Prefectia Campaign - The Breaking of the Blades: In the macrostrategy of Kauyon, the Patient Hunter, none were more skilled than Commander Shadowsun -- just as there were no souls on the Eastern Fringe more proficient in lightning-fast attacks than Kor'sarro Khan. On Prefectia, these two extraordinary hunters' contrasting skills would be tested against each other once more.O'Shaserra's traps had been long set, their resolutions rehearsed over and over. Wherever the Adeptus Astartes broke out of her kill-zones, cadres hidden in the canyons and fissures of Prefectia's crust sped in to intercept, closing the net once more. Hundreds of Space Marines died in these opening stages of the war, and a great many more were sorely wounded. Where the mobile defence networks closed upon their prey, the crossfire was so intense that they could hardly reposition without drifting over the pulse-blasted corpses of the fallen. For the moment, Shadowsun remained aloof, content to watch the carnage on her Drone-net relays with a faint smile on her lips.The Khan, however, was an enemy of surpassing skill. The Huntmaster had led his Stormlance Battle Demi-company against the outposts west of Siphonid Complex, a long dam­like structure of ruined habs and generatoriums. With the base being closest to the Tau command nexus hovering in the southeast, the Khan considered the site the most likely to receive swift reinforcement. Rather than assign one of his Sergeants to its destruction, he took that mission upon himself, hoping to find a challenge worthy of his blade in the process. He was not disappointed.The White Scars Captain had organised his attack well in advance. His demi-company roared from the lee of the Siphonid Complex to fall upon the grouped hexagon defensive networks of the Tau. At the same time, a Speartip Strike of bikers peeled off from the strike forces negotiating Vaegrus Scar's labyrinthine infrastructure, taking a sharp eastern course to fall upon the Tau site from the west. The Land Speeders of the Khan's Stormbringer Squadron blasted from the ash storm to the south, effortlessly carving over the crevasses that radiated from Thannur Spar.The three-pronged attack closed on the Tau outpost with perfect timing. Bike-mounted hunters jinked through incoming Pulse Rifle fire, leaning in the saddle and using the solid weight of their machines as a shield. Even those knocked down by direct hits righted their bikes and rejoined the attack, for their Power Armour was proof against the small arms fire of the Tau atop the battlements. The Khan's demi-company attacked from upwind, firing the Smoke Launchers of their Rhinos and Razorbacks one after another to ensure a thick grey haze preceded their assault. The tactic proved invaluable -- without the swirling shroud, the hypervelocity Railguns atop the Tau's Tidewall Gunrig tower would have crippled the transports easily enough, stalling the Khan's advance and destroying the cohesion of his assault. Their deadly projectiles dented and even laid open the transports in places, but did not stop them. The Razorback Vicious Knife slewed to a halt, its side doors thrown open long enough for two Lascannon-armed Devastators to take their shots. Twin beams of intense light pierced the smoke, and the barrels of the Railgun atop the gun tower crashed down in flame to send Fire Warriors scurrying for safety.The Shas'ui in command of the Tau Tidewall defence network made note of the terrain and the bikers' speed, and was still confident he had time to blunt and encircle the incoming assault. The missile fire of the XV8 Crisis Battlesuits supporting the main garrison sent many oncoming vehicles pin-wheeling into the ash drifts -- their intent was to cut the leading elements from each advancing column until their charges were neutralised completely. As the Tidewall Defence Network began to unfold, the firepower of the Tau garrison thickened with deadly effect, yet they had not taken into account the superior skill the White Scars possessed in navigating their steeds through war­torn battlefields. With a series of jinks, slides and low turns, the Astartes bikers pushed their vehicles to their maximum and hit the defences several moments sooner than the Tau had anticipated.Even as the ranked Fire Warriors atop the battlements scrabbled for their Photon Grenades, the White Scars were upon them. Battlesuits boosted away, jets flaring, just as the Stormbringer Squadron flew out of the clouds behind them, missiles punching diagonally down to scatter the Crisis suits in disarray. Red-helmed Veterans roared out of the skies alongside the squadron's Stormtalon gunship, Bolt Pistols hammering deadly explosions into the jet packs of their Battlesuited prey. Their Chainswords were not far behind, whirring around to finish the job wherever their headlong charge sent Crisis suits sprawling.The Tau gun-sites were soon under fierce attack, the jaws of each trap broken wide. Each rampart structure was hit by hissing Melta beams that forced breaches in its outer walls. Rhino personnel carriers followed close behind -- teams of Tactical Marines burst out from the side doors to shoulder through the wall breaches in cherry-red gobbets of molten alloy. The Tau Fire Warriors recovered quickly, pouring fire down into the Space Marines clambering up onto the ramparts. Here and there, the defenders sent a White Scar tumbling away, but with the Hunting Force stitching explosive bolts across the battlements, the garrison found it practically impossible to repel the attack. The Khan himself gained the walls, Moonfang swinging in bloody arcs as he roared his Chapter's battle cry. When Terminator-armoured Veterans teleported in to join their Captain atop the battlements, the butchery of the Tau garrison force began in earnest.