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At a glance
The Eye of Terror is the largest and most infamous warp rift in the galaxy, a vast region of space where the boundary between realspace and the warp has collapsed. It was born in the Fall of the Aeldari, when the excesses of an ancient empire gave birth to the Chaos god Slaanesh. The psychic shockwave of that birth tore a hole in reality, swallowing the heart of the Aeldari empire and leaving behind a maelstrom of warp energy.
Within the Eye, the laws of physics are malleable, and the will of the Chaos gods shapes reality. Its worlds are known as Daemon Worlds, ruled by Daemon Princes and inhabited by daemons, mutants and the damned. After the Horus Heresy, the defeated Traitor Legions fled into the Eye, and they have dwelt there ever since, launching raids and crusades against the Imperium.
For ten thousand years, the Imperium guarded the Eye through the Cadian Gate, the only stable route out of the rift. The fortress world of Cadia stood at its heart, holding back the forces of Chaos. But in M41, Abaddon the Despoiler finally broke the Gate in the Fall of Cadia. Soon after, the Great Rift tore the galaxy in two, and the Eye of Terror became part of a wound that stretches across the whole of the Imperium.
Geography & environment
The Eye of Terror is a vast, swirling vortex of warp energy, visible from many worlds as a dark purple stain on the night sky. At its heart, the warp and realspace mingle completely, and the Daemon Worlds float in seas of raw psychic energy. Further out, the boundary is less complete, and worlds there exist in a strange half-state, partly real and partly warp.
Travel within the Eye is unpredictable. Ships can be lost for centuries or emerge before they left. Navigators struggle to find their way, and many ships are destroyed by warp storms or daemons. The few routes that are reliable are guarded by the Traitor Legions and their allies, and they are fiercely contested.
The Daemon Worlds themselves are shaped by the will of their masters. Some are paradises of excess, others are hellscapes of fire and blood. Some are vast factories where daemon engines are forged, others are libraries of forbidden knowledge. Each reflects the nature of the Chaos god or Daemon Prince who rules it.
The Daemon Worlds
Among the most infamous Daemon Worlds is the Planet of the Sorcerers, home of Magnus the Red and the Thousand Sons. It is a world of shifting landscapes and impossible architecture, where Magnus raised a twisted echo of lost Tizca. Its towers are filled with knowledge, and its sorcerers study the secrets of the warp.
Medrengard is the domain of Perturabo and the Iron Warriors. It is a world of vast fortresses, endless factories and grim, grey skies. Perturabo broods there, building ever more elaborate defences and plotting against his enemies. The Iron Warriors' fortresses are among the most formidable in the galaxy.
Other worlds are ruled by the Daemon Princes of the Traitor Legions. The World Eaters have no single homeworld; they roam the Eye in endless war. The Emperor's Children have claimed worlds of excess, and the Death Guard's patron Mortarion once ruled the Plague Planet before he led his sons out to war. The Black Legion has no homeworld; its warbands are scattered across the Eye, united only by their loyalty to Abaddon.
The Crone Worlds
At the heart of the Eye lie the Crone Worlds, the remnants of the ancient Aeldari empire. These worlds were swallowed by the warp during the Fall, and they are now ruled by the servants of Slaanesh. Their ruins are filled with the spirit stones and artefacts of the Aeldari, and they are haunted by the souls of the dead.
The Aeldari regard the Crone Worlds with horror and sorrow. They are the graveyard of their civilisation, and they are a constant reminder of the price of their ancestors' sins. Yet some Aeldari venture into the Eye to recover lost artefacts, and they risk their souls to do so. The Crone Swords, powerful weapons forged in the ancient days, are said to lie hidden there, and the Ynnari believe that they hold the key to the rebirth of the Aeldari.
History
The birth of the Eye
The Eye of Terror was born in the Fall of the Aeldari, around the end of M30. The ancient Aeldari empire had become decadent, and its people indulged every pleasure without restraint. Their excesses fed the warp, and in time, a new Chaos god was born: Slaanesh. The birth of Slaanesh unleashed a psychic shockwave that destroyed the Aeldari empire and tore a hole in reality. The survivors fled, some to the Craftworlds, some to the Exodite worlds and some to Commorragh. The heart of their empire was swallowed by the warp and became the Eye of Terror.
The coming of the Traitor Legions
After the Horus Heresy, the defeated Traitor Legions fled into the Eye. They fought each other for territory and resources, and their Primarchs became Daemon Princes, ruling Daemon Worlds of their own. The Legions fragmented into warbands, and many fell into infighting. But they never forgot their hatred of the Emperor, and they have raided the Imperium ever since.
The Black Crusades
Abaddon the Despoiler has led thirteen Black Crusades against the Imperium. Each has emerged from the Eye through the Cadian Gate, and each has been driven back. But each crusade has also achieved some hidden goal, and the 13th Black Crusade finally broke the Cadian Gate. With the fall of Cadia, the Eye of Terror was opened, and the forces of Chaos poured into the Imperium.
The Great Rift
After the Fall of Cadia, the Great Rift tore the galaxy in two. It stretches from the Eye of Terror across the galaxy, cutting the Imperium in half. The Eye is now part of a vast wound in reality, and the forces of Chaos have been unleashed across the galaxy.
The Cadian Gate
For ten thousand years, the Cadian Gate was the only stable route out of the Eye of Terror. The fortress world of Cadia stood at its heart, guarded by the Cadian Shock Troops and the pylons that stabilised the region. Other worlds, such as Belis Corona and Agripinaa, supported Cadia's defence. Together, they held back the forces of Chaos for millennia.
The Cadian Gate was not the only route out of the Eye, but it was the safest and most reliable. Other routes existed, but they were unpredictable and dangerous. The Traitor Legions used them for raids, but large invasions needed the Gate. This made Cadia the focus of countless attacks, and it was the reason the Imperium invested so heavily in its defence.
Life among the warbands
Beyond the great Legions, the Eye is home to countless smaller warbands. Some are fragments of the original Traitor Legions, others are renegade Chapters who turned from the Emperor in later millennia. They fight for territory, slaves and the favour of the gods, and they raid one another as often as they raid the Imperium. Alliances are rare and short-lived, and betrayal is expected.
A warband's strength depends on its leader. Champions rise by killing their rivals, and they fall when they are killed in turn. The gods watch these struggles, and they reward those who please them with gifts: mutations, weapons, daemonic allies and, rarely, the ultimate prize of daemonhood. Many champions die long before they reach it, and their warbands are absorbed by their killers.
Abaddon's great achievement was to unite these warbands under his banner. He did it by force, by cunning and by the promise of revenge against the Imperium. When he calls a Black Crusade, the warbands answer, and for a time, the Eye speaks with a single voice.
The Eye as seen from the Imperium
For the people of the Imperium, the Eye of Terror is a symbol of everything they fear. On worlds close to it, its light stains the night sky, and preachers point to it as proof of the Emperor's wisdom and the warp's evil. Psykers on those worlds suffer nightmares, and many go mad. Children are told that the Eye watches them, and that it will take them if they stray from the Imperial Creed.
The Imperium has long known that the Eye is a source of danger, and it has maintained vast fleets and armies around it. The Cadian Gate was the most heavily defended region of the Imperium, and its fall was a catastrophe that shook the faith of billions.
The pylons of Cadia
For millennia, the surface of Cadia was dotted with mysterious obsidian pylons. Their purpose was unknown to most of the Imperium, but they were protected at all costs. In truth, the pylons were ancient Necron devices that dampened the warp and held the Eye of Terror in check. They made the Cadian Gate the only stable route out of the Eye, and their presence was a key reason Cadia held for so long.
Abaddon understood the importance of the pylons, and he worked for centuries to destroy them. During the 13th Black Crusade, he finally succeeded. Many of the pylons were destroyed or corrupted, the warp surged, and Cadia was doomed. Belisarius Cawl attempted to restore the pylons in the final battle, and for a moment, it seemed he might succeed, as the reawakened pylons pulsed and the daemons upon the surface were banished in their thousands. But Abaddon brought down the Blackstone Fortress Will of Eternity upon the planet, and Cadia was destroyed.
Inhabitants & culture
The inhabitants of the Eye of Terror are a mix of daemons, Traitor Marines, mutants, renegades and slaves. Daemons are the most numerous, and they are the servants of the Chaos gods. Traitor Marines rule over the Daemon Worlds, and they command armies of mutants and cultists. Slaves are captured from the Imperium and put to work in the factories and fortresses of the Eye.
Culture within the Eye is shaped by the Chaos gods. Followers of Khorne seek glory in battle, followers of Nurgle spread disease and decay, followers of Tzeentch seek knowledge and power, and followers of Slaanesh seek pleasure and excess. Many inhabitants worship Chaos as a whole, and they seek to rise in the favour of the gods. The ultimate prize is daemonhood, the transformation into a Daemon Prince.
Time flows strangely within the Eye. Traitor Marines who fought in the Horus Heresy are still alive, for ten thousand years in the Imperium may be only a few centuries within the Eye. This allows the original Traitor Legions to survive, and it is why the Imperium still faces warriors who fought at the Siege of Terra.
Defenders & war-machine
The Eye of Terror is defended by its own inhabitants, and by the warp itself. Any force that invades the Eye faces daemons, warp storms and the Traitor Legions. Few have ever tried, and fewer have survived. Those who return are often quarantined by the Inquisition, and many are executed to ensure that no taint has followed them home. The Imperium has occasionally sent forces into the Eye, but these have rarely achieved anything of lasting value.
The forces that emerge from the Eye are some of the most dangerous in the galaxy. The Black Legion, the Iron Warriors, the Thousand Sons, the Death Guard, the World Eaters and the Emperor's Children all dwell there, along with countless lesser warbands. They are supported by daemons, daemon engines, mutants and renegade Imperial forces. Their Daemon Princes and Possessed are among the most feared warriors in the galaxy.
Notable battles
- The Fall of the Aeldari (M30): the birth of Slaanesh creates the Eye of Terror.
- The Black Crusades (M31 to M41): Abaddon leads thirteen crusades against the Imperium.
- The Fall of Cadia (M41): the Cadian Gate is broken; see Fall of Cadia.
Trivia
- The Eye of Terror is visible from many worlds as a purple stain on the night sky.
- Time flows strangely within the Eye, which is why Heresy-era Traitor Marines still live and still remember the betrayals of the Heresy as if they were recent.
- The Cadian Gate was the only stable route out of the Eye.
- The Crone Worlds are the remnants of the ancient Aeldari empire.
- Medrengard, the daemon world of Perturabo, is covered in vast fortresses built by the Iron Warriors.
- The Great Rift, which followed the Fall of Cadia, is also known as the Cicatrix Maledictum.
