Bayou Bay

Created by Kirk Smith (put his name in the subject when sending mail).
[ Return to Main Page ]

Population: 18,000 permanent residents and 20,000-25,000 transients
Racial Breakdown: 90% human, 10% other
Education and Literacy: The education levels are low. There are no public schools or libraries to speak of and only about 15% of the population can read and write. The language is a blend of American and Spanish. Anyone speaking both will have no problem, but characters who only speak one will be -20% on language rolls.

Out-of-Towners: Anyone is welcome if they have money.
Magic and Psionics: Both are not a problem, but the only ones who commonly have these abilities are pirates, visitors, or other adventurers.
D-Bees: Same as the Out-of-Towners.
The Coalition: They are not liked at all and any CS soldiers are likely to get an unfriendly welcome.

Bayou Bay doesn't really have a tech level, since most of the products are stolen. The construction of ships and buildings is on par with the late 20th century (but using M.D.C.^tm alloys). The leaders would like to expand the port facilities to allow more ships to dock, and also extend their trade contacts further inland to more buyers. No major changes are planned or will be planned until the money stops rolling in or slows down. The only relations Bayou Bay has with any other kingdoms or cities is in trade, and they are always on the lookout for a new market for their goods.

Relations with Other World Powers:

Fort El Dorado: Has trading relations, trades goods for fuel
El Paso: Trades goods and sells weapons by way of the Rio Grande
New Del Rio: Trades goods and weapons by way of the Rio Grande
Los Alamo: Trades goods and weapons with them
Pecos Empire: trades goods and weapons
Whykin: Occasionally trades with them
Kingsdale: Occasionally trades with them
Atlantis: Anyone from Atlantis is not welcome, and will be refused port mainly because one of the ruling five was once a slave in Atlantis.

History

Bayou bay was settled some 50 years ago [circa 52 P.A.] It started out as a small fishing village on the new coast of Louisiana, and it stayed that way for almost 40 years. Nine years ago the town was taken over by a group of pirates and turned into a safe haven and storage area for goods that could not be sold immediately. Since then the town has steadily grown, because of the constant flow of goods and pirates with too much cash. Today it is a bustling commerce haven of legal (and illegal goods) and trades with many of the cities and kingdoms in the deep south, Texas, and Mexico. It has also become a haven for outlaws, pirates, Pecos raiders and other scum. Just about anything you can imagine will be and is sold here. An old saying in Bayou Bay is "if you can't find it, it ain't been stolen yet".

Government

The city is controlled by what's left of the original pirate crew who seized the town nine years ago. Currently there are only five, but they are very wealthy and either control or make a profit from all the legal and illegal businesses in town. Each of the five receive a cut of all the money made from these businesses and each also has a small pirate fleet of 4-10 ships which brings in a private profit for each. The rulers have no secret agendas, as it is well known their only agenda is to make money and make themselves as rich as possible at any cost. The only public works projects are ones that are absolutely neccesary, such as town defenses, roads (for the transportation of stolen goods to warehouses), and the upkeep of the docks. They do, however, invest money in any project that is likely to make money, such as bars, hotels, shops, etc. [and sports from the Juicer Uprising^tm book, I imagine]. Support for the rulers of the city falls into three categories - the ones who make money like them, those who don't make money don't, and people who don't care because they're just here for a good time.

Bayou Bay's Armed Forces

The city's defenses consist of 200 mercenaries (average level 4) in Bushman body armor, 10 Trident attack helicopters, and soldiers in flying titan power armor and armed with an assortment of weapons (they also serve as the police). They also have four large cannons (1d4x100 M.D.^tm, range 1.5 mi., 3 attacks per melee), six medium range missile launchers (payload 144 each) and 10 autocannons (1d6x10 M.D.^tm) overlooking the ocean in case of pirate attacks or a sea borne assault. It is also likely that pirates and Pecos raiders and other inhabitants of the town will come to its defense in case of attack.

The rulers are of the Pirate O.C.C. Three are human and two are of the Amphib R.C.C. Each has his own private body guard which are mostly human mercenaries, Juicers^tm (level 5 or 6), but some are of other races. They mostly use body armor and hand held weapons, but have access to almost any type of equipment.

Places of Interest

Pirate Jake's Weapons and Accessories: Sells weapons, armor, and other items at 25% below market price.

Bob's Gun and Pawn: Buys, sells, and trades weapons, plus cost is usually 20% below market price.

Cyber-Bob's Medical Clinic: Sells cybernetic and bionic items and repairs at 20% market cost, and will do Juicer^tm and M.O.M. conversions for 200,000cr.

Smith's Repair and Salvage: Outside town but the trip is well worth it, they sell just about everything, and usually 25%-40% below market price.

Bayou Bay Ship Yard: Specializes in ship repair and construction, and is the only shipyard in town, cost is 10% below normal market price. Minor repairs can be handled in a few days, major repairs in a few weeks, and can construct a coast guard cutter size ship in three months. This is the largest ship they can construct and they aren't capable of producing submarines.

Trident Arms Shop: Specializes in aquatic weaponry, and sells at 20% below market price.

Blood Sport Arena: this is a huge building with a capacity of 6000 people, every night there are various types of deadly entertainment ranging from hand to hand combat to team sports. There is an entrance fee of 200cr but it is still packed to capacity by 8:00 PM, for those who are unable to get in it is televised to most hotels and bars. Betting is common and the arena will accept bets up to 200,000cr in size. During the day (until 6:00pm) the arena doubles as a casino.

Other Shops: There are about twenty other small weapons shops, which usually sell 10-15% below market price. Three or four smaller cybernetic shops and repair yards also exist, and sell goods and repairs at 5-15% below market price.

Port Authority: is in charge of upkeep of the docks, and collecting docking fees, which usually range from 1000 to 3000cr a day depending on ship size and docking availability.

Police and Defense Force HQ's: A large building near the docks which houses the police, all their equipment, and also serves as a prison. Not that the police take many prisoners, as they usually break up fist fights and gun fights with deadly force.

Airport: Located outside of town, it consists of a control tower, airstrip, a dozen hangers, and a few small shops and a restaurant. The airstrip is capable of handling large cargo planes and any V.T.O.L. craft, and will rent hanger space for aircraft, and cargo with security for a fee of 1000cr a day.

Grandma D's Boarding House: Accomidations are cheap, but no frills, and security is minimal.

Hurricane Hotel: A run down three story building that charges by the hour (5cr), and anything goes short of all out war. Security here is almost non-existent. There are dozens of hotels similar to the Hurricane hotel, but they aren't as dangerous.

Plaza Hotel: Accommodations cost about 300cr a night, security is top of the line, and the hotel has its own restaurant. Laundry, room service and all other perks are free.

Waterfront Hotel: About twice the size of the plaza but charges the same rates and offers the same services and accommodations.

Anderson Hotel: This hotel is about mid-way between the Plaza and the Grand Hotel in luxury and services. It costs 500cr a night.

Bayou Bay Grand Hotel: This is for the rich and powerful. Rooms average 1000cr a night and the penthouse runs about 5000cr a night. The hotel has just about everything - pool, weight room, bar, restaurant, casino, movie theater, and nightly entertainment. If this is not your type of entertainment then what ever you want will be arranged and sent to your room, for a price of course.

Bars: There are literally hundreds of bars, ranging from the posh and expensive to the downright dangerous. The names usually have something to do with the ocean or pirates, but a lot don't even have names.

Houses of Ill Repute: There are probably 30-40 of these and again most don't have names because nobody cares what the name is but about what goes on inside. They can usually be spotted by the red light hanging outside the establishment and the half naked women on the balconies. One has to listen to word of mouth.

Odd Places: Other than the large, walled estate in the center of town (where the ruling class and rich live, and is off limits except for those with an invitation and authorized clearance), there is not not much else that seems to strange.

Alexandria: About 12 miles west of town are the ruins of a pre-rifts city known as Alexandria, which for the most part is uninhabited. It has been picked clean by scavengers, but the occasional pre-rifts item can be found.

Other Places of Note: To enter or exit the town by air travellers must use airport north of town. Ships traveling to and from many areas in central and south America, and occasionally up the Mississippi river, use the ports to the southeast. There are also three roads leading out of town for a few miles, but are not kept up very well. One road leads west to Alexandria and then towards Texas, one goes north, and the other east. Smuggling things into town is unnecessary. Visitors can bring anything into town (with the possible exception of a thermonuclear device) by paying the entrance fee of 200cr. Outside the city is a run down slum full of poor people, unable to pay the fee to enter the city. They live just outside the city walls (the walls are S.D.C.^tm and mainly just to keep out the poor). If you think life was cheap inside the walls its even cheaper in the slums. About the only jobs available are burning the dead bodies picked up every morning (burying the dead is not very practical, so all bodies are burnt). The buildings are made out of anything they can can get their hands on and fires frequently burn the slums to the ground. Beyond the slums there is the occasional farm, or village, but mostly alligator infested swamps and bayous. There are no ley lines in the territory of Old Louisiana. No churches have been set up in Bayou Bay but occasionally traveling priests do their work in the slums. The Salty Dog (the shop the pirates used when capturing the city) is now sitting in the main square and is the only monument in the city.

NPC's of Note:

The five rulers of Bayou Bay are Captain Roger Young (8th level human pirate), Andrew Rothe (6th level amphib pirate), Jolly Roger (6th level human pirate), Nathan Cooper (6th level human pirate), and John Bessemer (6th level amphib pirate). One of the few doctors in town is Cyber-Bob (7th level cyber-doc). Pirate Jake (6th level pirate) owns a weapon store now but is still up on all the latest news, and will help anyone if the price is right. Lastly, the Rev. Johnson (5th level vagabond) usually stands outside the gates and protests the evil going on in the city. He also helps the poor in the slums by providing medical help and hope. He isn't well liked by the people in the city and occasionally has to dodge a stray laser blast or two.