Home brew Chicago area map

Cool!
If I make the farmlands from the 1st map Walsave.. Yeah, I can definitely use this.
Thanks so much and welcome aboard.

Thanks for the compliments! I was trying to make the maps using a drawing program but never had the ime to make it work. I decided to just use pencil and paper. Next step is to go through my notes and type out the basics of the various locations. I hope to start that this coming week.

Chicago Ruins:
A once mighty megalopolis along the western shores of Lake Michigan, Chicago and the surrounding suburbs are now mostly ruins. The vast majority of the ruins have not been explored. This is because most of the surrounding human/mutant settlements have just finally started recovering from the cataclysm. Most of the outer suburbs and controlled by numerous tribes and gangs of Skullocks and Warmorts who are in a constant state of war with each other. Garnocks are also encountered throughout the ruins especially in the heavily urbanized interior parts of the ruins. The sewer systems are home to many insects and mutant rats and rodents.

The old Chicago Loop area is a fortified city, known simply as The Loop, inhabited by a growing population of mutants. The majority of this city is located in the old Chicago tunnels (think Metro 2033) that were converted to shelters before the cataclysm. While these tunnels are still in good condition the population is slowly out growing it and has moved to the surface to expand. Several sky scrapers and buildings have been cleared and fortified for the cities populations. There are almost constant battles with the Skullocks and Warmorts in the area but the mutants, while not superior in numbers, are slowly gaining the upper hand.

North of The Loop, in what was once the city of Evanston, are the ruins of a mighty university. A group of secretive mutants live in the old library and several other buildings studying the lore and knowledge of the ancients. There does not appear to be any foliage or livestock in the area so it is unknown how the mutants survive. It is known that the Warmort clans in the area do not go near the University because of dark technologies defending the area.

In the western part of the ruins, along the old I-88 corridor, a large group of industrial ruins are located. This is the old Illinois Technology and Research Corridor. Miles and miles of what appear to be pristine and undisturbed areas are found. However, the few excavators to enter the area report numerous bio-weaponized mutant creatures in the area. The small of amounts of technology that has been found is highly prized and very valuable.

In the north western part of the ruins a stronghold funded by the Skyport airship guild has been established in the old O’Hare Airport. This area was chosen due to the numerous aircraft parts located here. The airship guild has not explored much of the surrounding area but may pay excavators to do so.

In the southern parts of the ruins lies what appears to be a large dome. Rumors are the dome was built in an old rock quarry by one of the many mega corporations prior to the apocalypse. A section of I-294 goes right through the dome but is closed off by large blast doors. It also appears there is some type of heliport at the top of the dome. The dome has only been seen by airship and no one knows what it looks like through the probably heavily armored glass.

Large areas of mutant plants are located north of the ruins and south of Morton Fort. It appears this area was once some type plant research center or arboretum. Several large buildings can be seen in the interior of this area.

The Crawler Hills are home to a large colony of giant ants. This area is watched by militia troops in Charlie Fort who report any large scale movement of the ants back to their commanders in Kalb City.

The Gary Iron Works:
The old Gary Indiana iron works are still in use dozens of years after the cataclysm. Scavenged metals are brought to the iron works to be melted down into iron ingots and then sold to traveling traders and guilds. The iron works is run by a human known as Iron Spike. The iron works are a hellish place filled with numerous smoke stacks, noxious vapors, acid and radioactive pits, and worked by slaves.

A barter town has sprung up in the ruins of Gary around the iron works where many of the biker gangs from the Indiana wastes come to sell their loot and slaves. Almost any kind of legal and illegal substance can be found here but the prices are exorbitant. The barter town has several docks and the lake nomads come here often to trade fish for various items. The town is absolutely lawless therefore only the most heavily armed trading caravans go there to do any trading. Venturing into the ruins at almost any time without being heavily armed is a dangerous undertaking. The ruins are used as a battlefield to settle many scores between biker gangs.

The old Southshore Railcats stadium is used as a gladiatorial arena for slaves. Fights are normally to the death.

Kalb City
Kalb City is located along the old I-88 Highway about fifty miles west of the Chicago ruins. Located in what was once DeKalb, Kalb City has slowly started to flourish against the surrounding wastelands. Just prior to the cataclysm, several military units were stationed in the area and the survivors of these units stayed after the cataclysm struck as there was nowhere else to go. Numerous police and public safety personnel fled Chicago to DeKalb during the destruction. The first few decades were brutal and many of the survivors perished. However, the population stayed pretty stable as survivors from the surrounding areas came to the city for protection.

Over the last twenty years or so the area around the city has been made habitable again. Crops are being planted and the population has started to grow. A human scientist from the Fermi Lab created a robot that was able to remove the poisons and radiation from the surrounding lands and make them able to support hardy plants. In the local fields dozens of these machines work daily to improve and expand the crops fields.
The old Northern Illinois University is located here with thousands of books, magazines, and even working computers. The city leaders allow access to the library to anyone for a small fee. Damaging any of the material in the library is punishable by death.

The city has a large garrison made up of militia troops, mutant shock forces, and motorcycle recon troops. Also, the city has two airships owned by the Skyport Guild that can be used if needed.

MechaCoy:
Located in the northern part of the North Woods, MechaCoy is located in what was once Fort McCoy. Highly modernized by the former US Military before the fall of civilization; the base contains numerous underground areas, an airfield, ammunition storages, and hundreds of vehicles. Several large buildings are located throughout the complex but most are destroyed. Rumors from the feral human tribes located in the North Woods say the base is stirring again and that tribes located near the base have simply disappeared. One survivor related robotic creatures took his tribe into the base.