Battleground Planet: Catachan (Warhammer 40k)
Status: Death World
Geographical Features & History:
Catachan is the most infamous death world in the galaxy. It is located in the Ultima Segmentum, with a population of 12-Million humans, and is covered in dense jungle. The planet's entire ecosystem seems consciously hostile to all foreign life. Each and every element of the native flora and fauna of the planet represents a real danger to any human. Catachan was colonized by humans longer than Imperial records can remember. When the first probes arrived, the planet was a deceptive, calm green orb from orbit but when the colony ships crash-landed and the colonists had no way to escape, they awoke to find themselves on one of the harshest planets in the galaxy. The colonists only barely survived, holed up in their spacecraft against a living, besieging jungle, a battle for survival in which many undoubtedly died.
Even all these years later, there still aren't many settlements on Catachan. Those precious few settlements that can hold back the fearsome jungle are massive fortresses surrounded by vast plains which have been cleared to give improved lines-of-fire. However, Mother Nature clearly doesn't appreciate the level of hard work that goes into these buildings…
Building on Catachan is difficult as vines and lichen take hold anywhere and poisons melt the mortar and vines can crush bunkers and tanks. Buildings must constantly be rebuilt; it seems that wherever they build, the jungle redoubles its efforts to destroy them. As well as the jungle, the native wildlife gather to repel the human invaders and eventually the numbers grow enough to push the humans out of their settlement so they must resettle elsewhere. As such, there are no true permanent settlements on Catachan, as the very nature of the planet itself makes this impossible.
Third Party Factions: 2
-The Humans:
Perhaps the one good thing to come out of this jungle-hellscape are the people. The humans bred on Catachan are not only hardy, but pragmatic, with an easy grasp of realities and an uncomplicated attitude towards danger. They are also somewhat disdainful towards people from other worlds, believing - with good reason - that few others in the galaxy have had an upbringing as dangerous as their own. In such dangerous surroundings, children are quick to learn survival tactics and only those who are fast and have a good natural aim survive to adulthood. Children often learn to shoot before they walk (which sounds bad, but really what's worse: The possibility that little Billy might shoot his eye out, or that little Billy can't defend himself from being eaten by the Lovecraft-ian horror lurking outside his bedroom window?).
Some of the most famous humans on the planet are the renowned 'Catachan Jungle Fighter regiments' of the Imperial Guard.
-Native Flora & Fauna:
Why exactly the entire planet seems to actively seek out human beings for the sole purpose of killing every last one of them is, at this time, unknown by the Imperium. What they do know is that, without exception, everything on this planet can and will (gladly) kill you. Every plant is poisonous, making foraging impossible. Some plants secrete pollen into the air which is poisonous and destroys air-filters. Others secrete sticky liquid to capture passing animals and slowly dissolve them. Other plants poison the ground and turn the immediate area around them into boggy wasteland to trap invaders. Frankly, it seems like a rigged game that wants to punish you just for being there!
--The Flora
Brainleaf:
The Brainleaf, a vegetative carnivore, is a small tree, not particularly conspicuous on Catachan, but is able to attach its tendrils to the spine and brain of a person, taking control over their body. The Brainleaf can then make use of the creature and its abilities.
Spiker: The Spiker fires its spikes into its victims' bodies, which then releases a mutative chemical which literally turns the person into another spiker. A human taking a spike in the arm will soon find his arm become hairy and immobile, and within a short time his whole body will be covered in spikes. Although the victim remains mobile for some time, the physiological changes destroy the mind, so that the victim wanders aimlessly and is unable to react to the horrifying process. Eventually all mobility is lost, and the host completes his transformation into a Spiker.
Venus Mantrap: The Venus Mantrap is a carnivorous plant common to jungle Deathworlds. It resembles the Terran Venus Flytrap for which it is named, but is far larger (20-30 meters in height), and unlike the flytrap, it is able to move its leaves to attack and consume its prey. The Mantrap consists of a number of mobile leaves attached to a single immobile stem.
--The Fauna
Grox:
Originally a native to the Soloman system, the animals (which look like a cross between a Cow and a lizard of some sort… maybe a raptor or komodo dragon) are prized for their highly nutritious and tasty meat, and have been introduced to many worlds throughout the galaxy, so that the Grox is now the most ubiquitous livestock animal in the Imperium. Grox, however, are extremely ornery and virtually impossible to keep under control without some form of brain-implants or lobotomy - on Catachan they have become wild, and are deadly predators.
Shambling Mamorphs: Found primarily in volcanic areas, these creatures are tough fighters and put up a good fight even against the Catachan Devil. However, information about the specifics of these creatures is vague at best. The Imperium apologizes for the inconvenience.
Catachan Devils:
The Devils are scorpion-like in appearance, with a series of segmented body sections carrying pairs of legs and a terminus in a long tail with a poisonous barb, which curves forward over the creature's back. As Catachan Devils grow, they develop more and more mid-sections and pairs of legs. A fully grown adult can have up to thirty sets of legs, and can reach up to thirty meters in length. They are able to move with surprising speed for something of their size, being superbly adapted to move across a large variety of terrain. Once capturing a victim, the Devil will shred it with razor claws or, alternatively, will sting into insensibility with barbs located around its maw. The victim will then be consumed. Catachan Devils are territorial, yet quite sociable creatures, tending to form into nesting groups. These groups often contain several large Devils, as well as a few dozen or so of 'Devilspawn' (younger Devils). The entire nest will come together to defend their territory from any intruders, be it rival Devils, colonists, or other predators, and they have even been known to attack Imperial Guard Tank Companies.
Catachan Barking Toads: Don't be fooled by the benign appearance. The Great Barking Toads are arguably Catachan's deadliest animals: the creatures are easily startled and, whenever they feel threatened, explode in a cloud of toxins which kills anything within a one kilometer radius, including the Barking Toad itself. The toxin is virulent enough that even respirators and sealed suits such as power armor offer no protection. They are known as the most toxic creatures in the galaxy. So if you see one, be very calm, try not to make any sudden moves, and get out of there as quickly as possible. If you think you may have startled one, run as fast as you can and don't look back.
Snakes: There are also many types of serpents on Catachan, including the Flying Swamp Mamba, the Coiling Death Cobra and the Catachan Black Viper, and are all deadly to most living beings. Some can kill in under 30 heartbeats.
Danger Status: 5/5
-I'm sorry, did you miss the part about the whole planet having evolved specifically to kill you? No? Well now you know why it gets a five out of five.
Overall, the best things you can hope to get out of this planet are the people, a lot of angry violent monsters, and poisons by the shipload.
No comments:
Post a Comment