Hope's Point

In the year 2020, an alien race from a distant galaxy launched an attack on Earth with the aim of wiping out the human race so that they could colonize the area. After a long and arduous fight, human kind was able to reclaim the planet, but not without severe losses. Fallout from the weaponry used on both sides has made many parts of Earth uninhabitable and wiped out 60% of life. Generations later, the remnants of humanity have adapted to the new conditions and are beginning to rebuild society in the form of new settlements. Hope's Point is a settlement in the ruins of what used to be Seattle.   Hope’s Point formed as a safe zone where survivors could band together and pool their resources to improve their chance of survival. In the current year of 2100, Hope’s Point has become an established settlement where people have begun to rebuild society. Most of the city remains as ruins of both Seattle and the alien’s attempt at colonization. At the city's center, the human reconstruction efforts are most evident as the citizens of Hope's Point have formed their community. Long range communication is limited so the concentration of government power falls to a local level. Hope’s Peak is led by a community council that leads reconstruction efforts, settles disputes, and allocates resources. While the government does not provide social services, humanity has learned that helping others is the easiest way to survive in such a harsh environment. The council facilitates cooperation between Hope’s Peaks citizens in order to ensure everyone has what they need. Some consider the council to be hypocritical due to the fact that, in their ensuring of equality and fairness among others, they have placed themself above the average citizen. The council was originally chosen by the people but now remains in power due to the fact that they control resources. There is not an established democratic process but there is pressure from the community to look out for the wellbeing of the people.   The concept of an “economy” is, in some ways, outdated. The primary concern for most people is survival, and even people in larger groups like those in Hope’s Point are focused on duties like farming and construction. Members of the “city council” control most of the resources of the region, and as such live a bit more comfortably than most, but otherwise the people of Hope’s Point are all in this together. There are some small trade routes between cities, but with travel and communication so difficult, most things have to be locally sourced. The apocalypse has removed most structures of inequality from the previous society. Few people care about gender, race, or sexual orientation, as it does not affect your ability to contribute to the group. However, there is great prejudice towards aliens. Art has a strong presence in society, as humans need an outlet for their emotions to stay sane, though there is no such thing as pop culture or a unified understanding of art, as most art made in this period has no way of being preserved or spread. Religion also holds a steady presence in the culture. Though many abandoned faith in the aftermath of the war and traditional structures were lost, many still cling to personal beliefs. Furthermore, a cult worshipping the aliens has gained traction in recent years. Most human technology has been rendered ineffective by time or by a lack of power, but the aliens have left some technology behind. A few of the aliens who stayed behind for various reasons have befriended human society by teaching them how to use these artifacts for their survival. The small size of the population means most everyone gets along, but as things improve, the capability of the people to arm and defend themselves increases, leading to more of an organized armed force. Many of the surviving humans who had been alive before the invasion had been veterans of the fight against the aliens, and so were able to teach the next generations to be an effective militia.

The City of Hope's Point

 

Geography

The city of Hope’s Point was once known as the city of Seattle, a sprawling metropolis in Washington state. While the population of Hope’s Point is much smaller than the population of the city once was, the settlement is growing out and beginning to fill much of the space left behind by the invaders and the original inhabitants. Most of the original human structures in the city were either ruined by the invasion itself or allowed to decay by the invaders, to the point where much of the original city is razed, marked only by the remaining road. It’s in this area, once the heart of a city, where Hope’s Point has constructed simple buildings and farms, the beginnings of a new home for the people of the northwest. In other areas further from the center, the buildings still stand, but only by a thread--those in Hope’s Point usually avoid these towers for fear of their collapse. As such, they are left with very little remaining infrastructure in the city: a small collection of human buildings small enough that even decades of neglect left them safe enough to use, and a small collection of buildings built by the invaders themselves, left empty in the retreat. Outside of the original city limits, there is a much more open area of largely arable land, spotted with smaller settlements of humans who have yet to join Hope’s Point, as well as some of the alien stragglers. While the citizens of Hope’s Point usually stay within the city itself, the former suburbs surrounding the city are often less harmed by the invasion and thus ripe for scavenging.

History

The year 2020 was a tense one for the USA, and for the world, for a multitude of reasons. In the midst of these troubles, which left the world vulnerable, an alien race from a distant galaxy arrived, desperate to colonize a planet and save their dying race. From their original points of attack--in the USA, southern California--they spread out over the course of the next several years, seeking to clear the humans out of the way. They made it to Seattle by mid-2021. This was the beginning of a long, arduous struggle for humanity. The aliens had a technological advantage, but were far, far fewer in number; when they thought they’d cleared a city, they’d move on and eventually go back to find it once again infested with humans. After over 40 years the invaders finally began to retreat, fearing that the losses from fighting with humans were too great a risk for their low population. While the humans were victorious, this left their population and societies absolutely desecrated. In the 40 years following the retreat, individual humans have banded together to rebuild in former centers of population, while world leaders fought to regain control without access to communications structure or military backing. Hope’s Point formed as a safe zone where survivors could band together and pool their resources to improve their chance of survival. It’s difficult to pinpoint an exact date, because it grew naturally and gradually out of peoples’ quest for survival. In the current year of 2100, Hope’s Point has become an established settlement where people have begun to rebuild society.

The Governance of Hope's Point

 

Government Presence (1 / Trending)

The Hope’s Point City Council was founded not too long after the city was founded, which itself was founded not too long after the end of the world. In true American spirit, the original members of the council were elected, save for one, former Seattle Mayor Grant Windham. Having already been elected to office previously and admired for his service during the end of the war, no one was opposed to him having a seat on the new council. Seats on the council are for life, with the only ways outside of death to lose the position being resignation or pressure from the community at large. In recent years, as people more familiar with America’s previously democratic system have aged and died, Hope’s Point has moved away from electing its city councilors to appointing them based on popularity and prestige.   The council has no official hierarchy, though it is commonly accepted that Avery Sykes, the (great-)granddaughter of Mayor Windham and the daughter of a previous city councillor, is the de facto leader of the group, having been surrounded by politics her entire life.   The city council organizes rebuilding around Hope’s Point, though their power is still very limited. Having no legally binding authority, they act purely by the consent of the people, and are more like community leaders and pillars of hope than anything, perfectly exemplified in Zachary Graves, who spent most of his youth looking after the city’s children, and is far and away the most popular of the councillors.   Due to their lack of formal training, some people take issue with the power of the council, as it is currently up to them to hand down the final verdict in civil complaints amongst citizens. The council has been in talks of making the city more like the America of old, with power divided among a number of bodies, rather than belonging solely to them, but the members of the council are at odds. Avery and Zachary both agree that, while somewhat inefficient, the council does a fine job acting as a glue for the community, which is exactly what Hope’s Point needs at the moment. Other council members believe that the city council needs to become more like a formal government to enforce laws and take more charge in rebuilding, as the city is running solely on goodwill and a mutual understanding between people which, while it’s worked, isn’t foolproof.   In the uneasy times the people live in, some also are very concerned about the idea of the city council becoming more like a traditional government, with its members holding onto power and abusing their authority like tyrants.  

Rule of Law (1 / Trending)

Within the settlement of Hope's Point the rule of law is enforced mostly by the people. If you are caught committing acts that harm others or the settlement’s ability to survive you will most likely be forced into exile by a group of your fellow citizens. Exile can essentially be a death sentence for those unprepared to survive outside of a settlement. Some would be able to survive either by joining one of the smaller groups outside of the settlement or by having the knowledge and skills to survive on their own in a harsh environment. There are also hostile groups that will have no trouble taking advantage of a lone traveler. Exile is reserved for those who commit acts that are determined to be unredeemable and those whose continued presence in the settlement would actively disrupt progress.   While there is no official group in charge of enforcing laws there has been the creation of a local militia composed of citizens who have combat training. This group fights off threats from outside the city as well as keeps the peace internally. The amount of authority these citizens actually have is debatable.   Because there is no defined justice system the enforcement of laws usually devolves into mob mentality. When there is no court it is difficult to prove that you are innocent if accused. Additionally, it is difficult to prove that someone else is guilty if they have powerful friends. Sometimes disputes are brought before the council to get their judgement on the matter, even though they technically don't have any legal authority to do so. They will say what they think about the situation and the people will decide what to do next. Many Hope’s Point residents are aware of the flaws in the system and have spoken up about the need for a more organized rule of law. The council is aware of these issues as well and has been discussing creating a formal judicial system for quite some time. They have yet to agree on any official system to put in place and remain at a stalemate in their discussions. Some believe that the council itself should make final decisions as a court of law would, while others argue that this would lead to corruption. They are also at odds about how to enforce these laws, as creating a police force could increase tension and distrust between the people and the council, but allowing a militia to enforce laws with no restraint is equally as dangerous.  

Social Services (1 / Trending)

There is no formal system of social services in Hope’s Point at the current moment. However, most citizens understand that cooperation leads to success and willingly help out other members of their community when they are in need. Additionally if someone goes to the council in need of help, the council will attempt to contact another resident of Hope’s Point who has the skills or resources necessary to assist them. It is looked down upon to refuse to help other members of the community so if someone is in need they can often find help for little or no cost.   The downside of this system is that there is very little organization. If someone needs, for example, medicine they will have to either ask the council where they can find it or search on their own rather than going to a designated organization dedicated to providing this service. Additionally it is difficult for those who provide these services to make a living because it is frowned upon to turn someone away even if they cannot pay. If they were reimbursed by a governing agency for providing assistance to those who could not afford it they would be able to provide a greater quality of service.   Many people have brought their concerns with this system to the council and the council in turn has started to develop a system where they will be able to provide social services rather than just facilitate cooperation between independent parties. Unfortunately this will require many changes including, potentially, a taxation system in order to fund such services so it will take time. It is unclear how the citizens of Hope’s Point would react to the implementation of such a system so the council is looking into alternatives as well. The 2 social services that they are focusing on establishing are education and medical services. These services were determined to be the most necessary at the current moment and, because of this, have been prioritised.  

The Cultural Influences of Hope's Point

 

Military Influence (2 / Trending)

Unsurprisingly, there is no formal military in Hope’s Point. However, many people who helped to found Hope’s Point were either in the military or had some sort of military experience when the war ended. In the early days, when chaos reigned and groups of people were constantly fighting one another for resources, these soldiers were crucial in defending the city. They then went on to train others, so that the city could still be safe after they were gone.   Due to this, the people of Hope’s Point hold great respect for the concept of the military. The city’s unofficial militia meant to help ward off invaders and keep the peace are composed almost entirely of people with some sort of military training, further adding to that respect.   In some circles, the militia is an even more respected body than the city council due to that training and combat prowess, and the fact that they are not loyal to the council, acting as a buffer between them and the people should they ever try to overstep their bounds.   The heads of the city's militia are in agreement that the militia is in cooperation with the council and are all on the same page about wanting the best for the city. The idea that some think it would be necessary for them to act as guardians against a tyrannical council is depressing, as it goes against the city’s entire purpose, but they understand that the fears are not unfounded.  

Arts and Culture Influence (4 / Stable)

Many of the reminders of better, long-gone times, remain in the memories of those few still alive from the initial invasion, and in the form of surviving art. Pre-apocalyptic times have been glorified in the minds of children raised in the ruins of Seattle, who have been exposed to some of the lasting images of humanity’s lost stability--most importantly, the idea of the space needle, a tower with a point that pierces the sky itself, has become a symbol of better days. It’s no coincidence that the name of the settlement, Hope’s Point, is inspired by this impression of the once-city’s great landmark.   It is, of course, difficult to create new art without the resources of paper, paint, and ink; though the settlement has reached a point of stability where these things can be produced in small amounts, for the most part they have learned to make do without them. This means that most art created in Hope’s Point is of an auditory kind. Music, as it has been for much of humanity’s history, is an invaluable tool for coping with tragedy and suffering. As such, musical traditions have grown and developed in Hope’s Point, and become critical to the culture. A listener from the times before the apocalypse would describe this music as a blend of American folk and expressionism. In addition to music, people have also turned to oral traditions in lieu of record keeping, both to tell stories and to remember details about the past. Many of these traditions originally sought to keep the memory of how society once functioned alive, but have become somewhat warped over time.

Religious Influence (3 / Trending)

During the war, many people lost faith in religion. The terrible tragedy combined with the introduction of concepts outside of the scope of some world religions led to the end of many religious traditions. However, just as many people found solace in their faith and clung to their religious identity, passing on the ideas and concepts of the old world religions to the future generations. Formalized, central structures of religion, such as churches and dioceses, no longer exist. Religions have adapted to small scale communities with extremely localized conventions. Members of a religion in one part of the country will appear to have completely different beliefs than members of the same religion in a different part. As such, no particular religion has much cultural influence outside of its locals. There have also been new religions founded in the wake of the destruction, often cultish in structure, with one leader attempting to unify survivors under a single belief system. One cult in particular, founded by Allison Yehns, considers the alien invasion to be a divine reckoning. They believe that the aliens came to save them from the immoral failings of the old world and build up a new society free from strife. This cult is known to be particularly dangerous. They travel in groups, attempting to convert people and destroy remnants of the old world where they find them. They particularly resent how many of the major settlements seem to be trying to rebuild what they see as an evil society and campaign against them. As the settlements grow, the cult of Al. Yehns becomes more and more restless and panicked.

Technological Influence (3 / Trending)

After the invasion, many aliens left Earth in a hurry, leaving behind various devices used in the invasion. Most of these alien devices consisted of weaponry, although there are also communications devices and entertainment devices.   The ruins of the old world are now homes to most of human technology. However, most of it doesn’t work anymore, either because they were completely destroyed, or because the resources needed to make them work, such as fuel, just aren’t available anymore. The settlers at Hope’s Point have a certain group of people called the Scavengers whose jobs are to roam these ruins looking for any piece of tech that might be usable, from rudimentary yet essential bandages or other first aid items, to powerful HAM radios for long-distance communication.   Also, there is another group of settlers, known as the Tinkerers, who are responsible for maintaining any old tech, learning how to use found alien tech, and developing useful gadgets out of whatever they can find. The Tinkerers are also responsible for working on water-powered turbines to generate electricity for practically everything at Hope’s Point.  

The Economics of Hope's Point

 

Economic Strength (1 / Trending)

With the fall of many of the previous systems the economy ran on, it doesn’t exist in the same form today. People do not have access to or care for conventional wealth, instead preferring to barter in goods and necessities. The “wealthiest” people are the people who have access to a large amount of important resources such as food or medicine, or even control of certain territories.   In major settlements like Hope’s Point, a semblance of a real economic system is beginning to emerge. The city council, who controls the resources of the city, offers luxury goods and other benefits in exchange for necessary work such as farming or construction, encouraging people to do their part. However, necessities like food, water, and shelter are made available to everyone, provided they are not causing trouble for the other residents. The resources gained from these jobs are then either stockpiled for future use or traded with other nearby settlements.   Hope’s Point is the largest settlement in the northwest, so it also has the largest amount of resources. Most people work essential jobs, but some others have managed to pick up specialized jobs, such as trades and the arts. The amount of opportunities is expanding daily as people uncover knowledge from the past.  

Wealth Distribution (1 / Stable)

  In a developing settlement without many resources to go around, there isn’t that much wealth to distribute. In Hope’s Point, there are more or less two formal classes: The City Council, and everyone else. Members of the city council are people who control the resources of the settlement, both in an ownership sense (e.g. in charge of farming efforts,) and in the sense that they are in charge of allocating the settlement’s resources. This relationship between resources and power is a very tight one; if someone were to be booted off of the city council by the other members, they would also lose the resources they control. Those not in the city council are generally all in the same boat, as far as the formal structures of Hope’s Point are concerned. They each have their share of the resources, with enough food, water, and shelter that survival isn’t too much of a concern on a day-to-day level. More informally, some people are closer to members of the council than others, and are therefore able to access their resources more easily--for example, they might be more likely to get approval to keep a piece of technology that they scavenged.   People in the surrounding area, both human and alien, who are not a part of Hope’s Point proper, have a great deal more to worry about. Most humans in the area outside of the city are in small groups, functionally surviving as hunter-gatherers and scavengers. The aliens who stayed behind have some technology, and thus are in a much better position to live comfortably alone, but still lack the safety net of a social structure.  

Agriculture and Trade (2 / Stable)

With the lack of viable transportation methods for resources, most settlements have to rely on themselves to procure their own resources, and so all materials used for building or farming and all food has to be produced locally. Fishing and hunting are the most successful ways to get food, but there is a growing number of small farms with limited livestock, mainly chickens, that are used to produce animal products like eggs or dairy products, though larger animals, such as cows, sheeps, and pigs, are much rarer to find.   In addition to self-procured materials, there are limited trade routes among settlements that settlers use to trade rare or luxurious goods, mainly extravagant gadgets and trinkets found by the Scavengers or created by the Tinkerers.  

The Social Relations of Hope's Point

 

Race Relations (1 / Trending)

In Hope’s Point, the aliens are generally despised. The 40-year invasion left a really bad taste in the survivors’ mouths, and so whatever aliens the settlers do encounter are often discriminated against or attacked, especially by the older survivors who fought in the invasion, who tend to be more violent.   Years and years of the humans hating them led to the aliens developing their own fear and anger towards humans, and so most aliens have designated their areas as “human-free” zones and will drive away any human who approaches.   However, there are some aliens that have taken a liking to humans and vice versa. Within Hope’s Point, there is an ever-growing group of younger people who advocate for peace among the humans and the aliens and to end the discrimination against them. The elders of the group, who have experience fighting in the invasion, are not too fond of this idea, and any public display of friendship between a human and an alien always ends in one of the elders in a fit of fury.  

Class Relations (3 / Stable)

With their being no formal economy, there is no real concept of socioeconomic class. However, informal social classes have propped up among the people in the decades since Hope’s Point’s founding: the council, the favorites, the haves, and the have-nots.   The council, obviously, are the members of the city council, with the most influence and - while it still isn’t much - power in the city. As it is up to them to organize the city’s rebuilding plan and allocate resources to where they need to go, some people are a bit wary of them, though no one would go so far as to outright resent them for having that authority.   The favorites are normal citizens who are close to those on the council, being their family and friends. Due to that close bond, some people believe these people would abuse these connections to get preferential treatment. While it is true some try to do this, it certainly isn’t true of all of them, and all people who aren’t them hold that preconceived notion about them.   The haves are the people who produce most of the city’s resources. While the majority of them are just happy to contribute to the city, there are some among the haves that are dissatisfied with the fact that most of what they make is handed right over to the city council in case it has to be reallocated to other parts of the city. However, there are a few of the haves who hoard small portions of what they make before delivering the rest to the council.   The have-nots, then, are everyone else. The regular citizens that don’t hold power on the council, have connections, or produce resources.   While these titles have become rather commonplace, there is no real social tension between the people of Hope’s Point. Just individuals within these groups who might act in less than savory ways. Due to most everyone being focused squarely on the reconstruction of the city and survival, their relative comfort and access to resources is pushed to the side.  

Gender Relations (4 / Stable)

When most societal structures collapsed due to the alien invasion, society’s standards for gender roles went with it. If you needed clothes, and could only find a dress, you wore a dress, regardless of your gender. Because of this, when society began to establish itself gender roles became incredibly fluid. There is little to no stigma around gender presentations that would be considered by some to be “unconventional”. When faced with their potential extinction, people determined what was necessary to survive and what was just getting in the way. Strict adherence to gender roles and stigma around not conforming to gender norms were squarely the latter category and thus were disregarded by survivors. Additionally what few aliens that have come to tenuously coexist with the human population do not seem to care about gender as humans do and rarely note the difference between genders.  

Sexual Orientation Relations (4 / Stable)

Conventional stigma against non-heterosexual relationships all but disappeared in the aftermath of the war. The stress of survival was often too great to consider the traditional forms of romance, and it was never worth turning on important allies over petty disputes such as bigotry. Now that society has begun to re-establish itself, people have realized that such discrimination was always pointless, and give it no quarter.   In Hope’s Point, all sorts of romantic relationships can be found, including same-sex and polyamorous relationships. There is a willingness to experiment among people and a strong “live-and-let-live” sentiment. Though labels from the old world exist for convenience’s sake, many people don’t bother with strict categories, preferring to simply state their preferences.