Dark Age of Technology

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  Ages of Mankind     Age of Terra — Dark Age of Technology (Expansion)— Age of Strife — Age of the Imperium  

"Fools have asked 'Why did the Dark Age of Technology end in the fall of humanity?', and other fools answer back 'Folly' or 'Pride' or 'The Worship of Progress', as if these things alone had any meaning. The answer, as the wise know, is simple. It is because finally humanity had the arts at their disposal to make their dreams reality, and the dreams of humanity have ever been the darkest things in all creation." - Introduction to the Emerald Testament, Suppressed work of the Technoarchaeologist Synecius Thorn, M29[18]


The Dark Age of Technology, also known as the High Age of Technology[30] or Age of Technology, was the zenith of mankind's scientific knowledge and technological power. It was a golden age of exploration and innovation, where scientists, engineers, inventors, and innovators became new gods. It spanned from M15 to M25 or[15] M18 to M23.[4] Various stellar empires rose in glory and fell to ruin during these millennia, but Mankind endured.[2c]

This age was long before the Age of the Imperium and knowledge of this time period is now incredibly sparse, and many "facts" about it are mere legend,[1a] many of which contradict each other.[2b]

Timeline

During the prior age, the Age of Terra, humanity had already taken its first tentative steps into the greater galaxy. By using slower-than-light interstellar travel they began to slowly explore parts of the galaxy and encounter alien races. Diplomacy was initiated with some and battled with others, such as the Orks.[2b] These early colonies had to be self-sufficient and were isolated from Terra due to the long, dangerous journeys.[7]

M15-M18

During M15 through M18, Mankind began to colonise the stars using sub-light spacecraft. The ships sent to reach the nearby star systems had to survive as independent states. These colonising vessels were separated from Earth by up to ten generations of travel.[24a]

M18-M22

The Age of Exploration begins in earnest. The Warp Drive is invented in M18 and interstellar FTL travel was now possible. For a period of time Navigators did not exist. According to some records, Navigators would eventually be created by M19. Many federations and empires would be founded. The first Alien Wars are fought.[2b]

Between M18 and M19,[2b] the Navigator gene was fashioned leading to the creation of the Navigators, mutant humans who could see the currents of the Warp and navigate a course through them. This allowed spacecraft to make longer and more accurate Warp-jumps than previously possible and Humanity proceeded to colonise the stars at a furious rate.[15] By M19 or M20, Navigator families had become powers in their own right, controlling the vast majority of industrial and trade cartels.[2b] The Navigators formed Houses, and began to survey the systems that would later form the Imperium during this Age of Exploration.[14b]

M22-M25

Humanity enters a golden age of enlightenment as scientific and technological progress accelerates. Human worlds unite and non-aggression pacts are secured with dozens of alien races. Some sources state this period is when the first Navigators were born.[24a][42] Other sources state that toward the end of M22 the first psykers were mentioned in records,[2b][7] making a sudden appearance across almost every human world within a relatively short span of time.[7]

By the end of M23 there was widespread anarchy across many human worlds. Mass Daemonic possessions, the Cybernetic Revolt, and great turbulence in the warp all brought the golden age to a spectacularly swift and brutal end by M25[7] or, at the latest, M26[8]. Thus began the Age of Strife.[7]

Overview

During this age, and well prior to Humanity's first steps into the stars, the Aeldari were the undisputed rulers of the Galaxy. The Aeldari Empire cared little for the goings-on of the lesser-races.[40] The Eldar Empire's gradual descent from ennui to excess began in M18.[41]

Golden Age of Expansion

The Dark Age of Technology is sometimes referred to as the Golden Age of Expansion, also known as the Golden Age of Exploration. Mankind travelled throughout the Galaxy and colonised the stars.[13] World after world was colonised at a rapacious pace.[4]

At some point after achieving interstellar travel, mining fleets were also set out from Terra bound for the Galactic Core, these fleets eventually settled in these stellar territories, aided by their Ancestor Cores, from this sect eventually the Leagues of Votann civilizations arose and Kin race was formed.[17]

Autonomous probes were sent forth to scout for worlds for suitable for human habitation. Pioneering fleets of Long March settlement ships would travel to these worlds carrying with them instructions on how to found human settlements in hostile environments, along with instructions concerning how to repurpose their Long March ships into combined construction-defence platforms, now known as the Imperial Knights. Charters for exclusive colonization rights would be given in times before and after warp travel was discovered. These colonies would later evolve into what are now known as Knight Houses and Knight Worlds.[20][22]

After warp travel was discovered in M18 human expansion increased. Gruesome accidents and tragic missteps were known to have occurred as the strain of Humanity known as Navigators did not yet exist. After some amount of time, the Navigators were cultivated, allowing for longer and more accurate warp jumps, and Humanity began a rapid flurry of expansion and the Age of Exploration began in earnest. Planetary colonialisation proceeded at a furious rate.[2b]

Stellar empires would rise and fall during these times. The Human race splintered and reformed time and again into warring or competing power blocs and planetary empires. While there is evidence that many wars and conflicts occurred, none seemed to threaten the destablisation of Human space as a whole.[2b]

Genetic Engineering

During this age, Humanity's mastery and belief in science allowed it to experiment widely with genetic engineering, modifying their species' genome to ever greater degrees and leading to creations such as armies of tailored gene-troopers. Scientist-kings and technodemagogues would wage wars that consumed entire star systems. Bloody uprising of genetically-altered humans would erupt within populations, many altered to a state beyond recognition and sanity.[2b]

Psychic Evolution

During the Dark Age of Technology humanity's evolution into a psychic race began to rapidly accelerate. By the end of M24 psykers and other mutations were appearing in human populations across the galaxy.[2b]

Some sources cite the first instances of scientifically proven psykers existing in humanity and appearing across human worlds between M18 and M22.[24a] Other sources state it occurred in the latter portions of the Age of Technology. Regardless, during this age the psychic evolution of Mankind began or accelerated. What few Imperial records remain show that the first mentions of psykers appear at the end of M22. Then by late M23 records indicate that psykers had became near ubiquitous across Humanity’s worlds.[15] The dread powers were draw towards humanity alongside this psyker emergence.[4]

The End of the Dark Age of Technology

Humanity's collapse from the golden period of the Dark Age of Technology is said to have been sudden and apocalyptic, engulfing all of human space. The large numbers of psykers that were appearing across the Galaxy were inadvertently heralding Daemonic possession and incursions, while others were claiming godhood over entire worlds or instigating full-blown reality collapses.[15] Great turbulence in the warp and mass daemonic possessions began occurring towards the end of M22. By the end of M23 there was widespread anarchy.[7]

Meanwhile the work of scientist-kings and technodemagogues progressively lead to ever more expansive wars and bloody uprisings. Entire worlds and star systems would fall to anarchy, due in part to the destructive creations of the period.[2b] The Cybernetic Revolt was an apocalyptic conflict which started between M23[7] and M26[8][Conflicting Sources] when artificially intelligent beings, known as the Men of Iron, turned on their Human masters. Entire Sectors were purged during the revolt.[7]

Then came the most ferocious warp storms in Mankind's history.[15] In M25 through M26, the shroud of Old Night begin to fall. Terrible warp storms would interrupt interstellar travel. Sporadic at first, they would eventually make warp jumps impossible.[24a] With the emergence of warp storms throughout most of the Galaxy, travel through the Warp became more and more dangerous until all but impossible, isolating many planets. Trade between Human worlds collapsed. Several worlds, particularly Terra, dependent on the imports from other worlds to feed their enormous populations, suffered massive famine.text-middle[Help]

The following time period is aptly named the Age of Strife. Old Night, as some call it, saw the many scientist-kings and technodemagogues that aided in these catastrophes take control.[19][21]

The end of Humanity's Age of Technology coincided with the buildup to the Eldar Empire's progressive fall. Humanity's Age of Strife ended with the culmination of the Fall of the Eldar Empire in M30, resulting in the creation of the Eye of Terror, birth of Slaanesh, and calming of the tempestuous tumult in the Warp.[40]

Creations and Discoveries of the Dark Age

Technologies of the Dark Age were far more advanced than what the Imperium has today, and indeed essentially all Imperial technology is based on acquired STC's from the period. In the superstition and religious fervor that has taken hold in the Imperium since the Horus Heresy, Dark Age technology is viewed with a mixture of both awe and fear. Worshiped as divine, relics of the Dark Age are sought after fanatically by the Adeptus Mechanicus.

The first proto-hive cities were built on over-populated human worlds during the Dark Age, using the recently invented construction mediums; Plasteel, Plascrete, Rockcrete, and Ferrocrete.[2b][7]

List of Notable Dark Age Creations and Discoveries


The Men of Stone

Main article: Men of Stone

The Men of Stone were created by the mysterious Men of Gold for the purpose of colonizing the Galaxy.[8][10] The Men of Stone were great artificers who existed in a state of "half-life" that helped protect them from the perils of the Warp. In time, the Men of Stone would create the Men of Iron to act as their servants.[8]

The Warp Drive

Main article: Warp Drive

By M18[7], the Age of Technology brought the development of the Warp drive and the Gellar Field, allowing spacecraft to make short Warp-jumps, travelling vast distances in a relatively short amount of time. Slowly, through many disasters, Humanity learned to use the warp to make faster-than-light journeys out of their own star system. It was during this time that the first alien races were encountered.[2b] In the early days of Warp travel, many means were tried to navigate the Warp with varying degrees of success, including drugs, psychic powers, and machines.[14a]

The Warp drive accelerated the colonisation of the Galaxy,[6] with vast colonisation fleets travelling from Terra.[13] It also allowed trade and communications between the colonies and Terra. Humanity began encountering other alien races, such as the Orks[6] and Eldar[5], and clashed with both civilizations during this period.[5][6]

The STC

Main article: Standard Template Construct

Amongst the creations in this scientific high point were the Standard Template Construct systems,[2b][6] at the heart of which was an evolved computer program designed to provide construction details for colonists. The STC systems contained all human technological knowledge. As most colonists were simple and required only basic equipment, the more advanced technology was rarely utilised.[31]

With Warp Drives and Navigators, mankind was finally able to colonize distant worlds and expanded with great speed. Terra-forming techniques and evolved astro-engineering capabilities were developed that allowed them to transform barren worlds into habitable planets.[1c] During this time, thousands of colonies were established by humans on distant worlds.[6] The resulting exploration brought mankind new knowledge, wealth and arrogance. Science is said to have become God. Humanity had encountered several alien races. With their discovery began the first human-alien wars. With mankind at the height of its power the threat of aliens was trivial and eventually non-aggression pacts were signed with many of the alien races. At this time the human colonies were federated to Terra - allowing the human race to remain unified.[24a]

Artificial Intelligence

Main article: Men of Iron

Mankind created various forms of artificial intelligence during this time. Thinking machines of vast intellect transformed colony worlds into utopias where they administered to every need of human colony. Endless ranks of fearsome Men of Iron were created to be unleashed on any that refused to capitulate, alien and human alike.[2b] Used as servants, these beings eventually rebelled and nearly brought humanity to ruin. After a devastating war, the Men of Iron were defeated and subsequent developments of artificial intelligence was outlawed. This edict remains in effect even to this day.[8]

Trivia

TriviaScrollTrans.png

The following information is not to be regarded as officially sanctioned and/ or is not written from an in-universe point of view. A detailed explanation of the term "Trivia" as used in the Lexicanum can be found here.

Conflicting Sources

Cybernetic Revolt

The Journal of Keeper Cripias in the 3rd Edition Rulebook places the Cybernetic Revolt in M25 or M26 (the wording is unclear). It should be noted that the Journal is written as an in-universe account of an historian in the 41st Millennium attempting to write a history of the Dark Age of Technology.[8] The 6th Edition Rulebook, written as an out-of universe resource, places the Cybernetic Revolt between M23 and M25.[7]

Psykers and Navigators

In regard to whether widespread psykers or the first Navigators came first:

There are conflicting sources as to whether psykers began appearing across Human populations before[2b] or after Navigators are noted as coming into existence. The Deathwatch Core Rulebook and Horus Heresy: Collected Visions timelines have the same text. Both explicitly state that Navigators appeared after psykers and warp travel had already become widespread.[24a][42]

However, this could be an in-universe document of the Inquisition (based on the artistic style of the page), thus being potentially fallible.[24a] Other sources, such as the Warhammer 40,000 6th Edition Rulebook explicitly mention psykers becoming widespread in M22. Other 40k core rulebooks also note or imply psykers became common after navigators and warp travel have been around for some millennia.

See also

Sources

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This article includes background material from a Black Library publication re-released under the Heretic Tomes banner which, per the Heretic Tomes Publication Disclaimer, contain parts which are considered outdated and in contradiction of established background lore.

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