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The Surface - Zion - Hovercrafts
Nameless RPG

The "Nebuchadnezzar" (shown at right) is a pretty typical Resistance hovercraft. As you can see, aesthetics are given little consideration relative to pure functionality. Weapons are almost nonexistent, with speed and communications power being primary design goals.

Propulsion is provided by clusters of plates which project powerful electromagnetic fields all around the ship. Sophisticated sensor arrays bristle from every inch of the outer hull. The larger antennae are used to broadcast and receive pirate signals to and from the Matrix. These feed directly into the ship's central chamber.

The central chamber houses the neural interface units, VR computers, and broadcast equipped used to monitor and hack the Matrix. This is also where training programs are loaded into the memories of newly freed minds. It requires the most regular maintenance and is, therefore, the focus of most ship activity.

The small bridge and piloting station is connected to the central chamber by a ladder in the bow of the ship. The crew quarters, galley, mess hall, and medical center are all located below and aft of the chamber, with main engineering located in the tail section. Finally, a small cargo bay opens up beneath the ship.

Virtually every room in a hovercraft contains a trigger switch for the EMP weapon. Short for Electromagnetic Pulse, this is a Resistance crew's last defense against a sentinel attack. It projects a field around the ship in all directions, shutting down every electronic system within a few meters to a few miles (depending on geography). Of course, this includes the hovercraft's systems as well, so the ship must be set down and its crew disconnected from their neural interfaces before flipping the switch. (No rolls are necessary for this weapon. When triggered, everything in the blast radius, as defined by dramatic license, shuts down.)

Hovercrafts are incredibly agile vessels capable of extremely high speeds and complex maneuvers. Combined with a Free Born's intricate knowledge of the tunnels and the surface, they can outrun most machines... and many sentinels. (Allow a hovercraft pilot to use some kind of unmodified vehicle or piloting skill for maneuvering. Sentinels should have roughly equal stats, and other machines should have slightly poorer stats.)