A Beginner’s Guide to the History of Boomtown

Last year, Cultured Vultures ventured into the chaotic throng of Boomtown’s annual fair for the first time, and while there, we witnessed one of the most pivotal moments in the town’s storied history.

This year, things are set to get even more crazy, but the uninitiated may find themselves asking – what exactly is Boomtown? Is it a music festival? An art installation? A gathering of enthused revellers? It is all these things, and much more. If you’re planning on making your first visit to the town this year, it would be wise to read up on the dramatic, erratic backstory, so we’ve thrown together a condensed version to prepare you for the trip.

 

2009 – 2011: Rapid expansion

Boomtown was founded in the wake of a gold rush. Said gold was first discovered by the appropriately named explorer Nickolas Boom, and the annual fair soon became the town’s most treasured tradition. It was in 2009 that Boomtown Fair really took off, with people travelling from all around to celebrate the growth of the prosperous little town.

It certainly felt like a fairground at this point, if fairgrounds featured a set from Zion Train, and apart from one poor sod getting taken out by his own bicycle, what came to be known as Chapter One was a resounding success. Things only escalated the following year, but with the growth of the fair, trouble brewed.

During Chapter Two, a man calling himself The Kaptin arrived, seeking to exert further control over the lawless town. Nickolas Boom and his associates managed to ward him off, but not long after that, The Kaptin returned, flanked by more of his crew. Out of sheer frustration, Boom ventured off into the mountains in search of hidden treasure.

He never returned, leaving Chapter Three to open on a sombre note, as all the town’s most prominent figures (The Kaptin included) paid tribute to Boom. By then, the town had ballooned in size, with new districts opening up and others falling into disarray. Suffice to say, Boomtown would never be the same again.

 

2012 – 2014: external forces

By the time Chapter Four rolled around, it didn’t seem appropriate to even call Boomtown a town anymore. The districts had become divided, and unruly. Residents debated about the future of the town, but then something bizarre and unsettling happened. A gigantic mechanical spider appeared in the middle of Downtown, sending the crowd into a frenzy. In response, The Kaptin named himself the new Mayor and took on emergency powers to deal with this strange new invasion.

The Kaptin’s reign didn’t last long. One year after the spider’s mysterious arrival, his grip on the town had loosened so much that he was forced to call on a new, more democratic age for Boomtown. It worked, in a way; Boomtown grew and advanced more rapidly than ever before, but at the same time, a rival stepped up to threaten The Kaptin’s control of the town  – Comrade Jose.

The Kaptin was defeated, and found himself wandering through the town, drunk on dejection and, well, alcohol. Nobody wanted him, so he did something drastic, he consorted with the mysterious aliens, and they sent him back in time. When he returned, Boomtown’s timeline had been warped – The Kaptin was the sheriff of a whole new district, the Wild West. Now, with the help of new alien technology, he planned to regain his grasp over the ever-growing town.

 

2015 – 2016: The rise and fall of the new regime

With order seemingly restored, Comrade Jose set about recasting Boomtown in her own image. The alien spider had gone, and in its place the colossal Bang Hai Palace was erected. 50,000 people descended on Boomtown for 2015’s fair, and things seemed more beautiful and prosperous than ever.

Behind the scenes, though, the Sheriff was setting about manipulating Jose into a state of stricken paranoia, and while the revellers partied in blissful ignorance, other forces began to take note of the cracks in her resolve. As the fair closed out, Bang Hai was taken over and a mysterious masked man sent out a message, a promise of ensuing revolution.

It was a few months before the next fair that the relationship between Cultured Vultures and Boomtown began. We had taken an interest in the development of the fair, but after publishing our first piece we were mysteriously called to a remote location, and I found myself having an audience with the Masked Man himself.

My visit to the town that summer was fraught with tension, and throughout the weekend the looming threat of insurgence gripped Boomtown like a vice. You can read my account of it in more detail here, but to sum up, the town’s authorities were stripped of their power, Comrade Jose disappeared and the Masked Man handed control of the town over to the people. For the first time since it was founded, Boomtown was a lawless state.

 

2017 – the uncertain future

We’re still months away from the annual fair, but what little evidence has emerged suggests that Boomtown has changed more drastically than ever before. Bang Hai Palace has been torn down, and the Masked Man’s promises of a balanced, anarchistic society are in shards. Lawlessness has turned to chaos, and a mysterious new industrial presence has been slowly consolidating more and more power.

Suffice to say, if you are planning on popping your Boomtown cherry this year, you’ve picked a very interesting time to do so. The Masked Man is still lurking somewhere in the shadows, the Sheriff is missing and the name ‘Bang Hai Industries’ is appearing everywhere. If you want to find out what happens next, be there.