Bork'an

Bork'an is one of the major colony star systems, or septs, of the T'au Empire.

It is a centre of learning and academia, and is the home of many of the T'au's universities and scientific research facilities. The includes the most prestigious military training centre in all of the empire. The warriors of Bork'an are known to be cerebral and restrained in their tactics.

Bork'an's systems also possess many rich mining planets and the Fire Warriors of this Sept are outfitted with the especially fine equipment and weapons.

A high percentage of the T'au Earth Caste come from this world.

The Sept colour of Bork'an is jade green, which in T'au culture has come to symbolise practicality.

The system has suffered from two major Ork invasions, both of which were ultimately repulsed in defence of the Greater Good.

History

In 893.M37, the Poctroon became the first sentient race to join the T'au Empire, although within a few generations, disease destroyed their indigenous population.

The T'au, whose physiology is fortunately immune to the plague, inherited the Poctroon homeworld, turning it into the prime world of what became the Bork'an Sept during the First Sphere Expansion.

Bork'an Raid

In 939.M41, Bork'an's prime world suffered an assault by the elite forces of the Militarum Tempestus in the form of the 196^th Iotan Gryphonnes. The Tempestus Scions were deployed in their entirety by the Ordo Tempestus to the Tau Sept World to wipe out every scientist, researcher and student.

If they succeeded in their objective, this would greatly affect the T'au Empire's ability to mass produce prototype weapons and deadly Battlesuits. Earth Caste teachers and students alike were gunned down in their auditoriums and research facilities.

Though their initial strike was promising, the T'au's vicious counterattack, spearheaded by experimental Battlesuits and prototype weaponry, quickly overwhelmed the attacking Scions and virtually annihilated the 196^th Iotan Gryphonnes.

A well-executed tactical withdrawal saw the Gryphonnes come within a hundred yards of their extraction point when Commissar Tilenus ordered them back into the fight. They subsequently gave half their number to seek out any remaining Earth Caste stragglers.

However most had by that point been evacuated by Manta gunships. The Scions transmited their findings to Tilenus, but his request for extraction was again denied.

Over the next solar hour the Gryphonnes did as much damage to the Earth Caste facilities as they could before they were wiped out by T'au Battlesuits.

The few survivors were systematically hunted down by Bork'an's vengeful Fire Warriors.

Notable Bork'an Sept Tau

Commander Quickstrike - Commander Quickstrike is a hero of the Bork'an Sept, whose teachings are still used by the Fire Caste academies.

Sources

Codex: Tau Empire (7th Edition), pp. 24, 71, 77, 94
Codex: Tau Empire (6th Edition) (Digital Edition), pp. 28, 87, "Tempestus Militarum"
Codex: Tau Empire (4th Edition), pg. 18
Warhammer 40,000: Battle Missions (Supplement), pg. 73
White Dwarf Weekly Magazine #114 (UK) 02 Apr 2016, "Codex: Apocrypha Extra - Stubborn Unto Death"
Commander Shadow (Short Story) by Braden Campbell