Steam and Sand
From Brass Goggles
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'''Ireland''' - Divided Feudal Island to the West | '''Ireland''' - Divided Feudal Island to the West | ||
| - | '''Wales''' - Nation of Communal | + | '''Wales''' - Nation of Communal Atriums to the West |
| - | '''Brittany''' - Catholic Theocracy across the sea to the South | + | '''Brittany''' - Catholic Theocracy across the sea to the South East |
==Organizations== | ==Organizations== | ||
Revision as of 23:16, 11 May 2009
Contents |
Overview
The Event has left England a barren wasteland, with sandy deserts, rocky badlands and dead ash heaths. However, it is not the end of human civilization in this part of the world. People scrambled along as they do and eked out life in the inhospitable climate. One effect of the Event was mass carbonization and further carbonization – coal is very abundant in the country side, especially anthracite coal. Steam is thus the main way to get around – electricity is available, but expensive and difficult to acquire. There is no magic energy – whatever studies had been done in that field are long lost.
A more difficult resource to get a hold of is water. The only settlements in the area are known affectionately as Atriums. They consist of a circle of buildings placed right next to each other, with a wall tight around the outside. Over the buildings is placed a special glass dome, with humidity catchers, this becoming the main source of water. The middle of the town is always left as a small open area, where “rain” is allowed to fall and small crops are allowed to be grown. While the important buildings are in this above ground circle, the populations of Atriums can actually be much larger, as many people live in the cool underground areas, which can be quite expansive.
While life is hard to come by, raw minerals are not. Most Atriums have a Factory Complex attached, where vehicles, walkers and constructs of every size and type imaginable are built to let people travel and explore the wastes. These are either built beside or next to the atrium and are usually walled for security purposes. In this world, nothing is more valued and prized than a good steam rig. Ranging for massive tanks, to speedy autos, to cumbersome walkers, people will find any sort of way to get around.
People dress similar to how they did before the event, but much of the finer clothes and materials have been lost. Thus, through necessity, clothing has moved closer to that of rough areas like the American frontier, rather than urban or rural England, noticeably among the higher classes who simply don’t have the materials for elaborate and fancy dress. English style working clothing is still popular and useful for its durability. When outside the cities, people wear many layers of covering clothes to protect them from the heat of the deserts and the occasional sandstorm. Goggles and face protection is also common, as well as whatever gear one might be carrying with them. Most people end up looking like a combination of a Saharan nomad and a heavily armed engineer.
Relics of the older age can often be found across the wasteland, from the rusting shells of old factories to the beached carcasses of old steam ships to the empty shade of ruins that were once majestic gothic cathedrals. These are valuable and often can be sold for a tidy profit. There are lots of old ruins and such, especially in the south. The most valuable find one can make is an airship frame. The technology to make these has been lost and many scientists would pay a fortune to be able to study one. Scavenging is a popular way to make money, but can be dangerous. Despite the new governments, the lack of control and the empty spaces has made robbery and murder another profitable venture. Parties on foot are often mowed down by bandits in fast vehicles and even travelers in large armed vehicles may find themselves under attack from a coordinated mounted bandit attack.
There are already political powers emerging. In the north are the States of York and Lancashire. These two states vie for increased power. Lancashire has some of the largest Factory Complexes on the Isles. They are a very capitalist society, run by an elected parliament, although it could very well be called a Corproratocracy. While York is less industrialized, it is the larger state and has a few very well supplied Atriums, having mastered the new style of agriculture. It is ruled by a council, who elect members based on merit. Much of the political structure of York is communal, with resources being spread across the population.
In the south, rising from the ruins of London and the surrounding counties, is the self claimed “Kingdom of Anglia”. Despite the title, it only has a firm hold on London and the south east of England. It is a dictatorship lead by a Monarch with a single party parliament and has strict control of its people, attempting to forge a nation that can expand and reclaim England.
Tucked away in the far west is the Republic of Cornwall. A small number of cities united into a Federation, with an elected leader. They do not have much power and are threatened by the Kingdom, despite being perhaps the only stable functioning democracy.
The lands between York and Lancashire and the Kingdom are known as the Free Lands of Mercia, taking up most of the middle lands. There are many cities in this area, but it exists in essentially a state of anarchism, with all the cities running themselves as they like. The only “government” is a group of nomad warriors known as the Knights of Mercia. They don’t hold any real political power. They receive taxes from each of the cities, which they collect whenever they visit. In return, they eliminate any bandits or warlords that may arise and keep the other nations from encroaching on Mercia. The Kingdom especially has had to been reminded that Mercia is a Free Land, not free land. The Knights also keep garrisons in each city. They defend the city and act as the police force and legal force, giving all of Mercia a set law system. The only power the Knights have is military and judicial. For everything else, the cities do as they please.
The lands to the north, Scotland, are ruled by a variety of nomadic clans, who sometimes move south to raid. There are also raiders living in fortresses in the mountains of Wales, who occasionally move to loot or pillage. Ireland is ruled mostly through a feudal system, the dukes not wielding much power on their own. Another occasional threat is raiding parties from Brittany, which is a slowly growing Catholic theocracy.
Quick List of Nations and Organizations
English Nations
Lancashire - Capitalist Nation in the North West
York - Socialist Nation in the North East
Mercia - Minarchist State in Central England
Cornwall - Republic in the South West
Anglia - Monarchy in the South East
Outer Nations
Scotland - Anarchist area to the North
Ireland - Divided Feudal Island to the West
Wales - Nation of Communal Atriums to the West
Brittany - Catholic Theocracy across the sea to the South East
Organizations
Knights of Mercia - The only authority of Mercia, handling policing, law and military matters.
Ironsides - A mobile group of anti-royalist fighters in the South harrying Anglian expansion. Known for use of quick tracked vehicles and often found aiding Cornish forces.
Black Reivers - A feared and renowned group of mercenaries and raiders from the norther border region
Bermegrave Riggers - Bandit group operating between Brizzle Atrium and Bromwicham Atrium.
