Mauryan Guard

The Mauryan Guard are the elite Astra Militarum regiments that hail from the verdant jungle/hive world of Maurya located in the Segmentum Tempestus. Regiments recruited from Maurya are most known for there skilled line infantry & there elite shock troops pulled from there mountain tribes called Gurakas. Mauryans are a naturally fearless culture but the guraka tribes are what cemented that to the Praetorian overlords and later the Imperium as a whole.

Notable Battles & Conflicts

 * The War for Independence (953.M27): After hundreds of years of praetorian occupation rebel cells unleash a massive assault across the planet. Most of the hives fall to the rebels but the capitals garrison held out due to a large amount of heavy armor backing them up. This forced the rebels to storm the fortress used by them & after 3 days of combat that ended with a brutal melee fight in its hallways as the rebels surged into firing zones. Over 4 million Mauryans were killed before the last praetorian soldiers were killed and the planet free of their grasp. When the praetorians sent a second wave of soldiers on the planets personal flagship it was taken out with orbital defense batteries and swarms of fighters within 5 minutes of leaving the warp. After this Praetoria signed a treaty and officially ended the occupation of the Onkar System.


 * The First & Second Battle of Samana (578.M37 ): Valiant last stand on the mountain planet Saragarhi during a chaos uprising that swept across the entire planet between its garrison of 30 from the 63rd Renjara Reigment's 11th Company and over 20,000 cultists whipped into a blood frenzy. The outpost was located on a ridge overlooking a massive valley down below with the loyalist town of Samana in the middle of it, also two forts located north & south of the outpost were garrisoned but constantly fending off raiders. When the cultists horde was spotted the garrison of inexperienced guardsman tried to signal the forts for reinforcements but raids in there areas made it impossible for at least 24 hrs. They voxed the town of Samana to to be ready to defend itself from cultists and then they decided to make the outpost a last stand if need be to keep the enemy from reaching the peaceful farmers living in Samana. The cultists tried several times to push through the gate but were repulsed by the defenders overwhelming firepower from its heavy weapon emplacements, but on the 5th assault they were able to take the gate and push toward the inner tower where the rest of the defenders had already taken cover in and poured out as much munitions as possible before the cultists swarmed the bottom levels and butchered any they found, evidence shows that the defenders fought a savage melee outside the entrance to the vox tower. The last survivor, voxman for the outpost Pvt. Gurmukh, killed dozens trying to reach the top most level before they just burned the entire tower down with him in it. Over half of the cultists were estimated to have died in the attack to the mauryans 30. The rest of the 63rd arrived the next day & the Second Battle of Samana erupted as the guardsmen took a bloody vengeance on the cultists found there. Due to the courage of the outpost garrison they cultists were unable to take the town in the valley below since they were busy scavenging to replenish there meager munitions & replace there dead when the 63rd attacked them from all sides. Lt. Ishar Singhe & the rest of his men were revered as heroes to the Saragarhites & all of Maurya when word got back home.

Recruitment & Training
The mauryans natural skill with tech allow them to create many different things in there home system that end up supplying there regiments like plasma weapons & armored vehicles. There soldiers are known for improvising random things in an emergency on a battlefield like remote explosives or breaking into secure areas by rewiring electronic locks.

There shock troops are mostly recruited from there mountain people the guraka, even naming all of them after the tribes, who are famous as mercenaries all over the galaxy. The punishing environment and culture of the people who live in them bred very tough soldiers that are fearless even in the face of certain death. Known for wearing a brimmed hat instead of a turban & using there unique forward curved war knife called a kuhkrei.

Battle Style
Though they field every type of regiment normally seen in the Guard they are mostly known for there line infantry regiments skilled at defensive actions, quick moving mechanized cavalry regiments, and of course the guraka shock troops. They use a lot of psykers compared to most regiments but with there cultures history with them they are used to being near them. Every regiment has at least 1 psyker as an advisor to the commander but many have a few others to more directly help the companies in combat. They have specialist regiments made up of veterans like the Renjara which are light assault troops used to quickly respond to various threats, or there psyker platoons of guraka guarding some combat psykers.

Regiments are often grouped together into a contingent of about 5-10 but sometimes up to 20 or more if supporting a crusade or a war near there home system. These contingents travel on board naval ships crewed by mauryans. This makes the contingents much more close knit than other battlegroups, especially between the infantry and the navy ​​​​​​.

Wargear
The following is a list of the wargear normally available to a standard Mauryan guardsman:
 * Mauryan Pattern Lasgun - Slim but hardy lasgun with a collapsable stock and furnished with the hard woods of there home jungles. It also has an ammo counter, and the ability to handle many different modifications like a foregrip, longer or shorter barrels, & various scopes. It has a hardened barrel for longer firefights or for use with a hot shot pack, an upgrade common with the Renjara.
 * 3 Charge Packs - Charge Packs are powerful capacitors used almost exclusively by Imperial laser weapons. The potency of a Charge Pack varies depending on the class of the weapon. In all cases, it provides shots equal to the weapon's full magazine value.
 * Krys - A wavy bladed dagger, often with ornate engravings when owned by an officer, used as a bayonet or combat knife by almost every mauryan soldier for 1000s of years. They can be passed down through a family for generations. Some coat there blade with poison or acids from the jungles to kill enemies easier.
 * Kuhkrei - Large forward curved knife used by the guraka tribes for utility and defense, it has been adopted as the main combat knife for all mauryan shock troops. Most of them also carry a krys for bayonet use or as a back up blade.
 * 2 Frag Grenades - These explosives use a combustible charge and special fillers of shrapnel fragments to fill a given circumference with deadly shrapnel, making this grenade a potent anti-personnel weapon. Imperial Frag Grenades are roughly the size of a clenched fist and covered with a heavily notched shell, both to increase the shrapnel produced and provide a more secure grip for throwing.
 * 2 Krak Grenades - Krak explosives contain powerful concentrated explosives that have been shaped to punch holes in armoured targets such as vehicles or bunkers. While stronger than Frag Grenades, Krak detonations do not produce a blast effect and their more focused explosion makes them less practical for use as an anti-personnel weapon.
 * Mauryan Imperial Guard Uniform - Mauryan guardsman almost always have the famous tightly bound turbans in whatever color there uniform is instead of a helmet, along with tan fatigues, a leather gear harness & bandolier, and boots combined with leg wraps to deal with varying terrain. Officers have much more ornate uniforms on par with the parade dress uniforms of other regiments. There uniforms and turbans have flak plates installed or available much like mordian troops to offer basic protection
 * Poor Weather Gear
 * Rucksack
 * Micro-Bead - A Micro-bead or Comm-bead is a short-range radio wave communication device worn in the ear, good for communications out to about one kilometre (depending on weather conditions and the intervening terrain). Each fits discretely in the ear, with higher craftsmanship models nearly undetectable in casual inspection.
 * Respirator - A simple breathing mask that covers the nose and mouth or entire face, these offer much better protection than filtration plugs and are used by Guardsmen in toxic environments or during attacks by chemical or even biological weapons.
 * Survival Kit
 * Basic Toolkit
 * Mess Kit & Water Canteen
 * 2 weeks' Rations
 * Blanket and Sleep Bag
 * Rechargeable Lamp Pack - Sturdy and reliable, glow-globes illuminate many an Imperial paveway and cathedral. Most portable ones are roughly the size of a clenched fist and can shine strong, yellowish light a dozen or so metres in width, lasting roughly five hours before their power pack needs recharging or replacing.
 * Grooming Kit
 * Dog Tags
 * The Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer - A standard-issue Imperial text that covers a vast variety of topics, this book is possessed by all members of the Imperial Guard as part of their standard-issue equipment. The Primer is a basic guide that details everything a Guardsman needs to know: principles and regulations of the Imperial Guard, issued arms, attire, apparatus, and equipment, basic battlefield policy and Imperial Guard organisation and structure, elementary battlefield medical instructions, and a detailed guide on the foes of the Imperium. No Guardsman should ever be found without possession of a copy of the Uplifting Primer, for the punishment is severe. The Primer is a basic guide to life in the Imperial Guard and the tactics employed by its regiments. Even elite Imperial troops like the Guraka often times still rely on its advice.

By the Mauryan Guard Regiments
"Bina Dara! Bina Dara! Bina Dara! Bina Dara! Bina Dara! Bina Dara!..."

- Pvt. Gurmukh as he died fighting during the 1st Battle of Samana

About the Mauryan Guard Regiments
Feel free to add your own "If someone says that they are not afraid of death, they are either lying or they are Mauryan."

- Unknown Astra Militarum Colonel during the Second War for Armageddon