Zakuul

**Zakuul**, dubbed **World of the Damned**, the **Gateway to the Eye**, and by the descendants of the people that once lived on the planet, **The Homeworld That Was**, is a planet located in the far western edge of Unknown Regions of the galaxy and from what little records and data that remains from their ruined civilization, the capital of an empire known simply as the Eternal Empire of Zakuul. Once it was a harsh swamp planet filled with all manner of dangerous fauna, now it is an even harsher Warp-touched planet that's barely recognizable to its' ancient past, with the only indication of this earlier history being the ruins of a massive pyramid-like structure called the Spire and the fragmented remnants of the Eternal Swamp doting the twisted landscape that now comprise the majority of the planet's surface. As to why this planet became this state has much to do to its' proximity to the Eye of Terror, a region of the galaxy that serves as the gateway to the Warp, and due to its' closeness to this Force-based phenomenon, it became twisted by the Warp considerably , to the point that the society and people that once existed there have either died out entirely or fled the planet en mass, escaping its' horrors as it become more and more twisted by the influence of the Warp.

Much about this world is a mystery, from its' society and culture to its' empire it used to be the heart of. But due to proximity to the Eye of Terror and the Warp corruption that has long since twisted the planet makes attempts at discovering how this planet ended up like this nearly impossible, with any recoverable data often times being corrupted in some way. But theories have been suggested that the mysterious creation of the Eye of Terror likely has some reason behind the state of the planet. Specifically, whatever event that created the Eye, likely had a serve affect on Zakuul as it opened up a pathway to the Warp, which in turn also allowed the Warp's influence and corruption to spread out in a radius of several light-years. A radius of which Zakuul was astrographically right in the center of it, causing it to become the first of many planets to be twisted and turned into a Warp-touched world. Predictably, this event also marked the end of ancient Zakuulan society as a whole, as the resulting chaos this caused would lead to societal collapse, and a death toll of unimaginable levels. And yet a few manage to survive this horrific event, becoming nomads scattered across the galaxy, and yet still secretive about their people even to this day.

Due to its' location, Zakuul has enviably became a "holy world" of numerous Warp based cults, the most common of which is the Cult of Chaos. But they are not the only group that has settled the world to worship the Warp, numerous other cults also exist among the ruined landscape of the planet, yet they are still very much at danger from the numerous Warp made horrors that now plagues the planet, and not all of them are Chaos Cult in relation. Plenty are made from a variety of other sources and influences, such as the Malefactors, which represents violence and cruelty, being just one of the many different Warp daemons found on the world. Occasionally, either brave or foolhardy people would come to the planet to either find riches among the ruins or to try and solve the mystery of the planet's current state, but more often then not, these individuals disappear, likely becoming victims of any of the planet's numerous Warp daemons or the cultists that now call it home.