 Valdenheim
Valdenheim
Origins:
Discovered sometime during the Great Crusade by The Imperial Fists Legion, Valdenheim was one of the few planets that gladly accepted the Imperium. A small planet on the fringes of the Segmentum Solar, the planet was inhabited by people whose culture resembled that of the ancient Jermani. The planet was believed to be first colonized during the Dark Age of Technology though no records of its existence appear before the Imperial Fist reclamation and even that is only a passing note in their records. Fairly advanced to up to industrial technologies, Valdenheim gladly accepted Imperial rule and legends say that the Emperor himself once set foot on the planet.
Relapse:
Due to this complacency towards the Imperium and due lack of colonization administrations, Valdenheim was rendered compliant and then left behind by the Imperial Fists. The population was temporarily brought up to speed but then lost in the bureaucracy of the nascent Imperium to be forgotten and ignored. It was during this time that the now “ancient” cities of the provinces were built by Imperial Colonists. In the following millennia Valdenheim degenerated back to its pre-Imperium state and remained this way until what is known as to the population as The Great Cataclysm in 995.M41. Valdenheim by this point had reverted back to feudalism and was in a state of black powder technology.
Cataclysm:
In the few years before The Third War for Armageddon an Ork WAAAGGGHHH descended upon Valdenheim. At first the Orks were kept isolated in the south deserts of the planet as they prepared for the upcoming campaign and quarreled amongst themselves as Orks tend to do. The Nobility of Valdenheim were too busy fighting their own petty wars and after the initial “sundering of the sky” as the Orks made planet fall, life returned to normal. The population had little idea of what was about to befall them. The Orks burst forth form the southern deserts and began to wage war against the southern-most province of Ausland. Feral Orks poured in from the deserts and southern jungles of Valdenheim and overran Ausland and nearly subdued Westphalia. The nobility of Valdenheim banded together and after a brutal campaign, drove the Orks back to the jungles and deserts but unable to press their victories any further. Ausland was retaken and soon the nobles, unable to resolve issues that arose during the war resorted back to quarreling. For a brief period of 8 months there was no activity from the Orks but in the summer of the next year they returned with their strength doubled and advanced to the city of Graz in the Kingdom of Tyrolia past the Dorn Mountains. The Orks besieged Graz for 2 years while endless hordes poured from the south, making forays into the northern provinces of Styria, Jutland and Nordland. In all the provinces the nobles fell back to their fortresses and fought the Orks for 3 more years until the Kroh Crusade first came to Valdenheim.
Liberation:
With the arrival by chance of the Kroh Crusade fleet to Valdenheim from Armageddon the tables completely turned. Marshall Kroh, seeking a new recruitment base for his Crusade by order of High Marshall Helbrecht, was to establish a Chapter Keep in the sector. Marshall Kroh and Castellan Gerhard united the provinces of Valdenheim and together began to drive the Orks back through the southern wastes in a campaign lasting a little less than a year. With the Orks dispatched and the planet liberated the Black Templars began the construction of a new chapter keep as the people of Valdenheim had proved in their dogged resistance that some of their number were capable of becoming Angels of Death who had saved them from the Orks. It was during this time that the “ancient” cities of Valdenheim were reconstructed and the planet began the slow process of being brought up to speed with the Imperium once more. Graz became the official capital of Valdenheim and became a shining example of the Imperium’s cities. Eventually though the Kroh Crusade Fleet was called away to the campaign on Medusa V. Marshall Kroh left Castellan Gerhard and 40 new Initiates in charge of the garrison and the planet with orders to hold trials and recruit more Neophytes to serve the chapter.
Intermission:
Events continued on Valdenheim peacefully and Graz was rebuilt and reinforced. Ausland was finally free of all Ork activity, and Westphalians began to till their fields once more. Fortresses were constructed in all the provinces to guard against further invasions. The Castellan, after initially commanding personally the vast majority of strategic strengthening, let the provinces fend for themselves after this work was completed. The King of Tyrolia, Maximillian IV who was equivalent to the planetary governor ruled Valdenheim well and kept close to the policies of strengthening all the provinces established by the Black Templars. 3 star ports were built in Jutland, Tyrolia, and Hochland to facilitate easier reinforcement and communication in case of another invasion.
Storm of Iron (Isenstürm):
After the Imperial victory on Medusa V, the remnants of Iron Warrior Goluk the Obliterator’s forces who had fought the Kroh Crusade repeatedly throughout the campaign, fled the dying planet and stumbled upon Valdenheim. The Iron Warriors under Goluk’s command made planet fall with a vengeance born of the defeats they had endured on Medusa V. The PDF units mustered from all the provinces responded to the Chaos incursion with admirable speed and courage but their efforts were not enough. After landing in the western wastes the Iron Warriors carved a bloody path through the Styrian Palatinate and the Duchy of Westphalia and were soon upon the planetary capital of Graz. Thanks to the efforts of the Dukes of Styria and Westphalia the Iron Warriors were stalled long enough for Maximillian IV and the Tyrolian Army to evacuate the majority of Graz to the Northern provinces at the urging of Castellan Gerhard. The evacuation proved to be one of the few victories of the early campaign due to the sacrifice of the PDF. The Castellan had made contact with Marshall Kroh and was aware of his imminent arrival. His most important concern was stalling the Iron Warriors long enough to withdraw all available forces to the Northern provinces and await the return of the Kroh Crusade and Kampfgruppe Edelweiss.
Orks Return:
In the midst of the Iron Warriors invasion the Ork Tribes of the Southern and Eastern Wastes began to mobilize a mighty WAAAGGHH under Warboss Gorgutz ‘Eadsmasha. Gorgutz’s hordes surged into Ausland and Ostermark but were held in check initially by the forces stationed there. After a few weeks however the Orks began to make advances and eventually overran Ausland once more. Ostermark only faired better due to its proximity to Hochland which had become the staging area od the Imperial forces on the planet. The Baron of Hochland, Lord Konrad von Hochwald, led an army that defeated the Orks at the Battle of Steinbach Pass and staved off defeat temporarily for Ostermark. Eventually however the Orks broke through the Imperial Defense line and Besieged Königsberg, the Capital of Ostermark.
Templar Fury:
The Kroh Crusade made planet fall and halted the Iron Warriors and prevented them from entering Nordland. With the arrival of the Kroh Crusade, the Imperial Forces began to make progress in reclaiming part of Tyrolia and Styria. Kampfgruppe Edelweiss was deployed and inevitably the two sides dug themselves in. The Iron Warriors, masters in siege craft had dug in quickly as was their doctrine, and were incredibly had to displace. The Imperial counterattack stalled in the middle of Tyrolia and along the Morrholt Mountains on the border of Styria and Nordland. After initial gains both sides began their slow grinding war to take the planet. The Orks were pushed back but counterattacked fiercely causing a great deal of damage to Ostermark. As Ausland was uncontested at this point the Orks began focusing all their efforts on breaking Ostermark.
War of Iron:
After the initial rapid movements and deep striking by the forces of Chaos and Black Templars, the War of Iron as it was to be called was to become a war of attrition. The majority of Kampfgruppe Edelweiss was deployed against the Orks in the south and east while the Black Templars and some Imperial Guard forces were tasked to deal with the Iron Warriors. With the construction of defensive lines and both sides digging in, the war became a stalemate. The War raged for 2 years with neither side being able to achieve any sort of advantage until a break through was achieved against the Orks in the center of the Tyrolia Gap, as it was called. The Imperials poured through the breach and were able to extend their hold all the way to Graz where they encountered the Iron Warriors that had taken the city 3 years before. The city was put under siege where it remains a war zone today.
There are rumors circulating that Tau forces have been spotted in the system, but for now the future of Valdenheim is a long bloody war.
Provinces and Capitals: Valdenheim has 8 Provinces of habitable land (40%) with deserts, ash wastes, mountains, and ocean making up about 60% of the planet. *denotes Planetary Capital
The Protectorate of Ostermark (Königsberg) Wilhelm von Gassenstein
Grand Barony of Hochland (Brunswick) Konrad von Hochwald
Principality of Jutland (Staufen) Ludwig von Helsing
Kingdom of Tyrolia (Graz*) Maximillian von Falken IV
Duchy of Westphalia (Averheim) Reinhold von der Pfalz
Stryian Palatinate (Klagenhoff) Dietrich Hohenburg
Principality of Ausland (Kriegsfurt) Helmut Feuerbach
Grand Barony of Nordland (Eisengrad) Tancred von Manstein |