[Request] New York Based Fallout Campaign?

[MilitiaJim]

How far from NY is Camden, NJ?

Seventy mile drive, the better part of a 300 mile sail.  And I am not even sure she still has boilers.  They for sure won't be working in 200 years. 

[Krensky]

How far from NY is Camden, NJ?

I was thinking of USS New Jersey, she's in Camden.
She has nine 16-inch guns...

A lot. Camden is accross the Deleware River from Philadelphia. Probably close to 200 miles.

[OverNinja]

A lot. Camden is accross the Deleware River from Philadelphia. Probably close to 200 miles.

Expected as much. I've been using other than my own computer, so I could not use Google Earth to check the distance.

[MilitiaJim]

A lot. Camden is accross the Deleware River from Philadelphia. Probably close to 200 miles.

Expected as much. I've been using other than my own computer, so I could not use Google Earth to check the distance.

It is well less than 200 miles, a bit less than a hundred, depending on where in NYC you want to be.

[TheAuldGrump]

200 Years.

I was thinking about having the remnants of the descendants of the Islanders and Rangers still existing as gangs, and they still hate each other just as much.

I was also considering Coney as the site of a really messed-up post apocalyptic carnival, with inbred cannibalistic carnies running the joint.

Even if some of the pumps are atomic, not all of them would still be working. Some would have broken down, making the subway a mishmash of ghoul territory bordering on mirelurk territory. Hey, how about this: a section of the subway, one of the old lines, still works. It's run down, but one train still works and it's run/inhabited by a gang that charge a reasonable fee to take you across town. The rule is: no violence on the train. Or the twin sandbagged .50 cals at the end of the car will put paid to any trouble, along with all passengers.

As I mentioned in my Florida thread, I also have Carnies - in my case I am building them up to look like bad guys, but they aren't. They have a secret, they have a Mastermind (similar to the Master from the old Fallout), but his 'evil' plan is to get the circus on the road and self sustaining before he dies - and he knows pretty much exactly how much time he has left. This plot also puts the PCs in contact with the Gypsy faction. (Guess how much their lifestyle changed when the End came?)

Which brings up the question: What Factions are you going to have?

So far possibles include:
Raiders
BoS
Ghouls
Yakuza
Triad
Gangs (multiple)
Mafia

Would the NYPD have become their own faction, along with the NYFD? Might have some Judge Dredd potential there.

I was wrong about there being one or two castles in New York State - I found a list that counted over a dozen of them....

The Auld Grump

[Krensky]

A lot. Camden is accross the Deleware River from Philadelphia. Probably close to 200 miles.

Expected as much. I've been using other than my own computer, so I could not use Google Earth to check the distance.

It is well less than 200 miles, a bit less than a hundred, depending on where in NYC you want to be.

Eh. So I was off on the disgtance, it feels farther. Anyway, Camden is in the Philadelphia area, not the NYC one.

[MilitiaJim]

Eh. So I was off on the disgtance, it feels farther. Anyway, Camden is in the Philadelphia area, not the NYC one.

No worries.  But if you are going to have West Point in play as a BoS or Enclave base, then Camden/Philly is reasonable.  West point is 50 miles upriver from the City.

While I understand that NYC would be some sort of prize, I am unsure as to how many people can live there absent the massive infrastructure currently in place.  Video games in general seem to be rather light on explaining how people get fed, have we thought about this at all?

As for the factions, I can see the NYPD being one.  They would have a fortified compound and be more or less at odds with everyone.

[glimmerrat]

Food? Edible fungus and brahmin steak. Cooked molerat. Radscorpion meat. You're looking at the entire human race being educed to the most basic of subsistence hunter-gathering. There is going to be little or no farming at all.

The NYPD could be holed up in a landmark rather than a precinct. I thought about having the world trade center still standing, with some sort of community living there protected by fortified lobbies.

Central park would be a deathtrap. I'm thinking at least one major deathclaw nest.

[glimmerrat]

Ok, so here’s what we have so far:

Manhattan
• Manhattan is intact, but the streets are largely blocked with rubble. The ruins are inhabited by Super Mutants and scavengers.

• Many of the bridges are down, but the ones that are still up are run by gangs that charge a toll to cross.

• Central Park is considered a death trap, as there is a large Deathclaw nest somewhere within the interior. The trees are infested with Bloatflies, particularly in the summer.

• Many of the subway tunnels are intact, but they are inhabited by Ghouls.

• Some tunnels are flooded thanks to failed pump mechanisms, and they are inhabited by Mirelurks.

• One of the main subway lines is still running, with a single functioning train. A gang runs the train, offering transport for a steep fee and a promise of no violence.

• World Trade Centre 1 and 2 are still standing, and are inhabited by an isolationist survivor community, protected by heavily fortified lobbies.

• Madison Square Garden is run by an ice gang called the Rangers. They’re nominally good guys, and enemies of the Islanders ice gang. The occasionally travel to Long Island to carry out a raid on the Islanders.

• Indian Point atomic plant is inactive, and the reactor burned a long time ago. The surrounding area is heavily irradiated.

• The USS Intrepid is an Enclave base, and anyone that goes anywhere near pier 86 is never seen again. Enclave vertibirds are seen taking off once every few days.

• Chinatown and Little Italy are warzones, and have been locked in a perpetual bloodbath between the Yakuza, Triads and Mafia for decades.

 Brooklyn
• Coney Island is open to the public, and a number of rides (including the ferris wheel) still work. It is run by inbred, cannibalistic carnies.

• The northern neighbourhoods are uninhabited thanks to radiation spilling over from Queens.

Queens
• Queens took a direct hit from a stray nuke intended for West Point that went off course. The banks of the East River are home to a number of scavenger communities, but the interior is generally off limits to everyone but the insane and the insanely well-prepared. It is rumoured that there is a base run by intelligent Super Mutants here somewhere.

The Bronx
• Yankee stadium is home to the Yankees, a gang of baseball-bat wielding thugs.

• The Bronx is home to the descendants of escaped zoo animals, including the irradiated mutant offspring of bears, big cats and wolves. The zoo is home to a large feral wolf pack.

• The NYPD run Riker’s Island. They send patrols out across the whole city, and operate a judge/jury/executioner policy with their beat cops. Foot patrols make use of flamethrowers, and are escorted by Mr Gutsy robots when they’re available. They offer ‘protection’ to survivor communities, for a fee.

Staten Island
• Richmond Town is home to a number of feral tribes that operate a hodge-podge mix of Native American and Colonial tradition (including clothes). Their traditions are mostly incorrect and wildly contradictory, and they’re largely regarded as dangerous but stupid.

• A ferry, covered in welded steel plates and gun emplacements operates from a dock in northeast Staten Island. It runs between here, Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan on a daily circular route.

 Beyond the 5 Boroughs
• Liberty Island is occupied by a sect of, of all things, Librarians. They’re too scared to go to New York Public Library, and pay good money for undamaged books and audio recordings.

• The Brotherhood of Steel has a large base at West Point military academy, but they maintain a forward base at Sing Sing prison. They use riverboats to stage recon missions into Ny City.

• In New Jersey, the boardwalk acts as a sort of bazaar with traders coming from all over the city to visit. The sea life centre is overrun by Mirelurks, who use it as a spawning ground leading into the sewers and waterways. The central and southern parts of New Jersey are under the watchful protection of the USS New Jersey, and her massive 16” guns. She’s immobile, but nearly all of her guns still work.

Now I need to figure out where to put a few vaults, which castles are where and what the forts at Wadsworth, Schuyler, Totten and Hamilton look like. How does this look guys?

[Girlfriday]

I really like it.

As for the vault I'd put one in West Point an one under the World trade centres?

[Krensky]

• In New Jersey, the boardwalk acts as a sort of bazaar with traders coming from all over the city to visit. The sea life centre is overrun by Mirelurks, who use it as a spawning ground leading into the sewers and waterways. The central and southern parts of New Jersey are under the watchful protection of the USS New Jersey, and her massive 16” guns. She’s immobile, but nearly all of her guns still work.

Seriously, don't.

Camden is not part of the NYC area. It's directly across the river from Philadelphia. There are bridges, ferries, and cable cars connecting them. People from Camden tend to be Phillies and Eagles fans, not NY whatever fans. If Camden wasn't in another state it probably would be officially part of Philadelphia rather then just part of the metropolitan area.

It's 90 some miles from the center of Camden to the center of NYC, much of it hilly and rocky with a swamp and a mountain or two. It takes two hours by car, without traffic, on modern highways. Traditionally a postal rider might make the trip in five days, it took the delegates from New York ten days to get to the first Continental Congress, it took Washington ten days to retreat from NYC to Philadelphia without pursuit.

Also, the boardwalks would have likely rotted away, and they're also a southern jersey thing, and on the other side of New Jersey. If you want a boardwalk, Coney Island and Staten Island have them, and I'm pretty sure Long Island has them too.

If you're going to use Camden, they you'll have to decide what's going on in Philadelphia as well, since it's right across the river. It dominates the view west from Camden.

Using Southern New Jersey seriously ruins the unity of location for a Fallout game. There's more then enough stuff in the NYC and surrounding area without going to West Point or Philadelphia or Camden or Scranton or wherever.

[OverNinja]

Sorry about mentioning Camden and USS New Jersey.
I thought that they'd be a little closer to NYC than they really are.

As for Chinatown...
How about a bunch of Chinese Black Ghost counter-insurgency/terror troops in Stealth Armor... who are ghouls and veterans of the War.
And a covert Chinese base/vault in Chinatown.

[Krensky]

Sorry about mentioning Camden and USS New Jersey.
I thought that they'd be a little closer to NYC than they really are.

As for Chinatown...
How about a bunch of Chinese Black Ghost counter-insurgency/terror troops in Stealth Armor... who are ghouls and veterans of the War.
And a covert Chinese base/vault in Chinatown.

As Jim mentioned, they're close enough for them to potentially be part of a typical, sandy boxy post apocalyptic game that starts in the NYC area. And, admittedly the first two Fallout games are relatively wide ranging. The third one is very tight in location though, and I think the five boroughs and the surrounding counties will give you more then enough to play with and stat up. Possibly too much.

[MilitiaJim]

I really, really like.  I want to play.

For information on Fort Schuyler go to http://www.sunymaritime.edu, the State's maritime college is there now.  The Fort is a granite pentagon, with walls that are 8-13 feet (2.5-4m) thick, that will withstand a ludicrous amount of damage.  Fort Totten was built at the same time, 1870s, and is similar.  I am unsure of the others, but one template is close enough.

Shan't be many radscorpions this far north, brahmin will be more north and west of town, but by now there well can be enough to trade for.

[TheAuldGrump]

No radscorpions - but given the retro nature of Fallout you very well might have albino sewer gators.

Perhaps the Empire State Building instead of the WTC? Again because of the retro approach of Fallout - back in the '50s the Empire State Building was still a Wonder of the Modern World. Plus, it is a much more striking of a design, the WTC was huge, but boring. 

The Auld Grump