Kashidaan Cluster

The Kashidaan Cluster was unfortunately lost to the Imperium during the 1st Tyrannic War in the year 745 Millenia 41 but before it were the decades of the 640s and 50s that saw endless conflicts against the various Ork Warbosses that tried to dominate the Kashidaan worlds and each other and Chaos cults that would occasionally rise to trouble the region. The regiments that took place in the best known of these conflicts are as follows: CADIAN 517 Motto: Ex umbra in gloria – from Darkness into Glory The Cadian 517 has made a name for itself  fighting Orks throughout the Imperium with its large numbers of heavy weapons and its emphasis on ranged combat but it has always returned  to Cadia to fight the constant threat from the Ruinous Powers of Chaos and to replace its numbers, and so it was spared the fate of the Kashidaan Imperial Guard Regiments. It has done very well for itself throughout its long centuries of existence including its part in fending off Abbadon the Despoiler’s 13th Black Crusade(occurs centuries after the stories where the regiment appears) but its primary focus has been against Orks including the Ork Warboss Tubthumpa. Structure Commanded By Colonel Dolvan Omero- uses a Leman Russ as a command vehicle (Commander, Gunner, Driver, Loader, 2 Sponson Gunners and General Omero- 7 men) 12 Companies of 288 men each plus a command squad of 5 men (293 men each) 3516 total Broken into 6 platoons of 48 men each 4 Squads of 12 men Company 1 Squad 1- Sgt Tiresas Okaan 1 flamer 1 voxcaster 1 grenadier 8 guardsmen Company 1 Squad 2 (even numbered squads have a heavy weapon team and a scout for companies 1-7 mortars 8 to 12 lascannons) Sgt 1 flamer 1 Voxcaster 1 mortar team 6 guardsmen 1 scout/sniper Some variety exists among equipment with some guardsmen carrying weapons and armor painted with the winged skull icon seen on Cadian pattern weapons and others carry unadorned lasguns. Some of those lasguns carry bare metal magazines and the others magazines painted to match the weapon- all of those are painted to match their green flak jackets. They do not wear the skull icon on the right side but do carry the regiment number on the left shoulder While Cadians fought in the cluster they did not call it home. The worlds of the Kashidaan Cluster produced their own guard regiments the most famous of which are listed below as they were structured in the year 658 Millenia 41 when they fought with the Cadian 517th on Jurus. 12th Vatian infantry corps “Blade Runners” Commander: Kalak (roughly equivalent to Lt. Colonel) Isagani Balleseros The people of Vatia have hacked its major cities from the mountains and dense rainforests of their homeworld. http://www.protoolindustries.net/sc_images/products/526_large_image.jpg in the Vatian dialect of Low Gothic this large knife was called a Kutsi and in their hands this blade did everything from felling trees to defending their farms and outposts from Feral Orks and occasional Chaos cults. Everyone on Vatia carried one (their descendants still do) and as such it is as much cultural identity as it is tool and weapon. The Vatian regiments carry a modified version that serve as bayonets. Heavy armor was useless to them and so they relied on a combination of heavy infantry that wore Cadian pattern armor painted to match rainforest environments and Sentinel Walkers. While they were best suited to fighting in jungles and forests they were capable soldiers otherwise, using a traditional Vatian martial art called Eske The 12th the “Blade Runners” earned their name during an incident on their homeworld facing an outbreak of the Curse of Unbelief. Clusters of villages fell to the Zombie Plague forcing the PDF units that became the 12th Vatian to respond. Their investigation led them to a forgotten stone temple to the Ruinous Powers, likely the source of the outbreak. They destroyed the zombies holding it only to call the entire horde down on them. They ran out of ammo and were forced to break out with nothing but their knives and martial arts training. The surviviors were reorganized into a Guard regiment and shipped offworld shortly thereafter, joining 11 Vatian units already serving. Structure 1220 men 10 companies commanded by a Kamagat (equivalent to a captain) •	120 men •	12 squads of 10 commanded by a Tsip (equivalent to Sgt.) 1 recon section of 20 Sentinels(20 men) •	10 Catachan Pattern •	10 Cadian Pattern Serlendor 12th “GateKeepers” Motto: Gatekeepers none shall pass Commander: Major Stefanus Van Eyck (taking over for the KIA former commander Colonel Tijmen Van Ingen who died in action on Jurus The Low Gothic of Serneldor was somewhat polished than that of the other worlds in the Imperium and it suits the people, who tend toward fair skin and platinum blonde hair. Serlendor was a world of field and factory producing grain, dairy, and wargear alike with small Ork settlemets causing occasional problems for them.  The citizens of Serlendor had a culture of hunting (producing some excellent marksmen) they wore blue Cadian pattern armor and matching cammo. The existed as a PDF unit but officially received recognition as an Imperial Guard regiment during the assault by WAAAGH Zurruk when the small containable Ork populations joined their new warboss and nearly brought Serlendor to its knees. Structure 1485 men Command squad of 10 men (Colonel and 9 staff) 10 companies of 143 commanded by a captain Each company is 1 elite squad of 11 veterans (10 troopers 1 sgt.) and 12 squads of 11 men(10 troopers 1 sgt). •	1 Sergeant •	1 voxcaster •	1 sniper(carries a longlas) •	2 grenadiers •	2 flamers •	4 guardsmen(standard lasgun) 5 Leman Russ(30 men total) (some regiments use the Basilisk rather than the Leman Russ) •	Gothika, •	Rechter(Judge) •	Toeslaan(Knockdown) •	Izjeren Val (Iron Will) •	krijgsheer (Warlord) 5 Chimera(15 men) •	Black Betty, •	Sweet Anja, (pronounced AHN-YA) •	Bottoms up •	Evangeljine (pronounced Ev-Ayng eh-Line) •	Magdalen Straat(Magdalen Street-named for the address of Van Ingen’s childhood home)

Medici (note: They did were not called offworld to fight until the Tyranid invasion) The Planetary governor, called The Doge, ruled from the capital city of Indina which was built on a collection of large islands much like Venice on Ancient Terra. The provinces were called Duchies or counties based on whether a Duke (duchess) or Count (countess) ruled (the titles are traditional, owing to the planet’s past and their heritage of her people, the positions were largely hereditary but were occasionally elected democratically) they ruled from the Provincial capitals surrounded by smaller cities and towns. Each Duchy/County was responsible for its own defense maintaining PDF units and militias the quality of training and equipment varied depending on where they were raised from. Medici’s primary military strength was in its Battlefleet whose area of operation covered the space surrounding Jurus, Serlendor and Vatia among other worlds. (Medici built the battlefleet that bears her name, stripping the asteroid belt and the moons of Bolia, a gas giant in system of any useful resources and her moon Ciosa was home to the “ Fabrica Majoris” a sprawling industrial complex and shipyard capable of constructing and maintaining anything up to a Grand Cruiser) •	Carriers all had the word Shadow somewhere in their name (Medici Shadow) •	Lighter warships were named for historical figures (Ultimomen Sigmar was named for Sigmar DiTolla, a naval officer murdered by Siro Amador when he went pirate(Blood of a Liar) Note: Siro Amador was from a wealthy Medici shipping family) As a result the Imperial Guard regiments Medici supports were never been called into battle offworld and instead acted as the 2nd line of defense should any enemy break through the fleet. The number was rather low as several million of her people already served in the Battlefleet. The common infantryman wore Cadian pattern armor( Brigade Sigil, unique to each brigade and regimental sigil, unique to each regiment, on left shoulder Imperial Aquila on the right shoulder) painted to match their uniform an olive green long sleeved shirt(rank markers on the sleeves) bloused trousers (same color) with gray puttees and black boots. Standard issue weapons included •	lasgun •	auto pistol(used as a sidearm)and 2 extra magazines. •	Bayonet/combat knife. •	2 frag grenades 2 krak grenades •	All other equipment is carried in a standard issue pack, also olive green. •	Also issued greatcoats and insulated gloves for winter operations, same markings as the armor, and rank markers on sleeves. Command officers were issued the same uniform but without armor, instead wearing an olive green double breasted coat with the Imperial Aquila on the right side of the collar and the regimental sigil on the left with the rank pins on epaulettes and black leather gloves. They also wear peaked hats the same color as their coats with the Imperial Aquila displayed in silver on the front. They carried a laspistol and swept hilt chainsword http://browncoatmando.deviantart.com/art/Medici-Officer-pattern-chainsword-483959660b instead of a lasgun and bayonet Structure 16 Guard Brigades (a total of 104,352 men) Each Brigade was commanded by a Brigader General that answers to the Doge’s Minister of war, who held the rank of Grand General. The 3 most prominent were Brigade 1 Rubicon- Paride Ditmer Brigade 2 Apennine- Marco Carrozza Brigade 3 Tessera Adriana Serino (the first woman ever to rise to a position of such power in Medici’s armed forces did so with a combination of political influence and actual command skills) A Brigade consisted of 6522 men divided into 3 Infantry regiments •	2010 men divided into 8 companies 1.	1-5 infantry 6-7 Assault(armed with heavy weapons, lasguns etc. and homegrown copy of Carapace armor) 8- reserves 2.	Each company(commanded by a captain) of 250 is 24 squads of 10 men and a 10 man pathfinder squad(sniper/scouts) that carry sniper rifles and wear cammo armor and clothes 3.	A command squad of 10 men(The Colonel, a Lt. Colonel 4 Majors who oversee 2 companies each and 4 others as chosen by the Colonel. Comissars etc.) •	1 Armored regiment 1.	1 command tank(Colonel and veteran 5 man crew) 2.	3 companies of 20 Leman Russ Tanks(360 men) •	1 Artillery Regiment 1.	Salamander Scout(Colonel and veteran 5 man crew) 2.	 20 Basilisks (60 men) 3.	10 Hydra Flak Cannons(60 men) Note: The Guard Brigades had no aircraft as they would receive support from Battlefleet Medici should they be called offworld, and reason that they need none to defend against enemy aircraft as each Artillery Regiment contains Hydra AA guns. Note: Women served in the ranks but making it beyond Captain in the male dominated and somewhat sexist hierarchy was rare. Women also served in Battlefleet Medici but only one woman, Marzia Carbone captain of the Gothic class Battlecruiser Dominica Superbus has ever commanded anything larger than a light cruiser. When Medici fell to the Tyranids in 745 the surviving commanders fought as long as they could to save as many civilian lives as possible and when the last refugees had escaped turned their fleet on their own world in a suicide ramming attack, rendering Medici uninhabitable for centuries or longer but denying it to the Tyranids. The words of admiral Sura Amador remain legendary “Admiral Sura Amador to the Tyranid fleet. I am of house Amador and I deny you this world. To whomever is command on the ground I have only one thing further to say Frak you all. You’re all going with me! Full speed, take us in.” SZerkasian "Black Hats" Szerkasia was a rugged, sparsely populated resource poor world save for a very resilient people used to making a living from hardscrabble conditions and their capital city Senova reflected that. In its prime (if it can be called that) it was a rough dangerous working man’s town home to many taverns and other far less savory entertainments dotted throughout its dark polluted streets and waterways. It was once home to roughly 3 million people, roughly 1/20 of the Szerkasia’s total population. Other cities and towns were scattered, few and far between and biker gangs and Orks haunted the wilds between them. The Szerkasian(Sehr-Kayz-ian) Guard were raised to counter the invasion of Warboss Mukrukka in 645 and 20,000 men joined (the Black Hats unlike most of the Kashidaan Imperial Guard was not open to women) Their uniform was very basic consisting of the Forage cap that they were named for black, with a gold Aquila in front and a pair of black metal buttons beneath it. (Officers wore peaked caps instead) A black, short sleeved button down shirt with the Imperial Aquila over the heart in gold, a black flak vest, elbow and knee pads. A black leather jacket or trenchcoat with a gold Aquila over the heart regiment number on the left shoulder, company number on the right and white rank makers worn on the sleeves (marshals and vice marshals get red cuffs and decorative buttons ). Black leather gloves and sunglasses black trousers bloused into tall black boots with decorative lacing up the front. While they were issued lasguns, lascarbines and grenades most of the men supplemented their equipment with their own personal weapons leasing to a variety of sidearms and blades seeing use in battle alongside autoguns and shotguns. The Serlendor 4, 6th 7, and 14th and the Vatian 1st   5th and 10th were sent to assist them and a  single Kasrkin Squad were sent to assist them and one of the Kasrkins, a man named Petros Alexander became a local celebrity due to his one man stand against hundreds of Orks(the way of the Kasrkin) http://browncoatmando.deviantart.com/art/3-Kashidaan-saga-pt-3The-Way-of-the-Kasrkin-446602482 but was forgotten by the time he and his squad left. Structure Supreme command fell to High Marshal Bysek Lata 20 regiments of 1000 each divided into 4 “marches” (company equivalent)” of 250 each

Commanded by a Regimental Marshal and each part of the regiment was commanded by a Vice Marshal(Vice Marshal of outriders, grenadiers etc.) below them are the Squad Master (roughly equivalent to a sgt.) and under them the “common men”(pvt/cpl.)

1st company- Outriders (125 riders) These bike mounted soldiers acted as scouts and when the need arose a sort of light cavalry. The first generation of outriders were built around outlaw biker gangs who answered the call to fight, receiving a pardon for their crimes in return for their service. (Favor lascarbines sawed off shotguns and autopistols) divided into 25 5 man squads •	(Szerkasian Starlords(2nd regiment) commanded by Brada Dubrov •	Szerkasian Roadpigs( 8th regiment) commanded by Duvra lishkov •	Szerkasian Firebirds(4th regiment) commanded by Zbora Dusek •	Amasec Devils(13th Regiment) commanded by Vadim Durenko 2nd company Grenadiers - composed of the toughest (and craziest) men of the regiment, trading in their hats and coats for a face covering helmet goggles and mask. They charged into battle with grenade belts and heavy weapons trying to thin the ranks for the regulars.  Divided into 10”Banners” and then into 5 10 man squads with squads 1 and 5 receiving heavy weapons(lascannons and stubbers) with squads 2-4 receiving grenades and rocket launchers. 3rd company Regulars- The Basic infantry armed with lasguns and supplemented with personal weapons.  Divided into 10 ”Banners” and then into 5 10 man squads with squad 5 receiving heavy weapons (lascannons and autocannons) 4th company “Cavalry” Any vehicles that could be outfitted with weapons and armor and some Leman Russ and Chimeras shipped from Medici(most were captured or destroyed by Orks ) and their crews or armed passengers. No standard organization divided instead by what was available. note: the Chimera Petros Alexander rode in was a part of the 9th Regiment and named Emerald Zdara (named by the driver for a favorite club performer in Senova) the makeshift vehicles were replaced by proper vehicles after the crisis passed and organization became standardized. 5th company Support 125 men that serve as mechanics cooks engineers etc. The most famous regimental commanders are noted below Steko Zlavoi- Marshal 3rd regiment (“Mountain Dogs”) Rada Zdomir- 5th Regiment “Manus” [5 fingers on a hand]) one of the few to receive a chainsword and laspistol(the initial shipments of wargear were captured or destroyed by orks) Zankovic Gurlov- 16th regiment “skulldogs” The Cadian 517th returned to the Kashidaan Cluster after Tubthumpa built a WAAAGH from the survivors of the Ork forces broken at and Szerkasia(Battlefleet Medici fought in both engagements and Mukkrukka was killed by crashed Valkyrie pilot Elena“Angel Eyes” Amadeus earning her a promotion and several commendations) Colonel Omero(who spent most of his career fighting on and off in the Kashidaan Cluster) and a Space Wolf Great Company led by Wolf Lord Haakon pursued him for several years before he was cornered at Trazadone ultimately forcing the final confrontation at Polus. http://browncoatmando.deviantart.com/art/4-Kashidaan-Saga-pt-4-The-Cadian-517th-467796986 The Kashidaan regiments fought together as a whole only once. They were never very many, roughly 160,000 men and women total but before they were destroyed in battle they are credited with killing 12 million Tyranids and Battlefleet Medici is credited with the destruction of 271 Tyranid bio-ships and uncalculated millions of  Tyranid warriors with its final suicide attack.