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The following rules are for use in an extended campaign of Warhammer 40K.

Sector Occultus: Background Information

Sector History

The Imperium

Sector Occultus is in an extremely remote section of the Imperium. Due to frequent solar flare and warp storm activity, the Imperium has not yet extensively explored or settled the sector. Some planets in the sector, however, are densely populated. These planetary populations are the descendants of settlers that originally colonized those planets during the Dark Age of Technology. All such planets have been assimilated into the Imperium for many thousands of years.

The surrounding sectors have a scattering of Imperial worlds and outposts.

Recent months have brought reports of conflicts with various aliens, as well as sightings of Eldar, in the sector. Messages have been dispatched, and Imperial forces are currently en route to the sector.

Chaos

The Occultus Sector is rich in resources - resources that can be used to make war. Servants of the Chaos god Tzenntch were quick to note and take advantage of this fact. Using psychic energy from the constant warp storm activity in the area, a number of servants of Tzenntch used their sorcerous powers to create a small, unstable warp gate from the Immaterium on one of the worlds in the Occultus Sector.

Other servants of Chaos were quick to note this, and soon followed suit. A number of different Chaos forces soon set up military bases on the outskirts of the Occultus Sector. The Imperium is unaware of these bases, due to the recent nature of the settlements, and the infrequent nature of exploration in the sector.

Although the Chaos forces arrived at almost the same time, they do not share any common purpose. Each Chaos force seeks to exploit the sector for its own ends, regardless of the purposes of any other Chaos forces in the sector.

Orks

Orks have been reported in varying concentrations on numerous worlds in the sector ever since the earliest histories of the Occultus Sector were recorded. Until recently, the Orks caused few problems. Their numbers were small, and their populations showed no signs of increasing in size. Given the difficulty of actually eradicating Orks from a planet, due to the peculiar and persistent xenobiological nature of Orkoid reproduction, the Imperial forces in the region diverted their attention to more immediate concerns.

The nature of the Ork threat changed drastically with the arrival of an Ork-laden space hulk in the Occultus sector two years ago. Although little information is available, it appears that the space hulk was the command ship of a mighty WAAAGH, lost in the warp on its way to its destination.

The Warboss commanding the WAAAGH quickly landed massive Ork forces on the Ork-held worlds of the sector. Existing Ork planetary populations were massacred, enslaved, or recruited into the horde. Internecine Ork warfare continues on a number of planets, but most of the planets of the sector have been subjugated.

In the past two years, during intermittent intervals of heavy warp storm activity, a few Ork spacecraft from the original WAAAGH fleet have appeared in the Occultus sector. Their numbers have only added to the growing Ork menace.

Eldar

Eldar spacecraft have occassionally been sighted in the sector. No diplomatic relations have been established between the Imperium and the Eldar in this sector.

Unknown to the Imperium, there are a number of Eldar warp tunnels leading to and from the Occultus Sector. Various Eldar from different craftworlds visit to harvest resources from the uninhabited planets of the sector. Such visits are brief, ending as soon as the required resources have been gathered.

Some years ago, a visiting Eldar party left a small scouting force in the Occultus sector, as a Farseer of the Craftworld had determined that an indeterminate danger would arise in the area. After reports of the recent influx of Chaos forces, a number of Eldar Craftworlds sent reinforcements to prevent the Chaos forces from taking control of the warp tunnel outlets.

Dark Eldar

A Dark Eldar raiding party, chasing a fleeing convoy of ships, happened to enter the Occultus sector sometime in the distant past. What they saw were worlds with only light defenses, worlds cut off from the rest of the Imperium by frequent warp storms.

Worlds rich in souls for the taking.

After destroying the convoy of ships, the Dark Eldar forces left the sector. Their Lord, after receiving their report, sent raiding forces to the sector on regular occassions thereafter, to harvest a steady supply of plunder, slaves, and souls for her Kabal.

The raiding Dark Eldar took advantage of the frequent warp storm activity in the area, attacking only when astropathic communication was impossible. The victims of the Dark Eldar raids were assumed to be lost in the warp. The gradual harvesting of the Imperial worlds continued for centuries, until the leadership of the Kabal changed.

The new Lord of the Kabal was far more aggressive than the former Lord, and sent larger and more frequent raiding forces to the sector. It was inevitable that the increased scope of activities would attract the notice of the Imperial forces in the sector, and the attention of other Lords in the Commorragh.

Tyranids

Far from the planetary systems of the Occultus sector, a vast fleet of millions of spacecraft drifted, silent in the darkness of the void.

A number of ships, on the outskirts of the fleet, floated close enough to a planetary system for the rays of its sun to begin melting their icy shells. The courses of those ships gradually changed, their new heading taking them towards the inner planetary systems of the sector.

The rest of the vast fleet moved on through the emptiness between the stars.