"...For myself, I just go with the idea that it is a near miss. Enough for blast damage to effect the harbor facilities, but distant enough to keep enough intact for basic use. An airbust also negates the issue of radiation a great deal".[/QUOTE]
Thats the way to go for me,too.
And i liked Rainbow & Olefins scene descriptions.
After reading through the older threads regarding this topic, i am convinced, that there is no way, that
a) if you want to use Norfolk as an active (at least still in winter 2000) Milgov-base,
b) and it was nearly missed by the nukes (canon had it nuked)
the people running the place have had no way of preparing the arrival of ca. 43.000 people in a fashion, that everyone has enough food and "safe" transportation out of Norfolk. Or the hygienic conditions to provide a longer stay for everyone.
Here we have a opportunity for a drastic T2k- "mass-scene", as the ships are unloaded within the ruined harbor-area. Lots of queues, which are under strict control by unfriendly marines in NBC-gear. And loudspeakers with patriotic music, warnings about radiation-hazards, desertion, etc.
The girls and boys get off the ships with several thousands of others, but they dont get, what they expected. Instead of enough food, and a save haven with lots of information about several locations within conus ("what about our familys back home in Walnut Grove, sir?" - they get rations for 2 days max and learn, that they will get to Jersey or some other base, far away.
And fast! IF they are able, after getting off the ship.. where they had rationed food and water, too i guess.
As long as the PC´s are in the massive bulk of the undistributed european vets, they have to be treated like refugees - just because of the pure amount of them. Theres no other way to handle that many hungry people.
And even that wont be good enough for the survival of everyone, if the hordes of soldiers, are not split in several different directions.
"Sorry, there´s not enough vaccine here for everyone. Just look around you, idiot! Get back in line!" (a shot in the background once in a while).
Ohter ideas could include drugged patrol-soldiers (heavy on all kinds of happy-pills "to handle this shit" - radiation, fear of starvation in the near future, no privacy in crowded underground installations, same underwear for weeks now..), people dying from old injuries and new diseases in cramped fieldbeds, after getting through the whole war in europe..
Remember that scene in "apocalypse now", when the boat reaches a US outpost at a bridge upstream under constant attack?
The whole scene screamed "everything is spiraling downwards" and was filled with little details, how the military order falls apart.
That would the atmosphere i think would be fitting, till the PC´s reach another place with less people around to feed (or to catch disease from).
Norfolk is just a makeshift solution of Milgovs former plans for the returnees - whats ahead, is pretty much open (at least to the players).
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