SPOILER Wastelands theories

I want to preface this by saying that no, I did not glitch my way into the Wastelands, however I did find this fellow while peeking through a gate. "Powderman", level 107. Attacks by rolling a TNT minecart at you.
107, how strange, isn't the Wasteland supposed to have Cinnabar, the level 115 ore? Well, yes, but it stretches across the length of both the Roughworks and the Mistwoods. It likely has a very wide level range as well.

As you (hopefully) know, Deraj Prison is a major location in the Wastelands. I think it's going to be a "town" in some way, or at least have a safe zone. There's a train stop, presumably at Deraj, which implies that it's in a safe area. Aside from that, I have basically no clue how the story would play out regarding actually breaking in. The Canopy seems to have someone on the inside, so it'll probably tie to them.

Project Hallowground, a top secret experiment conducted a few decades ago, will most definitely be expanded upon in the Wastelands, considering that's where most of it took place. Sovereign Selium died because of it, or was at least presumed dead. The fact that they don't know really seems like a Chekhov's gun to me, I think he might actually be alive.

There's a massive cave network under the Wastelands, definitely a major location. According to the Project Hallowground files, these caves were deemed very dangerous, to the point of it being deemed necessary to memory wipe most of those who knew. Who knows what could be lurking down there? (It's changelings. There are changelings down there.)

Some small details include: Slag Beetles are native to the Wastelands, there are a lot of mines, and most of the labor in them is performed by inmates, there appear to be two kinds of tree, one that looks dead and one that looks a lot like a jungle tree, which is found near the mountains that separate Fruma from Wynn, and there's a ravine(?)

Maybe there's Wastelands-Jungle fast travel?

That's all.

 

The enemies that are there are temp ones I made a while ago, and the levels shouldn't be considered much. Originally I wanted a lot of Fruma enemies to have lower levels than the player to make it clear that they weren't exactly equipped to do combat with you

 

My only hope is for a dungeon. This will not happen. But I will hope.

 

I'm aware this is what's in game, but it feels weird to me... It feels like Ascension to Sovereignhood is enough of a tie for Her Majesty to at least have known his state.

Though obviously she didn't say anything, and didn't write the report anyhow I guess.

 

And she said to the public that he ... retired .

 

I'm guessing the wastelands is where we'll finally learn more about Sohso, given that the Hallowground report seemed to allude to him.

 

Wait really? Huh.

________________________________

It Meh be Soh

 

Stuff that I hope is in Wastelands/predict will be in the Wastelands:

• 2-part side chapter to the main storyline, starting at lv 110 and ending at like lv 113
• Sohso will be a character in the Wastelands side chapter
• Selium will be a major character in the Wastelands, either being amnesic and forgetting much of who he was, or is cognizant of who he is, but deranged to the point of insanity. He will also likely be the final boss of the side chapter.
• All of this ties into Deraj somehow
• Deraj is added as a dungeon, with its boss being Sovereign Oru. Oru will also play a major role in the Wastelands side chapter.
• The people in the Wastelands/Penitence District are forced to mine away the area in search of the changeling tar
• There could be a resistance group here that actually does stuff composed of people who got sent away
• Characters that got sent to Wynn are referenced at some points in dialogue

 

I'd say 'the Wastelands sidestory must be where we save the Roughworks friends' but I haven't. Finished. The questline yet.

 

The Wastelands is in kind of an odd place in the plot right now where it's important for a couple of Fruma-related lore questions, but doesn't seem crucial to the overarching plot. There isn't any clear, pressing reason the player would want to go there, although presumably some reason will be added when the region is added.
Although the Wastelands are very long, it doesn't look to be any bigger than the other areas in Fruma, and I expect it to be a post-Apotheosis level 120-125 area.