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At a glance
Catachan is one of the most notorious death worlds in the Imperium. Its entire surface is covered by dense, humid jungle teeming with predators, poisonous plants, parasites and diseases, and the average life expectancy of its human population is famously short. Many Imperial scholars regard it as barely habitable. Yet humans live there, in small, fortified settlements scattered through the jungle, and they are among the hardest people in the galaxy.
Catachan's real value to the Imperium is its people. The Catachan Jungle Fighters are the finest light infantry and jungle warfare specialists in the Astra Militarum. Big, muscular and supremely self-reliant, they are raised from childhood to survive in a world that is constantly trying to eat them, and they bring those skills to every battlefield. Their regiments are found on countless worlds across the galaxy, from jungle planets and swamps to cities and ash wastes, and wherever they go, they have a reputation for toughness, independence and a certain disdain for rules.
To the Catachans, their homeworld is both a curse and a source of pride. They speak of it with a mixture of fondness and grim humour, and they measure every other world against it. Most find other death worlds unimpressive by comparison.
Geography & environment
Catachan is a world of jungle. Trees of enormous size rise from the forest floor, their canopies blocking out the sun, and the undergrowth is a tangle of vines, ferns and creepers. The air is hot, wet and thick with the smell of rot and growth. Rain falls frequently, and rivers and swamps cut through the jungle. Visibility is often limited to a few metres, and sound is muffled by the dense vegetation.
The jungle grows quickly. A clearing cut one week can be overgrown the next, and settlements must constantly fight back the vegetation. Roads are rare, and travel is usually on foot or by river. There are no great cities on Catachan; the population lives in small settlements that are fortified against the jungle and its inhabitants. Even these settlements are not safe. Predators and plants can break through defences, and diseases can sweep through a community in days.
The planet's landscape includes mountains, rivers, swamps and coasts, but all are covered by jungle. There are few open spaces, and those that exist are often more dangerous than the jungle itself, because predators hunt in them. The seas are home to their own monsters, and few Catachans venture onto the water.
Life on a death world
Almost everything on Catachan is dangerous. The planet's ecosystem is one of the most hostile in the Imperium, and its predators are famous across the galaxy.
The Catachan Devil
The most infamous predator of Catachan is the Catachan Devil, a gigantic, many-legged arthropod with crushing pincers and a venomous sting. It can grow longer than a battle tank and moves through the jungle with terrifying speed. Killing one is a mark of great prestige among the Catachans, and many veterans have stories of encounters with these monsters.
The Barking Toad
A small, unassuming amphibian, the Barking Toad is one of the most feared creatures on Catachan. When threatened, it inflates and releases a cloud of toxins that can blind or kill those nearby. Catachans learn to recognise its bark from an early age, and they treat it with the utmost caution.
Brainleaf
This parasitic plant attaches itself to a host and slowly takes control of its nervous system. The host becomes a puppet of the plant, moving it to new locations where it can spread. Catachans fear Brainleaf more than most predators, because there is little that can be done for a victim once the plant has taken hold.
The Venus Mantrap and other plants
The jungle is full of carnivorous plants, from creepers that strangle unwary travellers to giant flytraps that can swallow a man whole. The Venus Mantrap is one of the largest, and it can lie in wait for days for a victim to stumble into its jaws. Other plants exude poisons, sting with barbed thorns or release spores that cause hallucinations and death.
Insects, parasites and diseases
Catachan is also home to countless insects, worms and microorganisms, many of which carry deadly diseases. Swarms of biting insects can strip flesh from bone, and parasites can burrow into the body and feed from within. Even a small cut can become fatally infected in the jungle's heat.
History
Settlement and survival
Little is recorded about the original settlement of Catachan. The human population may have arrived during the Dark Age of Technology or the Great Crusade, and they adapted to the world over generations. Their survival is a testament to human endurance, and their culture evolved to meet the demands of the jungle.
The Imperium recognised the value of Catachan's people as soldiers early on. The planet's tithe is paid in regiments of jungle fighters, and Catachan regiments have fought in countless wars across the galaxy. The Catachans have become legends in the Astra Militarum, and their exploits are told in barracks across the Imperium.
The Catachans at war
Catachan Jungle Fighters have fought on every kind of battlefield, but they excel in jungles, swamps and forests. They are masters of ambush, infiltration and guerrilla warfare, and they are skilled with knives, flamers and booby traps. They have fought against Orks, Tyranids, Eldar, T'au, Chaos and rebels, and they have earned a fearsome reputation.
The Catachans are particularly famed for their wars against the Orks. Orks are tough, brutal and relentless, and they enjoy fighting in jungles. The Catachans fight fire with fire, matching the Orks' ferocity with their own. Many Catachan veterans regard Orks as worthy foes, and they take a particular pride in beating them at their own game.
Iron Hand Straken
The most famous Catachan of the 41st millennium is Colonel Straken, known as "Iron Hand". He earned his name after losing his arm to a monstrous creature on the world of Miral Prime; he killed the beast and continued to lead his troops, and his arm was replaced with a bionic. Straken is a legendary leader, renowned for his toughness, his tactical skill and his loyalty to his troops. He has fought in countless campaigns, and he embodies the Catachan ideal of the soldier who never gives up.
Life in the settlements
A Catachan settlement is less a town than a fortified camp. Its buildings are low and solid, built from local timber and salvaged materials, and its perimeter is ringed by cleared ground, ditches, stakes and barricades. Flamers are kept ready at every gate, because burning back the jungle is a daily task. Watch posts are manned day and night, and every adult carries weapons at all times, even when working the small fields and gardens that feed the community.
Settlements are often moved when the jungle becomes too aggressive or when a particularly dangerous predator claims the area. Catachans do not grow attached to buildings; they grow attached to people. A settlement's strength is measured by the number of its fighters, and its history is told through stories of the battles it has survived. Orphans are taken in by others, and the whole community takes responsibility for raising the next generation.
Contact with the wider Imperium is limited. Tithe ships arrive to collect new regiments, and traders sometimes visit to exchange off-world goods for the planet's rare medicinal plants and animal products. Most Catachans see little of the Imperium until they join a regiment, and their first sight of a hive city or a starship can be a shock.
Growing up Catachan
A Catachan child learns the rules of survival before anything else. Never touch an unknown plant. Listen for the Barking Toad. Watch the canopy as well as the ground. Never go out alone. Children are given knives as soon as they can hold them and are taught to hunt small animals, to recognise dangerous plants and to treat wounds. By their early teens, they accompany adults on patrols and hunts, and by adulthood they are capable jungle fighters.
The Catachans have few formal rites of passage. Instead, a young Catachan proves himself through deeds: surviving a dangerous hunt, killing a predator, saving a comrade. Scars are worn with pride, and the stories behind them are told around the fire. Those who survive to adulthood have already passed tests that would kill most soldiers from other worlds, and that is why the Imperium values them so highly.
People & culture
The people of Catachan are big, strong and incredibly tough. They are raised from childhood to survive in the jungle, and they learn to hunt, fight and avoid danger before they can read. Many Catachans grow up without knowing their parents, raised by the community as a whole. They are taught to be self-reliant and to look after their comrades, because in the jungle, survival depends on teamwork.
Catachan culture is informal and egalitarian. Rank and status matter less than ability, and respect must be earned. Catachans have little patience for bureaucracy, and they often clash with Commissars and officers from other worlds. They are known for their sardonic humour, their love of tall tales and their contempt for anyone who has not proven themselves in battle.
The Catachan Fang, a long, heavy combat knife, is the signature weapon of the Catachans. Every Catachan carries one, and they are skilled in its use. The knife is used for everything from cutting through vegetation to killing enemies, and many Catachans regard it as an extension of their own bodies.
Catachans are often depicted wearing little more than trousers, vests and bandanas, a reflection of the hot, humid conditions of their homeworld. They favour light equipment that does not hinder movement, and they rely on their own skill rather than heavy armour.
The Catachan Jungle Fighters
Catachan regiments are organised as light infantry, specialising in jungle warfare and guerrilla tactics. They are often deployed in small units, operating independently behind enemy lines. They are experts in stealth, ambush and sabotage, and they make extensive use of traps, explosives and flamers.
Catachan regiments are rarely deployed with heavy armour, preferring to fight on foot. When they do use vehicles, they favour light vehicles such as Sentinels and transports. They are often supported by artillery and air strikes, which they direct from the ground.
The Catachans have a reputation as difficult soldiers. They resent officers from other worlds and often disregard orders they consider foolish. Commissars assigned to Catachan regiments have a notoriously short life expectancy, and the Catachans have a reputation for leaving incompetent officers to the mercy of the jungle. Despite this, Catachan regiments are highly valued for their effectiveness, and commanders who earn their respect find them to be loyal and reliable.
Defenders & war-machine
Catachan itself is defended largely by its jungle, which makes any invasion a nightmare. Its settlements are fortified, and its people are all trained fighters. The Imperium maintains a small presence on the planet to manage the tithe of regiments, but there are few large military installations.
Catachan has rarely been seriously threatened by invasion, and Imperial strategists say this is no accident. Any army landing on Catachan would face a planet with no cities worth taking, no roads to follow and a jungle that kills as surely as any defender. Every native is a trained guerrilla who knows the terrain intimately. An invader would bleed for every kilometre, and even a successful landing would accomplish little. The Catachans themselves joke that the jungle would eat any invasion force before they had to.
Off-world, Catachan regiments serve throughout the Astra Militarum. They are supported by the full range of Imperial Guard equipment, including Leman Russ tanks, Sentinels and artillery, but their main strength is their infantry. They often work alongside other regiments, providing light infantry support and specialist skills.
Notable battles
- Countless jungle campaigns: the Catachans have fought in jungles and forests on hundreds of worlds.
- The Ork wars: Catachan regiments are famed for their battles against Ork Waaaghs! across the galaxy.
- The wars of Iron Hand Straken: Straken has led his regiments in many campaigns, earning a legendary reputation.
Trivia
- The Catachans are often depicted with heavily muscled physiques, a reflection of the harsh conditions of their homeworld.
- The Catachan Fang knife has become a symbol of Catachan identity.
- Catachan regiments are notorious for their dislike of Commissars.
- Catachan veterans often regard other death worlds as easy by comparison.
- The Catachan Devil is so iconic that many Catachan regiments use it as a heraldic symbol or a nickname.
- Commanders from other worlds often underestimate Catachans as brutes, a mistake the Catachans are happy to exploit.
