History CrapsackWorld / TabletopGames

** Iomedae, the goddess of Justice, can be a ManipulativeBitch when it serves her purpose, and even Sarenrae, the goddess of healing and IncorruptiblePurePureness, is not above a little PayEvilUntoEvil. Caydan Cailean is a former alcholic, womanizing mercenary who ascended to godhood on a drunken dare, and hasn't been sober since. Shelyn, the goddess of beauty, forbids her paladins from killing even the most vile villains, even to prevent more death, because a dead person cannot create things of beauty and a person who EatsBabies ForTheEvulz may make a HeelFaceTurn and take up glassblowing. And these are considered good gods.

** Numeria is ruled by a cabal of {{Mad Scientist}}s who are strip-mining a crashed spaceship. Cheliax is led by a group of human supremacists who intend to subjugate the world in the name of Asmodeus, and the queen has a pit fiend as her chief advisor who is there to make sure she doesn't fall into StupidEvil, not corrupt her. Slavery and human sacrifice are also perfectly legal in large swathes of the world. Queen Ileosa of Korvosa is a full-fledged monster running a eugenics program that makes the Nazi T4-program look like flourinating drinking water, and intends to rise to godhood on the back of a high six-digit number of human sacrifices.

** The Worldwound, the site of a gigantic portal to the Abyss where [[TheLegionsOfHell hundreds of demonic creatures]] pour into Galarion '''every day'''.
** On top of this, you have all the usual things expected of a WorldOfAdventure; rampaging monsters, magical plagues, roaming undead, wizards doing dodgy stuff... the list goes on.

* Between the eternally warmongering, xenophobic and corrupt factions fighting for the remains of the galaxy ([[OurOrcsAreDifferent one of which literally exists]] for the sole purpose of killing and looting), the [[CorruptChurch poverty-ridden heresy-crushing Imperium of Man]] (whose [[ObstructiveBureaucrat bureaucracies]] and [[FeudalFuture feudal orders]] do spend a lot of their time figuratively and literally fighting each other), and the [[HyperSpaceIsAScaryPlace infernal nightmare]] of the Warp infested by the [[EldritchAbomination Ruinous Powers of Chaos]] and their [[TheLegionsOfHell ravenous insane Daemonic apostles]], life in the universe of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' [[WeHaveReserves really]], [[CrapsackOnlyByComparison really]], [[HyperspaceIsAScaryPlace really]], [[BlackAndGreyMorality really]], [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity really]], [[TheWorldIsAlwaysDoomed really]]''', '''[[AbsoluteXenophobe really]], [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil really]], [[OmnicidalManiac REALLY]], [[CosmicHorrorStory REALLY]], [[OverlyLongGag REALLY]]''' '''''[[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] sucks [[UpToEleven HARDCORE]]'''''. [[BrutalHonesty Seriously]], it's to the point the universe of ''40K'' seems to be exclusively designed to invoke [[CosmicPlaything as much misery and suffering as inhumanly possible]] out of the universe's myriad denizens, and atrocious enough that ''a brand new word'' was invented to describe the sheer hopelessness of the setting, aptly named "{{Grimdark}}", and it is hands down THE BLEAKEST setting ever put to fiction, ''period''. Let's count the ways, shall we?

* Between the eternally warmongering, xenophobic and corrupt factions fighting for the remains of the galaxy ([[OurOrcsAreDifferent one of which literally exists]] for the sole purpose of killing and looting), the [[CorruptChurch poverty-ridden heresy-crushing Imperium of Man]] (whose [[ObstructiveBureaucrat bureaucracies]] and [[FeudalFuture feudal orders]] do spend a lot of their time figuratively and literally fighting each other), and the [[HyperSpaceIsAScaryPlace infernal nightmare]] of the Warp infested by the [[EldritchAbomination Ruinous Powers of Chaos]] and their [[TheLegionsOfHell ravenous insane Daemonic apostles]], life in the universe of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' really, really, really, really, really, [[OverlyLongGag REALLY]] [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] '''''sucks [[UpToEleven HARDCORE]]'''''. Seriously, it's to the point the universe of ''40K'' seems to be exclusively designed to invoke [[CosmicPlaything as much misery and suffering as humanly possible]] out of the universe's myriad denizens, and bad enough that ''a brand new word'' was invented to describe the sheer hopelessness of the setting, aptly named "{{Grimdark}}", and it just might be the bleakest setting ever put in fiction, period. Let's count the ways, shall we?:
** To emphasize how shitty life is in this universe, let's cover some of the biggest {{Wide Eyed Idealist}}s of the entire setting: The [[DarkMessiah Emperor of Mankind]], the [[LawfulGood Salamanders, Ultramarines]], [[ChaoticGood Space Wolves]] and [[WellIntentionedExtremist the Tau]] and what happened to them.

** Iomedae, the goddess of Justice, can be a ManipulativeBitch when it serves her purpose, and even Sarenrae, the goddess of healing and IncorruptiblePurePureness, is not above a little PayEvilUntoEvil. Caydan Cailean is a former alcholic, womanizing mercenary who ascended to godhood on a drunken dare, and hasn't been sober since. And all these three are considered good gods.

** Numeria is ruled by a cabal of {{Mad Scientist}}s who are strip-mining a crashed spaceship. Cheliax is led by a group of human supremacists who intend to subjugate the world in the name of Asmodeus, and the queen has a pit fiend as her chief advisor who is there to make sure she doesn't fall into StupidEvil, not corrupt her. Slavery and human sacrifice are also perfectly legal in large swathes of the world.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Rifts}}'' takes place roughly 300 years [[AfterTheEnd after a minor nuclear exchange]] jump-started a [[FromBadToWorse chain reaction]] that resulted in the Earth becoming a magical nexus point for the [[{{Multiverse}} Megaverse]]. Tears in time and space (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 the Coalition States]], who have a huge hate-on toward anyone and anything nonhuman, magical or both; and who consider literacy and reading to be dangerous.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Monastyr}}'' (''Monastery'', sometimes called [[FanNickname Warhammer Fantasy's Little Brother]]): Humanity was once the chosen race of their local CrystalDragonJesus, but got tricked by other races, that are evil by default, to pay tribute to a GodOfEvil (local equivalent of {{Satan}}), for which their jealous god condemned them to thousands of years of being enslaved by other races and only relatively recently sent the Prophet, who set them free. Since then, humanity has at endless war with the primitive evil races, everything is controlled by the Church and Inquisition, who are also very militaristic and merciless and yet are the only thing saving people from magic, which in this world is [[MagicIsEvil a soul-stealing demonic force]].

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post-apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. Meaning that there's no luxury of finding a stable settlement that's not struggling or falling apart at the seems. The world is covered in lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma simply called The Rot; a poison that literally eats away at the [=PCs=] until it eventually kills them. Then there's [[EldritchLocation The Zone]], a horrible and deadly environment of The Dawnworld which filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier feral]] [[{{Mutant}} mutant]] [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* ''TabletopGame/BladesInTheDark'' is a downplayed example. The sun has gone out and the world is covered in darkness. The local phlebotinum is running out, but the people who are invested in it are blocking all attempts at finding a replacement. Corruption is endemic, the undead are running rampant, strange cults pop up like mushrooms and crime is everywhere. That said, the game doesn't beat you over the head with its suckiness. There are communities of poor but honest and hard-working people just trying to get by, food is generally not a problem even for the poorest, there is some social mobility and playing NeighborhoodFriendlyGangsters is difficult but definitely possible.

* ''TabletopGamladesInTheDark'' is a downplayed example. The sun has gone out and the world is covered in darkness. The local phlebotinum is running out, but the people who are invested in it are blocking all attempts at finding a replacement. Corruption is endemic, the undead are running rampant, strange cults pop up like mushrooms and crime is everywhere. That said, the game doesn't beat you over the head with its suckiness. There are communities of poor but honest and hard-working people just trying to get by, food is generally not a problem even for the poorest, there is some social mobility and playing NeighborhoodFriendlyGangsters is difficult but definitely possible.

* As you'll probably notice, this is something of a staple for most non-historical war games. Beyond the inevitable creative effects of GamesWorkshop's many years of market domination, there's a fairly simple reason -- your armies need a reason to be fighting, and any setting with that much war is probably going to suck to live in.

* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' has a hell of a lot: Rath, Old Phyrexia and New Phyrexia (AKA Mirrodin), Shadowmoor, [[GothicHorror Innistrad]], 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 Phyrexians are quite nice if you can overlook the whole "Yawgmoth"/"Praetors" thing.)

** As a reference, the four main factions provided in the GM handbook are: A DeadlyDecadentCourt focused solely on discovery and perseverance of knowledge and the survival of the learnt BlueBlood class, and not much on the peons and peasants that supported their living; a totalitarian empire founded by a WellIntentionedExtremist, who hopes to liberate humanity from the jail of the boundless maze by blowing it up (up and including the maze walls, grounds and ceilings) regardless of the will of safety of the inhabitants; a HordesFromTheEast-like nomadic empire (using trains as their cities and settlements) that strengthen itself by RapePillageAndBurn; and a TotalitarianUtilitarian hyper-capitalist republic that cares about nothing but wealth and money. It is stated that all four factions are either out to exterminate others, or merely using them to further their own goal. The lesser kingdoms that happened to be caught in between tend to suffer only more.

* Between the eternally warmongering, xenophobic and corrupt factions fighting for the remains of the galaxy ([[OurOrcsAreDifferent one of which literally exists]] for the sole purpose of killing and looting), the [[CorruptChurch poverty-ridden heresy-crushing Imperium of Man]] (whose [[ObstructiveBureaucrat bureaucracies]] and [[FeudalFuture feudal orders]] do spend a lot of their time figuratively and literally fighting each other), and the [[HyperSpaceIsAScaryPlace infernal nightmare]] of the Warp infested by the [[EldritchAbomination Ruinous Powers of Chaos]] and their [[TheLegionsOfHell ravenous insane Daemonic apostles]], life in the universe of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' really, really, really, really, really, [[OverlyLongGag really]] [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] '''''sucks [[UpToEleven HARDCORE]]'''''. Seriously, it's to the point the universe of ''40K'' seems to be exclusively designed to invoke [[CosmicPlaything as much misery and suffering as humanly possible]] out of the universe's myriad denizens, and bad enough that ''a brand new word'' was invented to describe the sheer hopelessness of the setting, aptly named "{{Grimdark}}". Let's count the ways, shall we?:

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'': Leaders generally come in three flavors: insane, corrupt, and evil, with those who are none of the above and are actually good at their jobs generally having their work undone within a decade or two after their deaths. 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 (at least as long as nobody pays attention to how awful they treat [[KligonScientistsGetNoRespect anyone who isn't a warrior]]). 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.\\

* ''TabletopGame/{{Monastyr}}'' (''Monastery'', sometimes called [[FanNickname Warhammer Fantasy's Little Brother]]): Humanity was once the chosen race of their local CrystalDragonJesus, but got tricked by other races, that are evil by default, to pay tribute to a GodOfEvil (local equivalent of {{Satan}}), for which their jealous god condemned them to thousands of years of being enslaved by other races and only relatively recently sent the Prophet, who set them free. Since then, humanity has at endless war with the primitive evil races, everything is controlled by the Church and Inquisition, who are also very militaristic and merciless and yet are the only thing saving people from magic, which in this world is [[MagicIsEvil a soul-stealing demonic force]].

---> "It is the 41st Millenium. For more than a hundred centuries the Emperor has sat immobile on the Golden Throne of Earth. He is the master of mankind by the will of the gods, and master of a million worlds by the might of his inexhaustible armies. He is a rotting carcass writhing invisibly with power from the Dark Age of Technology. He is the Carrion Lord of the Imperium for whom a thousand souls are sacrificed every day, so that he may never truly die. Yet Even in his deathless state, the Emperor continues his eternal vigilance. Mighty battlefleets cross the daemon-infested miasma of the warp, the only route between distant stars, their way lit by the Astronomican, the psychic manifestation of the Emperor's will. Vast armies give battle in his name on uncounted worlds. Greatest amongst his warriors are the Adeptus Astartes, the Space Marines, bioengineered super-warriors. Their comrade in arms are legion: the Imperial Guard and countless planetary defence forces, the ever-vigilant Inquisition and the tech priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus to name only a few. But for all their multitudes, they are barely enough to hold the ever-present threat from aliens, heretics, mutants - and worse. To be a man in such times is to be one amongst untold billions. It is to live in the cruelest and most bloody regime imaginable. These are the tales of those times. Forget the power of technology and science, for so much has been forgotten, never to be relearned. Forget the promise of progress and understanding, for in the grim dark future there is only war. There is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and slaughter, and the laughter of thirsting gods."

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post-apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. Meaning that there's no luxury of finding a stable settlement that's not struggling or falling apart at the seems. The world is covered in lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma simply called The Rot; a poison that literally eats away at the [=PCs=] until it eventually kills them. Then there's [[EldritchLocation The Zone]], a horrible and deadly environment of The Dawnworld which filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier feral]] [[{{Mutant}} mutant]] [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* Between the eternally warmongering, xenophobic and corrupt factions fighting for the remains of the galaxy ([[OurOrcsAreDifferent one of which literally exists]] for the sole purpose of killing and looting), the [[CorruptChurch poverty-ridden heresy-crushing Imperium of Man]] (whose [[ObstructiveBureaucrat bureaucracies]] and [[FeudalFuture feudal orders]] do spend a lot of their time figuratively and literally fighting each other), and the [[HyperSpaceIsAScaryPlace infernal nightmare]] of the Warp infested by the [[EldritchAbomination Ruinous Powers of Chaos]] and their [[TheLegionsOfHell ravenous insane Daemonic apostles]], life in the universe of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] '''''sucks'''''. Seriously, it's to the point the universe of ''40K'' seems to be exclusively designed to invoke [[CosmicPlaything as much misery and suffering as humanly possible]] out of the universe's myriad denizens, and bad enough that ''a brand new word'' was invented to describe the sheer hopelessness of the setting, aptly named "{{Grimdark}}". Let's count the ways, shall we?:

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post-apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. Meaning that there's no luxury of finding a stable settlement that's not struggling or falling apart at the seems. The world is covered in lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma simply called The Rot, a poison that literally eats away at the [=PCs=] until it eventually kills them. Then there's [[EldritchLocation The Zone]], a horrible and deadly environment of The Dawnworld which filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier feral]] [[{{Mutant}} mutant]] [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post-apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. Meaning that there's no luxury of finding a stable settlement, that's not struggling or falling apart at the seems. The world is covered in lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma simply called The Rot, a poison that literally eats away at the [=PCs=] until it eventually kills them. Then there's [[EldritchLocation The Zone]], a horrible and deadly environment of The Dawnworld which filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier feral]] [[{{Mutant}} mutant]] [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post-apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. The world is covered in lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma simply called The Rot, a poison that literally eats away at the [=PCs=] until it eventually kills them. Then there's [[EldritchLocation The Zone]], a horrible and deadly environment of The Dawnworld which filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[OurGhoulsAreCreepier feral]] [[{{Mutant}} mutant]] [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* The Dawnworld of ''[[TabletopGame/MutantYearZero Mutant: Year Zero]]'' qualifies as this, unlike most post apocalyptic settings that are set long after the end of the world. ''Mutant: Year Zero'' only takes place a few decades after the end of the world. The world is covered in a lethal background radiation that has mutated into a miasma called is filled with Rot, which is filled with Rot wrapped [[EldritchAbomination creatures]] and [[HumanoidAbomination freaks.]]

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'': 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.\\