Trisdekan Primer 0.6

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The Trisdekan Primer

I P J

A Record of the Planets, Peoples and Armies of the Synerge Cluster

(Subsector Trisdeka), Sector Ixaniad, Segmentum Obscurus

A P D

VERSION 0.6

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Subsector Trisdeka

“The Trisdekans are, on the whole, a bunch of dangerously unstable yokels, and I thank the Emperor they’re so far away from anything important.”

-Calixis Sector Governor Marius Hax

The Synerge Cluster of stars lies in the great void between the Ixaniad and Calixis Sectors on the edge of the Segmentum Obscurus, and has remained a sleepy backwater for much of its time under Imperial control. The reasons for this are twofold; firstly, its great distance from other Imperial territories, and second, the cluster’s peculiar gravitational anomalies. Strange spatial mass fluctuations are present in nearly all charted areas of the cluster, often taking the form of unusually strong tidal effects at system Lagrange points, but more dramatic spatial alterations, like the Gold Bank of the Bellagian system, are not unheard of. These two factors combined to make early Imperial exploration of the system come slowly and piecemeal; while the Tennanlowe system had contact with the Imperium as early as M35, most of the cluster had not been explored until more than 2000 years later, in M37.

The Cluster is composed of 82 discrete star systems, of which 6 are inhabited by citizens of the Imperium of Man. These six systems, namely Coin, Suno, Astera/Nahp, Victory/Morality, Niva and Voshkhod, comprise the Imperial Subsector Trisdeka, under the control of the Sector Government of Ixaniad. Coin, and its primary planet Bellagia, is designated as subsector capital, but because of the region’s remoteness, and the strong presence of the Adeptus Mechanicus on many of its inhabited planets, it functions as an effectively

self-governing region in the larger Sector, with minimal oversight except in the case of Sector or Segmentum-wide military concerns. Its history is fairly unremarkable; largely untouched by war save for the occasional pirate raid and Dark Eldar incursion, the citizens of Trisdeka were largely peaceful, at least until the Meritech Wars of M40. As one of the closest Imperial holdings to the Mercate Cluster, Trisdeka became a valuable secondary staging ground; while most Imperial forces were brought in from Calixis, a significant portion of Battlefleet Ixaniad was stationed in the Cluster, braving the gravity disturbances in exchange for a more direct striking path against the Meritech Clans. The economic benefits to the subsector were substantial, and the tradition of militarism

established during the Meritech Wars has continued largely into M41 in some form or another.

Trisdeka is primarily an industrial subsector, and most of its trade goods are destined for Forge Worlds and commercial interests in Ixaniad. Trisdeka possesses a substantial Promethium reserve from Katyush in the Voshkhod system and the somewhat finicky manufacturing might of the Niva system planet Gustav making it well-supplied in terms of industrial resources and manufactured goods, though gravely lacking in foodstuffs. Under different circumstances both Edelweiss of Astera and Tennanlowe of Victory/Morality would be major food suppliers. Edelweiss especially nearly borders on an Agri-World in terms of production, but circumstances theret have largely caused it to cease major food exports, though its' mining industry is more than respectable. Trade in Trisdeka is nowhere near the level it would be for a larger and more prosperous subsector, but the one great source of cash flow that benefits the entire region is pilgrimages to Coin to visit the church-casinos of Bellagia. Many newly-minted Bellagians remain behind, trapped by circumstance or ill fortune, and their wealth has allowed a slow but respectable trickle into the coffers of the other Trisdekan worlds.

The vast majority of Trisdeka’s star systems are uncolonized and lifeless, though they have been charted by various Imperial missions, and active Imperial listening posts are still scattered throughout the cluster, a defence against any further movement by pirates through the subsector in the criminal power vacuum following the Meritech Wars.

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Bellagia

“Gentlemen, here under the watchful eyes of Him on Earth, Blessed be his Grace and Fortune, I implore of thee; place your bets!” -Traditional prayer of the Cult of the Emperor’s Fortune

The bright star Coin, so named for its golden-yellow radiance, lies on the coreward side of the Synerge Cluster, and is one of the easiest star system to access from the rest of the Ixaniad Sector. For many centuries the system was little more than a way point and stopover for starships going elsewhere, however, for actually accessing its inner reaches is incredibly difficult. Most of the outer system is littered with a thick and asteroid-filled dust cloud, with the occasional wreck of a badly-battered spacecraft hinting and the unusual spacial disturbances that lie further in.

The true oddity of the Coin System is the Gold Bank, a system-wide spherical gravitational anomaly that lies just beyond the orbit of the planet Bellagia. The Bank is so named because of its curious lensing effects on the light of Coin itself; empty space within the bank glitters with a yellow-gold light, like the lustre of newly-minted coinage. Those enticed by its glow, however, quickly find themselves drawn into a series of vicious gravitational instabilities more than capable of ripping a starship apart. Their most common effect on encroaching matter is to rapidly accelerate it into the outer solar system, where collisions with asteroids and ship hulks frequently finishes the job the anomalies themselves started. The Bank’s anomalies shift constantly in a semi-random pattern, and there are numerous gaps between them large enough for a talented, or perhaps lucky, pilot to slip through totally unscathed. The Bank also shares a close orbit with Sloane Station, the orbital settlement established by the Bellagians as a stopping-point for spacecraft damaged by their transit through the Bank.

Beyond the Bank are the worlds of the Coin system, the twin planets of Luxx and Bellagia. These two worlds orbit on opposite sides of Coin, with Luxx occupying the L3 Lagrangian point of the Bellagia-Coin system. Luxx is a small and low-density world dominated by volcanoes. Thanks to a peculiar quirk of geology its surface is composed almost entirely of reflective black volcanic glass. The entire world has a distinct lustre from orbit, and its glass is a popular decorative material and trade good in the rest of the Subsector.

Bellagia is a large dry world on the inner border of Coin’s habitable zone. A planet of wide deserts and high, rocky mesas, it boasts little surface water, few major local lifeforms, and a thin atmosphere. Temperatures year-round hover between 30 and 50 degrees, and rainfall is functionally nonexistent. Huge undergyear-round aquifers provide the only water sources, and accessing them is a difficult task at the best of times. Those few areas where the aquifers break the surface are natural oases, blooming with what little plant life survives in the area. Individual oases are often so separated by burning desert that their local plant species are entirely unique, tiny pocket ecosystems that exist nowhere else.

Bellagia has a single small moon, dubbed Nugget by the locals. This small, atmosphere-less lumpy ball of dirt and rock would be wholly unremarkable if it didn’t possess the highest natural deposits of gold in the entire sector. Its surface is scarred by industrial mining on a titanic scale, all of it from the years after the Miracle of the Emperor’s Fortune.

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The Miracle of Bellagia

The Coin system was originally mapped in mid-M36 by Rogue Trader and financier Bellage de Luxx, who lived up to the spirit of his noble profession by naming both planets in the system after himself. After probes sent through the Bank discovered the gold deposits on the moon de Luxx would come to call Nugget, his fleet forced its way through the anomaly, suffering grievous losses in the process, and quickly established a mining operation. Unfortunately, this did not lead to permanent settlement, as the mining base, and indeed de Luxx’s entire

dynasty, collapsed as a result of an unfortunate orgy accident several years later. Until M38 Bellagia and Luxx were little more than curiosities, occasionally studied by Imperial research teams or used as minor bases by the more foolhardy or desperate pirates of the region.

Everything changed in M38, when con-man, impersonator, heister and all-around criminal mastermind Benemus Seigel fled to Coin with half of the Ixaniad Arbites on his tail. Seigel had risen like a meteor through the ranks of the sector’s crime families, defrauding nobles for millions of Thrones, and controlling a network of illegal gambling-houses, drug-smuggling rings and money-launderers stretching across the Segmentum. The coordinated Imperial campaign to bring him down brought in all three branches of the Inquisition plus

thousands of the Adeptus Arbites’ finest. When he finally fled towards the Calixis Sector, apparently seeking to lose his pursuit somewhere in the Expanse, the fleet following him numbered hundreds of ships. Why Seigel stopped at Coin and broke through the Bank is unclear, but he was cornered by the armies of the Inquisition on a high mesa overlooking an arid river valley on Bellagia’s equator. What happened next is literally the stuff of legend, though a legend confirmed by numerous sources, many surprisingly trustworthy. The skies opened above Seigel’s head, and he was bathed in a shaft of golden light. A booming voice proclaimed that while Seigel had profited from his risk-taking and good fortune, all would be forgiven if he repented his sinners’ ways and devoted himself to the worship of the Emperor’s Own Fortune, which guides all Mankind come whatever trials and torments. The aftermath of this miracle is largely unrecorded- the Inquisition especially seems to have gone out of their way to both obfuscate records and simultaneously spread the word of the Miracle of the Emperor’s Fortune.

Bellagian Society

By the beginning of M39, Bellagia had become a massive pilgrimage site and de facto subsector capital, eclipsing Old Tennanlowe as the most developed and populous civilized world in the region, and Benemus Seigel had transformed himself from criminal mastermind to the Bettor-Cardinal of the Bellagian Diocese. Though he passed on in 033.M39, he left behind a lasting legacy. Every year, millions of pilgrims, rich and poor, flock to Bellagia to embrace the risks and rewards of the Emperor’s Fortune. Many lose their money and their lives in the planet’s vast temple-casinos, but the very few who demonstrate truly blessed luck, or the skills to make their own luck, find themselves wielding power and influence beyond their wildest dreams.

Bellagia is well on its way to becoming a hive world, with the massive Emperor’s Fortune Temple-Casino and Pilgrimage Site, built atop the very mesa where Seigel first encountered its miracle, boasting more than 150 million souls alone. Lesser sites all over the planet pay tribute to his good works, and bear collections of holy relics demonstrating the luck of the faithful- Uplifting Primers that have stopped Ork slugga rounds for instance. Bellagia has a nominal Administratum government, appointed from off-world, but in practice the immense wealth of the religious authorities on the planet, for winning in the casinos makes one a religious

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authority unofficially, and official appointments from the planet’s ruling cabal soon follow, give them huge influence, and the government bows to the Ecclesiarchy in almost all things.

The Bellagians form an incredibly disparate population, incorporating hundreds of cultures from human planets spread all over the galaxy, but they are united by their fanatical belief in the power of Chance, and how that chance might be influenced by prayer. Gambling and betting form the basis for almost all financial transactions in Bellagian society, and many children learn simple games of chance before they are taught to read. Despite the emphasis on luck, Bellagia’s is a carefully structured society where the rule of law is paramount, and the planet’s Arbites receive strong support from Ecclesiarchical casino authorities in rooting out cheaters who do not demonstrate legitimate divine inspiration in their craft. It is often said that Bellagia is the only planet in the universe where there is one gambler to every bookie, and it is true that the work of keeping the books is a well-respected one and often considered a solid foundation for a later career in the temple-casinos.

The Imperial Creed on Bellagia

The Cult of the Emperor’s Fortune’s core tenets are quite simple; first, Humanity’s most blessed trait is not their form or their intelligence, but their luck. Second, said luck, the Emperor’s Fortune, is received directly from the Emperor by each human being who worships Him on Earth. Third, Humans’ next most blessed trait is the ability to make their own luck- anyone clever enough to cheat the system without getting caught is deserving of

whatever they have earned, because they were using whatever the Emperor gave them. Fourth, the Emperor’s Fortune is a double-sided coin; while risk-taking earns rewards, the believer not prepared for the Emperor’s blessing to turn fickle as punishment for their hubris does not deserve the luck they have been given. While this is an unusual creed, and one that is oft-debated for its legitimacy elsewhere in the sector, it cannot be denied that the Cult of the Emperor’s Fortune has been incredibly effective in attracting new devotees. For one, it is a remarkably optimistic form of worship- anyone can, in theory, make their own luck and become a true devotee of their emperor. For another, being a good worshipper also means making ones’ self, and the Ecclesiarchy on Bellagia, filthy stinking rich. Even those who have failed or are down on their luck have the chance to redeem themselves and earn their way back into the Emperor’s good graces. The most famous among these failures are the Bellagian Low Rollers, the planet’s primary tithe to the Imperial Guard.

The Bellagian Low Rollers

“Two to one odds says that Ork artillery fire’s not gonna hit anywhere near us, praise the E-”

-Final recorded transmission, Bellagian 273rd_{“Straight Flush”} When a resident of Bellagia defaults on their gambling debts, or is caught cheating in a way not worthy of the Emperor’s love, they are given two choices. First, immediate lobotomization and conversion into a Servitor on Niva Gustav. Second, if they are in good enough shape and truly believe, they can be immediately enrolled into the ranks of the Low Rollers, the umbrella term for one of the most peculiar Drop Regiments in the entire Imperium.

The Low Rollers are issued shabby second or third-hand Flak armour, the deliberately unstable Gambler-Pattern lasgun, a suite of combat drugs distilled from the adrenal glands of their fallen comrades, and a parachute. Then, with minimal training beyond the basic operation of their weapons and ‘chutes, they are shipped offworld in huge numbers and literally dropped at random over battlefields where reinforcements are needed. Those who survive the trip to the ground are lucky. Those who manage to last on the ground with

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par equipment and little knowledge of what they are doing are luckier still. Those who manage to regroup with a unit are the rarest of all, and they, picked for their fortune or ability to cheat death, are the true Bellagian Low Rollers, given actual combat training and organized into proper Drop Regiments along the lines laid out in the Tactica Imperialis. While their tactical doctrine is fairly standard, the overall strategic usage of the Low Rollers is unusual, because they are one of the few truly fixed-term armies in the Astra Militarum. If a Bellagian trooper can survive a five-year term of service, they will be collected by the Ecclesiarchy, demobilized, and sent back to Bellagia itself, where their debts are forgiven and they are allowed to rejoin the gambling population with whatever spoils they gained in combat to support themselves. Of course, if they fall into penury again, they may well end up back in the ranks once more, but these “Old Rollers” are generally far better at surviving a full tour than their contemporaries.

While the Low Rollers are officially a penal regiment, and treated as such by the Munitorum and other regiments, the title is not entirely apt, for the Bellagians themselves are quite unified, driven by their faith in their own luck and the Emperor’s protection. Their tenacity and willingness to use bribery, underhanded tactics, subterfuge and outright backstabbing to win their battles has made them a favourite of the Militarum’s high command as a tool to be used when a battle absolutely must be won, even if the victory results in massive casualties, heavy collateral damage, or entire regiments enrolling in criminal organizations. The watchful eyes and deep pockets of the Bellagian Ecclesiarchy have kept the Low Rollers supplied through thick and thin, and though their numbers fluctuate wildly as entire regiments of more than 5000 men are destroyed at a time and then reformed, they continue to barter, gamble and sleaze their way through the battlefields of the Spinward Front.

Playing a Bellagian Low Roller

While each Bellagian regiment varies in size, experience, and overall unit composition, all generally follow the same basic structure, due in large part to their insanely dangerous

recruiting procedures.

Characteristics: +6 Agility, +3 Toughness, -3 Fellowship Starting Aptitude: Willpower

Starting Skills: Intimidate, Linguistics (Low Gothic), Operate

(Aeronautica)

Starting Talents: Peer (Underworld), Die Hard, Catfall Other:

+10 to Logistics to acquire contraband -10 to all Logistics rolls

-20 on all Random Issue Gear rolls Cannot burn Fate Points to resist death +1 Starting Wounds

Favoured Weapons:

Lascarbine, Grenade Launcher

Starting Kit: Gambler-Pattern Lasgun, 4 x Charge Packs, Suit of Flak Armour, Respirator, Parachute, 3 x Frag

Grenade, 2 x Smoke Grenade, Inhaler, 4 x Dose of Frenzon, Uniform, Set of Poor-Weather Gear, Knife, Rucksack, Set of Basic Tools, Mess Kit and Canteen, Blanket, Sleeping Bag, Lamp Pack, Grooming Kit, Set of Cognomen Tags, Combat Primer, 14 x Day's Combat Rations

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The rules for Low Rollers use the following Only War doctrines.

Homeworld: Penal Colony Commanding Officer: Sanguine Regiment Type: Drop Troops

Doctrines: Iron Discipline, Combat Drugs Drawbacks: Doomed

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Dolcatero

“Please, do not mock the authority of this institution with such scurrilous talk. There is no real scientific evidence of life on other worlds. Now, if we could abandon this nonsense and get back to the far more important subject of winning the war...”

-Extract from the minutes of the Brumeran Imperial Science Academy Suno is a blue-white star in the upper ranges of the Main Sequence, isolated in empty space on the spinward side of the Synerge Cluster. Its bright glow illuminates a system composed mainly of scattered asteroids and dust clouds, a constantly-churning mass of gravitational distortions and colliding space rocks. Suno possesses only one major planet- Magna, the largest gas giant in the Subsector.

Magna occupies the only area in the solar system swept clear of orbital debris, and there is some evidence that it is the cause of the rest of the system being planetless. Closer examination of the asteroid fields reveals that they were likely collapsed planetoids destroyed in the process of forming by the immense tidal stresses from Magna’s gigantic gravity well. That, combined with the natural gravitational anomalies already present in the Sunnon system have made the presence of any rocky planets at all all the more remarkable.

Magna has three significantly-sized moons, three minor ones, and countless hundreds of large asteroid moons, as well as a sparse ring system mostly composed of dust but largely destroyed by the presence of so many larger orbiting bodies. The smaller moons have as yet not been detected by the systems’ natives and thus lack a name, so they are generally referred to by the names originally assigned to them by the Nivans during their first

exploration- URM-1, 2 and 3.

The two uninhabited major moons, Sferablanka and Sferabluo respectively, are slated for imminent Imperial development, and have long been the subject of a bitter bidding war between Ixaniad Rogue Traders over mineral extraction rights. Sferablanka is the larger of the two, a frozen ball of carbon dioxide ice where surface temperatures average around -70 degrees Celsius. Its crust bears significant deposits of a wide variety of

industrial, ornamental and radioactive metals and mineral products, though the extraordinarily cold temperatures would make any extraction efforts difficult at the best of times. Battlefleet Ixaniad is particularly concerned about Sferablanka, and has left a listening post on its surface, because of the remains of massive Orkish

constructions of the surface, including the debris trail left by at least one major Rok. Though no living Orks have ever been detected on the planet, and the Dolcaterans have no record of Orkish incursion on their world, fears abound that a sudden climactic shift could cause millions of Orkish spores, left over from whatever killed the last batch of Orks, to activate and precipitate a major Waaagh.

Sferabluo is a rare watery moon, its entire surface submerged between a planetary saltwater ocean. While its atmosphere is oxygen-based and reasonably pure and thick, its surface temperatures are somewhat elevated due to a rather unusual phenomenon, namely the presence of extraordinarily high nuclear materials. Sferabluo’s seabed is dotted with geothermal vents letting off heat from thousands of naturally-occurring nuclear reactors still in an active state- while radiation levels above water are reasonable, beneath the surface any lifeforms larger than the hardy local bacteria would be fatally irradiated in seconds. Even this has not deterred Imperial mining concerns, for whatever curious natural process generated the natural reactors has also left Sferabluo’s crust ripe with an abundance of heavy metals, chief among them platinum and iridium.

The only inhabited planet in the Sunnon system is also its smallest major moon, Dolcatero. A roughly

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sized rocky world with an oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, Dolcatero is slightly colder and has a slightly thicker atmosphere than Terran standard. Dolcatero’s low temperatures are largely brought about by its peculiar orbital situation- the Dolcateran year is only about two months long, as it orbits very close to Magna’s outer

atmosphere, but almost half of that year is spent in Magna’s shadow, with little to no light on the surface.

While Dolcatero has fairly low incidence of surface water as well it is wholly inhabitable by human beings and has been for at least six thousand years. With its temperate zones covered by thick forests, wide deserts at its equator and several large mountain ranges stretching across its three continents, Dolcatero is an almost textbook example of a classical Imperial world; it lacks the bounteous plant life of an agri-world, the excessive mineral or

promethium resources of a mining world and the idyllic surface conditions of a Paradise World, but is more than capable of supporting a much larger human population than it already possesses.

The People of Dolcatero

The Sunnon system was mapped by the Nivans in M38, and its primitive inhabitants noted as a potential source of Servitor materials, but it was largely left alone until M40, when the needs of the Meritech Wars saw Imperial forces re-map the entire subsector in search of local resources, both economic and otherwise. Though the

Dolcaterans were once again passed over by the Imperial forces as being insufficiently developed to be worth the time and effort to civilize, listening posts and probes were left in orbit until such time as its people were ready to be contacted. As of M41, the Dolcaterans have finally been contacted, to a certain degree.

Dolcatero is a semi-industrial Feudal world governed by several warring imperial states. The largest of these, the military dictatorship of Brumera, seems likeliest to become the planet’s ruling body, as they have already begun a tentative tithe of manpower to the Imperial Guard. However, the existence of the larger Imperium is generally unknown in the populace, which is in a constant state of war against Langeter, the nation to Brumera’s south. The Brumerans, the planet’s most technologically-advanced nation, have developed simple steam engines, basic scientific theory and are beginning to experiment with electricity, but their philosophical advancement far outstrips any technology they might actually possess.

The average Brumeran is slightly better-educated than many Imperial citizens, being capable of reading and writing the Brumeran language, though their learning is limited. The people of Dolcatero are in the midst of a scientific revolution in parallel to their many military struggles; Brumerans have recently begun colonizing other continents, and scientific discovery and learning are in vogue the world over. The Brumerans are simultaneously curious and war-hardened; they seek out new knowledge, but their patriotism drives them to apply that

knowledge in service to the State. However, they are still largely ignorant as to their situation in the Imperium, or even that a wider Imperium exists. The Emperor of Brumera, His Highness Mihaelo III el Brumera, and most of his inner court have been made aware that their planet lies within a fief of a much larger stellar realm, and have quite sensibly decided to bend the knee in exchange for the right to rule their own planet as they see fit. Though Brumera does not yet rule all of Dolcatero, they are confident that, within a few decades, and with a little bit of Imperial aid behind the scenes, the planet will soon be united beneath Mihaelo’s, or at the very least his

descendants’, enlightened despotism.

The few Brumerans who have survived for any length of time offworld have had varying reactions to the mind-blowing revelation of how truly gigantic the universe really is. Many simply go mad at the realization, throwing themselves into whatever work they have undertaken or been forced into until they die. A small minority have

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taken to their new situation with elan and dedication, taking the work ethic of a small imperialist power

dedicated to conquering its world and applying it to the larger galaxy. These Brumerans are determined to prove to themselves and the wider universe that they are worthy of being recognized as Imperial citizens, and have risen beyond whatever judgments have been imposed upon them due to their somewhat primitive origins.

The Imperial Creed on Dolcatero

Dolcatero has no central church body, though the majority of the planetary population follows some version of a monotheistic religion known as Cefism. A few other deviant or debased religions exist in small numbers, but Imperial covert investigations performed with the aid of the Brumeran government have confirmed them to be non-Chaotic in nature.

The Cefists are clearly a descendant of the Imperial faith; they believe that long ago, in a far-off land now lost to time, a man named Savo Cef was born who was the human incarnation of a single unnamed deity. Though Cef was betrayed by his closest disciple, he promised that one day he would return and bring about a golden age for all humanity, and that in the meantime humans should prepare for his coming. The Ixaniad Ecclesiarchy

anticipates no major difficulty in integrating Cefism back into the fold of the Imperial Cult, but there are some worries that Dolcatero could become a religious battleground in the constant power struggles that always wrack the more distant arms of the Ecclesiarchy. The Bellagian Cult of the Emperor’s Fortune is always interested in attracting new converts and enriching itself, and Dolcatero presents a prize of willing converts ready to hear the Good Word. Already a battle of words has begun between the Ixaniad Ecclesiarchy, who argue that the

Dolcaterans fall under their direct jurisdiction, and the Bellagians, who hold that as the closest Shrine World it is only logical that they should have oversight. What this actually means for the Dolcateran people remains to be seen.

The Brumeran Korpogardistos

“’Impossible’ is not a word in the Brumeran tongue! Charge, men, for His Highness!”

-Colonel Napoles Bonesolvo, 1st_{Brumeran Korpogardistos} The Korpogardistos are one of Brumera’s most elite regiments, composed of the finest and longest-serving soldiers from other units. Their musketry is regarded as some of the finest on the planet, and none can doubt their skills with bayonet and shot. Plucked from Brumera as part of its first tithe of men to the Imperium, the Korpogardistos have been forced to improvise to survive in a wider galaxy they cannot hope to understand. Fortunately, they find themselves ably led by Colonel Napoles Bonesolvo, a solid tactician whose true expertise lies in the realm of logistics. By training his men in the maintenance and care of their own weapons, encouraging scavenging when the authorities aren’t looking, and simultaneously encouraging his men to build connections with those same authorities, he has been able to arrange a series of fairly easy postings that, though they have left his men champing at the bit to see ‘real’ combat, have largely succeeded in keeping most of the regiment alive. The Korpogardistos are heavy line infantry in the traditional sense, fighting shoulder-to-shoulder in ranks and making heavy use of continuous volley fire. Their signature tactic, once they have closed to a reasonable distance with the enemy, is to throw a volley of hand grenades and then charge into hand-to-hand combat in the

aftermath. Bonesolvo has pioneered the use of hand grenades on his homeworld, and though many of his soldiers still prefer to use their simple and familiar black-powder weapons, he is using every mental and social resource at his disposal to have his men outfitted with more modern gear. Many of the Brumerans, being intensely proud

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veteran soldiers, object to having to bow and scrape their way across the warzones of the 41st_{millenium, but they} know that Bonesolvo has a plan for them, even if he will never willingly reveal it.

Various native subspecies of the common horse are found on Dolcatero, and the Korpogardistos use them as beasts of burden and mounts for officers, though they are not a cavalry-focused regiment. For a common soldier to be awarded a horse as a gift is an uncommon prize, and a symbol of great achievement on the battlefield or a significant favour rendered to a superior officer.

Playing a Brumeran Korpogardisto

The Korpogardistos make great use of their well-made muskets and skill with a sword, but they will seek to scavenge, pillage or borrow any newer gear they can, while simultaneously doing their best to uphold their good name.

Characteristics: +3 to Strength, -3 Intelligence, +3 to any two of

Toughness, Weapon Skill and Willpower

Starting Aptitude: Willpower

Starting Skills: Athletics +10, Common Lore (War), Command, Linguistics (High Gothic) Starting Talents: Rapid Reload, Any two of Duelist, Double Team or Combat Formation Other:

Enlightenment: Brumera is nothing if not a traditionalist state, and its local dialect is derived from High, rather

than Low, Gothic. Brumeran characters begin play with Linguistics (High Gothic), but are otherwise unable to read or speak Low Gothic, though they may be able to pick out words in the same way a Latin speaker might recognize words in French or English.

Age of Reason: Dolcatero is in the midst of a scientific revolution, and the population of larger nations like

Brumera pride themselves on their education and learning. That said, compared to the wider Imperium, they are horribly primitive and backwards. Lore, Operate, Tech-Use and Medicae skills used by Brumeran characters only apply to technology or knowledge known in the early to mid 1800s on earth- they can suture a wound, drive a carriage and operate a clock, for instance, but electricity is a scientific novelty, steam engines are still unfamiliar and disinfectants are wholly unknown.

Military Science: Dolcateran military strategy and tactics still revolve around the musketeer, the lancer, and

muzzle-loading artillery, and they have not yet had the time to fully appreciate what exactly they are tithing their men to do. Dolcateran characters cannot take the Operator Specialty, though they are free to switch in to them at higher ranks. Further, they cannot purchase or recieve any Weapon Training talents other than Solid Projectile and Low-Tech until they have gained at least enough XP to change Specialties for the first time.

Additionally, newly-created Dolcateran characters replace the starting gear from their Specialties with the following:

• Heavy Weapons: 2 x extra Black Powder grenades and one Common-quality Hand Mortar, or one Common-quality Seven-Barrel Gun and 35 extra Paper Cartridges

• Medic: Surgeon’s Tools

• Sergeant: Good-Craftsmanship Flintlock Pistol, Horse (See Hammer of the Emperor p. 139) • Weapons Specialist: 30 extra Paper Cartridges, 1 x extra Black Powder Grenade

Starting Wounds: Early Modern World characters increase their starting Wounds by 1.

Pride Over Life: The Korpogardistos are the finest their planet can muster, and they have immense pride in

themselves, their country, and their regiment. Members of this regiment must pass a Difficult (–10) Willpower

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The rules for Korpogardistos use the following Only War doctrines.

Homeworld: Early Modern World Commanding Officer: Fixed Regiment Type: Line Infantry

Doctrines: Iron Discipline, Close-Order Drill Drawbacks: Honour-Bound

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Test to refuse any formal challenge or ignore any other major slight to their honour. If a character from this regiment succeeds on the Test, he sees the bigger picture and ignores the challenge or attempt to goad him into action. If he fails on the Test, however, he must engage the individual in question (usually in a formal duel) or suffer a –10 penalty to Willpower Tests for the remainder of the session. This penalty is cumulative should he refuse multiple challenges to his dignity over the course of a single session.

Favored Weapons: Sword, Flintlock Musket

Starting Kit: Good-Craftsmanship Musket with Melee Attachment, 50 x Paper Cartridges, 2 x Black Powder

Grenades, Good-Craftsmanship Sword, Good-Craftsmanship Padded Uniform, Good-Craftsmanship

Reinforced Shako, Woolen Cloak, Good-Craftsmanship Powdered Wig, Good-Craftsmanship Knife, Rucksack, Set of Basic Tools, Mess Kit, Canteen, Oil Lamp, Set of Flint and Tinder, Grooming Kit, Set of Dog Tags, Dolcateran Book of the Imperial Creed, 14 x Day’s Combat Rations (Hard tack and salt beef ), Bottle of Standard-Distribution Infantry Rum

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Uniform of the Korpogardistos before their deployment offworld.

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Edelweiss

“Warfare begets strength and industry, peace weakness and lethargy.”

-Edelweiss expression The Astera/Nahp binary system is one of the largest, and certainly the brightest, in the Synerge cluster. Both Astera and Nahp are gigantic blue-white stars, and their radiance is visible in the night sky through most of the Subsector. Due to their great mass, it is unsurprising that their system is a large one, and in fact has the most major rocky planets of the entire region- five in total. Astera/Nahp has one of the lowest incidences of gravitational distortion in the region, and it is this that has made it a comparatively travelled and well-mapped region by Trisdekan standards.

The inner end of the habitable zone of Astera/Nahp plays host to a small asteroid belt, likely the remains of a seventh planet torn apart by the gravitational pull of the twin stars, and two mining worlds, Arnica and Erica. Both are punishingly hot, possessing of unpleasantly superheated atmospheres, and rich in a variety of mineral resources, Erica especially. Beyond their small mining settlements, buried deep in the planetary crust to avoid the heat, the only oddity in the area is Erica's lone moon, a dwarf planet barely large enough to avoid asteroid status. This body, Dom, has a curious orbital pattern seen almost nowhere else in the Galaxy- not only is it tidally locked with Erica, which is itself tidally locked with Astera/Nahp, it also orbits in what is essentially a naturally-occuring geosynchronous orbit. This means that Dom is always directly between Erica's surface and the suns, creating a permanent eclipse on Erica's surface.

Edelweiss, the third planet and system capital, would under normal circumstances be an Edenic place: its atmosphere is balmy, its soil fertile, its local lifeforms easily-tamable. Unfortunately, it has several peculiarities that make it stand out from other such Imperial paradise worlds. For one, Edelweiss appears to have been deliberately constructed; the entire planet is composed of a series of identical alpine valleys, each with an identically-shaped lake at its center, each with the exact same area of arable farmland and the exact same forests growing in the exact same locations. Further, its atmosphere appears to have been enhanced at some time in the past, seeded with an as-yet-unidentifiable chemical compound that induces extremely high fertility and multiple birth rates in human beings.

On the outer edge of the habitable zone is Astera/Nahp's fourth rocky world, frozen Gentian. It is a planet of rolling, rocky hills, half-buried in thick water ice. In addition to yet more mining colonies, Gentian and its large moon Alphubel are home to several expeditions of local treasure seekers and Magii of the Adeptus Mechanicus, for they are covered with dozens of ruins of cities of xenos origin. No remains of their actual inhabitants have ever been discovered, and what few artefacts have been chipped out of the ice have been apparently

nonfunctional, but efforts continue to unlock the mysteries of these cold, ruined worlds.

Primulaca, the fifth planet and only gas giant in the system, is remarkably small, barely larger than its single moon Moench. While both have small Edelweiss planetary colonies in orbit and on the ground, their lack of major natural resources make them unlikely to grow any larger. Moench has seen fairly recent military activity, with reliable sightings of Dark Eldar spacecraft operating on and near its airless surface. Why the alien raiders would be drawn to a planet full of so much nothing is unclear, but the Edelweiss System Defence Force has greatly increased the numbers of its garrison there.

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Far out in the dark edge of Astera/Nayp's Oort Cloud is the final rocky world of the system, the low-density iceball Pulsatilla. So cold that liquid nitrogen often falls to its surface as rain, it is a bleak, forbidding rock, with little of value aside from its strategic position on the edge of the system. Both Pulsatilla and its equally frozen moon Eiger are host to significant port facilities, minor shipyards and fuelling stations, a natural waystation for the constant flow of both inter and intra-system voidships, especially the huge troop ships used to transport the Kurassier regiments from Edelweiss.

The People of Edelweiss

When first rediscovered by the Imperium in M37, the planet had a medieval technology level, a population in the billions, and was divided into thousands of feudal kingdoms, each squabbling over control of the alpine valleys. The Imperium suppressed the population of the Edelweiss through political manoeuvring, and eventually the planet came under control of a parliament of major nobility which still rules it to this day. However, the parliament is just a front for a far more sinister rulership headed by the Imperial Inquisition: they believe that Edelweiss is the perfect breeding ground for a eugenically-engineered race of supersoldiers. Today, the many sub-kingdoms of Edelweiss are kept in a deliberately-maintained state of warfare with each other, and more than 50% of the planet’s population (which now exceeds 100 billion) is composed of soldiers of some kind or another. The best of these soldiers, those whose bloodlines have proved the most apt, are removed from Edelweiss and enrolled as cavalry regiments, with hundreds of thousands more ready to take their place. The Edelweiss

governments have been given free reign over their system, with small military bases from the various nations that have independently developed or purchased spacecraft almost as common as the many, many mining colonies. The Edelweiss people themselves are remarkably warlike, for indeed war has been bred into them, and there is never a time on Edelweiss where a fight isn't going on somewhere, but also remarkably even-tempered and level-headed. Conflict is such a common idea to them that they actually become uncomfortable when away from the sounds of distant battle. While the stereotype of the average Edelweiss citizen as a twitchy, knife-wielding maniac is far from fair, it is true that the vast majority of the planet's citizens go armed- usually with their signature Apashe folding pistols. Edelweiss society is divided along lines of loyalty to one's individual kingdom, republic, or monarchy first, but things tend to break down from there. Individual mountain valleys have so many different forms of government, societal structure and culture that two citizens from neighbouring regions of the planet can speak almost wholly different dialects, wear vastly different clothing, and violently hate each other as their families and clans have for thousands of years.

While roughly half of Edelweiss' population is under arms, it is not strictly correct to call it a planet of soldiers. Almost all of the kingdoms and states of the valleys maintain standing armies and militias, but they are not always in the field. Most citizens recieve some modicum of self-defense training, and street fights among youth are considered a healthy way to vent negative emotions and build a sense of comradeship. Mercenaries are not uncommon as well, and many states (heavily encouraged by the Inquisition's agents) actually sponsor the

formation of official mercenary bands as a way to keep citizens in fighting shape and make a bit of extra money on the side during times of peace.

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Faith and Equestrianism on Edelweiss

The only two common points that unite the disparate peoples of Edelweiss are their unified worship of the God-Emperor and the planetary obsession with riding. The former results from a centuries-long program of cultural programming and memetic inoculation by the Inquisition, who have drilled the Imperial Creed so thoroughly into the collective Edelweiss mindset, such that it is, that heresy is almost wholly unthinkable to many citizens. The Edelweiss Creed is extremely orthodox, and is little different from the centralized forms of worship found on many civilized planets on the coreward side of the Segmentum Obscurus. The Edelweiss obsession with equestrianism stems from the planet's most important lifeform, a semi-quadrupedal herbivore known as the Querl. Though there are dozens of different breeds and subspecies, all Querl follow roughly the same body plan- they have two powerful main legs, used for running and jumping, a secondary set of legs that grows from the same joint, used for climbing and gripping, a long tail that aids in balance, and a head covered by a boxy exoskeletal crown that they use to batter down trees and thick plants to eat the pulp and nectar inside. Almost all species of Querl are semi-docile and easily tamable, but they make excellent mounts, have a natural sense for rough terrain, and can carry huge loads- larger breeds outweigh the lighter Leman Russ variants. Most Edelweiss citizens learn to ride Querls in their childhood, and the animals are used as beasts of burden in most places where the steep terrain makes ordinary ground vehicles or skimmers impractical. As an added bonus, Querls breed quickly and reliably, meaning that even the poorest of Edelweiss citizens can afford an animal to ride and make a living from.

The Edelweiss Kurassiers

“We were not ‘recklessly aggressive’, sir. We were merely doing what all Guardsmen ought-trampling upon the enemy until it dies.”

-Trooper Laslov Bercseni following the Charge at Iron Ridge As a cavalry-centric society, it comes as no surprise that the Edelweiss contribute nothing but mounted regiments as their primary Imperial tithe. These Kurassier regiments are selected from the finest soldiers the planet can muster- regiments of local troops nominate their best and brightest, who are then tested by the planet's

Inquisitorial presence for their suitability, subjected to low-level brain-washing techniques to smooth over any differences of opinion soldiers from rival countries might have, and sent into battle. The troops born of this selection are a gallant bunch of fighting men and women, full of fighting spirit though prone to tactics that are almost dangerously aggressive. Edelweiss soldiers know they are the cream of the crop- that much is inculcated in them in their training- and they are determined to let the rest of the universe know how superior their fighting skills are, even at the cost of their own lives.

Most Kurassiers are classified as Rough Riders by the Munitorum, but this is not strictly speaking true. All Edelweiss regiments are indeed mounted, but more often than not they are dragoons, and not expected to fight from Querlback. The smaller, lighter Querl breeds used by these regiments often trade fortitude for mobility, and not all share the aggressive temperament that would make them suitable for, say, charges against enemy lines. Many are classic lancers, running down enemy troops in thunderous massed charges, but yet more are what the Edelweiss refer to as superheavy cavalry, riding Querls large enough to haul an entire gun emplacement with the necessary crew at considerable speeds. These regiments behave more like conventional tank units, using their high-mobility firepower to break through enemy armies and destroy their supply lines, or harass columns at short ranges. The only commonality between the many Edelweiss regiments is their aggressiveness, and love of closing to knife-fight range to let their melee weapons do the talking.

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Playing an Edelweiss Kurassier

These rules detail the statistics for a standard Kurassier lancer

regiment, but could easily be modified to represent a lighter dragoon regiment or even a unit of Superheavies.

Characteristics: +3 to Willpower, Toughness and Agility Starting Aptitude: Weapon Skill

Starting Skills: Common Lore (War), Common Lore (Imperium), Common Lore (Imperial Guard), Linguistics

(Low Gothic), Survival

Starting Talents: Hatred (Dark Eldar), Rapid Reaction, Catfall, Unstoppable Charge, Nerves of Steel or Sprint Other:

Hated Enemy: The Edelweiss cavalry units have frequently deployed against the Dark Eldar raiders, in situations

where their mobility can counter that of the dread Xenos. Stories of countless battles against the Eldar have made their way back to the homeworld, and many young Edelweiss soldiers dream of blooding themselves against the sinister raiders. Edelweiss characters must attempt an Ordinary (+10) Willpower Test in order to stop themselves from attacking Dark Eldar on sight.

Bred for War: The rules and regulations of combat are drilled in to Edelweiss citizens almost from birth, and they

have difficulty disobeying authority figures. An Edelweiss character must attempt a Challenging (+0) Willpower Test to go against the rules and regulations of the Imperial Guard.

Lancers: Increase distance Mounts move as part of a Crushing Charge by a number of meters equal to twice

Mount’s Agility bonus.

Starting Wounds: Edelweiss characters generate their Starting Wounds normally.

Cult of Chivalry: Such a tiny percentage of Edelweiss’ population actually becomes part of the Guard that those

who are in the regiments feel they must hold themselves, and other Guardsmen, to an extremely high standard of behaviour and professionalism. Edelweiss Kurassiers must roll a Difficult (-10) Willpower Test to use the Decieve Skill, and take a -10 on Scrutiny tests to oppose the Deceive skill.

Favored Weapons: Hunting Lance or Lasbarde, Lasarque

Starting Kit: Good-Quality Mono Great Spear, Hunting Lance, Good-Quality Lasarque, 3 x Charge Pack,

Good-Quality Apashe, 4 x Apashe Charge Packs, Flak Jacket, Flak Helmet, Camargue Querl Mount, Saddle, 2 x Saddlebags, Set of Riding Tack, Uniform, Set of Poor-Weather Gear, Sling Bag, Set of Basic Tools, Mess Kit, Canteen, Blanket, Sleeping Bag, Lamp Pack, Grooming Kit, Set of Cognomen Tags, Uplifting Primer, 14 x Day’s Combat Rations

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The rules for Kurassiers use the following Only War doctrines.

Homeworld: Fortress World Commanding Officer: Choleric

Regiment Type: Rough Rider Regiment Doctrines: Heavy Lancers

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Tennanlowe

“This is what we must do: go west. Go west or die.”

-Message issued by the Tennalowe Provisional Government in the aftermath of the Blight The binary star system of Victory and Morality shines bright with the yellow-white glow of two healthy main-sequence stars, and yet their light has a distinctly sinister pall. The Victory/Morality system is no friendly home for Humanity, though it once was. Often labelled as Tennanlowe (with the title ‘Old’ occasionally appended), this system was the first in the Synerge Cluster to be properly mapped and figures on the oldest charts of the region. In the depths of the system lies the red-hot world of Indaan, baked to a crisp by its close proximity to the two suns. The Tennanlowers have attempted the occasional settlement buried beneath its surface, for it is rich in base metals, but the difficult of navigating the intense solar gravity well, combined with the unbelievable heat, have left it largely uninhabited save for a few scattered mining colonies.

Next in the system lies an anomaly, a rare blot on the good name of the Tennanlowers, and a curiosity that has attracted outside attention for centuries; the remains of a second planet, its solar Lagrange points filled with the ancient and picked-over debris of unidentifiable starships. The planet itself, which is never named on

Tennanlower star charts but which some refer to as Whithead, has been literally cracked in half by repeated and prolonged orbital bombardment far in excess of what would be necessary to commit Exterminatus on even the most heavily-populated world. The only outsiders the few remaining authorities on Tennanlowe itself permit access are the occasional Inquisitor, who naturally do not divulge what, if anything, they find on the airless and broken planet-remnant. For all others visiting the system, Whithead remains an enigma, conspicuous in its total absence from any official or even unofficial Tennanlower records.

The third and fourth planets, Felro and Albri, orbit a common centre of mass, though Albri is technically Felbro’s moon. The former is a cold boreal world, with a thick atmosphere that has locked the planet in a global ice age. Unfortunately for any Tennanlower attempts at settlement, the ‘snow’ that falls on Felro is carbon dioxide, and not water. While the planet has a thriving biosphere composed of large winter-adapted mammalians and robust plants, carbon dioxide appears to have somehow developed as the primary chemical means for life, and almost all organic matter on the planet is generally incompatible with human needs. The Magos Biologis of the Adeptus Mechanicus from Niva Gustav maintain a series of surface research and orbital bases here, mainly studying the unusual ecosystems that have developped on this nearly-hospitable world. Its moon Albri is fairly large and close, but even more inimical to life- it appears to have once been a garden world, but its thick

atmosphere for its small size trapped atmosphere and has rendered it a corrosive, overheated world not dissimilar to Venus.

Tennanlowe, the outermost and largest planet in the system, is a rarity among Imperial planets: a populated gas giant. Though not particularly big by the standards of gas giants, it possesses an ultradense core that have led many to theorize that it is in fact a brown dwarf that failed in the very early stages of becoming a star, though what happened to its atmosphere is unknown. Several kilometres below its gaseous and roiling red-purple surface is a band of breathable oxygen-nitrogen air currents, at a temperature that, while uncomfortably warm, is still enough to support human habitation. The planet has a half-dozen small rocky moons, a gigantic ring system that has not yet been swept clear by its moons’ gravity, and three major satellites. Pett is the largest of these bodies, devoid of atmosphere but rich in various mineral compounds and hydrogen locked into its dusty regolith. Sho is

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large and may in fact be a rogue planet swept up in Tennanlowe’s gravity well; though it possesses a semi-breathable atmosphere and even the beginnings of early microbial life, its high gravity and surface air pressure make any prospects of colonization meagre ones. Bois is yet another world that is close, but not quite there; its moderate gravity, comfortable atmospheric temperatures and high oxygen content would make it ideal, except that all the local plant life is virulently toxic to human tissues; many Tennanlowers do live on Bois, but theirs is an existence like those of deathworlders; for each step forward they take, the planet’s nightmarishly deadly

biosphere seems prepared to push them back.

The People of Tennanlowe

Tennanlowe’s history stretches back to the earliest days of Human settlement in the Galaxy, possibly even before the Dark Age of Technology. Few can agree on exactly how long there have been Humans living in the gas giant’s clouds, but it is clear that the planet is the longest-settled of the Synerge Cluster. Until M37, Tennanlowe was what passed for the subsector capital, with a population of billions living in hundreds of floating settlements, held aloft by balloons, long wings, or the anti-gravity technology the planets’ peoples are still famous for. They made a lucrative trade of selling a variety of chemical compounds extracted from their atmosphere, especially extremely pure hydrogen useful for starship plasma engine fuel. The billions of Tennanlowers lived in luxury, for their planet, though wracked by storms, was abundant in water vapour, and had a variety of airborne local plant and animal life that bred quickly and made for suitable human food products. The great floating cities were prosperous and well-maintained, with thousands of locals flitting between the shining spires on their traditional skyboards, and great starships docking with huge floating gantries built into the thin upper atmosphere. All that changed when the great Blight radiation storms erupted in 872.M38.

What caused the Blight on Tennanlowe is still unclear- it might have been a natural climatological anomaly, or a spatial disturbance, or even the atmosphere miners descending too low into their planet’s dense core and

unleashing something long-forgotten. Regardless, the result was a massive plume of extremely radioactive dust bursting forth from a point along the planet’s equator, combined with a huge upwelling of superheated air. The resulting radioactive shockwave, which for unknown reasons was primarily focused on a westerly path along the world’s habitable band, effectively wiped Tennanlowe’s skies clear of major human habitation. Those few

floating cities that did survive were battered and irradiated, riding the bow-wave of the planetary shockwave as it continued to circle the globe endlessly.

There are still tens of millions of Tennanlowers left, but their position becomes yet more precarious with every year. Un-irradiated food is a luxury, and what little water can still be extracted safely from the atmosphere is a precious resource. The great floating cities are limping wrecks of what they once were, forced on a constant pilgrimage westwards along the planet’s equator, for it is just after the passive of the Blight that the radiation levels are the lowest. Some who eke out a living among the crumbling spires are determined to rebuild their planet to its former greatness, and the democratic governments of each city are generally still intact and trying to maintain order and good government, but too much damage has been done, and many look to offworld for their salvation.

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The Imperial Creed on Tennanlowe

The Tennanlowers have, for as long as Imperial memory records, been faithful servants of the Imperial Cult in the traditional mould, and their worship does not deviate much from what is practised on a thousand other Imperial worlds, with the exception of a deep strain of apocalypticism, understandable after the great calamity their world has endured. Many locals feel that the Emperor has punished their society for growing above its station, but yet more are convinced that the Blight is a sign that it is time for them to seek a new home among the stars. Ferocious conflicts have errupted time and time again between the Abasers, those who believe that

Tennanlowe society needs to be reduced to a simpler level, and the Ultrists, who are convinced that the Emperor desires all his servants on Tennanlowe to abandon their home planet and build something better elsewhere. The Ultrists are currently dominant, given their more uplifting message, and have inspired many thousands of the Tennanlowers to join the Imperial Guard in the hopes of earning the right to settle other planets.

The Tennanlowe Skyboarders

“If we take that hill, this world is ours! Dive my Skyboarders, DIVE!”

-Colonel Briareus Vultan, 8th_{Tennanlowe “Hawkmen”} Unsurprisingly for a world of endless skies, the Imperial Guard regiments of Tennanlowe are primarily drop troops, using their distinctive grav-assist Skyboards and long many-coloured lances for swooping attacks on their enemies. Skyboarding began as a hunting method on the homeworld, a fast and skillful way to catch a variety of airborne food animals, but later evolved into a competitive sport and a tool of war between scavenger settlements following the Blight. Painted in bright and clashing colours to distort their silhouettes, the

Skyboarders drop from transport aircraft, rapidly penetrating enemy airspace with a great deal more control and precision than would normally be expected from troops with grav-chutes, for instance. Their specialty is

pinpoint insertions, concentrating a mass of troops in an unexpected area of the battlefield to draw enemy fire and disrupt supply lines as they go. During their descent, Skyboarders will harass enemy ground units at low-altitude, causing the maximum amoung of havoc before dismounting their boards and digging in to await reinforcements or hold their objective.

The Skyboarders have understandably gained somewhat of a reputation for being mavericks and risk-takers even among other drop troops- if a Skyboarder is knocked off his board, after all, he has no other means to slow his fall- and their attitude towards other regiments in battle has left them with somewhat of an unsavoury mien. The Tennanlowers, Ultrists especially, are desperate to ingratiate themselves with any planet that will take them in, and will go to great efforts to ape the customs of regiments they serve alongside. The greatest goal of any Tennanlower is to earn land to cultivate for their own, and so they throw themselves into combat with almost reckless abandon, unafraid of enemy threats, driven by rage and grief at the memories of what their world once was, passed down from generation to generation. Where they are truly terrifying, however, is against those who reject Imperial authority; all any Tennanlower wants to be is part of a prosperous greater Imperium, and the thought of deliberately rejecting the Emperor’s most holy government fills them with pious anger and bitter jealousy.

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Playing a Tennanlowe Skyboarder

Tennanlower regiments are generally quite homogenous due to the limited industrial and manpower base of their home planet, and despite differing regimental traditions they follow the same overall structure.

Characteristics: +7 to Weapon Skill, +3 to Perception and Agility, -3 to

Fellowship

Starting Skills: Awareness, Linguistics (Low Gothic), Survival, Operate (Aeronautica)

Starting Talents: Resistance (Radiation), Catfall, Die Hard, Street Fighting, Frenzy, Hatred (Secessionists) Other:

Resourceful: The vast majority of the Tennanlower homeworld is a blasted radioactive sky-waste, and their cities

are little better. Tennanlowers grow up fast and knowing how to make the best of limited resources, or they don’t grow up at all. Characters from this regiment gain a +10 to Survival tests to obtain potable food and water, and +10 to Tech-Use tests to jury-rig or repair equipment that is not technologically advanced, Skyboards included.

Doomed World: Even a sheltered and protected upbringing on Tennanlowe is hideously dangerous by the

standards of other worlds, and their grim attitude towards the future of their home planet leaves a mark. Tennanlower characters begin play with 1d10 + 1d5 Insanity Points. Any time they fail a Willpower test by more than 3 degrees, they are Stunned until the end of their next turn.

Favored Weapons: Spear, Lascannon

Starting Kit: Lascarbine, 4 x Lascarbine Charge Packs, Suit of Flak Armour, Respirator, Tennanlowe Skyboard,

2 x Frag Grenade, 2 x Smoke Grenade, Best-Quality Mono-Spear, Uniform, Set of Poor-Weather Gear,

Survival Suit, Micro-Bead, Sling Bag, Set of Basic Tools, Mess Kit, Canteen, Blanket, Sleeping Bag, Lamp Pack, Grooming Kit, Set of Cognomen Tags, Uplifting Primer, 14 x Day’s Combat Rations

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The rules for Skyboarders use the following Only War doctrines.

Homeworld: Post-Cataclysmic World Commanding Officer: Sanguine Regiment Type: Drop Troops

Doctrines: Hardened Fighters, Crusaders Drawbacks: Scarred by Loss

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Niva Gustav

“Here do I strike the Rune of Activation, that the energies might- wait. Oh. No no no run run run ru-!”

-Extract from security recordings recovered from the ruins of Gustav Manufactoria 182-B

Buried in the heart of the Synerge Cluster, the star Niva is a dim red dwarf near the end of its life cycle, putting out a wan red-brown light and the occasional spike of weak radiation. It has two planets, namely the Forge World Niva Gustav and the sparsely-inhabited “Testing World” known as Niva Karl. The Nivan system has thick outer asteroid rings and shows many of the same gravitational anomalies present in the rest of the Cluster,

making stellar navigation into and out of the system difficult at the best of times.

Niva Karl is an average-sized world near to its sun. Surface temperatures are comfortably temperate, but the thick carbon-dioxide atmosphere, high gravity and dangerous surface winds make it impractical for anything but the barest human settlement. Today the planet’s surface is coated with tens of thousands of craters, scorch marks, blast patterns, and debris, the remnants of the endlessly dangerous inventive spirit of Niva Gustav’s inhabitants. Niva Karl is generally classified as a forbidden world on Imperial charts, though this is not wholly true; passers-by are free to land, but landing on Karl is not dissimilar to landing in the middle of an active firing range and carries with it obvious dangers.

Niva Gustav, the system’s second planet, is small, cold and rocky; though it does possess a remarkably pure oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, it does not have any major plant life and temperatures year-round tend to hover just above the freezing point of water. Its surface is dominated by dozens of small continents in a series of shallow salt-water seas where naturally-evolving life has not yet begun to stir. It has few natural mineral resources, with most being mined in the Nivan asteroid belts in the outer system. The planet is surrounded by orbiting clouds of metallic debris, including the hulks of various prototype starships, weapons and engine testbeds, and the detritus of a planet of dangerously inventive minds.

The People of Niva Gustav

Niva Gustav has never been a particularly succesful Forge World, not in the least because it is a dumping ground for the Mechanicus’ failures. The origin of this practice is unclear, but it is widely acknowledged that Gustav’s population of Techpriests, almost all brought in from offworld, are those too considered too intractable, ingenious or lacking in common sense to succeed on their homeworlds. Over the years, the Nivans have, by dint of overambition, stupidity, recklessness or brilliance managed to produce a wide range of new STC-derived designs, some horribly unsuccesful, others quite clever. The wider Mechanicus deliberately keeps the Nivans at arms’ length; supply shipments are few and far between, and the only major visits to the system by Explorator Fleets and otherwise are generally to slap down any locals whose projects are getting too ambitious, ‘requisition’ any new plans or concepts that seem valuable, and drop off more troublesome Techpriests. Nivans are not actually Hereteks, and indeed tech-heresy is brutally stamped out by the planet’s leadership. On the other hand, almost all of them fall under the categorization of Maleteks, which many in Ixaniad wouldn’t see as much of an improvement.

The Magii in charge of Niva Gustav are a loose-knit and poorly-organized bunch, given their disparate background, and many have called the planet a high-functioning anarchy which only survives because of its

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inhabitants naturally mechanical dispositions. Dozens of different cliques, cadres, semi-secret societies and scientific orders compete for production line space, an unfortunate fact which is largely responsible for the planet’s widely variable industrial output. The one area in which the Nivans generally seem to actually excel is materials science; centuries of forced self-sufficiently have made them remarkably creative with the minerals they can scrounge for, beg or dig up within their own system, and their alloy production and forging methods are second to none, competing even with some of the metal products of the Lathe Worlds.

The industrialization of Niva Gustav has left its mark, and almost none of the planet’s original geography remains. The world’s islands are each effectively scrapyards, interspersed with towering industrial stacks and manufactoria. Gigantic recycling servitors wander the cold scrap savanna, breaking down the ruins of abandoned projects for reuse in new forms. Surprisingly, the planet has a biosphere, almost entirely imported from offworld. The scrap savanna deserves its name, for it is a dry grassland, thanks to the presence of a variety of incredibly hardy grass and scrub tree species, the byproduct of years of genetic modification. Semi-feral Grox wander the low bushes, hunted by packs of wild dogs, and around those few chilly lakes that still dot the surface exist small fortified villages of tech-serfs, protected by their walls against the occasional malfunctioning servitor that wanders by.

Official Nivan records list two major “Servitor Rampancies”, occasions when meme-virii or out-of-control upgrade programs spread through the planetary data network, causing servitors to go insane and attack

everything nearby. Unofficially, this has happened dozens of times and is still to a certain degree happening in the wilderness away from the industrial stacks or at the bottom of the seas, making moving overland on Gustav a risky proposition. The Nivans seems to have accepted this as a fact of life- they have every reason to be blase, for servitors are nothing if not easily replaced.

Nivan techpriests are understandably more than a little irritated that they have been put into exile, and tend to be hostile to outsiders almost to a fault. Many simply want to be left alone to work on their own pet projects, while still others strive desperately to earn their way back into the wider Mechanicum. They have earned a chequered reputation with the rest of the Subsector and the Sector in general- some come to the Nivans in search of a more open-minded attitude towards unorthodox technologies, while they have been outright banned from many conservative planets. The political machinations that underly Nivan government are fiendishly complicated, but one thing is generally clear; the few times the Nivans have been united by an outside threat, the results have been utterly terrifying.

Though Niva Gustav does not field any Skitarii, its inhabitants have not hesitated to take up their disparate and monstrously unpredictable arms to defend themselves against pirates, raiders and rebellion, whatever the species or origin, and their overzealous and often collateral-damage-heavy “police actions” have earned the ire of the Ixaniad Mechanicus. As a result, offworld Imperial Guard forces have been stationed on their world- ostensibly for their protection, but truthfully to keep the Nivans from straying too far off the beaten path of the

Omnissiah.

Trisdekan Primer 0.6

The Trisdekan Primer

The Trisdekan Primer

I P J

I P J

A Record of the Planets, Peoples and Armies of the Synerge Cluster

A Record of the Planets, Peoples and Armies of the Synerge Cluster

(Subsector Trisdeka), Sector Ixaniad, Segmentum Obscurus

(Subsector Trisdeka), Sector Ixaniad, Segmentum Obscurus

A P D

A P D

VERSION 0.6

VERSION 0.6

Table of Contents

Subsector Trisdeka

Bellagia

The Bellagian Low Rollers

5

Dolcatero

The Brumeran Korpogardistos

9

10

Edelweiss

The Edelweiss Kurassiers

14

Tennanlowe

The Tennanlowe Skyboarders

18

Niva Gustav