Breech: Fall of Trench 45

The might of the 501st Spades detachment was solely down to their ability to entrench a front line within hours. The key to this was the modularity of the component pieces and their ease of transport with the heavily armoured trenching moles. A typical mole would excavate a 100 yard section of trench as fast as the engineers behind could piece together the concrete sections and communications....

The might of the 501st Spades detachment was solely down to their ability to entrench a front line within hours. The key to this was the modularity of the component pieces and their ease of transport with the heavily armoured trenching moles. A typical mole would excavate a 100 yard section of trench as fast as the engineers behind could piece together the concrete sections and communications. Depending on the climate and conditions, this could range from five hours to as little as ninety minutes (Assuming the best conditions and no incoming enemy fire)

Once a trench is fully operational, it is down to the fearless and numerous field engineers to keep not only the structural fortification of these trenches sound, but more importantly the fixed communication cables. Without communication, the front line trenches would be cut off from the HQ trench which on any given battlefield could be several miles away, long outside Vox Casting range.

Typically, a field engineer team consists of two electricians, a structural engineer and two regular guardsmen. However, when the lines are pressed and incoming fire creates more holes in communication and indeed the trenches themselves than there are teams, they can be split up. This can however lead to disaster...

Trench 45 on Perdus Prime took sustained shelling during the Perdus revolt. the local uprising against Imperial rule was the least of the Imperium's worries in the sector. The constant bombardment awoke something dormant beneath the surface, something far more sinister than a well armed militia force. Whilst the field engineer teams were stretched incredibly thin, a breech in communications along Trench 45 was being attended to by PFC A. Endleson who was unfortunately alone due to the sheer number of faults in the trench lines. The stampede of the oncoming horde couldn't be heard over the deafening artillery strikes that the engineers had become used to and Private Endleson's assailants had cut him down before he could even reach for his service rifle.

The cascade failure of several connecting trenches within a matter of minutes alerted Lord Commissar Heighe ensconced safely in the HQ trench to the problem just as the blood curdling screeches started coming in over the portable Vox units. His decisive action and subsequent orbital bombardment order onto the front lines of his own trenches undoubtedly cost the lives of hundreds of his own men. It did however stop the initial frenzied attack of the Tyranid swarm, saving countless thousands and buying the 501st enough time to prepare for the second wave...


Diorama Pictures













Detailed Close Ups




I hope you enjoyed the background fluff on that one and the diorama itself. I certainly had a lot of fun putting it together.

See HERE for the WIP pictures if you're interested.

I'm not going to say Subscribe/Rate because that's pointless. Comments however are always welcome as long as they're constructive.

Cheers for now folks,
Neil.