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Deus Ex: New York Investigation

3K views 39 replies 8 participants last post by  dr_nick22 
#1 ·
Hi it’s me again, I finally decided to try another RPG based on the simply wonderful Deus Ex series. The events of my game occur ten years after the original Deus Ex, after the Collapse but over a decade before Deus Ex 2.

The Plot-

As the title suggests, the action takes place in New York where your characters are part of an experiment to use Nano Technology to enhance human physical abilities.

The company that recruited you is a bio-chem company known as MetaTech that is in return owned by a larger private company firm called Omen.

Your characters have received free tuition at private academies courtesy of MetaTech and your families greatly compensated for your participation in the experiment. Unless anyone wants to roleplay otherwise your characters will meet for the first time at the MetaTech HQ in Uptown New York.


Your character-

I’m going to use this RPG as an opportunity to test a new system for a game I’m writing – so feedback would be nice on this.

Skills- by default your character is untrained all but two of the skills listed bellow- you may pick two of them and note them on your character sheet. These represent things your character is particularly good at.

Weaponry-
Pistols
Rifles
Heavy
Demolition
Low Tech (swords etc)

Fitness-
Swimming
Running
Climbing
Jumping

Advanced Training-
Computer (Hacking)
Electronics
Lock Picking
Stealth
Medicine

Social-
Persuade (how convincing your character is)
Street Smarts (informal interaction)
Protocol (formal interaction)


Loyalties-

In a world where things are not always what they seem, loyalties are an ever-shifting aspect of your character’s persona. You have 5 “loyalty points” that may be towards a people, groups or even political ideas.

It’s very likely for your characters to start this game with a loyalty towards MetaTech or Omen. Loyalties need not directly relate to characters you know will be present in the game- for example you can have a loyalty your family. Loyalty can be more general “better humanity” or “serve the needs of my country” etc.

Loyalty ranges in strength from 1-5, someone with a loyalty of 1 towards a cause merely sees it as doing the least harm or the right idea at the time. Loyalty 5 to a cause is to the point of fanaticism.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Some Background-
Please note- this is not from the perspective of the Deus Ex games and is more focused on what your character could notice about the world they live in. Virtually nobody knows what caused the event known as the Collapse and like in the real world- if you start blaming Majestic 12 and the Illuminati for the world's problems then people will advise that you seek medical attention.


The State of the World-
The events of the original Deus Ex game resulted in the breakdown of global communication and while the world did recover it returned as a changed world. The divide between rich and poor is far greater, the rich now live in guarded areas called Enclaves while the poor are left largely to fend for themselves in the inner cities.

The Enclaves trade with each other via the World Trade Organisation (or WTO for short) a group similar to the modern day United Nations.

The main alternative to the WTO is the new age church known as the Order, while they are mostly peaceful and in pursuit of spiritual balance there are militant elements to the doctrine who are willing to resort to less peaceful methods.

Technology-
Nano Technology remains the new frontier for much of the post collapse world, they are increasingly being used for complex surgeries and have even made their way into the commercial sector- some firearms use a “universal ammo” principle and certain foods can be kept fresh even in open air. Nano Augmentation of people is actually rather dangerous- with only a handful of the population even eligible for such advancement.
"Bio Mods" were common in Post Collapse society though they were largely of the cyborg nature.

-Sample Character-

Amelia Crawford

Born and raised in Boston as the youngest child of a poor family, her inquisitive nature and choice of friends soon got her into trouble with local law enforcement. Despite these minor spots on her record (nothing worse than petty theft) she was offered a place in the MetaTech programme. The arrangement would benefit both her and her family- so she accepted and was enrolled at the academy.

Personality wise Amelia interacts with people like a police detective, even when there is nothing amiss. She has shown a keen interest in mysteries- particularly the true cause of the Collapse.

Trained in:
Lock Picking
Computer

Loyalties:
Group: MetaTech 2
Group: Family 2
Goal: Learn the truth about the Collapse 1
 
#3 ·
yay! good to see you around lioness, that exalted thing you ran was my fav on this forum while it lasted, ill make a character after i look this over a bit, as im new to this rpg world.
 
#4 ·
so is that all there is to it lioness? just two skills and the loyalties and your character is made? or is that just all we need to worry about right now?
 
#7 · (Edited)
Doctor Nick has the right idea, good use of the background btw.
That's all you need to worry about right now. Other aspects to your character such as equipment, injuries and augmentations will be dealt with during gameplay.

LordLink- take what time you need, I won't start until there's a working group of characters.
 
#5 ·
Ah, it's been a while since I played Deus Ex, I can't remember much about it, but I remember enough to know I enjoyed it thoroughly :) I'll make a character for sure.

Gordon Blane

Gordon lead a fairly quiet life growing up in Baltimore, Maryland. He joined the United States Army at 19 after dropping out of a law degree at college, and rose through the ranks quickly, to achieve the rank of Sergeant-Major by the age of 25. He saw combat on many occasions, and it became second nature to him. Gordon was prepared to leave the army for good several months ago, when something happened to him that he could simply not accept - he began to enjoy killing. He was on the verge of handing in his resignation when an opportunity arose that could take him away from the army, and give him a chance to redeem himself - A place in the MetaTech experiment.

Gordon is a fairly serious guy, as a result of the military philosophy, but he can be laid back and joking when the need arises. His respect goes only to those he deems worthy - generally fighting men and women - but he can also make friends fairly amiably. 2 kinds of people he cannot stand, however, are members of the Order Church, and the top Brass of the WTO; he is an advocate of the people, and despises the whole 'enclave' system.

Trained in:
Rifles
Street Smarts

Loyalties:
Group: MetaTech 1
Group: Army men and women 2
Goal: Redeem himself for lives taken over the years, by doing something good for the world 2

-Is the character okay? Anything I need to change?
 
#8 ·
Christelle West
A 22 year old idealist fresh out of the academy, having never lived on the other side of the fence (so to speak) Christelle believes utterly in the Enclave system and regards the Order Church as a threat to the world’s economic recovery.

She recognises the importance of this experiment and believes it is a positive step towards the future.

Training-
Medicine
Protocol

Loyalties-
Group: WTO 2
Group: MetaTech 2
Goal: Improve Mankind 1
 
#9 ·
Jimmy Tidus
A 20 year old Enclave brat, Jimmy was always discontented with his life.
His parents died young and he was left with their money, of which he quickly drained most of it. He turned to mischief, and became a local legend at petty thievery, though no-one ever discovered his identity. He has no aim in life, but when Metatech offered him a way out of debt, he took it, and hasn't looked back since. He had been known to get into much trouble, pickpocketing at the academy.

Skills:
Stealth
Running

Loyalties:
Metatech 1
Money 2
Selfishness 3

how is that, did i do it right or wrong?
 
#10 ·
Loyalties:
Metatech 1
Money 2
Selfishness 3

how is that, did i do it right or wrong?
Mostly, except you have one too many points for loyalties. You only get 5.
 
#11 ·
Danny Black (16)

Danny was just one of those kids in high school who had learned to keep a straight face during interrogations. Selling fire works, test answers and alcohol was what he mainly got caught for. None of the teachers had managed to prove that he had complete control of the schools computers yet.

After being found with a small pipe bomb under his bed things were looking bad for Danny. During the court case he was approached by a representative for MetaTech. The judge decided that time at the MetaTech academies would help him more than a fine on his already stressed parents.

Demolitions
Computer Hacking

Loyalties
MetaTech (1) [He didn’t really go there voluntarily]
Infamy (3) [He wants nothing more than his talents to be recognized]

I need to think up another loyalty to put a point into. Otherwise theres my character.
 
#12 ·
So, how many people were you looking at getting before starting? I've found with a smaller number, the thread goes quicker, and you don't have to wait as much. 4 could definitely work, but it's up to you. I wouldn't have any more than 6 though.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Katherine Girling

Katherine learned how to fire a rifle at an early age is considered an expert shot. She worked for several counter terrorist agencies. She doesn’t talk about her childhood much but it’s thought her parents had been involved with a militia group and was trained as a child soldier one thing is certain, she hates her parents.
Katherine enjoys watching and participating in sports and is a fan of the Boston Bruins Ice hockey team. Katherine has a few friends in high places that she has made over the years and has learned the common language of lies and half truths used by most intelligence agencies.


Trained in:
Rifles
Protocol


Loyalties:
Group: MetaTech 2
Group: Boston Bruins 1
Goal: To gain a position of power and authority within Meta Tech 3
 
#15 ·
This is the first time I've RP'd on these forums, so just let me know if I'm not doing somthing right, I just love the Deus Ex world and had to join when I saw this. :)

Edward Dawn

Drawn from the enclaves, Edward has had a privaleged upbrining and his excellent physical state made him a fine candidate for MetaTech's program. He his quite, observant and is obssesed with firearms and computers and is well versed in their uses.
He tends to be paranoid and slow to trust new faces, but is stubbornly loyal to those he feels he can trust and rely on.
He always has a silened pistol concealed in his clothes just in case his wanderings land him in trouble as he tends to poke at computer security systems an awful lot for the challenge as simulated systems just aren't the same....


Now 17, Edward is becoming less and less faithful in the WTO due to their brutal rich/poor divide but is taking to the MetaTech program well and is a sucessful candidate with great potential. Highly mature, he is taking an interest in the past and is becoming a little curious into what caused the collaspe, but isn't his greatest priority right now.

Skills:
Pistols
Computers/hacking

Loyalties: (for now)
Goal: Suceed in the MetaTech program: 3
Friends: 1 (Too focoused on his training for much of a social life, but that could change...)
Goal: Research the collaspe: 1

BTW here is my characters inventory, I will do my best to stay up to date. :)
-Silecned pistol (He's one paranoid chap)
-3 Chocolate bars he got from the vending machines. :)
 
#18 ·
Skills will grow and improve as the game progresses and rather than explaining my system in detail may I simply say that the more you use a skill the more that skill will improve.

There are also augmentations, though we will address them soon enough.

That's all for now :yes:
 
#17 ·
Alrighty, we have 6 people, I'd say that's plenty. I know I have a game going with 9 people, and that's pretty tough going to get everyone to post regularly. Numbers over that, like the Star Wars game (14 people I think) and however many you had for X-Men are just unmanageable. Besides, you get a better group dynamic with fewer people.
 
#21 ·
Hey, just a heads up, from the 30th March (Friday for me) I will be in Turkey until the 15th of April (Sunday for me). I'm not sure what you will do with my character, but I'd definitely like to keep playing, I'm just going on holidays. Thought I'd let you know beforehand so you can work something out.

Cheers,
Nick.
 
#22 ·
Okay we can arrange an extra long coma for you *twirls a baseball bat*

Here's a list of the biomods made by MetaTech who offer a wide variety of options, though there are experimental and even black market biomods which are not listed.

Though you may encounter them on your travels...

Eyes-
UV detection – may see fingerprints and minute DNA evidence
Thermal Vision – can see people clearly day or night, defeats a cloak biomod
Telescopic Sight – zoom vision
Electromagnetic Sensors- can locate electrical equipment even through walls
Targeting – determines vulnerable areas and weak spots

Arms-
Strength Enhancer – can carry more equipment
Combat Strength – more raw damage from combat attacks
Electrostatic Discharge – easier to damage bots and electrical equipment

Legs-
Move Silent
Speed Enhancement

Body-
Cloak – invisibility to the naked eye
Radar Transparency – invisibility to cameras and bots
Regeneration – as it says
Environmental Protection –defence from radiation
Aqua Lung - increased lung capacity

Head-
Neural Interface – allows one to hack into a system without a terminal
Spy Drone – small drone that allows short ranged recon
 
#23 · (Edited)
so miss lady lion, would it be better to get some mods that would make us more well rounded or compliment our already existing skill? and if say our skill is running, will someone without the skill but with the mod outrun us? and, if one were to take a mod that complimented a skill, would it increase it exponentially?

edit: and with the electrostatic thing, does that mean like, walk up to a security camera and give it a jolt and knock it out, require close range or touch?
 
#24 ·
Right, as my character is already a hacker, I'd love to have a nerural interface, just like in the Deus Ex games, I love to hack and take over security systems. :) And it helps to be a crack shot with a pistol too, so I would also like the targeting biomod.
 
#25 ·
oh and do we pick our mods here and it is supposed they give us what they want us to have for their experiments in game, or do we get to pick in game?
 
#26 ·
You chose your biomods in-game and you can be as specialist or as well-rounded as you like- generally the mods are far more effective than any mundane skill but are useless without bio-electric energy (more on that later).

Electrostatic Discharge normally requires physical contact though there may be ways to get around it if your suitably creative.
 
#27 ·
so would someone with the skill of say, running, be the faster of two people with the speed mod, or would it bring them both equally up to par?
 
#28 ·
The speed mod would out preform the equivalent skill in the short term at least until the character ran out of bio-electric energy upon which point the skilled runner would easily catch up.

Sorry for the delay- Nick and Bastet both being away presents some "challenges" for such a small group.
 
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