The Crusade, A WH40k Inspired Stellaris AAR.

[ParadiseCity]

A Stellaris After Action Report

Inspired by Warhammer 40k.


So I have more or less always wanted to make an AAR for a paradox game. This AAR will however be my first. However, the Stellaris (or any games for that matter) won't properly represent the massive scale of Warhammer 40k in the whole milky way galaxy is part of the lore. So instead of making this playtrough a galaxy I decided I will roleplay it as just a small sub-sector of the milky way. The way I will write it will be in the perspective of Imperial administration reports and case files.


I am not quite sure how long I will play this one, I have a bad reputation to quit my campaigns in midgame and rarerly actually meets the late/end game. Hopefully, with this AAR I will be more motivated to actually finish the game for once.


As previously mentioned, this in my mind will not be a galaxy per se we see, but rather a small sub-sector of the milky way galaxy set in the Warhammer 40k Universe. This sub-sector was in many ways the heartland of the Imperium of Man. With a huge human population and isolated from the wars and misery we usually see in the Warhammer universe. However this changed drastically in the 38. millennium. A massive warpstorm erupted around this sub-sector. Making communication and travel beyond the respective star systems impossible. The star date 2200 means in this scenario, the last time this imperial world received any communication from the rest of the Imperium.

Feedback, both negative and positive is appreciated.

 

[ParadiseCity]

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BY THE ORDER OF HIS MOST HOLY MAJESTY

THE GOD-EMPEROR OF TERRA


AUTHORIZED PERSONS ONLY


Please enter your authority code > ********************
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Validating...


Validating...


Validating...


Access Granted!
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CASE FILE 442:41f:JL3


Written by Imperial Scholar Agitus

M40.120

Thracian Primaris College of History


History of Hiveworld Thracian Primaris and the Sub-sector of Ghoticus

Thracian Primaris had throughout history been a major trading hub in this sector. The planet itself was settled in the early 32. millennium, first by traders and then cities grew around these trading posts on the world. With a steadily growing population the world was used as a forward outpost in the colonization of the nearby star systems. In the millenniums that followed, vast amounts of stars was populated by Imperial citizens of the whole Sub-sector of Ghoticus. The sector was far away from any Tyranid Hives, Ork Waaaghs and thus also enjoyed peace and stability for many centuries.

A overview map of the Ghoticus Sub-sector in the Segmentum Ultima.


Thracian Primaris served as the capital world of this sub-sector and had at its peak many hundred billions of citizens living in hivecities throughout the planet. The role of a hive-world made it highly dependent on resources and especially food from other nearby star systems, it was highly dependent on trading and taxation from the rest of the Ghoticus sub-sector.


The sectors main contribituon to Holy Terra were at this men, or soldiers that is. Millions were drafter every 10th year, mainly from Thracian Primaris but also from neighboring star systems to the Imperial Guard. The Thracian Regiments were famous for their courage and loyalty in the field. This also drew the attention of a nomadic Spacemarine Chapter called Sanguine Foxes. The Sanguine Foxes chapter thus in the 35. millennium built a huge monastry-fortress in one of the orbiting moons of Thracian. Recruiting it's warriors from the undercities of Thracian Primaris.


The Ghoticus Sub-sector was renowned throughout the whole Imperium as an example of how the all of the Imperium should look and be like. A stable, thriving sector with peace, trading and stability. However this would not last.


In M38. A massive warpstorm engulfed around and troghout the whole sub-sector. Making any communication or travel futile. This period is in later times called The Dark Days by the citizens of Tharcian Primaris. Without trade or taxation, food shortage became a growing problem on Thracian Primaris which started many riots that escalated into full blown rebellion. The rebellion was quickly hijacked by Khorne cultists. The war lasted for many centuries and billions of citizens were lost in the war. The war culminated with the total destruction of the Governors palace by the use of tactical nukes by the Khorne cultists. The loss of the governor and his whole retinue caused panic and infighting between the remaining Imperial forces. By the will of the Emperor however, a Inqusitor by the name of Rexen (which had just arrived on the planet when the warpstorms emerged. He and his retinue was there to investigate reports of chaos cultists activity).assumed control of the rest of the imperial forces and managed to finally wipe out the last remnants of chaos cultists on the planet.


With most of the leadership killed during the war, there were none to assume the role as governor. The warp-storm was still not finished, so the whole planet fell under the jurisdiction of Inqusitor Rexen. Inqusitor Rexen, now the Lord-Inqusitor of the planet created strict population control laws to make sure food shortage was not going to be an issue anymore, he also had to rebuild many of the cities on planet again. With many reforms and laws he managed to succesfuly create a balanced planet, with a stable population, a thriving agriculture industry and so forth. Lord-Inqusior Rexen also created clear succession laws which made sure the Inquisition would still retain power of the planet when he would die. Lord-Inqusitor Rexen died in M39. 225 at the age of 320. His successors of the Inquisition followed his policy throughout the centuries that followed. Holding strict control of the population, with purges and purification whenever they suspected any cultists activity.

Their main goal was to have the planet under Imperial jurisdiction and mainly Inquisitional jurisdiction until the warp-storm stopped. Patiently waiting for the reunification with Holy Terra.

End.
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[ParadiseCity]

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Lord-Inquisitor Metellus Report to Holy Terra

Highly Classified

By order of his most holy majesty
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After the warp-storms dwindled down in our sector, after two millennials we are trying to communicate with the rest of the Imperium. Is our whole sub-sector still engulfed in a massive warp-storm? This needs to be investigated more. The end of the warp-storm means however that we can retain communication with long lost colonies in our system, if they still exist that is. I have therefore approved a search team to search for our long lost colonies.

Our neglect of our fleets needs to be addressed as well. Many of our greatest ships went into the void throughout the years in desperate attempts to reach the Imperium, in which we never saw or heard from again. We can only assume that their attempts were futile, many more of the ancient ships were lost in the great wars of The Dark Days. Therefore we need now more than ever to rebuild Thracian Primaris once glorious fleet.

The remnants of the once powerful fleet of Thracian Primaris

We have lost tremendous amounts of knowledge and technology over the centuries, the majority of it lost during the Dark Days. We need to address this as well. Huge amounts of our resources are therefor now given to the scholars of our planets in an effort to re-invent and rediscover a lot of our lost technologies.

The leading scholars of Thracian Primaris and what they are currently focusing on.

I highly advised them to focus their skills on our growing problems with power and power plants at the moment. Which they all agreed on.
Furthermore I have erased an old policy regarding population control decreed by my old predecessor Lord-Inquisitor Rexen (blessed be his name). We no longer have a need to keep our population growth under check, as of this moment we have access to nearby planets which we can both colonise and gain resources from in the years to come. Thracian Primaris will finally after all these years, grow again!

In the name of the God-Emperor, I hope in all sincerity that this message will be received by the High Lords of Holy Terra and we will be given much needed assistance to our sector. If not, I can only assume that our sub-sector is still very much encircled by a raging warp-storm.

The Emperor Protects!

End of Transmission.
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[ParadiseCity]

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From: Captain Drusus of the expedition ship Concorde

To: Lord-Inquisitor Metellus


Highly classified, Metellus eyes only!


Authority Code > *********

Validating...

Access!
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To the Lord-Inquisitor Metellus, the Emperor protects!

We have successfully made two minor warp jumps to our neighboring systems by your orders, my astropath had found it extremely difficult to guide trough the immaterium but doable. We landed first in the Ludekpesek. Where the once famed Forgeworld of Instinus had once been. Nothing remained of it, the world had become a barren world with no signs of life. I highly suspect this is a result of huge amount of detonated nuclear bombs. However dreadful these news might be, the system is an excellent choice for mining operations in the years to come.


The next system which I am currently in proved to be a much more bountiful encounter. Mycerinos I according to Imperial records was before the warp-storms a thriving feudal world. We have surveyed the whole planet without finding any traces of sentient life. According to the imperial records, the planet had roughly 100 million citizens prior to the warp-storms some 2200 years ago. I have no idea where these people have gone or why they have left the planet, decayed structures is the only trace left of the 100 million humans that used to live here. The planet itself is perfect for a colonization attempt by Thracian Primaris and I highly recommend you to begin the process of colonization.

A snapshot taken by Concorde in orbit of Mycerinos I.
End of Transmission.
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Our planet is dying. We do not have the proper technology to stop the development of the biosphere. Our main objectives now will not only be to find lost colonies and establish contact with the Imperium, but also to gain access to technology and knowledge which will reverse the development of the biosphere. It is heavily suspected by Imperial scholars that the changes of the biosphere is the dark days fault. Massive use of tactical nukes and the destruction of atmosphere philters may have escalated the situation we are in now. Thracian Primaris must not die! Luckily we have found other planets which we can resettle parts of our population in if disaster should occur.

 

[Lowki]

I shall be keeping an eye on this one! Subbed!

 

[Thousandflowers]

I like the sound of this!

 

[ParadiseCity]

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Newsreel 2213.01.11
Thracian Primaris Imperial Broadcasting Network

Propaganda Broadcaster Cassus: "Breaking story citizens. The colony ship Gloria has after a long voyage finally landed in Mycerinos I, which have from this point on been renamed Mycerinos Primaris. This is a great day for the Imperium of Man and a clear indication that we have passed the dark days and the reclamation of our system is at hand!"

"In other news, Lord-Inquisitor Metellus has just entered the podium at the massive rally held at The Emperors Plaza here in Thracian Primaris, we will tune in and listen to what he have to say today"

Lord-Inquisitor Metellus: "The Thracian Primaris we possess today, we owe to those men and women that fought valiantly two millennials ago. And above all, to those that shed their blood for the Emperor. They acted out in a boundless love for the Imperium. The same can be said today about those brave men and women that have ventured beyond this planet and system and started the process of reclaiming our long lost worlds and systems."

"I have grave news for our citizens. After the disaster that occurred two millennials ago we as you all know lost contact with our brothers and sisters in the Imperium. Yesterday, one of our search vessels stumbled upon signals coming from a nearby system. After investigating the system they stumbled upon a xeno spacefaring civilization that has taken over our lost planets in that region.
This cannot last and this cannot remain! Otherwise our Imperial citizens would be burdened with this blemish for all time! This we shall eliminate from our history. We will erase it again! We will resurrect a Imperium of Honor, Might, Power and Magnificence!
We won't let it be like this! Preparations for a Crusade will soon be undertaken, in which we reclaim our long lost worlds from these xenos and other filth currently occupying it, all in the name of our beloved Emperor. May he be forever watchful over us."
*Massive applause and cheering*

Propaganda Broadcaster Cassus: "That was a extraordinary powerful speech by our beloved Lord-Inquisitor. Hold on one second... Breaking news! We have just obtained a holopicture of one of these xeno filth and will broadcast it right now"

"Be vigilant citizens, be vigilant..."

End of Transmission.

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Dunno whats up with the background city in the picture tho, I suspect a out of date mod or something.

 

[sebas379]

Ooh a wh40k setting, neat. I like what you've done so far, i'm in

 

[ParadiseCity]

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From: Inquisitor Galvius
To: High-Inquisitor Constantius
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Highly Classified

Xeno Surveillance Report

Emperor protects, my Lord.
The signals that we picked up from the western systems are indeed what we feared it to be. More xenos breed are occupying various systems around the signals we picked up. How these creatures managed to settle here is beyond me. No one should have been able to break trough the warp storm that engulfed us and according to Imperial records, there has been no sign of xeno life in this sub-sector in over six millennials.
These xenos seem to be roughly double the size of a standing man and are extremely aggressive. Their behaviour remind me closely of that of an Ork. They communicate with each other using grunts in various lengths and sounds, making it difficult for our Xeno linguists decoding this language. Their society reflects this behavior, in which various warlords rule their respective territories. Their technology level seem to be roughly on par with ours, being that the way the acquire technology is trough looting and scavenging ruins of dead Imperial worlds. This might also indicate that these creatures have stumbled upon an SCT which they have somehow managed to decode.

I have attached with this document an picture taken of an specimen of these creatures which we managed to capture. We have come to call these xenos 'Outcast'.

May the Emperor guide us.

End of Transmission...
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[sebas379]

Boar type Orks, WAAAGH!

 

[ParadiseCity]

Yeah they are basically angry ork-boars with rusty heavily modified (for better or worse) lasguns they found in the ruins of an old Imperial armory .

23 years have passed and the Imperium is steadily reclaiming their lost worlds. 3 planets have been successfully colonized and Thracian Primaris population is at its peak. The capitals administration "encourages" people to settle in their newly found colonies, forceful resettlement in other words. The bugs, called Trakpocian , occupying systems south-east of the Imperium will be the first target for the Ghoticus Crusade. Their capital is an Urban World (part of a mod I downloaded in which you can terraform planets into urban worlds and I guess these creatures just spawned with their starter world being an urban world).

These creatures' homeworld is classified as a urban world, but there is nothing urban about it. They create huge so called Cathedral Mounds which ultimately have covered their whole homeworld. Raised hundreds of meters high, mixed with the slime of the Trakpocians and mud is as hard as Imperial concrete. The whole world is covered with these spikes.
It is believed by many scholars of the Ordo Xenos that these creatures have a clear hierarchy in which the queen (their mother) is at the top. Therefor the Imperial Guard have prepared a massive army, many millions strong which will strike first in the heart of the Trakpocian empire in an effort to neutralize the Mother.

Massive Imperial buildup of its army. Along with its own Imperial Walker division. Consisting mainly of Sentinels as shown in the picture below.

After the process of building up the Imperial army and fleet is finished, the Crusade of the Ghoticus system will start, it will begin with the eradication of the Trakpocians.

 

[sebas379]

For the Emperor, purge the Xenos!
Maybe bring some Leman Russ tanks along for the party, should make short work of those Cathedral Mounds

 

[kart72]

Am I the only person expecting that just before storming the enemy's main line of defense yor troops will find a division of baneblades (that the xenos couldnt enter and didn't realize were weapons or did realize but forgot about that and built a museum orr smth like that over them) in a spearhead formation and the one in the front will have an engraved message "Armored Support courtesy of General Creed Jr"?

 

[Galaxy Scribe]

The Emperor Protects!

 

[Viden]

God I love this.