13 - Galrisian - Apocalypse at the forges of Ruhr, The VI° Legio Metalica Battlegroup, escorted by a cult mechanicus legion of Piombus, at the head of the CCXLIII° imperial regiment faces the ork assault on the lost factories of Ruhr.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once. Of all the wonders that I yet have heard. It seems to me most strange that men should fear; Seeing that death, a necessary end, Will come when it will come." --Julius Caesar from "Julius Caesar" (Act 2, Scene 2) - William Shakespeare
OST - AC/DC - Hail Caesar
Squeeze metal on metal, while the plates are writhing of rage, fire, death and glory. The wind whistles and inflates the immense banners of the Legio Metalica Hells Angels division, while the crude ork flags soar arrogantly from the top of their gargants. Huge columns of smoke and fire are plunged by the immense boilers of the living effigies of Gork and Mork. Immense feet ready to stomp everything, monstrous, huge tracks ready to leap forward. To screech, to tear, to overturn, grind. As gods of two races in an eternal struggle, gargants and titans are ready to slaughter each other, while under their shadow, like ants, swarm, fight and die hundreds of orcs and men. The Gods, walk.
Sons of Piombus.
« We're thirty of a clan, and with the Death thirty-one. Eia! Eia! The last one! Eia! Eia! Alalà! » Legio Metalica Hells Angels division Battle Cry.
<< Sons of Piombus! Full speed ahead! >> Veteran Princeps Julius Zar on Warlord titan Nuntius Fragor
The immense Big Krawler plunges rage and death from innumerable pistons and chimneys, a boiling boiler ready to overwhelm the red army, but again they are quicker. With decisive steps the reaver titan Portae Custos advances, at the head of its army it unleashes a firestorm against the horde of killa kans and dreadnoughts, destroying half a dozen and forcing the survivors to flee. Chest out, shining eyes, not fearing death Portae Custos stands before the Big Krawler, ready to hold up the shock of the inevitable assault. And the metallic monster launches forward.
The Big Krawler followed by the speedstas launches the assault, overwhelming the entire army of the reds. The immense beast rushes towards the reaver titan, an avalanche of steel strikes on the right leg of the titan, while with the left feet the reaver titan dominates the beast from above, dragging it back towards Lux Vindicta warlord titan, which unleashes its fearsome laser burner and melta cannon in a now unbearable firefight for the gargant.
The reaver titan, limping, advances beyond the Big Krawler in flames, dragging behind it the legio cybernetica and the skitarii demi-century, in a now vain firefight against the speedstas. The fearsome dragsters deflect the storm of blows, and for very little, the victory, clear, decisive, lethal, escapes from hand, in the most black and unlikely bad luck. Driven back, the defeated Piombus army withdraws at the shadow of the reaver titan, defeated and damaged, but proud of having destroyed the Big Krawler gargant.
<< Fuck! Where are you Luck that helps the brave? Bitch! Luck was lacking, not courage! Fuck you Gork and Mork! >> Princeps Fabius Faber on reaver titan Portae Custos
<< You're not alone Fabius! For the Omnissiah! Fire and steel is upon you! >> Princeps James Draco on warlord titan Lux Vindicta
Lux Vindicta warlord titan, given the bad turn of the forces at its right, assaults frontally the immense stompa mob before it's too late. A furious firefight explodes between the titan and the ten stompers, but the void shields protect the titan, which unleashes its laser burner and melta cannon for a second time, sweeping out the stompers into a desolation of incandescent debris and roaring flames. An overwhelming victory that immediately rebalance the front.
The regiment of leman russ tanks above the hill opens fire on the soopa zzapp fortresses, destroying another one, while the second regiment prepares an overwatch fire, to protect the collapsed front from a possible planetary assault of the ork landa.
The fury of the battle flares without respite, and this time it's the great gargant that advances, unleashing a hell of fire on the HQ mechanized infantry regiment. Flesh, bodies, plates, tracks, at dozens jump in the air like burning embers, to fall like dead ashes, dead leaves that fall dozens of yards away. A terrifying cannonade, which breaks the regiment's kidneys.
The bodies and tank chimeras are still burning, that the kult of speed throws itself on the vile assault of the macharius super heavy tanks and stormtroopers in disarray. A cruel massacre to which no one escape, followed a few minutes later by the retaliation of the ordinatus minoris armed with the vulcan mega bolter, which exterminates the vile ork speed freaks, that retreat among the rails.
The bad moon clan, in the hellish mess, unleashes a deadly substained fire against the HQ mechanized infantry regiment, completing the massacre. Only one hellhound tank, and thirty soldiers manage to escape behind the abandoned nuclear power plant.
The imperial response is immediate, with the bombardment of the manticores against the speed freaks outriders, but being well perched the damage is light, and only a couple of warbikes are knocked down.
The last soopa zzapp fortress moves fast in front of Nuntius Fragor warlord titan, and with its soopa zzapp gun knocks down two void shields.
The battle on the imperial right flank is a terrifying fire. The repeated sorties in depth of the orks have swept and weakened the imperial first lines and the reserves, now only Nuntius Fragor warlord titan and a handful of imperial guards are what remains to advance to the heart of the orchish front.
On the other side, the reaver titan and the red army is in disarray, defeated when the victory was at hand! The leman russ tanks, with the warlord titan Lux Vindicta is what remain of the imperial strenght. The forges of Ruhr shine with light, flames, glory and sacrifice.
But the battle rages, rages, and rages again. The ordinatus minoris with the volcano cannon tries to stop the blood axes mob destroying its battlefortress, but the hit is inaccurate, and it only damages the fortress, that advances and surrounds the ordinatii minoris.
The blood axes mob fires at the ordinatus minoris armed with the volcano cannon, forcing it to retreat.
<< If luck turns our back, Army of the Imperium, we certainly don't give it the ass! Advance and open fire on the Great Gargant! Forward towards their primary objective! >> Veteran Princeps Julius Zar on Warlord titan Nuntius Fragor
With a quiet advance Nuntius Fragor warlord titan opens fire against the Great Gargant, knocking down more than half of its countless power fields. A few minutes later, the last infantry regiment of imperial guard assaults the last soopa zzapp fortress, with the support of the titan who alone annihilates everything who dares to stand in front of it.
The snakebites gargant moves fast among the small buildings once occupied by the piombus army, and giving its back to the reaver titan in disarray, it fires at the warhound titan. The death cannon and the gaze of Mork miraculously miss the target, and with a daring escape Ardens Lupus moves behind the warlord titan Nuntius Fragor, for the last, decisive hour of battle.
<< Boss! For the eight arms of the Omnissiah! My ass is still burning! >> Princeps Bill Hudson on warhound titan Ardens Lupus
The last orc formations furiously forward. The NapoleOrk horde quickly advances towards the center field, running behind the snakebite Gargant. The speed freaks outriders come out in a deadly sortie and destroy the imperial artillery, reached shortly after by the colossus robots in an attempt to stem the ork pincer.
What remain of the blood axes speed freaks warband comes from the ork rearline to stop the march of the imperial guard at the rail crossing, while in the skies the imperial thunderbolt fighters and the ork stukas held at a distance in an air patrol.
Only Portae Custos reaver titan regroups, alone at the head of its army in disarray. Alone, to face the assault of a second gargant. Alone, before the sacrifice instead of the ignominous defeat. Not far away, Lux Vindicta warlord titan is ready to run to its aid, but across the entire front line of the imperial left flank is a succession of orders for help, cover, regroup.
The rail crossing is the place of the imperial retaliation. Nuntius Fragor leads the imperial guards to the ork primary objective, in a desperate attempt to hold them here. Victory is a mere chimera now.
The Ruhr's forges boil with incandescent fury, while like serpents bands of outcasts begin to plunder the bodies of the fallen, dragging corpses, debris, and wreckage into the depths underground of the factory, precious gears for their miserable lives. And while shadowy shadows creep in the darkness, glorious heroes on red and gigantic war machines write their page of death, and glory.
TURN 3. End turn. ORKS WAAAGH: 1 (defend the flag) ARMY OF THE IMPERIUM: 0
