Warhammer 40,000 season is over for now, but the impact of the invasion of Nydrazom will be felt throughout the sector. Now we commit the campaign to record with a recap of...
Horrendous Hordes
Warhammer 40,000 Campaign 2012
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| Planet Nydrazom - Nydrazom system, Incendia Paeniteo subsector. |
Once, the world was a thriving garden. It fed the entirety of it's system, and even tithed food and other agricultural products to the Administratum, such was it's bounty. Now, all that has changed - perhaps forever.
For nearly a year, the world of Nydrazom has been under attack by the dark forces of Chaos. Now, something even more sinister approaches through the depths of space and time.
The Imperial defenders of Nydrazom are in dire straits. Wave after wave of Chaos Space Marines crash against the lines, and their infernal machinations have stretched the line so thin, it is only a matter of time before heretic forces push through the beleaguered Imperial Guard and into the fertile agri-land where the general populace lives. Who can say what their agenda is?
The war has dragged on, with Chaos Marines falling from the sky and Imperial defenders repelling them. However, the Chaos raiding has brought with it another evil. Daemonic legions have begun to claw their way through the walls of reality, and join the Chaos Marines in their attack on Nydrazom.
The forces of destruction seem to have one goal: smash the Imperials' ability to defend themselves, and plunder the world at their leisure. When the daemons arrived, the line was close to breaking. However, something miraculous happened to the loyal defenders of Nydrazom.
Only a few days ago, during a great battle with daemons and the traitorous marines, the sky broke apart. Beams of light dazzled the raiders and defenders alike, and the force of their arrival swept whole divisions of Chaos scum away. The Mardannon Crusade has arrived on Nydrazom.
Loyalist space marines rapidly reinforced the lines, and repelled the enemy attack. However, Chaos ships in orbit have engaged the fleet, and now support is limited. However, the objective is now clear.
Soon another Chaos attack will come. The Imperial defenders must hold the lines at all cost, lest all they know be swept away in the fire and blood the invasion will bring.
And all the while, the machinations of an unknown menace circles the star...watching...waiting...
Horrendous Hordes is the Wargate's Warhammer 40,000 campaign for 2012. This campaign is a little different from some of the other campaigns we've done in the past, but we've decided to change things up a little, so here's a brief explanation of how this works.
In this campaign, the Chaos forces are attacking the well defended battle lines of the Imperials. Chaos must capture a number of territories in order to claim victory. Each territory is worth a certain amount of Campaign Points, and each side adds or subtracts them from their total running Campaign Point totals. At the end of the campaign, totals will be assessed and the side with the most points wins the narrative! Battlefield influence will be applied to individual campaign totals and individual scores will show your overall rankings for prizes.
So how exactly does it work? It's pretty simple. The campaign map (Nydrazom Battlefront) is broken into six tiers. On each tier there are four battle zones. Each of the four zones in the first tier will be attacked by a Chaos team member and defended by an Imperial team member. If chaos wins, the zone is taken by them. If the Imperials win, the Chaos attack is stalled and they must attack again!
Play proceeds through seven Attack Rounds. Here are the general steps and rules for conducting the campaign.
- The Defenders place their forces on each Battle Zone.
- The Attackers place their forces on an initial "Attack Vector".
- Attack Rounds commence. Each Chaos player may conduct an attack on the topmost tier in their current vector OR may conduct a joint operation with another Chaos player, switching vectors to deal with a difficult enemy. In order to do so, Chaos forces simply swap places with an adjacent force on the same tier. Example: Legion player on Vector 1 can attack Tier 1 defended by Lumisi Armor. However, they feel threatened by the tanks and would rather their allies the Brotherhood take them on. Legion slips to Vector 2, while the Brotherhood take their place in Vector 1 during the Attack Round.
- Once all four battles in each Attack Round are fought, the next one begins, until seven rounds have been conducted. At this point, all totals will be tallied and battle honors given!
The military forces taking part in the conflict are quite remarkable.
Order Forces
- Lumisi Armored Divisions - The defenders of Nydrazom from the beginning, these regiments of Imperial Guard were on hand to handle a tithing of foodstuffs and men and marshal for their next warzone - but the warzone came to them. The morale of the Armored Divisions has increased tenfold since hope appeared when reinforcements from the Crusade arrived.
- The Mardannon Crusade - Black Templar space marines have been carrying out a crusade in the sector that started fighting orcs near Carpithica - but the Crusade has an objective in mind. Having recruited small forces from various space marine chapters it has encountered along the way, the Crusade's influence in the entire sector is growing.
- The Grey Knights - A hidden taskforce within the Crusade, this enclave of Ordo Malleus operatives seeks knowledge of the daemonic threat on Nydrazom. Having divined this catastrophe, Grey Knight commanders convinced the Marshall of the Crusade to invest ships in Nydrazom's defense - and hitched a ride in the process.
- Unknown ?? - A hidden (or not so hidden) ally! Who could it be?
- Umbral Stalkers Cabal - The Alpha Legion raiders strike at the defenders of the planet with a frightening precision and an unsettling amount of siege weaponry. Apparently bent on wrecking everything they encounter, these bandits undoubtedly have an ulterior motive.
- Brotherhood of the Most Hated - Warmaster Laserwolf wants Las-Cells. He wants YOUR Las-Cells. He has brought his renegade Chaos marines to plunder this weak and defenseless world, but now that other Astartes have showed up to play he's become more invested in the campaign. He will break the so-called Mardannon "Crusade" in half, and prove he's the Chaos Lord with the Most.
- Daemonic Legions - Little is known of the daemons breaking through, but the Ordo Malleus suspects the Umbral Stalkers' heretical teachings to be responsible. Once the Daemons are quelled, the Cabal can be dealt with by the Crusade.
- Unknown ?? - A hidden (or not so hidden) ally! Who could it be?
The Unknowns are actually known! However, the campaign will unfold in time - and everyone will learn exactly what is happening on Nydrazom!
Presented here is the current Battlefront and Campaign Statistics. There are seven Attack Rounds, after which standings will be tallied and the winners declared!
Brotherhood of the Most Hated have won the campaign!
Umbral Stalkers Cabal wins 2nd Place!
Grey Knights win 3rd Place!
The Mardannon Crusade is Dead Last!
Campaign Updates
- (1/1/2012) - Order ally determined as Killing Frost of Craftworld Tir' Tairngire.
- (1/8/2012) - Destruction ally determined as Writhing Lash Dark Eldar Kabal.
- (1/22/2012) - Attack Round 1 completed.
- (1/29/2012) - Attack Round 2 completed.
- (3/6/2012) - Attack Round 3 completed.
- (3/8/2012) - Attack Round 4 completed.
- (3/13/2012) - Attack Round 5 completed.
- (3/20/2012) - Attack Round 6 completed.
- (3/27/2012) - Campaign completed.
Final Scores
Once again, the Chaos Space Marines sweep through the defenses of another world. The balance of power is tipping in Mardannon, and soon the Imperium might discover it is in a precarious position. The ships of the crusade have to turn back, insufficient to deal with the masses and machinations of the traitor legions and renegades. Soon they may return, but the Crusade has other matters to deal with...
The Warmaster Laserwolf of the Most Hated fills his ships holds with loot (all the lascannons on the planet), while the Alpha Legion do Chaos-Gods-Know-What in their hidden spaceports. With the Dark Eldar hovering about the planet but unable to get to their newly won slaves, the Chaos Marines banished the daemonic Azu'Kulman back to the warp from which they called him forth. The pillaging can truly begin on Nydrazom.
Broken Deals
"What do you mean they won't give us their lascannons?!" the Warmaster bellowed, as he put a tag on another crate of large output las-cells. "We told them that's what we wanted from the very beginning."
The decrepit slave shuddered at the thought of his master's wrath, but continued steadily. "They are being obstinate, my lord. They keep saying those are their lascannons," Tubes running in and out of the slaves' face bubbled furiously with noxious fluids as he continued, "and their commander has sent warning that any more attempts to wrest the spoils of victory from the Cabal will result in your annihilation."
Laserwolf put down the clipboard, looked at the pathetic slave, and sighed.
"Return to your post. Send this message to the Alpha Legion dogs," he began. "Dearest Battle Brothers: You reneged on our last deal, I knew you would renege on this deal. All lascannons on the planet were to be mine. Therefore, all you guys is toast. Sincerely, Warmaster Laserwolf." His hands on his hips, the Warmaster was obviously pleased with his stern rebuttal of his erstwhile allies and sometimes enemies, the Umbral Stalkers Cabal.
"Is that all, my master?" the slave asked hesitantly.
"No," the Warmaster growled, and the slave recoiled as slightly as he could from Laserwolf's frightening countenance, "tell the fleet to make ready. We're heading back to Discordia."
The Warmaster glared around him at all his crates of las-cells and lascannons. A giant, bubbling laughter gurgled out of him, causing some of the Brotherhood to stop and cast a questioning look at their leader. Not that they were afraid he was insane, but usually this meant the Laserwolf had a new idea.
The Warmaster raised his fists above his head and drank in the glory of victory. They he yelled, at the top of his augmented lungs...
"I'M GOING TO BUILD A GIANT LASCANNON!"
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