[OOC] Captain-General Valentine has extended an invitation to any commanders wishing to discuss the imminent Serraxx landings. Thus I have created this thread for any discussions over strategy you wish to conduct. An organized landing is in everyone's best interest.

I would guess that this is mainly for the Secundus Hive Attack, although I believe that any IG reps can front up for it. NPCs in attendence will be Dragon-Lord Arkadius, and a Tech-Guard Adept representing the Adeptus Mechanicus. You can also contact via hologram-projector anyone else you wish to involve in the discussions. I will also monitor this thread for intel requests. [/OOC]

Captain General Valentine watched as the Imperial Guard commanders and assortment of other characters entered the meeting room aboard the Star of Karusa with his arms resting on those of his chair. This meeting room was a stark contrast to the bare and uncomfortable chamber where the TSC meetings took place. The chairs situated around the table - which doubled as a holomap - were tall and well cushioned and the walls were decorated with tapestries, paintings, and ancient maps. It was a true war-room. Perhaps the only downside being that the temperature in the room was at a bitter cold.

Valentine himself looked the exact same as always. His posture and uniform as perfect and straight as one would expect from a veteran Mordian on the parade grounds and countless small battle honors and unit citations covering his chest. Perhaps the detail that caught the eye the most however was the fact that he seemed to be completely comfortable in the frosty atmosphere.

“Welcome gentlemen. I’m sure you all know exactly why you’re here, so we should be able to get through this meeting quickly.

Now, I take it that most if not all of our forces will be landing either at Hive Secundus or the Derandus Complex. The only one of us who has openly expressed a different opinion being Captain General De Brye. I believe that taking those two targets those would be the most feasible goals at this point, but if anyone here has a different opinion then feel free to share and explain your situation.”

Valentine looked around the room, waiting for any relies before he continued to explain his plans.

Captain-General Huxlow entered the meeting room; it was certainly rather different to the one aboard the Sword of Elannius where, even now, his men were training with the Eden Legions.

He nodded to Valentine, a wry smile escaping as he remembered their last encounter. It seemed the dour Mordian did not appreciate humour.

"Captain-General Valentine, I would invite you to explain your planned actions to us all. Doing so may well provide us with inspiration."

Ferzar took his seat amongst the assembled Serrax assault force commanders, noting that all seemed unusually enthusiastic, perhaps things were taking a turn for the better.

"I believe that would indeed be a good start to the proceedings, i would also wish that each commander present be able to list readiness and status of their units so that we may proceed with as few pauses as possible."

DeBrye arrived and took his seat, his dress was more subdued than the last meeting, no medals or cape. It appeared that he was ready to get down to business.

"General Valentine, I would be happy to lend my support in an attack at the Derandus complex. It is a logical first step, but I would rather our first objective be Hive Primus, once we have taken Darandus and established a beach-head."

Merkos took his seat and looked around the room. He was new to this operation and was very curious to see how these folks ran it. He sat quietly, with obvious anticipation shown on his face.

Gaia shakes his head and leans forward in response to Captain-General de Brye's comment. No surprise really, given the rumours.

"With respect to the Captain-General, I wish to vehemently disagree. Hive Primus is without a doubt the most obvious first target available, as well as the heart of the enemy. Therefore, it would be foolish in the extreme to attack it without sufficient intelligence and knowledge of the enemy force composition. I can understand the reasoning that suggests an immediate attack on Hive Primus, but I prefer a more subtle approach."

Steepling his fingers, Gaia leans back in his chair before continuing to speak. "Think of it as a delicate surgical or interrogation procedure. First we cut away the extraneous flesh, in this case, Hives Secundus and Tertius. Then, you carefully, slowly remove the target, perform your operation, then replace what was removed and seal off the wound. To wit, we make an overwhelming armored thrust against the enemy and cut the head from our foe, then seal the breach and cut the enemy into managable portions. Which brings me to another point, in fact".

Gaia turns to look at Captain-General Valentine, his face set in a mask.

"As I understand, we have the ability to simultaneously deploy the Airborne Corps and my 81st Corps, plus sixteen other regiments. I would like to request temporary command of the Airborne Corps to coordinate drops and support to secure a landing zone, plus any heavy infantry or slow-moving highly defensive troops we may have available. If we encounter any enemy unit in force, my troops WILL hold them, and die trying if necessary, but that is the worst-case option and to be avoided if possible. Therefore, I am making this formal request."

"You should not forget the very large amount of anti-orbital defenses arrayed across Serraxx. I would look further afield, to the wastelands. There are huge empty expanses with very little in the way of Anti-Air defenses. My army is rather suited to them. Gaurai and Syra are both Hive worlds, far more toxic than Thraxx. My soldiers are equipped for toxic conditions. In fact, the only soldiers better suited are the Valmare and the Avernus. I would advocate a portion of the Fifth Army landing in a flat area of the wasteland, and using Engineers to construct and fortify a base."

Huxlow waits a second.

"That said, I do not wish for this to seem as though I am seeking glory. I am perfectly willing to share the landing with alternative forces. The Mordian "Nukes", for example, could possibly land along one of the Highways leading to Hive Secundus. By eliminating AA within a section of the highway we find ourselves with a flat area to quickly land troops on."

"As to the necessity of attacking Hive Secundus, I believe that it would be far better than attacking Hive Primus initially. By taking Hive Secundus - an easier target in nearly all respects - we give ourselves a beachead which the enemy should not be able to shake us from. In effect, gentlemen, we get our foot in the door."

Severan slipped through the door and toward an open seat, trying his best not to disturb the conference that was already in cession. Silently, he cursed himself for being late. Being new, it would be to his best interest to take a nice long look before contributing comments of his own.

Valentine considered what everyone in the room had said before answering with his own thoughts. Their suggestions were interesting, but they were already behind schedule and could not wait any longer.

“Lieutenant General Gaia, I hereby give you command of the 24th Karusan Airborne Corps in addition to the 81st Karusan Foresters. As long as you can effectively command them they will stay under your command. Do not misplace my faith. Take that however you will.

Anyways, my plans for the Serraxx Landing - Operation Meteor - have gone under much revision, and here is the draft product. I'm sure none of you will hesitate to give your views on the plan.”

Captain General Valentine pressed a large activation rune and the table leapt to life in an explosion of light and color before the shape of Serraxx took shape just above the table's surface. He then pressed another, smaller rune and the image zoomed onto the hemisphere facing away from the sun. He pressed it once again and the image faded into an aerial view of Hive Secundus. Valentine produced a long stylus from a compartment on the side of the table and began revealing his plans.

“As you all may know, the Archenemy has been present on Serraxx for well over a year now, and are undoubtedly well fortified, armed, and reinforced. They have had all this time to prepare, and they couldn’t be more prepared to meet our assault, but there’s one thing they don’t know…that is exactly where this assault will come from. And this fact, gentlemen, is what I intend to take full advantage of.”

Valentine pressed the smaller button one more time and this time instead of zooming, the area around the image was filled with data while the image of Secundus itself was suddenly marked with lines, shapes, and calculations.

“Operation Meteor would begin with a crippling blow off the bat. Utilizing the Navy ships and especially aircraft, we would first sweep down from orbit and use the power of our air forces to destroy the anti-air and orbital defenses located on and around the target, Hive Secundus. With the reports I have seen on the Naval order of battle we should have no problem attaining complete air superiority. And once the anti-orbital defenses have been destroyed, that allows our cruisers to close in and help with eliminating the anti-aircraft guns as well as use their firepower to obliterate the two super-highways leading to and from Secundus, thus greatly delaying the arrival of any enemy reinforcements or supplies. In other words, we sever the arteries that feed the heart. However, another option for the highway leading to Hive Tertius would be to place an “obstinate” force there to hold the highway so that we may have easier access to Tertius when the time comes to attack it. The downside here being that the enemy could still possibly mass a large enough force to remove our own and gain access to Hive Secundus before we can properly take and fortify it.

The next phase of Operation Meteor is a massed airborne strike on Secundus’ very own front door, the spaceport. As you can see -” Valentine pointed his stylus to a patch in information at the edge of the image “We have a total of eight airborne units, and it would be these units plus our detachment of Ogryns, that would land directly on the spaceport under heavy aircraft cover and attempt to take it as quickly an effectively as possible without damaging the landing pads themselves. I would also be honored if the Steel Dragons would commit themselves to this attack.

Before this air assault goes off however, we should have landed a much larger mechanized and armored force of Guardsmen east of the Hive. By placing them about two-hundred and fifty kilometers away we should be able to avoid most if not all anti-aircraft defenses while we land. This force would be able to reach Secundus within the day, with our own artillery being used as anti-batter fire to counter the enemy’s. With an orbital bombardment, we could likely destroy the enemy fortifications before this force reaches the Hive, therefore making our job much easier. If things go as planned, this land assault should reach the Hive just as or a small period after the air assault begins. These two assault combined would likely take enough ground to create a firm beachhead for further pushes into Secundus, and if the spaceport could be captured within the day we’d be able to land a considerable amount of additional forces a day. It is a high risk, yet very high gain plan…but I have faith that we could pull it off.”

Valentine looked around the room at each person in turn, giving time for the plan to sink in.

“Any comments, questions, or suggestions?”

As the General began to speak a holographic image of Admiral Dacus appeared. Obviously ready to speak he instead concentrated on the plan, before an invitation was granted.

"Regardless of where we attack the anti-ship defences of the entire planet will be embattled with the Naval fleet, however, Hive Secudnus does pose as great an opportunity as any and in that regard the operation has my full support. Some issues to consider remain. By asking aircraft to destroy anti-air facilities you are asking us to strike not at a weakness, but at a strength. The risk of high, even unsustainable, losses is great. To land on top of a spaceport is the very greatest risk as anti-air defences there are formiddable. Not only do transports risk being shot down, our only assault transports, the troops inside would also perish. Another issue is how far East we can go, to fly in from the sunward zone will damage the aircraft and even then only the largest transports and assault transports could withstand it. Finally, simply reviewing our order of battle is a poor estimate of superiority if we have no information on the enemy. Such an assumption is a dangerous one I am unwilling to make.

As a result I propose some revision. That the direct assault on the spaceport be reconsidered. I am willing to undertake this operation but I want my notification of the risks involved officially recognised. That the reinforcement attack land at the mining stations south-west of hive Secundus. There is little anti-air defence there and it would be possible to establish another base of operations as well as reinforcements. Finally, that we reconsider how many anti-air defences need to be destroyed by a risky air assault. I have intelligence that some defences around the hive are inactive but it remains a dangerous operation."

Dragon Lord Arkadius spoke, his deep voice booming.

"The Steel Dragons will destroy these air defences that bother you. We shall fall from the skies and destroy the enemy as they flee before us! The direct attack on the spaceport is the best plan! Let us tear the heart from the enemy before he knows the Emperor's vengeance is up on him!"

"Dragon Lord, are you confident that you can take and hold the spaceport?"

Arkadius leaned back in his chair as he barked triumphantly.

"HA!"

A plasteel gloved hand moved forward in a chopping motion of dismissal as he leaned back to address the table again.

"The pathetic Chaos forces of the spaceport do not stand a chance against my brothers and I! When your soldiers and aircraft arrive there will be none left for them to test their might against!"

"I too am somewhat reluctant to land my units directly upon the enemies strongest concentration of anti-air assets. Whilst it may be that Space Marines can endure such punishment or indeed descend fast enough to avoid the majority of such fire, alas the Imperial Guard in their landers simply cannot, many thousands would be lost in the initial landings. I propose this for the Spaceport; the Steel Dragons quite rightfully take the supreme honour of destroying any air defences in and around the spaceport, as well as perhaps sewing a fair bit of panic in the enemies hearts. Then, the Imperial Guard airborne forces come in to reinforce the assault and perhaps secure a bridgehead from which supplies can be delivered.

This will secure us the spaceport in the fastest time possible with minimal casualties to the Imperial Guard, however, i wish to reiterate the risk of the part Lord Arkadius' men will play in this. I do not for one minute question your ability to carry out the task once on the ground Dragon Lord, but are your drop pods fast enough to avoid the ground defence fire?"

He waits for a response and moves on.

"As for the main force. The wastelands that have been spoke of are ideal for the Tallarn Corps under my command. Indeed, having spoken to the commander, they are most eager to make planetfall as soon as possible and would no doubt serve to speed our journey towards Hive Secundus wit their expertese in such environments."

"Captain-General, I would be interested in talking to your Corps Commanders. Last I heard, Tallarn was a desert world. Sand." Huxlow smiles, evidently enjoying poking fun at his compatriots. Hopefully he would have a better sense of humour than Valentine.

"These are ash wastes. The fifth army has been raised from birth on the hive worlds of Gaurai and Syra. In many cases, Serraxx is more mild than either. Perhaps the only regiments better suited to these conditions are the Avernus and the Valmare." Huxlow nodded his head at Ferzar.


I would propose that the Fifth Army be used as a large-strength Imperial deployment. I would be able to deploy Heavy Infantry, Mechanised and Armoured regiments, all with excellent equipment and excellent training at the hands of the Eden Legions. As such, my forces would land further out from the Hive than most other Imperial regiments, and could be utilised to build a forward base should one be required."

"I was merely stating that the arid nature of their world would suit them to such conditions. Ash wastes differ in but small ways to sandy deserts, and they should have no problems negotiating such areas,

As for the Valmere and Avernus, as you well know they await replacement upon Station Omega after operations are underway upon Serrax and forces can be made available.

I would ask this? Why must we limit ourselves to only the fifth army being deployed en masse? When we could form a massive anvil strike now instead of trickles of troops that will die needlessly as reports suggest upon battlegrounds such as Gensal."

"I am not averse to all our armies landing - in fact, we must eventually, or we won't be doing our jobs properly." Another joke, but the council don't seem too humourous at the moment. "That said, Captain-General Valentine seems to be advocating a very hasty plan of action. I am firmly of the school of thought that to proceed methodically should not be confused with cowardice or a lack of courage. Moving carefully will save many thousands of lives. The lives of our men are in our hands. We should not waste them searching for glory. As Magos Heskel could testify, the Mechanicus do not build weak fortresses. We could be fighting on Serraxx for years. We will not be fighting for long, however if our forces are butchered due to miscalculations. As Captain-General Valentine said, the Arch-Enemy has been on Serraxx for quite a while. A few days won't make much of a difference."

The image of the Admiral appeared briefly lost in thought before speaking. "Logistics. That is why we cannot deploy all at once. Our transport capacity is limited. It will take days to land a single army group completely, let alone all forces and this will naturally take longer as transport craft are lost and supplies are brought down. Thus the capture of the Secundus Spaceport, although a gamble, is a necessary one I feel.

The plan to land conventional forces after the Adeptus Astartes have paved the way is a good one. However, I recommend defensive troops such as medium infantry rather than elite but lightly equipped airborne who may find a better offensive role elsewhere in the hive attack. This is, however, your expertise generals."

Turning to Huxlow Dacus continued, "Sadly the Ash Sea will have to wait General as the soft ground makes landing transports impossible, the establishment of a base equally so and unpredictable storms only present another danger. If you are willing to establish a secondary base may I recommend the conglomerate of mining stations South West of Hive Secundus? May I suggest dedicating half of the remaining transports to such an operation, after 4 for the airbourne forces have been considerd?"

That the Admiral was stressed and struggling to hide it had become steadily clearer as the meeting continued. He paused to look at some notes before he spoke again.

"I understand the benifits of beginning an airfield as soon as possible, but loath as I am to say it, I think transports are better filled with combat troops than bags of plascrete on our first day of operations. Three regiments of combat troops could be landed rather than supplies and engineers for a base construction. I strongly support making two landings to attack the Hive and the mining stations concurrently, which I believe can be developed into a base in time.

If the superhighway from this area can be siezed intact transport will be very fast. I support using the elite paratroopers to land along this highway and take it intact while a strong force lands at the mines and begins rolling to the Hive. As suggested the spaceport can be taken by the Marines and further forces land at the hive. A second landing could occur in support of this.

My data suggests the Valmare are ideal to take the mines as they have equipment to repair the superhighway if required. The native Gaurian hivers would not doubt be at home in the Secundus battle. However, I do not have time for a great debate now, they are your troops, whatever you decide now I will support but please make the decision soon."

"Admiral, I feel you misunderstand me. I do not intend to land in the Ash Sea, although more forces could endure it. I also agree that Hive Secundus should be our principal objective, and that the spaceport - if we can capture it - would be a vital resource. I would also agree that using the Steel Dragons as our spearhead would be the best course of action."

"Though I continue to think that assaulting Hive Primus as quickly as possible would bring about the most direct end to this conflict. . . I will lend my forces in support of an attack at Hive Secondus."

"Admiral, I begin to see the merit of such a plan. I would consider allocating some Tallarn Infantry to secure the Spaceport behind the Adeptus Astartes as they are both strong and resilient enough to carry out such a task. From there is where i suggest we bring down engineers and resources as facilities are already available for its landing and distribution.

This, as the Admiral rightly points out, frees up our more light airborne units who i feel would indeed excel at taking the highway, however, i am dubious as to their ability to hold it against a concerted enemy armoured push, which is what i fear will be their response. Perhaps securing the highway after its capture should also become a priority?

As for the mines, no doubt the Valmere would indeed be a hardy and effective group of men to capture them, but alas they are upon station Omega awaiting replacement. The only part that is not is their armour which i am reluctant to deploy in such a role.

I am, however, willing to make available the regiments of the 790th Infantry Corps who are not stationed at Omega, to the Hive Secundus theatre, their hive backgrounds being valuable and Artillery support crucial, along with 171st Tallarn Medium Infantry to secure the spaceport.

The rest of the Tallarns i put forward for taking the mining facility but if we have better suited troops i would gladly move them to a supportive role.

Finally i allocate the entirity of 71st Special corps to securing the highway, although additional forces are requested."

The debate had gone on long enough but was thankfully nearing a conclusion.
"The transports will be ready for your forces as soon as you give the orders Generals."

The image of the Admiral flickered briefly and vanished.