Battle report: Orks vs Aeldari - The Comet

Warboss Skrapsmacka had seen a flash of light in the dark skies above, shortly followed by a second flash, and a third ,...and a fourth. A trace of light plummeted towards the planet, coming straight to the Orks on Belis Alta.
The War boss quickly rallied his army and soon they were moving forward to a better position anxious to find out what it was that was falling from the sky.

Unknown to the Orks at that moment an Aeldari force was following the light trace with great interest. They knew exactly what it was and needed to secure it before anyone on the planet's surface would be able to obtain it.

The battlefield

 The Orks set up position coming from the South West of the crashed Aquila site whilst the Aeldari set up in the North East near the old temple grounds. The area was a rough terrain and alien jungle plants had overgrown much of the ground. Large rocks and deep impact craters from the first Belis war gave the terrain a rugged look.

Soon the green tide was ready to crush the enemy but they still had some ground to cover. The Aeldari smartly used the terrain to their advantage knowing the Orks would have to cross the bare middle terrain. Falcons and a fire prism lined up to shoot as many orks as possible. Having the initiative would surely help them.

Unfortunately for the Aeldari the Orks seized the initiative and raged forward immediately and catching the enemy by surprise. The weirdboy casted Da Jump on a group of 30 boys which cornered a group of Guardians and the Avatar of Khaine in the temple grounds. The Orks shooting didn't do much because guardians were in cover.

But after shooting the Orks did what they do best and charged forward into combat. The avatar of khaine knew this spelled trouble.

On the other side of the board a group of Rangers had spawned and took cover in an old impact crater. Their rifles had the Ork leaders in their sights. Unfortunately for them Warboss Skrapsmacka had held a group Kommando's in reserve and they ambushed the rangers. Before they knew it the five man rangers squad was decimated. 

From the back f the Ork lines a Dakkajet flew over and aimed it's supaShootas at an Aeldari Falcon but it only took minor damage. However the loud noise of the Dakkajet caused an uproar in the Ork army. The hand to hand combat in the old temple grounds was as quick as it was bloody. 

The Ork boys decimated the guardians but know they themselves seemed to be in trouble. The Avatar of Khaine pulled back from combat and the Aeldari lined up all their units to shoot the Ork boys which were now within their position.

Aeldari shooting was very effective although they had used all their shots to see off the immediate Ork threat. 

Warboss Skrapsmacka was raging with anger. He shouted to his weirdboy to send in another squad of boys using "Da Jump". The battlewagon was loaded with Nobs and with the boys out of it's way it now rolled towards the Aeldari line.

Another unit of 30 boys was "jumped" forward but now they didn't go for the temple ground but the guardians and Falcon nearby. The dakkajet aimed it's Shootas at a unit of Striking Scorpions which at the end of shooting had only one scorpion left. 

The Aeldari knew from their previous encounter with a large group of boys within their lines that they could easily see them off if they aligned their shooting in one turn of mass shooting. And again the result was the same and the boys were gone. 

The Aeldari then shot the battlewagon to pieces. Unfortunately this part of battle wasn't documented properly but the Ork battlewagon and the Nobs inside were taken out by mass shooting by the falcons and fire prism. Guide and Doom left the Orks with no chance.  However the Ork weirdboy triad to cast smite but rolled perils instead and that took off the last wounds of the avatar of khaine and the Ork warboss...

The comet had landed at the middle of the table. An area already swarming with Orks but the Aeldari Tanks quickly moved in. The Aeldari however hardly had and scoring troops left. The Orks had held a unit of 20 Gretchin back in cover which now raced forward to grab the objective. The Ork Kommandos also moved in from the South east but were still a long way out.

Once again the Dakkajet roared through the sky and took out the last Aeldari scoring units. The gretchin now held the objective in their small grubby claws and refused to give it up. even when the Aeldari shot most of them off the comet. With this the game came to an end as the Aeldari withdrew from combat knowing they wouldn't be able to secure the objective.

This was a great game and very exciting till the end. at first it seemed the overwhelming attacks of the Orks would drown the Aeldai in hand to hand combat but the Aeldari armour seemed to be too much for the Orks. A narrow victory  in the first battle on Belis Alta was rewarding but most of all a lot of fun. This is one of the three types of terrain I have made for Belis Alta and I'm looking forward to the next battle.

Untill next time...

Ork Skin Tutorial

Ork Skin Tutorial
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Over the past months I have been asked a few times: "How do you paint Ork Skin". I have replied to those questions but I thought it would be nice of me to make and article about how I do it.
With this method you get a light colored skin tone and the recipe and techniques are quite simple. The key to this is GW's  paint "gretchin Green" of which I still have a few pots but you can't buy it anymore but for you I have also researched the current Citadel colors and used them for this article. I can't say this enough but you need to water down your paints to get the best result. Undiluted paints tend to look "thick" and messy and most of all they obscure the finest detail of your models specially if you use multiple layers.

So here's my step by step recipe:

-First basecoat the Ork model in light grey primer. I used to use the citadel black primer but using a grey primer is much easier.

 -When you start the actual painting use watered down Deathworld Forest (Gretchin Green). I use 60%paint & 40% water, because the paint it has loads of pigment and diluting it will not make it transparent but will make it flow easily and will give you a thin layer.

-Then I wash all of the skin with Agrax Earthshade. I also dilute this to 50/50. You don't have to dilute it but I prefer it so it doesn't pool and doesn't look too thick.

Ork Skin close-up
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-Next I paint all the raised areas like muscles with the same paint I used in the first step, Deathworld Forest. Make sure the wash is completely dry or it will become messy. just leave the deepest areas as they are. this will create the first bit of definition.

-The next step is mixing up Deathworld Forest with Ushabi Bone and again dilute the mixture it water. I use about 60%DF and 40% UB and water this down again to get a nice flowy paint. I use this mixture to paint the higher areas leaving just a bit of the previous layer visible.

-The 5th step is highlighting the most raised areas and edges. For this I use a mixture of 30%Deathworld Forest and 70% Ushabi Bone but I water it down quite a bit so it becomes a bit transparent and blends with the previous layer.

-The last step is to blend it all together a bit and for this I use Biel-Tan Green wash that I water down a lot. 20% BTG and 80% water. If you leave the Biel-Tan Green too thick it will puddle in the deepest areas and it has the nasty habit of leaving a very light color when it pools. If you dilute it like me it will blend all your layers together nicely without any nasty side effects, almost like a glaze. I started with this technique before we even had Glazes so now I just stick with the same method I have always used.

As an alternative you could experiment with the color of washes. I sometimes wash a model with Seraphim Sepia to finish it up or use a purple wash instead of Agrax Earthshade in the 2nd step.

(around the mouth area like lips and the ears I mix in Cadian Fleshtone. This seems to give a nice effect to the Ork's face)

This is a very simple guide on Ork Skin. Of course you can add extra detail by painting in the veins or tattoos.

Faction Focus Orks: Meet the Boyz!

When the green tide attacks the earth trembles and the trees shake. Coming closer and closer you can hear their savage roars swelling to a deafening noise and all you can see are Green Orks and probably a lot of flying limbs.

The Ork Boyz green tide on Belis Alta
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I proudly present you part of my own green tide. I have about 100 normal boyz in a 70/30 ratio of slugga's to shoota's. These are about 60 of them. It takes me a long time to paint up a group as I paint all of the details and use multiple layers but I like the end result.

Here are some more shots of my Boyz:  WAAAAAAGH!!!

You need a few Nobz to keep things running Smootly
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Here's a better picture of a few individual Boyz and you can see why it takes me some time to paint up a new unit. Painting 30 at the time is too much but doing only 10 at the time goes too slow. After all these boys I still haven't found that sweet spot.

Faction Focus: Grey Knights Vindicare Assassin

When the Inquisitorial strike cruiser "Icarus" was within orbit of Belis Alta the vindicare assassin #34.826 had awoken from his cryo chamber. The ships medical staff had slowly turned off the Cryo implants and the assassin regained consciousness. It had been many years ago the the Assassin was last active but now his expertise was needed once again.

Vindicare Assassin on Belis Alta
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Inquisitor Coteaz had ordered the activation of the deadly assassin specially to hunt down the genestealer Patriarch on Belis Alta. Coteaz realised that killing the Patriarch quickly was nigh impossible. He would be protected by his cult followers and would probably not show himself and stay in his lair. But a vindicare assassin was perfect for this job, he would infiltrate deep behind enemy lines and could lie in wait for it's target for days or weeks for that one kill shot. The assassin had been given it's target and when his personal drop pod had landed on Belis Alta assassin #34.826 quickly slipped into darkness and wasn't seen again. The hunt was on...

About Vindicare Assassin Operatives

 The Vindicare Assassins specialise in vengeance and revenge killings. They make use of a specially designed, long-range Sniper Rifle called the Exitus Rifle. The Vindicare Assassin brings inglorious death to the Emperor's enemies with a Sniper's bullet. Vindicare Assassins have been known to wait in a position for as long as two weeks before taking a shot. Many rebellions and cults have been ended with one, perfect shot from a Vindicare's rifle.

The Vindicare Temple teaches the assassin the art of patience and the perfection of marksmanship. These stoic assassins are conditioned by their temple to be unflinchingly loyal to the Imperium, often being trained to limit their vocabulary only to words that are useful for their profession, cutting off all emotional attachments to other humans so that they will never hesitate to eliminate any target.The intense training of a Vindicare Assassin enables them to pick out a single target even amongst roving hordes of enemies on the battlefield.

A Vindicare Assassin scopes
 his target.

Equipment

 The Exitus Rifle of a Vindicare Assassin is his primary weapon, and is chambered to fire a variety of specialised ammunition types, therefore he is equipped to take out targets ranging from well-shielded individuals to monstrous beasts or vehicles. He is also issued with an Exitus Pistol, which fires a shot more powerful than most personal firearms used in the Imperium, providing him with a valuable short-ranged weapon for situations where a sniper's rifle would not do.

Vindicare Assassins wear a Spy Mask, which is able to scan on a wide spectrum to pick out heat and energy sources over long distances. The mask also allows the Assassin to monitor the enemy's communication channels, and comes equipped with concentrated food and water cartridges for extended operations. They also wear a specially designed Stealth Suit, which combines normal synskin with chameleon chemicals to hide their forms in their surroundings.

Source:wh40k.lexicanum.com

Faction Focus: Ork Mad Dok Grotsnik

When limbs are flying through the air of the battlefield you can be sure Mad Dok Grotsnik isn't far away. He loves a good scrap but he loves putting Orks back together even more. An injured Ork can have any missing body part replaces by Grotsnik as long as he has enough teeth to pay for it. If they pay a little extra he will even fit you with a few bionic parts enhancing the combat skills.

Mad Dok Grotsnik leads the charge on Belis Alta...as usual.
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Mad dok Grotsnik is known for his weird experiments. He fitted himself two bionic arms and a powerklaw for superior strength, a bionic eye with target finder, Metal Maw and various pneumatic parts to make him stronger.

The Ork Grotsnik, also known as Mad Dok Grotsnik, was a typical Ork Painboy obsessed with the performance of "surjery" and rooting around in other people's heads to see what he could find -- or alter. Mad Dok Grotsnik is an absolute terror, the most bloodthirsty and deranged of an unhinged breed. Once a Painboy of some skill, Grotsnik is now all but berserk with the desire to do harm to others. He rose to prominence when he became the personal Dok of the future Ork Warlord Ghazghkull Thraka and Ghazghkull gave him credit for opening up his mind to the messages of the Ork Gods Gork and Mork that subsequently led Ghazghkull to lead the two greatest Ork WAAAGH!s in recent history during the Second and Third Wars for Armageddon.

Raving and screaming, the delusional Dok leads the charge toward the foe at an all-out sprint, unmindful of enemy fire in his desperation to sink needles and blades into unwilling flesh. His surgical skills are questionable at best, and only the most desperate Orks will go to him for medical assistance. Yet Ghazghkull will tolerate no threat to the safety of the Ork who facilitated his visions. Indeed, as Ghazghkull's Great WAAAGH! blazes its way across the stars, Grotsnik has become an integral part of the Goff Warlord's personal retinue. The Dok has not entirely lost his touch with a chain-scalpel -- for some reason he still seems able to rein in his maddened impulses if ever called upon to tend the wounds of Ghazghkull himself, and has saved the mighty Greenskin Warlord's life on more than one occasion. Otherwise, however, Grotsnik's chief value these days is as a fighter. He is as brutal as the meanest Goff Nob, and his sheer boundless ferocity serves him well in the press of battle. In combat the Dok becomes a frenzied whirlwind, his excesses inspiring those Orks around him to ever-greater acts of violence.(warhammer wiki)

Faction Focus: Grey Knights Terminators

When the Cruiser "Icarus"was in orbit of Belis Alta a strike force was dispatched to the planet's surface. The strike force was split up and several 5-man squads of Terminators started their "search and destroy" patrols gathering information for Kaldor Draigo who stayed on the Icarus to oversee the action. Going through the desolated ruins of Belis Prime and impermeable jungle every encounter was documented on date sheets and transmitted to the command vessel.

A sergeant leads his 5 man teminator squad on Belis Alta.
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Other than their stats there's no real difference between Terminators or Paladins so these can be fielded as either one. I like using the five man squads with various weapons and I have magnetised the terminator at the back so he can also be fitted with a brotherhood banner. 

Faction Focus: Genestealer Cult Patriarch Kartichii

Many years ago a cargo vessel landed on planet Belis Alta. Unknown then the transport harboured a genestealer that had slipped aboard. The cargo vessel had investigated a ghostly abandoned space cruiser that drifted Steeringless through space. On board the investigation was fruitless. All crew members seemed to have disappeared. No signs of violence, no bodies. The vessel seemed to have been evacuated. Unknowngly the investigators brought a genestealer to their own ship when they salvaged the cruiser's cargo.

Genestealer Patriarch Kartichii and two Familiars
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On Belis Alta the genestealer hid in the shadows waiting for a suitable prey. It found it in Ministorum Priest Benedict Alphus. He "blessed" Alphus with the genestealers kiss, infecting him and setting his own transformation in motion. The genestealer over time grew and became more powerful, as a psychic and in strength. He became the Patriarch known as Kartichii.

Want to read more about the genestealer cult? carry on here

I had a lot of fun painting up this model. It is really well thought out and has a great pose. The only thing I don't like about genestealers is the mouths coming out their tongues so I shaved that off. It was really fun trying to paint the Patriarch as if he was using his psychic powers and having his brain glow and the power going through his body to the tip of his claw.

Faction Focus: Ork BigMek Snagtoof

Snagtoof was just one of the many Meks in Warlord Grimsnik's army. He was small of posture for an Ork but when Skrapsmacka challenged Grimsnick's leadership they fought to the death. Skrapsmacka won but was seriously injured to the head. The other Nobz ordered Mek Snagtoof to heal the new warlord thinking the inexperienced Mek would surely fail and that way they could easily get rid of Skrapsmacka and seize power.

Ork BigMek Snagtoof with his Kustom Force field
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However, things went differently and not only did the warlord make a full recovery, Snagtoof also made some great bionic enhancements to Skrapsmacka's mangled body.
When Skrapsmacka was fully recovered he showed his gratitude to Snagtoof for operating on his brain and body without killing him, actually making him stronger instead. He appointed Snagtoof as the new Big Mek in his WAAAGH! Snagtoof is a thinker and magnificent genius coming up with all sorts of wonderful contraptions and vehicles. He is particularly great in building kustom forcefields, he even wears one as a backpack making it near impossible to shoot him on the battlefield.

Faction Focus: Grey Knights Inquisitor Coteaz

Once inquisitor Coteaz heard word about the uprising on Belis Alta he immediately set course to the sector. He gave orders to ignore the imperial blockade that was put in place to contain the thread on Belis Alta. When his strike cruiser "Icarus" was within orbit of the planet he gathered all the data from the intercepted communications and decided to make planet fall right outside the old hive city Belis prime. From there he would first move through the hab sectors in the south before reaching his destination, the industrial sector, he believed to find what he was looking for here.

Inquisitor Coteaz moving through a hab sector in Belis Prime.
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Moving in with a small team of inquisitorial henchmen and assisted by a small detachment of Grey Knights and Kaldor Draigo himself he soon found himself deep in enemy territory. Surrounded and outnumbered they managed to push forward deeper and deeper into the ruined city. Would they find what they came looking for.....? Make sure to come back soon and find out.

Faction Focus: Blood Angels Dreadnought Brother Kael

Brother Ka'el was once a sergeant in the Blood Angels' 2nd Company until he fell during the battle at Hollonan defending a ridge against the Genestealers incursion. Fighting of wave after wave and losing his entire squad of battle brothers he held the xenos off the ancient Relic. He defended the "blade of Omni" but the genestealers ripped his body to shreds. After the battle he was found clutching the glowing blade. His mortal wounds proved too numerous and severe for even the skills of the Sanguinary Priests. As such, Ka'el was interred within the Adamantium sarcophagus of a mighty Dreadnought built by Brother Morleo.

Brother Ka'el of the Blood angels 2nd company with Tactical Sqd. Abraxus on Belis Alta.
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In response to a request for assistance in putting down a seemingly minor rebellion, Chief Librarian Mephiston of the Blood Angels would lead a strike force to the Imperial Hive World of Hollonan. However what was first thought to be a minor rebellion was soon revealed to be a massive infestation by Tyranid Genestealers of a splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Kraken. The hivecity of Hollonan was also where the sacred "Blade of Omni"was kept. A relic blade that had to be kept from the genestealers at all costs. Because Sergeant Brother Ka'el had sacrificed his own life and succeeded in protecting the relic his mangled body was entombed in a Dreadnought to live for many more battles to come.

Adding value to your models

Plastic models are the way forward and GW is bringing out more and more plastics. This way they can keep the costs of producing lower then with metal and finecast models and for us it makes it easier to convert models. The amount of detail is outstanding with plastics but it has one drawback, plastic models are very lightweight. They have the tendency of bouncing to the other end of the room when you drop them.
But there's an easy solution for that. I stick a 5cents euro coin in the bases to weigh them down a bit and it works really well. Models don't get knocked over on the table and stay in their place nice and sturdy. I imagine that every currency has a coin with the size of a base so if you're not in the euro zone you might have to have a look which coin fits or go to your local DIY store and pick up some washers. This way you also add a little value to the models. A unit of 10 models costs me €0,50 so that's not much .

But why stop there? I also magnetise all my bases. I started doing this with my fantasy army as they have to be placed on movement trays. so when you magnetise the bases and get a metal sheet and cut that to the size of your unit they will never fall of and you can easily move them around on the table.
But why do this with 40K models then,.. well you can put your models on any metal tray for easy transport. the models will stick to the tray even if you turn the tray upside down. I have seen DIY cases that fit metal serving trays and have magnetised units on them.Also you can imagine that when you attend a tournament and have to move between tables a lot that it's very easy if you have one or two of these trays and you don't have to worry about people bumping into you when you make your way through the crowded room with your precious painted models.

Faction Focus: Ork Battlewagon

Warboss Scrapsmacka likes to get in the fight as quickly as possible so he ordered the build of a couple battlewagons. The hulking trucks are the heavy behemoths in his army, the ground shakes and the sky is filled with suffocating black smoke as they move forward. Enemies tremble by the shears sound of screeching tracks and rumbling engines as they get closer and closer.

Ork Battlewagon fitted with Deff Rolla and Kill Kanon.
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After being frustrated a couple of times because his battlewagons got stuck behind his own troops Scrapsmacka ordered his BigMeks to fit every battlewagon with either a Deff Rolla or Reinforced Ram. His troops learned the hard way that the battlewagons would move in one straight line towards the enemy as fast as possible no matter what was in its way

"GET OUT OF ME WAY YA NUMTY!" ouch!! grot didn't move quick enough.
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One of the mightiest vehicles the Orks can field on the battlefield is the Battlewagon. A large truck welded together with different kind of scraps and loot. It can be used as a mobile firing platform with a big gun on it or you can choose to use it as a transport vehicle. It has a few nice option but the best one in my opinion is the deff rolla.

Faction Focus: Genestealer Cult Genestealers Ambush

The Genestealer Cult Hydraic on Belis Alta hails from Hyvefleet Hydra. The cult was started many years ago when a cargo vessel brought a single stowaway genestealer to Belis Alta. It slipped through the starport security and hid in the shadows, lurking for a suitable prey the genestealer ambushed the convoy of the imperial priest of the Adeptus Ministorum, Benedict Alphus. The priests bodyguards were slain but Alphus himself was "blessed" with the "genestealers kiss". Alphus continued his duties but started to use his position and influence to aid the Genestealers objective to infect en infest the Belis system.

The trap is sprung, Genestealers led by the Patriarch Ambush the enemy.
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Patriarch Kartichii of Genestealer Cult Hydraic leads the Assault.
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Genestealers jump out of their hiding places with lightning speed
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At the moment I have 40 Genestealers painted up which seem to come in handy going by their current 8th edition rules. They are led by a Patriarch with his two Familiars. I will do a portrait and bit of storyline on them soon. Of course I have bought the Games Workshop Overkill box set to get the most out of it for my genestealer cult but I also have some various other genestealer types from box sets as the assault on macragge, the normal genestealer boxset and even some genestealers from the original 1989 Space Hulk 1989 set. It's funny to see how the genestealers have changed over the years but as long as you all paint them up the same way and mix them up you don't really notice.

Faction Focus: Ork Warboss Skrapsmacka

The Orks on Belis alta are led by Warboss Skrapsmacka, a fearsome and cunning leader that is ruthless towards his enemies and his own warband. He is often seen dishing out disciplinary punishments to those who don't obey him quick enough or simply stand in his way.

Skrapsmacka in "the battle for Mareks Pass" CLICK TO ENLARGE 

Skrapsmacka came to power when the ork assault on Belis Alta led by Warboss Grimsnik failed. The remaining orks were stranded on the planet and regrouped far from the battlefield deep in the jungle. Warboss Grimsnik ordered the Orks to rebuild their battered warmachines. Piles of loot and scrap were dragged from the battlefield and the rebuilding of the army began. Grimsnik's leadership was under pressure though and from all the Ork Nobz longing for power it was Skrapsmacka who acted first and he challenged Grimsnik to a fight for power. The duel lasted 2 full hours and ended when Skrapsmacka bashed the old Warboss' head in with a peace of scrap. He is their new leader and he is eager to start another Waaagh! on Belis Alta.

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The story of Belis Alta - Part 2 – Flora Mortis

At first the expedition teams that were send out on patrol were keen and eager to explore and document as much as possible of their new found planet. But it wasn't long before the realised that however beautiful this planet was most lifeforms on it were skilled predators. Even the local flora seemed to have a habit of snapping at explorers that were incautiously moving through the terrain.

 Some of the plants had ingenious ways of trapping pray with a lure, something that looked like fruit would attract the prey and when they were close enough they would spring the trap and catch the victim. A plant notorious for killing explorers like that was the Velvet Bulsatrap. With a width of 10 feet and razor sharp thorns it would snap shut and release a digestive fluid through its stem which would slowly dissolve the victim. The Barbed venustrap worked similar but when the victim came close enough to the middle it would shoot out hundreds of tiny sharp poisoned darts or thorns which would paralyse the victim before slowly closing its leaves and let the digestive fluid do its work.

The story of Belis Alta - Part 1 – Nova Spero

The Belis planetary system excists of three planets. Belis Alta, Nova Belis and Belis Auris which all move around their single sun, Aurora. The Belis cluster itself was was right at the edge of the Segmentum Pacificus with Tanith being the closest planet.

 

See the Belis planetary cluster at the bottom right.

The Sun Aurora had been burning bright and warm for thousands of years. When the belis sector was first discovered by the Imperial pioneer fleet of Admiral Avarell Prichard it was Aurora that had guided the fleet in like a beacon of light and hope in the vast darkness of empty space.