Every one of us has a role, in our fucked up society.
Some might be clearer than others.
CORPORATE
Fuckin’ Corps. They act like they own the world.
Problem is, they actually do.
The more powerful they are, the more resources and contacts they can bring to the table.
And I’m talking tons of them. The “I-can-buy-a-third-world-nation-without-a-thought” kind of wealth.
At one point or another, you will work for one of them, even if you don’t know it.
Remember to smile to them, take your paycheck, and watch your back.
For every single time they make a deal, they are planning to betray someone.
Just make sure this time it isn’t you.
RUNNER
A bunch of weirdos, all the time talking about cables, flatlines and ICEs.
Don’t even try to understand their jargon. But make it a point to remember what they like and don’t like.
It’s always good to have a runner on your side, and always a nightmare to have one with a score to settle with you.
Everyone says it like it’s a cliché, but it’s true.
In the digital age, information IS power. And if you need information, you have to talk to them. Problem is, good information is never cheap.
They say the l33t (elite) of them are able to do literally anything they want on the NET.
And it’s not that far from the truth.
FIXER
They say that if you ever need something, a good Fixer will find you even before you even start asking for it. Just pay the price, and don’t ask questions as to where it’s coming from.
I get what you’re thinking. There is something that the best Fixer CAN’T provide, given enough credits? You would be surprised. You’re thinking of fuckin’ nukes? Well, the answer is obvious.
And if you ever need to make some money on the side, they always have some job to be done. Just hide your moral compass, shut your mouth, and load your gun.
HOUND
“Serve and Protect”? Where did you hear this nonsense?
Even if it had been true a long time ago, now it doesn’t matter.
Don’t even try to convince them to help you find who robbed you with a moving statement.
Just pay, like everyone else.
Give them something to smell.
And they will follow [it? you?] until the end of the world.
Are you laughing? You shouldn’t be.
The best of them, they can smell it, you know.
When you are lying to them.
Don’t even think to run away from them.
If you are their target, they will catch you.
They have an honor code. Or, at least, pretend to.
If you see one asking too many questions about you, there’s only one thing left to do.
Just hope that this time you’re not the one they are looking for.
RONIN
They are the best at what they do. And what they do isn’t kind.
In this age, they have a lot of tools to use. All the training to do it well. And many jobs to choose from.
Because when everything else fails, you need to use violence. A lot of it.
You need a Ronin.
If you ever see one of them in combat mode, just pray you’re not the target. Don’t even think about shooting at them. They will simply shrug off bullets and continue towards their objective.
Most of them are professional. Some of them, even polite. But they always have a plan for killing everyone they meet. No one knows which new contract they will have to complete tomorrow.
MEDIA
Reputation and fame are tools, just like everything else. Shifting the public opinion to one way or the other today is just a business service.
You can find any kind of people doing this job. From idealistic idiots with a death wish, on the hunt for the truth no matter the cost, to cold professionals which will report everything (or nothing) for the right price.
They need a good story, hard proofs, and the time to broadcast them before they are shut down (usually literally). But if they manage to do it, then they will have a lot of power. Because everyone knows that the Corporations own the Government, and the public will not listen to their paid straw men.
But they will listen to a Media.
TEK
In a world where the difference between flesh and machine is becoming academic, the same goes for the job of medics and technicians.
In an ideal world, you would go to patch your wounds and install your implants in a clean, well-equipped and illuminated clinic. Yeah. There’s just a little problem. That’s not our world.
When the operation is done in the Sprawl, in the back of a noodle shop, you’d better hope you chose the right man for the job. Only the best Teks can handle the job of treating the most serious wounds, or installing the more powerful implants.
Or at least, they can do it without leaving you with horrible scars, on the outside and the inside.
Yeah, believe me. After all, you’re only asking someone to literally cut your brain open.
BOSS
There is just one word to describe the Sprawl: unforgiving.
You may come equipped with state-of-the-art implants, tons of money and the best connections, and still end up on a street corner, face down in the mud.
They say that the Mega-Corps own the world. That’s just half of the truth. Because in the Sprawl, the Gangs lay down the laws. If you want to make business in it, you have to seek the protection of one of them.
You have to find their Boss, and hope you can convince him that you’re mostly helpful to their cause, whatever it may be.
Never said it’s gonna be easy.
CELEB
In a world that has forgotten deities and religion, someone has to inspire people. Someone has to be a celebrity.
No matter if they are a rocker poet, a performance artist, a social leader or a Corporate puppet. They are famous. They get people up, they lead them. They know they can’t change the world. But they will still try. Or pretend to. The choice on what to believe is yours.
Whatever you believe of them, don’t even think to mess with one.
Do you know what a crowd of screaming fans can do to the jerk that killed their idol?
The right question is what they can’t do. And in the Sprawl, you already know the answer.