The Macharian Crusade: Kallastin

Fifteen months into the campaign, the Lord Solar had his

first real test in the Kallastin Stratocracy. Administratum

records indicated a polluted hive-world at this location

had rebelled and thrown its lot in with Apostate Cardinal

Bucharis during the Plague of Unbelief. It’s military rulers

had no intention of voluntarily surrendering.

The first task was the destruction of the Kallastin fleet

and orbital defenses over the course of a two-month

naval campaign. Once safely in low orbit, Stratego Kemal

led a high-speed war of position which isolated and

routed the rebel’s tide of mutant throngs in the world’s

rural areas. This isolated its advanced central hive cities.

Generals Hollweg and Martel threw up mighty rings of

iron around the three besieged hives and shelled them

incessantly for four months before the Merican Fusiliers

under General Bradley stormed the citadels.

The battles for the “Three Sisters” was a bloody houseto-

house affair. At the climax of the fighting, Lord Solar

himself led the final assault on the palace of Governor

Van Buren, besting him in single combat.

Kallastin was secured in a total of six months and three

weeks from the time the First Army arrived in system.

Macharius ordered the dissolution of Van Buren’s rebel

government, and sent away all ranking stratocrats in

chains to Methalor.

From:History of the Macharian Crusade, Adeptus administratum curator Bigred, Bell of Lost Souls

 With a friend we played one of the battles of the "macharian crusade" supplement published by Bell of Lost souls. Me, impersonating the first army of the Lord Solar had to hold the planetary senate of the Kallastin Stratocracy, my friend as the kallastinians (imperial guard also) had to kill Macharius in order to claim victory.

I deployed my armoured company of 6 leman russes with battlecanon and flamethrower, and a Banehammer acting as a command leviathan carrying Macharius and two squads of veterans.

My friend had lots of infantry, two 10 men assault squads, sly marbo, two squads of sentinels and a demolisher.

 The battlefield, with the stratocracian senate in the center and surrounded by entrenchments

 Leman russes and the leviathan

 Macharius and a squad of necromundan vets in the fighting platform of the command vehicle

 Some of my friend's forces

we resurected the 2d edition strategy cards, he got forced march being able to deploy au to 45 cm from fis board edge, and I sabotage being able to cancel the shots of one of his units once rolling 4+ for miniature 

 view of his forces inside the senate

  

 Thanks to the "master strategyst" trait of Macharius, i got the first turn and all my tanks started to move forward weapons blazing. A hit from the leviathan's main hammer destroyed all the servitors of a machinepriest

while a battlecanon shell killed his company commander 

 a sniper runs from the death of his commander

 a unit too close to my lines is decimated by flames and battlecanons

 But in his turn he concentrated all his firepower on the Leviathan, disabling the main cannon and inflicting two hull points of damage

 Sly Marbo appeared and hided behind the senate's walls

 While the kallastinian assault troops deployed via gravchute behind my tank line

 And to the leviathan's right, both units fired their meltaguns inflicting heavy damage to the command vehicle

He regrouped a fleeing unit in his right and the sniper

but was unable to repair the demolisher cannon 

 the lascannons in his left fired against the leviathan

which finally was destroyed under the concentrated fire 

 The survivors of both units crawled out of the weckrage only to be recieved by a storm of mortar, missile and lasgun fire

 When the dust settled only Macharius remained while all the necromundans had perished around him

 In my turn it was vengeance time, with my russes burning to a crisp both squads of stormtroopers with their flamethrowers

 My rightmost Leman Russ fired a shell that landed amongst the platoons command squad killing the lot of them and a Lord Comissar with the sole exception of a heavy bolter hidden behind the machinery, the lone survivor passed his morale test and prepared to fire unconcerned

 Finally, in the assault phase Macharius managed to reach the senate, he massacred a mortar crew defending a window, consolidated inside...

 and came face to face with Marbo

 In the Kallastin turn the demolisher rammed the rear of one of my tanks, without much effect

 And the remaining garrison of the senate charged valiantly against the Lord Solar

 General view of the battlefield in my turn, all my oponent's right flank is gone, but his left still helds some of it's initial force, shielded from the explosions as it is by the manufactorum's machinery

 The hand to hand continued, with Marbo dying at the hands of Macharius (who has suffered just one wound)

 In my next turn the remaining veterans helped Macharius to end with the machine priest and the sinper, hence claiming the building. Now they just had to hold it for two turns until the end of the battle.

 But surprise of surprises! the remaining sentinels charge against Macharius and kill the vets!

The walkares manage to survive untill the end of the 6th turn, even injurying Macharius at the cost of one of their number.

So the outcome? Macharius is alive, but he has been unable to claim the senate which is contested by the sentinels, a draw then.