It all starts with a Prototype

If you're here and reading this, it either means you're a friend/relative, or you're someone interested in reading about my series of games. In either case, welcome! Studio Topia is a loose association (3 people) who have banded together to create tabletop role playing games.

Studio Topia found its roots in my Junior year of college at Western Washington University. It stems both from a good friend of mine who wrote his own RPGs and from a monumental inspiration I received from a Comics & Diversity Class I was taking at Fairhaven College. The initial result was a very rough draft of my first game, "The Neurojack Chronicles." After some initial success with a Beta version and some playtesting, I continued on and created a fantasy game called "Red, White and Black." As time went on, I added more games to my repertoire, found a graphic artist friend of mine to do layout, and an artist to illustrate what will eventually be printed books. While none of the games have been fully prepared for the book treatment as yet, Neurojack is closer than ever to a state of publishing readiness.

The Neurojack Chronicles

Ah, my very first game. I mentioned it all began with a Comics & Diversity class at Fairhaven. This is true. The final for the class was to create a comic book, in one form or another, that included diversity in some way. My initial idea was to do a story about a futuristic SWAT team on a colony world that utilized mecha (large robots) as a type of advanced armor. I seem to like acronyms and it was the acronym for the mecha that eventually led me to develop the Neurojack world. Dubbed "SPARTANS" (Self-contained Power-Armored Robotic Tactical Assault UnitS), these mecha would eventually grow into one of the driving forces behind the Neurojack world.

I drew a lot of my inspiration from one of my favorite RPGs, Dream Pod 9's "Heavy Gear". Set on the colony world of Terra Nova in the 61st century, Heavy Gear focused heavily on mecha combat and had a rather interesting setting. The world itself was divided, both physically and politically. Much closer to the sun than Earth, the climate on Terra Nova was much dryer and forced most of the populace to concentrate either in the northern or southern poles, where the temperature was not as harsh. Covering the entire equator of the planet is a vast desert known as the Badlands, which is sparsely settled by raiders, pioneers and others seeking to find their own way.
Mired by constant warfare, Terra Nova was hotbed of conflict, rife with intrigue and huge battles.

The world of Neurojack drew heavily from Terra Nova: the planet on which I set my story, "Asperian", is also divided politically and geographically. Northern and Southern governments maintain an uneasy peace despite vastly differing policies while the planet itself is divided by an enormous archipelago that coats the planet's equator. Various island nations exist in the "Equatorial Chain", though they pale in comparison to the might of the polar governments.

The Northern government, built primarily upon corporate mining conglomerates, is concerned primarily with profits and protecting their business interests. The South, by contrast, is occupied with preserving the agricultural stability of the planet and protecting the environment from the sort of degradation witnessed on Earth. The South also has the distinction of being the home of the first colonists to settle Asperian.

Add to this mix a new type of metal called "Illuminus." Illuminus possesses super-tensile properties, allowing the construction of kilometer-high buildings and nigh-impenetrable armor. Additionally, Illuminus can act as fuel in the environment of a fusion reactor, providing power for several years before needing replacement. It was the discovery of Illuminus that brought the mining conglomerates to Asperian in the first place, but there is more. In reaction to the reckless development exhibited by the mining corporations, various elements in the South began a covert terrorist war designed to subvert the agenda of the corporations. Among their number was a brilliant scientist who discovered a third for of Illuminus: liquid. Known as "Mercurial Illuminus", this liquid metal can be consumed by people known as "Imbibers" to transform them into something more than human. Through the use of Imbibers and terror tactics, the Southern rebels take their private war to the north.

There is a lot more to the game that I am leaving out, but this is the general foundation. Conflict is built on political ideology, nationalism, racism and social discrepancies.