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Around Town
A Quick Guide to Places to Go in the Portland Area
The Amp
Portland
One of the NuSkül decker clubs, the Amp caters to
the younger generation of "Slot-n-Run" decker types. Externally
a coffee shop, the Amp features a high-turn over rate of
brew jockeys and technical support staff all combined into
one. (The guy that whips up the espresso for you can probably
program in five languages.) The shop also features hosting
and NSP services, as well as many retail utilities. After
hours at the Amp often feature local and regional DJs, as
well as house brewed experimental AI-DJ ambient noise filter
programs.
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>>>>>[Too
clean and well lighted to be a real decker haunt. Don't come here looking
for loa, that's for damn sure. Every last slotter in here is a green chipper.
If you're looking for a beginner, this is the place to go. Quality pros
are found elsewhere.]<<<<< |
Caf House
Portland
An old school decker haunt, the Caf House is a seedy,
dirty cafe on Congress Street. Built into one of the husks
of one of the buildings that burned in the '39 fires, the
owner likes to assert that the Caf House has "character."
Home to newbie and netgods alike, Caf House is dark and doesn't
feature much more than a consistent staff (consisting of
the owner -- who is part-time owner, part-time deckmeister --
and three employees, all of whom are regional net legends
in their own right) without much in the way of bells and
whistles. They'll play music from a simple holophonic
sound system setup in the back on request, but it isn't
very often that they throw any big parties. The lighting
is dim, the muffins are stale, and the air is laden heavily
with smoke.
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>>>>>[This
the real thing. If you're looking for a local loa grade decker, this is
the place to look. Some major digital mojo flows through this joint. Rumor
has it if you're looking for the likes of Switchburn or MainEventHandler
you've got to come here. Forget that "newbies and netgods" crap. The green
chippers come here when they want to feel close to the gods. They don't
come here looking for work.]<<<<< >>>>>[Yeah,
and when they say this place is without bells and whistles or frills or
anything, they mean it. This place is a scummy hell-hole. But we love
it.]<<<<< |
Cash Crop
Portland
A parody off of a dive club in Savannah, Georgia, the
Cash Crop has grown into one of the biggest smuggler's hang
outs in Portland. The owner, Dmitri Koyelov, a former
smuggler himself, opened it after he decided to retire
from the business. So he opened this bar. Although he
did not intend for it to draw the kind of crowd it has, he
now finds himself surrounded by the same kind of people
he has been around his entire adult life. However, they
are all big spenders who prefer not to leave debts behind,
so he is far from complaining.
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>>>>>[Rumor
has it that the Diablo himself has quite an interest in the Cash Crop.]<<<<<
>>>>>[I'll
add some creedence to the rumor. But de Silva's interests in the place
have nothing to do with buying it. He is in fact quite good friends with
Koyelov. Rather, the Diablo's interest in the Cash Crop is just as using
it as neutral territory for his meetings. That's all.]<<<<<< |
The Glass House
Casco Bay
An extremely exclusive club, the Glass House has its
offices in Portland, but is actually a structure anchored
in Casco Bay. A favorite among Portland's elite, the Glass
House is actually made of high density transparent polymers.
They boast an extensive seafood menu and a wide range of
high quality entertainment -- from musicians to comedians.
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>>>>>[Don't
fall for this crap. The only reason anyone likes it at all is because
it markets itself as exclusive. You have to pay a lot of cred just to
join. Stupid stupid stupid. The food isn't even that good.]<<<<< |
JavaNet
Portland
The original decker bar, JavaNet's first incarnation appeared around the turn
of the century. It defined what would become the typical decker haunt by being
one of the first cafes to feature simultaneous coffee and net access. Although
at the time, the primary communications mode was analog modulation/demodulation,
JavaNet renovated early on when it became apparent that the Matrix was going
to change the way information moved. Integrated digital ports line the walls
of the cafe so you can cruise infospace and sip your latte at the same time.
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>>>>>[This
one may be the original, but it's also the cliche. If a tourist is looking
to hang out in "decker chic" someplace, then chances are they'll end up
here. The fraggin place is always crowded, the service has slipped from
even just five years ago, and most of the time their ID ports are all
occupied or being repaired. Don't waste your time here.]<<<<< |
Sparq's
Cape Elizabeth
A small majik store and inn on the shore. The owner, a mage calling himself
"Sparq," caters to all forms of magicians. The inn, a quarter mile from Higgin's
Beach, is very small and in and of itself, very unsuccessful. However, Sparq
attracts magicians from far and wide who wish to purchase magical goods from
him.
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>>>>>[They
say Sparq has the best ritual sorcery materials in the Northeast. Excellent
producer of fetishes and foci, too.]<<<<< >>>>>[I
heard this rumor that Sparq is heavy into using spirits and that he's
got them crawling all over the inn. Seeing as how this unnerves a lot
of people (even a lot of mages), it kind of makes sense why the inn isn't
very successful on its own.]<<<<< |
Three Dollar Dewey's
Portland
A favorite bar of the Portland area, Three Dollar
Dewey's a classic that has been there forever and doesn't
appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. Having never
achieved "trendy" status, it isn't a tourist attraction
or a hang-out of the yuppity corp types. However, their
is a core, dedicated group of people that make Dewey's
their home come evenings. Go for the clams, stay for the
beer.