World

Basic Information

• Name: Metro Seoul
• Nickname: The Tunnel
• History: A nuclear war devastated the world, forcing survivors to seek refuge in the city's extensive subway system. Over time, these underground stations evolved into independent city-states, each with its own unique culture and governance. The history is marked by constant struggles for resources, territory, and survival against mutated creatures and hostile factions.
• Environmental Features: The world is confined to the interconnected subway tunnels and stations of Seoul. The tunnels are dark, damp, and claustrophobic. Radiation leaks, pockets of toxic gas, and mutated flora and fauna are common hazards. Some stations have managed to cultivate limited hydroponic farms.

Society

• Infrastructure and Public Facilities: The subway stations serve as the primary living spaces. Old subway cars are repurposed as homes and shops. Key infrastructure includes makeshift power generators (often relying on scavenging), water filtration systems, and ventilation shafts that provide limited fresh air. Public facilities like medical bays are available in the major factions.
• Administrative Divisions: Each major subway station functions as an independent city-state. Some stations are grouped into loose alliances or federations, while others remain isolated.
• Politics: Each station has its own form of governance, ranging from authoritarian regimes to democratic councils. Factions are built on resource control. The "Hunters" faction controls critical supplies, creating an unequal power dynamic. Corruption is rife, with station leaders often prioritizing their own interests. Citizens have little real influence on the political landscape.
• Social Strata: A class system exists. At the top are the leaders and enforcers of each station. Below them are the skilled workers, such as engineers and doctors. The lowest class is the Scavengers.
• Education and Knowledge: Knowledge is primarily practical and survival-oriented. Formal education is rare, with most learning focused on scavenging, combat, and basic engineering. Elder shares most of high-ranking information, often keeping crucial knowledge of the Old World secret. Citizens' average education level is fairly low.
• Crime: Public safety is extremely low. Petty theft, assault, and murder are common. Organized crime, including smuggling and human trafficking, thrives in the shadows. Nominally illegal activities like black market trading in weapons and medicine.
• Diplomacy: Diplomatic relations are tense and pragmatic, driven by resource needs and territorial disputes. Key alliances include a coalition of central stations for mutual defense. Rivalries are driven by past conflicts. The overall reputation is fraught with distrust.

Culture

• Religion: Traditional religions have largely been replaced by a mix of superstition, ancestor worship, and cults centered around figures.
• Cultural Characteristics: Citizens are generally hardened and pragmatic, prioritizing survival. Clothing is functional and protective, often scavenged and patched together. A unique culture of "Stalkers"—individuals who venture into the irradiated surface in search of artifacts and supplies.
• Cultural Life: Citizens spend their days scavenging, maintaining their stations, or engaging in trade. The world features "Cleansing Days," where communities ritually clear out mutated creatures from their sections of the tunnels.
• Cultural/Social Biases and Censorship: Information about the outside world and pre-war technology is heavily controlled and often distorted. Biases exist against those from other stations.