Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[The Adversary]

"To feel is to be alive, and to be alive is to feel! Enhance your life today with new NeuroDex NC-Shunt, now with a 42% reduction in migraine headaches and dendrite necrosis as compared to the next leading brand, all with a 13% increase in emotion stimulation! Feel what you've been missing, feel alive!" -NeuroDex advert


Making things better for less effort has been the driving goal of technology since, well, since man started trying to harness fire. If you really think about it, everything we have ever done falls into one of two categories: an endeavor of power, or an endeavor of laziness. While the crowning achievement in that great effort isn't even old enough to drink yet, the seeds were first set in the 1950s when a group of scientists wired electrodes into the pleasure centers of a rat brain, and those seeds began to grow deep within the earth in the 1970s when the experiments were replicated with humans. Simple idea: stick a wire in part of the monkey brain that makes the monkey brain light up nicely, then charge the wire. Monkey hoots in excitement. Press the button more, monkey hoots more. Everybody loves to shock the monkey. Fuck you, Peter Gabriel, you prescient dead bastard.

When the first Civ models came out for neuro-stimulators, 2050-ish (I was in prison at the time, so my facts are a bit fuzzy), all sorts of hullabaloo went up. Not surprising, considering that all earlier studies showed that people and rats would both rather press the pleasure button than eat, drink, screw, or shoot heroin. One supreme court case later, emotion stimulation through artificial means was made illegal, but one little provision was made: emotion augmentation was still totally legal. Talk about closing a mousehole and opening the barn door. Didn't take long for the products to roll out, all designed to enhance some naturally occurring feelings and minimize others. Got some damn good press; plummeting suicide rates, artificially induced resting states for recovery patients, natural adrenal doping for improved athletic performance, miracle weight loss through altered dopamine rewards. You'd have though Jesus came down from heaven with free hookers and an open bar pass for all the fuss people were making. You want broccoli to give you the same level of pleasure rush as tearing into a juicy steak? You got it! You want to be able to genuinely laugh at the same three shitty jokes your step-brother cracks every fucking thanksgiving? No problem. You want the sloppy, sweaty, overweight, five minute sex you have with your girlfriend to feel like you're banging God's prettier sister on a cloud made from cocaine and satisfaction? Done, just make sure to wear those rubbers boys and girls!

Disgusting.

If I'm being honest, it really didn't matter much to me at first. Stupid people do stupid things. Stupid people with more cash than sense do REALLY stupid things. I was solidly part of the underclass when I got out of prison, and I joined the underworks in laughing at those stuck-up pricks with wires in their eyes drooling with pleasure because they just huffed a kitten with their enhancer turned up to eleven. Looked pretty goddamn stupid, and it just made them dumber, slower, and way easier to rob. Thing is, the damn units started to get cheap, cheap enough that even scum of the earth like me and mine could buy low end models. That's when shit got bad. I had a friend with a bit of a meth habit. Man had scabs and sores, teeth like a goddamn nightmare, and the kind of twitches you usually only see on taser victims. He was also goddamn funny, a solid friend when he wasn't jonesing for a hit, and a decent human being underneath the  scars his father gave him life that he'd let crush him. He gave up the meth habit after he bought the Model S from NeuroDex. He said he didn't need it anymore. Little while after that he gave up his talking habit. Guess that was getting in the way of his time with his rig.  His sister found him about a week after that, rig engaged and his hand down his sweats. Judging by the way he'd looked, his eating and breathing habit had been getting in the way of his jollies too.

Still, time marches on, and her casualties get ground to dust beneath the jackboot of progress. Maybe people would have thrown more of a fuss, but throwing a fuss is unpleasant, being afraid is unpleasant, getting angry is only pleasant when you don't have to actually do or change anything. Better to not let those unpleasant emotions bother you too much, right? E-enhancers were everywhere. Companies paid millions to get the right blends to keep their employees at the optimal levels of active, alert, and satisfied. Politicians... goddamn politicians. Before I became... whatever it is I am now- criminal, revolutionary, terrorist, FuckIfIKnow- I went to a political debate. It was like a goddamn dream, a nightmare of everything I'd joked about and derided in highschool about pigs and sheeple. One speaker took the stage, pyrotechnics flared, people screamed in ecstatic awe. He spoke, patriotic music swelling behind him, each note exquisitely planned. Christ, I'd never been jacked in and I felt like a rousing surge of pride at that music. There aren't words to describe the reactions of the others. They frothed at the mouth, they screamed, they clawed at the air and chanted.  When the speaker stopped and the hush came, they slowed and came to a stupefied halt, glassy eyed and drooling as their overloaded bodies finally came to rest.  Then the next speaker took the stage. Another burst of pyrotechnics. Another euphoric surge. Another surge of patriotic music to accompany meaningless words. I saw a woman scream until blood flecked her lips.

The men and women on stage could have been make airplane noises with their lips and they would have gotten the same effect. They weren't competing based on policy, they were competing to see who could invoke the most emotion, whose music had the best sub-hypnotics embedded. That was the day I decided this had to end. That I had to do something. Yeah, freedom is freedom, people have the right to choose how they live and all that bullshit, but there are times when a man needs to take a stand for what he believes in. I'm a pretty shitty man to make that statement, once a convict, now a murderer, arsonist, and terrorist, but I cannot stand by. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is all well and good, but people have more than a right, they have a goddamn need to be unhappy sometimes.


You're in 2070s America, a point in time where Emotion Modification technology has reached a critical point. By and large, the public is accepting of the technology, and its use is prevalent everywhere from schools, to drug-dens, to military strike teams. It doesn't create feelings, but it can either enhance or suppress any existing emotions.

As to who you are, you're just an every joe or jane. Perhaps you're a salary man eeking out his bit of blood from the corporate stone, perhaps you're a neon goth partying away daddy's money with glowstix and blood, perhaps you're a student trying to find your place in this brave new world. It doesn't particularly matter, just show some thought.

As far the cyberpunk goes, be reasonable with what you have, but have a little fun defining yourself.

Your appearance, personality, and bio will determine your stats and any special abilities, so do be aware.

If you're struggling to figure out what goal these characters will be striving towards, that's fine. They'll figure that out pretty quickly, or die. Just focus on making fun people.

Spoiler:  Character 'Sheet' (click to show/hide)

Name:
Description:
Bio:

Spoiler: FAQ (click to show/hide)

Q: Who... are you?

A: No one of consequence.

Q: Will there be combat? With mechs and explosions and lasers, and shit?

A: Yes. Probably. I mean, combat with shit is kinda weird. Don't bring shit to a laser mech fight, or, if you do, prepare to get wiped.

Q: OH GOD, THE BLOCK OF TEXT HAS CRUSHED ME... PLEASE... HELP...

A:  You didn't phrase that in the form of a question, so I'm going to ignore it.

Q: Uh, what is the storyline? I'm kinda confused. Also, is the guy in the beginning supposed to be a good guy, because he doesn't seem like a great guy either...

A: All will become clear as the game progresses. Unless it doesn't, in which case all will become murkier as the game progresses.

Q: Is there any point to this FAQ?

A: It amused me briefly. Hopefully your life will manage to achieve as much.

[NRDL]

Name: Jim Nix
Description: Short, very stocky, with a messy brown mullet. 
Bio: A hard working but unambitious man since the day he was born, Jim wanted nothing more than to make a living, have a family, enjoy life as simply as possible.  Manual labour was his forte, working in construction, logging, mining, anything requiring a hell of a lot of elbow grease and a solid disposition.  When emotional adjustment started springing up, he immediately became wary, seeing it as unnecessary and reprehensible intrusion into what was previously a steady, honest existence.

[_DivideByZero_]

Been waiting for something like this.

EDIT: Actually, I came up with a better idea (IMO).

Spoiler: New Character. (click to show/hide)

Name: Akira Nagamoto (Real name: Rika Holmgren)
Description: A 20 year old, 5'2" Swedish-American girl who worked as a singer and model. He has scars along her wrists and typically wears a long-sleeved hoodie and shorts with sneakers. Her shoes and watch have Strike Spikes on them.
Bio: x For years, anime and Japanese culture bloomed along the US West Coast, but out of all the industries hit hardest by the advent of E-enhancer technology, it had to be American J-Pop.

Akira, once an icon of West-Coast culture, saw her sales decline as the demand for a strong singing voice and good looks plummeted. Performance no longer mattered as the audience would buy literally anything. She hopped from studio to studio, taking jobs at lower and lower wages, but she eventually found herself replaced altogether by robot voices and cheap CGI. She was out of a job.

With no skills to speak of, she turned to the streets and alternated between fan's houses for meals. But as her followers dwindled in number, she needed other means to make ends meet. Akira started mugging hapless Pokemon GO players among others, collecting just enough to get by. Her weapon of choice: a stun gun and flashlight she found in a woman's purse, along with strike spikes and razor blades.

Spoiler: EDIT: Old character (click to show/hide)

Name: Rika Holmgren
Description: A A 5'2" 21-year old girl who is always in a fit of coughing, or shivering, and doesn't seem to mind. Wears (silver-dyed) loose side-braids and has (natural) blue eyes. Currently enrolled in a Master's program at a nearby university, studying Neurocomputing.
Bio: Rika was always rather eccentric. Growing up in a Swedish family turned Japanese citizens, she grew to be reclusive and refused to step outside the house, except when there was snow (she had an unhealthy fascination with the cold after almost dying of hypothermia in Hokkaido). Her mom quit her job at a software firm to homeschool Rika, and her dad developed heart problems and died in the mid-2070's while Rika was meant to be in High School.
During this time, E-enhancers became incredibly popular in the United States, and her mother thought that maybe, just maybe, this technology could help Rika enjoy being outside the house. And so the family settled in [CITY THIS TAKES PLACE IN], where Rika's mother got a small job programming neuro-stim presets and using Rika as a sort of willing test subject. It worked. Rika began getting out of the house, and even went to university two years early, but she found herself increasingly distanced from other students who didn't really take learning seriously. Rika enjoyed studying for its own sake, but most of the students were heavy Stimmers who'd rather go out and party if it weren't for the dopamine.

It was wrong. It was unfair. Real students like Rika didn't get the recognition they deserved, because all one needs to do now to succeed in life is purchase a study rig and be a puppet. It was disgusting. And most of all, she hated herself for relying on the tech so much. She thought about freezing to death in an industrial freezer once, but couldn't bring herself to do it. But her fascination with slow, painful death stuck, and she often fantasizes about people dying, though she could never really imagine taking a life herself.

[hector13]

Name: Ernest Quinn
Description: Athletic man of average height, short black hair
Bio:Ernest's grew up with a father that provided a perfect example. A perfect example of what Ernest didn't want to be: hard drinking, heavy partying, unemployed criminal wastrel. Heck, if you're going to rob people at least put some thought into it, pops.

He presently works as rent-a-cop security at a shopping mall. If daddy taught him anything, the easiest scores were to be had by those who had everything to lose by fighting back. Forgetful little old ladies, soccer moms and pathetic petty thieves were easy money.

Hey, even if somebody did have the intestinal fortitude to tell on him, who are the cops gonna believe? The scumbag that tried to steal a hundred bucks worth of kids underwear, or the rent-a-cop eking out a hard living stopping these "scumbags"?

Even so, Ernest finds this life is getting less and less fulfilling as time goes on. He wants- no, needs more excitement in his life. Bigger scores, maybe even bigger risks. Maybe this emotional augmentation racket has something to it...

Edited a bit in, need to get the "asshole" across

[crazyabe]

PTW

[vishdafish]

Name: Jamie Walters
Description: A tall, strong man with sinewy muscles and a lean figure. He has short, black hair in a crewcut and pale, blue eyes.  (6foot3 and is 30 years old)
Bio: Jamie was a high-school dropout and general thug. His parents, unhappy with his academic progress, kicked him out of the house. Alone with no money and no skills to speak of, Jamie joined the local gang.

There he excelled, putting his toned physique and cunning to good use. After he was sent on a mission to fight with a rival gang, Jamie discovered a military E-enhancer, unavailable to the civilian market, that was in the process of being smuggled to god-knows-where. Jamie slipped it in his pocket before anyone found out about it. Later that week, he went to a back-alley surgeon who, fortunately, installed the E-enhancer without any problems.

Making use of his augmented abilites, Jamie quickly rose up the ranks. By 10 years, he was made the "Big Boss" of [city]. Unfortunately, after the 2069 crackdown on gangs, most of his gang was destroyed. Left with his "inner circle", his most trusted and hardened members, Jamie vows to take revenge on the government for the killings of his comrades.

[TheBiggerFish]

[sheet incoming, eventually]

[spümpkin]

Spoiler: Ocean Mei (click to show/hide)

Name: Liola Stone
Description: A short, chubby, lightly tanned woman with hair that is long enough to reach her tailbone, but is usually tied up in a bun. It starts as green at her forehead, but slowly gradients down to a light blue at the back. She wears large, square glasses most of the time, but will switch to a round, smaller pair in formal situations. She is somewhat curvy, but her chubbiness somewhat contributes to that. Her face is plump, and her teeth are large, yet straight. She is quite the optimist, but troubles can be somewhat devastating to her resolve. She is also somewhat introverted, preferring animals to humans. They're a lot less stressful.
Bio:
Liola was born to two english parents, who had recently been transferred to Hawaii to work as representatives for travel agencies. It was meant to be a temporary job, but they decided they liked it, and settled down.

A few years after her birth, her father passed away.

She and her mother felt the full effects of this, and Liola was homeschooled after that, due to her mother's newfound paranoia. She learnt a lot at home, and soon went to a public high school, excelling in most subjects. She was quite a natural learner, and had a particular passion for marine life. However, spending years at home meant she rarely got an oppurtunity to practice physical abilities, and suffered in school due to that.

She moved out of Hawaii eventually, and started researching marine life, in the field. It was everything she had hoped for, and more. Australia was a great place for snorkelling. But, sadly, her mother passed, and she was distraught. She dabbled in E-Enhancers, but she felt guilty, for not properly moving on. After giving her mother a proper funeral, Liola strengthened her resolve, and continued doing what she loved. She was, however, quite pleased with the advances in scientific technology, such as advanced snorkelling systems, and personal submarines.

She is now 24, and sees something wrong with the world. All these people, using false happiness to continue after problems... It's sad. They need to face their problems, and use them as stepping stones to becoming a better person. It will be hard, but she's always been determined to make a difference.

[Pencil_Art]

Spoiler: WIP (click to show/hide)

Name: Henry Watson
Description: A rather tall, unassuming man with grey hair usually tied into a ponytail and grey stubble covering his chin. His hazel eyes have a strange, piercing quality and his fingers fidget constantly.
Bio: Henry Watson enrolled into the nearby University of Emotion Science, a more modern place of learning focused on exploiting the technology of emotion modifiers and regularly spawning new and more effective models and pioneers in the industry. Henry was accepted into a emotion modifier company's R&D department after studying for 7 years, and

[SOLDIER First]

ptw

[The Adversary]

Akira (Though I actually liked the old one a little better, to be honest), Ernest, and Jamie are in. The fourth, well, we'll see about that when I get finished writing up the turn.

[Playergamer]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Adam Jones
Description: A 20-something college student, with brown hair, blue eyes, and dark stubble on his chin.
Bio: Adam was a poor kid in the South Bronx. He went to school everyday, aware that he was a black sheep among his colleagues. One of the handful of white kids in his neighborhood, Adam spent most of his time just trying to stay out of trouble. He had a knack for electrical work, and spent most of his time tinkering with whatever he could get his hands on.

The augmental revolution stayed away from the poor, at least when it started. As the technology advanced, however, the poor dregs of society were able to buy junk augs on the cheap. He watched as the richer kids at his school started getting their hands on these things. They turned into drooling zombies, without fulfillment or need. It was, needless to say, a little terrifying.

Adam managed to grab a merit scholarship, and head off to a renowned technical school to study electrical engineering. After high-school, he avoided augs wherever he could, determined that he wouldn't turn into one of those zombies. Now, he and his small un-augmented clique are looking into the E-Enhancers, determined to find a way to save people from themselves.

[_DivideByZero_]

Akira (Though I actually liked the old one a little better, to be honest), Ernest, and Jamie are in. The fourth, well, we'll see about that when I get finished writing up the turn.

How much better, like, slightly or much better? I have the old sheet still, I save all my RTD characters.

[The Adversary]

Akira (Though I actually liked the old one a little better, to be honest), Ernest, and Jamie are in. The fourth, well, we'll see about that when I get finished writing up the turn.

How much better, like, slightly or much better? I have the old sheet still, I save all my RTD characters.

Like it would have been nice to have a character who could show the things that go right with E-enhancers, but Akira is already statted up, and I'd rather have happy players.

[Ardent Debater]

PTW