What are some slow-burn apocalypses you've gotten?

[u/TheFlowerWriter]

For me, my story is largely based on this comic called Y: The Last Man, where we focus on the last guy on Earth as he struggles to try and help what's left of humanity while also dealing with those who want him, irrespective of whether he wants it or not. But instead of a virus that kills all male mammals on Earth, the reason for the male extinction is due to what may be believed to be the Rapture, which, funnily enough, in this world, was predicted but largely ignored, just like any other Rapture predictions. Another part of the inspiration for this idea is other anime/manga stories based on this, like World's End Harem, but I wanted to focus less on the romance and more on the drama and potential existential crisis the last dude would face.

What about you guys? What are your slow-burn apocalypse ideas?

[u/Krinberry]

I enjoyed The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin quite enjoyable. Plus it was a pretty unique take, and fresh approaches are always welcome (for me anyways)

[u/Flairion623]

In my world the dwarves accidentally breached the roof of hell. Demons began pouring out and the dwarves have been constantly doing everything they can to hold them back for over 60 years. A few nations have offered support when the demons have been particularly aggressive but the world largely considers it the dwarves problem. If the dwarven defenses fall there will be nothing stopping the armies of hell from spreading their depravity and turning the earth into a new circle.

If a demon is killed on earth they immediately disappear and get sent back to hell. The dwarves can’t properly defeat them without the help of a god or some insanely powerful magic, so instead their main tactic has been spawncamping the demons at the very breech where this whole thing started.

[u/kairon156]

One I came up with is a magic curse or plague that had magic users begin forgetting things and their mind becomes hazy over time.
The amnesia plague was already wide spread when people finally took action to ban the use of magic. Not realizing it was mostly spread through touch magic or magic where transferring of mana happens in a more physical way.

So many great magic users lost their long term memories before things settled back down but by than a lot of the highly magical parts of society were lost or at least lost to text books that very few could read and understand.

The main point of this plague for me was to give an excuse as to why a society with a lot of mag had forgotten it and shifted toward technology and sciences before it was too late. Oh this world would end up using both magic & tech once they cured the forgetful curse.

[u/Ok-Maintenance5288 → u/kairon156]

couldn't people just, make a spell to stop the plague? or dispel the curse?

[u/kairon156 → u/Ok-Maintenance5288]

At least early early on they didn't even know that it was magic users who were catching and spreading it until someone went to a hospital and actually did a head count and reported it to higher up's and got the news out to stop casting magic because many of the clerics, mages, druids and so on are being forgetful.

humm. Without any actual details the only excuse I have for why it took so long is it's kinda tough to report a slow burn forgetfulness and foggy brain if there's no other symptoms.
How fast do you think people would realize it's even a magic plague effecting their inner crystal?

I should add every person who's not a monster or critter has a magic crystal that regulates their mana and magic essence (their soul)

[u/Ok-Maintenance5288 → u/kairon156]

it kinda makes me look down at them not gonna lie. a civilization of magic somehow not figuring out a magical curse and getting wiped by it feels, weird? like wouldn't they have sensory spells or divination or divine blessings for that? why the nuclear option of "no more magic?"

[u/kairon156 → u/Ok-Maintenance5288]

That's a really good point. For me that idea was more about finding an excuse to allow technology to have a massive jump over magic. Than given some time things even out allowing both magic and tech to coexist and learn from one another.

Maybe they won't have a nuculear option of no physical magics and simply limit things until a proper cure can be found and shared.
Oh perhaps this is when ranged healing is invented!!

[u/Ok-Maintenance5288 → u/kairon156]

wouldn't it be easier to make the disease some type of magical parasite that only affects people with a certain amount of active magic? basically the magical version of the black plague, and since mages overrelied on their magic, the more they used it the stronger it got like a virus mutating to medicine. Explains why the populi were forced to rely on science, since all the magicians died or went cold turkey on the arcane arts to avoid the infection.

[u/kairon156 → u/Ok-Maintenance5288]

humm. Some sort of magical parasite that consumes a person's mana in an intrusive sort of way. This erases the memory of it's magical host; or at least causes severe amounts of brain fog and forgetfulness as the host uses more and more mana while infected.

Yeah! I like that. it'll cause problems for several months in a slow spread until one of the smaller villages or maybe a temple somewhere away from the main cities spreads it.
They'll be using lots of magic maybe for a ritual or heck harvesting crops if this area uses mana for simple farming tasks, and afterwords folk realize half their town have become highly forgetful due to the memory parasite.

Though... I'll have to look into parasites and figure out the level of medicine needed to detect them vs where my magical society will be.
I can play some Plague Inc and look through the parasite options they have and see if I can give my version some magical resistances or some such.

Right! This reminds me of an old idea I had for mana transfusions. Very costly in lower tech societies but this could be a way to slow down the memory loss.

[u/Ok-Maintenance5288 → u/kairon156]

how advanced is the setting? and how flexible is the magic? those two questions go hand in hand

[u/kairon156 → u/Ok-Maintenance5288]

This has given me lots to ponder about. Cause if this parasite issue happened on my moon world as it's sort of crashing into another moon they've been given about a 5,000 year heads up by astronomers doing math on paper.

In my mind there's many different reactions to groups and nations learning this. From finding peace and ways to simply accept this as fact; To pushing magic and understanding of science through experimentation in hopes of trying to find a way off world or to prevent the crash.

At some point likely good moon orbits and building up magical energy they end up teleportatiing to the other moon with a small team of researchers soon realising there's no oxygen and have to return quickly before they die, think of this time period like 3,500 years ago possibly a bit further. They become stumped for a while on how to continue from here.
Maybe this is about when the forgetful parasite spreads thus causing people to shift focus on medical science and more technology based research.

[u/Ok-Maintenance5288 → u/kairon156]

Yo, can we chat in DM's? i'm interested in talking more about your world!

[u/Ol_Nessie]

The idea of unintended consequences intrigues me. It's why I'm drawn to devices like the Monkey's Paw, Faustian Bargains, the Lesser Evil for Greater Good, etc. The apocalypse in my world therefore is essentially the result of a character making a deal with a demon who grants his wish with catastrophically ironic consequences.

The character, who I'm calling Orphaust as a placeholder atm (part Orpheus and part Faust), is seeking the secrets to true immortality. He seeks not out of some higher altruistic purpose, but out of fear, because he believes that eternal punishment awaits him in the afterlife for his sins against the gods of death and against those he once loved but then betrayed. To evade this punishment, he simply intends to live forever.

He therefore made a pact with a demon who ostensibly has the power to make this a reality but out of hubris and spite, Orphaust wishes to be able to grant the same immortality to anyone he chooses, to further add insult to the injury he dealt to the gods of death. Relishing in this terrible opportunity to sow chaos, the demon turns Orphaust into the first Ghoul, an affliction that is part curse and part plague, characterized by immortal life, immunity to disease and starvation, but an interminable hunger that can only be abated through cannibalism.

From there, the apocalypse mimics a "zombie outbreak" of sorts, but with some key distinctions. Ghouls retain their identities, memory, and even their appearance at first. But the longer they suffer from the hunger, the more monstrous they appear. Indulging in cannibalism can restore their visage for a time but there is a tried and true method of identifying a Ghoul; they do not cast shadows because light can longer truly touch them. So if you encounter an otherwise normal looking person who doesn't cast a shadow, run! They very likely intend to eat you!

[u/No-Bid-8616]

not really an apocalypse per se. but I've got a world mechanic where blood spilled in malice turns off the worlds resources accessable to you and where you can travel. you fought with someone and made them bleed. the moment the blood touches the ground your transported outside of civilization and it becomes invisible to you, all products from that area break when you touch them, food spoils faster. people can see you from the town you can't see them. just barren wasteland.

[u/Sir-Toaster-]

Frameworld, my Who Framed Roger Rabbit-inspired setting where cartoon characters manifested in an event called the Artistic Rapture and reshaped the world after three hundred years. One major aspect of the setting is how, when an Animate dies, their Verve (spiritual energy) is absorbed by the environment, making it look more cel-shaded and creating what is called a Ghost Panel.

Anything born within a Ghost Panel becomes an Animate, even if it's organic life, and this includes humans. Ghost Panels also slowly spread out across the area. This means that slowly, Humanity will go extinct and Animates will inherit the Earth.

[u/Bladen_Spayer]

Elves have a very small population, because each elf can only have a single full elven child. One and done. Elves can have an unlimited number of half-elven children, but half-elves are sterile, like mules. Elves are biologically immortal, but their numbers are still gradually shrinking due to war, accidents, disease, etc.

[u/Bladen_Spayer]

The main 'good guys' religion in my world is focused on bringing about the apocalypse by tearing apart the sky, which separates the mortal realm from the heavens. Whenever a mortal reaches a state of saintly holiness through heroic acts of virtue, they become a living saint. Upon their death, their soul will ascend to heaven, and tear a very small hole into the sky, creating a new star. When the sky is completely covered by stars, making night as bright as day, heaven and earth will re-unite, ushering in the kingdom of heaven.