Talk:Exirans
A curiosity found in the weeks following up to the Core Worlds Campaign, the Exirus Subsector remains to be an oddity well received by the Imperium. Uriel Starikov's web of informants and spies had told him of a small collection of systems which had banded together under a single banner. It was told of the massive manpower and industrial capabilities of these worlds, which would make them perfect for a staging point for the coming expansion of the Emperor's Great Crusade. With the Winged Victory in tow the Children of Armok set off to find and bring into the fold these far flung worlds close to the Core Worlds.
What they found surprised them.
Upon arriving at the closest to Solar Segmentum, the Liddelstadt system, hails to comply to the Imperium's rule were met with confusion not defiance. The diplomats sent to meet with the Expedition fleet explained the current system which had lasted for generations. The current Kaiser dealt with outside threats, while these lords ruled their own worlds themselves. The planet wasn't even united! It had petty lords all fighting for the title of Prince, and the Prince himself would gather these lords to fight every decade for the title of Kaiser. It was also explained carefully to the two Primarchs Gaspard Lumey and Uriel Starikov, that the Kaiser was the only one who could accept a declaration of war or give them a surrender. Wishing to peacefully annex these systems, both Primarchs agreed to give the ultimatuum instead to this Kaiser. He resided in the Detrickserg System.
Along the way they met a system of waystations which were at fixed lulls in Warp Space. These lulls would change almost annually, which meant a constant surveying team led by a Navigator would record the changes and shift the stations accordingly. The Expedition Fleet was happy to receive aid after one ship had been damaged by a warp phenomena had caused damage to the hull. These routes existed for each route between systems.
It was not made readily apparent, but the Mechanicum detachment of the Expedition made contact with Martian brethren on the surface of Exirus Prime, the name of the gem world in the Detrickserg System. It seemed that long ago when the Mechanicum sent out their own exploratory ships in the Age of Strife one managed to crash in the Hive World of Exirus Prime. These disciples of the machine made pacts with the local warlord, allowing him to conquer the planet. Eventually these grew into a desire to conquer the other local worlds. These planets would not bow however, and a new system was put in place.
The Kriegspiel.
Every dominant warlord of the other systems could bring a fixed amount of men to battle for the title of Kaiser. The Kaiser had a final veto on laws made throughout the Dominion, along with being the one to lead the assembled troops against Ork raiders, pirates, and vile Xenos attackers. It was under the Kaiser Villheim III that the waystations were established, allowing a more connected and stable realm to exist but it drastically limited the ambitions of those within the Dominion for good reason. Would they risk venturing outside of their systems after growing so accustomed to the well developed routes?
Uriel soaked in the history and culture of the Exirans, wishing to learn more about them. Lumey had a similar interest, but was repeatedly infuriated by the diplomatic shafting going on in the Dominion's court. The Kaiser was having a mental breakdown, for he knew what the Imperium was and its vastness. Unfortunately, none of the assembled Princes understood this and demanded to strike while they could against the attackers. After a week of nothing happening, they all have a unanimous vote of No Confidence, initiating the Kriegspiel.
Gaspard Lumey's only reply after a week of deliberation was, they would get back to him in two weeks once the ceremonies had ended.
Only Starikov was able to calm him down in the end.
He was able to do this by explaining a trick he had learned. Any human outsiders could attempt to lobby for joining in the Kriegspiel, if they offered to give vassalage to the Kaiser if they failed. If they won, the Dominion would join the obviously superior whole. No one had been able to do it, but The Smiling Primarch was assured in the abilities of the Astartes. Gaspard agreed to the plan, which entirely hinged on the local Kaiser, for none of the Princes wanted them to be able to join but it was his decision to veto their vote that allowed them to join. Written on candidate sheet was Uriel Starikov's name, for he would represent the Imperium in the Kriegspiel but the Winged Victory would field the troops showing the cooperation of the two Legions. Not knowing how to properly pronounce the name, all of the Exirans present referred to him as 'Ural'.
The rules were as such. Two hundred infantry, ten tanks, and five 'special' vehicles which usually came in the form of either artillery, super-heavy tanks, or extremely primitive recreations of Knight Armors. Uriel brought in for his special vehicles, the Titans of Legion Crucius. They wasted the other opponents on the field, showing the strength of the Imperium and humbling all the Princes on the field. They now knew the wisdom of their Kaiser, who so cleverly chose not to engage with the Imperium openly.
The winner of this semi-final round would proceed to the next one., a formal duel with the current Kaiser. A champion of the Prince in question could serve or the Prince himself could also take to the dueling arena. Uriel Starikov brought himself down to the world to face the Kaiser, who immediately upon the beginning of the fight offered his sword over the Primarch.
"I am your servant, Kaiser-Elect Ural Starkov. What shall be your first decree?"
