Under An Atomic Sky - Wk. 2

Howdy Skrappers! I just wanted to share a recap of the hexes I posted on Bluesky this week! In addition to that, I also learned that my original goal of 800 filled hexes in a 1,200 hex map may have been too ambitious, so I think I’ll be downsizing the number of filled spaces quite a bit. After all, a common trope in post-apocalyptic fiction is just how fuggin’ empty the world is after 99% of humanity is wiped out.

Anyway, here’s the roundup of hexes from Week 2. Spoiler alert: We got cannibals!

[#2234] The Holy Crater (R.E.Z.)

A 30 ft.-wide crater in the middle of a forest clearing (or, more likely, the creator of said clearing!). In the heart of the crater is the mostly-intact remains of a nuclear bomb that failed to properly detonate, although the casing cracked, allowing nuclear waste to seep out and fill the bottom of the crater with a glowing green substance. At night the faint green glow can be seen through the surrounding trees.

A small shack (clearly post-Blast) sits at the treeline and serves as the “base” for 2d4 Bomb Kultists. Led by High Detonator Alfred (absent-minded, friendly, brilliant), the Kultists have been tasked with using this waste to create dirty bombs for use in their war against the Worm Kult. The Bomb Kultists don’t mind visitors, provided they aren’t filthy, heretical Worm Kultists and will happily provide tours of their base and pontificate endlessly about their faith.

On occasion, a Bomb Kultist can be found bathing in the waste at the bottom of the crater, seemingly to no ill effect. If a Skrapper bathes in or drinks the waste, they must make a Guts Test. Failure results in reducing a random ability by 2 points (min. 1) and taking 1d6 radiation damage while success causes them to reduce a random ability by 1 point (min. 1) and roll a random Mutation.

[#0230] Catyote Den

No one but the most skilled tracker would even notice the faint tracks leading through the hills to this hidden den. The entrance is small, forcing a normal-sized human or mutant to crawl inside. The interior consists of one chamber where the catyotes live. 1d4 catyotes can be found inside sleeping or resting while another 1d8 catyotes prowl the hills surrounding the den - quickly rushing to defend their home if they hear any disturbances.

A picked-clean humanoid skeleton can be found in the den next to a foldable bicycle (Ud8). The skeleton carries a messenger bag with a Wasteland Express patch emblazoned on it. Inside is a 4-pack of MEGATHIRST™ Sports Drink (Ud4, Skrapper’s Handbook), a canteen (Ud6, filled with a Ud4 of non-potable water), and a claw hammer (d6, Ud6).

[#0630] Roadside Garage

Just off the highway exit is an old, independent garage (or at least you don’t see any notable pre-Blast logos plastered all over the place). The windows are boarded up and the doors are barricaded with heavy shelves and metal containers. A thick chain only allows the garage door to be opened a few inches, but if it can be cut access to the interior is granted.

A rusted jalopy sits on an elevated lift. Most of the car has long since deteriorated beyond usefulness, although the steering rack is remarkably pristine. Curiously, a handwritten note reading “#16 - J.C. Kemp” is attached to the rack with a piece of wire. Inside the car are 1d4 sleeping Squeezebags which awaken and attack if disturbed.

The rest of the garage is a veritable trove of mechanic’s tools and scrap metal - exceedingly valuable to the right buyer! Unfortunately the building itself isn’t as sturdy as it used to be.  Too much movement or noise and the entire thing will come collapsing down on itself, potentially burying would-be looters.

[#1515] Monastery of the Order of St. Browning

An ancient set of cloistered buildings tucked away in the mountains immediately north of the Big Salt Lake. A small order of monks and nuns toils away here night and day crafting some of the finest firearms in the wasteland. They freely deal with individuals and are more than happy to sell someone a single firearm. Under the orders of their leader, Abbess Francine Carbine (stern, compassionate, studious), they will not deal with larger organizations or factions, much to the chagrin of groups like the Water Merchant's Union and the Flatliners Mercenary Company.

Founded shortly after the Blast, the brothers and sisters of the Order of St. Browning are an isolationist sect who believe that crafting and creation is a celebration of God's divinity. Why they chose firearms is anyone's guess, but nearby wastelanders certainly aren't complaining. Their weapons are of the highest quality and are often made-to-order (St. Browning firearms cost 50% more, but has a Usage Die one size higher than normal - maximum Ud12 - and deals an additional point of damage).

The monastery itself is a veritable fortress, with the stone buildings surrounded by a thick wall guarded at all hours by well-armed and trained followers of St. Browning. A single reinforced gate bars the way into the monastery and an escape tunnel in the main chapel (hidden beneath the altar) connects to a hidden doorway at the base of the mountain in case the monks and nuns would ever need to escape.

Raw materials are running low at the monastery and Abbess Francine is willing to handsomely reward anyone who can provide a fresh supply of iron or lead. There used to be an old iron mine nearby (Hex #1917), there might be some ore or ingots laying around.

[#2837] Grubb Family Farm

A modest piece of farmland that serves as home to the Grubb Family.  Led by its patriarch and matriarch Vernon and Lundy Grubb (overbearing, crafty, wicked), this large brood is known throughout Quitter’s Respite for their… peculiarities (they eat people) and their seemingly unending number of brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

The farm itself boasts three buildings: a massive Colonial-era farmhouse with rooms to spare, a large barn (iconic red paint barely hanging on), and a creepy shed. A half-dozen poorly maintained fields grow stunted produce while oinkers (pigs) and billy-caps (goats) wander aimlessly about the property consuming anything remotely edible. During the day, 2d8 Grubb Family Members can be found at the farm toiling in the fields or taking care of the livestock. At night, 3d6 Members and their 2d12 Bloodhounds return from their wasteland hunts to rejoin the family for food, drink, song, and dance.

The farmhouse has long-since been worn down by years of neglect - the Grubbs only do enough maintenance to keep the walls erect and the ceiling over their head. The first floor is comprised mainly of a foyer, dining room, kitchen, and a living room while the second and third floors consist of winding corridors and narrow staircases connecting a myriad of filthy rooms. The attic is packed with the discarded knick knacks and tchotchkes of countless generations, although buried beneath the piles of useless junk is a mini-nuke launcher (d12 radiation, Ud6, relic).

The house’s basement is little more than a dirt floor and limestone walls with rusted hooks and chains hanging from the rafters. The unfortunate victims of the Grubb Family’s hunting parties are kept here - alive or dead, it doesn’t matter to Papa Vernon and Mama Lundy. Currently only Elsie Winnows (adventurous, free-spirited, world-wise) from Gridtown and her boyfriend Mammoth (gruff, heart-of-gold, poetic), a former member of the Mongrels, are alive in the basement, both in terrible shape (they cut off Mammoth’s legs!).

The smell of grain alcohol can be encountered long before one closes the distance to the shed, which has been converted to a ‘shine distillery. Cousin Eustace and Nuncle Bascum (good-humored, inventive, drunkard) spend their days brewing up booze so strong it can strip paint and make your hair fall right out. Once a week Vernon and Lundy’s oldest daughter Cricket (bossy, shrewd, flippant), who passes for non-mutant, goes to Gridtown to sell the hooch.

Behind the shed is the old barn, with pens for the oinkers and billy-caps on the ground floor and a large loft area on the second floor (an earth ramp leads to a large double door). A farm tractor (Mobility 11, Hull 13, Ud8) sits in the loft. It’s in working condition, but the Grubb Family doesn’t have any gasoline to get it running. Scattered throughout the barn are farm tools, bags of fertilizer, and a working radio.

[#1024] The Jupiter Diner (R.E.Z.)

A good old-fashioned greasy spoon sitting just off the exit ramp of the ancient highway. The windows are filthy and the door’s hinges are nearly rusted shut, but the building itself is in surprisingly good condition. Shame that it’s in the heart of the R.E.Z. A half-dozen skeletons can be found sitting at the bar or in the booths.

Vibrant, blooming mold covers just about every inch of the dining room and kitchen. If one’s brave enough to scrape away this “protective layer” of biomass they’ll find seven crates upon crates of canned (but irradiated) food, a jukebox in working condition (just needs plugged in!), and several kitchen implements. The men’s bathroom is shockingly clean, but empty. The women’s bathroom is also very clean… if you ignore the mighty fist (d6, Ud6, relic*) toting raidah corpse sitting on the toilet.

*Found in the Skrapper’s Handbook.

[#0439] Destroyed Tekno-Kultist Safehouse

Lingering wisps of smoke still rise from the blasted remains of a bunker built into the side of the hill. The corpses of dozens of Tekno-Kultists - a few wearing scuttled power armor - litter the ground just outside a set of melted steel doors. Tech-savvy Skrappers can identify the signs of plasma discharges almost immediately: blast marks on the slagged armor and destroyed doors, the lingering whiff of ozone, and the warping of steel and plastic.

The interior of the safehouse is pitch black. A lightsource reveals more of the same carnage - slaughtered Novitiates, Kultists, and Chroniclers alongside gunned down Inquisitors and Chroniclers. The personal quarters of each Tekno-Kultist have been ransacked. The armory has been destroyed, again showing signs of high-yield plasma weaponry. The Templar’s quarters are surprisingly untouched, with no sign of the safehouse’s leader.

A locked and depowered computer sits on the Templar’s desk. Accessing it reveals several communications logs between Templar Arminius and an unnamed outsider. The contents of said logs appear to be quite heretical (trading/selling pre-Blast tech, sharing the locations of Tekno-Kultist patrols, etc.). 

Locked in a safe hidden beneath the Templar’s desk is a laser carbine ripe for the taking. Various bits of salvageable skrap (copper wiring, microchips, old computers, etc.) can be found scattered throughout the wrecked bunker.