NEW MEXICO

The climate of New Mexico has always been brutally dry, and the droughts brought on by the nuclear war have only made it worse. There are a number of settlements in the grazing lands of the western part of the state, and semi-nomadic groups wander throughout the southern deserts, but the forested mountains are pretty much the only place large numbers of humans still live. The towns contain the usual mix of white, Hispanic and Indian groups found pre-war, with all the class differences and racial troubles as well. The Apaches rule in the northwest and the old Aztlan Empire still has some influence in the south.

1) NUCLEAR TARGETS

Albuquerque, SS-N-17
Santa Fe, SS-N-17
White Sands, Missile Range, SS-19
Fort Wingate Army Depot, Gallup, SS-N-8
Walker AFB, SS-18M2

Discretionary nuclear targets:
Kirtland AFB, SS-18M1
Cannon AFB, SS-N-8
Los Alamos Laboratory, Los Alamos, SS-N-17

2) MORROW PROJECT ASSETS

(Designation unknown): In the Los Cruces metro area, many MP families are under cyro sleep in specially built bunker-style boltholes.
Morrow Training Grounds: Located outside of what used to be White Sands Air Force Base, this was where teams were trained before being frozen.
Science/Maintenance Team Omega-15: Boltholed in the Rockhound State Park area.
MARS Team Delta-75: Boltholed in the Rockhound State Park area.
Recon Team 09: Bolthole location unknown.
Recon Team (Designation unknown): A Recon team with a bolthole located on the edge of the Coronado National Forest. This team has two "special caches", with unknown contents. The first is twelve miles west of US-25 and one mile south of Hillsboro, NM, buried under a road side marker that is a large granite rock that recounts the battle of the Indian Chief Sitting Bull victory over the US Calvary. The second cache is located 5 miles north of the town of Elkins, which is 30 miles northeast of Roswell, NM. The cache is buried inside and under a large barn that was a "UFO visitation site".
Long Range Recon Cache: Located in Las Cruces, under a municipal swimming pool. Under Lifeguard Tower. Standard Recon Pack. Tower Plaque reads: This Lifeguard Station built in Memory of Brucie Morrow, "So that Others may Live."
Unnamed MP bolthole: Somewhere inside Angel Peak in San Juan County southeast of Farmington.
Unnamed MP bolthole: Somewhere in the Carlsbad Cavern area.
Unnamed MP bolthole: In a cave near El Moro National Monument northeast of the town of Pie Town.
Unnamed MP bolthole: In a black rock cavern north of San Cristobal, north of Taos.
Unnamed MP bolthole: In a cave above the Lucero River, not far from Frijoles Canyon near Taos.
Unnamed MP bolthole: Near the old historic Sunspot Post Office in Otero County south of Alamogordo.
Unnamed MP bolthole: Near the town of Datil southwest of Albuquerque.

3) NORTHERN NEW MEXICO

Apaches: After the bombs fell, the Jicarilla Apache Indians of northwestern New Mexico "went on the warpath". Over the next few decades, they absorbed the local Zuni and Ute tribes, often forcibly, and stretched out their territory. By today, their territory is bordered roughly by I-40 in the south, Highway 84 in the east, the Ute lands in Colorado to the north, and up to the edge of the Navaho lands in the west. Total population of the tribe now numbers some 4,000 people, scattered in settlements across this region. The Apaches are currently at peace and no longer have any plans for further expansion. They believe in living in total harmony with the land and nature, but they will use guns to keep out strangers. They are very observant and keep an eye on their territory, using "smoke signals" to warn each other of intruders. Some slavers in Gallup have been causing problems, but their raids have not been more than pinpricks and they are going to get crushed if they are not careful.

The ruins of Albuquerque: The city was hit by numerous nukes, including a large 25 megaton SS-18M1 over Kirtland AFB. While much of Albuquerque's civilian population was killed outright, a few scattered areas of the city situated in the protected valley of the Rio Grande River survived the worst of the damage. 150 years later, these settlements are the home of about 300 people picking salvage out of the ruins and selling them to traders to the south and east. The main enclave is located in a nuke-proof underground bunker of the thousand-acre Manzano weapons storage complex east of the crater that was Kirtland AFB. The Apaches wisely avoid these ruins, considering them massive burial grounds.

Santa Fe: Though nearby Los Alamos was nuked hard and spread fallout across the area, Santa Fe's own SLBM missed short and impacted in northwest Canada. Santa Fe has continued over the last 150 years to act as the titular government of the state, though it exerts little influence outside of the city limits. A local 150-man cavalry unit serves as the "State Militia", barracked in the one surviving section of Saint John's College. The Apaches to the west occasionally trade here, but they normal avoid the white men when they can.

The ruins of Los Alamos: Very little remains of the famous labs that created the first atomic bombs 200 years ago but three craters and a legend that bluish zombies walk the sandy hills at night. A rumor still circulates that the Government had a hidden cache of nuclear weapons hidden near Los Alamos. Why or where is still in question.

Coyote: The above rumor is in fact true, and perhaps it is coming to a close. Among the citizens of this small town in the mountains northwest of Los Alamos, a child out hunting in the woods found a secret steel doorway in a cave. The cave was in an old silver mine about ten minutes walk north of the town. Coyote is a settlement of the Apaches, and the residents here have placed a offering in front of the door ever since, sure that it leads to the "spirit world". The cache holds a dozen crates of plutonium powder, amongst other invaluable items.

Gallup: Mostly destroyed when washed by the blast wave from the nuke over nearby Fort Wingate, Gallup was abandoned for nearly 140 years. About ten years ago, a clan of slavers came to the area from Arizona, looking for a base to begin striking into the Apache lands. They are not really that effective, and only 35 of them are still alive, down from a high of 300.

"Site-A": A large and deep underground Snake-eater base is located near Dulce, designated "Site-A". While this area had been a favorite of UFO and alien invasion believes before the war, the truth was that the secret base was home to a group of cryo-frozen Green Berets and associated support personnel. To the west, the Navaho Hydroelectric Dam once provided electrical power to Site-A, but it has long ago been offline.

4) EASTERN NEW MEXICO

The deserts of this part of the state are just as formidable as they were before the war. In addition to the lack of water and the fierce heat, there are wild reports of radiation zones that have melted the flesh of unwary travelers. Crazed biker gangs, rabid survivalists, wandering religious zealots, and all sorts of feral mutated animals make their home in the region. Traveling in the desert nowadays without an experienced guide is plain suicide.

Fort Sumner: Known locally as "The Fort", a popular caravan stopping point at the intersection of four roads. This settlement survives by a fragile pledge by the town's citizens to do anything possible to please the traders. This has often included horrible acts of violence and depravity by the locals. The Pecos River provides water and several large tanks of it are set up in the town to quench the thirsts of the traders.

Tucumcari: In an effort to survive by trade, Tucumcari long ago turned itself into an open town, with a lot of dirty deals and violence. A cholera epidemic this fall has forced the current leadership into drastic measures to keep the town from melting down. Anyone even looking sick is shot on sight by the militia, including other militiamen. This is only making the situation worse.

Roswell: Roswell is populated by a collection of ranchers and farmers living in the eastern suburbs of the old town. They are doing well despite the occasional raids of slavers, and trades as far as El Paso and Mexico. While nuked and radioactive, nearby Walker Air Force Base is notable for having an untapped underground fuel bunker of gasoline waiting to be found. The quality of the gasoline after 150 years is a serious question mark.

White Sands Missile Range: When the bombs fell in 1989, White Sands became a refuge from the chaos. Scattered bands of refugees, most from the cities to the north, gravitated towards the base, lured there by the promise of military protection and help. The base's huge underground missile storage complex soon become the center of the enclave. 150 years later, over 400 people still call the base home--Hispanics, Indians, drifters, stragglers from Texas, malcontents and loners who just couldn't make it anymore in the open deserts.

Alamogordo: After a series of bad harvests led to open rebellion, the local town government turned it over to the militia in a bloody coup. That was 11 years ago, and today the population has been reduced to about 230. The most recent problem in this cursed town is that this past month the militia leader was accused of kidnapping local citizens for his own sadistic games. The citizenry revolted, there was much bloodshed, and now no one runs the town. Now, the people of Alamogordo are hostile and suspicious of everyone, including their neighbors. If you want food, you must take it from someone else or grow your own and defend it well.

Carlsbad: A struggling trading town whose food more than a few nearby settlements are depending on to survive. Carlsbad also serves as the hub of a Mailman service route and is always looking for new folks to brave the sun, snakes and dead of night to deliver the mail.

Clovis: Typical of the smaller towns in this region of the state. Clovis has almost completely lost its foothold over Mother Nature. Weeds, cacti, and sagebrush cover nearly everything and the wind has brought sand into every nook and corner.

5) SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO

The Aztlan Empire: This empire flourished and died in the first few decades after the war (see San Diego for a full description of the Aztlan). In New Mexico, Aztlan control held on a little longer than in other areas due to strong local leadership, and today there are a number of communities that still take pride in being part of the "New Aztlan Empire". The local economy is based almost entirely on ranching and scavenging, with trade mostly local or with communities to the south in old Mexico. The Aztlans maintain control with roving, horse mounted patrols and by taxing the local ranchers. The Aztlan enclaves are almost exclusively west of Interstate 25 and south of the Elk Mountains.

The militia: The Aztlan militia is pulled from local towns, with men required to serve a two-year stint. While mostly foot, it has a high number of cavalry troops, many outfitted with locally-built armor kits for their horses. The militia also has an amount of wheeled vehicles, all running on alcohol fuel and all kept in Los Cruces for emergencies. These include six "Wheeled Armored Personnel Carriers"--nearly indestructible Volkswagen Beetles with thin sheets of armor nailed to the sides.

Los Cruces: The largest Aztlan city in the state, Las Cruces is home to some 2,200 people. All governmental functions are carried out here as well as most cultural activities and education.

Bayard: Typical of the farming settlements in the Empire, home to about 200 farmers and ranchers. Taxes are paid and young men are called upon for militia duties. Towns similar to Bayard in size and economy include Lordsburg, Silver City, Red Rock and Deming.

Elephant Butte Dam: The Aztlan settlement here is working to repair the remaining generators. So far they have had little success, but mostly because they are just guessing what is wrong with the massive machines. In reality, the main obstacle is about a dozen blown fuses that need to be replaced, a fact that has yet to be discovered.

People who have contributed to this entry:
John Raner
Karl Zohler