Warp Storms

Warp Storms are a term used to describe the common and cataclysmic natural disasters in Antares.

Overview

Warp Storms are a common and catastrophic phenomenon in Antares. Despite the name, they encompass a variety of disasters, including earthquakes, meteor strikes, thunderstorms, typhoons, and tsunamis. These events are visually marked by a distinctive "tear" in the sky, or a pillar materialising in the epicentre of the storm, forming a seemingly infinite void of stars. While the weather effects themselves are severe, the true danger of Warp Storms lies in the emergence of Warp Entities, which manifest as a direct consequence of these storms.

The frequency and intensity of Warp Storms have increased over the past centuries, posing an existential threat to civilisations across Antares. Many of the societies founded after the Second Maelstrom have either been destroyed or absorbed into larger powers. To stave off annihilation by Warp Entities, most surviving civilisations have built Citadel Cities—large urban conglomerations fortified by towering walls or other formidable defences designed to withstand both the initial calamity and the onslaught of aberrations that follow.

Despite their deadly nature, Warp Storms leave behind deposits of Voidite Crystals, also referred to as Warp Crystals. These crystals, while imbued with the corruptive properties of the Warp, are highly sought after as a fuel source. Mined and processed, Voidite powers much of Antares growing industry.

Warp Maelstorms

Warp Maelstroms are catastrophes far exceeding the scale of regular Warp Storms. These extinction-level events occur once every several centuries, leaving devastation that reshapes the continent and significantly impacts its inhabitants. The significance of these events is so profound that the Antares calendar system marks the years following each Maelstrom as 'AT' or "Après la Tempête," meaning "After the Storm."

A Warp Maelstrom is not merely a disaster but a near-apocalyptic phenomenon. The last known Maelstrom fractured the continent and almost eradicated all life, ushering in a new era of survival and adaptation. While historical records remain incomplete, current research suggests that at least two Warp Maelstroms have occurred. The first is theorised to have obliterated Antares' precursor civilisation, and the second defines the era in which the current events of Antares unfold.