Arkadelaide
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SURVIVAL DIFFICULTY:

Class habitable

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concrete%20texture

A close-up photo of the concrete wall and its texture.

concrete%20warehouse

The average room platform — note the drab grey walls and scant furniture. To the right, two M.E.G. water jugs can also be seen.

Level 162 is the 163rd level of the Backrooms.

Description:

Level 162 is an extremely large and thick concrete wall with furnished platforms on its side that hold their own walls and ceilings in place. In both height and width, this wall stretches on forever in every direction according to current observations. This wall lacks any standing support below it, so unlike many levels, Level 162 has virtually no flooring. In front of the wall and its platforms is an infinite light grey void. This level, though temperate, lacks any weather formations such as rain or wind, and always remains at a temperature of 79° F (29° C). Level 162 has no day-night cycle, though there is light comparable to daytime in the Frontrooms. Observation has shown this light shines directly on the wall from the opposite of the wall's surface. This light comes from the light grey void, though it's currently unknown where exactly this light comes from within the void if anywhere specific. It's assumed this light source may also be infinite in size.

Due to its many entrances, exits, and the habitability of the level itself, Level 162 has become a hub for inter-level transport. Entering from some levels will lead to specific platforms, and leaving through some platforms leads to corresponding levels. As a part of the level's overall habitability, a unique feature of Level 162's physical properties is that falling from any height will lead to no injuries upon impact on another platform. Despite this, inertia is still experienced when falling.

Through unknown means, platforms randomly emerge from the side of the wall and are seamlessly absorbed back into said wall. All platforms remain visible and solid anywhere from ten minutes to several 24-hour periods. Usually, when a platform is about to move, the platform shakes for around thirty seconds before it moves. The shaking will then stop and the platform will move back into the wall. These platforms may be entered and exited via doors and windows in their outer secondary walls. If one remains on a platform as it recedes, they will either eventually fall onto another platform below as the floor moves, or in the instance a platform has four walls, they will involuntarily no-clip.

Vague calculations have shown the speed at which the platforms move is four miles per hour, or the average human walking speed. Platforms may be anywhere from around 250 to 3,000 square feet (76 to 914 square meters) in size, although the dimensions of these platforms can be heavily varied. Secondary wall heights are usually anywhere from 8 to 15 feet (2.4 to 4.5 meters). Most platforms are square, rectangular, or a combination of multiple quadrilateral shapes merged together. Though triangular and hexagonal platforms have occasionally been found, there have been no recorded cases of platforms deviating from the previously mentioned shapes. Some of these platforms both on their secondary walls and the main concrete wall itself have doors that function as normal, though doors located on the main concrete wall always lead to other levels. Doors appearing in the secondary walls act as entrances and exits for platforms within Level 162. Windows appear on the platforms' secondary walls, though there are no confirmed cases of windows appearing in the main concrete wall.

broken%20wall

An example of a broken secondary wall on a nondescript platform. Though the rebar within is bent, it is still stable.

Tests have shown that the concrete wall can be chipped and damaged, but never broken completely. When small pieces are chiseled off of the main wall, new pieces of concrete will fill in the holes within 30 seconds or less as if the wall is healing itself. Samples of this concrete, which are usually very small due to the wall's sturdiness, show it's made of normal-strength concrete — that is, concrete made of unprocessed concrete, sand, and an aggregate of gravel and sand at a ratio of 1:2:4 per gram. Secondary walls on adjacent platforms show this same makeup, though they are destructible. When broken apart, these walls seem to contain supporting rebar. The floors of platforms are made of the same concrete mixture, although this may be covered by carpet made of synthetic fiber that comes in random colors. Rebar is also present in the floors in larger quantities than the platform walls.

Around half of these platforms are mostly empty and have no important characteristics, while the other half resemble rooms akin to what can be found in the Frontrooms. Some of the empty rooms may have smaller pieces of furniture such as end tables and chairs, although these tend to be more brittle than their Frontrooms counterparts. Meanwhile, Frontrooms-like platforms are commonly filled with furniture of all sorts.

Some rooms may have appliances, but the only known functional appliances are wall sockets and electric lights. Plumbing and Wi-Fi networks that naturally occur in the Backrooms do not function on Level 162, but radio signals at around 400-500 MHz or above work as normal. This makes receiving radio transmissions at distances greater than 3,000 feet (914 meters) difficult.

Platform Room Types:

blue%20bedroom

A photo of a bedroom platform taken by Wall-Wrangler Josiah Wilkins.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms are room platforms similar to bedrooms found in American suburban houses from the early 21st century. Their secondary walls are always painted or wallpapered light brown, eggshell white, or bright blue. The paint or wallpaper in bedrooms (along with any other platform rooms in Level 162) can also be chipped off revealing grey concrete beneath. Bedrooms are always polygonal, described as rectangular shapes merged together. Furniture in bedrooms include beds, desks, dressers, side tables, and chairs, while appliances such as televisions, lighting apparatuses, and ventilation can also be present. All furniture and appliances are made with resources used for their Frontrooms counterparts. Wall decorations such as paintings and posters depicting Frontrooms cultural hallmarks (scenes of nature, bands, movie advertisements, etc.) are common.

Though bedrooms hold no edible food or water, bedrooms are comfortable to inhabit and sleep in. Bedrooms are used as resting areas for the groups that inhabit Level 162 and as places of hospitality for lost wanderers and explorers. Usually in bedrooms, there are one or two beds, meaning beds are usually shared by multiple people.

abandoned%20kitchen

A kitchen platform. All appliances except for the sink — which isn't functional — are missing. The brick wall is actually concrete with brick-printed wallpaper.

Kitchens

Kitchen platforms are rooms resembling kitchens typically found in American suburban houses from the early 21st century. Kitchen walls are always painted white or wallpapered in different prints, usually to mimic bricks or wooden planks. Kitchens are usually rectangular or triangular in shape, and, rarely, can be square. Kitchen doors, unlike other platform doors, are made of sliding glass. The glass is barely translucent, and only shows blurred shapes on the other side. Refrigerators, sinks, stoves, ovens, and cooking utensils are common finds in kitchens, though they're never functional. Nevertheless, edible, perishable food appears in refrigerators and ovens, consisting of fresh fruits and vegetables of all kinds. Potable water can sometimes be found in sinks, though the faucets will never work.

As scurvy among inhabitants of Level 162 is common, kitchens are desired for their fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C. Citrus fruit such as oranges, lemons, and limes can be found in refrigerators and are rationed by the groups that inhabit Level 162, making them one of the most valuable items bartered in trades. Kitchen platforms don't serve any other purpose than to restock food and water. If a kitchen platform has little to no resources, they usually remain ignored by inhabitants of the level.

Warehouses

Warehouse platforms are platforms resembling cross-sections of larger warehouse buildings. Warehouse platforms are always rectangular and are the only platforms with no secondary walls. The ceilings above, though still attached to the main wall, do not collapse from the lack of supports and stay upright. The only furniture found in warehouses are long metal shelves, which may hold non-functional household appliances sold under brands active in the early 21st century from all over the world. Along with appliances are boxes of perishable food which may be either fresh or stale. These boxes can contain an abundance of popular junk food such as potato chips, pretzels, milk chocolate, and gum. Bottles of potable almond water are plentiful throughout warehouses, making it the main source of the drink.

Warehouses are popular destinations for food and almond water. Though the food isn't nutritious, it does increase the spirits of those who enjoy such snacks. Snacks and almond water are sold by the major groups of Level 162 to independent wanderers.

Shop Fronts

Shop front platforms resemble small businesses from the Frontrooms, which are mainly restaurants, delis, and convenience stores. The walls and floor are usually painted in many different colors or covered with ceramic tiles, while the platform shapes themselves are usually rectangular, triangular, or hexagonal. Shop fronts contain counters, small tables, chairs, and empty vending machines typical of design from the early 21st century. Unlike other platforms, the edible food on shop front platforms consists of full meals, which are usually soups, sandwiches, and deli platters. Baked goods can also be found, such as cakes and cookies. These baked goods taste fresh, as if they had just been pulled from the oven.

Though there is no potable water or almond water in shop front platforms, full meals bring in wanderers who are wanting more than just the rations found in warehouses. Like kitchens, as these foods are rare to encounter, shop fronts are valued by the inhabitants of Level 162 and usually end up raided with nothing but the furniture left behind afterwards.

Office Spaces

Office spaces are platforms akin to the offices found in Level 0. Their overall design — as office spaces are the only platforms with secondary walls in the area of the platform — resemble Level 0 greatly, though the wallpaper and carpet can come in many different colors. Office spaces are always closed off by secondary walls which hold no doors or windows, though the main concrete wall they're attached to are capable of holding doors. These platforms never have any ceilings, making the only way to enter or exit an office space either climbing over the walls, jumping into one from a higher platform, or walking through a door on the main concrete wall.

Office spaces are always rectangular in shape and are good sources of potable water. Furniture is abundant throughout office spaces, and beside desks or chairs there is a high chance for there to be a water cooler. The water jugs are removable and can be taken with a wanderer. Office supplies such as paper, pens, scissors, and glue are easy to find in office spaces, which some groups use to create identifying clothing. Beyond the water and office supplies, office spaces don't serve many other purposes within Level 162.

Bathrooms

Bathroom platforms are akin to public restrooms found in early 21st century buildings. Bathrooms are always rectangular or polygonal in shape and hold ceramic tiling on the walls and floor. Toilets, sinks, mirrors, stall dividers, and wet floor signs are the only furnishings in bathrooms. Potable water can be found in every sink and toilet, making the bathroom platforms the most important in terms of collecting water.

As bathroom platforms are relatively small and easy to navigate, and water is almost always guaranteed to be found, bathrooms are common targets for scavenging runs by the larger groups of Level 162.

Bases, Outposts, and Communities:

concrete%20lab

The M.E.G. "Concrete Cavaliers" base holding microscopes and scanners made for studying concrete samples. This lab is mobile — all equipment is moved to more stable platforms when necessary.

M.E.G. (A.K.A. The "Major Explorer Group") Base "Concrete Cavaliers"

The "Concrete Cavaliers" base makes up the M.E.G.'s presence on Level 162 consisting of twenty members. Due to the level's ever-changing form, this base is one of the M.E.G.'s only mobile bases, working in conjunction with the Wall-Wranglers to explore the concrete wall to the fullest extent they can. This cooperation occurs as a part of the Wall-Wranglers' and Concrete Cavaliers’ mutual goal of keeping the people within Level 162 safe.

The Concrete Cavaliers do much of their own scavenging on kitchen, warehouse, shop front, and bathroom platforms. Their only cooperation with the Wall-Wranglers is on the further exploration of the main wall sections. Every mile, the main wall is marked with a red spray-painted X, which also shows up on outward platform room walls that advance from these marked sections.

wall-wranglers%20symbol

The symbol drawn on the armbands of the Wall-Wranglers replicated in basic drawing software.

Wall-Wranglers

The Wall-Wranglers are a group of humans inhabiting Level 162, consisting of 104 members. Utilizing hiking-grade climbing equipment, ropes, and pulleys to travel between platforms, the Wall-Wranglers describe themselves as the guardians of those who travel in Level 162. They're known for conducting rescue operations for those inexperienced with the environment, trading with other smaller groups and wanderers, and leading those who don't wish to remain to the safer exits of the level.

Wall-Wranglers are identifiable by their hiking equipment and ropes. As well as their equipment, every Wall-Wrangler is required to wear a grey armband depicting the Wrangler Symbol in white crayon — a straight vertical line with three horizontal lines going through it, symbolizing the main wall and its many platforms. These armbands are made crudely via paper and adhesive tape found in office spaces. Wall-Wranglers make their homes in any platform they can find, though for habitability reasons, usually choose bedroom, warehouse, or shop front platforms.

Living off of food supplies from various platforms, Wall-Wranglers travel from platform to platform using their hiking equipment and ropes in organized groups of five.

Organizers

The Organizers are a group of 49 that act as an accounting system for those who enter and exit Level 162. Keeping extensive logs on paper, they keep track of those who enter the level make sure those who exit go only to the safest levels — or, if they're official explorers for one group or another, make sure they get to the more dangerous ones safely. Though the Organizers travel frequently with the Wall-Wranglers, they are their own separate group.

Organizers are not easily identifiable unless in their working spaces, which are almost always offices. Wall-Wranglers provide food and water to the Organizers in exchange for keeping track of who enters and exits the level.

Entrances and Exits:

Entrances

  • Level 162 can be entered by no-clipping through the floor on Level 20, where you'll find yourself on a warehouse platform.
  • Walking through any door in Level 81 has a chance to take you to Level 162.
  • Some of the Type 2 concrete boxes in Level 170 lead to Level 162.
  • Walking through an entrance door on Level 172 has a chance to take you to Level 162.
  • Entering through the hole in the bathroom area of Level 176 leads to a bathroom platform on Level 162.
  • Hiding under the wooden stairs during a blackout on Level 432 leads to Level 162 via an involuntary no-clip through the floor below. How this occurs is currently under investigation.

Exits

  • Exiting through a door on an office space platform or no-clipping via staying in receding platforms with an outward wall lead to either Level 0 or Level 1 randomly.
  • No-clipping through any platform's secondary wall as it recedes will also lead to either Level 0 or Level 1 randomly.
  • Walking through a bedroom door with a painting next to it in a bedroom platform will lead to Level 57.
  • No-clipping through an office platform secondary wall will lead to Level 81.
  • No-clipping through the concrete wall itself leads to a Type 2 concrete block in Level 170.
  • Exiting through a door on a bathroom platform leads to Level 189.
  • Walking through any open door both on the main concrete wall and on secondary platform walls may lead to Level 277.
  • Exiting through a door on a suburban room platform may lead to Level 111, Level 409, or Level 566.
  • Some warehouse, shop, or office platform doors with neon exit signs nearby lead to The End regardless if they are on the main concrete wall or a platform's secondary walls.
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