“	Rocky outcroppings punctuate fields of tall grass in a planet dominated by misty highland terrain.	„
	~ Official Description

Hort is one of the six planets that reside within the Rigel Sector.

Topography and Astrography

Similar to Bellatrix, Achernar Secundus, Afoyay Bay and Volterra, Hort is a lush, green, mountainous planet comprised of vast grasslands that cover the majority of its landmass. Besides the two oceans found on each of its poles, Hort's landmass remains mostly uniformed, only rarely interrupted by small ponds and instead having rough cliffs and ridges splitting the plains and valleys of the planet.

The Hortian Valleys are regularly bathed by rainstorms, which while providing needed water for agriculture and cattle farming during peacetime, it can also pose a factor to be considered during combat. The rainstorms that sweep the planet reduce visibility, making engagements at long range difficult for all S.E.A.F. infantry and combat personnel on the surface. With the apparition of the Exostorm on March 24th, 2186, however, the grasslands of Hort would begin to be drowned and zapped in an eldritch thunderstorm, casted by the Illuminate's nefarious Exospires.

Additionally, Hort's surface is populated by limited forms of xenofauna in the form of bioluminiscent insects that can only be seen during rainstorms or at night, as well as having scattered cultures of xenofungi that, when disturbed, will release a thick, inert spore cloud that can serve as an emergency smokescreen and help detect enemy patrols. Should said xenofungi be disturbed by explosions or gunfire, the release of spores will occur with greater force and will be capable of stunning and ragdolling nearby Helldivers but will destroy the fungi.

Hort is home to three of the only four Mega Cities in the Rigel Sector. These Mega Cities will be listed up next by Tier. Mega City Tiers do not affect level generation and only serve to determine a city's health pool in the galactic war map. The three Mega Cities on Hort are the Cities of On-Earsahou, Clockstop and Magnitude. Besides these three Mega Cities, Hort's surface houses numerous smaller urban settlements that shelter its rural population, as well as loose detached dwellings and smaller compounds that dot the wilderness outside of these.

Additionally, having been part of the Illuminate Empire prior to the end of the First Galactic War, Hort is home to various Illuminate ruins scattered both throughout its surface and buried underneath. The apparition of the Exostorm on March 24th, 2186, saw the Illuminate destroy the three Mega Cities on Hort entirely, as they searched for the ancient Exospires buried underneath, alongside the ruins of their ancient civilization. However, following the liberation of Hort on March 29th, 2186, the three Mega Cities would be recovered and the reconstruction efforts of the Hortian Cities would commence.

The Hort System is comprised of planet Hort itself, its orbiting white, rocky moon and at least one other astronomical body, which is an unknown green, rocky exoplanet. An orange nebula can be seen from Hort's surface. The Hort System would not see much importance on itself during the early campaigns that followed the returning Illuminate, as the planet remained detached from the Federal FTL Network in the wake of the Battle of Calypso on December 2184. Only with the reconnection of the Rigel Sector to the FTL Network on October 7th, 2185, would Hort's bigger role in the struggle against the Illuminate Cult become clear. Alongside neighboring Rirga Bay, Hort is one of the two planets that control southbound access into the Rigel Sector. Additionally, it was one of the only two planets to have Mega Cities in its sector, Rirga Bay being the only other planet and only having one. Hort's FTL Lines to RD-4, Hesoe Prime and Rirga Bay make it a crucial hub for maintaining the fight against the Illuminate on the Southern Galactic Frontier.

History

Second Galactic War

Return of the Illuminate

Hort was, for much of its history following its colonization between both galactic wars, a peaceful planet colony of Super Earth without much occurrences worth noting. It would spent most of its time in relative peace, even amidst the initial chaos following the resurgence of the Illuminate at Calypso and the subsequent raids on other colonies in the Southern Galactic Rim, its neighbor Hesoe Prime among them.

However, such passiveness would only invite the despicable squids to attack. On December 30th, the Illuminate launched a double assault onto Hort and Hesoe Prime immediately after their attack on Irulta. The Helldivers, hot on the Illuminate's trail, would deploy onto Hort as quickly as they could, decided to avenge the lives lost. However, the lack of manpower available to deploy onto Hort would ultimately prevent the Helldivers from quashing the invading fleet and allowed the alien pillagers to escape 12 hours later.

Operation Democracy Delivered

Hort would be left to mourn its losses after the New Year had come, as the invasion left the Hortians' homes in ruins and their families fragmented if not killed in their totality. Yet the despicable squids seemed unphased by their abominable actions and unsatisfied with the fruits of their odious robbery since, on January 18th, 2185, they would invade Hort for a second time. However, the Helldivers would turn up in greater numbers than the first time, decided to deliver justice to the ailing Hortians. But Hort would not be the only attacked. Prior to Hort's own invasion, the Helldivers had been defending Ilduna Prime and the Illuminate had also sent an early invasion to Alathfar XI, both campaigns draining manpower away from the forces sent to Hort which, ultimately, caused the defense to fail again and allowed the Illuminate to escape.

Post Illuminate Raid Campaign & Operation This Belongs in a Museum

Up until April 29th, 2185, Hort eventually saw numerous raids across its surface time and time again. Often, with the Helldivers having to contain the other two fronts of the war with powerful offensives from both the Terminids and the Automatons, the Illuminate front was neglected for a significant time, even amidst the Cult's movement of the Meridian Singularity toward Super Earth. As part of the Illuminate campaign to harvest Dark Energy to propel Meridia's movement, Hort came under attack several times as the Squ'ith sought utmost carnage against the Federation. Though some attacks were repelled, other attempts by the Illuminate to plunder the planet proved unfortunately successful, leaving infrastructure in ruins and further propelling their eventually failed scheme. The Illuminate would attempt to plunder Hort in April on several occasions and would abandon their raid campaign shortly after before invading Super Earth in May.

Following their abject failure to capture Super Earth, the Illuminate retreated to their former hideouts in the Galactic South to begin re-establishing their former empire, mainly within the Hanzo and Omega Sectors. Ditching their old raid tactics in favor of formally capturing planets, the Illuminate established their strongholds on Alairt III and elsewhere to coordinate their attacks on Zea Rugosia, Ain-5, and others. Eventually, the Squ'ith would push further to the north, invading both the Gallux and Rictus Sectors to further their territorial ambitions. Eventually, by the end of August 2185, the Illuminate had reached as far north as the Super Earth-bordering Cancri Sector, capturing both Effluvia and Seyshel Beach before their offensive ended during the Tripartite Invasion.

So far, Hort and the rest of the Rigel Sector had avoided the fate of many planets further to the north. All FTL Lines within the sector remained severed, keeping each world isolated from the Illuminate menace for now. Hort would have to be self-sustainable in rebuilding itself after constant Illuminate attacks earlier in the year, hoping to buy itself time in case of any further Squ'ith incursions.

On October 7, 2185, High Command issued a new order to the Helldivers, calling for the liberation of archaeological Illuminate sites on Alairt III, Herthon Secundus, and Zea Rugosia that were now presenting several strange spacetime fluctuations. With the Helldivers already mostly stationed in the Galactic South on Seyshel Beach, most began to flock toward Alairt III to begin the swift liberation of its Mega Cities.

Shortly before the beginning of the new operation, the Rigel Sector had suddenly reestablished all of its FTL Lines. Hort would have its previously downed lines to Hesoe Prime and Rirga Bay "re-built," along with a brand new line to the lonely frigid world, RD-4. That wouldn't be the end of it, however, as the Illuminate seemingly established brand new lines from their currently controlled planets, Heze Bay & Herthon Secundus, to Rirga Bay and Hort itself. Now, it seemed the Rigel Sector was bracing for an imminent Illuminate offensive that it had strived for so long to avoid after the end of the Squ'ith raid campaign. Fearing the worst, the colonial overseers of Rirga Bay & Hort quickly scrambled to stockpile weapons, hoping for the best but expecting bloodshed.

On October 8, with most of Alairt's surface already mostly liberated, the Illuminate sent a powerful attack onto Rirga Bay from their new FTL Line on Heze Bay in the hopes of escaping being encircled on the latter. Despite having the Eagle Storm booster active on the Democracy Space Station, which could halt the Illuminate advances on the ground, the Helldivers opted to keep the DSS stationed on Alairt instead, leaving Rirga Bay to its own devices for the entirety of its 48-hour defense.

At nightfall on October 9, with liberation efforts on Alairt virtually completed and Rirga's defenses nearing collapse, the Illuminate on Herthon Secundus utilized their new FTL Line toward Hort and began to assault the planet with 16 invasion fleets. Luckily, however, it seemed that the Illuminate had made a critical error in giving the Helldivers even more reason to deploy to Herthon, as its liberation would automatically end the defense of Hort if done promptly.

Sure enough, the Helldivers would abandon defending Hort directly for most of its campaign, instead concentrating on liberating the attack's point of origin on Herthon. The Helldivers would swiftly liberate the two sprawling townships of Penscewt and Eagle's Likeness on the hellish Herthon, giving them a massive advantage and beachhead to expunge the squids from the planet. Yet, time was running out on Hort. By the time the Helldivers had finally reached the massive city of Consensus on Herthon, there were just 18 hours left to save Hort in the process, the latter of which began to crumble bit by bit.

In the face of increasing time pressure, the Helldivers wouldn't back down in any case. They would instead re-double their efforts to liberate Herthon, with thousands upon thousands joining the cause to ensure a double victory. The tide would begin to turn in favor of the righteous Helldiver Corps as the Illuminate were thoroughly outmanned in the city of Consensus, allowing the Helldivers to sweep through the massive city with relative ease.

By 21:00 SEST, the Illuminate were all but defeated on Consensus, thoroughly destroyed by the fervent and tactical aggression of the Helldivers. 45 minutes later, with just an hour left before Hort's defenses would collapse, the Helldivers had liberated Consensus, and with it, had saved both Herthon Secundus and Hort in a brilliant defense gambit. In one of the more impressive displays of coordination among the Corps, they had managed to achieve both their operational target of liberating Herthon's archaeological sites and their non-operational target of saving the innocent civilians of Hort. Both planets stood as the brightest lights of freedom across the entirety of the Galactic South, a battle that would be well remembered by those who bore witness to it. And thankfully, thanks to the liberation of Consensus on Herthon Secundus, the Illuminate attack on Hort was stopped, and the planet was safe.

Interim (October 25th, 2185)

Hort would come under direct assault during Illuminate offensive into Rigel Sector. While Rogue 5 and RD-4 earlier that week were left mostly ignored by Helldivers, due to different Major Orders, some dedicated groups managed to grind down the bulk of Squi'th offensive to manageable levels. With assistance from the Democracy Space Station, Hort was defended at the last second.

Festival of Reckoning 2185

Hort would come under a third assault on morning of December 22nd. The attack size was noticeably smaller than others in Rigel Sector, but if planet was to be lost, it would completly lock out the entire sector into Illuminate grasp. 3 Hours into the defense, Democracy Space Station was voted to Orbit the planet, together with 20 Thousand brave Helldivers. While only some focus was put into city of On-Earshou, Squith were routed from adjacent colonies across the planet and retreated from the system before any city was deemed liberated.

Operation Celestial Power

Illuminate would once again arrive into Hort System on early night of January 17th,2186, beginning a two day siege upon the planet. With a fleet strength of 18, many assumed it would be another easy defense. Squids immediately began attacking the city of Clockstop and the neighboring countryside. Yet despite being the only defense happening at the moment, together with the fact Operation Celestial Power was over, reinforcements were not arriving - most Helldivers spread evenly between encircled Gaellivare and the entirety of Terminid Front. The situation was further strained when Automatons invaded Zefia 6 hours later.

With only 11% of all divers on Hort, the defense progression was looking grim, and the fight for Clockstop had more or less grinded to a standstill. The situation would not change until the early morning of January 19th - when after successful defense of Zefia, divers would answer the call. However, this influx had arrived too late -the Illuminate had struck the city of On-Earsahou, splitting the Helldivers across both cities and ensuring none of them would be defended on time. Hort was declared lost on 21:45 SEST Time, with the mass retreat order given. With fall of Hort, the Rigel Sector became inaccessible and entirely within the tentacled grasp of the Squ'ith.

Operation Voidfall

Following the Appropriators successful deployment of exospires on Seasse, the an impenetrable darkness would consume the entire system and the surrounding space, blocking access for hundreds of lightyears in every direction. Dubbed The Void, this strange phenomenon emits no detectable radiation, and probes immediately cease broadcast upon entry. Following up on this act of galactic terror, the Appropriators would move to Hort on the 24th of March, 2186. Here, they would level every city on the planet and begun raising additional exospires, whilst also deploying the Mindless Masses to Rirga Bay in order to buy them time to expand the growing void. With a little under a week to stop the Illuminate, the Helldivers would first deploy to Rirga Bay to secure their staging ground, then finally assault Hort on the 25th of March.

The Heavy Ordnance distribution of the Democracy Space Station would help make up for lost time, accelerating the offensive tempo and slowing down the Illuminate through the liberal use of orbital fire support. Despite this, the Appropriators did not give up easy and the Helldiver Corps had to maintain the offensive pressure or risk losing operational momentum.

The fight on Hort was difficult on every measure, especially once the Helldivers were ordered to divert towards Ursica XI. However, the offensive continued onward and, once Ursica XI was liberated from the Terminids, the Helldivers would proceed at full speed against the Illuminate aggressors, intent on avenging the three Mega Cities leveled by the Illuminate. Amidst the battle, the three Mega Cities in Hort, or at least the ruins that remained of them, would be secured, ensuring that they would be reconstructed once the battle for Hort concluded. All seemed fine until the Illuminate sent out a second attack from within The Void towards Rirga Bay on March 28th.

The Helldivers were on a race against time to liberate Hort AND rescue the defense at Rirga Bay, as its protection was part of the Major Order's objectives. Hort would be liberated on March 29th, only some hours before Rirga Bay's defense was projected to collapse. Despite their best attempts, Rirga Bay would fall on the morning of March 30th, though the Helldivers did not surrender. They pressed the offensive and, against all odds, liberated Rirga Bay on the afternoon of March 31st, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat with barely more than 30 minutes before the Major Order concluded.

The Illuminate's plans for the Southern Galactic Fringe had been frustrated. Hort had been saved from the eldritch darkness of The Void and Rirga Bay had been defended. Despite all the destruction, the Hortians rejoiced, for the enemy had not destroyed anything that could not be rebuilt. The Helldivers had succeeded. Their homes had been set free. And the flag of Liberty still waved over the Hortian Grasslands.

Interim (May 12th - 14th, 2186)

Hort would come under direct attack from Hesoe Prime on afternoon of May 12th. Spearheaded by the puppted Mindless Masses, this attack was one of progns of offensive, as Heze Bay was attacked shortly after by Appropriators.

The call for defense as always was met with rapid response - Most Helldivers were finishing liberation efforts on Vernen Wells, thus in less than an hour, around 30% of divers were arleady present. Illuminate first begun their invasion in City of Clockstop, eventually spreading across whole planetside. By the morning of May 13th, Helldivers begun to gain an advantage over the invaders, deploying mostly to countryside, while besieged cities remained under constant squid attacks. Eventually, on same day, High Command has announced a new Major Order that would reduce the defensive garrison to less than 15% of all Divers - which would strain the defense to such degree, that most calculations were arleady predicting the planets fall. This was changed on morning of next day, when the remaining Helldivers focused their attention once again to besieged Clockstop, which was slowly getting won over past 2 days.

The fights in Clockstop would finally come to an end on noon of April 14th, 3 hours before planet would be declared lost. Squids were forced to retreat from the city, resulting in the Illuminate attack collapsing across whole surface - sparing Hort once again.

FTL Lines

• Herthon Secundus- Hanzo Sector (Established on October 7th, 2185)
• Hesoe Prime (Re-established on October 7th, 2185)
• Basquine VIII (Established on June 16th, 2186)
• Rirga Bay (Established on October 7th, 2185)

FTL Timeline

• February 8th, 2184: Hort is connected by FTL to Hesoe Prime and Rirga Bay.
• June 13th, 2184: FTL lines to Hesoe Prime and Rirga Bay are destroyed.
• October 7th, 2185: FTL lines to Hesoe Prime and Rirga Bay are re-established, plus new lines to Herthon Secundus and RD-4.
• June 16th, 2186: FTL line to RD-4 is destroyed and replaced with one to newly added Basquine VIII