In a world not unlike our own, but much different…The year is 1838. A brave party of explorers, adventurers and big hairy mountain guys embark to conquer the great Pointy Mountain Range that separates the bustling city of Vanceattle from the Less Notable Ocean and its untold riches, and to bring back the wealth that lies beneath the mountain peaks.
One month into the expedition, the caravans are caught in a spontaneous micro-volcanic eruption, charring them beyond recognition. With an ample food supply, the group decides to strike the earth, and it is told in numerous legends that after the very first pickaxe swing, the head miner reached down and yanked a pure nugget of gleaming zinc straight out of the cracked earth, the most noble of metals. The mine was soon expanded into the largest zinc-refining operation on the planet, sending caravans all over the continent and growing extremely rich.
However, in 1842, the François-Müller Method of zinc extraction was discovered, allowing zinc to be produced in vast quantities with nothing but a fresh source of seawater, a certain species of fungus and a neutron gun. The zinc mine was closed, boarded up, and cemented over, and the miners switched from mining to offering historic tours and operating bed-and-breakfasts for the travelers hoping to found their own outpost overlooking the Less Notable Ocean.
The year is 1938. Emotionally hardened by the horrors of the Third Gulf War, Steve the Nameless One, eminent nuclear metaphysicist and metaphilosopher, discovered the true horrors of osmiridium-215, and was fatally poisoned by its intense radiation. Before he died, Steve wrote a letter to the President detailing how mankind could either use his new isotope to forge a clean future of practically free energy, or blow itself to hell in about three months of hard work. Nuclear scientists were immediately set to work in the most suitable location possible: the abandoned zinc mines from a hundred years ago, so deep in the mountain that no radiation-measuring satellite could possibly detect a clandestine nuclear research facility. New tunnels were dug, hazardous materials were poured into distant tunnels with reckless abandon and within a year, half the continent was irradiated desert.
The year is 2038. Civilization has re-claimed most of the land bombed during the Fifth Gulf War of 1939, and the Robot Halls of the Old World have been crippled by a recent extrasolar storm. The Robot Royal Prime Minister of the United Robot Fiefdom is one of the casualties, and a power vacuum opens up, devastating the delicate structure of international power-politics. The Republic of Vanceattle Prime, half a world away, sends a crack team of armed forces to recover its rusting nuclear weapons from deep within the halls of the two-hundred-year-old zinc mine in the mountains, and bring them safely back to the capital for a reason known only to the President.
The team makes its way through the damp entrance, covered by vegetation to hide secrets that became common knowledge centuries ago. Soon, they reach the smoother hallways and rooms, and then the once-lit corridors with broken metal furniture, and then the almost undamaged rooms with anti-humidity safes built to preserve everything learned within the facility. Eventually, they wind their way into a narrow entrance that hasn’t been touched for centuries. Nuggets of zinc are visible in the walls, showing that they’re at where the zinc miners had reached before the mine was suddenly abandoned. Nowadays, zinc is the most plentiful metal of industry, but some among them remember a history lesson telling them about the high value of zinc before a cheap way of obtaining it was found. Lining the walls is a stockpile of mass destruction that would make a dictator cry.
There are so many bombs here, they look like an array of hot water tanks. Some are clearly empty. Others are broken. One still has a faint light glowing on the outside, primed for a war that ended long ago. Where there aren’t bombs, there are bins and boxes of strictly regulated materials of all kinds, including one gigantic lead safe labeled “OSMIRIDIUM-215, DO NOT STEAL”. Osmiridium-215?! The most horrifying of radioactive materials, as poisonous as it is a handy source of gamma rays? The stuff that ended two wars at once? Even worse, the safe is being used as a support beam in the tunnel, and the weight has shortened it by at least six inches. If it ever broke, Vanceattle would probably have to be evacuated.
The task force leaves, reports of the terrifying wonders of the abandoned mine in hand. But then, disaster strikes. As the team reaches the main research room, a multi-storied complex filled with toppled desks and obsolete equipment, deep enough underground to be protected from severe moisture damage, the leader tries to push open the main blast door, opening the way for the bombs to be hauled out. A robotic voice crackles to life.
<PASSCODE-?>
The leader, frustrated, kicks the door, but it won’t budge.
<PASSCODE-?>
A keypad is located next to the door, embedded deep within the solid shielding. Unfortunately, the symbols on the keys have worn off ages ago, as evidenced by the paint flakes on the floor. Swearing, the leader kicks the keypad, too.
Everything goes white as the keypad detonates, reducing the leader to an angry cloud of atoms and those nearest to him to depressing lumps of charcoal. Those who are not changed into a baser form are flung across the room, mostly dying on impact, others already dead from the blast wave. A few, still in the previous corridor, have half a second to react before a very heavy door slams down in front of them, while a red light turns on. The sign below, if you were an extremely fast reader, says “LOCKDOWN: FACILITY COMPROMISED”. A very loud noise is heard, and the door bends, but does not give. Those locked in the corridors have some hope, are not yet dead, should probably get medical attention soon, and need to find a way out. Who are they?
CHARACTER CREATION- Give a name, and some physical attributes because I’m hoping to draw some scenes. Don’t say anything ridiculous like “6’8”, weighs 250 pounds of pure muscle, is a prime hunk of man-beef and has one red eye and one black eye.”
- You have an inventory, but unfortunately it is all filled with the same stuff at the beginning.
- It will be impossible to retcon in new characters later on, so strike while the iron’s hot. But don’t feel obligated to make your own self-insert either, because we don’t want one character for every single thread participant (which would also alienate latecomers). Just suggest names and try to come to some sort of consensus, so that different people can suggest actions for the same character later on.
- If you set off a nuke in your pants, you will die. Try not to do things like that.
ROLLSYes, it’s a RTD, so what did you expect? Standard rules all around.
[1]: Failure with negative consequences
[2]: Plain ol’ failure
[3]: The bare minimum
[4]: Mostly successful
[5]: Success!
[6]: You have done too well and bad things will happen.
For EXTRA-CRITICAL stuff, we may use a CRITICAL ACTION SYSTEM™ and a D12:
[1]: You failed so badly that something good happened.
[2]: You failed so badly that something mediocre happened.
[3]: You failed so extremely that absolutely nothing good happened.
[4]: You failed and you probably won’t get the intended result.
[5]: You failed only a little bit and have still done somewhat okay.
[6]: You failed to do a good job. You have done a mediocre job.
[7]: You succeeded at not failing. You have done a mediocre job.
[8]: You succeeded at your action. Okay!
[9]: You succeeded at your action and have done very well!
[10]: You succeeded very nicely and everything is copasetic!
[11]: You succeeded so much that there may be an untold side-effect!
[12]: You succeeded so incredibly much that there may be failings in your future! Oh no!
DEFAULT INVENTORY- Basic Clothes: These are comfortable and possibly unsuited for secret clandestine stealth missions. Oh well…
- Zinc Nugget: While no-one else was looking, you just had to pocket one of these. The anions contained within will help you sleep better and regulate your heart rate. But don’t fall asleep here because you’ll probably get cancer.
- Geiger Counter: Surplus from the war. Yours keeps clicking, it’s probably broken or something.
- Car Keys: If you ever manage to return to the armoured convoy outside, you’ll be able to hop in and start driving. Also useful for etching little penises on painted surfaces.
- Hazmat Suit: You never know what you’ll find in these abandoned mines full of old nuclear weapons! Just in case, you were issued these ultra-portable suits. They probably won’t be much help, but hey, better safe than irradiated.
- Day Planner: Appointment @ 4:30: Recover lost nuclear weapons cache. Check!
- Ballpoint Pen: In case you can’t vandalize something with your keys, there’s always this. You had another one but it burst in your pocket.
- Night-Vision Contacts: Now you don’t have to let total darkness get in the way of the plot. Science marches on!
SYNTAXPreface actions with > so we can tell that you're suggesting something.
Before the >, put the character's name. Here's an example:
Urist McAverage > Burn everything
Also, this is not like BAY12 ALLCAPS ZOMBIE STD SPIN TO DODGE, it's somewhat formal so don't say things like
URIST MCEXAMPLE > EAT SUN
All right, I sure hope this is compelling enough!
CHARACTERSJeremiah Douglass: Farm guy, comes from a large family, enlisted because he thought it was cool.
Michael Caine: Tall, word is in the street he's a decent guy.
Samuel Malbeau: Old. Mustache. Glasses. He wants to find his parents even though he's old and they're probably dead.
Author
Topic: Tales of the Lost Zinc Mine: Exciting and Serious RTD (Read 1871 times)