Scorched Nebraska

{
  "npc": {
    "id": "npc_sun_jackal",
    "name": "The Sun Jackal",
    "titles": [
      "Corsair Captain",
      "Warlord of the Solar Marauder",
      "Lord of the Burned Sands"
    ],
    "faction": "Dune Corsairs",
    "role": {
      "type": "Leader",
      "archetype": "Pirate Warlord",
      "tier": "Epic"
    },
    "appearance": {
      "age": "Late 40s–50s",
      "gender": "Male-presenting",
      "face": "Bearded; visible skin with glowing cyan cyber-lines/implants along temple and cheek",
      "outfit": {
        "headgear": "None (no mask visible)",
        "clothing": "Dark naval trench coat with luminous circuit seams/piping; red scarf; black gloves; rank-style chevron patch on left arm",
        "adornments": "Shoulder-perched red mechanical parrot/falcon drone with camera eye",
        "held_item": "Short vial/capsule emitting blue vapor in left hand"
      },
      "setting": "On a starship bridge awash in cool blue light; the ship hull marked 'SOLAR MARAUDER' visible through the viewports",
      "aura": "Cold, deliberate command presence; tech-etched like a jackal motif without wearing a mask"
    },
    "persona": {
      "traits": [
        "Ruthless",
        "Charismatic",
        "Strategic",
        "Merciless to rivals",
        "Protective of chosen crew"
      ],
      "motto": "As Above, So Below. The Sands Feed the Stars.",
      "speech_style": "Clipped, coded phrases with poetic turns of desert imagery",
      "reputation": {
        "ground": "Feared desert raider king, a phantom of sandstorms",
        "orbit": "Solar dreadnought scourge of convoys and smugglers"
      }
    },
    "assets": {
      "flagship": {
        "name": "Solar Marauder",
        "class": "Retrofit Mining Hauler → Heavy Pirate Dreadnought",
        "visuals": {
          "livery": "Name 'SOLAR MARAUDER' stenciled in white block letters on starboard hull",
          "profile": "Brutalist plating with ramming prongs; multiple turret emplacements; massive aft engines",
          "scene": "Silhouetted against an orange, flaring sun"
        },
        "armament": [
          "Dual/quad kinetic or plasma turrets on upper decks",
          "Reinforced prow rams/boarding prongs",
          "Hidden hangar bays for raider craft",
          "EMP/ion options for convoy interdiction"
        ],
        "function": "Funds and arms the desert Corsairs via orbital piracy; serves as mobile command"
      },
      "ground_influence": [
        "Controls hidden cisterns and desert supply lines",
        "Funds raiding skiffs and crawler-barges",
        "Maintains smuggling ties between orbit and desert markets"
      ],
      "companions": [
        "Autonomous parrot-drone scout/relay perched on captain's shoulder"
      ]
    },
    "presence": {
      "score": 92,
      "spawn_pressure": "High",
      "encounter_channels": [
        "orbit/ambush",
        "desert/raid",
        "faction/negotiation",
        "no-choice/legendary"
      ]
    },
    "lore": {
      "origin": "Rumored to be an ex-miner left behind in the Belt, who rose after hijacking his first hauler.",
      "myth": "Implants trace a jackal's hunt-lines; some say they map star currents only he can read.",
      "fear": "Seeing the Marauder's stencil drift past a viewport—or its shadow over the dunes—means tribute or ruin."
    },
    "art_notes": {
      "palette": {
        "bridge": "Teal/cyan blues, cold highlights",
        "space": "Ember orange sun, dark steel hull"
      },
      "consistency_checks": [
        "No bone/metal mask present; face visible with cyber-lines",
        "Mech-parrot on right shoulder",
        "Vial with blue vapor in hand",
        "Ship name legible on hull"
      ]
    }
  }
}