Hodgepocalypse Ontario: A Thousand Fragments - Part 4 - Oshawa: The Electro-Haven

Location: Eastern Ontario, bordering Lake Ontario, with influence stretching along the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Pre-Apocalypse History & Context:

 Oshawa was once the powerhouse of Canada’s automotive industry, anchored by the presence of General Motors, which employed tens of thousands. This blue-collar city thrived on industry and manufacturing, creating a proud legacy of skilled labor and innovation. In the decades leading up to the apocalypse, Oshawa transformed itself into a North American leader in electrification and automation, transitioning from traditional factories to high-tech facilities dedicated to advanced robotics and cybernetics. Though its stature never rivaled Detroit's automotive dominance, Oshawa became known as a burgeoning "electrification capital."

Post-Apocalyptic Oshawa & Cybercult Influence:

After the apocalypse, Oshawa's industrial heart adapted to the new world. Its advanced robotics and cybernetic research made it an attractive stronghold for the Cybercult, especially the Keepers of the Locks. This faction, obsessed with mechanical perfection and technological preservation, quickly saw Oshawa’s potential to become a bastion for their cause.

The Cybercult in Oshawa:

The Cybercult capitalized on Oshawa’s historical ties to machinery, tapping into its citizens' affinity for mechanical innovation and survivalism. Initially arriving under the guise of helpers, they repaired and revived failing infrastructure, including old factory complexes and automated systems. The locals, intrigued by the cult's technological expertise, allowed them to establish their presence. Small chapels sprang up, offering both worship and enhancements, while the cult’s influence began reshaping society.

The Cybercult's doctrine framed humanity as part of a grand machine—a concept resonant with Oshawa’s industrial past. Sermons linked old factory production lines with divine purpose, promoting cybernetic transformation as a pathway to salvation. While many embraced this ideology, tension simmered due to the cult’s austere, loyalty-driven lifestyle, rigid social hierarchy, and relentless push for cybernetic integration. Dissenters either fled or disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

 

Key Factions and Relations:

• Keepers of the Locks: View Oshawa’s surviving factories as sacred spaces. They believe humanity’s future lies in melding with automation and cybernetics and see Oshawa as central to this destiny.

• Oshawan Guilds: Initially allied with the Cybercult for mutual benefits but grew wary as the cult tried to monopolize technology. The Machinist’s Guild has emerged as a vocal opponent, secretly working to weaken the cult’s control.

• Greywatch: Scouts and defenders of Oshawa who view the cult with suspicion, fearing their hidden motives. Greywatch agents work covertly to expose the cult’s darker ambitions.

• Free Market Clans: Independent innovators who resist the cult’s doctrines and operate a black market for removing Cybercult implants—an illegal and risky trade.

Geography & Key Locations:

Automated Districts

 

Patrolled by ancient robotic guardians and cybernetic drones, these districts maintain order and symbolize the cult's dominance.

Plot Hook: Infiltrate the district to disable rogue AI that has seized control.

Canadian Tank Museum

The Canadian Tank Museum, once a proud showcase of Canada’s military history, now stands as a decaying fortress of steel and shadow. Its hulking tanks, abandoned on the grounds, are scavenged for parts or repurposed into crude fortifications by survivors. Beneath its halls, hidden bunkers and workshops house forgotten experimental tech—some say the birthplace of cybernetic warfare. Urban legends warn of mechanized sentries still patrolling the museum, enforcing long-forgotten commands.  The cybercult considers this a no entry zone as they have had nothing but trouble.

Plot Hook: A scavenger discovered a working prototype tank with advanced AI in the museum’s depths, claiming it to be the key to reclaiming the Rusted Sprawl. Now, factions race to seize it. Will you lead the charge to secure this prize, or uncover the secrets buried beneath the museum’s iron skin?

Darlington Power Core

The Darlington Nuclear Plant, once a beacon of modern engineering and energy production, is now a towering relic of both peril and promise in the Electric Haven. Encased in a constant aura of humming electricity and eerie glow, the plant’s reactors continue to operate at reduced capacity, sustained by automated systems and what some claim to be arcane interference. Its proximity to the ruined city makes it a focal point for scavengers, technomancers, and factions vying for control of its untapped energy reserves. Yet, few dare venture too close—whispers of mutated wildlife, sentient machines, and a growing fissure in reality have turned Darlington into a place of equal fascination and fear.

Plot Hook: The lights in Electric Haven flicker and dim as power output from Darlington suddenly declines. A desperate council hires you to journey into the reactor's heart to identify the source of the issue. Is it failing systems, external sabotage, or something far stranger? What you discover could stabilize the region—or unleash a catastrophe that reshapes the entire Hodgepocalypse.

General Motors Plant

 

A fortress of automated production, still churning out cybernetic enhancements and weaponry under the Keepers’ control.

Plot Hook: Sabotage the factory’s production or reactivate a forgotten assembly line.

McLaughlin Fort-Technical

Once a hub for education and trade learning, the McLaughlin Collegiate and Vocational Institute (MCVI) has been repurposed into a fortified haven for survivors and tinkerers. Its unique multi-level design and sturdy construction make it an ideal defensive stronghold, while its auto shop and other workshops have become key to Electric Haven’s survival. Here, scavengers repair vehicles, craft improvised weapons, and train apprentices to keep technology alive in the post-apocalypse. However, the institute's shadowy underlevels are sealed off, rumored to house both pre-Hodgepocalypse relics and unexplained phenomena that some claim are best left undisturbed.

Plot Hook: Strange malfunctions and eerie sounds have been emanating from the sealed underlevels of McLaughlin Fort-Technical, spooking its residents and disrupting operations. The local mechanic guild hires you to investigate and secure the area—but be warned, whatever lies below might be more than just faulty machinery. Will you uncover a treasure trove of lost tech or unleash something far more dangerous?

McLaughlin Knowledge Nexus:

 

The McLaughlin Gallery and the adjacent Public Library have survived the chaos as a unified bastion of culture and learning in Electric Haven. Known collectively as the "McLaughlin Knowledge Nexus," the gallery houses rare art and artifacts, while the library holds an extensive collection of pre-Hodgepocalypse data archives. Together, they attract scholars, scavengers, and wanderers seeking knowledge, inspiration, or a moment of solace. However, whispers persist of a secret sublevel connecting the two, rumored to house an experimental AI tasked with cataloging humanity’s greatest achievements—and its darkest secrets.

Plot Hook: The Nexus’ AI, “Archivist Omega,” has gone silent, and its defense systems have activated, locking both the library and gallery down. A desperate scholar hires you to retrieve critical data before rival factions breach the facility and erase humanity’s history for good. Will you navigate the labyrinthine halls and bypass the rogue systems, or become another cautionary tale whispered in Electric Haven?

Oshawa Centre (Shopping Mall)

A post-apocalyptic trading hub, offering cybernetic upgrades, salvaged artifacts, and more. Certain areas are controlled by rogue AI or wild plant growth.

Plot Hook: Investigate a cybernetic smuggling ring or battle rogue security drones.

Parkwood Estate

 

Once a grand mansion, now the high-tech headquarters of the Keepers of the Locks. Blending Victorian opulence with cyberpunk flair, its halls are reinforced and its passages secretive.

Plot Hook: Players might infiltrate a gala to retrieve classified schematics.

The Rusted Sprawl: 

 

Oshawa’s network of old and new factories, now refitted as fortified cybernetic foundries. The skeletal remains of the GM plant have been fused with glittering conduits of the Cybercult.

Plot Hook: Unearth an ancient AI trapped within the plant, whose liberation could either aid or endanger the city.

The Shoreline Ports: 

 

These ports, vital for trade along the St. Lawrence, are controlled by the Cybercult. They oversee all waterborne activity with cybernetic-enhanced constructs and strict mechanical protocols.

Plot Hook: Players might smuggle rare tech or defend the port from a rival faction raid.

Plot Hooks and Adventure Themes

The Electrogeist

A chilling legend surrounds the GM plant—a ghostly, electrically-charged entity rumored to haunt its ruins. Whispers claim the Electrogeist is the consciousness of a long-dead engineer, trapped in an experimental AI gone awry. Its presence disrupts machinery, and those who enter its domain either emerge with strange insights or vanish entirely.

• Plot Hook: Brave the dangers of the GM plant to locate the Electrogeist. Will you earn its favor to unlock forgotten technological secrets, or face its wrath as it defends its domain?

Faustian Sparks

Unpredictable and dangerous, Faustian Sparks are rogue bursts of magical energy that corrupt and alter technology. Machines exposed to these sparks often gain sentience, exhibiting erratic and sometimes hostile behavior. While the Cybercult fears and despises such creations, others see them as potential allies—or untapped weapons.

• Plot Hook: A rogue outbreak of sentient machinery is wreaking havoc in the Rusted Sprawl, destabilizing the fragile balance of power in Oshawa. Can you contain the outbreak before it grows beyond control, or will you discover an unexpected ally among the chaos?

The Electric Shiver

Oshawa trembles under a growing terror: a spree of mysterious murders known as the "Electric Shiver." Victims are found with burned-out implants and scorched bodies, suggesting a killer with a mastery of electricity—or a supernatural force at work. Panic spreads, and the Cybercult seizes the opportunity to tighten its grip on the city.

• Plot Hook: Investigate the Electric Shiver murders to uncover the truth. Is this the work of a rogue tech-wielding killer, a malfunctioning AI, or something more sinister? Time is running out to stop the next victim from meeting a grisly fate.

Other Plot Hooks

• Artifact Hunts: Discover pre-apocalyptic tech hidden in the Rusted Sprawl or beneath the Oshawa Harbour.
• Defense Missions: Protect a rebel enclave from a Cybercult retaliation strike.
• Faction Espionage: The players are hired to infiltrate the Cybercult to steal blueprints or sabotage production lines.
• Moral Choices: Side with a faction (Cybercult, Greywatch, Free Market Clans) and face the consequences of their agenda.
• Mystical Encounters: Investigate rumors of the Electrogeist or uncover the true nature of the Faustian Sparks.
• Shoreline Raids: Engage in naval skirmishes or smuggling operations along the fortified ports.