Viewpoint If not zombies then what? What do you care to see in apocalyptic roleplays?

[DeusExAlice]

My favorite thing in PA settings is seeing how things get repurposed. A fun way to highlight human ingenuity and give a bit of irony, especially when you let yourself get a little goofy with it. Like some order of bridge keepers that all bear a stop sign affixed to the armor they've cobbled together.

Alternatively: How time and misunderstandings can twist the understanding/purpose of objects, structures or behaviors.
Like a cult that lashes sacrifices to an old radio tower. They remember it could send messages to the heavens, but the gods they're trying to communicate too are still silent.

 

[cl0ud]

Global economic collapse.

 

[Broken Promise]

Zombie outbreaks are almost their own genre these days. I do like them; they're a great antagonist that represents some unfeeling force and how we couple with death. If you were infected, would you tell the others even if they might crush out your last remaining moments of life? Would you be able to put down a zombie that use to be your friend/family? Even with zombies overtaking the earth, are humans still the greatest danger to themselves? Is there a place for altruism in such a bleak future.

Apocalyptic settings should focus on the collapse of civilization. This can be caused by anything, from AI gone out of control, a deadly virus, some higher evolution of humans that see us as little more than pets, aliens, a world war, any super disaster from massive volcanos that blot out the sun to asteroids. that pulverize the earth. So long as it causes panic and makes things like laws and government subsidies obsolete, it's good.

I'll second that the characters are important, but that could be said for almost any setting. The apocalypse should be more than a backdrop, It should remind us of what being a human is really about, and what we shouldn't take for granted.

My inner edgy teen likes gratuitous violence too.

 

[viceroy]

I like the idea of a widely distributed, sparsely populated human race that was largely killed off by a catastrophically deadly virus or something of the sort. Because of the vast amounts of people who die, there would be nowhere near enough people to manage the many large institutions, infrastructure, and technology left behind. Unable to recuperate population and with global communication (like the internet) being quickly lost, human populations are geographically separated again and isolated in various hotspots. People would know of what came before them and what society was like, but they have no chance to unify humanity again, or even their own country, simply due to how few people there are (like.. 700 million people worldwide or less, with most of those people being in Asia and Africa) and how hard it is to find them.

Although technology and knowledge (in books, computers, and media) would be intact for the first few decades, they are only usable by individuals or small settlements of people. Thus, while used, they wouldn't be used effectively or in a way that would further advance humanity as a whole. It's like the blank slate of a nuclear apocalypse, but mother nature decided to drop the bomb instead.

There's an element of survival to it, but it's not as hard as it could be. I actually think that you would be more worried about other people with bad intentions wanting to kill you/loot your stuff, as well as the makeshift "states"/governments that would inevitably pop up, and the tensions that would cause. Especially if they want to seize the land you live on. Now that I think about it, that could be an interesting conflict.

 

[Malphaestus]

Frankly, the apocalypse- in apocalyptic fiction- is amongst the most pointless things. If you choose to make a tale around it, then don't. You can do so much better, with so much more. Though, I suppose I should be specific; the process of it, leading to it, are worthwhile. After, it's worthless.

The apocalypse is only a tool to validate a process, or highlight extremes without 'noise,' in most fiction. When it isn't, it is superb. But most writers are not god-gifted.

 

[Murdergurl]

Frankly, the apocalypse- in apocalyptic fiction- is amongst the most pointless things. If you choose to make a tale around it, then don't. You can do so much better, with so much more. Though, I suppose I should be specific; the process of it, leading to it, are worthwhile. After, it's worthless.

The apocalypse is only a tool to validate a process, or highlight extremes without 'noise,' in most fiction. When it isn't, it is superb. But most writers are not god-gifted.

in other words, you don't really have anything to add to the topic at hand? Pretty long-winded way to say, "no comment", bruh.

And setting is never pointless. It portrays the stage on which the story is set. Whether the apocalypse came around by a virus that wiped everyone out, a zombie horde, an alien invasion, a nuclear war, etc. etc. is very detrimental in carving out what the rest of the story will be centered upon. It determines the characters that will populate it. It will create the pitfalls and dangers of the environment. So it very much is NOT pointless.

 

[Malphaestus]

in other words, you don't really have anything to add to the topic at hand? Pretty long-winded way to say, "no comment", bruh.

And setting is never pointless. It portrays the stage on which the story is set. Whether the apocalypse came around by a virus that wiped everyone out, a zombie horde, an alien invasion, a nuclear war, etc. etc. is very detrimental in carving out what the rest of the story will be centered upon. It determines the characters that will populate it. It will create the pitfalls and dangers of the environment. So it very much is NOT pointless.

I speak because I want to, I don't do it for others. So yes, it is, indeed, "no comment." Long-windedly. If we ignore what I said, of course.

It is pointless because it is not special. Merely window-dressing, every addition it provides replacable by less obnoxious mechanisms. The functional piece it plays in the whole of the story, as close to nothing as something can be. But, as you seem to have ignored, that is if it is placed in the hands of people not competent enough to make it flourish; what I am saying is that most people make the same things, fall into the same pit-falls, and learn nothing from apocalyptic stories.

Whether that be roleplays, actual literature, or any number of other diction. There are not many things you can do, for an 'apocalypse' that sets it apart. And if you seek to make it unique, you already forsake the benefits that the apocalypse itself plays. The apocalypse is the main character of any apocalyptic story, but it is also window-dressing, because they all progress the same. Or the dangers are made so insignifciant, the apocalypse is merely an excuse to introduce anarchy.

Ergo, whilst an apocalypse may determine all that you say, all that means nothing meaningful. Pointless.

They are worthless after they start. The worth of an apoclypse is the fact that it may happens, when it might do so, and how. How they combat it, before it progresses, is the essence of an apocalyptic tale. Naturally, destined to fail. At which point the story ends, to the shine of a second sunrise.

You can build so much more from the prelude to disaster, than the disaster itself. The disaster is simple, uniform. Before it happens it is nebulous, malleable; more interesting to interact with.

 

[Murdergurl]

I speak because I want to, I don't do it for others. So yes, it is, indeed, "no comment." Long-windedly. If we ignore what I said, of course.

It is pointless because it is not special. Merely window-dressing, every addition it provides replacable by less obnoxious mechanisms. The functional piece it plays in the whole of the story, as close to nothing as something can be. But, as you seem to have ignored, that is when it is placed in the hands of people not competent enough to make it flourish; what I am saying is that most people make the same things, fall into the same pit-falls, and learn nothing from apocalyptic stories.

Whether that be roleplays, actual literature, or any number of other diction. There are not many things you can do, for an 'apocalypse' that sets it apart. And if you seek to make it unique, you already forsake the benefits that the apocalypse itself plays. The apocalypse is the main character of any apocalyptic story, but it is also window-dressing, because they all progress the same. Or the dangers are made so insignifciant, the apocalypse is merely an excuse to introduce anarchy.

Ergo, whilst an apocalypse may determine all that you say, all that means nothing meaningful. Pointless.

pointless, like your addition to the conversation. lol
I'm gonna need a tetanus shot from all this irony

I think you are missing the point of RP writing. No one here is trying to educate or win an award. And as you can tell by the plethora of fandom RPs, no one is going for originality, either. In fact, I would go as far as to say that it is nigh impossible to come up with anything truly original anymore. Think of everything that has been written, everything coherent at least. No matter how hard you try, everything under the sun has already been touched on. Everything is just a rehash. The point here is to have fun, not brood over the lesson our story is going to teach. I mean, its hard enough just to get these things started, and now you also want some kind of moral to the story to linger over it as well? Gimme a break.

 

[Malphaestus]

pointless, like your addition to the conversation. lol
The irony

I think you are missing the point of RP writing. No one here is trying to educate or win an award. And as you can tell by the plethora of fandom RPs, no one is going for originality, either. In fact, I would go as far as to say that it is nigh impossible to come up with anything truly original anymore. Think of everything that has been written, everything coherent at least. No matter how hard you try, everything under the sun has already been touched on. Everything is just a rehash. The point here is to have fun, not brood over the lesson our story is going to teach. I mean, its hard enough just to get these things started, and you now want some kind of moral to the story to linger over it as well? Gimme a break.

Obviously. That is common sense.

Feel free to ridicule what I've said at your leisure. All I wanted to do was speak my mind, as you do now. Though, doubtlessly, less provocatively.

 

[Lorsh]

breaking: malphaestus absolutely murdered by gurl

 

[Bullyboy Squad]

That escalated quickly

 

[The Random Fox]

Personally I like to view the Apocalypse in the universe of Vampire Hunter D (Awesome Anime/Novels). I just always loved that concept of Gothic Fantasy and Science Fiction merging together.

 

[Murdergurl]

Personally I like to view the Apocalypse in the universe of Vampire Hunter D (Awesome Anime/Novels). I just always loved that concept of Gothic Fantasy and Science Fiction merging together.

I'm not really a big fan of anime. But I think the VHD setting would make an excellent setting for a group RP. And the Bloodlust movie was excellent.

 

[Baphomet]

I'm currently part of an apocalypse RP. It's fantasy based. The apocalypse is a miasma that covers the world, with only high altitude cities still existing. The miasma is a magical mist that can mutate creatures and plants and even enhances magic, to potentially self-endangering levels. The miasma will also kill things if it gets thick enough, so it's not like there's just mobs of mutants roaming around. The miasma is the apocalypse, not any creature.

 

[Murdergurl]

I'm currently part of an apocalypse RP. It's fantasy based. The apocalypse is a miasma that covers the world, with only high altitude cities still existing. The miasma is a magical mist that can mutate creatures and plants and even enhances magic, to potentially self-endangering levels. The miasma will also kill things if it gets thick enough, so it's not like there's just mobs of mutants roaming around. The miasma is the apocalypse, not any creature.

Soooo... basically, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles?

And literally referred to as the "Miasma", in the game.

 

[Baphomet]

Soooo... basically, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles?

And literally referred to as the "Miasma", in the game.

I've played a handful of Final Fantasy games, but never that one. I just like the word miasma. I also liked the idea of running from a mist as opposed to a swarm of zombies. Or having something like monsters, or a desolate wasteland to deal with.

 

[Murdergurl]

I've played a handful of Final Fantasy games, but never that one. I just like the word miasma. I also liked the idea of running from a mist as opposed to a swarm of zombies. Or having something like monsters, or a desolate wasteland to deal with.

The general idea of Crystal Chronicles is that the characters are all villagers, being able to choose from one of 4? (or was it 5?) species. They live in a village that is cut off from the rest of the world because a cataclysmic miasma has settled over the known world. It has seemingly magical (even elemental) properties, and cannot be lived in by the sentient races. However, it has warped all manner of flora and fauna that reside within it. The only thing that allows the characters to travers the miasma, are special crystals that hold the mist back in a sort of magical force field that creates a protective barrier in bubble-like fashion around them. The crystals need special water from these trees found all over the world, and they lose their power if not regularly invigorated by this special water. And that's basically the gist of the plot. The characters need to seek out the treest to get the water, to power the crystals, to keep the mist at bay from consuming their village.

The game came out in 2003 for the Gamecube.

Another tale that has to do with otherworldly mist containing monsters is the novella by Steven King, titled "The Mist" (published in 1980). They made a movie about it in 2007. The movie is very spot on to the short-story. They just embellished the ending so that is wasnt so ambiguous and open-ended as the story. But King has direct input to all the films made off his books. So they are all pretty accurate.

 

[Baphomet]

The general idea of Crystal Chronicles is that the characters are all villagers, being able to choose from one of 4? (or was it 5?) species. They live in a village that is cut off from the rest of the world because a cataclysmic miasma has settled over the known world. It has seemingly magical (even elemental) properties, and cannot be lived in by the sentient races. However, it has warped all manner of flora and fauna that reside within it. The only thing that allows the characters to travers the miasma, are special crystals that hold the mist back in a sort of magical force field that creates a protective barrier in bubble-like fashion around them. The crystals need special water from these trees found all over the world, and they lose their power if not regularly invigorated by this special water. And that's basically the gist of the plot. The characters need to seek out the treest to get the water, to power the crystals, to keep the mist at bay from consuming their village.

The game came out in 2003 for the Gamecube.

Another tale that has to do with otherworldly mist containing monsters is the novella by Steven King, titled "The Mist" (published in 1980). They made a movie about it in 2007. The movie is very spot on to the short-story. They just embellished the ending so that is wasnt so ambiguous and open-ended as the story. But King has direct input to all the films made off his books. So they are all pretty accurate.

Ooh, sounds fancy. I haven't read or seen The Mist. The characters in my RP traverse the "wastelands," though there's plenty of forests and plant life, wearing gas masks. Though, the miasma can get thick enough that the gas masks aren't effective. It can also be absorbed through the skin, though its effect is weak compared to inhalation.

We haven't fully plotted everything out, but we're thinking that perhaps there's some people or groups out there trying to tame the miasma and use if for themselves. Since it has magic enhancing properties. Or to potentially use it to wipe out cities, since it's also lethal with enough exposure.

 

[Murdergurl]

Ooh, sounds fancy. I haven't read or seen The Mist. The characters in my RP traverse the "wastelands," though there's plenty of forests and plant life, wearing gas masks. Though, the miasma can get thick enough that the gas masks aren't effective. It can also be absorbed through the skin, though its effect is weak compared to inhalation.

We haven't fully plotted everything out, but we're thinking that perhaps there's some people or groups out there trying to tame the miasma and use if for themselves. Since it has magic enhancing properties. Or to potentially use it to wipe out cities, since it's also lethal with enough exposure.

Another film that might interest you is Miyazaki's, Naasica: Valley of the Wind. Old school anime from before Miyazaki made Studio Ghibli. What with tthe gas amsks and skin absorption. Though in this case, it was plant spores and such

 

[Baphomet]

Another film that might interest you is Miyazaki's, Naasica: Valley of the Wind. Old school anime from before Miyazaki made Studio Ghibli. What with tthe gas amsks and skin absorption. Though in this case, it was plant spores and such

Wow. I'm impressed with your knowledge of media! I love Studio Ghibli! I haven't seen much, but I love everything I have seen. I'll definitely give it a watch at some point! Thank you for the suggestion!

 

[Murdergurl]

Wow. I'm impressed with your knowledge of media! I love Studio Ghibli! I haven't seen much, but I love everything I have seen. I'll definitely give it a watch at some point! Thank you for the suggestion!

lol. Thanks. To be honest, I can read most people's ideas and usually come up with a couple of movies or books (or video games) that are similar in nature. Well, within certain genres. I'm a big sci-fi buff. But If you wanna get into romance or drama or supernatural/superhero stuff, I'm all thumbs

 

[painpeko]

In lots of fiction, zombies are often just used to mask the true enemy, ourselves.

 

[Scholar Ya]

The build-up and suspense that characters go through as they struggle to survive their hellish world.

 

[arato.]

I personally enjoy environmental apocalypses that are paired with biological scenarios (zombies, birthing crisis, overpopulation, disease, etc). I find that forces of nature are so much scarier because it's literally impossible to fight them. I think my favorite scenario to date would be a second Ice Age, but I also think large scale tectonic shifts and/or volcanic eruptions is such a cool idea. Long time fan of "big meteor hitting the planet" or "moon falling into the planet" too.

 

[Safton]

There's no shortage of zombies, which can be good or bad depending on how I'm feeling at the moment lol. I go through major zombie kicks here and there.

Personally, I wouldn't mind participating in a bleak "realistic" post-collapse RP based on a setting akin to that of The Road, The Postman, etc. where the collapse is brought about by something semi-believable like nuclear war, super-pandemic, ecological disaster, astronomical phenomenon, etc. No need for monsters or an extant threat other than the ever-pervasive threat of starvation, disease, and your fellow human being.

I also participated in a pretty interesting pre-apocalyptic RP on here years ago which lasted all of about one page. Don't remember the details, but the basic premise was that the world was going to end in one year's time due to massive solar flare (or asteroid impact? I can't remember tbh) and it was to follow the characters -- all living in the same flat/tenement building -- as they came to terms with this news and lived out their final days one way or another while society collapsed around them in a panic. Untapped potential there IMO.

For something a little more... out there and less well-defined, one of the young adult series I was addicted to in high school -- and to this day one of my favorites -- had a major plot point of pagan gods and their various fantastical creatures potentially escaping into modern Earth to wreak havoc.