| “ | Abundant with life, this wet planet is covered in deep oceans, thick forests, and tall grasses. | „ |
| ~ Official Description |
Mantes is one of the five planets that reside within the Xzar Sector. It compares quite similarly to how Meridia used to look like, a former planet on the complete opposite side of the galaxy in the Umlaut Sector.
Topology[]
Mantes is a tropical jungle planet, populated with lush vegetation and trees and tall grass with the occasional clearing in between. Among the trees, volcanoes may be found on certain occasions which, if they happen to start erupting during an operation, can prove dangerous if not fatal, as the rocks spurted out of them can very well kill anything they catch off-guard, from meager, unfeeling robots to any righteous Helldiver who might just be getting their designated 2.3 seconds per mission to enjoy the scenery.
History[]
Special Military Operations[]
Automaton Expeditions[]
Mantes, alongside with Draupnir, would be the first world to suffer the toil of the Automatons. In February 2184, the Automatons launched a surprise attack on the Xzar and Severin Sectors, overwhelming the defenses and taking over multiple planets upon which they would released their mechanized cruelty.
The defenses would be fierce and the Helldivers, as usual loyal. They would fight for 3 days to hold the line on Mantes and Draupnir, but to no avail, as the Automatons' trickery once again allowed them to take over the planets and continue their spread of socialism to continue unfettered, as Mantes, and most of the Xzar, Severin and, by that point, Trigon Sectors had become locked in a bloody deadlock, as Helldivers diverted attention away to the East in order to install the Terminid Control System.
Operation Swift Disassembly[]
With the Terminid Control System being successfully installed and operational by the end of February, Super Earth High Command decided to refocus back on the Automaton threat that loomed in the West. With strong determination, Operation Swift Disassembly was authorized. Through the entire month of March and into the month of April 2184, the Helldivers relentlessly pushed against the Automaton threat, capturing planet after planet. While Mantes was not part of any of the operation's objective, it would be liberated roughly around the same time as nearby Draupnir and Ubanea.
When the last Automaton forces at Durgen were destroyed and the dust had settled, Super Earth rejoiced in celebration. Mantes, and the rest of the Western Galactic Rim, were free at last from the cruelty of the Automatons.
Automaton Reclamation of Cyberstan[]
However. The Automatons were not going to just embrace Managed Democracy out of the goodness of their motherboards, for there was no such thing in them besides innate evil and hatred for freedom. A mere 3 days after their righteous obliteration, they returned. A massive Automaton fleet, 10 times larger than the one encountered before, was now invading the Valdis Sector, taking over Cyberstan and slowly encroaching onto the neighboring systems.
Second Galactic War[]
Operation Xzar Lockdown[]
From April to June, the colonists in Mantes watched in fear as, one by one, the Automatons took over the planets in neighboring systems. Then, after they broke the deadlock in Charbal-VII, they launched a third assault onto nearby Mort. Super Earth could not bear the prospect of the Automatons regaining their old position and, fearing for the safety of its citizens, authorized a major order with one primordial goal: Keep the Automatons out of the Xzar Sector by all means necessary.
On June 21st, the Automatons captured Vandalon IV, just as the defense at Ingmar was ongoing. Then, 2 days later, as their offensive on Mort collapsed and took their offensive at Pöpli IX down with it, they revealed their nefarious ace under their robotic sleeve: The Automatons would create a new FTL Line from Vandalon IV into Mantes and began an attack on it on June 23rd.
While Mantes' defense would be successful, with the Automaton advance being halted on June 24th, it has left a new concern burned into the minds of Super Earth Strategic Command.
It had to now account for the possibility of both of its enemies now being capable of creating new supply lines to outmanoeuvre them.
FTL Lines[]
FTL Timeline[]
- February 8th, 2184: Mantes is connected by FTL to Ingmar, Pöpli IX, Draupnir and Malevelon Creek.
- June 23rd, 2184: New FTL line to Vandalon IV is established.