St. Bacchus' Respite

Once, this world was an arid rock, fit only for limited human presence. All but ignored by the Imperium, it became a hermitage for old soldiers who had seen too much of war, seeking solace in the desert's harsh beauty. Whatever name this place had before has been lost to time, for in M33 this planet's legend began. A veteran named Bacchus was roused from his retirement by the news that his dearest friend Sergius was in peril! With clear and pure oratory, Bacchus stirred the hearts of the old warriors, and they took up their battered arms and armor as Bacchus' Old Guard, forming the core of a Crusade that won many great victories and performed miracles.

The survivors and refugees decided to settle on the world where the Crusade had begun, calling upon favors with the Adeptus Mechanicus to crash ice asteroids into the planet, forming great crater lakes and bringing life to the parched planet. St. Bacchus Respite grew, the deserts turning green, the hamlets becoming cities, and the next generations of priests and soldiers were trained.

In the 36th Millennium, the Imperium was effectively ruled by Goge Vandire, leading the Administratum and Ecclesiarchy at the same time. Hopes of an age of ideal pious rule were dashed by the tyrant's growing insanity, and when ordered to perform senseless atrocities, the Bacchan Frateris Templar rose against him in mutiny. Enraged, Vandire ordered his Brides of the Emperor to put the rebels' homeworld to the sword. The Bacchan PDF could not hold against the lavishly equipped armies of remorseless women in power armor, and survivors fell back to continue a guerilla war from the ancient warrior hermitages in the countryside. The Brides burned and butchered the innocent without pity.

The planet was a sorry sight when it was liberated by Saint Sebastian Thor's Confederation of Light, but St. Bacchus' Respite would recover in time with generous aid from the new Ecclesiarch. The Bacchan Frateris Templar were required to disband by the Decree Passive, but were allowed leeway due to choosing the winning side in the civil war. The Templar were reformed into the Imperial Guard, separated forever from the priesthood who ruled their world, but allowed to keep their traditions and hard-learned ways of war.

Aside from its cathedrals and training fields, St. Bacchus' Respite is known for its great paper industry, which pollutes several lakes. Holy books are scribed en masse, and the Administratum is tithed endless reams of parchment. As many items and forms of packaging that can be made of paper use the substance, which is ruthlessly recycled. Stone is quarried for sculptors to fashion into statues of saints and heroes, and the tailings are rendered into gravel and powders.

Recently, St. Bacchus' Respite has been a beacon of the Emperor's light in the Dark Imperium. A raid by the forces of Chaos ruined several cities before being driven off, and refugees from devastated worlds have poured in. This has included the survivors of several Orders of the Sisters of Battle, who still are not entirely welcome after their forebearers' atrocities...