[X] My Assistant

[Brazilian_Shinob...]

Well, that too. Anyway, I'm assuming from now on that any major population center that has strategical value will be kept more or less intact using this bio-technology. Also, I think this opens the possibility of thr Air Force using more cyber to improve their pilots, while the Army and the Navy will be using bioware to enhance their un-Awakened elite soldiers.

[Fatum]

Well, that too. Anyway, I'm assuming from now on that any major population center that has strategical value will be kept more or less intact using this bio-technology. Also, I think this opens the possibility of thr Air Force using more cyber to improve their pilots, while the Army and the Navy will be using bioware to enhance their un-Awakened elite soldiers.

Well, don't forget about those biodome that were all the rage in the sixties. While, if I recall, Ares abandoned their Detroit project, Amazonia very well might have a domed city or town.

[sabs]

A dome futuristic city, in the middle of the jungle that's over-run on the outside by said jungle. That would be cool.

[Inncubi]

I come here as an invitation to work on the project. Now I suck at Shadowrun fluff (mostly) and I don't know what teh premises you guys want for this. I am also not a military expert or anything similar. I am a citizen from Colombia so I can give oyu guys a bit of local view on the matter.

I think that Amazonia is a way to cluster a lot of governments under the heel of magical all-powerful entities. Amazonia and Aztlan at war are interesting, and the Aztaln sourcebook used to put Bogotá on the border and show it as a war torn place. Now, let me tell you, the Andes mountain range is difficult. Very much so. So much we've had guerrillas for over 40 years and they're still running. Naval control is mostly useless, except in fluvial control run by infantry and "infantería de marina" (naval infantry), and helicopter oversights and troop transport. Now the helicopter pilots in Colombia are some of the best in the world due to extensive training and experience of actual in-combat flight.

My point is simple: this place is amazing to show low-intenstity horribly brutal conflicts in the Shadowrun universe, where drugs are able to pay for huge armies: FARC troops are between 9000 and 15000 men/women/children; paramilitaries were around 7000-9000, after demobilization in the 2000' first decade there's still around half that number running around, ELN counts around 4000-5000 men/women/children. Currently Colombia's army has about 68.000 effectives, plus conscripts who serve in administration mostly -EDIT: Apparently due to U.S recent financing and increase of the security budget this last number has gone up to 244.000 men. Ouch.)

Back on track now, the Aztlan-Amazonia war is probably one fought through skirmishes due to rugged terrain. Civilian casualties are probably very high and horripilant. Something like this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Gabarra_Massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Jos%C3%A9...%C3%B3_massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mapirip%C3%A1n_Massacre

Now for concrete cases: The Paramilitary armies actually had courses on how to dismember human bodies with machetes so victims could be easily hidden away. They used living persons for these exercises.

There is a case that after a massacre the troops started a soccer (fútbol) match using a human head as a ball.

These are the watered-down things I found.

And here is another wikipedia page that can be plunged for Shadowrun resources and how real world corporations have been actually indicted of financing the groups in Colombia. In some cases, there have been confirmations. In others not yet, but it can give a good idea on how to use plot hooks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramilitarism_in_Colombia

Some more stuff:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Self-D...ces_of_Colombia


I'll see what else I can get and post it here. Again if my help is useful, let me know. I'll give these kinds of links, instead of wiritng stuff, because: A) I don't write well, and others can do amuch better job than I at that, B) this takes less time off my day and I like the idea of collaboration, instead of participation.

As to bioware enhanced units... I'd say no. Latin America is a poor place. People and life are cheap. If you want to stress that, the enhancements are mostly second hand and bad quality, used to utmost effect. This is not a place where nifty toys are used by the military, but rather recycle, reuse and save (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) . Policies here lean more on horrible government corruption (taking a big chunk of taxes), then see what the men can use. It makes the situation more grim, and if you want to picture Amazonia and Aztlan, I think grim is the proper adjective.

I hope my post made some sense.