Future Portland Primer

[pringerbeam]

Cara'Sir AKA Portland
     Portland was better known as a small but trendy town up until the awakening.  With the formation of Tir'Tairngire the sleepy town suddenly became the capitol of one of the most powerful nations of the former United States.  With that came millions seeking refuge from the chaos of the increasingly wild rural areas and a better life in the capitol metroplex which gained the nickname "The Land of Promise."  It didn't take long for the things to go south though as the brutal oppression of any non-Elven residents and the focusing of resources on the wealthy districts West of the Willamette quickly saw the deterioration of outlying suburbs into barrens.  Now, a strip of the East bank containing luxury apartments and corporate towers quickly gives way to barrens as you move away from the river.  The West bank holds city center where the governmental buildings and top tier corporate facilities are located, slowly giving way to the west to the pleasant suburbs of those with SINs and a good paying job.  The forested hills and banks South and Southwest of the city center are neighborhoods for the wealthiest in the capitol and heavily patrolled by private security companies to keep the riff-raff away.  North of the city center quickly gives way to an industrial area that fills the area from the city up to the Columbia river and spills across onto the East bank as well for the same distance.
     The city has a dark past of heavy oppression of non-Elven citizens and this shows in the fact that while the estimated population of the city only slightly favors elves in the usual metahuman population breakdown, the SIN population comes out with elves leading the pack at around 78%.  Keeping those unruly masses at bay is tough work especially in a, until relatively recently, racial monarchy and various policies and traditions sprang up to keep the Elven nobles on top.  Among these is the tradition of the so called "Great Hunts" where Elven nobles and their entourages would set loose on the barrens and even in some cases the supposedly safe suburbs tracking and killing non-elves (and even the occasional Elven metahuman rights activist) for sport.  The practice waned with the change of the Council of Princes to publicly elected positions but has seen a disturbing resurgence in recent years with certain disaffected nobles becoming disappointed in their waning of power and wouldn't you know it, the Constabulary just can't seem to find any decent suspects whenever one rolls through town.

Security
     Tir'Tairngire has its own public police force: the Constabulary, which handles the majority of policing in the capitol.  They have a rather tense relationship with non-Tir based private security companies and don't like it when they make a scene but are just as ruthless when it comes to keeping the peace.  Serving in the constabulary can count as part of a Tir citizen's national service and many try for this coveted position over risking being assigned to front-line infantry in the armed forces.  Of course, this being the Tir, this means that the constabulary is primarily staffed by young elves with the more pleasant being allowed the safe jobs of working in the high-sec areas and the more brutal being assigned to patrols that let them take out their frustrations on any round-ears or trogs they come across.  Don't take these SINners for just some punks though, they still have to go through the same boot camp as every other national service trainee so they have decent skills and even the golden-boys are usually within easy backup range of career officers that can really throw down with any shadowrunner.  Patrols of the lower-sec regions are usually conducted by these veterans that have had plenty of practice duking it out with gangers and won't take shit from any runners they have the displeasure of colliding with.

Region Security Breakdown (General Guide)
Downtown (West Bank): AAA
Downtown (East Bank): AA
Southern Hills: AA
Western Hills: A
Western Suburbs: B
Northern Industrial Expanse (West Bank): B
Northern Industrial Expanse (East Bank): C
South, Southeast, and East Barrens: Z