Transformation

THE TRANSFORMATION OCCURED AT APPROXIMATELY 2:23 AM, PACIFIC STANDARD TIME. As far as I could tell, anyone who was indoors when it happened died instantly.
-- Carl (Book 1, Chapter 1)

The Transformation (or the collapse) was the instant collapse of all Earth structures with a closed top or roof (including buildings, cars, airplanes, tents, cardboard boxes, etc.), which occurred at approximately 2:23 AM Pacific Standard Time (PST) on Tuesday January 3. Any living being inside or underneath such a structure was killed instantly.[1]

The transformation was a "collection," or mining operation, undertaken by Borant Corporation. All interiors were processed and mined for rare primal elements, and the 99.99999% of remaining matter was then repurposed to create the World Dungeon.[1][2] Living creatures killed in the process are considered collected.[3]

Background

The Syndicate Council initiated "first contact" with fledgling Earth civilizations around 2250 - 2490 BC, when the pyramids were constructed.[4] When humans failed to claim Earth as a sovereign planet or file an appeal for mineral and elemental rights within the 50 solars allotted by the Precious Elemental Reserves Code, the Borant Corporation was appointed as Earth's "planetary regent" and given full rights to the planet's resources.[1]

Several thousand years later, the Borant Corporation has come to collect. Per the Syndicate's complex tangle of laws, Borant must offer survivors their legal right to "reclaim" the Earth's resources by becoming crawlers and conquering the World Dungeon.[1]

Read More: Dungeon Crawler World

Event

Every closed structure on Earth appears to vanish in an instant, leaving only indentations of dirt behind, as though the Earth itself swallowed everything whole.[1] Everyone and everything inside or partially inside such a structure was swept up in the collection.[3]

The building smashed down to the ground. I watched it happen. The seven-story apartment building was there one moment, and then it was gone. But it hadn't disappeared. ... It was like the building was a massive tin can that had been crushed by a giant, cosmic boot. I saw it, and I heard it. Wind rushed at me, and it was instantly dark outside. The streetlamp just to my left was gone. The buildings all around me were gone. The cars on the street were gone, too. Everything was gone except the trees and the bicycles and the bike racks. ... A couple random things remained. Like the bike rack. The stop sign was there, but the street sign next to it was gone. It didn't make sense. Where the cars were parked on the road, car-shaped indentations of dirt appeared, as if they'd been pulled down toward the center of the earth, being ripped directly through the asphalt. ... All that remained of my building was a rectangle of churned dirt and rocks.[5]

AI Announcement

Approximately one minute after the transformation, the System AI makes a surface-level announcement explaining the transformation and introducing the World Dungeon.

Surviving humans take note.

Per Syndicate rules, subsection 543 of the Precious Elemental Reserves Code, having failed to file a proper appeal for mineral and elemental rights within 50 Solars of first contact, your planet has been successfully seized and is currently being mined of all requested elemental deposits by the assigned planetary regent.

Every interior of your world has been crushed and all raw materials—organic and inanimate—are in the process of being mined for the requested elements.

Per the Mined Material Reclamation Act along with subsection 35 of the Indigenous Planetary Species Protection Act, any surviving humans will be given the opportunity to reclaim their lost matter. The Borant Corporation, having been assigned regency over this solar system, is allowed to choose the manner of this reclamation, and they have chosen option 3, also known as the 18-Level World Dungeon. The Borant Corporation retains all rights to broadcast, exploit, and otherwise control all aspects of the World Dungeon and will remain in control as long as they adhere to Syndicate regulations regarding world resource reclamation.

Upon successful completion of level 18 of the World Dungeon, regency of this planet will revert to the successor.

A Syndicate neutral observer AI—myself—has been created and dispatched to this planet to supervise the creation of the World Dungeon and to ensure all the rules and regulations are properly followed.

Please pay careful attention to the following information as it will not be repeated.

Per the Indigenous Planetary Species Protection Act, all remaining materials—estimated to be 99.999999% of the sifted matter—is currently being repurposed for the subterranean World Dungeon. The first level of this dungeon will open approximately 18 seconds after the end of this announcement. The first-level entrances will be open for exactly one human hour and one hour only. Once the entrances are closed, you may no longer enter. If you enter, you may not leave until you have either completed all 18 levels of the World Dungeon or if you meet certain other requirements.

If you choose not to enter the World Dungeon, you will have to sustain yourself upon the surface of your planet, and this may be the last communication you receive during your lifetime. All previously-processed matter and elements are forfeit. However, you are free to mine and utilize any remaining and naturally-occurring resources for your own benefit. The Borant Corporation wishes you luck and thanks you for the opportunity.

For those who wish to exercise their right of resource reclamation, please take note.

There will be 150,000 level-one entrances added to the world. These entrances will be marked and easy to spot. If you so choose to enter the first level of the dungeon, you will have five rotations of your planet to find the next level down. There will be 75,000 entrances to level two. There will be 37,500 entrances to level three. 18,750 to level four. 9,375 entrances to level five and 4,688 entrances to level six. The number of available entrances to the next lower level will continue to decrease by half, rounding up until the 18th level, which will only have two entrances and a single exit.

Crawlers who choose to enter the World Dungeon must find a staircase and descend to the next level down before the allotted time is up for that level. Once the time has passed, the level will be reclaimed and all remaining matter in the level, organic and inanimate, will be forfeit. Generated loot and other matter that is not gathered and claimed may be placed in the Syndicate market.

Each lower level will have a longer period of reclamation. Additional rules come into play once any crawlers descend to the tenth floor. These rules will be explained when and if any crawlers reach this level.

If you so choose to enter the World Dungeon, it is highly recommended you immediately find and utilize a tutorial guild. Multiple tutorial guilds will be seeded throughout the dungeon on levels 1 through 3.

If you have any additional questions, or you wish to file an appeal, such requests must be submitted in writing directly to the closest Syndicate office.

Thank you for being a part of the Syndicate. Have a great day.[6]

Aftermath

Following any planetwide collection, all seeded species and "sustainable fauna" are sorted into three categories: Collected, which is typically the largest percentage of the population; Crawlers; and Natives. Per Syndicate rules, Natives' implants are scrambled so that they cannot be easily hunted by bounty hunters looking for marks on the Walk-On List.[3]

To preserve the "lost biology," the Syndicate also collects samples of the planet's unique flora and fauna to cultivate in a compatible biome.[7]

Trivia

  • A collection does not always look like a "cosmic boot"; on the planet Aryl, the buildings roll to the side and appear to be swept away.[8]

Speculation

  • January 3 falls on a Tuesday in 2017 and 2023; there are a couple references throughout the series that would suggest the collapse happened in 2023:
    • When introducing Razor Foxes on the Fourth Floor, the AI makes a joke that ends with "after you finally got out of quarantine."[9]
    • On the Ninth Floor, the AI references a song topping the charts on June 20, 2020.[10]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Dinniman, Matt. Dungeon Crawler Carl (Chapter 1)
  2. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. The Butcher's Masquerade (Chapter 33)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Dinniman, Matt. The Gate of the Feral Gods (Epilogue)
  4. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. Dungeon Crawler Carl (Chapter 4)
  5. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. Dungeon Crawler Carl (Chapter 1) (pp. 5-6). Kindle Edition.
  6. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. Dungeon Crawler Carl (Chapter 1) (pp. 6-9). Kindle Edition.
  7. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. The Butcher's Masquerade (Chapter 41)
  8. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. Dungeon Crawler Carl (Chapter 14)
  9. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook (Chapter 27)
  10. ↑ Dinniman, Matt. This Inevitable Ruin (Chapter 23)