THE WAR AT ABUNDANCE TERTIUS ACT 1 WARHAMMER 40000 CAMPAIGN

it is the far future of the 41st millennium the imperium of mankind rules great sways of the milky way galaxy but we are beset on all sides by enemies the green skinned and barbaric orcs the horror of the tyranid high fleets the soulless legions of the necrons the dark designs of the ancient elder and the servants of the insatiable dark gods forever do they plot the downfall of the hegemony of man but humanity has fallen from the light it has a time of ignorance and superstition conformity and tyranny for mankind has paid the highest cost of ignoring the old axiom beware that you do not fight monsters lest you become one yourself hence out of necessity some say the imperium of mankind is the most repressive and brutal regime imaginable usually the conflicts are as distant as the very stars themselves from one edge of the galaxy to the other few are the times when fate weaves so many strands in such a grand ballet fewer are the times when doom brings so many players to the one fierce fray for the futures of empires champions and kings can rest in the lap of even the most unobtrusive of sights welcome to the tale of such an unremarkable place where the truly remarkable and terrible was about to unfold welcome to the ongoing tragedy of the war at abundance tertius the world abundance dashes the place the capital the palace of the emperor's grace a lake thin courtyard slides into the room and stands in its corner unobtrusively data slate in hand dire countenance on his equine face it is not good news it seems i take this as my cue to pull back my chair at which point will present instantly fall silent a rush to stand before me the munitorium official has eyes like daggers the administration representative only a placid look of mild surprise by planetary regions the barons all stand sharply and bow deeply as i stand and stride to the door and its loitering attendant i should not be leaving but this particular deadlock will not be swift in its resolution i shall return with their parties have had a few hours to talk around the same points before they even approach getting to one i see both sides of course but few do everyone in every last committee i chair has an endless stream of faux rage and pointless jockeying from the outside but in reality they all wish the same thing the destruction of our enemies the defense of this world alas some of them balance one above the other for the warriors of the imperium are here to fight wars they see only the objectives the enemies and the potential casualties forever trying to defray them those who wish to defend the world itself see the threat of the enemy but also the dire threat from our own the horrific cast this could all affect on this world my duty my home my abundant stashes yet etiquette is on my side i can leave any time as i will for i am the archduke i am the regent of the entire system placed here by the will and grace of the emperor himself so dint of my lineage our service and our ongoing faith in his imperium of mankind we have ruled here for countless centuries from the very dawn of the age of the imperium what we always construed as his pax imperialis for in all of the time of the imperium we have only twice before known the horrors of war well as far as our records maintain of course but we are studious we have always kept faith with the administration we have held a good account of ourselves only rarely have we ever been pushed to service the great pact our payment for the protection of the great imperium the tithe all of the million worlds of the imperium paid some in manpower some in machines selling clothes or munitions for us it is food and it has been our lasting pride that scores of worlds scores of populations of those worlds have relied on the bounty of our crops the beautiful catch of our seas the grain from our fields the fruit from our orchards as so much of it is condensed broken down every last ounce of utility and nutrition taken from every last strap of food we create our world is so rightly named so aptly given for it is indeed abundant to an extent i am told that is the envy of thousands of our classification of worlds across all of the imperium but of course this is no accident this is no fluke no passing luck for my forebears were men and women of vision they were custodians of the greater wheel and we have always strove to improve to push forward to do better nearly every one of our generations has held our duty as our core not a duty to maintain alone but to strive for more and we made sure the biodiversity was maintained our air is clear a life-giving microbiotic bacteria thrived i do not understand the technicalities of it of course i'll leave that to the adepts and administration but we brought in the best beasts and creatures over millennia we have built on the gifts nature gave us we have enhanced this world so it is a jewel without measure right to face the magos of the mechanicum i would put our glorious production against a metal output of materials any day but of course this itself is now under threat it is why so many of such high rank were in the meeting i just left administratum and my own regents on one side the colonel's a munitorum on the other the issue land clearance of all things the melatonin was to clear huge swathes of land of foliage of all cover they stayed it even was started before i intervened damn creed they had some of their attached air wing dropping defoliating gases on my world the second i heard of it i stopped it thus the meeting i understand krieg no matter how bluntly dismissive and rude they may be especially to a non-military man like me they must consider a pen pusher but the use of these agents will upset the balance we'll seed into our grounds our fields our waters it will destroy that which the warriors of the imperium are here to defend well at least from my perspective which is thankfully also held by my balance it would be messy if they were to rebel at this point very but i have recovered from my injuries my arm is repaired such of these better than it was before i am still known as the brightest bladed court defiance from one of them would be suicide i will not brook rebellion but the negotiations go on for i see the pertinence of the clearing of the areas indicated by the militarum the munitorum so we are trying to get enough headcount to perform the task thus this entire verbal of fray has been concerning bloody logistics with all the evils of the galaxy aimed at this one place we leaders we are gust pillars of the imperium endlessly barrack each other over logistics but then the wall is only the tip of the iceberg for every man or woman under arms there are many who work to support them then of course when the war is over the warriors all depart to battles on distant stars then and only then will my own work begin in earnest for i must not only stay the course of this war this wretched affair but also harbor enough strength to then do the impossible to then go on to heal my world to return it to its duty to feed the teeming masses of humanity that rely on it on its abundance but we have planned my forebears knew that the future is unpredictable nothing is certain so they put in place measures that may well be our only hope when all of this is done but first we must get it done i take the data tablet from the courier as i walk past him through the door my guard flanked me closely as i stride out towards my next meeting reading as i go it is a report from the arbiters and it is grim reading outbreaks of psychoanomalies have increased exponentially they are getting to such an extent that the sisters of battle are calling for inquisitorial support as a priority the pyres burn day and night i never thought to see bonfires used us for us in only months gone by let alone years we would gather around bonfires at the harvest the common people would share their food shed their drink share the first part of the bounty of the harvest and they would share their dreams their stories their hopes their fears loves will be lost and fights would occur as ever they did when the wine flowed but they were communal fires the warmth of our communities given form yet now they are things of horror for now the bonfires all have men and women at their center the rise in psychoactivity alone has caused pandemonium the arbiter's report of more and more fringe groups and more cults arising most are merely scared flock hoping that giving themselves a name and wearing a symbol of unity will somehow ease the situation inside their stomachs their hearts give them calm like children they form gangs and groups out of fear alas this is not always the case for the sisters have also uncovered cults of a far more dangerous and harrowing nature between the sisters and the arbiters the streets of our highs are kept clear and faithful but it is a concern another to be added to the huge pile a pile that grows every day for nothing itself is simple when you are the leader of a world let alone an entire system and its closest neighboring world the regiments of the god are brave and true but they can also be rough callous and cruel to my people for they are hard men and women battle born and without pity or remorse they stride our streets like ambles none know what will offend them what will make them rear up and attack their own meh my people are under the yoke of an oppressive invader as how many cults now coin things are fools what is a slap to the head a dodge tanker an insulted dignitary compared to what they will do for us very soon they will stand in their lines in columns and stand before monsters we let them have their head for if they succeed they will leave if they do not none of us will be left to complain but it does great sometimes i watch as the lines of my people are taken in and herded like cattle into buildings where they are stripped shaved and showered then forced into fatigue and a weapon thrust into their hands they are farmers my people they're makers not destroyers they're human so they will stand they must the regiments of the guard are our professionals but they will not make up all of the forces on this world that's how my people conscripted in their millions the transport ships full of equipment never ending i feared if they had their way these men of war would attempt to weaponize every last one of them if i would let them which i will not it is hard to remember to go back to the last few months to the beginning of this horror the terror that stalked me for weeks on end hanging there above my bed above my head dripping its burning saliva on me whenever i dozed off staring just staring but those days are gone i had told us doomed then until the jungle fighters arrived i had no idea humans could be so lethal could fight monsters and win there may be no hope strategic prognostication can foresee the future but cannot this time and at this moment foresee the outcome perhaps my world will be sacrificed on the altar of this war but while i live i will fight for it not just against those obvious enemies the xenos that traitors the heretics but also against those who would sacrifice its future for the gains of the present never before have we witnessed such a collection of the imperium's might it is almost unfathomable millions of men and women on the ground in the darkest space billions supporting them it is the will of the emperor made manifest and it is a thing of wonder so much effort so many resources it is humbling sometimes feel insignificant yet i am a man of significance in this great war i can only hope i do not disgrace my line betray my people i i'll have such need of strength for in the days to come i will be dealing with legends and horrors the likes no man should ever face and that is just our side yet i must admit to myself even if i never state it ever to my subordinates i secretly hope they will never arrive for despite every report that hits my slate every reality of the situation painted out in graphic numeric displays i still believe not only in the emperor but in him the border prince he has fought so many engagements gained such glory he is such a hero in this sector it is hard to discern the truth from the hyperbole but the truth alone is legend the victory of placidia mons the battle of petrina the forge fire incident the burning of sadrina the route at the three key points the list goes on and on he has smashed xenos fleets and traitor raiders annihilated migrations and seen off hulks and deep down each night when i attempt to rest when i finally banish the memory of that foul apparition i secretly hope all of this is in vain all of us running around and busying ourselves building our power defenses secretly hope it is all wasted effort because he had done it i look to my chronometer at his time above us in the darkness of the void it is happening the final briefing from the prince to his groups oh to be a fly on the wall the lord nelson apocalypse class battleship flagship of lord admiral f drake codenamed the border prince grand meeting hall 2. five tables heaved with rare cutlery and precious ceramics all looking into a central segment of this pentagonal room each facing had two tables the inner table where the high admirals of the battle groups their commodores and cruiser captains sat their most important escort squadron captains behind them on the second long table and pride of place was battle group nelson but nobody called it that it was battle group border prince after its admiral farfax drake codenamed the border prince a living legend of the fleet he now stood and took one of his many forks and gently tapped it against a refilled glass of the most exquisite hammer set the hubbub of the gathered officers fell away as all now slowly rhythmically began to sump on their tables the gas and silverware were clanging as they did heralding their admiral the border prince the amazic had been flowing so very healthily that many were flushed and jocular the prince then put down his fork and simmy bowed comically to the tables then he swept his hands out flat in a cutting motion and has one all stopped he began a gentleman ladies officers of the grand fleets of his highness the emperor it's been a long time since we were all together far too long not since adrina have we all had the good fortune of meeting that my wish it were for a better brighter reason to celebrate our victories and our accomplishments for there are so many much tortling arose but swiftly died again as he continued to name but a few battle group impregnable hassan was it your efforts that were responsible for so many reported in my desk last cycle and recall over a dozen pirate bases crashed in so many weeks with that the tables around battle group impregnable were thumped with the palms of the hands of the officers there and that something continued now in a rhythm as the lord admiral spoke battle group illustrious ah ramirez now who can forget the way you sent the degenerate elder packing in the sanguineum cluster battlegroup triumphant dealing with the metal monsters out in the trebetia system how many of those monstrosities did you shoot out before they even made orbit and kamanski atlantis my glorious troublemakers out there in the dark hunting down the ragtag scum of the traitors free flotillas since last we sat together free jennings free and of course my own sorry lot and thank you for the victories my fine fellow officers of battle group nelson and of course to commodore cesarski my number one patience of a servator has this man it's been a glorious half decade since edrina and i am proud of every last one of you every last one and at that the assemblage drowned out whatever he was about to say next the cheering went on for a full minute before his hands came out in the slicing motion again and all subsided now we haven't gathered here to make amersak an even more endangered species amongst the fleet so let us be about it there is no way around this we are in for a rough couple of years nor if we face such a dire threat as we do today for the coming weeks and months we'll be at trial the likes we have never faced before and make no mistake we stand on the footstep of greatness the very doorway to everlasting glory is before us we need only walk through it strategic prognostication has lit this sector up like a sanguinalia display and we're here to deal with the situation along with a great many others as we have all seen for the last couple of weeks there are ships arriving every day forces mobilized to consolidate here in this very system and then the reports are serious in the void between systems our organs and scouts have discerned the position of not one but two separate fleets the necrons have a building armada that they are harshly defending making it difficult for us to gain better and exact count but it could well be one of the largest clusters of the necrons we have witnessed kimanski you're going to be busy reloading the best way to hit these horrors the second fleet amassing collection of corsairs of the eldar variety needless to say theirs are one of the most formidable fleets in the galaxy at presents they are both massing and veiling themselves as best they can if it were not for uh strat prog we would not have known where to look would not have detected them on top of all this we have the sledgehammer that comes to scatter the pieces so delicately being arranged on the board the orcs the green skin as well as go it's not a big one but that does not mean it will not be dangerous we all know the golden rule never underestimate the green skin and then to compound on this behind the orc vessels are a tendril of high fleet leviathan at this moment the shadow in the war prevents us from discerning its true scale we have a vague idea as to why they're all here but that remains more of an issue for the ground pounders all we need to know is that none of these fleets are hanging around for a sightseeing tour they aren't going away they are merely biding their time so let me recap for those in their cups we face the nimble and professional eldar corsair fleets the impossibly rugged and destructive necron armada the unpredictable and terrible ships of the traitor astartes and our twisted mirror the dark navy it will be a mobile void conflict it will have to be if we are pinned in place we are doomed this isn't a battle this is a war we must face it as such attrition is the greatest threat our fleet faces heroism its potential downfall we will fight separately to the astartes it may be more than their patients can bear hence the astati's fleets have been tasked with guarding the mendeville point as more of our lads arrive by the hour they are also in reserve should one or both of the xenos fleets make a substantial move in our direction ramirez alas you and battle group illustrious will have to take a seat on this one and stick with the marines they'll need the support in case they are activated now now i know it's all been dashed serious before you all get down in the doldrums go modeling on me let me tell you the good bit the central area of the floor of banquet hall 2 opened and out arose a holographic display of the entire system and the nearest half dozen stars on it were chevrons of the battlegroups perfectly placed and also were the collections of xenos sigils that marked the forces in play because here is how we are going to smash the orcs so badly that the others will be quivering in their boots or whatever it is they wear and thus the lord admiral divulged his pan to his senior flag officers and by only the mid-point of his demonstration there was not a single face in the bank at all that was not leering at the thought of what they were about to do to the orcs [Music] abandoned structures the palace of the emperor's grace what did you just say back to the cannas her tone was aggressive incredulous but it matched the sentiment of all those in the room some were still shocked into silence mars practically hung open at this revelation two days the commodore flatly repeated add that the spell was broken chairs were flung back as many got to their feet as violent indignation erupted from nearly all gathered there the commodore to his credit did not flinch from the shouts and glares no matter what invective was thrown in his direction some of which would usually require he gained satisfaction but for this time alone he sat aloof to it all captain larash the liaison who would be left to handle all of this resentment when the commodore had returned to the fleet was less happy no less composed but far less sanguine sasaki was merely passing on the decision as it was from his lord it was of course the right decision but that did not make it an easy one not to take not to impart regent curlish had folded into his chair whitening regens anna stood and blustered regent's fian and tobin had looked daggers growled their descent general ven jordan of the planetary defense force was standing gesticulating at the commander and cursing like a heathen the cannon sneered at the naval officers with contempt both administrator and magistorum officials were styling for his hide the imperium there were only a few islands of calm in this congregation the creek general was inscrutable behind his mask disconcerting but he never took it off no matter who he met with or where odd the archduke who sat at the head of the table with his fingers steepled in front of him so he could look over them at the fresco of rage painted before him calm colonel harker looked at commissar rickard they both shrugged mildly and looked on resolutely unruffled the last was major general killian known across this region as major kill he grabbed attention with a simple fluid action his bolt pistol whipped from its holster around firing into the ceiling the gun returned to its aster so quickly few knew the origin of the shot but all fell silent the sister languagely nodded at the catagen officer an overall commander of military operations in the system to krieg when the command of the ground forces on abundance tertius itself as two of the system's plans had vast jungles even larger than the primary world it was eminently logical the archduke resisted sighing as he brushed flakes of fallen dust and paint from his epaulette as the brusque catachan general leaned forward and glared into the eyes of all who were squawking it's time to sit down shut up and remember who you represent the emperor do you think that shouting at commodore sasuke here is going to change a thing or the liaison he decides nothing it's a courtesy he is here at all we have to put our big boy boots on now and get on with it the prince says he can wipe these scum from the skies but for his plan to work we need to button down the hatches for a few days so stop your whining it is what it is because you can be bloody certain that admiral drake knows his business at dan's side better than anyone else here the red face of regens anna proved his point many were happy there was a substantial table betwixt them due to the spittle that flew from his moor as he rampaged we do not question the skill of the admiral but his priorities he would see all of our world burn to save the hull of but a few of his ships two days we'll endure two full days of orbital bombardment from an unoccupied unchallenged orca marta fleet said commodore sasaki it is not numerous enough to be designated an armada despite this correction a direct confrontation with the green skins would cause catastrophic casualties and damage we can't afford that with what else that is supposedly coming this way and it will be two days perhaps three we cannot be certain at this the listeners were more placid so they went more to jaws dropping again instead of ferrari nothing is certain in war not in the seas not on the land not in the void nothing so we plan for the worst this changes things a lot it's time to get every man woman armor battery and boot undercover avoid shielding arc duke we're gonna have to absolutely send it across every hive available the archduke looked on sternly and nodded his ascent installations with star ports are a top priority general she said indicating the kriegsman i want your best in position around these hard points what we do is very simple we bunker for days of fire from above when the admiral returns and wipes them from the skies we explode out from our positions we take background and then strike down their landing sites in quick succession if we leave the scum to their devices they'll have all kinds of nasty armor and vehicles spewing out from their bases so we hit them hard the sisters will spearhead these strike forces backed by krieg heavy armor and assault regiments the may creek regiments will be deployed at all strategic points as the general has agreed the catachon regiments will be outside the hives in the jungle it's likely we will lose some to attrition from impact or bombardment but we will be dispersed and for the gains it is worth the risks the general will be in charge of the static lines hives cities fortifications except a few the rest of our formations will be on abundant secondus and sectors i will be coordinating the defenses out there cannoness will you accept the honour of leading the vanguard the emperor wills it we shall lead the cleansing sword of fire unto the unclean xenos i we shall lead the van the manger nodded to the sister parker i want you and the born to get up to the north and onto the heights get your men dug in deep as soon as the shields come down it will be open season because they can't stay up forever harker gave a nod rickard a slight incline of his head in affirmation with that as your rock i want you and your attached armor supporting the closest three cities those planetary defense formations will need stiffening general vorden sneered but looked away did not challenge the major general thank you for attending commodore we'll let you get back to the fleet he then turned to address all in the room we only have 10 hours if we aren't finished with this in eight i'm gonna start shooting people every last unit squad and gun needs accounting for in a protected position by the end of this meeting recap is on the way roll up your sleeves people it's time to do the hard bit of war the organization he looked around for any sign of descent then waved the officials at the doors which were then opened the stations of the regents and officials then spun and tech adepts of mars came inside to act as links or assistance an army of intelligence and strategic officers in their wake and where's that the heads of the micro realms their armies informed bartered bullied command coerced and cajoled the many strands of the forces under their command it was a huge room and it was filled to rafters with activity it was actually seven hours later that they all stood gaping at the beauty of the web of orders they had issued the pure symmetry efficacy and pragmatism of the plan no one thing relying on too many others to be effective some redundancy many transport units organized with little slippage here and there for delay or disaster the huge list of units the pride of the guard nothing will be left to chance this would be nothing if not a damned efficient war the bedrock of major kill success realistic planning well that an almost unhealthy streak of bravery and instantaneous cunning that had foxed more than one enemy and led them from victor to vanquished major general kirian would not be present but his fingerprints were all over this entire theater all they would have to do was endure multiple days of bombardment from orbit and then take back their world from an angry horde of greenskins running a mock that's all the first battle of abundance tertius the dark of the void betwix systems a huge rent in space tears across reality it is joined by half dozen more of these hideous scars as the orc fleet translates out of the war into real space coming through these holes in their tens supporting the largest vessels that created the reds the mammoth meteors called rocks as predicted they are on the opposite side of the system to its standard mandeville point their course directly at abundance tertiares their weeks out but immediately begin the slow process of building up speed and as one their engines spark into life and propel them slightly forward through the darkness of the void the auger arrays go from cluttered to a wash with data as the first reports of contact are signaled between the battlefleets the road nelson hails the flagship of each battle fleet the border prince addresses his officers one last time before battle the first engagement first remind your men and women of this first no heroics we let them close with the monitors then we sweep them in one passing broadside and out no double dips whole formation and off we go full thrust all the way this one is about information and giving them a bloody nose pick off stragglers and try and bunch them up for our next waves unwell but bring your ships through the link was closed everyone knew what they were about only battle group illustrious was not present they would join in later perhaps if there was real need of them if the orc fleet was more lurching than plowing through space still slowly building its speed but heading directly toward the line of old monitors that have been left as a lure as the range closed the all specs and august went into overdrive finally the numbers will be confirmed again they are dipped out of warp near five jumps out to get their bearings or to stop the endless assault of the forces of cows who could say but then there were only partial readings now hard facts came through 10. a full 10 rocks were at this fleet's core huge meters with engines and weapons attached to them then jettisoned toward their target usually the readings coming from these rocks were proving hard to define near impossible to pinpoint but it seemed as if the fields were centered around the rocks possibly despite this disruption the fog of war was lifting 10 rocks with dozens of supporting ships and killed cruisers amidst the entourages of these mobile bases but no battleships not one for a fleet of this size strange not unheard of but strange the only thing they could immediately see the monitors were out in the open and lined for a defense they were small inner system platforms more than ships their engines for positioning more than battle but they had one thing in their favor fire power in the sector the older thunderstrike macro cannons were on most of these types of ships and orbital defenses there were certainly no matching orange or fury to the stygi's pattern macro cannons of the ships of the line in the system but they were dangerous enough they had no hope of escape no chance of survival the crews had been skeleton and those who had fallen from grace for one infraction or another they would die they knew this every last one of them knew it but they also knew how much damage these old macro cannons could dish out to their full before the end the orc ships were rumbling forward still half a day out heavily armed most of the kill cruisers were looted ships of other species make the orcs had just welded and board into them to double or triple their firepower with huge crude shooters they were deadly if you were in their path as the monitors were but they could not move with the battleground could never keep up so they were to get expended now at imperiums choosing not setting targets for later waves orc ships were bristling with weaponry alright but most if not all of it faced forwards the drives were powerful but unpredictable they would often arrive in dribs and jabs if not disciplined or lucky nor could they maneuver well thrust organization and chain of command meant the navy had a clear advantage if they could capitalize on it even far outside of effective range the orcs began to fill the void with shells and their huge shots of darker but none of it hit their aim was atrocious when they closed even further the first of the five monitors opened up and was quickly followed by those around it the shots were far more accurate at least ten percent hit tearing into the heavily armored prowse of the orc fleet a few of the smaller ships were turned to burning husks fires ripping down their bodies from their burning fronts but not many dork fleet fully committed the battle group came racing around from behind one of the planets and hurtled toward the fray but directly on or so it appeared at first the groups arrayed as per the old formations but as they ate the space between them the orc fleet was still moving forward on to the monitors the navy would cut behind them but it was too late the rocks could not be turned without colossal effort the kill cruisers and other ships would not leave their size protecting them like a pack of wolves the attack craft launched but kept pace with their cruisers acting as screens sitting in defense the orcs were enthusiastic to engage but their fury went forward towards the monitors tearing towards them the fighters of the navy did not intervene only broke off and easily outnumbered and annihilated any elements of the orcs that went near their groups the engagement was brief but bloody battle group nelson the head of the spear of the imperial navy was not battle group nelson that would fall to admiral kiminska and her battlegroup triumphant but nelson was the first to fully engage with the orc fleet along with the revenge on the gryphon for both the lord nelson as an apocalypse class battleship and the artemis ascendant a dominator class cruiser both were armed with the terrifyingly powerful nova cannons the revenge the mars class battle cruiser with battle group atlantis and the gryphon another dominator-class cruiser in the battle group would also be unleashing their fire before the fleets engaged when in close proximity it would be impossible for them to be used without collateral damage the heavy nova cannons were things of wonder for the navy and the imperium closed they fired these massive weapons the vast majority of admirals despised these inaccurate and dangerous weapons but this was the interior of the imperium it was where older ships were sent to patrol and newer vessels were a rarity unless they were ill-omened or inefficient then they would be sent to the seemingly less dangerous regions of the imperium shifted out of the main battle lines as admirals attempted to ditch the ships that they could not use easily the prince took in these ships with open arms swapping smaller but more favored vessels in their place but by doing so admiral drake had been permitted to collect a battle fleet of ships that were far larger and more powerful than would usually be seen anywhere but high priority in intensity zone the nova cannons were not favored weapons at all but he had many ways to use them had always been ingenious and now battlefleet prince were experts in their use but they would only get a few shots off at most before they went in to close the range so they had to count if at all possible the firing of the weapons was a herculean task the main shaft of the cannon went down the entire length of the ship drawing massive amounts of power from the engines as it prepared to fire shot that itself was over 50 feet in length but would be pushed down the ship by ever increasingly powerful graphitic impellers that accelerated them to near the speed of light each segment the shot went through amplified its speed until it was released into the enemy the shots from the nelson and artemis ascendant fired first followed only moments later by those from the revenge in the gryphon their blasts were propelled into the void towards orcs one flew so far to the south and one to the east that they were utterly ineffective the ascendant was wide so to the revenge but the shot from the lord nelson smashed into the main body of a rock it exploded outward in a second bursting into fire as potent as that of the heart of a sun with an area of effect hundreds of kilometers across the rock was mostly melted and cracked its contingent of ships mauled but some of the cruisers limped through it as their void shields were high the escorts were vaporized but the void was huge the second shot that classified as a hit burned away more escorts exploding in the path of another of the rocks but its fires had mostly burnt out when the rock actually went within the region singing it only for the type of weapon involved this had been a magnificent result a rock was gone utterly there was one more volley but there were no substantial hits this time battle group nelson powered on behind battle group triumphant and had to cease firing for risk of hitting their own in the blast but these huge cruisers of mammoth battleships were armed with more than just their nova cannons and the battle groups went in battlegroup triumphant heading the charge the mighty battleship the emperor triumphant under admiral kaminska was at the front escort squadrons ringed the battle group's main ships of the line but those main ships came in right behind the triumphant kaminska had been at its helm for a decade now and the group knew her mind the void shields of the triumphant were the best in segmentum despite her being an old apocalypse cast a slew of admirals and officers had spent many centuries honing her abilities she was a beast it slowed her slightly which is why kaminska was given the first pass so they would not be outpaced later they said to bar if their entire fleet was to stay in formation but directly behind her were the myrmidon an armageddon-class battle cruiser the nimrod and morningstar old sturdy lunar class cruisers and their nearest and the merlin a gothic class nasiluria light cruiser but they did not have the nova cannons nor the space control ships with vast wings of attack craft no carriers no sluggards battlegroup triumphant was tough and steady in a direct fight and thus they led the charge the orcs were in utter shock it seemed because they could not make up their minds a few of them began to turn looking as if they might engage the navy but the vast majority went forward onto the monitors a kill cruiser and a pair of smaller vessels came on at the battle group others were rising out of position but they would not be able to strike until the other battle fleets were passing and triumphant was long gone the triumphant concentrated on raking the lines of walks with its board's eyes as it passed them the moment on an emerald engaging the cruiser the nimrod shot and tore down the void shields and then the myrmidon's volleys ripped along the thing's spine and it was shown practically in half and with that battlegroup triumphant were out the other end and speeding away as ordered the small forays of the orc ships had detracted much from the fire that was optimally to go into the rocks too many remained battle group nelson it's heavy nova cannons fired the group swept by the orcs following its predecessor the attack craft and fighters of the grand cruiser cardinals thunder protecting the formation it was led by the spear of roth and the belligerence they did not need to punch through any resistance as none was wheeling fast enough yet but the waste-firing broadsides of the heavy ships the lord nelson cardinals thunder and spear of roth were tearing into the rear armor of the closest orc vessels non-exploded but many were mauled battle group atlantis admiral jennings followed with his battlefleet atlantis the retribution class battleship at the fore as was the practice the revenge and gryfon being the heavier nova cannon vessels were protected by the bulk of the atlantis the augustus minotaur and gladius providing the main gun line they drove down and cut huge rents off the rear most awk rocks with their broadsides the orcs had indeed sent up some challenge in the form of a wasp-like swarm of fighter bombers and landers the former were their own version of attack craft void fighters the landers were simple bricks of armor that were shot into space of enemy ships inside said blocks were the maniacal mobs of orcs raring to get out and kill anyone or anything they encountered the banks of flack and battery fire that erupted from battle group atlantis was astonishingly effective tearing the majority of the oncoming orcs to pieces then the survivors faced the hardened veteran pilots of the navy but they were vast in number and utterly single-minded in their goals they would not dodge or be herded they simply sped forward towards the ships of the line practically ignoring the escorts the escort captains took truck with this and punished them further but eventually inexorably some of them got through the goddess and gryfon had been boarded by oak boys in their hundreds but not in their thousands as all ships had prepared for long before even setting off on the hunt the fighting was furious and fast the choke points of the ship were butcher's hearts where the concentrated fires the naval security brought them down in their tens still swatting off the last of these assailants the battle group made it past the lines and fired its last volley straight into the nearest rock it did not stop but it did shatter the impacts forcing chunks of it to be left behind with angry orcs shaking their fists at their cowardly comrades who had left them in the cold of the void battle group impregnable they'll have to fly by the worst position to be in bar that of first place perhaps often much worse for at this point the slower or more cautious to launch fighter groups the more organized escorts and a triad of kill cruisers had all coalesced to make a full attack wave the arrogance would launch nearly all of its fighters and the mercurial wrath was an overcannon vessel so neither would be at the front admiral hassan led the impregnable an old vanquisher that most had believed decommissioned but the broader prince had nabbed it and given it to his most aggressive admiral backed up by the power of the emperor's majesty an overlord battle cruiser there was formidable punch in the group the dangerous and righteous oath were light cruisers but still had it where it counted the orcs were banking and attempting to get the group into their front arc the rest of the orc fleet now some distance away so hassan turned his line so they would gain a better broadside apogee on the enemy matching their angle to elongate the fuselage but remaining out of their optimal firing marks allowing the orcs to get closer than most would the collected might of battle group impregnable was brought to bear on one after another of the cruisers the first broadsides brought down the outer armor of the orc ships although not utterly scattered the navy shifted target to the next this suffered the same fate hassan hoping that they would be slowed to such an extent that they would not be able to keep up with the main force and be easy pickings later in the campaign the righteous oath took a hammering on its shields and armor as the last kill cruiser finally got into ark the escort vexitor valiantly flew between the two ships and eased the passing of the righteous oath but was crippled and left behind in its turn as battlegroup impregnable sped off with the rest of the fleet the vexitor was surrounded by orc craft but all went up in a huge explosion as the vexitor waited for the other ships of the group to get clear before overloading their plasma engines but while all this was occurring what are those guaranteed the crews of the monitors the fire from the rear did nothing to improve the mood of the orc captains so they threw open their every gun port and spat their fury at the monitors the heavy shots slammed into the armored fronts of the monitors but the sheer volume of impact simply shook then tore two of them apart another was diced by a closing cruiser that unloaded right into it another was round by no less than four smaller orc vessels they cut straight through it eventually the last was brought down by successive dive bombers and strafing runs from orc attack craft the monitors were gone the battle over the armada plowed on into the system the navy furiously filing all engines to get to its next set point the lord nelson flagship of admiral drake the border prince a few days after the first engagement the closest aid of the admiral went to the galley to pick up his lord's meal after several attempts on the life of the admiral lord lieutenant banks would take no risks with the welfare of his child he always had a taste of everything before ever he set it down in front of his lord the door was securely protected by two of the finest men in the fleet the contents of the carried tray that banks held was inspected swiftly of course they would never question the loyalty of lord lieutenant banks but there was no guarantee someone else had not stolen or copied his visage of course but when they were sure when passwords and questions had been answered with alacrity the doors slid open the admiral's quarters were ordered in every regard except for the table at which the border prince now sat data stayed after data slate stacked precariously in front of him the phenomenal depth of detail that the admiral knew was always interesting to banks he did not see how his lord should need to know the exact situation on every ship in the fleet but then he was not the best admiral the sector had ever seen and the border prince was as he entered the room the junior officer hailed his admiral letting him know of his presence admiral drake looked up from his screens and then moved a few out of the way when he saw that it was time for his sustains but he kept hold of one of the things and read from it as the junior placed the tray before him and took off the metal lid the freshly poached fish was delicately oiled and surrounded with the most exquisite of nutrient cubes the prince barely looked at it how goes it my lord prince damage reports are light thankfully a few escorts frigates maimed the monitors the next engagement will be more fierce the worst held until last time to share what i've already told the admirals the grand scheme the admiral indicated the bank should be seated as he finally took a few fork fulls of the fish and nutrients into his mouth he then drew out a data slate from one of the piles and passed it to banks using it to indicate his points as he spoke we are here we've hit them once but that was more a fact-finding expedition we've identified their numbers their composition their deployment their weaknesses but we'll get to that and of course given the filth for bloody nose but you've also seen how the battlefleets move yes my lord indeed perceptive you'll go far the pasting we dished out at zardrina was possible due to being on the heels of the victories at the three key points the volcan suppression before that we were a well-oiled machine it's been a while the good years may have made the fleets flabby they need those two run-ups before the main events ah euro forging the fleet on the anvil of this orc armada you underestimate the greenskins perhaps you know me better than that something is off of this lot no battleship not even a grand cruiser equivalent it's off they're sluggish even for orcs i suspect a split command possibly even fractured we'll capitalize on that tell the fleet to slow one quarter we hit them a day later it may vex the locals well let it this is not the main event i can feel it in my bones and the reports from strategic prognostication that too that too the plan my prince ah yes the plan we've engaged now we are building up speed around abundant sextus and two of its moons when we come around again we'll be moving of such speed that they will not risk launching attack craft not even there but again we will strike them so as to lead them after they have been through the outer minefields we will skirt them coming around their rear again we know our orders controls and experience are better than theirs this is certainly no hardened freebooter fleet it is a rag tag why we punish them again but we will be concentrating our efforts onto their rocks you see if that many hit the main planet it won't matter if anything comes out not one orc the place will be a wasteland so we bring down the rocks first and foremost you said we know their weaknesses aye number one we do their main engine struts and directional thrusters are clustered under their bulk from here we come around the abundance secondus it's five days before we hit them at such a speed they cannot even react unfortunately this will mean they have two days out to pound our forces on the ground but then we'll stiffen them up what's left of the orc fleet will be strung out in bombardment pattern if they have one at all it should be like sweeping leaves before us the watsa i always forgot you were hive born let's put it in a way you'll understand shall we we'll plow through them like a cohort of arbitrators through unarmed muties does that help very graphic sir but we still leave orbit of sorts of sorts somewhere out there in the regions of dark space two letters short of loyalty i laugh in their faces every day i scuttle about bribing brain bulking and blustering out my part the part of the good lieutenant the perfect but potent stewed the man i must be careful of him as a man he questions the source of my might its magnitude i feel it in his eyes the rest are dots but not my master not he yet he is blinded by his want his yearning he has not smelt me out but then my true lord shrouds me and helps me hurl this crusade at the gate but i understand the wand yearn for it also of course the opening of the labyrinth so we are aligned my master and i because we both want to release chaos on divided [Music] continued next week [Music] so [Music] you

Channel: Baldermort's Guide to Warhammer

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Keywords: baldemort, Baldermort's Guides to Warhammer, Warhammer Audiodrama, Warhammer 40000, Grim Dark Tales, Grimdark Stories, Warhammer for dummies, Beginners Guide to Warhammer 40K, Baldermort Stories, THE STORY SO FAR, CHAOS - THE STORY SO FAR, Abundance Tertius, Sisters of battle, Order of our martyred Lady, Catachan Jungle Fighters, Lictors, PROLOGUE TO ABUNDANCE TERTIUS, ABUNDANCE TERTIUS, THE WAR AT ABUNDANCE TERTIUS ACT 1 WARHAMMER 40000 CAMPAIGN, THE WAR AT ABUNDANCE TERTIUS

Id: LjATIBD_ZXI

Length: 65min 32sec (3932 seconds)

Published: Fri Dec 24 2021