The orbital defense station's database, like a captive forced to speak, revealed all its secrets. This vibrant planet, in the T'au Empire's language, was named "Sere Kl."
Perhaps this Name held some special meaning, but in the Imperium of Man's War Council's eyes, it was merely an alien nest that needed to be purged.
Cold and efficient orders were quickly relayed via encrypted communication to the Helldivers' bridge—the space marines of the Emperor's Scythes Chapter would be the spearhead of the Emperor's wrath, the first to set foot on Sere Kl.
And following closely behind, as the first wave of Astra Militarum to land, would be the Helldivers Legion.
"Guys!"
Ghostface, having received this information, almost immediately turned around and shouted to all the players on the bridge, who were eagerly preparing for the upcoming landing battle. His voice, amplified by wide-area communication, echoed through every corner of the warship, reaching the ears of every Helldivers soldier.
"We will be the 'Vanguard'! The first Astra Militarum Legion to set foot on this alien land, the first to directly confront the T'au Empire's ground forces!" He spread his arms. "Regardless of the outcome, our Legion, our Name, will forever be etched into the annals of human history because of this!"
This speech, simple and direct, precisely hit all the players' sweet spots.
"For managed democracy!"
"For the Emperor!"
"Long live humanity!"
"Kill all the xenos!"
Cheers, like a mountain tsunami, instantly filled the entire warship. A fervent war atmosphere was completely ignited at this moment. The Helldivers' enthusiasm was even hotter than the engine's plasma reactor. They rushed to the armory, grabbing weapons; they ran to the vehicle bay, boarding chimera troop carriers and leman russ tanks. Everyone was in position, just waiting for the order to be given, the hatch to open, and then they would charge out, turning every living thing in their sight into dust under their treads and char under their muzzles.
However, before the ground forces descended, there was the "purification" from the sky.
The Imperium of Man fleet slowly adjusted its formation, aiming its bellies, covered in macro cannons and lance batteries, at the serene blue planet below.
No warning, no surrender.
In previous engagements, the Imperial fleet had already confirmed that the T'au Empire's shipbuilding technology seemed to lack the crucial "void shield" technology. This fatal flaw was also evident in their planetary defense systems.
When hundreds and thousands of destructive beams and giant, mountain-like shells rained down from the sky, Sere Kl's planetary defense system did indeed activate. On the ground, countless gun emplacements rose, and energy shields unfolded over the cities.
But without the cover of void shields, these conventional defensive measures were as fragile as children's toys in the face of fleet-level orbital bombardment.
The energy shields shattered like foam in the first wave of strikes, and then, destruction descended. Lance batteries easily pierced the crust, triggering violent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions; each time a macro cannon shell landed, it was equivalent to a small-scale nuclear explosion, completely wiping cities and everything within them off the map.
Elegant white spires melted in the flames, busy aerial traffic hubs were vaporized, vast fields turned to scorched earth, and the blue oceans boiled from the excessively high temperatures.
In just half an hour, Sere Kl was bombed into a burning hell by the Imperium of Man's fleet.
Witnessing such reckless and utterly destructive acts, the T'au Empire command on Sere Kl finally understood completely.
This was not a war for territory and resources.
This was a thorough massacre with the goal of racial extermination.
The previous idea of sending Water Caste diplomats to attempt communication and understanding now seemed so ridiculous and naive. The enemy had not come to negotiate at all.
In despair, the T'au Empire's high command made a final decision. They abandoned the plan to save the planet and instead began to accelerate the evacuation of the most important officials and valuable Earth Caste engineers at all costs.
At the same time, all Fire Warrior stationed on Sere Kl were organized. They were told that their mission was no longer victory, but delay. To use their lives to buy even one more second for the evacuation of their compatriots.
They would resist until the last moment on their home, which had already become their burial ground.
The "rain of death" from the Emperor's Scythes descended first. Hundreds of drop pods, like steel dice cast by the Emperor, tore through Sere Kl's ash and smoke-shrouded sky, trailing long plasma wakes.
With unstoppable momentum, they accurately slammed into predetermined strategic strongpoints, clearing out one bloody landing zone after another for the follow-up forces.
Closely following, when the orbital detection arrays repeatedly confirmed that all large anti-aircraft firepower on the planet's surface had been silenced into scrap metal by the previous bombardment, massive transport and supply ships began to slowly descend.
Their enormous bodies obscured the burning sky, casting vast shadows on the ground. Heavy landing ramps crashed onto the scorched earth, emitting deafening roars.
One new leman russ tank after another, one squad of chimera troop carriers filled with Helldivers soldiers after another, surged out from the belly of the ships like a torrent of steel. Self-propelled artillery positions rapidly deployed, their thick barrels angled towards the sky, ready to unleash death and destruction to the other side of the horizon.
With such formidable armored strength as a backing, the players' initial tactical concept was a textbook classic of armored torrent.
Armored clusters in the front, forming a wedge assault formation, to tear open the alien defenses. Infantry followed the armored units, using chimeras as mobile cover, protecting the flanks of our tanks, and clearing out segmented enemies. Self-propelled artillery and other heavy parabolic firepower would provide continuous fire suppression on enemy strongholds.
Accompanied by the roar of engines and the crunching of tracks grinding gravel, the Helldivers Legion's war machines began to advance slowly and steadily across this alien land.
However, reality soon delivered a resounding slap to their faces.
"Enemy unit spotted at 11 o'clock! It's... a hammerhead! One!" The commander of a leman russ tank, through his high-magnification scope, caught sight of the flat, sleek, sci-fi-looking silhouette hovering in mid-air.
"Main gun! Target hammerhead! Fire!" The commander did not hesitate, giving the order decisively.
The gunner immediately responded, the heavy battle cannon roared, and a massive shell, carrying destructive kinetic energy, whistled towards the target.
However, the scene that followed made all the players in the crew widen their eyes.
Just as the shell was about to hit, the anti-gravity engine beneath the hammerhead's hull suddenly flashed. Its entire hull, like a weightless ghost, shifted several meters sideways, elegantly dodging the fatal blow by mere inches.
Even more astonishing, during this high-speed lateral maneuver, its top-mounted railgun main cannon did not wobble in the slightest, its muzzle steadily locked onto the firing leman russ.
Blue-white arcs of electricity frantically flickered on both sides of the barrel, emitting a teeth-gritting hum.
The next second, a blinding white beam, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, flashed and was gone.
"Boom—!"
That leman russ tank, from its front turret to its bottom engine room, was neatly pierced through by the shell, which had been accelerated to the extreme by the railgun. The ammunition inside the turret instantly detonated, and the entire tank became a massive fireball that shot into the sky.
A few seconds later, at the respawn point behind, the five crew members, who had just turned into white light in the explosion, looked at each other.
The tank commander scratched his head, complaining with a pained expression: "Damn it... that's what you call tank maneuverability and fire control in the interstellar age! Dodging shells while locking on and firing? What kind of junk has the Adeptus Mechanicus given us? Iron coffins with tractor engines?"
His complaints resonated with countless players. Because they were also facing similar problems.
The T'au Fire Warrior's technologically advanced combat suits not only activated optical camouflage for stealth but also had defensive capabilities far exceeding the carapace armor issued to the Astra Militarum. More troublesome, they could also use the thrusters on their backs for short-distance flight and jumps, moving flexibly between ruins and buildings.
The blue plasma bolts fired from their pulse rifles were almost as powerful as the hellguns in the hands of Stormtroopers, capable of incinerating an ordinary soldier in bulletproof armor into a charred stump with a single shot.
Everywhere in the sky and surroundings, swarms of drones, like annoying flies, constantly harassed and scouted. Any tactical movement by the Helldivers seemed to be immediately known by the enemy, and then, precise and deadly artillery support always arrived a step faster than their own bombardment, landing in the most critical spots.
The front was advancing, but extremely slowly.
"This is too ugly!" Ghostface looked at the constantly reddening friendly units on the tactical map, his face so grim it looked like it would drip water. Of course, he wasn't complaining about the high casualties; he just thought the push was too slow.
Admittedly, with the sheer size of the Helldivers Legion and the players' fearless nature, grinding it out like this, filling it with lives and steel, would eventually crush the T'au on Sere Kl.
But Ghostface couldn't accept it.
They were the "Vanguard"! The first Astra Militarum to land! This battle should have been a crushing victory, a classic campaign worthy of being recorded in server history! Instead, it had turned into this ugly, passive, and messy fight—it was a complete disgrace!
"Damn it!" Ghostface slammed his fist hard on the armored plate of the command platform. He took a deep breath and let out a near-roar into the communicator.
"All units, listen up! Tactical change!"
"Leman russ and chimeras, don't drive like old ladies strolling through the park! Overload your engines! Full speed ahead! Charge! Charge!!!"
"All infantry! Stop dragging your two legs! Find the nearest vehicle, and find a way to cling onto it! If you can't cling on, at least get your squad leader on! Use the system mechanics to keep up with the assault by committing suicide!"
"Whether you're driving a leman russ, driving a chimera, or an infantry clinging to a vehicle! Put one hand on your system store interface! Once you charge in front of those Avatars, immediately buy explosives! Then self-destruct! Use your tanks, use your troop carriers, use your lives, to blow a path for me!"
"All of you, charge like hell! If anyone dares to chicken out now and cause our entire Legion to become a disgrace among the Astra Militarum, don't blame me for hanging you on the forums and cursing you for a year!"