Awe Factor: Contempt
Tech-advantage: Low
Inspiration: Bubblegum Crisis, Tek Wars, Ghost in the Shell

A genre that has grown in popularity over the last few years, cyberpunk takes place in a dark future following some great calamity. The world governments we knew no longer exist, replaced by huge MegaCorps who vie for total control of the planet. Computer technology has advanced to the stage where people can connect their brains directly into the internet, and travel about unencumbered by physical bodies, or in ones enhanced with cybernetic replacements for limbs, eyes, or internal organs.

Robotics is also advanced to the point where specialized machines serve as servants, police or Security drones, and even combat troops. The classes are divided in two classes. The workers toil in the depths of the cities, serving the Corps - the Elite. The Elite run the Corps or perform privileged functions that allow them a life of luxury, high in one of the glittering towers. Falling in between is the criminal element such as Net-Runners, who venture into cyber-space to steal secrets for a price.

When the Titanic arrives in such a world, she'll draw scant notice at first. Her light show could be attributed most anything high-tech. If your running a Shadowrun campaign, some mage's spell could make blue glowing lights. Even the fact that her stacks are belching out clouds of black coal smoke will not faze the denizens of this world - the EPA has long since been ground under the heels of the all powerful MegaCorporations. However, the quality of 21st century air should faze the crew of the Titanic.

Eventually, someone will take an interest in the ship and her crew. Curiosity could be a motivator, as it was depicted in the Japanese Anime, Moldyver, where a popular hobby amongst the mega rich was the collecting of 20th century technology. Raw materials are another catalyst for investigation. Tons of iron and over 2,000 healthy human test subjects.

Once noticed, the Titanic and her crew will be beset upon by the inhabitants of this realm, who will after them to exploit them. The ship's main line of defense is the energy field that envelopes her. Harmless to those aboard, the field plays havoc with any sensitive electronics that pass through it, such as cybernetics, weapons targeting systems, or communications, rendering them useless for several hours.

Invaders will have the upper hand with the advanced weapons they carry (unless the Titanic stopped at a similar or more advanced world and the crew picked up some gadgetry of their own). The crew of the ship have the advantage of knowing her every inch, allowing them to strike from concealment evening the odds a bit.

Like the inhabitants of a fantasy realm, the crew of the Titanic are going to be looked upon as primitive. Everything around them is going to beyond their Edwardian comprehension. The gamemaster should describe things to the players as they would view them with a 1912 mind-set. Try to convey just how dangerous this world is.

When the ship visited 1990's Chicago, anyone who ventured ashore was treated as a media sensation. Wander off here, and there's a good chance your vital organs will have several new owners by morning. There is also the chance of contracting some disease spawned by all the pollution and industrial by-products laying around, which would lead to another adventure with the crew racing to find a cure.

There are great advantages to visiting a Cyberpunk realm... honest. The advanced technology allows PCs to upgrade the ship, perhaps even finding a power source to supplement the limited amount of coal aboard. The medical expertise of this world could cure or rebuild any sick and wounded members of the crew. And there are things that the Titanic's crew can offer this world as well - untainted blood for transfusions, healthy cells for cloning, knowledge picked up on another world, or the opportunity for lithe individuals to actually experience a new world, rather than visit it in a "virtual" setting.

CYBERPUNK ADVENTURE STARTERS

A Matter of Trust

Going ashore to obtain needed medical supplies, one of the landing parties fails to return on time. A day later, a message transmitted in Morse Code, requests a meeting with the captain and party members at one of the decrepit warehouses on the waterfront. The players meet a smartly dressed man (who never reveals his name). He explains that his employers know where the missing people are being held, and will lend their resources to retrieving them in exchange for a favor - allow them to perform harmless tests on every person aboard the Titanic so they can locate genetically compatible subjects to clone organs from. Wealthy clients suffering from terminal illnesses would pay anything for replacement organs. The man promises that the process is painless, and those selected will be needed only for two days. Once the tests are completed, the company will help retrieve the missing people.

In the midst of negotiations, several heavily armed figures storm the warehouse. An equal force of troops from the man's employers engage the invaders and drive them off. After the smoke clears, the man explains that his employers are not the only ones interested in the Titanic's passengers, but they are the only ones with honorable intentions. If the players agree to his terms, the company will do everything it promised, and the missing people will be returned.

It may be discovered later that the company was the one who captured and held the landing party in the first place, staging the raid on the warehouse as a further means of persuading the players to agree to their offer.

Come one, Come all!

Shortly after arrival, the Titanic is hailed and requested to sail to an island several miles off shore from the main continent. Once there the crew discovers a climate controlled paradise where they are invited to stay. Wandering about, they discover the island divided into several sectors, each following a different theme. One contains several live dinosaurs cloned from ancient DNA, another an old west town filled with robotic citizens visitors can interact with, and yet another a medieval castle complete with fair damsels and jousting knights. In all, there are twelve sectors, each one representing a different period in history.

There are also several other ships in the harbor, and at the small airstrip the players spot a 1930's Lockheed Electra parked beside several World War Two era TBM Avenger bombers (although they would not recognize them as such, without prior knowledge of the technology). Interviewing the crews of the other ships, reveals they fell through portals of their own, eventually ending up here. The players are shown a video recording of an advertisement for the island which ends with the pitchman extolling viewers to:

Come and tour the legendary Titanic!

Meet her gallant crew!

If the players decide to weigh anchor and leave, they'll come face to face with the security forces of the island's PT Barnumesque owner, who's not about to let his "Star" attraction get away!

Charting Your Course: Gamemaster Guide

Introduction
Fantasy
Cyberpunk
Horror
Superheroes
Steampunk
Alternate History