Uppsala Grimdark: Battle 2a. Chaos-Fallen Tartarus: Southern Wall

This battle represents the southern defense of the chaos-infested city of Tartarus, where renegade Krieg and Wordbearers face an assault of Space Wolves, Fleshtearers and Crimson Fists. The Crimson Fists have acess to a captive Kommissar-General Ilse, who can plead with Krieg troops to lay down their arms, if she gets close enough.

Battle intro here
Northern assault here

[Author: Mattias]

- Location: the desert city of Tartarus, Cerberus XIII
- Imperial Forces: Crimson Fists, Space Wolves, Fleshtearers
- Chaos Forces: Renegade Death Korps of Krieg, Wordbearers, Daemons of Nurgle
- Points value: total of 1200 points on each side
- Combat objectives Imperium: Slay Warlord. Destroy Chaos Altar. Annihilate the enemy.
- Combat objectives Chaos: Slay Warlord. Slay Kommissar-General Ilse. Defend the city.

Special Rules:
- Night Combat all turns.
- Daemons roll for each unit prior to battle. On a 6: -1 Toughness.
- Kommissar-General Ilse travels with the Imperials. If she is within 12" of a Krieg force, she can force a Ld-test. If they fail, they will not fight the next round.
- All demons held in reserve.
- Victory points are combined for two parallel battles (2a - Southern Wall and 2b - Northern Wall)

The vehicles advanced rapidly towards the dark wall. On cue rifle fire and artillery broke loose along the entire front. Unter-Kommissar-General Hilda von Stroheim pressed the trigger button to the Vengeance Cannon and a rhino was chewed apart under the merciless storm of bullets. Astartes of the Crimson Fists evacuated in panic and was almost crushed under the tracks of a predator. Two different chapters at once?

The vox crackled. There were more atmospheric disturbances than ever. "Predator is equipped with flamethrowers, Kommissar-General."
Hilda cursed. "Take it down now - if it reaches the fortification line all the men will be fried to a crisp in their bunkers".

She tried to get a clear shot of the predator, but was thrown to the ground when the turret was hit by a missile. The tanks advanced rapidly. "Crack grenade - take it down now -" The vox was filled with screams when gouts of blazing promethium hit the northern bunker.

As the predator swung around with flamethrowers directed against the ramparts at the city gate, the desert was filled with explosions from Krieg artillery, which rained shrapnel over the astartes that advanced across the sand to get within shooting range. But the enemy did not die quickly enough.

The ground shook as a landing capsule hit the town square. Panic from militia who crowded into a bunker, when a huge metal monster loomed out of the capsule, shimmering force field on its huge axe and shield. On its plate was etched runes, and the monster was decorated with trophies, furs and grinning wolves skulls. Three chapters? Hilda almost started laughing hysterically.

An automatic turret in the capsule started spraying bullets all over the place while the dreadnought trudged toward the artillery. Hell. "Good Emperor of Mankind, see us in our struggle, send us help in this hour of need ..." Hilda mumbled prayers almost without thinking.

The air over the battlefield shimmered; swarms of flies seemed to multiply. A few soldiers threw up inside their gas masks, when rotting mountains of meat and slippery tentacles ripped reality and dumped out in puddles of fluids, like grotesque newborns. Help had arrived, her prayers had been heard, But not from the Emperor. Hilda laughed out loud with relief!

During a break in the artillery fire, the demons charged on the Marines. A huge abomination fell the rear squads in the back while wolves in Terminator armor slowly hacked their way through a flock of chattering creatures that just refused to die. An enemy razorback got a cannon shot into the next bunker which went up in flames, but despite that the battle had turned. Krieg sappers got a melta shot in the back of the dreadnought, while the chaos marines attacked it in the flank. Hurray! The fortress was secured! With a smile, she ran across the square toward the drop pod - the noise and the chaos had been so loud that she almost had forgotten the bolter turret that still rained bullets over the defenders.

She got some hits, but nothing she could not handle.
"In you go!," she laughed and lobbed a melta bomb into the capsule. The bullets continued to hammer the ground around her. "One more!"
She stretched and peered at the horizon while the capsule collapsed as its foundation turned to molten slag. "The demon seems to have taken care of the reinforcments." She saw the massive creature cleave another dreadnought, before going down being peppered to a pulp by the intelligent bullets of the sternguard. The tanks backed away, and they retreated quickly, to escape the ongoing artillery fire.

Renegade Kommissar Hilda

Remaining was only broken battlements and burning bunkers, where demons and their human allies feasted on charred corpses.

Hilda limped up the steps to the altar and stood at the top. She looked triumphantly out over the square and the many faces turned toward her.
"We have won - you hear it all! We won! We made the Emperor flee!" Weeping, she collapsed on the top step.

At the corpse-puddle left from the great demon, on a hill far from the battlefield, was Kommissar-General Ilse and those of the Crimson Fists who had managed to get out of the bullet-riddled troop transport. Ilse handed back the borrowed image magnifier. "I arrived too late to save them, and now they are lost. Although they feel that victory is sweet, ultimately they will only taste the bitterness of debt. How could they all fall like that? "
She was injured, but just felt tired. "Take me back to the base. Nothing more can be done for them.”

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Extra images courtesy of the ECBE (Esteemed Conclave for Battle Evaluation), Astra Militarum: