Section 19

[Durandal]

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to your new lives. The world is yours to change.

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Section 19 is a relatively recent idea that came out of random thoughts over what RP to finally make combined with finding out that another Deus Ex game is currently in production, spurring me to consider a cyberpunk themed RP.

The world, one which I have yet to name, is for all intents and purposes an alternate Earth, even if the planet is not Earth itself. War has consumed a majority of the world's nations for near three years as of the starting point of the RP, a very brutal, tiring war, arising from arguments over territorial sovereignty, dwindling world resources, and the power complex of an unstable dictator, becoming a three-way war once a former megacorporation decided to join in the fun. Very much in a cyberpunk manner, you, the players, will be exposed to robots, powered armor, artificial intelligence, augmentations, and all manners of technology which are in development or pipe dreams in our modern world. However, it is very much a non-traditional style RP.

Cyberpunk focuses in large part on the rebellious segments of society, those who oppose/resent some totalitarian government or corporation whose only goal is to make the world's population miserable. I intend to focus heavily on the "cyber" rather than "punk" part of the genre, however. You will take the role of government agents in the RPs namesake organization, Section 19, similar to an amalgamation of the CIA, FBI, Military Special Operations Forces, and Secret Service, created earlier in the world's timeline as a response to the growing threat presented by terrorism. Although not directly participating in the war, the operations you undertake have as much influence on the world as that of the militaries of the various nations in their sweeping engagements. Although there is no set plot which you will follow, there is an underlying threat of the rise of genetic augmentation, an untraceable, almost unnoticeable method by which groups with access to the technology can make secret super soldiers, making the world a much more dangerous place, and one of the underlying goals of your task force will be to stop these projects at their heart if they appear.

Be warned that this RP will not be very traditional in terms of management. It will evolve and react much as the real world does, with your actions having rippling consequences that can and will affect future operations, dialogue, and interactions with people and the environment. Outside of managing my own member of the team, I will not be the GM, I will be akin to God. I can and probably will arbitrarily act upon your characters in some situations and you will abide by my decision in the end, because in the real world you don't have a say if someone comes out of an alley randomly and smashes into your car before you can react, nor do you have much of a choice if a bullet comes out of nowhere and hits you. That is not to say you cannot ask me, respectfully mind you, to rethink the decision, or that I will not take your character's current state of mind and health into take; I will never kill or permanently incapacitate one of your characters without your permission. You will not find this RP an easy adventure, and if you join it expecting to be so, then I sincerely thank you for the interest, but perhaps you should not join.

I expect a higher level of writing ability from participants, meaning a well-lengthed paragraph or two at minimum per post. Posting I would like to happen once or twice a week, though if it must proceed more slowly or quickly than we can do so. Please make sure to notify me if you have issues with making a deadline. I hope you have enjoyed reading this blurb, and that the RP idea interests you! At the moment, I plan for the RP to have five players. Note that setting ideas are not finalized, so some aspects may change. Expect graphic content, although it may not be present depending on player actions.

Character Sheet

Name:

Age:

Gender:

Team Position: (To be determined when I get the RP set up)

Appearance:

Personality: (Picture optional, but written description is mandatory)

Equipment: (More on this in the actual RP, nothing fancy for now)

Skills:

Augmentations: (Subject to revision)

History:

(Make these characters come alive. I don't expect very lengthy character sheets, but please develop them well)

[Ulstermann]

This is extremely interesting. I'm ready to give it a go.

[Haeo]

This is a fascinating concept and I am interested indeed.

[FantasyChic]

Quite the interesting concept. I am intrigued.

[Durandal]

Thank you all for showing interest! Adding in some clarification, my policy of arbitrary decisions will happen infrequently, turning up on a case by case basis. For the most part, expect a normal procedure in terms of RPing. If you have any questions, I'd be glad to answer them.

[Ulstermann]

Can you give us some mor detail on the world? I mean by that the actual planet.

[Durandal]

As in cultures, geography, nations, etc?

[Ulstermann]

Yeah.

[Ulstermann]

So I can get the old brain box working on a possible PC.

[Durandal]

Alright, here it goes. I have no map for the world as of yet, for I have not the artistic skills to create such a piece of art and have not found a representation to my liking. However, I shall attempt to acquire a visual by the time that the actual RP goes up.

Onwards to more about the setting itself. There are four major nations in the world, wielding the greatest influence of all of the planet's states. They are the Tarhague Republic, the Mersian Federated State, the Ascandian League, and the Kingdom of Halesh. Tarhague's government operates under a democratic parliamentary system similar to that of England's without the monarch. Not terribly strong economically, many still travel to this nation, boosting its already large population. Not directly involved in the war which consumes the world, many refugees flee to Tarhague in hopes of restarting their lives, with the government willing to accommodate many of these peoples. Moderate in ideology and action, Tarhague is renowned for its stability. Rising consumption of alternative energy sources and the dwindling of easily accessible oil supplies have placed the largest strain on their economy. Cities within the nation are much like modern New York City, with the outer areas not being as settled and medium-sized areas of natural land separating the inhabited areas, although many live in such zones to escape the bustle of contemporary society. Augmentations in Tarhague are the pinnacle of normal, with price, quality, availability, and sophistication generally standing in the middle of world standards.

Mersia leads the Coalition, host to the most powerful military of the Coalition in size and organization if not technology. Their economy is somewhat stinted due to heavy regulation of business, with much of their overseas exports made in the form of farm products, the result of the dedication of the majority of the nation's space to crop and grazing area. Hive cities are necessarily dense, some of the densest in the world, with an average population of 330,000 inhabitants per square mile in the hives, although the exact measurement varies. Government policy is socialist in nature although there exists comparatively small corruption and opposition to such a form of rule. Instead, much of the conflict within the country stems from the ideological struggles of those whom support or oppose the expansion of augmentation. Most augmentations are generally on the lower scale for the manufacturing capabilities of Mersia is less than that of others. In terms of culture, it can be roughly considered similar to real world Latin American countries.

The Ascandian League is a totalitarian state with vibrant nationalism infusing the core population and some related ideological groups, but most of the compliant and conquered countries resent the League. The military of Ascandia is large, advanced, and competent, one of the few reasons it has been able to sustain itself against its foes; their economy has also shifted almost entirely to production of war goods, replacing losses in a hasty manner. Opposing the Coalition and Corporation, regimented law and oppressive measures are common within the boundaries of Ascandian territory. A massive urban sprawl covers much of Ascandia's surface territory, with its subsidiary members varying in this aspect. Dedicated farming and industrial complexes occupy key areas, above or underground, entrenching them firmly within their territory. AUgmentations are of high quality and expensive to acquire, assuming one can even do so outside of the League military. A thriving black market exists inside the country.

Halesh is similar to the Holy Roman Empire in government style, with the monarch theoretically wielding great power but not in practice. Nobles administrate many of the provinces, although civilian government personnel can rarely attain such positions. Very industrialized and facing the problems common to such nations, exploitation and corruption are rife within Halesh. Hive cities are small relative to the rest of the world although much more numerous, with a proportionally larger number of people existing outside of the confines of the hive cities. An ethno-centric culture, racism and bigotry is a common problem when dealing with Halesh society. Joining the Colaition as a means of weakening Ascand's power, they contribute less than they should towards the war effort. Augmentions, although minor, are generally quite advanced.

Hive cities are one of the developments which occurred during the timeline of the planet's history, with the first recognizable organizations appearing approximately 29 years ago. A consolidation of government, population, and production, hive cities are extremely dense metropolises, similar to and named after the similar cities in the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Much of the world's population lives in these areas, and many of your adventures will take place here as well.

Augmentations have almost fully replaced prosthetics and are arguably the most important developments to occur within the world. Mostly made of metal and plastic and dealing with physical rather than mental processes, high-grade augments utilize carbon fibers or arer materials in their creation. Despite the proliferation of such devices, the procedure to install an augmentation is invasive, hazardous, and sometimes unsuccessful as the gene-conditioning procedure to coax the body to accept such an installation is prohibitively expensive. Able to outperform even peak humans with mid-grade augmentations, this class of technology enables greater feats of skill and advancement than any time before. Many, if not most, augmentations come with am in-built battery which can be charged through any normal or specialized port, although the latter is highly recommended. Additionally, one can create a special connection in order to use the body's own energy reserves to power augmentations in case of emergencies, although such systems requisite a higher rate of food consumption. Limb replacements are the most common, followed by organ, eye, and finally cereberal enhancements. Augmentations can range from unnoticeable changes in body structures to full replacement. I would like to think of the augmentations in Deus Ex as similar to the mid/mid-high end of augmentation.

More to come later.

[Lady Seraphina]

Is this still accepting? Also what level of augmentation would players generally be allowed and could you give some more details on the formation and operation of Section 19?

[Durandal]

Yes, this is still accepting. As to level of augmentation, players will generally be assumed to have higher quality augmentations than normal and in greater amounts, but not terribly so at the beginning. While I will not allow near-full body replacement at the start, that is something you can work towards. So no more than two limb enhancements and replacements, non-exclusive. No more than one optical augmentation, no more than two organ augmentations. Please note that this is tentative and the limits may change by the time the RP begins.

As to how advanced the augmentations shall be, a lot of them are fairly basic in nature. Normally, the bionic parts are simply that, metal and plastic replacements for pieces of your body. However, things such as inbuilt weapons, defense systems, radar, data tethers, filters, etc. also appear in the world. If you are familiar with the Deus Ex series, I am basing the augmentations somewhat off of those. Cerebral enhancements shall be, for the moment, done on a case-by-case basis. When I get home I will write up some of the information I have about Section.

Edit: If you come up with an interesting aug, then I will review it and make a decision as to whether it needs to be changed somewhat or not

[Ulstermann]

And seeing as this is not on Earth, are there any non-human species?

[Durandal]

And seeing as this is not on Earth, are there any non-human species?

@Ulstermann

Under consideration. I'll make a decision soon, along with a CS so you can start planning

[Tearstone]

Even just reading the opening this sounds like Ghost in the Shell. *thumbs up!*

interested still.

[Mifuyne]

Would nano-technology exist in any shape or form in this world? I was toying with the idea of a character whose augmentation uses nanites to accelerate healing. Of course there would be cons to this (along with augmentation rejection), I'm thinking stuff like how it has a high risk of causing fatigue/exhaustion depending on how much healing needs to happen and how quickly. The nanites would need to draw material from the body itself (bone marrow, fat, etc) to do the repairs and to keep itself powered through the process. The faster they need to work, the more taxing the process is on the body. There may be some other augmentations that could offset this, but I'll consider it in greater details if the idea is allowed.

The backstory to that would involve the character being a volunteer to a military pilot project, which makes him first gen.

Let me know what you think. I'm not super attached to the character so I can always think of something else if it doesn't work, but I am interesting in participating :)

[JulienJaden]

I like what you present of the world so far. No guarantees yet but I am interested in where you are going with this.

[Durandal]

I would like to thank everyone who has shown interest thus far. Updates may be a bit slower than planned as I am somewhat busier than normal this week, but I will be doing my best to present you with the information I have created.

@Mifuyne Nanotechnology is very much a developing part of the setting of Section 19, seen primarily in the creation of nanostructures, directed medicine, and nano-scale electronic components. An augmentation like you describe would certainly be possible for someone with access to the right technologies, such as in the military pilot project in which he participated according to you. At the moment, it sounds good to me.

I have made a character sheet if any of you wish to begin creating one, but applications will not occur until I set up the actual RP itself.

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EDIT
Prepare for blurb about Section 19, the organization, itself.

Section 19 arose approximately 10-20 years, a detail that is yet to be determined but should not be terribly important if at all to the proceedings of the RP itself. Created as a response to the growing threat of terrorism and war within the world, a group of nations multilaterally contributed portions of their military, foreign and domestic intelligence committees, and administrative personnel to the fledgling organization, code-named Section 19 by the participants after the date of the conference's beginning. No official name was established by the attendees and none by any of the directors, preferring instead to refer to the organization by its original designation.

Originally overseen by a committee of government officials randomly selected from the constituent nations, Section has since then developed an autonomy outside of supervision, allowing them to operate in manners which might not always be legal but ensure smoother operations. Recruiting occurs both with assignments from governments as well as independent enlistment of candidates. Entry requirements are stringent in both physical and mental fields for most positions, ensuring that only those who can do their job well enter Section, supplemented by a thorough psychological and background examination. An entire wing of Section is devoted to internal affairs, ensuring the continued health and dedication of personnel and investigating possible signs of mental trauma or corruption.

The field and intelligence operative wings of Section are organized in a pyramidal cell-type structure. Most common are the field teams, collections of 3 to fifty people who cooperate frequently with each other to further their assigned task, be it the gathering of intelligence for an operation, assassination of a target, or simply assisting in the execution of a construction initiative. Teams are built specifically for their purpose but with a mind aimed towards versatility, so that the loss of a member will not spell the end of that cell and their operation. Information about the operations of other cells are normally withheld so as to ensure the safety of the organization's personnel as a whole.

Managing the cells are networks of intelligence and administrative personnel, equal to or greater in number than those whose tasks they help facilitate. Collating information gathered by the cells and determining the worth of this information, the networks also assign secondary objectives if necessary. Network hubs operate outside of active zones so that their can be no overlap in territory and further secure the safety of Section.

Directors and sub-directors manage entire wings of Section, responsible for prodigious amounts of material and personnel. The equipment available to Section operatives is some of the most advanced in the world, although often loaned out from armories only on special request due to the possibility of the technology being lost. Doesn't stop many from enjoying their "toys." Recently, Section has become involved within the war itself, with many cells deployed as substitutes for standard Special Operations Forces or on propaganda/subversion missions.

You will play as one of these cells, operating in various locations for different purposes under different rules of procedure, from combat to civilian interaction.

[Durandal]

@Everyone
I will create the RP page sometime within the next couple of days, hopefully today when I get back home.

[Ulstermann]

Looking forward to it.