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''Warning, Most everything on this page is original content, little of it is canonical and some is even currently disputed. Please do not cite this as a factual resource in other articles.''
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[[Category:Malton]]


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{{FA}}'''Malton''' (known in [[zamgrh]] as '''Marzan''') is one of three cities available in [[Urban Dead]], the others being [[Monroeville]] and [[Borehamwood]].  The Malton map, like the Monroeville and Borehamwood maps and the game itself, was created by [http://www.kevan.org Kevan Davis].  As the first available map, it was introduced on July 3, 2005 when the game was released.  Malton is the only city in which [[revivification]] has been possible and which has never seen suspended registration of new characters.  Although Monroeville and Borehamwood are still active maps, the number of active players they contain has dwindled to such a degree, that those maps are considered to have been temporary.  Thus, Malton has been the only "permanent" map available in Urban Dead.
 
Creating and logging in with Malton characters is done from the [http://urbandead.com Urban Dead main page].  A player may choose to create either a [[zombie]] or [[survivor]] character, but any new character name must be unique.  Names from  Monroeville and Borehamwood cannot be reused in Malton (and, conversely, Malton names could not be used in Monroeville and Borehamwood.)  All three cities share the same user database and, for the most part, game mechanics.  Differences in the gameplay mechanics of each available city are related to the availability of certain [[items]] and [[building types]]. Notably, the lack of [[NecroTech Building|NecroTech buildings]] and [[NecroTech Revivification Syringe|syringes]] in Monroeville and Borehamwood has made zombification permanent in those two cities.


'''Malton''' is the fictional city within which Urban Dead is set.  A large area of it has been quarantined after a [[zombie]] [[Malton_Incident|outbreak]].
==Unique features of Malton==


Malton has a distinctly mid-Atlantic feel; malls seem to be US-style, containing "Liquor Stores," "Drugstores," and "Gun Stores," and police stations go by the American name "police departments",  but the pubs have distinctly British names along the lines of "The X Arms." The one hundred [[Suburb_Navigation_Map|suburbs]] have names from various sources. As the outbreak situation is updated, individual suburbs can range from [[Suburb|safe(green) to very dangerous(red)]].
*The maps of Monroeville and Borehamwood were created using many of the same building types previously available in Malton.  When the Monroeville map was released on February 25, 2008, it consisted of several [[Monroeville/Location Types Unique to Monroeville|new building types]].  Similarly, when Borehamwood was introduced on October 28, 2008, it featured more [[Borehamwood/Location Types Unique to Borehamwood|new building types]].  However, several building types and complexes were not seen in either Monroeville or Borehamwood, and remain unique to MaltonThese include: NecroTech buildings, [[Forts|forts]], [[Power Station|power station]]s, [[Stadium|stadium]]s, [[Cathedral|cathedral]]s, and the [[City Zoo]].


A general consensus on the unofficial forums, along with some confirmation early in the game's history from Kevan regarding time zones, is that although Malton is US style in layout, it is actually located in EnglandAn alternate theory proposes that Malton is located in English speaking Africa, which would account for the timezone and also for the mix of traditional English businesses alongside gun stores and museums with African art. One problem with believing that Malton is in Africa, is that it snowed on December 10th in Malton. It would be very unlikley that it would snow any place in Africa, unless on top of a high mountain peak.
*The presence of [[NecroTech]] is unique to Malton.  This means that Malton is the only city available that contains NecroTech syringes and [[DNA Extractor|DNA extractor]]s.  Consequently, it is the only city available in which revivification of zombies is possible. Malton is also unique in that it is the only city in which the registration of new characters has never been suspended.


Two towns named Malton actually exist, one  [http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?client=public&X=479000&Y=472000&width=700&height=400&gride=&gridn=&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=w3&addr1=&addr2=&addr3=&pc=&advanced=&local=&localinfosel=&kw=&inmap=&table=&ovtype=&keepicon=true&zm=0&scale=25000&out.x=8&out.y=10 a medium sized town in Yorkshire, England], and one in [http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?client=public&lon=-79.63880&lat=43.70610&place=Malton,+Ontario,+Canada&db=w3&scale=1000000&search_result=Malton%2C%20Ontario%2C%20Canada&lang=&db=w3&keepicon=true Ontario, Canada]. It is not known if the existence of these has anything to do with the naming of Malton itself. Other possible references to places in Ontario include [[Wikipedia:Richmond_Hill%2C_Ontario|Richmond Hills]], and [[Wikipedia:Buttonville%2C_Ontario|Buttonville]].
*[[Newspapers]] are available in all three cities, but each city has a unique set of news stories. The news stories found in Malton's newspapers are compiled [[News Stories|here]].


== History ==
==Geography==
:''The following information is fan-made, and is not officially part of any background history for [[Urban Dead]].''


=== City History ===
===Climate===


Malton was founded in early 37 A.D. by a group of displaced Welshmen and Scotsmen, driven out of their homes for reasons lost to the mists of time (though the best estimate is tribal land disputes). Driven south by their pursuers, they encountered each other in the misty hills of southwest England on the site of an even older town, and decided to settle there, protecting each other. These were the Ridleigh and Galbraith families, and the town they settled had once belonged to the Marbháin tribe, now gone. Hence began the city of Malton, and all its dark past.
Whilst little to no information is available in regards to Malton's location on a regional scale, what knowledge is available from anecdotal observations suggests that Malton's climate is Oceanic. Heavy [[Snow|snow]] falls on the city in the Winter from as early as December 10, and settles enough that snowbanks establish and those walking the streets leave clearly distinguishable footprints. During late October to early November, Malton has also experienced significantly lessened visibility due to [[Fog|fog]], to the point where [[Binoculars|binoculars]] have been rendered useless. Interestingly, no [[External Military|external military]] reports have been recieved during these periods of heavy fog, though it is unknown if this is a result of the fog or merely a coincedence.  


Though the maltons (as the hills were known) housed many small towns all the way up to the 19th century, the city as it is known today was not officially founded until 1820, when several small towns united in an effort to clean up their area, notorious as a slaughterhouse and crime center. The official Founding of the City of Malton was made on July 3rd, 1820, with the signing of the Ridleybank Doctrine by the mayors of the eight central towns in the area- Havercroft, Shore Hills, Barrville, Mockridge Heights, Ridleybank, Galbraith Hills, Stanbury Village, and Shackleville. The Ridleybank Doctrine currently sits in the British Archives, locked away and forgotten, much like the town it founded.
===Neighbourhoods and areas===


In 1912, the city was partially ruined in the wake of the [[Great Fire]] and subsequent rioting by local church groups. {{main|Great Fire of 1912}}
The Malton map is divided into 100 [[Suburb|suburbs]] arranged in a 10 by 10 grid.  Each suburb consists of 100 [[block]]s similarly arranged in a 10 by 10 grid, meaning there are a total of 10,000 blocks in the city of Malton.  4,286 of these are [[empty blocks]], meaning they contain no buildings.  Players can be either inside or outside the remaining 5,714 blocks containing buildings.  This gives a total of 15,714 places a player can be in the city of Malton. The following map displays the location of all 100 of Malton's suburbs, and is color coded to reflect an approximation of zombie presence in each suburb.


=== Population ===
<br>
Malton was a large city with a population of around 600,000 people on the day of the outbreak (making it the third-largest city in England at the time), which occurred around July 2005. Some believe that some people escaped and left the city before quarantine.  However, this is highly unlikely, since the military-imposed quarantine was so sudden; there was no chance to pack up and leave. Exactly three weeks after the outbreak, a military containment force, numbering about 200,000 troops and crew, was sent in to try to eradicate the numerous zombie hordes, but their war was lost before they even arrived. In the first two weeks, it was estimated that at least 50,000 civilians were killed in riots and zombies. About six months after the outbreak, military estimates reported 225,000-300,000 civilian deaths, attributed to zombie attacks, low food supply levels, disease, and gang violence. About 2/3 of the people initially killed were turned into zombies themselves from zombie bites. Also in that six months, about 45% of the military forces that were sent in were reported to be either KIA or MIA. A year since the outbreak, new estimates said that at least 450,000 people, including the military forces, were now dead from the previously listed causes. As of 2008, there are 15,664 survivors remaining.


Trends of Malton's changing population can be seen on the [[Statistics]] page.
<center>{{DangerMap}}</center>


{{Malton Population}}
==Economy==


=== Climate ===
===Industry===
Whilst Malton has a relatively damp climate, it has gained an undeserved reputation as a rainy city. The average annual rainfall is 979 mm. Its average annual rainfall total is comparable with that of Central Europe, unusual for the area. Strangely snowfall is not a common sight in the city, due to urban warming, however many roads leading out of the city can be closed due to snow.


=== Location ===
From the presence of Malton's [[:Category:Factories|227 factories]] and [[:Category:Warehouses|268 warehouses]], it can reasonably be inferred that Malton had a large manufacturing industry that comprised a large part of its economy. Further, Malton contains [[:Category:Auto Repair Shops|238 auto repair shops]] and [[:Category:Junkyards|262 junkyards]], and [[Fuel Can|jerry cans]] are readily available as common loot for survivors, suggesting that the city also enjoyed a healthy automobile industry. Aside from these more traditional industries, the scientific company [[NecroTech]] also seems to have had a large presence in Malton prior to the outbreak, as implied by their [[:Category:Necrotech Buildings|211 research facilities]], as well as old [[Newspaper|newspapers]] containing [[News Stories|interviews with the head of the company]] and advertisements for [[NecroTech Employment|employee positions]]. However, it is unknown whether NecroTech was solely a scientific research company or also offered products and services for sale.
:''For information on the suburbs located inside Malton, see the [[Suburb|Map of Suburbs]].''
Malton lies in a bowl-shaped land area bordered to the north and east by hills. Additionally, along its northern edge adjoining the [[suburbs]] [[Jensentown]], [[Quarlesbank]], [[West Boundwood]], and [[East Boundwood]], runs the [[River Kevan]]. The City is very unusual, mainly modern, with  a planned grid layout. The City itself is square, of the river, hills and protected forestland on it eastern border.  


=== Demographics ===
===Shopping and retail===
In the 2001 census, 87% of people identified themselves as "White", 5.9% as "Indian" or "Pakistani", 2.3% as "Black Caribbean" and 1.4% as "Black African". When it came to religion, 78% were any form of Christianity, 10.1% were atheist/followed no religion 4.9% were believers of Islam, 2% were Jewish and 3% were Hindu. The other 2% were of other religions.


Age demographics in Malton showed a slight lean towards the older end of the population spectrum, as many younger people tended to not find anything of interest in the town, and moved out as soon as they could. Inversely, middle-aged and older citizens found themselves drawn by the town and its rich history, and hence often moved in.
Malton's retail economy primarily consists of nightlife establishments, including [[:Category:Clubs|235 clubs]], [[:Category:Arms|250 pubs]] and [[:Category:Cinemas|221 cinemas]]. However, Malton also contains [[:Category:Malls|20 large, high-profile malls]] housing bookstores, drugstores, gun stores, hardware stores, liquor stores, sports stores and tech stores, catering to the average [[Consumer|consumer]]. Most of these malls span 4 blocks, except [[Lumber Mall]] which spans 2 blocks and [[Pole Mall]] which spans 3 blocks.


=== Economy ===
==History==
From its founding in 1820 Malton was and is a primarily industrial city. Sitting as the crown jewel of several steel and textile companies, Malton pre-Outbreak was a linchpin of the Cornish tin industry, the Somerset coal mining, and several points of British steel production. Big names such as Stothert Banking, Harper Chemical, and the massive Woodroffe Steel Corporation, all hung their hats within the city borders, and brought in huge amounts of money for the council to expand.


Malton industry has served an important role in both of the Great Wars since its founding- in the First World War, the Royal Small Arms Company shunted much of their weapons production out of London to Malton to avoid German bombing. From 1915 to the end of the war in 1918, Malton's factories and railway stations hummed with the roar of industry, sending thousands of rifles and cartridges to London and the Continent. In the next great war, Malton once again found itself host to Enfield's works, and also found itself playing host to German bombers tracking the industry as it flowed out from burning London.
===Post-outbreak history===
Unlike the [[Pre-Outbreak History of Malton|pre-outbreak history]] of Malton, the [[UDWiki:Project Timeline|timeline of events]] that occurred in-game after July 3, 2005 is largely well verified and undisputed.  The history of Malton has thus far followed two very basic trends: 


Malton's tourism industry has always had erratic highs and lowsThe suburb of [[Peppardville]] is the central hub for all of Malton's tourist attractions, including [[Titley Park]], though is pockmarked with many low-rent housing plans and projects in the surrounding area, which is a benchmark of the low capital the city's tourist industry brought in.  At a few peak times tourism has been very profitable in Malton, however, and several attractions were able to remain profitable up until the outbreak.
*The formation and eventual fracturing of mega-groupsBoth zombies and survivors have incentives to combine into larger and larger [[group]]s.  Larger groups provide better protection for survivors and greater odds of carnage for zombies.  The largest of groups tend to be fleeting, however.  Typically groups are sporadically brought together to form larger alliances with a specific goal in mind, such as [[Caiger Mall Survivors|holding Caiger Mall for survivors]].  Whether the mega-group either succeeds or fails in it's goal, the smaller groups tend to fracture and go their separate ways. Due to the fact that mega-groups require a large amount of players actively contributing to their cause to maintain their high in-game influence, the relevance and significance of mega-groups naturally dissipates over time as the in-game activity of their gradually decreases or ceases altogether.


Though largely industrial, Malton was hit hard by the collapse of the Cornish tin industry and the English coal industry in the 1980s, which (hitting right after the Energy Crisis of the latest 1970s) nearly destroyed the city. As a forced result of the collapse, much of the city center tranformed from secondary industry to tertiary industry- rather, from manufacturing to service jobs. By the time of the outbreak in 2005, though the Malton skyline was still dotted with the towers and chimneys of factories and peaked roofs of warehouses (and though the Dot-Com Bubble collapse in 2001 hit the industry across the knees once again), the predominant shapes were those of the ubiquitous office blocks of clerical work.
*Since late 2005, the total number of active players has been slowly decreasing, which generally benefits survivors. [[Barricades]] present a significant obstacle for zombies, particularly because of the [[AP|action points]] advantage that survivors possess in this context.  Consequently, with fewer total players, smaller groups of zombies must spend proportionally more time breaking down barricades in order to kill fewer survivors.  As a result, rule changes occur sporadically to address balance of power in the game between survivors and zombies, a phenomenon [[A Brief History Of Barhah|scrutinized by players with zombie characters]] and [[Survivor-Zombie Imbalance|observed and analyzed]] by all players alike. Urban Dead has received notable criticism from players for this imbalance, with many perceiving it as poor game design.  


=== Culture ===
====2005====
After the decline of the heavy industries of the 20th century, Malton council wanted to change the city's image. It was designated to be a cultural center, with a large amount of public museums and art galleries.
2005 saw the explosive popularity of Urban Dead and the Malton map after its introduction on [[News/2005#July_3|July 3, 2005]].  By the end of 2005, the number of active characters in Malton peaked at approximately 60,000.  2005 also saw the peak of survivors relative to zombies.  In late 2005 survivors outnumbered zombies by almost 3:1.  As a result of larger overall numbers the following famous events and confrontations from 2005 are some of the largest Malton has ever witnessed:
* [[Dia de los Muertos]] is the term given to the rapid fall of [[Giddings Mall]] around October 31 and November 1 at the hands of a zombie [[horde]] numbering approximately 500.  Several zombie groups were present under the name [[The Ministry of the Dead]].  This was arguably the first successful alliance of zombie hordes.  The rapid fall of Giddings Mall built upon previous zombie victories and it's success set the stage for the first [[siege]] of [[Caiger Mall]].
* The [[First Siege of Caiger Mall]] occurred between approximately November 10 and December 2, and is famous for being the first major survivor victory against so large a zombie horde.  The survivors in Caiger Mall held off an estimated 1,300 zombies in what was the longest siege ever at the time.
* By the end of 2005, many zombies came to believe the game had become unbalanced in favor of survivors.  These zombies (as well as some survivors,) calling themselves [[On Strike]] decided to hold an event: [[Stanstock]] (a portmanteau of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodstock_Festival Woodstock] and [[Stanbury Village]].)  Stanstock took place in [[Whetcombe Park (Stanbury Village)|Whetcombe Park]] in Stanbury Village from December 19 to December 23.  By the end, over 1,300 zombies and survivors showed up resulting in some noticeable server strain.  Kevan responded by implementing two major game adjustments.  The first came on [[News/2005#December_22|December 22]] and introduced [[Zombie Skills/Feeding Groan|feeding groan]] which allowed zombies to more quickly congregate at the sight of assaults and sieges.  This change satisfied enough players that Whetcombe Park was gradually abandoned.  December 23 is considered to have been the end of Stanstock.  However, yet another game change came on [[News/2005#December_30|December 30]] which changed [[large building]]s (such as [[mall]]s) to allow both zombies and humans to move freely inside; it allowed zombies who breached one square of a large building to quickly move through the rest of the building, hastening it's fall.


=== Crime ===
====2006====
Malton's crime rate was quite high before the outbreak. There were several organized criminal groups in the southern suburbs, which supposedly had contacts with other organizations from America, Morocco and Chicago. Several mafias, assassination squads, and terrorist organizations ran loose in Malton. However, the most illegal events were unorganized, chaotic and very violent. There were several instances well before the outbreak where martial law was temporarily imposed in the city and elements of nearby military forces were sent in to aid Malton police.
* The [[Mall Tour '06]] began just weeks after the post-Stanstock game changes.  From January 3 through January 29 the mall tour (comprised of a horde of approximately 1,000 zombies) destroyed every mall but Caiger.  [[Ackland Mall]] was the second to last hold-out up until January 29, but it fell to approximately 400 zombies that day. Mall Tour '06  in January was seen as a tremendous zombie victory and, for zombies, a vindication of the rule changes.  Ultimately, however, early successes set up the second siege of Caiger, which would end in survivor victory.
* The [[Second Siege of Caiger Mall]] occurred from approximately February 20 to March 19.  Around January 31 zombies began slowly moving toward Caiger en masse, laying waste to survivors in the surrounding area.  Their plan was to move slowly, attracting a large number of [[feral]] zombies. Ultimately around 1,000 zombies laid Siege to Caiger.  However, their hesitation, combined with the fall of every other mall in Malton, led to around 3,000 survivors defending Caiger.  Ultimately the zombies decided their efforts were futile and dispersed, resulting in a second major survivor victory at Caiger.
* On [[News/2006#March 28|March 28]] another prominent change came to the game's rules.  The rule change increased the [[AP]] cost of reviving zombies from 1 to 10, making both [[combat revive]]s and legitimate revives more difficult.
* Another important change to the game's rules occurred on [[News/2006#June 16|June 16]] which tweaked the [[ransack]] ability that had been introduced on [[News/2006#April 29|April 29]].  This allowed zombies to block survivors from barricading building squares which had been ransacked. This allowed for zombies to in some way control buildings (forcing survivors to kill them all before retaking a building.)  It also made large buildings less defensible for survivors, as if one square became ransacked it could not be barricaded until all zombies were first removed.
* After Mall Tour '06 ended on a down note for zombies, there was a void for a mega-horde in Malton. That void was filled by [[The Big Bash]], which formed around July, 2006 and lasted until it was supplanted by Mall Tour '07. Their stated goal was to organize "a grand alliance of zombie hordes to partake of a rampage across Malton."  They succeeded in rampaging through most of Malton (except the northwest.)  Unlike previous large-scale zombie offensives, however, The Big Bash was more loosely coordinated and aimed at ruining whole suburbs rather than being narrowly focused on specific buildings (such as malls or Necrotech buildings).
* [[Battle of Blackmore]] occurred from August 18, 2006 to October 13, 2006.  It began with a small group of survivors barricading and occupying [[Ridleybank]] (widely considered to be a zombie controlled suburb and home to [[The Ridleybank Resistance Front]]).  The survivors made their stand in [[The Blackmore Building]], Ridleybank's only necrotech building.  They held it for approximately 2 months while generally outnumbered by zombies.  Ultimately, The Blackmore Building fell very quickly on October 13 to a very organized [[Shacknews]] horde.
* The [[Third Siege of Caiger Mall]] became notable because of the result of the battle: a zombie victory.  The third siege of Caiger lasted from October 23 to November 10.  Through the use of advantageous game changes and superb coordination, the zombie hordes, led largely by Shacknews, achieved what had never been achieved before: the fall of Caiger Mall.


=== Border ===
====2007====
[[Image:Wall-barrier-fence-tower.jpg|260px|right]]Known by most inhabitants of Malton as '''Quarantine Zone''', the border area that has surrounded the map of Malton has been established since the threat of an outbreak. This desolate territory is utter suicide for both [[Survivor]] or [[Zombie]] that attempts to cross it.
* [[Mall Tour '07]] lasted between January and February, and resulted in the fall of all of Malton's malls to zombie forces, except Caiger Mall (which was still in zombie control when the mall tour began.)  Mall Tour '07 is notable for being the first Mall Tour to take advantage of the [[X:00]] zombie tactic.  With the recent fall of the formerly impregnable Caiger, many survivors took to using [[river tactics]].  The only notable survivor hold-out of the mall tour was [[Stickling Mall]] in [[Shearbank]], which stayed in survivor hands for over a month due to the effort of [[New Malton Colossus]] among others.
* [[The Battle of Santlerville]] was a notable zombie siege that occurred between April and May in [[Santlerville]].  A back and forth battle between the [[RRF]] (among other,) and several coordinated survivor groups ended with a survivor victory when the RRF declared their withdrawal after almost two months of fighting.
* In June, a completely new zombie group was formed, calling itself [[LUE]].  They very quickly (while many of their members were still level 1) went on a successful series of campaigns.  Eventually, they attacked the suburb of Santlerville, in what came to be called [[The Battle of SantLUEville]].  The battle lasted about a week in late July and early August, and is notable for being a quick zombie victory (despite the strong resistance the RRF had previously encountered.)
* On June 18, [http://www.yahoo.com Yahoo] published an article on Urban Dead that inspired more than 4000 people to join the game in the space of about 12 hours. The following few days were a boon to zombies, as the streets were filled with many inexperienced low level survivors.  June 18 was dubbed [[Yahoomas day]] by grateful zombies.
* A game update on [[News/2007#August_14|August 14]] introduced [[ruins]] to the game.  Buildings which had been ransacked 5 times could now become ruined by a zombie.  A ruined building is visible from the street, and (like ransacked buildings) cannot be repaired while there are zombies standing in the square.  Unlike ransacked buildings, ruined buildings can only be repaired by survivors with the [[construction]] skill and a [[toolbox]].
* [[The Second Big Bash]] began October 8 and lasted until April 3, 2008.  Over that period, zombies ruined most of the same suburbs hit by the first Big Bash.


The border is mostly just the area of surrounding city that was once part of Malton, but was then leveled and occupied by the Army in order to keep people out and zombies -and survivors- in. The soldiers stationed around Malton take ''special'' precautions that '''nothing''' crosses this zone.  
====2008====
* A game update on [[News/2008#January_23|January 23]] introduced [[interference]] to the game.  Zombie interference (or barricade blocking) is a passive zombie ability that takes effect when there are more than 2 zombies inside a building.  Interference hinders survivors ability to construct barricades (by about 50%.)
* In Febuary, a new zombie group began to take shape.  They were [[The Dead]] and within a week had become the largest zombie horde ever seen.  They cut through and ruined the entirety of Malton in what came to be called the [[March of the Dead]].
* The introduction of the Monroeville map on [[News/2008#February_25|February 25]] drew large numbers of players away from Malton (which were disproportionately survivor characters.)  When the quarantine of Monroeville was implemented on [[News/2008#March_28|March 28]] many of those players returned to Malton, boosting survivor numbers.
* A game update on [[News/2008#May_28|May 28]] made ruins more challenging for survivors to repair.  Previously survivors had to expend 1 AP to repair a ruined building.  After the game change, a ruined building cost more AP to repair the longer the building had remained ruined (1 AP per 24 hours.)
* On [[News/2008#June_23|June 13]] the first quarantine of Monroeville was lifted.  Monroeville was re-quarantined on [[News/2008#August_6|August 15]].  These events altered the population of Malton in the same way the introduction and first quarantine of Monroeville had.
* On [[News/2008#October_28|October 28]] the third city of Borehamwood was introduced.  This too drew (mostly survivor) characters away from Malton. Borehamwood was quarantined on [[News/2008#November_28|November 28]], prompting [[inactive|idled]] Malton characters back into the game.


In places around Malton, the actual old city walls- that is, the medieval walls that were built around Malton back in medieval times and maintained as historic landmarks- have been incorporated into the Quarantine Zone's design. In other places, entirely new walls have been erected. Contingents of soldiers patrol both old and new walls day and night, manning the spotting towers, machine-gun posts, and flame turrets. But in some places no wall exists, either due to the terrain or the needs of the area. These places are possibly even more heavily defended than the walls- the obstacles include long lines of razorwire, land mines, anti-vehicle barriers, and napalm trenches, accompanied by manned machinegun emplacements that target anyone or anything that tries to cross the border.
====2009====
* After a two year hiatus, [[Mall Tour 2009]] was as successful (from the point of view of zombies) as the last mall tour (Mall Tour '07.)  The tour lasted from January 9 through May 4.  17 of Malton's 20 malls were visited by the tour's hordes and ruined. Only [[Ackland Mall]], [[Blesley Mall]], and [[Treweeke Mall]] were not ruined by the mall tour (because they were previously ruined and remained so for most of the duration of the mall tour.)
* In honor of Urban Dead's fourth birthday, on [[News/2009#July_3|July 3]] it was announced that the [[Emergency Broadcast System]] would be findable somewhere in Malton. That same day, it was located in [[The Coram Building]] in [[Lukinswood]].  It is the only building from which survivors can broadcast on the otherwise restricted military frequency of 25.92MHz (provided The Coram Building has a powered [[generator]] and working [[radio transceiver]].)  The building has since become a higher profile target for zombies and survivors alike.  It has been the scene of numerous small sieges, changing hands frequently.


==== [[Monroeville]] ====
====2010====
* The [[Escape_(event)|Escape Event]] was a siege that occurred on the western border of Malton (specifically [[Ellicott Place Railway Station]] in [[Owsleybank]]) towards the end of May.  [[Escape]] was a group claiming to have become bored with Malton and Urban Dead in general.  Although intended to be a survivor / zombie group (in the manner of Stanstock,) it received almost no support from zombies, and rather became a target for large numbers of zombies.  Although unsuccessful in both retaining control of Ellicott Place Railway Station and gaining notice from Kevan, it is notable for being the largest strike type event since Stanstock.
* [[Blackmore 4(04)]] was a siege of the Blackmore Building and the surrounding area in Ridleybank that lasted from August 19 to August 31.  The survivor group [[404: Barhah not found]] held off the RRF and The [[Feral Undead]] during that time, but ultimately fell to zombie forces.
*[[Big Bash 3]] was a major factor, along with the rise of the [[Militant Order of Barhah]] and [[Ridleybank Resistance Front]], in the swing of the game's ratio much more towards the zombie side than it had been in quite some time.


By the time of the first known outbreak in the United States (seemingly unconnected to either the first Malton outbreak or the supposed culprits of that epidemic, NecroTech), the American military had been taking observational data on British procedures for almost three years, and as a result the cordoning off of the Monroeville area was far less messy than the British quarantine.
====2011====
* Although The Dead had been an active zombie group since 2008, starting around April 2011 The Dead saw reinvigorated numbers again in Malton, this time branded as [[The Dead 2.0]].  With the lower overall population totals, The Dead 2.0 went on a [[March of The Dead 2|second march]], devastating the city as had never been seen before.  At the height of it's success the city's population was comprised of over 85% zombies (an all-time high for that percentage.)
* Due to The Dead's success in early 2011, search rates changed to favor survivors.  As a result, survivor numbers bounced back to more sustainable levels.
* [[Mall Tour '11]] occurred from October to December.  Although survivor numbers at this time were fairly high and stable, the mall tour encountered little notable resistance.


No large scale military attempt was made to combat the zombies- rather, the U.S. Army simply marked off a line on the map and set up shop. While the outbreak was still in its early stages, the Army had already split the town into two and arranged a massive cordon across local fields and thick bands of woodland. Small sorties have been sent in occasionally to try and gather data, but some did not return.
====2012====
*On October 23, after news that long-time player Winka passed away, friends and fellow players held a [[New_Malton_Colossus/The_Winka_Memorial|memorial]] for her at [[Quartly Library]]. Winka was 78 years old.
*[[Samhain Slaughter 6(66)]] takes place at [[Marven Mall]]. Committed by survivors of the [[PK Alliance]], at least 71 casualties were recorded.
*A short siege takes place at [[The Blackmore Building]] in [[Ridleybank]] on [[5th of November/2012|November 5]].
*In response to the events of the November 5, Blackmore siege, the [[PK Alliance]] and their member groups host [[Sith of November: Order 66]].


The U.S. barricade system is similar to the British one in Malton, except that the U.S. had no medieval walls to work with. The line was originally a simple riot barricade and was updated over the first week- construction on the final version of the line, resembling more fully the well-established British Quarantine Zone, is expected to be completed in late March or early April. As it stands the Monroeville Quarantine Zone is strong largely due to the extra contingents of soldiers patrolling it rather than the elaborate automated defense systems and trench layers of Malton, but to quote the official Department of Defense report, "As of the seventh of March no entity of any kind has managed to escape the Monroeville cordon."
====2013====
*The recent trend of survivors outnumbering zombies became worse in 2013, with most of the city remaining green or yellow unless a major horde was actively going through the suburb. [[Fiddler's Green Syndrome]] became a major issue in a number of suburbs, and active player numbers dropped even further as survivors had less and less to do while zombies had a harder time accomplishing anything that could last for more than a few days. Two different events seem to be shaking that trend up, however.
*After a long hiatus, [[The Nurglings]] returned in April, appearing suddenly in the [[Vinetown]] area. Helped by an influx of nearly two dozen new recruits, their arrival in Vinetown had quite an impact, transforming it into a heated battleground and bringing The Nurglings into the ranks of the largest active zombie groups in the game.
*In June, [[Big Bash 4]] got underway, with over 140 zombies joining the party as it toured for the summer. It was joined by [[The Nurglings]] and a number of other groups and individuals. An alliance of several major survivor groups, calling itself the Malton Resistance, staged a defense of the Pitneybank area. Though it was overrun in short order, it remains notable for being the only significant defense offered against the horde, which was the largest group in the game at the time that it was active.


====2014====
*The new year started with a temporal truce in New Arkham area where all the resident zombies and survivors gathered for a joint party in Harford Building. The truce was, however, short and soon it was back to the old game of claws and headshots. Meanwhile the [[Vinetown]] area became an active battleground as [[The Nurglings]] returned home from their walkabout around southern Malton suburbs. Down in south-east corner of Malton, zombie group LUE has become a long game with the aim of keeping large parts of Malton permanently ruined. The suburbs of Miltown, Whittenside, Fryerbank and Pennville were held completely under LUE control.
*Over the course of the year the zombie attacks on the eastern parts of the town increased rapidly. While the southeast Malton had been abandoned and/or ruined even before this new increase in attacks over the year the undead conquered major parts of northeast and east Malton, now threatening areas that had been very stable and in survivor hands for years before this. By the end of the year 2014 many of the old neighbourhoods of northeast and east Malton were permanently ruined as survivors left them to concentrate their numbers in other areas.
*Meanwhile in the other end of the town, in soutwest corner of New Arkham the Sons of Chester activated again after being in hiatus for most of 2013 and what used to be a ruined and mostly abandoned township suddenly came alive as the Sons fought the zombies that had taken residence in New Arkham region in the Sons absence.


====2015====
*The increase in zombie attacks in the eastern parts of Malton have tapered down, it seems survivors are once again making an effort to take back several neighborhoods lost in 2014.
*During the period of May and June, several areas that were either highly contested or held by survivors were abandoned. This can be attributed to survivors becoming inactive or leaving the suburbs altogether. For example, in the suburbs of Vinetown and Arkham, many buildings are ruined and contain zombie hordes.


==See also==
====2020====
*[[Suburb|Estimates of danger throughout Malton]]
*An alliance of survivor groups are holding Nicholas Mall against the RRF
*the [[Great Fire of 1912]]
*The Knights Templar continue to defend Poll Mall from an alliance of zeds and PKers


[[Category:Cities]]
[[Category:Malton| ]]
[[Category:Glossary]]
[[Category:Glossary]]
[[Category:City|Malton]]
[[Category:History]]

Latest revision as of 08:56, 23 June 2020

Malton
Flag of Malton.png
Flag
Malton-coat-of-arms.gif
Coat of Arms

Motto: Quaeris et nihil reperis
(Latin: "You search and find nothing")


Introduced: July 3, 2005
Government Type: Anarchy

Population:
Malton-coat-of-arms.gif Population of Malton

Active Characters: 3771
Survivors: 1375 (57%)
Zombies: 1030 (43%)
Dead bodies: 1202
Revivifying bodies: 164
Standing Zombie Hunters: 1048


02:20, 30 September 2024 (UTC)


Cities of Urban Dead
BorehamwoodMaltonMonroeville
Featured Article

Malton (known in zamgrh as Marzan) is one of three cities available in Urban Dead, the others being Monroeville and Borehamwood. The Malton map, like the Monroeville and Borehamwood maps and the game itself, was created by Kevan Davis. As the first available map, it was introduced on July 3, 2005 when the game was released. Malton is the only city in which revivification has been possible and which has never seen suspended registration of new characters. Although Monroeville and Borehamwood are still active maps, the number of active players they contain has dwindled to such a degree, that those maps are considered to have been temporary. Thus, Malton has been the only "permanent" map available in Urban Dead.

Creating and logging in with Malton characters is done from the Urban Dead main page. A player may choose to create either a zombie or survivor character, but any new character name must be unique. Names from Monroeville and Borehamwood cannot be reused in Malton (and, conversely, Malton names could not be used in Monroeville and Borehamwood.) All three cities share the same user database and, for the most part, game mechanics. Differences in the gameplay mechanics of each available city are related to the availability of certain items and building types. Notably, the lack of NecroTech buildings and syringes in Monroeville and Borehamwood has made zombification permanent in those two cities.

Unique features of Malton

  • The maps of Monroeville and Borehamwood were created using many of the same building types previously available in Malton. When the Monroeville map was released on February 25, 2008, it consisted of several new building types. Similarly, when Borehamwood was introduced on October 28, 2008, it featured more new building types. However, several building types and complexes were not seen in either Monroeville or Borehamwood, and remain unique to Malton. These include: NecroTech buildings, forts, power stations, stadiums, cathedrals, and the City Zoo.
  • The presence of NecroTech is unique to Malton. This means that Malton is the only city available that contains NecroTech syringes and DNA extractors. Consequently, it is the only city available in which revivification of zombies is possible. Malton is also unique in that it is the only city in which the registration of new characters has never been suspended.
  • Newspapers are available in all three cities, but each city has a unique set of news stories. The news stories found in Malton's newspapers are compiled here.

Geography

Climate

Whilst little to no information is available in regards to Malton's location on a regional scale, what knowledge is available from anecdotal observations suggests that Malton's climate is Oceanic. Heavy snow falls on the city in the Winter from as early as December 10, and settles enough that snowbanks establish and those walking the streets leave clearly distinguishable footprints. During late October to early November, Malton has also experienced significantly lessened visibility due to fog, to the point where binoculars have been rendered useless. Interestingly, no external military reports have been recieved during these periods of heavy fog, though it is unknown if this is a result of the fog or merely a coincedence.

Neighbourhoods and areas

The Malton map is divided into 100 suburbs arranged in a 10 by 10 grid. Each suburb consists of 100 blocks similarly arranged in a 10 by 10 grid, meaning there are a total of 10,000 blocks in the city of Malton. 4,286 of these are empty blocks, meaning they contain no buildings. Players can be either inside or outside the remaining 5,714 blocks containing buildings. This gives a total of 15,714 places a player can be in the city of Malton. The following map displays the location of all 100 of Malton's suburbs, and is color coded to reflect an approximation of zombie presence in each suburb.


Dakerstown Jensentown Quarlesbank West Boundwood East Boundwood Lamport Hills Chancelwood Earletown Rhodenbank Dulston
Roywood Judgewood Gatcombeton Shuttlebank Yagoton Millen Hills Raines Hills Pashenton Rolt Heights Pescodside
Peddlesden Village Chudleyton Darvall Heights Eastonwood Brooke Hills Shearbank Huntley Heights Santlerville Gibsonton Dunningwood
Dunell Hills West Becktown East
Becktown
Richmond Hills Ketchelbank Roachtown Randallbank Heytown Spracklingbank Paynterton
Owsleybank Molebank Lukinswood Havercroft Barrville Ridleybank Pimbank Peppardville Pitneybank Starlingtown
Grigg Heights Reganbank Lerwill Heights Shore Hills Galbraith Hills Stanbury Village Roftwood Edgecombe Pegton Dentonside
Crooketon Mornington North Blythville Brooksville Mockridge Heights Shackleville Tollyton Crowbank Vinetown Houldenbank
Nixbank Wykewood South Blythville Greentown Tapton Kempsterbank Wray Heights Gulsonside Osmondville Penny Heights
Foulkes Village Ruddlebank Lockettside Dartside Kinch Heights West Grayside East Grayside Scarletwood Pennville Fryerbank
New Arkham Old Arkham Spicer Hills Williamsville Buttonville Wyke Hills Hollomstown Danversbank Whittenside Miltown

Economy

Industry

From the presence of Malton's 227 factories and 268 warehouses, it can reasonably be inferred that Malton had a large manufacturing industry that comprised a large part of its economy. Further, Malton contains 238 auto repair shops and 262 junkyards, and jerry cans are readily available as common loot for survivors, suggesting that the city also enjoyed a healthy automobile industry. Aside from these more traditional industries, the scientific company NecroTech also seems to have had a large presence in Malton prior to the outbreak, as implied by their 211 research facilities, as well as old newspapers containing interviews with the head of the company and advertisements for employee positions. However, it is unknown whether NecroTech was solely a scientific research company or also offered products and services for sale.

Shopping and retail

Malton's retail economy primarily consists of nightlife establishments, including 235 clubs, 250 pubs and 221 cinemas. However, Malton also contains 20 large, high-profile malls housing bookstores, drugstores, gun stores, hardware stores, liquor stores, sports stores and tech stores, catering to the average consumer. Most of these malls span 4 blocks, except Lumber Mall which spans 2 blocks and Pole Mall which spans 3 blocks.

History

Post-outbreak history

Unlike the pre-outbreak history of Malton, the timeline of events that occurred in-game after July 3, 2005 is largely well verified and undisputed. The history of Malton has thus far followed two very basic trends:

  • The formation and eventual fracturing of mega-groups. Both zombies and survivors have incentives to combine into larger and larger groups. Larger groups provide better protection for survivors and greater odds of carnage for zombies. The largest of groups tend to be fleeting, however. Typically groups are sporadically brought together to form larger alliances with a specific goal in mind, such as holding Caiger Mall for survivors. Whether the mega-group either succeeds or fails in it's goal, the smaller groups tend to fracture and go their separate ways. Due to the fact that mega-groups require a large amount of players actively contributing to their cause to maintain their high in-game influence, the relevance and significance of mega-groups naturally dissipates over time as the in-game activity of their gradually decreases or ceases altogether.
  • Since late 2005, the total number of active players has been slowly decreasing, which generally benefits survivors. Barricades present a significant obstacle for zombies, particularly because of the action points advantage that survivors possess in this context. Consequently, with fewer total players, smaller groups of zombies must spend proportionally more time breaking down barricades in order to kill fewer survivors. As a result, rule changes occur sporadically to address balance of power in the game between survivors and zombies, a phenomenon scrutinized by players with zombie characters and observed and analyzed by all players alike. Urban Dead has received notable criticism from players for this imbalance, with many perceiving it as poor game design.

2005

2005 saw the explosive popularity of Urban Dead and the Malton map after its introduction on July 3, 2005. By the end of 2005, the number of active characters in Malton peaked at approximately 60,000. 2005 also saw the peak of survivors relative to zombies. In late 2005 survivors outnumbered zombies by almost 3:1. As a result of larger overall numbers the following famous events and confrontations from 2005 are some of the largest Malton has ever witnessed:

  • Dia de los Muertos is the term given to the rapid fall of Giddings Mall around October 31 and November 1 at the hands of a zombie horde numbering approximately 500. Several zombie groups were present under the name The Ministry of the Dead. This was arguably the first successful alliance of zombie hordes. The rapid fall of Giddings Mall built upon previous zombie victories and it's success set the stage for the first siege of Caiger Mall.
  • The First Siege of Caiger Mall occurred between approximately November 10 and December 2, and is famous for being the first major survivor victory against so large a zombie horde. The survivors in Caiger Mall held off an estimated 1,300 zombies in what was the longest siege ever at the time.
  • By the end of 2005, many zombies came to believe the game had become unbalanced in favor of survivors. These zombies (as well as some survivors,) calling themselves On Strike decided to hold an event: Stanstock (a portmanteau of Woodstock and Stanbury Village.) Stanstock took place in Whetcombe Park in Stanbury Village from December 19 to December 23. By the end, over 1,300 zombies and survivors showed up resulting in some noticeable server strain. Kevan responded by implementing two major game adjustments. The first came on December 22 and introduced feeding groan which allowed zombies to more quickly congregate at the sight of assaults and sieges. This change satisfied enough players that Whetcombe Park was gradually abandoned. December 23 is considered to have been the end of Stanstock. However, yet another game change came on December 30 which changed large buildings (such as malls) to allow both zombies and humans to move freely inside; it allowed zombies who breached one square of a large building to quickly move through the rest of the building, hastening it's fall.

2006

  • The Mall Tour '06 began just weeks after the post-Stanstock game changes. From January 3 through January 29 the mall tour (comprised of a horde of approximately 1,000 zombies) destroyed every mall but Caiger. Ackland Mall was the second to last hold-out up until January 29, but it fell to approximately 400 zombies that day. Mall Tour '06 in January was seen as a tremendous zombie victory and, for zombies, a vindication of the rule changes. Ultimately, however, early successes set up the second siege of Caiger, which would end in survivor victory.
  • The Second Siege of Caiger Mall occurred from approximately February 20 to March 19. Around January 31 zombies began slowly moving toward Caiger en masse, laying waste to survivors in the surrounding area. Their plan was to move slowly, attracting a large number of feral zombies. Ultimately around 1,000 zombies laid Siege to Caiger. However, their hesitation, combined with the fall of every other mall in Malton, led to around 3,000 survivors defending Caiger. Ultimately the zombies decided their efforts were futile and dispersed, resulting in a second major survivor victory at Caiger.
  • On March 28 another prominent change came to the game's rules. The rule change increased the AP cost of reviving zombies from 1 to 10, making both combat revives and legitimate revives more difficult.
  • Another important change to the game's rules occurred on June 16 which tweaked the ransack ability that had been introduced on April 29. This allowed zombies to block survivors from barricading building squares which had been ransacked. This allowed for zombies to in some way control buildings (forcing survivors to kill them all before retaking a building.) It also made large buildings less defensible for survivors, as if one square became ransacked it could not be barricaded until all zombies were first removed.
  • After Mall Tour '06 ended on a down note for zombies, there was a void for a mega-horde in Malton. That void was filled by The Big Bash, which formed around July, 2006 and lasted until it was supplanted by Mall Tour '07. Their stated goal was to organize "a grand alliance of zombie hordes to partake of a rampage across Malton." They succeeded in rampaging through most of Malton (except the northwest.) Unlike previous large-scale zombie offensives, however, The Big Bash was more loosely coordinated and aimed at ruining whole suburbs rather than being narrowly focused on specific buildings (such as malls or Necrotech buildings).
  • Battle of Blackmore occurred from August 18, 2006 to October 13, 2006. It began with a small group of survivors barricading and occupying Ridleybank (widely considered to be a zombie controlled suburb and home to The Ridleybank Resistance Front). The survivors made their stand in The Blackmore Building, Ridleybank's only necrotech building. They held it for approximately 2 months while generally outnumbered by zombies. Ultimately, The Blackmore Building fell very quickly on October 13 to a very organized Shacknews horde.
  • The Third Siege of Caiger Mall became notable because of the result of the battle: a zombie victory. The third siege of Caiger lasted from October 23 to November 10. Through the use of advantageous game changes and superb coordination, the zombie hordes, led largely by Shacknews, achieved what had never been achieved before: the fall of Caiger Mall.

2007

  • Mall Tour '07 lasted between January and February, and resulted in the fall of all of Malton's malls to zombie forces, except Caiger Mall (which was still in zombie control when the mall tour began.) Mall Tour '07 is notable for being the first Mall Tour to take advantage of the X:00 zombie tactic. With the recent fall of the formerly impregnable Caiger, many survivors took to using river tactics. The only notable survivor hold-out of the mall tour was Stickling Mall in Shearbank, which stayed in survivor hands for over a month due to the effort of New Malton Colossus among others.
  • The Battle of Santlerville was a notable zombie siege that occurred between April and May in Santlerville. A back and forth battle between the RRF (among other,) and several coordinated survivor groups ended with a survivor victory when the RRF declared their withdrawal after almost two months of fighting.
  • In June, a completely new zombie group was formed, calling itself LUE. They very quickly (while many of their members were still level 1) went on a successful series of campaigns. Eventually, they attacked the suburb of Santlerville, in what came to be called The Battle of SantLUEville. The battle lasted about a week in late July and early August, and is notable for being a quick zombie victory (despite the strong resistance the RRF had previously encountered.)
  • On June 18, Yahoo published an article on Urban Dead that inspired more than 4000 people to join the game in the space of about 12 hours. The following few days were a boon to zombies, as the streets were filled with many inexperienced low level survivors. June 18 was dubbed Yahoomas day by grateful zombies.
  • A game update on August 14 introduced ruins to the game. Buildings which had been ransacked 5 times could now become ruined by a zombie. A ruined building is visible from the street, and (like ransacked buildings) cannot be repaired while there are zombies standing in the square. Unlike ransacked buildings, ruined buildings can only be repaired by survivors with the construction skill and a toolbox.
  • The Second Big Bash began October 8 and lasted until April 3, 2008. Over that period, zombies ruined most of the same suburbs hit by the first Big Bash.

2008

  • A game update on January 23 introduced interference to the game. Zombie interference (or barricade blocking) is a passive zombie ability that takes effect when there are more than 2 zombies inside a building. Interference hinders survivors ability to construct barricades (by about 50%.)
  • In Febuary, a new zombie group began to take shape. They were The Dead and within a week had become the largest zombie horde ever seen. They cut through and ruined the entirety of Malton in what came to be called the March of the Dead.
  • The introduction of the Monroeville map on February 25 drew large numbers of players away from Malton (which were disproportionately survivor characters.) When the quarantine of Monroeville was implemented on March 28 many of those players returned to Malton, boosting survivor numbers.
  • A game update on May 28 made ruins more challenging for survivors to repair. Previously survivors had to expend 1 AP to repair a ruined building. After the game change, a ruined building cost more AP to repair the longer the building had remained ruined (1 AP per 24 hours.)
  • On June 13 the first quarantine of Monroeville was lifted. Monroeville was re-quarantined on August 15. These events altered the population of Malton in the same way the introduction and first quarantine of Monroeville had.
  • On October 28 the third city of Borehamwood was introduced. This too drew (mostly survivor) characters away from Malton. Borehamwood was quarantined on November 28, prompting idled Malton characters back into the game.

2009

  • After a two year hiatus, Mall Tour 2009 was as successful (from the point of view of zombies) as the last mall tour (Mall Tour '07.) The tour lasted from January 9 through May 4. 17 of Malton's 20 malls were visited by the tour's hordes and ruined. Only Ackland Mall, Blesley Mall, and Treweeke Mall were not ruined by the mall tour (because they were previously ruined and remained so for most of the duration of the mall tour.)
  • In honor of Urban Dead's fourth birthday, on July 3 it was announced that the Emergency Broadcast System would be findable somewhere in Malton. That same day, it was located in The Coram Building in Lukinswood. It is the only building from which survivors can broadcast on the otherwise restricted military frequency of 25.92MHz (provided The Coram Building has a powered generator and working radio transceiver.) The building has since become a higher profile target for zombies and survivors alike. It has been the scene of numerous small sieges, changing hands frequently.

2010

  • The Escape Event was a siege that occurred on the western border of Malton (specifically Ellicott Place Railway Station in Owsleybank) towards the end of May. Escape was a group claiming to have become bored with Malton and Urban Dead in general. Although intended to be a survivor / zombie group (in the manner of Stanstock,) it received almost no support from zombies, and rather became a target for large numbers of zombies. Although unsuccessful in both retaining control of Ellicott Place Railway Station and gaining notice from Kevan, it is notable for being the largest strike type event since Stanstock.
  • Blackmore 4(04) was a siege of the Blackmore Building and the surrounding area in Ridleybank that lasted from August 19 to August 31. The survivor group 404: Barhah not found held off the RRF and The Feral Undead during that time, but ultimately fell to zombie forces.
  • Big Bash 3 was a major factor, along with the rise of the Militant Order of Barhah and Ridleybank Resistance Front, in the swing of the game's ratio much more towards the zombie side than it had been in quite some time.

2011

  • Although The Dead had been an active zombie group since 2008, starting around April 2011 The Dead saw reinvigorated numbers again in Malton, this time branded as The Dead 2.0. With the lower overall population totals, The Dead 2.0 went on a second march, devastating the city as had never been seen before. At the height of it's success the city's population was comprised of over 85% zombies (an all-time high for that percentage.)
  • Due to The Dead's success in early 2011, search rates changed to favor survivors. As a result, survivor numbers bounced back to more sustainable levels.
  • Mall Tour '11 occurred from October to December. Although survivor numbers at this time were fairly high and stable, the mall tour encountered little notable resistance.

2012

2013

  • The recent trend of survivors outnumbering zombies became worse in 2013, with most of the city remaining green or yellow unless a major horde was actively going through the suburb. Fiddler's Green Syndrome became a major issue in a number of suburbs, and active player numbers dropped even further as survivors had less and less to do while zombies had a harder time accomplishing anything that could last for more than a few days. Two different events seem to be shaking that trend up, however.
  • After a long hiatus, The Nurglings returned in April, appearing suddenly in the Vinetown area. Helped by an influx of nearly two dozen new recruits, their arrival in Vinetown had quite an impact, transforming it into a heated battleground and bringing The Nurglings into the ranks of the largest active zombie groups in the game.
  • In June, Big Bash 4 got underway, with over 140 zombies joining the party as it toured for the summer. It was joined by The Nurglings and a number of other groups and individuals. An alliance of several major survivor groups, calling itself the Malton Resistance, staged a defense of the Pitneybank area. Though it was overrun in short order, it remains notable for being the only significant defense offered against the horde, which was the largest group in the game at the time that it was active.

2014

  • The new year started with a temporal truce in New Arkham area where all the resident zombies and survivors gathered for a joint party in Harford Building. The truce was, however, short and soon it was back to the old game of claws and headshots. Meanwhile the Vinetown area became an active battleground as The Nurglings returned home from their walkabout around southern Malton suburbs. Down in south-east corner of Malton, zombie group LUE has become a long game with the aim of keeping large parts of Malton permanently ruined. The suburbs of Miltown, Whittenside, Fryerbank and Pennville were held completely under LUE control.
  • Over the course of the year the zombie attacks on the eastern parts of the town increased rapidly. While the southeast Malton had been abandoned and/or ruined even before this new increase in attacks over the year the undead conquered major parts of northeast and east Malton, now threatening areas that had been very stable and in survivor hands for years before this. By the end of the year 2014 many of the old neighbourhoods of northeast and east Malton were permanently ruined as survivors left them to concentrate their numbers in other areas.
  • Meanwhile in the other end of the town, in soutwest corner of New Arkham the Sons of Chester activated again after being in hiatus for most of 2013 and what used to be a ruined and mostly abandoned township suddenly came alive as the Sons fought the zombies that had taken residence in New Arkham region in the Sons absence.

2015

  • The increase in zombie attacks in the eastern parts of Malton have tapered down, it seems survivors are once again making an effort to take back several neighborhoods lost in 2014.
  • During the period of May and June, several areas that were either highly contested or held by survivors were abandoned. This can be attributed to survivors becoming inactive or leaving the suburbs altogether. For example, in the suburbs of Vinetown and Arkham, many buildings are ruined and contain zombie hordes.

2020

  • An alliance of survivor groups are holding Nicholas Mall against the RRF
  • The Knights Templar continue to defend Poll Mall from an alliance of zeds and PKers