A|State Region: Portside

Portside 

People, Places and Organisations

Claimed by the Black Fang Trolls gang.

Refuse and Waste Fuel Facility (RAW Fuels known as The Great Crapworks locally)

Nike Torrensen [aggravating, knowledgeable, self-serving]

RAW Fuels is actually owned and operated by the trust; Food and Chemical Concern (FCC). Nike is the General Manager on their behalf. While always out for his own self enlargement he is very aware that the Food and Chemical Concern (FCC) board could have him removed at a moment's notice so takes great pains to cover his arse.

The great Crapworks is a combined operation consisting of four main areas. The central element is The Energy Centre which transforms compostable waste into a range of fuel sources. The most well-known and the one that adds that evocative aroma to the lower cityscape are Burners. Other liquid and gas fuels are also manufactured form the waste that is imported to The Heap (see below) via The Turd Port. There are tanks in the Heap that hold liquid refuse but the area known as The Tanks holds ready to export liquid and gas fuels.

The Heap

 A huge wasteland of excrement. The Heap is actually the equivalent of a municipal tip but one where the majority is compostable organics and recyclable materials. It is a huge compost heap ready to explode. A series of mills along the Surging Run pump water into a cris-cross of aqueduct’s that constantly sprinkle the Heap attempting to reduce explosions and to keep the smell and insect life under control. There are some extremely big insects and swarm’s travelling the Heap not to mention the human scavengers that roam sometimes singularly but mainly in packs collecting the useful trash and selling it to the breakers yard that is Big Bales Recyclables and Reconditioned Paraphernalia.

Michiltus Pilther [bossy, conniving, authoritive]

Runs the The Toggers a band of scavengers not known for the generosity or their helpfulness

 Peitra Beccs  [compassionate, gentle, emphatic]

Runs the Survivors, A small community built of garbage between The Heap and Big Bales Recyclables and Reconditioned Paraphernalia

Big Bales Recyclables and Reconditioned Paraphernalia

A huge second hand and reconditioning trade hall run by

Big Bales [boisterous, salesman, caring]

The Turd Port

 This is the main offloading harbour area used by The Great Crap Works to bring in waste from across the City. It feeds directly into either The Heap or for some of the better sorted or more up-market refuse directly into the great underground Waste Lakes where they are condensed into thick cakes and the liquid/gas elements syphoned off.

The Tanks

 Fuel is made into various size cakes called Burners which are packaged here but it is mainly the huge gas and liquid fuel containers that the area is known for.  Containers ships and Gaspalines both dock and draw off loads to export. 

The Watermen and Lightermen Consolidated Fluvial Workers Union Building (The Wetmen)

Jim Tupence [determined, extrovert, shrewd]

President of the Union.

Although called a union it is closer to being a guild holding a monopoly over the waterways around Harbour Port and pretty much throughout the districts.

The Watermen traffic people, either too and from the bankside or on and off boats moored in the canal. The Lightermen do the same for cargo. Between them they run most of the water-born businesses in the Burgh. They actively encourage all such to become members for their own protection. There are independents but they tend to be secretive and affiliated to a gang or one of the big Trusts such as Big Rat or an outside Trust to avoid Wetmen prosecution.

A|State - session 3 - Skid Row: Your Corner

 

Skid Row

A Shit Corner

A|State - The Area Around Skid Row

 Brief Discription of Skid Row and Surrounds

The Main Canals are are named around the spoke of the City. To windward is The Serpentine and to leeward is the Nothing. The rings are simply numbered from 0 at the Basin out to 8. Skid Row is situated between 4 and 5. Each landmass varies in length dependent on where in the rings it lays and they are called Burghs. A march is the distance between a ring and is six miles across while the major canals are a mile wide.  With the Rim that makes the City's radius about sixty mile. That is the world, the whole world and nothing but the world.

Scale Political Map of the immidiate march 1 large Square to a Mile.

Skid Row is on the corner of a canal crossroads known as Harbour Basin. The main canal is The Surging Run and is a furlong (600') across and runs from The Serpentine but splits into smaller sections further along the Burgh.  Harbour Basin is located where two smaller canals run into The Surging Run. Basinward it is The Underdung which surges forth from a great tunnel under The Big Dung. 

Rimward runs the Edgeway which flows through The Cut, a much more salubrious neighbourhood. Here the canal runs through a steep valley known as Junipers Heaven though no one can remember why. Above Sky Hights and Sky Reach, one on either side rise great reachers. Not as tall as the Basins dromescratchers but they are still of a phenomenal size.  The sublevels dig into Junipers Heaven forming an under city exposed at the valley edge with glass fronted sides looking out across the valley. Meanwhile the reachers clasp hands across the valley forming gravity defying pathways and the famous richlands of The  Hanging Gardens that span the valley from Hight to Reach and support some of the most palatial estates known anywhere.

The Harbour Basin area comprises of five districts. Lee-basinward is Dungside where on the corner of the Underdung and Surging Run stands the huge church Blessed Mortality, a member of the Church of the Mortal God which dominates the Harbour. Either side of the Underdung stretch two sprawling estates known as  Downwind on the windward bank and Upwind opposite.

Further basinward split by the Freman Street (also known as the Peaceline) and climbing up the Big Dung are the estates of On Dungside and at their limit The Wreak.  Leeward of both areas is an fortunate error.  Here a freshwater conduit runs buried across the Lesser Dung. This whole area is contested by the two gangs that base themselves in the two districts, The Electric Mammoth Squad of On Dungside and the Disciples of Dungside.  Sometime in the distant past during one of their more explosive fights, a detonation split the conduit and a stream of pure clean water gushed down into The Surging Run.  It has seemingly never been noticed by whoever owns the conduit and has been running so long that it has not only claimed the name The Clean Flow but has been plumbed into the local estates providing clean fresh water to the populace.  The area is full of ruins created by the two gangs as they try to oust each other from the area.

Beyond the Clean Flow is the only local bridge across The Surging Run called Lovers Leap (an origin story for the Booze Bars). This takes the wanderer into Cannery Row, a thin district that runs along The Surging Flow back to Harbour Basin.  Rimward of Cannery Row is Meat Town where a great Crapybara farm dominates.  The largest gang, The Black Fang Trolls operate here and are trying to make gains into Cannery Row which is contested land. The last corner where the Edgeward and The Surging Run meet is Portside dominated by The Great Crapworks and its subsideries. 

Further windward, a few mile down the Surging Run is Deep Down, an
urban quarry.

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Blade Runner - Session 2 - Electric Dreams Case 1

 This is the first part of the published scenario pack Electric Dreams by Free League presented in the Starter Set as written by Tomas Härenstam and Joe LeFavi.  Blade Runner and its scenario's are really designed for only 1-4 player characters, my group has 6 (plus me, the current GM). We get around this by standard cop procedure, they partner up. 

This session we have five detectives: Hardee (RichardB), Teransky (MarkW), Warkowski (LeeL), Antoney (PeteR) and Lewis (GaryG).

Thu 14th May 2037 Night

A shooting takes place at the Snake Pit involving two Nexus-9 Blade Runners LH3-7.93-Leah and SN9-1.48-Sandor. Sandor is killed and Leah goes missing.

Fri 15th May 2037 Morning

The Detectives on-duty yesterday and involved in the The Maid Did It Report are given commendations from Wallace Corps for their quick work in absolving the suspected Nexus-9 involvement in quick time allowing them to control the media output of the story. 

Deputy Chief Holden then reproaches them for slovenly paperwork and states that everyone in the investigation should be filling out shift reports and should sign/date and record the shift appropriately.

He then briefs them on the shooting last night.

Warkowski stays at the LAPD building making checks on ESPER via the mainframe and to the RIT Lab where Sandor's body is being processed.

Hardee and Tarankski visit Wallace Corp meeting Quell in hopes of getting more info on the Leah model.  She is happy to help one of the people that so helped out the company in yesterdays affair. This re-iterates the need for a quick response before the tabloids get hold of the story.  She shows them Leah's late  two baseline test, she failed both, suggests they look into her memories.

Lewis and  Antony visit  the Snake Pit and interview Taffey Lewis (the club owner) and Iris (the dancer on stage at the time of the shooting).  They discover that there was a crowd fight before the shooting with no one paying attention to the attack but focusing on anti replicant taunting (Iris is a replicant).

Antony reports Hardee for anti-Replicant behaviour and lack of respect to his superiors.

The Hardee Report

Fri 15th May 2037 Afternoon

Lewis and  Antony return the Bullet to RIT & Visit the LAPD Library.

Hardee, Tarankski and Warkowski visit Leah's apartment where they find photos of a girl which they correctly believe to be from Leah's implant memories, and some other stuff.

End of Session Crime Board

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Blade Runner - Session 1 - The Maid Did It Case

The Maid Did It is a quick intro game I put together as a couple of my players where not able to make the first session.  Parts of the final events purposely put them near to events from Electric Dreams the first published set intended as the main scenario.

Wed 13th May 2037 Night

Jessra Melady is killed at about 11pm. At about 5am just after sunrise, neighbours taking a walk with their dog replicant see and report the next door maid hurl the dead Mr. Melady across the patio and bury him in the flower beds behind the house. 

Wed 13th May 2037 Morning

The Melady Residence (from Google images)

Jessra Melady is watched being buried by his maid and reported to the LAPD. LAPD upon discovering that the maid is a replicant call the RepDetect department. Detective Hardee, Warkowski, Antoney and Amenda are detailed. They arrieve to inspect the scene and start to interview the staff and witnesses. 

There is an obviously dug grave (no attempt to hide) in the flower bed where the burial could be over-looked by the neighbours.  Security cameras to the house had been turned off.  LAPD had already initiated some forensics before the believed culprit was identified as a replicant. This showed time of death at around 11pm on the 13th. 

The neighbours Mini and Ted Rogers witness the event of the maid JUL.7.132 - Penny, burying a body and called the police.  This was after sunrise. They did not see the murder. They give character witness for the couple Lucia and Jessra Melady.

The wife Lucia is crying in the corner supported by her friend Stevena Hance.  Both are interviewed.  They give run downs of their activities saying that they arrived after the killing. The times conflict slightly with the car timings.  They show that Lucia had been home earlier than stated and that the car had then left to return an hour after the killing. She covers and is alibied by her friend, saying she went out with Stevena and returned together later which is why both arrived in the early morning but are not sure of the time (they had been drinking).  The maid ran off, they were drunk enough not to be curious and she was not expecting Jessra home from a business trip until the next day. The first they knew of the murder was when the LAPD turned up at the front door and the maid was not available to admit them.

There are two licenced guns registered to the house but one is missing as is a magazine of bullets of the correct calibre to match the murder weapon.  Detective Amenda is worried about the comings and going of the car and a private taxi-cab but cannot work out why they don't match.

Maurice Jacobs, the live in gardener was not aware of anything until the LAPD arrived responding to the Rogers alarm (they woke him up).  He says that Penny may have gone to Clean Stuff a shop she frequents and one where many replicants go when in trouble.

The suspected murderer is JUL.7.132 - Penny a Nexus-9, who/which are incapable (officially and yet to be disclaimed) able to harm their masters.  The Nexus-9 was only released a year ago and has undergone extremely stringent controls and checks to be allowed back on the streets after the previous ban, to the extent that some have even become Blade Runners, Detective Antoney being an example.  

Interviews suggest Penny has gone to her favourite shop Clean Stuff where she is friends with the owner a Paul Sacreteddies. Jacobs suggests many replicants go there for help and support but doesn't elaborate. When asked about the Replicant Underground he seems genuinely ignorant of such a thing.

Late Morning

Investigations at Clean Stuff which is not far from the residence, show that Penny had been at the store and had gone through to the back. There is no camera to the rear but the shop is 'Closed' and the owners car is missing.  While at the shop a call comes in from LAPD saying that the maid and another man have been identified (an APB had been broadcast earlier) near Animoid Row.  The detectives rush to investigate.

Shift Report, not signed, not dated and useless in court, reprimands will be made

Afternoon

Animoid Row map from Electric Dreams set showing The Ostrich Farm middle left. 

Reported events are that a man and woman, the woman matching the discription of the APB where spotted about mid-day.  Attempts to apprehend them failed and the man disappears. The woman runs off into the shopping area of Animoid Row and shots were fired. As the Detectives arrieve, the woman is penned up in a outlet called The Ostrich Farm.  Everyone has been evacuated and the LAPD are simply holding the perimeter until the RepDetect arrieve. 

Although shots were fired it seems they were all by LAPD who had identified that the suspect was openly carrying a handgun. There is no report she fired it at any time. She is believed to be wounded and has hidden in a local shop.

The detectives enter, Warkowski and Hardee taking the lead. They talk her down, disarm her and escort her to their car and take her in.  She is wounded and very frightened.

 

Evening

Penny is taken for interrogation. The resultant details are that Mr Melady had arrived home earlier than expected had taken coffee and relaxed, sending Penny off-duty, she retired to her room. She was later disturbed by Mrs Melady who told her to clean up Mr. Melady's body and bury it. She was also given a gun (later identified as the murder weapon) and told to keep hold of it, bury the body and run.

She followed her instructions. She never let go of the gun but never used it either (only one bullet, recovered from the Melady residence was missing from the magazine). She made no attempt to hide what she was doing but complied to the letter of the instruction and then fled. She knew that another replicant who had had some trouble had received help from Paul Sacreteddies and having nowhere else to go went to see him. He said he knew someone in Animoid Row that might be able to help and they went off in his car. As she left the car, police challenged her then saw her gun and fired at them. Paul was separated, she has no idea where he went.  More shots were fired, she got hit and just ran until she found herself in a shop with no back exit. The people there all fled and a stand-off occured until the Detectives turned up.

End of session crime board

An arrest warrant has been arranged for Mrs Melady and she and Ms Hance taken into custody. JUL.7.132 - Penny is absolved of all crimes and quicky becomes a celebrity as Wallace Corp use her to demonstrate the absolute loyalty and courage inherent in the new Nexus-9 model.  They are very happy with the outcome.  The detectives are awarded although they are also reprimanded for the quality of their paperwork where they left the trainee to do it all and he did not even identify himself on any of it. The trial of Mrs. Melady is arranged although Ms. Hance, who turns out to be Mr. Melady's business partner, seems to have an alibi and is freed.

After game discussion suggests that Ms. Hance had more to gain than her friend from the killing but no one had done any checks on her or even considered she might have manipulated events.  Oh well, now the Replicant side is cleared up the rest of the investigation returns to the hands of the real police.  Events of the same evening will be more than distracting enough as they lead into the published scenario for the next session.

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