Ahoy. I was just reading through a few of my books, and I realized that a bunch of the more 'meta-plot-y' developments (the Renraku Arcology Shutdown for example) that I've been considering using at some point probably aren't around anymore, or the problems causing them have been solved, or whatever. So, I'd just like to know what ever happened to the following situations. Which books they were resolved in would be a major plus, as well as timeframe.

1. the Renraku Arcology Shutdown (fairly sure about this one, but don't know any specifics)

2. Bug City (Is the wall still up? Bugs gone? I'm in the dark here)

3. The Yucutan War

4. General Saito's Regime

Can anyone help me here?

1) Deus is gone. See Threats2 and "The network". Essentially, he downloaded himself into people's brains in order to escape.

2) Bugs are supposedly gone. Ares sprayed Strain III over the entire city. See Threats, Target: UCAS, the history in SR3, and MitS.

3) Still going on. See YOTC to see how it's gone from bad to worse.

4) He's still in power. Another Threats2 entry.

That's the books you need to check.

Don

Thanks folks, it's appreciated.

He's torquing off a lot of people, and the PCC isn't that far away…

Besides, this can't be good PR for the new Emperor. Can't even control his own generals?

Edit: or his own minor officers, for that matter. Almost forgot that Saito wasn't a general 'till he proclaimed himself one. He has none of the savvy, intelligence, cunning, or even help that survival in his position requires.

~J

Hmm. I thought there were some hints that he has plenty of the latter, even if none of it's obvious.

I dunno... aren't the more racist Japanacorps supposed to be backing him under the table?

His assistance: Humanis and their friends, Mitsuhama, Renraku, Shiawase.

His opposition: The PCC, Ares, Orkland and everyone meta-friendly in the area, probably the new Japanese emperor, and, IIRC, the Orange Queen.

The second to last is most important. If he (the emperor) consolidates power and really starts pushing, they're going to drop Saito faster than a pair of burning underpants.

~J

That's a big if.

Protectorate General Saito isn't going anywhere, but he's a toast to all those who hope he dies quietly in his sleep.

The PPC has far too much on its plate already. The takeover of LA overextended their resources and pissed just about everyone, including LA, off. Their own people are unhappy about the merger and the acquisitions haven't paid off yet. Plus Aztlan hasn't dissolved as a threat, rather it's become a wounded animal more likely to strike with chemical weapons if provoked. Even the STC won't back the Pueblos if they move to attack Saito, and the Japanacorps don't really want LA barely enough to push war with the PPC.

Ares is a contender, but it cannot directly attack Saito unless attacked. At least three of the Corporate Court members (Aztechnology, Shiawase, Mitsuhama) have already recognized the California Protectorate as a legitimate government and by law Ares cannot aid in the over throw of said governments. Hell Novatech and Cross won't do anything to help Ares even against Saito, and I highly doubt Saeder-Krupp would do anything but abstain leaving only Waxing and Yamatetsu as allies of the corp. No way will Ares risk a direct fight... yet.

The Emperor, as said, is a great big fraggin' IF.

Saito also only has 25,000 troops to back him up. With no reinforcements to replace those that die. He may recieve tactical and logistical support under the table from the japanacorps, but out and out supplying troops wouldn't be anywhere near as deniable.

If he stayed in SF, he could reasonably hold on to it, but by trying to expand he's overextending and setting himself up for a fall.

As it stands, there's no one there to tip his house of cards over just yet.

I think he'll start integrating the Californian forces to supplement his own right quick. He's already got Sacramento in his pocket and there's nothing to stop him from using the rest of the Californian military to keep guard on the North and South while he presses East. 25,000 troops with the best equipment money can buy, compared to Ares with their 5,000...

He's the invader; why on earth would the CFS citizenship cooperate?

He just does not have the troops to occupy more then the isolated 'plexes of Sac and SF (leaving him cut off from quick reinforcement from the other 'plex). And Sac's only because they didn't put up a fight and are working on destablizing Saito's regime through underhanded tactics.

Because some people like the Japanese there. Every occupied country has its collaborators.

Collaberation would only extend as far as SF.

Anyone who would have agreed with the japanese pov would have already moved there. Anyone who didn't agree with the japanese pov (and there is far more of these then CFS or YotC makes out), but were previous in SF, have been forcibly moved outside of it. Into the territory he's trying to expand into.

Still, whatever collaborators he may garner, is no where near the amount of troops needed to occupy that much high population density land area.

He has SF because of the "purification" process. He has Sac because the politicians rolled over rather then putting up any overt resistance.

Any other land grab is suicide. He just does not have the forces necessary to occupy. Attacking he can do fine. Take the land once the day is won? Hardly.

Saito is a paper tiger.

Perhaps. Someone managed to convince me using the example of the U.S. occupation of Iraq.

Of course, he also relied on the size of the divisions being large enough that they'd have ~40,000 Marines, and not 25k.

Also remember the US only really has to occupy the areas around the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers. There's a lot of land in Iraq with absolutly jack for population density.

i've always assumed that Saito's been importing mercenaries to supplement his forces.

Or recruiting local racists.

On the Iraq parallel.... California today has 34 million people, and Iraq has 22 million. If you cut out San Diego and Los Angeles to get down to the CFS size, you probably do get a similar population between the two.

However... the average income in CA today is around $35,000 a year. In Iraq, it's between $450 and $600. That makes a big difference in how many guns you can buy, how many mercs you can buy, etc. California residents would be in a much better position to fight back.

Also, if Saito has 25,000 troops or even 40,000 troops.... There are over 140,000 US troops in Iraq, plus around 30,000 more non-US troops. Coalition forces in Iraq have a massive technical and financial advantage over their enemies. And despite that, it would be a stretch to call the situation in Iraq "under control" of coalition forces.

--K.

Saito isn't causing chaos, he's bringing order, which is something the vast majority of the human population in CFS likes. The population is soft and used to the good life (such as it is in 2063) and has been under Japanese/corp supervision for quite a while. They may have a high income, but it's not being shunted to the insurgency trust fund, it's buying food, pricy condos, NERPS, p-sec's, etc. Saito's also got better PR, according to Threats2. It's very easy to just not do anything when the streets are safe, and it's only the metas that have any trouble.

The analogy with Iraq breaks down because the native insurgency isn't acting alone, it's supported by outside influences and presumably money and the local propaganda machines.

If present day diversity justified a lack of racism, there'd be no racism in Seattle, either. That's one of the things, I think, we have to take at face value in SR.

Isn't Humanis just as strong in CFS as anywhere? I think they'd be just as bold, given that some of their goals are already accomplished in SF (metas herded into ghetto). And if Saito can accomplish that, why not help? If it's a contest between who they hate more, the corps or the metas, I think they'd pick the metas to hate on any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

And again, I reiterate, Saito is not just some loon with a private army (well, he is from our standpoint, but...). He's providing a valuable service by keeping the city crime-free. By providing order in a disastrously unstable world, he makes himself a legitimate authority. Contentment with security and complacency will keep the humans in line and maybe even recruit a few who want to do good by their community.

I'll grant you that he is invading Sacramento. And that any further expansion is nonsense. I agreed with that already; I'm pointing out that he has ways of maintaining a subsistence-level police state with what he's got. Actually, I think there's a slight misunderstanding here. I'm not saying CFS is Saito's for the taking, so I don't care that SF isn't representative of the entire CFS. I'm just talking about what he's already got.

How is he invading SF? It's already a corp town. The corps and the Japanese have been there for years. He's just the new CO, basically. So he's taking a slightly more active hand; he's keeping the streets clean. That's even his message: "Sure, I'm not from here, but I love this country, and can't bear to leave it unprotected. With that in mind, I'm going to be making sure that no deviants will be polluting this fair city."

Don't underestimate Saito, and also don't rush to stereotype him.

Saito is a rascist, no doubt. Not in the "metahumans must die for the metahuman conspiracy" type of rascist, but the far more complex and subtle rascist who sees the world as black and white, and categorizes trouble as coming from metahumans. Partially, he's right. Crime and instability did more commonly come from the metahuman enclaves, though not really because metahumans are bad people. You just have enclaves of unemployed, downtrodden, angry young metahumans who want to vent. Take a look at what is going on in areas of the Middle East from Islamabad to Najaf.

Saito is also very sharp. He's not spewing racial hatred everywhere. In his words, he is preserving California and returning stability to an area that has the potential to completely break down in the absense of the Japanese troops. Which is also partially correct. There are many entities that would love to carve California up (Hestaby, the Tir, PCC, Aztlan, even various flavors of Californians) and the central Sacramento government is largely too weak to stop it from happening. And while Saito is, in fact, carving his own piece of California, he's ensuring the status quo. To the ordinary Joe Californian who lives in the Protectorate now (note that Joe Californian is likely human), life hasn't changed much. If anything, it's gotten a bit more stable and peaceful, because racial violence is less visible (Saito's moved it out of the spotlight) and Saito can actually back up his words with force if necessary, unlike the Sacramento government.

And while Saito is absolutely tricky and slick, he does also believe what he preaches. He does love California, he'd gotten very comfortable there during his time as a Japanese peacekeeper. And he does actually feel as if he's protecting the Californian people. Take current-day events as an example again. The current presidential administration in America certainly has its detractors, but few will say that President Bush doesn't honestly think he's doing the right thing in Iraq.

Also, Saito is not blind to the idea that Californians in the central valley would be opposed to a foreigner coming in and running the show. He's relying a great deal on proxies in the Sacramento area. Local figureheads he's swayed to be his voice there, who aren't Japanese. Local militias to enforce control, who aren't Japanese, but are Joe and Bob Smith from down the street. Some of them bristle at the idea that Saito is running the show up top, but they have more freedom to act and get things done than they have ever had, so it's hard to dispute that. Also, they know they'd have a rough time keeping out the other, far worse, power players on their own.

Saito is bringing security, peace, and jobs to the local Californian population, and though more than a few people wonder what's really going on, and whether they like it, it's hard to argue when you're more likely to live to see tomorrow and more likely to have the money to put food on your table. The company that just built a plant in your town and is hiring might be owned by Mitsuhama through various shells and subsidiaries, but most people don't know that, or don't care. They just got a job, things are looking good.

There's a serious power-play in California to be the person that seems like the "good guy." Saito and Hestaby are both fighting for that image, and both are enjoying success to good degrees with various groups of people. One advantage Saito enjoys there, though, is that while he's Japanese, he's not a gigantic, scaly lizard who could swallow you whole.

Oh yeah, the other important thing to note. Saito is certainly a bad cookie if you happen to be a metahuman, but the people acting behind the scene are worse. Groups like Alamos 20K and Human Nation are all sorts of involved in the behind-the-scenes parts of Saito's Protectorate. These guys have global reach and established bases of influence and power, and have a vested interest in seeing Saito's Protectorate survive and thrive. So while it may seem like Saito has an array of powerful enemies lined up against him, he's one canny human, and you've only got to break out your old copy of Threats to see some of the powerful allies he has also.

Indeed. Group XYZ might love Saitoh for helping kill the metas, but group ZYX might hate him just as much as the metas 'cause he's one of those. You know, the ones without just the right ancestry.

~J

I normally don't harp on spelling, but... R-a-c-i-s-m. It's racism. Sorry, but I see it's spread to another person already, and it's driving me nuts

Anyway, the main thing that Saito probably has going for him is that there is just no unity or authority in the CFS to oppose him. He's got a strong base in San Francisco; it was already practically ruled by the Japanese, so the populace has probably adjusted fairly easily. Sure, the folks in Orkland or the Northern Crescent might band against him, but unless some fantastic leader comes along, they don't stand a chance. There's really no one anywhere with the authority or power to dislodge him. Maybe Tir Tairngire, if it was so inclined, but there's no reason to think that just yet.

Or in a means to further enhance other meta-plotlines, have someone else do it.

I haven't read the whole post so please forgive me if I am wrong. But aren't people missing the fact that Santa Cruz is the smallest County in Califonia and has 80,000 people. Why do I bring this fact up? Because from my understanding there are at large a battalion of CFS rangers. Meaning that yes, within a year or two the CFS rangers could have trained an army large enough to over throw Saito.Or at least hold him back. And wile Ares can't over throw Saito, they can help the CFS..It is also a regonized nation, bu the UN,and CC.

Ok, one thing that I think not alot of people are taking into account here, is exactly how racist California as a whole state is in Shadowrun. And I'm not just talking Central Valley here people. I happened to be lucky enough to get my mits on the California Free State Book, a bit back and on reading through it I came to the following conclusions.

The Northern Cressent is incredibly racist. But its fragmented. Various groups keep sniping at each other. From the human Native Californian's, the elven Blood Ravens, the Ork Red Eye Tribe, etc. But none of it is unified. Its all fragmented and helter skelter. The other side of the coin is that the Gypsy Bands act as a counter balance to that kind of BS. They are a calm mediating factor in all of this.

In the Centrall Valley however (and I'm referring to Pre-Saito here), the racisim is a solid unified wall against Metahumans and those people who would associate with them. It's cold, calculating, and indifferent. Metahuman's couldn't get shit done in the central valley, with the possible exception of the Oakland/Berkly sprawl because it was treated as a dumping ground.

And keep in mind, this was all pre Saito. So he shows up in an area that already has a unified hatred of Metahumans, sure, some of them don't trust Saito because he's a forienger, but they get orders from Humanis and the Human Nation NOT to screw this up, or they'll up and "vanish". Some disobey anyway, and hook up with Anti Saito resistance groups.

Now, I am by no means saying that Saito's regeime is self sufficient. In reality all he has is time before the lid blows off the area. If the Tir can't hold on forever, neither can Saito. The real question is how much time he can buy himself and how much damage he can do in that time.

One other power player that has a vested interest in SF is Rumyo.
He wants the Ring of fire and in addition to being on the ring, SF is a major trade port. IF Rumyo can gain influence with the new child Emperor then I see a concerted push to regain control in the name of Japan(Rumyo).
However, since Lung is trying to undercut Rumyo's influence wherever he can, this could lead to Lung's support of Sato just to keep SF out of his rivals hands.

Sidartha's right.

Ryumyo has particular trouble controlling the west coast North American section of the Ring of Fire, thanks to his fellow dragon, Hestaby. Hestaby controls one power site in Mount Shasta, and sits on the council that controls another, Crater Lake. The only edge Ryumyo has in that area to counter Hestaby is Saito, who happens to have strengthened some of Ryumyo's traditional vassals, the Yakuza.

And Ryumyo certainly has never shown any problem backing a metahuman-hater. He had immense influence in Japan before the Comet.

That's my point really. Politics makes for strange bedfellows and any one of those Dragons and possibly other corp and government influences could lengthen or shorten Sato's rule because he really is in a pretty vulnerable position if anybody gets serious about knocking him out.