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[Wayward Device]

So, I let my last game die. Life, etc. There should be a template. Anyway, its time for another. I'll be accepting 5 players, first come first served.

The Game

As those of you who compulsively ponder thread titles before clicking will have already deduced, this is a game set in the Early Digital Age, specifically in the year 2029, in a universe that is on the surface not to dissimilar to our own, just with better broadband, simple commercial exoskeletons and ridiculously expensive hand lasers, a larger population, decreased arable land and much more violent weather. Oh, Brazil, the U.S.A and the P.R.C, the three superpowers of the day, are engaged in the third year of a multinational occupation of North Korea. Apart from all that, things aren't too unrecognizable, corporations still have to much power, people still oppose it. Famines and other disasters still fuck peoples shit up, people still send aid.

So, that's your basic setting right there. I'm not going give to much away about what will actually be happening in the game and you will pretty much free to do whatever. That said, at the start various events will already be in motion. How you react to them is entirely up to you. Oh, I should mention that this is going to be pretty dark and death will come easily. If someone stabs you in the chest with a broken bottle you're not going to lose 2d6 hitpoints, you're going to lose a lung.

Character Creation

 If you want to join me using these sigils which simultaneously represent a conjunction of highly specific yet nebulous sounds and, when joined together, almost all the ideas we are capable of comprehending, using them to tear a portal in the very barrier between realities, to journey the universe described above, which definitely exists somewhere according to !!SCIENCE!!, strictly for our entertainment, then I demand a hefty price: a description of the character you wish to play.

You can be pretty much anybody who would exist in alternate 2029. The only cast iron requirement is that you must have had, like this feeling, for a really long time, that something is very, very wrong with the world and has been for a while. You may also have recurring dreams, show symptoms of xenoglossia, feel isolated from those around you, make lightbulbs explode when you are angry or have, like this weird knack for finding things. And nightmares. You definitely have those, no matter how much you try to block it out with booze or drugs or religion or work. You also wish you knew why. 

So, tell me:

Your name: Durr, of course. Tell me any nicknames as well.

Age: In numbers please.

Gender: M/F/Somewhere inbetween

Occupation: What do you do and stuff. Are you employed? Got cash?

Location: Where are you? Do you live there? Tell me!

Stats: Yay stats! Gotta define stuff with numbers, "pretty strong" and "kinda weak willed, I guess" will not do it.

Strength:
Dexterity:
Constitution:
Intelligence:
Will:
Charisma:

I don't think I have to explain these. The scale will be:

5-very weak, stupid, slow etc, 10- an average human, 15-peak fitness, genius level IQ etc, 20- superhuman.

anything above 15 is pretty exceptional, as an example if Steven Hawking appeared as an npc he might have 17 Intelligence, 14 Will and 1 Dexterity.

I leave it up to you to define your character with these numbers, don't go nuts with the powergaming but feel free to have you character be exceptional in some ways if you want to. Just don't forget to throw in some flaws too. I'll tell you if its too much.

Skills:

Tell me the skills your character has, whatever they are. I'll be using 2d6 to resolve all rollworthy stuff and the skill scale will be as follows:

+1: You have some basic skill
+2: You have some skill and experience
+3: You are a master of whatever this skill is
+4: Not only are you a master, but you are truly exceptional (see Bruce Lee, Richard Feynman, that dude who freeclimbs skyscrapers for fun)
+5: Superhuman.

And Finally

 So, if you want some adventure set in the not to distant future with the possibility of horrible things worse than death, please apply.

Accepted Characters

Zanzetkuken- James G. "Zanzetkuken" Elrod

Evil Marahadja- Lars Olofsson 

Slots still open: 3

Waitlist
jaass- John S. Shane
Hailfire
Deep Waters     

[HailFire]

This looks awesome, why no posts?

Working on a character to be posted if I can finish it before slots are filled, PTW otherwise.

[Wayward Device]

This looks awesome, why no posts?

Working on a character to be posted if I can finish it before slots are filled, PTW otherwise.

Thanks! I've been wondering about the lack of interest myself, I decided to avoid going bump crazy and just see how things turn out. Anyway, seeing as yours is the first reply after nearly three days, I reckon you should be ok getting your character in there before all slots are filled . Hopefully there'll be some more interest in the thread and we can get this show on the road.

[10ebbor10]

Working on a character, probably.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

Here is my character. I got the name from this site.  I made a couple changes to the sheet to better differentiate some things.  (added a place for the nickname, split up skills into two categories, ect.)

Spoiler: Character (click to show/hide)

Your name: James G. Elrod

Nickname: Zanzetkuken

Age: 33

Gender: M

Occupation: Computer programmer

Salary: $92348 per year

Location: St. Louis, Missouri

Stats
Strength:7
Dexterity:12
Constitution:11
Intelligence:15
Will:9
Charisma:6

Non-Combat Skills
Programming (3)
Physicist (3)
Camouflaging (2)
Tracking (2)
Carpentry (2)
Metalworking (2)
Mechanics (2)

Combat Skills:
Swordsmanship (2)
Self-defense (2)
Marksmanship (1)

Other Knowledge
Mathematics (3)
Electronics Construction (2)
Architecture (2)
Military History (1)
Aerodynamics (1)

Power
Aura Shielding (2)


Personality Flaws
Obsesses over one thing for a varying period of time.
Mildly Isolationist.
Major Arachnophobia.
Somewhat High Level of Paranoia. (see biography)

Patents
"Dwarf" AI coding
USB-AI port adapter
Portable high compression AI drive

Biography
He was born in 1996 in a rural area around Billings, Montana.  He learned many of his skills from his father in childhood, and with his father's help, rebuilt an old car from 1972 for his use.  He developed interests in computer programming and physics in college, and got majors in both.  He began his own company, which was absorbed by another known as Kilosoft.  He did not retain his job, and became a freelance programmer.  He was eventually contacted by a suspicious character who claimed to be from an unknown division of a company competing against Kilosoft.  That person wanted an encryption software made, and Elrod, needing the money, made the software.  He was mildly suprised when he was paid fifty grand for it, but he eventually forgot about it when that company failed later in the year.  Sometime thereafter, a government agent wanted to speak to him.  It turned out that the company was a front, and Elrod's encryption was given to an organization that was a freelance splinter cell of another power's intelligence division of the military.  Elrod gave the de-encryption software to the government and had his identity changed so that the cell could not track him.  However, they are getting close to finding him.

Spoiler: Supplies (click to show/hide)

House:
Medium-sized apartment with secret escape exits.

Current Cash:
$12,548 in gold (hidden)
$245 on hand

Weapons and Armor:
One long sword
Three electrified daggers
One Steel Breastplate (1/2 of Kevlar below plating)
Steel Greaves/Leggings (1/2 of Kevlar below plating)
Steel Helm (1/2 of Kevlar below plating)
Steel High boots
One .35 caliber pistol

Vehicle:
1972 Gran Torino with a full car bug sweeper, bullet-proof glass, and titanium alloy plating under the steel body of the car.

Technology:
"Dwarf" AI  (finished personal project)
4.2 GHtz, 32gb ram, 3 5.0 usb ports, 2tb electronic storage drive custom laptop computer w/ dwarf fortress v.0.78(?), a Indie being made by Elrod, and some custom programs
USB-AI adapter

At Work:
Combat AI for S.P.A.R.T.A.N. (Prototype)
1 1/2 inch Kevlar full body suit with titanium plating, S.P.A.R.T.A.N.(prototype)
Holographic disguise device (Prototype)

Other:
Assorted Food
Assorted Drink
Customized gym bag to fit armor, blades, laptop, etc. in hidden compartment
Family Heirloom-diamond in this shape:
/\
l l
\/

Spoiler: Dwarf AI (click to show/hide)

Emergent Behavior(1)
Devious (1)
+1 to Friendship with  James G. Elrod
+1 to Steam Engineering

Spoiler: S.p.a.r.t.a.n. AI (click to show/hide)

+1 to Intuitive User Adaptation
-1 to attempts to program overrides.

[Wayward Device]

Ok, Zanzetkuken, that looks ok for the stats, skills and other miscellaneous stuff. I will need a little bit more info in some areas (sorry for not specifying that in the first post). Basically, I need some stuff about who your character is, what their life is like. Nothing like pages and pages of biography, just a little something about how they got where they are. As an example, just looking at the skills and stats I see a whole little story there already. Smart, takes care of himself (martial arts of some kind clearly, maybe with a hobby of making his own swords as well (the metalurgy)) but not exactly a bodybuilder. Not brilliant socially either, but he gets by (charisma and will). The Architecture had me thrown for a minute, it's pretty high for something that's not his primary profession, until I thought that maybe he worked for a company that specialized in software for automated building systems.

Anyway, I'm not telling you that has to be your character background, that's just what I got from looking your stuff over. But I need a little paragraph of background like the one above (feel free to go nuts if you want to, though).   

Also, I need some flaws. These can be anything, from something relatively minor like insomnia or phobias to, say, visual and auditory hallucinations or meth addiction. At the very least, your character must have "a nagging feeling that something is terribly wrong with the world", or some variation.

EDIT: Basically, tell me how this feeling manifests itself in your characters, whether its something they do to block it out (OCD, addiction etc) or  a result of it (very socially withdrawn, politically radical etc). Hope all that's clear. 

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

Ok, Zanzetkuken, that looks ok for the stats, skills and other miscellaneous stuff. I will need a little bit more info in some areas (sorry for not specifying that in the first post). Basically, I need some stuff about who your character is, what their life is like. Nothing like pages and pages of biography, just a little something about how they got where they are. As an example, just looking at the skills and stats I see a whole little story there already. Smart, takes care of himself (martial arts of some kind clearly, maybe with a hobby of making his own swords as well (the metalurgy)) but not exactly a bodybuilder. Not brilliant socially either, but he gets by (charisma and will). The Architecture had me thrown for a minute, it's pretty high for something that's not his primary profession, until I thought that maybe he worked for a company that specialized in software for automated building systems.

Anyway, I'm not telling you that has to be your character background, that's just what I got from looking your stuff over. But I need a little paragraph of background like the one above (feel free to go nuts if you want to, though).   

Also, I need some flaws. These can be anything, from something relatively minor like insomnia or phobias to, say, visual and auditory hallucinations or meth addiction. At the very least, your character must have "a nagging feeling that something is terribly wrong with the world", or some variation.

EDIT: Basically, tell me how this feeling manifests itself in your characters, whether its something they do to block it out (OCD, addiction etc) or  a result of it (very socially withdrawn, politically radical etc). Hope all that's clear. 

Okay, will write those up.

Have written them up.  Tell me if anything needs changing.

[Wayward Device]

Perfect! That will work nicely. A few questions: Is the salary government hide-from-spies money or something else? How much cash to you have in your account/s? As a note for the paranoid, in the not so distant future its easier than ever to hide your cash in various shady online banks operating out of servers floating over the pacific in dirigibles and the like. Just mentioning.

Also, if you want any specific starting equipment other that cash, specify it.

Apart from that you're good to go. Now we just need another 4 and we can get started.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

I am being forced off, so I will have to complete the supplies list tomorrow.  I apologize for any inconvenience caused.

[Wayward Device]

@Zanzetkuken: No inconvenience caused, we're still waiting for a few more people. Well, 4/5 characters still need to be posted, so we've got a little will before things get started. I like that most of your cash is tied up in hidden gold. Gold luck tracing that various people who might mean you harm! Also, as a note on that armor, it might be fairly noticeable in public unless you wear, say, a trenchcoat or other large concealing piece of clothing (a cape will only draw more attention I'm afraid). It will likely provide some protection against low caliber firearms (.22's mostly) and melee attacks but do little against larger rounds. The good news though is that any assassins that don't just use a high caliber sniper rifle to take you out from over a mile away are probably going to be using some form of .22 pistol (because you can actually silence them with a silencer instead of just making a slightly quieter gun). Not that there's assassins after you or anything like that. Honest.   

@Hailfire, 10ebbor10, unspecified persons existing as a quantum field of postchr/don'tpostchr: 4 slots still open, get your characters ready! Paranoia, bar fights with physiologically and psychologically damaged veterans with bionic limbs and other hijinks in the not so distant future!       

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

@Zanzetkuken: No inconvenience caused, we're still waiting for a few more people. Well, 4/5 characters still need to be posted, so we've got a little will before things get started. I like that most of your cash is tied up in hidden gold. Gold luck tracing that various people who might mean you harm! Also, as a note on that armor, it might be fairly noticeable in public unless you wear, say, a trenchcoat or other large concealing piece of clothing (a cape will only draw more attention I'm afraid). It will likely provide some protection against low caliber firearms (.22's mostly) and melee attacks but do little against larger rounds. The good news though is that any assassins that don't just use a high caliber sniper rifle to take you out from over a mile away are probably going to be using some form of .22 pistol (because you can actually silence them with a silencer instead of just making a slightly quieter gun). Not that there's assassins after you or anything like that. Honest.         

I have finished the supplies list.
And you cannot fool the person who wrote the last line of the biography on his character!

[Wayward Device]

K, looked over the finished equipment list, got a few questions 'n stuff. Firstly, the "Dwarf" A.I.: basically, what is it? I can't be larger than a few hundred gigs (2 TB hard drive), so I'm guessing that its not a "real", take out the world/bring the singularity type deal. A learning program designed to pass a dwarf Turing test?

Also, the "at work stuff" and its implications. When the government gave you are a new ID, did they set you up with a new job that you are going to every day or are you still literally in the run? I.e, are those prototypes something you are working on at a company or your profession intellectual property?

Also, a few things on electroknives. Due to years lobbying by the Less-Than-Lethal industry, by 2029 all remaining restrictions, laws and permit requirements pertaining too owning and carrying tasers, pepper spray and incapacitating sonic weapons have been completely removed from those few states that still retained them. One side effect of this is a legal loophole that mean that any bladed weapon less than 12' in length which would be illegal for a number of reasons in various states (length, design, openly carried etc) becomes entirely legal as soon as a device for electrifying the blade is attached. Still, using your weapons in a public place is likely to be a bad idea, the police don't tend to respond well to heavily armored and armed people, especially when they are dressed in Kevlar plate mail.

EDIT: You'll be glad to know that DF v.0.78 finally has a mixed fluids system (pools of blood, booze etc) but still lags like a bitch on even the most high end machines. Because it's still single cored. 

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

-snip-

The "Dwarf" AI is an actual AI on a high-compression device that was developed by Elrod specifically for AI.  The "Dwarf" was the first one to be programmed onto one, and has the personality of a highly-intelligent dwarf fortress dwarf.  The combat AI is on another one of these disks.

Simple explanation.  It's a government job that was part of a deal.  They would change his identity so that he is hidden, in exchange for fifteen years of work.  In second year of the deal, currently.

So, the knives are legal.  I must note that when a hidden button at the bottom of the hilt beneath a false dome is pressed, the electricity becomes hyper-lethal due to increased power.  I wonder what the police would think of something like that?

Sweet, anything else in it?  Should the version number be higher?  (I want Elrod to have the latest version)

[Evil Marahadja]

I am writing up a character at this moment. But two questions;

1. How would you define willpower?

2. How will this game be played? IRC or play by post?

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

I am writing up a character at this moment. But two questions;

1. How would you define willpower?

2. How will this game be played? IRC or play by post?

The GM will probably correct me on this, but I think the answers are:

1) How soon you fall into line of another person's reasoning, or how susceptible you are to torture.
2) Play by post.  If it is IRC, I would have to drop out, since I have dial-up internet.