The Thorns of Judgement are thought to have appeared during the start of The Great Collapse. These thorns, in essence, are extremely large protrusions from within the planet itself, devastating major parts of every city. It’s said that nearly half of the planet’s population died in the disaster alone. At present, they are dormant, and many researchers have tried to study them and what caused them to spring up, but many questions remain unanswered.
The in-game loading screen description for Thorns of Judgement are as follows: ”Massive spikes that sprung up from the earth like the teeth of a hungry maw. They are currently dormant. A large number of researchers have studied them to learn what they are and what caused them to move, but these questions remain unanswered.”