Chapter Summaries

The Star Navy's Fourth Fleet attacked the Provence System and its spaceports, while the Provence Sector's leaders called for aid from an expeditionary fleet that had already been defeated. Xavier chose to seize the spaceports intact, and hundreds of Star Space Marines teleported inside to begin an assault.

• The Fourth Fleet entered the Provence System, prompting alarms and a frantic call for aid from the Astropathic Court.
• Xavier ordered the fleet to attack the two spaceports, whose Void Shields withstood the initial bombardment.
• Xavier decided to capture the spaceports rather than destroy them, and Dorak suggested a Space Marine boarding assault.
• Xavier sent Aerospace Fighters and Intelligent Wingmen toward a spaceport, evading its point-defense fire.
• Intelligent Wingmen activated teleportation beacons inside the spaceport, allowing hundreds of Star Space Marines to charge its defenders.

Star Space Marines seized both spaceports by killing their commanders, then Dorak sent battle robots and Defense Force soldiers to capture the weapons compartments. The Imperium soldiers refused to surrender, and the Defense Force attacked them inside a macrocannon compartment.

• Star Space Marines led by Magras stormed both spaceports and killed their commanders in less than half an hour.
• Magras reported the mission complete to Dorak, who sent battle robots and Defense Force soldiers through teleportation passages to take control.
• A Defense Force squad leader demanded the Imperium soldiers surrender, but they cursed him and one charged out with Meltabombs.
• A battle robot killed the charging soldier with a Gauss beam, and the squad leader ordered an attack with no survivors.
• Battle robots shielded the Defense Force as they suppressed the Imperium soldiers, then the Defense Force used Meltabombs and Ripper Rifles to attack behind the barricades.

After securing the spaceports, Dorak and Magras used them to bombard the three hive worlds, then sent Star Army forces to invade. The Star Army overwhelmed the Planetary Defence Force and occupied all three worlds within twelve Terra hours.

• Magras reported that the Defense Force and Space Marines had seized both spaceports, and Dorak ordered him to bombard designated positions.
• Magras launched a half-hour bombardment of the hive worlds while Aerospace Fighters destroyed additional defenses and dropped teleportation beacons.
• Apocalypse Tanks, Space Marines, and Defense Force soldiers teleported down and attacked the surviving Planetary Defence Force troops.
• The Planetary Defence Force fought back, but the Star Army broke through its defenses and occupied all three hive worlds within twelve Terra hours.

The Fifth Fleet overwhelmed the Adeptus Mechanicus defenders in the Dokla System, then used teleportation beacons to deploy Earth Dreadnoughts and Star Space Marines onto the system’s spaceports and fortresses. The landing zone fell, and the Space Marines secured positions while waiting for reinforcements before advancing.

• The Fifth Fleet attacked the Adeptus Mechanicus fleet, destroying most of its more than twenty warships despite fire from the system’s spaceports and fortresses.
• Five surviving Adeptus Mechanicus warships retreated to orbit around Dokra Forge World, where orbital plasma cannons joined the defense and battered the Star Navy’s Void Shields.
• Wood ordered the fighter units to deploy Intelligent Wingmen and activate teleportation beacons for Space Marine boarding operations.
• Intelligent Wingmen entered the spaceport and fortress defenses and opened azure teleportation passages, through which Earth Dreadnoughts emerged.
• The Earth Dreadnoughts wiped out the Adeptus Mechanicus forces at the landing zone and seized it.
• The Star Space Marines arrived through the teleportation passages, established defensive positions, and waited for more troops before advancing.

Five Earth Dreadnoughts dropped from an Aerospace Fighter onto Dokra Forge World, where they fought through heavy fire to establish a teleport beacon. More Dreadnoughts arrived through the beacon and joined the counterattack against the Adeptus Mechanicus.

• Fighters and Intelligent Wingmen bombed Dokra Forge World's defenses but could not break through the orbital defense platforms' firepower.
• A Dreadnought pilot persuaded the Aerospace Fighter pilot to open the hatch so five Earth Dreadnoughts could drop directly to the ground.
• The five Earth Dreadnoughts descended through incoming fire and used their thrusters to land safely.
• The Dreadnoughts endured Dokra Forge World's artillery and destroyed Skitarii defensive positions with their anti-aircraft guns.
• One Earth Dreadnought deployed a teleport beacon, and more Earth Dreadnoughts arrived to join the counterattack against the Adeptus Mechanicus.

Mo Tuo’s Star Army overwhelmed the Adeptus Mechanicus defenses on Dokra Forge World with Earth Dreadnoughts and Knight mechs, then advanced to seize the orbital defense platforms. The assault aimed to capture their plasma cannons and use them to destroy the remaining Adeptus Mechanicus warships in orbit.

• More than a hundred Earth Dreadnoughts emerged from the transport passageway and suppressed the Adeptus Mechanicus defenders with withering fire.
• Dozens of Knight mechs entered the battlefield and blasted the defenders’ fortifications with thermal shells and Gatling cannons, collapsing the first line of defense.
• Mo Tuo arrived with Space Marines, Defense Force soldiers, combat robots, and Apocalypse Tanks, then ordered the force to secure the orbital defense platforms and destroy the Adeptus Mechanicus warships.
• The Star Army split into five columns and advanced toward the five orbital defense platforms to take control of their plasma cannons.

Yeks Pike sent elite reinforcements to strengthen the defenses around the orbital platforms, but Star Army artillery devastated the first position. Star Space Marines then swept through the surviving defenders and charged toward Orbital Defense Platform One.

• Yeks Pike dispatched Skitarii, Combat Servitors, and high-ranking priests to reinforce the orbital defense platforms.
• The Adeptus Mechanicus hurriedly strengthened the first line while Apocalypse Tanks and Knight Titans bombarded their positions.
• The high-ranking priest ordered the defenders to shelter, but the bombardment destroyed fortifications and killed many Skitarii and Combat Servitors.
• After Auspexes warned that Star Space Marines were approaching, the high-ranking priest ordered the survivors to leave the bunkers and form a defensive line.
• Star Space Marines charged through the defenders' fire, cut down the Skitarii and Combat Servitors, and continued toward Orbital Defense Platform One.

The Star Army charged through the Adeptus Mechanicus position and stormed No. 1 Orbital Defense Platform. After several minutes of fighting, the Star Army captured the platform.

• Hundreds of Star Space Marines and twenty Earth Dreadnoughts rushed past the Adeptus Mechanicus position toward the orbital defense platform as Knight mechs and Apocalypse Tanks attacked from behind.
• A high-ranking priest tried to stop a Star Space Marine with bolter fire and mechanical Chainaxes, but the Space Marine severed his mechanical arms and killed him with a Power Fist.
• The Space Marines and Earth Dreadnoughts fought through the defenders while the Apocalypse Tanks and Knight mechs joined the assault.
• The Star Army captured No. 1 Orbital Defense Platform within minutes.

After the Star Army captured Orbital Defense Platform One, Mo Tuo organized its defenses and ordered engineers to seize the plasma orbital cannons. The engineers took control of the system, but the cannon kept firing at the Star Navy Fleet, leaving Mo Tuo to investigate.

• Mo Tuo ordered tank and Knight units to establish defenses against incoming Adeptus Mechanicus reinforcements and sent engineers to operate the plasma orbital cannons.
• The Cogitator System detected the engineers as intruders and sounded an alarm, so an engineer smashed it.
• The engineers replaced the cannon's control screen, cracked the Adeptus Mechanicus firewall, and adjusted the weapon's parameters.
• The plasma orbital cannon ignored the engineers' commands and continued firing on the Star Navy Fleet.
• Mo Tuo questioned the engineer, heard that the cannon could not be controlled, and approached the platform to investigate.

Mo Tuo discovered that his presence and the Space Marines’ anti-magic field let the combat engineers control the plasma orbital cannon. The cannon fired on the Adeptus Mechanicus warships, while their forces rushed to retake Orbital Defense Platform One.

• As Mo Tuo approached the platform, the cannon turned halfway under the combat engineers’ control, then stopped and fell silent.
• Aishiliya suggested that the Machine Spirit was causing the cannon’s strange behavior, but Mo Tuo dismissed it and ordered the Space Marines to secure the cannon’s energy nodes.
• With the Space Marines in position, the combat engineers aimed the cannon at the Adeptus Mechanicus warships and charged it for ten minutes.
• The plasma beam struck a warship’s Void Shield, making it shake violently under the impact.
• A high-ranking Tech-Priest saw the attack and urged the Skitarii and Servitors to hurry to Orbital Defense Platform One and retake control.

Mo Tuo and the others watched the plasma orbital cannon take longer to recharge as the Defense Force and a Knight mech unleashed heavy fire on the Adeptus Mechanicus assault. The high-ranking priests ordered their troops to keep charging despite devastating casualties.

• Mo Tuo and the others noticed that the plasma orbital cannon now took ten minutes to gather energy instead of five, and they reaffirmed their faith in the Lord of the Stars.
• The Defense Force's Apocalypse Tanks and a Knight mech's Rotary Gatling Cannon bombarded the Adeptus Mechanicus forces advancing on Orbital Defense Platform One.
• The high-ranking priests ignored the casualties and ordered their troops to keep attacking so they could reclaim the platform and save Dokra Forge World's remaining warships.
• A Gatling round destroyed a Leman Russ Conqueror Tank and its nearby Combat Servitors, while artillery and cannon fire tore through the charging troops.
• A mechanical soldier used its Repulsor Grid to deflect a shell aimed at a high-ranking priest, but the blast killed more than a hundred Skitarii behind him.
• The high-ranking priest ordered the advance to continue, and uninjured Servitors and Skitarii trampled their wounded comrades as they charged.

The Adeptus Mechanicus launched a desperate counterattack toward No. 1 Orbital Defense Platform, but the Defense Force’s weapons annihilated its forces before they could reach the platform. The assault ended with the Adeptus Mechanicus reinforcements completely wiped out.

• A high-ranking priest ordered the Skitarii and Servitors to charge through the Defense Force’s machine-gun fire without retreating.
• More than a hundred Kastelan Robots advanced under Repulsor Grid protection, but Gauss energy beams overwhelmed their grids and disintegrated them.
• Gauss beams also destroyed a Datasmith after he watched the Kastelan Robots under his control fall.
• Gallon Cannon shells engulfed the advancing Leman Russ Conqueror tanks and destroyed hundreds of them.
• The Defense Force’s artillery wiped out the Adeptus Mechanicus force before it could reach No. 1 Orbital Defense Platform.

The Star Army seized Dokra Forge World's orbital defenses and destroyed its remaining fleet, leaving Yeks and Kahil to prepare a desperate defense while hoping for Archmagos Cawl's reinforcements. Commander Mo Tuo then launched a full-scale assault across the Forge World, ordering the Star Army to eliminate the Adeptus Mechanicus.

• The Star Army captured Dokra Forge World's remaining orbital platforms, spaceports, and fortresses, then destroyed the five warships outside the planet's orbit.
• Yeks despaired over the fleet's defeat, but Kahil urged him to hold out for reinforcements from Archmagos Belisarius Cawl.
• Yeks and Kahil agreed to commit their forces to defending Dokra Forge World until reinforcements arrived.
• The Star Army assembled two armies, including millions of soldiers and robots, hundreds of thousands of Apocalypse Tanks, and two thousand Space Marines.
• Star Army Aerospace Fighters bombed Adeptus Mechanicus defensive positions, exploiting Dokra Forge World's loss of air superiority.
• Commander Mo Tuo ordered the Star Army to attack and kill every Adeptus Mechanicus member, and its forces advanced across Dokra Forge World.

The Skitarii captain and his forces prepared a bunker ambush against the advancing Defense Force, using prayers to rouse their heavy weapons. Their Melta Cannons and Heavy Bolters opened fire, and the Skitarii noticed their ammunition was being depleted unusually slowly.

• Twenty Apocalypse Tanks advanced through Dokra Forge World with Defense Force soldiers and combat robots as nearby battalions attacked the Adeptus Mechanicus.
• Inside a concealed bunker, more than a hundred Skitarii gathered with over a thousand Servitors and laborers to pray before two Melta Cannons and ten Heavy Bolters.
• The Skitarii captain stopped the ritual when he heard the tanks approaching and ordered his forces to prepare for battle.
• The Skitarii positioned the heavy weapons at firing ports while Servitors and laborers knelt behind them, praying to soothe the weapons’ machine spirits.
• After the Defense Force entered firing range, the captain ordered an attack, and the Melta Cannons and Heavy Bolters unleashed a barrage.
• The Skitarii loading ammunition found that the explosive bolts were being depleted incredibly slowly.

The Defense Force destroyed the Adeptus Mechanicus bunker and the Melta Cannon that continued firing after its operators were killed. The battalion commander ordered his soldiers to advance and wipe out the remaining Adeptus Mechanicus members on the planet.

• The Skitarii attacked the Apocalypse Tanks, but their fire failed to penetrate the tanks' Void Shields.
• The Apocalypse Tanks and anti-aircraft guns battered the bunker until it collapsed, killing the Skitarii, Servitors, and laborers inside.
• A surviving Melta Cannon continued firing at the Defense Force despite being unmanned and heavily damaged.
• The battalion commander ordered the Apocalypse Tanks to keep firing, and their siege shells finally destroyed the Melta Cannon.
• The battalion commander ordered his soldiers to advance and wipe out the remaining Adeptus Mechanicus members on the planet.

Five Star Space Marines and their Exploding Hounds attacked an Adeptus Mechanicus weapons workshop deep beneath Dokra Forge World. They overwhelmed the Skitarii defenders, leaving the position in ruins as they pressed toward the workshop gate.

• Five Star Space Marines advanced through Dokra Forge World's underground complex, killing Adeptus Mechanicus forces while sparing unaugmented humans who surrendered.
• The squad detected a fortified position guarding a weapons and equipment workshop and decided to attack.
• The five Exploding Hounds charged the iron gate and drew the Skitarii's fire.
• The Star Space Marines emerged from cover and destroyed the defenders with Ripper Rifles, a Gauss weapon, and a Blast Gun.
• The Exploding Hounds rushed into the ruined position and tore through the remaining Skitarii and Servitors.

Five Space Marines and five Exploding Hounds overran an Adeptus Mechanicus defensive position and forced open a steel gate. They entered a brightly lit production hall where Servitors worked nonstop on assembly lines, seemingly oblivious to the intruders.

• Five Space Marines and five Exploding Hounds slaughtered the Adeptus Mechanicus defenders and headed for the steel gate.
• A Servitor embedded in the gate scanned the Space Marines and sounded an alarm, but one of them killed it with a punch.
• One Space Marine forced the heavy steel gate open with his bare hands.
• The five Space Marines saw a vast, orderly workshop where Servitors assembled weapons and equipment.
• The Servitors continued working without reacting, their bodies sustained by nutrient tanks and fused with machinery.

Space Marines encountered the brutal treatment of Servitors in a Dokra Forge World factory and reacted with horror. After a blind Servitor pleaded for its eyes back, the squad leader killed it and ordered the others to burn the Servitors in the hall.

• A Space Marine condemned the Adeptus Mechanicus for their cruelty, and the squad leader struggled to comfort him.
• A Servitor accidentally struck a Space Marine, then knelt and begged forgiveness, mistaking the squad for Tech-Priests.
• The blind Servitor pleaded with the Space Marines to restore its eyes so it could work more effectively.
• The squad leader crushed the Servitor's head and told his comrades to grant the others a final mercy.
• The Space Marines fired incendiary rounds into the hall, burning the Servitors to ashes.

Mo Tuo and his Space Marines and Earth Dreadnoughts stormed the fortress where Fabricator-General Yeks and Dokra Forge World’s ruling Magos had taken refuge. They crushed the defenders and advanced toward the fortress core, where the Adeptus Mechanicus resistance grew increasingly desperate.

• Mo Tuo led one hundred elite Space Marines and ten Earth Dreadnoughts toward Dokra Forge World’s heavily defended central fortress.
• The Earth Dreadnoughts unleashed their weapons on the Skitarii, tearing through their defenses and destroying Kastelan Robots and tanks.
• The Skitarii launched suicidal charges against the Dreadnoughts, but Gauss beams and the machines’ heavy armor stopped them.
• Mo Tuo and the Space Marines advanced through the fortress, killing Adeptus Mechanicus reinforcements as bodies piled up around them.
• As Mo Tuo’s force neared the fortress core, the Adeptus Mechanicus intensified its resistance and used extreme tactics to defend Fabricator-General Yeks and the ruling Magos.

Mo Tuo’s force attacked the underground fortress by blasting through a wall instead of storming its guarded main gate. The surprise assault overwhelmed the Adeptus Mechanicus defenders, and Mo Tuo’s Space Marines charged into the hall to slaughter them.

• Mo Tuo and his group reached the central gate after defeating the Adeptus Mechanicus reinforcements, and Mo Tuo destroyed the alarm Servitor above it.
• Fan Lun Tien warned Mo Tuo that the defenders would expect an attack through the gate, so Mo Tuo chose to catch them off guard.
• Mo Tuo ordered ten Earth Dreadnoughts to blast through a wall several hundred meters from the gate and charge into the hall.
• The Earth Dreadnoughts opened fire on the surprised Servitors and Tech-priests, tearing through their ranks.
• Mo Tuo led the Space Marines into the hall, where they attacked and killed the Adeptus Mechanicus defenders.