Welcome to the Barking Alien City Guide to Original TRPG Cities created by yours truly. Over the course of the month of August I hope to get out at least five posts depicting fictional cities I've created throughout my HOLY-CRAP-IT'S-BEEN-48-FREAKIN'-YEARS of gaming.
Enjoy.
BLAST CITY
Blast City, New York, United States of America, North America
Earth / Sol III
Origin/History: Early in the 21st century an alien starship crashed into New York State's Lower Bay. The vessel was prototype, bringing with it over three thousand Sentient Extraterrestrial refugees. These aliens were on the run from a marauding species known as the Dreggetti.
Begging the people of Earth for help, as the Dreggetti Empire were destined to catch up with the refugees within a year, these beings offered Humanity advanced technology, incredible scientific knowledge, and - wait for it - superpowers. The aliens had invented a formula that could give Humans, and only Humans, extranormal abilities (although some of the alien species that arrived on Earth had some special traits naturally).
Humanity agreed to ally with their galactic charges and a year later their combined forces were ready for any threat. With Super Soldiers, Space Fighters, Force Fields, and Particle Cannons, a United Earth and their alien allies waited for the Dreggeddi's arrival.
And it never came.
Not a year later, not five years later, and not ten.
Forward to today and the starship has been converted into a city - Blast City! Home to nearly a million people, Human and Alien alike, the city stands as arguably the most important and vibrant in the entire Sol System. A center of scientific and technological development, cultural exploration, and economic change, everyone wants to visit, if not live, in Blast City.
Demographics: There are virtually one million permanent residents of Blast City. An additional 100,000 people live outside the city but commute to work on a daily basis. Thanks to improvements in infrastructure and transportation, someone living in Manhattan can expect less than an hour commute on average while still complaining about the traffic.
Approximately 60% of the city's population, about 600,000 people, are Humans. Of those Humans, perhaps .05% or 300 people, are SuperHuman, possessing extranormal abilities. Generally this is limited to active Superheroes and students attending Hero Classes at Blast City High School and Blast City University but also includes Scientists, Engineers, and other civic/civilian jobs cleared for Superpower use.
The remaining 400,000 occupants of Blast City are extraterrestrial in origin. Most arrived along with the starship, though some were born on Earth after the landing/crash. Other aliens arrived later on slower spaceships. The alien population is made up of 30 different species. Some are fairly numerous, like the Uchunekojin, while others are remarkably few in number like the Googlimooglians.
Weather: Essentially the same as the greater New York City area but a little more severe given that Blast City is basically an island in New York Harbor. That said, the citizens of Blast City don't really notice it as Weather Control technology prevents extreme climate situations from bothering anybody. Unless this technology is damaged or hindered in some way, conditions of intense heat and humidity, cold, high winds, rain and flooding simply do not occur.
Infrastructure: Thanks to the advanced scientific and technological knowledge of the city's denizens, upkeep and maintenance of the Blast City's utilities, streets, and the like are expertly and excellently handled. Blast City's plumbing is particularly effecient.
Transportation throughout the city is accomplished by a few municipal conveyances: The Magnetic Levitation Monorail (colloquially referred to as the Mag-Rail), a Subway system, and City Buses. In addition, there are Taxis, Uber, and other car services, many of which have grav-cars. Ferry service is available between Blast City and several locations on the mainland.
In addition, there are some interesting elements atypical of most metropoles. Blast City has four large and six smaller Force Field generators that can be activated to protect the city from everything from a Tsunami to directed Particle Beams! Along with the Central Power Plant in the center of Blast City, a number of Auxiliary Batteries are scattered throughout the inner workings of island that help prevent power failures and black outs. They can also be used to super-charge the city's power grid for...well...see below.
Highlights and Points of Interest:
You've probably noticed that the city, which was formally a starship, looks very much like a giant humanoid robot. That is because it is. The original starship was capable of transforming from interstellar craft to mecha in hopes of being able to fight the Dreggetti so others could escape. When converting the starship into a livable city, the engineers found it easier to work on the structure and systems with the vessel in robot mode.
Rumor has it, the city and still fully transform and stand up but this has yet to be confirmed.
A) Blast City University - The prestigious BCU is THE center for higher learning - College Bachelor's Degrees, Master's Degrees, and Doctoral Degrees available - in a wide variety of majors. The major of the students are graduates of Blast City High School. They have a major rivalry with Titan Prep based on Saturn's moon Titan.
B) Supernova Stadium and Entertainment Arena - A massive stadium/arena with a retractable roof,modifiable and movable terrain, great sound systems, and an unparalleled holographic light show capacity. It is used to hold all sorts of events, from home games of the Blast City Blazers Boogie Ball Team to Rock & Roll concerts. It also has the ability to convert into an Emergency Shelter and descend underground if the city is under attack or suffers some other catastrophe.
C) Galaxy Patrol Central - Precinct One - Headquarters and Command Post of Blast City's Finest, the Galaxy Patrol. The name is a holdover from the organization the alien refugee's used to police their region of space prior to the Dreggetti invasion that forced them to escaped to Earth.
At present, the Galaxy Patrol doesn't actually 'patrol the galaxy'. I mean, c'mon. They do protect the citizens of the Sol System, enforce the law on its various inhabited planets, moons, and asteroids, investigate interplanetary crimes, and most important of all, regulate the unauthorized use of supernormal abilities.
A much put upon sub-division functions as Truant Officers who make sure the students of Blast City High School don't do anything crazy.
D) Blast City High School - [The main focus of most of the campaigns I've run using this setting] the heart and soul of Blast City are the students and facility of Blast City High. While it is a free, public school, an entry examination is required to get it. Students take fundamental class in English, Literature, History, Science, Art, etc., as well as elective esoteric courses such as Applied Mad Science, Combat Geometry, and Lollygagging Throught Life 101.
Gym classes include Superpower Use Training for members of the student body with extranormal Human or alien abilities. In addition, BCH boasts the best High School Boogie Ball Team in the Sol System! Go Starbirds! The school has a particularly intense rivalry with Mars High of Utopia Planitia.
Many BCH students go on to attend Blast CIty University and get jobs in such exciting careers as Superhero, Space Explorer, or 5th Dimensonal Accountant.
E) Sol Institute of Super Science - Some of greatest and most unpredictable minds in the fields of Quantum Physics, Extra-Dimensional Travel, Exobiology, and Hyperspatial Engineering work at SISS, researching and developing the innovative answers to tomorrow's question today!
F) Offworld Amusement Park - Featuring innovative rides and plenty of food vendors, the Offworld Amusement Park is a favorite destination of kids of all ages in Blast City and beyond. While much of Blast City caters towards helping alien assimilate to Earth culture, the Offworld Amusement Park celebrates the interests and tastes of extraterrestrials and the Humans who want to learn more about them.
The park is split into five major sections, each based on a different planet, with the food, rides, and attractions within based on the culture and/or ecosystems of those worlds. Every section contains 2-3 elements from other worlds as well and there are plans to expand to include more 'worlds' in the future.
Rides utilize advanced Environmental Control and Artifical Gravity to create unusual experiences such as the Tubular Floom, the Climb & Dive, and Bumper Pods. Food options include variations on Earth fare like Zlogburgers and Gorpogo Ice Cream (a little pricey - Gorpogo's are very difficult to milk) to classic alien dishes like Zlent Pucks and Fried Nanite Fritters (a favorite of Cyborgs).
Ticket prices are reasonable with discounts for young children, students, families, and there are three-day packages available! The first twenty-five visitors each day get a free picture with park mascot and popular cartoon character 'Offworld Ollie'!
G) Stellar Nightinggale Hospital - This medical facility focuses on special surgeries, rare alien diseases, and advanced medical research. The experimental cybernetics inside of Blast City High School student Miquel 'Mecha' Herrera were made here [and the operation performed on him to install them were done here as well]. It is named for a medical supply ship that arrived sometime after the initial starship's landing, having been damaged by a Dreggetti attack. The building is constructed out of the vessel's hull.
H) ReEntry Island - The first place and last place you see when entering or leaving Blast City is ReEntry Island, constructed from the remains of an advanced Scout Probe. In addition to serving as a 'Chamber of Commerce' information site and toll booth (no toll for permenant residents of Blast City), ReEntry Island also functions as a security check point. The central tower on the island is equipped with extremely advanced communication and sensor gear second only to Blast City Central Control (in the robot 'head').
Blast City Like a Local:
The most notable neighborhoods of the city are Upper Thorax (the robot's chest) which is the business and commercial district, North Brachium (upper right arm) which is mostly upper and upper-middle class families, South Brachium (upper left arm) where middle class families and lots of single people live, Lower Pelvis (the robot's stomach to groin region) is a mix of commerical and residental and also includes Blast City High School, and the tough parts of town - North and South Talus (the robot's ankle to lower shins). Watch yourself around these areas! While they have great bars and nightclubs and a thriving art and music community, a lot of dicey characters hang out there at night.
The sport of Boogie Ball is all the rage in Blast City and throughout the Sol System. It is an amalgam of a alien game and a number of Earth sports. The home team are the Blast City Blazers and they have won the Sol System Championship for the past 5 years in a row! Blast City University boasts the BCU Shooting Stars, while Blast City High School has the Starbirds - Go Starbirds! The game is played by two teams of 7 facing off against each other to get a flying ball into a goal using what looks like a cross between a radar dish and a lacrosse stick. Each player rides a hover board across the field, which consists of a large (preferably olympic size) swimming pool. It's a rough and very fast moving sport that most closely resembles Earth lacrosse and hockey. Kinda sorta.
If you're in town, catch a game!
Blast City's popular fast food chain WinkyDink's, often called Winky D's by natives, has over a dozen locations throughout the 'Big Blaster'. The best one, according to a survey of students attending Blast City High, is located a few blocks Southeast of the school in the area known as Lower Pelvis. Get the Big Winky Deluxe if you're really hungry! It's sooo worth it.
North and South Talus, especially South Talus, has underground Superpowered and Supernatural Fight Clubs! Some serious and dangerous customers can be found there and that's just the attendees! You should see the combatants! Yikes!
Teenagers from Outer Space and Blast CIty Blues
I created Blast City in 1987 as the backdrop for my first TFOS campaign, which I titled 'Blast City Blues'. Inspired by Macross City from the classic Japanese Anime 'Super Dimensional Fortress Macross' (which arrived here as R-word: The Macross Saga), I noted to myself that the city in Macross is built around the transformable starship/robot. What I wanted to do was go one step further and have the city BE the transformable starship/robot and vice versa.
Over the course of dozens of sessions and a few later campaigns, the city was fleshed out in great detail. The image up top shows many areas and features from my games that I didn't detail here because if I did this post would be alot longer than it already is and its already really long. Gomen nasai.
To describe every NPC, location, and the ever expanding milieu of Blast City and its universe could easily take up an RPG sourcebook product. Maybe some day.
Well that's the first entry in my City Guide series. Did you like it? Hate it? Something I could do to make it better? Is there a feature of City gaming you think I should include? Please let me know in the comments.
See you soon,
AD
Barking Alien
