1. Do you plan on putting out a map (even a rough one) so we can have a visual reference of where things are in relation to each other? Yes, the map will be put into play once the introductory log goes up and then will be added to the setting page and linked on this page.
2. The city in the center of the oasis, how big is it and how advanced was the technology before it went to ruins? Rough square mileage or how many miles across it is would be great. Many modern day cities can spread out anywhere from 5 miles wide to 18 or 20 (or more) depending on the way the metropolis is situated and how tall it grew vs the ground spread. The city spans five miles. The technology is advanced to what would be found during the beginning of 2016 in America.
3. How tall is the tallest building in the former city and how decayed is it? The tallest building in the former city is eight stories tall and is an old hotel. It has a ninth story but due to weathering it's pretty unusable and unstable. It is decayed to that which would be typical of a building that was left in a panic and then spent 100 years abandoned with no upkeep. Weeds and plants grow on what remains of the top floor and stretch out towards the sun.
4. How overgrown are the ruins? The ruins have spent 100 years having been rained on and inhabited by wild animals and infected, therefore there has been no upkeep to keep invasive plants from taking their place among the buildings and streets. Something like ivy seems to climb up the buildings and even the walls of the city, trees have taken root where they can find earth between the cracks of the sidewalks and roads and have pushed their roots out causing damage to quite a lot of the pathways that humans used to walk and drive. Grass takes root wherever it can, as do weeds that have found their way in from the encircling forest.
5. What kind of forest is it? Temperate vs Tropical? What common plants/trees/vegetation are we looking at? Is this something someone familiar with the North American Mid-West or Rocky Mountains would be at home in, or is it something someone familiar with the Amazon River Basin would be at home in? The forest takes root in a post-apocalyptic world where plants and animals have been forced to adapt to the situation of the infected and the lack of a large human population but where the leftovers of such a civilization remain. It would not be recognisable to anyone typically familiar with Earth's climate due to the 100 years it's had to evolve. However, the forest would be more typical to the Amazon Rain Forest and tapers off as it gets closer to the desert. This means the forest is more closely related to a tropical forest and gets a healthy amount of rainstorms and thunderstorms. As for the desert nothing seems to grow in it, not even cacti.
6. What kind of fauna can be found? Common animals of all kinds (or their equivalent) would help flesh out what characters are in for. There are normal earth animals, what typically shows up in lush forests: deer, squirrels, rodents, rabbits, coyotes, amphibians, birds, snakes, etc. The infection can spread to animals with similar brain chemistry to humans therefore there is a distinct lack of monkeys. There have also been animals that have adapted from the desert climate and encroached into the forest. In the desert there seems to be very little aside from snakes, lizards, and scorpions as if anything that else could remain has been over-hunted. Due to the infected's interest in animals, the fauna have taken refuge in the forest. The infected's habit to over-hunt anything in their wake have lead to animals that wouldn't typically match the environment having moved into and adapted to it.
7. You mentioned to someone there's a lake outside the city and that the city is surrounded by a wall. How tall is the wall? How large is the lake? Does the lake encroach on the city? Does the forest surround the city, or is it mostly just on one side of it because of the lake? The lake is five miles wide and takes up more than 2/4ths of the forest. The wall spans from ten feet tall in more preserved areas to three feet tall in more weathered areas. The wall may be repaired throughout the game. No, the lake does not encroach on the city but one of the boarders will line a quarter of the wall and there is an aqueduct to supply water to the city. The thirty mile forest surrounds the entire city and provides protection from the encompassing desert.
8. There is some confusing information presented about arrival and what characters may or may not remember. On the setting page specifically, you have the bit where characters should be questioning "what is Project Oasis" as though they've heard those words before. But on the TDM/Premise pages, you make it sound like no one knows how they got on the drop ship and have been moved there while unconscious. A little more clarity on what characters may or may not remember from their transfer from their worlds, to the station, to the drop ship, would be awesome. The characters will not remember anything of the time on the station. To them, their memories will be from their canon point then to waking up on the dropship. The topic of Project Oasis will be brought up in character upon the game opening through a plot-related situation.
9. You keep mentioning that characters have the ability, if they have the knowledge, to restore communications to the Station. If they are not aware of who put them on the ship or how they got on the drop ship, how will they know there's a Station orbiting above them in the first place? How will they know who to restore communications with? Or are they just expected to fumble in the dark until they come across someone responding to their radio signals and hope it's someone who might be able to help them? There's no real context clues given on an IC level to establish that this might be possible or how it might be possible. They will not be aware there is a station orbiting them, or even that there is someone to get in contact with. Due to the mystery of the game, it's up to characters to decide if they want to try make contact with those around them or not. The dropship has damaged communications - this is set out for characters that may have the knowledge or technical skills to fix it. The fact that the ship has communications implies there is someone to communicate with. Also in the search of information about the location and situation as a whole, it might make sense to the characters ICly to try to seek out any potential source.
10. Are characters (outside those from canons already inclined toward fighting zombies on some level - maze runner, walking dead, etc) supposed to have some instinctual knowledge that they shouldn't 'share bodily fluids' (like through kissing) with locals? The premise suggests that they should understand this already, but as no one ICly seems aware of the Ira Virus or why they're on the planet in the first place, the suggestion that they should have this understanding about how it spreads is giving mixed messages. Once the game is open characters will be able to discover this, however it will not be specifically stated in character to them. It is widely understood that spread of many pathogens is through bodily fluids. Those infected by the Ira Virus look and act like rabid people/zombies and given the aggressiveness and appearance, most people are likely instinctively inclined to stay away from them. Of course, it is possible that characters may not heed these warning signs.
Thank you for your interest and in-depth questions! We hope this helped.
no subject
Yes, the map will be put into play once the introductory log goes up and then will be added to the setting page and linked on this page.
2. The city in the center of the oasis, how big is it and how advanced was the technology before it went to ruins? Rough square mileage or how many miles across it is would be great. Many modern day cities can spread out anywhere from 5 miles wide to 18 or 20 (or more) depending on the way the metropolis is situated and how tall it grew vs the ground spread.
The city spans five miles. The technology is advanced to what would be found during the beginning of 2016 in America.
3. How tall is the tallest building in the former city and how decayed is it?
The tallest building in the former city is eight stories tall and is an old hotel. It has a ninth story but due to weathering it's pretty unusable and unstable. It is decayed to that which would be typical of a building that was left in a panic and then spent 100 years abandoned with no upkeep. Weeds and plants grow on what remains of the top floor and stretch out towards the sun.
4. How overgrown are the ruins?
The ruins have spent 100 years having been rained on and inhabited by wild animals and infected, therefore there has been no upkeep to keep invasive plants from taking their place among the buildings and streets. Something like ivy seems to climb up the buildings and even the walls of the city, trees have taken root where they can find earth between the cracks of the sidewalks and roads and have pushed their roots out causing damage to quite a lot of the pathways that humans used to walk and drive. Grass takes root wherever it can, as do weeds that have found their way in from the encircling forest.
5. What kind of forest is it? Temperate vs Tropical? What common plants/trees/vegetation are we looking at? Is this something someone familiar with the North American Mid-West or Rocky Mountains would be at home in, or is it something someone familiar with the Amazon River Basin would be at home in?
The forest takes root in a post-apocalyptic world where plants and animals have been forced to adapt to the situation of the infected and the lack of a large human population but where the leftovers of such a civilization remain. It would not be recognisable to anyone typically familiar with Earth's climate due to the 100 years it's had to evolve. However, the forest would be more typical to the Amazon Rain Forest and tapers off as it gets closer to the desert. This means the forest is more closely related to a tropical forest and gets a healthy amount of rainstorms and thunderstorms. As for the desert nothing seems to grow in it, not even cacti.
6. What kind of fauna can be found? Common animals of all kinds (or their equivalent) would help flesh out what characters are in for.
There are normal earth animals, what typically shows up in lush forests: deer, squirrels, rodents, rabbits, coyotes, amphibians, birds, snakes, etc. The infection can spread to animals with similar brain chemistry to humans therefore there is a distinct lack of monkeys. There have also been animals that have adapted from the desert climate and encroached into the forest. In the desert there seems to be very little aside from snakes, lizards, and scorpions as if anything that else could remain has been over-hunted. Due to the infected's interest in animals, the fauna have taken refuge in the forest. The infected's habit to over-hunt anything in their wake have lead to animals that wouldn't typically match the environment having moved into and adapted to it.
7. You mentioned to someone there's a lake outside the city and that the city is surrounded by a wall. How tall is the wall? How large is the lake? Does the lake encroach on the city? Does the forest surround the city, or is it mostly just on one side of it because of the lake?
The lake is five miles wide and takes up more than 2/4ths of the forest. The wall spans from ten feet tall in more preserved areas to three feet tall in more weathered areas. The wall may be repaired throughout the game. No, the lake does not encroach on the city but one of the boarders will line a quarter of the wall and there is an aqueduct to supply water to the city. The thirty mile forest surrounds the entire city and provides protection from the encompassing desert.
8. There is some confusing information presented about arrival and what characters may or may not remember. On the setting page specifically, you have the bit where characters should be questioning "what is Project Oasis" as though they've heard those words before. But on the TDM/Premise pages, you make it sound like no one knows how they got on the drop ship and have been moved there while unconscious. A little more clarity on what characters may or may not remember from their transfer from their worlds, to the station, to the drop ship, would be awesome.
The characters will not remember anything of the time on the station. To them, their memories will be from their canon point then to waking up on the dropship. The topic of Project Oasis will be brought up in character upon the game opening through a plot-related situation.
9. You keep mentioning that characters have the ability, if they have the knowledge, to restore communications to the Station. If they are not aware of who put them on the ship or how they got on the drop ship, how will they know there's a Station orbiting above them in the first place? How will they know who to restore communications with? Or are they just expected to fumble in the dark until they come across someone responding to their radio signals and hope it's someone who might be able to help them? There's no real context clues given on an IC level to establish that this might be possible or how it might be possible.
They will not be aware there is a station orbiting them, or even that there is someone to get in contact with. Due to the mystery of the game, it's up to characters to decide if they want to try make contact with those around them or not. The dropship has damaged communications - this is set out for characters that may have the knowledge or technical skills to fix it. The fact that the ship has communications implies there is someone to communicate with. Also in the search of information about the location and situation as a whole, it might make sense to the characters ICly to try to seek out any potential source.
10. Are characters (outside those from canons already inclined toward fighting zombies on some level - maze runner, walking dead, etc) supposed to have some instinctual knowledge that they shouldn't 'share bodily fluids' (like through kissing) with locals? The premise suggests that they should understand this already, but as no one ICly seems aware of the Ira Virus or why they're on the planet in the first place, the suggestion that they should have this understanding about how it spreads is giving mixed messages.
Once the game is open characters will be able to discover this, however it will not be specifically stated in character to them. It is widely understood that spread of many pathogens is through bodily fluids. Those infected by the Ira Virus look and act like rabid people/zombies and given the aggressiveness and appearance, most people are likely instinctively inclined to stay away from them. Of course, it is possible that characters may not heed these warning signs.
Thank you for your interest and in-depth questions! We hope this helped.