With the release of Arcane Season 2 on Netflix, we are once again thrown into the streets of Piltover and Zaun as factions vie for power in the wake of a devastating attack. The conflict and intrigue in these cities is captivating and, crucially, provides wonderful inspiration for your own TTRPG designs.
Last time, we looked at how to steal ideas from the gleaming upper city of Piltover. This time, here are 5 interesting ideas you can steal from Zaun to inspire you when designing your next city or urban adventure.
1. Chembarons Fight for Control
While originally beholden to the ruling class in Piltover, the real authority in Zaun belongs to the chembarons. These crime lords run dangerous gangs, each claiming turf throughout the lanes. Unfortunately for Zaunites, the chembarons are usually at violent odds with one another, turning the streets into battlegrounds. It’s a dangerous life in Zaun. And if you don’t fall in line with one of these gangs, you’re likely to find yourself on the wrong end of their wrath.
Some places in your campaign might have a token political structure, but are truly run by criminal elements. When designing gangs for your own city, determine what motivates them above all else. Is it money, power, or something more exotic? The most interesting gang leaders have a secret goal beyond controlling the next block. What lines are they willing to cross to get what they want? How much does a PC have to do to earn their trust?
2. Brutal and Faithful
Life in Zaun is a battle for survival. Many of its people are destitute and victims of gang violence. Surprisingly, this brutality is not a purely negative aspect of the city. These tough conditions breed incredibly tough people.
NPCs (and PCs who come from here!) here are direct and not afraid to get their hands dirty. Take Ekko for example, who leads the Firelights. His gang fights tooth and nail to push back against Silco’s corruption and bring some semblance of safety and peace to those they call friends.
Faith also plays a key role in Zaun’s culture. Whether it’s to a figure of worship, like the wind spirit, Janna, or to a cause that gets you what you want, like the Firelights or one of the chembaron gangs, the people in Zaun have a profound belief that things can change. They have to.
In a game, consider making NPCs act independently of the PCs, taking game-changing actions when the PCs aren’t around, that players only find out about after the fact—and not the NPC who did it. This helps to establish a grounded environment, full of people with their own lives, improving immersion and sparking players to think about their own actions in a new context.
The combination of brutality and hope in a rough place helps communicate that it’s a place worth fighting for, and not just a pit of villainy and scum.
3. Shimmer Floods the Streets
The narcotic known as shimmer has taken to the streets of Zaun like wildfire thanks to Silco’s efforts. Originally advertised as the means for Zaun to fight back against Piltover’s oppression, it serves its true purpose as a means of controlling the natives of Zaun for selfish gains.
Truth be told, taking shimmer grants the user strength and power beyond natural means, but this power comes at the cost of an unyielding dependence on it. A powerful weapon that comes at great physical cost? Some PCs might be willing to pay that price for strength. Some NPCs definitely are willing.
Having a substance like shimmer in your game can be a tricky topic. Addiction is a real-world problem that many players have had to deal with personally or among loved ones. Before introducing an element like this into your game, consider reading the safety tools section in the Player’s Guide and have a clear talk with everyone in the game about what they are comfortable playing with.
4. Just Living Here Is A Hazard
From years of mining, runoff, and pollution, the air in Zaun is not exactly fresh. While the natives here have grown accustomed to the less-than-ideal conditions, visitors find themselves with hacking coughs, requiring personal ventilators just to breathe. The worst of this smog is called the gray, noxious factory fumes that have been trapped underground for who knows how long. Despite their resilience, even Zaunites can’t breathe gray.
This aspect of Zaun allows for the creation of interesting environmental hazards that make certain parts of the city inaccessible without proper equipment and protection. What kind of hazard is present? How did it get there? How do the natives feel about it?
5. There’s Always A Shortcut
As Zaun continues to develop, old parts of its infrastructure become abandoned or forgotten. The Sump, as it’s come to be called, offers clever explorers and adventures hidden paths to and from almost anywhere in the city. It’s often safer and quicker to use one of these shortcuts, but finding them is the tricky part. Well trafficked shortcuts offer the danger of running into others, while completely undiscovered ones lead to potentially uncharted places deeper in the Sump. And who knows what else lurks in its depths?
Incorporating an underground shortcut system is a great opportunity to allow more streetwise characters to flex their skill in navigating the streets. It’s also a chance for GMs to plant monsters that would otherwise be inappropriate for a typical urban adventure.
