The Ataster War

The Road to War

The state of the world at the start of the Ataster war.

The State of the world

The world of Ataster was split into several nations (with one alliance). Indacria was by far the most powerful, both in size and economic prowess. Rethan was the smallest and always regarded as the least powerful of the nations, but their isolation following the Coup (see below) allowed them to build a powerful army to defend themselves with.

Before the war, all the nations of Ataster were united under the Federation. Rebellions in Rethan were looked down upon with contempt as an attempt to claim the world as their own by a power hungry and warmongering people. The other nations knew nothing of Johann Sartani’s corrupt ways, and if they did they ignored him.

The Coup in Rethan

After several years in power, the corrupt and tyrannical emperor, Johann Sartani was ousted in a military coup led by the then Commander-in-Chief, Alaitar Lentar. The coup was long planned, and took mere minutes to execute. After a previous failure at rebellion, Sartani had increased his level of security, and had placed his long time friend Alaitar in charge of the Armed Forces. Fortunately for the people of Rethan, Alaitar was more loyal to his country and people than to his friend, and organised a coup. During a military parade in 2011, Lentar stormed the Imperial Palace and quickly dispatched the guards who were both unprepared and outnumbered. After Sartani committed suicide, Lentar came to power, and the Empire of Rethan was renamed the Militocracy of Rethan.

International Response

The other countries of the planet Ataster responded almost immediately by embargoing what they believed to be an unstable state which would soon bring their warmongering into their lands. Not only were they wrong in their assumptions, but Rethan actually fared quite well despite the trade embargoes. The three nations nearest Rethan also saw an increase in their military sizes, along with a massive inflow of soldiers from other countries.

The Cold War Begins

With enemy soldiers building up on their borders, the Rethast went into overdrive, producing huge numbers of weapons and enlisting in the armed forces in record numbers. For a whole year each side simply continued building up their forces on the borders. The tension reached a peak when Alaitar died of cancer in early 2020. The other nations, still believing Rethan to be a nation which posed a threat and thus believing they were in the right, prepared for invasion. However, Alatair's son Scalan quickly regrouped the demoralised Rethast just in time for the first enemy invasion.

The Northern Front

The First Stages (November 2021)

Rethan suffered a major blow when enemy forces moved in quickly from the North. Soldiers from both the Emirate of Hernas and the United States of Handeran struck swiftly, carving a deep gash into Rethast territory. Fortunately, the north also happened to be the most mountainous terrain in Rethan, and armed civilians joined with the trained forces in the area to begin a series of hit-and-run attackes which proved effective against the lost and hemmed in forces of the Federation. In fact, so effective were the attacks, that the Handerans retreated out of Rethan, and out of Hernas, leaving the Hernasians on their own in Rethast territory.

The Hernasians attempt to retreat (February 2022)

Left on their own in enemy territory, the Hernasians about turned and tried to follow their allies out of Rethan. However, Rethast forces in the area redeployed with the aid of civilians who knew the mountains and cut the Hernasians off from the border. Now completely surrounded, the Hernasians were running out of supplies, and when Rethast reinforcements from the East arrived in dropships, they surrendered almost immdediately. The Hernasian 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battalions were captured, leaving only 20,000 men of the 4th Battalion to defend Hernas.

The Push into Hernas(March 2022)

Following up on their victory at home, the Rethast advanced into Hernasian territory and won a score of victories. They soon were stopped when the Handeran 5th Army returned in force to aid their allies, giving the remainder of the 4th Hernasian Battalion time to regroup. Rethast forces would be stuck in Hernas for ten years fighting a constant war against Handeran and Hernasian soldiers waiting for help.

The Western Front

The First Stages (January 2022)

In an attempt to alleviate pressure from their allies in the north, Ulthwan invaded in the west with their 1st and 2nd Infantry divsions and their 1st armour divions. Unfortunately for them, they went in expecting the main bulk of the enemy to be in the north, when in actual fact the Rethast had the majority of the forces in the west, as it was the only place without a natural chokepoint, as did the North (mountains), south (thin land mass) and east (the sea). Ulthwan forces were destroyed quite quickly, with the estimated kill to death ration being 1 Rethast soldier for every ten Ulthwan soldiers. When the Rethast counterattacked, the Ulthwan just barely held them back.

Yanye arrives with help (March 2022)

When overseas troops arrived from Yanye, Ulthwan invaded again with their 3rd, 4th and 5th Battalions of Infantry and their 3rd and 4th Armour battalions. Combined with the Yanyese 1st and 2nd Armies, Rethast forces were pushed back and the Federation forces advance to within ten miles of the capital. Things looked grim for Rethan at this point. With a large part of their army trapped in Hernasian territory to the north, and a new Kellner invasion to the south, the Rethast were outnumbered against the enemy in the west. They needed a miracle.

Technology wins the day (April 2022)

That miracle came just in time with the Defiler Tank, MkI. While similar to the Cheetah Tanks previously holding back the enemy, the Defiler boasted one major improvement. It was a hover tank, the first and so far only of its kind on Atasten. While Yanyese tanks were better armoured than both the Cheetah and Defiler, and the Ulthwan Giga tank had more powerful cannons, the massively superior speed of the Defiler more than made up for both these advantages, as well as their lack of numbers. With only a mere 20 in use, the Defiler proved more than a match for the armoured divisions of the Federal Alliance. And nowhere was this proved more so than at the Battle of Ryhëvan.

The Battle of Ryhëvan (April 2022)

Ryhëvan was a large Rethast city near the border with Ulthwan and was strongly held by a coalition of Ulthwan and Yanyese forces. The south side of the city was the last bastion of Rethast, with only 1,000 soldiers and 15 tanks, 5 of which were Defilers. Over 200,000 enemy forces were on the north side of the city, and the Rethast were getting desperate. Led by Field-Marshal Stammper, the five Defilers moved over the river towards the enemy under the cover of darkness. Once across, they began several lightning raids on the enemy, striking at troop concentrations and knocking out supply lines. The Defiler's speed allowed them to constantly move around the city well ahead of the pursuing Giga tanks and Yanyese Radeons. Eventually, the Ulthwans and Yanyese tanks were obliterated one by one, and the infantry were left on their own. Worst of all, General Striker of Ulthwan, the commander of the Federal forces in Ryhëvan had been killed on a strike raid. After two more nights of constant raids, the infantry surrendered. Upon being brought to the Rethast on the south, they realised they had vastly superior numbers and what they thought had been numerous tanks attacking them had only been five. The Yanyese and Ulthwan forces were, needless to say, embarassed beyond all reprieve when they heard of the outcome of the battle for Ryhëvan.

The Federals retreat westwards (June 2022)

Soon after the battle of Ryhëvan, Yanyese forces withdrew, with the Ulthwan armies close behind. The embarassing defeat and sheer combat superiority of the defiler tanks, with their numbers now in the hundreds, left Federal High Command in a difficult situation, which was about to become a whole lot worse.

The Southern Front

The Kellner Invasion (March 2022)

On 3rd of March, 2022, the Kellner 1st Army moved into Rethan, along the Corabine Straight. This narrow strip of land was all that connected the two nations of Rethan and Kellner. Due to its small size, the Rethast had fortified it with a line of bunkers, trenches, mines and barbed wire. When the Kellner invaded with a massive force of 400,000 men, the largest bloodbath of the Ataster war ensued.

Kellner infantry moved through the fields of barbed wire trying to clear the mines for the tanks. However, constant gunfire from the bunkers forced them to move at a crawl, and the tanks were left out in the open, vulnerable to air strikes and artillery. When the Kellner soldier managed to succesfully clear the path through the mines, only 50 of the orginal 125 tanks remained. A head on assault onto the Corabine Line began, which lasted a full three hours. The charge culminated in the death of the entire Kellner army, with only 120 Rethast deaths in return. Historians say that the main reason for the loss of life was poor Kellner organisation, and the superior air forces of the Rethast. Kellner gorund forces went in completely unsupported from the air, and the chaos of coming under constant fire from the bunkers caused all battle plans to become obsolete. Again, the Defiler's speed allowed them to perform strafing runs on the Kellner line, and the Kellner armoured battalions were destroyed before they could reap a sufficient tally on the defenders.

The Counter Attack

With the enemy attacks halted in their path, and their militaries decimated, the Rethast organised a counterattack. The attack was to consist of several blitzkireg strikes into enemy territory. The planned targets were:

• Ulthwan
• Hernas
• Kellner

Indacria was left out of the orginal planning, as they had made no offensive moves against Rethan and so did not seem a threat.

The Kellner Front (February 2024)

On the 14th of February, 2024, Rethast forces moved deep into Kellner territory in a quick strike. Air forces moved in first, successfully clearing the enemy bunker installations and disrupting supply lines. Tanks and infantry followed. Kellner put up little resistance, and when, in July 2024, Rethast forces moved into the capital, the people surrendered. Kellner was destroyed and became little more than a Rethast province.

The Ulthwan Front (September 2024)

Ulthwan was next in line for destruction. When Rethast forces moved in, again with air forces leading the way, the Ulthwan were prepared. Yanyese forces had returned to help their ally and the Rethast were surprised to see soldiers from the Union of Lesser States. However, the Union soldiers were ill-trained and put up no resistance worthy of noting. Ulthwan, on the other hand, put up a fight which cost the lives of over 100,000 Rethast soldiers. The most costly battle during the Ulthwan invasion was the Battle of Gunho Valley, where Rethast forces were ambushed by Ulthwan and Yanyese soldiers. Although the Rethast won, it was at a terribly high cost of 30 Defiler tanks, and 800 Infantry. In contrast Federal losses numbered no more than 40 infantry.

In December 2024, Ulthwan officially surrendered and Yanyese and Union forces pulled out of the country. Ulthwan however, was allowed remain free, although they were left with only one island under their control.

Hernasian Forces are relieved (March 2032)

For ten years, Rethast forces were trapped in Hernasian territory, fighting a constant war against the might of both Hernas and Handeran. A series of small skirmishes continued until Macrh 2032 when Rethast APCs arrived with help. The 30,000 Soldiers already in Hernas were reinforced with a further 40,000 and began to push forward. Hernas put up a massive fight for their land and Handeran evacuated civilians in the way of the Rethast advance. For two years Rethast forces pushed into Hernas, their Defiler tanks reaping a savage toll on the Hernasian and Handeran Armoured divisions, and their superior air cavalry disrupting supply line. Hernas overall put up more of a fight than Ulthwan, but morale was low as news reached them of Kellner's destruction and Ulthwan's defeat despite numerical superiority.

Hernasian and Handeran Peace Treaty (June 2034)

In 2034, Rethast diplomats met with Hernasian and Handeran diplomats and a peace treaty was signed. The Rethast would retain control of the land they had captured in return for leaving Hernas alone. Despite public disapproval, the treaty was signed, and uneeded soldiers were moved from Hernas back into Rethan.

Indacria Enters the War