The following section should be useful to the GM's and provides NPC information and a few new weapons for the Truck crews to use.
Following are descriptions of various NPC's and some of their equipment. A general rating of their capabilities labeled Threat Level is included to allow the GM to customize the challenges to the cell's abilities and are defined as such:
Very Low – At this level of opponent skill, the characters won't even break a sweat. This is your typical 6 year old human with a plastic baseball bat and a temper tantrum.
Low – This level of threat is one of the more common levels of competence and can be dangerous if not taken seriously. This is the common civilian with a CAF and an attitude or maybe a Carnivorous Pig.
Moderate – This level of opponent is equivalent to the characters in skill and ability. An inexperienced or new Slop is a good example.
High – This level of opponent should be tackled carefully and is superior to the character's ability. An experienced Slop or a manchine are good examples.
Very High – This level of opponent is well above the character's abilities to handle and must be approached with a great deal of caution. Examples would be a lone Darkfinder, very experienced Slop squads, or Necanthropes.
Extreme – This level of opponent far outmatches the character's abilities and should be avoided. Good examples are a squad of Darkfinders and War World Criminals. There are no opponents in this adventure of this level.
Krychek is one of the more skilled interrogators working in the Trade's
Acquisitions division. His weird tendencies and sick sense
of humor are ignored because of his competence, but no one likes to be
around him for long.
Threat: Low
Equipment: Chip detector, lie detector, various interrogation/torture tools.
Penman is the conniving right-hand man for Parson and sees himself as a
rising star. He is devious, charming, and completely
ruthless. If Parson didn't pay him so well, he would have taken the old man
out long ago.
Threat: Moderate.
Equipment: Various weapons and the bodyguards to use them effectively.
Ramon is one of the local youths that joined the Hope facility and now works
for MacGregor as a runner. He is fairly wise for his
age and has an innate talent for reading people correctly and guessing what
is about to happen. He also subscribes to any conspiracy
theory and urban legend and can spout SLA propaganda at the drop of a hat.
Threat: Low.
Equipment: Whatever he can scavenge.
Arthur Parson is a good example of a competent Crew Boss destined for better
things. He runs a tight operation, takes care of his
people, and uses military style tactics when directing his people. Although
it is not widely known, he is an ex Kick Murder
operative that went native.
Threat: High.
Equipment: Anything desired, prefers SLA weaponry.
Tomas and Samson are two of the huge baggers assigned to Parson's truck
crews. These two are indicative of most of the heavies that
Penman uses and look strong enough to break a man in half. Unfortunately,
they are not that skilled tactically and are a few bricks
short of a load in the brains department.
Threat: Moderate.
Equipment: KACK –12 SMG's, various other firearms and melee weapons.
Mr. Ikeda is a serious professional with strong ties to the Orienta
underworld. His always displays a calm exterior, regardless of
how angry he actually is. Rumor has it that he was originally a victim of a
Block Party and was raised by members of the Trade. He
is reported to be very close to the people upstairs.
Threat: Very High
Equipment: Any
MacGregor is the PC's Crew Boss and happens to be one of the best. Her professional attitude and ability to motivate new employees are unrivaled at the Hope facility. If she isn't killed in the ongoing war with Parson, she is destined to rise through the organization.
MacGregor is known to say what she means and then back it up. In the years
she has been with the organization, she has seldom backed
down from a fight. She has the scars to prove it and would be much prettier
if her hard head hadn't gotten in the way.
Threat: High
Equipment: Any
Snow is a bit of a wild card in the escalating fight between Parson and
MacGregor. Viewing the ongoing hostilities as a great
opportunity, he intends to support each side as much as possible to insure
they tear each other down.
Threat: High.
Equipment: Any
Following is a list of several new items used regularly by the Skin Trade.
The Gelpack Stungun is the preferred nonlethal ranged weapon of the Skin Trade. Using compressed air, the short rifle fires a weighted "bean bag" or gel pack at high speed to incapacitate victims. It is very uncommon for a victim to receive more than a bad bruise, but there have been several incidences where serious injuries or fatalities have occurred. Mostly these occur when the pressure has been pumped up beyond a tolerable level and fired into a target at close range. The gelpacks are sometimes reusable provided that they can be recovered when the prey is picked up. Any successful hit from this weapon requires a Phys roll at –2 to avoid stun and knockdown.
Blackmarket Cost: 1500
Clip: 1
Caliber: n/a (beanbag)
ROF: 1
Range: 12 meters.
The Trade Shock Prod is a modified livestock prod normally used to thick-skinned bovines to cooperate. This version can deliver anything from a mild jolt to a serious and potentially fatal shock, depending upon the power setting. A successful melee strike with this device requires a PHYS roll at –2 to avoid being stunned for up to 10 minutes. If set at the highest settings, a PHYS roll of –4 is required to avoid cardiac arrest.
Blackmarket Cost: 2500
Clip: 30 shots
ROF: 1
Range: Touch
Used as a deterrent or to incapacitate a victim, this high-pressure sprayer has an effective range of up to twenty feet. On a successful hit, the victim must make a PHYS roll at –3 or become incapacitated.
Blackmarket Cost: 20
Clip: 10 shots
ROF: 1
Range 6 meters.
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