Winter Titanicus League

[Pictors Studio]

We just concluded our Winter Titanicus League.  Set after the Siege of Terra as the loyalist swept the traitors from the Galaxy, Legios Astorum and Gryphonnicus attacked Irden while Legios Audax and Krytos desperately tried to hang on to the logistically important planet. 

This was a map campaign with the World divided into a number of regions each one worth a differing amount of armour points totaling 4000.  The Loyalists start with 6000 pts but while the Traitors get 4000 pts each turn the loyalists have no more points unless they can capture regions on the map getting those points and denying them to the enemy.

The years of anger and frustration splashed across the solar system in a silent, blue roar.  The warriors had been betrayed, cut-off and rendered helpless while the Empire they had spent their blood and sweat building was torn apart.  Now they had the chance to do something about it.  They relished the opportunity. 

But it was not the berserk fury of the XIIth Legion that drove their reconquest of the planets orbiting Sol.  The anger of the XIIIth was calculating and cold.  The fury had been sharpened with the whetstone of training, planning and analyzing.  That was the way of the warriors from Ultramar.  The only difference this time was the goal.  Doctrinally they would have broken the enemy formation, let some of them run and caught as many as possible on the retreat.  The enemy was already broken.  They didn't want them to run, they wanted to trap them and when trapped, they wanted to exterminate them. 

So it was that waves of metallic blue warriors surged across the moons of Jupiter and boarded ships in the broad expanses of space between the planets. 

Largely leaderless, their opponents had no hope of stopping them.  For all their ferocity they couldn't compete with the Ultramarines and even had they been able to, Guilliman was not fighting alone.  The Dark Angels roared Earthward.  While their fury wasn't as precise as that of their brother legion, they were quicker to react when the enemy did something entirely unexpected. 

Between the two brothers, the forces of the Warmaster were shattered and what had already been a loss was now a rout. 

Those forces that were able to escape the anger of the Loyalist armies fled the system as quickly as possible, heading for the only area in the Galaxy that would be clearly safe for them.

With the reignition of the Astronomicon, hope flared beyond the home system.  The beacon of the Emperor flashed out to distant loyalist forces licking their wounds after defeats or waiting for opportune moments to use the few forces they had to inflict the maximum amount of damage possible. 

With the reignition of the Astronomicon, those Loyalist forces knew the Traitors were coming and they knew where they were heading. 

The planet Irden was one place that the forces of Terra knew they could hurt the traitors. 

Slightly closer to its star than earth was, the planet was mostly covered in seas, two continents spanned half of the world's equator, the centers of which were mostly rocky deserts.  An archipelago of islands, mostly volcanic, separated the two and formed a bridge of "stepping stones" between them. While the landmasses became increasingly important in the value of Irden, the seas were still the primary source of resources.  Mass algae farms were scattered across the seas and fleets harvested the sea life.  Early in the Heresy the planet's leaders had thrown in their lot with the Warmaster and he had husbanded the resources of the planet at first, it being a steady and plentiful source of food for his troops.  Industry was starting to develop in the rocky deserts as mines were sunk.  These the Warmaster ordered to be expanded but only to a certain extent.  His intention was to strip the planet bare on his final thrust to Terra, but after Molech his focus drifted and Irden was largely forgotten. 

They sent their produce to the various fleets of the traitor Legions and were protected by a small force of Titans from a couple of Forge Worlds as well as a garrison of Iron Warriors, of course. 

And while Irden was of only tertiary importance in the advance on Terra, the retreat would see it's value increase logarithmically.  It was directly on the most stable Warp routes between Sol and the Eye of Terror. 

Wild and unsecure or even coded messages were sent out from panicked traitor fleets to the planet to announce their imminent arrival and plans to harvest as much of the planet's resources as possible for shipment up to the incoming ships. 

But forces loyal to the Emperor that had fled the slaughter at Beta-Garmon were closer than the traitors and they received the messages too.

Now the Loyalists were landing on Irden in significant force, if they could take the world it would be a great staging post for furthering the Scourging, but that would be later.  Right now if they could take it they could plan a terrible revenge.  When the Traitor fleets arrived expecting succor and they would instead face the wrath of Titan legions. 

Of course, if they Loyalists couldn't take the planet, they could at least deny the resources to the enemy. 



In the first week the Loyalists were trying to establish a beachhead on the planet.  They were crushingly successful and managed to conquer one of the most significant manufacturing regions of the planet. 
 











Legio Krytos was just mauled in the first game, losing all of their titans and inflicting not a single enginekill in return. 

Legio Audax was on the verge of doing some serious mischief to the Warp Runners until a luck shot took out one of the warhounds, who fell, crashed into another, killing it, that one then spun around firing and took out the void shields on a third which was then easy pickings for the loyalists.  After that the traitors withdrew.

[Pictors Studio]

The initial landing by the vengeful Loyalists forces had been successful. With a beachhead established the Warp Runners and War Griffons pressed on further onto the planet.

The few forces still available to the Traitors near the initial landings are some remnants of the Godbreakers who are holding out trying to keep as much of the  Loyalists tied down as possible in the heart of the Defard forgefane.

Legio Astorum has 2000 pts and Legio Kratos has 1500 pts.  They will play the Forge Fane scenario from page 156 of the Campaign book.  The Loyalists are the attackers.  The game lasts for 5 Turns.










The sudden and rapid collapse of Traitor defenses in Defard caught the inhabitants of Guses Hive completely unprepared for the advance of the War Griffons into their territory.  As army units hurry away from the advancing titans along with masses of civilian refugees. 

The Loyalists are determined that no traitors to the Emperor will survive.  This planet it to be purged with as much of the infrastructure intact as possible. 

The fighting inside the Hive itself is brutal, with neither the War Griffons or the Ember Wolves asking or giving quarter.  But both sides are stunned when a lance strike the Dark Angel's Gloriana class battleship Eternity of Vengeance blasts a hole through the top of the city. 

Recovering from the effects of the raining debris, Traitors and Loyalists begin to tear each other apart again. 

Legio Gryphonnicus and Legio Audax will play the Death of a God scenario from pg. 110 of the Campaign book.

[LouieN]

The game look amazing.  Thank you

[Pictors Studio]

Thank you.  We had a good time, as usuall.

Week three:


The Loyalists continue their quest for vengeance as they sweep across the Eastern Continent of Irden. After a decisive victory in Fassat, Legio Astorum moves across the Shallow Sea emerging from the waters to assault one of the shoreline titan repair facilities. An Ember Wolves scouting force detects them and summoning reinforcements heads to the beach to repulse the attack.





Unfortunately for the Traitor's the Warp Runners are more than capable of pushing the smaller titans back and inflicting a crushing blow to Legio Audax's hopes of regaining a toehold in the Guses Hive region.



Legio Krytos, on its last legs, attempts to do as much damage to the infrastructure of the hive as possible. Small warbands of titans rush through the massive structure setting fires and destroying support columns. The War Griffons also split up to track down the Traitors.







While the Godbreakers were able to inflict some damage on their opponents, it turns out that the ability to break Gods and the ability to break shields are two entirely different skill sets.

The Traitors are decisively defeated in the Hive and Legio Krytos pulls their few remaining titans together and leaves Irden to Loyalist vengeance.

With only the Ember Wolves left planet side they must compete against the overwhelming Loyalist forces rampaging across the planet.

With Guses Hive region completely in Loyalist control the forces of the Imperium turn towards the Fassat Archipelago to extend their dominion there.

[Pictors Studio]

The sudden collapse and retreat of the Godbreakers left Legio Audax in the unenviable position of trying to defend Irden against the advancing and victorious loyalist titans.

As a force that relies on aggression to win their battles the Ember Wolves were especially wrong footed in the increasingly one-sided conflict.

As the forces that still held Fassat were trying to coordinate and consolidate their foes stole a march on them.

Determined to divide and eliminate the traitors the Warp Runners moved to the Island of Laod while the War Griffons attacked Fassat Majoris.

While many of the Ember Wolves titans were able to break free of the encirclement and flee north of Laod, a few maniples were caught on the bridge between Fassat Majoris and Laod.





With the full force of both Legio Astorum and Legio Gryphonicus closing on and trapping them the two Legio Audax maniples knew there was no escape and they determined to sell their lives as dearly as possible and tie up the enemy for as long as possible.





In the end it was too much to expect of the ten Warhound titans. One by one their shields were stripped away, they were damaged and then destroyed. They accounted for four enemy Reavers in return but it was not enough and the Loyalist marched on the space port, seriously disrupting the evacuation and quickly gaining control over the planet Irden.