RolePlayerGuilt

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

The first round of applications will run to 11:59 pm PST, July 14 17. Up to eight players (beside my co-GM and myself) will be accepted through competitive character submission.

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Veejay Gupta

195 centimeters | 6 feet 5 inches 110 kilograms | 242 pounds	Veejay Gupta Age: 28 Gender: Male Citizenship: Indian Date and place of birth: June 26th, 2031 | New Delhi, India Official occupation: Personal secretary for Mr. Joshi

Profile

Residence: Ghaverdasanna Townhomes, Southside, Sopahn

Affiliation:

• Indian Military Police Veteran Association
• motherhen.in - Information Exchange Website

Appearance: Veejay Gupta is a behemoth of a man. His height makes him tower over the average person in Sopahn by at least one head. Not only is he spacious vertically, he is also not lacking in width. His weight is over the norm; some of it are muscle inherited from army exercise regime, but more it are blabber built up by a McNuggets diet. While he is not overly obese, his stomach does protrude when wearing tight fitting shirts. Slight fat flaps can be seen dangling off his arms and legs. However, his right forearm is mostly muscle from handling joysticks, drumsticks, bamboo sticks, meatsticks and other sticks.

His face is not a pretty one. Oval shaped and fluffed with extra meat on the cheeks, Veejay can be described as a bit of an egghead. His black hair runs 3/4 of a finger's length and part way to a thin bald strip amid his scalp. Sideburns extend just below his ears, a mustache sits above his lips and any signs of a beard are terminated with extreme prejudice. His eyes form a downward crescent, his nose is elongated and his big elephant ears make him look like a better listener than he is.

In terms of skin color, Veejay is a lighter shade of brown due to his Awadhi heritage. His forearm is more tanned than his biceps, which gives a bit of a farmer's tan.

His attires are wrinkled and often stained. While Veejay's clothing aren't the worst, or have been through the worst, they degrade quickly due his poor upkeep and frequently neglecting laundry (even if it is just to press a button). Born and raised in urban Delhi, Veejay is fairly resistant to heat, so he will often wear long pants and full sleeved jackets for environmental protection and extra pockets. With that said, Veejay will gladly change into a short sleeved button-up shirt when those cruel summer days roll around; leaving the buttons open and (not so) proudly display an oval birthmark on the lower left of his slight beer belly.

Upon closer examination, one can see Veejay's right index, middle and ring fingers have been sheared off at the phalanges. He will likely be wearing cream-colored prosthetic fingers, but may take them off from time to time.

Background: Veejay's parents are the Indian Dream personified. They started out poor, one of them a hospital janitor and another public transit operator. Things changed when the bus driver had to rush an injured foreign investor to the hospital. From there, they met, was thanked by the investor and got some tips about buying real estate. Four years later, they were celebrating their success as realtors by getting married. Forty weeks after that, Veejay Gupta was born in New Delhi.

Unlike most Indian parents, Veejay's mom and dad didn't have strict expectations raising him. But also unlike most Indian children, Veejay managed to fail whatever little was expected of him. Veejay was not a smart kid, not dumb, just plain mediocre with a lot of bad attitude. Despite being sent to premium English-speaking private schools, he never tried hard and never received more than minimum passing grades. Instead, Veejay focused on the pursue of a bunch of odd hobbies. His parents bought everything he wanted to develop his "video gaming passion", but after a console and a flat screen TV smashed in rage quit, they stopped endorsing him. Then Veejay found music, which he quickly declared himself a connoisseur of 2010s North American pop. Lady Gaga, Kanye West and Justin Bieber would be his saints. He spent hundreds of hours in his teenage years making remixes and mixtapes. Some of these work were sent to record producers, but there was only one response after a dozen or so submissions; "stop".

One thing Veejay did pride his younger self in was being the head of a posse of troublemakers. Many days of his youth were spent rebelling without a cause, and without a goal or outcome. They were simply first world anarchists in a third world country; all of them were from well-off families, and they committed petty crimes out of cheap thrill instead of necessity. But after graduating high school, they ditched him in favor of more mature pursuits. His best friend (or so he thought), was an Odia kid called Hensegati Joshi. "Ati", as Veejay called him, promised to enlist in the military together after their last summer break. When that August came to an end, Ati returned to his family in some place called "Sopahn", citing responsibilities in family business. Dead set on being the badass soldier he discovered in first person shooters, and figuring Ati was just going to be dead weight, Veejay proceeded into the Indian Army.

His branch of service was the military police (MP). Honestly speaking, Veejay had no idea why he chose this particular military specialization. Maybe the MP beret was the coolest to him, maybe there was an underlying fear of frontline service, or he simply went along with the recruiter. Whatever the reason, Veejay found himself in a platoon full of similarly confused high school graduates. They spent months training at a state-of-the-art academy in Bangalore, and when they came out christened with their red berets, Veejay's platoon had apparently set a new battalion record in the training simulator (though only five courses were ran before, and three were interrupted by glitches).

Emboldened by their questionable achievement, the platoon couldn't wait to test out their prowess in real missions. Their first assignment was Assam in 2053. A bunch of insurgents was causing trouble since 2050 (and their predecessors from much earlier), and it was time for Veejay and his fellow MPs to do their share in quelling them. They sang ancient Hindu battle anthems mixed with modern day Bollywood pop songs on their anxious VTOL plane ride. When they touched down, they were soon put to work in assisting a Ghatak special operations group; the soldiers couldn't be more excited.

Turned out the Ghataks didn't even encounter the enemy. Instead, their opponent was the Assamese rice paddies, and their casualty was their autonomous load carrier; a robot pack mule broke down in a puddle. No one, the Ghataks or the MPs, could figure out how to get the drone up and running again. They stood around and stared helplessly at the thing for an hour, then stood in different places and stared from different angles for another helpless hour. Where were the engineers? Apparently their transports' auto-navigation malfunctioned and the engineers drove themselves to the Bangladeshi border.

Veejay wasn't impressed at all. All these fancy training and equipment had led them to huddling around a damn drone. Surely it couldn't be that hard, surely it would be as simple as the movies, surely the drone would start up with a good kick to the head. So that's what Veejay did; he kicked the drone's sensor "head". The first kick earned nothing more than metallic clanking, but the second kick, well, it decapitated the poor robot pack mule.

On that clammy Assamese day, Veejay earned himself the monikers of "Mule-Kicker" and "Bot Slayer".

The Assam mission was terminated within a week. The insurgents were already negotiating a surrender when his platoon arrived; the MPs saw no action at all. In fact, Veejay and his comrades weren't even allowed near the surrendered insurgents, as one of their conditions for laying down arms was to be disarmed by civilian law enforcement, not the military. Some MPs were disappointed, but others began fostering a belief where the insurgents gave up in fear of the "elite platoon". Veejay and the majority bought into the latter, and their officers nurtured it; a false aura of superiority worked like a shot of caffeine for their morale.

A few months later, Veejay was deployed back home in Delhi, in response to a terrorist attack on Connaught Place. Though the gunmen were already shot dead by city police when Veejay arrived, he and his comrades did not miss the aftermath of a bloody carnage. There was no false optimism or humor in this situation; thirty bullet ridden corpses in the capital hit too close to home. A military policeman's job suddenly seemed so grim in the current day.

By 2058, Veejay was a Naik (corporal) and a junior NCO in his platoon. Fellow soldiers came and went. Their mission were mostly routine in domestic regions with the exception of a few international exercises, notably with Russia, Sri Lanka, South Africa and Brazil. The Indian Armed Forces rarely intervened in foreign conflicts, but with its sizable ranks, it was the vanguard of United Nations peacekeeping. In 2058, India would be called up to head United Nations Mission in Mauritania (UNMIM). Thousands of soldiers and police personnel were deployed to Africa; Veejay was one of them.

Mauritania was a terrible place. The country was so dry that people started killing each other for water. On top of water scarcity, the millennium old tradition of human trafficking was still alive and well. Some Mauritanians become religious fanatics, some became anti-religion fanatics, some turned to extreme nationalism, and some declared independence along tribal lines. Without oil to quench the thirst of the economic engine, blood would become the only substitute.

For Veejay and his platoon, Mauritania was both a shitshow and a wake-up call. A mission mandate of "upholding peace and order" was as meaningless as it got. There were up to a dozen factions shooting each other the same time, and within an hour drive of the base Veejay deployed in, half of them had some form of presence. Determining friend and foe was nearly impossible. In a failed state where three governments were recognized by competing foreign powers, everybody was someone else's bogeyman. So he went out to man checkpoints, deliver rations, herd refugees and conduct the occasional midnight sweep. It was in Mauritania that Veejay killed his first man. A car was speeding towards the roadblock, Veejay signaled, fired warning shots and finally pointed his Amogh carbine directly at the driver's seat with seven more weapons coming to life alongside him.

The car skidded off road as a punctured husk. The driver was more than dead. He was asleep behind auto-navigation. At least he died peacefully.

Warfighting was gradually losing its glamour to Veejay at this point. But just when he wanted to get away from the war, the war started to get to him. A few photos and stories on social media was enough to invoke the pity and outrage of the world. Suddenly everyone was painfully aware of the atrocities in Mauritania. The UN responded with a "robust mandate" in UNMIM, which meant that peacekeepers would be actively engaging threats in order to protect refugees. Veejay found himself patrolling villages dozens of kilometers from the safety of a fortified base, getting a few pot shots and improvised bombs sent his way every once in a while. These attacks were rarely deadly, but they strung up his nerves like never before. He found himself up late at night, not out of fear or homesickness, but a sense of nervousness that came out nowhere, but attached itself to everything.

Towards the end of Veejay's six month deployment, he was sent to escort a chemist from a desolate village to the closest airport. Dr. Jerome Omar Amazzal said he was press-ganged into the service of an extremist faction, and now that he escaped, he wanted asylum in India. That was good enough reason for a combined Indian-Brazilian operation into hotly contest battlegrounds. The idea was that the UN blue marked them neutral, and it worked at first. Once they reached Dr. Amazzal, several Indian Police Service (IPS) agents appeared in a helicopter flown by Lion Security PMCs. They took over the situation and whisked Dr. Amazzal away, leaving a portion of Veejay's platoon to clear the surrounding area with the Brazilians. For some reason, their blue helmets lost all of its neutrality when they reached the village boundary. A hail of rocket propelled grenades greeted the peacekeepers.

Veejay never screamed out of fear prior to 2059, but the sight of a Brazilian soldier's torso being pulverized caused him to screech like a harpy. The shock was so great that he didn't even feel three fingers getting chopped off by an explosion fragment.

Seeing the bloody stumps of three phalanges almost made Veejay faint. He was medivaced back to base in a armored vehicle. Searing pain punished Veejay every second of the ride. He desperately wanted pass out, but his brain would rather be hyperventilating. The injury would be far from life-threatening. He was discharged from UNMIM's medical HQ in Nouakchott within a week. Dr. Amazzal visited him personally to thank him for saving his life. However, Veejay turned away every word with cynicism. After all, the chemist must be mocking him when he offered a handshake.

With only a few months left in his service contract, Veejay was shipped back to Bangalore for prosthetics, physiotherapy and light garrison duties. He got discharged a month before his service ended formally, and received a wound medal along with a bit of media spotlight. Feeling suddenly uncomfortable being interviewed by the press and being questioned by eager new recruits like himself eight years ago, Veejay decided to quit the military for good. He was feeling bitter and detached from the reality at home. No longer had he had any optimism, any illusion for a meaningful army career and the goal of becoming a modern warrior sounded like the silliest fantasy. So he went back to living with his parents in New Delhi. He aired to them his grievances over his tour in Mauritania, and then declared he would begin anew by studying music recording in the Pusa Institute of Technology.

According to Veejay, his application went accordingly. But then came the biggest information hack in Pusa's history. Almost every digital application would be deleted by some internet troll. Veejay was pissed, and instead of handling it calmly, he marched up to the registration counter and choked the staff member behind it. He was swiftly arrested, charged for assault and fined a solid amount of rupees. He was too ashamed face his parents after the incident, and he had nowhere else to go. Wandering through the dusk on streets of New Delhi, Veejay heard his cellphone ring.

It was Dr. Amazzal, who had settled down in New Delhi and read about Veejay's case online. He wanted to help Veejay to make up for his lack of sincerity in Mauritania. It came at just the right time, and Veejay couldn't refuse it. He asked for a job and a house, but Amazzal could provide neither. The chemist had failed to get his PhD recognized by Indian universities, and had no choice but to work as a private tutor just to make the ends meet. Amazzal did, however, direct Veejay to an affordable apartment he rented before. Shalimar Condominium was clean enough and cheap enough, so Veejay moved in and took the closest job he could find; the McDonald's across the street.

McDonald's was alright at first. Veejay enjoyed the abundance of comfort food and sweet treats, while staying out of the heat inside air-conditioned lounges. He worked hard in his first two months, even to the point of earning an award for efficient burger production and being promoted to crew trainer. But the never ending grind caught up to Veejay three months in. The customers are entitled idiots, his fellow employees were entitled idiots, and guess what the managers were? Entitled idiots. Frying oil wreaked havoc on his plastic fingers, washing dishes was messy, maintaining the cleaning bots was dirty and nothing enraged Veejay further than dealing with rude customers. Without army discipline, Veejay started to crack under pressure. He would frequently be late to work, cut corners during procedures and even punching a few punchable faces. Against all odds, the managers didn't fire him. Hell, they even bribed the prosecutors with McNuggets to get his cases dropped. Why? Because of some veteran employment benefit; having a "disabled veteran" like Veejay gave the bosses a tax break. Also, (and they wouldn't admit to it) Veejay did scare some bad people away.

Feeling trapped in a crappy life, Veejay looked back to music once again. He reckoned that a college degree was useless anyways. Didn't a whole bunch of celebrities drop out of high school? If so, Veejay was already better than them. So why pay for post-secondary school when the same thing is free on Youtube? Armed with his laptop and the internet, Veejay delved into the world of music production. He wrote his own lyrics, rapped it out, bought his own drum to play (to the ire of his neighbors) and autotuned it all together. This time, the record producers had kinder words to say. They said Veejay had potential, and they could even provide him with a professional production team. But what he lacked was a down-to-life theme. His songs are meaningless, and he wasn't hot enough to make meaningless songs.

One does not simply experience the thug lyfe in McDonald's kitchen, and one also does not simply travel on a McDonald's salary. Now it dawned to Veejay that his youth was spent on becoming someone he never wanted to be. He never wanted to go to a top of the line private school and study with the brightest kids. These assholes and their ivory towers; just hearing their names on the news made his blood boil. He should have been working the hard life, whatever that meant. It was too late now. He couldn't get of this shithole condo and this shithole fast food job. Virtual reality had to suffice. Veejay started watching gangster documentaries, though he didn't even get through half of it before getting sidetracked by the hottest VR game. Just a few matches, just a few more wins, all a sudden, he blew more than 150 hours gaming in one month. Oh well, writing his new hits would have to wait.

Towards the end of May 2060, someone familiar dropped by Shalimar McDonald's. It was a certain Mr. Joshi. That's right, Ati was back after a decade. Gone the awkward little sneak. In walked a straight-standing man in sleek gelled hair, designer smart glasses and the most vogue carbon fiber vest. Behind those smart glasses was someone of abundant confidence and creative energy. Of course, he didn't stop by just for the latest McFlurry; he had an offer for a dear old friend, an offer Veejay couldn't refuse.

In the last decade, Ati had taken over the family pawn shop in Sopahn. The odd little shop wasn't making money for him, but it connected him to many interesting folks and carried their rumors. Ati said he really wanted to close it all down so that he could join Veejay in the military police. Unfortunately, he couldn't do this to his parents, to his grandparents, and all those generations that ran the same shop one after the other. Fortunately though, he found alternative opportunities from the shop goers. With the advent of 3D printers and xG networks, the junk people pawned off wasn't any value. The information they brought in was, and Ati had plenty of those. All Ati had to do was hook these up to the internet, program a snazzy little app, cobble together an online community and cook up a bundle of spicy memes. Mother Hen Street Broker was digitized into motherhen.in. Rapid development in Sopahn meant people wanted fast facts. Boom, Ati was suddenly making big bucks as an information broker.

So what where does Veejay fit in all this? See, Mr. Joshi had more than his share of imitators, competitors, as it is formally known. Sopahn doesn't have the strongest laws, which is perfect for allowing unrestricted innovation. But it is less than perfect when certain people started to threaten Mr. Joshi's life. So he needed someone he could trust, an old friend that goes way back. Just act tough; the rest will take care of itself. Oh, and Veejay may need to lift a couple of heavy boxes. On the plus side, Ati promised him blazing fast wifi, a cozy townhouse, a sleek sedan and three months of McDonald's salary in one; it even beats the army benefit package. In addition, Veejay may finally get a taste of the street hustle he so long craved.

Just another big city, by the ocean this time; Veejay wanted to try beach side living anyways. What could possibly go wrong?

Outlook and Motivations: One of Veejay's favorite thing to say is "entitled cunt", and quite frankly, he is one himself. Growing up in an upper-middle class family as the only child (his parents had more than enough drama with him), he had a lot of good stuff handed to him on a silver platter. Veejay feels like everyone, and by extension, the world, owed something to him. After all, they took away three of his fingers and a college degree; surely that's enough of a price for karma to swing around. So every time Veejay tries something, he expects twice the reward.

However, that doesn't mean Veejay is an elitist or a snob. In fact, he is the opposite. Some may call him an anti-intellectual. He hates smart people asses. Part of this attitude stems from a sense of inferiority during his schooling, which was backed by actually inferior results. Another part came from his experience with college application and fast food management, both of which he despised. Finally, Veejay believes veteran grunts like him were underappreciated in India. While this is true to an extant, Veejay likes to exaggerate his service and trauma in what could only be assumed as an attention grab. Because he knows he's not a genius, Veejay doesn't get enjoyment out of feeling smart. So he has to derive superiority out of making other people feel stupid. Whenever someone starts to recite random facts he doesn't know, Veejay is inclined to clock them in the jaw.

People typically expect him to be traumatized by the events in Mauritania. In reality, he isn't. Therapy and psych meds advanced so much recently that they actually work. Veejay does get nightmares about being blown up once in a while, but these are nothing more than minor nags at night. His worst moment was when he got arrested for choking a college registration clerk. The shame of being led away in a police cruiser makes him want to choke someone else.

Veejay's personal escape is behind his VR headset. Does he ever know he plays too much? Nah. He can't let silly things such as sleep and work get in the way of getting good. Well, he hasn't gotten too good, but hey, it's the effort that counts, right? And surely playing these games is a productive contribution to the society.

Capabilities

Languages:

• Hindi (native - Delhi dialect)
• English (fluent - Indian English)

Skills:

• Brute force - Veejay's biggest strength is his brawn. His imposing size allows him to easily overcome smaller opponents in physical confrontations, and is frequently able to intimate aggressors into backing down. Veejay knows this and takes full advantage of the fact. He is someone who gets in fights often, and likes to throw the first punch and kick in the door without hesitation.
• MP training - A military police is trained in non-lethal takedown, base protection, handling prisoners, managing riots, guarding VIPs, driving, as well as the standard army marksmanship, fitness and fieldcraft. Like everything else he learned, Veejay is a mediocre soldier at best. Still, at least he's better than most civilians at those things.
• Thug lyfe - Veejay didn't grow up on the streets, and neither has he hustled in the hood. But that doesn't stop him from having the "grit" of a true thug. Veejay supposedly descended from the Thuggees. Today, he thinks he is making his ancestors proud with dope rhymes (in both English and Hindi) and a willingness to commit crime for what he wants.

Flaws:

• Severed fingers - Veejay's right index, middle and ring fingers have been gifted to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. In their places are cheap plastic stubs. Courtesy of the Indian Army's veteran fund, these prosthetics are made by the lowest bidders. They are coarse, rough, irritating and the plastic shavings get everywhere; a constant reminder of his dislike for Mauritanian sand. Though he had gotten used to them over the course of a year, Veejay still finds them less dexterous and enjoyable than the original flesh ones.
• Can't cook - The Indian Army might have taught Veejay how to make fire out of sticks, but they (or anyone else) couldn't get him to cook a proper meal for himself. Veejay never had to cook from scratch, and he never intends to do so, ever. Sure, he has a large appetite, but fast food nowadays have actual standards, the street vendors are cheap enough and the Golden Serpent instant pho tastes like heaven in preservatives.
• Ungraceful - Veejay is a big clumsy guy. He trips on things, bumps his head on low hanging ceilings and gets his clothing tangled on hooks and loops. His speech further adds to that lack of grace. Though he is more fluent in English than most Indians of similar standings, a conversation with Veejay would more likely than not produce crude jokes and unintentionally rude comments.
• Easily frustrated - Veejay gets pissed off easily. Seriously, this guy smashed several lakhs rupees worth of gaming hardware just because some scrub wrecked him in Call of Duty. It's easy to flip Veejay off, and no, he doesn't get any stronger or smarter while angry; he just gets stupid and does stupid things.
• VR gaming addiction - Veejay doesn't smoke, and rarely drinks, but makes up for his otherwise vice-free lifestyle with a copious amount of virtual reality gaming. Veejay outright sucked at non-VR games, which he blamed on their lack of "immersion and interaction". Well, he isn't doing much better with more immersion and interaction, but that doesn't stop him from trying again and again, through late nights and early mornings, conveniently forgetting everything else in his life. Ask the man himself, and he will never admit any possibility of addiction; Veejay prefers "persistent".

Connections:

• Throne Reality Delhi (parents' business)
• McDonald's India (former employee - veteran employment initiative)
• La Me French and Chemistry Tutoring (acquaintance from military service)

Accomplishments:

• National top 500 burger machine operator, McDonald's India
• Naik (corporal), Indian Army
• International Baccalaureate diploma, X-Sell International High School

Crimes:

• Assault x2
  
  • December, 2059; punching agitated McDonald's customer (case thrown out)
  • June, 2059; choking college staff (₹2000 fine)
• Peace disturbance x3
  
  • January, 2060; loud rap music in apartment (audio equipment confiscated)
  • October, 2059; insulting McDonald's staff and customers (case thrown out)
  • April, 2049; throwing shoes onto power lines (not prosecuted)
• Trespassing
  
  • November 2048; streaking with three friends in teacher's yard (30 hours of juvenile community service)

Inventory

Cash, saving and debts:

• ₹5000/month disability pension
• ₹50000 deposited in Khariboli Bank International
• ₹400 cash on person

Tools and weapons

• Leatherman titanium-lite multitool
• Cheap Chinese mini-flashlight
• 10-pack pre-creamed disposable shaving razors

Electronic devices:

• Panasonic 13 inch toughbook with holo-projector
• Oculus VR headset
• Huawei holographic smartphone
• Knock off Beats by Dre headphones
• Used Sony mini DAC

Apparels:

• Multiple pairs of jeans, cargo pants and shorts
• Leather belt with oversized metal buckle
• Plain gray t-shirts
• Short sleeve button-up shirts
• Red canvas jacket
• Several flannel shirts
• Green rain poncho
• One pair of sneakers
• One pair of hiking boots
• One pair of slip-proof kitchen shoes
• Black apron
• A box of disposable silicon gloves

Credentials and ID cards:

• Indian Army veteran certificate (physical)
• Delhi driving license (digitized on phone)
• Khariboli UltraSaver credit card (digitized on phone)

Jewelry and valuables:

• 50TB USB flash drive with his mixtapes, worn on necklace
• Carbon fiber paracord bracelet
• Mountaineering watch with holographic projection

Consumables: Bottle of orange Fanta, five strips of chewing gums and a Snickers bar on person

In fridge:

• Two 500mL cans of Red Bull
• 2L bottle of Mountain Dew
• Two bags of Dorrito
• Four packs of TV dinners
• A bag of frozen chicken nuggets
• A box of vegetarian samosas

Load bearing equipment:

• Blue fanny pack
• Brown camelbak hydration backpack
• Black shoulder slung laptop bag
• Two large gray sport bags
• Green airsoft tactical vest (private purchase during military service)
• Hardened phone case with wrist strap

Illicit goods: 20+ digital issues of pirated Japanese adult comic

Vehicle: Old skateboard

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Jobs
Jobs

Bounty Hunting

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Poster

*Officially Approved by Sopahn Police Department

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TAKE
उन्हें

THEM
नीचे ले

DOWN
जाया गया

REWARD *
इनाम **

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Call | फोन: 122

_{* See bylaw P-1337-2051 for details
** जानकारी के लिए उपनियम P-1337-2051 देखें.}

Take down these dangerous NPCs for some sweet cash and character development. How you work or who you work with is personal choice; just be sure to register with the Sopahn Bail Enforcement Network.

You may submit your own bounty.

• Streamsniper: Unpredictable narcissistic solo shooter who livestreams killings on Twitch. This individual has been eluding police tracking so far. As a contributing citizen, any help ending this random murder rampage is appreciated.
• Edgers: Sword swinging vigilantes, decked out in black trench coats and fedoras. They have hurt dozens of innocent people, which they claim as "corrupt villains". Anyways, the City Safe Board have upgraded them to top-level threat.
• Canesmokers: Senile anti-aging drug smugglers. Their excuse is the right to live as long as the first world citizens. The Narcotics Control Bureau doesn't agree; they're offering rewards for takedowns.
• Deadc47: Obnoxious, animal abusing DJ duo. Safe to say that many animal rights activists and music critics want them gone.
• Jack-Your-Son 5: Five human trafficking douchebags, claiming to "clean" kids with bleach. The United Parents of Sopahn wants their children back.
• Need for Weed: Often intoxicated street racers; the more they smoke, the faster they drive. It's fine if they only wreck themselves. Unfortunately, they are responsible for numerous incidents involving unaffiliated citizens. It's time someone end their racing ring for good.
• New Thuggee Movement: The original Thugs are back!
• True Speech Therapy: They'll literally cut off your tongue for bad grammar. Often stalking schools and malls with language trivia, failing grade gets you snatched up, tongue-tied and cut. It's hard to believe some elitists actually support them.
• Ramp Up the Rampage: Local xenophobe mobs have been waving cricket bats and broken bottles on the ramp leading into the Resettlement Zone. In response, many Bengalis and Kashmiris formed their own mobs to fight back. Someone better find the agitators behind this and calm the mobs down, or a lot of people are gonna get hurt really bad.

Active Enforcers

• "Kutta" (NPC): A flamboyant man with a head of blond-dyed mane. Banned from firearms, but is still competitive with non-lethal equipment.

Completed Bounties

0 bounty turned in

Illicit Requests

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Handoff Markings

₹₹₹
RIP भांजीमार
NO TALK | चुप रहो
☠ ☺ ☠
आदित्य ❤ ईशा FK U!
GO AWAY | चले जाओ
!!!

_۩

Take down these dangerous NPCs for some sweet cash and jail time. How you work or who you work with is personal choice; just be sure to register with the contact shut up.

You may submit your own request.

• Dumbasses of Donbass: Russian ski tycoon Imran Mastisky wants you to stop these insensitive actors and writers from opening a satirical play about the 2010s Ukraine conflict.
• Full Moon on High Noon: Business owners from the downtown pedestrian zone want you to give these streakers a good spanking. After all, they're asking for it by running around butt-naked at 12 noon.
• Paper Tigers: Hackers so pathetic that they can't even find proper Guy Fawkes masks. These nerds don paper masks and hack for the lolz; rip their sheets off and give them some nasty paper cuts. Hundreds have lost valuable data (including search history, saved vids and credentials), and they will appreciate some disproportionate retribution.
• Deep Throat Singer: This Youtuber got to be the worst singer ever. Luckily for you, this kid is close enough to be shut up permanently. A loose coalition of Sopahnian Youtubers wants this clown to stop ruining everyone's reputation.
• Dr. Phail: Technically, this med school prof never did anything wrong. However, ridiculous grading, crappy life advice and a tendency to steal fellow instructors' naans means someone needs to be schooled again. Taray Medical College is willing to hand out honorary degrees for exceptional achievements.
• Security Van 5-7: Whoever drives this money-carrying lorry likes to stop at a 24/7 lassi joint, from 0000 to 0200. Sounds like the perfect time to have a payday, no? Just remember to donate afterwards, so the four masked goons can continue providing such opportunities.
• Uberride: Since it's legalization in the 2030s, ride-sharing has squeezed taxis out of Sopahn one by one. Today, the last Sopahnian cabbies have decided to band together and take a final stand. They will fight to keep their tradition alive; not matter the means, no matter the costs.
• Robo Farms: Robotic agriculture came to Taray farms in the late 2040s. In 2060, a newly appointed regulation committee has frozen all autonomous farming operations, citing farmer unemployment and declining safety. This new committee would not grant leniency even with bribes. Perhaps, some farmers thought, someone should force them out of their backwardness.
• Fly Me a River: Sky-high hologram ads collide with private flight lines upstream. The city approved of both before realizing the consequences, and it is now up to you to convince the other side that their case won't fly.

Active "Helpers"

• Dog Watchers (NPCs): A small group of individuals specializing in flipping security cameras and traffic lights. They are actually on the government's good grace thanks to them filtering would be criminals.

Completed Requests

0 request fulfilled

Startups and Shutdowns

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Entrepreneurship Brochure

1. Move to Sopahn

^{You know you want to ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)}

2. Start your business

^{Size is overrated!}

3. ???

^{It's your fault when you fail, but our fault when you succeed.}

4. Profit!

^{Money makes the world go around}

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Do not deface this poster
इस पोस्टर उपद्रव मचाना नहीं है

8=======D

Take up (or down) these dangerous lucrative business opportunities for some sweet cash and possible criminal charges. How you work or who you work with is personal choice; just be sure to register with the Chamber of Commerce.

You may submit your own business opportunity.

• Chance Meating: All meat shops in the market besides the train exchange have failed inspection. A couple even have been suspected of cannibalism. Why are they still squatting there then? Someone clear them out. Do so, and you can take their place rent free for 3 months (as long as you ramp up the standards). _{Hint: Try cultured meat!}
• Theatre Franchising: The last theater venture near the Daladal didn't go so far. Perhaps you can do better? Plus Ultra is offering grants for bringing indie holo-films to the less fortunate.
• Ring Harbour Donuts: This year's Harbour Festival will have a theme of donuts! Let's break the world record for most donut vendors in one place! Wait, what's that? Triggered diet junkies?
• Rabid Pet Care: Mixing cats and dogs with lion and wolf genes; what could possibly go wrong? A dozen injuries is what. Catch these animals (and their owners) and find some way to get rid of them.
• VR Addiction Counseling: Kids these days; always sneaking out of school to play with their immersive headsets. It's 'bout time someone set them back on the right track. Hold on, there's a crowd of protesting neckbeards outside.
• Arcological Renovation: A few experimental structures require urgent renovation. Mr. and Mrs. Khatri in particular needs someone to make their super skyscrapers look better, or their competitors' look worse. Don't worry, work fatalities are fewer than 50.
• Airport VTOL Overhaul: Bholi International Airport wants to cash in on the VTOl craze. Can you fly one? Can you cement landing pads? Are you traffic control certified? If so, your job is waiting to take off! _{Nearby residents are adamantly against airport expansion!}
• BRICS Summit: Several ministers from Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa will be meeting with their Indian counterparts. National arts performances and exhibition football games are part of the venue. A few of these ministers aren't the most popular back home, and it may be their mistake coming to an area of frequent protest.

Active Professionals

• Kant Singh (NPC): A musician making jingles for various brands.

Completed Work

0 business concluded

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Roster
Roster

Age | Nationality | Description

Player Characters

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♂ Veejay Gupta
28 | Indian | Salty scrub
@Gcold

♂ Bahadur Shiri
37 | Indian | Hobo with a gun
@Peik

♂ Peter Hannegy
32 | British | Blackmailed bloke
@Peik

♂ Rajan Solehani
25 | Indian | One-legged plant guy
@BingTheWing

♀ Sashi Shah
35 | Indian | Pretty in plastic
@Atrophy

♀ Kamala Khan
21 | Indo-Canadian | Squeaky clean
@Greenie

♀ Delilah Gheimhridh
23 | Irish | Belly full of sin
@Kingfisher

Characters: 7 | Players: 6

Inactive Characters

Deceased Characters

NPCs

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♂ Justin Nero
41 | American | Dogged bounty hunter
@DeadDrop

Inactive Characters

Deceased Characters

Organizations

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GM Factions (Joinable)

WIP; more factions to come.

♖ City of Sopahn (~40000 employees)

• Municipal Corporation: The mayor, councilors from 100 wards and various committees.
• City Development Authority: Non-elected, profession public servants handling technical matters such as urban planning and tax collection.
• 122 Emergency Services: Encompassing the police department, fire station and ambulances; dial 122 for general emergencies.
• Taray Power: Responsible for clean electricity generation of the city and surrounding district.
• Sopahn Waterway: Combined public company handling harbor traffic, sewage and aquatic sanitation.
• Education Board: Receiving funds and oversight from the state; implements mandatory education from elementary to high school.
• Rapid Transit: The committee that controls various buses and trains, in addition to overseeing taxi and ride-share services.
• Parks and Recreation: It's hard to decide whether these guys deserved to be kissed or slapped. Depending on your part of the town, parks and leisure facilities can go from cutting edge to hardly functioning.

♖ Common Development Asia, India Branch (~20000 employees)

• Lion Security (LeoSec)
• Tasmanian Defence and Engineering
• Orilla Aerospace Solutions
• Zenon-Sabta (ZS) Transportation
• Anderson-Ford (Aford) Pharmaceutical
• Jolo Electronic Systems
• Lestari Designer Fashion
• Lue Urbanization Consulting
• Ligature Marketing

♖ LK Broadcasting (~1000 employees)

• LK1 News
• LK2 Entertainment
• LK3 Movies
• LK4 Sports
• LK-XM Radio

♖ Khariboli Bank International (~2500 local employees)

♖ Kashmir Liberation Movement (~300 local sympathizers, 7000+ nationwide)

♖ SOcial JUstice WarrioRs aka SOJURs (hacktivists; 1000+ confirmed local associates)

♖ Green not Greed aka GnG (eco-terrorists; 100+ confirmed local associates)

Majabut Bharat Parishad (MBP)
Hindu extremists
@BingTheWing

Iris-Sakamoto Corporation (ISSOco)
Bio-medical company
@Atrophy

Uzbek Mafia (AKA the Gardeners)
Less-than-honest business
@Peik

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Character Sheet

Height Weight	Name Age: Gender: Citizenship(s): Date and place of birth: ... Official occupation: ...

Profile

Residence:

Affiliation:

Appearance: (written descriptions)

Background:

Outlook and Motivations:

Capabilities

Language(s):

Skills:

Flaws:

Connections:

Accomplishments: (optional)

Crimes: (optional)

Inventory

Cash, saving and debts:

Tools and weapons:

Electronic devices:

Apparels:

Credentials and ID cards:

Jewelry and valuables:

Consumables:

Load bearing equipment:

Illicit goods: (optional)

Vehicle: (optional)

Pet and animals: (optional)

Other: (optional)

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Sopahn Soap Pan

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Summary with pictures; coming soon!

Stories

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Player-created content; coming soon!

Locations

Neighborhoods

Harbourfront: Sopahn Harbourfront refers to the immediate area surrounding the Ring Harbour. This is the iconic postcard downtown scene, where elevation gently rises from the Bay of Bengal in the east to the foothills in the west, and streets gradually climbing like a giant set of stairs. The name "Sopahn" itself derives from "Sopaan"; meaning stairs in Hindi. Sadly, half of the original Harbourfront have been flooded or in immediate danger of flooding. No new development happened in the last decade, which means the now precious ocean view properties are very expensive.

Langar Island: Originally a peninsula jutting into the harbor, the thin land bridge connecting it to the mainland would often be flooded during high tides. Therefore, the land bridge was dug out and replaced by two bridges, one north and one south, in 2031. A park and few heritage buildings are the only notable features of Langar. For the busy people, the only purpose it serves is a shortcut to circumventing the Ring Harbour.

Dhaar: Widely panned as the worst Sopahn has to offer, Dhaar has the highest concentration of slums in addition to being highly suspicable to flooding. Situated southeast of the downtown harbor, it is characterized by a system of narrow waterways that has been flooded into a bog of putrid sewage. The municipal authority invests little here, resulting in poor infrastructure and law enforcement. Still, the good old Daladal managed to develop a culture of its own; where else can you find spare lungs and synthetic opium?

Bholi: Bholi is a peninsula bounding the northeast of Harbourfront, where the most prominent landmark is a giant international airport. This is the place of rapid progress; blink and there could be another skyscraper popping up beside you. If Harbourfront is the heart of Sopahn, than Bholi is its backbone.

Northside: The transportation hub of Sopahn, and as its name suggests, it is directly north of Harbourfront. It is home to the Northside Exchange, Chalene Regional Airport, the bus depot of Sopahn Public Transit, a racing circuit and the largest block of car dealers. Residential properties once exist in Northside, but most have been replaced with transportation facilities.

Dightings: Two centuries of history makes Dightings the oldest part of Sopahn. Dightings overlooks the Harbourfront from the foothills of its western boundaries. First built in the mid 19th century by the Dighting family, a wealthy merchant clan of the British India Company, it has since hosted elites under the British Raj and the Republic. Administrative centers are here, and maybe that's what makes Dightings uncharacteristically clean. Old money resides here, but newer fortunes are trickling in thanks to the development of LUX.

Resort Cluster: Twenty kilometers north of the city is a series of luxury resorts. Because it situates in a different cove separated from the city harbor by a peninsula, it is able to maintain impossibly pristine beaches. A large dome, with artificial sky and sun, is fitted over premium hotels and their beaches, ensuring enjoyable vacations even through typhoon seasons.

Industrial Quadrant: Gargantuan factories clumped under turbid emission act as Sopahn's production backbone. The industrial quadrant is located thirty kilometers southwest of downtown Sopahn. Originally infamous sweatshops have since been modernized. Car assemblies, ore refineries and microchips makers are among its top residents. The Quadrant is eco-terrorists' favorite target.

Southside: Positioned south of Harbourfront and upstream of Dhaar, the sewage treatment plants of Southside discharge straight into the Daladal. It is perhaps the most populous neighborhood or Sopahn, with a sizable amount of middle class housing in the center and the Resettlement Zone on its outskirt. Traffic congestion has been a problem for two decades now.

Market Colony: Although urban development first happened in Dightings, the indigenous Odia fishers had a village called Jundh (many petitioned unsuccessfully to revert to this historic name) in today's Market Colony long before the arrival of empires. This region formerly drove Sopahn's economy with its fish markets. Today, it contains modern malls, various places of worship and a canal with a hydroelectric dam.

Mendhak Charagah: A satellite town thirty kilometers south of Sopahn, the place locals call "MC" was nearly wiped out by Typhoon Kara in 2055. Seaside meadows were buried by tides and surviving buildings were swept away by heavy winds. It was incorporated into Sopahn during 2056 for rebuilding, where a jail was built on the hills just outside of the town. Most of the town was left in ruins. During the dry months of spring, many unsavory characters take advantage of the ghost town. But comes the moonsoons in later summer, no one with common sense stayed to drown.

Graphene Valley: Named for the striking graphene structures that adorn the research park, the "Graphene Valley" actually encompasses both the river valley and the plateau above it. In fact, most of its residents like Sopahn University, Taray Medical College and the mushroom shaped towers of Thal Miterin Research Institute appreciate their high ground. It is a shame that this powerhouse gets little attention outside of scientific publications, as much of the cutting edge tech in Bholi could not have been conceptualized without the minds from forty kilometers away.

Landmarks

Taray Medical College (TMC) Hospital: A recently built public hospital with private donations. Houses medical research institutions. No queue jumping or malpractice, mostly.

Bholi International Airport: One of two airports in the city, along with it's smaller and older brother; the Chalane Regional Airport.

Club Monochrome: We can't afford won't bother you with neon lights. Walk in specials on Fight Club Friday, STI Saturday and Sucker Sunday!

Minnie's Drug Stores: Originally founded by a Chinese nurse during WW2, it has since expanded into the largest chain retailer of legalized recreational drugs in Sopahn.

ASHOKA: The finest hotel that dominates a third of the resort cluster. Under a dome of holographic sunshine and serene white noise, one night in their porcelain toilet-equipped room is worth a year of middle class salary.

Jhakhof's Adult Funhouse: Oh, the fun you will have! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

K-Mall: Department store chain notable for selling ice, tardigrade plushies, ironclad models and the occasional Harambe memorabilia. Headed by someone called "Zungi", these stores are rumored to be the front of black markets.

Dhaliwal Shopping Centre: The biggest mall in Sopahn, this giant facility hosts hundreds of stores, restaurants and offices.

CD Towers: A trio of skyscrapers that are also the tallest buildings in Sopahn; they are owned by Common Development Asia. One building houses CD Asia offices, the other is a hotel, while the last is rented to business partners.

LUX: Ultra up-scale community on suburban hills, every house here is worth crores of rupees. Even the cheapest home would probably be worth half a slum. Community managed by CD Asia.

Artha United Hindu Temple: The largest religious structure, this temple is a recent construction to replace multiple derelict Hindu worship places.

Masjid az Twera: Also known as the Mosque of Nets, this Muslim place of worship in Market Colony is one of the few preserved structures predating the British settlement. Folklore states that when Mughal missionaries sought roofing materials from the local Hindus, they were given nets in mockery. But these missionaries' faith in God was so strong that they were kept dry through a three day downpour, and that was the first origin of the earliest Muslims in Sopahn. The mosque has been abandoned and renovated multiple times throughout history. It is flourishing as of 2060, but the recent string of MBP attacks in India and unrest in the city caused the mosque to hire additional security personnel. A few dozen Muslim LeoSec contractors have been brought in from Malaysia and Indonesia, leading to some perceiving them as a form of religious militarization.

All-India Wonderland: The combination of a zoo and amusement park, it is tourists and children's favorite.

Matisky's Indoor Ski Hill: A bulging dome that started India's all season skiing sensation! Brought to you by Imran Matisky Jr, in partnership with Common Development.

Northside Exchange: First constructed as a train station in colonial times, it has since been repurposed as the northern terminus of Sopahn's maglev rails.

City Hall: Another colonial era relic, except it is kept faithful to the luxurious original; an expensive governor house. The inside is much more modernized.

Alfred Dighting Garden: A natural wonder from the British Raj, the garden built by Sir Alfred C. Dighting stands today as a diverse botanical display. The garden's name remains in homage of the Dighting family's contributions to the Independence movement. Beware of pigeon droppings (and occasionally human ones).

Ring Harbour: The city's bay is named after it's ring like shape. Two halves, north-east and south-west, form two crescents flanking a circular harbor. Langar Island, connected by north and south bridges, is positioned in the middle of the harbor.

Patel Gallery: Opened shortly after independence, the gallery bears the name of its most famous patron; Vallabhbhai Patel, a founding father of India.

Plus Ultra Performance Theatre: Sleek and modern, the avant-garde architecture hosts the Bollywood-grade performances.

Daladal: Officially Precinct 11, the sprawling slum of Sopahn is named after the Hindi word for "swamp".

Resettlement Zone: After the Kashmir Agreement, many Kashmiris were given "alternative residence" alongside earlier Bengali climate refugees. Sopahn is home to lakhs of Kashmiris and Bengalis, many living below the poverty line. The condition in this region rivals the Daladal.

Seawall: Built after typhoon Kara of 2055, a complex project of barriers, sea filling and other geological feats were to be completed within five years. As of June 2060, 85% is operational. The construction suffered multiple setbacks from corruption, improper standards and sabotage.

Equipment

Firearms

Many recently produced firearms have been tagged with RFID trackers, and some even locked with biometric safeties, which allow only authorized personnel to fire. However, those licensed are often aided by gun-embedded computer chips, which feeds weapon info, safety and operating statuses to compatible smart-device apps. Everything from the manufacturer warranty to handling instructions, from recommended ammunition to live magazine capacity readout are available for viewing on phones, watches and smart glasses.

In India, gun politics lean towards restrictive. Indeed, firearms have been kept out of civilian hands since the Indian Arms Act of 1878. Guns are divided between prohibited and non-prohibited, and the licensing processes for both are difficult. Non-prohibited arms, which are manual action and have barrel lengths over 20", are possible for civilian shooters. All other guns are considered prohibited, which are only approved for certified security firms and high profile individuals facing imminent danger.

Of course, officials can be bribed into giving you a license. Government registrars can be bypassed via the black market, and then secretly kept out of records. Both of these routes are risky, and should one fail to skirt the law, hefty fines and lengthy jail terms await in their future.

Because getting a gun in India is that hard, those seeking a good weapon make do with a melee arsenal. You will likely see street thugs armed with cricket bats and meat cleavers, rather than pistols and shotguns. If anything, a good stick or knife tends to be discreet before, during and after a hit.

Pepper sprays can be freely carried by civilians, but tasers are strictly restricted. The average Singh can throw small firecrackers at whim, but when explosives step up to actually destructive, one needs to prove they are the right person before getting anything bomb-like. Molotv cocktails are illegal, though that never stopped angry chemistry geeks/mixologists from making them.

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WIP; more weapons still to come!

Availability: civilian legal, authorization required, military exclusive

Note: non-civilian legal weapons can be obtained through the black market

Handguns

Katta: Who knew sawn-off Martini-Henries could be legit handguns in 2060?

TOK revolver: Indian manufactured personal revolver, its weaker round allows for civilian ownership.

.22 "Pecker": Although Indian Ordnance Board calls this product the Light Calibre Pistol, its utter failure against any body armor earned it a more justifiable designation.

.32 Personal Defence: Locally manufactured single action pistol, designed for quick deployment.

Glock Gen 7: Austrian tactical 9mm pistol, reliable and simple to use. Lack of cutting edge tech means it's at least reliable.

Basilisk: Modernized take on a classic American revolver series.

Threadsnake: Downsized basilisk, locally manufactured with license, civilian legal.

Hi-power centennial: Joint Belgian, Canadian and Indian project bringing Browning's final pistol to 2035 standards.

Uzi NXT pistol: 100 years in and the Israeli classic is still going strong.

Arbiter: Brazilian large frame revolver, can quickly switch from .454 magnum to .410 bore shotshells.

Inferno: Slovak 7.5mm pistol that runs on a single action, tilting barrel type mechanism, with a proprietary recoil attenuating system.

Umbra: Czech match pistol, having proved its exceptional accuracy in multiple shooting tournaments. Mil/LE variants also exist.

Silver: Export version of the Chinese Type 46 5.8mm pistol; low recoil, high capacity and built-in white noise sound neutralizer.

Signature 357: A Swiss pistol firing an proprietary round, with enhanced ballistics and blended tungsten/depleted uranium core to maximize armor piercing and tissue damage.

K pistol: A formerly shelved design using "recoilless" action, realized by a Korean manufacturer. Auto fire capable.

Mk 45: Belgian striker-fired .45 ACP pistol, crisp trigger pull and recoil controlling design allows the large caliber to be rapid fired.

UCP46: The revival of a canceled German pistol, which fires thin, high-velocity PDW cartridges. Though effective against body armor with minuscule recoil, its stopping power is low.

PW-50 Dragoon: A giant Russian auto-loading pistol firing .50 Beowulf ammunition.

CR-DS: Italian recoil operated revolver, can load magnum or its downsized cousin round with minimal adjustment. This revolver fires from the lowermost chamber of the cylinder and has the barrel on a low axis compared to other revolvers.

Riptide Mini: A four barrel stacked projectile pistol; essentially a futuristic derringer by Tasmanian Defence.

AF11: What's better than one m1911? Two! Want to hold both of them in one hand? Now you can! Who to credit? Philippines!

VBR-PDW: A pistol ahead of its time. It was only appreciated by popular media for the first two decades since its appearance in 2002. However, it has since been refined and better understood, leading to its current status as an established auto-pistol.

Manual action rifles

Snider-Enfield reproduction: Brand new muzzle-loaders for antique firearm collectors.

Peary rifle: American lever action rifle based on a 170 years old design.

.22 cadet: Light bolt-action carbine intended for young shooters; locally built.

.315 sporter: The typical bolt-action rifle in shooting clubs; made in India.

ISR 7.62/.308 Heavy: Indian made heavy duty bolt action rifle. Easy to produce, readily available in military/police and civilian configurations

RM7: American basic hunting rifle for medium-sized games.

2A1M: Final Indian bolt-action rifle turns into a precision weapon, one century after its inception.

Rapture: Canadian precision bolt-action rifle, accurate up to four kilometers.

SM-215: Russian low noise bolt action-rifle, built from biathlons rifles. Can be quickly broken down into two pieces for transportation.

Alpinist: Modern British sniper rifle intended to function in the harshest conditions, will keep on shooting from 50°C to -50°C. One of the most expensive guns in the world because of its handmade manufacturing.

SK Tick: Finnish sniper rifle, competed against the Alpinist in a NATO-wide sniper rifle standardization bidding. Supposed failure at -49°C lead to its manufacturer desperately cutting down price.

Pincer: Swiss straight pull bolt-action hunting rifle.

TP 406: "Smart" sniper rifle with an enhanced bullet, capable of hitting targets five kilometers away.

Self-loading rifles

Cassidy .22: Widely exported and copied American carbine.

SVD(M): Indian snipers wielded Russian Dragonuvs during the transition period from 20th to 21st centuries. As better solutions became available, leftover rifles were sold as surplus to shooting clubs.

STAR: Switchable, Task Adaptive Rifle. The most widely adopted modern rifle in 2060.

MCIWS: Indian modular rifle system, can change between calibers within a minute, without special tools.

Amogh-Excalibur: Indigenous service rifle family of India, standard military issue alongside MCIWS.

AK Alpha: Latest Russian evolution of the classic AK. In addition to stand-alone guns, Alpha kits can also be fitted onto legacy Kalashnikovs. Much of the Indian Army and border patrol AKs have been upgraded to Alphas.

ARAK: American Armalite-Kalashnikov hybrid assault rifle.

Para gun: Popular name for Brazilian overhauled FALs under Indian contract, used by Para SF as designated marksman rifle.

MCR: German-American Modular Caseless Rifle; advanced competitor to the STAR, current employed as the alternate rifle of several special forces.

F790: This Belgian rifle has a magwell in front and behind the trigger, which allows the user to go between traditional and bullpup in the push of a button.

XTR: Israeli compact carbine, an earlier 21st century design updated for telescoped ammo.

Black Rock: Israeli battle rifle, conventional 7.62 design based on the Galil. Can be configured as DMR or LMG.

Ironclad: Russian battle rifle, fires 2-in-1 duplex rounds.

Type 35 flechette: Chinese rifle with dart ammo, first of its kind in actual (albeit limited) service.

GS 7000: German designated marksman rifle, fires an experimental enlarged version of the MCR caseless bullet.

Leviathan: Two barrels shooting a high volume of fire, essentially two Israeli guns put into one. Comes with the specialy zeroed HYMARS sight.

VS-5 Artemis: Russian silenced rifle, special subsonic ammo compromises between range and quietness.

Fulcrum: American carbine with a downward blowback bolt, which decreases recoil alongside its in-line action.

SMGs/PDWs

Anamika: Before making the total switch to MSMC, Indian armories modernized many rusting MP5s.

MSMC: Indian SMG, used by spec ops and cops.

MP7A3: German PDW, an early 21st century design, revised in the 2020s and remained in use since.

PMG: Pocket Machine Gun; American-made concealable, folding SMG.

Silent Blaster: India's latest update to the suppressed Sterling; name in homage of a classic sci-fi weapon.

2K6: Russian machine pistol, comfortably delivers automatic armor-piercing 9mm bullets in one hand.

CPW: Close Protection Weapon. A Singaporean machine pistol.

Ax9: Essentially a scaled up Italian pistol with automatic fire.

Buffalo: Russian SMG with a 80 round mag.

Thor PDW: Swedish SMG with a unique magazine that wraps behind the thumb-hole grip.

P90CL: Belgian PDW with side loaded helical magazine. Streamlined for caseless ammo.

Accelerator: The SMG variant of Fulcrum; same mechanism and manufacturer.

Shotguns

SMLE shotgun conversion: Lee-Enfield rifles converted and refurbished by Ishapore to shoot 410 shotshells.

OAC coach guns: Civilian-legal double barrel manufactured by the indigenous Oriental Arms Company.

Insurance gun: Why choose between rifle and shotgun when you can have both in one? Straight out of Italy, this combination of two 12G barrels and one .308 barrel is the best insurance you can have!

Terminator: Indian license production of an American lever action shotgun. Named after a popular movie franchise that featured its predecessor.

12B Warden: Your run of the mill Indian pump action shotgun. Its purpose is to put down the undesirable, but the definitions of "put down" and "undesirable" are dependent on the shooter.

12B Tac: Indian made bullpup pump action shotgun, uses a proven mechanism underneath a modern chassis.

BADT: American ultra-compact pump shotgun. With a short barrel and 3+1 rounds in a pistol sized package, it is ideal for breaching and room clearing, and not much else.

Scylla: German-American integrally suppressed revolver shotgun designed to be attached under barrel, also available in standalone configuration.

Vulture: Chinese magazine fed shotgun, can fire in both semi-auto or pump action.

Kush: The bullpup conversion of a Russian self-loading shotgun.

U-19: Turkish pump action shotgun with two or four tube magazines, allowing for the shooter to change ammo types on the fly.

Hi-cal launcher: Australian stacked ammunition launcher, can fire shotgun shells or light grenades. Capable of attaching under rifle barrels.

Decimator: South African automatic shotgun, fed from a 25 round belt.

CCMG launcher: Indian made multi-caliber bullpup system designed to fire shotgun shells out of an adjustable choke and 20mm smart grenades with built airburst computer.

Heavy weapons

SFF S-gun: Recently founded Sikkim Frontier Firearms couldn't decided between Safari or Super gun, so they simply called this .600 single shot monster "S-gun". It can take down elephants and their poachers.

Border Defence Gun: Indian refurbished Bren with the latest skin, along with some new guts as well.

MG 9A: While many armies scaled up LMGs to fire GPMG calibers, the Indian Army downsized their MAG GPMGs for 5.56.

RPG Protronics: Indian upgrade to the classic RPG-7, proven core weapon with the comfort of modern furniture.

Pro pipe: With some modifications based on WW2 British artillery, remote firework launching tubes can be made into mortars.

Homemade flamethrower: While militaries have phased out the flamethrower, various criminal groups have not. Beware of accidental self-immolation.

Vidhwansak AMR: Indian-South African heavy anti-material rifle in 50 cal or 20mm. In service since early 21st century.

SFSW: Sustained Fire Support Weapon. Belgian light machine gun, gradually declining fire rate to preserve accurate auto fire.

UMG 6: 6mm Unified Machine Gun. This Russian weapon fires a special cartridge in between battle rifles and assault rifles.

LWMMG 338: American medium machine gun with a souped up round.

Gonolek SAW: Singaporean automatic rifle, blends carbine weight with MG firepower.

Y8: Eight shot revolver smart grenade launcher. Locally manufactured with license from South African partners.

AGS-42: Russian auto smart grenade launcher. Designed for vehicle or stationary mountings, but light weight materials (20kg loaded) make man-portable shooting possible.

RCL Mk 4: The last of the Carl Gustav line recoilless rifle used by Indian military. Even though the RPG-36 has overtaken it in frontline service, it remains a powerful bunker-buster.

RPG-36: Russian multi-mode heavy rocket launcher, with a two round "magazine" to overcome active protection systems.

Hast: Israeli guided rocket launcher, can track ground, coastal and low flying targets. Can be programmed to attacked from a variety of weak angles against armored vehicles, hardened structures and really stubborn people.

MAHEM: Magneto Hydrodynamic Explosive Munition launcher from the US. Purportedly capable of piercing the armors of three M1A3 Abram tanks side by side.

OFB E6: British made advanced 60mm mortar. Compatible with auto loader, smart munitions, remote firing and instant vehicle mounting.

Vehicles

Coming soon!

Science and Technology

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Coming soon!

Society

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Coming soon!

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

◤A leader or a man of action in a crisis
almost always acts subconsciously
and then thinks of the reasons for his action.
― Jawaharlal Nehru

A limitless new frontier, where anyone can be anything.
Built on the wastes of an ancient land, where forgotten wounds fester.
Wealth, fame, power, thrill, memes.

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

43 years into the future, the only constant we have is change. For far too long, humanity sacked the treasures of nature with no regards, all in the name of progress. We saw valuable fuel and food depleting, bountiful lands turned to waste. Extreme weather spiked in every region; the dry lands got drier and the flooded plains drowned deeper. In response, treaties and breakthrough technologies came one after another. The oil age neared its end, but many alternative energy poised to dethrone the black gold. We could travel faster than ever, at great convenience and little ecological footprint compared to decades ago. We could produce more efficiently than ever, realizing complex designs with the push of a 3D printer button, then breaking it back down and starting over with the help of recycling robots. But even as technology stimulated change, our society frequently lags behind. The internet of 2060 disseminates information at a blistering speed. xG networks, quantum computers and virtual reality seeped into mainstream markets, their introduction made accessing information easier than ever. However, not everyone relents on free rein. In the past, horrendous crimes have been aided with the latest tech. Petty criminals could find thousands of oblivious targets with the touch of a screen, and scheming extremists turn ambitious youths with vast arrays of internet propaganda. It only makes sense for law enforcement to counter with their own. Bio-metric records, call monitoring and surveillance drones are just few of the tools. Some governments went one step further, sealing off outside networks entirely. People were unimpressed with restrictions. See, the prime generation of 2060 grew up taking internet for granted. To them, being connected is not a privilege, it's a right. So what happens when the governments push? People push back. The world would see increasing amounts of hacking, protesting and rioting.

"How would that all affect me?" You ask. To start, you are living on the forefront of change. Sopahn is an Indian city on the edge of the Bay of Bengal, it was the fastest growing city last decade in India, if not the world. When much of the globe turns increasingly inwards in fear of radical change, Sopahn welcomes the new with open arms. Forty years ago, this place was just one of hundreds of medium-sized cities in south-east Asia, barely worth a pixel on Google Maps. In those dry, bland places, all that would take to ignite a revolutionary fire is a tiny inspirational spark. Soon, the original sparks faded in a vast ocean of flames. In Sopahn, what started its growth mattered to nobody. Some time during the third decade of the 21st century, pieces simply fell in place. First came the money, the capital serving as foundation blocks. Then the brave entrepreneurs, the blooming enterprises and cutting-edge innovations. Finally, millions would flock in in search of a better life. Poor rural dwellers transformed to skilled workers, sweatshops and call centers gave way to efficient manufacturing and R&D, local fisher markets bulldozed to seat skyscrapers and their multi-billion dollar international companies.

In a rush of fortune, the downtrodden were swept under; forgotten but not gone. Just because downtown streets displayed glimmering holograms of the perfect future, it doesn't mean every single person lived in paradise. Sure, one can say the overall standard of living improved. That is, if you're in the right place at the right time. For many, circumstance dealt a cruel hand. Every successful "Indian Dream" spawned another dozen "Indian Nightmares". Unemployment fluctuates on the market's whim, one week someone sipped expensive European wine, the next week they would be choking on the poisonous slum creeks. Getting out of poverty is tough, and let's face it, taking shortcuts is just way too tempting. Many turned to crime, to the darkest activities festering in Sopahn's underbelly. Gangs, syndicates and cartels run the poorer neighborhoods. The city tried to put an end to crime, but the officials handling such matters always value their bank accounts over their citizens. A little gratitude in exchange for a blind eye seems innocent enough, that is, until truly sinister plots unraveled. Some doomsday cult calling itself Hamza predicted the end of humanity on September, 2060. A flood would wash over the unfaithful, and those embracing the divine purge will find shelter in heaven, their leader said. Now, less than three months away from judgment, Hamza cultists escalate preaching to murder.

Welcome to Sopahn, 2060; your dreaded playground.

• Starting time is June 15, 2060. The place is Sopahn and the surrounding Taray district; both are fictional.
• The megalopolis is approximately 200 km², while the metro is 2000 km². Four and a half million live there.
• Official languages are English, Hindi and Odia.
• Technology, manufacturing, service and real estate development are the main industries within city limits. The Taray district outside mines thorium and bauxite, in addition to cutting timber and growing jute. Fishers compete with shipping firms for sea access.
• Monsoon season is imminent, pressure build up in the Himalayas and southeast Asia suggest high storm frequency.
• Common Development Asia is the largest private corporation, it is the second largest employer in Sopahn, behind the government.
• Coal mining had been phased out for at least a decade, due to a combination of legislation, depleting reserves and eco-terrorist sabotage.
• Maglev trains run within the city, and outside to other parts of India.
• Several waterways have been polluted to the point of toxicity.
• The Kashmir Agreement was signed in 2056. India gained territory over Pakistan. Many Kashmiris have been forcibly resettled in cities such as Sopahn, where they often clash with the locals.
• Many refugees come from Bengladesh, where much of its coasts, valleys and river basins have been ravaged by flooding.
• The government suffered multiple hacking attacks, prompting stricter cyber security law and the temporary deactivation of its policy/archive AIs.
• Mayor Vivek Yudhvankavi resigned because of personal and corruption scandals. Deputy Mayor Alma Laxmi and Counselor Soth Sila are running the city until an election in August.
• Due to rising water levels, older beaches are completely submerged. A barrier protects harbor side properties. Doomsday cults were responsible for destroying parts of this barrier.
• More and more tech companies and think tanks have been settling down, several conferences and exhibitions are scheduled this year.
• Corporate regulations remain loose to attract investors.
• Corruption, police brutality and bureaucratic incompetence are widespread. Trust in the city council is at a all-time low. Protests, riots and occasional looting frequent the streets.
• Crime rates spiking, gang clashes on the rise. Drug trade, arms trafficking and prostitution run rampant.
• Wealth gap greatly widened. Sopahn hosts record amounts of millionaires and homeless simultaneously.
• India is the most populous country with 1.7 billion people; surpassing China since the 2030s.

Lore Policy

Absolutely zero "alternate history". Anything 2017 or prior must follow established world events to the letter. The period between 2017 and 2020 should be left unmentioned, so that the blanks could be filled as they act out in real life. From 2020 onward, you may create custom events.

Technology must be validated in real life in order for incorporation. In addition to scientific plausibility, practicality and cost of deployment should be considered as well. Success in a lab does not translate to success in stores, and certain technologies are restricted by demographics.

If you have a world-changing event or advanced tech in mind, send me a PM to confirm first.

This roleplay is a hybrid of nations game and traditional character-focused RP. We will be following an episodic schedule, with each IC month (excluding the prologue of June) forming its own episode and a separate thread. Playing a character is mandatory, but creating and leading an organization is optional. In terms of plot, it will be relatively free-form. There are several storylines to pursue, which do not have predetermined outcomes. Players may cooperate or compete against each other in IC, however, competition should be agreed upon by all involved parties. Remember, no one "wins" in this RP, but if winning is your goal, you will definitely lose.

The in-character world is a realistic one. The plot is inspired by real events or plausible future scenarios. Some research may be helpful in the topics you wish to cover, but with that said, we're looking for reasonable creativity over strictly scientific analysis. The genre spans thriller, drama, slice of life, satire and more. Combat is present but will not be the only activity. Please ensure your character has potential outside of action.

There is no limit on playable characters, as long as they are approved. To keep things manageable, I recommend starting with no more than three major characters. You may introduce new characters at any time; all major characters are subject to GM approval. Minor characters in the form of NPCs can be brought in freely; they are useful for bridging your main character(s) into relevant events. NPCs unrelated to your main character(s) is a faster alternative to get in on the action without lengthy explanations.

As an advanced RP, your application is the proof of your writing skills. Bring your A-game on grammar, spelling and creative writing, and you'll have no problem being accepted. If certain parts of your character require editing, please do so appropriately or provide valid reasons otherwise.

Character sheet is available in the characters tab. You may reformat the sheet or add in additional categories as long as you answer all existing fields.

Character Guidelines

Many characters will fall into one of six categories below. However, these aren't limitations and you may create something entirely different.

• Rogues: Shady members of the society; includes criminals and shunned people.
• Public Servants: Folks working for the goal of order. You can be a elected official corruptly lining your own wallet, or a fired cop hunting down thieves on your own terms, or anything in between.
• Corporate: You are an important member of a big company, and being the team player you are, you will everything and anything to make the company better.
• Entrepreneurs: Personal business interest is your interest. Instead of working for existing companies, you are starting your own.
• Citizens: The average Singh doesn't carry too many ulterior motives. With that said, you may as well take advantage of these changing times.
• Outsiders*: You came recently from other parts of India, or maybe, even from another country. Sopahn is an international city; expect no shortage of foreigners.

^{*The number of foreigner will be limited; maximum one per user.}

▪ Please avoid cliché and tried stories and personalities and go for something a bit more diverse. This is a major reason we will be doing background checks. If you basically make the same story over and over, you’re not getting a pass. Do something interesting and don’t go with some tragedy staple for cheap drama in an attempt to make your character look deeper than they are. This doesn’t mean you can’t go for the dead parent/orphaned/home burned down/badass loner/insert something you’ve seen in every RP thread ever, this one not being an exception. It just means we want to see a solid backstory where something like that isn’t used as a weak justification for your character setting out for exploring and never mentioned again or pulled up whenever you feel like your character needs to have an angsty/sad moment. If you actually feel it serves a purpose and makes sense for your character’s development and history, than by all means. Just make sure it’s understandable and a relatively believable subplot.

▪ If you are trying to omit something in your character sheet saying that it will be revealed later in the RP, we expect to be private messaged about it for approval.

▪ Keep in mind the age or your character in relation to their physical ability and skill as well as personal experience. Older characters may not be as strong or have the vitality of younger characters, but they have experienced much and had much longer to master skills, as well as they will generally be much more mature and rational, but will take longer to recover from physically demanding situations, wounds, and may be very set in their ways. Younger characters have the raw strength and vitality that comes with being at the peak of your physical prime, and chances are, they are rash and less disciplined, as well as being susceptible to new ideas and will be generally inexperienced with the world. If your character excels at something at a young age, there must be a good reason for it.

▪ You can only carry so much on your person at a time. Are you going to be carrying a rocket launcher, a kilometer of steel pipe, a dining table, a full-sized statue of Gandhi, 4000 coins, a 72 inch TV, just as many beer cans and weed, and every physical assembly manual out of IKEA? Keep it reasonable, keep it realistic. Collecting loot should never be your goal. You should also specify how your character is carrying around most of their inventory.

▪ Requisitioning takes time to happen. Even with advanced 3D printing, express shipping and digital catalogs, stuff won't teleport into your character's hands.

▪ Cyborg characters are a potential possibility, but this is similar to the weapon rules where it’s going to be based more around role playing than stats. People aren’t going to react well to seeing their buddy turning into terminator, and many of the traditional, paranoid, or sensible types will likely try to end them for it on the spot. If you do decide to go this route, your application will face higher levels of scrutiny than others because we need to make sure that you can actually properly role play somebody who is primarily synthetic.

▪ Medicine takes time to work in most cases, so you're not going to get flattened by a truck and then look brand new by chugging Nano Booster Juiceter™. A med kit can help your body mesh the wounds and heal you, properly made drugs eliminate poisons and disease, and prosthetics can replace your lost limbs, but nothing can help you recover when you are too dead to do so.

▪ Damage is realistic(ish), if you're hit by something heavy or sharp; you're going to need some serious medical attention if it hits something vital. But since this is the future, and health care work in ways that a platypus would say, "that's fucked up", most people also aren’t going to die of a paper cut infection. Your character is mortal and will be taking wounds in combat. Also, equipment will be worn from use, maintenance is required to keep them going.

▪ Weapons have to reasonable for your character type, and its operational state should be tracked. Things like knives, batons, small arms and homemade bombs are fair game. Vehicle weapons (improvised or purpose built) can be integrated as long as they are within reason. However, this doesn't mean free rein to put ridiculous things like laser blasters or tanks into the game. Keep your kit in line with what someone could have in a real life city.

Skills and Weaknesses

Please be precise when listing skills. Proficiency in a broad skill (such as "business") may be interpreted as superficial and ineffective in any of its sub-skills. On the other extreme, skills that are too specific (like "thumb bending") will likely to disregarded as insignificant. Try to strike a balance (example; "hotel management" or "gymnastics").

Explanation of skill proficiency is required; you need more than a simple list.

Skills are locked in once your sheet is added to the roster. There may be chances to increase them, but leveling up in not the focus here.

Weaknesses are also mandatory, everyone need to have at least one distinct problem with their character. The end goal is not a medical simulator, so we can take some liberties without absolute realism. With that said, weaknesses have to be significant and not easily overcame; cheap excuses like "hates dogs" or "too attractive for his/her own good" are not acceptable.

Sample flaws and weaknesses

• Loss of certain body part(s) that are not fully replaced
• Dull senses
• Chronic illness
• Low stamina
• Clumsy
• Sensitive to elements
• Addiction
• Allergy
• Mentally Challenged
• Illiterate
• Phobias
• Social Awkwardness
• Weak-willed
• Anxious
• Gullible
• Debt

Skills and weaknesses will come into play when resolving conflicts and determining the outcomes of important actions. Dice rolls may be used for complex scenarios, and simpler situations are up to player discretion. For example, high chemistry skill will let you cook up some dank weed. Having hydrophobia might be problematic when your character's backed up against a body of water. Being indebted with no finance skill means no deal for life.

Organizations

Since this roleplay is not a nations game, controlling organizations will be secondary to playing individual characters. You may submit relevant organizations to augment the story of your character(s), as long as they are not universally powerfully or able to act over other organizations. Major organizations, such as the municipal government, will be GM-controlled. Your character may work for a GM-controlled factions and even create independent sub-factions within.

Creating an organization requires a similar application process to a character. However, you do not need to follow a strictly defined sheet. However, make sure you describe important elements such as the organization's type, its founding, its resources, its activities, its personnel, its structure, its association and relationship with other organizations.

Some ideas are listed below.

▪ Legal

• Security contractor
• Biotechnology
• Construction and land development
• Crisis management
• Charity
• Media
• Retailer
• Transportation
• Think tank
• Agriculture
• Minority group
• Youth and senior groups
• Foreign-based company

▪ Semi-legal

• Government watchdog
• Protest/lobbying group
• Gambling
• Racing
• Sponsored by rogue states
• Popular movement
• Alternative religion
• Information trafficking

▪ Illegal

• Gang
• Arms trade
• Drug trade
• Human trafficking/abduction
• Money laundering
• Poaching
• Hacking
• Ethic-less innovations
• Ethnocentric
• Revolutionaries/dissidents
• Terrorism
• Cult

§ Player participation can be terminated at any given time, at the GM's discretion.

§ The following offenses will result in the player's removal

• Starting arguments
• Circlekjerking
• Harassment
• Spamming and excessive shitposting
• Advertising without GM permission
• Breaking forum rules

§ The following offenses will result in the character's removal

• Metagaming
• Flawless characters
• Controlling other players
• Writing strictly for winning
• Low effort IC content
• Inactivity

§ In-character posting guidelines

• Max 5000 words per post; split anything longer
• No exotic glyphs or H1/H2 headers
• Color coding optional; medium contrast colors only
• Clearly indicate the IC time and location
• Collab outside of IC

Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

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Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

Alright folks, main thread's coming tomorrow; stay tuned!