Rheelas (Mining World)

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Rheelas is a Mining World in the Canis Salient. It was quarantined by Lord Ebongrave alongside Kaggeran and Argoth (it was deemed tainted by the Tau, but too valuable for Exterminatus).

Unable to support its population without food imports, this mining world suffered greatly from the decades-long blockade of the Quarantined Worlds. Most of the mines and refineries fell into disrepair, as workers slowly died off due to starvation. Despite the blockade, a few Rogue Traders traded food and weapons to the world, in return for whatever minerals the warlike miners could provide.

When Barotta arrived to break the quarantine, each mine complex had become an isolated feudal state, warring endlessly with its neighbors over dwindling resources. Rather than use force, Barotta proposed the food for resources program, which the warlords all accepted with a minimum of violent persuasion.

Rheelas has resumed exports to Argoth and is quickly becoming that planet's main supplier of everything from common ores to exotic materials. Old enmities die slow, however, and the local mine-lords are not above engaging in a little internecine strife over particularly rich ore deposits. The world is one of the destinations for humans expelled from the Tau Sept.

Kaggeran (Agri World)

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Kaggeran is an Agri World in the Canis Salient. It was quarantined by Lord Ebongrave alongside Kaggeran and Argoth (it was deemed tainted by the Tau, but too valuable for Exterminatus).

When the quarantine hit, Kaggeran became a world without purpose. Without anyone to export to, Kaggeran's endless fields became desolate and weed-choked, and the massive grox herds dwindled and turned feral. Countless desperate agri-workers flocked to the planet's cities, swelling the endless slums, and providing a massive pool of recruits for the armies of countless petty warlords and kings.

When Barotta arrived to lift the quarantine, he found a world that, despite its agricultural resources, was starving, as its fields lay fallow and its workers had become warriors, fighting over scraps of food and dwindling technological resources. Barotta offered weapons and luxuries for the warlords that could provide him with agricultural produce. And death to those that did not.

Kaggeran is slowly but surely regaining its feet. In a generation or two, it could be back to where it was before Lord Commander Ebongrave consigned it to a slow, wasting death. Much of its exports go to Argoth, but grox meat reaches every part of Barotta's great domain. The world is one of the destinations for humans expelled from the Tau Sept.

Argoth (Hive World)

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At the time of the Achilus Crusade, Argoth was a minor hive world found to be trafficking with the Tau. The Greater Good was worming its way into the hearts and minds of the people - even some of the nobles. When Lord Commander Ebongrave was forced to focus on the Greyhell Front, he declared the system off-limits and deployed a vast array of automated defenses to keep out any Tau infiltrators. 

By the time Barotta arrived, the system had suffered horribly for decades, as the Imperium's blockade had starved the planet of food and resources. Cannibalism was as common as unemployment, several hives had collapsed completely, leaving only a handful in working order. Ironically it turned out that one hive city, where the Tau still held sway, had managed not only to survive but prosper to some degree.

Argoth is now the industrial and technological heart of the Jericho Sector. Its hives are filling up, in no small part by humans expelled from Tau-held worlds, it's industries are gearing up, and in orbit, great battlefleets are being constructed. The Adeptus Mechanicus has a great deal of influence here, with one entire hive given over to the Archmagos of Jericho, Hextrix of the Lathes.

The Tau are gone* from the world now, but curiously, the people of Argoth are among the most united and easily governed citizens of the Jericho Sector. They do not talk openly about the Greater Good, but something they call the Common Cause.

* The are not completely gone but are still present in Hive Decimus, where they help to keep the wheels of industry and trade going. Their leader is the female Etheral Aun'La Velk'Han Tai'la Mont'yr (which could be translated as the Bloody-handed Human-loving Princess of the Kingdom of the Broken Star-paths), or Lady Tai'la for short.