11.27.2009

Character: Vaugn

Background, Private/OOC: Male, Swedish, Trancer

Background, Public/IC: Male, Swedish, Trancer

Mode Deck:
Primary Design Card: Trancer
Secondary Design Card: Expert Fighter
Tertiary Design Card: Heart

Maneuvers: cosmic trance

Goals:(* current goal)
*Learn the hard way

zGear:
Basic Green Reflex Ulster
Basic Green Feet
Basic Green Spacewing Backgear

Inventory:
c9

Character: Kleer - mentat with a mission

Background, Private/Out of Character : - - - - - - - - -
born on 2092 July 9th (17 years old)

Altruistic in nature and has history of independent thinking
and erratic behavior. Born and educated on Terminus Station.
Educated by accelerated measures especially in areas of melee.
Has had bio-modifications made in order to boost his ability to
store and access information in his mind. Has a love/hate
relationship with datanets. He wishes more beings would use
their own mind to store their most important information instead
of relying on technology so much, but he benefits from accessing
datanets more than the average humanoid.

Believes there is no such thing as a stupid question.
Believes all searches for knowledge are honorable regardless of
subject matter. Has come to believe through years of experience
that by helping others one creates the greatest opportunities to
learn new information. Believes taking things apart and putting
them back together is necessary to fully understand how something
works and how it can be improved. Has a large distrust for the EGS
(Earth Gravity Sphere) due to discovering their attempts to cover
up the truth surrounding specific historical and local events.



Background, Public/In Character: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
183 cm (6 ft.) tall, 109 kg (240 lbs.), black, male

appears to be around 17-19 years old

Asks a lot of questions and shows a desire to help others even
if they've had a history of being hostile toward him. Tends to
surf any available datanet system looking for information related
to situations he and his group is in. Likes to work through all
possibilities before making decisions - this sometimes slows
down group decisions.

Has joined a group of Earth exiles on September 3, 2109 during
their temporary stay on Terminus Station.

Likes to fix/modify things - especially zGear/weapons.



Mode Deck Cards - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Primary: (1st slot) : Drive - REASON
Secondary: (2nd slot) : Syndic : SAVANT - MENTAT : Alertness, Engineer, Savvy
Tertiary: (3rd slot) : EXPERT DUELIST (melee expert)
Quaternary: (4th slot) : Syndic : FREAKER - zJACK : Alertness, Engineer, Pilot
(my REASON card allows for a 4th slot)



Maneuvers: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
melee : LUNGE!!
alertness : HIT THE DECK!!



GOALS: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
CURRENT GOAL : gain the "DEATH FROM ABOVE!!" pilot maneuver

other maneuver goals:
melee maneuver : RIPOSTE!!
melee maneuver : EXPERT BLOCK!!
engineer maneuver : HOTSHOT!!
engineer maneuver : JURY RIG!! (needs to trade cards to pick this one up)
engineer maneuver : SUPERCHARGE!! (needs to trade cards to pick this one up)

short term goals:
***gain more zGear and boost them with LODES

long term goal:
***establish a center of education/datanet for Earth exiles. It appears
Terminus Station would make the best location for the main center.
Determine if other exile-oriented edu-datanet centers would be
needed at other locations throughout the solar system.

other goals related to long term goal :
***learn more about the exiled life by helping a group of exiles
accomplish their goals

***investigate LUNAR Rebels to see if their cause against the EGS
will give access to more information helpful to building an education
center. Determine if building an edu-center/datanet within their
information system is possible. Being a FREAKER might overcome
any LUNAR Rebel hostility towards Kleer being a SAVANT.

***win Z-G tournaments to collect enough credits to build a
edu-center/datanet for Earth exiles. Might have to enter and
win the final tournament of the ZGXL to accomplish
this goal. Winning the final tournament would likely open
numerous opportunities for the edu-center/datanet to
become a reality.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

accomplished goals :
>> became a FREAKER (pilot / zGear modifier)


accomplishments / lessons learned :
>> fixed a broken shotgun the group picked up during an asteroid skirmish

>> learned how important the ULSTER is in Z-G combat - since a penetration
hit to his ULSTER took him down quickly during arcade Z-G combat

>> resuscitated DUKES from a near death experience

>> fixed the broken robot pilot that DUKES attacked only to see it broken
again right after repairing it



zGear : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
IXIS (green) : REFLEX ULSTER
KRUEGER (red) : TURBOBOOST BACKGEAR
IXIS (green) : SKYCLAW FOOTGEAR - LEFT & RIGHT
ABSA 292-X (red) : SUPERIOR -- DEFENSOR Z-BUCKLER



Inventory : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
credits : 228
medic pack (picked up from the taxi/DUKES fiasco)
tools for fixing/modifying zGear & robots


character signals :

Z-G character signals - for Kleer

Ken Ichijo - Paragon Cypher

Age: 15


Paragon Elite

Expert Scout

Ambush!! x1

zGear:

Kronos Assault Ulster

ABSA 291 Z-Buckler

Goal:

Jury-Rig!!

11.16.2009

Movement & ZG

This section will discuss movement.
At it's basic level, you just lay down the number of cards you have in the movement stat on the card. You must follow the turn order of (4) Move then (5) Attack. Place them one at a time and you can't "take it back" once you set it down. When you move up onto something, you "climb" up/down the wall, so it takes movement cards. You can stick to any surface for as long as your movement lasts. The Blue & Red footgear are notorious for this, because they don't have the powerup Z-G. If you end your movement more than one card above the nearest surface, you fall down.

Related to this, if you fall more than 1 card on a foe, you are knocked down but you also push that foe. Test your movement card vs a random card from their deck for the number of cards of knockback. No damage is taken.

A tactic that anyone can do to increase movement is Dash
If you play both L&R Footgear of the same color in the same turn, the second Footgear played gains +3 to Move. The two Footgear don’t have to be played sequentially, another action may take place between them. It is easier to remember to take the move bonus & tactic mode card if you do take them sequentially.

Movement & Z-G:
You must follow the turn order of (4) Move then (5) Attack. If you have Z-G, you may choose to take your movement after (6) Damage. If you have the rare Z-G2 power you can take a portion of your movement, attack, then finish your movement.

Z-G itself gives you an number of free vertical movement cards equal to your base movement. It also gives you the ability to fall as far as you want without falling down when you land. This effectively allows you to arc over things as tall as your horizontal movement, then float down from your maximum vertical height. If you land on someone, you don't get to knock them back because it's too soft a landing.

Tactic: Jump
If you have Z-G, you may “jump” from solid ground to solid ground. You may cross over pits, chasms and other falling hazards as long as you start and end your move on solid ground and your card(s) has the Z-G powerup.

Sorry, in the ZGXL if you don't have Z-G you can't jump. This is what house rules are for.

Movement & Attacking:
You can jump down on your foe from above to get the height advantage +1 armor piercing on HtH attacks. If you jump down more than one card and don’t attack with a Z-G card or have another Z-G card in your hand, you are knocked down immediately following your attack. Your opponent does not suffer the normal knockback falling on them would get you.

If your attacking card has Z-G and your foe dodges, you may immediately take as much unused Move as the card has remaining to Chase the Dodge. If this extra move places you within HtH range of the dodging foe, the dodge fails and you may conduct your attack test normally.

11.09.2009

Penetrating attacks

Penetrating attacks are attacks that score 3+ strikes on the target card and then get to "continue" the attack on another target card from the same opponent's deck.

We had a game this weekend where it seemed like every attack was either 0 strikes or 3+. We had a whole team eliminated by 1st strike penetration attack ulster kills. This is a fine time to mention the benefits of having your ulster in your hand, protected from penetrating attacks by a low impulse (going last). The only way to hit your hand is via spending an action on the reflex substitute ability.

From the Battlebook:
Neither penetration nor Multicard attacks may be enhanced with any powerup, be it from a zGear or Mode card.

For example, if you use a Supercharge!! card to add a target card to your T-Laser’s attack, you may use the T-Laser’s Scan powerup vs. only one, not both, of your target cards.

Likewise, if your T-Laser scores 3 strikes vs. a target card you don’t get to use your Scan powerup vs. the penetrating attack target.

If you use a powerup like Knockback (whose effects depend on the number of matches you make) Penetrating or Multicard matches don’t add to the effects of the powerup. If you use a Knockback attack and score 3 strikes and then score only 1 match on the additional target card, you knock the foe back only 3 cards from the original target card.

Now lets assume you are hit by a penetrating attack. Once the 3 strikes, maneuvers, retests, etc are resolved and you still suffer a penetration, if you want to use your hero ability from your drive to undo that attack and save your gear you need to do it BEFORE you draw the next target card. Once you draw that second card (and it's your ulster, doh! you are allowed to look at the target card in all circumstances unless it is a sneak attack) you can't do anything to stop or modify the attack. Once you draw your target card the next attack has started. This is when the "no modifications" rule is in effect.

That's the power of 3 strikes!

11.04.2009

Card Tests

Pulse Time 5 - ATTACK: After you move, you may attack a foe if you're in range.
+ZG allows you to take your attack before your move, but it is the only exception.
If your action card has Ø Range, you must be able to touch your foe’s figure with your attacking weapon. Read the name of your card’s attack, but don’t show the card to your foe. Then secretly choose which end you want to attack with. Place your card face down, with your attacking end facing the foe.

Press the spin button to spin the defending card.

Your foe then draws the top card from their deck, keeping it face down. The foe may examine their card. This card is your TARGET CARD. Your foe then SPINS the card to randomize the test.
If you're feeling lucky, after the spin the attacker may request a half turn.




Flip over your cards and compare the ends by aligning the 3 colored dots.



Example: Firefight Frontgear attacks Magnetron Generator- 3 Matches, 2 Strikes. SLAGGED! The Armor blocks the green strike, but not the match. The explosive cannot break armor. The Armor-Piercing has nothing to impact, so it is useless in this attack.

Count the number of dots that match up by color, if any. This action is called a TEST. Whenever one of the pairs of dots has the same color, it's called a MATCH.

* No matches: Your attack misses. Discard your action card back into your deck and take your next action, if any. If you want to retest, you need to do it before your next action.
This means that Deadshot!! may not be used if there are 0 matches, because it is a Time 6 - Damage maneuver card.
* 1 or more matches: Check for strikes.

Pulse Time 6. DAMAGE
: Once you’ve determined matches, compare the cards’ blazes. Blazes are the symbols on the dots. Matches without blazes are always strikes. Offensive blazes only are useful versus Defensive or Status Blazes.

Defensive:
Armor - Blocks the strike. Removed by Armor-Piercing. Explosive ignores armor when there is a weak point.

Status:
Weak Point - Add one strike when removed by explosive. Add two strikes when removed with AP.

Offensive:
Armor-Piecing - Removes 1 Armor per Armor-Piercing blaze. Add two strikes when removing weak point.
Explosive - Always a strike when removing weak point, regardless of color match or armor.

Now compute how many strikes you get, then look at the chart below:

* 1 Strike: TARGETLOCK: No damage, but you may target this card again with your next attack if you have actions remaining this turn.
* 2 Strikes: SLAG: Foe removes part from figure, discarding the card from play into their slag heap.
* 3 Strikes: SLAG & ATTACK AGAIN: Slag card, draw another target card from foe’s deck, attack again with the same card. This is called a penetrating attack. It is special because no powerups can modify the follow up attack.
*4 or more Strikes: SLAG, STUN & ATTACK AGAIN. Foe is also stunned; see Powerups.

Slagged cards may not be used for the remainder of the game. A RETEST would start this process over at Time 5- Attack.

After you resolve strikes with an action card immediately return it to your deck; this pulse is done. If you have unused Z-G or Z-G2 movement, you must take it now before your next pulse.

10.21.2009

Make your own Pixel Signals



Make a signal for your gaming group!
Sean's Signal Generator - Big version with symmetry options
sfiera's Signal Generator - Save your signal with a code or view the existing signals.

10.14.2009

Basic Rules

Z-G BASIC RULES

1. SETUP: Z-G is for 2-4 players, each with their own InterAction Figure™ and matching cards. Play anywhere. Anything and everything is terrain — build it out of books and boxes.

2. START: Pick any 3 cards from your deck. Place them, face down, on the table. This is your hand. Shuffle the remaining cards, which compose your deck.

3. IMPULSE: Find the Impulse (blue) number on each of your 3 ACTION CARDS. Arrange these numbers from highest to lowest (e.g., 7-5-3) and call out the resulting 3-digit number. Do not reveal your cards. The player with the highest overall Impulse poses their figure any way they like, anywhere in the arena. Then the next-highest places their figure, and so on. No figure may start more than 7 cards from the nearest foe. If a tie occurs, each player draws a random card from their deck and compares the Impulse number; highest number goes first.

* The first player begins their turn.

4. MOVE: First player picks (but does not reveal) 1 action card, then moves their figure a distance, measured in card lengths, up to the number of that card’s Move score. To plot your move, lay out a row of cards on the table (connect the arrows) so that the first card touches both of your figure’s feet. Move your figure along this path, then place your figure on the last move card and pose it any way you like, so long as both feet touch it.

* Once you lay a card, you can’t start over. That’s your move.
* You may use Move to climb up and down any surface as normal, card by card. Just lay the cards out, up and over.


5. ATTACK: After you move, you may attack a foe, if you're in range to do so. If your action card has Ø Range, you must be able to touch your foe’s figure with your attacking weapon. Read the name of your card’s attack, but don’t show the card to your foe. Then secretly choose which end you want to attack with. Place your card face down, with your attacking end facing the foe. Your foe then draws the top card from their deck, keeping it face down. The foe may examine their card unless you’re making a sneak attack (see Tactics). This card is your TARGET CARD. Your foe then SPINS the card such that a random end is placed toward you (after the spin, you may request a half turn). Flip over your cards and compare the ends by aligning the 2 cards so each of your 3 colored dots faces each of your foe’s dots. Then count the number of dots that match up by color, if any. This action is called a TEST. Whenever one of the pairs of dots has the same color, it's called a MATCH.

* No matches: Your attack misses. Discard your action card back into your deck and take your next action, if any.
* 1 or more matches: Check for strikes.

6. DAMAGE: Once you’ve determined matches, compare the cards’ blazes. Blazes are the white symbols on the dots. Matches without blazes are always strikes. If a target card dot has an armor blaze, this blocks the strike unless the attacking card has a corresponding armor piercing blaze on its opposing dot. If any target card dot has a weak point blaze and you have a matching armor piercing blaze, the match counts as 2 strikes. If you have an explosive blaze and the opposing dot has a weak point, you ALWAYS score a strike (even if you don’t have a match or the weak point is covered by armor). Double armor blazes can be broken only by double armor piercing arrows.
Now compute how many strikes you get, then look at the chart below:

* 1 Strike: TARGETLOCK: No slag, but you may target this card again with your next attack (this turn only).
* 2 Strikes: SLAG TARGET CARD: Foe removes part from figure and card from play, discarding the card into their slag heap.
* 3 Strikes: SLAG & ATTACK AGAIN: Slag card, draw another target card from foe’s deck, attack again with the same card. (4 or more Strikes: Foe is also stunned; see Powerups.)
If you slag a card, remove it from play and place in your foe’s slag heap. Then take the corresponding part off the figure. Slagged cards may not be used for the remainder of the game.
* After you play an action card, immediately return it to your deck; its pulse is done.

7. NEXT PULSE: Now play either of your remaining 2 action cards as you did the first, taking its move and then making its attack. After that, play your third and final card.

8. NEXT PLAYER: Now the second player (second-highest Impulse) takes their time 4-7. After this player finishes their turn, the next player takes all their actions, and so on.

9. NEW TURN: Repeat from 2. START until the winning conditions are met.

10.VICTORY: You win by defeating all of your foes. To defeat a foe, slag their Ulster card or reduce them to fewer than 3 zGear cards.

EXCEPTIONS

These are the core exceptions to the Basic 10 card deck.

1. CHARACTER CARD: This card represents you. It is not zGear and is not part of your deck — keep it to the side, in your control panel (see MODE CARDS). Use its special powerup once per turn, or sacrifice it to save a zGear card. A character card is used in basic play; advanced games use a Mode deck instead.

2. RANGED ATTACKS: Weapons with a Range number, such as guns, may attack foes at a distance. Lay out a number of cards, in a straight line, up to your Range score. If you reach your foe, you can attack them. You can’t start over if they are out of range; you must target some foe along that line of cards. You measure range and zone attacks from the muzzle of the gun or the edge of the weapon. If a zGear card has a Range number of Ø, it is considered a hand-to-hand (HtH) weapon, and the weapon itself must touch the foe’s figure for an attack to occur. Tip: Ignore height when measuring range; lay the cards flat.

3. LINE OF SIGHT: To attack a foe, the foe must be within line of sight. If, from your figure’s vantage point (the head), you can’t see any part of your foe, the foe is considered to be out of your line of sight, and you can’t attack them. Line of sight is not an exact science; compromise and conventions of play are key to play. Tip: Put your eye behind the head of your figure and call out what you see. Facing is unimportant; you're an action hero!

4. COVER: If your foe is partially concealed by a barrier — for example, their figure is crouched behind a wall or lurking around a corner — whatever gear can’t be seen by your figure (from the head) can’t be targeted. If that zGear card is drawn as a target card, the attack fails. Your own zGear can’t provide cover for your own zGear. Tip: Agree on what zGear has cover before making a test. In general, if you can't see 2 colors on the zGear, it's covered.

5. TERRAIN: After you start play, no player can move, add, or remove terrain — however, you can blow it up!! Just measure its two longest dimensions in card lengths (its "Mass") and that’s how many strikes it takes to pull it off the arena. For the purpose of targeting terrain ONLY, draw a card from your own deck. If you play on a table, decide if the edge is a WALL (figures can’t be forced off table) or a FALL (fall off and you’re out of the game).

6. BOLSTER: Some situations allow defenders to bolster their defenses. When bolstering, a defender gains +1 armor blaze on one dot. Declare the bolster before the test, but after the test you get to decide which dot has an extra armor blaze on it.

7. AUGMENT: Some situations allow attackers to augment their attacks. When augmenting, an attacker gains +1 armor piercing blaze on a dot of their choice. Declare before the test. After the defender decides their bolsters, if any, the attacker decides which dot gains +1 armor piercing.
Tip: Either an augment or a bolster can be added to a dot that already has armor or armor piercing.

8. RETEST: After making a test, some cards and situations allow the attacker, the defender, or both to "do-over" the test, respinning the card and applying the new result. When retesting, choose a single target card or attack card to which the retest applies. Each player may retest only once per test. (This means you!)

9. COUNTDOWN: If a player is taking too long with their turn, start the countdown. The player has 1 minute to complete their turn. You may also start the countdown after you’ve picked your action cards, giving the rest of the players 1 minute to choose their cards.

TACTICS

Rules options you can use to change the odds.

1. HIGH GROUND: When making a ranged attack, if your entire figure is above your foe’s head, your attack is augmented (+1 armor piercing). When making a hand-to-hand attack, if your figure is over your foe’s knee, your attack is augmented. You can jump down on your foe from above to get the +1 armor piercing on HtH attacks. If you don't have Z-G and jump down more than 1 card onto your foe you suffer knockdown.

2. SNEAK ATTACK: Don’t announce the name of your card’s attack (and don't let your foe examine their target card) if any of the following apply:
o You are the player with the highest Impulse and this is your first attack.
o You’re attacking from cover.
o You were out of line of sight when you began your action.
Note: You can't sneak attack with a card that you used last turn.

3. JUMPS: If you have the powerup Z-G, you may jump from ledge to ledge. As long as you start and end on solid ground and use a single Z-G card (or multiple cards, each with Z-G), you can cross over chasms.

4. FALLING: If you drop down rather than use movement to climb down a drop of more than 1 card in height, and your don’t have a card with Z-G in your hand, you are knocked down (see below). If you land on a foe, make a free attack with your last action card, but only to determine knockback (see below).

5. KNOCKDOWN: You score a knockdown if you knock back your foe:
o Into another figure at least 1 card away
o Into a barrier over 1 card away
o Off a ledge at least 1 card length high (see Falling).
Place a knocked-down figure on its back. That figure must spend 3 Move to stand up again. Any attacker may make a free retest when making a hand-to-hand or Zone attack against that figure.

6. DASH: If your character is equipped with 2 footgear of the same color, add +3 to the Move rating of the second footgear card played in the same turn.

7. FLAMEOUT: At the start of any turn, before players have chosen their cards, you can announce "flameout." This turn you may play each of your hand cards twice, for a maximum of 6 actions. If none of your foes is defeated by the end of the turn, you flameout and forfeit the game.

8. STANCES: You can pose your character to gain an advantage. Entering a stance costs Move. For example, if you play a Maneuvering Footgear card (Move 4), you may choose to move 1 card, then enter the Kneel stance (Move 3).

o KNEEL: Cost: 3 Move. Cannot be knocked back unless foe gets 3 strikes. May not move.
o ATTACK: Cost 3 Move. All your hand-to-hand attacks are sneak attacks. Maximum Move is 1 per card. Counters defensive stance (may attack hand).
o DEFENSE: Cost 3 Move. Foe may not attack your hand. Maximum Move is 1 per card. Counters attack stance (all HtH attacks are not sneak attacks).
o PRONE: Cost 3 Move. All your foe’s ranged attacks are augmented, but all foes’ HtH attacks vs. you are also augmented. Maximum Move is 1 per card.
o STAND: Cost 3 Move. Stand up from any other stance. No penalties, no bonuses.

ERRATA

* Scan is an Extra, not a Replace, powerup. It may be played in addition to, not in place of, an attack.
* The Reaction Armor Frontgear card should have the Knockback powerup printed on it.

RULE OF PRIME: If you and a foe can’t agree on a rule, then call for a test — both of you choose a card and pick an end. Match? - You decide. No Match? - Foe decides. (Or find a zMarshal!!)
RULE OF NULL: Unless another rule or a card directly contradicts a Basic Rule, the Basic Rule always stands.

WORDKEY

Action Card: The card currently in play.

Blaze: The white symbol inside the dot; determines whether a match becomes a strike.

Character: The deck of cards and zGear parts that defines your unique character. "Give ‘em a name."

Control Panel: The active Mode cards that are face up in front of you.

Deck: All your zGear cards not in hand or the slag heap. If a foe has no cards in their deck, that foe must draw target cards from their hand.

End: The two shorter sides of a zGear card.

Mode Deck: All the Mode cards your character has that are not yet in the control panel.

Slag: To remove a card from play. Your slag heap holds all your slagged cards and zGear.

Target: To attack a particular card.

Target Card: A card from your foe’s deck (or hand) that you are trying to strike.

Targetlock: To score 1 strike and thereby gain the opportunity to target the same card with a new attack.

Test: To make an attack by matching up dot sets.

zGear: Your equipment, represented by both a plastic part and a matching card.

10.09.2009

Open Discussion

No Topic here, just keep it civil

10.06.2009

Character: Yowuya Matago® – Child of the Matago Corporation

Background, Private/OOC:
Female, born to the Matago Corporation, Orbital Jan 3. 2097, assigned to Beta Crèche, Matago Halo5, Earth-Sun Lagrange point 5. Accelerated education approved by nursing governance board. Subject exhibits excellent absorption and retention of standard materials. Subject exhibits leadership qualities and good communication, e.g. Class president through basic; numerous competitive speaking placements. Accelerated curriculum completed to College Level. Transported to Sino-Australia Arcology second semester, 2106 for Aeropagus prelims, Average scores. Exiled September 3, 2109 for extra-league ZGXL competition. Non-normative behavior, 3 standard deviations. Minor infractions totaling 16 demerits.

Exile week: Exact whereabouts unknown. At sea off Australian coast, all tracking implants disabled via unknown means.

Summary recommendation:
Permanent and irrevocable termination of MATAGO-EGS corporate officer track, transition to MATAGO-Grange administration, high standing.

Background, Public/IC:
She is cold, argumentative and selfish. Yow is 150cm (5ft), 35kg (75lb) soaking wet, but a stubborn fighter in the ring. A dyed-in-the-wool child of the Matago corporation she uses primarily the rugged mining gear that Matago is famous for producing. She keeps a small book detailing who owes her favors and why. She has good credentials with the Matago corporation; she's probably a junior officer or manager trainee.

Mode Deck:
Primary Design Card: Consortium
Secondary Design Card: Expert Leader
Tertiary Design Card: Ambition

Maneuvers:
Opportunist!!

Goals:(* current goal)
*Halt!!!
Expert Fighter
Force
Ares Lode
Grendel Lode
State of the Art Blue Gear (Feet, Front, Loader Claw, Shield, Ulster)

zGear:
Basic Red Helmet (found, virtual match)
Superior Green Frontgear (stolen, Monzon Ezut Issue)
Superior Blue Shield (c40 @ zGearGo)
Basic Blue Feet (c20 x 2 @ zGearGo)

Inventory:
c19 hard EGS currency
Diary / Book of grudges
Ego Lode - Basic Matago Corp. Artifex + Personal Librarian Artifex

10.01.2009

Dark Side Station

Never in human history has there been a more foul and distasteful collection of the dregs of humanity than Dark Side Station. Located in lagrange point two, the point to gravitational stability perpetually on the far side of the Moon, Dark Side Station has become a haven for those who wish to remain within the borders of the EGS, but free from its overt control and influence.

Lurking in its darkened corridors are Mavryks and hustlers, Cartel wiseguys and syndicate factors. No one rules Dark Side Station, its original founders having been scared off years ago. Periodically the Armada attempts to place a Viceroy and a garrison of troops on board, but somehow this never comes to pass. Most people speculate that those who control the illicit activities here must have friends in very high places.

The station itself is a huge mélange of ships, hubs, asteroids, and spare parts. Anyone and anything is allowed to attach onto any ship that gives its permission, and within certain clusters of ships it is said you can find nearly anything – perhaps even an old Gemini capsule or a hive of mummers. Always in danger of being torn apart by different gravitational forces, somehow the disparate individuals working toward their own ends manage to keep the amalgam of ships together. Despite Dark Side’s population of nearly 3 million, in the last ten years only 3 near-catastrophic events have occurred, and at such times only about 10% of the total mass of the station was lost due to tidal forces.

Dark Side Station is best known for one thing: the yearly Z-G tournament that takes place here, which in turn takes its name from the station. The final tournament of the ZGXL, the largest Z-G professional league, the Dark Side Tournament attracts over 8 billion viewers from all over the Solar System. The final game of the Dark Side Tournament typically demonstrates the cold, calculating treachery and violence that are such hallmarks of this remarkable place.

Luna

To humanity, the moon began as a goddess of the night, a loving sentinel of the sky, a haunting reflection of the brutal gaze of the sun. Later she became a siren, luring explorers, taunting them to leave gravity behind. Now, Luna has become a prison colony, a place where the resources for the ever-growing and always-ravenous orbital colonies can be found. And because few humans would agree to toil in the mines, even with the aid of Artifex, only prisoners and convicts, political or otherwise, will toil.

This latest history of Luna began during the Second Cold War, which started when China and the United States began a race to colonize this closest of all celestial bodies. The discovery of Z-G, anti-gravity technology, forever altered the fabric of society, as millions fled Earth for the Grange and many others plotted revolution on Earth. The only practical means of keeping the peace on Earth was to force the mass immigration of “malcontents” to the moon.

At first, Luna was advertised as a place of abundance, but quickly the facts become apparent on Earth. The moon was a dangerous and filthy world of tunnels and corridors. Food was bland and far from constant, death was forever at the door, and there were far, far more men than women. Fighting between convicts was the norm. It was here in the mines that the Cartel originated, and it was from the ranks of the trustees, the prisoners promoted to guards, that the first Corps of the Cestus Mercs arose. As the years went by, many of the convicts gained their freedom, but were not allowed back on Earth and were rejected admittance by the very selective Orbital colonies. Forced either to risk everything and venture to the Grange or to remain on the Moon, many chose the latter and began to create the unique Lunar culture so well known on Earth today.

They also became the first people to begin to view Z-G as a sport and to formalize duels into matches. Their pastime eventually become a system-wide obsession. Of course there are many discordant forces on this rocky orb, and while ostensibly a free and full member of the EGS, the complaints and resentment of the ’Loonies’ are legion. If revolution were to begin anywhere in the EGS, it would likely begin here.

Earth

Earth is the 3rd planet in the Sol System, the cradle of Humanity. Earth is the mother world, the locus of all culture and trade; still home of over half of humanity, and indeed the font of life itself. No other place in the Solar System has anything close to the panoramic diversity of natural wonders that Earth does. And that, indeed, is the problem. For thousands of years, human beings tore into Earth’s crust, cut down its forests, plowed over its jungles and plundered its oceans. Never since the great asteroid hit Earth and killed off the dinosaurs have so many species been extinguished.

Only after the close of the Second Cold War and the discovery of ZG technology did human beings begin to come to their senses and begin to restore Earth to her majesty. Since the formation of the EGS in 2090, things have come a long, long way. Two billion people have been relocated to orbit, and another billion have found their way to various parts of the Grange. Population growth has been reduced nearly to zero, and the rivers, forests, streams, and oceans have been slowly and painstakingly restored. The ugly scars of millions of miles of roads and highways have been removed, and whole swaths of countryside have been restored to their natural state.

It has taken some draconian laws to achieve these hard-fought environmental victories, and not all agree that protecting the source of life is as important as protecting the self-interest of humans. The Zero Tolerance Laws are an especially egregious and hated set of regulations. The slightest infraction of a population, environmental, or human welfare Zero Tolerance Law and you can be Exiled from Earth forever. In this manner a huge number of Earth denizens have had their citizenship revoked and been cast into the Grange. None of this, good or bad, would be possible without the EGS, the Earth Gravity Sphere Government. Formed in the wake of the first Grange War (during which Earth suffered a strike from a intentionally diverted asteroid), the EGS finally united Earth’s governments to found the Armada and protect Earth from Grange forces.

Terminus Station

Terminus is the largest Waystation in the solar system, and currently has a population of over 20 million people. It began as simply a series of military supply and support ships around the “T1 Space Gun”, and has grown into an enormous Orb and Wheel, the veritable center of system wide trade.

The true center of Terminus is the Space Gun, one of only two that currently exist. Capable of shooting ships at near light speeds to any moon size or larger mass in the system (which then use that objects gravitation force to slow down) it was designed by the Armada as the premier line of defense for earth. Consisting of 7 concentric rings that are nearly 1000 meters in diameter, it uses control of gravitational forces to sling nearly any object at high fractions of light speed in nearly any direction. This makes the Gun a very dangerous weapon, and accordingly, the Armada defends it with all its might.

The space forces always have two squadrons of Iconnu Fighters stationed at Terminus for immediate launch through the space gun. These elite Armada ships are trained to intercept and then drag with them using huge magnetron generators any unknown or undocumented ship that is approaching the EGS. The station itself is has 7 battleships and over 10,000 troops stationed on it, such a massive collection of military might that it is impossible to imagine it being captured. Despite being so militarized, or perhaps because of it, Terminus is also a major center of trade.

Most of the ships that come to and from the Grange (especially the Asteroid Belt, where Terminus’s sister Waystation, Halfway is located) are shot through or captured by the T1 Space Gun. Thousands of ships pass through Terminus every day, and many of them stop for a quick drink, a fast deal, or to pay the EGS’s onerous taxes and duties.

Paranoia about the infiltration of nanovirii, bioplagues and other toxins into the EGS biosphere runs rampant on Terminus. Every ship that comes in from the Grange, whether shot in by the Gun at Halfway or coasting in under its own jets, must pass through quarantine at Terminus. This process consists of a high spectrum gamma ray bombardment of the ship, special disinfectant washes of the outside and inside of the ship, and cavity searches of all its crew and passengers. Many Grangers consider this to be intentional harassment and object vehemently, including diatribes against the short duration of their visas, 5 days. None are allowed on Earth itself, it would be considered to be too unclean by the fastidious EGS Citizens.

In every other way but biosecurity matters, the people of Terminus are notable for their open-mindedness, especially in comparison to Terrans on Earth. While they maintain a very good relationship with the Armada and the Vanguard (“after all, we are a military town”) they also consider themselves translators and intermediaries between Earth and the Grange. No matter what fashion or what passion, no matter where it hails, it is bound to have fans somewhere on Terminus. As a city based on trade, Terminus has no other choice but to welcome all creeds.

Umbilical
Connected to the Earth in the middle of the African continent, the Umbilical is an enormous 500-mile long, 1 mile diameter cylinder that connects Terminus to the Earth and enables energy efficient Z-G movement into and out of the Earth’s gravity well.

9.29.2009

Z-G as a Roleplaying Game 01

Character Selection
Your character is defined by what drives you, who you know, how you've lived your life so far. In Citizen Z-G, your character is defined in the game through 3 starting cards. Obviously this will not represent your character fully, but you need to have a goal for your character. The Gamemaster or zMarshal in IC (In Character) terms will need to know the direction you want to take.

This combination of 3 cards will normally consist of a Drive, an Expert, and a Syndic. Do not feel limited to this standard. If you desire a starting Flaw, you can take it in addition to your 3 cards, but it will not benefit you except in role-playing terms. Avoid flaws if possible, because this is not a points based game.

Rare or high ¢ cards will need to be vetted by the gamemaster. Unlike the advanced game the RPG version of Citizen Z-G will put you in the shoes of a EGS Citizen. This means that some card combinations will not be seen until your characters leave the EGS.

Exceptional Starter Cards
  • Syndics - Solon, Omniclone, Mummer, Monzon Ezut, Virago, Null Foundation
  • Drives - Wits, Force
  • Maneuvers - Rare maneuvers such as Deadshot!!
  • Characters - Lucy, Seren, Jett, or Zak-9.
It would be unusual for any normal citizen to own anything other than an ulster. An Ulster, as discussed in ØTech, is what makes life in space possible. Only the richest Terrans would never need an ulster, because they wouldn't have cause to leave earth. A truly hardcore Z-G fan would own working physical zGear, but only as a collectible, because to use it to battle inside the EGS would mean exile. Actual Z-G matches only take place in specific sanctioned orbital arenas.

Inside the EGS, Z-G matches take place in virtual arenas. Even the most experienced fighter wouldn't actually own any of their gear. Some of the major advances in technology between now and 100 years from now are in the field of nerve grafting, human computational integration, sense & memory spooling (recording/encoding), and large neural networks. This means that should a character be picked out of the safety of the EGS and put in a slum fight in the grange they would be competent. The nature of virtual interactions in Z-G can involve the muscles and the mind through modified ulsters. This means that your character would likely be able to actually perform the maneuvers that they have trained in virtually. This is another topic to be discussed in the ØTech articles.

So, there are a few options for starting your character out in the null cosm. Don't just look at a syndic and say, "I'm that guy right there". Those are the syndic champions. People are still people, and making a character for Z-G is not much different than making one for any other Sci-Fi game. Just go into the game with the concept of your character and your 3 cards and build your characters as a group.

9.09.2009

Thesper

The Reporter
"This is my life!!"

Underground newshounds broadcasting on pirate channels, Thespers record their lives by wire.  They defy the EGS censors and exile gunslingers alike, reporting the truth without fear or favor.

Thespers are everywhere and nowhere. Everyone gets paid for their data, but a select few chose to devote their life to the story. Unless they are hot on a story, Thespers operate in total anonymity. Thespers flaunt their technological eyes and ears even under the nose of the EGS censors. Inside the EGS they tap into the military surveillance systems and use spyfex that are nearly invisible. Beyond the boundaries of the EGS, they operate in a more subdued and open "neutral observer" role if only to save their skin from their stories. These traditionals will openly flout their recording gear and ask anyone in the area for their point of view in hopes of editing together some juicy rivalries or valuable soundbites. Thespers have earned many enemies among those who have secrets to keep, and equally many friends among those who want to get their message out.

The competition for a byline on the story eventually drives all Thesper to the arena to settle "professional disagreements". By recording their day-to-day with a trance cap, citizens can upload their spools to the traditional media for their chance at fame or simply keep a private record of their day. This competition with the common person drives hardcore Thespers into the offices of the Consortium Techs, Freaker Hackers, and Exotic Splicers. There are even stories of Thespers who seek out the scourge to perfect their technological union. Thespers are on the bleeding edge of automated data mining & sorting, records editing and deep research tech. Thespers are always accompanied by an editor artifex. The editor's job is to deal with the data that a Thesper generates and find the most profitable avenue to market it. In the event that data is too esoteric even for the Savants, Thespers have one of the largest datanets in the EGS where random facts go to die. Thespers never delete anything.

Champion
Sally Starlight, Anchor, VOX POPULI
Sally Starlight learned to battle while on maneuvers with the Armada in the inner Solar System. She practiced ZG with the best pilots in the fleet and earned her knocks from the best gunners in the fleet. A decent fighter, she didn't ascend to the ZGXL's upper echelon until after her silver tongue talked her way into the story of the century, literally. Early in 2090, Sally broke the news of the Venus Quarantine while embedded on the Armada interceptor Lion Heart. After her big story and subsequent ejection from the Armada, she focused herself into the arena and found her true skills lied in dissecting her opponents under the lights and cameras of the ZGXL's infamous Darkside Arena.

Strongpoints
ENN Headquarters (L1 Earth Orbit)
VOX POPULI (Darkside Station, Luna)
The Extraordinarily Large Omnidirectional Listening Antenna Array(ELOLAA) (Oort Cloud)
NewsForum (NeuNewYork, Earth/MediaNet)

Headquarters

None

Sphere of Operations

Thespers are everywhere, but they are more visible outside the EGS as Traditionals. Traditionals will openly identify themselves and their cast affiliation, but the majority of Thespers appear as any other citizen of the EGS.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Armada, Cartel, Cestus, Monzon Ezut, Null Foundation, Solon, Virago, Vanguard
Rival: Mummer
Friendly: Androgyne, Exarch, Omniclone, Lunar, Mavryk, Orbital, Savant, Skrag, Sleeper, Terran, Trancer
Ally: Avatar, Consortium, Exotic, Freaker, Paragon, Protostar

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 9
Firepower: 3
Respect: 2
Renown: 4

Psych Profile
Syndic Drives: Wits, Verve, Cool
Syndic Flaws: Reckless, Crazy, Obsession
Syndic Skills: Alertness, Glam, Savvy

Terran

The Extremist
"Earth is for humans."

This hateful, ruthless partisan seeks to purge exotics, clones, mummers, androgynes and other deviants.

In the 22nd century, the world is a very different place than that of our forefathers. Modern humans see a world filled with wonders and miracles. There are many that can see a world filled with terrors and blasphemy. Life is no longer simple in the ways that matter. It's from this that that Terrans, as they have called themselves, derive their strength. The syndic that has co-opted the name of humanity's home planet of Terra is a radical organization that styles itself a group of freedom fighters. Devoted to the purity of an earlier age, the Terrans have one of the most far reaching and powerful syndics in all of the Solar System.

The core constituency of the Terrans are the dispossessed. Impressionable youth and the working poor who seek more control over their life. They are the fingers, eyes, and ears of the Terran warmachine. They receive orders that rarely are self-explanatory or clear, but very simple. The cellular nature of the organization keeps it running despite the constant attention of the EGS secret police, the Monzon Ezut. The upper echelons have been infiltrated, but the leadership has never even been close to capture.

Everyone has heard the broadcasts of the soft spoken, charismatic bigot, Mike. The leader of the Terrans is a well known figure, but often supposed to be a construct. You won't find a Terran that admits it, but his words of hate and intolerance often are much more extreme than they are comfortable with. Terrans do not often hate the whole gamut of deviant behaviors found in the zCosm. The average Terran has a single burning hate that drove them into the arms of "The Movement", but deviating from the party line earns them the scorn of their cellmates, and sometimes worse.

The upper ranks of the Terrans are where the truly dangerous people live. These hardcore purists are financed by the movement in private, heavily armed, and guarded enclaves. Most are located in the newly revitalized Saharan Plains of North Africa. The most select are shipped to their secret training camp on the harsh planet Mercury never to return to the Earth. These elite fighters are sent into the grange to sow destruction among the newtypes.

Syndic Champion: Salt of the Earth
The highest rated heel in the league, Salt is the leader of the ZGXL's ratings board. Often in conflict with the Skrags, Salt has few friends in the league. Nothing brings in more viewers than good grudge match, and Salt's list of grudges gets longer near daily. Salt's crushing melee blows and high powered zone attacks make him the master of urban combat, but the use of largely non-ZG gear leaves her vulnerable to high flying adversaries.

Syndic Strongpoints:
The Homosapien Institute (Alexandria, Mediterrainia)
The Strong Family Initiative (Darwin, Australia)
NexCleanse Training Camp (St. Quadragesimus' Landing, Mercury Terminator)
NeuEarth (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
ForceOrg (Internet)

Syndic Headquarters:
DeathHaus (Internet)

Sphere of Operations: Although the Terrans might be fighting for the purity of earth, it does not mean that they are located there exclusively. There are many exiled Terrans that fight for mother earth despite never being able to return.

Syndic Drives: Pride, Force, Ambition
Syndic Flaws: Obsession, Vengance, Stubborn
Syndic Skills: Body, Command, Melee

Orbital

The Expat
"Leave gravity behind."

This elite member of the orbital colonies exploits his distance from the earth to foment intrigue and create a luxurious life in space.

Extravagant and beautiful, the orbital colony suburbs of earth harbor the nouveau-riche born shortly after the invention of ØTech. The first Orbitals fled the grinding taxes and EGS regulations of earth and vowed never to come back. Some have even gone as far as to forgo gravity entirely and devote the rest of their life to the stars. These radical few consult with the Null Foundation on biomodifications to avoid the health issues of microgravity life such as bone loss & gene degradation. They even go as far as creating Negative-G ulsters to allow travel to the spin colonies without the hard hand of pseudogravity.

Among the Orbitals, nothing is revered more than the ideal of escape. Escape from the dull monotony of EGS life, escape from old earth mores & religions, and most of all escape from the cradle, earth. The most zealous among them believe the maturation of humanity rests on their shoulders. These zealots live by the slogan, "How can you reach for the stars with your soul weighed down by gravity?"  This is not to say that most orbitals are even aware there is an Orbital political movement.  The Orbitals are the fastest growing (percentage-wise) population in the EGS.  Everyone born in space is an Orbital just as everyone who is born on Luna is a Lunar.  These populations have exploded in the last 10 years due not only to immigration, but also due to the first and second generations of colonists setting down roots and starting families.  These young Orbitals can't always relate to their elder's friction with the EGS.

Many of this syndic are matriculated from the Armada fleet after a long history of service and by choice assigned to the upper echelons of the most prestigious waystations. You would be hard pressed to find a colony not flagged and run entirely by Orbitals. They are simply the best at zero gravity operations and maintenance. Others are veterans of defense services or Mavryk Komet runners. This leads to a healthy appetite for their flagship sport, ZG arena fighting. Orbitals consistently place in the yearly ZGXL final rounds, and there are rumors of private Orbital only ZG leagues. One outed ZGXL spinoff league dominated by Orbitals is the ØPrix racing federation, which has a small cult following among the colonies.

With lax rules and a culture of openness and acceptance, Orbitals rarely make enemies. Terrans describe the Orbitals as tepid, prosaic layabouts, and few spacers would disagree.  The truth behind it, known only to the most elite of the colonies, is that the Orbitals plot rebellion against the EGS and expansion beyond the senate's wildest imaginations.


Syndic Champion:
Quattro, The Gold Standard
More of a ballet dancer than a fighter, Quattro's matches are decided early. He relies on his intellect and speed to keep him above the level of his opponents. With precision hit and run strikes most opponents don't have the chance to get out the gate before they receive a boot in the face. Quattro has been clocked as the fastest ZGXL contender in both raw speed and average match length, win or loss. Early in his career, he mysteriously appeared in the ZGXL as if created from whole cloth. He was ridiculed for his foppish gold plated armor, cut down lightened zGear and meager arsenal. His devastating gold plated State-of-the-Art ABSA-90 Recoilless Rifles turned out to be quite the crowd pleaser, and despite never placing in the ZGXL (so far), he is a regular contender in the weekly ZGXL programs and surprisingly, several afternoon holodramas.

Strongpoints:
Side 7 Complex (Earth-Moon L4)
Bernard's Star Institute (Mars Orbit)
Severance Hospital (Earth-Sun L3)
MegaMade Manufacturing (Asteroid Belt)

Headquarters:
Euler Colony (Jupiter-Sun L5)

Sphere of Operations: Few orbitals are found outside the comfort of the colonies that cluster around Earth & Mars, but there will be a few on every colony or waystation in the whole solar system.  A secret asteroid base in an eccentric orbit near Jupiter is Euler Colony's war room.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Exarch, Mummer, Skrag, Sleeper, Solon, Terran
Rival: Cestus, Lunar, Mavryk
Friendly: Androgyne, Avatar, Exotic, Freaker, Monzon Ezut, Omniclone, Protostar, Thesper, Trancer, Vanguard, Virago
Ally: Armada, Cartel, Consortium, Null Foundation, Paragon, Savant

Syndic Drives: Reason, Wits, Heart
Syndic Flaws: Despair, Reckless, Fear
Syndic Skills: Command, Stealth, Pilot

Null Foundation

The Initiate
"The Way cannot be told."

This illegal cabal of scientists secretly plots to speed the progress of the human race by increasing complexity. Space is but the first step...

An organization with many faces, the Null Foundation’s public image is that of a philanthropic institution dedicated to the colonization of the Solar System through advances in technology. This is entirely true, but merely the tip of a colossal iceberg that exists below the surface. Their enemies think that they intend to rule humanity through subtle political manipulation and piecemeal introduction of new technologies. These enemies (mostly the leadership of the Monzon Ezut, Consortium, Solon and other Syndics with System-wide ambitions) claim that already the Null Foundation’s memetic engineering attacks the status quo and leads humanity down a path that ends with the overthrow of the EGS. This, too, is largely true. But it is only the smallest part of what the Null Foundation has in store.
In actuality, the Null Foundation is a loose network of scientists, artists, politicians, intellectuals, and financiers who solve problems in exchange for favors. The bulk of Null Foundation’s resources are ephemeral, but no less real than the budgets of the EGS bureaucracies. In fact, if push came to shove the EGS might find itself hard pressed to defend against the resources the Null Foundation could marshal from within the Armada, Vanguard, and Cestus themselves! The core group of founders is rumored to be the team that invented Zero Gravity technology, and if this were true their resources would be vast indeed. One personality is known to associate closely with the affairs of the Null Foundation: Dr. Emilio Lazar. Famed for his neuro-lingustic programming that computed the Z-G theoretical models, Lazar is known to be over 120 years old, but is not yet wanted as a Virago. He hosts elite salons on Dark Side Station that the most creative and brilliant personalities in the System clamor to attend. Media stars, political powerhouses, business magnates, and science visionaries attend for the engaging conversations, inspiration, and peerless connections. Operating much like secret societies or social clubs of the nineteenth century, these salons are cross-pollination sessions that seem to put into practice the mimetic engineering principles that Dr. Lazar invented. If the Null Foundation has any fascist or totalitarian goals, there is little evidence to suggest it; nor are there any who have proof that they employ criminal methods like theft, extortion, or blackmail to get what they want. An enigmatic organization that exists on the fringe of human though and effort, the Null Foundation is known to help those in need whose skills or resources in turn can be used later. Failing to make good on a favor rarely results in direct consequences, but those that renege on a Null Foundation member calling a debt due usually find they come into hard luck sooner or later.

Null Foundation Champion
ARI, MYSTERIOUS FEMME FATALE FIXER:
Usually encountered by those who have a dire need but can’t find anywhere to get what they need to farther their goals, Ari appears in the back of a sleek hoverlimo, just in time to save the new Null Foundation member’s bacon. Charming and personable, Ari is the epitome of a fixer – someone able to find anything two people want on short notice and profit from the exchange. She used to be a zFighter in the Shadowleague but quit to pursue her role as guardian angel extraordinaire to those deemed worthy by the Null Foundation. She will be the first to remind her “partners” that nothing is free – especially her services. She’s rarely been crossed or reneged upon, and her taste for revenge is rumored to be both poetic and painful.


Null Foundation Strongpoints:
Ø Salon (Dark Side Station, Luna),
Null Foundation Philanthropy Tower (Diadar, Earth),
Ø Lab (Nemesis Station near Sol),
Club Nullity (Asteroid Belt),
Trance Station (Jupiter Orbit)

Null Foundation Headquarters: Unknown.

Sphere of Operations
The Null Foundation is known to have connections and agents everywhere in the Solar System. They usually have a spy or informant, if not someone who actually is leading the effort, in any project that involves experimental technology, especially if that technology would make it easier for humans to survive and explore space. As such, basic and applied research into the fringes of faster-than-light vehicles, multidimensional universe theories, nuclear physics, quantum computing, nanotechnology, cosmology, cybernetics, robotics, artificial intelligence, and so on draw their notice, support, and funding.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Monzon Ezut, Omniclone, Solon, Vanguard
Rival: Cestus, Exarch, Lunar, Mummer, Paragon, Savant, Terran, Thesper
Friendly: Armada, Cartel, Consortium, Freaker, Mavryk, Orbital, Skrag, Sleeper, Virago
Ally: Androgyne, Avatar, Exotic, Protostar, Trancer

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 7
Firepower: 7
Respect: 7
Renown: 7

Psych Profile
Syndic Drives: Ambition, Heart, Reason
Syndic Flaws: Obsession, Stubborn, Vengeance
Syndic Skills: Alertness, Engineer, Gunnery, Martial-Z, Savvy, Stealth

Mummer

 The Acolyte
"Now I am whole..."

A bizarre disciple of the nanotech messiah, SANTO SANTE, the Mummer fanatically serve one of the most feared cults in all of the Solar System.

The Armada first encountered the Scourge in 2053 – it seems to have emerged from the disastrous attempt to terraform Venus using nanotechnology. The nanites went out of control and the Armada and Vanguard were forced to destroy all settlements and labs on the surface and quarantine the entire planet. Some infected commandos and Artifex must have escaped the cleanup attempt because soon after that, the Mummers came howling out of the void bringing word of the coming of their new god with them: Santo Sante. Mummers are humans who have been taken over, every atom of their being converted to the Scourge nanite. Thus, they are a swarm of microscopic entities that retain a semblance of the form they had before infection. A Mummer retains some individuality, and continues to have a personality, though twisted and fractured by the chaotic nature of the infectious Scourge. They are immortal, after a fashion, and can re-arrange or re-assemble their bodies down to a molecular level. Whatever consciousness is left seems mostly occupied by keeping their body from dissipating or merging with that of other Mummers, and only rare individuals of strong will have absolute command of their new form. Most have no memory of their past, but a few do and invariably use what they know to farther their shared goal – spread the Scourge to as many humans as possible. Groups of Mummers or cells raid settlements and capture fresh humans for conversion throughout the Grange. These terrors travel on Scourge infected Komets, trade ships, or even on Mummers who have transformed themselves into vehicles. It is not easy to be infected by the Scourge – despite claims of the EGS to the contrary. In what resembles a gestation and birth, the new Mummer emerges from a complex conversion process initiated by an entire Mummer cell that takes around 24 hours. After that, it takes anywhere from a day to six weeks for the nanites to fully convert the victim’s body. The Scourge can convert Artifex, technological items, animals and organic matter, but they merely become formless masses of nanites that Mummers can command or incorporate into themselves. Even more strangely, Mummers sometimes block out their traumatic capture and infection, and experience no change to their external form at all, totally unaware of their changed state until some stress or accident forces them to realize what has happened. All Mummers claim to worship a prophet/god they call Santo Sante, the progenitor of their new existence. Whether this is a figment of their twisted Scourge-addled imagination, the first human to be infected by the Scourge, or something else entirely is unknown. Broadcasts of odd poetry and rants about evolution, conversion of humanity to the Scourge, and even stranger content are attributed to this person, and seem to be broadcast on the electromagnetic spectrum by nanite organs within the Mummers themselves.

Mummer Champion
KAOS, DISCIPLE OF SANTO SANTE: A rare example of a Mummer who seems fully conscious and in control of his state, KAOS has given in completely to the Scourge and seeks to prove the superiority of his new form through combat. The Shadow League and ZGXL have provided the greatest challenge, and though he is feared wherever he goes, he seems to enjoy playing within the limitations of the rules – in the arena at least. Especially tough opponents of KAOS have been known to disappear and be seen as Mummers years later in the depths of the Grange. . .

Mummer Strongpoints: Mummer Cells are itinerant and have no central structure, needing no
fuel, food, or other sustenance but sunlight.

Mummer Headquarters: Santo Sante is rumored to reside somewhere in the Oort Cloud

Sphere of Operations
Mummers are rarely encountered in EGS space, but ransack their way through the Grange with impunity. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to their activities, and as such a cell or individual sometimes slips onto Terminus or Luna and causes havoc before being destroyed. The message of Santo Sante is constantly broadcast on a spool channel by pirate stations and mummer bodies nearly everywhere.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Armada, Cestus, Consortium, Monzon Ezut, Omniclone, Orbital, Savant, Solon, Terran, Vanguard
Rival: Androgyne, Avatar, Cartel, Exarch, Lunar, Mavryk, Paragon, Protostar, Sleeper, Thesper, Virago
Friendly: Exotic, Freaker, Null Foundation, Skrag, Trancer
Ally: None

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 1
Firepower: 5
Respect: 2
Renown: 8

Psych Profile
Syndic Drives: Force, Pride, Verve
Syndic Flaws: Crazy, Obsession, Reckless
Syndic Skills: Engineer, Martial-Z, Trance

Monzon Ezut

The Agent
"Dedication, Perseverance, Domination."

The dreaded secret police of the EGS, Monzon spymasters enforce the Zero Tolerance Laws throughout the Solar System, but especially on Earth.

Intelligence has long been the prerequisite for political, economic, and social control. In the Earth Gravity Sphere the Monzon Ezut fulfills this role to an extent only dreamed of by totalitarian regimes of the past. Their official mission is to gather information overtly and covertly from everywhere humanity has expanded, from the Sun to the Oort Cloud, and analyze that information to present reports to the Senate on Diadar. In practice, the Monzon Ezut is one of the most powerful and feared military forces in the Solar System, operating in the shadowy world of espionage, assassination, counter-terrorism, counterintelligence, and covert, black, and wet ops.
The majority of known Monzon Ezut are information analysts employed at the agency’s public offices on Diadar. Supporting them are an unknown number of special agents who work in the field to gather human intelligence and engage in other more secret activities. Special Agents of the Monzon Ezut are culled from the Armada, Cestus, and Vanguard services, and from civilian positions on the basis of unknown criteria. Training is secretive and (it is said) involves not just combat and spycraft, but memory implantation, psychic boosting, and surgical modification. Sometimes a prospective agent is not even aware of their recruitment throughout their entire career. Paranoia is cultivated among analysts and agents, and many in the Monzon Ezut suspect their memories have been altered, or even replaced. Though the official budget of the Monzon Ezut is nearly equal to that of the Solons, it is well known that they supplement their income with a variety of black market financial operations. Secret labs and factories, in addition to classified projects undertaken by public companies hired and sworn to secrecy, supply a variety of specialized technology, pharmaceuticals, vehicles, and weapons systems to Special Agents. Some are so exotic as to provide the reality behind Grange rumors of ghost ships and wild rumors of space monsters and Void terrors. The Monzon Ezut has become so influential that they have only a limited accountability to the EGS government, and no one really knows what
their real objectives are. Key members of the Sentate and influential politicos of Earth know the Monzon Ezut have scandalous information and that they won’t hesitate to use to discredit or Exile any that oppose them. The Monzon Ezut are known by insiders to be violently opposed to the Null Foundation and its goals, as well as the immortal Virago and the Mummers infected by the Scourge.

Syndic Champion
LIEUTENANT DAMIEN, MONZON EZUT SPECIAL AGENT:
Lt. Damien (which may or may not be his real name) first found himself fighting in a Shadow League match quite by accident. Pursuing an escaped informant, the best opportunity to capture her presented itself during the match itself, and the crowd nearly tore him and his target to bits before he escaped – after defeating all zFighters in the arena with pinpoint deactivation blows and strange prototype Monzon Ezut-issued weapons. He seems to have developed a taste for the sport and continues to fight in Shadow League circuits, though many suspect there is an ulterior motive to his fighting.
Monzon Ezut Strongpoints:
MAJESTIC Training Base (Neptune)
Intelligence Network Node 542 (Jupiter)
URIEL Research and Development Lab (Charon, Mars)
OBLAGON Observatory Complex (Oort Cloud)

Monzon Ezut Headquarters: Intelligence Network Center (Diadar, Antarctica, Earth)

Sphere of Operations
The intelligence gathering activities of the Monzon Ezut extend throughout the Solar system, though they are concentrated most heavily in EGS space. Teams of Special Agents are able to infiltrate nearly any installation, organization, or group. Rumors mention extra-solar missions to Orion and other deep space activities, though it is impossible to confirm or deny such reports.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Mummer, Null Foundation, Omniclone, Thesper, Trancer, Virago
Rival: Cartel, Exotic, Lunar, Mavryk, Paragon, Skrag, Terran
Friendly: Androgyne, Avatar, Consortium, Exarch, Freaker, Protostar, Orbital, Sleeper
Ally: Armada, Cestus, Savant, Solon, Vanguard

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 6
Firepower: 6
Respect: 6
Renown: 6

Psych Profile
Syndic Drives: Ambition, Reason, Wits
Syndic Flaws: Fear, Obsession, Shame
Syndic Skills: Command, Martial-Z, Savvy

Mavryk

The Smuggler
"It'll cost you."

This dealer in contraband jockeys between Earth, Orbit and the Grange, defying the EGS' agents... for a price.

No one gets around more in the Solar System than a Mavryk. These colorful characters are part space trucker, part buccaneer, and part smuggler, plying interplanetary space in ships as small as a scout or as large as a freighter fleet. Some Mavryks earn their keep as honest transporters of goods for the EGS and Consortia, while others conduct shady contraband smuggling operations between Earth and the Grange. Perhaps it is the long hours spent alone in the Void, but all Mavryks seem a bit unbalanced, always looking to go faster and risk everything for the big payoff.

Mavryks usually start off at the bottom of the delivery ladder - as package couriers on Komets. This can become a lucrative business for individuals who take on risky (or illegal) packages, and the eventual goal is to upgrade to a real transport ship, one that can tow one or more of the standard cargo containers used throughout the System. Besides merchant traffic, Mavryks who are particularly fond of risks go for transport-fighters and take commissions from the EGS to waylay and salvage pirates, political enemies of the EGS, or criminal ships. Then again, an equal number of Mavryks use specially modified suped-up stealth smuggler ships to take questionable passengers and cargo anywhere in the System, no questions asked.

Many waystations cater to the Mavryk traffic, serving as overnight pit stops and repair depots for them to rest and relax before resuming their haul. Every need the weary traveler could have is catered to, the farther from the EGS, the wilder the place and more exotic the needs that can be met. Mavryks are a wild bunch, prone to boasting and fighting, but an unspoken code exists when they are blasting through the Void - no matter what, a Mavryk always helps another Mavryk out of a jam. The danger and loneliness of their job has forged a certain amount of loyalty - no one else knows what it's like spending day after day in the depths of space, with the possible exception of Armada warship crews and Exiles with nowhere else to go.

There is an ongoing rivalry between Mavryk and Armada pilots as to who can make certain distance runs the fastest or who can pull off the most stunning display of skill. Many locations, especially in the Asteroid Belt, hold impromptu competitions when the two Syndics happen to meet. Challenges between Armada pilots and Mavryks on leave in bars and canteens have resulted in spectacular races, some even covered by the media. Armada forces are always on the lookout for smugglers, and there are many long-lasting feuds between wily Mavryk smugglers and Armada ship captains based on quarry and prey encounters over the years.


Mavryk Strongpoints: 

Belle's Space Trucker Pit Stop and Canteen (Asteroid Belt),
Terminus Station (Earth orbit),
Interplanetary Shipping Unlimited Central Distribution Hub (Mars orbit),
Elite Courier Express (Spain, Earth),
Nemesis Station (Sun orbit),
The Last Stop Pleasure Station (Pluto orbit)


Mavryk Headquarters
: The pilot cabin of their Komet, spacetruck, or transport ship.

Sphere of Operations
: Mavryks can be found anywhere in the Solar System, transporting goods or passengers. Official trade routes that are patrolled by the Armada are not always the fastest, so desperate or reckless Mavryks sometimes use quicker routes, exploiting the gravity wells of planets to get their cargo to its destination faster. This runs the risk of encountering pirates, Scourge vessels, and other threats, of course, but that kind of trouble is all in a day's work to a Mavryk.

Relations Analysis
Hostile: Monzon Ezut, Mummer, Omniclone, Savant, Solon, Terran

Rival: Armada, Cestus, Paragon, Protostar, Thesper, Vanguard
Friendly: Androgyne, Avatar, Consortium, Exarch, Lunar, Null Foundation, Orbital, Skrag
, Sleeper
Ally: Cartel, Exotic, Freaker, Trancer, Virago

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 2

Firepower: 5

Respect: 6

Renown: 6

Syndic Drives: Cool, Resolve, Wits

Syndic Flaws: Reckless, Stubborn, Vengeance
Syndic Skills: Pilot, Savvy, Stealth

Lunar

The Rebel
"Get off my moon!!"

Former prisoners in the Lunar Penal Colonies, these radicals actively incite dissent against the EGS. They'll stop at nothing to put an end to the Exile laws.

The EGS has colonized the Moon over the last century with miners, criminals, and low-wage manufacturing workers. The factories of Luna manufacture more than 60% of all products sold on Earth itself. The EGS government taxes these imports, yet the Exile laws prevent Lunar citizens from ever setting foot on the surface of Earth. Luna is represented in the EGS Senate, but even the smaller Earth-based interest groups dwarf its power there. Because of this basic disparity dissatisfied Lunar citizens (and other opportunists) created the Lunar Liberation Front, a movement that seeks the independence of the Moon from Earth by any means necessary. EGS operatives and anti-independence media have termed them "Loonies."

While the actual membership of the LLF is relatively small, nearly half the population of the Moon, from CEOs to Cestus Mercs to blue-collar sweatshop workers are sympathetic to the cause. Others in the Grange support the Loonies as well: everyone who has a bone to pick with the EGS bureaucracy would love to see Luna secede and thereby cripple Earth's economy (the tariffs on Lunar imports fund 40% of the collective EGS yearly budget). A web of Consortium ties, legislative relationships, and the combined might of the Cestus, Vanguard and Armada keep this from happening, but it is these ties that Lunar Rebels have vowed to break.

Most Rebels keep their membership a secret, but a few operate openly, seeking to remedy the situation from within the system through lobbying and propaganda. Others take a more direct approach, using sabotage, terrorism, and other methods to drive their point home. Riots and uprisings on Luna are a weekly occurrence, and the Monzon Ezut are kept extremely busy tracking and neutralizing Lunar Rebel threats to the status quo. The ruling Cestus Trustees minimize and downplays these violent clashes, a difficult task in the media savvy 22nd century. Citizens of Earth keep themselves purposefully ignorant of the mounting tension, but if the LLF can pull off a particularly spectacular act of rebellion they might be able to effect some change.
The Rebels fund themselves however they can, taking donations from supporters under the table and stealing material from the EGS when they can. They fund a few Avatars and several zFighters in the ZGXL and in the Shadowleague who deliver the message of Lunar Liberation whenever they can in the media. These individuals are constantly harassed by Solons and the Monzon Ezut, but believe their troubles only add to their stature as martyrs for the cause.

Syndic Champion: 
"Blue Tiger" Lau Tai-Muk

Lau grew up working the factory with the rest of his family, another cog in the wheel of Lunar industrialism. At the age of thirteen a fellow classmate awakened him to the LLF cause. Since that time he has dedicated himself to Lunar independence. One of the most visible elements of the movement, he fights in the ZGXL Lunar Circuit and donates his winnings to the cause. He is known for his ferocious fighting style, and his zGear is stylized with blue tiger stripes. He has also been known to ferment riots on the Moon, and has been tagged by Monzon Ezut as the leader of a rebel cell that continually hijacks transports and their cargo.

Lunar Strongpoints: 

Centre for Lunar Independence (Moon Base Alpha, Luna),
Lunar Embassy (Ireland, Earth),
LLF Asteroid Base (Asteroid Belt),
FREE LUNA Bar (Dark Side Station)

Lunar Headquarters: 
LLF Asteroid Base (Asteroid Belt)

Sphere of Operations: 
The Lunar rebels operate in the media, on the Moon, in Earth orbit, and on Earth itself to publicize their cause, sabotage EGS interests, and sow dissent for the status quo. LLF cells conduct riot incitement, bombing, sabotage, hijacking, and space piracy to fund themselves and to further the cause through terrorism and agitation anywhere they can target EGS interests.

Relations Analysis 

Hostile: Cestus, Monzon Ezut, Omniclone, Savant, Solon, Terran
Rival: Androgyne, Armada, Avatar, Consortium, Exarch, Mummer, Paragon, Protostar, Vanguard 

Friendly: Exotic, Freaker, Mavryk, Orbital, Sleeper, Trancer, 
Virago
Ally: Cartel, Null Foundation, Skrag, Thesper

Power Levels (1-10) 

EGS Influence: 1 

Firepower: 4 

Respect: 7 

Renown: 5

Syndic Drives: Heart, Pride, Resolve 

Syndic Flaws: Reckless, Stubborn, Vengeance
Syndic Skills: Body, Command, Pilot

Freaker

The zJack
"Gotta problem? I can fix it!"

One of the techno-junkies haunting the sordid underbelly of the zGames, the Freaker is dangerously adept at on-the-fly modifications of zGear.

Humans have always loved technology, but some have an overriding fetish for it. Freakers are the techno otaku that epitomize the do-it-yourself attitude by constantly inventing, adapting, and hybridizing their collection of gadgets and equipment. They generally relate to hardware better than they do to other people, which makes them social misfits and at a loss in any situation or conversation that doesn't involve technology. Exceptions exist, mostly career military engineers or charismatic inventors, but by and large Freakers get along better with their machines better than with actual humans.

Usually Freakers specialize in a certain type of tech, like Artifex, vehicles, communications media tech, space stations, etc. Freakers that focus on Z-G combat gear are known as zJACKs, and it is they who many fighters rely on to upgrade and repair their zGear. Some fight in the ZGXL themselves, relying on their techno-savvy to surprise opponents and win the day.

Because of their obsessive nature, Freakers generally maintain a network of like-minded Freakers. Clubs gather regularly to show off new inventions, and the competition can be intense. Status amongst Freaker technology factions is determined by the difficulty and ingenousness of their latest piece of tech.  A high-status Freaker usually gains access to all sorts benefits, including the right to call in favors from other Freakers or sponsorship and gizmos from tech Consortia or even the military.



Syndic Champion:
 Rosie Thorne, zJACK Krewegirl

Rosie never met a piece of zGear she didn't like nor did she ever see one she couldn't improve. A mainstay of the official ZGXL circuit, Rosie is a top-notch zJACK who has made her fortune maintaining and upgrading zGear for top fighters like Mumbo Jumbo, Midas the Sun King, the King of Skrags, and many others. She specializes in state-of-the-art zGear, and is known for being able to tune the top of the line equipment to perform beyond factory specifications.

Recently Rosie has begun to fight in matches herself, using highly modified Arena elements to surprise and take down opponents. Her deadly use of mobile-platform mounted Turrets has leveled many arenas and match opponents with it, and the number of rose-and-thorn stamps on her Arena gear have multiplied. Also, she plans to bring some new zGear of her own invention to market in the 2110 holiday season.

Freaker Strongpoints:
Hack 2100 Mediazine (Solar System medianet),
The Pit Garage and Club (Asteroid Belt),
Akihabara Orbital (Earth Orbit),
Moon Base Alpha Industry District (Luna)

Freaker Headquarters:

Technopolis Consumer Show (annual convention held at Moon Base Alpha Center)

Sphere of Operations
:
Freakers can be found everywhere in the Solar system, from the inner planets to the outer Grange. Their skills for repairing, inventing, and improvising are needed by nearly everyone at one time or another, and so Freakers lead an itinerant life from freelance job to contract work. Some Freakers are permanent employees of the EGS, the Armada, Cestus, Vanguard, various Consortia, other Syndics or just private citizens. These types are usually looked down on by 'free' Freakers because they have given up their freedom to invent and improvise in exchange for security - that is, unless they work in black-clearance research labs. These kinds of Freakers are held in awe by others, and constantly pestered to tell what they are working on - which they can't.

Relations Analysis

Hostile: Monzon Ezut, Mummer, Omniclone
Rival: Cartel, Exarch, Paragon, Solon, Terran

Friendly: Androgyne, Armada, Avatar, Cestus, Exotic, Lunar, Mavryk, Orbital, Skrag, Sleeper, Trancer, Vanguard

Ally: Consortium, Null Foundation, Protostar, Savant, Thesper, Virago

Power Levels (1-10) 

EGS Influence: 6

Firepower: 6

Respect: 4

Renown: 4

Syndic Drives: Force, Heart, Reason
 
Syndic Flaws: Obsession, Reckless, Stubborn
Syndic Skills: Alertness, Engineer, Pilot

Exotic

The Mutant
"Swifter, Stronger, Smarter!!"

A true genetic freak, the Exotic has been artificially modified, making him far stronger, faster, and deadlier than a normal human. They are tolerated, but never accepted.

As humanity scatters farther from Earth, two drives have caused pioneers and iconoclasts to use "wetware" technologies (bioengineering, genetic manipulation, submolecular pharmaceuticals) to change their bodies: the need to adapt to the Void and the need to differentiate from "standard" human form. Exotics are Grangers who have lived a generation or more in the deep Solar System, in the process re-creating themselves and their progeny to better survive in the post-gravity world of the farthest planets. They have made themselves faster, stronger, and tougher than normal humans, and have often modified their nervous systems and brain to be smarter as well.

The general rule for Exotic appearance and behavior is that there are no rules. The post-human imagination has brought a myriad of forms to the human body, some differing from the norm only in skin color or ear shape, some going so far as to abandon any semblance of vertebrate structure. In general, the appearance of an Exotic is mostly due to their environment, with minor adjustments to color and shape made for aesthetic reasons. Beauty in the Grange is truly in the eye of the beholder.

Exotics have a thriving economy in bio-pharmaceuticals and genetic manipulation technology. The conservative citizens of the EGS have outlawed most research in these fields, but in the far-flung Grange the Exotics proceed to solve the puzzles of life itself. Labs and hothouse stations are scattered from the Asteroid belt as far as the Oort cloud, with Exotic personnel endlessly experimenting on plants, animals, and themselves. Some Exotics style themselves body sculptors, their artworks being not merely animated tattoos but the flesh of enthusiastic fans itself.

The shadow-side of Exotic experimentation lives up to the worst nightmares of normal EGS Citizens. Human experimentation on slaves and the creation of horrors in bioweapon research also thrive in far-flung, secret waystations. Lurid examples of insane Virago abattoirs, Oort pirate gene-slave dens, and military bioweapons gone berserk overshadow the good that most Exotics do. Some people even blame the Scourge on Exotic experimentation.


Syndic Champion:
Blur, Posthuman Warrior
Renowned for his streak of undefeated matches in the ZGXL Darkside Arena, Blur personifies the way the Exotics might just leave normal humanity behind. He is swifter, stronger, and smarter than most of his opponents and never hesitates to rub this fact in their faces as he trounces them in match after match. Though others used to dub him a freak (and some still do), his record speaks for itself, and his stardom hasn't yet peaked. Even, so Blur is a relatively close human analog, differing only in his internal wetware enhancements and some cosmetic changes, like skin color, ears, and other minor differences. Because of this, other Exotics farther out in the Grange consider him a "lightweight" and he gets little respect from them. He has been approached by the Posthuman Resistance Front and the Church of the Immaculate Exotic, but so far has not publicly allied himself with their causes. He says he prefers beating up "throwbacks" close and personal.

Exotic Strongpoints:
NeuYou Clinic (Asteroid Belt)
Cephalopod Station (Oort Cloud)
Exotic Pharmaceuticals AG (Darkside Station, Luna)
Skyside Station (Jupiter orbit)
Posthuman Resistance Front (Uranus orbit)
Church of the Immaculate Exotic (Saturn orbit)

Exotic Headquarters: 
Exotic Pharmaceuticals AG (Darkside Station, Luna)

Sphere of Operations
Exotics travel freely in the Grange, but face bigotry and racism in EGS territory, so few are seen there. The exception to this is the Exotic Pharmaceuticals AG, which maintains a vast complex of labs and an extensive network of research and production facilities in Darkside Station at Luna. Exotics seeking personal alteration can easily find clinics and labs in the Asteroid belt, but for more radical wetware services or products one must search farther out.

Relations Analysis 

Hostile: Armada, Monzon Ezut, Solon, Terran 

Rival: Avatar, Cestus, Paragon, Omniclone, Savant, Thesper, Vanguard 

Friendly: Cartel, Consortium, Exarch, Freaker, Lunar, Mavryk, Mummer, Orbital, Protostar, Sleeper, Skrag
Ally: Androgyne, Null Foundation, Trancer, Virago

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 1
Firepower: 6
Respect: 6
Renown: 4

Syndic Drives: Cool, Heart, Resolve 

Syndic Flaws: Despair, Fear, Shame
Syndic Skills: Body, Martial-Z, Stealth

Exarch

The Scion
"This is beneath me"

The dilettante offspring of the EGS' highest officials, these silver spoon terrors use their parents' influence to indulge their whims.

Privileged jet-setting sophisticates of Earth, the Exarchs form groups of spoiled rich kids who are in the habit of causing scandal and getting into trouble. Though not all of them are bored, thoughtless, bratty, thrill-seeking terrors, enough are to keep an entire sector of the media Consortia in business publishing their latest misadventures. Their wealth comes from trust funds and/or nepotistic positions in high-ranking political or consortium jobs. A very few have earned their own way through some precocious talent, but all have more credits than they know what to do with and are constantly seeking something to stave off the ennui of the fantastically wealthy and privileged.
Exarchs who behave themselves can actually do some good, operating philanthropic ventures funded by their parents or in other ways. Examples of these include social welfare foundations that provide food to the poor in a particular part of the Solar System; arts foundations that fund performance, music, or media; and antiwar or environmental political-action lobbies and groups that operate within and without of the EGS. These efforts tend to be ineffective at solving root causes of social ills, only temporarily ameliorating the symptoms of injustice and poverty. Petty one-upsmanship and jealous infighting are a constant occupation for Exarchs, as they try to outdo their upper-class friends through subtle plots, open hatred, and rumor-mongering. Exarchs mostly gain status amongst themselves by cutting each other down, though an especially well-thrown party or successful venture in art, politics, or aid can gain a modicum of respect. But the majority have no talent for such things, focusing instead on an intricate game of wit, betrayal, and scandal endlessly funded by their vast wealth.
Exarchs attend an ever-changing social circuit of parties and events at the latest hotspots throughout the Solar System. Another entire hospitality industry caters especially to these clients, always hoping that their bar or resort will be the next "in" location. Those who know, go. Not keeping up with this grueling lifestyle is taken as a sign of weakness, and an Exarch stands to lose reputation if he or she doesn't pull off an especially delicious scandal or coup on a rival.


Syndic Champion:
Argus Rockefeller Washington V, EGS Scion
Argus has been a spoiled terror since he was small, and he still flies into a rage when he doesn't get his way. He has taken to fighting in the ZGXL, as it gives him more excitement than his pranks, plots, and subterfuges amongst the other rich kids ever did. He always fights with the best equipment credits can buy. He also uses his family's connections to rig matches in his favor by bribing Arena technicians and zMarshals, hiring thugs to rough opponents up before a match, or just buying off dishonorable fighters who will throw the match for the right amount of credits.

Exarch Strongpoints:
Zodiac Club (Asteroid Belt, Grange),
Void Resort (Titan orbit, Grange),
It Bar (Earth orbit),
The Red Room (Dark Side Station, Luna),
Go-Go Lounge (Hollywood Megapolis Hive, North America)

Syndic Headquarters:
Real Thing Pleasure Bar (New York, Earth)

Sphere of Operations:
Exarch schemes against each other can take place nearly anywhere, embroiling anyone who will take their credits to do their bidding with no questions asked. However, Exarchs will never dirty their hands with any real work, keeping track of things remotely from their palaces and villas, or throwing parties at luxury resorts or the latest "in" clubs.

Relations Analysis:
Hostile: Monzon Ezut, Omniclone, Savant, Solon
Rival: Armada, Cestus, Cartel, Lunar, Mummer, Null Foundation, Paragon, Terran, Vanguard

Friendly: Consortium, Exotic, Freaker, Mavryk, Orbital, Skrag, Sleeper, Virago

Ally: Androgyne, Avatar, Protostar, Thesper, Trancer

Power Levels (1-10)
EGS Influence: 5
Firepower: 4
Respect: 2 

Renown: 7

Syndic Drives: Cool, Pride, Verve 

Syndic Flaws: Arrogant, Fear, Reckless
Syndic Skills: Body, Glam, Pilot