Mel's Scratchpad
Scene/Arc ideas
- Increased attacks against augments, new grey-market taser-like weapon that specifically damages them.
- Filler: Mocha manages to book the race track she goes on track-days to and The Technosexual staff go for a corporate-getaway.
- Melissa and Zee learn about Thumper's history over a few drinks.
- Filler: The Technosexual calendar is produced.
- Leon's medical implant fails
- Lost enlists Melissa to help him investigate a black market cyborg parts trade... It's Zee. She gets in trouble and a firefight ensues
- Some asshole totally tweaked out on something tries to hold-up the Technosexual, it does not go well... for him.
Character Sidearms
Melissa: FN Five-seveN in 5.7x28mm
Zee: Custom Revolver in .500SW (Likes unconventional rounds)
Rachel: Glock 17 (Full Auto Mod) in 10mm
Leon: 1911 in .45ACP (AP) Vera: Walther PPK/E in 10mm
mavica: Internal Taser Implants for Personal Protection (Dislikes Firearms)
Mocha: H&K USP Match in 10mm
Max: Glock 29 in 10mm
Society and Culture
Social Media Services
Timeline
A Twitter analogue, and just about as bad as the service it represents
Telegram
Long lived, encrpyted messaging service. Funded and operated by an exiled NEEB Oligarch. This doesn't appear to bother its billion or so users...
Discourse
A large and popular net based communications platform, originally targeted at online gaming. Expanded into the realm of business quickly, acquiring competitors along the way. Now the single largest VoIP, conferencing and group chat platform on the planet.
IRC
An approximately 150 year old chat protocol it has been kept up to date by a near fanatic community of developers for it's entire lifetime. It still sees moderate usage amongst nerds, hackers and enthusiasts of all walks. Also pulls double duty as an easy-to-implement communications protocol for software and other services.
NeoChat
A large network of virtual reality hubs and chatrooms, mainly targeted at people with neural interfaces.
However the in-house "NC-VR Suite" is a more traditional HMD and Body Tracking system for non-augments and has proven incredibly popular, and incredibly immersive.
Corporate Entities
Horizon Enterprises
Analogue to Amazon, Global Ultracorp.
Global Logistics, Net services, global warehouse networks.
Conrad Delivery Systems
Analogue to UK delivery contractor "Hermes", EU Corp.
Package delivery and logistics, not very good at it.
Train their workers poorly, pay them even worse.
Audiini
Analogue to Audi and other high-end car manufacturers.
Been around a long time, known for high-performance vehicles.
Tsuyoda
Analogue to Toyota.
Known for reliable and performant consumer vehicles.
Active in Rallying and other Racing events.
Factions
Drugs
Five-Leaf
Analogue for weed, legal across the EU, WR and NWD.
Frowned upon in the Sunrise Empire and NEEB.
Produces a calming and painkilling effect in it's users, consumed through vaporisation of oils or burning of plant matter.
Headrush
Analogue for speed, illegal globally.
Usually Distributed as a pressed pill or disolvable tab.
Crash
Analogue for cocaine, illegal globally.
Distributed as a white powder with a consistency somewhere between salt and flour.
Boost
Analogue for meth, illegal globally (except the NEEB for unknown reasons).
Distributed as a blue crystaline compound.
Tobacco
Tobacco, distributed in oil form for use in vaporisation devices.
Occasionally distributed as dried plant matter and burned in pipes or other devices.
Cigarettes phased out entierly, although sometimes seen in museums.
Alcohol
Drink, Beer, Spirits, Wine, etc.
Alcohol has been around since before the beginnings of society, and will likely outlast it.
Legal everywhere, sold freely on licenced premesis, produces variety of intoxicating effects in organics and most cyborgs with excessive consumption.
Pure examples of alcohol are highly toxic and make very good cleaning and disinfecting solutions.
Overload
A nanosynthetic compound distributed in neural interface injectors, gives cyborgs a distinctive "high".
Excessive usage can cause system malfunctions, dependancy, and damage to organic systems.
Pure organics attempting to use this compound usually die, painfully, within 24 hours of consumption.
Frowned upon in all nations, but not specifically illegal, the law hasn't caught up yet.
"Clocking"
Not specifically a drug, but has a drug-like effect in sufficiently augmented cyborgs.
The act of overclocking augmented components to boost performance at the cost of increased energy consumption and heat output.
Can also be actioned on the bio-neural links connecting organic and cybernetic systems resulting in increased performance of those links at the risk of damaging said organic systems.
Running "Clocked" for too long can cause permanent, irreversible damage to cybernetic and organic systems. Can also cause restlessness, paranoia, erratic and unpredictable behaviour, and brain damage. It can also void component warranties.
Illness
As a society we've not exactly managed to "Cure" much, even in the time between now and the goings on of the comic.
Yes, medicine has got much better, and people struck down by serious ailments are more likely to survive than they ever used to be.
Medical progress is generally controlled by a series of privately and government operated facilities.
Incredibly, one thing we have got, is global universal healthcare.
Having private healthcare does still improve your standards of care though... Of course, with new advances in biotechnology come new issues, some are listed below.
(Sudden onset) Implant Rejection Syndrome [S/IRS]
Class: Autoimmune
Frequency: Rare
Treatment: Pharmaceuticals/Cybernetics
S/IRS is a condition that can befall anyone that has recieved any form of cybernetic augmentation.
It's considered a form of autoimmune disease as it is caused by the host immune system violently and uncontrollably attacking the new cybernetic implants.
The "Sudden" variant is particularly nasty in that it can strike unexpectedly, even if the individual has been augmented for years.
Less common than it used to be, it's still something that has to be considered before augmentation takes place and is monitored for during maintainance checks.
Ironically one of the treatment methods is further cybernetic augmentation to attempt to override the host immune system. Otherwise frequent injections of immuneosuppressing drugs or other chemicals may be required to reduce the impact of the condition.
VirtualReality Lockin Syndrome [VLS]
Class: Mental Health
Frequency: Rare
Treatment: Psychiatry/Pharmaceuticals/Cybernetics
VLS is a strange and poorly understood condition where an individual (often with some form of neural interface) either actively or passively refuses to leave a virtual world, be it a game world or The Net itself.
Disconnecting the individual forcefully can result in psychotic episodes, depressive fits, seizures or brain damage depending on the severity of the case.
Treatment varies depending on the nature of the case with two cases rarely being the same. Right now, medical professionals have just been throwing things at the wall to see what sticks.
Sufferers can sometimes break free on their own with no intervention, but that is more rare than the condition itself.
VirtualReality Dysmorphia [VRD]
Class: Mental Health
Frequency: Infrequent
Treatment: Usually wears off on its own, otherwise psychiatric help required
VRD is a phenomena caused when a user spends a large amount of time in VR spaces occupying a different form from their "in reality" form.
It manifests similarly to "Alice In Wonderland Syndrome", where the sufferer temporarily loses their sense of self and can feel like they have body parts missing, in wrong places or even additional body parts.
It is unpleasant, but generally not harmful. Frequent or heavy users of VR will experience this condition at least once in their lives, often after spending an extended period in a new or exotic "avatar" whilst in a virtual space.
The phenomina will wear off on it's own after a few minutes. Not unlike being dizzy, a sufferer can close their eyes and remain prone for a moment as their brain re-adjusts.
Extreme cases can see the symptoms persist, if this occurs psychiatric help must be enlisted to prevent VRD from turning into VRLSVLS as the brain attempts to cope.
Brands
Snack Foods
"Runners Brand Chisps"
Popular potato chip brand, comes in a wide gamut of flavours.
"PopIts"
A popular potato chip brand that ships in tall cardboard tubes.