Scorched Lands

Lore
It was once a flourishing planet under the direction of the brightest minds of the Expanse. Its original name was Haven, for it was to be a land for all to rest their weary heads and sigh in relief, as they passed through the Highlander's Gulf and entered the Expanse proper. All of the races of the Council were involved in its construction, reinforcing their ties and believing Haven to be a symbol their unity and their prosperity.

For that reason, the event that would come to be known as the Sundering was all the more devastating to the galactic community. Over a span of three days, the outside lost all contact with the verdant planet that was Haven. Within 48 standard hours, the planet's surface was obscured by dust formations of unknown composition or origin. Then, the dust settled, to reveal a blackened, destroyed, annihilated landscape.

Preliminary scans showed no carbon-based lifesigns on the planet's surface. When the Mentalic Array was delivered and put in place, it was revealed that the entirety of the planet was now suffused with enough eldritch radiation to kill whoever dared thread upon its surface. The Council decreed the Expeditionary Fleet 801 to investigate the matter further, which was acted upon with due diligence. An expedition was dispatched on the surface, supplied with the best specialists that could be found.

They never returned. 12000 trained, combat-ready marines, supported by a detachment of the Psykana masters and several cutting-edge total warfare battle mechanoids disappeared without trace along with the Captain of the flagship Karnaca, Zachariah Severian. A blockade was established upon the planet, where no one could get in or get out. Several monitoring stations were constructed, but the expeditions to the surface were forbidden.

And that is how it is now. A scorched land of the dead, guarded eternally by the dogs of war, a stern and dark reminder of the dangers of the Expanse, where nothing is what it seems.