Hello everyone,
We’re back with our Index Militarum series, which will focus in the next three articles on the regiments of the Astra Militarum featured in our second article, Steel and Tracks. Today, we invite you to discover the Praetorian Guard, which was part of our campaign The Fall of Praetoria. An article detailing this campaign will soon be available on our Patreon page. Feel free to support us and learn more about our original project! All illustrations for the Index have been commissioned for our website (although some have already circulated on the Internet), and we need to pay the illustrators. Your support will allow us to publish many more Index entries.
Praetoria is an over-populated Hive World which supplies the Imperium with one of the best regiments in the Imperial Guard. Its inhabitants are lofty and proud. Each soldier coming from a Praetorian barracks remains calm in the face of the horrors devastating the Emperor’s lands. Although there is a high crime rate on Praetoria, the planetary lords ensure order prevails; the Adeptus Arbites maintain a strong presence in sensitive zones. Most delinquents are enrolled by force into the Imperial Guard or locked up in the huge prison on Lamentation Island. Praetorian natives drink Ivtea, a plant endemic to the Plains of Imra, which they dry and drink as an infusion. Ivtea is supposed to contain energizing properties which, according to local beliefs, keep soldiers awake and alert, whatever time they are called upon to go into battle. The Imperial Guard regiments recruited on Praetoria are renowned for their cast iron discipline and their bravery. They despise sloppiness and disorder, including in fields of operation where they strive to ensure their ranks are always perfectly in line and their uniforms impeccable.
This reputation for perfection and their unswerving devotion to the Emperor has convinced the Administratum to sent Praetorian regiments to fight in the four corners of the Galaxy.
Equipment:
The uniforms of the Praetorian Guard are produced in the huge factories in the planet’s industrial zones. Every soldier wears a scarlet tunic trimmed with gold, navy blue pants, a bullet-proof vest and a cream-colored rounded helmet. The shades of the cuffs vary depending on the role of the regiment and the rank of the soldier. The Planetary Defense Forces wear a uniform entirely in beige and the artillery sometimes wear an alternative tunic in dark blue. The Praetorian Guard’s tanks and units are very diverse. Their mounted Hussars constitute an elite cavalry, seen by all as merciless and fearless. Many Abhuman Ratlings are to be found in the various regiments and, since the Massacre of Big Toof River, rumor has it that Orks mercenaries are working for the Praetorian authorities. In terms of tanks, the Praetorian Guard opts for the formidable Griffon or Colossus artillery tanks as well as for Malcador-type heavy tanks. In fact, this tough, elite regiment has the nec plus ultra in equipment and cutting-edge technology.
Notable campaigns:
The Battle of Helios Pass [624.M41]:
When the “Flaming Carrion” Ork Space Hulk suddenly appeared on the edge of the Kallax system in the Ultima Segmentum, the four billion citizens of Kallax III thought the Day of Judgment had come. They were filled with terror. There was no one to protect them as virtually all of the planet’s native regiments were engaged in the fight the Tau’s third sphere expansions. Furthermore, the planet’s defense forces, caught unawares, were not affected to defend their world. Nothing could stop the Ork landing on the south of the continent. Little by little, the Greenskins invaded Kallax III. The Imperial troops that were there fought valiantly during two weeks of intense combat but were lacking in numbers. There was a glimmer of hope when a back-up fleet, commanded by Emperor-class battleship Dominus Eternus, engaged the Ork ships in combat in orbit. Battle raged in the skies. Under a fire fed by the clashes, the back-up regiments managed, somehow, to land on Kallax III. Among their rescuers was Colonel Animus Winterborne, leading the Praetorian 4th Mechanized Infantry. Quickly realizing that the battle on the planet’s desert wastes was not going his unit’s way, he ordered a strategic regrouping close to the walls of the Hive City Tammerus. Trapped between two Ork forces, the Imperial tanks unleashed a constant barrage of missiles in both directions. Despite the intensity of their fire, they could not prevent the battle descending into bloody, hand-to-hand fighting. Nobz in Mega Armor gutted most of the tanks. Two thirds of the regiment were thus mashed, but not before inflicting heavy losses on the ferocious Xenos. Staring at a disaster in which his troops had been decimated, Colonel Winterborne decided to beat a hasty retreat to save the survivors. Although the Battle of Helios Pass was a complete fiasco, Imperial reinforcements have managed to gain a foothold on the planet and are able to begin mounting a defense. The future of Kallax III remains uncertain but more back-up is currently on its way. As for the Praetorian 4th, it was repatriated to its native world to be rebuilt.
The Fall of Medusa V [999.M41]:
Along with some 100 other regiments, the Praetorian 57th was incorporated into the defense force lead by Lord Marshal Graf Harazahn, headed for Medusa V. The aim of this army was to evacuate all civilians before the Warp Storm “Van Grothe’s Rapidity” could swallow up the entire sector. The regiment lead by Colonel Inglis completed its mission with style, saving several thousand citizens. During the widespread conflict in which numerous protagonists attacked each other savagely, the Imperial forces managed to impose their supremacy. Having successfully saved the population, some regiments including the Praetorian 57th took part in victory battles aimed at disrupting the plans of the Chaos Sorcerer Ygethmor. Alas the Imperium paid a high price as a great number of Imperial Guard and Space Marine regiments had to sacrifice themselves to protect the planet right up until its demise. Thanks to this symbolic defense, the Medusa V campaign was considered a great Imperial victory. All men and women of the Praetorian 57th were decorated posthumously for their acts of bravery. In honor of these heroic fighters, a red pennant now floats above the walls of the capital of the planet Praetoria.
13th Black Crusade [999.M41]:
Many Praetorian regiments have left their native planet to assuage the never-ending thirst for soldiers that characterizes the Imperial war effort. Deployed in Segmentum Obscurus in the center of the Eye of Terror to defend this Cadian sector from the threat of Chaos, the 5th and 35th Praetorians were a perfect example of this. Fighting alongside Cadian regiments of the Excoriator Chapter on the Agri World of Vagera (Scarus Sector), they proved themselves so brave and disciplined that the Imperial troops were able to recapture virtually the entire planet that had fallen into the hands of the Warp Ghosts Traitor Chapter. The Praetorian artillery thundered against the fortified positions of the traitors for days on end, reducing entire towns to rubble. This massive and random destruction was unfortunately the only way to eliminate all the vermin that had infested the planet’s buildings. The final siege of the planetary capital cost the 5th half its soldiers. It was a heavy blow for the Imperial forces. So, in a bid to build its ranks back up, a plan was drawn up to combine the regiment’s survivors with the remainder of the decimated Cadian regiments.
Notable character:
Captain John Rouse Merriott Caine:
A phenomenal strategist, John Rouse Merriott Caine is the man responsible for the amazing defense of Glazer’s River. He was promoted to lieutenant at the age of 21 on leaving the academy because his professors all agreed he possessed incredible talents. So far he has enjoyed a stellar career throughout Segmentum Tempestus where, serving in the Imperial Guard, he has taken on many enemies. This celebrated officer backs mixing classes and ranks in order to offer young recruits the chance to share the experience of veterans without being constrained by hierarchy. Caine is currently leading the 24th Praetorian with whom he has taken on the Orks on several occasions. The 24th Praetorian is a mixed regiment, half infantry and half artillery.
It is an effective combination allowing them to attack in two waves; first the enemy comes under bombardment and then the infantry launches its assault. Deeply humane, modest and loyal, Caine places the life of his men before his own personal glory, often opting for a victimless defeat over a bloody victory. After deploying such an impressive strategy at Glazer’s River, Caine was awarded the honorary title of captain. Upon his return to Praetoria the ruling family and the general public gave him a particularly enthusiastic welcome. In recognition of his merits, he was showered with numerous awards. For now, the 24th Praetorian is still in barracks on its home planet. Caine is busy passing on his skills, his sense of values, his wisdom and his recommendations to new recruits at the military training school on Praetoria. He devotes the rest of his energy, combining theory and practice, to organizing the defense of Praetoria. Captain Caine stands ready to fight to the last to preserve the independence of his native world. Moreover, given the severe losses the Imperial ranks have suffered, Caine is eager to train up volunteers who would like to do their bit in any conflict. But his greatest wish is that the future of Praetoria should be a peaceful one.
We’ll see you again soon in an upcoming Index Militarum article, where we’ll explore more regiments of the Imperial Guard.
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