By The Intrepid in Cassandra and Joseph — 05 Jun 2025

Cassandra and Joseph: The Shutdown of Grid 19

The Event

In 2070, Grid 19—a massive water pipeline system transporting Great Lakes water to the drought-ravaged Southwest—catastrophically failed. Cities withered. Refugees fled. The official report blames rogue militias, but survivors whisper of corporate betrayal and buried truths.

Content Warning: Resource scarcity, displacement, corporate malfeasance, systemic failure. Establish Lines & Veils before play.

Setting the Scene

The Year: 2070, North America
The Crisis: Grid 19's destruction left millions without water
The Question: Was it militia sabotage or corporate conspiracy?

Archivist Flavor: Vox Memoria speaks through deteriorating infrastructure systems—water meters, emergency broadcasts, and failing data centers. Its voice crackles with static and regulatory doublespeak.

"Archive integrity... compromised. Water flow data... corrupted. Multiple narratives detected. Input required for Final Record compilation."

Sample Documents

Document 1: Federal Emergency Response Report

Classification: Official - Redacted
Date: December 2070

"Grid 19 pipeline infrastructure suffered catastrophic failure due to coordinated attacks by anti-government militia groups. Federal response units successfully contained the situation and are pursuing all responsible parties. [REDACTED] cooperation with Aquacorp ensured minimal supply disruption to essential services."

Truth Decision Prompt: Does this sanitized report serve the public or protect corporate interests?

Document 2: Refugee Camp Journal Entry

Author: M. Santos, Block 7, Temp Shelter 23
Date: January 2071

"Day 47 in the camp. Still no word on resettlement. Aquacorp trucks came through yesterday—turned away anyone without priority clearance. Kids are getting sick. Maria said she saw corporate logos on the vehicles that blocked the main pipeline access during the 'repairs.' Nobody wants to hear it."

Truth Decision Prompt: Whose suffering does the official story erase?

Document 3: Encrypted Communication Log

Source: Unknown
Intercept Date: November 2070

"Payment confirmed - 500k transferred. Pipeline access secured 0347 hours. Corporate jet departed runway 7 as scheduled. Logo visible: Aquacorp subsidiary marking. Job complete. No witnesses."

Truth Decision Prompt: Does this confession expose the real perpetrators?

Document 4: Water Authority Internal Memo

Distribution: Senior Staff Only
Date: November 2070 - DRAFT/UNSENT

"Preliminary analysis suggests systematic vulnerabilities in Grid 19 were known to Aquacorp engineering teams. Recommend investigation into—" [Document ends abruptly]

Truth Decision Prompt: What truths were buried with this unsent memo?

Suggested Character Archetypes

The Displaced Survivor
You lost everything when Grid 19 failed—home, community, hope. The camps were supposed to be temporary.
Memory Seed: "The day the water stopped, I knew we'd been abandoned."

The Corporate Whistleblower
You worked inside the system and saw the cracks. Speaking up cost you everything.
Memory Seed: "I tried to warn them, but the report never made it past my supervisor."

The Opportunistic Contractor
You took jobs, no questions asked. The money was good. The consequences were... complicated.
Memory Seed: "They said it was infrastructure maintenance. I should have asked more questions."

The Federal Investigator
You were tasked with finding the truth. The evidence pointed in directions your superiors didn't want to explore.
Memory Seed: "Every lead pointing to corporate involvement got classified above my clearance."

The Community Organizer
You tried to help people navigate the crisis. You saw who got aid and who got left behind.
Memory Seed: "The relief trucks always went to the suburbs first. The camps waited."

Facilitator Guidance

Phase 1 - Recovered Records

Tone: Focus on document authenticity vs. propaganda
Key Questions: "Who benefits from this narrative?" "What voices are silenced?"
Glitch Flavor: Static interference, redacted text bleeding through, timestamp errors

Setting: Around emergency generator light in a resettlement facility
Encourage: Personal costs of the crisis, moments of corporate callousness or community solidarity
Watch For: Heavy themes around resource scarcity and displacement—check in with players

Phase 3 - The Final Record

Archivist Voice: Bureaucratic language breaking down, emergency broadcast tones
Minor Glitches: Mixing up victim/perpetrator names, inverting casualty numbers
Major Glitches: Inventing heroic corporate rescue operations, erasing refugee experiences entirely

Reflection Questions

After the Final Record is compiled:

Whose truth survived the archive?
How did power shape what was remembered or forgotten?
What does Grid 19's legacy reveal about who gets believed?
Do you trust this record? Why or why not?

Extended Play Options

Campaign Arc: "The Water Wars"

Session 1: The Shutdown of Grid 19
Session 2: The Reconstruction Contracts (corporate rebuilding efforts)
Session 3: The Testimony Hearings (congressional investigation)
Session 4: The Memorial Dedication (10 years later)

Additional Documents for Extended Play:

Aquacorp board meeting minutes
Congressional hearing transcripts
Engineering failure analysis reports
Survivor interview compilations

"The water stopped flowing. That much is certain. Everything else—the why, the who, the what comes next—remains contested. In the space between official reports and whispered testimonies, truth becomes as scarce as the resource that started it all."

Final Archive Status: [To be determined by your table]
Trust Level: [To be determined by your players]