Dogmatic Intervention lead-in

Operation Black Ork Down had been a success – Sky-Captain Marwell had been rescued from the diabolical clutches of da Green Barron – and upon his debriefing (after the usual round of amasec, blended spacigars, moustache twiddling, and other jolly banter), he revealed a dark story of his time in the hands of the orks.

Amid the usual boasting and squabbling of his captors, Marwell had gleaned that while tau, ork and Imperial forces fought over Monstrous, a particularly ambitious ork Warlord had somehow deployed a force of unprecedented size in the sector's history on the adjacent moon of Merryweather.

Gathering the banners of other warbands to himself, Snazgutz the Corpulent had managed to forge an unholy alliance of his forces with other notorious orks, such as Kudkill da Smasha, Burning One-toof the Snakebite shaman, Kaptin Nuzzgrond, Bighead, Zodsnik da Blade and even the notorious Bad Moon Prophet of Mork, who leads the largest number of ork foot troops in the sector. The force had swiftly overwhelmed the peaceful Merryweather, putting the inhabitants to the sword or forcing them into manufacturing warmachines and other materiel.

The strike on Monstrous' capital, Manassas, had been executed by another ork in Snazgutz' employ – da Green Barron – with the express purpose of capturing Hieriel de Heirarra, an Eldar prophet from the Craftworld Vaul Cerridwen. Hieriel had been locked in a stasis seal by the Imperial Inquisitor Josiah Maltheus, operating under Special status, and was being transported by shuttle before being taken off-world.

How Snazgutz learned of the transport of this secret cargo is unknown, but the implications are terrible. De Heirarra is an Eldar of prodigious passive psychic ability. Locked in stasis, his wards are loosed, and the psychic bleed-off is enormous. Should Snazgutz and his cronies be able to deactivate the Null-monk's psychic baffles that surround the stasis-casket, the entire sector is at risk of a psychic weapon whose power level is OVER 9,000(!!!1!!!one!), capable of destroying whole worlds at a stroke...

A force has been raised by Inquisitor Unfortunus Veck on Marathon, consisting of over forty regiments of guardsmen and armour. Tribune Meshulam of Braun VI has pledged a division of Skitarii, and elements of the Emperor's Hawks led by Risius Kyle have answered the call to battle with their characteristic speed. Even the mighty Legio Validus have deployed their God-Machines to Merryweather. Greatest of all, however, and the best hope for mankind in the sector, are six full companies of the Stars of Dorn, recently arrived in-system. They are led by the incomparable Chapter Master Schwarzenkegger, acclaimed by all as Chief Strategist and overall Commander of the Combined Forces.

Battle has been joined, and the retrieval – or destruction – of De Heirarra is of prime import. Numerous battles rage across the moon, under its seas and in its skies. Small strikes have split the numberless orks into roving warbands that engage the Imperial forces in limited engagements, and left Snazgutz' court isolated from the main bulk of the horde. After tense days of searching, baffled by the orky know-wotz of Big Mek Dregkart's Stelff Genuratas, Imperial recon units have finally located Snazgutz' mobile court.

Chapter Master Schwarzenkegger has hurriedly gathered a force to engage the orks in their hidden base on Merryweather's Plains of Tranquility. Such is the size and might of the ork horde that even the tiny splinter that protects Snazgutz' fortress consists of thousands of slavering orks, terrible warmachines and the fearless villains that are Snazgutz' lieutenants and best drinkin' buddies.

The future of the world – or even the sector – is in the enormous hands of Schwarzenkegger...

The lines are drawn on the Plains of Tranquility. Dare you fight?