This OP is still very much a work in progress, so please be patient.
A Little Background:
The grand city of San Jose de Cupertino was once the undisputed pearl of all Aurora. Founded in the year 1534 by conquistadors from the Kingdom of Jaracas, San Jose de Cupertino quickly became the capital of the whole Viceroyality of Rio Abundante, and major seaport and center of trade. For almost 300 years, it was the center of colonial power, and one of the richest and grandest cities in Aurora. In 1821, the Viceroyality of Rio Abundante rebelled against its overseas Jaracan masters, and while SJC didn't become the capital of the newly-independent Republics of Vuzuenela or Bolviana, it maintained its primacy as the premier city in the Jaracan-speaking Republics.
This state of affairs lasted for almost two centuries. In the wake of the disastrous First Skorzenian Wars of the early 50s, SJC - largely spared by the war's devastation - increased its primacy even more. When the Second Skorzenian Wars of 1996 threatened to swallow up the whole region, the government of Vuzuenela reached a devious compromise with their neighbors in Aurinsula - the two nations manufactured a fake war that allowed Aurinsula to seize control of SJC and its environs, sparing them Skorzenian domination and allowing the Vuzuenelan government a tiny toe-hold from which it could one day return to power.
Unfortunately, military necessity forced the Aurinsulan armed forces to move before the deal was finalized, and those same demands - or at least the Aurinsulan interpretation of them - prevented Aurinsula from relinquishing its control over SJC or its neighboring province of Violetas. The Aurinsulans, despite ruling SJC, find the place unwholesome and contaminating, and have left its administration and actual governance entirely in the hands of the same entrenched political machine that was ruling it before the war.
In its 18 years of Aurinsulan association, SJC has become a veritable modern city-state. It has loosened up almost all restrictions on business, trade, and capital, making it a massive haven for international finance and trade. It is also one of the region's largest entreports, with the largest and best natural harbor in the whole Sea of Mesaston. The municipal government, owned and operated by a system of patronage and corruption called the Institutionales, has made SJC simultaneously one of the richest and poorest cities in the region, with tremendous wealth flowing through the city even as many of its residents live in the most dire poverty. Businessmen and entrepreneurs from all across the world can readily find a place there.
It has also become a haven for international gangsters. The Aurinsulans, as said before, have refused to govern or administer the place themselves, but careful political horse-trading has created a situation where the wealthy and criminal of the whole Tinchalian-speaking world - the larger cultural macrocosm to which Aurinsula belongs - have flocked to the place, bringing their money and their connections in the hopes of eventually emigrating to Aurinsula proper, presumably for the purpose of fleeing justice or revolution in their home regions. As such, SJC is a money-laundering megaplex and a major point for the trafficking of heroin, and several powerful criminal fraternities - chief among them the enigmatic and omnipresent Tongpinghui - have made the city their new headquarters.
And finally, it is one of the most heavily-militarized places in the world. Lurking beyond SJC's borders is the awesome might of the Empire of Skorzenia, and the Aurinsulans have assembled a combined force of five nations (and counting) to defend it. The city is thus dominated by military bases, and the city thrives on the money spent by soldiers stationed at them.
TLDR - San Jose de Cupertino, better known to Aurinsulans as Shenfei City, is like what you'd get if it was Hong Kong, but backwards - if the Chinese went and bought, say, Santo Domingo. Its culture would be broadly Latin American, except there's that heavy layer of Chinese infusion on top of it.
Here's a map. The whole Zihua Special Administrative Region is that little purple peninsula hanging off the bottom end of the gray country. SJC is located on the eastern end of that peninsula, just behind that roundish purple island.
So who can I play as?
There are three options. If yours is one of the countries that has established a military base in SJC, then you are welcome - in fact, encouraged - to play as service personnel stationed at your base. SJC is an exciting place for a soldier or sailor; sex, drugs, drink, and sport are all freely available, and the local authorities habitually turn a blind eye.
If your country is not so represented, then fear not - SJC's 'all are welcome' immigration policies ensure that anybody with a dream can come to the Mad City and try to make it come true. Whether you're an aspiring restaurateur, a dilettante English teacher, an import-export adventurer, an operator for a foreign company, or a general journeyman at large, all are welcome to jump into the mix. You could even be a career criminal, out for a slice of the heroin pie, the money-laundering quiche, or the human-trafficking gateau.
Finally, if neither of those options appeal to you, then you are certainly welcome to play as a local. The residents of San Jose de Cupertino are firmly grounded in their ersatz of real-world Latin culture, particularly that of Central America and the Northern Andes. They speak Spanish, though they call it Jaracan; they eat empanadas, gallo pinto, churrascos, and tres leches; they drink cola champagne, horchata, and local wine of a half-decent constitution; they read dictator novels and magic realism; they follow futbol and beisbol; they are Catholics or Evangelicals or maybe even Santeria; they may be appreciative of the government, or acquiescent, or maybe even hostile. If you wish to play as one ekeing out a life, then I definitely encourage you to, feel free to fill out any necessary cultural details in order to make your concept come to life.
They key to it all: Coco Rico
Coco Rico is a tavern complex located in the Colonia Porfiria, almost directly-adjacent to the Norvenian and Anglican military bases. It has three claims to fame, all of which make it an excellent hang-out joint for military personnel and those wishing to fraternize with them. In the first place, it has the widest selection of foreign beverages anywhere in the western city, with 12 different beers on tap and at least 40 by the bottle. Second, it is the only bar in the area that subscribes to all the foreign channels, allowing sports devotees to catch any game they want and watch it on one of the bar's many big screens. Third, it has four pool tables, and is a long-term sponsor of the All-Nations Military Billiards Tournament. It is thus in an excellent position to profit from the Colonia's development as a new service center with its new infusion of military money.
Why yes, our framing device is a billiards tournament, why do you ask?
The Coco Rico is thus the epicenter of the international military community, a place where foreigners of all stripes can immerse themselves in the atmosphere of their home countries and fraternize on an equal basis.
Rules:
Rule 0: Musāvādā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi. Unceasingly observe the Fourth Precept of the Pancasila and abstain always from deceptive, malicious, and evil speech.
1: No modding, obviously. You only have absolute control of your own character, and "casualized control" of others that might reasonably respond to their orders, provided you only portray them doing things they would reasonably do. (If you are the boss of Coco Rico, for instance, you can portray your employees bussing some tables and sweeping the floors, but you can't portray them cutting their own fingers off.)
2: Aurinsula is a MT country, so if your country is not firmly grounded in the MT continuum - got dragons, ghosts, ponies, maybe some robots, and that running around - then you are not welcome.
3: No government special agents. To be sure, there are shit-tons of spies running around SJC; their presence is totally believable. But that's not the sort of story I'm interested in telling here.
4: If you are military, please abstain from ranks above OF-3; people of such importance wouldn't and shouldn't fraternize in these kinds of settings. Also be mindful that nobody is permitted to carry arms off-base without very special permission (you need a piece of paper with the mayor's signature on it). Weaponry in general is very tightly-controlled.
5: Feel free to "paint" additional details as you see fit, provided they don't contradict with something I've already written.
6: If you want to play an SJC municipal police officer, talk to me first; there are some circumstances and realities we should probably discuss. This should not discourage you from playing such a person.
7: It is permissible to play as a Tinchalian, an Aurinsulan, or even a member of the Tongpinghui, but you have to talk to me about it first; such a concept must undergo some scrutiny.
Applications:
