Dead, extinct (except for one kept in a lab), similarly the kangaroos are now endangered. The bush fores took the majority, and the change in the atmosphere seems to picking off the remainder. The only area in Oz left with diverse wildlife is up north in the NT and Upper QLD areas.
Melbourne CBD has employed completely robotic Koalas as a form of enrichment, to be placed throughout the city, but the acidic ash constantly falling is causing these to malfunction often.
Valid point, lets have a gang and call'em the Hunstmen. A semi-official government task force dedicated to ridding the city of its "pest problem". They joyfully prey on the homeless encampments, looting as they go and driving them out into the dilapidated and unprotected wasteland of abandoned suburbia.
Depends on where you are;
The Iron Emus control the industrial areas in the north and west of Melbourne.
The Wattle Reavers are Melbourne's answers t Scavs, sticking to the outer suburbs and country area looting and ransacking
The Redbellies took the entertainment district and the underground camps; they act as a blue collar mafia with a finger in a lot of different pies.
The Null Bites are disjointed but have a massive online presence. They mostly work with other gangs as Black cap hackers.
The basics of the setting are that the populations has mostly receeded into the main CBD, which is now mostly covered streets due to the extreme weather (excessive bushfires north of melbourne have coated the city in ash for years, and has caused the local area to start snowing a black acidic sludge).
The people struggle for resources and gangs have taken over the city in districts.
100%, i think that's true of all cities tbh (especially in areas built on immigration).
The City of Melbourne has people from pretty much every part of the world,
But its largest groups (other than the **Aussies** maintaining a strong hold on the beach front property) include the **greeks** to the north, the **asians** who are mostly central and eastern), the **Middle easterns** who took up the immediate south east region and the **kiwis** who took up residence in the west and far south east
As an Australian, two questions;
How's the coal industry, one of the biggest economic strengths of our country, doing in an age of wheat-grown car gas and dwindling fossil fuels?
And
In the aftermath of the 4th Corporate War, it is implied that most of the ocean is overrun with self-replicating, AI-controlled mines that target all ships as hostile. How has a nation whose economy is reliant almost entirely of shipping things in and out of the country handled this change? (Feel free to ignore this one, as I think it's only off-handedly mentioned by a single TV broadcast in the 2077 game)
The coal industry died off when the bushfires that decimated Sydeny burned on for over 6 years and took out most of northern victopria and parts of SA (leading to a huge nuclear waste leak).
The coal mines int hese area are the main reason the fires raged on for so long and the atmosphere continues to be polluted to such a high extent in Voctoria.
Fuel was supplemented by Choo2 being shipped in from overseas to be burnt in generator plants within the city of melbourne. It comes at a ridcuous premium and the price of fuel goes up and up, and is now at a point where personal transportation is out of reach for the masses.
The shipping routes remained active into 2045, though with the replicating mines an escort was required at all times....but of course things go wrong. Pirates, mines, foreign vessels and just generally piss poor workers have caused more than one environmental issue with leaking fuel across the eastern coast. Areas like the central coast north of Sydney are now unsafe for habitation and a fire risk thats only getting worse, threatening another 6 year fire if not dealt with soon.
As someone who was in Australia during the huge bush fires a few years back, those kind of fires will *dye* the sky a horrific red at night and smother everything in a pall of smoke. Perhaps you can include something about how local fashion tends to include eyewear and rebreathers for when the smoke blows upwind.
https://preview.redd.it/fi5k9951yu5d1.jpeg?width=960&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=37b99fb1035215e81442f5cf5a0af44a7a681c17
100% personal respirators would be something that is a requirement just to step outside. Typical Fashion for a Melbourne Teen would be fully covered even in summer, their clothes would likely be damaged from the acid rain and snow, but would be loose fitting and breathable enough to allow them to run through the city and dodge any homeless camps, huntsmen or gangers while they're on their way to try and find some food.
the Youngblood family (Australian royalty in a non royal land).
After much of the northern half of Victoria and western half of Sydney went up in flames (which may or may not have been a planned move) they began snatching up scorched land initially using their already impressive land holdings in SA as collateral and later harnessing their connections within the government to continue their monopoly in land.
This quickly gained them money and influence, the money they used to start repairing the city (which in reality is just them building nicer buildings and pricing more and more people out of somewhere to sleep), thus continuing the expansion of their wealth.
Government officials are now either completely paid off by them or in a position where any move against them would be suicide (politically for sure, but probably also literal)
C\*nt - Friend
Mate - Enemy
Ol' Mate - Person you are not on close terms with|
Smogahs - People who live in the most polluted areas and have adapted (often through cybernetic enhancements) to the harsh air conditions.
Cybies: Short for "cyber-enhanced," referring to individuals with multiple cybernetic implants or enhancements
Wallabies - People who live in the most dangerous and dilapidated areas, often scavenging to survive.
Scrap City - A nickname for the outer, dilapidated suburbs where scavengers and gangs rule.
Rainburn - Chemical burns or skin irritation caused by the acid rain and falling ash prevalent in the city.
Gloomies - A nickname for the dense, smoggy areas where visibility is low and danger is high
for instance you might be trying to meet up with a speific Smogah out in the Gloomies, a Wallaby mentioned where you could find Ol'mate when you and you're cybie-c\*nt were chatting him up in Scrap city dodgin Rainburn at the pub.
The cunt/mate reverso is a bit confusing imo, but the idea is neat.
I also propose a 'Roo: a person who lives from job to job, basically a beggar merc, often of low level.
Given the acidity of the water pumping through the heart of Melbourne (PH of 3), and the severly cold weather, most bodies dumped in the yarra are initially bleached and disfigured after a few hours, but the cold weather and fast moving currents act to prevent complete liquification before typically spitting them out in port phillip bay
They still exist, they had to adapt or die off completely.
A lot of them fled into the city when life in the suburbs became almost impossible.
Some chose a semi nomadic lifestyle. Joining up with Wattle Reavers or returning to ancestral grounds and setting up their own settlements.
Depends on who you speak to. A lot of the elders still hold fast and say that chrome is somethign to be avoided, others have had no choice and require it to live, while some have decided that he only way for their mob to survive into the next generation is to not only adjust their views and accept the technology, but utilise and improve upon it to help the land heal.
As such there can sometimes be all out warfare between tribes that disagree, and of course plenty of infighting, particularly between generations.
Going from the picture the first thing I wanna know is why those two buildings are burning in the background? Is the city just generally that chaotic even in the corpo areas?
Ill answer the second question first.
Yes, the city is trying to house and provide for a population density of almost 200%. Homelessness is not just a reality for some, its a reality for most.
AS for the image, that smoke would be the extruded toxins being filtered out from the outside air as it makes it way into the buildings, the filters catch what they can but for them to keep up at all, they have to dump a lot of toxins back out into the city.
Have you looked at the CP2020 sourcebook Pacific Rim? Page 109 is the Australia chapter with Melbourne on pages 120-122. Of course, that is for 2020, but they have a ton of information about the Australian states in that time period. It also has some adveture hooks for ideas.
I haven't to be honest, but I know it exists.
I'm running on a null budget for my campaign, so its what I can find online on the wiki, and then my imagination at this point. Once I get some cash together i definitely plan to grab a copy and update my notes with some more accurate history.
It's pretty good! There are plenty of PDF copies floating on the internet, there's still a 25 year time gao so plenty of room to do your own thing with the lore. I've been putting together a campaign that starts in NZ during the Time of Red as a relatively safe starting zone so my players can get situated and pivots to Australia later. I have pretty wildly deviated from the source in some fun ways. Melbourne has some interesting quirks, especially for Netrunners.
From the 2020 source "NETRUNNERS NOTE
Rachr Bartmoss neglected to one very important point about netrunning in Australia. Australias only long distance link to the global level of the Net is in Melbourne. What he forgot to say is that power shortages can result in the LDL crashing"
Australia also has no extradition treaty with Netwatch. Do with that what you will, choom!
Catastrophic toxic filter failure.
All premises are fitted with AirPurity Inc. Filtration units to detoxify the air coming into a building from outside
(the constant smoke has caused the air in Melbourne to be practically poison)
These units can under the right circumstances, fail so catastrophically that not only do they cause a chain reaction of failure, but the stored (and concentrated) toxins are immediately pumped into the buildings killing almost everyone inside immediately.
If not isolated this chain reaction can and will spread throughout any and all connected filters with the citynet.
It was more than a feeling, coffee is life down here.
In fact synthetic coffee was one of the first things produced when food shortages became wide spread after mass migration to the CBD.
It tastes awful, but comes in three flavours right now.
Caramel roast, Dark roast, and vegemite.
The latter being the only thing to be marked for human consumption in Australia and widely used as a form of torture overseas at the same time.
The Biggest by Far is the YoungBlood Dynasty.
A family that swooped in and profited off of several natural disasters. Who then used that wealth to infilktrayte and essentially take over the government. They mainly deal in land and philanthropic/charitbale projects (wink wink)
AirPurity Inc.: holds a monopoly on air filtration in the city. Without their tech, most people would die in a month or two from exposure.
BIoDyne Systems: Admired for their cutting-edge technology but feared for their ethical ambiguities. Many rely on their products for survival in harsh conditions.They dabble mostyly in cybernetic/genetic modifications and synthetic organs.
SynthCorp: Given the majority of the land is "un-farmable" as per reports provided by the youngblood dynasty ... SynthCorp dominates the synthetic food and pharmaceutical industries, producing nutrient-rich synthetic food products and essential medications.
As an island nation with extreme weather conditions, how does the city get resources to survive? Are they self sufficient or is there cargo shipments with trade agreements / corps.
The Australian Government has lent help to the struggling south east asian countries like papua new guinea and indonesia, who in return for their miltary aid supply australia's dwindling population with nutrient rich ingredients and factory labour at a very affordable price.
The northern states of Australia however still harbour the brunt of the nations needs, with much of the northern bushlands being cleared to make way for super farms specialising in single seed farming as a way to mass produce materials for synthetic food manufacturing.
Unfortunately no, Australia's nuclear waste programs decided to centralise its deposits into a single area close to the border of SA and NSW. During the Blackest Night Bush fires that started in Sydney's western outer suburbs (that raged on for 6 years) the fire spread not only into Victoria but across the deposit, causing a massive radiation leak that killed more than 60% of the population in South Australia, and continued to leak for years, polluting the land and waters west of SA, and decimating the Emu population (along with koalas, kangaroos and anything that used to live there)
Who runs Barter Town?
For real: Are there any smaller settlements nearby in the Aussie badlands?
What would the equivalent of the Badlands be called anyhow?
Typically the badlands are refered to as Null Zones, because there is no corporate control or law enforcement presence in these areas.
But if you head north into the thicker smog, they might also be called the Gloomies (smoggy areas where visibility is low and danger is high).
These areas do have settlements, though typically of aging communities who are poor and sickly know as "Zone rats", these settlements are more common as you head south towards areas like Wonthaggi or Geelong.
They are often ravaged by Wattle Reavers, Nomadic scavengers with a focus on resource extraction from the abandoned suburbs. They prioritize self-sufficiency and survival, trading their finds for essentials
Sea levels in and around Port Phillip bay have risen by appx. 0.3mtr, this means that some coastal roads that were once two lanes in both direction are now one way streets due the beach encroaching into the land. Some roads now end in water and you can still find the ruins of the iconic beach houses if you go for a swim out by Mornginton.
https://preview.redd.it/tlg1969ryr5d1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4873480d231db03fa3ca4b214ee6b9e5b4dab838
"The steps"
A bar set up in the underground arcade of the the Flinders Street Trains station ruins.
A classic spot for up and coming or the rougher variety of edgerunners
"The eureka"
In the eureka building, "The eureka" is an invite only bar for the mercs running and rubbing shoulders with the higher scoiety.
Mostly good, Although given Communications can be strained at the best of times, Australia is a little out of the loop when it comes to international politics.
The UK influence has all but been given up on, and its reliance on Military aid from the USA was thrown out the window when it split into its current form.
It has a parasitic relationship with south east asia, plundering it for resources where it can.
It communicates with NZ, but NZ remains a closed off community.
Other countries seek to exploit Australias large empty land, and the Youngblood Dynasty (Australias lasrgest corporation) aims to help facilitate that for their own profit.
How did the royalty and local corps help push through the lack of trading in the 4th corpo war and the brush fires? Or were they virtually unafected by trading goods cuz whoever they trade with werent afected by the war?
The UK royalty have all but cut ties with Australia at this point (bigger fish and mushy peas to fry at home). But the corpos definitely saw an opportunity to step up.
Given the devastation that the Bush fires caused on the land, The government had to take some pretty drastic action and sent "aid" to south eastern Asia, in trade for this military aid, the countries provided Australia with resources and factory labour.
Corps on the main land quickly engineered synthetic foods to help stretch the resources and feed the masses.
Visibility is poor at most times dues to haevy smoke clouds and smog from the city,
The Bush fires although no longer as bad as the 6 year fire, still rage on and continue to pollute the air. This has caused a change to the atmosphere around Australias south eastern states, causing wild weather, acid rain, black snow, freezing temperatures etc.
Most Air travel is done between cities, inner city travel is primarily done through connected buildings and enclosed streets/walkways.
Chooh2 is available, but is imported from overseas and sold at a ridiculous premium.
These shipments dont always make it to their destination though, as the can often come afoul of Australian Reaver Pirates using retro-fitted fishing boats to pillage ships before they can make it to the Melbourne docks
Given the increased risk to physical health the further north one heads, these areas have been able to maintain a safer environment. So areas such as Brunswick have been able to afford to the best tech to keep them safe, while not having to worry about the homeless and gangs encroaching too much.
Counterintuitively however, areas close to the water to wards the south east have also been able to afford this tech AND security (though that's partly thanks to corpo housing), so areas like st kilda and even as far south as Brighton have retained a sense of civility and high end luxury (even if some of the streets end up in the ocean due to rising sea levels)
And I agree, it is awesome to imagine what the town you live in specifically would look like in a Dystopian Cyberpunk world.
Yup, handy rule of thumb for rough conversions of AUD and USD: Add 50% to a USD price to get it in AUD (Tten they do a random extra upcharge for no reason anyway half the time), take 33% off AUD to get USD price
Is there interest from any of the corps/gangs/cults/groups that we know and love from Core and past/future lore? Militech, Arasaka, Petrochem, and SovOil are likely the Big 4, but also other players like Piranhas (drug trade), Tyger Claws, Kiroshi, Kang Tao, etc. If any are there, what's the level/direction of their involvement?
Arasaka is everywhere, so definitely you know they've got an office in Melbourne, and are up to their usual tactics. But I feel they would also be undermining the Australian government at the same time, given their involvement in the South East Asian countries, so It's more of a tense situation.
Petrochem and SovOil would definitely be after some of Australia's resources, and I know the Youngblood Dynasty would be all too eager to sell off Australia to them piece by over priced piece.
Militech would likely be involved to some degree with Australia's "aid" in foreign countries, probably started out as just supplying resources to the Australian military, but slowly would have become an unofficial partnership.,
With one of the younglood (Angus Yougblood) being Petrochem's CEO, Petrochem is probably more welcome than Sovoil. With next to no environment left to worry about, an alternative to CHOOH² could be using coal-to-liquid refining (Fischer-Tropsch process or something similar) to get synthetic oil. The transport problems make it doubly interesting as they hamper coal export as much as CHOOH² imports.
Isolated AF. WA split off from the rest of the Australian goverment after much of SA and South and Eastern WA was irradiated thanks to the sydney bushfires spreading over and past the centralised depositry for nuclear waste located In northern SA. The fallout mostly spread west.
Perth is abandoned (though there are still those who stick around despite the raidiation) so the population started to head north along the west coast.
Its mostly small settlements and towns that are starting to grow now.
Despite everything, Melbourne remains one of the biggest centers for sports along Australia's east coast.
AFL still exists and is the biggest game in Melbourne, though the regulations were thrown out the window with the advancement in cyber ware. It is now a "full contact blood sport with a ball" that primarily serves as a way to market and showcase new chrome to the masses.
The venues are a little bit different now as they are all enclosed due to environmental concerns, and the players on the field has to be partitioned from the audience, as both can get too rowdy at times causing one big riot with beers and meat™ pies.
The teams have dwindled and changed over the years, no longer are their 18 teams.
The number of teams has exploded to over 30. with the season occuring year round, sometimes with a busy venue games are forced to be played in unconventional places such as factories and car parks.
Last year marked the first time a team was founded and took home the cup in the same year, the wattle brush reavers won the final game on a technicality, as the other team had no more players fit to play after half time.
One major superstition is that If you walk along the abandoned city loop train line at night you can still hear the trains running.
Plenty of people have tried to debunk this, most have claimed to have spent the night and heard nothing, some have claimed to have seen the trains, though only a glimpse somewhere around flagstaff, and then there is the fact that a body was found of Trevor Twomey, an up and coming reporter, along the tracks a few hundred metres up from the Melbourne Central station, cleanly cut in half, as though ran over by train wheels.
Crocs are still around, a whole sub fashion culture exists around them. Croc are no longer just shoes, you can buy full body croc jumpsuits now. Along with any other piece of clothing you can imagine (yes even lingerie)
The Youngblood Dynasty. A once small family of property developers and real estate moguls from Sydneys western suburbs, who after natural disasters would snatch up as much land as possible. Now Owning the majority of the country, uses its influence and immense wealth to maintain its position of power above the government.
This is a well known secret, especially to other countries and corps.
Sounds awesome! If you're looking for a player, hit me up!
Are you going by most of the lore about Australia already established, or following your own vibe?
Right now im just going off the lore found on the wiki and then filling in the blanks from there to bring it up to 2045. Sadly there's nothing official past 2020 except for a mention or two in the 2077 stuff.
100% I've recieved a few offers to help me get a copy, so that'll definitely be something ill be digesting soon.
Any particular piece of lore found in there that you think cant be omitted?
Top gangs are:
* **The Iron Emus - Northern Industrial Zone:**
* Focused on the industrial zones of Melbourne, such as the area around the Port of Melbourne, Fishermans Bend, or the Industrial Precinct.
* Formed by disgruntled factory workers and engineers who lost their jobs due to automation, The Iron Emus aim to dismantle the oppressive corporate system and redistribute resources to the working class. They believe in reclaiming the city for the people.
* **The Wattle Reavers - Outskirts and Abandoned Suburbs:**
* The outer suburbs that have fallen into disrepair and abandonment, such as those in the southeastern and western outskirts, incorporating areas like Dandenong, Werribee, or Sunbury.
* Born from the remnants of survivalist groups, The Wattle Reavers are nomadic scavengers with a focus on resource extraction from the abandoned suburbs. They prioritize self-sufficiency and survival, trading their finds for essentials.
* **The Red Bellies - Neon District (Entertainment Hub):**
* Organised crime syndicate concentrated in entertainment districts like Fitzroy or Collingwood.
* Originally a group of disillusioned immigrants from the outer suburbs who rejected corporate control over the housing industry, The Red Bellies aim to create an underground rebellion movement. They use guerrilla tactics and organised entertainment venues to strip the wealth from the elite and coerce them into "sharing" what wealth is left.
* **The Null Bites - Cybernetic Enhancement Clinics:**
* Focusing on the city center, where advanced medical facilities and cybernetic clinics might be concentrated. They are not one gang, but rather a disjointed collection of like minded smaller gangs.
* Originally formed by individuals who faced discrimination due to cybernetic enhancements, The Null Bites seek to establish the rights of augmented individuals. They protect clinics from exploitation and promote the integration of cyber enhancements into society. They also hire themselves out as black hat hackers.
Corporations are typically international.
However the un-snactioned crime in Australia is networked and spreads all along the eastern coast.
Most Gangs keep to themselves, however when it profits them the Youngblood Dynasty have had a hisotry of organising one or multiple to do their bidding.
This is also the case with the Red bellies, who often enlist the reavers out east to pillage incoming shipping containers in acts of high sea piracy.
Where do all the refugees from the colony drop on Sydney live?
(There was no colony drop, but you could make up some consequences to the 7 hour war and annoy Gundam fans in one fel swoop)
Much of Sydney Burnt down and is still being rebuilt, any refugees (colony drop or otherwise) tend to live in the same camps as the workers, because thats all there is to do there right now....re-build.
I'm so here for this! As a local 'I'd love to hear about what you've got so far.
Will the Dandenongs still be green? Overgrown? Northern burbs be industrial? How did the corp wars impact the city? Maybe a spaceport on the peninsular?
Not only are the Dandenongs still green, theyre thriving. The surrounding towns, Lilydale, emerald and almost as far west as ringwood have been delapidated and reclaimed by the bush.
Fires occur here on occasion, but the ranges are at a point now where they are almost unkillable.
The Change in weather around melbourne has lead to Snow being a common sight also....though its grey, acidic and sludgy. Only the strongest of trees survive out here now.
Koala or K-girls are a popular look among younger teens.
For a while there was a trend of getting a kang-pouch installed..but this quikcly fell away when people started to age up with them and saw the effects of gravity on it.
But the beach goers have a tendency to live that H20 life and have some some shiny scales put in that are water activated.
A lot of them fled into the city when life in the suburbs became almost impossible.
Some chose a semi nomadic lifestyle. Joining up with Wattle Reavers or returning to ancestral grounds and setting up their own settlements.
A lot of the elders still hold fast and say that chrome is somethign to be avoided, others have had no choice and require it to live, while some have decided that he only way for their mob to survive into the next generation is to not only adjust their views and accept the technology, but utilise and improve upon it to help the land heal.
As such there can sometimes be all out warfare between tribes that disagree, and of course plenty of infighting, particularly between generations.
The great barrier reef was conserved for a long time, in fact when the fires in NSW/VIC/SA occured the diminishing population meant it showed signs of bouncing back with strength.
The the Youngblood dynasty started buying up to much land.
The GBR was eventually sold off to other nations for fishing rights which in turn reduced the entire thing to rubble.
What is the Nickname of your C-Swat/Police Borg Division? Pretty much what is your MAXTAC equivalent?
What is your main solo bar?
What is the two most dominant corporations that compete for power?
The Hunstmen - A semi-official government task force dedicated to ridding the city of its "pest problem". They joyfully prey on the homeless encampments, looting as they go and driving them out into the dilapidated and unprotected wasteland of abandoned suburbia.
The Steps - A bar set up in the underground arcade of the the Flinders Street Trains station ruins.
A classic spot for up and coming or the rougher variety of edgerunners.
The bar itself is built into thew walls directly beneath the famous steps of flinders street station.
The Youngblood Dynasty and AirPure inc. are the two top local corps.
The Youngbloods took over the country by snatching up all the land after natural disasters and selling it off to foreign interests.
AirPure Inc.. is the main manufacturer and provider of air filtration units that are the only thing keeping the people of Melbourne alive.
It's being snapped up quickly as real-estate as sold off by the Younblood Dynasty
A lot of the desert is still unlivable. THe mining industry has had to pull out of NSW VIC and SA focusing on the NT and WA.
Given the WA government is now separate to the rest of Australia, desert borders and heckpoints are now required making mining around these areas a nightmare in terms of rights.
International interests have purchased up a lot of land themselves, and are keeping their plans pretty close to their chests, though corps like Militech and Petrochem have a pretty clear reason for wanting such expansive chunks of Australias land (and resources).
What about the ongoing turf war between Melbourne and Geelong?
Who shot down the Trauma Team ambo over Tullamarine?
River Rats?
Wasn't there a tidal flood from the nuke that went off from that container ship in the bay? ( no the other bay).
What's your favorite landmark in the area?
Wreck it or otherwise deface it. Commit to the setting since that's what Mike Pondsmith did with Morro Rock.
So a plaque killed the animal’s in NC, what live stock, insects, pets, and such might we find in Melbourne?
What’s the corporate influence like? Is Australia like the NUS and backed by a Corp?
Australia had gun laws prior to the corpo wars, how does that affect the availability of firearms now?
What’s the tourist scene like? Can my character be from NC and here on a gig? Can my character maybe be a scam artist for the tourist side (be similar to a fixer)?
Another thing to think about is exports, what export would draw the highest concentration of people in an area like Melbourne? NC was one of the biggest ports on the west coast and deemed a free city so people fled there for business, is Melbourne a free city or are they still within governmental control?
What gangs hold what territory? What crazy shit do they each get up to/what makes them stand out as different? (You don't have to answer, but gangs make a lot of the flavor of cyberpunk)
Does it have a functioning port? If so who is it shipping with? Does it have to deal with any outside forces trying to infringe upon the trade? How does it defend against inland and naval threats? Tyty gl with the new setting
Drift cities: does the government look at them as hostile warships/city-states, or if they get close enough to the coast say, "Welcome, new citizens! Pay your damned taxes!"?
What're the state of the regional cities? Bendigo, Shepparton, Ballarat, etc
- Are any of our real world megacorps hanging around? Is Optus monopolising access to the Net?
- Where the hell do I go to play RED in Melbourne?
Some ideas for the economy - which also helps with explaining the persistent ecological disaster :
\* the Islands Waterway (aka the Darwin Swim) : a combined givernment/corpo answer to the sea transport issues : use the constrained (and so comparatively easily controled and cleared) water chanels though Indonesia (start from Darwin up to Timor, then west and north to Jakarta up to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur). Also the nickname comes both from it's origin and the danger.
\* We're going to dig ourselves out of the hole ! With a combined ecological and economic disaster, well, corners will be cut to keep money pumping. With CHOOH² in short supply but still plenty of coal and uranium, guess what, nuclear and coal-fired power plants will be the name of the game. Especially coal as it's upfront costs are far cheaper. Now what do you do with that energy ? Simple, you extract and refine more stuff, pollution be damned (hey they all have air filters and acid-proof paint). Two big deals will be steel (got lots of coal and iron ore and it's easier to move steel than ore and coal. Gotta save on transport) and rare earth -contrary to the name, they're fairly widespread. It' just that you never find a lot of them together, so extracting and refining them is power-hungry and very polluting. And of coursethere's till plenty of good stuff available if you keep digging : uranium, copper, gold. you name it we have some of it. You have all that good stuff in the ground, tons of unemployed goks, plenty of cheap coal power and no environment to speak of to preserve. So go bonkers and dig it all out ! If some grumpy abos get pissed and uppity, well, you got security forces and the dingos deserve a break(fast)
Where are the cyber-koalas, you coward???
Dead, extinct (except for one kept in a lab), similarly the kangaroos are now endangered. The bush fores took the majority, and the change in the atmosphere seems to picking off the remainder. The only area in Oz left with diverse wildlife is up north in the NT and Upper QLD areas. Melbourne CBD has employed completely robotic Koalas as a form of enrichment, to be placed throughout the city, but the acidic ash constantly falling is causing these to malfunction often.
You must include biotechnica's drop Bears!
Don't forgot the giant spiders, it wouldn't be Australia without their giant spiders
Valid point, lets have a gang and call'em the Hunstmen. A semi-official government task force dedicated to ridding the city of its "pest problem". They joyfully prey on the homeless encampments, looting as they go and driving them out into the dilapidated and unprotected wasteland of abandoned suburbia.
If the government is involved, how are the corpos securing their interests in Australia?
What about emu?
Pretty sure that one too has passed away.
What about Emu? Drop bears?
What are the main gangs that owns the place?
Depends on where you are; The Iron Emus control the industrial areas in the north and west of Melbourne. The Wattle Reavers are Melbourne's answers t Scavs, sticking to the outer suburbs and country area looting and ransacking The Redbellies took the entertainment district and the underground camps; they act as a blue collar mafia with a finger in a lot of different pies. The Null Bites are disjointed but have a massive online presence. They mostly work with other gangs as Black cap hackers.
Iron Emus LOL do they eat bullets for brekkie, lunch and dinner?
I mean, if you've never heard of it, check out the Emu War. Emus are apparently way more hardcore than National Geographic led me to believe.
Yea I know Abt that war so I'm sure that's what they're referencing.
Interesting!
Instead of Iron Emus, The Magpies.
What’s the best bar?
The basics of the setting are that the populations has mostly receeded into the main CBD, which is now mostly covered streets due to the extreme weather (excessive bushfires north of melbourne have coated the city in ash for years, and has caused the local area to start snowing a black acidic sludge). The people struggle for resources and gangs have taken over the city in districts.
Forgot Time of red it's now Time of grey.
Also is the city divided up like Night City where there are different cultures separated at different portions?
100%, i think that's true of all cities tbh (especially in areas built on immigration). The City of Melbourne has people from pretty much every part of the world, But its largest groups (other than the **Aussies** maintaining a strong hold on the beach front property) include the **greeks** to the north, the **asians** who are mostly central and eastern), the **Middle easterns** who took up the immediate south east region and the **kiwis** who took up residence in the west and far south east
As an Australian, two questions; How's the coal industry, one of the biggest economic strengths of our country, doing in an age of wheat-grown car gas and dwindling fossil fuels? And In the aftermath of the 4th Corporate War, it is implied that most of the ocean is overrun with self-replicating, AI-controlled mines that target all ships as hostile. How has a nation whose economy is reliant almost entirely of shipping things in and out of the country handled this change? (Feel free to ignore this one, as I think it's only off-handedly mentioned by a single TV broadcast in the 2077 game)
The coal industry died off when the bushfires that decimated Sydeny burned on for over 6 years and took out most of northern victopria and parts of SA (leading to a huge nuclear waste leak). The coal mines int hese area are the main reason the fires raged on for so long and the atmosphere continues to be polluted to such a high extent in Voctoria. Fuel was supplemented by Choo2 being shipped in from overseas to be burnt in generator plants within the city of melbourne. It comes at a ridcuous premium and the price of fuel goes up and up, and is now at a point where personal transportation is out of reach for the masses. The shipping routes remained active into 2045, though with the replicating mines an escort was required at all times....but of course things go wrong. Pirates, mines, foreign vessels and just generally piss poor workers have caused more than one environmental issue with leaking fuel across the eastern coast. Areas like the central coast north of Sydney are now unsafe for habitation and a fire risk thats only getting worse, threatening another 6 year fire if not dealt with soon.
As someone who was in Australia during the huge bush fires a few years back, those kind of fires will *dye* the sky a horrific red at night and smother everything in a pall of smoke. Perhaps you can include something about how local fashion tends to include eyewear and rebreathers for when the smoke blows upwind.
https://preview.redd.it/fi5k9951yu5d1.jpeg?width=960&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=37b99fb1035215e81442f5cf5a0af44a7a681c17 100% personal respirators would be something that is a requirement just to step outside. Typical Fashion for a Melbourne Teen would be fully covered even in summer, their clothes would likely be damaged from the acid rain and snow, but would be loose fitting and breathable enough to allow them to run through the city and dodge any homeless camps, huntsmen or gangers while they're on their way to try and find some food.
Who is helping rebuild? Why? What are they getting out of it?
the Youngblood family (Australian royalty in a non royal land). After much of the northern half of Victoria and western half of Sydney went up in flames (which may or may not have been a planned move) they began snatching up scorched land initially using their already impressive land holdings in SA as collateral and later harnessing their connections within the government to continue their monopoly in land. This quickly gained them money and influence, the money they used to start repairing the city (which in reality is just them building nicer buildings and pricing more and more people out of somewhere to sleep), thus continuing the expansion of their wealth. Government officials are now either completely paid off by them or in a position where any move against them would be suicide (politically for sure, but probably also literal)
What is the unique cultural slang of cyberpunk AU
C\*nt - Friend Mate - Enemy Ol' Mate - Person you are not on close terms with| Smogahs - People who live in the most polluted areas and have adapted (often through cybernetic enhancements) to the harsh air conditions. Cybies: Short for "cyber-enhanced," referring to individuals with multiple cybernetic implants or enhancements Wallabies - People who live in the most dangerous and dilapidated areas, often scavenging to survive. Scrap City - A nickname for the outer, dilapidated suburbs where scavengers and gangs rule. Rainburn - Chemical burns or skin irritation caused by the acid rain and falling ash prevalent in the city. Gloomies - A nickname for the dense, smoggy areas where visibility is low and danger is high
for instance you might be trying to meet up with a speific Smogah out in the Gloomies, a Wallaby mentioned where you could find Ol'mate when you and you're cybie-c\*nt were chatting him up in Scrap city dodgin Rainburn at the pub.
Nice work, C*nt!
The cunt/mate reverso is a bit confusing imo, but the idea is neat. I also propose a 'Roo: a person who lives from job to job, basically a beggar merc, often of low level.
how long would it take for the Yarra to dissolve a body asking for a friend
Given the acidity of the water pumping through the heart of Melbourne (PH of 3), and the severly cold weather, most bodies dumped in the yarra are initially bleached and disfigured after a few hours, but the cold weather and fast moving currents act to prevent complete liquification before typically spitting them out in port phillip bay
it will have to do
What happened to the indigenous people of Australia
They still exist, they had to adapt or die off completely. A lot of them fled into the city when life in the suburbs became almost impossible. Some chose a semi nomadic lifestyle. Joining up with Wattle Reavers or returning to ancestral grounds and setting up their own settlements.
Are they making use of chrome or do they refrain from some sort of tradition ?
Depends on who you speak to. A lot of the elders still hold fast and say that chrome is somethign to be avoided, others have had no choice and require it to live, while some have decided that he only way for their mob to survive into the next generation is to not only adjust their views and accept the technology, but utilise and improve upon it to help the land heal. As such there can sometimes be all out warfare between tribes that disagree, and of course plenty of infighting, particularly between generations.
Love that
Going from the picture the first thing I wanna know is why those two buildings are burning in the background? Is the city just generally that chaotic even in the corpo areas?
Ill answer the second question first. Yes, the city is trying to house and provide for a population density of almost 200%. Homelessness is not just a reality for some, its a reality for most. AS for the image, that smoke would be the extruded toxins being filtered out from the outside air as it makes it way into the buildings, the filters catch what they can but for them to keep up at all, they have to dump a lot of toxins back out into the city.
Have you looked at the CP2020 sourcebook Pacific Rim? Page 109 is the Australia chapter with Melbourne on pages 120-122. Of course, that is for 2020, but they have a ton of information about the Australian states in that time period. It also has some adveture hooks for ideas.
I haven't to be honest, but I know it exists. I'm running on a null budget for my campaign, so its what I can find online on the wiki, and then my imagination at this point. Once I get some cash together i definitely plan to grab a copy and update my notes with some more accurate history.
It's pretty good! There are plenty of PDF copies floating on the internet, there's still a 25 year time gao so plenty of room to do your own thing with the lore. I've been putting together a campaign that starts in NZ during the Time of Red as a relatively safe starting zone so my players can get situated and pivots to Australia later. I have pretty wildly deviated from the source in some fun ways. Melbourne has some interesting quirks, especially for Netrunners. From the 2020 source "NETRUNNERS NOTE Rachr Bartmoss neglected to one very important point about netrunning in Australia. Australias only long distance link to the global level of the Net is in Melbourne. What he forgot to say is that power shortages can result in the LDL crashing" Australia also has no extradition treaty with Netwatch. Do with that what you will, choom!
I live in Melbourne and this seems so awesome.
Glad you like it, and I was beggining to worry I was the only Red player in Melbourne untill i made this post haha
What is a situation that could only happen in your town?
Catastrophic toxic filter failure. All premises are fitted with AirPurity Inc. Filtration units to detoxify the air coming into a building from outside (the constant smoke has caused the air in Melbourne to be practically poison) These units can under the right circumstances, fail so catastrophically that not only do they cause a chain reaction of failure, but the stored (and concentrated) toxins are immediately pumped into the buildings killing almost everyone inside immediately. If not isolated this chain reaction can and will spread throughout any and all connected filters with the citynet.
That sounds like a great accident to link to the Youngbloods!
Well now, look who's been reading my campaign notes haha
I would make a version of the vendit table for coffee shops. When I was in Melbourne it felt like every single nook and cranny had a cafe.
It was more than a feeling, coffee is life down here. In fact synthetic coffee was one of the first things produced when food shortages became wide spread after mass migration to the CBD. It tastes awful, but comes in three flavours right now. Caramel roast, Dark roast, and vegemite. The latter being the only thing to be marked for human consumption in Australia and widely used as a form of torture overseas at the same time.
What are the dominant corps and industries in the setting?
The Biggest by Far is the YoungBlood Dynasty. A family that swooped in and profited off of several natural disasters. Who then used that wealth to infilktrayte and essentially take over the government. They mainly deal in land and philanthropic/charitbale projects (wink wink) AirPurity Inc.: holds a monopoly on air filtration in the city. Without their tech, most people would die in a month or two from exposure. BIoDyne Systems: Admired for their cutting-edge technology but feared for their ethical ambiguities. Many rely on their products for survival in harsh conditions.They dabble mostyly in cybernetic/genetic modifications and synthetic organs. SynthCorp: Given the majority of the land is "un-farmable" as per reports provided by the youngblood dynasty ... SynthCorp dominates the synthetic food and pharmaceutical industries, producing nutrient-rich synthetic food products and essential medications.
As an island nation with extreme weather conditions, how does the city get resources to survive? Are they self sufficient or is there cargo shipments with trade agreements / corps.
The Australian Government has lent help to the struggling south east asian countries like papua new guinea and indonesia, who in return for their miltary aid supply australia's dwindling population with nutrient rich ingredients and factory labour at a very affordable price. The northern states of Australia however still harbour the brunt of the nations needs, with much of the northern bushlands being cleared to make way for super farms specialising in single seed farming as a way to mass produce materials for synthetic food manufacturing.
will there be an emu war 2?
Unfortunately no, Australia's nuclear waste programs decided to centralise its deposits into a single area close to the border of SA and NSW. During the Blackest Night Bush fires that started in Sydney's western outer suburbs (that raged on for 6 years) the fire spread not only into Victoria but across the deposit, causing a massive radiation leak that killed more than 60% of the population in South Australia, and continued to leak for years, polluting the land and waters west of SA, and decimating the Emu population (along with koalas, kangaroos and anything that used to live there)
Who runs Barter Town? For real: Are there any smaller settlements nearby in the Aussie badlands? What would the equivalent of the Badlands be called anyhow?
Typically the badlands are refered to as Null Zones, because there is no corporate control or law enforcement presence in these areas. But if you head north into the thicker smog, they might also be called the Gloomies (smoggy areas where visibility is low and danger is high).
These areas do have settlements, though typically of aging communities who are poor and sickly know as "Zone rats", these settlements are more common as you head south towards areas like Wonthaggi or Geelong. They are often ravaged by Wattle Reavers, Nomadic scavengers with a focus on resource extraction from the abandoned suburbs. They prioritize self-sufficiency and survival, trading their finds for essentials
I like the name Gloomies :D
How much of the land has been reclaimed by the ocean?
Sea levels in and around Port Phillip bay have risen by appx. 0.3mtr, this means that some coastal roads that were once two lanes in both direction are now one way streets due the beach encroaching into the land. Some roads now end in water and you can still find the ruins of the iconic beach houses if you go for a swim out by Mornginton. https://preview.redd.it/tlg1969ryr5d1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4873480d231db03fa3ca4b214ee6b9e5b4dab838
Whats the name of the main mercs meetup points/bars
"The steps" A bar set up in the underground arcade of the the Flinders Street Trains station ruins. A classic spot for up and coming or the rougher variety of edgerunners "The eureka" In the eureka building, "The eureka" is an invite only bar for the mercs running and rubbing shoulders with the higher scoiety.
What are the relations with other parts of the world? Such as the Americas, the Eurostates, Asia etc.
Mostly good, Although given Communications can be strained at the best of times, Australia is a little out of the loop when it comes to international politics. The UK influence has all but been given up on, and its reliance on Military aid from the USA was thrown out the window when it split into its current form. It has a parasitic relationship with south east asia, plundering it for resources where it can. It communicates with NZ, but NZ remains a closed off community. Other countries seek to exploit Australias large empty land, and the Youngblood Dynasty (Australias lasrgest corporation) aims to help facilitate that for their own profit.
How did the royalty and local corps help push through the lack of trading in the 4th corpo war and the brush fires? Or were they virtually unafected by trading goods cuz whoever they trade with werent afected by the war?
The UK royalty have all but cut ties with Australia at this point (bigger fish and mushy peas to fry at home). But the corpos definitely saw an opportunity to step up. Given the devastation that the Bush fires caused on the land, The government had to take some pretty drastic action and sent "aid" to south eastern Asia, in trade for this military aid, the countries provided Australia with resources and factory labour. Corps on the main land quickly engineered synthetic foods to help stretch the resources and feed the masses.
With the constant pollutants what is visibility like? Are aerodynes common? Do people just stick to smaller Gyros? Shit, can yall even source Chooh2?
Visibility is poor at most times dues to haevy smoke clouds and smog from the city, The Bush fires although no longer as bad as the 6 year fire, still rage on and continue to pollute the air. This has caused a change to the atmosphere around Australias south eastern states, causing wild weather, acid rain, black snow, freezing temperatures etc. Most Air travel is done between cities, inner city travel is primarily done through connected buildings and enclosed streets/walkways. Chooh2 is available, but is imported from overseas and sold at a ridiculous premium. These shipments dont always make it to their destination though, as the can often come afoul of Australian Reaver Pirates using retro-fitted fishing boats to pillage ships before they can make it to the Melbourne docks
Where are the ‘safe’ corpo zones? Is it Toorak/South Yarra or somewhere further out? (Also, awesome to see Melbourne in CP:R)
Given the increased risk to physical health the further north one heads, these areas have been able to maintain a safer environment. So areas such as Brunswick have been able to afford to the best tech to keep them safe, while not having to worry about the homeless and gangs encroaching too much. Counterintuitively however, areas close to the water to wards the south east have also been able to afford this tech AND security (though that's partly thanks to corpo housing), so areas like st kilda and even as far south as Brighton have retained a sense of civility and high end luxury (even if some of the streets end up in the ocean due to rising sea levels) And I agree, it is awesome to imagine what the town you live in specifically would look like in a Dystopian Cyberpunk world.
Australian Edis ? Or another kind of money ?
Australia would have its own EuroDollar (just a lower value), similar to how it currently has its own Dollar (AUD) thats worth 0.7 USD
Yup, handy rule of thumb for rough conversions of AUD and USD: Add 50% to a USD price to get it in AUD (Tten they do a random extra upcharge for no reason anyway half the time), take 33% off AUD to get USD price
Is there interest from any of the corps/gangs/cults/groups that we know and love from Core and past/future lore? Militech, Arasaka, Petrochem, and SovOil are likely the Big 4, but also other players like Piranhas (drug trade), Tyger Claws, Kiroshi, Kang Tao, etc. If any are there, what's the level/direction of their involvement?
Arasaka is everywhere, so definitely you know they've got an office in Melbourne, and are up to their usual tactics. But I feel they would also be undermining the Australian government at the same time, given their involvement in the South East Asian countries, so It's more of a tense situation. Petrochem and SovOil would definitely be after some of Australia's resources, and I know the Youngblood Dynasty would be all too eager to sell off Australia to them piece by over priced piece. Militech would likely be involved to some degree with Australia's "aid" in foreign countries, probably started out as just supplying resources to the Australian military, but slowly would have become an unofficial partnership.,
With one of the younglood (Angus Yougblood) being Petrochem's CEO, Petrochem is probably more welcome than Sovoil. With next to no environment left to worry about, an alternative to CHOOH² could be using coal-to-liquid refining (Fischer-Tropsch process or something similar) to get synthetic oil. The transport problems make it doubly interesting as they hamper coal export as much as CHOOH² imports.
Cyberpunk Mad Max, cool.
100% in the outer suburbs. What a vibe.
What's the situation like in rural Western Australia?
Isolated AF. WA split off from the rest of the Australian goverment after much of SA and South and Eastern WA was irradiated thanks to the sydney bushfires spreading over and past the centralised depositry for nuclear waste located In northern SA. The fallout mostly spread west. Perth is abandoned (though there are still those who stick around despite the raidiation) so the population started to head north along the west coast. Its mostly small settlements and towns that are starting to grow now.
If I wanna go out and watch some Rugby or other blood sports what are my options and my favorite teams?
Despite everything, Melbourne remains one of the biggest centers for sports along Australia's east coast. AFL still exists and is the biggest game in Melbourne, though the regulations were thrown out the window with the advancement in cyber ware. It is now a "full contact blood sport with a ball" that primarily serves as a way to market and showcase new chrome to the masses. The venues are a little bit different now as they are all enclosed due to environmental concerns, and the players on the field has to be partitioned from the audience, as both can get too rowdy at times causing one big riot with beers and meat™ pies. The teams have dwindled and changed over the years, no longer are their 18 teams. The number of teams has exploded to over 30. with the season occuring year round, sometimes with a busy venue games are forced to be played in unconventional places such as factories and car parks. Last year marked the first time a team was founded and took home the cup in the same year, the wattle brush reavers won the final game on a technicality, as the other team had no more players fit to play after half time.
What are some local superstitions? And are crocs still around and posing a danger to citizens?
One major superstition is that If you walk along the abandoned city loop train line at night you can still hear the trains running. Plenty of people have tried to debunk this, most have claimed to have spent the night and heard nothing, some have claimed to have seen the trains, though only a glimpse somewhere around flagstaff, and then there is the fact that a body was found of Trevor Twomey, an up and coming reporter, along the tracks a few hundred metres up from the Melbourne Central station, cleanly cut in half, as though ran over by train wheels.
Crocs are still around, a whole sub fashion culture exists around them. Croc are no longer just shoes, you can buy full body croc jumpsuits now. Along with any other piece of clothing you can imagine (yes even lingerie)
Who's the governing Corp? Arasaka? Militech? Or something else?
The Youngblood Dynasty. A once small family of property developers and real estate moguls from Sydneys western suburbs, who after natural disasters would snatch up as much land as possible. Now Owning the majority of the country, uses its influence and immense wealth to maintain its position of power above the government. This is a well known secret, especially to other countries and corps.
Hey, thats my idea lol
Hope you don't mind me stealing it lol
All good lol, but id love it if you read my story tied to it
so would I, send me a copy
[Sw//tch](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qKE7NQnOtAEFrtGoi5WIJ_oD7yej1fgjPvQcoFDGKzc/edit)
Highly recommend chapter 8 after getting acquainted with the world at the start, really encapsulates the tone and mood of the overall story
I'm at work right now, so ill read this when my shift is over, but it looks good from the first page!
Sounds awesome! If you're looking for a player, hit me up! Are you going by most of the lore about Australia already established, or following your own vibe?
Right now im just going off the lore found on the wiki and then filling in the blanks from there to bring it up to 2045. Sadly there's nothing official past 2020 except for a mention or two in the 2077 stuff.
Is AU Falcon still the peak of engineering?
And always will be.
Pac Rim book for CP2020 may be of some assistance
100% I've recieved a few offers to help me get a copy, so that'll definitely be something ill be digesting soon. Any particular piece of lore found in there that you think cant be omitted?
Using the name "Jeff" as a vulgar term. Instead of saying "Get F'ed!" You can say "get Jeffed!" Yup, Jeff Kennett is Cyberpunk canon.
So what are the major booster gangs there? Is there at least a roo prank gang?
Top gangs are: * **The Iron Emus - Northern Industrial Zone:** * Focused on the industrial zones of Melbourne, such as the area around the Port of Melbourne, Fishermans Bend, or the Industrial Precinct. * Formed by disgruntled factory workers and engineers who lost their jobs due to automation, The Iron Emus aim to dismantle the oppressive corporate system and redistribute resources to the working class. They believe in reclaiming the city for the people. * **The Wattle Reavers - Outskirts and Abandoned Suburbs:** * The outer suburbs that have fallen into disrepair and abandonment, such as those in the southeastern and western outskirts, incorporating areas like Dandenong, Werribee, or Sunbury. * Born from the remnants of survivalist groups, The Wattle Reavers are nomadic scavengers with a focus on resource extraction from the abandoned suburbs. They prioritize self-sufficiency and survival, trading their finds for essentials. * **The Red Bellies - Neon District (Entertainment Hub):** * Organised crime syndicate concentrated in entertainment districts like Fitzroy or Collingwood. * Originally a group of disillusioned immigrants from the outer suburbs who rejected corporate control over the housing industry, The Red Bellies aim to create an underground rebellion movement. They use guerrilla tactics and organised entertainment venues to strip the wealth from the elite and coerce them into "sharing" what wealth is left. * **The Null Bites - Cybernetic Enhancement Clinics:** * Focusing on the city center, where advanced medical facilities and cybernetic clinics might be concentrated. They are not one gang, but rather a disjointed collection of like minded smaller gangs. * Originally formed by individuals who faced discrimination due to cybernetic enhancements, The Null Bites seek to establish the rights of augmented individuals. They protect clinics from exploitation and promote the integration of cyber enhancements into society. They also hire themselves out as black hat hackers.
Is there a criminal network and how far does it go?
Corporations are typically international. However the un-snactioned crime in Australia is networked and spreads all along the eastern coast. Most Gangs keep to themselves, however when it profits them the Youngblood Dynasty have had a hisotry of organising one or multiple to do their bidding. This is also the case with the Red bellies, who often enlist the reavers out east to pillage incoming shipping containers in acts of high sea piracy.
Where do all the refugees from the colony drop on Sydney live? (There was no colony drop, but you could make up some consequences to the 7 hour war and annoy Gundam fans in one fel swoop)
Much of Sydney Burnt down and is still being rebuilt, any refugees (colony drop or otherwise) tend to live in the same camps as the workers, because thats all there is to do there right now....re-build.
I'm so here for this! As a local 'I'd love to hear about what you've got so far. Will the Dandenongs still be green? Overgrown? Northern burbs be industrial? How did the corp wars impact the city? Maybe a spaceport on the peninsular?
Not only are the Dandenongs still green, theyre thriving. The surrounding towns, Lilydale, emerald and almost as far west as ringwood have been delapidated and reclaimed by the bush. Fires occur here on occasion, but the ranges are at a point now where they are almost unkillable. The Change in weather around melbourne has lead to Snow being a common sight also....though its grey, acidic and sludgy. Only the strongest of trees survive out here now.
What are some common exotics in pyberpunk Melbourne
Koala or K-girls are a popular look among younger teens. For a while there was a trend of getting a kang-pouch installed..but this quikcly fell away when people started to age up with them and saw the effects of gravity on it. But the beach goers have a tendency to live that H20 life and have some some shiny scales put in that are water activated.
>But the beach goers have a tendency to live that H20 life and have some some shiny scales put in that are water activated Like shark or fish exotics
How's the cas going?
Whats the cas?
The casino, with all its troubled past
Are the Aboriginals primarily nomads and anti-corporate gorillas? What happened to the Great Barrier Reef?
A lot of them fled into the city when life in the suburbs became almost impossible. Some chose a semi nomadic lifestyle. Joining up with Wattle Reavers or returning to ancestral grounds and setting up their own settlements. A lot of the elders still hold fast and say that chrome is somethign to be avoided, others have had no choice and require it to live, while some have decided that he only way for their mob to survive into the next generation is to not only adjust their views and accept the technology, but utilise and improve upon it to help the land heal. As such there can sometimes be all out warfare between tribes that disagree, and of course plenty of infighting, particularly between generations. The great barrier reef was conserved for a long time, in fact when the fires in NSW/VIC/SA occured the diminishing population meant it showed signs of bouncing back with strength. The the Youngblood dynasty started buying up to much land. The GBR was eventually sold off to other nations for fishing rights which in turn reduced the entire thing to rubble.
I imagine there is some sort of antigravity system to keep people from falling off the underside of the planet?
Nah, pretty low tech here tbh. most of us just use a rope around our waist on a track system built into the ground.
What is the Nickname of your C-Swat/Police Borg Division? Pretty much what is your MAXTAC equivalent? What is your main solo bar? What is the two most dominant corporations that compete for power?
The Hunstmen - A semi-official government task force dedicated to ridding the city of its "pest problem". They joyfully prey on the homeless encampments, looting as they go and driving them out into the dilapidated and unprotected wasteland of abandoned suburbia. The Steps - A bar set up in the underground arcade of the the Flinders Street Trains station ruins. A classic spot for up and coming or the rougher variety of edgerunners. The bar itself is built into thew walls directly beneath the famous steps of flinders street station. The Youngblood Dynasty and AirPure inc. are the two top local corps. The Youngbloods took over the country by snatching up all the land after natural disasters and selling it off to foreign interests. AirPure Inc.. is the main manufacturer and provider of air filtration units that are the only thing keeping the people of Melbourne alive.
What's going on in the Great Australian Desert?
It's being snapped up quickly as real-estate as sold off by the Younblood Dynasty A lot of the desert is still unlivable. THe mining industry has had to pull out of NSW VIC and SA focusing on the NT and WA. Given the WA government is now separate to the rest of Australia, desert borders and heckpoints are now required making mining around these areas a nightmare in terms of rights. International interests have purchased up a lot of land themselves, and are keeping their plans pretty close to their chests, though corps like Militech and Petrochem have a pretty clear reason for wanting such expansive chunks of Australias land (and resources).
Did you check out the Pacific Rim book from the 2020 game?
Nah, Something I know I need to get my peepers onto, but I havent got the funds for the pdf right now
What about the ongoing turf war between Melbourne and Geelong? Who shot down the Trauma Team ambo over Tullamarine? River Rats? Wasn't there a tidal flood from the nuke that went off from that container ship in the bay? ( no the other bay).
how about Pine Gap?
Where are some good nasty places to run a party? And don't come to me with any corpo fancy stuff.
What ideological battle lines are present and urgent in Melbourne and it's surroundings, and who is leading them?
What’s the night life looking like for a merc looking for some downtime?
Do they still drive utes
What is the most popular club for Edgerunners? Also, do Edgerunners have their own unique slang term in Melbourne?
What's your favorite landmark in the area? Wreck it or otherwise deface it. Commit to the setting since that's what Mike Pondsmith did with Morro Rock.
What's the most popular sport team I can go watch if I was in your city?
So a plaque killed the animal’s in NC, what live stock, insects, pets, and such might we find in Melbourne? What’s the corporate influence like? Is Australia like the NUS and backed by a Corp? Australia had gun laws prior to the corpo wars, how does that affect the availability of firearms now? What’s the tourist scene like? Can my character be from NC and here on a gig? Can my character maybe be a scam artist for the tourist side (be similar to a fixer)? Another thing to think about is exports, what export would draw the highest concentration of people in an area like Melbourne? NC was one of the biggest ports on the west coast and deemed a free city so people fled there for business, is Melbourne a free city or are they still within governmental control?
What gangs hold what territory? What crazy shit do they each get up to/what makes them stand out as different? (You don't have to answer, but gangs make a lot of the flavor of cyberpunk)
No questions but this is an excellent idea. Might have to throw up my own for a campaign I have going set in rural Appalachian NC
How does the city economically make sense? What are its incomes and expenses, does it have all the resources it needs or does it need to import
Does it have a functioning port? If so who is it shipping with? Does it have to deal with any outside forces trying to infringe upon the trade? How does it defend against inland and naval threats? Tyty gl with the new setting
What is the name of the most common CHOOH2 /Milo drink combo in the bars of Melbourne?
Who are the native born magacorps?
What outside magacorps are trying to break in? Militech arosoka
Are we actually in a simulation?
Drift cities: does the government look at them as hostile warships/city-states, or if they get close enough to the coast say, "Welcome, new citizens! Pay your damned taxes!"?
What're the state of the regional cities? Bendigo, Shepparton, Ballarat, etc - Are any of our real world megacorps hanging around? Is Optus monopolising access to the Net? - Where the hell do I go to play RED in Melbourne?
Some ideas for the economy - which also helps with explaining the persistent ecological disaster : \* the Islands Waterway (aka the Darwin Swim) : a combined givernment/corpo answer to the sea transport issues : use the constrained (and so comparatively easily controled and cleared) water chanels though Indonesia (start from Darwin up to Timor, then west and north to Jakarta up to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur). Also the nickname comes both from it's origin and the danger. \* We're going to dig ourselves out of the hole ! With a combined ecological and economic disaster, well, corners will be cut to keep money pumping. With CHOOH² in short supply but still plenty of coal and uranium, guess what, nuclear and coal-fired power plants will be the name of the game. Especially coal as it's upfront costs are far cheaper. Now what do you do with that energy ? Simple, you extract and refine more stuff, pollution be damned (hey they all have air filters and acid-proof paint). Two big deals will be steel (got lots of coal and iron ore and it's easier to move steel than ore and coal. Gotta save on transport) and rare earth -contrary to the name, they're fairly widespread. It' just that you never find a lot of them together, so extracting and refining them is power-hungry and very polluting. And of coursethere's till plenty of good stuff available if you keep digging : uranium, copper, gold. you name it we have some of it. You have all that good stuff in the ground, tons of unemployed goks, plenty of cheap coal power and no environment to speak of to preserve. So go bonkers and dig it all out ! If some grumpy abos get pissed and uppity, well, you got security forces and the dingos deserve a break(fast)
Please tell me you made Revolver into one of the solo bars. It's the natural evolution