Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > Roleplaying in General

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-20-2018, 12:10 PM   #1
WaterAndWindSpirit
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Default Post nuke Alaska

Hello everyone!

I'm making a campaign in Alaska after WWIII and I'm looking at a few things that I could use for it.

So basically, aside from the fuel production facilities, I start with the assumption that Alaska was not hit that hard by the warheads.

Then, there is the fact that Alaska's gun laws make it easier than in a lot of other states to get guns, but gathering food would be harder than in warmer climate, so instead of being hit hard by the warheads, Alaska was hit hard by the social collapse.

I'm using an actual road map of Alaska that the PCs have access to In-Character, but I would welcome if someone has more knowledge of Alaska than I do could indicate the "good spots" of Alaska (more food than other places, or easily defended places for urban centers with a start of economic production beyond simple survivalist activities), and the "bad spots" (hard to defend places, hard to find food, and the places most likely to have been hit by the warheads, the fallout, and other spots best avoided because of post nuke hazards).

Thanks a bunch.
WaterAndWindSpirit is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-20-2018, 12:18 PM   #2
Bengt
 
Bengt's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Ronneby, Sweden
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

Fishing is usually a very important food source in cold areas with a coast. If industrialised fishing is gone in the wake of the war fish should be plentiful for local fishers, though it might be radioactive. :)
Bengt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-20-2018, 02:06 PM   #3
WaterAndWindSpirit
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

Okay, so if I get this right, I can expect new settlements to be made alongside coasts for fishing, with whatever (salvaged or newly built) boats available used for fishing? That's a good thing to know.

What about ethanol/biodiesel/gasifiers? Where could I expect prewar boats retrofitted with these kind of engines for fishing and where would be good places for newly build Age of Sail type of fishing boats?

What kind of psychoactive chemicals could local raider bands/local junkies be high as a kite on? Alcohol is universal in that regard, but what else could raiders/junkies use to get high?

Last edited by WaterAndWindSpirit; 10-20-2018 at 02:48 PM.
WaterAndWindSpirit is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-20-2018, 06:02 PM   #4
Irish Wolf
 
Irish Wolf's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Earth, mostly
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

The northern reaches might have been hit, both to destroy the DEW Line and to deny access to the oil fields around Point Barrow. Also, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and the neighboring (in fact, nearly attached) city of Anchorage might well have taken a few nukes. I doubt they'd have targeted any other major cities in Alaska, though - no real strategic reason to do so.
__________________
If you break the laws of Man, you go to prison.

If you break the laws of God, you go to Hell.

If you break the laws of Physics, you go to Sweden and receive a Nobel Prize.
Irish Wolf is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2018, 03:28 AM   #5
Bengt
 
Bengt's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Ronneby, Sweden
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

As roads in cold climates takes a lot of maintenance most trade would be seabound as well. So raiders would probably be pirates.

Though if you don't want too much nautical stuff climate change induced nasty storms could be a good excuse.
Bengt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2018, 07:22 AM   #6
The Colonel
 
The Colonel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

I understand that the Amerindian tribes are still pretty cohesive up there - presumably they would form a significant part of any post collapse society.
The Colonel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2018, 07:35 AM   #7
whswhs
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

I just have to say: Talk about baked Alaska!
__________________
Bill Stoddard

I don't think we're in Oz any more.
whswhs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2018, 10:00 AM   #8
adm
 
adm's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: MO, U.S.A.
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

Alaska's condition is very reliant on when WW III happens, pre-pipeline there is a lot less development, as well as more military targets asking for tac nukes. Before the ICBM became reliable, there were a lot of aerial tankers in Alaska to refuel B-52's, plus multiple radar sites that were largely replaced by better satellites in the 80's. While, given the sheer size of Alaska, nuke strikes will affect a comparatively small overall area, they will tend to hit important commerce and communication hubs. The "good" news is Alaska would likely draw mostly small nukes, the big ones being saved for the lower 48 states, plus Hawaii, Guam, and Okinawa.
__________________
Xenophilia is Dr. Who. Plus Lecherous is Jack Harkness.- Anaraxes

Last edited by adm; 10-21-2018 at 10:05 AM. Reason: Added to my original post.
adm is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2018, 10:49 AM   #9
tshiggins
 
tshiggins's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Denver, Colorado
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

The social situation in rural Alaska could prove incredibly grim -- especially for women.

https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/artic...es-anyone-care

https://www.adn.com/commentary/artic...it/2013/04/08/

The "rugged individualism" of Alaskans frequently acts as cover for deeply sociopathic and misogynistic attitudes, in a place where there are 29,000 more men than women -- with the worst disparity in the rural areas.

While I would choose to not include such a grotesque reality in most games, it might be appropriate in a dystopian post-apocalyptic setting.

Raids by rural barbarians on snowmobiles against the coastal refugees could feature prominantly, and defense against them and retribution for them could give the PCs an important role.
__________________
--
MXLP:9 [JD=1, DK=1, DM-M=1, M(FAW)=1, SS=2, Nym=1 (nose coffee), sj=1 (nose cocoa), Maz=1]
"Some days, I just don't know what to think." -Daryl Dixon.
tshiggins is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2018, 07:50 AM   #10
Anaraxes
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Default Re: Post nuke Alaska

Quote:
Originally Posted by Irish Wolf View Post
Anchorage might well have taken a few nukes... I doubt they'd have targeted any other major cities in Alaska, though - no real strategic reason to do so.
Fairbanks has an air force base (a fighter squadron and tanker squadron) and two army bases (an infantry division and an ABM launch site). It's also a transportation hub for most of the state (including the Trans-Alaska Pipeline to Prudhoe Bay), and the economic center of the interior (including the northern terminus of the Alaska Railroad down to Anchorage, and the Tanana River connecting to the Yukon and to the southeast. Historical river transport routes might well return to importance in a post-apoc setting with lower industrial and energy output).

A minimalist surgical strike focused on warfighters only might give it a miss, other than Fort Greely, at least if your war plan lets you ignore the fighters because you're not sending your bombers that way. Any attack that's trying to affect economics and long-term military capability, or just sheer revenge / spite / MAD would probably hit Fairbanks as well.

FEMA's 1990 "Nuclear Attack Planning Base" document is a county-by-county list of their expectations of nuclear attack effects in the entire US at that time. Since that's a 500-page monster document, and scanned images so not searchable, here's an image of Alaska that's supposed to be based on that report. It shows four nukes in the Fairbanks area, compared to only one each on Anchorage and Juneau (and six others elsewhere in the state, including one on Kodiak Island). So Fairbanks rated a third of the total warheads dropped on the state, at least according to 1990's FEMA.
Anaraxes is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 02:03 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.