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BURN
A Quick and dirty
cyberpunk setting
for rewired
Among the fractured sovereign states that have arisen in the shadow of the former USA, The
Independent State of Texas stands proud against the onslaught of anarchy and hazards of
the south west. Surrounded by Mexican warlords to the south, radioactive badlands to the
east and deserted rural wasteland to the north... the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex shines as a
monolith of civilization in a wrecked land.
Millions have flocked to the sprawl of D/FW hoping to find security and safety in numbers.
Within the urban jungles of concrete and steel, however, life is far from orderly and fair. The
municipalities that make up the Metroplex are entirely understaffed, underfunded and
infamous with corruption. All of the nice communities around the area are actually privatized
gated neighborhoods owned by local corporations, often funding their own law enforcement
and security. Outside those gates, the streets run rampant with poverty and violent street
gangs.
Still, D/FW is a prize hub for business in the Southwest. Not only is it one of the safer stops in
the region to stock up on local goods and commodities, its also a crucial backbone for the
South Western DataSphere. Several major pipelines run through the D/FW networks, and
many relay paths connect through their data streams. Surrounding counties remain as
important agricultural sources for the region, and most of the oil production coming out of
Houston for trade outside the state is sold through D/FW markets.
Then theres the friendly neighborhood black market. Drugs, weapons, and many other types
of contraband are ran through D/FW streets nightly. Big businesses play some nasty games
with each other when the city edges on general lawlessness. The information that travels
through the digital complex leads to some interesting paydirt and blackmail. Many high-stakes
deals are made in the alleyways and back rooms of seedy bars. Murder, extortion, espionage
and sabotage these are all tools of the trade.
The Metroplex, it seems, is a hopping place for any Ronin to make a living working The
Burn. Staying alive to make that living, that's the tricky part.
Ronin also have to worry about their reputations. Reckless, careless actions mean youve
become a liability to all involved. The default policy with these types is to simply disavow any
knowledge of them, and toss them to the birds when caught. Any further risk of endangering
either the Broker or Client with a botched job could also result in a bounty on your head.
Helix Technologies
Home Office: Los Angeles, California.
Ownership includes Omnidex and Sorbet Microsystems.
While Hermes may reign supreme in terms of currency protocols and network solutions, Helix
is the hardware that keeps cyberspace moving. After acquiring
Sorbet in the post Y2K crash, they have managed to rebuild
their brand of personal computing devices in a restored market.
Homes and business productivity primarily thrive off Sorbet
computers, and most important DataSphere Gateways function on Helix servers and
mainframes. Helix is also the owners of Omnidex, a popular global search engine and
knowledge base.
Marcel International
Home Office: Syracuse, New York
All businesses acquired for Marcel adopt company name.
Marcel International is the largest manufacturer of defense vehicles,
particularly aeronautics and VTOL transport, as well as a leader in Drone
technology. With dozens of locations scattered throughout North America,
Marcel is a powerhouse in both military and private sectors. In recent
years, investors have seen record share values as the CEO has
announced plans to begin pushing for the development of privatized
space programs and orbital structures.
Provided by Wikicommons.
Ft. Worth
Downtown
Downtown Ft. Worth has a myriad of skyscrapers, luxury hotels and big offices. Ferencszy Corp and
Helix own the tallest buildings in the Ft. Worth skyline. At the heart of downtown, Sundance Square
remains a lit up hive of cultural activity, being home to countless bars, restaurants, museums and
theaters. Despite the high amounts of corporate security and drone surveillance, downtown Ft. Worth
offers plenty of smoky pubs and back rooms for Ronin and Brokers alike to arrange Burn contracts.
Ridgmar Heights
On the Northwestern side of Ft. Worth, the areas known as Ridgmar Heights is actually a mix of
various corporate enclaves and gated communities. Although there are a few public road ways that go
between the different communities, travel for an unregistered resident through each usually entails
heavy surveillance via drones and neighborhood patrols. Various golf courses, entertainment venues,
and a few big ass shopping malls can be found sandwiched between communities. Carswell, a former
United States Air Force base, is now a privatized airport catering to corporate residents.
White Settlement
Outside of the gated enclaves and drone patrols of Ridgmar, White Settlement and other surrounding
communities were once thriving suburbs, but have now devolved into slums and overpopulated housing
projects. Though many families can get by here, the crime rate has skyrocketed in the last decade. Gang
violence, robberies and carjackings are at record highs.
Dallas
Downtown
Downtown Dallas, while also a hotbed of corporate skyscrapers and luxury hotels, is colder in feel
thanks to what feels like an endless maze of glass, concrete and steel. Reunion Tower, the famous
ball landmark of the Dallas Skyline, has been purchased by Hermes Telemetric and renamed
Mercurial Tower. Still operating as a world famous restaurant above a renowned hotel, Hermes has
also managed to modify significant portions of the tower to operate as a massive DataSphere relay for
the city. On the outskirts of downtown, a popular arts district known as Deep Ellum. Here, countless
art galleries and music venues collide with radical, often times underground night life. While
Downtown maintains the same heightened levels of drone patrols and corporate police, Deep Ellum
and neighborhoods beyond it have a noticeable lack of security.
North / South Dallas
Doesn't really matter which way you go... leaving Downtown by means other than the interstate or
major highways usually gets you in the nasty, over populated areas. Dallas PD are pretty much unseen
in these locations, unless massive sweeps and drug busts are going down. While the streets are unsafe
to anyone not packing heat, many Ronin find some prime-time safe houses in these neighborhoods.
Muertos: Recognizable by their sugar-skull face paint and goth-inspired attire, Muertos haunt
the alleys and roadways of South Dallas. Though they're renowned as dangerous car jackers and
drug runners, many who reside in Muertos territory regard their familial attitudes towards each
other.
Dallas 13: Their gang colors are black and dark green, adorned with red armbands and the
number 13. Known for arms smuggling and robbing businesses. Has ties and allegiances to the
Mexican Mafia.
Rancid Rodents: Old School gearheads who specialize in rebuilt custom rods and reckless
night rides. Call White Settlement their home, but are notorious for bullying pedestrians and
civilian drivers in North Dallas (Calamity Rider territory.)
Cowboys from Hell: Biker club, claims most of North Texas as their territory. Infamous for
bar brawls and rowdy gatherings wherever they go.
The Pack: Another bike gang, but strictly consisting of Arlington youths with crotch-rockets.
Obnoxious racers prone to rumbles.
Calamity Riders: Gearhead gang fixated on state of the art wheels and flashy rides. Often deals
exclusively in the latest designer drugs, and run a few racketeering operations in North Dallas.
Larger Syndicates
Mexican Mafia was born out of the former US Prison system. In the wake of Texas becoming
an independent state, and most of Mexico and South America becoming contested by various
cartels and warlords, the Mexican Mafia has stepped up its operation in the D/FW area.
Weapons and drugs are simple things; extortion, human trafficking and data smuggling is also a
huge part of day to day operations.
Romanian Mafia: Ferencszy Corp has always had deep ties to the varying clans of the
Romanian Mob, and it came as no surprise over the years as their presence has been felt in
D/FW. Though their connections are few outside of Texas, the D/FW connection is an empire
of prostitution, gambling and other vices.
The Brotherhood: In many rural communities and backwater towns, a lot of Texans actually
have a distrust of augmentations, genetically modified farming, or even the DataSphere. Grown
out of the former Aryan Brotherhood, this organization follows a burning zeal for purity
among humanity. They reject modern healthcare, seeing nanite injections and genetic
restructuring as a blasphemy to creation. While the majority of Brotherhood members live in
private communities outside of the Metroplex, they often recruit sympathizers as well as plant
moles within the city. Their operations are purely terrorism, ranging from bombing cybernetic
clinics, razing NuGeneTek farm labs or toppling Hermes relay towers.
Miscellaneous Groups
TrinityNET: Named after the Trinity River, which runs through the entirety of Texas through
Dallas and down into Houston, this shadow set of relays operates both as a digital black
market, as well as a pirated broadcast station and community forums. To access Trinity, you
have to go looking for it. The Gateway relays for the network are always mobile: the back of
vans, trailers, even deployed Drones (both in the air and within the river.) Some gateways
relocate on a pattern or schedule, but these are usually only for weeks at a time before changing
their routine. Once a person (or at least their handle) is established on TrinityNET, they may be
able to get in on encryption keys and signal sniffers to help them locate access in the future.
Devil Dealers: Texas is renown for its alternative, more traditional methods of trade and
commerce: Flea Markets, trade shows, vendor gatherings and the like. As urban and
industrialized as the Metroplex is, don't think for a second that the flux of nomads from the
waste or the rustic folk from the surrounding communities haven't had an impact on the Black
Market. Devil Dealin' is a collection of folk etiquette, colloquialisms and other bearings that
have originated in the region as sort of a tradespeak for those doing shady deals under the
radar. This isn't just among common folk, either: Many corporate types who've pursued
collections (such as antiquities) will host Galas that are very much a front for this activity.
ADVENTURE IDEAS
Wanting to run your players in the Metroplex Burn scene, but not exactly sure where to start? The
following are some loose synopsis of game sessions I've ran while play testing REWIRED.
PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH
D/FW has its share of celebrity empires, and none of them are as big as Father Chavez. Chavez is the
host of a massive televangelist data feed, with millions logging in to his sermons which are
performed on location at his All-Light ministry (a converted shopping mall.) However, not all is
what it seems: Chavez is renown for his ministry work in South America. However, buzz on the
TrinityNET is that he uses his mission work as a front for weapon smuggling and drug dealing.
The Pitch: The Broker has a client who claims that their teenage son was found beaten, bloodied, and
strung out on some drugs when he was allegedly on mission with Chavez's crew. The Ronin get hired
to burn Chavez: Infiltrate the ministry, and obtain evidence of his crooked operation.
DOUBLE-CROSS ON THE DOCKS
This is best pulled off as either a multi-part adventure, or a lengthy session of gaming. Alex Dimir is a
prominent executive with Ferencszy Corp. Sarah Bellfonte is in a dead marriage with Cameron
Bellfonte, a wealthy tycoon invested in Helix. If ever Alex and Sarah's affair was exposed... it would be
a scandal that would cost her everything, and potentially ruin any mutual endeavors between the two
companies.
Alex has a plan. While cloning may be a restricted practice, it wouldn't stop him from dealing with
some more underground research labs in providing just enough of a body to be mistaken as Sarah's
corpse. He proposes a risky endeavor to her: Stage a kidnapping, leave her corpse to be found, and
make sure her will is updated to sign all of her estate including shares in Helix over to him.
First, staged kidnapping. The proposed idea is to nab her at Club Dynast, an upscale nightclub
in Deep Ellum. There's moderate security on hand, bullets are expected to be exchanged, but if
they could grab her and haul ass out (avoiding Downtown) they could manage a get away.
Second phase involves laying low, either at a safehouse or some other location. They're going to
be hot, so the idea is to keep themselves covered while waiting for the All Clear. The plan is
to throw off investigations and lead them to the red herring of a burnt corpse in a car, which is
Sarah's double.
The last step is the riskiest: Get her ass down to the docks in Galveston (right outside of
Houston, roughly a four hour drive.) Not only will they need to not attract any Texas Troopers
on the drive, but potentially avoid conflict with road gangs and xenophobic small town locals.
The catch in all of this is that Alex really has no interest in sharing happily ever after with Sarah. His
plans out in the Gulf is to simply have an alibi after she's found murdered. Truth is, he's going to
murder the real her out here, and feed her corpse to whatever the hell has survived swimming in the sea
here. All he's after is the shares in Helix, which will give him a power play he's sought for sometime in
pushing toward the advancement of some projects he's funding.
If the players had any suspicions up until now, it should be heavily hinted by Sarah's actions that
something seems off when they arrive (have some menacing goons standing around or something.) At
the drop off, Alex informs them payment has been sent to their Booker, and no more work is needed of
them. They can either try to be heroes, or they can take their payment and leave. Whatever they decide,
feel free to have that choice echo in future adventures.
CLEANING UP THE NEIGHBORHOOD
The city of Denton, on the northern side of D/FW, has been a home to wealth of urban primitives, selfsustaining survivalists, Neo-Bohemians and all around hippies. It's a progressive town, but has been the
target of trouble lately. Generally receptive of most nomad packs that come through the area, a clan of
Brotherhood members have settled in the town lately. They've been inviting a lot of sympathizers to
their compound, and have started roughing up the neighborhood. Nightly assaults are reported, property
vandalized and as of this morning, the local augmentation parlor has been carbombed.
The Pitch: A contract has been offered by the owner of Redline Modifications to clean Denton of the
Brotherhood compound. This can be handled however the players want; if they want to go in guns-ablazing, they can. While this is a simple job, it has its repercussions. Depending on how the players
handle it, they run the risk of kicking the proverbial hornets nest, causing more Brotherhood clans or
area sympathizers to continue to harass and harm people in the area. It might also paint a giant target on
themselves.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
While I'm a North Texas native, quite a bit of research went into this document.
Most artwork used was based on public domain images.
I'd like to give a shout out to my friends who allowed me to doctor photos of them for this project:
And again would like to thank Modok and Vaitel for contributing some artwork to the REWIRED
project as well.
OpenStreetMap.Org is an amazing resource. The initial map of Dallas/Ft. Worth was provided by them
( OpenStreetMap contributors ) and used under the Open Data Commons Open Database License, and
their cartography is licensed under CC-BY-SA. http://openstreetmap.org
Any resemblance of actual facts were most likely scammed off of Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas%E2%80%93Fort_Worth_metroplex
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_River_(Texas)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DISH,_Texas
The text in this document is released under CreativeCommons Attribution-NonCommercialShareAlike 3.0 meaning you're more than welcome to redistribute, re-use and even alter the works as
long as:
While I hope this goes without saying, METROPLEX BURN is a work of fiction to supplement a
role-playing game. While based on real world locations, it's not meant as a literal guide to the D/FW
area, and lots of creative license has been taken. The corporations, gangs, political commentary and
location descriptions in this text do not accurately reflect the real world, and any similarities are purely
coincidental.
Any complaints, criticisms, praises and fan mail can be sent to me at redavis101@outlook.com
You can find this and more free gaming projects, as well as blogs and reviews at:
http://chaosgrenade.com