Level 948 is the 949th level of the Backrooms. It is seemingly infinite, and it contains a useful and unique object.
Description[]
Level 948, commonly known as "Road Convenience", is an area that represents an underground tunnel that serves as a passageway to cross a road. This level is notable for its presence of Object 16.
General Information[]
Level 948 is a modern subterranean tunnel composed of white concrete and brick walls as its main building material. Navigation is made difficult by the level's confusing turns and dead ends. In response, explorers use spray paint to graffiti symbols on the walls to mark their whereabouts, making it easier to navigate. Common sights in this level are traffic cones, bicycles, and exit signs, as well as arrows on the walls, which typically lead to dead ends. Some machinery noises are also heard faintly within the area.
Junctions between the tunnels commonly appear, allowing one to enter a new tunnel. In these junctions, rectangular lights line the brick walls, illuminating the area. Exit signs create an illusion of leaving the tunnel, but typically there is no relation between the path of the exit signs and legitimate exits. Going deeper into the junctions may lead one to a staircase, which allows one to exit the level. The machinery sounds heard in the tunnels can be traced to large machines within the junctions, responsible for powering the level. Cardboard boxes can be seen lying on the ground everywhere, which rarely contain Almond Water cans and food packages, though they are generally empty.
Yellow and black tapes can be seen wrapping around the dark, narrow and dusty areas of the level, where Object 16 is harvested. Since the walls and floors are made of undried Object 16, it is very difficult to traverse them. The undried Object 16 floors take on similar properties to quicksand, and as a result, escape is nearly impossible for sunken wanderers. To combat this, M.E.G. operatives have located all Object 16 pitfalls and put up "DO NOT CROSS" tape to ensure people's safety.
Rarely, one can find empty storefronts in Level 948, resembling a vacant space in a shopping mall. The rows of shelves are mostly empty, but sometimes include cans of Almond Water or firearms. When a can of Almond Water is taken away for a few hours, another can of Almond Water appears at the same place. There are LED advertisements and posters on the walls promoting shows, products, or even other levels. These areas are chosen as living quarters by inhabitants because of the shelter they provide, the constant supply of Almond Water, the accessibility of food and the wood and metal shelves that can be broken down to make tools. In addition, the concentration of Object 16 is higher near these structures.
In Level 948, the ceilings are in poor condition due to the lack of structural support, and the least structurally-sound ceilings collapse randomly. Consequently, in Level 948, the most casualties are caused by collapsing roofs. Mold or water leakage are both signs of a hazardous ceiling. When a ceiling collapses, the rubble formed completely blocks the narrow crawlspaces, making it impossible to advance through the tunnel.
Object 16[]
Object 16, also known as "Skirodemium", named after the Greek word of "σκυρόδεμα", meaning "concrete", is an exclusive object found in Level 948. It takes on the appearance of concrete, but the main difference lies in its unique applications, determined by what substances it is paired with. It can be found everywhere in walls as impure Skirodemium, but there is a higher concentration nearby the empty storefronts mentioned above.
Since Level 948 is the only source of Skirodemium, many colonies visit the level to gather a large amount of it to use it as a building material for their bases. This includes the M.E.G., which has a colony in Level 948 to gather and sell Skirodemium to other colonies or outposts.
According to the experiments performed by the M.E.G., 100 cm³ of Skirodemium can withstand more than 3000 psi of pressure and a large temperature. It is a very good insulator as well, and 1 m³ of Skirodemium only weighs about 1kg. It is very durable due to being able to maintain over 99.99% of its original resistance in multiple resistance tests. It can resist dynamite explosions and multiple shots of 500 S&W bullets. As a result, it has a lot of applications, such as making heavy machines that need to endure high pressures and temperatures. Some colonies in several levels use it as their main building material as it is a cheap replacement for concrete.
Blending Skirodemium with a certain amount of particular liquids produces new materials, but it is unfortunately impossible to revert it back to its original form after this process. For example, adding 1 drop of Cashew Water can turn Skirodemium into a soft plastic, which can be used to make bottles. The following is a list of compounds that can be produced by Skirodemium and their ingredients:
Hard Plastic: 2 drops of Cashmond Water
Wool: Less than 30cm³ of Carpet Fluid
Rubber: Exactly 30cm³ of Carpet Fluid
Wood: More than 30cm³ of Carpet Fluid
Glass: Less than 1mm³ of Nuclear Infection
Unrustable Tin: Exactly 1mm³ of Nuclear Infection
Uranium: More than 1mm³ of Nuclear Infection
Unrustable Aluminium: At least 100m³ of Yellow Almond Water
Unrustable Copper: At least 50m³ of Blue Almond Water
Nylon: At least 100m³ of Green Almond Water
Silk: 1 drop of any kind of Achrophiline
Ceramics: 10 drops of any kind of Achrophiline
Brick: 15 drops of any kind of Achrophiline
Unrustable Zinc: 1-20cm³ of Chocolate Sludge
Unrustable Lithium: More than 20cm³ of Chocolate Sludge
Cement: Exactly 9-10 cm³ of Liquid Pain
Unrustable Iron: Exactly 20-25 cm³ of Liquid Pain
Asbestos: Exactly 5-6 cm³ of Liquid Dread
Gold: 1-2cm³ of Bottle 'o Void
Crystal: 2-3cm³ of Bottle 'o Void
Unrustable Alloy: 3-10cm² of Bottle 'o Void
Skirodemium quickly became a highly sought after item following its discovery. The M.E.G. has created a monopoly around Object 16, selling it to colonies and outposts in different levels. As a result, Skirodemium has ended up as one of the most commercialized items distributed throughout the Backrooms.
Entities[]
Smilers and Skin-Stealers are known to be found in Level 948. The entities always appear in hordes and rush the person they see at first glance. There is also a unique entity.
ENTITY NO. 302
THREAT LEVEL
2
Habitat:
Only Level 948
Aggression: 1/5
Attacks if threatened
Intellect: 2/5
Low-level intellect
Danger: 4/5
Life-threatening
Trash Cans are unique entities which only inhabit in Level 948. They resemble ordinary gray trash bins with wheels seen in The Frontrooms, hence their name. While a mix of standard trash cans and their entity counterparts can be found in Level 948, the particularly dull Skirodemium composition of Trash Cans makes it simple to distinguish between the two. Specifically, the Skirodemium used is in plastic form, which is sometimes painted green, blue, or rarely red.
Trash Cans act as barricades in dark, narrow hallways, only letting wanderers pass when they deposit their personal trash into the bin. When wanderers comply, Trash Cans will be pacified toward that person unless attacked. Upon refusal, they will become aggressive and chase the wanderer down and swallow them. If wanderers don't have any trash, they require wanderers to give away any survival resources, like Almond Water.
When Trash Cans are provoked by a wanderer, their wheels allow them to pursue wanderers at high speeds (~15mph). In addition, they attack wanderers in groups so it is harder for people to deal with them. When they catch a victim, they swallow them and digest them using pure hydrochloric acid. However, they are not resilient to physical damage.
Colonies and Outposts[]
Due to the nature of this level, many colonies and outposts have been settled. Two of them managed to be the most influential among all of them.
M.E.G. 948 Researchers
This group was established by the M.E.G. after the discovery of Object 16. There are 10 members and their objective is to explore Level 948 and collect Object 16. They give out free Almond Water to lost wanderers and help them to adapt to the environment. Everyday, they excavate Skiromedium from the storefronts and sell it to colonies from different levels. The R.O.U. is their primary customer, purchasing large quantities of Skirodemium to build new structures.
Republic of Underpassia (R.O.U.)
Republic of Underpassia, informally called Passia, is a self-declared colony which was founded a week after this level's discovery. It consists of 135 wanderers who has decided to settle in Level 948. They are moderately armed and actively killing dangerous entities. They own 1km² of land and the border is marked using plastic barricades, preventing other wanderers from infiltrating. A store is set up outside the border, letting other wanderers to buy Almond Water and Moth Jelly.
Due to the nature of this level, many colonies and outposts have been settled. Two of them managed to be the most influential among all of them.
M.E.G. 948 Researchers
This group was established by the M.E.G. after the discovery of Object 16. There are 10 members and their objective is to explore Level 948 and collect Object 16. They give out free Almond Water to lost wanderers and help them to adapt to the environment. Everyday, they excavate Skiromedium from the storefronts and sell it to colonies from different levels. The R.O.U. is their primary customer, purchasing large quantities of Skirodemium to build new structures.
Republic of Underpassia (R.O.U.)
Republic of Underpassia, informally called Passia, is a self-declared colony which was founded a week after this level's discovery. It consists of 135 wanderers who have decided to settle in Level 948. They are moderately armed and actively killing dangerous entities. They own 1km² of land and the border is marked using plastic barricades, preventing other wanderers from infiltrating. A store is set up outside the border, letting other wanderers to buy Almond Water and Moth Jelly.
Entrances and Exits[]
Entrances[]
- Entering any underpass that looks out of place in any level leads here.
Exits[]
- Noclipping into an air vent leads to Level 34.
- Noclipping into the pipes on the ceiling leads to Level 2.
- Exiting by walking up a staircase can lead to a random outdoor level.
- Walking for a week non-stop while not following any exit signs will cause the level to fade into a random level.
- Following an exit sign written "YELLOW" leads one to Level 0.
- Following an exit sign written "HUB" leads one to The Hub.
- Following an exit sign written "STATION154" leads one to Level 154.
- Following an exit sign written "BRIGHTENESS" leads one to Level 228.
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Author: Brightened Star
Images:
First image: Photographed by me
Second image: Photographed by Brian Lai on Flickr, licensed under CC, link here
Third image: From Wikimedia Commons.
Fourth image: Generated using Illusion Diffusion.
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