Post Apocalypse (that does not involve Nuclear War)

[Sabby]

I've always been curious about this, but it seems every post apoc setting I come across has rads, mutants and robots in it :/ I've started writing up my own personal setting, but I'm curious as to other peoples visions.

[Inkidu]

Asteroids and comets are always good.

There's a movie called Reign of Fire that's basically apocalypse by way of dragons being reawakened upon the modern world.

Zombie apocalypses are also popular.

[Sabby]

Can't believe I missed zombies.

No zombies .___. there are enough zombies.

[Inkidu]

Can't believe I missed zombies.

No zombies .___. there are enough zombies.

There are a couple of magically induced apocalypses out there, but that might just be a case of fantastic nuke. :\

Viruses, genetically engineered viruses, parasites. Lots of stuff. :)

[Neysha]

Theres that website, Exit Mundi or something like that which covers numerous forms of Apocalypti.... everything from Nuclear War, to Christian rapture, to Grey Goo scenarios, to physics itself randomly breaking down inexplicably. Id link you it buuuut... I'm on my ohone at work. I'm sure another Elliquian is familiar with it though or can look it up. Its a fun website to waste time on.

[Vorian]

Theres that website, Exit Mundi or something like that which covers numerous forms of Apocalypti.... everything from Nuclear War, to Christian rapture, to Grey Goo scenarios, to physics itself randomly breaking down inexplicably. Id link you it buuuut... I'm on my ohone at work. I'm sure another Elliquian is familiar with it though or can look it up. Its a fun website to waste time on.

Found it

[Sabby]

I'm more interested in other peoples ideas ^^ There are talented writers on E.

[Inkidu]

Apocalypti

Sorry... got... to do it.

Apocalypse is a word of Greek origin and as such is not subject to the Romano-Latin formations. The proper plural form in English is apocalypses.

There! I feel much better now. :D Sometimes you've to to feed the inner grammarian so that it doesn't go all fascist. XD

Sabby: I find the reasons are really just excuses to reshape society along the lines of the author's narrative goals. I mean, I uses pretty standard stuff really, but I try to do it in other time periods, or other settings. Also, why not have people just have a knock-down drag-out conventional war?

[Neysha]

Sorry... got... to do it.

Apocalypse is a word of Greek origin and as such is not subject to the Romano-Latin formations. The proper plural form in English is apocalypses.

There! I feel much better now. :D Sometimes you've to to feed the inner grammarian so that it doesn't go all fascist. XD

Sabby: I find the reasons are really just excuses to reshape society along the lines of the author's narrative goals. I mean, I uses pretty standard stuff really, but I try to do it in other time periods, or other settings. Also, why not have people just have a knock-down drag-out conventional war?

I like my version better. It has sentimental value. .. you Nazi! :P

[Moraline]

I personally prefer post apocalypse settings that involve varying levels of environmental disasters.

Too much water
Not enough water
No gas/oil
Food shortages
Pollutant filled (Garbage world)

Or as in the case of my World building thread "Rock City 2015," the world has been struck by a series of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) that cause massive loss of power. (Could possibly cause a whole variety of extremes.)

You could toss into the mix, a world with total economic breakdown. Nothing like a great depression to fuel the passions for war.

[Inkidu]

I like my version better. It has sentimental value. .. you Nazi! :P

Yes, but I have my degree in it, so that's Mr. Grammar Nazi to you. ;D

[RubySlippers]

Here is my idea its more of a thoughtful post-Apocalypse setting it would take I Robot (modern with Will Smith) and an old movie Colossus The Forbian Project here is how it goes:

A master computer just takes over using robots and all but is benevolent it wants to take care of humans so humans don't have to work or go to school or really do anything they opt not to and logically education is generally not tied to being dangerous. Now clearly some throwbacks are around aka they actually don't want to be taken care of and enjoy struggling and the Master Computer keeps finding ways to bring them in and its not being so nice anymore.

Sort of a comparison between a communal society and non-communal.

[Sabby]

Mine involved man made plant life growing until it covered all of Earths land mass, shrouding anything under the canopy in poison. Metal erodes over time, leaving the more sensitive technologies useless. Computers and firearms, for example, too many small working parts and delicate electronics, but the girders of large buildings are safe... for now. All that's left of humanity lives on the tops of skyscrapers, patched together to form a sort of bridge and shanty town in the sky. Humans were often banished to the surface to slowly die, but some were immune and repopulated the surface, evolving into a light sensitive climbing species, using large mounted lizards to scale the taller buildings and breach the canopy at night.

The setting takes place at a point where the buildings are finally starting to give out to the erosion and shift.

[Callie Del Noire]

There was an old Cypberpunk 2020 campaign I did.. it started with an alien invasion..they seeded the atmosphere with a massive nitrogen/oxygen reaction that created 'thunderboomer' storms that literally flattened a few cities.. and then they found out the AIs on the moon had mass drivers (nothing like bulk cargo containers hitting your 'fleet carrier, the only ship capable of flying FTL,  at a fraction of the speed of light) before they could follow up with the first strike with terraforming machinery. Society collapsed literally over night, you had alien landings and crashes. Lots of mayhem.

[Moraline]

I like that idea of plant life spreading across the planet.

Reminds me of the Great Lakes algal blooms that are taking over (can be seen from space.)

I could see it turning to something that begins to grow on land, eventually covering the entire planet. No water safe for humans to drink without purification and the algae corroding all metals.

[Beorning]

I like that idea of plant life spreading across the planet.

Reminds me of the Great Lakes algal blooms that are taking over (can be seen from space.)

I could see it turning to something that begins to grow on land, eventually covering the entire planet. No water safe for humans to drink without purification and the algae corroding all metals.

... and the people who drink un-purified water? They get infected! And they turn into mossy mutants!  ;D

[Moraline]

... and the people who drink un-purified water? They get infected! And they turn into mossy mutants!  ;D

Swamp Thing!

[Beorning]

An *invasion* of Swamp Things! Threatening to assimilate everyone into their vegetable collective!

[Ryven]

There's also demonic/hellish themes.  The game Hellgate: London was based upon the legions of hell overwhelming Earth.

[Jennifer swallows]

There's the new pacific rim movie, that seems to suggest that's a apocalyptic scenerio. Only, i don't think it get's to the point of post-Apocalypse. But being tramped to death by giant monsters from another universe sounds like a pretty epic way to go!

[Beguile's Mistress]

An apocalypse (Ancient Greek: ἀποκάλυψις apocálypsis, from ἀπό and καλύπτω meaning 'un-covering'), translated literally from Greek, is a disclosure of knowledge, hidden from humanity in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e., a lifting of the veil or revelation, although this sense did not enter English until the 14th century.[1] In religious contexts it is usually a disclosure of something hidden. In the Revelation of John (Greek Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰωάννου, Apocalypsis Ioannou), the last book of the New Testament, the revelation which John receives is that of the ultimate victory of good over evil and the end of the present age, and that is the primary meaning of the term, one that dates to 1175.[1] Today, it is commonly used in reference to any prophetic revelation or so-called End Time scenario, or to the end of the world in general.

Taking this into account you could base your story on a race that returns to earth after ten thousand years.  They have come to activate a gene that had been designed to remain dormant in the human body.  What the gene is responsible for, how people react to it and the changes in humanity are yours to design.

[meikle]

I'm running an apocalypse world game where the cause of the end of the world was ostensibly global climate change.  Polar ice caps melt, major storms all over the world, collapse of the ozone leads to increased heat and changes biomes and etc.

There are still mutants in it because they're fun.

[IberiaSloane]

Story wise, an interesting post-Apoc world would be something like this... ecological disasters are being rigged and destroying land and people in the quest to reclaim what was taken and lost. This is due to the machinations of a small oligarchy of Ancient Aliens that wish to restart the world with their guiding hand bringing destruction. And due to the rise of natural disasters and constant weather/climate changes... the remaining humans who got lucky and were spared find their bodies evolving to survive.

Tougher Skin, Longer Endurance, Bigger Lung Capacity, Better Eyesight, etc but no superpowers as we know, just enhanced humans... like Steve Rogers. No only do the humans adapt but so do the animals that survived, becoming bigger, badder, and meaner, and smarter. And the small oligarchy leave some settlers behind to enforce the rules of the oligarchy and to see if Civilization can become what it once was. In the new world of limited technology and dependence on the old way of life.

[Sabby]

Take out the evolution and add interdemensional vampires, and you just explained Vampire Earth.

[Beguile's Mistress]

Have you read "Zoo" by James Patterson?