OOC for this.



The city.

It's not exactly known when the cities along the northern coast of the Gulf of Thailand merged into the single continuous sprawl of wet concrete and searing neon they are today, but the event itself is undeniable. From Bangkok to Phnom Pehn, city. Stands of spindly skyscrapers with the lumpy gray of the slums groveling at their feet. Waterways perpetually clogged with unmanned supply barges. Crime is rampant and largely ignored where it isn't brutally punished. Capitalism is the order of the day, much of the voracious expansion of the city fueled by the ambition of immense conglomerates worth trillions of baht. And of course, with capitalism comes the massive class divide: executives and investors and entrepreneurs holed up in their shining arcologies while the working people below scrabble to eat, indentured and usually practically enslaved to the companies that employ them, usually drawn from somewhere else with the promise of good work, a better life. They're trapped here, in the biggest city on the planet, in what should be a shining beacon of opportunity. It doesn't have to be just so. But, humans are humans, of course, and so it is.

Who are you? Are you a disgruntled laborer, finally fed up with the torturous state of affairs in your place of work and ready to strike? Are you a criminal? A killer-for-hire? A simple, petty, timeless thief, be it of memes or gold or drugs? Or are you something else entirely?

K there's the pretentious exposition pitch thing taken care of. Uhh yeah everything determined in the interest check still applies as far as setting goes. Augmentations exist, the government is basically a figurehead and is controlled by megacorps because duh it's cyberpunk, there's a """""cyberspace"""""-type thing that's used for recreation and also houses runaway AIs that deal in information services. Space travel is expensive but can be done dangerously and slightly cheaper via unlicensed services. The culture is cosmopolitan as hell and just about everyone's mixed-race and from somewhere else.

I won't ask you to make a character sheet. I want you to make a pretty descriptive write-up, though. Nothing ridiculously complex; just give your character some dimensions. Background, motivations, personality, in addition to standard superficial stuff like appearance. Note that it'll also serve as an impromptu test of your writing ability.

I suppose we can work out some type of plot hook once we have everyone's character, something that'll neatly include everyone.

Oh and I'm not making a formal minimum on post length. Sometimes there just isn't much to type without resorting to filler, and I don't want to create an environment where that feels like a necessity. Just try, please.

Excelsior! I'll be finishing my write up relatively soon. I'm writing a scene with an epilogue/CS attached. I assume this is what you're looking for or at least will find acceptable.

I'll also work on a write-up; my character may be pretty useless in a combat situation, it depends if I go with the idea I'm planning. Hope he can still be pro-active!

Making a character seems to take a bit longer than i had forseen.

I'll have my sheet up before the end of the week.

i'll see what i can do here in the next day or so. I'll try to find time on my trip next week too to be involved in the rp. Might have to hold off in involving my character until I get back. We shall see how the trip goes ;)

Enticing!

This looks amazing! This is merging one of my favorite parts of the world with one of my favorite genres. Definitely joining.

I'll be posting a sheet tonight or tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully tonight.

aight b.

Yeahhhh I'll probably get mine up pretty soon, so you guys actually have some idea of where to go here.

I have a couple of different ideas for characters atm:

-A transhumanist anti-capitalist terrorist masquerading as the matron of a brothel
-A procurer of illicit biotech and weapons that operates from houseboats along the Mekong
-An up-and-coming broker of one of the largest megacorps who becomes involved in the seedy underbelly of the city. Psychopathic tendencies. Could possibly have dealings with the first character.

Any of these sound good?

...I like the way you think. Any of those is fine.

I already said I was doing biotech in the interest check, and I have a whole character sorted. Please don't make me redo everything.

On that topic, I've not got round to the writeup due to my broken arm. I should have it done soon, though.

Ah that's right. k Babbysama maybe just choose one of the ones that's not biotech.

And you know what? I've been trying to cobble together a writeup here and I don't really think I'm going to require it any more. If you still want to use one, I'll take it, but it just seems difficult to me to include any significant amount of detail about the character within a short prose piece without things coming out kind of stilted. If you're putting up a character sheet I wanna see at least these things:

Name/Age/Appearance

Background(Doesn't have to be huge, but should at least cover how the character ended up in the city, how they ended up doing whatever they're doing, and maybe stuff about their life before.)

Personality(I'd prefer it if this contained at least one dimension :P)

Skills/abilities/augmentations(probably the most advanced you should to be here is a full cyborg, but equipped for espionage or something. No unstoppable killing machines. Obviously combat implants are fine, but they're extremely expensive and there should be some reason for your having them.)

Current state-of-affairs(Basically how they're doing in life, what they're currently doing, their living situation, et cetera. Useful for trying to tie all the characters together with a plot hook)

Relationships/allegiances/rivalries(Try to come up with a few characters your character would be associated with in some way and describe them briefly. What they do, where they live, general stuff.)

Feel free to add whatever you like to that, but I'd like to see info about all of those areas, at least.

Groovy. I'll see if I can get mine wrapped up and posted tonight or tomorrow. It'll be done shortly.

@GrandDM2
Okay, so is your character like a biotech dealer...or...?

Also, I'm wondering, is there an official language for the city, or do different portions speak different languages?
For instance, would people other than the natives still speak Khmer in the area near Phnom Penh, Thai in the Thai portion, Vietnamese along the Vietnamese coast? I know that there are a lot of immigrants and most people are of mixed race, so is there a lingua franca used by everyone to bridge the gap?

I'm sure there would be some sort of Thieves' Cant or trade language in the inner city. There are plenty of historical examples of melting pots creating their own patois out of mixed cultures and languages. The Creole/Cajuns of the United States are a good example.

Hell, even American English is a patois of sorts, given that it borrows so heavily from other languages. Much more so than UK English.

Name: Oliver “Ollie” Campbell

Age: 34

Appearance:

Height: 1.7m / 5’8”
Weight: 104kg / 230lbs

Description: Oliver Campbell is a physically imposing man. Though of just-barely average height (in Europe, anyway,) his barrel chest and bull-like shoulders give him a presence that many taller men envy. He seems to have been carved out of slabs of rock; what he lacks in ripped definition, he more than makes up for in raw power, and if anything the layer of fat he carries over his muscled frame only serves to reinforce the fact that his is a strength born of hard work and hard living, rather than neatly sculpted beneath the halogen bulbs of a gym.

His blue eyes are deep-set beneath a heavy brow, and his nose has been broken and poorly set several times. The top of his shaven head carries small scars earned in dozens of scuffles, street fights, and barroom brawls, and his knuckles are heavily scarred from years of hard work and conflict.

Image:



Background: Oliver was born on London’s East End, to a loving drunk of a father and a sober shrew of a mother. His father died in a bar brawl when he was a young boy, the victim of a man with a hunting knife and a chip on his shoulder. Young Ollie became the man of the house, and began working at a young age to support his mother and three younger brothers. He worked as a day-laborer at the dockyards, starting under-the-table at 15 and staying with it until his 18th birthday, when he joined the British Army.

Ollie served three of his four years as an infantryman, and was present at the disastrous “Battle of Fox Bay” during the Third War for the Falklands, where the British Army sustained heavy losses and was eventually driven off the island. During the retreat he was run down by a panicked truck driver, and nearly killed. Though he survived his injuries and the military medical personnel repaired the damage as best they could, he was deemed no longer fit for military service, and medically discharged.

Upon returning home, the listless soldier returned to his own neighborhood spiritually defeated. The residual pain from his injuries led to an addiction to pain medication, which he obtained through illicit contacts from his youth. To afford his new “prescriptions” the burly young man began working as muscle for drug dealers and hoodlums in London’s underworld. His natural build and surly post-war attitude made him an excellent enforcer, and his addiction to the drugs was an effective chemical leash.

Eventually, the mounting debt became too great for him to work off, and at the age of 25 he fled the country, eventually ending up in Thailand. His old habits returned with a vengeance, and he immediately set himself up with the local underworld, operating primarily as a free-lance debt collector who sold his services to anyone willing to pay for a bit of muscle. Now, with his drug habit under control and a firmly established reputation for both reliability and violence, he continues to ply his trade in the inner-city streets of The Sprawl, doling out physical punishment for money.

Personality: Despite his lifestyle and past, Oliver does not consider himself a “bad” person. He certainly accepts that he’s capable of violence, and knows that what he does isn’t exactly family-friendly, but he consoles himself with the knowledge that ultimately, the people he’s working over have brought it upon themselves. He learned the hard way that debts should always be paid, and the fact that he facilitates such payments has become a point of pride for him.

Outside of “work”, Ollie is a surprisingly relaxed man. He has several solid drinking-buddies at a variety of inner-city bars, and gets along as well with the natives as he does with his fellow expatriates. His gallows humor and dry wit make for entertaining conversation, and though he’s quick to violence when it comes to business, he’s remarkably slow to anger in social settings. He’s pragmatic about his life; violence is work, and if he’s not at work, why be violent?

Skills:
-Comfortable and well-trained with most kinds of firearms. Though not a sniper by any means, he’s certainly more experienced than your average Joe Citizen. He generally carries a small pistol when on the job, just in case things go beyond fisticuffs.

-Physically strong. Ollie is a very muscular man, and it shows. It’s rare that someone is able to physically overpower him without augmentations, and he can deal punishing damage with his ham-hock fists.

-Street fighter. Ollie really shines in physical confrontation. Though he lacks formal training, and isn’t terribly graceful, his strength, experience, and ability to absorb physical blows like a sponge make him a dangerous opponent in a brawl.

Augmentations:
-Left hip and right knee- Damaged at the Battle of Fox Bay. Both joints were extensively reconstructed by military doctors.
*NOTE These implants are medical grade, not combat enhancements. They allow him to function normally (though not without a residual limp) and provide no other special abilities.
-Bio-laminate- Five years ago, Oliver paid a bio-tech team under-the-table to surgically attach a laminate sheath to the bones of his forearms, wrists, and hands. This laminate is extremely durable, and allows him to put much more power behind his punches without fear of breaking the bones of his hands. Though they don’t make him any stronger, he’s able to punch a cement wall full-force and just bruise his knuckles, rather than shatter his fist.

Current state-of-affairs
Currently, Oliver is living in a one-bedroom apartment down in The Sprawl. He works as a free-lance debt collector and negotiator, collecting on loans from various criminal elements and delivering beatings to delinquent debtors when necessary. He also contracts as a bodyguard when possible. This makes him well connected amongst the lower elements of society; though he isn’t a high-ranking crime boss himself, he’s a trusted associate of many of them, and his free-lance nature and decade of reliable and effective service means that he’s generally got a favor or two he can call in, if things get tight.

Relationships/allegiances/rivalries - WIP

Character sheet is up. Wasn't sure where to put it, so here it is...If it needs to be moved, let me know. I'm open to edits, but I don't think he's too overpowered at all. Just a step or two above "Thug 1" and "Thug 2". Definitely not a terminator.

Yeah, we can just keep sheets in here. And that's certainly not overpowered. Accepted! Additionally, once more people start posting ideas for characters or the sheets themselves, you can have some of them be prior relationships, if you can both work out a story for the connection.

babbysama said
Also, I'm wondering, is there an official language for the city, or do different portions speak different languages? For instance, would people other than the natives still speak Khmer in the area near Phnom Penh, Thai in the Thai portion, Vietnamese along the Vietnamese coast? I know that there are a lot of immigrants and most people are of mixed race, so is there a lingua franca used by everyone to bridge the gap?

Uhhhhh gonna be real here man you've given this much more thought than I have hahaha. For convenience's sake for now I'd suppose that the general lingua franca is English, since most of the multinational corps that came and essentially colonized the area are from the Western world, but of course the native languages of each area are going to be present. Hm. I'm not sure, but in general I'd think that translation technology wouldn't make this too much of an issue on the "metagame" side of things. Lore-wise I'd love to hear what you think would make sense. Maybe English/whatever we decide this trade language will be is just more prevalent in the corporate centers and as you radiate out it becomes much more varied.