Sabbat Worlds Crusade - Cabal Salient (765-773.M41): Just like his noble predecessor, the young Warmaster fixed on a primary objective that would take a considerable length of time to achieve. But, unlike Slaydo, Macaroth's objective was not merely one world but a greater portion of a planetary system -- the Cabal Systems. The Warmaster's commitment of Imperial forces to such a monumental undertaking was considered too ambitious and impossible to achieve by his detractors.Macaroth took heavy criticism from his peers for not consolidating Imperial forces after their victory on Balhaut, but there is numerous evidence to support that consolidation of forces was his primary aim. The young Warmaster just chose to do so in a different way than how Slaydo might have done it.Macaroth did not wish to waste valuable time and manpower cleansing the remnants of the scattered components of the enemy, but rather strike at their centre. The Warmaster knew that by ordering a bold thrust forward they could capitalise on the weakness of enemy's hasty withdrawal, thereby taking the initiative away from the Archenemy instead of laboriously trying to tie up loose ends.This would set the Archenemy forces on their heels, effectively making it impossible for them to gather at one point and consolidate their forces. Macaroth hoped to drive right into the heart of the enemy by orchestrating a bold thrust that none of the scattered enemy forces could predict nor rally against.Intuitively, he knew that by being unpredictable he would be able to strike at the head of the enemy and effectively end their stranglehold on the system. Therefore, Macaroth ordered the crusade to drive across two major system groups to the threshold of the Cabal Systems to achieve this bold new objective.The crusade began its massive spinward advance at the close of 765.M41, invading and liberating worlds across the Newfound Trailing Group, with separate actions taking place as far rimward as Nonimax and the Menazoid Clasp, and as far coreward as Nacedon. Nonimax would be one of the first planets to be assaulted under Macaroth's leadership. The prosecution of this campaign under the Warmaster's brilliant leadership enabled the deployed Imperial Guard units to achieve reconquest in only six weeks.Another success came on the world of Grimoyr, where the preliminary stages of fighting had begun a year prior to Balhaut and ground down to virtual halt. Macaroth handed the command of the theatre to the brilliant but later disgraced Lord General Noches Sturm. Commanding the Royal Volpone 50th Imperial Regiment, Lord General Sturm quickly delivered an accomplished victory within a single solar week.Macaroth used mobility as his primary strategy, rapidly deploying battlefield troops of regimental strength onto each target world, and then moving them on to the next target world with all speed as soon as the target world was firmly under control of second echelon occupying forces. These hit-and-run tactics enabled the most experienced and effective battlefield veterans within the crusade to move swiftly from one theatre to the next.Between 765 and 769.M41, it was not an uncommon occurrence for Astra Militarum units to have seen combat on eight or more worlds. This vigorous four-year advance saw the liberation of multiple worlds: Presarius, Sapiencia, Monthax, Prince Oberrnid, Voltemand, Albrecht and Fortis Binary.The most notable of these liberations took place on the world of Presarius by the indomitable Iron Snakes Chapter, adding another victory tally already won during the crusade. The Iron Snakes acquitted themselves well by forcing battle with a partly mechanised mutant under-class in the tectonic foundries under the main hive cities.Cut off twice from Imperial lines of supply by enemy action and eventually exhausting their ammunition supply, the Iron Snakes resorted to vicious hand-to-hand fighting against their foes. This battle lasted for nine solar days, resulting in nearly all the mutants being annihilated, with only the loss of 39 battle-brothers.Chapter Master Veegum of the Silver Guard honoured the courage and fortitude shown by the Iron Snakes by having his own Marines bow, bareheaded, to the valiant Iron Snakes upon their return.