The Markian Corps

This article is about an Imperial Army formation from the /tg/ Heresy project, a fan re-working of the Warhammer 40k universe.

The Markian Corps
Homeworld	The Markian Pact
Doctrine	Combined Arms
Signature Equipment	Atashia/Markia-Pattern Lasgun, Mountain gun
Colors	Red on Black
Associated Legion	Winged Victory/Void Angels

The Markian Corps is the collective Imperial Army forces supplied by the combined worlds of the Markian Pact, that share standardized equipment and organization. Though of greater quality than the average Imperial Army force, the strength of the Markian Corps is not prowess in a particular kind of warfare, but in the ability for its regiments to communicate and coordinate. When the Markian Corps's regiments are raised they are not sent their separate ways across the galaxy, but insteaded formed into one grand corps containing as many as dozens of regiments of many kinds. Thanks to rigorous joint training by the five worlds, the grand corps have a level of combined arms rarely found in the Imperial Army, with high morale and a camaraderie between soldiers from many different regiments, and well-made equipment from both the Markian world Atashia and the forge world Ghalhal.

History of the Markian Corps

The Markian Corps have their origins in the wake of the war against old Ghalhal. Unified in purpose, the Markian Pact organized their armed forces into a single host of soldiers, combining the strengths of their regiments to counteract their weaknesses. When the Mechanicum came to Ghalhal, the Markian Corps strengthened further with new materiel. Unfortunately, until the Imperium came there was little conflict in the Markian Pact, and so little use for the Markian Corps. It wasn't until the arrival of the Winged Victory in the Pact that the Markian Corps knew conflict again, but when they came into the Imperium they did so with a fervor that carried the grandeur of Markia across the galaxy for ten thousand years.

The Great Crusade

"The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether humans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no efforts will deliver them. The fate of unborn billions will now depend on the courage and conduct of the Markian Corps. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die."--Sky Marshal George Valjean

Throughout the early Great Crusade the grand corps of Markia were attached to the Winged Victory as Imperial Army auxiliaries, often alongside or mistaken for their cousins in the Ciban Chasseurs. In the Pacification of the Chwiorydd Hardd, the Markians, who have not known war for centuries, had their first taste of conflict since the war with old Ghalhal, facing the race of slavers known as the Amatteir. It was not battle itself that unsettled the Markian soldiers, however as they were still professional soldiers; it was the condition of slaves upon the world Chwiorydd Hardd 3 after contrasting with those on CH-4 that greatly disturbed many soldiers. As Karmian photo-journalist Verrell Boucher said:

"It was not their physical deprivations that struck me so. I had seen men and women lost in the wilds of my homeworld and returned to civilisation starved and sick before. It was their eyes. Our poor kinsmen, brutalised and degraded, looked at me with the mute ignorance of beasts. Foul aliens have taken human beings and made into them animals! How many more worlds is this happening on?"

Upon return to the Pact worlds for various military and civic reasons, veterans much like Boucher brought word of the atrocities committed by the xenos. Tales of the sheer harm and humiliation suffered by their fellow men galvanized the Markians, and aligned them sternly against the enemies of the Imperium. After further encounters with only more brutal aliens such as the Amatteir's full empire, the Dark Eldar of the Harakien star-empire, and the barbaric orks, the Markians' hatred for xenos was further validated, and to this day the Markians believe the only kind of xeno friend is one used as a sandbag to protect humans.

During the first part of the Great Crusade the Markian Corps served admirably in the Expedition Fleets of the Fifth Legion, especially their sapper regiments who proved vital in the Core Worlds and Harakien Sector campaigns. However, Markian Corps also showed its greatness in independent actions, without the assistance of the Legiones Astartes. It is among the formations who fought in such battles that names such as Caieton and Judas Ranc became known to the larger Imperium, their campaigns leading to the pacification of over a hundred more worlds before the Great Crusade's end.

The Nightkill Sector Campaign

"Here, there, everywhere. In front, behind. To the left, to the right. We are surrounded and outnumbered ten to one. We have caught the enemy in our grasp!" --Marshal Judas Ranc on Inkan

An empire of hive-mind arthropods known as the Arakan made itself known in the Nightkill Sector, consuming neighboring worlds to expand their dominion. With the Fifth Legion sent to the edge of the galaxy and no other Astartes available, it was up to the Markian Corps to purge this threat to the Imperium. The Sky Marshal of the Markian Pact, military leader of all Markian forces, organized the largest army of Markians ever assembled under the direct command of Grand Marshal Caieton, with the goal of neutralizing the Arakan at all costs. With the assistance of Mechanicum forces under Archmagos Khazal ibn Tekhalla, discoverer of the mountain gun STC, the Markian 31st Army set out for the Nightkill Sector.

Opening Battles on Pahoehoe

Grand Marshal Caieton decided to make his first strike on planet Pahoehoe, a recently-conquered periphery world of the Arakan Empire. Though it was only freshly colonized, the world was already crawling with Arakan warriors. While the initial landing forces were able to secure solid ground, the 95th Shrike Division found itself divided, isolated, and unable to complete its mission to discover the enemy base. Caieton was quick to respond, and ordered his subordinate, decorated soldier General Judas Ranc of the 984th Division, to enact a rescue operation. The 984th abandoned their heavy armor and artillery for the sake of mobility, and rushed quickly through the enemy lines, relieving whatever elements of the 95th Shrike Division they could find. In the end, 70% of the 95th survived to fight another day, but the Markians were still unaware of the location of the Arakan base.

The Mechanicum had better luck finding the Arakan headquarters; or rather, knowing the nature of the Arakan's command structure. Using seismographic data gathered from sensors planted by forward scouts, Archmagos Khazal located dozens of seismic concentrations where the subterranean bases of the Arakan were located, but lines connecting the bases were nowhere to be found. Regardless, they now knew locations of the enemy, and the 31st Army immediately directed actions against the Arakan. The Markians prepared for several subterranean operations led by the Lemartian Sappers.

As expected, penetration of the enemy hives was difficult. Many tunnels were simply too narrow, and armor and artillery supper was useless. To end this battle quickly, Marshal Ranc proposed use of nuclear weapons place precisely in the hives to destroy all enemy resistance, an idea Caieton was reluctant to swallow. Unfortunately, Caieton yielded, and the Markians conducted operations to place nuclear bombs in the hives; one of such was led by Ranc himself, so that another commander would not risk his life in such a perilous and immoral mission. But despite the dangers, Ranc survived the mission where others fell, and was commended once again. After the Purge of Pahoehoe, Khazal deduced that the Arakan were not a monolithic power that initial research on their hive-mind suggested, suggesting there were multiple hive-minds based on the autonomy of Pahoehoe's bases. The campaign in the Nightkill Sector would be much more difficult than expected.

Inkan

Following Pahoehoe, there was the battle for the water world Inkan's sole continent. Unlike Pahoehoe, Inkan was heavily colonized, and Arakan lived above ground in massive cities populated by billions. Worse, is the system was defended by the Arakan fleet, complicating the naval forces' support. On the ground, nothing was as simple as on Pahoehoe; the Arakan were relentless, and only the strategic intervention of the Shrike Division and L'Infanterie de Marine saved the 31st Army from destruction early on. Once again, the 984th distinguished themselves by chasing the routed xenos. However, Marshal Ranc discovered too late that Arakan do not flee without reason, and the 984th Division found itself surrounded by Arakan. Ranc was neither perturbed nor shocked, and simply stated,"Here, there, everywhere. In front, behind. To the left, to the right. We are surrounded and outnumbered ten to one. We have caught the enemy in our grasp!"

The 984th fought its way back to friendly lines with only moderate casualties for an encirclement, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy. Meanwhile, the navy finished its battle with the Arakan, in the void, and proceeded to assist the ground forces with bombardment of the Arakan cities, only to find the cities to be defended by void shields. Grand Marshal Caieton hatched a plan: elite rangers of the 95th Shrike Divisions would drop directly into the Arakan cities, deactivate the shield generators, and extract before naval forces opened fire. The operation completed without any problems, and the rangers were gone long before the navy started their bombardment from orbit.

Final Battle for Culainn

As deduced by the Archmagos, the Arakan were not completely unified. In fact, Arakan society resembled a feudal empire, where the hive-mind nobles sacrificed the mindless bodies of the Arakan to further their goals, united under the massive Hive-Emperor solely by fear. However, the Imperial forces were proving greater than any horde of bugs, and many hive-minds feared for their own existence. To continue living, several hive-minds cracked a struck a deal with Grand Marshal Caieton to continue living, in exchange for the location of the Hive-Emperor on the world of Culainn. The Imperial Army mobilized, and gave special passage for the traitor hive-minds' fleets.

The battle for Culainn was a difficult one. The Mechanicum deployed its titans, Thallaxi of the Ordo Reductor, whatever forces it brought from the forges of Ghalhal on that burning hive world. However, even with the full might of the Mechanicum backing them, the Markian Corps found themselves outnumbered by the Arakan a hundred times over; numbers only the Legiones Astartes could face. Still, the Markian Corps had a trump card: Ghalhallan void missiles. Utilizing these ancient weaponry, the Mechanicum vaporized the cities of the world, shattering the psyche of the Hive-Emperor by destroying the cognitive brain-caste that sustained its thought processes. The Markian Corps and Skitarii finished off the disoriented rabble with ease, and took the world in the name of the Emperor. Meanwhile, the hive-minds that betrayed the Hive-Emperor set course for the outer fringe of the galaxy, settling in a sector that was next in line for an invasion by the Legiones Astartes. Following the conclusion of the war, Ranc was promoted to Marshal and assigned to the 78th Grand Corps for the coming campaign in the Mortekaiser Sector.

The Mortekaiser Campaign

"Officially, my first command served on Ryleh in Segmentum Pacificus. But the truth is, we were in the Eastern Fringe. One day, an Astartes... approached me, and told me my regiment had been selected for a tour on the Eastern Fringe. Do you know those tales of fantastic xenos there? They are true, but it is not those irregularities who frightened me. It was those… Spires. I only ever saw pictures of them, but I knew where they were from the streaks in the sky. Their soldiers… Terrifying in their silence, their rough black armor, the crackling sparks arcing off them, the grotesque beasts they ordered about. I know those spires; they are the same. I cannot let them rampage unmolested. I must stop them."

"How many nukes does it take to destroy a titan legion?" "Three if you're Verdun."

"What starts with A and is a techpriest's worst nightmare?" "Verdun starts with a V."

Markia's other notable independent actions include the battles undertaken in the Mortekaiser Campaign against the foul Intax Empire and misplaced elements of the Morkai. When Imperial explorers discovered the human realm of Intax, they were terrified to find unrivaled levels of degeneracy: heathen machine-worship, unsanctioned pursuit of knowledge, human sacrifice, and playing with xenotech. Appalled by the level of heresy, the Mechanicum requested that the Markian Corps personally see to the empire's destruction. The Sky Marshal assigned the task to Grand Marshal Vivyan Broussard, whose command included the decorated war hero Marshal Judas Ranc of the 78th Grand Corps, General Marius Marie-Gaston Verdun, and the lesser of the three, the 35th Army. Among other forces present were the Mechanicum Forces of Ghalhal and their Legio Cataegis, and knights of House Goda.

The Bridge World

The Intax Empire had dismantled a forgeworld. Verdun and the 1001st Division discovered this when they fell under fire from titans on the bridge world Ulysses. With Legio Cataegis and superheavy support elsewhere, Verdun had to work with what he had to slow the enemy titans. So, the 1001st lured the titans under a bridge-city, collapsed the two of its three bases with tactical nuclear weapons and brought several million tons of steel and flesh down atop an entire cohort.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Ulysses, Marshal Ranc had a different issue: AI. Abominable automata assaulted the 1002nd Division in the thousands, cornering them on a bridge-city where they faced both droids and human partisans. However, the odds were in the 1002nd's favor, for they had experience with cramped environs, numbers skewed towards the enemy, and generally being surrounded and outmatched. The 1002nd fought on for several days in a desperate fight, until support from the Skitarii and Shrike Divisions arrived. By the time they were relieved the 1002nd was decimated, and so the equally-exhausted 1001st Division was folded into them, with overall command being given to to Verdun.

The Burning World and Shazakh

In the wake of the battle for Ulysses, the Imperium became aware of the full extent of Intax's crimes. The campaign hastened, and Markia marched on the volcanically active Burning World. Though many parts were unsafe for the ill-equipped Markian Corps, the Intax battalions could move unhindered thanks to their bionic enhancements and automaton support. The Burning World was left to the Ghalhallan Skitarii, who too were safe in the wastes of the planet. Meanwhile, the Markian Corps proper moved on to the world of Carices and Helion Prime, where they faced light resistance compared to other worlds, regrouping with Ghalhal on Talia in preparation of the invasion of the pillaged forgeworld Shazakh, capital of the Intax Empire.

The battle for Shazakh was a long one. Titans, knights, xenotech of unknown origin, abominable intelligences, even the machine-halls of the manufactorums conspired to destroy the Imperial forces. From floor to floor, building to building, even in the throne room the Markian Corps fought, not resting until a grenadier placed a lasbolt in the Intax Emperor's head; and even still, there was brief respite, as the Imperium now had to purge the entirety of the Intax population, and destroy the automata roaming the worlds of the Mortekaiser Sector. Ultimately, fighting continued for centuries after the campaign ended, dragging far into the Age of the Imperium.

Ranc's Incursion on Dread

The 78th Grand Corps did not fight on Shazakh, as their commander had what were in his opinion more pressing matters to attend to. On the eve of the final assault Imperial patrols detected long and pointed vessels venturing near the plains world Dread. Most generals would pass this off to another, but Ranc was familiar with these ships; they were undoubtably transports of the Morkai, a race from the distant east he was somehow familiar with, and their presence in Segmentum Pacificus was both curious and unsettling. Immediately Ranc set out with the 78th, against Grand Marshal Broussard's wishes, and pursued the Morkai craft, finding they were already shooting troops to the ground, tiny black spots screaming through the atmosphere like burning meteors. The 78th did likewise, landing to engage the Morkai soldiers while the Imperial fleet engaged the spires. Battle was fierce, mores than even the battle on the bridge city. Morkai were nothing like the automata of Ulysses: their aim was true and deadly, their jagged jet-black armor deflected all but the most harrowing lasfire, their assaults were relentless, and their biomechanical horrors wreaked havoc on the Markian troops. The battle only ended when the Morkai suddenly began retreating to their spires, the Markians doing likewise in caution. This proved wise, as the planet's surface shook with an eery vigor, and green fissures opened all around the world, spewing skeletal machines. The 78th and their Morkai adversaries had just narrowly averted their destruction at the hands of the necrons, who stirred from their slumber briefly, only to return to their ancient rest once Dread was once again confirmed devoid of sentients.

Aftermath

In the wake of the Mortekaiser Campaign Imperial scholars unmasked the truth behind the Intax religion. Based on their machine worship, macabre face-paintings, myths, and proximity to a necron tomb world, the Intax probably worshiped the necrons of Dread as gods, revering them as purifiers who slumbered until the time came to purge the galaxy of the heathens. As for the morkai, their presence on Dread was baffling because morkai had no way of reaching the galactic core in a timely manner, let alone the Mortekaiser Sector; nor is it known why they landed on Dread beyond that it was related to the necrons. Though it was not all questions and confusion; promotions were in order after the campaign. Verdun was promoted to Marshal and commended for his actions on Ulysses. Ranc, who had defied orders in going to Dread, was nearly court-martialed. However, while the Markians were fighting on Shazakh, the Imperium erupted into civil war. Markia would need every man where he belongs, so Ranc was promoted to Grand Marshal in preparation for a new, more massive campaign.

The Hektor Heresy

Near the end of the Mortekaiser Campaign, the traitor Hektor initiated a civil war to take the Imperial Throne, taking with him half the primarchs and a large portion of the Imperium's territory. Compared to other segmenta, Pacificus was peaceful at first glance; no space marine legions were present in the segmentum. However, that is not to say it was a trivial matter, as the traitors of Pacificus, while still only human, were countless in ways the Astartes could never be. Rebels were hiding in every crevice and dark corner of the galactic west, renegade Solar Auxilia were rampaging across the segmentum, and countless forge worlds were defecting and supplying the traitors with materiel to match the Imperials. Marines or no, the battle for Segmentum Pacificus would be a long one.

The Markian Front

"We don't talk about the Wolverines."

At the dawn of the Hektor Heresy, the 2394th Solar Auxilia Cohort "Wolverines" launched an invasion of the Al-Sherar Sector from the galactic east with various allied forces. To assist the home front, Grand Marshal Caieton sent back only the 78th Grand Corps under the command of Grand Marshal Judas Ranc, and upon his return he gained command of the the 99th Army, a fresh force of raw recruits hardly fit for combat. His mission: prevent the Wolverines from reaching the Markian Pact and push the traitors out of the sector.

Ranc's strategy was simple: hold the Wolverines off in the neighboring Subsector Doxe. Ranc disbanded the 78th Grand Corps and dispersed its veteran regiments into other grand corps, and onto the worlds of the subsector to train locals and stationed Markians. The three remaining grand corps were placed on the worlds of Dahlia's Rest, Burrock, and Korintus, to defend them from direct attack while other worlds organized for asymmetrical warfare against the Wolverine's allies.

The Battle for Dahlia's Rest

The first major battle of the campaign was on the swampy world of Dahlia's Rest, where the head of the Solar Auxilia's spear met the 300th Grand Corps's shield amid the planet's flowering season. Covered in thick vines and moss for most of the year, the forests broke the dull brown-green shades with bouquets of flowers so thick that entire trees wore blankets of white, red, and violet. Such a beautiful sight the world was from an eagle's view, it was a shame that battle unfolded in the spring of Dahlia's Rest.

Initial efforts to repel the Wolverines were widely successful. Markian fire bases hidden across the main continent suppressed and destroyed advance forces, keeping their enemies from gaining a firm grasp in the world's major cities. Especially successful were the mountain infantry who explored the swamps, and the air and marine regiments which kept the skies clear and laid down heavy fire on landing troops. However, once the Wolverines brought superior numbers of aircraft against the Markians they held the upper hand and secured air supremacy. Markian movement along open roads became heavily restricted, and overall mobility decreased while the Wolverines were hardly impeded by the remaining air defense regiments. Dahlia's Rest would soon be lost along with the 300th, as its remnants hid to fight against the Wolverine garrison from the shadows.

The Battle for Thenar

The continued strategic importance of Subsector Doxe had hinged on all three worlds resisting the Wolverines. After losing Dahlia's Rest, Ranc withdrew the grand corps from Burrock and Korintus to defend Markia. Even without grand corps defending them, Karmia and Atashia were too well-defended for the Wolverines and their allies, and the environments of Lemartia and Kouralia were too hazardous and skewed towards their natives. However, the agri-world Thenar was the perfect choice, as it was the bread basket of the entire subsector, and compared to its sister worlds it was lightly defended and safe to navigate. On this world the 99th Army regrouped for the final battle against the renegades.

For three weeks the armoured fist of the heretics battered against the 99th. A million brave citizens of Markia died in the fighting, and countless miles of countryside were poisoned by phosphex and leaking engine fluids. The bodies of both the loyal and the treacherous littered the fields and forests of Thenar, but still standing among the ruins was the 99th. Such heavy casualties were inflicted upon the Wolverines that they could not follow the conquest of Thenar with a siege of Atashia, and with their naval support too occupied with the Markian armada to evacuate them the ground forces had no choice but to surrender. After taking the prisoners to camps on Atashia and securing Subsector Doxe, Grand Marshal Ranc led his army to retake the knight world Goda, while the Sky Marshal set about raising the 100th and 101st Armies of the Markian Corps from draftees and refugees to prepare for the greatest and bloodiest campaign in the history of the Sector: a northward push from the Al-Sherar Sector all the way to Rosskar, bastion home of the Silver Cataphracts.

The Al-Sheraran Front

Whilst Judas Ranc returned to Markia to ready for the Wolverines' invasion, Grand Marshal Broussard brought the 35th Army straight to the fight against Legio Nova and its slaved hosts. In the northern parts of the Al-Sherar Sector the 35th joined the Taghmata and knight vassals of Ghalhal and Al-Sherar in combating the renegade titans. While their auxiliaries were nothing compared to the organized might of the Imperium, the god-machines of Legio Nova were not to be trifled with, for their strength exceeded Ghalhal's own Legio Cataegis. In the Battle of Holgirth the superheavy regiments of the Markian Corps proved instrumental in stopping Legio Nova once and for all, as their massive guns successfully crippled multiple titans in combat against Legio Cataegis.

Battles Abroad

During the Hektor Heresy there were many grand corps outside of the Al-Sherar Sector engaged in combat against traitor forces. Although they participated in many pitched battles, the Markian Corps are most well-known in Segmentum Pacificus for raising and training new regiments from other worlds' populations to fight the heretics.

The Scouring

The Pacificus Campaign

The greatest mobilization of Imperial forces in Imperial history occurred during the legendary Pacificus Campaign, a massive offensive that built the foundation of the Imperial Guard as the most powerful force in the galaxy. Led by the Rosskan Strelky in the north and the Markian Corps in the south, and later joined by several space marine legions during the Great Scouring, the campaign began late in the Hektor Heresy but was fought predominantly during the Great Scouring. Countless billions were pressed into service as the Imperial Army suffered terrible losses in the gruesome battles against the rebels and the foul warp creatures they summoned from Hell, and entire worlds burned in cleansing flame to save them from Chaos's grip.

Following the Battle of Thenar in 012.M31, Sky Marshal Victor Gustave ordered the creation of not one but five armies of the Markian Corps. The forges of Ghalhal and Atashia burned bright day in and day out to match the demands of not one but two armies, but not even the Mechanicum could meet such an order speedily while supplying other worlds that were also preparing for the coming offensive. The entire Al-Sherar Sector reached the breaking point training and arming regiments in preparation for the northward offensive. Such a need for equipment quickly outstripped the sector's ability to produce it, and the Markian Corps needed immediate action to resolve this. Beyond the sector lied multiple forgeworlds and armoury worlds brimming with the materiel necessary to equip the Imperial Army. Initial predictions placed such planets as a later priority that would supply regiments raised during the course of the Pacificus Campaign, but their equipment was required immediately for the Markian Corps and its allies. The great offensive had to start early with the conquest of these worlds before the full might of the Imperium could be brought to bear.

First Battle of Struthis and Battle for Hauser

The Pacificus Campaign began with the securing of two vital worlds: the forgeworld Hauser and the armoury world Struthis. In charge of seizing Struthis was the 99th Army commanded still by Grand Marshal Judas Ranc, while the conquest of Hauser was left to the Mechanicum of the Al-Sherar Sector and the Ciban Chasseurs. Initial reports claimed the warehouses of Struthis were lightly defended, but upon arrival Ranc quickly realized their intelligence was trickery. The planet was not only heavily defended, but its reinforcements were renegade Markians of the 56th Army, thought lost in battle at the Heresy's start. The shock of meeting their former comrades in battle struck the 99th's morale a blow as devastating as the defensive artillery the traitors sent their way, and the invasion quickly reached a standstill. Rather than remaining in this deadlock, Ranc instead withdrew the army from Struthis to join the Cibanese on Hauser, where the campaign was similarly bogged down by surprises.

On Hauser, the advance had slowed to a crawl with the intervention of Legio Digitus, the "Finger of God". These ancient titans wrought havoc on the Imperial forces, even with two legions facing them. Such was their strength that before the end of the battle Legio Cataegis had suffered catastrophic damage and was unavailable for the rest of the Heresy. The 99th's entry into the battle did little to change the course; in the end Legio Digitus was defeated by Legio Antsar in a grand exchange of superheavy fire in Vinagio Canyon. Following the destruction of the traitor titans the 99th worked with the remaining Chasseurs and skitarii to clean out the forges of the world and reclaim the world for the Imperium, thus acquiring the first world needed for the Pacificus Campaign.

Second Battle of Struthis

The Imperial forces followed the liberation of Hauser with a second attempt on Struthis. Once again the armoury world was strengthened by traitor reinforcements, but with the support of Legio Antsar, knights and regiments of Goda, and the Taghmata the Markian Corps could now better penetrate the enemy defenses. The god machines of Al-Sherar strode over the trenches and shrugged off the barrage of profane guns, laying waste to the rebel Markians all the way to their fortress capital of Bastion Primus. There the guns of Markia shook the fortress's walls to pieces, and warriors of Goda and grenadiers of Markia poured into every hole, fighting for every room in that confounded lump of plascrete until the head of the governor was brought to the Grand Marshal in a wooden box. While much equipment was destroyed in the battle that could have been used by the Imperial Army, there were still miles upon miles of motorpools and storage facilities untouched by the battle. With sufficient materiel now secured the Imperial Army could truly begin the Pacificus Campaign.

In the wake of the battle Imperial forces discovered that the fallen rebels, while Markian, were not serving Hektor willingly. Techpriests of the Mechanicus performed autopsies on multiple traitor cadavers, and discovered they were implanted with strange cybernetics; dangerous cybernetics. Archivists on Ghalhal researched these cybernetics, and concluded they were a blasphemous tech-heresy known as Vitae ex Machina: Life from a machine. A technology prohibited by Mars, the implants can revive a corpse and slave them to the will of their nominal savior. Based on the evidence, Markian High Command concluded the 56th had indeed been destroyed by the traitor forces at the start of the Heresy, but what force was responsible for their revival was as of yet unknown. Depleted and Demoralized, the 99th Army withdrew from the conflict to garrison the worlds the Imperial Army had liberated in the early stages of the Pacificus Campaign.

Battle of the White Void

Among the noteworthy naval engagements of the Pacificus Campaign was the actions by Battlefleet Al-Sherar in the Archaeon Sector, which occurred the same day the Great Scouring began. Tucked in the tendrils of a nebula was the secret base of Battlefleet Archaeon, named the White Void. Throughout the Archaeon Campaign the traitor flotillas harassed Imperial convoys and sent too many sailors to the void. Multiple navigators and astropaths were devoted to locating the White Void through the psychic footprints left by warp travel and communications. Through their effort the Markian Corps was able to locate the White Void, and so dispatched the 4th Markian Battlegroup to eliminate Battlefleet Archaeon from the war.

Anorexia on Cykarox

The Pacificus Campaign, so far, had been rather spectacular for the Imperial Army. Regiments and battlegroups jumped from planet to planet, and rebel worlds fell under the heel of the Markian Corps. With the Great Scouring in full swing and the Legiones Astartes dedicating themselves to galactic liberation the pacification of the segmentum was drawing near. However, the enemies of the Imperium were all so worldly and mortal, and the deceptions of Chaos were not yet known to the marshals of Markia. On the hiveworld of Cykarox the 100th Army, with units attached from the Goda Retainers and the Solidus Chromehounds, met major setbacks soon after planetfall in 017.M31. An unknown disease had spread among both Markians and Cykaroxians, and was rapidly rooting itself in the overcrowded hives. A fifth of the army was too ill to fight, and hundreds had died from the plague. Still, the 100th fought on, taking hive after hive, sweating through the pandemic.

In the spires of Cykarox, the cauldron of Nurgle stirred. The world's aristocracy, including the planetary governor, was afflicted with the pox. This was no mistake, as it was the governor who invited the plague into both his world and his body. The lords of Cykarox, knowing what happened to those who opposed the Emperor, consulted with an agent of the rotfather's cult, and asked for a weapon to defeat the Markians in one fell swoop. They learned of a heavenly matron, said to be the more beautiful than angels, who could save them. Immediately they sought to summon her, and as per the cultist's instructions spread her love through the fluids the cult provided. They imbibed the pus drawn from boils, and slipped contagions into the water supply of the hives. However, the saint they wished for did not come to save them; not when they had yet to meet defeat.

Despite the growing plague the 100th Army fought its way to the final bastion of Cykarox, Hive Hunden. By the time they reached the last hive the 100th only had a single grand corps able to fight, as the rest of the army was dead or dying from disease. Even at only a third of its initial strength the Markians could still defeat the rebel PDF with strength of arms and skill. Now, on the brink of defeat, in the depths of despair, and without a soul left untouched by illness in the hives Cykarox would be saved by Nurgle. From the ground sprung thick vines that climbed the spires of Hunden and blossomed into wilted flowers. From the flowered sprouted creatures of rot and plague. Nurglings and plaguebearers clustered in the streets, citizens wreathed in pain as new and even greater diseases grasped them. In the center of the hive grew a single tree, taller than any tower on Cykarox, its leaves withered and its wood full of fungus. A single flower as red as blood blossomed on the highest branch, and its petals pealed back to reveal the world's new saint. Her limbs were like a fly's, skinny and sheathed with rugged keratin. Her lanky body was pocked and covered with open sores, fungus and worms crawled out from under her pale saggy skin. A thin translucent skin covered her veiny body, and the only substantial flesh on her body were her small droopy teets that ooze pus and her potbelly, pregnant with the children of Septicus and covered in the holes left from nurglings clawing their way from her womb. She opened her mouth, her teeth like rotten wood, and sung her melody of deafening screeches, letting the love of Nurgle reach all the humans of the world through her song.

The hosts of Anorexia brought gifts of disease and death to the 100th personally, and invited them to be her children with blades and clubs. A tide of disgust swept over the frontline and into the camps, and they brought the soldiers too sick to fight to meet Anorexia personally. She spoiled her guests with poxes and plagues, fed them carcass and fungus. Through her generosity she won the hearts and souls of the 100th, and they swore to tell the whole galaxy of their devotion to their new mother. However, before they could begin to show their new love the 2nd Markian Battlegroup, previously providing orbital support, began bombarding the planet. They granted the remnants of the 100th a swift death, and burned the vines and hives in radfire and macrocannon barrages. The fires of vengeance swept clean the surface and shook the world to its core; not a blighted shrub was left by the time the rancored commodore lifted the bombardment, and all the 100th Army was cremated, spared from an unlife as servants of the alien god. The Markians mourned the loss of their brothers, and carried the ill news to Atashia in silence.

The Verdunian Reforms

Before the Hektor Heresy the Markian Corps possessed a vast fleet beyond the venerable voidships used to fight Old Ghalhal, consisting of manyfold battleships and cruisers crewed by indigenous Markians. Though the Markian fleet had replaced its native hands with various press-ganged conscripts over its existence, the ships themselves had always been Markia's until the Imperial Reformation post-Heresy, when the fleet, including its eight most ancient voidships, was divided from the Markian Corps and absorbed by the new Imperial Navy to the ire of Markians. Worse, is that the Imperial Navy demanded the Markian Corps give all their aircraft, from air superiority fighters and bombers to dropships and support craft, to them; an order vehemently opposed especially by Kouralian officers who relied on air support. Ultimately, the two compromised: the Markian Corps may continue using dropships and close air support craft, but bombers and air superiority fighters were the domain of the Imperial Navy. Despite coming to an agreement, the Markian Corps's stubbornness drew foul feelings from the Imperial Navy, and the Navy's bitterness often kept Markians from boarding their ships. For centuries following the fiasco the Adeptus Mechanicus of Ghalhal or merchant captains would ferry the Markian Corps to other worlds, and even even in the forty-first millennium the Navy and Corp's rivalry stirs disputes; such was the damage they dealt to each others' pride.

With changes in warfare's conditions, the Markian Corps too needed to change. Sky Marshal Marius Marie-Gaston Verdun was the first to address this, by inducing many reforms in the Corps:

• The replacement of the Atashia-Pattern laslock with the Markia-Pattern lasgun;
• The standardization of Kouralian warship production with modern fire control systems, vox and radar systems, cruise missiles, and other modernizations of the aging Markian maritime fleet;
• The integration of commissars in Markian ranks;
• The removal of fighter and bomber wings from Kouralian air regiments;
• And the improvement of training in specialist ranks.

The Corps's Grandeur

The Markian Corps does not split its number to fight on countless worlds throughout the galaxy. Rather, the Markian regiments are gathered into grand corps, each serving on one world. Should even a grand corps be insufficient, the Markian Corps organize an army of multiple corps, including specialist formations such as artillery corps and shrike divisions.

Regiments

The Markian Corps uses a simple alphabetic classification for the regiments in a simple three-letter form. The first letter signifies the specialization of the regiment, while the second is whether the regiment is infantry, artillery, or vehicle-focused. The third is usually just an R for regiment, although for bureaucratic purposes other letters are used for things such as ranger companies, logistics, attached Mechanicus forces, intelligence, and formerly, naval support.

Specialty

• B denotes the regiment is a superheavy regiment. Sometimes, it is used as a fourth letter on a regiment's classification to denote that the regiment has baneblade or other superheavy support.
• A denotes that the regiment makes heavy use of aircraft and is from Kouralia.
• H denotes that the regiment is from Karmia.
• L denotes it is a line regiment, meaning it is meant for frontline combat in a straightforward manner, such as line infantry or armor regiments. It also means that the regiment is non-world specific.
• M denotes the regiment has minimal armor support and is from Thenar.
• O is exclusive to Kouralian maritime regiments.
• S denotes the regiment is a siege regiment, and is Lemartian in origin.

Composition

• A denotes the regiment is an artillery unit.
• I denotes the regiment is infantry.
• R is a letter only used by the roughrider regiments.
• T usually means the regiment is focused on vehicles, although it is generally associated with tanks.

Line Infantry Regiments (LIR) are the most common units in a grand corps, consisting primarily of infantry with light armored and artillery support. Highly disciplined and able to handle any situation, though not excelling in any in particular. Mechanized Regiments (HIR) are mobile elements of the Markian Corps meant to exploit breakthroughs and plug gaps in the line, originating from Atashia. Les Régiments de la Sapeurs de la Lemartia (SIR), or simply sapper regiments, are specialists from Lemartia equipped with breaching drills, mole weapons, mole transports, heavy armor, and special weapons, that specialize in siege warfare and tunnel fighting. The Mountain Infantry Regiments (MIR) of Thenar are light infantry specialized in alpine warfare as their name suggests, although they also have advanced experience with forests and plains.

Artillery Regiments (LAR) are highly prominent in the Markian Corps, and able to smash a hole in any line. Artillery regiments are rather large, possessing a mix of mortars, basilisks, medusas, and mountain guns. In case multiple grand corps come together to form an army, the artillery regiments form a single artillery corps. The Air-Mobile Artillery (AAR) regiments of Kouralia are a strange contradiction: they are highly mobile thanks to their light mountain guns, which can be transported in most air transports.

Armor Regiments (LTR) are well-equipped and handled by trained crewmen as with all Markian regiments, although are simply there to fill a niche, and so do not hold the same distinction as other regiments in the Corps. Baneblades are very rarely used in LTR as spearheads or command vehicles, but they are in their greatest numbers in Superheavy Armor Regiments (BTR), which can penetrate all but the thickest defenses. Alongside the BTR are the Superheavy Infantry Regiments (BIR), which consist of superheavy transports that shuttle infantry under harrowing fire. The Air-Defense Regiments (DTR) are outfits consisting of anti-aircraft artillery and tanks.

The Air Regiments (ATR) of Kouralia consist solely of aircraft. Once plentiful in the Great Crusade, limitations placed by the Imperial Navy led to the downfall of the Air Regiment, and now only have avenger strike fighters in their numbers. Drop regiments (AIR) originate from the world of Kouralia, trained in high-altitude insertion much like drop regiments of other worlds; however, unlike other worlds' counterparts, Markian drop regiments carry mountain gun artillery with them to provide good long-range firepower alongside gunship support.

Maritime Regiments (OTR) are another unique force from Kouralia, as each regiment is an entire fleet of maritime vessels with supporting naval infantry. Vessels within an OTR are designed to be easily transported by specialized Mechanicus voidships from Ghalhal, and are equipped with enough firepower to match an artillery regiment, and supported with a complement of highly trained marines to take shore positions and perform maritime operations. Naval Infantry Regiments (OIR) are the infantry complement of OTRs that can transport, deploy, and protect naval infantry battalions for assaulting shoreside defenses.

Armaments

• The primary armament of the Markian Corps during the Heresy is the Atashia-Pattern bold-action lasgun. Based on primitive designs from the Age of Strife, the Atashia-Pattern's powerful but easily-fried capacitors require a new cell to be loaded after every shot, sacrificing rate of fire for extra punch. It should be noted, however, that expert users of the Atashia-Pattern lasgun can fire dozens of times in only a minute, even including reloading of the ten-shot magazine. After the Verdunian Reforms, the Atashia-Pattern was phased out and replaced with the Markia-Pattern, though the Atashia-Pattern continues to see use as a ceremonial weapon.
• The Karmia-Pattern lascarbine is an improvement upon the Atashia-Pattern. Produced for drop regiments, L'Infanterie de Marine, mechanized regiments, sappers, tank crews, and all Karmian forces, the Karmia-Pattern is semiautomatic unlike the Atashia-Pattern, and is loaded via a twenty- or thirty- capacitor magazine on the bottom. Though it was mostly replaced by the Markia-Pattern lasgun after the Heresy, Karmian regiments continue using it out of tradition.
• The main service weapon after the Hektor Heresy is the Markia-Pattern lasgun, designed to receive the laspacks used by the rest of the Imperial Guard. It boasts equal firepower to the Atashia-Pattern while also being semiautomatic, but also possesses modularity, and can be modified for use by snipers, drop troops, light infantry, sappers, and tank and artillery crews.
• The mountain gun is the main piece of air-mobile artillery and mountain infantry regiments for many reasons. Besides being light enough for transport by valkyries or horses, the mountain gun can also be disassembled easily, allowing it to be moved around in pieces and stored with ease.
• The sniper mantlet is a high-caliber anti-materiel rifle mounted on a heavy shield. Built for trench warfare and countering light armor, the sniper mantlet is capable of sharpshooting enemies, even on the frontline of a siege.
• As experts on siege and tunnel warfare, the Lemartian sappers make heavy use of mole transports to bypass enemy lines, an ability they used to great effect during the Core Worlds Campaign.
• Designed in the Hektor Heresy to combat asymmetrical warfare and penetrate thick defenses, the banelord is a baneblade design indigenous to Ghalhal. The banelord forgoes all superheavy weaponry for two decks which can hold a Markian infantry company of 100, a single demolisher, vanquisher, or battle cannon; and six multilasers.

Organization

The Markian Corps follows a rigid organisation designed with large-scale maneuvers in mind. The sheer size of a grand corps necessitates a detailed breakdown of formations and an expert pool of officers.

The smallest formation after the squad in the Markian Corps is the platoon. The exact composition varies depending on the kind of platoon (infantry, roughrider, armor, etc.), but generally has twenty to sixty men, or three vehicles, commanded by a lieutenant.In air regiments, flights are equivalent to platoons.

Companies number over a hundred men or over a dozen vehicles, commanded by a captain. Battalions are the largest formation before regiments, including two or three companies commanded by a major. Mortars and heavy weapons are attached at the battalion level.

Regiments are the basic formation like on most worlds, commanded by a colonel. Regiments are specialized for a specific task, such as sapper, armor, artillery, and maritime regiments.

Due to the gap in size between grand corps and regiments, there exists the division level, commanded by a general. Like regiments, divisions are typically specialized, and classified based on its composition.

What makes the Markian Corps is the grand corps. The size of the grand corps cannot be fully absorbed by many, and many years of service are needed to command one. The marshal rank is a coveted position which demands greatness from its tenant.

Larger still is the army. Three grand corps commanded by a grand marshal, there is little that can stop an army.

The sum of all the Markian Corps is under the command of the sky marshal, at least in theory; taking charge of such a voluminous force is impossible for a mere man. The true duty of the sky marshal is to dictate the creation of grand corps, set doctrine, and determine materiel needed from the Mechanicus.