the post apoc genre

[Sorrow]

Yes, it would be the whole Western US... except in California most the dust is white

I'm surprised that the coasts are still above water. Wouldn't the greenhouse effect and nuclear winter raise the ocean? This means no San Francisco, Florida, or Maryland. (C'mon, who doesn't want to see Bethsoft HQ under 20 feet of radioactive liquid?)

And Fallout 3 would happen on archipelagos made of silt deposits?*giggles*

 

[Kyuu]

I'm surprised that the coasts are still above water. Wouldn't the greenhouse effect and nuclear winter raise the ocean? This means no San Francisco, Florida, or Maryland. (C'mon, who doesn't want to see Bethsoft HQ under 20 feet of radioactive liquid?)

From my understanding of a nuclear winter, overall global temperatures would actually decrease as a result of the large amount of soot and other particulate matter that would be blown into the atmosphere in the event of a large scale nuclear war (and hence why it's called a nuclear winter rather than a nuclear summer). Such a thing would not exacerbate the greenhouse effect because it would be opaque to solar radiation (preventing much of the sun's energy from reaching the Earth's surface), but transparent to infrared (i.e. heat). So actually, assuming that scenario is accurate, the coastlines should stay largely intact.

 

[Pirengle]

Such a thing would not exacerbate the greenhouse effect because it would be opaque to solar radiation (preventing much of the sun's energy from reaching the Earth's surface), but transparent to infrared (i.e. heat). So actually, assuming that scenario is accurate, the coastlines should stay largely intact.

Makes a lot of sense--thank you. I'm assuming that the Fallout pre-apocalyptic universe's race for fossil fuels and the greenhouse gases produced were all canceled out by the resultant nuclear winter.

I'm also wondering why Utah in FO2 wouldn't be sheet glass because of the salt sands.

 

[Sytxferryman]

The bombs only hit strategic locations, also not all might have made it here. Strategic locations are like major cities, ship building harbors, ordnance factories, missile silo's, things like that that would cripple the enemies defenses and offensive measures with as little damage to them as possible.

More to the spoils of war if less is radiated.

EDIT: the sheet of glass thing is easy... there would be extreme heat yes, but not just heat also a blast wave which would disturb all that so if it did turn to glass it would be shattered and thrown at great velocity although I believe for the most part it isn't turned to glass if it is that close, most things that close are disintegrated into almost nothing. Some leave shadows burned into concrete or rocks of what used to be there at one time.

 

[UniversalWolf]

The attraction of all post-apocalyptic settings is the same: the absence of law. The modern world has liberated people in many ways, but in other ways the lives of human beings are more thoroughly regulated than at any other time in history, even in "free" countries. Everyone has identification cards and numbers, and everyone is surrounded by enforced regulations prohibiting them from doing things - even minor things - they want to do. No driving over a certain speed. No smoking. Cameras on every street corner. List your income on your tax form every year, and don't lie because we'll make your life miserable because it's what "we" voted for to support the greater good. No murdering the guy who abused your kid; you must allow "the system" to do its job.

Unfortunately the greater good always allows lesser evils to flourish; there are laws everywhere, but law is not the same as justice.

Now destroy civilization - or have it destroyed out from under you, so you have no guilt - and from the ashes you're free to make your own law and your own justice, free to judge what is good and what is evil, even free to decide who lives and who dies. But of course, other people are free too, which means you have to be able to defend yourself to make sure your ideals survive. It's a perfect justification for violent behavior, which is exciting and works well in stories and games.

Has anyone read "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy? Just wondering.