History CrapsackWorld / TableTopGames

* If Warhammer wasn't miserable enough, the {{GRIMDARK}} that is '''''{{Warhammer 40000}}''''' has gone out of its way to be the [[WorstWhateverEver WORST. PLACE. EVER.]] See its own page for the awful details. It is not that it was a world half empty; the glass itself attempts to attack you.

* Polish RPG Neuroshima introduces [[AfterTheEnd postapocalyptic USA]] in which most of cities are destroyed, earth, air and water are polluted, north has been taken over by Moloch - giagantic inteligent machine that is slowly expanding and turns humans into mad cyborgs or mutants, south was taken over by Neojungle, full of monstrous beasts, there are bands of humans rampaging through the world as well as strange tornados, that are sources of strong narcotic and economics returned to pre-money times. There are four "colors" on which you can play that mostly determine which way of DyingLikeAnimals is dominant among people. At "Steel" most of them are [[CrazySurvivalist obsessed with defending themselves from all threats no matter the cost]]. At "Rust" they are nihilistic and see life after the end as nothing but prolonged dying. At "Mercury" humans have completely lost control of the situation and hide in fear of all rampant monstroities, desperately trying to survive. Only "Chrome" is somehow optimistic, because people decided that since they're doomed anyway, they would rather [[WhileRomeBurns spend rest of their life at endless hedonistic party than die crying]].

** The only upside is the [[FunWithAcronyms GAURD]] and Elemental Champions that are protecting humanity with their HumungousMecha and elemental giant warriors, though they still can't kill opposing monsters without some collateral damage.

** The explanation given in ''DemonTheFallen'' is that {{God}} deliberately ''broke'' [[LittleMissAlmighty Her]] own creation at the beginning of the War of Wrath, robbing it of perfection (which included the ability to perfectly regenerate). Hence, the world has deteriorated to its current state over the millenia. This is one of the reasons most Fallen hate Her so much.

* CrimsonSkies has the place once called the United States of America [[BalkanizeMe now divided in separate nations]] inhabited by sky pirates, corrupt politicians, xenophobic Indian tribes and KnightTemplar sky militias. ItGetsWorse as most crapsack worlds do since WorldWarTwo is approaching and the European powers are encroaching into the Western hemisphere in search for allies. Or so thy say...

* PlaneScape was an old DungeonsAndDragons dimension-hopping setting which features angelic beings who sell arms to demons and devils to prolong a genocidal war, seven distinct infinite hells, seven heavens that consist of friendly fascism, an adaptation of the tests and suffering of Dante's Purgatorio, a DeathWorld of nature where sapient animals eat each other and you, the not-really-that-nice Norse mythology (complete with rampaging giants and einherar who forget that ''you'' don't get to come back for fighting for no reason), and a couple of decent places. The central city might as well be Charles Dickens meets Uptown Sinclair [[RecycledInSpace recycled in]] DungeonPunk. It is a mutable CrapSackWorld, however, and some of the bigger adventures featured an EarnYourHappyEnding or five and the chance to make it a WorldHalfFull.

** It was outright a WorldHalfFull. You aren't going to stop the bigger evils unless the GM completely missed the point of Gothic Horror and the setting, but you could make some lasting contributions and changes to local events, [[HopeSpot Hope Spots]] did happen, and...oh, wait, 4th Edition. Nevermind.

* PlaneScape was an old DungeonsAndDragons dimension-hopping setting which features angelic beings who sell arms to demons and devils to prolong a genocidal war, seven distinct infinite hells, seven heavens that consist of friendly fascism, an adaptation of the tests and suffering of Dante's Purgatorio, a DeathWorld of nature where sapient animals eat each other and you, the not-really-that-nice Norse mythology (complete with rampaging giants and einherar who forget that ''you'' don't get to come back for fighting for no reason), and a couple of decent places. The central city might as well be Charles Dickens meets Uptown Sinclair [[RecycledInSpace recycled in]] DungeonPunk. It is a mutable CrapSackWorld, however, and some of the bigger adventures featured a HopeSpot or five and the chance to make it a WorldHalfFull.

However, the {{Battletech}} universe could only truly be considered a CrapsackWorld during 2 time periods- the Succession Wars (when the game originally started), and the Jihad (storyline set to end in during 2011). At no point did average technology levels fall below 23rd Century levels according to [[WordOfGod Word of God]], and at present they're higher than they've ever been. Indiscriminate use of [=WMDs=] has been unheard of for more than 2 centuries, which was why most people were shocked when the [[AxCrazy Word Of Blake]] began tossing them around during the Jihad, and while incursions and the occasional full blown war still happen in the story line, most factions go out of their way to avoid attacking civilians-- when a planet is conquered, the typical effect is that there's a new flag flying in the town square and the taxes go to a different planet. Oppressive governments are actually the exception, not the rule.

* ''MagicTheGathering'' has a hell of a lot: Rath, Old Phyrexia and New Phyrexia (AKA Mirrodin), Shadowmoor, and most of the Shards of Alara, especially Grixis in particular (with the possible exceptions of [[KnightInShiningArmor Ba]][[PlanetOfHats nt]] and possibly [[AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever Naya, if you can avoid getting squashed by the behemoths]]). (Although the Phyrexias are quite nice if you can overlook the whole "Yawgmoth"/"Praetors" thing.)

*** Oh, and about that twelve-year-old? While she may be good, the church she heads is...[[KnightTemplar not so]] [[ChurchMilitant much]].

* ''{{KULT}}'', maybe one of the darkest Role Playing Games out there. Everywhere are monsters, but most humans can't even see them (and they are the lucky ones), the [[spoiler:Demiurge (Creator) cursed us humans (once-immortal demigods) with death and amnesia and took away most of our powers]], and then there are demons too... and this isn't a world where SatanIsGood. Get too much violence or insanity in one place and you open rifts straight to Hell or, worse, Metropolis, the city that is everywhere. Definite NightmareFuel, if played right.

* The premise of the d20 fantasy setting ''Midnight'' is essentially "What if [[LordoftheRings Sauron]] won?" [[Understatement It's not pretty.]]

* The premise of the d20 fantasy setting ''Midnight'' is essentially "What if [[LordoftheRings Sauron]] won?" It's not pretty.

* ''MagicTheGathering'' has a hell of a lot: Rath, Old Phyrexia and New Phyrexia (AKA Mirrodin), Shadowmoor, and most of the Shards of Alara , especially Grixis in particular (with the possible exception of [[KnightInShiningArmor Ba]][[PlanetOfHats nt]]). (Although the Phyrexias are quite nice if you can overlook the whole "Yawgmoth"/"Praetors" thing.)

* In the ''{{Battletech}}'' universe, leaders come in three flavors: insane, corrupt, and evil. The ChurchMilitant manipulates governments into bombing each other into the Stone Age to strengthen their monopoly on technology. The [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Proud Warrior Race Guys]] of the Clans, despite being obsessed with fighting and military prowess and having an average life expectancy of around 50, are ''less evil'' than the Inner Sphere governments much of the time. Everyday technology has scarcely advanced beyond the 20th century because technological research and development has been entirely focused into making new and better war machines. The international treaties against [[AtomicHate indiscriminate nuclear bombardment]] often weaken into optional international suggestions. "Cold wars" aren't. The known galaxy has been in a state of virtually constant war for almost a thousand years. TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt has happened ''at least'' four times in the setting's history and will likely happen many more times in the future. And if anything changes for the better the premise of the universe will end, so nothing ever will.
** Way off the mark. The {{Battletech}} Universe could only truly be considered a Crapsack World during 2 timeperiods- the Succession Wars (when the game originally started), and the Jihad (storyline set to end in during 2011). At no point did average technology levels fall below 23rd Century levels according to [[WordOfGod Word of God]], and at present they're higher than they've ever been. Indiscriminant use of WMDs has been unheard of for more than 2 centuries, which was why most people were shocked when the [[AxCrazy Word Of Blake]] began tossing them around during the Jihad, and while incursions and the occassional full blown war still happen in the story line, most factions go out of their way to avoid attacking civilians- when a planet is conquered, the typical effect is that there's a new flag flying in the town square and the taxes go to a different planet. Oppressive governments are actually the exception, not the rule.

* ''MagicTheGathering'' has a hell of a lot: Rath, Phyrexia, Shadowmoor, and most of the Shards of Alara (especially Grixis) in particular. (Although Phyrexia is quite nice if you can overlook the whole "Yawgmoth" thing.)
** Most layers of Phyrexia are machine hells that can kill an unprotected human in an instant.

* ''{{Malifaux}}'' mainly deals with a world connected to Earth in Victorian era via a kind of dimensional breach (the creation of which killed a crud load of people). Many aggressive and downright evil creatures inhabit that world, and if that is not enough, the majority of human population sent there are "convict labor"; basically crooks and criminals forced to mine for objects called Soulstones which has magical, healing, and energetic properties. These soulstones run out of power eventually, but its power is replenished if placed near a dying person. It has been implied that the person's essence (if not downright his/her soul) seem to be sucked into the soulstones. Soulstones are, ofcourse, extremely valuable. An organization established by the government, called the Guild, regulates the soulstones (read: monopolize soulstone tradings), as well as capture and execute criminals, rogue witches, and fledgling resurrectionists who have learned the dark arts of necromancy through ancient ruins in Malifaux. The "good" characters in the fluff are zealous witch-hunters, power-hungry wizards, a crimeboss-like Union leader, among others.

** '''Sidereals''': half the problems you're trying to deal with are immune to your powers, thanks to being outside Fate. The oldest and, theoretically, wisest member of your dominant faction is going to die quite soon. You have to police thousands of JerkassGods who don't particularly want to follow the rules. Mortal contacts find it very hard to remember you. And there really aren't enough of you to go round.

* {{Ravenloft}} was often depicted as being a CrapsackWorld in early 2E products. This was back when it was meant for a "Weekend In Hell" campaign in which the PCs would be brought to the Demiplane by the Mists and their main goal was to escape. Later 2E products like the ''Domains of Dread'', and the 3E product line eased off of this and also went with the assumption that the players would be playing native heroes. So, to them the world would not seem so bad because it is all they know.

* {{Ravenloft}} was often depicted as being a CrapsackWorld in early 2E products. This was back when it was meant for a "Weekend In Hell" campaign in which the PCs would be brought to the Demiplane by the Mists and their main goal was to escape. Later 2E products like the ''Domains of Dread'', and the 3E product line eased off of this and also went with the assumption that the [=PCs=] would be playing native heroes. So, to them the world would not seem so bad because it is all they know.

* {{Ravenloft}} was often depicted as being a CrapsackWorld in early 2E products. This was back when it was meant for a "Weekend In Hell" campaign in which the PCs would be brought to the Demiplane by the Mists and their main goal was to escape. Later 2E products like the ''Domains of Dread'', and the 3E product line eased off of this and also went with the assumption that the PCs would be playing native heroes. So, to them the world would not seem so bad because it is all they know.

* ''{{Warhammer}}'' (Warhammer Fantasy Battles, WHB) is an archetypal Crapsack World - a world doomed to perish into Chaos and its minions, themselves {{Eldritch Abomination}}s. The world is grim and dark, inhabited by uncaring Lizardmen, haughty and snobbish High Elves, insanely bloodlusty Dark Elves, sullen and autistic Wood Elves, humans who come in a variety of flavours: [[KnightsTemplar Bretonnians]], Empire or [[HumansAreBastards just about any other kind of evil Human you can imagine,]] cannibal Halflings, grudgy and fatalistic Dwarves, boorish Goblins, bullyish Orcs, bloodthirsty and wildly breeding Skaven ratmen, two types of Undead (Tomb Kings consisting of mummies, skeletons and zombies) and Vampire Counts (your local Dracula settings), and, of course, the insane Chaos. Of course, a Crapsack World requires to be ruled by JerkassGods - all the deities of the Warhammer worlds reflect the half-emptiness of the world itself.
* If Warhammer wasn't miserable enough, the {{GRIMDARK}} that is '''''{{Warhammer 40000}}''''' has gone out of its way to be the [[WorstWhateverEver WORST. PLACE. EVER.]] See its own page for the awful details.

* ''{{Rifts}}'' takes place roughly 300 years [[AfterTheEnd after a minor nuclear exchange]] jump-started a [[ItGotWorse chain reaction]] that resulted in the Earth becoming a magical nexus point for the [[{{Multiverse}} Megaverse]]. Tears in time and space ([[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the eponymous Rifts]]) open randomly across the globe, dropping willing and unwilling being onto various parts of the globe, from fantasy creatures to [[StarfishAliens weird aliens]] to literal demons and worse. Atlantis has reappeared from a dimensional limbo (altering coastlines to the point that Australia is half underwater) and is inhabited by an EldritchAbomination and its legions of slaves and servant races. Humanity has just finally clawed itself out from barbarism and is starting to reclaim portions of the world. Unfortunately, the ones who seem best able to do it are TheEmpire.

** All that said... in most settings/campaign there is ''one'' thing that shifts it towards the AWorldHalfFull side of the spectrum: the player characters. Things may be dark, but at least some difference ''can'' be made... assuming the dungeon master running the campaign sn't a KillerGameMaster, of course.

* ''{{Warhammer}}'' (Warhammer Fantasy Battles, WHB) is an archetypal Crapsack World - a world doomed to perish into Chaos and into the hands of its minions, themselver presenting {{Eldritch Abomination}}s. The world is grim and dark, inhabited by uncaring Lizardmen, haughty and snobbish High Elves, insanely bloodlusty Dark Elves, sullen and autistic Wood Elves, humans who come in a variet of flavours: [[KnightsTemplar Bretonnians]], Empire or [[HumansAreBastards just about any other kind of evil Human you can imagine,]] cannibal Halflings, grudgy and fatalistic Dwarves, boorish Goblins, bullyish Orcs, bloodthirsty and wildly breeding Skaven ratmen, two types of Undead (Tomb Kings consisting of mummies, skeletons and zombies) and Vampire Counts (your local Dracula settings), and, of course, the insane Chaos. Of course, a Crapsack World requires to be ruled by JerkassGods - all the deities of the Warhammer worlds reflect the half-emptiness of the world itself.
* If Warhammer Fantasy Battles wasn't miserable enough, the {{grim dark}}ness of ''{{Warhammer 40000}}'' has gone out of its way to be the worst place ever. See its own page for the awful details.

* If Warhammer Fantasy Battles wasn't miserable enough, the {{grim dark}}ness of ''{{Warhammer 40000}}'' has gone out of its way to be the [[MostTriumphantExample worst place ever]]. See its own page for the awful details.

** It was even worse during the 300 year Dark Age that predated the beginning of the P.A. (Post Apocalypse) Calendar. [[hottip:*: To give an idea of the time frame, the Coming of the Rifts occurred on December 21st, 2098. The P.A. Calendar, marking the end of the Dark Age and the beginning of Humankind's rise from chaos, was established by [TheEmpire the Coalition States]] in 2287. The original Core Book was set in the year 101 P.A. (2387), and the books have since then progressed to the year 109 P.A.]] During the Dark Age, and especially in the beginning, Rifts opened pretty much on an hourly basis, Ley Line Storms (overflows of magic energy that cause all sorts of mystical mayhem) were more or less constant, and the fracturing of [[NegativeSpaceWedgie dimensional energies]] wreaked havoc on the weather, and caused other disasters like the eruption of the Yellowstone Park supervolcano, covering North America in ash. Russia experienced 80 years of perpetual winter, and pretty much everywhere else on Earth fared just as badly. Among the lucky ones were people who were Rifted into the future, such as the [[strike: Royal Canadian Mounted Police]] Tundra Rangers and two cities in Japan, who only had to deal with the aftermath of the destruction. A lot of this is covered in the sourcebook/standalone RPG ''Chaos Earth'' takes place roughly two weeks after the Coming of the Rifts.