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PLOT AND SETTING

Hiraeth City was once a land of opportunity and a place for the hopeful and ambitious. Built from the ground up by various corporations in the 80s, this massive metropolis was meant to be a technicolor utopia to usher in a new generation of technological advancement and social evolution. The rich and famous flooded into the city like moths to a flame, and Hiraeth City quickly became an international hub for science, technology, and the arts. Businesses boomed under the holographic glow of the city lights overhead, and as the world was ushered into a new millennium, people saw the city as a beacon of hope and prosperity.

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Corruption quickly took the city by storm. The rich became affluent, and the poor became impoverished, and soon those who came to the city looking for a new life became victims of a cruel system that left them homeless on the streets. The police force was owned by corporations, and crime became rampant. A safe, prosperous city soon became a dark, anarchic crucible. Gangs rose to fight the corporations, leading in turf wars and violent assaults on the streets. Cameras watched from every corner— privacy becoming a limited commodity afforded by few.

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The City is split into three tiers, similar to a birthday cake. The Inner Ring is where the wealthiest reside— a center for the sciences and arts. Arguably the safest area of the city, security can be found at every corner, cameras looking in every direction. A chrome and neon paradise. The Middle Ring is where the common folk reside— home to many businesses and residences. This would be the city’s suburbs if it had any, but with overpopulation becoming a greater issue, it just feels like a more cramped and affordable alternative to the tier above it. The Outer Ring is where the poor, sick, and impoverished reside— criminals are found at every corner, and police presence is nearly nonexistent. Gangs wage war and shoot-outs happen almost daily. Home to few, a danger to many.

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The City has become a place of turmoil and conflict, the corporations consuming everything in the city and stripping people of their freedom. Many call for reform, others are content so long as they're safe. The City Council works tirelessly to take back the control it's lost, but to little avail. Is there any hope for change in a city so rife with corruption?

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Hiraeth City takes place in the near-future, in the American Midwest. It takes aesthetic inspiration from works such as Akira, Detroit: Become Human, and Batman: Beyond. We dabble in soft-cyberpunk or futurepunk, where we envision a dark, neon city without the posthumanism elements and extreme technological advancements of works such as Cyberpunk 77, Blade Runner, or Ghost in the Shell. People may have mods and minor cybernetic enhancements, but we do not imagine everyone having access to flying cars or robots. Technological advancements will be mostly modern, with some futuristic elements (holograms, advanced vehicles and weaponry, and most of what people may envision within the near-future). We encourage creative liberties and want players to help forge the world around them.

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Renbu

Tradition Chinese culture describes that every living being possesses Qi, a person’s power and life force. In Near-Future America, we call this force Renbu. Everyone has Renbu within them, but a few who have awakened that power may manipulate it at their will. Renbu Awakenings are described in more detail here.