Narr Kagaddon
'The Gilded'
Narr Kagaddon, known as 'The Gilded' for his propensity for the Cthonic tradition of gold-plating enemy skulls, was assigned the task of hunting and executing loyalist command elements stationed on Semita IV.
While Kagaddon took this as a great honour, in truth it was a scheme devised to send the more zealous and unpredictable legionaries away from the greater campaign at large. Previously,
Narr Kagaddon had served in the 1st company Sons of Horus as a justaerin, where he held defacto leadership over 'The Octet'. This unit and Narr himself were ever at the forefront of engagements,
favouring teleport strikes into the heart of the enemy, or rapid insertion via assault transports. It was also Narr who oversaw the induction of a rebel cell from the White Scars, calling
themselves the 'Brotherhood of the Crescent Moon'. These legionaries led by Sobal Khan had turned away from their legion, having previously been destined for the Luna Wolves before the arrival
of Jaghatai Khan, and believing that Horus was their true leader.
The forces commanded by Narr Kagaddon are drawn from the 1st company Justaerin, 1st company Reavers, various Sons of Horus reserve companies, and the traitor White Scars 'Brotherhood of the
Crescent Moon'.
No official designation was given to this group before its dissolution at the end of M31, and its full size and strength was not recorded or easily estimated, as it was noted
Narr preferred deployment be determined by drawing lots. attached are confirmed elements of the force that were most commonly sighted.
++Installation Delta. North Wall++
Repulse at the Northern Wall
A great fireball screamed down from above and sundered the ornate defensive wall. Kylik Vasht watched from a vantage and signalled to the fast-approaching column. "The wall is breached. The field is yours my lord". "Excellent Kylik"
Kagaddon closed the connection and opened a wide vox-link to all his legionaries. "Sons of Horus!" the tinny sound of his voice through the rebreather coupled with the vox static made his voice sound inhuman "into the breach! For the
Warmaster!". Iron Hands barrelled out of the smouldering crater and assembled atop the walls, bracing for the oncoming assault. Lascannon fire tore through a Sons of Horus raider, spilling the reavers inside across the open field,
and leaving them vulnerable to the plasma cannons that rained down from the battlements. The reavers, heavily suppressed and still meters away from the walls, began to flee, much to the chieftain's chagrin. He grabbed one of the
stragglers with his massive powered gauntlet, and with the other hand, tore the topknot from the reaver's head. "Whelp! You are not worthy of this!".
Narr Kagaddon and his retinue poised themselves. The assault ramp of their spartan tank swung open, and the Justaerin piled out in a frenzy. They charged at the closest available target, forgoing shooting in their bloodlust. Multi-meltas
shot out from behind a crude barricade of rubble, taking out half of the terminators. The Justaerin slammed against the defensive line, and from amongst the ranks of Iron Hands stepped forth Morad Krysk. Kagaddon bellowed a challenge to
the Librarian. Krysk's eyes crackled with power and rage. He channeled it through his staff and, faster than any could react, lodged it under the arm of the Captain as he swung at him. The hammer fell from his grasp,
and Kagaddon screamed in pain and surprise. Baltus, ever at his master's side, swung his hammer in turn and knocked the psyker to the ground. In a flash of light, Godzimir Ursaak and his Morlocks teleported in, and fell upon
the remaining Justaerin, who were all cut down as Baltus carried their leader away. The warriors of the Iron Hands continued to batter the assaulting horde with esoteric weaponary, incinerating marines with a hail of plasma, and
collapsing vehicles inward with gravitic force. Reinforcements arrived en-masse as a convoy of Rhino transports approached from the Eastern flank, slowly boxxing-in the Sons of Horus and cutting off their retreat.
The pilot of 'Conveyance of Slaughter', seeing his payload of Justaerin tore down, moved to assist the commander in his retreat, but in that moment found his steering locked. The Spartan's weapon targeting trained everything onto the
Iron Hands captain, who was seeing to his downed Librarian comrade. The vehicle raced forward against his will, crushing Morlock terminators under it's tread. Ursaak fled backwards, but a wild shot from a lascannon glanced his head.
He retreated past the defensive wall, and once out of sight, wrenched his helmet free. Blood poured from a wound in the side of his face, but he was alive, and the inury would stand as testiment to his resilience. Iron Hands destroyers
lept from the walls, and swiftly put an end to the Spartan's rampage, the sheer number of melta charges putting a dozen holes in the hull of the tank.
A gout of fire burst from a Sons of Horus ancient, his internals guttering from constant gravitic bombardment, and the outflanking Iron hands forces closed upon him. Just as they thought the contemptor was downed, he rose once more,
and poured his entire arsenal into the approaching Rhinos. One burst in a horrific explosion, another had it's treads blown to shreds, but they persisted through the attack, returned fire, and the dreadnaught finally fell limp.
Kylik Vasht found himself pinned inside a ruined building. The two remaining legionaries assigned to him had just been felled by more plasma fire. The Sons of Horus had failed to make it past the walls thanks to the grim determination
of the Iron Hands. Kylik voxxed the command to retreat. The voids protecting the mighty defense battery would remain another day.
Phase 2 - Thallax Gorge
1st Battle of Thallax Gorge
++Rad-wastes. Unknown sector++
The sound of grinding tracks and astartes moving in lockstep echoed across the open expanse of the rad-wastes. The fall of Installation Delta had opened the floodgates to the traitor's orbital landings, and now the reinforcements marched through the blasted hellscape to their next destination. Kagaddon insisted that he oversee the march himself, despite his advisors counsel that his 'talents' were best utilised on other fronts. He had grown untrusting of all but Kylik and his Justaerin after the 'faithful true sons of the Warmaster' from the White Scars had turned tail at the first prospect of assaulting the Northern Wall, and now sat in a dark cell in the depths of his ship. His faith in the 1st company reavers had wavered similarly, and had sent one of his old lodge masters to serve as an inspiring orator and, should the needs arise, executioner. As Kagaddon continued to dwell on the failings of his army, a massive blast rocked his land raider transport and the vox opened to the sound of commencing battle. A projection of their surroundings filled the darkened insides of the tank, showing a horde of cult Mechanicum automata and battle tanks, and among them, lobotomised astartes of the 10th, 7th, and 16th. The legionaries accompanying Kagaddon, not his usual ensemble, grimaced at the sight. "They're using astartes. Our brothers. cannibalised them". Kagaddon shut off the projection and glared "If that is enough to unnerve you I question if you should bother leaving this transport." He spoke again, this time addressing his battallion
"Sons of Horus. They, who butchered our brothers, seek to stop our march. Give them no quarter-For the Warmaster".
A sea of lumbering tech-thralls made their way toward the now dug-in Sons of Horus. It was clear that whatever Magi controlled them had one goal; to push the newly arrived forces back through the irradiated deserts on a wave of expendable bodies. The Mechanicus construct that had battered Kagaddon's raider, a Thanatar class automaton, now charged headlong into it, free from any higher control.
It pounded at the tank, and it began to crumple and stutter. Nearby, squads of astartes took fire from a range of esoteric weaponry, damaging their suits and exposing them to the full effect of the radation saturating the ground. Their enhanced bodies prevented them from death, but it ravaged them all the same, and were forced back. A pair of dreadnaughts, all but immune to the plagues of rad-poisoning, stormed into the lines of enemy astartes, pinning them sheer meters away from their objective. Elsewhere, the black-clad reavers surged out from their carrier and toward the enemy, the centurion among them bellowing "Brothers! Slaughter the false kin! Flee- and you shall die by my hand!". There was an uproar from the crowd of black armoured legionnaires, before they slammed into the line of automata, and butchered them effortlessly, falling over each other to claim a kill. Kagaddon too now led his men into combat. The Thanatar which had began taking hits from lascannons across the field, was mobbed by a squad of terminators, who began to shred at exposed wiring and servos with their lightning claws. The giant fell, and the explosion that followed washed over the terminator's
protective fields. All at once, across the Mechanicum army, thrall, automata, and battle tank alike, moved in unison. A Triaros conveyor alighted it's electrified ram, and forced the reavers back through a canyon, whilst Thallax automata took positions above them, ready to fire. Another group of Thallax turned and trained their guns on Kagaddon and his squad, but a bright flash heralded the arrival of the Justaerin, called upon when the battle had broken out. Mass bolter fire shielded the commander as he fell away from combat, but the return fire took down many of the elite warriors.
"Hold the line!" a shout went up from the reavers. As they prepared to engage with the mechanicum, something in them changed, like a switch turning on. Cybernetica began to back away, firing as they went, whilst thralls dragged away the corpses of the Sons of Horus' dead. The withering fire made it impossible to follow up, but the Sons of Horus held their positions. It appeared to all as if the Mechanicum had conceded. Had the Magos calculated a loss? Had he achieved some hidden objective unknowable to all but him? The questions would linger in everyone's minds in the hours to come, as they
re-organised, and prepared for the long march once again.
Phase 2 - Epilogue
Kagaddon walked through the bay amongst the serfs, techmarines and engine crews tending to their duties, refitting tanks for the next engagement. At his side was an Archmagos of the Mechanicum-the'New' Mechanicum they had said, totally unbound by the laws of Terra.
Kagaddon had never questioned their sudden appearance on his ship after his awakening and felt that now, looking up at the Magos massive that he was, borne upon great piston-driven claws, it was too late."The contents of your cells has proven most useful captain, rare is it that I come across so many live Astartes for my experiments". Kagaddon had not seen what the Priest had done with them, but rumours were spreading among the ranks. "A small price to pay for my life". The Archmagos came to an abrupt stop and leaned in close to Kagaddon, allowing him a glance at his face distorted from countless augmentations. "It was not I that saved you. I merely pieced you back together." They continued to walk, and the Magos spoke again "However, should the Mechanicum's continued service be needed, I will require more subjects". The Magos came to a rest "to aid you in this, I have taken the liberty of restoring your personal transport" He gestured to a Spartan, The Conveyance of Slaughter, decommissioned in the first battles of the conflict.
"The hull was badly damaged, but the spirit was willing". Kagaddon
scoffed. "Spirit. You talk as if it were alive". The Archmagos leaned in once again and let out a long binaric screech. "Blasphemy! I assure you it is very real." Kagaddon looked at the tank, and something deep within it began to scream in his mind. "When this war is won, and this planet is yours, remember it was Sarum that came to your aid."
Installation Delta, North Wall
- (Turn 1: Sons of Horus all moved up, Iron Hands blew up a Land Raider, Plasma'd the reavers inside, who then ran for the rest of the game. A topknot snapped off and it will stay that way (Whelp))
- (Turn 2: Justaerin got out their spartan and charged multi-melta squad and librarian. Kagaddon issued a challenge, accepted by Librarian Morad, who one shot him and severed his arm. Ursaak and Morlocks teleported in and charged the same combat. Librarian died but the rest of the Justaerin got mopped up. Iron Hands Rhinos outflanked to get more scoring up the centre. Plasma cannons drifted into tactical squad that THOUGHT they were safe.)
- (Turn 3: Spartan rolled a 6+3 for a ram attack and killed the Morlocks and it's Lascannons took down Ursaak. Ursaak rolled facial injuries and +1 FNP after the battle. A certain ex-president was brought to mind. Spartan was blown up by a shitload of melta bombs. Elsewhere more SoH died)
- (Turn 4: Contemptor was brought back after a tiny rules blunder, tried it's best to create a chain of explosions to the rhinos but couldn't quite do the damage. Sons of Horus were all wiped or fleeing)
- (Iron Hands decisive victory)
- (Turn 1: Sons of Horus got first turn. Did a lot of movement, but just shy of the 3 objectives. Snap fire took down a few automata marines and bikes. Mechanicum turn 1 had a lot of shooting, but sadly due to no cortex controller it was a lot of ineffective fire against armour 14. Stray templates managed to make one of the few Sons of Horus scoring units fall back. Thanatar was forced to charge the land raider.)
- (Turn 2: three big charges. Reavers hit the lines of automata marines, leviathan pinned a big squad of 20 just shy of the objective, and kagaddon's terminator squad got out the raider and charged the thanatar. Little automata squad was minced, the larger squad was locked in with the levi, but the thanatar went down to sheer number of attacks. The terminators and reavers were left quite exposed. Lots of sadly ineffective thrall shooting (60 shots x_x).Big thing was the reavers were boxed in between 2 rocks, a spartan, and a triaros, with 6 thallax baring down on them.)
- (sadly timed out. Reavers were still holding a centreline objective and 2 no-mans objectives were likely to be denied. Math-ed it out and concluded SoH probably had the game)
-Known Elements-
Sons of Horus
Fleet elements
'Lupercal Victorious'- Strike Cruiser
Vehicles
'Conveyance of Slaughter'- Spartan Assault Tank
-Notable Members-
Narr Kagaddon- Force Commander, Justaerin
Baltus 'The North Point'- Standard Bearer, justaerin
Kylik Vasht- Master of Signals (dubbed 'Master of War'by Narr Kagaddon)
White Scars
-Notable Members-
Sobal Khan- Khan of the Brotherhood of the Crescent Moon
Children
Comments
Author's Notes
Morgan Hildyard