To those still asleep or only recently awakened the world seems much the same as late 1990's. The Matrix has recreated life in that time down to perfection. This page will not however be about presenting all the available weapons and gadgets of a 20th century world. I have neither the time nor the inclination. Use the old weapons listing in the main rule book and your common sense and you should be okay. In fact in direct conflict with the usual type of cyberpunk tech page I will not provide that many hard details period. Many things in the Matrix don't need numbers because there is no way to actually fight one on one.
When the clouds formed the machines had to hurry and adapt, find a new power source. They choose their enemy, Man. When we see the power collector in the Movie it is a massive organic looking tower ringed by countless storage units, each containing a single human. Massive arcs of lightning lash the structures which glow a pale pink in colour. Before the machine arrives this is the first site an awakened human will see. The stack of pods just like his own falling away as far as the eye can see.
Home away from home. The storage unit is reality for almost every living human. A tube of pink gel little bigger than a typical human, linked into the complex life support systems and of course the Matrix. Inside the human power source lives out a virtual existence, his body never used. As such it is wasted and atrophied, bald and pale. This is where a newly awakened human will find himself. Suffocating on pink goo, trapped inside a membranous bag.
Unlike Cyberpunk 2020 the humans trapped in the Matrix are not reliant on a single I/O plug. They have many, a chain of them along the spine and several sub-ports along the major joints. Various smart connectors link the human to his personal waste and supply systems. These systems see that he is fed, has air to breath, remove his wastes and provides a perfect virtual experience in which to keep him docile.
An ironic title for this self aware machine. Looking much like a spider this machine is equipped to handle nearly any human medical situation, in a world were defective power sources are merely discarded. An unknown number of these machines hover, on anti-gravity units, along the power collector grids scanning and assessing each power cell. If an error is found they can effect repairs or dispose of the power source and request a replacement. To each newly awakened human they are probably the first moving object they'll see. Awakened humans are worthless and the Docbot will initiate a full disconnect and flushing.
Once flushed, a human has really few options. He must be rescued or he'll die. Simple as that. His first view of human technology will be the waiting hovership that comes to rescue him. These vessels, maintained in Zion are the only real way to get around the ruins of Earth.
Supported by anti-gravity generators these ships are fast and carry months of supplies. They slip through the darkness and the ruins seeking entry points from which to launch attacks on the Matrix. I will not attempt to give details on how tough,or how fast a hovership is. Its irrelevant. Except for an EMP pulse generator they are unarmed and helpless. Their only option to power down and hide hoping the machine will not find them, and knowing only the EMP pulse can save them. The Matrix is not a world where you can fight the machines and expect to win. Out thinking, and finding the Chosen One are the only hopes.
A human freed from the Machines has never walked, never really even moved. It has never used its senses, or had to perfect balance. Only its autonomic functions work. As a result its totally unprepared for life outside the Matrix. The children of Zion have mastered ways to correct this. Surgery to remove the cybernetic I/O plugs, except for the main cranial one is the first step. Then a long treatment of direct muscle stimulation and medical support is used to slowly rebuild wasted muscles. Cybernetic teaching is used to provide basic motor skills and synchronize the Matrix based memories with the new physical body. Once done the pale human will be fit to walk and will have started growing hair.
Zion is hidden deep in the ruins of Earth, powered by geothermal energy and therefore totally isolated from sunlight. At present no forms of hydroponics seem to exist and as such food is limited. What currently passes is a pale lumpy concoction of goo, with little or no taste, but packed with everything you need to survive.
The Matrix itself is dangerous, so training takes place in the Loading Program, a limited run simulation of the Matrix housed in the hovership computers. Overseen by an Operator, a human outside the Matrix assisting with data and more, the Loading Program is a flexible environment in which anything can happen. Here the newly awakened are trained and tested, new skills can be downloaded, and new ideas explored. History lessons can be unfurled. And of course any equipment the user might need in the Matrix can be accessed.
Originally an interesting side effect of nuclear explosions, EMP or Electro-Magnetic Pulse is very dangerous tool, but only to machines. When an atomic weapon explodes it creates a very highly charged wave of electrons that can literally burn out any unshielded circuit. Over time this effect has become almost as interesting as the bomb and as such efforts where made to safely duplicate it. The hovership carries one as a fail safe, if the Machine ever get too close it can be used to erase them. One has to wonder why the machines have never bothered to shield their own circuits...
These are the machines most awakened humans will have to fear. Squid like, these machines roam the ruins, floating on their anti-gravity generators looking for targets. Machines that never rest and never tire. They can also be directed to incursions, if the humans are detected.
Equipped with long tentacles and well designed claws, sporting a high powered laser these machines are formidable. They can cut into a hovership in mere minutes and no human can stand up to them in combat. Like malevolent spiders they are fearsome and lethal. Without EMP there is no stopping them.
Even inside the Matrix the machines have a presence. The Agents. A series of advanced AI subroutines that monitor and oversee humanity. Like the cliched Men in Black or the CIA they all look alike, all dress alike. Dark suits, sunglasses and ear pieces (an interesting note, the ear piece represents a connection to the Matrix, if the Agent removes it, he is on his own, unheard by and unhearing of the rest of the system). Capable of rewriting the Matrix on a limited scale and moving with machine speed and power they are as deadly as the sentinels are. They literally can be anyone, overriding a human's interface and taking control. Fast enough to dodge machine gun fire one bullet at a time, and strong enough to tear holes in stone walls. They cannot be stopped, merely delayed. Most cannot be surprised, since they are tied into the Matrix as a whole. If one should be killed only the poor human who was controlled dies. Some of the awakened can approach their speed and strength, but only a Chosen One can beat them. Oh and their most dangerous ability...an Agent can hack into and attack any system attached to the Matrix...the goal they all carry...to hack into Zion's mainframe and end the war.
Everything in the Matrix is code, and everything has a representation. The bug is no exception. A simple trace program this evil looking critter literally burrows into a human's interface and hides.
If an awakened human is captured inside the Matrix he can be killed literally or attacked by a very sophisticated virus. Its representation in the Matrix is a syringe of mercury, but its function is to attack voluntary reason and gain access to memories. Like the bug it is use is solely by the Agents.
If I think of new material to add to this page it will be added at a later date. Created July 1st, 1999