Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

[Killer Shrike]

Hi all, Im putting together a collection of generic Cyberpunk / Dystopian adventure formulas / templates / scenarios, which will eventually be presented on the MetaCyber site. Ill probably also throw together a random plot generator as well to help GM's get going.

 

So, Im putting out an open call for examples. The idea is to keep it generic, reusable, and of course modular.

 

Looking forward to your collective responses....

[Susano]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

I think the most basic of cyberpunk plots is to acquire data from location A, or to extract a person from location A. Location A, of course, if a guarded/secure location.

 

Another would be to transport an object or person from location A to location B. Usually across multiple countries.

[ghost-angel]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

First, what Susano said: The Grab And Stash. Get Object from Organization A to Organization B.

 

The Hit: find, stake out and take out someone or some group.

 

On The Run: Someone's taken a Hit out on you!

 

Bodygaurd: you're hired muscle to protect someone or something.

 

Double Cross: You're the bait for another group, usually they're performing a Stash & Grab or a Hit and you're given the "other" target to distract the enemy. Oh - and you're sold out too.

 

Good CP is built into the plot twists you use:

Constantly changing who the "bad guy" is.. sometimes it's you.

Someone isn't what they seem.

You aren't getting all the info here - just enough to do your job.

[ghost-angel]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Oh, almost forgot one of my favorites:

 

We've got WHAT?!?!: Group ends up with something through a fence, or other means, that they really don't want - because everyone else does and the group is just an obstacle.

[Blue Jogger]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Simular to the "We got WHAT?!?" is the "What the???" where half of the plot is trying to figure out why Group A suddenly wants the players very much dead. Unfortuately, your typical cyberpunk group has dozens of likely reasons. Critical to making this plot work is to have lots of backstory with several things left unresolved returning to haunt them.

 

"Why did your girlfriend SUDDENLY come back into town?"

"I told you that last job was TOO EASY."

"Well, I did steal this experimental device as part of my origin..."

"Oh, NOW you tell us CorpCo MIGHT have a contract on your head."

 

Of course, knowing WHY they are after you, doesn't always tell you WHO.

[Blue Jogger]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Liquid Gold...

 

Popular in Dystopian futures is an item so rare that it is more expensive than gold. Several things has been used in science fiction.

 

Water

Gasoline

Drugs (legal or illegal)

Freedom (Usually in the form of a Corporate Data that will ruin a totalitian corporation control over the people or escaping to a place where one can be free)

Technology (usually in the form that make people more self-sufficent)

 

This helps explain why the villians are so powerful (yet so vulerable) and motivates the heroes (or anti-heroes) towards a goal.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

First, what Susano said: The Grab And Stash. Get Object from Organization A to Organization B.

 

The Hit: find, stake out and take out someone or some group.

 

On The Run: Someone's taken a Hit out on you!

 

Bodygaurd: you're hired muscle to protect someone or something.

 

Double Cross: You're the bait for another group, usually they're performing a Stash & Grab or a Hit and you're given the "other" target to distract the enemy. Oh - and you're sold out too.

 

Good CP is built into the plot twists you use:

Constantly changing who the "bad guy" is.. sometimes it's you.

Someone isn't what they seem.

You aren't getting all the info here - just enough to do your job.

 

 

This is exactly on point -- knew I could count on you for good stuff.

 

Also, back to being ghost-angel I see.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Susano & Blue Jogger -- those are good ones too. Keep em coming people, in the end when its all done and posted I think it will be a great resource for all of us.

[Susano]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Working from a more anime standpoint, you have the ever popular "rogue" scenario. Be it a cyberdroid, AI, experimental tank, replicated human, or what not, the PCs have to trackdown, find, and capture/eliminate a self-willed object that doesn't want to be found.

[tgrandjean]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

A Star is Born: The PCs have been targetted by a MediaCorp. This could be either Pro/Con against the Runners, Corps, Government, etc, or could be pure entertainment. This could be upfront or if the PCs have had any surgery recently, the might not even know about it (implanted cyberware).

This could be "A Day in the Life" of the runners; actual missions or media planted missions or the PCs could be drafted (voluntarily or involuntarily/ known or unknown) to play bit players/ starring roles in whatever new Reality TV series, sitcom, movie, gameshow, whatever.

In any case, the consequences will be amusing.

 

Wanna Race?: The PCs are approached by streetracers, gangs, mediacorps, bored cops, etc to race from location A to B. This could be armed or unarmed, a circuit race or street (or air, or cross country, etc), official or unofficial. The PCs could race as a team, individuals, or could crew the same vehicle (or variations). Complications could include rival teams, street protestors (gangs), corps, cops, etc. The whole event could be cover for another operation.

[ghost-angel]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Notes on Stash & Grab - the "Object" can be a person as much as a thing.

 

Bodygaurd can involve a Transport option where it's to get the Person/Thing from Point A to Point B, or just house sitting.

 

I'll try and think of some more variations or ideas... keepign 'em as generic as possible. Looking forward to seeing the results.

[tgrandjean]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

I Know What You Did Last Summer: Someone is out smearing the players rep. Whether the rumors are accurate or not, somebody needs to find this berk and teach 'em a lesson. And where did they get their information? What's their motivation?

 

Complications

Technology on the Fritz: The characters cyberware/weapons/vehicle breaks down. Perhaps this is a city wide failure followed by a recall. Who do the players trust with their favorite toy? Is this mearly a plot to foster paranoia?

 

Where's the Beef?: One or more of the characters get the munchies. Where are they going to go for some chow?

 

Anythin' on TV tonight?: Boredom overtakes the players. How do they amuse themselves?

[Curufea]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Important elements for cyberpunk are - going up against authority, techno-culture shock, and betrayal.

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Killer Shrike again.

 

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Susano again.

 

 

 

Damn!!!

 

QM

[Dino]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Plus ca change ...

 

An important element of cyberpunk stories is the fact that nature abhors a vacuum. Any lasting change to the staus quo is likely to be rendered irrelevant soon after the characters finish thier job. If a megacorp goes under, it will be bought out by a bigger, nastier corp; if the PCs wipe out a street gang, an organized crime syndicate will take over thier drug dealing operations. The charaters can only really hope for small personal victories.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Quick clarifcation -- not looking for important elements. We're looking for typical run scenarios. Like:

 

The Snatch & Grab: Object A is on the move from one highly secure locale to another; the goal is to acquire it while it has theoretically less security

 

The Ambush: The goal is to interdict something on the move and cause as much damage to it as possible.

 

The Raid: Direct assault on Location A

 

The Collateral Damage War: The general goal is openended -- cause random damage to Company A over time.

 

The Distraction: Whether the team knows it or not, the real goal is to serve as a distraction for something more important thats going down.

 

The Hit: The goal is to take out a specific person.

 

The Extraction: The goal is to get someone out of the clutches of someone else.

 

The Prison Break: Similar to the Extraction, but done from the inside and usually longer term

 

The Heist: Acquire something -- whether it be data, an object, valuables, research results, whatever.

 

The Crash: The goal is to take down Company A's network.

 

The Indirect Sabotage: The goal is to sabotage something seemingly minor that indirectly hoses something bigger / more important.

 

 

Things like that. You can also combine scenarios or string them together to make a wild adventure.

 

The goal is to categorize / identify them and then to make a Random Plot Generator from them.

[David Johnston]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Well, let's try this:

 

The Bodyguards: Protect a person from assassination or abduction

 

Slumming It: Find someone who has disappeared into the bottom level of society

 

Frankenstein's Oops: A dangerous intelligent "monster" created by genetic or cybernetic means has escaped from it's creators and is roaming the streets.

 

Information Wants To Be Free: Someone has discovered a terrifying secret and people want to kill them before they can reveal it.

 

Who Are You?: All of a character's records have been removed or erased leaving them with a different or no official identity.

[Captain Obvious]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

For a list of generic RPG plots, a good starting point is S. John Ross' Big List of RPG Plots. Some of them would be a stretch for CP, but most can be made to fit.

[Inu]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Despite its emphasis on elite criminal action and violence, cyberpunk is also more flexible. I like my cyperpunk very noir -- so one of my favorite character types is the private investigator. In which case, investigation is a major plot type (some crime has occurred, or a person has gone missing. Must track them down. May be combined with raid/heist/crash/sabotage/etc, but may also exist on its own).

 

Investigation can also be done by characters who aren't in that profession. Buddy turns up dead. Must track down who did it, so that they can pay. Often a lead-in to raid/heist/crash/sabotage/etc.

[Inu]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Oh! Then there's the 'caught in the middle' plot. Two gangs/corporations/small third world armies/etc are tearing up the place. You're in the middle, and have to survive.

 

Courier: transport object from point A to point B. Survive many deadly ambushes on the way. (Opposite of Ambush).

 

Survival: similar to 'caught in the middle', but more pointed. In revenge for an attack against, them BigMegaCorporation4 has dispatched killers to destroy the PCs. They have to survive the hitmen and strike back.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Oh! Then there's the 'caught in the middle' plot. Two gangs/corporations/small third world armies/etc are tearing up the place. You're in the middle, and have to survive.

 

Courier: transport object from point A to point B. Survive many deadly ambushes on the way. (Opposite of Ambush).

 

Survival: similar to 'caught in the middle', but more pointed. In revenge for an attack against, them BigMegaCorporation4 has dispatched killers to destroy the PCs. They have to survive the hitmen and strike back.

Yup, all three are good, and of course the other side of the Survival coin is:

 

The Reprisal: Hired by an interested party to extract vengeance on some other party. Similar to The Hit, but more sustained / broadly scoped.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

The Sacrificial Lamb: Secretly hired by Company A to attack one of their own facilities. This is really to test the security or to make an example out of them...or both.

 

The Pick: Similar to an Ambush...hired to provide a scrape off for some other job done on the move. The operators on that job move thru the teams emplaced position, leading any pursuers into an Ambush and giving themselves more time to get away.

[Inu]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Stranded: your elite team/gang/military outfit/shadowrunners/thieves have been dumped in the middle of nowhere/enemy territory/south american jungle/desert and have to find their way back. Particularly common in cases where the expected pickup is cancelled or blown up.

[Thia Halmades]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

Some additional concepts:

 

The Rescue: one of your contacts/agents calls up in a panic needing someone to get their friend/sister/paycheck out of the secret base of CorpCo. While there...

 

The Revelation: You discover the full extent of CorpCo's current technology. Bioroids are PEOPLE. The Revelation puts the PCs out of the usual gun-bunny mentality and gives them a clear, obvious opponent with a nefarious (yet possibly worthwhile) objective.

 

The Rundown: As mentioned, finding someone who doesn't want to be found. Or HIDING someone who knows too much about The Revelation.

 

The comedic aside: "There's a bomb in my SloppySoy." - Shadowrun 2nd Ed. Instead of the usual high-gun drama, the PCs find themselves in an (even for them) absurd situation which breaks up the pace of the game briefly.

 

The Ancient Master: Much of Cyberpunk involves a heavy study of Asian Culture. Sinanju would fit well in this setting, as would tracking down the Ancient Master to have a weapon modded, a new skill learned, a martial manuever imparted, etc. Unbeknownst to the PCs, the Ancient Master (he can be a 12 year as in Cowboy Bebop or an 80 year old as in Kill Bill) has been discovered. Now in order to learn the secret/technique/get the gun, the PCs must first save his/her life.

 

Warzone: Unlike thier usual jobs, the PCs are commissioned as full blown mercenaries to go help "settle a dispute" in a contested war zone. This will only work for a few parties who are built to handle it, but within the Warzone other minor objectives can be established.

 

Disrupt Enemy Comms.

Cut Enemy Supply Lines.

Remove a Rebel Leader (possibly change sides and help the Rebel Leader)

 

I'll think of others later, those are some morning thoughts.

[sinanju]

Re: Cyberpunk / Dystopian Adventure Formulas

 

"The Hot Potato" -- the PCs acquire an object (accidentally or with great effort) that EVERYONE wants. They're being pursued by groups/orgs of every kind. Simply abandoning it is probably not an option--whoever winds up with it will want...exclusive knowledge of it. The PCs have to figure out how to survive and end the conflict.

 

(Typically--I've used this more than once--if the maguffin is information of some kind, my players wind up spamming it worldwide so there's no longer any point in killing them to keep the info confidential.)