ᴛʜᴇ ɴᴇᴡ ᴡᴀsᴛᴇʟᴀɴᴅ discussion

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BACKGROUND

half a century ago, in 2043, the world was destroyed. there were several factors in the carnage - pollution. corruption. war. but the main trigger for the apocalypse was a series of nuclear bombs dropped everywhere in the world. no one was safe. to this day, nobody knows who dropped the bombs, but the effects were clear. those who managed to get to shelter - be that a homemade bunker or a government-built vault - were plunged into a strange new world, while those who had been caught by the bombs were now dead, or... something else. something inhuman. monsters that attacked everything on sight, spreading their infection with every bite and scratch.
now, the monsters are still a problem, but the world is slowly but surely recovering. with the government in shambles, a number of groups attempted to take control, all clashing with each other.

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FACTIONS

several groups have come into play over the past fifty years, each with a different goal in mind. not everyone is a member of a faction - in fact, most people in the wasteland have no association with any of them - but many at least have one or two they support.

red rangers
by far the most secretive of the groups, very little is known about the red rangers. they fight for a truly independent wasteland - "no gods, no masters." the red rangers rely on a variety of tactics to win their battles, from stealth and espionage to brute force. either way, they are scarily efficient and keep their cards very close to their chest. all of the red rangers use codenames, and even their own members don't know the others' real names.

toxin
toxin is the most well-known group in the wasteland, closely rivaled by the riveters. they're militaristic and strict, aiming to whip the wasteland back into shape whether its inhabitants want that or not. it is brutal and unforgiving, using merciless force to take what it wants. its leaders frequently make radio announcements to the west, hijacking popular signals to spread toxin's message: "power in unity." toxin takes what it wants, regardless of who might need it or already have it - it sees itself as superior to all and more deserving of things such as resources and land. it feels no need to share those things with those who defy it or refuse to join.

the preservers
in the violent wasteland, the preservers are barely even a contender. though they are widespread and could be very intimidating if they wanted to, the preservers are more of a spiritual group than anything else. they follow the belief that the apocalypse was sent from above as a punishment, and that to bring back the beauty of the world, all people need to be redeemed and treat each other with kindness rather than fighting. they have numbers to be a force to be reckoned with, but the preservers refuse to get involved in the wasteland's battles. "peace costs nothing. war costs everything."

the shields
the shields, much like the preservers, try to stay out of the conflicts of the wasteland. they have no enemies - although their relationship with toxin is extremely tense - because their goal is something most of the wasteland can agree with. the shields focus on education and healing, and they provide medical attention without charge and teach the people of the wasteland various survival skills. the shields' power and influence depend on the area. while most of the members are doctors or teachers of some kind, others are defenders - a position added more recently after an attack from an unknown source. "not to know, but to understand."

riveters
the riveters are toxin's biggest rival in all ways - firepower. numbers. support. they too are focused on bringing order back to the wasteland, but while toxin relies on intimidation and violence, the riveters focus on diplomacy and negotiation, although they are no strangers to combat. the riveters have a big advantage in terms of technology. that's their main thing, engineering and machines. they fight for a controlled but peaceful wasteland that works like a well-oiled machine. pun intended. "factum per artibus" - achievment through diplomacy.

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MONSTERS

after the smoke had cleared, a majority of humanity had become some kind of monster, a rotting, walking corpse. they have no minds, attacking every living thing they can sense, and the infection can spread easily through bites and open wounds. currently, there is no cure for the infection, though it's been a project of the shields for years. once the host has succumbed to the infection, there are three stages.

sprinters
sprinters are the most human-looking of the monsters, with the least decay. these are the recently infected, less than two months. true to their name, the sprinters are able to move much faster than the other monsters, and even faster than humans. some can even speak human words, but don't be fooled. they still want to eat you. sprinters have extremely heightened senses, and there's no hiding from them. if you come across a pack of sprinters - or even just one - the best course of action would be to climb something. a tree, a ladder, the side of a building. sprinters, like all the monsters, can't climb things, so you should be safe to wait there until it gets bored and leaves.

stalkers
the second stage of the monsters. these have been infected for between two months to a year. stalkers are much slower than sprinters and have poor eyesight, although their hearing is extremely enhanced. they also cannot pass for human - at this stage, a monster will be somewhat decayed or have missing limbs and chunks of flesh, and will also smell horrible from the rotting. the easiest way to deal with the stalkers is to either run - they're too slow to keep up ith you - or to set them on fire. while all of the monsters are very flammable, the stalkers are the most susceptable.

lurkers
the third and final stage of the infection. these dudes have been infected and dead for over a year. they are relatively harmless in small groups - slow as snails, with horrible senses and more rot than flesh - but in large packs, as they tend to gather, they can quickly swarm someone and tear them to shreds. however, if you disconnect a monster's head from its body (which is very easy to do to the lurkers, given how fragile their bones are), it will be rendered completely harmless.

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AREAS OF THE WASTELAND

there are four main regions of the wasteland, most controlled by a different faction. each of the factions also has its own headquarters.

the eastern wastes
this side of the wasteland is the most dangerous. settlements and safe areas are few and far in between, and monsters are everywhere. however, it's full of pre-waste ruins, which are both magnets for monsters and deadly creatures and gold mines for the brave enough scavenger. this area isn't really run by any of the factions - it's been deemed too dangerous to be worth the effort.

the western wastes
the west side of the wasteland is far safer in terms of monsters. toxin has almost complete control over this region, with soldiers constantly patrolling. anyone who is even suspected of being an enemy of toxin is immediately taken into custody. there are many different settlements here, and monsters are a rare sight, but toxin's iron fist takes a toll on all its residents.

the central wastes
the middle section of the wasteland is by far the most lively. home to the well-known gale city, this area is controlled by the riveters. unlike the harsh strictness of the western wastes, this region's ruling is much gentler, and residents have far more freedoms while still being safe and protected. however, toxin is constantly trying to gain control, and the border is always a battle between the two sides.

gale city
surrounded by the central wastes is the biggest settlement in the wasteland: gale city. a sturdy wall wraps around the city, protecting everyone inside, and it's one of the most populated places left. under the control of the riveters - although the red rangers also have an unknown presence here - it's one of the few places in the wasteland where life feels even close to how it did before the bombs fell.

red ranger base
somewhere in the eastern wastes is a high-tech underground bunker. this is the main base of the red rangers, where agents come to resupply or rest or just receive orders. the defenses are very dangerous and extremely hard to get past unless you're an agent, and the tunnels leading to the bunker are a labyrinth of twists and turns. it's near impossible to get to the main part of the base without experience or a guide.

toxin headquarters
a tall, imposing building on the far side of the western wastes, surrounded by training fields and a tall barbed-wire fence. this is where all of toxin's operations are planned, where its soldiers are trained and kept. there are also several large storage buildings nearby with weapons, rations, and other supplies. it's heavily guarded, and trespassers are shot on sight.

preserver home
if you wanted to break into the preserver home, you could literally just walk in. it's entirely undefended. it's an old, crumbling apartment building in the central wastes that's had most of the interior walls knocked down, creating a wide, open space on each of the twelve floors. the preservers generally live in peace - the riveters don't bother them because they just don't care.

shield prime facility
the shield's main facility is in the heart of gale city, an old military fort that's been repurposed into a sort of hospital-slash-school. it's got bedrooms for each of the doctors that live there, as well as several storage areas, hospital and surgery rooms, and classes on various topics. it's patrolled by the defenders, but other than that, barely guarded.

riveters airship
yeah, you read that right. the main base of the riveters is a huge airship floating above the central wasteland. it sort of looks like they attached a navy aircraft carrier to a giant blimp. aside from being very heavily defended, it's just about impossible to get to unless you're a member because, you know... it's in the sky.

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RADIO STATIONS

in the wasteland, radio stations are the main form of entertainment. music. stories. the occasional sportscaster. it's also the easiest form of communication for some of the factions - whether that's their own station, or hijacking someone else's. anyone can start a station, but it takes a certain bit of skill to gain a following. most people in the wasteland have a portable radio.