this post was submitted on 18 Oct 2023
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Worldbuilding
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So, what's up with the Ohio Exclusion Zone? I mean, Ohio is a rough place, but it's not that rough...!
Honestly, I don’t exactly know. Until I come up with something good enough it’s a “here be dragons” zone.
I want whatever it is to be so bad that even during the height of the second American civil war, the three bordering states, despite being at war with each other had a truce along the border containment wall, with their guards manning the wall without fighting each other.
Hah, fair enough. I thought it was just a joke about the "Ohio is terrible" memes, but that works too.
Easiest answer: Someone deployed a bioweapon. Maybe a "rabid runner zombie"-style bioweapon, or something that induces psychopathy. They're not a critical threat, as long as the wall is watched. But with civilization kind of broken down, nobody wants to risk a real outbreak.
It totally is riffing on the Ohio is terrible meme.
A bioweapon or zombie plague is a natural idea but I want something more esoteric. Something very cryptid and even when explained, still mysterious. I like the idea of having dark rabbit holes in worlds.