Shivarik's Constellation
Type:Weapon Archeotech
Shivarik's Constellation is an archeotech weapon system formed by 25 satellites, that fire ether-beams at any nearby target, friend or foe, presumably a type of quarantine system from the Dark Age of Technology. [9e]
It was used during the Pariah Crusade by Magos Ghelf, most likely under the influence of entities inside the Warp.
While the new Necron attacks were highly coordinated, Imperial commanders often fought alone due to difficulties in communication. Cawl turned ever towards superweapons, while conventional Imperial Battlegroups were worn down by attrition and the effects of the Pariah Nexus. Matters finally came to a head in the Skahren System, where early in the campaign Battle Group Hephaestus under Dominus Ghelf had successfully driven back Necron forces. The Mechanicum had since set up giant mining engines on the Feral World of Santis-Magna to uncover Noctilith as part of Cawl's attempts to utilize it against the Necron Pylons. However the Imperials were compounded by a near-indestructible Necron Pylon nearby, which took an ever-escalating toll on the miners and soldiers below. To try and protect himself from the many malfunctions and ill-effects of the Pylon, Ghelf sequestered himself in his personal sanctum in the form of an ancient unidentified weapons complex dubbed Shivarik's Constellation.
It was into this context that a massive Necron invasion fleet appeared in the Skahren System. Boasting armies from the Szarekhan, Oruscar, and Nihilakh Dynasties, it was a terrifyingly powerful host sufficient to crush the Imperials several times over. Almost immediately, Strike Cruisers belonging to the Silver Templars and Hawk Lords powered out to meet the foremost enemy warships, but these were outflanked by a force of Necron vessels that immediately arrived in high orbit above Santis-Magna. These ships unleashed a punishing bombardment upon the planets surface, and while they took losses in the face of Imperial defenses they managed to land substantial amounts of Necron ground forces. As violence raged, the growingly paranoid Ghelf sought to unlock the truths of Shivarik's Constellation.
Ghelf was convinced by deranged voices in his own mind to disable the complex's safety regulators, and deep in the void 25 satellites dating back to the Dark Age of Technology suddenly overcharged and prepared to fire. As Ghelf unleashed the ancient weapon, ships on both sides died with every volley of satellite fire. What followed next was a very rupture in reality as the satellites detonated one after another. Their feedback was so intense that even Ghelf's brain exploded within his personal sanctum, and a Warp Breach followed where the satellites once were. Through this breach came the dreaded Wyrmwood, commanded by the Daemon-Smith Vashtorr himself. In the wake of the Wyrmwood came a massive fleet of Chaos Space Marine and Dark Mechanicum vessels. [9e]
