Persepolis

Persepolis is a harsh and arid desert world located on the Eastern Fringe of the Ultima Segmentum. Settled sometime during the 29th Millennium by human settlers, this planet was once a verdant agri-world. But during the early years of the Horus Heresy it fell victim to the ravaging joint-fleet comprised of both the World Eaters and Word Bearers Traitor Legions during the Shadow Crusade. Using forbidden weapons of apocalyptic destructive abilities, Persepolis was reduced to an arid, blackened ruin. Those few who survived the catastrophe learned to eke out a life of hardship and struggle for survival. Becoming self-sufficient and highly independent, those few that remained managed to rebuild and create a semblance of civilisation. Later, in M34, following their inception, the Sable Lions Space Marine Chapter helped to cleanse a Chaos infestation of the besieged planet. Afterwards, they claimed Persepolis as their own, and the surrounding system as their demesne.

History
The Sable Lions are shaped not only by the personality and deeds of Rogal Dorn, but also by the nature of their home world. Persepolis is a harsh desert world that lies within the borders of the Segmentum Ultima, near the Pelegron Cluster. In ancient times this region of space was known as the Xersinia Prohibited Zone – a vast area of the void whose dark renown long predated the birth of the Imperium. Few save the insane or desperate would venture within Xersinia's bounds. Long before the wars of the Horus Heresy, all Imperial shipping was under specific interdiction from entering the region. When it was first discovered by human settlers in the 29th Millennium it was classified as a civilised verdant Agri-World. In ancient days, Persepolis had an earth-like atmosphere. However, during the Horus Heresy in the early 31st Millennium, dual Traitor fleets comprised of the World Eaters and Word Bearers Legions approached Calth, making good use of this forbidden region of space to conceal their approach to Ultramar.

Thus began the so-called Shadow Crusade, the joint military campaign that saw the two Traitor Legions proceed to lay waste to the Ultramarines' stellar empire in the Eastern Fringe of the galaxy, as they rapidly destroyed twenty-six worlds in quick succession. One of the first worlds to feel the wrath of the Traitors was Persepolis. Its relative isolation meant that its demise went unnoticed as it was swiftly razed to ashes by the combined fleets of Lorgar and Angron as a bloody prologue to their assault on Ultramar itself. Much of the world’s population was wiped out and many of Persepolis' once great cities were cast to ruin. The Traitors unleashed ancient weapons of terrifying potency which irrevocably changed the face of the planet forever. Verdant grasslands became arid deserts and the seas were flash-boiled away as they were vaporized by rad-caster saturation and pin-point lance strikes. The few surviving inhabitants of Persepolis were forever after plagued by the horrors that the servants of Horus had unleashed, and quickly regressed into a feudal state. They struggled for their very existence against the corrupted environment and the harsh elements. The number of survivors dropped nearly to the point of extinction before the last remaining humans banded together in their struggle for their survival. The population devolved into nomadic tribes who constantly roamed the land seeking out the few remaining sources of food and water. Only the strongest of them survived. The nomads took to the mountains, where they were able to meek out a meager existence amongst the ruins of their once-great civilization. Soon, the survivors began to rebuild these ruins into massive fortress cities. The occupants lived in a complex feudal societies under the command of mighty warlords (Amir). These warlords rule the great fiefdoms called Kasr, which encompass both their colossal fortresses and any surrounding territory. Kasr also house great warrior hosts originally sworn to defend from occasional pirate attacks or xenos raids, but now more frequently from assaults by rival Kasr. In exchange for service within his armies and a tithe of any looted equipment, an Amir accords these warriors various hereditary rights based on the particular feudal clan to which they belong, as well as individual rewards for accomplishments in battle. As in all things, from dress to bestowed honours, the people of Persepolis follow the dictates of the ancient ways -- especially the legends surrounding the Annunaki Mitu, more commonly known within the Imperium as the "Angels of Death."

Warrior-Bred
The warriors of Persepolis are a proud and noble people who value courage and honour above all else. Only through combat and glory in battle can individuals advance within Persepolisian society, which means the clansmen must fight continuously to maintain their Kasr rights in a never-ending cycle of death and bloodshed. In addition to power and glory, the inhabitants of Persepolis also fight to honour the great warrior king of heaven referred to in clan lore as the Al-Malik (Emperor of Mankind). It is said that long ago, the celestial god-king sent his host of angels down from the sky on columns of flame to deliver the people of Persepolis from their enemies in a purifying baptism of blood. These legends also foretold that the Al-Malik's armies would one day return to Persepolis to convey the worthy to fresh conquests across the heavens.

From the time they are able to wield a blade, the children of Persepolis are instructed in the ways of war, in preparation for this glorious return. When a child reaches seven summers old, they are placed within one of the Kasr's Jannisaries, where they undergo rigorous education and training regimen as mandated for all male citizens of Persepolis. The training is brutal in the extreme, with only the most senior clan warriors allowed to instruct the new recruits. The training involves battle tactics, cultivating loyalty (Asabiyya), brotherhood (Ikhwan) and Persepolis tradition (Khabar), as well as military training, pain tolerance, hunting and basic survival skills. Discipline is strict and the males are encouraged to fight amongst themselves to determine the strongest member of the group. The aim of the Jannisaries is to produce physically and morally strong males to serve in Persepolis’ standing Planetary Militia Forces.

Each Kasr maintains its own militia force and is responsible for protecting their region from pirate attacks, xenos raiders, and even the occasional Chaos incursion. But the clans' sons are not the only ones who are forced into the Jannisaries. Every five years, the Amirs will send their Kasr's clan warriors to scour the surrounding deserts and mountains, to seek out any signs of the La Magiri -- the "Unconquered" -- the ancient nomadic tribes who long ago, were forced to adapt to the brutal environment of Persepolis. Their continuous fight for survival and cultural persecution saw them emerge as efficient and hardy warriors, who use their superb combat skills and deadly environment to fend off those with superior technology and formal training. The skills of these warriors are highly prized by the Amirs, for after their indoctrination and training at one of the Kasr's Jannisaries, their loyalty is absolute. They are often shown great favor and are relied upon for an Amir's personal guard. The feudal clansmen of Persepolis wield a variety of weapons in combat, such as khanjar knives and curved scimitar blades. These weapons vary in condition and function, from jealously-guarded relics to blades that have been repaired countless times over the years. Many of these weapons are proudly maintained by a familial line, and are handed down from father to son. Persepolis tradition states that if a blade is drawn, it cannot be re-sheathed until it had drawn blood. These warriors believe that every weapon has a spirit within that yearns for battle, and that this spirit must be maintained if a weapon is to aid them in battle. For this reason, older, proven weapons are highly valuable to these warriors, both as relics of the Amir’s armies and objects of personal value to the fighter and his clan. Many go to great lengths to retrieve weapons that have been damaged in battle, though those which are beyond repair are ceremonially salvaged in order that the spirit within may live on.

When the lords of the Imperium turned their eyes back towards Persepolis in the 32nd Millennium, they soon realized the potential for such skilled fighters. Soon the Ecclessiarchy sent missionaries from the Missionarus Galaxia to begin the long and diligent process of indoctrinating the clansmen of Perseopolis into the Imperial Creed. Within a few decades the Amirs were shown the proper rites of devotion, and those who survived publicly swore new blood oaths to the Al-Malik. Shortly thereafter, Departmento Munitorum transport vessels arrived, and before long the first Imperial Guard regiments were raised, and the Persepolis Janissary regiments left their world behind to claim glory and honour upon the Imperium's countless battlefields.

The Lionhold
"Caliph Akkad, the Great Lion, fought the Daeva for many hours, but was sorely wounded, and so Kaos prevailed. The soldiers fought fiercely and saved the fallen Caliph from death, though many died for their efforts. Some of the soldiers ushered him away into the night so that the minions of Kaos could not slay him. For a long time they traveled, until they came to the far mountains where the Daeva would not find them. There, they built a great and secret fortress which they called Haydar al-qasr, the Lionhold, for it was stalwart and strong. Caliph Akkad rested and tended his wounds, and grew stronger. Certain of his soldiers, whom he found worthy, he made of the Heartblood also, and bade them make war upon Kaos and its minions, that their evil should not taint the earth."

- From the apocryphal Lay of Sargon Akkad

Like other Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes, the Sable Lions maintain a mighty fortress-monastery, a sanctuary where it trains every new generation of Space Marines and keeps its secrets safe. On Persepolis, this great Imperial bastion is known as Haydar al-qasr, "the Lionhold" – a mighty citadel forged from the planet's tallest peak, Shadu Sargon (Mt. Sargon), located amongst the world's tallest mountains, the Asad Asnaan (Lion's Teeth). The Lionhold is an impressive fortification, rising hundreds of metres above the arid plains of Persepolis' northern polar continent. In the seven millennia since the creation of the Chapter, it has never fallen to a foe. The fortress-monastery is riddled with chambers, some of them enormous assembly grounds and sparring arenas, others tiny cells or shrines to Imperial heroes whose inscriptions are all that remains of them in the Chapter's memory.

As Scions of Dorn, the Sable Lions have an affinity for building formidable fortifications. Within the Lionhold, natural volcanic tunnels have been enlarged to form the interior of the fortress, each constructed with a mind towards defending against an invader -- dead ends, switchbacks and false gateways leading to killing zones. The Lionhold is clad in armour of immense thickness and strength. Across the entire structure stretches the citadel's void shields more powerful than those found on even the mightiest of the Emperor's warships, glistening faintly as the oblique sunlight slants through the clouds. Every aerial approach to the fortress-monastery is overlooked by potent Icarus Pattern lascannons, and a macro-laser known to the Sable Lions as the Lion's Fury which stands like a spear of vengeance to lance space-borne enemies from the heavens. These huge weapons are as ancient as the Chapter itself, the geothermal reactors that power them testament to the precious technology from the distant past.

The Lionhold possesses one external gate known as the Sunrise Gate, located to the rear of the main structure of the fortress-monastery. The Lionhold could not be taken by a host of enemies unless some foe was cunning enough to come behind and scale the lower skirts of the mountain, and so come upon the narrow shoulder that joins the termination of massive ridges between the peaks, allowing movement up towards them from the surrounding highlands. The ridges run up to the citadel gate itself. But this would be suicidal on the part of an attacker, as the gate overlooks entirely bare approaches, such that any massed advance on them would provoke a slaughter. The Sunrise Gate itself is wide enough for a hundred mortal men to walk through abreast. The colossal structure of adamantium, granite and ceramite bristles with twin-linked bolter turrets, rocket launchers and static plasma cannons.