Apocalypse Fuel — 9 of 18

Book - Who Run Barter Town

To say keephard:

if the temp-text is not "" begin;

say temp-text;

now temp-text is "";

otherwise;

say "[pop holdernames]";

end if;

hardnames is a list of texts that varies. hardnames is {"[pop commonnouns] [pop settlenames]",

"[pop commonnouns] [pop commonnouns] [pop settlenames]",

"[pop commonadjs] [pop commonnouns] [pop settlenames]",

"[pop commonnouns] [pop commonnouns]",

"[pop commonadjs] [pop commonnouns]",

"[pop commonnouns][one of]town[or]ton[or]ville[or]hold[or]fort[or]house[purely at random]",

"[one of][holdpop allbasicnames][or][holdpop holdernames][or][pop commonverbers][purely at random]'s [one of][pop commonnouns][or][pop settlenames][purely at random]"}.

settlenames is a list of texts that varies. settlenames is {"Bazaar", "Baron[*ies]", "Bridge", "Camp", "Castle", "Center", "Central[reckon]", "Crossing", "Cit[*ies]", "Ditch[*es]", "Factor[*ies]", "Farm", "Ford", "Fort", "Gard", "Gather", "Gulch[*es]", "Hardhold", "Hearth", "Hill", "Hold", "Hole", "House", "Kingdom", "Market", "Pale", "Polder", "Pit", "Mountain", "Ridge", "Ring", "Rock", "Ruin", "Souk", "Square", "Stockade", "Stronghold", "Town", "Tower", "Valley", "Vault","Walls[reckon]", "World", "Yard"}.

hardvantage is a list of texts that varies. hardvantage is {"[one of]It has barely any children[pop nokidsreasons][or]There are unusually large numbers of children[pop kidsreasons][purely at random]",

"[one of]It earns tribute from a [b]protection racket[/b] over nearby communities[or]It owes [b]protection tribute[/b] to a more powerful group[purely at random]",

"[one of]It has access to abundant fresh water[or]Fresh water is very scarce and valuable[purely at random]",

"[one of]It produces surplus food[or]It has large food stockpiles[or]Food is abundant and the populace are well-fed[or]Food is chronically scarce and commands high prices[or]Most people live on the edge of starvation[or]It is undergoing a famine: the least fortunate are dying of hunger[purely at random]",

"[one of]A highly contagious plague is burning through the hold, and nobody is safe[or]The hold and its inhabitants are thoroughly infested with vermin and parasites[or]Many of the population suffer from a slow-killing disease[or]The population are afflicted with an assortment of unpleasant (if not usually fatal) ailments[or]Something about the environment makes everybody sick[or]Ignorance of basic medicine makes even minor injuries deadly[or]They have a horror of sickness and infirmity; those who do not hide their disease are exiled[or]They have strong medical expertise and take good care of their sick[or]It is a renowned medical center[purely at random]",

"[one of]The population are decadent and perverse[or]The population follow a strict moral code and punish nonconformers; they particularly abhor [pop puritylist][purely at random]",

"The population are lazy and drug-stupored",

"[one of]There is insufficient living space: homes are crowded and many sleep without shelter[or]There is abundant living space: everyone has privacy if they want it[or]There is abundant living space: many homes are deserted[purely at random]",

"It is a major trade hub, with a daily market",

"Its manufactory produces [pop manufactory] and is always hungry for labor",

"[one of]An absence of strong rivals[or]A nearby caravan route[or]Easy long-range travel[or]An abundance of nearby settlements[purely at random] allows for lucrative raiding"}.

harddetail is a list of texts that varies. harddetail is {

"Criminals [one of]are executed by [pop execmethod][or]are eaten[or]are ritually sacrificed[or]become fertilizer[or]are flogged and cast out[or]are branded with marks of their crime[or]have various parts cut off[or]are subject to mob justice[or]are pitted against one another in fights to the death[or]are thrown into the oubliette[or]are thrown off a great height[or]officially do not exist[or]are carved up for organs[purely at random]",

"[one of]Their patrols and lookouts are dissolute, understaffed and easily bribed[or]Their patrols and lookouts are eagle-eyed and highly motivated, and approaching unseen is very difficult[purely at random]",

"[one of]It is a very new hold, and lots of things are still being figured out[or]It is a very new hold, and much of its organisation is hotly contended[or]It has been around a long time, and society tends to be set in its ways[or]It is said to have existed since the days of the Collapse; there are many legends of its past glories[purely at random]",

"[pop valueadjs] [pop oddities] may be obtained at [one of][pop gangertitle][or][pop maestrotitles][purely at random]'s",

"[one of]The local cuisine makes heavy use of[or]The locals have a constant appetite for[or]Almost every meal contains[or]Visitors will quickly get tired of eating[or]They really like cooking with[purely at random] [pop foodkinds]",

"Their dead are [one of]ritually butchered and eaten by their nearest and dearest[or]mummified and stored in a special place[or]rendered down for fertiliser[or]buried close to the homes they lived in[or]never spoken of again[or]honored in elaborate ceremonies[or]thrown into an unfathomed cave[or]mummified and displayed to scare outsiders, protecting the hold even in death[or]burned on pyres[or]picked clean by birds and insects, then stored in an ossuary[purely at random]",

"Almost everyone can read, and [one of]most people own a few old-world books[or]there is even a small library[or]locals often travel to find scribing work in less-literate parts[or]a complete history of the post-Fall world is reputed to be hidden here[purely at random]",

"They have a reputation as cannibals, [one of]and the locals like to play it up[or]but probably just in hard times, hopefully[or]but they get offended and cagey if you bring the subject up[or]and outsiders take care to be well clear of the hold by nightfall[purely at random]",

"[pop hotgoss]"

}

foodkinds is a list of texts that varies. foodkinds is {"aspic", "beans", "bushmeat", "cassava", "catfish", "chicken", "chili", "corn", "dogmeat", "fishmeal", "fish oil", "goat", "government cheese", "grits", "hardtack", "land snails", "lamb", "lard", "lentils", "liver", "lizards", "molasses", "mushrooms", "nutria", "peanuts", "pickles", "potatoes", "puffball", "rats", "rhubarb", "rice","salt pork","sausages", "sorghum","spam", "spinach", "squab", "taro", "tripe", "whitefish"}.

oddities is a list of texts that varies. oddities is {"books", "footwear", "armor", "maps", "media", "clothes", "curiosities", "drugs", "electronics","experiences","engine parts", "flavors", "furs", "jewelry", "medicines", "occult items", "sex aids", "shinies", "weapons", "tools"}.

valueadjs is a list of texts that varies. valueadjs is {"Rare", "Vintage", "Unusual", "Foreign", "Weird", "Expensive", "Custom", "High-end", "Old-world", "Luxe"}.

execmethod is a list of texts that varies. execmethod is {"drowning", "guillotine", "starvation","hanging", "quartering", "stoning", "fire", "firing squad", "pressing with stones", "dragging", "boiling", "bleeding", "pig-sticking", "beheading", "electrocution", "trebuchet", "strangulation"}

hardfort is a list of texts that varies. hardfort is {"with multiple rings of fortifications up a hill-mound", "in an old-world fortress of concrete and iron", "perched on an inaccessible [one of]crag[or]mesa[or]plateau[purely at random]", "on an island with steep cliffs", "on a barricaded peninsula", "a system of tunnels and bunkers", "in a steep canyon with narrow entrance points", "in the vast, armored hulk of an old-world ship", "in a massive old-world ruin with the ground floors barricaded"}.

nokidsreasons is a list of texts that varies. nokidsreasons is {", because something is taking them", " due to widespread infertility", " due to high infant mortality", ", because of a recent disaster", ", since times are hard and nobody wants to start a family", "because frail or ill-formed babies are exposed at birth"}.

kidsreasons is a list of texts that varies. kidsreasons is {", since orphans gather here", ", because of a disaster that mostly killed adults", ", due to a cultural emphasis on fertility and childcare", ": whether through environment or heredity, the locals are highly fertile", " and nobody is quite sure why", "; only horrors are birthed here"}.

manufactory is a list of texts that varies. manufactory is {"armor", "alcohol", "black powder", "blades", "bullets", "charcoal", "copper", "compost", "cement", "electricity", "explosives", "drugs", "fertilizer", "fuel", "glassware", "glue", "guns", "ironwork", "jewelry", "leather", "lenses", "lumber", "medicine", "pottery", "preserved food", "rope", "saltpeter", "steel", "sulphur", "textiles", "tires"}.

softfort is a list of texts that varies. softfort is {"a cluster of rough huts and tents", "a straggled-out collection of homes", "a crumbling, shored-up ruin"}.

Rulers is a list of texts that varies. Rulers is {"King", "Queen", "Duke", "Prince", "Princess[*es]", "Autarch", "Archon", "Magister", "Master", "Magistrate", "Warden", "Sheriff", "Captain", "Lord", "Hegemon", "Emperor", "Empress[*es]", "Hierophant", "Mayor", "Tsarina", "Tsar", "Caesar", "Tyrant", "President", "Premier", "Chair[*man]", "Chief", "Boss[*es]", "Intendent", "Commander", "Komisar", "Count", "Marquis[*es]", "Professor", "Doctor", "Guru", "Pope", "Bishop", "Centurion", "General", "Marshal", "Hero[*es]", "Godking", "Avatar", "Arbiter", "Chef", "Jarl", "Baron", "Grandma", "Grandpa", "Uncle", "Madame", "Speaker", "Auntie", "Consul", "Comrade", "Khan", "[pop Roles]", "[pop Beasts]", "[pop godnouns]", "Nana", "Chancellor", "Kingpin", "CEO","Brigadier","Comte", "Dame", "Judge", "Elder", "Lictor", "Marm", "Royal", "[one of][pop commonnouns][or][pop shortbeasts][or][pop spoopynouns][purely at random][one of]lord[or]king[or]queen[or]boss[purely at random]"}.

Hardholders is a list of texts that varies. Hardholders is {"the [one of][pop commonnouns] [or][pop commonadjs] [or][pop peopleadjs] [or][pop Beasts] [or][pop commonverbers] [or][pop complexnouns] [or][purely at random][pop Rulers]",

"[pop Rulers] [one of][namepop holdernames][or][keephard][purely at random]",

"[one of][pop commonadjs][or][pop commonverbers][or][pop Beasts][or][pop complexnouns][purely at random] [one of][namepop holdernames][or][keephard][purely at random]"}.

holdernames is a list of texts that varies. holdernames is {"Abe", "Alice", "Alvarez", "Ann", "Ang", "Anna", "Anya","Barnum", "Barry", "Bass", "Ben", "Bill", "Biff", "Blue", "Cal", "Cass", "Cam", "Caro", "Clem", "Colt", "Dan", "Dave", "Dee", "Devika", "Dick", "Diya", "Dona", "Ellen", "Flor", "Gale", "Gepke", "Grizz", "Hank", "Heike", "Herve", "Jack", "Joe", "Jim", "Kabo", "Karin", "Karim", "Kim", "Krupp", "Lee", "Luka", "Lupe", "Line", "Mack", "Mal","Masha", "Maura", "Meg", "Mike", "Noor", "Nkosi", "Odessa", "Ping", "Rafe", "Rath", "Red", "Rhett", "Riva", "Rhoda", "Ronja", "Rurik", "Salome", "Saul", "Shan", "Sig", "Soto", "Sunny", "Thor", "Tyra", "Ulf", "Vadim", "Vic", "Wen", "Wynn", "Zarat", "[pop chiefnames]"}.

A government is a kind of thing. A gang has a government called rulership.

A government can be led or unled. A government is usually led.

a tyranny is a government. The description of tyranny is "[one of]ruled by the authority of whoever can cling on to power[or]although its apologists prefer to call it anarcho-capitalism[or]an absolute dictatorship governed by personal authority[or]an absolute dictatorship ruled by main force[purely at random]".

a chiefdom is a government. The description of chiefdom is "ruled by a hereditary leader, whose title passes to [pop chieflist]".

chieflist is a list of texts that varies. chieflist is {"their first-born[one of] female[or] male[or][at random] child",

"their youngest[one of] female[or] male[or][at random] child",

"their oldest blood relative",

"whoever of the chief's family can hold it",

"a family member of the chief's choosing",

"a family member chosen by popular acclaim",

"an appointed successor",

"the chief's spouse, who is expected to remarry",

"their slayer"

}.

a representative democracy is a government. The description of representative democracy is "the people hold more-or-less regular elections to choose a leader".

a big man society is a government. The description of big man society is "there are no official leaders, but the most [noreppop leaderquals] and [noreppop leaderquals] individuals tend to shape most decisions". big man society is unled.

leaderquals is a list of texts that varies. leaderquals is {"capable", "dedicated", "energetic", "powerful", "meddlesome", "respected", "scary", "wealthy", "well-connected"}.

an oligarchy is a government. The description of oligarchy is "an alliance of influential figures divide power between them and choose a leader"

an anarchy is a government. The description of anarchy is "nobody is in charge; there are no obvious leaders or hierarchies". anarchy is unled.

a direct democracy is a government. The description of direct democracy is "decisions are made[one of][or][or] (or, more often, fail to be made)[purely at random] by group vote, after prolonged arguing". direct democracy is unled.

a theocracy is a government. The description of theocracy is "ruled by the leader of a charismatic cult, the [pop churchnames]".

a collapsing state is a government. The description of collapsing state is "it is undergoing a [one of]power-struggle[or]civil war[or]succession crisis[or]revolution[or]political clusterfuck[purely at random] and has no clear leader". collapsing state is unled.

a satrapy is a government. The description of satrapy is "its leader is a puppet installed by an outside power, [one of]the warlord [pop hardholders][or]albeit a mysterious and distant one[or]the [pop churchnames][or]the [pop mobnames][or]the hardhold of [pop hardnames][purely at random]. [pop tributeforms]".

tributeforms is a list of texts that varies. tributeforms is {

"It pays only token tribute, but [pop tributeplus]",

"It pays a small but [one of]humiliating[or]annoying[or]galling[or]injust[purely at random] tribute[one of][or], and [pop tributeplus][purely at random]",

"It pays substantial tribute[one of][or], and [pop tributeplus][purely at random]",

"It [one of]is obliged to pay[or]suffers under[purely at random] [one of]ruinous[or]backbreaking[or]cruel[or]a cruel and unusual[or]terrible[or]massive[purely at random] tribute[one of][or], and [pop tributeplus][purely at random]"

}.

tributeplus is a list of texts that varies. tributeplus is {

"is required to provide military support",

"has had many foreign customs and laws imposed on it",

"is required to provide intelligence, capture fugitives, and report on suspicious activity"

}.

a hierarchy is a government. The description of hierarchy is "social status is determined by advancement within an institution - in this case, a [one of]religious order[or]mercantile guild[or]military organisation[or]hermetic society[or]worker's collective[purely at random] - with a leader appointed by senior members [one of]for life[or]for a fixed term[or]until recalled[or]until challenged[purely at random]".

a company town is a government. The description of company town is "the hold and everything in it are treated as property of a single entity".

a division of powers is a government. The description of division of powers is "[divpower]". division of powers is unled.

To say divpower:

let N be a random number between 2 and 4;

let X be 0;

let Q be govbranches;

sort Q in random order;

while N > 0 begin;

let P be entry 1 in Q;

say "[if N is 1]and [end if][pop divbranches] [one of]is in charge of[or]administers[or]has authority over[or]makes decisions on[or]controls[purely at random] [P][if N is 1] and more or less everything else[otherwise], [end if]";

remove P from Q;

now N is N - 1;

now X is X + 1;

end while;

divbranches is a list of texts that varies. divbranches is {"a hereditary post ([b][pop Hardholders][/b])", "an elected leader ([b][pop Hardholders][/b])", "a citizen body selected by lot", "direct voting", "an appointed council", "a regularly-elected body", "an appointed expert ([b][pop Hardholders][/b])"}.

govbranches is a list of texts that varies. govbranches is {"citizenship", "diplomacy", "[one of]public projects[or]infrastructure[or]maintenance[purely at random]", "health", "[one of]intelligence[or]espionage[or]the historical record[or]censorship[purely at random]", "[one of]justice[or]crime[or]policing[or]law and order[or]punishment[purely at random]", "[one of]law[or]arbitration[or]jurisprudence[purely at random]", "[one of]military matters[or]warfare[or]the military[purely at random]", "[one of]morality[or]public decency[or]purity[purely at random]", "raiding", "rationing", "religion", "[one of]trade and industry[or]labor[or]economics[or]production[or]commerce[purely at random]"}.