Description

In 2088 only monolithic cities of trans-humanistic worship protrude from the crust of the earth. Between these cities lies The Expanse, where all opposed were banished. The first to stabilize an economy was Neo Tokyo. The 3 foundational levels that stabilized the economy are as follows:

THE UNDERBELLY
The Underbelly is at street level and is home to the augmentation junkies looking to merge with machines as much and as fast as possible. This is a wild jungle with extremes in morals and values. The Underbelly is a powerful economy completely driven by tech advances.

THE PEN
The Pen, home to the sheeple. The Pen is completely self contained ecosystem above the Underbelly. It is a stable economy but possesses a docile culture which needs protection provided by corporate security called "The Regulators". Now that The Pen faces a new threat from the villains henchmen, their fear needs to be managed because if the The Pen falls, so does the city.

THE QUANTUM
Above it all sits The Quantum, the home of the Corporate Elite. Completely sealed off and secured, these are the lever pullers. Their key to success was helping to facilitate a social contract with the citizens and their representatives. This unwritten understanding is what made Neo Tokyo possible and has yet to be displayed, defined or quantified.

When word got around about the quality of Aug's/Mods and the success rate, many, including Natalia Burtolla (an accomplished hacker known as Liquid Squid) rushed to Neo Tokyo. Born without legs, she came for the best money could buy. She quickly fell in love with the city and the feeling was mutual. She finally feels at home and will do anything to protect Neo Tokyo.

With great decadents comes greater corruption and the stench of that sludge attracts the greatest of villains.

When the villains henchmen hit the streets many were caught off guard. Liquid Squid was well aware and prepared for this threat. To The Underbelly, this was only a matter of time.

OBJECTIVE
A Super Villain is hell bent on terrorizing Neo Tokyo into his control. If he takes out 3 Landmarks he gains the levers of power over the entire city. When the 3rd Landmark has been targeted for attack the Super Villain himself and his elite army descend to make sure the job gets done right. Try to foil the attacks on Landmarks until you can assemble an army of allies powerful enough to defeat him and end the chaos.

DEFEND NEO TOKYO
Neo Tokyo is rife with the Villains Henchmen and natural enemy factions that will destroy anyone and anything in their path. You must protect the citizens from these threats. At the same time you must try to foil attacks on Landmarks until you are prepared to face the Super Villain.

BUILD AN ARMY
Build rep with powerful city influencers by completing missions, assemble your army of allies and temper public fear.

END THE CHAOS
When the third Landmark is triggered you go toe-to-toe with the Super Villain and his army with only one option for an ending. Explosive.

THE STREETS
The streets are the underbelly of Neo Tokyo and have 3 stand-alone districts which hold 36 key locations. The Villains henchmen are causing chaos across the city. It has become a monstrous jungle war between the treacherous and the savage. The Villain needs to destroy three landmarks to throw the city into proper chaos and take control of the primary levers. You must defend the streets while building an ally army and when you’re ready, end the chaos.

PUBLIC FEAR
During play the Villain will trigger events that spook the general public. The higher the Public Fear meter rises the more carnage the Villain will rain down on the city. Gain reputation with influencers and they will use their platforms to try and calm the public.

MISSIONS
There are 126 missions offering reputation and gadget rewards. When visiting locations around the city you can access Mission Control to see what missions are available and select at least one.

ENEMY AND ALLY POOLS
The enemy pool builds randomly during play, these forces are inserted into a scenario when they are triggered. A Landmark is triggered when 3 enemies appear on it. You build the ally pool and those are the forces you use when a Landmark is triggered.

LANDMARKS
There are 12 Landmarks across the city. Each has a unique one-shot combat scenario. When a Landmark is triggered place the scenario on the board, try to defuse the situation and exit with as much loot as possible. If an ally does not reach an exit they are removed from your forces.

POINTS of INTEREST (POI)
In order to hack from the streets Liquid Squid must enter a POI. POI's can be destroyed as well but do not count as Landmarks. Most missions involve POI locations and NPC's from those locations.

HACKING
HACK INTO THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENEMIES
Liquid Squid is a balanced dance between physical combat and hacking. If you have an angry mob on the other side of the city, not a problem. Hack in and set-off a Regulator Alarm, that will make ‘em scatter. Facing an overpowered enemy? No problem. Hack into his system, overload it and watch the fire works. The synergy between problem solving, physical combat and hacking is what makes Liquid Squid so enjoyable.

In order to hack there has to be a Mobile Hub in the district. You will always have a 50% chance that there is a Mobile Hub in the district. But you can gain control of Mobile Hubs and dedicate them to certain districts granting 100% hacking as long as you maintain control of the Mobile Hub.
In order to hack the streets, Liquid Squid must launch the hack from a Point of Interest. In a scenario she must launch a hack from a Hack Entry Point. Hacking consists of O-Hack/D-Hack gadgets, Offensive/Defensive Programs (Oprog/Dprog) and NODES.

FACTIONS
The Syndicate (Ally)
The Syndicate are a network of gangs in the Tokyo Underbelly lead by Robert Crisp. Attain Ally status with Crisp and they will join you in your fight.

Regulators (Ally)
The Regulators are corporate security and the law in Neo Tokyo. Attain Ally Status with Chief Yamasaki and they will join you in battle.

The Coda (Enemy)
The Coda are the Villains henchmen. They are a mixed bag of characters with a wide range of mod limits. They are exceedingly loyal to their boss, relentless terrorists and your sworn enemy.

Outliers (Enemy)
Outliers are the Villains Praetorian Guard. They have taken exceptionally well to merging with machines and poses a fervor to watch the world burn.

Mercs (Ally)
Mercs are deadly mercenaries for hire. They have a natural disdain for oppressors and Outliers in particular. Mercs further modify their Mods for optimum carnage. Mercs will join Liquid Squid free of charge.

Drones (Enemy)
These nasty machines are the Super Villains master assassins. They have destroyed the competition, even Regulator Drones. Now they only exist to hunt you and your ilk.

Block Rockers (Enemy)
Block Rockers are massive mechs with on board sentient AI. They will cut off passage through the block and are chock full of Gank Rating. Each of the three types of Block Rocker requires a specific gadget to engage them.

The Chimera (Enemy)
The Chimera are mutants who suffered grotesque side effects from merging with machines. Chimera can be found in the Underbelly and below. Besides general carnage they also maintain coordinated attacks of "The Pen" above.

—description from the publisher