I was wondering if legal/court/lawmaking rp was a thing that was available in this.
https://www.sindome.org/wiki/index.php/Withmore_Justice_Force
You can read the lore page for more information.
Additionally, keep in mind that many lawyers are really just "fixers" in the access/contacts/making things happen sense, rather than the overly-simplistic "moving goods" sense that tends to be the paradigm around here.
Many characters are unfamiliar with the law and it may be possible convince some to pay for legal instruction and advice. Just keep in mind that this could draw all kinds of attention - wanted and unwanted.
There are other 'sets of laws' that exist and it may be possible to find or create courtroom like RP on some places. But you really need to learn a lot of this ICly. A new character is like an American Dude in Japan for the first time ever - they have a lot to learn about the local ways.
More like a mediator, a fixer of information. Maybe you are a representative for someone. Maybe you get a client and do things to better their interests. All that RP is there and can be done.
Your character isn't likely to have any avenue for accessing this type of gameplay as a newcomer to the city. It's likely to be a long-horizon goal.
One important thing to keep in mind is that in SD, the top-top positions are always held by staff via NPC's. This isn't one of the MOO's that has player rulers or leadership, however, there's SIGNIFICANT agency within that restriction. Players can, and often do hold the #2 positions of power within organizations, and they tend to run the day to day operations, just understand that they will have a 'bigger fish' that they report to that will direct them towards plots, drive story for the game, etc.
But for real though, I can't recommend Ehrengraf enough. If you haven't read it, get your hands on this for an extremely fun read with a flavor that directly maps to Sindome even though it's not in a cybepunk setting. url]http://lawrenceblock.com/lbbooks/ehrengraf/[/url]
... as far as YOU know. :P We have a saying around here, which I believe is extremely useful for new players to keep in mind, since it has the effect of removing perceived boundaries and obstacles:
Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it's not a thing.
I have my own personal corollary to that, which is:
If you don't know, then your character doesn't know either. Doesn't mean they can't try to find it.
Be aware that it might take a long time and a fair bit of effort to develop the connections needed to do this effectively.
When conflict mediation does occur, it's usually performed by characters with substantial authority or the ability to enforce mediation (which is to say, the ability to kill everyone involved if necessary).
A more likely outcome is being a plugged-in political operative in some other position (business owner, senior corporate office, organized crime associate) but expect it will take years to learn how.
Sindome is very realpolitik, soft power is going to extend from a player's own expertise and ability more than their character's IC role in most cases.
Violence is only one form of leverage. And not even the most fun or most profitable or most themely.
Violence is absolutely a generally preferred mode of conflict resolution, I didn't say it was the only one or even the best one. But if you want to split syntactical hairs about it we can say instead that conflict is the preferred mode of conflict resolution in Sindome.
Sometimes it's great to talk things out and arbitrate, it's not always called for, but sometimes it can be in everyone's interests to do so.
Other times people just need to get stomped, Withmore Welcomed, reality checked, whatever you want to call it. That might mean vatting, it might be getting maimed or disfigured, or simply the 'fear of god' put into them: the situation is always contextual. A sense of actual paranoia and fear for your character's life will inject a fat shot of RP fuel into your character's life.
That said. If you want to be a bigshot go-to arbitrator for things, then you're going to have to strap in for a long haul. Connections to some of the deeper parts of the dome's societies are not easily gathered, and often come in the form of two steps forward, one step backwards. It's a great long-term goal to have, but don't try and walk in the gates and be like "I'm JoeBaka, bigshot player from
So, there are people who "generally prefer" this or that or the other. People on both sides of the admin wall. 95% of the time someone says "kill them", it's tongue in cheek - it's Sindome's inside joke.
Doesn't mean that other people's general preferences and oft-repeated "received wisdom" is the only way to play.
Stop acting attacked - if you want to use the kill hammer on every nail, go ahead, it's not wrong. It is wrong though to just act like it's the only right thing.
Soft power is going to extend from a player's own expertise and ability more than their character's IC stats and skills in most cases.
