Anime 2030 Game Log

Our heroes back ground.

Anya Rodchenko – was born in a small rural area of Canada 2014. Her home was a fortified camp a short distance from the town of Sackville. Life in Canada after the EMP of 2012 was never quite what it had been. Although some technology was rapidly restored, many areas of life took on a pattern that was pre-modern, late 1800s. In particular the car as an individual all pervasive device and the long distance trucking industry were abandoned. For young Anya surviving in the wilderness, working on the farm and training to fight for the freedom of the local community from outside domination were her world.

Things changed a lot in 2024 when uncle Stone joined the UN-Space Force. Everyone knew about the alien ship crash of 2015, but it seemed distant and unimportant. That is until Stone’s visit home after his three month training. Although he gave away no secrets, he did stress how important it was that people get ready to defend Earth from the aliens. Thus by the time she was 11, Anya had in mind her future as a space marine.

Anya arrives in Osaka, three weeks after her father Ivan came over to set up his shop; one week before school starts its new year. It was a total culture shock to her. Not only was Japan a foreign country, Osaka was a huge city of millions. Although she had prepared for it, learned to speak the language, etc, nothing could prevent the amazement she felt when she arrived.

Her birthday present this year was not a gun, as it usually was; it was a classic motor bike. So she spends most of that first week updating her driving license. Of course other paperwork had to be done in connection with the school and the embassy. Although she wanted a license to carry a gun, all she could get was a permit to transport a weapon ( in a locked box ) from point A to B.

So there Anya was the night before the first day of school, excited yet felling a bit home sick for the open green lands of her home.

Emiko Aoki - was born in 2018 in the slums of Osaka, Japan. Her mother died when she was young and she soon found herself living in the Uji no-habitation zone. By age 10 she had gathered a few other street kids around her to form a small gang her “hand”. They worked odd jobs and did small crimes to get pocket money. They scavenged for other tings they needed. Life was hard on the streets but Aoki was one smart cookie.

The “hand” include; the twins Yasushi (boy) and Rei (girl) Kawano, Tsuyoshi Takaki the street fighter, and little Miki Wada who has her own special power.

Things changed a year ago when she found a special deck of tarot cards. She always had something mystical about her, most people simply thought of it as good luck. But with the cards she could work some real magic, although controlling it was difficult.

She would still be on the streets if not for a chance encounter with a cop and his partner, who could sense magical powers. On behalf of the government, they offered her entry to an elite school, but she agreed only if her friends were taken care of too. So it was that

Aoki moved into her new apartment with her “hand” two weeks before the start of school. Their newly appointed guardian, an officer in the Osaka PD, took some time off work and ran around enrolling the kids in near by schools. Although he did not think she was ready for high school, her entrance tests and the examiners did.

The street kids got a crash course in normal life, they got a nice place to live and pocket money for food, it was like a dream come true, but none of them really believe it was going to last. Although Aoki took up the role as a dutiful adopted daughter, she had her own set of plans for escaping with her “hand” if things got really weird.

 

Kimi Matsumoto - born in 2015, a descendant of the great female general Katsumi in the time of Emperor Ojin, was a very average shrine maiden living a quiet life with her family, until she found a mystical amulet. It had been put away and forgotten at the shrine managed by the Tanaka family. Then as fate would have it, one summer’s day as Kimi’s family was visiting she picked it up and tried it on; to everyone’s shock she could not remove it.

It was shortly after this, that a group of Master Monks came to examine her and the amulet. They told her of the new path that she must walk. She was now bonded to the spirit of her ancestor that lay within the artifact. Some of the Masters wanted to send her into seclusion; others had a more progressive plan. Eventually it was decided, Kimi would attend an elite high school with the aim of better controlling the power that was linked to her; a power that caused the monks both fear and hope.

The Master Monk who would act as her guardian in Osaka explained most of the situation to her and her parents. The spirit of Katsumi – Akroma as she was known, could be a powerful force for the good of Japan, but she could also be a force of destruction. Legends tell that she had acted increasingly erratic in her duty as protector of the Emperor, killing any whom she suspected of trouble making, including Shinto monks. Because Akroma is bound to Kimi, she is the best if not only person to control her.

All this was some heavy weight for Kimi but she was not one to refuse her duty. On the bright side, going to school would mean a renewal of the friendship she had with Shin, of the Tanaka family, who had been like a brother to her.

Sainen Hatorri - had been planning for this moment for almost a year. Although he was over two thousand years old and had lived many interesting lives, he now looked like a teenager and was about to integrate himself into the modern world. It was a daunting task even for him.

After living quietly in isolation, under the Buddhist monetary he had founded some a hundred years ago, Sainen suddenly realized the world was moving much faster than ever before. The nuclear bombs that fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki came as a total shock to him. After a thousand years with hardly any change in the tech level, atomic weapons were being used.

After WW2, he went on a brief fact finding mission to examine the world as it now stood, entering the Cold War. It seemed inevitable that a full nuclear war would soon happen, so back into hiding he went. He put his resources towards building a very deep base to withstand WW3 and support him in the post war nuclear waste land. 

Although there was a WW3, a bit later than expected, it did not turn out half as bad as his predictions had indicated. Humanity had survived the 2012-2015 global conflict. But more critically they had encountered aliens. Something deep down told Sainen that isolation was a luxury that could no longer be afforded.

The dangers loomed large and something had to be done. The world was not ready for an alien invasion, even after 15 years of effort. So it was off to the elite high school, which his research showed was the best place to meet young people with powers and the idealism that could change the world.

As a right hand man he chooses Somni, a Buddhist monk with extraordinary healing abilities.  

( Let me know if there are any important errors or omissions, I will update the text )

Living Space

Here we have some floor plans that are typical of the sort of housing you may find in 2030 Japan.
Rent ranges between 50,000 to 350,000 yen / month depending on size and location. Typically you will need key money and a security deposit, each equal to two months rent. "Key money" is a one time payment to the landlord for the honor of renting from him. Rental renewal is every two years, and has a small contract fee. When you move out the cost of cleaning and repairs is always deducted from your security deposit before it is returned. Cats are often allowed, dogs much less often.

Here are some examples;

The small 416 square foot, one room, apartment with traditional separate toilet and bathing rooms. The kitchen is quite large by traditional apartment standards. Rent is about 40,000 to 60,000 y.

The medium 520 square foot, two room, apartment traditional separate toilet and bathing rooms. The entry closet is huge and serves as general storage. The kitchen includes a stand up pantry. Rent is about 50,000 to 70,000 y. 

Almost the same 520 square foot unit is this apartment with a western style bathroom. It has a small entry closet and a large storage closet off the main room. The kitchen is minimal - preferred by men who do next to no cooking at home. Rent is about 50,000 to 70,000 y.

The 572 square foot, long luxury, two room apartment. It has several closets, traditional separate toilet and bath, a nice kitchen and generously sized rooms. Rent is about 60,000 to 90,000 y. 

The 702 square foot, family corner apartment. It has two bedrooms, with the one off the kitchen usually used by parents and the other by children. The kitchen is a bit small but has a large closet. There is a traditional toilet and bath arrangement. The living area offers a great view with its corner windows.   Rent is about 90,000 to 120,000 y.

The new standard in large apartment buildings, the 1000 square foot, three bedroom unit. It has both an entry closet and a larger storage room. The bathroom is western style. The kitchen is an open concept to take advantage of the main room's natural light. All bedrooms have built in closets. Rent is about 100,000 to 200,000 y. depending mostly on location with in the building.

A house!

 

First floor of this traditional duplex type house, 727 square foot. Most meals are taken at the kitchen table, while the tatami room acts as formal dining room. There is a washer-dryer off the kitchen. Usually there is a small side yard 10ft wide, which may be converted to a drive way and there is a 20ft back yard. 

Second floor of the house has three bedrooms and a large storage room. Also there is the traditional separate toilet and bath rooms. Parents usually take the middle bedroom, but that is entirely a personal choice. Rent is about 100,000 to 200,000 y. Of course you will not find many houses near urban centers.

Character Scetch

 

From class C-3 here we have: Anya & Aoki the hobbit and the amazon. By the end of the first week everyone in school knows they are friends. By the end of the second week some boys have started a fan club, mostly about Anya, but Aoki works perfectly for the moi-factor.

Aoki chan ( Emiko Aoki ) Tarot Girl

Quiet girl who sits at the front of the class, very bright but she seems to hang out with the delinquents and the dangerous types. Rumor has it her dad is a policeman.  







Anya (Anastasya M Rodchenko ) the Amazon

Tall and blond, so perfectly American, but she is from Canada and gets upset if you don't know it. She is loud and friendly in the foreigner's way. But watch out, she joined the Gun Club. Rumor has it her dad is part of the Russian Mafia.

The Monster Murders

AKA the Psycho Killer’s Triple Strikes 

Public Info.

Over the past year there has been some 48 murders linked together under the heading “Psycho Killings” because all fit a general pattern of gruesome deaths. No normal reasons for these crimes have been found. Nor is there any connection between the victims. However the murders often happen in a pattern, with three people in a neighborhood being killed on three consecutive nights. 

Thus far no neighborhood has been hit more than once. The time between triple strikes seems to be random, between 6 to 24 days.

At first it seemed to be a connection to the full moon, but many attacks have happened outside that narrow window of time. Evidence from a few eye witnesses who found bodies gave rise to the Monster Murders as a title for the events, because of the claw marks on the victims and some times the nearby area.

People have tended to panic if one such event happens in their neighborhood. As they expect two more deaths to follow rapidly. This is something of a problem because the Triple Strike pattern is not absolute. Some murders are stand alone and may be the work of a copy cat killer.

Police Info.

The Monster Murders actually date back three years, but have been happening with increasing frequency. The total deaths are closer to 80 than to 50. Early on, there was one killing near the full moon and one similar in style but randomly timed, almost every month. They were spread out over the entire greater Osaka area, so no connection was made right away. Investigators eventually came to suspect that the murders did take place each month, but sometimes the bodies were not discovered.

Evidence suggests some sort of beast, or psycho pretending to be one. The theory of a lunatic with a werewolf delusion has been popular with the police and with the press. However as the number of deaths increased, investigators began to suspect it was more than one individual. A cult was the new working theory. Although the victims were not killed in a ritual manner, similarities between deaths (missing body parts) can point in that direction.

One year ago a special squad was created to deal with the case. They have been carefully managing what info is made public, in the hope of avoiding general panic and of catching the suspected killers. At lest one lone copy cat murderer is known to exist because his pattern is different in its details. Based mostly on speculative timing some 8 missing persons are believed to be victims of the Monster Murders.   

Occult Club Info.

The werewolf theory seems to be correct in the case of the full moon murders. Not all were wolves hunt and kill each full moon, but some do. The fact that the number of lunar timed killings has gone up tends to support the idea that more werewolves are involved. Perhaps a pack has been formed. The taking of bits of victims is not unusual. However the idea of a cult connection may also be valid. The wolves may be building a following of human minions. In a speculated worse case situation the wolves may be working with an evil wizard who does need the missing body parts for some ritual.   

But there is another set of murders going on, which are not connected to the werewolves, despite the superficial facts. These are more troubling because the creature(s) behind them are unknown. They seem to imitate the style of the other murders to hide their own nature.

The critical pattern that emerges when you strip off the wolf attacks and the copy cat killings, and then plot the murders by time reviles that each year they begin in Nara and move outward. ( This was the clue that the Club was following up on when it vanished during the spring brake. )

The Gun Club

Mission – You can’t protect peace if you are unarmed. Get armed, get ready.

The Guns’ Club is more like an umbrella organization with several smaller clicks and teams with in it. Although the firing range is open to anyone with basic gun training, the Club thinks of it as their territory. Outsiders are looked at with some suspicion. The Club’s actual rooms are located on the main floor of the student hall building. Located next to the gun range is an outdoor practice village; there is also a section of the school’s nature park fenced off for use by the Club.

 Students are NOT normally allowed to carry weapons. Safety laws are enforced.

( Permits to carry live weapons are issued on a case by case basis, a student must prove they are qualified, responsible and have need to keep a gun on hand. )

Aside from target shooting with real guns, the club spends a lot of time doing “paint ball games”. These are conducted with realistic guns firing low velocity paint bullets, not the soft round balls of paint. Serious players end up joining Red of Blue teams, who play in the inter-school matches. Casual players join Gold or Green teams.  

During festival time there is an exhibition game between teams; Pink-girls and Black-boys.

Each semester there is a Club competition for best shot, in various categories; hand gun, SMG, rifle and full auto fire. Accuracy is measured against a stationary target and a moving one. Unofficially there is the long shot sniping contest. This is held in the ruins, because it requires a target to be 1.5 km distant and the school has no gun range that long.  

 

  

 Kohta Hirano - Club President, not just a wimpy overweight guy with glasses, he built up a huge theoretical knowledge on guns in middle school, but never used one, until his school was attacked by terrorists. He surprised everyone by fighting back.

Kohta has no super abilities, but he does have a passion for military matters. His skills in the field are high-average and cover a wide range from weapons armoury to large unit tactics. His aim is to become an officer in the JDF.

Clera Higurashi – VP of the club. She does all the paper work and clean up. She sometimes holds weapons like they were babies, but she never fires them. She always tells people “please be careful out there”.

She is a high quality cyborg from Italy, who was retired from special operations (her death was faked) and adopted by a friend of her handler (smuggled to Japan). Her skills and abilities are frightening but she has lost the will to fight. She is at the academy to build some sort of normal life. Of course she tends to hang out with the sort of people she is familiar with, those in the gun club.

 

School Location

The OEAOE – school location

South-West edge of the Osakasayama ruins zone. In the Izumi ward.

A short distance outside the no-habitation zone (red) is the School property (purple)

 Satiate view and conventional map view.  

School Property

01 – the main buildings, including student dorm halls.

02 - an apartment complex and a small housing neighborhood for staff mostly.

03 – recreation park, open to the public.

04 – future development site, mostly left in ruins for now.

05 – large forest park

Near the School 

North of the school, towards Komyoike commuter rail station, is a small shopping district. It is about a 15 minute walk from the main entrance to the central mall. There is also a major hospital, across from the mall.  A bit out of the way is the public library, next to the large community sports field. 

 South of the school, in a small wood lot, surrounded by farms in an old Shinto monastery.

Getting there is a short bus ride plus a 5 minute walk, or about 25 minutes on foot. The road to the monastery is very inconvenient, using the walking paths is much faster. 

Osaka nuke damage

Osaka area – map with names.

Osaka area - map with location of nuclear strikes.

               These are the Ashiya, Uji and Osakasayama ruin-zones.

During the 2013 to 2015 conflict with North Korea and China, several missiles were fired at the region, of the 9 nukes 3 were detonation hits, the others were intercepted or neutralized. Many conventional missiles also hit the region, but they are not marked on the map. Their damage repaired by 2030.

Each nuke was a "small" 150 kt bomb causing a 1.5km center of intense devastation with lasting radiation levels, a 2.5km zone of heavy destruction and a 6.5km zone of light damage. In all three cases a 5km zone is marked on the map, because it is still a no-habitation area.The land surrounding these zones has mostly been been cleared for about 200m and turned into gardens. 

For more realistic data on nuclear strikes:  http://meyerweb.com/eric/tools/gmap/hydesim.html

  

Ashiya blast area (outer most ring was only minor damage)

 Osakasayama blast area (outer most ring was only minor damage)

 Uji blast area (outer most ring was only minor damage)

Wellcome to Osaka

South central Japan, 400 km from Tokyo. 

Osaka Overview 

Below is the area often known as Keihanshin the metropolitan region encompassing the cities of Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe. It has a population of about 15,670,000 (2028 data) It is Japan's second most populated urban region after the Greater Tokyo Area, containing approximately 15% of Japan's population.

For a lot of info see   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keihanshin

General road map.

 General topographic map.

Vector map, showing off the core cities of Keihanshin: 

Osaka (population 2.65 million) - red

Kobe (population 1.53 million) - green

Kyoto (population 1.46 million) - blue

Aspects of Interest 

Rail Travel

Greater Osaka has a very extensive network of railway lines, comparable to that of Greater Tokyo. Main rail terminals in the city include, Umeda, Namba, Tennoji, Kyobashi, and Yodoyabashi. 

High speed, non stop, rail lines run from Shin-Ōsaka Station and provide connections to other major cities in Japan, such as Kyoto, Nagoya, Yokohama and Tokyo to the east, and Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, Kitakyushu and Fukuoka to the west.

 Osaka Municipal Subway

First opened in 1933, it now has 8 underground lines with a total of 125 stations. Basic ticket price; 200y adult, 100y youth. No extra cost to transfer to a bus. If you need to transfer to the commuter rail line the cost is 300y adult, 150y youth.   

Air Travel

Kansai International Airport opened in 1994 and is now the main international airport for the region. It sits on an artificial island off-shore in Osaka Bay. In addition there are also Osaka airport (inland) and Kobe airport (another island), both of which handle domestic fights.  

House Rules Anime 2030

“Bulletproof Nudity” – this is not an advantage it is a cinematic rule for the setting.  Inappropriate displays of your body will gain you a bonus to your defense actions; sowing off too much +1, down to underwear +2, fully naked +3. This is not DR, it adds to your active defense rolls.

This ability is based on shock and the viewer’s desire to look at you. If you suddenly appear in a bikini at school you qualify for a +2 bonus, however at the beach people expect you to be dressed that way. At best a micro bikini will provide a +1 bonus. Also the ability is less effective against members of your own gender, unless they are attracted to same sex partners.

A classic example; a girl character gets her clothing ripped to bits in a fight; she may then apply a +2 on all defenses vs. the male bad guys.

Computer Hacking – quick and easy rules

There are two types of action; Easy – taking 1d6+1 seconds, Hard – taking 1d6+1 minutes. Any hacking activity usually requires three actions, each one taking time and a skill roll. ( This is cinematic hacking using the best interface tech. A more realistic time frame would be 1d6+1 minutes for easy and 1d6 x10 minutes for hard. )

System entry; Easy - sneaking on to a regular network, Hard - cracking your way in to a high security network. This assumes you have programs set and ready to help you, that you know some important things about your target. Going in blind will often take more time and you may suffer a -2 skill penalty in addition to any from security.

Data search or manipulation, the difficulty depends a lot on the situation. Easy – finding info on subjects that are well documented, Hard – subtly changing records or finding very obscure data. Creating a back door is another data manipulation action which is always hard. It has the useful feature of turning a protected network into a regular one.

System exit; this includes hiding your tracks; the difficulty depends on system security. You can always do it quick, but this is more likely to leave clues pointing to you.

For example; Action 1, entering a public network. Action 2, searching records. Action 3, erasing your tracks. All are easy rolls each taking just a few seconds. The GM may simply require a single role and mark the total time as 10 seconds.

What makes a hackers life difficult is the security rating of the target system. Light -2, Medium -4, Heavy -6, Military -8, these are skill penalties. Of course some unique and elite computer systems will have an even higher rating.

For example; Action 1, entry into a police network – hard task 1d6+1 minutes, heavy security -6 to skill roll. Action 2, once you are in, most data manipulation is easy, except for making a back door. Keep in mind running several searches or searching a huge data base will take minutes not seconds. Action 3, exiting and cleaning up, this is a hard task taking 1d6+1 minutes and facing the heavy security -6 penalty.  Thus the entire job may take 5 minutes or more and require 2 modified skills roles in addition to 1 regular role.

Penalty skill levels for hit locations.             Cost;  2p / 1 level or 5p / level

This is an advantage that effectively reduces the normal penalty for targeting a body location. It is a reflection of skill and training that comes in two forms; The 2point form represents very specific location aiming. You specialize in hitting one body part. Regular penalties apply for all other locations. The 5 point form represents a general improvement on your targeting ability, reducing all location penalties.

This rule is to help in the cinematic action, so heroes can disarm enemies with reliable non lethal shots. ( targeting the weapon in a person’s hand is usually a -4 )

Example; Bill buys 3 levels of the 2point form, to offset the normal -4 penalty to hit the hand. He now can target any hand at -1, but all other locations are unaffected. This costs 6points. Mark buys 3 levels of the 5point form, to offset all location penalties. This costs him 15points but makes him more versatile in choosing his targets.

This rule was intended for guns, but can be applied to melee weapons or unarmed. Each general category must be acquired separately. Being good at aiming with a gun does not carry over to your aimed swing with a sword.

Knock Back

In real life it is very hard to knock a person off his feet and send him flying back several yards. Guns don’t often do it. In this cinematic setting, any blunt or blast type damage may knock a person back, 1 hex / 10 points of damage delivered. The person lands prone at the end of the turn. In many situations a character may try to roll with the blow, making an acrobatics skill check. A success will let him get back to his feet as a ‘half action’.

Cutting and piercing weapons don’t usually cause knock back.

Example; shot gun blast to the chest, 4d6 = 13 damage, knock back 1 hex. ( GM may round off in whatever way is most fitting to the situation ) Let’s say the target had a DR 15 vest, he takes no real injury, but still suffers the knock back effect.

Extreme situations: For each hex a person is knocked back he may suffer 1 point of damage, if he suddenly runs into a solid object. A force blast of 5d6, with double knock back enhancement his you, for 20 points, which is doubled for knock back calculations.  You fly backwards 4 hexes, but hit a wall 2 hex away, you then take 4 more points of damage. If your armor is good you will not be hurt. But this sort of impact will cause you to be stunned. ( see normal rules on being stunned ) 

  
Teleporting by the numbers  
You need to see the target location, a second hand view gives -2 to IQ, or you may jump to a known location that you can not see, also -2 to IQ. If you have the special enhancement, you can make blind jumps to locations you calculate to be there (rooms you can not see) this is always a -5 to IQ. 
Jumping around the main school building would be in the 100yards range, -2 to IQ, from one end of the school to the other would be about 500 yards -3 to IQ. 

If you assume an 8 second preparation time -2 and that most jumps in the school are -2 for range and -2 for known but unseen location, you have a -6 IQ role to make. Not a problem if you have the full +10 from reliability enhancement. You have an effective IQ+4. 

This gives a good idea of what a teleporter can do.   
  
If you want to jump from Osaka to Tokyo, the range is about 400km -6 to IQ. The location would usually be a -2, known but unseen. With 2 minutes of preparation time you gain a +2. With the +10 reliable bonus, you are at an IQ+4 to make the jump. 

If a jump fails you go no place and your power suffers -5 for the next 10 minutes. A critical fail will send you to the wrong place and burn out your power for 1d6 hours. You can not end up stuck inside an object.

The Occult Club

Mission – To understand the tings most people refuse to believe.

The Occult Club was founded when the school first opened, given full endorsement by several teachers in the Religion and Social studies departments. There has since been several similar clubs which have come and gone according to student interests, most of them have focused on specific para-normal / mythological subjects.

The Club has its room on the top floor of the main building. Even though it has a computer, most of its research is based on books and its records are on paper. The room itself has many mystic wards and symbols of protection decorating it.  A locked cabinet contains a bunch of “magic” weapons and ritual items.

Natsuno Yudeshi – current head of the Occult Club. Year 3 student (missing)

He entered the school after his village was destroyed by cultists, who followed a vampire motif. He firmly believed there were real vampires involved in the death of his friends and family. 

 He joined the Occult Club not with a desire to simply learn about the super-natural, but a dedication to fight against it. ( School records show he has improved greatly in armed and unarmed combat since his arrival, but he has no special ability aside from pure will power. )

During spring brake Natsuno and most of the club went to Nara on an investigation. They disappeared. Club records show that they were concerned with a particular aspect of the recent psycho-monster murders. The police seem to believe it is a group of crazy killers. Natsuno was following clues that made him think it was several groups of real monsters, acting similarly but not in cooperation.

Iada “Terra” Mitsumi – acting head of the Club. Year 2 student.

A shy girl with good grades, she comes from a long line of witches - so she says. She had planned to go with the others to Nara but was detained by unavoidable family matters. She wants to find out what happened, although she is hesitant to put anyone at risk.