Just bored. Thinking stuff up on long coach journeys. A bio of my Regiment and it's officers. You may have noticed (if you've been here long enough) bits of fluff relating to the 122nd Churakee Rangers C Company floating around. Here's the latest.
ChurakeeCyclesChurakee Major is a Y Class
[Civilised] planet in the Churakee System on the fringes of the Highcourt Cluster. This area of space is located in the northern rim of the Segmentum Pacificus. It has a mainly temperate climate, although winters in the northern part of the world can be particularly harsh. Churakee Major takes 313 days to orbit it's star, which divides into ten months ranging from 30 - 33 days in length. Each rotation on it's axis takes the planet 25 hours and 53 minutes standard time. That becomes 26 hours Churakee time for the state of convience. Every ten years Middas - the fifth month - gains an extra day to compensate.
The TemperatureNorthern Churakee at the polar caps is quite desolate and cold, but can support tough pine trees and other evergreens. The further south, the thicker the population density becomes. Most of the cold air is blocked by the encricling mountains, which run almost completely round the northern part of Churakee in a ring. These towering cloud covered mountains themselves then give way to smaller mountains and large hills, leaving deep river valleys. The evergreens continue to grow thick in this region, however deciduous trees begin to take root. This is where the majority of the Churak* live, although there are many "frointer" mining towns tapping the rich mineral deposits of the mountainsides*.
Leaving the mountains behind, the majority of the the planet then gives way to flat plains and low hills with a mild climate all year round, but tending towards wetter the more north you go. Long meandering rivers criss cross these plains, keeping them fertile and allowing the Churakee to raise enough not only to feed their own population, but also be a leading exporter of foodstuffs in the region. The population on this "green belt" lives mainly in several large cities, the biggest being Phoenix, the capital of Churakee. Both Great Crusade natives* and Uglashu* live here. However, native Churak's are somewhat reclusive and tend to shun the cities.
EconomyThe main economy outside the cities in the various small holdings is husbandry and agriculture. Because of the amount of food being exported, farmers and small holders earn just as much as people who work in the manufactora of the cities, keeping the class divides low. The economy within the cities tends to focus on the manufacturing of a non military nature.
PoliticsChurakee Major is a liberal democracy, presided over by a senate. Two great houses dominate this senate - House Thracian* and House Reich*. Ideas are expressed, debated and implemented. Elections are held every 3 years, with universal suffrage for all adults over the age of 18. For the most part, the population seems to be happy in continuing this trend. Civil strife is amongst the lowest in Segementum Pacificus.
RegimentsChurakee has tithed 34 Regiments to the Imperium in 6,000 years since the 1st Churakee were raised. These regiments are infantry heavy and specialize in infiltration and moving swift and light and make for excellent Light Infantry capable of living off the land and laying expert ambushes.
Churakee units do make limited use of armoured vehicles, provided to the planet upon it's First Founding. The vehicles fill artillery and support roles. Most vehicles in the Churakee armoury are Sentinels, Hellhounds, Chimeras and Griffon Siege Mortars, although the motor pool does contain Salamander Scout vehicles, Atlas Recovery Vehicles, Tojans, Powerlifters, and a few Medusa, Hydra, and Manticore tanks, as well as specialized HQ Chimera with extended vox apparatus.There is also an attempt to raise the First Churakee Armoured Regiment using Leman Russ variants bought offworld. The Regiment will comprise of 100 Fighting Vehicles split into 4 Company's.
After the DuCourt Rebellion of M.35*, it was deemed that no member of House Reich could ever ascend to being in full command of a Regiment. A time honoured tradition is therefore to make Thracians the leaders of the Regiments, due to the families personal sacrifice and contribution to ending the civil war. The only non Thracian to ever become a Colonel was Byrant O'Ryan. He was elected by the Senate in M.35 to lead the 2nd Churakee Rangers and died defending the Phoenix Council Chambers during the civil war.
A Bright BeginningThe 122nd Churakee Rangers are the 33rd Regiment to be raised, and are barely three centuries old.* The were led until 27 years ago by Colonel Lewins Thracian, and are currently led by Colonel Ciahill Thracian. C Company consists of between 100 and 120 men under the Command of Captain Cyrus Thracian. The 122nd Rangers has already distingushed itself during the dark days of the 13th Black Crusade, and includes victory's unmatched by regiments with a far longer history.
A Dark PastWhen Cyrus Thracian was first assigned C Company 122nd, he was posted to a small desert mining world on the outskirts of the Highcourt Cluster. Ork Warbands still roamed the planet, though they were small, weak and leaderless. The senate decided this would be a good bloodying for the new Captain, and assigned C Company to six months garrison duty on the dustball known as Octavia.
Octavia had a population of no more than 1,000 prospectors, miners and their families, and most shanty towns were within a days walk from the landing pad and 4 walled, square Imperial fortress compound which doubled up as starport, marketplace, and accommodation for anyone posted to this luckless ball of dirt, and was the only place which spacefaring craft could make a safe landing.
What happened on Octavia remains unknown. Details are hard to come by, and the survivors do not talk about what occurred there. What is known is that amongst his final transmission, Captain Cyrus makes mention of losing contact with a small shanty town on the outskirts of the "populated zone", and dispatching a Platoon with Sentinel support to investigate. Octavia then entered the shadow of Cicaro, and all communications were halted until the small planet had come through the disruption caused by it's proximity to the larger, uninhabited gas giant of Cicaro.
Octavia was in Cicaro's shadow for just under 28 days. When she emerged and communications were restored no one could comprehend what had occurred. Of the 1,102 miners, adepts, and their families who worked the planet, less than 200 remained, all contained inside the walls of the compound. 43 Imperial Guardsmen out of a garrison of 158 were left manning the walls. Before relief ships could arrive, the planet was placed under immediate Inquisitorial quarantine. Once all the remaining troopers and civilians were removed, Octavia was deemed Perdita and destroyed by cyclonic torpedo barrage from orbit. Whatever happened in those 28 days has never been made public knowledge. Most of the miners got the first barge out of the system and were not seen again. Of the 43 surviving Imperial Guardsmen, 9 committed suicide within a month.
There are currently 26 soldiers who served on Octavia still alive. All are still within C Company, which was brought back to fighting strength within six months. Among them are Captain Cyrus Thracian, Lieutenant Villargo Vicili, Lieutenant Kale Verner, and 23 NCOs and Veteran Troopers.
No one knows what took place on Octavia, but in a neighbouring system, a popular wives tale sprung up just after the incident. Locations and names bear a chilling resemblance to the world of Octavia. Mothers warn their children to be good or monsters will steal them away in the night. Each tale varies slightly, but one inescapable fact remains that if the children are disobedient, they will be taken by iron men dressed in the visage of death, steel demons with a pale corpselight glow who are older than time itself.
*1 -
[Native Churakee]*2 -
[Whispering Woods - The Corruption Within]*3 -
Imperial Guard regiments who rediscovered Churakee during the early part of M.31 and settled*4 -
[literally "dark skinned. Members of the 14th Ephini Infantry who helped defend the planet during the Ork Wars of M. 35]*5 -
House Thracian gained much their wealth in agriculture and transport between cities*6 -
House Reich own much of the Manufactora in Phoenix and the six other major cities* 7 -
See "Seeds of Hate". The DuCourt rebellion was caused by a member of House Reich feeling particularly envious of a Thracian Colonel chosen to lead the 3rd Churakee. He murdered the Colonel along with his general staff and those loyal to him, declared Phoenix under martial law and waged a bloody civil war for 19 months until the 1st Churakee Rangers returned from campaigning and helped 2nd Churakee Rangers crush the heretics. This took place 3 centuries before the Ork Wars. A law was promptly passed by the senate decreeing that no member of House Reich could ever be promoted to Colonel of a Churakee Regiment. Regiment designation was no longer in ascending numerical order, but rather any Regiments raised after the uprising were allocated numbers based on what day of the year they were officially founded (ranging from 1 - 313). The 3rd Rangers were expunged from the roll of honour and are the secret shame of Churakee. Once every three years, 27,500 candles are lit in the Cathedral of Phoenix. One for every loyalist soldier and civilian assumed killed in the civil war.*8 -
The latest Regiment is the 53rd. Raised to fight the menace of another Black Crusade. See "Seeds of Hate".EDIT: The Inqusitor's report may now be read. It is
The Dossier of Inquisitor Vandyre.
