Chapter 414 Disaster of Steel
The Chapter is about to head to the Ring of Steel.
What kind of place is this?
To truly understand the full scope of the Steel Belt, you first need to know the history of this area. This region of countless stars is known for its clustering of Forge Worlds, tributaries of the Adeptus Mechanicus scattered across many star systems. Their huge demand for ancillary industries such as agricultural worlds has led to other planets having more or less connections with these forge worlds.
Under such circumstances, it would be understandable to think that the steel ring was of a solid nature, but this was not the case.
Most of the forge worlds here existed long before the Age of Strife, and for the next thousands of years, they were completely isolated and completely ignorant of things outside their own mechanical empire. Such an environment has caused each forging world to write its own history. In the main theme of bloodshed and sacrifice, they are originally from the same origin, but the contradictions between them are getting bigger and bigger.
It wasn't until the Great Crusade launched by the Human Empire that they entered the Pacific Star Territory and the Storm Star Territory. These already disparate forging worlds were connected. After understanding each other's existence, the Human Empire and the Iron Ring naturally formed an alliance.
This alliance is undoubtedly mutually beneficial. On the one hand, the forge worlds of the Iron Belt are able to embrace the knowledge and power of the entire Empire. On the other hand, the Empire also gets multiple new Titan legions that can be used to continue to expand outwards. .
In the early days of the alliance, the Titan legions of various forge worlds marched forward with the expedition fleets of the Space Marines. They severely attacked and exterminated various inhuman alien civilizations, and also defeated those human regimes that were unwilling to submit to the Empire and Mars. In the process, Each force in the Iron Belt has gained a large amount of territory and wealth, and all historical issues within the Iron Belt have been covered up by the benefits brought by the Great Expedition.
But no one will easily forget these wars that took place in their homeland. The old enemies and feuds that once tore apart their homeland are now called allies and unified under the same flag. This has laid the foundation for the division of the Iron Belt. seed.
Then the Horus Heresy broke out.
The Iron Ring naturally split into two factions, oh no, three factions, the loyal faction that supports the Emperor, the rebel faction that supports the Warmaster, and the independent faction "Unyielding Iron Empire" that does not support either side and just wants to seek independence. The three parties The forces began a great melee. Eventually, as the rebel factions across the galaxy fled to the Eye of Terror, the Titan Legion loyal to the Emperor took over the Iron Ring again, and this area once again returned to the embrace of the Empire.
This is the "Steel Scourge" campaign.
Throughout the Horus Heresy, it began at the end of the Great Crusade and ended at the end of the Heresy.
but! This battle, known as the "Iron Catastrophe", did not come to an end with a bang, but quietly withdrew from the stage of history: the loyalists suppressed the rebels to the High Varia Forge World, and just as they surrounded the galaxy Just when the final blow was about to be given to the rebels, the rebel troops disappeared inexplicably in a way that could not be explained by common sense.
In the end, only an empty and uninhabited galaxy was left. The ten planets in the galaxy had turned into dead worlds without any signs of life. The fortresses were empty, the forge cities disappeared without a trace, leaving only industrial ruins.
In other words, there was no final outcome in this war. The loyalists regained their lost territory, while the rebels took away the main force - both sides achieved their respective strategic goals.
The Horus Heresy is over.
But the Iron Disaster did not really come to an end, and this result did not comfort the lives that had been ravaged by the artillery fire of the Titan Legion and its affiliated forces.
Small-scale conflicts are still taking place in the Iron Belt. Civil wars are tearing apart planets, and speculators are active among them trying to get ahead. Hundreds of worlds have been affected by the war, and are gradually declining in the battle between themselves and their enemies. The blood of billions of lives has dyed every pair of strong hands red.
The above is the current situation of the steel ring belt.
Based on the wording in Terra's transfer order.
The group of Dark Mechanicum that escaped at the beginning.
It seems... back again?
…
This time Qingshan Khan came out with the main force of the Iron Buddha Chapter. The naval force included a battle barge, three strike cruisers and a bunch of imperial transport ships. Only one strike cruiser was left to guard Marquez. King Star District.
The Marsk King Sector is located on the border of the empire. Although the sector is large, it is vast and sparsely populated. All in all, there is only one recruiting world, one forging world, one hive world and one agricultural world. They are also located in different star systems. .
A company and a strike cruiser are enough.
The Forge World of Atal Median.
The headquarters of the Loyalist Mechanicum in the Iron Belt.
Now it is a gathering place for counter-insurgency forces from all sides.
As soon as the Iron Buddha Chapter's fleet passed through the subspace from the Mandeville Point on the edge of the galaxy, it was discovered by a patrol battleship nearby. After confirming its identity, a Cobra-class destroyer guided the Emperor-class battleship and followed closely. The following three heavy cruisers headed to the Forge World Airport.
The 1.5-kilometer-long Cobra-class destroyer, traveling in front of the 12-kilometer-long Emperor-class battleship, is like a small tadpole swimming in front of a pike, very inconspicuous.
It can be seen from the various paintings of warships that the airport of the Forge World of Atal Meridian is already crowded with fleets from various battle groups, all of which are troops dispatched by the Ministry of Military Affairs to assist in countering the rebellion. Titan legions from other forge worlds, it seems that the Mechanicus also attaches great importance to the Iron Ring, perhaps even more than Terra.
The arrival of the Su Zheng caused some commotion in the airport. Such giant battleships that have been discontinued are really rare. Although they did not know that it was an empty aircraft carrier without fighter planes, it did not prevent them from envying them. envy.
Fleet docking completed.
Fu Qinghai led his men down the battleship along the connecting channel and came to the airport deck. Several imperial officials and technical priests were waiting here. They bowed and said:
"Please follow me, my lord."
…
Steel Ring Theater Command, this is a large conference room temporarily transformed from the Forging Temple.
Fu Qinghai entered the conference room alone and found that there were many Space Marines already there. In addition to the Space Marines, there were also officers of the Imperial Guard and sages of the Mechanicus. They were whispering to each other and talking in low voices.
"You're late, Chapter Master of Iron Buddha."
A deep female voice sounded.
Fu Qinghai turned around and saw a woman wearing Ignatus-type power armor, with a black cloak hanging behind her. The hood covered half of her face, with a few strands of hair hanging down.
A female inquisitor?
Ignatus type power armor is a special power armor for the Inquisitor. Fu Qinghai has seen it in Terra.
"You also know about subspace navigation."
Fu Qinghai explained casually.
Then he asked:
"If I may take the liberty, may I ask who you are?"
The woman lifted her hood, revealing a middle-aged face. She had caramel-colored smooth skin. Objectively speaking, her facial features were delicate and pretty, but her eyes were too deep and sharp. Those eyes felt like a sharp knife piercing the soul. .
"Sid Nora, Order of the Hammer, Grand Inquisitor."
The woman spoke concisely and to the point.
No wonder he always felt uncomfortable when he was stared at by her eyes. It turned out that he was a judge of the Demon Tribunal, and most of the judges were psykers.
"Good morning, Your Majesty the Inquisitor."
Fu Qinghai extended his hand politely.
"Hello, Qingshan Nayanhan."
The Inquisitor reached out and shook his hand.
oh? Fu Qinghai raised his eyebrows slightly.
On his way here, some people called him "Captain Qingshan Chapter", and some people called him "His Excellency Chapter Commander". Only this judge called him the correct title.
The green hills are sweating.
It shows that this woman has a certain understanding of the Fifth Legion, and knows some cultural traditions unique to Chogris, as well as the special titles and titles of White Scars.
This actually aroused Fu Qinghai's good impression.
Fu Qinghai was half a body taller than the inquisitor, but she was still neither humble nor arrogant when she stood in front of the giant ceramite giant. When she saw the surprised look on the face of the space warrior, the woman's lips curled up into a smile. It seemed that she had done this in advance. Some homework.
Fu Qinghai sat on his seat and asked casually:
"So, what is the situation now? Is there no top military commander in this war zone?"
There was some commotion in the conference room.
There are people from all military systems in the empire.
"Yes, Marshal Hershro of the Imperial Guard serves as the highest military commander of the Iron Ring Theater."
Sid Nora found a seat diagonally behind Fu Qinghai, crossed his arms and said lightly:
"He'll be here soon."
As soon as he finished speaking, a white-haired old man with a solemn appearance in military uniform walked slowly into the door.
Hey, Hexelo?
Fu Qinghai has heard of this name.
The author of the later "Introduction Guide to Imperial Infantry" seems to be the Marshal of the Imperial Guard in front of him.
The Imperial Infantry Beginner's Guide can be called the Imperial Guard's version of the Codex Astartes. Every Guardsman soldier has a copy of it, but its actual guiding significance is much greater than that of the Codex Astartes, covering all aspects of the Imperial Guard. All aspects required for daily combat: rules, regulations and organizational structure; instructions for using issued weapons, instruments and other equipment; basic battlefield tactics; basic medical skills; strategies for dealing with enemies of the empire, etc.
The Marshal of the Imperial Guard who can write such an instruction manual is probably not an incompetent mediocre person.
GW has published a physical book called "The Imperial Infantry Beginner's Guide". This book uses a joking but serious tone to supplement the daily combat details of the Imperial Guard, as well as some Soviet-style Warhammer 40K political metaphor jokes, which is quite interesting.
A bit like "One Weekly".
So Fu Qinghai was deeply impressed.
"Who is that person next to you?"
Fu Qinghai then asked.
"The ruling sage, Hieronymus Gant, is also one of the highest military commanders in the war zone and is responsible for the actual command of the Mechanicum troops. He knows the iron belt very well."
Sid Nora answered patiently.
"The supreme commander is a mortal, haha."
A disdainful chuckle came from the side.
Fu Qinghai turned around and looked over.
He was a space warrior wearing dark red power armor.
No way, right? What era is this antique from? The Legion has been divided for so long. Is it any wonder that mortal officers command Space Marines? Do you think you are still living in the era of the Astartes Legion? Fu Qinghai thought to himself.
As if feeling Fu Qinghai's gaze, the space warrior turned his head, nodded and said:
"Clifford, Bloodthirsty Chapter."
"Qingshan, Iron Buddha Battle Group."
After Fu Qinghai introduced himself, he tentatively asked:
"A sub-band of the Blood Angels?"
"Very accurate vision."
The chapter leader replied calmly:
"We are indeed the children of Sanguinius."
After speaking, he raised his hand and pointed to the opposite side:
"Here, the Flesh Tearers are over there."
Oops, two sub-groups of Blood Angels came at once.
From the second establishment of the army in 31K to the ultimate establishment of the army in 42K, the Adeptus Astartes has had more than a thousand battle groups. Some of them disappeared in a flash, and some of them lasted forever. To be honest, Fu Qinghai Can't even remember who is who.
But he knew some basic rules.
Any war group named "XX Angels" is either a sub-group of the Blood Angels or a sub-group of the Dark Angels. At the same time, because the High Lords Council does not allow the use of the gene seeds of the Dark Angels to establish sub-groups, the latter group has a larger number of sub-groups. Young Master, if you guess at the Blood Angels, you will basically get the right guess.
Although Bloodthirsters and Flesh Tearers do not conform to this rule, one look at their dark red power armor, as well as the blood drops, wings and Holy Grail symbols on their shoulder armors...
One hundred percent Blood Angels sub-group.
Fu Qinghai thought that he would have to tell the brothers in the war group to stay away from these guys later, so that the "blood thirst" and "black rage" would not attack at the same time, and the enemy would fight indiscriminately.
Perhaps because the Dark Angels are very disobedient and the High Lords Council does not like them, they are prohibited from using Dark Angel gene seeds to create sub-groups. However, the Dark Angel gene seeds are actually very useful, and several sub-groups were forcibly separated despite Terra's protests. , genes are very stable without any variation.
On the contrary, there are many Blood Angel sub-groups, but almost every sub-group has inherited "blood thirst" and "black rage", which poses huge hidden dangers, but the High Lords Council does not care about these.
"I'm a descendant of the White Scars."
Fu Qinghai also briefly introduced himself.
The Bloodthirsty Chapter Master nodded in understanding.
In the center of the auditorium, Generalissimo Hershrow was describing his strategic plan, describing it in a precise and precise manner:
"In this battle, I will use the Titan Legion as the main ground force, the Imperial Guard Corps as the auxiliary ground force, and the Astartes Chapter to fully cooperate with the Imperial Navy fleet, participate in peripheral gang-hopping battles, and seize orbital air supremacy..."
First let’s make one thing clear:
The Titan Legion serves as the main force.
Not even the most unruly Chapter Master Astartes raised any objections to this arrangement.
Clash of the Titans is Clash of the Titans.
Even the smallest Knight-class Titan in the Titan Legion is far more powerful than any Space Marine or Dreadnought. Apart from orbital bombardment, there is only one Titan Legion that can deal with another Titan Legion.
If the Space Marines want to arm-wrestle with the Titan Legion, unless they are equipped with a large number of heavy armored vehicles or heavy army aviation fighters in the Legion era, then forget about it.
Afterwards, the marshal continued to assign combat tasks.
The more Fu Qinghai listened, the more he frowned.
According to the information currently available, the empire's overall military strength is greater than that of the Dark Mechanicus. And Hershrow's tactical layout is well-organized, step by step, fighting steadily, dividing and encircling bit by bit, eroding the traitors' living space. If everything is executed smoothly, it can achieve the greatest results at the smallest cost. At first glance, there is almost nothing wrong with it. .
The only drawback is that it takes a bit long.
Many officers present, including Space Marines, Imperial Guards, Imperial Navy, and sages from various forging worlds, could not find any fault with such a plan. Everyone listened silently, and no one raised an opinion.
What Fu Qinghai thinks is wrong is:
This is not the early stage of the Great Rebellion. Most of the traitors have already hid in the Eye of Terror. Doesn’t the Dark Mechanicus know that its overall military strength is inferior to the Human Empire and the Mechanicus? If they knew it, why would they dare to invade the Steel Ring?
Generalissimo Hershrow's plan.
More or less...
Too slow and too conservative.
Fu Qinghai thought about the outcome of the "Steel Disaster".
Perhaps the Dark Mechanicus has no intention of territorial sovereignty over the forge world of the Iron Ring?
This is just a guess. You must know what the enemy's specific strategic goals are before you can make targeted arrangements. If you know what the enemy wants to do, then tell him not to do anything. What if the enemy doesn't care about the gains and losses of a city or a place at all?
So what does the enemy care about?
What exactly does the Dark Mechanicum want?
Fu Qinghai doesn't know either.
At this point in time, Abaddon's first Black Crusade has not yet begun. No one in the Empire has been to the Eye of Terror. They actually don't know much about what is going on in the Eye of Terror and the specific needs of the rebels. Understand, based on this situation, Fu Qinghai has a conjecture:
Assuming that the strategic goal of the Dark Mechanicum is to grab a wave of resources and run away without any other plans, then this steady and steady territorial recovery plan based on usual experience will play into the enemy's hands.
Finally, the ending of "Steel Disaster" reappears.
The traitors got what they wanted.
The empire also regained lost territories.
When a war is over, both sides are happy?
No, it can't be like this, and it shouldn't be like this.
Fu Qinghai frowned and shook his head slowly.
War shouldn't be fought like this.
In the ten thousand years from 31K to 42K, Abaddon launched a total of thirteen black expeditions, which was the so-called "Eternal War" on the Chaos side. Each time Abaddon was driven back to the Eye of Terror, but the Chaos War Shuai has a tough mouth and insists that he has not lost, so he has won the title of "Victory in every battle".
But if you think about it from another angle, the empire also claims that it has won every victory against Chaos. However, the black army is getting stronger and stronger... What's going on?
Don’t you win every time?
Then why are the opponents getting stronger and stronger?
After all, your side is getting weaker and weaker?
As a Chinese, Fu Qinghai is well aware of how many grassland regimes outside the customs rose in history.
The Empire of Man...may need to reflect.
After the combat meeting ended, the commanders of each Astartes chapter and Imperial Guard regiment walked out of the meeting venue one after another, preparing to enter the battle according to strategic arrangements.
"how?"
Sid Nora suddenly came over:
"You think there's something wrong with Hershrow's strategy?"
Fu Qinghai shook his head and said nothing.
He was not familiar with this demon judge either, and they only had a close relationship, so there was no need to tell her his thoughts for the time being.
Moreover, although they don't quite agree with this current strategy, there is one thing that everyone can agree on - the Titan Legion is the absolute main force in this war. Without Titan units, they are not qualified to participate in the battle on the frontal battlefield.
But no one knows that.
There are actually Titans in the Iron Buddha Chapter...
Fu Qinghai couldn't explain to others why his own Astartes Legion had a Titan? A Titan with an extremely strange shape? Did the Codex Astartes agree? Did the Adeptus Mechanicus Titans agree?
It's too complicated to explain.
Fu Qinghai did not answer the judge's question.
Instead, he changed the subject and proactively asked her:
"This battle was supposed to be a battle between the Titan Legions. Even the Astartes Chapter was not the main force, but the Demonic Tribunal came. This means that the Dark Mechanicum will appear and psionic Related nastiness?”
"You're sharp, Khan."
Sid Nora nodded and said.
She gave Fu Qinghai a meaningful look:
"In fact, I asked the Ministry of Military Affairs to issue the order to dispatch the Iron Buddha Chapter to the Iron Ring."
"oh?"
Fu Qinghai didn't expect this.
No wonder this woman started talking to him when he came up.
It turned out that she was the one who applied to be sent to fight in the war.
Fu Qinghai thought to himself:
The problem is that I didn't provoke the Demon Tribunal either.
"why?"
Fu Qinghai humbly asked for advice.
"There is no reason. Just because you are a descendant of the White Scars, one of the most powerful legions in psychic power after the Thousand Sons, I want to use the power of the Storm Prophet. I know what you want to ask, why not Go directly to Chogoris to find the White Scars Chapter? Because Jaghatai Khan is leading his war group to hunt down the Dark Eldar fleet in the Yashan Sector and has no time to deal with this side. At the same time, the Imperial Regent led the Ultramarines and All its sub-groups are hunting down the fallen Primarch Fulgrim and have no time to pay attention to the war on the Iron Ring."
Sid Nora said slowly:
"I read the records of the Ministry of Military Affairs. The Iron Buddha Chapter is a sub-group of the White Scars and has a good record. Therefore, I applied to Terra to send you across the star field to the Iron Ring."
Very far indeed.
Fu Qinghai didn't understand it at first.
Why do we need to send our war group from the Hazy Star Territory to the war between the Taiping Star Territory and the Storm Star Territory?
"I'm afraid I have to disappoint you."
Fu Qinghai said rather embarrassedly.
The Iron Buddha Chapter, worthy of being called the White Scars, has neither Storm Seers nor an established think tank unit.
The only high-quality think tank candidate, the future think tank director of the chapter, the battle brother who used Amon's gene seed, is still studying magic in the Quanzhou monastery.
What we are good at is something else.
Fu Qinghai explained sincerely: Our battle group does not have a think tank. The three-legged cat kung fu and magic tricks of No. 56, Salfaran and Kalamanda are not worthy of being called a think tank.
"But, I don't understand..."
Fu Qinghai turned around and asked:
"Even if you need to deal with issues related to psychic energy and demons, you shouldn't come to us. That, the legendary Chapter 666, isn't it already..."
"How do you know about Chapter 666!?"
Sid Nora was shocked when he heard this.
During the Second Founding of the Army, in addition to well-known battle groups such as the Black Templars, Crimson Fist, Nova Warriors, and Scarlet Angels, there was also an ulterior secret battle group codenamed "Chapter No. 666" that quietly The ground was established.
It is famous in later generations...
Gray Knights Chapter.
This is an expert in dealing with demonic issues, an armed force directly under the Holy Hammer Order, and the first choice of demonic judges.
Well……
Seeing Sid Nora react so violently.
Fu Qinghai was also a little stunned.
Has the Gray Knight not been established yet?
However, he responded quickly and said immediately:
"Ms. Sid Nora, what I want to remind you is... I am in Terra, and I have connections."
My news channels are very well informed!
does it matter? That relationship is so powerful.
Sid Nora was a little confused.
The Inquisition, the Assassin's Court, and the Gray Knights are all institutions established by the Imperial Prime Minister during his lifetime. He knew about the existence of the Gray Knights, and he said he had connections...could it be the connection with Malcador, the Master of the Mark? This relationship is too strong!
Former Imperial Regent.
It turns out that the Tiefutu war group actually has hidden connections?
Seeing that Sid Nora's expression was a little messy.
Fu Qinghai quickly said:
"You haven't answered my question yet. What kind of demon problem needs to be dealt with by the think tank?"
"There is no concrete evidence, just a conjecture of mine. Come with me and I will show you some photos."
Sid Nora whispered.
Fu Qinghai followed the judge to the airport.
An Imperial Clipper anchored in the lower deck.
Walking into the Imperial Clipper and arriving at an ordinary cabin on the upper deck, Sid Nora closed the cabin door, checked it carefully, took out a stack of photos from the drawer, and handed it to Fu Qinghai , said:
"Do you know the final outcome of the 'Steel Scourge' battle? The fleets of the Empire and Mars have surrounded all the Mandeville Points on the outskirts of the galaxy where the High Varia Forge World is located, but the rebel forces of the Dark Mechanicus, It didn’t break out of the galaxy, it just disappeared under their noses.”
"Yeah?"
Fu Qinghai was a little surprised when he heard this.
Due to the influence of planetary gravity, subspace jumps cannot be made directly inside the galaxy. You must first reach the Mandeville Point on the outer reaches of the galaxy before you can jump to subspace.
This is basic common sense.
However, what goes against common sense is:
The Dark Mechanicum actually ran away.
Fu Qinghai looked through the photos in his hand.
"The first troops to land on the surface claimed to detect no signs of life, seeing only empty husks of Dawnstar Titans that had been destroyed in previous battles. The postures of these husks looked like they were twisted in great pain, holding up Their shelves formed even more bizarre patterns, and many people who witnessed it almost lost their minds. No one knows what happened to High Varia and how it left the galaxy."
Sid Nora said in a deep voice.
The Dawn Stars Titan Legion was the first loyal Titan Legion to invade the forge world of High Varia. However, they failed to wait for follow-up support, so they all fell on the rebel territory. Fu Qinghai looked at the photo in his hand. In the photo, these loyal Titans The Titans were all twisted into strange postures.
Fu Qinghai is not a demonologist. He doesn't know what these gestures mean. He only knows some basic common sense, such as what the sacred numbers of the four evil gods are.
"So, do you think they used some kind of sacrifice method to forcefully break through the restrictions and jump into subspace?"
Fu Qinghai narrowed his eyes and asked.
"Yes, I think that if the Dark Mechanicum dares to invade the Steel Ring again, it is likely that it will repeat its old tricks and use the same method to leave the galaxy again!"
Sid Nora said firmly.
…………
I'm sorry, the new campaign needs some ideas and preparation, so I accidentally delayed the update.