Chapter Summaries

Robert considered how to strengthen the Death Seekers while the company advanced through a dangerous tunnel, then read the announcement for the Third Closed Beta. New Players would arrive gradually during the ongoing mission, leaving him worried that he might have to spend his merit equipping them.

• Robert decided that a guide to using merit would help Players improve their combat ability and planned to gather equipment experience from them.
• [Name? Haven't decided] alerted Robert to an official forum announcement about the Third Closed Beta.
• Robert learned that updates would no longer interrupt gameplay, the thousand new qualifications would be distributed in batches of ten to twenty, and recipients had twenty-four hours to activate them.
• Robert saw that the Third Closed Beta would begin on July 3, Earth time, a little over two days later.
• Robert realized the mission would likely continue after the new Players arrived and worried that the Death Seekers might have to spend merit supplying their equipment.

The Death Seekers Company pursued Cultists into a tunnel covered in hallucinogenic mushrooms, where spores confused and endangered the Players. A Player in a Flamer Suit burned through the tunnel, clearing the threat and giving his long-neglected equipment its moment to shine.

• Joker and the Players followed fleeing Cultists into a passage covered in mushrooms marked as hostile by the IFF System.
• A Player entered the tunnel, inhaled the spores, and was killed by a Cultist who ambushed him.
• The Players realized that the hallucinogenic spores made the passage too dangerous to clear normally, especially with Robert unable to revive.
• A Player wearing a Flamer Suit stepped forward and unleashed his Promethium flamethrower into the tunnel.
• The flames consumed the mushrooms and hidden enemies as the Player laughed and declared that flame would purge everything.

The Players pushed through the Underhive passage with a Promethium flamethrower, while the Cultist commander struggled to understand why his collapsing defense contradicted reports of repeated victories. The Players prepared to continue their assault, and the commander remained convinced his subordinates were lying as the Death Seekers advanced again and again.

• A Player burned the Cultist ambush and mushroom remains with a Promethium flamethrower, heating the passage so intensely that his teammates retreated from the heat.
• Joker arranged for the Company Commander to wear the flamer trooper's heatproof suit and learned that the weapon's fuel costs nearly matched its merit rewards.
• Joker concluded that Players needed to cooperate and complete missions to profit from powerful weapons.
• The Cultist commander watched his defensive line retreat toward the Mid-hive elevator despite reports that his forces had repeatedly repelled Astra Militarum attacks.
• The Cultist commander accused his subordinates of fabricating victories because he did not know that the Death Seekers revived and returned to the assault.

Big Eagle Cop and the other Players reached the hive elevator’s control room, where Bit’s minigame blocked its activation. Joker finally completed the calibration, and the elevator began running.

• Big Eagle Cop broke into the control room, killed the cultist commander, and tried to activate the elevator console.
• Big Eagle Cop failed the console’s calibration minigame, and several Players took turns failing as well.
• Joker completed the calibration by keeping the blue ball inside the circle until the progress bar filled.
• The elevator system activated, its gate rose, and fresh air from the Mid-hive flowed into the Underhive.
• The Players nicknamed Bit’s frustrating calibration minigame “Rubbing the Omnissiah's G-Spot.”

Assassin rejoined the Death Seekers Company as they reached the Mid-hive elevator platform and prepared to rescue a Tech-Priest. Robert received directions to the Holy Trinity Forge Workshop, though the Tech-Priest's distracted behavior left Assassin questioning whether he could be trusted.

• Assassin logged into the game and learned that the Death Seekers Company was already traveling by elevator to the Mid-hive.
• The elevator stopped at a safe, brightly lit platform, where the Players marveled at the Mid-hive's comparatively clean air before forming a marching column.
• Robert contacted the Holy Trinity Forge Workshop and received a route through a maintenance passage and abandoned Nutrient Paste Processing Area, while being warned about Genestealer cultists and faulty steam pipes.
• The Tech-Priest abruptly ended the transmission while fussing over a Servitor production line, and Robert decided the Company should follow his directions.
• Assassin asked Robert whether the Tech-Priest was reliable, and Robert judged that he had at least provided the essential information.

Robert reasoned that the Holy Trinity Forge Workshop was guarding a valuable Relic and warned the Players to expect Genestealers and possible security traps. When twenty new Players arrived, he welcomed them into the Death Seekers Company and assigned them to veteran squads, strengthening the force as it advanced.

• Robert explained that the Skitarii were likely staying inside the workshop to protect a Relic, possibly an STC, and that the remaining security systems might mistake the Players for intruders.
• Joker observed that Players could exploit game mechanics in the realistic world, where their inability to die was itself a Bug.
• Twenty new Players materialized in the passage and told Robert they had entered as soon as they received their qualifications.
• Robert welcomed the newcomers, promised veteran guidance and equipment, and split them among existing squads to increase the company's firepower against the Genestealers.
• The veteran Players readily integrated the newcomers, leaving Robert pleased that the company had united without friction.

Two Astra Militarum scouts discovered a gathering of fanatical workers devoted to the Void Lord, whose leader used psychic power to daze them. Recognizing the danger, No Name Yet and Moth detonated grenades in the middle of the surrounded crowd.

• Fluttering Moth and No Name Yet followed the central route and found a repaired passage leading to a plaza filled with apparently ordinary people.
• No Name Yet spotted a heretical serpent-and-gear symbol painted on the plaza wall before a black-robed man approached the scouts.
• The black-robed man invited the scouts to join the gathering and preached that the suffering workers served the Void Lord and would gain eternal unity through him.
• The scouts realized a Cult Sorcerer had clouded their thoughts as the crowd surrounded them and chanted against the wealthy.
• No Name Yet and Moth activated their Frag Grenades, and the explosions tore through the crowd.

After Nightingale and Silence reported their encounter with the Genestealer cult, Robert ordered Fifth Squad to bombard the distribution plaza and led the Death Seekers forward. Cult Sorcerer Mas Kyle survived the attack and rallied his followers to destroy the advancing unbelievers.

• Nightingale and Silence resurrected beside Robert and reported what they had seen, prompting him to send Fifth Squad their coordinates.
• Fifth Squad fired four mortar shells at the plaza, killing many Genestealers but missing Mas Kyle.
• Robert urged the Players to advance and destroy the Genestealer cult before it harmed more people.
• Mas Kyle gathered his followers amid the burning plaza and framed their fallen brethren's deaths as liberation through the Void Lord.
• Mas Kyle ordered the cultists to destroy the Death Seekers and bring more people into the faith.

The Death Seekers Company's Seventh Squad encountered a Genestealer cult vanguard in the underground passageways and charged into battle. Big Eagle Cop led the slaughter, leaving nearly two-thirds of the cult force dead and standing amid the wreckage.

• The Death Seekers Company's line advanced through the passageways, and Seventh Squad collided with the Genestealer cult vanguard.
• The Astra Militarum Players charged the hybrids and aberrants with combat knives and Chainswords.
• Big Eagle Cop dodged an aberrant's power hammer and crushed its head with his iron bar.
• Big Eagle Cop used measured blows to kill hybrids and batted a grenade back into the cult's formation.
• Big Eagle Cop tore through the vanguard, killing nearly two-thirds of its fighters.

After the Players defeated the Genestealer hybrids, they marveled at Big Eagle Cop’s overwhelming Ogryn strength. The chapter ended with Big Eagle Cop and most Players making clear they preferred fighting as rank-and-file soldiers over taking promotions and command responsibilities.

• The Players finished off the Genestealer hybrids, and injured soldiers killed themselves to respawn intact beside Big Eagle Cop.
• The Players compared Big Eagle Cop’s strength and endurance to their own and envied his Ogryn stats.
• Big Eagle Cop boasted that he could now kill more Genestealers with his iron bar, drawing praise and jokes from the Players.
• The narration explained that Players’ human intelligence and veteran combat sense compensated for Ogryns’ usual weakness, making Ogryn Players exceptionally powerful.
• Big Eagle Cop said he did not want promotion, and the narration explained that most Players preferred rank-and-file combat to the burdens of command.

After Seventh Squad’s victory boosted the Players’ confidence, the Death Seekers charged into a Genestealer ambush and suffered a devastating defeat. The surviving Players retreated to the passage and decided to await Company Commander Robert’s orders.

• Cult Sorcerer Kyle learned that his vanguard had been wiped out and decided to hold the line, believing his forces could trap the enemy infantry.
• The Players rushed into the Nutrient Paste Processing Area without further reconnaissance and found themselves facing a fortified position beyond a one-way trench.
• Genestealer forces opened fire on the trapped Players, killing many before they could identify targets or return effective fire.
• A rocket struck Big Eagle Cop, killing him and sending him back to Company Commander Robert.
• The Players stopped their charge, gathered in the passage, and agreed to report to Robert and await orders.

Robert ordered a coordinated infantry charge and artillery bombardment against the Genestealer cult’s hastily built position, leaving the Players fighting amid friendly fire. After Fourth Squad’s accurate shells helped them seize the first line, another barrage accidentally struck the captured position.

• Robert learned that the enemy position had been built temporarily and ordered the Players to charge while artillery continued firing.
• Fourth Squad discovered that Death Seekers Company's Hand-Drawn Firing Table had gained a special effect that accurately marked indirect-fire impacts.
• Fourth Squad bombarded the cult position, destroying many turrets and bunkers and allowing the Players to charge with little resistance.
• The Players fought Genestealers in close combat as Robert ordered Fourth Squad to shift its barrage forward.
• Fourth Squad failed to stop the bombardment in time, and shells struck the captured first line, blasting both Players and Genestealers into the air.
• Robert said he would not defend Fourth Squad when the other Players started cursing them.

The Players used Wyvern artillery to break through the Genestealers’ outer defenses, while Kyle recognized that his improvised positions could not withstand the bombardment and ordered a retreat into the factory. Robert identified the enemy’s withdrawal and prepared the Players for a costly urban battle, which he believed could still help them complete the mission.

• After the first position was accidentally hit by friendly artillery, the Players recaptured it and watched the next salvo strike the Genestealers’ second position.
• Kyle saw the Players’ artillery destroy his defenses and ordered his forces to retreat into the factory for urban combat.
• Robert ordered Fourth Squad to cease fire and sent lightly equipped Players to scout the abandoned positions.
• Assassin wondered whether the game had malfunctioned, but Robert concluded that the Genestealers had withdrawn because they could not counter the artillery.
• Robert warned that the factory battle would cause more Player casualties, but suggested the enemy’s intelligence might help them complete the mission.

Robert's Players cleared the Genestealer cult's abandoned outer defenses and entered the factory, where they fought through an ambush before receiving orders to split up and advance. The chapter ended with the squads choosing different routes into the factory.

• The Players used their ability to resurrect to trigger and clear the cult's traps, while Kyle watched and hoped for reinforcements.
• Robert ordered Fourth Squad to bombard the factory, but the attacks failed to damage its steel walls, so he sent the Players through its open gates.
• Genestealers ambushed the Players in the entrance hall, killing some before the survivors fought back and cleared the initial threats.
• The Players debated whether to split up, and Robert ordered each squad to take its own route while protecting its Squad Leader.

Fifth Squad and Fourth Squad fought the Thieving Magpie Cult in a dark residential district, where the Players’ ability to spot enemies and revive made the Genestealers’ superior firepower ineffective. The Purestrain Genestealer ordered its forces to hold their fire as the Players dismantled the defenses, hoping to ambush them inside the buildings.

• Fifth Squad and Sixth Squad entered a mine- and wire-filled residential district and spotted concealed snipers with their white outlines.
• The Players opened fire, and the Genestealers’ commander discovered that the Players could keep fighting despite being killed and revived.
• The Genestealers stopped the losing exchange of fire, and the Players tried to lure them out by taunting them in the open.
• After several Genestealers exposed themselves and were killed, the commander ordered the rest to ignore further provocations.
• The Squad Leader of Fifth Squad ordered his squad to dismantle the barbed wire and landmines while Fourth Squad provided cover.
• The Purestrain Genestealer refused to let its forces attack, deciding to hold back until the Players entered the buildings.

Joker led the Players into the residential area by blasting through a wall, and the Death Seekers fought the Genestealers room by room despite heavy casualties. The Players captured the lounge’s side room and attacked the washroom as the Purestrain Genestealer refused to send reinforcements, leaving the first floor close to collapse.

• Joker convinced the Squad Leader to breach the residential area through a weak wall instead of using the guarded entrance.
• The Players stormed Habitation Unit 3, where Genestealers attacked from neighboring rooms and bathrooms, but the Players killed them through relentless fighting.
• After suffering more than thirty deaths, the Players cleared the breached side and advanced into the Central Lounge.
• The Fourth Generation Hybrid Genestealer asked the Purestrain Genestealer for Aberrant reinforcements, but the Purestrain refused and ordered it to keep defending.
• A revived Player told the Squad Leaders that the Players had taken the lounge’s side room and were assaulting the washroom.

The Fourth Generation Hybrid Genestealer withdrew from the Central Lounge after suffering severe losses, while the Players pushed into the blocked rear section of the first floor. The Hybrid briefly believed the humans were short on explosives, but the bored Squad Leaders and Bit’s hidden merit-point system revealed how little it understood the Players’ motives.

• The Fourth Generation Hybrid ordered its forces to abandon the Central Lounge after nearly five hundred Genestealers had been killed.
• The Players pursued the retreating Genestealers into the larger, obstacle-filled rear section of the first floor.
• The Hybrid noticed the Players conserving explosives and mistakenly concluded that they lacked enough high-yield charges.
• Two Squad Leaders stayed behind the front lines, bored but unwilling to risk deaths that could anger their squads and cost them their identities and merit points.
• Bit’s merit points were revealed to depend on the dynamic information the Players generated, not on rewards from the Imperium, and Bit had concealed that truth from them.
• The Players’ loyalty to humanity was shown to rest on their own values, which they would reject if a game tried to make them fight alongside Xenos against humans.

Fourth and Fifth Squad’s leaders sent [Bug] back for his Promethium flamethrower, and he burned through the Genestealers’ defenses in the first-floor combat zone. The Purestrain sent mutants to attack him, and [Bug] unleashed another blast of fire as the battle continued in choking smoke.

• The Squad Leaders of Fourth and Fifth Squad agreed that the urban battle needed to end quickly and ordered [Bug] to retrieve his Flame Dragon Armor after he respawned.
• [Bug] entered the combat zone in his Promethium flamer gear and swept the first floor with fire, killing Genestealers and destroying their defenses.
• The Fourth Generation Hybrid watched its forces and the residential area burn, then received the Purestrain’s order to attack [Bug].
• The Purestrain’s mutants broke through the ceiling, and the remaining Genestealers charged toward [Bug] while Astra Militarum soldiers advanced to shield him.
• The Players complained about the smoke and [Bug] apologized, but he immediately fired another blast when he spotted the approaching Genestealers and mutants.

The Players lured the Genestealers into a residential building and destroyed it with more than twenty Meltabombs, earning a huge amount of merit. They found the surviving Purestrain Genestealer trapped in the wreckage and rushed to attack it.

• The Purestrain Genestealer ordered its forces to swarm the Players and target Bug, the Flamer Trooper.
• Joker signaled the Players to retreat toward the Central Lounge and attached a Meltabomb to Bug, making him the focus of their plan.
• The Players detonated more than twenty Meltabombs, collapsing the building and killing most of the Genestealers.
• After reviving, the Players noticed there was no Purestrain kill notification and charged into the wreckage to find it.
• The Players found the Purestrain Genestealer pinned beneath twisted metal and began kicking it while arguing over who could attack it next.

Robert realized the Genestealers were making an organized retreat and sent squads forward to investigate. Seventh Squad encountered Cult Sorcerer Kyle, whose psychic attack failed when it found no souls in the Players and drove Kyle into madness.

• Robert heard unusually dense explosions and gathered reports that the Genestealers had vanished from the front lines.
• Robert concluded the Genestealers were retreating under coordinated orders and sent squads to scout while others held position.
• Seventh Squad pursued the retreating Genestealers and met the approaching Cult Sorcerer Kyle.
• Kyle tried to use psychic power to control the Players but found no souls for its attack to grasp.
• Kyle went mad from the contradiction, while Seventh Squad wondered what had happened and called for Assassin.