We have no United States until we have a country again.
— Elizabeth Kress, Cyberpunk RED
Elizabeth Kress is a former president of Militech, and later the president of New United States of America. She was instrumental in keeping the NUSA together in the wake of the Fourth Corporate War and rebuilding the country. Elizabeth had her own interests, and turned the NUSA into a functional dictatorship for many years.
Biography[]
1978 – 2021[]
Elizabeth was born in a small USA Air Force hospital on Okinawa, Japan in 1978. Her father was a major in the United States Armed Forces, a distinguished officer with twenty years of experience. At the age of twenty-two, Elizabeth graduated from the Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, with a promising career awaiting her in the military. After only eight years, she had risen to the rank of colonel, commanding a unit in NORAD.
During the First Orbit War in 2008, the ESA's Tycho colony on the Moon dropped a two-ton rock on Colorado Springs. At that time, Kress was returning home from vacation, recalled due to rising tensions between the U.S. and the EEC. When the rock hit, she was driving her Jeep just 3 miles outside the city. The mountains saved her life from the explosion, though the blast blew her car off the road and burst her eardrums, rendering her deaf. After the event, she found herself the highest-ranking officer in NORAD. After recovering and having an audio cyberware installed, Kress stayed there to oversee the long rebuilding of the higher military command. When finished, she decided to retire from the Air Force.[2]
Elizabeth Kress would go on to serve as the president of Militech for the greater part of a decade.[3]
Her popularity as the "Lady from NORAD" led Kress straight into politics. After one term as Senator from her adopted home state of Colorado, Kress was asked to accept the nomination for Vice President. Her acceptance speech at the convention, entitled "Rebuilding the Dream," was a huge success. When former President Blair was struck ill, Elizabeth was there to assume command, becoming Acting President in 2018.[4] Blair passed away six months later. After the elections, Elizabeth was sworn in as President in 2021. Her casual manner and precise way of speaking made her a popular president.[2][5]
2021 – 2025[]
During the Fourth Corporate War, President Kress nationalized Militech in order to save face. After the terrorist bombing of the Arasaka Towers, Kress blamed Arasaka for the bombing, despite the fault lying with Militech. The president used this to demonize Arasaka for her own interests. Arasaka's charters to operate in the United States were immediately revoked, its members and board declared terrorists, and its assets either seized or driven offshore. Elizabeth turned the United Sates into a functional dictatorship, and with the help of Militech she made it her goal to unify the country under her new ideals.
2030s – 2060s[]
Elizabeth remained the President of her new United States of America for many decades after the war, stating there wouldn't be any new national elections until a treaty was signed with the Free States.[5]
By 2045, Kress was known for her honesty, fairness, and tough nature, serving to face any threat to U.S. sovereignty. She had been "re-elected" four times, holding the New United States together in spite of the wars and the collapse it had endured.[5] However, many still questioned the fact that her actions often benefited the Militech Corporation, her former employer.[3] Elizabeth knew of the Militech mini-nuke that was used on Arasaka, but refused to ever address the issue publicly.[6]
Kress held the US presidency until 2053, when the new constitution was ratified. As such, she left her post to an interim government in preparation for the new elections.[4] Kress had been re-elected a total of nine times during her long career,[1] prior to finally leaving the post to her successor, David Whindam.[7]
Equipment[]
Stats[]
INT: 9, COOL: 10, MA: 6, REF: 7, ATTR: 7, BODY: 7, TECH: 9, LUCK: 7, EMPATHY: 9[2]
Skills[]
Charismatic Leadership +9, Awareness +9, Education +7, Wardrobe and Style +5, Composition +7, Persuasion +8, Oratory +8, Social +9, History +6, Library Search +8, EXP: Military Officer +7, EXP; Political Science +6, EXP; American Politics +6, EXP: American Government +8[2]
Cyberware[]
Audio W/ Tight Beam, Level Damper, Scrambler, Sound Editing[2]
Notes[]
- Alongside other Presidents, Kress has her own street in former Serenisands.
- In the original 2020 Cyberpunk lore, Kress was sworn into the presidency on April 14, 2019.[2] In Cyberpunk RED, her election date was changed to be a year prior to the Fourth Corporate War.[5]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lucretia My Reflection (Conversation in the tunnels with Rosalind Myers.)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 MACDONALD, M. Home of the Brave. Berkeley, CA, R. Talsorian Games, 1992. (p.49)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Your Business is My Business
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 NUSA Database Entry in Phantom Liberty
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 PONDSMITH, M. Cyberpunk RED Core Rulebook. Kenmore, WA, R. Talsorian Games, 2020. (p.258)
- ↑ BATYLDA, M. The World of Cyberpunk 2077. 1st ed. Milwaukie, OR, Dark Horse Books, 2020.
- ↑ Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Mission Kit - Edgerunner's Handbook. Kenmore, WA, R. Talsorian Games, 2024. (p.6)