Hello!
I will state my questions and then context for those who care to know because I realize these may be some odd questions. Also, sources are highly appreciated if applicable because then I can read more about the topic.
Has there ever been an instance of mass biological warfare used?
Has any country ever produced biological weapons?
Were there any things in place that prevent countries from creating bio weapons of mass destruction in secret?
Is the production of biological weapons officially banned? (I ask bc I read a bit about the convention by the UN in '72 but then I found an article stating that 16 countries plus Taiwan are developing bio-weaponry including the US and Canada)
Context: I'm creating a DnD homebrew one shot that is a zombie apocalypse set in 1974.
The premise I'm trying to string together is that a biological 'nuke' was secretly being developed by the US before the 1972 UN convention. Once they signed the treaty the US still continued developing this despite signing the treaty because "technically" it hadn't gone into effect yet.
Thanks in advance!
Hi there - we're happy to approve your question related to your creative project, and we are happy for people to answer. However, we should warn you that many flairs have become reluctant to answer questions for aspiring novelists and the like, based on past experience: some people working on creative projects have a tendency to try to pump historians for trivia while ignoring the bigger points they were making, while others have a tendency to argue with historians when the historical reality does not line up with what's needed for a particular scene or characterization. Please respect the answers of people who have generously given you their time, even if it's not always what you want to hear.
Additionally, as amazing as our flair panel is, we should also point out that /r/AskHistorians is not a professional historical consultation service. If you're asking a question here because you need vital research for a future commercial product such as a historical novel, you may be better off engaging a historical consultant at a fair hourly rate to answer these questions for you. We don't know what the going rate for consultancy work would be in your locality, but it may be worth looking into that if you have in-depth or highly plot-reliant questions for this project. Some /r/AskHistorians flairs could be receptive to working as a consultant in this way. However, if you wish for a flair here to do this work for you, you will need to organize this with them yourselves.