A Strange New World (OOC|OPEN|DYSTOPIA|FANTASY)

[Lavan Tiri]

I'm not ready to make an app yet, but I'm thinking I'll do a modern-day banana republic (located around the ruins of Jefferson City) ruled by a shrewd and wealthy dictator; it'll take inspiration from the Tropico games, and CGP Grey's recent video 3 Rules for Rulers.

https://youtu.be/rStL7niR7gs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_republic

Of course, every banana republic needs a resource to base its economy off of; does this universe have any magical or highly-valuable resources that could make a trader in that good extremely rich?

Speaking of high-value resources, does the world have a unified currency à la Fallout's caps?

Yes. Check the OP.

I'm not ready to make an app yet, but I'm thinking I'll do a modern-day banana republic (located around the ruins of Jefferson City) ruled by a shrewd and wealthy dictator; it'll take inspiration from the Tropico games, and CGP Grey's recent video 3 Rules for Rulers.

https://youtu.be/rStL7niR7gs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_republic

Of course, every banana republic needs a resource to base its economy off of; does this universe have any magical or highly-valuable resources that could make a trader in that good extremely rich?

I have ideas, but why don't you invent something and we'll run from there?

[Lavan Tiri]

I'm feeling like being a wandering gunslinger with a bit too much western mannerisms.

Okay maybe I've been watching too much Westworld.

No such thing as too much Westworld.

[Riysa]

Looks cool what's the status of vehicles like your average family car or jeep in this universe? I'm mainly interested in how much tech has survived the passage of time.

[Jaslandia]

Faction App
Nation Name: Jaslandia
Faction Name: Republic of Jefferson
Faction Leader: Henry Edgar Stanton
Faction Culture: Virulently and indisputably American. The American Founding Fathers are worshipped as literal gods, and the Republic’s namesake, Thomas Jefferson, is placed chief among those gods. Quotes by Thomas Jefferson (many of them falsified) are used to keep up morale and ensure loyalty, and all historical information is tightly censored to conform to the Republic’s agenda and ideology. The people are very proud of their nation, some to a fanatical extent, and this patriotism is created and used by the government to keep the populace in line.

Faction Goal: Acquire wealth, extract resources, perpetuate the wealth and power of the Stanton dynasty
Faction Symbol: https://goo.gl/jpc7pG

Faction History: Though Jeffersonian history books might tell you otherwise, the story of Jefferson is really the story the Stanton family, and their four generations of rule. The founder of the Stanton dynasty is John Edward Stanton (1865-1939), originally a shopkeeper from Lebanon, Missouri. However, Stanton was charming and ambitious, which caused him to attract the eye of a wealth heiress named Louisa Edenton; the two married in 1888, and they had their first child William Alexander (1889-1979) the next year.

In 1898, John staged a run for the Missouri House of Representatives, which he won (in an unexpected victory) due to his charisma and the influence of his wife’s family. John served in the House of Representatives with distinction for decades, and even won election to a Missouri State Senate seat in 1920. Stanton was a well-loved by his constituents, and he often took populist stances to gain support. Stanton also used his influence to help his eldest son William climb up the political ladder, with William being elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 1924. When John died in 1939, William was elected to fill his father’s Senate seat.

6 years after John E. Stanton’s death, the monstrous horde was unleashed on the world, with monsters even tearing through and slaughtering representatives attending the Missouri state legislative session; by coincidence, William Stanton survived because he stayed home on that day due to a cold (although official Jefferson histories claim William had a divine revelation from the angel Gabriel of the event, and that William’s efforts to warn his fellow legislators went unheeded).

With the Missouri state government destroyed, William turned to his business ventures, particularly a coal mine he owned just outside of Jefferson City. William found that instead of digging up coal, the miners (or, at least those that weren’t killed by the monster rampage) dug up a purple, glowing, non-radioactive mineral that was later named unobtanium [OOC: This is mostly a placeholder name]. With Stanton’s other partners in the mine having died in the attack, Stanton took sole ownership of the mine, and began selling the mineral to anyone who would listen. It was soon found that unobtanium was no ordinary mineral; not only could it act as a power source for electronics, but it was also very effective in killing monsters and warlocks when combined with traditional armaments like guns and tasers.

Word spread of the discovery, and while unobtanium was later found elsewhere across the world, Stanton’s mine was the only source in Missouri, and soon became the biggest unobtanium mine with the biggest unobtanium deposit in the American Midwest. As Stanton grew rich, he hired security forces, established settlements for his workers, and established stores and farms; before he knew it, he had created a self-sufficient community. In 1966, Stanton declared his community ‘the Republic of Jefferson’, with himself as 'provisional' president. William Alexander Stanton died in 1979, and was succeeded by his son Edward Henry Stanton (1922-2024).

Edward continued the development of Jefferson by expanding unobtanium mines, and he solidified the Stanton's base of support among the military and capitalists (who were allowed to have a stake in the government-owned unobtanium mines). After Edward came his son Frederick Henry (1977-2061), a cruel and sadistic tyrant who increased the usage of torture, and elevated his family to a near-divine cult of personality. Each generation consolidated the Stanton family’s wealth and power, increasing mining activity, increasing the propaganda and cult of personality, and further controlling the flow of information within Jefferson, all the while ensuring a steady stream of money flowed to the personal coffers of the Stantons and their supporters.

When Frederick died suddenly in 2061, his son James Madison Stanton was already deceased, leaving the Presidency to Frederick’s grandson Henry Edgar (2052- ). A regency council of generals ruled on behalf of the young Stanton until 2070, when Henry came of age. While Henry so far seems to be a more caring and kindhearted man than his grandfather, he still uses the same ironfisted and totalitarian tactics of his ancestors. As long as the people of Jefferson are kept too uneducated and hungry to revolt, and Stanton’s supporters are adequately rewarded, the future of Jefferson and the Stantons is secure.

Faction Description: The modern-day version of a banana republic, almost everything about the so-called 'Republic of Jefferson' is a sham: the little democracy that does exist is superficial, living conditions and quality of life are horrid, and everything in the nation exists to benefit the Stanton dynasty and their supporters. By paying off key supporters, keeping living conditions at the bare-minimum so the peasants will be too illiterate and starving to revolt, and deluding the masses through patriotic and pseudo-historical propaganda, the Stantons have managed to remain the de facto kings of Jefferson for generations. The Stantons have built up massive palaces and manors for themselves and their government employees, while everyone else is lucky to have access to a hospital or a school. Traders are mostly confined to the outskirts of the city to minimize outside information, and information inside is tightly censored and controlled to maintain Jefferson's propaganda system. In short, Jefferson is a luxurious and wonderful place to live if you're one of the elites; however, if you're part of the mass of peasants and common workers, your life will likely be brutish and unpleasant.
RP Sample: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=387189&p=29649802&sid=f5e90c0b5b11789d2f903baa68793942#p29649802
viewtopic.php?f=31&t=384566#p29433382
#LAVANISLOVELAVANISLIFE (app tracker)

PLACE APP (DELETE ALL THE SHIT IN THE GODDAMN PARENTHESES)
Nation Name: Jaslandia
Place Name: Republic of Jefferson
Place Location: Jefferson City, Missouri and surrounding area
Inhabitants: The inhabitants of of Jefferson are a fairly homogeneous group, being uniformly White and Protestant, and there is a strong preference for Anglo-Saxons. There are roughly three levels of society: lower class, middle class, and upper class. The lower class is the common menial labor, primarily miners and farmers. While the farmers are able to make a decent living and enjoy a good (if simple) standard of life, the miners work for very little money, are subject to miserable working conditions, and are generally considered expendable. As the lower class are the most uneducated and most susceptible to propaganda, they are consistently loyal to the Stanton regime.

Just above are the middle class, who are the small shopkeepers and government bureaucrats. These people enjoy a comfortable standard of living (though with few luxuries), but they are a relatively small group. The middle class are also subject to the most scrutiny and most surveillance, as they are more likely to be educated than the lower class, and are less likely to be loyal the regime than the lower and upper classes. The middle class exists mostly out of necessity, and the government does its best to keep the vast majority of people in the lower class.

Finally, the upper class consists of government bureaucrats, capitalists, and members of the Stantons' inner circle. The upper class live in luxurious manors or palaces, have access to all the best luxuries, and are subject to the least scrutiny. As practically all of the upper class' fortunes are tied to the Stanton government, the upper class is consistently loyal to the Stanton regime.
History:
RP Sample: See faction app
Description:
#LAVANISLOVELAVANISLIFE

[Lavan Tiri]

Looks cool what's the status of vehicles like your average family car or jeep in this universe? I'm mainly interested in how much tech has survived the passage of time.

A great deal of technology was rendered useless in the Event, and of what remained, very little has survived 150 years.

[Jaslandia]

Faction app is finished. Character and place apps still in progress.

[Brusia]

So, any ETA on the IC?

[Achidyemay]

I forgot how much your OPs crack me up, Tag.

[Lavan Tiri]

I forgot how much your OPs crack me up, Tag.

A wild Achi appeared ten days ago. Lovely.