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Scenario: Your the Planetary Governor of a Civilized World out in Segmentum Pacificus.

By some terrible stroke of luck - a Space Hulk has appeared in your region and is making a bee line for the Planet under your care.

You of course have your Astropaths sending out signals, but a sudden Warp Storm seems to have Engulfed your Region of Space. Help will come eventually, sadly there is no telling when.

Your Civilized World is much like Real World Earth - 7 continents with a variety of landscapes and weather zones. Each continent has 1 Hive City which stands as the administrative center for each continent. Your world is capable of sustaining life and producing a limited number of munitions and weapons (your not a Forge World or Armageddon, but you aren't some backwater Agri-World either).

Your Planetary Defense Force is better equipped and better trained than the average PDF out in the Imperium.

Being a forward thinking Planetary Governor (who has been mostly concerned about the security of his people), you can draw on the following resources:


1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:

Why these particular units?
What do you intend do with them - how would you position them, make use of them?

2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
Again - Which Chapter? Why given the Situation?
And how Would you make use of 6 Adeptus Astartes against an oncoming tidal wave of Greenskins?

3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)

Don't care if its the Kroot, the Dark Eldar, the Bloody Axes, etc..

They are already planet side and can field a sizeable force, but nowhere near the size of the Waaagggh! that's coming.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Your resources are Limited, your time is Short (The Space Hulk will be here in less than a week).

However, you have the absolutely loyalty of your people - they believe you walk in the Emperor's Light.

Explain to me given these circumstances, how you intend to defend your Planet with a Waaaggh estimated to have 30 Orks for Ever 1 Human you have on your Planet.

1. Make a mercenary contract with a Khornate cult.
2. Have them open a warp portal.
3. Funnel enough prisoners into the Khornate carnage to fuel a larger Daemonic invasion.
4. Have the military forces at my disposal hold the Daemon hordes at bay until the Orks get here.
5. When the Orks arrive retreat all my forces into underground bunkers (the civilian population already being moved into these bunkers).
6. Let the Daemons and Orks fight it out until help arrives.
7. ???
8. Profit.

 mrhappyface wrote:
1. Make a mercenary contract with a Khornate cult.
2. Have them open a warp portal.
3. Funnel enough prisoners into the Khornate carnage to fuel a larger Daemonic invasion.
4. Have the military forces at my disposal hold the Daemon hordes at bay until the Orks get here.
5. When the Orks arrive retreat all my forces into underground bunkers (the civilian population already being moved into these bunkers).
6. Let the Daemons and Orks fight it out until help arrives.
7. ???
8. Profit.

Well Mr. HappyFace is a Survivor....or just likes Hijinks!

The PDF is better than average - an important question is how much better the system defence fleet is (defence monitors, etc)? Assuming I don't care about trying to loot the hulk for archeotech shinies, do they have the capacity to destroy it or redirect it into the sun?

Probably not in a week. But damage preventing it manouvring can possibly buy me more time. Depends if there's an escorting fleet or not.

A pre-emptive strike is out, because no matter how good the guardsmen and PDF are, hulks are nightmare combat environments that eat whole chapters. Unless there's an obvious "explode whole hulk here" target - in which case I'd throw as many guardsmen as needed to provide a distraction whilst the astartes deal with it.

The fight has to be defensive - 30 to 1 isn't survivable, but if it's 30 orks for every human, not just 30 for every combatant, then to be brutally honest we're all dead. It's not about winning it's probably about gutting the Waaaggh! as much as possible so this is the last planet they take.

Anywhere that isn't already a fortress isn't going to become one in a week. It can, however, become a trap. Be prepared to blow up any facility, district or even whole hive once it's fallen and the maximum number of orks have been drawn in.

Probably I'd want Valhallans just because they're stubborn, excellent ork-fighters and good at defensive warfare,

For the marines, Crimson Fists - same reason. Mostly in a command cadre role because they're much better at war than me.

One regiment, maybe two, of Harkoni Warhawks. To give a mobile reserve.

The mercenaries - some non-xenos mercenaries - ideally an elite unit; Vessorine Jannissaries or some such - because hiring Kroot or Blood Axes is a quick way to get me personally executed by the marines!

The only way to win is either to hold until help arrives (unlikely) or to get the orks to stop fighting me and start fighting each other. That means locating the warboss and killing him and any obvious successor(s) by any means necessary - astartes or grenadier kill-teams, orbital gunfire, letting him take one hive then blowing it up under them, whatever it takes.

And as a final backup, backup plan on behalf of the next imperial system in line, have an SDF ship out in the system's outer reaches start accelerating big rocks towards the planet (either recording their course so it can stop them again if we somehow win or waiting for a loss-of-signal order to be sure we've lost) as a cheap "home-made" exterminatus.

1. Death Korps of Krieg- They are well-known for their tenacity and willingness to die in hopeless situations.

2. Minotaurs- they are the best-equipped Chapter in the Imperium, thanks to being the personal hit-squad of the High Lords of Terra. Additionally, they are also known for their tenacity and willingness to die in hopeless situations.

3. Farsight Enclaves- There are fewer Ork-fighters as capable or experienced as Farsight himself and the Tau troops we hire from him will be similarly capable. When the suicidal Guard and Marines kill themselves fighting off the Orks, Farsight's troops can clean up the remainder and grant my world entry into the Enclaves, where I will not have to rely on the incompetent Imperial bureaucracy to maybe provide help for the next incursion. It will take so long for the Imperium to figure out we weren't wiped out by the Orks that I will have long since died of old age before Imperial forces come to retake the world.

 EmpNortonII wrote:
1. Death Korps of Krieg- They are well-known for their tenacity and willingness to die in hopeless situations.

2. Minotaurs- they are the best-equipped Chapter in the Imperium, thanks to being the personal hit-squad of the High Lords of Terra. Additionally, they are also known for their tenacity and willingness to die in hopeless situations.

3. Farsight Enclaves- There are fewer Ork-fighters as capable or experienced as Farsight himself and the Tau troops we hire from him will be similarly capable. When the suicidal Guard and Marines kill themselves fighting off the Orks, Farsight's troops can clean up the remainder and grant my world entry into the Enclaves, where I will not have to rely on the incompetent Imperial bureaucracy to maybe provide help for the next incursion. It will take so long for the Imperium to figure out we weren't wiped out by the Orks that I will have long since died of old age before Imperial forces come to retake the world.

I'm not sure the Minotaurs are the best equipped chapter in the Imperium, between the return of Gulliman, Primaris Marines and losing their on sight gene seed stocks due to the death guard I suspect the Minotaurs are a chapters whose star is in descent


addressing the rest of your post. not sure how brilliant your master plan is. "Hi I'm gonna throw away the high lords personal toys and then count on the high lords not noticing me when I shortly there after betray the IoM"

Firstly, deathwatch kill team, have them and the best troops I have for the job, maybe navy assets, try and get the spacehulk destroyed in which ever way they want to get it done, cadian shock troopers regiment, some of the best defensive soldiers, have them position a squad or 2 across the each continenet in such a way so as to provide an early warning system for the hive cities which will be where the bulk of my forces would stay, having the pdf prepare defensive positions in the hive cities and also rally the hive populations, maybe with some help from the chaplain, finally get some alpha legion astartes operatives working behind the scenes, helping break the ork horde into different warbands

If that hulk contains a full-sized Ork Waaagh!!! then there is no hope for victory with such few forces at my disposal. So the objective would be to do as much damage to the Orks as possible before going down.
For my regiments I would choose 3 Valhallan and 2 Vostroyan Firstborn, excellent tenacious fighters, they should be able to inflict serious losses on the Orks.
For mercenaries, I want a hardened elite group of fighters that is adept at striking behind enemy lines. Militarum Tempestus or Elysians or something like that. Finally, for the Marines I want Blood Angels or Raven Guard.
In the time I have before the Orks make planetfall, I would have my system defense fleet and all available ships evacuate my family and as much kids and other civilians who can't fight as possible (because I am a nice ruler who cares about his people). Civilians that can fight get pressed into auxiliary service. As many as possible will receive weapons and be used to augment the PDF, the others will man the factories to produce more weapon, convert non-military factories for military purposes and help set up defenses. I would fight a scorched earth war. Once the Orks land, I would have the PDF fight delaying actions to give time to set up defenses around critical objectives (cities mostly). The AM holds the line as long as possible around these critical objectives, hopefully inflicting heavy casualties on the Orks while the objective itself is rigged with explosives. Once the objective is fully rigged the AM will fall back to the next objective with PDF forces covering their retreat and once again fighting delaying actions. The objective is blown up, hopefully with a lot of Orks inside.
Using this strategy, I hope to maximise Ork casualties. Meanwhile, I do everything possible to scout the Ork forces and locate the warboss. By the time the Orks have finally almost overrun the planet I hope to have located the warboss. That is when the mercenaries and marines come into action. This force would strike behind enemy lines in full force while the majority of the Ork forces are distracted by taking down the final objective and looting the rest of the planet. We would attempt to fight our way to the warboss with the marines leading the charge and hopefully slaying him. The death of the warboss would lead to infighting in the Ork Waaagh!!! It would be too late to save our planet, but it might delay and weaken the Waaagh!!! enough to prevent them from spreading to any further Imperial worlds, and allow Imperial reinforcements to mop them up more easily.

Probably worth spending a regiment trying to detonate one of the hulk warp engines. Harder in the tight confines of the hulk for the waaaagh to benefit from their numbers.

Wow.. lots of inventive responses. Just a few clarifications:

1.) Locarno = I should have stated "the Imperial Guard and Astartes inherently trust you as well." In other words, the Xenos Limitation on your Mercenary Ace in the Hole shouldn't exist (unless of course you do not wish to hire Xenos Mercenaries as a personal choice), because in this type of "Back to the Wall" type of Situation no one is going to question it...

.....You might consider some Ramifications if you and your world might somehow survive the Waaaggh!, but that falls outside the scenario as it stands.

2.) Some thoughts thus far:

Excluding your fellow planetary governors MrHappyFace and EmpNortonII, the majority of you accept your world is going to die (unless the Warp Storm breaks) and you are all willing to slug it out with the Xenos if only to give the Next World in the Path of the Waaaaggh a chance. Well - your all definitely loyal servants of the Imperium in that respect.

It seems you are all converging on two strategies - Either Waste the Warboss regardless of what the price of that would be, OR you are contemplating damaging the Space Hulk's engines somehow.


3.) MrHappyFace and EmpNorton chose some interesting moves with their Mercenary Contract.

Joking or not, HappyFace seems willing to risk a Daemon overrun of his planet so long as it directly coincides with the Greenskin's arrival. It is an ingenious move to deal with the arrival of a Xenos host, but i wonder if he had any back up plan if the Daemons somehow came out on top...

For all intents and purposes, Norton seems to have prioritized his peoples lives by abandoning the Imperium altogether for the Tau....

Anyway - love reading all your moves folks - look forward to seeing more.

GrapeApe wrote:
Joking or not, HappyFace seems willing to risk a Daemon overrun of his planet so long as it directly coincides with the Greenskin's arrival. It is an ingenious move to deal with the arrival of a Xenos host, but i wonder if he had any back up plan if the Daemons somehow came out on top...

Well I can't actually think of a case when an Ork Waaagh has landed on a world that is also under a daemonic invasion. The closest there has ever been to an Ork vs Chaos battle was when the Ork boss Daemon-hunter launched a waagh into the eye of terror: he died but Khorne kept resurrecting him to fight his Champions.

So I don't know who would win out of the two forces but I think it's pretty clear that an exterminatus would shortly follow the invasion. Just got to hope it's the Space Furries who come to save us so that we have a chance of being rescued before the planet is set on fire.

Imperial reserves and reinforcement can be months off.

You could be facing it alone. You gotta pick a long game.
Hold put and fight the wars not the battles.

5 regiments.
2 Cadia, great general purpose troops, gear for all tasks.
1 Catchan, on the defensive and operating im my jungle regions, there unbeatable.
2 regiments of penal troopers like the chemical dogs. Why you ask? Because of then there former gangers and despite reputation, powerful urban skirmishing troops.

Prepare as best can, to be forced on defensive early on. You do not have forces to attack the hulk, but you can be ready to meet them on the planet. Prepared defences as best possible can elevl odds more than direct battle.

Warp storm can last a long time, fight a quick battle and lose the war, or try and hold the long war, and hopefully last long ernough that they get bored or can strike at there cohesion, and cause them to infighting.

Try and disrupt a early on but withdraw pretty fast to avoid wasting lives

As for marines, 6 or so marines is not going to win wars Alone.
A chapter like samanders, veteran marines and skilled in command oporations but also careful and not likely to waste manpower that's limited.

More a command role, 6 marines may turn a battle by taking down a key Warboss, however they can act to bolster the command and orgonisation for a far more effective campaign.there experts, but you only got 6, not ernough to be aggressive.

As for mwrcaneries, go with a elite unit, who can bolster your abilities like a special operations force. If you want to destabilise Thete command or destroy/defend key targets, need some special forces to do it.

In general your gonna be forced Into a defensive battle so prepare for that and concentrate to defend key planetary locations. Do as much damage early on but your gonna have to yield the field or lose alot of your trained men fast.

Press civil service into auxiliary and use some Cadians to lead, as higher trained, they can help bolster the conscript ranks.
Stockpile everything you can and strip anything from outside the key points as resource denial.

Move outlying civilians in to deny workers, yes heavier on food but denies slave labour.

Rig outer settlements maybe with mines etx as traps. Of your not manning them they can least do some damage.

In general, your gonna have to prepare to face and win a long fight. There's no getting round it. Maybe you win, or your wiped out but you also slowed and held them up for however long so impirum can counter attack.

Anyway you look at it, odds are long, you cannot take them face to face, but maybe face them defensively.

1) 3 Siege regiments from Krieg, they bring good infantry and a ton of artillery, allowing my forces to potentially wipe out waves of Orks before they even reach the line. A regiment of Valhallan Ice Warrios tankers should provide all the armor support we need as well as offer good advisors when it comes to fighting Orks. Finally, I'd take the Scion 22nd Tethoid Gryphonnes, another unit with experience fighing the Orks, they're also noted as being specialists in lightning strikes and other fast moving operations, giving me an elite and mobile force allowing me to strike at different targets, or quickly move them where the line might struggle to hold.

2) Chaplain Grimaldus and his retinue, that comes at about 6 Marines or so, pack them in a Thunderhawk and give them jump packs, that gives them a role similar to the Scions, with greater force concentration, the two forces could easily support one another to strike at very critical targets.

3) A Rogue Trader, his household guard should provide another well equipped force to deploy, while his ship will help with the battle in space, as well as possibly provide orbital bombardement agaisnt harder targets that the Scions/BT can't reach.

I'm not going to pick any Guard regiments known for their willingness to die - DKoK are damn good soldiers but that won't help in a 1-30 uphill battle vs the orks. I don't need troops willing to die in suicidal last stands. No Mordians either, my troops will have enough independent thought to take cover when enemy fighters strafe them! I need troops that want to stay alive and kill a few more orks after falling back again, and again, and again. And still possessing the strength of mind to regroup for another action they can't win but must inflict heavy damage to the enemy and escape with as much of their force intact as possible.

The same for any Space Marines I happen to have at hand, ofc. It's good if they're willing to die for the mission but they should have enough brains to not die needlessly (or force me to spend men from my limited elite regiments to bail them out). Ideally I want a group versed in all manners of warfare with experience fighting xenos alongside Imperial forces. Marines used to the idea of working as advisors for "lesser" forces, not just glorified shock troops.

My mercenaries will be the most mobile parts here, harrying enemy columns, supply dumps, back lines, anything soft, all the time. All the while gathering intelligence for me to analyze and maybe pinpointing the enemy leader so one could try something devious. They're more likely to fight well if there's less risk anyway, right? And keeping them out there means I don't risk the security of my important sites on the whims of a mercenary.

So my AM regiments will be four of the Armageddon Steel Legion type - mechanized, heavily armed but not totally crazy. They can fight, withdraw, fight again. Plus one regiment made up of Jopall Indentured Squadrons - sabotage specialists, snipers and in general dirty fighters wanting to pay off their debts and get back home alive. They have to stop the orks but they don't want to die so their ambushes and traps will be even more vicious.

The Space Marines that bring the most value would IMO be the Mentors (sometimes called Mentor Legion). They specialize in lending out squads as advisors to other Imperial forces, and obsess about getting all the new knowledge and battle data back home for study. If a measly six Marines can do any good here it's them. Six marines with supercharged tactician brains advising my ordinary human armies is going to be worth magnitudes more than six marines in a transport charging some mook warboss. Maybe I'll risk them if the true Waaghboss is identified. The Chaplain is a superhuman warrior, he could do it.

My mercs will be the Dark Eldar that sometimes raid the system. It's not like I didn't make deals with them before, and this deal too can be hidden and denied. Their fast crafts and webways mean they will be striking ork assets anywhere, anytime, long gone before ork reinforcements can turn around to deal with the problem. Often the reinforcements too will get ambushed and harassed, further spreading unease and chaos in the orkish ranks.

As for general strategies and tactics I do hope my system defense craft could do something about the ork-infested Space Hulk, but probably not. They won't be sacrificed on it if it looks hopeless. I'd rather save them anyway to use for orbital support once the orks are on the ground.

On the ground I'm not even going to waste my best troops on fortifying hive cities, that the PDF can handle. And the citizens once the priests whip them into a suitable Emperor-fearing rage at having xeno scum on our planet ofc. It will be a series of delaying actions with troops retreating and hopefully drawing massive columns of orks after them into whatever hostile terrain is available, which my guys are hopefully more used to. Basically scorched earth all over, even in the hives where defenders gradually collapse districts and retreat deeper down. It might not be enough to win, we might not find a big enough warboss to kill to make the Waagh stop, but at least they will pay for every foot of ground and every minute they spend on the planet.

GrapeApe wrote:
Being a forward thinking Planetary Governor (who has been mostly concerned about the security of his people), you can draw on the following resources:


1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:

Why these particular units?
What do you intend do with them - how would you position them, make use of them?

Savlar Chem Dog. I station them near civilians and I don't put any guards around my supplies. Also I prevent feeding them.

GrapeApe wrote:
2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
Again - Which Chapter? Why given the Situation?
And how Would you make use of 6 Adeptus Astartes against an oncoming tidal wave of Greenskins?

Flesh tearer. I station one of them in the middle of every hive, and I instruct my pdf to throw gallons of menstrual blood on their faces.

GrapeApe wrote:
3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)

Don't care if its the Kroot, the Dark Eldar, the Bloody Axes, etc..

Dark Eldar. I offer my entire population as slave if they can kill or capture the Ork big boss, the savlar chem dogs, and the flesh tearers. What could go wrong?

 Hybrid Son Of Oxayotl wrote:

GrapeApe wrote:
Being a forward thinking Planetary Governor (who has been mostly concerned about the security of his people), you can draw on the following resources:


1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:

Why these particular units?
What do you intend do with them - how would you position them, make use of them?

Savlar Chem Dog. I station them near civilians and I don't put any guards around my supplies. Also I prevent feeding them.

GrapeApe wrote:
2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
Again - Which Chapter? Why given the Situation?
And how Would you make use of 6 Adeptus Astartes against an oncoming tidal wave of Greenskins?

Flesh tearer. I station one of them in the middle of every hive, and I instruct my pdf to throw gallons of menstrual blood on their faces.

GrapeApe wrote:
3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)

Don't care if its the Kroot, the Dark Eldar, the Bloody Axes, etc..

Dark Eldar. I offer my entire population as slave if they can kill or capture the Ork big boss, the savlar chem dogs, and the flesh tearers. What could go wrong?

props for roleplaying a imperial governerer in such an accurate fashion!

Isn't the correct answer send the Titan legion at them unsupported while insisting everything will be fine, and looking suprised when the Space marines try to arrest you when they arrive?

Spetulhu wrote:

On the ground I'm not even going to waste my best troops on fortifying hive cities, that the PDF can handle. And the citizens once the priests whip them into a suitable Emperor-fearing rage at having xeno scum on our planet ofc. It will be a series of delaying actions with troops retreating and hopefully drawing massive columns of orks after them into whatever hostile terrain is available, which my guys are hopefully more used to. Basically scorched earth all over, even in the hives where defenders gradually collapse districts and retreat deeper down. It might not be enough to win, we might not find a big enough warboss to kill to make the Waagh stop, but at least they will pay for every foot of ground and every minute they spend on the planet.

You definitely put a lot of strategic thought into how to tackle the situation.

Someone deserves a job at Segmentum Command...




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Hybrid Son Of Oxayotl wrote:

Dark Eldar. I offer my entire population as slave if they can kill or capture the Ork big boss, the savlar chem dogs, and the flesh tearers. What could go wrong?

ROFL

Hybrid definitely gets the Prize for Being the Typical Planetary Governor....

GrapeApe wrote:
Scenario: Your the Planetary Governor of a Civilized World out in Segmentum Pacificus.

By some terrible stroke of luck - a Space Hulk has appeared in your region and is making a bee line for the Planet under your care.

You of course have your Astropaths sending out signals, but a sudden Warp Storm seems to have Engulfed your Region of Space. Help will come eventually, sadly there is no telling when.

Your Civilized World is much like Real World Earth - 7 continents with a variety of landscapes and weather zones. Each continent has 1 Hive City which stands as the administrative center for each continent. Your world is capable of sustaining life and producing a limited number of munitions and weapons (your not a Forge World or Armageddon, but you aren't some backwater Agri-World either).

Your Planetary Defense Force is better equipped and better trained than the average PDF out in the Imperium.

Being a forward thinking Planetary Governor (who has been mostly concerned about the security of his people), you can draw on the following resources:


1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:

Why these particular units?
What do you intend do with them - how would you position them, make use of them?

2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
Again - Which Chapter? Why given the Situation?
And how Would you make use of 6 Adeptus Astartes against an oncoming tidal wave of Greenskins?

3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)

Don't care if its the Kroot, the Dark Eldar, the Bloody Axes, etc..

They are already planet side and can field a sizeable force, but nowhere near the size of the Waaagggh! that's coming.

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Your resources are Limited, your time is Short (The Space Hulk will be here in less than a week).

However, you have the absolutely loyalty of your people - they believe you walk in the Emperor's Light.

Explain to me given these circumstances, how you intend to defend your Planet with a Waaaggh estimated to have 30 Orks for Ever 1 Human you have on your Planet.

Astra Militarum Regiments
1-3. Elysium Drop Troops. From Lexicanum: "These drop regiments are able to strike deep into enemy territory, specialising in ambushing the enemy or capturing important objectives, and can operate for extended periods of time without resupply". Operating without resupply for long periods and striking into enemy territory (to kill a Warboss, for example), are going to be vital.

4-5. Militarum Tempestus. We're going to be using the Scions for duking it out in the vanguard line.

We're going to be making our primary stands in the deserts, since fungi like Orks will have the least capacity to spread there. The Effects of Weather on Fungal Abundance and Richness among 25 Communities in the Intermountain West: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC117440/. We'll be using the hive city in that climate as, basically, a multi-tiered fortress. Slowly retreating down and detonating/sealing the levels above us. While the Scions work in the van in this capacity, the Elysians will be raiding outside the Hive to distract Orks and distort supply lines of scrap.

Adeptus Astartes
Since it's any Adeptus Astartes we're picking Grey Knights. Right now, we've got no capacity to shut down or protect against Weird Boyz. We'll need the Grey Knights to do that. Plus, their Force weapons will be useful against the larger, more monstrous Orks. Psilencers may help gun them down particularly fast as well.

The Grey Knights will be lurking on upper levels of the Hive after they've been sealed in order to launch ambushes and harry the Orks. Once the area is too overrun, they'll Gate of Infinity back down to one of our still secure lower levels.

Mercenary Contract
We're going to have a contract with the Void Dragons, an Eldar Corsair group. They use Void Dragon Phoenixes and Vampire Hunters. They'll be protecting the Hive from Ork flyers and conducting strafing runs on Ork forces before they penetrate the Hive. They'll be given their own shelter and refuge in the mountainous terrain of the planet for inbetween operations and gifted supplies of any abandoned sector they feel like taking as long as they conduct regular, continuous ambushes against Ork forces and occasionally re-supply our roving Elysians. These are also how we ensure the Orks attack the right hive city first: by using them to display a massive show of force at the Orks arrival and lead them to the desert Hive.

Just off the top of my head...5 regiments of troops and 6 Astartes = not strategically important across planetary scales. Without aerospace superiority, how are these guys going to get anywhere after they win the first battle?
Winning battles is grrrreat, but that is just not enough to win a war.
Logistics, replacements, troops trans, space/air/ground/naval forces are all a thing.
How many troops do I have at my command, what size is the Waaaagh?
Wars are much more complex than the actual 1000m of conflict. What about assassins? Artillery? Sub-surface survivable habitats, etc.

Anyway...
1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:
OK, I'll take the 3rd Mordian due to their experience fighting Ork Waaaaghs and their unit history, so they will not run.
For the next four regiments, I want shadowswords...lots of them. How many can I get? Those are what I want so I can get as much long range heavy anti-armor as I can get because I pretty much can make most everything else on my planet to at least some degree so I don't want to waste my choices on something that is just a bit better than what I can already make. Lets say I can get...4 Shadowsword Domination forces? That will be great to get rid of weird ass Gargants and other orky garbage at range.

Everything is going to be defense in depth. The hives are going to be defended by the regular populace given a LOT of guns and armor. I will also not hesitate to Danger Close everything and everyone. And, of course scatterable mines will be my best friend...I'll throw those things everywhere.

2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
So, I suppose I can max spank this as well? Then in that case I want a Deathwatch Kill Team with a Lamenter Chaplain in Terminator armor, an Ultramarines Dreadnought, an Astral Knight Librarian, an Astral Shark tactical marine, a Carcharodon devastator..and a Black Templar apothecary so they can get that old "Abhor the Witch, Destroy the Witch" rule to no-sell all those annoying psyker powers...but since they are in the Death Watch, they kinda have to just deal with having a Librarian around. That six man team should/could conceivably destroy anything they show up to fight...but 99% of the time, they will be coordinating and leading my forces (do they get a battlebarge?) only showing up to either do the first strike OR the final strike. I will not allow them to be decisively engaged.

3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)
I want some Imperial Knights to help out crushing infantry assaults (or counter-assaults), gargants, big nobz and other orky things that I can't beat down with air/artillery. Also, they come with their own ships and troops and armor, right?

I really want to know about aerospace forces....

-STS

GrapeApe wrote:
1.) Pick 5 Astra Militarum regiments - Explain:

Why these particular units?
What do you intend do with them - how would you position them, make use of them?

Firstly, I want some Scions, or Storm Trooper equivalents (Kasrkins, Volpone Bluebloods, etc etc). These will be my lynchpin units, and personal bodyguards, if needed, plus their air support will be valuable. Ork hunters is best.

I want some siege specialists, and the Death Korps are second to none here. Have them fortify my cities as best as possible, set up their trenches, gunlines and artillery and keep them pulling back. They set up the fortifications and use their zeal to bolster the PDF and civilians I have holding them.

I need some armoured units, ones that can adapt to the battle well and have a good hatred of Orks. Valhallan or Tallarn Leman Russ groups work well here. Superheavies would be too cumbersome, and due to the nature of Ork tech, might be too at risk of lucky attacks. Keep my armoured forces small and well supported.

I then want line infantry, which I can rely on to do well and take down Orks at both range and melee. Cadians would be reliable here, as would Valhallans and Vostroyans. Armageddon Steel Legion are a possibility, but are too used to mobile warfare, which isn't what I'm after.

Recon/skirmish regiments would be needed too: Catachan Ork Hunters would be exceptional here, but might be too small in number. The Tanith First would be nice too, for plot armour, their reputation and stealth. Still, the Catachans would win out here for me.

2.) One 6 Man Fire-Team of Adeptus Astartes, the Chaplain (who has been through 2 Waaaaggghs) has Agreed to lead your Forces.
Again - Which Chapter? Why given the Situation?
And how Would you make use of 6 Adeptus Astartes against an oncoming tidal wave of Greenskins?

Deathwatch, comprised of Chapters with vendettas and experience with Orks. Crimson Fists, Imperial Fists, Black Templars, Ultramarines and Salamanders would all be good picks. I want them to have rapid aerial response in the form of a Thunderhawk or Corvus, and a wide range of equipment, as per the Deathwatch armoury. Terminator Armour, Jump Packs, sniper rifles, a Dreadnought, the works. These will be my kill teams, dedicated to slicing out the critical parts of the Ork force: warbosses, warlords, meks, weirdboys and titan manufactories spotted out by my recon forces would be subject to precision strikes from my Deathwatch, supported by fireteams of Storm Troopers, who are more or less there to keep the Deathwatch alive. I have at least one member of the Deathwatch (something like a long-range psyker or Techmarine) who stays back at my command centre and uses their expertise and knowledge to help me co-ordinate the defence, and acts as my advisor, as well as aides for each of the regiments.

3.) 1 Mercenary Contract (Hey you never know right?)

Don't care if its the Kroot, the Dark Eldar, the Bloody Axes, etc..

They are already planet side and can field a sizeable force, but nowhere near the size of the Waaagggh! that's coming.

A Knight House would be a tough obstacle for the Orks to face off against - I'm assuming something like a full Titan Legion is out of the question though.
Otherwise, Ork infiltrators (a la Blood Axes) could be fun in disrupting the Orks from within, but unreliable, and heretical. Someone like Inquisitor Drogan, who tried building an anti-Ork psychic device, would be a good ally here, but I feel that having a Knight Household coming to my aid would be a massive assist here - let them take on the brunt of the infantry and light walkers, and let my artillery and airborne shock troops take out the Gargants.

Scorched earth tactics, trenchlines dug outside of the city and held by as many fighting civilians and PDF as I can muster, get the non-combatants off world and either to a safer system, or just out of orbit, rig blocks of the city to blow, hold them up in wars of attrition. Keep my airforce active and alive in case of my speedy retreat to a new base, convert as much of my resources to war material if possible. Let the Deathwatch use their own expertise in the situation, split up my regiments to give good combined arms, use my Storm Troopers to support critical missions (assassinations, demolitions, rescues etc etc). I want to encourage the Deathwatch to cause damage to the Orks before they can land - ie, causing a catastrophic explosion/internal strife. Beyond that, I use my recon units to harry the Orks and bleed them out, shell them with whatever I have, danger close on heavy Orks concentrations when they are about to overrun a trench/chokepoint, etc etc.

The more Orks I can take out between sieges (ie ambushes, skirmishes, calling in airstrikes and killteams on isolated warbands) the better. The sooner I can break their spirit (killing Warbosses) and backbone ( destroying tech and logistics) the better. Aerial superiority and control of production centres will be key, until relief. If I can't hold out long enough, then I give the Deathwatch the permission to Exterminatus the planet if they so wish.

I love these, keep them up please.

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We can't possibly hope to win an offensive against them inside the Hulk and so this has to be defensive from the start.

To that end, I want four regiments from the Severan Dominate (http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Severan_Dominate) and would risk the potential fallout later with the Inquisition. I would choose them because they're used to fighting outnumbered and are exceedingly good at fortifying positions, which is exactly what we need at this point. I would probably have to make a deal with the Dominate in order to secure some of their regiments but needs must.

The last regiment would be Elysian. Just in case the Ork Warlord reveals himself and is in a potentially vulnerable situation. The Elysians would pounce on him to assassinate him and his top officers. Failing that, they can act as a rapid response force to key enemy pushes.

I would choose the 'fire-team' of Astartes to be the Executioners (http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Executioners). They could attempt to challenge the Ork leaders and Champions to single combat and hopefully eliminate them, achieving a greater kill ratio than they could get by simply charging into battle or holding an area in my line. Failing that, they could assist the Elysian regiment in decapitation strikes.

For Mercenaries I would like the 'Void Dragons' Corsairs. They're experienced with Orks and have significant numbers. I would employ them to strike at landing craft entering orbit and to assist in decapitation strikes against Ork leadership. That should be a full time job but if they have more time/ forces I would use them for intelligence gathering in order to assist the entirety of the defensive project.

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Now, with 30-1 Orks for each and every human... we need to arm each and every human to stand a chance in hell. Production that isn't focused on fortifications will be switched to arms and ammunition, empty every single reserve, every private armoury, every warehouse (I'm assuming we've built up a stockpile for tithe etc., again I'll face that music later) and hand them out to everyone. Everyone who's armed will form a militia that'll be rapidly trained by the PDF and will supplement them in battle but hopefully not relied upon.

I'd form 'volunteer' groups that utilize bombs or other explosives to take out tanks and other Ork vehicles.
Civilian shuttles/aircraft/vehicles/cars would also be prepared and used for such roles.

Each and every facility that has its own reactor/ power generator would be set up to detonate at short notice, in order to maximise ork casualties and fully commit to scorched earth tactics. This would include any orbital facilities, which hopefully could take out Ork landing craft when they detonate.

I'd abandon the majority of each Continent, pulling all food, men and material back to choke-points and easily defensible locations and the Hives. Dismantling/ destroying all bridges, farms, railways etc. behind them to deny the Orks food and ease of transport.

I would gather all of the surface vessels, including civilian ones, into a vast fleet and fill them with PDF and add AA guns to them etc. and use them as a giant mobile raiding force to land behind the Ork lines and harass them across the continents, falling back and away before being caught in protracted engagements. At worst they'd be a distraction to draw Orks away from the hives and other fortified locations. At best, they can keep doing this until relief comes or we all die.

I would issue orders to never waste manpower (officers who did so would be swiftly demoted) and to never fight the Orks on their terms; bait/lure them into traps or onto defensive emplacements.

If a Hive were to fall, I would have it self-destruct, denying all its contents to the Orks and potentially wiping out millions if not billions of them with its destruction. This would be mandatory for each and every Hive.

Despite this, the sheer numbers are against us and I will probably lose the planet and my own life. Knowing this, I would have orders in place (in the event that we lose the surface war) to use what remains of my system defence force and hopefully Void Dragon ships to crash the Space Hulk into my planet. Home-made Exterminatus and removes the Space Hulk as a threat to the Imperium in the future.