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Alien Rope Burn posted:90s RPGs, though, I think you see a lot of: Don't forget the heavy dose of metaplot. If you look at the large game lines of the era (oWoD, Deadlands, Torg, Shadowrun, even Paranoia), there was always some sort of big story going on despite the actions of the PCs. The idea was to give the world a sense of existing outside the characters and their actions. Which is fine. But it became a problem when the metaplot became more important than the players. What usually ended up happening was there'd be some huge event that the PCs would get to watch but not participate in because they might gently caress up the carefully-laid-out script the designers had in mind. Instead you'd get pages of boxed text about major setting NPCs fighting while you got to hold off a few handfuls of minions. Sometimes it was handled well (Shadowrun's presedential election), often it wasn't (Deadland's game line transitions, the later books in Torg). Either way it soured a lot of people on the whole "story gaming" concept since it started to mean "you have to sit through the designer's self-fanfic". (And yes, I know I'm way behind on Torg)
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Nov 12, 2013 21:16
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Halloween Jack posted:Metaplot was also especially terrible when it came in the form of "The entire Platypus Clan died in the Eggstorm, if you're a Platypus you're either dead or alone with a bullseye on your head." Oh man, I completely forgot how White Wolf did that with both oVampire and oWerewolf.
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Nov 12, 2013 21:30
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Cardiovorax posted:And in Mage. People who played that game just didn't pay any attention to the plot. Who got wiped out in Mage? I know it was the Ravnos (because their antideluvian woke up) and the Stargazers (who just took their ball and went home), but I don't remember Mage having anything that earth-shaking happen.
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Nov 12, 2013 21:42
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Davin Valkri posted:
But yeah, it was pretty much game lines shooting themselves in the foot. If my campaign isn't following the metaplot, then any book that happens after The Big Event That Changes Everything probably isn't going to be that useful for me. Case in point: the transitions between the various eras in Deadlands. Deadlands and Hell on Earth both ended with adventures that more-or-less wrapped up everything going on in that era (or at least stopped caring), and used various methods to bring the PCs to the next game line. These adventures pretty much assumed that that's what everyone wanted to do: leave everything established behind and do an effective hard reset of the campaign. But if you liked running around the Weird West, then odds are you didn't care about Hell On Earth. And if you did transition from Weird West to HoE, then your old established characters couldn't take advantage of the cool new character types available, making those pretty much useless for you.
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Nov 12, 2013 21:53
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That is still the greatest oWoD metaplot summary ever written. 
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Nov 12, 2013 22:17
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AccidentalHipster posted:The best summary of oWoD metaplot. If you don't mind me asking, what's the whiskey bottle trick? The whiskey bottle trick was from the old Mage mailing list (to give you an idea of how long ago this was; forums really didn't exist yet). In the original Mage book, one of the examples of using magick to defend yourself was to create a whiskey flask over your heart that blocked a bullet. Unfortunately, they didn't explain how you'd actually do this; it was just a throwaway example. A huge argument erupted on how you'd do this (did you use Matter to create it? Correspondence to transport a flask from home?) and if it'd be vulgar or conincidental (creating matter out of thin air was vulgar, but nobody'd know there wasn't a flask in your pocket, so is it coincidental?). Basically it was an early warning sign that WW didn't think as much about the magick system as they should have before releasing it to the public.
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Nov 12, 2013 22:22
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Halloween Jack posted:I can't remember exactly how the Tremere antitribu bit the dust. It involved some kind of triple threat cage match between Tremere, Saulot (the Antediluvian he diablerized), and Goratrix, Tremere's sidekick.
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Nov 12, 2013 22:27
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Cooked Auto posted:Speaking of which it's kinda fascinating to see that WOTC still keeps going with the whole metaplot thing considering the changes they've decided to go through with Faerun for 5th ed.
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Nov 13, 2013 02:46
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AccidentalHipster posted:
What's the name of this manga again? I was looking for it the other day but couldn't remember the name.
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Nov 17, 2013 19:02
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Thanks folks!
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Nov 17, 2013 20:03
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ibntumart posted:Now I wish someone would run a Dungeon World or FATE Thundarr campaign. Dungeon World already has Adventures on Dungeon Planet for that kind of thing.
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Dec 12, 2013 22:23
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Looks like I picked the wrong time to get back into this.  The storm has a name... - Let's Read TORG  Part 9c: CyberFrance France has had a rought time of it lately. The invasion of the Cyberpapacy brought not one but two distinct axiom washes, both of which had very heavy effects on the country. First there was the Collapse, where all the technology stopped working, then not long after was the Tech Surge, where Core Earth's technology not only started working again, but advanced by leaps and bounds. Before we get too deep into that, though, let's take a look at the realm map.  The Cyberpapacy, about three weeks after the initial invasion. This is the map from the sourcebook; in the original boxed set they hadn't moved into Spain yet. The Cyberpapacy is the smallest of all the realms, barely extending outside the borders of France. It's also in a very bad position: the map doesn't show it, but the Cyberpapacy is boxed in both to the north (by Asyle) and south (by the Nile Empire). Asyle's borders go right up to the English Channel, meaning that at some points there's literally only a few miles between the Ayslish and Cyberpapal borders. The proximity of the two realities (three, if you count Core Earth) means that the English Channel is one big perpetual reality storm with the added bonus of sea monsters. The proximity between the two realms was actually done on purpose, because Malraux had allied himself with Uthirion, Aysle's High Lord. The two became allies due to a common interest in pain (Malraux because it purifies the soul, Uthirion because he was a sadistic gently caress), but the recent ousting of Uthirion has put a bit of a crimp in the alliance. The Nile Empire is a little further away, being on the far side of the Mediterranean Sea, but that doesn't mean Mobius isn't a problem. There is constant warfare between Malraux and Mobius over control of the Mediterranian, and while the Cyberpapacy has the better technology, Malraux can't keep up with the insane creations of Dr. Mobius. Especually since Mobius actually has a better grip on technology than the Cyberpapacy does. So that leaves the east and west for expansion. Expanding to the west is possible, but ulitmately a dead end once you reach Portugal. And standing in the way to the east is Germany, and that's become a problem. Remember, Torg originally takes place in 1990. At this point, Germany had literally just reunified, and now all of a sudden they've found themselves as the only thing stopping the Cyberpapacy from expanding into eastern Europe and Russia. But we'll get more into that when I'm done with the "core" realms and talk about Core Earth in general. But let's get back to France, and talk abou the Collapse and the Tech Surge. Malraux's maelstrom bridge did not drop down upon Core Earth's Avignon, but unstead dug up into the dungeons and basements of the city. When the bridge "dropped", all Core Earth technology just...stopped working. Electricity ceased to flow, engines failed, and essential services collapsed. Millions were killed as planes died in mid-flight, hospitals went dark, and the population began to riot. This was, of course, all according to Malraux's plan. As part of the initial prep work for the invasion, Malraux sent his own agents to Earth via dimthread to start converting people to Magna Verita's version of Christianity so he'd have enough believers to power the stelae. In the outlaying areas where Malraux had converted the population, things weren't as bad. In the major metropolitan areas, it was a different story. Lack of technology meant lack of communications, so hysteria spread through France rapidly as theories ranging from "World War Three" to "The Antichrist" were bandied about. And into this chaos came the Church, ready to help the needy and to ease the suffering. Malraux's Church was ready to start siezing control right away, and had organized many right-wing groups to act as muscle (c.f. the Hands of God). Roman Catholic priests who were stuck in the realm were a high-priority target for the Church, in order to cement Malraux's "God" as the One True God. Just over a month after the initial invasion, the Church's forces converged on Paris. Paris is a Core Earth hardpoint, and as a result it was vital for Malraux to take it down. His forces burst through the city's defensive forces, and attacked the National Assembly without mercy. quote:Seizing the outer chambers, they set fire to the building and mercilessly turned their guns on those fleeing from the inferno. A Papal Legate proclaimed that the Church was now in control. The savior was coming in the form of the Pope. France would be safe from the Antichrist now that the godless socialists had been destroyed. At this point, Malraux still hadn't come across the bridge to his new realm. He had one last "step" in his invasion plan. In order to cement his position as savior to the people of France, he released two demons from Magna Verita into the country. He would allow them to ravage the countryside, establishing themselves as a major threat, and then appear to publicly defeat them (thanks to the power of his Darkness Device) to show how only he could defend his people from the forces of the Antichrist. As he waited in what the Core Earthers called the "Dreamtime" for the correct moment to arrive on his bridge of light, he was waylaid by Storm Knights. This is the attack by Dr. Hachi Mara-Two I talked about [url="https://"""]back here[/url]; the sudden vision of the high-tech reality taking place in a spiritual realm had a severe effect on Malraux. Seeing this as a "vision from God", Malraux's personal axioms were altered to a mix of Magna Verita's and Kandara's. When Malraux entered the new realm, he carried these new axoims with him. Powered by the Darkness Device, a second axiom wash occured across the realm. Technology that had ceased functioning came back to life, devices that had been transformed completely by the initial invasion changed back, and Possibility-rated people found themselves fluxuating between the two axiom sets. It took surprisingly little time for the changes to settle, but once they did a new reality was formed; a mix of medieval mindsets and high technology ruled now; the Church was no more, and the Cyberpapacy took its place. The Church has adapted well to the new situation. Not perfectly, of course, but the axiom wash and Malraux's tight grip on the church power structures have kept it in control of France throughout the changes. The main lynchpin of Malraux's control is, of course, the GodNet. quote:Information contained within the GodNet was at first fragmentary and confused. Thanks to the work of the cyberpriests, data has been collated and systemized within the vast data bases of the GodNet. The Cyberpope now has instant access to information detailing the extent and structure of his new realm. Confident in its workings, the Cyberpope has decreed that all loyal Catholics will be connected to the GodNet and their activities monitored by it. Information is currently being compiled on the activities and locations of all heretics and opposition groups. The Cyberpope is tightening his grip to create the perfect totalitarianstate. quote:The Malraux Bible was the first order of business for Père Jean, and it encapsulates the Cyberpope’s message of salvation through Cybernetics. It is based upon the Julian Bible of Magna Verita, but adds a final book: the Cybernetic Vision. So we've talked about the GodNet, but haven't really said what it is yet. When Mara-Two slapped the dataplate onto Malraux, he wasn't the only one overcome with visions. Eboncrux, his Darkness Device, also saw the visions of Kanandra. While the visions were strange to it as well, it was better equiped to analyze and understand them than its master was. Where Malraux saw "the face of God", Eboncrux saw a tool that could be used to spread misery and destruction. As the second axiom wash happened, Eboncrux began to create a sort of sub-reality in the restored telecommunication systems and technology. It was like weaving a web, with the Darkness Device at the center and symbology drawn from its master's mind. quote:When it had finished, it had created a matrix of data and communication comprised of biblical images. Databases and computers took on the shapes of religious buildings. Huge Gothic cathedrals came into being in its cyber landscape. Churches and shrines appeared which held less important data. In the center, where the arms of the cross met, it raised a cybernetic Tower of Babel. Signals are routed through and monitored through here. In Avignon, monitor screens and cyberdecks were established to allow the cyberpriests to watch over this new tool of Papal power. So what does this all mean for the inhabitants of the CyberPapacy? What's life like in modern day CyberFrance for the millions of ords? It should go without saying that life in France has changed pretty drastically since the invasion. For the people who live in the cities, or who can afford all the new things the increased Tech axiom allows, the standard of living has actually improved, and these people are more capable of dealing with the dangers the new world puts in front of them. Those who cannot, however, find themselves in a pretty bad position. CyberFrance is isolated from the rest of the world in several senses of the phrase. The entire country is surrounded by reality storms, and the realm itself is boxed in by Aysle to the north (literally on the other side of the English Channel) and the Nile Empire to the south. This makes it difficult, if not impossible, to get basic supplies shipped in from other countries. The biggest issue this has caused is the lack of oil and gasoline. Cars are basically luxury items now, because oil shipments can't get into the country. It doesn't help that most of the oil in the world is controlled by the Middle East (who are heathens) or by Mobius (who Malraux hates with a firey passion), of course. Electric-powered cars are starting to become available to the populace at large, but as it stands now most Core Earth vehicles are out of the picture. The Collapse did a number on the existing industries, of course, but the Tech Surge just compounded the problem with the advent of cyberdecks. Factories and large-scale services came back online, but now are either fully automated or can be done by a few people with cyberdecks instead of a full-fledged workforce. Millions are out of work, and the economy is suffering for it. One good thing that happened in the wake of the Tech Surge is the transformation of existing electric and nuclear power plants into more powerful and safer power production. Basic services (like electricity) are provided free to every home now. Rural France has remained pretty much the same for the most part. There's a larger pressure on the farms to produce since they're the sole food producers for the realm, and as a result farms and rural areas tend to be targets for gangs, rebels, and thugs working under the unbrella of the CyberChurch. The Cyberpapacy has a strong hold on the more rural areas than the cities thanks to the protection they offer the "farm belt". Unfortunately, the lack of food production is taking its toll on the urban centers. Food riots are not uncommon, and the Cyberpapacy doesn't tend to intervene unless church property is directly threatened. The Church has been known to instigate a riot or two on its own, blaming Jews, Muslims, and other assorted "heretics". The Cyberchurch sees the riots as a sort of pressure release for the population, and if a few The GodNet (and, by extension, the CyberPapacy) is also isolated from the rest of the world. The GodNet doesn't connect to any outside data resource or communication network; it is completely and intentionally off Core Earth's global grid. This means that the Internet, television, phones, even radio transmissions from outside France can't get into the country. The Church has a hard lock on what information is available to the public, with the news networks filtering any major news events through their needs. Most major news events from the "outside world" are spun to seem worse than they are, are attributed to the forces of the Antichrist, and reinforce how only the Cyberpope can protect his people from the evils of the rest of the world. Of course, the Cyberpapacy has a few other ways of keeping the populace in line. The big three are Faith Chips, Homers, and HolyVids. Faith Chips are probably the scariest of the three; these datachips are installed directly onto a person's cyber-control system (i.e., the spine/brainstem region), and cannot be removed without major surgery. A Faith chip broadcasts the Cyberpapacy's beliefs and doctrines directly into the victim's brain, making him a fanatical follower of Malraux who will kill or die for the Church without question or hesitation. When you're fitted with a Faith Chip, you fully believe in the threat posed by the Antichrist, and that only the Cyberpope is capable of saving the world from it. Trying to perform any action that goes against Cyberpapal doctrine requires a very difficult Spirit check to perform. Failing the check means you have to follow doctrine. But don't worry. Sooner or later, you'll love it. Homers are less insidious but no less dangerous. These small implanted devices transmit basic homing signals to a range of 25 km, which can be (and are) recorded in the GodNet. If you have a homer installed, then the Church will always know where you are, where you've been, and will probably have some suggestions on where you're going to end up. HolyVids are mass-produced "entertainment systems" that are distributed to the faithful once they prove themselves "worthy". HolyVids are basically virtual reality systems that plug directly into the GodNet. You don't need cyberjacks to use them, so they're safe for the whole family! A HolyVid allows the users to project themselves into fullly immersive recreations of Biblical events, allowing the faithful to experience them first-hand as if they were really there. It should come as no surprise that HolyVids are psychologically addictive, and contain subliminal messages that let the Church control the flock. These devices are the most widespread of the three main control points, because they don't require the user be cybered to use it. On top of that, they're becoming popular means of escapism in a rapidly deteriorating society. Ultimately, Malraux wants to install Faith Chips and homers in the entire Cyberpapal population, and eventually in everyone in the world. As stated previously, he doesn't care so much about becoming Torg; his goal is controlling the world (for its own good, of course). Now, at this point in the chapter, there's a bunch of stuff about all the individual provinces in CyberFrance. It's another case of things not being presented in a logical manner; we go from background to "life in CyberFrance" for about two minutes now we're in a province-by-province breakdown of what's going on across the country. This whole part of the chapter can be summed up as follows: 1. The city of Avignon, the capital of the Cyberpapacy is expanding rapidly. 2. The farming areas are pretty much under Cyberpapal control, and the Church is trying to meet demand by applying new technologies to farming, with mixed results. 3. In the industrial areas, unemployment is at an all-time high thanks to the new technologies. One guy with a cyberdeck can control a whole factory now, so who needs workers? It doesn't help that unions are considered "heretical". 4. The Resistance has been gaining strength on the outskirts of France. The situation in Belgium deserves special mention, though. quote:The stelae planted in western Belgium isolate the Belgian coal fields from the industries of Brussels. Fierce reality storms have set fire to the underlying coal seams turning the west of Belgium into a raging inferno. Thousands of Belgians have been killed in the resulting disaster and now lead a precarious existence amongst the smoking ruins. From here we learn about Cathedrals and Monasteries. So of course we start by talking about the GodNet. Have I mentioned that these books aren't very well organized? The GodNet does get its own sourcebook (which I'll cover briefly after this book), but for now let's cover the basics. The GodNet is France's internet, and is completely cut off from the rest of the world. Due to the Tech Surge, people are able to interface with it through cyberdecks, and view it as a 3-dimensional "virtual experience" (VX for short). Churches, Cathedrals, and Monasteries act as system relay points, data centers, and network control points. Because of this, and the importance placed on the GodNet, data cathedrals and churches are rapidly becoming the central focus of most communities. quote:The concept of a neighborhood is undergoing rapid change. Now the center of the neighborhood is the cathedral, even more than it was in medieval times. Everyone connected to the GodNet is two short exchanges away from a meeting place for thousands of people, and similarly connected to hundreds of businesses. Mass at a cathedral has become a focal social point for hundreds of thousands of French citizens. They go to Mass, enjoy the sense of awe and belonging which is magnified many times by the nature of the GodNet, and then meet friends who might live hours away by car. Their own image is more attractive in the VX environment, and they feel themselves more capable. This facet of the GodNet gives Jean Malraux I a seductive and powerful tool for getting the French citizenry to voluntarily and loyally join his cause. Cyberpapal stelae are, unsurprisingly, altars that have been ritually prepared by Malraux himself. Malraux keeps a few back-up stelae "prepped" near important live ones, so if Storm Knights do manage to take one out he can have Ebencrux quickly energize a new one and keep the zone from collapsing. And that's the "Cathedrals and Monasteries" section of the chapter! From there we logically move to Getting Around. France is a big country, and since it's pretty much cut off from the rest of the world now transport is...tricky. Normal air service everywhere in France is pretty much done. Between the lack of fuel and the constant weird weather, it's just not practical anymore. The Cyberpapacy is trying to introduce new planes with alternate fuel sources, but for the most part that effort is going into combat jets. People who own chartered planes are still going about their business, but again the lack of fuel is driving prices up. Ground services haven't fared much better. The Collapse didn't do wonders for the road system, and even after the Tech Surge fixing the roads wasn't really a high priority. Cars are rapidly becoming luxury items, and (again) alternate fuel sources are being rolled out slowly. The only mass transit system that's still working is the rail system. If anything, it's improved thanks to the Tech Surge allowing bullet trains that are faster and safer than Core Earth's. I do want to point out that there's a map in the book that shows all of France's major roads, and another that shows all the rail lines. Previously, there was a map of all of France's provinces. I just find that quaint, a relic of a time before you could just type "France maps" in Google and get all the maps you want. I am ten pages into this chapter. The next section is about Avignon, and it's not much we don't already know. The city is expanding rapidly due to new cyberware factories being built and the assorted needs of the thousands of pilgrims streaming into the city. Avignon is a historical city; the papacy was located there from the early 1300's to the early 1400's, so there's a lot of old buildings reflecting the ancient glory of the church. As you can imagine, Malraux has "improved" on that. Ancient frescoes have been replaced with holographic projections. The Palace of Popes has had a monitor tower attached to it, broadcasting the word of Malraux across the skyline. The bell tower of the Avignon cathedral has been replaced with a giant glowing cross visible from anywhere in the city. Subtle, it is not. The next part of the chapter is a "typical locations" deal again, and you'll forgive me for not getting into too much detail here. Provided are maps and NPCs for a Cyberlegger Hideout (basically a street doc/chopshop), a GodWare hospital (complete with techpriests, innocent patients, and cyberboosted guard dogs), and Church Police Checkpoints. Interestingly, we don't get sample cathedrals or other places where you'd go to actually deal with Cyberpapal personel or get your cyberhack on; those are in the GodNet book for some reason. The last part of the chapter is about how CyberFrance gets along with its European neighbors. As you can imagine, it's "not well". Germany is probably in the best and worst position. Unification had just happened when the invasion hit, and they were not ready at all. They had a few NATO forces available, but sending modern troops into Collapse-d France didn't work out so well. Falling back from the French border, the German and NATO forces got a front-row seat for the Tech Surge. It wasn't long after the Surge that the CyberPapal forces attacked: demons and cybered-up troopers poured over the border. But by this point, people had started to get a handle on how reality mechanics worked. German forces basically played a defensive game; they'd "retreat" while fighting, drawing Cyberpapal forces deeper into Core Earth and wait for them to disconnect. Germany couldn't attack, but they could at least hold the line. As it stands now, Germany has found itself trust into the role of "major world power". It's no secret that Germany is pretty much the only thing between Malraux and Russia, and has also found itself as a launching point for Storm Knights who want to get in on the action in the Cyberpapacy, Aysle, or the Nile Empire. The main focus now is on defense; missile silos are rapidly being set up along the western border, and there's a greater push on industrial production. In fact, due to North America and most of Europe being off the grid, Germany has also found itself becoming a major player in the world economy. Fortunately, the Japanese government has been helping out with that, giving them money and helping improve their technological frameworks. It's a good thing the Kawana Corporation is there, huh? Luxembourg didn't make out quite as well as Germany. Between the reality storms sweeping through the tiny country and the almost constant influx of refugees from France, the government has pretty much collapsed. NATO troops tried to get things under control, but they're not having much luck since they need to focus more on keeping Germany strong. At this point, Luxembourg is pretty much a done deal as a nation. Italy isn't having a much better time, though. Like Spain, Italy has been cut off from the rest of Europe, with the added bonus of being stuck near the wars over control of the Mediterranean Sea. The other problem is that the ROman Catholic Church is one of Malraux's primary targets. Malraux has decried that Pope John Paul II is the Antichrist, and taking out the Roman Catholic Church (or better, converting it) is a high priority. Rome, for its part, has declared that Malraux is "an abomination under God" and is currently engaged in propaganda wars throughout Italy. Unfortunately, the Cyberpapacy backs it propaganda up with assassinations and mass violence, and the Roman Catholic Church is having a hard time adjusting to needing to hire mercenaries and Storm Knights. The recent awakening of Core Earth's spiritual power has helped, though. quote:Miracle at Saint Peter’s Square As stated earlier, Belgium is kinda...broken. The western part of the country is in bad shape due to the underground coal fires sparked by the reality storms along the border. Most of the country's resources are tied up dealing with the refugees from the western part of the country and trying to support Germany. The Netherlands got hit hard by reality storm-powered tidal waves that were created by the insanely close proximity of the Ayslish and Cyberpapal borders. The waves actually reached as far inland as Amsterdam, destroying most of the city. The Netherlands, like Luxembourg, are devistated. People are abandoning the country en masse as anrachy reigns. Switzerland is slowly falling to Cyberpapal influence. The government hasn't been very effecting in dealing with the destruction the invasion caused, and lynching of "heretics" is becoming more widespread thanks to Cyberpapal agents. Spain is pretty much hosed. Completely cut off from Europe, and with the Cyberpapacy already getting a foothold, the country tries to hold onto their faith and resist the invaders as best they can. In fact, Spain is one of the few countries that seem to be able to resist Cyberpapal doctrine. Spain has enacted a sealed-border policy, letting nobody into the country. Unfortunately, agents of the College of the Way managed to get into Spain before the border was closed, and are slowly worming their way into the lives of the people. As for the rest of the world...well, Malraux knows he needs to keep his physcial forces focused on Europe. He knows that Core Earth religious artifacts have probably transformed into hardpoints or eternity shards, so any forces he has that aren't trying to take the rest of Europe or stomp Mobius are dedicated to artifact hunting. Outside Europe, the Cyberpapacy is focusing on winning hearts and minds. Healing miracles are used in front of as many people (particularly Catholics) as possible in an attempt to undermine the Roman Catholic Church's spiritual base, and high-tech medical procedures and alternate power solutions are winning over the athiests. And...done. This is a long-rear end chapter. Well, technically it's not, it's only 20 pages. But it feels a lot longer than it is. It once again suffers from the two main problems that plague the Torg sourcebooks: there's too much goddamn detail you'll probably never use, and it's not presented in a logical order. I don't need to know what's going on in every single province in France; just give me a quick list of common problems and little things like "in northeastern France the farms are having a lot of trouble with bandits and Cyberpapal forces clashing" and we're good. Don't bounce from background to maps to the GodNet to talking about trains. None of it follows! Still, this is probably the roughest part of the book to get through, so hopefully things will get more interesting from here. NEXT TIME: Paris in the cyber-springtime!
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Jan 6, 2014 17:48
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Young Freud posted:I think it's implied that Malraux allied with Uthirion because, at the time, he was totally possessing the body of a hot chick that's Queen Pella Ardinary. Seriously, she's a high-fantasy babe who would totally be one to throw away your vows for. I believe there's a couple references in later books, whenever the High Lords met, he's uncomfortable around Uthirion because he's now inhabiting the body of some Viking chieftain. My fanfictions! posted:The pope was soon met by Uthorion, who occupied the body of Lady Pella Ardinay. After some initial tension, the two discovered a mutual interest in the subtleties of pain. Malraux considered the other High Lord a heathen scoundrel who might very well be possessed, but a heathen who had an appreciation of what was important in life. To be fair, Uthorion and Malraux shacking up would be less dumb than what eventually ends up happening. quote:You forgot to mention that Malraux's agents worked in sabotaging technology as well to prepare for the invasion. Namely, sabotaging nuclear power plants and contaminating the blood supply with HIV-tainted blood.
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Jan 6, 2014 18:30
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Glazius posted:So is there any possibility that the cyberassassins sent to kill the cyberpope weren't just a plant by the cyberpapacy? quote:Trying to cyberkill the cyberpope is right up there with trying to drown Poseidon. (If you think this slang is bad, wait until the next chapter where we finally see Torg cyber-slang; it's right up there with the Marvel 2099 stuff. I'll probably be posting it later tonight; for some reason my favorite piece of art in the book isn't in the PDF, and I need to scan it it when I get home.)
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Jan 6, 2014 21:09
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In before the lock! The storm has a name... - Let's Read TORG Part 9d: Paris This is a surprisingly short chapter, especially after the last one. And again, it's a bit of an artifact of an earlier time where you didn't have the ability to just go onto Google or Wikipedia and get basic information about a country like population breakdown or the layout of the metro system. Of course, I'm not going to cover that stuff. Instead, I'm going to talk about the changes the invasion has had on the city. As stated previously, Paris (to be specific, the Eiffel Tower) is a Core Earth hardpoint. Core Earth's axioms still hold sway in the city, and have since the initial invasion. That's not to say that Paris weathered the Collapse without a problem. When Malraux dropped his bridge, all of France except Paris dropped off the grid. There was no way to contact people outside the city to see what was going on, world communication was cut off, and it wasn't long before people started to panic. Many people fled the city out of fear or to find out what happened to loved ones in the outlying areas, only to find castles, manor houses, and carts where suburban areas once stood. It didn't take long for people to find out that Paris wasn't changing like the rest of the country, and thousands headed there to seek shelter from the changing reality. Papal forces managed to inflitrate the city by coming in with the waves of refugees. Not that they needed to do much to destabalize the city. Core services collapsed due to the lack of technological or financial support. Supplied dwindled rapidly, and it was impossible to get resources from outside the city. Gang warfare became common over such important locations as gas stations and food warehouses. The Hands of God did their part, too, egging on conflict and just flat-out wrecking poo poo. Things went from bad to worse when the food supplies started running out. Rationing was instituted for all the good it did. It wasn't long before people started fighting to the death over food, then pet food, then pets, then any animal you could catch and cook. By the time the Tech Surge came around, the damage was done. Still cut off from the rest of the world, the citizens of Paris eek out a tenuous existence surrounded by the enemy. That's the Paris of the Near Now: once one of the most spectacular cities in the world, now reduced to a post-apocalyptic wreck. With the fall of the French government, Paris has had to set up its own government. In responce to the insanely right-wing forces taking over the rest of the country, a body of liberals, communists, and socialists was elected into office. The leadership of Paris is called "The Commune", and they wasted no time organizing people to fight back against the HOGs and Church forces. It took a lot of fighting, but eventually the Church's forces were driven out of the city. Despite the victory over Malraux, things are still pretty shaky for the Commune. Basic supplies are still hard to come by, refugees still pour into the city, Cyberpapal forces still attack the outlaying areas. The peacekeeping force in Paris is the "Paris Liberté Militia" (PLM), and is a militia in the traditional sense: citizens who are willing to take up arms in defense of what's theirs. If these folks have their own guns, so much the better. PLM "troops" patrol the streets in small groups searching for Cyberchurch agents or keeping the numerous gangs at bay. The PLM has no standard uniform or gear. They identify themselves by wearing red armbands on their left arm and using whatever weapons or defensive gear they can scrounge. They're headquartered just outside the Eiffel Tower. It should be pointed out that while not well-equiped for the most part, the PLM do have access to twelve tanks (two of which are mobile), four functioning Apache helecopters, and sixteen missile sites. Obviously, none of these see any regular use; they're pretty much all for emergency use only. Despite all that, Paris's best defense is still the reality storm raging around the city. The population of post-invasion Paris is just over 13 million people. Which doesn't seem so bad until you realize that the population just before the invasion was 10.5 million. Needless to say, there's not a lot of free space in Paris right now. Refugee camps are set up anywhere you can stick three tents together, and the strain is being felt on basic human services. Life in Paris is pretty nasty, brutish, and short. Street gangs and leftover HOG forces roam the streets battling for territory and supplies, not caring who gets caught in the crossfire. The Metro no longer runs due to being too expensive to operate, and the tunnels have been taken over by punks and nutbags too dangerous to live on the streets. Any building large enough to hold people is used as shelter, even if that wasn't the original purpose. Landmarks like the Louvre and Le Pantheon have become overcrowded shelters. Outside the borders of the City, Church Police forces keep anyone from leaving the city, while at the same time ushering refugees into Paris, putting further strain on a city that's one bad day away from collapse already. The overcrowding has also put a strain on everyone's general health; lack of medical supplies combined with forced close quarters means that disease runs rampant, with cholera and typhoid making big comebacks. Despite all this, Paris remains free. Yes, it's overcrowded and starving, but the people of Paris have a unique viewpoint on it: they may be trapped, staving, and surrounded by the enemy, but their souls are still theirs. The people of Paris refuse to give in to hopelessness or despair. They're not going to let some monster who thinks he's the mouthpiece of God control their souls. The Marseille is played on public address systems throughout the city, and the French flag still flies from the top of the Eiffel Tower. They may be trapped and beset on all sides by an insane tyrant, but the people of Paris aren't going down without a fight. Viva Liberté indeed. The Eiffel Tower is the hardpoint that keeps Paris working as a Core Earth zone. Everything within about 100 meters is a pure zone, and beyond that it's Core Earth dominant to about 4 kilometers. Sometimes the reality storms shift, and the effect can go out as far as 6 km. Reality storms rage around Paris 24/7, and on occasion they ground themselves out as electrical storms on the Eiffel Tower. When this happens, the storms have been known to blow the tops off the larger buildings in the city. The reality storms in and around Paris are a little different than most. While most reality storms strike with impunity and without direction, the ones around Paris seem to target the invading forces rather than Core Earthers. Nobody knows why this is (the top theories are that the storms are reacting to the population's desire for freedom, or that it's a sign from God), but every little bit helps, right? This actually has a mechanical effect in that anyone from Core Earth who gets involved in one of these storms has a +3 bonus to their reality total, and folks from the Cyberpapacy have any damage value caused by the storm increased by 3. Because most of Paris is a dominant zone, cybernetics and related technologies still work there. Cyberleggers have begun setting up shop on the outskirts of the city, getting "supplies" from captured or killed Cyberpapal agents and dealing mainly with the street gangs. Most cyberware in Paris is subdermal; nobody wants to look like they work for Malraux if they can help it. Still, in the rougher areas of Paris it's nice to have a set of cyberclaws or a skinweave to give yourself a bit of an edge. And, of course, the gangs like to go full chrome anyway. Now, the next few pages are just general info about Paris, but it's nothing you couldn't look up on Wikipedia or Google Maps. So I'm going to skip them and get to the part you really want to know about : Cybergangs of Paris!  Cyberpunks in their native habitat, cyberpunking it up Oh come on, like you didn't know that was coming at some point. Any major city has gangs. But when the city is hit by a sudden spike in technology and a downturn in overall quality, the street gangs upgrade to cyberpunks. And these are totally 90's RPG cyberpunks, with the weird outfits and gimmicks and everything. This is street trash mixed with Generic 90's Cyberpunk then dumped into The Warriors. Seriously, the Baseball Furies would not be that out of place here. Just give them, like cyberbats or something. One thing I haven't mentioned yet about the Cyberpapacy is West End's attempt at coming up with cyberslang. I did not change a word of this posted:Crimes against the citizens of Paris began with the normal theft and muggings. Then came drugs. Then came zipyanks, murders in which the victim’s organs or cyberware were removed for sale; fry-bys, where punks drive by citizens and attack them with energy weapons modified so as to ignite the victim; grabaways, where the victims, usually entire families, are kidnapped and assaulted. Anyway. We get the down-low (as it were) on six of Paris's biggest cyberstreetgangs. Street cybergangs? Whatever, let's just enjoy this glimpse back to an earlier age. First up are The Sun Kings and Queens, who, AND I QUOTE, "are streetwise posers who dress in the style of Ancièn France with pomaded wigs, chalked faces (complete with beauty spots) and elegant clothing."  Pictured: A Cyberpunk Regardless of how they dress, Sun Kings and Queens are usually pretty cyber-ed up and are good fighters. They control the docks of Paris, and anyone dumb enough to enter their territory while possessing cyberware will quickly find themselves swarmed by gangers and dragged to the local cyberlegger to be stripped for parts. Their normal activities boil down to protection rackets and "sin-palaces". They also have a small presence in the GodNet, and their data base (yes, that's what it's called) is a virtual recreation of the Palace of Versailles. The leader of the Sun Kings and Queens is Louis XIV; the leader of the gang is always called Louis or Marie. They're nothing if not unoriginal. For some reason, the "number" of the leader always counts down, not up. Also for some reason a map for the Sun King and Queens' HQ is provided. Next up are the Carrion Dogs. As I'm sure you can all guess, these guys are all street-wolf-ish, dressing in dirty rags and living it up on the streets. Every member has fangs, and most have either slicers (finger- or toe-blades) or slashers (forearm blades). They'd be considered a pretty bad joke if it weren't for two factors: one, they're pretty much all cannibals and like pack-hunting innocent people, and two, they all have modified their fangs to inject victims with rabies. Yes, rabies. Unfortunately for the Dogs, most of their cyberware is so low-quality that the disease holders leak and the majority of the gang members have rabies themselves. If it wasn't for the secret backing of the Cyberpapacy, these guys probably would have died out on their own a long time ago. Like all true cyberpunks, the Crucifaces have large brightly-colored hairdos and tattered leathers. They also paint crosses on their faces with the crosspiece going across their eyes. They also favor slicers/slashers, or just normal knives if they can't get the tech, and perform what can be best described as "basic level" street crimes. You know, muggings and shakedowns. And that's pretty much it for these guys. No idea why they're here. And we move into Obvious Pun territory with the Warewolves. The Warewolves are obsessed with cyberware, installing as much as their bodies (and souls, but we'll get to that later) can handle and then tagging on a few extra parts just to be on the safe side. They get most of their cyberware through theft or (ugh) zipyanking. Their "emblem" is a side view of a howling wolf's head stiched out in metallic thread, and they hang out around the edge of the dominant zone because I guess they like the thrill of knowing that if they disconnect they'll probably die?  Next, there's The Tri's. And yes, the apostrophe is there; it's because they wear the French tricolor on their jackets as their "gang symbol", as a representation of their defiance of Malraux. Not that they're allied with Paris; a full 95% of their crimes are commited against the Parisean public. It's more the idea of their leader Anne Druillard. She figures that with everything going on, Paris is going to focus on the more serious threats. So she sets her gang up as "Robin Hood" style bandits, working with the PLM to fight other gangs, organizing very public attacks against the Cyberpapacy, and so on. So far it seems to be working in her favor, even though her tactics tend to get a lot of her own people killed. But hey, plenty more where they came from. We close out the chapter with the last "gang": Spacers and Crazies. Well, they're not really a gang, just a convienent category for the various nutjobs and burnouts that litter the streets. Spacers are people who've fried their brains out on drugs or who've succumbed to cyberpsychosis. These are the ones who live on diets of drugs to ease the pain of life, and will kill whoever they need to to get the money to buy said drugs. Crazies are people whose minds snapped after the reality change and reality shift, or who can't handle the joy that is life in modern-day Paris. A lot of crazies have dangerous cyberware (somehow), and more and more appear on the streets thanks to the Cyberpope funneling them into the city. So yeah, there's cybershit all over the streets now. And I just have to say I love the fact that Paris itself gets less book time than the rest of France, even though it's a pretty important place in the scheme of things. At this point, though, we're pretty much done with the setting stuff so it's time to start getting into the mechanical side! I can't wait! NEXT TIME: Axiomatic!
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Jan 7, 2014 00:10
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Young Freud posted:You know, this is an oxymoron, right? The '90s RPG cyberpunk gangs, as in the ones outlined in R. Talsorian's Cyberpunk, were pretty much ripped off from The Warriors (and, to a lesser extent, Italian ripoff trash like 1990 The Bronx Warriors and Escape From The Bronx). I think Mike Pondsmith even came out and said so in interviews. I honestly never made that connection; I remember the dumb stuff like posergangs but I don't remember ever seeing "themed" gangs outside of that, at least to that degree of "We have a common theme and facepaint style".
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Jan 7, 2014 00:43
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Yeah, the Warewolves are the only gang listed that is specifically stated hangs out near the pure zone, even though there's no reason why they should. Ords disconnecting is always problematic, because they either transform and stick that way (since they don't have the reality skill they can't reconnect and have to spend their one Possibility to survive the disconnection), or explode if they've already transformed once already (since they've already used their one Possibility).
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Jan 7, 2014 01:50
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