S3E23 Cyberpunk RED Chapter 2: Iron Oasis

Lair Of Secrets

Our Cyberpunk RED actual play campaign continues with Chapter 2: Iron Oasis! Technical issues with recording this podcast that caused the video to glitch and the audio to get messed up near the end. We’re releasing a summary of this episode so future episodes make sense.

Previously … on Cyberpunk RED

The edgerunners were hired by the Maker Enclave, a group of throwback techheads that aggressively void warranties, to acquire some new black box tech from Zetatech. The corporation’s farming subsidiary developed the next iteration of its farm tractors which – of course – have no user serviceable parts and software that can’t be modified by the end user. The Makers are looking to crack the software and liberate a few Southern California farms from Zetatech’s technological yolk.

The edgerunners learned the black box containing the new tractor controller was being shipped to test bed farms in Southern California via Stormhold Transport’s new self-driving cargo rig. Rather than try and steal the black box from the Zetatech warehouse, they decided to hit the rig … with a little help from the extended family of Omen – the crew’s Nomad (and an agreement with the Nomads to turn the rig over to them once the edgerunners had the black box).

Mission Brief: Iron Oasis

With the crew set on hijacking the Stormhold truck, they did additional research into the prototype. They determined it was a Titan 1X, an autonomous vehicle with an onboard AI and self-contained network that controlled its myriad features:

• Propulsion: Hybrid motive power: electric for the city, CHOOH2-based engine for overland driving.
• Cargo Bay: A modular bay capable of different configurations depending on the job’s needs.
• Weapons: The Titan’s carries two mini air drones for scouting and to repel attackers.
• Onboard Architecture: The onboard control system is a nine level net architecture. Access to the network’s data port is protected by a locked external service node.

Research completed, the edgerunners used old satellite maps to identify where they should try and take down the transport. They decided on the “Iron Oasis”, a privately owned junkyard located at the junction of a junction of State Route 101 and County Road 13 a 25 south of Night City. Across the road from the Oasis was the Mirage Fuel Stop, a CHOOH2 refuel station.

Before traveling they debated specific strategies for dealing with the Titan 1X, settling on two options:

• Using a “Roadrunner” approach to trick the truck AI into driving down a fake road
• Setting up some sort of a roadblock to force the truck to stop.

They also secured a number of magnetic harpoons so they could attempt to board the truck while it was moving. Atlas, the team Solo who was always looking for a something packing a bigger punch, secured a rocket launcher. “Just in case,” he said, admiring the weapon as they walked out of his weapon dealer’s shop in Night City.

Heading to the Iron Oasis

With gear secured, the edgerunners picked up their road car from Omen’s extended Nomad family and sped out to the Iron Oasis, intent getting there before the self-driving truck. Once there, they spoke with Remy “Rusty” Navarro, owner of the Oasis, and his right-hand operator, “Lockjaw” Lucy Harper. The edgerunners offered 400 Eurobucks – and an agreement to introduce them to Omen’s Nomad family – if the two of them would leave them the keys to the facility for a few hours.

They also spoke with Matt Rameriz and his wife Samantha, owners of the Mirage Fuel Stop located opposite the junkyard. For 100 eurobucks, the couple agreed to take that weekend getaway to Night City they always talked about. They locked up the shop, then headed out.

The Ambush

With the non-combatants dealt with, the edgerunners got to work. They used they strategically placed wrecked vehicles on the road to force the transport rig to slow down … and to move closer to the junkyard. From that position, the rig would be within range of the massive crane – complete with massive electromagnet – that the facility used to maneuver scrap in and out of the yard.

APT hacked the crane’s controls and prepared to go fishing for transports. Meanwhile, Omen and Angry Bob – in the Nomad vehicle – prepared to chase the transport rig. Atlas took to the high ground of the fuel station roof, making sure that his assault rifle and rocket launcher were within easy reach.

The plan went off beautifully: the rig appeared, thundering down State Route 101, then slowing as it approached the blockade of wrecked cars. As the onboard artificial intelligence tried to navigate the obstacle, APT snagged the machine with the electromagnet and hoisted it partially off the ground. The crew then moved to secure the Stormhold transport, with Omen jumping into the truck’s empty cab while APT deftly bypassed the security on the rig’s network access port. The netrunner jacked into the vehicle’s network … and found it oddly empty. The electromagnetic pulse badly scrambled the network, leaving it undefended. APT quickly secured the network and the necessary files, then jacked out.

The edgerunners popped open the back of the rig and secured the Zetatech black box. As they prepared to load the black box into their own car, they caught sight of an unwelcome visitor: a Zetatech AeroCop air assault vehicle … and it was coming directly toward them.

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The post S3E23 Cyberpunk RED Chapter 2: Iron Oasis appeared first on Lair Of Secrets.