In this article Andy Chambers, Andy Hoare and Graham McNeill take a look at some of their most famous triumphs and their curious use of propaganda.

THE WAR OF THE PLACE OF UNION
t the height of the first Tau expansionist phase, an expeditionary force set out from Dal’yth. This force was led by the Water caste explorer Por’o Dal’yth Kiv’rai, famous for his discovery of two artefact-worlds now under Ethereal caste interdiction. Air caste observers based on orbital stations around Dal’yth had studied a cluster of worlds beyond the Perdus Rift, and after many years of careful planning, the expedition was sent to explore, study and colonise these worlds.

The journey to the nearest system within the cluster proved uneventful, and O’kiv’rai decided that it was safe to set his fleet on a course for the fifth world of the system. The chosen planet was a blood red gas giant, the second moon of which was considered the most likely to support life. Entering orbit, O’kiv’rai was surprised when initial scans detected a large amount of debris scattered over a substantial area of the upper atmosphere. His Earth caste advisors counselled caution, and samples of the debris were brought on board for analysis. It was determined that the debris was the remains of a large spacecraft that had exploded very recently.

Landing a Crisis battlesuit team, O’kiv’rai watched through an uplink as the moon’s surface was revealed. Under a crimson sky, the Shas’ui came upon a scene of destruction; a settlement reduced to charred rubble. Sickened, O’kiv’rai directed the warriors to search the ruins, where they discovered the mutilated remains of unknown alien bodies.

O’kiv’rai recalled his teams and ordered an extensive sensor survey of the surface. The readings showed evidence of further destruction at numerous locations, and O’kiv’rai concluded that the moon was far from suitable for colonisation. The fleet moved on and soon found mounting evidence that a violent invader had recently laid waste to this part of the cluster. O’kiv’rai began to suspect that the region would prove too dangerous for settlement.

As the fleet neared the core systems of the cluster, alarms rang out and a group of ships were detected heading in on an attack course. After years of exploring the frontiers of Tau space O’kiv’rai recognised the crude constructions of the Ork race and knew how to deal with Ork pirates. His Air caste interceptors made short work of the ramshackle flotilla. Knowing now who had caused the devastation across the region, O’kiv’rai seriously considered abandoning his mission altogether, yet a part of him would not allow the fleet to leave without first discovering the identity of the Orks’ victims.

Setting course for the next scheduled system, O’Kiv’rai put his fleet on high alert. Soon they encountered random groups of Ork fighters engaged in insane races with one another through the system’s asteroid belts. The stronger expeditionary force soon drove off these disorganised bands. As the fleet moved in-system, no resistance was encountered, and O’kiv’rai came to the conclusion that the Ork ships merely represented a small scouting force, and that he could therefore safely claim the worlds in the name of the Tau empire.

After months of disappointment, the Earth caste colonists were keen to begin the process of claiming these worlds, and several shuttles embarked in preparation for landing. What happened next would be written in Tau history as one of the greatest tragedies of that era. O’kiv’rai’s sensor operators reported the approach of a huge, spherical alien spacecraft. Opening communication channels and preparing to greet the ship on behalf of the Tau empire, O’kiv’rai saw that it was pursued by a substantial force of Ork warships. Cursing the warlike Greenskins, O’kiv’rai ordered the fleet to take evasive action as the fleeing alien ship was heading on a course that would smash through his fleet.

The fleet scattered, all except the colony transport ship Sha’tiro Suli, that had almost completed the disembarkation of her passengers. The sphere was heading directly for the transport and in an instant O’kiv’rai was faced with a stark choice: destroy the alien vessel and save the lives of the skeleton crew still to disembark the Tau ship, or attempt to save the lives of the far greater number of crew aboard the alien ship by firing on the Sha’tiro Suli.

The Orks made the choice for him.

One of the Ork warships had set itself on a heading intended to ram both ships. O’kiv’rai’s bridge crew watched in horrified silence as the Ork ship smashed aside the Tau carrier, causing it to disintegrate and spill it's remaining passengers into the void. The Orks continued on their course, and the communication channels came alive with the insane laughter of thousands of battle frenzied Boyz readying themselves to board the sphere. The Ork ship seemed to impact on the hull of the sphere in slow motion. The surface buckled and the Ork ship ground into the guts of the alien ship until it was almost entirely buried, only its rear quarter remaining visible. A series of explosions lit the grotesque scene from within, and the sphere burst apart in a massive explosion that consumed both ships as one, scattering superheated wreckage over the remainder of the Tau fleet.

O’kiv’rai ordered a full sensor sweep of the area, and reports flooded in of more Ork frigates swarming after another of the strange alien spheres. The ships’ course would bring them into contact with his fleet once more, and O’kiv’rai was not prepared to witness the destruction of any more of his ships.

Bringing his fleet around, O’kiv’rai allowed the sphere to pass through his formation. As the Orks came into range, they realised too late they were heading into the midst of a completely unexpected foe. Travelling too fast to alter their course, the Orks rocketed straight through the Tau fleet. Timing his command to the instant, O’kiv’rai ordered the release of a massive missile salvo. Streaking from the Tau battle lines, the hundreds-strong salvo unerringly altered trajectory to pursue their targets. Ork Fighta-Bommerz tried desperately to intercept the missiles, but they were too slow, and too few. Scant Ork ships escaped.

One kai’rotaa later, O’kiv’rai, flanked by the fleet’s finest Fire caste hunter cadre looked across a windswept plain. In the distance he watched a party of tall, crested aliens making their way towards him.

Communication between the two groups was at first difficult. However, O’kiv’rai was an experienced diplomat and the aliens seemed to have an innate ability with language, learning quickly by mimicking O’kiv’rai’s words and body language. The two parties soon found common ground and the Tau were impressed by the new race, although they had yet to witness their more disturbing, carnivorous tendencies.

The aliens were called Kroot, and the talks established that the world, which the Kroot referred to as Krath, was part of a larger region occupied by them. O’kiv’rai recognised that this race would make a notable addition to the Tau empire, and prepared, with the permission of the Ethereal caste, to make representations to the Kroot people.

Events, however, took a hand and the two peoples would be forced to wait some time before an alliance proper could be negotiated.

O’kiv’rai’s command ship signalled that an armada of Ork ships had appeared, and was speeding towards Krath. Against such numbers the fleet had little chance, and so O’kiv’rai ordered those ships that could to land immediately. Those too large to make planetfall he ordered scuttled. The finest Air caste scout crew was assigned to run the blockade and bring help from the Tau empire as soon as possible.

For the next eighty kai’rotaas, Tau and Kroot forces fought together against the Ork hordes. Casualties were high on all sides, but the Tau soon learned to appreciate the fighting abilities and fieldcraft of their newfound allies. As time passed and no aid from the Tau empire was forthcoming, the Tau came to rely on the Kroot in certain battlefield situations, and their tactics became increasingly integrated. In the wake of the first combined victory, Tau Fire caste warriors witnessed the Kroot warriors’ practice of eating the bodies of the fallen. This caused some tension and the Fire caste commanders almost refused to fight alongside the Kroot. O’kiv’rai was instrumental in arguing the case for continued cooperation, arguing that contact with the honourable and civilised Fire caste would ultimately influence the less civilised aliens.

By the eightieth kai’rotaa, the Orks had amassed a huge army with the intention of destroying once and for all the troublesome allies. Eager to begin the looting of Krath, the Orks gathered and, as darkness fell, began their assault on the combined lines.

The battle should have been a slaughter, as the allied army was far outnumbered by the Ork horde. At the height of the fighting however, the night skies were lit by what witnesses took to be a spectacular meteor storm. As the fire streaking the sky brightened, combatants on both sides realised that the display was in fact a flight of Tau Barracuda superiority fighters. The Ork hordes were decimated by the concentrated bombardment that followed. At the last moment, Crisis battlesuit teams dropped from their Manta Missile Destroyers, encircling the Orks and cutting them down with relentless precision.

Over the next twelve Tau’cyrs the Fire caste warriors of Sa’cea embarked upon their campaign to rid the entire cluster of the Orks. The culmination of the campaign came when the Kroot war-leader Anghkor Prok swore fealty to the Tau empire at the Oathstone. O’kiv’rai bore witness to the spirit of the Kroot people, and the two races stepped forward into a new period of peace and cooperation.

Next: Echoes of the Mont'au.