Phobox Anomaly

Overview

Catalogued by the Imperium at some point after the Horus Heresy, the Phobox Anomaly was an omnipresent large warp rift that bordered a significant portion of subsector Kalibras. Although it prevented any travel past it, few attacks originated from it thus the Imperium focused their attention on the more active warzones in the sector and treated the reaches of Kalibras that lied near the rift as Terra incognito. This would change shortly after the conclusion of the First Poxwar, whether due to the machinations of the Ruinous Powers, the warp echo of the countless victims of the war, or merely the random nature of the Empyreum, the Phobox Anomaly rapidly expanded in an explosion of warp energy that tainted anything caught within the expansion.

The Anomaly Expands

At its zenith Phobox was large enough to be its own subsector, though as quickly as it grew it collapsed inwards, vanishing and leaving in its wake a mass of uncharted space and warp storms that left only three passages to the New Worlds. The newly termed Specelo, Shadowed, and Tonitro Passages offered varying degrees of safe passage to the New Worlds, and soon Explorator fleets, Rogue Trader vessels, pilgrim fleets and more flooded the New Worlds. The New Worlds offered new opportunities for the Imperium, but many worlds were already claimed by heretics long hidden and touched by the warp energies that secluded them, with followers of the different Ruinous Powers quickly engaging Imperials unlucky enough to find them. Realizing the threat the New Worlds could pose, from heretic to Xeno, reinforced void stations were repurposed to guard the passages to and fro the New Worlds. The Imperium has not had much success in taming the reaches of Kalibras, as while the differing Chaos forces found within lack central organization they will unite against any invading force, a fact which will force the Imperium to launch a Crusade to truly take the New Worlds. This same lack of organization has historically benefitted Kalibras, as the only attacks originating from the Reaches are isolated and random raids instead of large scale attacks, thus Battlefleet Kalibras has grown well accustomed to hit and run attacks and focuses more on interdiction than large fleet actions. The Inquisition has taken an interest in the New Worlds as well, for some amongst the Ordos are hopeful that the answer to stopping the Bubonic Rift are hidden away in the subsector, a search which has thus far proved fruitless.