i know I set up that whole TCM area for the setting of this supplement, HOWEVER… I don’t feel like working on it yet. AND I left out a few key areas on purpose, the TCM is meant to be Arasaka’s main territory and ‘heart’ of influence in Tokyo, meaning those who like to lay off their grids need somewhere decent to hide.
there’s a word in Japanese called “Shita-machi” (下町), literally meaning “Under/Down Town”. A shitamachi is an area thats cheap, unsophisticated, rowdy, and maybe a bit hippie or punk-y, think Camden Town or Shoreditch in London, for example. Maybe a bit less gentrified than that though. Some popular shitamachis in Tokyo are Ikebukuro, Ueno, Koenji, Kamata, Sangenjaya and Shimokitazawa.
out of all those, Shimokitazawa (usually abbreviated to Shimokita) is specifically unique, its got a huge hippe and punk culture with tons of thrift shops, vinyl stores, underground DJ bars and listening bars. The main audience there are uni students, young musicians and DJs, and of course locals.
since it’s such a unique spot, I wanted to give it more important role in the setting, Shimokita is right outside the TCM area, just on border with Shibuya ward so its a convenient spot to hideout in if you’re in some corpo trouble nearby.
that being said, say hello to the baddest gang in the area, the Shimokita Discogangers:
A gang of old school tech-obsessed kids busting moves to disco and popular tunes from the 90s and early 2000s, you can imagine their parties. They only dress in 5th hand thrift shop outfits, baggy jeans, old denim and patterned pastel trash that seem like they’ve been dunked in sour fruit shots.
LEDs wrap their clothes, they overuse flip phones, got voice recorders, a bunch’a the kids even go full ‘ganic. Made it pretty rough for the authorities to deal with ’em, now the town’s got a weakened law enforcement, and since so much of their communication is through landlines and even “paper” letters, its a pain in the ass to catch them with modern tech.
The kids ride around in suped-up bicycles, which help traversing the labyrinthian streets of Shimokitazawa. Think to just grab one of em? You’ll think twice next time, especially after getting dismembered by their monowire bike-chains. All while a VHS of Disturbed’s “The Sickness” blasts from their retro, duct-taped speakers.
what’s next for these guys? Well they need clear goals, enemies, important members and preferred means of action.
we can imagine they’d have some split amongst their ranks with kids who prefer the full ‘ganic style and others who like to chip in a little, we can name the chromed ones “Silver Hands”, you get the reference, and they made it on purpose to claim that they can still rebel, even with chrome. The others can be called “Unplugged”, like MTV’s Unplugged sessions, easy enough.
and yeah I did think about calling the former “Radio Heads”, and I still might change my mind.
anyway, we’ll flesh out their inner-workings and Shimokita next time.
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