Orcus
| Map | Basic Data | Planetary Image | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Name: | Orcus | 
|
| Segmentum: | Segmentum Obscurus[1] | ||
| Sector: | Calixis Sector[1] | ||
| Subsector: | The Periphery[1] | ||
| System: | |||
| Population: | |||
| Affiliation: | Imperium / formerly Severan Dominate | ||
| Class: | Penal World | ||
| Tithe Grade: | |||
Orcus is an Imperial Penal World located in The Periphery in the Calixis Sector.[1]
Contents
Overview
Orcus is a largely barren world of rocky crags and plateaus. The native animal life tends toward the large and dangerous, while the flora consists primarily of hardy grasses and mosses. Saltwater oceans cover approximately a quarter of Orcus’s surface, fed by freshwater streams that flow from the craggy mountain peaks.[2a]
Orcus’ native inhabitants primarily live on the equatorial region’s rocky highlands and lowland plains, although smaller communities can be found in the mountains and even wandering the frozen tundra of its poles. The native Ogryns are hearty enough to survive almost anywhere on the world’s surface.[2a]
History
Colonisation by the Imperium
Following the Angevin Crusade, the colonists and Administratum tithe assayers catalogued Orcus and deemed it unsuitable for conventional colonisation due to its high gravity. Nevertheless, the Missionaria Galaxia began efforts to introduce the Imperial Creed. The Ogryns eagerly embraced the worship of the Emperor, interpreting Him literally as their “Father.”[2a]
Missionaries reported enthusiastic but often confused responses, with Ogryns flocking to sermons but struggling to comprehend doctrine. Because of the crushing gravity, much of the governing and proselytising was conducted from orbiting ships and stations, as most Imperial agents could only endure short stays on the surface.[2a]
In 609.M40, the Adeptus Administratum found a use for Orcus. With its high gravity acting as both a natural form of restraint and unusual punishment, the Adepts decreed that Orcus would serve as a penal world. Immediately, construction began on massive penitarium complexes and Adepts of the Administratum and Adeptus Arbites began drafting the native Ogryns to work as guards and custodians. The crushing gravity ensures that ordinary humans can tolerate only short spans on the world's surface, and so the Arbitrators who manage the Penal World cycle through brief rotations on-planet, with the rest of their time spent aboard Orcus' two orbital stations, situated in geosynchronous orbit above each pole.[2a]
Known Regiments
See also
Sources
- 1: Only War Core Rulebook, pgs. 332-333
- 2: Only War: Shield of Humanity
