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Hammer of Justice, Captain's Log
057.011.M41

We recently received reports of an incursion of human-like xenos in the outer reaches of Segmentum Obscurus, and were dispatched to engage and eliminate them.  I was assigned a five-ship unit, comprised of the Dominator-class Hammer of Justice, the Lunar-class Agrippa, the Tyrant-class Incendrius, and two of the new Falchion-class escorts of the Cypra Mundi Patrol.  After some months hunting the xenos, we encountered them in the Dimmamar system.  They hailed me, and stated that they were "Peacekeepers", and that we much submit to their rule.  Their force consisted of four light cruisers and one truly massive dreadnought (hull 20 as opposed to our 8), larger than anything our Mechanicus have yet built.  Three of the light cruisers were of some sort of organic material, and clearly alien in origin, while the third was metallic and clearly well-armored.  I informed these "Peacekeepers" that they must perish for their invasion of human space, and battle lines were drawn. 

I placed the two Falchions on my port side, and the Incendrius and the Agrippa on my starboard.  Their array was symmetric, with the three organic cruisers in a line in front, then the metallic one behind them, and the leviathan still further back.  I ordered the Falchions forward to test the enemy's range while the cruisers advanced more cautiously and the Hammer of Justice hung back to rain fire upon the enemy with its nova cannon.  The enemy cruisers advanced at a speed similar to the Falchions and opened fire on them; one of the Falchions was soon crippled, as the armament of the cruisers was superior both in range and strength.  It was here that we discovered the frightening range of the dreadnought, as it aided in the destruction of the Falchions.  Its weapons were set in broad turrets with only slightly shorter range that our own nova cannon, though mercifully less powerful.  Also of note was the poor quality of the shooting by the Falchions; I do not know if their crews were poorly trained or their auspex misaligned, but of all the firing they did, only one torpedo struck an enemy ship.  The Agrippa and the Incendrius shortly engaged the enemy cruisers, and obliterated two of the organics with a combined volley of torpedo and battery fire.  The Hammer continued to hang back, bombarding the leviathan relentlessly, though to little effect.  It was not that the nova cannon was not striking it, but that the sheer volume of the target prevented it from inflicting serious damage. 

Then, the enemy armored cruiser engaged the Agrippa and the Incendrius while the remaining Falchion fought the remaining organic.  The armor of the cruiser was the equal of our own, and turned many of our shots aside, while its own weapons, some sort of repeating Gatling energy weapon, caused significant damage to the armor of the Incendrius.  Sensing an opportunity, I ordered the nova cannon fired on both the organic and the armored cruiser, as they were in close proximity, and succeeded in damaging them both. 

As the second Falchion was destroyed, our situation grew increasingly desperate, and the captains of the Agrippa and the Incendrius attempted a forlorn hope against the dreadnought.  They succeeded in inflicting significant damage to both the leviathan and the armored cruiser, disabling the main weapons of both, but both cruisers were disabled in the attempt, left with a handful of guns between them, as we realized that the leviathan's close-range weapons were even more fierce than its long-range ones.  Meanwhile, realizing that the Hammer was the only remaining credible threat, the last organic cruiser attempted to close the range and engage it with its sole remaining weapon (a torpedo launcher of some sort), but was destroyed by the nova cannon. 

The Agrippa and Incendrius were subsequently destroyed wholesale by the combined close-range firepower of the two remaining enemy ships.  I was bewildered by the array of weaponry that they brought to bear; I observed no less than two types of torpedo, two varieties of explosive shells, and three types of energy weapons.  At this point, I began a retreat, hoping to bring news of this grave threat to Imperial sovereignty and return with reinforcements.  In doing so, it became clear that both remaining ships were much slower than the Hammer (whether naturally or through damage to their engines I do not know), and I was able, through a protracted guerrilla strategy, to destroy both vessels by maintaining the range and firing the nova cannon.  While I understand that this Pyrrhic victory is likely to cost me my command, I go happily knowing that I have done my duty to the Emperor by bringing his wrath to the Xenos.