The Neighbourhoods

• Sawyer Square (North West): One of the older parts of town clustered around the titular Sawyer Square, one of the biggest open air areas in town. In the middle there is a statue to someone named Sawyer, that no one remembers and no one actually cares about. Although not as old as Old Hades, it is somewhat dilapidated and run down, where someone might end up if you only have a handful of Novus in your pocket.

• Seren Street (West): The continuation of the West conurbation, it would be simply an extension of Sawyer Square, if not for the Bazaar, a miles long road of sellers, shops and stalls. If you have the Novus, you can find it here.

• South Kew (South West): One of the latest major Corps investments in the city, South Kew saw massive relocations and improvements. It is now a place of expensive shops, glittering hotels and upper middle class buildings of chrome and glass. It gets much of its energy, paradoxically, from the money pouring out of the Bazaar (whose southern reach borders South Kew).

• Corpville (Centre West): If there is a gleaming heart to New Hades, it is here. The Corps reign supreme. The streets are clean, the Corps' security details patrol the area, there's police everywhere. The shops are expensive, the food is gourmet, there are busy people moving billions of Novus everywhere you look. Most MegaCorps have their headquarters (or flagship buildings) in this area. This is where the money lives.

• Downtown (Centre): An extension of Corpville, but without the Corps, and with much more public influence. Most salaryman will live here. Posh, upscale, but without the technocratic / rampant capitalism trappings.

• HighRise (Centre): Technically still a part of Downtown, but with the tallest buildings in the city, spires of chrome and glass reaching for the stars.

• Rattown (South): Originally a slum of Old Hades, this neighbourhood developed and grew as an organic entity, and now could almost be called a city in its own right. An area of buildings seemingly budding off and leaning into each other. It is a place of narrow streets and shady deals, of criminals and outlawed scientists. A lot of the Old Hades service corridors, tube networks and sewers (all out of comission) still exist, and are simply called Below. The Corps let it all be, for the influence and money that gets moved around. Whatever deal you need, you can find it here.

• Old Hades (South): The original city, whose name is now lost to history and the War. A place of crumbling 19 and 20th century buildings and even older churches. Similar in atmosphere and philosophy to Sawyer Square, but older, falling apart and without the charm (!)

• Little Moscow (South West): As the name implies, a Russian / Slavic enclave. Should be very much more dangerous, but people here value business too much. Here you can find some of the last surviving hand-craft item shops in the city. Rich people from Downtown, or poor people from neighbouring Old Hades, if you have the Novus, the artisans here will make anything you wish.

• Chinatown (North): Founded by a convoluted mass of Far-east Asian refugees, fleeing the waves of destruction that followed the founding of the Chinese Empire in 2042. Mostly a services, shopping and eating area, it keep deep links to The Empire (something the Corps crave) and with Rust, downriver. The place to go for some cheap and filling hot noodles.

• Arkham Island (North East): Possibly the most difficult area of the city to define or pin down, no shinning core, no main ethnicity, just a melting pot of activities and cultures

• Westside (North East): Named for Jeremiah West (an american rebel from the 2020s) and not the compass point, Westside is a middle / working class area. Some light industry dots the landscape, mainly made up of decent apartment blocks and the occasional shopping area.

• The Sprawl (Centre East): When sci fi writters in the 20th century thought of the future, this is what they dreamt of. The Sprawl is the high tech core of New Hades, new programs, drugs and living things are pumped out as fast as the public can order them. Giant screens and neon signs light up the raining landscape, maintenance droids advertise anything you can think of. If there is a heart filled with light and hope to New Hades, this one is it. Just don't ask what happens behind the lights.

• Docklands (South East): Being only 2 hours away from the North Sea, sea and river trade are the arteries of New Hades. Most of the cargo gets moved into smaller ships offshore (or unloaded in Rust) and fed into the Docklands. Containers everywhere, giant cranes doing a mad dance, moving millions of tons of produce. Not the safest of areas, but you can usually find stuff at a discount. 

• Factory Sector (South East): The muscles of New Hades, the core of its heavy industry. Where the AlgSoy tanks are, and anything and everything bigger than a car is made. A quiet and dangerous place for the unthinking visitor, there are many alleyways behind warehouses and there is hardly anyone out and about....

• Scraplands (Far South East): As close to a dystopia as you get in New Hades. This area used to be storage for the Factory Sector, until the Storms of '55 ripped through it, dumping most of the containers onto the river, and downstream (eventually becoming Rust). What was left were destroyed buildings and rotting smashed containers, not even worth the price of the metal scrap. Rumours abound of old underground assembly lines snaking through the underground, rabbit warren-like.

• Redcrest, Brightgate, Ravenglass: Three 'empty' locations, with nothing really there at the moment, awaiting a narrative to make them shine....

There is a saying amongst old Hadeans: 'Poorness goes: Seren, Sawyer, Old Hades, Rattown. When you can't go further down, you're in the Scraplands'.