Side Passages

Ken rants about the new and improved Blade Ward cantrip. in Dungeons & Dragons 2024.

Chapters

0:00 Intro - Welcome to Greyhawk ’760:15 Why I Hate Blade Ward1:10 Blade Ward: 2014 vs. 20242:00 The Action Economy Problem2:30 Final Thoughts & Playtesting3:00 Outro - Like & Subscribe

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Watch "I Hate Blade Ward - Greyhawk '76 (Ep. 5)" on YouTube.

Show Notes

Welcome to Greyhawk '76. I'm Ken Newquist and I hate blade ward.

Quick backstory: Had our first Greyhawk '76 session, in which the adventurers got recruited to recover a lost Fairheights family treasure from an abandoned mine.

Our human battlemaster / wizard initiate LOVES blade ward.

And rightly so - it's a cheap, spammable buff that builds on his already impressive AC.

What changed?

What it did:

Resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing attacks

Lasted until the end of the next turn

What it does now

Whenever a creature makes an attack roll against you before the spell ends, the attacker subtracts 1d4 from the attack roll.

Requires concentration

Lasts for 1 minute.

My concern:

Impacts the action economy.

We've added another die role for EVERY attack on this character. More dice being rolled means more time waiting for die rolls. And more math.

Increased cognitive load on the Dungeon Master

I've got a lot of things to remember. This is one more thing.

Combined with fighter's 18 Armor Class (from Scale Mail), this increases the character's tank-iness at low levels.

Seems over powered for a cantrip (no, I did not do the math)

Where we go from here?

Obviously I'm joking that I hate Blade Ward.

I have some concerns, but we can mitigate them by:

The player rolling the dice

The player keeping track of the spell

We already have similar book keeping for things like bless so it's not THAT much more.

But it IS one more thing.

Ken talks about lessons learned during his first Dungeons & Dragons 2024 adventure, "The Lost Coins of Cousin Ernest", including:

Blade Ward

Rules guide in the 2024 Player's Handbook

The Thief

Hand-drawn maps in Roll20

Weapon Mastery

Chapters

0:00 Intro0:35 Setting the Scene: The Treasure Mine1:50 Rival Factions: Fairheights vs. Witherwinns3:10 Water Weird Ambush4:20 Rogue Abilities Shine5:15 Hand-Drawn Maps and Retro Vibes6:30 Lessons Learned: Rules and Mechanics7:45 Blade Ward: Overpowered or Balanced?8:30 Teasing the Next Session9:10 Wrap-Up and Final Thoughts

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Show Notes

We had our first Greyhawk '76 session, in which the adventurers got recruited to recover a lost family treasure from an abandoned mine.

I played on the High Ery / Erybend family rivalry subplot from the DMG:

Fairheights vs. Witherwinns (their client is James Fairheight, and he found deciphered a map to the family treasure).

Started the action IN the mine, with the adventurers and their client having just discovered the treasured.

See the "Ignite Your Next D&D Campaign" episode of Campaigns and Coffee

Setup is an old mine.

The first level has a main shaft and lots of side passages.

Mine tunnel collapses created a jumbled, partly flooded cave lake on the second level.

The treasure, gleaming in light from a ventilation shaft over head, was located in the center of the lake.

The bludgeoned corpses of a previous crew were on the island, having just reached the treasure.

The treasure was protected by a water weird (inspired by a re-read of the Dungeon of Dread "Endless Quests" book)

The cavern was multi-teared, with a walkable rim surrounding it, and multiple entrances.

At intervals, additional crews would show up to challenge the party, because James couldn't stop humble bragging about his find.

Goals:

Give each character a chance to try out class abilities in a multi-level environment.

Inject role-playing opportunities to help define character personalities and priorities.

Lean into the DMG as a campaign source book.

The Adventure

It went well.

Water weird attacked "Predator"-style, leveraging disengage and its' innate invisibility in the water maneuver around the cavern and threaten heroes.

The arrival of the Witherwinn faction delivered additional drama, as some players chose to intimidate through force, while the Trickster cleric charmed other Witherwinns to his side … and used "calm emotions" to keep them disinterested.

Set up the next confrontation: The Burrow Brothers, a murderous band of halfling cutthroats and their ogre allies.

Lessons Learned

I've got a bunch, some of which will be covered in upcoming episodes.

The Rules Guide in the Player's Handbook is pretty great.

Death Saving Throws: Work the same as they ever did (the save is a straight d20 roll, which happens at the start of your turn).

Finding Traps is a Wisdom (Perception) - it counts as finding a hidden object. Check the Compendium

The Rogue's Thief gets a Climb speed. Handy when moving down the crumbling walls of a collapsed cave.

The Rogue's Thief also gets to substitute Dexterity for Strength when Jumping

Hand drawn maps work well in Roll20

Weapons Mastery represents weapon-specific features that certain characters (rogues, fighters) can use take special actions (like "Nick" or "Vex". More on that next time.

Blade Ward is a powerful cantrip. I hate it. Ok, I don't like it. Ok, I'll wait to pass judgement, but right now, I'm not a big fan.

On this episode of Greyhawk '76, Ken talks about the essential books for running a World of Greyhawk campaign, including the new Dungeon Master's Guide (2024), the World of Greyhawk boxed set (1983) and the Expedition to the The Ruins of Greyhawk (2007).

Chapters

0:00 Introduction1:00 Greyhawk ‘76 Campaign Kickoff2:30 Reviewing the 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide4:00 Updated Maps: Hits and Misses6:00 Exploring Greyhawk Lore: Classic Sourcebooks8:00 The Twin Cataclysms and Canon Debates10:00 Iuz, the Great Kingdom, and Major Conflicts12:00 Adventure Hooks and Iconic Locations14:00 Wrapping Up: Greyhawk Library Essentials

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Watch 'Build a Greyhawk Library - D&D 2024 (Ep. 3)" on YouTube

Show Notes

Welcome to Greyhawk '76. Let's talk books!

Player's Handbook (2024)

The rules.

Dungeon Master's Guide (2024)

High-level overview of the Free City of Greyhawk and the larger campaign setting.

Loosely based on the 1980 Greyhawk Folio.

It's nice to see Greyhawk featured so prominently, but there are a ton of continuity, country, and NPC changes that don't make a ton of sense (except in the context of 1) updating Greyhawk for modern sensibilities 2) fitting all the things into Greyhawk … which doesn't really need all the things fit into it.

Like … why is Otto (long standing member of the Circle of Eight) now a … dwarf?

Sets up the primary conflicts as … Elemental Evil (they were defeated, but yeah, some cultists are still out there), the demigod Iuz (gathering his forces in the north; classic villain), and dragons … umm, yeah, dragons aren't world-shatteringly important in Greyhawk. The Scarlet Brotherhood and/or the dying Great Kingdom are better Big Bads.

BUT … it wouldn't be Greyhawk if we weren't arguing about canon … hell, it feels like coming home to be reading people passionately and thoughtfully arguing about how the latest release disrespects with their favorite setting (I'm looking at you, From the Ashes).

I'll link to some of that commentary in the show notes.

Fold-out map of the Flanaess, with the City of Greyhawk on the other side.

The World of Greyhawk (1983)

The true state of the World of the World in CY 576.

The original World of Greyhawk boxed set.

Greyhawk Adventures (1988)

Notes on Gods, Geography, Magic Items, Spells, and even Zero Level Characters

The City Of Greyhawk (1989) - Pre-Greyhawk Wars release

Gazetter of the Free City and the Surrounding Area - the city, plus some city-based things like the DM's guide to the Low City (random tables!)

Folk, Feuds, and Factions - a who's who of the free city, plus guilds, low life, mages and priests, economics, military, and law.

Expedition to the The Ruins of Greyhawk

The 3.5 update of the Greyhawk Ruins book, which itself documented a chunk of Castle Greyhawk.

Never ran it, but I might pull from it if the crew goes there.

Somewhere, i've got a copy of the original Greyhawk Ruins … but haven't been able to fi gure out where I put it.

Living Greyhawk Gazetteer

This book provided the foundation for the old Living Greyhawk campaign.

It takes place in CY 591, which is nearly two decades after our '76 campaign, but it's still a great reference (particularly for areas not covered extensively in earlier releases)

Castle Greyhawk

The joke version of Castle Greyhawk. Not recommended.

Two new fan-created resources

World of Greyhawk Gazetteer Revised

Classic Guide to Greyhawk

Greyhawk grognards take on DMG 2024

Canonfire - Samwise - Greyhawk 2024

Age of Great Sorrow - Entirely Unsolicited Grognard Opinions on the World of Greyhawk in the 2024 D&D Dungeon Master’s Guide

Meet the adventurers taking center stage in Ken's Greyhawk '76 test drive campaign for Dungeons & Dragons 2024!

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Watch "Meet the Party - D&D 2024 (Ep. 2)" on YouTube

Show Notes

In the second episode of Greyhawk '76, Ken talks about the player characters the campaign is using to test drive the Dungeons & Dragons 2024 rules.

Campaign Guidelines for Character Creation

Since the purpose of the campaign is to test drive the D&D 2024 rules, we decided to start at 3rd level rather than 1st. That gives everyone a few more options to play with, and lets them pick a subclass (which is where things often get interest for players, since more advanced capabilities kick in with the subclasses).

Here are our guidelines:

Everyone begins at 3rd level

Everyone uses the Standard point buy for attributes

Use the "starting at higher level" rules on page 43 of the D&D Player's Handbook

They get normal starting gear plus one Common magical item

Characters who will die (what, Ken kill low-level 5e characters? Impossible!) will be built using the same rules, with the "starting level" tweaked as necessary.

The Characters of Greyhawk '76

Ramnulf Heathertoes

Male Halfling Thief

Subclass: Rogue

Background Origin Feat: Magic Initiate (Mage)

Species Origin Feat: N/A

Reed Goodbarrel

Male Halfling Cleric

Subclass: Trickster Domain

Background Origin Feat: Tough

Species Origin Feat: N/A

Tiberius

Male Human Fighter

Subclass: Battlemaster

Background origin feat: Tough

Species Origin feat: Magic Initiate (Wizard)

Raqsam

* Male Dragonborn Wizard

Subclass: Illusionist

Subspecies: White Dragon

Background Origin Feat: Alert

Species Origin Feat: N/A

Evaluating the Party

It's a well rounded party.

There's a good mix of classes (with a surprising number of halflings), which should help us achieve our playtest goals.

It nicely balances hard-hitting martial characters (the rogue, the fighter), magical support (the wizard, the cleric), and healing (the cleric again).

The chosen classes also help us playtest specific parts of D&D 2024 rules, like mastery, tweaked spells and cantrips, and the less combat-oriented skills (finding and disarming traps, interacting with NPCs, offensive and defensive spells, and the ever-fun battle master maneuvers.

Welcome to Greyhawk '76, a test drive campaign for Dungeons & Dragons 2024! (aka D&D 5.5).

This episode introduces the test drive, what it hopes to accomplish, and explains where the campaign gets its name from (hint: it takes place in the Common Year 576).

Chapter List

0:00 Intro to Greyhawk '760:45 The Legacy of Greyhawk1:45 Blackrazor Guild’s Storied Past3:15 New Campaign Setup and Testing D&D 2024 Rules4:00 Closing Thoughts

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Show Notes

Introduction: Ken introduces Greyhawk '76, a podcast exploring D&D 2024 rules within the classic Greyhawk setting.

Greyhawk Overview: A brief history of Greyhawk as D&D's second campaign setting, emphasizing its balanced factions and lower-magic tone.

Blackrazor Guild Legacy: A retrospective of the group’s adventures in Greyhawk, spanning nearly three decades and multiple campaigns.

New Campaign Setup: Details on the new campaign with third-level characters based near the Free City of Greyhawk, designed to test the 2024 rules.

Focus on Testing: Ken explains the goal of evaluating the changes in D&D 2024, comparing them to 5E, and planning to incorporate lessons into ongoing campaigns.

Feature Image Meta

A classic illustration of adventurers planning by David A. Trampier, featured in the original D&D Player's Handbook.

We explore our favorite game conventions, from the chill vibes of CinCityCon to the dynamic events of Gamehole Con, to the cozy fun of MEPACon. We also look ahead to Philadelphia Area Game Expo, a new-ish convention happening in January 2025.

After the convention stories, we dive into our RPG experiments, including David's mechanical torchlight for ShadowDark, the crunchy mechanics and destroyable hexcrawl map of Forbidden Lands, and Dragonbane as the sweet spot of complex vs. simple game rules.

Chapter List

0:00 Intro0:36 Convention Recap: CinCityCon and Gamehole Con3:12 Super Nintendo Escape Room Highlight5:45 Upcoming Events: MEPACON and Philly Area Game Expo7:10 Exploring ShadowDark's Torch Timer Mechanic10:29 Forbidden Lands: Hex Crawls and Crunchy Dice Mechanics14:12 Open Table Games and RPG Planning16:45 RPG Innovations: ShadowDark vs. Dragonbane19:30 Wrapping Up: Balancing Gaming with Life30:02 Outro and Lair Warnings

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2vZFA8dRVk

Show Notes

Conventions We Attended

CincityCon

Hamilton, OH

October 11-13, 2024

Played lots of Sparks

It’s a Star Wars Living Campaign based on West End Games original Star Wars RPG.

Gamehole Con

Madison, WI

October 17-20, 2024

Played in an Escape Room

Met Seth Skorkowski in person

Played a lot of Sparks

Saw friends who I don’t normally see

Digression: Easton’s Escape Room

Off Center Escape Rooms in Easton, PA.

Easton was a hive of scum and villainy back during Prohibtion (or at least, a good place for illegal alcohol).

Conventions We Plan To Attend

Mepacon

Bethlehem, PA

November 8-10, 2024

Philadelphia Area Game Expo

Philadelphia Area Gaming Expo (aka PAGE 2)

January 16-19, 2025

Banter

Forbidden Lands

Ken’s reading through the Player’s Handbook. 

Dice-pool based fantasy RPG built around a hex crawl.

Bunch of d6s, a d8, a d10, and a d12.

These represent base dice (from attributes), skill dice (from skills), gear dice (from your stuff).

1s are called banes. They represent  damage, exhaustion, fear, or degraded gear (but only hurt you if you push your luck). When you fail, you fail forward.

6s are successes; multiple 6s trigger special effects.

Great art, great setting, but is the dice mechanic too crunchy for beginners?

Thinking of playing a solo game with this as a way to try out the rules and relax.

David ran ShadowDark in person and used Foundry VTT

Ran The Lost Citadel of the Scarlet Minotaur from the Shadowdark Quickstart

Used Foundry VTT on the television to show the player view of the map. Sans UI

Had the Shadowdark module installed

The torch timer was fun

The timer on the first torch ran out an almost inconvenient time

David made physical torch prop as a clue to the players, which they liked due to it’s obvious changes

Ken's been playing with TorchLightTimer.com

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In this episode, we brainstorm ways to launch your campaign without resorting to "they meet in a bar". Providing fodder and inspiration is Greyhawk '76, Ken's upcoming D&D 2024 test drive campaign, and David's just launched open table ShadowDark campaign.

We talk about how to engage players through immediate conflict, emphasizing choice, and balancing proactive vs. reactive player behaviors.

Chapter List

0:00 Intro0:26 Ken’s Greyhawk Campaign Concept1:51 Greyhawk Nostalgia and Resources4:27 70s Aesthetics Meet D&D5:48 ShadowDark’s Torchlight Mechanics11:38 Kicking Off Campaigns with Conflict16:11 Engaging Passive Players19:57 Crafting a Dark Empire22:34 Outro and Call for Feedback

Video

https://youtu.be/GObxgGFpQQQ

Show Notes

Introduction: The hiatus of Elemental Apocalypse and excitement for D&D 2024.

Greyhawk Revisited: Ken’s “Greyhawk 76” campaign idea with a 70s aesthetic, playlists, and retro maps.

ShadowDark Adventures: David’s exploration of ShadowDark mechanics and its old-school D&D feel.

Engaging Players:

Starting campaigns with immediate conflict (e.g., being chased).

Emphasizing consequential choices to encourage player buy-in.

Balancing proactive and reactive player behaviors.

Hero’s Journey: Using inciting incidents to create origin stories for party cohesion.

Avoiding Passivity: Techniques to engage reluctant players or inspire action when adventurers resist the call.

Overlord Advice: Brainstorming ideas for building a sustainable, formidable dark empire.

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We look at The Electric State RPG, a role-playing game game featuring a slow motion apocalypse, haunting artwork, and a cyberspace plague so intoxicating that people died playing it ... simply because they forgot to eat.

We start with Simon Stålenhag's original art/fiction book, which depicts a young woman's journey across the wrecked remains of the United States. We then walk through the role-playing game, discussing its setup, mechanics, and how it translates art book into a different kind of apocalyptic game.

Finally, we get confused about the upcoming 2025 The Electric State movie. Directed by the Russo Brothers, it shares the visual aesthetic of the book and the game, but the setting itself has gone from somber death dream to ... action comedy?

After geeking out about The Electric State, we talk about Netflix's new KAOS series (featuring Greek gods in a modern day setting), the Balder's Gate 3 and Mechwarrior 5 video games, using Obsidian for an Ironsworn: Starforged solo campaign, and news of various Lair experiments.

Check out our unboxing of the Electric State RPG!

Chapter List

0:00 Intro2:15 Introducing The Electric State3:40 Exploring Themes of The Electric State: A Slow-Motion Apocalypse6:10 Comparisons to The Last of Us and the Visual Narrative7:55 The Netflix Adaptation: Apocalypse Meets Comedy?10:05 Year Zero Engine and Its Role in The Electric State RPG14:50 David's Thoughts on MechWarrior 5: Tactical Mech Combat16:50 Ken's Adventures in Baldur's Gate 3: An Epic Battle with a Door19:25 Starforged, Solo Campaigns, and Using Obsidian for RPG Journaling26:05 Winter Break Gaming Plans and Balancing Nostalgia28:20 Revisiting KAOS on Netflix: Greek Myths and Modern Horrors30:40 Planning for Starforged and Co-op Gameplay35:00 Outro: Cloaking Device and Final Remarks

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Watch The Electric State RPG (S4E11) on YouTube

Show Notes

Introduction

Ken beat Hades. Insomuch as anyone can beat Hades. The game REALLY keeps going after it is "finished".

David completed his gaming coffee table project.

The Electric State

The Electric State book and RPG are set in an alternate 1997, where a slow-motion apocalypse combined with a virtual reality addiction, is wiping out civilization.

The Electric State art/fiction book

An example spread from The Electric State artbook by Simon Stålenhag.

Released in 2018, The Electric State is a hybrid art book/fiction book. It’s a story of a slow motion apocalypse, and tells the story of a young woman and her robot traveling through a ruined American landscape in an alternate 1997. The world’s been wrecked by a plague of virtual reality, which almost everyone succumbed to.

Like Stålenhag's Tales from the Loop, the book is a combination of art and written fiction. Unlike Tales from the Loop, there’s little wistfulness or sense of nostalgia in The Electric State. It’s about the end of the world … and it’s a somber read.

It's been categorized as a graphic novel, but it's more of a novella wrapped in beautiful artwork. Most pages feature a short narrative, usually connected to the illustration on the accompanying pages.

The Electric State RPG

An example spread from The Electric State role-playing game.

Inspired by the artbook, The Electric State RPG is published by Free League. It was funded by a Kickstarter, which raised $413,598 from 5,715 backers.

Game Mechanics:

Powered by Free League's Year Zero Engine [PDF] , used in games like ALIEN, Tales from the Loop, and Mutant Year Zero.

Emphasis on survival, exploration, and narrative-driven journeys in a crumbling, dystopian America.

Ideal for players in the right headspace, as the setting is emotionally heavy and reflective.

Narrative Depth:

Rich background story involving Neuronics technology developed in the 1960s for remote-controlled warfare.

Escalation to civil war and the fracturing of the United States into multiple factions (e.g., Pacifica, Texas).

Rural areas devolve into lawlessness, while urban centers struggle to maintain order.

Role-Playing Experience:

Players focus on the journey, survival, and uncovering the mysteries of the collapsing world.

The tone and setting demand thoughtful storytelling, akin to Call of Cthulhu but more grounded and relatable.

The Electric State Movie

A still from the upcoming The Electric State movie by the Russo Brothers. Credit: Netflix.

The Electric State movie is coming in March 2025. It's directed by the Russo Brothers (The Winter Soldier, Infinity War, Endgame) and stars Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, and Devyn Dalton.

It's described as an action comedy ... and we have no idea how that reconciles with the depressing tone of the original art book:

The Playlist: The Electric State’ First Look: Millie Bobby Brown & Chris Pratt Star In New Sci-Fi Film From The Russo Brothers

YouTube: The Electric State teaser trailer

Nostalgia and Mechwarrior 5

David discusses MechWarrior 5, the evolution of BattleTech, and the appeal of tactical mech combat.

Baldur's Gate 3

Ken's recent delve into Baldur's Gate 3; struggles and humor involving game mechanics.

Reflection on nostalgia and classic role-playing games from the 80s and 90s.

Starforged and Tabletop Campaign Tools

Ken and David discuss the use of Obsidian for campaign journaling and planning.

Potential video project idea: using Obsidian for solo RPG games like Ironsworn: Starforged.

Lair of Secrets News

Experimenting with YouTube Shorts and future plans for Instagram content.

Updates on winter gaming projects, YouTube ideas, and possible multiplayer MechWarrior sessions.

Featured Image Meta

Cover art from The Electric State RPG.

Campaign prep is something every dungeon master a needs to do … even if "prep" is something you throw together five minutes for the session starts.

On this episode, we talk about our individual game prep strategies, from structured approaches like Chris's multi-phase plan to Ken’s adrenaline-fueled last-minute inspiration. Josh and Erin share insights into managing unpredictable player behavior and ensuring character growth.

To end the episode, we offer advice on how to childproof your evil lair.

Quotes

"I process, I think, I make notes. Honestly, that second section is my favorite part." – Chris

"The first group I ever DM’d for were probably some of the most creative people that I’ve ever known, and that was a bad thing because they went off on a whole bunch of different tangents that I did not see coming at all." – Josh

"The first thing I want to do is figure out how I’m going to make characters change." – Erin

"I have to have deadlines or else it won’t work. My best ideas come the night before or the day of the game." – Ken

Chapters

0:00 Intro0:30 Chris’s Three-Phase Prep Method3:00 Josh's Chaotic First GM Experience5:45 Adapting to Player Choices7:45 Erin’s Character-Driven Prep10:15 Ken’s Last-Minute Inspiration12:45 The Role of Music in Game Prep14:30 Tools for Note-Taking and Mapping17:15 One-Shots vs Long Campaign Prep21:45 Final Thoughts on Prep Approaches24:00 How to Childproof an Evil Fortress26:02 Outro

Video

https://youtu.be/DFn26QB8-Oc

Show Notes

Chris’s Three-Phase Prep: Reading the material, brainstorming for character hooks, and finalizing maps/tools.

Josh’s Experience: Adjusting to unpredictable players and focusing on world-building to adapt.

Erin’s Approach: Preparing for character growth and change, particularly in convention games.

Ken’s Method: Last-minute inspiration, enhanced by musical playlists and physical notes.

Digital Tools: Discussion of tools like Obsidian and Remarkable tablets for note-taking.

Final Thoughts: The group compares one-shot vs long campaign prep.

Outro: Discussion about childproofing an evil lair.

Get in. Do a thing. Get out. Look awesome doing it.

That's your typical cyberpunk adventure, and it always involves some sort of security. On this episode, we discuss real-world hacking inspiration, cinematic heist scenarios, and strategies for balancing game difficulty. We dive into the nuances of netrunning, social engineering, and how even the best-laid plans can spiral into chaos.

Examples are drawn from the Cyberpunk RED and Cities Without Number role-playing games, with the occasional digression into Dungeons & Dragons, Blades in the Dark, and Scum & Villainy.

Quotes

"You can plan it out meticulously and think you've got everything covered… but then you get five minutes into it, and everything has gone wrong… something's always gonna go wrong, and that's where the drama happens." - David

"There is crazier stuff going on in the real world in, like, cybersecurity right now than you're going to think of in your game, I guarantee it." - Chris

Chapter List

0:00 Intro and Cyberpunk Security2:15 Cyberpunk Red Heists and Netrunning Mechanics8:45 Chris Miller’s Real-World Cybersecurity Insights12:10 Cinematic Inspirations for Cyberpunk RPGs15:45 Balancing Player Roles in Heist Missions21:30 Real-World Hacking vs. Fictional Depictions27:15 Strategies for Planning Heists in RPGs35:10 Handling Consequences and Failed Plans39:45 The Art of Improvisation in Cyberpunk Campaigns45:00 Outro

Video

https://youtu.be/paCzPGt-EPw

Show Notes

Cyberpunk Resources

Broken Loop - Our Cyberpunk RED Actual Play Campaign

Cyberpunk RED Role-Playing Game Resources

Locked Out: Doors, Locks, & Security Homebrew Rules for Cyberpunk RED

Thinking About Cyberpunk Security

Planning the Network/Scoping the Heist

Two main choices:

Scale the network difficulty for your players (story mode), or

Don’t, and design for the idea that some things are beyond the capabilities of you team (but they might get lucky)

Remember the Defender’s Paradox (Defense must be perfect, but attackers need to succeed only once):

The Net Architecture Difficulty section on p210 of the Core Guide help with this

For the D&D minded, things of the daemons and such as counterspells and denizens of a dungeon. That’s what this is. 

Inspiration

The examples in the core guide are pretty good

Real world threat intelligence guides are a great inspiration: for example – Visual Threat Intelligence: An Illustrated Guide For Threat Researchers 

Movies, while cheesy, can provide some inspiration – OH GOD NOT SWORDFISH WHY

Podcasts – Hacking Humans from Cyberwire, Darknet Diaries, news programs

Books - oh so many (history of Space Rogue’s book on L0PHT, Kevin Mitnick, etc)

Role-preservation

Know your players. What are their roles and what are their skills?

What skills is the crew missing?

If you are missing a role, what opportunities can you create to give the players options for getting past the challenge.

If you lack a TECH, MEDTECH, or NETRUNNER, you’re unlikely to bypass electronics.

Creative Thinking

Encourage your players to think outside the box. How else can you get into the room or past the door, or through the challenge?

Consequences

Noise attracts guards … and the more time it takes to get through security, the greater chance the guards will show up.

C4 may destroy the thing you came to snag.

Not all security is a locked-down barrier

It could be a drawing in a conference room

It could be a data drive hidden in a crystal necklace at a party

Protected by guards, surveillance

It could be a person or animal (remember Ein the corgi from Cowboy Bebop)

Time Pressure

Start a clock! If not using a clock (with increments advancing toward an event) then just advance time … and have consequence for advancing time.

What happens on a failed roll?

Are they not getting through?

They get through but there is a complication

The clock ticks up.

What happens on a failed gig?

Consequences for not securing the thing.

The Situations

As in Blades in the Dark, think about the type of engagement that the players might execute.

Situation 1: Sample Retrieval

Break into a secure vault in a biolab. Retrieve a sample. You have 24 hours. (hard target infiltration)

Hack your way past the physical security & Infiltrate their network to bypass or control networked security

Blast your way in.

Talk your way in (but it could be really hard)

Examples: Resident Evil, Die Hard, Terminator 2, Fast Five 

Situation 2: Steal data from a secure terminal

Steal data from a secure terminal in a ZetaTech subsidiary. It must be completed in one week’s time. (Soft target infiltration: Open to the public and easily infiltrated)

Forge identities to infiltrate the company (steal the ID card, hack the computer to add your record)

Go legit: they get themselves hired by the company

They break into the building

Go in as solos and blast their way through the building

Example: Sneakers, Cyberpunk 2077 - Arasaka tower, V and Jackie

Situation 3: Corpo Defection

A corporate operative wants to defect to a non-profit, but they’re constantly watched by security officers.  They will be at a high-profile Zetatech gala and it’s their only chance for extraction. You’ve got a month until the gala.

Rockerboy gets hired as the entertainment

Get hired as supplemental security or medical support

Go in hard - hire goons to attack the party, giving you the chance to snag the operative (if you don’t care about the collateral damage)

Hack the building - Cut power, bypass remaining security

Fake it - Do the Mission Impossible thing.

Example: Ocean’s 12, Count Zero

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The map from our Cyberpunk RED campaign's infiltration of Elysium HQ. Art is from the Traveller Starships GeoMorphs fan source book for the Traveller RPG.