All right, let's have a look at the few things that we likely should, sooner or later.

Full 'borgs. They are expensive. So expensive in fact, that most full body converted people do not own themselves. Most of them indeed make a contract with a corporation and have their body rigged to explode/disable itself/whatever appropriate if they move against the contract made. And even then they are mostly utilised as soldiers, few for pilot or research purposes. Not as rare as androids, because fully electronic brains are extremely difficult, but still quite unlikely an occurrence.

What has been chosen for the story thus far, if I am not mistaken, we chose to go for Lt. Davison having disappeared. His status is unknown to everyone, even the NCPD, but everyone wants to get their hands on him. The corporation (which probably needs a name, I propose we salvage Murkywater Security), the police department, the gangs, and then there's the relatives of the man. The last one probably has the least resources to spend? Either way, this allows for characters from multiple walks of life who may or may not end up forming alliances or competing directly with one another. It's Night City. The usual Friday night has at least a hundred firefights.

Lastly, the character sheet format. Suppose it should be at least something like below. Criticism and improvements encouraged!

Created 0th posts for OOC and Characters tabs. Anyone who wants to share the burden of keeping them up to date with me is welcome to do so, we have a few of these Co-GM stickers that let one do that still available.

I am all the willing to manage those things as they come, @Hekazu. All I would ask is that if anyone has lore they wish to add to the document, that they please inform me as soon as possible. I say this so I can prioritize getting universal understanding about it out with the reference portion. Assuming you choose someone else, I strongly recommend they begin on such a project for all our sake.

I think that's a great CS, simple yet thorough, and the story you outlined is ideal. Again, simple yet thorough. The android topic has been cleared, I believe? I'd just like to put out a final round for questions before we kick off, because I am fearing that should the conversation carry on much longer, interest will dwindle. This is not to slag off the conversations, but I feel we really should get a kick on. My opinion anyway, but let me know if there's anything we can bring up the now.

I am all the willing to manage those things as they come, @Hekazu. All I would ask is that if anyone has lore they wish to add to the document, that they please inform me as soon as possible. I say this so I can prioritize getting universal understanding about it out with the reference portion. Assuming you choose someone else, I strongly recommend they begin on such a project for all our sake.

Could I get a link to the document as well, for viewing purposes? For those of us without access to the RPG Discord Server.

There is no document we are using as of yet, other than one for inspiration, which I take is the one you need, @Terminal?

No, I was under the impression it was a setting lore document. Disregard, as you were.

@The Scotsman, @Terminal, @Hekazu, @SleepingSilence, @DJAtomika, @DeadDrop

It comes down now to are there any further, outlying questions that have yet to be addressed? I believe we can, at least to some extent, begin with the character template and start from there, seeing what we encounter next and dealing with concerns as they come. As far as I cans see however, most all are eager to move on to that, but do correct me if I am wrong in my perception there. For myself, however? No questions at the moment, though when we see the characters I suspect some will arise.

I guess my only question is does anyone have a problem with full body conversions? I'm fully aware and intending to do what would make sense/use logical steps to justify it. (I'd like to know in advance.)

Might be a little busy this weekend? Time will tell, but will try to work on a character sheet as soon as can.

I guess my only question is does anyone have a problem with full body conversions? I'm fully aware and intending to do what would make sense/use logical steps to justify it. (I'd like to know in advance.)

They are a part of the setting, to be sure. I however find any and all of said individuals to be astronomically unlikely to be taking part in the Davison case, not the least because very few exist outside direct megacorporation governance. The lack of humanity in full 'borgs stemming from their obviously superhuman status makes it unlikely that they would be interested out of their own consciousness either. Said lack of empathy is, after all, the base cyberpsychosis jumps up from. Why care about the lesser beings if you are so much greater than them? These are the main troubles I can currently recall to mind as I think what including a post-full conversion individual in the initial storyline would bring.

As noted before I see no reason for it to be impossible, but with the angle we are going on the game and attempting to keep the scope much more narrow in application, I am wary of it. That is just myself, @SleepingSilence. My position on the matter has been well stated thus far, but again it is more of "It isn't likely and we wish to avoid everyone trying to top one another." For if we go down that road, others may feel obligated to match or exceed ability. Fortunately, as it is now, no one seems to be stepping on one another's toes, but that is only in this moment and with no submissions yet.

@Hekazu@The Harbinger of Ferocity

Well like I said, won't be a prude. If someone voices a complaint or concern now, it will be better all around before everyone has their stuff already done or heavily worked on. So I'll just scrap my idea entirely and try to think of another idea for a character.

But just so we can squash any further power creep discussions, perhaps we should make perfectly clear the limit of pieces you'd all like to see? One, two, six? Their power/capability is subjective. Is there any certain standard we are setting here? I'd much rather have that cleared up, before we go "mechanical eyes that can see -that- far?!"

You raise a tough question, @SleepingSilence. I believe the most important thing here is that the level of tech makes sense for the character's status and occupation, and we need to also note that a cyborg is, in the end, the sum of their parts. A man with a reflex booster, flash resistant eyes and a smartgun link will be a much greater threat than, say, a guy with the same reflex booster, a biomonitor and skinweave. Things tend to work together. The example for zooming cyberoptics in Cyberpunk 2020 is, I believe, 20x magnification.

are we ready?

@DeadDrop
We have a character sheet form and the base of the plot has been decided on. See 0th post of the OOC section.

I'm still here! Been busy with work and all

@SleepingSilence

I believe the best way to perceive it is what the improvements do in quality, their quantity, and their effect. The majority of people, at least in a major "city" as Night City, do have basic cybernetics, everything from watches to color changing eyes, to generic mass produced biomonitors, to chips for paying as they go, to plugs to connect themselves to their computers and vehicles. Those are assumed standard place, fair game as far as I can imagine because they are open to the regular populace and people all use them. Of course there are those who do not, wisely so depending on their lifestyle, but they are considered few and in between generally. A person with synthetic arms and ultraviolet capable eyes, wired reflexes, and reinforced bone would objectively be unusual, but they are still at least three-fourths human and would not be too unexpected.

That is how I am choosing to view it, where I am concerned that is. "What does the common man have or entertain?" then from there, "What access and entry would deviants from the norm, be them corporate, criminal, or government have?" then build up the pyramid that way to you reach the people who are chrome killing machines with arms that turn into lasers, ten different tools, are mostly cyborgs, can launch miniature missiles from their shoulders, run tirelessly, and react at the speed of light thanks to fiberoptic nerves.

I had thought since it would take me a few days to arrange some matters before I could actually get to this that somebody else would have made a character before me. Suppose I was mistaken. Well, here is Croaks, the one I said I'd provide. I hope I got the name right, it wasn't as simple as I thought... Anyhow, if anyone finds that anything needs elaboration, I will be only happy to do so!

---

Name: Miquel Borges Mão de Ferro Santos, though everybody knows him as "Croaks"

Appearance: Croaks is a large man, despite him lacking any easily visible cybernetics and having not gone through any biografting. His small victory in the genetics lottery did make him taller and more muscular than your average Combat Zone kid though, and when times are rough one has got to count all the blessings they can get. While on the ground, he most often dresses in paramilitary style cargo pants of jungle camouflage style, coupled with heavy black boots, all the while he covers his upper body with a manila string vest. If he is expecting gunfights, he might exchange the stuff for kevlar his gang had bought from good Lieutenant, but he prefers not to.

His hair is kept short, and the river keeps it dyed in its dirty colour. For his skin, the man is tan as his Portuguese heritage would suggest, but with how little sun keeps coming down here it is not anything too impressive.

When doing stuff underwater, he tosses on a black wetsuit with a few yellow stripes on the side, or stripes that once were yellow anyway. The polluted river has made its toll on those. Like any self respecting diver, he will also be seen wearing flippers and an oxygen mask, using a small waist mounted air tank for what he needs. The gigs don't usually take that long. It's better that way.

Cyberware:

• Neuralware
  • Neuralware Processor (Allows any other neuralware to function)
  • Low-end Kerenzikov Reflex booster (Enhances reaction time barely noticeably, but it is there)
• Implants
  • Adrenal Booster (Used to pump more adrenaline in the works for enhanced combat capability. Good for three uses/day.)

Weapons:
On dry land:

• A "surplus" NCPD favoured bullpup submachinegun of questionable origin. Quite similar to its predecessor FN P90, it fires at 900 shots per minute but thanks to the ammunition used being caseless as is the way of the age, the magazine can fit double the bullets, that being 100. Croaks's gun has been painted over with a paint that gives it an oily appearance, as if recently fished out from the river.
• A serrated knife, serration added by himself onto some nice knife he picked up on one of his river lorry raids. Nothing too special about it.

Underwater:

• Marinetech 1765 Harpoon Gun, usually reserved to licensed combat divers. Croaks calls his "Boltcaster".
  Quite a bit more lethal than the usual gun underwater, but much too heavy and clunky to really be of any use outside of water.

Armour: While Croaks prefers to not bother, when the time comes he does toss on a cop grade kevlar vest, and sometimes even changes his pants for the lightly armoured sort. Of course, neither of these are an option when he goes diving. Then it is just the wetsuit and what little protection a rebreather and goggles offer.

Background: Croaks belongs to one of the many gangs in the Night City Combat Zones, and is actually a rather high ranking member of the "Colonel's Corner Amphibians" as they call themselves, based on the fact that around the spot they do most of their work in, at the curve of the river, one can see the neon sign of a bar called Colonel's Corner far above. Croaks is one of the two leader figures of the gang, the other one being Ribby, the nickname belonging to someone Croaks can only call a brother from another mother.

Their gang is small, but as a result quite tightly wound, but small numbers are a big drawback when one takes into account that they need a large headcount or big guns to protect one's turf down here in the slums. Thankfully enough, the saving angel in the for of the crooked Lt. Davison appeared and supplied them for the longest time. Only to vanish in their time of need.

Now that guns and ammo are both running a bit low, there is no other option than to either look for another salesman or find the old one anew. Hopefully without the rest of the gang losing the turf in the meantime. It would get plenty awkward if he needed to try and get the things he was holding for people out of the river until the watchful eye of his rivals.

Went with the atypical "solo" approach as I noted before, working for a third party that is trying to find Lt. Davison. Not all of this, for those of you with the inspirational material that is, is entirely verbatim to its source. A few major overarching themes are, such as solos modifying themselves extensively, although this character has not specialized too much, or that work comes and goes, often dipping into illegal dealings and dabbling.

---

Name: Mark Theron
Appearance: For all intents and purposes Theron is outwardly as human as one might come, at least at a cursory glance of physique and build, although as much is suspect in the age of internalized cybernetics and cosmetic alteration. However, rather than being trimmed in chrome and lined with hardware, Theron is a rehash, a chimera, a "splicer", an exotic, all thanks to the handiwork of microscopic machines and a bit of genetic tinkering and biological trickery to biosculpt. As it goes, it isn't that his athleticism or ability is innate to him, rather it was put there like any other mod, just much more even and throughout. Part of that makes him deceptively human, but there are some clues on the surface he isn't untouched; Theron is too anatomically improved without hardware bolted on to be legitimate. People are not just normally faster, stronger, or more resilient without a good throw of the dice from their parents and probably more than a little training added in. Theron on the other hand is what happens when you decide to throw some of the wilder things into the mix.

The end result is that Theron is lean, as tall as any other man, perhaps a bit taller, and has an abnormally defined build throughout that is uncannily limber, and pocked with too few scars for his own good despite his occupation. Though of course he has a few distinct novelties built in, the kind people do notice; night eyes of the amber variety, retractile rippers, skin grafts and the like, all the thing one does when they want to make an identity for themselves while having too much credit and faith in an employer offering upgrades. Fortunately, he's a bit older now, a bit wiser. Unfortunately, Theron is not all that much better off, but at least he's kept his penchant for having his near-black crew cut and avoiding balding while not being too pale. There's some perks to being an exotic after all, even if not all of you is human throughout anymore.

Unlike the stereotyped ronin or enforcer, Theron opts to avoid the duster and camouflage. Granted he isn't far off of course, preferring black, polished combat boots, grey battle pants, fingerless weighted gloves, smoked polarized adjusting sunglasses, and headed off by a false leather armored jacket. Woven with fiber-optic cable and integrated lighting, it makes for a nice addition anywhere where the air is hazy and simultaneously all too dark and garnished with garish vibrant pinks, yellows, blues, or violet. Of course one could always turn off the lighting, which is at least half of the appeal for when you need to look somewhat professional.

Cyberware:

• Bioware
  • Biosculpting
    • GENX Biomedical Apex Sculpt¹ (Genetic external cosmetic physique and condition improvement, includes pronounced features. Animal donor basis.)
    • GENX Biomedical "Chimera" Template (Viral Modification) (Genetic internal template, allows cross-species grafting, alters base genetic code.)
  • Audio
    • Graff-Stein Research Laboratory "Clairaudience" (Amplified hearing, supersonic, subsonic ranges.)
  • Grafts
    • Re-Human Stage I (Muscle Graft) (Enhanced muscular strength, endurance. Growth hormone, animal donor basis.)
    • Re-Human Stage I (Muscle and Bone Lace) (Viral Modification) (Enhanced muscular and bone strength, endurance, amplification. Organic variant, growth hormone, animal donor basis.)
    • Re-Human Stage I (Nervous Augmentation) (Viral Modification) (Enhanced passive reflexes, reaction. Compare to Kerenzikov Reflex Booster neuralware. Organic variant.)
    • Unlisted Retractile Claws¹ (Compare to generic ripper cyberweapons, animal donor basis. Organic variant.)
  • Immunity
    • Unlisted Metabolism Accelerator¹ (Viral Modification) (Improved healing rate, disease resistance, energy output, metabolic reserve. Shortened life expectancy, increased consumption demands, atypical circulatory and respiratory behavior, animal donor basis. Compare to Enhanced Antibodies.)
  • Olfactory
    • GENX Biomedical "Hunter" Boost (Enhanced perception, tracking by scent. Compare to Olfactory Boost. Organic variant.)
  • Optical
    • GENX Biomedical "Eyeshine" Night-Eyes (See in dim light, near-total darkness. Retinal retroreflector. Amber, predator variant, animal donor basis. Compare to Low Lite^TM cyberoptic.)

_{1 = Grey bioware, cross-species hack, unauthorized tampering with patent(s).}

Weapons:

• Brandish Fingerless Weighted Gloves (Kevlar reinforced, knuckle weighted and polymer capped, fingerless model. Finished in black pseudo-leather.)
• Cobalt M31 Heavy Pistol (Gas-operated, semiautomatic, twelve round, magazine fed, 11mm handgun. Designed to fire tungsten penetrator caseless ammunition. Highly effective against armor and cover, less effective on soft targets due to lacking hollow point ammunition and its over-penetration. Features integrated reflex sight and tritium optic, hand and trigger guard, black polymer finish.)

Armour:

• Cylife "Urban Jungle" False Jacket (Protective light Kevlar jacket, finished in black pseudo-leather, capable of stopping most handgun and submachine gun rounds. Passes for regular leather jacket, but features integrated Synthskin and Biomonitor, both of which are controlled on the sleeves.)

Background: Mark Theron did not so much chip in as he "spliced in", trading far more plentiful, available cyberware for the sort of thing that turns a man inside out and messes with all of the little details deep down inside them. Of course this was easy, everything is when you can pay for it, no matter how deviant the purchase is, and rest assured getting biosculpted at the genetic level into a chimera, a muddied mess of human and animal, is pretty deviant even if it is not obvious as with other exotics. The reward of course for the deviancy was being ahead of the averaged jacked up, glinting booster, yet Theron was far from finished.

What came next was a venture into the criminal underground, first as a hand for hire, rather another added gun for the fight in the Combat Zones of Night City. While this afforded Theron a few more tweaks and augments through the grey market, things that "just so happened" to end up for sale outside their clinics, it wasn't enough. What Theron was looking for cost handily, but at least now he had a base to work from and a reputation. GENX Biomedical, the same ones who provided a number of his earlier augments, were offering work and incentives in place of euros, and it helped to already be on file for their side of the Net. For an aspiring solo, this was an opportunity too good to ignore.

Though like everything good, it never lasted forever. No matter how competitive one remains, everyone is replaceable, and Mark Theron was no exception. GENX Biomedical reorganized not long after and swept away anyone their corporation considered non-essential. While norm for Night City, it set the man back further than desired. Months were spent doing what he had done before in the shallow end of the pool until the Intellitron Corporation decided it needed something more subtle, more atypical, more unexpected and low-key. The type of contracted agent who didn't look like he had seen one too many ripperdocs or stuck too many 'dorphs into what few non-wired veins they still had. What they needed were hunter-killers in one, contracted out to those who could go just about anywhere and complete either role, and Mark Theron was one.

In short order, ending that stint of wandering the street and its Combat Zones again with nothing but animal cunning and some experience, the Intellitron Corporation had another Hunter, and only fitting it was a man who was at least some notable percent leopard. As expected the first few marks went smoothly enough, some hunting and observation, others with a dash of finishing the work. What came next however, was another sealed document, nothing digital, about a Night City Police Department lieutenant by the name of Davison, working for Murkywater Security. And while it was clear there was only two reasonable contractors for the Intellitron Corporation to be directed by in this matter, something else was at play...

Corporations working through proxies don't offer incentives in place of pay.

"Got the Chrome and enhancements.
Got the Attitude right.
Got the metal beneath my skin
Movin' faster than light"

Forget everything you ever thought about cyborgs. Everything. This is the 2000's. Today's cyborg is stylish. His cybernetics are designed for a streamlined, high-mover lifestyle. Whether equipped with implanted data chips in his nervous system to enhance his tennis game, or bioengineered mini-weapons for his personal protection, the cyborg of the 2000's is the cutting edge of high tech living. But he isn't a walking machine either. Cybertech is smoother than that-less obvious. You have to integrate your newtech gadgets into a slick, seamless whole… Of course, it isn’t all about skill.

It's hip and aware to have "hi-tech" grafted onto your body somewhere. If you can afford it, you probably have at least a couple "enhancements": a few software chips installed in your nervous system to interface with your computer, remember your appointments, and improve your racquetball reflexes. If you're "cutting edge," you probably have interface "plugs" to operate computers and vehicles mentally. Maybe your eyes are cyberoptic with a recording function and the latest iris tint, or your hearing is "boosted" to better hear the gossip in the executive lounge.


“I’m not a man /or a machine.
I’m just something in between.
I’m all love / a dynamo
So push the button and let me go.”
The world of Cyberpunk is a combination of savage, sophisticated, modern and retrograde. Fashion-model beautiful techies rub shoulders with battle-armoured road warriors, all of them making the scene in the hottest dance clubs, sleaziest bars and meanest streets this side of the Post-holocaust. But more than anything, Cyberpunk is an attitude. You wear the coolest clothes, use the most advanced tech, know the right people, make the new trends. You plan your crimes in the most select clubs and bars; your enemies are Corporate armies, cyborg bike gangs, power-armoured assassins, computer-wired hackerheads, and sometimes the rival Altcult down the street. Your weapons are nerve, streetsmarts, bravado and the Minami 10 smart-gun on your hip.