One of the weirder things I keep seeing implied in Cyberpunk is the general level of decay. Nothing is clean, nothing is safe, nowhere is law abiding, nowhere is there a haven from the Cyberpunk era. This annoys me on several levels. But mostly cause it seems to imply that everyone in 2020 is either an edgerunner or a corporate executive. No middle ground. Just like there are no casual computer users. Cyberpunk's world is vivid and ultimately scarey because its plausible, but only if we look at the whole. A society of just execs and edgrunners couldn't function. So who else is out there and how are they living? Though part of me is wondering if this is just me being too literal about things again. *S*

There are actually a lot of people in the Cyberpunk cities of tommorrow. The everyday people who manufacture the goods that are available, clog the streets with traffic, spend the majority of the money. They are the faceless masses that the Corporations sell to and the Medias try to sway. They are the silent majority who just wish to live out their lives. And they are the ones who follow the trends the edgerunners might start.

They are also the source for most of the edgerunners.

But as with the Net, Cyberpunk makes really very little mention of these people. I can't really say why. Maybe they aren't exciting enough. But why do all players have to come from the streets, oppression and violence has no bias, it can strike anywhere. If you've ever read the book for "The Running Man" you'll see how a normal citizen became a worthy edgerunner and made a difference. Not tomentionw hat greed does to everyone it contacts.

Someone has to hold all the blue collar and lower level corporate jobs. We never really hear about them, we don't really care. But we should. When our edgerunners shoot it out with Arasaka Security its often these faceless masses that die in the crossfire. It is to these unknowns that the Media turns his charm. In fact the majority of people in Cyberpunk's dark future live much the same lives as everyday people today. The technology is a bit flashier, and the violence and oppression a lot more open. But they live normal lives, punching a time clock and working for a decent pay. They raise families and try to get a little better for their children than they themselves experienced. They provide all the juvie criminals that will reinforce the edgerunners of today. They also provide most of the targets.

In a city as crowded as Night City is guarranteed that sooner or later you're going to meet everday people. Statistically certain in fact. But in cyberpunk 2020 everyone you meet tends to be a defined type with a special ability and usually some useful edgrunner skills. Personally I don't think the majority of humans in Nght City even need to have stats or even histories, they are targets pure and simple, and only occassionally should evolved into more. But doesn't that counter what I've just said? No, I'm not here to tell you to make templates for everyone, or remove the street people. I just want you to remember them in future.

The everyday person is almost everywhere in 2020, they go to the store to buy food, something most punks probably never do. They buy screamsheets, they watch TV. They crowd dance clubs. they buy the latest gimmic. They make obvious witnesses, and enough of them can form a mob. They can call 911. They find things that get dropped or left behind, they shelter runaways. The clog the highways withtheir cars and buy the last copy of that chip you wanted. They do stupid things. And they also employ edgerunners during the day. And in case you think night will keep them away, there are still going to be winos asleep in alleys. Hell they are even on the Net.

All I'm really saying is try to remember them in your setting. They make up just as much a part of the background as the buildings and the decay. Have them flee in panic when the shots start, have them call the cops, have them get in the way. Why waste a perfectly annoying setting element?

I think part of the problem is that the game tends to see everyone as a possible NPC with greater meaning. Or it might just be an aspect of the games I've been part of. But there's really no need for detailled crowds, only when one of the does something noteworthy. Once they stand out then they can be made into full NPCs, but till then why worry about it?

Hopefully over time this concept page will grow. Reformatted December 16th, 2000