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General Category => Role Playing Public Radio Podcast => : clockworkjoe February 03, 2016, 02:38:56 AM
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So Caleb is having me run Red Markets. Here's a brief write up of the enclave we generated.
Enclave Name: Trabajo
Location: Train yard in Greeley Colorado adjacent to a meat processing facility.
Defenses: Boxcar barricades surround the enclave. A weaponized slaughter house continually thins the horde around the enclave by luring in groups for destruction. The slaughter house is funded by the bounty and grimecloth it reclaims from the casualties. Trabajo still maintains one train, which goes on seasonal trading missions with other enclaves. The train’s movement and loud whistle draws many undead away from Trabajo, keeping their numbers in check.
History: Trabajo was founded by Hispanic meat processing workers, who flocked to their job site in the first hours of the Crash, as it was the most defendable site that would allow them in. The workers did not trust the authorities or local community to open their doors to them. Some Catholic priests and nuns went with their congregation. The train yard was emptied out of its local staff, whisked away to more strategic rail sites by the government. The workers fortified the site as best they could, using their tools of trade to fight off the undead. However, they realized they would need to use the trains to protect the site. A team of workers and a nun recruited local trainspotting hobbyists from nearby enclaves, promising them bounty and a high position in Trabajo. A particularly cantankerous hobbyist who insisted on referring to himself as The Conductor saved the enclave by neatly arranging spare boxcars into barricades, even derailing a few without damaging the tracks or other trains. With its perimeter secured, Trabajo became a stable enclave.
Despite its safety from the undead, Trabajao was desperately short on supplies and firepower. Celeste, a former marijuana dispensary owner, provided both when she and her entourage of PMC contractors joined the enclave a few months after the Crash. She came with literal truckloads of supplies but part of her arrangement with the enclave was that no one could ask where the supplies came from. She also insisted that marijuana farms would be set up within the enclave, despite the protests of the church and some workers, who wanted food grown over drugs. She kept Trabajo safe from the growing number of raiders and cultists roaming the countryside and pot became a popular export.
Trabajo has never closed its doors to new members, so many poor college students and faculty from the nearby university joined out of desperation. Most enclaves only allowed in refugees with valuable skills or connections. The leaders of Trabajo all knew what it was like to be an outsider or a member living in the fringe of society before the Crash, so they were more sympathetic than the other enclaves. Anyone can join Trabajo if they are honest and are willing to be judged by the church’s court for any crimes they committed before joining the enclave. Most new members are given penance in the form of difficult and unpleasant work but former bandits and cultists must prove their trustworthiness by months of incredibly dangerous missions for the enclave.
Top Exports: Marijuana and hemp products, grimecloth reclaimed from casualties, milk and meat from livestock processing, freight and logistics service, passenger transport, and education from Catholic schools. Some enclaves pay to send students to the Catholic school, which has the best reputation of any educational establishment in the region.
Top Imports: Fuel for the trains, pot growhouses, and slaughterhouses, is unending. Food, especially grain, for the huge number of citizens is always in demand. Every time an enclave in the region falls, survivors flock to Trabajo. Weapons for the PMC guards, machined tools and rails for the trains also face shortages.
Competition: The DHQS has a large presence in the NORAD facility, 140 miles to the south. The HQ of the Moths, the Ubiq Campus is also in the region as a major player. Trabajo has become a battleground in the cold war between the two factions. Each faction wants to flip Trabajo to its side. The leaders of Trabajo want to stay out of the war, not wanting to suffer government airstrikes or Moth IED attacks.
Other competitors include a well organized convoy of diesel trucks that have alternated between raiding and trading with other enclaves in the region. They have maintained a low profile, but they have targeted Trabajo-affiliated travelers and underbid Trabajo transport contracts before. If anyone can find more information about this group, they will receive a big payday from the Union.
Social Structure: The primary authority in the enclave is called the Union. Made up of the original slaughterhouse workers, the Union runs most of the businesses and infrastructure. The PMC protects the enclave’s walls and polices its citizens. The legal system is presided over by Catholic priests, including several former lawyers for the church and a few Jesuit priests. The Trainspotters run and maintain the trains, effectively giving them veto power over many decisions. If the Conductor refuses to run the train, no one can force him.
Neighborhoods: The Train – engine room and adjacent machine shops. Reserved for the Trainspotters.
Trough: Celeste’s turf – PMC guards, growhouses, and gardens.
First Class: Pullman cars for VIPs and other rich members of the enclave.
Processing: Warehouses converted to barracks. The poor working class neighborhood.
Grand Central: open air marketplace – where hustling and commerce happens.
VIPs: Boss Marta Munez: Leader of the Union and de facto mayor of Trabajo.
The Conductor: Leader of the trainspotters, eccentric and iron willed hobbyist with encyclopedia knowledge of trains.
Cardinal Joseph O’Connell: Appointed as Cardinal of the archdiocese of Denver by the surviving priests. Charismatic and known as a pragmatist. Well-liked by other leaders.
Father Antonio: Defrocked priest and former lawyer. Only public defender of the enclave. Man of the people.
Tammy: Only meth dealer in enclave. Great connections but total white trash. Somehow fatter than she was before the Crash.
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Looking forward to hearing this campaign!
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So Caleb is having me run Red Markets. Here's a brief write up of the enclave we generated.
You make this sound like he drew a gun on your feet and said "dance for me."
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Sweet. I'm curious, Ross: how would you say this enclave compares to Le Corbusier, in terms of its overall size and population level? I'm still trying to get a feel for how big a "normal" enclave should feel.
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I demand to hear Aaron's Hispanic accent.
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It's definitely a much larger enclave than Le Corbusier. I haven't figured out exact population numbers yet, because ugh, effort.
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Sounds bitchin'. I love the concept of a more compassionate Enclave, and Celeste and The Conductor sound like interesting characters.
Is this the Enclave the Grimecloth people in The Brutalists campaign are from? Sounds like it is.
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I hope there's a reference or a job called "...But the trains run on time."
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WW2 references being better than Trainspotting references I guess?
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"Choose Zombies..."
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(http://i.imgur.com/Kp3ueBH.png)
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Taker Groups in Trabajo
Fallen Flag (The PCs)
Cutty: A crusader cultist doctor. Crazed but great at stitching up wounds.
MacReady: A latent with a sword. Good at swording zombies.
Han: A quiet man with a bow and machete.
Aamu: A lost soul with a gun.
Refurb: A techie with a falcon.
Half-Off: A negotiator with 2 prosthetic limbs. Immune.
The Luchadors: a former troupe of amateur wrestlers turned Takers. Has two latents in the group, both enormously strong. Boisterous and looking for excitement.
Renegades: A group of bikers and crooks that travel between Trabajo and the Clubhouse, a small enclave outside of Denver. Mostly works for Tammy but takes on odd jobs.
The Wild Geese: Teenage orphans led by an Irish priest, Father Robert O'Connor. Essentially a Black Math cult with Catholic underpinnings. Tolerated because they will take on jobs for the Church and always honor their word.
Lifeline Contractors: Adjunct faculty and military veteran students at the nearby university help run the Lifelines forums during the Crash. They are not members of the Moths but have some ties to them. Considered professional and competent by most clients.
Some minor enclaves in the region
The Coop: A chicken farm run by Old Man Harris, who runs the enclave with an iron fist. Very old fashioned.
Euphoria: Ski resort turned into New Age commune.
Clubhouse: A biker bar turned into a heavily fortified enclave. Between Greeley and Denver.
City on the Hill: A prepper community that took over a strip mall and nearby bank. Known to be paranoid.
"Ninth Circle": rumored secret enclave of zombie-worshiping cultists. Thought to kidnap children to brainwash as new members. Feeds intruders to zombies. No one knows location.
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Sounds great! The rival groups seem interesting. I like the concept of the Wild Geese the most, but the other three have sound concepts.
Let's play "Guess the Player"!
Cutty: Shaun
MacReady: Tom
Han: Faust
Aamu: Caleb
Refurb: A-A-Ron
Half-Off: With a pun like that, it has to be David
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Cutty: David
MacReady: Tom
Han: Shaun
Aamu: Faust
Refurb: Aaron
Half-Off: Caleb (I'm cheating on this one - Ross confirmed this in the GroupMe chat, 'cause Caleb wants to test the prosthesis rules)
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Random RM inspiration: http://elcomics.tumblr.com/post/54127537542/dead-planet-a-new-comics-drawn-by-the-amazing (http://elcomics.tumblr.com/post/54127537542/dead-planet-a-new-comics-drawn-by-the-amazing)
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Half-Off: Caleb (I'm cheating on this one - Ross confirmed this in the GroupMe chat, 'cause Caleb wants to test the prosthesis rules)
(http://49.media.tumblr.com/79fa331996e5bd1720a961138b7d2579/tumblr_npltypJNyy1tfr0v3o1_500.gif)
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Random RM inspiration: http://elcomics.tumblr.com/post/54127537542/dead-planet-a-new-comics-drawn-by-the-amazing (http://elcomics.tumblr.com/post/54127537542/dead-planet-a-new-comics-drawn-by-the-amazing)
Cross post this to the Red Markets Inspiration thread, dammit! Look at me, telling you how to post on your own forums.
Whatever, I did it for you. :)
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The Red Markets Kickstarter is up!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/159466030/red-markets (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/159466030/red-markets)
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Question about setting.
If DHQS is the ultimate antagonists for the players in the settting (clandestine goverment agency dedicated to ensure that there are no orginized civilization/survivor resistance and unpersoning of anyone in the loss) how can any taker group ever work for them without distroying their retirement plan? It seems your branded by the devil for life because he caught you trying to sneak into his house. The end result being joinning them and sent right back out on missions or being killed as a security risk.
Would it be any better working for the moths or we talking high fuctioning driven refugee that needs shit done until you die.
It would seem the way to survive in red markets is to not engage with any of the major players At All, And just scootch by into the safezone. You need both to live, moths for ubic and DHQS for bounty but neither are your friend and will get you killed.
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Question about setting.
If DHQS is the ultimate antagonists for the players in the settting (clandestine goverment agency dedicated to ensure that there are no orginized civilization/survivor resistance and unpersoning of anyone in the loss) how can any taker group ever work for them without distroying their retirement plan? It seems your branded by the devil for life because he caught you trying to sneak into his house. The end result being joinning them and sent right back out on missions or being killed as a security risk.
Would it be any better working for the moths or we talking high fuctioning driven refugee that needs shit done until you die.
It would seem the way to survive in red markets is to not engage with any of the major players At All, And just scootch by into the safezone. You need both to live, moths for ubic and DHQS for bounty but neither are your friend and will get you killed.
I'm not Caleb, but seeing the DHQS as nothing but ultimate antagonists is only one possible choice that the Market could make when running the setting. In your game, they could be less hostile and ruthless than they are in the Brutalists Maybe they're trying to extinguish all organized Enclaves, or maybe they're trying to pick certain ones to grant official Reclamation status to. Or maybe some parts of the Agency are doing one or the other of those things, or completely different things, or are just so inefficient and unaccountable that they're not really doing anything with a single discernible purpose.
The fundamental fact for Takers is that DHQS needs jobs done, and they have a lot of money. Yes, it's pretty dangerous working for the Feds, but that's who has the money.
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Question about setting.
If DHQS is the ultimate antagonists for the players in the settting (clandestine goverment agency dedicated to ensure that there are no orginized civilization/survivor resistance and unpersoning of anyone in the loss) how can any taker group ever work for them without distroying their retirement plan? It seems your branded by the devil for life because he caught you trying to sneak into his house. The end result being joinning them and sent right back out on missions or being killed as a security risk.
Would it be any better working for the moths or we talking high fuctioning driven refugee that needs shit done until you die.
It would seem the way to survive in red markets is to not engage with any of the major players At All, And just scootch by into the safezone. You need both to live, moths for ubic and DHQS for bounty but neither are your friend and will get you killed.
I'm not Caleb, but seeing the DHQS as nothing but ultimate antagonists is only one possible choice that the Market could make when running the setting. In your game, they could be less hostile and ruthless than they are in the Brutalists Maybe they're trying to extinguish all organized Enclaves, or maybe they're trying to pick certain ones to grant official Reclamation status to. Or maybe some parts of the Agency are doing one or the other of those things, or completely different things, or are just so inefficient and unaccountable that they're not really doing anything with a single discernible purpose.
The fundamental fact for Takers is that DHQS needs jobs done, and they have a lot of money. Yes, it's pretty dangerous working for the Feds, but that's who has the money.
I imagine the DHQS would be a lot more negotiable towards Takers the further you get from the Recession, which is the attitude I adopted for them in the Hooverville campaign; why expend precious fuel and flight hours on expensive aircraft to carry out operations hundreds and thousands of miles from the Recession when you can maintain a network of fixers to pay Takers to do the same jobs?
The CCC's second job was to rescue a DHQS soldier in a crashed helicopter near their enclave, and their fourth involved scouting out a site that the DHQS had secretly staked a claim on. While they were opposed to the Takers in the second example (Through their agent guarding the place) they were also perfectly justified in defending a site that was technically government property even before the Crash, as it was full of military vehicles and munitions.
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Aaron is playing a "tech" character.
Tom is playing a "monster".
Caleb is playing a character with a horrible past, that makes elaborate plans.
You guys went way out of your character comfort zone! ;)
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Been listening to parts of Fallen Flag #2 (access from backing Red Markets on kickstarter).
Just have to rave about it here. The first half is a laugh riot of the blackest of black comedy. Faust you were fantastic and so much on point as Caleb's son (Half-son??). The hesitant responses. The uncomfortable backpedaling.
And then Aaron. Generally Aaron is the "moral center" of the group but like all good plot lines he will do a Heel-turn when you least expect it. "Half-dad". And then the totally in character 12 year old. Fantastic.
Poor David man. Wow you sounded sick but you powered through.
I will never get enough of the crazy Crusader doctor either. But everyone was stealing the show for comic relief.
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Been listening to parts of Fallen Flag #2 (access from backing Red Markets on kickstarter).
Just have to rave about it here. The first half is a laugh riot of the blackest of black comedy. Faust you were fantastic and so much on point as Caleb's son (Half-son??). The hesitant responses. The uncomfortable backpedaling.
And then Aaron. Generally Aaron is the "moral center" of the group but like all good plot lines he will do a Heel-turn when you least expect it. "Half-dad". And then the totally in character 12 year old. Fantastic.
Poor David man. Wow you sounded sick but you powered through.
I will never get enough of the crazy Crusader doctor either. But everyone was stealing the show for comic relief.
I binged the entire season over the course of a work week. That was a mistake--I needed a strong drink after the ending.
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Been listening to parts of Fallen Flag #2 (access from backing Red Markets on kickstarter).
Just have to rave about it here. The first half is a laugh riot of the blackest of black comedy. Faust you were fantastic and so much on point as Caleb's son (Half-son??). The hesitant responses. The uncomfortable backpedaling.
And then Aaron. Generally Aaron is the "moral center" of the group but like all good plot lines he will do a Heel-turn when you least expect it. "Half-dad". And then the totally in character 12 year old. Fantastic.
Poor David man. Wow you sounded sick but you powered through.
I will never get enough of the crazy Crusader doctor either. But everyone was stealing the show for comic relief.
I binged the entire season over the course of a work week. That was a mistake--I needed a strong drink after the ending.
The whole thing is excellent. Some parts better then others. I thought Mr JOLS was not one of their best. Bet the epilogue was great bot the good and the bad of it.
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I needed a strong drink after the ending.
Took a combo of Mastodon, funny pics, and Monster Hearts APs to cope with that ending, for me.
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*Shrugs* I dunno, Han's ending was really satisfying and heartwarming. As was Refurb's.
McReedy & Half though... goddamn Half's ending...
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Aamu was that character I loved to hate in this campaign, and I say that in a good way? Like she was just so god damned selfish and cold hearted at times and caused so much drama when she got angry and spiteful and I LOVED the role-play of it. (That fight between her and Half... "Magnifique!") And then her ending was so heart warming and sweet that I all but forgave her actions previously.
Good job Faust!