Setting

The game opens on Monday 5th September 2011.

Without the economic revitalisation that occurred in the real world city, Sheffield, the Kingdom of Rust, is a much grimmer place to live. Jobs are scarce and poverty is rife. Lack of money for repairs means and maintenance means that parts of the city are, quite literally, falling apart. Despite the over-crowding, buildings stand empty, 'condemned' notices stuck to their facades. The rotting hulks of the factories and steel mills are strewn across the landscape like so many carcasses. The place is choking under a thick fog of desperation and despair. Everyone wants to get out, and yet few ever actually leave. They say that once the Steel City has you in its grip, it never lets go.

Despite -- or perhaps because of -- the extensive urban decay, there is a significant mage presence in Sheffield. Most, if not all, of the Traditions are represented to some degree. They all have their own reasons for being here, but one of the biggest draws is that, in recent years, there have been a significant number of spontaneous awakenings in the area. This is one of the worst kept secrets among the local Tradition mages, but if anyone knows why it's happening, they're not telling.

The Technocracy seemed to lose interest in the area when local industry more or less collapsed. They still maintain a nominal presence, mostly focused around the university campuses, but there seems to be something of an unofficial detente within the city limits. As long as the local 'reality deviants' don't cause (too much) trouble, the Technocrats seem happy to leave them more or less alone.

As a whole, Sheffield's Tradition society tends to keep its distance from other supernatural entities and organisations. However, individuals -- or cabals -- may have their own ideas, and there are always rumours...