Hi all... My first post so I thought I better show some eye candy! This is my 'Pulp' Future Wars project that I completed over the course of a week a while ago. The figures are from Copplestone, ERM and EM4. The storyline is based upon the comic strip 'Sinister & Dexter' from 2000AD with a healthy dose of 'Cyberpunk 2020' included for good measure!
I am currently using the Foundry 'Streetfight' rules but I would be interested if anyone can point me to a set that has a more RPG feel, with experience and skills, so as to capture the feel of a RPG but without being too complicated!
Anyways... on with the show!Downlode – The City That Never Sleeps
The year is 2069. The majority of the European continent has become a vast sprawling city. Nations cease to exist in the urban chaos. The new city continent is called Downlode. It is the largest city on earth… It is the most dangerous place to live.
The vast continental metropolis is divided into various smaller city districts. Where there may have once been nations, now they are city districts. The Police, the City Elders, religious groups and organised crime, control these areas. Some people live in utter poverty, while others live in unimaginable luxury.
Downlode is the city that never sleeps… In Downlode, everything can be bought and everyone has a price.
Whatever your sin… Downlode will feed it.
The area this guide will look at is the city district known as Makabra and its various inhabitants. This district covers an area formerly part of France and Germany. The once great Eiffel Tower is now a restaurant with its bottom area closed in to protect the diners. Yet echoes of the past still linger. The area around the former Moulin Rouge is still a notorius red light district, but now regulated by the ‘Moulin Reds’, a group of prostitutes, well armed and with a distinctive brand of communism. One reason for looking at Makabra, over the other districts is that it is a microcosm of Downlode itself. While most districts have a distinct regional flavour, Makabra is a true mix of cultures and represents the best, and worse, that Downlode has to offer.
Makabra is home to various organised criminal syndicates. The main group is the Russian Mafia syndicate run by Viktor Solonik. Known as ‘Tzar Viktor’ he is a ruthless and psychotic gang leader. He has no qualms about those he crushes and he delights in pain and suffering as well as making money. These attributes make him the perfect man to lead a crime syndicate in Downlode. The Solonik syndicate makes its money from various activitites; illegal gambling, prostitution, protection rackets, drug dealing and the more traditional pursuits of gun-running and armed robbery.
Alongside the Russian Mafia their only real opposition to their criminal rule are the ‘Slicks’. Once a popular youth culture, the Slicks style themselves on the ‘Mod’ culture of the 20th Century. As the founders have got older they have also got wiser and are making inroads into the Russian Mafia control of the district. Various other criminal gangs abound in Makabra, with most running part of the district as they see fit. Often the DPD are unable to police areas, either because they don’t have the manpower to deal with the gangs, or they have been paid enough not too bother.
Makabra is also home to some of the famous personalities of Downlode. In Downlode, alongside the Pop Stars, TV stars and film stars, posters of Solo’s and Gunsharks appear on peoples walls. The cult of stardom has spread to those who take lives for a living. The distinction between the two is clear but often rather murky in reality.
A ‘Solo’ is a licensed gun for hire. They often act as security for VIPs, operate as bounty-hunters, perform corporate security or help DPD forces when they need specialist skills and knowledge. As such the ‘Solo’ is a killer working within the law. While they are supposed to act within the law, many do not and many innocents die at the hands of ‘Solos’ each year, either by design or caught in a crossfire with the intended victims. Whatever the individual, the ‘Solo’ is recognised by the Police and able to operate freely in the pursuit of criminals.
The ‘Gunshark’ is the criminal opposite to the ‘Solo’. These are hitmen and guns for hire, often working freelance or attached to criminal gangs. Their lives are short and violent but some make vast sums of money. These people work outside the law, taking on ‘whacks’ for varying sums of money based on the difficulty of eliminating the target. While they may be criminals, there does exist a ‘Gunshark’ code of honour. While the old school sharks abide by the code, the newer, younger ones have left it behind. They vary in morality as much as anyone, with some having a keen sense of honour and moral fibre, while others are nothing more than total psychopaths.
The most famous ‘Solo’ who works across Downlode, but lives in Makabra, is Jenni DiMarco. She is a beautiful young lady who has worked contracts for various corporations, law enforcement agencies and now works freelance. She is currently the ‘face’ of Heckler & Glock, and carries a special pair of ceramic H&G 12mm auto-pistols. Her sponsorship deal with them is reputed to run into seven figures.
At the other end of the line is Downlode’s two most famous Gunsharks. The pair have always worked freelance, and always work together. They are know as ‘Sinister & Dexter’. Finnegan Sinister is of Irish descent, having moved to mainland Downlode to seek his fortune. He says ‘me father says the road wit paved with gold in Downlode… But with de tat drunken eejit know’. On his arrival to Downlode he met with the young Ramone Dexter, from the Basque District, and the two embarked on a career as Gunsharks. While having worked for various factions over the years across the globe, the two now work freelance, able to pick and choose the contracts they want. The pair are successful for several reasons; they watch each others backs and are loyal only to each other, they stick to the gunsharks code of honour and they strangely still seem to have some morals. On the whole the Police tend to turn a blind eye to gunsharks as long as they are ‘whacking’ undesirables and they stick to the code of not ‘whacking’ cops. Sinister and Dexter became household names and pin-ups after they helped the ‘Moulin Reds’ kick out the Solonik Syndicate from trying to take over the Moulin Rouge Red light district. While Dexter has been romatically linked with many famous ladies, including Jenni DiMarco, Sinister remains faithful to his first love – Whisky.
Viktor 'Tzar' SolonikAKA - The Beast of Kiev Street
Born in the Kirovka District of Downlode, Solonik grew up in the slums of Kiev. Born into poverty he found an escape by turning to crime at an early age. By his late teens he was a well established 'heavy' for the crimelord Gregori Romanov. He soon rose to power in Romanov's criminal gang and was sent to Makabra District to run the Romanov interests in that area. After several years Solonik's own power grew and when Romanov died, he made a power bid of his own. He successfully enforced his rule on the Makabra syndicate and has maintained his position of power for sometime. He has survived numerous assasination attempts and has been wounded a number of times. In recent years his 'war' with the Moulin Reds over prostitution rackets lost him some face among other criminal leaders. For this reason he has a distinct hatred for the gunsharks Sinister & Dexter. Since this debacle he has had to enforce his power with an iron fist against several younger men who wish to steal his crown as 'Tzar'. None have as yet been successful but Solonik has become far more paranoid and unstable as time goes on.
He is seen here carrying his replica gold Luger, made specially for him by the reknowned gunsmith Jean-Claude Jaque who mysteriously vanished after finishing this unique weapon.
The Arasaka Type 66 Security Enforcement Droid
Designed by the Japanese Arasaka Corporation, these droids represent a leap forward in automated security enforcement. For several years this pattern has been seen on deployment at Arasaka buildings around the world. After many years of testing they have now become available for sale to corporations, the military and police agencies across the globe.
The droids run a complex artificial intelligence programme that allows them to learn their job from a human 'buddy' before solo deployment. In the sphere of police enforcement, the droids are programmed with laws and judicial memorandums and then spend a period of six months alongside a human police officer to collate job specific training and build their mission parameters into a useful and viable alternative to a human police officer.
While those droids deployed on military operations have less need to learn their trade, those purchased by police agencies perform far better after extended learning rotations with human police officers. The first batch deployed by the Downlode Police Department has been seen recently on the streets in the Makabra District and they have been welocomed by their human 'buddies'.
They give much needed firepower to police patrols and can obviously withstand far more damage than a human. It is hoped that after the learning period the droids can be deployed to areas where the police are unable to operate and start to bring law back to the lawless areas of the city.
However, it remains to be seen if the droids will be able to learn the peculiarities of being a police officer. In one well publicised event, a droid opened fire on a Hot-Dog vendor whose street trade licence was out of date. Luckily the droid caused no injuries but it has provoked a backlash against them from both the public and certain members of the police service. The City Elders are however adamant that in order to bring the city back under control, these enforcement droids are vital in the war on crime.
The 'Slicks'...
Once an underground youth culture, the 'Slicks' have developed into a fully-fledged criminal organisation. Their members tend to have a propensity for violence and many of their dealings end up in firefights. In the last few years they have been challenging the other criminal gangs with them going head-to-head with the Solonik Syndicate in the Makabra District.
Their main sorce of revenue is the selling and supply of illegal drugs and narcotics. Not only do they supply recreational drugs such as 'Crank' and 'Lucious', but they are also able to supply medical drugs and more worryingly those drugs generally only available for military usage, such as the infanous combat drug 'Red Mist'. For this reason the DPD, Solo's and even Gunsharks are vary of crossing swords with the 'Slicks'. During the police raid on the drug complex at Keeble Street, over seventeen officers lost their lives along with several Solo's who had been hired for the assault on the main 'Slick' facility in that area. Since then the DPD has avoid large scale contact with the 'Slicks' but the introduction of the new law-enforcement droids will surely see this change.
Max 'The Viking' Narvik
Born in the Scandia District, Maximillian Narvik spent his early years in the military wing of International Cybernetics Solutions (ICS). He spent several years as a corporate enforcer before joing the ICS Special Operations Unit. As he rose up the ranks he took every opportunity to use himself as a test subject for new, advanced cybernetic systems. After three years in the ICS Spec. Ops, he was seconded to the DPD as a senior combat advisor. After a disagreement with a senior ICS manager over his re-deployment he parted company with the corporation and went freelance.
He now terms himself a 'Combat Solo', uniqe among other Solo's in Downlode. Although outwardly looking like a well muscled human, he has a number of advanced cybernetic systems cleverly hidden from view. He has a ICS advanced nanotech neural processor that runs his 'Combat Fire' hardwire system. This system has two targetting units, which have replaced his eyes, and allow him to track multiple targets. His hardwire system is also linked to a series of ICS muscle boost systems that give him almost superhuman strength. On top of these and other systems he has sudermal plating with EMP shielding, offering him heavy duty protection from both kinetic and electronic munitions. The EMP shielding also offers protection against all known anti-cybernetic systems currently in service.
It is no overstatement to say that Max Narvik is a one man army - He was designed for that exact role. It has even been known for criminal gangs to stop fighting and surrender when they have been informed that he has arrived on the scene. Even those who fear no-one else in Downlode, have a healthy respect for Max Narvik. Viktor Solonik called him 'the only man that makes me think twice' and Jack Weller of the Makabra Slicks said 'not even we would f*ck with the Viking... We may be high, but we aint f*ckin' stupid!'.
Arasaka Ninja
The ultimate in 'hostile takeover', the Arasaka Cybernetic Ninja.
Rarely seen, these 'ninjas' are the long arm of the Arasaka corporate leaders. No-one knows who they were originally, indeed one rumour has recently suggested that they are clones, breed deep in the bowels of the their Tokyo headquarters.
While it is not known what systems they have fitted it is undoubtedly years ahead of any other corporation. They also seem to wear some sort of stealth suit that allows them to move almost unseen towards their victims.
As yet no-one has seen an Arasaka Ninja up close and lived to tell the tale. They remain a 'bogeyman' of Downlode and the reason why few people double-cross the Arasaka Corporation. This however has not stopped other corporations offering huge bounties for the capture of a specimen. As yet no-one has been successful, and given the abilities of the Ninja, it seems unlikely anyone ever will be.
The End.......... For Now...
Welcome, Guest. Please 
April 27, 2024, 01:18:48 AM
January 16, 2008, 09:32:49 AM