It is tempting to view the Imperium of Man as a single coherent entity; a nation in the
style of those that once existed before the terrible collapse of humanity during the Age
of Strife.
Yet the borders, sectors, or territories laid over the maps of the galaxy have no basis
in reality and serve only to comfort the egos of those in power.
They are a reassuring lie that the Imperium has been established on a solid foundation.
The uncomfortable truth is that mankind is scattered across a million worlds, many of
which will go entire lifetimes without ever hearing the edicts of their Sector Governors,
let alone the High Lords of Terra.
Distance, time, and the ever shifting nature of the galaxy make a mockery of nations and
civilization.
Even a region that’s been thoroughly explored with no mystery left to it, if such a place
ever existed, might be cut off from the Imperium for millenia only to reemerge as a shadowy
wilderness beset by wonders and terrors beyond count.
Even in the best of cases, maps and records are unreliable.
The Koronus Expanse is far from the best of cases, in a galaxy of myth, legends, and lies,
it stands apart.
It is the edge of the map, the edge of all knowledge, the edge of the abyss.
Located in the outermost periphery of the galaxy, a region of space known to the Imperium
as the Halo Stars, the Koronus Expanse lies on the rimward outskirts of the Calixis Sector,
itself a part of the Segmentum Obscurus.
Its inclusion within the Imperium as a constituent entity however, does not reflect reality.
Imperial control is nominal and the entire region is instead a truly dark and dangerous
void in which man and xenos races compete with one another for dominion.
Imperial authority extends not a single meter beyond the range of their warships, and the
reach of their guns.
The true extent of the Koronus Expanse is difficult to determine as no all-encompassing
survey has ever been completed by the Imperium, nor is one possible so long as so many dangers
persist.
The entire region is believed to be enclosed within an outer boundary of warp storms, though
it is impossible to know for certain.
By even the most conservative estimates however, the Koronus Expanse contains a great multitude
of star systems and other celestial phenomena.
There is every indication it is a truly vast region, and were it ever to be fully integrated
into the Imperium, it would likely warrant the creation of an entirely new sector.
The fragmented nature of the Koronus Expanse and the Imperium's intermittent exploration
thereof, has made it necessary to divide the entire territory into numerous sub-regions;
the first and most important is the legendary Koronus Passage.
Known more often as “The Maw '' to the superstitious voidsmen who make the journey through it,
it represents the only reliable route in or out of the Expanse.
The Maw is a brief cleft between two enormous raging warp storms, the Screaming Vortex and
the Void Dancer’s Roil.
Though the passage itself is stable enough to allow for starships to pass through, it
is still a perilous journey, and it is hardly rare for the surrounding energies of the warp
to spill out into the Maw and consume any starships in their path.
Accordingly, the most valuable commodity within the Koronus Passage is a safe-haven from the
surrounding turmoil.
Port Wander is by far the most established, a massive void-station with a sizable presence
from the Imperial Navy.
Though technically it is positioned within the neighboring Calixis Sector, it guards
the entrance to the Koronus Expanse and will almost always be the point of embarkation
for any expedition intending to enter the Maw and the territories beyond.
Within the Maw itself are numerous “Stations of Passage”, locations largely immune from
the surrounding warp storms that can offer a place of refuge.
Some, such as “The Temple” and “The Hermitage” are literal ports in a storm,
void stations operated by Imperial or private authorities.
Others, such as the ill-omened “Witch-Cursed World”, or the wreckage field known as “The
Battleground” are places that, for whatever reason, Warp Storms will not touch.
While these four Stations of Passage are the most famous, dozens, perhaps hundreds more
exist throughout the Maw.
But without a heavily armed voidstation, most safe havens in the passage will only remain
so for as long as they are kept secret.
Many have consequently become the prized secrets of the Imperial Navy, Mechanicum, Rogue Traders,
or the myriad of other Imperial institutions that regularly travel into the Kronous Expanse.
Others still have developed a darker reputation, used by piracy groups, cults, and other foul
elements who likewise require a safe harbor.
More than one expedition traveling through the Maw has rejoiced upon discovering a new
Station of Passage only to find it has already been claimed by elements far more dangerous
than the surrounding storms.
On the far side of the Koronus Passage, the first stop for most within the Expanse itself,
is the Furibundus System.
Its eponymous star is noted to be unusually bright, raging with an inner turmoil that
evokes the imagery of primal beasts.
Outside its lethal ribbons of solar plasma lies Footfall, an interconnected network of
hundreds of asteroids and stations, all linked together by a labyrinthe of tethers, tunnels
and arch-bridges.
At its center lies one of the great wonders of the Imperium, a masterfully constructed
statue of the Emperor, whose stern visage towers over all.
Yet despite this reminder of Imperial power, it belies the true state of the outpost.
It has been centuries since a single authority governed Footfall and control has long since
devolved into rival gangs, criminal elements and piracy groups.
Deeper into the Expanse lies Winterscale’s Realm, named for the famous Rogue Trader,
Sebastian Winterscale who was the first to discover and chart many of its scattered worlds.
Though many more remain unexplored, those few that have been surveyed even partially,
were all found to possess enormous riches and treasures.
Gems, precious metals, nephium, exotic beasts, xenos artifacts and other curiosities made
Winterscale himself, and those who followed him, wealthy and powerful beyond all imanaging.
Even centuries later, entire Rogue Trader dynasties, merchant cartels, noble families
and other powerful institutions within the Imperium, can trace their ascendence back
to the fortunes they made in Winterscale.
First among them is the dynasty of Sebastian himself, whose descendent, Calligos Winterscale,
is said to still operate within the Koronus Expanse.
The promise of unrivaled fortune and glory has been enough to make Winterscale’s Realm,
and the entire Expanse, a household name across the Imperium’s exploratory elite.
Starmaps purporting to reveal the location of hidden riches and lost treasures known
only to Sebastian Winterscale himself are common, although most of them appear to contradict
one another.
This has led to the belief that Winterscale’s Realm was poorly charted, though it seems
more likely that many of Winterscale’s so-called “Thousand Charts' ' are forgeries, meant
to enthrall the foolish and separate them from their coin.
Rumors persist however that every chart is accurate, especially those that contradict,
and when viewed through the right cypher, they collectively might indeed hold Winterscale’s
greatest secrets.
Bordering Winterscale’s Realm are the “Ragged Worlds”; many hundreds of star systems,
nebulae, asteroid fields and other phenomena clustered tightly into a comparatively tiny
region only a few dozen light years across.
The presence of so many stellar bodies and their respective gravity wells in a single
area has the tendency to upset the neighboring warp storms, and travel within the Ragged
Worlds can be arduous to even the most experienced navigator.
And while there are always those willing to risk the perils of void travel in exchange
for material reward, the region is universally poor, with little of the wealth and power
found elsewhere in the Koronus Expanse.
The human civilizations that exist here are benighted and backwards, left to wither as
the attention of the Imperium is directed elsewhere.
Yet as competition grows among Imperial institutions and agents to explore the other regions of
the Expanse, some have instead given the Ragged Worlds a second look.
There remains the possibility that undiscovered treasures might exist here, overlooked by
all those who think they know better.
On the opposite side of Winterscale’s Realm, far deeper into the Koronus Expanse, lies
the region known as the Heathen Stars.
It is a particularly ancient area of space, devoid of any stellar nurseries and instead
filled with the dimming light of dying stars.
Strangely, human societies are common here, though they predate any colonial efforts undertaken
by the Imperium and might in fact have been founded well before the Great Crusade.
Most have fallen into savagery, and are now led by Psyker Kings or Cannibal Lords.
They wander amongst the ruins of their forefathers, their knowledge and sophistication forever
lost to them.
Other human civilizations are bizarre beyond recognition.
Stories persist of enormous mobile hive cities that war upon one another, dormant prayer
mechanisms built of impossible materials, or ruined cities filled with untouched relics
from the Dark Age of Technology.
Regardless, these civilizations know nothing of the God-Emperor and the Ecclesiarchy has
become especially interested in the deployment of missionary zealots and auto-temples.
The first early attempts however, ended in the disappearance of all those involved, amidst
swirling rumors of torture, slaughter and blood.If the Imperial faith is to survive
here, a far more encompassing effort will be required.
The Cinerus Maleficum, Foundling Worlds, Rifts of Hecaton, Unbeholden Reaches, Accursed Demesne
make up the remainder of the major regions of the Koronus Expanse, but in each case,
so little has been explored so as to make even a rudimentary assessment impossible.
None of these regions possess any commonalities that might justify their distinctive borders,
and they exist merely as theoretical administrative divisions, awaiting a time in which Imperial
control over the region might be solidified.
Such a time is likely far off however, for these unexplored regions are rife with xenos
civilizations, blighted worlds, and forgotten horrors.
The Accursed Demesne in particular is said to be a foul place, imprinting an aura of
ill-fortune on all those who travel within it.
Deep within it lies the Ork Empire of Undred Undred Teef, whose constant raids spill outwards
across the Expanse, though far darker things are said to haunt even the Orks.
Human civilization has existed within the Koronus Expanse in one form or another for
tens of millenia, though when precisely the Imperium reached its borders is difficult
to determine.
It is generally accepted that the Great Crusade either never reached the Expanse, or failed
to find a navigable route through the Maw.
Yet by the 38th Millennium, exploratory fleets and Imperial Crusades in the midst of bringing
the Calixis Sector into compliance, began making mention of some new territory beyond
the adjoining warp storms.
Nearly all information from this era concerning the exploration of the Halo Stars is fragmented
but it seems that an Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator Fleet likely found a path into what would
become known as the Koronus Expanse.
If this is true, then the knowledge of how to enter the Expanse was swiftly lost to the
Mechanicum, either to fate or the shifting warp currents of the Maw.
Swirling rumors of enormous wealth and unclaimed worlds beyond the Calixis Sector sparked something
of a gold-rush amidst Rogue Traders and other Imperial explorers, all seeking to be the
first to break through the barrier.
The emergence of an Ork Space Hulk from the far side of the warp storms further confirmed
that something lay beyond, and provided an additional military incentive to discover
what.
It was not until the construction of Port Wander in the final century of the 40th millennium
however, that attempts could be made with the necessary resources and momentum.
Finally, in the 997th year of M40, Rogue Trader Purity Lathimon became the first to navigate
the Koronus Passage.
Wary of its dangers, she made her fortune not in the exploitation of this new realm,
but rather by selling the secrets of how it might be entered.
With the existence of the Koronus Expanse finally proven beyond doubt, the sector lord
of Calixis and all their successors were granted the authority to issue Warrants of Trade.
These legal documents sanctioned the exploration, exploitation and domination of the new frontier,
and all those who possessed them could operate with the authority of the High Lords of Terra
themselves.
Armed with such Warrants, dozens and then hundreds of Rogue Traders entered the Koronus
Expanse, spreading Imperial power to the area for the first time.
The act also formalized the relationship between the Koronus Expanse and the Calixis Sector,
ensuring that whatever new territories were established beyond the Maw, would be politically
and economically reliant on their established neighbors.
The formation of Winterscale’s Realm, the supposed discovery of ancient and priceless
STC artifacts, Aeldari raids and Ork Waaghs forever cemented the Koronus expanse as a
place of boundless opportunity, and terrifying dangers.
Rogue Traders were quickly joined by other elements of the Imperium, with the Adeptus
Mechanicus, Ecclesiarchy, and even some Space Marine chapters pursuing their own agendas
within Koronus.
Yet the hold of the Imperium within the Koronus Expanse has always been tenuous.
Most power remains in the hands of criminals, thugs, and gangs, many of which aspire to
greater heights and some of which have even been recognized by the Imperium as its true
representatives in the region.
On every world, every station, loyalists, heretics, and every can of person in between
might be found, and it is often these latter groups who hold the most sway.
Even millenia later, though great efforts have been made in the region, only the smallest
fraction of the Koronus Expanse has been explored, and none of it thoroughly.
In addition to the ancient Xenos rivals of the Imperium, new threats have emerged.
The escalating attacks of Rak’Gol marauders is seen as especially concerning, and possibly
the precursor to a determined campaign to overthrow humanity’s dominance in the region.
Even more dire are the rumors that travel within the Maw has grown ever more dangerous,
and the entire region might soon be cut off from the greater galaxy.
But while the mysteries and hidden dangers that define the Koronus Expanse remain, so
too do its opportunities.
There are untold riches awaiting those with the courage to seize them, entire worlds that
might be claimed for the Imperium, and terrible foes whose transgressions against humanity
will bestow glory on any who might bring them to account.
Though it might one day become another sector within the Imperium of Man, for now it remains
the realm of the Rogue Trader.
The Koronus Expanse is a place where one can step off the edge of the map, the edge of
knowledge, the edge of the abyss, and into a realm of terror, wonder, and immortality.
Thank you to OwlCat games for providing the Templin Institute with a Warrant of Trade
and supporting our investigation into the deepest reaches of the Koronus Expanse.
If you’d like to journey beyond the maw and seek out your own fortune and glory, Warhammer
40,000 Rogue Trader is an upcoming classic CRPG, currently available for Pre-Order, you’ll
find the link in the description of this video.