Guide to the Planets of the Aetelian Sector: Guinefort
- Location
- The land with palm trees, where the thrush sings
Guide to the Planets of the Aetelien Sector
Guinefort
Guinefort
"Rats are always a problem, contaminating food supplies and defecating across the ship. But Ptera-squirrels are the worst. The uninformed crew may keep them as pets for a while, only for them to suddenly turn feral and suck their blood dry. To combat both pests, a pack of Guineforts may be requested. Adorable little things, but are still able break the neck of any vampire-rodent they come across" - Rear-Admiral Urraca Casadevall, Battelfeet Aetelian Special Note # 25,757: On Pets and Pest-management.
"For they are the greatest companions of man, our most reliable allies since time immemorial. Being so deeply tied with Mankind, it is only natural that they can manifest His divine power, and serve as instruments of His will." -Excerpt from the bull Cannis mirabillis, Aetelian Synod.
Classification: Agri World, Feudal World, Shrine World (unrecognized)
Administratum Tithe: Solutio Secundus
Capital: Beddgelert
Population: ~ 15,000,000
Day Cicle Duration (In terran standard): 23 standard terran hours
History: A small Agri-World in the Karostei subsector, Guinefort was mainly known for luxury dairy products, still produced to this day with the nutritious milk of a local type of xeno-bovine, but these are no-longer Guinefort's main export. For in the quiet plans of it's single continent southwest, something happened that would change it forever.
It is said that it happened in time immemorial, for the poor peasants knew not of the imperial dating system, nor had the means to write it down, only keeping the memory alive through oral tradition. In the village of Rollox, there lived a man called Bosco, who herded both xeno-bovines as a farmer and men as the local preacher. Bosco had a shepherd-dog called Boye, whom he loved, but was resented by the locals for its mischievous temperament and the way it was spoiled by its owner, who fed him meat and cheese-treats. One day, the baby of the of one of the local farmers disappeared, and Boye returned with bloody jaws. The locals all believed Boye had eaten him, and Bosco was forced to kill his beloved dog. A few hours later, the infant was found safe... right beside the corpse of a treacherous eldar, its throat lacerated by dog bites!
Feeling guilty for the execution of the brave Boye, the locals interred him with full honors. The following day, when other xenos returned to avenge their killed comrede and destroy the village, Boye rose from the dead, invoking the true power of a living saint to kill all xenos. He returned to his grave, where it soon became a local shrine. The Cult of St. Boye stayed an obscure local tradition for the longest time, until it was discovered by Christophe XII, Seigneur de Licye. A cousin of the local Imperial Commander, Christophe soon spread word of the Cult of the Saintly Dog.
Heretical so-called scholars often connect the cult with supposed pre-Imperial Cult tradition, and claim that de Licye only promoted it to justify his own weird obsession with dog breeding. Those who promoted such views in Guinefort were quickly purged, as the Cult of the Saintly Dog spread. Members of the gentry started forming Holy Cynology Guilds, to devote themselves to St. Boye through the breeding of "perfectioned dogs" who may emulate Boye's deed.
Such breeds quickly became known well-beyond the Sector, becoming Guinefort's main export, as the Golden Throne demands more than just men to be sacrificed in its service. Each breed controlled by its own Holy Guild: the Guinefort terriers are favored by the navy as a pest-control measure; the Giant Guinefort Hound is favored by both Arbites and noblemen wishing to hunt particularly dangerous prey, and the Guinefort Lapdogs are favored as pets for their docile disposition. Last but not least, we have the ancient Caramel Dogs, a wide variety of mongrel-breeds bred by farmers. As St. Boye is said to come from these, Caramel dogs are not exported, but are sometimes gifted to senior Adepts, sectors nobles and members of the Ecclesiarchy. The locals view this as the greatest of honors, but most of those awarded see little difference between these "holy dogs" and the mongrels kept by your average mid-hivver.
While Boye is not recognized as a Saint outside Guinefort, the Aetelian Synod issued the bull Cannis mirabillis in M40.190, stating that the manifestation of divine energy through "man's best friend" is theoretically possible, and thus the Cult is not heretical. Outside the Sector, such bull is considered "of doubtful theological basis", and primarily concerned with political considerations.
Imperial Guard Regiment: Guinefort K-99 troops
These regiments only exist for administrative purposes, being broken into specialized detachments to serve under other regiments. Employs Giant Hounds and terriers in combat and support roles respectively.
Trivia:It is said that it happened in time immemorial, for the poor peasants knew not of the imperial dating system, nor had the means to write it down, only keeping the memory alive through oral tradition. In the village of Rollox, there lived a man called Bosco, who herded both xeno-bovines as a farmer and men as the local preacher. Bosco had a shepherd-dog called Boye, whom he loved, but was resented by the locals for its mischievous temperament and the way it was spoiled by its owner, who fed him meat and cheese-treats. One day, the baby of the of one of the local farmers disappeared, and Boye returned with bloody jaws. The locals all believed Boye had eaten him, and Bosco was forced to kill his beloved dog. A few hours later, the infant was found safe... right beside the corpse of a treacherous eldar, its throat lacerated by dog bites!
Feeling guilty for the execution of the brave Boye, the locals interred him with full honors. The following day, when other xenos returned to avenge their killed comrede and destroy the village, Boye rose from the dead, invoking the true power of a living saint to kill all xenos. He returned to his grave, where it soon became a local shrine. The Cult of St. Boye stayed an obscure local tradition for the longest time, until it was discovered by Christophe XII, Seigneur de Licye. A cousin of the local Imperial Commander, Christophe soon spread word of the Cult of the Saintly Dog.
Heretical so-called scholars often connect the cult with supposed pre-Imperial Cult tradition, and claim that de Licye only promoted it to justify his own weird obsession with dog breeding. Those who promoted such views in Guinefort were quickly purged, as the Cult of the Saintly Dog spread. Members of the gentry started forming Holy Cynology Guilds, to devote themselves to St. Boye through the breeding of "perfectioned dogs" who may emulate Boye's deed.
Such breeds quickly became known well-beyond the Sector, becoming Guinefort's main export, as the Golden Throne demands more than just men to be sacrificed in its service. Each breed controlled by its own Holy Guild: the Guinefort terriers are favored by the navy as a pest-control measure; the Giant Guinefort Hound is favored by both Arbites and noblemen wishing to hunt particularly dangerous prey, and the Guinefort Lapdogs are favored as pets for their docile disposition. Last but not least, we have the ancient Caramel Dogs, a wide variety of mongrel-breeds bred by farmers. As St. Boye is said to come from these, Caramel dogs are not exported, but are sometimes gifted to senior Adepts, sectors nobles and members of the Ecclesiarchy. The locals view this as the greatest of honors, but most of those awarded see little difference between these "holy dogs" and the mongrels kept by your average mid-hivver.
While Boye is not recognized as a Saint outside Guinefort, the Aetelian Synod issued the bull Cannis mirabillis in M40.190, stating that the manifestation of divine energy through "man's best friend" is theoretically possible, and thus the Cult is not heretical. Outside the Sector, such bull is considered "of doubtful theological basis", and primarily concerned with political considerations.
Imperial Guard Regiment: Guinefort K-99 troops
These regiments only exist for administrative purposes, being broken into specialized detachments to serve under other regiments. Employs Giant Hounds and terriers in combat and support roles respectively.
-While no-longer its main export, Guinefort cheese and diary products are still considered a delicacy across the sector.
-The Order of the Thorned Spear has an agreement with the planet for a supply of Caramel Dogs. They seem to be kept exclusively for companionship.
-Paternova Manuella Maeror did a pilgrimage to Guinefort in M40.550, requesting intercession from St. Boye to cure her beloved Phyrr Cat as a desperate last resort. It seems to have work, since House Maeror commissioned a giant gold statue to the Shrine of the Saintly Dog shortly afterwards.
-The Order of the Thorned Spear has an agreement with the planet for a supply of Caramel Dogs. They seem to be kept exclusively for companionship.
-Paternova Manuella Maeror did a pilgrimage to Guinefort in M40.550, requesting intercession from St. Boye to cure her beloved Phyrr Cat as a desperate last resort. It seems to have work, since House Maeror commissioned a giant gold statue to the Shrine of the Saintly Dog shortly afterwards.
Men's best friend has a long history in religion, with literally every single place or personal name in character being a reference to an example of that (most notably Boye and Guinefort). As doggos are confirmed to exist in the grimdark future, it is only proper that they would equally influence the Imperial Creed in the baffling ways they always do.
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