'Ere We Go!
The Ork advance swept from the far northern latitudes down into Bhorivor. Some probing attempts to enter Kozar from the north were repulsed as the Ork forces struggled in the rough mountain passes against the airborne Xhorik drop regiments. The path into the Chirosov Valley lacked such natural barriers and so the humans had to rely on the strength of the planetary defense forces (PDF).
Bhorivor deployed six infantry divisions (nearly 75,000 men) to their northern border via rail lines as soon as it became clear where the bulk of the Ork forces were making planetfall. They were commanded by the aged General Thoctus, great uncle to the planetary governor. Unfortunately, they were not well supported by armored columns. Most of the planet's armor was in the region of Unimund and it was unusually slow in reaching the front. The Orks were advancing rapidly, and the PDF divisions did not have time to establish well-fortified positions. General Woundwart was able to utilize Dagzag's highly mobile Speed Freaks to attack the humans' flanks and disrupt their lines before launching a frontal assault with his Blood Axe warband, supported by Deathskull firepower. The first battle was a decisive Ork victory. Several regiments were nearly obliterated outright, such as the Xhorik 113th Infantry Regiment, the Vayyan Rifles, which suffered over 80% killed or wounded. General Thoctus was forced to fall back. The only thing that saved his army from complete destruction was that the Death Skull warband, Da Skulltakas, stopped to loot the battlefield rather than pursue the fleeing humans.
The Planetary Defense Forces fell back through the snow-covered coniferous forests along the northern frontier of Bhorivor. Thoctus knew it would be futile to try to reform the line under these conditions and he retreated all the way back to the walls of Vayya in an attempt to reorganize his battered forces and await the overdue armored reinforcements.
House Harkhathe
House Harkhathe had existed as a noble house in the Empire of Yitus for at least one thousand years before the Great Crusade reached the system. They were experts in the scheming political intrigues of the Empire and they became one of the most influential and powerful of the noble houses, eventually taking control of the entire Federation of Unimund, the wealthiest and most populous cities of Xhoirk Prime. In the century prior to the First Xhorik War with the nascent Imperium of Man, four of the last six royal chancellors had been of House Harkhathe. The Great House fought against the Emeror's Legions until Yitus was brought into submission. During the Horus Heresy, they sided with the Death Guard and eagerly looked forward to taking control of Xhorik once the Loyalist forces were driven out.
After the Heresy, multiple senior House members were executed by Imperial tribunals. They then suffered the indignity of serving under a hereditary planetary governor appointed by the High Council of Terra and of seeing the regional capital of Unimund being renamed from New Barbarus to Bauenbar. The Imperial governor began a program of massive terraforming, converting the eastern wastes into the great fertile valley known as Chirosov, named after the agri-world of Chiros, the source of most of the new settlers. Soon, the region of Bhorivor became the most populous, surpassing even the mighty industrial heartland of Unimund. Huge new cities were surrounded by hundreds of miles of farmland, providing Imperial tithes of food and men. In the late 31st millennium, the seat of the planetary government was moved to Chiros Nova.
All the while House Harkhathe maneuvered for position and looked for a chance to regain their former prestige and power. From their ancestral home of Harkhold, they planted their agents in the governor's household, the PDF and the planetary intelligence services. They were able to get the head of their House, Count Morvuld Harkhathe, appointed to the planetary High Council, who were second only to the Imperial Governor himself. Morvuld was able to use his position to enable his House to maintain private armed forces loyal only to him, separate from the PDF regiments provided by Unimund. In the last decade, the name of the regional capital was even changed back to New Barbarus, in an effort to rekindle the passions of the population of Unimund for a time when they were dominant over the entire planet.
When the Ork invasion occurred, Morvuld Harkhathe saw a golden opportunity to gain absolute political control of the planet for his house. He decided to delay his forces' mobilization to the front by as much as possible without being accused of outright treason. The Unimund regiments incurred all sorts of "unavoidable" delays and made slow progress. The logistical situation gave ample opportunity for excuses. The journey by rail is long and tortuous, with no direct routes. And the main road through the mountain pass could only handle limited traffic, especially in winter. By delaying his forces' arrival, Count Harkhathe hoped to see Bhorivor teetering on the brink of collapse and defeat. Then he could extract political concessions from the nobility for his rescue while simultaneously playing the hero to the common people. Thus he would build sufficient political support from the nobles and the wider population to force the planetary governor to abdicate to him. And if that did not work, then a "friendly fire" incident could eliminate the governor and his son. House Harkhathe would rule Xhorik Prime, as they were always meant to, even if they had to pay tribute to a far distant Emperor, for now.
