Kars Terrax

Set into the blasted, barren lands of Kars Terrax are hundreds of individual arcologies, each dozens of stories deep in the sand to house the billions of prisoners and dregs of the Imperium safely. With the subterranean design this gives a specific designated area in which the prisoners can be controlled and kept. Even if a prisoner did manage to make it to the surface, they would only find the blazing sun to keep them company as they crossed the leagues of unending desert and barren rock. The prisoners are kept on a tight schedule, handed down from the Marshal herself; it includes mining work and simple item manufacturing which can then in turn be shipped off world again. The most significant job however, is one that takes the prisoners offworld. Once a set amount of time has been served on Kars, a prisoner is given the 'choice', to remain on Kars or be shipped off to one of the many mining stations throughout the Reach. Although the merit of this being a 'choice' is debatable at best, most choose to move off-world to the possibility of a better life away from the constant sand and blazing heat. Though thoughts of a 'better life may be misplaced as most of the prisoners sent to these mines die horrible deaths beneath tonnes of rock, anywhere seems better than Kars Terrax at the moment they are given the choice.

   Kars Terrax consists of a large desert that circles the world, only ending at the northern and southern poles where the environment is much more temperate, this is also where the two major spaceports are on the planet, with extensive rail systems running between these ports and every arcology.

The rail system is simplistic in nature, but powerful, as it is tasked with hauling tens of thousands of prisoners and tonnes of supplies on a daily basis. In the deepest parts of the desert, nearest the equator, the railways require guarding, specifically from local fauna which has proven to be a ongoing problem. To help guard the tracks rockrete walls have been placed, some over 8 metre high in places, and frequent ambush spots have been equipped with tarantula turrets and guard stations to ward off any possible attack.

The problem of ambushes is an ongoing one, with no real answer save for literally combing the desert and hunting the species to extinction. The species is known as the 'Dust Rat' amongst the populace (both willing and not) of Kars Terrax, an individual adult is a hexapod around 5 metres long with an elongated skull and jawbone that can split into two separate parts. They mainly hunt by sensing sound waves created by disturbances in the air hitting the two vertical spines on their nose, this has been exploited by railway guards by disorientating them with flashbang and stummer grenades.

Hunting in packs of up to 50 they have a tendency to bury themselves in the sand and attempt to slowly sneak up on a target over the course of several days, though the telltale nose-spines sticking out of the ground is a dead giveaway for those experienced enough to notice. Overall they have proven a formidable threat as they roam nomadically around the desert, occasionally coming across Imperial convoys, notorious enough that one dust rat head is worth a bottle of amasec to any supplies officer back in the polar spaceports.

## Stone Dragon – Six Teritus Level Garrisons 'The Flame Pillars'

The ring of bastions hidden under the blazing sands of Kars Terrax are both guard force and development centre for marines recruits and aircraft alike. The harsh environment and access to raw manpower amongst the prisoners of the world have played host to the Dragons exercises on more than one occasion. Built deep beneath the sands, these extensive, fully functioning airports can open and close large hanger-doors at either end of the base to allow incoming and outgoing traffic to take-off and land, with massive hangers and facilities to support the functions of an astartes base for months at a time without replenishment. The bedrock is supported by the man-made fortifications that lace adamantium beams and rockcrete in layers to protect them from all but the most brutal of orbital bombardments. Supplied by the same transport railway that covers the desert world, it's underground stations allow for rapid replenishment if need be.

With the endless sea of sand stretching around their bases they are also used as a training ground for new recruits, sent out into the desert wastes and forced to survive amongst the blazing heat and ravenous animals that stalk the sands night and day. It is said that every Stone Dragon has to taste the sands of Kars Terrax at least once to be considered a true Dragon.

In conjunction with the Imperial administrators of the world the Dragons also take advantage of the numerous prisoners that litter the world. In rare, but inevitable cases where prison complexes fall wholesale to riots the Astartes use this as a method of training for recruits for inter-organisational operations. The might of Astartes coupled with the experience of the Arbites jailers allowing any such rebellions to be crushed swiftly.

Alongside the hazing and training of new recruits, the bases serve as a training ground for the specifics of desert warfare amongst the order, regularly rotating the troops stationed there to keep the training fresh in their mind. Things like vehicle and armour maintenance, desert tactics and navigation are used to keep the marines sharp even if they are 'manning the walls' in the home systems. Keeping these lessons in mind will also help them when their time defending the Wall of Flame is up and they venture with their Claws back into the void.