War for Taros
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The War for Taros was the third attempt by the Imperium to reclaim the world Taros, from the T'au Empire and occurred in early M42.[1a]
Contents
Overview
As the Imperium prepared for the Second Agrellan Campaign, smaller strike forces were sent to reclaim Imperial worlds that had been conquered by the T'au Empire. The 455th Battlegroup Ultima was one such strike force and its Fleet Commander, Konras Dray, was charged with invading Taros. The plan was to retake the world with brutal swiftness, as it was believed the T'au would still be consolidating Taros after their previous victory over the Imperium. It was also hoped, that the attack on Agrellan would draw the T'au's forces from across the Damocles Gulf and further increase Commander Dray's chances of securing victory. When the Battlegroup emerged from the Warp, however, they discovered that several years had passed and the Second Agrellan Campaign had ended long ago. Nevertheless, Commander Dray ordered the Battlegroup to attack Taros[1a], whose T'au forces were led by Commander V'ors L'ar.[1b]
The world was only defended by a small number of T'au warships and these were either destroyed or forced to hide from the Battlegroup's fleet. With the orbit of Taros now in their hands, the Battlegroup began the invasion to reclaim Taros.[1a] However, while the T'au and Taros' Gue'vesa were caught by surprise by the invasion, Commander L'ar had long prepared for such an event[1b] and they inflicted heavy causalities on the invaders. In the end, though, the Battlegroup's superior numbers overwhelmed L'ar's forces and the Commander escaped with his forces to the Sept World Ksi'm'yen. Once there, L'ar began mustering reinforcements to reclaim Taros and time will tell if Commander Dray will be able to hold on to the world.[1e]
Imperial Order of Battle
455th Battlegroup Ultima
- 17/23rd Elysian Drop Troops Regiment[1a]
- Mordant 808th 'SkyRats' Airborne Regiment[1a]
- Tallarn 437th Desert Raiders Regiment[1a]
- 11th Drookian Fen Guard[1a]
- 455 Battlegroup Ultima fleet[1a]
- 717th 'Blue Devils' Bomber Wing[1a]
- 15th Fighter Combat Group[1a]
- 119th 'Dust Devils' Vendetta Squadron[1a]
- 88th 'Snake Skins' Valkyrie Squadron[1a]
Auxiliary Forces
- Tribal Taros Loyalists[1d]
Tau Empire Order of Battle
Taros Tau Empire fleet
Auxiliary Forces
- Taros Gue'vesa ground forces[1b]
- Taros Gue'vesa Thunderbolt Fighter Wing[1c]
