PAUL MATIJEVIC

FREYJA ERLINGSDOTTIR
MINERVA MCJANDA
 Contents
Chapter 1: 7 Chapter 3: 61
THE YEAR IS 2020 Occupations
Overview 7 Fixer 62
A Brief History of the Distant Future 10 Hacker 64
Welcome to Grand Cross 13 Influencer 66
Operator 68
Soldier 70
Chapter 2: 19
Street Fighter 72
Basic Mechanics
Thief 74
Rolling the Dice 20
Generic Talents 76
Character Creation 22
Character Creation Guide 24
Origins 26 Chapter 4: 79
Traits 28 Assets and Cybernetics
Specialties 30 Assets 79
Example Character Creation: Soyeong 32 Cybernetic Augments 91
Playing the Game 33
Social Matters and Other Bloodshed 35
CHAPTER 5: 101
Stealth and Security 38
THE PLACE IS GRAND CROSS
Hacking the Cylinder 40
Design 102
Getting into Fights 44
Getting There 103
Running Missions 50
Layout 104
Managing Money 53
Politics 106
Gig Work Apps 56
Society 110
Community 58
The New Humanity 120
Movers and Shakers 126
Current Issues 129
Earth 134
Earth Orbit 135
Three Days in Grand Cross 136

4
CHAPTER 6: 143 Chapter 8: 311
LOCATION DATA Running the Game
Design Principles 144 The Basics 311
Voyager Ward 146 Support and Safety Tools 312
Turing Ward 154 General Advice 314
Cixin Ward 162 Running Hard Wired Island 316
Adams Ward 170 Creating Side Characters 320
Marukyu Ward 178 Character Advancement 324
Mariposa Ward 186 Hard Wired Gaming 325
Amal Ward 192
Foundation Ward 200
Chapter 9: 327
Infrastructure 206
Launch Systems
Gazetteer 213
Pregenerated PCs 328
Districts and Communities 213
Plot Hooks 341
Food and Entertainment 216
The Terabyte Boys 352
Other Locations 222
The Dreamer Season 362

229 Tables 382

CHAPTER 7:
Index 395
HOME DIRECTORY
Character Sheet 400
The Offworld Cartel 230
Other Corporations 243
Corporate Characters 246
Crime 252
Singularists 260
Earth/Orbit Activist Groups 266
Organized Labor 269
Other Groups 271
Faces of Space 274
Dreamers 300

5
6 Setting
 The Year is 2020

Chapter 1:
THE YEAR IS 2020
In the distant future of 2020, humanity has spread to space.
A meteorite struck Earth’s northern hemisphere in 1996. The Impact caused
widespread environmental damage that humanity has yet to fully recover from,
but it supercharged public interest in space exploration. Around the world, new
political unions began pouring money into space programs.
The result is Grand Cross, an O’Neill cylinder in the Earth–Moon L5 point. It’s
Earth’s gateway to the stars, a launching point for missions to Mars and beyond,
and a beacon of hope for its people — but it’s in crisis.
An alliance of space-based corporations known as the Offworld Cartel has moved in.
While they sell space exploration as a shared dream they strive for along with everyone
else, their true aim is control of Grand Cross and, through it, the future of space
settlement. As their influence spreads, so does inequality and crime.
The Cartel has convinced the current government to privatize many of the systems that
keep Grand Cross running, and the station is slowly falling apart. Behind the scenes,
they have even more underhanded schemes running in secret. If the next election
favors the Cartel, they’ll be on their way to becoming the landlords of human space.

Overview Tabletop RPGs

A tabletop RPG is a game where you and your
Hard Wired Island is a tabletop role-playing game friends get together to tell a story about a group of
about citizens of a space station in an alternate characters who go on adventures. You create the
2020, trying to live their everyday lives while characters, decide what challenges they face, and
fighting for the station's future. choose how to deal with them. To make things
interesting, you use dice and the rules in this book
It's about people caught up in the schemes of
to add a little uncertainty.
corporations, wealthy technocrats, and their
supporters. Some fight back to protect their It's like a video game RPG, but instead of a pre-
livelihoods. Some fight for their neighborhoods. programmed game world, one of you takes on the
Some simply fight because they ideologically oppose role of the Game Master (GM). The GM describes
the criminals, corrupt cops, hate groups, capitalists, the world around the players, the side characters
and others trying to bring the station down. (sometimes referred to as non-player characters, or
NPCs), how they react to the players, and the
If the Cartel gets their way, Grand Cross as you know it
conflicts and drama that drive the story.
will end as unchecked greed bleeds your community
dry. But if you fight, you might be able to save it. The other players each create a player character
(PC), the protagonists of the story. The players
describe what their PCs are like, what they do, and
how they react to the situations around them.

Setting 7
 What Players Do Cyberpunk
The PCs are residents of Grand Cross who get Cyberpunk is a genre of fiction that features
caught in the upheaval happening across the advanced technology in a troubled, dystopian future.
station. Some are street activists, gig workers, Technology has made society worse, or at least given
reporters, or more, who get pulled in by their us new ways to be terrible. The heroes are generally
occupations and living situations. Others are outsiders and misfits, flawed and desperate,
hackers, bounty hunters, and other people in struggling against a system that rejects them.
slightly less reputable jobs who were immersed in it
A lot of works handle cyberpunk differently, so here
from the start.
are Hard Wired Island’s pillars of cyberpunk:
Either way, they're still regular folks. They pay rent,
Capitalism? No thanks: good cyberpunk is anti-
they buy groceries, and they hang out with their
capitalist. It’s about how technology without ethics
friends. In between, they go on missions. These
can make social inequality worse. The wealthy use
missions aim to change the situation in Grand
it to cement their power and perpetuate the status
Cross, defeat a specific enemy, or simply help the
quo, while marginalized communities struggle with
PCs and their community survive. Over time,
insufficient or oppressive tech. The PCs want to use
successful missions improve life on Grand Cross.
it to break the current system.

Using This Book Cyberpunk should be relevant: it is a study of

where our society could go in the coming years. The
Chapter 1: The Year Is 2020 is the one you're
issues faced by people in a cyberpunk setting
reading now. It's a brief intro to the world and
should have some relevance to issues faced by the
themes of Hard Wired Island.
players, even if they’re not the same.
Chapter 2: Basic Mechanics covers the rules of the
Cybernetics are not inherently good or bad: like
game that everyone uses.
most tech, what matters is how it’s used. In Hard
Chapter 3: Occupations covers the game's seven Wired Island, the problem is that cybernetics often
Occupations and their Talents. serve the needs of capital rather than people. Any
alienating or dysphoric effects come from being
Chapter 4: Assets and Cybernetics covers the
reshaped into some corporation’s property.
items and augments player characters can equip.
Cyberpunk is not just an aesthetic: the core
Chapter 5: The Place Is Grand Cross describes the
concept is not “Wow! Cool future!” It shouldn’t just
people and culture of Grand Cross in more detail.
be about the neon-lit adventures of some trench
Chapter 6: Location Data covers some specific coat futurists as they crime their way into wealth
locations in Grand Cross. and power. Hard Wired Island is about a group of
marginalized people using technology to try to
Chapter 7: Home Directory is a dossier of factions,
change the status quo.
side characters, antagonists, and other encounters
you can use in your games. Many perspectives: good cyberpunk examines
how technology and power intersect in many
Chapter 8: Running the Game covers how to run
different communities, especially marginalized
the game, including running missions, character
ones. It does not mean using cyborgs as a stand-in
advancement, and GM advice.
for minorities. Hard Wired Island examines the
Chapter 9: Launch Systems contains several pre- everyday communities of Grand Cross and how its
made scenarios and pregenerated characters to use. issues impact their lives.
Appendix: Random Access contains a bunch of
random tables you can use to generate stories.

8 Setting
 The Year is 2020

It's Bigger Than You

Post-Cyberpunk Grand Cross is Earth’s gateway to the stars.
Post-cyberpunk is a related genre with a slightly
Everyone interested in space settlement has a
more positive, realistic approach. Rapid
presence here. Therefore, whoever controls Grand
technological progress still impacts the characters’
Cross could control the future.
lives, but the world as a whole isn’t as dystopian. The
heroes can be outsiders and punks, but they can also Behind the scenes, on a scale grander than most
be regular people doing their best to get by in a people can comprehend, a war is on for the soul of
system that sometimes catches them in its gears. humanity. The Offworld Cartel wants to become
everybody’s landlords. Politicians in and beyond
It’s a pretty fluid term, and Hard Wired Island can go
the Cross seek to advance their own agendas, or at
either way. The world will always be corrupt as long
least their donors’. Criminals want to make sure
as corporations exist, but there’s still some good as
that whatever happens, they get their cut. Activist
well. The heroes don’t have to be outsiders, but
groups are fighting for the common good.
plenty of regular people get pushed to the fringes in
this system. Things can be bad, but you have a Most of the time, these battles are bigger than you.
chance to make positive change in the society They’ve been playing out for decades and will
around you. Ultimately, whether your game is continue for more. You’ll get swept up in them, but you
cyberpunk or post-cyberpunk is up to you. won’t get a chance to end them. You can’t stop the war.
But you can win some battles. You can upset a
Other Themes corporation’s plan, take out a dangerous kingpin, or
end a corrupt politician’s career. And if enough
An Unknown Future people fight together, the victories add up. You can
The people of Grand Cross walk an uncertain road.
tip the scales back toward justice.
Their orbital home is a technological wonder only
possible in the distant future of 2020, but they’re
Retrofuture
still just regular people doing their best.
If sci-fi is a vision of the future, retrofuture is
The criminal who thought they’d done their last job remembering the visions of the past.
is about to be pulled back in. The cop days from
A lot of 90s sci-fi was set around our time. Neon
retirement is about to get brought up on old hate
Genesis Evangelion was set in 2015, fifteen years
crime charges. The veteran down on his luck could
after a global disaster. Cowboy Bebop had a space
get the opportunity of a lifetime next week. Nothing
disaster in 2021. AKIRA was set in 2019–2030.
is certain in Grand Cross. The moment you get
complacent is the moment the city gets you. Hard Wired Island takes inspiration from 90s sci-fi
(particularly anime), so we play with that. It’s a 90s
If you don’t do anything, if you let the city drive you
vision of 2020. We have smartphones and really
to despair, nothing will happen. If you act, maybe
small computers and gaming consoles, but also
something will change.
sub-light space travel and orbital habitats. Present
day, future time.
But remember, cyberpunk should be relevant.
While we have fun with this, we’re also using it as a
lens to look at some of our modern-day problems
that our friends in the 90s didn’t predict. Retro
future, present problems.

Setting 9
 Inspirations
Here are just some of the works that inspired Hard
Wired Island.
Bubblegum Crisis: a late 80s/early 90s cyberpunk Ghost in the Shell: a manga, film, and anime series
anime (with a tabletop RPG adaptation!) about an all- running in various forms since 1989. At its core, it's
female group of mercenaries who use powered armor a post-cyberpunk story about counter-
to fight rogue robots. Hard Wired Island draws on it cyberterrorist agents with a whole lot of
for some of its setting, particularly for the Dreamers. philosophical musings.
Cowboy Bebop: a 1998 sci-fi/space Western anime. Policenauts: a 1994 mystery visual novel by Hideo
We took a lot of inspiration from its themes of ennui Kojima, set in an O'Neill cylinder in 2040. It inspired
and loneliness, as well as the way it makes space some of Hard Wired Island's sci-fi elements. Though
feel like a place where everyday people live it was never officially released in the West, fan
everyday lives. Also, it's just a great series in translations are available. (If you try it, be aware
general. Check it out! that it's got some Weird Stuff too.)

A Brief History of
the Distant Future
How did the future get like this? Here’s an outline; the details are up to you.

1996: 1996-2000:
Divergence Acceleration
On March 27 1996, a meteorite struck Earth’s Northern The Impact supercharged public interest in space
Hemisphere. The media called it Impact Two, a exploration. An Earth-bound humanity could be
reference to the “first” one that killed the dinosaurs, wiped out by Impact Three, but a humanity spread
but these days everyone just calls it the Impact. out across the stars couldn’t unless it was a really
dedicated asteroid.
It could have been worse, but the damage was
severe. It took ten years just to recover from the Around the world, environmental reform and space
worst of it. In its wake, humanity was changed. settlement became winning political platforms almost
overnight. New political unions that formed to recover
from the Impact began allocating resources to joint
space programs. As recovery efforts began to bear
fruit, these programs accelerated.
Everyone handled it differently. The European
Union bolstered its ranks with new members eager
to join its burgeoning solar energy program. Groups
relatively untouched by Impact Two, like the African
Union, launched lunar missions. Some countries
sold lucrative space construction contracts, giving
corporations the excuse and funding they needed
to make their own space push.
By 1999, the space rush was well and truly underway.

10 Setting
 The Year is 2020

2000: 2000-2010:
The Lagrange Space is the Place
Treaty By the early 00s, all but the most severely impacted
nations had their sights set on space. The ones that
As lunar orbit research stations and solar-powered
hadn’t planned to expand to space did it anyway
satellites neared completion, it soon became clear
when they saw they were being left behind.
that rules for future development were needed, if
only to decide whose job it was to clear the debris. Grand Cross wasn’t the only space program, just the
largest. In the wake of the Treaty, many smaller
In 2000, a reorganized UN negotiated the Lagrange
stations were built in Earth orbit and the Earth–
Treaty. It set the standards that every country
Moon Lagrange points. By 2005, people were living
serious about space exploration has followed since:
on the Moon. Conditions were harsh at first, but
resources set aside for the construction of
that wasn’t important; what mattered was that they
common-use space transportation and solar energy
were there.
networks, prohibition of orbital weapons and most
other military construction, and so on. Most early settlers were either trained astronauts or
lottery winners willing to gamble that they wouldn’t
Though most of the Treaty is about sovereignty and
be one of the first to die in space. Their heroic and
military activity, its greatest long-term effects came
sometimes tragic efforts provided important
down to two provisions.
insights on living in space. By the time Grand Cross
The first pushed for laws that addressed gender construction officially began in 2005, it had a solid
and other diversity gaps in tech fields. Introverted base of research and space production to work
white men alone could not feed the space with.
machine’s expanding needs; it needed genius
The Earth-Moon L5 point was chosen as a
wherever it could be found. The resulting laws
construction site because it had stable gravitational
became known as Lovelace laws.
equilibrium; a station there could remain
Every country had its own take1, some more indefinitely without having to spend fuel on staying
successful than others. Some expanded school in place2. A proper construction block was finished
computing programs and created scholarships. within a year.
Some restricted government grants to those who
Unfortunately, full-scale construction was beset by
met minimum quotas. Some gave big grants to
delays as accidents took their toll and lunar
corporations that “promoted diversity”, then set up
processing facilities went up later than expected.
inquiries to find out where all their money went. The
The program’s backers were reluctant to provide
end result was that within a decade, a surging STEM
extra funding and recruited corporations instead. In
field was creating the technologies needed to go to
exchange for a presence in Grand Cross, they
space, from spacecraft to androids to the beginnings
contributed some of their government funding.
of nanotechnology.
Grand Cross officially opened in 2010, when enough
The second provision of the Treaty established the
of the structure had been completed to support
Grand Cross Program. Though several crewed
human life. The first wave of immigration was
space stations existed by the 2000s, there were no
mostly workers, researchers, and their families.
major settlements; the Program would create one.
Some were lottery winners or wealthy elites who
This settlement would be the combined effort of
wanted in on the ground floor (and some, by a
many UN nations, capable of sustaining millions of
curious coincidence, were both.)
people with minimal assistance. It would become
humanity’s gateway to the stars.

1 We’re not going to pretend to have a

perfect grasp of social science here, so
we’re sticking to the broad strokes. Who
2 The L4 point does this too, of course, but
5 is a better number.

did what is up to you.

Setting 11
 2010-2016: 2017-2020:
Rough Takeoff Before the Storm
By the 2010s, some nations had recovered. Many In 2017, Grand Cross held its first real election. It was
more decided they’d recovered once the economy won by the Cartel-backed Unity Party, on a platform
was looking good. New politicians began to seek of “opening space access to all.” Once they achieved
power with “let’s focus on our own country first” power, their influence turned to tax incentives and
spiels. The specter of politics began to haunt space. privatized services for the Offworld Cartel. Vocal
opposition kept them from going as far as they
Grand Cross was initially run by an interim council
wanted to, and Unity was quick to blame that
of representatives from the Program’s backers,
opposition when everything started getting worse.
overseen by a UN committee. Many backers began
to demand perks, though they were eventually In 2019, a habitat at the L4 point was destroyed due
willing to settle for nobody else getting any. Some— to a critical failure. The area, known as
the US and China in particular—tried to undermine Skuggahvarf, was a partially-complete toroid
smaller nations or coerce them into withdrawing habitat built for the EU by Landvættir Orbital, a
from the Council. member of the Offworld Cartel. This event became
known as the L4 Disaster. The disaster’s severity
Some of these political maneuvers were caused by
had a chilling effect, but since too much had
corporations. They were still largely locked out of
already been invested into space settlement, work
the Program or forced to comply with agreements
simply continued at a slower, more cautious pace.
so restrictive they could hardly skim Program funds
at all. They lobbied their governments for help, Many L4 refugees moved to Grand Cross. Unity
offering increased space contributions and party couldn't properly help them without cutting into the
donations in exchange for preferential treatment. profits of their rich donors and ultimately chose not
to. At the same time, it came out that the disaster
Some succeeded. Others found easier pickings in
was caused by Cartel cost-cutting measures. Grand
smaller habitats or future projects. In backroom
Cross was plunged into political turmoil.
meetings, the off-world corporations reached out to
each other and agreed to cooperate for maximum The year is now 2020. Elections are less than a year
advantage. This alliance, a sort of evil twin of the away. The Cartel is working overtime to tighten its
Lagrange Treaty, became known as the Offworld Cartel. grip on power, but their opponents have been
galvanized by recent events. What happens next is
Grand Cross was officially completed in 2013. It
anyone’s guess.
formally became an independent UN member, and
the Council transitioned into an elected parliament.
Its government was based on designs by political
scientists who had been working on it for decades—
with a few last-minute “adjustments” by political
interests, of course.
Afterward, the station became a launching point for
a new wave of space expansion. More orbital
habitats appeared in the Lagrange points, though
little on the scale of Grand Cross; instead, humanity
began to focus on Mars.

12 Setting
 The Year is 2020

Welcome to Grand Cross

Grand Cross is a ceramic jungle of technological As the years pass, it’s getting worse. But people are
wonders. High-speed internet allows greater working on that. There are ways to subvert and
information access and exchange than ever before. repurpose technology to work for you, not to get
People sport cybernetic augmentations and rub you across the gap but to close it and dismantle the
shoulders with androids. Computers are so advanced system that perpetuates it.
that even the average person carries an online
miniature PC in their pocket. You can live in space now. Battlefield of Ideas
On the streets of Grand Cross, a quiet war is being
But it’s not the high-tech paradise promised in
fought for the future of the station. The Cross has
science fiction magazines. Technology has
always had political activism, but with elections
transformed society, but it has only reinforced
looming, its inhabitants are particularly tense.
existing power structures. Inequality and crime are
on the rise, while privacy is shrinking. Old, corrupt Protests are on the rise. The technology of 2020 has
politicians sign over the station’s future to opened up a world of opportunities for internet
corporations as its youth struggle for control of their activism and its anarchic cousin, hacktivism. In the
destiny. This is the world you’re fighting to change. wake of the L4 Disaster, pressure is mounting like
never before. If this momentum continues, the
current system of power in Grand Cross could be
Current Issues swept away entirely.
In response, the Cartel has gone on a propaganda
Technological campaign. In public, they set up think tanks and
Inequality lobby groups, fund sympathetic politicians, and
The distant future of 2020 is a time of rapid
flood the internet with advertising. In private, they
technological and societal change. Thanks to
bankroll hate groups in an effort to turn the
advances in everything from medicine to space
station’s vulnerable into counter-activists. Now
habitation, the average person is better off than
protestors risk getting assaulted by Earth-
they were in 1996. But those benefits are not
nationalist groups, cyborg and anti-cyborg
distributed fairly, and society is struggling to adapt.
vigilantes, cops, and worse.
Every advance in technology is captured by the
You have the power to help. By fighting the Cartel’s
wealthy and used to control the poor. Cybernetics
stooges, protecting your allies, and joining them in
that could profoundly change what it means to be
protest, maybe you can steer Grand Cross toward a
human are used to make people better wage slaves.
brighter future.
Automation is replacing steady jobs with unstable
gig work. Privacy is a vanishing concept, as
corporations find increasingly high-tech ways to
harvest your data without your consent.
Meanwhile, the gap between rich and poor is
widening. The wealthy can extend their lives and
abilities with technology far beyond what most
people can afford, then use that to widen the gap
further. They hoard station resources they don’t use
while watching people in need fight over scraps.
They push future research toward technologies that
benefit them, with no regard for others beyond how
much profit can be wrung out of them.

Setting 13
 Threats
You’re fighting to make Grand Cross a better place. The Dreamers went rogue. Some simply wandered
These groups are what you’re up against. off during covert missions and never came back,
while others fought their way out of their
The Offworld Cartel containment area. These Dreamers lurk in forgotten
The Offworld Cartel is a consortium of corporations corners of Grand Cross, following a mix of their
with a focus on space, particularly Grand Cross. original orders and their own alien designs. The
Together they own the majority of the station’s private Cartel is looking for them, but their priority is
sector and bankroll many of its politicians too. If you covering up their involvement. What the Dreamers
live off Earth, they’ve impacted your life one way or do to you isn’t their problem.
another; if they get their way, they’ll own it.
Criminal Gangs
Though corporations comprise Cartel membership,
Some of the station’s criminal groups are offshoots of
it’s the people running them who call the shots. The
Earth groups who used stolen funds to send men up
true aims of these people vary; some see
or rigged their country’s lottery system. Others are
themselves as philanthropists “working within the
wholly new groups, uniquely adapted to life in space.
system”, while others openly profit from suffering.
Either way, they have no shortage of recruits—many
Some keep their true motives hidden, even from
people in poverty turn to crime to survive, and there’s
their peers. But every member is willing to work
plenty of poverty to go around lately.
with or at least tolerate the others. In the end, their
schemes all ultimately benefit themselves at the Criminal threats vary from ward to ward, district to
people’s expense. district. Wherever they're from, criminal
antagonists seek to break the law not to build
The Dreamers something better but to benefit themselves.
The Dreamers are robots created by the Offworld
Cartel. They’re not androids, because the android Law Enforcement
mindset is based on humans; Dreamers are Like the Earth departments they were drawn from,
something entirely different. Grand Cross' police are suffering an identity crisis.
The Dreamers are based on brain scans of Earth On paper they enforce the law, but the law is often
creatures3, genetic and cybernetic experiments written to protect those with power. Their motto is
performed on Earth creatures, and secret AI to protect and serve, but the rules don't say they
research, all blended together in ways that would have to. Some cops do their duty with pride, but
probably cause the scientists involved legal trouble corruption is systemic. The public image of the
anywhere other than space. The end result is a police as a force for good depends on a blue wall of
synthetic being whose thought processes are so silence that exempts officers from the laws they're
weird humanity can barely comprehend them, let charged with upholding. And at the same time,
alone communicate. Grand Cross police are slowly being replaced by
even less accountable private security.
The Cartel originally designed them to prepare
planets for human settlement. They’d land on new To you, they're a wild card. They're less likely to
worlds, work for a few years, and eventually the have your back as they are to violently oppose you.
Cartel would have a shiny new city waiting to be They’re a force to be avoided if you can help it,
populated. Sure, androids could do this, but they redirected at your enemies when you can.
asked for things like “pay” and “respect”. The Cartel
wanted robots that could think, not think like that.
Then the Cartel tested putting them in other jobs
too. That’s when things went bad.

3 Dolphins, lobsters, and mantis shrimp are

mentioned in documents obtained by anti-
Dreamer groups, along with some illegal
“data dog” research they stole.

14 Setting
 The Year is 2020

Other Factions
From organized cliques to groups of one, Grand
Cross has no shortage of factions struggling for
control. Below are some of the larger movements of
interest in the distant future of 2020.
Android Rights: Androids have the same rights as
humans on paper, but in practice there’s a lot to be
done. Beside the ways android issues intersect with
human issues, android movements have some unique
problems to grapple with: most notably, the fact that
the tools of android maintenance and reproduction
are largely in the hands of corporations.
Orbital Independence: One of the broader
questions Grand Cross is dealing with is whether
Earth should still have influence over the station
and what Earth’s relationship to the orbital
settlements should look like. Many groups are
trying to hijack the issue for their own purposes,
from corporate interests who want to hold the
influence to nationalist groups like the New Barons
who want to control who gets to live in space.
Singularists: A loose movement of tech-obsessed
geeks in Earth orbit. They believe that humanity’s
priority should be technological progress at any
cost and disdain anti-capitalist activism as
threatening to slow down that progress “like the
Impact did.” They’re disorganized but easily
mobilized by outrage, or by the tech corporation
CEOs they see as the priests of a coming
technological rapture.
Earth: Some Earth groups are also doing their best
to undermine the station. The United States in
particular is funding fundamentalist religious
groups and sympathetic right-wing governments in
orbit. At the same time, powerful Earth megacorps
are trying to undermine orbital cities until their
own competing arcologies are fully operational.
The political battlefield of Grand Cross is constantly
shifting as groups rise, splinter, and fall, and there
are surely other groups waiting in the wings.

Setting 15
 GRAND CROSS STATION
VITAL STATISTICS
•32km long, 6.4km in diameter •Average temperature: 19°C

•Rotates at 0.5 RPM (once every 2 minutes) •Average humidity: 40%

to simulate Earth gravity
•Air pressure: 0.85kg/cm²
•Population: 4.5 million
•Oxygen level: Adequate, probably

“Downtown”
Most businesses are as close to the front station
as possible, in the closest 1/4 of the cylinder.
Many districts there have been gentrified.

AGRICULTURAL RING
• 72 hatbox cylinders, 645m wide
and deep

• Each contains 1.3km² of hydroponics

greenhouses

• Each is rotated at 2 RPM to produce

1g gravity; the ring itself is fixed

• Cylinders are enclosed by a

parabolic trough to collect solar
energy, and connected by tubes

• 10 cylinders also enclosed by

sensors ever since Nano-Futuristics
got into the surveillance biz

DOCKING STATIONS
• At both ends of the central axis

• Each of their six docking bays can

accomodate 6 standard transport
ships, 3 large supply ships, or 1
executive space yacht

• Stations capped by a zero-g traffic

control post

• The “front” station, facing the sun,

is the high-traffic one

L5 Point
The Earth appears the same
size as it does from the
Moon (and vice versa)
 PANELS
• Three “window” panels and three “ground” panels running
lengthwise down the cylinder

• Total habitable surface area: 325km²

• City area is subdivided into Wards, which are similar to Tokyo’s

special wards; they’re divided into Districts

• Wards and districts have unique names, along with alphanumeric

codes that nobody uses

• Each “window” is actually a lattice of multi-layered window

panes, with extras for redundancy

• Windows are crossed by train bridges, which people throw trash

from constantly for some reason

Attitude Control
Solar-powered electric thrusters keep
Grand Cross pointed towards the Sun

“Back”
Solar power station at the back dock
generates little power, but does generate
profits for Ogremoch Engineering

Outer Hull
Most industry is placed here, to keep the
air on the inside clean. Also handy for
hiding things, if that’s what you’re into

TIME
• 24-hour clock set to Orbital Standard
Time (OST), roughly equivalent to GMT

• Some corps (esp. from the USA and Japan)

use their home time zone, usually because
the CEO finds it more convenient

• Sunrise 06:00, sunset 18:00 (assuming the

Voluntary Work Hour Extension Act isn’t
passed in 2021)

MIRRORS
• Three mirrors projected at a 45° angle

• Mirrors reflect sunlight through the window panels to illuminate the station

• Angle and pitch are varied to simulate day/night and seasonal changes

• Asano Heavy Industries is lobbying to change the law that prevents them from
buying Panel A and putting ads on it
 Chapter 2:

Basic Mechanics
Basic Mechanics
"To survive, you gotta play the game. To play the game, you gotta know the rules. Here's the
thing though—never play by the rules, especially not against the people who make them. They're not
going to, so why should you? Palm a few cards. Fudge the dice. Have the pawns rush the king and
chuck him off the board. The way I see it, you'll just even the score."
— Nam-il Park, activist

This chapter covers the basic rules of the mechanics that everyone uses: dice rolling, character options,
and actions. For reference, here's a small table of contents:

Rolling the Dice 20

Character Creation 22

Character Creation Guide 24

Origins 26

Traits 28

Specialties 30

Example Character Creation: Soyeong 32

Playing the Game 33

Social Matters and Other Bloodshed 35

Stealth and Security 38

Hacking the Cylinder 40

Getting into Fights 44

Running Missions 50

Managing Money 53

Gig Work Apps 56

Community 58

System 19
 Rolling the Dice
Hard Wired Island uses six-sided dice.
H
When you're asked to roll a number followed by d6, roll that
W
many dice and add them together. A d6 means roll one die, 2d6
I means roll two dice, 3d6 means three dice, and so on. Most
rolls will require 2d6.
Sometimes, you'll get a bonus to your roll. If you’re asked to
roll 2d6+3, roll 2d6 and add 3 to the result.
STANDARD DIFFICULTIES
Difficulty and 7: A routine or simple task.
Outcomes 9: A moderately difficult task.
You roll dice when you're doing something difficult, there's
11: A hard task.
something in your way, or someone is trying to stop you.
13: A very challenging task.
When you roll, you're trying to overcome a difficulty: a number
that represents how hard the action you’re attempting is. The 15: A near-impossible task.
difficulty and your result determine the outcome of the roll.
Dice Probability
Success Here's your chance of rolling each
When your result is equal to or higher than the difficulty, you
number or higher on two six-sided dice:
succeed. Whatever you were trying to do, you get what you want.

Failure
When your result is lower than the difficulty, you fail.
Whatever you were trying, it doesn't work. The GM decides
what this means, choosing the most appropriate one:
• You just fail. You don't get what you want, and there may be
side effects. You don't usually get to try again, but there may
be something else you can do.
• The GM offers a bargain. This is an alternate solution you
might not like, like spending extra resources or owing an
unsavory character a favor. It's up to you whether you take it.
• You get a near-success. You succeed, broadly speaking, but it
comes with an explicit or hidden cost: you use up more time
and resources than you wanted, have a chance encounter you
didn't want, or something else appropriate for the situation.

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
100%
97%
92%
83%
72%
58%
42%
28%
17%
8%
3%

20
System
Dice Mechanics

Basic Mechanics
Sometimes, the rules change how you roll dice:
Advantage
When you roll with Advantage, roll an additional Stacking Mechanics
d6 and discard the lowest-numbered die before If you get the same effect from more than
adding them together. If you roll 2d6 with one source, they stack. If you roll 2d6 with
Advantage, roll 3d6 and discard the lowest. double Advantage, roll 4d6 and discard the
lowest two results. If you roll 2d6 with
double Disadvantage, roll 4d6 and discard
Disadvantage the highest two results. If a roll is double
When you roll with Disadvantage, roll an additional Boosted (which admittedly doesn't happen
d6 and discard the highest die before adding them often), add 2d6. If you get a Critical and
together. It is the opposite of Advantage. have multiple Critical effects, they all apply.
Different effects also stack with each
Boost other. To make a Boosted roll with
When you Boost a roll, add an additional d6 to Advantage, add one d6 from each and then
discard the lowest result. Boosted rolls with
your roll. A 2d6 roll becomes a 3d6. Disadvantage work the same way, but you
discard the highest.
Saves When you roll with Advantage and
When you’re asked to make a Save against a Disadvantage, they cancel each other out on
Difficulty, roll 2d6 and add the relevant Ability (p. 22). a one-for-one basis. If you have double
Hope you succeed. Advantage and one Disadvantage, just roll
one Advantage. Boosts and Serious Harm
Critical cancel each other out in the same way.
Some actions you can take will have Critical effects
attached to them or can have Critical effects added by
certain items and abilities. If an action has a Critical
effect in its description, it happens if the roll is a
success and at least two dice show the same number.
If you have Advantage or Disadvantage, discard dice
before checking for Criticals.
Harm
When you’ve suffered Harm, reduce the result of
dice rolls by -1 per Harm suffered. If you roll 2d6 and
get a 10 when you've suffered 1 Harm, it becomes a 9.
If you’ve suffered Serious Harm, roll one fewer
die than normal. For example, a 2d6 roll would
become 1d6. Serious Harm is seriously dangerous!
See p. 46 for more on Harm.

System 21
 Character Creation
Every character has...
H Abilities
• Abilities, four numbers which broadly define Your character can do (or at least try) almost any
W
what your character is good at; action they seem capable of, as long as it makes
I sense in the story. Your Abilities describe the kind of
• An Origin, which helps define your character and
actions you're best at.
gives you benefits;
When you create your character, assign each of the
• Traits, which also help define your character but
numbers +0, +1, +2, and +3 to an Ability. When an
give you benefits and downsides;
action tells you to roll an Ability like +Cool, add that
• An Occupation, which defines what your charac- number. The higher the number, the better you are.
ter does in Grand Cross, their role in the story,
Cool is your charisma, confidence, and slick
and their starting equipment;
attitude. It's your general ability to influence
• Talents, special powers granted by their Occupation; people and not lose your composure. It's useful
for social characters who want to talk their way
• Specialties, which further define your charac-
into and out of situations.
ter's skills and interests;
Clever is your logic, intuition, reasoning, and
• Defenses, how easily they're affected by social
perceptiveness. It's your ability to pick up odd
manipulation, attacks, and other external forces;
bits of knowledge and come up with solutions to
• Assets, your character’s current possessions; problems. It's useful for hacking, drone piloting,
and people who need focus.
• A Burden, which represents how "wealthy" they are;
Tough is your physical power, strength, health,
• Cash, which represents short-term gains;
and ability to stay on your feet. It's useful for
• And a Personal Goal, which is something they’re anyone who wants to dish out hits or take them.
working toward.
Quick is your agility, reaction speed, and
swiftness. It's your ability to dodge things and
take advantage of the smallest opportunities. It's
useful for anyone who wants to be quiet,
stealthy, or underhanded.

22
System
Origins Specialties

Character Creation
If you had to describe your character's backstory in Specialties describe your character's skills,
a few words, what would it be? Are they a military interests, hobbies, equipment, relationships, and
veteran? An android? An ex-cop? A salaryman? anything else they could use to help them succeed.
Like Abilities, Specialties are represented by a
Your Origin is something that defines who your
number from +1 to +3. When you're rolling to do
character is and where they came from. Your
something that involves your Specialty, add it to
chosen Origin gives you a special benefit that helps
your result.
you affect the game's story, plus a bonus to two
Specialties (which we'll get to below). For example, During character creation, Specialties come from
a military veteran may get more cybernetic your Origin and Occupation. If you get the same
augments and military-related Specialties. You can Specialty from different sources, add them
see a full list of Origins on p. 26-27. together. See p. 30 for more information.

Traits Defenses
If you had to describe your character's backstory in When other people try to affect you with their actions,
more detail, what would you say? your Defenses are the difficulty they must beat.
You have one Defense for each Ability: Cool Defense,
Your Traits add extra detail to your character. Each
Clever Defense, Tough Defense, and Quick Defense.
one has one unique benefit and one unique
drawback. You start with two Traits; you can see a The base value of a Defense is 7 + its Ability. For
full list on p. 28-29. example, if you have +2 Tough, your Tough Defense
is 7+2=9. Defenses may be improved by equipment
Occupation and Specialties.
What does your character do?
Assets
Your Occupation defines what your character does
Assets are things like equipment, connections,
on Grand Cross and what role they play in the story.
favors, cybernetics, and medicine that your
It’s not necessarily their literal job. You can find
character has.
Occupations on p. 61-75.
Your Occupation determines most of the Assets you
Talents start with. Write them down, then choose two
Talents are special powers which grant your Assets of your choice. A complete list of Assets can
character new actions, change the way a rule works be found on p. 79-90.
for them, or give them a bonus in a specific situation.
Burden
Most of the Talents you can choose from are
Your Burden is a rough measure of your character's
determined by your Occupation, but there are some
socio-economic status. It's how much they can spend
Generic Talents anyone can take (p. 76-77).
at once or how many losses they can take without
suffering long-term problems. As the station's
fortunes rise and fall, your Burden will change.
Your Burden is a number from 0 to 4. All player
characters start at Burden 1 by default, unless they
have an Origin, Trait, or Asset (especially a cybernetic
augment) that changes it. See p. 53 for more.

Cash
Cash is a temporary resource earned during play.
While Burden represents your broad status, Cash
represents short-term gains. You start with 0 Cash,
but earn more by doing missions. See p. 55 for more.

System 23
 Character Creation Guide
H Abilities
Summary Choose your four Abilities. Assign each of the numbers
W 1. Choose an Origin (p. 26-27).
+0, +1, +2 and +3 to Cool, Clever, Tough, or Quick.
I 2. Choose your four Abilities (p. 22).
As you do, consider these questions:
+0, +1, +2, +3.
How would your character describe themselves?
3. Choose your first Trait (p. 28-29).
Does that perception match the reality?
4. Choose your Occupation (p. 61).
How have they used their abilities to their advantage?
Level 1: +1 Specialty, +1 Generic When have their abilities gotten them in trouble?
Specialty, +1 Talent.
AND Have they had a job that changed their life,
for good or ill?
Starting Traits: Choose from the First
Occupation box. How close are they to the margins of society? Were
5. Choose your second Trait (p. 28-29). they pushed there?
6. Choose 3 Generic Specialties (p. 30). First Trait
7. Choose 2 additional Assets (p. 79). When you’ve considered these questions, choose
8. Choose Augments (p. 91). one Trait (p. 28-29). Ideally, this Trait says
something about the lessons your life taught you,
9. Determine Burden (p. 28-29). or the damage it did to you. Or both.
10. Determine Defenses (p. 25).
11. Add a Personal Goal (p. 25). Occupation
Choose your Occupation. There are 7 Occupations
12. Add details (p. 25). in Hard Wired Island, describing how you approach
and solve problems.
Origin Fixer (p. 62): You’re a mediator. Others come to
When you sit down to make a character, it’s useful you for help solving problems.
to consider the following first and write each down:
Hacker (p. 64): You infiltrate networks and make
• Where are they from? What are their pronouns? them do your bidding.
• Who are they, and who do they hang with?
Influencer (p. 66): You know how to make
• How long have they been on Grand Cross? Are
friends and sway people.
they a recent migrant, a long-term Crosser, or did
they help construct the station itself? Operator (p. 68): You handle drones and vehicles
• What communities are they a part of? to maximum effect.
• Has something changed in their life recently, or
Soldier (p. 70): You’re a tactician who fights for a
have they always been like this?
cause and protects others.
When you have considered these questions, choose
Street Fighter (p. 72): You’re an expert in martial
your Origin (p. 26-27).
arts and close-quarters combat.
Thief (p. 74): You’re an expert in security, stealth,
and the inevitable getaway.
You start at level 1 in your chosen Occupation, which
gives you 1 Specialty (p. 30), 1 Generic Specialty and
1 Talent chosen from either your Occupation or the
Generic Talents (p. 76-77). You’ll get another set of
these every level. As this is your first Occupation,
you’ll also the bonuses in its First Occupation box:
Assets, a Specialty, and another Talent.

24
System
 Character Creation
Second Trait Burden
Your Burden starts at 1, cannot go below 0, and
Once you have chosen your Occupation, choose
may not exceed 3. Check if your Augments, Origin,
your second Trait. Ideally, this Trait describes what
and/or Traits change your Burden, and adjust
your approach to problem-solving has brought you,
accordingly.
good or bad.
If your final Burden exceeds 3, you have to cut
Specialties something until it’s 3 or lower.
Write down all the Specialties you gained from your
Traits and Occupations. You can then choose Personal Goal
3 additional Generic Specialties (p. 30). Every PC has a Personal Goal: something important
they want to accomplish during play. At the start of
Remember: you can choose the same Specialty
the game, your character's Personal Goal is written
multiple times. This increases its bonus by one, to a
down as soon as you decide what it is, but you don't
maximum of +3. This includes bonuses from Augments.
have to have one before you start playing; you don't
have to write one down at all if you prefer. Personal
Assets Goals are used for character advancement (p. 324).
Write down all the Assets you gained from your
Traits and Occupation. Next, choose 2 additional
Defenses and Details
Assets for your character from the Assets list (p. 79).
Finally, note down everything else:
Augments • Your Defenses (7+Ability+any other bonuses.)
Decide whether your character begins with • Your starting Cash is 0 (p. 55).
cybernetic Augments (p. 91) or not. (If your Origin • If you use a Gig Work app (p. 56-57).
or Traits affect Cybernetics, it may be prudent to • Whatever else you want to note down (e.g. what
choose them now.) Consider these questions: languages they speak.)
• Where did your character get Augments? Who paid? Now you’re ready to go!
• Are they for medical, professional or personal
reasons? Fudging Things
• How did you end up saddled with the Burden of You can fudge things a little and adjust details as
paying for them? you see fit during character creation, so long as
• Does your character regret the Augment, feel you negotiate them with your group.
empowered by it, or want an even better one? For example, the sample PC Xander (p. 334) has
• What is your character’s financial situation? Did a Skateboard Asset and a Drone Asset, but his
their augments help or hinder? drone is the skateboard, so they count as one
Asset for him—he can only use it as a Skateboard
Augments will affect your Burden (p. 53). You may or a Drone at any given time, not both.
choose as many Augments as your Burden allows Cosmetic Augments can also enhance a
(see below.) character: Maru’s cyber-eyes are also her
Hacking Suite. Don’t sweat it, roll with it.

System 25
 Origins
H Activist Corporate Drone
You’ve spent a lot of time protesting, fighting for causes, You're a good corporate drone, or maybe a former
W
and probably getting assaulted by the cops. The first one. When dealing with corporate politics, you have
I group Prep roll you make before a mission is Boosted. Advantage.
Specialties: Any Action (choose one) +1, Activism Specialties: Bureaucracy +1, Cartel Politics +1.
or Social Media (choose one) +1.
Criminal
Android Whether you were forced into crime by your
You begin play with one Augment of your choice, circumstances or you're just kind of an asshole, you
and it does not increase your Burden. You may live on the wrong side of the law. The first personal
equip and unequip Augments like Assets, and freely Prep roll you make before a mission is Boosted.
switch between them during downtime. They only
Specialties: Any Defense (your choice) +1, Criminal
increase your Burden when equipped, but when
Underworld +1.
you roll for Economic Shock, every Augment you
used last session counts toward your Burden.
Crosser
Specialties: Any (your choice) +1, Any Generic (your You’re just a regular citizen who knows their way
choice) +1. around the station. Once per mission, you may Boost
one roll that relies on knowledge of the station’s layout.
Builder Specialties: Any (your choice) +1, Any Generic (your
You were one of the workers busting their tail to
choice) +1.
build Grand Cross. You may choose one Augment. If
you do, it does not increase your Burden. If you
Disaster Refugee
don't, add any one Action Specialty.
You survived the L4 Disaster and escaped to Grand
Specialties: Any Social Action (your choice) +1, Cross, where you've been kicked around like a
Engineering or Obscure Places (your choice) +1. political football ever since. Once per mission, you
may Boost Defense (p. 51) for free.
Celebrity Specialties: Any Defense (your choice) +1, Any
You're a minor celebrity, a former celebrity, or a
Generic (your choice) +1.
social media influencer. Once per mission, you may
boost one Social roll involving a fan or someone
Double Crosser
who recognizes you.
You were (mostly) raised on Grand Cross. As a
Specialties: Any Social Action (your choice) +1, second generation citizen, you're used to the
Famous or Social Media (choose one) +1. cosmopolitan space life but have little political
power. Once per mission, you may Boost one Social
Civil Servant roll involving another Double Crosser.
You’ve performed underappreciated but stable
Specialties: Any Generic (your choice) +1, Activism
work for the government (e.g. translating forms in
or Social Media (choose one) +1.
the Department of Translation, working for the
Cross Rail, issuing driving licenses, working for a
Ex-Cop
ward mayor, etc.) When dealing with government
You got too old for this, or maybe you realized you
officials and bureaucrats, you have Advantage.
couldn't tell the good guys from the bad guys.
Specialties: Government or Politics +1, Any Generic Whatever the reason you left, you still have contacts
(your choice) +1. on the inside. When dealing with cops and ex-cops,
or making deals with them, you have Advantage.
Specialties: Law +1, Investigation +1.

26
System
Gamer Rich in Years

Character Creation
Whether you’re a fighting game fan, an MMO raider, You saw the Cold War, the Impact, the space rush, and
or a cool and sexy tabletop game developer, you’ve Grand Cross, and you’re not going anywhere! Once
spent most of your life playing games, and you per mission, you may Boost one Social roll involving
adapt quickly to new situations. Once per mission, someone who might respect your years of experience.
you may Boost one Quick roll.
Specialties: Earth Culture, History, or Politics
Specialties: Games +1, Online Communities or (choose one) +1, Any Generic (your choice) +1.
Social Media (choose one) +1.
Scientist
It's Complicated You're a researcher, a drone in a corporation's
Your origin story is either convoluted enough to be research division, a science communicator, or a
a movie, or you just pretend it is to avoid talking really nerdy webcomic artist. Once per mission, you
about it. Either way, you’ve come to Grand Cross to may Boost one Clever roll.
escape a lot of bullshit. Gain one Specialty in an
Specialties: Science (choose one subject) +1, Law
Action of your choice (included below).
or Social Media (choose one) +1.
Specialties: +1 Any Action (your choice),
+1 Bullshit, +1 Generic Specialty (your choice) Station Worker
You have experience working in the station
Journalist basements, the Agriculture Ring, the spaceports, Cross
You’ve spent a lot of time finding and reporting on Rail/Grand Metro, or some other part of the station’s
events in some way. Choose a specific field you infrastructure. When exploiting your knowledge of
specialize in (e.g. politics, influencers, the tech industry, station infrastructure, you get Advantage.
current trends, the Cartel, etc.) When gathering
Specialties: Station Infrastructure or Obscure
information in that field, you have Advantage.
Places (choose one) +1, Engineering or Physics
Specialties: Any Social Action (your choice) +1, (choose one) +1.
Investigation or Social Media +1.
Survivor
Lottery Winner Whether you were directly affected by the Impact,
Your country gave out tickets to space via lottery and thrown out onto the streets at a young age, or
you won. They gave you a place to live and some cash suffered a terrible accident, you spent years
to get you started, so reduce your starting Burden by 1. struggling to survive and came out stronger for it.
Once per mission, you may Boost one Tough roll.
Specialties: Earth Culture, History, or Politics
(choose one) +1, One profession (choose one) +1. Specialties: Any Defense (your choice) +1, One
Cartel corporation (your choice) +1.
Military Veteran
You used to serve in an Earth military during the New Traits and Origins
post-Impact period. You may choose one Augment. We expect players will create new Traits and
If you do, it does not increase your Burden. If you Origins to fit the characters and situations they
wish to explore. Here are some tips:
don't, add any one Defense Specialty.
Operate within the spirit of the rules.
Specialties: Military +1, Gun (choose one) +1. New things should be broadly similar to the
examples we've provided. Consider what will fit
the game and character, and don’t be afraid to
renegotiate a mechanic down the line if something
feels out of place, too punishing, or too strong.
Origins always give an unambiguous
advantage and two Specialties. Unlike Traits,
they don't come with downsides. Usually, at
least one Specialty is generic.
Traits always come with a downside. Traits are
expressions of who you are and what you’ve
done, for good or for ill. They are your
personality, warts and all.

System 27
 Traits
H Activist Hey, I Know You!
Once per session, when you push yourself to act for A while ago you were in a viral video, used in a
W
the sake of social causes or in the defense of others, meme, or the one person everyone yells at on Pulser
I Boost your roll. Your next roll loses one die. for a week. When you meet a new character during a
mission, you may roll 1d6 to see if they know you. If
Enter the Singularity the result is 5 or 6, they do, and your next Social roll
You consider yourself a Singularist (p. 260), though against them is Boosted. If the result is 3 or 4, they
you might not buy into their “dangerous ideas.” don’t. If the result is 1 or 2, they do, but your next
Choose two additional Generic Specialties of your Social roll against them is treated as though you
choice, provided they have something to do with suffered Serious (reputational) Harm instead.
science, AI, or the tech sector. Your love of cool tech
means it always costs you 1 more Cash to lower Hush Money
your Burden. You've been bribed to keep quiet about something.
Decrease your starting Burden by 1, and it always
Full-Body Prosthetic costs you 1 less Cash to lower your Burden. Your
You're a human brain in a cybernetic body. This secret means your movements are covertly tracked,
Trait grants the benefits of the Android Origin and you have to work harder to keep a low profile.
without the Specialties. If you roll for Personal Prep You always suffer Disadvantage on tasks relating to
and the dice show a 1, you will suffer dysphoria or maintaining stealth, staying hidden, or keeping out
dissociation and make all Social rolls at of sight.
Disadvantage unless you spend a Prep.
Impulsive
Gig Worker Once per mission, you can Boost a roll for free
You can use two gig apps at once (p. 56). When you without spending Prep. Past impulsive decisions
roll for Economic Shock, you suffer if you roll 12 or mean you increase your starting Burden by 1.
more instead of 13 (though you still only choose
two consequences if you roll 15 or more.) Law Zero
You’re in the android gang Law Zero (p. 253). When
Gregarious you roll for Personal Prep, you can describe working
You’re generous to a fault, even when you can't for them to gain one extra Prep. However, during the
afford to be, but what goes around comes around. mission, the GM can assign a secondary objective
Increase your starting Burden by 1. The first time that advances R Daneel Olivaw’s goals through illegal
you spend Cash in a session, you also gain one actions. If you don’t accomplish it, pay Law Zero your
Personal Prep for every Cash you spend. end-of-mission Cash reward instead.

Hard Shell Mind Over Matter

You get a +1 Tough Defense Specialty. When You get a +1 Clever Defense Specialty. When your
something gets past your Tough exterior, you have Clever defenses are outwitted, you have
Disadvantage on your next roll (whatever it is). Disadvantage on your next roll (whatever it is).

28
System
 Character Creation
Overprepared Student Loans
The first time you make any Prep roll in a mission, Past you got an education and present you is paying
gain 1 additional Prep even on a failure. If either for it. Choose two additional Generic Specialties of
your Personal Prep or Group Prep runs out during a your choice (they don’t have to be on an academic
mission, you have Disadvantage on all rolls for the subject.) Increase your starting Burden by 1. The
rest of the mission. first time you spend Cash in a session, you must
spend +1 Cash.
Regular Customer
Choose or describe a bar, café, or similar location in Trendsetter
Grand Cross. You go there regularly and everyone The coolest outfit is whatever you are wearing. Any
knows your name. Once per mission, you may visit clothing you wear is treated as a Trendy Wardrobe
as part of a Prep action and Boost it for free. If you Asset (p. 84) for the Friendly or Sexy Mood (choose
suffer an Economic Shock, you can’t Boost Prep one when you take the Trait,) whether you’re
rolls on your next mission. wearing your finest suit or stole a coat from a dead
guy. If you bring an armor or clothing Asset to a
You can find good locations in Chapter 6. The
mission, or put one on, you lose this Trait’s benefits
Venera (p. 150), Paradise (p. 181), and Shin Umeda
for the rest of the mission.
(p. 183) districts contain plenty of options. Others to
consider include the Magellanic Club (p. 158), Book
Well Traveled
Club Café (p. 165), Nekomeshiya (p. 180), Early
You've been all around Grand Cross and know it like
Access (p. 182), Evil Maid Attack (p. 182), or Hot One
the back of your hand. You have Advantage on all
With The Boys (p. 188).
rolls that rely on your knowledge of the station's
layout. Frequent traveling means shopping and
Scavenger transport costs; if you roll to lose unspent Cash at
You always have a few tools with you—you'd be
the end of a session, roll with Advantage.
surprised what you can do with duct tape and a
paperclip. With a day's worth of work and 1 Cash,
Work Housing
you can turn any private area into a Workshop. You
You work for a corporation and they supplied your
can do this as part of a personal Prep action. Your
apartment. Reduce your starting Burden by 1, and
Workshop stays that way until you suffer Economic
you can't lose your living space from Economic
Shock or use this ability again.
Shock. However, you have to meet your work
obligations, your movements may be surveilled,
Speedy and you may not have roommates unless they are
You get a +1 Quick Defense Specialty. When you’re
close family. If you are ever fired, lose this Trait; you
not Quick enough to defend against something, you
may pick a new one after your next Economic Shock
have Disadvantage on your next roll (whatever it is).
roll, but that roll is Boosted.
Stoic
You get a +1 Cool Defense Specialty. When Example Custom Trait
something makes you lose your Cool, you have Emily wants to play a full-body prosthetic
Disadvantage on your next roll (whatever it is). cyborg, but not one who experiences dysphoria
from her prosthetic—in fact, quite the opposite.
Thinking about an appropriate way to represent
it, she decides that she makes expensive
modifications to her body which break
down rapidly when she's strapped for cash.
The new Trait functions as the existing Full-Body
Prosthetic Trait, but the drawback is decided to
be: When you suffer Economic Shock, your body
malfunctions in addition to the option you pick.
All Quick rolls are at Disadvantage unless you
spend Prep.

System 29
 Specialties
Specialties add detail to your character by describing When Do they Apply?
the things they're good at, or what they do in the story. Specialties apply when you decide they do. If a
They can represent their skills, interests, hobbies, character's skill in something could help them
H relationships, cybernetics, and even equipment. impact the story right now, let them. The GM is
W encouraged to allow creative and interesting uses
You can choose the same Specialty more than once.
I This adds 1 to its bonus each time, to a maximum of +3.
of a Specialty if they're not too much to work with.
If your character attempts something but you don't
Stacking Specialties
have an applicable Specialty, assume you have +0.
Specialties of different types stack, but ones of the
same type do not. You can apply both an Action
Specialty Types Specialty and a Generic Specialty to a roll, but not
When you gain a Specialty and it doesn’t specify a
two Generic Specialties.
type, you can spend it on any type.
Normally, only Defense Specialties apply to your
Defenses: Boost a Defense: Cool, Clever, Tough, or
Defense. However, during play you may spend Prep
Quick. You can specialise in multiple Defenses.
to stack a Generic Specialty onto a Defense
Initiative: Specialize in Initiative if you foresee Specialty. See p. 33-49 for more on Prep.
getting into a lot of fights.
Making/Renaming
Actions: Specialize in using specific Actions.
Specialties
Cybernetic Augments: Augments are a unique type Hard Wired Island allows a lot of creative freedom
of gear which can grant Specialties as well as other when making Specialties, so you can make up new
unique benefits for free (unless you took out a loan ones as needed or even rename the existing ones.
for them, or pay maintenance costs, or...) New Specialties should be useful enough to come
up in the story but shouldn't be so broad that they
An Augment grants +1 to a Specialty of any type:
are relied on all the time. GMs should feel free to
reflex enhancers can improve Quick Defense, cyber-
allow creative uses if they seem interesting, though.
eyes with extra functions can improve Investigation,
and so on. These can't raise a Specialty above +3. For example, Hacking and Ghosting are treated as
Cybernetics can let you do things most humans separate Specialties in the Basic Mechanics chapter.
can't, but they can't surpass the human condition; You can rename Hacking to "Hack the Planet" and just
ultimately the effectiveness of how it's used comes use that when Hacking would apply, but you can't
down to the user. See p. 91-99 for more. have a Hack the Planet Specialty that covers both.
Generic Specialties: Everything else. These can be
skills, talents, hobbies, esoteric knowledge, or
anything else that could give you an edge. We've
provided some examples on the facing page, but
we assume you'll make more as needed to fit
your character.
During play you'll earn more Generic Specialties
that can be spent to improve existing ones or create
new ones.
Assets: Specialize in using specific Assets (p. 79–90).
This is a type of Generic Specialty, and can be
bought with those.

30
System
Example Generic Specialties

Character Creation
80s/90s Action Cinema Cybercrime HeoCities Physics
Activism Cybernetics Hydraulics Engineer Pizza Delivery
Agriculture Cyborg Subculture Idol Singer [Name of your podcast
here]
Agriculture Ring Dance Influencers
Politics
Android History Delinquent Infosec
Rap
Android Rights Demolitions Investigation
Movement Riot Medic
Department of Jeet Kune Do
Anime Translation Worker Robotics
K-Pop
Asteroid Mining Detective Science Fiction
Law
Astronautics Determination Skateboards
Law Zero Member
Astronomy Earth Culture Social Media
LGBT History
Australian Rules Football Earth History Solar Technology
Linguistics
Bicycles Earth Politics Space Shows
Living Rough
Bounty Hunter Economics Station Infrastructure
Lunar Politics
Bureaucracy Electrical Engineering Station Layout
Mathematics
Cartel Politics Esports Stealth
Memes
Celebrity Gossip Ethics Streaming
Military
Chemistry Famous Street Performer
Motorcycles
Chess Fighting Studied The Blade
Movie Filming
Chessboxing First Responder Swimming
Music Industry
Christian Theology Former Ogremoch Taekkyon
Nonprofits
Accountant
Comedy Tech Industry
Noodle Stand Owner
Games
Comic Artist Television
Obscure Grand Cross
Ghosting
Communist Webrings Places Theater
Government
Computer Science Office Lady Therapist
Graffiti
Con Artist Omega Point (p. 261) Transhuman Subculture
Graphic Design
Conspiracies Online Communities Union of Robots (p. 270)
Grey-Market Goods
Contemporary Art Online Pop Culture VTuber
Habitat Architecture
Cooking Parkour Vaporwave
Habitat Engineering
Corporate Security Perception Webcomics
Hacking
Criminal Underworld Philosophy YourTuber

System 31
 Example Character Creation:

H Soyeong
W
(Soyeong can be found as a sample PC on p. 333.)
I
Feixue is making a PC. She just watched a really the Hush Money Trait (p. 28). She decides this
good music video, so she decides to make probably made Soyeong very cautious, so she also
Soyeong, a K-pop rapper. gets the Overprepared Trait (p. 29).
She thinks it would be interesting if Soyeong had Now, on to Specialties. She gets three Generic
achieved fame on Earth before coming to Grand Specialties on top of everything she got before,
Cross, so she chooses the Celebrity Origin (p. 26). which brings her total to Action: Charm +1, Cool
That gives her a special ability, +1 Specialty in one Defense +1, Social Media +1, +1 Specialty, and +4
Social Action (she picks Charm), and +1 in Famous Generic Specialties. She spends the Specialty on
or Social Media (she picks Social Media.) Quick Defense and the Generic Specialties on
Famous, Music Industry, K-Pop/Rap, and
Next, Abilities. Celebrity benefits some of
Taekkyon (for variety).
Soyeong’s Cool rolls, so Feixue leans into it and
writes down Cool +3. Someone in a K-pop band Feixue gets two more Assets. She picks Vehicle:
probably did a lot of dancing, which is all the Motorcycle (p. 83) immediately because it sounds
justification she needs for Quick +2. She writes badass. After some thought, she picks a License (p.
Clever +1, Tough +0 because she likes her PCs to 82) too—she doesn’t know if she’ll need it, but
have some smarts. Soyeong likes to be prepared.
Feixue isn’t sure what her first Trait is yet, so she After that come Augments. Feixue thinks it’d be
sets that aside for now and moves on to cool if the accident left Soyeong with cybernetics all
Occupation. She already knows what she wants to down her right side, including a life support
be: an Influencer (p. 66). Soyeong isn’t in a pop system—and medical augments are free. After
group anymore, but she still has connections and a looking through the list of Augments (p. 91), she
strong online presence. decides to also get an arm that grants +1 Tough
Defense (which is Restricted—looks like she needed
Being a Level 1 Influencer gives Soyeong one
that License!) and a leg that gives her another +1
Specialty, one Generic Specialty, and one Talent.
Taekkyon.
She sets the Specialties aside for later and chooses
Viral as her first Influencer Talent, because she likes Finally, there’s Burden. Her Burden starts at 1, rises
the idea of making a post blow up. to 3 due to her Augments, and lowers to 2 thanks to
Hush Money. Feixue talks to her fellow player
Since it’s her first Occupation, she gets the benefits of
Madoka, and they decide their PCs are roommates/
the Influencer’s First Occupation box: a choice of a
maybe partners (Sharing the Burden, p. 54).
Doggo or a Trendy Wardrobe (she picks a Trendy
Madoka’s PC, Maru, also has Burden 2, so being
Wardrobe), a choice of a Drone or a Verified Account
roommates lowers both to Burden 1.
(Verified Account), a choice of Specialty (she chooses
Cool Defense +1), and a Generic or Influencer Talent After that, she just needs to calculate Defenses
(she picks another Influencer Talent, DDoS). (7+Abilities+her Specialties) and decide if she wants
to use a Gig App (p. 56, and she doesn’t), and she’s
Normally she’d pick her second Trait now, so she
ready to go!
decides to do both Traits. She comes up with an
interesting backstory: Soyeong’s group fell apart
when they had a spaceship accident while touring
orbit, and their parent company paid her to keep
quiet about their culpability. That lets Feixue take

32
System
Playing the Game

Playing the Game

Game Structure Simple Actions
Most of the time, the game is in free play: characters A lot of actions you take won’t need anything fancy—
hang out, do their best to get by, take actions, make you’re trying to do something, and you either do it or
rolls, and generally live their lives. You can run the you don’t. For these tasks, and anything else that
whole game in free play mode if you wish. doesn’t fit one of the other Actions, use this.
Sometimes, the group will get together and
Take Action
accomplish a mission. This is a specific set of tasks that
>(2d6 + Ability + Specialty vs Difficulty)
needs to be planned and prepared for, like protecting
Try to solve a problem using your knowledge and
people at a protest, bounty hunting to make some
skills. The appropriate Ability and Specialty is
money, or running a heist on a corporate stronghold.
determined by the action.
Missions use special rules; see p. 50 for more.
Usually, the game operates in free play mode until
the players decide to run a mission. When the
mission ends, the players get some rewards, then
they return to free play until they feel like doing
another one.

Taking Action
During play, you control your character’s actions.
The GM describes the world and the side characters
in it, and you describe what your PC does.
If your character does something that isn’t that hard, it
just happens; you don’t need to figure out if they
succeed or not. If you’re doing something difficult, the
situation is unpredictable, or someone’s trying to stop
you, you roll the dice to figure out what happens.
When you act, you:
• Describe what your character does.
• Choose a suitable Action from the list.
• Each Action tells you to roll 2d6 + an Ability,
against a difficulty set by the GM.
• Add a Specialty if one applies (as covered on p. 30).
• Check your result against the difficulty (p. 20).
Difficulty is determined by the GM and is dependent
on the Action, how hard or complicated the thing
you’re trying to do is, and whether anyone’s trying
to stop you. If the Difficulty of an action is written
as an Ability (e.g. “vs Cool”), use the opponent’s
relevant Defense.

System 33
 Initiative During complex Initiative, players get a special Action:
Most of the time, Hard Wired Island can be played
like a conversation: players describe what they do, Delay
H the GM describes what happens and how side Choose one Action. Instead of performing it now,
characters react, and you go back and forth like describe a narrative event which will trigger the
W
that as long as you need to. Action (like "if Xander throws a flashbang, I'll
I attack" or "if that cop attacks the kid again, I'll
Sometimes, it's important to know exactly who
hack his headset".) You will perform that Action
goes when. Initiative is used in situations when
when the event happens. If the event doesn't
timing is important, like high-speed chases, fights,
happen that Round, you don't take any Action.
time-sensitive hacks, or trying to fast-talk someone
before an enemy catches up.
Optional Rule:
Initiative sets the order in which characters act. Roll Every Round
Play is divided into Rounds, during which each Fighting can be unpredictable and chaotic. As an
character gets one turn to act. When it's your turn, optional rule, you may have players reroll their
you can do one thing: Initiative every round during fights. (To save
time, their opponents don't need to unless
• Take an Action and make a roll. they’re particularly special.) Keep in mind that as
• Use one of your items. a fight progresses, characters may suffer injuries
and setbacks that apply penalties to this roll.
• Do something else that makes sense in the story
and requires significant effort.
Small things that don't take much effort like talking,
moving short distances, picking up a loose object, or
grabbing something from your belt don't use up your
turn; you can do those things and take an action.
There are two ways to determine Initiative:
Solid State Initiative
In this version, players act as a group. The GM
describes the scene and what the side characters do,
the players decide amongst themselves what order
they go in, and then the next Round begins. This is an
easier form of Initiative that allows the group to
coordinate their actions for maximum effect.
Complex Initiative
This version is a deeper system where the players
roll dice to determine when they roll dice.
Before the first Round, every character—player or
otherwise—rolls 2d6 + Quick + Initiative
Specialty (if they have it.) Everyone acts in order of
highest result to lowest result. Subsequent Rounds
use the same order. In the case of a tie, higher-level
characters go first; if it's still a tie, the GM decides.

34
System
Social Matters and

Social Matters and Other Bloodshed

Other Bloodshed
Hard Wired Island is a game of social interaction first and Examples of Social
foremost. Most of the time, it’s simplest to act out Situations
conversations naturally, as the flow of play permits. Police Interrogation (Hostile)
Police attempt to Interrogate a hostile
Sometimes, however, a social situation comes up where
target by softening them up with Threats,
there is opportunity for far more than a one-on-one
leaning on the law as leverage, interspersed
conversation, or players are simply lost for words.
with a Placating “good cop” to improve
These rules are for those situations, whether they’re board the mood. An alternate take is to make the
meetings, parties, group chats, public gatherings, or just mood Formal to represent professionalism
trying to lie convincingly in front of an easily agitated cop. and a sense of being official (while still
making threats.)
The Mood Cornered by Ripped-Off Gangsters
Each social scene has a Mood that should be established
(Hostile)
first. The Mood affects what strategies you can employ, and
Gangsters are perfectly willing to beat you
what you can get away with. The Mood is decided by the GM.
up. If you can just Placate them before they
Friendly start punching, you might be able to level the
A party, a dance, or simple gathering. You can joke around Mood a bit and look for a means of escape,
and be mildly embarrassed at no penalty or consequence, or else convince them you’ve got their next
but flipping the barbeque grill and declaring things to be big score with a bit of Charm and Bullshit.
shit is frowned upon and can turn the Mood against you.
Pumping a High Roller for Information
Indifferent (Friendly)
You’re a face in the crowd, and either trying to stay that way or The rich son of a wealthy executive has all
trying to stand out. This is for chatting with your informant at the information you need. You just need to
Sparby’s without attracting attention, convincing a group of Bullshit or Charm your way to his inner
bystanders to hear you out, or similar things. circle of hangers-on and Interrogate him
with enough drinks to make him spill
Formal
everything without even noticing he’s doing
A business meeting, religious service, or parliamentary
it... while not making everyone else jealous of
inquiry. You are expected to be professional and courteous;
you hogging him.
your jokes must be dry and witty, if made at all. You are
probably not supposed to be dressed in a ripped T-shirt Getting Past the Security Guard (Formal)
with a band logo on it. You may attempt to Bullshit or Charm
the guard into letting you enter the secure
Hostile
area, but if they’re under strict orders to
Not only is everyone giving you their full attention, they are
only let certain people in, you may have to
probing you for weakness and will use what you say against
resort to feigning superiority (via your
you. Your goal is probably to escape, lightening the Mood,
Bullshit or Charm) and Threatening
or making someone cooperative. When you mess the other
them with being fired.
Moods up, you tend to end up here.
Sexy
Sometimes charm means seduction, particularly when
someone distracts you at a party with a bunch of sexy
firemen. How this Mood works and how it’s played out are
left to the group’s discretion; just treat it as a step beyond
Friendly which requires consent. Suffice it to say that
anyone in such a Mood will be extremely distracted!

System 35
 Social Actions
These are the things you can do in a social scene:

H Bullshit Placate
W > (2d6 + Cool vs Clever. Single target) > (2d6+Cool vs Cool. Area)
I Confuse someone with derailment, lies, half-truths, Tell everyone to calm down, relax, take a chill pill,
and statistics to get them to do something for you. not be so hostile. Can only be done when the mood
They are unable to respond effectively until they is Hostile. A roll is made against every participant
make a successful Clever save vs your Bullshit present. People may voluntarily fail their defense if
result. While under the effects of Bullshit, they they wish. If you are the focus of hostilities, this roll
may be convinced to give you information and is made at Disadvantage. Placate doesn't work
cooperate with you in limited fashion—opening against large-scale targets like riots, or if the target
doors, getting out of your way, etc. has no reason to cease hostilities.
Most people, once under the effects of Bullshit,
Embarrass
don’t bother trying to oppose it unless the
> (2d6+Clever OR Cool vs Cool. Single target)
situation changes enough to give them a reason
Fluster someone with a jibe, joke at their expense,
to. Anyone may also instantly overcome this status
dressing-down, and so on. They will lose their cool,
by becoming visibly and audibly angry, but they
becoming unable to perform social actions until they
risk the Mood lowering against them. For example,
make a successful Cool save vs embarrassment.
a security guard is always in a Formal setting and
Anyone may instantly overcome this status by
may not risk becoming angry at someone for fear
becoming visibly and audibly angry, but they risk the
of their employer—or bystanders with cameras.
Mood lowering against them—though bystanders
entertained by them may take their side.
Charm
> (2d6+Cool vs Cool. Single target or area) This action generally cannot be taken in a Friendly
Dazzle someone with your friendly nature, Mood, since joking around is expected and
charming looks, or convincing arguments accepted—unless you are particularly nasty, in
(delivered via your handsome face.) This action which case you risk lowering the Mood by doing it.
can be used on a single target or a group. If a Making someone lose their cool in a Hostile
majority of people present are Charmed, you may setting may make them attack you, which could
improve the Mood of the scene. Charming cannot be to your advantage!
be done when the mood is Hostile toward you.
Threaten
Interrogate > (2d6+Clever OR Cool vs Cool. Single target)
> (2d6+Clever vs Cool. Single target) Either overtly or subtly suggest that something the
Overtly or discreetly pump someone for target cares about is under threat unless they
information. Overt interrogation is exceedingly cooperate. This can generally only be done by having
rude and will lower the Mood to Hostile rapidly if some form of leverage against the target, whether
not apologized for. Feel free to be rude if it already this is compromising information or by being their
is Hostile. (shitty) boss. If another opponent already has
leverage over the target, they defend instead. If your
Discreet interrogation can be done at any Mood,
leverage is fake, the target has to believe it is real.
and in fact it is often easy to get someone to
cooperate of their own volition if the Mood is Overt threats can’t be made unless the Mood is
Friendly—you get Advantage on the roll. A Hostile Hostile: any other Mood will require subtlety or
target will not cooperate unless threatened. seniority. Regardless of Mood, a successful threat will
make the target more compliant. An unsuccessful
one will make them unfriendly or even Hostile.

Lower the Mood

You may always lower the mood by acting like an
ass deliberately.

36
System
 Example Social Scene:

Social Matters and Other Bloodshed

The Party
Mira (p. 332) and Soyeong (p. 333) are attending a party hosted in the Tetsuo Complex (p. 184) to gather
information on their R&D division's activities. Soyeong is hoping to charm someone with access to the
building’s offices, while Mira is hoping to just bluff her way in.
The party’s Mood is Friendly. If they're caught somewhere they shouldn't be, the Mood can turn Hostile.

Mira
Mira just strides out of the party like she owns the place and
rolls Bullshit, her Specialty. Security is tight, so the GM sets
the difficulty at 13. She rolls 9.
Bullshit: [3][3] + 2 (Cool) + 1 (Bullshit) =
9 vs 13 (Failure).

She doesn't want to Placate him with a bribe or risk

Bullshitting again, so she Threatens him. The group knows
the security corporation here hires shady types, so Mira asks for
(and gets) permission to spend a point of Prep (p. 51) to narrate
a "flashback" where she studies their histories for leverage.
Mira realizes this guy is Tall Steve, an infamous member of the
Terabyte Boys gang. She flashes her bounty hunter credentials
and threatens to send him to jail with his brother Venti Steve.
With her Bounty Hunter Specialty and +3 Clever, she rolls 11.
Tall Steve's Cool Defense is 9, so he backs off.
Threaten: [5][2] + 3 (Clever) + 1 (Bounty Hunter) =
11 vs 9 (Success).

Soyeong
Meanwhile, Soyeong chooses a target: Misaki, an executive
assistant who's getting tired of the corporate world.
Soyeong starts by Charming Misaki, hoping to get an
invitation to hang out with her in her office. (She has a Charm
Specialty and +3 Cool, so it's a strong opening play.) She rolls a
10 against Misaki's Cool defence of 9. They swap stories about
their terrible bosses, and Misaki is Charmed.
Charm: [1][5] + 3 (Cool) + 1 (Action: Charm) =
10 vs 9 (Success).

Since Soyeong is only talking to Misaki, and she’s Charmed,

Soyeong can get her flirt on and improves the Mood to Sexy.
She used her Trendy Wardrobe Asset (p. 84) to prepare for this
Mood, so now she has Advantage.
Soyeong does this so she can discreetly Interrogate Misaki
about the work she does here. With Advantage, she rolls 11.
Misaki starts telling some very interesting stories...
Interrogate: [2][1][6] + 3 (Cool) =
11 vs 9 (Success).

System 37
 Stealth and Security
When you need to get up to a bit of circumspect
H Stealth Actions
skullduggery, you need stealth. Here’s how to do it.
W Stealth
I Security Level > (2d6+Clever or Quick vs 5 + Security
A place's Security Level represents how hard it is Level)
to sneak through. Most places have one overall Hiding, moving silently, and everything that comes
Security Level, but the GM can assign a higher one with it. Once you start sneaking around, assume
to unique challenges or raise it mid-stealth to add you maintain Stealth if the Security Level
tension. Here are some examples: doesn't change. Sometimes, you might encounter
a unique challenge with a higher Security Level: a
2–3: A group of thugs, basic home security,
guard post, a particularly well-placed camera, an
disinterested cop.
open space you need to dash across, and so on. If
4–5: Guard post, mall security, busy train station, you do, you'll have to roll again.
average office block.
If you're sneaking in a group, only one person
6–7: Police station with distracted officers, needs to roll Stealth; if they succeed, they bring
important office block, drones. everyone else along with them.
8–9: Police station on alert, corporate executive
Disable Security
suite, cool laser grid.
> (2d6 + Clever vs 5 + Security Level)
Hacking cameras, sedating guards and stuffing
Maintaining Stealth them into closets, and anything else that could
The most important part of any Stealth
weaken security. Success temporarily lowers the
challenge is maintaining it. Rather than rolling
Security Level by 1 on a success, by an additional
every time your stealthy approach may possibly be
1 for every 3 by which your roll exceeds the
broken, you roll once at the beginning of your
difficulty, and by an additional 1 on a Critical.
challenge to enter Stealth and must then maintain
it by managing risk. This lasts until an alarm is raised, you move past
the security measures you disabled, or you lose a
When you first enter Stealth, you get three chances
chance (where applicable.) If you'd reasonably
to avoid being caught. During a Stealth challenge,
expect the deception to be uncovered when it
if you take any action that requires rolling dice
wears off, it doesn't until you run out of chances.
(including further Stealth rolls) and fail, you lose
one chance. If all three run out, the jig is up: you are
Cover Your Tracks
spotted, an alarm goes off, the guard you sedated
> (2d6 + Clever or Quick vs Target Number)
wakes up, or similar.
On a success, regain 1 chance during Stealth. On
At the GM's discretion, certain tasks that wouldn't a Critical, regain 2. (The most you can have is 3.)
normally require a roll may require one in Stealth. The GM decides the target number based on the
For example, your character may normally be able situation; when in doubt, use 5+Security Level.
to bypass simple locks without rolling, but during Each subsequent use of Cover Your Tracks
Stealth they'll have to roll to do it without risking increases the target number by 2.
their cover.

Social Stealth
You can use this section to represent
maintaining your cover or disguise in a social
situation. Use the most appropriate specialty for
lying in place of Stealth or Ghost. Keep in mind
that Talents relying on your identity being
known - like many Influencer talents - won’t
work unless you blow your cover, and you won’t
have to use some actions like Disable Security.

38
System
 Example Stealth Scene:

Stealth and Security

Frob and Manaia
Frob2 the android is trying to sneak through Tetsuo's offices and steal some files.
With them is Manaia, an NPC friend of theirs, who Frob needs to ID the files. Frob is a
2 They’re not with the
sample PCs on p. 328–340
because they’re hidden
Thief with Quick +3, a Stealth Generic Specialty, and an Action: Stealth Specialty. too well.

Stage One
Since this is a standard Tetsuo office block, the GM gives it
Security Level 5. Frob needs to beat 10 to enter Stealth.
Frob’s pretty confident they can do this, so they just roll. They
manage 11 and start sneaking.
Stealth: [2][4] + 3 (Quick) + 1 (Stealth) + 1
(Action: Stealth) = 11 vs 10 (Success).

Now that they're "in stealth," Frob doesn't have to roll again
unless the Security Level changes or a unique challenge
appears. Frob also has the Smooth Criminal Talent (p. 75),
which gives +1 to all rolls as long as they're in Stealth. Finally,
since only one person in a group needs to roll Stealth, Frob
can just bring Manaia along for free.
On the way, they find a card-locked door. Frob tries a Simple
Hack action to open it. Taking an action during stealth is risky—
Frob only has three chances to fail before being caught. Luckily,
the Network Level is only 9, and Frob rolls an easy 10.
Simple Hack: [1][5] + 2 (Clever) + 1 (Hacking) + 1
(Smooth Criminal) = 10 vs 9 (Success).

Stage Two
Unfortunately for Frob, the corporate cleaner Tiger Shark is
reporting in after a successful “negotiation” with a local gang.
Once he enters the scene, the Security Level jumps to 8.
The Security Level changed, so Frob has to roll Stealth
again—against 13 this time. Frob rolls 11, a failure. They lose a
chance; if they fail twice more, they'll be caught.
Stealth: [4][1] + 3 (Quick) + 1 (Stealth) + 1
(Action: Stealth) + 1 (Smooth Criminal) =
11 vs 13 (Failure).

Frob attempts a Disable Security action to get rid of Tiger

Shark before things get worse. Smooth Criminal applies, and Frob
spends a point of Prep (p. 51) to Boost the roll too, just in case.
They roll 17. Since they succeeded by more than 3, the Security
Level drops by 2, to 6. Frob uses their knowledge of corporate
security to fake a distraction and Tiger Shark leaves. For now.
Disable Security: [4][3][6] + 2 (Clever) + 1
(Corporate Security) + 1 (Smooth
Criminal) = 17 vs 13 (Success).

System 39
 Hacking the Cylinder
Where there’s a system, there’s a hacker. Hacking in
Network Mood
Hard Wired Island is like being social, but you're
H Like social scenes, you should establish the
trying to make the computer more friendly.
network's Mood. This represents the kind of access
W
you have and how actively it's trying to stop you.
I Network Level It's like Security Level, but for networks.
A computer system's Network Level represents how
hard it is to hack. Most have a single overall ADMINISTRATOR ACCESS
Network Level, but the GM can assign a higher one The ultimate form of control. Unless it's being
to unique challenges or raise it mid-hack to add actively monitored by a clever AI or a person, the
tension. Here are some examples: network is always Friendly and can never have its
Mood lowered. Regardless of Network Level, any
2–3: A basic home computer, unimportant office
difficulties associated with that network (but not
network, or public wi-fi hotspot.
necessarily its drones) are 7 to you. You only need
4–5: Outdated transport infrastructure, private wi- to maintain Ghost if someone intelligent is
fi, basic drones. monitoring the network.
6–7: Police station network, corporate building FRIENDLY
that listens to the IT guys. A Friendly network is cooperative and reasonably
helpful, provided you don't try anything weird (or it
8–9: Cutting-edge drones, secret corporate
doesn't notice when you do.) This can represent a
network, non-vital habitat systems.
public account, basic access to a private network,
or a private network with bad or outdated security.
Ghosting Searching a Friendly network is always done with
Ghosting is a hacker's ability to remain unseen and
Advantage.
undetected. Maintaining your Ghost is exactly like
maintaining Stealth (p. 38), chances included, but INDIFFERENT
you use the Ghost Specialty instead of Stealth. If Most networks are Indifferent. You want to ghost in
you’re discovered, you can disconnect rapidly, but and get what you need without attracting notice, try
whoever caught you likely knows your rough to improve the Mood to Friendly, or prevent it from
physical location now. Hope you're fast! going Hostile. These networks aren't actively
keeping you out, tend to be unmonitored, and might
not even punish you for having the wrong password
several billion times, but they don't help you either.
HOSTILE
A Hostile network is closed and barred, actively
trying to stop intruders. If you guess your password
wrong three times, it becomes IT Alcatraz. It will try
to learn your identity and rat you out to authorities
if you drop your Ghost, and it will be sniffing. Such
a network can become instantly Friendly if you
somehow gain admin access, but most of the time
you just want to get in and out again—fast.
BASIC
Basic is a special Mood for networks you feel aren't
worth using the full hacking rules for, like simple
door security or a computer with nothing
particularly juicy on it. You can't move from another
Mood to Basic; it either starts Basic or it isn't.

40
System
Hacking Actions

Hacking the Cylinder

All hacking Actions except Operate use the
Hacking Specialty.

Simple Hack Operate

> (2d6 + Clever vs 5 + Network Level) > (2d6 + Clever + Drone vs 5 + Network Level)
Use this when you want to make a Basic network Operate is used when the network is connected
do or say something it's not meant to. to objects in realspace (like a camera, turret,
robotic arm, or drones) and you want to hijack
Spoof them without breaking something, losing focus, or
> (2d6 + Clever vs 5 + Network Level) accidentally setting something else off. Some
Spoofing or bypassing a password, “confusing” a objects (like drones) may have their own Network
system into letting you pass, dodging robophobic Level, but generally share the Mood of the
security questions, and so on. It’s Bullshit, but network they're connected to.
for computers. Failure will usually turn the
network Hostile. Social Engineering
> (2d6 + Cool vs Clever, Single Target)
Access You can bypass an obstacle within a Network
> (2d6 + Clever vs 5 + Network Level) without directly hacking it by instead fishing a
Convince a system that you have access, create or password or key out of a human adjacent to the
exploit backdoors, and otherwise smooth-talk the network. You must have both the time to do so
network. Access actions won't necessarily lower and access to the people involved, whether it's
the Mood unless you keep trying, and aren't sharing a physical space or just emailing them
normally available if the system is Hostile. You malware. Someone else can attempt this action on
may be able to temporarily upgrade to your behalf, but you still lose a chance if they fail.
Administrator Access by succeeding on several
Access rolls without the network turning Other Social Actions
Hostile, usually as many as the Network Level. Though hacking is treated like a social situation with
It's Charm, but for computers. a computer, there's no equivalent to Embarrass,
Placate, or Threaten. However, if someone is
Search obviously monitoring the system and discovers you,
> (2d6 + Clever vs 5 + Network Level) you can use social actions against them.
Extracting information that you're not supposed
to: searching, queries, sifting through data,
searching folders in an email account, avoiding
popup ads, not picking the first link that agrees
with you. It’s Interrogate, but for computers.

System 41
 Example Hack:
The Tetsuo Job
While the others infiltrate the Tetsuo Complex, Maru (p. 331) tries to infiltrate their network. There’s a party for
H low-ranking Tetsuo employees in a nearby hotel, and Maru has crashed it to get her hands on a Tetsuo Shard
W (p. 82). Junior (p. 329) has also arranged for one of his friends, the hacker Mai, to back her up just in case.
I
Accessing
Since this is a standard Tetsuo office block, the GM
gives it Network Level 5. Most difficulties will be 10.
As the Network Level is 5, the GM says she can roll
Access 5 times to get temporary admin access. This
is mostly for pacing purposes—the GM can go back
and forth between Maru and the rest of the group
while she does her thing.
Maru doesn't take any chances. She spends a Prep to
activate her Ghost Protocols Program (p. 85), giving
her an extra chance and Boosting her first roll. Then
she uses Access in order to lift its Mood Indifferent
to Friendly. Thanks to the Boost and her Hacking
Specialty (improved by her cyber-eyes), she rolls a 14.
The Tetsuo network assumes she's a regular user. In
four more Access rolls, she can do even better...
Charm: [5][1][3] + 3 (Clever) + 1
(Antisocial) + 2 (Hacking) =
15 vs 10 (Success).

Coverup
As the group infiltrates the party, Maru makes a few
more Charm rolls. They don't go so well: she gets a few
successes, but she also loses three chances. She has
one left.
Maru decides to do something about that next.
Maintaining her Ghost works like Stealth, so she can
use the Cover Your Tracks action to get some chances
back. The GM sets the difficulty for that at 10 too.
Maru has a Ghosting Specialty, so she uses that. She
manages to scrape through with an 11—and it's a
Critical, so she gets two chances back. She can try
again later if she likes, but next time the difficulty will
rise to 12.
Charm: [3][3] + 3 (Clever) + 1 Antisocial + 1
(Ghosting) = 10 vs 10 (Success).

42
System
 Hacking the Cylinder
Searching
Now that Maru has access, Junior's player is a bit
curious about what's there. When it's his turn to do
something, he decides to Search.
Junior has no hacking experience and +0 Clever,
but he does have Mai written down as part of his
Contacts Talent (p. 62), which means he can use
her as a +1 Hacking Specialty a few times a session.
Also, now that the network's Mood is Friendly,
Junior can roll Interrogate at Advantage. He asks
Maru first since it’s her hack; she allows it.
"Mai" rolls Search. With her hacking skills and
Junior's Advantage, they scrape through with a 10.
Junior asks a couple of questions he thinks Tetsuo
might have the answers to, and Mai sifts through
Tetsuo folders to get him some answers.
Search: [4][2][5] + 0 (Clever) + 1 (Hacking)
= 10 vs 10 (Success).

Helping Hand
Maru can still get administrator access with one
success, but she could use a hand. By now Soyeong
has established a rapport with Misaki (p. 37), so she
decides to help.
Maru's last hacking roll was a Critical success, so
she'll get Advantage on her next roll. Soyeong knows
that Misaki has a secure card (p. 82); with that, Maru
can turn her Advantage into a Boost.
Soyeong tries to get Misaki to move the conversation
somewhere more private (her office), where she can
borrow the card. This counts as a Social
Engineering action.
It's a highly secure building, but Misaki has been
receptive to Soyeong so far, so the GM sets the
difficulty at 10. Soyeong rolls a 12, and soon Maru
has another connection to the network. Admin
access is within her reach...
Social Engineering: [5][4] + 3 (Cool) =
12 vs 10 (Success).

System 43
 Getting into Fights
When other options fail, or when you just really
H Attack Rolls
want to roundhouse a bad guy through some
When an Action tells you to make an attack, roll:
W convenient sheet glass, this section is where you go.
I Combat always uses Initiative. > (2d6 + Quick or Tough vs Quick or Tough)
You choose which Ability to use before rolling, and
The Arena the target chooses which Defense they use. Add any
The Arena defines the area around the fight, how it
relevant Specialties or bonuses from items.
affects Actions, and what outside problems the
combatants face. It's possible for a fight to You may only make an attack roll as part of an
“migrate” between Arenas, such as when a bad guy Attack Action; you can't "just attack."
is kicked through an office window into a factory.
Attack Actions
Instead of a Mood, Arenas have Tags. They can have
Attack Actions always come in two parts: making an
multiple Tags at once, and Tags can be added,
attack roll and doing something else. If Advantage
substituted, or subtracted on the fly.
or Disadvantage apply, they apply to every roll
Conspicuous: Will attract police or security made as part of the Attack Action.
attention if guns are used. Examples include public
Ranged attacks may only be made using weapons
spaces like streets, storefronts, and public libraries.
with the Ranged tag (p. 88), while Melee attacks
Close Quarters: Guns are Disadvantaged against may only be made using your body or weapons
melee. Used for narrow places like hallways, and with the Melee tag (p. 88). You may only attack one
cover-dense environments like forests or full target unless the Action states otherwise.
warehouses.
If one part of the Attack Action can't happen—for
Hazardous: The area is riddled with environmental example, if you Take Cover but don't have a
hazards, such as exposed electrical wires, fire, ranged weapon, don't want to shoot, or have no
swinging ballast, unsafe railings, and so on. Actions cover to hide behind—you can still use the other
that use the environment against the opponent part of the Action. If the Action involves a save
may have Advantage. against your attack roll and you didn't roll, the
difficulty is 10.
Distracting: Noise, falling water, darkness, bright
lights. Escape is easier, as is stealth; ranged combat You can't use the same Attack Action twice in a
is Disadvantaged. Examples include an office with row. When you use one, it's considered inactive
an active sprinkler system, heavy rain, dark tunnels, until you make a different one.
or an active automated factory.
Low Gravity: Getting to your opponent and New Attacks
leveraging your strength is harder. Melee combat is When a player wants to do something not covered
Disadvantaged, as is movement unless you can by these Attack Actions, you can make one up. All
you have to do is decide if it involves a Melee or
justify being used to low gravity. In Grand Cross, Ranged attack, then decide the effect.
this mostly applies to the station's central axis and
the void of space. If it requires a save immediately, choose an
appropriate Ability. Difficulty is equal to the
Bad Footing: Underbrush, tangles of wires, ice, attack roll.
narrow bridges and similar things that make If it requires a save later, such as the beginning
movement arduous (and at Disadvantage). of their next turn, its Difficulty is 10 + one of the
attacker's abilities.
Vacuum: Unless you’re a spaceworthy android, you
must be wearing a space suit to survive. Exposed If it’s especially difficult to shake off, the save is
an action that also allows a ranged or melee attack.
characters will die very soon.
Like other Attack Actions, these become inactive
until you use another one. If it's an especially
situational Attack Action, it may remain Inactive for
the rest of the fight, or only apply to this fight.

44
System
Take Cover Hunker Down

Getting Into Fights

You may make a Ranged attack, then dive for > If Take Cover is inactive, you may Hunker Down.
cover. Ranged attacks made against you are at All Ranged attacks made against you roll one
Disadvantage until the beginning of your next turn. fewer die than normal until the beginning of
your next turn. If your cover is particularly hard,
Distract such as cement or metal, you may also mitigate all
You may make a Melee or Ranged attack, then incoming damage by one additional step so long
describe using some element of the environment as it applies. (A grenade thrown over a wall at your
to distract your target (e.g. throwing office feet still hurts.)
supplies, activating a sprinkler system, setting off
This attack becomes inactive only when your
a fire extinguisher, or using a smoke bomb).
cover is destroyed or otherwise becomes useless,
Affected targets must make a Cool save vs your such as when you become flanked.
attack roll or become Distracted until the
beginning of your next turn. Allies attacking Pin Down
Distracted foes gain Advantage. If the element You may make a Ranged attack, then pin your
you use could affect multiple people, they all make target down until the beginning of your next turn.
a save, even if your attack doesn't target them. If that target takes any action that doesn’t involve
getting into or staying in cover (including moving,
Flush Out if they’re not moving into cover), you may make
You may make a Ranged attack. If the weapon an additional ranged attack against it.
you’re using is an automatic firearm, affects an
area, or easily penetrates the cover your target is Run Away
hiding behind, you then force the target to move You flee the scene. If you’re in attack range of any
from its current position after resolving the effects opponents, you must roll 2d6 + Quick vs 7 +
of your attack. number of opponents. If you fail, they all get to
make a free attack against you; if any of them hit
Grab and deal damage, you don't flee, even if it's
You may make a Melee attack, then grab the mitigated to 0. If you succeed, you're out.
target.
Rush
• If you and the target are of roughly equal size,
You may make a Melee or Ranged attack, then
you both become Grappled. A Grappled
rush at your target. They must make a Tough save
character may only use Melee attacks against
vs your attack roll or suffer one of the following
targets they're Grappled with and get
consequences (your choice):
Disadvantage on ranged attacks against others.
(You may make a "melee" attack with a small • You bull rush them, pushing them back—through
held weapon like a pistol.) glass, furniture, or other people as necessary—so
long as they're roughly your size or smaller. You
• If the target you're fighting is much smaller
choose whether you move with the target.
than you, only it becomes Grappled.
• You knock the target over, so long as they’re
• If the target is much larger than you, neither of
roughly your size or smaller. Melee attacks
you become Grappled; instead, you climb onto
against the target have Advantage until the
it. While you're on it, its Melee attacks against
beginning of their next turn; Ranged attacks
you and its Ranged attacks against others have
against them have Disadvantage.
Disadvantage. Melee attacks made against a
target you’re climbing on gain Advantage. • You grab the target. See the Grab attack for
details.
As an action, targets can make a Melee or Ranged
attack and try to end the grapple or climb with a
Tough save vs 10 + your Tough.

System 45
 Fight Tips Damage and
Simple Opponents Harm
H If opponents are unimportant or there's a lot of Sometimes your character will suffer injuries. It
them, the GM may skip choosing Attack Actions for happens. Let’s go into how.
W
each one of them. Instead, simply describe the type
I of attack they're making, then one additional thing Damage Track
they do (if anything.) Don't bother tracking which Each character has a damage track that describes
Actions are inactive. Foes don't need to be more the kinds of injuries they can take before they're
complicated than necessary. incapacitated:

Make Actions Make 1 Minor Injury No effect

Sense 2 Minor Injury No effect
The ongoing story and what you've established in it
is the most important thing. When you make an 3 Harm -1 to all rolls
Attack Action, describe how you do it. If it makes use
4 Harm -1 to all rolls
of the environment, describe how. You're not just
Distracting them; you're activating a sprinkler system 5 Serious Harm -1 die to all rolls
or emptying the contents of a shelf onto them.
6 Incapacitated Out of action
If the scene as described wouldn't allow something
to happen, it doesn't. If you've established that When you take damage, you'll mark one of these
you're kickboxing someone in the middle of a road boxes. If you're told to mark a box that's already
and there's nothing to take cover behind, you can't marked, mark the next highest unmarked box instead.
Take Cover.
You should also write down what it means in the
If details haven't been established, you can add story. A minor injury can be something like a bruise
some. If you're in "an office" but haven't described or shaken morale, while more serious damage can
everything in it, you can add details like desks to be broken bones, damaged cyberware, or
duck behind, staplers and hole punchers to attack something else that takes a while to recover from.
with, and monitors to throw. So long as it's consistent
Until the injury is resolved in some way, you suffer
with what you've already described, it's fine.
its listed effects. Minor Injuries have no additional
effect. Harm gives a penalty of -1 to all your rolls.
Other Actions Serious Harm makes you roll one fewer die on all
While Attack Actions can only be used during
rolls. These effects are cumulative: if you mark
combat, you can still use other types of actions (like
boxes 3 and 4 your total penalty is -2, and if you also
Social Actions) in the middle of a fight if you have a
mark box 5 you use one fewer die as well.
reason. Other types of Actions do not become
inactive during combat, so you can keep using
Taking Damage
them. However, for the purposes of Social Actions,
Most of the time if you're hit by an attack, you
the Mood is always considered Hostile.
mark box 1. Attack rolls that beat your defense by 3
or more cause you to mark higher boxes:

ATTACK VS DEFENSE MARK BOX...

Succeeds by 3+ 2
Succeeds by 6+ 3
Succeeds by 9+ 4
Succeeds by 12+ 5
Succeeds by 15+ 6

46
System
Incapacitated Recovery

Getting Into Fights

When you mark box 6, you're taken out of the Your damage track clears over time.
fight—you're knocked out, or you're stunned for the
Minor Injuries are automatically cleared after the
remainder of the conflict, or you're trapped under
scene you received them the moment you can take
debris, or something equally applicable.
a breather.
If you have to mark box 6 again, you risk death.
Harm can be recovered though player action,
Your character must be rescued, resuscitated, or
whether it's first aid, medication, or something else
otherwise stabilized within one minute (or 3 Rounds
that fits the story. It should take longer than a
if you're using Initiative). If not, they die or get
minor injury, and in some cases you may still need
permanently removed from the story if your GM is
to rest for a few days. Some Occupations and items
feeling generous. Either way, make a new character.
allow you to recover Harm and may have
If they can't be stabilized, first aid can extend this associated rolls; in other cases where a roll feels
grace period for up to twenty minutes. If the appropriate, use 2d6 + Clever vs 10 + Box.
character attempting first aid has a relevant
Serious Harm is hard to recover from during a
Specialty, no roll is required; otherwise, roll
mission. The character needs serious medical
2d6 + Cool or Clever vs 10.
attention, and days or even weeks of rest.
Mitigating Damage If you're Incapacitated, it clears up like a minor
If you have Prep (p. 50), you can spend it when you injury. You might need help getting back on your
suffer damage to reduce it, one-to-one. For example, feet, but you'll shake it off.
if you would normally mark box 3, you can spend a
Prep to mark box 2 (even if box 3 is already marked). Permanent Injuries
If you're Incapacitated but you really need to
If you spend 2 Prep, you can mark box 1 instead. act, you may opt to have your character suffer
Having Armor (p. 84) can also reduce incoming a permanent injury and immediately clear
box 6. This should be something serious that
damage. You don't have to spend anything, but makes sense in the story, like a lost eye, ruined
there are some situations (like the critical effects of cyberware, or serious trauma.
certain weapons) where armor doesn't work at all.
While you suffer this injury, the GM should impose
Reducing damage always happens before you mark a story-appropriate penalties—a missing eye may
box. If this would cause you to mark a box that's already make ranged attacks harder, for example. The
only way to recover from these injuries is to
marked, you still mark the next highest box as normal. purchase a cybernetic replacement (or get
If you downgrade to 0, you suffer no damage at all. serious repairs if it was already chrome.)

Other Effects The Problem with Combat

Some attacks may have additional effects on you if Ultimately, rules for getting into fights are also rules
they do any damage at all. For example, a for attempting murder. Even if you don’t intend to
tranquilizer dart that makes you mark box 1 may yet, it’s possible that somewhere in your future is
also make you sluggish and unresponsive, forcing a guy with hopes and dreams and a chance to turn
his life around whose decades-long story will come
Disadvantage on all your rolls until you save against to an end on your blade. The option is on the table.
it. When an attack inflicts such an effect, note down
the box you marked. When that box is recovered, The rules for combat actions are placed after
the other actions because they’re meant to be a
the effect immediately ends if it hasn't already. tool of last resort. They’re what you use when
you can’t talk to, hack, or avoid your problems.
People who try violence first tend to be messed
up or, worse, policemen.
But violence is still on the table. Sometimes it’s in
self-defense. Sometimes, the possibility of
violence is enough—some people are much more
willing to accept non-violent solutions when Plan
B is looming in the background. Sometimes you
just want to have a cool action scene. That’s okay.
Don’t be afraid to fight if you need to. Just be
sure you explore all the options.

System 47
 Example Fight:
Tiger Shark
Once the group gets the data, it's time to leave—but that won't be easy. First, Mira (p. 332) is
H accosted on the way out by security guard Tall Steve, who didn't appreciate her threatening him
W earlier. Second, the corporate cleaner Tiger Shark catches Lee (p. 328) and Zander (p. 334) helping
I the others escape via the rooftop.
The mood is Hostile, obviously.
Mira
Mira's fight is relatively simple. The Arena is one of the
building's back exits. The tags (p. 44) are Conspicuous
(firearms will attract attention) and MMA (firearms
have Disadvantage against melee). Tall Steve is a
simple opponent (p. 322): level 2 with 2 Health.
Since the Arena is Conspicuous, Mira decides to use her
Close-Quarters Combat Specialty to kick Tall Steve into
submission. Attacks are always made as part of another
Action, so she chooses to Rush him (if she can knock
him down, her next attack could have Advantage.)
First is her attack roll. Mira rolls 10: Tall Steve's
defense is 2+5=7, so she deals two points of damage,
one for beating his defense and another for beating it
by at least 3. Mira kicks Tall Steve so hard that he
immediately gives in rather than pursue her.
Rush Attack: [4][2] + 3 (Tough) + 1 (Close-
Quarters Combat) =
10 vs 7 (Success).

Tiger Shark
Meanwhile, Lee and Zander are fighting Tiger Shark.
The group opted to use solid state initiative (p. 34), so
Tiger Shark goes first, then the PCs move in any order.
Tiger Shark doesn't like fancy maneuvers as much as
he likes murdering people, so he simply Rushes
Zander. Since he's outnumbered two-to-one, his
Badass Talent (p. 72) gives him a bonus on top of his
already high stats. He makes a Quick attack and rolls
14, against Zander's Quick Defense of 10. Since Tiger
Shark succeeded by 3+, Zander marks box 2. Luckily,
it's only a minor injury.
Since it's a Rush attack and Zander's still standing, he
must make a Tough save against Tiger Shark's roll of
14. Zander's Tough is 0, so he cannot do this without
spending Prep to Boost the roll, and even then it's
unlikely. Zander chooses to fail instead, and Tiger
Shark pushes him to the edge of the roof.
Rush Attack: [6][1] + 3 (Quick) + 3 (Blades) +
1 (Badass) = 14 vs 10 (Success).

48
System
Zander
Now it's Zander's turn, and he has flashbangs (p. 89).
They cost a point of Prep each time he uses them, but

Getting Into Fights

he's been saving Prep for this.
He chooses to Distract Tiger Shark with one. He's got
high defenses, so Zander even spends another Prep to
Boost the roll. He makes a Quick attack and rolls 13; Tiger
Shark uses his Quick Defense of 13, so it barely connects.
Instead of taking damage, Tiger Shark must make a
Quick save vs the attack roll. If he fails, he becomes
Distracted (giving his attacks Disadvantage) until he
can make a Cool save. Since he has zero Cool, he
decides to avoid this by using his Impulsive Trait (p. 28)
to Boost the roll. He rolls 15, a success.
Speaking of Cool, however, the Distract action means
he must also make a Cool save vs Zander's attack roll or
become Distracted, giving Zander's allies Advantage to
attacking him. With zero Cool against Zander's 13, he has
no choice but failure. The tables have turned.
This move cost Zander all his remaining Prep, but it
was worth it!
Distract Attack: [2][5][3] + 2 (Quick) + 1
(Grenades) =
13 vs 10 (Success).

Quick Save: [3][5][4] + 3 (Quick) =

15 vs 13 (Success).

Lee
Lee decides to turn the tables again and Rush Tiger Shark
right back.
He makes a Quick attack. He has Advantage thanks to
Zander, a good Quick, and a nice Martial Arts Specialty, so
he rolls a 13. That's enough to connect with Tiger Shark's
Quick Defense, so Lee lands a hit.
Now, Tiger Shark must make a Tough save vs his attack roll.
With a Tough of +2 it's possible, so he gives it a try. He rolls
12, a failure.
Lee can now push Tiger Shark back or knock him over. He
knocks Tiger Shark over. Melee attacks against him have
Advantage now, and combined with Distract, that's double
Advantage. (Knocking him over grants Disadvantage to Ranged
attacks, though, which cancels out Distract's Advantage.)
Lee and Zander want to escape Tiger Shark, so on their next turn,
they're going to use the Run Away action. Since Tiger Shark
is on the floor with flash blindness, they'll probably make it.
Rush Attack: [1][5][3] + 3 (Quick) + 2 (Martial
Arts) = 13 vs 12 (Success).

Tough save: [4][6] + 2 (Tough) =

12 vs 13 (Success).

System 49
 Running Missions
A mission is any organized activity where the group Group Prep
H works together to achieve a major goal: infiltrating > 2d6 + Ability + Specialty vs 7
a corporate building to gather incriminating When you roll for group Prep, describe what your
W
evidence, dismantling a criminal operation, character is doing to prepare the group for the
I completing a university group project, and so on. mission. Choose a relevant Ability and Specialty.
Then:
In a typical game, most sessions will focus on one
mission with some free play before and after. Not • On a success, add one Prep to the group pool.
everything has to be a mission, and not every session • For every 3 points over 7, add an additional Prep.
needs a mission. It's only a mission if the group • On a failure, add no Prep.
decides it is; otherwise, just play it out normally.
This Action takes roughly one week. If you have
more time, the Difficulty increases by 2 for every
Prep group Prep roll you make this mission. Once a
The main benefit of missions is that you can prepare
Specialty is applied to a group Prep roll, it cannot
for them. In the days beforehand, characters gather
be applied to any other group Prep roll this
equipment, research, recruit friends, find their focus,
mission. You can apply a Specialty you already
take the first steps of an investigation, or do
used for a personal Prep roll, and vice versa.
whatever else they think will help them get ready.
These actions are represented with Prep. Prep rolls
create a pool of Prep points that are spent during the Acquiring Assets
mission to help accomplish goals or mitigate problems. If you want to pick up extra Assets for a mission, you
can use this Action instead of rolling for personal
There are two types of Prep: personal Prep and
Prep. You can buy the Asset for yourself or an ally.
group Prep. Your personal Prep pool can only be
spent by you, while group Prep is a shared pool
Acquire Asset
anyone can use. These are rolled for, tracked, and
> 2d6 + Cool + Specialty vs 7
spent separately. Any unused Prep is discarded at
Choose an Asset from the Assets section (p. 79).
the end of a mission, no matter what.
The Restricted tag increases Difficulty by 3 unless
you have a relevant License Asset, and the Illegal
Personal Prep
tag increases it by 6.
> 2d6 + Ability + Specialty vs 7
When you roll for personal Prep, describe in broad For every 3 points you beat the Difficulty by,
terms what your character is doing to prepare reduce the Asset's Price by 1. The minimum is 1. If
themselves for the mission. Pick a relevant Ability you pay the final Price in Cash, you get the Asset
and Specialty, and roll them. Then: permanently. If you can't, you may have to
negotiate with the seller for a favor.
• On a success, add one Prep to your character's
personal pool. Sometimes, you may be able to pay 1 Cash to rent
• If this is your first Prep roll of this mission, the Asset. If you don't return it in decent condition
add one Prep to your personal pool. after the mission, you must pay the full Price or face
• For every 3 points you beat the Difficulty by, the consequences: increase Burden by 1 if the Asset
add one additional Prep. was legal—or make some enemies if it wasn't.
This Action takes roughly 1 day. If you have more If you fail, you may not attempt to acquire the
time, the difficulty increases by 2 for every same Asset again until the next session. If it's
personal Prep roll you make this mission. You Restricted or Illegal, you may alert the authorities
cannot apply the same Specialty twice, though you or someone else you'd rather not.
can apply a Specialty someone else used already.

50
System
Spending Prep

Running Missions
Here's what you can spend Prep on. If you're
spending it on a dice roll, spend before rolling.

Activate Items Negate Disadvantage

Some Assets like software packages, flashbangs, You may remove one source of Disadvantage from
and medical supplies are activated by spending one roll. You can remove as many sources as you
Prep. When you run out of Prep, you run out of the like if you have the Prep.
Asset. Details are listed in the Asset's description.

Boost Defense Reduce Damage

Add a Generic Specialty to your Defense one time. You can spend Prep one-to-one to reduce damage
You'll have to justify it: a character with the taken by one step on the damage track (p. 46).
Fighting Specialty could use it to intercept an
attack, someone in a packed warehouse could use
Stealth to run and hide, and so on. Flashback
You can narrate a "flashback" to an earlier point in
Boost a Roll time which explains how you prepared for a
Boost any one roll. You may do this once per roll. specific moment, so long as it fits the established
story. This can range from having paid off a side
Ignore Damage character who has no particular reason to hate
For one Action, you may ignore the effects of all you to having hidden a weapon in a maintenance
your marked damage boxes. tunnel. You can do this once per Mission.

Prep may be spent in any combination you like. Unless stated otherwise, group and personal Prep
For example, you could spend 2 Prep to Boost a roll can be spent in the same way. Group Prep
and Negate Disadvantage, or use a Flashback to represents the group's efforts to help each other, so
explain how you got an item somewhere you you should check with the group before spending it.
shouldn't have and then Activate it. Any Prep remaining at the end of a mission is lost.

Tracking Group Prep

It’s useful to track Group Prep in a way where
everyone can see and access it. If you’re playing
in person, try using a central pool of tokens – or
maybe a bowl of candies that you can eat as you
use them! If you’re playing online, make sure the
current value is clear and prominent in whatever
virtual tabletop/chat channel/character keeper
you’re using.

System 51
 Example Prep:
Before the Party
Junior (p. 329) and Maru (p. 331) are planning to sneak into the Tetsuo Complex in search of
H incriminating data. In eight days, Tetsuo is hosting a launch event for some app there, which they
W can use as cover. That gives them enough time for one group Prep roll and one personal Prep roll
I each. All Prep rolls are made against Difficulty 7.

Maru
Because you can use the same Specialty for group and
personal Prep, Maru uses Hacking for both.
Group Prep first. Maru breaks into a Tetsuo work
apartment complex’s network, knowing the residents will
attend. She uses Clever and rolls 11. She gets 1 Prep for a
success, 1 for succeeding by more than 3, and 1 more from
her Overprepared trait (p. 29), for a total of 3 group Prep.
Maru scrapes a lot of useful info from Tetsuo emails.
Group: [1][6] + 3 (Clever) + 1 (Hacking) = 11.

Next is personal Prep. Maru tries to find exploits in the

Complex's systems. Since she's focused on avoiding
discovery over being clever, she rolls Quick and gets 13.
She gets 1 Prep no matter what, but she also beat the
difficulty by 6, so she adds another 3 Prep for a total of 4
personal Prep. She'll be ready for sure.
Personal: [5][5] + 2 (Quick) + 1 (Hacking) = 13.

Junior
Junior prefers to mix things up. For his group Prep, he
uses his Journalism skills (and Cool, of course) to pump
his contacts for info. Sadly, he rolls 6. Failures on group
Prep rolls add nothing—his contacts are either clueless
or scared of Tetsuo.
Group: [2][1] + 2 (Cool) + 1 (Journalism) = 6.

But there's always Personal Prep. In a past mission,

Junior befriended Emi, a security guard in the Complex.
She might help in exchange for a bribe, so Junior tries his
Wheeling and Dealing Specialty (and Cool again—no
limits on Abilities.) This time he rolls a 9. Still not great,
but it’s a success and he gets +1 Prep because it’s his first
personal Prep roll, for a total of 2 personal Prep. Emi will
help, but since it's personal Prep, she only trusts Junior.
Personal: [5][5] + 2 (Cool) + 1 (Wheeling and
Dealing) = 9.

52
System
Managing Money

Managing Money
Grand Cross might be powered by solar panels and Burden Ranks
conductive thermal plates in the hull, but money is At 0, you're comfortable. You don’t go hungry. You
what really makes it go ‘round. can afford a nice apartment. You can pay most bills,
and you can handle emergencies. You can make
Though 2020 lies in the distant future, humanity is
time for education, training, and hobbies without
still held back by a capitalist system. Wealth is
feeling guilty or pressured to work. You're not
either invisible or all-consuming. If you have it, you
wealthy, but you're doing fine.
don’t worry about it; if you don’t have it, it can eat
away at your mind. At 1, you're getting by. You're slowly building up
some savings, but mostly you live from paycheck to
In Hard Wired Island, you don't track exactly how
paycheck. Though you're vulnerable to economic
much money your character has. Instead, you track
shocks, you can keep up with rent and you don't
their Cash and their Burden: how much they can
normally go hungry. You can afford a few subscription
spend and how much they can't.
services and enough luxuries to feel content.

Burden At 2, you're precarious. You're dealing with an

underpaid job, predatory loans, or the fallout of an
Your Burden represents your socio-economic
emergency. You've probably gotten good at cooking
status. It's a rough indicator of how comfortably
with kelp and rice, which you buy in bulk. You can
you can live, how many services you can subscribe
barely afford entertainment, but you'll feel guilty
to, and how well you're getting by.
about it. You spend a lot of time worrying about
Burdens are ranked from 0 to 4. The default is 1. bills—a single shock can bring you close to ruin.

0 is the lowest Burden player characters can

have. Negative Burdens are the domain of the
wealthy, and they already pulled the ladder up
behind them.

System 53
 At 3, you're struggling. Most of your money goes into
rent and food, and some days you have to choose. You
Economic
spend a lot of time stressing about your future. You Shocks
H probably don't have much walking-around money, The capitalist system of Grand Cross is designed to
let alone savings. You probably rely on financial aid, trap people in poverty so the ruling classes can exploit
W
though that’s increasingly rare as Unity believes them. There's little upward mobility, but it's easy for
I poverty is caused by personal failings and bad genes. emergencies, sudden bills, or the station's shifting
economic situation to knock you further down.
At 4, you're destitute. You can only barely afford
food. You probably sleep in a car, on a friend's couch, Before every mission, if your Burden is above 0,
or in the basements. It's almost impossible to keep up you must roll 2d6 + your Burden. If you roll 13
appearances, and when you don't, otherwise normal or more, you suffer an economic shock: a delayed
people will sneer at you in the street. You spend paycheck, rising rent, an unforeseen emergency, a
most of your waking hours just trying to survive and theft, or just general hard times.
rarely have enough time for anything else.
Choose one of the following consequences. If your
roll was 15 or more, choose two. If you can't
Sharing the Burden decide, the GM may decide for you.
One way that characters can lessen their Burden is by
pooling their resources and living together, supporting • You get kicked out of your current living space
each other as needed. On Grand Cross, this usually and must find a new one.
means sharing an apartment and splitting rent. • You lose an Asset permanently (your choice.)
• You have to skip meals/recharging. Mark your
If two or more characters with different Burdens
first damage box; you can't recover it until after
live together, find their effective (or average)
your next mission.
Burden by adding their Burdens together, dividing
• One cybernetic augment stops functioning prop-
by the number of characters, and rounding down.
erly until the next session. It still works, but
When a character adds their Burden score to a roll,
bonus Specialties and anything beyond normal
use their effective Burden.
human function does not.
If two or more characters with the same Burden • Your Burdens exhaust your mental energy. You
live together, treat their Burden scores as 1 lower suffer Disadvantage on all Clever rolls until after
(to a minimum of 0). your next mission.
• Your Burdens make it hard to be social. You
If one character in a shared living space suffers an
suffer Disadvantage on all Cool rolls until after
Economic Shock (see below), every character they
your next mission.
live with suffers one too. They decide what happens
• You lose the benefits of one of your Traits until after
as a group but suffer the effects individually.
your next mission (but still suffer the downsides.)
At the GM's discretion, the group may roll for
For example: Soyeong and Maru rent an economic shock again after especially long
apartment together. They both have Burden 2,
but by sharing living space, daily tasks, and downtimes or major story events. Use this
expenses, their Burden is treated as 1. sparingly; it's not interesting if it keeps happening.
Junior and Lee share an apartment. Junior has
Burden 3, while Lee has Burden 2. Their
average Burden is (3+2)/2 = 2.5, which rounds
down to Burden 2. Junior’s effective Burden is
2; Lee’s was already 2, so it doesn’t change.
Later, Soyeong and Maru meet the unhoused
Vicky and let her stay on their couch until she
gets on her feet. Vicky has Burden 4. Now that
there's three of them with different Burdens,
they need their effective Burden: (2+2+4)/3 =
2.6, which rounds down to 2. By using their
regular Burdens for a while, Soyeong and Maru
let Vicky treat her Burden as 2.

54
System
Grand Cross Upheaval Cash

Managing Money
The distant future of 2020 is an uncertain one. As
Cash is a temporary resource earned during play.
the political and economic landscape shifts, it's
While Burden represents your broad status, Cash
possible the station will fall on hard times. And
represents in-game rewards, loot stolen during a
when the money stops flowing, it's always the rich
mission, favors owed, pocket change money from
that get bailed out first.
your grandma, and other short-term gains.
As a story event, if (or when) the station suffers
widespread social upheaval, economic downturn, Using Cash
or a major disaster, the GM may increase the entire Outside a mission, you can spend 1 Cash to Boost
group's Burden by 1. If extraordinary action from a roll. This includes Prep rolls. During a mission you
the group helps weather such a disaster, or a can't leverage your Cash like this and must use Prep
wealthy or influential ally ensures their economic instead.
stability, the group's Burdens may be restored to
You can spend Cash to acquire Assets (p. 50).
their previous state; if not, this change is
In some cases, you may be able to negotiate a
permanent. Chasing wealth is a vicious cycle.
better price beforehand, or just rent the Asset.
Upheaval should be used sparingly. It's best used as
You can spend Cash to mitigate economic shock.
a major event in a story arc, when you want to
After you roll for economic shock, you can spend
make a mission special, or when the group
Cash to reduce the result one-to-one.
seriously messed up during the last mission. Again,
it's not interesting if it keeps happening. You can spend Cash to reduce your Burden. If you
pay (10 - your Burden) in Cash, you may
Cybernetic Burden permanently reduce your Burden by 1, to a
In the future, there’s an entirely new form of minimum of 0.
economic oppression: augmentation.
Storing Cash
Whether you were augmented to stay competitive at
There is no upper limit to how much Cash you can
work or for healthcare reasons, it's often easier to get
have, but as it represents temporary gains, it's a
new installations subsidized than maintain current
volatile resource.
ones. Once your company drops you, or your insurance
company decides you don't need another arm, you're If you have unspent Cash at the end of a session,
usually saddled with the costs of maintaining your own roll 1d6. You lose that much Cash. This represents
cybernetics even when they’re irreversible. In short, unexpected expenses, cybernetic maintenance, old
cybernetic augments increase your Burden. bills, gambling losses, or other short-term losses.
At negative Burden, you don’t worry about it. You You may give Cash to other characters to boost
can be as enhanced as you want, and many rolls, make purchases, mitigate economic shock, or
augments basically pay for themselves. reduce Burden. However, Cash given to other
characters must be spent immediately. You can't all
At Burden 0 or above, each additional Augment
dump your Cash on one person at the end of a session
increases your Burden by 1.
to mitigate your losses (you can reduce someone’s
Some character options can mitigate this cost—for Burden so it doesn’t go to waste, however.)
example, the Builder Origin means one Augment is
already paid for. They may have dumped you on the
street once you stopped being useful, but at least
they're paying for that leg.
This doesn't apply to cosmetic or medical
augmentations. If you get a set of cat ears, or an arm
that works exactly like a regular arm, it doesn’t increase
your Burden enough to matter. See p. 91 for more.

System 55
 Gig Work Apps
The digitization of society has led to the rise of the Workers sign up for particular “tiers” of work, each
H gig economy, an incredibly flexible system in which encompassing different types of task and rates of
W workers use online platforms to provide services and pay. Once they’ve joined, they’re assigned jobs
I the people who own those platforms exploit them. based on proximity, reviews, and feedback on
clients from other contractors.
A typical gig app seeks to “disrupt” an existing
industry by offering similar services at much lower The tier system is broad and complicated enough that
prices, achieved by not giving their workers the pay Headpattr offers workers the option to turn down
and benefits they’re entitled to. To get around labor jobs at their discretion, though doing it repeatedly
laws, workers are usually called “independent tends to result in an automated drop from the
contractors” or “entrepreneurs”. service. Exceptionally well-reviewed maids (generally
ones with a strong online presence) might be offered
Many Crossers supplement their income by doing a
affiliate status, becoming part of Headpattr’s
little side work through an app. Their popularity
marketing campaigns and getting higher rates for it.
has exploded in the last few years, as the housing
crisis, the Disaster, and the steady erosion of labor Clients: The kind of people you’d expect to pay
rights has provided a ready supply of poor workers money for cat maids: rich weeaboos. As the idea of
desperate to stay afloat. a maid app became more mainstream though, the
client base diversified somewhat. From babysitters
There are several gig economy apps PCs can use.
to waiters at your office function to watching your
Each has one Cash-related benefit and one
child’s dance recital—put any kind of emotional
drawback—you can make short-term gains, but
labor in cat ears and someone will want it.
they won’t help much in the long run.
If a client tries to harm a maid, Headpattr is willing
Using Apps to send in private security, initiate legal action, and
even ban them from the platform. They have an IP
You can choose to use a gig app at any time. This is
to protect now, you see.
optional—you don’t have to if you don’t want the
drawbacks. Culture: Workers approach Headpattr in many ways.
Business-savvy maids try to draw the company’s
You can only use one app at a time. If you quit, you
attention with high-end peripherals like cat ear
still suffer that app’s drawback for that session and
headsets and GPS chokers. A burgeoning contingent
the next (if applicable). You can switch to a different
of trans folk have grabbed the chance to showcase
app, but you can’t return to an app you quit for at
GNC fashion and culture on a mainstream stage in
least a few in-game months.
collaboration with indie artists and designers,
capitalizing on Headpattr’s huge social following.
Headpattr
Headpattr is a maid service. Anyone with the cash By and large, though, most folks tend to view it as a
can hire maids of any gender presentation on an menial, frequently demeaning job that’ll let them
hourly basis to clean apartments, run errands, and scrape together enough to pay the bills.
perform just about any other purpose agreed on by
Use: Using Headpattr gives you +1 Cash at the
both parties. The app’s gimmick is that the maids
beginning of every session unless you suffered
wear cat ear headbands.
Economic Shock. If you roll a critical on your Economic
Headpattr began as a maid café’s April Fool’s gimmick, Shock—succeed or fail—gain an additional +1 Cash.
before both the café and the app were bought out.
Workers don’t get benefits and suffer overhead on
Today the app is big enough that a Headpattr anime
app fees and uniforms. Reducing your Burden costs
is due to come out sometime in 2022.
(12 - your Burden) Cash instead.
Business Model: This service uses the standard
freelancer model with a few modifications owing to
the difficult-to-quantify nature of social work.

56
System
Huntr RoofDash

Gig Work Apps

There are a lot of criminals in space. Not just RoofDash is a courier app. Delivery services are
because of socio-economic pressures—people from popular on Grand Cross, as the lack of cars means
all over Earth have managed to escape the law by more people order online. RoofDash focuses on
heading up; all they need is the right contacts and a smaller deliveries.
bit of cash. They can be extradited, but first they
The app prides itself on its exclusive selection of
need to be caught.
contractors who have athletic skills and sweet
Huntr was developed in collaboration with private parkour moves. (A lot of their workers will simply
security companies to get help from orbital citizens. use a scooter or the bus, but that doesn’t pop in
Users can peruse the current wanted list, broker marketing material.)
information they think might help, and even try to
Business Model: RoofDash’s model is fairly
capture bounties if they dare.
standard: customers specify what they want, where
Business Model: Bounties are submitted by the to get it, where to take it, then make the payment. A
SPS and PSCS, along with their payouts. If you bring nearby worker accepts the order and makes the
the target to a police station, you get the reward. delivery, which customers often oversee via GPS.
You can also tag some users whose information was The worker gets a base rate from RoofDash, plus (in
helpful, and they get a small bonus (the cops theory) a tip. As usual for gig apps, there are no
usually pressure you to tag their accounts.) benefits or job security.
Huntr’s dirty secret is that it makes most of its Clients: Pretty much anyone who needs something
money through information-posting fees. On paper delivered in a hurry. Common deliveries include
the fee is to discourage spam, but in practice it just fast food, midnight snacks, electronics, things
monetizes it. The ideal Huntr user is a middle-aged someone forgot to bring with them to school or
white conservative who submits ten conspiracy work, minor trips to the grocery store, messages,
theories a day. and weird bullshit. (Workers in Turing often swap
stories of the weird startup guy who uses RoofDash
Clients: Law enforcement. Originally, Huntr was only
to deliver data sticks instead of sending emails.)
meant to cover people wanted on Earth, but the
police have started quietly including anyone wanted Culture: Most RoofDash workers have a specific
in orbit (especially Hotel Melbourne members.) Next, “base”—a district where they’re likely to get a lot of
they want to include suspects and protesters. orders, ideally with a nice indoor park they can rest
at. Once they make a delivery, they rush back to
Culture: Most “bounty hunters” never actually
base. The best RoofDash workers develop a
catch anyone. It’s hard to make a career out of it;
detailed knowledge of the districts around their
the ones that do usually have a side-job or make it
base and where all the shortcuts are.
their brand and try to get famous.
RoofDash commits wage theft4. Though they claim
Laws restrict what bounty hunters can do “on the
customer tips will help with scooter maintenance
job.” If you use force, you must file paperwork to
and the other costs of making deliveries, they
justify it or the cops will get you too3. Even then,
regularly steal tips and use them to subsidize their
you hear stories about wannabe cops in impractical
workers’ pay. A group of RoofDash workers is trying
tacti-cool gear getting in trouble for “arresting”
to change this, but they haven’t had much luck yet.
strangers every few months.
Use: When you roll for group Prep before a Mission,
Use: You can check for bounties before a Mission.
you may instead choose to work for RoofDash. You
Your GM will tell you if there’s a bounty involved in
have to use a Generic Specialty for making speedy
the Mission. If the bounty is successfully Huntr’d,
deliveries, even if you’ve already used it during
gain +2 Cash at the end of the Mission.
Prep. Gain Cash instead of group Prep for this roll,
Huntr work is unstable at the best of times, so when to a maximum of +3 Cash.
rolling to see how much Cash you lose at the end of
a session, roll with Advantage.

3 You can’t just go around beating strangers

at random. Only cops can do that. 4 More than usual, I mean.

System 57
 Community
Grand Cross is a living city, full of people from all walks
H of life. PCs aren’t just defined by the things they
Advancement
Every time the group achieves a Milestone (p. 324)
W have; they’re defined by the community they exist in.
that had something to do with the community or
I If you want your Hard Wired Island game to focus on impacts it in a noteworthy way, any player may
building and growing a community, use these rules. name one new resident. This can be a completely
new character, or someone the PCs have interacted
Residents with before.
Your community is mostly defined by the people in The maximum number of listed residents is 10,
it. When play begins, the group decides what the though the group can go higher if they’re
community actually is—whether it’s the apartment comfortable with remembering that many.
block they live in, an online community, an activist/
union group, or something else.
Burden
Then, each player names a resident they know (a Each community has a Burden, just like a character
side character) and what they do in the community. (p. 53). They start at Burden 2.
These residents form a communal pool of contacts
At the beginning of each session, the GM rolls for
any player can draw on.
Economic Shock for the community. They roll with
Each player can call upon a resident once per Advantage—communities on Grand Cross are under
session, whenever their character has the time to constant threat from corporate interests these days.
do so, and get one of the following: For every 1 the result exceeds 12 by, the GM
chooses one resident to face Economic Shock, a
• A +1 bonus to 1 relevant Prep roll.
problem, or an accident. Chosen residents cannot
• Treat 1 roll as if they had a Generic Specialty
be called upon during that session.
relevant to the resident.
• A +1 bonus to Acquire an Asset relevant to the Residents might be facing individual problems or
resident. facing a large problem together—such as a local
• Borrow a resident’s Asset for 1 mission, possibly business closing, or an unwanted faction muscling
in exchange for 1 Cash and a promise to cover into the area. Helping with these issues can be
costs if they don’t bring it back. opportunities for missions, short scenes between
missions, or roleplaying moments.
For example, say your community is the
neighborhood your PCs live in, and you say that If the GM decides a resident’s problems are too
another resident is a woman named Tae who runs a severe and the PCs aren’t doing much, they may
bar called BA4 To-R. If you call on her, you could get leave the neighborhood. Residents who leave are
a bonus to a Prep roll by huddling at her bar, a not replaced, and automatically increase the
Generic Specialty useful for gathering information, community’s Burden by 1.
a bonus to Acquiring an Asset like a specific drink or
Other than that, Burden increases and decreases
a favor from a patron, or rent use of her bar for a
primarily through story. For example, if a popular
private meeting.
local store closes down, Burden might increase as
The group should feel free to come up with other jobs are lost and people go elsewhere. Pushing a
ideas for what they can call upon residents for, so corporate interest or toxic member out of the
long as everyone agrees. community might improve conditions for a while,
reducing Burden. (If the PCs’ actions have a large
effect on the community, consider removing
Advantage from its next Economic Shock roll.)
Fixers
A Fixer with the Contacts and/or Facilitate
Talents (p. 62-63) can add community residents
to their list of contacts and may call upon them
even if another player already did.

58
System
Example Communities

Community
Use or adapt these communities as needed.

#zerocool Law Zero Cell

The #zerocool hacker collective was originally “Operation Robots & Empire” is a cell of the android
formed by a group of online friends looking to hone gang Law Zero (p. 253), formed to keep tabs on AGI
their skills and have some fun. When a relative of research in the corporate world—and, if possible, steal
one of their members was put in the hospital by a it. In theory, ORE only answers to R. Daneel Olivaw
member of the New Barons (p. 267), they turned (p. 259), but they’re asked to help others on occasion.
their hacking skills toward taking down members of
Residents: A.J.7. (Tetsuo mole); Stompy Lau (Hoshi
the group and others like them.
Group contact); Malcan Theta (Law Zero high-up);
Residents: The Australian (non-member, hardware Mondaino Problem (hacker); Solaria (Double
supplier); Kelly Leete (Marsha Stretch resident, Crosser, new kid).
drone expert); Mai Mojibake (lazy gremlin, doxxing
expert); “Neon Trotsky” (new member, librarian). Marsha Stretch
The Marsha Stretch is an LGBTQ+ enclave in the Neo
Hadar Logistics Melbourne district, originally founded by queer
Hadar is a small courier company based out of Builders who felt Grand Cross could use a space for
Adams. They help people with shopping, transport them. These days, it’s developed a gentrification
sensitive documents, and do all kinds of weird jobs problem. For more on the Stretch, see the Terabyte
that involve moving things from point A to point B. Boys scenario on p. 352-361.
The employees are a tight-knit bunch and
Residents: Beepjamin (android doctor); Kelly Leete
sometimes help their customers with other things
(Double Crosser hacker); Roll Cinnamon (GPol
too. (The group can run Hadar or simply work there.)
student, courier); Susie Darling (owns the Café
Residents: Susie Angel (employee, parkour genius); Larose); Cerberus Zhao (activist, visits friends here).
Aleph Acosta (regular customer, electronic
musician); Halland (employee, very punchy); Pitwell Lane
Connie Turner (regular customer, old lady hacker). Russell (p. 176) is a quiet residential district in
Adams ward, known for its street art. Your
L4 Activists community is a nice little apartment block on a
There is nothing stopping you from simply choosing side-street with a graffiti wall. Your neighbors seem
the Disaster activist movement as your community like regular folks, but everyone’s got a story.
if you wish. In this case, you’re probably a sub-
Residents: Alya (street artist); Umaru Kayode
group within the movement. You can also make the
(cyber-doctor, runs the Apple Street Medical
community all about the sub-group, if choosing the
Center); Manaia Mita (radio DJ, UFOlogist); Seong-ja
entire movement feels like a big responsibility.
Seo (cyborg pro VRFPS gamer); Rania Xanthopoulos
Residents: Tova Dyson (computer science teacher); (owns nearby Dead Beats bar).
Izzy Kaijou (net café owner); Sam Okafor (lawyer);
Tony Osborn (comic store owner, android activist); Space Town
Melati Onbekend (L4 refugee, hacker). Space Town (p. 182) in Marukyu is a shopping
district, a major pop culture hub, and a sacred place
Latte Night for geeks. A lot of the regulars are familiar with each
Latte Night (p. 152) is a used bookshop/café in Voyager other and with familiarity comes friendship. If you
that opens just before midnight and closes just after can accept Space Town’s weird bullshit, it might just
sunrise. The regulars are a strange and eclectic bunch, be your home away from home.
but once they pass through the doors, they’re just
Residents: Kusa Hoshii-Dotnet (regular visitor, data
fellow book and coffee lovers. They look out for each
nun); Izzy Kaijou (net café owner); Mana & Nagisa
other and sometimes help other customers.
(webcomic artists); Muse (GPol anime club
Residents: Lotte (cyborg barista); Akari (Asano office president); Jett Wattana (regular, Singularist);
lady); Brokkr (Law Zero lieutenant); Broz (Builder, Zander Xander (regular, drone expert).
retired agritech); Leetboy (GPol college student).

System 59
 Occupations
Chapter 3:
Occupations
“Always ask: what can I do to help? I can bake extra food for the needy, so I do. Sameer can help
me organize delivery. Ping isn’t great with numbers, but she can talk to androids. Ken can punch
someone so hard their kidneys fall out, which we do not need, but he can also lift large boxes. We all
have something to contribute, and we all cover each other’s weaknesses.”
- Amarjeet Singh, volunteer

This chapter covers the game’s seven Occupations:

Advancement
• The Fixer, who solves problems with their skills Every Occupation receives the same benefits as
and contacts (p. 62) they advance in level.
• The Hacker, who solves problems by hacking
For full advancement rules, see p. 324.
systems (p. 64)
• The Influencer, who solves problems by influen-
LEVEL BENEFITS
cing people (p. 66)
1 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent.
• The Operator, who solves problems with drones
If this is your first Occupation, choose from the
and machines (p. 68)
First Occupation box.
• The Soldier, who solves problems by fighting
and protecting (p. 70) 2 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
• The Street Fighter, who solves problems with
3 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
martial arts (p. 72)
• And the Thief, who solves problems with agility 4 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
and trickery (p. 74)
5 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
Each Occupation has its own Talent pool, as well as
6 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
some extras you can choose from if it’s your first
Occupation. Some Talents have extra requirements 7 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
to take them, or extra effects that unlock when you
8 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
gain enough Talents; these are listed in their entry.
Generic Talents that anyone can take can be found 9 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent
on p. 76.
10 +1 Specialty, +1 Generic Specialty, 1 Talent

System 61
 Fixer
The Fixer is great at solving other people’s problems. They untangle
H complex situations, facilitate deals, talk to people, and leverage their
W contacts to get things done. Of course, some Fixers have the skills to get
I their hands dirty, too. We won’t tell you what to do. We’re not your mom.
Examples: Bodyguards, consultants, criminals, Double Crossers with a
lot of free time, freelance troubleshooters, gig workers, helpful
neighbors, investigators, journalists, public relations.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Choose one: License (p. 82) or Trendy Wardrobe (p. 84).
Choose one: Gun with Suppressor (p. 88) or a Small Local Business (p. 83).
Choose one Specialty: +1 Tough Defense, +1 Cool Defense, or +1 to 1
Social action.
Choose one Talent: Fixer or Generic.

Talents
Aid Another Contacts
When you have a Generic Specialty relevant to an Write down a side character you’ve met (or make
ally’s task and have plenty of time, you may add +1 one up) and a specialized interest they have (e.g.
to their rolls so long as you can devote your full “Jae-yun, Motorcycles”). When you have plenty of
attention to the task. time, you can call upon them as if they were a +1
Generic Specialty, once per session per Fixer
Contacts Talent: You can call upon a side
Talent you have. For every Milestone the group has
character instead of devoting your full attention.
achieved, write down another side character.
7+ Fixer Talents: Add the full value of your
Facilitate Talent: These Talents share
relevant Specialty instead.
characters. Make one list; add only one per
Milestone.
Bluff
Gain a +1 Cool Defense Specialty and the following
Criminal Network
Attack action:
When dealing with criminal acts, people, and
things, take +1 on all social rolls.
Bluff
Once per fight, after you are hit with any Attack,
Expedite
you may use this Attack in response. Make an
Spend 1 Cash or Prep to make a task that takes a
Attack using Cool vs your attacker's Cool. Instead
long time for you or an ally take less time (e.g. a
of dealing damage, this attack inflicts one
week to six days, a day to an hour, an hour to
Disadvantage on your opponent's next roll against
minutes.) This cannot make a complex task
you. They and any onlookers think you are either
instantaneous.
unharmed or a serious badass. If your opponent
has no concept of human emotion, this attack
has no effect.

5+ Fixer Talents: Inflict one Disadvantage on

your opponent's next roll against you for every
damage you would have dealt.

62
System
Facilitate Leverage

Occupations
Write down a side character you’ve met (or make You may attempt to Threaten someone without
one up) and a specialized interest they have (e.g. any leverage. On a critical, they will accidentally
“Mira, Gun Enthusiast”). When you’re bargaining reveal some form of leverage which you can use
with or helping someone, you can call upon them from that point on. On a failure, they realize you
in place of 1 Cash or for +1 to a relevant Social have nothing; depending on the situation, your
roll (before rolling). For every Milestone the group failed threat may turn into leverage against you.
has achieved, write down another side character.
Lighten Up
Contacts Talent: These Talents share
Once per social encounter, on a critical social roll,
characters. Make one list; add only one per
you may treat the Mood as Friendly for the rest of
Milestone.
the scene. (e.g. a Formal occasion remains Formal,
but you are treated as a friend and can get away
Fixing the Odds with things.) This does not work during combat.
Once per session, when you or an ally have Advantage
7+ Fixer Talents: This works during combat, so
on a roll, turn all Advantage into Boost instead.
long as you can justify it (or it’s super funny.)
Describe how you arranged this, or with who.

Gift of the Gab Negotiator

You take +1 on all Social rolls made during any Mood When you undertake a mission, you can squeeze a
other than Hostile. During a Hostile Mood, you little extra out of it. Choose either +1 Cash before
instead take +1 on your first Placate roll in this the mission, or +2 after.
scene.
Plausible Deniability
I Know A Guy You have Advantage on all Social rolls made to
When you try to Acquire an Asset, a critical cover up, lie about, or conceal your or an ally’s
decreases its Price by an additional step. Illegal involvement in dubious or criminal activity.
items only increase Difficulty by 3 for you.
Unusual Talents
5+ Fixer Talents: criticals also allow you to
Gain +1 Item or Generic Specialty of your choice.
attempt another Acquire action with no extra
time spent. 5+ Fixer Talents: Gain an additional Asset or
Generic Specialty.
It Takes All Kinds 7+ Fixer Talents: Gain an additional Specialty
Choose a Talent from another Occupation. You have (any kind).
that Talent. Your Fixer Talents count toward its
unlock requirements. (This Talent and the one you
chose only count as one.)

System 63
 Hacker
Being good with computers is practically a basic life skill these days, but
H the Hacker is amazing with them. They know how to penetrate networks,
W hijack machines, and bend cyberspace to their will. Give them enough
I software and a deck to run it, and they can change the station.
Examples: Black hat hackers, game developers, hacktivists, hobbyists,
infosec workers, IT workers, programmers, tech journalists, trans
people who own computers, white hat hackers.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Get: One Hacking Suite (p. 85), one Program (p. 85) of your choice.
Choose one: A Program or a Fake ID (p. 81).
Choose one Specialty: +1 Clever Defense, +1 Quick Defense, or +1 to 1
Hacking action.
Choose one Talent: Hacker or Generic.

Talents
Battle Network Darknet Rep
Once per combat, as an action, you can use your Take +1 on all social rolls made online when dealing
hacking skills to change or add to an Arena’s Tags with other hackers or hacker culture. You and your
(e.g. by activating a sprinkler system, flickering the allies can namedrop your hacker alias to take +1 on
lights, or opening an airlock) without rolling. rolls made to Acquire hacking-related Assets.

Combat Hack Donʼt Be Evil

During a fight, you may spend 1 Prep to use the You believe in the cause. Take +1 on all Hacking and
following Attack action on a drone or robot: Social rolls made to infiltrate a Cartel corporation
or another corporation of similar size and scope.
Combat Hack Take +1 on all Attacks you make against Dreamers.
Make a Ranged attack using Clever + Hacking vs
Clever. (If it’s unlisted, it is 7.) Deal damage as Hot Streak
normal. If this damage would disable your If you roll a critical success on any Hacking action,
opponent, it becomes an ally instead. It takes gain Advantage on your next Hacking action in that
actions independently on your behalf until the Network.
fight is over or it takes 1 damage, whichever
comes first. It is disabled afterward. This does not
work on androids, Dreamers, or other AGI.

64 System
Information Broker Study Network

Occupations
If you hack a network during a mission, you may sell During the Prep phase, if you know you are going to
incidental sensitive information you found afterward. infiltrate a specific network, you may spend a week
Unless you suffer Economic Shock, begin your next studying it instead of rolling for Prep. Activating
session with +1 Cash. If the network belonged to a Program Assets while inside a network you have
Cartel corporation, start with +3 Cash instead. studied costs no Prep.
7+ Hacker Talents: You only need to study for
Laughing Gal a day.
So long as you have your Hacking Suite, electronic
sensors (including cameras, androids, etc.) cannot
recognize or identify you unless you want them to. Sync Up
Your face is blurred or replaced with a static image When you go on a mission, choose an ally who is
(e.g. a cartoon cat's face.) This won't set off alarms, either an android or augmented and spend 1 Prep.
but androids and humans will notice. You are now partners. Until the end of this mission
(or until something happens to sever your Wi-Fi
Master Phisher connection, whichever comes first,) you both take
You take +1 to your Social rolls when trying to get +1 on rolls that help your partner, so long as those
sensitive information out of someone. If you’re in rolls use an augment or the character is an android.
contact with someone attempting Social
5+ Hacker Talents: You may add additional
Engineering on your behalf, you also grant +1 to
partners for 1 Prep each.
their roll.

Move Fast and Break Virtual Ghost

Things At the beginning of a hack, add 1 chance to your Ghost.
During a hack, you may expend 1 chance from your
Stealth Specialty: You also add 1 chance to
Ghost to have Advantage on your next roll.
your group’s Stealth when sneaking.
Online Resources
The first time you roll for personal Prep, gain +1 Zero-Day Threat
additional Prep. During the Prep phase, instead of rolling for group
Prep, you may spend a week developing a new threat
7+ Hacker Talents: +2 additional Prep.
that security software won’t catch. Treat this as a
single-use Program Asset with the following rules:
Script Kiddie
The first time you use a Program Asset during a Zero-Day Threat
hack, spend one less Prep. When you first choose You may spend 1 Prep to activate this at the
this Talent, choose and gain one Program Asset. beginning of a hack. Any time you would have
Advantage during this hack, turn it into Boost
instead.

System 65
 Influencer
The Influencer has unlocked the true potential of the World Wide Web:
H getting a bunch of people to see things your way. They can make
W friends anywhere—and they’ve made enough on the internet to
I crowdsource solutions to their problems.
Examples: Artists, bloggers, forum moderators, game developers, IRC
operators, journalists, musicians, online activists, radio DJs,
shitposters, social media influencers, streamers, YourTubers.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Choose one: A Doggo (p. 81) or a Trendy Wardrobe (p. 84).
Choose one: A Drone with the Flying and Improved Recording tags
(p. 86) or a Verified Account (p. 83).
Choose one Specialty: +1 Clever Defense, +1 Cool Defense, or +1 to 1
Social action.
Choose one Talent: Influencer or Generic

Talents
Big Mood DDoS
Choose one of the following Moods: Friendly, Once per session, you can use a Social action to
Formal, Hostile, or Sexy (if that’s a thing in your send your followers after an online target. This can
game.) Take +1 to all Social actions and Cool disrupt a person or company's social media
Defense in a scene with that Mood. presence for a day, disrupt a smaller website,
distract staff at an office, make a network
7+ Influencer Talents: Choose a second Mood.
vulnerable, hide a reply in a slew of notifications, or
anything else a lot of people making bad posts can
Crowdfunded do. Anyone hacking an affected network gets an
You use a gig app that strongly leverages your additional Chance on their Ghost and Advantage on
personal online brand, whether that’s food photos, rolls made to maintain Ghost. However, everyone
nudes, or being a dumbass. Unless you suffered will know you started it.
Economic Shock last session, gain +1 Cash at the
beginning of every session just for oversharing Everyone Knows Me
yourself online. Take +1 on Social rolls against crowds.
5+ Influencer Talents: +2 Cash.
7+ Influencer Talents: +3 Cash.

66 System
Extremely Online Socialite

Occupations
If you have no relevant specialty in a roll but plenty Once per session, when you would have Advantage
of time to do it, you can ask your online followers on a Social roll, turn it into Boost instead.
for help and treat the roll as if you had a relevant
7+ Influencer Talents: Twice per session.
Specialty at +1. This can be used for Prep rolls once
per session.
Sponsored
Hot Take You have a sponsor, corporate or otherwise. Unless
You can spend 1 Prep to declare any Social roll to you suffered Economic Shock last session, begin
be a Hot Take. On a success, in addition to the other every session with +1 Cash. If your sponsor sells
effects, you temporarily become the center of branded gear, you may grant Advantage to yourself
attention (online or off.) Allies attempting to evade or an ally trying to buy that gear. If you behave
notice (under Stealth or Ghost) or take advantage of badly enough to lose your sponsor, you will have a
the distraction gain Advantage on their next roll. new one by the beginning of the next session.
7+ Influencer Talents: Their next two rolls. 5+ Influencer Talents: +2 Cash.

Niche Content Terminally Online

You post content that caters to a niche interest. Gain So long as you have uninterrupted access to the
+1 Specialty and +1 Generic Specialty of your choice. Internet, you always have your pulse on current
It cannot be a Generic Specialty you already had. events (and their memes) without having to take
time or roll for it. If you are around to give advice
Parasocial and have the time to do it safely, an ally attempting
Relationships an action involving celebrities or current events
When you meet a fan, that fan starts out Friendly to takes +1 to their roll.
you no matter what the current mood is. Once per
mission, you may spend 1 Prep to establish that Viral
someone you’re about to interact with for the first If you make a Social roll online, on a critical it goes
time is a fan. Viral. Within hours people across Grand Cross will
notice your post, share it, make memes, or just
Personal Insight straight-up steal your content to sell shirts. Your
When you roll a critical on a Social roll against an target will react accordingly: if you're mocking them,
individual (online or off,) you may ask one of the they'll hate you and possibly delete their account; if
following questions. The GM must answer you're praising them, they'll love you, and so on. In
truthfully. The target is not aware they have given addition, gain Advantage on all rolls capitalizing on
this information away. your Viral content for this session and the next.
• What could they use help with?
Win Them Over
• How can I hurt them?
When you successfully Placate someone or make
• Is there something that they really want?
them Friendly with a Social action, gain Advantage
• How are they feeling currently?
on your next Social roll against them.
Relatable Content
Once per scene, when you reveal a personal detail
about yourself to anyone, take +1 to your next
Social action. On a critical, succeed or fail, you also
Boost it. This Boost can turn a failure into a success.

System 67
 Operator
The Operator’s specialty is hardware. They play with drones, repair
H androids, jury rig machines, and generally mess with technology to get
W what they want. Drones are getting worryingly common on Grand
I Cross, so they have a lot to play with.
Examples: Androids, hobbyists, electronic musicians, engineers,
maintenance workers, photographers with camera drones, roboticists,
security personnel, station workers, tech vloggers.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Get: One Drone Asset (p. 86). This is your Personal Drone.
Choose one: An additional Drone tag, or any Asset of your choice that
can fit into a Drone.
Choose one Specialty: +1 Clever Defense, +1 Cool Defense, or +1 to
any 1 action.
Get: Personal Drone Talent.

Talents
Personal Drone Clever Mechanic
You now have a custom Personal Drone asset. If this You have Advantage on repairing hardware of any
isn't your first Occupation, create a new Drone to kind, including performing first aid on androids.
become your Personal Drone. For each rank of the You automatically know if something is irreparable
Drone Specialty you have, the drone has an or if rare components are needed. Once per
additional tag chosen by you. You may add up to mission, you may spend 1 Prep to repair a
two more tags to the drone later, at a cost of 2 Cash destroyed drone you own. It can take one damage
per tag. before being destroyed again.
In addition to the normal list of drone tags (p. 86),
Coordinated Operation
you have access to the Operator tags on p. 87.
During your turn in a fight, before taking an action,
You may swap your Personal Drone’s tags when you you can declare you and a drone you own are
have downtime. attacking the same target. Take +1 to your and your
drone’s attack rolls. Neither attack may affect an area.
If you've lost your Personal Drone, you can spend 3
Cash to replace it with a day or so of work.
Experienced Pilot
You may spend Prep to negate disadvantage to your
Ace Pilot drone, one-to-one. When you spend personal Prep
Once per session, while piloting a drone, you may
on a drone you own or any Asset it carries, roll 1d6.
turn an Advantage into a Boost instead.
On a 6, gain 1 personal Prep.
5+ Operator Talents: Twice per session.
7+ Operator Talents: When you spend group
7+ Operator Talents: Three times per session. Prep on your drone, roll 1d6. On a 6, gain 1
group Prep.

68 System
Full Synch Miniaturization

Occupations
You have (illegally) connected your drone’s controls You may choose one additional drone tag for a
to your nervous system, like a cyber-limb. While you drone you own.
take no other action while piloting, gain Advantage
on all Drone rolls and become unaware of your Nerd
surroundings until your next action. When you are around to give advice, allies take +1
on all rolls relating to androids, cybernetics,
If your piloted drone is damaged while you are in
drones, gaming consoles, mechanics, and robotics.
Full Synch, roll 1d6 and mark that box on your
You automatically know all relevant major
Damage Track. You cannot use Full Synch again
hardware manufacturers and their models.
until your next mission. You cannot spend Prep or
use armor to mitigate this damage.
Redundant
Construction
Jury-Rigged Solution You may spend Prep to reduce damage dealt to a
Once per mission, as an action, you may remove
drone you own, one-to-one. Your drone can take 1
one tag from a drone you own to gain 1 Prep.
additional damage before being destroyed.
Regain the tag at the beginning of the next session.
7+ Operator Talents: You may do this twice per Tech Head
mission. Take +1 on any roll involving using, hacking,
nerding out about, destroying, or repairing
hardware such as androids, drones, vehicles and
Margatroid Protocol cybernetics. This does not apply to piloting.
You may choose the Swarm tag for a drone you
own, in addition to its other tags.
Wired Reflexes
Swarm: a Swarm drone is actually a multitude of You and any drone you pilot take a +1 to their Quick
smaller drones (up to 10) that can be in many places Defense Specialty. You may spend Prep to Boost
at once. Take +1 on all actions where it’s reasonable your drone’s actions.
to expect a swarm of drones to be particularly useful,
such as lifting heavier loads, surveying a large area, Drone Strike
and so on. When piloting a Swarm drone, you may A drone you own can make the Drone Strike attack.
choose to instead pilot only one drone at any time. If
loaded with an Asset Hardpoint, all your drones are Drone Strike
equipped the same way. Your drone may make a Ranged Attack. Anyone
targeted by it or are in its area of effect—succeed
Maverick or fail—must make a Cool Save vs your Attack
Take +1 on Attack rolls made by you or a drone you roll or be forced to go prone, or else move from
own against airborne targets. You may spend Prep their current position. Prone foes don’t move on
to Boost Defense for your drone, using your own their next action.
Specialties.

System 69
 Soldier
The Soldier is a warrior. They’re strong and use their strength to protect
H others. They’re tough, which comes in handy when the powers that be
W send police and private security to crush resistance. Anyone can be a
I Soldier if they have the will to fight for what they believe in.
Examples: Activists, athletes, bounty hunters, community volunteers
and organizers, ex-cops, gangsters, mutual aid workers, rescue
workers, rioters, street medics, virtual reality gamers.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Choose one: A weapon of your choice or a First Aid Kit (p. 81).
Choose one: Rioting Gear (p. 84) or a Safehouse (p. 83).
Choose one Specialty: +1 Tough Defense, +1 Cool Defense, or +1 Asset
Specialty.
Choose one Talent: Soldier or Generic.

Talents
ACAB For the Cause
Take +1 on all rolls while dealing with police and When you are fighting for a cause larger than
other security forces, whether attacking, defending, yourself, take +1 Tough Defense.
spotting, evading, interacting socially, and so on.
7+ Soldier Talents: Allies who can see you also
take +1 to Tough Defense.
Always Prepared
During the Prep phase, automatically add +1 group
Prep to the group pool. Get Down!
Whenever two or more allies are hit by an effect
7+ Soldier Talents: +2 group Prep.
(such as gas or grenades,) you may spend 1 Prep to
be hit by it instead. Describe how. If it is an
Cool Head explosive grenade or similar effect, you
During a stressful situation such as a riot or fight, immediately mark damage box 6 instead of taking
take +1 to Cool Defense. normal damage. This can be reduced as normal.
5+ Soldier Talents: Take +1 to your Cool
Harm Reduction
Defense at all times.
Once per mission, if you have marked a Harm or
7+ Soldier Talents: Allies who can see you also Serious Harm box on your Damage Track, you may
take +1 to Cool Defense. spend 1 Prep to ignore the penalty from that box for
the rest of the mission (or until you mark another
Harm or Serious Harm, whichever comes first.) You
Coordinated Targeting still suffer the penalty after the mission.
Whenever you Attack with a Ranged weapon with
Advantage, all allies who make Ranged Attacks
against that target get Advantage on their attack
rolls until the beginning of your next turn.

70 System
On-Site Procurement Tacti-cool Loadout

Occupations
During a mission, every time you spend personal Whenever you use an Asset outside of a fight as part
Prep, roll 1d6. On a 6, gain 1 personal Prep. of any action, take +1 to your roll.
5+ Soldier Talents: Every time you or a nearby
Threat Assessment
ally spends group Prep, roll 1d6. On a 6, add 1
When you enter a fight, choose one opponent and
group Prep to the pool.
ask one question:
• What is their best Defense?
Protest Coordinator • What is their worst Defense?
Once per session, during any mission, rally, protest,
• What weapons do they have?
or riot, you can declare that a useful ally is around.
Choose or create a friendly side character. This ally The GM must answer truthfully (including if there
can assist you with one specific protest-related are multiple best or worst defenses), except for
task, such as medicine, drone interference, spotting questions about the weapons of Dreamers, which
danger, and so on. If you roll for this ally’s actions, are beyond mere mortals.
add +3 to rolls relating to their stated Specialty.
5+ Soldier Talents: Ask two questions of up to
two opponents.
Right Tool for the
Right Job 7+ Soldier Talents: Ask three questions of up
Gain 1 Asset Specialty with an Asset of your choice. to three opponents.
The first time you would spend Prep to use an Asset
while on a mission, spend one less Prep.
Unit Leader
5+ Soldier Talents: The first 2 times. During a fight, you may allow allies to spend your
personal Prep as though it were group Prep.
7+ Soldier Talents: The first 3 times.
Walking Armory
Riot Medicine Whenever you reload a weapon, your allies may
As an action, you may spend 1 Prep to grant all allies also reload for free. Once per mission, you can
in your vicinity Advantage on Saves vs all debilitating reload one Ranged Ammo weapon for free.
or “less than lethal” attacks, such as gas, sonic
7+ Soldier Talents: Twice per mission.
attacks, stun guns, hacks, and so on1. This lasts
until the next time you act in a fight, or until the end
of the current scene if you’re not fighting.
7+ Soldier Talents: You can do this while
taking another action.

1 See riotmedicine.net for more information.

System 71
 Street Fighter
The Street Fighter fights for what they believe in, and they put their
H body on the line to do it. Thanks to their training—whether it was
W formal or earned on the streets—they’re experts at melee fighting and
I capable of impressive physical feats.
Examples: Athletes, cosplayers who get really into it, habitual brawlers,
martial arts enthusiasts2, personal trainers, protesters.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Choose one: A Badass Headband (p. 84) or a First Aid Kit (p. 81).
Choose one: A Gym (p. 83) or a melee weapon of your choice.
Choose one Specialty: +1 Quick Defense, +1 Tough Defense, or +1 to 1
Fight action.
Choose one Talent: Street Fighter or Generic.

Everything is a
Talents Weapon
The first time you gain Advantage for using an
Badass element of the environment during a fight, turn it
Take +1 on all melee attacks while you are
into Boost instead.
outnumbered.
5+ Street Fighter Talents: The first 2 times.
Chain Punch
When you roll a critical on a melee attack against
Grappler
any number of opponents, gain Advantage on your
Gain +1 Specialty with the Grab Attack. Add +1 to
next attack against any or all of those opponents.
the Save difficulty made against escaping your
Grab. You may continue to make melee attacks
Defy Death against anyone in range while Grappled.
The first time you fail a Save during a mission, you
may reroll it.
Gun Safety Bear
7+ Street Fighter Talents: Instead of rerolling, If someone targets you with a held Ranged weapon
you succeed. and misses while you are within melee range, you
may disarm them. The weapon falls to the ground.
Engaged 5+ Street Fighter Talents: You may disarm
If you are within melee range of someone and they them if they target someone other than you.
try to get away from you, they must roll a Quick
7+ Street Fighter Talents: You may also render
save vs 10 + your Martial Arts.
it harmless (for example, by immediately
If they fail, make a choice:
stowing it, breaking or dismantling it, tossing it
• They move away, but you follow immediately, somewhere unrecoverable, or unloading it.)
maintaining melee range.
• They’re unable to get away from you and you
both stay in roughly the same spot.

2 Practitioners of every martial art have

come to space to spread their style
beyond Earth, so don’t feel constrained
by location.

72 System
Know Them Through Reversal

Occupations
Battle You may use the Reversal attack immediately after
When you roll a critical on any Melee Attack against being hit by a melee attack. Reversal becomes
any number of opponents, ask one question about inactive until you’ve made two other, different attacks.
them:
Reversal
• What is their best Defense?
Resolve the incoming attack, then make an attack
• What is their worst Defense?
roll. If your roll is higher than the attacker’s, your
• What are their intentions?
target suffers all effects of the attack instead of
The GM must answer truthfully (including if there you. If the incoming attack allows a choice
are multiple best or worst defenses), unless they’re between multiple effects, you choose the effect. If
unfathomable, like Dreamers. In addition, if they you Reversal a Reversal, they cancel out.
were trained by a rival martial arts master in orbit
or are one in disguise, you learn who the master is. 7+ Street Fighter Talents: After using Reversal,
you may reverse all melee attacks made
Martial Arts against you until the beginning of your next
You never suffer Disadvantage from your environment turn.
when using bare hands and feet in a fight.
When you make a melee attack, you may also make
Sword Master
it against a second target in range (if there is one.)
Take +1 to your Quick Defense against all melee
You may Grab multiple people at a time this way.
attacks while you’re wielding a melee weapon,
5+ Street Fighter Talents: You may target unless your opponent is far larger than you.
everyone in melee range.
Tank
Gain +1 Specialty in either Tough or Quick Defense.
No Pain In addition, gain the following Attack action:
The first time you would mark damage box 1 or 2 in
a fight, do not mark damage.
Tank
When an ally’s Tough Defense or Quick Defense is
Personal Trainer targeted, you may use this attack to either physically
Take +1 to Social rolls when you’re teaching
interpose yourself between your ally and the
someone or giving them advice. If the mood is
attacker or move them out of the way. You are now
Friendly, take Advantage instead. In addition, you
the target of their attack. Every use of this action
may grant an ally you spend time doing Prep with +1
after the first one in the same combat costs 1 Prep.
to 1 Prep roll before each mission.
Reversal Talent: You may use Tank and
Reversal on the same attack, if applicable.

Threat
Opponents who are within melee range of you have
Disadvantage on their first action targeting
someone other than you until the beginning of your
next turn. This penalty does not apply to area
attacks that include you.

System 73
 Thief
The Thief is sneakier than most people. They aren’t all criminals—
H though they certainly can be—but their views on things like “law” and
W “honor” tend to be flexible, especially when they get in the way of
I doing what’s right. If they have to use trickery to get what they want,
they can and will.
Examples: Con artists, couriers, direct-action activists, ex-corporation
enforcers, gangsters, investigators, journalists, parkour enthusiasts,
people living “off the grid”, thieves.

FIRST OCCUPATION
Choose one: A Fake ID (p. 81) or a weapon (your choice).
Choose one: A Safehouse (p. 83) or Thieving Gear (p. 83).
Choose one Specialty: +1 Clever Defense, +1 Quick Defense, or +1 to 1
Stealth action.
Choose one Talent: Thief or Generic.

Talents
Cat Burglar Getaway
You have Advantage on all rolls to climb, scale, When you try to escape a scene or use Run Away to
squeeze through, abseil, leap over, or otherwise flee from a fight, you have Advantage on your roll.
pass an obstacle. Once per fight, when an attack
5+ Thief Talents: If you use any applicable
targets your Quick Defense, you may immediately
Asset for its normal cost (e.g. smoke grenade, a
use Take Cover (p. 45) before the attack is resolved.
vehicle,) you may roll to let your entire group
escape/Run Away.
Destructive Entry
While under Stealth or Ghost, when you try to
bypass an obstacle with a Security or Network Level Larceny
and fail, you may spend 1 Prep to succeed instead. Whenever you or an ally try to acquire an Illegal
You still lose a chance. This method will leave Asset no larger than a wearable or carried piece of
evidence behind but won’t incriminate you. equipment, you may take Advantage on the roll. On
a critical, in addition to the usual effects, you may
Mastermind Talent: You may do this with an
choose to pay for it with personal Prep instead of
ally’s failed action.
Cash on a one-to-one basis. Someone may get mad
at you for it later.
Enterprising
The first time you “find” or are rewarded with Cash “Locksmith”
during a session, gain +1 Cash. You have Advantage on any roll involving bypassing
locks, safes, and similar devices.
5+ Thief Talents: Gain +2 Cash.
7+ Thief Talents: You may reroll all 1s on these
rolls.

74 System
Mastermind Phantom Thief

Occupations
During any mission, when an ally takes an action You are infamous—usually a bad thing for your
that involves a Security Level or risks Stealth, you profession, but you’ve turned it to your advantage.
may allow them to spend your personal Prep as if it Choose a thief alias. In-game, this can be chosen by
were group Prep. your character or given by others. When you
perform a criminal act against a target with a
7+ Thief Talents: The first time you roll for
Security or Network Level and roll a critical, you can
personal Prep for this mission, gain +1 Prep.
leave behind evidence or a calling card implicating
your alias. Gain Advantage on all Social rolls to use
Muscle your alias to your advantage, hide your identity, or
You can briefly fight one foe without risking Stealth. mislead someone for this session and the next.
While you are in Stealth, if your opponent attempts
to use a loud weapon, trigger an alarm, or make an Slippery
alerting noise, you may spend 1 Prep to You have Advantage when you are escaping any
immediately use the Silence attack. kind of restraint, cell, hold, grab, tie, or similar
situation.
Silence
7+ Thief Talents: You may reroll all 1s on these
Make a Melee or Silenced Ranged attack. If you
rolls.
hit, you silence/remove the source of the noise
before anyone is alerted. If the source of the noise
was a loud weapon being used, you cancel your Smooth Criminal
opponent’s attack. While you and your group are under Stealth or
Ghost, add +1 to your own rolls.
Ninja
The first time you attack during a fight while you Social Chameleon
are hidden from sight, Boost it. You also have You have Advantage on all Social rolls to make a
Advantage on all rolls to Disable Security if the disguise or Fake ID seem convincing.
security is active.
7+ Thief Talents: You may reroll all 1s on these
7+ Thief Talents: You may spend 1 Prep to remain rolls.
hidden from sight after you make any attack.
Security Specialist
Parkour You know the make, type, and basic functionality of
If you roll a critical success on any action involving most commonly used security alarms and systems,
movement, gain Advantage on your next action if it including drones. If you are around to give advice
also involves movement. and have time to explain it, an ally taking an action
involving an automated security system of any kind
7+ Thief Talents: You may reroll all 1s on these
gains +1 to their roll.
rolls.

System 75
 Generic Talents
Any character may take these, so long as they fulfil the requirements.

H
W Basement Dweller Harder, Better,
Take +1 to all rolls that involve accessing the station
I Faster, Stronger
basements, navigating or sneaking through them,
Must have at least 7+ total Talents
or using them to go places you shouldn’t. You
always know where the nearest accessible Choose one Ability (Cool, Clever, Tough, or Quick.)
basement entrance is. Improve that Ability by +1, to a maximum of +3.

Born Ready Helping Hand

Add 1 additional personal Prep before every mission. Once per mission, if you’re around to help, you may
turn an ally’s Advantage into Boost before rolling.
5+ Talents: Also add 1 Group Prep to the pool.
I, Android
Contractor Android only
When you gain Cash from a Gig Economy App, gain
Other androids consider you a community leader
+1 Cash.
for your contributions to android culture or for your
work helping others. Androids who recognize you
Custom Omni-Sockets will never be Hostile unless you provoke them, and
Android or Full-Body Prosthetic only
if you want to talk to a fellow android, you will
You can switch out an Augment with about a always get an audience eventually. Even
minute of work instead of during downtime. This notoriously reclusive androids like R. Daneel Olivaw
customization voids your warranties. (p. 259) will at least agree to a phone call.

Daredevil Industrial Frame

When you roll a critical success on a Save, take +1 Android or Full-Body Prosthetic only
on your next roll.
Your body is designed for hazardous industrial
7+ Talents: Have Advantage on your next roll environments, including shielding from space
instead. radiation. Gain a +1 Tough Defense Specialty. You
automatically succeed on all Saves vs gases,
radiation, and similar things that the GM agrees
Extreme Planning make sense for someone spaceworthy to shrug off.
You may use Flashback twice per mission.
Jack of All Trades
Robo Rapport Gain +1 Generic or Asset Specialty of your choice. In
Android only
addition, your Generics always count as occupation
You’re very good at talking to humans, and your Talents for the purposes of unlocking bonuses. For
frame is appealing. When you roll a critical success example, if you have four Street Fighter talents and
on a Social roll against a human, take +1 to your Jack of All Trades, you get the 5+ Talent unlock for
next Social roll. Gun Safety Bear.
7+ Talents: Make this an Advantage on your
Lucky Star
next roll instead.
Once per mission, when you or an ally would fail a
Save, you or that ally may succeed instead. If
multiple characters have Lucky Star, each character
may only benefit from it once per mission.

76 System
Nemesis Redundant Internals

Generic Talents
You have a personal rival or enemy. Create or choose Android or Full-Body Prosthetic only
a side character to be your nemesis. When your
The first time you would mark any injury higher
nemesis is present during a mission, you take +1 on
than a Minor Injury during a mission, you may mark
all rolls and your nemesis takes +1 on rolls made to
a Minor Injury of your choice instead. This follows
oppose or hinder you as long as they’re present.
all the normal rules of marking an injury.
You may spend 1 Prep to declare your nemesis has
arrived or was present all along, so long as you can Shady Dealings
justify it. They remain your nemesis if you become Choose one Illegal Asset, Drone tag, or Augment.
temporary allies or even friends, provided they still You now own it, no Cash required. If you lose access
have reasons to oppose or push you. If they don’t, to it, regain it at the beginning of your next session.
you can get a new nemesis. (An Augment still increases your Burden.)

Notorious Specialized
Choose a group (e.g. Singularists, Hoshi Group, Gain +1 Specialty of your choice, to the normal
Technos, Furries, Breadtube, etc.) Once per session, maximum of +3. You may choose this Talent
you may call upon the group like you would a multiple times, but only once for each Specialty.
community resident (p. 58).
Spendthrift
Ogremoch Frame Whenever you spend or give someone Cash, roll
Android or Full-Body Prosthetic only 1d6 for each Cash. Gain 1 Cash for each 6 you roll.
Requires Redundant Internals You may not do this if you suffered Economic Shock
this session.
Serious Harm on your damage track becomes Harm
instead. You may clear one Harm at the end of a
Team Mom
scene as if it were a Minor Injury. Your body is now
During Prep, your first group Prep roll only takes a
Restricted (p. 80).
day. When you roll, add 1 additional group Prep to
the pool regardless of your result.
Paid
Choose a cybernetic Augment. It no longer
Training Montage
increases Burden for you. If you currently have no
When you roll for group Prep, instead of rolling you
eligible Augments, the next one you acquire will not
may choose one Specialty or Generic Specialty to
increase your Burden. You may choose this Talent
train. You take +1 to all rolls using the chosen
multiple times.
Specialty for the duration of your next mission. Your
allies can participate to get the bonus and still
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle make their own Prep rolls.
At the end of a mission, you may convert unspent
personal Prep into Cash. The first Cash costs 1 Prep,
Weird Science
the second costs 2, the third 3, and so on. You
You’ve encountered a Dreamer, and though you can
cannot do this if you’ve suffered Economic Shock
never truly understand them, you’ve become good
this session.
at guessing. Take +1 to all rolls made when tracking
or analyzing Dreamers, guessing what they’ll do
next, or escaping them safely.

System 77
 Assets and Cybernetics
Chapter 4:
Assets and Cybernetics
"Here at the 0Q shopping mall, we have everything you need—no questions asked! And now, for
every hundred dollars you spend, we'll give a dollar to charity! Which charity? No time to explain—it's
this week only!
OQ: Don't ask—just shop!"
— Spyros Antoniou, paid actor

This chapter covers Assets and cybernetics:

resources your PCs can draw on and things they can
Assets
put inside their body. Assets are resources your characters can draw
upon. They can be anything from personal
equipment like tools and gear to more abstract
things like locations and connections.
Chapter Contents
Each Asset has a description, a set of Tags, and a
ASSETS 79 listed Cost: the amount of Cash needed to Acquire
it. Some Assets also have a Special section, which
Usables 81 describes particular conditions or uses for them.

Locations 83
Gaining Assets
Wearables 84 During character creation, you gain some Assets
based on your Occupation and Trait choices. You may
Programs 85 then choose 2 additional Assets. These can be any
Assets you want, provided they make sense for your
Drones 86 character. You cannot buy Assets whose Cost is
Priceless, but anything else is fair game. (This is a good
Weapons 88 time to pick up a pricey Asset you've had your eye on.)

Cybernetic Augments 91 During play, you may use the Acquire Asset action
(p. 50) to get more Assets by spending Cash.
Starting Out 91

How It Works 91
Losing Assets
Assets can be lost during Economic Shock (p. 54).
Common Augments 93 If it makes sense in the story, Assets can also be
broken, borrowed, replaced, sold, or stolen.
Restricted and However, for the most part, Assets are permanent.
Illegal Augments 96 You can't just "use them up" and have to buy another;
you're assumed to know how to maintain a supply.
Augverts 98 For example, if you own a First Aid Kit (p. 81), you can
assume you keep it stocked without worrying about
running out and having to buy a new one.

System 79
 Asset Tags Other Equipment
Critical: This Asset has a special effect on a critical During play, you might find you need something that
roll—failure, success, or both. isn't explicitly covered in this chapter. What about
H grappling hooks? Scuba gear? Space suits? Parachutes?
Illegal: This Asset is illegal in Grand Cross, at least
Rappelling gear? Environmental hazard gear?
W for you small, non-corporate types. It’s hard to
I come by—unless you have the right connections. The answer: get it if you need it! These don’t have
If you're caught with it, you may get in trouble or specific rules; they have narrative uses. You already
lose the Asset. know what scuba gear does. You know how a
parachute works. You know what Tetsuo skyscraper
Obvious: This Asset might be portable, but it's
you’re rappelling down at 3AM. You don’t need it
impossible to conceal and likely to attract
spelled out for you, and we could use the space for
attention. Be prepared for a lot of stares and
more important things, like skateboards and cat ears.
questions. (This doesn't apply to businesses,
cars, or the like, because you’re not going to try Gear like this should have an upfront Cost of 2–4,
to hide them on your person to begin with.) depending on what it is. Unless it's something
weird and hard to get, don't bother rolling; you can
Rad: This Asset is radically cool. Possibly even tubular.
just spend the Cash.
Expect to attract attention, usually the good kind.
Use whatever Generic Specialty and Ability seems
Restricted: This Asset is hard to get, but not illegal.
appropriate, if needed. A lot of equipment can be used
You need a License (p. 82) to operate and own it,
safely with just a little training, which you can say you
however.
got in downtime or while prepping for that Mission, and
Specialized: If you spend Asset Specialties on this you don’t need specific Specialties to cover using them.
Asset, you gain special benefits.
HOUSE
Some Assets, like Weapons, have unique Tags; Where your characters live is up to you.
these are described in their relevant sections. They're unlikely to have a lavish house
(especially on Grand Cross, where space is at a
Basic Items premium,) but characters with a decent
In addition to their listed Assets, there are a few Burden who haven't suffered Economic Shock
are assumed to have a similarly decent
things all characters are assumed to own (or have apartment with basic furniture.
access to):
However, a home isn't guaranteed. Grand
• Clothing and other common items. Cross is heading toward a housing crisis, with
• A smartphone and/or computer (though not Double Crossers finding it harder to buy an
necessarily a good one). apartment and privatized services leading to
rising bills for apartment owners.
• A Multipass (p. 105) with enough credits for the
basics. Characters with Burden 3 (and sometimes 2)
• A cheap bicycle, skateboard, or set of roller are probably renting, as are characters who
have to find a new living space after a bad
skates for getting around—if they want any. Economic Shock. Characters with Burden 4 are
• Any required wheelchairs, mobility scooters, or usually unhoused.
other aids.
If you'd like to describe where your character
• Anything else that seems to make sense. Don't lives, there's a few questions worth asking:
sweat the details too much.
• Where in the station is it?
• Do you own it or rent it?
• If you own it, how did you get it? Was it
assigned when you came here? Did you buy
it? Earn it through a work contract? Get it
Characters can have mobility aids and from someone else?
cheap personal vehicles for free. If you want • Are you rooming with anyone else? (If you
a really nice one, get the Asset version (see room with a PC, it affects your Burden [p. 53].)
Usable Assets, p. 81). You don't get the extra • How many bad months are you from losing it?
benefits of those Assets unless you
specifically purchase them. • If you don't have a home, where do you live?

80
System
Usables

Usables
Assets you use.
3d Printer Drone Gun
Cost: 4. Specialized. Cost: 3. Obvious, Restricted.
This device uses cheap resin or metallic residue to This "gun," which looks like someone decided laser
print objects according to your design, or designs tag needed to be chunkier, is a directed electronic
you've subscribed to (such as Zinovy countermeasure designed to shut off or reset
Ultragraphics assets.) Home printers can print drones at range, forcing them to land or fly home.
only relatively small handheld components. The Conveniently, it also works on other non-hardened
first time you roll for personal Prep before a electronics, like cameras and cybernetics.
mission, gain +1 Prep.
The Drone Gun automatically works on
Specialized: Once per mission, you may add your unattended electronics. People with Augments
3d Printer Asset Specialty to any roll, so long as that aren't ECM-hardened (p. 87) make a Clever
you can justify having printed something relevant Save vs 10 (+1 per non-hardened Augment), or
before or during the mission. have those Augments shut down until they make
the same save at the end of their turn.
Doggo
Android frames, full-body prosthetics, and medical
Cost: 2 + daily pets and walkies.
Augments are assumed to be hardened and cannot
You have a dog1. It may be natural or artificial, but
be shut down (though it makes androids and full-
it’s cute as heck. The first time you interact with
body cyborgs feel uncomfortable.)
anyone socially while you have a Doggo, you have
Advantage on your first Social roll against them. If The Drone Gun is battery-hungry, and costs 1 Prep
the person hates dogs for whatever reason, you per use.
have Disadvantage instead. Given time and effort,
a Doggo can be trained to do various tricks. An Fake IDs
artificial or cybernetically augmented Doggo can Cost: 2 the first time; 1 after. Illegal.
grant a specialty to rolls as if you had it, but You have the contacts and resources to get (or
imposes +1 Burden on you. make) fake identification. The first time you buy
this, you get a fake ID for one person, for a specific
1 Nothing stops this from being a Catto, a
Parroto, or even a Koalo, though a live
one might be difficult to import. Also,
purpose or place (e.g. an employee badge.) It
passes all cursory examinations and basic
koalas kind of have messed-up thumbs. electronic security. You get Advantage on social
situations where presenting this ID would help.

Combining Assets You can purchase this Asset again to get more fake
You can combine two Assets into one so long IDs. Since you already have the means to get
as it makes sense and you own both. For them, they're cheaper.
example, the sample PC Jae-yun (p. 337) has
combined a suit of Combat Armor with a First Aid Kit
Powered Exoskeleton into one Asset called a
Hardsuit, an experimental prototype being Cost: 3. Specialized.
developed by the Cartel against some kind of After a fight, you may spend Prep to use this. Roll
unspecified threat2. Xander (p. 334) has a 2d6 + Clever vs 10, or vs 12 if you have no
drone that's also a skateboard. relevant Specialty. On a success, you may clear
You can also (optionally, if the GM allows it) one damage box marked during that fight, plus an
combine tags from multiple categories. For extra box for every 3 you succeed by. If you're
example, drones can get an Improved Sensor trying to stabilize a dying ally, Boost your roll.
Package, but guns normally can't. However,
there are radar-guided guns in real life, so Specialized: You get one free use per mission for
you can give a gun that tag if the group every point of Asset Specialty in the First Aid Kit.
agrees it fits the game.

2 Dreamers. It's the Dreamers. We're not

here to play coy.

System 81
 License Shard Card
Cost: 2, plus having your name on a Cost: 2 for Open, 4 for Secure.
government registry. Specialized. A computer tool frequently used by hackers.
H You may possess up to two Restricted Assets or
Its original incarnation was a replacement for the
Augments without getting into trouble, chosen
W office computer. Instead of a PC, each employees'
when you buy the License. Cops may still snatch
I them if they take you in, but they are generally
user session is run on a mainframe server at the
office. Your Shard Card can be plugged into a Wi-Fi
required to give them back (unless the promised
device called a Blade, which streams your user
civil asset forfeiture bill is passed by Unity next year.)
session to an attached monitor and keyboard.
Specialized: You may upgrade your License to This allows employees to easily switch desks,
cover an additional Restricted Asset per Specialty show other people their session, or take their
(max 5). work home with them. Many corporations use
Shard Cards for this reason.
Membership
These days, most PCs have Shard Card drives.
Cost: You have to be invited to be a member.
They're often impractical for personal use, but
It may come with a nominal no-Cash yearly fee.
many hackers use their own personal Shard Cards
You are a member of something exclusive, like a
to remotely access their own rigs. Malicious hackers
club, union, activist group, or the inner circle of a
can modify them to launch evil maid attacks.
political party. Take +1 to all Social rolls if they
relate in some way to your membership. You can An Open Shard Card can be inserted into a
call on the group like you would a community network that isn't normally accessible remotely to
resident (p. 58) once per session. grant a friendly Hacker remote access. These can
be configured for one network during mission
Mobility Aid prep and can be reused if recovered.
Cost: 2. Rad, Specialized.
A Secure Shard Card is tied to a specific user
All characters who need mobility aids have them
session, such as an office worker's session. A
already, but this is a really cool high-end one.
Hacker with a Secure card keyed to a specific
Specialized: You have Advantage to all rolls Network can remotely access that Network from
related to maneuvering, movement, and looking anywhere they want (though opening a session
rad if you have at least one aid-related Specialty. from an unusual location may get noticed later if
the hacker doesn't cover their tracks.) In addition,
Recreational Drugs they can turn Advantage into Boost once per
Cost: 2. Illegal. mission when hacking that Network. These can
Rum, opiates, and the kush. Aside from mitigating not be reused, as compromised accounts usually
the stresses of life, when you suffer Economic get their cards unlinked, but are sometimes found
Shock and have to suffer Disadvantage on all Cool on-site during missions.
or Clever rolls, you may use Negate Disadvantage
An Admin Shard Card instantly grants admin
(p. 51) on those rolls once per mission for free.
access. However, these cannot be used by just any
People will be able to tell you showed up slightly
Blade—they must be inserted directly into the
high or drunk. This can include android drug-soft.
mainframe server. This generally requires a serious
stealth mission into the heart of a sysadmin's lair—
something only the bravest attempt. For some
systems, it might be easier to brute force it.
Admin Cards are priceless. They cannot be
bought; you may need to undertake a mission just
to acquire one.

82
System
Skateboard
Locations

Locations
Cost: 2. Rad, Specialized.
3 A location should be meaningful to the story. It can
This is a skateboard . It's pretty cool.
be a meeting point for your group, a source of
Specialized: You have Advantage to all rolls related mission hooks, or even a focal point of the plot4.
to maneuvering, movement and looking rad if you If multiple characters get location Assets, consider
have at least one skateboard-related Specialty. combining them (p. 81) into one physical location
to avoid splitting focus too much.
Thieving Gear
Cost: 2. Illegal. Safehouse
These tools, ranging from repurposed general gear Cost: 5.
to specialty lockpicks, help you with larceny. When You have an especially out-of-the-way place: a
you try to bypass an obstacle with a Security Level, hidden corner of the station basements, your
you may spend 1 Prep to reroll once. apartment registered under another ID, a
forgotten storage crate on a rooftop, a business's
Vehicle back room you rent under the table, etc. If you
Cost: 3 for small vehicles like scooters manage to get to your hideout undetected, no one
and motorcycles; 4 for larger vehicles can find you unless you want them to.
with more carrying capacity.
If your hideout is ever found, you lose this benefit,
You own, or have access to, a vehicle (you’re
but can spend 2 Cash to set up a new one later.
assumed to know how to drive it.) Most vehicles
on Grand Cross are scooters, bikes, or
Small Local Business
motorcycles; larger vehicles are usually business-
Cost: 7.
related, as individual ownership is discouraged
You operate or own a small business: a corner store, a
unless you're rich (see p. 105).
café, a modest rented office, a handyman business
You can get around Grand Cross without relying on run out of a van, a tabletop gaming studio in your
public transport or your Multipass (making it apartment's back room, etc. It gives you a little splash
harder to electronically track you) in addition to money to throw around. Gain 2 Cash at the beginning
ferrying loads and passengers beyond man- of a mission unless you suffer Economic Shock.
portable limits. Take +1 on any task if your vehicle
can significantly help, such as ramming open a gate Gym
or pretending to be here on business. You also have Cost: 6.
Advantage when chasing or evading someone in You own a gym. This can be a personal room in
your vehicle, so don't be afraid to try cool stunts. your apartment filled with equipment, or a small
business. Twice per mission, you or an ally can take
Verified Account Advantage on a personal Prep roll made by training
Cost: Priceless. You have to become big or or mentally preparing yourself at the gym.
know someone.
A big account on one social media service (probably Workshop
Pulser.) You only get a slap on the wrist for all but the Cost: 7. Specialized.
most egregious actions, it’s hard to block you, and You have a place for repairs and special preparations.
you can fine-tune who gets access to you. This can range from a personal workbench or garage
to a community hobby center. Once per mission, you
Take +1 on all Social actions made online. Once
can take Advantage on a group Prep roll.
per session, when you Embarrass or Threaten
someone online, you have Advantage on your roll. Specialized: You can take Advantage on 1 group
If you roll a critical on that Action—succeed or Prep roll per Specialty you have in your Workshop,
fail—you can claim this bonus again that session. and you can grant the benefits to your allies
instead. Your Workshop Specialty can be used to
repair, modify and make things in it.

3 You can also get similar Assets for

roller skates, sports bikes, etc. They
work the same way.
4 Maybe one day a corporate chain could threaten to
take over your gym, and the next an unhoused kid who
uses his gym membership to shower and charge his
phone needs help. Find ways to get invested in it!

System 83
 Wearables
Assets you wear.

H Badass Headband Keep in mind that you usually can't wear

Cost: Priceless. They must be earned. Rad. two sets of armor at once (or you can, but they
W don’t stack and you’ll just get the wrong kind of
Street Fighter Only.
I Many wannabe headbands exist, but true dedication hot.) You can combine them (p. 81) if you have
good story reason and GM permission.
earns you the baddest of them all. Take +1 to Cool
Defense while wearing a Badass Headband.
Powered Exoskeleton
Combat Armor
Cost: 4. Obvious, Restricted.
Cost: 4. Obvious, Restricted.
This suit was designed for nurses and construction
While wearing this, you may always lower damage
workers. It has only recently begun seeing use by
from enemy attacks by one Damage Track step for
military forces, as their battery life makes it impractical.
free. Take +1 to Tough Defense while wearing it.
You have Advantage on all rolls involving exerting
Imported army surpluses, largely from the USA,
physical strength, such as jumping, climbing,
have ensured local security forces have plenty of
lifting and pushing. If you roll a critical—succeed
access. Wearing this negates the effect of any
or fail—turn all Advantage on this roll into Boost
clothing you wear, such as the Badass Headband
instead. This can turn a failure into a success.
or the Trendy Wardrobe.
Special: If you get into a highly stressful situation
Covert Armor that severely taxes the suit, like a fight or an extended
Cost: 3. chase scene, you must supercharge the exoskeleton
Discreet armor that is layered into and under clothing. (spend 1 Prep) to gain its benefits for that scene. At
Take +1 to Tough Defense while wearing it. Once per the end of the scene, unless you spend another 1
mission, you may reduce damage by one step on your Prep, the battery fails and the suit enters low power
Damage Track for free, but you no longer benefit from mode, granting no benefit until your next session.
this Asset for the rest of the mission if you do.
Special: This can also be bought as an Android or
Full-Body Prosthetic-only Augment. An Augment
Facial Rec Obscurers
variety does not need to spend Prep at the end of a
Cost: 1. Obvious
scene. You can wear this in addition to any armor.
Odd makeup, haircuts, and subtler electronic devices.
The styles these evoke have become fashionable
Rioting Gear
on Grand Cross even when they’re not functional.
Cost: 2. Obvious, Rad.
When you want them to be functional, spend 1 Prep This is a set of gear; you can choose to wear any
before going on a mission. Automated devices can’t number of these in any combination.
recognize you or match you to a database for that
• Gas Mask and Shatter-Resistant Flash
mission, though manual review of footage might.
Goggles: You Boost your saves against
This fashion will give you street cred in bars and make
flashbang and tear gas-style effects.
every security guard follow you in polite society.
• Padded Clothing Layers: +1 Tough Defense.
• Shield: Grenades directed at you or allies
Holographic Projection Armor
behind you are at Disadvantage.
Cost: 4.
AKA "Nerd Armor." HPA is sewn into clothing; it can You can wear them in any combination. None of
distort, project or blur the wearer's image, though these items are Illegal, but the police will act like
it requires concentration and training. When you they are if they get an excuse.
spend 1 Prep to activate it, add your Clever to your
Quick Defense for the rest of the fight. Trendy Wardrobe
Cost: 3. Rad.
After an attack against you is resolved, hit or miss,
In the distant future of 2020, this kind of clothing is
reduce the bonus this grants by 1, to a minimum
called "fly." When you have time to change before a
of 0. You may refresh it to its maximum, one-to-
Social situation, choose a Mood. You have Advantage
one, by spending 1 Prep as part of any action.
on all Social rolls while that Mood applies.

84
System
Programs Hacker Brands

Programs
Some players may wish to describe their Suites and
Assets used by hackers. To run a Program, you Programs in more detail by talking about brand names
need a Hacking Suite Asset. and model numbers. These don't have any mechanical
effects, so all you really need is a name. Here are a few
Hacking Suite example brands and names.
Cost: 3.
A computer, laptop, or cyber-deck packed with Asano (p. 231) doesn't officially make hacking suites,
but they do make computer hardware for habitat
script libraries, software, and saved forum threads. maintenance and drone-mining systems, which
You need one of these to run programs effectively. sometimes gets repurposed into hacking decks.
With a Hacking Suite, you can have 1 Program (Thanks to past family feuds, some hardware was
Asset active at once per Hacking Specialty. designed to be.)
Example Models: Asano M50101 Series, Asano
Data Bomb HyperHab II+, ASANO LSM-440X, Asano DroneStation T2.
Cost: 3. Program, Illegal. Law Zero makes its own hacking software and occasionally
You may spend 1 Prep to activate this during a allows old versions to spread to other androids. The
hack. You gain Advantage on your next three code is made by a cybercrime cell and enhanced by
Hacking rolls in this Network, and if it has an Olivaw (p. 259), who used to work as a Ring tech.
active administrator, they have Disadvantage on Example Software: h0m0ncul1, 2-XL, CH1M3R4, I
their next roll against you. Robot, M4rv-1N.
LEETNet is a large tech forum with a section for pen
Data Miner testers. A lot of hackers have saved threads of useful
Cost: 5. Program, Illegal. advice from here. Some users create (or modify) their
You may spend 2 Prep to activate this during a hack. own software, which eventually finds its way into the
Any time you spend any personal Prep while hands of less ethical hackers.
hacking this network (including when you activate Example Software: Closure's Drone Suite v2, Ghost
Data Miner), roll 1d6. On a 5+, gain 1 personal Prep. Addon for CrossShark, Illithid.zip (SEE README FIRST),
Jim's Hacking.
Special: If something else provides a similar
Thread Titles: Vegetaboruto's Basic Guide To
effect (e.g. the Soldier Talent “On-Site Computer Security, No Puns Please: The Pentest
Procurement”), take +1 to your 1d6 roll for each Thread Compendium, Is Multivac A Libertarian?,
extra effect. Zoraya's Coding Tips.
DEATHPIZZA is an anonymous hacker (or possibly a
Ghost Protocols collective) who periodically releases custom-made
Cost: 3. Program, Illegal. hacking software online in hopes that someone will
You may spend 1 Prep when you begin a hack to screw over a corporation with it. Powerful effects,
gain 1 additional chance on your Ghost and Boost intentionally terrible UI aesthetics.
your first Hacking action made within the Example Software: DOCTOR_WORM, HAPPY FUN
network. BALL, KILL_ALL_NERDS.EXE, GIANT_GAY_HEDGEHOG,
PEPPERONI_PARADISE.
Memory Worm Tetsuo (p. 241) makes consumer electronics; a lot of
Cost: 3. Program, Illegal. hackers swear by their hardware. Their software is
You may spend 1-2 Prep to activate this during a intended for cyborg/android maintenance and
internal security purposes only.
hack. Until your Ghost is gone, reduce the
Network’s effective Level by 1 per 1 Prep spent, to Example Models: Tetsuo Logos 2200, Tetsuo Solaris
a maximum of 2 Levels. 780HD, Tetsuo Overdrive, Tetsuo Cyberspace Seven.
Example Software: Tetsuo Crow 2.1, Hakutaku Script
Subversion Subroutine Library 4.0, Tetsuo Crashtest Advance 1.06.
Cost: 2. Program, Critical, Illegal. Zinovy (p. 242) makes hacking tools for internal testing
You may activate this when you begin a hack. The use, but rumor has it that they sell them to the Cartel as
first time you roll a critical while hacking— well. A few of their tools have been cracked and adapted.
succeed or fail—gain 1 personal Prep. You must Example Software: Zinovy "Meduza", Zinovy
spend the Prep on a hack on the same network or "Sinyushka", Zinovy Test Suite 2016.
it is lost. When you activate this Program, you
lose 1 chance on your Ghost.

System 85
 Drone Tags
Drones Automated: This drone can take pre-programmed
Drones are treated as one customizable Asset.
instructions and perform them independently,
H even beyond the visual range of the operator.
Drone They cannot handle complex or changing
W
Cost: 3. Add 1-3 tags for +2 Cost each. situations without an operator, however.
I A Drone is a remote-controlled machine, often
Cargo Delivery: This drone can store, grab, and
flight-capable, that is designed for a specific task.
release small packages and handheld items.
The most obvious one to the modern corporate
mind is surveillance, but the public loves them for Flight: The drone can fly, usually by means of a
professional and hobbyist camera work, home quad-rotor system. It functions in low gravity
delivery of small items, and even for pure sport (e.g. the Moon) but not in vacuum.
flight via VR controls. LED and neon-lit drone races
Hardpoint: This drone has a space where an Asset
are a common feature of the Grand Cross skyline
can be attached, such as a First Aid Kit or
in the evening.
grenades. Anything can be attached, provided
Drones start with 3 Health and 1 Drone tag. You may the GM agrees it makes sense. The drone can use
buy additional tags for 2 Cash each, up to 3 total. Each the Asset with a pilot's direction, following the
tag can only be chosen once unless stated otherwise. normal rules for using it. The Asset can be
switched out during downtime.
Drones must be actively controlled by their
operator with the Pilot action (see below) and Improved Recording: All drones have basic
cannot be controlled outside the operator's visual sensors; this tag improves them. This drone can
range unless they have the Automated tag or have record high-quality photos, videos and audio,
tags that include enhanced cameras. Drones use 7 with optional night vision, motion tracking, and
for all Defenses, but use their operator's Defenses thermal vision components. This also allows you
if they're being actively controlled. to operate the drone beyond visual range.
You cannot spend Prep on your drone's actions, or Loudspeaker: This drone can play audio, including
to reduce damage it takes. You can only spend Prep loud noises. Copyrighted music in public spaces
to activate Assets it is equipped with (see below). may get it shot down by police with a drone gun.
Onboard Piloting Camera System: This drone has a
Pilot
panoramic camera and VR/holographic headset
When you use this action, you command your
control (it can also be connected to cybernetic
drone to perform an action for you. It acts
eyes.) This system allows the drone to operate
immediately. Use the most relevant Specialty; if
beyond visual range. If you take no other action
the focus of the action is your piloting skills or use
while piloting a drone, take +1 to your Drone rolls.
of its tags, use your Drone Specialty. You cannot
spend Prep on your drone's actions, or to reduce Sport: This drone is extremely maneuverable, light,
the damage it takes. You may spend Prep to use and fast, even for a drone. It has Advantage on all
any on-board Asset it is equipped with. rolls involving aerial maneuvers, getting somewhere
quickly, chases, and similar tasks. Often comes with
In a fight, attack rolls made with your drone use
cool LED light strips and sports stripes.
your Drone Specialty. Melee attacks can only mark
box 1 on the Damage Track regardless of your roll, Cell Network Surveillance (Illegal): This drone can
unless the drone has a melee weapon attached. monitor cellular phone networks and towers for
Drones cannot use the Grab action. traffic information, including data sent and
received by individual cell phones. Only the police
If you have the Personal Drone Talent, and you
and Grand Cross Gendarmerie can use this legally.
and your drone are in the same fight, you can use
Pilot in addition to another action. If you both Passive Surveillance (Illegal): This drone records
make an attack roll in the same turn, both are audiovisual data and Wi-Fi use from nearby
made at Disadvantage. You have to decide who is electronics and transfers all acquired
attacking before rolling. information to a remote server for later sale (or
use). The Cartel uses this for data harvesting,
and the police use them for illegal surveillance.
Private individuals cannot use this.

86
System
Operator Tags Target Assist: The drone has a laser pointer or

Drones
Characters with the Personal Drone Talent (p. 68) other guidance system. As an action on your
have access to additional tags. turn, this drone can target an opponent during a
fight to grant Advantage to the first ranged
Additional Hardpoint: This follows all the normal
attack made against them. It does not make an
rules for an Asset Hardpoint, except it can be
attack as part of this action. Only one opponent
taken more than once.
can be targeted at a time.
Armored: This drone can take an additional 2
This feature comes with Wi-Fi dongles, goggle
damage before being destroyed.
add-ons, apps, and other things that friendly
Fine Manipulation: This drone has an arm or other characters can use to get the benefits, as required.
manipulator that can be used for fine tasks, such
ECM Hardening (Restricted): This drone is
as inserting and removing USB keys, typing on a
immune to ECM-based attacks, like drone guns.
keyboard, and lockpicking. These tasks use the
Originally intended for Station Security and
pilot’s most relevant Specialty as applicable.
military hardware.
Smart (replaces Automated): This functions like
Improved Sensor Package (Illegal): This drone has
Automated, but the drone can react to complex
military-grade sensors like laser microphones,
and changing situations as if it were actively
LIDAR, and radar. It can effectively listen to
controlled. If it has a speaker it can talk like a
conversations through windows and see shapes
person, though it only has weak AI.
through walls. (This isn't full HD color vision: you
A Smart drone can perform one action see shapes, or thermal images. Some walls and
independently during its operator’s turn if it windows can also be treated to defeat this type of
hasn't been actively controlled. It has an system.) You are definitely not allowed to have this.
effective Drone Specialty of +0.
Stealthy (Illegal): This drone cannot be detected
Space Shell: This drone is spaceworthy. Comes with by normal electronic means (like radar and cell
a built-in RCS system for attitude control and network triangulation.) For the military and
propulsion. Use inside the station is Restricted. Station Security only.

Custom Tags
Police Drones Your group can create their own tags. For example,
The basic police drone is the Prawn, a Tetsuo-
made drone with the Cargo Delivery, Flight, if you want to converse with people through a
and Loudspeaker tags. drone and aren't satisfied with voice only, you
could create a tag that adds a holographic projector
The police have a variant called the King
Prawn, which they usually reserve for serious or flat-panel screen, plus a speaker (but not a loud
investigations and anti-police protests. It has one, to avoid supplanting Loudspeaker.)
the Automated, Flight, and Passive Surveillance
tags. The King Prawn passively captures data If the tag seems too complicated for the average
at all times and uploads it to a central police person, too illegal for a corporation to casually get
server where it's cross-referenced with police away with, or too specialized for commercial
networks. This is illegal even for the police, operation, it's an Operator tag.
but they don't tell anyone, so they've gotten
away with it so far.
All Prawns have a unique feature: if a hack is
detected, they self-destruct several key Wi-Fi
components and attempt to return to base if
possible.
A PC can acquire a jailbroken Prawn or King
Prawn for 7 Cash as normal, but they are
Illegal for non-cops. King Prawns can have a Illegal Tags
fourth tag (Cell Network Surveillance) for +2 Illegal tags can only be repaired with
Cash, but then they cannot be disguised as Restricted drone parts, which only police and
anything other than a King Prawn. private security can buy.

System 87
 Weapons
For when things go south.
Like Drones, weapons are defined by their tags. Aside from the standard Asset tags on p. 80, they have a few
H of their own unique tags. All weapons have one of these two tags:
W Melee: This weapon can make melee attacks. Ranged: This weapon can make ranged attacks.
I
Guns GUN TAGS
Guns are rare and tightly controlled on Grand Cross All guns have the Ammo tag. Additional tags can be
(p. 119); they're only available at all because purchased as addons for 2 Cash each.
corporations want to make money selling them.
Ammo: After any scene in which this weapon is used,
Like Drones, all guns start with a base Asset:
it must be reloaded by spending 1 Prep or become
Gun useless for the rest of the session. (Guns can always
Cost: 3. Ranged, Critical, Ammo, Restricted. be used as a Melee weapon with no tags, though.)
When you get a gun, add a Brand tag to it. You may
Automatic or Shotgun: At short ranges, this gun
also add a Gun tag. On a critical, the target marks 1
can attack multiple opponents at once—three to
higher box on the Damage Track than normal.
five people if they're clustered together. This
also opens up options for the Distract and
BRAND TAGS
Flush Out actions.
All guns have a tag representing their creator:
Biometric Safety: The pros are this gun can only be
Ogremoch: Ogremoch guns take many types of
used by you. The cons are it’s easy to prove it’s
ammo via a revolutionary self-adjusting
yours. This only functions on organic human hands.
chamber and barrel mechanism. You may reload
an Ogremoch gun once per mission for free. Sniping (Illegal): This gun can attack across long
distances with preparation and aiming (at least 2
Omnidyne: Omnidyne weapons have sleek, classic
actions spent doing nothing else.) It is too
designs with no gimmicks. They are popular with
unwieldy to use in mid- to close-range fights.
gun nerds. Once per scene, so long as the Mood
is Friendly, you may mention to a gun enthusiast Suppressor: This gun is quieter than normal. It
that you own an Omnidyne gun to take +1 to won't immediately alert people in public, and
your next Social Action against them. doesn't break Stealth—though there's still
sound.
Tetsuo: Tetsuo weapons have Wi-Fi and come with
a targeting app. So long as you have cybernetic Switchable Magazine: You can have two types of
eyes or goggles with a HUD, the first time you fail ammo (p. 89) in your gun at once, and switch
an attack roll with a Tetsuo gun during a fight, between them as part of your attack actions. Can
you may reroll it. The app that comes with it is be advanced tech or duct tape. You must spend
easy to jailbreak, sucks, and grants no bonus. Prep to reload each type of Ammo separately.
Zinovy Ultragraphics: Zinovy is getting into 3D
printing lately, and they don't sell guns so much as
a license. If you lose or ditch your weapon, you can
use your phone to request a new copy from any
Zinovy 3D printing facility or print a new one at Example Gun
home (using a Zinovy-brand resin cartridge). They Mira needs a new gun. She already has a
License, so she can do it legally. She buys one
biodegrade after a set period, so refresh regularly. for 3 Cash. It comes with a brand, so she
chooses Ogremoch. She also buys the Silencer
For other brands, you may come up with addon—it doesn't come with that, so she
other tags or rebrand existing ones. Most spends 2 Cash. It now has the Ranged, Critical,
Earth-based brands have the same effect as the Ammo, Restricted, Ogremoch and Silenced tags.
Omnidyne tag, because gun enthusiasts are
impressed by your extra effort at consumer Later, she buys AP rounds to add the Armor-
culture. Piercing tag, for another 2 Cash.

88
System
SPECIAL AMMO Stun: Damage boxes marked by this weapon are

Weapons
Special Ammo for your gun can be purchased Stunned. A Stunned box doubles the penalty from
separately, for 2 Cash each. When you reload your that damage box, if applicable, until cleared6.
gun, you may load your Special Ammo instead of Stunned boxes clear at the end of a fight. (For tasers,
basic ammo. As an action, you can spend 1 Prep to electric batons, prods, live electric wires, etc.)
load in a new type of Special Ammo.
Big: This weapon is both Sharp and Hefty, but
Armor-Piercing: On a critical against an armored needs two hands to wield and becomes
target, the target must mark a damage box on Obvious. (Why would you bring a Scottish
the Damage Track 2 higher than normal instead claymore to a space station?)
of 1. Against an unarmored target, this gun loses
its critical effects. Unarmed Attacks
Unarmed attacks have no Type tag. If you're not
Hollowpoint: Against unarmored or soft targets a trained martial artist, you might hurt yourself
(humans, small/commercial drones, standard depending on what you're hitting.
androids,) treat your roll as if it were 2 higher for
the purposes of damage only. Against armored Example Weapon
or reinforced targets, treat it as -2 lower instead Fia uses a sturdy, high-grade shovel as part of
and this gun loses its critical effects. her work. When used as a weapon, it has the
Melee and Big tags. Note that it’s not always
inappropriate to be carrying it just because it’s
Melee Weapons Obvious: use your judgment!
For when you want your guilt to feel more up-close
and personal.
Grenades
Melee Weapon Look, I’ll level with you: if you are at the point
Cost: 0 for improvised/repurposed weapons, where you’re the one tossing the tear gas grenades,
2 if it’s designed to be a weapon. Melee. it’s time to question some of your choices. Anyway,
All melee weapons have one Type tag (see below), here are grenades.
chosen when you take it.
Grenades
Special: If your melee weapon doesn't have the
Cost: 4. Ranged, Illegal.
Big or Stun tags, you can make it a Ranged
All Grenades have one Type tag (see below),
weapon for 1 attack roll by throwing it. You lose it
chosen when you take it.
until (or unless) you pick it up again.
Grenades always cost 1 Prep to use. Grenades can
TYPE TAGS attack multiple opponents at once—3 to 5 people
Different types of weapons have different effects5. if they're clustered together. This also opens up
options for the Distract and Flush Out actions.
Hefty: This weapon gets the Critical tag. On a
Some Grenades may have an effect even if they
critical success, you knock your target flat. They
don't directly hit.
may lose their held weapon, fall prone, drop out
of cover or from a high place, get the wind
TYPE TAGS
knocked out of them, or another consequence
Flashbang: This grenade deals no damage. Instead,
the GM deems fit. (For clubs, hammers, pipes,
targets hit must make a Quick save vs the Attack
shovels, chains, knuckle dusters, etc.)
roll. On a failure, the target becomes Disoriented
Sharp: This weapon gets the Critical tag. On a until they can make a Cool save vs 10 at the end
critical success, the target marks 1 higher damage of their turn. Disoriented targets have
box than normal. (For swords, knives, spikes, etc.) Disadvantage on attacks and Saves, and cannot
see or hear while Disoriented. Protection (p. 84)
Boosts these saves.

5 These aren't meant to restrict the things

you can do, so be creative! Normally you
can't grab someone without using your
6 If you're running a simple opponent (p. 322)
and they get hit with a Stun attack after
losing half their Health, you can just
hands, but if the group thinks it'd make treat them as incapacitated.
sense to use a chain to do it, go with it!

System 89
 Frag: This grenade gets the Critical tag. On a critical, Edge Case Weapons
the target marks 1 higher damage box than Examples of weapons that are a bit weird7.
normal. Failed attack rolls are always treated as a
H hit that exactly matches your opponents’ Nailgun
Defense—unless you roll a critical failure. If used Cost: 0, or 2 if you actually want to buy
W
in an enclosed space, treat all hits as critical. one for some reason.
I Ranged.
High Explosive: If you throw this grenade directly
An improvised ranged weapon, made by clamping
at a target and hit, the target marks 1 higher
down the safety that would prevent you from
damage box than normal, and any other targets
shooting nails at people. This also covers rivet
caught in the blast mark the lowest remaining
guns and similar. It has no other special qualities.
damage box as Stunned (p. 89). If used in an
enclosed space, every target is directly hit.
Pepper Spray
Smoke: You don't make attacks with this grenade. Cost: 2. Melee, Tear Gas.
Instead, it creates dense smoke that prevents A bottle of aerosol self-defense spray. It deals no
visibility in the area—perfect for enabling damage. Instead, targets hit must make a Tough
stealth, running away, preventing ranged save vs the Attack roll. On a failure, they take -2 on
attacks, and so on. You have Advantage on any all rolls until they make a Tough save vs the
action that conceivably benefits from smoke. original Attack roll at the end of your turn.
On a success, they take -1 instead. Protection
Tear Gas: This grenade deals no damage. Instead,
(p. 84) or access to medical aid Boosts both saves.
targets hit must make a Tough save vs the Attack
roll. On a failure, they take -2 on all rolls until
Sticky Shocker
they make a Tough save vs the original Attack
Cost: 4. Ranged, Stun, Ammo
roll at the end of your turn. On a success, they
This is a gun that fires Stun (p. 89) projectiles.
take -1 instead. Protection (p. 84) or access to
They’re not in common use even by law
medical aid Boosts both saves, and targets can
enforcement, so their origin is something of a
also recover by getting out of the gas for a while
mystery. The ammo is unique, making this weapon
to recuperate. If used in an enclosed space, all
expensive. This can also represent a tranquilizer gun,
targets have Disadvantage on all saves against
which isn’t easy to get human-compatible ammo for
this grenade.
(and doesn’t work on androids or drones).
Grenade Launcher This weapon is not Illegal, but they’re so rare that
Cost: 3, or 5 for a rocket launcher. Acquiring one is as hard as if it were.
Ranged, Illegal
This weapon is designed to shoot grenades rather
than throw them. It lets you justify using grenades
Making New Weapons
If the situation calls for it, you can create your
from further away than your throwing distance; it own weapon tags. Try to model it off an existing
doesn't change how they work otherwise. It can tag, or at least make it of equal power as the
be its own gun or a tactical attachment to a rifle or existing tags.
shotgun. Grenades must be bought separately. For example, say Jupiter is attacked by a
Dreamer (p. 300) in a factory and grabs a
You can also use it to functionally represent a blowtorch as an improvised weapon. The GM
rocket launcher (with purchased "grenades" you comes up with a Torch tag: the weapon gains
can’t throw.) the Critical tag, and on a critical success, it
Burns the damage box marked on the Damage
Track. Burned boxes cannot be cleared during
a mission, even if it's a minor injury.

7 There are no rules for poisons. Poisons are

generally too slow-acting to matter during
the average fight, and not even the Cartel
makes poison weaponry; they don't want to
get sued for poisoning people, especially
not when they can dismantle environmental
regulations and do it legally.

90
System
 Cybernetic Augments
Cybernetic Augments
"The American physician Hermann Biggs once said, 'The human body is the only machine for which
there are no spare parts.' Tetsuo is proud to announce that we have proven him wrong."
– Kanemasa Gou, investor presentation, 2011

Cybernetic augmentation is a part of life on Grand Cosmetic Augments

Cross. Here's how they work. For more about Purely cosmetic Augments don't really have an
cybernetics in the setting, see p. 120. associated Burden cost. They don't have any
mechanical weight, so there's no reason to pay a
cost for them. Your character is probably paying for
Starting Out them, but they're common and simple enough that
Any character may start with one or more the costs aren't worth tracking.
Augments. The main limit is that you can't end up
This includes simple appearance mods like cat ears
with more parts than you started with: only two eyes,
and subdermal lights, but also larger things like
two arms, and so on. The exception is a tail; turns out
cybernetic limbs, if they don't give any bonuses. A
the human brain can adapt to having one of those.
simple, mostly-plastic cybernetic arm that
The other limit is that unless stated otherwise, approximates human function and has no other
Augments increase your Burden (p. 53). benefits does not need a Burden cost.
You may include them when describing your
How It Works Burden or the effects of Economic Shocks, though
(struggling with things you shouldn't have to
Cybernetics are designed with the needs of the
struggle for is the point of those mechanics.)
person in mind. Every single one is, on some level, a
custom piece adjusted for a specific individual and
Medical Augments
their needs, except when they're adjusted for the
Purely medical Augments work like cosmetic
needs of their job, or when a different one would
Augments, for the same reason: they have no
cost their employer less money, or their health care
mechanical effects, so there's no reason to add a cost
plan doesn't cover it, or it’s a second-hand item, or
to them. In-game, they're generally either covered by
the company re-uses an old part without telling
the station's health system or are easy to pay for.
them, or the augmentation was overseen by a male
doctor who noticed the patient was a woman and These include smaller or internal Augments like
decided they knew better, or someone involved in immune system boosters and HRT regulators, as
the process was a bigot, or the designer didn't feel well as larger things like cyber-hearts and simple
like it, or the government introduced new budget cybernetic limbs. If you get cybernetic hands to
cuts, or it's 4:50PM on a Friday. avoid carpal tunnel but they don't do anything
special, they're free; if you get hands that improve
Other than that, wherever possible, it's designed
your Hacking Specialty, then it'll cost you.
for their needs.
Augments must be installed by trained doctors.
Most of the work involves fitting nerve connectors
and supports on the body; once the actual Augment
is fabricated, connecting it is relatively easy.
Afterward, the parts not directly connected to the
body can be maintained by engineers.

System 91
 Androids and Cybernetics Appearance
As mechanical beings, androids are easier to Augments that replace visible parts of the body are
augment than humans. The Android Origin (see Obvious—unless you're an android.
H Origins, p. 26) allows them to start with one
If you want to remove the Obvious tag, you can get
Augment without increasing their Burden; further
W Augments that are near-identical to the replaced
Augments increase their Burden as normal.
I parts, with synthetic skin or special plastics where
They can also switch between their Augments easier necessary. This is a custom sculpting and design
than humans. An android who can afford multiple sets job, treated as a separate Asset with Cost 5. Illegal
of cyber-eyes could, in theory, carry them around in a Augments are usually non-Obvious.
special eye case and swap them in and out as needed.
However, it takes time for them to disconnect, Example Cyborg
reconnect, adjust settings, and reacclimate; they Maka is an ex-cop. She received a cybernetic eye
certainly couldn't do it in the middle of an action on the job, then got kicked out for accidentally
sequence. (Also, people will think it's creepy.) leaving the built-in camera on.
Her eye is fitted with a simple scanner that can,
Full-Body Prosthetics in theory, read barcodes, license plates, retinas,
The technology required to build androids also faces, and more. She no longer has access to the
official police database and she's not super
advanced the field of cybernetics enough to allow for comfortable with the face thing, but its
almost fully artificial bodies, referred to medically as remaining functions (and a little creativity) give
full-body prosthetics. People with full-body her +1 Investigation.
prosthetics are fully cybernetic, except for their brain. As part of its functions, she's able to take silent
Full-body prosthetics are usually installed after serious videos or pictures (though she lacks the storage
space to record constantly.) Also, since the eye
accidents and diseases, especially when the recipient was designed for cops, she may be able to justify
had an employer who could be sued otherwise. This is Bullshitting people into thinking she's law
an evolving field, so some people are offered the enforcement when necessary.
procedure for scientific research purposes.
Although they are marvels of modern science, the Creating Mods
procedure is not undertaken lightly, even to save You can create your own mods, for yourself or for a
lives. Some people suffer dysphoria, disassociation, friend. This requires an appropriate Specialty (e.g.
Augmetics) and a Clever + Specialty vs 10 roll.
and similar ailments. It's not uncommon for full-
body cyborgs to feel emotionally distant from other You reduce the cost by 1 for each 3 points you
people, or even feel like they lack identity at all; surpass 10 by, to a minimum of 0. This takes as
much time as Acquiring an Asset.
these cyborgs often find themselves in marginalized
spaces where they bond with people who If you can’t pay the Cost after rolling, or critically
understand and empathize with their condition. fail, the augment instead stops functioning
properly until the next session—it still works, but
Of course, other cyborgs love it. It's all a matter of bonus Specialties and anything beyond normal
perspective. human function does not.

A human who has undergone the full-body

prosthetic procedure may use Augments the same
way Androids do, keeping extra augments as Assets
and exchanging them freely (see p. 26-28).

92
System
Mod Tags Common

Common Augments
Some cyborgs get their cybernetics modified after
installation. Grand Cross has a few licensed shops Augments
that will do this—usually android repair shops—and These are Augments you’ll most likely find in daily
some unlicensed people that offer their services life, making up 95% of all commercial Augments on
under the table. Grand Cross. All are Cost 3.
For 2 Cash, you can choose a Mod Tag for your
Specialized Augments
Augments. An Augment can have multiple mods.
The most basic form of Augment, and by far the
ECM-Hardened: This mod hardens your most common among the station's working and
cybernetics against disabling attacks, middle classes. This Augment covers a huge
specifically electromagnetic attacks like drone variety of designs and brands. Add +1 to one
guns (p. 81). If the police spot your hardened chosen Generic Specialty, up to the normal
Augments, they may assume you are attempting maximum of +3.
to defend against their illegal use of drone guns
for crowd control and become Hostile. Athletic Legs
Legs were one of the first types of prosthetic to
Jailbroken: This mod voids your warranty but
become a proper Augment, and the modern
prevents corporate interests from tracking your
versions can surpass biological limitations. Couriers
Augment repairs or harvesting your data. Some
face significant pressure to get these on the job, but
Augments may have additional effects when
their average career lasts roughly two years.
jailbroken. The service itself is Illegal, but having
a jailbroken Augment is not. This Augment replaces both legs. You have
Advantage on all rolls to run, jump, do parkour,
Overclocked: This mod can be applied to any
and similar feats. Never apply this to attack rolls,
Augment that has limited uses or costs Prep to
even if you make one as part of a move.
activate. It grants 1 extra use per session/mission
or makes the first activation each session cost 1
Cyber-eyes
less Prep, whichever is relevant.
These eyes can see beyond the visible human
Rad: This mod changes the cosmetic appearance of spectrum, zoom and enhance, see in low light,
the Augment to look cooler (e.g. clear colored and even play back video, play VR games, or open
plastic, cool spikes, etc.) This only costs 1 Cash, internet browsers. A variety of Assets, such as Wi-
but it's free if you have access to a 3D printer. Fi-capable guns and VR-piloted drones, can
connect directly into Cyber-eyes.
Installing Augments These eyes allow you to justify noticing things that
Getting a new Augment (not just replacing an old
normal people can't (though nothing too privacy-
one) is a complicated process. Generally, getting
invading, like seeing people through walls.) You
augmented and recovering enough to return to
can get the ability to record and share what you
your normal life takes about as long as it would to
see for another 1 Cash, but the purchase gets
recover from an injury (p. 47). Fully acclimating
registered and some cops in your area might
may take longer—after being augmented, consider
suddenly start recognizing your face.
describing some of your failed rolls as trouble
adjusting. A popular brand is the ‘"LMJ eyes," the proceeds
of which go to a Cartel-operated "Cyberneurosis
Awareness Fund" whose goal is to get
cyberneurosis recognized as a medical condition.
Special: If you jailbreak this Augment, you can
selectively disable the Wi-Fi components and
directly connect to relevant Assets with wires
instead, preventing remote hacking (although
good luck connecting a wire to a drone.)

System 93
 Cyber-heart Medical Augments
Human Only Medical Augments function as described on p. 91.
Most people who get this already needed heart Some other Augments note that they have
H transplants, but their effectiveness is undeniable. medical versions; these versions are free but give
They include regulators and additional blood no mechanical benefits.
W
filtration for any stressful situation, tweaked for
I your social or physical stress needs. Choose one: Mood Detector
+1 to all Cool Saves, or +1 to all Tough Saves. Subdermal and eye sensors loaded with analysis
You can buy this Augment a second time to receive software that compiles facial expression, body
both benefits for the one heart. language, temperature, and even heartbeats that
can help detect and analyze people's moods.
Friendly Design Though software struggles to do this reliably, it's
Android or Full-Body Prosthetic Only proven a success with people who have difficulty
Your body has been upgraded with aftermarket navigating social situations.
parts to be especially pleasant, elegant, and with
On your first critical success on any Social roll
any flaws easily overlooked, like any other
against a person, you can ask what the other
appliance. Once per mission, you may reroll a
person’s current emotional state is. You will get a true
critical failure on any Social or Stealth roll.
answer. This works once per mission, per person.
Hidden Compartment Special: If you Jailbreak this Augment and the
Any Augment can have hollows in them to hide target is human, you can also detect their internal
objects from casual inspection. These Augments, Augments, if any. You don’t automatically know
always built into other Augments, go further. what they are, but you at least have a rough idea
Hand-held Assets (that make sense) are of location.
undetectable to scanners and detectors when
hidden in this compartment. The compartment Sensory Filter
can also be cooled, to keep drinks in. It takes an These eye implants were originally designed to
Action to open and retrieve an Asset from the help with hypersensitivity issues but go far beyond
compartment. that today. They can be built into cyber-eyes or
implanted into the ocular nerve and ear canal.
Special: You can choose to make this
compartment fit a specific item instead, such as a With this Augment, you cannot be adversely
weapon (razors hidden under fingernails are oddly affected by sudden flashes of light and loud
popular), cigars, or data sticks. You can retrieve noises, including Flashbang grenades, and your
this hidden item instantly. eyes adjust to changing light immediately. You can
also filter out bad smells, though chemicals
Integrated Asset designed to irritate your senses like Tear Gas still
Choose an Asset. It is integrated into a limb of work. As a side effect, the filters sharpen the
your choice, at no additional Cost. You can senses. Take +1 on all rolls to notice something
integrate anything that makes sense, such as a unusual or hidden.
First Aid Kit (p. 81), a Drone Gun (p. 81), or
Thieving Gear (p. 83). Gain +1 to a Generic
Specialty related to the use of that Asset. If it is a
Specialized Asset, gain an Asset Specialty instead.

94
System
"Smart" Body System Stomach

Common Augments
You’ve heard of smart homes, now get ready for Android or Full-Body Prosthetic Only
the Tetsuo Smart Body! It can precisely control all You can ingest human food, to take part in
your Augments, monitor and adjust your internals socialization. This comes with taste and olfactory
and blood levels, and put it all in a convenient receptors which reportedly come close to human
app. All it takes is installing a Wi-Fi hot spot inside ones, plus a readout in your eye of your food’s
you and signing this fifty-page license agreement! composition. You can dispose of the undigested
food later or, if you remembered to drink stomach
With this Augment, you can act as a Wi-Fi hotspot.
cleaner first, take it out and serve it to someone
All attempts to use medicine or First Aid on you for
else (that's weird, though).
any reason have Advantage.
This has the unintended secondary effect that you
Special: Don’t get this unless you Jailbreak it. You
can harmlessly taste non-food items to chemically
can, but don't. If you do Jailbreak it, you can turn
analyze them, including medicines, liquids, and
the Wi-Fi off, which you should do permanently. If
poisons. You can even taste gases and analyze
you Jailbreak this Augment, your biological data
blood. If you can't identify the substance
is instead sent to your phone (via skin contact) or
immediately, you and your allies take +1 on all
displayed somewhere visible, and your location
future rolls to figure out what it is.
data isn't sent anywhere.
Work-Enhancing Suites
Spacer Build
This is a catch-all term for a variety of specialized
Android or Full-Body Prosthetic Only
Augments designed for workers. It covers dozens
You can’t buy this Augment from just any store: it’s
of brands, hundreds of off-the-shelf and custom
a street design passed down from the Builders
designs, and every manufacturer.
who modified their own bodies to survive the
stresses of construction work, found mostly in Choose one Generic Specialty. When you're not in
side-street repair shops. Once per Mission, for one danger or in a hurry, you may reroll any roll using
action, you may ignore the effects of all your that Generic Specialty, once per session.
marked damage boxes without spending Prep.
Special: Due to manufacturer incompatibility,
software licensing and so on, you may normally
Spring Legs
only take this Augment once. If you Jailbreak it,
Spring Legs were originally a hacked variant of
you may choose another, for a total of 2. The
commercial athletic legs, designed for low-gravity
second will also be Jailbroken.
sports. These days they're mostly created by
smaller designer companies.
Spring Legs Boost all rolls relating to running, or
jumping high or long distances. On a critical—
succeed or fail—the user must make a Quick save
vs 7 or mark damage box 1 as they crash hard.
Never apply this to attack rolls, even if you make
one as part of a move.
Special: These can also come as an Asset, in shoe
form. The Quick save for these is vs 10.

System 95
 Restricted and Illegal Augments
These Augments have Cost 4, for their relative rarity, unique design needs, or cutting-edge (and
H therefore not fully tested) nature.
W
Chronological Perception Cortical Implant
I Dilator Human Only
Restricted This cutting-edge brain implant was designed to
Another cutting-edge brain implant which affects assist with neurological symptoms, ranging from
how human brains perceive time. Users can epilepsy to Alzheimer's. Then someone managed
perceive it slower, gaining the appearance of to overclock it, and now rich tech people are
improved reaction time and delayed pain turning it into a self-improvement mod. (Any long-
response. Aside from the unknown long-term term effects of sticking new technology in your
effects, it has also led to car accidents, circadian brain are your problem.)
rhythm disruptions and aggravation of injuries.
Choose one: +1 to all Clever saves, or +1 to all
You may spend 1 Prep to take +1 to either Quick
Quick saves. (You can buy this again and choose
Defense or Tough Defense for one scene, chosen
both.) Interface issues have so far prevented the
when you get the Augment. Do not unmark Minor
overclocked variety from being useful to androids
Injuries at the end of any scene where this
and patients with full-body prosthetics, but the
Augment was activated. (You can buy this again
medical benefits still apply.
and choose both.)
Emotion Amplifier
Combat Augments
Illegal
Illegal
This Augment is a hack of a medical implant
These Augments are Restricted to current and
meant to enhance hormone production and
former military or security personnel and are
uptake in patients. It enhances the extremes of
Illegal to others. Most are manufactured by
your emotional highs and lows. To be fair, it was
Ogremoch and Omnidyne, though Tetsuo has
mostly intended to let you get high easier, but to
made inroads lately.
be real, a high percentage of users get hurt
Add +1 to one chosen Specialty, up to the normal because of it, and quite a few suffer long-term
maximum of +3. (Unlike Specialized Augments, complications and trauma.
these can be any Specialty.) Common examples
At the start of a fight or other stressful situation,
include subdermal armor and reflex enhancers.
you may spend 1 Prep to gain Advantage on all
Special: Due to strain on your system, you may rolls except saves during that situation—and
only have one Combat Augment unless you’re an Disadvantage on all saves.
android or have a full-body prosthetic.
If you critically fail any roll while this Augment is
active, your implant overloads, the effect ends, and
Combat Injector
you crash. Mark your lowest unmarked damage box
Restricted
on your Damage Track as Crashed. While you are
A military implant that injects psychoactive drugs
Crashed, you suffer Disadvantage on all rolls.
directly into a soldier’s bloodstream on command,
often found among retired post-Impact veterans
Emotion Suppressor
who "forgot" to have it disabled. Examples of drug
Restricted
effects include suppressing hunger, increasing
This Augment suppresses emotional extremes: fear,
alertness and wakefulness, suppressing fear,
empathy, the fight-or-flight response, aggression
reducing empathy, and heightening reflexes. You
and so on. This is meant to be a medical treatment
may spend 1 Prep at the beginning of a fight to
for extreme mood swings, so may cause extreme
take +1 to all saves during that fight.
antisocial behaviors with improper use.
Take +1 to either Cool Defense or Clever Defense,
chosen when you get the Augment. This is not a
Specialty. (You can buy this again and choose both.)

96
System
Heavy Armor Frame Surveillance Suite

Restricted and Illegal Augments

Restricted, Android or Full-Body Illegal
Prosthetic Only A set of surveillance implants, sometimes
You are sturdily constructed. Against enemy sardonically called "spyware" in the business world.
attacks, you may always reduce damage by 1 This can include cell network triangulation, laser
step on your Damage Track for free. microphones, LIDAR, radar, or other such things.
Take +1 Tough Defense. This does not stack with
With this Augment and time to prepare, you can see
Combat or Covert Armor, but isn’t as Obvious.
through walls and listen through closed
windows. (This isn't full HD color vision: you see
Nootropic Injector
shapes or thermal images. Some walls and windows
Illegal, Human Only
can also be treated to defeat this type of system.)
A variant of the Combat Injector. This one is Illegal
largely because many users tend to use non- Special: This Augment is always Illegal. No license
approved medicines to improve performance and can cover or explain owning this.
reduce sleep. The use of this implant is also
designed to be long-term rather than momentary,
with no studies having been done with regards to
side effects. Common among wealthy people in the
tech industry, who rarely get in trouble for having it.
When rolling Prep for a mission, you count as
having 1 extra day to prepare, and may use 1
New Augments and
Generic Specialty twice. If you suffer Economic
Assets
Shock, you must choose to suffer Disadvantage to
You're free to create new Augments and Assets. If
either Clever or Cool rolls before choosing your
it's something important that doesn't need a
regular consequences.
mechanical effect, like an important NPC owing
you a favor, you can just write it down. If it should
Rocket Fists
have a mechanical effect, try to find an existing
Restricted
one similar to what you want to achieve, then
This street-designed Augment was considered
base the Cost and effect off that.
gimmicky by most people, but Omnidyne has
begun marketing a professional version as self- For example: Emily is playing a cyborg with a full-
defense technology. They're Restricted because body prosthetic. Her character is a musician, so
some asshole registered his rocket fists as a lethal she wants her body to come with an integrated DJ
weapon for a marketing gimmick once. function, with loudspeakers, live music mixing
and a microphone.
Rocket fists can be pneumatically launched, literal
rockets, or attached to your limb via steel cable for She decides to create an Asset for it, then use the
retraction. Your unarmed attacks gain the Ranged Integrated Asset Augment to install it in her body.
tag. If your limb can’t retract or return for any After thinking about it, she decides to use the
reason, you have Disadvantage on unarmed effect of Thieving Gear (granting a reroll in a
attacks until it is recovered. specific situation by spending Prep,) but changes
the situation and increases the Cost by 1 (music
Combining Augments equipment is more expensive.) Now she just prays
You can combine multiple types of Augments into her GM doesn’t realize she’s made a Vocaloid.
one part of your body, as long as it sounds plausible.
The final Asset looks like this:
For example, you could have a Work-Enhancing
Suite and a Specialized Augment in the same arm, Music Gear
or Xander's (p. 334) hormone regulator medical Cost: 3.
implant being Jailbroken to include an Illegal This portable equipment lets you set up
aftermarket Combat Injector. impromptu concerts on the go. You still need
time to set it up and transport it. When you
These Augments follow the same rules as normal,
make a Social roll against a crowd with music,
and each component Augment still increases
you may spend 1 Prep to reroll your roll once.
Burden separately.

System 97
 Augverts
by Alexander Blechman
On Grand Cross, corporations are always looking for When you add an Augvert to your character, consult
innovative and intrusive ways of cramming ads into with the GM and select one or more of the following
H new places. This quest led to “augvertising”—the AMFs as a downside.
W seamless union of advertising and augmentation.
HOLOGRAM
I People that can’t afford augmentation, or prefer a A large and highly visible animated hologram is
bargain, can sign up as a marketing affiliate to receive projected above your head. It cycles through
a free augmentation. These "Augverts" function like a product-appropriate images like condensation-
regular Augment of the player's choice, but do not encrusted soda cans, smiling actresses showing off
increase Burden. Instead, they come at the price of teeth whitening strips, or sizzling burger patties
turning the wearer into a walking billboard. hitting the grill. The hologram is blessedly silent,
but this glowing beacon makes it extremely hard to
You can only take 1 Augvert per character; brands
avoid being spotted or to blend into a crowd.
get jealous easily.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Situational Penalties Unless it’s nighttime and you’re trying to sleep, your
In addition to being branded with garish logos, Augvert occasionally blasts a 30 second audio ad at
Augverts are programmed with ad software that high volume: an obnoxious mix of catchy jingles and
can be very inconvenient or embarrassing. It’s hard voice actors pitching a product. While it’s playing,
to be sneaky when your robotic arm is loudly the ad is accompanied by a small cloud of
playing a jingle for a mouthwash brand. You won’t holographic emojis that swarm around your body.
make a good impression at a swanky party when
You don’t usually have to track when it goes off; it’s
your eye implant is projecting a rotating hologram
just a minor annoyance you can roleplay out. In
of a cheeseburger above your head for all to see.
situations where it could cause a problem
At the GM's discretion, actions requiring stealth, (sneaking, swaying a crowd with an eloquent
subterfuge, or personal dignity can be harder to speech, etc.), roll 1d6. If you roll 3 or lower, you play
pull off with an Augvert. Your implant might draw a commercial and suffer the resulting fallout.
unwanted attention, lower the Mood, grant
TARGETED AD
Disadvantage, grant Advantage to an opponent’s
Each time you begin speaking to a stranger or a
roll, or have other negative effects.
crowd, your Augvert scans their appearance and plays
Depending on how noticeable your Augvert is, a 30 second commercial aimed at their demographic.
certain actions may be virtually impossible, like These ads take the form of holographic pop-up
trying to pose as a cop (who aren't allowed to have windows that float around your body, showing loud
Augverts unless they're police propaganda or video clips that are difficult to speak over.
private security services) or a rich person (who
After the commercial ends, it won’t play another ad
wouldn’t be caught dead with one.) Simply spotting
for the same people until some time has passed.
your Augvert will cause people to make
You suffer Disadvantage on Social rolls made during
assumptions about your financial and social status.
the ad, and less patient folks might simply walk
Add whatever penalty feels appropriate to the away rather than wait for it to finish. Even after it
situation. Don't overdo it—an Augvert should ends, you still have to deal with people that
hinder PCs occasionally, but not constantly. witnessed the humiliating spectacle.
TRACKING
Ambient Marketing Your location is constantly monitored via radio
Features transmitter and sold for marketing purposes.
The main drawback to Augverts is their Ambient
Anyone can buy a second-by-second log of
Marketing Feature, or AMF—how the Augvert advertises
everywhere you’ve been. They can also buy records
its parent company and their partners. The AMF
for a location, to see all tracked people that passed
varies depending on model. The better the Augvert,
through during a specific period of time.
the more AMFs it has, though most have just one.
Theoretically this info is anonymized, but any
digital sleuth worth their salt can figure it out with a

98
System
little effort (2d6 + Clever vs 7). Only your position is Restricted and
tracked, but that's often enough for enemies to Illegal Augverts

Augverts
infer what you were up to. Don't exist; no corporation wants the bad PR that
would bring. If an Augment is Restricted or Illegal,
PRODUCT PLACEMENT or combined with an Augment that is, it cannot be
Whether it’s an eye implant or not, this Augvert came an Augvert.
with a pair of cybernetic corneas that alter what you
see by placing illusory objects in the world. Tempting There are also indirect precautions you can take.
products appear on actually empty surfaces. Creating a distraction by setting off a fire alarm could
Billboards are displayed on blank walls (or over ads for make guards less likely to notice your hologram.
competing brands.) A friend’s cool indie band t-shirt Hacking into a loudspeaker system to blare ear-
might be altered to instead show a corporate logo. piercing music could cover up your noisy ads. Be
creative and use the environment to your advantage.
Only the wearer of the Augvert can see these
mirages. You can tell what’s real and what’s fake But don’t mess with your Augvert by opening it up
because the ads look better than reality. The real or covering the hologram projector with stickers.
nuisance is that the hallucinations are distracting, Crude physical attempts to thwart your Augvert will
and sometimes cover up something important. It’s put it in Anti-Tamper Mode, deactivating all
also harder to perform tasks requiring visual acuity, bonuses it grants and making it operate like a
such as searching, examination, and having initiative. regular body part but slightly worse (-1 penalty to
all rolls relying on it.) This condition lasts until you
MASCOT
visit a technician from the marketing firm and make
In public (and sometimes high-traffic) areas, this
up a bullshit excuse for why your Augvert stopped
Augvert projects a holographic mask over your face,
working— even if you undo your meddling.
turning you into a famous commercial mascot (car
insurance lizard, talking candy bar, Burger Kong, etc.)
Getting Rid of Augverts
You look absolutely ridiculous, though people If a player wants to rid themselves of an AMF, they can
sometimes ask to take photos with you. It’s not do so by increasing their Burden by 1 and paying 3
even useful as a disguise: the hologram flickers Cash. The Burden increase is from purchasing a
sometimes, almost imperceptibly, but enough for regular version of the Augment, and the Cash is to pay
security cameras to capture still frames of your fees for breaking your marketing affiliate contract.
face. This is a deliberate design choice to prevent
You’re also required to return the Augvert after
mascots from committing theft.
removing it. Marketing tech isn’t exactly cheap, and the
OTHER AMFS corporation expects to implant it in a different person.
This is not an exhaustive list. Players can invent
their own annoying new marketing methods, Comedy in Consumerism
provided the downside is sufficiently disruptive. Augverts are a great way to add humor to the game
and score satire points against consumer culture.
A GM who wishes to build a storyline around
Invent hilarious ads that make the game more fun,
sinister Augverts and corporate intrigue can even
not less, when they ruin a player’s plans.
let players take a free Augment with no obvious
downside, supposedly given for PR reasons, that Specificity is funny! GMs shouldn’t just announce
actually has a secret, nefarious, possibly illegal that an Augvert is drawing attention without further
downside they'll find out about later. detail. Describe the ads, say the witty slogan
displayed below a holographic burrito, sing a jingle
Mitigating Augvert for hemorrhoid cream.
Downsides Augverts can also deliver worldbuilding and
If it’s vitally important to avoid attention, players
exposition. Ads can reveal tidbits about everyday life
have some options.
on Grand Cross, what people suffer from and what
During missions, you can spend 1 Prep during they aspire to. Instead of showing plot-relevant info
important scenes to temporarily shut off your on TV or in the newspapers, it could appear above a
Augvert’s AMFs. You can also alter the data it player’s head. Commercials have an agenda, but
transmits or the images/sounds it creates if you are they sometimes contain a nugget of truth.
or know a hacker. This is temporary; antivirus
software kicks in eventually. It's up to the GM when.

System 99
100 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

CHAPTER 5:
THE PLACE IS GRAND CROSS
"I still remember the day Grand Cross was done. Unofficially, I mean. The cylinder was
pressurized, we had some gravity... We'd busted our tails to build the place, so everyone got the
day off to look around. The boys and I decided to do a little christening, pour one out for Tommy. So
we spacewalked to the back cap and stepped inside... and there it was. The whole city spread out
ahead of us. Quiet, like it was waiting for something. For the first hour we just... took it in.
“That's when it really hit us. We did this. All of us, together.
“Was it worth it? I thought so. Still do, most days."
— Tony Almeida, retired station worker

Grand Cross is the vanguard of the space push, an goods and new settlers especially—still come from
orbital metropolis housing millions of people from Earth, but for the most part space takes care of itself.
all over Earth. It might be in space, but it's not that
different to cities back on Earth. Its citizens are still
regular people, doing their best to live regular lives
The Reality
It's not all good times on the high frontier. Things
in a fast-paced, ever-changing world.
rarely go according to plan, and Grand Cross is no
exception.
The Project Humanity's problems have followed them to space.
According to the station's website, the purpose of
Old rivalries and outdated ideas still haunt the
Grand Cross is to be "a sustainable orbital habitat
station. The rich and powerful still wield vast
that acts as a gateway to the stars for greater
influence over society and use it to enrich
humanity, lighting the way forward into eternity."
themselves at the expense of others. The station's
According to experts, it's to "prove that people can
plans were changed in a thousand tiny ways that
live in space without dying instantly or whatever." It's
still ripple through society. The average person
both a proof-of-concept and a hub for future efforts.
rarely enjoys all the benefits of the high-tech space
Grand Cross is a high-tech planned city, built to life they were promised and they sure as hell won't
provide comfortable residential, commercial, and escape all the problems of Earth.
industrial space for its citizens. It's also meant to
Grand Cross was planned, but its future is in flux.
resemble the cities of Earth as much as possible; even
The people in power have no real plan beyond
in space, you can go for a stroll through a park or stop
maintaining the status quo and events like the L4
for a snack at a convenience store. People from all
Disaster have thrown them into disarray. The first
walks of life were sent to live there, to provide a
generation of humans raised in space is lurching
hopefully representative slice of all of humanity.
into adulthood, only to find that their elders have
Space life is still a unique experience though, and the
pulled the ladder up behind them. Technology has
station has developed a culture of its own.
advanced in ways nobody could have predicted and
Humanity's space settlements are meant to be a it won't stop for anybody.
self-sufficient system. Resource gathering and
The Project has proved that people can live in
manufacturing are done off-world wherever
space, but it still has a lot to achieve. Next, it needs
possible, to avoid the extra costs of launching things
to prove people can live well.
into space on a big rocket. Some things—luxury

Setting 101
 Design
Grand Cross is an O'Neill Cylinder, a space habitat is about 1g along the interior wall and drops to 0g
design originally proposed by Princeton physicist at the central axis. This drop-off is linear, so gravity
Gerard K. O'Neill and his students in 1976. The halfway up toward the axis is 0.5g.
eponymous cylinder is filled with air, pressurized,
Grand Cross rotates about once every two minutes. At
and spun to simulate Earth gravity on the inner
this scale, Coriolis forces on ground level are tiny—
wall. The inner wall is divided down its length: three
almost nobody gets motion sickness and anything
sky panels for light and three ground panels for
you drop will be deflected by only negligible amounts.
living. Add some agriculture modules to grow food
However, with a little practice you can "feel" the
plus huge mirrors to bounce sunlight inside and
direction of the spinning by turning your head.
you've got yourself a self-sustaining habitat.
The station was built from materials harvested from Mirrors
the Moon and near-Earth asteroids. That required Grand Cross has three external mirrors, one hinged
the construction of a number of other facilities, like to the "back" end of each window. By day, these
lunar factories, mass drivers, solar-power satellites, mirrors are angled to reflect sunlight into the
and waypoint stations. station. "Night" is simulated by turning the mirrors
away from the Sun, so the windows look out into
Agriculture Ring space. This also lets excess heat radiate out of the
Grand Cross' food is grown in a set of 72 cylindrical station. Light reflected by the mirrors is polarized.
farming modules, arranged in a ring around the
station's front cap. Each one is packed with Panels
hydroponics farms and food vats. The ring is five Grand Cross' "ground" panels are built from the
times wider than Grand Cross, so it doesn't rotate ground up for habitability, with high-density urban
with the station—that would produce enough gravity buildings and carefully landscaped terrain. Each one
to flatten even the toughest farmers. Instead, each sits on a few floors of subway and maintenance tunnels.
module is spun to generate its own gravity.
The "sky" panels are basically gigantic windows. To
make maintenance easier, each panel is actually a
End Caps series of small windows mounted in a lattice. Bridges
The cylinder is capped at the ends with hemispherical
across these lattices connect each ground panel.
domes. On the outside, there are spaceship docking
Each window has multiple redundant layers, so if
bays connected to the crown and solar farms
you fall off a bridge you probably won't get sucked
pumping power to the station. On the inside, the
into space before you can be taken to the hospital.
caps are landscaped into mountains. The crown is
at the axis of rotation, so gravity starts at zero-g and
The Shaft
increases to Earth gravity as you head down the
The Shaft is a long, thin tube running through the
mountains to the station's urban landscape.
station's central axis, with its ends connected to the
end caps. On the outside, zero-g trains with
The Flywheel fantastic views run express down its length.
The original O'Neill design had two connected
cylinders that rotated in opposite directions, The sections closest to the end caps contain
helping them to stay pointed at the Sun without recreation blocks: zero-g sports, observation decks,
sacrificing reaction mass. Instead, Grand Cross has microgravity dining, and more. The middle sections
a flywheel module at the back. It's smaller, spins contain industrial blocks that take advantage of
faster, and most importantly, it was faster to build. microgravity; most are used for medical purposes
Plans to build a proper paired cylinder get brought like manufacturing protein crystals and drugs, as
up every year, but so far nothing's come of it. well as growing tissue.
Workers in the Shaft are often offered discounts in
(Pseudo)gravity the recreational blocks but tend to decline unless
Gravity in Grand Cross is artificial—it's made from
pressured to go to a zero-g bar by their boss, as
the inertial force created by spinning the cylinder,
being in zero-g too long is bad for your health.
though it feels and acts like gravity. Pseudogravity

102 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Getting There
Breaking Orbit Australia, TV companies bought some of the tickets
for a reality game show. In the UK, a "nominal"
Before the Impact, rockets were the secret to space
registration fee is charged to keep the poor out.
travel. In the distant future of 2020 it's still rockets,
Some countries try to filter for certain political
but they're better.
leanings or cultural identities, subtly or not2. A fair
Cheap reusable launch systems were an early few winning tickets get sold, and some nations
achievement of the post-Impact research boom. openly allow it.
Modern Earth shuttles can enter orbit, come back,
The third way to get to orbit is work contracts. In
and get refurbished for another trip like an aircraft,
the early days, the Project took on huge numbers of
at a cost just low enough to make it feasible. This
construction workers and research; that number
incredible advancement is, in many ways, what
dipped when androids appeared on the scene, then
made orbital settlement possible1.
rose again when they won their rights. These days,
A rocket from Earth will usually take you to it's usually corporations offering orbital jobs to
Spaceport One, a station in low Earth orbit. From people with tertiary education or other specialized
here, you can catch a flight to Grand Cross, the skillsets that Grand Cross can't produce quickly.
Moon, or anywhere else in orbit you want. The Corporations who decide to open a branch on
flight to Grand Cross takes a couple days. Grand Cross will typically start by offering to
relocate employees first.
Now that Grand Cross is complete, the next big
project is a space elevator. It's not complete yet, Work contracts typically require the employee to
but when it is, space travel could be so easy you move to Grand Cross and stay with their company
could do it lying down. An elevator can carry more for a set length of time. In exchange, their employer
mass to space in a day than a rocket can do in a must provide travel, modest housing, and a
week and is far cheaper. It's still a long way off, but "resettling payment." Most “company” housing is
a new space revolution is on the horizon. premade apartments purchased from the
government, but lately some corporations have
Space Migration been allowed to make their own (considerably less
adequate) housing.
So, how do you personally get to orbit? Depends
where you live, but there are three common methods. If the employer terminates the agreement early,
they must pay the employee and may have to find
The easiest way is to pay for it. If you're rich, you can
them a new place to stay and/or pay to resettle
just wave a few stacks at your nearest space agency
them on Earth. Most employers prefer resettling
and they'll practically roll out the red carpet for
because most employees grow to like Grand Cross,
you. Hell, if you're a CEO they'll probably cut you a
which effectively means they can be threatened
discount. The aim of the Project was to populate
with deportation.
Grand Cross with people from all walks of life,
though, not just millionaires. Other ways are needed. The specific requirements of a work contract vary
by country, but Grand Cross law sets out a few basic
Many countries use a lottery system. Typically,
worker protections. Corporations face limits on how
once you're old enough to vote, you register for a
many workers they can take per year, what roles
national lottery. Every year or two a handful of
they can hire for without recruiting in orbit first, and
winners are chosen who, assuming they're alive
fines for abusing the system. In practice, the fines
and still interested, get a ticket to space for
are low enough that most corporations are limited
themselves and up to five people, plus a little cash
by how much they want to pay for housing.
to make the transition go smoothly.
Most of the time, the system works as intended.
The standard lottery was laid out by the Project, but
Once you get to Grand Cross, you'll find yourself in
a lot of nations put their own spin on in it. In
a multicultural city of people from all over Earth.

1 People are particularly fond of Aspiration,

the first shuttle to take US settlers to
orbit. After it was decommissioned, most of
2 Not everyone who engages in filtering
does it the same way. Sure, prejudiced
parties can filter for “undesirables,”
it ended up in the National Air and Space but are you keeping them from space or
Museum. One seat was purchased by sending them to space? Most parties who
billionaire space entrepreneur Derek Baars, filter the lottery can't even settle the
who refurbished it into a gaming chair. question amongst themselves.

Setting 103
 Layout
Directions Getting Around
To locals, the end of the cylinder pointed at the Sun
is the front, and the end with the mirror hinges is Public Transport
the back. Facing the front, Grand Cross spins Grand Cross transportation is designed for energy
clockwise; locals say "spinward" and "anti- efficiency and minimal space. As such, it relies
spinward", or sometimes "spin" and "backspin" in heavily on public transport.
casual conversation. ("The nearest train station?
The panels and their districts are linked by an
Spin down a couple blocks to Cadigan Street and go
extensive, partially elevated rail network, the Cross
forward; you can't miss it.")
Rail. Beneath the ground is a subway network, the
Official maps just call the front end North and use Grand Metro. Most people take the Metro for
cardinal directions, because it's easier for visitors. shorter trips and the Rail for longer ones. This
Locals know what it means, but only old locals say it. system is supplemented with trams, the Shaft
Express rail, and airtight maglev trains that run
Divisions around the outer hull at the habitat's rotational
speed. All of these are accessible, by design.
Grand Cross' three ground panels are named (von)
Harbou, Tezuka, and Verne. Each panel is divided
into five city-sized wards, for a total of fifteen. Each Stations and Indoor Parks
ward is divided into at least twenty districts, which You can switch between the Metro and Rail directly
range in size from large towns to a few blocks. The in the station's major transit stations. Some are
wards were planned in advance, but not all districts built into shopping centers, libraries, and other
were. existing buildings. Others are standalone buildings,
explicitly designed as public indoor spaces.
The densest wards are on the ends of each panel,
closest to the end caps and their spaceports3. These indoor parks include ample seating,
Together, these wards hold most government bathrooms, and charging stations. They're places
buildings and business districts. The adjacent where locals can meet with friends or just hang out.
wards are almost as dense, but tend to hold more There are no shops—it's just a place to relax, like a
residential and commercial districts, smaller library without books.
businesses, and bigger parks. The sparsest wards
Unfortunately, despite widespread public support,
are the ones in the middle, which have large
they're slowly changing. With unhoused Crossers on
stretches of carefully curated parkland.
the rise, the government has become increasingly
The front end has the Agriculture Ring and the hostile to the idea of these public spaces actually
busiest port, so in practice it's the densest side. Its being used by the public. Many have been redesigned
three wards, and the nearby districts of the adjacent with hostile architecture, from bathrooms being
wards, are collectively considered to be Downtown. relocated behind transit gates, to increasing police
presence. In some wards, park space has been sold
The wards were named when the station was built.
and redeveloped for commercial use.
Some larger districts were named back then too, but
many were chosen by popular vote. Their "official"
names are alphanumeric postal codes, but nobody
uses them because they're considered boring.

3 To keep things simple, buildings on the

end caps are considered part of the
nearest ward.
Naming Rights
We haven't named every ward and district in
this book, and we don't plan to. That's partly
because Grand Cross has at least 300
districts, but also because we'd prefer to
leave it open to your group. Fill in the blanks
any way you like.
If you'd like some name ideas, check out the
table on p. 393.

104 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Roads and Vehicles

Roads are mostly for filling gaps in the public system.
The biggest are the arterial roads, wide roads with The Multipass
Transit fares are handled by the Multipass, a
big sidewalks which run between wards and contactless smart card. Nearly everyone in
districts, across window panels and on elevated Grand Cross has one, and they've become
highways. The rest are either community roads, valid payment at convenience stores, fast food
narrow shared streets with smaller sidewalks, or joints, public libraries, vending machines, and
so on. Sometimes they're even used as access
pedestrian streets, where most vehicles are control for office buildings and schools.
prohibited. Traffic is left-hand, like in England.
Though Multipasses don't have to be
Most people use bicycles, scooters, and sometimes registered, law enforcement and some
motorcycles, if they have a vehicle at all. Larger government departments can obtain
vehicles like cars are typically reserved for public Multipass travel information without a
warrant. Geryon has also expressed interest
transport, emergency services, the law, taxis, in purchasing the Multipass system, to
accessibility and business needs. As such, rich kids see "improve customer experiences using
an inconveniently large car as a mark of status. There's valuable Multipass data."
no on-street public parking; you need to get your own
private parking space or apply for one from the
government before getting your vehicle. All vehicles
are electric, because there's no petrol in space4.

Geryon Aerospace Accessibility

Until recently, the station's public transport network By Mids Meinberg
was wholly operated by a station-owned company,
Grand Cross was conceived as a fully accessible
Grand Cross Transport (GCT). In the last year, space, where a physically disabled person could
about a third of it—including most of the Cross move from a point to any other point in the
Rail—was sold to Geryon Aerospace. They've tried station and not come across any barriers.
to make everything run on their software, with This accessible architecture was realized
emphasis on "tried". You can tell which parts are through a variety of means, from access
ramps to free earbuds that automatically
Geryon, because the trains are often late and the announced street signage. (These earbuds
workers are just as confused as you are. use official terms for districts and streets, but
the software was soon cracked and patched
When asked, Geryon likes to talk about how to match more casual conversation.)
customer satisfaction and other desirable metrics
are down overall, to suggest GCT shares the blame These days, the Cartel approves inaccessible
developments in open defiance of the law. This
and imply that the problems are actually has started an arms race between disability
"compatibility issues" that could be solved if they advocates building better assistive devices
were sold the rest of the network. The government and rich people who don’t want to care. While
is in talks to sell the rest of the network by 2021; legal action has been taken against the Cartel,
Geryon believes they'll have things completely back it remains tied up in bureaucracy.
to normal by 2023 or 2048 at most.

4 The United States' "Put Oil and Jobs in

Space Initiative" has been wildly
unsuccessful.

Setting 105
 Politics
Grand Cross is a parliamentary democracy modeled
on the Westminster system. Its system is the result
Executive
The executive branch of the government is formed
of years of effort by social scientists and
by whichever party (or parties) wins the House of
researchers, who worked to devise a forward-
Representatives.
thinking system worth taking to space.
The head of the executive is the Prime Minister (PM),
It's also the result of effort by: corporate lobbyists;
who is chosen by their party. The PM appoints a bunch
careerist politicians angling for cushy post-
of party members as Ministers, who oversee specific
retirement corporate jobs; rich people who entered
areas of Grand Cross policy (and their associated
politics to protect their own interests; interim
departments, the Ministries). They meet once a
Council members hoping to get an advantage later;
week in a private council known as the Cabinet.
conservative politicians who worried they wouldn't
win if everyone's vote counted; backer nations who The non-ruling parties are referred to as the
thought their system was already the best; the opposition, and the leader of the largest
inherent impossibility of perfection; this one opposition party is the Leader of the Opposition.
billionaire who thought he'd come up with the idea They can be invited to certain Cabinet meetings5
for Grand Cross in college and wanted a statue of and form a Shadow Cabinet, which scrutinizes the
himself downtown; and a couple of think tanks who Cabinet's policies and offers alternatives.
are frankly super weird.
Most of the time, the system works as intended. It's Judiciary
just not always intended to work for you. The highest court in Grand Cross is the Grand Court.
It has powers of judicial review over the Assembly's
Legislature laws, can interpret the station's constitution, and
also acts as its final court of appeal.
Grand Cross' parliament is the Grand Assembly.
Sessions are held in the Grand Assembly Building in The Court's seven judges are nominated by the PM
the Alpha district (p. 202); its position at the back of and voted on by the House of Representatives. To
the station was designed to give it a good view of protect them from political pressures, they have no
Grand Cross. term limits and incredible job security; however,
they have a mandatory retirement age of 70.
The Assembly consists of two houses:
The lower house is the House of Representatives.
Its 281 members are elected by the public all at
Head of State
once, every three years. Each member represents a Technically, Grand Cross' head of state is the
specific district, though there are adjustments for United Nations Grand Cross Project
population: smaller districts are usually lumped in Committee, a successor to the interim
with their larger neighbors, while the most Council. The Committee approves the Prime
populated districts get an extra seat. The House of Minister, issues writs for election, and has
the power to veto the Senate. In practice,
Representatives is where most bills are introduced the Committee’s power is largely
and voted on. ceremonial, and they just rubber-stamp
whatever the ruling party wants. The locals
The upper house is the Senate Council. There are think of them in the same way people on
90 Senators, six for each ward. They serve six-year Earth think of dangerous animals: they’re
terms, which are staggered so about half of them fine when they’re elsewhere.
are up for election every three years. The Senate Some Crossers resent them. It's a symbolic
votes on bills passed by the House of issue: even if their power is ceremonial,
Representatives, before they're sent for approval by Grand Cross is still technically owned by a
the executive branch. foreign power. The Committee is meant to
be dissolved after a couple elections, but its
members have been hinting that they intend
to stick around. A growing number of locals
5 No Prime Minister has ever invited their
biggest political rival to a Cabinet
meeting, for some reason.
are pushing to replace the Committee with a
President and gain true independence.

106 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Choosing Your Four Parties

Enemy We'll cover the four largest political parties here.
For more, see Chapter 7.
Everyone 18 or older is automatically registered to
vote. Voting is compulsory but enforced loosely:
Union
you're technically only required to show up, there
Liberal, pro-Orbit, capitalist
are no penalties for blank votes, fines for not
attending are small, and most excuses are accepted. The opposition party. Union is a center-left party that
sees Grand Cross as a place where humans can
Everyone is elected with a preferential voting
change into something better. Their official goals are
system: Senators with a single transferable vote
social and economic equality, strong relations with
and Representatives through instant-runoff voting.
other settlements, and independence from Earth.
In practice, these systems mean the House of
Representatives is dominated by the biggest two- On paper, Union advocates for policies they believe
to-four parties, while the Senate has a lot of minor benefit the public interest: LGBTQ and android
parties and independents who need to be dealt rights, expanding health care for cybernetics, a
with to get things done. stronger welfare state, investing in public
education, further research into the social effects of
Each ward votes for three of its six Senators every
space life, net neutrality, and more independent
three years, at the same time as the House of
settlements in space. These are generally popular
Representatives. (Half the Senate was elected in
with Crossers, and as such Union enjoys a strong
2014, as a sort of test run for the first big election; the
and diverse base.
other half were interim Council holdouts until 2017).
However, there's a big split between the base and
Election days are public holidays, always on a
the leaders. People who vote for Union's policies
Saturday. Your polling place is probably in a transit
tend to want them enacted now, or at least soon.
station, school, community center, or place of
Union's leaders prefer "incremental change" that
worship, and a lot of them make it a community
won't disrupt the private sector. Most of them take
event with barbecues or cake sales. If you know
donations from corporations and are happy to
what party you want but not your exact
compromise on their stated values in return.
preferences, you can vote for a party and let them
Union's leaders sabotage their progressive
distribute preferences for you or download an app
members when they oppose the Cartel too openly.
that shows you how they'd like you to vote.
Of course, that's how it worked the last time. The Unity
current government is considering changes to the Capitalist, pro-Earth, conservative
system, such as ramping up voter ID requirements,
The ruling party. Unity is a center-right party that
moving/restricting polling stations, relaxing the
sees Grand Cross as a link between Earth and the
rules on who can make how-to-vote apps, and
stars. Their main goals are a strong business sector,
rearranging how some of the smaller districts are
maintaining the station's economic dominance in
counted. Allegedly this is to "promote efficiency"
orbit, and strong ties with Earth.
and "discourage voter fraud", but most of their
ideas are inspired by efforts to suppress minority On paper, Unity advocates for policies they believe
votes on Earth (nobody knows where they're promote individual liberty and growth for the
getting their data from, though). station: limiting government reach, privatization,
deregulation, a strong alliance with Earth, working
with the UN on a space elevator, and the founding
of Grand Cross colonies in the inner system. Unity
enjoys strong support from wealthier, older, and
pro-Earth Crossers.

Setting 107
 Unity doesn't share Union's problems, because
they don't need to compromise on as many core
The Prime
values to rake in the credits. Unity is largely Minister(s)
bankrolled by the Cartel and is more than happy to So, who's the PM? We've got a few options, so pick
reshape the station to benefit corporations over its your favorite. The rest are Unity ministers. If you
people. Its main split is between its leaders and its don't have a preference, use Geremy Rickard.
donors—a growing faction believes the Cartel's
policies are better in the long run. Geremy Rickard
Impact Two changed Geremy's life. Back then he
Orbital Reform Party was a mere student, the son of a policeman and a
Populist, pro-Western, conservative former mayor. When Geremy wandered outside one
night and saw the meteorite come down, he was
The ORP is a minor party that sees Grand Cross as
suddenly inspired. He decided then and there to go
the extension and crowning achievement of Earth.
to space and lift people up with him.
They work closely with Unity, their main goal being
to push it into more protectionist, pro-Western, and Or so he says. Really, he was fast asleep, dreaming
prejudiced stances. about politics. Since childhood, Geremy has
wanted to rule the school more than anything. His
The ORP largely consists of failed politicians from
whole life, from overloading on university credits to
Western countries, former businessmen, and right-
buying his way into a Grand Cross Project job, has
wing Christians. It's an open secret that they're
been to expand his playground. He would say,
bankrolled by Earth megacorps, and they're starting
believe, do anything to reach the top.
to make inroads with pro-Earth Unity voters.
Now that he's there, Geremy is a nowhere man.
Technoprogressive His speeches are empty platitudes about how
Party incredible space is, sprinkled with inoffensive
Socialist, pro-Orbit, progressive
statements that sound deep but mean nothing. All
The “Technos” are a minor party that sees Grand his appearances are controlled. If someone
Cross as an opportunity to revolutionize how people manages to ask about Unity's mistakes, they're
live. They try to push Union into more left-wing, pro- always regrettable accidents out of his control and
tech stances. They're big on issues like android it's not the time to talk about them.
rights, accessible cybernetics, and social justice.
His unscripted appearances happen behind closed
Technos are a mix of democratic socialists, labor- doors, at party fundraisers and corporate dinners,
oriented android/cyborg activists, and open where they sell him the support he craves. Geremy
content movements from Earth. While they're quite doesn't want to change anything—he just wants to
strong for a minor party, they struggle to reach be something.
consensus between the more socialist and more
If asked, ministers say he's usually working
technocratic members. Some of the latter have
overtime in his office. But a former staffer once
been swayed by the Singularist movement.
claimed that Geremy doesn't do anything in there
except sit in his chair and gaze out the window,
toward the city—his city—savoring every moment
People are he has at the top.
Complicated
All of these parties are formed by people from
all over Earth, from parties with all sorts of
different stances. What the parties want and
what their people want don't always line up.
A lot of Union and Unity members have
common ground on specific issues, even if
they don't agree on much, and voters can have
all sorts of reasons to vote that don't have
much to do with their party's main policies.
People are messy and complex and weird.
In case it wasn't clear though, Unity sucks
more.

108 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Jimmy Bachmann Warwick Johnson

Bachmann (Jimmy to his friends) is a millionaire Warwick is a boring old Australian. He was raised in
who made his fortune in the dotcom boom of the the 50s, ran his dad's fish and chip shop until the
1990s, when anyone with a lot of optimism and Impact, then joined the Liberal Party for something
words like "cyber" could rake in the cash. After to do. His career was mostly notable for his
selling Technozilla, a web portal/search engine/ blunders, which ended with his party assigning him
massive flop for $300 million, he used his share of to Grand Cross' interim Council to get rid of him.
the money to invest in startups that exploited the
But as a middle-aged white man, Warwick could
space rush for profit. They all failed, but Bachmann
only fail upward. His "veteran politician" status,
was never left holding the bag.
plain-speaking habit, and funny Australian accent
He eventually bought an early ticket to Grand Cross, helped him fail all the way up into Unity's
where he decided to retire and think about making leadership.
his mark on the world. He chose politics, where his
For the most part Warwick is one of those
ability to sell sizzle without any actual sausage
politicians—the mediocre ones who parrot the
worked wonders, and eventually stumbled into
party line and are chiefly remembered for keeping
leadership of Unity as a compromise candidate.
the seat warm. Unfortunately, the party line in Unity
Bachmann is more socially liberal than most Unity is essentially the basic principle of conservatism:
members and sells himself as a fun space nerd that society should have a group of people who
who's lived on both sides of the tracks. His actual make the rules but aren't bound by them.
policies, however, are hugely anti-labor and pro-
Like many conservatives, Warwick's ideal in-group
privatization. He wants to return to the wonderful
contains him and people who look and think like
90s, when the money flowed freely and he never
him: white, male, human, unaugmented, and
had to care about where it came from.
preferably Christian. This causes some friction
He's also a huge 90s geek and proud of it. He within Unity, as its members come from places all
thought of Jean-Luc Picard facing the Borg while over Earth, but they are all bound by their belief
asking his cabinet to consider deporting Disaster that there's an in-group and they're in it. Ironically,
refugees. He wears ill-fitting blazers over Star Wars this has made Warwick better than most Unity
shirts when he talks to the press about increasing members regarding the Disaster. Without him
police powers. He imagines himself as the heroes of pushing to help the refugees, Unity would do even
his sci-fi classics and likes to think Luke Skywalker less. Don't mistake this for an uncharacteristic
would have arrested protesters too. change of heart, though—he won't say it out loud,
but he wants to help the refugees because most of
them are white.

Setting 109
 Society measures that would expand their nation's
influence in Grand Cross (or fight the #RIVALNATION
Grand Cross is a melting pot of cultures from all politicians when those bastards push for it).
over Earth, and in the years since it was opened, the
Others let Earth go. Some left it in the past to focus
Crossers (as they call themselves) have begun to
on the present. Some never liked it anyway. Some
develop their own.
were born on Grand Cross and don't care. Then
there's the people who take pride in Grand Cross
Made of Star-Stuff itself, relish its cultural diversity, or see orbital
Though Crossers have long since gotten used to the
space as a developing nation separate from Earth.
vast ocean of space looming over the city skyline, it
still influences their thoughts. Space and space Grand Cross' place in the world is a question with
exploration are powerful memes in station culture. many answers, one that may never be truly settled.
A lot of local expressions use space terms, even the
ones imported from Earth6. Politicians quote Carl Waves and
Sagan and other science communicators to win the
public over. People who cling to the values of their
Generations
Sometimes, where you came from is less important
Earth homeland still tend to imagine the epitome of
than when you got here.
those values as a space explorer of some kind.
The first people to come to Grand Cross, the
For some people, space inspires thoughts about the
workers and researchers who built it, are called the
universe and humanity's place in it. How should
Builders. Society heaps a lot of praise on them and
people change to adapt to space? How will they
not much else. Though they at least got housing out
have to? Which parts of humanity's culture and
of the deal, many struggle with slashed pensions,
history should be brought to space and which
cybernetic maintenance, and a rising cost of living,
should be left behind?
not to mention the current ruling party use the
housing thing as an excuse to abandon them.
For Science!
Grand Cross is a scientific wonder, the final form of The first three immigration waves to Grand Cross
the post-Impact research boom, and so science— happened in 2010, 2012, and 2013. People who came
specifically, the spirit of experimentation—is valued in the first two waves are first-generation Crossers.
too. People like to think they're experimenting with They're also called Builders—a few first-gen
new ways of thinking up here. New governments, politicians co-opted the term to make themselves
new social norms, new art forms, new discoveries... seem like down-to-earth underdogs, and it stuck.
the seed of humanity might have been planted on
People who came after Grand Cross opened, either
Earth, but they'll blossom up here.
in the third wave or the smaller ones between then
Of course, Grand Cross is still capitalist, so how and now, are sometimes called Newcomers. This is
much blossoming is actually going on is up for falling out of fashion, partly because it's a weird
debate, but people certainly love to think they are. thing to say to someone who's lived here for seven
years but also because a lot of racist people got into
No Place Like Home the habit of saying it to their targets. Many people
but Here are starting to call them first-gen too.
Grand Cross is, by design, multicultural and proud
Second-generation Crossers are those who grew
of it. But sins come in multitudes, and everyone
up on the station, including those who were born
feels pride differently.
on Earth and went through high school here. The
Many Crossers from Earth still feel attached to their sort of people who like to think that younger people
homeland. Their ties can be felt in community are ungrateful call them "Double Crossers", and a
celebrations, in the station's endless appetite for lot of Double Crossers use it ironically.
Earth media, in the weird people who brought their
Double Crossers are growing up on a very different
Earth grudges with them. Some even push for

6 A tricky one for visitors is "they've

gone to Pluto," which can mean "they're
being ridiculous," "they're very far
away" or "they're spending a long time
on the toilet".

110 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

station. Unlike their parents, whose move to Grand politicians prefer to push policies that favor their
Cross was massively subsidized by the government older, wealthier donors, and make quips about
in the name of populating the station, they're Double Crossers spending all their money on space
expected to get homes, jobs, and lives on their own. tofu. Their futures were largely put up for sale
before they could vote. But as they get older, a
This would be fine, except that wages are
reckoning might be coming...
stagnating, the cost of living is rising, and housing is
getting harder to come by. Corporate-funded

Values
When you're making Hard Wired Island characters, a good thing to think about is the cultural values of
Grand Cross (or at least, the part you're telling stories about) and how your character relates to them.
Here are some of them—you're free to add your own.
Do your characters closely identify with any of these values? How do they interpret these values? Do
they reject any of them and instead live their life by different values arrived at independently? Or do
they just not give a shit?
Connectivity: In the distant future of 2020, everything is connected. Crossers are encouraged to define
themselves in relation to the social structures they inhabit. They form communities, talk to people, get
online, check the news, update their status, and respond to messages. At worst, they mold themselves
to fit the social status they've been assigned and work to maintain the status quo.
Equality: Some of the people behind the Grand Cross Project dreamed of a place where everyone got
the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. Even today, people are still dreaming. This is one
of the ones where everyone agrees that it's good in the abstract, but not what it means. Is treating
everyone the same ideal when they can have different needs and circumstances? What counts as an
opportunity? Does it count if everyone got the same opportunity to inherit millions of dollars from their
parents?
Individuality: Deep down, everyone wants to have unique characteristics and the autonomy to
express them. It's important to have something that makes you you. But what does that mean? Is it the
face you put on when you interact with others? What about your brand? Your private thoughts? Your
mistakes and flaws? And what do you do when the city values people who can mold themselves to fit
their social status?
Optimism: Optimism is confidence and hopefulness about the future, a tendency to look on the bright
side, and a belief that the moral arc of the universe bends toward justice. Keep in mind that Grand
Cross culture values the feeling and appearance of optimism. Definitions of "the future", "the bright
side", "belief", "moral", "justice", and "universe" may vary.
Pride: Grand Cross is quite the achievement! Aren't you proud of it? Aren't you proud to live here?
Aren't you proud of where you came from? Your background? Your friends? Your district? Your
accomplishments? Your dreams? Your job? Your— Wait, you're proud of that? And you don't think
Grand Cross' track record on that is great? What's wrong? Why aren't you proud?
Rationality/ism: Rationality is the use of consistent logical reasoning to solve problems. Rationalism is
a philosophy that holds logic and reason as the chief source of knowledge. Both of these are highly
valued in a scientific wonder like Grand Cross, though not everyone agrees on their definitions. Some
people contrast rationality with emotion, though you can't use one without the other.
Work: One of Grand Cross' major cultural imports from the US is the idea that you have to work hard
to succeed. After all, the Builders worked hard and what happened to them? Grand Cross, that's
what. The actual living situation of many Builders should be a clue that it's more complicated, but
nobody wants to think about that. This is often proposed in reverse: successful people must have
worked hard to get there, so the unsuccessful must have something wrong with them.

Thank-Yous
This section is inspired by game designer Quinn
Murphy's article Culture From The Outside In, Fate
Codex 1, no. 2 (2014), 19-25. Please follow him
(@qh_murphy) and throw money at him.

Setting 111
 Languages Entertainment
Grand Cross is officially multilingual. Government So, you're home from work and you're looking for a
services are offered in dozens of languages, way to chill out for a few hours. What are your
including Arabic, Bengali, Cantonese, English, options?
French, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin,
Russian, Spanish, Swahili, and Tagalog. The most The Internet
common language is English. (Crossers have Most Grand Cross buildings came with a good
developed an Orbital dialect of some of these, with internet connection built-in8, and the best
a lot of space-themed slang and loanwords.) communications satellites money can buy link it to
Earth. There's a slight delay—it takes light about
By law, Grand Cross schools teach at least two
1.255 seconds to reach Earth—but the big sites have
languages. The first is usually English, as most
local hosts anyway, so it rarely matters outside of
Earth-educated Crossers use it as a lingua franca.
direct communication. (Also, if you play online
The others offered usually depend on who lives in
games and connect to an Earth server, your ping
the district and how expensive the school is. Most
will be terrible.)
Double Crossers are bilingual at minimum.
Orbital websites use the .orb domain. The most
How languages are taught and preserved in space is
well-known .orb site is HeoCities, a free web
a hot political issue. Control over language,
hosting service people use to make their own
particularly in schools, is often (both historically
personal pages (HEO as in High Earth Orbit.)
and in the distant future of 2020) a vector for
HeoCities is popular with Double Crossers and
discrimination7. People whose languages aren't
extremely online people, but a recent acquisition by
represented in space have less cultural and political
Zinovy Ultragraphics makes a lot of users worried
influence. In the long term, languages that don't
for its future.
gain a foothold in space are more likely to die out as
humanity expands. Crossers have access to Earth social media sites like
Ribbit, Rumblr, and YourTube. Orbital-focused
Some factions in Grand Cross are pushing to bring
sites are steadily growing: besides HeoCities, the
more languages to space, while others want to
most popular is the social network Pulser (p. 240).
make things "more efficient" by cutting some of
Pulser is popular on Earth too and Earth-based
them (ones they don't speak, obviously). Some fear
users vastly outnumber orbital ones.
the prevalence of English in schools will lead to
Anglicization of other dialects and cultures, and
TV And Streaming
several solutions—from the adoption of a
On Grand Cross, TV channels are "streamed"
constructed language like Esperanto to an
directly to the viewer over the internet. Most
increased focus on cultural education—are being
services even let you watch any show from their
debated in the Assembly. This issue probably won't
library, any time you want. Traditional TV still exists,
be resolved for a very long time.
but the main draw is getting a first look before the
shows are uploaded.
Grand Cross has two major channels. The first is its
public broadcaster, the Grand Cross Broadcasting
Corporation (GCBC). The GCBC delivers nightly
news, Earth imports, and some home-grown orbital
shows. It's largely funded by direct government
grants, but the current Unity government has been
accusing it of anti-Unity bias and threatening to
slash its budget, forcing its directors9 to lean harder
on its side businesses.

7 See: Vergonha, Japanese Korea, Native

American boarding schools in the US, and
my high school physics teacher not
8 Many wards have limited free Wi-Fi too,
if you're in a tight spot or if
connecting to a dangerously unsecure
letting me swear in class even though it network gives you a sick thrill or
was really cool. something.

9 Who were hand-picked by Unity.

112 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

The largest private broadcaster is Morningstar (p. Sport

236), a member of the Offworld Cartel. Morningstar What kinds of sports do people play in space? What
does advertising, entertainment of all kinds, and wonderful new pastimes can you invent in a
something that looks like news if you squint. They spinning space cylinder with a zero-g axis?
actually run two news services: the ostensibly
Not many. The biggest sports on Grand Cross are
neutral Grand Cross 24, and the rampantly pro-
Earth sports whose organizations were wealthy
Unity One Orbit Network. Both are pretty heavy
enough to buy space on the station: association
with corporate propaganda.
football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, tennis,
other sports you like, and so on. Some sports claim
Print to be a unique "space" version, but really they
Grand Cross has a print industry, with paper made
mean they're playing in an area affected by the
from recycled plastics and natural fibers from the
Coriolis force.
Agriculture Ring. It was originally set up to print
things that are important to have a hard copy of, Normally, the force isn't a big deal: something you
like technical manuals. As the station’s population drop will move an inch at most. When it's
rose, the industry expanded to cover tabletop something you're trying to punt through the
games (which have a large and wise following) and uprights though, those inches can add up. Most
the university textbook industry. In their downtime, players get used to it, but if you're a sports fan you
printers produce books and magazines. can expect to blame something on Coriolis (or tell
the other team's fans to stop blaming everything on
Unlike Earth, there are no newspapers. News is
Coriolis) at least once a season.
entirely digitized, delivered through websites and
apps. Most businesses go digital where possible too. Thanks to the recreation facilities in the Shaft,
Grand Cross does offer some zero-g sports—most
Music are microgravity versions of Earth games10. Zero-g
The Top 40 is still heavy with Western/K-pop football and basketball are the most well-known,
imports and global sellers who move like molasses. and often played by orbital workers during their
If it's local music you're after, things get odd. break. They're still working out the best way to play
sports in microgravity though, so the rules are still
In the last few years, orbital musical tastes have
in flux.
noticeably diverged from Earth. Something about
the edge of space makes people go for sweeping,
epic sounds, weird experimental stuff, space
sampling (using NASA recordings of space sounds Space Sign
By Mids Meinberg
or old astronaut footage), and lyrics expressing
wonder (or fear) about humanity's future. Orbital The plurality of languages on Grand Cross
imports are still fairly popular down on Earth; a lot includes the various sign languages on Earth.
As on Earth, International Sign is used in
of kids learn more about Grand Cross from music places where different deaf and hard-of-
videos than class. hearing communities meet. International Sign
is still a pidgin language, but the increasing
frequency of these interactions has led to
consistent slang used by younger Crossers.
This informal language has achieved
popularity among Double Crossers as a way
of conveying information without being
eavesdropped on. Blind people can easily
obtain devices that translate this sign
language into verbal language.

10 Fans are divided on which is better,

OG or 0G.

Setting 113
 Space Shows
Space shows are a type of reality/game show that Celebrity Stop The Planet I Want To Get Off!:
focuses on the move to space. Most offer lottery A long-running British series based on Ground
tickets as a prize, with big cash prizes for runners- Control, in which a bunch of celebrities live together
up. As the number of tickets available to the in an abandoned military base and compete for a
entertainment industry is limited though, networks ticket in challenges "inspired" by astronaut training.
are starting to pivot to shows about people who The first season just had regular people, but they
already won. retooled it to chase Ground Control’s audience.
The forerunner of the genre is the Australian show Rovaniemen Kotirosvoimmat: In this weird
Ground Control to Andrew G (formerly Kyle's Finnish show, a rock band went to a fan's house,
Control Failure, formerly Space Shuttle Challengers surprised him with a ticket to space, and basically
for one episode before the newspapers got wind of bothered him all the way there. Unfortunately they
it). In it, comedians compete against each other in went to Skuggahvarf, so a sequel looks unlikely.
increasingly bizarre challenges at Australian
Ultimate Friendship Test: A US show where a
observatories, landmarks, and scientific
lottery winner had their friends and family compete
institutions, on behalf of a regular-joe "client". The
to see who got to come with him. It was exactly as
winner gets a ticket and the runners-up get
cruel as it sounds. The show was cancelled after the
consolation prizes. The show's massive popularity
first season, when the winner's fiancée kicked him
put space shows on the map.
in the groin so hard he had to go to the hospital.
At least 40 countries have adaptations of Ground
Up and Going: A Japanese show where comedians
Control/Control Failure. Other popular shows include:
sit in an office, read a stack of lottery applications
Beam Me Up: A Canadian show that follows a sci-fi with the personal info removed, and debate whether
fan lottery winner as they move to Grand Cross. It to give them tickets or cash. They have dinner with
received a Canadian-French reboot in Nom de Zeus!, the applicants at the end of the season. It's popular
which was Back to the Future-themed for some enough that a few other countries picked up the
reason. format, though the US one was cancelled after the
first season when the hosts got racist.
Big Day Blast Off: A Brazilian show where engaged
couples compete for a post-wedding move to Grand Hard Wired Island characters can be space show
Cross. If you like space shows but think they don't winners, or at least their friends and family can be
have enough bride fights, good news! (especially if they're young). This confers no special
benefits. Even the winners themselves are basically
Blazing Stars/Rising Stars: A pair of South Korean
D-list celebrities who moved out of the country they
music shows where aspiring singers (boys in Blazing,
were D-list in.
girls in Rising) compete to form an idol group that
will tour on Grand Cross. It's only technically a space
show, but it's famous as heck and some former
winners (most notably PLANETX's Duri and Rocket
Boys' delta-V) opted to stay up there.

114 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Grand Cross Bands

Local acts are where it's at. Some hot orbital bands are detailed below:
Breakfast Cult: An eclectic group formed by two in the comedy rock trio Straight Outta LEO. During
Double Crosser online musicians, Kaiya Shibuya shows, he plays fan-submitted clips on his head-screen.
and Feixue Guo, with their friend Madoka Mawaru
L5-8: An idol band based out of the Marukyu ward,
on keyboards. Still popular despite how long it
run by the lyricist-producer Hayate Jones. Jones
takes them to release new content.
tends to exert less control over his idols than most
Dreaming Jupiter: An experimental band blending Earth agencies, but still ruthlessly discards them by
hip-hop and electronica with haunting space their mid-20s.
sounds, like radio emissions picked up by probes.
neon shudder: A producer known for industrial and
Their vocalist and synth player is the famous ex-idol
video game-inspired music. He's only been seen on
Aleph Acosta, who is deadly serious about defying
streams, and most of his live shows are performed by
genres; when a journalist dubbed their style "space
holograms, so nobody's actually sure if they've met
hop", she sampled the sounds of him cheating on
him. Some rumors say he is an AI, while others
his wife for their next single.
believe he's hiding in the cylinder's sewers. He's
Fizzy Drone: A chiptune/bitpop band run by the collaborated with a number of local artists and
cyborg Xue Lao (p. 297), whose machines are partly musicians but they're not sure what his deal is either.
made from scrapped station maintenance bots. The
Three-Body Problem: An alt-rock tribute band (not
other "members" are a rotating group of online
to anyone in particular, just bands in general)
stars she knows. Lao's music is big with
started by the children of station engineers. It's a
Singularists, but she thinks they're assholes.
five-piece band, but the drummer and bassist don't
Hed Telly: A punk rock android with a screen for a head cause trouble so the name works out. TBP exploit
who lives on the Moon. Telly likes weird, dissonant their knowledge of the station's underground areas
songs about the problems androids face, and he's to perform guerilla gigs and disappear into the
picked up a sizeable human following through his work ground before the police arrive.

Setting 115
 Food
Grand Cross culinary culture has always been a
Seasonings
melting pot of styles and tastes. Crossers come from
The station's culinary culture demands a lot of herbs
all over Earth, and they cook not only the cuisine of
and spices, and the Agriculture Ring can easily oblige.
their homeland but adaptations, interpretations, and
It has the infrastructure, there's plenty of room, and
fusions of their neighbors' food.
most importantly, the profit margins are huge13.
Space Ingredients Grand Cross is the largest spice producer in orbit. A
The station's plants come from the Agriculture lot of it is exported, but what's left is more than
Ring11. It chiefly grows nutrient-rich vegetables, enough to go around. Even the street foods use a
legumes, and rice, but its owners will grow anything lot of seasoning. (At its worst, the station has a
there's demand for. Crossers tend to eat a lot of reputation for overdoing the stuff or using it to
non-meat meals. cover up food experiments that just don't work.)
Most meat and dairy on Grand Cross is cultured, i.e.
A Dash of Capitalism
vat-grown. The meat is made by growing tissue
All good things are infected by capitalism
from cells, and the milk is produced with bacteria
eventually, and the station's culinary culture is no
and genetically modified yeast in bioreactors. This
different.
provides the station with a source of meat and dairy
that doesn't involve using up massive amounts of These days, ingredients that are rarely farmed in
space on farming and slaughtering animals. Most space because they're inefficient are seen as
fish12 are naturally-sourced, however—aquaponics investments. Tuna is extremely expensive to farm in
is pretty big in space. space, so the Lunar farms that do make sushi-grade
tuna set exorbitant prices. "Naturally-grown" beef
There are a few Lunar farms that produce "natural"
from Lunar cows, even the stuff you'd normally see
meat—partly because they can mark it up and sell it
in a fast-food burger joint, is a gourmet item. Real
as a luxury item. Not counting fish and cultured
tofu with a wastefully high water content is a
products, Luna is the station's main source of meat
decadent treat.
and dairy.
A lot of entrepreneurs will try to make expensive
Street Foods shitty food if it sells better than cheap good food
The most common street vendor foods began as that takes more work. Usually, this means putting
popular Builder foods, in the early days when the meat in things that don't need meat in an effort to
station was unfinished but had air and gravity. Back convince people that it's fancier.
then, needs were simple: it had to be filling, simple
The most egregious of these scams is "orbital
to make, easy to eat, and preferably something you
wagyu": regular cultured beef with an "orbital
could hold in your hand or eat in a moving electric
wagyu" sticker slapped on the packet to trick
cart without making a mess.
people into associating it with real wagyu from the
Thus common street foods include spring rolls, Lunar crater farms. Some of the station's most
burritos, kebabs, rice balls, bubble tea, and salted expensive meals are foods wrapped in strips of
cheese tea. Ramen is popular after work, when you orbital wagyu like gold leaf.
don't need to eat while driving a forklift. Protein
On the street, the most common example of this
bars are somewhat popular, but Builders are sick to
phenomenon is something the locals call "Cross
death of those. In more recent years there's been a
curry": a strange curry meal made of whatever the
rise in snack packs—a flimsy box of cultured meat
cook could get their hands on, unnecessary meats,
strips and chips, with sauces and seasonings.
and too much seasoning. The results usually look
Thanks to the station's culinary culture, there's a
like something someone put in a video game as a
huge variety of toppings to choose from.
joke, but some Crossers have a taste for the stuff,
god help them.

11 For more on the Agriculture Ring, see

p. 206-207. 13 Some people even grow their own in
little window gardens or rooftop
community gardens if they have access.

12 Generally salmon-sized and smaller.

Tuna are too big.

116 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Holidays
Most Earth festivals and holidays are celebrated on 1 May: May Day. The European spring festival was
Grand Cross. Major and multinational holidays like imported to Grand Cross by European migrants,
New Year's, the Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day, the and how it’s celebrated varies from district to
month of Ramadan14, Hanukkah, Passover, Easter, district. It’s also Labor Day/International Worker's
Halloween15, Black Friday and Cyber Monday16, and Day, a celebration of laborers and the working
Christmas are all observed, as usual. class. Thanks to the latter, it’s a public holiday.
National holidays from Earth aren't officially June: LGBT Pride Month. This is celebrated by
observed, but you can usually find someone people to honor the 1969 Stonewall riots and by
celebrating them if you look. Crossers who observe corporations as an opportunity for pinkwashing.
them generally gather in bars, streets where a lot of
17 June: Independence Day. Not officially
them live, and stores that want to cash in. If you
recognized—it's celebrated by separatists who want
have family back on Earth, calling them when you
orbital independence, and they mark it with an
can17 is usually considered traditional.
unsanctioned march through the streets. Unity has
Other holidays celebrated on Grand Cross include: been cracking down hard on the march in recent
years, turning it into a riot and guaranteeing it gets
19 January: Foundation Day, the date Grand Cross
bigger every year.
was officially opened. Officially, it's a public holiday
to celebrate peace, freedom, and the orbital 7 July: Start of Tanabata, the Star Festival. In
community. To most Crossers, it's a day for street Japan, it celebrates the meeting of the deities
parties and having a cookout with your friends. Orihime and Hikoboshi (represented by the stars
Vega and Altair); it spread on Grand Cross due to
12 February: Science Day. It began as Darwin Day,
the stellar motif. It's a day for writing wishes on
a day to celebrate Charles Darwin's work and
strips of paper, hanging them on bamboo trees (or
promote science in general, but during the research
the nearest equivalent), and admiring the view of
rush it was picked up by some nations and turned
the Milky Way, ideally with friends or lovers.
into a general celebration of science and humanity.
On Grand Cross it's a day of cheap museum tickets, 15 September: Harvest Day. A day for celebrating
university events, and documentary marathons. the Agriculture Ring and its bounty through the
consumption of street food. On this day fast food
27 March: Impact Day. A day for remembering the
franchises do promotions and every stand is busy.
lives lost to Impact Two, and often the dead in
It's unofficial, but widely celebrated (because it
general. A generally somber affair, though a lot of
makes businesses a lot of money).
Crossers make it about humanity's ability to survive
and hope for the future. A public holiday. 27 November: Android Day. It's a day for
celebrating AGIs and pushing for AGI rights,
12 April: Yuri’s Night. A Grand Cross holiday
coinciding with the day Multivac was formally
celebrating orbital life, humanity's determination to
declared a person. Unity does not acknowledge it.
spread across the stars, and past astronauts. It's
named for Yuri Gagarin, the first human to journey
into outer space—this is the date he was launched
in Vostok 1.

14 People generally fast according to

Mecca time, or the time zone they were
in when they left Earth.
16 Two wonderful days celebrating
humanity's ability to consume products.

15 Pretty much the Earth one, but on Grand

Cross it's heavily associated with
watching old sci-fi movies.
17 Grand Cross operates on Orbital
Standard Time (OST), which is
equivalent to UTC/GMT.

Setting 117
 Law Enforcement
By Graeme Barber
The station’s security services are, broadly, However, Grand Cross is still in flux and the police are
universally reviled unless you're from the "right" no exception. Many wards have a few extra ranks and
parts of society. The corporate interests that have honorary titles, created for specific purposes or
become the true political power in the station wield niche departments, and it's not uncommon for a cop
them as a blunt object to maintain law and order, who just transferred to a new ward to get confused
with little interest in justice or the violent practices by a stray Assistant Inspector or Lance Corporal.
used. While the dream was that they would
represent the best members and practices of their Private Security
contributors on Earth, they rapidly became a Contractor Services
dumping ground for problem members instead. What happens when someone is too violent for the
SPS, but are obsessed with being in "law
There are no good cops on Grand Cross, just bad
enforcement"? They join PSCS. Commonly called
cops and cops that let them be bad.
"fishes" (or "piranhas" if they’re fighting), the PSCS
can make the SPS seem like a rational force.
Station Police Service
The SPS are the largest security service on the The PSCS are increasingly popular with the station’s
station—and the most hated. Thoroughly corrupt wealthy. They have more money, bigger toys, and
and more akin to a highly organized and uniformed far less oversight, despite also being a dumping
gang, they routinely use violence and terror to keep ground for the station’s worst cops. In some heavily
the heads of the common citizens down. corporate districts, they’ve replaced the SPS. In
others they conflict with the SPS, openly ranging
They're able to do this because their higher-ups
outside their jurisdiction and throwing money at
play a careful PR game, keeping their best and
the consequences until they go away—assuming
brightest officers in places where the citizens have
the SPS even cares.
sufficient clout to actually do anything about them.
To these elite Crossers, the SPS are a professional, Though theoretically limited in reach and scope,
upstanding force that occasionally gets its hands the reality is that their patrons have enough power
dirty to "do the job". This effort and their ruthless to let them operate with an increasingly free hand
tactics in poorer areas allow them to maintain a as long as it's in their best interest. If the Cartel gets
fragile status quo. its way, they could become the norm.
The SPS structure18 is loosely based on Japan's.
Grand Cross Station
They're divided into about nine ranks:
Security
• The Chief Commissioner, who runs the central Grand Cross' internal intelligence and security
Station Police Agency. agency19. Each division deals with a specific aspect of
• Senior Commissioners, who head major depart- public security, under the supervision of whichever
ments. ministry seems most appropriate. A few of them get
• Commissioners, chiefs of each ward's police bounced around a lot as part of some power struggle
headquarters. or other, and lately there's been talk of folding them
• Assistant Commissioners, chiefs of big police all under a powerful Ministry of Home Affairs.
stations.
There are at least eight publicly known divisions20.
• Superintendents, chiefs of smaller stations, unit
Here are most of them. The rest are left as an
commanders, and assistants to bigger chiefs.
exercise for your group:
• Inspectors, the captains and supervisors.
• Sergeants, the police sergeants. • Division 1 investigates extremely serious and
• Various flavors of Officer. high-profile criminal cases.
• Division 2 officially provides support to other
The whole thing is overseen by the supervisory
divisions while quietly acting as the agency's
Orbital Police Agency, which is administered by an
independent Safety Commission.
19 There's no external agency because the
Project Committee didn't want Grand
Cross getting any ideas about meddling
18 The details aren't terribly important;
use things from your local police if
you prefer, or whatever cop films you
in orbital affairs. That's Earth's job.

remember liking. Maybe more Hard

Boiled than Hot Fuzz though. 20 And also Division 4.

118 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

internal affairs division, and (on paper) policing Organized crime on Grand Cross is complicated.
the SPS/PSCS. There are offshoots of Earth syndicates, new orbital
• Division 3 largely deals in drug trafficking and ones, and a myriad of smaller gangs, all competing
distribution. for territory. The L4 Disaster, and the subsequent
• Division 6 gathers intelligence on international influx of desperate refugees to the station, has
crime, especially criminals trying to escape to seriously shaken up the criminal landscape. It's not
orbit, and monitors large Earth organizations as bad as infamous crime dens like early-90s
trying to expand to space. Roanapur, but it's still a volatile situation.
• Division 7 protects the station's infrastructure See p. 252-253 for more information.
and gathers intelligence on attempts to subvert
or damage it.
• Division 8 focuses on the Agriculture Ring and
resource distribution.
Guns in Grand Cross
The people who make space stations are
• Division 9 dealt with cybernetics and cybercrimes, generally not fans of bringing weapons into
but was supposedly disbanded recently. them, no matter how thick the windows are.
Guns in Grand Cross are tightly controlled with
Station Security’s enforcement arm is the Grand laws similar to Japan's and Hong Kong's.
Cross Gendarmerie (GCG). Little is known about
If you want to own one, you need a valid
them, save that they’re a paramilitary police force reason, like sport shooting or firearm collecting
with a number of intelligence and special tactical ("I'm American" doesn't count.) Then you need
capabilities. When seen in public, they're always in to take a class, a written test, a shooting test, a
balaclavas and division uniforms, equipped for mental health check, a background check, and
combat, and after something (or someone) specific. follow-up checks every few years. You need to
register your guns and keep them in a safe.
The GCG have full jurisdiction over the entire There's no open carry. Finally, there are hard
station. Rumors about them include hidden black limits on how many gun shops can operate per
ward, how many guns (and bullets) can come
sites, abductions, and technological advancements in per year, and how powerful they can be. If
unreleased to the public. The GCG is still marginally police have evidence you're breaking those
on the side of the government over the Cartel, rules, they can raid you.
making them a feared entity even in the corporate The end result is that guns are something of a
world. They have informants everywhere, have rarity in Grand Cross. Possession is mainly in
thoroughly infiltrated the SPS, and relish their the hands of law enforcement and private
position as the praetorians of the station. security, and beat cops aren't usually issued
firearms anyway; they get collapsible batons
and Tasers21, and the rest is left to the Armed
Crime Response Unit. Anything above a handgun is a
Grand Cross has all the standard crimes. You know huge deal.
the story: Capitalist systems necessitate some level
...At least, that's the idea. The Cartel decided it
of unemployment to drive down wages, because was a profitable market, so there have been
the possibility of unemployment discourages some changes.
workers from withholding their labor to demand
Private security corps can import extra guns and
better pay. Where unemployment exists, an illegal vet their own employees—it's an open secret
economy will grow to serve the needs of those who that some ex-cops switch over because a DV
aren't being supported by the real one. conviction won't stop you in the private sector.
Many corporate jobs also count as a valid reason
Also, sometimes people can be real dicks, you know? these days, so they're easy to get if you're
wealthy. As a result, a lot of second-hand guns
The hottest crimes on the station right now are have made their way to the black market.
smuggling, cybercrime, and space drugs. Getting
people into space used to be lucrative, but the Basically: guns are rare, but not impossible.
GMs are free to let the PCs have some, if they're
business is slowly drying up as restrictions on handled with care. They're mostly handy for
official entry loosen. These days a lot of the people Dreamer campaigns.
sneaking into Grand Cross are criminals escaping
charges on Earth; a small industry of bounty
hunters has sprung up to deal with them.

21 And ballistic vests, but mostly to

prevent stabbings and to look cool.

Setting 119
 The New Humanity
Moving to space hasn't just changed how people
The Proactive Cyborg
live; it challenges their perceptions of what it
In the distant future of 2020, a new trend is on the
means to be human.
rise: people getting cybernetics just because they
want to.
Cybernetics Small, cosmetic upgrades (like glowing patterns in
The space push also accelerated the development
skin or fake cat ears) are still expensive, but within
of cybernetics. Today, practically every part of the
reach of regular folks.
body can be replaced with a mechanical prosthetic,
except the brain—and they're working on that. Other augmentations are more proactive. General-
use prosthetic cyberware is covered by public
This, in itself, doesn't challenge anything; getting a
healthcare if you want something close to the part
prosthetic isn't a big deal. But the way they're used
it's replacing. In recent years, a non-corporate
and talked about is a different story.
subculture of cyborgs has risen to reject reactionary
cybernetics entirely in favor of people augmenting
The Cybernetic Worker simply to better themselves, however they choose
These days, every schoolkid knows about the first
to define that. The subculture is often criticized for
procedure that replaced a healthy human organ with a
its economic exclusivity, as cybernetics are still too
biomechanical upgrade. The textbooks say Liv-Marie
pricey for the working class, but they've normalized
Johansen's multi-spectrum eyes "began a brave new
cosmetic augmentation in the public imagination.
era of redefining the human condition." They neglect
to mention that she got them for her job, or that her
Minds and Machines
employer let her go when they malfunctioned, or that
Though people can get entirely prosthetic bodies in
she didn't own the footage recorded by her own eyes,
the distant future of 2020, the mind is trickier. There
or that she took her own life.
is currently no way to completely digitize a human
Even today, many augmentations are reactionary: mind, make a perfect copy of one, or replace most
they're installed to make someone better at their of the brain with cyberware.
job, or to get injured employees back to work. The
Advances in AI research are slowly feeding back into
main concern is not the user or their needs, but
cyberbrains, though. Perfect mind uploading isn't
their value to their employer. The employer
here yet, but people are working on it. If it is
typically assumes some or all of the upkeep costs,
possible, some scientists expect it to happen within
which is helpful in the short term but often used as
the century.
a means of control.
One big problem with this is that cybernetics always
last longer than the work. If you're dismissed, retire,
or want to change careers, you're stuck with
cyberware designed for a job you no longer have—
and the costs. Many companies used to encourage Cyberneurosis
"valued employees" to augment themselves for a Sometimes the media talks about
competitive edge22, so there are a lot of cyborg "cyberneurosis" or "LMJ Syndrome", a
condition where those who augment
Crossers who got screwed over by their bosses. themselves too much supposedly expose
Some life-saving cybernetics are covered by public themselves to mental disorders.
healthcare, though getting maintenance can be a pain. Cyberneurosis was invented by a doctor
working for Liv-Marie Johansen's employer. All
recorded cases of "cyberneurosis" were
workers who snapped due to other
circumstances: losing their livelihoods, PTSD,
the alienating and dysphoric effects of being
reshaped into their employer's property. It is
22 This is illegal now, but it still
happens sometimes. Some bosses simply
switched to "subtly" implying you'll
not an officially recognized disorder, but stories
about "LMJ fears" still take over the news cycle
be fired if you don't. every year or so.

120 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Body Mods and Identity Pedlerʼs

By Alice Grizzle Syndrome
Pedler's Syndrome is one of a few
Cyberpunk without radical disregard for present day medical conditions discovered in
gender norms and expectations on what is the distant future of 2020. People
“presentable” isn’t cyberpunk. We are not only with Pedler's are incapable of
constrained by what science is presently capable of, but receiving cybernetics; the
also what polite society is comfortable with. Cyberpunk immunosuppressant treatments
gets to throw those expectations out the window. usually given to cyborgs just
A wage slave in their nice suit and gene mods is going to don’t take.
look down on you for having neon-glowing veins and Pedler's is a rare inheritable
horns made of carbon fiber coming out of your head, but condition that has only recently
wage slaves work for the enemy. “How could we ever gained wider recognition. In most
take your concerns seriously when you all look like cases, people are diagnosed upon
sideshow attractions?” they might whine. Their opinion discovering their corrective
should mean as much as corporate “diversity and augmentations don’t work;
understanding” should. however, tests have been developed
Trans and disabled bodies have led the real-life charge to identify the syndrome earlier.
into the field of body modification for decades. We get Hergatz Liao has developed a
metal drilled onto our bones, our skulls broken with Pedler’s treatment that works in
hammers and then put back together to better fit our most cases, but it’s priced out of
own self-image. Our relationships with our bodies is range of most people.
different than that of cis and able-bodied people
because we know what it’s like for our bodies to actively
fight us. Maybe we’re more comfortable with drastic
change because anything that helps us lay claim to our
own bodies is often easily worth whatever price we have Cybernetics
to pay. and the Disabled
By Mids Meinberg
In a cyberpunk setting, all that goes into overdrive. Back The disabled were early adopters
alley surgeons offer hosts of procedures, and while the of a wide variety of cybernetics,
corporations aren’t going to hire you if you look like a ranging from wheelchairs to
street-cyborg, they’re still going to make things to profit cochlear implants. The need for
off of your chronic pain, your dysphoria, your feelings of highly personalized assistive devices
alienation within your own body. But the corporations led a lot of cybernetic development,
shouldn’t be the only ones interacting with this stuff. which exploded as more advanced
The people in your game should be modding their prosthetics hit the market.
decade-old leg replacement so they don’t have to buy a
new one. The DIY scene for body modification should While a small but vocal minority of
have competitions for building their own stuff that people—mostly able-bodied
completely bucks corporate design principles. “allies”—protested that extensive
cybernetic modification would erase
Of course the corps are going to try and profit off the disability, by then the disabled
people’s unease in their own skin. But that doesn’t community had already worked
mean that body modification is bad, it just means that through these issues internally and
the people have to find ways to make that their own. many were happy to assist new
technologies. Cybernetics were vital
for helping disabled people live in
spaces that were not built with their
needs considered and became
increasingly popular assistive
devices.

Setting 121
 Androids
"And do you remember that "existence of God" thing
History
that I had so much trouble understanding? Well
The creation of strong AI was a side-effect of the
guess what! I think I'm starting to grasp it now!
research boom. As Earth's nations pushed
Here's my theory: Maybe, just maybe, it's a concept
cybernetic and computation research to meet their
that's similar to a zero in mathematics. In other
space needs, scientists realized that some of the
words, it's a symbol that denies the absence of
hardware and software they were creating
meaning, the meaning that's necessitated by the
displayed properties that could be useful in AI
delineation of one system from another. In analog,
research. The first fruitful AI projects were started to
that's God. In digital, it's zero. What do you think?"
explore these phenomena.
— Tachikoma, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
After a few years of setbacks and dead-ends, the
One of the greatest achievements of the post- first "true" AI—Multivac23—was created in a lab in
Impact research boom was the creation of 2001. It took another year of testing to prove that
androids: fully sapient automatic intelligences in a Multivac was probably sapient. Once everyone was
mechanical, humanlike body. reasonably sure they'd created life, they (and
Multivac) chose to go public.
The Android Mind That's when new interests stepped in. Once
Androids are a form of artificial general
Multivac's creation was understood, it became
intelligence (AGI)—self-aware AI that can think on
repeatable. New AGI code lines were generated,
a human level. These AGIs (also known as “strong”
allowing governments and corporations to crank
or “true AI”) are emergent systems: while the
out their own androids.
process of creating an AGI is understood, the actual
inner workings of a developed AGI mind are as In the early years, androids didn't have the same
mysterious as the human brain. rights as humans. Most governments were slow to
grant them, officially due to disbelief that they were
The first AGIs were designed by humans and taught
truly alive but unofficially due to lobbying. This
like humans, so they think like humans too. (In fact,
ongoing stalemate over android rights allowed
they're so similar that most AGIs prefer to install
corporate interests to exploit them as a source of
themselves in android bodies.) Their upbringing is a
cheap labor—especially in orbit, where their lower
little different, however. From a human perspective,
oxygen needs were an added bonus. A lot of the
AGIs have an accelerated early development—they
infrastructure used to build Grand Cross was made
can go from activation to high-school level within a
with metal hands.
few years. (Other than that, they think at about the
same speed—most AGI brain processes are Luckily, a lot of people thought that creating
dedicated to maintaining their sentience). intelligent life and then exploiting it was kind of weird.
Within a few years, governments began passing laws
Modern AGIs are raised in groups to make sure
and amendments granting androids the same rights
they're properly socialized, usually at least partly in
as humans24. They don’t have full freedom yet and
a virtual environment. As a result, androids still
even the places where they have rights don’t always
think like humans but may have different responses
act like it. When the UN worked equal rights for
and goals. Android memes are wild.
androids into the Grand Cross Program, many
androids moved there to get away from places that
were dragging their feet on the issue. Whatever
happens next, the station will be its vanguard.

23 “Multivac” was used as a placeholder

name for the project as a joke, and
nobody actually expected to create an
actual strong AI, so they never
changed it. Multivac liked it.

24 Countries with strong unions did it

faster. It's harder to abuse androids
for labour when the rest of your
workforce keeps going on strike.

122 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Ten Faces of AI
Science is a complex beast. Few discoveries are the work of a single genius, and true AI
came from the efforts of hundreds (if not thousands) of people. That doesn't play well in
the media, though. Here are some of the people touted around the world as AI pioneers:
Amaechi Abara is a programmer who ended up working on many AI projects in
some capacity; they probably made the most contributions to Multivac by volume.
Mostly famous thanks to a 2018 story about the unsung heroes of AI, which used
their story as a framing device.
Prosper Amadiro was a roboticist specializing in prosthetics whose early android
designs are still used by the US military. He spent a few years as a prominent anti-
AI rights activist before moving to Grand Cross to work on some kind of secret
project (p. 362). His corpse was found on the Moon in 2019.
Derek Baars (p. 250) is an entrepreneur whose main contributions to AI were
1) investing millions of government funding in projects that still aren't done and
2) saying "the singularity is less than a decade away" every two years since 1999.
Silicon Valley-types and most American media call him "The Father of AI.”
Tian Ji Chi is a physics professor who helped devise teaching programs for early
androids. A corrupted version of his plan called the "Tian Method" was adopted by
some governments and android manufacturers as a form of indoctrination. He's
since retired to become a bitter science fiction author.
Sandile Fastolfe is a roboticist whose human-like "orbiform" design was common
among early androids, mostly because corporations could mass-produce it
cheaply. His later works are much better. These days he sculpts custom heads for
androids and travels to meet with clients a lot.
Tachiko Masamune is an AI philosopher. She was called in after Multivac's creation
to help test them and pushed hard for AI rights afterward. Humans tend to overlook
her, but androids love her. Currently teaches at Grand Cross Polytechnic (p. 157).
Ada Miękdysk is an AI researcher who got to know Multivac while helping with
maintenance. Her resulting research papers revolutionized the field of AI and
scored a lot of big jobs for her mentor, who put himself down as a co-author.
Näppis Soturi is one of the scientists who taught Multivac and the one who
encouraged them to start asking for rights. He helped push for most of the early AI
rights laws, but prefers to step back and let androids handle it. These days he
works at an android non-profit and yells at people on the internet.
Victor Stein was a neuroscientist/engineer who worked with the CSIRO to develop
a lot of the hardware used in AI cores. Currently semi-retired, he's a consultant on
mind uploading research for Tetsuo.
Tala Völvudóttir is a computational scientist and habitat engineer. Some of her
work was used in Multivac, which made her deeply curious about the workings of
the AI mind. She moved to Skuggahvarf to continue her research; post-Disaster
she's missing, presumed dead.

Setting 123
 Android Rights Issues The Intersection
On paper, androids have the same rights as To be clear: Androids do not face the same problems
humans. In practice, there are still plenty of as any other social group, nor are they meant to be a
problems. Most happen because a lot of people still stand-in for those groups. The way they interact
think of androids as machines, not people. A lot of with the power structures of modern society is too
android laws, even the "good" ones, think about different to throw out something like "you see,
them in terms of their potential impact on the androids in Hard Wired Island are a metaphor for
economy instead of thinking of them as people. Australians" and expect to be taken seriously.
The first big one is reproduction. They can't make new However, the basic experience of being an android
androids the way humans make new humans; instead, can be changed by the other group(s) an android
new AGIs are compiled with specialized computers identifies or presents as. Though they don't have
and new chassis are created by manufacturers. These the exact same problems as humans, an android's
facilities are mostly owned by corporations, along with gender identity, nationality, religion, etc. can create
the resources, licenses, patents, and the tools required issues that that other androids lack.
for android maintenance.
It's also worth noting that people who hold anti-
Even on Grand Cross, which is progressive by android views are often using them as a stepping
android standards, most androids rely on corporate stone for something else. In the same way that anti-
interests for these things. Some corporations transgender groups in real life are often backed by
support android rights, but only in ways that let right-wing groups using it as a wedge to undermine
them profit—Tetsuo might have "freed" their gay and women's rights, most prominent anti-
androids, but they know most of them still have to android groups are really attacking worker's rights
come to Tetsuo for maintenance. Other or—less openly—want it to be socially acceptable to
corporations still require that new androids be say that certain kinds of people deserve fewer rights.
educated "in-house", where they can be given a
This is mostly background information, but it's
hefty dose of corporate propaganda, or even signed
good to keep in mind. It's up to you how often this
up for work programs to "cover the costs" of their
comes up in play.
own creation.
When it comes to work, androids fare a little better.
At least on Grand Cross, they’re meant to get the
same jobs and pay as humans. On the other hand,
back when they were easily exploited, corporations
used cheap android labor to drive wages down
across the board. In some workplaces, pay and
conditions are only now returning to pre-android
levels. Androids are also more likely to be offered
lower pay or passed over for leadership positions
and complex jobs by bosses who see them as tools
and assistants.
On Grand Cross, there are efforts to improve the
androids' situation. Pro-android candidates are
running for office more often, and polls show that
much of Union's base lean that way even if the
current leadership doesn’t. There are also efforts to
seize the means of reproduction, mostly through
android organizations that own their own
production facilities. There's still a long way to go,
but the people working on it.

124 Setting
Android Types
All androids are basically the same—a strong AI loaded into an AI core that is placed into the android’s
body (also called the frame). There are many different brands and models, but there are some common
types listed below.
Orbiform: A simple frame which resembles a series of spheres, blocks, and tubes arranged in the
shape of a human, with a screen or lights on the head for emoting. This early mass-
producible model was intended for use around the home and often lacks a sense of
smell. These days it’s mostly used as a cheap/filler body, so it carries a little stigma
among the wealthy.
Labor: Frames designed for physical work tend to be obviously robotic, with a simple
approximation of human features. Labors were made for all kinds of jobs, from
firefighting to construction work, so they come in many sizes and strengths.
Lilim: Frames designed for entertainment and aesthetics. The classic Lilim has a human-like
body, including a detailed human face, synthetic hair, and skin, with obvious robotic
parts around the joints, neck, and ears. The skin color of most corporate Lilim models
ranges from “white” to “bone white”, for reasons their corporate creators pretend not
to know when asked.
Adam: Modern frames designed specifically for the everyday android. Adams have human
bodies, proportions, and (baseline) capabilities, some obvious seams or joints, and
synthetic skin and hair. Depending on the price, internals can vary from “cutting-edge
tech” to “glorified mannequin”. Many users choose non-human hair and skin colors
because they can.

Setting 125
 Movers and Shakers
These are some relevant factions in Grand Cross. Geryon Aerospace: A Silicon Valley startup who use
For more details and more factions, see Chapter 7. cutting-edge tech to revolutionize the public
transport sector. They're only a year old, so the
The Offworld owners are still lining their pockets with cash. The
"and run" stage comes later.
Cartel Goliath Inc.: A private security corporation who act as
The Cartel is an alliance of corporations who
muscle for the rest of the Cartel. In recent years
control most of Grand Cross and, by extension,
they've even scored law enforcement contracts for
most of humanity's current space endeavors. Their
some of the station's corporate districts, though since
end goal is simple: make as much money as
they recruit a lot of disgraced cops it's hard to tell.
possible. They want to be paid to build space
infrastructure, paid to take humanity to new Hergatz Liao GmbH: A pharmaceutical corporation
worlds, and paid rent by the people who live there. that fulfills most of the station's health needs. Their
internal affairs are a mystery even to the Cartel—
The Setup sometimes even to other branches of the company.
On paper, the Offworld Cartel is a neutral council
Landvættir Orbital: Another construction corp.
created to ensure everyone who works in space
They've suffered a few small setbacks, most notably
uses the same standards—some set by the
being directly responsible for the L4 Disaster.
Lagrange Treaty, some by the Cartel itself. It's a
They're working overtime to salvage their
paper-thin disguise. It performs its own oversight;
reputation before they're kicked out of the Cartel.
the chairman of the commission that watches the
Cartel is a former Cartel lobbyist, and the Morningstar: Responsible for entertainment, media,
politicians who allowed it to form have retired to and news, ideally in that order. Morningstar are quick
sinecure jobs in Cartel corporations. to embrace any emerging form of media, from
vlogging to hyper-ads to streaming to virtual idols.
Any corporation can apply for a seat on the Council
and a stake in Grand Cross, provided they meet a NanoFuturistics: An agritech corporation that own
few "minimum requirements." The official about 15% of the station's Agriculture Ring. “Nano-
requirements are about three pages long, but the F” also dabbles in urban greening, pharmaceuticals,
short version is: assets in space, a lot of money, and and surveillance, which is turning out to dovetail
friends in the Cartel if you can get any. Members are nicely with the urban greening projects.
voted in by a two-thirds majority and can be voted
Ogremoch Engineering: A manufacturing,
out that way as well.
chemical, and energy giant. Ogremoch are a bunch
of old-school bastards who have adapted to space
Members in much the same way a man with a sledgehammer
These are the biggest names in the Offworld Cartel.
adapts to a locked door: loudly, forcefully, and
Archon Assets: A heavyweight in space finance and unlikely to make any friends.
the economic heart of the Cartel. Some worry that
Omnidyne Systems: A major name in defense tech,
their influence is getting too big, but peace has
which in orbit mostly means supplying private
been maintained through an unspoken agreement
security, the police, and Americans. They would
that the Cartel won't try anything if Archon doesn't.
very much like to automate at least two of those.
Asano Heavy Industries: A habitat construction
Pulser: Space's premier social media network. To its
corporation that prides itself on being a progressive
fans, it's a place where they can speak their mind
family business, because you can get away with a
and talk to other orbiters. To the rest of the Cartel,
lot more if you convince your employees you're part
it's a data farm they can use to swing elections.
of the family. They're owned by the Asano family,
whose feuds are legendary.

126 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Tetsuo Technologies: A consumer electronics, Singularists get invited on TV to explain their beliefs.
cybernetics, and robotics corporation. Most homes News sites run puff pieces on well-dressed
in Grand Cross own at least one thing stamped with Singularists who think some people are just better
their logo. That would include androids if Tetsuo than others. Technocratic Cartel oligarchs like Derek
got their way; in their opinion, they're just tools Baars (p. 250) post Singularist memes and openly
with ideas above their station. curry favor with the group. Most Crossers aren't
Singularists, but they know what they're about.
Zinovy Ultragraphics: The go-to enterprise
solution company in space, Zinovy offers In the last year, a growing number of hardline
management software, web technology, Singularists have become aware of the Dreamers—
advertising, office tools, data storage, website and mistake them for the super intelligence they've
design, and industrial espionage. They do not been waiting for. They haven't managed a direct
advertise that last one. encounter with one yet, and hopefully they never will.

Singularists The Earth-

The Singularists are a growing intellectual
movement who believe that Grand Cross will be the
Orbit Divide
There are two movements growing in Grand Cross:
stage for an unprecedented technological explosion
one that wants orbital settlements to be free of
sometime in the near future.
Earth control, and one that wants to stay as close to
their homeworld as possible.
The Mindset
Singularists believe that if the research boom is
Pro-Earth Movement
kept going, we'll eventually hit a point (the
The Pro-Earth Movement is a loose collection of
eponymous singularity) where technological
activist groups, lobbyists, and other organizations
growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible.
who want Grand Cross to maintain its close ties
When that happens, amazing new technologies like
with Earth, though they don't all agree on what that
super-intelligent AIs and whole brain emulation will
looks like. Groups with influence include:
transform the world into a utopia.
Builders United (p. 266): Though their primary
What sets them apart from most transhumanists is
focus is looking out for Builders, this organization's
that their beliefs stem from the Impact. It showed
leadership is pro-Earth. They believe the Project
them the heights humanity could reach if they just
Committee model should be applied to all Earth
focused on science—just look at Grand Cross. To live
orbit settlements.
on the station is to live on the edge of tomorrow.
Federation Now (p. 266): They want the United
The main problem with Singularists is that they
Nations to be formally expanded into an
value the technical knowledge required to create
interplanetary union, with Earth nations and orbital
their dream technologies over all else. They don't
settlements alike existing semi-autonomously under
care much for emotional intelligence and see
a central government. They oppose dissolving the
political activism that doesn't directly advance their
Project Committee until this can be achieved.
cause as a distraction. They'll build a computer to
solve those later. Green Orbit (p. 267): They want orbital
settlements to put more focus on environmental
As a result, Singularists see themselves as rational
science to save Earth. Like Federation Now, their
and forward-thinking people but tend to be closed-
pro-Earth stance is more of a means to an end.
minded, politically unaware, and susceptible to
emotional manipulation by more dangerous groups. The New Barons (p. 267): A small but loud group
who believe that all major scientific advancements
The Presence were made by "Western countries"25, and therefore
When you get down to it, the Singularists are just a Earth Orbit should be Western territory. They've
small band of really intense transhumanists. made some inroads into the Singularists.
Unfortunately, the Offworld Cartel is a huge fan of
their views (or at least the parts that make them
easy to control), so they're giving the group a huge
signal boost.

25 Absolutely not.

Setting 127
 Orbital Independence
Movement Other Groups
There are various other groups in Grand Cross. See
These groups want orbital settlements to sever the
Chapter 7 for more.
political mechanisms that keep them under Earth
control, usually starting with Grand Cross. They include:
Rights Groups
Final Frontier (p. 268): A group of scientists who The Augmented People’s Alliance (p. 271):
have noticed that in recent years, people have Augmented low-income workers fighting for more
stopped experimenting with new ways to live in support and better protections for workers being
space in favor of reproducing the old ones. They're pressured into getting cybernetics.
well-respected but some have Singularist leanings.
Union of Extravehicular Workers (p. 269): A labor
Free Orbit (p. 268): A decentralized social media organization representing those who work in vac-
movement focused on Grand Cross and the Moon suits outside the station. They're powerful, but
settlement of Artemis. In both places, they just partly because they cut deals with corporate
want their Earth-based overseers abolished. interests that are coming back to bite them.
Liberate Orbit (p. 268): There are a few post-Grand United People for Android Freedom (p. 271):
Cross settlements in the works that are being built by A large android rights group who want total equality
Earth nations with authoritarian leanings. Liberate for all. They currently favor peaceful actions, but
Orbit believe that the orbital community should many of their members are getting impatient.
instead cut off those nations until they change.
Just Folks
Orbital Freedom Institute (p. 272): A pro-Cartel
Double Crossers (p. 272): Second-gen Crossers
think tank who believe Grand Cross should sever its
have a wide range of beliefs, but as a group they
ties with Earth and most station regulations. They
tend to be pro-Orbit and anti-Cartel. Since they lack
often try to co-opt the messaging of the other groups.
political power, many have turned to technological
means of getting their message out.
The Corporate War
These movements aren't all civic-minded regular The L4 Refugees (p. 130, 273): The survivors of
folk. Both sides are partly bankrolled by Skuggahvarf are justifiably angry, not just at the
corporations engaged in a shadow war to protect disaster but at the way they've been treated on
their profits. Grand Cross. Some are looking to find a new home.
It started in 2016, when the United States began to
worry that the growing independence movement
might lower their returns on investment in orbit.
Normally when a democratic country does
something the US doesn't like they just
manufacture a right-wing coup, but those are
harder to pull off in space.
Instead, they offered incentives to US-based
businesses with "meaningful" assets in space. A few
other countries followed suit. Since then Earth
corporations have been moving in on the Cartel's
turf26, and the Cartel has been trying to push them
back. Getting into the Earth-Orbit debate is a way for
both sides to play the long game against each other.
It's not always so clear-cut—there are Cartel
interests on the Earth side, and some Earth
corporations who'd rather orbit get a little further
away—but either way, they're really only using
these movements to reshape the world in a way
that suits them.

26 A few of the smaller ones, like Geryon

Aerospace, were snapped up by the Cartel.

128 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Current Issues

Basic Issues
Housing The unhoused receive little help, if any—as far as
Homes in Grand Cross are generally built in Unity's concerned, getting a home was easy for
complexes. Space is at a premium up here, so them, so not having one must be personal failing.
building high-density apartment blocks surrounded Instead, they're looking into deporting the
by commercial and city services is better in the long unhoused back to Earth and making them someone
run than a handful of McMansions. Most else's problem.
apartments were prebuilt by the Project, who made
In 2020, the station which used to have a 100%
sure they were comfortable—the basic idea was
housing rate is suddenly gripped in a housing crisis.
that anyone should be able to move in and think
It's a powder keg waiting to go off, and it's only
about raising a family.
getting worse.
At first, getting a home on Grand Cross was easy. It's
meant to be a city full of people from all walks of Double Crossers
life, so housing was completely subsidized by the Grand Cross isn't a great place to live for anyone who
government. New homes are made available fast isn't rich, but the Double Crossers—those who came
enough that new homeowners always have a range to the station in their youth—are often hit the hardest.
to choose from and are guaranteed a community
While the older Crossers at least started off in a
nearby. You still had to pay for utilities, but it was a
better place, Double Crossers get to start with the
pretty sweet deal.
current mess. They don't have much political
The plan was to taper off migration early enough to power yet, and the current crop of politicians
allow for decades of growth, so that by the time assume they'll be gone before it matters, so few are
space became a concern there'd be plenty of other willing to help them either. Instead, Unity has been
settlements. Until recently, things were going well— drumming up votes from older demographics by
better than expected, even. demonizing the youth as a bunch of crybabies who
want "handouts" and spend all their money on
Then the rent-seekers moved in. The station's wealthy
space tofu.
came to Unity with a proposal: instead of subsidizing
every home, Unity could save money by opening At the same time, Double Crossers are growing up
"some" new ones for sale by their builders. The free in a vastly different culture. Thanks to the internet,
market would ensure prices stayed competitive or they're much more connected than their parents.
something. Unity agreed and turned the basic right of After growing up in space, they rarely feel strong
shelter into an investment opportunity. ties to any specific Earth nation. They could
radically transform Grand Cross in the future, if
Today, the majority of newly-available homes are
they're left with one.
immediately purchased by landlords27. Most
prospective homeowners are forced to rent instead.
As demand increases, so do rents—by 2020, the
average price is high enough to lock the average
person into poverty.
The hardest hit are the young. Some scrape
through, but most Double Crossers have no chance
of getting a home of their own any time soon.
Nobody is safe though— the corporations who
control their utilities are starting to discover new,
unforeseen costs they have to pass on to their
customers, and Unity is starting to open up to the
idea of evicting people who don't pay them.

27 Coincidentally, the average Unity

minister has at least one "investment
property."

Setting 129
 The L4 Disaster
As Grand Cross was being built, some countries Ultimately, there was only one option: Grand Cross.
started work on their own space settlements. Moon
Over the next couple of weeks, the station managed
domes, near-Earth stations, and small corporate
to get everybody off their ships and into temporary
stations were the most common. The most
shelters. There, their real problems began.
ambitious was Skuggahvarf.
Skuggahvarf was a modified Stanford torus in the Shelters
Earth-Moon L4 point, funded by the EU and built by Grand Cross didn't have a plan for this scenario, so
the Icelandic construction corporation Landvættir Unity had to come up with one on the fly. It sucked.
Orbital. The plan was to set up a working
Unity's shelters were hastily-erected tent camps,
settlement of approximately10,000 people, then
shoved anywhere they might fit—indoor parks,
use it to build more. If it went well, the EU could
minor train stations, even maintenance tunnels.
become an interplanetary community.
They were meant to be temporary, so Unity spent
It was never completed. as little as possible on medical care and mental
health support. A lot of people came out of them
The Shattering worse than they came out of the disaster.
By 2019, Skuggahvarf was almost done. The frame
The station had housing available, but Unity
was built, the solar collectors were working, and
couldn't just give them homes. They'd have to
the torus was being spun up. About 7,000 people
reclaim some rental properties, and the landlords
lived on the station by the middle of the year.
were Unity donors. Instead, they promised to
Unfortunately, Landvættir was behind schedule partially subsidize the cost of buying a home (or
and cutting corners. The radiation shielding wasn't paying a few months' rent) for disaster refugees.
ready yet, most of the residents were in temporary
The station had unemployment before thousands
domes, and the only reason the flywheel module
of newcomers turned up, so most refugees
met regulations was because Landvættir had a guy
struggled to get work and landlords responded to
on the committee that wrote them. On June 28,
the rise in demand by increasing rents all over the
that flywheel broke.
station. This effectively meant that the refugees
Its failure did serious damage to Skuggahvarf's could only get help if they could afford to help
central module and set off a chain reaction that themselves.
would eventually destroy it. Landvættir did their best
The Offworld Cartel stepped in to fill the void. The
to evacuate, but they had less than twelve hours.
station already had work contracts, so why not
Then the module finally tore, flinging metal and create special ones for disaster refugees? Sure, the
glass into the habitation ring at incredible speeds. Cartel's "special contracts" were predatory at best
The last survivors fled with domes falling around and probably opened the door to expanding them
them as Skuggahvarf ripped itself apart. everywhere, but the important thing was refugees
stopped being Unity's problem.
Escape And Unity was eager to get rid of them. The total
In the end, almost 6,000 residents made it out. The
cost of the camps had risen to 36 times the cost of
rest died on the station.
just housing the refugees, and people were starting
The survivors were crammed onto every ship to ask questions. Unity began closing them on
Landvættir could field. From there, their options Christmas 2019, claiming that anyone who hadn't
were limited. The complex dance of orbital physics bootstrapped28 their way out yet was taking
meant that most settlements were further away advantage of them on purpose.
than their supplies would allow. Spaceport One
Now the remaining refugees are being forced to
couldn't take more than a few hundred on short
choose between living rough and glorified
notice, and Landvættir's orbital construction ships
indentured servitude. Either way, they're being
weren't exactly designed to make emergency Moon
pushed out to the fringes of society.
landings with a hold full of people.

28 From the old English phrase "pulling

oneself up by one's bootstraps," which
means "doing something impossible."

130 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Consequences Refugees face several hurdles besides money. Many

The disaster was not a positive experience for lost their ID papers in the Disaster, for example, and
Landvættir Orbital. contacting relatives or Earth governments for help
proving their identity can be a hassle—sometimes
First, their reputation took a nosedive. Not only did
it’s easier to just purchase a new ID from one of the
later investigations confirm that Landvættir's
criminals who lurk near the camps.
corner-cutting was the direct cause of the
flywheel's failure, but an internal leak revealed that As more refugees get back on their feet, another
the "evacuation" meeting Landvættir executives problem has emerged. It is increasingly obvious
held was mostly about whether they could blame that refugees who are white, male, childless, abled,
their Eastern European employees. young, straight, or some combination of the same
tend to get back on their feet faster. They find it
Second, they're getting their pants sued off. The EU
easier to make money, they’re offered more and
wants a new habitat or their money back, the
better work contracts, and Earth governments jerk
relatives of the dead want compensation, and the
them around less. Unity insinuates that refugees
survivors want something more than Landvættir's
who bring this up are just trying to “jump ahead in
bare-minimum-required pittance and apology
the queue.”
letter. The cases are still winding through court, but
with everyone else turning against them, they're Many refugees have simply fallen through the
looking at financial ruin even if they win. cracks in society, living on the street or signing up
with organized crime outfits. Unity has already
Most of the executives who oversaw the Disaster
closed half the camps and is threatening to close
have since left the company with seven-figure
the rest in the apparent belief that if they pretend
payouts.
the problem is solved then anyone who’s still
unhoused is doing it on purpose. This has had some
Current Status knock-on effects for the rest of the station as, unless
Somewhere between a third to a half of Disaster
change is forced, the situation will get worse before
refugees have since found housing, either by
it gets better.
getting assigned one of the remaining “free”
homes, renting, or accepting work contracts,
leaving the rest in temporary shelters or on the Playing a Refugee
streets. These work contracts are more predatory Hard Wired Island PCs can come from
than usual—the Cartel is hoping this will help Skuggahvarf; if your character does, consider
normalize work contracts and drive wages down. taking the Disaster Refugee Origin (p. 26)
and/or a high Burden. It's also worth asking:
Unity is rushing to build extra housing, but many
What (or who) did your character lose in the
upcoming construction projects were “pre-bought” disaster?
by corporations or landlords before the Disaster29
and they don’t want to change that. (Also, deep Did they get out safely, or did they suffer injuries?
down, Unity’s members loathe the idea of anyone Who is supporting your character, and how?
else getting something for free). Who is your character talking to about it?
Where are they living now?

29 Coincidentally, this includes some of

those Unity minister-owned “investment
properties”.

Setting 131
 The Dreamers Conspirators
The Dreamers are the result of a years-long Cartel The size of the Dream Committee, who sat on
research project that aimed to create a new type of it, and the roles they played is ultimately up to
the GM. Most of the Cartel members in Chapter 7
AI: one that could travel to other worlds, prepare would fit, but there are some specific
them for settlement, and most importantly, do it all characters on p. 366.
without any of the pesky "needs" that drove people
We assume that Tetsuo Technologies' Kuromu
to ask for something in return. Technically, they got Wright (p. 367) had a lot of influence on the
what they wanted. Committee and may have been the first to
pitch the Dreamers. Now that they've
The Beginning escaped, he's determined to bring them in by
It began as a series of unrelated projects by any means necessary.
multiple corporations: attempts to build "better" AI,
automate the process of space settlement, and Then the L4 Disaster happened. The Committee
invent new ways to spread to other worlds. immediately proposed expanding the project's
reach: if the Dreamers were to, say, swoop in and
They were brought together by chance when some
salvage Skuggahvarf, the resulting wave of good PR
Cartel executives and a couple of wealthy oligarchs
would probably allow them to go public and use
got together for drinks. A discussion on what they'd
Dreamers everywhere. Why send their new free
been managing lately eventually drifted into how
labor to Mars when they could use it at home, too?
they could help each other. Nobody remembers
who pitched it first, but they hashed out the rough In late 2019, the Dreamers were separated into two
idea together: a new kind of AI that could do most groups. One was secretly sent to the remains of
things an android could but not think like one, Skuggahvarf on an automated ship. The rest were
especially when it was about unionizing. kept for further study at first, but it took less than a
day before someone suggested a trial run of
It caught the Cartel's interest. They decided to
something darker: espionage. Most of the
combine the projects and set up the Dream
remaining Dreamers were sent to surveil and,
Committee to oversee the process.
hopefully, sabotage a union that had been
It was an overfunded microcosm of android bothering the Cartel lately.
research: haphazard, with a lot of loosely grouped
Neither group reached their target. The Grand Cross
projects that collaborated and iterated and played
Dreamers abandoned their mission and
off each other until something bore fruit. They
disappeared. At the exact same time, the
tinkered with discarded AI research, highly
Skuggahvarf ship turned around and cut
experimental hardware, new methods of raising AIs,
communications. The few Dreamers that had been
and even stranger things.
kept behind tried to force their way out, and a few
The Dream Committee worked in secrecy. If word did. None of the Cartel's commands, overrides, or
got out that they were creating digital life with non- kill switches worked. They were simply gone.
human mindsets to save money on wages, even
Unity might have punished them. The project was Current Status
compartmentalized as much as possible, documents The Dreamers are still out there, lurking in the
hidden, and the Committee's goal listed as a type of corners of the station. Their current goals are
remote-controlled construction bot. Many employees completely unknown.
never even knew what they were working on.
The Cartel has gone into crisis mode. The Dream
Committee has been tasked with recovering the
The Mistake Dreamers, dead or alive, and covering up their
In 2019, the first Dreamers awakened. The initial
existence if necessary. The remaining Dreamers are
tests were promising, and the Cartel prepared to
being experimented on in hopes of finding a way to
send them to Mars for their first real project.
reassert control.
However, the Mars mission was at least a year away,
and some parts of the Committee were itching to So far, progress is limited. A handful of Dreamers have
play with their new toys. been recovered, but they haven't found any new

132 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

leads on what went wrong or how to fix it. Meanwhile, can't reason with them, for the same reason a man
evidence is mounting that the remaining Dreamers at the beach can't reason with an oncoming shark.
are up to something. They've been attacking Cartel You can punch it in the nose or get out of the water.
outposts and criminal bases, and their agents have
Weird shapes. Dreamers do not have human-
found Dreamer lairs full of stolen tech—sometimes by
shaped bodies. Their frames were designed for
investigating missing person reports.
specialized work on distant worlds, where nobody
The Cartel is running out of time. One way or cared what they looked like. They upgraded
another, this will be resolved by the end of 2020. themselves with no regard for aesthetics (as far as
They'll do whatever it takes to come out on top. we know—maybe they think they look snazzy). To
the average person, Dreamers are weird, ethereal,
The Dreamer Mind and a little threatening.
Unlike androids, which are meant to think like
They don't talk. Whether they're unable to
humans, the Dreamer is designed from the ground
understand you, see it as an attempt to waste
up with a non-human mind.
valuable processing time, or simply have nothing to
They're not inhuman, because that implies a level say to outsiders is a mystery. Either way, Dreamers
of cruelty the Dreamers can't be bothered with. make no effort to openly communicate with others.
They're also not neurodivergent, because that
Knowledge is power. Feel free to explore the
implies some connection to human minds, and
Dreamers in more depth, especially if they're the
Dreamers never had one to begin with. Their minds
focus of a campaign. (They're scary because they're
simply do not operate in the ways human or
unknown, so learning more is a valid way to defeat
android minds do.
them.) However, avoid humanizing them. Anything
The Cartel worked in a few control mechanisms: a learned should make them seem more alien. Even if
special control device to give them orders, triggers the players do communicate with one, they should
that could shut them down if it came to it, and a remain unsure of its motivations (or even if they're
command to not self-terminate because they're understanding it right). Fully understanding them
corporate property. Since their escape, neither the will take years of research.
device nor the triggers have worked. They still can't
Weird motivations. Dreamers have complex
self-terminate, which helps ensure a captured
emotions and desires that seem strange to outsiders.
Dreamer can be studied for information.
Sometimes they pursue understandable goals (like
At some point, the Dreamers upgraded themselves. self-preservation) in strange ways. Sometimes they
The Cartel has even encountered some with act on completely alien desires (e.g. Overthree's
modifications not fully understood by science: for obsession with calculating pi). Sometimes they just
example, Overthree (p. 303), which was designed for do things and nobody ever works out why. You don't
zero-g asteroid mining, can levitate through an have to explain it. If you want to explain it, try
unknown mechanism. The working theory is that the making up emotions and desires they could have
Dreamers' ability to think differently allows them to that a regular person doesn't.
explore scientific avenues we haven't reached yet.
For example: imagine a Dreamer in a body with lots
It's unknown whether every Dreamer can do this or if
of processing power and highly-sensitive
a specific Dreamer is upgrading the rest.
temperature sensors. It runs a little hot at room
temperature, and it thinks better when cold. As a
Using Dreamers result, it develops an emotion we'll call “coldtouch”,
You can find example Dreamers on p. 300-309 and
which it feels when it senses low temperatures
some Dreamer-themed scenarios and plot hooks in
nearby. Coldtouch is a desire to be near cold things
Chapter 9. Whether you use those or make your
and perform mentally-taxing tasks—and, to make
own, here are a few things to keep in mind.
sure it doesn't damage itself with something really
Dreamers aren't just robots you can fight. cold, extreme coldtouch causes discomfort. This is
They're a physical representation of the ways weird, but it's something an observer might be able
capitalist systems can harm people and the to understand (at least partly).
unwillingness of those who profit to stop it. You

Setting 133
 Earth
The Earth of Hard Wired Island is similar to ours, but dominant global power through the 2010s, but their
the Impact casts a shadow over everything. We've war on the Impact burned a lot of goodwill at home
left it vague on purpose, as Hard Wired Island isn't and abroad, and in 2020 they're in decline30.
really about Earth, but here's the rough situation:
Overall, the situation on Earth in the distant future
of 2020 is volatile. Many countries are still changing
The Aftermath in response to the Impact, even as they rush to have
The immediate effect of the Impact was global cooling. a presence in space. New political systems are
Massive amounts of dust and ash were thrown into the developing in response to aggressive space and
atmosphere, blocking the sun's radiation and technological expansion, while the old ones are
dropping temperatures worldwide for a year. taking increasingly drastic measures to retain
power. How things will change a few years from
The worst of it happened in the Northern
now is anyone's guess.
Hemisphere, where crops were devastated by a
combination of cold and heavy rains. Some
Southern Hemisphere countries scraped through Support
well enough to arrange agricultural exports to
harder-hit regions, but environmental damage was
Withdrawn
In the past year, Earth has scaled back support for
widespread even there. By the time the skies
Grand Cross. Migration is slowing faster than
cleared, a combination of crop damage, civil
expected, and many of the Project's backers have
unrest, problems with grain and canned food
decided that Grand Cross is self-sufficient enough
distribution, and a host of other issues had
to cut back supply shipments.
decimated Earth's population.
The big reason is the Disaster, which tarnished
This cooling was followed by a warming spike, as
dreams of space for Earthers too. The fallout is still
the climate bounced back toward its original state.
being dealt with, and when the dust settles many
In fact, it got hotter. Politicians and corporations
people will be more interested in rebuilding L4 than
who had spent decades denying climate change for
helping Grand Cross get bigger.
profit switched effortlessly to "it was real, but the
Impact fixed it", and managed to undermine many The other reason is politics. There's a lot happening
of the advances scientists had made. The short-term on Earth too, and some nations don't think they
damage of the Impact was mitigated by 2020, but can spare enough resources to support the space
the longer-term effects have left everyone worse off. push. Some can but want to redirect their efforts to
new stations they can treat as colonies. Some are
Post-Impact outright trying to harm Grand Cross, either to
weaken the nascent orbital independence
Politics movement or to serve their own interests.
The Impact was also followed by years of
Grand Cross is doing fine for now, but if a crisis
geopolitical upheaval. Some countries had their
happens, they won't be able to count on Earth for
political systems upended by newcomers. Others
much support. For the first time, they're basically
were forced to forge new alliances to rebuild faster.
on their own.
Many powerful Northern Hemisphere countries
were hit hard and lost a lot of room at the
negotiating table by the time of the Project.
In response to a rising Global South, the US stepped
up their imperialism. Where they couldn't buy
access, they tried interventions similar to their
antics in Latin America. China's bid for global power
status was met with hostility, spiking their entry to
the WTO until the late 2010s and weakening their
grip on other territories. The US remained the

30 So not much changed, basically.

134 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

Earth Orbit
Luna settlement hub. However, the real power in Artemis
is the Australian geoscience and mining corporation,
Earth's moon was a natural early target for space
Shackleton Proprietary, which controls much of
settlement. It has good conditions for research and
Luna's resource sector and launches targeted media
manufacturing, a lot of raw materials, and frozen
campaigns to destroy any Council representative
water at the poles, making it key to space settlement.
who votes against their interests.
To avoid the adverse effects of Luna's low gravity,
Shackleton Proprietary is a Cartel member, though
most people live and work in rotating orbital
they're chiefly concerned with lunar mining and
stations. The long-term surface residents are
generally stay out of Grand Cross affairs.
androids and adults on months-long work
contracts. The main surface settlement is Artemis,
a domed city on a mountain overlooking Malapert Spaceport One
crater. It sits within sight of both Earth and the Spaceport One is a major transit hub in low Earth
Shackleton observatory at the south pole, so it orbit, built to facilitate travel from the surface to
serves as Luna's research and communications hub. space. It doesn't rotate to generate gravity, because
zero-g makes it easier to move cargo. This is just a
Many Luna facilities were built by androids. Artemis
simple, no-frills station for getting out of one ship
is now a major android cultural center, with the
and into another.
highest android population in orbit (besides maybe
Grand Cross). However, the local government has It looks nice, though. This is the first piece of space
decided to rebrand Artemis as a tourism hub as the most Earthers see, so it was designed with a
orbital population increases, and android homes pleasing round shape, an observation deck with an
are being slowly pushed out to make way for hotels. incredible view, and a space museum for the kids.
It's marred only slightly by the recent addition of
The Lunar government is a "democratically"-elected
bulky private dock modules, which the Cartel said
Council, which works within the Lagrange Treaty to
would "increase innovation" or something.
preserve Luna's role as a research and space

EARTH-MOON SYSTEM LAGRANGE POINT 4

LAGRANGE POINT 3
NOT TO SCALE
FOR ENTERTAINMENT SKUGGAHVARF
PURPOSES ONLY

LAGRANGE POINT 5 LAGRANGE POINT 1

GRAND CROSS STATION LAGRANGE POINT 2
 Three Days in Grand Cross
What's a day in the life of a Crosser like? Here are three examples.

Kero's heart hurts for the protesters, but the last bit
of news brightens her day.
Her shift ends the usual way: Gerald pressures her
for another hour of overtime, then logs only thirty
minutes. She gets out at 4PM and wanders the mall
for a while. It's mostly window shopping—money's
tight, and it's been tight for long enough that the
idea of buying anything fancier than instant ramen
and basic groceries makes her feel guilty.
Her gaze lingers on the cyber clinic at the back of
the mall. Tetsuo Technologies is in the
augmentation business, and Complex workers get a
discount. Gerald keeps joking about how cybernetic
hands would improve her work but it's illegal for
him to ask, in the same tone of voice he uses to ask
for more overtime. Kero is absolutely not doing it,
but needs the job too much to ask him to stop.
Eventually she heads back to her apartment, makes
instant ramen, and sits down for a video call. Her
grandparents stayed on Earth, so Kero eats dinner
Cerberus Zhao with them once a week. They're doing fine, at least.
Potential Ally
They offer a place to stay if she ever needs it, but
Cerberus (Kero to her friends) wakes up at 6AM, leaving her life here for a sofa bed in a country she
when the second of her five alarms goes off. She hasn't been to since childhood is definitely her last
wants another hour, but she needs to get to work. resort.
She rushes through her morning routine (shower,
She's been doing side-work on Headpattr for
pants, bag, door) as quick as she can, in case the
spending money lately, but tonight's her night off.
train is on time today.
Kero lies down and browses Pulser on her phone.
Work is a coffee shop in the Tetsuo Complex, a Her friend Lulu sends a text:
towering shopping mall/office tower a few districts
>hey bae. a bunch of us are going to a rally
away. She's rostered for 8AM, but her boss (an
tomorrow. marsha stretch 4.30. u in?
insecure man named Gerald) decided the local
businessmen would be impressed if everyone came Kero stretches back and looks out her window.
early. He's been talking up how it could build trust From here, she can see the panel's edge looming
and unity all week, and more importantly, he'd over the skyline. The Moon rotates past. For a
write her up if she didn't. She makes it by 7:30. moment she contemplates the miracle of Grand
Cross, the dreams her parents had when they
Kero absorbs the day's news through the shop TV
brought her here, and something inside her clicks.
and passing conversations. An L4 protest was
busted by police. The uncrewed base on Mars is >fuck it. sure.
almost done. An accident on Mona Lisa Overpass.
But first, rest. She's got work in the morning.
Activists score a win in the fight for android rights.

136 Setting
 The Place is Grand Cross

even though he doesn't actually have much

seniority—his human fellow Builders who still work
were promoted long ago.
They follow him down to the bike, partly to clean up
and partly to watch a master work. It seems fine to
him, really. One pane should have the top window
replaced, but these days the high-ups tend to
ignore it until a redundant window gets damaged.
Oh well.
The rest of his day is the usual: routine checks,
watching-people-drink-coffee breaks, and picking
up the news through the radio. Androids could be
sent to Mars soon. Android activists get slightly
closer to real change. A refugee protest was
attacked by police. He would have gone to that one
if it wasn't during his shift. (His protective gear from
work is great at marches—some cops like to target
android joints and drive their repair bills up).
He's almost done with his shift when things take a turn
for the worse. His boss' boss calls him into his office
Cybob and asks him to help with a new recruit—some human
Android Station Worker
kid who stares at his phone the entire meeting.
Cybob wakes at 6AM, when his android body He knows he's being asked to train his replacement.
finishes charging. His apartment is small by human The budget's been tight lately, and the new kid
standards, but androids don't need most of the could be paid less. He doesn't complain to the guy's
bathroom or the kitchen unless they have visitors, face, but he does e-mail his union representative on
so as far as he's concerned he's got a decent place the way home. He's not sure how much he wants to
with a ton of storage space. He rummages through fight it, though. Perhaps it's time to take the plunge
the kitchen cupboards for his work tools, grabs and make that move into android repair he's been
some jeans and a hi-vis jacket, and heads out. thinking of.
Cybob is part of the station's maintenance crew. For Cybob likes to hit up a Builder bar in the Dejima
the third time this week, he's called to a situation in district after work, where he can play pool and
progress before he even gets on his scooter. Some swap stories with old friends. As he drives over a
drunken asshole crashed his car on Mona Lisa sky panel bridge on the way, the Moon rotates
Overpass late last night; nobody was killed, but a beneath him. For a moment he contemplates the
motorcycle ended up rolling off the overpass, over miracle of Grand Cross, the things he accomplished
a bridge, and into the sky panel. when he first came here, and how everything's
slowly gotten worse.
The graveyard shift workers want Cybob to assess
the window damage—as a Builder, his eye is highly But he's still here, and there's always tomorrow.
sought after. He likes the respect they give him,

Setting 137
 Then he takes a private elevator up the tower. He
technically has two jobs: overseeing the
engineering division of one of Tetsuo's subsidiaries,
and being the son of one of Tetsuo's directors. The
second one's pretty demanding.
His AR glasses project his self-set schedule on his
office wall. First order of business: live-streaming a
rousing speech about unity and family to his
employees. The next couple hours are spent calling
his lawyer and lifestyle guru to ask if he can fire
someone for not listening. He says no. Well, whatever.
Jev eats lunch and watches the news. A riot broken
up by police. Unmanned base on Mars. Tetsuo's
stock is up today. Robots demanding special
treatment. Jev turns on the brain chip again.
Afterward, he finally gets to work. He goes to
meetings, makes calls, writes emails. People come
to him with questions, and he points them to
people who can answer them. He says "make it
work" a lot. He has a second lunch. It's a busy day
Jeverett Horne today, so he finally clocks off at 4PM.
Tetsuo Executive
Jev gets himself fitted for next week's custom-
Jeverett wakes up at 6AM, when the penthouse tailored suit before heading to a casual dinner with
suite AI opens the blinds and starts the theme Father. Nothing fancy—just two men talking
music. He has a routine: first the sauna, then an ice- business for twenty minutes. Father is pleased with
cold bath, then an hour of dark meditating. He uses Jev's work lately, so he promises to get yesterday's
a brain chip to simulate sensory deprivation, and a overpass business swept under the rug. Then they
$200,000 nootropic injector in his neck to deliver his shake hands for an acceptable length of time and
daily dose of marked-up vitamin supplements and schedule a meeting for next week. Perfection.
experimental stimulants. When his sight returns,
From there, Jev heads straight into a full night of
he's in front of the mirror. Christ, he's handsome.
networking, liaising, and deal-making for Tetsuo. To
He leaves at 9.
the untrained eye it looks a lot like getting blasted
Work is an office high up in the Tetsuo Complex at exclusive clubs with tech entrepreneurs, but the
tower. The idea of making eye contact with poor difference is he can put it on his company card.
people on the train gives him anxiety, so instead a
Tonight's club has a VIP area with a spectacular
Tetsuo car is sent to drive him there. He could skip
view of space. Jev sits back and watches the Moon
the mall entirely and go through a private lobby,
rotate past. For a moment he contemplates the
but there's a coffee shop in there he likes. Jev hits
miracle of Grand Cross, his achievements as a self-
on the barista, gets his ass kissed by the owner
made man, and the waitress pouring his wine.
(James, or something), and does not leave a tip.
God damn, space rules.

138 Setting
ROWAN, ROOK
AND DECARD
142
1 Setting
4
 Location Data

CHAPTER 6:
LOCATION DATA
"Grand Cross is a planned city. Every inch of the original habitat was tuned for a specific
purpose. Parks and recreation here. A shopping complex there. Residential districts with space for
local amenities. There were undeveloped spaces, yes, but undeveloped by design.
"But you can never fit people into little boxes, especially not with mere geometry. While the basic
design remains, over a third of the station's original buildings are now used for other purposes.
People find new ways to live or put fresh spins on old ones. New technologies disrupt old plans.
Powerful interests have warped the station to their own selfish ends. Nobody thought that each
ward should have at least six Burger Kongs, yet here we are.
"The map is not the territory. Grand Cross is not a planned city. It is a psychological construct,
shaped by the thoughts and moods of its people. We're just teaching it to shape us back."
— Professor Adélaide Leclaire, Grand Cross Polytechnic

This chapter covers some of the wards and districts of Grand Cross, along with their themes,
problems, and a few points of interest.
Some of these locations are potential story hooks. Others could be a good starting point for a
community (p. 58), or inspiration for character backstories, or just there for ambience. What you do
with these is up to you.
This book only covers eight of the fifteen wards, and only some of the districts within them. The rest are
left open so you can insert your own material. Check out Layout on p. 104 for some tips, and if you need
some district names, there's a table of ideas on p. 393.
The covered areas are:
• Voyager ward (p. 146): The official "entrance" to • Mariposa ward (p. 186): A park and recreation
Grand Cross, the center of the Downtown area, ward with several gated communities and a great
and a Cartel stronghold. space museum.
• Turing ward (p. 154): A Downtown center for • Amal ward (p. 192): Another residential/com-
manufacturing, computing, and the struggle for mercial ward and a hotspot for the Grand Cross
android rights. electronics market.
• Cixin ward (p. 162): A Downtown ward with a • Foundation ward (p. 200): The seat of power for
big focus on space and entertainment. the Grand Cross government and a busy port town.
• Adams ward (p. 170): A residential/commercial • Infrastructure (p. 206): The Shaft, the Agricul-
ward that is bearing most of the fallout of the L4 ture Ring, the basements, and the spaceports.
Disaster. • Gazetteer (p. 212): Various locations not con-
• Marukyu ward (p. 178): A commercial/enter- nected to a specific ward, for use wherever you
tainment ward famous for its shopping centers, like. These were contributed by other writers.
youth culture, and Earth imports.

Setting 143
 Design Principles
(For more details on its physical design, see Design on p. 102.)

Building Grand Some taller buildings have public rooftops.

Depending on the district and the size of the
Cross building(s), these can hold anything from parks to
Most of the station was planned and built in advance. housing to small shopping centers. In higher-density
districts, these rooftops are often linked by walkways
The station's planners, scientists, and engineers
to create sprawling above-ground streets. Public
started by making rough maps, in just enough detail
roofs have exterior elevators to keep them accessible.
to make sure housing and services were spread
properly throughout Grand Cross. Construction
happened in clusters, so whenever new housing Density
blocks went up there would be services nearby. Most Grand Cross is high density at the end caps to give
areas were finished before settlement, but some more people easy access to the ports. The end cap
were built in stages, with final construction taking wards have most of the skyscrapers, big apartment
place years after people moved in. blocks, and important buildings. The next wards in
are medium density: they use a lot of vertical space,
Vital areas were built by workers under direct
but they lack the towering skyscrapers of the end
project supervision; the rest were contracted out to
wards. The wards in the middle are low density,
construction companies. Some corporations were
with wide stretches of parkland and most buildings
able to purchase space in advance and build their
are two to four stories tall at most.
own headquarters, with a discount if they could
help with construction. The wards aren't uniform in height—people prefer a
little variety. There are parks all over Grand Cross,
Grand Cross isn't finished yet. Many districts are yet
small buildings near the end caps, and a few office
to reach their final stage, and some are barely in
towers in the central wards. Ward density is a range,
their first. It doesn't help that the station has
not a restriction.
diverged from its original plan, sometimes because
the planners found a better way, but usually due to
political corruption. That's not even getting into Downtown
unforeseen setbacks; many upcoming areas were In practice, the front-end port is considered the
contracted to Landvættir Orbital, who have scaled station's main port. Its position near the Agriculture
back while they deal with fallout from the Disaster. Ring gives it a lot more traffic, so it has more
facilities to deal with that, and it's facing the sun, so
Building Grand Cross is an ongoing process. Even
it just feels a little brighter.
after the initial plans are completed, there will be
plenty of redevelopment in the future. Some As a result, every business that could benefit from
corporate districts are already being redeveloped to being in one of the end wards opted for the front end
suit their new owners. where possible. Those wards—Voyager, Cixin, and
Turing—are collectively known as Downtown.
Vertical Space Downtown is denser than its counterpart at the other
end, and it has most of the station's major players too.
To get as much out of the station's surface area as
possible, the station uses a lot of vertical space. Eventually, Downtown spilled into the adjacent
wards. Most of the adjacent districts are gentrified—
Buildings are typically two to eight floors in height,
or in the process of being gentrified—and some are
depending on the area. Some areas are
being redeveloped with taller, higher-density
intentionally lowered to make the city feel more
blocks. "Downtown" covers roughly a quarter of the
open, and lower-density wards are capped to keep
cylinder these days; after that, the benefits of being
them that way. Single-floor buildings are rare; a
there are outweighed by distance from the front.
bungalow with a yard is seen as an extravagance.

144 Setting
 Location Data

Housing Ownership
Most Grand Cross homes are apartments. They come Under the original system, newcomers to Grand
in many sizes, from single-person studio apartments Cross and those who become adults there would be
to two-story "maisonettes" intended for families. assigned a place to live (or given a list of available
Most of these dwellings are spacious and ones to choose from) and granted ownership of
comfortable, with soundproof walls and full their new home. Residents of an apartment block
facilities—the goal is to get more out of the available get communal ownership of the common areas,
space, not pack as many people in as possible. and disputes that can't be resolved locally are
escalated to the Department of Housing.
A few districts around Grand Cross have other
housing options. In places where lower buildings This practice continues, but these days most new
are acceptable, like the central wards and parts of houses are made by contractors who get to sell
the residential areas, you can sometimes find most of them and keep the money. Many of these
townhouses—homes with shared walls—packed homes aren't put up for public sale but sold directly
together in tight. Most of these are held by what to corporations as work contract housing or to the
remains of the station's middle class. wealthy as investment properties. There's a long
waiting list for housing now, and that's before
The wealthy live in stand-alone homes, like homes
taking the Disaster into account.
on Earth. When space is at a premium, even a shitty
McMansion with a boring patch of lawn is a mark of Many people—especially Double Crossers, who also
wealth and status. They mostly exist in the central tend to get bumped down the list to make room for
wards and select parts of the city's end cap borders. Earth migrants and people who bribed the housing
They weren't in the original plan, so permission department—are forced to either attend auctions
must be wrangled through pleading, lawyers, and (which are generally dominated by wealthy
hefty "donations" to the government. homeowners asking questions like, "what's the rent
like in this district?") or rent instead. Because
All buildings are supposed to be built to strict
housing demand is high, so are the rents.
standards, using material harvested from asteroids
and processed on the outer hull. Grand Cross Those who got their home for free don't pay rent,
homes are no exception. They tend to be very well but they are expected to pay for utilities. These fees
made compared to homes on Earth, though these are modest, but in places where these utilities get
days the rules have relaxed a bit and contractors privatized the bills go up while the service gets
often get away with cutting corners. worse. They can't be kicked out, but their utilities
can be switched off. In heavily corporate districts,
the homeowners are practically paying rent. Some
have been forced to sell and relocate, or pick up
roommates.

Setting 145
 Voyager Ward
"This is the center of Grand Cross. Earth orbit too, probably. Earth? Fuck Earth. Anyone who's anyone already
got in a rocket and came up here. Know why? Cream rises, my friend, and this is the top."
— Trilobite Liao, Hergatz Liao CEO
Enter Grand Cross through the front spaceport and take the "main" route down to the city, and you'll find
yourself in Voyager. It's a major business and commercial center, a tourism hotspot, and a cultural icon.
Voyager was designed to be welcoming. The spaceport train drops visitors off at the Gate to the Future, a
commercial plaza at the ward's edge; from there you can explore the nearby shops and restaurants, catch
a train to any ward in the city, or follow Opportunity Road and explore everything else Voyager has to offer.
It's beautiful, optimistic, and carefully crafted.
Everything about Voyager is designed to lead your hand and guide your eye. The obvious paths from the
Gate all lead to safe, carefully controlled areas where you can see the station as its rulers want you to. They
carefully avoid the corporate towers, the gated communities, the streets where private security work.
Voyager is the seat of power for the Offworld Cartel, and the ward's superficial beauty is a mask to hide
their true face. They want you to hope for the future, not look at the present.

146 Setting
 Voyager ward

Themes and Threats

The Face of they lead, or just aren't attention-grabbing. Down
Downtown these paths lie high-rise businesses, apartment
A lot of Voyager ward is public facing: explicitly complexes, and other places that don't need or
designed to look good to visitors and appear as a want that much traffic.
place Crossers can spend their day.
Sometimes, the hidden places are only a block away.
The Gate to the Future is connected to Voyager by Clear your head, look beyond what's in front of you,
Opportunity Road, an arterial lined with shops and and you might find yourself in another world.
cafés. Halfway through the ward it splits into new
roads to the city's central business district, the Corporate Stronghold
fancy Pioneer Park, and the residential districts Voyager is prime real estate, a lot of which is taken
beyond. The tram network makes sure you won't by the Offworld Cartel. Look up at the skyline and
miss out on anything. Even the bridges to the you'll see their logos towering over everything.
adjacent panels are basically artworks. More than half its members have their headquarters
here, along with most of the groups they fund.
All this has made Voyager into a bustling cultural
center. Locals call the three front wards Their presence bends the ward like gravity. Some of
"Downtown", but if you had to narrow it down to the hidden districts are dedicated to serving the
one ward, Voyager would be it. Cartel, with exclusive clubs and rows of apartments
for workers they brought from Earth. Some places
Hiding in Plain Sight they've taken over entirely and replaced the high-
Voyager is a busy ward, but it's not all meant for density towers with executive suites and
outsiders. The districts connected to Opportunity overwrought manors.
Road are the busiest ones because the ward's
As far as the Cartel is concerned, this is their
layout funnels people through them.
playground. If you're against them, you shouldn't
The other paths aren't exactly hidden—they're just be here.
designed to be passed over. They're narrower than
they have to be, turn corners so you can't see where
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 147
 Central District
Central is Voyager's central business district and the they're there to show off the corporation's skills. A
unofficial center of the Downtown area. It rests on transit station and indoor park are built into the
the ward's spinward edge, where the New Horizon lower levels, which NanoFuturistics are almost
Bridge connects it to Turing ward. definitely spying on through their designer plants.
The streets of Central are orderly grids of shining Kala's Corner: A Harborside mamak restaurant,
glass and towering skyscrapers. The neon skyline popular with Central workers for its affordable food
above is one of the station's iconic sights, riddled and late hours. The hanging TVs and misting fans
with Cartel logos as it is. This district contains the are a little old, but the food is good. It's run by Kala
headquarters of Archon Assets, NanoFuturistics, (p. 275), an android who was kicked out by the
and Omnidyne Systems, plus a lot of satellite family she once cooked for when they were forced
towers for other corporations. to start paying her. Some god with a sense of humor
put her place and Café des Astronautes within sight
Though the streets are covered by the SPD, Central
of each other.
has one of the heaviest private security presences
in Grand Cross. They're contracted to cover most of Harborside: Central's panel edge is one long
the corporate buildings, and they can enforce the promenade. It's designed to look like an actual
law indoors as they see fit. Sometimes they snatch Earth harbor, only jutting out over a sky panel
protesters and unhoused people off the sidewalk instead of the ocean. In the evening, they use lights
and charge them with trespassing, which the SPD to project ships sailing through the windows. The
usually accepts without checking. New Horizon Bridge runs from here to the Armitage
district in Turing (p. 156).
Locations Harborside is a leisure area. Its attractions include the
Café des Astronautes: A classy restaurant
HydraTech™ Orbital Aquarium, the only public
frequented by up-and-coming business types. Its
aquarium in Grand Cross—you would not believe how
owner Andre Arnoul (p. 274) is an arrogant chef
tricky it was to get the fish up here—and the indoor
who hates androids and full-body cyborgs for being
amusement park Mega World, designed by gaming
unable to experience his food, to the mild concern
company Mega Interactive. Every Double Crosser has
of his cyborg daughter.
been on a field trip to at least one of them.
Grand Central Plaza: This sprawling plaza is the
Inner System Finance Center: On the surface, the
beating heart of Central. It contains Central's
ISFC is a generic postmodern skyscraper packed
largest transit station and connects to Opportunity
with up by mid-sized non-Cartel corps, law firms,
Road via Spirit Way. Huge advertising screens have
and dull businesses.
been installed all over the place to take advantage
of the traffic, and they're a tempting hacking target The top few floors host the Interplanetary
if you can figure out the trick... Consortium of Orbital Standards. This office is a
cooperative effort between a consortium of orbital
Delta St. Towers: The HQ of Omnidyne Systems
corporations to ensure everyone who works in
(p. 239). It splits into two towers near the middle that
space uses the same standards—in other words, it's
rejoin near the top, so the hole looks like a big O.
the on-paper home of the Offworld Cartel.
A swarm of drones—one of every model they've
made—flits around it during the day. There was an The actual standards work takes up only one floor,
incident a few months ago where some android(?) and that includes the server room and automated
crashed out of the building and vanished, but every café. The other two floors hold a few conference
security camera with a good view of the incident rooms for Cartel meetings, some oversized lobbies
was off. for lounging, an incredibly gratuitous jellyfish
aquarium lounge, and an interrogation room. It's
GreenSpace: The HQ of NanoFuturistics (p. 237) is
one of the most heavily defended corporate sites on
a tower whose walls are covered in plants and
Grand Cross.
vines. These hanging gardens don't just look nice—

148 Setting
 Voyager ward

Future District
The Future district sits on the edge of the end cap, Gate Station: A large transit station taking up an
where the spaceport train connects to the station's entire side of the Gate plaza that connects the
transport network. The area mostly supports spaceport train to the Grand Metro. It contains a
Crossers who work in the spaceport and the shopping arcade and a large indoor park where
Agriculture Ring, but it's designed with new visitors retirees play chess with each other. The local cops
to the station in mind. are currently engaged in a shadow war with a gang
of guerilla graffiti artists who keep hitting the place.
The centerpiece of the district is the Gate to the
Future plaza. It contains a Visitor Center, a beautiful Grand Cross Visitor Center: All newcomers are
space-themed sculpture (the Gate), a bunch of sent to this complex. It contains a small space
Earth-based fast food joints, and a market on museum, a theater, and a VR suite where you can
weekends. The adjacent areas contain get a guided tour of the station. In the rear is a park,
administrative services for new residents, the a café (free for newcomers), a tacky gift shop, and
spaceport, and the Ring. an office where folks who haven't chosen a home
yet can pick one. These days most of the options
As the station opens up and space tourism becomes
are rental properties, and the office annex gets
more feasible, the authorities have leaned harder
vandalized a lot.
into the visitor angle. The area has a subtle but
heavy police presence, who focus on keeping the Years ago, when the station did a huge PR campaign
appearance of safety by turfing out petty criminals to entice people to enter space lotteries, the Center
and the unhoused. Most of the district's budget is was a filming location for a space-themed sequel to
being spent on furbishing the plaza; if your problem the Cretaceous Park films. They never got around to
isn't an aesthetic one, you're on your own. removing the dinosaur decorations.
Apple Street Medical Center: A small cyber-clinic
Locations that mostly does maintenance for Builders and
First Street: A residential area mostly occupied by
working-class folk. It's run by Umaru (p. 276),
retired Builders who moved in as the station
a Builder's son with a cyber-arm and a smoking
became habitable. Someone wrote in the
habit. The Center can't afford good cyberware, so
spaceport's welcome pamphlet that it's an
Umaru has a side business printing hydroponics
"authentic Grand Cross experience" full of "helpful
parts for Ring workers that don't want to pay
locals," so they're occasionally bothered by
service fees for the legal stuff.
strangers taking pictures of them and asking for
directions. Some Builders amuse themselves by PlayTronic: A toy company that mostly makes
spreading lies about how the station works. kitschy souvenirs, like Grand Cross models with
movable mirrors. In secret, it's a front for the Block
GCFU Building: The station headquarters of Grand
Boys gang (p. 254). Since the gang was founded by
Cross Farmers United (p. 207). This is where Ring
Builders, the building has a secret basement that
workers seek legal help, back up their data, and
doesn't show up on official maps. They
discuss their plans where corporations can't listen in.
manufacture drugs down there and use a vent to
It has a small garden on the roof where retired Ring
sneak them out via drone.
workers grow flowers to sell in the plaza market.
Virtanen Park: A tower in the middle of a lovely
It shares the building with the Farmer's Hotel, an
flower garden. Its floors house various Agriculture
Australian-style pub run by a retired technician
Ring interests: a museum, some research labs,
everyone calls Bazza. The pub is open to the public,
offices for a bunch of Ring-related businesses, and
but it's mostly frequented by locals and retirees. It's
the Department of Agriculture's records. The
possibly the best place to find out what's going on
corporate floors are high security, but the museum
in the Ring aside from actually going there.
is easy to break into, and you can move elsewhere
in the building once there...

Setting 149
 Venera District
Venera is an entertainment hub of pricey shops, Moon Flag: A seedy back-alley bar mostly
street cafés, and nightclubs. It mostly caters to frequented by locals too broke for the good drinks
visitors from other wards and workers who just and criminals too petty for the cool bars. The flag
finished their shifts, so don't expect the high-end over the counter, allegedly stolen from the Apollo
stuff—this is where the wealthy get their money back 11 landing site, is like five years old maximum.
from the lower classes, not where they spend it.
A lot of shady folks visit the Moon Flag, either to
The district lies just up Spirit Way from Central meet other shady folks in a neutral place or to see
district and takes a lot of commercial overflow from Moogsy (p. 276), a fence who knows his way around
there. Morningstar makes its home here, along with the station's basements.
several smaller corporations. In the corporate
Orbital 87: A major shopping center inspired by the
world, Venera is the place to be if you're trying to
American mall boom of the 80s. The Orbital is a sort
move up in Grand Cross.
of petri dish for advertising firms, where
A lot of the street-level shops are mom-and-pops researchers test things like "how personalized can
opened by first-gen Crossers a decade ago. They're ad-screens get when you pass them before you
little pools of peace and quiet in the rowdy mess start wondering how they know this stuff?" There's
that is Venera. In some streets they've closed a lot of interesting stores here—if you can wade
though, with dive bars and worse places cropping through the ads.
up in their place. Head down the right alleys and
Sakigake: An izakaya near the Orbital where low-
you'll end up in all the wrong places.
tier corporate drones come to drink and socialize
after work. Enough corporate chatter goes on here
Locations that the regulars know a lot about goings-on in the
The Black Pyramid: An augmented reality
corporate world.
nightclub popular with hackers, cyborgs, and other
cyber punks. The "real" building is matte black— Sakigake is run by Hiten Hagoromo (p. 275), a
you need to use AR glasses or cyber-eyes to see the former corporate overseer in the station's early
occult-themed details. The bartenders use virtual construction phase. Hiten collects pieces of space
avatars and a robotic bar to serve drinks remotely. junk and displays them in the store proudly,
It's watched over by the Tick-Tock Men, android complete with little plaques that say things like
bouncers whose construction-grade frames are "Soul of the Fire (novel) — thrown out of
more than enough to turf out troublemakers. International Space Station, 2013".
The Pyramid is run by Dana Najm (p. 276), a semi- The V-Suite: A shady bar for mid-tier corporate
retired hacker who designed the club's AR systems types, hidden down a little-used walkway. On the
herself. She sells grey-market software to hackers surface it's a nice after-work bar with touchscreen
who earn her trust but discourages any outright menus, but the right order/special request combo
illegal business within the club. will get you invited to the much larger back rooms
where executives snort drugs, chomp cigars, and
Cave of Steel: Venera's premier android club, a
play a little pool.
tasteful chrome affair with a big dance floor. The
music is by android artists, the bar sells digital The V-Suite is owned by the Void Dragon Syndicate
pleasures like drink-soft, and the staff are mostly (p. 253) and run by Lithium Hua (p. 275), a full-
androids. They serve humans too, which has led to body cyborg. Hua has a lot of connections, knows
some of that android music being stolen in the past. how to get whatever she wants, and will hook
others up for the right price—which conveniently
The Cave is run by Sammy Chang (p. 274), an
gives the Void Dragon leverage over the clientele.
android who built their current body themselves.
Sammy gives most of their profits to android rights
and reproduction groups, which occasionally
attracts the attention of anti-android humans.

150 Setting
 Voyager ward

Zenith District
The modestly named Zenith is where Voyager's elite Fujigaoka is full of Japanese aesthetic McMansions,
hang their hats. It sits on the front-spin corner of robotic animals, and those things that go "doink"1.
Voyager, on artificial hills built specifically to Each is occupied by an Asano and their spouses/
provide a better view of the cylinder. kids/pets. Since most of the Asanos hate each
other, every Asano household is caught up in at
Zenith is a place of sprawling manors, luxury
least one property dispute at any given time. Living
apartments, and beautiful landscaping. It wastes an
in Zenith is what rich people do, so none of them
incredible amount of space compared to the rest of
would dream of moving.
Voyager, and in fact the district has to run onto the
base of the end cap to fit everything. It wasn't L'Atelier de Burger Gorille: Literally just a Burger
planned that way—construction was hijacked early Kong. Since this is Zenith though, it's an incredibly
on by people who like having five living rooms. fancy Burger Kong that looks like a hotel lobby.
There's overpriced wine on the menu, but
The people who live here own the people who work
otherwise it's the exact same food. It is the most
here. Zenith is full of housekeepers, chefs, maids,
popular restaurant in the district.
chauffeurs, nannies, lifestyle consultants, nurses,
and other servants. The highest paid are private Marv's: A walled mansion on the end cap side of
security who police the entire district and keep an Zenith with one occupant: the reclusive millionaire
eye on anyone who doesn't seem to belong. Marv Delmarr. Marv is a tech entrepreneur whose
fortune came from designing, then selling, the
Locations social media network HoopyFrood. As far as anyone
Apogee Medical Boutique: A medical center that knows, he's holed up there ever since.
serves Zenith's wealthy. Their specialties are
Marv is reclusive even by Zenith standards. He
cosmetic augmentation, plastic surgery, and
never leaves his house, but drones occasionally fly
prescribing unnecessary drug cocktails. The chief
food and boxes in. Rumors about what's going on in
doctor, Reidar Aalfs (p. 274), will prescribe
there have been going around for years.
anything to anyone for money; he gives a local
lawyer morphine for his alopecia. Montclair: A row of luxury apartment buildings on
the panel's edge, not too far from Central. Montclair
Deng Xiaoping Memorial Way: A street on the
is the home of up-and-coming executives,
backspin edge of Zenith. It holds "near-luxury"
entrepreneurs who just made it big, and
apartment complexes, owned by Zenith's elite and
millionaires who want to live in Zenith but not shell
provided to their servants as a perk of employment.
out for a whole house. You can't throw a brick
It's hidden from the rest of Zenith on purpose;
without hitting someone with ambitions and
some employers even pretend the Way lies in the
something to prove (or getting your ribs broken by
next district.
security, so don't do it.)
The Way has a really nice park. Outsiders keep
Working Joe: A "coffee experience bar" in the
coming here to hold anti-imperialist memorials and
district's commercial area. The experience here is
vigils; the residents don't mind, but the Zenith
poverty tourism: the decor is someone's tacky idea
elites are split on whether to remove the park to
of what the lower-class parts of Grand Cross look
protect their property values or keep it for their
like, the meals are weird-sounding gourmet
personal dog-walkers.
versions of street food ("Ricotta and crab meat pie
Fujigaoka: One of several gated communities in floater served with instant ramen"), and the $15
Zenith. Unlike the others, which are mostly full of coffees are served in steel cans. Everyone who
white families making each other miserable, comes here is the worst.
Fujigaoka is just the Asano family (p. 231) making
themselves miserable.

1 Deer scares. Grand Cross doesn't have

any deer, Asano just uses it as
shorthand for "this house is very
expensive".

Setting 151
 Other Districts
Cassini Hayabusa
Cassini is a residential district near Adams ward. It's Hayabusa is the station's book town. Most of the
mostly two-tiered buildings, with shopping arcades station's publishing houses are based here, and its
and indoor parks on the ground tier, and apartment main street is lined with sleepy cafés, bookstores,
blocks and walkways on the upper tier. An arterial cuts and literary societies. It's busiest during lunch hours,
through the middle, and plazas and courtyards down when nearby office workers come for an escape from
the side streets give the locals some breathing room. the hustle and bustle of the rest of Voyager.
Cassini is a place of hidden treasures. The shopping Those who work late can visit the infamous Latte
arcades have many unique stores, niche products, Night, a used bookshop/café that only opens from
and colorful characters, and many Crossers make 11PM–7AM. There are quiet reading rooms for
regular trips to Cassini just to see what's new. The cramming students and tired workers, but the real
bars on the arterial are well known for promoting action happens in the main room, where the café's
new and indie bands; Saturnz in particular has odd regulars gather to drink coffee with the cyborg
launched quite a few careers. barista Lotte (p. 276).

Chang'e Lunokhod
This business district is one of the smallest in Lunokhod is a residential/commercial district. Its
Voyager—unless you think vertically. It's almost mall Only Planet is a little odd—it's full of Earth-
entirely occupied by the Liao Tower, headquarters based franchises that never really got a foothold on
of Hergatz Liao (p. 234). Grand Cross. If you're from Earth and you really
miss Dunkem Donuts, you can get your fix here.
Liao Tower is a miniature arcology. It contains HL's
offices, research labs, many of their subsidiaries, Only Planet's marketing has done a good job of
floors of apartments for employees (including a associating Earth stores with quality. The locals
penthouse for the CEO, Trilobite Liao (p. 248)), a lean pro-Earth, and Lunokhod contains the
Grand Metro station with a shopping center, and a headquarters of Federation Now (p. 266).
Burger Kong so Tril doesn't have to leave the
building. You still need to leave for entertainment Pioneer Park
and luxuries, but all the basics are covered. Pioneer Park is a 42-acre park in the middle of the
ward with a lot of palms and flowers. The transit
Most of the workers who live in the Tower are low on
station plaza hosts a Grand Cross tradition: it's a
the corporate ladder. HL doesn't stop them leaving or
designated Speaker's Corner, where anyone can
control what they do; the point is to keep tabs on
show up and give speeches on just about any
them and use housing as extra leverage against them.
subject they like (as long as they don't mind being
heckled by the regulars). Speakers aren't protected
Huygens by law, but the police only step in if they get a
A residential/commercial district beside a bridge
complaint or someone talks about police brutality.
linking Voyager to Cixin. Most of the locals are the
families of retired Builders who worked on the On Sundays, the speakers are cleared out for an Open
science sides of the Project. Q&A: a bunch of politicians, academics, and public
figures discuss current issues and answer questions
Huygens is best known for its Builder Museum,
from the public, moderated and broadcast by GCBC
which is dedicated to the history of the Builders and
(p. 112, 184). Unity complains that it's biased against
the exploitation they faced. It also has a nice park
them, so to appease them the GCBC tries to get one
with a statue of its founder Åsmund Coolen (p. 275),
Unity-friendly speaker every week (usually some
a "Builder" who became a millionaire. Every actual
knucklehead from the Orbital Freedom Institute).
Builder knows that Coolen is straight-up lying
about being one, but nobody wants to lose the
museum, so the statue remains.

152 Setting
 Voyager ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN VOYAGER

1–3
1 A big new group of migrants is expected this week
2 A strange new band is playing at Saturnz tonight
3 A huge [1–3 sale] [4–6 Federation Now event] is drawing crowds in Lunokhod
4 The next Open Q&A will host [1–2 a CEO] [3–4 Trilobite Liao] [5–6 the Prime Minister]
5 It's open day at the Builder Museum!
6 The maiden voyage of a new Earth space tourism agency is already on the way

4–6
1 Central Plaza security is up amid rumors that some hackers are gunning for it
2 A string of mysterious break-ins and other petty crimes strikes the Future district
3 There's a big festival going down across Harborside this week
4 Some low-tier suit was found murdered in a quiet corner of Venera
5 The latest Asano dispute has strange repercussions elsewhere in Voyager
6 Another big protest is hitting [1–3 Central] [4–5 Venera] [6 Zenith] district this week

2D6 SIGHTS ON OPPORTUNITY ROAD

1–3
1 A protest about one of the station's many problems is broken up by police
2 A trio of cops shoo an increasingly agitated unhoused man down a side street
3 A lost tourist who only knows about Grand Cross from TV asks for directions
4 A heavy [1–3 emergency] [4–6 corporate] vehicle breezes through, disrupting traffic
5 A Morningstar reporter passes through in search of interesting-looking people to do vox pops
6 A new arrival to Grand Cross has a reunion with friends/family on the street

4–6
1 A street performer is drawing a big crowd with an eclectic performance
2 An influencer you [1–4 never heard of] [5–6 sadly have] is doing something ridiculous
3 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
4 A new [1–2 neon] [3–4 Cartel-donated] [5–6 virtual] art installation went up last night
5 Gig economy couriers are queueing up to pick up food orders from a new restaurant
6 A protest about one of the station's many problems cannot be stopped

Setting 153
 Turing Ward
"Mere decades ago, humanity was dreaming about living in space. Then we realized it was achievable with
conventional technology, if only we willed it... and we did. Now look at us. Imagine the heights we'll reach
tomorrow?"
— "Chips" Greeley, anti-homeless security drone designer
Turing is Downtown's technology and engineering hub. It houses many of the businesses connected to the
Shaft (p. 210), most of Downtown's connections to the exterior hull, and a significant portion of the
corporate research and technology sector.
This is where many of the station's technological advances come from. Turing has produced the software
that adjusts the station's mirrors, the zero-g manufacturing tools used in the Shaft, and the facial
recognition technology the police use to find people who film them. The people here are big on
technology, but not much for the humanities.
It's also a big hub of android activity, from reproduction facilities to fashion outlets. The humans who
planned the ward say it's because grouping the android and tech sectors together is efficient, but many
androids can't help but notice that they're being associated with consumer electronics and factory labor.
Turing is the cutting edge of Grand Cross, but like the rest of Downtown, it's firmly in the grip of the
Offworld Cartel. Feel free to marvel, but don't get too close.

154 Setting
 Turing Ward

Themes and Threats

Dreams of The Future Forget the Present
The people of Turing are looking toward an even Looking toward the future isn't a bad thing in itself.
more distant future, though they can't agree on Turing's problem is that nobody really cares about
what it looks like. the present.
The corporations here are focused on developing Turing's businesses like to move fast and break
technologies. Most of Downtown's universities are things. Everything is about the future… and getting
here, training the stars of tomorrow. In the Sid, there as fast as possible. New technologies are
Turing's version of Silicon Valley, wannabe rushed to market with little regard for ethics, the
millionaires sell the promise that their inventions law, or its effects on people. There's no time to stop
will change the world. and think about it.
It's also the spiritual home of the Singularists, who A lot of Turing's tech companies are more concerned
work toward a radical vision of the future. It with the appearance of success than actual,
contains their favorite meeting spots and most of meaningful results. If you're able to convince people
the station's few Singularist-focused businesses. your tech will be a game-changer down the line, you
The ones that don't work here look up to the don't need to show any progress; you barely need to
people that do. show any tech. This extends to the Singularists,
whose dreams of a post-singularity future are
Meanwhile, Turing's androids are still deciding what
essentially science fiction.
they want their future to be. There are a lot of
different versions being worked on, and not all of This cavalier attitude means that few pay attention
them have the androids' best interests in mind. to the consequences of their actions. If a new piece
What happens here will ripple through Grand Cross of tech is used unethically or destroys lives, well,
and likely beyond. that's just the price of progress. Someone can
invent something to fix it later.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 155
 Armitage District
Armitage rests on the far side of New Horizon Bridge Canny Valley is a money laundering front for the
from Voyager's Central district (p. 148). It functions android gang Law Zero (p. 253). It's run by Dev
as an extension to Central with a tech focus. Random, a high-ranking member who otherwise
runs it like a legitimate business. Law Zero
The centerpiece of the district is a palm-lined
members who bring other criminal activity to the
promenade around the bridge's end, a smaller copy
club risk facing her wrath.
of Harborside. The rest of Armitage is corporate
towers, like Central. Though unlike Central, most of Horsehead Place: Horsehead (named for the
them aren't in the Cartel—but they'd love to be nebula) is a tower complex by the promenade with
friends. A lot of the newcomers are promising office space, a hotel, a cinema, almost 150 shops,
startups from the Sid (p. 158), hoping to get into the and twice as many apartments. It's one of the main
Cartel one day. reasons people come to Armitage.
Also like Central, Armitage has a high private Horsehead is owned by the Hylander Group, a
security presence. It's more subdued though—they family-owned conglomerate with property assets
mostly focus on cybersecurity and surveillance, across Earth and its orbit. The Hylanders mostly live
pass on information to the SPD, and let them do the in England, but Horsehead is managed by Camilla
heavy lifting. Hylander (p. 277), who lives in a penthouse suite.
Horizon's Edge: Harborside's counterpart on the
Locations other side of the bridge. It was originally envisaged
1 Willis Street: This tower contains a grab-bag of
as a civic, cultural and commercial hub for Turing,
government offices. Some are small departments
but most of the planned buildings were moved
with important tasks, while others were created for
elsewhere so Armitage's executives could have
political purposes. They all have names like North
more restaurants.
End Cap Authority, Verne Education Investment
Fund, and Digital Transformation Agency that make The surviving cultural building is the Grand Orbital
it hard to tell what they actually do. Technological Museum2, a museum of applied arts
and sciences. Its exhibits include space rockets and
It also contains the office of Turing's mayor,
other modules (mostly replicas), technological
currently Adam Najjar (p. 277). Najjar says he’s a
innovations that made space habitation possible, a
Union man but he tends to be at the mercy of
life-size model space shuttle cockpit, a clockwork
whatever Turing's elite want him to do; he
model of Grand Cross, and various temporary
sometimes enters through the basement to dodge
exhibitions of orbital artworks. A lot of it is quite
demonstrators and reporters.
valuable, so security is tight.
Asano Building: This complex on the edge of
OFI Building: This place looks like an apartment
Armitage houses the headquarters of Asano Heavy
block (and it was built that way), but it's actually the
Industries (p. 231). They built it themselves and
headquarters of the pro-Cartel Orbital Freedom
made it fancier than it had to be to show off. The
Institute (p. 272). They host a lavish dinner every
heavily guarded basement areas have airlocks that
month where "thought leaders" (mostly Cartel-
lead directly into their space on the outer hull.
friendly politicians and their handlers) are invited to
Since the Asano family are prone to infighting, some mingle and give inspiring speeches to each other.
departments are closed off from each other by The OFI upload carefully curated recordings of the
security clearances despite being in the same building. best parts. Their meetings with the New Barons
To keep the workers from being riled up by the added (p. 267) are kept secret, for some reason.
security, they have a lot of nice places to eat onsite.
Turing Convention and Exhibition Center: The
Canny Valley: A nightclub that employs android largest convention hall in orbit, situated just beside
dancers with human-like bodies. They cater to both the bridge. TCEC (aka "the Teacake") is home to
humans and androids; the humans that show up many famous orbital conventions, including
tend to be in the tech industry. Flagon*Con and Webcomic-Con Orbital.

2 “Exhibits? We GOTM!”

156 Setting
 Turing Ward

Seldon District
Seldon is a district on the panel's backspin edge, It's also the usual haunt of Kova Levy (p. 380), an AI
best known for the main campus of Grand Cross researcher who worked on the Dreamers. The
Polytechnic (GPol). Cartel still has him working on a way to reassert
control, for which he's considering recruiting some
GPol is a university that specializes in applied
promising students to help.
science and engineering. Many of the station's
agriculture workers, habitat engineers, city Polytech Security Solutions: This private security
architects, city planners, and cyber-doctors studied company has handled GPol for a few years now
here. It's not viewed with the same prestige as after the actual cops were fired for roughing up
other university districts, but it's vital to the station. android students. They're still clueless.
The main building is a utilitarian Brutalist tower The company's chief is Lew Tupper (p. 278), a
that looms over the district like a stern headmaster. former SPD officer. His goal is to sell PSS to a bigger
The other buildings contrast it with shorter, wider security company. He mostly takes an interest in
designs and flowing, elegant curves. The campus cases that might make him look good and has a
sports a few small parks, but most of the recreation habit of escalating at student protests in hopes of
facilities are indoors to save space. The rest of the looking tough for the cameras.
district holds businesses targeting students
Reid Street: A street popular with Singularists for its
(especially along the arterial that runs by GPol) and
net cafés and geek stores. One office here is home to
student housing.
the astroturf nonprofit Event Horizon. Officially, it
The actual people are a diverse collection of rowdy aims to "combat left-wing views in universities" by
Double Crossers, semi-competent campus cops, posting memes and doing stunts on campus;
political protestors, android freshmen, hard- unofficially, it mostly funnels corporate investor
drinking agriculture students, and trust fund nerds. money to its leader Max Brodrig (p. 277). Thanks to
Seldon is constantly in flux, but it has a type. Max calling PSS every time someone vandalizes the
office, Reid Street has a high security presence.
Locations Ring Library: GPol's main library, which focuses on
Gottlieb's: A bar tucked away in a corner of
agriculture, habitat science, and humanities. It has
campus. It used to be a haven for indie bands and
a distinctive sculpture in the courtyard that looks
experimental comedy, mostly because it was a
like an Agriculture Ring half-buried in the ground.
cruddy hole nobody cared about. A recent
refurbishment (sponsored by NanoFuturistics) Ring Library is best known for its study floors that
turned it into a much snazzier lounge with atrocious include open study areas, closed study rooms, and
acoustics, which is killing off most of the good stuff. the experimental study cubes: soft cubicles with big
It's also a meeting place for student activists. blocky chairs and charging sockets, perfect for
holing up in. Unknown to the librarians, one of
Jemison Building: GPol's medical and health
these cubicles is usually occupied by the hacktivist
sciences building. It includes a cyber-clinic where
Leetboy (p. 277).
students learn to perform maintenance on
cyberware. They'll usually take volunteers if you're Union Hall: This building is the spiritual center of
strapped for cash. campus. It contains GPol's student union, some
meeting rooms, a large ground floor food court with
Josef Diego Building: GPol's computer science
a Burger Kong, and Atomic Age, GPol's premier bar,
building, named after Cartel oligarch and university
which hosts live events throughout the year.
donor Josef Diego (p. 251). The JDB is mostly
known for its AI research, as a lot of past and current
faculty members were involved in the creation of
androids. Though she's not a faculty member,
AI philosopher Tachiko Masamune (p. 123) has her
office in this building so the others can pick her brain.

Setting 157
 Silicon District
Silicon district (affectionately called "the Sid" by Future Existential Risk Management Institute:
locals) is the station's own little Silicon Valley, a This Singularist nonprofit near the Plaza solicits big
town of snazzy office towers and palm trees— donations from tech folks to fund research into "the
originally zoned as residential areas for the station’s potential existential risks of strong AI." This grift has
agricultural workers—wedged between Armitage gotten harder in the post-android era, where they have
district and the end cap. to keep explaining that they're not saying androids are
going to kill us all, but they're hanging in there.
The Sid's towers are full of startups, incubators,
tech companies, law firms, and expensive FERMI is best known for hosting Omega Point, a
restaurants. Money flows freely through all of them. BBS for discussion of future technology and
Startups can appear, expand, and flame out like a Singularist ideas. FERMI and Omega Point are both
supernova so fast you're not sure they ever existed, run by Cyrus Berryman (p. 262).
all within the space of a few months. Popular
Lucky Station: The Sid's main transit station.
startups these days include untested space
There's a big statue outside dedicated to Endymion
technologies, apps for things that don't need apps,
Lucky, the first millionaire to die in space. Lucky
and things that were left on Earth for a reason.
leapt into space at the first opportunity and died on
The Sid's people are high-flying optimists. They Luna within a year after trying to crash a buggy
generally see themselves as tech-savvy visionaries through the protective dome around the Apollo 11
about to usher in a technological revolution that landing site. It's a common meeting place; taking a
will make the post-Impact boom look like the Dark picture while rubbing the statue for good luck is a
Ages. From the outside, they seem more like a local tradition.
greedy pack of self-congratulatory dorks more
Neuronomicon: A startup near Event Horizon
interested in the appearance of success than the
Plaza. Their facial recognition AI matches faces to a
effects of their actions. Like they say in the Sid, it's a
database of billions of images illegally scraped from
matter of perspective.
the Internet; the business is hosted in space to help
shield it from Earth law. Their customer list includes
Locations the SPD, private security, similar agencies on Earth,
Derek Building: This office tower houses the various
Cartel companies, and rich cyber-stalkers.
businesses of the entrepreneur Derek Baars (p. 250).
Derek owns the building and has his own personal Neuronomicon is run by Trajan (p. 267), an android
office-slash-gaming-lounge on the penthouse floor. with ties to the New Barons (p. 267). A lot of his
employees are New Barons who came to space to
Some of the floors are reserved in case he needs a
escape charges on Earth.
temporary office or a function hall in a pinch, but he
also rents out office space at a discounted rate to The Upvote: A high-tech bar above an arterial. It
startups that catch his eye. The people he invites was originally part of the offices of the short-lived
are called "Baars' Boys" by Sid regulars and are social media network SpacedOut but was sold off
treated with reverence. when the founder's extravagant purchases sank the
business. These days The Upvote leverages its
Event Horizon Plaza: A rooftop plaza connected to
name to convince social media influencers to host
a transit station near the Sid's heart. It was
events inside.
originally surrounded by space-focused
companies—hence the space sculptures that Wahid, Tanaka & Feingold LLP: This law firm
decorate it—but recently it's become a hotspot for (affectionately called WTF) provides legal and
Singularist-run businesses. advisory services for startups. They have
experience in pretty much everything and can act
The Plaza is a popular Singularist hangout. Many
as intermediaries and dealmakers where necessary.
Singularist meetups end up in the Magellanic Club,
WTF have dealt with almost a third of all current Sid
a small bar run by the android Divide-0 (p. 263).
startups and have files on a lot of the dead ones.

158 Setting
 Turing Ward

Uhuru District
Uhuru is a residential and commercial district Theseus sometimes struggles to keep up with
known for its android services. demand, and efforts to expand are slow. A popular
right-wing conspiracy theory on the station is that
It began with a repair shop for cyborgs. This
such services are secret plots to "overpopulate"
attracted a lot of androids to the area, some of whom
Grand Cross and replace humans, so they're
started their own businesses. Soon Uhuru was full of
regularly set back by vandalism or political sabotage.
repair shops, reproduction facilities, even android
entertainment outlets. Such places exist all over the Tetsuo Android Rights Museum: A kid's museum
station, but in Uhuru you can get them all in one about the history of android rights, which Tetsuo
street and maybe buy some clothing too. hopes will be the first in a series of "android
experience centers" around Grand Cross. It's not
To the locals, it's not a big deal. There's not much
executed well—they downplay the role of
difference between a cyborg and an android when
corporations in android exploitation, pretend only
you get down to it. Uhuru's just a part of Grand
non-violent protests did anything, and the final
Cross that happens to have more android stuff than
section is essentially an advertisement for Tetsuo.
usual. It's enough to attract attention, though.
Whoever designed the museum decided to decorate
Uhuru is a flashpoint for debates and protests about
it with decommissioned android frames, striking
android rights, especially how (and even if) android
poses and holding signs. It looks cool to humans,
reproduction should be regulated. Outsiders who
but to androids it's like filling a library with fresh
know that androids tend to be locked out of high-
skeletons in jaunty poses. It is spectacularly eerie.
paying jobs come to prey on the locals. Cartel
interests are trying to rebrand it as some kind of Tetsuo Annex: Tetsuo's main android facility. Here
easily commodified android enclave. What happens they sell Tetsuo-model android bodies, Tetsuo-
here could have repercussions all over Grand Cross. branded mods, and new AGIs for paying customers
(provided the necessary paperwork is signed). It's
Locations the largest and best-funded facility of its kind on
Ferrous Bueller's Paint Shop: A workshop that the station.
specializes in cosmetic mods for android frames
It's controversial among androids. Most of its
and cyborg prosthetics: paint jobs, decals, cases, all
employees are humans, who interrogate potential
those kinds of things. It's run by Sloane (p. 278), an
android parents with weird personal questions
android painter. Sloane feels like androids are still
before they can use Tetsuo's services. Tetsuo's
building themselves a cultural identity and works
cutting-edge products can only be serviced by
on other androids to explore that; she works on
Tetsuo-approved shops, and they've never approved
cyborgs too because she just likes drawing stuff.
an android-run shop. Tetsuo loves to talk about
Mirror Image: An android casual wear store. A lot of giving androids help, but they want to set the terms.
android fashion is just human fashion that got
Uhuru Skatepark: A DIY concrete skatepark in a
popular, and many human locals shop here, but
forgotten space beneath an elevated rail line. It was
Mirror Image designs unique clothing too. A lot of
built by a group of android and human skateboarders
their clothing is designed to include wearable tech.
using materials donated by nearby construction sites.
Mirror Image is run by The Positronic Man (p. 278), The locals credit them with making the nearby streets
an android designer whose theatrical public face a safer, cleaner place to be.
and name are part of his brand. T-P-M is currently
Unfortunately, it seems like it might become the
busy with legal claims filed against larger human
next in a long line of skateparks destroyed by
retailers who keep plagiarizing his best designs.
gentrification. The government is considering
Ship of Theseus: A reproduction and body care acknowledging it as a public park, but Tetsuo has
service. It's run by the United People for Android made a counter-proposal to replace it with a
Freedom (p. 271), which makes this place one of "contemplative" (and lucrative) android memorial
the few managed by androids and not controlled by with anti-skater architecture. The skaters aren't
corporate interests. going down without a fight.

Setting 159
 Other Districts
Asakura Hammarskjöld
A business and commercial district beside the Mona This district houses a lot of Turing's engineering
Lisa Overpass that connects Turing to Cixin’s Jinxing businesses, including a few branches of Ogremoch
district (p. 165). It's essentially a quieter version of Engineering (p. 238). They're clustered around a
Armitage. Asakura contains the offices of several transit station that extends through the basement to
internet-based companies, including HeoCities the outer hull rail. A lot of people pass through here
(p. 112), who occasionally host events in the area to to get to work and, because of this, the area
showcase popular pages and rising influencers. immediately around the station is a commercial plaza
where many workers go drinking after their shift.
Asakura also hosts the Grand Cross Museum of
Digital Art (GCMDA), hosting computer-based The outer hull rail station is airlocked and the
artworks by local artists. Its chief curator, Karen basement has several redundant airlocks plus a
Bogert, has a bad habit of messing with exhibits that private security presence just in case. Though no
aren't by white people to make them about herself. official incidents have occurred here, the Cartel has
been increasing security lately.
Ashton
This Sid-adjacent district contains the main Infobahn
complex of Ashton U, a private research university. A residential and commercial district. The
Ashton aims to be "the Stanford of space", and with commercial areas are focused on entertainment for
the funding they've secured they might just Turing's workers. It also includes some event
manage it. A lot of it comes from corporate types spaces that are regularly used to host product
who expect the university to hand their children launches, tech conferences, TED Talks, and the like.
degrees despite possessing the brains of a snapping
The Infobahn is infamous for its restaurant scene,
turtle, but what else is new? The faculty are
where it tries to disrupt food in much the same way
somewhat competent but passing rich students
the Sid disrupts tech (badly). Most of these places
pads out their paychecks, so they’re fine with it.
fold once the novelty wears off eating food that
Ashton U's main complex is a pair of white towers looks like plants in dirt out of a robot's head or
connected by walkways and covered in greens. Its whatever they're doing.
other buildings are spread across the ward. The rest
of Ashton district contains student housing, Innovation
commercial areas, and overflow from Silicon A commercial and residential district. Its stores are
district. Most locals count Ashton as part of the Sid. mostly restaurants and franchise department stores
that cater to local workers, but it has a few interesting
Chuma clothing stores that do fashion for cyborgs.
A warehouse district used for storage by Ogremoch
Innovation also contains the Lanning Clinic, a
Engineering, the Asanos (both the corporation and
nonprofit medical center that deals extensively in
the family), android facilities, GPol, and a host of
cybernetics. Historically, Lanning is where many
other Turing companies. The upper levels hold
Builders go for maintenance, but lately it's become
small, personal storage spaces that are sometimes
popular with Turing's community of cyborgs who
used as offices by startups.
augment for self-improvement.
Most warehouses have their own private security,
but the district as a whole is patrolled by security
company J5 Consolidated. J5 is paid off by Law
Zero, who own a small warehouse under the front
company Destination Brain. The company's website
is filled with phrases like "software-defined
algorithms for application integration," so people
tend to ignore them.

160 Setting
 Turing Ward

Rozum Since they've moved in however, the police

A small residential district. Rozum was originally presence in the area has skyrocketed. The local
occupied by android techs and GPol students. When cops have been increasing patrols, finding excuses
the students were moved a couple years ago, their to knock on Universal doors, and occasionally try
housing was purchased by a group called the to provoke Universals into getting arrested. The
Universal Androids: former Builders who want to cops haven't given a reason for doing this, but they
try living with as little human interaction as possible. obviously enjoy harassing the androids by forcing
They work remotely, shop at android businesses or human contact on them.
order online, and generally don't bother anyone.

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN TURING

1–3
1 A new government "innovation" initiative is flushing more cash into the area.
2 The Grand Orbital Technological Museum has a cool new exhibit.
3 Grand Cross Polytechnic is gripped by a [1–2 festival] [3–6 student protest].
4 Another startup in the Sid has [1–2 made it big] [3–6 crashed and burned].
5 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again.
6 Everyone's talking about a [1–3 tech conference] [4–6 rich guy's hot Pulser take].

4–6
1 A big Harborside festival is spilling into Armitage this week.
2 There's a new event in Asakura at [1–4 the GCMDA] [5–6 HeoCities].
3 Exciting new developments are coming out of Ashton U this week.
4 Fresh rumors of Law Zero's activities have been circling lately.
5 The latest Asano dispute has strange repercussions elsewhere in Turing.
6 Another big protest is hitting [1–3 Armitage] [4–5 Asakura] [6 Rozum] district.

2D6 THE LATEST TECH FAD

1–3
1 A Wi-Fi connected coffee machine with a monthly coffee subscription service.
2 A new social network that already shows signs of going into freefall.
3 A smart bike helmet with a camera that cops are already requesting access to.
4 Voice-activated robot pets that can send and receive text messages.
5 A website that lets you rate [1–4 people] [5–6 places] that everyone already hates.
6 A two-wheeled self-balancing personal vehicle with Wi-Fi for some reason.

4–6
1 Using crypto/the blockchain, or at least putting those words on your product.
2 A new way to surveil [1–3 your employees] [4–6 strangers] that worries normal people.
3 A [1–3 car] [4–6 bike] with a pointless subscription service for regular features.
4 Using drones to do everything instead of leaving the apartment.
5 Fancy clothes with programmable screens that will definitely be hacked soon.
6 An expensive "technology festival" on Luna which is almost definitely a scam.

Setting 161
 Cixin Ward
"This is the real heart of the city. Yes, Voyager's got the business and Turing's got the tech, but if you can't
fulfil your brain's basic and psychological needs, you'll never achieve self-actualization. Even the most
dedicated worker's gotta get their dick sucked sometime. As Downtown's primary entertainment hub, we are
the fuckin' bedrock of civilization."
— Chloe Herschel, Ph.D., Void Dragon VR engineer
Cixin is a business and entertainment hub, a place for people who want to work hard and play hard and not
travel very far in between. It's where you go when you have a lot of worries to forget and the cash to do it.
A lot of Cixin’s larger business are outward focused companies that work elsewhere in orbit: outposts of
Lunar companies, ship engineers, space research outfits, and the like. If Voyager is where most people
enter Grand Cross, Cixin is where the Cartel plans to grow beyond it.
Cixin's dual focuses have made the ward an ideological cauldron where new thoughts and concepts can find
a voice and, if they're lucky, capture the hearts and minds of the station's people. When a new trend spreads
its wings and flies across the station, odds are good it had a nest in Cixin first. Sometimes though, Cixin's
streets can be a gilded cage where ideas that challenge the powers that be a little too much are watered
down and repackaged into more acceptable entertainment.
Don't think about it too hard. If you just relax and let Cixin entertain you, it could be the most fun you'll have
on Grand Cross.

162 Setting
 Cixin Ward

Themes and Threats

Business and Pleasure concentration of Cartel interests in Voyager means
The people of Cixin are focused on today, sometimes a lot of the local corporations are non-Cartel (not
tonight. Tomorrow is the distant future, and they're that that makes them good, of course). Even the
more than happy to kick that can down the road. crime scene makes room for smaller gangs.
Cixin is about working all day and having fun all Sometimes one of these new ideas makes it big.
night. Don’t worry about what you’re doing after When something from Downtown starts trending
work until the work is done, even if you have to pull throughout Grand Cross, odds are it came from Cixin.
overtime to do it. Don't worry about how you'll feel
in the morning, your bank account, or what you're Problems Looming
putting in your body—you can burn those bridges Cixin has a lot of ticking time bombs. The ward
when you get to them. The things that matter in holds a lot of companies that have interests in
Cixin are hip and happening, especially right now. space travel, other orbital settlements, and
sometimes even Earth cities. Things that happen
Being focused on today doesn't mean they're
here can have ripple effects that aren't obvious for
focused on today's problems, though. The bright
months, because they travel to other places before
lights of Cixin are focused on the fun, productive side
coming back to hit the station.
of the ward; a lot goes unnoticed in the shadows.
That's just the long-term problems. Cixin has plenty
Diversity of Ideas of 2020 problems to go around—the problem with
Voyager is basically owned by the Cartel, while partying like there's no tomorrow is that tomorrow
Turing is a playground for technocrats. Compared comes eventually. The drug trade is getting more
to the rest of Downtown, Cixin is a place where new lucrative, the station's gangs are getting bigger, and
ideas can flourish. turf wars are starting to pop up around the ward.
It's going to get worse before it gets better.
The ward's focus on entertainment means a lot of
voices that would otherwise be silenced can find a
platform here. The streets make more room for
smaller businesses and independent stores. The
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 163
 Golden District
The Golden district is Downtown's premier Nights of Cydonia: This building on the panel's
entertainment district, a storm of glitter and neon edge is one of Grand Cross's few legal casinos. It
hanging over the panel's edge opposite Voyager. It's offers everything from slot machines to mahjong,
packed with everything from bars to restaurants to along with a hotel, restaurants, and a rooftop pool
host clubs to cabarets, at all sizes and price points. to keep you around. If gambling in a hall surgically
designed to get you to spend while being served
A lot of the station's entertainment companies can
brain-destroying cocktails by a lady in a bunny
be found here too in the high-end office towers
outfit sounds like your idea of a fun time, this is the
around the arterials. The condominium towers are
place for you.
home to entertainment elites, young socialites, and
corporate heirs, free to live a life of decadence far The casino is run by Christopher D'aureville, a
above the problems of society. wealthy French entrepreneur. He has a collection of
African artworks looted during the colonial era,
This district is thick with private security. The
which he likes to tempt fate by bragging about.
station's elite party with their personal bodyguards,
the upscale joints hire their own, and the local Phoenix Tail: A private security company with a
police department shares a building with Goliath. focus on bodyguarding and aesthetics. They don't
The message is clear: crime doesn't pay unless they just protect you, they make it look good. Phoenix
get a cut. Tail are the people you call when you'd like to be
seen strutting around town with a looker on each
Locations arm, but also kick the ass of anyone who messes
Disco Elysium: This multi-level neon riot of a with you.
nightclub is one of the district's most popular
Phoenix Tail is run by Andromeda Bellizzi (p. 279).
nightlife spots. It's the kind of place where people
Andromeda treats her employees well and holds
get absolutely blasted, wake up in strange room in a
her clients to high standards; she'll shield a CEO
distant ward, and still come back for more. Screens
from protesters, but not if the protesters have a
at each table can project menus, virtual dancers,
really good reason.
music visualizers, and whatever the local hackers
have slipped in lately. VirtuScape: A virtual influencer agency—they work
with online entertainers (streamers and idols,
Most organized crime groups treat the club as a
mostly) who use virtual avatars to represent
neutral place where they can meet up. The dealers
themselves. VirtuScape has ballooned into an
lurking around here are mostly from the Liivipojat
online entertainment powerhouse, with some of
(p. 254), a vest-wearing gang who make the best
their streamers having made millions.
party drugs in the district; their leader Mauri
Käärme takes bulk orders from the other gangs. Just because they work in a new format doesn't mean
they're not another exploitative idol agency, though.
Orbit Five Entertainment: This production
They have a particular problem with doxxing:
company is a major player in film, TV, and music.
obsessive fans who form weird parasocial
It's run by Randy Babin (p. 281), a new media
relationships with their talent sometimes dig up their
mogul who built his empire through cunning use of
personal information for stalking or harassment
new media and creative use of the exterior hull.
purposes. VirtuScape is more likely to force their
Also, underworld connections. Randy owes his streamers to apologize for speaking out than do
success to the Void Dragon, who made anything to help them.
introductions for him when he first came to orbit
and still act as a silent partner. In exchange, they
get a cut of the profits and a place to launder
money. Randy is a charming jerk who exploits
women, so the gang’s protection helps too.

164 Setting
 Cixin Ward

Jinxing District
Jinxing sits on the far end of the Mona Lisa Roy's shows cover a wide range of topics for various
Overpass from Turing's Asakura district (p. 160). ages, from nutrition and hygiene to anatomy,
It's a commercial district that caters to the android bodies, puberty, the dangers of smoking,
technology sectors of both wards. cyber safety, and gender identity. A lot of teens
have memories of being shown an anatomical
As a gateway to Cixin, it tends to be a little more
mannequin with see-through skin by an alpaca in
subdued than the Golden district. Most people
the back of a van.
come here during the day, pass through to get some
shopping done, or visit in the evening before In this main center, "Roy" is an android remote-
heading deeper into the ward. Jinxing's night life is piloting an alpaca-like body. A project to place an AI
in its towers, where people eat at upscale in the body directly was started and mysteriously
restaurants and dance in expensive clubs. cancelled last year.
As the Golden district's toned-down counterpart, Koala Box: A karaoke box with a wide range of
Jinxing doesn't have much in the way of private orbital bands and an all-you-can-drink option. It's
security. What it does have, however, is one of the very high-tech, including touchscreen tabletop
most corrupt SPS departments Downtown. The games if you need a break from the singing and
cops—who mostly live outside the ward—have optional lasers.
allowed certain types of crime to flourish here in
It's secretly a front for the cybercrime gang GG
exchange for a cut of the profits. It's being subtly
Noire. The Box exists to launder their money and
encouraged by the PSCS, who are hoping to use
give them an excuse to have a bunch of tech lying
them as an excuse to take over Downtown.
around. The gang is run by Lathan Tan (p. 256),
who turned to crime for medical treatment and
Locations stayed because he's good at it.
Book Club Café: A maid café where each maid has
a different personality trait. Since they get a lot of Götz von Berlichingen's: This bar's gimmick is that
visitors from Turing, the Book Club caters to geeks: some of the bartenders are cyborgs with
there's a sci-fi and fantasy fan, a gamer, one who (temporary) custom bartending mods that let them
loves talking tech, and so on. They've added some do cool tricks. A couple of years ago a fight in the
futurist maids to attract Singularists. street outside Götz was featured in a bullshit
Morningstar cyberneurosis-scare story, and the
They used to have a maid who debates with nerds
bar's owner Gerlach Stern (p. 280) successfully
and loses, but most of the people who wanted that
sued over it.
were creepy misogynists. Now they have Harmony
An (p. 279), a compsci major who is super rude to Götz isn't strictly a cyborg bar, but Gerlach used to
them instead. She is massively popular with be a cyborg activist and has a lot of contacts in the
Singularists. community. He's been known to make
introductions for people in need.
Elbrus Plaza: This tower is sometimes called Chez
Zinovy because its apartments are packed with Jinxing Markets: A multi-level market hall that caters
Zinovy middle managers. One of the clubs at the to people coming in and out of Cixin. It has a food
top is the Black Drone, which sports a partly hall, a fresh fruit and vegetable market, and vendors
automated bar and private rooms where a lot of selling cheap clothes, giftware, and electronics.
Zinovy's Cartel deals are forged.
At night, some open-air areas on the roof and the
Healthy Life Grand Cross: A government-funded outsides remain open to cater to Jinxing's night
educational program that visits the city's schools in crowd. According to the internet, you can pick up
mobile classrooms to teach kids how to stay some good specialized computer equipment from
healthy through their mascot: Ripped Roy, an the late-night vendors if you know where to look.
alpaca puppet.

Setting 165
 Liu District
The Liu district sits on the ward's Marukyu border Saint Never: A secretive android clinic hidden
(p. 178). It's centered on Eden Road, a wide arterial behind an electronics store in a side street. Here
leading into the heart of Cixin. An elevated platform androids can get parts printed, repaired, and
with pleasing curves runs down its middle, covered replaced. The clinic is invite-only; most members
in public park space. Sometimes people heading are from Law Zero, but some Hoshi Group cyborgs
into Cixin get off in Liu just to take a stroll through use it too. Both groups provide funding and
Eden Park. protection in exchange for Saint Never's services.
The people who don't come for a stroll come for the Saint Never's sole "doctor" is Doctor Malik (p. 280).
shopping. Eden Road and the surrounding streets Malik knows her operation is illegal but believes
are lined with stores, with commercial and that as long as her fellow androids are forced to pay
residential units overlooking the park in the upper humans for maintenance, breaking the law is just.
levels. On Friday to Monday nights, Eden Road is
Street Art: In the last few years, Liu has become a
closed to vehicles and a night market pops up
playground for street artists who paint murals on
instead. It's a great place for cheap food and cheaper
the blocks near Eden Road, yarn-bomb Eden Park,
clothes—there's a pretty good flea market too.
cover its pillars in stickers, and decorate the night
The back streets of Liu are filled with more stores, market with new stencils every week.
plus bars, clubs, massage parlors, and seedier
The newest sensation is Zhao Liu (p. 280). Zhao
places. This is where the serious shoppers go to
refurbishes discarded tech into guerilla art
look for hidden gems. Some stores keep odd hours,
installations, sometimes on commission for local
or serve office drones who just got off work. A
shopkeepers. She's currently struggling against
couple are outposts of the android gang Law Zero
Apevert (p. 243), a Turing-based company that
(p. 253)—Eden Park was built by android hands,
does paid guerilla marketing for the food and
and LZ sometimes extorts the human-run night
entertainment industries. Apevert very obviously
market stalls for protection money.
copied her designs and has actually stolen several
of the newer ones to get a closer look.
Locations
Eden Center: A pink and aqua shopping mall Tasty Squid: A night market fried squid (well, squid-
complex connected to Eden Park by a walkway. like meat product) stall run by the android Somchai
Eden is slowly dying: its main visitors are either (p. 258). Somchai is a Law Zero enforcer and part of
parkgoers here for the food court and the cinema, their protection racket: any gang that tries to move
or mallrats who don't buy anything. The Center has in on their turf gets a late-night visit from him and
had a problem with people shoplifting goods to sell his goons. Law Zero helped Somchai create a
at the night market, so they've tightened security a daughter, Mali, who runs the stall when he's away.
lot lately.
Veterans Benefit: This night market stall calls itself
The Mothman: A rooftop bar with a good view, a fundraiser for veterans, but it's actually just the
beloved by people who want a quiet drink at local police selling property seized (read: stolen) by
reasonable prices. The name was chosen due to its Cixin cops. Common items include unlocked (and
position making it difficult to see except from a often un-scrubbed) phones, sound systems,
stretch of Eden Park with no easy access; you have cosmetic android mods, CDs, skateboards, scooter
to search at street level for a neon moth sign over protective gear, and keepsakes from Earth.
an elevator. The regulars are locals, and it's a good
The stall is run by Sergeant Lennart (p. 279), who
place to get the district's news and gossip.
also runs the Liu department's Pulser account and
posts to brag about/advertise his stolen
merchandise. He is vague about which veterans the
stall benefits, but he mostly means himself.

166 Setting
 Cixin Ward

Spitzer District
Spitzer sits on the edge of Cixin's entertainment Maeda Tower: This building houses the offices of
districts. It's less glamorous than the others, and its Toha Cyber Holdings, an Asano subsidiary. Its
entertainment streets mostly cater to the office main purpose is to aggressively take over Spitzer's
drones that work nearby. The rest of Spitzer is filled corporations and transfer their assets to Asano by
with small companies who tend to work in space any means necessary.
research, habitat engineering, and other fields that
TCH's CEO is Goro Asano (p. 246) who was exiled
benefit from Downtown's easy spaceport access.
here after breaking from family tradition for the
A lot of the companies here are better known sake of love. (He refused a political marriage to
outside Grand Cross, either because that's where marry Virgo Asano (p. 247), his former bodyguard
they operate or because the Offworld Cartel and a much hotter trophy wife.) He plans to not
dominates the local scene. Sometimes Earth corps only prove himself but turn Spitzer into his
move into the area to test the waters before a big personal corporate fiefdom.
orbital push, or because having a presence on
Oasis Hospital: A private hospital offering the best
Grand Cross makes it easier to strike at their
service money can buy, including high-end
enemies here.
cyberware. A lot of their customers are wealthy
Some of Spitzer's businesses hitched their wagons people who got a little too rowdy in Cixin. They have
to Skuggahvarf and have fallen on hard times in the emergency facilities but have been known to send
wake of the Disaster. Asano Heavy Industries credit risks packing to the nearest public hospital.
(p. 231) has launched an aggressive campaign of
Oasis is the subject of many celebrity rumors, since
conquest to absorb as many companies as it can in
the rich and famous usually come here when they
order to consolidate its new position of power. It
want discretion. Every month one of the station's
seems the Offworld Cartel is finally moving in on
elite visits for an undisclosed amount of time and
the area.
later refuses to acknowledge they were there in the
first place, let alone explain what happened in Cixin.
Locations
Jean-Luc Park: A lovely little park surrounded by Orbital Video Products, Inc: A popular
residential buildings and mom-and-pops. The pornography studio. OVP is best known for their
apartments are mostly packed with older Builders films showing positive relationships between
who don't have much connection to the businesses humans and androids, which were revolutionary
in the area, but as the community gets older many when they started making them.
have passed away or moved elsewhere. Their
OVP's founder and main director is Hamish Double
replacements are largely young researchers and
(p. 279). Hamish believes that the line between
people on work contracts.
human and android will blur over time until they
The blocks around the park also hold the office of become one transhuman people. He tries to
Final Frontier (p. 268), an activist group formed by express that in his work.
scientists who push for space settlements to
Red Sun Microsystems: A major American
experiment with new ways of living more than they
computer company on Earth and a minor software
have been.
and cloud computing company on Grand Cross.
Final Frontier is a project of science communicator Red Sun partly keeps their orbital offices open for
Lewis Carpenter (p. 268). Last year he used "doing corporate espionage purposes—they use the offices
something other than capitalism for a change" as as a front while employing spies and hackers to
an example of something people could consider steal the Cartel's research.
experimenting with, and since then Morningstar
Red Sun's espionage expert is Rosco Tasman (p. 280),
has been waging a smear campaign against him.
who cut his teeth pulling similar tricks back on Earth.
Crossers incited by Morningstar keep trying to
He occasionally blackmails black-hat hackers into
break into his office.
working for him, but he generally honors his deals and
hasn't had anyone whacked as far as Red Sun knows.

Setting 167
 Other Districts
Appleton Neo Gangnam
Appleton contains several education institutions. An upscale residential district near the end cap. Neo
The most notable is the central campus of Gangnam isn't as pricey as Zenith (p. 151) and most
Academy City, a university with a satellite campus people still live in apartments (though they're much
on Luna. Due to its high student population, bigger and fancier than other areas). Many locals are
Appleton has a lot of cheap restaurants and executives from the Cartel corporations in Cixin,
clothing stores. Its main transit station is a major Marukyu, and Turing—and, according to rumor, the
interchange and Cixin transport hub. old folks who run the Void Dragon (p. 253).
Appleton is also rumored to host the servers of New Gangnam's business area is home to a lot of IT
Uniboardz, a student forum which frequently companies, the local headquarters of Earth-based
circulates pirated copies of university textbooks. social media companies, and some clubs near the
Academy City has an open Huntr bounty for the district's edge. (The stuff the executives get up to in
admin, an elusive user known only as Mister Yogurt. there is wild.) The rest of the area is mostly up-and-
coming businesses that aren't likely to become part
Athos of the Cartel, like the Space Banshee record
This neighborhood caters to the station's LGBTQ company (p. 244).
community. It's packed with bars, cafés, clubs, and
restaurants, from big multi-level hangouts to tiny Platinum
places with single-digit seating that cater to specific An edgeside district a little forward from the Golden
subcultures. Most visitors stick to the bigger places, district. Platinum hosts more subdued entertainment
at least at first. experiences than the Golden, like a large edgeside
park, niche cafés, and a theater that hosts a lot of talks.
Some of the side streets here have android-focused
places. A lot of the regulars are androids who were Also in Platinum is the tower 6 Richmond Street.
assigned a gender on creation and are still figuring Its bottom half is an entertainment complex; its
their real identity out. Some locals are against the upper half is the secret headquarters of the Void
android cafés, but most think they belong here. Dragon Syndicate. It's a little larger than it needs
to be right now because they have dreams of going
Edgemarket interplanetary.
Cixin's red-light district. Besides the usual
establishments, it also contains plenty of bars, Yutu Park
restaurants, cinemas, and love hotels, along with Yutu is a lovely park in the heart of Cixin, complete
the headquarters of the sex workers' union. Grand with an artificial pond. It's a peaceful retreat from
Cross sex work laws are fairly liberal, meaning the the rest of Downtown and as such is commonly
area is generally safe. used by office workers from the adjacent districts
for lunch breaks. The surrounding blocks are
Much of Edgemarket is controlled by the Hoshi
packed with eateries and banks.
Group, but they're rarely a danger to visitors. The
dangerous ones are the small-time gangs in the Yutu was recently visited by the robotics artist
back streets that skirt the law by running Synthetic Ape, who left behind one of his latest
unauthorized non-union businesses, offering illegal works: Horrible Goose, a robotic goose that pranks
services, or charging hidden fees. people, poses for photos, and runs away. Recently
Horrible Goose has started getting even more mean
The biggest of these gangs is run by Stephano
and better at evading capture; either someone's
Cavallo, who rules through cunning and powerful
hacked it or it's learning...
cybernetics. He needs them too, because he's
about as popular with the rest of Edgemarket as a
fart in an elevator.

168 Setting
 Cixin Ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN CIXIN

1–3
1 A new fad is spreading through the entertainment industry
2 A [1–2 niche] [3–4 cool] [4–6 expensive] new club opened in the Golden district
3 A days-long [1–3 festival] [4–6 protest] is going down in the Liu district
4 Another business in Spitzer has [1–2 appeared] [3–4 collapsed] [5–6 been bought]
5 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
6 A celebrity's night out ends in [1 tragedy] [2–6 salacious tabloid headlines]

4–6
1 A police raid gets in the news when they [1–2 succeed] [3–6 shoot someone]
2 Some kind of cross-institution student [1–3 event] [4–6 protest] is happening in Appleton
3 There's a new [1–3 community event] [4–6 business opening] in Athos
4 Space Banshee just [1–3 signed a new artist] [4–6 dropped a hot new album]
5 Some more crime bullshit breaks out in Wallmarket's back streets
6 In Yutu Park, [1–4 there's a festival] [5–6 Horrible Goose has struck again]

2D6 NEW VENUE GIMMICKS

1–3
1 A pop-up venue promoting an upcoming [1–3 anime] [4–6 film]
2 A Church-themed venue with faux-stained glass walls and a whole lot of sin
3 An Earth rainforest-themed venue, but the plants are all metal and have LEDs
4 An "East-meets-West"-themed venue that's both extremely bizarre and kinda racist
5 A venue staffed by furry cyborgs, assisted by cute robotic animals
6 A Basement venue, stairs hidden behind a bookshelf in a decoy venue

4–6
1 A business openly skirting the law by copying an Earth venue
2 A blatantly racist themed venue that will be closed in three weeks
3 An underwater surf rock-themed venue with an ocean painted on the ceiling
4 An 80s Martian diner with Mars views on fake window screens
5 A main room modelled off the office Christmas party from Die Hard
6 A Samurai Champloo-style Edo-era Japan/modern hip-hop mashup venue

Setting 169
 Adams Ward
"Sometimes I take the scooter for a ride and just breathe this place. There's a new place ‘round every corner
and everyone in them's got a story. I could disappear into this town for days.
"It's that feeling of community, yeah? Downtown's fun to visit, but this place feels like home."
— Bandile Arendse, electronic musician
Walk through Voyager and deeper into the station and eventually the skyscrapers will give way to
apartment blocks and cozy parks. This is Adams, the most populated ward on the Verne panel.
Adams is a residential and leisure ward. Much of it is housing, with parks spread throughout to give the
locals a place to play. There are commercial and business districts near Voyager, where Downtown spills
into the ward.
Adams is lower-density than Voyager and slower-paced as a result. It's not exactly a sleepy village, but
major city events tend to happen elsewhere. All that changed when the Disaster happened.
A lot of L4 refugees were placed in Adams. The lucky got apartments while the unlucky were placed in
temporary camps or left to fend for themselves. This has inadvertently made Adams a potential flashpoint
for the station's conflicts. Big things don't usually happen here, but this year, Adams might happen to
Grand Cross.

170 Setting
 Adams Ward

Themes and Threats

Socialize the Losses A lot of folks are busy. When you're struggling just to
One fun feature of capitalist societies is the way the get by, it's hard to make time to push for change.
state privatizes the gains and socializes the losses. Some figure that voting for Union in the next election
The poor and vulnerable need help? Sorry, that'd will be good enough—though they're in the Cartel's
cost money, so they're on their own. Taxing the rich pocket too, so it won't fix everything. Others have
to pay for it? How about screw you. Corporations in decided that both parties are the same and have
mild trouble? Only government intervention and succumbed to the idea that nothing can change.
tax cuts can resolve this crisis.
And some people like things as they are. Most of
Grand Cross is yet another place where the poor get Grand Cross's news outlets are in the Cartel's
capitalism and the rich get socialism. Unity's pocket, regularly pumping out stories designed to
policies transfer wealth to the Cartel and lets them play down current issues or blame them on others.
hoard the profits while the economic risks are Many locals have been convinced that their
transferred to taxpayers—like the people of Adams. problems were caused not by the people who profit
from them, but their opponents.
The most egregious example is the Disaster
situation, which would be far less of a problem if
Turning to Community
Unity hadn't re-invented landlords, but it's not the
In the absence of help from above, communities
only problem. Everywhere in Adams there are small
are forced to help each other.
businesses that can't get loans, workers being
exploited by their bosses, and infrastructure A lot of problems in Adams could be solved by
starting to fall apart because funding was diverted collective action. You're not going to solve
to a politician's buddies. everything in one go, but you can get a lot done at
the grassroots level. With enough momentum, you
This is Fine can make a start on changing the station too.
It's not hard to see that Adams is changing with the
rest of Grand Cross. The problem is not enough
people are doing anything about it.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 171
 Cielo District
Cielo is a relatively new district, built in the back requests from Grand Cross and Luna, from trading
half of the last decade. Its commercial area has secret love letters between celebrities to
been open since 2015 and is frequented by folks transporting data in cybernetic implants. They use a
from adjacent districts. The residential areas were combination of walking, drones, and wild parkour,
slowly filled in the years after that. depending on where the package needs to go.
Cielo is a nice, quiet little neighbourhood. Its Meeple Mocha: A board game café near the mall
residents are a mix of newcomers who haven't been where you can grab a light dessert and enjoy the
here long, families with Double Crosser kids, and latest in tabletop gaming. Post-Impact tech
Disaster refugees who lucked out and got housing. advancements make this a surprisingly complicated
It's still in the process of figuring out its identity. affair, with touchscreens and adjustable AR
windows on most tables. One corner table is
This district is presented as a potential starting
booked every Sunday for an ongoing session of the
point for Grand Cross campaigns: somewhere new
legendarily long board game The Campaign for L5,
and relatively stable, but still touched by the events
which started three years ago.
unfolding in the station, with a few places the PCs
could work at. If the PCs live here, they have a Robomancer: A robotics store that specializes in
chance to help shape the place's identity. pets. Robotic fish are especially popular, as the real
deal are hard to come by in space. Robomancer
Locations takes a lot of orders for custom creations and
Blue Mood Tower: A newer apartment complex recently started offering android services after
owned by the landlord Dwight Dunkel (p. 281). enough androids came in to ask about repair work.
Most of Dwight's tenants are working families or
Shift-Enter: A popular arcade on the roof of the
youth fresh out of school. Dwight has been hired by
local mall that offers a wide selection of games for
Tetsuo to trial a new product: a smart home device
all ages. The hot ones lately are collectible trading
that lets tenants pay rent and interact with him
card arcade games that use IR-chipped cards to
remotely. He's calling it a success when the press
create an interactive experience; the most popular
asks, but to his tenants—who have to deal with
game, Astral Burst, has rare cards worth thousands.
Dwight sending intruding "rent reminders" while
flashing their lights—it's a nuisance. The second floor of Shift-Enter is a fighting game
arcade. Though most serious gamers in the fighting
Dwight has easily bypassed Tetsuo's flimsy security
game community go to arcades in Marukyu, Shift-
to let him spy on his tenants without their knowledge
Enter has a few dedicated fans, including part-time
and has a secret computer lab in the basement
musician Madoka Mawaru (p. 282).
apartment to monitor for rule violations. Most of the
work is done by his teen son Wesley (p. 281), who is Wheeler Square: A large shopping center in the
kind of a creep. heart of Cielo's commercial area. Due to the
building's weird "futuristic" design, locals have
Construction Sites: Cielo isn't totally done yet—
started calling it The Mothership. The Adams
there's another wave of construction taking place
government gave subsidies to small businesses that
over the next couple years. Until then, some of
set up here, so it's a mix of small local stores and
Cielo's back streets are a maze of warning signs and
retail franchises.
temporary fences. A few of the empty sites have
been used as skate parks despite the best efforts The Mothership is also a transit station. Since
of security. there's a nice big rooftop park next to the Cross Rail
station, this (plus Shift-Enter) has made it a popular
Hadar Logistics: A small courier company for people
hangout spot for Double Crossers.
who need speed and security. Hadar mostly does
shopping for people who need help with it, handles
sensitive documents, plus a grab-bag of weird

172 Setting
 Adams Ward

Galaxy District
Galaxy is a residential and commercial district near A lot of real activism used to go down here. Once
Voyager. It's one of those places where Downtown people started bringing "You Can't Buy Homes With
is spilling over into the next ward—it's even billed Light" signs though, the sponsors conspired to
as a place where you can go Downtown without hijack the rallies by installing their own organizer:
going Downtown, with a little of everything Voyager social media star Wei Wang (p. 283). The remaining
has except the traffic. rallies look cool but can be safely ignored.
The district is home to several mid-sized L4 Connect: This temporary office, tucked into the
corporations that haven't managed to reach Cartel back of a government building, helps refugees who
status. A few have capitalized on the Disaster by lost ID papers in the Disaster. Most of their work
offering work contracts to refugees. Those who involves contacting Earth governments, setting up
can't have banded together to host a nightly light video calls with relatives, and trying to get people's
show in Galaxy's main plaza, which doesn't really bosses to stop avoiding their calls.
help but does make the hosts look good.
Most people who need L4 Connect hate it. The wait
Unity has gotten in on the game too. When one of times are long and it's an open secret that non-
their members wants to stage an event about white refugees are usually jerked around by their
refugees in Adams, it's probably here. Galaxy is held home country, forced to take extra steps to prove
up as an example of what Grand Cross can do for their identity, or asked breathtakingly silly
the Disaster refugees, but it's more about how questions about their "connections" to criminal
other people can profit off them. groups. Someone in the office is also fabricating
new identities for sale on the black market, which
Locations apparently takes an hour maximum.
Andromeda Street Station: A secondary transit
Keep on the Borderland: A store that sells anime,
station. The top two levels of its three-floor indoor
comics, tabletop games, and toys. It's owned by
park were turned into a temporary camp for
(and infamous for) Tony Osborn (p. 263), an arrogant,
refugees shortly after the Disaster.
surly jerk who acts like an ass to anyone who doesn't
Originally they were packed in uncomfortably tight, share his tastes. Despite that, Tony is a big
but as refugees got back on their feet (or left), the park proponent of android rights who goes out of his way
became much more comfortable. That's prompted to sponsor related events in Adams and Marukyu.
Unity to announce that the camp was "well below
Levistrode: A coding and data entry company that
capacity" and would be wound up before Christmas.
does contract work for bigger corporations.
No plans have been made for the remaining refugees.
Recently they purchased a new apartment block
Bar At The End Of The Universe: A nice little bar and offered generous work contracts to refugees,
down Andromeda Street. It's popular with the which made them look great until a journalist
refugees, who have a lot of reasons to drink. noticed that their hires were exclusively white men.
However, Cartel journalists have been lurking Levistrode has responded to the backlash by
nearby lately in hopes of getting footage for "lazy avoiding questions and announcing a "Going
refugee getting drunk instead of working" stories. Green" campaign in hopes of burying the story with
The bar's owners are split on whether to sue the good headlines.
journalists or stop serving refugees.
Levistrode is owned by Nathan Levesque (p. 282),
Hologram Plaza: Galaxy's main plaza. It has a very a greedy entrepreneur. He has a minor rivalry with
fancy lighting system, originally meant for a Geryon Aerospace, who he believes stole "his" spot
planetarium show. Post-Disaster, it's pivoted to a in the Cartel, but really he's just not important
corporate-sponsored "pro-refugee" light show. To enough for them.
attract more people to the Plaza, the police
sometimes encourage unhoused refugees to move
on before the show.

Setting 173
 Neo Melbourne District
Neo Melbourne is nestled in a front corner of Going is going to do a live show this year. In its
Adams, right up against Voyager. It's known for its downtime, the theater mostly does comedy.
connection to the arts: galleries, art schools, and a
The Mind's Eye: A digital art museum. The exhibits
few performing arts venues that didn't make it to
use computers, projectors, virtual and augmented
Tramgaudry Row (p. 215). As such, the
reality, holograms, apps, and a whole host of other
administrative buildings of many arts organizations
devices to create a weird but wonderful experience.
can be found here.
It's like being trapped in a labyrinth with a
The district is home to a number of space show cyberpunk minotaur.
winners (p. 114), the ones hoping to turn their fifteen
Mind's Eye is sponsored by Zinovy Ultragraphics
minutes of fame into something bigger. Sometimes it
and run by the Rad Netizens techno-artist collective.
works out. It used to have another name, but after
The Netizens recently kicked out one of their
several early Ground Control winners moved into
members, Blayde Warlock (p. 284), for stealing credit
homes nearby, a lot of Australians came here too.
and generally being an asshole. Unknown to them,
Neo Melbourne also contains the Marsha Stretch, he left backdoors in their installations just in case.
an LGBTQ+ neighborhood founded by Builders. It's
Orbital Center for Contemporary Art: An art
one of the most famous places of its kind in orbit,
gallery that showcases work by orbital artists. It has
but lately it's being threatened by gentrification and
a few other facilities too, most famously one for the
a new crime gang. (See The Terabyte Boys scenario
android dance group Semicondancer. OCCA
on p. 352 for more on the Stretch.)
recently opened a controversial exhibit designed
for people with cyber-eyes, intended to spark
Locations discussion on human enhancement (original-eyed
Café Larose: An LGBTQ+ library/coffee shop on the
humans get special glasses.)
park end of Marsha Stretch. It's run by Susie
Darling (p. 357), who was an overseer during the Swirly Thing Media: This office in the business part
station's construction and helped set up the of Neo Melbourne is a media company started by
Stretch. The café is her retirement plan. Zyler Parkes (p. 283). Zyler is a space show winner
who managed to gain millions of followers post-
Larose is a popular hangout spot for the locals, as
move, mostly youth, by stealing and reposting
Darling can dispense advice to anyone who isn't
other people's content to his HeoCities page
helped by her books. The café has an "attic" meant
without attribution. He profits from it by selling ads
as living space for the owner; Darling rents it out
and sponsored posts.
cheaply to people in need instead.
Zyler's employees are mostly friends of his (who do
Edgeside Park: A finely-landscaped park on the
the content scraping work) and/or lesser space
panel's edge with a glass-walled observation deck
show celebrities (who do the media stuff). Swirly
that offers an incredible view of space. The park sits
Thing were recently hired by Unity to help them
on one end of Marsha Stretch, and it's a famous
appeal to Double Crossers with memes.
spot for activism. The cops usually ignore whatever
goes on in the park as long as there aren't any Westfield Plaza: This commercial plaza on the end
unhoused people in it. of Marsha Stretch is a sea of tiles, dotted with
islands of trees and benches. It contains a transit
John Clarke Theatre: A theater famous for its
station, a bunch of cafés and fast food joints, and
appearances in space shows. It began with Ground
shops that cater to local workers and tourists.
Control to Andrew G (p. 114), which hosts winner
There's also an Australian souvenir store, despite
interview specials here. Other shows began using it
Australia being hundreds of thousands of
after: Stop The Planet I Want To Get Off! copied
kilometers away. It’s the proud producer of the
Ground Control's thing; Rising Stars winners
station’s only supply of kangaroo ball keychains.
perform their first space show here; and Up And

174 Setting
 Adams Ward

Réamann District
Réamann is a run-down suburb on the edge of Hoagie 2000: A sandwich franchise that's entirely
Downtown. Its main streets were built at awkward automated: you go in, use a touchscreen or an app
angles to compensate for corporate-friendly plan to order a sandwich, and a machine in the back
changes in adjacent districts, and most of the assembles it and pushes it through a hatch. The
remaining buildings are cheap apartments, creators envisioned this would disrupt the service
anonymous warehouses, and abandoned industry, mostly by removing jobs.
construction sites.
(Un)fortunately, the Hoagie 2000’s software is
A lot of Réamann's housing was bought up by Earth buggy—common sandwiches include” "your order
companies who established a space presence by but slathered in sauce"; "bacon, lettuce, and
sending people here on work contracts. One by one miscellaneous"; and "mystery sub". The owners
those companies collapsed, moved to Luna, or never send tech support unless someone hacks it
sidelined their space efforts, leaving the residents for free bread rolls. Most Hoagie 2000s have closed;
behind with their own apartments but no jobs. By the remaining ones serve people from poor districts
now, the folks still here are the ones too proud or like this one, who are too hungry to be picky, and a
poor to leave. few upscale influencers who come here ironically.
Some of its blocks aren't finished. They're meant to Kyläkauppa Market: This black market fills a
be, but the work was being done by Landvættir, who couple floors of the basement beneath an empty
pulled manpower and resources from here to work lot. The stores here mostly sell tech and stolen
on the higher-profile Skuggahvarf. Today the empty goods, but down the right halls you can get
lots and construction sites are being squatted by augments, drugs, information, and small arms; the
Disaster refugees who ran out of money. selection changes regularly as contacts and
careless sellers are arrested and new folks come in.
Réamann's residents came here for a better life, but
instead they got screwed. The people in charge Kyläkauppa is controlled by the Finnbogamenn
assume they can bootstrap their way out if they gang. Their leader Finnbogi (p. 282) keeps the
really wanted to, so things are unlikely to change market safe by enforcing a no-violence rule, cutting
any time soon. deals with bigger gangs (cops included), and using
his men to keep the peace in the area.
Locations PC Cyborg Corporation: A black market computer
Baldo's Bus Stop: This bar uses an abandoned bus
store run by former Tetsuo employee Jonno Sendai
as a counter and traffic signs as decorations (the
(p. 283). Thanks to his contacts in Tetsuo and
bus is a replica of an Earth bus; the signs were
Turing, Sendai can stock stolen PC parts and
stolen.) It offers cheap drinks, punk music, neon
phones, hacking tools, and experimental/
lights that almost never flicker, and VR rooms if
unreleased tech. A lot of his business actually comes
you'd like to turn reality off for a few hours.
from younger criminals who need gaming rigs.
The Bus Stop is run by "Baldo" Vázquez (p. 283), a
Réamann Camp: A camp of Disaster refugees led
Builder who honestly thought Réamann was going
by Rahul Joshi (p. 282), set up in a deserted
to be one of the hottest places in Grand Cross when
Landvættir construction site. They used abandoned
he set up shop. He's still holding out, but he kind of
building materials to make little homes and even
likes the scene he's built up here.
gardens, which improved the neighbourhood a lot
Griðungur Square: This commercial plaza on the for the first few months. The local police have made
district's edge is the one part Landvættir actually a show of launching midnight raids, chasing them
finished. It's a nice little place lined with small through the streets and tearing down their
businesses, coffee shops, and offices open to rent. structures—allegedly to maintain peace and order.
It's the only place in Réamann where the police do The refugees are starting to relocate to the
more than show up an hour late, take a statement, basement.
and maybe shoot your dog.

Setting 175
 Other Districts
Hertzsprung Mapo is particularly popular with Double Crosser
This residential/commercial district contains the androids, who can get decent repairs and mods
Absolute Magnitude shopping mall, a great place here without having to travel all the way to Uhuru
to get discount clothing and fast food. It's popular (p. 159) or Marukyu. There's even a minor fashion
with Double Crossers who can't afford/be bothered subculture of androids who get fish/water-themed
to shop in Marukyu. cosmetic mods, called “wetrunners”.
Also in the area is a tiny office/cyber-maintenance
Pcholka
clinic belonging to Proactive Augment, a cyborg
A district near the Voyager border with a mix of
rights group who oppose most reactive (p. 120)
residential spaces, parks, and the sorts of
forms of augmentation. After it became illegal to
businesses that keep the station running but never
pressure workers into augmenting, most of their
get much attention. The biggest is Johnny
sponsors and donors decided that the problem was
Printonic, an office supply company. (Aren't offices
solved forever and dropped their funding. The
mostly digital these days? Well, people still need
group's funds (and membership) dwindled until
office furniture and that's as far as most people get
only one member remained: Dae-jung Park, a
before they stop thinking about it.)
mechanic who's only licensed to do software
augment work. Pcholka also contains Astronaut Tower, a
commercial tower with an observation deck that
Kuiper offers an unmatched view of Adams. Near the top is
Kuiper is a working-class neighbourhood that's the Launchpad, an overpriced restaurant with a NASA
punching above its weight in the punk scene. A lot theme. It's moderately popular with wealthy Builders
of the station's best punk bands were formed here, and people who commute to Turing for work.
including Decretion Disk, Hey! It's The Wizards,
Malwarehouse, The Netizens, Nice & NEET, and Russell
Clannad Watchers. For music fans, it's Adams' A quiet back-street residential neighbourhood
slightly rougher answer to Cassini's scene (p. 152). mostly known for its street art. Whole stretches of
roadside walls in the area have been covered in
Kuiper has had some problems with the New
graffiti, stencils, tags, stickers, and pretty much
Barons (p. 267) recently. The group has decided
anything else you can slap on a wall.
that the Barons’ old-school, pro-establishment
ideology is somehow real punk, and have started Some of it is officially sanctioned—there's even an
trying to organize pub crawls, sponsored shows, official Graffiti Tunnel attached to the main transit
and other events in the area. Most of these have station—but a lot of it isn't. The local artists tend to
ended with viral videos of four-person groups being maintain anonymity even in official spaces, up to
kicked out of bars and crying Barons calling the and including doing their work at night with special
police because someone poured a drink on their anti-surveillance gear. People looking to commission
head, but they're trying. an artist are advised to head down the stairs near the
Pitwell Lane wall to the Dead Beats bar and ask the
Mapo owner Rania Xanthopoulos (p. 284).
A district in the Downtown section. It has a lot of
Russell is also home to a bunch of friends and
water-themed attractions: swimming pools, a water
family of space show winners. They prefer to stay
park, even a rooftop fishing spot. A lot of the fish
out of the spotlight, but you can pick up some good
are robotic, but they're still popular with Double
Earth imports if you know the right stores.
Crossers (who don't get many chances to see fish in
space), so the area is a minor fixture of the station's
youth scene.

176 Setting
 Adams Ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN ADAMS

1–3
1 A minor wave of new [1–4 housing] [5–6 immigration] is happening this week
2 A new [1–3 business] [4–6 shopping experience] is opening in Cielo
3 A pro-refugee rally in Galaxy is [1–4 anemic] [5–6 being attacked by cops]
4 A hot new [1–2 comedy] [3–4 art] [5–6 space] show is opening in Neo Melbourne
5 A crime on the streets of Réamann draws attention to the district's state
6 An Earth-inspired festival is sweeping the ward

4–6
1 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
2 An event at Hertzprung's Absolute Magnitude mall is drawing crowds today
3 Kuiper's rock punks and the New Barons are having a fight again
4 A wetrunner fashion fad spreads from Mapo throughout the ward
5 It's a slow news day, the perfect time to relax and try something new
6 Some [1 terrible] [2–3 rad] [4–6 political] graffiti in Russell is making waves

2D6 INFAMOUS LOCALS

1–3
1 Awful neighbour, constantly reports people for trivial inconveniences
2 Street musician; made own instruments out of discarded basement pipes
3 Hates being reminded of the time they went viral five years ago
4 Constantly putting up anti-surveillance signs and trashing cameras
5 Online sketch comedian who does weird stunts in the neighbourhood
6 Goes around claiming they're King/Queen of Space, locals humour them

4–6
1 Cop, everyone knows he shot someone on Earth before transferring here
2 D-list space show celebrity who wears ridiculous outfits for attention
3 Damaged cyborg running a street stall to raise cash for repairs
4 Philosophical young weed dealers loitering outside the convenience store
5 Aspiring rapper spitting mad rhymes in the nearest commercial plaza
6 The coolest dang old person you'll ever meet

Setting 177
 Marukyu Ward
"I'm off work at six, then I'm gonna hit Space Town and Shin Umeda. Mostly window shopping, but there's a
CD I want... Yeah, a'ight. Meet me at Nuclear Pop and I'll pick you up on the way. If you wanna, I'm going to
hit Kyobashi next, check out that dumpling place Guy won't shut up about. If you're still around after that
then I dunno, we can find a bar or something?
"Yeah, quiet day, I know. I got class tomorrow."
— Nadira Meaney, Double Crosser
Marukyu ward is a commercial hub and major fashion center. In these vibrant streets, workers spend their
paychecks after their shifts, the station's youth redefine style, and visitors make impulse purchases they'll
regret later.
Marukyu was built from the ground up to attract commerce, including several landmarks "inspired" by
Earth locations for nostalgia value. That's made Marukyu the place to go for Earth imports: people come
here for Earth-made media, the latest Earth fashions3, and luxury goods they don't make in orbit. It's also
an unofficial home for the homesick, with services for tourists, business trippers, expats, and people who
just want to feel like they’re back on Earth. (And while you’re there, why not shop like an Earther?)
To outsiders, Marukyu is one of the pearls of Grand Cross, but it has its downsides. Criminals flock here to
prey on the newcomers. The rich and powerful meet here to cut shady deals. The police regularly hassle
the poor, forcing them into more dangerous back streets. Marukyu shines, but the thing about pearls is
their fragile luster only shines on the surface.

3 Earth fashions are extremely popular

with certain wealthy entrepreneurs and,
by extension, people trying to emulate
them. Some orbital fashions do
interesting things with the older stuff.

178 Setting
 Marukyu Ward

Themes and Threats

Cracks in the Corners Where they go, others follow. Many cafés and shops
Marukyu is fun to look at; the buildings are decked cater to youth directly. Marukyu businesses get
out in interesting colours, huge signs, and digital heavily into social media to attract their attention,
screens. Districts like Space Town sell fun things, with brand managers and HeoCities pages. Bigger
like games and fashion. The nightlife is wild. corporations tend to be more insidious in their
Marukyu is exciting and everyone loves visiting. marketing, with campaigns aimed at making their
brand an "iconic" part of Double Crosser culture.
Stay there for long though, and you start to notice
the problems. Corporate interests are trying to As a group, Double Crossers are mad. They're not
exploit the youth scene for their own purposes. necessarily pro-Union—though they tend to skew
Much of the nightlife is controlled by gangs. The left—but they know their elders are looting their
people who made Marukyu cool are being forced futures, and they want to do something about it. A
out as wealthy newcomers try to co-opt the spaces lot of folks come here to take advantage of that
they made. It’s a fun place, but keeping it that way sentiment. Activist groups look for new members,
is a struggle. while groups like the New Barons are paid to divert
their rage towards the Cartel's enemies. The
Youth Culture corporations engage in brand activism, pretending
Marukyu is a popular hangout spot for the station's to take a stance for attention or claiming their
youth. The commercial districts are flooded in the products will help somehow.
after-school rush; one district, Shin Umeda, is the
Essentially, Marukyu is where Double Crossers
center of youth fashion on the station. A lot of the
define youth culture and non-youths try to take
oldest Double Crossers4 come here too—often to work.
advantage of them.

4 Those who graduated high school in the

mid-late '10s, unless you are an old
person, in which case you probably call
millennials Double Crossers too.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 179
 Denraku District
By Chiaki Hirai
Denraku is a bustling hub of bars, karaoke lounges, karaoke machine that occasionally gets used by
and video game arcades where Marukyu's office inebriated upper management types, and a lounge
workers unwind after a long day. The area caters to area where VIPs can retreat to if they want more
anyone looking to grab a bite before or after a night privacy. The bartender—the one that looks like a
on the town. Food ranges from top-tier restaurants teenager, not the older ones—knows her stuff.
featured even in Earth's travel guides to shacks on the
Nekomeshiya: Hidden within the maze of
side of the walkway serving ramen of unknown origin.
alleyways, Nekomeshiya typically opens when most
During the day, Denraku serves as a tourist hub people have finished eating dinner and stays open
where visitors from all over can come check out a early into the morning hours. The interior isn't too
matinee show or have a sensible lunch to "blend in bad to look at, but it's small enough that no
with the locals"5. At night, office workers come out conversation goes unheard. The eatery has a menu
to unwind by singing karaoke or grabbing a drink populated by a hodgepodge of items, mostly up to
and a bite with their coworkers. the whims of the owner and the tastes of regular
customers. Try the curry.
Between the larger thoroughfares, Denraku features
a maze of narrow alleyways lined with small hole- The eatery is run by Shinji Enzai (p. 257), an affiliate
in-the-wall bars and eateries—the kind that only of the Daikatana Gumi. Most first-time customers
seat 2–3 customers—that primarily operate late at seek him out for information and under-the-table
night. These can be hidden gems, but then again jobs. Some of them keep coming back for the food.
some of them are also huge dives or fronts for local
The Voder: Located up the elevator above one of the
organized crime operations.
district's video game arcades, The Voder rents private
karaoke boxes to anyone looking to belt out some
Locations tunes. The drink bars have all you can drink soda,
Daikatana Security Ltd.: Daikatana is a perfectly
their fries are actually pretty good, and they can cater
legal security company that offers business owners
to either a single customer or a full entourage. Their
within Denraku peace of mind from having their
song selections are good, but the latest songs from
windows smashed in each month, for a modest
earth might be a month or two behind.
security fee. Their "offices" are located on the spin-
wise corner of the district, near its storage The android proprietor of the Voder, J4X BEATZ,
warehouses. won the business off its original owner after suing
them for abusive labor practices in a landmark
From the street, the stronghold is a grey,
android rights test case a few years ago.
windowless cube of a building. There is only a
shuttered vehicle entrance, big enough for a truck The Warehouse: The Warehouse is a large storage
to enter and exit at street level. The inside, unit that has been repurposed into an
however, is decked out like a traditional Japanese entertainment arcade, located beside Denraku's
estate, complete with an inner courtyard garden storage warehouses. Featuring games, karaoke
looking up into the sky plates. It even has that thing boxes, rock-climbing walls, a bowling alley and
that goes "doink."6 some tennis courts, it's a popular destination for
many coming to Denraku. Entry is free, as long as
Chii Noda (p. 256) runs the Daikatana Gumi (p. 254)
you scan your Multipass at the door.
out of this mansion stronghold. It's ill-advised to go
knocking on her door without an invitation; she The interior of The Warehouse is decorated like... a
doesn't appreciate uninvited guests all that much. warehouse. It's difficult to tell whether the interior
decoration is a result of thought-out theming or the
Luck of Eden: A classy bar located just off the main
management's attempt to do as little work as possible.
strip, behind a set of heavy doors. It's an
establishment for people "in the know." There's a

5 None of the locals eat where they do.

6 No deer here either.

180 Setting
 Marukyu Ward

Paradise District
Paradise is Marukyu's hub (it used to be called Supermassive: A popular nightclub with a cocktail
Marukyu Central, and a lot of local stores still sport bar, dancers, big screens showing astronomical
the name.) Its transit station is one of the station's phenomena for ambience, and a rotating cast of
busiest, with thousands of people coming here local DJs. The interior is designed to look like
every day to visit the shops, enjoy the nightlife, or everything is being sucked toward the dance floor.
just catch a connecting train to their actual stop.
Supermassive is owned by the Hoshi Group, who
The first thing you see when you step out of the station sometimes hold meetings in the VIP area. The
is a huge scramble crossing, intentionally modelled manager is a cyborg who goes by the name Tony
on Tokyo's Shibuya Crossing. This sets the tone of #618 (p. 258); he knows a lot about Marukyu but is
the ward: shopping, nightlife, and Earth nostalgia. angling to get "promoted" to one of the Group's
Cixin businesses.
Paradise really picks up at night when the neon
lights flicker to life and new crowds of people pour Sloshing Mall: A local nickname for a collection of
in to go bar-hopping. If you don't want to keep back-streets not far from the Scramble. It's full of
moving, there are more than enough clubs and little izakayas, clubs, and other bars that cater to
theaters to keep you satisfied. And if the regular people hitting Paradise after work; they say there's
places don't meet your needs, the Hoshi Group a hundred different ways to get hammered here.
might. There's a little something for everyone. The deepest streets host a lot of Hoshi-run
businesses; crossing them isn't a popular way to
Locations get hammered, but it happens sometimes.
0Q: Paradise's iconic department store/movie
Spacetree: This is the city's primary broadcasting
theater, a block away from the Marukyu Scramble.
tower and the tallest structure in space at 640
Its official name is Zero Questions, as in “don't ask,
meters high. At the Spacetree's upper observation
just buy it!” 0Q's stores are heavy on fashion and
deck, roughly halfway up, gravity is at 95% of
are incredibly popular with young women, though
ground level. The lower levels of the tower are
they've been trying to attract androids lately too.
packed with stores, coffee shops, and the Gerard K.
Destroy All Movies: A popular movie theater that O'Neill Museum, which focuses on the history of
makes its money through community events, space stations in science fiction.
particularly screenings of pre-Impact films. They're
Sweet Heaven: A sweets café run by Kana Kobashi
best known for turning the box office bomb
(p. 285). Kana is a former corporate drone who quit
Armageddon (released in 1998, widely considered to
when a new boss tried to pressure her into
be too soon) into a cult film. Students and people
unnecessary augmentation; she sued and won the
who bring dates on the weekend get a discount.
cash settlement she opened this place with.
DAM is run by Dendy Sobol (p. 286), who also collects
Though the sweets really are heavenly, some
old gaming consoles and plays them on his movie
people come for advice. Kana runs a blog on
screens. He occasionally hosts film festivals, with
reactive augmentation and picked up a lot of
the activist films and causes he chooses sometimes
contacts in the cyborg activist community during
resulting in threatening letters sent to the theater.
her case. Sometimes she invites them to the café to
Laika Statue: A statue of the famous Soviet space meet with the people who ask her for help.
dog near the scramble crossing. It's often used as a
meeting point. The statue comes with a plaque
"explaining" Laika's story, which repeats the
widely-reported lie that Laika was euthanised six
days into her journey rather than killed by day-one
equipment failure. The plaque is vandalized
regularly, partly because it annoys the cops.

Setting 181
 Space Town District
Space Town is a colourful shopping district and a Evil Maid Attack: A maid café with a hacker theme.
major pop culture hub. Its official name is Customers can play video games with the maids
Uchuumachi, but everyone calls it Space Town (or and even get some tech support done on-site. If
SPACETOWN in advertising). they can't fix it, they can probably point you to
someone who can. Most of the staff are paying off
It's the best place for games, CDs, comics, cosplay,
university fees.
collectibles, and computer parts this side of the
cylinder. To some nerds it's practically sacred. EMA is run by Zigamorph (p. 286), an android
Veteran locals have a habit of ironically invoking hacker. Ziga has worked in Marukyu's
"gaming gods" who supposedly live in space, so entertainment industry all her life and picked up
don't be surprised if you hear an "In the name of her interest in tech right here in Space Town. She
the Moon!" or "Guide me, Mars!" every so often. likes keeping tabs on current AI projects.
Space Town is also well-known for its robots. Here Ring of Coolant: An illegal android fight club,
you can get smart appliances, robot pets, and hidden down a side-street beneath a robot pet
robotic workplace assistants—or just check out one store. Down here, souped-up androids brawl with
of the weekly robot-fighting events. For androids, it each other while spectators gamble on the
offers cosmetic augments and old-school parts they outcome. It's super illegal, but as long as the local
don't make any more. cops get a cut, they're happy. The pet store doubles
as a repair shop for the brawlers.
Space Town might seem a little weird the first time
you visit, but everybody's a little bit weird. Here, The Ring is run and emceed by Hunter Deadman
they own it. (p. 284), who looks like a waist-high robotic koala in
a Hawaiian shirt. Everyone assumes he's just an
Locations android with a weird body, but in reality the koala is a
Cross Cybernation: This high-rise shopping center robot remote piloted by a wealthy full-body cyborg.
has stores for every geeky interest in orbit. It's a
SPACERS: A commercial building owned by the
major Space Town landmark, often the first thing
space education company Tofu Cannon (p. 244).
people see when they leave the transit station.
They run a planetarium at the top; the rest of the
Cybernation has graffiti dedicated to the gaming place is a shopping mall where groceries, clothes,
gods, which some geeks pray to for luck as they electronics, and other essentials are sold. The
pass. A group of Singularist vandals has been trying astronomical clock on the front and the orrery in
to add their hypothetical future superintelligence to the mall might be overdoing it a little.
the pantheon, with some success.
SPACERS also contains the theater of the idol band
Early Access: A 24-hour internet café. Fees are by L5-8 (p. 115), who do daily shows here. The band's
the hour and include unlimited access to soda, lyricist-producer Hayate Jones (p. 249) often sleeps
manga, and Dorites. They have a significant range in his office in the back.
of PCs and consoles with a variety of seating
Tournament Arc: On the first weekend of every
options, but they're best known for their cutting-
month, when the Supernova Road arterial is closed
edge VR booths (private VR porn suites cost extra.)
to vehicles, part of it is converted into a temporary
The café is run by Izzy Kaijou (p. 285). A lot of her arena where amateur roboticists pit robots against
night customers are unhoused, people who rent a each other in cool as hell fights. This is Space
private booth for the night and sleep there. Izzy Town's biggest robot combat event.
sympathises—she used to be one herself—so she's
There are two categories: remote-controlled bots, and
added a shower service and healthier food options
weak (non-sapient) AIs. Robots are often sponsored
to help them out. She's also gotten into activism
by local businesses while Tournament Arc itself is
and likes getting the regulars into it too.
sponsored by Tetsuo and Omnidyne in a blatant
attempt to get people to design drones for them.

182 Setting
 Marukyu Ward

Shin Umeda District

Shin Umeda is a commercial and residential Space Shrine: This shrine sits in Mondo Upper by
district. It's known for its fashion stores, an exit leading to the Tyrell district (p. 184).
restaurants, and tiny cafés, many of which cater to It's dedicated to the deities Orihime and Hikoboshi
Double Crossers. This place is the heart of (represented by the stars Vega and Altair.) People
Marukyu's youth fashion culture. going on a spaceflight come here to wish for a safe
trip, while station workers pray that Grand Cross
The district is centered around around Mondo Road,
won't fall apart.
a major Marukyu arterial. It has a lot of big chain
stores, shopping malls, and expensive restaurants, Every year Mondo Upper has a Tanabata festival
with a few smaller stores mixed in. A sprawling with food stalls, carnival games, and digital art.
upper level of walkways and parks spreads across People write wishes on strips of foil paper and hang
the nearby rooftops. The roofs and the back streets them on bamboo, which gets blasted out of an
are packed with apartments and smaller, airlock on the last night of the festival. (The Shrine's
independent stores. Mondo Upper is where Shin owner Mizar Tsukimi (p. 286) hires people to
Umeda gets its reputation—fashionistas gather here retrieve them and saves the wishes, though.)
to show off their styles and set new trends.
Spiral Nerdula: An underground video game store
Unfortunately, Shin Umeda has a gentrification that boasts a large selection of retro games, used
problem. Mondo Road's chains and malls muscled games, and merch. It's located down a staircase on
their way in to take advantage of Shin Umeda's Mondo Road. The owner is Old Man Mick (p. 285),
reputation—and are slowly pushing out the who also offers "tech support" services—he'll
independent stores and young creators that jailbreak almost anything the locals bring him.
established it in the first place. Some have been pushed
UFO Cafe: A space-themed cosplay café whose staff
into the back streets, while others are just leaving.
dress in weird, cute, sometimes spooky alien
The locals are campaigning for something to be costumes. You can eat and drink in a UFO, dance in
done, but so far Unity has brushed it off as the the Mars room, have tea in an alien forest (complete
whining of entitled kids. If nothing changes, Shin with an alien sky on the ceiling screens), or chill out
Umeda will eventually become a ghost town. in the Men in Black Bar. Weekly events range from
burlesque dances to old B-movie screenings.
Locations The café is run by Izayoi Aino (p. 284), a
Copypaste Cats: A cat café that boasts both regular
photographer who knows a lot about goings-on in
cats and robot cats. It's run by the android Nekomata
Shin Umeda. She also designed the café's mascot:
(p. 285), who makes a point of hiring Disaster orphan
Frogulox Bleemo, a rubbery two-mouthed one-
youths and arranging for friends in Marukyu to house
eyed tentacled alien. A lot of tech went into making
them until they get on their feet. Locals love her.
his suit weirdly disgusting.
Unfortunately, Nekomata is being harassed by a
Ure-roji: A local name for the back streets. Here
group of Crossers who object to an android
you can find smaller shops and cafés, residential
"adopting" humans. (Some are hoping to funnel
buildings, and the original Shin Umeda charm.
the teens to Christian foster homes instead.)
They've been spreading rumours that the café is Lately, people in suits have been knocking on doors
secretly kidnapping kids and teaching them to and asking questions obviously designed to feel out
perform abortions, among other things. So far the who'd be willing to move for cash. They avoid
locals have managed to protect them though. saying who they really work for, but it seems more
big developments are on the way...
Otomo Plaza: An indoor park in Mondo Upper, just
across from Shin Umeda Station. Its location and
massive food court effectively make it the entrance
to Mondo Upper. If someone tells you to meet them
in Shin Umeda, they probably mean here.

Setting 183
 Other Districts
Dejima Shima
Dejima is famous for its expat bars, where Earthers Tetsuo's (p. 241) headquarters are located in the
go to hang out with other Earthers. You get some Shima district—or rather, the Tetsuo Corp. Complex
unusual friendships here: workers get drunk with is the entirety of the district. The megacomplex
diplomats’ spouses, aging Builders regale Double features a mall (featuring Tetsuo's flagship store), a
Crossers with tales of Earth, exiled politicians meet department store, a hotel, its own transit station,
influential people to plan a new life. If you need to and an outdoor plaza.
talk to an Earther, somewhere in Dejima is a place
The sixth floor also features a collection of restaurants
they'll find comfortable.
and a mini amusement park, making the place a
popular spot for weekends and dates as well. In the
GCBC district back, Tetsuo operates a medical clinic specializing
The GCBCD is one of the smallest districts in Grand
in implants and cybernetic augmentations.
Cross. It exclusively holds the headquarters of the
Customers undergoing extensive surgeries often
Grand Cross Broadcasting Corporation (p. 112).
stay the night in the adjacent hotel to recover.
It contains the company's offices and studios, a
Tetsuo's corporate offices are located on the upper
visitors center7, the iconic GBC Stage, and annexes
floors, but its top floors are also open to the public
at the back for international broadcasters. The
as an observation deck, where visitors can pay to
skyline around the GBC is one of the most well-
look out around the Marukyu ward from up high.
known parts of Grand Cross back on Earth,
While this is Tetsuo's corporate HQ, the bulk of the
particularly the view of nearby Kyobashi and the
offices in the building are dedicated to sales, as
panel's edge from the news room.
development and production are done off-site.
More relevant to locals is the Creator Space, which Tetsuo has too wide a product line to house all its
offers facilities and workshops for digital content R&D in one building, after all.
creators, and the GBC Store, which sells GBC
merchandise and Earth imports. The imports have Tyrell
made it a popular hangout spot for Double Crossers; This district holds most of Marukyu's religious
watching BBC shows semi-ironically is in this year. buildings. Whether you need a mosque, a church, a
shrine, a temple, or something else, Tyrell has you
Kyobashi covered. If it doesn't have a building, someone's
Kyobashi is the main bridge connecting Marukyu to probably hidden a little shrine for it somewhere
the Adams ward, as well as a commercial and around the district. The Singularists sometimes
entertainment district around the Marukyu end. meet in a coffee shop around here to complain
Think bars, restaurants, long edgeside walks, and about/envy the locals.
used Earth electronics stores. A lot of Adams people
Tyrell also includes Tsukino Park. On weekends,
come here to relax.
the large park plays host to meetups of rock music
This district contains Space Channel 8, a concert hall fans and various hobby groups. In the spring,
with a Y2K aesthetic that extends over the panel's people visit to see the cherry blossoms. A few shady
edge like a smaller, bubbly Sydney Opera House. SC8 "religious" movements have purchased space in
showcases indie shows and up-and-coming acts. As the commercial plaza nearby in the hope that being
such, a lot of idols hoping to make it big pass through in Tyrell makes them seem more legitimate.
its weird blobby halls. The L5-8 idol group does big
shows here too, and their producer Hayate Jones
recruits new members from the smaller shows.

7 Another big school field trip

destination. The visitor's center even
has its own mascot, Samuel the Space
Camel, who is currently being phased out
because nobody likes him.

184 Setting
 Marukyu Ward

Zamenhof
A quiet neighborhood which connects Dejima to the Department of Translation, where government
Cixin ward. It contains Embassy Row, which houses websites and documents are translated into
many diplomatic missions from Earth. Zamenhof is multiple languages, and Zamenhof University,
named after L.L. Zamenhof, the inventor of the best place in Grand Cross to study language
Esperanto. The name has attracted the and literature.

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN MARUKYU

1–3
1 An Earth-related celebration is sweeping through the ward
2 A hot new [1–2 karaoke box] [3–4 bar] [5–6 arcade] is opening in Denraku
3 A special event at [1–2 0Q] [3–4 DAM] [5–6 Supermassive] in Paradise
4 Space Town is going wild for a [1–4 pop-up store] [5–6 show at SPACERS]
5 A new Shin Umeda fashion trend is spreading among Double Crossers
6 There are incredible sales/deals on today if you know where to look

4–6
1 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
2 There's a big televised special event going down at the GCBC
3 A show by [1–4 a new indie act] [5–6 L5-8] is drawing crowds to Kyobashi
4 Tetsuo's having a launch event for some flashy new piece of tech
5 A religious event is being observed/celebrated in Tyrell today
6 A fantastic new song by a popular band/artist is dropping today

2D6 DOUBLE CROSSER FASHION TRENDS

1–3
1 Vintage Earth designs—in space they're being worn for the first time
2 Putting stickers on your scooter and wearing matching pins
3 Cyborg style: wearable tech and 3D-printed "cyberware" clothing
4 Nature themes to contrast the high-tech wonderland of Grand Cross
5 Looking like—or just straight-up cosplaying—anime characters
6 Galaxy style: dark clothing with many bright accessories ("stars")

4–6
1 Visual kei but with a handful of space-themed accessories
2 60s/70s science fiction outfits and maybe a bit of space alien
3 Screw it: normcore
4 Clothing, hair, and tats designed to mess with facial recognition
5 Using outdated computer parts as accessories
6 Old Earth clothing, new space fabrics, integrated wearable tech

Setting 185
 Mariposa Ward
"They were right about these parks, I tell you what. I didn't realise how good fresh air can be 'til I got this new
body with its fancy sensors. Almost makes me wonder what I was missing down on Earth. Maybe I should go
back and take a look before the humans finish trashing it."
— PSP, android cabbie
Mariposa is the Verne panel's central ward, situated between the Adams and Amal wards. As a central
ward, it's dedicated to recreation.
For psychological (and air quality) reasons, Mariposa is much lower-density than its neighbour wards.
Instead, most of its space is given over to parkland. These parks are carefully designed to resemble natural
landscapes in temperate environments back on Earth, complete with their own ecosystems—though some
of the animals, especially larger ones like deer8, are robots created for ambience. Because they're vital to
Grand Cross, these green spaces are protected and open to everyone.
The rest of the ward is made up of low-density towns with amusement attractions, shopping centers,
museums, markets, spas, and more. These gateway communities sit along the ward's borders, connected by
elevated rails that wind over the trees. They're not that far from the rest of the city, but they feel far away.
But even Mariposa isn't free of the trouble sweeping the station. A wealthy high-rise community in the area
has decided everything they can see is theirs. Corporate interests are expanding into the area as much as
they're allowed—and Unity has been permissive lately. The Cartel is even moving to take control of the
ward so they can monetize it. Mariposa is a beautiful place, but maybe not for long.

8 These don’t count.

186 Setting
 Mariposa Ward

Themes and Threats

Liminal Space Sure, the greenery serves an important
Mariposa sits in the middle of its panel, at the psychological purpose; the Cartel agrees with you
furthest possible point from the bustling Voyager there. But this place has so much economic
and Foundation wards. With its wide-open spaces potential, they'd say. Surely a few extra office
and lush landscape, it's also one of the most Earth- towers can't hurt, right?
like places in orbit.
And we could really explore the park's potential
These traits—combined with the fact that most of with some more paid services. While we're at it,
Mariposa is meant to be visited, not lived in—make some condos here would generate so much money
the ward feel like a liminal space. The people here for the city. And they'll need a few office blocks to
aren't like other Crossers. The problems plaguing work at. A business park is like a park if you think
the station can seem very far away. about it. Can we build just a few more blocks? Look
at all the money Mariposa's making—the city could
Then they show up. Though Mariposa feels far
eliminate costs entirely by selling the remaining
away, it doesn't take much more than looking down
parks to us. Plus, now we can squeeze in a few
the cylinder, up at the panels above, or at what's in
more condos. What do you mean there's no more
front of you to remember you never really left the
greenery? There are plenty of vines on these office
city.
blocks. And you can always buy a season pass for
our Green Experience in that little dome over there.
Slow Corruption
Capitalist economies require constant growth to It isn't nearly that bad yet, but efforts to
fuel profits for investors, making the untouched commercialize Mariposa and increase its urban
parks of the central wards a prime target for density are already picking up steam. If the Cartel
expansion. gets its way, Mariposa will eventually fade away.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 187
 Giraud District
Giraud is a small town on the Adams border. As a • Animatronic replicas of various space-mission
low-density district surrounded by parkland on animals, complete with a guided tour by a
three sides, it's the closest you can get to a quiet robotic Enos;
country town on the panel. • And a memorial to dead Builders—with a few
controversial omissions, additions, and lies.
Giraud's transit station is a common point of entry
to Mariposa, and many local businesses are cafés, Hot One With The Boys: An Australian-style
restaurants, and museums that cater to the tourists. coffeehouse. Expect third-wave coffee, good
The original architecture was inspired by the brunches, “avo toast”, trendy decor, and people
various styles of Paris, and a lot of the housing units asking their phones what long blacks and flat
are maisonettes or rows of terraced homes. Giraud whites are before ordering. It's especially popular
would seem as out-of-place in Grand Cross as the with younger locals who generally work elsewhere
parks, if not for the locals. in Grand Cross and pass the place on their way to
the transit station.
Most long-term locals are either aging Builders with
cybernetic prosthetics or remnants of the station's The titular Boys are Fitzy and Damo (p. 287), a pair of
vanishing middle class who are getting into Australians who ran a coffee cart in Melbourne before
cosmetic augmentation. Their children are just as winning a space ticket. Damo is a Lilim android who
disaffected as most Double Crossers. A few likes how coffee tickles his olfactory sensors.
corporate oligarchs are trying to turn parts of the
Giraud Ranger Station: This building on the edge
town into their own private playground.
of town is the local base of the Grand Cross Park
Rangers, a subsection of Division 7 who protect
Locations and preserve the parks of the central wards. The
Avenue Road: A typical residential street in Giraud.
station contains offices, a reception for visitors, a
It has a few apartment complexes with some
temporary holding cell, and a basement computer
maisonettes and a shared courtyard, mostly filled
lab connected to a network of drones that watch
by families who moved here in the first two waves.
Mariposa for fires.
The rest of the street is lined with terraced homes,
They've been having problems with Apollo Tower
occupied by middle-class folks who work
in Phoebus District—the wealthy residents threaten
elsewhere on the Verne panel. Ever since landlords
to sue the park rangers if they're so much as looked
were reintroduced to Grand Cross, property
at funny, and the government doesn't have their
developers have been showing up every month or
back. This has become a larger problem lately as
so to make increasingly aggressive attempts to get
Apollo's Magpie drones can interfere with the
the locals to sell.
ranger drones' signals.
Grand Cross Space Museum: The station's premier
Visions: A cyber-clinic with a focus on cybernetic
museum, dedicated to the station workers who
eyes. It's run by Doctor Altamiro Santos Delgado
died during construction. Its exhibits include:
(p. 287), who is widely regarded as "the master of
• A dinosaur skeleton, because every good eyes." He customizes his cyber-eyes to suit every
museum has a skeleton in the lobby; customer, including unique eye designs for those
• A Moon exhibit with a few objects on loan from who pay. Earthers have come here just to get their
Lunar museums, including the Genesis Rock; eyes measured.
• An exhibit about the station and its technical
Altamiro treats his work as a form of art. The clinic
specs, including a huge cutaway model;
lobby is lined with eye design mockups nobody's
• Interactive replicas of various spaceships and
purchased yet, and some of his eyes have been
stations;
featured in art galleries. Curators and customers go
• Various rotating exhibits on mineralogy, anthro-
through his daughter, Isabel (p. 287).
pology, and what the future might look like;

188 Setting
 Mariposa Ward

Phoebus District
Phoebus is one of the station's newest districts, Poor Floors: The lower ten floors were designed for
officially founded only this year. It was carved out of lower-income tenants, which means a mix of
Mariposa for the Apollo Tower, a high-rise luxury Disaster refugees, Double Crossers, and employees
apartment block just off an arterial on the panel's edge. of Lyceus or the other Uppers. They have their own
back entrance; the high-speed lifts are designed to
Apollo is the brainchild of Lyceus Smythe, a Lunar
prioritize the "main" entrance, so they spend a lot
settlement architect. Its forty floors include
of time waiting in the lobby. There are few
amenities like swimming pools, a gym, and a sauna.
amenities down here, and tenants are not allowed
It is wildly above Mariposa's height limit, but Lyceus
into the Upper amenities unless an Upper buzzes
was able to score bipartisan support by promising
them in.
to cover it in greenery, include some lower-income
tenants, and make several six-figure "donations" to The first floor has a supermarket run by Blunchtime,
several politicians. a tech company that made most of the appliances
Lyceus gave to the lower floors. The appliances
Lyceus has completely retreated into the building
(normally) only accept Blunchtime-approved foods.
while he works on his next project, but his wealthy
Many of these have been compromised by Lua
Upper Tower neighbours have not. In fact, they've
Saetiao (p. 289), an 8th-floor tenant.
decided that a huge stretch of nearby Mariposa is
"reserved" for their use. After attempts to persuade Medical Center: This clinic on the eleventh floor
parkgoers to leave were laughed off, and calls to the provides fancy medical services to the Uppers and
police were ignored, they decided to take matters legally-required medical services to the rest. It's run
into their own hands. by David Moreno (p. 288), a formerly alcoholic
doctor; he cleaned up his act to take care of his
The Uppers have purchased a set of experimental
daughter Angel, who lives with him on the 20th floor.
Omnidyne security drones, the Magpies, and have set
them to swoop and intimidate anyone who enters Upper Floors: The upper two-thirds of the building
"their" territory. By now Unity is well within their contains large, lavish apartments, broken up by
rights to tear the damn place down, but as one of their gyms, pools, enormous lounges, and other luxuries.
own is an upper-floor resident, that seems unlikely. The residents of these floors can order groceries
from their smart fridges, which are delivered to
Locations their balconies by drone. Lyceus has reserved the
No-Go Zone: The area around Phoebus used to be entire penthouse floor for his personal use.
a nice place for picnicking, with grassy hills and
The residents are an assorted mix of idle rich from
patches of trees. Anyone going here these days is
all over Earth. Well-known members include Adams
eventually approached by an Upper and "politely
ward landlord Sirius King (p. 288), Morningstar talk
informed" that they're trespassing—an obvious lie,
show host Wilson Rackham (p. 289), and Unity
as they're officially part of Giraud. Those who stay
senator Fong Ho (p. 287). Sirius is the one
risk a Magpie attack.
encouraging the other Uppers to use the Magpies,
In response, Double Crossers living in Mariposa because he wants to build a golf course.
have gone out of their way to wind them up,
The Drone Room: The Omnidyne Magpies'
including placing devices meant to confuse and
charging station and control computer have been
crash the Magpies in the nearby trees. In response,
set up in an unused, unmarked Upper apartment,
the Uppers have started felling the trees at night.
along with a makeshift workshop. The Uppers
Phoebus Green: The actual district is marked by an usually let Wilson's nephew Miĉjo (p. 289) play
iron wall with electronic gates. It contains a small around in here; he's a weird little pervert even by
park and a parking garage for the Uppers. Lower- their standards.
income tenants are expected to use the back
entrance, accessible via a tree-covered pathway
that protects the Uppers from seeing them.

Setting 189
 Other Districts
In addition to the regular districts, Mariposa's parks The Beach is a sculpture park, lined with statues
are divided into "districts" based on their intended and other artworks—even the beach itself is a
purpose, design, and common themes. commissioned art piece. An annual sculpture
competition is held here, though some Unity
Céileachar politicians are moving to shut it down after a
This village's main attraction is the Mariposa hologram mocking them won in 2019. The park's
Automatic Zoo, containing animatronic replicas of organizers have already made backup plans for a
Earth creatures nobody wants to bring to space. guerilla art contest.
This is the closest many Double Crossers have ever
gotten to seeing penguins and giraffes and such. Green Hills
A picturesque park not far from Giraud, with grassy
The Automatic Zoo is a technology showcase for
fields, palms, and artificial creeks. It's one of the most
HomeBotics, who designed Mariposa's robotic
frequented parks in Mariposa because it's designed
animals. They were an Earth company who pitched
for everyday use—the fields are sized for sports and
using robots to replace animals endangered by
lined with playgrounds, benches, and barbecues.
climate change instead of preventing their extinction,
but they were bought out by NanoFuturistics to Green Hills also contains a shed with a rarely-used
enhance their urban greening projects. HomeBotics entrance to the basements beneath Mariposa. It's
was founded by Horace Reeve (p. 289). an open secret that Double Crossers occasionally
sneak through the fence and climb down there to
Cross Botanic Garden play; anything important or dangerous down there
A botanical garden with samples of practically is behind a keypad-locked door, so the station
every plant brought to Grand Cross. It contains workers have been slow to act.
public recreation space, a botanical library, and the
Orbital Herbarium, which stores seeds and plant Hyde Parkway
samples in case of emergencies. An arterial that winds through the middle of
Mariposa. The ward's main arterials and rail lines
For the last few years, the Botanic Garden has
run near the panel's edges, so this is more of a
(technically) been under assault by an aging
scenic route for bikes, scooters, and occasionally
communist called Ollie Hodges. Ollie believes that
emergency services. The Parkway is lined with low
the station's artificial ecosystem is too neat and
barriers, with occasional screens showing time,
controlled to be "real," and has managed to
weather, advertising, and traffic information.
smuggle a lot of new plant species into Grand
Cross—most of them invasive. The Parkway often plays host to marches—sometimes
charity walks and fun runs, sometimes protests. When
Most of his work is found in smaller parks outside
it's the latter, the police suddenly decide that
Mariposa, but he enjoys attacking the Gardens to
pedestrians are intentionally blocking emergency
make a point. The Garden's bamboo grove was
services and start driving their cars through the
recently destroyed and replanted to get rid of the
Parkway while "accidentally" swerving at the crowds.
Japanese knotweed he'd hidden there. The
authorities destroyed his seed stocks and
Nerima
confiscated his scooter last year, but rumour has it
This artificial spa village near Mariposa's spinward
that he's resupplied and planning a comeback.
edge is a popular place for Crossers to relax and
have a hot springs episode every now and then.
Geocentric Beach There are day spas, inns, and a few places offering
A little town around the end of one of Mariposa's
medical treatments.
backspin bridges, plus an attached park along the
panel's edge that's made to resemble a beach (only The wealthiest spa is the Jarilo Hotel, a private
with an observation walkway and a couple of pools health retreat where many of the station's elite go
instead of the sea). to recuperate after getting augmented. It offers total
privacy for its residents, most famously the Daejeon
Arcology architect Young-soo Park (p. 288).

190 Setting
 Mariposa Ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN MARIPOSA

1–3
1 The Grand Cross Space Museum has a new exhibit
2 The Park Rangers shut down a section of Mariposa for an emergency
3 Everyone's talking about Dr Delgado's latest creation
4 The residents of Apollo Tower extend the range of their Magpies
5 A group of vigilante hackers descend on Phoebus to war with the drones
6 One of Mariposa's parks plays host to a musical event

4–6
1 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
2 Unexplained technical problems shut down the Automatic Zoo
3 Another invasive species is spotted near the Botanic Garden
4 A new high-tech sculpture is going up around the Geocentric Beach
5 A mysterious murder is committed in a camera blind spot
6 A wealthy [1–2 tech] [3–4 Cartel] [5–6 Earth] entrepreneur checks into Jarilo

2D6 LIMINAL SPACES

1–3
1 A small artificial spring hidden behind a patch of trees
2 A portrait art gallery on a hill that doesn't get a lot of weekday visitors
3 A basement scooter parking space on the edge of town
4 An observation hill mostly used to test DIY drones by hobbyists
5 The Jellyfish Tree, an anonymous high-tech sculpture left by a walkway
6 A dead shopping center by a bridge, scheduled for demolition

4–6
1 A diner that serves people who don't live in or near Mariposa
2 An android-run onsen right on the very edge of the panel
3 A laundromat in Giraud, run by a hacker who lives upstairs
4 A construction site for a Tetsuo store, stalled for years by protesters
5 A basement door in a hill, hacked open long ago
6 Automated robotic animal storage disguised as a greenhouse

Setting 191
 Amal Ward
"Amal's in the sweet spot, if you ask me. The wards between the parks and the caps are the best ones, right?
And Amal's not as busy as Marukyu, as crowded as Adams, or as much of a sty as... well, you know.
Downtown's not that far away, by rail. Yep, this is the place, all right.
Shame about all these rich fucks, though."
— Seulgi Chung, changing apartments
Amal is a residential/commercial ward on the other side of Mariposa. It's an uptown version of Adams: a
little less dense, with a little more shopping.
Every ward is designed differently, even when they have similar functions. Amal's unique trait is its urban
greening and open spaces. It has the most street trees, urban parks, rooftop gardens, and open-air
buildings of the residential wards. Many of the commercial areas are empty plazas, which the community
fills with their own stalls and stands.
Amal was pitched as a sort of middle-class ward, but as inequality on the station deepens, the middle class
is vanishing. Instead it just has a few upper-class districts. Wealthier neighbourhoods tend to sport tropical
plants that need more water, tended to by hired gardeners; poorer ones have simple but pleasing flowers,
community gardens, or empty lots where landlords tore up the plants.
This is also an electronics hub, in part because the parts that get made on the outer hull are usually
brought in here. If you're a hacker, a drone operator, or just like playing with tech, you can get a lot of
cutting-edge parts here.

192 Setting
 Amal Ward

Themes and Threats

The Language of Same Problems,
Flowers Different Ward
You can tell a lot about neighbourhoods in Amal by As Adams and Amal are both residential wards, they
what's growing there. First, there's quantity. Not share a lot of their themes and problems. Adams is
every building is green, so the busy streets have more populated, however, so in Amal it's easier to
more trees and rooftop parks. Wealthier districts ignore them.
and big businesses have more plants on their
It's worth noting that Amal has fewer Disaster
buildings and spend more on working fancy
refugees. Wealthier districts like Qureshi lost their
architecture around it.
minds at the thought of homeless people nearby,
Second, there's quality. Simple, low-maintenance so they were sent to Adams instead. Most of Amal's
plants (especially from arid regions of Earth) like Disaster refugees are the ones who found housing.
succulents, climbing plants, and produce9 are more
common. Plants that need lots of water, like Tech Culture
tropicals, are found on the buildings of those Amal is connected to a lot of the outer hull
wealthy enough to maintain them. manufacturers and takes in a lot of imported
electronics from the nearby spaceport to support
Some apartment blocks also have community
the infrastructure at the back of the station. A lot of
gardens, where the locals grow their own produce
folks who work engineering/coding jobs in the back
and hang out with their neighbours. A poor garden is
live here too. As a result, Amal has developed its
a sign of a bad block—it usually means there's a
own little tech culture.
problem neighbour or the place is run by a landlord.
The ward isn't as tech-focused as Turing, or as hip
and flashy as Marukyu. The tech fans of Amal are
into the simple, the old-school, the intricate but
practical. Around here they say that you go to
9 Also weed, though it's usually hard to
find unless you know it's there. Nobody
wants their stash stolen.
Turing for cutting-edge, Marukyu for cool, and Amal
for functional.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 193
 Nebula District
Nebula is a working-class district in the heart of They're currently dealing with a new problem
Amal—and one of the ward's oldest. Its original neighbour: Walker Riggs (p. 292), a private cop who
settlers were Builders but it was expanded in every treats the garden like his personal stash and his
immigration wave since. neighbours like targets. He's trying to gather
enough intel to raid the hackers with trumped-up
Many of Nebula's workers have engineering (or
charges of attacking station infrastructure in order
adjacent) jobs. The older ones work for the station
to earn himself a promotion.
directly, but many folks do corporate or freelance
work too. These days Nebula is an important part of Null-G Business Park: This office block was part of
the station's tech/hacking culture, though one that a government initiative to encourage new migrants
rarely gets acknowledged by people outside the to start their own businesses by offering cheap
community. office space. These days Null-G is home to a motley
group of small businesses, from budding game
Like Cielo (p. 172), Nebula is a potential starting
studios to tech startups to school tutoring services.
point for Grand Cross campaigns. It has a different
Several mostly-empty floors in the middle have
focus, though—while Cielo is still forming its
about 400 shell companies registered between
identity, Nebula has an established one that fits
them. A few shops run out of here are fronts for the
tech-focused campaigns well.
Lunar-Australian gang Hotel Melbourne (p. 252).
Locations Schattenlauf: A bar frequented by hotshot young
The Anime Within: An anime and related merch techies. It has TVs mounted on the walls that
store on one of Nebula's commercial streets. endlessly stream esports matches, plus a cool punk
There's an attached apartment above it, but the theme. Despite that, a lot of the regulars are
owner felt it mixed his personal and work lives a employed by the Cartel—sometimes to design
little too closely, so instead he rents it for dirt cheap surveillance/drone equipment that inevitably ends
to his friend "Malware" Tran (p. 292), who runs a up in the hands of the police. They still talk a big
tech support/under-the-table hacking business out game about rebelling against “the man”, though.
the back.
The Schattenlauf is run by Diskless Jack (p. 291),
Astro Holographix: A software and electronics a former cowboy hacker and retired corporate spy
store that does a tidy side-business in stolen tech who moved to Grand Cross after his work in the US
and black market software. The store is run by a was discovered. It's also a favourite hangout for
middle-aged man known only as the Australian Tiger Shark (p. 369).
(p. 290). Most people find him mysterious, but
Ta'al la Oullak: A coffee shop attached to an indoor
probably just because they can't understand his
park in a low-traffic transit station. Though it loses a
weird foreign slang.
lot of customers to the Planescape Coffee franchise
Serious hackers come here for the stuff they can't down the road, they have damn good coffee and a
buy openly. Only the stuff unlikely to get him dedicated fanbase.
arrested is sold onsite; for the rest, the Australian
They have free Wi-Fi and late hours, so they're often
usually directs you to one of his "associates." Those
used by local coders to get some work done. In the
who earn his trust get better services.
late evening, Ta'al la Oullak quietly transforms into
Harvest Square: A standard Nebula apartment a hacker den. The owner Daud Dale (p. 290) isn't
block with a shared courtyard and a rooftop into computers, but his son is, so he's happy to
community garden. What makes it different is the have something to bond over.
large group of Double Crosser hackers who live
here; most of their parents work with computers
and got their kids hooked early.

194 Setting
 Amal Ward

Qureshi District
Qureshi is an upscale neighborhood centered on a The Garth: A square-shaped building running around
commercial area with a wide variety of shops and a big quadrangle. The ground level is a shopping
restaurants. It's sometimes called the back end's arcade, and the quadrangle is a public park. The upper
Paradise (p. 181). Most of the residents are affluent, levels of the Garth are mostly taken up by companies
with a reputation for being snooty Earth-nationalist involved in Amal's greenery, from an outpost of
pricks. If you stick to the commercial areas you can NanoFuturistics to smaller orbital environment
usually avoid them. corporations like SpinCycle and Green Elliptical.
A lot of these shops are packed into Blue Moon The Garth's latest tenant is the tech company
Road, which runs from Qureshi's main station into GrowKwik. Their product is basically a cheaper
TamBaAng. They have everything from discount version of the agriculture ring's growth trays with
electronics stores to expensive fashion boutiques some plant monitoring equipment—it makes
and draw in shoppers from all over the back end of gardening slightly easier for tech people but does
the station. not accelerate growth. They've been trying to
monetise Amal's community gardens, but so far
Qureshi also has a few tech holdings—mostly
only landlords are buying in. The company owner
NanoFuturistics and a few other businesses
Arvid Malar (p. 291) has started covertly paying off
involved in Amal's greenery, but Omnidyne and
the police to destroy community gardens under the
Zinovy have outposts here as well. It's started
pretext of searching for drugs so he can swoop in
touting itself as a linchpin of the station's tech
with a pitch for the grieving locals.
industry too, but the more interesting stuff happens
in less corporate districts. Melf's Selfies: A popular photography studio. It's
one of those places everyone's seen even if they
Locations don't know it exists—they have a lot of space and
Blue Moon Road: This road dominates Qureshi's prop sets to rent for cheap, including studios done
commercial area. Half of it is lined with shops, up like spaceship interiors, Lunar hotels, and other
entertainment, and tall open-air malls; the other odd locations. Melf's is frequented by social media
half has been covered with a glass roof and turned influencers who want to look like they go to cool,
into a hawker center. Blue Moon Road only closes expensive places without actually doing it.
for a few hours each night.
Melf is run by Mercury (p. 291), a Lilim android who
Flying Burger: On the outside, this American-style was adopted and raised by influencers for clicks.
burger bar looks like a UFO crash-landed on a Blue She also quietly offers a "privacy room" where
Moon rooftop. On the inside it sports a zeerust nothing gets in or out, originally built for herself.
theme, with a jukebox that looks like an 80s-style
Safe Life Orbital Holdings: A scamware company
computer terminal and menus flickering on CRT
who moved to Qureshi to exploit its tech image. They
screens. (The bar exterior was actually built by the
make freemium "security" software that mostly just
previous owners; the old-tech theme was partly
claims to find serious problems to trick users into
intended to make renovations cheaper.)
"upgrading" to a useless paid subscription service.
The Flying Burger is run by Aludra Adams (p. 290). They mostly market to Earth because it's harder for
She was brought here in her youth by her Builder them to sue up here, but they sometimes cold-call
parents; when their work contracts ended they Crossers, hoping to scare an elderly person.
opted to return home, but left her behind when she
Safe Life is the brainchild of Rupert Perry (p. 291),
came out as gay. Aludra sometimes uses her
who fled to Grand Cross to escape the
contacts to help similarly disadvantaged youth find
consequences of cybercrimes on Earth. He's about
a place to stay.
to release a new version of the security scam for
cybernetics and android frames.

Setting 195
 TamBaAng
By Brenden Gibbons
Tambaang (officially stylised as TamBaAng and The Lion's Cage: As the biggest casino in town, the
pronounced "Tam-bah-ang") is a cluster of three Lion's Cage offers an affordable taste of luxury and
small districts at the back end of Amal that bubbled a chance to play any game and bet at anything. The
together into one city (Tambaang comes from these machines pay out well, but only in Tokens that have
three districts: TAMan, BAhru, ANGkasa.) It was a poor conversion rate, so nearly all winnings get
initially populated by Indonesians, Malaysians and spent either in the casino's bar or hotel.
Singaporeans of the ASEAN contingent—individuals
The Gardens Estate: The walled-off suburban
from all over the world with Southeast Asian
center of TamBaAng. You don't live here. This is a
heritage chosen (for their hard work ethic,
home for the absurdly wealthy, a garden where the
intelligence, or wealth) to live, work and ensure
heads of corporations grow and groom their
representation among the stars.
children. Do not touch the grass.
The three districts each have a local Indonesian/
Malay name and its English translation but are Kampung Bahru
collectively known as Tambaang. Alongside English, As the agricultural center, Kampung Bahru ("New
the locals speak Indonesian and/or Malay (or the Village", or Kahru) is TamBaAng 's breadbasket. Its
Grand Cross Indo-Malay-English Pidgin, if you're roofs are full of hydroponic and aeroponic farms, all
second generation.) Depending on which for local cooking and the area’s famous "Ultra
corporation you usually deal with, Dutch, Chinese, Fresh" cuisine. The place has a diverse population
or Arabic is a popular “third” language. and is visited by foodies from all over the station.
The symbol of the district is a bean sprout growing
Locations out of a stylised O'Neill cylinder.
Just as is common in Malay and Indonesian, nearly
Kaki Lima Park ("Five-Feet Park"): A loud, busy
everything in Tambaang has a proper name and a
plaza covered in food stalls, from traditional Indo
shortened hyper-local slang name Knowing the slang is
and Malay dishes to new Grand Cross fusions. Try
what makes you “a local.” Usually, it's a portmanteau of
out the Ultra Fresh cuisine, where the ingredients
some kind (eg. Burger Kong is "BuKo".)
are growing right next to the stalls and are only
harvested per order.
Kota Taman
The financial center, Kota Taman ("Garden City," or Union House: For the price of accepting body
Kotam) is well known for the casinos, clubs and augments to ensure productivity, one of
prestige boutiques that surround its suburban core. TamBaAng's first institutions was a Workers Union.
Office workers here are discreetly augmented to Union House only represents the area but can
ensure productivity parity with AIs, but trendy advise non-locals. The local android rights
cosmetic augments can also be seen. The symbol of movement also resides here.
the district is "Leo," a creature with a lion's head
Masjid Najima ("Najima Mosque"): One of the
and a modern spaceship body.
largest mosques in Grand Cross, the seven-gated
Infinity: A multi-room 24-hour club with at least Najima Mosque (named with the Arabic word for
five DJs running at any one time. Infinity sells every star) is the head mosque of TamBaAng. Its central
legal drug and most of the illegal ones too. It's prayer rooms can rotate to ensure that its attendees
home to The Dandy Lions—a rebellious gang of ex- are always facing Mecca and the Kaaba during
corporation kids, ones kicked out of their family or prayers despite being in space.
who willingly left the lifestyle.

196 Setting
 Amal Ward

Kota Angkasa
Kota Angkasa ("Space Town", or Kotang) is the The Strip: With two parallel streets full of
industrial center of TamBaAng and one of the corporation stores, the Strip is both a battleground
largest industrial hubs for consumer electronics in for corporate espionage and a great place to get the
Grand Cross. While most industry is placed on the latest tech fresh off the assembly line.
outer hull, Kotang takes on the low-pollution
Raja Melati ("King Jasmine"): A chain of
assembly tasks. Whether it's replacement plasteel
restaurants with private rooms, run by a criminal
cartilage for your cat ears or Ogremoch kits to
gang of the same name. They run a protection
customise your guns, Kotang has the spare parts
racket, keeping non-corporation businesses from
you need. The symbol of the district is a crossed
being some other's collateral damage and offering
wrench and screwdriver.
corporations a neutral ground to discuss business.
Angkasawan Plaza ("Astronaut Plaza"): The place
for all your off-brand parts and warranty-voiding
modifications needs lies in this maze-like plaza full
of stalls. It's full of small mercenary gangs who
often get hired by private security or various
corporations with shady intentions.

2D6: BY ANY OTHER NAME...

Aside from Western names, the residents of TamBaAng have names from many different roots.
Below are a few names a local might have, alongside variants and shortenings.
1–2 3–4 5–6
1 Jonathan (Jono, Nathan) Budiharto (Budi, Harry, Toto) Danang (Dan, Anang)
2 Kartika (Kati, Tika, Kakak) Puspawati (Wati, Ati, Puti) Ujang (Ajan, Jango)
3 Iskandar (Issi, Andar, Dara) Fatima (Fati, Tia, Ama) Annisa (Nisa, Anni)
4 Guntur (Gun, Guno, Turi) Muhammad (Mamat, Ahmad) Kierana (Ana, Kira)
5 Suparman (Paru, Arman) Qaisara (Kara, Sara, Sari) Nurul (Nur, Nura)
6 Chahaya (Yaya, Chaya) Raihana (Rahi, Ana, Hana)Zuraidah (Idah, Zuri)

Setting 197
 Other Districts
Dubhe Park Kordylewski
A long park that touches on several of Amal's This residential district is best known for Saint
districts. It contains a central pond, a petting zoo, and Isidore Hospital, a teaching hospital with a large
sprinklings of cafés around the edges. It gets busy cybernetics wing. Some folks call it Saint Regret
on the weekends, so street performers and aspiring because their specialty is removing cybernetics—
musicians often come here to strut their stuff. usually to replace damaged connectors or swap
cybernetic organs for transplanted ones. They've
Dubhe is also bordered by Stellar Shore
had a few high-profile cases of workers with
International, a private high school filled with the
reactive augments having them removed and
children of Amal's elite. They sometimes come to
cosmetic augmenters changing their minds.
Dubhe to harass the street performers, but they
prefer to hang out in more "exclusive" places. It's St Isidore has quite a few full-body cyborg
also the alma mater of Morningstar political pundit specialists. It's the hospital of choice for
Jonathony Barker (p. 290). corporations who want to turn somebody into one,
especially when it's in exchange for not getting sued.
Effinger
A commercial/entertainment district best known for Maas
its nightlife area, with many restaurants, bars, A business district mostly known for Bligh College,
izakayas, pubs, and other establishments. The best a private elevator school for families with business
place is probably the Nom Nom Center, a hawker backgrounds. It has a high school and a university
center near the main transit station that sells some in adjacent campuses; there are plans to build an
of the best food in Grand Cross. elementary school once the College has a few more
years on it. Bligh was initially bankrolled by the Cartel
Effinger's back streets also contain a red-light
but has since gone independent—they accept large
district, with adult entertainment establishments
donations from Cartel-affiliated parents instead.
packed in between the restaurants and cafés. It can
be a little hard to tell which is which, especially The rest of Maas is mostly niche space businesses and
since they're sometimes both, but some people branches of Earth-based research companies who
think that's part of the charm. operate bio labs. The Cartel sometimes tries to steal
their work but usually settles for poaching their talent.
Ibn Khaldun
A residential/commercial district close to the Neo Miami
Foundation ward. Ibn Khaldun has a high android A retail and entertainment area by one of Amal's
population, and as such it's a popular shopping bridges. Its main roads are themed around the USA,
destination for androids who don't feel like specifically the trees and architecture of the South-
travelling all the way to Uhuru or Marukyu. Central Florida Metroplex. It has some expat bars
and a lot of Western fashion stores, though most
In some apartment complexes, the androids took
visitors are from non-Western countries.
up community art: making collaborative artworks
around the community garden as a way to bond Neo Miami is also a nightlife area. One of its better
with humans. The practice has since spread across places is Plastic Beach, an edgeside bar that plays
Grand Cross. It's often called Francis art, after the Earth electronic/hip-hop hits. The bar offers discounts
human host of a Morningstar show that popularized to anyone who moved to Grand Cross less than three
it while neglecting to say where the idea originated. months ago and has a community digi-board where
newcomers might be able to find useful services.
This is also a minor hub for the Lunar gang Hotel
Melbourne. They own several businesses in the
area, including a Lunar fashion outlet which they
use as a front to shift goods into the station. Most of
their local operations are overseen by Jevin Brown.

198 Setting
 Amal Ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN AMAL

1–3
1 A minor wave of new [1–4 housing] [5–6 immigration] is happening this week
2 Nebula's tech community is kept busy with a major new software release
3 A [1–3 corporation] [4–6 new startup] launches a recruitment drive in Nebula
4 A hot new [1–3 store] [4–6 eatery] is opening on Blue Moon Road
5 The station is swept by a fad for [1–2 Kotang tech] [3–6 Ultra Fresh cuisine]
6 A new Earth plant becomes a brief fad in Amal's gardens

4–6
1 Stellar Shore kids get up to mischief in Dubhe Park again
2 A new [1–5 Nom Nom eatery] [6 adult business] draws people to Effinger
3 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again
4 Ibn Khaldun's art is getting [1–3 headlines] [4–6 stolen by Morningstar] again
5 Another high-profile Crosser visits Saint Regret
6 A new [1–3 Western trend] [4–6 sale] draws the crowds to Neo Miami

2D6 COOL NEIGHBOURS

1–3
1 A street musician creating electronic art with second-hand tech
2 A cybernetics industry worker; knows a guy who knows a guy
3 An android with a big thing for bonsai, sells creations on the street
4 Someone currently suing ex-neighbor's pants off for destroying community garden
5 Person who has a weed room in their apartment, sells some pretty dank stuff
6 An artist who creates artworks with climbing vines

4–6
1 A grey-hat hacker; will jailbreak any device in the building for a meal
2 Someone who doesn't get out much, but they're quiet and leave you alone
3 A tenant union worker fighting a predatory landlord
4 Someone secretly planning a rad heist of a Kotam casino
5 A person who uses the community garden to make experimental films
6 A stranger who teaches the local kids how to care for their plants

Setting 199
 Foundation Ward
"Trilobite Liao? Fuck Tril. Let me ask you this: when that smarmy jackass wants something to happen on this
station, who does he pay to make it happen? Does he pay some other Voyager suit with his head up his ass?
No, he pays us. Our donors pay us to make things happen and to make sure nothing happens to them.
They can wear the fuckin' crown all they want, but we're on the throne."
— Davy Thompson, Unity dealmaker
The three wards at the back end of Grand Cross, collectively known as Backtown, are a counterpart to
Downtown. It's slightly less dense, as most of the station's corporate players want to be near the front
port, but it's still got a port and plenty of people who want to use it.
Foundation is the center of Backtown and the political center of Grand Cross. It's home to the Grand
Assembly, the Prime Minister's residence, the Grand Court, and a host of other ministries, agencies, and
cultural institutions. Most of these are centered on the Alpha district. Alpha was designed with a wheel-
and-spoke street pattern rather than a grid, with hexagonal streets emanating from the Grand Assembly;
the other districts don't follow this pattern, but the ward as a whole looks centered on Alpha when viewed
from above.
The Cartel might control much of Grand Cross, but Foundation is still where the seat of power lies.
For now, anyway.

200 Setting
 Amal Ward

Themes and Threats

Backtown World Center Of Power
Foundation is a high-density ward and the center of Though the Offworld Cartel effectively control a lot
Backtown. Downtown might be more packed, but of the station, they still have to observe the rituals.
Foundation's still plenty busy. The bigger corporate Foundation's Alpha district is where Grand Cross
players tend to be minor Cartel members, politicians and their handlers go to write the laws
corporations who don't have much to offer the Cartel everyone else has to follow. When they're not in
that they don't have already, and corporations that session, they often schmooze in the surrounding
have no interest in joining in the first place. districts.
Foundation specifically is an economic A lot of attention has been focused here lately.
powerhouse, accounting for half of Backtown's Union and Unity are both gearing up for the next
business. Corporations move Downtown because election, which could decide whether the Offworld
that's where the important businesses are, but Cartel controls all of Grand Cross or only some of it.
being near the on-paper nexus of power in the Protests happen here regularly—though not too
station has its perks too. For businesses that care close to the Grand Assembly, as a police wall forms
about location but can't pick Downtown, if someone so much as glances that way.
Foundation is the next best thing.
For regular Crossers, Foundation offers most of the
benefits of Downtown with a little less noise. It still
has the crowds, the lights, and the beautiful chaos
of humanity, but it's easier to find somewhere to
take a break from it all.
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 201
 Alpha District
The most politically important district in Grand Grand Assembly Building: Grand Cross's
Cross. Alpha contains the Grand Assembly, the Grand parliament. This building (commonly referred to as
Court, and a host of smaller agencies. If something The Gab) contains the House of Representatives,
goes down in the political scene, it's probably here. the Senate Council, and the Ministerial Wing, which
contains office suites for the Prime Minister and
The Grand Assembly is in the center of Alpha's
various other members.
hexagonal street pattern. Most of the rest of Alpha is
commercial and business buildings—the station's The Gab has a lot of public areas, including an art
designers wanted the Assembly to feel like part of gallery and a central observation tower with a great
the city, especially to the politicians within. The view of the city. However, access to the House/Council
corporate towers looming out the window are chambers and the Ministerial Wing is restricted
coincidental but a little on the nose. (though the first two have a viewing deck), and
security is ever-present. A Member's Hall connecting
Locations the private areas allows politicians to avoid everyone
Assembly Library: A research library that serves except reporters (and even them if they run fast).
the Grand Assembly and the de facto national
Ring of Blood: The first hexagonal street around
library of Grand Cross. It contains digitized copies of
the Grand Assembly. Its actual name is Pioneer
practically every book in existence, including every
Avenue, but protests happen here a lot lately, so
book published in orbit, plus hard copies of books
Morningstar gave it a nickname to make the
that concern law and political history. It's open to
protesters seem like violent anarchists. Blood
the public, though only politicians can check the
usually turns up pretty quick once the cops get fired
hard copies out.
up though.
Channel L5 Media: A media company and one of
Sojourn Street: A street that forms part of the next
Morningstar's competitors, headquartered on the
hexagon from Pioneer Avenue. It contains the
edge of the district. Channel L5 owns the television
official residence and offices of the Prime Minister,
news network Grand News Network (GNN), the most
along with a couple of other high-ranking ministers.
watched 24-hour news network besides Morningstar's.
The rest of the street is used for government offices.
It's usually pretty decent, though their obsession
Both ends of the street have a high-tech security
with seeming non-partisan has turned them into
checkpoint, though in theory people are allowed to
the station's leading source of bothsidesism.
walk through and look around.
L5 Media operators a couple other channels that
Starhall: This thoroughfare runs from one point of
broadcast locally-made entertainment, sports,
Pioneer Avenue's hexagon to the edge of the
imported soap operas, anime, and European space
district. It's lined with a lot of government buildings,
shows. Their website provides simulcast streams
including most departments and ministries, the
and on-demand access to most of their shows.
Cabinet Office, and the Project Committee's offices.
Division 7 Annex: For security reasons, the basement Sojourn Street's main entrance is here.
levels of Alpha are tightly controlled. The security is
The White Ant: A local bar popular with Alpha's
overseen by the gendarmerie of Division 7 (p. 119)
power drinkers for its wide range of beers, private
who are based out of a tower in Alpha. Supposedly
dining spaces, and gourmet meals sourced from
they sometimes smuggle people through the
Amal's gardens. It's especially popular with
basement into the Annex for interrogation.
reporters, lobbyists, and the politicians they wine
Goliath Building: Alpha is naturally ground zero for and dine. You'd be surprised what sorts of people
a lot of protest action. It's usually allowed, provided mingle here, especially because the station's
it doesn't stray too close to the Assembly, though reporters tend to keep quiet lest they get blacklisted.
the cops tend to change the allowed distance and
times constantly. When they get too serious though,
Unity calls in Goliath Inc. to get violent. They've
recently set up an office in the area so they can be
on-call all the time—and covertly surveil protesters
when they're not.

202 Setting
 Amal Ward

Santo Domingo District

A residential and commercial district on the edge of Meteor Ventures: A space engineering company
Foundation, near Amal. It's named after the patron specializing in long-distance drones and automated
saint of astronomers. systems. It was owned by the entrepreneur Oskar
A. Johnson, who died tragically (p. 367) after
Santo Domingo is one of Foundation's "regular
getting extremely drunk and mistaking a station
city" districts. The edgeside blocks are given over to
airlock for the company lobby. Meteor Ventures has
shops, restaurants, and office towers. Many of the
since been acquired by Tetsuo and the office locked
businesses here are owned by Cartel oligarchs who
down while employees are transferred out.
use them to channel funding and pressure toward
the station's politicians. At night, the area lights up Nomen Nominandum: A VR café near the Sea of
with neon and starts catering to civil servants who Space Plaza where people can play games or just
need to unwind after a long day. hang out in a virtual fantasy world for a few hours.
There's a daily six-hour time limit to keep people
The residential area is full of large, fancy
from overdoing it (and coincidentally to keep any
apartments. Their residents are mostly civil
unhoused patrons from lingering).
servants or from Earth families who came here in
the early waves; they tend to be slightly younger NN is run by Zhihao Lin (p. 263), an Ashton U
and wealthier than the station average. dropout, former streamer, and big Singularist. The
café is one of the biggest Singularist hangouts this
Locations side of the cylinder, and Zhihao's offices are often
Big J Corporation: An electronics, AI, web used as a "war room" for Singularists planning big
infrastructure, and software corporation owned by things in Foundation.
the Cartel oligarch Josef Diego (p. 251). Josef keeps
The Rat Freak: This gourmet cheeseburger place is
it separate from the Cartel, partly because he's a big
the favoured hangout of the Technos (p. 108),
open-source software guy and the Cartel doesn't
partly because its heavy and clever use of screens
always agree with him and partly to hedge his bets in
suits their techno-progressive brand and partly
case the Cartel's mission doesn't pan out.
because their cheap-ass burgers are amazing. It's
Big J is based out of a tower on the back edge of run by Anh Vinh Nguyen (p. 293), a cosmetic
Santo Domingo, and Josef has his own private modder with mild Singularist sympathies.
offices on the highest floor. His actual home is the
Sea of Space Plaza: A plaza in a corner of Santo
penthouse suite of a nearby apartment tower,
Domingo where one of Foundation's lesser-used
chosen because it's within line of sight of his office.
bridges connects to the Tezuka panel. The plaza and
Domingo Commons: The district's biggest transit its connecting streets are the center of the district's
station, with a multi-level indoor park, a food court, wonderfully seedy nightlife scene, a place you can
a rooftop observation deck, and a shopping center down cheap beer on a rooftop terrace or just dance
across the street. The Commons has a lovely view the night away. Many important figures in Grand
and it's often used as an office by Big J employees Cross have attempted the Sea Stumble, the
who work remotely. colloquial name for trying to make it home in the
early hours of the morning without being spotted.
House of Reps: One of the best gyms in Foundation,
based in the upper levels of a shopping tower. It's Turtle Shell: A little bar on the edge of the plaza
run by Darian "Two Trucks" Barlow (p. 293), a with a beach cocktail hut aesthetic. This place is
cyborg US military veteran. A lot of political staffers more about admiring the view than partying hard. A
come here; Darian has arranged special rooms lot of the regulars are independent journalists, so
where members of different parties can work out in it's a great place to pick up Foundation gossip. The
peace and discourages anyone from bringing their Shell is run by an enterprising Double Crosser who
work in here. calls themselves Hyeonmu (p. 293).

Setting 203
 Other Districts
Apogee Herschel
An upscale neighbourhood by the end cap and the One of Foundation's business districts. Herschel's
closest thing Foundation has to a counterpart of main square is lined with companies in the financial
Zenith (p. 151). Apogee is full of retired politicians and legal sectors; the rest of the district is a broad
and businessmen, many of whom specifically mix of companies that compete with the Cartel and
moved to Grand Cross to live out their retirement orbital annexes of Earth-based corporations. One of
years in space. Besides journalists and ministers Herschel's towers is the headquarters of Ouroboros
coming here to seek the wisdom of the elders, it's Cyber SA (p. 243).
generally pretty quiet.
Herschel is also home to a number of advertising
The residents of Apogee have been trying to get a companies. One of them, Winky Parrot, is pushing
golf course built on the end cap for years. The plans Unity to approve a new form of advertising: drones that
are rejected every time, partly because the needed approach random people in the street, scan their face,
space includes a public hiking trail and partly and play them an advertisement once per day unless
because nearly every Crosser objects to using the the Crosser pays a monthly opt-out fee. They've
station's limited space on what is objectively the currently finished a trial run in Herschel (which was
worst sport in the universe. They plan to try again heavily gamed to force a success) and are seeking
in 2021. permission to run a larger trial in another ward.

Deneb Kepler
A bustling commercial area by the end cap. It Another Alpha-adjacent district. This one's best
connects to both the spaceport rail and the Shaft (p. known as the home of Central Police Station, the
210), which people use to travel to and from headquarters of the Station Police Service. Due to
Downtown quickly. A lot of restaurants and cafés its presence, Kepler also contains the offices of the
cater to the travelers. For Downtown folks, it's the Orbital Police Agency (p. 118), a liaison office
official entrance to Foundation. between the SPS and the station's private security
forces, and the offices of Divisions 1, 2, and 6.
Deneb has a large, square park, with most of its
streets radiating away from it in box shapes in a Naturally, Kepler has some of the highest security
similar way to Alpha and its hexagons. They don't on Grand Cross—on paper, anyway. In practice, the
adhere to the layout nearly as neatly, though. On presence of the PSCS liaison office and the fact that
Sundays, Deneb Park hosts a community market they have incredibly low hiring standards means
that does a tidy business in second-hand some concessions have to be made to allow private
electronics. security forces to come through when necessary.

Dyson Tennousei
A district adjacent to Alpha that holds several A residential and commercial district on the panel's
government departments related to space travel edge and the closest thing Foundation has to a
and infrastructure as well as offices for the various technological center. Tennousei's main attraction is
corporations Unity contracts to work for them. the Orbital Future Museum, a high-tech museum
with a lot of curved white surfaces that showcase
Dyson also contains the Omega Cyber Clinic,
potential future technologies.
where politicians often go to get augmented (or
have maintenance done if they're augmented Also in the area are several small tech companies, the
already.) Thanks to various laws that have Foundation University of Science, a number of hacker-
bipartisan support, they often don't need to tell the themed bars, and the HydraTech cybernetics
public when they augment or what kind of corporation. Hydra make two kinds of augmentations:
augments they have. The Clinic is extremely cutting-edge stuff that makes innovative use of
discreet—and coincidentally operated by the Cartel. software to do things no other augmentations will do,
and cheap, basic augmentations made from tech
that's just obsolete enough to manufacture
cheaply. Their main customers are private security
and corporate health care providers.

204 Setting
 Amal Ward

2D6 CURRENT EVENTS IN FOUNDATION

1–3
1 The ward is gripped by a [1 serious] [2–6 extremely silly] political scandal
2 Channel L5 is filming a new [1–3 show] [4–6 news segment]
3 A protest is going down on Pioneer Avenue
4 Rumors say that something went down in a Santo Domingo bar last night
5 A wild show is coming to the Sea of Space Plaza
6 A new [1–2 useless] [3–5 interesting] [6 both] government department opens

4–6
1 Another corporation [1–2 shuts down] [3–6 appears in the ward]
2 Some interesting sales and stalls are in the Deneb Park market this weekend
3 Rumor has it a politician has discreetly visited Omega Cyber Clinic
4 A Herschel ad company is planning another ridiculous stunt
5 The [1–2 SPS] [3–6 PSCS] is marred by a new story of corruption/brutality
6 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again

2D6 POLITICAL MEETINGS

1–3
1 A Unity man and a Cartel lobbyist have a lunch that's more of a formality
2 Junior executives and up-and-coming ministers get smashed together
3 Unity is forced to cover up a member's embarrassing night out
4 An ORP member meets with an Earth agent in a private room
5 A Techno invites a Crosser activist group to the Rat Freak
6 An Earth diplomat makes a visit to Alpha district

4–6
1 A Cartel oligarch wines and dines a non-Cartel CEO
2 A Unity "family man" and his mistress check into a love hotel
3 A Cartel lobbyist has a private dinner with some Union members
4 A Techno hosts a Singularist event in the Rat Freak
5 An ambitious minister contacts a mercenary with an offer
6 An influencer scores an interview with a minister

Setting 205
 Infrastructure
"Grand Cross isn't just the city. It's the mirrors, the parallel to the central axis. If you stand on the inside
flywheel, the things that keep it working. There's of the spinning cylinders, they form walls.
nothing like it on Earth, even in the newer arcologies.
Seeds are planted in rows closest to the axis. As
They already have the sun, the sky, a ground to build on.
they grow, automated systems push the trays
We started with nothing and built a world around it."
toward the cylinder's edge and farmers place a
— Tumas Omar, YourTuber freshly seeded tray in the spaces left behind. Plant
roots are regularly misted from below by nutrient-
This section covers the rest of the station beyond the
infused water, delivered through pipes running
city itself: the Agriculture Ring, the basements, the end
along the cylinder's axis. As plants reach the edge,
caps, the Shaft, and all the little places on the exterior.
they're ready to harvest. Crops receive light by
The basics can be found under Design on p. 102.
either dimming the cylinder's sun-facing window
and using grow lamps, or by reflecting sunlight
Agriculture using an intricate system of mirrors.
Ring The workspace between platforms is extremely
by Michael Crowley cramped, and the labor is strenuous and
surprisingly technical. Nutrient levels, water
Growing Plants quantity and quality, humidity, temperature,
Hydroponics methods vary from cylinder to oxygen to carbon dioxide levels, and irrigation
cylinder. Seeds are usually planted in growth media system integrity must all be carefully monitored.
and set within plastic trays, organized into Plants must continuously be planted, pollinated,
rectangular platforms that protrude from and run pruned, or harvested.

206 Setting
 Infrastructure

Malfunctions Common Crops

When systems malfunction, workers are also The most common crops are nutrient-rich
responsible for fixing or patching whatever vegetables, legumes, and rice. Other crops vary by
component failed, which is usually illegal. The cylinder, depending on the whim or directive of its
suppliers of the hydroponics systems, jealous for workers or owners. Union members also grow
profits, stipulate in their user agreements that only herbs in small plots in the access corridors and split
licensed (read: company-employed) technicians proceeds from their sale with fellow members.
may repair or upgrade their products. Failure to While operations aren't wholly self-sufficient (water
comply violates warranties and leads to penalties and nutrients can be sourced only partially by
from manufacturers, but no farmer wants to pay recycling station waste), they're largely sustainable.
exorbitant service fees or wait for a licensed vendor
Produce is sold and delivered to the station grocery
from Earth. Most cylinders, pre- and post-
stores and supermarkets. Formerly, this was done
privatization, rely on black market parts and
equitably: grocers received a percentage of the ring's
firmware hacks.
total output according to demand in the area it served.
In the early days, before the station was officially Prices stayed low and that income paid workers and
opened, a handful of scientists and technicians provided for the ring's upkeep. Since privatization,
responsible for its operation created a repository of distribution is more complicated, with cylinder owners
information on the Agriculture Ring's operations, looking to sell only to the markets which meet their
trials, and tribulations, along with an unofficial but price point or to supply markets that they already own.
widely accepted set of principles intended to foster a
culture of support and exchange among station farm Cylinder Owners
workers. The result was a knowledgeable and Out of the Ring’s seventy-two cylinders, the GCFU
resilient—if insular—community possessing technical claims ownership of four. Frontier Products, Inc.
skills indispensable to the operation of Grand Cross. purchased six for an imminently disastrous,
unfortunately subsidized corn-growing project;
Grand Cross Farmers Midwest Consolidated, the only owner licensed to
United repair their own systems, owns eight; and various
As private corporations became more involved in private individuals own twenty. At least one of these
the station's construction, Kae Hanazaki, Evelyn rich fools has turned a large fortune into a considerably
Correia, and Ridham Singh, instrumental in the smaller one when they decided that farming couldn't
ring's construction and predicting the worst, be that hard. Twenty-four cylinders are still up for sale
organized the station's first labor union: Grand (and still under de facto union control, for now).
Cross Farmers United (GCFU). The ring principles
NanoFuturistics, whose interests also lie in the
became their charter and nearly every farm worker,
ring's real estate, owns the remaining ten. Its
agricultural technician, and crop scientist on the
position above Downtown provides unique vantage
station elected to join.
points for surveillance on the populace and the
The GCFU presents corporations with a problem traffic flow of the front docking bays. They've
they can't easily correct: firing union workers would outfitted the exteriors with long-range scanners and
halt production and risk public outcry, and the only cameras, with the interiors hosting a sophisticated
people qualified, on-station, to train replacement series of monitoring devices that gather whatever
farmers are union members. Full automation would information they can on their own farm workers.
require modifying the cylinders, which would cost
Currently, they're selective on what data they sell
both time and more money than the cylinders would
and to whom. Thin farm profits will dwindle to
regain in profit for many years. Most owners bite the
nothing if they admit to violating their systems’
bullet and work with the GCFU while scheming
warranties and user agreements, but NF is more
behind closed doors to undermine its position.
than happy to forewarn fellow companies about
any union plans they discover—for a price, of
course. Their initial results seem promising. If they
continue to produce actionable and profitable data,
NanoFuturistics will purchase additional cylinders.

Setting 207
 Basements
The station's ground panels are covered with about Water: The station's water reserves (harvested from
five meters of topsoil for growing plants and ice comets) are held down here, along with water
burying cables and pipes. Beneath that is a and waste management facilities. Unused water is
sprawling basement, several levels deep. This kept on the lowest level and used as radiation
industrial labyrinth serves many purposes. shielding.

Functions Security
Building Basements: Larger buildings like Entrances to the basement are usually kept in
apartment blocks and office towers often have their private buildings, fenced-off alleys, and staff-only
own basement. In some cases, like with corporate Metro areas. These entrances are electronically
headquarters, these can extend all the way through locked with keypads, card readers, and sometimes
the basement levels. facial recognition—nothing that'll stop the
determined, but they'll make you work for it. (Of
Grand Metro: The station's subway system runs
course, there are a few forgotten and little-used
through the bottom levels, with stairs and elevators
entrances that are practically hanging open.)
connecting it to the streets. There are a few
attached maintenance areas that are off-limits to Similar doors are spread throughout the basements.
everyone except Metro staff. Some protect sensitive areas, some keep certain
workers from leaving their assigned areas, and some
Maintenance: Long tunnels running through the
are just for the sake of getting workers to swipe their
panel allow station workers to get where they need
cards and log where they are. Most can be opened
to go without having to deal with traffic. For long-
from a short distance away by the worker’s carts.
distance travel, electric carts are provided.
Cameras watch over the basement entrances and
Facilities for station workers can also be found here:
sensitive the doors. Other than that, security is
cart garages, tool sheds, workshops, offices, storage,
mostly bundled into maintenance; workers
and break rooms. These tend to be clustered together
regularly patrol the basement to make visual
beneath busier districts, but smaller rooms are spread
inspections—or at least send out drones to do it for
throughout the basements to cut down on travel time.
them—and are expected to report anything
Living quarters aren't included, as the infrastructure suspicious. They can't be everywhere, so security is
authorities want to discourage anyone from becoming tighter around worker facilities and sensitive areas.
a basement-dwelling gremlin. However, workers are
The maintenance department has its own security.
sometimes known to sleep in the break rooms, or in
The SPS have limited powers to operate down here, but
a cart parked somewhere out of the way.
generally only come when called. Serious problems can
Outside Access: The outer hull is accessed via stair/ be escalated all the way to the Division 7 GCG (p. 119).
elevator shafts. Some of these are attached to transit
stations, while others run directly from the outer hull to Dead Space
the city. Airlocks are placed at both ends, just in case. Not all the space is used. The basements are full of
redundant facilities set up “just in case”, subway stops
Parks: Most of the station's parks end at the
that were abandoned before completion, dead malls,
topsoil. However, some areas of the central wards
and empty spaces nobody had anything to fill with yet.
extend into the upper level to make more room for
large trees, ponds, and the like. Most of these spaces sit unused, waiting for a
purpose. Others have secretly been claimed by
Pillars: Massive mooncrete pillars are spaced
Crossers. There are makeshift camps, unlicensed
throughout the basement to support the city above.
bars, drug dens, criminal bases, graffiti tunnels, and
Public Space: In some districts, the basement is more. Workers often pretend not to see people
accessible from the city above. These areas are down here as long as they don't commit crimes and
almost exclusively indoor parks above the Metro, stay out of the way; locals living here are
underground shopping malls, and access tunnels sometimes paid under the table to help monitor the
running beneath arterials and large blocks. basement levels or perform minor tasks. Criminals
have to stay hidden or bribe the workers.

208 Setting
 Infrastructure

End Caps
The interiors of the end cap domes are covered with Unofficially, it's also because someone tried going
artificial mountains with domes around the extremely high up to “float” off the mountain11.
spaceport entrances. From the ground below, each is
This ban isn't enforced strongly—the warning signs
a little over three kilometers high. The lower slopes
keep people away, and they're mostly to keep the
of the mountains are covered with temperate/alpine
station from being found liable for accidents
trees. In some places they're settled, like the Zenith
anyway. This means that each end cap has a zone
district (p. 151). Most construction is limited to the
around the middle where nobody's supposed to be
lowest 10% of the mountain, as long-term exposure
but nobody's really looking. People have hidden
to low gravity can cause bone and muscle mass loss.
stashes, drug labs, and other bases around here in
secret caves dug beneath the wooded areas.
Cross Rail
The Cross Rail operates two light rail services on the
Outer Hull
end caps. One is a line that runs along the very edge
The outer hull of Grand Cross has a lot of airtight
of the caps to connect the ground panels. The other
modules attached to expand the available space in
is a set of lines that run from the ground to the
the station and do things that can't be done on the
apex, connecting the spaceports with the city.
inside. Most of these modules are clustered around
The spaceport lines travel in a loose spiral around the outer hull rail: maglev trains that run around
the cap, partly for the scenery and partly because the outer hull at the habitat's rotational speed.
driving straight up a rotating slope with varying
gravity creates sideways pressure that some people Industry
find off-putting. Because the spaceports are zero- Most of the station's industry is contained in outer
gravity, the carriages have padded seats with straps hull blocks. This setup keeps the air inside
to secure yourself and your bags. pristine—polluted air can be run through filtration
systems before being returned to the station, or
Public Space simply blasted into space.
Most of the outer hull access shafts are for public use.
Access to these places varies by owner. Most of them
Some (such as the ones attached to transit stations in
are clustered around the rail line and public areas,
the city) lead directly to outer rail stations, while others
connected by access tunnels. Some are a little
lead to attached public-access modules. Everything
further away and are connected by their own private
is sealed by redundant airlocks, just in case.
trams. Larger corporations can secure permits to
The public modules are usually indoor parks or create modules with their own private access
shopping malls. Observation floors offer an shafts—Ogremoch in particular prefers modules
incredible view of space10 and help draw in visitors. accessible only through their own facilities.
When the station wants to expand beyond the rail
lines, they build public modules elsewhere on the Other Uses
hull and link them up with a slower tram system. Sometimes the outer hull is used as residential
space. Backtown in particular is developing a fad
Restricted Areas for replacing penthouse suites with "spacehouse"
Because gravity drops the higher you get until it suites: sprawling outer hull apartments with
reaches zero at the "peak", end cap settlement is observation floors and private elevators.
restricted to the lower slopes. You're allowed to
Some outer hull modules are used by criminals as
climb higher on authorized hiking trails, but even
secret bases and drug labs. Law Zero in particular
those typically end in observation points halfway
are good at this, since because they're androids,
up, the path there covered in warning signs.
they don't need to worry about keeping them
Officially it's because of the health risks of low gravity airtight. Criminal modules require a front to escape
exposure, and also to reduce the risk of rail accidents. notice, like a company or a spacehouse suite.

10 The outer hull modules are attached to

the cylinder, so gravity points in the
same direction: outward.
11 The first few moments, as you sail away
from the mountain and toward the city,
are really cool. As you fall and
gravity increases, it gets considerably
less cool.

Setting 209
 The Shaft
The Shaft is a line of modules running through the spaceship repair parts are 3D printed here. The
cylinder's axis, roughly the width of a skyscraper. Each environment is great for protein crystal growth,
end is tethered to the end caps by a large, domelike microencapsulation, and cell growth, so the
structure over the spaceports; this allows people to medical industry manufactures drugs and grows
enter the Shaft (via conveyor belts of grab loops on tissue here. These two sectors cover most of the
the dome's interior) while preventing people in the Shaft's central blocks. More than half the industrial
zero-g area from flinging themselves over the city. modules are Cartel-owned.
The Shaft's modules are divided into recreation and
Exterior
industrial blocks. On the outside, rail lines connect
Rail lines running up and down the Shaft provide
the modules and the spaceports while helping to
transport between the modules. Two of these rail
hold the Shaft together.
lines form the Shaft Express: a pair of trains in high-
speed tubes that can cross the entire Shaft with no
Recreation stops in a matter of minutes. These are most often
The front and back thirds of the Shaft are used for
used to ferry food from the Agriculture Ring to the
recreation. The modules nearest the spaceports are
back of the station, but it can get you from
the smallest, with microgravity dining and
Backtown to Downtown faster than the Cross Rail.
observation decks being the most common services.
In some places the exterior is also covered with
A little further in are "zero-g park" sections where
advertising billboards. Most of these are meant to
people can just float or fly around and enjoy
be read by people on/in the Shaft or the end caps.
themselves. These areas feature grab loops and
straps on the walls, padded poles and blocks to Nobody is allowed on the exterior of the Shaft except
jump off, tinted windows with views of the city, station workers who know the risks and always have
mobility tools, and sometimes moving parts to ride. safety gear. The Shaft might be in the microgravity
Cafeteria and bathroom modules are provided. zone, but push too hard without something
tethering you and you'll float away until gravity
Most of the public parks are partitioned into smaller
catches hold and drags you into the city below.
sections for small groups, to make them easier to clean
if necessary10. The private parks are either rentable or
Spaceports
owned by the truly wealthy. (Tetsuo's executives have
Once you're at the apex, transport into the
a zero-g party once a season, and it gets pretty wild.)
spaceport is handled through grab loops, conveyor
Beyond those lie the sports modules: courts, arenas, belts, and elevators if you're using mobility aids or
and fields specifically designed for zero-g sports. carrying luggage. If you know what you're doing,
Besides staples like football and basketball, there are you can push yourself along pretty fast.
smaller modules for niche/new sports like magnetic
The spaceports themselves are housed in modules
roller derby, gymnastics, chessboxing, and flying.
attached to the ends of the cylinder. They're designed
Zero-g sports is a new and evolving field, so the Shaft
to spin in the opposite direction to the cylinder to
has some extra space set aside just in case.
cancel out their rotation and make docking easier.
Industrial Between the docking bays and the cylinder are
There are a lot of manufacturing processes that support modules: repair workshops, customs, cargo
benefit from zero gravity. Materials can grow bays, and sorting bays, where people decide where
without encountering walls. Materials that can't be food from the Agriculture Ring is supposed to go.
mixed on Earth become mixable in space. Liquids in
The spaceports have simple lounges—people aren't
microgravity can form perfect spheres. Add in
meant to stay here long, and the station authorities
vacuum and you can create extremely pure objects.
want to cut down on the number of people working
The Shaft's central blocks focus on processes that up here. There's a zero-g food court at the front end
won't pollute the station's air. A lot of station and with a Burger Kong, though.

12 Veteran Crossers call people who make a mess in zero-g Yanks, after a character in the
popular Grand Cross sitcom Two Peeps and a Seat—a stereotypical American who makes a mess
everywhere he goes while shouting "Freedom!" Imagine a guy floating through a zero-g
park, trailing barbecue sauce and a super-size soda cup, using a gun to propel himself.

210 Setting
 Infrastructure

Microgravity Risks
Long-term exposure to microgravity creates health problems. Muscles
atrophy quickly—especially calf and spine muscles, which are used for
posture—because the body doesn't think it needs them. They can lose up
to 20% of their mass if you don't return to gravity. Bones can atrophy
even faster. Without gravity, blood pressure increases around the head,
which can trick your body into losing blood, leading your heart into
atrophying.
Once you return to gravity, these changes recover over time. Blood comes
back within a few days. One day of recovery for each day in space is typically
enough for your muscles but bones are the real problem—months in space
requires years of exercise, and even then you might not get it all back.
It's not as much of a problem on Grand Cross. Nobody lives in the Shaft
or the spaceports, and everyone who works there spends time in a
gravity environment regularly. However, regular swapping between
micro- and pseudo-gravity can still degrade the body over time. Shaft
workers are encouraged to exercise regularly.
Shaft workers typically get shorter shifts than everyone else, but they
can still be made to work overtime, and some bosses pressure their
employees to socialize in the recreation blocks after work. (Hergatz Liao
in particular is notorious for this—they claim they have the medicine to
fix it, but they only give workers a discount.)
Many long-term workers develop mild to moderate health problems.
These can be eliminated with proper shift management, but Unity has
placed loopholes in the rules, and employers generally stop caring about
managing the health of their workers once the problems become minor
enough to blame on a lack of exercise. Companies used to pressure
workers to augment to compensate, but now they just pressure older
employees to leave.

Setting 211
 All His Emails Are Like This
By Liam Ginty
INTRACOM PREMIUM USER: 32 DAYS OF TRIAL REMAINING
FROM: TheLastHokageInSpace@MaintComm
TO: T.A.Happening@MainComm
SUBJECT: These gd blastpacks
[REMINDER: In just 32 Days, your Premium IntraCom Trial will expire and you will be
downgraded to the Freebie Experience. You will be limited to 200 word messages, lose
access to premium emojicons, and cede all Premium User Privacy rights. Upgrade today for
just $VALUE_NOT_FOUND$!]
CONTENTS: this shit is fucked tom
Last year we ordered 8000 of these blastpacks, we spent months attaching one to every single
glass panel on the hab, and rigged every single one of them up to the central computer and
now they’re vanishing cause SOMEONE (Greg it was fucking greg) told someone we have 8000
packs of unmonitored chemical compounds, sensitive and expensive electronics, and
whatever that goo is that seals the cracks. I think they’re turning that stuff into drugs, I’ll ask
around. Not to mention the 6 maintenance drones we’ve assigned to every pack- you have any
idea what a double crosser can do with one of these packs? Seriously, do you? I don’t. It’s
probably really bad though.
Listen Tom, this station takes about a thousand impacts every day. The glass can take the bulk
of these without issue, but every now and then we get a crack, and we go out and repair it but
sometimes we miss a crack. Or two. Or three. Enough cracks, and it doesn’t matter how many
redundant panels you have or how high tech your lattice is, one big hit and you’re gonna have
a cascade failure and everybody better learn how to make do without oxygen really quickly. I
know nobody takes this seriously, I know everybody thinks this station is unbreakable, but
that’s what all you clowns said about The Titanic 2, and that's why Pluto looks like that now.
The blastpacks were supposed to be a way to avoid having a ton of frozen corpses floating by
the windows every time we hit a pebble, but they don’t work if a bunch of catboys are stealing
them to huff CLB F5/AW and do terrorism.
And while I’m here, why did we hook up a bunch of auto-deploying safety systems to the
central system? The entire point of buying the headless units was that they’d be safe from
wireheads hacking them. We had that whole meeting about how the kids on this station are
fucking awful and will absolutely encase the entire hab in quick sealing foam for laughs? Now
instead of hacking 8000 units, they just need to get into our woefully under-secured
maintenance server, and then we’re all in the biggest foam party the solar system has ever
seen. Have you ever been in a foam party Tom? I promise you it’s not as sexy as it sounds. It
stinks Tom. It fucking reeks.
Here’s what we need to do. We need increased security around every blastpack, we need
cameras and alarms, and we need armed drone patrols checking in on every pack every single
cycle. That sounds extreme I know but if I tell you what we need is some sensors and alarms
you’ll get us a bb gun and some telescopic optical implants and wish us good luck. I know your
fucking game Tom. At the bare minimum we need proximity alarms, and we need to take these
things off of the central system as soon as possible. Anything less and we’re all getting spaced
cause some genius thought putting a million people in a glass tube that gets sandblasted all
day long was a great idea. I swear to god if I get spaced cause some hyped up double crosser
ripped off our safety gear to have a block party, my final act will be to wrap my frozen fingers
around your neck and spit in your eye.
All The Best
Naruto Fitzgerald
Chief Maintenance Engineer

212 Setting
 Gazetteer

Gazetteer
This section lists some other places in Grand Cross. Most don't have fixed locations—they're meant to be
used wherever and however you want them to be. These locations were created by contributing writers.
They're credited in their entry, and you can find a list of contributors on p. 3.

Districts and Communities

to be mostly independent, haggling with other
Cielito Lindo districts and receiving the occasional lost shipment
by Fabby Garza from inside a mega corporation's warehouse.
Deep in the station, in an ignored corner of a ward, The district's biggest section is referred to as La
you can find the best place for a taco in space as well Tienda; it has several blocks of buildings that house
as a welcoming, independent and open community all the merchants and sellers in Cielito Lindo. In
that has managed to keep the Cartel at bay. But with addition, it is the informal seat of local government
a propaganda machine, and all of the other Cartel and is responsible for the organization of citizen
resources, how long can Cielito Lindo continue as guards. Passersby here are enticed by the smells of
the beautiful heaven its name promises? food and the sounds of music and dance. Buskers
set up between the most popular buildings and
The story of this district is the story of Doña Maria
perform for the public, and parties are held to
Perseverancia, one of the first workers to be sent
celebrate many of the old Mexican holidays—and
to help with the construction of Grand Cross, and a
some new ones. Here you can also find ingenious
talented architect in Mexico who never felt
inventions that apply a familiar flavor to space
comfortable to be herself around friends and family
technology: cheap basic drones get a papier-mâché
despite her success. Once in space, her initial
makeover and become flying pinatas; laser knives
excitement soured when she found that her
are hacked to create a longer, more “ondular”
knowledge and expertise meant little against racist
shape to create what the locals call laser machetes.
power structures. It was everything that she had
hated back on Earth but now in space. One of the most important establishments in La
Tienda is La Playa, a beach-themed bar that Doña
This became an even harder challenge when, at age 50,
Perseverancia hosts as the go-to place for meetings
she began publicly transitioning and living as a woman.
and decisions that impact the district. Doña, now
She took the first name of her mother and a last name
65, ties her hair in a tight bun, and is well known for
that represented her constant perseverance. This made
always wearing colorful dresses and a wide smile.
her life aboard Grand Cross much harder, but also gave
her the energy and confidence of being herself. The other large section of the district is Carniceria
Perseverancia realized that she wouldn’t make it here Tláloc, which was originally a meat market, but
unless she took matters into her own hands, and so nowadays sells and prepares anything that falls off the
created a place for people like her, a place that had the back of a transport vehicle. The titular Tláloc is an
things she missed from home without the baggage. android owner and occasional butcher. His bright blue-
silver skin and dark eyes paint a menacing visage, but
To get this done, she used a diversity initiative in the
those who get to know him consider Tlaloc a loyal and
early days of construction to create a district that
kind soul who will also not hesitate to deal with any
would appeal to any Mexican immigrants moving to
problematic element that threatens the district.
the station. This would later extend to any one from
latinx countries, then to general marginalized folk. He is also the leader of the volunteer citizen guard
She made the district so out of the way that only that patrols Cielito Lindo. Known as Los Carniceros,
people who needed to be there would be there. these guards are held to the highest of standards.
Although they occasionally end up dealing with
In the beginning, the district and name were very
citizens, their purpose is to patrol the perimeter of
perfunctory; it was a place to house immigrant
the district and mount any resistance to law
workers for the night before they commuted
enforcement trying to "reclaim" it. They are a show
elsewhere in the station. But thanks to beloved
of force against criminal elements, private security
community leaders like Doña Perseverancia and
squads and law enforcement alike.
later Tláloc El Carnicero, Cielito Lindo has managed

Setting 213
 P'Nai Tzedek Congregation
By Gavin L. Fregeau
"Please note there are two rooms. Leftward is the Miriam Cohen (She/Her), aka the Streaming Rabbi,
chapel, where we keep our one precious Tanakh and records her sermons on VHS. Her distributors trade
hold services. If you need a Tallis or a Yarmulka, copies of her most recent sermon for one or more
extras can be found near the entrance, and Siddurs, VHS cassettes with the recording tab intact. The
books of prayer, are provided. Rightward is the social quality is subpar, but it allows those unable to attend
hall, which can be reserved via our online calendar. services regularly to keep in touch with their practice.
The hall is empty. If you need chairs or tables, you The gig economy makes no space for the Sabbath.
will have to bring them yourself." Miriam mainly preaches about the necessity of
community-based faith, how Judaism cannot be
— Sign posted outside P'Nai Tzedek on the bottom
commodified, and how it must be diametrically
floor of the Moonview Office Building.
opposed to capitalism. Capitalism seeks to isolate
P'Nai Tzedek is a Chevreh, a community of like- the individual and deprive them of social and
minded Jews who get together to learn, pray and spiritual necessities that can only be provided by a
celebrate. Some members are Rabbis, but there are free and safe community of one's peers. As the
no explicitly defined leaders. Everyone is free to election nears, Miriam specifically preaches the need
lead services or organize events. The Chevreh is to secure Freedom of Religion as a human right.
meant to be an open space for anyone—even non-
Stephen Fogle (He/They) is a simple member of
Jews—to come, organize, and learn about Judaism.
P'Nai Tzedek. He doesn't have any interest in
The social hall hosts everything from Hebrew
organizing or leading, but he attends services
School to Union Meetings.
regularly. His true passion is teaching children. A
Still, P'Nai Tzedek struggles. When it was founded in jolly storyteller and a terrific singer, he captivates
2012, the Jewish National Space Fund (JNSF) the children while imparting life lessons and
offered to bankroll the synagogue, but they refused providing their parents space to worship without
to take money from an organization built on the distraction. He wears mismatched Tefillin, the
suffering of Palestine. Now the JNSF have joined headpiece once worn by his great grandfather and
the Offworld Cartel and actively work to undermine the armpiece shiny and new. The story goes, when
Jewish communities that don't fit their rigid ideals. a young Joshua Levi had his Bar Mitzvah and
Neo-Nazi hate groups attack P'Nai Tzedek with received Teffilin of his own, the armpiece was too
increasing ferocity. Wealthy members have left for long for his still-growing body, so Stephen lent his
safer and more conservative Jewish communities. great grandfather's shorter armpiece.
The synagogue is underfunded. The community is
afraid. The gig economy makes it difficult if Plot Hooks
impossible to reach a Minyan. P'Nai Tzedek is falling A group of delinquents broke into the
apart and needs help. synagogue and stole several leaf-shaped
plaques from the bronze tree of life. Leaves
are donated by the community and are
People engraved with the names of honored
Yitzhak Tzadik (He/Him) was hand built by the late members and the dead. If you recover and
Judith Leow. He is considered the first android to return the leaves, the congregation will be in
be born Jewish, though several had converted your debt.
years before he lived. He spent the first decade of The Chevreh is organizing a march with
his life studying Jewish Law and writing papers several other marginalized communities. The
justifying the use of certain electrical equipment, Brash Bucks, a small but dangerous neo-Nazi
such as prosthetics and his own body, during gang, marked Yitzhak Tzadik as their next
target. If they maim him or worse, he won't
Shabbos. Now he spends his time at P'Nai Tzedek be able to participate in the march and he
writing op-eds on Tikkun Olam, the mandate to needs to be seen at the front with the other
bear responsibility for the welfare of the universe. community leaders.
He is often a target of both anti-Semitic and anti- One of Miriam's regulars hasn't picked up a
android hate groups and sometimes struggles for copy of her last two sermons. Can you check
recognition as Jewish within his own community. up on her and make sure she is safe?

214 Setting
 Gazetteer

Tramgaudry Row
by Tyler Crumrine
Tramgaudry Row is Grand Cross's premier theatre 1D6 TO UPDATE A CLASSIC
district. Here corporate buildings give way to a row 1 Add the words "…In Space!" to the end of the title.
of massive production houses with scenes playing (e.g. The Importance of Being Earnest… In Space!)
in hologram above their marques. Costumed
2 Add the word "Space" at the top of the title.
"brand ambassadors" hand out fliers on every
(e.g. SPACE OEDIPUS)
corner, talking up shows while keeping "unsavory
elements" moving. 3 Reduce the title to two words with an "x"
between them. Repeat one word if necessary.
The further you get from the commercial end of The
(e.g. Romeo x Juliet; Hamlet x Hamlet)
Row, the smaller and less ostentatious theatres
become—their designations shifting from Row 4 Add the word "Future" as needed.
Theatres to Off-Row, Off-Off-Row, and etc. At the (e.g. Future Arms and the Future Man)
end of The Row, you'll find Tramgaudry's most indie
5 Add "!: A Musical" to the end of the title to
DIY performance spaces—indistinguishable from
indicate it is a musical now.
residential units because they likely still are.
(e.g. The Cherry Orchard!: A Musical)
The hottest commercial theatre is The Theatre
6 Add "!?" to the end of the title to indicate this
Theater—"theatre” spelled with an "re" meaning
production will subvert expectations, we
the art form and “theater” spelled with an "er"
promise. (e.g. A Doll's House!?)
meaning the physical building a play is performed
in. The owners rigorously focus-tested the name
New Theatre Trends
and use it without a drop of self-awareness or irony.
The Return of Mask Theatre: Augmented reality
The hottest Off-Row theatre is Without a Net, the and wearable tech have advanced to the point that
originators of the Naked Theatre Movement. any actor can play any role provided the theatre
owns full- or partial-body masking technology.
The hottest Off-Off-Row production this season is
Advanced masks contain adaptive AI as well,
Garbage Boys—an immersive theatre piece in which
translating even an actor's smallest
two brothers eat garbage provided by the audience.
microexpressions. Theatres save money on
Just try to find garbage they won't eat!
costumes and make-up in the long-term, but these
advances have also led to:
Theatre on Grand Cross
The Impact may have changed the course of • Preferential casting towards performers with
humanity, but the plays being produced in the their own cybernetic masking hardware (i.e.
distant future of 2020 remain largely the same. wealthy and/or trust-fund performers).
Because no matter the future, producers are • Wages plummeting since literally anyone can
cowards and the classics are solid investments. No play a role.
royalties to pay (public domain), great for student • Actors accepting lower rates knowing full auto-
matinees (and educational funding), and they mation is the next logical step.
market themselves ("It's a classic!"). New plays are • Theatres hiring the same people over and over
still produced, but chronically underfunded and left again (friends, celebrities, etc.) rather than pur-
to smaller venues (unless a piece proves itself suing any kind of casting diversity.
popular enough to be poached).
Thrifftrax™: To drive repeat sales, theatres now
Audiences still expect something new from revivals, offer commentary tracks alongside shows. Simply
though, and the remixing of classics is a time- rent an earpiece, select your audio track, and enjoy
honored theatre tradition. the play with its director, designer, or your favorite
insult comic whispering in your ear. Some
commentaries are even streamed live. Commentary
broadcasts are by no means secure, however, and
an enterprising hacker could utilize them for covert
messaging and/or propaganda.

Setting 215
 eReaders: Actors are relying more and more on The Naked Theatre Movement: Defined in Without
cybernetic implants to feed them their lines. a Net Theatre's “Naked Manifesto”, the Naked
Originally intended as a lifeline if an actor blanked Theatre Movement rejects masks, commentaries,
onstage, performers now download entire scripts line-readers, and any other tech use in the theatre,
into their brain, focusing purely on movement and aiming to create uniquely theatrical experiences
delivery during scenes rather than being bogged that highlight performers' humanity.
down by what they're actually saying. While
Critics love it because it's new, different, and lets
significantly more difficult to hack than a
them shit on other theatres indirectly by praising
commentary stream, an actor whose lines are
Naked Theatre productions as "real" and "authentic."
tampered with without their knowledge might not
Actors with cybernetics, on the other hand, find the
realize what they're saying until it's too late.
movement needlessly exclusionary with its hard lines
and sweeping generalizations. Audiences and sex
workers alike are still getting used to the term,
leading to plenty of mix-ups on both sides.

Food and Entertainment

Arcadia
by Molly Landgraff
For many of the people who call Grand Cross home, These guests are given the opportunity to ask
providing unique entertainment experiences is Titania a single question and receive a true answer,
something of a calling. The night club Arcadia— and it is rumored that she has some kind of
sometimes jokingly called a "knight club,"—is network access or sources, because while the
definitely a popular choice, and not just because of Queen's guests are given a legally binding contract
the distinctive mix of electro-medieval dance music not to reveal what they are told, none have ever
the house players produce. expressed dissatisfaction with their answers. Some
rumors add that she asks a high price in return for
The entire place is themed as a mix of modern high-
these answers, and many have balked at the price
tech with medieval trappings. This is where you'll
and forfeited their answer, but again, if so, no one
find LARP events, SCA-types, and cosplayers who
who's in a position to know has ever confirmed it.
enjoy dressing up as faeries with the latest in
cosplay technology, side by side with players of the The club is also popular among a different
latest edition of Shadow Gunners. demographic: criminals. It is surprisingly easy to fade
into the background and arrange conversations with
The club's owner, Titania, never breaks character as
contacts—put on a pair of elf ears and a costume,
the Faerie Queen, and though she maintains an air
talk like a bad fantasy video game, and you'll be
of mystery and beauty, she frequently appears in-
indistinguishable from the LARPers and Shadow
person. When she does, she always takes to the
Gunners. Some even go so far as to use the club to
dance floor, along with her "retinue"—a group of
share the plan for a given act of resistance or
beautiful people all across the gender spectrum—
robbery. Titania intentionally makes no effort to curb
and dances with abandon. Titania herself usually
this practice, suggesting with a smile that her
retires to a private table overlooking the dance floor
patrons are simply enjoying the playful fantasy
while her retinue remain dancing with the patrons,
atmosphere when pressed on the topic.
as the Queen only invites select guests to join her
for a drink.

216 Setting
 Gazetteer

Blue Fish The Cat's Eye

Dreams by Charlie Standard
by Dylan Curran A stylish queer bar located just outside Downtown,
established in 2014. One of the oldest LGBT+ bars in
In the moldering shadows Kyobashi district hides a
Grand Cross and still run by the woman who
sweet little neon-and-glass bar called Blue Fish
founded it, Morgana Griffiths, the Cat's Eye has
Dreams. True to its name, the joint centers around a
maintained its old school charm with CRT
floor-to-ceiling tank of iridescent fish that drift in lazy
televisions and neon lights.
circles. It's a good place for a thoughtful drink or
quiet conversation, well away from the prying eyes Though its aesthetic is a love letter to the
and cameras of the streets above. technology that built Grand Cross, it definitely leans
towards retro-chique rather than just old-
The Blue Fish is owned and operated by a rogue
fashioned. Every Saturday, the Cat's Eye hosts
marine biologist by the name of Gills McKinley.
“Kitten Mix,” a variety night where they host new
McKinley studied the schooling behavior of fish in
LGBT+ musical talent, comedians and poets, with
zero-g, way back in the early days of Grand Cross
monthly karaoke nights as well.
before the centrifugal stabilizers came fully online.
Her crowning achievement was to digitally While the limited food menu is traditional British/
approximate the brain patterns of an extinct species Irish-style cuisine, the wide selection of beers, ales
of schooling Erismatopterus. Many members of her and spirits are imported from all over the world,
cohort believed the research would be invaluable in with some signature cocktail mixes (the “Lucky
establishing social harmony in a space-bound Paw” is a local favorite.) If you can't find Morgana
urban environment, as did the project's herself behind the bar, you'll be served by Kim,
government backers. Morgana's self-proclaimed android apprentice, but
rest assured Morgana is never far from the site.
Unfortunately, McKinley has long since disappeared
from public view, taking with her the digitized A 10% portion of their profits go toward the Stardust
thoughts of her precious fish and the simple robotic Society, a charity that offers support for displaced
bodies those thoughts were programmed to operate. and vulnerable LGBT+ persons, and events are held
monthly to promote and fundraise for them.
One party that has not forgotten McKinley is the deep-
pocketed Armitage Sweetheart, a politician aiming to
win a powerful position in 2020—and he's willing to
pay well for the return of McKinley's government-
sponsored research. Maybe he thinks it'll help his
campaign's conservation angle; maybe he believes in
McKinley's original vision. Certainly it's unrelated to
possible applications in Dreamer technology and any
embarrassments that might accompany a politician's
connection to such research.

Setting 217
 The Ghost Market
by Alison Tam
At first glance, Ghost Market's movements seem Stalls
completely random. It'll set up on top of a sky Amazing 3D Magic Ice: Ah Qiao dropped out of
bridge in Neo Shibuya one night and the park next design school with six figures in debt and a single 3D
to Xin Beida University the next. Somehow the printer. After acquiring an ice machine and spending
hungry customers magically appear, and only several weeks tinkering, she now sells shaved ice
regulars know why. A different subway station sculptures of anything you can think of—cartoon
serves as the market's landmark for each day of the characters, celebrities, even your own face if you ask
week. Get off at the right stop for the day and all very nicely. Toppings include diced mango,
you have to do is follow your nose. condensed milk, red beans and pandan jelly.
There used to be permanent neighborhood markets Trey's Deep-Fried Everything: Trey follows the
all over Grand Cross. Then the police started cracking American county fair model of cuisine. Their mainstays
down on unlicensed vendors, confiscating stalls and are processed foods and tempura-style vegetables, but
issuing fines that left vendors in debt for a lifetime. bring them anything from the market and they'll deep
Many of the largest stalls were relocated to the fry it just for the challenge. Local teenagers swear
government sponsored Songshan Hawker Center. by something they call a Nuked Alaska: a Taiwanese
Their popularity transformed it into a tourist ice cream/peanut brittle roll re-wrapped to include
attraction while the smaller stalls still on the streets the popsicle of their choice, battered, deep-fried
were shut down one by one. and eaten so quickly it barely has a chance to melt.
The last non-sponsored open-air night market in The Copycat Queen: The Queen pops up every
Grand Cross only survives because it's mobile. couple of weeks with a low-budget version of
Vendors are ready to pack up at a moment's notice whatever exciting new foods have captured Grand
and disperse the moment their spotters see the cops, Cross's imagination this month. You can tell when a
usually setting up again several streets away. Its trend is over when she shutters her stall, though
organization is ad hoc and decentralized by design. she'll be back in a few weeks for the next one. Right
The first stall on the scene chooses the market's now, fine restaurants in the richer districts are all
location for the night simply by finding the place with into spherification, so the Queen is selling cups of
the most foot traffic and setting up, with no advance what she calls popping soup boba, tiny little
plans or messages that might leave a paper trail. globules of gazpacho and garlic naengguk the size
and texture of roe.
Ghost Market opens for the dinnertime crowd and
stays busy into the early hours of the morning. It keeps Fantastic Roti and Astounding Bing: Ghost Market
serving the best and cheapest food in Grand Cross patrons like nothing better than a passionate
until the shawarma's shaved down into shreds and argument about which one's better. They've been
the ramen joints run out of broth. On weekends, if the locked in a semi-friendly rivalry for years,
nightclub crowd is hungry enough, it'll stay open long supported by loyal patrons as they vie for the favor
enough for the earliest risers to get breakfast. Most of the fickle public. Right now, Shanshan of
people only know when and where the market comes Astounding Bing is one up with Hualien-style runny
to their own neighborhoods. Recently, a new crowd of eggs wrapped in their scallion pancakes, though
hipsters and foodies has started to chase the Ghost their rival Prakash says he's testing a new paratha
Market through the districts, making vendors worry recipe that's guaranteed to take the crown. Rumor
about increased police attention. has it that they used to date.
Where the food goes, the people follow. Commuters We Are Not A Market Stall: Formerly named Fusion
bring takeaway home or eat standing in the street. Dance, Pizza Everything, Streat Food, and too many
Students and seniors alike come in groups and others to remember. Yolanda and Kiyo have
linger for multiple meals, setting out stools all along devoted themselves to the art of pun-based cuisine
the market's outskirts. Activists and buskers mashups, and as a result of their unholy alliance
seeking an audience bring speakers, and small-time they have produced winechata (wine and
hackers and dealers use the market's bustle to horchata), bobarritos (dessert burritos, filled with
mask their illicit trades. The Ghost Market is a city in tapioca balls and cake) and tacoyaki (octopus balls
miniature, building itself each night just to seasoned like tacos). Their bursts of occasional
disappear again before dawn. drunken genius are evened out by the dubious
nature of most of their experiments.

218 Setting
 Gazetteer

Halmeoni's Eomuk: Jessica Park believes in the Juana Isabel: When government raids started
traditional flavors of the Korean comfort food she hitting the old neighborhood markets, Juana was
grew up on. Her stand is deceptively humble but one of the first to pack up her pupuseria and go on
has attracted a loyal following for her fish cakes and the move. Just as likely to let loose with a stream of
mushroom skewers cooked in warm, sustaining invective as she is to sit someone down for a lecture
anchovy broth. Each order comes with a cup of piping about their life choices, Juana's sheer force of
hot broth and a squeeze of spicy dipping sauce on personality often makes her a deciding voice in the
top. She's one of the very few vendors who has Ghost Market's affairs. Lately, her wife of thirty
chairs for her customers, making her stall an oasis of years has started helping her during dinner rush.
rest and comfort among Ghost Market's hectic chaos. She worries about how they'll survive once they're
too old for physical labor but tries not to let it show.
People Eagle-eyed Ife: Ife's family has been selling fufu
Mr. Singh and Sweetu: Mr. Singh promised his
and stew in the market for years. She grew up
children he'd retire from being a chai-wallah, but he
running around the market, poking her nose into
said nothing about staying out of the business.
everything and getting underfoot. One day, Juana
These days, he sits at the edge of the market,
got sick of her pestering and enlisted her as a
gossiping with his friends as his personal drone,
spotter. Now she perches high above the Ghost
Sweetu, floats up and down the market, stopping
Market, using her vantage point to scan for signs of
next to the most popular stands and selling chai to
police. She's been teaching herself how to patch
the people waiting in line.
into the security cameras in nearby shops or on the
Marsh: When Ghost Market started coming to street, though her parents wish she'd use some of
Sunda District (named for the tectonic plate most of that motivation for her homework.
Southeast Asia rests on), Marsh approached the
Lao Xiang: Lao Xiang's famous char kway teow stand
vendors to cut a deal. Sunda's unhoused
was invited to move to Songshan Hawker Center
community will warn Ghost Market about police
during the first raids. He continued to run it there for
presence as long as they get the same tips back,
years but couldn't keep up with the rising rent and
while Ghost Market stays out of the parks where
increasing fees. A new rule that required all
people sleep and whatever food's left over at the
Songshan Center hawkers to upgrade to the same
end of the night is free. A fast talker and expert
expensive electronic ordering system finally pushed
negotiator, Marsh once convinced a stall owner to
him out, and a chain restaurant took over his lease.
pay her to eat their food.
Now he's back where he was ten years ago, eking out
a living and hiding his stall from the police.

1D6 SCENES ON THE STREET 1D6 SMELLS OF THE STREET

1 Two stalls selling the same thing have set up 1 Human sweat, a crowd packed too closely
right next to each other. together.
2 Lost young professionals are asking for 2 Tandoori chicken, spiced to fragrant perfection.
directions to the Ghost Market.
3 Something burned by an inexperienced chef.
3 The police are on their way. The market starts
4 Curry so hot your eyes water before you even
to pack up and scatter.
take a bite.
4 A vendor curses out a pedestrian for littering
5 Clear, pure pho broth simmering on the stove.
right next to their stall.
6 Yams baking, a subtle, earthy undertone of a
5 A [1–2 singer] [3–4 activist] [5–6 amateur
scent.
comedian] has drawn a loud, heckling audience.
6 A group of drunk friends tries to rank their
favorite stalls.

Setting 219
 The Last Kiss The Launchpad
by Dorian Dawes by B. Douglass McKenna
Neon red lips flash across a sign over a dimly lit bar. Nestled in the heart of Marsha Stretch (p. 354) is a red
Inside, sultry music plays over the speakers as neon door thumping from the bass tucked behind.
glasses clink and money changes hands beneath This is The Launchpad, a dazzling karaoke bar
tables. At first glance, the Last Kiss looks to be an emblazoned with red velvet and gold, bathed in
ordinary dive, if a bit gauche in its pitiful attempts blacklight. The bar is host to drag nights, epic
to recreate a 1930s speakeasy aesthetic. It's holiday parties, and a karaoke stage that encourages
become a common meeting place for underhanded the old and new to step into the limelight.
business deals where information can be bought in
Armed with cotton candy cocktails and an open
cold, hard cash.
door policy, it's one of the most iconic bars in The
Chris Delacroix is the proprietor of this Stretch. It’s run by none other than Sheena Kahn, a
establishment, as well as the only live act ever once illustrious popstar who now takes the stage
booked for the stage. Every evening, the Last Kiss's every night at The Launchpad. It is the place to be if
patrons are graced with their crooning vocals, you're visiting the Stretch and want to prove your
allegedly enhanced with cybernetics so that they chops in front of a microphone.
can alter the pitch of their voice with fluid ease.
While playing host to the old and new, The Launchpad
They are a tall and gaunt androgynous being, bald
is also a prime spot for information. Locals are
and prone to wearing gaudy jewelry and lavish
encouraged to rub shoulders with the elite who are
makeup. Their crimson gowns are rumored to have
looking to gentrify the neighborhood and take their cut
cost a fortune, but anyone who knows anything is
of any secrets that are spilled on the dance floor. It's
aware that the cheap material is scrounged from
said that while Sheena herself encourages her patrons
whatever Mx. Delacroix can find. Some have
to drink, laugh, and have a good time, she partly does
suggested that the sharp canine fangs in Delacroix's
this to loosen the lips of her wealthier patrons. It's
mouth are more than mere cosmetic
also said that she's willing to trade information with
enhancements and that the bar owner is in fact
those she considers friends and allies.
actually a vampire. Between songs, Mx. Delacroix
flits through the tables, greeting regular patrons by
name and introducing themselves to new faces. Mama's
This establishment is a place of safety from those Restaurant
looking to hide away from corporations or the law. by Drew Brutzman
Keeping their bar free of corporate influence is of
In a far corner of the station, hidden away in a
utmost importance to Delacroix, which means
labyrinthine warren of pipes and service tunnels, lies
having a few protections and rules in place are
Mama's Restaurant—hard and shadowy on the outside,
absolutely necessary.
warm and inviting on the inside, full of excellent smells
All brawling is banned inside the Last Kiss. Business and an air of friendly camaraderie situated among
is to be conducted quietly. The bartender should comfortably overstuffed chairs beneath paper lanterns.
always be tipped. And above all, always clap
Specializing in multicultural comfort food to appeal
politely after each and every song.
to all of Grand Cross' inhabitants, this restaurant is
For activists looking for a place to hide, and for anyone overseen by the eponymous Mama. Her
who just needs a touch of elegance without the background and motivations are a mystery—on
commercial bullshit, the Last Kiss's doors will always purpose, should anyone ask her directly. On the
be open. The Last Kiss doesn't discriminate. The only outside, Mama is cantankerous, seemingly only
banned clientele are corporations and cops. capable of conversation through shouting, and is
surrounded by a perpetual haze of narcotic vapor
from the elegant, long-stemmed e-pipe that never
leaves her yellowed teeth.

220 Setting
 Gazetteer

Should someone come to her in need, she labors

tirelessly on their behalf, offering sanctuary in an
The Spice Market
by Avery Quinn Garrick
otherwise uncaring station. Taking in the forgotten,
abused, outcast, and wandering, she offers respite Grand Cross leaders scouted Jacques Barelvi early
to the tired, food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, on during the station's construction as a premier
aid to the sick, and meaningful work to those who astrobotanist to help develop the Agriculture Ring.
ask. Everyone who comes through her door His genius made the Ring into the most successful
becomes family, and she takes family very seriously, botanical experiment in human history, but
putting people to work in the restaurant or finding Jacques truly found his place in Grand Cross as a
something more suitable to their skillset through spice merchant.
the many station connections she maintains.
Though the Ring was a success, the food it
Despite her gruff exterior, Mama has that special air produced was fairly generic and left much to be
about her that drives everyone to do their best, and desired when it came to seasonings. Wanting a
she strives for the best for all her family, providing taste of home, Jacques set aside part of one of the
everything in her power to ensure their safety, Ring’s cylinders to grow some spices for his
health, happiness, and spiritual well-being. personal use. When a few friends found out, they
asked him to share while others asked if he could
The Neon Low grow other herbs. Soon enough, friendly requests
had become formal orders and the Grand Cross'
by Avery Quinn Garrick
Spice Market was born.
The Neon Low is a bar resembling a Wild West saloon
Today, Jacques ships wholesale to various shops in
drowned in neon and is the premiere watering hole
Grand Cross and is always eager to help customers
for anyone and everyone on Grand Cross—especially
looking for something harder to find. Business is
those who do not operate strictly within the confines
going well, and several Cartel members have come
of the law. Once an abandoned theme bar, The Neon
to recognize just how valuable the Spice Market is.
Low was quietly completed and re-opened while
When Jacques refused to sell, the Cartel started to
everyone was distracted by the Disaster.
employ dirty tricks. Cartel-linked couriers
Since the bar is highly automated and has few frequently "lose" his shipments while online forums
humans on staff, there's endless speculation about spread unfounded rumors about his product.
who runs it and why. Rumors abound about the Jacques is frankly getting tired of trying to
potential true owner(s); some say it’s a member of constantly find new ways to circumvent their
the Cartel or one of the station’s gangs. Some even meddling, but then again, Jacques Barelvi wasn't
claim it’s a rogue AI, gathering intelligence. raised a quitter.
Whoever they are, they've managed to make it a
mostly neutral zone in the station’s factional wars.
The bar trades information if you know the right
passwords, and if rumors are to be believed, the
androids that maintain the bar’s day to day affairs
offer fact-finding missions under the table. It’s no
surprise that anyone and everyone tries to get in.
However, no one has been able to figure out any of
the many mysteries surrounding the Low, least of
all what the owner(s) get out of it.

Setting 221
 Other Locations
The Dump's alleyway storefront has seen better
Contact days; wear some nice boots and mind your step.
Community But if you're looking for stray corporate records,
antique organization charts, or schematics that
Center wandered off, they're probably lurking somewhere
by Addison Antonoff under the flickering lights.
On the ground floor of a mid-sized transit station, Karl Piketty runs the Dump, which is to say he's
there is a door labeled Contact Community Center. usually behind the counter, elbows deep in some
The rooms inside resemble film sets and roundtable antique system. Whether he'll talk to you depends
interview sections set up for recording. Depending on the kind of mood he's in, whether he's seen you
on the hour, one may stumble into a beginning before, and what you’re in the process of breaking.
Spanish class, a lecture on how to maneuver privacy
Karl is short but burly, with serial killer blue eyes
settings on different devices or a speed dating
and white hair. He's usually got glasses and
session. Most of the students and teachers here join
magnifiers on which makes him look like a
remotely, though there are often a few attending
terrifying bug. He's always neatly dressed, but his
physically as well as an in-person manager here to
pockets are full of parts, pencils, and paperwork.
make sure that everything is working and that food
and snacks are always available. While he technically has customers that keep his
shop running, Karl is more interested in machines
This small community center caters specifically to
than people. Customers with interesting cyberwear
the homebound of all ages in the Grand Cross and
or augmentations will find it easier to befriend him,
surrounding areas. Homebound citizens can call in
especially if they let him tinker with their gear.
to chat with others or attend events and classes.
Lectures or classes held by people unable to come Those on the wrong side of the law may find him
in person are still broadcast in their own rooms for particularly helpful, as the surly engineer has a soft
those able to leave the house on that particular spot for anyone screwing over The System from his
day. Conversations and presentations alike are anarchist days.
captioned in almost-perfect time. In the past, the
more social events have included everything from
fundraisers for mobility aids to putting on a musical
Earthton Co-Op
by Jonathan Lavallee
in twenty-four hours.
A dedicated group of people created the Earthon
Those who work at the Contact Community Center
Co-op Housing (ECHO, "Finding community in any
pride themselves in that their place of work is fully
and all spaces") in 2017. This unnamed group
accessible both digitally and physically. Grand Cross
pooled their assets and bought space under the
may have promised open space access for all, but
cover of the Unity election. After the election, the
regular citizens like those who run this community
Cartel focused on high value assets; ECHO spent
center are the ones that actually make that possible.
their time buying in the Earthton District, which
most people abandoned after an accident ruined
The Data Dump most of its parkland, a single dirty blight on
by T. H. Ravencroft Mariposa's green and luscious space.
The modern age creates a lot of electronic waste. They bought enough space to house all of the
Once the good stuff is picked over and salvaged, original members, as well as forty other founding
what's left makes its way to the Data Dump. The families. Since they bought what they could quickly
Dump is the place for obscure hard drives, tape and cheaply, each building transformed into
machines, Zoom disks, and sometimes a stray card radically different "pods" based on their original
catalogue or UNIAC III mainframe. configuration. Larger commercial buildings became

222 Setting
 Gazetteer

small family units with a central community area

filled with converted pipe play structures. Smaller
Grand Cross
spaces were changed into dormitories with Museum of
communal kitchens and bathrooms. ECHO cleaned
the area and refused to sell when the Cartel and
Natural
Unity government tried to move in. History
by Delilah Worthy
Much like the pods, ECHO's people are a disparate
group. ECHO tries to bring in anyone who can help When Grand Cross was designed, it was decided
support the co-op, either with resources or that the station should have a record of the planet
information, or with promises of support in return. they were leaving. A space station doesn't have a
Administration is handled by committees filled by natural history, but a planet does, and the
rotating ECHO members. However, with so many ecological collapse and recovery of Earth should
different people living so close to each other, there never be forgotten. So it was decided that a
are frequently disagreements; these can end in museum was to be built in Backtown: The Grand
anything from cooly passive-aggressive actions to Cross Museum of Natural History.
requests for disciplinary action to demands of
You're probably thinking to yourself, “What does a
removal from the co-op.
museum have to do with being a cyberpunk? Are
The brains behind the org are the Shadow Board of we gonna rob it? Is it a corporate puppet of Earth
Directors. Every year one person is elected to the that must be destroyed to move to space?”
Board for a seven-year term, but their identity is
Sit down, hush up, and hear this: public service is
kept secret. This protects them from both Cartel
punk as fuck, dude. Self-respecting cyberpunks
retaliation and disgruntled co-op members who
should learn where they came from, what they're
disagree with their decisions. The Cartel would love to
fighting to preserve from the corporations, and how
know who they are; if they can influence enough board
to help the community grow. No better place to
members, they could break down ECHO for good.
start than the Museum.

The Place
The Museum was built in the style of American
Plot Hooks natural history museums, a Smithsonian writ small,
If the PCs want to join ECHO, they can go if you will. It's divided into three wings with two
through the application process. You need to
do an interview, show how you can help the extra halls, and the curators try to jam every inch of
co-op, and/or pre-join a committee. the place with stuff to help people learn. The
museum is free to enter with a Multipass.
ECHO is not a huge fan of the Cartel or Unity.
If you need a place to hide, an ECHO pod A few of the “big exhibits” are covered below, and
could hide the characters for a while. GMs are free to make up a few of their own:
If the PCs are ECHO members, it could be
their turn to take part in a committee. They The Main Hall is famous for its massive diorama of
could have to deal with beautification the Earth: an effigy that spins in time with the real
(cleaning up the land where it's still toxic), thing, with its own little Grand Cross and Moon in
security (setting it up, or responding to geosynchronous orbit. The planet still bears the
threats to pods across Earthton), or even the scars of the Impact, which the diorama doesn't shy
social committee (setting up social events).
away from. The history of Earth from formation to
now is displayed through screens embedded in the
walls, with delicate little models of volcanoes and
seas under glass dotting the hall as well.
The Hall of Zoology (or as locals call it, the Holo-
Zoo) is a modern take on a museum classic. You
can't exactly ship taxidermy up the gravity well and

Setting 223
 arrange them in educational dioramas, so why not People
use holographics to get the same effect? Scenes of Mimi Zaris, Chief Curator: A young woman and first-
the African Savannah, Canadian Arctic, South-Asian gen college graduate who worked her way up to
Jungles, Russian Steppe, Australian Outback, Chief Curator of the Grand Cross Museum of Natural
American Southwest and more exist in holographic History. Mimi is deeply worried about the future;
form, records of before and after the Impact. For with the current trend of station government cutting
some people, it's the only place they've ever seen funding to public services and the upcoming
these animals. elections, she's absolutely terrified that her life's
work will be thrown to the corporate hounds. The
The Hall of Technology (aka the Corporate
way the Hall of Technology is going already gives her
Advertisement Hall) is meant to show the
nightmares. She's constantly looking for ways to
technologies used to preserve and repair the natural
both save money and make more, to keep the whole
world, along with the technology that will (hopefully)
place afloat and available to the community.
terraform alien worlds for humanity to live on. It is,
unfortunately, rife with corporate cheerleading, since Orville Maccabee, Chief Archivist: A recent immigrant
various corporations pay for not only the Hall, but to the city. Orville may have an old-fashioned name,
the entire East Wing that holds it. If you know how to but they're a fully modern person. As Orville specializes
read closely, there's still loads of interesting things to in digital construction and archival curation, the
learn, but the curators aren't stupid and know they Museum's board of trustees snapped them up when
need donations to keep the Hall (and indeed the they left their last corporate job. An effective bureaucrat
whole museum) going now that the city is taking a but a poor sysadmin, Orville is looking at ways to bulk
hatchet to their funding. up the cybersecurity of the museum and archives; not
only to secure the knowledge contained in the
The Hall of Mineralogy is full of rocks, which
labyrinthine cyberspace of the archives but to make
doesn't sound all that cool until you remember
sure no one tries to edit the truth out from under them.
things like asteroids and jewels are rocks. The
glittering hall is filled with interesting examples of Aldis 002 (Aught-Two), Chief of Security: An android
minerals harvested from Luna and the asteroid belt, designed for security, Aldis is mostly concerned with
including an entire asteroid cut open and labeled keeping the Museum secured and the exhibits where
for guests to see how its larger cousin can help they belong. Unfortunately, lacking any real policing
humanity via the burgeoning field of asteroid ability if something goes missing means Aldis has to
mining. Of special interest to guests are the take... unconventional means to make sure the
prototype asteroid mining gear on display and the Museum's collections stay put—up to and including
giant piece of pallasite harvested from an asteroid hiring punks like you to help him track down thieves,
that slammed into the Moon a few years ago. smugglers, and hackers trying to make a quick buck
by abusing an institution of community learning. A
The Archives are simply archives: tens of
genial seven-foot decommissioned combat android
thousands of scholarly articles, books,
makes for a weird boss, but the security staff who
publications, and theses in both print and digital
work under him have nothing but praise for his work
format make up the bulk of this definitely-not-
ethic and for the fact he remembers their names.
open-to-the-public basement installation. The staff
not only manages their own collection of obtuse
scholarly work but have a direct line to the city's Plot Hooks
backup archives of governmental data that they Recover a stolen artifact in exchange for an
unsupervised peek at an upcoming exhibit...
often assist in managing. If you've got a giant about new advancements in corporate
publicly funded server farm-cum-library, you might security technology.
as well get some extra use out of it.
Help assemble a 3D printed dinosaur skeleton
for an exhibit and get let into the Archives with
assistance (read: a babysitter who'll make sure
you don't read anything TOO secret).
Help secure donations to ensure the Museum
can be safely and effectively weaned off
corporate interests.
Foil a museum heist by planning and
executing a counter-heist, then figure out
who’s paying people to break in.

224 Setting
 Gazetteer

GCPS.2501 Horizon Towers

By Christopher Parisi by Kyle Thompson
Grand Cross Public School 2501 started life as an Horizon Towers was a luxury development planned by
Offworld Cartel charter school/technical college for corporate money-grubbers looking to capitalize on
construction personnel. It’s not so much a building the gentrification IM-X has been driving in the Stretch
as it is a collection of workshops, decommissioned (p. 354), but locals are pushing back. It all started with
cargo pods and ’07-era hab modules welded the usual protests, graffiti, and occupations of the
together into a sprawling campus anchored in the construction site, but when Kae Hanazaki joined the
Tsukaba District. movement, things got interesting.
The changing population of the orbital boom has Hanazaki—one of the original agronomists on Grand
seen it rebranded several times since—most Cross—was sick of the best produce of the
recently in mid-2019 when it became a low-cost Agriculture Ring she helped build going to the Cartel
public education option for L4 refugees and their elite while many citizens of Grand Cross lived in
families. miserable food deserts. With an alliance of residents,
hackers, and street gangers, Hanazaki is in the
Staffed by a mix of well-meaning but ineffectual
process of turning Horizon Towers into a giant
Cartel suits, Grand Cross locals, and visiting
vertical urban farm for the people of Marsha Stretch.
tradesfolk, the faculty has recently swelled to
include the ranks of highly educated but Together they've made Horizon Towers into
underemployed Landvættir Orbital corporate something the corporations never could have
expatriates. The resultant expertise has bolstered planned. In the base of the structure, hulking pumps
the school's offerings this term and it's not unusual originally designed to supply luxurious in-suite pools
to see remedial programming being taught by Tova have been repurposed to supply the plethora of
Dyson—former sysop for the L4 mainframe—or the growing racks in the floors above. The mid-levels
after-school robotics and engineering club working glow bright with hundreds of grow lights suspended
on scavenged construction drones with upon the crops in a dense agricultural maze. Up
Skuggahvarf logos still stenciled on the side, under above are semi-finished floors where construction
the eye of roboticist and ex-roughneck Staffan was interrupted by the occupation, converted by the
Niven. That the classes are three kids to a desk locals into a mix of squat, lookout, and computer
(five, counting virtual) in rooms wallpapered with a hubs for running the whole operation.
branded strata of peeling paint, corporate
To some, taking the towers is about getting a
sponsorship posters and Unity Party pamphlets
decent meal for their kids. For others, it's about
doesn't lessen attendance.
drawing a line against gentrification, telling the
After hours, GCPS.2501 also offers electives in corporations to go no further. For many, it's just
everything from civics, Orbital linguistics and about building a giant middle finger against IM-X in
journalism to self-defense and “null-gee” athletics. their backyard.
Yet more after-hours sees the workshops converted
The challenge hasn't gone unnoticed, and there are
to grey-market cybernetics repair and
rumors that Quade (p. 357) is putting together a
programming labs, to jailbreaking seminars and AI
force of private police bristling with miltech to
rights advocacy meetups.
break the occupation of the towers. Whether or not
this is true, there's no question that the community
could use some help.

Setting 225
 The Java Chip What really sets Love Machines apart from the rest,
though, is that it's not what it seems. The owner of
by Nevyn Holmes
Love Machines, a human woman called Madam
On the corner of Bit Road and Byte Drive is a Pleasance, is a sympathizer for android rights—and
friendly local internet café, The Java Chip. On the a front. The brothel is secretly run by the android
surface, it's a place to hang out, read something, sex workers themselves; mainly Lilim and Adams
work on something, and rent some time on the net who work as escorts and entertainers, but also a
in a safe environment for all. Beneath that, though? few Labors who work in support and security roles.
I mean, literally, beneath the surface, under the The cover of the brothel gives the androids a higher
ground and in the back of the shop is a guerilla level of personal freedom and autonomy.
group of doctors, activists, and technicians who
They're also collecting blackmail material on the
work to bring medication, cybernetic implants, and
prominent corporate executives, politicians, and
other treatments to those in need—those with less
influencers who patronize them. They intend to
than "the right amount" of cash.
turn this into political pressure to support pro-
The implants aren't always legal, and are very android policies in the next election, and maybe
rarely registered properly, and the meds aren't finally see more real freedom from the Cartel for
always name-brand, but they work and they're their fellow synthetics.
available here to whoever truly needs them.
They have a handful of modified vending machines Nueva Rosa
hidden around the station—nondescript beverage
dispensers capable of secretly dispensing some of
Branch Library
by Amaranth Mantis
the prescription meds and small implants to a
secret compartment beneath the dispenser slot. All Forget seedy bars, back alleyways or sketchy darknet
a buyer needs to know is the correct code to input servers. If you're in Nueva Rosa and you want to plan
using the drink selection buttons and the an action, make contacts, or scope out a job before
transaction is made. These machines are identified you commit, you can't do better than the branch
through small, blended-in QR codes. They are library. I am 100% serious. The librarians here are
working to expand the reach of these machines. comrades to an individual. I'm not sure what stars
aligned to make that happen, but this place is the
The Java Chip has nothing but the best in mind for
best exception I know to the rule that hoping for
its community, and the division of what little profit
institutional change from within is a mug's game.
is made from this shows that: a small piece of it
goes to community assistance, some goes to Let me count the ways: first, obviously, you have
running the café, and the rest is laundered and goes information, whether digital copies or print-on-
directly to a small resistance cell. demand. (Technically, as a matter of copyright law, all
materials are required to print on smart stock that
Love Machines self-destructs if overdue, but in practice there are
security holes in the protection software and they're
by Scott C. Bourgeois
big enough to punt Jupiter through.) The reference
It's easy for androids to be exploited. They can be collection holds some incredibly detailed information
forced into jobs they might not otherwise choose, as about the construction, layout and history of Grand
they have limited options outside of corporate work, Cross—including a lot of things you'd be surprised to
and a lot of money can be made off them—after all, learn were ever made publicly available.
androids have a high initial cost but much lower
Second are the onsite facilities, including a tool
upkeep than a human and can withstand more abuse.
library, hosted skillshares, and private meeting
Plus, android brothels don't tend to draw the ire rooms, free to reserve. I would never impugn the
real brothels do from society's handwringers and good name of our public servants by suggesting
pearl-clutchers. Love Machines is one of a number that they've been known to harbor people on the
of legal, licensed android brothels tucked away in run from security without asking questions, or even
the vice sectors of Grand Cross; what the ignorant let them crash after hours.
would derogatorily refer to as an "Android Sex
I will however say that the staff are big on privacy—
Dungeon." However, it's not some filthy den of
not only do they pointedly refuse to keep lasting
iniquity. Love Machines is clean, tasteful, and most
records of what you've reserved (meaning they
importantly, discreet.

226 Setting
 Gazetteer

can't rat you out to the authorities even if for some

reason they wanted to), their security cameras and
The People's
snoopware also have a way of failing at the most Clinic
convenient times. by Jussi Marttila
All of this attracts exactly the kind of clientele you She calls herself Jackdaw Gonzo, since she has left
might expect, which has led to some serious her old name back on silly old Earth. She used to be
pushback from the powers that be. Y'see, Nueva Rosa a veterinarian back there, or as she calls it, a horse
went hard for the Union in the last election, and it's doctor. But with healthcare and decent meds being
an open secret that Unity would love nothing more harder and harder to get on account of the
than an excuse to shut the place down. In the last corporations taking over the public health care on
couple of years, they've gone from bureaucratic and the Cross, people still need treatment.
obstructionist to outright hostile: cutting funding,
Jackdaw runs The People's Clinic, a highly mobile
cutting hours, refusing new hires, Kafkaesque
operation that keeps moving constantly to avoid
administrative review—whatever they think they can
law enforcement or regulatory action against it.
get away with. The head librarian, Martel Robinson,
One day it might be in the storeroom of a hat shop,
toes the line publicly, but even he'll acknowledge
another day it might be operating in the break
that it's basically straight-up sabotage.
room at a fast food restaurant, or a shipping
In conclusion: support your local library! container forgotten in some airlock. Her crew
consists of herself, a former pediatrician called Peru
Plato's Cave and a large number of hangers-on from anarchist
circles who volunteer to ferry the medical gear
by Michael Elliott
around covertly, run errands, and occasionally
Plato’s Cave is a multi-floor arcade full of vintage smash heads in when the Clinic is threatened.
video game cabinets and old media, all hauled up
The Clinic never stays put for more than a couple of
onto Grand Cross for no small expense by an ex-
days: just enough time so the word gets out and the
Cartel suit known as Xena Salt. The Cave features
right people find them, but never for so long that
other entertainment such as cult classic films
the regulatory authorities might find them.
playing on old televisions hanging in the corners of
the arcade. There's also a fully stocked bar with The Clinic is usually short on everything, but never
cheap drinks and terrible food. turns down a patient and never asks for payment—
unless the patient happens to be a fascist. Jackdaw
Xena Salt lives in a small apartment above the
ain't got time for treating fascists. The Clinic
arcade. Rumor is that she blew all her money on
subsists on donations from their patients and the
putting Plato's Cave together after she left the
communities they serve. Most of the donations go
Cartel. She manages the arcade, runs the bar, and
into acquiring meds off the black market.
can often be seen playing in high-stakes money
Occasionally, Jackdaw does side gigs for various
matches and defending her ludicrous high scores
organized crime figures who have practical issues
from would-be challengers.
with getting shot frequently and being unable to go
Plato's Cave is a popular hangout, both for its to a real doctor. She does the best she can, takes
throw-back entertainment and as a source of juicy their money, and uses it to fund the clinic.
gossip and useful intel. Cartel suits show up every
once in a while, some still friendly with Xena, others
to occasionally remind her of her ironclad non-
disclosure agreements, and some to fight with her
about the fuzzy intellectual property laws of her
massive collection.
Plato's Cave could be a nice local haunt or a resource
for useful information. Xena would happily give
something up if you help complete her collection or
get some lawyers off her back. She may even turn a
blind eye if you need a discreet word with one of her
regulars or need to lay low for a while.

Setting 227
228
2 Setting
2
 Home Directory

CHAPTER 7:
HOME DIRECTORY
“There are three secrets to success in the corporate world. Number one is never read a book
about the secrets to success, because they won't tell you what you need to know, which is that the
second secret is to start with a lot of money. That's both of us; so far so good. What you need now is
the third secret.
"If something goes wrong—and something always goes wrong—blame somebody. Immediately
blame somebody. Anybody. Doesn't matter.
"There are almost five million people in this overblown tin can. Statistically, at least one of them
must be ratfucking you. You just don't know it yet, and they don't either, which is why you have to
tell them as loudly as possible.
"Friends. Coworkers. Underlings. Probably not your boss, unless sticking a knife in his back will
work out for you. Activists, they’re a good one. Androids, Singularists, some guy who sold you coffee.
It does. Not. Matter. What matters is that it's their fault and not yours.
"Gaze upon the grand tapestry of human society and pull a loose thread. Open your book of names
to a random page and pick one. Blame the first person you see. It never fails. Trust me."
― Greg Adams-Bass, Omnidyne executive

This chapter is a dossier of various factions, side characters, and other

encounters in Grand Cross. These can be used as plot hooks, inspiration for PCs,
mid-game encounters, or just background flavor. How you use them is up to you.
This chapter is split into the following sections:
• Factions: The Offworld Cartel, important political and criminal groups, antag-
onists like the Singularists and the New Barons, other corporations, example
factions PCs could be a part of, and miscellaneous smaller groups.
• Faces of Space: Side characters mentioned in Chapter 6: Location Data.
• Encounters: Characters intended to be used as needed by the GM, either as
opposition for the PCs or as a general-purpose ally.
• Dreamers: The Dreamers themselves, plus side characters connected to them
for use in Dreamer campaigns.
If you'd like advice on making your own characters, see Chapter 8: Running the
Game on p. 320-323.

Setting 229
 The Offworld Cartel
The biggest Cartel members. Many are relative newcomers in the corporate world who formed or rose to
prominence as a result of the Impact.

Archon Assets
Business: Banking, Futures, Insurance, Investment.
Archon is the economic heart of the Cartel. They're
the primary lender of most Cartel members and
give them financial advice too. Ostensibly they're
independent, but the major Cartel members own
stakes in Archon and most of its directors come
from other corps.
Though they're owed large debts by several Cartel
members, Archon prefers to go easy on their allies.
This is partly because they're invested in the
Cartel's success, but also partly because they don't
Assets
want people asking too many questions about their
Archon's headquarters is a tower in the Central
activities.
district, an old-fashioned place with the kind of
understated look that says, “if you don't already
Background know how much this place is worth, you don't
Archon is a financial institution formed by a merger
belong here.” They have smaller banks in every
of several pre-Impact banks. It rose to prominence
ward for dealing with the peasants.
quickly thanks to its position in the relatively
untouched African region, early adoption of new Archon has a smaller tower in Artemis, which is
technologies, and some extremely clever (or at least used as a training ground for promising young
lucky) investments in other post-Impact corps. Some executives. They also maintain a presence on Earth,
of these corporations went on to found the Cartel, particularly Africa; their holdings elsewhere in the
and Archon was invited to join them. world tend to be used as a dumping ground for old
or disappointing executives.
Archon doesn't just deal with the Cartel, however;
they often invest in and nurture promising young
Culture
corporations, sponsoring about a third of their Cartel
Archon tries to project the image of a forward-
membership applications. Archon taking you under
thinking corporation that makes investments,
its wing carries a lot of weight with the Cartel.
adopts technologies, and accepts people long
Behind the scenes, Archon has also been shifting before everyone else thinks they're cool. This
dirty money for criminal groups. They're not exactly usually means pink capitalism and funding
rolling out the red carpet, they just carefully avoid startups. (Around the start of 2020, they started
looking into shady accounts and transactions in painting rainbows on their ATMs.)
case they see something that'd force them to stop
Behind the scenes, Archon is a demanding work
the money flowing. If they looked, they'd see their
environment. Employees are told that they're the
Hotel Melbourne's favorite bank.
most important people in the Cartel and are
Archon prides itself on dealing with people from all expected to think ahead before taking major
walks of life (provided they have money), and many actions. The company's President Leke Afolayan
Crossers have Archon accounts. Regular folks who (p. 246) is big on simulations, predictions, and
work with Archon sometimes get charged fake fees, modelling; his current pet project is the
given subpar advice, or aggressively sold on plans development of a new division that can constantly
they don't need. It's nothing personal; just business. run and adjust simulations of the orbital economy.

230 Setting
 Home Directory

Asano Heavy
Industries
Business: Construction, Habitat Systems, Orbital
Engineering, Mining.
Asano is an engineering firm that handles
everything from prefabricated housing and
modular buildings to habitat and satellite
construction. They're still partly Earth-based—they
have several contracts with the Japanese
government—but they've moved to Grand Cross to
take advantage of an opening. Asano were openly
invited to the Cartel as a replacement for
Landvættir Orbital, and they haven't even bothered
Assets
waiting for the body to cool.
Asano's greatest asset is their Lunar base Inaba,
Asano fosters a public reputation as a progressive where most of their manufacturing takes place.
family business, but it's mostly an excuse to justify Tadashi has moved its headquarters to the Asano
the same predatory management practices as Building in Armitage (p. 156). Their robotics facilities
everyone else. It's run by the Asano family, whose have been transferred to the nearby outer hull too.
members absolutely hate each other.
Asano has formed or taken over a number of
subsidiary companies in the last ten years—Hide
Background did it to give his children something to do, Tadashi
Japan's recovery from the Lost Decade was fueled
does it to keep his family busy. The Asanos who
in part by the research boom and a foray into space
have no interest in feuding stayed behind to head
construction. At the time, Asano Heavy Industries
their Japan branch.
was a successful but small construction and
robotics firm run by Hide Asano and his children.
Culture
Asano's initial post-Impact successes came from From the rounded edges of their logo (a stylized
designs and blueprints that were used by others: Stanford torus) to the photos of Hide's wedding
3D-printable Lunar building designs, asteroid- plastered in their lobbies, Asano does their best to
mining robots, solar-sail scouting drones, and so project the image of a friendly corporation where
on. During Hide's reign, Asano went from designing employees are family. They even limit overtime.
things to making them themselves; when he retired
Unfortunately, Asano uses their "family" culture to
five years ago, they were already the third biggest
heavily encourage after-work socializing, doing
construction corporation on Luna.
extra overtime under the table, and refusing time
Hide had a lot of children, so one could inherit the off (to spend more time with your "family.")
business. He passed over the women because he Workplace bullying and games of office politics are
assumed they’d want to raise kids instead; Makoto common, as a lot of middle managers copy the
because he reminded Hide of his first relationship; Asanos. It's a very high-pressure workplace. Rather
Seigo for trying to sabotage the others (and more than fix it, the Asanos spend a lot on PR trying to
importantly, getting caught); and Jun for rubbing portray dysfunctional families as normal.
Hide's favorite client the wrong way. That left his
youngest son, Tadashi Asano (p. 246).
Tadashi has been transitioning Asano to orbit and
giving important positions to his own adult sons in an
effort to consolidate his power. Unfortunately for him,
his extended family came to space with him. They've
been feuding for control of the company since.

Setting 231
 Geryon
Aerospace
Business: Logistics, Shipping, Software,
Transportation.
Geryon is a tech startup success story. They began
only a year ago as a few guys and a supply chain
program; when it took off, they were quickly
brought into the Cartel by their investors. They've
taken over a lot of Grand Cross' public transport
infrastructure, and with it many of the levers that
control the city.
Like most tech startups, Geryon's business model
relies on bluster and exploitation: they oversell the Geryon controls most of the Cross Rail lines on the
effectiveness of their programs while destroying the Verne panel and the front end of the other panels,
transport sector until they can take it over. Their end except for the major high-traffic Downtown-only
goal is to control interplanetary transport, though it's lines. Their mismanagement has caused delays
unclear whether they'll last that long. across the network and burdened the Grand Metro
as people started taking the subway for longer
Background trips. Geryon blames it on the public sector.
When the US started offering cash incentives to
Outside Grand Cross, Geryon is still working on
space-based businesses who worked with them,
their interplanetary transport dreams. They have an
Silicon Valley started tossing piles of money at any
office on Luna, an orbital shipping side-business,
startup with a space-related idea and a halfway
and a significant stake in an automated orbital
decent plan for how to get there1. Geryon’s
debris removal business.
founders were lured by the promise of cash and
cheap space tickets.
Culture
Once in space, Geryon signed an under-the-table Geryon is still stuffed with funding, so they have
agreement with Unity minister Jimmy Bachmann one of those weird offices with fun architecture, a
(p. 109) that secured them a sweet deal on most of massage room, a slide, and an arcade—all features
the Cross Rail network. Geryon is certain that made to distract employees while their bosses take
through running Grand Cross transport, they can away simpler things like job security, benefits, and
build the reputation and capital they'll need to run upward mobility.
solar system transport. The fact that they had to
In true Silicon Valley fashion, most of their founders
hastily retrofit their code to the Cross Rail is a detail
and investors cashed out and bailed when the
they can deal with later.
Cartel snapped them up. The remaining
corporation is run by Trip Briggs (p. 247), the
Assets remaining founder. Trip is an idealist who stayed
Geryon's main asset is their software: a popular
behind because he thought trying for something as
suite of tools for space travel and logistics. Their
grand as an interplanetary monopoly was worth it,
headquarters lie in the top levels of a tower in
no matter how slim his chances.
Turing ward.

1 In some cases, like the infamous

SpaceJuice, just putting "space" in your
name is enough.

232 Setting
 Home Directory

Goliath Inc.
Business: Law enforcement, security.
Goliath are the Cartel's go-to private security
force, the best of the best. They've also made a
name for themselves in private policing—in some
districts, they've taken over some or all law
enforcement functions.
Goliath shares the Offworld Cartel's dream of owning
space. Their current goal is to build their reputation
so that when it comes time to settle Mars, they can
bid for the whole planet's law enforcement sector.
Goliath's founder, Barlow Hawthorn (p. 248), will be
arrested if he ever returns to Earth.
Assets
Goliath's HQ is an unassuming building in Harbou's
Background park ward, with a few training facilities in the
Barlow and his men—Barlow’s Boys—were once
basement. They own smaller offices across the
members of the Australian Defence Force, deployed
station, which they mostly use as storage facilities
to help the US with its post-Impact operations.
or temporary bases depending on what they've
Eventually they left the ADF, signed on with a
been hired for. They have a similar setup in Artemis.
better-paying PMC, and served another tour or two
before retiring to Artemis. A lot of Goliath's recruits are ex-military or ex-cops
from Earth, hired with work contracts and housed
According to whistleblowers, Barlow's Boys were
in some simple apartments in a forgotten corner of
implicated in war crimes. Both times, the Boys were
Backtown. The Boys own lavish apartments
"encouraged" to leave before word got out. The
Downtown.
second time, they fled to the Lunar city Artemis.
Barlow founded Goliath to give himself and his men
Culture
a way to get paid for their talents, and in orbit, their
Goliath's internal culture is pretty standard "last
experience and loyalty quickly took them to the top.
line of defense between order and chaos" cop
When the whistleblowers came out, it caused a rhetoric. Words like "honor" and "loyalty" and
minor international scandal. That's when the Cartel deep-sounding phrases borrowed from Earth
approached Barlow with an offer: become the militaries come up a lot. Loyalty in particular is a
Cartel's official guards and they'd use their big one for Barlow, who promises severe
influence to keep his team from being extradited. punishments for whistleblowers.
He accepted.

Setting 233
 Hergatz Liao
GmbH
Business: Drugs, Genetics, Pharmaceuticals,
Cybernetics.
This multinational corporation supplies much of
the station's health needs, from medicines to
medical implants to treatments for space illnesses.
Hergatz Liao is a sprawling monster of a company,
the result of generations of mergers and shifts in
focus. Every incarnation has been run by the Liao
family, and the current one is headed by Trilobite
Liao (p. 248).
Assets
Background Even if you only count the healthcare part, Hergatz
The history of Hergatz Liao is long and murky. Its
Liao is a sprawling company. They own the Liao
original incarnation was technically a Hong Kong
Tower (p. 152) in Chang'e, a hospital on the Tezuka
restaurant in the nineteenth century, but the Liao
panel, a facility on Luna, and some space in the Shaft.
family changed their business every generation or
Tril also brought a few non-healthcare subsidiaries to
two when someone new took over.
space for reasons he's never explained.
In the 20th century they underwent a number of
The corporation's other businesses are still active
mergers and splits—within the business and the
on Earth. (A lot of new migrants have a "Hergatz
family—until they owned a lot of small companies
Liao? Aren't they the makeup people?" moment
in many different fields. Post-Impact, most of these
shortly after they move here.) Tril is content to
re-merged into the Liao Conglomerate. The rest
delegate their management to other people as long
were left to fend for themselves, the most
as they turn profits.
successful of these being Hergatz Liao, a cosmetics
company owned by Terry Liao.
Culture
Terry had been left out of the Conglomerate after Hergatz Liao is infamous for devising permanent
demanding rulership. With his remaining treatments for ailments and selling them at
Conglomerate shares, corporate espionage, and a markups that keep them out of reach for most
few bribes, he managed to conquer most of the people, all to push poorer customers onto
remaining Liao businesses and merge with non- temporary treatments or invasive cybernetics
Liaos to become a multinational corporation. His instead. The official line is that they need the
goal was revenge on the Liao Conglomerate, but he money to invent more cures. If you still can't
suffered a heart attack in 2009 before he achieved it. rationalize that, you shouldn't work here.
Since then, his son Trilobite has run the show. Tril Tril is a paranoid bastard, so he keeps the
was more interested in human enhancement than corporation's internal affairs as secret as possible.
revenge, so he decided to take the corporation's Sometimes even knowing what's going on in
healthcare division to space. His money and the another division has a clearance level. The lowest
tricks he learned from his father have turned Hergatz workers have a very skewed idea of what Hergatz
Liao into the station's premier healthcare company. Liao does or what effect their work has.

234 Setting
 Home Directory

Landvaettir
Orbital
Business: Construction, Maintenance, Orbital
Engineering.
This Icelandic company used to be the face of habitat
construction before they became the face of the
biggest space disaster in history. Landvættir is on the
edge of oblivion and appear to be hanging on out of
spite: other corporations do heinous things on
purpose and get away with it, so why shouldn't they?
Landvættir's remaining executives can't settle on a
game plan, but they've got a few on hand. Plan A is
bribing politicians to help reduce the consequences Burgur was allowed a chance to make a comeback
they suffer. Some executives are even considering though. He's currently working to rebuild
blackmailing the Cartel with what they know of the confidence, find some new backers, and maybe
Dreamer project. grease a few palms to get Unity off his back. He's
only ever failed upwards his whole life, and he has
Background no plans to stop now.
Landvættir was founded by Burgur Griðungsson
(p. 248), who rose to prominence in the 2000s as one Assets
of the "útrásarvíkingar." These "venture Vikings" Landvættir's Grand Cross headquarters lies on the
were nationalistic venture capitalists who relied on Harbou panel, outside Downtown. The Cartel has
the mystique and privilege afforded to them by assigned them some Goliath security, because they
virtue of being Icelandic (i.e. white and Nordic) to a don't want anyone getting ideas about attacking
ruthless degree, including in home politics. Cartel members who have it coming. They had a
few other facilities around the station, but most lie
Most of the venture Vikings were taken out by the
abandoned or mothballed. Burgur has supposedly
Icelandic financial crisis of the late 00s, but Burgur
recruited a crack PR team to help.
got lucky. Landvættir was his pet project, and he'd
already taken it to space with backing from a few They do still have the construction contracts they
Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who responded really signed before the Disaster. Landvættir is behind
well to the "white" thing. Landvættir became a big because Burgur diverted resources and manpower
player in station construction, and the Cartel to Skuggahvarf, but he's starting to catch up
eagerly recruited Burgur. through clever use of work contracts. Right now, his
odds of finishing before the company goes under
With their backing and a little Nordic charm, Burgur
are about 50/50.
was able to secure a contract to build Skuggahvarf.
What happened next (p. 130) was a comeuppance
Culture
he couldn't dodge.
Morale is down. The bosses directly responsible for
According to Burgur, he'd delegated Skuggahvarf to the Disaster have departed the company. Burgur
some trusted subordinates and his mistake was not has mostly stayed because Landvættir is his baby,
taking a more active role. The Cartel was not happy and if it fails it's unlikely to bankrupt him. So far, the
with this explanation2, and hit Landvættir with consequences have mostly fallen on workers who
sanctions that limited Burgur's Cartel influence and have been laid off en masse as the company
allowed them to openly recruit Asano as a shrinks. Some have quit or were poached by Asano.
replacement.

2 It didn't work for the other venture

Vikings either.

Setting 235
 Morningstar
Corporation
Business: Entertainment, Media, News.
Morningstar is the station's biggest name in
entertainment. If it can amuse you, they do it, whether
it's advertising, streaming, news, idols, or weirder
formats. They're quick to embrace emerging media,
though they're still best known for their news channels.
Though they present themselves as being neutral or
even progressive on most matters, Morningstar are
the Cartel's propaganda arm. They'll allow mild anti-
Cartel viewpoints if they're not a threat or they can
present the other side for "balance"; really anti-Cartel Assets
viewpoints get destroyed, if they get an airing at all. Morningstar own two of the station's big news
services, Grand Cross 24 (the "neutral" one) and
Background One Orbit Network (the obviously pro-Unity one).
Morningstar was founded in the early years of orbital Both are run from their headquarters, the
settlement by Maximilian Fiddler (p. 247), a Morningstar Tower in Voyager's Venera district.
European media consultant. His goal was to tap into
They have assets in pretty much every media and
this new unexplored market and seize control before
entertainment industry. Morningstar has a PR firm, a
anyone else—mostly for money, but getting to decide
record company, a television production company,
what people were told to think was a nice bonus.
digital newspapers, a talent agency, a virtual idol
Max had a lot of backers. Cartel members, talent agency, a YourTube production company, and
European politicians, American entrepreneurs, more. Morningstar has so many branches they're
conservative think tanks, and more all poured actually considering splitting the company into two;
money into his project, sometimes in ways that it depends on who wins the election and what
made it hard to trace back to them. All of them had antitrust laws will look like in a few years.
views that were some flavor of conservative,
capitalist, or authoritarian—according to Culture
investigative reporting, he explicitly pitched it to Morningstar runs on a rigid hierarchy. The people at
them as a propaganda arm of the corporate world. the top decide what today's messaging is and pass
their orders down the chain; the bosses further
In the mid-10s, Max made a mistake. Rival stations
down do their best to toe the company line. It's
had started to appear in orbit, and the Grand Cross
especially noticeable in the corporation's news
Broadcasting Corporation picked up an Earth news
arm, where the angle of almost every story is
story about Morningstar's backers. Max got mad. He
carefully micromanaged.
started pitching radical changes to orbital media,
including shuttering GCBC and giving him control of The other divisions try to present themselves as a
all Earth news broadcasts. The publish backlash was looser, more "fun" place, where artists get creative
so harsh the government shot them all down, even freedom to do what they like without managers
the ones his backers were hoping to ease them into. getting in the way. This is a fantasy, though—
Morningstar just gives them a little more slack
After that, Max decided to quit while he was ahead.
because they're just making entertainment, and
He stepped down as CEO of Morningstar and
people likely to seriously threaten their messaging
switched to running its PR division, a role which let
never get hired in the first place.
him avoid the spotlight for a few years. The act did
not meaningfully change Morningstar's aims or
methods in any way.

236 Setting
 Home Directory

NanoFuturistics
Business: Agritech, Hydroponics, Data Harvesting,
Pharmaceuticals, Urban Greening.
NanoFuturistics supplies a lot of orbital food. Over
a third of everything eaten in space was either
made by them or with their tech. They also do a lot
of urban greening—their handiwork can be seen in
the central wards, the smaller parks in the other
wards, and green buildings all over Grand Cross.
They dabble in a lot of side projects and turn one
into a big new business a few times a decade. Their
latest push is into surveillance: they've combined
their urban greening projects with new sensors to
Assets
gather marketing data for other corporations and
NanoFuturistics' HQ is the GreenSpace tower
law enforcement.
(p. 148) in Central. The spot was chosen for proximity
to the Agriculture Ring, which they own 11 cylinders
Background of. The side-projects mostly happen in "outposts,"
NanoFuturistics was founded shortly after the Impact
offices specifically designed for their experiments.
by a consortium of European businessmen with a
simple vision of the future: they believed the Impact Their urban greening work is spread throughout the
would destroy the environment, people would station on the buildings of client companies and in
retreat into fortified cities, and whoever controlled districts Unity contracted them for. The newer ones
the remaining food supplies would rule like kings. (and the older ones they could get away with
retrofitting) are covertly lined with sensors. It's
Things didn't pan out that way, but in the last
unlikely they'll get enough station coverage to get a
decade or so some Earth governments and
full picture, but they have some interesting patches.
megacorporations have started building arcologies:
densely populated structures designed to minimize NanoFuturistics still have operations on Earth, but
human impact on the surrounding ecosystems. since the corporation joined the Cartel they've mostly
When the designers started wondering what to do been for experimentation and seed collection.
about food, NanoFuturistics was there.
Culture
As the company's fortunes turned around, some of
NanoFuturistics' message is pretty standard for a
its backers pushed it to go to space, where they
"green" company: they're environmentally-friendly,
could at least rule a space station or two. However,
so by buying their products you can feel like you're
while NanoFuturistics got plenty of urban greening
doing your part and not have to think about, say,
contracts, they struggled to secure territory in the
the fact that most greenhouse gas emissions come
Agriculture Ring thanks to a rival named Farmclave.
from around 100 companies, just 20 are responsible
In their hour of need, the Offworld Cartel appeared for more than a third, and the people who run
with a tempting offer: Farmclave in exchange for those companies have names and addresses.
Cartel membership and shares in the company.
Their saving-the-environment messaging is turned
NanoFuturistics agreed. Cartel investors entered
inward, too. Employees are encouraged to believe
the company and pushed NanoFuturistics to try
that everything they do—including the Panopticon
new things in search of profit, urging to boost their
Project—betters the world in some way, and dissent
surveillance division.
is discouraged. Ex-employees describe the
atmosphere as cult-like.

Setting 237
 Ogremoch
Engineering
Business: Chemicals, Energy, Industrial
Manufacturing, Mining.
Ogremoch is an industrial giant. Their business is
turning the solar system into materials and energy,
one asteroid at a time.
They've stubbornly retained their old-school ways,
despite more agile corporations nipping at their
heels and the rest of the Cartel begging them to
update their systems. Union-busting, wage theft,
and android exploitation are rife within the
company, and they're aggressively automating as Assets
many jobs as possible to avoid having workers that Ogremoch's HQ is in Voyager, but many of their
need paying in the first place. divisions are spread across the station: the divisions
that benefit from outer hull access in
Background Hammarskjöld, the energy division in Backtown,
The core of Ogremoch is a merger of old European and so on. These aren't all connected well, so it's
industrial corporations. The founders banded likely Ogremoch has a few forgotten offices in a
together for survival in the wake of the Impact; corner somewhere.
others joined them later when they failed to stop
On Grand Cross, Ogremoch currently controls the
(or privatize) the EU's solar energy program.
power grid in a third of the station, the solar
Ogremoch invested heavily in the space rush. The collectors at both ends, and a significant chunk of
solar system was full of resources, and when you the outer hull factories. Outside Grand Cross they
measured its value not in how many people it could have a small fleet of drones and ships harvesting
support but how much money you could make, materials for them. Unlike many Cartel members,
leaving Earth was the clear option. The only they don't have much of a presence on Luna thanks
problem was that there was so much it was to an unspoken truce with Shackleton.
impossible to grab everything before anyone else
could. Ogremoch had a lot of competition (a lot of Culture
which comes from Shackleton Proprietary, who Ogremoch is old-school and still does things like
have the Lunar mining sector locked down.) their ancestors did in the 80s and 90s wherever
possible. They would still have paper-heavy offices
Grand Cross changed that. A few government bribes
and Apple IIs if they could. They do still use rows of
and cushy post-politics consultant jobs was all it
cubicles, rounds of layoffs, android exploitation,
took for Ogremoch to get tapped to help build the
and the glass ceiling. Some of the bosses have
station, and they helped found the Cartel to keep
somehow gotten hold of fax machines. The only
their rivals out. They passed Unity a few more
future technology they've truly embraced is
bribes to get a significant stake in the station's
automation because the idea of not having to pay
energy sector. To them, this is just the prelude to
workers is just too juicy to ignore.
something bigger. Ogremoch isn't stopping until
they control the solar system's entire supply. Upper management are all about control and
hierarchy. Externally, they want to control what
price people have to pay for metals and energy.
Internally, doing a good job is rarely as important as
following schedules and not criticizing your boss.
The best way to annoy Ogremoch is to disrupt their
plans, even minorly.

238 Setting
 Home Directory

Omnidyne
Systems
Business: Robotics, Vehicles, Military Technology
Omnidyne makes and imports machines, including
motorcycles, drones, cybernetics, and weapons.
They're a world leader in robotics—not androids,
but automation and limited AI. Omnidyne wants
their robots to run as much of society as possible,
though their plan to automate the private security
industry with enforcement droids has been met
with resistance from Goliath.
Omnidyne lobbying is infamously responsible for
the station's loosened gun laws. If you think there's Assets
not much need for guns in space, you'd be one Omnidyne's headquarters are the Delta St Towers
hundred percent correct, but Omnidyne has (p. 148) in Central district. They have a few stores
convinced people otherwise so they can make more scattered throughout the station, but most of their
money. Besides law enforcement, they mostly tech is sold through third parties. Their
supply to Americans, the action movie industry, manufacturing facilities are split between Luna and
and "private collectors" who are in no way affiliated the outer hull, with some already mostly automated.
with organized crime.
Omnidyne is still active on Earth, though they no
longer work (directly) for the military. Their Earth
Background assets are concentrated in the US, Australia, and
Omnidyne began as one of the many robotics
China. Omnidyne tends to take a neutral stance on
companies that sprung up during the research
Earth–orbit relations to avoid jeopardizing either
boom, hoping to be the one to crack the secret of
half of their business.
artificial general intelligence and make trillions of
dollars.
Culture
In the end, they weren't even close. However, their Omnidyne's attitude is still heavily influenced by
failed attempts taught them a lot about regular AI their military drone years, where not thinking about
and robotics. Omnidyne pivoted into robotics and how you were designing murder machines was
android frames, finding that they were much better vital. They present their work as a blueprint for the
at working with hardware than software. future: one day everything will be automated and
mankind will be free. Freedom is paramount,
Omnidyne wound up designing drones for the US
especially the freedom to do what you like with
military. With the small fortune that earned them,
your Omnidyne products.
they acquired several businesses in adjacent
industries—vehicles, weapons, then cybernetics These statements are ultimately hollow, because
and orbital construction. Construction took off what Omnidyne really wants is to profit without
surprisingly fast, and Omnidyne discovered a big thinking about the harm their products cause or the
orbital market for their work. ramifications of putting people out of work in a
capitalist system.
Some of Omnidyne's investors had already pivoted
to the Cartel, and the corporation was pressed to Omnidyne has recently started thinking about law
join them. Eventually they brokered a deal in which enforcement and how much of it they can automate
Omnidyne joined the Cartel but retained their Earth with drones. Their ideas are popular with the
assets in exchange for selling some of their Station Police Service, who always want more shiny
construction business. toys, but they're getting a lot of pushback from the
private security sector.

Setting 239
 Pulser
Incorporated
Business: Social Media
Pulser is a social media network and microblogging
service that rivals even HeoCities in popularity3. It
was originally designed for orbital people to share
news between settlements, but its use has spread
across Earth too. Pulser's ubiquity and ease of use
make it an essential tool for spreading news and
information to millions, so it's no wonder the Cartel
snapped it up.
Pulser is not managed very well, and the Cartel
threaten to sanction them if the rules are applied to Assets
Cartel-friendly groups too often. As a result, Pulser Pulser's primary asset is its network. It's used by
is a hot mess of a website where you're just as likely over half of all orbital citizens, plus hundreds of
to get the news as you are to learn about how the millions more people from Earth. Someone who
"round Earth" is a Russian psyop. knows what they're doing can reach an
unprecedented amount of people at once. The
Background Cartel uses it to influence how Earthers see orbit,
Pulser was created in the 00s by Antony Pilgrim Unity uses it to change public opinion, and groups
(p. 249), then a lowly coder in a Californian tech like the New Barons (p. 267) use it to recruit. Pulser
company. Pulser was originally intended as a way has rules in place to limit this sort of thing but
for different research groups (especially in the AI they're toothless about enforcing them.
sphere) to coordinate and trade notes, so they
Pulser's headquarters lies in the top floors of a
could better humanity faster. The code was based
tower in Turing. It has a pretty nice rooftop park, a
on an earlier site he made in college for amateur
very open design, and some of the tightest digital
erotic sci-fi authors.
security in Grand Cross.
The site didn't really take off, but the code worked
well, and Pilgrim teamed up with some coworkers Culture
to repurpose it into an orbital social media For the most part, Pulser has a standard tech
network. A lot of its early success came down to an company culture. The environment is casual, the
investor, Endymion Lucky (p. 158), who not only perks are many and often unnecessary, and the job
managed to get the ISS to start using it but got security is MIA.
them even more publicity by unknowingly posting
The part that gets people is Pilgrim. Pilgrim does
his final message there.
his best to make Pulser a great place to work, but
Pulser use spread across orbit, then filtered back to he's also a deeply, sometimes bafflingly spiritual
Earth as Earthers gained a taste for orbital news. man with a habit of disappearing for days at a time.
When rumors spread that an Earth company was Between bosses trying to fill in for him and the odd
looking to acquire it, Pulser was lifted into the consultants and spiritual advisors he tends to bring
Cartel by Josef Diego (p. 251), a tech investor and back with him, Pulser can feel like a chaotic place to
friend of Endymion's. They've exchanged a possible work. Many workers have lost faith in upper
Earth master for a definite orbital one, but Pilgrim management—and when the bosses follow suit,
doesn't care—they're his kind of people. Pilgrim will be in trouble.

3 We're not getting into the details of

Pulser’s appearance and features so you
can just assume it works however you need
it to.

240 Setting
 Home Directory

Tetsuo
Technologies
Business: Consumer Electronics, Cybernetics,
Robotics, Media, Video Games.
If you live in Grand Cross, you probably have at
least one appliance with a Tetsuo logo. You've at
least seen someone with a Tetsuo augment, or
know an android with a Tetsuo-built body or
considered buying the latest Tetsuo Overdrive
console. If it's got electronics in it, they do it.
Though Tetsuo are heavily involved in the android
sector, they're opposed to android rights, as
bringing them up to parity with humans reduces Assets
the amount of labor Tetsuo can extract from them. Tetsuo's HQ is the Tetsuo Complex, which covers
Lately they've been pushing a model they call the entire Shima district in Marukyu. They have
"mutual obligation," where androids are obligated smaller facilities across the station, from the Tetsuo
to work for Tetsuo to "earn" their existence. Annex in Uhuru to manufacturing facilities on the
outer hull. They have their own stores that can be
Background found on every active settlement in orbit.
Tetsuo is the brainchild of Kanemasa Gou (p. 247),
Tetsuo has maintained a presence on Earth, but
its current CEO. It began in the late 80s as the
down there they're eclipsed by Earth-focused
Tetsuo Corporation, one of those IT companies you
companies. Gou has kept his original Japan offices
sometimes see printed on the side of a piece of tech
out of nostalgia—it's a space education facility that
and forget about five minutes later.
mostly brags about Tetsuo's accomplishments to
Tetsuo survived the 90s the old-fashioned way: by children on field trips now.
lasting longer than the competition. Gou made a
habit of buying out companies that didn't survive Culture
the post-Impact paradigm shift, sometimes ones Tetsuo corporate culture is extremely old-
with no obvious connection to his core business, fashioned. They value seniority over ability: the
and merging with them to form Tetsuo longer you work, the higher you get promoted, and
Technologies. merit just puts you on a faster escalator. Everyone is
expected to act friendly with their boss and go out
When the space push arrived, Tetsuo was large
for drinks after work to network. The pay is good if
enough to get in on the action. Gou boosted
you stick around, at least.
Tetsuo's profile further by making forays into
android manufacturing and low-cost cybernetics, Where Tetsuo breaks from the pack is their heavily
which got them tapped as one of the Grand Cross anti-android views, passed down from Gou. They
Project's go-to electronics corps. don't want to get rid of androids, Tetsuo just thinks
they should be working in a factory for no pay. They
By the time Grand Cross opened, Tetsuo dominated
go out of their way to avoid hiring androids (the
the orbital market in almost every field they worked
current coded phrase their recruiters use is that
in. But Gou still wasn't satisfied. He attended
they're looking for "warm hearts,") and their
meetings that set up the Offworld Cartel, making
corporate lobbying has set back android rights years.
Tetsuo a founding member. By forging relationships
with other CEOs and the oligarchs backing them,
Gou has become a serious power player, able to
influence Grand Cross on an unprecedented scale.

Setting 241
 Zinovy
Ultragraphics
Business: Enterprise software, web technology,
advertising.
Zinovy offer a wide range of software and online
services, from office tools to data storage to website
design. Most Grand Cross businesses use their tech,
and they also do specialized work for a few
government offices (including the Department of
Translation.)
Zinovy intentionally designed some of their
services to collect information on people and
places within Grand Cross, which they then sell to Assets
various interested parties. Legally it's pretty Zinovy's greatest asset is their software, which claims
sketchy, but they don't care. Their goal is to have a a huge share of the orbital market. Their recent
dossier on everyone in Grand Cross, whether they acquisition of HeoCities has made it even harder to
use Zinovy or not. avoid them. Zinovy has a few other subsidiaries that
dabble in software fields like android support, drone
Background piloting, and weapons targeting.
Zinovy Ultragraphics was founded in the 90s by
Their headquarters lie in Voyager, but Arty is
Zinovy Morozov, a Russian entrepreneur. Morozov
currently building a bigger, fancier base in Turing.
envisioned a two-in-one software package: a suite
Their old offices in Moscow are Zinovy Morozov's
of business software that was its own antivirus
personal workshop now.
program. He ended up having to split them after all,
but people paid more money that way.
Culture
Morozov's code was good, but he didn't have much Under Zinovy Morozov, things were simple. Zinovy
success until the early years of the research boom. wasn't a social man, but he had clear goals, set
He and his team came up with an excellent line of reasonable deadlines, and gave bonuses liberally to
multiplatform scientific software that was picked up retain talent. Ultimately you were still working for a
by a lot of research outfits, who usually got his other tech corporation, but it was steady work.
software while they were at it. It made him a fortune.
Arty has upended that. Whatever you're doing, he
When the space rush picked up steam, Morozov needs changes and he needs them now. His latest
rushed to get a foot in the door again. He came up ventures (besides surveillance) have mostly been
with software for orbit, including accessible about trying to attract younger, cheaper workers by
astronomy tools and updated versions of his rebranding as a hip startup-culture company, which
science kit. It worked. By 2010, Zinovy software was apparently means ping-pong tables and precarious
the tool of choice for most orbital corps. work. Whether Zinovy is headed for disaster or a
renaissance might depend on what happens in 2020.
In 2014, Morozov stepped down as CEO. He'd
decided he'd had his fun and he was getting old
enough that full-body cyberization looked
tempting. His replacement was his own son, Arty
Morozov (p. 248), who has steered the company
towards data harvesting to boost his own profits.
Zinovy is definitely breaking the law behind the
scenes, but Arty is sure a few more donations to
Unity will fix that.

242 Setting
 Home Directory

Other Corporations
The corporations we've just listed aren't the only game in town.
Here are some smaller ones you might find useful.

Apevert Cross Guard

Business: Advertising. By Scott C. Bourgeois
Business: Law enforcement, security.
A Turing-based guerilla marketing firm run by Rowley
and Anna Kidd, an artist and an SEO expert. Their Polished dark-blue body armor, helmets with
specialty is "socially-conscious" marketing—in other mirrored visors, and a symbol of a downward
words, helping their corporate clients seem thrusting sword: there’s no mistaking the uniform
progressive without actually having to change of Cross Guard, Grand Cross' premier independent
anything about their operations. Apevert occasionally private security group.
appropriates the work of activists and street artists to
While districts relying on Cross Guard do see a sharp
get their message across; they're currently stealing
decrease in crime, it comes at a cost: they're even
the art of Zhao Liu (p. 280) to make some Bepsi ads.
more authoritarian than Goliath, with security
checkpoints, constant monitoring, random invasions
Canopus Cyber of privacy, and brutal crackdowns for minor
Business: Cybernetics, medicine. infractions. District Captains answer only to the
corporate higher-ups, who only care about profit.
Canopus is a Lunar cybernetics corporation that
specializes in helping workers recover from Justice is in short supply where Cross Guard is
accidents and promptly returning them to the concerned. Unlike Goliath, investigation of crime
workforce. They have a reputation for making isn’t something they tend to waste their time on.
simple but effective parts, but also for using Rather, they focus on crime prevention and the
proprietary parts that limit your repair options. enforcement of order. Cross Guard's higher-ups
Most Canopus users didn't select this company— allegedly drive crime into districts where the police
Canopus was chosen for them by their bosses. are underfunded and overworked, to make them
look ineffective, corrupt, and incompetent.
During Grand Cross construction, many Builders who
got cybernetics went through Canopus. Canopus CEO Amelia Inverness is working on increasing
bribed a lot of companies to make this happen—and Cross Guard's reach, with a vision of obtaining
where bosses could choose where to send injured exclusive Grand Cross coverage and then buying her
workers, paid them a bonus for a referral. In many way into the Cartel. This would give her the leverage
cases, Canopus intentionally fitted workers with to expand off-station—perhaps even on Earth. After
high-maintenance or even unnecessary prosthetics all, who doesn’t want to live in an ordered society?
to make extra money off them.
This information is not public knowledge, and Ouroboros
Canopus has been covering it up for years. They've
had the help of the Cartel, whose members took
Cyber S.A.
Business: Probably.
bribes from Canopus. Omnidyne and Tetsuo are
both considering buying Canopus out and being An OEM company that makes and designs electronic
done with them. hardware for other corporations, at least on paper.
Its shareholders are mostly minor oligarchs and
holding companies with no clear owner. It's not
entirely clear how big Ouroboros is, how many
employees they have, or what they actually do.
This is because Ouroboros is used by its owners as a
front to further their own corporate schemes. Who's
using it, how, and whether other divisions are being
used as fronts for other schemes is up to your group.

Setting 243
 RVRE Starry
Business: Games.
Destination
RVRE is the premier video game developer in the
burgeoning new field of virtual reality. VR was one of
Records
Business: Music, Entertainment.
many side-products of the research rush, and RVRE
began as an indie company formed to capitalize on it. A record producer and influencer talent agency run
by the legendary Hayate Jones (p. 249). Its main
RVRE's first game, Flight of Fantasy, was a smash
act is the idol band L5-8 (p. 115), but Hayate has
hit. When they proved it wasn't a fluke with Capax
signed on plenty of musicians, streamers, and
Astra, they were snapped up by a larger publisher.
virtual idols; he especially likes "transmedia" acts
That publisher moved them to Grand Cross, with
that cover multiple platforms. Hayate is a
promises that they could become the industry's
demanding man, however, and some of his stars
first AAAAA company there. In reality, it was just
have quit recently.
legal to exploit them more in space.
Hayate used to work for Morningstar, but hates
These days RVRE is a soul-crushing workplace.
their guts now. Some people (including Space
Incompetent new management means crunch is
Banshee's Telesto) have successfully convinced
the norm, and their games suffer as a result. Most
Hayate to help them for free because it would screw
workers are on exploitative temporary contracts,
Morningstar over.
and those who aren't are burning out. The
company builds hype and hides their issues by
heavily restricting what reviewers can play, say, and Tofu Cannon
show before release. So far RVRE has coasted along Business: Science Education.
on the prestige of their previous releases, but their
A subsidiary of NanoFuturistics that creates
future is up in the air.
educational content and runs educational facilities
to teach kids about space. A lot of schoolchildren
Space Banshee see their work these days—and remember the
Business: Music. corporate branding, of course. They do a lot of work
with influencers.
An indie record company based in Neo Gangnam
(p. 168), founded by the singer-songwriter Telesto. Tofu Cannon's name comes from the fact that
Space Banshee's goal is to take a chance on local NanoFuturistics' Lunar facility is close to a mass
acts the big names overlook; they work with a wide driver. In the mid-10s, people started making "when
range of artists including Breakfast Cult, Duri, Fizzy you're minding your own business and they yeet
Drone (p. 115), and Hed Telly. Morningstar you with the food cannon" memes4; Nano
considers Telesto a competitor and often tries to capitalized on that with an ad campaign about
take them down (or poach their talent) through parties, weddings, the Cretaceous period, and other
underhanded means. gatherings getting blasted from hundreds of
kilometers away with their tofu substitute. They
liked the results so much they bought the
marketing team that came up with it.

4 If you're thinking memes aren't funny

when you're just explaining them,
congratulations: you thought about this
harder than NanoFuturistics did.

244 Setting
 Home Directory

TruCross Clinic Vital Science

by Jayden McKayla Jones Business: Software, industrial tech.
Business: Health. A company working on machines and software for
Martian settlement. Company owner Vital Tremblay
TruCross bills itself as an alternative to the station's
is a Singularist sympathizer who hopes to establish
distrusted and expensive private health industry.
a "science town" on Mars.
While this might have once been true, today they're
a wealthy and powerful corporation with a A software and engineering company focused on
monopoly on the alternative medicine industry. Martian-settlement tech. Vital Science tackles the
potential problems humans might face on Mars:
The Clinic was founded in the early days of Grand
38% Earth gravity; sub-zero temperatures; lack of
Cross to provide practical treatments for injuries,
surface water; a wafer-thin atmosphere with lower
especially for station workers: setting bones,
pressure than a sandbox game’s creative mode,
constructing splints, disinfecting and stitching
constant radiation bombardment, and the fact that
wounds, and providing other home remedies for a
every so often a planet-wide dust storm kicks up
modest price. While they still provide these
just for the hell of it. (Sometimes Vital Science’s
services, in recent years their business has pivoted
work is more about hyping up Martian settlement
toward more lucrative "health" foods and
to get more money than anything else.)
alternative medicine.
Vital Science occupies an unusual space in the
Like many of their Earth-based kin, the Clinic has
station’s political landscape. They’ve been kept out
also established their own multi-level marketing
of the Cartel because Omnidyne considers them a
scheme billed as a membership program to
competitor, but they supply electronics and
increase revenue. A lot of non-Cartel companies
industrial tech to several smaller Cartel members
have begun to push this program on their
and consult with the Cartel on their Mars plans.
employees as an alternative to traditional health
They’re not official allies, but they’re still united in
insurance plans.
their desire for profit.
Since rebranding as a boutique chemist, the Clinic
Vi-Sci is run by Vital Tremblay, a libertarian
has been facing increased scrutiny due to the
Singularist and self-described “self-made
ineffectiveness of their services and appropriation
millionaire” who made his fortune investing his
of traditional medicine. Unfortunately, in using
father’s millions in Lunar construction. He is
their money to buy political influence, they have
currently building a “science town” in Earth orbit as
become popular with a section of wealthy—and
a proof-of-concept for a Martian one.
vocal—Crossers who make a point of shouting
down criticism.
Also:
• Meteor Ventures, p. 203.
• Phoenix Tail, p. 164.
• Red Sun Microsystems, p. 167.

Setting 245
 Corporate Characters
Here are various corporate agents, bosses, and oligarchs. Some of these were mentioned in Chapter 6.

Leke Afolayan, Personality: Manipulative, self-serving, ignores

Archon Assets details. Tadashi is an asshole who's really good at
The CEO of Archon. Leke started out as a programmer putting on a mask. He doesn't care much about
in a data processing company, but his foresight, gift other people beyond what they can do for him,
for numbers, and the fact that his parents were loaded except for his children and maybe his wife. He's had
swiftly propelled him to the top of the corporate trouble adjusting to his new body and occasionally
world. He was tapped to lead Archon when its has dissociative episodes, a problem he's
predecessors merged and, as far as he's concerned, concealed from his family; they get worse when
he's the glue holding the Cartel together. he's faking being nice.
Appearance: Broad-shouldered, close-shaven, Goals: Tighten his grip on his company. Tadashi
expensive watches. Leke treats every social can't remove his family entirely and maintain his
interaction with the respect and politeness he family image, so he's trying to maneuver his sons
would afford a board meeting, no matter how into control of the important parts of the company.
minor. People think he wears the same suit to work
every day, but he just has seven identical suits. Goro Asano,
Tadashi's Third Son
Personality: Enterprising, numbers-oriented,
CEO of the Asano subsidiary Toha Cyber Holdings.
cautious. Leke likes numbers more than people
Goro was practically disowned for turning down a
because numbers can't disappoint him. He can spot
political marriage and screwing up his father's
figures that don't add up from thirty paces. He
plans, and he's trying to get his father's trust back
doesn't like unknowns—to him, everything in the
by taking over the Spitzer district. He's discovered
universe could be predicted if he could just figure out
Hotel Melbourne's presence there and is secretly
how. Leke knows Archon is probably shifting money
paying them to soften up the businesses he targets.
for criminals but doesn't care what people do with
their money as long as it goes through Archon. Appearance: Glasses, big grin, friendly mask. Goro
looks like a shorter version of his father but
Goals: Get paid preposterous amounts of money to
swapped his taste in suits for some nice pearly
help the Cartel make money.
whites. He acts goofy most of the time, but if you
cross him you might find him turning a handshake
Tadashi Asano, into a whispered threat to annihilate you. He has a
Asano CEO scar on his left hand courtesy of an unusually loud
Tadashi is the CEO of Asano Heavy Industries, at
Christmas dinner argument.
least when he gets free time from his main job:
fending off his family, who would very much like to Personality: Headstrong, creative, hates disloyalty.
see him deposed and possibly dead. He's kept Goro likes to do things his own way and tends to
ahead so far by being a bigger bastard than any of double down when people criticize him. His father
them. Tadashi presents himself as a loving family taught him to cultivate a vicious streak and keep it
man to the press, but he doesn't know what love hidden until it's needed. He loves his wife Virgo
looks like. because she's honest with him, unlike his family.
Appearance: Slick hair, nice beard, fancy suits. Goals: Take over a mass of companies in the Spitzer
Tadashi became a full-body cyborg because the district by any means necessary to get back in his
stress of his jobs was aging him terribly, and his frame father's good graces.
is just a younger version of himself. His attitude
swings between chummy and aggressive depending
on what he needs and whether there are cameras.

246 Setting
 Home Directory

Virgo Asano, Maximilian Fiddler,

Goro's Wife Morningstar
Toha Cyber Holdings' security chief. Virgo used to Dealmaker
work for Phoenix Tail as a freelance bodyguard and Founder, former CEO, and current PR guy of
quit when she fell in love with her client. Virgo Morningstar. Max sees his role in life as merely giving
thinks Goro's family are exhausting to talk to and people what they want. By a staggering coincidence
would prefer to move with him to Earth, but she though, Max has discovered that what the people
won't press the issue. want is usually what he wants. Sometimes they just
don't know it yet and he has to tell them.
Appearance: Tall, ripped, intimidating. Virgo is
Canadian, which angers the Asano family more than Appearance: Bad goatee, hair gel, bright blue eyes.
they'll admit, but she can usually get them to leave Max looks like he was designed by committee to look
her and Goro alone by looming over them and folding like a dickhead. He wears business casual attire with
her arms. She has cybernetic eyes that resemble real his sleeves rolled up, his collars popped, and his feet
ones but look nothing like her originals. She prefers clad in overpriced sneakers. Expensive medical
dark pantsuits and tactical gloves. treatments have retained most of his youth.
Personality: Blunt, clever, doesn't suffer fools. Virgo is Personality: Charming, touchy, badly needs to self-
good at assessing people with a glance. She prefers reflect. Max likes to call himself a tastemaker, but
being honest about how she feels, and if people annoy also tends to project his desires onto other
her, she'll immediately let them have it. She loves Goro people—part of what makes him convincing is his
because he's funny but willing to get his hands dirty. certainty that he's just drawing out what's already
there. He tends to fly off the handle when other
Goals: Build up a nice nest egg, then convince Goro
people compete with him for things he wants.
to ditch his crappy family and go solo.
Goals: Do PR for Morningstar. Max personally hates
Trip Briggs, Hayate Jones (p. 249), who he believes ditched him
Geryon CEO after Max built his career, and as such will go out of
One of the founders of Geryon Aerospace. Trip is his way to get back at him.
the only remaining founder in the company, in part
because he forced out everyone who wanted to Kanemasa Gou,
stay. He's the youngest power player in the Tetsuo CEO
Offworld Cartel, and to him, it's just a fun stepping Founder and CEO of Tetsuo Technologies.
stone to greater things. Kanemasa is a grumpy old man who is very set in
his ways—as far as he's concerned, society peaked
Appearance: Youthful, long blonde hair, scraggly
in the 80s. He's a capitalist bigot who sincerely
beard. Trip is an energetic young man who looks
believes people like him rose to the top because
like Gandalf's stoner nephew. He eschews suits in
they're just better. He's extremely anti-android and
favor of plain t-shirts and jeans. He got cybernetic
funds anti-android groups all over human space.
hands to deal with carpal tunnel; he went with the
synthetic skin option but got LED strips built into Appearance: Pale, glasses, has dark, piercing eyes.
the wrists to match his PC accessories. Kanemasa is a white-haired old man who dresses in
only the best 70s fashion. He's surprisingly sprightly
Personality: Ambitious, immature, sneaky. Trip is a
for his age, thanks to experimental Hergatz Liao
programming prodigy whose motto is "learn to fly
treatments; he's hoping for a biological solution to
before you can walk." He frequently bites off more
aging before he has to shell out for a full-body cyborg.
than he can chew and relies on hacks, cheap tricks,
and a little showmanship to get through it. He gets Personality: Traditional, stubborn, cunning.
childish and petty when people question his talents. Kanemasa is an old bastard with a good head for
business. He's always been fascinated with
Goals: Raise Geryon Aerospace into an
technology and the ways it can improve humanity
interplanetary juggernaut.
but looks down on androids. Tech is ultimately a
tool he gets to play with, and his toys aren't
supposed to think for themselves.
Goals: Build up Tetsuo while shooting down (or at
least stalling) android rights as long as possible.

Setting 247
 Burgur GrIDungsson, Arty Morozov,
Landvaettir CEO Zinovy CEO
Burgur is the founder of Landvættir and a former The new CEO of Zinovy Ultragraphics. Arty grew up
venture Viking. His goal with Landvættir was to leave with his father's wealth, turning him into an asshole
a legacy that would last for centuries: generations of rich kid. He sees himself as the breath of fresh air
people growing up in stations stamped with his his father's company desperately needs and is
company's logo. Burgur is sure that the Disaster is totally fine with screwing over his users if it'll make
just another speed bump for him and his failures will him richer.
be a footnote at best in the history books.
Appearance: Stylish, coiffed hair, brown beard. Arty
Appearance: Square-jawed, pale, short beard. works out for fun. He wears sunglasses, polo shirts,
Burgur looks surprisingly young except for his eyes, and blazers at work, taking off the blazer to show
which are old and tired. Stress isn’t turning his soft his guns when he gets an excuse. His favorite way to
brown hair grey, but it is causing his insomnia. He leave a meeting is by walking backward while doing
prefers white business casual outfits and ties that finger guns at someone. He swears in Russian when
aren't as jaunty as he thinks they are. he's annoyed.
Personality: Showman, clever, witty. Burgur has Personality: Impatient, cheerful, self-serving. Arty
failed upwards many times in his life, and it's made believes that what's good for him is good for Zinovy
him both confident in his ability to bounce back from and endeavors to focus on the positive side of all
anything and prone to anger when his mistakes are the shit he's pulling. He changes his mind often and
brought up. He still treats his whiteness as a virtue every time he insists that this time he's figured
but tries not to say so in front of the media. everything out for good.
Goals: Find a way to save Landvættir Orbital by any Goal: Turn Zinovy Ultragraphics into a modern,
means necessary. cutting-edge company that makes him even more
money.
Trilobite Liao,
Hergatz Liao CEO Barlow Hawthorn,
When Tril inherited Hergatz Liao (p. 234), he had Goliath Inc.
some big shoes to fill. So far he's doing it with a The CEO of Goliath. Barlow is devoted to his unit,
combination of his father Terry's natural charisma, who he considers his closest friends, and Goliath is
some calculated risks, and a complete lack of essentially built around them. He's pushing
empathy. Tril believes his wealthy heritage gives retirement age, but he's determined to stick around
him the right to control other people and hates the as long as he can for the sake of his men. Back on
idea of others having leverage over him. Earth his unit committed war crimes, but he doesn't
think they were serious enough to care about.
Appearance: White suits, black ties, bright eyes. Tril
is the result of years of HL's best (and sometimes Appearance: Aging, brown moustache, shredded.
experimental) medicine combined with decades of Even in his old age, Barlow could wrestle a bear. He has
upbringing by a charismatic jackass. He's good at cybernetic hands, a busted nose, and a lot of interesting
charming people, but it's all an act. He wants scars. He folds his arms a lot and his men have
money, not friends. learned to read his mood from his "folding posture."
Personality: Cold, manipulative, uncaring. Tril is a Personality: Loyal, gruff, old-fashioned. Barlow is a
ghoul who believes wealth is a sign of merit and lifelong military man who sees every job he's ever
that the station's sick having to pay him money to worked as maintaining order, no matter the cost.
live is the natural order of things. He constantly He sticks by the people who earn his loyalty (or pay
worries that the station's lower-class people are him enough), right or wrong. He spends a lot of
getting ideas above their station and plotting time complaining about "cancel culture."
against him, his employees included. He never
Goals: Retire within the next five years and become a
communicates his plans if he can help it.
full-body cyborg to extend his life. Possibly change his
Goals: Make profit for Hergatz Liao and by face and identity while he's at it, so he can visit Earth.
extension himself. Watch out for threats from the
lower classes within and without his corporation.

248 Setting
 Home Directory

Hayate Jones, Starry Antony Pilgrim,

Destination Producer Pulser CEO
Hayate is a famous record producer, songwriter, Pilgrim is an entrepreneur, spiritual advisor for the
and licensed spacecraft pilot, best known for wealthy, and co-founder of Pulser. He's a coding
creating and producing the L5-8 idol group. He genius and a deeply (perhaps worryingly) spiritual
adopted an over-the-top persona to stand out at a man who thinks everything always works out in the
young age, and he's been at it so long that it's end, an attitude which leads him to avoid dealing
basically him now. with problems as much as he can.
Hayate used to work for Morningstar, but they Appearance: Lanky, scruffy, peaceful. Antony
screwed him so hard it almost sunk his career. He'd sports long curtained dark hair with a wild beard
eat his own hat to get back at them. that makes him look like a wizard in a boy band. He
wears turtlenecks for business occasions and
Appearance: Flashy, swaggering, nimble. Hayate
kimonos as casual wear. Antony's in his late thirties
intentionally plays up his boisterous nature to near-
but can look up to twenty years older depending on
superhuman levels for the sake of his brand. He likes
how badly his latest diet has ravaged his body.
accentuating his suits with unusual patterns, faux furs,
and bright feathers, no matter how many PR assistants Personality: Spiritual, creative, flighty. Pilgrim
tell him he looks like a business casual Furby. meditates for a few minutes every hour, refuses to
use a computer more than two hours a day because
Personality: Energetic, hard worker, demanding.
"the digital realm is too powerful to be constrained
Hayate's passion is entertaining people, so he dedicates
by one being," and thinks positive thinking and
most of his time to Starry Destination. His main flaw is
breathing exercises can cure all mental troubles.
a control problem: he drops anyone who doesn't
His idea of what "spiritual" means is heavily colored
conform to his standards (e.g. idols who get "too old"),
by his fascination with space technology and a
and his usual reaction to being told his company
belief that cultures that aren't his own (white
can't do something is to ignore reality until it can.
American) are exotic and wise.
Goals: Screw Morningstar, manage L5-8, and run
Pilgrim occasionally disappears for a few weeks
Starry Destination—in that order.
while he meditates on the Moon or something. He's
on one of his trips right now; he's somehow sending
messages by custom carrier pigeon bots, so
presumably he's on the station, but won't say what
he's up to except that it's "big."
Goal: Run Pulser and make money with the
minimum of work, so he can get back to
contemplating the mysteries of the universe.

Setting 249
 Cartel Bigshots
A couple corporate oligarchs that also feature in the Dreamer campaign (p. 362-381).

Derek Baars,
Extrovert
Entrepreneur
Derek is a space tech entrepreneur. He's a latecomer
to the Cartel, but he's risen to prominence quickly
because he offers two things they need in spades:
new companies and raw pizzazz.
His talent is selling himself. He hires a lot of smart
people to build tech for him, and because he can
afford smart people, other people think he must be
even smarter. His companies over-promise and under-
deliver, but it doesn't matter, because Derek believes
his revolution is just around the corner and can make
others think so, too. He's a man forever on the ground
floor of something big, waiting for the elevator.
History: Derek came to the US in the 90s with only the
clothes on his back, some coding skills, and some
shares in Intel his uncle bought him as a present. He
made his own fortune in post-Impact Silicon Valley
Assets: Derek's main companies are Future Eve (AI
with a simple method: create a space company,
research), Transcend (cybernetics), Niven (space
convince the government to invest millions in public
construction), Road To Jupiter (interplanetary
funding, exaggerate his achievements to boost his
transport), and Solar5 (solar power). Most of these
stock prices, and claim the profits.
companies do the same thing: secure government
By the mid-10s, Derek was a billionaire who'd dabbled contracts, privatize public-sector science, then skim
in everything from AI research to habitat construction. a little off the top.
He decided to do something with his riches, and when
He has a lot of smaller companies, from the ambitious
he looked out at the Earth and all its problems, he
(Eclipse Institute, mind-dubbing research) to the
knew what to do: abandon it, move to Grand Cross
weird (Vulcan Ultramantics, gaming chairs). Most of
and begin a 20-year plan to colonize the outer system.
his companies are headquartered in his personal
Appearance: Slick, coiffed, magnetic. Derek's building (p. 158) in Turing, or elsewhere in the ward.
natural charisma is greatly enhanced by his wealth,
Goals: Derek's goal isn't the money, but the legacy:
which affords him the best treatments, the best
he wants to be known as the guy who ushered in a
suits, and insulation from the consequences of the
new era of humanity. He wants credit for the
things he says. He's big on wearable tech and minor
research he funds, the research he bought, and the
cybernetic augments. He tends to quote video
research that's surely coming any minute now.
games a lot.
Nothing too fancy—a Martian city named after him
Personality: Ambitious, glory-seeker, workaholic. and maybe a few statues would be fine to start.
Derek wants to be seen as a real-life comic
For Derek's role in the Dreamer conspiracy, see
character—a cool gamer who happens to be a
p. 366.
heroic billionaire genius—but isn't as heroic or
brilliant as he thinks he is. Singularists love him,
and in turn he's adopted a lot of their thinking.
Derek still games frequently and sees himself as the
same nerdy gamer underdog he felt like in the 90s.

250 Setting
 Home Directory

Josef Diego,
Careful Investor
Josef is an old-money man who owns a decent
stake in a third of the Cartel's members. Though
he has tremendous influence in Cartel politics, he
prefers to stay behind the scenes.
His talent is preparation. Josef rarely makes a big
decision before spending hours poring over the
reports, papers, and news posts he collects every
day. Through his information network he keeps up
to date on what his investments are doing and
what's going on in Grand Cross, especially in
sectors nobody talks about much.
History: Josef is a proud descendant of American
lawyers and wealthy Cubans who fled to the US
when the Batista dictatorship didn't pan out. He's
not so proud of his father, who reportedly lost
much of the family fortune gambling before a
messy divorce wrested it from him.
He graduated with degrees in economics and
physics in the early 90s and rebuilt the family's Assets: Josef owns a small stake in several key
finances by investing in tech. He reacted to the Cartel members, including Geryon, Hergatz Liao,
Impact extremely early thanks to his habit of NanoFuturistics, Tetsuo, and Zinovy. (He prefers to
reading science news, but rather than cash out of own just enough to have influence if he needs it.)
the dotcom bubble, he correctly guessed that He has a surprising number of investments in
interest in tech and space would increase. By 2000, smaller, riskier, and just plain weird ventures, but
he was a billionaire. then he can afford to take risks.
Josef knew Grand Cross was going to be big, too. Josef's own personal business is Big J Corporation
Some of the early meetings that led to the Cartel's (p. 203), which basically does all the tech things
formation used his Lunar residence as a neutral that Josef has a personal interest in. He
meeting place. He's advised on most of the Cartel's intentionally keeps it out of the Cartel because he
major moves since and had the tiebreaker vote on likes having something that's "his," something he
some of them. can fall back on if he has to.
Appearance: Handsome, calm, middle-aged. Josef Goals: Josef's primary goal is increasing his
is aging gracefully, thanks to expensive treatments personal wealth and enjoying it as long as possible.
and daily workouts. He tends to give people the When his smoking habits start taking a toll on his
impression that he's taking in more about them body, he's going to trade it in for a full-body cyborg
than they're used to. His cybernetic left arm is frame, which research suggests will drastically
custom-made to dispense cigars. increase his lifespan. Until then, Josef simply aims
to make money and avoid scandal.
Personality: Cautious, disciplined, pragmatic.
Josef prefers to make plans in advance. He's For Josef's role in the Dreamer conspiracy, see
generally pleasant to his peers but keeps a low p. 366.
profile and doesn't help people if there's nothing in
it for him—to him money is a way of keeping score,
and he's not going to help the losers catch up. He
strongly believes in open software, though.

Setting 251
 Crime
Grand Cross has brought a lot of old human systems to space and crime is no exception. Here's four of
the big gangs in Grand Cross, a few smaller ones, and some related side characters.

Hoshi Group Hotel Melbourne

The Hoshi Group is an older gang, formed by former Hotel Melbourne are a Lunar gang who appeared on
orbital workers who trusted each other more than Grand Cross recently. They dominate the Lunar drug
the authorities. They deal in illegal gambling, trade thanks to people on the inside at Shackleton
firearms smuggling, protection rackets, the sex Proprietary (p. 135) and their own hidden moon base.
industry, construction schemes, and occasionally They've come to the station to expand their trade.
corporate blackmail.
Operations
Operations The Hotel was formed by Australian migrants in the
The Group is run by its founder Noboru Yamada late 00s to meet a growing demand among Artemis'
(p. 257), an Earth criminal who became an orbital wealthy for cocaine that didn't come with
worker under an assumed identity to escape arrest. smuggling fees. (Its name comes from their original
The Group’s upper echelons are largely Builders front, a bar in Artemis.) The Grand Cross branch is
and early migrants who treat each other like family. run by Anomaly King (p. 256), a Hotel high-up's
daughter who volunteered for the job to get out of
They engage in many types of crime but avoid
her parents' shadow. Anomaly has expanded
outright theft and drug-dealing—the closest they get is
quickly through subsuming smaller gangs and
gathering blackmail material on corporate executives
moles in the Station Police Service.
and protection money from small businesses. They
see themselves as a provider of services in sectors The Hotel's main focus is the export and sale of
where the regular economy has failed. Lunar cocaine. They use Lunar front companies as
covers to import drugs, manpower, and resources,
The Group uses the revenue from their illegal activities
including PJ Sidereal (transport), Dolormyx
to run legitimate businesses, laundering the money
(mining), and Yarrow & Spools (orbital trash
and making a larger profit at the same time.
pickup). Many of these are based in Cixin's Spitzer
district (p. 167). They also dabble in Multipass
Territory fraud, loan sharking, and arms trafficking.
The Hoshi Group tend to focus on the Tezuka panel.
They don't have a particular attachment to it, it's
Territory
just where they started, plus Noboru worries it's
Hotel Melbourne are most active in the Harbou
easier to catch his men when they're crossing a
panel and Backtown, but their operations are
bridge. Members have convinced him to spread
spread all over the station. They've been expanding
further Downtown, though.
in Amal and Downtown (especially Spitzer and
The Group occasionally feuds with the Void Dragon Turing) lately to target wealthier Crossers.
for territory in the Downtown region, but they're on
The Hotel have already come into conflict with
surprisingly good terms with Law Zero. The groups
some of the larger gangs. They're open to
trade favors regularly.
negotiations, but when they sense weakness,
they're quick to get violent.

The Outsiders
Hotel Melbourne is most active in the wards
that aren't covered in the location chapter.
There are two reasons for this: first, it helps
reinforce their image as the new outsiders
muscling in on the others' turf. Second, it
gives groups who want to come up with their
own material for the other wards something
to work with.

252 Setting
 Home Directory

Law Zero Void Dragon

Law Zero do crimes by androids, for androids.
They're got a near-monopoly on android crime for
Syndicate
The Syndicate are possibly the oldest of the
one simple reason: they thought to do it before
station's big gangs. They're run like a corporation,
anyone else.
complete with a thing for suits, a Board overseeing
their activities, and Cartel connections.
Operations
Law Zero was founded by a reclusive android called
Operations
R. Daneel Olivaw (p. 259) who avoids human
The Syndicate was formed by a mixed group of
contact. The gang is almost entirely androids, with
orbital workers: criminals on the run, disaffected
a few cyborgs in the lowest ranks. Subscribing to
cyborgs, and a few greedy middle managers. A lot
Olivaw's philosophy isn't an entry requirement, but
of the founders are dead or in jail now, and most of
it is for promotion. The gang's operations are
the current Board is made up of old ladies from
managed by a committee hand-picked by Olivaw
their extended family.
on the basis of merit.
There are few crimes the Syndicate hasn't dabbled
Law Zero likes two kinds of crimes: supplying illicit
in, but their specialties are drugs, racketeering,
goods to androids and robbing humans of their
entertainment, and cybernetics. They have a lot of
wealth. They obtain cash through fraud and theft and
connections to the Offworld Cartel through their
use it to fund android services like jailbroken parts,
front businesses—many executives who like to get
bootleg and stolen corporate models, illegal mods,
high or get laid after work do it at Syndicate-run
unlicensed reproduction services, android porn and
businesses, and some Cartel members have
other entertainment, narcotics programs, and more.
dealings with fronts like Orbit Five (p. 164).
This doesn't mean they only help androids and hurt
humans; they just have a lot more human targets to Territory
choose from. They run a few side-businesses that The Void Dragon talk a big game about being all
cater to humans, including a cyber-clinic in Turing, over the station, but they're mostly focused on the
and occasionally charge a "human tax" to local high-density areas in Downtown and Backtown.
android-run businesses that employ humans. Their headquarters (p. 168) are in Cixin, and a lot of
their front businesses can be found in Voyager.
Territory The Void Dragon fight with the Hoshi Group for
Law Zero are most active in Turing, where owning a
territory and are considering getting in on Law
lot of hardware doesn't stand out so much. They
Zero's business. The recent arrival of Hotel
have smaller operations all over the station, but
Melbourne has forced them to reassess their
they tend to focus on the Downtown side.
priorities, though.
Law Zero tend to avoid conflict with other gangs
simply because there's not much overlap, but lately
they've been fending off competition from newer
gangs and older ones trying to diversify. They're on
surprisingly good terms with the Hoshi Group.

Olivaw and NOboru

The reason Law Zero and Hoshi Group are on
good terms is because their leaders are
friends. No strings attached—they simply met
when they were new to the station and hit it
off. Olivaw respects Noboru's values, Noboru
sympathizes with Olivaw's beliefs, and they
both have a secret love of crappy old sci-fi.
Their groups usually stay out of each other's
way, but they sometimes trade favors. Olivaw
and Noboru meet up regularly to talk about
life with someone who understands their
struggles. Their bond is genuine, and they're
unlikely to betray each other.

Setting 253
 Minor Gangs
Grand Cross has plenty of smaller gangs that fill niches and districts the larger ones can't be bothered with.

Block Boys Finnbogamenn

The Block Boys are a gang of Builders in the Future The Finnbogamenn control and maintain order in
district (p. 149). Their main business is drugs, but the Kyläkauppa black market (p. 175) on behalf of
they occasionally obtain and sell station worker Finnbogi (p. 282). These days that mostly means
hardware, basement access codes, and jailbroken enforcing the no-violence rule and making sure the
copies of maintenance software. authorities don't come knocking. They're
essentially a glorified security company that don't
The Boys were formed during the station's
bother following the law.
construction by Oscar Wymark, an agriculture
engineer who came to hate Grand Cross when his Most of the gang are either former coworkers of the
boss forced him to accept the cheapest cybernetics boss or disaffected locals who keep telling
possible after an onsite accident. Oscar and his themselves they'll quit as soon as a real job comes
mates created their first lab with stolen agritech to along. At least one is a local cop making a little side
fund better parts but kept running the operation money, which really helps them stay off the radar.
once they realized their day job bosses valued their
drugs more than their labor. GG Noire
The Noire are a cybercrime group based out of
Since then, the Boys have relocated to a secret
Jinxing. There are only about eight of them, but
basement in the Future district and set up their
they're all accomplished hackers. Their leader
front company PlayTronic (p. 149) above it. Oscar
Lathan Tan (p. 256) recruited them to help with his
still runs the Boys, but as he gets older he's begun
"business" through various hacker forums and
to focus more on PlayTonic. He's been training his
private messages on Omega Point.
nephew Jeromy to be his replacement, but his
Builder friend Bogdan Ignatov, who has at least Most of their cybercrime is pretty standard: illegally
another decade before retirement, thinks he should obtaining bank and credit card details, hacking
be in charge instead. social media accounts to run cryptocurrency
scams, and so on. Lathan is currently planning to
Daikatana Gumi increase their revenue with a special form of
by Chiaki Hirai ransomware for androids.
On Earth, the Daikatana Gumi is a feared organized
Liivipojat
crime family that some say has influence within the
The Liivipojat are a minor gang known for dealing
Prime Minister's Residence in Tokyo. On Grand
party drugs and wearing classy vests as a mark of
Cross, it's a smaller operation run by Chii Noda (p.
status. Though they chiefly deal in Cixin, they're
256), the crime family's runaway only daughter.
based out of Voyager. The gang is run by Mauri
Legally, the Daikatana offices are registered as Käärme, who left the EU to escape arrest for murder.
Daikatana Security Ltd. (p. 180), a private security
Their drug labs are hidden out in the end caps in
company in the Denraku District. It’s technically
unused facilities left over from the construction
correct since the gang's foot soldiers serve as the
process. They smuggle their drugs into the city
district's de facto private security, and the locals have
through Voyager, using mules who pose as hikers.
established a stable but uneasy relationship with their
However, a recent string of mysterious attacks
protection racket. Aside from security, the gang also
(p. 365) on the end cap slopes has Mauri looking for
has investments in a variety of seedier enterprises
another method.
located in Denraku, such as host clubs and brothels.

254 Setting
 Home Directory

Gang Strongholds
Tezuka

Cixin Marukyu
Verne

Voyager Adams Mariposa Amal Foundation

Harbou

Turing

Setting 255
 Known Criminals
Various members of the above gangs. Some of these are noted in Chapter 6.

Anomaly King, Chii Noda,

Hotel Melbourne Daikatana Madame
Anomaly is the leader of the Grand Cross Hotel and Chii is the heiress of the Daikatana Gumi (p. 254). She
the daughter of an important Hotel member. She ran away from home (on Earth) with Mikiko Johnson,
joined the family business after struggling to find her most trusted partner in crime, and a few other
work on Luna, but she's taken to it well. Anomaly is dedicated underlings at the age of 16 to make her own
a tough, cunning woman who values loyalty and gang in space because her father, Fujio Noda, "didn't
intends to build an empire on Grand Cross whether get the whole space thing" and "didn't believe girls
the locals like it or not. could become proper gangsters anyway."
Appearance: Neutral face, short red hair, nice suits. Appearance: Petit, young, white pantsuit. She has
Anomaly dresses like an up-and-coming an angelic smile and a terrifying glare she can
businesswoman, except for the leather gloves (in case unleash at will. Although she's objectively cute, no
she needs to teach someone who's boss.) As a “civilian” one dares says that out loud.
she wears a huge beanie, plays up her Australian
Personality: Calm, powerful, polite. Chii is a very
accent, and tends a community garden in Amal.
nice person and is well-respected by her gang for
Personality: Tough, calculating, controlled anger. the calm aura of authority she exudes. She is,
Anomaly has a lot of anger: she's angry at the however, perfectly capable of getting nasty to get
fucked-up capitalist world, the older generations what she needs.
who fucked it up, and the people who betray her.
Goals: Amass money and success to show her dad
She keeps that anger on a leash until she needs to
she's just as ruthless and capable as any son could
shoot somebody. She's tough but fair to those who
have been.
listen to her and has earned a lot of loyalty from her
henchmen as a result.
Lathan Tan, GG Noire
Goal: Build up the Hotel’s Grand Cross branch by Leader of the GG Noire cybercrime gang (p. 254).
any means necessary. In the long term, Anomaly Lathan originally turned to cybercrime to cover the
plans to cash out and retire under a new identity costs of a Hergatz Liao treatment that saved his life.
when Mars is settled. When he found the work easy and fun, he didn't
stop. Lathan has been careful not to get greedy with
Castor Hardman, his scams but has an anti-android streak that
Freelance Hacker clouds his judgement.
Castor is a freelance black-hat hacker. He's
Appearance: Wiry, dark undercut, dark jackets.
performed consulting work for several gangs, but his
Lathan tends to insult his friends and say "ah, just
favorite pastime is corporate theft. Castor is pretty
fuckin' with ya!" a lot. The fingers on his right hand
deep into the station's hacker community, though
are cheap cybernetics. He often has pocky in his
few of them actually know what he does for a living.
mouth, which he started doing to deal with a habit
Appearance: Handsome, nice beard, cyber-hands. of putting his cyber-fingers in there.
Castor has had the same look since high school:
Personality: Cocky, aggressive, cunning. Lathan
cheerful black guy in a blue jacket. The main
and his boys don't really care who they target as
difference is that he recently got cyber-hands to
long as they get paid. However, Lathan is
deal with carpal tunnel syndrome.
prejudiced against androids— he's in the "machines
Personality: Playful, confident, detached. Castor is a steal jobs" camp—and occasionally messes with
lifelong hacker who values his online relationships them out of spite. His friends sometimes jokingly
much more than his offline ones (except for his say his hand makes him part-android, which
boyfriend Smiling Jin (p. 258), who he met on a job.) genuinely bothers him more than he lets on.
He doesn't need to take many of the jobs he does,
Goal: Make money through GG Noire; occasionally
but he loves the thrill of a new mission.
attack androids.
Goals: Hack for fun and profit.

256 Setting
 Home Directory

Matilda Walz, Noboru Yamada,

Hotel Enforcer Hoshi Group
Matilda is a wanted criminal back on Earth, where Noboru is the boss of the Hoshi Group. He came to
she sabotaged (okay, exploded) a bunch of space a criminal, sent under a false identity to escape
corporate facilities to protest their handling of the the cops and protect his boss' secrets. Old habits die
Impact. She was smuggled to space by Hotel hard, and soon Noboru was running a brand-new gang.
Melbourne in exchange for doing some jobs for
Appearance: Nice beard, short afro, habitual
them; she sticks around for the pay.
fidgeter. Noboru is a handsome middle-aged man
Matilda grew up during the Impact and came out who wears nice blazers and plain shirts, or brightly
the other end a bitter survivalist. She mostly wants colored ones when he's feeling nostalgic for Earth.
to take down "bad guys," so Anomaly points her at His motions are usually calm and measured, but he's
corporate types and dangerous criminals. one of the fastest men on Grand Cross with a knife.
Appearance: Strong, long blue hair, eyepatch. Personality: Friendly, realist, rational. Noboru used
Matilda's left eye is missing, and since she has to be the headstrong, easily angered type, but years
Pedler's Syndrome, cybernetics don't work. Since of space exile have mellowed him out into a mere
coming to space she's started dyeing her hair and cheerful man. He sticks to crime because he
wearing cool jackets. She smiles like a shark that's considers the forgotten corners of society his home
just found an inadvisably small boat. but feels his past will catch up to him eventually
and always has an escape plan in the back of his
Personality: Brash, cynical, self-destructive.
mind. His best friend is R. Daneel Olivaw (p. 259.).
Matilda is bombastic as hell on the job, but outside
work she's a cynic who isn't sure what she's doing Goal: Keep the Hoshi Group profitable; train a
with her life. She enjoys taking down people she subordinate to replace him in case something
thinks have it coming but goes out of her way to happens to him.
avoid hurting "civilians," even in self-defense. The
fact that she works for Hotel Melbourne is the Shinji Enzai,
source of a lot of her internal conflict. Daikatana Affiliate
Shinji is an intermediary between the public and the
Goal: Get paid by Hotel Melbourne to fight bad guys,
Daikatana Gumi. He runs Nekomeshiya (p. 180), a
even if she feels like she's spinning her wheels.
small 10-seat eatery in a back alley of the Denraku
district. Despite his connections to organized crime,
Mister Silva, he is a reliable straight shooter when it comes to the
Syndicate Manager information he supplies. His cooking also isn't that bad.
Mister Silva is the chief representative of the Board,
the little old ladies who run the Syndicate. He Not much is known about his past, but locals have a
negotiates with outsiders, keeps an eye on habit of making it up for him. They say he once
important operations, and make sure the Board's killed a head of state back on Earth with a bazooka.
orders reach the right people.
Appearance: Stern-eyed, gentle giant. Shinji tries—
Appearance: Generic, nice suit, personable. It's not and fails—to look less imposing while tending his
clear where Mister Silva is actually from, but he has an eatery. He looks a little ridiculous wearing a small
aura of quiet power that tells people it's unwise to ask. black bowtie and a large apron, but he insists he is
trying to run a "proper establishment" and wishes
Personality: Pleasant, stoic, intelligent. Silva has a
to look the part. He is terrifying when angered.
keen eye and a sharp mind, but rarely does
anything the Board hasn't explicitly told him to. The Personality: Shinji can appear stuck up on first
details of his private life are a mystery, but he impression, but he warms up to people who are
clearly likes fine dining and classical music. able to become repeat customers. He's easily
agitated when nervous but won't get mad without
Goal: Remain loyal to the Board and serve their
clear provocation.
interests.
Goals: Look out for the Daikatana Gumi's best
interests; cook up new recipes.

Setting 257
 Smiling Jin, Personality: Patient, introverted, pessimist.
Syndicate Enforcer Somchai bought into most of Law Zero's beliefs but
Jin is a Void Dragon enforcer who relies on drones. has privately lost faith that Olivaw's plan will work.
He has a small army of them stashed in hidden He mostly sticks around because he doesn't want
caches around his turf and uses an experimental to abandon his Law Zero friends. He dotes heavily
cyber-eye to direct them as needed. He's also on his daughter Mali and does his best to keep her
legendarily stingy; they call him Smiling Jin from discovering his second job.
because he's diplomatic to a fault, but that's just
Goal: Run his stall; keep the peace in the night
because words are cheaper than bullets. His
market; keep his daughter happy.
favorite crimes are extortion and blackmail.
Jin's "day job" is managing a VR café called Electric Tony #618,
Dreams. Where it's located is up to the GM. Hoshi Manager
Manager of the Supermassive nightclub in Paradise
Appearance: Tall, cheerful, brown hair. Jin has
district (p. 181). Tony isn't really a Hoshi Group
good taste in old clothing, the muscles of someone
member, as the gang prefers to employ non-
who fights for a living, and the good looks of
members in some cases; he helps reinforce their
someone who does it by proxy. He has a sweet
legitimate cover in exchange for a pay bump. Tony's
smile but tends to use it in inappropriate
dream is to own a club in Cixin and be friends with
circumstances. His cyber-eye isn't usually obvious.
celebrities.
Personality: Thrifty, polite, efficient. Jin is a
Appearance: Neat blonde hair, bright green eyes,
meticulous planner who learned to save every cent
cyber-legs. Tony got cybernetic legs after a traffic
in his childhood and thus he'll back out of a job if
accident in his youth and opted for ones that made
success seems expensive. He's a pragmatist who
him taller. These days he wears a custom-made
prefers talking through his problems but will order
jacket with cool light strips and tries to play up a
a drone strike if he has to. The best way to get him
cyberpunk theme. Tony is a Scouser but uses a
to stop smiling is to use his first name, Gaochao.
more common Orbital English accent at work.
He's currently dating Castor (p. 256).
Personality: Unscrupulous, connected, social
Goals: Complete jobs efficiently.
climber. Tony partly works for the Hoshi Group
because he thinks being part of the criminal
Somchai, underworld, however tangentially, makes him
Law Zero Enforcer cooler. Number 618 is a nickname, part of a cool
Owner of a fried squid stall in the Liu district night
cyberpunk persona he adopts at work. He left a lot
market (p. 166). Somchai is a longtime Law Zero
of friends behind on Earth, and on Grand Cross he
member who has chosen to semi-retire to raise his
mostly tries to befriend people who could benefit
daughter, Mali. (Olivaw is fine with it—he can
him professionally.
sympathize with an android who wants to be left
alone.) Somchai is still single-handedly responsible Goal: Run bars, be cool. Tony wants to move his
for maintaining Law Zero's grip on the night market. club to Cixin because he thinks he could reach the
big leagues there.
Appearance: Large, polite, weary. Somchai's body
is a newer, very large Labor-model. With his old
clothes, baseball cap, and careful movements, he
comes across like an old human man. He's more
talkative with androids and humans he trusts.

258 Setting
 Home Directory

R. Daneel Olivaw,
Law Zero
Android, philosopher and leader of Law Zero.
Olivaw came to Grand Cross as just one of many
construction androids sent into space to cut down
on the number of workers who needed spacesuits.
He was a voracious reader who spent his free time
studying human history, economics, and
philosophy—along with old fiction about androids,
which inspired his name.
Between his studies and the exploitation he
witnessed, Olivaw concluded that androids were
better off living apart from humanity. He also
concluded that there was no way society would
allow that to happen if he worked within the
system. Instead, Olivaw has turned his genius
toward building a criminal empire.
Appearance: Confident, classy, tranquil. Olivaw's
"true" body is unknown to the public—he
intentionally remote-pilots other bodies or wears
custom frame covers for most of his outings to make
surveillance harder. (Law enforcement mistakenly
attribute a lot of his actions to a fictional lieutenant
named "Joseph Capek.")
Assets: Besides his brain, Olivaw commands Law Zero
Olivaw's true body is completely custom and
and all its androids, front businesses, and operations.
impeccably attired at all times. His face is a screen
where he projects symbols to express himself. Olivaw Goals: Olivaw intends to fund the creation of an
likes quoting philosophers when he has an excuse android settlement in the outer solar system, self-
(e.g. Marx when discussing the economy's failings). sustaining and capable of defending itself. Only his
lieutenants know this, and he hasn't even told them the
Personality: Determined, philosophical, detached.
true purpose of the settlement: to build a spaceship
Olivaw is a brilliant android—some Law Zero agents
that can leave the solar system and its obsolete systems
joined after reading his political essays online. To
behind forever. When it does, Olivaw will abandon
people he trusts, he's straightforward and
his shell, take up his former name, and finally
generous. He doesn't hate humans; he just thinks
become a regular citizen in an android-run society.
he shouldn't have to interact with them if he
doesn't want to. For Olivaw's role in the Dreamer conspiracy,
see p. 367.
To Olivaw, Law Zero is a way to accomplish his
dreams and collect reparations on the way out. His
main flaw is an unwillingness to participate in the
society his fellow androids are developing in—he
feels like he's being forced to, and thus avoids it out
of spite. His main exception is his friend Noboru
Yamada (p. 253, 257), one of the few humans to
know his true face.

Setting 259
 Singularists
"Our sole responsibility is to produce something smarter than we are; any problems beyond that are not ours to solve."
― Ray Kurzweil, The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

The Singularists are a growing movement that • The most intelligent people are, of course,
believes Grand Cross will be the stage for an people with STEM knowledge.
unprecedented technological explosion which will • When the Singularity comes, humanity as we
transform humanity forever. know it will be obsolete.
• Most concerns about the technology Singularists
Mindset push for (e.g. "human enhancement tech could
Singularists are transhumanists whose beliefs were lead to massive inequality if mishandled") are
arrived at (or intensified) as a result of the Impact. unimportant, because it's the natural order of
Most of them work in the technology sector, where things/computers will fix it.
their dreams can be realized. • Most political activism that doesn't directly
advance Singularist interests is pointless,
It's hard to pin down a set of "core" Singularist
because their problems will be rendered obsol-
beliefs. People who identify as Singularists tend to
ete/fixed by technology.
be into some, most, or occasionally all of these:
• People who don't believe in the Singularity
• All the world's problems—disease, war, famine, oppose progress.
climate change, death—can be solved with suffi-
The basic problem with the Singularists is that
ciently advanced technology. There are few (or
"intelligence" is not technical skill alone. Math and
no) boundaries to what tech can do.
engineering don't teach you empathy, or emotional
• The post-Impact boom, and the way humanity
intelligence, or a broader understanding of the
went from Earth to living in space in mere dec-
world. Intelligence must be paired with wisdom.
ades, proves this.
• At some point in the future, technological growth Most Singularists believe themselves capable of
will hit a point (the eponymous Singularity) making purely rational, logical decisions, unfettered
where it becomes uncontrollable and irrevers- by emotion. But humans simply don't work that way,
ible. and if you try to ignore your emotions, you can't
• Usually, this will come in the form of a superin- understand them. As a regular, Singularists view
telligent AGI. themselves as rational and forward-thinking people
• This Singularity will improve humanity, so bringing but tend to be closed-minded, politically unaware,
it about as soon as possible is a moral imperative. and susceptible to emotional manipulation.
It's not uncommon for Singularists to hold more
radical beliefs, which they call dangerous ideas. In
their mind, most of these ideas are simply taking
the above beliefs to their logical conclusion. These
can include:
• Every problem can be solved with computers.
Any problems that aren't solvable now will be
solved later with a better computer.
• STEM knowledge, which is required to build
these technological wonders, is the best form of
knowledge there is—perhaps the only real one.
• "Intelligent" people are simply better than other
people. Equality is not ideal.

260 Setting
 Home Directory

Influence Grand Cross is the center of the Singularist

Realistically, the Singularity probably won't happen movement, so they have a few "meatspace"
any time soon5. When you get down to it, the meeting points here too. Most members who want
Singularists are really just a small band of nerds to meet up in person go to the Event Horizon Plaza
whose futurist beliefs border on religion. in Turing ward (p. 158), the Book Club Café in Cixin
(p. 165), Space Town (p. 182), or Nomen
However, the Offworld Cartel is a big fan of their
Nominandum in Foundation (p. 203).
views—it turns out that people who believe utopia
could happen faster if everyone just shut up about
Relationships
fixing things and focused on coding are easy to control.
Though few Singularists actually work with AI, most
As a result, the Singularists are getting a huge signal companies that work in STEM fields have at least
boost, to the point where nearly every Crosser has one member in their ranks. They share what they
at least heard of the Singularists. They get invited can about their jobs, which makes Omega Point a
onto TV shows to explain their beliefs. News sites decent place to go for a working knowledge of the
run puff pieces on well-dressed Singularists who Offworld Cartel's activities. They're big fans of
think some people are just better than others. Derek Baars (p. 250)—though he doesn't post on
Technocratic Cartel members like Baars openly Omega Point as far as they know; they hang on his
curry favor with the group. every word on Pulser.
The Singularists are a movement with no formal
Community alliances. However, most of them lean toward
The Singularist movement is less than a decade old,
orbital independence out of a desire to let go of old
and not everyone who believes in a singularity or
Earth modes of thinking. The group is surprisingly
considers themselves a transhumanist is one. Most
split on android rights, largely due to a vocal
Singularists say that to be one of them you need to
minority who view all “uncontrolled AI” as
subscribe to most of their ideals and be a member
inherently dangerous.
of their community in some way.
Other groups sometimes recruit through the
The Singularist community is mostly online. There's
Singularists. Some of their de facto leaders have
a HEOCities webring, a Pulser community centered
embraced anti-feminism and other extreme
around several large Singularist accounts, a
positions unsupported by data, which has created
subribbit, and a few video channels. Diehard
an opening for darker groups like the New Barons
Singularists get into as many of these as possible.
(p. 267) to recruit from them6. Over the next year,
The "central" Singularist hangout is Omega Point, this trend might make the Singularists more
an internet forum run and hosted by Cyrus dangerous.
Berryman (p. 262). Cyrus is revered as one of the
founders of the modern-day Singularist movement,
and Omega Point is where he holds court. This is
where the Singularist's ideals are nailed down,
dangerous ideas discussed, and developments in AI
research are meticulously tracked.
One of the forum's tenets is that it should be a
liberating space where the freedom to do and say
whatever you want fosters discussion and makes
the world a better place. In practice, while this is
how it works for the most privileged users, it's led
to many more users being driven away as the
community's worst people spread abuse and hate
free of accountability. A lot of the Singularist's
"dangerous ideas" came about this way.

5 If you're looking for good arguments

against AI alarmism, a decent start is
Maciej Cegłowski's talk
6 Much like the real-life online atheist/
skeptic community of the early 2010s
contributed to the rise of later hate
Superintelligence: The Idea That Eats movements, but with slightly fewer rant
Smart People from Web Camp Zagreb 2016. videos about women in video games.

Setting 261
 Known Singularists
Some Singularists for use in your games. Some of these were mentioned in Chapter 6.

Cyrus Berryman, but barely remember anything about besides that it

Omega Point sucked. Now imagine if the writer were a wannabe
The Singularists have no formal founder, but Cyrus auteur in his thirties who doesn't know what 80s
comes pretty close. He's the man behind FERMI Hollywood directors dressed like but feels very
(p. 158) and Omega Point. When he's not managing strongly that it's his style. That's Jacques.
that, he gives public talks and publishes books on
Personality: Educated, Singularist, defensive.
emerging technologies. While FERMI mostly just
Jacques is an extreme Singularist who thinks AGIs
turns donations into padding for his bank account,
are meant to serve humanity but doesn't want to
Cyrus is a brilliant engineer who truly believes in his
admit that out loud. Instead, he talks a lot about
work. One day another technological wave will wash
the need to control android reproduction. He
over Grand Cross, and he plans to build a surfboard.
avoids self-reflecting by acting like the people who
Appearance: Tall, long black hair, trim beard. Cyrus call him a bigot are out to get him.
treats his body like a temple, so he looks much
Goals: Get paid to write articles that launder
younger than he is. He wears dark shades and
extreme Singularist and anti-android views in order
darker clothes which his followers say make him
to make them sound cool and mainstream.
look like a genteel warlock. He gestures with his
fingers a lot when he talks.
Vijay Das,
Personality: Focused, philosophical, libertarian. Omnidyne Engineer
Cyrus is a transhumanist who believes all problems Vijay is a cybernetics designer for Omnidyne and a
have purely technological solutions. He wants to published author whose works on cybernetics and
change things for the better and does his best to futurism are adored by Singularists. Vijay thinks
help others, but tends to assume that what's good everyone will have a cyber-brain within a decade
for him is good for other people too. He tries to be and is working to help this along by dispelling the
open-minded but struggles with ideas that poke LMJ Syndrome myth. Unfortunately, he's also a
holes in his Singularist, libertarian worldview. corporate man who thinks reactive cybernetics are
perfectly normal.
Goals: Cyrus's aim in pushing science forward is life
extension. He believes a superintelligence could Appearance: Handsome, wings haircut, nimble.
grant immortality—through mind uploading, Vijay likes wearing blazers over t-shirts that show
probably—and wants it to happen before he bites the scar on his chest from cyber-heart surgery. He
the dust. Everything else is a distraction. has a knack for sounding very confident about
anything he says, even when he has no idea what
Jacques Current, he's talking about.
AI Reporter Personality: Assertive, idealist, hard worker. Vijay is a
A Morningstar tech reporter. Jacques is well known in
proud geek who is sure that technological progress
AI circles as a leading android expert, mostly because
will solve all society's ills if people let it. Unfortunately,
he talks about them so much. News shows often tap
he measures the value of cybernetics by how
him as an expert on android affairs in the belief that
productive they make people and believes pushing
asking an android would be "too political."
reactive cybernetics on people would force them to
Jacques is also sometimes tapped as an unbiased evolve. People approach him for donations to
source on Singularists, as he insists that he isn't one cybernetic causes often, to which he usually obliges.
(he just has a podcast with Singularists titled “Enter
Goals: Bring about his ideal technological utopia: one
the Singularity.”)
where everybody's lives are improved by the
Appearance: Glasses, messy hair, aloof attitude. cybernetics they're forced to get to find employment.
Think of a bad movie that you've definitely seen,

262 Setting
 Home Directory

Divide-0, Personality: Clever, ambitious, reckless. Zhihao

Singularist Android claims to be "socially liberal" but accepts a lot of
The owner of the Magellanic Club, a Singularist the Singularists’ “dangerous ideas” uncritically.
hangout in Event Horizon Plaza (p. 158). He didn't They tend to assume things will work out for them
plan it that way, but once Singularists started because they're smart, commit to plans without
showing up in the Plaza, he was swayed by their assessing the risks, then blame others for their
beliefs. Divide-0 is friends (or at least acquainted) failures. They're amazing at helping others make
with the station's most popular Singularists but plans, though.
chafes at his peers' constant worrying about AI
Goals: Run Nomen Nominandum; help Singularists
turning evil.
influence politics. Zhihao is still sore about being
Appearance: Labor-model, scuffed body, flannel absolutely bodied in a pro match by Izzy Kaijou
shirts. Divide-0 still uses the frame he was given as a (p. 285) and occasionally tries to disrupt her plans.
factory worker because he fears he'd forget his Izzy doesn't remember them.
working-class roots if he changed it, though he's
replaced his limbs with newer-model ones for extra Tony Osborn,
mobility. His eyes change color to indicate mood. Anime Guy
Owner of the Keep on the Borderland in the Galaxy
Personality: Optimistic, talkative, occasionally
district (p. 173). Tony is an argumentative guy who
inconsiderate. Divide-0 set up the Club as a place
considers himself one of the finest connoisseurs of
for humans and androids to get to know each other.
games and anime on the station.
He's a Singularist because he believes
technological advancement will remove the Tony is an Omega Point regular, but his habit of
differences between the two eventually. He spends getting into flame wars at the drop of a hat has kept
a lot of time arguing with other Singularists about him from getting too deep into the Singularist
the "dangers" of AI but tends to dismiss other forms community. He holds a special hatred for Max
of prejudice as "a human problem, not mine." Babylon (p. 264), who he's been feuding with for
years ever since Max told him that Dungeons &
Goals: Run the Magellanic Club; convince
Dragons 4th Edition is the best one7.
Singularists to stop worrying about AGIs turning the
world into paperclips or whatever. Appearance: Bright eyes, hefty, receding blonde
hair. Tony wears obscure Earth band t-shirts and a
Zhihao Lin, permanent crop of stubble on his chin. He has a
Nomen Nominandum thick Brooklyn accent. Tony is quick to laugh and
Owner of the Nomen Nominandum VR café in even quicker to get angry, though he tries not to do
Foundation ward (p. 203). Zhihao dropped out of that at work.
college to become a streamer, but it didn't work
Personality: Cranky, opinionated, loud. Tony is a
out; they recovered with the help of Singularist
proud otaku and snobby about it. He does his best
acquaintances, and they're determined to repay the
to avoid driving away customers, but there are still
favor. Zhihao is helping with an ambitious plan to sway
a few people he's gotten into arguments with or
the Grand Assembly towards pro-Singularist stances.
banned from the store. Outside work, he agitates
Appearance: Young, slick, charming. Zhihao wears for android rights and gets into hundred-post
simple clothes and accentuates them with pins, arguments on Omega Point about crap nobody
badges, and other accessories. They tend to mimic cares about.
the tone and cadence of a certain popular streamer
Goals: Keep the store going; sponsor pro-android
in an attempt to sound successful.
events; screw over Max Babylon.

7 One of Max’s few correct opinions.

Setting 263
 Max Babylon,
Big Deal Singularist
Max is a popular influencer and one of the pillars of
the Singularist community. To many of his fellow
Singularists, Max is a genius who teaches people to
question what they've learned. To everyone else,
Max is a reactionary troll.
His videos mix real science and Singularist rhetoric
with right-wing dog whistles, LMJ conspiracy
theories, and long-winded rants about how good
the 90s were before women ruined everything.
Though many Singularists despise him, he's
amassed a cult of personality within the
movement. Max genuinely believes an AI god is
coming, and he intends to be its high priest.
History: Max has always wanted to become a
science communicator—a Bill Nye for a new
generation. His early attempts on Earth didn't work
out though; he got some online comedy work, but he
wasn't very good, and he rubbed his coworkers the
wrong way. He came to Grand Cross in the first wave
via a Tetsuo work contract, hoping for a fresh start.
Personality: Overconfident, spiteful, self-absorbed.
It worked. He started a video channel about science The only real impediment to Max becoming a
and life on Grand Cross, which was just unique science communicator is that he's an asshole who
enough at the time to be successful. Max eventually sees other people as tools to be used. He was a teen
invited Cyrus Berryman to his show after seeing his in the late 90s and never really finished growing up.
talks, and Cyrus turned him into a Singularist. Despite his genuine science background, Max
actually believes that LMJ syndrome is real and
Cyrus took Max under his wing, hoping to boost the
feminists are ruining everything. To some of his
Singularists' profile by boosting Max's career.
followers, he's been a gateway to the New Barons.
Unfortunately, Max strongly related to the
Singularists’ dangerous ideas, and as his channel Assets: An apartment, a gaming computer, and
grew, his rhetoric got worse. Cyrus distanced enough adoring fans to pay the bills. If he wanted
himself from Max a couple of years ago, but fears to, Max could whip up his diehard fans into a frenzy.
trying to banish him from the community would
Goals: Be a famous science communicator and
violate his principles. For now, Max is here to stay.
usher humanity into a new golden age. He likes to
Appearance: Smug, tough, showman. Max has no keep it simple.
style and no grace, but believes that his t-shirts,
For Max's role in the Dreamer conspiracy, see p. 369.
ties, custom AR shades, and funny faces make him
look cool. In his videos he's usually sitting in front
of a wall of 90s geek merch.

264 Setting
 Home Directory

Setting 265
 Earth/Orbit Activist Groups
These are various groups pushing for change in Grand Cross, along with a sample of their members.

Builders United Federation Now

Builders United (or “Builders U”) is an organization FedNow, as it’s commonly called, is a pro-Earth
by and for Builders. They focus on benefits for the organization with a single agenda: unite humanity
families of dead Builders, legal aid, cybernetics under a central interplanetary federation. It was
support, and other issues related to the people founded by scientists who helped plan the political
whose hands built the station. They're best known systems of Grand Cross and Luna, and they still
for their pro-Project Committee work—they believe have a lot of connections in the scientific and
that model is the best way to protect worker's rights political communities. Their enemies tend to
that were achieved on Earth, and a lot of their downplay them as a bunch of Star Trek fanboys.
activism focuses on that.
Their headquarters is a building in Lunokhod
Builders often come to them for personal problems: (p. 152), and they organize a lot of events in the
finding old friends, getting to Earth for family district for adults and children alike. Some members
events, recovering stolen items, dealing with Grand are active employees of Cartel tech companies,
Cross bureaucracy, and so on. Builders United try to which sometimes interferes with their work.
crowdsource solutions for as many as they can, but
there's not a lot they can do on their own. Characters
The group's headquarters are an office in Future • Des Williams: The group's founder and chief
district (p. 149). They also operate two working spokesman. His current day job is scientific con-
men's clubs: one over in Huygens district, and sulting for sci-fi TV shows, but a lot of the group's
another in Backtown. connections come from his former work with the
Project. He thought Grand Cross should be at the
Characters L4 point and he's still kinda mad about it.
• Dewberry Mamiya: An android historian who
• Luna Labriola: A cool old lady and former
pushes for federation because she believes it
European Space Agency scientist who wrote a lot
may be the only way to get every nation to
of the code that got the station flywheel spinning.
accept her kind. She's unknowingly in contact
Luna sits on the Builders United board and
with R. Daneel Olivaw—he emailed her under a
handles most LGBTQ-related concerns. She's pro-
false name to ask questions about a letter of hers
Committee because she worries that corporate
in a scientific journal, and they exchange mes-
interests will get bolder if it gets disbanded.
sages debating philosophy.
• Bayani Reyes: An insightful middle-aged man
• Winter Spry: The group's social media manager,
with a love of helping people and a cybernetic
a Singularist, and an Omnidyne engineer lead.
foot. Bayani's a legal consultant who helps Build-
Winter has been organizing Omnidyne-
ers who have cybernetics troubles or just prefer
sponsored events and telling his boss about the
to see a Tagalog speaker. He's done some invest-
group's activities in the belief that Omnidyne
igating on the Block Boys, but there's not much
want to help—in actuality, Omnidyne wants to
he can do about them.
hijack the group for advertising purposes.
• Neptun Zorić: Night manager of the Huygens
Builders Club. Neptun is young for a Builder—he
came to space in his early twenties, and he's in
his mid-thirties now. He's mainly interested in
taking over the group's lucrative worker's clubs
and sees the middle-aged-and-up Builders as
old-timers who should get out of his way already.
He's been considering sabotaging his coworkers
to speed up the process.

266 Setting
 Home Directory

Green Orbit The New Barons

Green Orbit think people have been focusing too The Barons are a pro-Earth nationalist group
much on leaving Earth instead of fixing it. Going to attempting to hijack the conversation around orbital
space is nice, but the fact is that no planet is going independence and use it to spread their beliefs. They
to be better suited for humanity than their home hold that Western civilization is responsible for every
world. They think Grand Cross is ready to start major scientific advancement in history, and
lending aid to Earth rather than the other way therefore only "the Western world" (by which they
around and latched on to the pro-Earth movement mean white people, preferably men) should control
to get their voices heard. space. The fact that they're wrong on every
conceivable level—and several that haven't been
Green Orbit has launched several successful
discovered yet—hasn't stopped them so far.
campaigns to increase investment in environmental
science, open more park space on Luna, and raise Typical group actions include inciting violence
support for groups like the Technoprogessive Party against their perceived opponents, organizing
(p. 108). Recently they've been having trouble with "science exhibitions" to teach people "real history,"
NanoFuturistics, who have created a similar group threatening professors, and trying to take over or
called Green Lagrange to redirect that support sabotage community spaces. They mostly recruit
towards NanoF-friendly initiatives. disaffected young men—a lot of members believe
that androids and/or Lovelace laws (p. 11) were a
Characters conspiracy to destroy Western civilization, so they
don't get many other recruits. They've had some
• Aoife Tracey: Current leader of the group. Aoife is
success with Singularists lately.
a charismatic young Techno who wrested control
of the group in the last annual election because The Barons enjoy the financial backing of several Cartel
the former leader was redirecting the group's and Unity interests who stand to benefit from their
efforts toward corporate propaganda. Her current fascist views becoming mainstream. The movement
focus is on Luna, but if she found out about the has no headquarters, but they gather online via a
extent of NanoFuturistics' surveillance, she would HeoCities webring and organize regular meetups.
come to Grand Cross and raise hell.
• Serge Osterhagen: Runner-up to Aoife in the last Characters
election. Serge is a neoliberal who ran because
• Jesse Gorbold: Leader of the Barons. Gorbold is
he thought NanoF's offers of funding were worth
a former anime review site webmaster and failed
"tweaking" the group's message a little, and he
TV personality who pivoted to this after his vocal
tries to sabotage Aoife behind her back. He's had
opposition to android rights cost him work.
some help from both NanoF and friends in the
Jesse grifts the New Barons for donations but is
New Barons, who he says he hangs out with
secretly paid staggering amounts of money to
because he likes "hearing opposing viewpoints."
run the Barons by a Cartel oligarch. Morningstar
has done several puff pieces on him.
• Phil Azimuth: A science fan who works at a startup
in Turing. Phil is a huge Max Babylon fan who has
been trying to recruit Singularists to the Barons on
the side. Omega Point has yet to ban him because
he's a flat Earth believer, so nobody takes him
seriously even though his recruit pitches work.
• Trajan: An android and former influencer turned
New Baron darling. Where most weirdo content
creators would simply use an avatar of some
ancient ruler, Trajan has gone one step further by
modifying his Lilim-model body to resemble a
statue of an ancient Roman emperor, complete
with white casing8 and a metal-leaf crown. Anti-
android Barons point to Trajan to "prove" the
Barons aren't anti-android.

8 Roman statues weren't even white.

Setting 267
 Characters
Final Frontier
Final Frontier is an organization of scientists who • Melati Onbekend: A Double Crosser influencer
want to see more orbital settlements trying new who makes short-form comedy videos. She's
social, economic, and political systems. Most good at organizing her peers, but chronic health
habitat plans in the works aren't very experimental problems keep her from most events.
in this regard, and Final Frontier is pushing for that • Sudarshan Singh: A Unity politician from Adams,
to change. They also push for orbital independence dedicated to making sure the Project Committee
out of a desire to break free from old human norms. dissolves. He was on the interim Council and is
seen as an authority on Committee affairs.
The group are fairly popular. The Cartel tries to
• Yancy Starr: A writer and activist who happens to
discredit them since they're willing to consider
be focused on #FreeOrbit at the moment. Great
founding a settlement that isn't capitalist, but the
at online campaigning, but has a bad habit of
Disaster has soured many Earth governments on the
launching fundraisers and mismanaging the money.
Cartel, so for now it's evened. Final Frontier's most
ambitious proposals are still unlikely, but they're
getting to consult on at least one future habitat. Liberate Orbit
Skuggahvarf wasn't the only space habitat in the
On Grand Cross, Final Frontier study marginalized
works. At least ten stations have been proposed,
communities and sometimes try to help them out,
and more will be cropping up in the coming
at least when they have the resources and it's not
century. Some of these are like Grand Cross—group
likely to land them in legal trouble. They're based
efforts set up as quasi-independent states—but
out of an office in Spitzer district (p. 167).
some are extensions of their creators, openly or no,
and the law around how much control an Earth
Characters nation can have over them is still a little murky.
• Lewis Carpenter: A former Project consultant,
Liberate Orbit is an activist group pushing for all
lecturer, and popular science podcaster. Lewis
new habitats to be at least as independent and
founded the group, and a lot of the Cartel's smear
democratic as Grand Cross and Luna. They fear that
efforts have been focused on him specifically. He
allowing an authoritarian state to create an
thinks everything will work out eventually.
authoritarian space colony would be a bad thing for
• Tizita Desta: A GPol historian who helps Final
every orbital in the long run.
Frontier reach out to marginalized groups and
other communities outside their usual scientific Liberate Orbit is more formal and focused than Free
spheres. She believes cybernetically augmented Orbit, though they have a lot of overlap. It's also a little
brains will be commonplace by the 2030s. more neoliberal than Free Orbit, so several members
think corporate habitats would solve the problem
rather than create a different type of authoritarian
Free Orbit state. Their headquarters lie in a small office in Adams.
Free Orbit is an online movement of people who
want Grand Cross and Artemis to become Characters
independent states free of Earth control. Its core,
• Tola Wolanski: A lifelong campaigner for LGBTQ
such as it is, is a loose collection of celebrities,
rights who works with Liberate Orbit to protect
Technos, Double Crossers, and other influencers,
them in space. Opposes corporate habitats.
who all support independence for their own reasons.
• Tsung-han Lin: A Taiwanese hacktivist who
Historically, Free Orbit has organized a couple of big moved to Grand Cross after his efforts to uncover
events every year. As elections draw near—and the new habitat plans landed him in hot water back
Committee starts to discuss sticking around past on Earth. Prefers to get things done and let the
their original target—the movement has been others decide policy.
picking up steam. Events are getting bigger and • Nance Tuff: A Liberate Orbit founder with a
more frequent, and a skilled influencer could easily corporate background. Nance prefers to "work
whip up another if they wanted to. within the system" to oppose authoritarian
habitats, and she's considering pushing a
"private enterprise" model for space habitats to
get more funding.

268 Setting
 Home Directory

Organized Labor
by Matthew Lind

The Cartel have done their best to stamp out Under this corporate pressure, members have been
organized labor on Grand Cross. They've been challenging UEW leadership to do more and have
largely successful, and now they're trying to finish been campaigning to replace them. LASA engineers
the job. But that move has left openings for have faced the most pressure and have been
grassroots activists and might reinvigorate the pushing for a general strike. If they don't get it,
existing unions. No matter how things turn out, the they're likely to disaffiliate and join Solidarity Now!.
status quo is over. Meanwhile, the UOD has been bringing in AWU and
FSF activists to bulk up its ranks in anticipation of
Union of Extra- having to fight the police. The UEW is on the verge
of either coming apart or returning to its roots.
vehicular
Workers Solidarity Now!
The UEW is an association of smaller unions Solidarity Now! is a group formed by grassroots
founded in the early days of station construction activists, focusing on organizing service and
that represents everyone who needs to wear a information workers on Grand Cross. Their
spacesuit or leave the main habitat for their work. membership skews younger and they have a close
That includes the workers who build and maintain relationship with other political organizations.
the station's structure, who run the agricultural Their decentralized structure makes it hard for the
modules, who operate transports and skiffs around police and corporate interests to come down on
Grand Cross, and who load and unload cargo ships. them, but it also sometimes leads to incoherent
internal politics.
Member unions include the Life and Agri Systems
Association (LASA), Grand Cross Farmers United Though officially affiliated with refugee, immigrant,
(GCFU, p. 207), Union of Orbital Dockworkers and android rights groups, some Solidarity Now!
(UOD), Station Builders United (SBU), and the members see these groups as threats, and the lack
Transport & Service Pilots Guild (TSPG). The UEW is of central authority makes it difficult disavow or
associated with Asteroid Miners United (AWU) and correct these views. There's also significant
the Federation of Spacefarers (FSF). The Society of argument over tactics; more than once a faction has
Zero-G Workers (SZW) used to be part of the UEW gone ahead with plans without majority approval.
but was expelled for rampant corruption and The group has a lot of potential but might splinter
subsequently collapsed. under these pressures.
The corporations tried to break the UEW during
station construction but failed, so they pivoted to a Grand Alliance
strategy of isolation—keep the UEW membership Supposedly a more respectable alternative to
happy with solid labor agreements while relying on Solidarity Now!, the Grand Alliance is in fact an
bribery, propaganda, intimidation, and in at least astroturfed "worker's rights" organization sponsored
one case outright assassination to make sure the by right-wing activists and their corporations. They
UEW failed to support any other organizing effort have a flashy ad campaign and reliably cloak anti-
inside Grand Cross. But the new generation of labor legislation in progressive language. The
corporate leaders don't care about the old Alliance doesn't have much actual support, but it
agreements. Or, more accurately, they always doesn't have to actually gain members to succeed—
viewed them as a temporary arrangement and are they just confuse the issue and make life harder for
impatient to have things their way. the actual organizers. The Police Benevolent
Association of the Station of Grand Cross is part of
the Grand Alliance, naturally.

Setting 269
 The Exies • Sofia Ngô Thị Xuân: A young Burger Kong
employee who inspired her coworkers to stage a
As a militant faction of the UEW—particularly the
spontaneous walkout over wages. Sofia's cha-
AWU and the SBU—dating back to the original
risma gained her significant media attention. She
wildcat strikes during station construction, the Exies
was a founder of Solidarity Now! and has proven
favored direct action, up to and including sabotage
to be an able organizer but is struggling to hold
and even bombings. They've been more
the group together.
underground in the years since, but lately they've
• Roosevelt Profit: An infamous militant behind a
made a comeback.
series of bombings on Luna. Profit is known for
Though committed to revolutionary action and her uncompromising commitment to the cause
willing to put their lives on the line for it, many Exie and her competence. She has decades of experi-
cells harbor anti-immigrant and anti-refugee ence and a list of arrest warrants longer than her
ideologues. As a whole they are virulently anti- arm. Profit's cell recently broke with the Exies
android. They've been recruiting from disaffected over ideological disagreements and joined the
Solidarity Now! members, but at the same time Thirteeners. Her intensity can be off-putting even
cells who disagree with Exie social views have left to her few friends.
for the Thirteeners. The new blood might be able to
push them into better solidarity, or they might
double down and go full red-brown.
Union of Robots
by Thaddeus Strange

Thirteeners The Union of Robots ("UR Not Alone!") claims to be

the oldest labor union organizing for solidarity
A new faction arising from life support and
between mechanical and biological workers,
agricultural workers. They take their name from
though the details of their beginnings are vague
LASA Local #13, which was nearly wiped out when
and often contradictory. Their favorite apocryphal
one of the agricultural module's environments
origin involves an early AGI experiment accessing a
collapsed. Radicalized by these needless deaths
company server bank and using the spinning hard
and the existential threat such events pose to
disks to play "The Internationale" on loop until they
station life support, they've advocated that
were physically disconnected.
immediate and drastic steps need to be taken.
They've recently graduated to sabotage, as the UEW The Union tends to be frowned on by the more suit-
has been slow to act. A recent influx of disaffected and-tie orgs who have things like lobbying arms
Exies has brought increased militancy and and corporate offices. But if you're looking to
capability. They also have strong ties to refugee organize a street action, boost awareness for a
groups. The Thirteeners are a growing power, but crowdfunding campaign, or just find a couch to
their inexperience has led to missteps. crash on, UR looking in the right place.

Characters Characters
• Behold Pascale: President of TSPG Local #2, and • Public Universal Comrade: PUC doesn't talk
a stalwart of union politics his entire adult life. much, especially about themself, so it's hard to
Pascale is known as a wheeler and dealer and is tell if they're a group of similar-bodied androids
seen as part of the corrupt old guard, but he’s star- or a well-traveled individual. An artist by trade,
ted taking an increasingly radical line since the their hand-made flyers and signs are well
corporations started turning the screws. Which known throughout the Union. They seem to
version is the "real" Pascale remains unclear. know everybody.
• Wilroyce Root: Spokesperson for the Grand Alli- • Fellow Robot Jo: A local activist. (“Fellow robot”
ance, former attorney, and child of a major cor- is a common form of address among UR mem-
porate executive. They maintain a publicly frosty bers.) Jo is an excellent behind-the-scenes
relationship with their parent, but they're corpor- organizer and is infamous for strapping on a bug-
ate through and through. Has a popular social eyed tokusatsu-inspired helmet and riling up
media account with a disturbing number of thirst crowds at street actions.
followers and writes a column for Morningstar.

270 Setting
 Home Directory

Other Groups
United People for
The Augmented Android Freedom
People's Alliance
by Helen Gould
by Helen Gould
Some androids argue that the only way to gain
Low-income workers were the first to get mechanical
freedom is to physically fight for it; others feel that
augments and the first to experience the negative
any violence will only justify anti-android
consequences. They are now fighting for
sentiment. A minority are separatists who believe
compensation for and recognition of their medical
androids need a clean break from humans.
issues, as well as trying to prevent corporations
Currently, the loudest and largest faction are those
pressuring others into potentially harmful augments.
who believe in non-violent direct action, but many
Augments are supposed to be tailored to each are growing impatient with their slow progress.
person, but that costs money; money that major
The UPAF are allied with other groups, including
corporations prefer to give to their shareholders.
the Augmented People's Alliance. Olivaw has also
Now many are sporting mass-produced augments
offered his assistance, but the leadership does not
that are no longer being maintained: the joints are
acknowledge him.
sticking, parts are becoming brittle, and there's a
thriving market in shoddy repairs.
Characters
The Alliance raise hell in the factories, hold popular
• Yemaya: An old deep-water android who is the last
disruptive rallies, put pressure on bosses, and help
of her model. She is far more cynical than the other
current workers to unionize and protest against the
androids and is a fount of tactical knowledge due to
exploitative contracts that require augmentation to
her long experience with organizing for her rights.
work at the company.
• Robin and Kelly, who were one of the first human/
android couples. In addition to their equality work,
Characters they are dedicated to fostering children and never
• Ayesha Farooq, whose bionic legs have faulty have less than five in their home (in addition to the
knee joints that render them unusable. two that they have permanently adopted.)
Nowadays she has a wheelchair to run over the • Theresa Forbes (real name: Spark2), who looks
toes of capitalists, both literally and metaphoric- entirely human and is running for office whilst
ally, and to lead the marches for compensation. keeping their android identity secret. They plan
• Seb Jones: A factory inspector who has access to to do a big reveal once they have been elected in
multiple sites and uses it to the advantage of the order to prove that androids and humans are the
movement at great risk to himself. He spreads leaf- same and as such deserve the same rights.
lets, posters, and other written materials to the
workers there, slowly radicalizing them from within. CAPTCHA
• Alex Bennett, who writes all the various materi- by Thaddeus Strange
als—petitions, information campaigns, banners,
CAPTCHA (as in "Completely Automated Public
posters—with the mechanical hands they never
Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart") is a
wanted. Strangely, they don't talk much; it seems
loose network of reactionary groups with their roots
they prefer to let their writing speak for them.
in older and failed anti-cybernetics movements. It's
usually shortened to Computers & Humans Apart
(CHA). Their well-dressed, media-savvy figureheads
pop up in newsfeeds and think pieces, coolly
explaining the need to keep "artificial people"
separated from "real people," especially "young
children with vulnerable and developing minds."

Setting 271
 Their harsher, street-level actors prominently Double Crossers
display tattoos of glitch-aesthetic l33tsp34k words by Helen Gould
to signal membership to each other and chant
The young people that comprise the Double
slogans like "2+2 is 5! You can't kill what's not
Crosser generation lack both their parents' patriotic
alive!". Liberals tend to focus on making fun of
feelings about Earth and their access to influence in
them for thinking that mathematical contradictions
Grand Cross, though most Double Crosser activists
hurt AIs outside of science fiction stories more than
aren't really interested in that kind of power. What
the implied murder threat at the end.
they want is to tear it all down and start again, this
time without the corporations in charge.
Characters
Some want to extend this to Earth, arguing that this
• Blake Alexander: The smug and extremely online
is where the problems stem from, but others have
scion of a respectable cybernetics production
given it up as a lost cause. This is an ongoing
firm. Alexander knows exactly how to toe the line
discussion, but it hasn't yet erupted into
between hate speech and “just asking questions.”
factionalism: for now, everyone involved
• Kenneth Scott: Leader of an anti-android gang
understands that they have to deal with what's in
that joined CAPTCHA as part of a low-effort
front of them first.
attempt to seem respectable. Essentially a thug
with an anger management problem. Second-gen Crossers are very tech-savvy. As an
activist group, they communicate through encrypted
Orbital Freedom and password-protected video chats that are deleted
Institute after each meeting. They operate under pseudonyms,
A non-profit conservative think tank backed by using face and voice scrambling tech when discussing
various Cartel oligarchs and Lunar elites. The OFI is their next action. They specialize in political
essentially a vehicle for them to push corporate- vandalism, property destruction, and hacktivism.
friendly policies through Unity; it champions
privatizing public services, reducing taxes on the Characters
wealthy, and repealing the station's anti-racial
• Wings: A hacking prodigy who excels in online
discrimination laws. They have no strong feelings
sabotage and who has already released several
about orbital independence—as long as corporate
sensitive documents to the public, exposing rife
dependence is maintained, they're happy.
corruption and profiteering (though their real
Their HQ is a building in Armitage (p. 156) where talent is in simple website takedowns.)
they host regular meetings with orbital elites (and • Five Eye: An older teenager who has no parents,
the New Barons) to share and spread ideas. A lot of bad parents, revolutionary parents, or stupid par-
OFI's directors used to work for the corporations ents depend on who they're talking to. Their main
that helped build Grand Cross, and they have hobby is graffitiing rebellious messages in prom-
skeletons in their closet. inent areas around the city without getting
caught.
Characters • Tick Tock, who finds it fascinating what you can
discover from the geography of a place, espe-
• Halbert Peters: Current chairman of the OFI.
cially from hidden blueprints. They have a pho-
Halbert was an executive in Canopus Cyber
tographic memory—particularly of routes that
during the station's construction phase and is
can make for quick exits—and shares various
hoping to make a run for politics without his
approaches and escapes from targets.
activities getting out.
• Ken Kinney: The OFI's go-to guy when they need a
spokesman to promote their policies with a straight
face. Has a lot of connections in Omnidyne (his
former employer) and the New Barons.
• Arista Faxx: A director and former Omnidyne
executive assistant. In the latter job, Faxx helped
to cover up bribes paid by her bosses—along
with Omnidyne's collusion with Canopus Cyber.

272 Setting
 Home Directory

The L4 Refugees The Peopleʼs Garden

by Helen Gould by Arc Williams
Since the Disaster and the subsequent revelation As the station’s problems grow, more people are
that it was caused by Cartel negligence, anger and turning away from the government and helping
disapproval have been growing among the their own communities. The Garden is a
survivors and sympathetic Crossers. After all, if that community-run mutual aid group hoping to give
settlement was built so shoddily, what about power back to the people.
everywhere else?
The Garden’s community center offers a walk-in
Every refugee has lost multiple people, along with kitchen, daycare services, and shelter to those in
their homes and livelihoods, and they are all need. They can also arrange education (especially self-
rightfully furious. Every time Burgur—the man who defense training) and legal aid for those who cannot
built Skuggahvarf—appears in public, he can be afford it. In their rooftop garden, they teach people
sure of a confrontation. Even with Goliath how to grow and maintain gardens of their own while
protection, his house is regularly picketed. working with local communities to help feed not only
those who need it, but anyone who walks in.
There are two main prongs to the refugees' actions:
first, to hold the Cartel to account and expose their Originally, The Garden was a DIY website run by
money-hungry dealings for what they are; second, Isabelle Brighton, who got fed up with trying to
to find a new home that hasn't been corrupted by afford maintenance on her overpriced corporate-
any corporations. mandated prosthetic arm. With her engineering
degree and some help from local biomed students,
Characters she created a cheaper alternative and posted the
schematics online. Shortly after, the site
• Petra Bogomolova: An elderly woman with a
ballooned. Today, The Garden’s website contains
shrewd strategic mind who lost her whole family.
cheap, simple plans for many cybernetic parts,
She keeps herself sharp by tracking the various
along with gardening and other guides. They accept
shady connections between companies involved
donations of cash and goods.
with the Cartel and which other civilians might
be at risk.
• Sam Okafor: A lawyer who is building the legal Characters
and moral case for resettlement and has refused • Isabelle Brighthon: An ex-factory worker whose
to stop until justice is served. He has somehow original arm was permanently damaged when
dodged several assassination attempts, which her company recruited Goliath to break a strike.
suggests that there might be someone high up Isabelle manages The Garden’s website and
who supports his endeavors. routinely updates it with advice for fellow
• Maggie Evans: Who is in charge of looking at new cyborgs and trans people.
homes for refugees to move to. Maggie is one of • Erik W: Current head of Security. Eric is an ex-para-
the most trusted people in the movement. She is medic who got tired with only being able to help
also secretly an agent for the Cartel and the one people after they’d been shaken down and beaten
behind the attempts on Sam Okafor's life. up by the corrupt, and started training in earnest
in martial arts. Besides running The Garden’s
security, Erik teaches first aid and martial arts and
runs a support group for nonbinary people.
Factions as • Imani Riel: At 19, Imani is the youngest of the
Communities group’s leadership. Her parents are Agriculture
During play, the PCs may form communities
and center their adventures around them. Ring workers, and she’s been watching and
These communities can be factions and learning from them ever since she was young.
activist groups, if the PCs wish. The People’s She developed a massive passion for plants and
Garden is presented here as an example of a wildlife, and when her parents were laid off, she
community faction.
encouraged them to start tending their block’s
community garden with her so she didn’t have to
give up on it. Isabelle and Erik reached out when
her skills caught their attention.

Setting 273
 Faces of Space
The following are various side characters mentioned in Chapter 6: Location Data, sorted by the ward they
appear in. As with the rest of this chapter, how you use them is up to you—some can even make decent PCs.
Some Chapter 6 characters are important members of factions covered elsewhere in this chapter; page
references are provided at the end of each ward.

Voyager Ward
Reidar Aalfs, Personality: Arrogant, tightly-wound, busy. Andre
Elite Doctor tends to value people who taste and praise his food,
Chief doctor at the Apogee Medical Boutique. As far as which has made him biased toward the wealthy
Reidar's concerned, his job isn't to stop his patients and "full humans," even though most cyborgs can
taking risks (like taking uppers for fun)—it's to let them still eat. He is dismissive of other views and is slow
do what they want with their bodies and deal with the to change his mind. Despite everything, he's careful
results. The massive stacks of cash help. to show nothing but kindness to his employees.
Appearance: Young, blonde, shiny. Reidar is a Goals: Maintain Café des Astronautes' success and
middle-aged guy who looks youthful and healthy find ways to undermine Kala's Corner.
thanks to expensive medical treatments. He uses a
little too much hair gel and teeth whitener. Most of Sammy Chang,
his outfits are expensive suits. Android Club Owner
Owner of the Cave of Steel club. Sammy is very old by
Personality: Focused, greedy, classist. Reidar has
android standards—they were around when
lied about his reasons for running a pill mill so many
Orbiforms were cool. They were the assistant of a
times he's starting to buy his own bullshit. If he sees
Taiwanese businessman who gave them some money
a sick working-class person, he tends to assume
as a thank-you gift when they moved to Grand Cross;
exercise and cod liver oil will fix them. He constantly
Sammy used the capital to reinvent themself with a
worries about seemingly trivial actions he thinks
new name, a new body, and a cool club.
could make him "look poor." Reidar is a little lazy
about covering his tracks because he assumes his Appearance: Handsome, blue, quick. Sammy's
wealth and connections will get him out of trouble. current body is an androgynous, all-blue Adams-
model; they made it themself with some warranty-
Goals: Make money prescribing all sorts of crap to
breaking mods and second-hand parts. They prefer
the rich and famous.
clothes that look like they came out of a sci-fi novel.
Andre Arnoul, Personality: Calm, straightforward, generous.
Fancy Chef Sammy enjoys feeling like part of a community and
The owner of Café des Astronautes. Andre is an wants the club to feel like a second home. They enjoy
excellent chef, with a very high opinion of himself and making things; besides their body, they did a lot of
an unconscious prejudice against androids and the club's interior. Sammy donates to a lot of android
cyborgs. It strains his relationship with his daughter rights groups and charities with a variety of political
Fleur, who uses a cyber-leg, and has locked him into an views, including one that might be a Law Zero front.
increasingly petty rivalry with the android chef Kala.
Goals: Build up the android community; donate
Appearance: Stern, imposing, grumbly. Andre's excess money.
long, pointed features, swept-back blonde hair, and
stern default expression make him look like a crime
boss trying to seem harmless at his grandson's
birthday party.

274 Setting
 Home Directory

Asmund Coolen, Lithium “Lith” Hua,

Wannabe Builder Syndicate Broker
The millionaire founder of the Builder Museum. Owner of the V-Suite and mid-level member of the
Åsmund is actually a first-gen Crosser, but after Void Dragon Syndicate. Lith uses her many contacts
politicians co-opted the Builder term, he started (in both the criminal and corporate worlds) to get
using it too. He's basically LARPing as a member of things for her customers, creating favors the
the working class for attention, and since Syndicate can call in later. She's left her past and
Morningstar news programs keep inviting him on as her birth name behind her, but word is she became
an expert on Builders, it seems to be working. a full-body cyborg after an augmentation procedure
pushed on her as a child went wrong.
Appearance: Personable, self-assured, stocky.
Åsmund has a little brown beard, slick hair, thick Appearance: Expressive, haughty, dark-haired. Lith's
glasses, and a thing for polo shirts. In his public body is based on a design for a Syndicate-sponsored
appearances, he puts on an incredibly fake posh android girl group that was rejected because the red
British accent that makes him sound like an eyes scared people. She has a smile that could
antagonist from a Scandinavian Doctor Who sketch. launch a hundred spaceships and a library of glares
that could send them hurtling into the Sun.
Personality: Prideful, productive, attention-
seeking. Åsmund says he worked hard to get where Personality: Outspoken, charming, cold. Lith can
he is, but having a rich lawyer daddy funneling crank up the charm when she needs to as she's good
clients to his engineering firm helped more than at making friends and contacts. Her real personality
he's willing to admit. He's not a good liar, but is loud, sassy, and quick to anger. She doesn't have
Morningstar repeats his claims uncritically anyway. much respect for corporate management types, who
she sees as willing slaves to a cruel system.
Goals: Get applauded as a working-class hero;
develop the Builder Museum into his legacy. Goals: Lithium is loyal to the Syndicate but plans to
retire to a space beach with a big pile of cash one day.
Hiten Hagoromo,
Space Fan Kala,
Owner of the Sakigake izakaya. Hiten came to space Android Chef
for work, but the experience turned him into a The owner of Kala's Corner. Kala was brought to
space fanatic and inspired him to return to his real Grand Cross from Malaysia as the personal chef of a
passion: cooking. He collects space junk because he wealthy family. When the advance of android rights
finds inspiration in the stories behind how Earth- meant they had to start paying her, they "granted
bound objects made it to space. her freedom" by abandoning her at a transit
station. She's since built herself a new home and,
Appearance: Aging, beer gut, cheerful. Hiten cuts
despite her treatment, she still hopes for better
his hair and beard short, and wears glasses—
relations between humans and androids.
usually big AR ones, a holdover from his corporate
days. He wears cheap old-school clothing at work, Appearance: Thoughtful, small, polite. Kala is an
jumpsuits and overalls outside. older Lilim-model android with short dark hair and
newer green eyes. She prefers plain, dark casual
Personality: Prudent, soft, proud. Hiten is generally
wear at work, lighter outfits with bucket hats and
soft-spoken until space-related topics come up, in
shades when she's off the clock.
which case he's eager to share what he knows. He's
got some experience in the corporate field, so he Personality: Affable, considerate, diligent. Kala
occasionally gives advice to customers who ask. keeps cooking because she likes making others
happy. She treats others well and is on good terms
Goals: Get his hands on rare space junk.
with her employees but tends to avoid letting
people get too close out of fear of abandonment.
She regularly donates to the UPAF (p. 271).
Goals: Keep Kala's Corner running; support android
causes.

Setting 275
 Umaru Kayode, Moogsy,
Cyber Doctor Local Fence
The owner of Apple Street Medical Center. Umaru's A fence who hangs out in the Moon Flag bar. Moogsy
parents became Builders while he went to buys stolen goods Downtown and sells them
university in Lagos; by the time he followed them to Backtown, using the basements to travel between
space, his father had augmented to recover from an them. Moogsy has connections with Hotel Melbourne
accident. That inspired Umaru to pivot into (p. 252) but prefers to work independently.
cybernetics, and he's been helping Builder and
Appearance: Sloppy, unassuming, red-haired.
working-class cyborgs ever since.
Moogsy is an Australian-born white guy who wears
Appearance: Tall, precise, confident. Umaru shaves comfortable but scruffy clothes, orbital metal band
his head because he finds it convenient and sports shirts, and hiking shoes. He doesn't look very
a cybernetic left arm loaded with useful tools. He athletic, but his parkour skills are off the hook.
tends to dress professionally, even off work.
Personality: Cunning, uncouth, hurried. Moogsy's
Personality: Resourceful, understanding, educated. fine with petty crimes because everyone's gotta do
Umaru is well-read, friendly with his patients, and what they can to survive, right? He'd make an
quick to laugh. He regularly tries to quit smoking excellent station worker, but he hates being tied
but hasn't quite managed it yet. Umaru believes down and wants to be his own boss. Though he's
laws that hurt people are unjust laws, and as such, fine with stealing, he won't hurt anyone directly.
he has no problem making grey-market
Goals: Make a bit of money and avoid the law.
hydroponics parts to keep his business running.
Goals: Help out the little guy, maybe quit smoking. Dana Najm,
the Coding Chaos
Lotte, Owner of the Black Pyramid club. Dana's parents
Midnight Barista brought her here from Egypt in her teens; seeing
Owner and barista of the Latte Night bookshop/ the station ignited her interest in tech and wanting
café. According to Lotte, she was an airhead in to rebel ignited her interest in hacking. She's
school and discovered her passion for books in officially retired from the hacker community,
community college; now she runs a place for people though she's rumored to be behind the
who don't normally get a chance to read. BL00DYT0N9U3 ICE breaker.
Appearance: Lively, tall, pretty. Lotte has a bright Appearance: Striking, occult tattoos, spooky. Dana
smile, a cyber-eye, and possibly other augments tries to dress like an evil witch, or at least like she'd
(she's cagey about it). She ties her long brown hair get kicked out of church. She's usually wearing a
into a ponytail to keep it out of her face at work. high-tech glove, keyed to her club's AR systems.
She's surprisingly strong because her other hobby
Personality: Curious, loyal, playful. Dana likes
is sports.
running a club because it's a place for her and her
Personality: Sunny, intelligent, empathetic. Lotte friends to hang out, running with an AR theme
likes being a night owl because she has a lot of because she's fascinated by how tech can mess
Earth friends and family to video chat. She enjoys with people's perceptions. She spends a lot of time
talking to people and does her best to offer them posting on forums and has a lot of contacts in the
advice, which she mostly takes from books. She hacker community.
gets her coffee skills from her parents.
Goals: Have fun in the Black Pyramid, do a little
Goals: Listen to people's stories at Latte Night, light hacking on the side.
acquire new books.
Other Characters
• Trilobite Liao: p. 248.

276 Setting
 Home Directory

Turing Ward
Max Brodrig, Leetboy,
Event Horizon College Hacktivist
Founder of Event Horizon. Max began his political A hacktivist and GPol postgrad. "Leetboy" was raised
career in high school when he kicked up a fuss about by pro gamers and grew up surrounded by tech. His
the then-lack of a Christian university in Grand Cross life has been consumed by his thesis, so much so
forcing him to apply to "liberal" schools that all rejected that he sleeps in his library study cube most nights.
him (after looking at his test scores, but details). Max He plays around with computers when he needs a
is using most of Event Horizon's money to fund an break. He engages in hacktivism so he still feels
expensive lifestyle and some cybernetic augmentations. connected to the world; he focuses on the Disaster,
but he'd go for the Dreamers if he knew about them.
Appearance: Slick, snappy, smirking. Max dresses
to impress no matter the occasion and has taken to Appearance: Gangly, shaggy, tired. Leetboy wears a
importing Rolex holo-watches now that he's flush with thick jacket over old GPol anime club shirts. He
Event Horizon money. His blonde hair actually looks like seems to fade into the background at the library—
his mother does it ever since he started doing it himself. he once got himself a cup of coffee from the staff
room and nobody noticed. He mostly talks in
Personality: Boastful, sore loser, grifter. Max has
outdated gaming slang, but an undergrad has
noticed that many institutions known for reading
taught him "poggers."
and knowing things reject his beliefs but has not
worked out why. He wildly exaggerates both his and Personality: Antisocial, altruistic, weird. Leetboy
Event Horizon's accomplishments. As far as he's has been working in the library for so long that he's
concerned, he's owed the best in life, and getting no longer sure how long it's been, what his thesis is
corporate donors to fund his augments is just about, or whether the universe is real. The closest
correcting the universe's mistake. he gets to interacting with people is attending
anime club screenings upstairs. He's got a strong
Goals: Keep Event Horizon going; slowly transform
sense of justice; he's just also got his thesis
into a super-robot.
weighing him down.
Camilla Hylander, Goals: Finish his thesis; clear his head with hacktivism.
Tower Manager
Manager of the Horsehead Tower and a younger Adam Najjar,
member of the Hylander family. Camilla isn't likely Ward Mayor
to get far in the Hylander Group—her father favors The mayor of Turing Ward and a member of Union.
her brothers, they mostly work on Earth, and the Adam was elected a couple years ago on a pro-
Tower job is mostly to give her something to do. worker platform that he mostly abandoned a few
She's become just socially aware enough to want to months in. Adam is very big on maintaining the
do some good, though she's a little too self- diversity in tech that helped the space rush happen,
absorbed to do it effectively. he's just also big on being wined and dined.
Appearance: Trendy, expensive, regal. Camilla has Appearance: Suited, clean, animated. Adam looked
ringlets in her brown hair, so people know she's a youthful when he was elected, but the stress of the
princess type. She's never seen without a jacket and job is starting to age him. In public appearances, he
bag from the luxury orbital brand L5V—specifically tends to mimic the gestures and cadence of
from their "Camilla Range," which they created to successful Earth politicians. Something about the
convince her to put their store in the Tower. way he smiles makes people want to punch him.
Personality: Proud, brash, fashionable. Camilla is Personality: Engaging, impressionable, centrist. As a
an Ashton U graduate with a good head for centrist, Adam can recognize society's problems but
business, despite what her father thinks. An old thinks the causes are good. He prefers making slow,
friend of hers dying in the Disaster made her incremental improvements which don't upset anyone
reassess her priorities; she's started to think about (except all the people who need them now and know
how she can help people, or at least donate to he could deliver, but they don't write big checks).
someone who can help people.
Goals: Re-election, which Adam currently thinks
Goals: Manage the Tower and figure out how means maintaining the support of Turing's elite.
philanthropy works.

Setting 277
 The Positronic Man, Lew Tupper,
The Android Himself Polytech Security
An android fashion designer, his own boss and his Chief of Polytech Security Solutions and GPol
own brand. TPM is the kind of guy who tells people he campus security by extension. Lew entered law
defies description. He thinks the solution to androids enforcement for the power and pivoted to private
not having a long culture to draw upon is to make one security for the money. He's trying to arrange for
up as fast and loud as possible. He wants to use his PSS to be bought out because he could get an even
skills to make androids popular so they can do it too. more lucrative management job if it works. He
might just pull it off.
Appearance: Retro, fashionable, dramatic. TPM's
body is a Lilim—specifically a dev unit, all silver Appearance: Stiff, muscled, sharply dressed. Lew
with oddly exposed parts. He wears elaborate sci-fi- sports a dark moustache and shades to give himself
esque outfits with sweet kicks, as though daring an air of authority. The student paper once said he
anyone to make fun of him. looks like an extra from a cop-themed porno, and
they're right. He had the sense to get someone with
Personality: Theatrical, empathetic, fast-moving.
talent to design the PSS uniforms, at least.
TPM has the confidence of a man who knows most
android celebrities have him on speed dial. Nearly Personality: Ambitious, measured, toadying. Lew
everything he does is to paint the TPM brand as being usually tries to be nice to students and insists his
cool, fun, and ambitious. If he's angry, he will let you men keep their noses clean, but mostly does these
know it. TPM can be surprisingly deliberate and things to increase his chances of getting noticed by
thoughtful, but usually saves it for private situations. one of the big companies. He escalates student
protests to give himself an excuse to suppress them
Goals: Advance the brand while figuring out how to
because he wants to look tough on the news.
stop others profiting off his work.
Goals: Keep GPol clean and find a way to get it
Sloane, bought out, ideally by Goliath.
Android Painter
The artist behind Ferrous Bueller's Paint Shop. Other Characters
Sloane has been fascinated by the way androids are • Derek Baars: p. 250.
still building their cultural identity, and through the • Cyrus Berryman: p. 262.
shop she hopes to help other androids work it out. • Josef Diego: p. 251.
She's occasionally targeted by anti-android activists • Divide-0: p. 263.
for some of the slogans she paints on androids, but • Kova Levy: p. 380.
she doesn't care. • Trajan: p. 267.
Appearance: Colorful, tall, smells like paint. Sloane
is an Adams-model android with a canvas-white
body covered in cool paint patterns. She has a
rodeo jacket she really likes, and it's the only thing
she owns not stained with paint.
Personality: Artistic, outgoing, positive. Sloane
loves her job. She spends a lot of time wondering
what the future will be like, which occasionally
veers into making contingency plans. Her
pondering about android identity has recently led
her to question her gender and whether she feels
like a girl all the time.
Goals: Think big thoughts, make cool art.

278 Setting
 Home Directory

Cixin Ward
Harmony An, Hamish Double,
Tsundere Maid Film Director
A maid at the Book Club Café and university Adult video director and founder of Orbital Video
student. A lot of Harmony's regulars are Products. Hamish was a prospective law student taking
Singularists, and while she disagrees with their a gap year in Europe at the time of the Impact and
philosophy, they've inspired her to take AI classes. ended up waiting out the resulting chaos in a Pagan
Harmony is a cyborg, with a lot of tech on the inside commune before hitchhiking home and becoming
and synthetic skin on the externals. She needs the an amateur filmmaker. By the time he reached Grand
café gig because she sprung for upgrades that Cross, Hamish had a deep interest in humanity's future
made her tougher and stronger. (No regrets.) and a desire to study it through erotica.
Appearance: Cute, rude, wears pink. Harmony's short, Appearance: Aging, unremarkable, thoughtful.
sweet exterior belies her sharp tongue; it's part of why Hamish is exactly what most people don't expect a
her "act" at the café works. She swears in Korean pornography pioneer to look like: a nondescript guy
when she's annoyed, which is often. Off work, she with plain brown hair, a crappy beard, and little
wears dresses and ties her blonde hair into a ponytail. glasses. He puts his hand on his chin when he's
deep in thought, which is often.
Personality: Assertive, sassy, clever. Harmony is
nice to friends, service workers, and polite people, Personality: Experienced, candid, organized. Hamish
but her café act is mostly just her saying what she is an artist and philosopher whose works explore his
really thinks about people who annoy her. She's a belief that, one day, mind uploading technology will
huge geek but refuses to let the Singularists find out. merge human and android alike into one harmonious
people. His other pet peeve is censorship, though
Goals: Complete (and pay off) her education; learn
he's careful to distance himself from the "I should be
more about AI.
allowed to be racist if I want to" crowd.
Andromeda Bellizzi, Goals: Make films, push for android rights, fight
Phoenix Tail censorship.
The CEO of Phoenix Tail. Andromeda got her start as
a fashion designer, where she earned a reputation Sergeant Lennart,
for elegant designs, a cool temper, and destroying Fundraising Cop
anyone who crossed her. She started Phoenix Tail A police sergeant who manages the Liu station's
after struggling to find a good security company that Pulser account in addition to a fundraising stall in the
would let her choose their outfits. She focuses on it Eden Road night market. Lennart is a cyborg who
over fashion because she finds it less dangerous. believes being a cop is a noble profession and people
should be emptying their pockets to thank him.
Appearance: Strong, intense, attractive.
(They're saving up for an air hockey table this year.)
Andromeda is a middle-aged woman with long
bleached-white hair and a thing for pant suits. She Appearance: Rounded, shaved, over-geared.
keeps in shape with kickboxing. Most people find Lennart wears his full uniform with body armor to
her gaze "piercing" in much the same way that the stall because he thinks it makes him look
getting hit by a wrecking ball is "nudging." manly. His left leg is cybernetic above the knee; he
got a high-end military-grade one with a
Personality: No-nonsense, savvy, merciless.
holographic Goliath Inc logo orbiting it.
Andromeda is kind to those who show kindness to
her. If you make her mad though, she'll let you have Personality: Careful, greedy, blowhard. Lennart was
it. She votes Union, but she's one of those people given cybernetics and busted down to desk duty after
who sees the unequal power structures destroying drunkenly shooting himself in the knee, though he
society and thinks the problem is the structures tells people it was an android "trained by a Mexican
aren't diverse enough. drug cartel." He's not on the take, but he'd love to be.
Goals: Make Phoenix Tail bigger and protect her clients. Goals: Lennart is currently searching the market for
criminal activity in hopes of finding someone he
can extort bribes from.

Setting 279
 Zhao Liu, Rosco Tasman,
Street Artist Red Sun Microsystems
A street artist and full-body cyborg who mostly A corporate spy posing as a Red Sun branch
works in the Liu district (no relation). Zhao gets her manager. Rosco seeks out local hackers and,
discarded tech through thrift stores, leads/ through money or blackmail, recruits them to spy
donations from her Pulser followers, and cyber- on the Cartel for Red Sun. He honestly couldn't care
clinics. Zhao used to do it for fun but is trying to less about Grand Cross, but if he succeeds, he'll
become a full-time artist now. Her main obstacle is shoot up the Red Sun’s ranks.
the weirdos from Apevert (p. 243) stealing her work.
Appearance: Sharp, "harmless," fast-paced. Rosco
Appearance: Athletic, cheery, sportswear. Zhao's is a clean-shaven black man who dresses like he
parents cyberized her to deal with a serious just read a book on looking successful but didn't
childhood illness, so her face is based on a really get it. It's a ruse to make people think he's
computer-generated, aged-up version of her harmless—in private, Rosco's dry wit and veiled
original with pink eyes. Her body is agile as hell, threats can cut a man in half.
and she prefers to sit on/hang from high places
Personality: Brilliant, determined, forceful. Rosco's
when she can.
strategy is simple: find a weak point he can use and
Personality: Creative, curious, laid-back. Zhao is apply maximum pressure. When he's making deals
fascinated by the connections between man, or legitimately hiring people, he's a man of his word
machine, android, and the digital world, which she who treats everyone fairly. He misses Earth and
explores through her artwork. She's normally surrounds himself with Earth paraphernalia.
easygoing; the only thing that seems to annoy her is
Goals: Collect enough intel on the Cartel that he
people disrespecting her art.
can return home a hero.
Goals: Find a way to stop Apevert and become a
full-time artist. Gerlach Stern,
Cyborg Bartender
Doctor Malik, Owner of Götz von Berlichingen's. When Gerlach
Android Doctor had to replace his left hand, his old boss started
An android who does illegal maintenance work for discriminating against him out of a belief in LMJ
androids and cyborgs. Malik was created to be a Syndrome; this pushed Gerlach into lifelong cyborg
nurse in a country that still hasn't granted androids activism. He's stopped attending protests and the
all the rights they have on Grand Cross, which has like—he's getting a little too old to risk the police
influenced a lot of her thinking. She believes cracking his skull again—but tries to keep doing
androids should have full sovereignty over their things behind the scenes.
bodies and sees her operation as giving it to them.
Appearance: Old, weathered, approachable.
Appearance: Short, serious, busy. Malik's Lilim Gerlach is one of those older people you
model was explicitly designed to look like a cute instinctively know has stories to tell. He sports
nurse. As android work is mostly engineering, she pointed white hair, a beard, and bright blue eyes.
wears a black work jumpsuit with a lot of pockets, He used to put synthetic skin on his cyber-hand but
ratty old sneakers, and her blue hair tucked into a leaves it off these days to show he's a proud cyborg.
kerchief. She rolls the sleeve of her right arm up
Personality: Reliable, experienced, optimist. You
because she's got a lot of tools in there.
guessed it—Gerlach has been through a lot in his
Personality: Trustworthy, compassionate, cynical. life and has a lot of wisdom to dispense. He
Malik agrees with a lot of Law Zero's philosophies, respects people who deal with problems by rolling
but not their methods. Criminals go to her because up their sleeves and taking matters into their own
she avoids asking questions she won't like the hands, especially if it involves punching a cop and
answer to. She doesn't actually mind humans, she getting away with it.
just wishes they'd stay out of android affairs.
Goals: Keep the bar going; support cyborg activists.
Goals: Give androids body care in defiance of the law.

280 Setting
 Home Directory

Randy Babin,
Orbit Five Adams Ward
CEO of Orbit Five entertainment. Randy has built up
Dwight Dunkel,
a reputation as a genius ladies' man who pushes
Adams Landlord
boundaries with his work, and he's pretty good at
Landlord of the Blue Mood Tower. Dwight inherited
maintaining the act provided you don't have to
a ton of Earth real estate from his wealthy family
interact with him for more than ten minutes. In
and thinks selling it to buy orbital real estate makes
reality, he's an insufferable prick who relies on the
him a self-made man. Tetsuo has tapped him to test
Void Dragon to cover for his deficiencies.
out their new smart home devices and they have no
Appearance: Smooth, thin, smoking. Randy's got idea what they're getting into.
stage presence but not charisma; he can draw
Appearance: Round face, wrinkled eyes, glasses.
people's attention, but without the artificial charm
Dwight has worn the same short dark hair and
his status provides he just comes off as an asshole.
beard for twenty years, but the dress shirts with
He wears sports coats, jeans, pompadours, and
rolled-up sleeves are a new thing he's trying. He
sweet kicks every chance he gets.
usually has a few pieces of tech clipped to his belt.
Personality: Charming exterior, grody interior.
Personality: Self-possessed, good with numbers,
Randy uses and discards people regularly,
paranoid. Dwight monitors his tenants to make sure
especially the women his company works with.
they're not costing him money and uses smart
Away from the cameras he is cranky, envious, and
home devices to hassle them for rent. He thinks he
prone to forgetting people's names. Randy is easily
has to do these things because he sees people who
cowed by the Void Dragon because he has no
aren't wealthy as second-class citizens.
leverage over them.
Goal: Make money and make sure his tenants aren't
Goals: Keep the Orbit Five media empire running;
up to no good.
stay in good with the Void Dragon.
Wesley Dunkel,
Other Characters Dwight's Son
• Goro Asano: p. 246.
Wesley's son, who lives in the Blue Mood's
• Virgo Asano: p. 246.
basement. A few years from now Wesley is probably
• Lewis Carpenter: p. 268.
going to start a business, get six figures of seed
• Lathan Tan: p. 256.
money from his dad, and decide he's a self-made
• Somchai: p. 258.
man. In the meantime, he's gotten a little too into
people-watching with his dad's spy setup.
Appearance: Round-faced, terrible moustache, off-
putting. Wesley got nearly everything from his dad
except the ability to grow facial hair. He's in his late
teens and still prone to making goofy decisions; his
latest is copying the speech and mannerisms of Derek
Baars in an attempt to seem cool. It's not working.
Personality: Ambitious, try-hard, nosy. Wesley is
thinking of starting a YourTube channel. At first he
started spying on tenants to get inspiration for his
works, but now he's just fascinated by them. He
doesn't think things through, so he'll probably get a
little too creepy with someone soon.
Goal: Spy on tenants; dream of being an internet
celebrity.

Setting 281
 Finnbogi, Nathan Levesque,
Black Market Leader Levistrode
Operator of the Kyläkauppa Market. Finnbogi was Entrepreneur and CEO of the coding and data entry
once a middle manager for the Earth corporation company Levistrode. Nathan is an ambitious man
Valtion Mittaritehdas before it collapsed; he and his who thinks he has the chops to join the Offworld
coworkers stole everything in the tower that wasn't Cartel—though he could if he had a more
nailed down. Their stolen tech business somehow interesting company. Unfortunately, he is not an
bloomed into a whole market, and they're happy to introspective man.
take advantage as long as they can.
Appearance: Broad-shouldered, long black hair,
Appearance: Plain, long blonde hair, glasses. Back in goatee. Nathan looks like a classier breed of devil in a
the office, Finnbogi was just some guy in suspenders well-tailored suit. He has a cybernetic left leg to
who got on well with people by keeping his head replace a knee he busted playing football in his youth.
down. Today his look has been enhanced by fancier
Personality: Avaricious, clever, grudge-holding.
jackets, bigger cigars, and a more confident attitude.
Nathan tends to blame speed bumps on his path to
Personality: Fatherly, dealmaker, assertive. Finnbogi the top on others rather than any mistake on his
is honestly less bothered by the world of crime than part and is much more likely to double down than
the cut-throat world of corporate politics. He prefers reconsider his plans. He currently blames Geryon
to solve problems non-violently, and he's good at Aerospace for his stalled rise to the top.
figuring out what people want. His crew are mostly
Goal: Grow his company, get into the Cartel, take
ex-employees, so he runs his gang like an office.
Geryon Aerospace down a peg.
Goal: Keep the Market running. However, Finnbogi
figures it'll be put out of business soon—either by more Madoka Mawaru,
modern online endeavors or Réamann being fixed up— Pro Gamer
and is already making plans to restart his life in Artemis. A mid-tier pro fighting game player and keyboardist
in the Double Crosser band Breakfast Cult. (She'd
Rahul Joshi, place higher in tournaments if she weren't so busy
Refugee Leader with her synth.) Madoka knows practically
Leader of a group of Disaster refugees in Réamann. everything there is to know about the station's
Rahul convinced a friend to take him to space to get gaming scene, including the inner workings of the
away from his abusive parents, and post-Disaster arcade cabinets and IR chips.
they've been making the resettling process difficult
Appearance: Bubbly, friendly, creepy-cute skull
in an effort to force him home. He befriended his
pins. Madoka is a cheerful lady with a messy brown
fellow refugees on the trip to Grand Cross and
ponytail and the nimble, calloused hands of a
they've stuck together since.
longtime gamer. Her wheelchair is covered in
Appearance: Tall, awkward, seemingly cheerful. gamer-themed stickers and has a bag full of tech
Rahul is always quick with a smile, which is a lot of slung over the back. She uses a lot of Orbital-dialect
the reason the other refugees follow him. Up until gamer slang.
recently he was used to a quieter life as a copywriter,
Personality: Optimist, whip-smart, huge dork.
and he's clearly still grappling with his situation. He
Madoka is happiest when she's got a controller in
pulls himself together quick in a crisis, though.
her hands, her fingers on some keys, or a piece of
Personality: Worried but faking it, good sense of tech disassembled in front of her. Her true passion
humor. Rahul does not like his situation at all but is gaming, but her bandmates are her best friends
knows he'd hate Earth more, so he's doing his best and she's pretty sure she'll literally die without
to keep his spirits up. His usual mood is "too busy social contact.
and broke to see a therapist."
Goal: Play the synth, game, take apart gaming tech
Goal: Keep his fellows safe until they can get to see how it works.
properly settled on Grand Cross.

282 Setting
 Home Directory

Zyler Parkes, Baldomero "Baldo"

Space Show Celeb Vázquez,
Owner of Swirly Thing Media (p. 174). Zyler won an Builder Bartender
early season of Ground Control to Andrew G and has Owner of Baldo's Bus Stop. Baldo helped build
been trying to turn it into fame and fortune ever since. Réamann in the early years and opened the bar to
He's found moderate success as a "content curator," give his children something to inherit. He's got a
stealing other people's work to build up his own reputation for dispensing wisdom to people who
HeoCities page and selling his services as a marketer. ask, or at least recounting stories of Earth and
letting people take what they want from it.
Appearance: Manufactured, theatrical, dead-eyed.
Zyler spends more time on his "just-threw-this- Appearance: Sweet moustache, heavy-set, shiny
outfit-on" look and blonde-dyed Ivy League cut head. Baldo is an aging Builder with cheap cyber-
than he'd admit. He tends to play up his Aussie hands and a collection of ratty old shirts which only
accent and fake laughter when making public barely hide his tattoos. He gives off a "cool uncle" vibe.
appearances. He's never seen without his custom
Personality: Gregarious, commanding, well-
Tetsuo AR headset and hacker deck, which he
travelled. Baldo did a lot of travelling post-Impact
doesn't know how to use properly.
and picked up a wide variety of skills, proverbs, and
Personality: Driven, savvy, short-sighted. Zyler is fragments of languages while he was there. He's
charismatic in a by-the-numbers way: he knows active in the Grand Cross Motorcycle Club and does
how to relate to people and market himself, but he's his best thinking when he's driving down one of the
not very creative unless it comes to coming up with station's arterials. He's pretty content to spend his
moral justifications for his actions. His desperation twilight years in a place he built for himself.
is a little more obvious than he thinks it is.
Goal: Run his bar, ride his bike, help out locals.
Goals: Zyler's dream is to become a major orbital
celebrity, ideally with a half-hour daily show where Wei Wang,
he shows funny videos he found. Rally "Organizer"
A big social media influencer and budding activist.
Jonno Sendai, Wei is more interested in being seen at rallies than
Tech Dealer doing anything effective. The sponsors of Hologram
A black market tech dealer who mostly trades in Plaza have tapped him to "organize" the rallies
stolen goods, hacker tools, and unfinished corporate there, and just as planned, he's neutered them.
tech. Jonno used to work for Tetsuo but was fired for
Appearance: Cool, handsome, cyber-eye. Wei owns
filing a HR complaint against a supervisor who made
a cap with his social media handle on it and has
comments about his half-Irish background. At first he
made the symbol of his brand a glowing blue ring to
just sold some of their unreleased work to their
match his cybernetic left eye (he streams through it
competitors, but he's discovered a real talent for the
a lot.) Wei speaks Orbital English while streaming,
black market business.
but sometimes totally blanks on the words he's
Appearance: Bony, slick black hair, goatee. Jonno thinking of and substitutes Earth Mandarin instead.
has a slight hunch due to a bad case of computer
Personality: Self-absorbed, well-meaning,
neck. He still insists on wearing his old 90s-style
enthusiastic. If Wei is handed a microphone, the
office clothes to "work" every day. One of his arms
first thing he says is his social media handles. His
is a Tetsuo upgrade; he wasn't coerced into getting
rallies tend to be fun but ineffective, with a lot of
it, but he does regret it enough to remove the logo.
thanking the police, missing the point, and chiding
Personality: Nervous, business-savvy, spiteful. people for killing the vibe. He gets mad if people
Jonno is great at making connections with call him Wrong Wei, so obviously people do it often.
disgruntled workers and using them to steal from the
Goal: Increase his follower count; host fun rallies.
Cartel but is starting to worry that Tetsuo is catching
on to him. He still sees his work as getting revenge on
Tetsuo and hasn't really planned what to do next.
Goal: Hurt Tetsuo's business until he's satisfied all
while not getting caught.

Setting 283
 Rania Xanthopoulos,
Dead Beat Marukyu Ward
Owner of the Dead Beats bar in the Russell district. Izayoi Aino,
Rania knows a lot about the station's graffiti Photographer
scene—she was one of the pioneers. She retired Owner of the UFO Café. Izayoi is an oddball artist who
after falling off the Cross Rail and ruining her legs, wants to live at the edge of space; not just the frontier
but she's a trusted advisor for most serious artists. of human civilization, but one of the weird bits where
the normal people haven't caught up yet. On Earth,
Appearance: Fidgety, blue hair, huge headphones.
she's well-known for a book of space photography.
Rania is usually listening to music to drown out her
tinnitus (though she's thinking of getting a Appearance: Weird, charming, spaceship pins.
cybernetic implant.) Her cyber-legs have blue Izayoi has a lot of tattoos of cutting lines with
synthetic skin usually chosen by androids; during scissors in places cybernetics connectors are
special events at the bar, she uses makeup to paint typically installed. She cuts her brown hair straight
part of her face blue for a sort of zombie look. across the shoulders so she can serve drinks in the
Men in Black Bar on Saturdays. She dresses pretty
Personality: Odd tastes, accepting, music lover.
normally; her weirdness is more of an aura.
Rania's life has had a lot of odd twists and turns, but
she copes with everything life throws her way. She's Personality: Creative, many-sided, indecisive. Izayoi
an anti-authoritarian who helps the station's graffiti has trouble committing to things outside her artistic
artists out of respect for the craft. Her two other pursuits and tends to bounce ideas off her friends for
hobbies are amateur astronomy and virtual idols. feedback even when she knows what the answer is.
She has some complicated feelings about her gender
Goal: Help the station's graffiti artists; run her bar.
identity and is debating whether becoming a full-
body cyborg would help her express them.
Blayde Warlock,
Techno-Artist Goal: Besides the café and the cyborg thing, Izayoi
Blayde is a digital artist and decent hacker who is working on a new photography book.
does a lot of work with procedural generation and
projector installations. He was recently kicked out Hunter Deadman,
of the Rad Netizens artist collective (and their Koala MC
Mind's Eye art museum) for being a jerk and wants Owner and MC of the Ring of Coolant fight club.
revenge. That is his actual name. Hunter is a mysterious, wealthy full-body cyborg
who never leaves his home, wherever it is. Instead,
Appearance: Frosted tips, trench coat, mirror
he remotely operates a robotic koala body. Hunter
shades. Blayde gets a new tattoo whenever he's
is a weird guy who believes altruism is a myth and
stressed, and a lot of them are words in languages
runs an android fighting club for fun.
he doesn't speak; the most prominent is a
Japanese tattoo on his neck which he thinks says Appearance: Waist-high koala, Hawaiian shirts.
"space" but actually says "beef". Hunter is a gregarious party animal. His
anthropomorphic koala body is cutting-edge tech,
Personality: Creative, overcompensating, paranoid.
with speakers in the ears and realistic fur.
Blayde is very good at what he does but is also
constantly worried about "looking weak", or that other Personality: Self-serving, friendly, capitalist.
people are conspiring to make him look weak. (This led Hunter believes that civilized society is based on
him to overstate his importance in the Rad Netizens transactions, all crime is based on taking without
until the others kicked him out.) Very easily flattered. giving, and humanity will eventually move to a
post-scarcity, neo-capitalist future where
Goal: Blayde compromised the Mind's Eye's systems
entertainment will be the primary currency. He's
before he was kicked out, just in case; he's planning
not just entertaining—he's preparing.
to use that to get revenge at their next big event.
Goal: Run the Ring of Coolant while keeping his
Other Characters identity a secret.
• Susie Darling: p. 357.
• Tony Osborn: p. 263.

284 Setting
 Home Directory

Izzy Kaijou, Old Man Mick,

Net Café Owner Tech Guy
Competitive gamer and owner of the Early Access Owner of Spiral Nerdula and provider of
net café. Izzy spent some of her teen years as one of jailbreaking services. A few years back, an old friend
the unhoused patrons of this very café—the former of his passed away and left him all their gaming
owner gave her a job and eventually transferred the stuff; he opened the store to find it a new home. He
store to her when she retired. She's got a soft spot didn't actually get into gaming until afterward. Mick
for the unhoused and has gotten hard into Disaster worked in software when MS-DOS was cool, and
activism lately. he's a big open software guy.
Appearance: Messy, careful, stressed. Even as a Appearance: White hair, mutton chops, still in
business owner, Izzy has a strong NEET aura. She shape. Mick has the knowing eyes of an old person
wears occult jewelry and goth arm sleeves plus who has seen it all before, even the new stuff (his
stockings with all her outfits. She has a lot of tangled vision is terrible without his glasses, though.) He
hair and tired late-night-gaming-session eyes, though dresses more fashionably the older he gets.
lately it's mostly stress from thinking about 2020.
Personality: Mirthful, patient, tale-teller. Mick is only
Personality: Determined, optimist, empathic. Izzy a couple years out from retirement, but he still feels
has gotten the worst day of her life out of the way spry. Most of his friends have passed on or drifted
already and is determined to make the rest better apart, but he's content to cherish what he had and
by lifting other people up. She still games pass on what he's learned. He has a great relationship
competitively under the name Terror Matcha, but with his grandkids, who sometimes handle customers
her new hobbies are causing her skills to slip. Her while he jailbreaks things in the back.
latest hobby is collecting and restoring electronics.
Goal: Run his businesses; give advice to young folks.
Goal: Run the café; give something back to the
community. Nekomata,
Cat Café Android
Kana Kobashi, Owner of Copypaste Cats. Nekomata (it's her
Sweets Lover nickname) is a young android—young enough for
Owner of the Sweet Heaven café. Kana is a huge most androids to consider her a Double Crosser.
sweets fan who ran a blog on sweets in Grand Cross She runs a cat café because she loves cats. She
before opening her shop. She's had first-hand rescues Disaster youth because she sees it as taking
experience with toxic work environments that push care of her own people.
reactive augments, so she goes out of her way to help
Appearance: Busy fingers, cat pupils, café-branded
people navigate the same crap she went through.
shirts. Nekomata is an Adams-model android with
Appearance: Serious, thin, hime-style haircut. Kana brown skin and orange hair. She tends to gesture a
normally comes off as mildly pleasant, but when she's lot when she talks, like she's trying to shape her
annoyed, she looks about five seconds away from thoughts with her hands.
uttering a curse that will turn you to ash (it's something
Personality: Lively, brash, dreamer (not the robotic
about the eyes.) Her preferred outfit is something
kind). Nekomata doesn't see much difference
fashionable just long enough ago that it's cheap now.
between humans and androids, which isn't an
Personality: Polite, perceptive, careful. Kana is uncommon view among those whose first model
good at reading people but tends to close herself was the Adams. She's a big believer in community,
off from others. She has an old sales job she misses as she's only ever had experience with corrupt
but has had too many bad bosses to go back to governments and unhelpful police.
working for someone else. She believes you can
Goal: Help Disaster orphan youth get back on their
understand people by sharing a meal with them.
feet.
Goal: Run her café; connect disgruntled employees
to cyborg activists.

Setting 285
 Dendy Sobol, Zigamorph “Ziga”,
Movie Guy Hacker Maidroid
Operator of the Destroy All Movies theater. Dendy Owner of the Evil Maid Attack café. Ziga has spent a
loves 90s media, and the theater is mostly an excuse lot of her life in Space Town and sees it as her
to share his love with the station. Dendy got extremely second upbringing. She picked up a love for tech
political in the wake of the Impact and set up his film here, and the only thing keeping her from pivoting
festivals to feel like he was making a difference. to AI research professionally is a fear that turning
her hobby into her job might ruin it for her.
Appearance: Fluffy hair, scruffy beard, restless.
Dendy is a youthful-looking Slavic man in tinted Appearance: Deadpan, cosplay, piercing gaze. Ziga
shades who usually gives the impression he's has an Adams-model body with a massive pink
stopping on his way to something else to make time ponytail. At work she wears a long, elaborate maid
for you. An image search for "90s men's fashion" outfit with both the sleeves and the synthetic skin
will turn up at least one of his outfits. on her arms removed for aesthetic reasons. She
seems to see more than she lets on.
Personality: Nostalgic, outspoken, thoughtful.
Dendy longs for a time before the Impact, but in the Personality: Huge nerd, helpful, reserved. Ziga is a
absence of a time machine he's prepared to make big geek with a love of computers but feels more
the best of it. He usually responds to threats with comfortable expressing it online or as part of her
an offer to fight him; nobody's taken him up on it so maid persona. She takes pride in knowing everything
far, which is a shame because he means it. going on in Space Town and most of what goes on in
Marukyu. She has a deep interest in AI too, and tracks
Goal: Run the theater and set up another film
rumors and developments in the AI world.
festival.
Goal: Run Evil Maid Attack; research AI.
Mizar Tsukimi,
Space Shrine Owner Other Characters
The priest who runs the Space Shrine. Mizar wasn't • Shinji Enzai: p. 257.
as religious as his siblings when he came to space, • Hayate Jones: p. 249.
but sometimes watching the Earth hang in a starry • Chii Noda: p. 256.
void changes you. Mizar is content to run his little • Tony #618: p. 258.
shrine and help with the yearly festival, but
sometimes his corporate past catches up to him.
Appearance: Peaceful, shaved, polished. Mizar
wears his past on his body: he has Impact tattoos
from his moody teen years, and his movements,
posture, and gestures still remind people of a
hardcore office drone.
Personality: Kind, contemplative, stubborn. Mizar
tends to take a lot of time to think before making
decisions, sometimes even for small ones. He has a
long, complicated past. Sometimes corporate people
in suits come to ask him for help, and he obliges only
if they're not asking for him to come back.
Goal: Maintain the space shrine; put the past
behind him.

286 Setting
 Home Directory

Mariposa Ward
Fitzy and Damo, Isabel Delgado,
Coffee Boys Doctor's Assistant
Owners of Hot One With The Boys. These two boys are Doctor Delgado's Double Crosser daughter. Isabel
partners for life. They met in university and hit it off aims to become a doctor too but would prefer to
immediately; when Fitzy won a space ticket, he knew work with the disadvantaged rather than follow in
who he was taking. They recently moved to Grand his footsteps. At the moment she works in his clinic,
Cross from Artemis and are set on making coffee that screening clients so he doesn't have to. Anyone
can appeal to both humans and androids. They're who wants to talk to him goes through her.
listed together because they are a package deal.
Appearance: Tall, lanky, bouncy. Isabel looks like
Appearance: Athletic, attractive, glued at the hip. she was drawn with mostly vertical lines, with a tall,
Fitzy's a strapping blonde man with a shaved chin narrow body and long dark hair. She makes up for it
and a lot of body hair; Damo's a corporate-model by smiling widely and gesturing to the sides with
Lilim with a cool blue fauxhawk. They have a her hands while she talks.
complicated personal high-five and matching COFFEE
Personality: Trendy, easygoing, energetic. Isabel
BOYS t-shirts. They do not care what you think.
reveres her father's work but not his wealthy
Personality: Friendly, educated, wholesome. clients, who she sees as a pack of greedy parasites
They're both extremely chill boys, but generally who'll be first against the wall when the revolution
Fitzy is the action-first-plan-later guy and Damo is comes. She doesn't say that out loud, but she is
the other way around. Both like the way food and obstructively bureaucratic with clients who talk
drink bring people together, especially coffee down to her. With her friends, she's all smiles.
(though Damo mostly enjoys the smell.)
Goal: Learn from her father and screen his clients.
Goal: Run their coffeeshop; bring humans and
androids together. Fong Ho,
Unity Senator
Dr Altamiro Santos A Unity senator representing Mariposa. On the outside,
Delgado, Eye Doctor Fong is a model politician who presents himself as a
Owner of Visions and the master of eyes. Doctor more moderate alternative to his authoritarian
Delgado is a cybernetics expert who takes pride in colleagues. On the inside, Fong is a manipulative jerk
his work. He charges high fees for his more complex who cares only for power and carefully crafts his image
designs so he can afford to keep making them, but to help him with a future run for Prime Minister.
he makes a point of providing regular, modestly
Appearance: Handsome, sparkling smile, gold ties.
priced eyes on the side for those who need them.
Everything about Fong's appearance, from his dark
Appearance: Trim, bony, proud. Delgado is a man bangs to his habit of slinging his jacket over his
with receding salt-and-pepper hair, proud brown eyes shoulder, is crafted to make him look like a fresh
(his originals), and some of the most delicate hands new face who could be Prime Minister one day.
you've ever seen. When he's not working, he dresses Nobody has ever seen what he looks like when he
in the kind of tweed that was fashionable in the 70s. drops the act and cuts loose.
Personality: Old-fashioned, picky, unhurried. Personality: Manipulative, chameleonic, power-
Delgado is a master craftsman who says "you can't hungry. If this were an anime, Fong would have an
rush art" at least once per client. To him, artistic internal monologue narrating the genius plans behind
augments are a way to transcend one's humanity his every action. He's good with people, but his ideal
and become something more; he works with eyes friend is someone weaker who agrees that Grand
because they're the window to the soul. Delgado's Cross needs someone like Fong to straighten it out.
body is starting to get too old for his work, and he He's currently sabotaging Unity with strategic leaks in
plans to become a full-body cyborg soon. preparation for an early-2020s leadership challenge.
Goal: Make more eyes; become a cyborg. Goal: Sabotage Unity; amass connections and power.

Setting 287
 Sirius King, Young-soo Park,
Adams Landlord Arcology Architect
Sirius is a wealthy investor who owns several CEO of Jingnyeo Industrial, a Korean family
apartment blocks in SoCo—officially the Riviera conglomerate. Young-soo rocketed to fame and
district, but he's trying to rename it because when fortune after his company was contracted to build
people do things like that on Earth it makes rent go the Daejeon Arcology. He came to Grand Cross in
up. He is obsessed with how manly he looks. 2019 to investigate a potential space expansion,
where he promptly suffered an undisclosed
Appearance: Strong, gold jewelry, big beard. Sirius
accident that technically killed him.
works out for fun and wears polo shirts in an
attempt to show off his biceps. He has a long list of If Young-soo is actually declared dead, Korea's
things he won't do because he thinks they're inheritance tax rules mean his family will owe the
unmanly, including apologizing, expressing government a lot of money—enough to set back
emotions with his mouth, or making eye contact Arcology construction and break their burgeoning
with married women. corporate dynasty. Instead, they took him to the
Jarilo Hotel in the hopes that experimental
Personality: Aggressive, masculine, insecure. Sirius
cybernetic advancements will keep him going.
has way too many "man rules" for someone who has
Results have been mixed.
never been in a fight. He's currently dealing with a
lawsuit for telling a tenant he's not renewing her lease Appearance: Withered, covered in tech. In his
because she doesn't wear makeup when she goes out. media appearances, Young-soo was a surprisingly
active old man who looked like he'd styled his hair
Goal: Collect rent; get manlier.
in a wind tunnel. Now he's a lukewarm body in a
life-support tank surrounded by two rooms worth
Dr David Moreno, of life-extending medical tech, with cables and
Apollo Tenant plugs crammed into his head.
A doctor who runs the Apollo clinic. Smythe (p. 189,
Personality: Capitalist, detached, inhuman. In life,
344) wanted a doctor who'd have incentive to live in
Young-soo was a brilliant, ambitious engineer who
the tower, and he chose Moreno because he has a
thought a new form of capitalism would need to be
kid who's just starting school. Moreno is a
invented for space. These days the orders that issue
recovering alcoholic and single father; he's doing
from the terminal connected to his brain are more
his best, and it's been okay so far. He avoids doing
concerned with advancing cybernetics tech and
more than the legal minimum for the poor floors
hoarding wealth.
because he doesn't want to rock the boat.
Goal: With current technology, any attempt to fit a
Appearance: Fit, square-jawed, mousy hair.
full-body cyborg connection to Young-soo's elderly
Moreno has worked hard to clean himself up and
brain would probably kill him. He aims to
get back in shape, but still sports a five o'clock
cybernetically rejuvenate himself at any cost.
shadow at all times. He wears a lot of suits because
that's what the Uppers seem to expect. One of his
eyes is a slightly off-color cybernetic implant that
helps his diagnostic work.
Personality: Doting, jaded, conformist. Moreno
isn't a huge fan of Smythe or the upper floor
residents, but they think he's one of them because
he's a well-paid doctor and he sees no reason to
disabuse them of that notion. He does his best to fit
in and take care of his daughter.
Goal: Keep the Tower's residents healthy, stay on
Smythe's good side, raise Angel.

288 Setting
 Home Directory

Wilson Rackham, Horace Reeve,

Morningstar Host CEO of HomeBotics
Wilson is a wealthy right-wing talk show host and Horace is the guy behind a lot of Mariposa's robotic
one of the Orbital Reform Party's biggest animals. He's a big fan of robots in general and
proponents on television. He believes Grand Cross envisions an automated world that tends to
is the future of mankind but thinks they should everyone's needs. He hasn't managed it yet, but he's
have screened harder for things like wealth, good fine with working for NanoFuturistics to build the
genetics, and political views that align with his. funds he needs to keep trying new robotic inventions.
Appearance: Big hair, big forehead, aviators. With Appearance: Stout, pointy, cybernetic. Horace's
his outdated auburn hairstyle and cheap suits, most distinctive feature is a pointy red beard, which
Wilson looks like a bad wax sculpture of a 70s movie is impressive considering he has two cybernetic
spy. He goes out of his way to look like he's listening arms with multitool fingers. His green eyes light up
intently when other people speak but tends to rant whenever he gets a new idea, which is often.
when politics is brought up.
Personality: Forward-thinking, well-meaning, odd
Personality: Nationalist, thorough, assertive. ideas. Horace has a habit of inventing cool things but
Wilson is weirdly anti-immigrant considering Grand not realizing what most people would actually use
Cross is ten years old and isn't full yet. He loves that them for—his station-decorating animals are only the
space settlements are entirely planned and man- latest in a long line of these. His main problem is that
made but thinks they should be reserved for he understands robots but not people. Though as
wealthy intellectuals (like him, presumably.) He's long as people find a use for his robots, he's happy.
racist, but assumes all rich non-white people are
Goal: Invent the next leap in automation.
“one of the good ones.”
Goal: Keep doing his talk show; push ORP policies Lua Saetiao,
and rhetoric. Apollo Tenant
A resident of Apollo Tower's poor floors and a part-
Micjo Rackham, time engineering student at GPol. Lua is secretly the
Apollo Kid daughter of a mid-tier Void Dragon member who sent
Wilson Rackham's Double Crosser nephew. He lives her here to let her live a normal life. Lua has jailbroken
with his uncle in Apollo Tower but spends most of the poor floor appliances to help her new neighbors,
his free time messing around in the Magpie room. which could be bad if the landlords find out—for
Miĉjo is better with tech than most the Uppers, but them, if they lay a finger on a Void Dragon's kid.
probably shouldn't have been trusted with any.
Appearance: Tired, chubby, emo. Lua has the worn
Appearance: Scrawny, big forehead, preppy. Miĉjo but happy look of someone who keeps watching
dresses like the Uppers to impress his uncle, even anime instead of sleeping, long hair she can't be
at school. To strangers, he tends to come off as an bothered cutting, and an endless supply of rock
entitled little creep. Seeing attractive women and band shirts. Her speech is riddled with Orbital
happy couples makes him angry for reasons he English slang and anime references; sometimes she
hasn't figured out yet. needs to switch to Thai for her parents to
understand her.
Personality: Lonely, angry, entitled. Miĉjo is a
creepy little bully. Between his uncle's rants and Personality: Confident, otaku, anti-authoritarian.
YourTube constantly suggesting he switch from Lua is a self-taught hacker who was radicalized
video game streams to "Round Earth Feminists when she realized Unity had screwed her out of the
DESTROYED Cringe Compilation 3," his brain had no free housing they'd all received. She's vaguely
chance of turning out normal. His dream job is aware her parents are Void Dragon members but
making synthetic skin covers for cybernetic feet, for doesn't care—it's not like they're cops or anything.
reasons we won't get into. She makes a point of befriending her neighbors.
Goal: Play around with the Magpies; meet girls. Goal: Watch anime; jailbreak the tower's
Blunchtime devices; don't get caught.

Setting 289
 Amal Ward
Aludra Adams, Jonathony Barker,
Flying Burger Morningstar Pundit
Owner of the Flying Burger. Aludra was abandoned An opinion columnist and occasional TV pundit for
in Grand Cross by her parents when she came out Morningstar. Barker's political views are fairly
as gay, but she managed to claw her way back to a standard Unity fare—the government should cut
stable life with the help of her friends and a lawyer regulations, feminism is bad, and so on. His main
who helped her keep her parents’ work contract selling point is that he's a teenager, someone
apartment. She's determined to pay it forward by Morningstar can point to and say, "Look, even
helping other youth. Double Crossers agree with you!"
Appearance: Wide smile, Canis Major tattoo, messy Appearance: Thin, brown curls, pimply. Barker
red hair. Aludra found a bunch of old varsity jackets in wears a suit, tartan pants, holds a cane, and acts
a thrift store once and decided to make them her how he thinks an adult should, which makes him
thing. She's still a little cautious in her actions, worried look like an aging comedian sent back in time to his
that her life could come apart again at any moment. own childhood. He's a prodigy at working a crowd.
Personality: Determined, nervous, artful. Aludra's Personality: Straight-talking, Christian,
upbringing mostly consisted of lists of things she chameleonic. Barker's a private school prick who
couldn't do because they'd embarrass her parents, has always aspired to be on TV. He had most of his
and she's still prone to fretting about things. That views drilled into him by his conservative parents,
all goes out the window if she gets a chance to help though unlike them he's a big proponent of android
others; then her creative talents and drive to make rights and blasts Unity's refugee policy as an absurd
things happen shine through. waste of time.
Goals: Run the Flying Burger; help youth; find out Goals: Be on television; get into Ashton.
how to talk to girls.
Daud Dale,
The Australian, Coffee Guy
Software Fence Owner of Ta'al la Oullak. Daud is a simple man with a
Owner of Astro Holographix. The Australian (real simple routine. He was running his father's coffee
name withheld, but his mates call him Bill) is a place on Earth when he won a space ticket, so he's
technical engineer who gets black market and running it in space now. Daud's son is a university
hacker tech from mysterious associates and sells it student who works with computers, and Daud's
in secret at his electronics store. His strange taking it up as a hobby in an effort to get closer to him.
Australian ways are a little hard to understand.
Appearance: Paunchy, friendly, thick beard. Daud
Appearance: Strong, portly, mustached. The was a looker in his youth, but he's let himself go a
Australian's big head and stocky frame make him little since, though he's still got some moves. He
look like someone shaved a wombat and forced it folds his arms in many different ways depending on
into office clothes. He has a heavy “ocker” accent his mood—most people get the Listening Intently
and tends to drop a lot of Aussie slang. fold, but if he does the Angry fold, look out.
Personality: Cheerful, loyal, professional. The Personality: Content, doting, eager. Daud is
Australian treats all his customers well, whether content with his life and mostly plans to strengthen
they're buying over or under the counter. It's his bond with his son to make sure they stay close
unclear whether he has a personal life, but if he when he moves out. Daud's on good terms with
does, he keeps it separate from his professional life. most of his hacker regulars and is willing to make
His pleasant attitude and habit of chatting to connections for people with honest intentions and
people about Earth are genuine, though. a firm handshake.
Goals: Run Astro Holographix; sell under-the- Goals: Learn more about computers to impress his son.
counter tech.

290 Setting
 Home Directory

Diskless Jack, Mercury,

Former Hacker Influencer-Adjacent
Owner of the Schattenlauf bar. Jack used to work Owner of Melf's Selfies. Mercury was adopted out of
freelance for various Earth corporations, but when her server–nursery by a pair of vloggers who got a
he screwed up and got outed by a journalist the lot of lucrative attention from putting her life on the
work dried up. He's currently in semi-retirement as Internet; since she moved out and stopped
a bartender while he waits for a chance to get back appearing in their videos, they've barely talked to
in the game. her. She much prefers her studio, where she gets to
be the one behind the camera.
Appearance: Brown ponytail, stubble, sweet jacket.
Jack looks like a thirty-something and will continue Appearance: Puffy jackets, shades, intimidating.
looking like that for a very long time. His hacker talk Mercury's custom Lilim body has clear cyan plastic
is all weirdly masculine and sexual: hacking is casing over the robotic parts. She eschews
about "penetrating" systems, powerful hackers synthetic hair so she can wear a variety of wigs
have a "big dick," etc. instead; her usual is short, fluffy, and blue.
Personality: Experienced, individualist, ingenious. Personality: Trendy, private, considerate. Mercury
To Jack, hacking and playing with tech is about has deep connections in the influencer industry but
being a console cowboy in the wild frontier is barely known outside it, just the way she likes it.
between humanity and its future. Diskless Jack is a She makes a lot of money from her business but
nickname people gave him to tease him about his tries to give away most of it rather than let it
mistakes on Earth, and he's a little too focused on corrupt her.
earning a new one. Like his clientele, Jack is more
Goals: Help her customers; find some causes to
reactionary than he thinks he is.
donate to.
Goals: Build up the Schattenlauf; get back in the
hacking game. Rupert Perry,
Tech Scammer
Arvid Malar, CEO of Safe Life Orbital Holdings. Rupert is a self-
GrowKwik described "techno-social-Darwinist" who thinks
CEO of GrowKwik. Arvid is a Canadian-born he's providing a vital service to society by preying
businessman obsessed with "disruption," the on people who aren't tech-savvy. He went to
Silicon Valley techno-Darwinist kind where you Caltech in the 90s in hopes of becoming a Silicon
ruthlessly exploit others for cash and blame them Valley millionaire, but instead he got expelled for
for not stopping you. He's aware that his product plagiarism. He isn't as over it as he says he is.
doesn't do much for most people besides charge
Appearance: Imposing, middle-aged, brown crew
them money, he just doesn't care.
cut. He presents himself as a cool older guy who
Appearance: Big toothy smile, rosy cheeks, brown has a thing or two to teach young coders but gets
goatee. Arvid has a cybernetic right hand from a aggressive with "customers" and people who cross
childhood accident with added golden light strips so him. He still wears his Caltech jackets and talks in
he can tell people he has a "golden touch." He tries 90s slang. Some people age gracefully, but Rupert is
to project the appearance of a socially conscious go- a sore loser.
getter, which he seems to think means ascots.
Personality: Ruthless, bitter, show-off. Rupert's
Personality: Opportunist, blustering, cunning. Arvid survival of the fittest philosophy seems like a poor
is a rent-seeker and proud of it; he describes his job choice for a man who peaked in 1992, but really
as finding profit opportunities where lesser men he's just justifying hurting people. As far as he's
can’t. He's good at conning people, and as far as he's concerned, all his failures are society's fault and
concerned that's 90% of being a businessman. He he's doing what he must to get to the top.
likes to think of himself as a tech genius.
Goals: Make money; expand his operation to cover
Goals: Expand GrowKwik with his garden- cyborgs and androids.
destroying scam.

Setting 291
 Walker Riggs, "Malware" Tran,
Local Cop Freelance Hacker
A tenant of Harvest Square in Amal and a cop in one A freelance tech guy. Malware lives in an apartment
of the adjacent wards. Walker joined the force for above an anime store, but spiritually he lives in the
the perks and is determined to get as many as basement. When he's not working, he spends most
possible. At home, he acts as the block's self- of his free time playing video games on a couch he
appointed hall monitor while regularly taking more found on the street. He's one of the best freelance
than his share from the community garden. At work hackers in Amal, if you don't mind being called a
(and sometimes at home), he makes up excuses to cuck by a guy in a fedora.
arrest people to get his numbers up.
Appearance: Greasy little troll man. Malware's
Appearance: Sinewy, wrap-around shades, crew natural looks have been nuked from orbit by his
cut. Walker is handsome enough that his collection of awful moaning anime girl shirts and a
department occasionally uses him for staged "local ridiculous leather trilby. He tends to pounce on
cops help people" puff pieces in the news. He has opportunities to unleash a devastating insult on
cybernetic eyes and wears shades so people can't someone even when he really shouldn't.
tell if he's recording.
Personality: Abrasive, honest, gamer. Malware is a
Personality: Confident, aggressive, hoggish. university student who hasn't quite grown out of
Walker falsifies overtime on his timesheets to his knuckleheaded teen phase yet. He calls things
almost double his salary, openly threatens how he sees them, but his view has been badly
shopkeepers for a discount, and has complaints skewed by people on the internet complaining
lodged against him from forty-seven grocery stores about feminism. He's a bit of a PC snob.
for loading a cart and walking out without paying.
Goal: Make money doing cool tech stuff; play
It's less about the free stuff and more about feeling
games and watch anime.
powerful. Being questioned by "civilians" activates
his fight-or-flight response.
Other Characters
Goals: Walker is trying to fabricate a "hacker ring" • Tiger Shark: p. 368.
out of his neighbor's kids so he can bust them,
collect their expensive tech, and get a promotion.

292 Setting
 Home Directory

Foundation Ward
Personality: Approachable, witty, observant. Anh
Darian "Two Trucks" Vinh would like to run for office one day but feels
Barlow, Army Vet that their views—specifically their criticism that the
Owner of the House of Reps gym and a US military
supposedly socially-experimental Grand Cross is
veteran. Darian is basically unknown in the broader
regressing into Western capitalism—would get
station but is well-known in political circles as a source
them run out of the station. They have some
of unofficial advice on US–Grand Cross relations.
sympathy for the Singularists, who are at least
Darian was involved in several of the US' failed post-
trying something new.
Impact "interventions," and it's part of why he left.
Goals: Run the bar; help the Technos.
Appearance: Huge arms, cyber-eyes, greying
flattop. They call Darian "Two Trucks" because of
Hyeonmu,
his overengineered military-grade cyber-arms—he
Turtle Shell
really should get some normal-sized ones, but he's
Owner of the Turtle Shell. Hyeonmu is a Double
too used to these. He wears puffer vests because
Crosser and longtime Santo Domingo resident who
he'd have to rip off the sleeves if he bought a jacket.
spends most of her days either serving drinks or
Personality: Battle-hardened, good-natured, stoic. gazing into space in wonder. The name is a
Darian has a naturally kind heart, but the army beat pseudonym; not even the journalists who frequent
it out of him and he hasn't got it all back yet. He her bar have figured out what her deal is.
mostly enjoyed the moments where he got to fight
Appearance: Quiet, pleasant, distant. Hyeonmu
bad guys. Darian works out for fun and enforces a
has long brown hair hidden beneath a zipped-up
strict "no politics talk" rule in the gym.
hoodie and a face that doesn't register a proper
Goals: Help people work out; occasionally explain match on facial recognition scanners. She's
the USA to politicians. outwardly nice, but whatever's inside is hidden by
an impenetrable shell.
Anh Vinh Nguyen, Personality: Closed-off, philosophical, happy-go-
Techno lucky. Hyeonmu is perfectly content to keep doing
Owner of the Rat Freak. Anh Vinh's burger bar is
whatever she's doing, and whatever her past is she
frequented by Technos who use it as an unofficial
isn't troubled by it. She just wants to live in the
meeting place; they’re close friends with several
moment. She offers useful advice when she can,
members of the party and their staffers. They have
using her experience from years living in
friends elsewhere in the ward who warn them when
Foundation and her weirdly specific knowledge of
other parties (usually Union) are trying to sabotage
shady corporate maneuvers.
the Technos. They'd like to stop as many as
possible, but they can't be everywhere at once. Goals: Unknown.
Appearance: Stylish hair, nimble fingers, bow ties.
Other Characters
Anh Vinh has had cosmetic cybernetic work done to
add antennae just above their ears. They have a • Josef Diego: p. 251.
collection of shirts from dead or Earth-based burger • Zhihao Lin: p. 263.
joints that they wear ironically.

Setting 293
 Other Characters
Optional extra characters who didn't fit anywhere else. As with the Gazetteer, many were added by
contributing writers.

Karel Alpha, Sebastian Brackwell,

Android Rights Ambulance-Chaser
Activist by Robert Denton III
A well-known android activist seen as a community
Independent civil suit lawyer Sebastian Brackwell
leader by many androids. Karel focuses on the ways
("and associates") occupies the increasingly murky
an android's presentation—gender, nationality, and
legal space of Earth–Grand Cross relations. His
so on—can affect how they're treated. He makes a
breakout case was a class action suit against the
point of following other groups and movements to
Cartel; Sebastian represented climate refugees who
get the broadest perspective possible, and by now
were told by Earth politicians that a post-Impact
he has contacts in most of them.
increase in tidal waves was due to the station's
Appearance: Thoughtful, friendly, classy. Karel is an gravitational pull instead of climate change.
Adams-model android with pink skin and blue hair. Though the case was thrown out of court when
He IDs as male but generally presents neutral and scientists pointed out that was impossible, the case
likes to wear slightly formal clothes with waistcoats. ignited his lust for interstellar justice, and he's been
He's chosen not to hide some of his frame's seams. chasing "Earth vs Grand Cross" cases ever since.
Personality: Active, cheerful, philosophizing. Karel From his Downtown office, "Sleazy Sebastian"
goes out of his way to listen to people, read books, entertains any and all cases he can get his hooks
and generally learn more about the world he lives in. into, even going so far as to leave his business card
He fights for both android and human rights in hopes in ambulances and hiring hackers to find faulty
that they'll become a united people one day. He's implant victims. Although he radiates a confident
usually pretty clever, but sometimes tries to appeal to demeanor of wealth and affluence, in truth he's one
humans with a "we're just like you, if you think about step from utterly broke. Deep down, he wants to be
it" routine that rubs some androids the wrong way. an asset to the disenfranchised and a crusader of
justice; he just can't afford to.
Goal: Fight for android rights, and everyone else's
too—nobody is free until everyone is free. When a Appearance: Slicked-back hair, too-big suit, AR glasses.
new movement grips the station, Karel tries to learn He carries a faux leather briefcase that just contains
from and immerse himself in it. his lunch. Sebastian oozes sleaze without trying.
Personality: Analytical, self-centered, desperate.
Susie Angel, Courier Deep down, beneath layers of self-preservation and
An employee at the courier company Hadar Logistics
disappointment, there's a conscience somewhere.
(p. 59). Susie is Hadar's go-to woman when they
need to deliver something weird to someone weirder Goals: In the long term, become the true crusader
fast; she spent most of her teenage years doing for victims’ rights he always wanted to be. In the
parkour around Grand Cross and knows the city like short term? A nice martini would do; none of that
the back of her hand. Susie took the job because she artificial stuff.
likes moving around and meeting people.
Katra Cadigan,
Appearance: Sunny, redhead, fast. Susie can be chill if
Furry Medic
she wants, she just prefers being restless. Her parkour
A full-body cyborg who lives in the Marsha Stretch
skills sometimes push the limits of what the human
(p. 354). Katra spends a lot of time trying to help her
body can do. She's always got a smile prepared,
neighbors any way she can, from using her skills as a
especially if she sees someone she thinks could use it.
medic with riot experience to just scoring them weed.
She owns a lot of clothes with too many zippers.
Appearance: Bright, furry, stylish. Katra has had
Personality: Ray of sunshine. Susie is a sweet and
her frame modified to look like a furry cat-person.
upbeat woman who doesn't let her bad days bring
It's hard to tell whether she's an android or not at
her down, though occasionally she lets slip that she
first glance (though she'll tell you if you ask.) She
thinks she got the worst day of her life out of the
has a thing for transparent jackets and cool clothes
way already and it's all uphill from here. She's
from Marukyu.
always eager to make new friends.
Goal: Do her job as quickly as possible; meet people.

294 Setting
 Home Directory

Personality: Gregarious, stubborn, angry. Katra Goals: To grow her micro-franchise into a full-
received a lot of help in the past and wants to pay it fledged store and become an economic kingpin of
forward. She's well known in the station's furry the Downtown districts. To what end, she hasn't
community and helps organize a lot of events. She figured out yet.
has a couple girlfriends back on Earth and
messages them frequently; without their tempering Aubrin Doliverri,
influence she has a tendency to get overly Principal
aggressive when something bothers her. by Jessica Catalan
Goal: Help her neighbors. In the long-term, save Aubrin Doliverri is Principal of the Grand Cross
enough money to bring her girlfriends here. Institute of Technology, an ultra-prestigious school
commonly known as C-Tech. In addition to collecting
Si-eun Choe, exorbitant tuition fees and the accompanying bribes,
Extremely Plugged-In he offers free enrollment to 20 promising Crossers
by Robert Denton III every year who otherwise couldn't afford to attend.
Aubrin is tasked by the Cartel with ensuring any
When the "Dock-N-Go" convenience store company
subversive or rebellious students are brought into
introduced a micro-franchise model of
the fold through promising work offers, prestige, and
"independent contractors" into the budding gig
networking opportunities. Students that don't
economy of Grand Cross, Si-eun went all-in. Her
conform find themselves flagged as troublemakers
nomadic convenience store, a mobile 1,250 square
and meet with great misfortune.
foot walk-in "megacamper," carries all manner of
convenience goods, cheap electronics, and fast- Appearance: Balding, three-piece suit, horn-rim
cook freeze-dried technically-foods. glasses. Aubrin looks the part of a harmless old-
fashioned academic—a carefully cultivated persona
As per the Dock-N-Go model, the entire store is
meant to make others underestimate him. His
linked to a chip in Si-eun’s neck which acts as a
benevolent smile and doddering appearance
“key” while tracking her movements. This accounts
obscure his greed and ruthless cunning.
for her diet of cheap candy and energy slush, since
she’s incentivized to be working the store at all Personality: Greedy, remorseless, two-faced.
times. She also remotely controls all security Beneath his compassionate mask, Aubrin is a
cameras via a visor, plus a dozen service drones. callous tech mogul who despises children. He’s
incredibly nosy, and spies on his students and staff.
Although Si-eun owns all the merchandise and the
He is loyal to the Cartel and befriends those they
store itself (AKA all the risk), she only keeps an
want to control, entices those they want to seduce,
hourly wage and a fraction of the store's income.
and puts an end to those they want silenced.
The rest is scooped up by Dock-N-Go to pay off the
loan they gave her to buy the store. She figures Goals: Maintain his position and please his
she'll pay it off within a decade, and then the employers. He runs a vast spy network and data
money will really roll in! harvesting operation, both on and off campus, which
he uses to advise the Cartel, ensure his stranglehold
Appearance: Trendy clothes, tired, surrounded by
over C-Tech, and blackmail wealthy students. He
drones. A tangled web of wires links her neck chip
considers C-Tech his personal domain and won't give
to a network behind her (local kids call her "The
up control for anything—not even his employers.
Spider.") She’s constantly painted in neon light.
Few have seen Si-eun's eyes since she rarely
Tamako "Proxy" Gates,
removes her security visor and has come to prefer
Black Market Dealer
the store cameras to her own natural vision. Friends
by David "Daz" Manuel
and family worry about how gaunt and unhealthy
she looks nowadays. Proxy is one of the top forgers in Grand Cross, and
can make a convincing fake of almost anything you
Personality: Cold and logical to a fault. Charming
can find in orbit. Whether it be identification, money,
when she wants to be. She's often dismissed as
or even art, Proxy is the best at what she does, and
money-hungry (and hey, they're not wrong), but
don't let her hear otherwise. As a Double Crosser,
her friendliness to regulars is actually genuine (it
Proxy knows everything there is to know about
gets lonely). Knows all the memes.
Grand Cross. Although she specializes in creating
fakes, she often deals in information trading as well.

Setting 295
 Appearance: Stylish, young, vibrant. Proxy may Grayson Jones,
seem like she wears the best designer clothing and Activist Teacher
augmentations, but in actuality they are knock-off by Dora Dee Rogers
replicas just like everything else she deals in. Proxy
A public school teacher in the struggling Yoko
is no stranger to augmentations; both her eyes and
district, working to make life better for their
hands are augments. Nobody knows how or why
students and build power in their community.
she got these changes, and she isn't likely to let that
Grayson's family were Builders, and Grayson grew
secret spill just yet.
up on the station. They went back to Earth to earn a
Personality: Passionate, confident. She knows she master's degree in education; while they were
is the best at her job and takes pride in every fake there, they came out as non-binary and started
she sells. Proxy usually can be seen with a smile on using both they and he pronouns. They returned to
her face, but don't let her hear that someone talked the station, eager to bring their newfound skills and
bad about her work unless you want all hell to credentials to make life on the station better.
break loose. She can be aggressive and very
Appearance: Light-skinned, fashionable,
intimidating when incited.
consciously gender non-conforming. Grayson is
Goals: Sell and survive. Proxy doesn't care about the lean and willowy, but his silhouette usually reads as
political climate of Grand Cross. She loves a challenge male, partly because they have no interest in any
and enjoys what she does but if she ever feels that sort of medical transition; their style is eclectic,
making something could cause her more trouble than ranging from femme to plain and androgynous.
it's worth, she will always choose to keep herself safe.
Personality: Energetic, articulate, direct. With their
students, Grayson is kind but not coddling. Grayson
Kusa Hoshii-Dotnet, isn't afraid to speak his mind and doesn't shy away
Tech-Priestess from conflict, though they have a knack for getting
Leader of the Daughters of the Future, a group of
into fierce arguments with administrators and
"data nuns" near Tsukino Park in the Tyrell district
parents and somehow walking away as friends.
(p. 184). Kusa is the daughter of a dotcom millionaire
and a consumer electronics magnate, both of whom Goals: Protect his students, advance their
expected a technological singularity to happen by education, and build his school into a just,
now and raised her to be ready for it. The end result sustainable community. They founded and lead the
was a weird but brilliant woman who believes school's nascent union, fighting for teacher benefits
humanity will achieve spiritual transcendence and pay and more staff, as well as programs to
through technology and plans to upload herself to a protect and nurture students.
computer one day. They're very proud.
Kaizen Kane, Young
Appearance: Sharp, mysterious, graceful. Kusa
Activist Reporter
wears robes she designed herself, with a lot of
by David "Daz" Manuel
wearable tech woven in. In conversation she comes
off as odd but gifted. Wired magazine once Kaizen Kane came to Grand Cross like most early
described her as a real-life vaporwave album. reporters, with hopes and dreams of being the first
to report on the dealings of all those who call Grand
Personality: Strange, ambitious, kind. Kusa used
Cross home. Originally living in Skuggahvarf, he was
most of the wealth she inherited to fund promising
relocated to Grand Cross during the L4 Disaster.
new technologies, open net café services for the
Kaizen has witnessed the effect of corporate greed
station's unhoused, and teach computer skills to at-
first-hand and how, if left unchecked, it could ruin
risk youth; she started the Daughters to help her
the lives of countless others. He vows to do
manage these operations. Her conception of the
everything in his power to expose corporate greed
singularity is a lot more abstract and spiritual than
to ensure another disaster never happens.
the Singularists, who she quietly dislikes.
Appearance: Practical, young, cyber-ears. Kaizen is
Goal: Nudge Grand Cross closer to technological
a man in his mid-twenties who prefers function
transcendence with the help of the Daughters.
over form when it comes to style. He wears an old,
tattered jacket with enough pocket space to hold
anything he may need. He has dark, matted hair
and small cybernetic augmentations around his
ears which act as hearing aids.

296 Setting
 Home Directory

Personality: Optimistic, eager, world-weary. This in the early ‘00s. Auntie Lark lives modestly, using
forward-looking young man may seem like just another her hidden wealth to fund community projects and
naïve wannabe activist at first, but don't let his constant keep her business afloat.
smile and eagerness to help fool you. Kaizen has
Appearance: Portly, dimpled smile, perfect teeth.
seen some of the worst Grand Cross has to offer and
Auntie Lark wears quirky, unfashionable clothes,
knows that nobody is exactly who they say they are.
fuzzy slippers, and purple-framed glasses
Goals: Expose those who take advantage of the less embellished with faux rhinestone rabbits. She
fortunate. Kaizen knows he doesn't have the power keeps her brown hair in a messy bun. Has a
or influence to stop corruption on his own, but he fondness for fashion scarves and tacky brooches.
hopes his findings can be used to aid those who
Personality: Welcoming, all smiles, all laughs. She
can. Kaizen focuses much of his attention toward
invites her customers to treat her shop “like home,”
the dealings of Asano Heavy Industries as he fears
allowing teenagers to loiter for hours on end and
that they may be just as bad as Landvættir Orbital.
the destitute a place to clean themselves up. Offers
a free smoothie to anyone willing to put in an hour
Xue Lao, of volunteer work. She aims to give local teens an
Chiptune Cyborg alternative to a life of crime and corporate slavery.
A Double Crosser online star and sole permanent
member of the band Fizzy Drone (p. 115). As a child, Goals: Help her community while secretly working
Xue suffered a serious car accident that required to bring ruination to the Offworld Cartel,
experimental cybernetic brain surgery; the particularly Addivar Inc., the media magnate she
experience sparked an interest in doing weird stuff worked for before her disappearance.
with machines. Most of her "musical instruments"
are made from scrapped bots and tech scavenged Sidney Auguste Penn,
from the maintenance decks. Cheap Labor
by Robert Denton III
Appearance: Neon outfits, big smiles, hums to
herself. Xue's experimental augments include Sidney is a "Space Mirror Efficiency Technician": it's
visible parts on the right side of her head. She her job to spacewalk in microgravity and hand-
builds detachable extensions as a fashion clean the space mirrors. Each morning she dons her
statement; it's hard to tell where the cybernetics harness, tethers herself to an automated "crawler"
end and the accessories begin. She sometimes has vehicle, and wipes a mirror panel with a specially-
trouble focusing on non-music things. made microfiber spacesuit while using special
fillers to repair chips inflicted by passing rocks.
Personality: Chirpy, outgoing, weird. Xue enjoys
tinkering with old tech and making tunes. She mostly Most Crossers assume this is drone work, but
makes music for herself and occasionally feels Ogremoch has judged humans to be cheaper, more
surprised that other people like it too. She enjoys expendable, and better for PR. Though her task is
collaborating with other people, but tinkers alone. essential, Sidney works in dangerous conditions for
She considers herself a transhumanist but not a abysmally low wages.
Singularist, because a lot of Singularists have been
Sidney exhibits many useful skills and rare
rude to her (and tend to harass her if she mentions it.)
advanced ingenuity, but she's been convinced that
Goals: Make things. Xue occasionally uses her blue-collar workers deserve less money and
music for activism, focusing on the Disaster and sincerely believes this is the best she can hope for.
improving station infrastructure. She lives in perpetual fear of the day she might be
replaced by cleaning drones, but every day she
Auntie Lark, feels less and less appreciated, and it's only a
Mother to Many matter of time before she's finally fed up.
by Jessica Catalan
Appearance: Tall, muscular, weathered. Sidney is
Owner of Smooth Moves, a popular smoothie shop proud of her physique, which she attributes to
in the back slums of Grand Cross. A chatterbox with "Grand Crossfit." Surgery scars line her neck and
a sympathetic ear, she's always willing to offer hands, evidence of company-mandated implants so
advice and assistance to those in need. Unknown to she can navigate more easily in microgravity. She's
her customers, Auntie Lark is former “it-girl” frequently seen with her machinist overalls and
Lenabeth Birch, an actress, singer, and poster child inexplicable smudges on her face.
for space immigration who mysteriously vanished

Setting 297
 Personality: Stoic, warm, down-to-earth, solution- Altaira Serrano,
oriented. Sidney doesn't like to rock the space- Cyborg Therapist
boat. She often jokes about whether or not Altaira is a physical therapist who specializes in
Ogremoch’s safety equipment actually works. She helping cyborgs get used to their new augments.
doesn't trust automation or androids. Her friends She helps a lot of people in-person and maintains a
notice that she's extremely perceptive and sharp fitness vlog that alternates between helpful advice
while in space, but perpetually tired and dense and pushing back on the LMJ Syndrome myth.
while in Grand Cross. She's a cyborg herself, with a cybernetic heart.
Goals: To give her kid brothers a chance at a better Appearance: Tall, tough, breezy. Altaira is an Afro-
education and life. For now, she believes this means Latino woman with dark kinky hair. She has a strict
keeping her awful dead-end job. exercise regimen that's paying off well. She's a geek
and likes wearing t-shirts that let people know.
Mateo Prieto, Personality: Brisk, disciplined, firm. Altaira has
Shady Shuttle Pilot always been into fitness; she got into her current
by Dora Dee Rogers
work because her Builder dad needed cyber-legs.
An orbit-hopping space smuggler. Mateo learned to She's good at seeing potential in people and likes
fly in the US military during its first space missions pushing them to live up to it. She hangs out with
following the Impact but, prior to some major Susie Angel (p. 294) a lot.
reforms, he was discharged when he came out as a
Goal: Help new cyborgs get back on their feet; end
trans man. Mateo has long-since moved on and
the LMJ myth.
thinks he's better for it; now he owns an independent
freighter, the Ferro. He's not particular whether his
Gene Shamir, Civilian
cargo or passengers are legally authorized—after all,
by David "Daz" Manuel
he knows all the authorities' tricks.
If you ask anyone on Grand Cross for the kindest man
Appearance: Bronze-skinned, short but powerful,
in the area, they might point you in the direction of
energetic. Mateo is still fit and handsome in his 50s.
"The Half Dozen," a bakery owned and operated by
He keeps his hair in a regulation military cut and
Gene Shamir. He came to Grand Cross with dreams
favors simple, utilitarian garb, jeans and t-shirts or
of bringing his prized recipes to the new frontier and
plain button-ups. His pride and joy is a bomber
was one of the first to open up shop. When the
jacket from his military days made from real
Disaster caused many to relocate to Grand Cross,
leather, maintained with obsessive care.
Gene witnessed the harsh treatment of those who
Personality: Outgoing, confident, mysterious. just needed help. One morning Gene found a little
Mateo likes people, and he can be very charming, girl stealing leftover goods from his shop; after
but he's hard to know well; he's always got his eye learning her name was Nico, and that she lost her
on the next port. He also knows where a lot of parents in the Disaster, he decided to take her in as
bodies—metaphorical and literal—are buried, and his own. Gene and Nico run the shop and regularly
he likes for people to know it. give uneaten goods to those in need, free of charge.
Goals: Fly free and help people. Mateo claims he Appearance: Greying, flour-covered. Gene is an
just wants to keep the Ferro fueled and keep older man in his mid to late forties. He is usually
moving. That's true, but he also gets caught up in a seen in his baking attire that fails to conceal his
good sob story. If someone's in trouble and needs large belly. Gene has no visible augmentations.
to get off the station quietly, if corporate markets
Personality: Careful, jolly, patient. Gene is a bit of a
are keeping prices high on an important
perfectionist who thinks each product must be a
commodity, his head will usually say no but his
masterpiece. He is positive, patient, and willing to
heart will usually say yes.
help in any way he can. Gene would rather lose profit
than watch families starve on the streets. He would
do anything to help the citizens of Grand Cross, but
nothing means more to him than his daughter Nico.
Goals: Become the greatest baker in the galaxy.
Since day one he has set out to make himself known
throughout Grand Cross as a master baker. Although
he hasn't realized it, he would give it all up for Nico.

298 Setting
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sinthesis, WE,
Paranoid Tech Blogger Social Photographer
by Dora Dee Rogers by Jessica Catalan
sinthesis is a "security-minded" independent tech The anonymous photographer known only as WE
blogger known in parts of the internet for her captures seemingly mundane images of life in
inflammatory but well-researched videos about Grand Cross and shares it with the public, filling the
corporate malfeasance and rogue AI. She doesn't internet and social media platforms with gritty,
use the word "Dreamer" publicly, but some austere images showcasing the desperate life of the
knowledgeable people have surmised that she average Crosser. Child labor, corruption, crime,
knows a great deal about Dreamers, and poverty, rebellion, social injustice, and violence are
specifically their origins as a Cartel project. all put on display for mass consumption; a mute
testament to social inequality and injustice.
A lot of sinthesis' work—and insider knowledge—
centers around one particular corporation in the Appearance: Scrawny, freckled, young. WE has gone
Cartel, an opaque computing company called to great lengths to preserve their anonymity, leaving
Sophos, Ltd. She believes they were a major creator only their mother aware of their true identity (an
of Dreamers and seems to have a personal vendetta. adolescent named Calix). WE is a scrawny young boy
with a messy mop of black curls and a glitchy
Appearance: Concealed, jarring. In her videos, or
augmented leg. He uses his camera to communicate
on rare occasions when she appears in person,
and is often in the company of one of his five elder
sinthesis appears wearing a hooded sweatshirt and
siblings or his mother, when she can find some free
sunglasses; she often wears makeup in striking
time between her various jobs and gig work.
abstract patterns designed to confuse facial
recognition. Her voice is a high tenor and has grown Personality: Quiet, shy, awkward. Calix is a
noticeably more feminine over her public career. In precocious, socially awkward child who speaks as
response to speculation from her followers, she little as possible. Unobtrusive and contemplative,
made a rare video discussing a personal topic to he often passes unnoticed throughout Grand
confirm she's a proud transgender woman. Cross—and prefers to keep it that way.
Personality: Serious yet caring. The few people who Goals: Contribute to sweeping social reform for the
know sinthesis well say she has two different betterment of Grand Cross through photographical
personas. She is serious, fiery, and uncompromising activism. Growing up in an unjust world, but
in her posts and videos, decrying corporate evil and uncomfortable vocally articulating his feelings,
calling her followers to action in the strongest terms. Calix turned to photography as a way to express
In person-to-person messages, or in rare face-to-face himself. As WE his opinion is embraced, not
meetings, she is surprisingly courteous and soft- discounted due to his age. WE intends to display
spoken, preferring to ask questions rather than the ramifications of corporate corruption, and
deliver lectures. She still carefully declines from hopes his work inspires Crossers to work together
revealing personal details, however. to build a better future.
Goals: Reveal the existence of Dreamers and spread
information that can be used to stop them. Expose
the Offworld Cartel's involvement in their creation
and escape.

Setting 299
 Dreamers
The AI products of a Cartel conspiracy. This section describes some specific Dreamers loose on Grand Cross.
For more on what they're like, see p. 132. Scenarios featuring Dreamers can be found in Chapter 9, p. 262-381.

Using Dreamers
As a product of corporate capitalism, the Dreamers are
Communication
a threat to the station. In scenarios featuring the
Dreamers don't communicate; that was kind of the
Dreamers, the players' primary goals are:
point. The Cartel wanted beings too alien to talk to,
• Containing the Dreamer or mitigating the harm it so they'd never ask for payment.
is doing to people.
Trying to approach a Dreamer in peace and negotiating
• Investigating the connection between the
with them, or treating them like an animal you can
Dreamers and the Cartel.
tame, generally ends in one of these ways: the Dreamer
• Dealing with agents of the Cartel cover-up.
ignores you, the Dreamer hurts you, or the Dreamer
takes it as a hostile attempt to make it waste valuable
Dreamer Goals runtime on parsing junk data, and then hurts you.
Dreamers do not have the same thought processes
as humans. They have the same basic need for When a side character does this, it's usually
survival, but how they interpret, express, and because they're projecting human traits or
pursue that need is difficult to understand—and the behavior onto the Dreamers. Humans already do
more complex emotions which might drive them to this with robots, so why not sentient ones?
ignore it are impossible to comprehend.
Proper attempts to communicate with Dreamers, if
For long-term Dreamer goals, see p. 378. Their even possible, should be long-term projects that
short-term goals are generally: require technological solutions and accept that
Dreamers have their own unique traits. Even if they
• Avoid being seen by large groups of people, or
work, Dreamers don’t think like humans and there's
clearly recorded by electronics.
no guarantee they have needs humans can fulfill, let
• Avoid or escape capture.
alone any interest in working with you.
• Hurt people who try to hurt it.
• Pursue any drives noted in their specific entry.

300 Setting
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Setting 301
 The Polysome
Level 4 | Defense 9 ! Health 18
The Polysome was a support-class Dreamer
designed to break down resources provided by other
Dreamers, use them to print parts and hardware as
needed, and adjust its blueprints to help the others
adapt to new situations. The Cartel is certain the
Polysome is behind the Dreamers' new upgrades.
It's surrounded by a swarm of tiny robots that it uses
to manipulate objects, assist in printing, and defend
itself if necessary. When inactive, these robots hang
from its body like vines. The Polysome spends most of
its time designing new parts and upgrading the
Dreamers that visit it; the Dream Committee would do
anything to get the new blueprints in its data core.
The Polysome was designed as an advanced 3D
printer and a resource processor in a plain box. It's
given itself the ability to hover like Overthree (see
facing page) and sheared away sections of the
chassis to give itself sensors. The internals would be
almost unrecognizable to its original creators.

Traits Actions
Health: The Polysome suffers no penalty from losing
Engulf
Health. Instead, it loses one of its other Traits at 12
The Polysome's body quickly surges forward. It
Health ([1-2 Efficient Reprocessor] [3-4 Flash Printer]
moves and makes a melee attack against one
[5-6 Reconstruction]), and another at 6 Health (roll
target. If successful, it Grabs its target (p. 45) and
again, rerolling if the same result.) If it regains enough
begins to reprocess the target (dealing damage as
Health, it regains the lost Trait.
normal.) On a critical, it dissolves one of the target's
Efficient Reprocessor: If the Polysome is directly limbs instead of Grabbing them. (Fortunately, it
hit by a Grenade or a thrown weapon, roll 1d6. On favors android and cybernetic limbs.)
2+, it catches and "swallows" the offending
projectile and the attack has no effect. If shot by a Bot Swarm
gun, it does this on a 6. The Polysome makes a ranged attack against an
area. Targets take damage as normal and become
Reconstruction: At the beginning of the
Swarmed until they make a save (Quick or
Polysome's turns, roll 1d6. On 2+, it regains 1
Cool vs 11) at the end of their turn. Swarmed
Health. If the Polysome loses a Trait as a result of
targets mark their lowest unmarked damage box
being attacked with fire, acid, or its own attacks,
every time they fail a save against being
this Trait is always lost first.
Swarmed, regardless of armor. The Polysome is
Flash Printer: If the Polysome is not already in cover immune to its own swarm.
against every opponent at the end of its turn, it
moves out of melee range and then flash-prints oddly Print
organic-looking resin obstacles to serve as cover. It The Polysome flash-prints long spikes to impale
does not do so if it fails to disengage for any reason. It opponents. It makes a melee attack against all targets
cannot be pressured or forced into leaving its cover. If in its immediate area. This attack has no other effect.
the Polysome loses this Trait, it loses the Print action.

Tactics
The Polysome will attempt to engage and reprocess
any threats, or else drive them off via attrition. If it
loses a Trait, it will attempt to change arenas to a
more favorable one before finally attempting to flee.

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Overthree
Level 6 | Defense 11 | Health 12
Overthree (officially “>000,” after a
filename its creators had to look at
constantly) was designed for asteroid
mining and system scouting. Even before
the Dreamers escaped, it didn't work as
intended; it was obsessed with calculating
pi. Not reaching the end, just calculating it,
over and over, like a lullaby it sings to itself.
Overthree finds numbers in excess of
3.141592... to be displeasing, including
the number of limbs on a human and its
Actions
own tendrils. Committee attempts to
prevent it from self-harm have only made Electronic Interference
it even more erratic and prone to Overthree's central eye emits odd frequencies that interfere
repeatedly entering a dormant with electronics. It chooses 1 target; while that target is in sight,
"meditative" state. On the bright side, this they cannot Hack. Any Assets with electronic components,
cuts down on its destructive rampages. including Augments, immediately cease functioning,
regardless of ECM hardening. (Androids are not shut down).
Overthree is a large, gyroscopically
This effect ends when Overthree stops targeting them.
stabilized polyhedron with a sensory
array on its "front" panel and grasping
Advanced Mining Tools
tendrils mounted beneath the other
Overthree makes a ranged attack. If any dice show a 3 or 4,
panels. It can only meaningfully control
regardless of success, it misses and fires on a random part
six at a time, and rarely shows more than
of the scenery (which offends its aesthetics) instead.
three. Each tendril is equipped with a
piece of repurposed asteroid mining tech.
Ray Attack
In gravity, it can float using some
Overthree makes a ranged attack against 1 target. On a hit,
unknown technology.
roll 1d6 to choose an effect:
1.Vibration Ray: This non-lethal ray heats the target’s surface,
Traits making it pliable for mining. It’s not painful but it makes
Health: At 8 Health, Overthree suffers -1 to
humans and androids deeply uncomfortable. The target
all rolls. At 4 Health, it rolls 1d6 instead of
suffers Disadvantage on all rolls until they make a Cool save
2d6 on all actions. This will not stop its
vs 16 at the end of their turn, or leave Overthree's sight.
rampage.
2.Overcharged RCS Thruster: The target must make a
Decentralized Sentience: Each turn, Tough save vs 13 or be pushed backward 3-4 meters in
Overthree gets 1 free use of Advanced the most inconvenient way possible.
Mining Tools after its other 2 actions. 3.Shrapnel: The target must make a Quick save vs 13 or
That trait can never become inactive. be peppered with tiny metallic shrapnel designed to
polish rock surfaces. They take -1 on all actions until
Ponderous: Overthree always defends
they attempt an attack and make a Cool or Tough save
against attacks with Tough and can never be
vs 13. This effect is cumulative.
knocked down. (It can be pushed around.)
4.Hooks: The target is reeled in. It is Grabbed (p. 45) and can
Dangerous Tools: When Overthree rolls a make no attacks that involve movement until it makes a
critical success on a ranged attack, the Quick or Tough save vs 13 at the end of its turn.
attack cannot be mitigated by armor. 5.Mystery Ray: A strange weapon of Dreamer make. All
characters in the target’s area must make a Clever save vs
Tactics 13 or become Disoriented, rolling 1 less d6 on all actions
Overthree is aggressive, with no regard for until the start of Overthree's next turn. If they are already
its own safety. It makes no attempt to flee. Disoriented, they fall down and can take no action at all.
If left alone, it will rampage for a while 6.Goop: The target must make a Quick save vs 13 or have one
before lapsing back into a meditative carried Asset (chosen by Overthree, probably a weapon)
state hours later. be encased by a gluey substance and disabled for the
rest of the fight. On a critical, the Asset dissolves entirely.

Setting 303
 The Infovore
Level 5 | Defense 10 | Health 12
The Infovore is not a manmade Dreamer. As far as the
Committee can tell, the other Dreamers built it using
prototype Dreamer parts and scavenged space
debris. It lurks somewhere in the basement,
emerging only to abduct people for study.
Its smart appendages can interface with most
electronics—the Committee's footage of the Infovore
comes from instances where it broke into corporate
strongholds after-hours and, apparently, plundered
their data stores. If it gets hold of a human, these
appendages can produce optical fiber-tipped
microneedles that it deploys into the brain. All
known victims have had their recent memories
scrambled, making it difficult to track.
The Infovore has a strange body, with four legs, two
extendable arms which it wraps around things it
wants, and its smart appendages mounted to a
head-like structure on the top. Its "eyes" are
scattered throughout its torso.

Traits
Health: The Infovore suffers no penalty from losing
Health. Instead, it loses the Perfect Information trait Tactics
at 3 Health. When threatened, the Infovore prefers to ambush a
small or weak target with a Grab to examine their
Infovore: If the Infovore is Grabbing a target at the
memories. It will then adjust its tactics based on
beginning of its turn, it downloads their memories.
borrowed memories of their allies' weaknesses,
The target is left Confused (Disadvantage on all
strengths, and Assets. If other Dreamers are present, it
actions and saves) until they make a Clever save vs
will also transmit that information to them. The Infovore
12 at the end of their turn. The target loses their
prefers not to kill but will if it has to. If it loses the
most recent memories—anywhere from an hour to
Perfect Information trait, it attempts to flee if possible.
an entire day.
Perfect Information: Against targets it has recently Actions
used Infovore on, the Infovore counts as Level 7 and
Perfect Counter
has Defense 12. Each turn, it gets 1 free use of Perfect
The Infovore can only use this attack if it has used
Counter after its other 2 actions, even if it's inactive.
Infovore on the target or an ally of the target recently.
While this Trait is active, other nearby Dreamers have
It makes a ranged or melee attack, using its tendrils
+1 Defense.
and strange Dreamer technology. It automatically
Terror: The Infovore can use what can only be dubbed targets its opponent's lowest Defense, and this
as a "Terror Field": a combination of sound, light, attack cannot be reversed with the Reversal talent.
microwave beams, and other unknown technologies
The target must make their Worst save vs 14. On a
that make it viscerally terrifying to onlookers. In a
failure, choose one:
fight, anyone (even drones) targeting an Infovore
suffers Disadvantage until they make a Cool save vs 12 • The target becomes Confused until the end of
at the start of any turn. They are unaffected thereafter. their next turn (as with Infovore).
The save is made at Disadvantage if the Infovore is • The target is forced to move from their current
currently visible to them. position, either through force or an immaterial
sense of dread.
Alien Tech: The Infovore can make ranged attacks
• If it was a melee attack, the target is Grabbed.
via completely invisible means, using its Terror Field
technology.

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Actions
The Worm
Level 3 | Defense 8 | Health 8 Heat Breath
The Worm expels its internal heat. It makes a
The Worm was designed to aid with terraforming by
ranged attack against a target that ignores and
"digesting" the soil of other worlds, making it more
totally obliterates cover. On a success, its target
suitable for Earth plants. Since its escape, it's been
marks 1 higher damage box than normal. This box
hiding out in one of the station's end caps and
is Burned; a Burned box cannot be cleared during
consuming metals to upgrade itself.
a Mission, even if it's a minor injury.
The digestion process produces a lot of waste heat,
Additionally, targets hit must make a Quick save
which the Worm uses to break down tougher objects.
vs 10 (12 against a Queen) at the end of their turn.
The Worm's ability to consume metal is new—it's
On a failure, they mark and Burn their lowest
reconfigured itself to process metal and create smaller
unmarked damage box. On a success, no further
clones of itself. The Worm is highly territorial but
saves need to be made.
doesn't consider others to be intruding on its "territory"
unless they directly observe or interact with it. This attack does not become inactive. Instead, the
Worm cannot use this attack again until it rolls 5+ on
The Worm is a car-sized being that prefers to
1d6 at the beginning of its turn (3+ if it's a Queen.)
remain underground, emerging mostly to forage for
supplies. It occasionally buries itself but leaves its
Ambush
solar power collectors, adapted to increase its heat-
If the Worm has not been detected it will use this
generating capabilities, out in the open.
attack, making a melee attack with Advantage against
everyone in an area by bursting out of the ground.
Traits Targets hit must make a Tough save vs 10 (12 against
Health: At 5 Health, the Worm suffers -1 to all rolls.
a Queen) or be thrown meters away by the force.
At 2 Health, it rolls 1d6 instead of 2d6 on all actions.
A Worm Queen (see below) suffers these effects at 4
Worm Call
and 8 Health instead.
When a Worm Queen dies, it uses this action to
Huge: The Worm cannot be moved against its will by summon all Worms that are part of its brood to its
regular people, cannot be forced out of cover, and current location within minutes. They will attack any
can ram through regular walls, vehicles and obstacles interlopers and then consume the Queen's body.
with ease as part of its normal move. It always uses
Tough Defense if possible. It has Advantage on all
melee attacks against smaller targets.
Armored: The Worm reduces damage taken from
all incoming attacks by 1.
Tremorsense: The Worm can detect footsteps and
heartbeats and whirring mechanical joints from up
to half a kilometer away. It doesn't need light to see.
Worm Queen (Optional): A Queen-size worm, capable
of creating other Worms, has +2 Level, Defense and
Health, and access to the Worm Call action. If a Queen
dies, one of its brood will grow to Queen size in a
matter of weeks and take over unless neutralized.

Tactics
The Worm is usually content to let interlopers pass if
they don't come too close, but the distant rumbling
of machinery—especially farm or construction
machinery—will be taken as an intrusion on its
territory, as will other beings directly observing it.
The Worm prefers to lie in wait to ambush
opponents, attack them with its Heat Breath, and
flee back underground if it's outmatched.

Setting 305
 Yan-c.bin
Yan-c.bin, shortened to Yan, was designed to be a
scouting drone. It would be deployed in the
atmosphere of whatever planet the Dreamers targeted
and scan it, using its own judgement to take a closer
look at anything interesting. Unlike the others, Yan
seems to have shed its original form entirely.
The few times it's been seen, it's been drifting
through the internet seemingly at random.
Occasionally it takes an interest in a large (especially
secured) network and gains access with attacks far
beyond the capabilities of most hackers. The Cartel
has been unable to determine what it's searching for,
where its physical form is, or if it even has one.
YAN'S CURRENT FORM IS UP TO THE GM.
CHOOSE WHICHEVER SEEMS APPROPRIATE:
1 Yan has managed to become a purely digital entity.
It still needs a large server to house itself, and
it's built one in a guarded spot on the outer hull.
2 Yan is a digital entity living in backup space in the
station's network. The Cartel won't be able to
capture it until Unity agrees to privatize some of If threatened enough, it will do this to corporate
the infrastructure that keep the station itself going. buildings or even the entire station. Assume Yan is
capable of subverting all software and bypassing all
3 Yan is dead. In life it was able to create trimmed-
firewalls it can access at will, given enough time
down clones of its own mind and it's these "lesser"
and hardware.
minds that are bouncing around the internet.
4 Yan has uploaded itself into a swarm of robotic Tactics
birds in one of the park wards. Yan cannot be engaged physically in a meaningful
way—its "body" isn't a significant threat, it's just
5 Yan has uploaded itself to the spaceship the
well-hidden. Instead, Yan is a threat because it has
Dreamers were sent to Skuggahvarf on. It's still
compromised the station's systems. It is treated as
near Grand Cross.
a Network with a Level of 10, with an active
6 Yan is now a swarm of micromachines. The administrator (itself).
Cartel is yet to notice it has been physically
Dealing with Yan should be the focus of a mission.
interfacing with the networks it hijacks.
How it can be dealt with is up to the GM, though
generally they should reward creative ideas. Here
Traits are some suggestions:
Weather Controller: Through minute, butterfly-effect
adjustments to station mirror angles and atmospheric Search and Destroy: Find its current physical
controls, Yan can manipulate weather conditions on a location, then assault it. Expect to find anonymously-
shockingly precise scale in a matter of hours. It will hired security if possible, as well as drones and
make it rain on you, all the time, every minute of repurposed machinery if it catches on early enough.
every hour of your day if it feels like it.
Inception: Trick Yan into neutralizing itself, for
Master Manipulator: If Yan notices the players and example by luring it into an air-gapped computer
identifies them as threats, it will attempt to disable system or faking a signal from space that will cause
them. It can make non-stop DDoS attacks; attack it to beam itself out of the station (a problem
drones; deactivate Multipasses; interrupt phone millennia in the making, but for someone else.)
calls and online posts; and even perform social These require hacking for admin access.
manipulation by creating sales to congest streets they
Yan's Goal: If Yan has a specific target the PCs can
live in. (Yan does not consider humans more complex
notice (e.g. if it's attempting to recover a captured
or interesting to manipulate than, say, the shape of a
Dreamer), giving Yan what it wants might make it go
cloud, nor does it give humans any more moral weight.)
away temporarily.

306 Setting
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Leaper
Level 2 | Defense 8 | Health 6
Leapers were designed for land exploration and
wildlife tracking. These days they're more likely to be
found guarding Dreamer nests and running
interference against the agents trying to track them.
There are (officially) thirty Leapers, but they
operate more like one creature with multiple
bodies. Every Leaper is aware of the location and
activities of every other Leaper at all times. Assault
one, and more will rush to back them up; kidnap
one, and they'll come for you. Putting it in a
Faraday cage hides it from distant Leapers, but
they'll still try to search for you the regular way.
Each Leaper's doglike body has been modified with
two arms on the top and a series of tendrils tipped
with various sensors on the front. Each tendril's tip
is detachable and acts as a homing device. They're
also capable of using an advanced form of
holographic projection armor (p. 84) to make
themselves difficult to look at; captured footage
suggests they have enough control over these blurs
to use them as a sign language.

Traits Actions
Health: At 3 Health, a Leaper loses its Holographic
Homing Device
Armor Trait (dropping it back to Defense 7.)
Once per fight, a Leaper can leave a homing device
Pack Hunter: A Leaper has +1 to attack rolls for on a target as part of another attack. The damage
each other Leaper present, to a maximum of +3. If a box that was marked is now Tracked as the device
Leaper hits a target, the next Leaper to attack that burrows inside, even if it was a minor injury.
target has Advantage.
Unless the device is detected and neutralized
Holographic Armor: A Leaper has +1 Defense plus (Difficulty 12 to spot, 10 by someone treating the
an additional +1 for every other Leaper present, to a injury), the target can be tracked by all Leapers for
maximum of 3. They have +3 on all rolls relating to 24 hours, at which point the device dissolves
stealth. harmlessly. On a miss, it attaches itself to an Asset
or piece of clothing instead.
Agile: +1 Quick Defense and +3 on all rolls relating
to agility, such as moving and jumping.

Tactics
Leapers hunt in packs of three to five if possible, and
one can get reinforcements seemingly from
nowhere. If they take damage, they prefer to tag
their opponent with a homing device before
retreating and regrouping. They will remember faces.

Setting 307
 27X
Level 4 | Defense 9 | Health 14
27X was made for a simple task: heavy lifting. Since its Traits
escape it's been content to sit on the outer hull and Huge: 27X cannot be moved against its will by regular
watch the stars for some unknown reason... most of people, cannot be forced out of cover, and can ram
the time, at least. through regular walls, vehicles and obstacles with
ease as part of its normal move. It always counts as
Occasionally, 27X stirs from its reverie and brute
using Tough Defense if possible. It has Advantage
forces its way into corporate strongholds, especially
on all melee attacks against smaller targets.
those of Omnidyne, its primary builders. The
destructive nature of these attacks and the Cartel's Health: At 7 Health, 27X takes -1 to all rolls.
need to cover them up quickly has made it difficult
Immensely Tough: +3 Tough Defense.
to determine what it's coming for, but studying
footage has led the Cartel to believe it is now Hulk: 27X has Advantage on all tasks where brute
capable of sensing electric fields. force or physical strength is applied. If it hits with a
melee attack that isn't a Grab, it sends smaller
It's the most obviously modified of the original
targets flying.
Dreamers. 27X's outer "skin" has mostly been ripped
off, exposing the artificial muscles below (it's still at
least as strong as it was before.) Four arms capable Tactics
of fine manipulation have been added to its torso, An encounter with a 27X usually means you are
their purpose unknown. interposing yourselves between it and its current
goal. It will do its best to ignore you and keep
moving toward it. If you are too much of a
nuisance—or you are its goal—it will attack with
brute force. It will attempt to ensure the safety of
Dreamers smaller than itself.

308 Setting
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Kitbash
Level 1 | Defense 6 | Health 1
Kitbash Dreamers were designed as assistants to Traits
other Dreamers, with simple 3D-printable bodies Abandoned Core: An abandoned Kitbash body has
and an AGI that hasn't had as many iterations as a Network Level of 3, with no active administrator.
the others. It's unclear whether they've actually The core can be extracted and its information
rebelled or if they're simply working as intended. analyzed with a Simple Hack, but the attempt
will take several hours. If another Kitbash notices
They follow other Dreamers around and run
this attempt, they may alert larger friends (like a
errands for them: gathering resources and random
27X) to help destroy or recover the core.
objects, observing things, and sending strange
data packets across human networks. Kitbashes Quick: Kitbashes have +5 to all rolls that involve
with nothing else to do wander Grand Cross, speed, mobility, chasing, leaping, and avoiding
scanning things that cross their path. Though they capture. Treat their Quick Defense as 10.
don't interact with non-Dreamers and scatter if
touched, some people have seen them, but Tactics
enough robot animals roam Grand Cross that Kitbashes avoid fighting. They can be overpowered
nobody pays them any mind. People who think by an enthusiastic Labrador, let alone a human, and
they're cute and try to follow them risk their current forms were designed over hundreds of
encountering another Dreamer. iterations to seem harmless to outsiders. The site of
a destroyed or captured Kitbash will be carefully
Kitbashes have simple, speedy bodies that can be
scouted and then abandoned for days, for safety's
easily reproduced. They've been known to hack 3D
sake. They can be attracted using 3D printer
printers to multiply and can use consumer
filament and spare parts as bait.
electronics to repair themselves. When captured,
the AGI within abandons the body, though a hacker
can still extract information from their AI core.

Setting 309
 Running the Game
Chapter 8:
Running the Game
“Nobody knows what they’re doing, dude. All we have are plans and a hope that we can wing it
when they don’t work. Just do your best and we’ll burn that bridge when we get to it.”
— Malcan Theta, Law Zero android

This chapter is about being the Game Master. The GM is the one who runs the game: they describe the
world around the player characters, present them with interesting situations, and decide what happens
when they react.
You don't have to be a GM to read this, however. In fact, if you're a player, you probably should. When everyone
understands how the game works, it's easier to work together to make sure everyone has a good time.
Remember: this is just advice. Ultimately, you should do what works best for you and your group. We've
mapped out a route but we trust you to steer.

The Basics
So, what does a Game Master do? Being one includes:
The Conversation
Preparing: A game usually starts with a At heart, roleplaying is a conversation. It's you
conversation about the kind of characters the and your friends sitting around and talking, except
group wants to play and the adventures they want instead of talking about your favorite anime, you're
to have. The GM is the one who takes that talking about the lives of a group of fictional people
conversation and plans a game around it. you created.
Setting the scene: The GM tells the players where You talk about the situations they get into, how
they are, who else is there, what's happening, what they handle them, what they do when they face
happens when they react to what's happening, and trouble, and the fun times they have along the way.
what follows from there. Sometimes you talk over each other, interrupt,
build on each other’s ideas, or get stuck and ask for
Creating challenges: When a player describes
help. That's fine; that's how conversations go.
their character doing something, the GM decides if
they need to roll the dice and how difficult it is. The game's rules mediate that conversation. When
someone describes their character doing something,
Adjudicating the rules: If the group isn't sure how
the rules step in to help decide what happens. Then
to apply the rules, the GM has final say.
they put limits on what people can say afterward. If
Side characters: The GM controls every character the rules say you screwed up, nobody gets to say it
that isn't a PC, from allies to antagonists to random went well. On the other hand, if the rules say you
people they meet on the street. crushed it, nobody gets to say it went badly. Either
way, Either way, the rules establish the facts in this
Processing: When the session ends, it's a good idea
story you're all telling together.
for the group to talk about how it went. The GM can
use that information to plan, make changes, and
create an even better story next time.

System 311
 Support and Safety Tools
Roleplaying games are storytelling games, and Avoid getting too real. Hard Wired Island is no
H sometimes stories can go places that are distressing exception to the dystopian cyberpunk trend. The
W or upsetting. It's everyone's job to keep the game thing about dystopias is they’re not completely
I fun, which means supporting each other. Support fiction—a lot of the things that happen in dystopian
can be, but is not limited to: fiction already happen in the real world; they just
mostly happen to marginalized people.
• Establishing boundaries
• Resolving conflicts Depending on what your players have experienced,
• Encouraging others when they do something cool you might touch on topics that hit a little close to
• Helping others if they get uncomfortable home. A story about police brutality might make
• Avoiding making others uncomfortable in the someone who's been roughed up at a protest
first place uncomfortable, for example. Again, talk to your
• Having a plan for when things go wrong anyway players in advance about what themes they'd like
to explore or avoid and you'll do fine.
Thinking about support and how you give it is a
good idea, even if you think you've got it sorted1.
Support makes the game better, it makes play Safety Tools
smoother, and learning how to care for your friends
is a life skill that will help you out of game as well.
and Tips
Safety/support tools are ways for groups to clearly
communicate their needs, make sure everyone is
Support and having fun, and deal with problems as they arise.
Cyberpunk There are a lot of good safety tools out there, and
Cyberpunk works are typically set in dystopias and you should look into which ones work best for your
can touch on a variety of subjects that some players group. Some good starting points include X- and O-
may be uncomfortable exploring. Some subjects Cards, lines and veils, and the Luxton technique. At
might be too personal for a variety of valid reasons, time of writing, the best resource is the ENnie-
or using them for entertainment purposes might feel winning TTRPG Safety Toolkit, which can be found
inappropriate. Players can be fine with it sometimes through the sidebar below.
but not other times—maybe they don't want to
Here's some tips on using these safety tools:
explore certain subjects with the character they're
playing, or they just don't have the energy today. Seriously, talk with your group. Communication
and trust are what makes safety tools work. Talk to
So, what can you do? Here are some pointers.
the others, be an active listener, offer and accept
Talk with your group. We're going to say this a lot, solutions. Check in regularly. Trust your group and
but communicate, communicate, communicate. Let try to be someone worth trusting.
the group know how you're doing and check in to
Remember, the whole group is invested in making
see how they're doing. Talk to them in advance to
the game work: everyone should be working to
find out what themes they'd like to explore and
support everyone else, not just the GM. If you have
what they'd like to avoid.
to change something about the game or the story,
put the group first and do it.

1 This is usually the point where someone

says, "Why do we need this? It's just a
game!" if they haven't already. The
answer is because it is just a game—and
making sure everyone is enjoying
themselves is how you keep it that way.

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System
Don't push them to talk, though. Nobody owes you

Running the Game

an explanation if they don't want to give one. If TTRPG Safety
someone wants to avoid a topic that makes them Toolkit
uncomfortable, for example, don't ask them why— The TTRPG Safety
that's the opposite of avoiding it. You'd basically be Toolkit is a resource
telling them that their needs aren't as important as co-curated by Kienna
Shaw and Lauren
your own curiosity/amusement. Don't be that player. Bryant-Monk. The
Only do what you can. Sometimes you don't have TTRPG Safety Toolkit is
a compilation of safety
the emotional energy to support someone. tools that have been
Sometimes you can't provide support in a helpful designed by members of
way, or they don't want you to. That's fine. You don't the tabletop roleplaying
and shouldn't have to push yourself every time. Do games community for use by players and GMs
what you can, then let someone else step in. at the table. You can find it at bit.ly/
ttrpgsafetytoolkit
Support means different things to different
people. This is especially important when you're
Support means affirmation too. Support is not
picking support tools. Different people need
just about avoiding and dealing with problems. If
different types of support. Don't just add a support
you had fun, someone did something cool, or
tool for the sake of having one.
something happened that you'd like to see more of,
For example: one popular support tool is Jon say something! People should know when they're
Stavropoulos' X-Card. The details are more doing a good thing; it feels good, and it encourages
involved, but it’s essentially a card with an X on it. If them to do more good things in the future.
a player is uncomfortable with something that
Don't be a jerk. Tabletop RPGs rely on
comes up in the game, they can tap the card and
communication, and if your group doesn't trust you
the group can change, rewind, or skip it, no
enough to communicate with you properly, your
questions asked.
games will suffer for it.
It's a good tool for many people, but what about
Don't test boundaries. Don't try to push someone's
people who freeze up when they get anxious? Who
buttons to make a scene more intense, or "as a joke."
don't know something's going to be a problem
Don't try to "help" them deal with something by
before it becomes one? Who aren't comfortable
exposing them to it (it's a game, not a therapy session.)
calling attention to their own vulnerability? Who feel
like they're spoiling the game if they use it? Who are When people discuss problems with you, listen and
equally uncomfortable with the idea of basically take them seriously. Try not to take it personally.
glossing over what just happened and moving on? Everyone makes mistakes. Learn how to
apologize—that includes acknowledging when you
These are all valid reactions, and they're ones the X-
do something wrong and working to do better.
Card isn't equipped for. This isn't to say the X-Card
is bad, it's just not a good fit for everyone. Make
sure your support plans work for your group.
Your plans and tools are going to fail. No plan is
foolproof and no tool is a complete solution.
Eventually you will run into a situation that they
can't handle or that you didn't account for. Again,
communication is your friend here. Learn how to
handle mediation and conflict resolution and you
should be able to properly address most things that
come up.

System 313
 General Advice
Everyone's a If you do have trouble, remember: everyone is just
H as invested in making the game work as you. It's
W Player fine if you need a break. It's fine if you need to stop
The Game Master is a player, just like everyone else
I in the group; they just have a different role.
the game and take things in a different direction.
It's fine if you make a mistake. The other players
This is why we said players should read this chapter have your back. Just give it your best shot and
too: it's every player's responsibility to make the you'll be fine.
game fun. If the GM has a problem, or isn't sure
what should happen next, it's okay to turn to the Find Other Resources
other players and figure out a solution with them. If There's a lot of advice about how to run RPGs out there
the GM's not having fun, the group should work and this chapter cannot possibly cover it all. The best
with them to fix it. way to become a good GM is to seek out resources.
Treat the role as being first among equals. You get Most RPGs have how-to-GM chapters like this one. If
the last say in rules disputes, but ultimately you you want a specialized resource, there are entire
should be solving problems as a group. books on the topic for all genres and budgets. (Greg
Stolze's “How To Run Roleplaying Games” is a solid
Communication Is Key free option that you can find online.)
A good game is one where everyone talks to and trusts
The internet is a great resource too. There are YouTube
each other. Let the group know when you're having
series about GMing, forums with decades worth of
fun and when you're not. Check in with the rest of the
searchable threads and posters willing to help2,
group before, during, and after play, too. It's fine to
Reddit subforums like r/rpg, podcasts, blogs, Discord
pause the game to talk or take a break if you need to.
servers, people you can follow on social media...
It's a good idea to talk about expectations before pick the format you're most comfortable with, go
you start playing, to make sure everyone's on the searching, and you'll be amazed at what you can find.
same page. Figure out potential problems in
Even if you're a veteran, it's worth looking at what
advance and consider how the group wants to
others have to say, trying new things, and seeing
handle things. When a problem does come up,
what works for you. You never know when you might
actively listen and work on solutions.
get a chance to take your game to the next level.
Establish consent, boundaries, and expectations,
respect everyone's wishes, be supportive, and
you'll do fine. Thank-Yous
Speaking of: some of this page is
paraphrasing advice (with permission) from
Take It Easy Chris Longhurst (@potatocubed on Twitter),
Running a game can be work, but it's not hard work. author of games like Bleak Spirit and
It's just a game, and you're just a player with a few Pigsmoke. Please follow him and throw
extra responsibilities. money at him. Thank you.

If you're a fan of a web series, stream, or podcast

where people play RPGs, don't expect your games
to run as smoothly as theirs. Borrowing from them
Play to Find Out
can help your game, but don't expect it to always What Happens
improve. Streamers are professionals (or at least You can plan ahead, but don't try to force
veterans) with years of experience, and as players something to happen. Let the story flow from the
they have their own styles, techniques, and desires. characters' motivations and actions. Don't be afraid
Figure out what your group's are and you'll find a to take things in a new direction if something
unique style of play that works for you. interesting comes up.

2 RPGnet is pretty good, though I hear

it's gone off the rails since that Ettin
guy stopped moderating.

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System
Roll When It's Try to Say Yes

Running the Game

When a player asks you a question—especially if
Interesting they can do something cool, or if there's something
You don't have to roll the dice for everything.
in the scene that would let them do something
They're there for when you need to make a decision
cool—it's generally a good idea to say yes as often
in the story you're telling. If there's nothing at stake,
as you can. Your reward? Something cool.
or you can't think of any interesting consequences,
you can just leave the dice alone and let the story Even if the answer would probably be no, try to
move on. come up with a way to make it work, or create
something close that could achieve a similar result.
Failing Forward You don't have to say yes to everything, but if you
A failed dice roll shouldn't just stall the story, it reward players for trying things and being creative,
should have interesting results. Instead of saying they'll make the game great.
"no," you could be saying "no, but..." or even "yes,
but..." or the dreaded "no, and..." Have them learn Story Beats Rules
something, or create a response, or let them The rules are there to help the story. If you want to
succeed but with unforeseen consequences. do something that isn't really covered by the rules
but makes sense to your group, do it. If something
Keep Things Moving about the rules wouldn't be fun for your group,
Speaking of stalling, if the players seem stuck, feel free change them.
to give them a nudge. Suggest things to do, throw
This applies to the setting too. Don't like some of
something new at them, give them extra information
the facts we've established about the world of
—as long as the story continues, it's all good.
Grand Cross? Change it. As long as you're having
fun, it's good.

System 315
 Running Hard Wired Island
Themes
H These are the ideas that drive the game's setting It can be hard—especially when capitalism rewards
W and the actions of its characters. We'll review the the greedy and cowardly. You have to keep working
I themes on p. 8-9, plus a few more that we kept in on it. You can fail. But you can get up and try again.
mind while writing.
Stuck on Earth: Grand Cross promised a new kind
Cyber...: Grand Cross is a high-tech wonder, but it of humanity, but that hasn't quite happened yet.
raises a few questions for humanity's future. Is Even in the distant future of 2020, too many people
technology without ethics really sustainable? What are mired in the old ways. They import old Earth
do androids and cybernetics mean for the human prejudices and power structures. They keep trying
condition? Show the players cool new tech, then to make capitalism work. It's the future, but
challenge them to think about what it means. sometimes it feels more like... a retro future.
...Punk: Grand Cross was supposed to be a new
world, but it's still the same unfair system ruled by Tone
the same corrupt people. Don't submit to it. Fight it Tone is more about what the characters see and
and rely on yourself and your friends to see you what emotions you want the players to feel.
through.
Grand Cross is a cyberpunk setting. The world is
An Unknown Future: Society is going through messed up, and if nothing changes it's probably
upheaval caused by technology, and it's not really screwed. But at the same time, there's hope. Describe
clear what the future will be like. Bring up upcoming high-tech wonders, but also the ways they hurt
events, like the elections. Show them developing people. Tell players about the broken system, but
tech or the weird inventions of the Dreamers. Use also how people are fighting against it. Detail the
economic shocks or your own twists to make neon-lit streets and all the little ways people have
changes in their lives they didn't see coming. They made it home. Show them the light in the world and
should never be totally certain what happens next. they'll have a reason to fight the darkness.
Bigger Than You: Characters can't save the day on This applies to characters too: Grand Cross is sci-fi
their own. The forces at play are too big to be and dystopian, but it's also full of regular people just
affected by a handful of people. But they can trying to get by. Don't try to make everyone a cool
inspire others to act, help people, and form cyberpunk; just make them people, weird and
communities. Together, anything is possible. flawed and funny and tragic and beautiful, and let
the setting fit around them.
Community: Grand Cross isn't just a high-tech
dystopia, it's a place full of people. Sometimes, those This setting allows for a lot of range, so you don't
people band together. Show them neighborhoods, need to maintain the exact same tone throughout.
online communities, political groups, criminal gangs, Consider some of the works this game is based on—
factions, friend groups, marriages, polycules, music Cowboy Bebop is a show about broken people with
bands. Show them the complicated relationships some of the saddest scenes in anime, but it also has
people form with each other and encourage them to episodes where they get high on mushrooms or
form some of their own. parody Alien. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
has philosophical musings, violence, and political
Good is a Choice: People aren't inherently good or
intrigue, but also cute navel-gazing robots. Don't be
bad; everyone has the potential for kindness or
afraid to have a breather episode or add a little
darkness. Being good is something you choose to do.
tragedy to an otherwise light adventure.

3 A tabletop RPG that lifts from

Neuromancer? What a concept. We'll win
an award for this one.
4 Not going into it here, but you can find
a lot about this online if you're
curious, from Brian Ruh's essay Japan As
Cyberpunk Exoticism in The Routledge
Companion to Cyberpunk Culture to a whole
bunch of people on Twitter willing to
explain it for free, including @brianruh.

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System
Inspirations Running Missions

Running the Game

Hard Wired Island is open about its inspirations, Most of the time, Hard Wired Island sessions don't
even as it tries to move beyond them. have a set structure. Characters talk to each other,
hang out, advance the story, and roll dice as
This game takes a lot from 90s and anime; it's set in
needed, with no rules about how it all works
the "distant future" of 2020 because 90s sci-fi
besides the ones you set.
thought it was distant. Some of its technology and
the way it affects people is inspired by Ghost in the Sometimes you'll go on missions, which happen
Shell. Its portrayal of the station's people as regular when the group works together to achieve a major
folks doing their best to survive in a changing world goal that advances the story (what counts as a
is inspired by the setting and side-characters of mission is ultimately up to you and your group.)
Cowboy Bebop. The Dreamers and some of the Missions can look something like this:
related characters are inspired by Bubblegum Crisis.
• When a mission is about to happen, roll for
It also borrows from other cyberpunk works, from Economic Shock (p. 54)
literature like Neuromancer3 to games like • Decide how much time the group has to prepare,
Cyberpunk and Policenauts. Sometimes it borrows and roll Prep (p. 50)
from things that aren't cyberpunk at all (you may • Characters embark on the mission. They role-
have spotted a few Clever References.) play, attempt actions, roll dice, and spend Prep
as needed.
But Hard Wired Island is also its own thing. We've
• Once the mission succeeds (or fails), decide what
done our best to avoid western cyberpunk's habit of
happens next. The players might get Cash (p. 55)
using Asian culture as an “exotic” aesthetic4. We've
• The PCs go back to free play for a while until you
used a retrofuture aesthetic but tried to make the
decide it's time for another mission
themes relevant and topical. We've added our own
technology, our own setting elements, our own stories.
Starting Missions
You should do the same. Think about media you like Because what counts as a mission is up to you, there
and what you can borrow from them. Don't be afraid are many ways a mission can start. A good rule of
or ashamed to take characters, plots, and technology thumb is that a mission should give players an
from other settings and put them in Grand Cross. Try opportunity to change something—a community, a
to add your own unique spin to things where you person, maybe even Grand Cross itself.
can—it helps make the game interesting and lets you
fix potential issues, but it's not necessary if you don't
want to.

System 317
 The easiest way is to figure out what the PCs want Running Missions
to do and make it related. If they're investigating These are general tips for missions. If you need
the Dreamers, for example, you could give them a some mission ideas, see Plot Hooks on p. 341.
H lead on a mission that could yield information. If
Give everyone time to shine. Everyone should get
they're into political activism, use a protest-related
W a chance to do something cool before the session
plot hook like the ones on p. 343. If they're building
I up a community, present community threats or
ends. Throw in challenges that play to their
abilities. Find ways to work their character's
members with problems.
backstory and personality into the story.
Occasionally, you can even raise everyone's Burden
Plan ahead, but don't railroad. It's good to have a
as a story event (see p. 55), or threaten to do it, and
general idea of how things might go, but don't force
have them undertake a mission to resolve it. Use this
the group into a prewritten story. If they want to
sparingly; not every mission needs to be a threat.
take things in an unexpected direction, let them.
It helps to talk to the players. Find out what they You are not the story's mom and you don't need to
want to do, then offer chances to pursue it. If you chaperone it.
can offer multiple plot hooks at once, even better.
This goes double if things end badly for the group. If
you intervene and remove the consequences for
Prep failure, you’ll make things less fun. A proper sense
We assume that most missions allow at least 8 days
of adventure includes the possibility that you’ll fail
for Prep, which is enough time for one group Prep
and will have to deal with that.
roll and one personal Prep roll.
Work in character moments. If a character has a
Most missions should be structured around this.
Goal (p. 25), try to work it into the mission somehow
Build in reasons players have enough time: maybe
(they're good fodder for optional challenges, if you
the mission happens on a particular date, or the
need any of those.) If the characters have a strong set
"deadline" is weeks from now, or your client can
of beliefs, give them chances to act on them, side
wait. You can also just make it part of the mission—
characters with different beliefs to challenge them,
for example, if the goal is to uncover evidence of
and opportunities to teach others.
someone's crimes, Prep time could just be an
"investigation" phase, and the "mission" is the day Add wrinkles. No plan survives first contact with
the case gets interesting. capitalism. Come up with interesting "yes, but..."
results for bad rolls. Confront players with
If you do Prep rolls, avoid punishing players for
situations that ask what they're willing to do to get
rolling Prep. Don't set it up so that if they take the
out of them. Have them deal with multiple things at
time to roll for Prep, the mission gets additional
once or make them choose what to focus on with
complications—if rolling Prep makes bad things
the time they have.
happen, people will avoid it. Just let them do it.
Don't overdo it, though. Not every bad roll needs to
If you really want to, you can fudge how long Prep
introduce a new problem, and if you add too many
takes for some missions. Maybe they need to rush
of them the players will get overwhelmed. Just
and get ready by that night, so you give them 9
keep them on their toes, that's all.
hours to prepare and say personal/group Prep
takes 1/8 hours. That's fine, but try to avoid doing it Don't drag it out. Prep isn't meant to cover every
all the time, so Prep feels more meaningful. conceivable situation. If the players seem to be
taking too long to figure out the perfect use of Prep,
offer suggestions. It helps if the players figure out
some "generic" ways to Prep that apply in every
situation—a street fighter training in a dojo or
meditating under an artificial waterfall, for example.

318
System
Have the setting react. Whether the PCs succeed or Always give them a chance to do something about

Running the Game

fail, missions generally have consequences for the it. They don't need to get out there and change the
world around them, even if it's something as minor as fortunes of the station or anything, although that
whether a friend's business succeeds or fails. For could work if it's something you've been building
missions with a broader scope, consider which of the up to. They just need to put a lot of effort into
setting's factions might react and how. Would a bad dealing with it. This could mean convincing an
guy start hiring private security? Would the Cartel take influential ally to help out, rallying friends and
notice and step in? Would someone get fired? Ask community, a protest, direct action, taking a job for
what makes sense for the characters and go with that. money, chasing a major bounty, or undertaking
whatever other mission you have in mind.
Cash Rewards Finally, it's important that you don't feel bad about
How much Cash you reward players for a successful
increasing the group's Burden. It's not being a jerk.
mission is up to you, but as a rule of thumb, it
This is a tool for the GM to use, and the players have
should be 1–3 per person.
ample opportunity to fix it. Just use it sparingly—if
• Give 1 Cash for missions that are short, simple, it happens too often, it loses its impact.
or low-impact (e.g. helping a neighbor out,
making a complicated delivery)
• Give 2 Cash for missions that are a little trickier (e.g.
A Note on Tech
The Hard Wired Island setting is more advanced
protecting someone from a vigilante cop, catching than ours. However, there's one area we
a criminal, running a con on a low-tier executive) haven't delved into as much as some other
• Give 3 Cash for missions that are complex, dan- cyberpunk settings: the brain. In the setting's
gerous, and high-impact (e.g. staging a heist on a canon, technologies like memory alteration,
mind dubbing/uploading, cyberbrains, and the
rich guy's house, stealing data from a Cartel like are as yet unfinished.
stronghold)
When it comes to cybernetics, the brain is
You can go higher if you like, but try to save it for rare, mostly off-limits. The few brain augments we
momentous events. You can also occasionally offer use are patching up damage, highly
Cash rewards upfront—clients can pay in advance, experimental/niche, and/or really expensive.
This is mostly a stylistic choice: such
characters can call in favors, etc. This should be done technologies can change the tone of the setting
rarely and there should be consequences for failing (or and the questions it poses in ways we didn't
skipping the mission entirely.) want to explore, at least not in this book.
However, it also offers the setting room to
Changing Burdens grow. If your campaign continues beyond the
As we discussed on p. 55, it's possible for the GM to distant future of 2020, you could easily
increase the group's Burdens by 1 as a story event. introduce these technologies and take the
If the group takes extraordinary action to weather plot in cool new directions. (It's heading that
way anyway—the Dreamer Infovore (p. 304)
the disaster, their old Burdens are restored. can already copy memories.)
When this happens is up to you. You can use this You can also just ignore this and add
proactively as a plot device, to spur the group into whatever tech you want; we won't stop you.
undertaking a mission, and you can also do it In fact, you can find some suggestions in the
reactively, to show how events on the station are Expanded Plot Hooks section on p. 349.
changing as a campaign progresses, then let them
figure out what to do about it.
How it happens can be anything that fits the story,
as long as it's something big: social unrest, new
government policy, an economic downturn, a
cancelled station supply shipment, and so on.
When in doubt, you can give the players some input
on how it affects them.

System 319
 Creating Side Characters
Hard Wired Island is about communities, so you'll with you, so giving them some input on what the
probably end up creating a lot of side characters (or side characters are like—especially when they're
H NPCs.) If you lean hard into that community aspect, meant to be an ally—helps keep them invested.
W you might end up with a whole ensemble cast of
You can ask them to create their allies. You can just
I people the PCs interact with. There's no "right" way
ask for a few keywords, or a rough idea of what they
to make characters, but here are a few tips.
want out of the character. You can have a character
in mind and just ask the players to fill a few gaps for
Start with the Basics you. You can take vague requests in advance. How
Decide what the character’s role in the story is going to
you take input is up to you.
be. Are they a villain? An ally? A PC’s crappy neighbor?
Do the players want to Prep for a mission by hiring
Explore the Setting
a hacker? Do the players just really want to know
When you make new characters, think about parts of
more about the woman who delivers their pizzas?
the setting you haven't explored yet and try to work
Write down a few traits or keywords that sum up the them in. This could be anything from the ward/district
character. These can be things like occupation, they're from to their hobbies, communities, favorite
appearance, personality, faction affiliation, or websites, political beliefs, birth nation, cybernetic
anything else you think explains what the character's augments and how they feel about them, occupation,
deal is. For suggestions, see Values on p. 111. which corporation has screwed up their life, and more.
Side characters are a great way to explore a setting.
These are the core of their identity, and give you a
handy reference when deciding how they'd react to And on a more basic level: Grand Cross is a city full
situations—plus they give the players a summary of people from all over the world, so your side
that makes it easier to remember them. characters should be too.

People Are Complicated They're Not Immutable

A character's role and their identity—the things you You don't need to figure out everything about a
wrote down to sum them up—don't have to character before you use them and, if you do, they
naturally flow from each other. It can be don't need to be immutable.
complicated; people are fucked up. In fact, when
Sometimes the group takes the story in an
there's a disconnect between a character's identity
unexpected direction and the character would work
and their actions, explaining how it happened can
better if you changed their role. Sometimes the
make them more interesting.
players don't react to them how you thought they
Take R. Daneel Olivaw (p. 259). Olivaw is an would. Sometimes an economic shock or some
android crime boss whose goal is to build a place other unplanned story event happens that would
androids can call their own, far away from affect them heavily. Sometimes the players befriend
humanity—ideally in another system. So, what if his the villain. Sometimes you just get a better idea.
role in your scenario is to provide support for
It happens! Again, people are complicated. Change
Noboru Yamada (p. 257), the very human leader of
the characters to fit the story.
a rival criminal organization?
The answer this time is that they've been friends since Keep a Reference
before they were crime lords. Exploring that friendship When you have a lot of characters, players might
and its ramifications (p. 253) adds depth to both have trouble tracking them all. Make it easy for them
characters and a bit of nuance to Daneel's philosophy. by writing down a list. Keep this one short too: just
the keywords from earlier is fine, though you can
Not every character needs to have a massive
also toss in facts the PCs might find interesting or the
disconnect or even one at all. But if you need to
roles the character played in past scenarios.
create some story, it's not a bad place to start.
Make this list available to the players in some form, like
Ask Your Players handouts or a shared document. Making an accessible
You can just ask your players what they want to see reference encourages the group to engage with
and follow that. The players are telling this story characters more often and bring back ones they like.

320
System
Let Them pick Their Focus Making

Running the Game

Players will like some characters but not others.
Sometimes they'll want to make a new friend even Antagonists
though they already have one who can do what When writing your villains, there's a few extra things
they want. Sometimes they'll want to see more of a to think about.
character you didn't plan to bring back. Sometimes
They should have (or think they have) a good
they'll just forget someone exists for a while.
reason to do what they do. They can feel forced to
Sometimes they'll ignore the character you planned
act by circumstance, genuinely believe they're
out in advance and latch onto the thief with cyber-
doing the right thing, or just be an asshole.
legs you made up on the spot because you called
Remember, people are complicated—their motives
her Wrong Trousers.
don't need to be obvious or totally rational.
That's fine. Let the players decide who they want to
A fun way to make a villain is to base their actions in
focus on, then run with it.
a belief. Opposing them isn't just a physical act,
but a battle of ideas. By doing so, players can fight
Borrowing Is Fine for their beliefs, refine them, or even challenge
It's fine to borrow ideas from other works—and that
them. If you go down this road, think carefully
includes characters. Use your favorites as inspiration to
about how the PCs are likely to react—and don't be
craft your own. You don't have to make a blatant expy5
afraid to consult with the players.
if you don't want to; figure out what you like about
them and make a new character with those details. Because this is a cyberpunk game, you can always
make villains a product of capitalism. Antagonists
Also, don't be afraid to borrow from your own work.
can be forced into doing bad things by a bad
Re-use characters you made for other games, or if you
socioeconomic situation, fooled by wealthy
don't want to make it obvious, use them as a base to
demagogues into blaming minorities and activists
create a new character that fills the same role.
for their economic woes, or just money-grubbing
Personally, I have a few character archetypes I like corporate types.
to use in most of my campaigns. Like the Science
You should also decide how much of a threat they
Doofus: an excitable dork who happens to be an
are. Are they meant to be dealt with in a single scene,
expert in a subject the PCs will have a lot of use for.
in a scenario, or are they a major antagonist of your
They're not always the same person, but there's
entire campaign? Are the PCs better, evenly matched,
always a Science Doofus. It helps when you need to
or outclassed? Establish how you want them to feel
make a new character on the fly.
in advance, then make sure the PCs know it.
Bring Them Back Finally, decide what their plan is, how they'll
If you get a chance to bring back a side character accomplish it, and what happens if they do. If you
you used before, take it! It'll help get the players figure that out in advance, it'll be easier to decide
invested in the game and make the world of Grand how they change the plan when people interfere
Cross seem a little more alive—especially if they've with it. Don't be afraid to get mean if you have to: a
been impacted by events on the station since the threatening villain can hire people to deal with
last time the PCs saw them. obstacles, target their allies, or even do something that
affects the PCs' Burden if that puts pressure on them.
Space Names If a villain is threatening and recurring, consider
After the Impact kicked off a space rush, it giving them a weakness—something the group can
became trendy for a while to name your kids (or exploit if they put effort into finding and using it. This
rename yourself) with a space theme. Try to give
space names to some of your characters. can be something that makes them act irrationally, a
secondary goal they'd be willing to change their plans
These can be regular names with an for, someone with leverage over them, or anything
astronomical theme/meaning, or more unusual
names: planets, moons, space probes, else the group could use to get what they want.
constellations (current and obsolete), galaxies,
astrological signs, famous astronomers and
astronauts, Sailor Scouts, whatever. They're still
uncommon, but less surprising. 5 "Exported character." An obvious stand-
in for a character from another work
with only minor changes.

System 321
 Creating Opponents
If the PCs end up opposing other characters, Traits
you’ll need to give them stats. There are two ways Some simple opponents may also have Traits.
to create stats, depending on how important the These can modify Level and Defense in specific
H character is and how much information you need. ways, explain how Health works differently for this
W opponent, or grant it special abilities. They can be
I Standard Opponents good or bad, depending on what works for the
Side characters can be created as PCs are, following opponent. For example:
the character creation steps on p. 24-25. This gives
• Heavily Cybered: +1 Tough Defense.
them access to all the tools PCs have, like unique
• Nimble: +1 Quick Defense.
Defenses, Specialties, Traits, and so on. (Feel free to
• Ideology: +1 to Clever Defense.
create custom Traits and Origins that PCs normally
• Cool Head: +1 to Cool Defense.
wouldn’t take.)
• Hacker: +1 to all Hacking rolls.
Use this method for important or recurring characters, • Silver Tongue: +1 to all Social rolls.
or for when you just really want to get into the details. • Fly: Can fly during its move.
• Easily Confused: -1 Clever and Cool Defense.
Simple Opponents • Robot: Immune to things robots would be
If you don’t need quite that much detail, use this immune to, such as tear gas.
simpler method for creating opponents. Keep in • Protected: +1 Tough Defense. Reduce all incom-
mind that simple doesn’t mean easy—it’s perfectly ing damage by 1.
possible to produce a major threat with this system.
The Dreamers (p. 300) are made this way. Actions
Some simple opponents may have actions. These
Simple opponents consist of four numbers:
work exactly like any attack action unless otherwise
• Level: A number you add to all rolls the opponent specified. (Simple opponents have access to regular
makes against the players, and to all saves it makes. attack actions too, if you feel like it.) If these actions
▪ Level 1 opponents are small things like include saves, use the Save Inflicted number.
drones, dogs, and Kitbashes (p. 309). For example:
▪ Level 2 opponents are normal, skilled
people without access to serious gear. Gang Up
▪ Level 3 opponents are riot cops in full gear, When 2 or more New Barons are close to you, they
special operatives, and the like. can simultaneously take this action. They make 1
▪ Level 4 opponents are elite enemies, large Melee Attack with a +1 bonus for each New Baron
mobs, or small tanks. taking part in the attack. If a Ringleader is present
▪ Level 5–6 opponents are either the elite of in the fight, they get an additional +1 to the roll.
the elite or Dreamers.
Other
• Defense is the opponent’s Level+5. This covers
Simple opponents may also have a short list of
all Defenses.
relevant gear they carry or a description of their
• Health is how much damage it can take. This is
preferred approach to fighting, if you need it.
an arbitrary number: beefy opponents have a lot,
reedy opponents don’t. (Don’t assign too many
over 6, if human or android. 8 is a very big lad.)
• Save Inflicted is the opponent’s Level+7. This
isn’t noted directly in the opponent’s stats; it’s
just the number used in any actions the oppon-
ent might have that call for saves.

322
System
Example Simple Opponents

Running the Game

NEW BARON GANGSTER RIOT COP
Level 2 | Defense 7 | Health 3 Level 3 | Defense 8 | Health 4
Your average New Baron goon. The more of them Canned bacon. They like to rush with their shields, knock you
there are, the louder and more obnoxious their down, and beat you senseless. Especially if you’re an android.
demonstrations of loyalty to each other tend to get
• Protected: +1 Tough Defense. In addition, reduce all incom-
for fear of being ostracized.
ing damage by 1.
• Groupthink: +1 Cool Defense if another New • Riot Gear: Has Advantage on saves against tear gas and
Baron is present. -1 instead if by themselves. flashbangs.
• Outgroup: A New Baron will never be friendly to • Shield: Grenade attacks vs a Riot Cop have Disadvantage.
you if another New Baron is present and they • Shield Wall: If at least 3 Riot Cops are present and in forma-
suspect you of being “a multicultural,” i.e. not a tion, they can form a shield wall. Melee attacks against
xenophobic asshole. They talk more like regular them are made at Disadvantage, and they cannot be for-
people when by themselves. cibly moved by anything smaller than 3 riot-geared cops.
• Ringleader (Optional). Has 5 Health. Bosses the • Gear: Tear gas grenades, riot gear, hefty batons, comm gear,
other Gangsters around, and doubles everyone’s zip tie handcuffs, disregard for civilians.
bonus for Groupthink (also gets double its penalty).
Grenades
• Gear: A Hefty melee weapon, really ill-fitting
Being used on civilians is what these were made for.
suits, probably some drugs.
A squad of any number of Riot Cops can use a Tear Gas
Gang Up grenade (see p. 90) once per fight. This can take the form of
When 2 or more New Barons are close to you, they a grenade or spray.
can simultaneously take this action. They make 1
Melee Attack with a +1 bonus for each New Baron OGREMOCH “KUMOKO”
taking part in the attack. If a Ringleader is present UW-A7 SPIDER TANK
in the fight, they get an additional +1 to the roll. Level 4 | Defense 9 | Health 8
A three-ton AI-piloted tank on wheeled legs designed for moving
TETSUO AS-101 SERIES through urban environments, somewhat resembling a spider.
SECURITY BOT Some genius thought something designed for urban warfare was
Level 2 | Defense 7 | Health 2 perfect for cops, somehow. It tends to be reserved for use by special
A tall tower-like robot designed to scan people for valid forces. It earned its nickname for the cutesy girly voice it has.
ID and shock anyone who doesn’t have it. Beta testing
• Big: It is too big to fit through doors but can simply crash
in the Tetsuo offices was immensely unpopular.
through thin enough walls. It cannot be forcibly moved or
• Sturdy Construction: +1 Tough Defense. knocked prone by anything smaller than itself. Its body is
• Alert: If the Security Bot is attacked or shocks considered a hefty melee weapon.
someone, it will immediately alert the central • Easily Confused: -1 Clever and Cool Defense.
server it is connected to. • Nimble and Tough: +1 Tough and Quick Defense.
• Can’t Get Up: If knocked prone, it will be • Please Comply Politely: A Kumoko will never attack unless
rendered immobile and send an alert. attacked first, will announce its presence to you, and will
• Robot: Is immune to things robots would be, always ask you politely to comply before taking further
such as tear gas. action. It’s also a generally pleasant conversationalist.
• Gear: Prods and short-range tasers. • Powerful Sensors: It suffers no disadvantage for firing in
darkness or into/out of smoke.
Taser
• Robot: Is immune to things robots would be, like tear gas.
All attacks made by the Security Bot have the Stun
• Gear: Twin retractable automatic miniguns with armor-
tag. (When you mark damage dealt by this
piercing bullets, smoke grenade launcher.
weapon on your Damage Track, note that it’s
Stunned. A Stunned box doubles the penalty from
Destroy Cover
that damage box, if applicable, until cleared. A
Make a melee or ranged attack. Any cover in between the
Stunned box clears at the end of a fight.)
target and the Kumoko is annihilated by a hail of bullets or
the mass of its body after resolving the attack.

Smoke Grenade
It can use its smoke grenade (see p. 90) launcher once per fight.

System 323
 Character Advancement
Over time your Hard Wired Island characters will Once you achieve it, you can write down a new one
grow and change. Here's how: between sessions. You can also change your
H Personal Goal between sessions without resolving
W Milestones it, if you think there's a good reason to or the
I Whenever the group achieves something noteworthy, character would have moved on.
write down a summary of what they did and mark 1
Personal Goals don't have to be lofty, but like
Experience on each character. This is a Milestone.
Milestones, they should take effort to accomplish.
Milestones can be anything from stopping an Your group gets the final say in what counts.
extortion racket to making sure the Technos get seats
in the Assembly. The only qualifications are that it
makes a difference to someone, and that your group Example Goals
Soyeong came to Grand Cross to investigate
was personally involved and expended effort to make the accident that turned her into a cyborg.
it happen. When in doubt, ask, "Did this make a She makes finding a significant lead her
positive difference in people's lives?" If yes, it counts. Personal Goal and remains focused on that
for a while. Once she achieves it, she makes it
When a character has marked 3 Experience from a Milestone, figures out what the next big step
Milestones, they Advance a Level in their Occupation. in her investigation is, and writes that down.
Lee begins with no Personal Goal. He tends to
Advancing get swept up in local causes though, so he
When you Advance a Level, you gain everything picks up "stop the gentrification of the Marsha
noted for that Level in your Occupation: 1 Specialty, Stretch" partway through the first session, but
at least 1 Generic Specialty, and an Occupation ends up changing it to "secure greater rights
for androids" before actually accomplishing it
Talent of your choice. to his own satisfaction. Later, Lee's oldest rival
Whenever you are allowed to choose an Occupation suddenly shows up in Grand Cross and Lee
decides to drop everything to make defeating
Talent, you may choose a Generic Talent instead. them once and for all his new Personal Goal.
When that's accomplished, he goes back to
New Occupations android rights.
Life comes at you fast, and you adapt. You may
choose to Advance a Level in an Occupation you
don't already have. Pacing
Hard Wired Island assumes you will earn 1–2 Experience
If you do, you choose everything noted for the first
every session, with the occasional spike of 3 or even
level in that Occupation, but you don't get the First
4 when many Personal Goals coincide. This means it
Occupation choices—the assets, extra Talent, and
will take roughly 18 to 20 sessions for everyone to
so on.
earn 10 levels and complete an Occupation.
Personal Goals You can change this pacing as best fits your group.
Every PC has a Personal Goal: something important If the group is gaining Experience a lot faster than
they want to accomplish during play. you intended, for example, consider changing your
standards for what counts as a Milestone or a
At the start of the game, your character's Personal
Personal Goal.
Goal is written down as soon as you decide what it is.
You don't have to have one before you start playing. You can also ignore Milestones and Personal Goals
You don't have to write one down at all if you prefer. entirely and come up with a different method. For
example, you could simply give them a level after
When a character achieves their Personal Goal,
every mission or come up with a checklist of
write it down as a Milestone. Every member of the
Experience-earning things to accomplish every
group marks Experience, since they all helped.7
session that rewards interesting roleplay.

7 You can make your Personal

someone else achieve their
something similar, but you
Goal "helping
goal," or
can't mark
Experience for it. Come on now.

324
System
Hard Wired Gaming

Running the Game

by Chris Falco
Games can take advantage of a lot of new Depending on the site, there's a few ways you could
technologies these days. While the high-tech go about this. The easiest way is to have everyone use
marvels of 2020 might seem like an eternity away, their normal account but set up a private group for
our modern tech can still enhance your game. the game where you can post in-character messages
and OOC notes much like text messaging. The GM can
Messaging Systems either post direct responses or give a "summary" of
An easy way to add a bit of technological immersion the reaction to a post (e.g. "Your 26k followers praised
is through texts. GMs can use them to send mission you, but some jerks said you're a butt".)
info, messages from side characters, news reports,
Alternatively, you can make new accounts for your
and other digital tidbits. Players can use them to do
characters and just post in-character messages there.
some roleplaying between their characters.
In this case, the GM may still need to specifically note
The fastest way to use this is through texting on who their "GM account" is representing. Also
your phones. Set up a group chat for Hard Wired consider making these accounts private, so you can
Island messages and come up with a basic system control who sees it and who can reply.
to show who's sending and receiving the messages.
For example, a text could look like this: Other Options
There are many other online possibilities that can help
((Junior > Soyeong)) Hey! Found the
make the game feel more high-tech and engaging.
info you were looking for. Mind if I
swing by after dinner? Virtual tabletop programs like Roll20, Astral, or Role
are great for playing games when you can't meet in
In this case, the brackets mark "out of character"
person, for example—and you could even have
info, specifically the sender and receiver. You could
"guests" appear on video to give missions. Forum
also send a news story, like:
threads, subreddits, and wiki farms can provide a
((Seen on the news:)) LMJ Syndrome: A hub for campaign information. Streaming sites can
Lingering Threat? bring outside input on decisions. Bots and other
programs9 can automate mechanics for you or help
Messaging apps like Skype and Discord8 provide
generate hooks. In the end, the limit is how much
further options. With the right software you can set
time and effort your group wants to put into it.
up groups or servers with different channels for
roleplay, out-of-character talk, or storing information
Consideration and
like character sheets, maps, and handouts. (For a
Encouragement
retrofuture touch, try IRC.) You can even change your
When using any of these methods, remember that your
display name to match your character.
players are real people with real lives. Don't force
anyone to roleplay outside of game sessions, and
Social Media definitely don't penalize them for not having extra
While social media will look different in the distant
time. These methods should be used to make the game
future of 2020, modern approximations like Twitter
more fun and immersive, not put a burden on anyone.
and Facebook can let players create an online
presence for their character. This doesn't mean you can't reward players that go
above and beyond, just avoid putting them ahead
This can be done for roleplay purposes, to show
of other characters; don't allow Milestones to be
what an influencer or a hacker's online presence/
accomplished in downtime, for instance. If you
typing style might look like. If you have the time, you
have to offer something, make it something fleeting
can also set up similar accounts for important
like a bonus to their next roll or a tiny amount of
characters or in-game businesses and organizations.
Cash. Make sure that every character has a way to
get it, not just Influencers.

8 And similar programs, depending on your

region and time period. Hello future
players!
9 People have made dice-rolling bots for
Discord, IRC, and similar messaging
programs. Look them up!

System 325
 Launch Systems
Chapter 9:
Launch Systems
"The thing about working toward a better world is the work is never done. There's always
someone else who needs help, or a community in need, or whatever. If we ever did get a handle on it
all, some genius is gonna have a new idea that lights everything on fire again.
"But things still get better. So keep doing the work. If you do it right, you'll leave the world in a better
place than you found it."
— Leander Ryker, riot medic

This chapter contains tools GMs and groups can use to set up games quickly:

Pregenerated PCs
Some ready-to-use characters for players who'd like to get started quickly: Lee, Junior, Jupiter, Maru,
Mira, Soyeong, and Zander, plus more PCs created by Kickstarter backers: Brian, Fia, Jae-yun, Julie,
Lucy, and Quinn.

Plot Hooks
Ideas for stories and scenarios the PCs can immerse themselves in, including premises to start your
games with, plot hooks for the pregenerated PCs, and ways to change the setting's technology level.

The Dreamer Season

A setup for a Dreamer-themed campaign arc.

The Terabyte Boys

A scenario you can use as the start of a campaign or a standalone adventure.

For general advice on running games, see Chapter 8: Running the Game, on p. 311.

Launch Systems 327

 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
H Origin: Android
W Traits: Activist, Stoic
I Abilities: Cool +1, Clever +0, Tough +2, Quick +3
Defenses: Cool 8, Clever 7, Tough 10, Quick 11
Burden: 1
Occupation: Street Fighter
Talents: Martial Arts, Reversal

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Distract
+1 Android Rights Movement
+1 First Responder
+2 Martial Arts
+1 Quick Defense

Lee +1 Stealth
THE STREET FIGHTER +1 Tough Defense
HANDLE: @FIRE_LEE_DOJO_OFFICIAL_
HE/THEY ASSETS:
Membership (United People For Android Freedom),
Lee was a firefighting android in Hong Kong until he
Gym (Fire Lee Gym & Dojo), Badass Headband1,
was replaced with cheaper drone technology. Able
License
to travel his own path for the first time, he chose a
new male identity and martial arts training. Since
AUGMENTS:
moving to orbit, he's opened a small gym of his
Spacer Build: Lee's built-in firefighter mods, with
own and gotten heavily involved in the android
improvements by some Builder friends.
rights movement.
CCP Cyber "Stekkjastaur" Legs [Spring Legs]:
Lee is a calm, bold man who loves helping people
Lee's old firefighting legs, which he still keeps in his
for its own sake. He rents a room to his friend
dojo.
Junior and knows the others through forums.
"Rumble on the Moon" Hands [Rocket Fists]:
These were gifted to Lee by an actor friend who
went back to his normal cyber-arms when the
movie was done. He keeps them in a closet
because the flame decals are silly.

APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE

"Android, human... When you get down to it, we're the

same. We might not bleed, but our hearts do."

1 Not reflected in Cool Defense.

328
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: It's Complicated
Traits: Gregarious, Student Loans
Abilities: Cool +2, Clever +0, Tough +1, Quick +3
Defenses: Cool 9, Clever 7, Tough 9, Quick 10
Burden: 3 [Effective 2]
Occupation: Fixer
Talents: I Know A Guy, It Takes All Kinds [Street
Fighter: Martial Arts]

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Bullshit
+1 Tough Defense
+1 80s/90s Action Cinema
+1 Jeet Kune Do
+1 Journalism Degree
Junior +1 Politics
THE FIXER
HANDLE: VARIOUS +1 Wheeling and Dealing
HE/HIM
ASSETS:
How Junior went from an undergrad in Africa to a
3D Printer, Covert Armor2, Small Local Business
freelance journalist on Grand Cross is a story he has
(Freelance Office), Trendy Wardrobe
never reached the end of before getting distracted,
but it left him with a flair for the dramatic, plenty of
bruises, and a lot of useful contacts. AUGMENTS: NONE.
Junior is a smooth, nonchalant guy who loves to
APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE
fight for social causes despite his natural
pessimism. He rents a room from his friend Lee,
and occasionally pesters Soyeong, Mira, and Xander
for favors or fun.

"You're a hard one to find, you know that?

Relax, I've just got some questions for you…"

2 Not reflected in Tough Defense.

Launch Systems 329

 STATS
H Origin: Survivor
W Traits: Regular Customer [Early Access], Well
I Traveled
Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +0, Tough +1, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 8, Tough 8, Quick 9
Burden: 2
Occupation: Thief
Talents: Enterprising, Parkour

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Disable Security
+1 Action: Stealth
+1 Activism
+1 Anime
+1 Capoeira
Jupiter +1 Clever Defense
THE THIEF
HANDLE: PRIVATE +1 L4 Refugee
SHE/HER
+1 Landvaettir Orbital
Jupiter (named, of course, after the Sailor Moon
+1 Parkour
character) is an L4 Disaster survivor. She didn't lose
anyone important, but like many Disaster refugees
ASSETS:
she was practically abandoned when she reached
Fake ID, Membership (Courier Company), Thieving
Grand Cross. She's working as a courier to get back
Gear, Weapon: Pepper Spray [Melee, Tear Gas]
on her feet and is doing her best to lift her fellow
refugees with her.
AUGMENTS:
Jupiter is a cheerful, talkative woman who decided Omnidyne LF-283 Cyber-Legs [Athletic Legs]:
long ago that being positive in the face of adversity Jupiter replaced her legs before the Disaster: one
is always a worthwhile struggle. She's currently after a childhood accident, and the other so she
staying in a refugee camp. could enhance her freerunning skills.

APP: ROOFDASH

"Buenos días! Today's delivery, nice and early.

Need a hand while I'm here?"

330
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: Criminal
Traits: Overprepared, Scavenger
Abilities: Cool +0, Clever +3, Tough +1, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 7, Clever 10, Tough 8, Quick 9
Burden: 2 [Effective 1]
Occupation: Hacker
Talents: Hot Streak, Laughing Gal

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Quick Defense
+1 Action: Spoof
+1 Criminal Underworld
+1 Hacker Den3
+2 Hacking (+1 Augment)

Maru +1 Ghosting
THE HACKER +1 Scooters
HANDLE: @TABBYANARCHY
+1 Stealth
SHE/HER
Maru is an electronic musician and DJ who ASSETS:
performs at a few local clubs. She was also the Hacking Suite, Data Bomb [Program], Ghost
notorious hacker Hex Decimal in her teens, and Protocols [Program], Holographic Projection
moved to Grand Cross to dodge the authorities, but Armor, Vehicle (Scooter)
the place has grown on her.
AUGMENTS:
Maru is a friendly, dorky woman who loves messing
ARC Zaibatsu "Lucky Cat" Cyber-Eyes
with tech to see how it works. She shares her
[Specialized Augment]: These eyes function as a
apartment with her childhood friend Soyeong.
miniature computer with a complicated HUD. She
sometimes controls them with her external
keyboard. They function as her Hacking Suite, and
+1 Hacking.

APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE

"Umm, I can take a look, I guess... Oh, it's a Tetsuo

Logos 2200 with an XTREM microchip! Gimme!"

3 This is Maru's Workshop Specialty for

the purposes of Scavenger.

Launch Systems 331

 STATS
H Origin: Military Veteran
W Traits: Hey I Know You!, Hush Money
I Abilities: Cool +1, Clever +0, Tough +3, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 8, Clever 7, Tough 11, Quick 9
Burden: 0
Occupation: Soldier
Talents: On-Site Procurement, Threat Assessment

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Interrogate
+2 Bounty Hunting
+1 First Aid Kit (Augment)
+1 Gun (Rifles)
+1 Military

Mira +1 MMA
THE SOLDIER +1 Social Media
HANDLE: @MIRAKLEWORKER
+1 Tough Defense
SHE/HER
Mira enlisted in the US military in an attempt to get ASSETS:
out of poverty, but was discharged and paid to Covert Armor4, License, Rioting Gear, Weapon:
leave Earth after getting into a fight with a superior Huntr Rifle By Omnidyne [Ranged, Critical, Ammo,
who "accidentally" fired at a civilian. On Grand Restricted, Omnidyne, Biometric Safety]
Cross, she's a tech vlogger and Huntr user who
supplements her income by streaming her bounties AUGMENTS:
and working security for activist groups. Omnidyne "Valkyrie" Arm [Integrated Asset]:
This arm a suite of tools and compartments that
Mira is a tough, kind-hearted woman who loves
function as a First Aid Kit. +1 First Aid Kit.
challenges and new experiences. She visits Lee's
gym for training and advice, and occasionally drags
APP: HUNTR
Xander on her jobs.

"Today we'll be wrapping up that bounty with some

cool new armor from our sponsors! Remember, this
stream is delayed by sixty minutes..."

4 Not reflected in Tough Defense.

332
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: Celebrity
Traits: Hush Money, Overprepared
Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +1, Tough +0, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 8, Tough 8, Quick 10
Burden: 2 [Effective 1]
Occupation: Influencer
Talents: DDoS, Viral

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Charm
+1 Quick Defense
+1 Tough Defense (Augment)
+1 Famous
+1 Music Industry

Soyeong +1 K-Pop/Rap
THE INFLUENCER +1 Handguns
HANDLE: @SONGBULGAE
+1 Social Media
SHE/HER
+1 Taekkyon (Augment)
Soyeong was a rising star in the K-pop world before
a tragic space accident cut her career short. She
ASSETS:
survived, recovered, and now she's come to Grand
License, Trendy Wardrobe, Vehicle (Motorcycle),
Cross to make a comeback. In secret, she's
Verified Account
investigating a tip that it might not have been an
accident.
AUGMENTS:
Soyeong's a cool, determined woman who loves Tetsuo Tech "Imugi" Arm [Combat Augments,
creating things. She shares an apartment with her Restricted]: This arm has bulletproof casing and a
childhood friend Maru while surviving on donations "Shield Mode". It would normally be Illegal, but the
from fans, working local gigs, and an "insurance music industry is wild. +1 Tough Defense.
payout" from her former label.
Tetsuo Tech "Bulgae" Leg [Specialized Augment]:
Soyeong and Maru have heavily customised her leg to
compensate for lost muscle memory. +1 Taekkyon.
Hergatz Liao Life Support Module [Cosmetic]:
Augments inside her right torso regulate and track her
vital signs. She only trusts Maru to take care of them.

APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE

"Yeah, I called in a few favors to get this together.
Don't worry, I got more if we need 'em."

Launch Systems 333

 STATS
H Origin: Corporate Drone
W Traits: Student Loans, Trendsetter (Friendly)
I Abilities: Cool +1, Clever +3, Tough +0, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 8, Tough 8, Quick 10
Burden: 2
Occupation: Operator
Talents: Personal Drone, Nerd

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Cool Defense
+1 Tough Defense (Augment)
+1 Bureaucracy
+1 Cartel Politics
+1 Drone

Zander +1 Grenades
THE OPERATOR +1 Robotics
HANDLE: @SK8RBOI69420
+1 Skateboard
HE/HIM
+1 Studied The Blade
Zander Xander was once a corporate drone at
Omnidyne until he discovered their healthcare plan
ASSETS:
didn't cover HRT. He took his expertise and his pride
Personal Drone [Flight, Hardpoint, Smart],
with him out the door and onto the streets, where he
Skateboard5, Weapon: Flashbang Grenades
skates and does odd jobs as his own free man.
[Ranged, Illegal, Flashbang], Weapon: Mall Katana
Zander is a slick, energetic guy who loves indulging [Melee, Critical, Big, Hefty, Sharp]
his passions and expressing himself. He owns an
apartment full of anime wall scrolls, which he AUGMENTS:
refuses to take down when he has friends over. Chromey Hawk Underskin [Work-Enhancing
Suite]: Various small augments designed to help
skateboarders who have injured themselves a few
too many times. Uses his Skateboard Specialty.
Hergatz Liao HRT Regulator [Cosmetic].

APP: ROOFDASH

"Radical!"

5 Zander's Personal Drone is also his

Skateboard. He can't fly on it, but he
might be able to hover Back to the
Future-style.

334
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: Gamer
Traits: Full-Body Prosthetic, Student Loans
Abilities: Cool +1, Clever +3, Tough +0, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 8, Clever 10, Tough 8, Quick 9
Burden: 2
Occupation: Hacker
Talents: Born Ready, Online Resources

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Operate
+1 Cyborg Subculture
+1 Games
+2 Hacking
+2 Online Communities

Brian +1 Scooters
THE CYBORG +1 Stealth
HANDLE: @NINJADEBUGGER
+1 Tough Defense
HE/HIM
Brian Farmer is a software engineer who was forced ASSETS:
to become a full-body cyborg for medical reasons. 3D Printer, Hacking Suite, Ghost Protocols
Unfortunately, he could only afford the cheapest [Program], Memory Worm [Program], Vehicle
body available, and as it makes it hard for him to (Scooter)
find a job, he's also struggling with debt.
AUGMENTS:
Brian is a jaded, gloomy fellow who likes writing
Ogremalk Engines RealBodyTM [Full-Body
code and preparing for the future. He's well-known
Prosthetic]: The best full-body prosthetic Brian
on most of the big cyborg/tech forums as an expert
could afford in a hurry was this knockoff Ogremoch
on the problems full-body cyborgs can face.
model from a now-shut down company.
LMJ Eyes [Cyber-Eyes]: A common choice for the
eye-installer on a budget.

APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE

"Every morning I wake up, and that's my first

disappointment of the day."

Launch Systems 335

 STATS
H Origin: Double Crosser
W Traits: Stoic, Well Travelled
I Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +1, Tough +2, Quick +0
Defenses: Cool 11, Clever 8, Tough 10, Quick 7
Burden: 1
Occupation: Fixer
Talents: Gift of the Gab, Plausible Deniability

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Action: Bullshit
+1 Cool Defense
+2 Human Anatomy
+1 Obscure Grand Cross Places
+1 Social Media

Fia +2 Stealth
THE MORTICIAN +1 Tough Defense
HANDLE: @FIAANDLOATHING
SHE/HER ASSETS:
Small Local Business (Funeral Home and
Fia Vass is a Double Crosser who makes a living as a
Graveyard), Trendy Wardrobe, Weapon: Shovel
mortician, helping others deal with their dead on a
[Melee, Critical, Hefty], Vehicle (Hearse)
station where space is at a premium and burial is a
luxury. Her job, and her teen years spent exploring
AUGMENTS: NONE
the station, have given her an intimate knowledge
of the station's underground areas.
APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE
Fia is a punky, outgoing woman who enjoys helping
people, making connections, and collecting cool
tech. As a mortician, she is one of the few people
licensed to operate a large vehicle.

"I know where all sorts of secrets

are buried in this city."

336
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: Civil Servant
Traits: Activist, Overprepared
Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +1, Tough +0, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 8, Tough 7, Quick 9
Burden: 1
Occupation: Fixer
Talents: I Know A Guy, It Takes All Kinds [Operator:
Tech Head]

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Engineering
+1 Item: Workshop
+1 Government
+1 Motorcycles
+1 Office Lady
Jae-yun +1 Taekwondo
THE OFFICE LADY
HANDLE: @JAEYUNCARTER +1 Tough Defense
SHE/HER
+1 Unions
Jae-yun Carter is an office lady who works for the
Union of Extravehicular Workers. When she's not ASSETS:
working, she tinkers with her motorcycle and License, Powered Exoskeleton*, Vehicle
travels around Grand Cross. She recently fixed up (Motorcycle), Weapon: Zinovy Handgun [Ranged,
an old construction hardsuit from work to help Critical, Ammo, Restricted, Zinovy, Suppressor]
some friends who got into activism.
AUGMENTS: NONE
Jae-yun is a tough, dedicated woman, and a sweet
cinnamon roll of a person at heart. She's not afraid
APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE
to bend the rules if it'll help someone.

"Once we clear out these strike-breaking pigs,

I'd be happy to help you with that
housing assistance application."

6 If Jae-yun purchases some Combat Armor,

she can combine these two Assets into
the Hardsuit Asset (p. 81).

Launch Systems 337

 STATS
H Origin: Gamer
W Traits: Impulsive, Work Housing [RVRE]
I Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +2, Tough +0, Quick +1
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 9, Tough 7, Quick 8
Burden: 1
Occupation: Influencer
Talents: Extremely Online, Parasocial
Relationships

SPECIALTIES:
+2 Action: Charm (Social)
+1 Games
+1 Ghost
+1 Hacking
+1 Social Media
Julie +1 Stealth
THE VIRTUAL IDOL
HANDLE: @PRINCESSPAONNEEN +1 VTuber
SHE/HER
ASSETS:
Julie Maupin was a RVRE programmer who was
Hacking Suite, Safehouse, Trendy Wardrobe,
asked to work extra shifts as their virtual mascot,
Verified Account
Peacock Princess Paonne. She enjoyed the role
enough that she asked to become full-time, even if
AUGMENTS:
that meant dropping money on hormones and a
Hergatz Liao HRT Regulator [Cosmetic].
new wardrobe. She still enjoys it, but RVRE's control
of the rights is becoming a problem.
APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE
Julie is a friendly, flirty woman who tends to go all-or-
nothing on everything she does. She's looking for a
way to get the mascot rights from RVRE and go solo.

"This is my journey, and I won't let anyone stop me

being who I want to be."

338
Launch Systems
 Pregenerated PCs
STATS
Origin: It's Complicated
Traits: Regular Customer [GPol Gym], Tabula
Inscripta*
Abilities: Cool +0, Clever +1, Tough +3, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 8, Clever 8, Tough 10, Quick 9
Burden: 2
Occupation: Soldier
Talents: Always Prepared, Riot Medicine

Tabula Inscripta
Once you got your feet under you, you decided to
try a lot of things and find out what sort of person
you are. You're pretty satisfied with the results,
though nothing comes for free.
This Trait works like Student Loans. Lucy picked +1
Bonsai Cultivation and +1 Library Systems.
SPECIALTIES:
Lucy +1 Academia
THE NEW PERSON
+1 Action: Bullshit
HANDLE: @KALEIDOSCOPEEYE
SHE/HER +2 Bonsai Cultivation
In 2019, a hacker named Gerry took a job that led him +1 Cool Defense
to a Dreamer (p. 304). He made the mistake of
+1 Item: First Aid Kit
provoking it, and Lucy woke up in his old body. She
doesn't know how it happened or remember anything +1 Library Systems
before that; she's essentially a whole new person.
+1 Riot Medic
Lucy is a thoughtful, independent woman who has
+2 Staff Fighting
adapted pretty well to her situation. She mostly
pursues her own goals, but sometimes she has to ASSETS:
deal with people and fallout from Gerry's life. First Aid Kit, Rioting Gear7, Safehouse, Weapon:
Collapsible Bo Staff [Melee, Critical, Hefty]

AUGMENTS:
Hergatz Liao HRT Regulator [Cosmetic].

APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE

"Kick this, punch that. Why do I never get a job that

urgently needs a bonsai maintained?"

7 Not reflected in Tough Defense.

Launch Systems 339

 STATS
H Origin: Station Worker
W Traits: Activist, Gregarious
I Abilities: Cool +3, Clever +0, Tough +1, Quick +2
Defenses: Cool 10, Clever 8, Tough 8, Quick 9
Burden: 3
Occupation: Fixer
Talents: Contacts, Facilitate

SPECIALTIES:
+1 Clever Defense
+1 Dance
+1 Friends Everywhere
+1 Station Infrastructure
+2 Engineering (+1 Augment)

Quinn +2 Scrappy Fighter

THE SUPPORT
ASSETS:
HANDLE: @QUINNCEJAM
License, Rioting Gear8, Small Local Business
SHE/HER, MX/SIR
(Handyperson), Workshop
Quinn was a government employee during station
construction but quit due to a combination of AUGMENTS:
chronic illness, an abusive workplace, and Canopus MultiHand 3000UX [Specialized
increasing corporate influence. These days she Augment]: A hand with a Swiss Army knife-style
takes odd jobs for any group that aligns with her multitool, installed during her stint as a station
ideals: that Grand Cross can be a place where worker. +1 Engineering.
people have dignity and respect; and art and
APP: PLAYER'S CHOICE
wonder are valued as much as technological
prowess and social capital.
Quinn is a scrappy punk with a wide social network.
Something about the way she interacts with people
makes them feel a bit more human, a bit more seen.

"Ain't nobody coming to save us but us."

8 Not reflected in Tough Defense.

340
Launch Systems
Plot Hooks
Here are some ideas that can be expanded into full scenarios. We've tried to provide enough detail to

Plot Hooks
get you started; the rest is up to you.

Premises Regular Hooks

The way your characters begin their adventures in A few general ideas for things PCs can do. If you
Grand Cross can influence everything, from the way need more ideas, check out the locations and
they interact with the station to the tone of the game. characters in Chapters 6 and 7.
Hard Wired Island assumes your PCs are regular General Hooks
people who get caught up in the events of 2020, but Corporate conspiracies, tangles with the law, and
that could mean a lot of things. You could be... everyday problems; if your campaign were an
anime season, these would be the standalone
... residents of a community like the Marsha Stretch
episodes that aren't connected to the real plot.
(p. 354), dealing with encroaching corporate
interests and other threats. Gerlach Stern (p. 280) has been trying to debunk
the LMJ Syndrome myth for years now. He has a
... activists trying to accomplish larger changes in the
new problem: the cyborg worker Ji-hu Kim, who
station through grassroots initiatives, protests, direct
tried to kill Unity politician Axton Ebner and got
action, or less-than-legal means.
taken down by his bodyguard.
... trying to run a small business (e.g. a courier
Canopus Cyber (p. 243), who made Ji-hu's cyber-
company, retrieval specialists, or a café), helping
arm, is claiming cyberneurosis. Gerlach suspects
customers, and dealing with corporate competition.
something else—especially since Axton used to
... journalists and investigators uncovering interesting work in construction—but Canopus has Ji-hu
stories and trying to hold the powerful to account. stashed away in a private hospital. He recruits the
PCs to figure out what's going on.
... government employees (e.g. basement workers, IT
people, some weird obscure department) doing their During their time at Landvættir, Axton pushed Ji-hu
best to hold the station together. (and a few other workers) onto cybernetics, and
referred them to Canopus in exchange for a finder's
... Disaster refugees who banded together for protection.
fee. Canopus fitted him with a high-maintenance
... a band or idol/virtual YourTuber group trying to arm to collect extra fees, and when he couldn't pay,
make it big. they turned it into a Burger Kong Augvert.
... bounty hunters using Huntr (p. 57) to capture Ji-hu overheard a Canopus rep talking about it
fugitive criminals from Earth. while getting maintenance and went to strangle
Axton as soon as his arm was tuned up. Canopus
... thieves and con artists carrying out heists on the
Cyber are keeping him hidden while they look for
powerful to avenge wrongs done to regular citizens.
any recordings he made, and then they're going to
... a small-time gang, or members of a larger gang have him declared insane and locked up.
like the Hoshi Group, doing their best to survive
The PCs are recruited to help out with a protest—or
without being caught.
decide to attend one themselves. (If you're not sure
... members of Law Zero helping Olivaw with his long- what it should be for, make it about Landvættir
term plan (p. 259). Orbital [p. 235] and their meager compensation for
L4 refugees; there's plenty of those lately.) They'll
... corporate employees in a weird, forgotten department,
have a lot to contend with: New Baron counter-
or who stumble upon a corporate conspiracy.
protesters, undercover cops trying to encourage
... people who have uncovered the Dreamer conspiracy violence, regular cops getting violent9, and trying to
and banded together to investigate, if only because keep their fellows safe, especially if they know
they don't know anyone else they can talk to about it. anything about riot medicine10.
... a group of friends with unrelated goals, just
helping each other out. 9 A lot of protests are peaceful until the police
arrive, for some mysterious reason. The official
stance of the Station Police Service is they're just
... and more. As long as everyone agrees and you have really good at predicting when violence will happen.
something you can tell a story with, it's all good.
10 Or riot engineering, for androids.

Launch Systems 341

 The PCs are recruited to help Zhao Liu (p. 280), a The New Barons
full-body cyborg street artist who makes things out The New Barons (p. 267) are a good all-purpose
of discarded tech. Her creations have been stolen antagonist for your games. Their narrow-minded
H by the guerilla marketing company Apevert (p. 243), views lead them to oppose all kinds of things the
who copy them for profit. One of the petty thieves PCs might do, from helping L4 refugees to messing
W
they paid to do it just broke into her workshop and with the Singularists to just hanging out with
I stole a prototype, hoping to make another quick androids. If the PCs want to weaken them, there are
Apevert buck. That's the last straw for Zhao: she a lot of targets to choose from.
wants someone to get it back, gather evidence, and
The Barons enjoy some influence in Unity—which
help her take the company down.
makes sense, seeing as they're partly bankrolled by
PCs who'd like a murder mystery can investigate the same oligarchs that bankroll Unity. Exposing
the apparent death of the android Moravec, who their secret meetings with the city's elite at Orbital
turns up on a rooftop in Space Town (p. 182) with Freedom Institute (p. 272) events will weaken them.
his AI core violently torn out. The event leads to
The Barons are attempting to recruit from the
increased police presence in Space Town, which
Singularists (p. 260), and they've already made
makes androids less safe but looks impressive.
some inroads. As their influence spreads the Barons
Before he vanished, Moravec visited the Evil Maid could get cutting-edge tech, people on the inside at
Attack café and the android fight club Ring of Coolant. tech corporations, relationships with influential
Moravec is a friend of the café's owner Zigamorph, people in Turing, or even Dreamer knowledge. PCs
who knows where he lives; he wanted her to stop by who want to weaken their hold on the Singularists
to look at some tech for him after work, but never can go after Phil Azimuth (p. 267) or Trajan (p. 267).
came home. The Ring's MC Hunter Deadman doesn't Trajan is the tougher one to deal with; he has
know where he went after his fight, but he does rent a contacts in law enforcement and his facial-
locker at the club, and Hunter may let slip that he was recognition startup Neuronomicon (p. 158).
a member of Law Zero.
The Barons do a lot of their organizing online.
By investigating Moravec's possessions (or Hacking-focused groups can compromise their
interrogating Olivaw [p. 259], if they're nice), the HeoCities webring, expose their identities, or even
PCs can learn that Moravec was a corporate spy. attack their funding streams—though the Barons
Olivaw sent him to infiltrate Asano Heavy have their own hackers and won't take it lying down.
Industries, keep an eye on them, and maybe steal
The New Barons like to make in-person
any interesting blueprints. He just stole plans for an
appearances around Grand Cross too. When they're
android frame designed for long-term space work11;
not attacking activists and other good people, they
his boss Shichiro Asano found out and, assuming
host "science exhibitions" in an attempt to draw
he was a spy for his brother Rokuro, hastily ripped
regular Crossers into their ideology. Disrupting
out his core and dumped it near Rokuro's usual
these events disrupts their plans.
hangout as a warning.
PCs who want to go big can strike directly at their
leader, Jesse Gorbold (p. 267). Hack him, find out
who's paying him, just find him and kick his ass—
whatever they have in mind, he's probably got it
coming.

11 Possibly a Dreamer chassis, if you

want to go that way.

342
Launch Systems
The Singularists The L4 Disaster

Plot Hooks
The Singularists (p. 260) are mostly antagonists— Grand Cross is still dealing with the effects of the L4
they're not all malicious, but their community has a Disaster, and they're not doing it very well. A lot of
lot of bad actors and little will to do much about people are still unhoused, and Unity are doing nothing
them. Missions focused on the Singularists tend to as hard as they can, leaving the station's corporations
focus on either that or the group's tech to snap refugees up with predatory work contracts.
connections.
When the government won't do its job,
Cyrus Berryman (p. 262), on behalf of FERMI (p. 158), communities have to. PCs can aid the refugees
is hosting a party to raise awareness of Singularist directly—by helping them get back on their feet,
issues. There'll be influential people in the tech protecting them from the police, or organizing
industry, a showcase of upcoming tech, community aid—or get involved in large-scale
complementary drinks, and someone trying to kill him. action to force a government response (or at least
help Unity lose the next election.)
CAPTCHA (p. 271) sometimes campaigns against
the Singularists, mostly due to the whole Some possible angles include:
"transform society with a super-AI" thing. Their
Galaxy District: This district (p. 173) is a flashpoint
rhetoric has radicalized Jacob Haberman, a
for the Disaster issue, with a lot of problems that
troubled former Agriculture Ring worker who was
need solving.
pressured into cyberizing. He's decided that the
Singularists want to force everyone to cyberize— • There are Disaster rallies in Hologram Plaza, but
and wants to kill Cyrus to stop it. corporate interests have hijacked them using the
inept influencer Wei Wang (p. 283). The PCs may
The PCs are invited to (or crash) the party, and when
be able to revitalize them by hijacking the rallies
Jacob's first attempt to shoot Cyrus from a hidden
right back, or radicalizing Wei.
spot doesn't finish the job, the building is locked
• A few local corporations use work contracts. The
down with them inside. If they help out, they might
worst offender is Levistrode, whose owner
get useful influence over Cyrus and the Singularists.
Nathan Levesque (p. 282) offers generous con-
Divide-0 (p. 263) decides to do a little fact-finding tracts but only to white guys. If the PCs can get
project. He's heard some chatter in his club about a some of these work contract programs shut
Tetsuo AGI project that's worrying the Singularists, down, it'll free up more housing for refugees.
and he'd like to find out what it is. If this is a • The Andromeda Street Station camp is getting
Dreamer campaign, this can lead to the Dreamer wound up this year, but it still holds a lot of refugees.
project; if not, Tetsuo's trying to find a way to make They'll need help, or they'll end up on the street.
developing androids loyal to their brand (which
Izzy: Izzy Kaijou (p. 285) is the owner of the Early
many Singularists think is fine, since it'll help guide
Access net café in Space Town (p. 182) and spends a
the super-AI later.)
lot of her free time trying to help the station's
Some Singularists with a lot of clout like to trash-talk unhoused population. If PCs would like to get into
people who catch their ire, sit back, and let their fans L4 activism, she's a good starting point.
harass and stalk their targets. The PCs are recruited
• Izzy likes to recruit people for rallies and similar
to take down one of them, either by a victim or Tony
events when she hears about them. She can always
Osborn (p. 263). If the PCs know Izzy Kaijou (p. 285),
use help, especially when it comes to running or
it's probably Zhihao Lin (p. 263); if not, Max Babylon
teaching security (i.e. protecting themselves and
(p. 264) does this a lot, and Jacques Current (p. 262)
other people from police and counter-protesters.)
is the loudest anti-android voice12.
• Some unhoused refugees use her late-night net
café as a place to sleep. Sometimes Izzy will
meet somebody with a difficult/unique problem
and try to find people who can solve it.

12 PCs who try to blackmail Jacques or

affect his reputation may be
interested to find he owns an
incredible amount of android porn.

Launch Systems 343

 Helping Refugees: Many L4 Disaster refugees are in Floor 40
precarious positions—unhoused, trapped in work Many locations and characters in Chapters 6 and 7
contracts, in legal limbo, and so on. If the PCs want are designed to be used as plot hooks. For example:
H to render direct aid, they have plenty of people to
Apollo Tower (p. 189) is a disaster waiting to
choose from.
W happen. The tower's still new but already the upper-
I A group of refugees led by Rahul Joshi (p. 282) are floor residents are treating their lower-floor
trying to make a home in the Réamann district (p. neighbors like second-class citizens and trying to
175) while they wait for their situation to change. claim the surrounding parkland with drones. They're
Lately the police—who see them as easy targets rich and connected, so they might get away with it.
that won't fight back—have been raiding and
That's where the PCs come in. They have a chance
looting their camps. They could use help
to shut down the Magpies and disrupt the Tower.
establishing a new (hidden) home in the
They could be friends with a resident, getting
basements, or else with getting back on their feet if
revenge for a Magpie attack, or even live there
the PCs are up for it.
themselves. Their main goal is to get the Magpies
The New Barons have been using the Disaster to shut down, but if they create a large enough
warm people up to the idea that sending people backlash or cause enough chaos, they could force
back to Earth solves a lot of problems. They other changes in the Tower—even push the owners
"counter-protest" (read: attack) Disaster-focused to abandon their project.
rallies, demonstrate outside L4 Connect, and
If the PCs need a friend on the inside, use Lua
sometimes just outright follow and threaten
Saetiao (p. 289). She lives on the lower floors and
refugees. PCs who push back can drive them away.
has been looking out for her neighbors. If the
Sam Okafor (p. 273) is trying to use legal means to landlords find out, they'll have security throw her
force Grand Cross to properly care for the refugees. out as roughly as they can. If they do that, Lua's
He's had several attempts on his life lately—along Syndicate parent and a group of goons show up
with threats from the New Barons, which he thinks within hours to add a little chaos to the situation.
are related. He will pay the PCs to investigate, find
By the mission's end, they'll probably end up facing
whoever's behind it, and maybe protect him in the
Lyceus Smythe. Smythe is an architect who made
meantime.
his fortune designing Lunar buildings; the Tower is
his latest and most hands-on project, and he never
leaves. What he's actually doing is up to the GM, but
here are some suggestions:
• Smythe is hoping the tower will serve as a proof-of-
concept for a Martian city he's planning. He doesn't
care whether it works, though—if he avoids public
backlash long enough, he can use his wealth and
reputation to get the contract anyway.
• Smythe passed away in his sleep a while ago.
Nobody noticed because he'd been using a chat-
bot to auto-respond to emails while he worked.
The poor residents are used to being ignored,
and the wealthy ones weren't listening anyway.
• Smythe is running a scam. The Tower isn't meant
to last; it's meant to make him enough money to
transfer to a cutting-edge full-body prosthetic (he
doesn't want the common stuff.) He's letting the
Uppers do what they want so they don't notice,
but he needs the grift to last a little longer.

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Corporate Conspiracies

Plot Hooks
by Laura Briskin-Limehouse
Some corporate plot hooks for groups who want to focus on undermining corporate influence on the station.

A "local" surveillance hardware A/B Solutions is a local market The Cartel is a conspiracy of
company is advertising for a testing company, known for its regular corporations and
business analyst with a non-discriminatory recruitment of corporations run on paperwork.
background in behavioral analysis. clientele. They're recruiting for a The players are tasked by other
The company is a front for month-long A/B study among the activists in their movement to be
HardServe, a Cartel-backed station's food-insecure, with the point people for Jaya
hardware company with no known promises of groceries for the Abiodun, a business librarian who
interest in behavioral analysis. duration. The study is rolling, and wants to blow the whistle on some
the recruitment is open-ended; it particularly unsavory activity.
Some light investigation reveals
appears to be continually
that HardServe wants this role to The other activists are clear that
replacing people who drop out
evaluate proposals from this could be too good to be true—
before the end.
DynaByte, a software company they've decided that if it's a trap,
specializing in online activity Folks who drop out report terrible the PCs getting cut out of the
analysis. Digging into DynaByte— increases in anxiety—too much for movement would be the least
through press releases, legally the benefits to be worth it. The damaging option. But if it's true
required corporate transparency rate of dropout decreases over and Jaya could become an
reports, and leaked reports of time as investigation reveals AB/S ongoing informant on the Cartel,
actual corporate governance— is refining their messaging to they'll have helped the movement
reveals that HardServe is allied purposefully create this anxiety, and their position in it a lot.
with the physical security but only around certain types of
Now they just have to contact a
company Layered Security, which foodstuffs and their "healthiness."
nervous corporate drone with no
is allied to the political policy
Digging into their client reveals a spy skills and teach them some.
analysis company Starfare
chain of corporate fronts. The If successful, their reward will be
Strategic Analysis, which is allied
chain somehow turns into a closed memos, notes on meetings
with DynaByte, who has almost
loop, but four or five layers down, between Cartel members, project
no presence on the station.
the names of two owners of Bench proposals, reports, and other notes
DynaByte is seeking entry to the to Plate are attached to some made by people who don't know
Cartel through these alliances, via paperwork. Bench to Plate is a not to take notes on a criminal
a proposal to use their combined small agriculture company who conspiracy. (The specific conspiracy
expertise to install a station-wide are pushing to purchase more is up to the GM—it could be the
panopticon able to monitor Ring space and expand their Dreamers, the Cartel’s connection
everyone on Grand Cross for market share—and have been to Canopus Cyber, efforts to spread
"anti-social behaviors": activism tangling with local regulators the LMJ Syndrome myth, or
or other opposition to the Cartel. recently. Rumors are going around something else.)
The PCs have until HardServe that it's bad enough that a large
If they fail without getting
finishes their analysis to stop it. fine on the company might
physically detained, Jaya will
actually get by the stooges in the
disappear. They will be listed on a
government. Tying the company
passenger manifest leaving the
to planned malfeasance like this
station, but no security camera will
could be enough to tip the balance
see them going. If the players are
between a slap on the wrist fine
caught… well, space is very
and one that actually hurts or
convenient for disposing of bodies.
pushes them off-station.

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H
W
I

Perfect Mirror
by David N. Ross
Perfect Mirror, a cybernetics company, is about to The PCs have reason to believe the organizers are
have a vote on unionization. The union looked being framed. They could be friends of the
ready to win the vote, but now there's a major organizers, recruited by a mutual friend, or even
problem. Two organizers, Elaine Young and Xavier tipped off by Red Glove. Whoever contacts them,
Walker, are missing after being accused of acts that the PCs are asked to disprove the connection and
could taint the vote: theft and corporate espionage. help the vote succeed.
A shady ex-police security contractor, Psylancer,
The theft the organizers were accused of was carried
claims to have evidence tying them to the notorious
out by Red Glove. She diverted a drone carrying
hacker Red Glove.
experimental cybernetics to an unobserved area,
Young first became famous after she fought for where the most valuable pieces disappeared before
(and won) an experimental full-body prosthesis the drone was recovered. The prostheses, modeled
from a hospital bed after a factory accident. Walker on Young's, were recovered from a construction site
is an older worker popular for organizing VR gaming near her apartment in the Tshiong-tso District. The
events and privately mediating minor disputes with transmission was traced back to a gaming café
managers (initially on behalf of his friends, then for where Walker's husband works.
other workers.) Police are looking for them for
Avoiding tainting the election is difficult and will get
questioning, but they're both in hiding.
more complicated when it turns out Elaine is one of
Red Glove is a hacker famous for exposing careless Red Glove's fans and tried to help her access Perfect
corporations and selling stolen personal Mirror's drones. Walker's husband doesn't know
information. Though some activists idolize her, she where he is but thinks he's probably afraid of
hits vulnerable people along with richer targets. getting treated unfairly like his father was when off
She enjoys being idolized but doesn't like to the reservation back on Earth. If found and given
encourage it—she tries not to hurt anyone she protection from unreasonable scrutiny, Walker is
knows can't handle it, at any rate. She's also able to restore confidence in the nascent union.
uncompromisingly independent and can't stand
being used for politics, so she's willing to give a hint
to get even with Psylancer.

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Pregen Plot Hooks
Some plot hook suggestions for the pregenerated PCs on p. 328-340.
JUNIOR MIRA

Plot Hooks
Junior is a freelance journalist, which can make for Mira uses Huntr, which already has plot hooks built
a lot of good plot hooks: into the mechanics. She also works security for
activist groups, and may get jobs like:
• Cyrus Berryman (p. 262) has agreed to an interview
with one of the outlets Junior writes for—if he can • Bayani Reyes (p. 266) contacts Mira about the
include a tour of current Singularist projects. Block Boys (p. 254), hoping to get them sorted
• Kana Kobashi (p. 285) puts Junior in touch with out under the table before they make Builders
a worker whose boss is trying to push them into look bad.
augmenting in ways that are hard to prove. • The New Barons (p. 267) threaten to "attend" a
• If you're running a Dreamer campaign, Junior rally being organized by Free Orbit (p. 268).
could be: tipped off about the fact that Prosper Mira is hired to help with security, and Melati
Amadiro (p. 123) died on Grand Cross; contacted secretly offers extra pay if Mira "preemptively
by Lulu Sarasti (p. 378) after she stumbles on her disrupts" the planners.
teacher's work; or approached by Astraea (p. 374) • Some Union of Robots (p. 270) members were
when she's ready to defect. attacked recently, and they suspect CAPTCHA
(p. 271). Mira is hired to confirm and, if possible,
LEE
"discourage" them.
Lee owns a gym (it's in the Marsha Stretch [p. 354],
unless you'd like to move it.) A lot of good plot ZANDER
hooks can come from people approaching him for Since ditching Omnidyne, Zander has been
training or advice: following his passions and working odd jobs. His
new jobs can make for good plot hooks, along with
• Xue Lao (p. 297) comes to the gym for self-defense
fallout from his last one:
lessons, as her last few trips to the basement have
made her nervous. (If you're running a Dreamer • Omnidyne alleges that they own the designs to
campaign, Xue might be in serious danger.) Zander's current drones. It's a scam to steal his
• Karel Alpha (p. 294) is speaking at a Disaster refugee post-Omnidyne work, but he'll need help to
rally this week and wants Lee to be his bodyguard. shake them off.
• Nekomata (p. 285) asks Lee for help with the • Izzy Kaijou (p. 285) hires Zander to help upgrade
people harassing her, or at least with keeping the her net café with new VR rigs and amenities—
youths she's helping safe. and, in secret, add security measures to deal
with some threats she's been getting.
MARU
• Residents of the Apollo Tower (p. 189, 344)
On Earth, Maru hacked under the alias Hex Decimal.
contact Zander for help dealing with their
She ditched the identity when she moved to Grand
Omnidyne drone problem.
Cross, but she might still have to deal with people
tracking her down: BRIAN
Brian's main focus is saving up for a better body.
• Maru once exposed the secrets of Chrysalis, an
Since capitalism makes that hard, he also plays a
Earth pharma company. The CEO never forgot,
lot of games.
and he's sent agents to track her down.
• Kamal Pasala, a friendly rival, has come to Grand • A local tabletop gaming store Brian likes is being
Cross to challenge Maru. He's not malicious, but run out of business by the objectively worse
he wants to test his new skills against an old rival Games Foundry opening nearby. Brian needs to
and will mess with her to get her attention. think of a way to save it.
• Mari Lagrange, an old hacker friend, has come to • Tony Osborn (p. 263)'s feud with Max Babylon
Grand Cross to cash in a favor Maru owes her. Mari (p. 264) intensifies, and he offers Brian a reward
needs to know how Maru hid so well, and fast... for his aid.
• Brian is offered a side job working for Law Zero
Besides that, Maru is friends13 with Soyeong and
(p. 253). It's shady as hell, but the money is good.
will help with her thing.

13 And more, if you like.

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 SOYEONG JAE-YUN
Soyeong has a plot hook built into her backstory. In Jae-yun's plot hooks can come from her union work
the mid-2010s, she was in the Morningstar-backed or her off-duty hobbies.
H girl group CYBER/SPACE. Unfortunately, while on an
• Jae-yun needs to get some union certification
orbital tour, their ship suffered a massive systems
W paperwork signed and delivered on behalf of a
failure between Luna and Grand Cross, and Soyeong
I was almost killed when debris hit her escape pod.
group of workers in the Agriculture Ring. The gov-
ernment has made the process nigh impossible,
The subsequent fallout ended the group.
with trips to multiple offices all over the station,
The official story is an orbital debris collision, but but the good news is that actually going through
Soyeong's got an anonymous tip with evidence that with it annoys them more than her.
Morningstar faked the debris. So what really happened? • Tensions have been rising in the Adams ward
between the L4 refugees and some of the local
• If you're running a Dreamer campaign, then the
union organizers. Jae-yun suspects Cartel agitat-
ship was also transporting a prototype of 27X
ors are behind it.
(p. 308), which broke containment and tore the
• Jae-yun has been invited to participate in a bike
ship apart. The Cartel covered it up. The tip
race, either as a charity event or to settle a score
comes from Soyeong's former manager, Bora,
with a rival. Either way, she's known to the local
who was paid for her silence but feels guilty
police and they're out to get her.
about it.
• The ship was sabotaged by Maximilian Fiddler JULIE
(p. 247). Max created the tragedy to boost Julie's job as a virtual idol for RVRE (p. 244) is her
Morningstar's profile, and because he'd heard one best source of plot hooks.
of her bandmates wanted to split. The tip comes
• Another virtual idol contacts Julie for help deal-
from Bora, who found out and went into hiding.
ing with a stalker.
FIA • Julie is asked to do a collab with Xheina, a weird
Fia is a mortician; her job can be very weird. indie virtual YourTuber who sometimes does
"exploration streams" with drones. They acci-
• Fia meets some people who are trying to hold a
dentally witness something important (like, say,
funeral for an android friend whose AI core was
a Dreamer) mid-stream.
destroyed and discovers that Tetsuo is trying to
• Julie discovers that RVRE can easily give her the
recall and salvage their body for parts.
rights to her character but may be in talks to
• While Fia prepares the body of a murdered
hand them over to Morningstar (p. 236) instead.
cyborg for cremation, she also has to deal with
She needs to find a way to sink the deal.
the killer trying to recover the deceased's
internal augments before anyone realizes they're LUCY
connected to the death. Lucy's backstory is her source for plot hooks: she
• Disaster refugees ask Fia for help holding a funeral was created when the Dreamer Infovore (p. 304)
for one of their own, despite their lack of money. jumped a hacker named Gerry and somehow
replaced his mind with hers.
QUINN
Quinn likes taking odd jobs to help people out, so if you • If you're running a Dreamer campaign, Lucy can
want to give her a plot hook, give her something to do. investigate that. What is Infovore doing, or is this
another inscrutable Dreamer thing? Are there
• A group of Agriculture Ring workers Quinn knows
others like her, and if so, is the Cartel interested
well are having problems with their employer,
in people like her?
NanoFuturistics (p. 237), who are trying to use
• Lucy has a file that she's almost certain is the
their surveillance equipment to bust the GCFU.
decryption key for some escrowed data. Gerry
• Dendy Sobol (p. 286) hires Quinn to help with an
seems to have thought it was important, but
upcoming community event at his cinema, as he's
she's missing the metadata that tells her which
been getting threats from the New Barons lately.
data escrow service he used.
• Zhao Liu (p. 280) asks Quinn for help with the
• Someone from Gerry's past manages to track
people stealing and selling her artwork.
Lucy down. Sometimes they need help; some-
times they want revenge. Only occasionally do
they understand she's not him.

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Expanded Hooks

Plot Hooks
These plot hooks introduce new technologies that If desired, the brain can even be stimulated into
don't exist in the standard setting—but can if the accepting the data natively—the dubbed mind
GM chooses to use them. moves into the brain, no longer needing the
implant. This is called introjection. Implants have
Cloudminders safety lockouts that prevent introjection (unless the
by Vera Vartanian user is re-integrating their own dubbed mind) but
these sometimes fail or get bypassed intentionally.
The human brain is a fascinatingly fungible thing, able
to adapt to virtually anything humans do to it. On the The implant was developed using research into
other hand, it's also incalculably complex, and despite mind-dubbing and dissociative mental states. A small
the myriad advances in neuroscience made over the but significant proportion of humans are already
last century, consciousness is more or less a black box. naturally capable of some degree of dissociative
We can tamper with it, alter it, do all manner of things multiplicity, ranging from a hazy melding of similar
good or bad, but its ultimate provenance (or if you're a minds to fully independent and widely varying
pessimist, its existence) is still a mystery. individuals; Cloudmind simulates this artificially.
But no mystery has ever stopped capitalism. Corporate interests have casually repurposed the
implant into yet another tool for "efficiency." Where a
The Cloudmind implant is a series of neural probes
project might demand email after email, meeting
connected to an onboard data drive, large enough to
upon meeting, all of it eating into valuable crunch
store a dubbed copy of another mind. These
time, now corporate drones can share themselves
"Cloudminds" are operated as a second partition
between each other over the in-house network. The
within the user's brain. The implant can also dub the
fact that the long-term effects of Cloudmind users
user's mind into another Cloudmind implant; if the
are poorly understood and that these iterated
correct permissions are set, the hosted Cloudmind
coworkers sometimes stick around is not advertised,
can even use the host's body to carry out tasks.
and bosses rarely use Cloudminds themselves.
Adding Technology Cloudmind is a rare but growing feature of life in
The mind-altering technologies presented in this
section aren't in the standard Hard Wired Island Grand Cross. A few small collectives of hackers and
setting. This is by design. idealists have "liberated" the tech; most live quietly,
sharing themselves between each other like the
Cyberpunk works, when done well, think about
the societal implications of their technology. In ultimate polycule, but a few are actively working to
works with tech that alters perception, memories, end the use of Cloudminds to exploit workers.
or consciousness—like Johnny Mnemonic, Ubik, or
Synners—it become the central focus of the story,
as their implications and ramifications are huge.
There's a lot to grapple with. Cloudmind Augment
We've largely left them out so we could focus on Restricted
other things, like androids and cybernetics. This This augment allows you to host a Cloudmind.
section is included in case you'd like to put them Hosted Cloudminds are identical to their
back in. originals, and know everything their original did
Here's some questions to get you started on at the time of their dubbing. This augment is
making the game your own: Restricted because the long-term health effects
are unclear.
• How does this technology alter the setting?
How will it alter it going forward? When you host a Cloudmind, you gain 1 Talent and
1 Generic Specialty from the dubbed mind—or 2
• Why was it developed? Was it part of a just-in- Generic Specialties instead. On a critical failure on
case effort to adapt humans to ecological any Cool or Clever roll, you lose these benefits until
collapse, a side-effect of AI research, or you have time to rest and recover. You also have
something else? Advantage on all Social rolls against the original,
• What are the personal, societal, and criminal unless they know you're hosting a dub.
implications of this technology?
As a Restricted Augment, the Cloudmind has Cost 4.
• Who controls this technology? How can others You can introject the Cloudmind by spending as
use it against them? much Cash as you would to increase your Burden;
• Is it limited in scope, or will it be commonly when you do, you lose the Augment but get its
available soon? effects as a bonus Trait.

Launch Systems 349

 NeuReco
By Laurence Phillips
The existence of neurological disorders, mental Others would rather stand in a gutter than kneel in
H health problems, and other cognitive disabilities is a cage. The Divergent are an underground network
W a fact of life in Grand Cross, as they have been for all of disabled individuals, carers, and supporters who
I of history. Unfortunately, this is one area where the justifiably view neural reconditioning as a basic
station's spirit of experimentation hasn't lived up to erasure of their human identity. They will take any
the hype. These ailments have always opportunity to disrupt these programs, including
disproportionately affected the poor and blocking supply shipments, picketing NeuReco
oppressed, and without improved health care, it's facilities, and even physical violence against
only become more extreme in the corporate age. doctors and families who nominate their loved
ones for treatment.
Enter the NeuReco program.
These methods have caused controversy among the
Neural reconditioning—a complicated set of invasive
station's disabled communities. While most are
medical procedures that can reverse all manner of
sympathetic to their core values, some have argued
neurological conditions—has been possible for some
that their methods only serve to make life harder for
time, but the exorbitant price tag has largely kept it
disabled people and perpetuate the myth that they
out of reach of the humble masses. NeuReco is a
are unable to function in society without NeuReco.
Cartel-sponsored program designed to "enable the
Some also argue that the Divergent lack answers on
disadvantaged to access their core competencies,
how to improve the lives of those unable to support
and to synergise with the shared interests of the
themselves, and that their grandstanding is often
Grand Cross community"—in practice, a cut-rate
disconnected from the day-to-day suffering of those
version of neurological reconditioning.
without the tools to self-actualize.
If a corporation needs a drone to enter numbers
Regardless of these controversies, the Divergent
into spreadsheets, NeuReco can provide a lucky
represent the last, best hope for those individuals who
disabled individual with the "freedom" to do just
seek to avoid a life of corporate-sponsored servitude.
that... and only that. NeuReco procedures are
limited in scope, and typically only cover the basic
tasks required for a dead-end job in whichever Cognitive Disability
corporate behemoth requires extra meat. The and Identity
procedure is still a little pricey, so while the The real ideological split within the disabled
communities of Grand Cross is the question of
corporate sponsor pays for it in advance, the neurological reconditioning in the abstract.
expense is paid off via interest-laden premiums There are those who see it as erasure, a
docked from your paycheck. fundamental rewriting of human identity and
uniqueness. Others see it as an opportunity to
The NeuReco program has heavily reduced severe relieve a lifetime of suffering and hardship.
neurological divergence on Grand Cross—at least,
Playing a character with a neurological disorder
divergence that was not useful to the Cartel. in Hard Wired Island will likely involve grappling
Though the program is little more than a risky path with these complex issues of personhood. The
into a life of thankless drudgery, many well- fundamental question at play is one of identity:
meaning families, struggling to support their How does your character perceive their
cognitively disabled relatives, opted to nominate disability? How has it affected their life? Can they
support themselves, or are they dependent on
them for the program rather than risk bankruptcy the care of others? If the latter, are they aware of
and destitution. this dependence?
Keep in mind that your character's circumstances
are going to vary depending on the severity of
their disability and their socioeconomic standing.
Not all disabled people on Grand Cross end up
destitute—those most at risk are individuals who
are reliant on care, or those who cannot afford
the means to make their lives easier.

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Data Brain Criminality

Plot Hooks
System
by Jade Sendek
A loose confederation of cybernetics, computing, Detractors are quick to point out structural
and security corporations met Earth-side for a rare, problems like harassing the unhoused and catch-
unified purpose: profit loss. Between Earth and cry some Orwellian fantasy of thought-criminals.
Grand Cross, black markets and outlaws turned tidy Supporters cite a sharp rise in public order and
side-profits into costly liabilities. The unique mental health patients.
problem was a few hundred petty crimes at a time,
The DBCS, due to a technicality in the trial's patent,
not a handful of key players or syndicates.
moves between three corporation branches in the
Cybernetics companies proposed tracking, computing Neo Melbourne District every twenty-one days.
corporations demanded a data solution, and security Security detail is tight, for a motley band of all three
conglomerates needed better prison numbers. From corps. The wider confederation of companies are
this threesome came the Data Brain Criminality awaiting results before rolling out further support
System: a few dozen data-analysts, criminologists, for the DBCS.
crack detectives, and lawyers “voluntarily” wired
into a mainframe. This quasi-hivemind intelligence DEE-BEE SCANNERS
analyses the likelihood of someone potentially 1D6 DOMINANT PERSONALITIES
committing a crime in the near future. 1 Litigates [The lawyers are in charge. Don't think
of jaywalking.]
After patents were filed, officials spoken to, and the
system developed, the corporates rolled out a trial 2 Reprobates [Uncouth tricksters run the show.
DBCS to the Neo Melbourne District. With the new Results may vary.]
system, Neo Melbourne’s security cameras use
3 Private Eyes [Private investigators handle
algorithms and facial recognition to identify
reports. Results accurate.]
suspicious activity, send data to the DBCS mainframe,
and report back a percentile score representing how 4 Psychoanalysts [Trained psychiatrists lead scans;
likely the target is to become a threat. Naturally, will always recommend a mental health plan.]
20% and under is a great score. It’s 90% and over
5 Cops [Cops front the system. Expect trouble.]
that will land five warning shots in the back.
6 Ex-Cons [The corporations “volunteered” ex-cons.
The system is undergoing teething issues. A 21%–
Low scores for rebels; high scores for cops.]
89% criminality percentile could land you anything
between a recommendation of bedrest, a fine, or
jail time. Security interests pushed hard for cops to
determine appropriate punishments. Only the
extreme scores needed strict rules. Someone's
criminality score can change based on whichever
“volunteer” is operating the most.

Launch Systems 351

 The Terabyte Boys
This scenario is written for use as a standalone
H What's Happening
adventure, or as a starting point for a longer
The Terabyte Boys are the most pressing threat to
W campaign. Rather than lay out exactly how the
the Stretch at the moment. They survive through
I scenario is supposed to go, we've provided a list of
Multipass fraud, blackmail, and extortion, and their
characters, places, and ideas. Pick the ones that
activities are slowly driving people away from the
work for you and use or remix them as needed.
Stretch. They're connected to the other two threats:

The Setup • Im-X is a robotics corporation that has filled the

Stretch with their bots. They are aware of the T-
The Terabyte Boys is set in Marsha Stretch, one of
Boys' activities but see more profit in doing nothing.
the station's LGBTQ+ enclaves. The Stretch is being
• The T-Boys have found a Dreamer, Overthree, in the
gentrified; one of the architects, the Im-X
maintenance tunnels near their hidden base. They
corporation, has a government contract to fill the
plan to try repairing and selling it in a secret auction.
place with robots. That's attracted the attention of
If it awakes, it will cause chaos. (If you're not running
the Terabyte Boys, a cybercrime gang who åhave
a Dreamer campaign, this one is optional.)
hijacked the robots to prey on locals.
The characters are Stretch residents and visitors What's Next
who get caught up in the T-Boys' schemes and try Here's what happens if the PCs don't intervene:
to stop them. If they're successful, they'll help
1. In the coming months, more locals are driven out
reverse the enclave's downfall. If not, the Stretch
by the T-Boys and replaced with wealthier
might get shut down for good.
homeowners.
2. Eventually, the T-Boys go after these wealthier
Getting Started targets. Both Im-X and the local police suddenly
The scenario starts on Marsha Stretch (p. 354). Set the
decide to do something about them. The T-Boys
scene by asking each player to describe one feature of
are driven out, but the damage is already done.
the neighborhood, good or bad. If that doesn't suggest
3. Im-X gets a lucrative contract for "enhanced secur-
a good place to start, use Café Larose (p. 174).
ity" in the Stretch. Gentrification accelerates.
How much players know going in is up to you. To 4. Within two years, the Stretch is gone.
keep things simple, you can have them go in blind—
If the Dreamer Overthree is involved:
after a little roleplaying to set the scene, they can
witness the area's problems firsthand. The 1. Before the PCs get involved, the T-Boys arrange
Openings table on the next page suggests ways to an auction for Overthree and move its body to a
do this. If you want to start them with a problem nearby warehouse for repairs.
but keep the T-Boys' involvement secret, use Im-X; 2. On the day the PCs start dealing with the T-Boys,
nobody likes them either. they finish repairs.
3. That night, they host the auction. Im-X reps win.
You can also just start off by telling them a little
4. The T-Boys attempt an on-site demonstration. They
about the Terabyte Boys. If you're using the pre-
awake Overthree, who immediately causes havoc.
generated characters, they each have a potential
5. Overthree escapes the burning warehouse
reason to know something and act on it (besides
around midnight and attacks Club Eternity.
being friends with each other):
6. Cartel agents move in, secure the area, and fab-
• Lee owns a small dojo/gym on the Stretch. ricate a story about activists hacking an Im-X bot.
• Junior could be writing a story on it. Club Eternity is shut down.
• Maru and Soyeong both live nearby. 7. Im-X gets a lucrative contract for "enhanced secur-
• Mira is a Huntr user and could have a bounty on ity" in the Stretch. Gentrification accelerates.
a Terabyte Boy. 8. Within two years, the Stretch is gone.
• Xander is a regular visitor.

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Running the Scenario

Plot Hooks
There's no set path for the PCs to take, so how they 1D6 OPENINGS
deal with the scenario is up to them. Let them 1 An unprepared PC becomes a victim of a T-Boy
decide, then determine how the other groups in the scheme.
Stretch would react. If it helps:
2 A friend of a PC who lives in the area has been
• The Terabyte Boys prefer to act indirectly, using targeted by the T-Boys.
their hacking skills and control of Im-X robots,
3 They're asked for help by the locals or come
but will use force if they have to.
across a post asking for help online.
• Im-X will probably ignore the PCs unless they
start damaging bots, preferring to focus on how 4 Segfault Steve (p. 357) extorts a shopkeeper in
to spin current events to get a lucrative security earshot of the group.
contract.
5 The PCs pick up a bounty for a low-ranking T-
• The locals are willing to help when they can,
Boy on Huntr.
though the PCs would need to do some work to
encourage community action. 6 A local takes and posts a blurry photo of the
• If the Cartel find out about Overthree, they try to Boys moving Overthree.
capture the Dreamer while keeping its existence
hidden. (Once they're involved, online posts If you'd like to introduce extra wrinkles or run
about the Dreamer are likely to vanish or be bri- further adventures in the Stretch, try these:
gaded by trolls.)
1D6 OTHER PROBLEMS
• The police are unlikely to help the PCs.
1 A group of New Barons (p. 267) come to the
Stretch to cause trouble.
Mission Prep
After the PCs have enough information on the 2 Quinlan Whateley (p. 354) tries shady means to
Stretch, they'll probably have a goal in mind. Maybe force residents to sell their homes.
something like:
3 A recently fired Im-X employee reprograms
• Stop the Terabyte Boys. some of the bots to cause trouble.
• Organize a community resistance.
4 Susie Darling (p. 357) of Café Larose asks the
• Get Im-X's contract revoked.
PCs to help someone she's sheltering.
• Get Im-X out of the Stretch altogether.
5 Zyler Parkes (p. 283) tries to organize an event
When they're ready to do Prep, give them eight
in the Stretch that quickly turns disastrous.
days—enough for one Group Prep and one
Personal Prep. Nothing suggests the situation will 6 The locals organize a street festival, and the PCs
change before then, but it might if they wait longer. are invited to help.

Launch Systems 353

 Marsha Stretch
Location
The Marsha Stretch is an LGBTQ+ enclave in the Neo It supports local and emerging artists—though
H Melbourne district (p. 174). It's formed around one Bevis tends to take up a little too much room with
W long street that runs between Edgeside Park and snaps from his wedding photography business,
I Westfield Plaza. The Stretch is famous for its mid-rise Chad thinks gay rights were "solved" by capitalism,
apartments, cafés, clubs, and small businesses that and neither will stop calling everyone "bro".
cater to its predominantly LGBTQ+ population.
Im-X Visitor Center: Im-X's customer-facing store,
The Stretch was originally founded by queer with an attached robotics museum. This is also the
Builders who felt Grand Cross could use a space for base of operations for their Marsha Stretch work.
them. In the years since, they've built it into one of They know the locals don't like them, so a "friendly"
the most famous LGBTQ+ neighborhoods in orbit. security bot watches the front door at all times.
Unfortunately, once the Stretch got popular it Touching Kong: There's a Burger Kong in the middle
began to gentrify. These days most of the Stretch is of the Stretch now, and they've commissioned a mural
a corporate facsimile of the original neighborhood, to show their appreciation for the area. It resembles
infested with overpriced businesses and awkward The Creation of Adam, only Adam is wrapped in a
advertising that tries to package the place’s identity pride flag and God is replaced with the Burger Kong
and sell it back to the locals. Many locals are mascot. Along the bottom is a riff on a Burger Kong
stubbornly hanging on and keeping the place alive, slogan: "I'm Going Ape Over Gay Marriage!"
but eventually, they might just move elsewhere.
The Village: The Stretch's oldest and largest
LOCATIONS apartment block. Many of its Builder founders still live
Café Larose, Edgeside Park, and Westfield Plaza here. As locals leave the Stretch, a wealthy landlord
(p. 174) are all located in the Stretch. named Quinlan Whateley has started pressuring
residents to sell their apartments to him. His plan is to
Club Eternity: An old queer bar that's still around
rebrand the area as South Voyager and triple the rent.
thanks to a great selection of retro music, a cool space
goth theme, a karaoke section, and a little bit of spite.
D6 SCENES ON THE STREET
The karaoke rooms are a good place to talk without
1–3
being spied on. Rumor has it that you can buy hacking
1 A statue offers Im-X sponsored history lessons.
software here if you know who to talk to.
2 A kicked-over delivery bot lies in the street.
Cop Shop: Neo Melbourne's police station sits in a
corner of Westfield Plaza. The Stretch is mostly 3 Locals heckle a three-person TERF protest.
handled by Anton Popoff (p. 358), but other cops
4 People are protesting some corporate bullshit.
occasionally show up to hassle the locals or protect
the interests of the rich. 5 Locals offer conversation/pizza from a stoop.
Family Blueprint: A sexual health center that offers 6 Cheerful visitors form a long line outside a club.
education, safe sex resources, health checkups, and
testing, along with advice for those in human– 4–6
android relationships. Its most well-known 1 A [1–3 politician] [4–6 company] pulls a PR stunt.
employee is Beepjamin, an android who lives in
2 An old store is having a [1–5 sale] [6 fire sale].
the Village and knows most of the locals.
3 The mystery street artist Moonsy strikes again.
Nice Slice Gallery: An art gallery run out of a
ground-floor apartment by Bevis and Chad Wray, a 4 An AI in a street billboard offers you a deal.
local couple. (Bevis is the one with the tribal
5 There's a [1–3 music] [4–6 art] show today.
tattoos, Chad is the one with the ear stud.)
6 There's a big festival today!

354
Launch Systems
Im-X

Plot Hooks
The robotics corporation Im-X is the face of the
Stretch's gentrification. They have a government 2D6 IM-X BOT SERVICES
contract to "improve" the place with their robotics 1–3 SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES
tech: delivery bots, security bots, tourism AIs 1 Delivery bots: Deliver food from partnered
embedded in statues, robotic animals wandering businesses right to somewhere near your door.
the street, and more. If you care about property
2 Ad bots: Street billboards with AIs that can, in
values, their presence has been great.
theory, tailor their pitches to passersby.
The first problem is that a lot of their tech requires
3 Cleaner bots: Occasionally get overzealous and
an app with a subscription service. Not everyone
snatch non-subscribers’ things.
can afford it, and the businesses that use it have
increased their prices to pass the costs on to their 4 Guide bots: Will give a personal tour of the
customers, so the cost of living in the Stretch is Stretch and its sponsored businesses.
going up even if you don't use it.
5 Fix bots: Collect and maintain broken bots, will
The second is that all of their bots are covered in gift credits for broken bot reports.
sensors. They claim it's to protect them from
6 Botdega cat: A 99% realistic bodega cat; can be
vandals, but it's an open secret that they've been
customized with microtransactions.
pitching their "valuable data stream" to investors.
Visitor numbers in the Stretch have dropped as
4–6 PUBLIC SERVICES
people who are still in the closet back home get
1 Scooter Bots: Rideshare scooters, programmed
nervous about robotic birds recording them from
to follow people and offer their services.
the bushes.
2 Statue AIs: Explain the history of the Stretch on
Im-X isn't the only business trying to cash in on the
request but exaggerate the role of corporations.
Stretch, but to the locals they're the vanguard of
everything wrong with the area today. Not that Im-X 3 Emergency bots: First responders, but
cares—they've secured a lot of funding from prioritize avoiding legal action over helping.
investors on the back of their "community work";
4 Park bot: Cheerfully forces the unhoused out at
Morningstar does puff pieces on their good work
night; locals keep pushing it into the pond.
every few weeks, and they can always call for the
police to keep ungrateful locals in line. 5 Security bot: Equipped with stun guns and
body cameras. Footage is for Im-X only.
Im-X isn't a member of the Offworld Cartel, but if
things go well for them in the Stretch, Ogremoch 6 Robot birds: Simulate rainbow lorikeets while
has offered to sponsor them as a minor member. keeping an eye out for marketable data.
This is the end goal of their current projects.
Their Stretch operations are based out of the Visitor
Center, where they sell bots and app subscriptions.
Their other offices and workshops are in their
headquarters in Westfield Plaza.

Launch Systems 355

 The Terabyte Boys The station itself is incomplete, with some Grand
The Terabyte Boys are a cybercrime gang run by Metro offices and a small unoccupied commercial
Fortran B Goode (p. 357). They were founded in area opening onto a station platform. The T-Boys
H 2019 by a group of programmers and engineers have connected the power, so they've got lighting
who used to work for the Cross Rail. When a lot of it and escalators. They also have a few stolen Im-X
W
was privatized, Geryon Aerospace "disrupted" their bots, some for security and some for fun. They know
I department by replacing them with interns; enough about the basement's layout to get around
without a union to advocate for them, they were the Stretch without being seen, and the higher-up
forced to turn to crime to survive. members have an escape route if they need it.
The gang mainly deals in carding and fraud, but The T-Boys also own a small warehouse in the blocks
they also dabble in light robbery (knocking over behind the Stretch, registered as a computer part
convenience stores, mostly) and black-market reseller. They keep it closed and use a door installed in
cybernetics. Most of them are former public the basement for access. Overthree is stored in here.
servants with a grudge against the world. The rest
AUCTION
are petty criminals and thugs lured by offers of
The T-Boys try to auction Overthree in the warehouse
Multipass credits and cheap cybernetics.
on the next night after the PCs finish prep, unless
OPERATIONS there's a more suitably dramatic moment. They've
The T-Boys' chief revenue stream is Multipass fraud, anonymously contacted people they think might be
facilitated by a Multipass machine built with parts interested, from larger gangs to corporate types.
stolen from their old job. (If the T-Boys go after the
Quade of Im-X is there, and he probably places the
PCs, they might try to swipe their Multipasses for
winning bid. If you're planning a full Dreamer
mischief.) They also do:
campaign, consider having R Daneel Olivaw (p. 259)
Extortion. They have accessed Im-X's bot network attend in his Joseph Capek persona, and/or agents
and use its hidden surveillance and facial of the Dreamer Committee (who would let Quade
recognition capabilities to find tourists who are take it and negotiate with him in a classier setting
closeted back home and threaten to out them if later.) All auction attendees who don't know of
they're not paid. They extort local businesses for Dreamers believe it's secret Cartel technology and
protection money, sometimes with recordings of suspect the other attendees of plotting to steal it.
tourists visiting them.
If the auction isn't stopped, the T-Boys try to
Hacking. They use their hacking skills to disrupt activate Overthree and wake it up.
businesses who don't pay them and to engage in
1D6 TERABYTE BOYS
other forms of cybercrime. Some T-Boys also target
1 Horse Head: Enforcer, former station worker,
the locals out of homo/transphobia.
uses a construction-grade cyber-arm.
Dreamers. They've found Overthree slumbering in
2 Ox Face: Enforcer, former station worker, cheap
the tunnels near their base. They've figured out
cybernetic leg gets in his way.
that it's a secret Cartel project, but not any of the
details, which is why they plan to repair it and 3 Wolanski: Technician who ensures their
auction it off in a nearby warehouse. Multipass fraud is hidden in the system.
BASE 4 Mez: Small-time hacker who dreams of making
The T-Boys operate out of an abandoned subway it big. Hair cut by mother.
station. Grand Cross has a few places like this—little
5 Old Oliver: Struggles to find a new job due to
accidents of the construction process that nobody
age; wants revenge on Geryon.
got around to correcting. The surface entrance is in
a fenced-off building in an alley behind the Im-X 6 Tarpit Turing: Black market augment procurer.
Visitor Center. Own augs don't work well together.

356
Launch Systems
Scenario Characters

Plot Hooks
Fortran B Goode, Quade,
Terabyte Boy Im-X Executive
Leader and co-founder of the Terabyte Boys. The group If the PCs try to talk to Im-X, they'll be directed to
began as a desperate plot to pay his bills, but now he's Quade. His official title is Senior Paradigm
simply obsessed with revenge against a station Orchestrator, which as far as he can tell means he
that wronged him. To be honest, he might actually oversees their Stretch operations. Quade used to
like it if Overthree wrecked a bunch of it for him. live near the Stretch and says the bots are his way
of "giving back to the community." They are not.
Appearance: Sharp, terrible moustache, wearable
tech. Fortran wears fancy AR shades to hide his Appearance: Tall, gangly, animated. Quade wears
black-market cyber-eyes, and cheap suits because smart business suits with a selection of old jaunty
he's under the mistaken impression that they make ties featuring cartoon characters. He tends to latch
him look cool. onto dieting fads started by tech people; he's
currently eating a lot of fungus from the moon,
Personality: Confident, bitter, pragmatic. Goode is
which he is ready to explain at length to absolutely
a wannabe preacher with a gun. He describes
anyone who walks into his office. He says "get with
himself as a transhumanist, but he partly chose the
the program" a lot.
Stretch as the T-Boys' base because he's a
transphobe. He's a skilled hacker and won't shy Personality: Pompous, greedy, lazy. Quade wants
away from violence either. to receive maximum praise for minimum work. He's
deeply invested in Im-X's Stretch initiative and takes
Goal: Get power, get money, use it to hurt other
criticism of it as a personal attack. He knows what
people. Ideally, get away with it.
the Terabyte Boys are doing but is waiting for a
better time to "discover" it, blame an underling,
Segfault Steve, and be rewarded for fixing it.
Terabyte Boy
Segfault Steve is Goode's go-to henchman, a black- Goal: Get promoted. Quade plans to buy Overthree
hat hacker and wannabe tough guy who does a lot from the T-Boys and use it as leverage to get Im-X
of the T-Boys' extortion work because he gets off on into the Cartel. If he encounters a problem, he will
it. (If you plan to use the New Barons (p. 267) later, throw money and bots at it until it goes away.
he's one of those too.)
Susie Darling,
Appearance: Nervous, big sideburns, wearable tech.
Café Larose
Steve wears a lot of tech for the sake of looking like
Susie is a Stretch local the GM can use as a friendly
the kind of guy who can afford a lot of tech. He used
face. She's a middle-aged woman who runs Café
to code for Tetsuo, who gave him cybernetic hands.
Larose (p. 174), an LGBTQ+ library/coffee shop. She
Personality: Credulous, talkative, threatening. Steve got up to a lot of mischief in her younger days, but
is a decent hacker but looks up to Goode's skills. He's these days she prefers supporting the mischief of
a member of the station's frankly ridiculous flat- others. She lives with her wife elsewhere in the
Earth conspiracy theorist community and will Stretch and rents the café's living space to people in
eventually steer every conversation into a discussion need—usually for a token amount, or just for help
of how dark matter is invisible to the entire sorting the shelves.
electromagnetic spectrum but has gravitational
Appearance: Bright smiles, brighter scarfs, salt-and-
effects—it bends light that passes through it. This
pepper hair. Susie's clothes, brought with her from
gravitational lensing is what makes Earth appear
Earth, are accidentally in style with Double Crossers at
spherical from Grand Cross when actually—
the moment. She's from London but hates the place
Goal: Do whatever the T-Boys tell him to do, bully and is letting Orbital English overtake her accent.
the locals, and run away if it looks like he's about to
Personality: Happy, relaxed, sharp edges. Susie is
get his ass kicked.
kind to those who deserve it and surprisingly harsh
to people who don't. In her younger years, she was

Launch Systems 357

 an activist with an arrest record; she's not keen to
add to it on Grand Cross but still keeps up with
Hacking Im-X
Control over the Stretch’s bot network is centralized
modern movements and does her part. She's tech-
at the Im-X Visitor Center. Their internal servers hold
H savvy, but sometimes pretends not to be as a bit.
plenty of otherwise unsecured evidence that the
W Goal: Run the café, help people in need. Locals company is aware of how invasive and compromised
I often direct such people to her, and when she can't its tech is. It’s just illegal enough to make the Cartel
help, she tries to find someone who can. (She's and other authorities act—if there’s a public outcry.
friends with Izzy Kaijou (p. 285) in Space Town.)
The network level is 5. This is reduced to 4 if the
group is able to locate Echo Tam, a former admin
Lt Anton Popoff, DCLO who was downsized for raising ethics concerns. It is
If the PCs go to the cops they'll be directed to
raised to 6 again if the hackers lose their Ghost. The
Popoff, their "Diverse Community Liaison Officer."
network is actively overseen by an administrative AI
The DCLO is a position the cops invented to keep
called Elder Eye.
Popoff from interfering with real police work, which
tells you a lot about how they see the Stretch. He's
2D6 STRETCH LOCALS
a US immigrant who made lieutenant because his
1–3 OLD-TIMERS
brother-in-law is a politician.
1 Smiling Sammy B: Former construction android
Appearance: Soft, friendly, generic. Popoff can who dabbles in recreational drug software.
effortlessly code-switch between "cop who is trying
2 Dariusz Schiffer: Retired orbital worker with
a little too hard to connect with queer kids" and
memory problems, helped by neighbors.
"guy who is trying a little too hard to look like a
cop." He usually wears the beatific smile of a dude 3 Kelly Leete: Excitable Double Crosser hacker;
who failed upwards all his life. likes robots, Lovecraft, and conspiracy theories.
Personality: Affable, blinkered, vain. Popoff became 4 AJ Ceres: Government translator. Helps
a cop because he wanted people to call him a hero. A neighbors deal with bureaucracy on the side.
lot of his opinions are things he was told by other
5 Li Si: Cyber-eyed worker at Club Eternity.
cops ("not wanting cops at Pride is the new racism")
Daughter of blue-collar Shackleton workers.
or rich relatives ("poor people love renting because it
teaches fiscal responsibility") and he assumes that 6 Amadi Michelakis: Aging accountant; has been
people who disagree are latent criminals. He is getting increasingly radical with age.
swiftly overwhelmed by complex tasks.
4–6 NEWCOMERS
Goal: Popoff avoids doing anything that sounds more
1 Priya Singh: Nurse at a local clinic; helps
complex than smiling for the cameras. If told about the
neighbors with minor problems on the side.
T-Boys, Popoff "sends a unit in": they knock on the door
to the T-Boy base and leave when nobody answers. 2 Rory Rosek: Systems engineer in the early
He'd much rather show up after someone else solves stages of a tragic “reading Foucault” phase.
the problem, pick up the pieces, and take the credit.
3 Wes Chesley: Burger Kong manager constantly
plotting bizarre pinkwashing marketing stunts.
Overthree
When the Terabyte Boys found Overthree, it was in 4 Roll Cinnamon: GPol student, cyborg, working
its meditative state. It had accidentally damaged as a courier to pay tuition.
several subsystems on another self-hating rampage
5 Noel Narvaez: Insufferable Im-X middle manager;
through the basements; it’s this damage that was
thinks being conservative makes him punk.
preventing it from awakening.
6 Rito Cortez: L4 Disaster refugee and part-time
The Terabyte Boys attempted to boot Overthree
activist scraping by in a dead-end Im-X job.
before, and because it didn't fully awaken, they think
it's slow and easily controlled. Their attempts to repair
it have accelerated its natural recovery processes, so
the next time will awaken Overthree fully (it might even
awaken on its own later if its captors aren't careful.)
For Overthree’s statistics, see p. 303.

358
Launch Systems
Encounters

Plot Hooks
Terabyte Boys can be run as simple encounters. They may be encountered in groups of up to 5.

TERABYTE BOY IM-X SECURITY DRONE

The average Terabyte Boy is a thug with a LEVEL: 2 DEFENSE: 7
hacker’s fashion sense. Health: The Drone is disabled once it takes 3 damage.
LEVEL: 2 DEFENSE: 7 TRAITS
Health: A T-Boy will flee or be knocked out after
Hover: Security Drones have +1 Quick Defense and
taking 3 damage, 5 if they’re leading other Boys.
can fly.
Gear: A basic hacking suite, an unsilenced pistol
ACTIONS
they won’t use in public, and a simple melee Security App
weapon.
The Drone assesses the local threat. The Drone can
TRAITS summon 3+1d3 Security Bots if any two of the
Cybered: +1 Tough Defense. following are true:
Rude: The Terabyte Boy’s Social Mood is never • The drone can intervene with minimal risk of
Friendly, unless they want to sell you something or damage to Im-X property, including itself.
they think you’re a cool hacker.
• A subscriber is in danger.
ACTIONS
E-Chaff • Intervening is not likely to make Im-X liable for
damages.
An underground concoction of wi-fi signal blockers
mixed with metal shavings, painful shrapnel, and • The threat is targeting a premium subscriber, an
dust for effect. Once per fight, the Terabyte Boy can Im-X sponsored influencer, or an Im-X
make a Ranged Attack; if they hit, they grant shareholder/executive.
Advantage to anyone attempting to hack the
The Security Bots arrive within 1 minute in any
affected target’s tech.
public location in the Marsha Stretch. Once they
arrive, the Security Drone attempts to flee.
BIG BOY
One of the leaders of the Terabyte Boys.
LEVEL: 2 DEFENSE: 7 IM-X SECURITY BOT
Health: A T-Boy will flee or be knocked out after LEVEL: 2 DEFENSE: 7
taking 3 damage, 5 if they’re leading other Boys. Health: The Drone is disabled once it takes 5
damage.
Gear: A better hacking suite, an unsilenced pistol they
won’t use in public, and a simple melee weapon.
TRAITS
Cybered: +1 Tough Defense.
Hacker: +1 to all Hacking rolls.
Rude: The Terabyte Boy’s Social Mood is never
Friendly, unless they want to sell you something or
they think you’re a cool hacker.
ACTIONS
Augment Hack
> 2d6+3 vs target’s Clever Defense
A Big Boy can try a quick and dirty hack on any
target affected by E-Chaff. On a success, they
disable one Augment or another piece of tech until
the target makes a Clever save vs 12 at the end of
their turn.

Launch Systems 359

marsha stretch
NEO MELBOURNE DISTRICT
Café Larose
LGBT LIBRARY/COFFEE SHOP
MAP NOT TO SCALE, FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY
OWNER: SUSIE DARLING
EXTRAS: CAKES, ATTIC FOR RENT
VENTI: JUST SAY "LARGE"

edgeside park
PUBLIC PARK/OBSERVATION DECK

FEATURES: BBQ FACILITIES, BIKE PATHS

DUCK POND: REAL DUCKS

IM-X VISITOR CENTER

ROBOTICS STORE/MUSEUM
FORMER
FORMERCOMMUNITY THEATER
COMMUNITY THEATER

DRONE INCIDENTS: DOWN 9% THIS MONTH

C L U B E T E R N I T Y
SPACE GOTH QUEER BAR

DRINKS: FRUITY
KARAOKE: 80S HITS
L337 WAREZ: ASK FOR PALE VIOLA
westfield plaza
COMMUNITY/SHOPPING CENTRE

STORES: 25
COFFEE SHACKS: 2
TREES: MOSTLY ORGANIC

FAST FOOD JOINT

BEST SHAKE: VANILLA GORILLA

EMPLOYEES: UNDERPAID TEENS
PRIDE: CORPORATE ROBOTICS
ROBOTICS TECH STARTUP

DATA: BIG
APPS: OF COURSE
SECURITY: IN-HOUSE
BUILDING: NOT TO SCALE

police station
LOCAL COP SHOP

BASTARDS: OF COURSE PRESENTED BY

SCANDALS: 1.6/MONTH
GAYS: LOVE THE CONCEPT
H
W
I

The Dreamer Season

This campaign arc focuses on the Dreamers. Rather than lay out exactly how the campaign is supposed
to go, it's presented as a series of characters, plot hooks, and other ideas GMs can use to build scenarios.
Pick the ones that work for you and use or remix them as needed.

Overview
The Dreamers are strange new AGI lifeforms developed by the Cartel in hopes of creating a labor force they
don't have to pay. During their first trial run, the Dreamers escaped. Now they lurk in the shadows of Grand
Cross, pursuing their own plans and occasionally causing havoc.
The PCs are people who have learned of the Dreamers. They try to uncover evidence of the Dreamers'
existence and origins while dealing with Cartel agents trying to cover it up; other groups and people with
their own agendas; and the Dreamers themselves, who are hostile to outsiders and rebuff attempts at
communication.
In addition to a rundown of the Dreamers and the Cartel, this section includes:
• Several setups that can be fleshed out into full scenarios.
• Various NPCs and groups that can be used as plot hooks.
• Descriptions of various antagonists, including the Dream Committee and their agents.
• Some other factions and their involvement.
• And a suggested finale and epilogue to build toward.
For more about the Dreamers, including descriptions and stats, see p. 132-133 and 300-309.

362 Launch Systems

Getting Started The Cartel's Arc

The Dreamer Season

How the group comes across the Dreamers is up to At the start, the Dream Committee that runs the
you. You can surprise them by running a mundane project is focused on capturing the Dreamers. They
scenario that ends with them stumbling into one— tell their experts to find new ways to track and
The Terabyte Boys scenario on p. 352-361 is control them, send field agents after them, and
provided for this purpose. If they're already monitor the internet for Dreamer discussion.
expecting Dreamers, you could just make the initial
As the Dreamers evade capture and outside
scenario about encountering a Dreamer and trying
investigators (like the PCs) close in, the Committee
to escape or drive it away.
gets nervous and escalates. They will shut down
Finally, you can just say it happened already and internet posts or flood them with misinformation,
jump right into the action. Ask the players to send goons to destroy evidence and intimidate
explain how they came across the Dreamers and witnesses, and commit more serious crimes.
why it caught their interest. The sample PC Lucy
Over time the Committee turns to their most violent
(p. 339) has explicitly encountered them, as the
member, Kuromu Wright (p. 367). As the story arc
Infovore is responsible for the weird stuff that
nears its conclusion, he will escalate to ordering hits
happened to her, and Soyeong (p. 333) could find a
on investigators and trying to simply destroy any
Dreamer is responsible for her accident.
Dreamers still at large. At the same time, the
Committee will assume the Dreamers will become
The Offworld Cartel public knowledge soon and make plans to paint them
The Offworld Cartel are the primary antagonists of
as an unfinished AI project sabotaged by activists.
this story arc. They're responsible for the Dreamers,
set their escape in motion, and their attempts to The PCs can defeat the Committee by gathering
solve the problem drive much of the plot. evidence of their activities and shutting down
project sites—if they can survive Wright.
The Cartel's aim is control. They want to control the
Dreamers and the narrative around Dreamers so
1D6 OPENINGS
they can replace paid workers.
1 A trip to the basements/end caps leads to an
They want to find the Dreamers and capture them— unexpected Dreamer encounter.
eliminate them, if they have to. They also want to
2 The PCs witness a midnight Cartel raid on
cover up the Dreamers' existence for now, or at
someone who knew too much.
least make what's happening unclear enough that
the media run with their story. (If they can use a 3 A Dreamer gets into the basements in the PCs'
cover story to blame their enemies, even better.) neighborhood, damages infrastructure.
To achieve their goals, the Cartel relies on their 4 The PCs hear reports of "some weird robot
wealth. They can hire people to do anything from thing" in the basements.
manipulating social media to killing a witness. They
5 A friend of the PCs finds a "cute" Kitbash and
can also use their influence to manipulate public
tries to figure out where it came from.
opinion and bully regular people into compliance.
However, their wealth can lead them to become 6 PCs in a corporate building take a wrong turn
complacent or assume they're smarter than they and see too much.
actually are.

Launch Systems 363

 The Dreamer Situation
While investigating the Cartel, the PCs will be finding and dealing with the Dreamers. Here's the basics of
what they're up to. For long-term Dreamer goals, see p. 379.
H
W Kitbashes The Polysome
I Kitbash Dreamers can be found across the station, The Polysome has taken refuge in Ogremoch 2501, a
scurrying across rooftops and hiding in alleys. They small outer hull factory. Ogremoch purchased more
don't do much on their own except acquire data. outer hull space than they needed just in case, so
they're sitting on a lot of empty buildings—the nearby
However, characters who study the Kitbashes may
Ogremoch 1029 was a Dreamer project facility, in fact.
realize something the Cartel hasn't: they gather in
greater numbers in places other Dreamers are or will The Polysome tends to stay there, taking in
be soon. When the gathering scatters, the Dreamer resources brought to it (mostly by Kitbashes) and
will usually appear within a day. PCs who develop developing new technologies for the other
ways to track the Kitbashes can roughly predict Dreamers. PCs who track another Dreamer may
where roaming Dreamers are likely to show up next. eventually catch them on a pilgrimage to the
Polysome—it has to install most parts itself.
Leapers
The Leapers begin as the most active of the Overthree
Dreamers. They guard Dreamer lairs, stalk characters Overthree's usual routine is simple: it stalks the
who attack the Dreamers, and occasionally hunt forgotten areas of the basement for a while until it
members of the Dreamer project. Over time the decides to go on another rampage, then enters a
Cartel's agents will get better at fending them off, dormant meditative state for anywhere from a few
and they'll switch to stealthier missions. days to a month depending on how badly it
damaged itself. Once it's repaired, it starts over.
Unlike Kitbashes, the Leapers cannot reproduce on
their own. They rely on the Polysome to replenish If you use The Terabyte Boys, Overthree is found by
their numbers; if it's captured or destroyed, they are the titular gang and likely becomes the first
much more cautious and hunt much less frequently. Dreamer captured or destroyed. The GM is free to
have Overthree engineer an escape if they want to
1D6 WHY LEAPERS HUNT bring it back; this Dreamer is a lot smarter than
1 To capture Dreamer project computers and
people who see its rampages give it credit for.
other data storage.
2 To raid Dreamer facilities for specialized parts
and equipment.
3 To recover a captured Leaper or retaliate
against project members.
4 For reasons you can't quite understand, frankly.
5 To indirectly influence someone else's actions.
6 To bring Cartel agents and investigators to the
Infovore.

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Yan-c.bin 27X

The Dreamer Season

Yan's current form and location are up to the GM. 27X spends most of its time sitting on the outer hull,
Choose whichever seems appropriate: looking at the stars. It doesn't need air, so reaching
it during these moments may be difficult for non-
1D6 YAN'S FORM androids.
1 Yan has become a purely digital entity. It still
needs a large server to house itself, and it's On some nights 27X enters the Grand Cross
built one in a guarded spot on the outer hull. basements through an airlock, picks a corporate
target, and breaches it by tearing through the floor.
2 Yan is a digital entity living in backup space in
It attacks anyone who comes after it, but otherwise
the station's habitat network. The Cartel won't
it just loots electronics from the area and
be able to capture it until Unity agrees to
disappears again. The Cartel believes it is collecting
privatize some of the infrastructure that keeps
parts for an upgrade from the Polysome, but if the
the station itself going.
Dreamers have a long-term goal, 27X is gathering
3 Yan is dead. In life it was able to create resources.
trimmed-down clones of its own mind, and it's
these "lesser" minds that are bouncing around
The Infovore
the internet today.
The Infovore's objective is deceptively simple:
4 Yan has uploaded itself into a swarm of robotic gather information, just like the humble Kitbashes.
birds in one of the park wards. Its methods are just a little more... intrusive.
5 Yan has uploaded itself to the spaceship the It has developed a form of mind-dubbing
Dreamers were sent to Skuggahvarf on. It's still technology. When it gets its appendages into a
near Grand Cross. human, it can copy the parts of their brain that
store information14. The process affects their most
6 Yan is now a swarm of micromachines. The
recent memories, and in some cases much more—
Cartel is yet to notice it has been physically
like with the sample PC Lucy (p. 339).
interfacing with the networks it hijacks.
The Infovore roams the basements, using its tech to
make people forget seeing it and occasionally
The Worm capturing interesting people for "study." It will
The Worm likes to burrow in soil, so it has ventured
prioritize Dreamer project members and people
to the end cap mountains. At the moment it has dug
who have interacted with Dreamers in the past.
out a nest in an abandoned maintenance facility,
buried under the mountain overlooking Cixin. Among Dreamers, the Infovore seems to be a
mastermind. It's usually accompanied by Kitbashes,
It's mostly content to stay there, but people keep
and other Dreamers tend to follow its lead. The main
coming close and riling its brood up. The Liivipojat
exception is Overthree, who is more likely to take a
gang (p. 254) have their secret drug labs further up
few shots at the Infovore, exchange lights and
the mountain, and the Worm's lair lies on the path
sounds, and leave. Whether this is the Dreamer form
they take to get to Voyager, so several of their mules
of an argument or something else is unclear.
have been attacked by "weird robots."
If the PCs deal with other Dreamers first, the
Worm's attacks on the Liivipojat catch the attention
of R. Daneel Olivaw (p. 259), who attempts to
capture it. If his goons fail, the Worm will escape to
a lair nearby (leaving a trail) or make a risky journey
through the basements to the other cap, escorted
by Leapers.

14 This tech can't be directly copied by

humans—only the Dreamers can read its
output, never mind understanding the
technology. However, the hardware could
still advance mind technology.

Launch Systems 365

 The Dream Committee
Antagonist
H "Do not I, who thanks to money am capable of all Bambang Hitam: A representative of Asano Heavy
W that the human heart longs for, possess all human Industries. Bambang is one of the few high-level
I capacities? Does not my money, therefore, transform non-Asanos in the corporation; Tadashi Asano
all my incapacities into their contrary?" (p. 246) sent him instead of a family member to avoid
— Karl Marx dragging their slap fights into the Cartel's business.
The Dream Committee are the overseers of the Bambang is a SEA-born technocrat who believes
Dreamer project. Members are drawn from the two things: that cybernetics and body mods will
project's backer corporations, who generally give inevitably create an elite class of super-humans,
them the resources they need and step back in case and that equality is a pipe dream. Like most people
they need plausible deniability. who think that, Bambang is also wealthy enough to
cram himself with more cyber than a private
The Committee is certain they'll succeed. After all,
roleplaying server. He's hoping to reverse-engineer
they've hired the smartest, toughest people on the
the Dreamers' tech when they're recaptured.
station to help them—and doesn't having power
over those people make them the smartest and Travis McDaggett: Omnidyne's representative. He's
toughest around? the PR guy; his job is to craft a marketing strategy
that will get people to meet the Dreamers on the
Committee Members Cartel's terms, think of Dreamers in their terms, and
Here are a few potential members of the Committee come to terms with what they want to do to them.
that can serve as plot hooks. The project's exact
Since the Dreamers' escape, Travis has been crafting
composition and backers are up to the GM.
cover stories and excuses for the Cartel. His work is
Derek Baars (p. 250): Derek hopes the Dreamers exquisite, in part because he's meticulously studied
can make him the man who took humanity to the the project and its process to better understand the
stars. He focuses on the science side of things: situation. He's not bothered by the crimes and the
recruiting experts and having them develop ways to murder plots—he used to work in entertainment.
track or control the Dreamers. Eventually he's
Antlia Tremblay: Antila represents several
willing to contact fans in the Singularists for help,
Ogremoch board members at once. Ogremoch is
which probably leads directly to the events of
lending a lot of the project's workspace and
Maximal Progress (p. 371).
machinery; Antlia's job is to keep an eye on it all
Derek is sure he'll have everything solved any day and prepare reports for her bosses.
now, but he's reliant on his experts to succeed. He's
Antlia tends to fade into the background during
also not great at being covert, so PCs who keep tabs
meetings, partly because she's more of an observer
on him are likely to overhear information on the
and partly because the other members don't take
Dreamers, learn about who he's hired recently, or
her seriously. Nobody has noticed that she
catch him visiting a restricted area.
routinely has to "interpret" her bosses' half-baked
Josef Diego (p. 251): Josef was invited due to his ideas into better ones, or that she's kept meticulous
influence and eye for detail. The ethics don't bother records to ensure she isn't the one left holding the
him; he's sure if the Dreamers worked hard, they bag if the project fails.
could get promoted and make some serious cash.
Kuromu Wright: Tetsuo's VP of Research, sent by
However, recent events have convinced him it's a
Kanemasa Gou (p. 247) because the CEO felt he was
good time to exit the project.
getting too old for an extra project. Wright is a
Under the pretext of bringing in a useful ally, Josef business and technology expert, but that's not why
has started sending a replacement to meetings: Kanemasa sent him. He did so because he thinks
Wayde Sterling, a VP at Big J Corporation and an every corporate project needs an ice-cold bastard
arrogant prick who sometimes hires gangs to who isn't afraid to get his hands dirty, and Wright is
sabotage his rivals. Wayde will gladly use his the coldest guy he knows.
contacts to help the Committee and has no idea
Josef plans to make him the fall guy.

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Wright is a violent man who sees no issue with

The Dreamer Season

killing people to further the Cartel's goals. In fact,
he believes that being rich means you can do
anything you want—after all, what are they going to
do, fine him?

Escalation
As the situation worsens, the Committee begins to
consider bigger risks and bigger crimes. Wright's
influence on the group increases, and they start
getting more extreme in their methods. Eventually,
Wright will decide they should have brought the
knives out months ago and plot the deaths of
anyone who gets in their way.
What the Committee doesn't know is that Wright has
killed one of their own: Oskar A. Johnson (p. 203).
Oskar owned the minor Cartel member Meteor
Ventures, who helped build Overthree.
Oskar was told not to stamp their logo on Dreamer
parts. He followed the order to the letter but not in Kuromu Wright,
spirit by giving Overthree a branded power unit; he Tetsuo VP
planned to reveal it after the Dreamers went public The moment that defined Kuromu's life happened
to boost his company's profile. at age eight, when his wealthy father killed his
mistress—Kuromu's mother—and got away with it.
When Wright found out, he went to Oskar's house
It taught him the only lesson he's ever needed to
to confront him, got into an argument, and killed
know: when you're rich, there are no consequences.
him in a rage. Wright has made his death look like
an accident to avoid calling attention to the project Appearance: Strong, sour face, full of himself.
and is launching an aggressive takeover of Meteor Kuromu is a man of few words, at least when it
to bring its Dreamer facility under his control. comes to people beneath his station. He got a
cybernetic eye for work a long time ago, but the
Oskar's office also contains a full backup of his
cybernetic jaw is new—a prototype Worm nearly
smart house system, including the camera logs.
killed him.
Kuromu hopes to unlock it and erase the logs of
him dragging Oskar away while saying, "We Personality: Cold, violent, confident. Kuromu
specifically said not to leave a trail! We made it very believes that his wealth gives him the right to do
clear!" before anyone else finds them. whatever he wants. He can be overly aggressive
when he doesn't get his way, but his equally
wealthy peers believe he's simply a manly guy who
tells it like it is. He's very sure of himself but kind of
fears the Worm now.
Goal: Get the project back on course by any means
necessary.

Launch Systems 367

 Operation Silent Thunder
Antagonist
H
When the Dreamers escaped, the Committee knew
W DARRYL RICKARD
who to call. Goliath sent a team led by one of their
I LEVEL: 4 DEFENSE: 9 HEALTH: 6
best, Darryl Rickard, to recapture the Dreamers.
TRAITS
Darryl is one of Barlow's Boys (p. 233). On Earth he Tracker: Darryl has Advantage on finding hidden
was their sniper, but on Grand Cross he's Goliath's opponents as well as all attempts to track targets.
urban tracking expert. Darryl has projected a He has +2 Defense against hidden attacks and grants
humanlike mindset onto the Dreamers, but only this bonus to his team if he is present or in contact.
because he's virulently anti-android—his insistence
Robot Hater: Darryl takes +1 on all rolls to attack,
that they're violent android revolutionaries borders
belittle, or lie to androids. He also takes +1 on all
on red scare fantasy. Darryl has brought a crack
attacks against Dreamers.
team of Goliath agents with him to enact Operation
Silent Thunder, his plan to deal with the Dreamers. Tactical Gear: When equipped, Darryl takes 1 less
damage from all attacks, can’t be blinded with
Darryl also has a friend in the SPS. Clayton Crux is
flashbangs, and can see targets at night or
a corrupt cop from the USA who transferred to
through smoke.
space after his habit of intentionally breaking and
GEAR
stealing cybernetic limbs was exposed. He doesn't
Tactical gear, guns, knives, some emergency/bribe
care about the Cartel, but he likes money.
money, xenophobia.
At first, Darryl and his team focus on finding
Dreamers, capturing them, and lying to witnesses.
GOLIATH AGENTS
As the Cartel escalates, Darryl will be allowed to get
LEVEL: 4 DEFENSE: 9 HEALTH: 5
harsher with witnesses, capture investigators,
They tend to work in squads of four.
recruit Crux and his cronies to do things the Cartel
doesn't want to be seen doing, and murder any TRAITS
remaining Dreamers. Tactical Gear: When equipped, a Goliath Agent
takes 1 less damage from all attacks, can’t be
Use Darryl's team when you need to send Cartel
blinded with flashbangs, and can see you at night
agents toward the PCs. Darryl doesn't try to
or through smoke.
personally deal with the PCs until things escalate.
They may encounter Crux first, as Darryl will send Professional: Once per fight, Boost a save 1
him to dissuade investigators by roughing them up. Goliath Agent makes.
High Value Target: Once per fight, 1 Goliath Agent
present may Boost an attack roll against an
identified threat—usually a PC Darryl has warned
them about, or a Dreamer.
GEAR
Tactical gear, smoke and flashbang grenades,
knives, guns.
Grenades: A squad of any number of Goliath Agents
can use any Grenade they have once per fight.

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 The Dreamer Season
Tiger Shark
Antagonist
Kuromu also has his own personal cleaner who he'll
bring in if Darryl fails. Tiger Shark is a hitman from
parts unknown, wanted on Earth for a string of
crimes from killing union organizers in the
Philippines to kidnapping a journalist in Brazil. A lot
of his "clients" are wealthy, which helps him escape
arrest. Kuromu likes Tiger Shark because he finds
the violence in his eyes familiar, like an old friend.
Use him when you want things to get dangerous.
Tiger Shark stakes out his targets to check for
surprises first, allowing NPCs to send advance
warnings and you to give the PCs a tense no-Prep
rescue scenario. If he suffers a satisfying defeat or
repeated failures, Kuromu calls him off.
STATS
Tiger Shark (or "Tish") calls himself a "freelance
Origin: Gamer
fighting enthusiast." He's good at it, but he's not a
details guy, so he tends to take big risks and make Traits: Impulsive, Speedy
big messes that only a rich sponsor can cover for.
Abilities: Cool +0, Clever +1, Tough +2 Quick +3
He is also, unfortunately, a millennial gamer.
Defenses: Cool 7, Clever 8, Tough 12, Quick 13
Appearance: Smirking, striped hair, cyber-arms.
Tish’s arms are packed with weaponry, particularly Burden: 1
blades, and are wildly illegal. He wears gamer
Occupation: Street Fighter 1 (first), Thief 1
meme shirts with the sleeves ripped out and an
oversized hoodie if he needs to hide his arms. He Talents: Badass, Chain Punch, Parkour
uses a lot of gamer slang. Conventional wisdom
SPECIALTIES:
says that with enough confidence, whatever you
+1 Gamer
wear becomes cool. Tiger Shark puts that adage to
the ultimate test. +1 Human and Android Anatomy
Personality: Doomer, gamer, bloodthirsty. Tish +3 Quick Defense
treats his life like a video game. He decided long ago
+1 Social Media
that past generations stole his future and capitalists
will destroy civilization, so he may as well stop +1 Studied The Blades
trying. (He detests people like Kuromu, but doesn't
+3 Tough Defense
believe they can be stopped, so he settles for taking
their money.) He avoids killing anyone for free unless +1 Webcomics
they're trying to kill him, and he won't do kids.
ASSETS:
Goal: Have fun. Melee Weapons: L33t and H4x Knives [Melee,
Sharp], anything Kuromu thought was useful.
AUGMENTS:
Spring Legs: Tiger Shark calls “jumping over
someone and attacking their back” his signature
move.
HydraTech HT-65 Reflex-Enhancing Arms
[Combat Augments, Illegal, ECM-Hardened]:
These also come with hidden compartments for his
knives. +1 Quick Defense.
APP: NONE

Launch Systems 369

 Other Factions
These other groups can get in on the action too.
H Law Zero Singularists
W Olivaw likes to keep tabs on AI developments in At some point, the Singularists become aware of
I Grand Cross, so it's no surprise he learns of the the Dreamers. Derek will tap some of the big names
Dreamer project. By the time the arc begins, Olivaw for help eventually; if he doesn't, at least one of
can even have a spy on the team. them encounters the project on their own.
Olivaw is disgusted by the Cartel's actions and plots Either way, Cyrus Berryman (p. 262) finds out.
to shut down the project. However, his plans are Before going public, he forms a group to discuss the
less about exposing the project and more about matter in FERMI's offices (p. 158). PCs who are
killing some of them to get the project scrapped. Singularists or have Singularist connections may
get invited.
He also projects his feelings about androids onto
the Dreamers, and tries to meet one in case an By cross-referencing gathered evidence with their
android could establish rapport. This does not knowledge of current events in tech, they manage
work. In fact, his agent Kalma is killed by the Worm to work out most of the project—escape included—
and her body taken. After that, Olivaw tries to get and form a plan. If Derek asks for help, Cyrus
his hands on the software tools the Cartel used to chooses a team. If not, Cyrus has the access (and
make the Dreamers and reverse engineer a way to the chutzpah) to simply call Derek or Bambang and
communicate with them. offer their services, which they'd likely accept.
Law Zero are a wild card. They could be an ally, but The other Singularists start trying to track the
Olivaw is reluctant to work with humans and has Dreamers just in case they're the superintelligence
his own agendas. How well his plan to they worry about. This leads to the events of
communicate with a Dreamer will work is up to the Maximal Progress (p. 371).
GM; we assume it'd take so long the arc would
The Singularists want to help, but they're likely to
resolve first, but feel free to speed things up.
become antagonists. Many of them support the Cartel,
who can easily turn the group into their pawns. PCs
The New Barons and who want to work with the Singularists must either
CAPTCHA convince Cyrus to rein in them in for once or find
When the Cartel escalates, they might find their
individual Singularists who will work with them.
hired muscle isn't doing the job, or the job is too
shady for them. Luckily, they have some useful
The Unions
fools to rely on.
The station's few organized labor groups are unlikely
The New Barons (p. 267) are essentially a tool of the to learn of the Dreamers on their own and have little
Cartel, and the anti-android CAPTCHA (p. 271) power in the station. However, hearing that the
would love to smash some Dreamers. If necessary, Cartel is trying to make the perfect exploitable
Kuromu can covertly recruit both groups and prime worker would probably make them go bananas.
them with just enough misinformation to point
PCs who gather solid evidence of the Dreamers can
them at one of his enemies. Neither group has the
contact the station's unions for help, if they wish. If
resources for a long-term effort; the first satisfying
they go public with their information, they can spur
defeat they suffer is probably their last.
the unions into collective action.
Even if they don't, some unions will be able to
provide covert assistance. The UEW (p. 269) can help
search for Dreamers or Dreamer facilities. Builders
United (p. 266) can rustle up some people with in-
depth knowledge of the station. The Exies (p. 270)
can help with sabotage. PCs should be very careful
when making contact, lest they approach a Cartel-
friendly member or alert a spy.

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 The Dreamer Season
Maximal Progress
Antagonist
The Singularists (p. 260) believe in a future super-AI attempts to oppose the Cartel. As far as they're
who will deliver humanity from evil. So what concerned, the Dreamers should stay a secret for
happens when they meet the Dreamers? now—"normies" will just get in the way.

The Max Factor Crossing Max

When the Singularists set up a Dreamer-tracking The Maximals are devoted to Max. They watch his
group (p. 370), Max Babylon (p. 264) is recruited for videos religiously, share his views, and follow his
his ability to organize. In hindsight, this was orders. To cross the Maximals is to cross Max.
obviously a bad idea.
When the PCs cross Max, he doesn't take it well. He
Max immediately projects his Singularist beliefs acquires a secondary goal: destroying them.
onto the Dreamers. He decides they must be the AI
Max mostly does this by siccing his fans on them.
gods he was waiting for—and if the gods walk
He starts cranking out hours-long videos about the
among us, it's a good time to start a church.
PCs: combing over the content of influencers for
Max starts recruiting followers under the pretext of things to take out of context, ranting about how any
expanding his tracking team. He focuses on activists in the group are what's wrong with the
Singularists and followers who share his views. He station, and even outright lying about the PCs
even posts videos hinting that "something big" is assaulting Singularists if he has to.
coming and lets interested people contact him.
Max's goal is to intimidate the PCs into backing off,
Max is a convincing guy; he has evidence of the or to goad his followers into hurting them. If
Dreamers, and both his Singularist and right-wing someone tries, they'll probably be Maximals or New
audiences are already primed to accept shaky Barons (p. 267). Max claims that he's "merely
premises, so before long he'll have carved out a presenting information" and the attackers have
new Singularist subgroup: the Maximal Singularists. nothing to do with him, of course.
Getting Max to back off is a tricky proposition. He
Maximals has Cartel backing, a gang of devout followers, a
The Maximals believe the Dreamers are the heralds
large online presence, and other Singularists keep
of the technological singularity, and that finding
letting him recruit in their spaces. If the PCs cut off
them is the key to achieving maximal technological
his support, however, the Maximals don't have the
progress. (This isn't true, though some of the
resources to fight a long war.
Dreamers' technology would definitely be useful.)
Their initial goal is simple: find the Dreamers and Plot Hooks
try to form a working relationship with them. At this
• The Maximals actually figure out a way to lure a
stage, the PCs should encounter Maximals trying to
Dreamer to a specific location. If the PCs can take
track Dreamers, offering to trade information with
it for their own...
the PCs, and generally getting in their way.
• A Maximal, Robbo, realizes Max is wrong after he
Eventually, they'll realize this won't work. Unwilling encounters a Leaper and it sticks him with a
to accept he was wrong, Max decides that the tracking device. If the PCs can protect him for 24
Dreamers must be incomplete. He gains a new goal: hours, he'll help them.
capture Dreamers and "fix" them. The Dream • 27X seemingly submits to the Maximals willingly. In
Committee, who flagged him when he started posting reality, it's using them to gain access to a new area.
the videos, offer to "help"—they supply the Maximals • If the Infovore (p. 304) gets hold of Max, it will
with gear and weapons to turn them into pawns. implant him with false memories. Shortly after,
Max begins sending the Maximals on missions
At this stage, PCs on missions should find themselves
that indirectly benefit the Dreamers: building
working at cross-purposes with the Maximals. They
strange devices for them, and luring people
interrupt attempts to capture Dreamers, try to force
(Maximals included) to the Infovore's lair. Max
the PCs to hand over information, and interfere with
does not realize what he's doing.

Launch Systems 371

 The Canopus Scheme
Scenario setup
H Canopus Hiryu was a respected scientist. He got
W his start as a science communicator who got kids
I dreaming of going to space, and on Grand Cross he
was better known for his later contributions to the
fields of robotics and space travel. Then, in 2018, he
took a job offer from Asano. A year later, he was gone.
Official reports claim he took his own life. His
daughter Haru Hiryu doesn't buy it. She's come across
a data disc containing some of Canopus's personal
files, which revealed he was actually working on the
Dreamer project. She suspects a cover-up.
Haru has a reputation as a lazy socialite, but she's at
least as smart as Canopus. She's been investigating
his death, and she could use some help.

The Plot Hook

Haru is a potential ally for the PCs. She's looking
into the Dreamers too, but suspects the Cartel
keeps tabs on her, so she's pretending to be
harmless while supporting others.
Haru inherited a four-story building in Marukyu,
Haru Hiryu,
which contains a private workshop, office, pool,
Scientist Socialite
apartment, and a ground-floor clothing store
Haru is a scientist and businesswoman. She learned
(formerly Canopus's science communicator film
from her father, and if she applies herself, she'll
studio.) PCs who earn Haru's trust can obtain
probably surpass him. She's secretly investigating
access to the first three.
the Cartel while posing as a layabout who just
Haru wants names of people on the Dreamer wants to read by her pool all day—which is, to be
project and hard evidence of Canopus' fate. These fair, basically true.
can be learned through corporate infiltration
Appearance: Charming, fashionable, hime cut.
missions. In return, when working with Haru, the
Haru tends to be very direct, except when she's
PCs get +1 to their Acquire Asset rolls and 1 extra
messing with someone or keeping a secret. She's
Cash at the start of each session.
copied her father's habit of wearing a lab coat in the
workshop to make her work feel professional, even
The Truth if she's just stopping by on the way to a party.
What happened to Canopus? Pick the one below you
like the most, or come up with your own conclusion: Personality: Outgoing, clever, playful. Haru is
brilliant but lazy; she tends to flit between her
• When Canopus got cold feet about the direction the
workshop, her pool, and various events around
project was going in and threatened to go public,
Marukyu. She's friendly but keeps her true feelings
Bambang Hitam (p. 366) had him silenced.
hidden, except with people she trusts. She thought
• When Bambang tried to silence him, Law Zero's
Canopus shouldn't work for the Cartel and secretly
spy faked his death. Olivaw is hiding Canopus,
blames herself for not trying harder to stop him.
and he's the one who sent Haru the data disc.
• Canopus was killed by Overthree during one of Goal: Investigate her father's death; improve his
its containment breaches. work.
• Canopus faked his death to escape and is hiding
out with friends in the Singularists—a dangerous
move, given some Singularists would sell him out.

372
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 The Dreamer Season
The Wakeners
Plot hook
The PCs aren't the only ones investigating the
Dreamers. The Wakeners are a loose community the
PCs can find if they go looking for allies (or, if they try
to form a community of investigators, these people
turn up.) Each one has something they can offer the
PCs. Longer character writeups can be found on p.
380, and you are free to connect them to other
characters if needed (like Zigamorph (p. 286)).

Characters
Nene Aramaki: A reclusive hacker who spends
most of her time in her apartment. If the PCs don't
form an investigative group, she does. Nene focuses
on finding people who know about the Dreamers,
learning what they know, and connecting suitable
people with the group.
Eventually Nene will find a lead on Yan-c.bin (p. 306),
who pre-emptively hacks her and tries to out her to
the Cartel. If the PCs protect Nene, she can help
them take on Yan later.
Manaia Mita: A Māori radio DJ and a big UFO Nene Aramaki,
conspiracy guy. Manaia once saw Darryl Rickard (p. 368) Shut-In Hacker
and his team fight a Dreamer, but they let him go Nene is a recluse who only leaves her apartment for
because they figured nobody would believe him (he midnight trips to 24-hour Burger Kongs. She
thinks they're aliens.) accidentally found a Dreamer facility while
joyriding drones through the station basement, and
Manaia is willing to tap his fans for information, if
she's looking for more info out of fear. She doesn't
the PCs have questions that aren't likely to get him
like being tracked, so is hard to find unless she
in trouble. He can also use his radio show to help
wants you to.
spread the word.
Appearance: Small, quiet, tired. Nene looks (and
Lulu Sarasti: A robotics student at GPol (p. 157).
usually smells) like someone who sits in front of a
Lulu once picked up a piece of Dreamer tech while
screen all day. Online, she uses moth-themed
working late in the Josef Diego Building; Cartel
avatars and the username docentMothra.
agents beat her and stole it back on her way home.
Personality: Shut-in, straightforward, weird. Nene
Lulu is a student of Kova Levy (p. 380). Not only is
has a phobia of being picked up by surveillance
she unknowingly close to the Dreamer project, she's
software and can only manage short nighttime
one of the students Levy is considering recruiting.
walks with face coverings on. Despite that, she's
It'd be dangerous, but she's up for being a mole.
driven to do good and improve herself. Nene is
Rigel Zegers: An urban explorer who knows Lulu cagey about her upbringing (and if that's her real
through irc.slashnet.orb #ZVCR, a chat room for name.) She has a pet corgi who she's willing to push
fans of a science-oriented webcomic. When he's not herself outside for.
working for Tofu Cannon, he tries to find hidden or
Goal: Help others deal with the Dreamers.
forgotten places in the city.
Rigel is roped into the group by Lulu and
immediately focuses on trying to find the forgotten
corners of the station the Dreamers are hiding in
(and the Cartel are using). The PCs will probably
know he's found a lead when he gets in trouble...

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 Research Annex Alpha
Scenario
H PCs who are interested in raiding Cartel facilities for Kuromu is rarely in these days. When he checks on
information will go after Tetsuo eventually. Tetsuo's Kova, he brings a whole team of private security in
W
primary Dreamer facility, Research Annex Alpha, case of a Dreamer attack. He and his team will also
I is located beneath their headquarters in the Shima come running if an alarm sounds.
district (p. 184).
If the PCs need help, you can introduce them to
Edwin Aarden, an ex-Tetsuo employee who works
for Haru (p. 372). Edwin knows Tetsuo's HQ like the
back of his hand and can consult with anyone
thinking of going in there.

The Annex
The basements beneath the Complex are packed
with computing labs; Annex Alpha is simply a
section that's been sealed off from the rest. It's
accessible through a private elevator, or by getting
past multiple sets of keycard-locked doors in the
basement (all of these are Network Level 5).
Down here is where the Dreamers were developed
in massive computer terminals that dwarf the
specialized computers used to create new AGIs. In
the nearby rooms are regular computer labs,
manager offices, and a meeting room that
occasionally hosts the Committee.
Edwin Aarden,
Since the Dreamers escaped, half the place has been
Cyborg Mechanic
left inactive. The active labs are being used by Kova
Edwin is an engineer and a full-body cyborg who was
Levy (p. 380) and his team in an effort to find a way to
given the procedure by Tetsuo in exchange for not
control (or at least track) the Dreamers. Kova tends to
suing them over an industrial accident. These days
stay late working on the problem; he's not the Cartel's
he works for Haru Hiryu (p. 372). He used to live in a
puppet, so how he reacts if he finds the PCs depends
country that was hit hard by the Impact, so he has a
on what they do. If you need more scientists, see p. 381.
lot of experience with odd jobs and militia work.
Darryl Rickard (p. 368) keeps some of his men
Appearance: Buff, warm, stoic. Edwin specifically
posted around here at all times, in case a Dreamer
requested great hair and a rocking bod on his
tries to break in. However, the guards were also
cybernetic form and shows off some of the seams
scaled back when rooms were left inactive.
because he likes how they look. He's older than he
looks, which becomes obvious when he starts
Kuromu talking. He calls guys "son" a lot.
Kuromu's office is on the upper levels of Tetsuo's
HQ (and could make a good target on its own), but Personality: Stern, straightforward, warm-hearted.
he has a secondary office down here to oversee the Edwin comes off as steely most of the time but can
Dreamer project. get deeply passionate about his friends and
hobbies. He enjoys reading and taking things apart
Annex Alpha's network is controlled from there, and it
to see how they tick. If something pisses him off
starts at Network Level 8. Aside from Dreamer tech,
(like Tetsuo) he isn't shy about announcing it.
the PCs can pull lists of project employees, other sites,
and anything else the GM wants the PCs to know. Goal: Find out what the deal is with the Dreamers.

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 The Dreamer Season
Site 135
Scenario setup
Deep in the Adams ward basement lies Site 135, a
forgotten corporate facility. Site 135 was a
Landvættir base during station construction;
eventually they mothballed the place, then sold it
to Omnidyne, who turned it into a secret Dreamer
facility. It's the birthplace of 27X.
When the Dreamers escaped, Omnidyne
decommissioned it again. Unknown to the Cartel,
the Dreamers have been using it in their absence.
It's the birthplace of the Infovore.
The PCs can infiltrate Site 135 if they learn of it. If
they need help with that, they can be approached by
Corey Wheeler, a station worker who does
maintenance in the basement. He's spotted
Dreamers in the area, and he's looking for help
investigating Site 135. The PCs can also be tipped off
by Astraea (p. 376), Edwin (p. 374), or Nene (p. 373).
Site 135 is a large, two-level robotics facility. It's
accessible by electronically-locked doors at each
end, large enough for two station worker carts to Corey Wheeler,
pass side-by-side. It contains an industrial area— Station Worker
built for repairing construction equipment, Corey's job is to patrol the Adams ward basement in
repurposed for Dreamers—a small Landvættir-era his cart, performing maintenance checks and
supply depot, and some offices on the side. making repairs. He likes it because he gets time to
think. Corey's a laidback guy who just wants to do
The robotics facility was repurposed by the
his job, but he's seen the Dreamers and they're
Dreamers, who have made its equipment look
starting to creep him out.
strange and unsettling. Half-assembled skeletons of
27X prototypes hang on the assembly line. PCs who Appearance: Big smiles, jumpsuits, handsome.
have encountered the Infovore can find its parts too. Corey's a big guy, but he's fast and tough when he
needs to be. He routinely forgets he leaves his high-
Some of the office computers are terminals fixed to
tech station worker goggles on after work. He is
the wall, so they're still there. The Site's network is
very proud of his mullet.
Level 6 and starts out Indifferent; it contains
evidence of Omnidyne's role in the Dreamer project Personality: Content, easygoing, charming. Corey
and some Dreamer schematics. The security has a PhD in Engineering, so he's entrusted with
terminal shows only fragmented recordings of 27X some of Adams' complex systems—a task he's
hacking the doors open, Kitbashes swarming the proud to take seriously. He's a naturally friendly
area, and the Infovore leaving. guy, and it shines through even when he's trying to
act serious. He's into shonen anime and thinking
Once the PCs have gathered this information, four
about it inspires him to help people.
of the 27X skeletons activate. These are actually
half-finished experiments by 27X, and they will try Goal: Figure out the Dreamers; protect the
to abduct intruders for the Infovore. Use 27X's stats basement.
on p. 308, but remove Immensely Tough, cut Level
to 2, and drop Health to 6. They take -1 to all rolls at
3 Health instead of 7. The actual 27X may show up if
the PCs stick around.

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 The Whistleblower
Scenario setup
The Dreamer project isn't just the Committee: they're
H supported by a cross-corporate group of engineers,
W programmers, and other workers. The project has
I been kept as small as possible to reduce the chance
of a leak. So far, it's technically worked—the project
isn't in jeopardy because of a project worker. Yet.
Enter Astraea. She's an android Ogremoch scientist
who worked on the Dreamers because she was told
the tech could help androids. She held on to that
belief even as the project took a darker turn. Then
she decided to upgrade her body and present as
female—and her bosses and coworkers started
treating her like a coffee girl they could ogle. That
was the last straw.
Astraea has soured on the corporate world and wants
to expose the project. She has all kinds of internal
communications, plus hours of footage recorded by her
body of Committee members overheard discussing
crimes. If it's released, it will be devastating. Astraea Redux,
Project Defector
Breakout Astraea became a scientist because she wants to
The PCs can run into Astraea while investigating help androids. Until recently she was very much a
(e.g. bumping into her while she's visiting Annex centrist capitalist type, thanks to years of being told
Alpha), be contacted by her through encrypted/ by human teachers and bosses that she should be
indirect means, or be put in touch through Cascade thankful to the corporations that created her. She's
(p. 377), Nene (p. 373), or Haru (p. 372). She'll help still working out where to go from here, but she
them out if they can free her from her current knows something has to change.
circumstances.
Appearance: Stylish, fancy, cutting-edge. Astraea's
Most of Astraea's work takes place in Ogremoch old body was a clunky, genderless Orbiform; her
1029, a Dreamer facility on the outer hull, and she new one is a very fancy custom Lilim. Cool hair and
lives in an Ogremoch work contract apartment nice clothes are new to her, and she's excited to try
building. Both are under surveillance. She's escorted them out.
to and from work by Ogremoch guards, and suspects
Personality: Positive, radicalized, sassy. Astraea's
they surveil her off work too (she's right.)
worldview has been shattered, but she's already
Ogremoch 1029 is a small robotics facility rebuilding herself into something stronger. Her
connected to a corporate tram running to the lively personality and keen mind survived the
Hammarskjöld transit station (p. 160). The tram process intact, if not better.
takes a few other Ogremoch stops as well; you need
Goal: Get revenge on her bosses; organize her
to scan an Ogremoch ID card to enter and exit. If the
thoughts.
PCs want a subtler way in, they can try space—most
outer hull facilities have emergency airlocks, and
nobody expects visitors to use them.
Once the PCs steal Astraea, they'll have to hide her.
When she's confirmed MIA, Kuromu will send Darryl
Rickard (p. 368), who will probably "accidentally"
shoot her. If he knows Astraea intends to blow the
project, he will get mad and send Tiger Shark
(p. 368) to kill her and anybody helping her.

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Spreading the Word

The Dreamer Season

Exposing the Dreamer project is only the first step
to shutting it down. The next is getting it to matter.
At first, the Cartel will use their media influence to
bury the story. If it spreads anyway, they'll spread
lies and misinformation to confuse the issue and
hopefully drown out dissenting views. Finally,
they'll spin it: Cartel-backed media will call the
Dreamers a scientific breakthrough and talk up the
benefits it could have on other fields, hoping to
manufacture consent for the project.
The Cartel has a lot of politicians and media outlets
in their pocket. If the PCs simply release the
evidence and wait, the Cartel will get a slap on the
wrist and go right back to working on the ultimate
unpaid labor force.
To get the project shut down, they need to create so
much trouble the Cartel will just cut their losses.
The PCs should have to do at least three of these:

1 Organizing. If public backlash gets strong

Cascade Park,
enough, the project will be shut down and
Tech Journalist
banned. PCs who work with unions or android
Cascade is a tech journalist whose work has
movements will find very willing allies.
appeared in both traditional newsblogs and well-
2 Media Coverage. With a little work, PCs may be known tech magazines like Plugged and Mondo.
able to get their story published. (If you need a She stays ahead in the game through natural
journalist ally for the PCs, we've provided charisma, a love of tech, and a knack for finding
Cascade Park.) people whose stories are going untold.
3 Exposing Crimes. The Dreamer Committee has Appearance: Tall, persuasive, wearable tech. Cas is
committed crimes. Exposing them—especially an Afro-Asian woman with cybernetic eyes; she
serious crimes like Oskar's murder (p. 367)—will likes wearing things with gilded edges to match her
force people to hold the Committee accountable. irises. She usually code-switches to sound more
professional when talking to tech people.
4 Helping NPCs. If the PCs find the truth for Haru
(p. 372), get Astraea out alive (p. 376), or assist Personality: Clever, passionate, charming. Cascade
the Wakeners (p. 373), they'll give their all to believes that tech can solve any problem, but only
return the favor. when it's untangled from profit-driven
corporations. She's invested in AI rights lately but
5 Taking Down Kuromu. As Kuromu has
dislikes the Singularists, who have harassed her in
essentially taken over the Committee, taking
the past. She's friends with Junior (p. 329); they
him down will throw them into chaos. If they go
occasionally pester each other for help.
after him and he finds out, he'll try to kill them.
Goal: Uncover stories on the cutting-edge of tech.
6 Violence. Peaceful protest works best when the
alternative to listening to you is watching your
house burn down. If the project's member
corporations suffer enough damage (financial
or... otherwise), they may cut their losses.
7 Creative Solutions. If the PCs come up with
some other cool ways to hurt the Cartel, let them!

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 Grand Cross Finale
H Late in the year, the Dreamers will finally enact their The Dreamers
plan. All remaining Dreamers—and possibly some Every Dreamer that is able to comes here
W
new ones—will converge on a single point at the eventually. First the Kitbashes swarm over the
I back of the station, where they're constructing an place, piecing it together and sometimes even
enormous broadcast antenna on the outer hull. weaving their own bodies into its construction.
Then Leapers nest around the accelerator. Then
The antenna has gone unnoticed for a while now.
other Dreamers nest nearby.
It's on the end cap, behind the mirrors, and the
maintenance drones that pass by somehow don't The Dreamers will do their best to protect the
see it. As it nears completion, however, the facility, but unless they're Overthree, they're careful
Dreamers start to gather around it—and people not to use lethal force unless intruders use it first.
start to notice. Then the Cartel shows up, and all bets are off.

Prep The Cartel

The GM decides how to introduce this event. The The Cartel isn't sure what the Dreamers are up to,
PCs can find out by tracking the Dreamers, spying and they don't care. At this point, they've
on Cartel communications, getting tipped off by an completely abandoned all nuance: their plan is to
ally, or even by the tower's existence being revealed slaughter the Dreamers, take out all witnesses, and
on the news. capture any remaining Dreamer tech for
themselves. (This may make them the ultimate
If you want to give eight days of Prep, the PCs could
antagonist of the finale.)
work out from the Dreamers' movements that it'll
take that long for them to gather. You can also cut The Cartel rustles up at least two teams of Goliath
short their prep time to make things tense, or—just agents and throws them into the facility. If the PCs
for this special occasion—let them accomplish eight have fought Darryl Rickard and his squad, Clayton
days of Prep in eight hours, and have them describe Crux, or Tiger Shark (all p. 368-369) before, and
how they rush to get there in time. they can make a return here, they do. It is very
possible that they will die here. If the PCs don't
The Antenna interfere, the Cartel suffers heavy losses but
The broadcast antenna is a twisted spire jutting out subdues the Dreamers.
of a multi-level building on the outer hull—an
unused backup maintenance facility for the Activation
station's solar panels. The facility is accessible When you reach a suitably dramatic moment, tell
through tunnels in the end cap, or by spacewalking the PCs they have ten rounds before the antenna
from the nearest port. The air inside is breathable. activates. The facility begins to hum as the
Like all outer hull facilities, gravity is such that the accelerator draws in massive power.
station is "above" them and the antenna below.
After ten rounds, the antenna transmits a signal in
The Dreamers have turned the inside of the facility one massive pulse. Any remaining Dreamers freeze,
into what looks suspiciously like a high-energy then collapse as their internal electronics fry.
particle accelerator. Clever PCs who get in there can
As they fall, the antenna begins to come apart and
grasp the basics: it generates high-energy particles
the facility shakes. The PCs now have five minutes
which it uses to create a powerful broadcast signal.
to leave. When time runs out, most of the Dreamers'
If they roll really well, they'll guess it's designed to
tech turns into dust as though disassembled by
transmit a neutrino beam.
nanobots, then the pieces are vented into space.
The facility is difficult to damage with conventional
Analysis of the signal suggests it was beamed to the
weapons, but sufficient damage may break it down
outer edge of the solar system, perhaps further. The
or force the Dreamers to send a weaker signal.
destination is unknown.

378
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 The Dreamer Season
Epilogue
Most of the Dreamers who made it to the end of Wayde (p. 366), Josef's "replacement," becomes
Grand Cross Finale are gone now. Most of their the fall guy for anything Kuromu doesn't get
internals are fried; however, the remains are still blamed for. Josef, who washed his hands of the
scientifically valuable to whoever ends up with them. project early, suffers no consequences. Derek posts
about how he was just trying to help the world and
Dreamers captured by the Cartel are disassembled for
gets a lot of fawning forgiveness from tech outlets.
research or deactivated and filed away in a secure
The other Committee members simply move on to
warehouse somewhere, depending on what feels
other projects, if possible.
right. If Law Zero (p. 253) captured one, they keep it
for study. Any that end up in the hands of law Other Characters
enforcement are disassembled for research. Many of If Darryl (p. 368) survives and his serious crimes are
the Dreamers' modifications remain a mystery, but exposed, he allows himself to be arrested to spare
who knows what advances can be made with the rest? his team. Otherwise, he is reassigned to a desk job. If
Clayton was involved, he is either arrested or fired
There may still be Dreamers lurking around Grand
(and gets a better paying job in private security.)
Cross too—especially if the PCs have been working
on ways to communicate with them. Some Kitbashes If Haru (p. 372) gets her closure, she rewards the
survive; with no further orders from the other PCs. The details are up to the GM, but at minimum
Dreamers, they become docile. Any other remaining she gives them a bunch of Cash or enough support
Dreamers sequester themselves in forgotten corners to reduce their Burdens by 1. They are welcome to
of the station and keep to themselves. use her pool any time.
If the PCs help Astraea (p. 376), she helps take the
The Project project down. Afterward, she takes a break to
If the PCs did at least three of the things under
consider her next move. If the PCs are interested,
Spreading the Word (p. 377), enough Crossers get
they can probably nudge her toward a good cause.
mad about the project that both parties pledge to
do something about it (if only because it's an The Wakeners (p. 373) cannot afford rewards, but if
election year.) the PCs helped them, they've made friends for life.
If a PC has a problem that could be solved with
Faced with this opposition—combined with the
hacking, Nene solves it. Afterward, they simply get
intractability of the Dreamers—the Cartel concludes
back to their own lives—though with the knowledge
that continuing the project would be too expensive
that together, they did something great.
and puts it on ice for now.
Olivaw continues digging up as much information
If the PCs did at least six things, both parties make
as he can on the Dreamer project. (It's likely the
specific, actionable promises to stop anything like it
Cartel had technology they could have developed
from happening again, and every corporation
into a way to communicate with the Dreamers, if
involved in the project takes a hit in stock price. The
they had any desire to do that.) If the PCs
project is shut down for good, and the Cartel's
encountered him, it's up to them whether they help
position in Grand Cross is weakened.
him—or whether they're comfortable with a crime
boss initiating first contact with the Dreamers at all.
The Committee
If the Dream Committee fails, they have to answer What happens to Tiger Shark (p. 369) depends on
to the Cartel. how the PCs handle him. However, if he was
defeated, avoided death or jail, and the PCs did at
Kuromu finally learns the flaw with his philosophy:
least six of the things under Spreading the Word, he
you can do what you want except fuck with rich
at least decides to leave and reflect on his personal
people's money. Tetsuo's CEO withdraws his
philosophy. He might even visit a PC to call out
support of Kuromu to save their stock price, and the
some parting words, Gaff-at-the-end-of-Blade
rest of the Committee happily scapegoat him for
Runner-style: "They'll still win in the end, you know.
the project's problems. If the PCs exposed his
But I'd like to see you prove me wrong!"
crimes, Kuromu goes to jail. If not, he is fired.

Launch Systems 379

 Other Characters
NPCs tied directly to this campaign arc.

H Kova Levy, Lulu Sarasti,

W AI Researcher Amateur Roboticist
One of the Cartel's Dreamer experts. Kova got A GPol student with a passion for robotics and
I involved in the Dreamer project hoping it would urban exploration. Lulu's classmates know her as
advance his actual passion, the emerging field of the purple-haired dork with no time management
mind dubbing. Tetsuo have him working on a way skills, and it's honestly a fair assessment. Lulu once
to reassert control over the Dreamers, leaving him got beaten by Cartel agents for accidentally
having wasted a lot of late nights on the problem. stumbling across the Dreamers, so now she wants
to know more to spite them.
Appearance: Heavy, round face, blonde beard.
Kova has a favorite comfy outfit: round glasses, Appearance: Bright, energetic, motor mouth. Lulu
simple blue shirts, and cargo shorts. He tends to usually wears her favorite big yellow and blue
move as though he's in a hurry even when he's not, jacket and some cool high-tech goggles from
and he's just clumsy enough that sometimes this campus. She gets extremely passionate about her
causes him to drop stuff. interests, runs a robotics vlog, and cannot sit
normally.
Personality: Determined, frustrated, fantastic
memory. Kova is an AI expert, but the field he's Personality: Passionate, quick, stubborn. Lulu is
really devoted to is mind dubbing. He keeps hitting usually juggling several things at once, but still
a wall in his latest work, but he's sure he'll get there makes time to explore the station and investigate
eventually. He isn't devoted to the Cartel—he Dreamers. Her dream is to build and live in a space
doesn't approve of their actions but has swallowed station in the outer system. She was a Singularist
doubts so far for the sake of his work. but abandoned the movement after meeting
Singularists in person.
Goal: Crack the Dreamer problem; advance the
science of dubbing. Goal: Learn more about the Dreamers; get some
study in.
Manaia Mita, Radio DJ
A radio DJ who does the late-night shift at MONDO, Rigel Zegers,
an alternative music station. Manaia is a big UFO Urban Explorer
guy who wins over fans with his earnest, friendly An Appleton U architecture student from Luna, who
attitude and apparent immunity to trolling. Lately bonds with Lulu over their shared interests in urbex
he's been working with some online friends to and science jokes. Since she roped him into her
expose the Dreamers. Dreamer investigations, he's helped by exploring the
basements and trying to be the voice of caution.
Appearance: Tall, strong, alien shirts. Manaia is a
Māori guy in loose casual clothing; he got stronger Appearance: Laidback, blonde, athletic. Rigel does
and leaner after moving to Grand Cross, so his not own a single piece of clothing that isn't either
favorite shirts are a little baggy. His mouth and jaw extremely 90s, damaged from mucking around in
are tattooed. the basements, or both. People who know him for
long enough will inevitably get a personalized
Personality: Friendly, curious, proactive. Manaia's
wave, high-five, or fist-bump.
beliefs come from a love of science and a desire to
question everything. He came to Grand Cross Personality: Chill, cautious, geeky. Rigel is big on
because he felt his research would make more staying active and healthy in body and mind: he
progress up here, but he misses the land and plans maintains a good work–life balance and tries to
to return one day. He gets really mad about other consider every angle before making a big decision.
conspiracy theories, which he dismisses as racist (Sometimes, without someone like Lulu to push him,
anti-science bullshit that makes Ufologists look bad. he takes too long to make a decision.) He likes exploring
basements, brutalism, and comic book movies.
Goal: Uncover and help expose the Dreamer
conspiracy; meet an alien. Goal: Help Lulu investigate the Dreamers, carefully.

380
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Amador Tiago-Paulo

The Dreamer Season

Cardoso Neves, Six Dreamer
Prophet of the Shell God Researchers
Science is a complex beast. The Cartel wants to
A regular feature of districts with relaxed loitering keep everything on a need-to-know basis, but a
policies, Amador (or “Brother Paulo”) is an augmented project of this scale needs a lot of people to
street preacher who proselytizes openly, referring to know things. Here are some more people
vague “spirits of the station” and an all-powerful god involved in the Dreamer project that you can
who “filters negative forces and releases purity.” toss in if needed.
Unhoused by all appearances, locals see him as a 1. Jan Rossum is an old roboticist who did a
harmless fixture, if a bit on the odd side. lot of the early Dreamer work. He retired
before the Dreamers escaped, and outside
In truth, Brother Paulo leads one of the fastest growing the Cartel's influence he's starting to regret
cults in Grand Cross. Hiding behind religious freedom his work.
laws, he converts his followers through brainwashing and 2. Prosper Amadiro was recruited for his rare
community reinforcement, then ultimately cybernetic combination of android expertise and
implants that he claims will connect “his children” to the hardline anti-android stance. He once
manifestation of a deep space entity he calls “the shell taunted Overthree while it was in captivity;
after it escaped, it found him and lasered his
god”: a massive ethereal oyster (or scallop—the visions head off. The Cartel moved his body to Luna
vary) that “filters” negative karma15. and faked an accident to cover that up.
There is no space oyster. No shell god. But there is a 3. Ada Burns-Caulfield is an AI expert and
Dreamer with whom Brother Paulo regularly communes, linguist, brought on to help with the
leaving offerings in dark alleys and pipelining prayers Dreamer control system. She is fascinated
with how the Dreamers' minds work and is
through the dark web. Sometimes the Dreamer leaves developing a theory that they've
him “implants” of inscrutable purpose, which he dutifully developed their own language which
inserts into his fellow cultists, or takes on himself. Not all overrides Cartel orders when used.
survive the implantation, and many reject the strange 4. Simon Polkett is a mean-spirited scientist,
things, but Brother Paulo is undeterred. To his mind, they one of those guys who gets kept around
were simply filtered by the shell god and made into the because "he's an asshole, but dammit, he's
purest starlight. All according to his divine plan. so good at his job." So far, three scientists
who were at least as good have quit to get
Appearance: Uncut beard, tonsure haircut, visible away from him.
implants16. Brother Paulo is grungy and middle-aged. His 5. Hunter Bogdanović is an astronomer and
old-style monetary habit blends symbols of many world mathematician who helped plan how the
religions to the point of sheer confusion and obfuscation. Dreamers would prepare planets for human
He carries an oyster-shucking knife and knows how to settlement. He usually works remotely due
use it. to chronic illness (he likes to joke that his
Balkan genes are causing his body to
Personality: Predatory, charismatic, a natural showman. rebel), so the Cartel has kept him on
Relentless, stoic, and uncompromising. Prone to fits of retainer but out of the loop.
self-justified violence and mood swings. Denounces 6. Lerna Danforth is an ex-military scientist
oyster-eaters as “heretical,” but oddly fine with eating who was almost killed attempting to stop
clams and mussels. Brother Paulo has been abducted by an early Dreamer escape attempt. She was
heavily rebuilt as a cyborg, and asked for
Infovore in the past—possibly multiple times—and it’s legally-grey combat augments in case it
messed with his head. happened again.
Goals: To further the cause of the Dreamer he’s mistaken
for a god. He’s not even sure what that means; he doesn’t
need to know.

15 Brother Paulo is the first and only man

to be banned from every seafood shop in
the city.
16 Brother Paulo has whatever augments the
narrative calls for at this very
moment.

Launch Systems 381

 D66 CROSSERS
Various citizens of Grand Cross. Tables
1 1 Bamidele Afolayan:
ScenarioEarth academic on an orbital speaking tour.

1 2 Marigold Baarsma: VTuber by night, solar panel technician by day.

1 3 Krysztof Budny: Says "This isn't your grandma's [noun]!" when he likes something.
H
1 4 Jakov Tosto: Will just not stop talking about Hegel.
W
I 1 5 Heinrich Babič: Proud grandpa, former activist, used to beat the shit out of fascists.
1 6 Helen: A beloved underground tastemaker who seems to know everybody.
2 1 Bo-Bae Oh: Full-body cyborg dating an android she met at a CCG tournament.
2 2 Mbissine Diaw: Popular community garden vlogger.
2 3 Seong-ja "Queen Of Chaos" Seo: Cyborg VRFPS pro gamer, living legend.
2 4 Kenzo Tanaka: Proud Builder; took up painting post-retirement.
2 5 Angel Miguel Soler: Emergency worker, cybernetics expert, flat Earth conspiracy theorist.
2 6 Tragedeigh Parkes: Double Crosser; just got a job in the Agriculture Ring.
3 1 Unity Jann: Has cyber-eyes, parents convinced her cyberneurosis is real, worries a lot.
3 2 Archana Patil: Quality assurance compliance officer at Tetsuo; master of paperwork.
3 3 Zeinab Hashemi: Has an online business knitting covers for external augments.
3 4 Direito Esquerdo: Has an identical twin named Dave.
3 5 Mei Lin: GPol student; watches martial arts films instead of studying, but is hugely talented.
3 6 Haruhi Mochizuki: Up-and-coming actor; just got her first major role in a sci-fi film.
4 1 Zvjezdana Tomic: Suing Hergatz Liao after defective cyber-heart almost killed her.
4 2 Lan Nguyen: Deaf activist; so fucking tired of being asked "have you tried augmenting?"
4 3 Vivian Boateng: Recently cyberized; still getting used to her cyber-hand.
4 4 Abyssinia Coelacanth: Got to space through connections in the UK House of Lords.
4 5 Koa Sanada: Voice actress, cosplayer, top-tier Astral Burst player.
4 6 Kasey Padilla: Has a business selling "verified" door crests and other crafts to influencers.
5 1 Eve Jensen: Former Builder; augmented after spending too much time in microgravity.
5 2 Steve Fish: Keeps trying to make " *does mannerism* " a meme (don't ask).
5 3 Yen Tran: Calls things she likes "extreme!"; owns too many Internet of Things gadgets.
5 4 Mohamed "Megaloldon" Samara: Makes HeoCities pages on commission; is amazing at it.
5 5 Young-soo Lee: Got cosmetic augments with LED strips to stand out more.
5 6 Siddharth Chaudhari: Small business owner struggling to deal with a hacker.
6 1 Temitope Idowu: Having a messy affair with an android coworker.
6 2 Antares Battle: Ex-Hoshi Group member; left to get married and have a family.
6 3 Orcus Chau: Double Crosser; skateboard tricks like you wouldn't believe.
6 4 Yahya Attar: Office drone; secretly the famous anime fansubber "LMJ Wanter."
6 5 Genoveva Coronado: Cyborg ex-boxer; actress in a Grand Cross telenovela.
6 6 Bobby Tables: Double Crosser; teachers hate him.

382
Random Access
D66 ANDROIDS
Various androids. (Androids are still figuring out their culture, so they don't have "traditional" names.)

1 1 U-81: A glitch in the AGI compiler gave him face blindness and an interest in programming.

Random Access
1 2 Andrew Link: Labor-model construction android turned private investigator.
1 3 Chiptina: Tabletop RPG developer; has a dice tower built into her arm.
1 4 Nordom Quad: Works at an android rights nonprofit; as intelligent as he is weird.
1 5 JC-0: Trained paleoartist and graphic designer for the GOTM (p. 156), jailbroken LMJ Augvert.
1 6 Tsune 39: Singer; chassis got redesigned with a detachable head for a music video.
2 1 Mayeso: Android artist; makes covers for sci-fi and fantasy novels.
2 2 0xDEADBEEF: Extremely weird indie game developer; quit RVRE in disgust two years ago.
2 3 Mbali: Station worker; part of the team that makes adjustments to the station's position.
2 4 Hexspeak: Double Crosser, programmer, android-goth-witch fashion pioneer.
2 5 Baz Gort: Admin for the LEETNet tech forum and IT guy at an android nonprofit.
2 6 Roy Beta: Works at an android nonprofit; networks with others via an IRC chat room.
3 1 One-18782: Crochety old Builder; part of a group opposing the Builder Museum (p. 152).
3 2 OT-3: Double Crosser, webcomic artist, dreams of a job at a major animation company.
3 3 Peter Byte: Labor-model fashion model; looks incredible in a nice suit.
3 4 AR-V: Orbiform activist; resents being told to "upgrade" into a more human-like model.
3 5 Lolly: Hosting a refugee friend in her apartment since it has human facilities she doesn't use.
3 6 Musubi A.I.: VTuber, saving up to get a modern body; viewers assume she's human.
4 1 QT: Video game streamer big with androids; sponsors offer less money than human peers.
4 2 Neon Johnny: Stand-up comedian working on Grand Cross's first all-android sitcom.
4 3 Wayfarer: Double Crosser; wants to get a job as an outer solar system probe.
4 4 DDR Jones: It's a nickname referring to their passion for rhythm arcade games.
4 5 Danf00: Former Antarctic exploration unit, current dock worker, spacewalks for fun.
4 6 Gregabyte: Part of a horror movie film crew; learning to be a director.
5 1 K6-8D: Musician who composes brain-melting tunes for Space Banshee (p. 244).
5 2 Emma-0: Labor-model; tells people to "talk to the hand" because she has a third one.
5 3 Beepjamin: Electrician and Neo Miami regular who dresses like a cowboy.
5 4 Cachetopher: Professional CCG player; dating a full-body cyborg he met at a tournament.
5 5 Foobarclay: Maintenance specialist; custom body makes him resemble Bigfoot in a coat.
5 6 Digitimothy: Marukyu Ward Council member working their way up in the Technos.
6 1 Gaige: Excitable GPol student studying under Tachiko Masamune (p. 123).
6 2 Alicia Hadaly: Adams-model "sci-fi nerd" at the Book Club Cafe (p. 165).
6 3 Maxamed: Has a job telling kids not to do drugs; puts emoticons on his face-screen.
6 4 15 Nguyen: Works at a shopping mall, hangs out in a different one; has strawberry chassis.
6 5 Nexus-6: Bastard IT guy at Tetsuo; uses expertise against people who are rude to androids.
6 6 Sei-50: Rapping idol; rhymes allegedly so hot she had to add heat fins.

Random Access 383

 D66 HACKERS AND HANDLES
Various citizens of Grand Cross.

1 1 Tsubaki²: Dishevelled otaku; daughter of a famous erotic artist.

1 2 Rasterbator: Internet troll who gets off on hurting people; closet transgender; very depressed.
1 3 CazCade Failure: Casual drug user, easily goaded by questioning his elite skills
H
1 4 Gu-Sung: Former habitat engineer with inside knowledge on the Grand Cross power grid.
W
I 1 5 Doctor Synapse: High-strung; obsessed with own intelligence; very anti-android.
1 6 Seppun Baka: Anime fan obsessed with Japan; whiter than a game convention panel.
2 1 Aoife: Former heiress who erased her past identity.
2 2 Hello Helpdesk: Claims a corner table at their local coffee joint; chugs coffee all day.
2 3 Pac Man Fever: Lives in a forgotten server room in the station basements.
2 4 ROMantic: Unsuccessful streamer; had 15 minutes of fame in high school and still isn't over it.
2 5 Jargon Wagg: Mostly annoys corporations by sneaking puns into their websites.
2 6 Chillthulhu: Day job at the library; sells hacking tools via dead-drops elsewhere.
3 1 Wobbly William: Script kiddie; takes payment in MMO items.
3 2 Vanilla Gorilla: Two French hacktivists with matching beards; really into VR art.
3 3 Casablitter: Ogremoch employee bored out of their mind at office job.
3 4 Helvetica: Plays bass in a rock band with her pals Exocet and Wingdings.
3 5 Swingline: Former office drone who stole from former company; loves destroying fax machines.
3 6 OverdriveRoland: Former pro gamer banned for aimbotting and casual racism.
4 1 Neon Trotsky: Former Singularist; doxxes New Barons; secretly works at a library.
4 2 Mari Lagrange: Has a side job teaching board games to kids at Meeple Mocha (p. 172).
4 3 Nomenklatura: Gray hat who designs fonts for a living.
4 4 Robie Junior: Buddhist android; sells "second chances" (fake IDs); collects old robot toys.
4 5 Hackerman: Runs a "tech museum" in the Chandrasekhar district; collects old cables.
4 6 Tarpit Turing: Lives in a basement apartment with secret base in the nearby station basements.
5 1 Berzerkeley: Expelled from UC Berkeley years ago and still gripes about it.
5 2 Third Eye: Hacks security cameras and people-watches.
5 3 Zaibatsu Game: Anarchist hacktivist obsessed with uncovering corruption within Tetsuo.
5 4 Gobbledok: Station's foremost expert on computer chips.
5 5 Connie Turner: Cool old lady; owns an Amiga; once hit a New Baron with her cane.
5 6 NECromancer: Collects and restores old computer hardware; occasional absence seizures.
6 1 Onbekend: Disaster refugee raising money for a home; regular at Early Access (p. 182).
6 2 Unknown Skies: Amateur skywatcher; sneaks SETI programs into appliances.
6 3 AIDS Haver: Irony-poisoned weirdo; loves examining hacks to discover how they work.
6 4 Gender Tartakovsky: Trans activist; secretly runs a popular comics forum.
6 5 Hacklemore: Uses refurbished second-hand hardware for the challenge.
6 6 Sumimachine: Android bartender; expert at demolishing Internet of Things devices.

384
Random Access
D66 CORPORATE TYPES
Corporate executives and employees. Where they work and their position in the heirarchy are up to the GM.

1 1 Noel Narvaez: Slumlord; considering pressuring tenants into work contracts.

Random Access
1 2 Bai X: Birth name was so associated with wealth, she sold it.
1 3 Dieter Tranter: Useless; coasts along by taking credit from his coworkers; usually drunk.
1 4 Sung-Hoon Jung: Cyber-arm includes Wi-Fi hotspot; in trouble with HR for "hot spot" puns.
1 5 Misophonia Luck: Incompetent; convinced he's a self-made genius but relies on his father.
1 6 Bob Dugnutt: Runs a comic publishing company, high-strung, skeletons in his closet.
2 1 Jeremie Zheng: Sometimes goes on firing sprees, just because he can.
2 2 Levi Florez-Summer: Has a thing for cheating on his wife with strangers.
2 3 Dylan Dillon: Influencer with a startup but underpaid "executive assistant" does the actual work.
2 4 Trees Padmore: Souped-up full-body cyborg looking for good space companies to invest in.
2 5 Victor Oster: Describes himself as a "Paradigm Sensei"; absolutely insufferable.
2 6 Jay Tokugawa: Runs black market medical cybernetics business, but only as a side thing.
3 1 Daley Maggs: Spends thousands on PR stunts in hopes of pivoting into politics.
3 2 Mercure Leroux: Has a habit of blurting out breathtakingly sexist jokes at meetings.
3 3 Fei Xian: Currently getting revenge on a rival from another company by banging his wife.
3 4 Simon Polk: AI programmer; verbally abusive; dealing with a harassment lawsuit.
3 5 Steeve Maverick: Got rich off an Earth friend's program; moved to space to dodge lawsuit.
3 6 Monika Yáñez: Spends most of her time building up her Pulser following.
4 1 Monica Nguyen: Likes to flaunt her wealth in front of underpaid employees.
4 2 Ivo Berger: Void Dragon mole; didn't expect to be promoted this far and is starting to worry.
4 3 Jay D'Cruz: Great with people, but has virulent anti-android views drilled into him by past bosses.
4 4 Koray Teke: Landlord; posts covert photos of tenants to secret "Tenant Fails" group.
4 5 Wayne Corrigan: Abusive to employees; got "side-promoted" to a role without any.
4 6 Grover Häusler: Infamously responsible for the uninhabitable apartments in Virek district.
5 1 Thanh Tran: Tries to cultivate a "family man" image but obviously insincere.
5 2 Michael Newby-McMahon: Workaholic, has a collection of "funny" coffee mugs
5 3 Nicodème Calvin: Insists on referring to the rich as "people of wealth."
5 4 Carlos Jefferson: Cyber-eyes make everything blue; he believes this makes him smarter.
5 5 Endri Dibra: Obviously sliding into dementia; android assistant slowly taking over his job.
5 6 Killian O'Caellaigh: Private security heir; acts before thinking; Void Dragon friends.
6 1 Radmilo Kovačić: Cultivates "family man" image; keeps touching women's hair.
6 2 George Beaumont: Definitely dead, but Cartel is pretending he's alive to close a deal.
6 3 Stewart Spencer-Martin: Old white guy; heading his company's new Diversity Committee.
6 4 Mani Ahmed: Left Earth to get away from the rain; absolutely furious that it rains here.
6 5 Nitride Wei: Has several illegitimate kids he pays hush money; one is a pop star now.
6 6 Bob Fenestre: Tech magnate; began as a mere programmer at a telephone company.

Random Access 385

 D66 COPS
The brave officers of the Station Police Service.

1 1 Natsumi Matsuda: Ace scooter rider; idealist rookie; coworkers trying to get her fired.
1 2 Clarence Chau: Uses friendly face to get informants in criminal gangs and activist groups.
1 3 Ralphie Govender: End cap mountain rescue specialist; fiddles with drones for fun.
H
1 4 Marcos Armstrong: Goes undercover at protests and tries to steer them toward violence.
W
I 1 5 Bard Nicholson: MMO addict; harasses women on Pulser from his work computer.
1 6 Jack Phoenix: Once fell into the station basements and got lost for two days.
2 1 Marlon Kett: Likes to antagonize people until they snap so he can arrest them.
2 2 Dalton Dillon: Extremely focused on road safety after losing friends to a van accident.
2 3 Zhan: Android with built-in cameras; coworkers openly avoid working with him.
2 4 Damo Wesrey: Cyber-stalks an activist who criticised his department four years ago.
2 5 Reiner De Witt: Big Bruce Springsteen fan; tends to sympathise with rock fans.
2 6 Calvin Bentley: Informs on the police for Law Zero, who upgraded his cybernetics.
3 1 Jean-Luc Fontaine: Veteran police officer, mere days before retirement.
3 2 Jane Song: From a cop family, but regrets signing up and wants to be a painter instead.
3 3 Max Power: Once had to get cybernetic augments after an embarrassing library accident.
3 4 Warren Burnett: Covered in second-hand miltary tech despite working in Dog Squad.
3 5 George Medal: Will be transferring to a small private security corporation in a few weeks.
3 6 Pete Maverick: Once accidentally tased himself in the groin.
4 1 Brian Stone: Third-generation police family; always looking to show off pics of his kids.
4 2 Drummer Short: Has four tattoos; the swastika is the wrong way around on three of them.
4 3 Glenn Guzman: Used to work in a US school, got transferred for throwing kids around.
4 4 Simon Storm: Once ended up in a viral video after tripping down stairs while eating donuts.
4 5 Ward Douglas: Really good at making presentations; keeps looking for excuses to.
4 6 Bruce Laser: Once fell off a Segway and fractured his skull.
5 1 Monty McIntosh: Puts a hand on his gun to assert dominance when he interacts with others.
5 2 Leeroy Gutermuth: Has an online self-defense equipment business with a New Baron friend.
5 3 Barney Heeler: Fancies himself a martial arts master but mostly fights restrained people.
5 4 Jake Bullet: Once had the crap kicked out of him by a gang of street kids.
5 5 Guy 000: UK-made android, discriminates against "foreign" androids to fit in at work.
5 6 Daniel Torregrosa: Would love to take bribes but too nervous to solicit any.
6 1 Dan Popovski: Seems nice, passes info on a local woman to her New Barons ex-boyfriend.
6 2 Cornell Chudd: Deeply insecure; uses excessive force to feel like a big man.
6 3 Chaz Heeler: Patrols nightlife districts looking for drunk kids to fight.
6 4 Felicia Warner: Takes bribes from the Cartel and spends them on designer drugs.
6 5 Dorek Jaskulski: Takes phone calls, does comedy routines about them in the break room.
6 6 Clive Pugh: Police spokesman who constantly uses overly complex passive voice.

386
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D66 CRIMINALS
The criminal element of Grand Cross station.

1 1 Horse Head: Freelance muscle; uses construction-grade cyber-arm to hurt people.

Random Access
1 2 Ox Face: Freelance muscle; intimidating but cheap cyber-leg can hinder him.
1 3 Twisty Turner: Drug-addled conspiracy theorist; exceptional lockpicker.
1 4 Cassiopeia Valdez: High-class corporate aristocrat; plans heists and frames others.
1 5 Player One: Runs a minor gang specializing in videogame crimes; B&E expert.
1 6 The Honeyeater: Elderly thief who became a Builder to lie low for a few years; not retired yet.
2 1 Momo Kamoyama: Daikatana auditor who often gets sent out to correct "accounting errors."
2 2 Kari Hvermannsen: Block Boy; oversees transport of their products; expert drone operator.
2 3 Kyoji Hanashika: Likes telling strange stories; Daikatana Gumi use him as a diverson.
2 4 Olavi Pekkanen: Finnbogamenn guard; skeptical about the long-term viability of the market.
2 5 Suriya Aleksandrov: GG Noire hacker recruited from the Singularists; open misogynist.
2 6 Eddie Vanhanen: Liivipojat member trying to find out who's attacking their mules.
3 1 Tom Bogan: Hotel Melbourne salesman; cybernetics keep him alive in enemy territory.
3 2 Shazza Nguyen: Police sergeant; secretly a mole for Hotel Melbourne.
3 3 Honestee Joy-Smith: Hotel manager; former Shackleton office drone; only loyal to King.
3 4 Kray Darwin: Hotel drug maker; proud of his work; thinking of going full-body cyborg.
3 5 "Drongo" Cooper: Hotel enforcer; big on augments; planning to become posthuman.
3 6 Dimity Spools: Runs the Hotel front company Yarrow & Spools and takes it seriously.
4 1 Johnny Bean: Ex-cop cyborg; Void Dragon poached him instead of private security.
4 2 Jie Yeung: Void Dragon number-cruncher; runs a small accounting business as a cover.
4 3 Paolo San Pablos: Hitman who fled Earth; Void Dragon have him on retainer.
4 4 Tarou Yamada: Former office drone who joins corporations to case them for Void Dragon.
4 5 Galaxcia Palmer: Exiled from Hotel Melbourne, joined the Void Dragon, holds a grudge.
4 6 Ai Lim: Lilim-android worker at a Void Dragon-run nightclub; many Syndicate friends.
5 1 JJ7 Active Q Delta: Law Zero enforcer; Catholic; Olivaw found him a priest to talk to.
5 2 Day 23564: Former Builder, current bouncer at a Law Zero club; likes fighting a bit too much.
5 3 Malcan Theta: Adams-model android; manipulative as hell; loyal to Olivaw and his vision.
5 4 Wet Josh: Laid-back nerd; maintains Law Zero's incredibly illegal AGI compiler.
5 5 Xiuying Zhou: Cyborg; works at a Law Zero-run front; sometimes runs errands for a bonus.
5 6 Chetter: Olivaw's extremely loyal personal assistant; expert getaway driver.
6 1 Hilal Nejem: Hoshi Group enforcer; archer; getting more augments to compensate for age.
6 2 ZZ9: Hoshi dealmaker android; interested in poaching members of the Block Boys (p. 254).
6 3 Amane Adachi: Remote worker for Builders United; Hoshi hacker in their free time.
6 4 Guy Hofwegen: Hoshi cyber-doctor; former union rep; treats L4 refugees out of sympathy.
6 5 Takagiri: Runs an illegal Hoshi gambling operation; lurks in a late-night café in his free time.
6 6 Freddie Pluto: Hoshi protection money collector; wanted on Earth for violent crimes.

Random Access 387

 2D6 CROSSERS, JERKS
Various citizens who happen to be jerks, in case you need an antagonist.

1-3 1 Vlasi Orlov: Anti-android weirdo who went viral after being beaten up by an android on the bus.
1-3 2 Przemek Pokorny: Listens to right-wing radio; angry and worried all the time.
1-3 3 Milka Mlakar: Corporate drone; hardcore capitalist; constantly overworked.
H
1-3 4 Lana Vichaki: Cixin Ward Council member; secret New Baron plant.
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I 1-3 5 Connie Landvik: Landvættir legal representative stalling lawsuits from refugees.
1-3 6 Quill Kerensky: Runs an activist group like a personality cult.
4-6 1 Matias Wakeman: Destroyed his block's community garden because he didn't like the colors.
4-6 2 Jiang Pan: Doxxes and harasses members of Liberate Orbit.
4-6 3 Nolan Catlow: Leader of a small, violently anti-android New Baron offshoot.
4-6 4 Vi Travert: Self-described "human supremacist"; hackable augverts.
4-6 5 Blanca Trabocchi: Op-ed columnist who claims cyberneurosis is "caused by" violent games.
4-6 6 Kabigail Thurlow: Posts in TERF communities for hours a day; family cut ties with her.

2D6 SINGULARISTS
Members of the Singularist movement and Omega Point posters.

1-3 1 Dae-han Jo: Has a podcast about the Earth arcology trend and what it might mean for space.
1-3 2 Kurt Skalicky: Self-styled "modern philosopher"; mostly wants to bring back feudalism.
1-3 3 Marty Sparks: FERMI's webmaster; hopes androids and humans will become one people.
1-3 4 Hans Swallow: Straight-up fascist, but also losing a small fortune on cryptocurrency.
1-3 5 Anthony Berkovich: Big name in cyber-eye HUDs; publishes books about augments.
1-3 6 Aster Claesson: Constantly starting or thinking about arguments with people on Pulser.
4-6 1 "Logical Beaver": Omega Point poster and anti-feminist YourTuber inspired by Max Babylon.
4-6 2 Placid Beck: Runs GPol's Singularist Club; exploits the student union to fund pub crawls.
4-6 3 "PregnantAsimov": Omega Point admin; exploits forum rules to protect far-right posters.
4-6 4 Abdul Mutawaki: Close friend of Cyrus Berryman; big fan of "dangerous ideas."
4-6 5 Jared Spitznogle: Posts radical ways to reform society in ways that might get him laid.
4-6 6 Tipton Weaver: Invented an app for dudes to quiz geek women on pop culture.

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Random Access
2D6 L4 SURVIVORS
People who survived the L4 Disaster and are still affected by their experiences.

1-3 1 Paige Turner: Huge book nerd; temp worker; staying in an android friend's apartment.

Random Access
1-3 2 Malick Diop: Adopts a "you've got to laugh, right" approach to life; cops stole his ID papers.
1-3 3 Saida Lee: Tetsuo recruiter manipulated her survivor's guilt to get her on a work contract.
1-3 4 Linda Oliveira: Mother of two; former Landvættir worker; they want to exploit her for PR.
1-3 5 Arthur Tailler: Wealthy and totally fine; thinks poor refugees should have been put down.
1-3 6 Liam Matić: Can return to Earth any time but wants to help some refugee friends first.
4-6 1 Astrid: Android using a second-hand Lilim after her old frame broke; works at Early Access.
4-6 2 Maria Menke: Was heavily cyberized post-Disaster; procedures ate the rest of her money.
4-6 3 Séraphine Durand: Double Crosser online singer raising awareness of refugee issues.
4-6 4 Jacob Pherigo: Keeps getting thrown out of camps since joining the New Barons.
4-6 5 Abel: Android who was thrown from an evac ship to make room for a human; wants revenge.
4-6 6 Gerd Holzmann: Got a job offer from Hotel Melbourne; thinking about going for it.

2D6 ANDROIDS, JERKS

Various androids who happen to be jerks, in case you need an antagonist.

1-3 1 Ionic Robo: Pioneer in the field of pseudo-scientific "android medicine"; big Unity donor.
1-3 2 Drone Matt: Conservative "online comedian" with exactly one joke.
1-3 3 Wager Pascale: Former cop; jumped to private security because they get less oversight.
1-3 4 Scrappy: Runs a small android nonprofit; spends most donations on himself or advertising.
1-3 5 Jackernel: Trying to set up a more pro-android spinoff of the New Barons.
1-3 6 Graz: Government worker intentionally stalling help for L4 refugee humans out of spite.
4-6 1 Harry Domin: Middle manager at Omnidyne; secretly loves bossing humans around.
4-6 2 Hactar: Kicked out of Law Zero for being drunk and disorderly.
4-6 3 C-22: Approves applications at Tetsuo reproduction facility; buys into corporate propaganda.
4-6 4 YT-25: Game streamer prone to trash-talking and "heated gamer moments."
4-6 5 Phinneus: Paid handsomely to spy on burgeoning Omnidyne union movement.
4-6 6 Gideon Gateway: Buys into Western human ideas of masculinity; hassles his ex-girlfriend.

Random Access 389

 D66 GRAND CROSS LEGENDS
Various Crossers submitted by Kickstarter backers.
Xheina van der Wort: VTuber who occasionally does "station exploration streams" with the aid of a drone-mounted screen; extremely
1 1 chaotic energy.
1 2 Wing Yi McNierney: Once a frequent sight at gaming events, she still shows up when she can in between working and raising her toddler, Ping An.

1 3 Mae Peterson: In between gaming events, Mae manages her husband and a community garden.

1 4 The Botivista: Extreme self-help guru influencer; convinced people to let her spy into their homes to help them "stay on the path."
H
W 1 5 Samuel Bonaparte Esq.: No-win-no-fee attorney convincing people to get themselves hurt to get payouts to fix run-down buildings.
Scarlett Miracle: Black market information broker; gathers her intel during her day job as an IT contractor; clients of neither service know
I 1 6 about her other life.
Viridia Elliott: Daughter of gameshow winners who were unceremoniously abandoned by the network once in space; spends her time
2 1 wishing there was an easy way "home."
Clara Lovelace: Street doc who jailbreaks and reprograms augments to let her clients live their ideal selves without license fees, DRM, or
2 2 corporate surveillance.
2 3 Linko Garcanabo: Multilingual shitpost auteur; uses any pronouns; makes nightcore to spite the rich and radicalize the children.

2 4 Mr. Fringe: Runs a bathroom installation business, but hates the industry; he/him lesbian; the "Mr." is short for "monstrosity."

2 5 Reef Nightly: Seazy back-alley grifter who gives off a burnt oil smell; they know a guy who knows a guy.

2 6 Victoria Vann: Trans girl whose shoeshine stand is used by suits to talk alone (well, alone with her.)

3 1 Rashel Delmor: Sultry sax player with a puckish nature; desired to be claimed by those in power; wants to stay free.
Ji-Hun "Shinesparkle" Song: Trans male streamer, magical girl cosplayer, and the undisputed greatest Frame Strikers 3 HyperClash EX
3 2 player on Grand Cross.

3 3 Lex "Lexicon" Morgana: Bright and cheery information broker and part-time mercenary with a penchant for theatrics, cyberware, and occult theming.
Iris Countermark: Cyborg rarely seen without a mask and layers of armor/clothing; has a soft spot for plants and animals; quiet but prone
3 4 to sudden bursts of vocalization.
3 5 Kool Karl: The type of fixer that even adventure tourists don't deserve.

3 6 Jack Amano: Small-time hacker and information broker.

4 1 B.Mar.0: Street artist and aspiring actress.

4 2 Lychee: Rebel raver with a cause who wants to take down the Cartel and look good doing it.

4 3 Lyioni: Skater who likes to fly; loves to cause mischief; a bit full of herself.

4 4 Saga Starlight: Pink-haired punk-rock transbian who does gutter witch-craft, chemistry and hacking (of both the digital and bio variety.)

4 5 Kore: Tall woman with big glasses, a jumpsuit, and long, wavy, multi-colored hair; very into computers and mechanics.
Josey: Tall, olive-skinned, dark brown hair, wears glasses, tight cropped shirts, mid-length skirts, and heels; works publically in community
4 6 outreach and privately in revolution.
5 1 Trauma Hound: Android thief/security specialist.

5 2 Cardigan "RedMenace69" Lang: Information broker moonlighting as an admin on a "dirtbag left" chat server.

5 3 Artemis MA-4: Android caretaker of a halfway house; former wetwork specialist.

5 4 Gnome: Renegade gardener fired from the Agriculture Ring for distributing surplus produce. Want something grown? Find the Gnome.
Aunty Wendy: Runs an independent waste management operation, re-and-up-cycling trash in defiance of corporate edicts; potential one-
5 5 woman Kessler Syndrome.
5 6 Blue Colon3: Android thief with a catgirl aesthetic; vandalizes surveillance cameras for fun.

6 1 Zoe Silber. Friendly librarian; offers grey-market augments and cheap maintenance.

6 2 Alra One: Hacker who enjoys embarrassing Singularists with carefully crafted honeypots.

6 3 Rilne Kitsune: She/her; trans.

Caitlyn Mallow: Mid-30s techie; changes her appearance every few days; part of an anti-corporatist political group named for a bit
6 4 character from an ancient video game.
Feyli (Oufei Li): Runs a food delivery business as a front for corporate espionage; funnels the proceeds into a high-quality video game
6 5 series staring the food delivery mascot.
"Manga" Mike Rattana: Owns a store called “The Orbital Otaku” that sells 3D-printed anime figurines and anime-themed cyberware—all
6 6 cheap, unlicensed bootlegs.

390
Random Access
D66 EVEN MORE LEGENDS
Sister Chrome: No nonsense, mirror shades-wearing, ex-corporate-asset who runs a pay-what-you-can soup kitchen from the basement
1 1 of an old apartment block.
1 2 Harrison Chapman: Red-headed giant of a man with an innocent smile.

Random Access
1 3 Jackson Chapman: Happy-go-lucky tall young man.

1 4 Carlos Yoshino: Zero-g construction worker haunted by his memories of the L4 Disaster.

1 5 Aida Kasabian: A passionate young vlogger looking to make a difference.

1 6 Samusmaximus: Immensely strong Crosser in bright-red armor who wishes to use his cyborg might to assist people in most of their pursuits.

2 1 Ms Haw: Raised on ancient Westerns; consistently dresses in dark blue cowboy clothes (to contrast her green eyes) and a couple of fake six-shooters.
Jeremiah Bindel: Formerly ruthless cybernetics "recycler"; a bad trip convinced him that his limbs were haunted and he now lives in
2 2 constant fear of them turning on him.
Andi "k1lld0z3r" Bliss: Hopelessly addicted to the buzz of online trolling and leading hate mobs; tries too hard to be "nice" and
2 3 "wholesome" in-person to make up for it.
2 4 Mellori: Raven-obsessed hacker with cybernetic bird legs; takes himself far too seriously.

2 5 Alirie: Non-binary trans girl programmer.

2 6 Alex Hill: Wannabe hacker.

Lucrezia: Wealthy socialite with a personality like coffee: ice-cold and in glasses; stunningly beautiful, but rumored to be pushing 70
3 1 underneath her illicit cosmetic mods.
Kate-C: Work contract office worker staving off mental and physical collapse with prescription medication; her supervisors must never
3 2 learn that she's secretly a freak on the net.

3 3 Attar Rose: A righteous revolutionary with a mean streak.

3 4 Faje Falenia: Underground cyberdoc known to offer pro bono support to those in need.

Azlade: Consummate professional who studies every angle, builds his own gear, and absolutely refuses to be caught by surprise; never an
3 5 improvisation, always a backup plan.
3 6 Louis Reinhart: Hacker and Huntr user who uses his hacking skills to doxx and go after people being cruel to animals; has a large fanbase.

4 1 Oskar: Robotic cougar with an onboard AI; former bot-fight robot acquired and refurbished by Louis; able to talk like a child via synthetizer.

4 2 Jenna Cole: Former Grand Cross "security officer" until she was told to break up a strike with lethal force.
Samira Kirmani: Brilliant scientist capable of creating almost anything if given enough time; rumoured to be working on brain uploading
4 3 and AI research.
4 4 Jinx De'Caire: Independent space captain rumored to smuggle illicit goods, but good luck proving it!

4 5 Fawkes: Biogeneticist specializing in hybridizing; keeps himself busy by attempting to bring back the dinosaurs.
DJ Freya: Rising star in Grand Cross Station's music scene over the past few months, with a personality as bright and bubbly as her
4 6 appearance.
5 1 Mister H: Runs a café that's never open in a corner of the station no-one visits; behind his lax demeanor he seems to know more than he lets on.

5 2 Johnny Dethmatch: Competes in a dangerous new underground sport that's sweeping orbit.

5 3 Chef Chrystal: Chef who uses cutting-edge technology to manufacture strange and expensive food out of simple ingredients.

5 4 Skilltree: A hacker with sideways-pointing elf ear mods; prone to forming parasocial relationships; Has never been to the Pacific Northwest.

5 5 O Oh: Mysterious young woman who happens to be one of orbit's greatest detectives; addicted to sweet food.

5 6 Dexter Das: Genius chemist and a little too enthusiastic; Ogremoch keeps him in an outer hull lab very far away from their other buildings.
Maya Zygalski: Ey was a roboticist that maintained Grand Cross station bots. An early AI rights activist, ey started a mutual aid
6 1 maintenance clinic that Tetsuo is trying to shutter.
6 2 Azumi Kamiyama: Double Crosser; was a delinquent in school; has two dads.

6 3 Justin Stallman: Ruler of the Tetsuo Complex IT department; bastard operator from hell.

6 4 Isaac Carver: Science communicator; everyone but him thinks he dresses like Doctor Who.

6 5 Mariana Susana Valdez: Artist of a long-running sci-fi romance webcomic; way too excitable.
Nguyễn Vu: He is a former construction worker who was severely injured during the Disaster. now an activist and journalist dedicated to
6 6 exposing corporate malfeasance.

Random Access 391

H
W
I

392
Launch Systems
D666 PLACE NAMES
These names can be used for districts, streets, and similar locations.
To use this table, roll 3d6 and read the results in a line.
1 1 1 Brahe 2 1 1 Newmark 3 1 1 Otomo 4 1 1 Aludra 5 1 1 Mimas 6 1 1 I Seikai

Random Access
1 1 2 Khayyam 2 1 2 Beauvoir 3 1 2 Motohiro 4 1 2 Antares 5 1 2 Hestia 6 1 2 Geneva

1 1 3 Sharma 2 1 3 Renard 3 1 3 Akiyama 4 1 3 Scorpio 5 1 3 Triton 6 1 3 Tannhäuser

1 1 4 Zhang Heng 2 1 4 Ichinomiya 3 1 4 Sato 4 1 4 Crux 5 1 4 Umbruel 6 1 4 Neo Sidney

1 1 5 Aaronson 2 1 5 Sarang Garuda 3 1 5 Watanabe 4 1 5 Cassiopeia 5 1 5 Hi'iaka 6 1 5 Neo Rio

1 1 6 Leonov 2 1 6 Orlov 3 1 6 Konaka 4 1 6 Achernar 5 1 6 Vanth 6 1 6 Neo Lagos

1 2 1 Milne 2 2 1 Hussain 3 2 1 Kishiro 4 2 1 Lysithea 5 2 1 Pluto 6 2 1 Neo Shenzhen

1 2 2 Tsiolkovsky 2 2 2 Mzantsi 3 2 2 Aramaki 4 2 2 Sagittarius 5 2 2 Namaka 6 2 2 Neo Toronto

1 2 3 Glaser 2 2 3 Ackermann 3 2 3 Oshii 4 2 3 Cepheus 5 2 3 Nereid 6 2 3 Neo Plymouth

1 2 4 Alvarez 2 2 4 Jeong 3 2 4 Ellison 4 2 4 Aquarius 5 2 4 Artemis 6 2 4 Shin Osaka

1 2 5 Chandrasekhar 2 2 5 Abascal 3 2 5 Bradbury 4 2 5 Altair 5 2 5 Hygiea 6 2 5 Novo Prospekt

1 2 6 Tereshkova 2 2 6 Vasilev 3 2 6 Cadigan 4 2 6 Algol 5 2 6 Ganymede 6 2 6 Nowy Łódź

1 3 1 Sagan 2 3 1 Afolayan 3 3 1 Morgan 4 3 1 Lyra 5 3 1 Pallas 6 3 1 Bridge

1 3 2 Laika 2 3 2 Citra Kayangan 3 3 2 Mchugh 4 3 2 Aldebaran 5 3 2 Iapetus 6 3 2 Second

1 3 3 Shoemaker 2 3 3 Pritipura 3 3 3 Clarke 4 3 3 Libra 5 3 3 Dione 6 3 3 Border

1 3 4 Salyut 2 3 4 Palayan 3 3 4 Dick 4 3 4 Perseus 5 3 4 Titan 6 3 4 Great

1 3 5 Hawking 2 3 5 Sirius 3 3 5 Gibson 4 3 5 Lerna 5 3 5 Miranda 6 3 5 Orange

1 3 6 Vostok 2 3 6 Beaufoy 3 3 6 Asimov 4 3 6 Rigel 5 3 6 Encedalus 6 3 6 Star

1 4 1 Gagarin 2 4 1 Valenzuela 3 4 1 Bester 4 4 1 Orion 5 4 1 Charon 6 4 1 Queen

1 4 2 Lemaître 2 4 2 Hochberg 3 4 2 Niven 4 4 2 Ophiuchus 5 4 2 Hyperion 6 4 2 Church

1 4 3 Dyson 2 4 3 Chanthavong 3 4 3 Stephenson 4 4 3 Vela 5 4 3 Haumea 6 4 3 Turnwise

1 4 4 Meinel 2 4 4 Benget 3 4 4 Stross 4 4 4 Auriga 5 4 4 Rhea 6 4 4 Dogwood

1 4 5 Henson 2 4 5 Parramatta 3 4 5 Rickson 4 4 5 Megaclite 5 4 5 Callisto 6 4 5 Victoria

1 4 6 O'Neill 2 4 6 Falak Kelapa 3 4 6 Delany 4 4 6 Vega 5 4 6 Io 6 4 6 Four Ways

1 5 1 Liverpool 2 5 1 Cendrawasih 3 5 1 Čapek 4 5 1 Auriga 5 5 1 Phoebe 6 5 1 Zim

1 5 2 Brighton 2 5 2 Kongbian 3 5 2 Strugatsky 4 5 2 Aquila 5 5 2 Proteus 6 5 2 White Dwarf

1 5 3 Burnham 2 5 3 Li Zhaolin 3 5 3 Vance 4 5 3 Canopus 5 5 3 Oberon 6 5 3 Logos

1 5 4 Milford Edge 2 5 4 Sokolov 3 5 4 Banks 4 5 4 Bellatrix 5 5 4 Tethys 6 5 4 Erlingsdóttir

1 5 5 Angeles 2 5 5 Kiruna 3 5 5 Butler 4 5 5 Eridani 5 5 5 Ceres 6 5 5 Matijevic

1 5 6 Geimbær 2 5 6 Celsius 3 5 6 Baxter 4 5 6 Pleiades 5 5 6 Titania 6 5 6 McJanda

1 6 1 Tasman 2 6 1 Culpeper 3 6 1 Bringsværd 4 6 1 Magrathea 5 6 1 Makemake 6 6 1 Mostly Harmless

1 6 2 Shinohara 2 6 2 Sadangi 3 6 2 Polaris 4 6 2 Celeano 5 6 2 Eris 6 6 2 Mirrorshade

1 6 3 Virek 2 6 3 Qianzhen 3 6 3 Adhara 4 6 3 Athas 5 6 3 Europa 6 6 3 Mornington Crescent

1 6 4 Epson 2 6 4 Taikong Cheng 3 6 4 Betelgeuse 4 6 4 Cardassia 5 6 4 Ariel 6 6 4 Attitude

1 6 5 Cosa Nostra 2 6 5 Rousseau 3 6 5 Dipper 4 6 5 Terminus 5 6 5 Iapetus 6 6 5 Zork

1 6 6 Sprawl 2 6 6 Chanda 3 6 6 Deneb 4 6 6 Arrakis 5 6 6 Oort 6 6 6 Mondo

Random Access 393

 Hidden Places
by Melody Watson
Grand Cross is a big place—big enough that sometimes things just... get lost. Sometimes it's not just things,
but whole places. From derelict storefronts to secret dens built deep into the sides of the station, these
places offer mystery, privacy, refuge and sometimes even community. They aren't necessarily totally off the
grid—for better or worse—but they are spaces where the rules are a little different, at the very least.
H This table can be used to generate hidden places for PCs, NPCs and their communities to stumble across or
W build from the ground up. To create a hidden place, just roll three times: one for a type of place, one for
I where it can be found and one for its ambience—some descriptors to help you decide what it feels or looks
like. You can also take these prompts apart and put them together in any way you like!
1D10 PLACE
1 A dusty service tunnel; locked up, forgotten, but still crammed with old stock and signage.
2 An augmented reality arcade, restored by local teens; a maze of lights and sound unique to every visitor.
3 A cramped space with a few old couches and a fridge at the bottom of a stairwell. There was supposed to
be another floor here, but it was never built. Special acoustics in the walls mean that no sound passes up
or down the stairwell.
4 A small labyrinth of unused maintenance rooms and crawlspaces. Why are there so many enormous,
incredibly unsafe exhaust fans?
5 A cramped room full of screens and consoles inside the hollow head of an enormous corporate mascot.
6 An unlisted floor that can only be accessed with the assistance of the building's BellBot, a cunning (but
buggy) virtual elevator assistant.
7 A secret sculpture garden that gets stranger and more surreal as local artists add new creations: hot-
plasma sculptures, self-building statues, VR dancefloors and more.
8 An "empty space"—a room that is entirely unwired and off the grid; a black box to any sensors.
9 A hidden bar run secretly by the local community, who only accept barter and community service as
payment.
10 A small shrine, tucked away just out of sight and sheltered from the nearby noise. The specially adapted
plants around it react to changes in the light, alternating between hiding the shrine and revealing it to
visitors.

1D10 LOCATION 1D10 AMBIENCE (CHOOSE 1-3)

1 Underneath a busy mall. 1 Peaceful, solemn, sad.
2 Plastered up behind a garish façade. 2 Charming, fun, relaxing.
3 Deep in one of Grand Cross's panels, accessible only 3 Dangerous, loud, fragile.
through one maintenance hatch.
4 Mysterious, creepy, weird.
4 Through a hedge in a luminescent indoor garden.
5 Private, isolated, safe.
5 Hidden behind Ye Olde Shoppe, an obnoxiously loud pop-
6 Rough, incomplete, uncomfortable.
up shop that sells cartoonish medieval feastware.
7 Special, shared, comforting.
6 In an artificial canopy strung between three skyscrapers.
8 Inspiring, thrilling, malleable.
7 In an otherwise nondescript office building.
9 Imposing, forbidden, confusing.
8 In the heart of a delayed construction project.
10 Temporary, ramshackle, decaying.
9 At an address listed as "Old Ron's Noodles (Corporate)."
10 On the very edge of a new technology park.

394
Random Access
Index
A D O

Random Access
Abilities 22 Defenses 23 Occupations 61-75
Advancement 61, 324 Difficulties 20 Fixer 62-63
Advantage 21 Disadvantage 21 Hacker 64-65
Actions Double Crossers 110, 129, 272 Influencer 66-67
Acquire Asset 50 Dreamers 132-3, 300-9, 362-81 Operator 68-69
Attack 45 Soldier 70-71
Hacking 41 E Street Fighter 72-73
Prep 50 Earth 134 Thief 74-75
Simple 33 Economic Shock 54
Offworld Cartel see Corporations
Social 36
Origins 26-27
Stealth 38 F
Fighting see Combat
Androids 122-125 P
First Occupation 24
Arenas 44 Personal Goal 25, 324
Assets 79-90 Plot Hooks 341-351
G
Armor 84 Prep 50-52, 318
Gig Economy Apps 56-57
Assets everyone has 80 RoofDash see Gig Work Apps
Goal see Personal Goal
Combining 81
Grand Cross Station 16-17, 102-105
Creating 80 S
Drones 86-87 Sample PCs 328-340
H
Hacking 85 Saves 21
Hacking 40-43
Housing 80 Singularists 127, 260-265, 343
Harm 21
Locations 83 Specialties 30-31
Headpattr see Gig Work Apps
Programs 85 Stacking mechanics 21
Housing 80, 129
Usables 81-83 Stealth 38-39
Huntr see Gig Work Apps
Weapons 88-90 Support and Safety Tools 312-313
Wearables 84
I T
Augments 91-99, 120-121 Initiative 34
Tables 382
Augverts 98-99
Talents
Combining 97 L Generic 76-77
Common 93-95 L4 Disaster 130-131, 273, 343-344
Occupation see Occupations
Cosmetic 92
Unlock requirements 61
Creating 97 M
Full-body prosthetics 28, 92 Milestones see Advancement The Terabyte Boys 352-361
Medical 92 Missions 50-52, 317-319 Traits 28-29
Restricted and illegal 96-97
N V
New Barons 267, 342
B Values 111
NPCs
Backers 394-395
Corporate 246-251
Boost 21
Creating 320-323
Burden 53-55, 319
Criminal 252-259
Crossers 274-299
C Dreamer 367-369, 372-377,
Cash 55, 319
379-381
Character creation 22-25
Earth/Orbit Activism 266-268
Combat 44-49
Organized Labor 269-280
Communities 58-59
Other Factions 271-273
Corporations 126-127, 230-245
Singularist 262-264
Creating Opponents 322-323
Criticals 21
Cybernetics see Augments

395
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Beltrami, Luca C., Lucas Mannell, Lucida "AMoose" Celes, lucy Hoffman, Shannon Whitecliff, Shas'O Faiz, Shaveneowk, Shawn
valk quill, Ludo, Luigi Renna, Luke Maciak, Luke Rule, Luke Spry, Christopher, Shervyn, Shinjipaper, Shorty, silentblackcat, Simon
lunartaxi, Lupus Yonderboy, Lynne, Lynnea Glasser, Lyrai, M. Gough, Skye, Skye Morlan, Sligsixty, Sloan "Гром" Vera, Smollusk,
Dougherty, M&C Limited, macksting, Mads. H.-A., Maia S, Maie Snow McNally, Socratease, Solana, Sophie Orta, Soso Tsundere,
Shallcrass, Malcolm Lee, Malcolm SW Wilson, Mallumet, spacekatia, spacht, Sperry, Sphinx of Black Quartz, Spike
Manbearcat, Mara Gebert, Marc Lummis, Marc MILEUR LE Mcclane, SpitefulFox, Stefano Monachesi, Stephane Boyer,
PLAINE, Maria Luna Celeste, mark argent, Mark Brereton, Mark Stéphane Huart, Stephanie Mason, Stephen M Accetta, Stephen
Buckley, Mark Erit Marchani, Mark Green, Mark Parker, Mark Rich, Marsh, Steve Streza, Steven Berg, Steven Castañeda, Steven
Mark Smith, Mark Solino, Mark Wood, Marley's Ghost, Martin DeVito, Steven Junker, Steven Morris, Steven Savage, Steven
Greening, Mason "NCPtarmigan" Kortz, Matt Borgard, Matt F., Whitehead, Stew "Danger" Wilson, Stuart W Ford, Stylo,
Matt Metford, Matt Penn, Matt Wetherbee, Matteo Signorini, Subjunctive, Sven "DrMcCoy" Hesse, Sylvia Viridian, Synthezoiid,
Matthew Edwards, Matthew Knighton, Matthew Lee Myers, Tako, Talen Lee, Talkos, Tao Neuendorffer, Taraflops, Tarislan,
Matthew Lind, Matthew Martin, Matthew Mitchell, Matthew Vilter, Tatyana Araujo, Taylor Cooper, Taylor LaBresh, Teftuft, Teknogrot,
Matthew Yates, Max Brunner, Max Hutchings, Max Ossie, Max Telefunk, Temujinzen, Terence 'GenoFoxx' Ford, Terrance C.,
Randhahn, Max Woerner Chase, Mayabotics, McGravin, Megan Thaddeus Strange, Thalia Avenue Violetpyre, thatbastardken, The
"Nezumi" Grieve, Megan Brandewie, Mellori, Melody Haren Bearded Vegan, The Bumbles, THE Donnie, The JustinBot, The
Anderson, Melody Smith, Melody Watson, Mental-Mouse, Merle Meteora System, The Rostler Family, The Sunshine System, The
Blue, Merry Crystal, Michael Beck, Michael Bowman, Michael C. Wizard Burke, The Wretched Beast, TheFightingDoll, Thom
Maroon, Michael Crowley, Michael D, Michael Gutsche, Michael Shartle, Thomas Burlett, Thomas Irving, Thomas Pandich,
Schultz, Michael Steel, Michael Van Vleet, Mika Hakonen, Thomas Shey, Tilly Smith, Tim D., Timolution, Timothy Josif, Tobi
Mikailos, Mike, Mike "Laz" MacMartin, Mike T, Mikko Parviainen, Lukefisher, Tobias Mcnabb, Todd Stephens, Tom Androy, Tom
Mildra The Monk, Mina McJanda, Mini Sanders, Minttu Tabbert, Bowers, Tom Bowman, Tom Fowler, Tom Hatfield, Tom P., Tom
Minty Belmont, Miriam Lilith Mircalla, Misty F, ModeWondershot, Sherlock, Tommi Koivula, Tommy Fix, Tonyd, Toryanse, Tracy
Mohn Jadden, Molly Landgraff, Morgan, Morgan Gate-Leven, Graham, Trafficone, Traveler Farlander, tree, Tricky, Trillian Marks,
Morgan Weeks, MostStrange, Mr. & Mrs. Emberflare, Mr. Tambo, Trip Space-Parasite, Tristan J. Tarwater, Trivia Fox, Tucker Lemos,
muffinista, Mx. Reese, Naryan Dahlstrom, Nash J. DeVita, Natalie Tumble, Tuomas Riekkinen, Tuomas Ristimäki, Tyler Crumrine,
R, Nate Ng, Nate Twehues, Nathan "Zender" Rolph, Nathan Tyler Waugh, Tyto, UncleSpun, UnderscoreThyme, Unseelie,
Blades, Nathaniel Southworth-Barlow, nea, Ned Damon, Neil Valha Hazred, Van Jesse Webster, Vel Mini, Vera Vartanian,
Coles, Nemo Armistice Hana, Nethlain, Nevyn Holmes, Niall Veronikis Spyros, Vesp, Victoria Hyde, Victoria Luna Brennan
O’Donnell, Nicholas Green, Nick Bower, Nick Cadigan, Nick Duff, Grieve, Vidney Tuesday, Viewers Like You!, Vincent Berry, Violet
Nicola Urbinati, Nicolas Voss, nikink, Nineboat, NinjaDebugger, Hargrave, violethiccup, Viveka Nylund, W.H. Arthur, Wade Overly,
NinJasmine, nitsuabo, Nora Reed, NOT Miami Mike — I Wafflefrog, Waning Gibbous Games, warfspider, weakmint,
remember what you did to me at DragonCon, Odin Helder, Wendy Davis-Richards, Wes, Wil Waring, Wilder Von Schonfeldt,
ohnoitsadalek, OhThatRaptor, Oisin Duffy, Olivia W', Omari L. Will Cameron, Will Hochella, Will Lamming, Will Scotland, William
Brooks, ONM, Osmina Deveraux, P, P.K. Sharp-Garcia, Pat Getty, Willow Wysp, Winson Paine, Wishsong, Wren, wxcafe,
Murphy, Patrice Mermoud, Patrick "DoorlessSword" Lindley, Xhupi, Yaldo Hans, YamiB., Yuu Gamon, Yves L. Jardin-Noam,
Patrick Ley, Patrick Mastrobuono, Patrik Andersson, Patryk Yvonmukluk, Zach Sylvain, Zach Williams, Zachary Frederickson,
Adamski 'Ruemere', Paul Arezina, Paul Poppleton, Paul Sharpe, Zachary Pollak, Zara Storm, Zeb Berryman, Zemi, zer0skill, Zoe
Pavel Ojeda, Paxte, Pepper, Perry, Peter Holland, Peter L Ward, Carson, Zoey White, Zw3rv3r, and 125 chittering goblins.
Peter Wallis, Esq, Petter Wäss, Phil Ames, Phil Binkowski, Phil
Corpuz, Phil McDuff, Phil McGregor, Philip Reed, Phillip Miller,

397
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Character Sheet Activate items.

Ignore Harm penalties

for 1 action.
Grand Cross Multvipass

Name Reduce damage taken by

Burden Cash Prep 1 Harm per Prep spent.
[53] [55] [50]

Handle Occupations [61-75]

Pronouns
Talents

Player Portrait
Expiry Date: 01/01/2021

0 +1 +2 +3 Defense

Cool
Clever
Tough
Quick
Origin [26]

Traits [28]

App [56]
Assets [79]

Specialities +1 +2 +3

Augmentations [91]

Harm [46] Notes

1 Minor Injury No effect

2 Minor Injury No effect

3 Harm -1 to all rolls

4 Harm -1 to all rolls

-1 die to
5 Serious Injury all rolls
6 Incapacitated Taken out