The light of a flashing TV screen in a dark room makes your eyes sting. When your eyes have adjusted, you recognize the logo of the Dome Police Department soaring over the pale pink sands of the desert - seems like the colors are slightly off.
The desert is replaced with a massive wooden table in a bright room. A large, dark-skinned man in a brand new police uniform is leaning slightly towards the camera.
Sergeant Major James Keppler himself
“Greetings, cadets. I'm Sergeant Major James Keppler of the Black Wing Public Supervision Department. We perform police duties throughout the New Committee zone, as well as in friendly, neutral, and uninhabited areas of the Dome.
Get your pens and pencils ready. In this tutorial video, I’m going to tell you about our criminal code and about the measures we take against offenders.”
Keppler is a great storyteller, but let’s let him have the floor a bit later. In today's update, we discuss how the law works in the world under the Dome.
The world in post-apocalyptic settings is often one of absolute lawlessness, but Encased is an exception to this rule. In any civilized corner of the Dome, the player will have to think twice before killing a merchant or robbing a defenseless traveler, for there is a Justice System in the game which includes the following concepts:
Infamy: the motivation of the police to capture you. Ranges from 0 to 5.
Tension: the degree to which crime will be tolerated in the region. The lower the tolerance level, the more Infamy points the criminal will get for each transgression. In fact, it is an Infamy “multiplier." The Tension of each region ranges from 1 to 3.
Statute of Limitations: the time frame in which a criminal may be prosecuted. Varies from a few hours of game time to infinity.
Area: ranges from the spot on which the victim stands to the whole territory under the Dome.
The most important of these measures is Infamy. Infamy determines the intensity of the pursuit and the severity of his punishment.
In the video, Keppler limps as he makes his way around the table. It seems he hasn’t fully recovered from a recent leg injury.
“Law abiding citizens have an Infamy level of zero. However, we strictly monitor all crimes under the Dome and punishment will follow even a minor offense. Minor theft without bodily harm is an estimated 0.5 points of Infamy. Significant theft of money or valuables, as well as bodily harm to the victim, 1 point. Robbery and GBH, 2 points. Bank robbery, shoplifting and murder, 3 points. Mass murder, 4. In exceptional cases, a particularly egregious offender will receive 5 points. This will result in a search throughout the whole territory of the Dome.”
The Infamy level is a dynamic value, decreasing the farther you are from the crime scene. Prosecution for minor transgressions does not extend beyond the town sector or game location, while a criminal with an Infamy of 3 will be hunted throughout the whole city. At level 4 they will stalk the violator throughout that entire faction territory. If you reach Infamy 5 you’d better sleep with both eyes open. At that point, you’d be better off hiding out in some remote area until the threat has passed. But no matter how far you run, there is always a chance the authorities will come for you.
You might be able to hide, but most likely you will get caught.
***
“In most cases, we will let the offender off with a fine. This has proven quite an effective deterrent. However murder or serious injury to the victim requires imprisonment. If convicted, extremely dangerous criminals will be executed in accordance with New Committee laws."
Any character who consistently violates the law will end up in prison sooner or later. The imprisonment period is a whole new “game within the game.” The player can try to display that he’s been rehabilitated, plot an escape, bribe a guard or a judge, or even provoke a riot! Alternately, a hero with high Persuasion can argue his innocence in court with a fiery speech, or try to intimidate the judge in private.
But sometimes you will be unable to speak convincingly and running is not an option. In such cases the protagonist is forced, as in the Middle Ages, into the stocks in the town square, or to “do time” behind bars.
In the territories outside the New Committee zone, the punishment is more severe: the guilty are cast into the Labyrinth of Death.
Keppler walks to the overhead projector and inserts a slide. A disturbing image appears on the screen behind him: the dancing light of torches, an armed mob, and a gate opening on the grinning mouth of a metal beast.
“Write this down, Cadet: the Trial of the Labyrinth is a cherished tradition in the wild. The convict must navigate a cruel maze filled with traps, the autonomous combat systems of the Forefathers, and other desperate convicts ready to kill and devour newcomers."
It is a cruel tradition, but in spite of all its horror the labyrinth offers a faint hope: occasionally a lucky convict will pass the gauntlet alive.
Enter the labyrinth of death
Officer Keppler turns the projector off and stands by the table again, hands behind his back. The screen goes black, replaced in the darkness by quivering bands of interference.