IOT4: Bulgarian Wastes by @Thorvald (El Thorvaldo)

Second of four illustrations for the epilogue to Imperium Offtopicum IV, September 2010. A little on the rough side as it was done quickly.

When the game started to slacken, I had the bright idea of giving everyone nukes in the hope the warmongers would kill themselves off and a "winner" could be scavenged from the surviving wreckage. Turns out even this wasn't enough to push it through to the end, so I finally just pulled the plug. One of the players voiced interest in continuing the story, so I began drafting an epilogue as a springboard for a sequel that I would ultimately end up running.

In this image, soldiers of the New Hetmanate (Ukraine) conduct soil samples in the heavily-irradiated wasteland that was once Bulgaria for the Nuclear Liability Legacy Programme, an international body founded to study and ultimately combat the post-apocalyptic environment. The camouflage scheme is that of the modern Ukrainian Army. The tree in the foreground is lacklustre, but I guess it kinda reflects the bizarre and twisted new landscape.

I should mention that despite any S.T.A.L.K.E.R. vibe this picture radiates, I have not played the series.

[Originally submitted to DeviantArt January 2012.]