A Humble Beginning

Our local game store, Phantom of the Attic in Pittsburgh, PA, has become the site of a bloody struggle between Orks and the Imperium as we play out our own variation of the Sanctus Reach campaign being released by Games Workshop.

Forces of the Imperium

The armaments that enforce the Emperor's Will are varied and lethal in their glory.

Imperial Guard: The first line forces were the planetary defense forces of the Sanctus Reach sector, but they will be soon supplemented by other regiments of the Astra Militarium. The first supporting arrival is the Dernhelm 8th Regiment. Led by Lieutenant Colonel Harper, the 8th has spent considerable time fighting in the Eye of Terror against the 13th Black Crusade, leaving them under strength and taking the structure of a combined arms battalion (combining remnants of a tank company with survivors of an infantry company). Communications from astropaths have also suggested that the Death Korps of Krieg has been dispatched toward Sanctus Reach to assist in the defense.

Space Wolves: The main contingent of Space Wolves dispatched to help out will be those of Gunnar Red Moon's Great Company.

Blood Angels: A Blood Angels successor chapter, the Angels Penitent, has been dispatched to the sector in support of the Imperial forces there--though it is unclear yet why this force volunteered for this mission.

Orks of the Red Waaagh (under the command of Grukk Face-Eater and/or Big Mek Mogrok)

A selection of discarded Ork firearms left after the initial skirmish for Outpost 82R

As of yet, the forces of the Orks have not been surveyed properly in terms of threat, assets, and leadership. Certainly many warbosses, mekboyz, and psykers will make a name for themselves in the battle and rise to command. Preliminary surveys have seen a high number of Nobz, as well as a strong concentration of "Killer Kanz" micro-dreadnaughts participating in the attacks.

Initial Event

Alaric Prime is the planet at the center of the Ork Waaagh's attack. The initial planetary defense forces were overwhelmed across a broad set of landing zones where Ork Roks and dropships landed. The Planetary Governor dispatched guard regiments and asked advisory forces from the Space Wolves and Blood Angels to accompany them in investigating the raid sites and commencing initial strikes on the Ork invaders.

Each player will construct one objective marker for use in the initial game.Objectives can be sized anywhere between a 40mm base to a CD, and must be round. The nature of the objective marker will link to that force's objective for the battle. The starting layout and story will not be revealed other than that, but players should think about whether they're making one of the following types of objectives:

Rescue	Anything that needs evacuated: A wounded comrade, a hold-out from the prior battle, or an innocent civilian who needs evacuation.
Materiel	Goods for fighting the war: the classic bullets and beans, lasgun packs and corpse-starch rations, or maybe a good scrap pile and barrels of fungus beer.
Information	Items that enhance knowledge of the battlefield or the foe: radio communication towers, orders from Imperial Command and Control, or crude battle plans sketched in feces on the side of trukk plates as a reminder of where to drive to kill ‘Umies.
Strategic	Locations or objects that assist in the fight at hand: defensive towers, sloped earthworks, or emplaced weapons that can be turned against the foe.

August 31st will be the kick-off game of the campaign.