Setting (Fallout Supplement)
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Setting[edit]
The Fallout world is an anachronistic setting historically divergent from our own, and also is fundamentally different in terms of how science works. The base concept for the setting is a 1950s World of Tomorrow, decimated by a global atomic war. This means that before the war, the Fallout world was more or less what the people of the 1950s thought things would be like, a future as envisioned through the lens of the Atomic Age and Jet Age. So hovering housecleaning robots and laser guns were the norm, and automobiles looked like Motorama concept vehicles from the 1950s: massive tail-finned and chromed behemoths but with nuclear fusion engines.
Background[edit]
The year is 2249, the place the former US state of California. It has been 172 years since the Great War, the long dreaded nuclear world war that finally broke out in 2077. International tensions had been greatly strained the previous few decades, a time called the Resource Wars. Tel Aviv was destroyed in a terrorist attack. The European Commonwealth disintegrated and started infighting as it got bogged down in a military conflict in the Middle East, trying to seize control of the remaining petroleum assets. Unable to cope with the world crisis, the UN disbands. China, its economy greatly hurting over the lack of fossil fuels, became more and more belligerent in its trade talks with the US. In 2066, China would invade Alaska.
2077: Thanks to the development of powered combat armor, the US would turn the tide, reclaim Alaska and invade China in turn. In order to further secure its oil interests in Alaska, the US ultimately annexed Canada. The world’s supply of petroleum runs out; the switch to fusion power far from completed. In the US, civil revolt is pandemic. There are food and fuel shortages and the population protests against the atrocities of war and the government’s inadequate response to the outbreak of a disease called the New Plague. The military is mobilized to control the riots; many protesters get killed.
Clothing styles and building interiors and furnishings apparently remained very much stuck in the 1950s. Posters and signage are from right out of the 50s. Radio remains the most common mass media, and food products are based on those popularized in the TV dinner era (boxed macaroni and cheese, canned meat, Salisbury steak TV dinners, etc.). A demonization of communism, which was common during the Second Red Scare of the 1950s, is apparently also a part of everyday life. This is largely due to a massive propaganda campaign launched by the U.S. government during the Resource Wars. October 23: the Great War. Who attacked whom is unclear, and ultimately not very relevant. The Great War lasted two hours, which was more than enough to almost wipe out the entire human race. Survivors took refuge in caves and fallout shelters. The lucky few had places reserved in one of the 122 large, government constructed bunkers called Vaults.
Wild Wasteland[edit]
The Fallout universe is well known for its sense of humour, incorporating a multitude of references to pop culture phenomena, self-referential humour and just plain wackiness. It’s entirely up to the Overseer how much you want to reflect this in your Savaged Fallout game. This can range from references to other (post apocalyptical) science fiction settings to actual cross-overs. Players in the Fallout games could find a crash Enterprise shuttle, wander into the knights of King Arthur and the holy hand grenade of Antioch from Monty Python fame, find aliens with Elvis pictures or get ambushed by exploding cows. If you want to play it more straight, the more bizarre encounters (such as talking mutated animals and plants) and perks of the games can be removed. If on the other hand you or your players enjoy the lighter side of the post apocalyptical wasteland, you can easily adapt most of the original material to any system.
The Wasteland: 2249[edit]
Most of southern California is now part of the New California Republic (NCR). Founded some 60-odd years ago in the small farming community of Shady Sands, the NCR is now the major power to be reckoned with in the Wasteland. It encompasses as larger settlements the town of Shady Sands (now often dubbed NCR Capital or simply NCR), The Hub, Junktown, Boneyard, Maxson and Dayglow. The NCR has a strong police force and standing army, including motorized cavalry divisions and the Rangers Special Forces. NCR enforces strict laws, prohibiting slavery, gambling, prostitution and drugs, though they tend to get more relaxed as one travels farther from the larger settlements. There is no official policy towards mutants, but Ghouls tend to be treated as second rate citizens. Only in the military is more equality for Ghouls and even Super Mutants to be found. The mainstay of the NCR economy is its Brahmin ranches (Brahmin are the only stock of cattle to have survived the fallout, albeit in mutated form). The powerful Stockmen's Association and the merchant groups from The Hub hold considerable sway in decision making circles, a select group of wealthy families possessing multiple Congress seats and holding the position of governor in some member states. Under the presidency of Tandi, who was elected unanimously for the last 52 years, the NCR pursued an agenda of peaceful expansion and improving living conditions for its citizens. After Tandi's death at the age of 103, the NCR is currently in the second year of president Joanna Tibbett's term. The NCR is aiming to expand its borders north- and eastwards, at the moment attempting to do so by peaceful talks and brokering trade agreements rather than military threat.
Original Text courtesy Fallout Midwest, Obsidianportal.com (copied from Savage Fallout Overseers Guide)
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