cl0ud
Senior Member
There has been no discrimination.
The challenge is to all mankind.
Each nation must decide for itself how it will meet it.
Woodrow Wilson
It only took a week. The generals were so vicious and so efficient with their crackdown on the revolutionaries that morale throughout the other splinter rebellion were shattered. As tanks and APCs rolled through towns and villages, the people knew that the government was still in control and still had access to oil reserves. A martial oligarchy had been put into place and a strict curfew was enacted. Anyone out past their curfew were shot and killed immediately. The oppressive tyranny of those who were supposed to protect them enraged the public. In October they started the Labor Raffle. Each day the "Martial Republic of Atlano" would broadcast names of those who were selected. The next day, those selected were supposed to drag themselves to work. Most of the time this included manual labor or working in factories.
To those purely interested in stability, this life was good. The hours were long and rough, sure, but there was safety. The government wasn't bursting into houses, searching for terrorists or conspirators, they weren't holding mass-executions, and there weren't dead bodies littering the streets. Dominance had been established and however angry the public got, the common knowledge that any resistance was futile against the state. For a few years, the nation rested relatively in peace. Every three months the Conscription Drawing occurred and around 3% of the male population would be put into uniform and sent to the North Circle to fight against the Olmians. On the state-run news, life seemed to be getting better all around the world. Green energy was starting to become more affluent throughout multiple countries' power grids.
Although, Atlano kept to itself. The generals refused to give power back to the politicians. More factories were built. More mines were built. Larger quarries. More soldiers. More training. Less food. Six years after "State Zero" was put into effect, the Generals' Council mandated that all males must serve three years of military services as soon as they're 18. Those in the military were brainwashed, eternally loyal to the state. The skies in Atlano seemed to darken as the years pressed on. News of the outside world was cut off. People who spoke out against the state, even in the most private of places, would disappear the next day. Sometimes they came back chauvinists. Most of the time they didn't come back at all. The pollution caused by the factories and refineries were catastrophic to the health of citizens, so the state issued respirators and formed "Oxygen Domes" around places that were deemed strategically important. All trade was cut off from the world. Soldiers were paid in rations and land. Those who had mental illnesses, lame, or had genetic disorders were killed.
In the March of 1967, the first nuclear missile was launched from Anvik. It's target was Sumorcias. In April of 1967, Sumorcias responded. A biological weapon, known simply to the public as "X12" was unleashed on the cities of Anvik, Estero, and Bishop. The news stopped broadcasting. Whenever the local Captain of the garrison was asked about what happened to the people in the "Forgotten Trinity", the standard response was "It is a beautiful day today, civilian."
It wasn't long before those travelling between cities revealed information about X12. Apparently, in Anvik, the military was losing the battle with those who were infected. This scared the people of Atlano because if even the military couldn't stop the infected, what chance did the civilians have? On August 10, 1967, it a broadcast aired on national television. It was just a series of alarm sounds with a paragraph on the slide.
"CITIZENS. ANVIK HAS FALLEN. THE MILITARY IS REDIRECTING IT'S ATTENTION TO PROTECTING CALHAN, FACTORY TOWN, FORT KENTON, PORT CLAFLIN, SAN LUIS, AND SENTINEL.AS OF AUGUST 10, 1967, ALL HIGHWAYS ARE CLOSED. AS OF AUGUST 10, ENTRY TO CALHAN, FACTORY TOWN, FORT KENTON, PORT CLAFLIN, SAN LUIS, AND SENTINEL IS ILLEGAL WITHOUT PROPER DOCUMENTATION FROM THE BUREAU OF TRANSIT, LOCATED IN SENTINEL. THOSE WHO ATTEMPT TO ENTER THESE CITIES ILLEGALLY WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT. THE GOVERNMENT WILL CONTINUE TO BROADCAST INFORMATION VITAL TO YOUR SURVIVAL ON CHANNEL 17. THIS IS A STATE OF EMERGENCY. IT IS ADVISED THAT YOU SECURE YOUR HOMESTEADS AND YOUR FAMILIES. ON SEPTEMBER 5, 1967, THE GENERALS' COUNCIL WILL DEPLOY SOLDIERS IN CAMARGO, COMSTOCK, AND YOE. UNTIL THEN THERE IS NO OFFICIALS PROTECTING THE FOLLOWING CITIES: BENBROW, BLAIRSBURG, BLOCKTON, BOONTON, CAMARGO, CEDAR KEY, COLD SPRINGS HARBOR, COLONY, COMSTOCK, EITZEN, FITZHUGH, FOLKSTON, FREEBORN, GLENPOOL, JUNE PARK, KOLOA, LEHR, LOWELL, MANTORVILLE, MARSHALLBERG, McCAMEY, MEREDITH, PROCTORVILLE, RENOVA, ROBERTS, ROXANA, ST. ANDREWS, SUTTON, VALLE VISTA, WABASSO, WAUCOMA, YOE. GOOD LUCK."
That was the end. They didn't broadcast anymore. It's been fifteen years since the August Broadcast. It's a common consensus that X12 spread throughout the entire world and there are only small pockets of humanity left remaining. Since the August Broadcast, it's also become common information that X12 was a virus that reanimated the dead. Spread through the exchange of bodily fluids, contamination of water or food, or through direct contact (such as scratching). The government remains powerful in Calhan, Factory Town, Fort Kenton, Port Claflin, San Luis, and Sentinel. They also have checkpoints established to each of these locations. They even put up a wall just north of Calhan to keep out people and the undead alike. Occasionally, government will send out patrols along the highways or along the coast, but usually stick to their strongholds and rely on the Wardens to hold their influence outside of their walled-off cities. The neighboring Sumorciese have even made an appearance near the border just outside the mountains, which has caused skirmishes between them and the government.
Now, in this war-torn state, people strive to survive the harsh environment and the people who inhabit it. From warlords in the north, to the bureaucrats in the south, and all the undead and regular people in-between. This is Hell on Earth.
There are 8 major NPC factions in "State Zero".
- The Atlani Government
- The Republic of Sumorcias
- Wardens
- People's Liberation Force (PLF)
- Motherland's Soldiers
- New Republic of Atlano
- The Crimm
- Hell Rats
The Atlani Government, also known as the "Marshals", "Bucket Heads", the "No-Faced Men", and the "Old Republic" are the entity that used to oversee the entirety of Atlano, but was pushed into their strongholds after the X12 outbreak. Now they hoard the oil reserves in San Luis and conduct proxy warfare against the rebelling survivor groups and the Sumorciese through the Wardens. The Atlani Government is ran by the Generals' Council, a group of old generals that used to reign in the late 1930's. Their children will take over once they pass away, undoubtedly continuing the pattern of ruthlessness and efficiency that their fathers had.
The Atlani Government controls Calhan, Factory Town, Port Claflin, San Luis, and Sentinel. Their capital is Sentinel. They are represented by Navy Blue.
The Republic of Sumorcias was the neighboring country to Atlano before the outbreak. The Atlani and Sumorciese have had a long bloody history but experienced peace up until the oil reserves dried up in 1936. They were one of the countries to be able to progress and set up a relatively strong green-electric grid and were able to sustain themselves. The Atlani Government was so dependent on the energy that they begged the Republic to provide them with energy in the forms of batteries in exchange for the abundance of coal in Atlano. The border between the two countries led to millions of citizens in Sumorcias becoming infected in months. The government retreated to their capital, Abajas, and focused on building up their military strength. When intelligence reached Abajas that the Atlani military was pulling out of multiple population centers, the Sumorciese moved in and established Camp Barceino and began to spread their influence throughout the country. The group of Sumorciese in Atlano are led by Colonel Victor Agosto.
The Republic of Sumorcias controls Camp Barceino, Eitzen, and parts of Anvik. They are represented by Red.
The Wardens are a group of soldiers who weren't able to make it into the cities but were still loyal to the government. The government didn't know of the Wardens until 7 years ago when a scavenging group arrived at McCamey and discovered an Atlani flag flying high. Since that moment, the government has been supplying the Wardens with rations, munitions, soldiers, training, weapons, vehicle, and fuel in exchange for the Wardens performing raids against other factions and constantly combating the Sumorciese. They are led by Captain Thomas Myers.
The Wardens control McCamey, Valle Vista, and Wabasso. They are represented by Gold.
The People's Liberation Force (PLF) is a Communist faction deadset on creating a state of "equality". Their message of equality and everyone being the same resonates with those who were impoverished and without many resources. The PLF has a deep hatred for the Wardens and the government for the ways they oppressed the civilian population before the X12 outbreak. It's said that some of the forces in the PLF even praise X12 as a cleansing agent blessed upon the world by God himself. They also hate the Motherland's Soldiers and the New Republic of Atlano. They are led by Richard Grant.
They control Cedar Key and have several villages spread throughout the forest surrounding Lowell and Lake Junnie. They are represented by a Dark Red.
The Motherland's Soldiers is a radical nationalist group that supported the government prior to the X12 outbreak but blamed the defeat of Atlano on the belief that the government weren't strict enough and didn't enforce their regulation harsh enough among the people, as well as opening themselves to weakness by trading with foreigners. After the X12 outbreak and the August Broadcast, they united together via radio frequencies and consolidated into one large militia. They're led by Theodore Bellman.
They control Sutton. They are represented by Purple.
The New Republic of Atlano is a democratic faction that aims to restore the democratic Atlano before the Oil War in 1936. One of the more popular movements, the New Republic is run through democratic elections and has made strides in restoring Atlano. Although, there is a lot of difficulty in moving with their plans of conquest to reunify Atlano because of the internal political gridlock that the Senate faces every time they meet to discuss anything. This has led many groups to splinter from the Republic and form vigilante groups that move without permission from the Senate. The largest achievement of the Republic of New Atlano was the establishment of New Sentinel and establishing infrastructure between New Sentinel and Meredith. They're led currently by President Virgil O'Brian.
They control New Sentinel and Meredith, but have multiple undisclosed outposts littered throughout Atlano. They are represented by Baby Blue.
The Crimm are a raider group that operates out of a cove along the northwestern coast near Boonton. They conduct raids of survivor settlements and PLF caravans travelling between trading spots in Saint Johns and their villages in the forest surrounding Lowell and Lake Junnie. Known to leave bodies littered and lit aflame on the side of roads and highways, the Crimm have become notorious for their brutality and ruthlessness. They've had skirmishes with government patrols and have won a handful of them. Not many people outside the Crimm can attest to their combat competency or leadership skills, but theories have floated throughout the wasteland that it's a bunch of soldiers that went AWOL shortly after the August Broadcast and went insane. It is unknown who leads them.
They control an undisclosed location on the coast between Boonton and Roslyn, but have influence with Roslyn and Boonton residents. They are represented by Orange. (Lighter shade means influenced by.)
The Hell Rats are another prominent raider group in the Atlano wasteland. Although, there's more information on the Hell Rats compared to the Crimm. They patrol the highways and coast on horseback, armed with rifles and shotguns. It isn't believed that the Hell Rats have any permanent settlement, but instead constantly move along the highway and through the forests of Atlano, killing travelling traders and nomads in their wake. Accounts of the Hell Rats report that they often wear devil masks or face paint and have multiple burn marks on their body, and their horses seem to have horns. It is unknown if the Hell Rats are actually one singular organization or a series of splinter groups sharing a name.
They do not control any tangible territory. Because of this, they have no representative color.
Essentially, State Zero is a nation-building roleplay where you are a survivor of the apocalypse and the outbreak of a virus known as "X12". It's concurring with other plays, but each thread is a 1x1. You must work with a group of survivors to make yourselves last in this brutal, apocalyptic wasteland where you're limited on resources such as fuel and ammunition.
How will you lead your people?
Play and find out.
Inspired by Swarx. Find Overcast | Uprising here.How will you lead your people?
Play and find out.
You can also find my other survival roleplay, a sci-fi variant, VANA, here.
Last edited: