Sooner or later, you’ll see them. A silent patrol gliding through the rain-slicked streets, all black armor and reflective visors. Don’t make the mistake of calling them cops. The Civil Authority isn’t here to protect and serve you. They’re here to protect the machine from you.
The Corporate Leash (Their Purpose)
When Silas Vance and Aurora Industries built this cage, they needed guards to keep the inmates in line. That’s the CA. They are glorified security guards with a city-wide jurisdiction. Their job isn’t to protect citizens; their job is to protect corporate assets — the infrastructure, the flow of commerce, the workforce — from the citizens . They were created to maintain order, not peace, ensuring the steady, profitable grind of the city never stops for something as trivial as justice or morality. They are the fist of the Corpos, the blunt instrument that keeps the city running on schedule.
The Look (How to Spot Them)
You’ll know them when you see them. They move through the streets clad in black armored trench coats and reflective visors that hide any hint of a soul. They don’t walk the beat; they stalk it, moving with a cold purpose that makes the crowds part like water. Their patrol trucks, the “Enforcers,” are beasts of minimalist, brutalist design — all hard angles and flat, matte-black planes that seem to drink the amber light of the city . They move with an unnatural quiet, a low electric hum that’s more felt than heard.
The Grind (How They Operate)
The CA’s relationship with the city’s factions is one of brutal, corrupt pragmatism. They are the regulators of the city’s violence, ensuring it never boils over and threatens the machine itself. A loud street gang gets crushed, but a sophisticated syndicate that pays its dues gets a pass . For the average citizen, justice is swift, often violent, and always negotiable for the right price.
Their day-to-day is less about solving murders and more about harassing the populace to maintain the corporate order. Expect to be stopped for:
- Weapon Violations: Openly carrying a firearm inside city walls is the fastest way to get their attention. Discretion is survival.
- Illegal Augmentation: That cheap, black-market chrome you got from a back-alley ripperdoc? It’s not licensed by the Corpos, and the CA will fine you or force its removal.
- Possession of Contraband: Carrying unauthorized data-shards, scavenged tech that competes with a corporate product line, or anything that contradicts the official narrative is a serious offense.
- Vagrancy: Don’t have a registered address or a legitimate job? Loitering in a corporate plaza? You’re an unproductive asset, and they’ll move you along, forcefully if necessary.
- Trafficking in Static: Spreading unauthorized data-shards or anti-corporate sentiment. The Corpos own the truth; selling a different version is a crime they take very seriously.
- Illegal Power Tapping: The Warmth Grid is Aurora’s property. Punching a hole in a conduit to warm your slum without paying is called theft. They don’t take kindly to people stealing their primary source of control.
- Operating with a Glitched Bio-Signature: In this city, you are your data. If your bio-sig is unregistered, forged, or flagged, you’re not a person; you’re a ghost in the machine. And the CA’s job is to delete ghosts.
Every citation, arrest, and official incident is logged. It’s a black mark on your permanent record, tied to your bio-signature. A long record can get you denied for corporate jobs, flagged at checkpoints, and gives the CA all the justification they need to escalate force during your next encounter.
The Edge of the Leash (Their Jurisdiction)
The CA’s leash is held by the Corpos, and it’s cut at the gates to the Wastes. Their authority, their entire reason for being, ends at the walls of The Bastion. Out in the Amber Wastes, they have no power. They’re just another crew in armor, and their jurisdiction is limited to the range of their rifles, same as any Outlander.
So, learn the game. Know when to pay a bribe, when to run, and when to keep your head down. Whether you’re trying to avoid a black mark on your record or you’re the one writing the tickets, remember who signs the paychecks. In The Bastion, justice is just another commodity, and the CA are the only licensed dealers.