Goda

This page details people, events, and organisations from the /tg/ Heresy, a fan re-working of the Warhammer 40,000 Universe. See the /tg/ Heresy Timeline and Galaxy pages for more information on the Alternate Universe.

Goda
Segmentum	Pacificus
Sector	Al-Sherar
Sub Sector	Goda
System	Orochi
Population	13,000,000,000 As of M41
Planetary Governor	Lord Goza
Temperature	Temperate and Tropical

Goda is a Knight World of Ghalhal's star realm in the Al-Sherar Sector, and homeworld of the headstrong Goda Imperial Retainer regiments. Before its rediscovery by the Imperium the various lower clans of Goda waged war on behalf of the powerful great clans, houses possessing the gigantic knights used to maintain their domains. Following their contact with and absorption into the Imperium of Man, the planet has been united under the Goza Clan as House Goda, and now provides many forces to the Imperial war effort.

History

Early History to the Hektor Heresy

Goda was discovered during the Great Crusade by Mechanicum explorators. Their knights being worn down by centuries of fighting with other great clans, the Goza Clan bargained with the forge world of Ghalhal to make Goda a vassal if the Mechanicus assisted in the unification of the planet. Ultimately, after a brief war, the great clans agreed to recognize the Goza Clan as the dominant power, but demanded they maintain a level of autonomy; a condition the Goza accepted, if only to hasten the end of the war.

Throughout the Great Crusade and the Hektor Heresy, the knights of Goda served valiantly alongside their Ghalhallan masters. As a halfway point between the Markian Pact and the headquarters of Imperial Pacificus forces Goda was vital to the lifeline connecting the Markian Corps to the rest of the Imperial Army. To defend itself and passing fleets, Goda fortified its moon into a bastion and star-port.

The Age of the Imperium to the Time of Ending

Following the Hektor Heresy, Goda evolved from a mere agri-world to an industrial world. Soldiers of the lower clans, having served valiantly as auxilia for the Imperium during the Heresy, returned to Goda to forge a new planetary defense force, the Planetary Retainers, which would serve as the basis for the Imperial Retainer regiments of the Imperial Guard. The old men-at-arms of the Great Clans evolved into the siege retainers, heavy troops and fortress-smashers of the Imperial Retainers. Goda was set on the path of greatness within and without Ghalhal's ward.

In recent years, civil unrest began racking Goda. The great clans, to achieve power over each other, dedicated increasingly fewer knights to fighting for the Imperium, and increased Imperial Guard recruitment rates to excessive levels to offset reduced knight deployment, thus weakening the Planetary Retainers. The lower clans have responded negatively to this imbalance of power, refusing to raise more Imperial Guard regiments, and stockpiling munitions. Likewise, the great clans increased pressure on the lower clans, deploying more arbitrators and siege retainers to quell disobedience. Neither party yielded, and in the end the lower clans resolved that the great clans must be forced to serve the emperor. In 955.M41, riots orchestrated by agents of unknown origin led to the fall of the Batoka Clan's fortress city, Dai-Batoka.

The two belligerents engaged in a vicious civil war, the knights of the great clans and their allies versus the lower clans aligned against them. Rebels and siege retainers clashed on every front, from the islands to the mountains and back to the fortress-cities. After years of in-fighting, the war came to an end after Imperial forces led by General Leyisu Oron and Princeps Arman landed on Goda with superheavy armor to end the rebellion in favor of the lower clans. To the detriment of the loyalists, victory came at great cost, and many knights were destroyed in the fighting.

Geography, Climate, and Culture

Goda is a smorgasbord of environments, from jungles and swamps to plains and forests, populated with exotic flora and fauna. In the northern continent, desert and forest reign supreme; in the south and east, mountains and plains dominate the land; and the west is jungles and plateaus. All around the continent, islands are scattered, filled with jungles, forests, and the like.

Goda is home to a great many beasts, from man-eating eagles to giant crabs and serpents; but none are so respected as the giant turtles crawling on the surface of Goda. Used by lord and peasant alike as a working animal, the giant turtle continues its service even in the Imperial Guard, their shells amazingly resilient against las and bolter fire. Such is the Goda people's respect for these creatures that their deaths at the hands of the enemy drives soldiers to a fury beyond the usual battle-rage, making up for lost speed and protection with bloodlust and adrenaline.

In some parts of Goda, tradition reigns. In others, it is innovation and new values that drive them. The scale of tradition versus innovation is very visible when traveling from a fortress city; the further from the knights and the adepts you go, the more old-fashioned ways of doing things you find. In the fortress cities you will find siege retainers, delinquents and gangsters, and arbitrators; in the further reaches of the domain, there are noble retainers, bandits, and local sheriffs.

Likewise, life in the island clans is as different from in the lower clans as the lower clans is as different from the great clans. Fishers and boatsmen, mariners and divers, pirates and smugglers, and giant enemy crabs find their homes on the islands beyond the continent. Far from the reign of knights and siege retainers, the lower clans lead simpler lives than the rest.

Goda has one moon, Rabbit. Since the Hektor Heresy, Rabbit has been a fortress and port of Goda, protecting it and accepting goods from around the Imperium. The system defense force is based here, staffed by Imperial Navy officers and defended by siege retainers, as well as House Goda's personal knight fleet.

Relations

House Goda is the vassal of Ghalhal, and so by necessity and humility maintain good ties to them. Ghalhal produces and repairs all suits for Goda, as well as the bulk of heavy equipment such as Leman Russ tanks and baneblades, although Goda can accommodate its own small arms and armor. Ghalhal also supplies all enginseers for the Retainer forces and knights.

As a fellow house of Ghalhal, House Walkur is a close friend to House Goda. However, this is a vitriolic relation owing to mutual stubbornness. The fighting styles of the two houses work well together, with Valkyries dropping into battle from above, destroying enemy armor at close range while knights of Goda charge over infantry. Though knights of Goda are fit to marry Valkyries according to their standards, it is a long-standing issue on which house would acquire whose knight as a dowry if two knights were ever to marry, and until that is resolved the knights of the two houses are forbidden to marry one another.

The Markian Corps is patient. House Goda and the Imperial Retainers are not. House Goda has no reason to upset the Markian Pact, and the Pact finds Goda's integrity pleasing. In battle the two's doctrines complement each other: knights and retainers move swiftly with Markian light tanks and cavalry, whilst artillery and heavy armor of Markia keep the enemy in place.

They are neutral on the Void Angels because they could care less about people two steps above them.

Military

Both knights and guardsmen of Goda are noteworthy to the Imperium of Man for their mobility ferocity. Even the tankers of the Retainer forces are swift and brutal in their fighting style. Only the siege retainers show patience and restraint, and they are trained to charge into thick enemy fire.

Knights of Goda

As ancient as they are powerful, the knights of Goda are the greatest war machines Goda can provide. These giants of steel bear massive armaments, from battle to chainswords, wielding them with a fury matched by few. Indeed, it seems the thrones mechanicus of House Goda have a small quirk not shared by other houses: in addition to duty and honor, the throne also instills into its knight a burning fire that drives them with red hot fervor in battle, charging the enemy and entering bloody combat as soon as possible. Such a bloodlust shapes their arsenal; they forgo long-ranged weaponry and the bulky Questoris knights in favor of close-ranged weapons and the faster Cerastus patterns, although esteemed commanders use Questoris knights as a symbol of wealth, grandeur, and temperance.

As a house of the Adeptus Mechanicus, knights of Goda are maintained by the techpriests of Ghalhal as opposed to sacristans. Ghalhallan techpriests are distinct from other scions of Mars, dressed in exotic clothing and followed by Djinn-Servitors wherever they go. As the wardens of knights the techpriests know everything there is about their charge, and take great care in ensuring the continued functioning of suits.

Retainer Forces

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

Goda Imperial Retainers
Homeworld	Goda
Doctrine	Close Combat and Fast Assault
Signature Equipment	Sword, flak/carapace armor, turtle
Colors	Black and Gold
Associated Legion	Fifth Legion

Though Goda is a knight world, the lower clans make a point in protecting their right to maintain a disciplined military force to protect the planet and ultimately the Imperium. The lower clans are permitted to raise defense forces to fend off attacks from invaders and protect the outer cities where the Adeptus Arbites is less prominent. To maximize the efficiency of their forces, all lower and island clans of Goda have standardized their militaries as the Goda Planetary Retainers, a Planetary Defense Force equipped with both old and new weaponry. From these ranks the Astra Militarum draws its regiments, the Imperial Retainers of Goda.

Consisting of the most enthusiastic members of the Planetary Retainers, the Imperial Retainer Regiments are aggressive outfits that prefer aggressive advance over defense. Retainer regiments contain alongside infantry extensive cavalry, mechanized, and armored elements. Outfitted for close combat, retainers close the distance to their enemy and engage in close quarters battle, as armored components rush the enemy to shatter their lines.

A noteworthy element of the Imperial Retainers is the armored force. Though most primitive worlds lack armor, Goda is an industrial world as much as it is a knight world, and so has access to all manner of tanks. Much like the infantry, armored crewmen are vicious brawlers, charging the enemy in fast tanks to overwhelm them. Being a crewman is not merely a matter of being tossed in a metal coffin; Goda has dedicated tank schools, and tankers, distinguished from other retainers by their modern black uniforms, take as much pride in their tank as a noble retainer takes in his sword.

As the Imperial Retainers are bound for the stars and never to return, those close to them often give them what may be their last good memories before their departure. As part of tradition, a retainer’s old platoon and their families have him or her participate in one last festivity, where the retainer’s armor is decorated and the retainer is given presents that are expected to be useful in the coming days. Riders are given the finest steed their unit could afford, and a tank crew, hand-picked by its new tank commander from across the world, is given a deep red tank covered in beautiful imagery. A very common gift is simply a sword, crafted with a high degree of skill by a commissioned craftsman or passed down through generations.

Many retainers are deeply respectful of tradition, and so maintain adherence to the ancient ways as best they can. These "noble retainers" forgo modern weaponry in favor of archaic armor, obsolete close combat weapons, and bows made from strong wood and tough string. Horribly under-equipped for the battlefields of the forty-first millennium, noble retainers must achieve greatness through faith and fury.

Though primarily a lower clan effort, only the great clans have the infrastructure to equip the retainer forces. Providing standard gear to the lower clans, the great clans keep the higher-quality materiel to themselves to equip their highly trained siege retainers. Siege retainers are specialized infantry, analogous to grenadiers of other worlds, clad in carapace armor and armed with hellguns, chainswords, power weapons, or special weapons above the regular forces’, that serve as line breakers or knights' men-at-arms. Unlike the Imperial Retainers, the Siege Retainers have little fanfare with their departure offworld, and all their equipment belongs to the their great clan as opposed to being personally owned (A fact ignored by whoever finds their corpses first).