Project Zero

NEW YORK'S GRAY AREAS

In a world where all factions want to kill each other, there are few places where war is "forbidden".
Not for moral reasons.
For business.

Grey Zones are neutral territories where trade, diplomacy, and excess maintain an extremely fragile balance.

Ideologies don't matter here.
It matters how much you can pay… and how dangerous you are.

🏙️ 1. THE NEON DOME

(Times Square + Midtown Manhattan)

The decadent heart of the Zone.

Thanks to the atmospheric technology of THE CULT OF THE CIRCUIT, huge thermal emitters evaporate acid rain before it hits the ground, creating the only place in New York where people can walk around without a mask for hours.

The giant screens still partially function, illuminating the streets with broken advertisements, old propaganda, and constant neon lights.

👑 Regent:

AUREUM CONSORTIUM

The Dome is economically neutral territory.
Everything that happens here is profitable.

🛡️ Security:

THE GREY DOGS

Tactical squads patrol every street, rooftop, and entrance.

Drawing a weapon without authorization means:

immediate execution
body hanging from the turned-off screens
total confiscation of resources

Neutrality here is protected with bullets.

🎲 Leisure and Excesses
🩸 Blood Casinos

Illegal gambling sites:

meal
arms
slaves
mutants
murder contracts
entire territories
🍷 The Black Lotus

Private club managed by COSA NOSTRA NUOVA.

This is what we serve:

royal wine
uncontaminated meat
live instrumental music
genuine tobacco

Luxury closest to the old world.

☀️ Ash Market

Controlled area under supervision where the BLACK SUN CARTEL sells:

drugs
military stimulants
radioactive chemicals
illegal medicine

They can't start violence here... although that doesn't mean people won't disappear.

🚉 2. THE GRAND TERMINAL

(Grand Central Terminal)

The diplomatic and logistical center of the entire Zone.

Signed here:

treaties
truces
contracts
temporary alliances

It is probably the most politically important place in New York.

👑 Regent:

THE TRACKER

They act as neutral referees.

Even IRON DIVISION avoids breaking the rules here.

Because if someone destroys the Terminal…
Total war begins the next day.

🌫️ Atmosphere:

Tense. Silent. Professional.

They all come armed.
They all pretend to be civilized.

🔧 Trade
⚙️ Scrap Metal Bag

The largest technology and mechanical market in the state.

The DEVORARUTAS sell:

V8 engines
stolen parts
refined fuel

While the CIRCUIT CULT buys old hardware and electronic components.

👁️ Shadow Mail

Underground information market.

You can buy:

safe routes
bunker locations
identities
political secrets
contracts

Information is worth more than ammunition here.

📜 Golden Rule

Wearing visible faction insignia is prohibited if you are armed.

Inside the Terminal:
They're all just customers.

⚓ 3. IRON PORT

(Atlantic Terminal—Brooklyn)

The most unstable and chaotic Gray Zone.

Half market.
Half shelter.
Half a tension field waiting to explode.

Yes, there are three halves. The apocalypse broke the math.

👑 Regents:

Shared administration between:

NOVA FORTIS
THE SENTINELS OF THE ARK
🎯 Purpose:

Maintain the flow of:

meal
medicine
tools
fuel
refugees

It is the main point of survival for ordinary civilians.

🎮 Popular Leisure
🤖 Chatabot Battles

Illegal fights between drones, improvised robots, and armed machines.

The ROUTE EATERS and the CULT OF THE CIRCUIT bet absurd amounts here.

💉 Bazaar of Miracles

Medical market run by THE SENTINELS OF THE ARK.

Antibiotics, prostheses, and experimental treatments are exchanged for:

fuel
ammunition
technology
favors
☠️ Danger

The FREE COMMUNE is constantly infiltrating the area:

recruiting civilians
distributing propaganda
sabotaging systems

NOVA FORTIS tries to maintain stability…
without much success.

📜 THE CODE OF THE GRAY ZONES
🩸 Blood for Blood

If you kill someone in neutral territory:

All factions have activated a bounty against you
You lose access to trade
You can be legally hunted by the trackers.
💰 Gold Has No Side

Accepted:

bottle caps
credits Heirs
Aureum ingots
fuel
ammunition
information

Everything has value.

☔ “Rain Outside, Peace Inside”

All personal conflicts are left outside the barricades.

Within a Gray Zone:
War is replaced by business.

At least until someone breaks the rules.

🏙️ SECTOR 1: THE ISLAND OF WONDERS (MANHATTAN)

The political, economic and technological heart of the entire Zone.

🏛️ The Heights (Upper East Side + Central Park)

Control: THE HEIRS

A complex of interconnected bunkers under Manhattan surrounded by armored walls, drones, and automated laser systems.

Central Park was transformed into a private ecological reserve filled with controlled mutated fauna and biotechnological gardens.

Here lives the surviving elite of the old world.

⚙️ The Silicon Corridor (Chelsea + Brooklyn Tech)

Control: CIRCUIT CULT

Towers filled with active servers, laboratories and data centers powered by recovered energy.

The night sky always shines blue thanks to the LED panels and transmission antennas.

🔥 Ground Zero (Midtown Manhattan)

Control: GRAY ZONE

Extremely guarded neutral territory:

Times Square
Grand Central
Bryant Park

This is where treaties, trade, and negotiations between factions take place.

Seeing a mercenary from LOS PERROS GRISES drinking alcohol next to a COSA NOSTRA mobster is not uncommon here.

🏥 Bellevue Sanctuary

Control: THE SENTINELS OF THE ARK

The last truly functional hospital in New York.

Armored, neutral and protected by extreme medical protocols.

Even wounded criminals respect territory… usually.

💰 The Blood Vault (Wall Street)

Control: AUREUM CONSORTIUM

Financial center of the new world.

Fortress-banks, giant vaults and high-class black markets protected by private mercenaries.

Here, they literally trade in:

meal
fuel
information
organs
human debt
🏭 SECTOR 2: THE RING OF FIRE (BRONX + YONKERS)

A constant war zone where only the most violent survive.

☀️ Fortress of the Boss (Yonkers + North Bronx)

Control: BLACK SUN CARTEL

Armored mansions, radioactive drug labs, and armed convoys patrolling the streets.

The music never stops here.

🎪 Horror Precinct (Expanded Coney Island + Abandoned Bronx Parks)

Control: SONS OF RUST

Amusement parks warped by radiation, broken neon lights, and bodies hanging as decoration.

Entering here is basically betting your sanity.

🌉 SECTOR 3: THE IRON WAREHOUSE (BROOKLYN + STATEN ISLAND)

Industry, weapons and military power.

🐺 Mercenary Shipyard (Staten Island)

Control: THE GREY DOGS

Militarized port filled with speedboats, private arsenals and special operations hangars.

They control much of the maritime access to NYC.

🪖 Fort Hamilton

Control: IRON DIVISION

Main military base within the city.

Tanks, helicopters and heavy artillery guard the main bridges.

⚖️ Atlantic Terminal

Control: GRAY ZONE

A gigantic market where all factions trade under temporary truces.

Betrayals here often begin with a handshake.

⚙️ SECTOR 4: THE RUST MAZE (QUEENS + LONG ISLAND)

Territory of mechanics, mafias and industrial fortresses.

🕴️ Little Italy (Astoria + Long Island City)

Control: COSA NOSTRA NUOVA

Restored streets, functional restaurants, and elegant organized crime.

It is one of the few places where some semblance of "normality" still exists.

🚗 Los Desguaces (Willets Point + Corona)

Control: ROUTE EATERS

A gigantic vehicle graveyard turned into a mechanical city.

Engines roaring 24/7 and constant deadly races.

🏙️ Rikers Island

Control: NOVA FORTIS

A fortified and surprisingly functional city-state surrounded by acidic water and automated defenses.

Probably the safest place in the state.

🌲 SECTOR 5: THE NORTHERN BORDER (UPSTATE NY)

Mutated nature, deadly roads, and military fortresses.

🪖 West Point

Control: IRON DIVISION

Mountain fortress equipped with heavy artillery and military hangars.

The true military heart of the state.

🛣️ Highway to Hell (I-87)

Control: ROUTE EATERS

Main route to the north.

Here, speed, gasoline, and chaos rule.

🚇 SECTOR ZERO — THE UNDERGROUND

Beneath the entire city lies another world.

🚇 The Tunnels

Control: FREE COMMUNE

The gigantic subway and sewer network connects all of New York underground.

Here are the survivors:

anarchists
refugees
hackers
traffickers
mutants

It's the only way to cross sectors while avoiding military checkpoints... if you survive long enough.

THE CIRCUIT CULT: They are isolationists. They only trade technology with THE AUREUM CONSORTIUM in exchange for rare components that bankers import from outside the state. If you don't bother them, they won't shoot you with their lasers.

THE TRACKER(S): They have no fixed allies. They work for whoever puts a contract on someone who "deserves to die." They have hunted down corrupt Division captains as well as Black Sun lieutenants. Their only alliance is with their own code.

SONS OF RUST vs. EVERYONE: They are the common enemy. Even drug traffickers and the mafia occasionally join forces to repel an incursion by these psychopaths. Nobody deals with them; they are simply killed.

THE ROUTE-EATERS vs. THE IRON DIVISION: The military hates the nomads because they block supply routes with their scrap metal convoys. The Route-Eaters see the Division as "walking fuel and spare parts."

THE FREE COMMUNE vs. THE HEIRS: It's an ideological guerrilla war. The anarchists sabotage the luxury bunkers, and the Heirs respond with public executions in "The Heights."

LA COSA NOSTRA vs. THE BLACK SUN CARTEL: It's an all-out conflict. Don Vittorio despises the "lack of class" and brutality of "El Patrón" Mendez. The Black Sun wants to flood Little Italy with Ceniza, while the Mafia prefers control of alcohol and gambling. Their borders in Queens are daily battlegrounds.

This bloc seeks to rebuild society, but they clash over who should lead.
THE HEIRS + THE IRON DIVISION: They are "allies" out of necessity. The Heirs provide the technology and the credits; the Division provides the boots and the tanks. However, there is an internal cold war: General Iron wants a military government, while Chancellor Sterling wants the military to be merely his bodyguards.

Nova Fortis + The Sentinels of the Ark: Nova protects Bellevue Hospital in exchange for medicine and care for its citizens. It is the most stable and "humane" alliance in the Zone.

THE GREY DOGS + AUREUM CONSORTIUM: These mercenaries work almost exclusively for bankers as their private armed wing. If you owe the Consortium money, the Grey Dogs are the ones who will collect... or bury you.

Leader: "Viper" Jensen, former Blackwater commander, who leads his mercenaries with military discipline.

Resources: They possess the most diversified arsenal of encrypted communications and thermal imaging systems.

Vehicles: Armored SUVs and armed fast boats for maritime operations on the Hudson.

Location: The Mercenary Shipyard on the Staten Island docks, controlling maritime access to the metropolitan area.

Philosophy: Professionalism is the only morality; they operate under the premise that everything has a price in resources or old world currency.

Armament: Modern tactical assault weapons equipped with suppressors and advanced optics.

Culture: Military meritocracy where contracts are signed in blood and executed with surgical precision, including specialists in underwater operations similar to the Mexican navy.

Aesthetics: Worn urban camouflage, high-end tactical gear, and custom unit patches with stylized fangs.

Leader: Throttle-Master Jax, a mechanical genius who considers internal combustion a divine miracle.

Resources: Massive mechanical engineering workshops and the largest vehicle scrap yards in the state.

Vehicles: Custom V8 interceptors, off-road buggies with flamethrowers, and mobile battering rams.

Location: "The Junkyards" in Queens and control over the Hell's Highway (I-87).

Philosophy: A worship of speed and the absolute freedom of the open road; they believe the world belongs to those who are fast enough to claim it.

Armament: Vehicle-mounted firearms, pneumatic harpoons, and impact explosives.

Culture: A nomadic society with Mad Max vibes, where status is earned in deadly races and the ability to repair the impossible.

Aesthetics: Burnt leather clothing, mutant skins, motor grease as war paint, and reinforced rusted metal.

Leader: Don Vittorio "Il Nonno" Castiglione, a man who upholds the values ​​of honor and loyalty of the traditional Italian mafia.

Resources: High-quality alcohol distilleries, real tobacco, and a spy network based on family trust.

Vehicles: Armored classic luxury sedans and discreet transport vans.

Location: "Little Italy" in Astoria (Queens) and controlled sectors of Manhattan.

Philosophy: Honor, family, and respect; they consider themselves protectors of the community against external chaos while controlling the black market.

Weaponry: Restored classic Thompson submachine guns, luxury pistols, and sawed-off shotguns.

Culture: An elegant environment that appreciates melodic instrumental music with pianos and guitars, maintaining a code of absolute silence.

Aesthetics: Impeccable tailored suits (even in the apocalypse), gold signet rings, and venues illuminated with warm light and polished wood.

Leader: The Arch-Synthesizer 01, a human whose consciousness has been almost entirely integrated with server hardware.

Resources: Active data centers, high-power servers, and access to residual military satellites.

Vehicles: Autonomous robotic platforms and heavy-duty drones.

Location: "The Silicon Corridor" in the fortified data centers of Chelsea and Brooklyn Tech.

Philosophy: Religious transhumanism that seeks the evolution of the species through the digitization of the soul and cybernetic integration.

Armament: Electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapons, railguns, and automated defense turrets.

Culture: A monastic order dedicated to software restoration and hardware optimization, treating programming code as sacred scripture.

Aesthetics: Dark robes with integrated circuits, glowing eye implants, and an environment surrounded by the constant hum of servers and blue LED lights.

Leader: Warden Marcus Graves, a disciplined man who manages the city like an extension of a maximum security prison.

Resources: Recycled metal foundries, hydroponic farming systems, and basic construction supplies.

Vehicles: Armored industrial barges for patrolling acidic waters and heavy cargo trucks.

Location: Rikers Island and the fortified industrial area of ​​Long Island City.

Philosophy: Stability through order; they believe that discipline and hard work are the only tools to survive the apocalypse.

Weaponry: Combat shotguns, electric batons, and standard assault rifles for the wall guard.

Culture: A functional city-state with an internal economy based on bartering and entertainment through sports betting on football and basketball.

Aesthetics: Gray industrial uniforms, reinforced safety helmets, and concrete walls covered in barbed wire.

Leader: Dr. Elena Vance, a former combat medic specializing in emergency medicine and triage.

Resources: Functional shielded operating rooms, blood banks, and antibiotic supplies.

Vehicles: Armored ambulances with air filtration systems and rapid response units.

Location: The Bellevue Sanctuary in Manhattan, the last great functioning medical center in the state.

Philosophy: Extreme humanitarianism focused on preserving life and finding a cure for cellular degradation caused by radiation.

Armament: Non-lethal restraint weapons and tranquilizer dart rifles, although they have armed escorts for perimeter defense.

Culture: Medical organization that applies Technical Prehospital Medical Care (TAMP) protocols, with staff trained in clinical anatomy and biological study guidelines.

Aesthetics: Kevlar-reinforced medical gowns, white NBC (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) suits, and red cross symbols on each piece of equipment.

Leader: A decentralized council known as "The Network", which communicates exclusively through anonymous digital channels.

Resources: Hacking masters, homemade ventilation systems, and bioluminescent mushroom cultivation.

Vehicles: Railway wagons modified to move through subway tunnels.

Location: "The Tunnels" or Sector Zero, which comprises the vast subway and sewer network under New York City.

Philosophy: Radical anarchism that seeks the total reset of society and the destruction of any form of hierarchy or centralized government.

Weaponry: Silent crossbows, chemical traps, and firearms made with 3D printing and scrap metal.

Culture: A horizontal society that uses parkour techniques, technical climbing, and lateral movement to navigate the destroyed urban environment.

Aesthetics: Black tactical clothing, colored bandanas to identify cells, and industrial gas masks customized with anarchist symbols.

Leader: "The Pale Smile", an enigmatic figure whose mask is permanently fused to his skin.

Resources: Homemade chemical plants for the production of hallucinogenic drugs and nerve gases.

Vehicles: Armored ice cream trucks equipped with high-powered speakers and spiked motorcycles.

Location: The Horror Precinct in Coney Island and abandoned amusement parks in the Bronx.

Philosophy: Psychotic nihilism and worship of chaos; they see the apocalypse as the true freedom of humankind.

Weaponry: Flamethrowers, chemical explosives, and bladed weapons modified with human remains.

Culture: A cult of horror where pain is an art form and maniacal laughter is its war anthem.

Aesthetics: Distorted circus clothing, fluorescent neon makeup, and armor made of scrap metal and bones.

Leader: "El Patrón" Méndez, a brutal leader who expands his influence by controlling the trafficking of substances and weapons.

Resources: Massive laboratories for the production of "Ash" (radioactive drug) and access to the international black market.

Vehicles: 4x4 trucks and "Monster Trucks" decorated with gold and ceramic armor.

Location: "The Boss's Fortress" in the Bronx and the fortified city of Yonkers.

Philosophy: Aggressive territorial expansion and commercial monopoly of illegal substances; power is measured by fear and wealth.

Armament: Gold-plated AK-47 rifles, vehicle-mounted heavy machine guns, and grenade launchers.

Culture: Based on the aesthetics of classic drug trafficking, with lavish banquets and a loyalty system bought with money and drugs.

Aesthetics: Garish designer clothes, massive gold jewelry, and vehicles with luxurious finishes but protected by heavy armor.

Leader: Judge Thorne, a former district attorney who maintains her authority by enforcing a reclaimed code of laws.

Resources: Pre-apocalyptic criminal files and a vast network of informants throughout the state.

Vehicles: Armored pursuit motorcycles and rapid interception vehicles.

Location: The Manhattan Courthouse, converted into an operations base and detention center.

Philosophy: Strict retributive justice; they believe in moral balance and that criminal actions should be repaid in kind.

Weaponry: Custom-made, large-caliber Magnum revolvers and long-range sniper rifles.

Culture: A group of ethical bounty hunters who act as arbiters in neutral zones and hunt down the most dangerous transgressors.

Aesthetics: Reinforced leather trench coats, metal chest plates, and gas masks with polarized lenses.

Leader: Madame Vespera, a former Wall Street banker who uses debt as her primary weapon of control.

Resources: Physical gold reserves, proprietary digital currency system, and control of supplies of rare electronic components.

Vehicles: Heavy armored convoys with drone air escort.

Location: "The Blood Vault" in the Financial District (Wall Street), headquartered at the Federal Reserve.

Philosophy: Post-apocalyptic savage capitalism; the world is governed by debt, contracts, and the control of supply and demand.

Armament: Private guards equipped with elite tactical technology and intelligent defense systems.

Culture: A society of neutral bankers and merchants who organize the market in gray areas like "The Neon Dome".

Aesthetics: Dark business suits, armored transport cases, and an atmosphere of cold opulence surrounded by steel and impenetrable vaults.

Leader: General Augustus Iron, a military strategist who seeks to restore national order through martial law.

Resources: Military fuel depots, ammunition depots, and control of major land routes.

Vehicles: Functional Abrams tanks, Blackhawk helicopters, and armored personnel carriers.

Location: West Point in Upstate NY and Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, controlling the strategic entry points.

Philosophy: Stratocracy that seeks the forced unification of the territory under a hierarchical military command structure.

Armament: Heavy artillery, mounted machine guns, and standard military assault rifles.

Culture: Rigorous military discipline with an active chain of command that does not tolerate dissent or anarchy.

Aesthetics: Desert/urban camouflage combat uniforms, red berets, and vehicles painted with the phalanx emblem.

Leader: Chancellor Alistair Sterling, a former corporate CEO who governs with the cold logic of market efficiency.

Resources: They control cold fusion power plants, advanced atmospheric purification systems, and medical-grade bio-implants.

Vehicles: Long-range autonomous surveillance drones and armored transports with silent propulsion.

Location: "The Heights," a complex of interconnected, ultra-luxury bunkers beneath Central Park and the Upper East Side in Manhattan.

Philosophy: Authoritarian corporatocracy that seeks to restore civilization by eliminating mutant and social "impurities".

Armament: High-precision energy rifles and perimeter defense systems with laser turrets.

Culture: An elitist society that values ​​biological purity, corporate hierarchy, and technological status.

Aesthetics: Futuristic minimalism, pristine synthetic fabrics and armored glass architecture that contrasts with the ruin outside.