Who's Who In Seattle, 2051 Edition

The Gangs

The Blood Claws: Rippergang into cyberspurs and amphetamines. Typical member has Body 6 (9), Quickness 6 (8), Str 6 (8), Reaction 4. Skills are Unarmed 4, Stealth 4, Bike or Car 2. Cyberspurs (Str M 2), Dermal Plating 3, Muscle Replacement 2. Defense Pool 4, Dodge Pool 8.

The Mohawks: Go-gang operating south of downtown. Typical member has Body 5, Quickness 6, Str 4, Reaction 6 (7) +1d6. Skills are Firearms 3, Armed or Unarmed 3, Bike 5, Negotiation 2, 1 other language at 2. Boosted Reflexes, A Really Bitchin' Bike (usually Yamaha or Suzuki) and 1 firearm, ranging from Light Pistols to maybe 1 SMG per pack of people.

The Griffons: A very mysterious group that blurs the line between gang and shadowrunning team. They've staked out Aurora Avenue as a safe zone; no-one gets loud there and is still around to brag about it afterwards. The members are:
>>Alex Griffon, the leader. . . dark, brooding. . . real leathers and a midnight-blue Citizen cyberbike. Packs a custom Hammerli target pistol (6L1 damage). . . Former entertainment industry programmer turned hermetic mage. Uses subtle spells, Health and Detection mostly. . . Trying to achieve Balance wherever he can.
>>The Lieutenant. . . think Jigen Daisuke. . . The heavy-weapons boy of the gang. Packs a Rosewood Revenant Shotgun, and usually 1 or 2 other toys, like a Colt Manhunter. Smartgun-modified and dermal-plated. Rides a matte-black Harley and always has a tootsie-pop in his mouth.
>>The Girl With The Sword. . . Small-framed redhead, no-one knows her actual name. Physical adept with a wakizashi. Rides a Yamaha Rapier. Has very even thin-line scars tracking up her left arm. . . Badges of dishonor. As she moves closer to achieving complete control, they heal.

The Cops

Seattle City Police Department: >> Diana Knight, acting sergeant, C-SWAT. Not cybered, just damn dedicated and damn good. Packs her dad's Colt as a personal sidearm; on a heavy-flak mission, will have Light Security Armor and a Smith & Wesson Assault Rifle loaded with APDS rounds. Very high Willpower; Armed 5, Unarmed 6, Firearms 5.
>> Brian Hector. . . heavily cybered veteran cop. Both legs and both arms. The man is one step away from full 'borg. Patient and a bit more forgiving than Diana.
>> Dale Walters. . . A cop who his the "low pay and long hours" wall waayyy too early in his career. Now he's utterly bribable and corrupt. He'll sell anything to anyone, as long as his own ass is protected. A totally self-centered sleazebucket.
>>Tom Anderson. . . A detective on the force. Mustache, denim jacket, hand-rolled cigs.
>>Terry Brent, Caleb Briggs, Tim Cavanaugh. . . Just plain cops.

Lone Star Security: Usually draws the run-of-the-mill grunt security contracts. The sporting arenas all use Lone Star; lots of the banks do as well. They're the Brinks Security of 2051. Stats are going to be pretty much 4s across the board, and the cops themselves won't serve up any creative surprises.

Knight Errant Security: Most of the classier hotels use Knight-Errant, if they aren't using their own small-time discreet in-house security. A few software and optical-chip companies use Knight-Errant as well. Basically, if it's upscale and discreet, they're more likely to use Knight-Errant than Lone Star. Agents will have 5s with the occasional 6, and some minor, discreet cyber-mods.

Hard Corps: Used by Federated-Boeing, a few of the petrochem people, and a few of the Seattle offices of German corps—people who really don't worry about explaining a few extra bloodstains and appreciate ruthless efficiency. Hard Corps does not screw around. If Claymore mines are what it takes to do the job, so be it. Warning shots? Yeah, right. Oh, and they're also tasked to the biolab that the players have to make the run on. Curious, neh. . .?

Private Corporate Forces: Okay, the Big Three—Mitsuhama, Renraku, and Aztechnology—all have their own in-house security branch. Since the guys are unlikely to take on The Pyramid or 'Raku Arcology directly, their forces ought not come into play. There might be a few minor lab facilities up north away from the main enclaves; also, residences of the upper-level execs would be in-house corp-security guarded. Ares uses its very own elite Knight Errant boys; DocWagon contracts their office and administrative security to Knight-Errant (and also has a cross-training deal with them, but that's another story. . .)

Federal Forces: The UCAS has a slightly schizoid view of Seattle. Part of the government is waiting for it to wither up and die; another part is stubbornly determined not to let Seattle out of the UCAS fold. There is a local FBI presence; the agents are either wash-ups who have been sent here to end their careers, or stubbornly independent troublemakers who are dedicated and competent. One thing they all have in common, though, is how to survive in a swirling hotbed of 9,000 interest groups—none of whom would really want the FBI there, if they gave it a thought. Jurisdiction is a real problem, in Seattle. . . But remember that credstick fraud is, technically, forgery—which is DEFINITELY FBI turf. Hijacking, kidnapping—these are now grey areas, due to corporate intervention. Screw with UCAS assets, though, and watch Agent Kyle Lynch descend on you like the Wrath of Elliot Ness. . .

The Nihonjin Presence

Kiyoshi Yamada: The local Oyabun. Very, very low-profile; very very respectable. An expert in resource management. Cultivates an air of Zen-like calm, even in full crisis situations.

Hirotoshi Takeda: Undersecretary for Trade Affairs, Japanese Embassy. Sounds minor enough, until you realize that a) the Secretary never leaves Japan, and b) "Trade Affairs" mean anything to do with business—Japan's sole preoccupation. In other words, Mr. Takeda is Japan's number-one man in Seattle. The Ambassador doesn't even sneeze without checking with Takeda-san first.

Jun Takeda: Hirotoshi's son. Handles diplomacy of another sort—he's the liason between the Japanese Mission and the Yakuza. He's the one that owes the favor to Slipstream.

Nikki Takeda: a.k.a. "Casey Jones." Mage mechanic; professional associate of Fletcher and illegitimate daughter of Hirotoshi. She's trying to stay missing.

The Euros in Town

Phillipe-Claude Beauchamp: Mid-level exec in the EuroSpace Agency. Has liason ties to Boeing, so he goes back and forth between Seattle and Paris. Due to make a trip to French Guiana to oversee a launch facility's final stages.

Katherine Beauchamp: His daughter. 18 years old, kind of mousy, with washed-out dirty blond hair and a self-effacing manner. Loves ballet, stuffed animals, schoolwork, and is devoutly Catholic. Does volunteer work at the Holy Ghost Church when she can. Is about to get handed the surprise of her life. . .

Anatol Kerim: A Constantinople Turk who, through a long and circuitous downslide, has ended up working as a private detective in Seattle.

Dieter Frohn: A very slick shadowy German moneyman. He's definitely corporate, but nobody knows which one; he has access to better financial gear than most fixers, and impartially and cheerfully deals to the shadow world. People are still trying to figure out his angle.

The Science Geeks and Tech-Types

Morgan: Weird Science Dwarf At Large. UCLA grad; talks 500 wpm, average. . . Has invented everything from piezoelectric body armor to coal-powered air conditioners. Due to embarassing the head of a major corporation with one of his projects, he is hunted by them. He honestly still does not understand why.

Rathe McKendrick: Elven weapons tech, lately for Rosewood Arms. Very very serious and intense. Really believes in the Second Amendment, too, which is why he's still doing small-time personal sidearm weaponscrafting rather than pulling down big bucks at a corporation. He wants a well-armed responsible society, and is doing his part to keep the tech curve more or less equal for the folks at home. Formerly of Tir Tairngire; relations are strained but not hostile.

Sam Colton: Weaponsmith for Seattle City Police Dept., three years away from retirement. A very steady human, who really isn't looking for any increase in his blood pressure. White hair, mustache, and a grizzled old German shepherd named Ace. He's also rather fond of Diana, in an uncle-ish sort of way. . .

The Tribals In Seattle

Markennon Raven Feather: a.k.a. Marcus Longpaw, a Coyote Shaman and lawyer. Coyote likes tricking meat right out of the mouths of bigger predators; Longpaw likes doing pretty much the same thing to the corps, in the courtroom. A middle-class lawyer; he is not stupid, or about to risk his professional rep defending obvious psychopaths. But the right case just might perk his interest. . .

George Stone Coyote: Captain, 12th Salish Rangers. The 12th is currently attached to the Salish Bureau of Customs and Immigration—in other words, if you're trying to get anything or anyone into or out of Seattle illegally, you're going to end up facing the 12th if you screw up and get nailed. The 12th is very fond of an "AVMs first, questions afterward" approach. They're not interested in making a fast buck on the salvage; they're Career Army, and are looking at their performance records. Now the 8th Cascade Rangers, on the other hand. . .

Warpath: A Ghost-wannabee. Nothing more than a punk gang leader with feathers and beads, but don't tell him that. Not even well-regarded by street types in his own neighborhood. His "warriors" are bullies, pure and simple.

In The Gutters. . .

"Oakey" Yashida: Real name is Hiroaki, but this gnarled old grandpa ork, abandoned by his family after kawaru, does not stand on ceremony. He's a gentle old fart, irascible but kind, and loves people who respect traditions. Nihonjin traditions first and foremost, of course, but any suitable respect for any tradition earns you brownie points with him. Plays one mean game of go, and knows a lot more than he lets on.

Knocker: Scrawny ork who gets his name from his odd-job occupation—lookout for any number of clandestine meetings. He shuffles about the entrance, rooting through trash cans, and warns the people inside by a small repetoire of coded knocks what is going on outside.

Mrs. Emma Witherspoon: Just one of many Aunt-Mayish old ladies scattered throughout the city; Emma just happens to live near the runners. Skills: Miss Obvious—6; State Obvious—6; Be In Wrong Place At Wrong Time—8

Louisa Demetrios: Street kid, maybe 11 or 12, with a big pet wolf. Yup. That's what she thinks, too. Actually the "wolf" is her big brother Chris, a shapeshifter. Woe be to he who tries to harm Louisa. . .