I’ve been toying around with a setting for a TTRPG. Like most people, I probably won’t ever finish their TTRPG world. However, I think it’s nice to at least get out there so you people can read it, leave your criticisms, or steal any ideas I have.

Eventually, I hope to post the mechanics of the game on the website. Might set up some sort of discord / website just for it if there is enough attention or want for it.

Working Title: 

D E C O

The role-playing game of the retrofuture!

Premise: 

A decopunk role-playing game set in a glittering retrofuturist metropolis where skyscrapers pierce the clouds, corporations and political machines compete for control, organized criminals thrive beneath a luxurious lifestyle, and technological progress has made life more beautiful but certainly not more humane.

Players are:

Lawmen, Private Detectives, Socialites, Journalists, Musicians, Engineers, Gangsters, Spies, Pilots, Soldiers, Industrialists, Entertainers, and anyone who is worth a damn in this futuristic world.

Players actions:

Investigate conspiracies, navigate high society, make deals, commit crimes, expose corruption, fight rivals, build reputations, and decide what to sacrifice to get ahead.

Core aesthetic:

Art Deco, streamlining, chrome, marble, radios, zeppelins, luxury trains, neon, tailored suits, grand hotels, enormous factories, cigarette smoke, jazz, and monumental architecture. 

Core theme:

Everything is beautiful. Everything is rotten.

Living World Loop:

Marcus “Ironlip” Ruenbarn is a boxer, who is constantly out of francs. His wife has recently left him for pretty-boy James Edwin, an industrialist who is an executive for Lombardi Luxuries. Hoping to win her back, he signs up for a fight in the underground fight clubs run by Walker Combine. The Walker Combine will pay him a purse of 500 francs if he wins the fight. Lacy Northwood is a journalist hoping to prove that the Walker Combine is attached to the political machine of the Drindon’s Hall, and offers Marcus 600 francs if he throws the fight. 

Marcus has options now. He can simply train for the fight and see how he competes. He can take Lacy up on her offer, throw the fight, and pocket more. However, his reputation as a prize fighter goes down. He can alert his bosses that a journalist is getting close. He has a lot of options to progress the story. 

Contrast this to Lacy Northwood. She approaches Marcus to help her, but she’s still investigating the Walker Combine as well as Drindon’s Hall for their political connections and whatever else. She can focus on that, write an article, and influence the living world. Marcus can betray her, and she can end up with a slug in her head for going against a political operation. Players change the world, the world provides them the stage.

In this living world, there will be many player-characters who participate. Jazz musicians who perform, businessmen, criminals, lawyers, police officers, etc. Each one has their own story, objectives, and wants in this crazy world.

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D E C O

Setting Overview

Overview:

The sprawling Megalopolis of the Metrosphere is 28,453 square kilometers. Built from the remnants of Old Paris, the French Government constructed a large poly-glass reinforced dome to protect their buildings from the Dust Storms of the Old World. The Island of France represents the “Old City” (Paris itself), though it has become a sprawling sea of glass skyscrapers. The “Middle City” is the old refugee areas of the Entente Powers and their allies. Americans, British, Russian and Italians who fled the disastrous Last Conflict and found themselves begging their French allies for assistance. Roughly 12,000 square kilometers makes up the Middle City, also referred to as “Entente”. Much like the Old City, the Middle City is a sprawling complex of skyscrapers, but lacks the old-world class that the Old City possesses. It’s new, gaudy, and wealthy. Finally, the remaining 4,400 square kilometers is called the “Outer City”, also known as the Centrale. A complex of slums, refugee camps, and poor districts.  Those people who found themselves on the opposite side of the Last Conflict fled to this area. Originally it was outside of the Metrosphere, but a bigger sphere was constructed in 1963, and the Outer City was officially annexed.

The Year:

The year is 1990, almost one hundred years after the Last Conflict began, and one hundred years after The Dome was constructed. The Metrosphere is a large sprawling Megalopolis of competing interests, vice, sin, wealth, excess, and pride. 

In 1894, the Last Conflict took place. This war was fought between Entente Powers and the Central Powers. It lasted for almost thirty years, before The Republic launched a devastating bio-weapon against the Ottoman Sultanate. Nobody even knows why the war happened now. It’s the time of the future! We need to look forward, not to the past! Stop asking questions.

The Dust Storms:

Outside of the Metrosphere, a thick green-black cloud surrounds the dome. This is known as Dust Storms. A mutating bio-weapon that has turned the very air toxic and poisonous to humans. Some people claim they see lights in the distance through the dust, and that meta-humans live outside of the Metrosphere as nomads, tribes, and survivors. The Metrosphere does have air recyclers and purifiers pumping throughout the Megalopolis, and has constructed several dozen outside to help clean up the air.

Locations:

The Island of France ( Île-de-France) – The Old City “Politics, Prestige, and Pretension.”

The Néo-Parisiens represent the elite of the elite. Even their working class is seen as “above” those who live in the Entente and the Centrale, no matter how many francs they possess. Pedigree is important in this section of the Metrosphere, and even wealthy Entente can not enter certain clubs. 

At the heart is Point-Zero, where all distances are measured from. Notre Dame, Palace of Justice, Louvre, and Dauphine are all at the centre. Notre Dame as a building might no longer have any religious significance (HeliumCore has their offices there, so of course it’s important!), but it doesn’t stop the Revivalists from going there to pray to their corpse god.

The Nationale, also known as flics, are the coppers and lawmen of the Old City. Heavily armed, armored. They patrol the streets in groups of three, ensuring no Entente or Centrale causes problems. There aren’t any public prisons in the Metrosphere. The only punishment is exile, or death. Well, exile is death. So, only one punishment!

HeliumCore is the most powerful corporation in the Metrosphere, but it’s actually a subsidiary of La Compagnie. Nationalized by the Republic…though some say it nationalized the republic. Nobody is quite sure anymore!

The Land of the Entente (Pays de l’Entente) – The Middle City “Ambition, Industry, Excess”

The Néo-Entente represent the “middle class” of the Metrosphere. English, American, Russian and Italian corporations have built massive skyscrapers to rival the Old City. Corporations such as Crown Reserves, Yankee Arms & Manufactories, Imperial Courts, and Lombardi Luxuries control most of the Middle City. Anyone who is a “somebody” works for one of the big four, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be your cultural background either. Hell, even some Néo-Parisiens work for ‘em!

Rusdistricts:

The gilded towers of the Imperial Courts dominate the Rusdistricts. Much like the Old City, they are obsessed with pedigree. Those who trace their lineage back to the soviets are immediately blacked out from employment. This has caused many communists to seek work in the other big three. The executive of the Imperial Courts no longer owes any loyalty to the last Tsar. Sometimes referred to as the “White District”, the Imperial Courts seek to stamp out any remnants of the reds.

Italicore:

The glass towers of Lombardi Luxuries dominate the Italicore. The surviving corporations that fled Italy formed Lombardi Luxuries out of necessity. Lacking the capital of the other three, they focused on targeting the luxury market. Fast automobiles, planes, clothing, jewelry, etc. Whatever latest fashion a socialite is obsessing over was probably created by an Italian fashion designer, with British funding, American manufactories, and Russian labour. Italians care little for pedigree, and find the Russians fairly crude in their approach to things. Lombardi Luxuries is seen as very forward thinking, as are the Italians. Afro-Americans have routinely climbed high within Lombardi Luxuries, much to the annoyance of the Yanks.

Anglosphere:

The gilded towers of the Crown Reserves dominate the Anglosphere. The English were the first to reach the Metrosphere, and had more time to bring over their companies. The House of Windsor had to give up the crown in the Republic, but they retained board control over Crown Reserves. They focus primarily on finance, banking, insurance, and shipping. If something needs to be moved, Crown Reserves is certainly a part of the deal. Thousands of subsidiary companies based around insurance, banking, investment, and logistics dominate the Anglosphere. The English still have a trace of obsession over pedigree. Colonials are looked down upon for their “crudeness”, and no colonial has ever been an executive of Crown Reserves. Unlike the Russians, this is not due to paranoia but a repulsion to the “lower-orders”. Don’t tell a Brit that their entire corp would collapse without the Colonials though! They don’t like that idea.

Yanktown:

The glass towers of Yankee Arms & Manufactories dominate Yanktown. However, they lack the skyscrapers of the other three. Their glass towers extend up from factories on the ground level. Most of what is made, canned, or produced is done through Yankee Arms & Manufactories. The Yanks sure know how to keep production lines going. While luxury goods are produced by Lombardi Luxuries, anything everyone needs comes from the Yanks. It’s no secret that the euros look down on them, but they don’t seem to mind. As long as the francs are rolling in, why would they care? Their name is a bit misleading, as it is a conglomeration of several hundred American corporations that fled their homeland and came to Europe. They are probably the most cosmopolitan of the big four, but have old racial prejudices that the euros find very distasteful.

The Rise:

Most of the Middle City is not taken up by the four mega-corps, and instead is known informally as the rise. Eventually the Entente ran out of space, and had to keep building up and up. They reached the top of the dome only sixteen years ago, in 1974, reaching 1700 meters into the sky. Zeppelins float casually between these buildings, carrying supplies, information, and passengers all over the rise. While the Neo-Parisiens like keeping themselves on the ground, the Entente look to the sky and dream of flying.

The Rise is home to The Constabulary and the Governments-in-Exile. While the Parisiens forced their allies to adopt a Republican view of things, they permitted each cultural group their own parliaments and houses of government. The Constabulary is the police force of the Middle City, and is a joint force between the four Governments-in-Exile. However, each government maintains its own military and police force. 

Workers live and breathe low-rise. Low-rise is full of stops, stalls, street gangs, factories, and grit. The working class of Entente look up to the sky and hope that one day they can climb out of their social class and find work. Within the Middle City, anyone can rise if they work hard enough. 

The Central Marches (Les Marches Centrales) – The Outer City “Survival, Grit, Freedom.”

Annexed in 1963, the Marches, Centrale, or the “Outer City” is seen as a rough and industrial area of the Metrosphere. Nominally, the République Nationale has political, economic, and legitimate control over the area. Unfortunately for the Government, this has not been the case since 1973, when the Centrale Revolt happened. Certain neighborhoods have Nationale flics controlling the area, but they themselves act more like a gang than the ones in the Old City. Most neighborhoods are run by cartels, gangs, syndicates, and the odd Combine. After 1973, the Nationale retained the roads, checkpoints, and official maps; everyone else kept the hoods.

There are no large skyscrapers dominating the skyline here. The occasional metal monstrosity is built up by corporations ambitious enough to operate within the Outer City. It doesn’t take long for a Combine to take control though, either publicly or privately.

Kaiser’s Palace:

Kaiser’s Palace isn’t really a palace. It’s where the remnants of the German people came and built their local community. Several million people live here, but none of them think anything of the Old World Kaiser. Instead, hundreds of kaisers dominate the street gangs in this area. These petty warlords fight over vice, labour, factories, protection, and smuggling routes. Many people from the Old City and Middle City do make their way here, either for illegal goods, fun, or to do their business without the watchful eye of Nationale or the Constabulary watching their every move. 

Dragon’s Alley:

The Chinese were hit very hard by the Dust Storms, losing almost ninety six percent of their population in the aftermath of the chaos of the Last Conflict. It took many years for their refugees to reach the Metrosphere, but when they did they were unusually organized. Growing from several hundred thousand in 1954 to several million by 1990, the Dragon’s Alley is less of an “alley” and more like a Shantymetropolis. 

Unlike Kaiser’s Palace, which is dominated by hundreds of kaisers, the Dragon’s Alley is ruled by The Council of Tongs. They don’t trust outsiders, but the Nationale seem to look the other way when the tongs leave the Alley.

Unlike most places in Centrale, Dragon’s Alley actually has a skyline of skyscrapers. Bright lights, red lanterns, and a booming economy have made the Neo-Chinese a dominant political player in Centrale.

Ottoman Enclave:

The Turks suffered the most complete defeat of the Rival Powers during the Last Conflict, with many of their refugees arriving in the Outer City carrying a far stronger nationalist streak than their counterparts.  The Ottoman Enclave is rather cosmopolitan, even if the Turks themselves have become nationalistic. Janissaries patrol the streets, who are raised from childhood to serve the Sultan. These Janissaries are almost exclusively kidnapped from other Centrale neighborhoods, and even some dirt poor Entente sell themselves into slavery in the Enclave.

Arabs, Greeks, Armenians, Kurds, Balkan descendants, Jews, and Africans all live in the Enclave. In fact, they outnumber the Turks almost 6:1. They have their own neighborhoods, and the Sultan appoints his own Beys to run them for him. Even though Ottoman nationalism remains obsessed with ‘winning the war,’ the Sultan has largely left his subject communities alone.  It’s a very unusual situation.

Even more unusual is the rise of Zeppelin-Piracy, which the Ottomans certainly contribute to. The Enclave sends out Ottoman Pirates to raid, capture, and destroy their enemies. The Council of Tongs has a profound hatred of these Ottoman Pirates. Once, in 1983, the Sultan sent several of his Zeppelins into the Middle City and raided Crown Reserves. Their power grows with each year, and it seems the Nationale cannot contain them.

The Red Ward:

While the Whites were a part of the Entente, the Reds found themselves on the opposite side. Descendants of Soviet refugees, political exiles and agitators, soldiers, labourers, and communists who have been shut out of the Metrosphere. Unlike the White Russians of the Entente, the Red Russians have built their own neighborhoods. Owing to their cosmopolitan views, anyone who has read the works of Marx are welcome in the Red Ward. Everyone has to carry a copy around with them here, otherwise the Red Guard might wonder what a capitalist-pig-dog is doing in their worker commune. 

The Red Ward does not trade in francs, which they view as repugnant. Soviet Kred is traded instead, also known simply as kreds. Even in some working class neighborhoods in the Middle City trade in kreds.

There is no “leader” of the Red Ward, and instead it is made up of worker syndicates. Each worker syndicate contributes men to their own Red Guard. One might let you pass without much problem, the other one might demand you recite theory or take a bullet to the dome.

The Sprawl:

There are countless other neighborhoods. This is known as The Sprawl, which is a collection of low-rise apartments, houses, businesses, and factories. Factions within the Centrale fight over the Sprawl constantly, and it’s a giant warzone. Ottoman Zeppelins fly overhead dropping bombs,  Red Guard patrols might arrest and execute “class-traitors”, Tong Enforcers might patrol the streets, and Kaisers send out their men to ensure people still fear them. Some of the Sprawl extends outside of the Dome, also known as Black Zones. 

Those who live in Black Zones need to wear gas-masks, breathable devices, or have mutated to develop a tolerance for the Dust Storms. You don’t want to find yourself there, that I can tell you!