Languages:Languages:
Info
Written by Br Miller &
neptunium153.
The original concept was by Tocharian17, who posted an article about the Manila Room in March 2020 on The Backrooms Wiki Fandom. This page was imported to The Backrooms Wiki Wikidot on April 2020 and was rewritten by Hickory on April 2022.
Special thanks to:
PixelPurple for making the renders of the Manila Room.
SquibbleZombie for critiquing this page.
CROOOKIE for critiquing this page.
eggsyl for critiquing this page.
DrAkimoto for critiquing this page.
DivineAtlas for critiquing this page.
- Anonymous User for critiquing this page.
Chapter 2 | Key Levels Page 411
The Tragedy of Level 0
You are familiar with many of the dangerous levels of the Backrooms—filled with entities, harsh environments, and sparse exits—but as dangerous as they may be, the relatively safe Level 0 causes one of the highest numbers of fatalities each year.
Around 50,000 people on Earth go missing each year. It is estimated 20,000 of those are from people unfortunate enough to fall out of the bounds of reality and end up in the Backrooms' first level.
Unprepared for dangers that await them, newcomers desperately navigate the ever-shifting yellow hallways, trying to find a way back to Earth that does not exist, succumbing to dehydration or a total loss of hope before ever making it to Level 1.
Based upon numbers from Earth that survive long enough to make it to an outpost or community and the level of danger posed by the location, an estimated 60-70% of people die in Level 0 without ever escaping. This corresponds to over ten thousand deaths a year.
What is worse, there is nothing we can do to help them. The isolation effect prevents anyone within the level from ever meeting another person. Even when two people are side by side, they will be unable to see or talk to one another. When you are in Level 0, you are on your own.
But once they escape Level 0, you can now help them! If you see anyone lost in Level 1, Level 2, or later levels, provide them with hydrating drinks, and guide them to civilization. By working together we can save lives!
Testimony from Mary Mitchell, 7th May 1951
Under the weight of me and my heavy hiking bag, every footstep on the soggy carpet would leave a puddle of squeezed-out carpet fluid. Still not big enough to store all the items, I dragged a ceiling tile by my side as my camera dangled by a lanyard around my neck.
I had not been in these yellow corridors for over sixteen years. The last time I was here was during that dreadful experience that we all are familiar with… As a young girl I was jumping along rocks next to a river, but one rock was covered with algae, and I slipped. Instead of splashing into the water, I slammed into the horrid yellow carpet.
I had spent many hours trying to find another human soul, not knowing my efforts were futile due to the isolation effect.
I found an exit pretty quick, only to be greeted by concrete corridors with many monsters wanting to eat me. I do not like to be reminded of those memories, but I was one of the lucky few.
Finding an exit comes down to chance. On this trip I’d been walking for three days, burdened by the supplies on my back and irritated by the buzzing of the lights, yet I had no success getting out of this place. If anyone from Earth came here and had not gotten out by now, they would be dead. The only reason I am still alive is that I brought food and water with me. It makes me sick to think about how many have lost their lives here. If only I could do something to save them…
But I can’t let that get to me; I have to remember why I had gone on a mission back to the Yellow Hell.
I am working with a team of other survivors to build a new museum to help educate and entertain those who call these worlds home2. For a museum about the Backrooms, it would be strange not to include artifacts from the most iconic world. I collected pieces of the ceiling, floor, lights, and walls and packed them into my hiking bag, and I was transporting them back to the museum.
I sighed in relief when in the distance I saw a glowing, flickering wall. That was my exit from here. As I approached the wall, I heard something strange, the sound of a young boy crying. That shouldn’t be possible. No one should be able to meet each other in the Yellow Hell.
As I got closer to the glowing wall, the crying got louder. There was something else strange: a brown wall stood out from the yellow that appeared to be decorated with manila paper. An open wooden door stood defiantly in the center.
Mixed with excitement and fear, my heart raced. This was clearly an undiscovered section of this world. The only way we learn new things is by diving into the unknown. I needed to investigate this place to enlighten my community. I did not know what dangers awaited me, but with my hand on my gun and the other on my camera, I was ready.
I peeked in through the door.
I snapped pictures of what was inside, a large square room with the same manila-paper-coated walls, wooden floorboards, an octagonal table, and two chairs.
And then there was something that should have been impossible to see. What appeared to be a young boy was curled up against the wall sulking. Not knowing who or what he was, I asked if he needed any help, but the boy did not even glance in my direction. Raising my voice, I asked once more, yet he still continued sulking.
I stepped into the room. The boy looked up at me with shock. He jumped up and started cheering with the little energy he had left. He walked to me, only to step back with his hands in the air when I pointed my gun.
Looking at him closely, I became confident he was not a hostile entity and lowered my gun. I tried speaking to him, but he spoke a language I did not know. When I presented him bottles of Almond Water, he drank them with haste. I grabbed his hand and hoped to take him to safety, yet as soon as I left the brown room, to my horror, he vanished into nothing.
I paced through the yellow rooms, trying to find him to no avail. I went back to the room with manila wallpaper, and standing outside the door, I saw him come back into existence. He was running around the room in a state of panic.
“I am here!” I yelled, but he did not notice me.
When I stepped back into the room, he stopped panicking and ran up to me with cheer.
Then it dawned on me that the isolation effect did not apply to all parts of the yellow halls.
SURVIVAL CLASS
0
Resources: 5/5
No Drinkable Fluids
Exit: 0/5
Guaranteed Exit
Environment: 0/5
No Environmental Risks
Entities: 0/5
No Hostile Entities
The Manila Room is a small, difficult-to-find room in Level 0 and acts as a point where wanderers meet when traveling through the level as well as a gateway for newly no-clipped wanderers into Level 1.
An image of The Manila Room.
Description
The Manila Room is an isolated eight-by-eight-meter room with thick walls within Level 0, named for the unique beige color of its wallpaper reminiscent of manila paper. It has wooden floorboards, furnished with one octagonal table and two chairs, with a wooden entrance door on each wall. No food or water is naturally present.
Notes have been left on the table containing information about the Backrooms and guides to no-clipping, providing information that enables one to escape Level 0. There are also some cupboards under the table that contain food, water, and more documents about the Backrooms brought from elsewhere by volunteers.
An image of the walls of the Manila Room
Upon being in close proximity to the Manila Room, the isolation effect of Level 0 will begin to weaken. From the perspective of those already in the room, people entering the Manila Room will appear to phase into existence. If two people enter the Manila Room in the same spot, they will not phase in until one of them moves. Additionally, the humming noise of Level 0 will begin to fade, and relaxing piano music can be heard. This music seems to be playing from the roof and walls of the Manila Room3, and has been reported to invoke a soothing effect on all those who entered the sublevel after listening to the hum-buzz of Level 0 for days.
The layout of Level 0 changes continually while no one is looking, and the location of Manila Room shifts along with all the other rooms in Level 0. However, the interior of the Manila Room is static and unchanging. Any damage to the Manila Room's furnishings, walls, ceiling, or floor will regenerate over the course of several weeks if not directly observed.
History
The Manila Room first appeared in its modern form in 1950, the same year Level 0 took on its modern appearance with fluorescent lighting4. The room's history prior to this point remains uncertain due to a lack of documentation.
Following Mary Mitchell’s discovery that the isolation effect does not apply to the Manila Room, the I.M.B.H.5, founded by a group of Backrooms survivors, was quick to put paper documents in the Manila Room. Written in a dozen languages, the documentation contained information on how to survive the Backrooms and covered a variety of topics, most notably noclipping, a field guide to the most common and dangerous entities, and a guide to important levels. Many people reported they were helpful guides for making it to civilization.
Nevertheless, as these documents were regularly taken, the I.M.B.H. routinely had to send people back to the Manila Room to restock the documents. The journey to and from Level 216, the level the I.M.B.H. is based in, and the Manila Room is a treacherous, several-hundred-kilometer trek. The route is visualized below.
Route used by the I.M.B.H. to travel between the Manila Room and Level 216.
Many within the I.M.B.H. doubted this was going to successfully prevent fatalities, but Mary, who was leading the initiative, insisted it was worth an attempt.
Testimony from Mary Mitchell, 30th August 1951
I stared into the dimly lit hallway of the Hub as I waited. The lonely green exit signs were the only ones that accompanied me in this desolate oasis. The lights splattered yellow upon the hard concrete walls and the empty asphalt roads.
It was my turn to be the receptionist for the museum. The entrance doorway would automatically lock, so someone needed to stay on watch to let in visitors by unlocking the door with a level key. However, with the Backrooms so sparsely populated, visitors were an uncommon sight. When I was not doing paperwork, I would be slouched against the chair, gazing at the opposing wall as my mind wandered.
I thought about my recent journey to the Manila Room. I persevered for days pedaling that cargo bicycle filled with enough supplies to sustain me in the yellow wasteland. I twice had a brush with death: first from when I nearly rolled into a bottomless pit and second from when I turned a sharp corner and almost ended up in the Red Rooms. I hope my journey was worth it in the end. I have optimism that those documents will be a lifesaver for those fortunate enough to find the Manila Room.
I snapped out of my daydreams when I saw a shadowy figure approaching from the distance. As he came into the light, I could see his body was covered in bruises. He was limping while carrying a large backpack on his back and a knife in his left hand.
Prepared to give the same old speech I give to every visitor, I yelled out, "Hello, how are you?" He froze only to ask if this is the museum those papers said about. I gasped as I smacked my hands against the table, pushing myself up. "Yes, it is. Welcome," I said with cheer. A smile appeared on his face as he ran towards the table before collapsing on the floor. "I made it… I made it…" he said in tears, barely able to speak.
I highlighted his bravery and how proud he should be for making it this far. He expressed gratitude for the documents, saying, "…without those documents… I would be dead…"
People sometimes ask me why I make these daring journeys to the Manila room, and I would always say, "Once you see the face of someone who was saved, the feeling alone is worth anything."
Over the next decade, as the population of the Backrooms grew and trade routes developed, it became easier for the I.M.B.H. to obtain oil6. Instead of using bicycles to traverse the distance, they started using motorcycles instead.
Testimony from Mary Mitchell, 9th June 1965
While Umar was collecting resources from the Habitable Zone, he found a putrid pile of ripped-up clothes, cracked bones stripped clean of flesh, and a backpack stained red. Another victim of an entity attack… I see it too often, and every time, I can hear their hollow screams echo in the silence.
Looking through the backpack, he found a folder from the Manila Room. Pieces of paper can provide information, but not food. When a person is starving and exhausted after days of walking, long-run benefits do not matter.
The brutality of the Backrooms must be ended. More needs to be done. More lives need to be saved.
Starting in 1965, Mary Mitchell made regular trips to the Manila Room with bags filled with food, water, medical supplies, and weapons. She would stay in the room for days waiting for people from Earth to find her. She would satiate their thirst, provide equipment, and tell them how to survive. Most of them would later successfully make journeys through other levels. Once the resources ran out, she would travel back to Level 216 to restock supplies.
By 1970, she saved the lives of over two-hundred people. She became well known among the communities in the Backrooms through her efforts to help others, earning herself the nickname ‘Manila Mary’. She would receive donations of supplies, and others started volunteering by coming to the Manila Room with her. Inspired by her efforts, others in the Backrooms began their own volunteering initiatives for various causes, such as helping those lost across various levels, caring for the sick, or eliminating dangers from levels.
THE DAILY ROOMS
Endless Rooms, Endless News
Manila Mary Is Dead
Manila Mary in 1969 with one of the people she rescued.
The beloved ‘Manila’ Mary Mitchell was found dead at the age of 46 in Level 1 on April 24, 1973. Her motorbike was smashed against a wall, and her remains were scattered across the surrounding area.
Today is a sad day for the Backrooms, my thoughts and wishes are with Mary Mitchell’s friends. She was one of the kindest and selfless souls that I ever met.
Umar Haruna of the I.M.B.H.
She had been declared missing for three months, last seen when she left for one of her routine trips to the Manila Room. It is suspected while returning home she was chased by an entity. While attempting to outpace it, she crashed into one of the walls at high speeds and died either on impact or was killed by the entity immediately afterwards.
Originally from the Frontrooms and later a founding member of the I.M.B.H., Manila Mary pledged herself to helping those trapped in Level 0; she, alongside many donors and volunteers, rescued hundreds of people. Her remains have been taken to the museum to be buried alongside her other comrades who have fallen over the years.
Travelling through the Backrooms is a dangerous endeavour. Mary was aware of risks and aware this could happen to her, yet all the people she got the opportunity to save made it all worth it. The Backrooms is a harsh place to live, but those who put their lives on the line journeying across levels, rescuing those who are lost, studying entities, and finding new resources make the lives of everyone better.
Umar Haruna of the I.M.B.H.
The I.M.B.H. announced their intention to recruit volunteers and continue restocking the Manila Room in the same manner Manila Mary did.
Written by Nephi Miller, Edited by Min Chen.
1
With the death of Mary, volunteers were worried that they would be killed as well. Additionally, many donors questioned the benefits of restocking the Manila Room and whether resources could be better used for other initiatives. At that point in history, food and water were highly valuable in the Backrooms, and additionally, the availability of these resources was insecure due to various ongoing conflicts between groups.
Several months later, following questioning from the public, Gabriel Trev announced that a holistic assessment had been conducted, concluding that the I.M.B.H. does not have the resources to maintain a continuous supply of food and Almond Water to the Manila Room. In 1973, an average of three people per day would arrive in the Manila Room desperate for sustenance, so supplies would deplete quickly. Since reaching the Manila Room requires traversing 750 kilometers of Level 0 on average and every volunteer could only carry a few kilograms of supplies on their bikes7, achieving any meaningful result would take too many people, not to mention the fact that around 50% of the food and water are consumed on the journey.
The Manila Room was left abandoned for decades. No group considered occupying it given its inaccessibility.
The Major Explorer Group, a large group focused on exploring the Backrooms that emerged in the 2010s, sporadically placed informational documents in the Manila Room like the I.M.B.H. once did, though supplying food and water was still considered impractical.
In 2017, Phoenix Casey, a staff member of the I.M.B.H. who is well known on the BackNET, made a post on social media with the following proposal.
Phoenix Casey 1 March 2017I saw my son's high school limineography textbook talk about Level 0, and it said nothing could be done to save the people trapped in Level 0 and how it is a great tragedy.
But is there really nothing that can be done?
Many decades ago, the great I.M.B.H. hero Manila Mary saved hundreds of people from Level 0 by hiding out in the Manila Room, providing water, advice, and supplies to anyone who found her.
Resources were a lot more scarce during Mary's time, but now there are many bases across the Backrooms with surplus food, water8, and other supplies.
If Mary could do it, why can't we do that today? We could make such a big difference to the lives of so many people.
I am proud to announce that I am founding the Manila Mary Foundation.
With a team of volunteers, we will periodically visit the Manila Room, place documents explaining how to survive the Backrooms, bottles of Almond Water, and resources necessary to help thousands of people persevere.
Of course these supplies will get depleted. Of course, with the many hostile groups that exist these days, the vulnerable room will get sabotaged by evil individuals, but with enough volunteers, we can regularly stock the room and provide repairs. With some motorcycles, the journey to and from the Manila Room is straightforward, and supplies can be received from the various bases across Level 1.
HOW YOU CAN HELP SAVE LIVES
You can sign up to become a volunteer at manila-mary-foundation.org 💗
You can provide donations. Information on manila-mary-foundation.org 💗
Security of the I.M.B.H. is guaranteed by various groups as a part of the MULTILATERAL PEACE AGREEMENT OF 1950. I hope for there to be similar protections for the Manila Mary Foundation. Please sign the petition below to support an agreement to give the foundation a protected status: manila-mary-foundation.org/protect-the-foundation
The Manila Mary Foundation was founded by Phoenix Casey, and with a successful petition with over 20,000 signatures, the MULTILATERAL PEACE AGREEMENT OF 2018 was created between several Backrooms groups9 to provide protections to the organization.
In its first year, 10 volunteers joined, who kept the Manila Room stocked with donated supplies transported by motorcycle-tugged carts. While this process was still tremendously inefficient10 the determination of the volunteers inspired more to join the foundation. Eventually, the sheer volume of volunteers was able to keep the room constantly supplied. Even though anonymous people had placed traps in the room, they were quickly removed.
Following the invention of Blue Gel batteries, several electric mopeds were donated11, to the Manila Mary Foundation. These mopeds can drive for 3 days straight, and if the batteries run out of energy, they can easily be recharged by the various electrical outlets or light sockets throughout Level 0 and Level 1. This greatly increased the efficiency of operations and enabled many volunteers to carry other equipment alongside food and water, such as Squirt Guns for self defense.
"I had only barely escaped from the entity that chewed off my leg. I no-clipped into a new level, but not being able to walk, I didn't have a way to escape, and I was left to die. When I thought there was no hope, a stranger found me and rescued me from the level.
This was not the first time my life was saved during one of my expeditions. I owe my life to others, so I thought I should return the favor.
With a missing leg, I knew my days of exploring new levels were over. But you don't need a leg to ride a motorcycle, so I joined the foundation in 2023. Since then, we've been giving the earthlings who get stuck in Level 0 a new beginning." ~ Eldon Niedecken, a volunteer for the Manila Mary Foundation
Entrances & Exits
Manila Room Map
Entrances
The only way to enter the Manila Room is to travel through Level 0 and find a brown wall with a wood door.
As the layout of Level 0 continually changes, the Manila Room is difficult to find. After 24 hours of continuous walking without rest in Level 0, there is only about a 15% chance of encountering the Manila Room. An unfortunate consequence of this is that only about ~12% of people who enter Level 0 will reach the Manila Room, so most cannot be helped by the stocked supplies.
When trying to reach the Manila Room intentionally, motor vehicles are usually used so vast distances of Level 0 can be traversed quickly.
Exits
Exiting one of the wooden doors of the Manila Room will bring one back to Level 0.
Breaking through the walls and touching the exposed Voidstone base wall will transport one to Level 287.
An exit leading to Level 1 is located in close proximity to the Manila Room.
Hello to whoever is reading this. We are the Manila Mary Foundation and we are here to help!
Please take any food or water in this room, and enjoy your well-earned rest. You have completed the hardest part of the journey. The dimension you found yourself in is called the Backrooms. Many others have gotten stuck here and have built various communities and settlements throughout. Your goal is to make it to one of these settlements, as you will be living in this dimension for the rest of your life.
It is going to be a harsh adjustment from the Earth you left behind, but do not lose hope. Even in this strange world, we still have each other. In this desolate place, we will build a new future. All of humanity in this macrocosm are in this together.
In the cupboards below we prepared documents on your next steps to survive. Once you enter those flickering walls, the expedition ahead will not be easy.
