Go back to the Morrow Project Travel Guide index to get to the other regional entries.
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SECTION THREE: The Great Plains (North Dakota, South Dakota,
Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri)
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NORTH DAKOTA
North Dakota is probably as empty and barren today as it was 14,000 years ago. After the nuclear strikes destroyed the communications and power net, local communities were thrown on their own devices. The hearty frontier folk of the state were determined to solve their own problems without outside help and turned away all outsiders. Many of the larger towns out in the open plains are now deserted, the locals having moved to more defensible towns closer to the rivers. The Amerind Nation is now the biggest influence in the state, and North Dakota is generally better for that.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Bismarck, SS-17
Minot AFB (Minuteman complex), 10 SS-18M2
Grand Forks AFB (Minuteman complex), 10 SS-18M2
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Later…
3) WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA
The western half of the state is known as the
"Wildlands", a wilderness of scrub grass and stubby
cottonwoods. Rumors about of this area being a fierce desert of
mutated monsters, poisonous air and scorching heat. The truth is
only slightly less exaggerated. Very few outlaw gangs still prowl
the open prairies as the presence of the Amerind Empire keeps
them constantly on the run and limits their size. Most
settlements are along rivers and contain many Amerinds.
Williston: Located in the extreme northwestern corner of the state, Williston has taken advantage of a few operating oil wells to become the main supplier of heating and lighting oil for much of the Amerind Empire in the state. The population is now nearly 500 Oilers and their dependents. Over the generations, the town has fortified its edges and circled the oil wells with walls and fortifications.
The lost base: About 110 years ago, some Amerind scouts from South Dakota discovered the entrance to a secret underground government base west of Dickinson in the desolate buttes. The base was a medium-sized place dug right into the side of a butte. On the surface there is stands just three fallen-down shacks, the entrance exposed beneath one by years of storms. It was filled with radio equipment and fuel and tons of documents, the two staffers just skeletons killed by unknown hands. They Amerinds stayed here for a time, but eventually the distances from their homes forced them to leave. They took some items, but left what might have been the most valuable--a map of similar bases across the mid-west. The Amerinds still know the location of the base, but haven't been there in several generations.
4) CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA
The ruins of Bismarck: Nuked and crushed into radioactive mush. There are scattered humans in the far suburbs, where it is just possible to have some sort of life, just a family or two so deeply inbred that they are virtually mutants themselves. The Amerinds shun these people and have even been known to hunt them down and kill them as abominations.
Fort Rice: A small settlement of 1,000 Amerinds and whites on the Missouri River, south of the ruins of Bismarck. Trade is conducted on the river, mostly heading south into Amerind lands. The militia is ill-armed, with the odd ancient hunting rifle and bows of varying sizes, but most of them bear nothing more than spears, crude swords, axes and clubs.
Minot and Minot Air Force Base: This former SAC and ICBM base was nuked severely hard during the war and the town is now little more than a seasonal hunters camp.
Willow Lake: In the first few years after the war, there was a rumor going around the border with Canada (and soon the rest of the upper plains) that the rather ordinary waters of the Willow Lake east of Bottineau could wash away the radiation sickness from affected victims. While this was totally untrue, it became a beacon of hope for many people. Trickles of sickly refugees, mostly terminal cases, came into the state to cure themselves beneath the waters. The local Indians of the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation were firmly in control of the area by this time, but being forgiving people, they set aside the northeast shore of the expanding lake as a refuge for these people. Although the growing Amerind Empire officially did not help them in any organized way, many altruistic Indians did what they could to ease their suffering. 150 years later, there is still a community of fishermen and farmers on the northern edge of the lake that carry a hereditary debt to the Indians.
5) EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA
The ruins of Grand Forks: A bandit clan controls the rambling ruins of Grand Forks. They have 25 men, but there are few weapons save some Trade Rifles and a few homemade hand grenades.
Jamestown: This town boasts a population of some 600 farmers who trade their crops to local towns and Amerind settlements. A protective militia has been formed under the guidance of a mysterious band of mercenaries. These mercenaries are just a little too healthy, a little too well-armed have nice white teeth, and use words and phrases no one has heard of in forever, to be wandering mavericks. Some have even suggested that they are from the future, or even the distant past, before the nuclear war…
Finley: Home to 100 people making a living the best they can. The population is a diverse lot---Amerinds, drifters, stragglers from Minnesota and Canada, and loners who couldn't make it on their own anymore.
The ruins of Fargo: Ruined in the war's aftermath, this small city was nearly burnt to the foundations. Now only a small number of traders and farmers live here. The Red River again provides important transportation via barges and small boats.
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SOUTH DAKOTA
A state now dominated by the Amerind Empire, a coalition of Native American tribes. Conditions here are relatively peaceful and people are often prosperous and happy. The Empire keeps outside influences to a minimum, which is usually for the better.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Pierre, SS-19
Black Hills Army Depot, Igloo, SS-19
Ellsworth AFB (Minuteman complex), 10 SS-18M2
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Later…
3) THE AMERIND EMPIRE
In the height of the chaos, the Native Americans in the state--a
large percentage of the population--sought to band together,
first to survive, and then to reclaim what was once theirs. The
first acts of the Indians were to gather together all the tribal
leaders, come up with a plan of action, and then form an armed
expeditionary force. From there, they marched on the local towns
and cities and took them over. Those who resisted the takeover
were shot, those who didn’t resist were left in peace. In
their dealings with the “conquered” peoples of the
area, the norm was a tolerant attitude. Over the decades the
"Amerind Empire" was formed, which included all the
various people of the area. The Amerind Empire is an
“empire” in name only. In reality, it is a loose
confederation of the various tribes and groups that live within
the borders of the Empire. These borders are vague at best. The
Sioux and Lakota are the dominant tribes in the Dakotas, and they
control most of the Empire's land and trade. The Empire extends
west into Montana to the Flathead and Fort Peck tribes (see
Montana) and east to the river borders with Minnesota and Iowa.
In the north they go into North Dakota and to the south into
upper Nebraska, where they but up against the Krell. The Indians
today are mostly concerned with keeping what they have and
growing stronger. They patrol daily the area around their
communities and regulate who comes and goes.
The Amerind Army: There is no "army", just individual tribes forming their own militias and warparties. In times of great emergency, these militias can form a combined army, but this has not been necessary since the last major Krell push a generation ago. Most of the tribal militias have a variety of small arms for hunting and defense, consisting mostly of percussion cap hunting rifles and crude shotguns. They use horses and pack mules extensively.
The state of the Empire: The Amerinds have a technology level similar to that of the early 1800’s--some steam power, percussion cap rifles, cottage industries, etc. The manufacturing facilities are located in a few central villages. Some local whites remained in their towns after the war and their descendants are still there. Since their farming and industry is valuable, they are protected by the Empire. Surprisingly, a lot of Indians have resisted the idea of "going back to the old ways" and stay in their villages on what used to be the reservations. There is great variety in the type of people you will encounter in Amerind lands. These include nomadic hunter/gatherers, nomadic agriculturalists, farmers, and everything in between. Not to mention the Gypsy Truckers, Bikers, Ballooners, etc. that travel through the area trading, often on the eastern spars of the Open Road.
The ruins of Pierre: Ravaged by the nuclear war, Pierre is populated only by mutants and bugs.
Chamberlain: With Pierre nuked, the river town of Chamberlain down river has become the most important settlement in the state. It has become the capitol of the Amerind Empire, the place where all the tribal councils meet and policies are decided. A trade and farming center, as well, Chamberlain has a population of nearly 7,000. Much trade is conducted within the town, and caravans often arrive from other Amerind areas to the west.
Satanists: A small group of Satanists, lead by a powerful Telepath, have set up home in the ruins of an old high school on the northern outskirts of Pierre. They just moved in about a week previously, and are now busy hunting down local farmers. The Head Priest is a hideously ugly man in his late forties, nearly skeletal he is so thin. He is a full Telepath, one of the most powerful of this type you will ever encounter. (Thanks, Chris Van Deelen)
4) WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA
The ruins of Rapid City: Ellsworth Air Force Base near Rapid City was the home of an ICBM complex, blasted with nearly a hundred nukes. That area now is just a vast field of dirt and dust populated by mutated bugs and sickly weeds.
Sturgis: The large town of Sturgis is an Amerind town dominated by the Ogallala tribe. There are some 1,400 people living here now, nearly all of them from this tribe. Bikers still come here once a year in August, continuing a tradition of their forefathers. The celebrations are much more muted, however, and it has become more of a parts swapmeet than anything else.
Deadwood: Deadwood was once a gamblers paradise, dedicated to the big pockets of tourists. The war stopped that industry overnight, and the tourists slowly wandered away from the town over the years. Left were the actual residents of Deadwood, who dug in for the long winters ahead. Today, Deadwood is a thriving community with a solid work force of 550 and plenty of food.
Hot Springs: Home of a small band of five Krell Army deserters who followed their charismatic (and insane) commander far to the north. Their leader is the aged General Fred Groton, one of the dictator Krell's original cadre of leaders and a man born in the twentieth century. During the initial uprising by Krell in the first years after the war, Groton was swayed by Krell's power and promises of glory and joined his movement. He was one of the few people who were frozen along with Krell when he went into his periodic "sleeps". Thus, General Groton has seen the entire rise of the Krell over the last 150 years. They are up here because General Groton was born and raised here before leaving for college in Kansas in 1982. A year ago, he finally snapped mentally after awaking for the eleventh time from cyrosleep. Already growing senile and unstable, it wasn't too long before he gathered up his personal staff and left the Empire. Arriving back in his hometown, he quickly killed most of the few residents off and set up his men. Teetering on the edge of insanity, the General often wanders through the streets, speaking nostalgically about childhood memories. Willy Green, the General's most trusted advisor, is fast becoming the de facto leader of the group. He is totally loyal to the General, having been his aide since birth, but is aware that the old man is fast loosing his mind. What he will do after the General dies is a mystery.
5) THE WONDERS OF THE STATE
South of Rapid City are a cluster of ancient natural wonders and
historical sites.
The Badlands: The Badlands have looked pretty much the same for the last 10,000 years. It is still a wasteland of dry river beds and sandstone rocks. You can easily die in the Badlands and no one would every find your body.
Wind Cave National Park: About 300 Amerinds make their home here presently, including about 60 warriors. They use the cave to perform rituals and to store perishable food in the summer months.
Mount Rushmore: This monument to white presidents, none of them noted for their honorable dealings with the Native Americans, has been defaced with graffiti and bullets over the years. It is largely ignored anymore, though a "spirit quest" is held on top every two years by a local tribe. They would be very surprised to learn that deep within their mountain is a top secret Continuity of Government facility, built during the last major repair job on the monument. Since not a peep has been heard from the facility since the war, knowledge of its existence has completely faded.
Crazy Horse Monument: Following the war, the man who had been working on this sculpture nearly single-handedly decided to stay and finish. For about eighteen years he continued, even when his dynamite ran out and he spent weeks in bed with radiation fever. Two days after he died, he was found by Sioux scouts with a dozen arrows in his back.
6) EASTERN SOUTH DAKOTA
The Lake Traverse Indians: As noted, the Amerind Empire is composed of numerous individual tribes, each with its own territory and government system. In eastern South Dakota, the relatively fertile open plains and valleys are the lands of the Lake Traverse Indians, who have made their homes in this area for 250 years. This is mostly a loose organization of small settlements of Indians, forming a smaller version of the greater Amerind Empire in the region. They are firmly part of the Empire, but they depend more on the other Indians in their tribe than anyone else. The largest settlements in the Traverse territory are Aberdeen, Watertown, Huron, Redfield, and Brookings. The total population of the tribe is now probably 8,000 people total, which includes the population of the five towns and the surrounding area. The tribal council meets at a ranch outside of Aberdeen. The ranch now looks more like an old frontier post, with a fortified perimeter, lookout posts, and stake-filled moat. The current leader is Craig Eight Shots, an old man in his seventies. Taking braves from almost every settlement, they have formed a horse militia to patrol the plains and creeks in their territory. The area is pretty isolated so the militia is content with dealing with the stray marauder and drunken cowboy. This area serves as the eastern border of the Amerind Empire, and is an important buffer zone between it and the whites in Minnesota.
Sioux Falls: Once the largest prewar city in the state and an important trade and transportation hub, Sioux Falls is now a small struggling farming community of 750 Amerinds. With the Krell enclave down river at Sioux City, Iowa, barge traffic along the Big Sioux River is often subject to raids. Were it not for the disruptive and malicious influence of the Krell, this area, with its fertile valleys and good weather, would be instrumental to rebuilding the region. The town is currently protected by local militia forces occupying the former SD State Penitentiary, a large stone fortress overlooking the north side of the city. They are purely defensive in nature and have had limited success against Krell raiding parties. Most of the prewar city has been damaged by time and raids by various groups, but there are a number of reasonably intact sections north of the river which have been fortified. With hostile forces to the south, nearly all commerce is conducted with Amerind Empire to the west and occasionally east with the scattered settlements in Minnesota.
EROS data center: Located 15 miles north of Sioux Falls, this was the primary ground based station for the USGS LANDSAT satellite program. Its current condition is unknown, but certainly looted and in disrepair, if not completely destroyed. If any of it is still standing, however, it could be an important postwar C3 facility for the Morrow Project, especially if any computers or long range electronic communication equipment remains intact.
Pathfinder Nuclear Reactor: This experimental boiling water nuclear reactor was decommissioned in 1967 and was spared a nuclear weapon hit. At the time of the war the facility was in SAFSTOR long-term storage and there was no nuclear fuel stored at the site. As it is located just 5 miles north of Sioux Falls, it has been looted heavily over the last 150 years, and has served as habitation for groups as varied as refugees, bandits, Indians, to the crew of a Canadian Air Force plane that settled in the area in the dark days of the nuclear autumn. Today, a small community of Amerind farmers and grazers live here, many of them mixed race descendants of the Canadian airmen. With its distinctive and ominous cooling towers visible for miles, it is not surprising that rumors and legends have circulated around the region of the potential of reactivating the power plant one day. So far, the facility has not been visited by the Krell warriors from the south, but it is only a matter of time before they do and the locals have planned to fight rather than flee.
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NEBRASKA
Nebraska is now divided in two parts. The western half is a barren dustbowl of snakes and wandering bandits, and the eastern half is controlled by the evil Krell Empire. Most people couldn't tell you for sure which half is worse to live in.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Omaha, SS-16
Lincoln, SS-18M1
Sioux Army Depot, Sidney, SS-19
Offutt AFB, Omaha, SS-17
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Unnamed MP
bolthole: Somewhere in
north-central Nebraska.
Unnamed MP
bolthole: Near the town of McCook
in Red Willow County.
3) EASTERN NEBRASKA
The whole Missouri River valley is under the brutal regime of
Krell, extending westward into the hinterlands. Any people found
in outlying communities will be either Krell sympathizers or
dead. Frequent Krell sweeps for bandits and loot make travel even
on foot through the woods dangerous.
The ruins of Omaha: Five nukes hit the Omaha area, one on the city itself and another four MIRVs on the SAC base to the south. Little remains of the city but the ruins of the far western suburbs and few if any people live here full time. The southern outskirts of the area are patrolled irregularly by Krell soldiers to keep scavengers from bringing irradiated loot down to Krycheck City.
The ruins of Lincoln: Perhaps annoyed by the unrelenting arrogance of the Nebraska football team, the Soviets blitzed Lincoln with a 25 megaton warhead. Nothing now remains for miles but slightly hilly, barren dirt.
"Krychek City": Formerly Nebraska City, a river town south of Omaha, a major Krell settlement, by virtue of the intact Highway 2 bridge across the Mississippi River. This bridge is one of the few in the region capable of supporting heavy loads still, and is of prime importance to the Krell's plans for global domination. The town was renamed Krychek City after Krell General David Krychek, who in 2024 led a daring armored assault against the marauder band that was holding the bridge. It is perhaps apocryphal, but it is said that General Krychek single-handedly killed a hundred marauders with just his sword and pistol. The town has grown large over the last century, on both sides of the river, and now holds some 3,200 people, not counting a heavy garrison of Krell Warriors safeguarding the bridge. A converted farm combine factory is turning out homemade tanks, rifles and explosives in large quantities. Much effort is devoted to farming and many slaves are imported to work in the fields feeding the soldiers. Krychek City is currently trying to construct a modern water treatment plant and is looking for parts as far away as South Dakota. It is hoped that this plant will help with the abysmal health situation, which often kills hundreds a year through cholera and dysentery. Despite the vital importance of this bridge, it should be noted that over three generations of total security in the town have made the security of the bridge quite lax. This is especially the case upriver, where once a flotilla of armed barges assured that nothing could float down to the bridge to attack it. These barges have mostly been moved down river to Kansas, where the main action is.
ICBM silo: Surrounding Lincoln Air Force Base was an Atlas F ICBM complex, now long abandoned, their missiles deactivated in the 1960s. One of the silo complexes was just east of Krychek City and has been refurbished to act as a command center for the local governor, as well as a secure supply depot and redoubt.
The Krell Army of Nebraska: The Krell Army in Nebraska is now some 4,600 men, dispersed in Krychek City and in garrisons stretching north to the enclave at Sioux City, Iowa. For the most part they are armed with newly-made copies of the venerable Springfield rifle, and assorted blade and staff weapons. They have limited support weapons apart from a scattering of bazookas and 4.2 inch mortars. There is a large cavalry element to the Army, and horse patrols can be found ranging far past Highway 81 to the west and deep into Iowa to the east.
4) CENTRAL NEBRASKA
The central part of the state is the buffer zone between the
heavy Krell influence to the east and the nomadic outback to the
west. There are more independent communities, but life is still
tough and often short.
Grand Island: An outpost of the Krell, the furthest west in the state. The local governor is nasty and brutal man named Andrew Simon, a long-time Krell official from Kansas. Simon is currently trying to keep local farm production up to feed the 400 slaves under his control. He is backed by a force of 100 Krell Warriors, who often spend their time killing off the slaves in games of sport.
Broken Bow: In Broken Bow there are a group of survivors who are currently traveling across the state to the presumed safety of South Dakota. They came from Lexington, where they were burned out by marauders during the summer. They are about 160 strong, although about half of those are women and children. They have decided to winter in Broken Bow where they found a running spring. The group has many percussion cap rifles and melee weapons and has ringed their camp with barbed wire and pit trenches, fearful that the gang that attacked them is still out there looking for them.
Lexington: Deserted and burned since the abovementioned marauder attack during the summer. Many charred skeletons are still tied to crosses where they were burned.
Kearny: The mostly rubbled remains of this town are now home to a small nomad clan known as "The Holy Rollers". At one time in the distant past, this was a band of Fundamentalists Baptists who traveled the plains looking for converts. At first, they took voluntary contributions from locals, but soon began to "demand tithes" for their services, whether or not they were asked for. Over time, they lost that faith-based mission and became bandits more than anything. The name stuck, however, but lost its original meaning. The leader changes with the times and whoever is strongest, and the current one is being plotted against by at least five contenders. The gang has at least ten motorized vehicles ranging from motorcycles to an ancient pick-up truck, all gasahol powered. They are armed mostly with old shotguns and melee weapons, with a few percussion cap rifles thrown into the mix.
5) WESTERN NEBRASKA
The fallout from the strikes in Wyoming and Colorado cast a pall
of radioactive ash over the western third of the state, killing
crops and driving people east and south. The death toll and the
displacement were catastrophic and the region has yet to recover.
Much like Kansas and South Dakota, the open highways of the
western plains are the domain of horse-mounted bandits. These
bands are usually very small, as there is nothing here to steal
anymore. Also, many of the people now living in this area are
refugees, escaped slaves and deserters from the Krell Empire in
eastern Nebraska. The people living here are very poor; either
from bandit raids or because they have only recently arrived from
eastern Nebraska with little more then the clothes on their back.
Weapons are primitive; the most modern are some flintlock muskets
owned by new arrivals from the east and these are few and far
between.
North Platte: This town's 200 citizens are currently under the thumb of a racist bandit gang called "The Gorgonites", a white-only rabble led by "General Thomas" that is terrorizing the fringes of the Krell sphere for several years. They have two old Buicks with metal welded on as armor, a few M-14s and a 3.5" bazooka, all stolen from various Krell units they ambushed. They have been executing minorities and the aged, trying to make North Platte a "pure" white community. They often bring their views to area towns, converting at the point of the sword, so to speak. This was the group that burned out Lexington this summer.
Ogallala: A community of some 50 farmers who have long ago walled the town's center in for protection. Many of the people here are converting to a new militant form of Christianity brought to town by a man who calls himself "Jesus of the Road". This man perhaps came from Valentine to the north.
Valentine: Home territory of a quasi-religious cult that has survived the war and the past 150 years with its weird and often violent teachings intact. They are now dedicated to the worship of death and gruesome self-torture, certain that only through symbolically dying themselves can they redeem the world.
6) NORTHWESTERN NEBRASKA
Situation, pre-war: Northwest Nebraska was mostly economically depressed farm country in the late 1980s. Industry was very limited, with agriculture and tourism providing most of the income. Population levels were low but steady and most people led quiet, small-town lives. Chadron, where most of our story takes place, was a bustling little college town in Dawes County.
Situation, the war: Chadron's introduction to the war to end all wars was a series of bright flashes of light on the southern horizon on the night of November 18, 1989. Most people figured they were lightning storms, but they were actually Soviet nuclear warheads smacking into the ICBM silos in southwest Nebraska. They woke up the next morning in Chadron to a total lack of electricity and outside communications.
Situation, post-war: Things were stable until the first bands of refugees started to arrive, coming from all compass directions. With them they brought diseases and desperate violence. There were shootings, there were some vigilante lynchings, and there was a general decline in law and order. The town held on, however, through a combination of location and luck. By the end of the year, the refugees had stopped coming and Chadron was able to concentrate on survival.
Chadron today: 150 years after the war, Chadron is still a farming town. Perhaps a quarter of the town's buildings have fallen into disuse and are no longer fit for habitation. The population has stabilized at some 550 people, nearly equally divided between men and women. The average age is about 29, and there are two dozen people over the age of 60 still in the town. These older people are valued for their experiences and wisdom. In fact, nearly all the leadership of the town are men over the age of 50. Chadron has a trade agreement (maybe a defense pact as well) with a major South Dakota Amerind group across the border in the Pine Ridge Reservation area. Chadron is a provider of some important natural resource that the Indians want. Despite this, Chadron is a dying town. Over the generations of relative isolation, the gene pool has shrunk. The Krell have taken to many young men in the last four years, and the townspeople don’t think they will ever return. With the loss of the young men, the local women have no one to marry and have children with. The situation is approaching critical and something must be done.
Chadron Police: Chadron has a militia of sorts. Perhaps 40 older men serve in the Chadron Police. The Krell's taking of younger men has left the Police a hollow shell in many ways, the strongest and the bravest missing. This is a police force in the pre-war sense of internal law and order, but also serves as an external recon and fighting force. The leaders are usually older policemen with the Chief being one of the town's leaders. In addition, by town decree, all men between the ages of 15 and 50 are required to have yearly training courses in weapons and tactics, given by the police. Equipment is limited to melee weapons and a few score flintlock rifles. The rifles are kept in the town armory. When the Krell come to town, these firearms are taken far out to the countryside and hidden in a special cellar to avoid confiscation. They ride horses on external patrols, but keep to shoe leather when in town. The police force has twenty horses available at any time, with the right to requisition more if needed. In the event of an emergency, perhaps 275 semi-trained men could be called up to protect the town. This would be a last-ditch sort of effort, as there are only enough weapons for about 20 of these men, the rest having to make due with farming implements and crudely made spears.
Crawford: Located 22 miles west of Chadron along the banks of the White River. The citizens of the smaller town of Crawford wisely came to Chadron during the chaos years. Over the generations, many of the original citizens came back to their small town to pick up their lives again. The population has fluctuated widely over the years, depending on the weather and the crops. For many years there were no people here, and in some years there were as many as 50. Today, there are about five families for about 20 total living in the town. The economy of Crawford is dependent on Chadron, with the river serving as a trade route between the two towns. They have no police themselves, but have a few flintlock rifles that are kept for hunting.
Fort Robinson State Historical Site: About six miles west of Crawford is the former frontier US Army post of Fort Robinson. While the place was looted by surrounding towns, the buildings themselves mostly remained intact. Home of a Catholic monastery, part of the larger Wyoming Catholic community (see that state). It is sort of a haven for refugees from the Krell to the east. These monks have some psionic powers, as well as a mysterious ability to heal the wounded and sick. Rumors abound of their power to do much greater things. The waters of the White River are considered holy by the monks and are used for baptisms and cleaning sacred articles. They have made frequent offers of assistance to the people of Chadron, but so far have been rebuffed every time.
The Krell: Once every eighteen months or so, a party of Krell warriors comes to northwest Nebraska. They come to get their quota of loot and take the healthiest young men off to become warriors. They also come to look for weapons, though the town's flintlocks are so crude compared to the weapons possessed by the Krell, they do not have to hide them and have been able to keep them for hunting. Since Chadron is on the very edge of Krell territory, this system has only been in place for the last four years, with a total of six visits in that time. Before that it was decades between Krell visits and most of the younger generation in the town had never even seen a Krell warrior. Almost a century ago, early in the days of the Krell expansion, the citizens of Chadron tried to resist. In response, the Krell killed fifty people in the town square and raped every woman in town. While that incident has become a legend, the collective memory of that has influenced many of the older leaders of the community.
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KANSAS
Kansas is a bastion of Krell power, with the Krell controlling all the eastern cities, including Kansas City. Further west, scattered settlements work the harsh land.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Wichita, SS-17
Kansas City, SS-N-8
Topeka, SS-17
Salina, SS-18M1
McConnell AFB (Titan II Missile Site), 10 SS-18M2
Discretionary nuclear targets:
Fort Riley, SS-17
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Flying Squad FS-1 : Bolthole located somewhere in Kansas,
under a Project farm, under a grain elevator. 12 members, with
three HAAM suits, one CH-47 Chinook, and one Airscout. The
“Shock Troops” of the Project. They have no area of
responsibility and are not required to go out of their way to
further the goals of the Project. Their sole mission is to defeat
threats to the Project. It can be awakened or hailed by any
Morrow team within North America by use of a special distress
beacon. If a team is about to be massacred it can activate its
Emergency Beacon and a call will go out to the Flying Squad. The
team has caches scattered across North America, with at least one
in every state except Hawaii. (Thanks, Colin
Castelli)
Unnamed MP
bolthole : Near the town
of Kinsley in rural south-central Kansas.
Unnamed MP
bolthole : Near the town
of Hutchinson.
3) THE WARRIORS OF KRELL
The middle region of the nation is now under the pressing thumb
of the “Warriors of Krell”, an ultra-expansionist
empire built on the backs of slave workers and oiled with the
blood of their victims. The core of the empire is in eastern
Kansas. The Krell have organized a huge army of warriors to crush
and mangle all who stand in their way. Within a decade or so,
they might challenge the mighty Kentucky Free State for dominance
in North America.
Krell, the man, the myth, the legend: Krell is a mysterious figure. He is known to almost everyone alive as a brutal warlord out to destroy the world. he was also once a dissolute member of the planning staff of the Project, fired for embezzlement and inefficiency. In the first year after the war, he and his followers went on a campaign against the Project which caused the capture or destruction of several Morrow bases. He captured one intact and had himself frozen. He arises every few decades to incite his followers to further expansion. The same followers guard his bunker while he "sleeps". Whatever he used to be, Krell is now a sadistic tyrant who enjoys torturing and killing on a whim. He is, however, also a coward at heart and behind the scenes is ruled by advisors and concubines.
The Krell Army of Kansas: The Krell Army in Kansas is large and effective, organized into "battalions" made up of basic cannon fodder with better-trained sergeants and officers. There are about 8,000 soldiers in the Army of Kansas, of varying degrees of effectiveness. The current overall Commander of the Krell Army forces is General Victor Daison, hand-picked by Krell himself. For the most part the average warrior does not wear uniforms, and there is no standardization of weapons. Weapons range from shotguns to assorted rifles, halberds to pikes and bows. The Krell armament factories are geared up and working daily. They produce fair copies of the WW2 British Sterling SMG, the M1917 Enfield, the BARs, and a .38 caliber revolver. Though the weapons are not of the most precise manufacture, they are adequate for the Krell Army. There are some heavy weapons platoons, mostly with machineguns and mortars (60mm and 81mm). Usually tactics are limited to human wave attacks. Most of the units are foot infantry with a few trucks. Some tanks and armored cars are being introduced.
Krell Heavy Weapons: One of the problems the Warriors of Krell face is a shortage of heavy weapons and armored vehicles in any quantity. The biggest news for the Krell Army is the slow but steady introduction of a tank. For the last ten years they have been producing a limited number of versions of the old M4 Sherman tank. So far they have only made High Explosive rounds for the 75mm guns. They also have some captured Morrow Project weapons, but the majority of these are low on ammunition, and supplies are not as plentiful as Krell would like, one of the big reasons Krell’s forces are striking out to locate and capture MP caches, bases, and boltholes in a search for more supplies. Right after The War, Krell captured a number of National Guard armories and US Army Reserve Centers and Supply Depots. This was often easier then it sounds, as many such installations were under strength during the chaos following the end of the world. Thus, Krell’s forces obtained large stocks of rifles and small arms, along with a good supply of “Obsolete” and “Removed from Service” weapons, such as recoilless rifles and bazookas. With these weapons Krell led his campaign against the Morrow Project; they supplied his army until several MP caches and bases fell into Krell hands. A number of these weapons are still around; the present push by Krell’s forces has led to some heavy fighting, particularly between his advance patrols and a few, scattered Morrow Project Teams. These heavy weapons include various quantities of M20 3.5” Bazookas, M18 57mm Recoilless Rifles, M40A2 106mm Recoilless Rifles, Krell 20mm Anti-Tank Rifles (a weapon produced by the Krell to use captured 20mm ammunition), M30 4.2” Mortars, and homemade Armored Cars (trucks covered in boilerplates).
Way of the Warrior: The Krell do not built, they seize. They do not create, they prey. They are parasites. Where it possible to isolate them from the rest of humanity, they would die out in a generation. They move into an area that lacks any strong force, blow the local strongmen apart, and then re-organize the populace exacting severe taxes in the form of arms, grain, and most importantly, alcohol for their trucks. In exchange for the taxes the locals get no protection, most of their arms taken away (except for muskets and shotguns), and wiped out if the dare complain. The supplies are then sent back to the main Krell base to strengthen the Krell. Additionally, a selected number of young men are impressed into slave labor units back at the Krell bases. When they have served 15 years in back breaking labor, under brutal conditions, and have been thoroughly indoctrinated, they are turned into regular Krell soldiers. Mixed with them are various children taken by the Krell and raised as their own to be totally loyal to Krell and his appointed leaders. This system allows Krell to develop a totally loyal army, and with bonuses for spying on one’s comrades, the system almost always insures total loyalty (Krell has gone so far as to fake the capturing of a unit, selected at random, and then execute via torture anyone who foolishly joins the capturing side). The Krell have a gangster mentality, trusting no one in their own leadership and frequently killing each other off to gain or protect power.
4) EASTERN KANSAS
The Krell control the small urban centers in the area, Manhattan,
Emporia, Ottawa, Topeka, Leavenworth and Lawrence, as well as the
entire Kansas City metro area (Kansas City is covered under the
Missouri listing). Nearly all of Kansas east of Highway 77 is
firmly under their thumb. The southern border is ill-defined, but
extends to Iola and Fort Scott to the south, with tendrils
stretching south to the Oklahoma border. The Krell Empire also
extends east into western Missouri and north across all of
eastern Nebraska and western Iowa (see those states). The total
number of people in eastern Kansas is now about 18,000, many of
them slaves. The general technology level is roughly equal to
late 1800's America and has very little industry except in the
production of farm machinery and weapons. Despite the despotic
rule, the average person in this domain is relatively well-fed
and strangely content. Krell has reopened some schools and
hospitals, restored limited electricity and been aggressive in
keeping farming up. He has, however, enslaved anyone who opposes
him and stages public executions of dissenters almost daily.
Lawrence: One of the towns under Krell control where many of the richer and more powerful now live, and the heavy hand of Krell is not a visible. It is generally known that this is because Lawrence was the home of Krell's favorite (and most manipulative) concubine, and her influence has allowed her to become almost an independent ruler in this town. This woman was born in 1971 and has been with Krell since the beginning. Some twenty years ago, Krell moved his command center to Lawrence, taking over the old University of Kansas library building. Its location on top of a hill in the center of town made it ideal for his purposes. This is where his cryotubes are kept and where he and his staff go into periodic sleep for decades at a time.
Topeka: Topeka should have been radioactive dust. The SS-17 targeted failed to deploy correctly in the upper atmosphere and the four warheads splashed into the Gulf of Mexico far to the south. Despite this, much of Topeka was destroyed in riots and rampages before the Krell arrive to take control. This town is now home to Krell's main armored truck facility, a huge factory of slave laborers and salvaged automotive parts. Production is about one tank every two months and five armored trucks per month.
Fort Riley Military Reservation: Though nuked during the war, this sprawling fort out in the open plains is now a major Krell military base, home to the bulk of the combat troops and much of the heavy weaponry. Abandoned in the nuclear winter due to the lack of food, the base sat empty for decades before the expanding Krell Empire moved in. A large number of hardened underground bunkers, built to store vehicles, equipment and weapons, are still in use as supply depots and grain storage sites. During the brutally hot summer months, the base is virtually empty, the garrison troops send further east to Fort Leavenworth or the Kansas City suburbs.
Fort Leavenworth Military Reservation: This old but vast prison complex was once the personal mansion of Krell, before he moved his base to Lawrence. The fort is still a major Krell base, boasting huge stockpiles of weapons and specialized machinery.
5) THE RESISTANCE
Even an area as heavily controlled as eastern Kansas has a
network of resistance fighters. Unfortunately, for the most part
these rebels have to keep their numbers low and their actions
quick and indirect to survive in this region. The Krell
intelligence service is very diligent at rooting out enemies and
fear of horrible death keeps most locals from even considering
supporting a resistance movement. As such, those that do band
together to fight the Krell domination must do so in near total
secrecy, making it difficult to organize a large body of
supporters. The main cell of rebels are mostly local men and
women, usually older people or young kids chafing at the Krell's
military draft. There are a few disillusioned former Krell, as
well as a scattering of outsiders and mercenaries from states far
away.
Caves: The resistance's main base of operations is within a small network of caves in the Kansas Ozarks in the southeastern corner of the state. The main base is in a well-disguised cave along Sugar Creek in Linn County, far off the Krell's usual patrol routes. It can hold about 100 people if needed, but there are usually just 20-30 there at anytime. There are large stocks of weapons and foodstuffs stored here, as well as looted and stolen hi-tech items.
Supply path: There is a foot trail from the caves east along the winding creek bed to the former Marais Des Cygnes Wildlife Area, now just an overgrown and flooded lowland area. The fish and game to be found in this area help feed the rebels living in the caves, and at any given time several people will be here, fishing and hunting after dark. Once they have a pack load of food, they make the trip back to the caves, traveling one at a time to avoid detection. The sparse population in this area makes it relatively easy to continue this system.
6) CENTRAL KANSAS
Characterized by mostly flat or rolling hill covered with sparse
forests, many small creeks and streams, and a few lakes. Few
people live here because of the Krell, the bad weather and the
high radiation counts. There are a few farms, fisheries, and
small ranches spread about, mostly along the rivers and
year-round creeks. Krell influence over the last fifty years has
forced an increasing number of peaceful settlers to move further
west.
Silo farms: This area was thickly sown with empty and abandoned Atlas E and F ICBM silos of the Forbes and Schilling Air Force Base complexes. The Atlas F silos were located in the towns of Bennington, Abilene, Chapman, Carlton, McPherson, Mitchell, Kannapolis, Wilson, Beverly, Tescott, Glasco, and Minneapolis. The Atlas E Forbes complex silos were located in the towns of Valley Falls, Dover, Waverly, Osage City, Delia, Wamego, Overbrook, Holton, and Bushong. All of these missiles were deactivated and removed in the 1960s and the silos were nearly forgotten. Some of them have been used as safe havens over the years, and several are still occupied today.
The ruins of Salina: A big 25 megaton nuke landed a few miles to the west of here, landing on a barn and crushing a pony before exploding in a three-mile wide fireball of death. The nuke flattened the town of Salina and the fallout forced the surrounding area to the east to be evacuated. Nothing of Salina remains to be seen and towns to the east as far as Abilene are still empty and radioactive. When people slowly started to return to this area fifty years later, they found little value in anything left.
McPherson: The dusty ruins of McPherson are home to the westernmost year-round garrison of Krell soldiers. They have a fortified base on the top of a hill that was just south of what was once McPherson College. A few undiscovered treasures may be still found, but nothing of a military nature, mostly books or other such things that the Krell Warriors have little interest in.
Concordia: This past summer, this small Kansas town resisted an order by the Krell to turn over its last few cows. A company of Warriors descended on the town, tortured and killed everyone, and buried them in a mass grave. Posted signs tell anyone who visits that this is what happens when you resist the Krell.
7) SOUTHERN KANSAS
Death and distress were the bywords for the area after the
nuclear war and 150 years later very few people dare to live here
still. The Krell's frequent foraging raids have forced almost all
the settlers and farmers south and southwest into Oklahoma to
escape certain enslavement or death. There are a huge number of
abandoned farmsteads in this area, and the empty houses are
burned by Krell patrols just out of spite.
Pittsburg: The largest survivor community not under Krell influence is now Pittsburg, a town with a very effective militia that has kept the town free of marauders. Population is several hundred people. The Krell have this town up next on their target list for next spring. Flight is the only survival option.
The ruins of Wichita: The city and the entire area was pounded by over a hundred nuclear warheads, seeking to root out the Titan ICBMs in their silos spread in cornfields around the city. For nearly 30 miles in every direction from Wichita, few living creatures can be found. The massive amount of fallout covered a huge swath of land to the east, poisoning it for hundreds of years, killing all the grass and trees for miles and miles.
Pratt: The present population of this small river town is struggling to survive a local drought. The militia, based in the old police station, has been accused of hoarding food by the citizens. The militia leader and his "officers", many dressed in uniforms modeled on ones found in the police station, have nearly all the firearms in the town and seem to hold all the cards.
Arkansas City: One of the largest survivor communities not under Krell influence. The town's very effective militia has kept the them free of marauders for many years, allowing the people to concentrate on improving food production. Population is now up to several hundred people, double what it was twenty years ago. It is rumored that the Krell have this town up next on their target list and people are scared. Flight is the only survival option, though a vocal minority are pushing to militarize the town and fortify the approaches. They really have little to fear for the immediate future, as the Krell are leery of crossing the radioactive wastelands east of Wichita to get to the area.
8) WESTERN KANSAS
The great western deserts of Kansas, from Highway 281 west to the
border, are just as boring as ever--an endless brown and tan
world of bone-like towns and grain silos. The weather has been
very dry in the western part of the state for several generations
and there are often no living people for many hundreds of miles.
Most of the smaller towns, like Dodge City and Great Bend, have
been long ago deserted and looted, given back to the harsh
environment. The ribbons of highways running across the area are
the domain of a few bandit clans, though their numbers are very
small due to a lack of victims. The Krell's sphere of influence
is patchy this far west, with occasional plunder and slaving
raids moving through the region, but no real organized force
based in the area. This might change in the future as the Krell
continue to grow stronger and turn their eyes to the Rocky
Mountains.
Hays: This small town on the old ribbon of I-70 and the immediate area are currently the home of a slaver clan working for the Krell to the east. They use Hays as a collection point for slaving raids throughout the region. Currently there are some 320 captured men and women in a holding area in the town, waiting for the last few raiding parties to return before a convoy will be organized and sent east.
Wheeler: As the chaos reigned in the 1990s, a wealthy and well-known Wheeler rancher organized his neighbors into a vigilante group to combat the wandering bands of marauders and refugees. They were successful enough that to this day, the descendents of these men still keep the town and much of the open plains around it safe for travel. Not that there is much out in the open prairies to protect, with its sparse patches of sunflowers and occasional devastated farmstead barely breaking the flat expanse of nothing. The "Ranchers", as they have been called for the last century, have a standing force of 40 horsemen, with most everyone in the area pledged to join in if needed. They are undoubtedly destined to get their butts kicked by the Krell sometime in the future, and flight west is their only option.
Liberal: This small town out on the open plains suffered many deaths after the war but managed to keep from falling completely apart. Liberal has since slowly recovered and is now home to around 1,000 people, many of them Oilers. The lure of the numerous natural gas wells in the area have kept people here. Security is provided by the "Dragoons", a 60-man strong militia-type organization. A century ago, the Dragoons went on an extensive plan to collect every operational vehicle it could find in the area and store them in the town. The many state highways and small towns yielded dozens of working cars and trucks, a few of them still capable of driving. Many more were hitched up to horse trains and towed back to Liberal, where they were cannibalized to keep others in service. While few have seen the roads in the last fifty years, there are still about seven working cars garaged in various locations around the town.
Planes of fame: As well, Liberal was home to the Mid-America Air Museum, holding a nice collection of old planes and helicopters in an old Beech aircraft facility. The museum just opened a few years before the war, and the collection was just beginning to arrive. A wildfire in 1990 destroyed several of the planes, but one of the main hangers survived the worst of the chaos. Once things settled down, the remaining staff of the Museum, together with the town's leaders, recognized the incredible value of what they had. The town's two surviving pilots took to the air, flying scouting missions over the region for many years. Eventually, however, the specialized fuel ran out and the planes were put back in the hangars for good. Here they still remain, slightly rusty and faded, but basically airworthy.
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MINNESOTA
The land of a thousand lakes is about 90% empty wild woods, with scattered settlements along the rivers and lake shores. The northern woods and lakes provide wonderful places for wandering hunting/fishing groups. The thick snowfalls keep only the most determined people here year round. A few small coastal communities on Lake Superior are thriving as fishing towns. Large groups of bandits are rare, as there is little left to loot, but dangers come from the bitterly harsh winters and the mutant fauna in the woods.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Minneapolis, SS-17
Saint Paul, SS-N-17
Duluth, SS-17
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Shoreside Support
Facility 1: Support base for the
larger Manned Resupply Base on Isle Royale. Located in Grand
Portage, hidden beneath the ramshackle ruins of "Morrow
Shipping and Storage", a typical pre-war small-time shipping
operation, with two large warehouses, four lines of
rental-storage lockers, some small piers, and the remains of a
helipad. The underground facility is still fully operational,
containing two disassembled fusion-powered LCACs and much heavy
lift equipment to be used by Teams looking to resupply from Isle
Royale. (Thanks, Thomas Kozak)
Recon Team G-23B: Bolthole location unknown. Frozen September 8,
1984, they are one of several teams distributed through the Lake
Superior region.
3) NORTHERN MINNESOTA
The northern woods and lakes provide a wonderful place for
wandering groups of hunting/fishing parties. The area still
receives some lake-effect rains, as well, making agriculture
possible. A few small coastal communities on Lake Superior are
thriving fishing towns.
Pre-War: The region of Minnesota called the Iron Range, from Duluth to the Canadian border, was rich in iron ore and arable land. The rail and road system centered on Duluth and served to transport grain and ore to the port city on Lake Superior. The area was under-industrialized and under-populated. The Range was heavily hit by the recessions of the 1970s and 80s. Several universities and colleges served the Range. Principal among these was the University of Minnesota, Duluth. This school provided courses in medicine, nursing, agriculture, veterinary medicine, and military science (as part of the Air Force ROTC program).
The War: When the bombs fell, Duluth was preparing for the November storms. Many large vessels were preparing to end the shipping season with one last shipment to the seaway. The berths of the commercial docks were filled and pleasure craft were lining up to be pulled from the water. When the warhead struck Duluth Harbor, the Great Lakes merchant fleet was destroyed. In addition to the destruction of the ships, a cubic mile of mud was thrown into the air. This rained down on Northern Wisconsin and the upper peninsula of Michigan. A tidal wave 300-feet tall swept through the basin, scouring the flood plain and leaving an eerie, desolate marsh.
Post-War: In the aftermath of the war, only one out of every ten people survived. Distribution of scarce resources was managed by the officer candidates from UMD. The best organized areas were under the control of the ROTC, who felt it necessary to declare martial law. At first the ROTC remained responsible to the chancellor of UMD and to local military authority. In time, however; they realized that they held real power and refused to be controlled. They took control of the resources and materials of survival, and set the stage for the return of a feudal society.
Terrain and Environment: This region is known for its rugged beauty. The Mesabi Range where the iron is mined continues to Lake Superior. It is not easily crossed without a road. Generally valleys run east to west, though there are some river valleys that snake a course across this terrain. Since the War, the forest has reclaimed the land. The climate has gotten colder since the War. There are some valleys that have snow on the southern slopes until July. The average high in summer is 70 degrees Fahrenheit. There have been sightings of Kodiak and polar bears. In the winter temperatures can drop to -65 degrees Fahrenheit and not rise above 0 for weeks.
People of the Land: In general the society of the area (Duluth, Virginia, and Hibbing) is identical to the feudal baronies of the middle ages. At the bottom of the social structure is the slave. The slave provides energy to do work considered too dangerous for horses or cattle. The slave can expect to be worked until he or she drops, and lacks all rights--even to food. Just above the slave is the serf. The only real difference between the two is that a serf is allowed to protest harsh treatment, if he can find someone to listen. Where a slave belongs to an owner, a serf belongs to the land he farms or the craft shop he operates. Above the serf is the soldier. These are the muscle behind the rulers. Soldiers take what they want, as long as their lord does not want it also. Soldiers are usually the task masters for slaves and press gangs of serfs. At the top of the social order is the ROTC or "Rot-Keys". These are feudal barons who maintain some of the trappings of their more honorable predecessors. They rise through the ranks through the extinction of their superiors, and assassination is not uncommon among the more power-mad. Not all the Rot-Keys are corrupt, but the corrupt are in power and more visible.
Virginia: The supplies for raw iron for the Rot-Keys come from the taconite mines near Virginia. Virginia is an almost deserted town. It serves as a garrison for the mines and a supply depot for the soldiers. About 100 soldiers operate out of the town, half to guard the mines, the other half to protect the town and the route to Duluth. The civilian population numbers 700 serfs, craftsmen, and peasants, and 100 slaves in the mines and serving the garrison.
The Mines: To the west of Virginia, approximately 15km, are the mines operated by the Rot-Keys. The mines are built within a pre-war open pit mine, and use the high wall created for part of the prison. Surrounding the camp is a wooden palisade 12-feet high with one opening to allow traffic in and out. A guard in a shack at the gate screens traffic coming in during the day. The gates are closed and barred a few hours after sunset. Inside the wall there are watch towers. The towers are 10 to 20-feet high, except the two on top of the ridge, which are at ground level.
White Earth Indian Reservation: Generations ago, a Council of Elders met to determine that the tribes living here would take up a nomadic life. They have wandered about northwestern Minnesota and eastern North Dakota ever since, though they return to the reservation every winter to consolidate and raise their cattle.
The "Lanterns": A small band of fishermen and farmers dedicated to doing good in their area, from their home on a small island in Lake Superior. The Lanterns were originally influenced by a cache of ancient comic books called "Justice League". Their leader wears a venerable costume of Green Lantern, hand sewn by the founding father's mother. This costume, complete with cape and mask, has been passed down from leader to leader in an increasingly elaborate ceremony.
International Falls: a relatively prosperous, teeming trade town, its population currently numbers some 700. Of that, 500 live in a "suburb" of newly-built houses across the Rainy River in Fort Francis, Ontario. The river and the nearby Rainy Lake provide ample fish and a great trade route, and the thick forests still provide ample game and nuts. Surprisingly, there is little disease and few have starved over the years. There is running water for two hours every afternoon and public buildings have it all the time. The hospital, schools, and roads are in reasonable repair, and the citizens are happy. Winters are harsh, but houses are well-insulated and people are used to stockpiling food. This might be one of the few places in America that would turn down help from the Project.
Bemidji: Home of a band of local thugs who have recently decided that the Native Indians in the area need to be pushed out, mainly to insure that all crops go to the town and not the nomadic Indians. They now patrol an area roughly 30 square miles, centered on the town. They are armed with a variety of weapons, including bows, percussion cap rifles and homemade swords.
Eagle Mountain Lodge: When the war came, there were few people at the fancy Eagle Mountain Lodge on Minnesota's northeastern peninsula. Some left, others died, but a dozen or so stayed and settled down. Over the decades the population has increased from this mere handful to several hundred, by refugees and by simple procreation. Having been forced to fend for themselves after the war, the savvy trail guides and canoeists carved out a workable if often difficult life in the rugged Superior National Forest. Over the generations, the lodge was expanded and improved, becoming a virtual castle in the woods. A simple democracy evolved, with everyone working together for the common good. Their two main goals are to eat well and to make healthy babies. There is infrequent contact with trappers and hunters from other areas, but not enough to make a difference. Shipmen on the lake have been met, but so far the Lodge hasn't had much to offer them, and vice versa.
Grand Portage: A mostly abandoned city slipping slowly back into Lake Superior, due to erosion and a steadily rising lake level.
4) MAXWELL'S MILITIA
This is the "western seat" of the once-great Maxwell
Empire. See Indiana for a full description of the origins of
Maxwell. The Minnesota branch of the Empire has been independent
for the better part of 125 years, since the breakup of the Empire
following the death of its founder. At one time Maxwell
controlled nearly the entire southern half of the state with a
series of well-placed garrisons and administrative centers. That
was too much infrastructure to sustain long-term, however, and
over the years that territory has shrunk considerably. Today, the
Maxwell sphere of influence is centered around the central
Minnesota town of Brainerd and the nearby Camp Ripley Army
National Guard Training Center.
Brainerd: The region around Brainerd and the Camp (basically all of Crow Wing and Wadena Counties) has a population of about 5,400, with some 1,200 of those serving in Maxwell's Militia. They are the most technically advanced people in the region by far, and have the most secure borders. They have a fair amount of motorized vehicles still operational, but mainly use horse-drawn transport except in emergencies. They have extensive industry in Brainerd, and these products are traded throughout the area for food and grain. They also make dynamite and small arms--shotguns and smoothbore percussion cap rifles mostly. Most of the surrounding towns in a twenty-mile circle have small garrisons, about ten to twenty militiamen, except for Motley, Little Falls and Altkin. Those last three have about 50 men each.
The Camp: Camp Ripley is the prize of the empire. By the time Maxwell arrived here a few years after the war, much of the staff of the camp had wandered off. Left behind were some loyal soldiers who were guarding the camp's well-hidden stockpiles of weapons. After a bloodless standoff, these men and weapons were incorporated in the Militia, boosting the chances that the Minnesota branch would survive. Today, many of these weapons still survive, mostly M-1 Garand training rifles and some M2 heavy machine guns. The camp is where the Militia is quartered and trained.
The Militia: The modern version of the Militia is a powerful organization, more than capable of defending the area and even mounting effective offensive operations. It is, however, rarely needed for either of those activities. Of the some 1,200 men who are members of the militia, only about a quarter are actively on duty at any given time. The rest are farmers and townspeople who keep their uniforms and weapons at home waiting to be called up. The militia consists of ten companies of soldiers, with 100 enlisted and five officers per company. These are grouped into three battalions of three companies each. The extra company is the headquarters company for the militia's leaders.
5) SOUTHERN MINNESOTA
The Twin Cities: The state's lone metro area was nuked by seven blasts, and subsequently burned and abandoned in the chaos. The ruins were left to the dregs. If 400 people are still alive in the entire metropolitan area, then it's a miracle.
The residents: Only the far southeastern suburbs of the city are currently supporting any sort of population. The area around Saint Paul Park along the northern bank of the Mississippi River is currently held by the "Twins", a 150-strong settlement of farmers and fishermen. To their northeast, most of the suburb of Woodbury is home to a Jehovah's Witness enclave, one of the last in the nation. The Jehovah's Witnesses have been active in the city for 200 years and following the chaos of the nuclear war, they were one of the only groups that actually wanted to stay in the blasted city. There are about 100 people living here now, living in the areas around Carver Lake and the Prestwick Country Club. Further north, the suburb of Lake Elmo is loosely held by a tribe of Native American Indians, who moved down here a few generations ago from the northern part of the state. They are just 40 strong and they have all of one single rifle, having forsaken the way of violence for a peaceful way.
The threat: Miles to the south, in the ruined town of Rosemount, are a pack of violent Grunts. These mutants usually just kill each other for fun and hunt rabbits and deer, but lately they have been casting evil gazes at the settlements to their north.
6) SOUTHERN PLAINS
The open, rolling hills south of Interstate 94 are noted for a
scattering of settlements and miles and miles of nothing.
Maxwell’s Militia used to be strong in this part of the
state, but their influence has not been dominant for nearly a
century. Trade and travel are limited, especially during the
harsh winter months when people pretty much hole up in their
homes and make babies. The occasional Krell raiding party can be
found here, but never outside of the summer months, and not for
the last 13 years.
Mankato: Home base of an ultra-fundamentalist Christian sect following a twisted view of their Bible. They suspect everyone who doesn't know every passage of the Bible to be sent from Satan and kill all unbelievers they come across. The leader is called the "Prophet" and he currently has over 290 fanatical followers. They extort the local communities in southern Minnesota out of food and young women. They have numbers on their side and they have outposts all over the area. They are not producing any weapons more sophisticated than pikes, but they do have a gunsmith working to repair the few firearms that they have.
Windom: Home to 850 people, Windom and the surrounding Des Moines River valley are rich in agriculture, and the area feeds much of the surrounding countryside. The nearby County Corrections Facility was transformed into a fort for the local militia. It is now very formidable and would be difficult to take. They have been able to withstand several half-hearted attempts by the "Christians" in Mankato to "cleanse them of their sins."
Morris: This small town on the Pomme de Terre River is home to an unusual community of farmers and hunters called the "Cathays". When the bombs fell in 1989, a group of native Chinese, former students and families who were attending colleges in Minnesota, were meeting in Morris for a kind of group retreat organized by the Chinese Student Association at the University of Minnesota. During the first winter, many left for other places, but most of them, realizing that getting back to either China or even Minneapolis was simply out of the question, stayed here. They and their descendents formed a tight-knit community of traders and farmers, married local girls and boys and tried very hard to maintain their language and heritage. This is one of the very few places in America where nearly everyone speaks Mandarin as well as English. They have contact with Maxwell’s Militia in Brainerd, and several trade caravans a month make the trek over to that enclave.
Granite Falls: This small town is currently the winter home of a group of 5 traveling Emdees and their escorts. They are traveling in a convoy of four specially outfitted vehicles. The vehicles have been armored and armed with guns, which are usually kept out of sight. These Emdees have been traveling around the state for the last two years, offering medical services to the scattered communities. They were trained by descendants of the Army Corpsmen at Camp Riley. So far they have been able to avoid any confrontations out in the hinterlands, as even the bandits need stitching up. They do avoid the Christians of Mankato, however, as they think the Emdees are "witch doctors". Unfortunately, they are planning on traveling down to Marshall this season.
Marshall: Home to a small enclave of Breeders, conducting horrible and inhumane experiments in the old biology labs of Southwest State University here. This group was originally from the main Area 27 Breeder compound in Colorado, but left there nearly many years ago after a philosophical disagreement. They wandered throughout the Midwest, searching for a place to settle down and resume their work. Once the set up shop in Marshall, they continued their experiments on local children, cross-breeding them with mutant strains in an attempt to create a "super-human". The first generation of these hybrids is now reaching maturity, with mixed results. In a strange practice, those experiments which "failed" are not killed, but abandoned out into the local woods to either die or fend for themselves. Most perished quickly, but some are still out there. There are just a handful of "scientists" left here, the group having suffered numerous losses in their time wandering the region. One of these is Essie Harris, great grand daughter of Doctor Judith Harris, who led the group out of Colorado more than a hundred years ago. The scientific equipment is breaking down from a lack of regular maintenance and a lack of spare parts, and only one of the Breeders left has the nuts and bolts knowledge to fix mechanical things. There is only one operational "power source" left, which has to be shared between the machines. This power source is a type of RTG reactor like what runs Project boltholes, developed by the scientists themselves many years ago. If the Emdees from Granite Falls come here, the Breeders will most likely try and kidnap them and force them to help in their experiments.
"Number 32-B": One of the failed genetic hybrids that was released into the wild for not progressing well enough. This eight-year old boy simply called Number 32-B by the scientists has been living in the woods for at least nine months, surviving remarkably well on foraging. He has a few characteristics that set him apart from a normal child, including a long-range sensitivity to emotions and an erratic gift of telepathy. The woods in this area are full of mutant wild dogs, and even a group mutant skunks that have seemed to have congregated together. There are also some people living here and there, nomads who are adept at scavenging and surviving. Number-32B was taken in by one of these families and raised for a few months, given the name Jonah. Soon, however, they tossed him back out because of his "weird powers". Jonah learned enough from his time with the humans to know that he is "different" but also that being alone is no fun.
"Site-T": There is a secret multi-level underground Snakeeater base located somewhere in Camden State Park in the southwestern corner of the state, known as "Site-T".
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IOWA
Iowa today is a mix of rolling farmland and scattered Midwestern-style towns. It was supposed safety in open spaces this that attracted many refugees to the state during the chaos following the nuclear strikes. The local population resisted this invasion, and open warfare soon erupted. Some towns managed to force back the refugees, but in the majority of cases, sheer weight of numbers won the battle. When the refugees did get into the towns, they found that the situation was not as good as they had been led to believe, and more fighting resulted. The winter of 1989 in the Midwest was one of the worst on record, and many of the refugees died of exposure. The next year saw the survivors trying to improve their lot, but numerous marauder bands had sprung up and the state degenerated into chaos again. And then came the Warriors of Krell, rampaging across the plains like Mongol hordes of old. 150 years later, the state is mostly an empty dustbowl littered with abandoned farmsteads, bleached skeletons and horse paths. Only along the rivers are there functioning towns and sizeable populations, some of them quite large and well-defended.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Des Moines, SS-18M1
Iowa Army Ammunition Plant, Burlington, SS-17
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Due to the excessive Krell influence, MP teams in Iowa have so
far had a 0% awakening success rate so far.
3) WESTERN IOWA
As with other states in the Great Plains region, the Warriors of
Krell have slowly and inexorably forced most all the remaining
farmers and townspeople out of this area, leaving huge tracts of
empty land and abandoned farms and settlements. These displaced
persons had to travel long distances, endure hardships and bandit
attacks, to get to places where they were often not welcomed. No
one likes a large refugee column coming into their town, draining
their resources, and gunfights were often the end result of their
treks. The land they left behind is often very productive
agriculturally, it was just too dangerous to live there with the
Krell constantly threatening to pillage and burn them out. The
brutal empire of Krell now firmly controls the Missouri River
bank from Sioux City south to the border; Krell patrols from
Krychek City have been entering the interior of the state for
decades, scooping up slaves and salvage. In Iowa, you will not
find any "peaceful settlements of hard working farmers and
their daughters" anywhere west of Interstate 35. Even east
of that arbitrary line, there are few settlements that do not
exist in a constant state of fear and preparedness in expectation
of a Krell attack.
Sioux City: Fields around the slowly crumbling ruins of Sioux City, and most of western Iowa along the Missouri River, are a fertile area. As such, Sioux City is occupied as the northernmost outpost of Krell influence. A large expedition is currently forming here, preparing for a spring-time move across the Mississippi River into Illinois for some good ole' fashioned looting and plundering. This army is composed of approximately 3,000 men, supported by some armored pick-up trucks.
The ruins of Des Moines: Hit by a large nuclear warhead, Des Moines died in an orgy of heat, fire, and death. There is little of value left here anymore, and most wise travelers steer clear of the ruins.
Ames: This small city's story is typical of hundreds across the natio. Ravaged by riots and refugees in the aftermath of the chaos, the population battled to the death with desperate and starving outsiders. With no will or way to fight out of control fires, thousands of buildings were destroyed and neglect has brought down many more over the last 150 years. Wind-blown dust is knee-high in some areas, broken bits of glass lay under every window, and the rusted hulks of cars clog the avenues. Packs of feral dogs and abnormally large and aggressive cats now prowl the alleys, far outnumbering the 30 to 50 people still alive in Ames today.
Mason City: Home of a small Inquisitor enclave, based out of an old church in this small town along the Winnebago River. These are self-styled do-gooders out to purge mankind of his sins, using the Spanish inquisition as their role-model. They will kill and torture in the name of their god, though at times it seems they do it just for pure sadism. They have some hidden pre-war technology, but mainly travel around on horseback. They are mostly armed with simple blunt and edged weapons, but have some firearms. Their cruelty has appealed to the Krell, who have visited Mason City numerous times and have let them be. Year after year, there are fewer and fewer people for them to “purge of their sins”, forcing them to travel great distances to find the repentant. The Krell have occasionally helped in this, dropping off sinners on their way back from raiding expeditions into Minnesota and Illinois. (Thanks, Chris Van Deelen)
4) NORTHEASTERN IOWA
The far corner of the state has survived better than any other
area of Iowa. The terrain is more hilly and there are more local
streams to keep agriculture up. The Krell have been through this
area before, but the locals have usually managed to hide enough
of their treasures and women in the hills to sustain a reasonable
life.
Decorah: In this small former college town, nestled into the valley of the Upper Iowa River, a very unique society has developed. Amongst the refugees that came to the town following the nuclear war was a former History professor from the University of Minnesota, a world renowned expert on ancient Greece. Within a short period of time he had influenced the town's civic leaders to adopt a Spartan-style militia to keep out bandits and to keep morale high. Over the generations, this Spartan lifestyle has become part of the everyday life of the town, and has created sharply divided classes of warriors and citizens. Today, out of a total town population of 975, some 225 men serve in the militia, mostly part-time, and they drill and train weekly. They have some old, well-maintained M-16s and one hand grenade, but mostly they use flintlock muskets and crossbows. Ammunition for the M-16’s is limited (about 100 rounds) and the M-16s are only used if the town itself comes under attack. Twice in the last 80 years the Krell have ventured to this town. The first time they killed a few young men and ran off with a few cows. The second time, however, they were ambushed and slaughtered by the militia. The townspeople wisely hauled the dead on horse-drawn sleds south for nearly fifty miles before depositing them around an abandoned town. The Krell, generally not being the brightest people, bought the deception and didn't come to Decorah looking for revenge.
5) SOUTHEASTERN IOWA
Over the decades of droughts and dwindling water tables, much of
southeastern Iowa has withered away into almost nothing, leaving
only dry empty ruins of farming towns and bleached skeletons of
unlucky travelers. The larger towns in the region, from Cedar
Rapids and Iowa City in the north, to Mount Pleasant and Ottumwa
in the south, are all virtually deserted. There might be 20
inhabitants in each of the larger towns, subsisting on
scavenging. In closer to the Mississippi River, where limited
irrigation is possible, there are a number of operating
communities.
Clinton: The 350 helpless people living here are now controlled by a slaver gang led by a man named "Chicago Slim". Slim's business is women and guns, valuable products throughout all of human history. Having come here two years ago from Illinois, he has made Clinton his personal playground. He has expanded and reinforced a low wall around parts of the downtown area that the locals had started and the highway approaches are now controlled by roadblocks. Just this fall, there was a schism in the gang, with a group of twenty or so slavers under Jimmy Bob Murphy splitting off and moving northwest to the Maquoketa Caves State Park. Here they have built a stockade out of an old Park Rangers office and are planning on attacking Clinton next spring to get revenge on Slim. The residents of the town are hoping that any fight will provide them with an opportunity to free themselves.
Muscatine: A small enclave of security, home to a well-organized community of farmers and canoe traders on the bank of the Mississippi River. The town is surrounded by old walls of wood reinforced with metal plate, razor wire, and even the odd homemade landmine or two to keep out marauders. While this wall was mostly built a hundred years ago, it has been maintained by the current residents and is quite formidable. They are 150 people in the town, and most adults are armed with weapons of some sort, including a few rifles. They have a number of dairy cows, some small industry making farm implements and watercraft and are determined to hold onto their homes in spite of the odds.
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MISSOURI
For over a century now, Missouri has been a buffer zone between the brutal Krell Empire to the west and the only less so brutal Kentucky Free State to the east. As such, the Show Me State has seen a lot of conflict and a lot of confusion. Currently, the state is in a 5-year lull in overt aggression by either side, allowing the communities caught in the middle a chance to regroup and rebuild. Even in the midst of all this danger, there are a number of communities that have grown steadily stronger, brought together by the enemies on either side.
1) NUCLEAR TARGETS
Kansas City, SS-N-17
St. Louis, SS-N-17
Jefferson City, SS-17
Lake City Ammunition Plant, SS-17
Whiteman AFB (Minuteman Base), Warrensburg, 10 SS-18M2
Discretionary nuclear target:
Fort Leonard Wood, SS-19
2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS
Omega Base: Location unknown, but somewhere in southern
Missouri. Research Center and Stockpile of advanced weapons.
CT-9 Combined
Recon\MARS: Bolthole location
unknown. 14 members, with one Commando V-150 with 20mm, one
Commando V-350, one Humvee with Mark 19 AGL, and one FAV with
TOW/M60 MG.
Mars Force MO-1: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
central Missouri. 10 members, with one Commando V-350, one
Commando Scout, and one Fire Support Humvee.
MARS team M-11S: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
south-central Missouri.
Recon Team H-9: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
southern Missouri. 6 members, with one Commando V-150 Mortar
Carrier and one Commando Scout.
Recon Team MO-1: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
southern Missouri. 5 members, with one Troop Carrier Humvee. Team
also has a Pathfinder assigned to it, who is authorized to
conduct sole missions on his own discretion.
Recon Team MO-3: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
central Missouri. 4 members, with one Commando V-150 with 20mm.
Recon Team MO-4: Bolthole location unknown, but somewhere in
southern Missouri. 4 members with one Commando V-150 with 20mm.
Science Team MO-2:
Bolthole location unknown, but
somewhere in central Missouri. 10 members with two Commando
Rangers with M2HB .50 cal.
Unnamed MP
bolthole: 12 miles south of
Lebanon in central Missouri.
Unnamed MP
bolthole: In a cave or a mine
near the town of Cameron, northeast of Kansas City.
Unnamed MP
bolthole: Somewhere in the Saint
Francis Mountains between Saint Louis and New Madrid.
Unnamed MP
bolthole: Near the back service
entrance to Worlds of Fun Amusement Park in the northeast suburbs
of Kansas City.
3) SAINT LOUIS
Situation, pre-war: Saint Louis was a bustling river city, full of industry and commerce, the Gateway to the West.
Situation, the war: The northern half of the city was nuked by three SS-N-17 low-air bursts in 1989. The triple blasts destroyed a wide swath of industrial and residential property, Lambert Airport and thousands of commuters on I-70. Every man-made structure with a six or seven-mile wide triangle was instantly disintegrated by the blast waves or the hurricane firestorms. One of the MIRV warheads dropped squarely in the Mississippi. Besides generating a glowing rain to the east, the blast sent a wall of water down the river destroying everything as far south as Chester. 150 years later, this northern wedge of the city is still highly radioactive.
Situation, today: Saint Louis is a study in desolation and ruin. 150 harsh winters and hot summers, general neglect and out of control wild fire, along with assorted vandals and scavengers have turned this once beautiful river city into a wasteland.
Downtown: This area has suffered some of the worst deterioration. The roof of the baseball stadium collapsed a century ago, City Hall looks like it was hit with a giant spatula. Most of the older brick and wood buildings have collapsed into rubble, leaving just a handful of the more modern concrete towers still standing. The Gateway Arch was blown into the Mississippi River by the blast wave and now sticks up like a giant, twisted rusting pretzel. Boaters on the river have to be careful not to hit it, and are helped by bouys anchored to the remains. The zoo was emptied after the war and there are still a number of species of exotic wild animals to be found in the city's ruins, though few carnivores. There are very few independent, peaceful people in the downtown area; most of the residents are thugs and scavenger clans who delight in hunting and killing each other as much as finding loot.
Suburbs: The southern suburban quarter of the city is now the only part supporting any sort of population. Many neighborhoods were burnt completely, but enough housing survives to form small enclaves were people are protected from the elements and predators. Along the banks of the Mississippi River are some of the more active settlements.
Jefferson: "Jefferson" is a community of river traders and technology-collectors whose world revolves around the ownership, use and protection of the remains of the Jefferson Barracks Bridge, the only Saint Louis bridge across the Mississippi River still standing. While damaged enough by the lack of maintenance to preclude its use by heavier vehicles, it is strong enough to support horse and foot traffic, along with the occasional Gypsy Trucker. There are about 625 people here. Most of the men of age serve in a militia unit that has kept the scavenger clans away from the bridge for generations. They have a small quantity of old military weapons, all of them hand-me-downs from the Missouri National Guard's 35th Engineer Brigade, which was based in the city before the war. They trade up and down the river for things they need and have farmed the Jefferson Barracks Park and several small plots across the river in Illinois. The Park is now just open scrub land tilled and planted, bordered on the northern edge by a dead zone of burned and collapsed residential buildings.
Other groups: Other than the isolated scavenger groups, there are three notable groups of people who are currently vying for control of the rest of ruined city. The largest is a bandit clan called the "Road Scorpions", a 300-strong gang that controls the area around the ruins of the St. Louis Galleria in Clayton. The second is a growing population of Maggots based in the ruins of Union Station and the tram tunnels beneath. There are an unknown number of Maggots, but at times it seems like there are millions of them down there. The last is a smallish but well-organized slaver clan who is based out of the old campus of Webster University in Webster Groves. There are just 40 members of this enclave, but they are by far the best armed and most cunning of all the Saint Louis residents. This group is the biggest threat to the Jefferson settlement, as the slavers often capture stray townspeople and sell them to middleman operating for the KFS.
4) KANSAS CITY
The war: During the terrible nuclear exchanges, an SS-N-8 popped over Kansas City, Kansas, followed by two more missiles on the Missouri side of the city. The Kansas missile impacted nearly on top of the Interstate 635 bridge across the Missouri River. The blast generated only about 100 kilotons, far less than designed due to a design flaw in the warhead, but still wiped out about a quarter of the metropolis. The Missouri side was pummeled by seven MIRV warheads which pulverized about three-fourths of the total metropolitan area. Around seven hundred thousand people were dead by night's end. Thanks to a strong storm front and the prevailing winds that day, most of the fallout from the strikes was carried northeast away from the relatively unscathed southwestern suburbs.
The Warriors of Krell: Kansas City is the largest urban city that is controlled by the Warriors of Krell, though there is not much left of it to really brag about. The southwestern suburbs, Olathe, Shawnee, Lenexa and Overland Park, are the only areas populated now. Along with a considerable number of administrators, slavers and tax collectors, the city houses a large army of Warriors. The number of Warriors in the city range from about 1,000 to 6,000 or more depending on the season and what raiding expeditions are in operation. When all the Warriors are in town, it can be a dangerous and violent place.
Training grounds: The southcentral areas formerly known as Raytown and Grandview were never the nicest places to live even before the war. For many decades now, this area of shattered houses and charred radioactive rubble has served as a training ground of sorts for the Krell soldiers. The rugged territory offers training in urban warfare and stealth for special units, skills not often associated with the rank and file Krell army. Often slaves or other undesirables are let loose in the area, and squads of elite Warriors compete to see who can find and kill them first. In years past, even captured Morrow Project personnel were killed this way, before the Krell leadership realized how valuable they were alive.
Swamp: The fizzled nuke over the Kansas side blocked the Missouri River off completely with rubble. The river flowed southeast through low-lying areas of the blasted city. Today, everything east of about 27th Street is still a swampy bog, flooded every spring. There are numerous mutant fish and reptiles supposedly living in this swamp, the high radiation count of the water causing them to grow to frightful numbers.
Mystery: In the northern suburb of Gladstone are the remains of a Nike-Hercules missile battery. There are rumors that the underground missile magazine at the base hides an intact nuclear warhead. It is buried under tons of rubble at the moment, and the Krell leadership has yet to try and dig it out. Perhaps they know something others do not.
5) NORTHERN MISSOURI
Between the two Kansas City and Saint Louis was once a land of
open farmland and rolling fields of corn and wheat. 150 years of
refugee rampages, disease, fallout and brutal droughts have
severely depopulated the area. Current populations of the
scattered survivor enclaves range from just a handful, like in
Trenton and Princeton, to over a hundred in Kirksville. Entire
counties west of Highway 65 have virtually zero population during
the periodic Krell raids. As the Krell begin to assert themselves
more and more in Missouri, even these scattered folks will be
pushed east or killed off. The city of Columbia, midway between
the two cities, is the lone fortress of safety in the state.
Columbia: The rebuilt town of Columbia is a struggling settlement living under the constant fear of the Krell to the west. Despite sitting at the intersection of several major strategic roads, trade is minimal as there are just not that many areas nearby to trade with anymore. The population has remained constant at around 3,000 as people coming in from the west and north replace those leaving for the east and south. Columbia is fed by farms to the north and northeast near Mexico and Moberly. Frequent armed convoys carrying laborers and food can be found on the roads between the three towns.
The Tigers: The Columbia area is protected by the "Tiger Battalion", a descendent of the city's National Guard garrison. The Tigers now have 280 full-time soldiers and, while short on modern weaponry, they boast a number of repaired machineguns. Last-ditch security is provided by four part-time locally-raised "Emergency Companies" that can be raised from the area population. These are farmers and townies who train just a few weeks out of the year and all their equipment and weapons are kept in a central armory. Not once in the last fifty years has the city had to call up these Emergency Companies, a testament to the effectiveness of the Tiger Battalion. The Mayor's mansion is in Jesse Hall on the University of Missouri campus, which is also home of the Battalion's HQ. Barbwire and pit trenches encircle the whole area, known as the "Red campus" for its historic red brick buildings. Watchtowers and sentry posts, some with searchlights and others with riflemen, are at regular intervals around the perimeter. A single US Army 75mm howitzer, still operational despite being 170 years old, is kept here along with seven homemade armored wagons that can be moved by horse trains to prepared positions.
Against the Krell: Pressure from the Krell is mounting slowly on Columbia, thanks to the seemingly inexhaustible supply of Krell Warriors and guns. Two separate Krell columns have been beaten back in the last fifteen years, both of them ambushed on I-70 and crushed by the Tigers. The Krell forces in Kansas City are planning a better way to get to the city. The western frontier has been well-scouted by troops from Columbia, and they have long ago made sure all the river bridges along I-70, US-54 and US-24 were blown. Nothing can be done, however, about the wide open plains to the north of the city.
Pack your bags: Knowing that time is not on their side, Columbia's current leadership is exploring options to move the entire population northeast to a more-defensible location across the Mississippi River. They have scouts in the Hannibal area, and across the river at Quincy. One can only imagine the logistical nightmare that would result from such a large-scale move.
Hannibal: Typical of survivor communities on the eastern edges of the state along the banks of the Mississippi River. They survive by hunting the woods and sporadic trade with other towns. They have been known to waylay travelers and ship traffic on the river and raid surrounding villages when food is short and have as such garnered a reputation as a dangerous place for strangers to visit. This might change in a hurry if Columbia decides to come here.
Whiteman Air Force Base: Nuked out of existence, an area to be avoided at all costs.
Saint Joseph: Once a fair sized town, now strikingly devoid of human life except for a few stragglers combing the ruins for salvageable materials. It is fully within the Krell Empire lands and as such is particularly devastated, with nearly everything that can be pulled up taken away or burned down. A sizeable Krell Army unit is barracked just north of the ruins, preparing at the moment for a spring raiding expedition into northern Missouri.
Unionville: Holed up in the old high school campus here is a group of more than a hundred wandering nomads, most from Nebraska, who recently fled the Krell. They are planning a move further east in a few weeks.
6) SOUTHERN MISSOURI
The rugged mountains and valleys of the southern half of the
state are known today for a well-armed local populace and
beautiful scenery. Hiding in the forests are groups ranging from
rural moonshiners and dope farmers to slave camps and cult
religions (such as snake-handlers and tree-worshipping
Satanists).
Mark Twain National Forest: With clear-running streams and plentiful game, there are many settlements scattered through the forest, most of them doing quite well without venturing too far out of their forest.
The ruins of Jefferson City: Nuked hard during the war, the small city of Jefferson City was nearly obliterated. A wicked bout of typhoid swept through the hill country south and west of Jefferson City this past summer, taking away many of the people who had returned to the area generations ago. Few people choose to come to this area anymore.
Rolla: Despite the relative lack of outside influences, this town of 450 farmers and merchants is slowly collapsing in upon itself. The town is currently ruled by the "Town Council" which is lead by the "Grand Mayor", himself answering to his addiction to cross dressing. Every one of the town officials is corrupt and easily swayed by women and alcohol, making any effective governing difficult. Fueled by the Council's inflated views of their place in the universe, the citizens view themselves as the eventual rulers of America and daily plan their conquest of the "savage lands". When the Council makes laws, they apply them to all of North America even though the rest of North America might not be aware of this. Their militia armory contains mostly bows and shotguns, and infighting amongst the two militia co-leaders has left it a paper tiger. Any strong move by any enemy would crush the town.
Mystery: The research nuclear reactor at the University of Missouri at Rolla was contracted by Morrow Industries to study ways of refining RTG cells. On the night of the war, six visiting representatives of MI were seen fleeing west (oddly towards the nuked Fort Wood) in a van. The van was found a month later by a scouting party from the town, abandoned outside the entrance to a small cave off I-44. The van was intact, without signs of violence, and even had a half tank of gas. It was driven back to Rolla where it was used by a number of people for nearly 20 years before the axle broke.
Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation: Despite being nuked, this large, multi-county engineering base did not die. The surviving soldiers rallied together and survived for a year after the nuclear strikes on stockpiles assembled at the base. By then they had a strong agriculture base, supplemented by hunting with the ample firearms available to them. Once the food situation was solved, they turned to matters of security. They rounded up a number of howitzers and mortars and a huge stockpile of shells for them, and positioned them to cover all avenues of approach to the enclave. They also dug in a number of tanks and turned them into pillboxes. For the first few decades, the post was in constant danger of being taken by various warlords and marauder armies, but some brilliant use of artillery and prepared ambush positions, as well as some fast talking, has kept the base secure. 150 years later, Fort Wood exists as a power in the region. Over the generations, they lost their military identity, but have remained a strong cohesive community. Trade is conducted over a large area, taking advantage of I-44. The territory that they actively patrol and commerce with extends from the ruins of Jefferson City south to nearly the Arkansas border, and from Springfield in the west to Rolla in the east. The people of the Fort work hard to keep their town in good shape--vandalizing carries a stiff fine with a possible year in a labor camp. Fort Wood specializes in medicine, and doctors trained here are in high demand. Located in the less-developed area of the Fort is a poorer section that is kept hidden to most visitors, in it contains almost anything money can buy. The Krell to the west are aware of the strength of the fort, and it is only a matter of time before they come for their artillery.
Bolivar: This small town's center is surrounded by a high wall of earth and junked cars, and the 200 xenophobic locals greet strangers with hostility (if not outright gunfire), a byproduct of Krell raids and bad memories of worse times. They will tolerate only a few merchants, those from neighboring counties only, and even these are not welcomed warmly.
Springfield: Though still home to some 600 survivors, civic organization is severely lacking, and a crazy (literally) strongman has taken power recently. He has began issuing orders that make no sense, like demanding that everyone wash only their left hands, or nobody is allowed to wear anything yellow on Tuesdays. As his devoted followers have all the guns, the people have little choice but to comply. Some small bands of people have splintered off, and there has been some fighting between them and the strongman's troops.
Branson: Thanks to the nearby theme park Silver Dollar City, the residents here were ideally suited to survive in an ago of no electricity or modern conveniences. The many low-tech, easy to learn skills and technologies at the park were soon found to be the most efficient way to maintain a standard of living. As such, a healthy, if small, population has existed here for the last 150 years. Contact has recently been established with the Frozen Chosen in Arkansas, and an agreement of trade is in the works.
Ava: The latest incarnation of the Aryan Brotherhood is around the Ava area, deep in the backwoods of Douglas County. This group is very dangerous and will pose one hell of a threat to the Project's goal of rebuilding the nation. They tend to wear all-white sheets, and they have a swastika tattooed somewhere on their body or they wear it on an arm band. There is currently a large community of some 275 followers here, armed with everything from melee weapons to firearms. They mostly use horses but have a managed to keep a few patchwork automobiles running. Having heard of the crazy madman in Springfield, the current leader is thinking about leading his men on a large raid of that city. His plan is to take as many women and guns as he can, taking advantage of the city's troubles. There are some in the Ava camp, however, who fear that this might be a mistake and the weakness of the Springfield forces have been exaggerated.
7) THE BOOT HEEL
This swampy patch of land was severely depopulated by disease and
refugee migrations after the war and has never really recovered.
There are a few towns, but most people live in small family units
scattered through the hills and creek valleys.
Poplar Bluff: Home to a group of farmers and townspeople numbering near 350, known locally as the “Bluffers". They have a number of repaired farm trucks and make their own alcohol fuel. They run a small trade bazaar on the grounds of the local community college that brings in the hill folk several times a year.
Campbell: Run by a local autocratic force calling itself the "True Path". Their leader, known simply as the "Prophet", has organized the town into one large labor camp for his own purposes. His troops number about 30, which is easily enough to control the 100 or so citizens.
Mingo National Wildlife Reserve: Home to 5 thugs who are terrorizing the area on horseback. The gang was founded a year ago by a man named Lee Richardson, a former snake-oil salesman from Arkansas. Richardson saw a shooting star one night and in a haze of dope and woodgrain alcohol, interpreted it as a sign from God that he was destined to rule the nation. So far he has managed to rule a two-story farmhouse and a barn…
Caruthersville: An island of safety and an active river trading town on the banks of the Mississippi River. There are close to 500 people here now and they are living quite well on trade with communities further down the river.