In the latter half of the 21st century, the world was consumed by corporate greed, political unrest, and the constant threat of nuclear war. Eventually, many of the world's upper class were able to channel their wealth and power into political influence; often turning whole armies into their personal fighting forces. Eventually, clashing interests and desires consumed those in power and the Corporate Wars began. Over the next several decades, the rich and powerful lived in comfort and abundance while the world around them was consumed by the flames of a thousand atomic fireballs. Knowing their influence over the world would only last as long as there were people to lord over, cooler heads prevailed and the Megacity Plan was born.
The survivors of the Corporate Wars soon found themselves being ushered out of the wastelands that were once their homes and sent to live within the confines of the Megacities: vast Metropolises built by the amassed wealth of the corporate elite. Megacities were built upon the skeletal remains of ancient cities and spanned hundreds of miles in size. To ensure the survivors would be coaxed into the Megacities, incentives were offered such as the promise of a safe place to live, and luxuries that would be impossible to obtain living in the wastes outside the walls of the Megacities. Despite simply being cages for the masses, people flocked to the nearest cities in the hopes of obtaining a better life.
The year is currently 3085, and the promise of the Megacities has long since grown stale. The cities are constantly falling apart and they are in near constant need of repair. Most consider it a blessing if they can get through a week without having to put out a call for repairs. Crime is a common occurrence and the cities are more often controlled by local gangs rather than any unifying police force. While there is some level of law enforcement it's really just there to protect the interests of the Heirs, the last living descendants of the elites who started the Corporate Wars.
Despite the poor conditions of the cities, there is one luxury that makes life there tolerable: Geonet. An upgraded internet with lightning fast connection speeds and overseen by a powerful AI; all citizens are connected to Geonet and their GEO-IDs serve as a means of identification as well as keeping track of their personal information. Using their GEO-ID, citizens can readily keep track of their money, health records, and even access public transit. A GEO-ID is typically a small green disk that’s linked to a specialized armband, but it can be attached to different articles of clothing (i.e. glasses, earrings, rings, etc.) or it can be directly installed into a citizen’s cybernetics. Due to being DNA locked to an individual, stealing or masquerading another person’s GEO-ID is [i]NEARLY[/i} impossible. Despite GEONET being one of - if not the only - useful thing in the Megacities, there are some who elect not to use it, preferring a life of freedom without the watchful eye of City-Security on your back.
One of the most common sights to see in the Megacities - and the most profitable business - are Modified-Humans, or Mods for short. Simply put, these are humans who’ve elected to visit the ModDocs and had cybernetics installed. The type of modifications one can receive are vast as new cybernetics are developed on what feels like a daily basis. However, laws have been put into place as to what types of cybernetics can be legally installed. This hasn’t stopped Back-Alley ModDocs from setting up shop and acquiring upgrades on the black market.
While it may be tempting to have as many upgrades as possible, many Mods understand that “For every gain, there is sacrifice”. It’s become a social taboo to have so many cybernetics that one loses their humanity in the process.
Due to the impossibly vast size of the Megacities, it’s no surprise that what little police force they have is unable to cover all of the various districts and areas. This has resulted in street gangs, cartels, and other organized crime taking up residence in the areas. Some of the major groups are as follows:
Arguably one of the largest and most influential gangs within Megacity-01. The E Street gang is directly funded and controlled by a group of Heirs, granting them access to the best weapons and cybernetics money can buy. E Street is the only known faction that is allowed to operate around The Spire, a section of the city typically reserved for the Upper Class. Essentially a private mercenary force for the rich and powerful, law enforcement is encouraged to turn a blind eye to E Street’s ‘personal activities’ so long as they stay on the good side of their benefactors.
Known for their extravagant masks evoking animals long since extinct, members of The Pack can frequently be spotted in the slums of Megacity-01. Talented scavengers and mechanics, it’s not uncommon to see them digging through piles of trash and turning the scraps they collect into weaponry, cybernetics, malware, or whatever they happen to be building at the time. Items created by The Pack dominate Megacity-01’s black market and - despite their questionable craftsmanship - they are easy enough for even untrained soldiers to utilize effectively. Because of their belief in loyalty and anonymity, some people doubt members of The Pack are even human! An old rumor even claims they’re service robots that survived the Corporate Wars.
Ruling over Megacity-01’s sizable entertainment and red-light district, the members of Black Maria prefer working from the shadows rather than getting their hands dirty. It’s unknown how this once tiny and unnoticeable gang came to control as much of the city as they did, but a slew of ‘disappearances’ in that part of the city may provide some answers. As of now, Megacity-01 PD have never found a single body. Black Maria also has a long-running feud with E Street who have tried to move in on their territory more than a few times. With their vast wealth acquired through various casinos and racketeering, Black Maria can afford the best Megacity-01 has to offer be it fashion, drugs, or mercenaries.
What they lack in money or technology, Demonio makes up for in sheer numbers. Inhabiting the bottom rung of society, Demonio’s members are made up of the descendants of the wastelanders who were forced into taking part in the Megacity system. Claiming the downtown sector as their own, Demonio frequently runs protection rackets on the local shop wonders and has no problem roughing them up or robbing them when they can’t pay. Due to a lack of resources, most members of Demonio lack any significant weaponry or cybernetics, often opting for their bare fists or melee weapons.
Sk8te is an organization with no defined leader. The origin of the name is debated, but the term is used as a catch-all for various cells of youths and some adults that have elected to disconnect themselves from Geonet and live their lives freely on the rooftops or in the backstreets of Megacity-01. Due to constantly moving around, Sk8te cells are notorious for knowing the ins and outs of the Megacity like no one else. Due to needing a GEO-ID to operate a car, the members are all skilled freerunners, or use more conventional methods such as hoverboards, and holo-blades. The few that can scrounge up the money even find a friendly ModDoc and receive cybernetics to enhance their already impressive mobility. Because not being connected to GeoNet makes them untraceable, Sk8te members are often hired out for various jobs and that people want “off the books” they even serve as unofficial ‘couriers’ for illicit goods and messages around the city. It’s an oft used expression “If you want something delivered, find a skater.” Moreover, not all Sk8te cells are created equal. Some choose to live peaceful lives apart from the systems of Megacity-01 whereas some have a more militaristic worldview and seek to overthrow the Heirs themselves.
Of course, given the size of Megacity-01, there are more factions than just these five, but these serve as the major ones. If you’d like to add a faction, or create a Sk8te cell of your own, please DM me your pitch prior to submitting your character sheet. If you think you want to be the leader of any of the listed factions, you are welcome to write it into your character sheet. Bear in mind, if two or more people want to run the same faction, the final decision will come down to the overall quality of the character sheet. Your character doesn’t even have to be bound to a faction at all. They could simply be a ModDoc, an Heir, or something else. I’m happy to find a role for you!
Dropping this at the bottom so people know, there is more to this setup that I haven't completed yet, but it will be included in the full OOC when it goes live. Depening on interest, I may just edit the interest check periodically. Regardless, I'm super excited to put this story into action as it's one I've been sitting on for nearly a year! Welcome to Megacity-01!
