TM
TM
MARTINGALE SECURITY
Written by PHIL MASTERS
Edited by NIKOLA VRTIS
Illustrated by FREDD GORHAM, ANDI JONES, RICK LOWRY, and DAN SMITH
®
An e23 Sourcebook for GURPS
STEVE JACKSON GAMES
®
Stock #37-6705 Version 1.0  August 2009
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION . . . . . . . . . . . 4
About GURPS
MARTINGALE, THE COMPANY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Steve Jackson Games is committed to full support
Work Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 of GURPS players. Our address is SJ Games, P.O. Box
18957, Austin, TX 78760. Please include a self-
RUNNING THE CAMPAIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) any time you
Character Point Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
write us! We can also be reached by e-mail:
Team and Personal Equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
[e-mail]. Resources include:
Using Equipment from Ultra-Tech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Sample Scenario: A Concert in Zulia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 New supplements and adventures. GURPS con-
Further Scenario Seeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 tinues to grow  see what s new at
www.sjgames.com/gurps.
TEAM MEMBERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
e23. Our e-publishing division offers GURPS
Diego Hughes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
adventures, play aids, and support in PDF form . . . dig-
Diego s AIs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
ital copies of our books, plus exclusive material avail-
Paul Chung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
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Paul Chung s AI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
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Paz Ramirez . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
monthly PDF magazine includes new rules and articles
Paz Ramirez s AI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
for GURPS, systemless locations, adventures, and
OVERSIGHT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
much more. Look for each themed issue from e23!
OVERSIGHT s Buzzbots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Internet. Visit us on the World Wide Web at
Charlie Mallinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
www.sjgames.com for errata, updates, Q&A, and
much more. To discuss GURPS with our staff and
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
your fellow gamers, visit our forums at
forums.sjgames.com. The web page for Transhu-
man Space: Personnel Files 4  Martingale Security
ist www.sjgames.com/transhuman/personnel4.
Bibliographies. Many of our books have extensive
bibliographies, and we re putting them online  with
About
links to let you buy the resources that interest you! Go
to each book s web page and look for the  Bibliogra-
Transhuman Space
phy link.
The Transhuman Space series presents a unique
Errata. Everyone makes mistakes, including us 
hard-science and high-biotech universe for roleplay-
but we do our best to fix our errors. Up-to-date errata
ing. Set in the Solar System in the year 2100, it is a set-
pages for all GURPS releases, including this book, are
ting rich in adventure, mystery, and exploration of the
available on our website  see above.
possibilities of existence. The core book in the line is
Transhuman Space, written by the series creator,
Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for
David Pulver.
the GURPS Basic Set, Fourth Edition. Page references
that begin with B refer to that book, not this one.
GURPS System Design Z' STEVE JACKSON Managing Editor Z' PHILIP REED Marketing Director Z' PAUL CHAPMAN
GURPS Line Editor Z' SEAN PUNCH Art Director Z' WILL SCHOONOVER Director of Sales Z' ROSS JEPSON
Transhuman Space Line Editor Z' PHIL MASTERS Page Design Z' PHIL REED and JUSTIN DE WITT GURPS FAQ Maintainer Z'       
e23 Manager Z' STEVEN MARSH Production Artist & Indexer Z' NIKOLA VRTIS VICKY  MOLOKH KOLENKO
Prepress Checker Z' MONICA STEPHENS
Playtesters: Leonardo M. Holschuh and Emily Smirle
GURPS, Warehouse 23, and the all-seeing pyramid are registered trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. Transhuman Space, Personnel Files, Martingale Security,
Pyramid, e23, and the names of all products published by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated are registered trademarks or trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated,
or used under license. Transhuman Space: Personnel Files 4  Martingale Security is copyright © 2009 by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. All rights reserved.
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CONTENTS 2
INTRODUCTION
Each Transhuman Space:
Personnel Files supplement
offers a campaign set in the
world of Transhuman Space,
These, in the day when heaven was falling,
complete with background,
brief scenario suggestions, and
The hour when earth s foundations fled,
notes for the GM. The material
also includes a set of characters
Followed their mercenary calling
suitable to act as PCs in this
same campaign. These charac-
And took their wages and are dead.
ters are detailed using GURPS
Fourth Edition, with templates
 A.E. Housman,  Epitaph on
and other details drawn from
Transhuman Space: Changing
an Army of Mercenaries
Times and Transhuman Space:
Shell-Tech. Personnel Files 4 
Martingale Security offers a
look at a recently formed body-
guard company and its core
About the Author
members.
It s sometimes said that Transhuman Space provides a Phil Masters is the author of Transhuman Space: Changing
wonderfully detailed world, but it s hard to decide on and Times, Transhuman Space: Shell-Tech, Transhuman Space:
define an actual campaign to run there. The Personnel Files Personnel Files 1-3, and a chapter in Transhuman Space:
line is intended to provide an answer to this, and to demon- High Frontier. He has also worked on countless other GURPS
strate what PCs for the setting might look like. These charac- products, such as the Who s Who books and Banestorm, and
ters can also be used as NPCs  as antagonists, allies, patrons, on products for other companies. He lives and works in the UK,
or background color. and he doesn t have a bodyguard.
INTRODUCTION 3
PROFESSIONAL
PROTECTION
The characters detailed in this supplement form a profes-  it looks aggressive and paranoid. Politicians want to be able to
sional bodyguard team  a natural setup for action-oriented shake hands with other people, to move through crowds or drive
plots in the world of Transhuman Space. Often, in this setting, down the road while giving an impression of friendliness and
combat work is assigned to highly specialized cybershells, or accessibility. Celebrities need to seem somewhat approachable
sometimes bioroids, especially in Fifth Wave areas; the scope to their fans, and they often build valuable public images on the
for complex, more or less human characters to engage in old- idea that they re still regular folks. They also like to hit the
fashioned soldiering, shoot-outs, and suchlike action can seem nightspots without scaring other customers. Ordinary people
limited. Nevertheless, certain tasks call for something other with stalkers usually want to be able to carry on living their nor-
than raw firepower and heavy armor, even if combat is part of mal lives while the problem is cleared up. Heavy-duty combat
the job  and bodyguard work is one of those areas. systems get in the way of all that  and alert, computer-aided,
Someone engaged in normal, if high-profile, activity in V-tag-reading Fifth Wave citizens can often spot even quite sub-
civilian society probably doesn t want to be surrounded by tle automated security. Thus, in 2100, the bodyguard business
heavily armed death machines. Even if legal difficulties can be calls more than ever for discretion and the human touch.
overcome  and RATS or UCAV units tend to be highly restricted
COMPANY BACKGROUND
The group described here makes up the entire workforce of backers regard this as an interesting sideline or speculative
Martingale Security, a small commercial bodyguard team based investment, and they simply value their privacy. Nonetheless,
in the United States in the Transhuman Space setting. It can be some of the team is still keeping an eye out for evidence of hid-
treated as an example of how to make such an entity the basis den agendas.
for a campaign. Bigger companies are involved in the business, From the team members point of view, the company func-
but basing a series of adventures around a small independent tions like a partnership of quasi-independent professionals
team gives the PCs a greater feeling of control over their work that just happens to have some useful funding. However,
decisions, avoiding a sense of heavy-handed management from Martingale isn t rated as a Patron in the character descriptions.
higher levels. Martingale has outside investors and the usual The aid the company provides is strictly that given by a good
corporate need to turn a profit, but within that constraint, it s businesslike employer, and it won t extend beyond the job at
up to the PCs how they do their job. The team does have a hand. Martingale will furnish equipment (including weapons)
leader  that s really inevitable with a group of professional and legal assistance, but only as needed to get a job done. The
combatants  but the members are all trusted to make tactical company requires efficient accounting in return. Equally, work
decisions as necessary. They are permitted to query instructions for the company isn t rated here as a Duty (except for the com-
from the team leader in non-urgent situations, and even to pany s AI, which is legally property), although it can be moder-
debate policy. In the extreme case, they can be sacked, but they ately dangerous at times. It s essentially a job, which team
aren t subject to military discipline. Furthermore, Martingale s members can quit any time if they wish, and they re supposed
particular  command structure has some secret wrinkles, hid- to minimize risks whenever possible. The only stipulation the
den in the character descriptions. owners place on team composition is that it must include
The company was established a couple of years ago, as an Charlie Mallinson (see pp. 19-20). Additionally, a high-end AI,
independent start-up. The people who are putting up the OVERSIGHT (pp. 17-18), handles most of the admin work and
money have chosen to remain in the background, concealed day-to-day communications for the company.
behind indirect ownership arrangements. However, the set-up Martingale is based in Dallas, Texas, and all the team
is, as far as anyone can tell, legal. Those who have looked into members have residences in that city. This is as convenient
it, from inside or outside of the company, have failed to find as anywhere else, in the web-linked world of Transhuman
anything ethically dubious going on, and the team members Space, and GMs who prefer to choose another American
have never yet been asked to break any laws. Presumably, the city for any reason are welcome to move the base.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 4
Most jobs involve a flight out of the international airport to
wherever the action is, although there s also a fair amount
of work going in the city s own business district and else-
Work Hours
where in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The company has a
Note that, in general, Fifth Wave citizens in 2100 work
lease on a modest suite of offices in the business district,
relatively short hours  often around 20 per week. A body-
mostly to hold OVERSIGHT s computers and for confer-
guard team really can t function that way: They have to
ence rooms to allow for clients who prefer to meet the team
cover their clients for large parts of each day and be avail-
in person. The company also rents a secure storage unit fur-
able at short notice the rest of the time. Hence, companies
ther out of the city center, where the team can stow their
like Martingale offer a different work pattern, with  high
larger cybershells and some of their sidearms between mis-
intensity schedules while on assignment, and long periods
sions; getting into this involves multiple codes and forms of
of relaxed  downtime in between. (This isn t necessarily
identification, though all team members have access. The
time off; it can mean training, refresher courses, or basic
storage units are managed and watched by an experienced,
consultancy tasks performed over the Web from home.)
competent LAI; OVERSIGHT is automatically notified of
Obviously, this routine will suit some people more than oth-
both legitimate access to the store and any kind of
ers. Additionally, bodyguards might not have close relation-
attempted intrusion or suspicion activity.
ships, because their schedules often lead to friction and
Martingale advertises discretely through various web-
stress. Still, the relatively short total working hours are
sites and communal networks, and it aims to build a solid
another reason not to count the job as a significant Duty.
 word of mouth reputation. Team members may be
reminded of this objective if they seem likely to endanger
the company s good name. Initial approaches with offers of
work usually come in through the Web. Contractual negotia-
its employees aren t asked to confront many of the ethical prob-
tions are mostly handled by semi-independent agents (human
lems associated with military-mercenary work. They do have to
and AI) hired by the company owners. Team members who
be prepared to shoot people if absolutely necessary, but the cor-
bring in profitable work through their own efforts could
porate line is that they re in the business of preserving life, not
receive a modest bonus.
taking it. They re officially more than willing to cooperate with
The company currently employs just the one team. If it
the police. They avoid contracts that would take them to areas
chooses to expand in the future, it will probably create complete
where local law enforcement is very corrupt or untrustworthy,
new teams of much the same size, although members of the
though they don t often turn down paying work that is within
initial team may be given temporary training and assessment
their capacity. If they re offered a job that they decide requires
duties with the new group.
more firepower than they can muster, they know some paramil-
Martingale Security is not a military, or even paramilitary,
itary bodies to whom they can direct the customer with a clear
organization. It s a civilian company providing plain-clothes
conscience; such outfits will return the favor if offered work
civilian bodyguards. While other  security companies in 2100
requiring subtlety. Likewise, the company has no interest in any
are more like mercenary forces (and may have more military-
kind of espionage work and limited capabilities for counterespi-
grade hardware, including RATS and similar), Martingale
onage or countersurveillance. However, it might team up with
pitches for work at the subtler end of the market. As a side effect,
other specialists if a customer seemed to need such support.
RUNNING THE CAMPAIGN
A bodyguard campaign can be run on a simple, episodic, The short-term structure offers possibilities for variation
 mission basis. Each week, the team gets a new assignment from mission to mission. Sometimes, no real threat exits  per-
and a briefing, goes out, and does the job. Most times, this haps the whole thing is a misunderstanding that needs to be
means that the threatening force shows its hand, the team cleared up, or the client is paranoid and needs to somehow be
stops the attack (or at least tries to), the threat is eliminated convinced of reality. Sometimes, the team doesn t get the whole
(or the mission fails), and everyone gets paid and goes home. story because the client is confused, manipulative, or being
In cases where someone needs protection from a whole slew manipulated by someone close. Perhaps the  threat is coming
of possible threats for months or years, such services have to from someone with a legitimate complaint against the client,
come from larger companies or organizations. These entities but who won t resort to physical violence. The team then has to
can rotate multiple teams of bodyguards through the assign- disentangle the lies or misunderstandings and find a way to
ment as some take holidays or change job, collect intelligence resolve the situation so that it squares with their ethics, con-
on possible attackers, and organize a whole protective struc- sciences, and contracts. At still other times, the assignment is
ture around the client. That s not the kind of assignment legitimate and routine, but the client s life involves other com-
which a small independent team like Martingale Security will plications in which the bodyguards become entangled. They
be offered or accept. Rather, the company is in the short-term might find themselves guest stars in a soap opera, political
protection business, which suits the  adventure game model saga, or business drama; they somehow become involved
very well. despite their best attempts to preserve cool detachment.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 5
It s possible to run continuing plots or subplots over multi- GURPS game standards). This point level also allows charac-
ple sessions or to include recurring features. Some clients may ters to be sophisticated infomorphs installed in well-chosen
return; the guards get to know them, but contact is infrequent cybershells, and it gives access to the full range of parahuman
enough that other missions come between those assignments. or bioroid templates if desired. Something around this level is
If the team gets several jobs in the same area, they may become generally recommended for combat-oriented Fifth Wave PC
acquainted with local law enforcement, perhaps as rivals or groups, although the GM should then enforce the principle of
even low-key enemies if they show the cops up or just annoy low disadvantage levels rigorously in character creation.
them somehow. (Duty-minded cops may regard private secu-
rity outfits as overpaid, trigger-happy mercenaries.)
TEAM AND PERSONAL
Some missions may end up being drawn out unexpectedly.
The PCs have to think or fight their way out of complications
EQUIPMENT
that spring up at the last minute. Similarly, they might need to
Most of the PCs detailed here have Fifth Wave levels of
return to a location and deal with some kind of aftermath. For
wealth, and they can purchase possessions accordingly. More
example, they might be called on to act as witnesses against
to the point, they work for an employer who can provide them
assailants in court, or protect an injured client from further
with gear and sometimes arrange necessary licenses. Hence, in
attacks while he s recuperating.
this campaign, money is likely to be a less significant concern
For a particularly long-term plot, a mission might somehow
than legality when deciding what equipment the PCs are carry-
lead to entanglement with some large political scheme or
ing. The bodyguards usually carry some kind of handguns, but
secret conspiracy. Alternatively, the team members might
the exact types  and also the exact types of ammunition avail-
annoy harassers enough to become targets for revenge attacks
able  depends on the location of the operation and how sym-
themselves. Of course, individuals can have their own concerns
pathetic local law enforcement might be. A client or other
and commitments, developing relationships inside or outside
temporary ally with influence can also be useful.
the team, investigating secrets around the company, and so on.
As a rule, characters such as the Martingale team  with no
The group could become involved in plots that aren t (or
criminal records or such legal problems, a professional need to
don t start out as) paying jobs. If they happen to wander into a
use weapons, and the support of employers who can help them
crime scene, mystery, or disaster while off duty, they have more
acquire licenses and permits  have fairly free access to equip-
than enough abilities to lend a hand, if they choose. Likewise,
ment that is LC3 or 4. They may be able to get legal use of LC2
they might be asked for help by NPC friends or relations who
equipment for use in CR1 areas or if they can demonstrate spe-
can t afford to hire professionals, or who don t think that their
cial need to the right authorities in CR2 regions. LC1 equip-
problems merit such things.
ment may become available in peculiar circumstances or
Longer-term development of the security company may
during trips to war zones. (Note that AIs in the United States,
occur. Training and supervising new teams is one possibility
not being legal citizens, have  legal problems by definition.)
(see p. 5). Another is for at least some of the team to move up
Obviously, appropriate behavior is also important.
into managerial/supervisory positions, perhaps assigning
NPCs or cybershells to some field work while directing by tele- Professional bodyguards may be quite widely permitted to
carry concealed sidearms, and to draw them when necessary,
operation. In those cases, the campaign may involve missions
but waving them around for show is a quick route to severe
that go wrong, so that the old hands have to go in person to
licensing problems. Furthermore, weapons are severely
clear up the unexpected complications.
restricted on or near air and space vehicles, usually having to
be carried in bonded cases in the hold. Clients who have to
travel that way will just have to rely on the transport systems
own (generally extensive) security arrangements, and perhaps
If you ll be my bodyguard,
their bodyguards alertness, wits, and unarmed skills.
Hence, based on equipment information on pp. 62-64
I can be your long lost pal . . .
of Changing Times, the Martingale staff (aside from
OVERSIGHT) often carries electrolasers, although electrolaser
 Paul Simon,
rifles, being bulky and intimidating, are rarely an option. They
usually are permitted ordinary pistols, micro-missile pods, and
 You Can Call Me Al
laser pistols should they have the specific need for those. Mini-
missile pods and PDWs will be the sign of a mission into dan-
gerous territory or with unusual levels of legal sanction. HEMP
and SEFOP rounds are actually LC1, and so they won t typi-
cally be available. The tangler grenade (see Transhuman
CHARACTER POINT TOTALS
Space, p. 159) is a useful option for bodyguards and the simi-
The team members detailed on pp. 11-20 are each built on
lar professions. It is LC3 or even 4 in most jurisdictions; can
a 300-point base. This is high for  normal human characters
immobilize a possible threat nonlethally.
by general GURPS standards, but remember that these are
For protection, the Martingale staff usually relies on arach-
combat-trained specialists with access to the resources of Fifth
noweave, which can be worn under ordinary clothes. When a
Wave society. They can acquire and use nanomods, good-qual- certain amount of visible body armor is acceptable, they can add
ity infomorphs, and specialist cybershells. They can also bene- nanoweave. In fact, a light nanoweave vest can fit under loose
fit from genetic and memetic therapies that eliminate most
civilian clothes without becoming too conspicuous, and police
serious problems (so their disadvantage levels are low by most
vest worn by Diego Hughes (pp. 11-12) looks like reporter s gear.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 6
Using Equipment from Ultra-Tech
In a weapons-heavy campaign such as this one, some they are considered overpowered for civilian use, and thus
GMs may choose to use, not the relatively limited weapons are effectively limited to Fifth Wave militaries (LC1). How-
list from Transhuman Space and Changing Times, but ever, gas-powered air guns can be useful as a delivery
the more comprehensive options provided by GURPS method for exotic munitions. For example, the Martingale
Ultra-Tech. This can work well, but the GM will have to team might carry conventional, shotgun, gyroc, tangler, or
decide which technologies from that book exist in the electrolaser pistols, along with saucer grenades (usually
Transhuman Space world. just tanglers), stun wands, and karatands.
As a general rule, anything up to TL10 equipment is Likewise, team members will often wear ballistic armor
available, but no superscience gear. Some weapon types  specifically nanoweave. This may well be tailored; see the
may not quite fit with the setting atmosphere, though. To rules on pp. 174-175 of Ultra-Tech. Light versions can be
begin with, high-energy lasers have traditionally been worn inconspicuously under normal clothes, while stylish
unavailable in Transhuman Space, which makes relatively cuts can make armor  and its wearer  much more accept-
conservative assumptions about power cell capacities; this able at posh parties. Protective headgear is harder to keep
would also exclude particle beams smaller than spaceship hidden, unfortunately, but armored shades (with integral
main weapons and electromagnetic/Gauss guns. The GM HUD displays) will be team standard issue.
may also choose to exclude ETC weapons or decide that
Note that, technically, medium or heavy nanoweave is treated promotions company is prepared to pay the going rates for
as LC3 and so will meet problems in some places. Certainly, this job. They ll vouch for Narvaez s good sense   he is an
wearing any body armor onto, say, an airliner, will get as artist who cares, not a danger to anyone. Jordanson himself
much suspicion in 2100 as it would in the 21st century. TL10 will come along on the trip to mind the star. Departure will be
airport security is likely to detect even arachnoweave and by local shuttle tomorrow morning, transferring to an inter-
may put up a flag. national flight in Florida.
All of the Martingale team always wears IFF transponders.
All company-issue sidearms and ammunition are set to recog-
Background
nize these.
The team is given the rest of the day to prepare for the trip.
Successful use of appropriate skills or competent research
turns up plenty about Narvaez, who s a genuine minor star in
SAMPLE SCENARIO:
various parts of the Americas. He is indeed explicitly and
loudly opposed to exploitation, but he has multiple reputa-
A CONCERT IN ZULIA
tions: To his (mostly young, largely female) fans, he s a high-
The team is called together to the Dallas office in the morn-
minded star. To a very few anti-nanosocialist factions, he s a
ing. They are informed that the company has accepted a new
too-popular loudmouth. To some serious nanocorrido devo-
job. They re then introduced to Ken Jordanson, a representa-
tees, he s a corporate fake. Serious digging and successful
tive of a music/media promotions company. Jordanson comes
memetic analysis might even generate the suspicion that he s
across as a smooth-talking media shark with a tendency to slip
actually being used as a subtle propaganda tool by someone:
from English to Spanish and back in the course of a single sen-
He distracts attention from more genuinely radical figures by
tence, seemingly at random. (In fact, he is a smooth-talking
being cute, sexy, and rather vague in his politics. He projects a
media shark, but possibly not quite as slimy as the PCs may
textbook  lone-wolf bad boy with a touch of loneliness image,
assume.) He explains the job he has to offer.
guaranteed to attract a certain type of interest without really
Pablo Narvaez, one of his company s clients, is a moder-
worrying young teenage girls or their parents. Shrewd PCs
ately famous  nanocorrido singer (see Broken Dreams,
might guess that they re being hired at least as much as a way
p. 51). He s booked to perform at a music festival in the South
of emphasizing his  dangerous anti-establishment credibility
American nation of Zulia (see Fifth Wave, p. 64) in two days
 he s important enough to need bodyguards!  as to provide
time. This festival will take place on the edge of the small
serious protection from genuine threats.
town of San Timeo, rather than in the capital, because all the
The Zulia Festival of Radical Song, where he s due to per-
bigger venues are owned by corporations or interests
form, is a few years old. It s run by a cooperative that is com-
opposed to the kind of things that Pablo and the other per-
pletely sincere in a fuzzy, broad-front sort of way. One or two
formers stand for. However, Pablo s brand of free-spirited
of their booked performers sometimes get refused entry to
anti-establishment politics (broadly soft-nanosocialist, if any-
Zulia for controversial reasons, but the event mostly seems to
one asks) is somewhat controversial in Zulia   it s the nature
lie within the country s range of political tolerance. Corporate-
of things down there  and some people are worried that
run venues might well be a little unhappy to host the event, but
someone might attempt to make trouble for this popular rad-
the significant objections come at least as much from the
ical spokesman. Hence, insurance syndicate for the promo-
organizers, who prefer not to do business with The Man. They
tions company strongly suggests that he get some competent
opted to rent a big lakeside field on the outskirts of the small
protection. Jordanson s (genuine) honest opinion is that it s a
town of San Timeo instead.
long shot, but fans can be somewhat excitable, and the
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 7
partitions to provide rooms. Narvaez, as something of a star,
Equipment Options
receives a decent amount of space. The PCs have no problems
Zulia has moderate weapons restrictions, especially for vis-
with access and can start scouting things out. The site also
itors. It might normally be difficult for a bunch of foreigners to
has a temporary public radio net up and running, which
walk in with a suitcase full of guns, but someone at the man-
OVERSIGHT can use to good effect.
agement company has evidently pulled some strings to get
The first challenge is getting Narvaez into the changing-
quick clearance. (This itself should be a hint that they have
room tent past a small but quite determined group of teenage
influence on the establishment side of the fence.) However, the
girls who ve somehow acquired backstage passes. How the
group will be limited to pistols and nonexplosive weapons,
bodyguards handle this will have a large effect on how Narvaez
which will have to travel in bonded cases in the aircraft hold,
views them.
and they are politely advised to be careful and tactful.
One reliable facilities rental company in San Timeo can
offer hardware on which OVERSIGHT can run comfortably,
and the company has booked space there. OVERSIGHT can
transmit itself there through the Web and then provide support
without serious transmission time lag.
The Journey
A brief hop takes the bodyguards to Florida, where they
meet Pablo Narvaez, who travels with them from there. They
also have the pleasure of Ken Jordanson s company all the way.
If the team members work at being polite to him despite his
often irritating glibness, accumulating positive reactions, he ll
be easier to work with later. Both aircraft have good communi-
cations channels, and OVERSIGHT can preserve a virtual
presence throughout the trip if it wants.
Narvaez shows up with a guitar and a bag full of electron-
ics, but no backing band or entourage. ( He is a simple man of
the people  and NAI backing musicians are cheaper.) He
turns out to be quite a pleasant young man, if a little cool. His
preference will be to spend the trip jotting down ideas for
lyrics, but if anyone gets a positive reaction from him, he may
open up in conversation. He s hostile enough to the establish-
ment to believe that they might be out to get him, but smart
enough to recognize that this would be fairly stupid on the part
of those who oppose him  so he s unsure about this bodyguard
idea. In fact, he has a very serious sense of duty to his fans; he Once the performer is inside, he changes into his stage
does not want the escort or anyone else offending them or clothes (much like his street clothes, but slightly smarter) and
pushing them away. Treating any fan badly is guaranteed to starts booting up on various portable systems the dedicated
make Narvaez hostile and difficult to deal with. NAIs that act as his backing band. After a few minutes, another
The airliner lands at Zulia s international airport, at disturbance appears.
Maracaibo; a rented minibus, with NAI driver, plenty of lug- Anyone with an external overview may become aware of
gage capacity, and fortunately good air conditioning, is waiting a smallish young woman making her way through the back-
to take them on to San Timeo, which is a bit over 100 miles stage area. She s noticeable partly because of her air of self-
away. The same vehicle will be on hand throughout the visit. assurance, but mostly because she s accompanied by three
The hotel in San Timeo seems adequate, and has been warned humanoid cybershells, two large and one smaller, all rather
that this guest will have bodyguards. Organic travelers may garishly painted. The larger ones might be recognized as
well be inclined to grab some rest by the time they arrive. AIs MCS-52 units (see Broken Dreams, p. 123, and Shell-Tech,
can scout the area out in virtual space, but this is a small town. p. 19), though those are usually finished in camouflage pat-
OVERSIGHT s buzzbots may be the best things to use to keep terns or some dark gray metallic look, not primary colors in
independent watch in the small hours of the night. fashionable neo-Mayan style. (They also have no armor,
which might cause professional soldiers to sneer a bit, and
they are armed only with heavy pistols.) The smaller, equally
The Day of the Concert
garish unit is some kind of commonplace civilian humani-
The next morning dawns warm after an uneventful night,
form unit (see Broken Dreams, p. 123, and Changing
and everyone gets back on the minibus for the trip to the fes-
Times, p. 55). When the group reaches the performers tent,
tival site.
one of the larger shells takes up a position by the entrance.
The location proves to be open fields with a big rectangular
The smaller shell hands it a colorful shoulder-bag to hold,
tent/pavilion set up near the shores of Lake Maracaibo. The
making it look even more incongruous. Then everyone else
tent is open at one end and has a stage at the other. Smaller
enters the tent, walking straight through the festival s auto-
tents house concession stands and the like, while other tents
mated security/identification scans without breaking stride.
hold a performers-only backstage area, which includes internal
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 8
Indeed, if any PCs try to stop them, the festival s management secretly find their actions a little amusing, especially if Zulia is
AIs will politely but firmly tell them to back down. thrown into chaos.)
The young woman is in fact the 15-year-old Elizabeth-Jane However, the radicals have a member with inside access to
Espartero, who can be identified by any mugshot software a local software company, Mandragora Computadora, who
with access to local current affairs databases. She happens to receive a fair amount of business from the government of
be the only daughter of the president of Zulia, which doesn t Zulia. Hence, the latest automated updates installed in a num-
stop her also being an enormous Pablo Narvaez fan. She hur- ber of local computer systems have undocumented features.
tles up to her idol with a mixture of awe and hunger in her Subverting the secretary shell was one masterstroke. Their sab-
eyes. She starts enthusing, while her bodyguard and secretar- otage is also playing havoc with a number of nonessential gov-
ial cybershells hang back and fail to be inconspicuous. They ernment systems, including some data networks, which will
are all running specialist LAI systems and seem to more or less make it extremely hard to establish reliable communications
ignore Narvaez's retinue, although the bodyguard occasionally with anyone in authority. It further doesn t help that the insur-
scans the area. gents are planting numerous misleading messages of all sorts
After a minute or so of Ms. Espartero gushing and Narvaez on the Web in order to maximize the confusion.
responding modestly, anyone who is in the right place can Even more significantly, the radicals have taken control of
make a Vision roll to notice the humaniform secretary robot 10-20% of the ro-peds (Shell-Tech, pp. 8-9) in Zulia  those
step forward, pull the bodyguard s pistol from its holster, and with NAI software supplied by Mandragora. Most of these are
step back. The bodyguard pauses, presumably querying the merely acting bizarrely and sowing confusion on the streets of
secretary by radio. Unfortunately, no one can take a clear shot both San Timeo and the capital, Maracaibo, which is slowing
at this point. Then, an explosion occurs outside as that shoul- down and playing havoc with police responses to the develop-
der-bag detonates. A split second later, the secretary (which has ing crisis. A few  those nearest to or on the festival site  are
been applying its Visualization task-modeling ability to all this) converging on the heroes location, with a view to capturing
pumps a couple of HEMP rounds into the bigger cybershell s Elizabeth-Jane Espartero by raw weight of numbers. To add to
back. It takes a little damage itself from the close-range explo- the complications, some of them still have their original pas-
sion, just as a few fans who were too near the other bodyguard sengers on board, clinging on in terror.
become injured from the radio-triggered grenade blast. More The team members should be able to fend these off, but the
significantly, both the bodyguards are now down and inactive. next force on the scene is more formidable. A pair of hover-
Now, the team can react. jeeps is racing up the lake from Venezuelan territory, laden
The immediate problem for the PCs is that, unknown to with human insurgents, who are tapping into the ro-ped com-
them, the secretary has orders to take Elizabeth-Jane munications network for information about the site.
Espartero hostage, and it s holding a big gun. Even if the Competent but unexceptional fighters, they have sufficient
singer s escort doesn t intervene (which would be odd), cheap, functional guns for their work. The guards may choose
Narvaez will tell them to help her. He might even throw him- to run about now. A chase is likely to ensue.
self into the line of fire if not restrained; he s extremely serious If it becomes significant, the Venezuelan radicals want to
about his sense of duty to his fans, and she is definitely a fan. haul their prisoner back to the town of Santa Apolonia, about
The good news is that the secretary is using this gun at default 30 miles away in Venezuelan territory, before any  capitalist
skill and with inadequate personal strength. The bad news is rebel vermin can react. They are old-school pre-nanosocialist
that Ms. Espartero will be thoroughly bewildered for some radical leftists, blissfully unaware that much of their financial
minutes, and she will become irritated with anyone who blows support comes from Transpacific Socialist Alliance black
her secretary away. It shouldn t be a hard fight, but it may funding. The TSA intelligence unit responsible actually knows
become confusing. nothing about this operation; they could have done something
much more useful with these particular resources, if they d had
better control of their minions. Nonetheless, their involvement
What s Going On
is indirect, being based on the general principle of assisting
Soon, whatever happens, someone may discover that local
anyone who makes trouble for anyone else they dislike.
news channels are full of announcements that Elizabeth-Jane
More likely, though, the specialists will escape or defeat the
Espartero is a prisoner. Local law enforcement is told  by
Venezuelans, which leaves them with nothing much to worry
whoever is making the claim  to refrain from interference or
about apart from the local cops. These are lightly equipped, but
she ll suffer the consequences. The announcements are cur-
they do have one well-armed SWAT team available, complete
rently unsigned . . .
with a military-grade RATS shell and some competent snipers.
The specialists are caught in the middle of things. Of
(At some point, OVERSIGHT will also find its current-home
course, the people responsible for all this failed to anticipate
hardware surrounded by a team of worried-looking cops who
their presence, so the team is also well-placed to help fix the
are trying to decide where to point their guns.) Fortunately,
problem. However, many people with guns and too-limited
Elizabeth-Jane Espartero can tell the cops to back off with some
information are now converging on their location.
conviction if she gets the chance and the heroes have kept her
The situation originates with a small  irredentist faction
safe and not annoyed her too much. The local police chief is
from the neighboring nation of Venezuela. The nationalist
accustomed to her sneering at him as an oppressive thug.
political radicals have never accepted Zulia s independence and
In the end, the bodyguards may just want to leave the coun-
therefore want to disrupt the place, hurling it into chaos so that
try soon, taking Narvaez with them (and Jordanson, if they
Venezuela can reclaim its territory. (The Venezuelan govern-
didn t manage to lose him somewhere along the way). The con-
ment will disown them most sincerely in due course, but will
cert is a wash, of course, but there s always next year.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 9
movement. The suggestion is that the design uses material
FURTHER SCENARIO SEEDS
passed on by the TSA s Acquisitions Directorate, with the objec-
Here are some additional ideas for adventures to help along
tive of building a clean-looking slush fund for supporters of the
this campaign.
Indian Nanosocialist Party while simultaneously infiltrating a
whole range of non-TSA industrial corporations with a sub-
verted AI. Certainly, some of the designers are known to have
Country-House Mystery
Nanosocialist Party connections, but they deny that they have
The team gets a commission from a client who s living in a
anything to do with the TSA. Most, in fact, proclaim them-
small, isolated community in the Rockies. They are requested to
selves enthusiastic about conventional intellectual-property
get on site as soon as possible, but the client won t say much
arrangements  after all, the laws may make them rich.
more; he wants to brief them in person, and apparently doesn t
Likewise, the relationship between the Indian Party and the
trust any Web connection. This maybe seems rather paranoid,
TSA is often complex and difficult. Whatever the truth, the
but it s his money.
team now finds that the tour is attracting interest from a num-
However, when they arrive in their chartered aircraft, the
ber of shadowy figures  and whether they re local spooks,
team discovers that the client is dead  supposedly by suicide,
TSA, or industrial spies could be rather hard to determine.
but local law enforcement doesn t appear to be the most effi-
cient that the team have ever seen. In fact, they seem too
Hearts, Minds, and Questionable Ethics
friendly with the cult-like group that has all but taken over the
isolate community. The local cops would like the team to turn
A wealthy Eloi couple hires the team to retrieve their daugh-
round and go home, but ethics aside, they had a contract with
ter, who has left home in an apparent moment of anger and not
the dead man  and professional pride or common morality
contacted them since. They know where she is, however; special-
may both come into this.
ists who they hired have traced her to the Fritz el Gato, a small
ship-based drifter community (see Under Pressure, p. 17),
which is earning a name for radically diverse memetics. She is
refusing all communications, and the parents say that they re
concerned that she s been taken in by some sort of cult. The
Rachel:  Well, you don t
team s job is to escort a specialist memeticist/deprogrammer to
the Fritz el Gato, where she ll assess the young woman, and
look like a bodyguard.
attempt a memetic recovery if possible. The group should then
return her and the daughter home. One aspect that may bemuse
Frank:  What d you
the bodyguards a little when they check the detailed briefing is
that the daughter isn t a rebellious teen  she s actually in her 30s.
expect?
Still, even adults can be brainwashed by cults, and the contract
specifically excludes kidnapping or other illegal activity.
Rachel:  Well, I don t
Getting onto the Fritz el Gato proves to be simple. Part of it
is run as a sort of hotel, providing  holidays from normalcy
know, maybe a tough guy?
for jaded visitors and helping to fund the community. Locating
the daughter is harder. She doesn t want to be found, and sev-
Frank:  This is my
eral of the factions on board the ship espouse radical tempo-
rary cosmetic transformations and games with identity. Nor
disguise.
does the memeticist prove to be as much help as they might
hope. She s as much a scientist as a practical psychologist, and
 The Bodyguard
she becomes fascinated by the drifter groups as field studies,
and is often distracted. The deprogrammer might even be
accused of exploiting the parents to fund her interests.
When the daughter is found, she claims to have spent
much of her life, well, exploiting her parents to fund her own
Machine Minders
interests, and to have left home out of a combination of bore-
The team is escorting a machine instead of an organic
dom and guilt. She denies being brainwashed, and she says
being. A small Indian-based cybernetic design company claims
that she doesn t want to return for rational reasons. The
to have found novel solutions to certain control problems in
daughter also claims to have sent her parents two or three
the design of nanomanipulation systems. It has worked with a
brief messages politely explaining as much, which  evidently
hardware design group from the same part of the world to cre-
didn t get through.
ate a specialist nanomanipulation cybershell with something
Eventually, it is revealed that, for complicated family rea-
comparable to the capabilities of an experimental bushbot, for
sons, the daughter s trust fund actually accounts for the major-
a fraction of the cost. It has to run a highly specialized and
ity of the family wealth  which may explain why her parents
rather idiosyncratic LAI, but it seems to work. Now it s on a
are so keen to keep her at home. It would also explain why
demonstration tour of the United States, and the designers
some people on the ship are so keen to keep her around. It
want it protected from industrial espionage or sabotage.
turns out that the place is riddled less with cults than with
The LAI is as eccentric as any showbiz client  and less
scammers, leeches, and amateur memeticists, some of whom
human. Furthermore, shortly into the tour, its designers are
now turn their attention on the bodyguards. It soon seems that
accused of having connections with the Indian nanosocialist
everyone s motives are suspect.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 10
TEAM MEMBERS
This section details the core Martingale Security team you favor a heavy pistol and maybe some nonlethal grenades
members. These characters can be used as described here, as or similar tools. Jack s electrolaser and Ratchet s armaments
templates for new characters, as NPC mentors for a new team, provide extra options. You may even have to remind yourself
or as rivals of another company. sometimes that you don t to have to get your
hands dirty.
Aside from that dislike of microbots, your
DIEGO HUGHES
minor foibles boil down to enthusiasm for the
role of an experienced warrior coupled to a dis-
You were born in New York in 2048,
taste for the sort of things that distract from it.
and your parents cut a few corners back
You re professional, of course, but that profes-
then. They had your genetics checked
sionalism includes a commitment to the job at
for standard flaws, but they couldn t
hand and to the interests of the people you lead.
pay to have all the details attended to.
Nonetheless, you didn t have many
problems growing up. Even now, the
Diego Hughes
worst anyone can say is that you ve
300 points
turned a bit craggy with age.
A grizzled, rather battered, 52-year-old ex-
When you came of age, you did a 15-
military man (an early version genefixed
year stint in the army (with a bit of
human), clean shaven but with unruly blond
action). Then you mustered out and
hair.
took a string of jobs in security. Along
the way, you had a bunch of low-end nanomods and biomods
ST 11 [10]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 11 [10].
installed. Unfortunately, one procedure went bad and slightly
Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 12 [2]; Will 13 [0]; Per 13
scrambled the sleep-controlling centers of your brain; you still
[0]; FP 11 [0].
have to take weekly treatments to avoid some very bad nights.
Basic Speed 6.00 [5]; Basic Move 6 [0]; Dodge 10; Parry 11
You ve done okay for yourself in general. Some people
(Brawling).
would drop down to a less active sort of career once they d
5 9 ; 170 lbs.
reached your level with your savings, but you don t like that
idea; you enjoy a bit of action, getting stuff done. The only snag
Social Background
is, well, you re old enough to want to stick with your personal
TL: 10 [0].
preferences, you hate playing politics, and you re not too keen
CF: Western (Native) [0].
on some types of operation. (Microbots get on your nerves  a
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Spanish (Native) [6].
long story that you don t like telling.) Thus, when the current
job came up  leading a small team in a small company and
Advantages
doing things your way  you jumped at it.
Ally ( Jack ; 100% of starting points; Constantly Available;
The investors who set up  Martingale Security are a shad-
Minion, +50%) [30]; Ally ( Ratchet ; 75% of starting points;
owy bunch, who mostly communicate through lawyers and
Constantly Available; Minion, +50%) [18]; Born War-Leader* 3
AIs. They admit that they don t know enough about this busi-
[15]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Contact (Old Army Buddy in the
ness to micromanage it, so they let you make your own tacti-
Pentagon; Current Affairs (Politics)-18; 12 or less; Somewhat
cal decisions and look after the team as you see fit, so long as
Reliable) [6]; Filter Lungs (Lung Cleaner Nanosymbionts) [5];
you get the job done. They ve also promised you that they ll
Fit [5]; Immunity to Known Bacteria (Bacteriophage
never ask you to act, for example, against the interests of the
Nanosymbionts) [5]; Immunity to Known Viruses (Virus
United States. (You still take your service oath seriously.) It s a
Hunter Nanosymbionts) [5]; Longevity (Nanosymbiont Treat-
fair deal. Things aren t going bad for you these days.
ments) [2]; Regeneration (DNA Repair Nanosymbionts; Slow;
During your army career, you had a good suite of standard
Radiation Only, -60%) [4]; Reputation +2 (A good security spe-
modifications installed  nothing very advanced, but enough to
cialist, in the business; 10 or less) [1]; Resistant to Ingested Poi-
see you through and to work well with your military experi-
sons +8 (Liver Upgrade) [5]; Resistant to Nanomachines +8
ence and training. You re protected against many kinds of
(Guardian Nanosymbionts) [2]; Status 1 [0] ; Wealthy [20].
harm, and you know how to handle quite a range of sidearms
Perks: Alcohol Tolerance (Liver Upgrade). [1]
and gear. You ve also done a fair few command courses, and
the instructors always said that you were a natural.
Disadvantages
Code of Honor (Professional Bodyguard) [-5]; Extra Sleep 2
Playing Diego
(Mitigator, Weekly Treatment, nanodrug therapy, -65%) [-1];
You re the steady team leader whose focus is his job, which Insomniac (Mild; Mitigator, Weekly Treatment, nanodrug ther-
is to hold back, often in cover, and coordinate the team. While apy, -65%) [-3]; Sense of Duty (His team) [-5]; Unattractive [-4].
you like action, you don t forget that they depend on you. Quirks: Can t hide his enthusiasm in moments of high
Unfortunately, on many assignments, you can t carry as much action; Dislikes microbots; Refuses to play politics; Sincerely
weaponry as you might like  but management is supposed to patriotic  wouldn t touch a job that significantly threatened
assess mission risks in advance. In case you do have to step in, U.S. interests. [-4]
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 11
Jack, patch the feed from Paz through to my screens, will you? OK,
the main entrance looks clear. Charlie, start moving forward, and Paz,
you can tell the client to stop signing autographs now . . .
 Diego Hughes
can absorb a bit of damage, especially when it s wearing
Skills
armor.) He s a sociable sort, though he keeps his secrets, and
Area Knowledge (Central America) (E) IQ [1]-13;
his enthusiasm is a plus.
Armoury/TL10 (Small Arms) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Battlesuit/TL10
Paul Chung and Paz Ramirez, however, at least seem to know
(A) DX-1 [1]-11; Beam Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-13;
what they re doing. Paul is ex-Alberta police, but he wants to
Brawling (E) DX+2 [4]-14; Camouflage (E) IQ [1]-13; Cartog-
make good money enough that he dropped out of that force and
raphy/TL10 (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Driving/TL10 (Automobile) (A) DX
took up freelancing. He s quite a straight arrow and a classic
[2]-12; Guns/TL10 (Gyroc) (E) DX [1]-12; Guns/TL10 (Pistol)
strong silent type, but he s good at fading into the scenery and
(E) DX+1 [1]-13! ; Guns/TL10 (Rifle) (E) DX+2 [4]-14;
providing backup for the others. Paz shares more of your back-
Guns/TL10 (Shotgun) (E) DX [0]-12! ; Guns/TL10 (Subma-
ground  she did a stint in the U.S. Army, though not a long one,
chine Gun) (E) DX [0]-12! ; History (21st Century Military) (H)
and she has the sort of honest enthusiasm for the job that you
IQ [4]-13; Housekeeping (E) IQ [1]-13; Intelligence Analy-
recognize and can hardly criticize. Once or twice, you ve found
sis/TL10 (H) IQ+1 [1]-14ż; Leadership (A) IQ+3 [2]-16ż; Navi-
yourself feeling downright paternal towards her. Other times,
gation/TL10 (Land) (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Observation (A) Per+2
you ve shared a drink and swapped some stories (and the lady
[8]-15; Piloting/TL10 (Vertol) (A) DX [2]-12; Savoir-Faire (Mil-
likes to hit the bars, even if she always complains about her head
itary) (E) IQ+3 [1]-16ż; Savoir-Faire (Police) (E) IQ [1]-13; Sol-
in the morning). Then again, it s hard to entirely shake the feel-
dier/TL10 (A) IQ [2]-13; Strategy (Land) (H) IQ+1 [1]-14ż;
ing that she s a rich kid playing a game; she s had a bunch of bio-
Streetwise (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Survival (Desert) (A) Per-1 [1]-12;
mods done to her on her own money. Still, you tell her to look
Survival (Jungle) (A) Per-1 [1]-12; Survival (Mountain) (A)
after the client, and she steps up and does the job.
Per-1 [1]-12; Survival (Plains) (A) Per-1 [1]-12; Tactics (H) IQ+1
OVERSIGHT is another team member who comes with the
[1]-14ż; Throwing (A) DX-1 [1]-11.
job, whether you like it or not, but in this case you don t mind so
much. It s a fully sapient AI, with enough parallel-processing
Equipment
capability that it can do three things at once, which is handy
Hughes is always equipped appropriately for the mission
when it s dealing with admin for the company while doing
(see pp. 6-7), and takes professional care of his gear. He usually
research for you and watching the 10 miniature flying cyber-
wears  Jack over a light full-body protective suit, and always
shells that give you all top cover. It s a bit nosy and weirdly proud
has a  sunglasses visor with HUD. He s also old-fashioned
of being competent at the thing it was built to do, but it is good
enough to carry a sap in his pocket when possible, just in case
at its job. You have to remember, too, that it has restraints on its
that proves the best option.
behavior to keep the authorities happy  it always has to ask
* Talent gives bonus to Intelligence Analysis, Leadership,
your permission before it starts anything violent.
Savoir-Faire (Military), Strategy, and Tactics, and a reaction
bonus from professional soldiers.
Free from Wealth.
DIEGO S AIS
! Default from Guns (Rifle).
Of course, military command means control of your infor-
ż Includes bonus from Born War-Leader Talent.
mation resources. Your main personal digital assistant is  Jack,
a low-sapient AI installed in your  police vest body armor. Jack
has control of a whole bunch of sensors and can overlay imagery
Diego s Views of the Team
on your visor. It also can operate a shoulder weapons mount,
Your team members are good, if not always quite as profes-
which usually has an electrolaser fitted when legally possible.
sional as you d like. In particular, Charlie Mallinson was,
(It s modified to look a bit like a camera, just to avoid worrying
frankly, foisted on you by the investors; he s no kind of profes-
nervous folk.) You communicate with Jack through a throat
sional. Turns out he was a rich civilian who got himself
mike. It s good at reading and watching people, and it s designed
scanned as a ghost when he found he was getting old. Then he
to hold aiming locks on up to three hostiles simultaneously. Its
got bored and decided to get a job where he could play at body-
main job is managing communications and looking after things
guards. He was also a pal of some of the investors from way
like your tactical and facial-recognition software.
back, so they signed him up and dropped him on you. Great.
You also have the control codes for a backup cybershell that
Still, being software running on a robot body, he is, well, as
you can call on if things turn tricky.  Ratchet is another low-
near to expendable as you can allow a team member to be, and
sapient system, installed in a securibot  a spider-shaped cyber-
he doesn t seem to mind being treated that way. You use him as
shell with a weapons mount of its own. It s not especially bright
the visible point man, who goes out in front of the group and,
or adaptable, and its AI is a cheap thing that can t run skill sets.
in the worst case, draws fire. (His body isn t that tough, but it
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 12
Its biggest drawback is that it s coded to avoid lethal Basic Speed 5.25 [0]; Basic Move 7 [0] ; Basic Move N/A;
force, which is the only way you could get a low-sapient com- Dodge N/A; Parry N/A.
bat shell approved for general use in civilian environments.
Despite that, Ratchet is kind of gung-ho. Its job is to come in Social Background
shooting (with sublethal weaponry) in emergencies.
TL: 10 [0].
These two AIs have minimal virtual avatars  just simple icons
CF: Western (Native) [0].
 floating in virtual space  but they rarely need to use them.
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Spanish (Accented) [4].
Advantages
Jack
LAI-6 [82]; Securibot [141].
300 points
Perks: Accessory (IFF Transponder). [1]
ST 6 [0] ; DX 10 [0]; IQ 9 [0]*; HT 12 [0] .
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 6 [0]; Will 9 [0]; Per 13 [10] ; FP N/A.
Disadvantages
Basic Speed 5.50 [0]; Basic Move N/A; Dodge N/A; Parry N/A.
Duty (To owning company; 15 or less) [-15]; Impulsiveness
(15) [-5]; Pacifism (Cannot Kill) [-15].
Social Background
TL: 10 [0].
Skills
CF: Western (Native) [0].
Acrobatics (H) DX [4]-10; Beam Weapons/TL10 (Rifle) (E)
Languages: English (Native) [0].
DX+3 [8]-13; Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3 [0]-12*;
Electronics Operation (Communications) (A) IQ [2]-9; Stealth
Advantages
(A) DX+1 [4]-11; Tactics (H) IQ-1 [2]-8; Wrestling (A) DX+3
LAI-6 [82]; Modular Abilities 3 (Computer Brain: 6, 2, 2)
[12]-13.
(Limited Integration, -20%; Skills and Languages Only, -10%)
[41]; Police Vest [142].
Weaponry
Ratchet usually is fitted with an electrolaser rifle if using the
Disadvantages
weapons listed in Changing Times, or an electrolaser carbine
Duty (To wearer; 15 or less) [-15].
if using GURPS Ultra-Tech.
Quirks: Continually trying to help its wearer with his
* From LAI-6 template.
romantic life. [-1]
From Securibot template (see
Changing Times, p. 58).
Skills
Beam Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+2
[4]-12; Body Language (Human) (A) Per+1
PAUL CHUNG
[4]-14; Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3
You were born in 2071, in British
[0]-12*; Electronics Operation (Communi-
Columbia, into a Chinese-Canadian fam-
cations) (A) IQ+3 [12]-12; Electronics Oper-
ily who weren t especially well off by local
ation (Surveillance) (A) IQ+3 [11]-12! ;
standards. It didn t help your circum-
Guns/TL10 (Gyroc) (E) DX+2 [4]-12;
stances when your mother went down
Guns/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+2 [4]-12; Obser-
with skin cancer a few years back. She
vation (A) Per [2]-13.
recovered, but it was rough on her, and it
hit the family finances. It also made you
Weaponry
very aware of those sorts of dangers
Jack usually mounts an electrolaser pis-
(which is why you always wear a hat out-
tol. In dangerous situations, this might be
doors, and don t forget stuff like sun-
replaced by a micro-missile or mini-missile
screen). Your parents brought you up to
pod if using the weapons listed in Changing
be law-abiding, but you also decided that
Times, or a holdout pistol or a system akin to
you wanted to make something more of
an underbarrel gyroc if using GURPS Ultra-Tech. It lacks the
yourself. Fortunately, you ve always been tolerably bright and
strength to use some other weapons to best effect, although it
well-built, and you keep yourself in good condition, so you
could still be fitted with some types of pistols if its controller
had a good start.
decided that firepower is more important than accuracy.
Your talents are kind of practical, certainly, and your first
real job was with the Alberta and British Columbia national
* From LAI-6 template.
police. After a couple of years, they offered you a place with the
From Police Vest template (see Shell-Tech, p. 6).
border security unit. It was higher risk, but the deal included a
! Defaults from Electronics Operation (Communications).
bunch of seriously useful nanomods and biomods, including a
full-on permanent brain booster suite, so you took it. After a
Ratchet
few years more, though, you decided that the job wasn t going
225 points anywhere fast enough or paying enough; your horizons had
broadened. Therefore, you resigned the force on good terms,
ST 8 [0] ; DX 10 [0]; IQ 9 [0]*; HT 11 [0] .
and you looked for something else.
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 6 [0] ; Will 9 [0]; Per 9 [0]; FP N/A.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 13
With your experience, you found a job with Martingale
Advantages
Security, a new outfit just setting up in the United States.
Ally (Wearable Tactical System; 25% of starting points;
Bodyguarding doesn t pay terribly well, but they were offering
Constantly Available; Minion, +0%) [4]; Attractive [4];
more than your old job. You figure that you should be able to
Comfortable [10]; Enhanced Time Sense (Brain Booster
strike out on your own in a couple of years, or maybe pick up
Nanosymbionts) [45]; Filter Lungs (Lung Cleaner
a good corporate post. Martingale has decent resources, and
Nanosymbionts) [5]; Resistant to Disease +3 (Immune
you are getting to see the world this way.
Machine Nanosymbionts) [3]; Resistant to Nanomachines +8
You have decent police/security training, including experi-
(Guardian Nanosymbionts) [2].
ence in the wilds of Canada. You spend a lot of time on the vir-
Perks: Honest Face. [1]
tual range, keeping your handgun skills up to scratch. Along
with the brain booster, which takes your reaction times right
Disadvantages
up, you ve had treatments that protect you against all sorts of
Honesty (15) [-5]; Odious Personal Habit (Excessively taci-
natural and synthetic infections and attacks. Your physical
turn and rather dour) [-5]; Sense of Duty (To the team) [-5].
abilities are innate, although you make sure that you keep up
Quirks: Congenial; Determined to get rich by honest means;
your training.
Nervous about strong sunlight  always wears a hat, shades,
and sunscreen; Secretly a bit infatuated with Paz Ramirez;
Somewhat suspicious of AIs running in implants. [-5]
Playing Paul
People sometimes think that you re a bit taciturn  one or
Skills
two appraisals even said  surly  but you prefer to call it
Acrobatics (H) DX-1 [2]-11; Acting (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Area
focused. Your job in the team is to hang back and provide the
Knowledge (Alberta & British Columbia) (E) IQ [1]-12; Beam
necessary firepower if things ever turn heavy. Charlie
Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+3 [7]-15*; Criminology/TL10
Mallinson stands in front, being visible and obviously a cyber-
(A) IQ+1 [4]-13; Fast-Draw/TL10 (Ammo) (E) DX+1 [1]-13 ;
shell, and perhaps draws fire. Paz Ramirez sticks by the client,
Fast-Draw (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [1]-13 ; First Aid/TL10 (Human)
protecting him from minor hassles and getting him clear or
(E) IQ+1 [2]-13; Guns/TL10 (Gyroc) (E) DX+4 [12]-16;
down as appropriate. Your job is to be less visible than either
Guns/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+4 [11]-16! ; Guns/TL10
of them, but to remain in sight, provide back-up, and deal with
(Submachine Gun) (E) DX+2 [0]-14*; Hiking (A) HT-1 [1]-11;
anything that needs serious force. You prefer to carry a couple
Karate (H) DX [4]-12; Law (Alberta and British Columbia
of decent handguns, loaded for a variety of targets and ranges.
Police) (H) IQ [4]-12; Naturalist (Earth) (H) IQ-2 [1]-10;
Unfortunately, you can t always get legal clearance for more
Navigation/TL10 (Land) (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Savoir-Faire (Police)
sophisticated ammunition or heavier sidearms. You rarely
(E) IQ [1]-12; Search (A) Per-1 [1]-11; Shadowing (A) IQ+2
have to worry about body armor or combat cybershells.
[8]-14; Stealth (A) DX+1 [4]-13; Streetwise (A) IQ-1 [1]-11;
Anyway, the point of the exercise is getting the client away safe,
Survival (Woodlands) (A) Per-1 [1]-11.
not fighting a war, and you focus on that.
Equipment
Chung usually wears decent but concealable body armor.
He favors heavy handgun-sized sidearms.
Clearing up this sort of mess
* Defaults from Guns (Pistol).
is what we get paid for.
Includes +1 from Enhanced Time Sense.
! Defaults from Guns (Gyroc).
 Paul Chung
Paul s Views of the Team
You believe in standing by your teammates as a group.
Fortunately, this lot isn t too bad, but some of them are more
Paul Chung
professional than other members.
300 points
Diego Hughes is in charge and signs off your paychecks. He s
A well-built mixed-race genefixed human with a somewhat a grizzled, competent old army type, with a lived-in sort of face
athletic figure; age 29.  his parents can t have paid for his genes to be polished.
He s a convincing enough team leader, though.
ST 14 [40]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 12 [20].
Paz Ramirez is also ex-army. She has the job of providing the
Damage 1d/2d; BL 39 lbs.; HP 14 [0]; Will 15 [15]; Per 12 [0];
client with close cover. She really seems to enjoy the work, to a
FP 12 [0].
degree that grated on you a bit at first but that you ve now got
Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 7 [5]; Dodge 10; Parry 10
used to. Actually, to tell the truth, you find her kind of cute. It
(Karate).
doesn t hurt that she s a blonde and her parents evidently got her
6 4 ; 190 lbs.
one of those high-end genetic fix-ups that makes her a bit of a
looker, but you like her as a person; she really enjoys life.
Social Background
Nevertheless, it d be unprofessional and dangerous to get dis-
TL: 10 [0].
tracted by those sorts of feelings in combat. You re not sure how
CF: Western (Native) [0]; Chinese [1].
she feels about you, so you keep your mind on the job and don t
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Cantonese (Native) [6];
embarrass her by saying anything. Maybe some day . . .
French (Accented) [4]; Spanish (Native) [6].
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 14
Charlie Mallinson leaves you a bit less impressed. He s okay
PAZ RAMIREZ
as a person, but he s no professional. It seems that he was some
You come from a rather ordinary background  born and
kind of office drone who got himself uploaded to software
raised in New Mexico  but you decided a while back that you
(which probably means that he was getting on a bit  only
were going to see the world and see some action. You also
weird transhumanist types go in for voluntary uploading when
enjoy a good party, to an extent that makes some boring peo-
they re young). Since he s now backed up, he decided that he
ple turn disapproving. (You don t let how you feel the next
could enjoy himself a bit more. Not that he should treat serious
morning stop you either, though you ought to see if there s a
security work as a hobby, of course . . . Well, fortunately, he s
treatment for that some day.)
not too stupid about it, and his attitude means that he doesn t
One of your early choices was to join the army and get your-
mind acting as point man. He tries, and he s even given you
self some front-line action training. You even managed to
some good investment advice.
Lastly, OVERSIGHT is Martingale s office AI  fully sapi- swing yourself a permanent brain booster nanomod, some
anti-radiation treatments, and other stuff. You ve also splashed
ent, and quite efficient, right up to doing three things at once.
out on getting some other modifications, which is why you
It has control of a bunch of miniature flying cybershells that
have good coordination as well as these neat glittery nictitating
give you a lot of eyes in the sky, which is useful. It s a bit
weird, of course  AIs aren t human, even the advanced mod- membranes on your eyes.
Once in, you discovered that the army mostly uses cyber-
els like OVERSIGHT, and it acts a bit nosy and a bit pleased
shells for the interesting stuff these days. Without a war on,
with itself  but you can live with it.
you mustered out after a few years, and went looking for some-
thing more reliably stimulating. Private security work seemed
PAUL CHUNG S AI like a good application of your talents. You eventually hooked
a job with Martingale Security  a new one-team outfit that
Some people think that you don t trust AIs, but that s not true;
uses real human staff because some people find armed cyber-
you just get a bit twitchy about implanted computers. The idea
shells too intimidating. Your job is to keep clients safe  and
of someone putting an AI inside their own head strikes you as
you can look good while you re doing that, if necessary.
creepy, though you know all the urban legends are rubbish.
You were born with Alpha Upgrade genetics, and your invest-
(Well, most of them. Maybe not all.) You do have an AI of your
ments and Army treatments have built on that. You re resistant
own, though, courtesy of your employers  a basic nonsapient
or immune to most diseases, nanomachine attacks, and pollu-
thing, installed in a miniature computer on your belt. It feeds
tants. You can take more radiation than an unmodified human.
you information through an earpiece and a HUD in your
Your eyes are visibly enhanced, your heart will keep going when
armored shades, and you operate it mostly through a throat
many would give up, and you don t have body odor problems.
mike. It s a handy information management tool, but its main
Moreover, you have broad military and security training.
job is running stuff like HUD-targeting and facial-recognition
software. Its virtual avatar is a simplified humanoid mannequin.
Playing Paz
Wearable Tactical System You re someone who
believes in living life 
75 points
real life, not some virtual
ST 0 [0]*; DX 10 [0]; IQ 11 [20]; HT 12 [0]*.
game  to the full, and
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 1 [0]*; Will 10 [-5]; Per 10 [-5]; FP N/A.
looking good while
Basic Speed 5.50 [0]; Basic Move N/A; Dodge N/A; Parry N/A.
you re at it. You don t let
that desire interfere with
Social Background
doing your job, and you
TL: 10 [0].
like to do it properly.
CF: Western (Native) [0].
Your function in this
Languages: English (Native) [0].
team is to remain close
to the client. Most peo-
Advantages
ple, if they look around
Modular Abilities 3 (Computer Brain: 4, 2, 2) (Limited Inte-
the area, spot that bla-
gration, -20%; Skills and Languages Only, -10%) [35]; NAI-6 [69].
tant cyberdoll Charlie
and think of him as  the
Disadvantages
bodyguard ; you are a little less conspicuous. Some people still
Duty (To the company; 15 or less) [-15]; Wearable Virtual
tag you as the key figure, thanks to the well-cut dark suit and
Interface [-42].
the shades. That s fine, because you should be able to hold off
serious problems for long enough for Paul to drop them. Of
Skills
course, that s a worst case: Usually, you just deck the odd minor
Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3 [0]-14 ; Current
trouble-maker or Charlie slows things down while you get the
Affairs/TL10 (Headline News) (E) IQ [1]-11; Electronics
client into cover. While you enjoy action, you are a profes-
Operation/TL10 (Communications) (A) IQ+3 [12]-14; Research
sional, and you re paid to keep the client alive.
(A) IQ+1 [4]-12; Soldier/TL10 (A) IQ-1 [1]-10.
Incidentally, your parents were paid-up members of the
Sons and Daughters of the King (the Elder), also known as
* From Wearable Virtual Interface template.
the Reformed Presleyan Heresy or the Elder Elvis Schism.
From NAI-6 template.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 15
You aren t sure how you feel about that, but it s as good an (Submachine Gun) (E) DX [0]-14ż; Judo (H) DX [4]-14;
answer as anything else to that  Religion? question on forms, Karate (H) DX [4]-14; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ+1 [2]-12;
and you don t let outsiders knock your family s faith. Scuba/TL10 (A) IQ-1 [1]-10; Shortsword (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Sol-
dier/TL10 (A) IQ+2 [8]-13; Swimming (E) HT [1]-13; Vacc
Suit/TL10 (A) DX-1 [1]-13.
Paz Ramirez
300 points
Equipment
A slim, 26-year-old Alpha Upgrade woman, with short
Paz s job primarily involves short-range combat, if she has
blonde hair, an easy smile, and a taste for snappy suits and
to fight. She s usually equipped accordingly, within the con-
dark shades even when off duty. The sunglasses often serve to
straints of budget and local law. She favors short-ranged, effec-
hide her obviously modified, reflective eyes.
tive sidearms and hand-to-hand equipment. Her body armor is
usually styled and well-fitted.
ST 10 [0]; DX 14 [60]*; IQ 11 [20]; HT 13 [20]*.
Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 10 [-5]; Per 13 [10];
* Improved from Alpha Upgrade template.
FP 14 [3].
Free from Wealth.
Basic Speed 7.00 [5]; Basic Move 7 [0]; Dodge 11; Parry 11
! Includes +1 from Enhanced Time Sense.
(Karate).
ż Default from Guns (Pistol).
5 6 ; 120 lbs.
Paz s Views of the Team
Social Background
The team leader for this outfit is Diego Hughes, who, like you,
TL: 10 [0].
is ex-army. He s okay, in a career-sergeant sort of way. He knows
CF: Western (Native) [0].
his business, and he quite enjoys it, even if he tries to hide it.
Languages: Spanish (Native) [0]; English (Native) [6].
Paul Chung, who joined around the same time as you out of
the Alberta/BC cops, seems effective, though he s a bit surly
Advantages
and subdued. You ve had the feeling, once or twice when you
Acute Vision 1 (Retinal Enhancement) [2]; Ally (Wearable
did manage to drag him out to a bar, that he might be thinking
Tactical System; 25% of starting points; Constantly Available;
of making a pass. Even so, he s never come that far out of his
Minion, +0%) [4]; Alpha Upgrade [41]; Charisma 1 [5];
shell  which might be a pity or might be better for the team s
Enhanced Time Sense (Brain Booster Nanosymbiont) [45];
effectiveness. Either way, it s his choice.
Filter Lungs (Lung Cleaner Nanosymbionts) [5]; Hard to Kill 1
You're less sure about Charlie Mallinson, who acts as point
(Boosted Heart Biomod) [2]; Immune to Known Bacteria
man, the bodyguard noticed by everyone looking for one -- but
(Bacteriophage Nanosymbionts) [5]; Immune to Known
he draws attention away from you and Paul. Charlie is a digi-
Viruses (Virus Hunter Nanosymbionts) [5]; Nictitating
tal ghost, probably some kind of aging office drone who got
Membrane 1 (Fisheyes Biomod) [1]; Night Vision 5 (Fisheyes
himself uploaded on the health plan. He s now gone into secu-
Biomod) [5]; Regeneration (DNA Repair Nanosymbionts;
rity work, because he knows he s safely backed up if someone
Slow; Radiation Only, -60%) [4]; Resistant to Nanomachines
does blow him away. You can t blame a man for wanting to
+8 (Guardian Nanosymbionts) [2]; Status 1 [0] ; Wealthy [20].
have fun, but he d better not get you killed by not being profes-
Perks: Sanitized Metabolism (Nanosymbiont treatments). [1]
sional enough. He seems okay in person, though you get the
feeling he may be a bit of a lech sometimes.
Disadvantages
OVERSIGHT is digital, too, but that s  cause he was made
Compulsive Carousing (12) [-5]; Unnatural Feature 1
that way. It s a fully sapient AI who the company bought to run
(Reflective Eyes, from Fisheyes Biomod) [-1].
this outfit when the meatbags have other things on their
Quirks: Claims to be a follower of Elvis (the Elder), mostly to
minds. It also keeps an eye on you all through a bunch of fly-
confuse people; Horrible Hangovers; Low-key thrill-seeker. [-3]
ing cameras. It s actually got quite a worthwhile personality,
but it insists that it doesn t mind being property, whatever
Skills
those Euro-style sapient rights crazies may say. In fact, it seems
Acrobatics (H) DX-2 [1]-12; Battlesuit/TL10 (A) DX-1
downright smug and pleased with itself sometimes. Oh well 
[1]-13; Beam Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-14; Current
live and let run-on-a-mainframe, you guess.
Affairs/TL10 (Popular Culture) (E) IQ [1]-11; Current
Affairs/TL10 (Sports) (E) IQ [1]-11; Electronics Opera-
tion/TL10 (Communications) (A) IQ-1 [1]-10; Electronics
PAZ RAMIREZ S AI
Operation/TL10 (Surveillance) (A) IQ-1 [1]-10; Expert Skill
Martingale has issued you a basic non-sapient tactical AI
(Military Science) (H) IQ-1 [2]-10; Explosives/TL10 (Demoli-
 nothing special but not likely to distract you either. It runs
tion) (A) IQ [2]-11; Fast-Draw (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [1]-15! ; Fast-
on a computer that you wear on your belt. You control it
Draw (Sword) (E) DX+1 [1]-15! ; First Aid/TL10 (Human) (E)
through a throat mike, and it feeds you output through an
IQ [1]-11; Gunner/TL10 (Cannon) (E) DX [1]-14; Gun-
earpiece and a display system in your shades. It s a handy
ner/TL10 (Machine Gun) (E) DX [1]-14; Gunner/TL10 (Rock-
information management tool, but its main job is running
ets) (E) DX [1]-14; Guns/TL10 (Gyroc) (E) DX-2 [0]-12ż;
stuff like HUD-targeting and facial-recognition software.
Guns/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+2 [4]-16; Guns/TL10 (Rifle) (E)
You ve set its virtual avatar as a cartoon of a grunt in fatigues.
DX [0]-14ż; Guns/TL10 (Shotgun) (E) DX [0]-14ż; Guns/TL10
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 16
Gladys, Mother of the King, that was more fun than a firefight ought
to be. C mon, everyone, we all deserve a drink.
 Paz Ramirez
tasks that make them feel fulfilled. You, however, know
Wearable Tactical System
exactly what sort of task you were designed and coded to per-
75 points
form, and you find fulfillment in performing it. Laws
ST 0 [0]*; DX 10 [0]; IQ 11 [20]; HT 12 [0]*.
designed to protect the emotional states of organic beings are
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 1 [0]*; Will 10 [-5]; Per 10 [-5];
essentially irrelevant to you.
FP N/A.
That s not to say that you re emotionless. On the contrary, you
Basic Speed 5.50 [0]; Basic Move N/A; Dodge N/A; Parry N/A.
need emotions to motivate you to do your job as well as possible
 and you re happy to say that you do it well! Your position in the
Social Background
team, and the respect of your co-workers, is extremely important
TL: 10 [0].
to you. You wouldn t respond well to those foolish enough
CF: Western (Native) [0].
to insult you. You may not have much use for monetary
Languages: English (Native) [0].
wealth as such, but you are annoyed if you are given inade-
quate resources for a task, and pointless orders (as opposed
Advantages
to constructive instructions) cause you cognitive dissonance.
Modular Abilities 3 (Computer Brain: 4, 2, 2) (Limited You have also been designed with a high level of interest in the
Integration, -20%; Skills and Languages Only, -10%) [35]; world around you. Other individuals should understand that
NAI-6 [69]. you need as much information as possible to do your job prop-
erly. You would, naturally, only use the data as intended, as you
Disadvantages are completely trustworthy and inherently honest.
Duty (To the company; 15 or less) [-15]; Wearable Virtual As an AI, you don t sleep and you have perfect recall, faster-
Interface [-42]. than-human situational awareness, full access to your hard-
ware s mathematical capabilities, and the ability to perform
Skills advanced modeling of specified tasks, improving your proba-
bility of success. In addition, you have enhanced multi-tasking
Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3 [0]-14 ; Current
capability. So long as the hardware on which you re installed
Affairs/TL10 (Headline News) (E) IQ [1]-11; Electronics
has the capacity, you can run up to three effectively complete
Operation/TL10 (Communications) (A) IQ+3 [12]-14; Research
instances of your core personality systems simultaneously, all
(A) IQ+1 [4]-12; Soldier/TL10 (A) IQ-1 [1]-10.
with full read/update access to your memories and skills. (This
* From Wearable Virtual Interface template.
doesn t count as illegal  xoxing because you always run all
From NAI-6 template.
three on the same system; there aren t three copies of you,
there s just one, doing three things at once.) Of course, you may
be limited by access to external hardware, but you can make
OVERSIGHT
good use of what s available.
You are a relatively conventionally designed Volumex-
The hardware on which you run is usually a static
Atlanta high-self-awareness business/administrative artificial
 macroframe ; Martingale has a long-term lease on a system
intelligence, instantiated in 2098. You were subsequently sold
convenient for its home base. On many assignments, you rent
to a small, newly established company named Martingale
space on a similar machine nearer to the scene of operations.
Security to perform administrative tasks and to assist the com-
Your buzzbots are more mobile, of course, and can shoot on
pany s employees in field operations. Interestingly, this means
your command, but they are actually of rather limited use as
that you sometimes provide assistance with security opera-
combatants. Their primary function is collecting data and pro-
tions, and you have extended your training to encompass this.
viding continual visual feeds to you and the rest of the team.
Among other things, you have control of the company s 10
They are well-equipped for this, with low-light vision and low-
armed  buzzbots (flying cameras), although their nonsapient
power telescopic cameras.
AIs can generally manage quite well by themselves. You are
aware that the team s other members know more about secu-
Playing OVERSIGHT
rity work than you, but you endeavor to be helpful.
Your job isn t to be physically present when the team is active;
You also understand that high-self-awareness AIs in other
it s to provide support and assistance of whatever kind is useful,
jurisdictions have legal freedom and sometimes the same cit-
including data extraction and analysis. In fact, you will never ini-
izenship status as human beings. However, you re not sure
tiate physical violence without direct instructions from a duly
why this is so important to anyone. Humans and such
authorized human. Humans are touchy about  combat AIs, so
organic beings suffer from uncertainties about their place in
you ve been programmed to err on the side of caution.
the world. They sometimes spend their lives trying to find
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 17
Because you are fully sapient, you have a fully developed (A) Per+1 [4]-13; Research/TL10 (A) IQ [2]-13; Shadowing (A)
personality, even beyond what was programmed into you. You IQ-1 [1]-12; Sociology (H) IQ-1 [1]-12ż; Tactics (H) IQ-2 [1]-11.
are, when all is said and done, a young, enthusiastic intelli-
* From Macroframe template.
gence. See the quirks listed on the character description, and
From SAI-8 template.
play them to the full.
! Default from Electronics Operation (Communications).
ż Includes +1 from Memetics Talent (in SAI-8 template).
OVERSIGHT
300 points
OVERSIGHT s Views of the Team
An AI running on a static macroframe; OVERSIGHT s digi-
Diego Hughes is the team s official leader, in charge of tac-
tal avatar is a floating crystal studded with eyes.
tics. His personal history (a career with the U.S. Army and an
additional period in private security work) shows him to be
ST 0 [0]*; DX 10 [0]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 12 [0]*.
quite skilled in such matters. Obviously, you defer to him. He
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 30 [0]*; Will 12 [-5]; Per 12 [-5];
appears to be motivated by pride in a job well done  some-
FP N/A.
thing that you can understand.
Basic Speed 5.50 [0]; Basic Move N/A; Dodge N/A; Parry N/A.
Charles  Charlie Mallinson acts as the team s most visible
 front man. He is a human who has had his brain destruc-
Social Background
tively scanned to achieve the safer state of software, but he still
TL: 10 [0].
evidently prefers to operate in a humanoid body  a rather vul-
CF: Western (Native) [0]; Chinese [1].
nerable  cyberdoll  much of the time. (He seems to regard
Languages: English (Native) [0]; French (Native) [6];
virtual reality as strictly for recreational purposes.) The com-
German (Broken) [2]; Mandarin (Native) [6]; Spanish
pany s investors arranged for him to obtain this job, apparently
(Native) [6].
as some sort of favor. You d like to know more, but most of his
personal data is under a legal seal. Of course, you can t try to
Advantages
bypass that. He lacks experience in this work, but at least he,
Allies (10 remote-controlled Combat Buzzbots; 25% of
like you, is willing to learn.
starting points; Constantly Available; Minion, +0%) [24]; Com-
Paul Chung is a former police officer from Alberta-British
partmentalized Mind 2 [100]; Modular Abilities 3 (Computer
Columbia. Evidently, he is competent in police tactics and
Brain: 6, 4, 4) (Limited Integration, -20%; Skills and Languages
weapon handling. He doesn t give much away about himself in
Only, -10%) [52]; SAI-8 [173].
conversation, but as you have access to his personal records,
which have few sealed areas, this doesn t worry you much.
Disadvantages
Paz Ramirez is another former U.S. Army soldier, although
Dead Broke [-25]; Duty (To the company; 12 or less) [-10];
her career was shorter than that of Hughes. Her task is to pro-
Macroframe [-104]; Social Stigma (Valuable Property) [-10].
vide close protection for the client, and she is admirably enthu-
Quirks: Absolutely unworried by the idea of being property;
siastic when on duty. Off duty, when awake, she can be found
Habit (Opens all communication with the words  This is
in some bar or other place of entertainment. You have often
OVERSIGHT ); Nosy; Proud; Won t initiate physical violence
had to arrange travel home for her. Nonetheless, you find her
without a direct order from a human. [-5]
quite likable.
Skills
Accounting (H) IQ-2 [1]-11; Administration (A) IQ [2]-13;
OVERSIGHT S BUZZBOTS
Area Knowledge (Earth) (E) IQ [1]-13; Beam Weapons/TL10
The buzzbots function as the mobile extensions of your
(Pistol) (E) DX [1]-10; Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3
awareness and as independent agents. Their AIs are in no way
[0]-16 ; Electronics Operation/TL10 (Communications) (A)
sapient, but they can learn and even make some decisions for
IQ+4 [16]-17; Electronics Operation/TL10 (Electronic Warfare)
themselves, within well-defined parameters. Each mounts a
(A) IQ [0]-13! ; Electronics Operation/TL10 (Security) (A) IQ
light electrolaser weapon, and they have been trained as com-
[0]-13! ; Electronics Operation/TL10 (Sensors) (A) IQ [0]-13! ;
petent shots. Their virtual avatars are simple numbered icons,
Electronics Operation/TL10 (Surveillance) (A) IQ [0]-13! ; Expert
but they don t have to use them much.
Skill (Memetics) (H) IQ-1 [1]-12ż; Expert Skill (Military Science)
You have no other assistant AI resources. You don t really
(H) IQ-2 [1]-11; Law (International) (H) IQ-1 [2]-12; Observation
need any, after all.
This is OVERSIGHT. The lawyers have now acquired that facial image database
from the local police, and I have four buzzbots scanning the audience for possible
matches. I am also downloading a copy of the database to your own personal
systems, and continuing to monitor local activist discussion spaces for threats.
 OVERSIGHT
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 18
That was when you discovered just how small-c conserva-
Buzzbot
tive your ever-loving family really was, and how much one or
75 points
two of them had been looking forward to getting their hands
ST 3 [0]*; DX 10 [0]; IQ 8 [0] ; HT 11 [0]*.
on your money. They pretty much all cut themselves off from
Damage N/A; BL N/A; HP 3 [0]; Will 8 [0]; Per 8 [0]; FP N/A.
you. Some of them even set the dear old family lawyers onto
Basic Speed 5.25 [0]; Basic Move N/A; Air Move 10 [0]*; Dodge
you. The sharks couldn t touch your personal wealth, but they
N/A; Parry N/A.
could sure as hell make trouble around
some of the trust funds and holdings.
Social Background
Well, to hell with them calling you a
TL: 10 [0].
 computer zombie monster. You still
CF: Western (Native) [0].
know who you are, and this new life is
Languages: English (Native) [0].
a lot more fun than being a fading, geri-
atric businessman. You told some of
Advantages
your family what you thought of them,
Modular Abilities 3 (Computer Brain: 2, 2,
and walked away. You had your hor-
2) (Limited Integration, -20%; Skills and
mone simulations and somatic image
Languages Only, -10%) [30]; NAI-4 [29];
set back to something more enjoyable.
Wotatech Combat Buzzbot [2].
You bought a decent humanoid cyber-
shell to be your body, and you changed
Disadvantages
your name. Your family still kept the
Duty (To the company; 15 or less) [-15]. lawyers on your tail, but you got an
injunction to stop them from saying
Skills too much about you, all solidly legal . . .
(Turns out to be handy that a lot of the
Aerobatics (H) DX-2 [1]-8; Beam
laws these days are made by people
Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+4 [12]-14;
who are ghosts themselves, or who re
Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ+3 [0]-11 ;
looking forward to that.)
Observation (A) Per+2 [8]-10; Stealth (A) DX+1
You wanted to do something with your new life, to start
[4]-11; Tactics (H) IQ [4]-8.
over, building something. It had to be a bit more exciting than
most businesses. You decided to start a security company. You
Weaponry
don t know much about the business, but you figured you
These cybershells typically mount an electrolaser pistol if
could work your way up. That meant starting on the ground
using the weapons listed in Changing Times, or a holdout elec-
floor, and if your co-workers knew that you were the boss,
trolaser if using GURPS Ultra-Tech.
embarrassing complications might arise.
* From Wotatech Combat Buzzbot template (see Changing
You set things up so they don t know that. Martingale
Times, p. 54).
Security is owned and operated through cut-outs. It s all legal
From NAI-4 template.
 it just looks like a bunch of investors who like their privacy.
Charlie Mallinson became a junior employee, with vague links
to  the owners. You try not to misuse your secret access to the
CHARLIE MALLINSON
administration network. It s weird, but after 85 years, you ve
Note: Charlie has a number of secrets from the other PCs, so
got the right to be weird.
anyone playing the other characters shouldn t be allowed to read
As a ghost mind emulation, you are a large piece of soft-
these notes!
ware running on the computer installed in your off-the-shelf
 cyberdoll body. You don t bother running any AIs on the
You were born Philip Charles Allard, in Ohio in 2015, and
same hardware  truth is, that d feel a bit weird  but you can
grew up in a small-c conservative community. You did okay for
operate other non-AI software as required, such as facial
yourself in business, and you made enough money to become
recognition, HUD targeting, VR amusements (heh, those are
what some folks would call an  Eloi, retiring to enjoy your
fun), and so forth.
wealth while modern medical technology kept you spry. Like
most people you knew, though, you didn t see much appeal in
giving up on biology altogether  having your brain destruc- Playing Mallinson
tively scanned into a computer looked like an expensive way to
You re still learning the security business, and you re still a
commit suicide.
better businessman than you are a bodyguard, truth be told.
Or so you said. Then the years started to bite, harder than
Nonetheless, you can shoot a gun if you have to. You want to
the fancy medicine could handle  even full cellular rejuvena-
be good at this job, which is why you ve slotted yourself into
tion looked like an expensive and grossly unreliable patch, not
the business at a low level  so you get time to learn.
a real fix. Even if you could become sort-of young again, acci-
In fact, you ve taken the job of point man for this team. Since
dent would get you one day. Maybe uploading is a fancy sort of
it s not too hard for a bright observer to peg you as a robot, you
dying, but you eventually decided that it beat the hell out of the
might as well play on that. You re the bodyguard who everyone
other sorts. So, a couple of years ago, you paid your money and
notices so they miss the others. If that means glowering at peo-
you got the job done. As far as you re concerned, you re the
ple a lot and even getting shot at, well, that is your job. You get
same person.
tactical input from the team leader by radio when you need it.
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 19
You usually wear decent body armor and carry a couple of Guns/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+2 [4]-12; Judo (H) DX+1 [8]-11;
hand weapons. You re careful about using this stuff  you do Merchant (A) IQ+3 [4]-14! ; Observation (A) Per-1 [1]-12;
have ethics, and you won t hurt innocents  but it s enough to Savoir-Faire (High Society) (E) IQ [1]-11.
make a point.
Equipment
Mallinson usually wears and carries a good range of equip-
Charlie Mallinson
ment, some of it paid for out of his own funds, such as the mul-
300 points
tiview optics in his sunglasses and his well-cut body armor. In
A very standard male-configuration cyberdoll   Caucasian
addition to his tactical programs, he has excellent full-senso-
and appearing dark-haired and clean-shaven. Mallinson s usual
rium VR software installed on his computer.
digital avatar appears the same.
* From Cyberdoll template.
ST 12 [0]*; DX 10 [0]; IQ 11 [20]; HT 12 [0]*.
Free from Wealth.
Damage 1d-1/1d+2; BL 29 lbs.; HP 15 [0]*; Will 11 [0]; Per 13
! Includes +2 from Business Acumen.
[10]; FP N/A.
Basic Speed 6.00 [10]; Basic Move 6 [0]; Dodge 9; Parry 9
Charlie s Views of the Team
(Brawling).
The people you ve indirectly hired are good at their jobs,
6 ; 160 lbs.
which of course means that they regard you as a bit of a dab-
bler. Maybe they re right, but what the hell, you re learning 
Social Background
and they may have noticed that you take on some dangerous
TL: 10 [0].
duties that they might not like.
CF: Western (Native) [0].
Diego Hughes was someone you chose personally; he s ex-
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Spanish (Native) [6].
army and knows his stuff, so he makes a good team leader. Paz
Ramirez is ex-army too, but younger. They both score high on
Advantages
enthusiasm, but Diego wants to be good at his job whereas Paz
Business Acumen 2 [20]; Cyberdoll [127]; Ghost Mind
seems to be in the game for kicks. Still, she s cute; you proba-
Emulation [86]; Status 1 [0] ; Very Wealthy [30].
bly ought to invite her into your VR space some time.
Perks: Has control codes for OVERSIGHT. [1]
Paul Chung is a Canadian  sorry, since the break-up of
Canada, that s Albertian  ex-cop, which rounds out the sense
Disadvantages
of professionalism in the team. He s not much of a talker, but
Chummy [-5]; Code of Honor (Professional/Businessman s)
the staff files say that he s a darned good shot, which is what
[-5]; Debt 3 (Maintenance/insurance fees for the cybershell,
counts, really.
corporate admin charges, etc.) [-3]; Enemy (Family Lawyers;
OVERSIGHT is the AI who looks after the team s require-
Small group; Appears 12 or less; Watcher) [-5]; Impulsiveness
ments on the Web. It also controls a bunch of flying cameras,
(15) [-5]; Pacifism (Cannot Harm Innocents) [-10]; Reputation
helps keep the books, and so on. You signed off on an order for
-2 (Seems amateurish to other people in the bodyguard busi-
a decent fully self-aware AI with enhanced multitasking capa-
ness; 10 or less) [-2]; Secret (Actually owns Martingale
bility, and OVERSIGHT meets that spec. It can actually run
Security; Serious Embarrassment) [-5].
three parallel versions of itself simultaneously, on a big enough
Quirks: Aggressively cynical about families; Fascinated by
computer. It s designed for purpose, with no big ideas about
VR sex (Gets downright lecherous when off-duty and online);
personal freedom. Some people find this weird, but it s sort of
Nosy; Slightly reckless  overrates the robustness of his cyber-
logical when you look at it. It likes its work. The only slight
shell. [-4]
snag is that it s been made very keen on what it does, to moti-
vate it, and it ends up coming over a little bit cocky and a bit
Skills
nosy. As you do own the company, you ve got a set of control
Accounting (H) IQ [1]-11! ; Administration (A) IQ+2 [2]-13! ;
codes for it, stored in your permanent computer memory,
Beam Weapons/TL10 (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-11; Brawling (E)
allowing you to give it instructions, directly or through cut-
DX+2 [4]-12; Computer Operation/TL10 (E) IQ [1]-11;
outs, if you choose. So far, you ve resisted the temptation to use
Diplomacy (H) IQ-2 [1]-9; Fast-Draw (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-11;
them. It d be messy and probably raise too many difficult ques-
Finance (H) IQ+1 [2]-12! ; Gambling (A) IQ+1 [1]-12! ;
tions. Anyway, it d miss the point of your position.
I may not know much about tactics, but I know families  and I ll bet
any of you a week s pay that family is the biggest likely source of trouble
with this client.
 Charlie Mallinson
PROFESSIONAL PROTECTION 20
INDEX
 A Concert in Zulia scenario, GURPS, 3, 6; Ultra-Tech, 7, 13, Martingale Security, company Team equipment, 6-7.
7-9. 19. background, 4-5; personnel, Team members, 11-20.
Armor, 6-7.  Hearts, Minds, and 11-20. Transhuman Space, 3, 4, 6,
Buzzbot, 19. Questionable Ethics Nanosocialist Party, 10. 7; Broken Dreams, 7, 8;
Character point totals, 6. scenario seed, 10. Narvaez, Pablo, 7-9. Changing Times, 3, 6- 8,
Chung, Paul, 13-15; views by Hughes, Diego, 11-12; views by OVERSIGHT, 4-5, 17-18; views 13, 19; Fifth Wave, 7; Shell-
others, 12, 16, 18, 20. others, 14, 16, 18, 20. by others, 12, 15, 16, 20. Tech, 3, 8, 9, 13; Under
Company, background, 4-5; Jack, 13. Patron advantage, 4. Pressure, 10.
personnel, 11-20. Jordanson, Ken, 7. Personal equipment, 6-7. TSA, 9, 10.
 Country-House Mystery  Machine Minders scenario Ramirez, Paz, 15-16; views by Using equipment from Ultra-
scenario seed, 10. seed, 10. others, 12, 14, 18, 20. Tech, 7.
Duty advantage, 4, 5. Mallinson, Charlie, 4, 19-20; Ratchet, 13. Weapons, 6-7.
Equipment, 6-7. views by others, 12, 15, 16, Running the campaign, 5-10. Wearable tactical system, 15, 17.
Espartero, Elizabeth Jane, 8-9. 18. San Timeo, 7-9. Work hours, 5.
Festival of Radical Song, 7. Maracaibo, 8, 9. Scenario, sample, 7-9; seeds, 10. Zulia, 7-9.
Fritz el Gato, 10. Secret of the campaign, 19.
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