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From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
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The Age of Technology ended catastrophically, as widespread insanity, daemonic possession, and inter-human conflicts suddenly took hold throughout the human worlds. With the emergence of Warp storms through most of the galaxy, travel through the [[Warp]] became more and more dangerous until all but impossible, isolating many colony planets for millennia. Soon, the planets dependent on importing goods from other worlds to feed their enormous populations, particularly [[Terra]], suffered from massive famine and widespread revolts. This left humanity incredibly vulnerable to external threats, which several [[Xeno]] races (such as the [[Ork]]s) were able to take advantage of and executed brutal raids, causing devastation to many human-colonized worlds. We find mankind at the dawn of the Age of Strife gripped in bitter civil war, while simultaneously battling hordes of powerful [[daemon|daemons]] and seemingly endless Xeno invasions.{{Fn|1}}
Over the long period of isolation new species of humans began to evolve, adapting to suit their new environment, and became the [[Abhuman]] races: the [[Ratling]]s (stunted by thousands of years of inbreeding on worlds with climates and environments even more conducive to human life than ancient Terra) , the [[Ogryn]]s (harsh, cold, and barren worlds), and the [[Squat]]s (the barren high-gravity worlds towards the galactic core). The Age of Strife was a time of anarchy, destruction, and regression, lasting thousands of years. Mankind's successes in the Age of Technology were lost, and many human worlds regressed to the level of barbarity.{{CMEFn|2}}
However some isolated pockets of human civilisation managed to survive and even thrive; mainly those worlds and star systems which were, or became, completely self-sufficient in all vital aspects. Sub-light travel was still possible, and some star systems had several colonies to trade and to share resources. Warp jumps could be made on occasion, as the storms waxed and waned. Some few fortunate star systems were even close enough to each other for tiny "pocket empires" to begin forming. Known "pocket empires" of this time were the domain of the [[Interex]]{{Fn|10}} and the Squat homeworlds.{{Fn|11}}
==Uncited==
*''[[Realm of Chaos: The Lost and the Damned]]''
*[[White Dwarf 178]] ''The Titan Legions'' by Rick Priestley.
