[OOC] No rest for the wicked (Cyberpunk rp with Vigilantes and crime lords)

[urukhai]

The year is 2055, and the world is a much different place. The world’s population has exploded in the past few generations, causing the already crowded streets of the world’s major cities to fill to near bursting. This plus upheavals in cultural and the international infrastructure, strained many of the worlds old governments to the near implosion point, a few actually falling in the upheaval. But the chaos was to be short lived, as mega corporations used this moment to seize power from most of the old governments of the world. They restored order, their kind of order, without much of a fight.
To compensate for the population demands huge public works projects began. Great Hab towers began erupting from the skylines, soon coming to dominate the view. As the great towers reached their final heights huge platforms began to be constructed between them, sealing them as the crowns of the sky, and the Rich away from the masses.
These cities were aptly named Neo Cities, for their new approach and the new order which they served.

That was the hope anyway.

Welcome to Neo Roma Built over what was once called Chicago, it was one of the original Neo cities (Now commonly called hives by the people of the lower city). It was once the shining example of what the New Order and the new cities were supposed to represent, a fresh start for us all. For a time it embodied this dream, but as time went on and the population of the city just kept rising, due to immigration and natural births, the city changed. It began with the Police losing their already tenuous grasp on the Ground Level, allowing the crime lords to infest and control that part of the city, and has continued with the introduction of the drug only known as Red Spice.

Now what was once called "The city of dreams and new hope", seems to not be able to make itself dream past tomorrow. Still that has not stopped motivated individuals who have taken up the good fight in the under city, but theirs is an uphill fight as new players on the top and on the ground have entered the game.

The only question I pose to you now is this. Will you be the one to save the city, or will you seize what its underbelly has to offer?

But no matter what you choose remember this, nothing in Neo Roma is ever as it seems.

---

Setting

Neo Roma

Ground Level:

The slums, the outcasts, the dregs of society. All of these names could describe the dark, dirty, cramped, streets of the Ground Level, or "Under City" as it is also known. It is here that Spice has really taken hold. There are no police here; as no person with a badge would set foot down here, out of fear of the street-lords. There is little light down here, besides what the shops, apartments and flickering street lights put out, this is because the entirety of the Under city is covered by the over hangs of the Mid-Low.

Wealth Level: Poor – Very poor

Average Living Conditions: Large “Apartment Buildings” where the “Apartments” are simply small sleeping pods built into the walls in large stacks and numbers.

Above Average Living conditions: A small single room Apartment

Notable Places: Dosen Street, Hive block A, The ghost-town (ruined industrial complex from the old city)

Notes: The Under City is the most populous by a large margin, leading to very cramped conditions. Spice flows like water down here and crime is a common way of life. Most Healthcare is run out of free Clinics, which of often overburdened by the demand. Due to near to no police presence at the bottom, vigilantes are usually the only thing keeping the Crime Lords and gangs in check.

Mid-Low Level:

The Mid-Low, or the Roots district, makes up the lowest spots on the Hab Towers and the surrounding platforms. The Mid-Low is also the beginnings of what one could call the “Middle Class” though even that would be a slight stretch of the truth of the matter. The entirety of the Mid-Low is split up into 3 “Rungs”. The first being the parts of the mid-low built on the platforms that form the roof over the lower city. The second Rung is the first homes and businesses located in the tower proper, with the smallest Rung being the third (which takes up the five floors beneath the Mid-Up).

Wealth Level: Lower Middle class - Poor

Average Living Conditions: Single room apartments, with most appliances being able to be stored in the walls, thus giving it a bit more space when required

Above Average Living conditions: Two roomed apartments, usually a bed room and a living space (with attached bathroom), though this is not always the case. They can be fold away like the single rooms or can have (what we consider to be) normal furniture.

Notable Places: The outer deck, Lift C (The “Gateway to the ground level”, really it’s one of many, but is simply the biggest), The roof

Notes: It is here that one would begin to see Spice users out in the open, though not as prolific as they would be in the Under City. The police force will patrol this area, but only in large groups and only sparingly from time to time.

The Veiw from the third Rung of the Mid-Low

Mid-Up Level:

The unofficial buffer zone between the Upper level and the lowers, the Mid Up encompasses much of the middle portion of the Hab Towers, ending right before the Canopy begins. It is here that the higher parts of the middle class make their home and do their business. Unlike its sibling, the Mid-Low, the Mid-Up is not separated into Rungs and is instead treated as a whole.

Wealth Level: Upper Middle Class – Lower Middle Class

Average Living Conditions: Two (or three) roomed apartments with an attached bathroom. Usually using variable furniture, instead of the fold away furniture.

Above Average Living conditions: Apartments that have more than three rooms, usually around four but no more than 5. Almost exclusively using variable furniture, these apartments are the beginnings of the opulence that is most predominant in the Canopy, but can be shown here.

Notable Places: Sorinsen Library, The “Staircase” (large mall like area)

Notes: Any Spice done here is done behind closed doors, as the police patrol around this level quite regularly. It is also on this level that augments would begin to be seen.

Upper Level:

The home to the rich and their entourages. The Upper Level, or "Canopy", is the shining example of what money can buy. Always clean, police wherever they can be spared, trees and flowers running down the center of the streets from the recessed plant boxes, not a sniff of spice anywhere in the open. Holoscreens dot the sides of the streets, and in small kiosks, advertising things of all sorts, as well as running the news a set intervals during the day and night (this is in contrast to the ground level where near to all of the screens are bugged, broken, or behind protective barriers) . It is never poorly lit here as well, being bathed in the sun in the day, and illuminated with multiple recessed streetlights as well as overhanging ones during the night. Truly it can be said that here the only worry a person would have is when and where the next dinner party is, or if the business deal will go through.

Wealth Level: Ultra Rich - Rich

Average Living Conditions: Multi room apartments that usually have the same square footage of a small house, or open concept with modular furniture.

Above Average Living conditions: Multi room apartments with the same square footage as an average sized home, or in rare cases slightly bigger.

Notable Places: Tetri-Corvatta Headquarters, City Council chambers, The Gardens, Police HQ

Notes: Spice is almost unheard of here and is only used in private behind at least two locked doors, due to its Opulence police are everywhere. Augments are much more common here.

Augmentations

<///The history of the modern Augmentations is a long history, beginning in the early 2000's with breakthroughs in prosthetic limbs. The greatest breakthrough, however, can be traced to 2029 with the discovery of Amalgam, a synthetic substance which acts as a bonding agent and as a communication conductor between the non-organic augmentations (now commonly referred to as Augs) and the organic tissue of the host. At first the Augmentations were limited to large things like bones and full limbs, but recent breakthroughs have allowed doctors to weave augmentations into the muscle tissue of a host and even (reportedly) into synaptic pathways of the body. While the great expense of Augmentations has been historically seen as a limiting factor in who could receive them, Tetri-Corvatta (Neo Roma's foremost medical technologies company) has continued to express that it stands by its pledge to the people and will continue research into creating cheaper and more accessible Augs.///> - Article snippet from the Neo Roma News, dated March second 2055.

Red Spice

The newest drug, Red spice has come into the scene in a big way. No one knows where it comes from, and it appears few criminal organizations can actually replicate it, driving prices up. It is inhaled or ingested and is usually sold by the half gram (or less). The drug itself comes in two forms, which dictate appearance and effects:

1) Unprocessed. This variation of Red Spice is untreated and unprocessed, making its appearance that of coarse crimson sand. It has the strongest effects with psychoactive elements (such as auditory and visual hallucinations), a state of absolute calm, and reduced metabolism. It is however the easiest to burnout (overdose) with, as no two cases are alike

2) processed. Just as the name implies, this variation of red spice has been treated with a purifying process, giving it the texture and appearance of fine blood red flower. It lacks the visual hallucinations of the unprocessed and cuts down on the auditory as well, but keeps the feeling of calm and the reduced metabolism. It is the hardest to burn out with, as two and a half grams usually needs to be used within a very short span for burnout to occur

What is Burnout?: Simply put, Burnout iw when so much red spice is used that the synapses of the brain literally begin to become confused and misfire, resulting in uncontrolled speech and seizing and ending with death as the synapses deteriorate rapidly.

General Tech and aesthetic

The general aesthetic of this 2055 is easiest to be seen in Deus ex Human Revolution, with holo screens replacing the LED and plasma of today, as well as "dumb" AI's being used in various processes around the city (such as in smart homes, manufacturing, database maintaining, etc..). Another thing that should be noted, is that most of the maintenance work of the city is run by robots, and the police also have access to security droids.

---

CS

Name:
Gender:
Age:
Appearance:
Augmentations: (If applicable)
Equipment:
Job (Vigilante, criminal, crime-boss, Etc) :
Aliases (If necessary):
Notoriety/Fame Rating:
Personalty:
History:

Fame/Notoriety

Notoriety/Fame is on a ranking scale of C-A with C being the lowest. The ranking of C means that you are a unknown, no-one knows your face or name, B would be you are well known among the lower levels (and this is where the divide of fame and Notoriety would begin) with a B rank in Fame security in the Mid-Low might turn a blind eye and most low level criminals will fear you. For Notoriety it is the opposite the Guards might fear you, but they will also pursue you with some amount of vigor.

The A rank is recognition in the Upper Level, everyone knows you, and loves you or hates you. Fame at this level would be an almost mythical status, you are known to everyone (or just the criminals you hunt, depends on how well of a low profile you keep). Notoriety at this level however is abject control and fear, at this point a Criminal or Crime-boss would probably be running a large operation and be known by all departments of the Neo Police, but most would be too panicked by them to even attempt an arrest, save for the most dedicated officers among them.

If you need any more info on the system, feel free to ask.

[Noble_]

What is the technology level for things like transportation, combat, and personal communication?

How difficult is it to move from one level to another. IE. From canopy to ground and vice versa.

I'm interested!

[urukhai]

What is the technology level for things like transportation, combat, and personal communication?

How difficult is it to move from one level to another. IE. From canopy to ground and vice versa.

I'm interested!

@Noble_

Transportation is usually done with your own two feet (due to the lack of space for cars), but for long trips across the city there are Vactrain systems in place that are much like the metro systems of today, but only really in the canopy, roof, and under city. Air transport is also used, and mainly consists of VTOL craft designed for tight spaces.

Combat varies quite a bit, with your common Ground Level weapon would be very much like they are today (semi auto handguns for your normal thugs, shotguns, automatic rifles, etc). But with the police forces (and private security firms) of the canopy useing compact railgun designs, and compact gauss cannon tech for the mechs. But also encompassing anything in between.

Communications are usually done with small hand held devices, or tiny earbud like devices. In the case of the small hand held devices, they are no bigger than our average credit card and are made of a clear material on which their semi transparent display is rendered. Other than that they are used very much like cell phones, video communications included. With the earbud version being simply like bluetooth, that can hook into augmentations in your eye to display information.

Now moving from one level to another can be done a few ways. Using lifts that dot around the internal structures, and vary in size from small 4-5 person elevators to huge cargo lifts (the most common way), using the literal stairs (usually only done if your going up a level or two), the maintenance ladders around the outside of the Hab Towers (if your feeling a touch suicidal), or you could take a VTOL (if your rich). But in the case of going down its not that hard, push a button and your on your marry way. Going up however might require an id check and a lift scan at least (and maybe a check by an armed official depending on where you coming from). But really it depends on what level your going up to, and what method your using to ascend.

Hope that helps and thanks for your interest!

[Pathfinder]

---

Name: Warwick

Gender: Male

Age: 40

Appearance, Left Guy: 6'5 and in his early forties.

Augmentations:
-Cyber Eye, a cybernetic eye with many uses for his line of work. Magnification, various spectrums of light, and a vitals scanner.
-Reinforced Bones, due to a degenerative bone disease from his birth, Warwick has enhanced bone strength however that is only a positive side effect of keeping him together.
-Cyber Arm, simple. The arm replaces his left hand and reaches up to his elbow. Its main purpose is stabilization of any gun he holds, it is also far stronger than any human limb and is far more durable.
Cyber Leg, replaces right leg. The leg can propel Warwick at high speeds and leap to high places. Has a nasty kick.

Equipment: Owns an extensive armory but you will always se him with a powerful handgun, a combat knife, and several grenades.

Job: Hired muscle/Assassin

Aliases: The Enforcer

Notoriety/Fame Rating: B+, He is hired just as much for legitimate work as he is for shady.

Personality: Deadpan, dry, and blunt. Warwick is not afraid to tell you to what he thinks, unless you pay him not to. You see, Warwick is in this business for the singular purpose of making money and making a lot of it. His loyalty is only as deep as your pockets and unless you prove more interesting a client he will drop you off with the tip of a hat.

History: As a kid he was good at hurting people so he decided to make a job out of at, that's about it.

[Noble_]

WIP

Name: Guile Jackson

Gender: Male

Age: 29

Appearance:

Augmentations:
Special Forces Standard Issue: Muscle Weave (Increases Endurance, Increase Strength) Lung Weave (Increases Breath Capacity) Eye Implants (Infrared Spectrum, Zoom Function) Ear Implants (Communication Scanner)

Police "Special" Response Unit Upgrades: Throat Implant (Air Filter: Resistance to Gas based attacks) Hand Implants (Knuckle Contact Tasers)

Equipment: Hard Suit: Made up of a number of different parts from Commercially available pieces, Special forces hard suits, and Police riot gear.
Major Suit Components: Late model aviator combat helmet (HUD, Air Filters/Conditioning)

Job: Vigilantly

Aliases: Major

Notoriety Rating:

Personality:

History:

[urukhai]

Alright!

[Quest]

Just gonna drop my interest here, may join in the near future if you'll have me.

[Dragonbud]

wip

Name: Kylie Evans

Gender: Female

Age: Twenty-Five

Appearance:

Augmentations: (If applicable)

Equipment: Twin Pistols (Named Kick and Ass), a combat knife with flowers carved into the handle, and a backpack full of drugs, alcohol and soda.

Job: Criminal

Aliases: Grease

Notoriety/Fame Rating: B

Personalty: With an affinity for alcohol and drugs, Kylie is an intimidating force. On the outside Kylie likes to act like the bad ass chick she is. She refuses to take shit from anyone who is of lower rank then her. Kylie is extremely foul-mouthed and has the tendency to go into berserk rages. Once you get on her good side, however, things change. She is a lot more laid back, on and off the job. And has been known to throw wild parties in the streets of the under city. She tends not to take things seriously, unless she thinks her life is on the line, and even cracks jokes while committing crimes.

Despite this rough and tough exterior, Kylie is actually more of a softie then she would like to admit. She has an extreme soft spot for innocent people, children, the elderly. She has failed jobs in the past for letting targets go after they began to beg for their lives.

History:

[RavenxVoid]

I'll make a character tooooo

[urukhai]

Wooohoo! I'll start making an IC and will post when we vet a good number of CS's finished

[Lugubrious]

I am interested by this. If a couple other people finish their sheets, I may very well cast my lot in with you all.

[Coronado]

I am writing up my character now. I think I may have gone a bit over the top, they're rather grimdark and perhaps at little op. Though I am enjoying writing it, I am open to all changes. Should I pm you when done or spoiler it here?

[Coronado]

Sorry for double post but here it is. I never remember my spelling being this bad. I think I may have invented some new words too. Above still applies, just pm or shout if anything needs changing.

Hider

Alias: Caliban, real name forgotten
.
Gender: Male
.
Age: Doesn’t know, probably over thirty, maybe little less, likely a lot more. He feels ageless, beyond age.
. 
Job: Technically a Crimelord, Warlord seems more apt.
.
Aliases (If necessary): None.
.
Notoriety/Fame Rating: B+ or A-, only for being relatively unknown on the top floors.
.
Personality: Despite the whirring wreckage of a broken mind Caliban can at times be quite sombre. Though don’t be fooled this quiet demeanour may be broken at any point, nor does it excuse the cruelty of his voice or deed. He has a great weakness for literature. It is important to stress , Caliban does not think in human parameters, his emotional response to any given occurrence is uncertain.
.
Appearance: It is best to leave his appearance up to your imaginations. Standing at a full height of 7 foot 5, but with the stature of a large deformed ape, Caliban is a biomechanical freak show, a wildly chaotic fusion of pale, scarred, leprotic, carrion flesh, under which wires and black blood is clearly visible and industrially blasted, twisted chrome. His barbwire face retains a distinctly human element but appears little more than a nightmare to the sturdiest of souls. For those who dare look at his face would see his right eye is a deep, human green.
.
History: Caliban’s past his cloudy at best. He believes himself to have been born on the ground, to good parents, missionaries perhaps. He must’ve had a better life than many that is for sure, he at least had an education a right few received. At some point he must have visited the upper levels, he remembers the lights most of all. At this point all memories fail and consciousness blackens. After the period of void came madness, after that blood. Then a baseness akin to animality. This mindless being found itself in the wild and empty expanses of the ghost town were in made terror on the junkies and criminals that found themselves in encamped in his territory.
His presence in the ghost town gave rise to the legend of the Beast in Ghost Town. During this stage his brain began to ‘reboot’ day by day recalcifying whatever intellect could be scavenged and skewedly relearning his self-awareness.. Catching a glimpse of his his barb wire face (more poetic that literal) in a pane of glass is what cemented the identity of Caliban. Recalling , as a child reading, Shakespeare’s the Tempest, specifically the line , ‘not honour'd with a human shape’. If he were not a man he would be a monster, Caliban. Knowing full well what his return to humanity would entail, having read Frankenstein after all. Aware of what he had done to all those people he endeavoured to evolve. After all any beast could hunt, it took much more to conqueror. Caliban decided he would partake in the sport of all those cruel men who made themselves a misery to the city of Neo-Roma.
Having quickly grown his Empire through force, low cunning and the horror of his own visage, he currently controls a large if exceptionally poor (even by Ground standards) swath of territory along/around/including the border of the industrial Ghost zone. His territory is for all intents and purposes lawless, so long as his ever shifting cabal of lieutenants remained loyal to him, (which they would, for they cannot match him) he is satisfied. His potentates income is less that that of the major Crimelords but wealth is not what concerns him. His gang largely makes money from the extortion of local and tolling those who attempt to make use of health clinics as well as pushing minor drugs. He has yet to find a stable supplier of Red Spice nor has he moved on the Tetri-Corvatta clinics. His relation with the other Crimelords is a less than diplomatic, unending hostility, there are constant, unimportant border skirmishes.
.
Augmentations: Caliban is more of a machine than man and more of a monster than machine.
-Low tech but extremely forceful enhanced muscle synapses with back up servos and several industrial pistons which massively boost strength and endurance, the perceived weight of these modifications is counteracted by their efficiency. Caliban is surprisingly expedite and agile.
-Intermittent patches of bullet proof weave, whatever compound it was made out of was obviously a prototype as many patches have begun to rust. Furthermore there are several large battle-scarred tensile plates welded onto his body which look like they could take a significant amount of damage.
-A large array of bladed weapons are strewn across his body which vary from concealed circular, hard tipped spinning saw blades to rudimentary knives.
-Not an augmentation per say but hidden within the crevices and scars of Caliban’s twisted body are diminutive spindly robotic spiders which regularly prong there way across his wounded body making whatever repairs they can, from welding to stitching to the removal of viscera.
-From his hunched back and upper arms protrude all manner of antennas and spikes, which alert him to thermal, electrical and chemical changes in close vicinity.
-Perhaps several mental and visual upgrades over which he has very tentative control if any at all.
-He assumes his organs are not his own. He needs not eat , drink or sleep, nor does he tire. His blood slicks around his veins a sickly black. He assumes he doesn't need to breath as he never runs out of breath and his nervous system is not that of a normal man having believed he has broken his spine several times. As a result of this Caliban is unaffected by red spice and all other intoxicants.
.
Equipment: Little if any that isn't attached to his body except for a dirty mustard shawl he drapes around his body as a minimum semblance of human practice.

Edit: Whoops! Looks like "of Ghost Town" has already been claimed.

[urukhai]

Hmm, I'll pm you about some stuff, but other than that it looks pretty good

[urukhai]

So how is everyone?

[Lugubrious]

I'm still keeping an eye on this, seeing if it's a good plan to hop in.

[Pathfinder]

@urukhai

Sorry its taken me five years to get back here, It's been super busy here and I've really only had time to focus on another RP I'm in. I'll be getting my character done soon.

[Pathfinder]

I'm done.