Sometime ago, I came across a site somewhere that had, I believe, a map of North America with toggles that allowed one to modify the map based on rising sea levels. The highest setting produced a map whose outlines I liked, because they struck me as a more plausible one for a post-apocalyptic Earth than the one included in the first two editions of Gamma World. This was during the days when Google Plus was still around and someone there – I regret that I cannot recall who – made the map above for me.
Lest there be any misunderstanding, I have always loved the North America map in Gamma World, particularly the blank version included in the first edition, shown here.
Like so many of my ideas, it'll probably never go anywhere, but it's fun to dream nonetheless.
There was a very early (low 20's?) Dragon magazine article by Jim Ward himself I believe that "filled in" some of this map and even had a pull-out version in the center.
ReplyDeleteIt labeled some of the ruins and divided the continent up into territories for the various cryptic alliances.
Probably not as good for the imagination as the blank one but interesting regardless.
Yes, I've seen it and it's interesting. I think you can find the maps online in various places.
DeleteThere are a number of online tools for doing that these days, including:
ReplyDeletehttps://coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tools/slr.html
https://www.americangeosciences.org/critical-issues/maps/interactive-map-coastal-flooding-impacts-sea-level-rise
https://www.floodmap.net/
I haven't been able to find a good one for dropping giant dinosaur-killer bolides on modern maps, but there's probably some of those out there as well.
Myself, I think I prefer this map to all others:
https://comicbookcartography.posthaven.com/the-world-of-kamandi-map-jack-kirby
There was a Google Map overlay that did it when I was in undergrad, back in 2006 or 2008. I think it was this one - it has the advantage of being both flexible and free. http://flood.firetree.net
DeletePleasingly, it takes at least 20m of sea level rise before my parents' farm disappears completely under the waters.
Ah, but would the weathervane on the barn still be above the waves? It was certainly the highest manmade point on our farm, although the several hundred year old cottonwood had a good 30 feet on it.
DeleteNo weathervane. Don't need one. The wind on that hill is strong enough the trees conveniently bend to provide the same function. ;)
DeleteNice map! What is the scale on that?
ReplyDeleteThe same scale as the GW 1e map: each hex is 43.7 km, I believe.
Delete437 is a magical number. I've used it several times in my own work.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favourite maps of PA America was the map from the Chaosium boardgame Lords of the Middle Sea. Whilst I only made some preliminary notes about using it as a base of a campaign setting, other people apparently have used it as such.
ReplyDeleteI don't know whether it was the bright colours of the map, or the fact it had airships which was the prime attraction to using it as a base for a setting. I do prefer PA games where new societies have had a chance to reestablish themselves in the aftermath of the old).
And in searching for a nice picture of the map to Lords of the Middle Sea I discovered this:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.geeknative.com/109284/chaosium-reveal-lords-of-the-middle-sea-cover-art/
Had no idea that was in the works. Neat idea, and very nostalgic for old folks who remember the boardgame.
DeleteIt was far from great literature but the Horseclans post-apocalyptic America was pretty compelling as a setting.
ReplyDelete1E Gamma World was the first RPG I owned after D&D. Purchased because the store I was shopping at at failed to get in the the D&D hardback I had saved up for (Fiend Folio, I think?) and I was not going to walk out empty-handed. I was inspired by that map to cut hexagons out of graph paper, (about six inches across each) and map out a considerable area, faithfully transferring the river lines from the big map before adding my own duralloy roads, rad craters, and cryptic alliance bases. I can't remember where or why I chose to locate my mapped area though.
ReplyDelete