Blackout 2030 OOC
On January the first 2030 technology shutdown worldwide sending a world dependent on its electronics into complete disarray and its occupants into a state of tension, fear and panic. Within a week society has almost totally broken away from what was previously considered day to day life. The few institutions that remain organised chase their own tails as they try to make sense of what has happened. In the midst of this all a specially trained United Nations sleeper cell has been activated in order to investigate the causes of and alleviate the effects of what has generally become known as "the Blackout.".
In 2020 the UN launched a unique training programme in order to create a highly unconventional task force. The end result would be numerous sleeper agents ready for activation should a crisis occur. Should a crisis reach the point these sleepers were activated the agents would rendezvous with their nearest counterparts to create a fire-team or squad sized unit. This team must then be able to operate unsupported for extended periods of time and blend into civilian populations if necessary.
In order to meet the criteria required for the UN's unconventional task force the "recruitment agency" looked outside of the box for its potential agents. In order to blend in with civilians and operate unsupported the recruits would require elevated civilian skills (ideally a vocational one such as engineering, construction, medicine...), proficiency in at least a few languages and a comfort in the civilian environment a full time soldier could not hope to achieve. As a result of this candidates were recruited directly from the civilian market with priority individuals being high performing people who matched the criteria required. Once the individuals passed the vigorous screening process they were placed on the training regimen.
Initial training is comprised of a one year intensive course instilling a high level of proficiency in two combat specialisations, a working knowledge of twelve languages, high fitness levels and finally 2 months combat experience in live theatres of operation. Once this year of training is over the now complete agents are assigned to their location where they will live as civilians for ten of twelve months. The other two months are spent on annual refreshers and expansion courses. Your agents have been assigned to southern England.
Every team has a handler. Teams never meet their handler but the handler monitors the teams progress live via the AR systems they use and provides relevant information as well as assigning objectives. Handlers can also commandeer additional resources for their teams. This teams handler is known as Alan Y.Maus and, as far as can be told by his voice he is an american male.
This information is by no means complete or exhaustive. I will be adding to it throughout the roleplay. Feel free to suggest stuff for me to factor in.
Politics
General info
The United Kingdom, Spain, Italy and Greece are no longer part of the European Union. The United Kingdom is the only country to have voluntarily left the union with others being ejected for economic reasons. The United Kingdom has since strengthened its connections to the United States quite substantially whilst the other stray states have connected more strongly to Russia and china. The European Union theoretically remains neutral to what seems to have become an East vs West mentality although, being on the same landmass as Russia and China means it has resorted somewhat to appeasement for a perception of safety.
Black Trade Economy
The black trade economy is an underground network of business transactions that utilises highly illegal hacking and often force to achieve the perpetrators aspirations. Combatants range from individuals to corporations to governments with the world economy on the line. If an individual were aware of the black trade economy and factored it into the world situation that individual could make a justifiable argument for world war three having started years ago.
Corporate States
With the first few of these appearing around 2020 a corporate state is an area of land a corporation has bough from a country and possesses total sovereignty over. This allows the corporations a tax free headquarters and immunity to many laws and conventions that would otherwise dictate how they dictate business. It is not uncommon for a corporate state to have its own private army and frequently these companies possess immense political power and are wealthier than many first world countries.
Technology
Lifestyle:
Medicine:
Medicine has advanced a long way since the early 2000s and the belief that transhumanism, improvement on the human design, is now attainable. Such procedures are highly controversial however and, in the case of military "super-soldier" projects, highly illegal.
Power:
Due to concerns regarding the sustainability of energy provision in the past a number of cleaner energy production methods have been adopted. Unfortunately most circuitry and power generators remain vulnerable to EMP and thus break when exposed to one. Military tech tends to be hardened against emp and is merely disrupted by it if exposed as opposed to being destroyed.
Transport/vehicles:
Weaponry & Warfare:
Please bear in mind at all points when developing your character that they must be able to blend in with civilian populations where possible. A group of obviously armed/armoured characters is going to draw unnecessary and unwanted attention making missions in populated areas much trickier so if you simply must have that extra large sniper rifle please figure out where and how on your person you are going to hide it.
Name:
Alias: This is a name/handle used whilst on operations generally picked by the character. Some characters may choose to use their real names.
Nationality:
Gender:
Age:
Appearance:
A picture and/or a description is acceptable here. An optional description template has been provided in the below.
Optional character appearance template
Height/Build:
Skin tone/colour:
Hair colour and Style:
Eye colour: If your character regularly uses any eyewear such as coloured contacts please list that here in addition to natural eye colour.
Scars/tattoos/birth-signs:
Fashion:
Voice: Technically not part of appearance but actually an important and often overlooked aspect of your characters perception by others.
Personality: optional
Biography: Tell us a bit about your character. What job do they do when they aren't training with the UN? Why did they agree to be a part of the programme?
When picking a specialisation try to look at what other players have put up and do something different. This will help create a more diverse team as well as making your character more unique giving him/her more opportunity to shine in his/her field.
Civilian Specialisation/Job: e.g. Engineering, medicine,
Combat Specialisation: E.g. Driving, explosives, reconnaissance, sniping,
Weapons and ammo: When choosing weapons please bear in mind your characters will have had to purchase these from the black market as they will be starting in the UK where firearms are generally not permitted. This means the weapons would likely be old or cheap, mass-production guns (think 2030 equivalent of the uzi/tec-9). Ammo may be scarce. You might be able to get hold of some grenades of various types.
Equipment:
Standard issue is:
-Augmented reality system. The UN prefers agents wear the contact lens version of these for concealability however for agents who refuse these AR is available in numerous designs of eyewear.
-Bivi bag. An enclosed, waterproof sleeping bag designed for sleeping outdoors unsheltered. This one comes with a second removable layer of insulation to allow adaptability to different climates. When the bag is closed an integrated mini-tent at head level provides some headroom.
-Coms set/camera. This is usually head mounted in a discreet manner such as a bluetooth style headset or similar and is the primary means of communication with the groups handler as well as between characters when out of hearing range. The camera's mounted within transmit images to the handler and can be made to take a still for later use at the click of a button. The headset can also be used to transmit images into the AR system by the handler.
-A 40 litre rucksack with chest and waist straps. These come in various colours, shapes and styles to avoid operatives looking too uniform and help them blend in. They are usually rugged and waterproof.(Customise to taste. May be replaced with a bigger or a smaller one as desired but be sure you can carry what you have.).
-Fixed bladed utility knife and sheath.
-Rations. Enough food to last four days used sparingly.
Gadgets: These are advanced, character specific pieces of equipment. They might be a specialist tool, weapon or device that helps them on the field. Your character may acquire additional ones or upgrades for their current one throughout the plot so don't feel you have to be the be all and end all now! Examples: Strength suit, UAV, guidable/air-fragmenting rounds. Be creative and enjoy!
On January the first 2030 technology shutdown worldwide sending a world dependent on its electronics into complete disarray and its occupants into a state of tension, fear and panic. Within a week society has almost totally broken away from what was previously considered day to day life. The few institutions that remain organised chase their own tails as they try to make sense of what has happened. In the midst of this all a specially trained United Nations sleeper cell has been activated in order to investigate the causes of and alleviate the effects of what has generally become known as "the Blackout.".
In 2020 the UN launched a unique training programme in order to create a highly unconventional task force. The end result would be numerous sleeper agents ready for activation should a crisis occur. Should a crisis reach the point these sleepers were activated the agents would rendezvous with their nearest counterparts to create a fire-team or squad sized unit. This team must then be able to operate unsupported for extended periods of time and blend into civilian populations if necessary.
In order to meet the criteria required for the UN's unconventional task force the "recruitment agency" looked outside of the box for its potential agents. In order to blend in with civilians and operate unsupported the recruits would require elevated civilian skills (ideally a vocational one such as engineering, construction, medicine...), proficiency in at least a few languages and a comfort in the civilian environment a full time soldier could not hope to achieve. As a result of this candidates were recruited directly from the civilian market with priority individuals being high performing people who matched the criteria required. Once the individuals passed the vigorous screening process they were placed on the training regimen.
Initial training is comprised of a one year intensive course instilling a high level of proficiency in two combat specialisations, a working knowledge of twelve languages, high fitness levels and finally 2 months combat experience in live theatres of operation. Once this year of training is over the now complete agents are assigned to their location where they will live as civilians for ten of twelve months. The other two months are spent on annual refreshers and expansion courses. Your agents have been assigned to southern England.
Every team has a handler. Teams never meet their handler but the handler monitors the teams progress live via the AR systems they use and provides relevant information as well as assigning objectives. Handlers can also commandeer additional resources for their teams. This teams handler is known as Alan Y.Maus and, as far as can be told by his voice he is an american male.
This information is by no means complete or exhaustive. I will be adding to it throughout the roleplay. Feel free to suggest stuff for me to factor in.
Politics
General info
The United Kingdom, Spain, Italy and Greece are no longer part of the European Union. The United Kingdom is the only country to have voluntarily left the union with others being ejected for economic reasons. The United Kingdom has since strengthened its connections to the United States quite substantially whilst the other stray states have connected more strongly to Russia and china. The European Union theoretically remains neutral to what seems to have become an East vs West mentality although, being on the same landmass as Russia and China means it has resorted somewhat to appeasement for a perception of safety.
Black Trade Economy
The black trade economy is an underground network of business transactions that utilises highly illegal hacking and often force to achieve the perpetrators aspirations. Combatants range from individuals to corporations to governments with the world economy on the line. If an individual were aware of the black trade economy and factored it into the world situation that individual could make a justifiable argument for world war three having started years ago.
Corporate States
With the first few of these appearing around 2020 a corporate state is an area of land a corporation has bough from a country and possesses total sovereignty over. This allows the corporations a tax free headquarters and immunity to many laws and conventions that would otherwise dictate how they dictate business. It is not uncommon for a corporate state to have its own private army and frequently these companies possess immense political power and are wealthier than many first world countries.
Technology
Lifestyle:
- Augmented Reality and PDEs
Augmented reality has seen unprecedented success by the year 2030 and with it has come the widespread introduction of PDEs (passive data emitters). In its early years of its distribution augmented reality technology was largely demonised for invasion of privacy and a price tag that rendered it unobtainable for the majority. Whilst privacy remains a strongly debated issue by 2030 the convenience of augmented reality technology has completely overridden these concerns and is essential in day to day living in any developed economy.
Augmented reality devices generally utilise a number of sensors to gather information about the environment including cameras and microphones for visual and audio input and then utilise that information to display relevant information to the wearer (usually by visual means).
Passive data emitters (PDEs) are simple information storing devices placed or worn to provide information relating to the location or wearer. They are generally used as signs. These devices aren't powered themselves and thus will work even during a power out. Nearby augmented reality systems will detect the PDEs and display the information it provides. Most PDEs can be reprogrammed by external sources with the right authorisation and a power connection. - Intelligent cities
So called "intelligent cities" are those in which control over the infrastructure has been handed over to a computer system in order to maximise efficiency and minimise human error. Among the more basic tasks assigned to them are traffic control; water and electric distribution and co-ordination of emergency response teams in the event of emergency. These cities are unfortunately vulnerable to hacking (although security is incredibly tight) which makes them a popular target for suitably skilled groups with something to gain.[*]
Medicine:
Medicine has advanced a long way since the early 2000s and the belief that transhumanism, improvement on the human design, is now attainable. Such procedures are highly controversial however and, in the case of military "super-soldier" projects, highly illegal.
[*]Cybernetics
Cybernetic technology has come on in leaps and bounds, particularly in the field of neuroprosthetics. Neuroprosthetics are usually artificial limbs or sensory organs hooked into the body's neural network. Depending how advanced the limb/organ is it can be able to sense touch, temperature, pain and move in response to brain signals. With these it is possible to restore (and theoretically improve) limb functionality and senses such as sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing. Modern limbs however require regular maintenance and replacement parts if damaged can be extremely hard to come by. Prosthetic can look exactly like what they are replacing if desired.
Power:
Due to concerns regarding the sustainability of energy provision in the past a number of cleaner energy production methods have been adopted. Unfortunately most circuitry and power generators remain vulnerable to EMP and thus break when exposed to one. Military tech tends to be hardened against emp and is merely disrupted by it if exposed as opposed to being destroyed.
- Ambient energy harnessing
Small devices such as wrist watches and some mobile phones tend to utilise energy harnessed from their environment now as opposed to a chemical battery. Example sources include ambient vibrations, solar and thermal energy. - Solar towers
Solar towers are a form of clean, renewable energy comprised of a chimney, turbines and large greenhouse structures of which the first was constructed in 2015. The greenhouse at the bottom cumulates heat and humidity which causes the warm air to rise up the chimney which, in turn, turns the turbines and thus generates electrical power. Due to the lush, tropical nature of the land inside the greenhouses agricultural companies encouraged the construction of and even started building their own solar towers seeking to gain the benefits of a double income. By 2030 these structures dominate whole countrysides in some countries.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTkmTsKLRq0&sns=em
Transport/vehicles:
- Drones/auto-pilots
Self piloted vehicles are becoming increasingly commonplace by 2030. Many commercial vehicles are now unmanned and small UAVs can be seen delivering packages. Most combat role vehicles (excluding transport vehicles) are driven by auto-pilots or remotely now. Aircraft in particular tend to be piloted by an ai system or remotely which allows them to make far more physically demanding manoeuvres. - Walkers
Walkers are yet to be and unlikely to be used for mainstream transportation purposes however they recently been introduced for specialist roles such as construction and combat in rough terrain. Walker type vehicles are rarely manned and range from spec ops pack mules to large BWPs (bi-pedal weapons platforms).
http://www.futuretimeline.net/21stcentury/2014.htm#robotic-pack-mules
Weaponry & Warfare:
- Electronic Warfare
Low profile, low risk and highly effective hacking tends to be the first and sometimes the last weapon employed in warfare on any scale. With the world as dependent on technology as it is now and ideas alone worth billions electronic warfare is an indispensable tool in anyones arsenal. The right button presses and one can shut down entire cities for weeks, become a billionaire or topple corporations and governments without ever having fired a single shot. Ultimately however when it comes to the collection of physical assets more traditional approaches are needed. Not that traditional is defined the same way anymore. - Small arms.
The basic concept of small-arms technology remains the same as it has for hundreds of years now. Rapid gas expansion is used to drive a projectile at high speeds down the barrel. What has changed is the formatting of the firearm and the ammunition fired from it.
Most small arms utilise the bull-pup format now (in which the firing mechanism is located behind the trigger) and longitudinal and cylindrical magazine designs have become much more prevalent to increase the ammunition capacity of the weapons without excessive protrusions from the gun. Cutting edge firearms have re-adopted caseless ammunition to allow much higher rates of fire by skipping shell ejection stages. Modern cased ammo guns tend to use forward ejection of the round to allow full ambidexterity despite the bullpup format.
Some weapons introduced as early as 1949 still see common use around the world despite advances in firearm technology. The ak-47 is one such example. - Rail-guns and gauss cannons.
These are the cutting edge in ordnance weapons by 2030. In these weapons electromagnetism is used to give the projectile it's energy and are capable of firing immense distances with incredible accuracy. The large power supplies required mean that they are only really practical for fixed or naval applications.
Please bear in mind at all points when developing your character that they must be able to blend in with civilian populations where possible. A group of obviously armed/armoured characters is going to draw unnecessary and unwanted attention making missions in populated areas much trickier so if you simply must have that extra large sniper rifle please figure out where and how on your person you are going to hide it.
Name:
Alias: This is a name/handle used whilst on operations generally picked by the character. Some characters may choose to use their real names.
Nationality:
Gender:
Age:
Appearance:
A picture and/or a description is acceptable here. An optional description template has been provided in the below.
Optional character appearance template
Height/Build:
Skin tone/colour:
Hair colour and Style:
Eye colour: If your character regularly uses any eyewear such as coloured contacts please list that here in addition to natural eye colour.
Scars/tattoos/birth-signs:
Fashion:
Voice: Technically not part of appearance but actually an important and often overlooked aspect of your characters perception by others.
Personality: optional
Biography: Tell us a bit about your character. What job do they do when they aren't training with the UN? Why did they agree to be a part of the programme?
When picking a specialisation try to look at what other players have put up and do something different. This will help create a more diverse team as well as making your character more unique giving him/her more opportunity to shine in his/her field.
Civilian Specialisation/Job: e.g. Engineering, medicine,
Combat Specialisation: E.g. Driving, explosives, reconnaissance, sniping,
Weapons and ammo: When choosing weapons please bear in mind your characters will have had to purchase these from the black market as they will be starting in the UK where firearms are generally not permitted. This means the weapons would likely be old or cheap, mass-production guns (think 2030 equivalent of the uzi/tec-9). Ammo may be scarce. You might be able to get hold of some grenades of various types.
Equipment:
Standard issue is:
-Augmented reality system. The UN prefers agents wear the contact lens version of these for concealability however for agents who refuse these AR is available in numerous designs of eyewear.
-Bivi bag. An enclosed, waterproof sleeping bag designed for sleeping outdoors unsheltered. This one comes with a second removable layer of insulation to allow adaptability to different climates. When the bag is closed an integrated mini-tent at head level provides some headroom.
-Coms set/camera. This is usually head mounted in a discreet manner such as a bluetooth style headset or similar and is the primary means of communication with the groups handler as well as between characters when out of hearing range. The camera's mounted within transmit images to the handler and can be made to take a still for later use at the click of a button. The headset can also be used to transmit images into the AR system by the handler.
-A 40 litre rucksack with chest and waist straps. These come in various colours, shapes and styles to avoid operatives looking too uniform and help them blend in. They are usually rugged and waterproof.(Customise to taste. May be replaced with a bigger or a smaller one as desired but be sure you can carry what you have.).
-Fixed bladed utility knife and sheath.
-Rations. Enough food to last four days used sparingly.
Gadgets: These are advanced, character specific pieces of equipment. They might be a specialist tool, weapon or device that helps them on the field. Your character may acquire additional ones or upgrades for their current one throughout the plot so don't feel you have to be the be all and end all now! Examples: Strength suit, UAV, guidable/air-fragmenting rounds. Be creative and enjoy!
- Please respect one another. You may or may not like one another but it benefits no-one if your dislike of one another brings negativity into the OOC or IC threads. Try to bear in mind that it is hard to perceive tone of voice from text so messages which look pretty mean may have been said in jest and come off badly.
- Players must post once a week minimum or state that they are not posting in order to maintain the flow of the roleplay. If you are dropping out of the roleplay please tell me! I reserve the right to use the characters of players who have dropped out or not posted within two weeks.
- Please do not auto-hit without express permission. An auto-hit is one in which the attacker also determines the effect his attack has e.g. Jack swung his hammer and knocked off the Orcs head. Most of the time auto-hitting will be permitted to provide simplicity in play but from time to time I may not extend that permission to ensure appropriate damage scaling. This may apply to the first round of combat to give players a sense of what they are fighting or to "boss" battles. In the event auto-hitting is not permitted please say what and how your character is attacking and I will determine the effects of that attack.
- Should two characters be drawn into a lengthy conversation that does not involve other players please try to place it in a collaborative post. This prevents the thread being filled with posts unnecessarily.
- God-modders and power gamers will be warned to change their ways or, at worst, be ejected from the game. It is meant to be at least a little difficult or what challenge is there to overcome. Try to balance your characters with the other existing ones to avoid outshining one another.
- Hailfire is the gm and, ultimately, what he says goes. He does not like to enforce things on people but if it necessary for the sake of the setting, gameplay or the people playing he will.
