Editing Nobledark Imperium Notable Planets (section)

=== Iyanden ===

In official records and Imperial propaganda, Iyanden is one of the most successful examples of Imperial-Eldar relations in history, a friendship won in blood and iron. And while this may be believed by the rank and file of both peoples, the truth is a little more complex than that.

Even after the marriage between the Steward (as he was still known at the time) and Isha, the Craftworld of Iyanden refused to be part of the alliance. They saw the evil that lurked in the hearts of men, and lambasted the idea of chaining their entire race to the barely-tamed, barely-evolved pseudo primates that had the gall to call itself a sentient species. Even so, they knew that angering said wild beast would only prove detrimental, so they made a deal- they would of course honour any request the Imperium would make of them, on the condition the Imperium never made any such request. Though the High Lords took great offence at this snub, they also knew that antagonizing Iyanden would risk the rest of the alliance, and so quietly backed down.

And so matters were left, Iyanden being an island of isolation in the middle of the Realm of Ultramar. Though they opened their docks for limited trade in late M36, they only did so for the handful of Rogue Traders who managed to find their home. Even then, it was only for what few luxuries the Craftworld could not provide, and would be safe for those on the Path to consume.

Then the Hive Fleets came.

Isolated as they were, Iyanden was almost engulfed by the Shadow in the Warp when they managed to send their distress signal. Even so, it said that only by miraculous guidance from the Eternal Emperor and Empress did Prince-Admiral (later Saint) Yriel manage to find the beleaguered Craftworld (indeed, it is officially recorded as the Saint's first miracle). Though the rescue effort was a success, the Craftworld was left devastated, with many of its population reduced to soulstones.  Even worse, the Imperial fleet that had saved them could barely spend enough time for rest and repairs, as the chitinous tide threatened to drown Ultima Segmentum. No ship could be spared to defend Iyanden, not even the most grievously wounded ones guaranteed to die pauper's deaths in the void.And so it was that Iyanden found itself making another unfair deal. They offered to make themselves a mobile dock for the Imperial Navy, on the condition that there would always be ships provided for their protection.

Today, Iyanden is so integrated into the Navy organization of Ultima Segmentum that it is officially designated a void station colony instead of a Craftworld. Sailors from a hundred member races, from a thousand times more worlds, mingle every day in bustling streets where once Eldar took quiet walks. So many ships orbit the Craftworld that at times they block the stars. And while many of the younger races and Eldar youth see this as a great thing (some even proclaim Iyanden's colours of blue and gold, the same as the Imperial Navy's, to be a sign of divine intervention), older Eldar simply sigh, and mourn the lost purity of their home as yet another casualty of the Tyranids, and they fear what the outsiders might bring in.

The other notable feature of Craftworld Iyanden is its use of wraithguards. The Iyanden Infinity Circuit has been noted to be rather odd compared to other Craftworlds. The Infinity Circuits of most Craftworlds are often described as cold, cloying, and lifeless. The dead wish to be left to their rest and although it is possible to coax a spirit out to give guidance to their living descendants spending too much time in the Infinity Circuit makes most spiritseers depressed, grow tired of living, and eventually abandon their physical forms. The Iyanden Infinity Circuit is different. Rather than being composed of eldar that died to various causes and lived a relatively long life, at one point in time the vast majority of Iyanden’s dead were composed of eldar whose lives were cut dramatically short by the arrival of Hive Fleet Kraken.

This created a very different environment in the Infinity Circuit. The newly-arrived Iyanden dead did not want to rest, they wanted out, whether it was due to the fact that their home was still being ravaged by tyranids or because they weren’t yet ready to die in the first place. This created a psychic feedback cycle typical of the eldar, whose unstoppable momentum ended up transforming the overall nature of the Infinity Circuit. As a result, the atmosphere of the Iyanden Infinity Circuit is very different from that of other Craftworlds, having a nearly electric atmosphere of anticipation and energy than a tranquil air of finality. As a result, Iyanden spiritseers are somewhat odd even compared to the spiritseers of other Craftworlds. When trying to describe the experience, Iyanden spiritseers have compared communing with the Iyanden Infinity Circuit to sticking your tongue in a light socket.

By the end of rebuilding from the arrival of Hive Fleet Kraken, wraithguards outnumbered the living population by nearly ten to one. Wraithguard body stockpiles were rapidly depleted, and it took bonesingers more than sixty years to make up the deficit. The ratio of living to walking dead has become more reasonable in the years since, but Iyanden still has more active wraithguard than any other Craftworld. Wraithguard actively patrol Iyanden’s streets like British Beefeaters, rather than waiting to be summoned in the Craftworld’s most desperate hour, seemingly stoic and oblivious to the world around them but more than capable of responding should their ire be raised. Post-Kraken, the Iyanden Infinity Circuit is less a resting place for the dead and more a waiting room until the next bonesinger can sing you a new wraithguard body into existence. Drawing comparisons between the current practices of the wraithguard of Iyanden and the Necrons is ill-advised.

The Eldar of other Craftworlds frown on this practice, saying the dead should be allowed to rest. The Iyanden dead rather pointedly tell the other Craftworlds to stay out of this, saying that they asked for this and the other Craftworlds could at least have the decency to let the dead speak for themselves. To them, their lives were stolen from them before their time, and accepting death at this point would feel too much like admitting defeat.