CyberGeneration 2047 - ＥＶＯＬＶＥ ＯＲ ＤＩＥ (OOC)

[Hecatoncheires]

INTEREST CHECK | OOC | LORE | IN-CHARACTER​

Night City, 2047...

The sky is stained red, choked with the ashes and debris of the Fourth Corporate War. Your city is still largely wasteland, it's centre an irradiated Hot Zone from the nuclear detonation that destroyed the Arasaka Tower and claimed the lives of untold thousands. Gunfire crackles from the Combat Zones that have spread throughout the ruins, and even after two decades of reconstruction there is still so much left to be done.

You are the children of cyberpunks, the edgerunners and corporate agents who's shadowy war erupted into a conflict your world still hasn't recovered from. You have been raised in the Time of the Red, in the wake of societal collapse, your parents swept up by the rise of the New United States of America if they even survived long enough to raise you at all. Freedom has been surrendered for the promise of safety, of security. Even after they nearly ended the world, the MegaCorporations are more powerful than they ever were before.

Every year, they grow stronger. Every year, their territory expands. Inch by inch, city by city, they are clawing back what they once held a stranglehold over. They offer a return to the way things once were before the war. Before the DataKrash tore the NET apart and sent everyone back to the dark ages for a terrible few years.

All they ask in exchange is your liberty.

You have grown up watching society piece itself back together bit by bit, watching the full picture of your parents' generation and their failures be exposed on a day to day basis. You are young, angry, full of youthful optimism and convinced of your own invulnerability. Together you have built up a culture of risk-taking, fist-fighting and doing whatever you can to thumb your noses at all the things your parents valued more than leaving a world behind that you could live in.

Maybe you want to change the world. Maybe you want to get back at the people who fucked your city up. Mostly, though, you just want to be left alone.

They won't even allow you that.

For two years, the Carbon Plague has swept across the cities and ruins of the New United States. It has devastated whole communities, turning anyone infected by it into little more than half-dissolved mounds of flesh and hexite. No-one survives, that's what the authorities say. The only solution is to round up the infected, for everyone's safety.

Of course, you learned a long time ago that the new corporate masters of the world rarely tell the truth.

You were infected by the plague, but somehow you survived. You're not the only one, either. Anyone under the age of 21 has a chance to survive exposure to the disease. But you haven't emerged unscathed. You and your fellow survivors have changed. You have been Altered. Imbued with strange new abilities, the power to speak to machines or reforge your limbs into new shapes, to move faster than any human ought to be able to.

These changes mark you as a target.

They're coming for you now, one way or another. A national emergency has already been declared, claims circulated that all survivors of the Carbon Plague are carriers who need to be detained for the safety of the public. Every government agency and MegaCorp wetwork squad is out to black-bag you, to rush you off to some lab where they'll take you apart, piece by piece, to figure out what makes you tick.

There's no place in this fucked up world you've inherited any more. Maybe there never was. You can either run from that fact, or you can do something about it. Take a stand, take the fight to the people who want to take you apart.

You have to make a choice.

Evolve or die.

'CyberGeneration 2047' is a story about angry teenagers versus the dystopian corporate state.

Also the aforementioned angry teenagers have superpowers.

Set in the Cyberpunk universe created by Mike Pondsmith and made insanely popular again by CD Projekt RED's janky but still fun 'Cyberpunk 2077'. Our cast has grown up in the wake of disaster: young, angry and disillusioned with the world their parents have left them. They've just been handed the keys to the kingdom in the form of a deadly disease that has imbued them with strange powers. Not to mention the incentive to use said strange powers, because you best believe the powers that be are less than thrilled by these developments.

CyberGen 2047 is a love letter to the X-Men, Akira and all the wonderfully deranged spin-offs that Cyberpunk has had over the years. Those familiar with the setting through any of it's incarnations (yes, even Cyberpunk V3.0) are welcome, as are those new to this deranged, wild world of high tech and low life.

---

Themes: Teenage Rebellion, Revolution, Transhumanism, Accelerationism
Style: Cyberpunk (as fuck), with a healthy dose of Near-Apocalypse and Dystopian Fiction
Aesthetic: Grungy, red-stained skies, retrofuturistic tech, grim-faced corporate overlords and scrappy teenage rebels (and their grumpy Edgerunner mentors)
Posting Speed: I am fucking incompetent but we'd be aiming for once a week, and I plan on using something I'm tentatively calling the 'Card System') to help players co-ordinate and plan scenes

RULES AND STUFF

1. Try not to be a dick.
2. You are playing teenagers imbued with bizarre nanotech superpowers.
   
   1. No you can't play an old Edgerunner/Cyberpunk. I didn't spend like two weeks drafting up all this shit about the Carbon Plague for people to just ignore it, goddammit.
   2. Please don't pitch 'child of [INSERT CYBERPUNK CHARACTER] and [ANOTHER CYBERPUNK CHARACTER]'. It's best we keep things fresh. For plot reasons.
3. The plot of 'CyberGeneration 2047' is all about building a resistance movement, fighting spooky men in black, and generally being teenage heroes in a dystopian future. Please make characters who will vibe with this.
4. Please aim to post roughly once a week.
   
   1. Please bully the shitheel of a GM if he does not also put roughly once a week when required.
5. Anyone who makes an "impressive cock" joke will be shot.
6. OOC discussion and scene planning occurs in this thread. I'm not making a Discord, cos they just stress me out.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Character Sheet​

NAME: [goes here]
AGE: [goes here]
GANG: [goes here]
ALTERATION/CYBERGENUS: [goes here]

SKILLS: [goes here]
COMPLICATIONS: [goes here]

PERSONALITY: [goes here]
HISTORY: [goes here]
HOW WERE YOU CAUGHT?: [goes here]

EQUIPMENT: [goes here]

Character Creation​

1. Make sure to read all the dumb bullshit I've in both this thread and the Lore thread. That way you have an idea of the setting, and what will fit.
   
   1. If you want to clear up anything, or have any questions about the setting, feel free to shoot me a message.
2. Use your incredible powers of making shit up to begin concocting a character concept.
3. Determine name of character and age. I'd prefer you to aim for the 15-18 age range, but if you *really* wanna go for something else message me.
4. Choose the gang that your character is a part of. This will determine the 'GANG CARD' you receive as part of your character sheet. Choose from the ones I've provided in the Lore thread, or if you have a concept you really want to try out message me and we can arrange something.
5. Choose the Alteration that your character has been imbued with upon surviving the Carbon Plague. This will determine the 'EVOLUTION CARD' you receive as part of your character sheet. The ones listed here are the ones available.
6. Choose two skills that your character has knowledge and experience in, representing interests and abilities they have outside of their gang pursuits. These will become the two 'SKILL CARDS' you receive as part of your character sheet.
   
   1. (OPTIONAL) Choose a single complication or hindrance/disadvantage your character has, representing an aspect of your character that might cause them problems or come back to bit them in the ass. This will become a 'COMPLICATION CARD' that the GM can bring up in-game to create further tension. If you choose to do so, you are allowed to choose a third skill that will become an additional 'SKILL CARD'.
7. Determine your character's personality, so other players and the GM have an idea of what to expect from them in-game (and can start planning how characters might interact).
8. Determine your character's history, which will outline their experiences up until the point they were infected with the Carbon Plague. How did they fall in with their gang? Where were they raised? Are they a child of Night City, or did they grow up elsewhere?
   
   1. It's recommended that your character have some sort of connection to Night City, since this is where the majority of the RP will be taking place, but if you've got a great idea for your character being an outsider I can make it work in one or two cases.
      
      1. If everyone insists on being from outside the city I will scream.
9. As your characters begin the game in the custody of BuReloc (don't worry, that will probably change soon enough), determine how your character managed to land up in the hands of the authorities.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

THE CARD SYSTEM
(Because GMing Is Hard And I Am Lazy)​

Scenes that involve player characters having to take decisive action in order to overcome challenges are, in my experience at least, often where RPs stall out. It's a combination of analysis paralysis, not wanting to step on other players' toes and not wanting to hog the limelight, that results in players posting passively (ie. simply acknowledging events without moving the story forwards) or not wanting to post at all. I'm as guilty of this as the next guy, but for this RP I wanted to try and implement something that will hopefully counter this issue.

The Card System isn't me trying to stealth-implement stats and other TTRPG mechanics, let me stress. Forum RPs work best when players have plenty of creative freedom, and I want to keep that in place. Instead, the goal here is to have a system that allows both players and the GM to collaborate on planning out a scene. It (hopefully) ensures that everyone knows what's happening, what the stakes are, and what challenges need to be overcome in order for things to progress. It will also (hopefully) ensures that every player character gets a chance to contribute, to have their character make a difference in terms of how the story progresses.

If all goes to plan, we'll have something that creates a framework, a scene outline that ensures we can use our characters in creative and interesting ways.

And if it doesn't go to plan, we can always just scream "fuck it" and do it the old fashioned way.

The basic system works like this:

1. At the beginning of a dramatic scene (ie. when there are stakes at play, consequences for failure, etc), the GM reveals a
   'Threat Card', which describes the nature of the challenge and the different aspects that must be overcome in order to resolve it
2. The players have access to their own cards, representing different aspects of their characters (some represent equipment, others skills, or powers, etc.)
3. Before any posts are written, the players and the GM gather to discuss how the characters will go about solving/overcoming the challenges listed on the Threat Card, using their own Player Cards
   Players use their own cards, either on their own or in combination, to counter the aspects of the Threat Card
   
   1. For larger threats (designated as 'Potent' on the Threat Card), co-operation and coordination between different players will be required in order to succeed
4. Once the Threat Card's challenges have been resolved in this fashion, both the players and the GM will have created a framework by which the scene will play out
5. We get writing
6. ???
7. PROFIT

PLAYER CARDS THREAT CARDS

• A way of codifying character traits and abilities so things are a little less freeform, without getting bogged down with stats and dice rolls (these don't usually work on forums, or slow things down even further).
  
  CARD TYPES
  
  • Gang Card: Stemming from the crew/juvegang that the character was running with. A Bosoganger's ability to do outrageous shit with a motorbike, or a BeaverBrat's skill at breaking into things.
  • Skill Cards: Characters are not solely defined by the subculture they belong to, and many will have interests adjacent to, or outside, their peer group. Skill Cards represent individual abilities not covered by the Gang Card that a character possesses. Perhaps an interest in computer programming, or a working knowledge of firearms.
  • Evolution Card: Defines the abilities that a character is granted now that they've survived the Carbon Plague. These cards come in three different forms, representing a character's development and understanding of their powers as the story progresses.
    • Basic: The character has recently joined the ranks of the Altered. Their powers are more rudamentary, as they do not have a full grasp of them yet.
    • Advanced: Having had time to get to grips with their abilities, to test things out and see what works, the character's powers are growing more potent.
    • Expert: Now one of the veterans of the Altered, the character has a full understanding of their powers and knows how to use them to their full potential.
  • Equipment Cards: Representing useful tech, gadgets, weapons and vehicles that the character has access to.
  • Complication Cards: Representing issues, impairments or difficulties that a character is facing. Can be temporary, or more permanent. During in-game events, I will trigger these Flaw Cards to add further challenges and conflicts to the story.
• When the characters are deployed on a mission, they will encounter challenges, dangers and other obstacles. These risks will be defined by a Threat Card, describing the challenge the characters face.
  
  There will be several different aspects to a Threat Card, defining the nature of the threat and the different aspects to it. Some aspects are a particularly difficult challenge, and are listed as 'Potent'. These will often require characters to combine abilities/cards in order to overcome them. For example:
  
  Corporate Patrol
  
  • Well Organised (Potent): All four officers work well together.
  • Heavily Armed: These boys are packing heat, including automatic weapons.
  In order to overcome a Threat Card and progress the story, each aspect of it must be countered by a Character Card. Different combinations of skills, abilities and equipment must be deployed by the characters, and they must often work together in order to succeed against the Threat Card. Players offer to play specific cards and describe how the abilities/equipment these cards represent can be used to overcome this aspect of the Threat Card. The GM then accepts or disagrees with the card use. In some cases, the GM might choose to accept the offered card but declare that it comes with a complication (an injury, loss of equipment, etc).
  
  Using the example above, let's say we have three characters going up against the patrol. One player puts forward their Gang Card 'Urban Explorer' to counter the 'Heavily Armed' portion of the Threat (they've studied the environment and know how to get an ambush set up with plenty of cover). 'Well Organised' is a more significant challenge, but two players pool their Cards to overcome it (a mix of Evolution Card and Equipment). Once all the aspects of the Threat Card have been countered (hopefully this means everyone has a chance to contribute), we play out the scene based on what's been agreed and move on to the next.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

[CHARACTER ROSTER WILL GO HERE]

 

[MrStoryTeller]

@Hecatoncheires
I do have a question regarding the Medic abilities. Are they limited in any way? Does healing a severe wound drain the stamina of the person or is there a limit to how many severe injuries they can cure a day? Is there no limitation at all and they can just heal anything with their power?

 

[Hecatoncheires]

@Hecatoncheires
I do have a question regarding the Medic abilities. Are they limited in any way? Does healing a severe wound drain the stamina of the person or is there a limit to how many severe injuries they can cure a day? Is there no limitation at all and they can just heal anything with their power?

Medics are limited by the amount of assemblers they can deploy, is the way I'm thinking of it. They won't be able to fix up more serious injuries without a lot of concentration and drain initially, though as they progress and develop they'll have access to more assemblers and a better idea of how to use them.

 

[MrStoryTeller]

@Hecatoncheires
I do have a question regarding the Medic abilities. Are they limited in any way? Does healing a severe wound drain the stamina of the person or is there a limit to how many severe injuries they can cure a day? Is there no limitation at all and they can just heal anything with their power?

Medics are limited by the amount of assemblers they can deploy, is the way I'm thinking of it. They won't be able to fix up more serious injuries without a lot of concentration and drain initially, though as they progress and develop they'll have access to more assemblers and a better idea of how to use them.

Gotcha gotcha. That seems like a good way of going about it then.

 

[RunsFromWasps]

I'm certainly interested. What concerns me in general about RPing currently is it seems less playing a role and more collaborative writing. What's a typical post length you like to shoot for?

 

[Hecatoncheires]

I'm certainly interested. What concerns me in general about RPing currently is it seems less playing a role and more collaborative writing. What's a typical post length you like to shoot for?

I tend not to worry about post length so much, these days. If your posts are moving the plot forward and giving other players stuff to work with, then they're good posts as far as I'm concerned.

 

[RunsFromWasps]

Awesome. I'm not fond of unnecessary narration to describe a simple conversation, haha. I see another thread on this - is there more room?

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Feel free to jump in if you're interested, chum, we got plenty of space still.

 

[Goonfire]

Oh, I like this.

Quick question: You mention the morph can also change their body's pigmentation. Is it possible to build upon that to the point of mastering a chameleon/active camo ability?

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Quick question: You mention the morph can also change their body's pigmentation. Is it possible to build upon that to the point of mastering a chameleon/active camo ability?

That wasn't something that I'd considered myself, but I really like the idea. It wouldn't be something that a newly Altered person could pull off, but with time and practice it's feasible.

I'm aiming to keep the different abilities fairly broad and loose, because I want players to be able to use them in interesting ways that I hadn't thought of.