THE NORTH BAY Special Report by: Renford Political Consulting Chris Beauregard <[c p beaure] at [undergrad.math.waterloo.edu]> >>>>>[I was wandering the UCAS system in Detroit, and I came across this. It seems to have been written by an independent contractor for some UCAS bigwig. Would anyone like to guess that they're considering reclaiming the place? It could be very interesting up there in the next few months.]<<<<< -ReRun <12:01:51/11-01-50> >>>>>[Could be really deadly up there. The only way they're gonna get into that place is by gassing half the occupants and permanently disabling the other half. I don't think Quebec is gonna like a couple divisions of UCAS regulars on their doorstep too well. The UCAS couldn't take the Warrens with anything less.]<<<<< -Omega Wolf <05:13:29/11-03-50> >>>>>[Hey, you wouldn't believe what happened here just a while ago. Shriek and I were sitting over the SAN, and out of nowhere comes a triad of UCAS chopper constructs (wonder who that could have been?) They punched through the SAN ice, and we followed them right up to the SPU just outside you-know-which 'tastore (wonder what they were after?) The Sysop will be glad to know that 'ol Blacky works, real well.]<<<<< -Silicon Eel <02:34:01/01-02-51> A report on the status of the city of North Bay, prepared for Senator Jan Douglas by Renford Political Consulting, Inc. OVERVIEW North Bay is one of the largest thorns in the UCAS's side next to the NAN. The constant panzer runs across the Quebec border by riggers based in the area have put negotiations with the country in a very difficult position. Not long ago, Quebec demanded that the runs be stopped before any increase in the power allocation from the James Bay project were approved. The UCAS military has begun mobilization for what appears to be a major action in the North Bay area. The prospects of a large scale assault on the area look to be very grim. The firepower of the relatively large number of panzers in the area would be a deterrent in itself, without the added threat of an operating airbase, difficult terrain, and the impregnable fortress that is the Warrens. It is believed that two or three regular UCAS divisions will be necessary, along with a considerable number of specialists to deal with the Warrens. This number of troops that close to the Quebec border will certainly result in a very delicate diplomatic situation, something the UCAS should avoid at all costs. >>>>>[Yup, they're going for it. Stupid, really stupid.]<<<<< -Omega Wolf <05:20:12/11-03-50> HISTORY For the latter half of the twentieth century, North Bay was noted for it's NORAD installation. Aside from having one of the largest military airbases in North America, deep within what is essentially a hollow mountain was housed the command centre for most of the DEW line. Around 1995, a sizable portion of the base personnel, as part of the Canadian defense budget cuts, were moved out. To make use of some of the empty space, portions of CFB North Bay were converted to biological research and storage areas, without the knowledge of the city. Shortly after the turn of the century, the base was converted almost entirely into a hazardous substance research facility, the politically correct word for a bio-warfare centre. While considerable outcry was made by the population of the city, the base was the only major support to the economy of the city, and the furor quickly died out with the influx of several thousands more military personnel and their spending. Throughout the early years of civil unrest throughout the rest of the world, the city, because of its relative isolation, was mostly unaffected. The only major incident was a small riot started by a brawl between reserve Indians and servicemen. Several were killed in the fighting, and close to one hundred wounded before the fighting was brought to a standstill. >>>>>[Now that's a load of drek if I ever heard it. I think the figures were closer to fifty killed, and three hundred wounded. The real reason the whole thing started was because some army hotshot took the opportunity during the fighting to see what driving a tank through a hotel would do. Trust me, I was there. I was part of a group who took out three parked CF-18 fighters while the military was out shooting civilians.]<<<<< - Tall Boy <13:56:26/11-03-50> >>>>>[Do you know why they covered it up so much? I mean, that many dead didn't mean much back then when thousands were dying in street fighting across the country.]<<<<< - Shriek <03:43:52/11-05-50> >>>>>[That was in the United States. Canada wasn't nearly as bad. And you have to consider that the city only had a population of 70,000 or so at the time. We're talking about a good portion of the population being killed off.]<<<<< - Tall Boy <13:22:00/11-10-50> During the Lone Eagle crisis, the peace of the small city was once again broken when vigilante action against reserve Indians resulted in what amounted to a small war. The end result was 90% of the native population being wiped out, and large portions of housing in the city being leveled by guerrilla action. The remaining natives were shipped to the re-education centres established about that time. When the VITAS plague hit, the area was mostly free of its effects, given the relative isolation of the city. It did not escape the effects of the UGE, however. After the beginning of the UGE, every child born in the area exhibited the characteristics of the Dwarf strain. Close to 15% of the population left the area in the first three months. After several months, a small number of normal children were born to the area. The effects of the UGE on the area were explained by government officials as an isolated effect probably having to do with the pollution of one of the area lakes. >>>>>[They explained it like that, yes. No one believed it though, at least no one living there. The lake water story is pure and simple drek. No one ever drank out of it, and that's the only way you could possibly be affected by the water. They just didn't want to admit to the shoddy waste disposal techniques used by the base. I once had an army transport dump about a ton of PCB's on a site next to my property. I complained, but they stated that it was harmless. Harmless, if you consider having non-human children harmless.]<<<<< - Tag <09:06:45/11-03-50> >>>>>[Sorry chummer? 'non-human' did you say? I sure hope you don't live around here anymore, 'cause if you do you ain't gonna live much longer...]<<<<< - Chuck D <17:09:24/11-07-50> During the years of the Ghost Dance, North Bay was hit hard. One night, the city was rocked by a major earthquake. As the city is situated in the extremely stable Canadian Shield, the only explanation was the now growing magic. Indeed, one month after the quake, a group of native shamans took credit for what they called 'justice against the befoulers of the planet.' The recovery of the city itself occurred quickly enough, but the base was damaged considerably. Large areas of the underground complex were lost completely, and the electronics of the base were, with few exceptions, destroyed. Close to two thousand personnel died as the tunnels collapsed around them, and several hundred others died in the city itself. The rebuilding of the above-ground portion of the base was accomplished in the first year after the quake. The underground complex was operational after two years of work. However, large portions were still unusable. While the quake took out a considerable amount of the cities economic power, the most damaging event in the history of North Bay was Goblinization. On that day in April, 2021, almost half of the residents of both the city and the military base were transformed into dwarves. The reason still has not been explained to any great extent. In the next year, North Bay became the site of the largest influx of dwarves in North America. Close to three thousand moved to the city. This was counterbalanced by over five thousand normal humans leaving the city. In a matter of one year, the face of the city was transformed. Several years later, the military converted a portion of the base into a magical research centre. Part of its duties were to study the reason for the high rate of Goblinization among the population. Three years later, a Matrix Warfare centre, essentially a clone of the U.S. Echo Mirage project, was added. The entire base was wired for the use of the new technology. For unknown reasons, the old computer linkages were kept intact and added to the new system. When it was discovered that parts of the damaged base were still connected, the old system was disconnected again. During this time a fusion power plant was also added to the base. The Crash of '29 hit the base hard. In the first few days, close to one third of the base hardware was destroyed as the virus swept through the system. In response, the system was disconnected from external lines, the virus cleaned out of the system (with a high rate of damage to equipment and personnel), and the old linkages restored to pass over the damaged sections. The base continued to operate more or less normally, albeit slowly, until the virus was destroyed. After the virus was destroyed, the base system again underwent an overhaul. The work was not quite as thorough as the previous rebuilding of the system though. Patches to the damaged sections were made, and much of the ancient connections still remained part of the new system. At this time, the MW section added some rudimentary IC to the system. As the years went by, this was improved considerably, and CFB North Bay eventually had what was considered the most secure military system in the world. >>>>>[Drek! The guys who programmed most of it also left a trapdoor big enough to throw a Cray III through. The Soviets got more research information outta the place in one year than they got from NORAD during the entire Cold War]<<<<< - Viper <12:09:22/11-05-50> When the Canada-U.S. merge occurred, close to half of the personnel of the base were transferred, in a move that devastated the North Bay economy, as part of a deal with the separated province of Quebec. For several years, until one small Japanese chemical company moved in, the city was akin to a ghost town. The introduction of Kenji Biotech Inc. was the only thing that saved the city from death. >>>>>[Of course, we weren't all that surprised when this happened. I mean, North Bay was pretty much the leading manufacturer of Bio- Hazards, courtesy of the Canadian government. Over the years the company has shrunk somewhat. They used to have over a thousand employees, mostly from the area. Now they employ maybe two hundred and most of them are foreigners.]<<<<< - Tall Boy <14:01:54/11-06-50> The greatest transformation of the city occurred around the period of the Night of Rage. Given the large meta-human population of the city, it became a prime target of New Terrorism. On the night of September 23rd, 2038, close to a thousand members of a group calling themselves the Purity League went on a rampage through the city, killing all metahumans crossing their path. The military watched the battle without interfering. During the fighting, several thousand dwarves retreated into the damaged parts of the base, and fought off numerous attacks from the terrorists. When they were finally fought off and the smoke had cleared, one quarter of the meta-human population of the city were dead, and hundreds of normal humans as well. >>>>>[For those who don't know, the Purity League was the northern equivalent of Alamos 20,000. I think there were close to ten thousand members in the northern UCAS and Quebec. After the North Bay battle, the group splintered into smaller terrorist groups. A few of them took another shot at the town, but they didn't last much longer than the military. Eventually, we all got tired of PL groups taking shots at us and we took out about half-a-dozen of their compounds with some of the CF-201's the military 'left behind.' No trouble after that...]<<<<< - Tag <11:44:30/11-07-50> At this point, the meta-humans rallied and, in a prolonged battle, took over the base. All military personnel were killed on sight. Before the UCAS even had time to mobilize, the angry dwarves had turned the base into a fortress. A takeover attempt by a battalion of UCAS infantry was beaten back with 70% casualties before they had even reached the outskirts of the city. A second assault was called off when Quebec sent an ultimatum warning that any more mobilization of troops within 50 miles of the border would be met with force. No more attacks on the base were ever attempted. >>>>>[Fraggin' idiots! They didn't even have any air support, no prelim recon, nothing. I guess they didn't figure that a group who could take one of the stronger military bases in the country could also hold it.]<<<<< - Chuck D <03:45:16/11-08-50> In the aftermath, the defenses of what was now called the Warrens were increased even more. The contents of the air base, still containing several military CF-201 interceptor/bombers, were supplemented by stolen military craft, most notably four Ares Dragon helicopters, at least a dozen heavy panzers, and an EFA interceptor. The newly formed government of the Warrens also began encouraging riggers running the Quebec border to use to base as a resupply point. As a result, the base normally has a number 'visiting' panzers and several other craft on call. Much of the complex was destroyed during the fighting, and sizable portions of the grid serving the base had to have extensive work performed on them. As well, close to two thirds of the base was lost due to cave-ins during the fighting. This includes the Matrix Warfare labs, one of the larger magical research labs, and close to half of the bio-warfare labs. >>>>>[Heh. "Close to two thirds." Slight understatement there chums. Getting into the bloody place took a fraggin' big pile of explosives, in all kinds of bad spots. I think we lost more 'cause of overkill with the boomers than we did to the security systems. From what I saw, and I saw a lot, the rebuild after the quake was a real spit 'n glue type job. Wires hangin' all over the place, cracks and crevices all over the place, tunnels packed with rubble.]<<<<< - Tall Boy <05:09:34/11-22-50> >>>>>[You wouldn't believe the security on this place. I stopped there one day for a refuel, and got to look around. They still have the blast doors from the original base (the ones designed to handle a nuke...), but with a few more feet of some kind of ceramic shielding attached. There are camera/servo-gun combinations in almost every corridor, and most of the larger corridors has gas vents and servo- grenade launchers. I was told that most of the passages are rigged with explosives to collapse on command. And this was just the residential areas. They wouldn't let me into any of the high security areas.]<<<<< - ReRun <11:07:21/11-26-50> >>>>>[Magically, this place isn't nearly as tight. I mean, they're dwarves mostly, right. Dwarf mages are pretty rare, and there are absolutely no shamans in the place. I've been told that the high tech/high contamination atmosphere of the places drives most of them nuts in the first week, and none have managed to last more that a month without killing themselves. I've heard rumours of toxic shamans in the abandoned areas though. They'd thrive on the bio-hazards]<<<<< - Barron <23:17:42/12-03-50> >>>>>[I do not know about toxic shamans, but there are things deep within the Warrens that are many times worse. I have fought things that would make the UCAS think twice about wanting the Warrens back. I have fought things that make myself think twice about ever going back]<<<<< - Pendragon <12:01:00/12-05-50> >>>>>[At least you beat them. I've lost a few friends who decided that bio-prospecting was the way to go. Damn right it's the way to go. To you're grave, if they can find enough to bury.]<<<<< - Barron <00:23:14/12-10-50> >>>>>[Are you kidding? There's a fortune to make bio-prospecting down there. Only about ten percent, maybe less, of the base is currently occupied. That leaves a lot of room for exploration. I've come across a few mega-nuyen finds in that place in only the six months I've been in there. The beasties sure as hell don't deter me from going down there.]<<<<< - Jade Hunter <10:37:02/12-15-50> >>>>>[That's not quite true about the lack of mages. There are a few of them down there, but they are very isolated. They spend a lot of time in the old magical labs, trying to decipher the military magic notation. I'm also told that they spend time putting together new spells, tailored for the underground. I must agree that there are no shamans.]<<<<< - Ice Bunny <15:00:33/12-17-50> ORGANIZATION The North Bay government is divided into two areas. There is the city government, essentially a town council governing close to eight thousand residents of the city, and there is the Security Council of the Warrens, governing the close to four thousand permanent residents of the underground complex. The city government defers to the Security Council on defense matters, but is otherwise independent. As well, Kenji Biotech maintains a compound approximately twenty kilometers from the city, with its independent corporate government. Neither the Security Council nor the town government have any kind of diplomatic relations with any neighbours. The closest they have come are the occasional 'negotiation teams,' battalion sized combat groups sent out to deal with suspected infringements on their territory. It is policy of the Security Council to encourage criminal elements of both the UCAS and Quebec to use the base as a resupply point. Specifically, the Warrens deals well with riggers running the Quebec/UCAS border. In this manner, they receive new technology, while riggers are offered a safe resupply zone, fuel, and for aircraft, a large defended runway with heavy concrete hangars. Occasionally, it is believed that the Security Council participates in some of the runs, adding the occasional panzer team to a run. >>>>>[Those negotiation teams are nasty. I saw one go after a Humanis compound that someone (stupid) established about 50 km away from the base. All that they left of the place was a few burnt out shells and a lot of craters. Those CF-201's are killers on a strafing run.]<<<<< - Puck <23:10:06/11-04-50> >>>>>[If you happen to visit the Warrens, don't screw with the security procedures. If you get out of line, even by a millimeter, they toast you. This place doesn't follow anyone else's laws, so they don't have any trouble in shooting people. This is only security procedures, you can raise all the hell you like, shoot people randomly, etc., and they won't bother you. They assume that anyone in the Warrens who gets killed shouldn't be there anyways. Nice, friendly people.]<<<<< - Omega Wolf <14:50:33/11-19-50> >>>>>[I can speak from experience that the sight of one of the Warrens concrete hangars is one of the most uplifting things you're likely to see. Cheap fuel, good, solid repair jobs, and lots of reloads are the norm. And after a run of the Quebec defenses, you normally need it.]<<<<< - ReRun <11:24:53/11-26-50> >>>>>[They're pretty good about paying for your cargo too. I exchanged a load of Vindicator cannons for some really hot bio material. You wouldn't believe the profit I made on them.]<<<<< - Jade Hunter <04:45:36/12-03-50> GEOGRAPHY THE WARRENS The Warrens was perhaps one of the largest and most intricate of underground bases in the NORAD system. At its largest capacity, after its last expansion in 2006, it could hold close to 12,000 residents full time in housing zones, as well as close to three times as much room in labs and storage areas. At its largest occupancy it only held three thousand. In the aftermath of the quake and the battles, much of the base was lost to collapses in the tunnel system and bio-chemical contamination. Indeed, few residents move out of the known safe zones without enviro-suits. The inhabitable area of the base is currently divided into three main zones: Residential, security, and supply. Residential zones contain all the space and services necessary for the four thousand residents. Security zone handles not only the defensive systems of the base, but controls close to forty kilometers of territory around the base, and monitors out to an unknown distance. Supply consists of the food production caverns and several small factory areas producing necessities of life for the underground. As well, a large portion of its efforts go towards the recovery of gear from the lost areas of the base. Defensively, the base is a wonder of technology. Almost every corridor is covered by camera/servo-gun combinations, and most of them are monitored. Externally, a large sensor array searches for air targets, and two interceptors are always ready to scramble in case of threat. Most of the ground around the base is also covered by sensor arrays. It is suspected that these arrays extend northward to the Quebec border, and forty to fifty kilometers to the south. Heavy panzers also patrol the areas around the base, and infantry teams patrol the outskirts of the city. To top things off, every adult resident of the base is trained in the operation of most of the systems of the base, and almost all carry heavy sidearms at all times. Aboveground, the airport is the main feature. The ancient commercial airport has been converted entirely into the military base. Concrete hangars house a fleet of at least a dozen helicopters, between six and eight CF-201 fighters, two EFA interceptors, and a fleet of panzers. As well, a variety of conventional armored vehicles are housed. >>>>>[The way I understand it, security nowadays has gone down the tubes. A lot of the servo-guns are more or less dead, the lighting in the tunnels has been cut down, and many of the security sensor arrays have been taken out by weather, Humanis infiltrators, and some of the animals in the area. Some parts of the complex have turned into little tribal caverns, and I hear a lot of gang fights go on in the tunnels. Is this just rumour, or what?]<<<<< - Komet Kid <02:19:50/11-06-50> >>>>>[The whole servo-gun thing is a rumour, but they sure don't look like they'd work. I hear that Security Council technical teams occasionally select a few guns and give them a little work so they look like they're dead. The thing about the lighting is entirely correct, but since all the security cameras have been replaced with thermo systems, it doesn't matter much. Besides, they never needed lighting anyways. Think about it. They're mostly dwarves. Built in thermographics. As far as the tribal thing, it's true, but not in the Security controlled sections. Since they're completely isolated from the rest of the complex by some serious defense systems, they really don't care what goes on down there. Besides, they use it as a training ground for their troops.]<<<<< - ReRun <17:09:27/11-09-50> >>>>>[I don't know about isolation. I heard about a Banshee that got into the residential section and killed off a couple people before they fragged it. Supposedly it got in through some ancient ventilation tunnels. Understandably, the SC downplayed it quite a bit.]<<<<< - Barron <01:07:48/12-10-50> >>>>>[While you're in the Warrens, some places you might run into. First, a note on finding your way around. The place is organized in colour zones, Red being the main security zone, purple, green, blue, and white being the residential section, and orange, gray, and black being the factory/research zones. If you see the black zone, by the way, get the hell out of it. If you're not authorized, you're dead. Then the place is set up in levels, from 1 to, as far as I know, 40. The Access number is the "street address" of the place. You might have to ask directions to find the Access, the place is a real maze. Temporaries Hostel Green Zone, Level 7, Access 1409 Large Hotel No racial bias LTG# 0956 Manager: Armand Lorino If you're a visiting rigger, they normally put you up in the Temporaries. A really nice place, big rooms, awesome room service, and solid doors (this is real important in the Warrens). No problems with weapons, armor, but they don't like customers killing each other. Cavern One Green Zone, Level 17, Access 0043 Nightclub Bias towards non-riggers LTG# 9844 Owner: Morin Desjardine You can't really call it a nightclub, 'cause the Warrens doesn't have a day/night cycle. This is the hottest spot for riggers. The amount of tips and information running around this place is fantastic, and Rick, one of the bartenders, has run the Quebec border at least fifty times, still does, and likes talking about it. Weapons are allowed, fighting is allowed, but don't shoot the staff. Purple Zone Bazaar Purple Zone, Level 10, various entries Open Marketplace No racial bias Organizer: Lt. Lesli Darrien In every zone of the Warrens, there exists a mall. The purple zone bazaar takes the cake. Located in a really massive cavern that used to be a series of gyms before the walls were taken out, jam packed with several hundred people, you can buy and sell anything here, plus a few other items. BTLs, body parts, military hardware, data, anything. Don't try to rip anyone off though, because the place is organized by the security council, and there's normally about three platoons of regular infantry roaming the crowd, and a few drones hovering over your head.]<<<<< - Komet Kid <00:34:59/12-12-50> >>>>>[We can't forget something really important, can we? Security Council HQ Red Zone, Level 15-20, various Accesses Large Office Building LTG# 1111 The nerve center of the Security Council, this multi-level complex is open day and night, heavily guarded, and real important to visitors. This is the place where you arrange permission for a temporary stay, Warrens citizenship, sale of really big/hot cargo, escorts for a run through Quebec (they do this sometimes), and a lot of other stuff. Don't screw with security. You can't carry weapons into the place either, and if you happen to trip a detector while you're in there, and they have them all over, the automatic defenses will shred you.]<<<<< - Sage <23:20:12/12-15-50> >>>>>[Purple Zone, Level 36, Access 1034 will get you into the abandoned section, if you fiddle with the electronics on the lock a little. Getting back is a little tougher.]<<<<< - anonymous <15:22:47/12-18-50> NORTH BAY The city proper of North Bay exists in a relatively small area near one of the two area lakes. While in its prime the city occupied considerably more area, the quake, depopulation, and warfare left a much smaller population and most of the city in ruins. The remaining population retreated into an easily defended lakeside area, which they eventually walled off. As well, the current location is less than a kilometer from the gates of the Warrens. The majority of the residents earn their pay in trade with the Warrens. Farming, hunting, fishing, and scavenging from the city provide a meagre, yet sufficient lifestyle for most residents. A small portion also engage in running the Quebec border, usually through the system of rivers and creeks of the northern wilderness. As a result, the proliferation of weapons in the city is extreme, where virtually everyone has access to military hardware. The city government, as a result, tends to be quite dynamic in that the entire upper echelon is normally 'replaced' several times per year. The current government, led by the Dwarven Bear shaman Erich Connors, has somehow managed to last out six months, despite three separate attempts at deposing them. >>>>>[Hmmm. They don't say much about the place. Sounds like some kind of frontier town.]<<<<< - Smily <08:45:04/11-06-50> >>>>>[That's actually a pretty good analogy, if you add in the military surplus family car, automatic weapons, modular housing, and the occasional gang. The place is actually very fun at night. The wall parties are a real blast, and some of those bars...]<<<<< - ReRun <17:22:16/11-09-50> >>>>>[Yeah, the wall parties are awesome. This is when a bunch of residents get together, go up on the wall (about thirty feet high, twenty thick with battlements) and watch the ghoul/gang wars. Hell, sometimes targets get close enough so that we can join the fun. And the bars, yeah, they're something else. Bass One is about the wildest and most dangerous place I've ever been, and The Tank is phenomenal. The Tank, by the way, is a reconstruction of the place that started that riot in town way back near the turn of the century. They have this big Leopard tank imbedded in the wall. And the turret still moves...When you're completely burned and the thing starts pointing your way...]<<<<< - anonymous <23:50:05/11-24-50> OUTSKIRTS When the population of the city retreated to a relatively small area, the remainder of the city became easy pickings for all manner of squatters and more sinister residents. A few homesteaders live out of the main city, in small walled fortresses. These are normally surrounded by small plots of cultivated land and several layers of razor wire, minefields, and remote weapons systems. Aside from these few, the remainder of the residents consist of a variety of gangs, squatters, and a fair number of ghouls. Nearly every night the city erupts with the sound of gunfire, explosions, and such as the gangs fight running battles with ghouls over scavenged food supplies. Occasionally the city sends out troops to cull the number of ghouls, but lately this has resulted in considerable casualties. It is expected that the practice will be discontinued in the near future, unless more military vehicles can be borrowed from the Warrens. >>>>>[This is not a place to get caught outside in at night. I've seen groups of ghouls go after some of the homesteads with flamethrowers. They're much worse on people caught in the open.]<<<<< - Looie Loo <20:39:04/11-02-50> >>>>>[The reason the combat teams have been getting shot up so much is due to infiltrators, not the ghouls and gangs. It seems the Purity League is about to have another go at the Warrens, the poor, stupid buggers.]<<<<< - From the Deep <11:02:00/11-07-50> >>>>>[Wasn't the PL wiped out?]<<<<< - Tag <13:55:30/11-02-50> KENJI BIOTECH The Kenji Biotech compound is typical of Japanese corporations. A number of modular housing units, a factory, and various services all contained in a high wall studded with defensive systems. There are several helicopter pads, and almost daily one heads over to the Warrens airport to pick up some bio-hazard. It is estimated that 200 workers live here, but the exact figure is unknown. On a rare occasion, Kenji will recruit workers from the town, usually to supplement security. Normally they simply bring in workers from one of their other factories. If is unknown exactly what the purpose of the Kenji base is, however it is obviously known to some party as a number of attempts by criminal elements to enter have been made on the compound. It is unknown whether any have succeeded - Kenji Biotech does not have much in the way of public relations. It's suspected that the heavy security has been more than a match for the runner teams. >>>>>[Yup, that's one thing the locals are good at. Supplementing security.]<<<<< - Tall Boy <23:50:01/11-08-50> >>>>>[This Kenji outpost is just there for the purpose of testing the various items from the Warrens. It is believed that, as well as the daily chopper run, they send in exploratory teams through some hidden passages. They also pay bio-prospectors pretty well for their stuff.]<<<<< - ReRun <02:05:20/11-09-50> >>>>>[They do send exploration teams. I have encountered a few members of these teams, violently. They are heavily armed, and use powerful magic. They do not know the passages though, and that is their weakness.]<<<<< - Pendragon <20:17:51/12-01-50> >>>>>[I wouldn't be braggin' about that chum. Kenji has some real vicious security units. I for one would not want to have a run in with them.]<<<<< - Chuck D <14:08:21/12-10-50> >>>>>[I do not brag, and I do not fear Kenji Biotech.]<<<<< - Pendragon <18:58:06/12-10-50> >>>>>[Maybe you don't, chum, but a lot do. 'Cept maybe said 'criminal elements.' I have it on good authority that they're actually a bunch of good old boys from town after KB's ass for something or other. If you've met the towns good old boys, you sure wouldn't want to be in Kenji's position, chums. Maybe you think yer big city go-go-gangs are tough, but you don't want to be around when these guys pull up in an APC with belt fed Vindicator/GL mounts on the top. Or the LAW rockets in the back of the family pickup. 'Less you got a panzer.]<<<<< - Wastrel <00:10:58/12-21-50> THE MATRIX The Warrens matrix has been torn down, damaged, patched and overhauled so many times that no one can really say what it is. The original military connections, dating back to approximately 1970, are still connected to the state of the art system added around 2038. Add to this hundreds of line patches and the various hardware running the system, and the result is what some deckers have called the most dangerous grid on the planet. The Security Council has taken advantage of the deadliness of the system by connecting their own system inside the many layers of military IC still operating. This is possibly the only major weakness in their defensive systems. Currently, the outer security layer of the grid is purely the old 2038 military system with a few patches. These system patches, however, are indistinguishable from the old system. Once past this main outer layer, the ancient internal military systems are mixed in with many system patches and the new government systems. Security is laughable. To quote the infamous decker Sparrow, "A complete drek-head could cut through that stuff with a turtle and on-the-fly utilities." Analysis by an independent consulting firm has confirmed this opinion. The matrix, while possibly the easiest way to access the Warren goings-on, has little to offer in the case of a large scale assault. Thorough analysis has indicated that absolutely no external slave system such as doors or ventilation systems are connected to the grid. Only a few internal security cameras, obviously passed over in the rebuilding, seem to exist. Quite possibly there is a second, unconnected system controlling all this. The city system is attached to the Warrens grid, but the security of it is minimal. The biggest threat outside the Warrens is the Kenji Biotech grid. Strong corporate IC has encouraged many invaders of the North Bay system to look for their fortunes elsewhere. It is of interest to note that the area grid is still connected to the international system, although the Warrens is technically speaking a criminal outpost. Attempts were made in the early years of its establishment by UCAS technical teams to remove the system, but the teams were overwhelmed by the number of ancient military connections to the outside grid. It is estimated that there are close to three hundred independent connections to the UCAS RTG, as well as those to the Quebec and Algonkian-Manitoo RTGs. >>>>>[The thing about this mix of the new and the old is that it leaves all kinds of holes in the security there. The government relies on the older military ice to keep out intruders, so they have relatively light security themselves. So if you're good, you can trace a path through the old military systems without a hint of ice...]<<<<< -Key Cat <12:01:51/11-01-50> >>>>>[If you're lucky, chummer, you might. If you're not lucky, you could be toast. I thought I had a nice little entry, 'til I hit the wandering ice. I was lucky. I only lost a Cyber-7.]<<<<< -Nova <23:20:00/11-04-50> >>>>>[Yeah, tell me about it. I got chased halfway through the system before I managed to kill the sucker! By that time, there were fragging alarms going off all the way to Chiba. I almost got hit by a Trace, but it managed to get bogged down in one of their patches. Not that it would have mattered much. There's no one for the Trace to call back to!]<<<<< -Ice Falcon <03:57:09/11-07-50> >>>>>[You killed the ice?!? Frag, this is military ice here!]<<<<< -Stink Bug <17:34:10/11-08-50> >>>>>[You betcha! It took a bit, but I had this MG9067-SF hardening chip my buddy Tall Boy picked up in one of the old Matrix Warfare labs down there. Besides that, I don't think the ice was updated for the patches, because it really slowed down when it hit 'em. And it may be military ice, but it's still a decade old.]<<<<< -Ice Falcon <12:30:38/11-12-50> >>>>>[This military stuff is peanuts compared to some of the Kenji Biotech system they have in town. I was doing a look-see on the Kenji system, and did I get a little surprise. I burn the fraggin' Killer, in a Red node no less, was browsing some data, and then the alarms go off. So I haul ass for the SAN, and what do you know but the Killer is back up, meaner than ever, and lookin' for me! Far as I can tell, they've got something that's regenerating.]<<<<< -Louie Loo <02:12:15/11-18-50> >>>>>[That's pretty doubtful. You probably just set something off when you were browsing, and it started the alert and rebuilt the ice.]<<<<< -Screamer <20:45:07/11-19-50> >>>>>[Like hell I did, chum! I've been scanning for things like that since...well, since I set one off. If they were capable of something my little 'mine detector' couldn't find, then I'd never have got past that ice in the first place.]<<<<< -Louie Loo <03:47:32/11-24-50> >>>>>[My question is, with all the various hardware, how do they maintain the thing?]<<<<< -Argand <21:04:59/12-02-50> >>>>>[They don't. They can't. They don't even know where the hardware running half the thing is, and they don't know how to maintain what they can find. When a machine goes down, they just replace it with something a little more modern, and maybe patch the area around it. >From what I've heard, some of the military ice they can't even get to recognize the Security Council deckers. They've lost a few to that problem.]<<<<< -Ice Falcon <11:13:40/12-04-50> >>>>>[Who would want to get into the system in the first place? The place is ancient.]<<<<< - Kormack <14:08:18/12-11-50> >>>>>[If you can get into the MW mainframe, you have paydata. There are programs in there that were designed to take out Sov military IC, and that means they can cut through modern corp IC like a Fairlight Excalibur through Blue Access. You just have to find the lab. And finding it doesn't mean you can find it again. The fraggin' system changes so often...]<<<<< - From the Deep <09:46:40/12-13-50>