Midnight Run

Midnight Run

The Year is 2124 and Humanity has spread across the Solar System thanks to Terraforming technology and the M-Gate System.

Earth became the smog filled environmental nightmare they always said it would s the effects of global warming play havoc with weather systems. While the governments and nations of Earth engaged in costly proxy wars over dwindling resources it fell to big business to explore the Solar System.

The first break through in that led to this was the development of Terraforming technology and the second was a series of breakthroughs in Nanotechnology. Terraforming Tech made the first colonies on the Mars thrive in a matter of years and meant they required less support from Earth. However making the air breathable was only half the battle.

The creation of Nanomachines opened up a whole new field the practical applications of which are only starting to be felt. They allow people to be stronger, faster and smarter than ever before. An early example of this was the creation of the Muscle suit. A bulky suit tht was made from woven nanotubes which allowed wearers increased strength and durability. As time progressed the suits became less bulky with more features.

The companies that funded the original colonisation trips guarded their prize jealously and soon the cities were being divided up between the large Interplanetary Corporations. Many companies moved their entire operations to Mars where they could conduct research in whatever direction they pleased without governmental oversight. Of course this led to Industrial Espionage and Sabotage on a massive scale, providing a lucrative field for many Private Security Contractors.

The next major breakthrough was the creation of Artificial Intelligence. While the original Idea was that these intelligences would be given very limited free will and only used in helping with scientific research or complex problems. Of course this didn?t last and eventually someone came up with the idea of combining a muscle suit with an AI. Thus Artificial Life was created and the first Synthetics were born.

At first the Synths were only to be used as labour on distant planets and moons. However the Genie was out of the lamp and soon Synthetics were a part of everyday life. While on Mars they are treated as equals by all but a few of the most backward on Earth they are viewed with distrust and often open hostility.

The Corporations while favouring their own private security forces saw the sense in creating a public police force after a spate of protests and terrorist actions. Thus the Mars Security Services was created. Unfortunately corruption is rife and the rich definitely get an easier time than any of the other citizens. Never the less there are good cops.

Technology.

Computers exist in pretty much everything thanks to the minute size of Nanocomputing. Computers in clothing, cars, weapons even cooking utensils. If you can think of it odds are someone stuck a computer in it.

The Net

The growth of the Internet continued unabated and with the larger memory and processing capabilities allowed by Nanocomputing its scope exploded.

Human Augmentation.

The creation of artificial life led to an invigoration of the robotics field. While early AIs had to make do with ugly bulky bodies it is now possible to make Synthetic bodies practically indistinguishable from the real thing. This led to humans becoming interested in changing their own bodies.

Some people do this for medical reasons but the vast majority opt for it due to fashion tastes or because they are unhappy with their body. The sale and use of Augmentations is prohibited but on Mars the people who sell the Augments have a great influence in what is permitted and what is not.

One augmentation that is nearly ubiquitous is the Neural Interface a Nanomachine that allows a user to connect with the Net directly, allowing very secure communications across vast distances. It also provides users with a Heads up display superimposed over their normal vision.

Interplanetary Travel.

This is achieved through the use of the M-Gates. The technology is based around M-Theory which is where the gates get their name from although most people think the M stands for Massive as the Gates are so huge. The Gates are maintained by private companies and work like toll roads. The downside is a Gate can only deliver you to another Gate, therefore to set up a gate someone has to go the long way at least once.

Synthetics.

Synths are AIs that instead of being contained on the net or as part of a device exist in bodies. These bodies began as bulky simple affairs but as the technology developed they eventually became indistinguishable from human beings. While a Synthetic can be of a particular make and model and their actions constrained by programming and intelligence limiters their personalities vary greatly. This is because to date it is impossible to create the nuanced quantum interactions that result in individual personalities.

Groups.

M.S.S.

The Mars Security Services does exactly what it says on the tin provides security to Mars and the people living there. In reality their job is made difficult by the corporations who prefer to purchase their own security. They are underfunded and overworked but are seen by the corporations as something that will keep the people happy while keeping attention off their own shady dealings.

Locations.

Earth.

An environmental disaster with many regions flooded due to rising water levels or turned into barren desserts due to global warming. The resource wars crippled most of the big powers of the past and the political make up of the planet has changed. China is still the dominant power although their commitment to communist ideals is weak at best. The larger European Powers banded together to create the European Central Government which is moderately successful. The United States had the largest fall from grace as the politics in the country became more partisan and seditious, while its economy and people were hardest hit by the resource wars. After a brief but bloody civil war Texas became the first to secede but it was followed by quickly by others. These days what was once the United States of America is now just a collection of small countries similar to what Europe was before it unified.

Mars.

Mars is still the Red Planet but now it has patches of blue. These patches are craters that have been Terraformed. While it?s not possible to Terraform the entire planet due to the lack of a magnetosphere it is possible to make the craters habitable as they offer some protection from the solar wind. While the Martian Peoples Assembly is in charge of the planet on paper the truth is they are pretty toothless and the true power lies with the corporations.

Weapons.

The main difference is weapons are now chambered for far larger rounds, for example 9mm is now obsolete while 50.AE is most commonly found in handguns. This is because augmented bodies and muscle suits are laced with carbon Nanotubes which require larger rounds to damage. While wearing a Muscle suit or augment a person can handle the recoil like they were firing a much smaller weapon.

How the RP will work.

The RP is going to be based around two occurrences. The first is a terrorist attack on luxury Starliner while the second is the investigation of a murdered computer hacker. The quick witted among you may deduce the two occurrences are connected and you?d be correct. Over time the two plots will feed into one. How this will happen is the magic of PM?s. In another RP I?m working on I?ve let the RPers do their thing but everyso often I PM them clues or plot points then which feed the main story, obviously they develop their own storylines independent of me and so far rthe system ha worked really well. I think something else like that could work here.
So at the moment I see the main character being members of the MSS. They will either be deployed on the Starliner as Close Protection Operatives (Bodyguards) or on Mars working the murder case. The two starting points are obviously very different. The starliner will have lots of action while the Murder investigation will be more about setting the tone and character development.

At this point I?m asking for questions and comments.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/BScBmEvj_rI/viewtopic.php

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