Talk:Second Vetrovnak Incursion
Contents
The Vetrovnak Warplan[edit]
OK, it's not really a "war plan" as others might understand it. The Vetrovnak don't care about material, resources, strategic warp routes, or anything like that. They are purely in it to harvest humans and maybe snack on a few delicious psykers. Therefore, their opening strikes focus on Imperial communications to impair their enemy and get their hands on delicious Astropaths. These attacks are bad enough to effectively black out the Ultima Segmentum. --Lumey (talk) 06:34, 12 October 2016 (UTC)
After the initial attacks, the Vetrovnak start harvesting, focusing on densely inhabited Hive Worlds. This part is a good time for Imperial Guard and Space Marines to make their Heroic Last Stands. --Lumey (talk) 06:37, 12 October 2016 (UTC)
Imperial Cast[edit]
The most important figure in the Imperial story is the (Lord?) Inquisitor who assesses the threat and acts to bring the right resources to bear. Also important are the heroes of the Imperial Guard and Adeptus Astartes who blunt the Vetrovnak onslaught, and the newly-formed Adepta Sororitas who arrive to turn the tide. --Lumey (talk) 06:36, 12 October 2016 (UTC)
I could use the Brimstone Fire-Eaters. They're part of Imperium Asunder but they were originally an idea for post Heresy HekHer.--Dingdoodah (talk) 01:54, 13 October 2016 (UTC)
- Sure thing!
UPDATE: The Inquisitor is Vera Vinter. Stormtroopers now fit into the story, so just about any Imperial Guardsmen could be involved. Some dead Marines added. Chapter Sigma are the heroes who get the goods so that the Imperium can lose less. Sisters are en-route. --Lumey (talk) 08:24, 14 October 2016 (UTC)
Vetrovnak-anon's explanation of Space Vampire operations[edit]
The basic operational protocol would involve parking a pair of tier-0 ship in deep space near but not in the target sector. It will pause there until it has calculated an emergency retreat fold. Once this is complete it will deploy the Tier-1 ships (a Tier-0 ship generally carries 5 to 7 Tier-1s). Half of the T-1 ships (which for conveniece I will designate Alpha Flotilla) will fold to deep space outside of the target system, preferably outside of sensor range or in a blind spot. The Beta Flotilla will remain with the T-0s for the time being as the Alpha Flotilla approachs the system through sublight systems under stealth fields.
Once in position the Alpha Flotilla will message the Beta Flotilla with fold calculations. Then the Alpha flotilla will commence with the attack aiming to first prevent the defenses from calling for help and second to prevent the defense from coordinating. The Alpha flotilla is not to take undue risks, the moment the enemy returns enough fire to break through the nano-cloud defensive barriers they are to begin an orderly retreat to draw the enemy to give chase. Then Beta Flotilla folds in. If everything goes according to plan this surrounds the defenders and puts them in disarray. Then they disable ships one by one by means of fold torpedos, intending to capture as many ships as possible. Prior to that point all fire is nanite suspension-beams aimed at thwarting enemy fire rather than dealing damage. Once orbital superiority is achieved they will take up position in orbit to begin ground operations. (If they cannot achieve orbital superiority they will retreat using pre-calculated emergency folds, using seemingly random short range hops until they are safe enough to fold back to their parent T-0s. A T-0 should never enter battle unless a win is statistically guaranted within a large margin, this is because they carry tens of thousands of live humans on board as crew and also where they store their harvests in cryostasis before returning to Hvar.)
Note: optimal strategies for the Imperium to fend off the vetrovnak from space would be to put as many small ships in the field as possible. This will tie up their suspension-beamers and nanoswarms.
Ground operations would involve deploying stealth transports to land troops on the surface while the rest of the fleet floats menacingly in orbit. They may drop pods full of sensor nanites to gain intel but otherwise there's no orbital bombardment. Anti-orbital batteries would be targeted by strike craft, but in general its left to ground troops to secure facilities since the black aura makes the weak willed wholesale ignore them. From there its just a matter of disabling defenses and using petrification nanites to destroy weapons until they're ready to begin the harvest. Once its declared safe the harvester ships come in and deploy specialized nanite swarms to subdue the population and prepare them for stasis. Robots speed up the work of loading.
Counters to the Vetrovnak in ground combat generally involve massed troops with simple weapons, especially flamers. Nukes also work well for a suitable value of "work". Imperial force fields (including those around power weapons) are fairly effective against Vetrovnak nano-weapons in this Incursion.
I should add on my own part: the Vetrovnak are much better scientists than the Imperium, and can basically win an arms race on that level. However, the Sisters of Battle are an irrational problem that science can't really grapple with - that's why they get slated as the Imperium's best weapon against the Space Vampires. --Lumey (talk) 07:53, 12 October 2016 (UTC)
Vetrovnak Fleet Structure[edit]
Due to the way fold drives work a ship's jump range is primarily a function of the drives size. Thus the vetrovnak have the longer range ships carry the smaller range ships by anchoring them to their hulls. I'm still working on the exact terminology but the anchor of a fleet is the Tier-0 vessel which have a jump range in thousands of lightyears and are capable of making them rapidly. Each T-0 carries with it at least five Tier-1 and as of the Second Wave, up to 13 depending on its scale. Each T-1 carries the same in T-2s, and this repeats in a fractal fashion all the way down to the T-5 which is the smallest ship capable of mounting a fold drive which has a range measured in a few dozens of light years. Each tier of ship is of course an order of magnitude smaller than the previous tier to allow for them to stack.
Due to this arrangement ships are designated by a series of six numbers separated by periods. So for the flotilla that Kamir Xazun was part of the ship he was one would be designated as 8.15.0.0.0.0 or just 8.15. Of course this is just what they're represented as in their databases, each ship would have it's name because even if they are space vampires they're still pretty human. As for ranks all I've decided on at the moment is that the person in control of a T-0 is called an admiral and the person in control of a T-1 is called a commodore and that the 0th Fleet never leaves Hvar.
Commodore Anton Stazlav[edit]
A Vetrovnak commodore that is going to suffer. A lot. [further details coming later]
Battle for Kiazuno[edit]
The Beginning
Vetrovnak forces under the command of Commodore Anton Stazlav fold into the Kiazuno system, with the main target of operations being the harvesting of the Hive World Ryounis. The primary line of defense for Ryounis, the Kiazuno Orbital has barely minutes of advance warning before being pummelled by fold torpedoes, knocking out communication arrays and crippling the planetary defense grid.
The Fall of the Kiazuno Orbital
Reeling from the destruction of the orbital defences, the space marines of The Puritans chapter quickly reorganise under the command of Chapter Master Valentin Kaede. A single order is broadcasted through the planetary vox – “We are the spear.” The entire chapter mobilises to take the fight to the unknown enemy, safeguarding Ryounis at all costs.
Disaster strikes when the ancient battle-barge Lance of Vengeance, carrying the Second and Fourth Companies of The Puritans takes a critical hit from a fold torpedo while still docked at the Ryounis Orbital, unable to raise its void shields in time. The battle-barge was in the midst of resupply before operations against the Ork Warchief Bludrac Chefgud. Faced with a malfunctioning warp drive that threatened to rip the boundaries of space-time, unleashing the horrors of the warp on Ryounis, the Lance of Vengeance instead decides to make an emergency transition into the warp to save the planet.
The aftershock of the transition of the Lance of Vengeance shatters the already weakened Kiazuno Orbital, destroying much of the battle fleet that was preparing to launch. Strike cruisers are flung away or instantly destroyed, sending their debris flaming through the atmosphere of Ryounis. In that instant, the defences of Ryounis are halved.
The Counterattack
Undeterred by the loss of the Kiazuno Orbital, The Puritans charge at the Vetrovnak fleet with their remaining forces. When torpedoes fail to breach nano-cloud defences of the Vetrovnak ships, cruisers opt for ramming tactics, smashing through the cloud and disgorging Void Breacher marines in boarding torpedoes and Thunderhawks. As the black armor of The Puritans begins to pour through Vetrovnak ships, the Alpha Flotilla receive orders to retreat. The threat to the Kiazuno system is seemingly over.
The remaining ships not destroyed through void warfare give chase to the retreating Alpha Flotilla, intent on completely destroying the enemy. This leaves them vulnerable to the sudden appearance of the Beta Flotilla from stealthed positions, scything through the remnants of the defender’s fleet. Meanwhile on the actual Vetrovnak ships, battle-brothers find themselves disabled by nanite swarms and facing enemies that heal from seemingly lethal wounds. Additionally, petrification nanites wear through their bolters and melta guns, leaving them without usable weapons. Attempts to commandeer Vetrovnak ships falter and then fail completely as even the hardened armour of breach squadrons fail them.
The End of The Puritans
Prior to the destruction of the battle-barge Guardian of Man, Chapter Master Valentin Kaede and his Garde Perdus, together with the Terminator-armoured remnants of the First Company make a one-way teleport into the presumed command ship of the Vetrovnak. Due to fold entanglement, barely half the force arrives in one piece, with many esteemed battle-brothers scattered into atoms or fused into solid material.
The 21 survivors of The Puritans carve a bloody path through the Vetrovnak ship, the might force stave Cinquieme proving impervious to the effects of the petrification nanites deployed. After hours of bloody fighting, having to kill Vetrovnak forces again and again, The Puritans finally take control of the Vetrovnak ship. To their dismay however, it is not the actual command ship of the enemy.
The surviving members of The Puritans receive a transmission from Commodore Anton Stazlav, master of the carrier Honour of Erytho. He offers them terms of surrender, that they would be treated fairly as prisoners of war. This offer is unanimously refused by The Puritans. In the words of Valentin Kaede, no enemy forces would set foot on Ryounis as long as a Puritan battle-brother drew breath.
The Vetrovnak response to the refusal is swift and decisive. The captured ship, just a minor stasis carrier is annihilated by fold torpedoes, ending the last of The Puritans. Within hours Vetrovnak forces were on Ryounis and the true harvest begins. --Asymptotic (talk) 04:48, 15 October 2016 (UTC)
Battle of Raman II[edit]
Raman II is the second of two similar-sized planets that are in a stable 'binary' orbit, each occupying a Lagrangian point of the other. Raman I is uninhabitable due to severe volcanic activity and lack of usable resources, while Raman II is a civilised world with a population of approximately 7,000,000.
The Chapter Sigma Third Company under the command of Captain Zang Achzar arrive in the Thenes system after being dispatched by Inquisitor [redacted] to investigate the astropathic blackout from the sector. They arrive in the strike cruiser Symmetry, carrying 87 battle-brothers in total.
They approach the world of Raman II as it is in the midst of a harvesting operation. The Symmetry immediately takes heavy fire from fold torpedoes and Captain Achzar takes the decision to descend to the surface to find answers, taking 70 battle-brothers with him to the surface in Thunderhawks. The remainder are left onboard the Symmetry to guard Librarian Mesvar Kandar. Librarian Kandar is tasked with being a living vox-net, coordinating his brothers while allowing vox silence to be maintained.
At this point the battle splits into two separate sections, void-side and planet-side.
Planet-side:
Chapter Sigma forces lose a Thunderhawk to enemy fire but otherwise land safely. By then most of the ground defences have been neutralised and harvester ships are beginning to descend. The initial plan to use Librarian Kandar to coordinate operations is a bust, the anti-psyker nature of the Vetrovnak is interfering with his abilities. Conventional vox is used instead.
At first the Chapter Sigma forces are unnoticed, and one squadron is able observe the subjugation of the population and subsequent harvesting. Things quickly spiral out of control then. with Vetrovnak forces noticing the scattered Chapter Sigma forces and moving to engage. The ability of the Vetrovnak to regenerate catches multiple squads by surprise, many battle-brothers give their lives before tactics are adapted to ensure complete kills. Even so, in the chaos of battle, tactics are not as sophisticated as targeting the brain, instead complete kills with flamers are prioritised.
The survivors fall back and regroup, now down to less than half strength. Additionally, the survivors also find that their weapons are beginning to malfunction due to exposure to petrification nanites. Captain Achzar is able to make vox contact with Librarian Kandar and briefs him on the nature of the harvest and the capabilities of the Vetrovnak. The order is given for the Symmetry to bring the news of the incursion back to the Imperium immediately.
Understanding that the Thunderhawk LZs have been compromised, Captain Azchar splits his forces into two expanded squadrons of fifteen to assault and hopefully capture a harvester ship. No further contact is made with the planet-side Chapter Sigma forces following that transmission. It is possible that both squadrons failed in their mission, or that they were unable to contact the Symmetry afterwards.
Void-side:
The Symmetry continues to be pummelled by fold torpedoes and is almost disabled. Techmarine Vrik Liang realises that the other Imperial vessels floating around the orbit of the planet have merely been disabled, not destroyed. He orders the venting of an engine, giving the illusion that the Symmetry is dead in orbit. The Symmetry is promptly 'captured' by nano-suspension beams and the Vetrovnak assume that they no longer pose a threat.
Following the transmission from Captain Azchar with the order to escape with the news of the incursion, the remaining ship-side battle-brothers form a plan of escape. Techmarine Liang continues work on repairing the damaged engines while the remaining 16 space marines assault the Vetrovnak ship that is holding the Symmetry with nano-suspension beams. Despite protests to the contrary Librarian Kandar insists on joining the mission, reasoning that the disruption to his psychic powers would also be present on the Vetrovnak ship, necessitating closer proximity to protect his battle-brothers. He leaves behind a single data-recording summarising the situation, to be taken to Inquisitor [redacted].
Of the 16 boarding torpedoes launched, 15 make it to the target. Librarian Kandar leads the assault through the 'alien' Vetrovnak ship, his protective warp shield protecting his battle-brothers from Vetrovnak weaponry and petrifying nanites alike. However, due to his proximity to Vetrovnak forces, he suffers immense pain as their Black Auras eat away at his mind. Marines give their lives to seal off vital sections and delay enemy reinforcement, ultimately allowing for a key power node that supplies the nano-suspension beam to be destroyed by melta charges.
Following the cessation of the suspension beam, Techmarine Liang fires up the engines of the Symmetry, surprising Vetrovnak forces and creating enough space for the strike cruiser to not be destroyed by fold torpedoes. Despite causing massive damage to the power systems of the ship, it is able to enter the warp, limping home towards [redacted] with its remaining engines. The message carried by the sacrifice of the Chapter Sigma Third Company would be but the first of many points of data that would ultimately reveal the true nature of the Second Vetrovnak Incursion. --Asymptotic (talk) 01:43, 14 October 2016 (UTC)
