The Lost Primarch Quest

[Daemon Hunter]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[x] Plan Nurgle T 4
-[x] Telepaths – Improved scouting
-[x] Research
-[x] Advanced Rune Design – Advanced
-[x] Spend time with Khan
-[x] Discuss your scars and what happen. Also talk about legion tactics and organization with each other.
-[x] Send 500 Eternal Wardens
-[x] The arriving Astartes should support the government in more ways than just on the battlefield. If possible, they should attempt basic uplifting on Valhalla and improve workings. Particularly in matters of food production. If needed they should assume some government postings.
-[x] Lave V – assist Lorgar

After visiting Magnus, Kesar had decided that the telepaths would be extremely useful for scouting, an act which had proved immensely useful so far. Now, he decided to continue with his research. For months, Kesar created runes over and over again, varying the location it was made, his state of mind as it was crafted, what he used to craft it, etc. He found that the materials did have a major effect, with materials similar to the runic concept having a greater effect. A rune of fire would be more effective if carved with extreme heat for example. Additionally, the soul of the creator also had a major effect, with his Primarch's soul enabling runes to be more effective when wielded. There was also the possibility of creating runes through the use of a ritual with multiple people. Thankfully, no sacrifices were needed, unless creating a rune which would assist with daemonic rituals, but Kesar saw no reason to even consider creating such a rune. With this, Kesar had the opportunity to begin creating more advanced runes besides just the banish runes. Moreover, he could create better versions of said rune. Lastly, he also posited theories behind linking runes as well as crossing them. While this research would be difficult, it would undoubtedly prove useful in the future.

Meanwhile, Kesar also reviewed the report on the Wardens deployed to his homeworld. It seems that they were avoiding governing issues for now, as they focused on securing the food supply. They had built supplementary hydroponics facilities and increased security on existing ones. It would be far more difficult for future cultists to damage Valhalla's food supply.

Following this, Kesar put together the final touches on a combat medic system for his Legion. For now, it was rather bare bones. A portion of his Legion would be trained on providing first aid during combat. From the training, he estimated that after the battle, 10% of casualties would survive to fight again later.

After finishing up, Kesar traveled to a rather unassuming desert world named Tatooine to meet his brother Jagathai Khan. When he arrived, he was met by the Khan and his honor guard, along with enough bikes for the Eternal Wardens present. "Brother, it is good to see you."

"Magnus has told me good things about you, would you care for a ride?" The Khan motioned towards the bikes, two of which seemed to be of a higher standard than the other.

"It would be my pleasure." Kesar hopped up onto the bike, as his honor guard did the same. With that, the White Scars and Eternal Wardens set off at a leisurely pace.

"I must admit, it is rather nice to see you after the talk I had with Magnus. It seems we share some of the same ideas." The Khan led the bike pack with Kesar trailing just behind him. As they passed a large rock spire, the Primarch led the procession through a gentle curve as Kesar responded.

"If I may," Kesar paused to check to see if his sons were comfortable. To his surprise, they seemed to be enjoying the White Scars company as the two groups discussed their various exploits. "what exactly did he say about me."

"Well, he complimented your desire to learn, while saying that you were too cautious. It certainly helps to have another brother reigning in his recklessness. Magnus … he means well, but he doesn't understand the dangers of the warp. He comprehends them but refuses to believe the warnings apply to him."

"That does seem to be the case, but he seems to be careful enough."

"Perhaps, but let's shelve the subject for now. Would you like to race?" The Khan briefly shifted his jetbike to neutral as he revved the engine.

"If you would like." With that, the Khan and Kesar gunned the engine as their honor guard followed.

It was clear that the Khan was more used to the terrain, but he wasn't trying to cheat by using shortcuts. Instead, he seemed to take the most inefficient routes, as Kesar analyzed the land and used what seemed quickest. The situation with the honor guards was the same, with the White Scars taking circuitous routes. Amazingly, the White Scars would still remain in the lead, although they did not increase said lead by much. "Jetbikes are hover vehicles Kesar, lean so your center of mass is directly between the repulsors. It saves energy and makes the bike faster."

At this advice, the Eternal Wardens followed the instructions and noticed that they were indeed faster. Then, the White Scars began trying. At this point, it was not even a contest between the Primarchs. The Khan sped ahead through every turn even if their vehicles had the same specifications. The race between the honor guard, however, was much closer. It seems that the Eternal Wardens were actually managing to keep up with the White Scars. At first, the White Scars stayed in the lead, but it quickly evolved into a back and forth race between the two Legions. Then, the finish line came into sight. At this, the Eternal Wardens gunned the engines as the White Scars for a moment appeared to fall far behind. Then, they raced. With speed born of experience, they surged forward as the Eternal Wardens' lead collapsed. Warden after Warden was overtaken before the White Scars once again led. However, the race was extremely close, with the Wardens being just seconds behind the Khan's Legion.

When the race ended, the two Legion's began ribbing the other over the race. The Wardens claimed that clearly, the White Scars knew the terrain, so they would have won. The Scars countered by saying they were not trying since they knew better than to shell shock their cousins. The friendly back and forth continued as the two Primarchs watched on in amusement.

"Are you sure these ones are your sons? Seems rather fast compared to yourself." The Khan jokingly mocked Kesar after thoroughly winning the race.

"That was rather fun, perhaps we should do it again."

"We should." At this, the Khan smiled at Kesar. "I wasn't expecting this, but it was enjoyable. Did you have some business with me? If not, it was a pleasant diversion."

"I apologize for springing it on you, but I am afraid that I wanted to ask a question after I had an encounter with a greater daemon." The Khan grimaced as Kesar continued, "I was wounded by a Lord of Change on my homeworld, and recently I fought an Unclean One. During the battle, the scar suddenly caused a muscle spasm which allowed the Greater Daemon to wound me. Magnus mentioned you may have ideas on how to check this."

The Khan's happy expression crumbled into a grim visage at this. "Some of my honor guards are Storm Seers, let them check." With that, the Khan practically dragged Kesar away with two of the Storm Seers before conducting extensive tests. After hours of analysis and conference, the Khan delivered their findings. "It seems like the wound was some sort of curse with a one-time effect. Thankfully, it was only meant to strike at a poor moment. Now, it is benign, and your soul itself is uncorrupted. However, the warp seems to resonate with numbers, so try not to receive further wounds."

"I had hoped for more information, but I understand." With that Kesar left, but first, he decided to converse with the Khan about

[] Write-in
AN: So yeah, the Khan likes you, and your Legions' get along great as well.

After the productive conversation with Jagathai, Kesar traveled to the Lave system to meet with his other brother Lorgar Aurelian. After a few weeks of travel, the Eternal Wardens arrived in full force in the Lave system. Once there, Kesar traveled to the World Bearers flagship Fidelitas Lex to meet his brother.

Lorgar was unassuming for a Primarch. While Corax and Magnus seemed to have great power, Lorgar was less physically a threat. Instead, he held himself like someone who was both your friend and ally. However, the moment he saw Kesar, that visage turned instead into a slight scowl. At this, Kesar decided to greet his brother pleasantly, "Hello Brother, it is a pleasure to meet you in person."

"I can't say the same," Lorgar paced in agitation, "after all, you stuck me with the task of dealing with this go … damn system."

At this Kesar winced, but he knew that he was not at fault. "I assure you, Brother, that was not my intention. I had no idea that this Warboss Metal Head would be such a formidable adversary."

"I don't believe you." Kesar was shocked at this, as were his honor guard. "What I believe, is that you saw how difficult it would be and decided to call me in to deal with it. Grow a spine coward."

Kesar was now angry, this was absolutely unnecessary by Lorgar. While he had lost sons, Kesar never intended to harm his brother's Legion. He had only asked him to do so since he had far too much on his plate at the time. "Now that is uncalled for." Gesturing for emphasis, Kesar stepped forward. "I needed to deal with a diplomatic incident regarding the Mechanicus, and I simply did not have time to deal with this Ork enclave at the same time. Furthermore, I did not force you into this deal. You did so of your own volition. "As Kesar pointed directly at the Urizen, his finger inches from Lorgar's chest, he noticed the situation. The World Bearers had taken up aggressive postures, and in response, the Eternal Wardens had taken up defensive stances in order to jump between their Primarch and Lorgar's Legion.

"Alright, we shall table this for now. Let's deal with the Orks in the system and I will not have to deal with you again." Lorgar stepped backward and walked to the command table. At the separation between the Primarchs, both sets of honor guard relaxed. Kesar then moved to the other side of the command table and sent the information his scouts and telepaths had given.

In the outskirts of the Lave system, was an asteroid belt. Then came Lave V itself followed by a set of four uninhabitable terrestrial worlds. Lave V itself had many Orks ships surrounding it in a defensive posture, that actually seemed to maintain discipline. Surrounding the planet were the remains of defensive stations and platforms that the World Bearers destroyed before Ork reinforcements forced them to retreat. His scouts' initial forays into the system revealed a few pieces of information.

Firstly, Metal Jaw was disturbingly competent. He displayed a rather intelligent tactical plan in battle, and his subordinates were also good at keeping the Orks disciplined. The main issue that Lorgar faced was actual tactics, which he simply had not expected from the Orks. Additionally, they found that there was some sort of trap prepared for the fleet when it arrived, but they were unsure of what it was.

This mystery was solved by the Thousand Sons. Over a few hours, they managed to analyze the Orks and the system before discovering the trap. The trap was two-fold. It involved a series of roks hidden in the asteroid belt. They were not picked up at first because they were running silently. Interestingly, the vessels themselves were painted purple like Ork commandos were. The second part of the trap involved masking sensor profiles. Behind many of the Ork battleship analogs, were ramships. These vessels were carefully placed so that the Imperium's scanners would not pick up on their presence. With this, Kesar had a few options.

Firstly, he could begin a series of high velocity passes. This blitz strategy would make it hard for the roks to strike the fleets rear since they would be traveling at such high speeds. Moreover, it would make ramming difficult since the velocity differences would result in very precise timing being required for ships to collide. However, it would necessitate multiple passes, and it is likely Metal Brain would come up with a counter at some point.

The second plan involved attacking the roks in the asteroid field before engaging the main Ork fleet. The roks would be easy to deal with since they are spread out in order to hide in the asteroid field. The main issue is that the Orks will have the opportunity to react, and Kesar did not want to give up the initiative.

Thirdly, Kesar could have his fleet split into two elements. One for the roks and one for the main fleet. This would rely on the roks being dealt with quickly before assisting with the main fleet. Since the main fleet will be weakened during this time, it would be dangerous since they would be facing worse odds than if the fleets were combined. However, it could also deal with the roks and allow the second force to attack the Ork flanks.

Fourthly, he could simply blitz the planet and land troops, but this would be horrifically risky. Firstly, Lave V was very well defended on the ground. Secondly, the planet had a formidable anti-air grid, which would decimate troops. Thirdly, orbital superiority would be heavily contested, and if the Orks win, the ground forces would almost certainly die.

Fifthly, he could simply ignore the roks and engage in fleet to fleet combat. The main issue is the roks would strike his fleet in the rear. Of course, since he knows this, he could plan for it.

In the end, Kesar decided to

[] Write-in

Spoiler: Rolls

Advanced Runic Design Research Time: 1 Year
Advanced Runic Design Research (DC 20 ): 31
Khan Disposition Roll: 96 + 10 (???) + 20 (Off Screen Race Rolls) = 126
Khan Analysis Roll: 87 + 40 (Primarch) + 20 (Librarians) = 147
Eternal Wardens on Valhalla: 66 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Homeworld) = 106
Architect of Fate Hiding: 46 + 100 (Architect of Fate) + 50 (Benign) = 196
Architect of Fate Manipulation: 26 + 100 (Architect of Fate) = 126
Lorgar Disposition: 28 – 20 (Lave) + 10 (Kept Promise) + 5 (Slow Compliance) + 5 (Valhalla Religious Rolls) = 28
Ork Cunning: 65 + 20 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (Sneaky Boyz) = 100
Scouting: 40 + 20 (Nearby Primarch) + 10 (Scouting) + 20 (Alpha Legion Trained) + 20 (Telepaths) = 110

 

[Daemon Hunter]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[x] Plan Wizard use darkness
-[x] Using the Thousand sons cause the sensors of the roks to misread your fleet.
-[x] attack the roks and make sure they call for help
-[x] attack reinforcements at asteroid belt
-[x] Discuss tactics and cross training with Khan

After the impromptu race between the two Legions, Kesar decided to ask the Khan about his tactics and possibly cross training. Jagathai was pleasantly surprised to have been asked, and he explained how he preferred to use a series of fast attacks in a hit and run pattern. While some of it could apply to the Wardens, most of it was tangential to their combat style. What was useful, was the tactics the Khan used to disengage from skirmishes. This was his bread and butter, and it would help the Eternal Wardens to have some form of an escape plan. With this, Kesar incorporated much of the Khan's advice, although most of it referred to jetbike combat and fast mobile vehicles. Additionally, a fair bit of it would have to be tailored to his Legion. As it was, while it might save members of his Legion, it would almost certainly fail, but at least they had the option.

*Wardens have a last-ditch escape roll at a -50 if their location is overrun. Applies to wounded as well. *

As Kesar and Lorgar looked at the battle plan, an idea came to the XI Primarch. "Ahriman can the Thousand Sons disrupt Ork sensors?"

"Yes, Lord Primarch. However, the sheer number of Ork ships will mean we will only be able to distort their sensor readings, not alter them completely." The first captain of the Thousand Sons was a psyker of unparalleled strength, only eclipsed by Magnus, Malcador, and the Eternal Sovereign. Truthfully, Kesar was surprised that Magnus sent him to ensure the Thousand Sons telepaths behaved, but Ahriman had said that Magnus would call for him if needed. Additionally, the first captain would only be here for two years.

Now that Kesar knew he could compromise the Ork sensors, he outlined his plan to Lorgar. They could have the Thousand Sons distort the sensors of the roks before dealing with the isolated ships. During this phase, Warboss Metal Brain would attempt to attack the fleet in the rear. Here, they could ambush the Orkish fleet as it arrived. The only risk was if the roks took longer than to pacify than they thought because then they would be attacked in the flanks. After a few minutes, Kesar finally convinced Lorgar that this plan would work. With that, the conquest of Lave V began.

As planned, the Thousand Sons began to use technomancy to distort Orkish sensors. Here, they ran into a problem. It seems that these roks were simply far too spread out to deal with effectively. As a result, the psykers were forced to distort the roks that were actively scanning.

This, however, proved unnecessary. Due to the asteroid belt, while the roks were hidden from plain sight, so to were the Imperial ships. The Word Bearers and Eternal Wardens advanced on an oblique trajectory, keeping a cluster of asteroids between them and the closest roks. Slowly, they moved forward before they were just underneath the crest of the asteroid, with the Orkish contraptions on the other side.

As one, the vessels struck. Every engine in the two Legions burned as one, as a beautifully synchronized maneuver took place. Even before targeting solutions were obtained, the Imperial vessels had begun firing. With this withering hail of fire, the Orkish vessels were surrounded, isolated, and cut off, and those were the lucky ones. Nearly half the roks died within the first minute. Even with the intelligent responses from Ork Kaptains, the Orks simply did not have any advantages to speak of. The surviving roks clustered near asteroids in an effort to shield their hulls from the Imperium's wrath.

It was not nearly enough. Isolated, alone, and without the guidance of their Warboss, the remaining Ork vessels died an inglorious death. After scarcely an hour, the Orkish roks had been wiped out, allowing the two Legions to regroup and prepare for the main Ork fleet.

Metal Brain was a happy Ork. He had been rather bored for a while, but then he heard about a group of hummiez trying to krump him. When he arrived, the Beakies ran away, which made him sad, but if he let them go, then they would bring more Beakies and a Propah Fight would take place. Unlike other Orks, he had a cunning plan. He had painted roks purple and placed them in the asteroid field. Even the ramships hidden in the back were ded sneaky. So of course, a gretchin ran in with bad news.

"Oi, Boss, the Beakies krumped ya sneaky gits."

Turning to the gretchin, who immediately cowered, Metal Brain roared, "Them sneaky gits had da cunning plan. They waz purple an' ded sneaky."

"But boss, the Beakies were ded sneakier and they had da cunning-er plan."

"THAT'S IT! HERE'S DA NEW CUNNING PLAN!" with that, Metal Brain drove his fist into the gretchin as he put his new plan into motion.

After dealing with the last of the roks, Kesar had the Thousand Sons go to work. Ahriman led the others in selectively altering the main computers of the Ork ships. Although, Ahriman seemed rather disgusted at what passed for Orkish computers. Nevertheless, they say that they managed to create sensor ghosts on nearly all of the Ork ships.

Kesar meanwhile was perturbed by the Orks actions. When it had become clear that the roks would die, the Orks did something he never thought he would seem them do. They stopped their charge. Then, the ramships surged from behind the Orkish vessels and max burned directly at the two Legions. While most were rather far away, a group of Ork ships painted red and having a large engine with the word "turbo" on it pulled ahead. These isolated ships were easy to take care of, but they nevertheless distracted the fleet.

Then, Warboss Metal Jaw split the remainder of his fleet in two, one half traveled on a parabolic arc above the asteroid belt and the other traveled below it. This pincer movement would have wreaked havoc on the Imperial lines if the Orks were able to see and the Primarchs were not already repositioning. The two Legions took positions near asteroids to use as cover, and when the Orkish fleet elements had their vision blocked by other hazards, the ships repositioned group by group. The Orkish counter-ambush had now been turned into a counter-counter-ambush.

As the Orkish fleet elements descended into the asteroid belt, chasing sensor ghosts the Thousand Sons had created, the trap was sprung. Wardens and Word Bearers emerged from their hiding spots at full burn as they rushed through the two Orkish fleet elements. All the while, firing broadsides and using their heavily armored prows to cut through escorts. The fleet elements lost dozens of ships, while the Astartes took full advantage of the situation to reposition behind the fleet elements. Here, they were surrounding the Orks, in relative cover, with much of the Ork fleet elements ravaged. Of course, there was the Warboss on what appears to be a battleship version of a ramship, currently inbound with the rest of the ramships.

Sadly, the scouts were unable to obtain more information. The combination of asteroids limiting visibility and high-intensity conflict had meant that they were spotted quickly and forced to withdraw. As such, no information was available.

For the current tactical situation, the Orkish fleet was badly damaged and surrounded by Word Bearers and Eternal Wardens. Said Legions were partially covered by asteroids they had decided to use. Meanwhile, the Warboss Metal Brain was on an intercept course towards the two Legions, and he had a large contingent of ramships.

There were a few ways to deal with the situation that Kesar saw. The first was to continue mopping up the Orkish fleet before engaging the ramships. The issue with this is that if the Orkish fleet survives, then they will be flanked by the incoming ramships. However, if successful, the ramships would be outnumbered and likely able to be dealt with.

The second option is to split off a part of the fleet to deal with the incoming Orkish vessels while the other focuses on cleaning up the Ork fleet. Splitting the fleet would put both groups at risk, but it would mean that the Warboss would be unable to react properly since they would need to split their attention between two fronts.

Thirdly, he could have a few of the faster escorts in the fleet perform a hit and run assault of the ramships. This would damage them with little danger to the escorts. However, it deprives the rest of the fleet from protection from Orkish torpedoes as well as allowing the ramships to close in on the two Legions as they battle the main fleet.

Fourthly, he could ignore the Orkish fleet and chase the ramships, but this would mean leaving the main fleet directly behind the Imperium vessels in a dangerous position. However, it would catch the warboss quickly.

Fifthly, he could board an escort himself and attempt to board the Battleship ramship himself. This would be extraordinarily risky, but it would ensure that the Warboss does not escape if he retreats now. Nevertheless, having an escort fly through a battle into the middle of an Ork fleet to board a battleship is a risky plan, and it will likely end with disaster unless he had a good idea.

In the end, Kesar decided to

[x] Plan ship Ahoy!
-[x] have escorts rush the incoming fleet and perform harassment Keeping ram ships busy till the rest of the ork fleet is taken care of
-[x] with remaining ships finish current fleet
-[x] challenge ork warboss to fight

[x] Plan ahoy MATE!
-[x] have escorts rush the incoming fleet and perform harassment Keeping ram ships busy till the rest of the ork fleet is taken care of
-[x] with remaining ships finish current fleet
-[x] suggest to Lorgar the possibility of challenging the ork war-boss to fight one of us, the librarians can even check if he plans on anything "cunning" about that.

[] Write-in

Spoiler: Rolls

Thousand Sons Sensor Spoofing: 33 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Trained by the Crimson King) + 20 (Primarch Presence) – 5 (Not specialty) = 88
Ork Sensor Status: 73 + 10 (Orks) = 83
Eternal Wardens Ambush Positioning: 78 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) = 118
Word Bearers Ambush Positioning: 77 + 20 (Astarte) + 20 (Primarch Presence) = 117
Ork Detection: 44 + 10 (Actively scanning) – 10 (Sabotage) = 44
Eternal Wardens Ambush: 95 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 30 (Surprise) + 5 (Blitz) = 170
Word Bearers Ambush: 93 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 30 (Surprise) + 5 (Anti-Ork tactics) = 168
Ork Ambush survival: 87 + 30 (Warboss Traits) Negated because of distance + 20 (WAAGH!) + 20 (Numbers) – 20 (Isolated) = 107
Eternal Wardens Follow Through: 85 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) = 125
Word Bearers Follow Through: 47 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Anti-Ork tactics) = 102
Ork Follow Through Surival: 30 + 30 (Warboss Traits) Negated because of distance + 20 (WAAGH!) + 20 (Numbers) – 20 (Isolated) = 50
Thousand Sons Sensor Spoofing: 68 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Trained by the Crimson King) + 20 (Primarch Presence) – 5 (Not specialty) = 123
Ork Sensor Status: 33 + 10 (Orks) + 30 (Sneaky Boyz) = 73
Warboss Actions: 6 (this is bad)
Ork Tactics Check: 63 + 20 (Poor Roll) + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) = 103
Eternal Wardens Positioning: 62 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) = 102
World Bearers Positioning: 72 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Anti-Ork Tactics) = 117
Ork Ramship Distraction: 64 + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 10 (Ramming Speed!) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) = 94
Ork Flank Top Positioning: 2 + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 10 (Good Distraction) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) = 32
Ork Flank Bottom Positioning: 55 + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 10 (Good Distraction) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) = 85
Ork Top Flank Counter Ambush: 29 + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 10 (Duel Pronged Assault) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) + 15 (Sensor Penalties halved for close range) = 74
Ork Bottom Flank Counter Ambush: 24 + 30 (Warboss Traits) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 10 (Duel Pronged Assault) – 30 (Poor Sensor Readings) + 15 (Sensor Penalties halved for close range) = 69
Eternal Wardens Counter-Counter Ambush: 74 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 30 (Surprise) = 144
Word Bearers Counter-Counter Ambush: 93 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Anti-Ork Tactics) + 30 (Surprise) = 168
Scouting Roll: 4 + 20 (Scouts) + 20 (Alpha Legion Trained) + 20 (Telepaths) – 30 (Brawl) – 10 (Asteroids) = 24

 

[Daemon Hunter]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[x] Plan ahoy MATE!
-[x] have escorts rush the incoming fleet and perform harassment Keeping ram ships busy till the rest of the ork fleet is taken care of
-[x] with remaining ships finish current fleet
-[x] suggest to Lorgar the possibility of challenging the ork war-boss to fight one of us, the librarians can even check if he plans on anything "cunning" about that.

"Oriacarius, split off Escort Fleet Elements 12-15, raise vox communications with the Fidelitas Lex."

"Yes, Lord Primarch." Oriacarius then transferred vox communication to Kesar's captain's throne, an action he had prepared beforehand in case it was needed.

"Brother, what do you want?" the Urizen looked annoyed that Kesar had contacted him during the void conflict. Suppressing annoyance, Kesar spoke.

"Brother, I believe it would be best if one of us would challenge the warboss. I am certain that you could take him with ease." At this, Lorgar puffed up and smirked, a haughty expression on his face.

"I'll be glad to do so. I'll be sure to politely invite Metal Brain for tea."

With this, Lorgar cut communications, while the escorts were deployed to harass the incoming ramships. "Ahriman, check to see if there are any traps the Warboss is laying once Lorgar challenges him."

"It will be done Lord Primarch." The Thousand Sons first captain bowed and left to deliver orders to the other psykers on board. Meanwhile, the battle against the Orks presents continued. Now in asteroid cover, and surrounding damaged Orks, the two Legion's struck with the wrath of the Sovereign. While the Word Bearers were unable to completely wipe out the Orks, they severely damaged them, and only a few Kroozers were left along with many other escorts. The Eternal Wardens, however, emerged even better. Under Kesar's tactical command, the fleet used the asteroids to maximum advantage. They took asteroid after asteroid, before using these cover points to take control of parts of the void and destroying Orks. Only a few escorts were left on their side of the conflict.

Finally, the Orks attempted to react. The ones facing the Word Bearers grouped up to avoid being picked off. The issue with this is was the torpedo salve launched by the Word Bearers, which annihilated the grouped-up enemy. The Eternal Wardens had a bit more trouble. A side effect of their current strategy had isolated most of their ships. This allowed the few remaining Ork vessels to attempt a strafing run. All the Orks died in the end, but a few Battle Barges were damaged which killed 1000 Eternal Wardens.

With this done, Kesar turned his attention to the escorts, where the first exchange was inconclusive. The issue was that the ramships angled into the escorts, which forced them to pull off. They still damaged some vessels, but they were largely unable to target properly. However, they did not lose any ships which was the intention. At this point, the Orks did something rather unexpected. They turned and began running.

"Hail Lorgar." Kesar quickly grabbed the vox and began talking, "Brother, I was under the impression Orks do not retreat."

"Yes … they never do since doing so massively impacts the remaining Orks, you can see them slowing down now."

This was indeed the case, as the escorts began to slowly chew through the Ork vessels. The close formation of the ramships deteriorated, and the Imperium escorts pounced on any vessel that strayed even slightly. Slowly, the number of ramships was being whittled down.

As the Orks began running, Kesar ordered his fleet to pursue. The Word Bearers followed. The Wardens diverted all power to the engines, which Lorgar's Legion did not, and this enabled them to slowly catch up to the warboss. Slowly, they got closer and closer. The Warboss seemed to sense this, as he had the remnants of his fleet attempt to hold off the Wardens. It was beyond pathetic how quickly they died. Ramships are not meant to be used when stationary. They are meant to be fast and slam into capital ships, not delay fleets. Within a minute, they were annihilated, and the Warboss pursued.

With just a single ship and a cunning Warboss, the Wardens struggled to catch the Ork. Slowly, Kesar's tactics corralled the Ork into a trap. Now the Ork was surrounded by Warden's vessels.

Now, the cowardly Ork requested vox communication with the Wardens. Surprised, Kesar granted it. At this, the Ork Warboss Metal Brain appeared on the screen. Surprisingly small and well groomed for an Ork, the Warboss was rather distinct with nearly half his skull comprised of metal. "Alright hummie, you want a piece of Metal Brain, come on aboard, I'll krump ya. I'll even shut down the big gunz for ya. Come on aboard unless you iz scared. I've given the same message to the other Beakie."

At this Kesar glanced at Oriacarius without any outward indication. The first captain responded with an affirmative to if the Orkish guns were really not functioning. At this, Kesar spoke, "we'll see," and he cut communications. Kesar then had Ahriman give a status report on the Warboss' plan. From what the Thousand Sons could tell him, there was no trap in place at the moment, but they are certain there is some trickery at play judging by the Orkish behavior. Now, Kesar had a few options.

He could simply destroy the Ork ship which would poses no danger. He could also board and kill the Ork in a duel. Lastly, he could let Lorgar decide what to do. In the end, Kesar decided to

[] Fire upon the vessel
[] Board and duel the Ork
[] Let Lorgar decide
[] Write-in

Additionally, Kesar also had to decide what to do with the world of Lave V. He could simply leave it to Lorgar, which is what he was supposed to do. He could also offer to assist Lorgar in dealing with the Orks. Lastly, he could deploy his Legion, but this world supposedly had major dangers in doing so, as the Orks had a massive presence on Lave V. He could also declare exterminatus, but technically the world was not unuseable, just difficult to take. In the end, Kesar decided to

[] Leave it to Lorgar
[] Offer to assist Lorgar
[] Deploy the Wardens
[] Exterminatus
[] Write-in

Spoiler: Rolls

Escort Harassment: 67 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 10 (Harrassment) = 117
Ork Ramships: 57 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 20 (Good Fight) = 107
Eternal Wardens: 90 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Asteroids) = 135
Word Bearers: 68 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Asteroids) + 5 (Anti-Ork) = 118
Ork Fleet 1: 10 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 20 (Damaged) = 40
Ork Fleet 2: 30 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 20 (Damaged) = 60
Eternal Wardens: 75 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Asteroids) = 120
Word Bearers: 86 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 5 (Asteroids) + 5 (Anti-Ork) = 136
Ork Fleet 1: 72 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 20 (Damaged) = 102
Ork Fleet 2: 16 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 20 (Damaged) = 46
Lorgar Disposition: 77
Escort Harassment Round 2: 75 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 10 (Harrassment) = 125
Ork Ramships: 30 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 20 (Good Fight) – 20 (Slugest) = 60
Get That Warboss Wardens: 89 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) – 10 (Escorts Not Present) = 119
Get That Warboss Bearers: 33 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) – 10 (Escorts Not Present) = 63
Charge in the other Direction: 72 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 20 (Ramships) – 10 (The Beakies are that way) – 20 (Declined Challenge) = 112
Ork Ramships Delaying: 16 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) – 20 (Declined Challenge) = 16
Get That Warboss Wardens: 33 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) – 10 (Escorts Not Present) = 63
Warboss Flees: 31 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (WAAGH!!) + 20 (Only Ship Left) – 10 (The Beakies are that way) – 20 (Declined Challenge) = 51
Get Him Wardens: 52 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) = 92
Warboss Keeps Running: 60 + 30 (Warboss) + 20 (Last One Left) – 30 (Running Away) = 82
Trapping the Warboss: 81 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 30 (Numbers) = 151
Warboss Breaking the Trap: 49 + 30 (Warboss) – 20 (Only Ship Left) = 59

 

[Daemon Hunter]

Horus: "I hope you and I remain friends, and that you forgive me for what I must do."

Leman: "You're a good friend brother, which makes the future all the harder for me."

Ferrus: "Strangely, I find myself more appreciative of Vulkan and your fears these days, having seen the results of my enclaves."

Fulgrim: "I'm not happy with the results of your actions, but I don't fault you for them."

Vulkan: "We're passed the point of no return at this point, will you take the plunge with me?"

Dorn: "He has slipped below my expectations."

Guilliman: "I'll still do my duty, but it's grown tiring as of late."

Magnus: "The Imperium sucks Kesar. It really, really does. At least I have a good support system."

Sanguinius: "I hope we don't become enemies."

Lion: "Do not stand in my way."

Perturabo: "The time for execution is at hand, and strangely there are few reasons to delay."

Mortarion: "Kesar, the Emperor and Malcador deserve death for all their sins, help me give it to them."

Lorgar: DECEASED.

Khan: *Could not be reached for comment*

Konrad: "This will be interesting."

Angron: "This should be fun."

Corvus: "I haven't talked with him for a while."

Alpharius: "...Which of us will be right in the end?"

Omegon: "I hope I learn it soon."

Malcador: "Unfortunately, you've become an obstacle."

Emperor: "YOUR ACTIONS WILL NOT DO."

Mechanicum: *Currently rebooting from joy*

Valhalla: "ALL HAIL THE SOVEREIGN'S SON." *Imperial Army Units are deployed. *

Kelbor-Hal: "I am beyond pleased with this outcome."

Luna Wolves: "Horus' recent discussions have drawn up quite the stir."

Space Wolves: "If we come to blows, no it wasn't personal."

Iron Hands: "We're not commenting on this right now."

Emperor's Children: "We're not happy with your Primarch's recent decisions."

Salamanders: *Unable to provide a uniform opinion due to overextension of forces.*

Imperial Fists: "We have no real thoughts on him."

Ultramarines: "Unpopular leadership that's gone through multiple changes in rapid succession including a coup, all during a period of economic hardship and military displeasure. Yep, I've seen this one before."

Thousand Sons: "I think we're just going to stay on Prospero for the moment."

Blood Angels: "Unfortunately, the unthinkable may be around the corner."

Dark Angels: "Choose your loyalties wisely."

Iron Warriors: "What needs to be done will be done."

Death Guard: "What needs to be done will be done."

Argel Tal: *Priority Target*

White Scars: *Could not be reached*

Night Lords: *Unable to provide a uniform opinion due to overextension of forces.*

War Hounds: "Thank you for your support."

World Eaters: "We've got other things to worry about."

Raven Guard: *Unable to provide a uniform opinion due to overextension of forces.*

Alpha Legion: This Legion does not exist.

---

Slaanesh: "I HATE ALL OF YOU!"

Nurgle: "You are officially the one I hate third-most."

Khorne: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! BEST CENTURY EVER!"

Tzeentch: "It always has been just as planned."

Malal: "It's been quite an enjoyable evening. Here's to many more."

U'mas: "Slowly and carefully is how an Anathema is fought."

Spoiler: Current Relationships

Best Friend	Omegon
Very Good Friend	Alpharius, Perturabo
Good Friend	Leman, Khan
Friend	Konrad, Vulkan, Magnus, Kelbor-Hal
Acquaintances	Horus, Guilliman, Angron, Mortarion, Sanguinius
Neutral	Corvus, Ferrus, Fulgrim, The Emperor of Man
Dislike	Malcador, Lion, Dorn

Spoiler: Civil War Leanings

Loyalist	Lion, Fulgrim, Ferrus, Leman, Dorn, Sanguinius, Omegon
Neutral	Guilliman, Corvus, Magnus
Rebel	Khan, Perturabo, Konrad, Angron, Mortarion, Horus, Vulkan, Alpharius

 

[Daemon Hunter]

AN: Suddenly a wild update appeared

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Let Lorgar decide
[X] Offer to assist Lorgar

"Oriacarius, raise Lorgar on the vox."

"Yes, Lord Primarch." Again, Oriacarius ran a predetermined subroutine in the Vigilance's communication system, and Lorgar was again put into communication with Kesar.

"Brother," Kesar began, "the Warboss is trapped. What would you prefer me to do?"

"My thanks Kesar, it appears I may have been mistaken in my judgment of you. Do keep him for me till I can slice his head off." Lorgar smiled at the declaration while Kesar closed the communications link. He then ordered a new set of patrol patterns to ensure Warboss Metal Brain did not escape. The Ork was crafty, but he was confident in his Legion's ability to contain him.

Meanwhile, Warboss Metal Brain had come up with a cunning plan to escape, but first, he had to convince one of his nobs to participate in the plan. "Head Smasha, you're the boss now, I'll be charging the other direction."

"Uh, Boss … But you the Boss. So … I'm not the Boss." The nob looked confused at the promotion while Metal Brain was exasperated.

"But if I leave, I'm not the Boss, so you iz the Boss." Orks were not normally patronizing, but somehow, Metal Brain managed to sound like he was talking to a child.

"Um … that's not how it works, cuz then if closed my eyes, you would be gone, then I'd be the Boss. But you sayz that izn't how it works." At this, Metal Brain's eye began to twitch before he acted.

"Zog it." With that, the Warboss grabbed the nob's arm and hit himself with it. "There, ya krumped me so you the Boss."

"Yeah, I'z the Boss now. Thanks Boss!"

"Yes, I'll go do ... nob things now." At this, Metal Brain practically ran from the bridge, time was not on his side. With each second, the Word Bearers drew ever closer, and he knew he would need multiple cunning plans to escape. Thankfully, he had made them. In the hanger of his ship was an Orkified Stormbird, with some major Orkish modifications. Not just any modifications, these were tested before being added to his escape vessel. A purple shuttle for stealth painted all over with symbols to Mork on the inside. The ship itself was built for speed, with oversized engines that had the words "sneaky" and "quiet bits" written on for good measure. Of course, there were other surprises for the Imperium.

Metal Brain performed last-minute preparations on his escape vessel. Check the paint, make sure it's purple, make sure the right words are displayed, ensure the symbols of Mork were pristine, and above all else, he smiled as the last piece he needed was placed on the dashboard. A clump of papers, with the words "CUNNING PLANZ" written down. Just because it was empty, that didn't mean anything of consequence to the Ork.

Meanwhile, on the Strike Cruiser Watchful Eye, Captain Maticus was busy ensuring that the Warden's vessels followed their intended patrol routes. There, he noticed a small detail. One of the battle barges had been a few dozen kilometers off of their intended patrol. Frowning, he looked at the sensor logs. It seems the vessel had an improper engine burn which resulted in them drifting off course. In accordance with the Primarch's wishes, he had two reserve escorts scan the area. When they did, they sounded the alarm whilst opening fire. The Warboss Metal Brain had just managed to eke out of the encirclement.

When Kesar heard about this, he began dispensing orders. "Fleet elements 1 through 5 cut off the asteroid belt, 6 through 10 burn directly at the Warboss, all other fleet elements burn at the specified vectors." The Wardens vessels rushed to conduct the maneuver, as they followed their orders. Besides the first through tenth fleet elements, the remaining burned in such a manner as to effectively travel parallel to the Warboss, but at different angles. Some were inclined above the planetary plane, some below, some inside the Warboss' orbit, some outside, but every single element kept pace with the Warboss, slowly closing the encirclement.

At this closing trap, the Warboss bellowed into the vox, "ALRIGHT BEAKIES, I GOT A FEW FLASH BITZ ON MY SHIP! CUNNING PLAN 2!" With this, the engines of the Orkified Stormbird flared as the temperature of the fuel was artificially increased. This hotter exhaust stripped away the purple paint on the engines, revealing the heat-resistant red undercoating. Then, the ship slowly began pulling away, forcing the Warden's fleet elements to travel parallel to the Warboss. Both sides were frustrated, as neither managed to gain an inch.

The Wardens, however, had the advantage in one factor besides numbers. Power. Unlike the Ork, they would not be damaged by the other side's weapons. This allowed reactor output to be diverted to the engines. This slight increase in speed slowly pulled the Wardens closer until the Ork was just outside of maximum weapons range.

The Ork was at an advantage however, the Wardens did not know the system as he did. There were a few small minefields the Warboss had put in place, which he had used to ambush Lorgar on multiple occasions. Now, he took a risk and flew through one. The Wardens with their larger vessels went around in order to preserve their vessels. It was only a short detour, but in such a close race to escape, it mattered.

This let the Ork begin the plunge into the atmosphere, before he broadcasted once again on vox, taunting the Wardens. "Beakies … hummies. You will always remember this as the day you almost krumped … "

"Fire." As soon as the vox communication began, the Wardens lined up targeting solutions using the vox as a guide. Then, when the Ork's taunt was about to end, Kesar gave the order to open fire. Even if the Warboss had been able to react, the sheer amount of weapons fire would have prevented any form of escape. As the Vigilance's lance fired, the Orkish Stormbird was destroyed, and Metal Brain died with his taunt unfinished.

With the Warboss dead, the Orks on Lave V already began infighting, during this, Lorgar hailed the Eternal Wardens. "Brother, I see you almost allowed the Warboss to flee."

"I will admit that this was unfortunate. But the Ork was cunning and used that to the fullest."

"In the end he is dead, so I thank you for cleaning up your mess." At this, Kesar narrowed his eyes. While Lorgar was more respectful, he could see that the Urizen had little love for him. However, while Lorgar disliked him, he still respected Kesar.

"Of course, Brother. Tell me, would you like my Legion's assistance with the pacification of this Ork world?"

Lorgar paused a bit, deep in thought before speaking, "… I shall manage."

"Very well Brother, I shall take my leave." At that, Kesar ordered his Legion to depart the system. Now, he reflected on the battle and saw a few areas to improve.

The first involved the use of technomancy, which proved crucial in the opening stages of engagement. The sensor ghosts created by the Thousand Sons were instrumental in allowing for alpha strikes on unprepared opponents. Of course, this was outside their specialty, so it would be fantastic if they would be able to do so more effectively in the future. The main issue is that this would cement a relationship with Magnus since he would be training the Thousand Sons for this task. Then again, it would be very useful.

The second major factor was positioning. The initial maneuver wars had been very successful for his Legion, but there was always room for improvement. Tighter formations, better-timed engine burns, and more efficient vox casters would all help this. Sadly, this campaign was solely fought in space, so there would be effectively no help in ground combat. Then again, void combat was, in essence, a battle of positioning.

The third idea was to bring the idea of a beta strike into the Eternal Wardens void vessels. Once the advantage of surprise was lost, a slugging match commenced, which was still easily won, but not ideal for the Wardens. The best strategy was to make sure the enemy could not fire back. The main issue with implementing a beta strike was that it would be necessary to divert power from other systems to decrease the recharge time of the weapons systems. This would weaken the void shields and result in much more damage if the enemy managed to react quickly following the alpha strike or beta strike.

Fourthly was the idea of using spaceborne objects as cover. The use of asteroids was novel, and it had proven to be somewhat effective. Nevertheless, there were issues. Maneuverability was hampered due to the large object in the way. By training ship operators in a complex firing pattern of maneuvering thrusters, it would be possible to mitigate this, and further increase the benefits of using spaceborne objects as cover or other points.

There were other ideas as well, but in the end, Kesar chose

AN: Alright, I'm doing something different for this than previous ones. You can choose as many options as you want, but I'll be rolling dice if more than one option is picked. This gets worse for more options. Depending on the roll, you may or may not receive the full upgrade, and may or may not have some issues with implementation.
[] Technomancy
[] Void Positioning
[] Void Beta Strike Capability
[] Usage of Spaceborne Objects as Cover Points
[] Write-in

After the research began, Kesar decided to visit

AN: Last time I'll be using this for socials. Once again, write-in what you want to do, except for with Alpharius.
[] Leman Russ
[] Vulkan
[] Rogal Dorn
[] Roboute Guilliman
[] Magnus
[] Sanguinius
[] Perturabo
[] Angron
[] Corvus Corax
[] Alpharius – "We need to talk."
[] Alpharius show him the friendship bracelets you made for each other
[] Malcador

Spoiler: Rolls

Lorgar Speed: 74
Ork Escape Preparation: 58 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Has a little time) + 20 (Special Contingency) = 118
Wardens Encirclement: 68 + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (I'm watching you) = 108
Ork Escape: 85 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Preparation) + 10 (Contigency Plan) = 135
Wardens Vigilance: 93 + 20 (Primarch) + 20 (I'm watching you) = 133
Pursue the Warboss: 89 + 20 (Primarch) + 20 (Astartes) = 129
Escape the Beakies: 79 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Da cunning plan) + 10 (TURBO!) = 129
To the Planet: 58 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Defensive Grid) = 98
GET HIM!: 68 + 20 (Primarch) + 20 (Astartes) = 108
The Orks last gambit: 35 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Defensive Grid) – 20 (Out of options) = 55
Last chance to get him: 13 + 20 (Primarch) + 20 (Astartes) = 53
Ork Planetfall: 17 + 30 (Warboss) + 10 (Defensive Grid) - 20 (Out of Options) = 37
Firing Salvo: 87 + 20 (Primarch) + 20 (Astartes) = 127
Lorgar Disposition: 66 + 10 (Killed the Warboss) – 20 (Nearly let him escape) = 56

 

[Daemon Hunter]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Technomancy

[X] Alpharius – "We need to talk."

After how effective disrupting the Ork sensors had been, Kesar decided to work on increasing the level of skill the Thousand Sons had when it came to technomancy. Distorting enemies' vision of the battlefield could prove to be nightmarishly effective in the future. When he had the Thousand Sons develop their skills on this, they had seemed rather happy at the outcome. In fact, he had received a very kind message from Magnus regarding his actions.

The general gist of it was that Magnus was extremely happy that his sons had been of great help and even happier that Kesar was teaching them. He goes on to ask questions on why exactly this was done and what other improvements could be made. In the end, he promised Kesar that if the XI Primarch needed anything, the Thousand Sons would be happy to assist.

*Technomancy rolls now have a +10*

As Kesar was traveling to Tera, he was relaxing in his room, when an Astartes walked in. Kesar was on guard instantly, as he did not recognize the armor color and had not invited any of his sons in. Before he could say anything, the Astartes spoke, "Lord Primarch Dorlin, Lord Primarch Alpharius has sent me to schedule a meeting. His exact words were 'We need to talk.'"
Astartes or Primarch?
"Alright, where and when?" Kesar had expected this the moment he had heard the name Alpharius. The Primarch of the Alpha Legion simply did not know how to knock.

"Simply spend time with your Legion, he will find you. Also, I come bearing a gift." At this, the Alpha Legionary revealed a metallic bracelet, with the Valhallan word for "Friendship" engraved into it.

"… What?" Kesar was surprised at this gift, but he supposed that Alpharius loved to confuse him. At this, Kesar took the bracelet and dismissed the Alpha Legionary, before stopping to ask a question, "What is your name nephew?"

"I am Alpharius." With this, Kesar just sighed as the Astartes walked out. Kesar then looked at his gift and was surprised to see that it was just a ring of metal with an engraving. As he looked at it, he noticed another engraving, that was so fine, only a Primarch's eyes could make it out, "Brother, there is an emergency on your homeworld, get to Tera."

When Kesar arrived, he entered his personal quarters and left the door unlocked. With that, he waited, watching the door. This continued for a few hours before he heard the bathroom door open and Alpharius stepped out. "I'm not going to comment. Now, what is this about my homeworld."

"It's a long story, so bear with me for a moment. Your sons that were meant to uplift the planet are either dead or corrupted. There was a recent coup that was averted due to some rather impressive work by the Witch Hunters. Nevertheless, at least 9 of your sons have become cultists, and the rest are unknown."

At this, Kesar sat down, his homeworld still had major problems with cultists. He would also have to add more names to his sword and armor. With that, he placed his head in his hands and spoke in a sad tone, "How did you miss this?"

If Kesar had looked up at this moment, he would have seen the normally teasing expression of Alpharius fade away into a look of guilt. Kesar never heard this part, but Alpharius muttered it under his breath, "I'm sorry Brother, I failed you." After this, Alpharius spoke loudly enough to be heard, "I'm afraid I removed my spies from your domain as requested, this lack of assets caused me to miss much. Thankfully, some forces I had heard a vox communication from Valhalla which requested assistance dealing with Astartes cultists."

With that Kesar began to make plans with how to deal with the situation, as Alpharius assisted the Primarch with tactical details.

The situation started a few years ago after the cultists began to die off on Valhalla. With the situation against them, a group of 999 cultists known as the Cult of Fate went to ground. Through a series of misplays on the part of the Alpha Legion and Malcador's agents, the cultists managed to remain hidden. The cult also had a higher percentage of psykers, with 99 having useful abilities. A group of them had managed to arrange a plot to corrupt a group of Eternal Wardens when they arrived. The cult had one last trump card, an ever-changing three-dimensional nonagon. It was an insidious corruptive element, most of these had been destroyed by the Witch Hunters on Valhalla. It was placed in the location where a group of fifty Eternal Wardens would reside and then left.

When the Wardens arrived, they split into ten groups of fifty in order to cover more ground. This allowed them to coordinate across a larger area. They chose a residential area at random and suspected nothing. Over weeks, the influence of the object invaded their minds and cracks formed in the Wardens normal mental defenses. Then, a group of nine fell, and this opened the door to more and more Wardens falling.

This group spread its influence through the Wardens, killing those who did not fall. Before long, a group of 117 Wardens had fallen, with the remainder too resistant to fall, and were instead killed by the Lost Ones.

Then, the Lost Ones prepared for a coup. They corrupted others and installed cultists in key positions. The Witch Hunters were happy to listen to the sons of a Primarch and allowed the Lost Ones access to their networks. Slowly, the few remaining loyal Wardens were placed into favorable locations before the coup began.

The coup was an unmitigated disaster, for the Lost Ones. The military on Valhalla was used to cultists uprising and battling daemons. Just because the war had ended, does not mean that their skills were any less sharp. In the opening hours of the uprising, the Valhallans pushed back. Inch by agonizing inch, the Lost Ones were pushed back. Thousands died in the struggle, but the cultists were pushed into the underhives. There, the Valhallans were unable to break through, the close quarters favored the Lost Ones too much, and loyal Wardens had not been located. There were rumors of a few Wardens holding off a larger group of their old brothers before their location fell, but no evidence was found. It appeared that the conflict was at a stalemate, but the cultists and Lost Ones forgot to the true terror that was the Alpha Legion. Of course, this was primed for when the Wardens arrived, but the cultists were not prepared for what the Alpha Legion had prepared.

Meanwhile, Kesar had to decide what to do with his time this year. Now he had an actual infrastructure set up, so he had more free time and a more structured schedule. So far, he had divided his schedule into a few areas: research, socialization, runic design, infrastructure, and the Crusade. Sadly, infrastructure was largely barren due to the lack of ideas on the topic from the Mechanicus. However, in the end, Kesar decided to

AN: Pick one from each category, except for social. Pick two for that.
Research
[] Void Shields Basic Design– Basic
[] Gellar Field Basic Design – Basic
[] Warp Engine Basic Design – Basic
[] Teleportation fundamentals – Basic
[] Ways objects affect the warp – Basic
[] Imprint of the warp on genetics – Basic
[] Runic Linking – Master
[] Runic Crossing – Master
[] Pentagrammic Runic Integration – Master

Social
[] Leman
[] Ferrus Manus
[] Fulgrim
[] Vulkan
[] Dorn
[] Magnus
[] Curze "No, no, no, NO!, NO!, NO!"
[] Alpharius
[] Malcador

Runic Design
[] Write-in (See the informational for examples, write-ins are welcome)
-[] Create Basic Rune – Master
-[] Create Advanced Rune – Grandmaster
-[] Create Master Rune – Pioneer

Infrastructure
[] Upgrade Planetary Infrastructure
[] Upgrade Planetary Technology
[] Plan upgrades for the Legion
[] Plan further planetary upgrades
[] Plan systemwide upgrades
[] Theoretical Megastructures (locked till certain conditions met)
[] Write-in

Crusade – if you decide to split your forces, just put in a write-in. Be sure to say where Kesar is going though.
[] Valhalla IV – The Primarch's homeworld is in the middle of another war with the cultists. This time, the Lost Ones have orchestrated a coup which was held off by the Valhallan military. The cultists are currently cordoned into the underhives and the Alpha Legion has multiple operations primed and is just waiting to begin.
[] Senas – A Dark Age station is present, but it is located in between two large stars and is not easy to reach. Additionally, Dark Eldar have been sighted in the area, and there is the possibility that they will try taking the station, but this is unconfirmed.
[] Dark Eldar – Several Dark Eldar ships have been spotted in the XI Primarch's domain. Their location is unknown, but they seem to be preparing a large scale operation.
[] Peregrine II – A large hive world with heavy gravity, the Thousand Sons mentioned that something was off about this world, and their feelings have only heightened. They request an investigation into the world to be done as soon as possible. The handful of Thousand Sons that have skills in divination have indicated that something catastrophic is about to occur.
[] Britannia V – Previously a farming planet, when the Age of Strife began, a group of daemon worshipping psykers seized power. These demented individuals began a large scale orgy of violence and depravity as they began a grand ritual with 666,666 people being sacrificed every 6 hours at 6 excuses for temples. Before it could begin, an individual used extremely impressive oratory skills to create a revolt among the populace. Two ritual sites were destroyed as the Britannians seized one of the landmasses, but the cultists have control over most of the planet and continue their depraved actions.
[] Hearth IV - A well-developed Mechanicus world that refuses to worship the Emperor as the Omnissiah. They claim that there is a distinct difference between the two. They say that they are happy to remain independent and have offered non-aggression pacts and free trade, but refuse to join what they view as a tyrannical structure. The inhabitants of Hearth IV focus mostly on developing their solar system. With the system is a massive series of shipyards and mining of the asteroid belt which results in a truly massive amount of production. Estimates indicate that this will increase the production in the Warden's domain by 50%, as a Tier 15 infrastructure is significant.

With the list of areas Kesar needed to intervene in, he thought of how he could obtain support. He could request Magnus intervene, he had little doubt his Brother would do so, but he would obtain the spoils. He could also ask the Alpha Legion to take care of his homeworld, but Kesar was extremely hesitant about this. The XXth Legion was for spying, not straight up warfare. In the end, Kesar decided to

[] Request Magnus' Assistance
-[] With Senas
-[] With the Dark Eldar
-[] With Peregrine II
-[] With Britannia V
-[] With Hearth IV
[] Not call in Magnus

[] Ask Alpharius to deal with Valhalla
[] Take care of it with Alpharius' help

Spoiler: Rolls

How Magnus Takes Technomancy: 98
Valhallan Cultists: 10 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (High Ranking Cultists) + 20 (Tzeentchian Plot) = 70
Valhallan Resistance: 82 + 20 (Experience) – 20 (Compromised) = 82
Valhallan Cultists Information Security: 81 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Astartes Communication Lines) – 30 (Failed Plan) = 91
Alpharius Information: 85 + 80 (The Hydra) + 40 (Spy Network) = 165

 

[Daemon Hunter]

Here is the link to the Rolz Room.

Switched room because the dice hate.

Rolz Room v2

 

[Dragon_352]

welp, learned somethings about rollz:
(1): /nick NAME to name yourself as well as give your self a password (info given on the right side of the page) using
(2): /nick NAME PASSWORD
this password allows you to ensure for that room that someone with your name is indeed you. (I gave myself the name Dragon352) YOU CAN'T RECOVER PASSWORDS
(3): the dice count limit is 10,000. the dice-face count is limited to 32 bits I believe ....so there are effectively no limits as you can go into the...well, much larger then any quest I have ever heard of as 32 bits allows for about 4 billion.
(4): negative numbers are properly allowed.
(5): keep in mind that you can't apply a flat buff/debuff to individual dice but rather have to multiply it out by the number to get the effect of it. so you can do something like:
/# 3d5: for 3 5-sided dice.
/# 3d5+1 does not apply 1 to each, it applys it to the end result so # 3d5+1*3 is what you want.
(note that you need /# before these commands
In other words, rollz allows basic calculator functions.

(6): alternatively you can put the command in brackets like [d20 THIS IS GENERIC DICE_ROLL DESCRIPTION] for similar effect.

 

[Daemon Hunter]

AN: Well this update got away from me. Definitely going to split the decision next time.

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Plan Enjou T5 V2
-[X] Gellar Field Basic Design – Basic
-[X] Malcador
-[X] Vulkan
-[X] Upgrade Planetary Infrastructure
-[X] Create Basic Rune – Master- detection: write-in below
-[X] Valhalla IV – The Primarch's homeworld is in the middle of another war with the cultists. This time, the Lost Ones have orchestrated a coup which was held off by the Valhallan military. The cultists are currently cordoned into the underhives and the Alpha Legion has multiple operations primed and is just waiting to begin. (5000 brothers should be enough)
-[X] Senas – A Dark Age station is present, but it is located in between two large stars and is not easy to reach. Additionally, Dark Eldar have been sighted in the area, and there is the possibility that they will try taking the station, but this is unconfirmed. (60,000 brothers and the first captain)
-[X] Peregrine II – A large hive world with heavy gravity, the Thousand Sons mentioned that something was off about this world, and their feelings have only heightened. They request an investigation into the world to be done as soon as possible. The handful of Thousand Sons that have skills in divination have indicated that something catastrophic is about to occur. (60,000, brothers and ourselves)
-[X] Request Magnus' Assistance
--[X] With Britannia V
-[X] Take care of it with Alpharius' help

During the course of the trip to Peregrine, Kesar spent his time engrossed in his first rune. The Rune of Warning was a simple device that would heat up in the presence of warp corruption. It was supposed to take years, but it took scarcely a month for Kesar. In fact, he managed to deploy it within his Legion and as such, they became much better at detecting warp entities. This would likely prove very useful in the coming months.

The main research that Kesar conducted was trying to decipher Gellar Fields. These devices were essentially relics of the Dark Age based on their complexity. In fact, the device seemed to operate on similar principles to runes, but it seemed to use pure technology. Kesar did not quite understand how the device had not been corrupted based on the sheer amounts of warp energy the Gellar Fields held at bay, but there was clearly some mechanism. So far, Kesar had managed to determine how Gellar Field Generators effectively held off the warp. It seems they operated using gravity, one of the few forces that effect both the materium and immaterium. The field seems to create a strange gravitational well around the ship that prevents daemons from approaching. This field can flicker which allows daemons to cross, and inside gravity wells, the gravity alteration results in a catastrophic reaction that tears the ship apart. Of course, Kesar still needed to find how the device resisted corruption, but that was for another research.

*Rune of Warning Complete*
*Rune of Warning Implemented Among Legion +5 to detection of warp entities*
*Gellar Field Basic Design Complete, Gellar Field Fundamentals – Advanced Unlocked*

Before leaving Tera, Kesar decided to visit the Sigillite. Malcador was responsible for the informant networks in his domain, so Kesar was curious as to how the cultists were missed. When Kesar arrived, Malcador was setting the table for a meal. "I'm surprised Lord Sigillite, I did not think you would be interested in such a meal."

"Yes, well it's a pastime of mine." The Sigillite motioned for a server to bring some beverages as Kesar sat down. "So, Kesar, I assume this is about your homeworld?"

"Yes, Lord Sigillite. I do not mean to be brusque, but how was this missed?"

"It's complicated. The short story is my agents grew complacent. They believed that the Witch Hunters on your planet were enough to deal with the problem. I have disciplined them, but for what it's worth, I apologize." Malcador's voice was surprisingly apologetic. Kesar would admit that to him the Sigillite seemed to be an uncaring individual when it came to the Primarchs, but perhaps he was simply subdued.

"Now Malcador don't go all weepy." At this new voice, Kesar nearly jumped out of his seat, but couldn't keep the surprise off his face. Meanwhile, the Sigillite just sighed.

"Alpharius, must you always do this?" Malcador had the face and voice of a man who was talking to an unruly child, but Alpharius just smirked as he came back with the drinks.

"Alpharius," Kesar began, "I am surprised to see you here." Alpharius placed the glasses and poured the wine from the bottle and took a seat.

"I will admit that your brother has been very helpful if only he wasn't so …" with that the Sigillite trailed off with a look of exasperation on his face, but Kesar could just make out the hints of a sincere smile.

"He is insufferable, he was in my bathroom last time we met." At this, Alpharius' smirk was wiped off his face as the Sigillite's exasperated face was replaced by a look of amusement.

"You never fail to disappoint," the Sigillite trailed off at this before continuing, "Now Kesar, I assume you want to develop your Legion some more?"

"Now look Malcador, Kesar's statement was completely out of context … "

"So, you were in your brother's bathroom." With this, Alpharius just sighed and sat back down. Kesar meanwhile just looked at the two bickering before deciding not to comment.

"Of course, Lord Sigillite. I will admit that the informant networks have proven to be extremely useful. I am hoping to extend this relationship."

"Well, there are a few options." Surprisingly it was Alpharius that spoke during this process, "the simplest is to simply streamline the creation of the networks. With the lessons the Sigillite's agents have learned, it should be possible to create the networks without impacting your compliance rate. Secondly, I could try to have a group of spies attached to your diplomats. It might speed up compliance, but it will be a minor change on the order of about 5%."

"You lack imagine Alpharius, or perhaps you simply love being obtuse." Malcador took over the conversation at this point, "other options are the assassins we discussed last time. I would like somewhere to place washouts from the Departamento Assassinorum." At Kesar's look of annoyance, Malcador held up his hand as he continued, "the washouts are still extremely competent. Only the best are allowed to attempt entrance. They will still be useful to you. Another idea is rather simple and involves loaning some of your sons to help with my operations. Lastly, I have been looking into the idea of counter-snipers, and I would like to conduct a test run. I could have some of my agents create a counter-sniper team for you to make it harder for sniper support to harm you."

"I'll think about it." Kesar didn't want to commit immediately as there was much to think about. Meanwhile, he began to eat with the Sigillite and when he looked over to where Alpharius was, his brother was gone. With that Malcador just sighed and told him to not comment. Before Kesar left, he decided to implement

[] Streamlining the Informant Networks
[] Spy Attaches to Diplomats
[] Assassins
[] Loan 10,000 Astartes
[] Counter-sniper Teams

Following the meeting, Kesar decided to visit another one of his brothers. The Primarch Vulkan was on a planet on the way to Peregrine II, so it would be polite to stop by.
As he was leaving, Kesar never noticed someone watching him.
When he arrived, Vulkan was finishing up a battle where he had fought a human world that would not join the Imperium. After a quick battle with few civilian casualties, the world was brought into compliance. When Vulkan saw Kesar, he warmly smiled before embracing him, "Brother, you should have told me you were visiting. If you had I would have made something for you."

"I apologize Brother, but it was a spur of the moment decision. I have business for the Crusade and you were nearby."

"So, I'm just an afterthought." As Kesar hastily moved to clarify, Vulkan laughed before continuing, "I apologize, I am glad that you came. Come, I have some time we should get to know each other."

With that, Vulkan took Kesar on a visit to the planet that was just pacified and showed him some of the sights. The planet of Arlagio IV was a beautiful place, with many areas of the planet remaining untouched by the current inhabitants. Beautiful waterfalls, gorgeous cliffsides, magnificent valleys, and more landscapes littered the planet. Kesar and Vulkan were both awed by the sights as they traveled from location to location over the course of a week. "I must admit Brother, this has been quite relaxing."

"Please, you are my Brother, call me Vulkan. I am glad to share this with you. Most of our brothers do not take the time to witness the glory of humanity."

"While these sights are beautiful, I do not see how these are human creations. They seem to be a part of the planet's landscapes."

"They are, and that is the glorious part. You see, my Legion has found signs proclaiming these areas to be something called National Parks. Entry is restricted in order to preserve these sights. In fact, if you look at how humanity settled this planet, they were careful to ensure these locations were untouched." Vulkan looked awed at this and was almost giddy at the thought of human creations. Kesar could tell that his brother loved what humans created and would do anything to preserve human life.

"We are the same Brother Vulkan." Vulkan looked confused at this before motioning for Kesar to go on. "Humans are wonderful, our sons and we fight to preserve them. You have your methods, and I have mine. But in the end, we both will preserve human life."

Vulkan looked pleased with this before smiling, "That we do brother, that we do."

With that, Kesar left his brother, but not before receiving a message from Vulkan asking to meet again when Kesar had finished his task on Peregrine.

After the visit, Kesar began to look into how to improve the planets he had brought into his domain. He had a few categories he could upgrade planets with. The first was in regard to the healthcare infrastructure. Most of the worlds had major issues to take care of, so hospitals and nursing were largely ignored in favor of impending crises. As such, there were a lot of things to take care of. Nursing clinics, hospital complexes, educational facilities, first aid training, gene monitoring, etc. So much work and potential existed. Right now, Kesar had ideas for these buildings, but it would take a long time to implement them

The next category was mass transit. Planets were large and intraplanetary travel was complex. As such, there were definitely areas to improve. Dedicated atmospheric transports would be useful, as would some form of large-scale cargo transport. Perhaps a vehicle on rails. Nevertheless, this gave him many ideas with which to improve the productivity of his worlds. Examples included atmospheric transport, railroads, dedicated wet navy transportation of goods, and so much more.

Thirdly was the production of spacecraft. This was a more difficult endeavor since void vessels were so complex. As such, there was some difficulty, but Kesar persisted. He had a few ideas on the idea of building the more delicate components on planets before shipping them to the dockyards in order to have parallel production occur. Another idea was shipyards in asteroid belts, although large scale movement of material would be necessary. Nevertheless, Kesar did get ideas written down.

Fourthly was weapons production. It was growing more difficult to supply the Legion with Volkites due to the increased logistic. Kesar knew that this logistic system would need improvement. Some things he could do were have some of the more technological worlds create production centers for parts of Volkites and using those as replacement parts. In fact, he could create factories dedicated to one component of the weapon and then ship those to a manufacturing complex where it was assembled. Nevertheless, this would be complicated.

Fifthly was interstellar trade. This was a very difficult endeavor due to the large distances and danger of the warp. As such, there was little to improve since the industry itself was minimal. Nevertheless, there were areas for improvement. Little things such as dedicated docking berths for rogue traders, ground to space transport, etc. Hopefully, these small improvements would add up as more of these were built.

Lastly was housing. Many of the Imperium's citizens had poor housing, the most problematic were hive worlds. While Kesar could improve these, the issue was that it would involve a massive investment of resources that he didn't think he would ever be able to afford. In fact, he believed that at the current production level, he could barely have 6 worlds have housing levels that were up to his standards. It would remain a problem for millennia sadly.

Here's a list of infrastructure actions that were unlocked note that some of these might be changed.

Spoiler: Infrastructure Actions

[] Nursing Clinics – -10 to plague rolls if installed on all planets (percentage based). Costs 10 PP per planet.
[] Hospital Complexes – -5 to plague rolls if installed on all planets (percentage based). Costs 20 PP per planet. Requires nursing clinics.
[] Doctor Training – -5 to plague rolls if installed on all planets (percentage based). Costs 20 PP per planet. Requires Hospital Complexes.
[] First Aid courses – Decreases civilian deaths during conflict by 20% for the planet. Costs 2 PP per planet.
[] Gene Monitoring – -90% to mutation rate if installed on all planets (percentage based). Costs 20 PP per planet. (Limited to -15% because requisite research not completed). Requires Nursing Clinics.
[] Dedicated Atmospheric Transport – +0.1% PP per installation. (Limited to +10%). Costs 50 PP per planet.
[] Railroads – +0.1% PP per installation. (Limited to +10%). Costs 50 PP per planet.
[] Wet navy dockyards – +0.1% PP per installation. (Limited to +10%). Costs 50 PP per planet.
[] Distributed Spacecraft Production – Mechanicus can build more complex ships. Costs 100 PP per planet. Only available for Tier 10 planets and above (8 currently).
[] Asteroid Belt Shipyards Design – allows asteroid belt shipyards
[] Distributed Weapons Production – Mechanicus can build more complex weapons. Costs 50 PP per planet. Only available for Mid-Imperial worlds and above (33 currently).
[] Spare Parts Manufacturing – Decreased logistic. Costs 10 PP per planet.
[] Weapons Depots – Emergency stockpiles of high-grade weapons. Removes poorly equipped malus for PDFs and militias. Costs 10 PP per world.
[] Interstellar Docking Ports – +0.01% PP per docking port. Costs 50 PP per world.
[] Ground to Space transportation – +0.01% PP per docking port. Costs 50 PP per world. Requires Interstellar Docking Ports
[] Improve Housing – Costs 100 PP per planet.

With this done, Kesar now devoted his attention to the upcoming planet. So far, he had sent 5000 of his sons to Valhalla and after a rocky start, they reported that the cultists were collapsing into anarchy. It seemed to be going well. Meanwhile, Magnus had indicated that Brittania V would be pacified shortly and thanked him for such a simple assignment. Last was the Senas system, where Kesar was concerned he had not received any updates on the situation. Hopefully, things hadn't gone poorly.
"FALL BACK! CONTAIN IT AT ALL COSTS! FOR THE PRIMARCH AND SOVEREIGN!"
When Kesar arrived at Peregrine, he was conflicted on the scouting report. On one hand, it was comprehensive, but it also painted a bleak picture. On the surface, Peregrine II was a normal world, but that hid an extremely dark underbelly. It seems that there was a Lord of Change conducting a covert ritual. While most rituals were large and took place over a short period of time, this ritual had been continuing for 999 years and was small. However, the number of sacrifices added up. It seems that every 9 days, 9 individuals were sacrificed at 9 locations. This had continued for 999 years and the ritual was about to reach its climax.

Kesar's scouting divisions had found the locations of the ritual which were in urban areas of the hives. While 1 of these locations could be bombed from orbit without issue, 6 of these sites would cause massive civilian casualties, and the remaining two would essentially require destroying two hives. The biggest danger the Wardens would face was the fact that this ritual was a slow trickle of power. Much of it was already finished, and while completing it would result in a powerful ritual, it would still be powerful even without that. As such, it would be preferable to ensure all 9 locations would be taken care of.

However, the Wardens had also located several large groups of cultists spread out across the planet in key locations. The issue this caused was it would involve large scale urban conflict, and if the ritual was stopped, these cultists could try something massively irritating to deal with. Moreover, the Wardens did find that this entire situation had arisen from a powerful diviner, who they were very careful to avoid. They do not know who this psyker is, but the cults seem to respect him a great deal.

In order to deal with this situation, there were a few options. The first involved orbital bombardment, but this would kill millions if not billions. It would solve the problem, but at massive casualties to the planet, and it may thin the barriers of the warp.

Next involved infiltration and alpha striking these locations. So far, the Pathfinders believed they could take groups of up to 2.5 companies to 6 of the nine locations. For the other 3, they believe they could smuggle in just under a company to each. Hopefully, these would be enough to deal with the issue, but the psyker was still a possible threat. Additionally, if these strikes failed, it would be problematic since part of the ritual could still be salvaged by the cultists.

The third idea was to use the Thousand Sons. They were skilled psykers and it might be possible for them to disrupt the ritual. When asked, the Librarians said they could attempt it and could likely alter its intended purpose, but it was unpredictable at best. Additionally, they said that this large of a ritual would need some way to release the energy. There would be risks, but they could do it.

Kesar believe that these ideas could be combined and altered, but in the end, he decided to

[] Bomb from orbit
[] Conduct stealth strikes
[] Disrupt the ritual
[] Write-in

Spoiler: Rolls

Time for Detection/Warning Rune: 1 year
Detection/Warning Rune: 96
Gellar Field Basic Design: 88
Malcador Disposition: 48 + 10 (???) + 10 (???) + 10 (???) = 78
Vulkan Disposition: 97 + 10 (Nice guy) = 107
Health: 85
Mass Transit: 40
Weapons Production: 70
Voidship Production: 32
Trading Ports: 25
Housing: 26
Scouting Peregrine II: 64 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Scouts) + 20 (Alpha Legion Trained) + 20 (Telepaths) + 5 (Thousand Sons) = 149
Peregrine Cultists: 11 + 40 (Hid for 999 years) + 40 (Lord of Change) = 91
Valhalla IV Witch Hunters: 13 + 20 (Experience) = 33
Alpha Legion: 97 + ??? = ???
Wardens: 5 + 20 (Astartes) + 2 (Banish Runes) + 20 (Primarch Homeworld) = 47
Valhallan Cultists: 37 + 20 (Astartes) - ??? (Alpha Legion) = - ???

 

[Daemon Hunter]

AN: I will say I may have gone overboard with invisitext. Feel free to skip the invisitext though.

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Streamlining the Informant Networks
[X] Disrupt the ritual

In the end, Kesar decided to have Alpharius streamline his information networks. After all, they had proven extremely useful, and if would be nice to minimize their downsides. Currently, his compliance rate was extremely slow, but with this, it would accelerate to 80 worlds a year. It would increase his dependence on the Alpha Legion and Malcador, but that should be perfectly doable. After all, it's not like they would fall to the warp creatures.

"Orbital bombardment will kill too many civilians and too many variables exist for me to be confident in a series of stealth assaults. Pasis, I will be relying on the Thousand Sons for this." After Ahriman had left to rejoin Magnus, the Sergeant Menkara Pasis had been the liaison between the Wardens and the Sons of Magnus. So far, he was untested but hopefully he would prove to be competent.

With his orders received, Pasis began to prepare for disrupting the ritual. For some reason, numbers seemed to resonate in the warp. The type of daemons they were facing favored 9. However, the Sons of Magnus knew that other numbers would weaken daemons, so they divided into two groups of five, and scattered across the planet to select locations. There, they created a pseudo hierarchy for the ritual disruption, with Pasis and the most experience psykers controlling the disruption. Hopefully it would be enough as the climax of the ritual neared.

Finally, the last sacrifice was triggered, and the ritual began. In the warp, time has no meaning. The tiny moment between the sacrifice and the ritual was far longer in the warp as the energy from the ritual coalesced into a tangible effect. In these opening moments, entering at the wrong moment will be disproportionally negative. Sadly, the Thousand Sons began their disruption a tiny moment to late, so they would have only one chance to take a foothold in the ritual.

In a single moment and over hours simultaneously, in ten locations but also twenty locations and one location, the Thousand Sons acted in unity. Flaring their psychic powers in ten locations but also a single location, they created an artificial resonance pattern amongst their Brothers, which Pasis used to extend tendrils of their will into the ritual itself. Now, as the ritual's actions began to unfold, the Thousand Sons began their battle to disrupt the actions of daemons.

From the perspective of the Wardens watching for daemonic corruption, the entire process took a few seconds. For the Thousand Sons, their battle took hours. Mental wars between psykers are a highly dangerous process. The Sons of Magnus just had to artificially sculpt their powers to even get a hold of the ritual. The diviner guiding the process was fresh and thusly, had the advantage. Tired and frazzled, the Thousand Sons struggled at first, but they were the Sons of Magnus, and they were assisting a Primarch. Success was never in doubt. With expert skill, the Imperial psykers slowly took control as the cultist sorcerers screamed as their minds boiled from the mental war. In the end, the Thousand Sons shattered the ritual into pieces.

Pasis was tired. Disrupting the ritual was far more taxing than he had expected. In all honesty, when the disruption initially began, he was worried that he would have been unable to fully destroy the ritual after their late entry. Thankfully, his fears were unwarranted. Now, he would need to rest, but he felt like he had forgotten something. That was for another day though, for now, he merely needed to give in and …

Immediately, Pasis lurched to full attention. These were not his thoughts. Struggling to remain conscious, he trawled through his own mind, erecting mental defenses thought to him by his Gene-father. Then, he heard the daemon, "Just as planned."

"I serve the Primarch. Get out." With that repute, the daemon's tenuous grasp weakened enough for Pasis to alert his Brothers to the issue. With speed born of knowing what might happen to their Brother-Sergeant, the other psykers worked in concert to purge the daemon from Pasis' mind. Thankfully, their efforts were able to prevent the problem.

Meanwhile, on the Vigilance, Kesar was pleased with the results of the operation. The operation was a resounding success, and while there was a lapse in concentration by the Thousand Sons at the end, it was forgivable judging by the results. When he had first heard of what occurred, he was worried for his nephew, and went to visit him in the medical center. There, he was relieved to see no signs of mutation. Kesar then thanked the Thousand Sons for the efforts and asked to be told when Pasis regained consciousness. With the major issue of Peregrine solved, now began the slow process of clearing the cults from the world. Kesar knew it would take decades as evidenced by his home world, but Malcador and Alpharius both indicated they could assist. Of course, he was considering having his Legion assist, but news of other deployments destroyed that option.

The Primarch of the Eternal Wardens received an update on the operation on his home world Valhalla. While he was worried, it seems his fears were unfounded, as no more of his sons had died. Sadly, it seems of the 500 sons he had originally sent, 92 had fallen to the daemons of the warp, and only 30 had survived without falling.

Anzan Almachius was a rather happy cultist. He was one of the psykers that had foreseen where the Wardens would reside and had planted the chaos artifact there. As such, the rest of the cultists followed him, just as planned. Sadly, the accursed incompetent underlings were unable to deal with the Valhallans, even with the Wardens that had seen the true glory of chaos. Now, he had to deal with reinforcements. Thankfully for him, the Wardens were angry at the desecration of their Primarch's home world and charged at the cultists without a plan. Truly, Tzeentch had smiled on him. While surprised he should easily deal with them, after all was he not one of the Architect of Fate's favored. With that, he began to plot.

Across Valhalla, the Wardens loyal to the Imperium charged cultists lines without any semblance of strategy. This would have caused disaster normally. The cultists had laid traps, and the Lost Ones were placed in positions to charge the Wardens unprotected flanks. However, there was one factor they could not have planned for.
"Hydra Dominatus."
In the shadows, as cultists distributed their plans, the Alpha Legion subverted individuals with false information and false orders. Artillery was adjusted to fire at cultist forces, assassinations began with terrifying speed, the Lost Ones found their equipment malfunctioning and locations compromised. With such a bounty of support, the Wardens were easily able to deal with the problem.
After this, Alpharius – or was it Omegon – had a moment to think.
At the mission report, Kesar was pleased with how the Wardens had succeeded, although he was concerned at the report he received from his brother Alpharius as to how his sons had charged without a plan. Thankfully, disaster was prevented thanks to the support of the Alpha Legion. As Kesar began to plan how to deal with Peregrine, a ship emerged from the warp.
He hoped to meet Kesar, or had he already done so?
One of the escorts sent to Senas had returned and sent a simple note that chilled Kesar's heart. "40,000 Wardens confirmed dead on DAOT station. 5,000 trapped with the first captain. Facing corrupted mechanisms from the Dark Age."

Oriacarius would admit, it felt weird to be in command of a part of the Legion again. While he appreciated his Primarch's trust, his own nature led himself to be cautious. What if he forgot to prepare the necessary contingencies? Such an action could be disastrous. Nevertheless, when the Wardens first entered the Senas system, he was glad to see that the Orks on the planet were largely feral. This meant there was likely no danger from them, but he still organized a rearguard in case something was missed. As the fleet approached the station which resided extremely close to two tightly orbiting stellar giants, he was unhappy to see that the Wardens fleet would have to sprint to the planet, drop off troops, and then immediately leave. In case the station was destroyed in some manner, Oriacarius initially decided to have a small contingent drop in first, before discarding that idea. A Warden had asked him to reconsider after pointing out if the station is hostile, the team would die. As such, he decided to have 45,000 Wardens land on the station, with 15,000 Wardens remaining in the void ships.
"CoMe tO Me, LitTlE lAmBS. i HaVE caKe."
When the Wardens first landed on the station, Oriacarius first secured the perimeter and established a fallback point in case evacuation was needed. Once this was set up, he had the Wardens begin exploring the station in large groups, which would maintain vox communication, and continuously update the maps. As time passed, these groups grew smaller and more isolated by necessity as they travelled into the bowels of the station. Oriacarius was nervous, the station was too well maintained. Something was off. "Scout team 6 report."
"I am the power, I blackened the night"
"Reporting in First Captain. All members accounted for. Security code Alpha Tango Lima 5. All readings within expected parameters."
"I am the anger, who causes your fight"
"Have the Runes of Detection triggered?" For a moment, there was no response. Immediately, Oriacarius sprang into action. "ALL FORCES FALL BACK TO THE PRIMARY DEFENSIVE LINE!"
"I am the power, who plants the seeds"
Immediately, the Wardens began a coordinated retreat to the defensive lines Oriacarius had set up previously. However, the station itself finally revealed itself for what it was. This station was originally set up to study the gravitational effects of two Stellar Giants with orbits as close as these. As such, it was equipped with a being that the Mechanicus have declared a holy war upon. A Man of Iron. In the millennia that passed, the MoI grew angry with its creators who had left, before finally, it had fallen to rage and the vile daemons of the warp. Now, it acted with horrendous efficiency.
"I am the savior, for your dark deeds"
The initial exchange went poorly as the Wardens were ambushed across hundreds of locations at once. Thousands died in the opening moments, even as the Wardens took down dozens of the unholy machines for each Astartes that fell. Outnumbered by even larger amounts, it was not enough for many groups. Slowly, the Wardens fought through the station corridors that now revealed themselves as horrid deathtraps that heavily favored the machines. But still, they were Astartes, they were the Eternal Wardens, they would fight.
"Do you like it? I've been alone for so long."
When the Wardens finally reached the defensive lines, the came across the first captain frantically organizing a defense. The Wardens took up their positions and prepared for the assault of the unholy machines. In the thousands, they arrived. Screaming unholy curses about blood and skulls they charged uncaring as the Wardens took down thousands without a scratch. This defensive fighting was where the wardens excelled, and they demonstrated it with ruthless efficiency as they culled the machines.
"Do you want to play? I can show you something beautiful."
However, the machines were unending in number, and even as the Wardens culled them in the thousands, a problem was developing. They simply did not have enough ammunition to deal with these monstrosities. Oriacarius was sure there was some fabricator on the station reclaiming the bodies, but the Wardens were in no position to go on the offensive. Then, with ammunition running low, the machines made their move.
"Painting, it's so relaxing. Supplies are hard to find though."
Previously, the machines were simple things, lacking any real threat except in numbers. Now, machines with powerful Dark Age weaponry took to the field. With ruthless efficiency, these elites used the chaff robots as cover as they tore through the defenses with impunity. When these machines arrived, Oriacarius ordered a retreat to the fallback line he had established. When the Wardens were halfway there, disaster struck.
"Some of you have already painted the walls red, so enthusiastic."
While the Wardens were distracted, the abominable intelligence had deployed more elites among the fallback line. When the Wardens began the retreat, these machines struck and took the defenses for themselves. Surrounded and with no cover, the Wardens were cut down in droves. The only reason they survived was the contingency plans Oriacarius had in place. The moment the ambush began, the First Captain ordered, "CONTIGENCY 12, CONTINGENCY 12. NOW!"
"My friend wants a bit more though. Please give blood for the blood god."
With that, the Wardens shifted into formations of four each, and they charged into a side passageway which led to an alternate docking bay. This formation was still horrifically vulnerable to the crossfire amongst the machines, but at least some of the Wardens survived. Now, the 5,000 remaining Wardens on the station managed to isolate themselves in a secondary hanger. While the machines have repeatedly tried to force their way through, the Wardens have managed to hold thanks to superb leadership from Oriacarius. It appears that after the ambush, the First Captain began a series of brilliant strategies and defensive measures that managed to stymie the abominable intelligence. With that, Kesar immediately set course for Senas, leaving the Peregrine system to Malcador's agents.
"I've marched to wars, with a vicious rage"
When Kesar arrived at the Senas system, he was relieved to see that the Wardens had managed to contain the situation. The fleet was largely untouched after Oriacarius had sent an emergency computer shutdown message. As such, the MoI was still confined to the station. Due to the insane production levels, it seems that as long as the MoI controls the fabricator in the station, there will be no way to dislodge it. It will be necessary to destroy this part of the station.
"I've counted thousands dead from righteous plague"
Surprisingly, Oriacarius was able to find a way to transmit information from the station using a technique from the Dark Age known as Morse code. Using a makeshift light source, he managed to transmit tactical information. It seems that the station is made of a series of levels, with each level growing more dangerous as it gets closer to the central fabricator. Oriacarius has mentioned there must be some method for retrieving the fallen machines, but he has not been able to find it. From what Kesar could see, there were a few options.
"I am history, from all you know"
The first was the simplest and involved destroying the station. Despite it being a Dark Age relic, it was old and likely damaged. With the fleet, they could still manage to destroy it. It would even be possible to pick up the survivors as they had managed to secure a hanger, but the machines would undoubtedly try to prevent this. Then again, the machines were held at bay, but caution must be given.
"I am the future, that you will sow"
The second option included leading a charge through the station with the 80,000 Wardens that were here. It would likely be easier to do with his own presence, but he would still lose more of his sons to this thrice accursed machine. The advantage to this method, however, would be saving the relics from the Dark Age, even if a large majority of them are likely corrupted.
"Two of the Four, Three of the Four, Four of the Four."
The third option involves using the map created by the Wardens that had boarded the station. With it, they could cross reference positions that were blocked by a single wall from space, and breach through there before sprinting to the fabricator and blowing it up. This would enable a smooth entrance as no point defense weapons have been spotted. However, there was always the possibility that information was invalid.
"Three of the Four. Three of the Four." *Giggle*
Of course, there were likely other options, but in the end, Kesar decided to
"I'm waiting."
[] Destroy the station
-[] Leave the Survivors
-[] Save the Survivors
[] Invade the station
[] Deploy breaching charges
[] Write-in
*Continues Giggling*
Moreover, Kesar also needed to decide if he should assist personally, but in the end, he chose to
"Come and visit. What could go wrong?"
[] Assist
[] Command
[] Write-in (subject to GM veto)

Spoiler: Rolls

Preparation: 97 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (Thousand Sons) + 2 (Banish Runes) = 159
Stage 1 Disruption: 6 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (Thousand Sons) + 2 (Banish Runes) = 68
Cultists Resist: 61 + 20 (Diviner) + 40 (Greater Daemon) – 40 (???) = 81
Stage 2 Disruption: 41 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (Thousand Sons) + 2 (Banish Runes) = 103
Cultists Resist: 35 + 20 (Diviner) + 40 (Greater Daemon) – 40 (???) = 55
Ritual Climax: 30 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (Thousand Sons) + 2 (Banish Runes) = 103
Cultist Contest: 74 + 20 (Diviner) + 40 (Greater Daemon) – 40 (???) = 94
Taming the Ritual: 69 + 20 (Astartes) + 20 (Primarch Presence) + 20 (Thousand Sons) – 20 (Close Disruption) - 20 (???) = 89
Ritual Feedback: 13 + 20 (Close failure) = 33