Rifts: The West Coast- New Haven, Quakezone, Ashfall:fanmade

[Primus]

The city and suburbs are spread in a fan-like pattern from the base of Haven Mons to the Pacific Ocean in the west, north from the mountain nearly 45 miles, and south another 60 miles. The sheer size of the territory rivals even the great pre-Rifts cities of Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York. The city and suburbs are all interconnected by the city’s public transportation systems. Busses, techno-wizard teleport devices, highways, and the “Met”-a high speed monorail subway system- allow citizens to get easily from one part of the suburbs or city to the next with little or no difficulty. Travel in the city from one place to another rarely takes more than 30 minutes. The smooth, flat landscape at the base of Haven Mons is conducive to this type of public transport system.

Surprisingly (or maybe not depending on how you look at it), the people built their city in an area replete with magic energy. Three major ley lines form a super-nexus between the city and the ocean and a dozen smaller ley lines run through the suburbs. However, random rift activity is very rare. Why? The New Haven Triad, three massive Atlantean stone pyramids constructed on each of the major ley lines control and harness the mystic energies. Most of this power is channeled into huge techno-wizard generators, which provide electricity for the city. At substations located on the smaller ley lines, much smaller pyramids act in the same way, converting and stabilizing the magical energies into power for the citizens. Virtually all public transportation runs on techno-wizard engines and power, but have conventional back-ups as well.

[Primus]

City Government

In a city such as New Haven is, with its nearly infinite diversity, finding a government that would work for all inhabitants was extremely difficult. The advent of psionics and magic, with which one can read or manipulate thoughts, also created a significant difficulty. The solution city founders came up with may be one of the most unique governments on the planet. A democratic style system was chosen using the three-branch political system for checks-and-balances: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. This template then added a fourth branch: Overseers. The executive branch is made up of the Presidents; the legislative is the House of Unity; the judicial is the Central Court System; the Overseer branch consists of the Council of Impartiality.

The Presidency is much like the office that headed the old pre-Rifts American Empire. The President has the power to sign bills passed by the Unity into law, veto them, and conduct diplomatic negotiations with foreign powers and organizations. He or she is also the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and represents the government to the people and the people to the government. The Presidency is two offices shared by two duly elected citizens: one is always human, the other always non-human. The reason is simple: both make decisions so one race isn’t favored over another. To further this feeling of fairness, both presidents must sign a bill for it to be made into law. If one disagrees, then that President may veto it. From there, the vetoing President can offer suggestions to aid in passage of the bill. Once both Presidents can agree on changes to the bill, it is sent back to the Unity for approval and the entire process begins again. This particular system has worked very well for nearly many years. Also, the Presidents have term limits of 6 years, or two-3 year terms. Both Presidents are elected simultaneously in a free election in which anyone of adult age (which varies per race) votes for their human and non-human choice. In the case of the death of one or both Presidents, the Council of Impartiality selects a worthy replacement until an emergency election can be held. The election never takes place more than three months after the replacement is selected. The replacement may run during that election.

[Primus]

The New Haven House of Unity, or the Unity, is the law-making branch of the government. It handles all statewide legislation and day-to-day management of the government. The Unity is split into two houses: the Human Senate and the Non-human Assembly. Each group elects a Speaker of the House to oversee sessions and organize meetings. The Speakers of each house work very closely with each other to coordinate the running of the mutual government. Both Houses meet separately for three weeks out of every month to work on legislation pertaining to their race or races. For the fourth week, the Unity meets as a whole to debate and pass bills and other legislation. The Speakers do not take part in the voting (meaning that there are no ties). However the Speakers are responsible for vote counting, and coordination with the Executive branch in the case of vetoes. The Speakers inform the Presidents of the Unity’s status and relay information to the Unity from the high offices. Each individual Unity member is elected by their home district. Each district elects one human and one non-human representative simultaneously to a two-year term, with a term limit of 6 years. In all there are 100 districts of about 17,500 citizens. In case of a member’s death, the replacement process is the same as the Presidents’, with the election taking place only in the deceased member’s district.

The Central Court System is the Judicial branch of the government and is virtually identical to the old American system. Each district elects one human and one non-human to judgeship in their district. Each judge is responsible for cases of their own race or races. In cases involving both groups, the judges work together. Each judge has a two year term and a 4 year term limit. For crimes, all persons are tried by a 10-person jury consisting entirely of citizens from their own race, i.e. 10 dwarves, 10 magic-users, 10 humans, etc., with the district judge overseeing the case. Above the district courts are the Appeals, or Appellate, Courts. There are 10 Appellate Courts- one for every 10 districts. Any disagreements with verdicts handed down at the district level may go to appeals. Each Appellate Court consists of 4 judges- 2 human and 2 non-human- who all hear and judge cases together. The four judges listen to the arguments, discuss privately, vote, and issue a verdict. The term and limits are the same as the District Court judges. The judges are elected by the citizens of the 10-district area they will serve. Any disagreements or hung verdicts may appeal to the Supreme Court. Once a case is reviewed, the Supreme Court may decide whether or not to hear the case. If they refuse, then the decision of the appeals court stands firm and may no longer be appealed (they always hear hung verdicts). The Supreme Court judges are chosen jointly by the Presidents and confirmed by the Council of Impartiality. Their terms are 10 years and they may only serve one term. These nine judges (5 human, 4 non-human) often hear cases involving citizens rights and also tries anyone charges with treason or conspiracy against the government. Once the case is heard, the judges convene to discuss the matter and return a fair verdict. Note that all courts at all levels are magically and psionically monitored for hypnotic suggestion and mind control.

[gaby]

a pop of 2 million is a bit too big,I say cut it down to 500,000,they must have dangers or rivals ther.

[Primus]

The fourth branch of the government is the most mysterious and highly respected. The Council of Impartiality is made up of 5 beings who are generally beyond the petty needs of materialism, but are principled and just enough to provide an impartial consideration to literally every case brought before them. The current members of the Council are 2 ancient Chiang-Ku dragons (18th and 15th levels, both female), a well-known and just Cyber-Knight (12th level), a Gargoyle Mage of great age and wisdom (17th level), and a human male in his 60’s (Vagabond, 12th level). The Council takes great pride and care with its position. It has the ability to overturn virtually any decision made on any level, with the exception of the Supreme Court and military decisions. Basically, if the Council sees fit to issue a statement, everyone listens and abides by it. Appointment to the Council is made by the Council itself. All positions are lifetime appointments. The current Council has been together for 40 years. They all have the utmost respect and affection for each other. But above all, these souls believe in fairness. Any charges of corruption brought before them are tried fairly. No decisions are made hastily. It is the Council that has caught the only 5 members of the Unity that had planned to usurp government control or manipulate the system to their whims, but even then they were allowed to defend themselves. Two of the five were actually exonerated when the Council discovered that they were possessed. The other three were found guilty by unanimous action, one after trying to psychically manipulate the human member of the Council. The guilty parties were all exiled by ley line teleport to Mexico and haven’t been heard from since. In public, the Council members are treated with honor and respect. They wear gold hooded robes and always have a powerful honor guard and personal force field on them at all times.

Despite all efforts by the Council, corruption does exist though not nearly on as large a scale as most governments. Power corrupts all, though for the most part, the system has, and continues to, worked very well.

[Primus]

My reasoning behind the number population-wise was that it is really the only safe place in the region. Once word got out that it was so, the area to draw population from was extremely significant. Basically anyone who wanted to live or even thrive in the region came to the city. And honestly, when your initiall population base was over 120 million at the time of the Cataclysm, you can expect a possible survival rate of 5-10% initially. Once you throw in the sentients that came to the region via Rift activity, there is a very good possibility of that population number. And the mountains to the west are such a boundary that most would just stay put rather than try to move east; north is out of the question, and vampires would deter those heading south (along with the Quakezone). Essentially, New Haven is the only place to go.

As for enemies, you bet. When I get to the diplomacy section, you'll learn that they are currently at war with the Horune Pirates, and shoot and destroy ANY Coalition they see on sight.

[gaby]

Well I hope you keep them balance and they can't Curbstormp any one.

I do not like another Genocide the CS power in NA.

[taalismn]

Good..If they get too powerful, well, it's alternate universe/timeline time...

[Primus]

The odds are totally against teh Coalition making it that far west...especially with the Rockies and expanded Sierras and Cascades Mountains in the way. They have too many issues at home right now anyways. That's the primary reason I believe that they wouldn't make it out that far any time soon. Need to get the FoM other enemies under control first.

[gaby]

Will tell what OCC are available ther?

[Primus]

Coming up Gaby...I wrote this stuff over the last couple years so I'm re-editing as I'm going through it...which is why I didn't put it all up at once. My typos are embarrasing..LOL

[Primus]

For those interested, I have a geographic map available. It is a VERY rough draft that I have yet to redo, but has lasted me this long...heh heh. I will be making some more maps showing the different regions of the area as well as ley lines and nexus points. Sorry no new stuff today...I'm at the rink with the hockey team I work with (AHL level, Blackhawks affiliate) and we had a home game so been busy today. At least we won...

[Primus]

More on New Haven for all to examine and enjoy.

Technology

On a technological level, New Haven is the equal of any country on Rifts Earth and may even surpass such powerhouses as Triax and the Coalition. The know-how and engineering behind the city itself tops even the magnificent city of Splynn in Atlantis. The reason for the technological advancement is threefold.

The first reason is rooted in the flight from the Coalition. Computers full of data, equipment, sensors, armor, and weapons were all stolen from the outpost raided before the trek west. Techno-wizardry and reverse engineering allowed the fledgling city-state to begin production of equipment of Coalition quality. They even began to make improvements on the equipment. Any remaining data from the computers were also used and soon SAMAS power armor began to appear in the city. This technology was also used to distribute electricity, indoor plumbing to be installed, and other luxuries to be built and utilized.

The second main reason for New Haven’s technology, and likely the one with the most influence, has to do with the city’s main source of income: archaeology. Before the Great Cataclysm, the West Coast of the old American Empire had been a highly populated, technologically advanced area featuring such cities as Seattle-Tacoma, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Anaheim, Alameda, Portland, Oakland, and, most importantly, Silicon Valley-the computer center of the world-, not to mention the numerous military installations that dotted that part of the continent. A large portion of these cities had been leveled in the Great Cataclysm. During those catastrophic events, every volcano and fault line on the west coast became active. Much was leveled. However, what wasn’t destroyed in the initial earthquakes and eruptions soon became buried under layers of ash and mud caused by the melting of mountainous snow, resulting in remarkable preservation of many items, from day-to-day computers to military hardware. The people of the fledgling town began excavations for salvage in the area west and east of the Sierra Nevadas. They discovered not only the remains of Silicon Valley, but a fully intact dock system under the ocean near the area of San Francisco. The docks held several damaged, but salvageable ships. They also discovered a hardened underwater bunker holding two perfectly preserved Sea Wolf-class nuclear submarines and a partially completed Ticonderoga-class submersible carrier. Also discovered were the manufacturing plans for a high speed monorail system, an experimental fusion reactor core, quantum supercomputers, and several types of military powered armor suits and weapons. The expeditions also found a cache of two dozen USA-G10 Glitterboy suits, several types of military body armor, and munitions for several types of weapons. A library was unearthed in the San Diego area and numerous small caches of data, books, and saleable pre-Rifts artifacts were uncovered. This brought in a rush of fast credits once trade routes opened. All data was carefully studied and recorded. The docks were raised and relocated, ships salvaged, and suits refitted. Eventually contact was established with Bandito Arms and trade begun with the Black Market. The monorail system was modified and built. With this head start on the rest of the world, New Haven’s technology prospered. Why had these treasures not been previously salvaged? First, the Sierra Nevadas served to almost completely isolate the area from the rest of the country- especially with their new height. The original pilgrims’ trek through the mountains had not been very easy- even with the equipment they stole. Second, the West Coast had been so completely decimated that virtually no one was left to scavenge. As mentioned before, nothing was left alive so even supernatural predators tended to move on and not settle. Once the ash and volcanic rock began to break down and sprout life, everyone still “knew” the area was a desolate wasteland.

[Primus]

The third reason for the high levels of technology is the most obvious. When the New Haven Triad was constructed, several Atlanteans in the population began interdimensional travel. Soon goods from other worlds began to arrive and domestic goods started to flow into other dimensions. Naruni Enterprises and other interdimensional companies requested permission to set up distribution centers in the city for the purpose of distributing their wares. A permanent D-Gate was established with Center on Phase World and tourists and technology began to flow back and forth. All exports and imports are very closely scrutinized on both ends of the D-gate. Occasional trade with the city of Splynn is also made, but no slaves are allowed through in either direction and all activities are closely watched. Very few travel there since most everything anyone could need is found in the Marketplace anyways.

Naruni Enterprises is very closely monitored on the advice of CDF Commander Drak Mul, who had been a denizen of Center until a series of odd events deposited him on Earth. Having seen the manipulation Naruni is capable of, Mul issued the company’s local dealer a warning: behave or pay the consequences. So far, Naruni has abided by this edict. However, after the defeat by the Coalition it’s unlikely that they will be satisfied with only the small market share they have on the West Coast. They also covet much of New Haven’s unique technologies (like the Psi-Mecha), but so far the CDF has prevented any Naruni agents from salvaging or stealing the data. It is only a matter of time before they cross the line into espionage and the like. Once this happens, the CDF will step in and close down their operations and totally eliminate their presence on the West Coast.

[Primus]

Law and Law Enforcement

The creation of a system of law that was fair and just while taking into consideration the many races living in the city was the Unity’s single greatest task. Law enforcement was not a problem- volunteers were plenty. But how do you create laws for such a diverse group of sentient beings while keeping each of their cultures and backgrounds in mind and not limiting their beliefs in any way? There was no simple answer so a set of “guidelines” were put in place. First and foremost, killing another sentient being was totally prohibited. However, to allow for races that had a history of “death duels” for honor or other such reasons, a number of public-use arenas were created. In order to gain use of these arenas, one must apply to the arena’s Adjunct (administrator) for permission. The reasons for the duel must be clearly explained. If the Adjunct accepts the form, permission is granted. If denied, the Adjunct acts as a moderator to solve the dispute or the fight goes to the court system. The privacy of both sides in a dispute is respected and no outsiders are allowed inside the arena unless otherwise requested by the parties involved. Each arena seats about 6,000 and the battle zone is the size of a football field. A small, but well equipped medical facility is also onsite. A shield encloses the combatants and no heavy weapons, power armor, or robot vehicles are allowed.

If a murder is committed, the CSC is the investigating body. The suspect is interrogated, mentally if necessary. The person is then tried by a jury in court. Murders are always rushed ahead of any other pending cases in a court. Conviction of murder must be by unanimous jury decision. Punishment is one of two things: execution, or exile by ley line teleport to Northern Canada or Mexico. The jury decides which is given.

Other guidelines include a 200 foot altitude ceiling on any power armor, aircraft, or flying sentient within city limits unless escorted by CDF or CSC forces (gargoyles are excluded since flight is their normal mode of transportation); driving under the influence of a mind-altering substance is illegal (excludes Juicers); possession of mind-controlling substances or magicks is banned (note that Psi-Cola IS banned in the city); controlling or entering another sentient’s mind against their will is banned; thievery, burglary, and assault are tried on a per-case basis, but are basically illegal; smuggling or selling contraband, illegal substances, or other sentients is illegal; psychics and magic-users (and supernatural creatures with magical abilities) are licensed at no cost and permits to use those abilities are easily attainable via the New Haven WebNet; necromancy and death worship is illegal; unauthorized use of magic, supernatural powers, or psionics is illegal without permit or unless defending oneself is banned; discrimination based on race is illegal.

[Primus]

Note that most other laws are similar to the laws in the American Empire for all sentients, including traffic laws.

Punishment is generally lenient for minor offenses. The city has a 2,000-cell M.D.C. prison in the CSC tower for these cases. It is enchanted to prevent teleportation in and out. In fact, magic cannot be used inside the prison because it will not work! More than two thirds of the staff in the prison are nega-psychics and psi-nullifiers! They are strategically placed all around the prison to prevent any magic usage. Also, to house more violent and habitual criminals, city archaeologists unearthed and helped to restore Alcatraz Island Penitentiary.

Punishments are as listed. Any repeat offenses or multiple charges double the listed punishment. For example, one count of burglary is a 1,500 credit fine and 30 days in CSC prison. A person found guilty on three counts pays a 6,000 credit fine (1,500 doubled for the second charge, and doubled again for the third charge) and spends 120 days in prison. For each subsequent offense, the total continues to double to no limit. Note that when a sentence reaches the 20 years total mark, the perpetrator is transferred to Alcatraz island.

[Primus]

Traffic Violations: 100 credit fine; add 30 days CSC jail time after 4 offenses.
Burglary (less than 1,000 credits stolen): 1,500 credit fine and 30 days in CSC jail.
Grand Burglary (more than 1,000 credits stolen): 4,500 credit fine and 120 days in CSC jail.
Bribery of public officers/officials: 50,000 credit fine and 3 years in CSC jail.
Resisting arrest: 10,000 credit fine and 2 years in CSC jail (plus any other charges) note that on multiple charges, resisting arrest is counted again; for example, a man charged with 5 counts of grand burglary that resists arrest receives a fine of 464,000 credits (10,000 for resisting arrest+4,500 for Grand Burglary, then double the total five times!) and 74 years, 190 days (120 days for Grand Burglary+2 years for resisting arrest, then double five times) in prison! Note also that this is only if convicted of the burglary counts. If found innocent the only charges that are counted are the resisting arrest charges.
Simple Assault: 35,000 fine and 5 years in CSC jail.
Grievous Assault (near-fatal): 150,000 fine and 15 years in Alcatraz.
Sexual Assault/ Rape: 250,000 credit fine and 30 years in Alcatraz.
Smuggling: 250,000 credit fine, seizure of all personal properties, and 10 years in Alcatraz.
Selling contraband/ illegal substances: 250,000 credit fine and 13 years in CSC jail; repeat offenses result in TRIPLED punishment, rather than doubled.
Unauthorized psionic/ magic use: 7,000 credit fine and either 2 years in CSC jail or 2 years probation (judge’s discretion).
Intentional Mind manipulation/ control: 1 million credit fine, seizure of all personal properties, and 50 years in Alcatraz or 50 years of exile; repeat offense TRIPLES punishment and makes the perpetrator eligible for capital punishment and permanent exile.
Unauthorized flyby: 150 credit fine; add 30 days CSC jail time after four offenses.
Weapon discharge/ Property damage (no or minor damage): Confiscation of weapon, power armor, or robot vehicle for 90 days, 700 credit fine, and 30 days in CSC jail or 2 years probation (judge’s discretion).
Weapon discharge/ property damage (major damage): confiscation of ALL weapons, armor, equipment, vehicles, and robots for at least 5 years (judge’s discretion), 50,000 credit fine, and 1 year of CSC jail time.
Possession of a banned substance: 7,500 credit fine and 120 days CSC jail time.
DUI: Confiscation of license for 1 year, 2,500 credit fine; second offense means 120 days CSC jail; Fourth offense is permanent license confiscation.
Driving without license: 7,500 credit fine and 30 days in CSC jail; if this is in conjunction with a DUI, it is automatic lifetime license confiscation and punishments are combined and TRIPLED.
Practicing necromancy/ death worship: Exile from the city via ley line teleport
Accidental Manslaughter (vehicular): 50,000 credit fine and license revoked for 5 years; vehicle confiscated; 2 years jail time; If combined with DUI, combine punishments and triple; If combined with driving without a license, automatic lifetime license termination, and combine punishments and multiply times five per charge; If combined with driving without a license and DUI, combine all punishments and multiply by ten per charge.
Murder/ sentient sacrifice: Execution or permanent exile to northern Canada.
Willful disobedience of exile: Execution.

For sentients with life spans of 150-300 years, jail time is doubled; for 300-600 years, tripled; more than 600 years, jail time for serious offenses is on a percentage of total estimated lifespan basis.

[Primus]

New Haven Community Safety Corps

The new Haven Community Safety Corps, or CSC, is the civil and urban safety branch of the New Haven Civil Defense Force. The CSC is the police force as well as emergency services, hospital and medical services. They also hunt and destroy supernatural predators that get into the city. The CSC is responsible for community safety during large combat operations or natural disasters, coordinating the city-state’s mass evacuation system. The CSC is the organization with the power to close the city’s massive protective wall-shield.

The CSC has four divisions, each with their own unique responsibilities: the New Haven Police, New Haven Health and Rescue, New Haven Supernatural Investigation and Elimination, and the CSC Urban Defense Division.

The New Haven Police Department handles all crime investigation, traffic monitoring, and domestic disturbances. Patrols are made in traditionally marked police vehicles, hover bikes, motorcycles, and on foot. The NHPD also handles security in the public dueling arenas and at other public functions as well as some private functions. In emergency or mass evacuation situations, they serve to guard evacuation trains and underground routes. Though they have their own unique body armors and colors, in mass evacuation cases the PD has full access to all CSC armor, bots, and equipment. They are overseen by the Police Commissioner.

The Health and Rescue Division is the fire rescue and community health division of the CSC. They are the firefighters, doctors, healers, and personnel that provide rescue, medical, and other services to the city. All specialists in these fields- from traditional medical doctors and firefighters to Bursters, water elemental warlocks, and those with exceptional strength- are encouraged to participate for the good of all. In fact, a new kind of psychic- the Psi-Fixer- developed in the city HRD. Most healers (mystics or psychics) tend to lean toward the ambulance service provided, while Bursters and water and fire warlocks tend toward the fire services. The services provided by the HRD include: fire suppression, search and rescue, emergency medicine, traditional and holistic medicines, cybernetic replacement and augmentation (by government permission only), sentient health and wellness, and mass casualty control. There are also currently four large hospitals and one main superhospital for a total of over 8,000 beds. Physicians are cross-trained in many different races and specialties, though the presence of mystical and psionic healing has made most M.D.’s jobs fairly routine. In cases of mass evacuation, the HRD assists in moving the injured, treating patients in the field, and keeping evacuation routes free of debris.

[Primus]

The New Haven Supernatural Investigation and Elimination unit, known as the “Ghostbusters” thanks to an old pre-Rifts movie, does just that: investigates incidences of supernatural activity that pose a real or potential threat to the citizens of New Haven. This includes everything from death cults to rogue vampires to alien intelligences. Using magic, psionics, and detective work the threat is evaluated. Afterwards, the SIE agents use whatever means necessary to disarm the situation, from simple negotiations to large military assault. The Ghostbusters have full access to the entire CDF arsenal and even has three squads of CDF troops at their disposal should the need arise. The majority of SIE agents are magic-users and minor supernatural beings, including Rahu-men, Simvan, gargoyles, elves, titans, and most especially True Atlanteans. Undead Slayers have a very strong tendency toward serving in this elite unit. SIE agents have a couple suits of unique body armor and powered armor that are at their disposal. In case of mass evacs and combat, all SIE units act to cover civilian evacuation and provide protection in shelters.

The Urban Defense Division is a combination of SWAT team and urban commando squad. Basically the UDD handles anything the police cannot. Hostage situations are a specialty. The UDD is also trained in modern urban combat techniques. They serve with the police as needed and also assist SIE agents. The most important responsibility the UDD possesses is to isolate and eliminate enemy forces trapped in the city proper when the protective wall is closed. In these cases the UDD has command of over 600 CDF troops to assist.

[Primus]

City Defenses and the CDF

Defending a town against the threats of Rifts Earth is a unique challenge. New Haven was no exception in the beginning. Around the year 55 P.A., well before the rest of the continent encountered them, a large group of Mechanoids emerged from a dimensional rift. It was an advanced scout group but was still very large, numbering around 3,000 strong. The population of the fledgling city-state was over 45,000 at that time and a fierce battle ensued which leveled nearly 80% of the town. However, fewer than 100 civilians died as city forces skillfully divided to cover the town’s evacuation. This cost the forces dearly as they were nearly totally decimated, losing 70% of their equipment and 66% of their manpower. In the end, a group of two dozen elemental warlocks succeeded in summoning 4 greater earth and 2 greater air elementals and binding them long enough to allow for civilian evacuation and a powerful counterstrike using recently recovered Glitterboys. Virtually the entire attacking horde was totally destroyed. Several types of Mechanoids were actually CAPTURED and later would lead to significant scientific advances. In the mean time, city leaders, having been caught by surprise with the massive assault, proposed a four part plan to defend the community better. Step 1 was to control the activity of ley lines and nexus points in the immediate vicinity; step 2- design and build improved defense lines for city forces; step 3- create a usable evacuation network and shelter system to protect citizens; step 4- update, upgrade, and reorganize city defense forces. Once approved, the plan was implemented and completed by the early 90’s P.A. Why so quickly? When surrounding communities and even some supernatural beings discovered what was happening they wanted to help. Their reason was simple: power in numbers. But even beyond that, they just wanted to help because it was safe, they were provided food and shelter, and they were awestruck by all that was going on. None of them had ever seen anything like what New Haven planned. The city’s growth rate surged to nearly 115% in one year! The city paid all newcomers and citizens who helped fair wages and soon the new city defenses were complete. By the time all was finished, the population of the city had burgeoned to over one million sentients! Not only that, but for the first time humans and D-bees had worked together side by side and accomplished a greater good for each other with little disagreement or strife.

When the plan was unveiled at a town hall meeting following the Mechanoid attack, the leaders of the town asked for ideas. Two Atlantean Stone Masters stepped forward and volunteered a solution for Step 1 of the plan: 3 huge stone pyramids which could be used to stabilize the magic activity, and could also be used for power and as a line of defense. Most of the magic-users in the city concurred that it would solve that problem and the measure was approved by the populace almost unanimously. Within six months the mammoth structures were completed. Each of the three 1,000 foot tall pyramids sits on one of the three major ley lines that pass near New Haven. The lines actually intersect in a “T” near the city, forming a powerful super nexus point. This point is located near what used to be downtown San Francisco. The pyramids sit about a quarter mile from the nexus on all three sides, surrounding it. The Triad, as they are called, is virtually indestructible. They serve to channel mystic energy from the ley lines into mystical TW super-generators that provide power to the city (note that the city also has solar power plants and PPE batteries hidden underneath the city proper as backups; both can last for two months without recharge). The Triad also serves as D-Gates and the city’s first line of defense. Two stone masters man the pyramid at all times and can use them to summon ley line storms to slow approaching armies to allow citizen evacuation. They also can use the stored PPE energy in the pyramids to cast powerful offensive and defensive spells.

[Primus]

Step 2 was going to be the challenge. How can you defend a city when an attack can come from any direction? The city leaders proposed relocating the city to the base of a nearby cliff face. This did not go over as well as they thought. Frustration and anger began to build and much shouting and disagreement filled the meeting hall. After three hours, they were no closer to solving their problem. As the ruckus built, someone finally shouted in futility “Just build the town in the damn mountain!” Dead silence followed. Suddenly excited agreement followed. Like the ancient Native Americans had done, they would live in the side of the mountain. Thus plans were designed and approved and by the time the Triad was completed, construction was set to begin on the mountain. Using powerful elementals, stone magic, and lots of elbow grease, a huge hollow was carved out of the west side of the mountain. The lone signs that anything had been there were 8 huge stone pillars three times the size of a city block and 1,500 feet high. The city itself was built in the resulting opening. The roof and pillars were enchanted, etched with a series of mystic runes, and reinforced to hold the weight of part of a 15,000 foot mountain, as well to withstand any earthquake activity. The pillars were then surrounded by a framework of steel concrete and glass creating huge buildings 120 stories tall. All buildings under the overhang were reinforced in case portions of the roof were to somehow collapse. Part of the original side of the mountain remained intact around the city as a strong 150 foot tall wall. The wall is also reinforced mystically. Mounted every 750 feet on the six mile long wall are rail gun turrets and two CDF soldiers (Range: 4,000 feet; Damage: 1d6x10 M.D.C; 500 bursts total; Gun has 170 M.D.C). The wall itself has six main gates for traffic and pedestrians. The monorail trains run underneath the wall. The trains move underground within 500 feet of the wall.

The wall, however, is much more than a wall. The wall is, in fact, a group of greater earth elementals that have been mystically bound together. Not only does it significantly increase the tensile strength of the wall and allow it to regenerate damage, but it allows for the wall to raise and enclose the city in a protective cocoon of magical stone! The effect is astounding: the ground trembles as the opening in Haven Mons begins to shrink. After 15 minutes, the opening is gone altogether. The only openings in the walls are where the rail gun turrets are located. Each of these openings is large enough to allow any of New Haven’s forces through, approximately 75 feet wide by 30 feet tall. The turrets prevent any outside forces from getting inside. Each 10 square foot area of the wall has 1,000 M.D.C and regenerates damage at a rate of 1d4x100 per minute (4 melees).

[Primus]

Once the plans for the city were finished, it was decided that the citizenry should take shelter in the enclosed downtown section should the city come under massive attack. Now that step 2 had been resolved, a local archaeology buff stepped forward. He had discovered the technical plans for a high speed monorail system that had been used in pre-Rifts times on the west coast. After studying and modifying the plans, the High Speed Monorail Evacuation Train System was created.

Doubling as a public transportation system, the system (also called the “Met”) begins as 24 monorail tracks starting above ground in the distant parts of the suburbs. Trains stop at various stations along the tracks to pick up and drop off passengers. As they move closer to the city proper, the 24 rails merge into twelve, then finally into six before entering the city. Just before the wall, the trains dip underground into subway tunnels that stop at various stations throughout the city proper. Trains stop at each station every 10 minutes and both inbound and outbound trains run all day. Each train consists of two driver engines (one on each end) and 4 passenger cars. Each car is capable of holding up to 400 people in an emergency, allowing each train to haul up to 1,600 human sized sentients.

In the cases of mass evac situations, all trains are instantly put into service. In all, 210 trains disperse rapidly to all stations. They arrive and leave at set times in a set pattern to transport civilians to shelters. Each train leaves and returns in a span of 30 minutes and they have a maximum speed of 310 mph. To further protect the passengers, the trains and passenger cars have armor plating and can also function as hover craft for a short time in case of damaged tracks (maximum of 10 miles before having to stop to cool; this is enough normally to get to any nearby undamaged track). Each train is escorted by NHCSC troops. The trains will be further detailed in the equipment section.

A second evacuation system used by citizens that are more able to defend themselves is a series of reinforced underground tunnels. These tunnels lead to four large subterranean shelters. These are only temporary holding facilities and can hold no more than 60,000 people. Each of these caverns has a train system running to the main city section. The trains are similar, but have 8 passenger cars rather than four and the cars are designed for larger passengers as well. Each has the same capacity as other cars. The tunnels generally run directly underneath the monorail tracks for easy recognition by the citizens. The tunnels branch into all neighborhoods. At least one entrance is present in every square mile. They are marked clearly and can be sealed with M.D.C doors. The entire city’s population can be totally evacuated into secondary shelters in two hours. Within 6 hours, all citizens will be within the protective cocoon. Inside the city, thanks to a combination of magic and planning, the citizenry can survive for up to two years!

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The fourth and final step in the plan was the reorganization of city defenders. Up to that point a loose militia of armed citizens and mages made up the city’s defense. They were well-armed, but unorganized. As the population grew, it became obvious that an organized, dedicated military unit would be needed. Thus was created the Civil Defense Force.

Today, more than 60 years later, the CDF is a powerful, well-equipped, and cohesive fighting force equipped to handle nearly every eventuality. It is a diversified group with nearly 1/6 using magic or supernatural abilities and another 1/6 having psionic abilities. Rather than grouping these supernatural forces together in special forces units, they are dispersed within the “normals”- soldiers with no special abilities to speak of. This helps prevent the “supers” from thinking themselves higher than the normals and balances small units against a wide variety of attacks. For example, a pair of Bursters would have a great deal of difficulty with a pair of armored troops, let alone an entire squad. However, if you add a mage and infantry support man-for-man the mixed squad would win against equal numbers and even greater numbers nearly every time. It also prevents troops from being totally dependent on one type of combat and opens avenues of attack and defense that wouldn’t be available to a force such as the Coalition Army.

The CDF is made up of a wide variety of soldiers, pilots, RPA, mages, and psychics, though 57% of the force is human. In addition to traditional infantry, naval, and air divisions, the CDF also fields juicer augmented troops (with a required detox program after 30 months of service), cyborg shock troopers, and several totally unique forces such as the Psi-Mecha, Techno-wizard RPA, Techno-wizard Full Conversion Cyborg, and the CDF Supertrooper Special Forces. The CDF uses mainly Hellfire and New Haven Weaponsmiths equipment, though they do buy occasionally from Bandito Arms and (very rarely) Naruni Enterprises

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Points of Interest

The Eight Towers- New Haven is replete with sights to behold, but none are more obvious or remarkable than the Eight Towers. Arranged in a 3-2-3 pattern (from west to east), these huge edifices dominate the skyline of the city and dwarf surrounding buildings. Each tower has a core of solid reinforced bedrock (mostly solid granite) which aids in holding up the roof of the cavern. To assist in the roof support, a superstructure was built around the rock columns. These superstructures were later developed into the buildings known as the Eight Towers. Including the superstructure each tower is a half mile in diameter, with two-thirds of that being the stone column. The towers each descend 100 feet into the cavern floor and extend upwards to the ceiling of the cavern 1,570 feet above the floor. Each of the Towers is colored differently and used for different purposes.

Tower 1 (northernmost of the west row of towers)- Headquarters for Hellfire Weapons, Inc.: This copper-and-glass clad tower is the primary headquarters for Hellfire Weapons, Inc., the city’s only privately owned weapons manufacturer. The building is approximately 75 stories tall, with 5 being subterranean. The building holds all engineering, administrative, and sales offices, as well as a 10 story warehouse and store. The executive offices are the top 5 levels. All floors have 20 foot ceilings to allow for those citizens and customers that are taller than most humans. The 5 subterranean levels are extremely high security and are research laboratories.

Tower 2 (Middle of the three Western towers)- Freedom Tower: This beige tower is made mostly of concrete with black-glass opaque windows. The building has a mixture of units. The first 45 stories of this 90-story tower comprises the Central General Hospital, a 6,000 bed superfacility that contains psychic, holistic, mystic, and long-term healing floors, full diagnostic centers, over 250 operating theaters, and an emergency room equipped to handle 300 patients an hour! Ten of the 45 stories are giant-sized (20 foot ceilings). The next ten stories are Freedom Clinic, the largest medical clinic in the city. More than 700 physicians, healers, and specialists are housed in these offices. 2 of these floors are giant-sized. The upper 35 stories are apartments and living quarters for citizens. These are average 2- and 3-bedroom apartments with all amenities ranging in rent from 400-1,000 credits a month. All rent goes to building upkeep. 15 stories are giant sized with 4,500 square foot apartments. The other 20 are normal with 2,200 square foot apartments. In all, more than 4,400 apartments are in the building.

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Tower 3 (Southernmost of the three western towers)- New Haven Weaponsmiths Headquarters: This building is completely identical to Tower 1 in the main structural details, including the building colors. The only difference is that there are an additional 2 stories of subterranean laboratories. They are locked up as tightly as Hellfire’s are.

Tower 4 (Northern tower in the middle row)- New Haven University: This sandstone red edifice may in fact be the largest center of learning on the planet. Rising some 80 stories (all floors are 19 feet tall), the University offers a huge variety of degrees from law and medicine to education and vocational trades to 29 varieties of language. The bottom 34 stories make up the university itself. The school is divided into four divisions: University of the Mind, a school for psionic adepts; University of the Heart, a gathering of mystical scholars and mages; University of the Arts, providing various arts degrees; and the University of the Sciences, offering a variety of science, medical, and law degrees among others. The upper 46 stories are dormitory rooms, leisure halls, sports courts, food courts, and resource centers. Competitions between floors in the dorms are common and are very similar to the contests between the different schools in pre-Rifts days. These competitions are very popular and make up every kind of event imaginable from basketball to chess. Each floor is assigned their own specific colors and symbol.

Tower 5 (Southern Tower in the middle row)- Equality Tower: This tower is the social center of New Haven. This navy blue glass and white marble edifice has a variety of entertainment, shopping, and businesses as well as an indoor amusement park and several thousand apartments. The upper 5 floors are luxury penthouses with rent upwards of 75,000 credits a month. All have high ceilings, Redwood floors, multiple fireplaces, marble accents, and other such luxury amenities. The bottom three floors of this section hold single story apartments while the fourth floor apartments open into the fifth floor. This also includes a private elevator to the other floors. The next 65 floors are regular apartments in the medium to high medium price range (1,000 to 6,500 credits per month). 15 of these floors are giant-sized and 50 human sized. In all over 8,000 apartments are in this building. Moving downward, the next 10 floors are all business offices and restaurants with high ceilings. The final 15 stories make up Equality South Mall and Amusement Center. The mall makes up the furthest inside portions of the building and contains over 1,600 shops, stalls, vendors, and arcades. Along the outer ring of the building is the Amusement park, featuring, among other things, a salvaged pre-Rifts steel roller coater and an old but popular singing boat ride salvaged from a nearby pre-Rifts theme park. In all, over 100 rides and 7 roller coasters make up the park.

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Tower 6 (Northernmost of the Eastern row of towers)- CDF Headquarters: This massive durasteel structure is very obviously a military structure. It is the headquarters for the Civil Defense Forces. Inside the 88-story building is communications, repair, and training facilities, a full body-chop-shop, munitions storage, a huge barracks housing 24,000 troops, and a full landing pad for aircraft and powered armor. The lowest levels comprise the garage and contain a huge hangar filled with vehicles, robots, armor, and troop deployment vehicles. There are also 20 subterranean levels which house Central Command and CSC Mass Evac Command. Special security clearance is needed to get access to any areas, with highest security in the subterranean levels. All walls are reinforced.

Tower 7 (Middle of the Eastern row of towers)- Ivory Tower: It’s beauty is breathtaking- a 1,600 foot tower of white marble and granite, accented with mirrored glass windows and gothic styling. The White Tower is the government seat, the headquarters for all government offices, the Unity, the Council of Impartiality, and Supreme Court, and the Presidential offices. It is a mere 65 stories tall (all giant sized), but each floor is reinforced. The Presidential offices are located on the top two floors. The offices are two-floored structures and also serve as living quarters for the Presidents. The third floor from the top is the “secret service” floor. It holds equipment and 450 troops to protect the Presidents at all times. The next 10 floors are the Unity meeting chambers and offices. There are three large meeting areas with small public viewing zones. Also scattered throughout these 10 floors are CDF forces totaling 570 troops in squads of 10. They constantly patrol the area. The next floor down is the offices, living quarters, and meeting hall of the Supreme Court. Again, 240 CDF troops patrol the floor continuously. The final 51 floors above ground are government offices for various services such as magic use permits, psychic and supernatural licensure, traffic licensures, and lower court offices and judge’s living quarters. Ambassadorial offices are also located in these floors. 1,200 CSC police are scattered throughout the floors. The 6 subterranean levels are the living quarters and meeting areas for the Council of Impartiality. 200 CDF troops are stationed here for protection. Each of the members of the Council has an entire floor for their living areas, decorated to their individual tastes. The sixth is the meeting area and offices.

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Tower 8 (Southernmost of the east row of towers) CDC Headquarters: This tower is virtually identical to the CDF tower externally. A column of durasteel and concrete with black opaque windows, it cuts an imposing figure in the backdrop of the cavern wall. The upper 20 levels are the prison area. It is enchanted on these levels to prevent teleportation by any means in or out. There are 100 cells per floor with processing facilities and 240 CSC officers, at least 10% of which are psi-nullifiers, nega-psychics, and psi-stalkers. Each cell can hold up to 30 offenders and is enclosed with a high-M.D.C force field. The walls are approximately 450 M.D.C per 10 square foot area. The next 55 floors make up the CSC headquarters section, including dispatch centers, UDD hangars, repair bays, police vehicle hangars, police and fire training facilities, a huge emergency medical facility, and arsenal storage for UDD, police, and Ghostbuster units. The lower levels of this tower are huge kitchens that are used in case in mass evacs, as well as the main underground shelter, which can hold up to 450,000 people (note that the city proper can hold nearly ten million so generally this shelter is used for those who are injured, children, and the elderly). The shelters have direct, high-speed elevators to the medical floor and Central General Hospital.

The Evacuation Network: The tunnel system and four main subshelters are also very interesting sights. All visitors to the city are briefed on evacuation protocols as they enter by CSC units. The tunnels themselves have hundreds of entrances, all capable of being sealed from the inside with massive blast doors (800 M.D.C). The tunnels merge over the course of time into larger main branches that run underneath the MET tracks. The corridors are mainly bedrock with durasteel support beams every 15 feet and are 14 feet high and vary in width from 25 feet at the farthest points to over 200 feet just before the main subshelter entrances. Upon reaching the subshelters, a second MET is seen. These trains are constantly boarding and departing to move citizens to the shelter of the city proper (note that mages, psychics, and supernatural beings are evacuated last due to their increased ability to protect themselves and take damage). CSC forces are constantly on patrol throughout the tunnels in squads of 2-8 and a large force of 200 is present in each subshelter during evacuation. The shelter appears as a huge cavern with roughly 40 foot ceilings and measuring three quarters of a mile long by a quarter-mile wide. The monorail trains functioning in these areas are fully armored as opposed to the above ground trains that have concealed retractable armor plates. The rails themselves merge into the main system near the point where the above-ground trains dip under the city wall. Like the above-ground trains, these trains also have the ability to function as hovercraft for a short time.

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Haven Arena: In the shadow of the Eight Towers lies a huge structure of gleaming glass and old sandstone-style brick. The open air stadium is Haven Arena, a public-use arena that can handle virtually every form of entertainment from concerts to trade shows to sporting events. The field itself is roughly 450 feet by 600 feet of natural grass and has, among other things, a baseball diamond, football and soccer fields, and (increasing in popularity) an outdoor ice rink. The edifice surrounding the field contains outdoor seating for up to 80,000 sentients as well as “skyboxes” for those races that can fly. Built underneath the field and throughout the structure are public meeting rooms as well as a convention center complete with restaurant. Most dorm contests are held here and are broadcast in full holo to the surrounding areas, as are almost all other events. No duels are held here.

Hellfire Weapons Assembly Plants: Located in DockSide, this huge structure and several smaller surrounding structures are the production facilities for Hellfire Weapons. The Main Center is gargantuan, being nearly 2 miles long and a mile wide with high 500 foot ceilings. The building and surrounding outbuildings are all hardened against attack very similarly to old nuclear hardened buildings.

New Haven Weaponsmiths Assembly: Also located in DockSide, this mammoth building serves as production and assembly for all New Haven Weaponsmiths products. Also hardened as if against nuclear attack this building is actually several structures in one and includes firing range, store front, part production, and final assembly. The building is 740 feet tall, with a width of over a mile and half and a length of nearly two miles.
NOTE: Both of the buildings are guarded by private security and passes are required to enter at all access points. The security guards are generally off duty CSC personnel or retired CDF forces (between 3rd and 8th level) and use company equipment.

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The City Gates: Following the main roads into New Haven city proper will take you to the City Gates. Each gate is about 70 feet tall and provides access inside the wall. Each gate has blast doors that are closed in mass evac situations (800 M.D.C). Each gate is also guarded by one robot vehicle (usually a Hellfire Weapons model) and 8 CDF troops. Visitors to the city are flagged down and screened for magic and psionics and instructed on mass evac procedures. The whole process takes only 15 minutes. After the screening is done, the visitor receives a city license and sticker with a microchip in it to denote they have been instructed and screened and won’t be stopped again. They also will call screen airborne visitors with assistance from aerial units.

New Haven Triad: Three 1,000-plus foot pyramids sit west of the main city near Coast Side. In that area, three major ley lines form a “T” intersection forming a super-nexus point that had in the past caused all kinds of havoc (including the Mechanoid attack). By placing one of the huge structures on the northern ley line, one on the southern, and one on the western the lines and nexus were stabilized. Now, the huge silver buildings serve as a tourist attraction, power supply, and first line of defense. There are four main entrances (one on each side). All entrances are guarded by a squad of CDF soldiers (2-8, usually in power or body armor with at least 1-4 mages as backup). The inside of the pyramids are a labyrinth of tunnels if you don’t know where you are going. The corridors are all stone and are etched with runes that provide light and increase the tensile strength. Deep inside the pyramid is a large chamber from which two Atlanteans operate the D-gate. Each pyramid also has large TW super-generators that draw energy from the ley line and convert it to electrical energy for use by the city. These generators produce the equivalent electricity of three large nuclear power plants. The electricity is carried by underground cables to the city. A team of 40-60 technicians work in the power centers of all three pyramids. Also, teams of 1-4 CDF mages and 2-8 infantry patrol inside the pyramids at all times.

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The D-Gates: Built on the nexus point, the D-Gates serve to transport people and goods to and from many points in the Megaverse. They are basically six large silver and steel circular rings built on large individual platforms. The entire area is located in a shielded dome (750 M.D.C). In order to leave or enter the shield dome, everyone must pass through the checkpoint. At the check point are 2 robot vehicles and 2-8 power armor troops with 1-4 psi-stalkers and 2-8 mages/ psychics, all under CDF jurisdiction. In addition are 40-60 armored inspectors. Everything is physically, psychically, and magically scanned before being sent through the gates. After inspection, the destination is relayed to the Atlantean pilots in the pyramids. One Atlantean handles one gate, six gates in all. One gate is always open to Center on Phase World and is the busiest gate. Other common destinations include Lazlo, New Lazlo, Lyn-Srial sky cities, and on rare occasions the city of Splynn. There is a cost of 200 credits for use of the D-gates and all transports must be approved by permit from the city. Merchants generally have a special license from the city and only have to show a license chip to use the gates.

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The Marketplace: Sitting amidst the steel and glass of the city proper, this large public market spans a large open area in the middle of the proper. Lined with gardens, trees, sculpture, and fountains, it is a truly beauteous sight to behold. The Marketplace has over 610 vendors selling everything from traditional farm vegetables and fruits to exotic wines, ancient weapons, artifacts, and mystic items. Anything can be bought or sold with the exception of banned substances and other sentients. Also no robot vehicles are allowed in the market place and no weapons discharge is allowed. Most vendors are food vendors though many hand-crafted items are available. Naruni Enterprises has a large booth displaying both traditional hand to hand weapons and energy weapons and power armor. They are closely monitored. Along all four sides of the market are restaurants, pubs, and cafes offering a huge variety of foods. In all, 79 such businesses line the Marketplace. The Market is set up in a grid pattern with sidewalks every 100 feet. The market is nearly 1,600 feet wide by 2,000 feet long and has three levels. This area is converted into shelters for mass evac situations. Some notable places in the marketplace are:

Curly’s Diner- An old-fashioned style diner serving old-style fast food and what some call the most incredible shakes and malts in the Megaverse. It is located on the northern border of the Marketplace.

The Alchemist- This shop is run by an ancient (14th level, but powers diminished by 2/3 due to age)mystic who specializes in healing potions and mystic weaponry. Located on the 3rd level.

Fish and Chips- Straight from a history book, this old-style British pub serves a wide variety of food and drinks. This is a favorite haunt of CSC personnel after their shifts. Located on the western border of the Marketplace.

Red Horse- Run by a fetish shaman of Apache origin, this shop specializes in holistic medicines as well as traditional native American fetishes and weapons; located on the first level.

Terminator- Named after a 20th century movie about a powerful cyborg, this bar and club offers live music and entertainment geared towards cyborgs, supernatural beings, Juicers, and other super-beings. The entire bar is made of high-tensile M.D.C alloys, right down to the barstools, and also features high ceilings and a large dance floor. The place can get raucous, but is a favorite for the rare mercenaries passing through the city. Located up from Curly’s on the north end of the Marketplace.

The Sword Vendor- This shop is owned by a talented sword maker and blacksmith and offers high quality hand to hand weapons, but at exorbitant prices. Make no mistake- his weaponry is worth every cent with outstanding balance and beautiful craftsmanship (all weapons are +2 to parry from good balance). He does not offer M.D.C weapons, only SDC, but also trades and sells a limited number of rune weapons. He rarely has rune weapons in stock (only 7% chance). He is located on the middle level.

Naruni Enterprises- This booth is located on the top level and offers body armor, weapons, and power armor only. They do not have any robot vehicles at this location, but can order them for a buyer if they put 10% down. It takes up to 7 days to get the armor, unless it is custom designed (will take a minimum of 30 days).
Note that CSC police officers are always milling about in the crowd. As many as 100 are present at all times in the market.

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The Docks and Naval Station- The Docks are a huge pre-Rifts artifact salvaged and refitted to be used in shipping and defense. The docks are not as large as most would expect since the seas are still very rarely traversed, but trade does occur between the city and other seafaring races. Half of the docks are taken up by the Navy of New Haven. This branch of the CDF tends to sea rescue, coastal patrol, and defense against outside threats such as the Horune Pirates and occasional strikes from the minions of the Lord of the Deep or even the Reachers themselves. There are always at least a half dozen merchant ships in port being loaded or unloaded and 1 or 2 major CDF warships. The centerpiece of the CDF Fleet is a completed Ticonderoga-class submersible carrier (the Navy will be detailed under equipment). The ship is generally in dock and tours are given daily. Numerous small patrol boats are also present. Large coastal anti-ship batteries are located all along the docks in case of large scale attack. Warehouses line the docks with factories and small businesses providing backdrop further inland. Hellfire and NH Weaponsmiths both have large warehouses located here (under tight security). The Naval station is located on the northernmost docks and is a hardened building used to coordinate shipping patterns and dispatch patrol units. One battery is located on each side of the building and a large airfield with underground hangars runs next to the station.
Two naval-use dry-docks are located just north of the station. In all, there are thirty available docks.

Alcatraz Island- This is the ancient prison island of folklore, only rebuilt and updated for post-Cataclysm super-criminals. The old Alcatraz may have been inescapable in its day, but to most modern villains the walls were hideously thin. The city needed a place to keep its worst violent convicts and decided Alcatraz was it. The “Rock” was redesigned and outfitted with mega-damage force field reinforced walls, wards and runes to prevent teleport, a force field dome, and a staff of nearly 400 CSC personnel including psi-mecha, psi-stalkers, juicers, cyborgs, and nega-psychics and psi-nullifiers. There are now 550 individual cells in the Rock, each totally inescapable. Quadruple backup systems provide power to the force fields and any violence by the inmates is met with equal reaction. In case some get loose, large rail gun cannons (2d6x10 M.D.C per burst) are mounted on towers (47 towers in all, placed so that there are no blind spots anywhere in the prison; 450 M.D.C per tower) throughout the penitentiary. All towers are equipped with infrared sensors and airflow detectors measuring air disturbances for inmates who can become invisible. Needless to say, inmates are very sorry they are on the Rock. It is interesting to note that 77 inmates have been killed attempting escape or creating chaos while only 4 CSC personnel have been killed. NOTE: Use of magic in the prison is impossible thanks to numerous wards etched in between the walls. The walls are basically two layers of M.D.C alloy (800 M.D.C) with a force field between the layers (750 M.D.C). By the time anyone were to pound or blast through a wall, they would be swarmed by prison guards. The prison is located in the same location it has been for 350 years. The airspace in a five mile radius is constantly patrolled by radar and air units.

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Diplomatic Relations
The New Navy: Captain Nemo-2’s forces first encountered New Haven in 103 P.A. when a patrol group from the USS Ticonderoga was making a recon sweep for salvage on the west coast. The contact went without a hitch and diplomatic relations were opened. Though populated in large part by D-Bee’s, New Haven was an ideal trade partner in that it offered large quantities of agricultural trade and some new weapons and armors that could not have been produced by New Navy’s island bases. Captain Nemo-2 was also curious as to how the city-state was able to build a Ticonderoga-class carrier (he had known that sister ships were planned but didn’t know that one was nearing completion when the Cataclysm hit), so he decided to keep a closer eye on the city-state. However, trade and commerce has been very beneficial to both sides so relations continue to be good. A military cooperative may be down the road (within 10 years) for the two forces.

Pecos Empire: This loosely knit group of bandits knows very little about New Haven outside of occasional reports of a magnificent city on the west coast. Some raiding parties have strayed out that far and have not been heard from again, but the leaders of the Empire do not connect the two stories and believe that the Sky Knights may be behind these losses. For now, the bandits are focusing in their own back yard.

Bandito Arms: The Black Market has far reaching tentacles and conducts sales and trade with merchants from New Haven. They covet many of the unique technologies produced there and are constantly negotiating to try to acquire them. They have yet to be able to duplicate even some of the more basic TW technologies produced at New Haven. Bandito Arms has a storefront on the Marketplace and sells a wide array of products. The Market will continue to try to acquire the technologies any way they can. The CSC keeps a very watchful eye on all their activities.

Native Americans: All Native Americans are welcomed in New Haven, as long as laws are obeyed. Shamans and totem warriors and the like must register and license as do other mages. Traditional Native American tribes tend to stay away from the city, but enjoy forays into ForestSide. All in all relations are good with most tribes and sects of Native Americans.

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Cyber-knights: Though fairly far from where the most Cyber-knights tend to frequent, a few have made it to the city and taken reports back to Lord Coake. The reports were mostly favorable and he has taken it upon himself to visit in the near future. The division of the Cyber-knights during and after the Coalition’s siege on Tolkeen has slowed this process down, but the visit should take place by the year 115 P.A. For now, cyber-knights do not often frequent the area since the city’s forces seem to have the area fairly well protected and governed.

Simvan Monster Riders: The very few Simvan tribes in the area tend to stay clear of the city and its surrounding protectorate. Some Simvan have actually moved into the city and become prominent herders, police, and CDF cavalry. However, most still feel that avoidance is necessary to prevent conflict. The city has extended invitations to any peaceful sentient to enter and live and the Simvan are included, though occasional skirmishes with the more war-like tribes have occurred with all victories going to the CDF.

Lyn-Srial Skypeople: A prominent force for law in the southwest, the Lyn-Srial look with favor on New Haven and openly trade goods and services with the government. A formal non-aggression alliance has been signed and a military cooperative pact is in the works (will be completed within 4-6 years). The Sky-knights see the citizens and government of New Haven as enlightened and peaceful people and vice versa. Sky-knights frequent the city on their journeys for lodging, supplies, and equipment and a few have joined the ranks of the CSC and CDF. New Haven has an ambassadorial attache’ in Tryth-Sal. The Lyn-srial people do not approve of some of the methods of the law in the city, but understand that most peoples are not as peaceful as they are and require this control to maintain peace and discipline. Note that a couple of Cloudweavers teach at the University of the Heart at New Haven University.

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Coalition States: Any and all Coalition forces encountered by the forces of the CDF or CSC are destroyed on the spot! The reason is simple: after seeing what happened at Tolkeen, the government is a little paranoid that it may happen again to them (though this is very unlikely for at least 100 years) so they are trying to keep their existence a secret. Any stories the Coalition picks up about cities on the west coast are usually attributed either to Native American tribes or flights of fancy. IF the city is discovered and reported to the High Command, it is unlikely anything will be done at this time due simply to the fact that it would stretch the resources of the States too thin, especially so soon after the conquest of Tolkeen. They MIGHT earmark them for future expansion and likely rely on mercenaries or other rebels to conduct espionage (very difficult) or guerilla operations. But for now, the city does not exist in the Coalitions eyes.

Manistique Imperium/ Northern Gun: Like the Coalition, they do not know of the city’s existence. However, they are getting reports of some new and unique weaponry in the west that they currently are attributing to Bandito Arms. Independent agents have been dispatched to investigate, but they are never heard from again (most actually choose to live in New Haven, but some are destroyed or captured). They are likely to look at the city in one of two ways: a new potential market to exploit or a new competitor with outstanding quality weapons. Which it ends up being is a toss up.

Atlantis and the Splugorth: Any Splugorth craft or minions are attacked and destroyed on sight. Information obtained in the initial exchange with the New Navy as well as data from other sources has convinced the populace (including some former minions who have taken up residence) that the Splugorth are nothing but bad news. The CDF Navy constantly responds to distress calls from boats attacked by Splynncryth’s horde and has destroyed several motherships and slavers, some in conjunction with the New Navy (usually the sight of the Ticonderoga and the NHS Equality , the CDF carrier, is enough to make them tuck tail). Lord Splynncryth knows there is something going on in the western part of North America, but has yet to get a reliable report as most who enter the area are destroyed. For now, it is a minor nuisance but he will send spies to learn more.

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Tritonia: The floating city does not reside very close to the west coast, but trade is seen with merchants from New Haven. Officially, there is no relationship though delegates have been sent both to Tritonia from New Haven and vice versa. With attacks from the Naut’Yll on the rise, Tritonia realizes that a unified front must be presented to eliminate them. New Haven has not had a lot of contact with them, mainly due to the interceding of the Lemurians (unintentionally, of course). However initial information exchange with the inhabitants of the drifting nation has revealed how dangerous these would-be conquerors are and New Haven may soon enter into a military alliance to help fend off the invasion. For now, Tritonia is content to discuss the future relations and investigate New Haven further.

Lemuria: Very little contact has been made with the reclusive Lemurians since few New Haven vessels actually venture out far enough to gain their attention. The Lemurians are aware of New Haven through the network of the Whale Singers, but prefer to keep their distance. Any attempts by New Haven to open a dialogue will be met with distrust and likely turned away simply because of the intense distrust of surface-dwellers by the Lemurians. Note that New Haven forces will NOT be the first to fire in any confrontation with the underwater beings.

Horune Pirates: A state of war exists between the Horune and New Haven. Any vessels that see the other open fire without hesitation. The Horune have on several occasions raided Coastside, costing lives and stealing many valuable artifacts and capturing slave stock. The CDF Navy is constantly patrolling looking for the pirates and have actually taken out FIVE Horune dreamships! The Whale Singers in particular appreciate the aid of the CDF in combating these sadists. Major conflict with the Horune is seen as virtually inevitable and preparations and planning are underway for this contingency.

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The Naut’Yll: As mentioned before, the Naut’Yll and New Haven have had no direct contact, though the aliens have attacked and raided some shipping. The Naut’Yll are usually driven off by the Lemurians before CDF forces can arrive and usually they miss the battle as most fighting takes place underwater. Once they encounter each other, New Haven will attempt to make peace overtures. They will, of course, fail through no fault of their own. The Naut’Yll are bent on conquering the planet and will not accept any overtures from the citizens of New Haven. Likely, between the Naut’Yll and Horune, a buildup of naval power will occur in New Haven to defense this threat. However, for now New Haven focuses on what it can see.

Others: All of Europe, Japan, China, Russia, and South America do not know of the existence of New Haven. As for New Haven, they are not exploring in those directions at this point, but if any nations from these areas are encountered New Haven forces will attempt peaceful contact and will not fire unless attacked.

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O.C.C.’s and R.C.C.’s of New Haven
The following is a list of common O.C.C.’s and R.C.C.’s found in New Haven. Remember to keep the location of the city-state in mind when selecting or playing characters in New Haven.
Adventurers
Administrator
True Atlanteans (virtually any type)
City Rat (and variations)
Cowboy and related character classes
Cyber-Doc
Huntsman-Trapper
Operators
Mercenaries (and related character classes)
Rogue Scholar and Scientist
Vagabond
Wannabe Juicers
Wilderness Scouts
Biomancers, Warlocks, and Shaman
Tattooed Men and Undead Slayers
Conjurers, Line Walkers, and Mystics
Sea Druids and Sea Inquisitors
Stone Masters
Whale Singers
Borg (most are in the CDF or CSC)
Cyber-Knights and Tundra Rangers
Glitterboy
Headhunters
Juicers (only in CSC or CDF)
Any Native American O.C.C.’s
Psi-Stalkers and most other psychic O.C.C.’s
Pneuma-Biforms
and most other R.C.C.’s native to North America
Police Officer O.C.C. is also common and is used for the CSC police

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Psi-Mecha

This new and unique O.C.C. was the brainchild of a mind melter and a techno-wizard in the employ of a fledgling company called Hellfire Weaponsmiths, Inc. Shortly after New Haven itself was founded, the city was attacked by a small batallion of Mechanoid troops. The new town managed to beat back the attack with minimal civilian casualties. Several of the Mechanoids were actually captured intact. A thorough study of these unique creatures followed. The idea was to duplicate the ability to use psionic powers despite being enclosed in mechanical shells. Rather than transferring the subject's brain into a metallic body as the Mechanoids seemed to do, the group working on the project decided to attempt the same results by utilizing a combination of natural psionics and a special M.O.M. cybernetic implant. Success was achieved after 28 years of intensive study and testing.

The Psi-mecha have already proven themselves to be the equal of even the most elite power armor pilots. The line between man and machine blurs thanks to the natural powers of the psychic and the special M.O.M. implant. Subjects are put through a rigorous training and educational program to hone their psionic powers and help them understand and use their new armor suits.

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The Psi-mecha have only a couple of prerequisites: the first are the attribute requirements. The second is that he must be a master psionic with the power of Telemechanics. This allows for the further blending of the man and machine, achieving a melding that no RPA pilot could match. The inside of the mecha itself does not have any controls; the entire suit is run by mental command. The connection to the machine is made by a jack similar to the universal headjack implant. This special implant is located at the base of the subject's neck. A jack in the special power armor plugs into the implant, tapping into the essence of the psychic. This allows the psychic to use the suit on a thought as opposed to levers, switches, or even VR. It adds to the agility of the armor and increases control. Also, thanks to this system, no one other than the pilot the suit is attuned to is able to use the armor as well as allowing the psychic to be able to pilot any of the mecha models with no penalties or special training. It’s like putting on a new set of clothes, it may feel a tad different for a few minutes but you very quickly forget about them and they become part of you.

One unusual and unexpected effect of this bond is that the character can get injured when his suit gets damaged. Unless the character makes a save of 15 or higher (psionic bonuses can be added), the character will take 1 point of S.D.C. damage from feedback for every 10 M.D.C. points of damage to the suit. If the suit is destroyed, the character must save with a 15 (no bonuses) or pass out from severe feedback for 1d4x10 minutes. However, this one negative has not deterred many psychics from becoming one of these warriors. The increased agility and response far outweigh the negatives.

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O.C.C. Abilities
1. Physical bonuses: The training of the psi-mecha helps to build his body and mind to the best they can be. Add 1d4x10 S.D.C., +1d4 to M.E., add one attack per melee, +2 to parry and dodge, +3 to roll with punch/ fall/ impact, +4 to P.S., +1 to P.E., +4d4 to Speed, +3 vs. horror factor, +3 vs. psionics. These are in addition to bonuses from physical skills.
2. Psionic Abilities: The Psi-mecha is a master psionic. The character receives Object Read, Summon Inner Strength, Sixth Sense, Bio-Regenerate (self), and Telemechanics and Telemechanics Mental Operation. At level 2, the PM may select a total of two powers from the three categories. At level 3, Character develops Psi-sword plus one other power from the three categories. At levels 4, 7, 11, and 14, select one Super Psionic power. Remember, these powers can work through the character's armor suit, but only if the armor is one of the Psi-Mecha suits. PENALTIES: For some unknown reason believed to relate to the Psi-meld implant, the Psi-Mecha pilot’s powers are weaker outside the power armor. Reduce duration and effects of any psionics by one third when not inside his suit.
3. I.S.P.: The character is a master psionic with a considerable amount of power. Base I.S.P. is 2d6x10+M.E. Add 3d6 per level.
4. Psi-meld with Mecha: When a psi-mecha pilot gets into his armor, he connects a special universal jack with a connector in the back of his neck. This circuit is wired directly into the special M.O.M. implant. The connection is mentally activated by activating his Telemechanics powers (takes only three melee actions to get into his suit and power it up!). Both powers Telemechanic powers listed above must be activated. This mental activity is noticed by a sensor in the brain, which automatically activates the power armor. Each suit provides a different set of bonuses. See the Psi Mecha Armor section for other abilities and bonuses and the pitfalls of the armor.

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Psi-Mecha O.C.C.
Attribute requirements: Must be a master psionic; M.E.: 14, P.E.: 12; a high P.P. is recommended, but not required.

O.C.C. Skills
Literacy (+30%)
Radio: Basic (+10%)
Boxing
Body Building
Running
Pilot: Robots and Power Armor (+15%)
Pilot: One of Choice
Read Sensory Equipment
W.P. Two of Choice
Lore: Psychic
Hand to Hand Expert
NOTE: Choosing the Power Armor Elite skill will NOT provide additional bonuses while in a psi-mecha suit; the skill is geared towards traditional power armor and does not cover the unique aspects of the psi-mecha armor.

O.C.C. Related Skills: Select 3 other skills from the following list. Also select two at levels 3, 6, 8, 11, and 14. As always, all new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Any
Domestic: Any (+8%)
Electrical: Basic Electronics only
Espionage: Any
Mechanical: Basic Mechanics and Locksmith only
Medical: First Aid, Paramedic, and Holistic Medicine only
Military: Any (+5%)
Physical: Any
Pilot: Any (+5%)
Pilot Related: Any
Rogue: Any
Technical: Any (+10%)
W.P.: Any
Wilderness: Any

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Secondary Skills: Select 4 secondary skills. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the bonuses listed in parentheses (). All skills start at base skill level.

Standard Equipment: As a soldier of New Haven, the Psi-Mecha is given room and board, food, clothing, and some luxuries as well (up to 1d4 extras besides what is provided in the barracks room). An adventurer is not provided these things but may have earned them as a mercenary or defender of justice. Note that VERY few of these soldiers are in the wild; 96% of the pilots remain in the New Haven CDC.
A traveling pilot will have a set of fatigues, dress clothes, extra set of fatigues, dress shoes, binoculars, polarizing goggles, one weapon for each proficiency plus 1d4 extra clips for each, survival knife, rations for 2 weeks, tent, flashlight, 100 ft. of all-purpose rope, compass, hand held computer, plus personal items.
For vehicle, the Psi-mecha will have one suit of specialized psi-mecha armor, plus one extra suit of light or medium mega-damage armor. Since the pilot is first and foremost a soldier, he is likely to have a variety of weapons at his disposal.

Money: If the character is a New Haven soldier, he receives 3,000 credits a month in salary and will have 4d6x1,000 credits in savings. As a merc or hero, he can earn much more, but starts with 3d6x1,000 credits in savings and the same in black market items.

Cybernetics: The only implant the Psi-Mecha will ever receive is the Psi-meld Implant. He will never get any other cybernetics because they would interfere with his abilities.

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Psi-Mecha Battle Armor

Psi-mecha power armor is a unique and very complex new style of body armor designed and used exclusively by the Psi-mecha pilots of New Haven. It is similar to standard power armors in that it provides a good amount of protection against enemy fire, provides a great deal of additional firepower in and of itself, and augments the human user's physical abilities in combat. That is about where the similarities end. The psi-mecha armor, or psi-suit, is as far above these units as power armor is above kevlar vests. These suits allow an almost complete blending of man and machine on a level never seen before on Earth, before or since the Great Cataclysm. These suits are specially designed so that only those with the Psi-Meld Implant may use them.
First, to start simple, the following traits are common to all psi-suits:
• Nuclear powered; average life span 15-20 years
• Radar; can follow and track up to 30 targets simultaneously
• Psionic dampers; this helps protect the pilot against psionic attacks while in his suit. This provides a +2 bonus vs. psionics, but only while in the suit. This does not include the psychosomatic injury (See Pilot Risks below).
• Complete environmental body armor; this includes up to 12 hours of internal oxygen and full air filtration systems. The oxygen system also has its own air compressor and can completely refill itself in 15 minutes of exposure to clean air; also, full life support and temperature control
• Combat computer; this correlates all data from radar and other detection devices and transmits it to the Psi-jack for processing.
• Targeting computer and laser targeting; this combines the standard targeting computer with a state of the art laser tracking system. This provides a +2 bonus to strike with long range weapons.
• Radio communications; 500 mile range, long range directional communication, as well as a short range radio, 5 mile range.
• Radiation shielded
• Internal 2 week food supply and bodily waste disposal units.
• High temperature resistant insulated shielding for up to 400 degrees C.

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The Psi-suits have many special features that help to make them agreeable to the psychic pilots that use them. The main complaint that psychics generally have with power armor is that they are unable to utilize their own significant powers through the power armor suits. This was the first problem addressed by the designers. From this, the Psi-Meld Implant was developed.

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The Psi-Meld Implant

The Psi-Meld Implant was first designed in 100 P.A. by the famed techno-wizard and city father Bob. The brilliant wizard surmised that, not only would the circuit he had designed allow for use of the psychic's powers through a power armor suit, but it might allow the pilot to more completely control the suit. Testing in jury-rigged SAMAS power armor suits, were successful beyond all expectations. A powerful mind melter was able to subdue a renegade dragon hatchling without firing a shot, throwing a punch, or even touching a control in the altered suit! There were a few downsides (see Pilot Risks), but they were far outweighed by the incredible agility shown in the trial runs.

The implant itself is a special and unique circuit. The circuit is similar to a power amplifier, but it connects to the specific electrical impulses in the brain controlling movement, reaction, and processing. The onboard circuit organizes these signals into computer code that is instantly processed by the CPU in the psi-suit. The speed of processing is almost instant- it is virtually the same speed as what occurs in the human body naturally! In addition, the power amplifier circuitry connects into the pilot’s ESP center, boosting its output to the point where they can use their powers through their armor. The amplifier circuit requires an external power source to function and thus draws on the psi-suit’s internal power source; this essentially means the power amplifier circuit of the psi-meld implant does not function outside of the suit. The pilot’s powers do still work outside their psi-suits, but only at 66% effective range and duration due to the interference from the implanted circuitry (see Pilot Risks). While in their psi-suits, the power amplifier increases the brain signal output allowing for normal range and duration of their powers. Each psi-meld implant is customized for the pilot and the particular class of suit they will be orienting to. These implants can be changed if the pilot receives an upgrade or promotion to a different type of suit; it is a simple reprogramming, but it must be done in the psi-mecha training facility run by the CDF.

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The implant immerses the pilot in his psi-suit. All of the controls, weapons, movement, and sensors are controlled mentally. He doesn’t so much as pilot the armor as he becomes the armor. He inhabits the control systems, able to move with minimum power armor training background, naturally understanding the speed, power, and limitations of his particular suit. Thanks to this, the pilot operates the suit more efficiently than any RPA pilot. Their reflexes are faster, their aim is better, and their maneuverability is beyond compare- in some cases on a par with Juicers. However, this power does come with a bit of a risk.

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Pilot Risks

The psi-mecha pilot receives significant power from his psi-suit. However, he also sacrifices some power while outside of it. The surgery that integrates the psi-meld implant is fairly invasive and can leave some minor damage to the brain- particularly to the region that has been discovered to govern the extra-sensory powers of the psionic. As a result of this, the powers of the pilot are reduced by 33% when outside the suit. In addition, those who are psychically attacked by the pilot get to save as if they were minor psionics (12 or better as opposed to 15 or better). They are simply less potent outside their suits. It is partially because of this that a good percentage of psi-mecha pilots remain in their suits virtually 24/7. Thanks to the power booster built into the psi-meld implant and activated by merging with his psi-mecha armor, the duration and range of powers are normal WHILE INSIDE THE SUIT.

A second risk of the psi-meld implant is the same as the average M.O.M. implant: the risk of mental instability and insanity. Though not as invasive as what most Crazies have, the single psi-meld implant does tend to interfere with the normal functioning of the brain and often results in certain types of insanity. At each level, the character must make a roll against insanity. After level 4, the roll is made a -1; after level 7, it is -2, level 10 is -3, level 13 and above at -4. The first insanity to appear is ALWAYS an obsessive-compulsive disorder focused around their psi-suit. They will treat the suit as if it were their actual body, including washing and bathing (which for some of the larger suits can be very interesting), will never leave the suit- even to sleep, and will obsess about the condition of the suit- repair, equipping, appearance, etc. The pilot will tend to refer to himself as “we”-meaning himself and the psi-suit as a single entity. Any subsequent insanities that may occur are rolled as normal on the Random Insanity Charts from the Rifts book. On the positive side, most psychics are naturally very resistant to mental instability so, despite the physical intrusion into the brain, incidence of insanity is still relatively low.

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The third, and maybe most unusual, risk of the psi-mecha is psychosomatic damage. The psi-meld implant allows the pilot to merge so completely with psi-suit that the pilot may actually take physical damage if the psi-suit is damaged. The pilot can occasionally resist the damage, but often the mind convinces the body that it too has been physically hurt. As a result, the pilot’s body actually demonstrates wounds and injuries such as bruises, bloody noses, black eyes, etc. Bones won’t break without external forces. However, the character can be killed in this manner. Every time the psi-suit is damaged by an external force, the pilot must make a psionic save (save is 15 or better; normal psionic bonuses apply including the damper bonuses from the suit itself). If the save is successful, the pilot avoids taking damage. If not successful, the pilot takes physical (SDC and/or hit point) damage equal to 1 point of SDC (or hit points) for every 10 MDC points of the external damage. For example, a psi-suit is hit by a railgun that does 40 MDC to it. The pilot fails to guard against the damage feedback (fails his save) and, as a result, takes 4 SDC damage. In the case of a critical hit, the damage goes to hit points instead of SDC. Because of this risk, some of the training regimen of the Psi-Mecha pilot is practice guarding against psychic feedback.

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As of this time, Hellfire Weaponsmiths have created 5 psi-mecha suits, each aimed at a specific battlefield purpose.
• The swift and dexterous Swift Wind- a psi-mecha deigned to fill the need of reconnaissance
• The Rottweiller, a powerful and tough unit designed for close combat and assigned only to the toughest pilots
• The Torrid Storm, a walking artillery piece and support unit
• An airborne unit, the Eagle’s Claw is designed for air to ground and air to air combat and troop support
• For amphibious missions, the Tiger Shark is utilized against underwater and surface water targets
Hellfire is currently attempting to incorporate the Psi-mecha technology to robotic vehicles. However, this is proving to be much more difficult than surmised as, even with the power boost, the psychic is unable to use his powers outside the massive robotic body. Though the research is ongoing, the techs at Hellfire are realizing that this is a futile effort and will soon transfer the research team to development of new psi-mecha models. One other major item of note: these ARE NOT AVAILABLE to anyone other than the New Haven armed forces. One must enlist and remain enlisted for four years in order to keep the implant and armor. As mentioned before, Naruni Enterprises is strongly coveting this tech. Because of this, Hellfire has tightened security on its tech; upon the death of a person with a psi-meld implant, the circuit melts down thanks to a small “dead man’s” switch. As a result a deceased pilot’s suit becomes useless until it can be refitted by Hellfire’s operators.
NOTE: Absolutely NONE of these suits are available on the black market! In addition, they are not sold or assigned to anyone outside the New Haven CDC.