Browsing through the core rule books I find references to:

• Densiplast...I think this is plastic that happens to be very dense
• Plasticrete...Plasticrete is some sort of hybrid concrete/plastic that isn't as tough but much cheaper
• Concrete

When I enter a remote research establishment, a high tech building, the basement of cheap housing...what am I expecting to see? Are bricks used any more?

Getting down to game mechanics, how would the spell "destroy plastic" work on densiplast and plasticrete? Similarly if I have "destroy concrete" would that work on plasticrete?

This is not really a RAW type of question, I have a player with plastic / concrete spells and high levels of civil engineering and architecture, so I would like some fluff to describe the sort of materials that he will be seeing and interacting with.

Plasticrete is primitive Nanotech. Also, there is:

- ArmorLite (armored plexiglass-like substance)
- BetonaPlast™ (a German version of plasticrete, apparently)
- Chromargan (ultra-hard steel alloy used in construction)
- Densiplast (hardened plastic often used in doors)
- Diakot (self repairing armored material, some of the hardest stuff used for construction, used for underwater domes and the likes)
- Dikote ™ (diamond coating that improves EVERYTHING it coats)
- Fixton (another German plastictrete, cheap stuff that rapidly decays in acid rain)
- Kevlarplex (a generic version of Xylan)
- Plascrete™ (Ares brand plasticrete)
- Plastiglas (some sort of transparent bulletproof material)
- PlastiSpex™ (German version of Xylan)
- Plastisteel-7™ (A first generation smart material that can be dissolved by a solvent that leaked to the shadows. Used to be very popular for secure doors and things but obviously isn't anymore.)
- PlastoBoard (Really cheap plastic and wood combined material used in really cheap doors.)
- PolySteel (Stauinless steel stuff)
- Securaplast (More secure material for doors.)
- Securitglas (bulletproof glass brand sold in Germany)
- Transparex™ (plastic glass made from recycled materials)
- Transplas (More expensive plastic glass. smart material that can turn opaque on one side or assume mirror qualities and sich tricks.)
- Xylan™ (bulletproof Transpartex that Renraku holds patent rights on)
- Zeiss ES16-Glas (Totally aresome reinforced glass with loads of high tech stuff in it that can only be shattered by the power of a dragon.)

Taken from a list I compiled once.

composites.

composites, ceramics, and plastics. old/cheap buildings will be the 2070 version of cinderblock and mortar. probably with some sort of fibers in the blocks to increase strength.

modularity might also be more prevalent.

Awesome answer both of you thanks. Loads of fluff there!

As far as "elements" for purposes of things like "destroy XXX" spells it looks to me that the following list is ok:

• Steel
• Concrete
• Plastic
• Carbon (dikote...etc)
• Ceramic
• Glass

Carbon seems a bit too wide; maybe 'diamond' and 'graphite derivates'?

Yeah, possibly a Destroy Carbon spell could work on biological forms as well.

For carbon I meant objects that are mostly composed of the element carbon: Specifically I didn't mean hydro-carbons, plastics or lifeforms. Just things that if you wrote the chemical formula for would read (say) 90% or more C. This means it would cover the different allotropes of carbon: carbon nano-tubes, diamond and graphite.

As a comparable example I would expect destroy steel to work on the different allotropes of steel, so stainless steel, cutting steel, dual-phase steel and maraging steel would all be damaged, and these are as different as graphite and diamond.

Put like that, it makes sense, yes. the others sound good, too. Glad I could help you out.