Asharn March
The Asharn March
Besides the ruins of now long dead Chiron there are six inhabited worlds in the Asharn March.
Dusenatk
Dusenatk orbits near the inner edge of its sun's habitable zone; as such, it is far hotter and drier than the other inhabited planets in the March. Technologically the inhabitants were much more primitive before the arrival of the Conservators, most native societies and tribal groups were still in the bronze age with only a very few having discovered how to work iron. The habitable areas of the planet tend to be clustered around the poles where the seas are located and the climate tends to be less arid. At the poles the climate and biome tends to be temperate and even gets snow in the harsher winters. The further from the poles you travel the more intolerable the sun becomes, the drier the ground and the sparser the life until the equatorial Death Belt is reached. Nothing lives in that accursed place forsaken by gods and man.
The lack of life is not the same as claiming it to be uninhabited, if local stories are to be believed.
The Death Belt neatly divides the planets poles and separates them utterly. Before the arrival of the chapter there was no travel between the two. Since then tunnels have been dug.
Dusenatk is a chief supplier of sun loving fruits and poultry. Despite the abundant aquatic life in the shallow polar seas there is no fishing industry as nearly everything that swims is extremely poisonous. The Apothecaries of the Conservators have taken an interest in the sea life as they may be able to farm them for toxic weapons or drugs.
The local orks are unremarkable in numbers, though tend to be darker in appearance. They are also more common towards the equator, away from the centers of the PDF, and dwell around oases.
On Dusenatk lies the Fortress Monastary of the Conservators Second Company. It is a stark stone structure carved into the side of mount Jindaskaar, also claimed to be the location of the first human settlers to that world back in the days of the Great Diaspora.
Amakahd
Amakahd was very nearly classified as a Death World, its elliptical orbit taking it across the far edge of the habitable zone out beyond where man was ever meant to dwell. A slightly heavier world than the Terran Norm, and far colder in winter, this is where the gene-spliced Rhinoceros derivative originate. The locals call them 'Tumults', and have been using them for farm work and the movement of heavy objects for untold generations. Bamboo, and descendent species, has taken the place of grass in many places, which the Tumults heartily browse. The bamboo contains a natural anti-freeze that can be refined easily into alcohol, which is burned across the winter months to fend off frostbite.
The long orbit of Amakahd results in nearly a full Imperial standard year of summer and almost three standard years of winter separated by brief springs and autumns. Only at the end of winter are the surplus foodstuffs allowed to be exported.
A larger than average ork presence hides here, hunting the gentle giants when the locals aren't looking. The orks grow dormant in winter but don’t die like humans do in the cold. Spring is the season of war when orks thaw out.
The most popular saying amongst the Amakahdi is “Winter never lasts”.
On Amakahd lies the Fortress Monastery of the Conservators Eighth Company amongst glaciers that last all year round beneath the burning nights sky at the northern pole. It has an extensive underground network of tunnels. Some rumors suggest that it is planned to be used as a vast emergency shelter capable of housing millions for centuries in the event of planetary invasion. Or at least will be if they ever finish building it.
Endurance
Endurance is the heaviest of the March worlds, and the least populated. The people, shorter and broader on average than most, get by on what they can catch and what crops can grow against the weight. The temperature range is fairly close to Terran norm as a result of the world being slightly further away from a slightly larger star than Sol. There is little difference between seasons as there is almost no axial tilt. The fields are fertile, but geological activity has sent ash across much of the world. The geological upheaval seems to be natural and has been ongoing since at least early to mid M32.
Due to the ashfalls across much of the arable land the mineral content in much of the food is at near toxic levels and many health problems have resulted. Although the locals might be able to tolerate an arsenic rich diet, most off-worlders can’t and exports are low as a result.
The ork presence tends to be what would be expected for a world with so much fertile ground, although they do seem to be slightly larger than average, possibly as a result of the mineral rich soil.
On Endurance lie the Fortress Monastaries of the Conservators Third & Tenth Companies. The former city-state of Kedul’s Town which is becoming the planetary capital.
The Tenth, with no need to maintain a permenant base as the Third seems to be doing it so well on their own, remains mostly nomadic.
Dekara
Dekara is world with a yellow dwarf sun coated in mountains and rich in easily mineral ores and deep fertile valleys born from a previous era of geological activity in pre-history. During its time away from the Imperium, it never fell below Iron Age tech for the most part bar a few isolated communities. This meant, compared to the other planets, it had a relatively large population and a slightly higher overall technological base to grow from. Orks are still present, but due to great efforts on behalf of the chapter and PDF, Slaughtered and burned to near extinction at 'current times'.
On Dekara lie the Fortresses of the Conservators First, Fourth & Fifth Companies, each of which were built in the capital cities of the three biggest and most prosperous nations.
The Fortress of Dun Kworum is the heart of the chapter and, whether the other nations like it or not, the effective seat of the planetary government as far as the greater Imperium is concerned. Which in all fairness is not that much.
The planet itself is pretty typical of any successful Dark Age terraforming project, which is to say earth like but lacking fossil fuels or fossils of any sort. This lack, suffered by all worlds in the March, has hampered industrial growth and technological development but has been mitigated somewhat by charcoal and alcohol.
Dekara has two natural satellites, one two-thirds the size of Luna and the other twice the size of Phobos. Neither have an atmosphere although the larger of the two has got sufficient mineral wealth close to the surface to make mining an economical possibility in the future.
Dekara is also the inter-stellar industrial hub of the March. This is because most of the industrial manufacturing devices acquired on scav runs tend to end up in Kworum. Its still comparatively little trade compared to almost all other worlds in the Imperium but it’s a start the chapter can build from.
Sarsoo
Sarsoo, a slightly smaller world than Holy Terra and the moon of a brown-dwarf star which itself is in orbit of an orange dwarf star.
Sarsoo and its dead sun, Betenoire, are notably outside the traditional habitable zone of its sun. Betenoire still produces enough heat to help warm the planet to habitable levels. This has resulted in a curiously ubiquitous climate and lack of distinct seasons. The presence of so close an astronomical body has also resulted in massive tidal forces.
Given the geological stability of Sarsoo and the constant mass movement of water there is very little high ground. Most of the planet is covered in a tangled mass of swamps and marshy forests, most of which are completely submerged at high tide. All native life can either swim, fly for extended time or survive extended submersion in briny water. The native human population usually make do with floating raft houses and boats.
Orks are fairly rare as they drown in the ground before they can be born and are usually only capable of breeding on the high ground, which severely limits their numbers.
Fish and amphibians are the main meats and semi-aquatic herbs and fruit from the higher trees make up the rest of the local diet.
The predominant weather over almost all of the planet/moon is impenetrable overcast and fog. Because of the cosmological oddity the days are not particularly bright and the nights are lighter than on most other worlds. It’s a world of twilight and gloom.
The people tend to be pale. Very pale. Albinism is not uncommon.
On Sarsoo lies the Fortress Monastery of the Conservators Sixth & Seventh Companies. Unlike most shared planets they dwell in the same structure. This may be a result of the sparse building ground and the nomadic nature of the population.
After the crippling losses sustained by the Sixth and Seventh during the failed expedition to Hell's Crucible it was deemed prudent to have the broken remnants of the companies adopted by other companies. Two veterans of the First company were sent to Sarsoo to oversee the rebuilding; Captain Gerald Fitzpatrick and Captain Patrick Fitzgerald now of the Six and Seventh respectively.
They do not dwell in the company fortress but remain mobile to bring the news of the rebuilding to as many as possible.
Blood-Tree
The scientists of yore tweaked this planet's terraforming in a strange way. It is in nature similar to any other of Earth decent and many organisms can have their ancestry traced back to old earth species with relative reliability. Sadly, and no sensible explanation can be given as to why beyond the universal and oh so human one “Because we could”.
Much of the planets native plant life was altered to be radio and thermosynthetic to take advantage of the planets many volcanic vents and notably high radiation level.
Thankfully they left edible plants photosynthetic.
Given the lack of green in all of the planet's environments the orks tend to stand out quite a lot and are punished all the harder for it.
Blood-Tree aquired its name from the red sap that many of the tree analogues possess.
Fortress of the Conservators Ninth Company is found on Blood-Tree in the island of Molndurin the inland sea of the central continent. It is a trade and commercial hub and the chapter maintains its hold on this world by trade.
The nations bordering the inland sea, of which each nation has a different name for, enjoy a nice Mediterranean climate and are the centres of learning and wealth on the planet. This is changing as the other civilizations are being uplifted by the chapter, much to the annoyance of the older powers.
Of all the inhabited planets of the March, Blood-Tree is unique in that it is a twin planet. The planet it is twined with, although obviously in the stars habitable zone, has entirely the wrong chemical composition for terraforming to be possible. It’s like a slightly cooler Venus. This difference indicates that they probably formed from different areas of the solar accretion disc and acquired their close proximity at a later time.
The lagrange point between the two planets is planned to be the sight of the Conservators first ship yard with which they will build a fleet to retake Charon IV in many centuries to come.