SHURIKEN IN THE DARK
This month has been about experimentation and trying out hacks. I’ve made minor mods to Things from the Flood, run The Veil as a fantasy game, and tried out Sherri Stewart’s reskin of my Neo Shinobi Vendetta setting. That’s an anime/ninja/mish-mash tech future game we’ve played previously with Fate and Action Cards. In it you’re part of a Shinobi Clan in a science-fantasy future megaplex. You discover that all the ninja clans, including your own, have been corrupted. You need to find out who did this and how to fix it while evading the attention of your peers.
You can see an early-draft premise statement here. Forged in the Dark’s mission-based approach fits well. Sherri framed the playbooks as team roles and then allowed players to choose their Source (i.e. how their particular powers work). That choice affects their talents and traumas. We boiled the Crew mechanics down to one type, with more choices for customization. Finally we also added a new phase after Downtime—Home Life. In these scenes characters play out their day-to-day within the clan or for their cover identity.
This month has been about experimentation and trying out hacks. I’ve made minor mods to Things from the Flood, run The Veil as a fantasy game, and tried out Sherri Stewart’s reskin of my Neo Shinobi Vendetta setting. That’s an anime/ninja/mish-mash tech future game we’ve played previously with Fate and Action Cards. In it you’re part of a Shinobi Clan in a science-fantasy future megaplex. You discover that all the ninja clans, including your own, have been corrupted. You need to find out who did this and how to fix it while evading the attention of your peers.
You can see an early-draft premise statement here. Forged in the Dark’s mission-based approach fits well. Sherri framed the playbooks as team roles and then allowed players to choose their Source (i.e. how their particular powers work). That choice affects their talents and traumas. We boiled the Crew mechanics down to one type, with more choices for customization. Finally we also added a new phase after Downtime—Home Life. In these scenes characters play out their day-to-day within the clan or for their cover identity.
This is very much a 1.0 draft at this point. That's built on a Google sheet found in the Gauntlet Resources (still tracking down who made it). Sherri plans to tweak the talents—moving away from a simple reskin. We’ve enjoyed our sessions so far. You can watch session one & session two. Since the game is relatively low-prep, I poured my energy into alternate, long-term prep: creating random mission generators. I love building tables and these pay homage to two great products: Augmented Reality, the best cyberpunk supplement, and The Heist Deck, the best Blades in the Dark supplement. When we move forward with this hack I’ll probably flesh these items out but for right now they serve as useful inspiration.
Mission Types
| 1 Psy Ops: Neutralizers 1-1 Create Paranoia 1-2 Destroy Reputation 1-3 Gaslight 1-4 Ghost 1-5 Frame 1-6 Turn 2 Sabotage: Wreckers 2-1 Viral Payload 2-2 Key Infrastructure 2-3 Transport & Supply 2-4 Timed Demolition 2-5 Forced Shut Down 2-6 Massive Display/Site Destruction 3 Extraction : Hijackers 3-1 Key Individual 3-2 Unwilling Target 3-3 Group Extraction 3-4 Information Removal 3-5 Vital Object 3-6 Massive Device | 4 Assassination: Quiets 4-1 Key Figure 4-2 Group of Targets 4-3 Non-Standard Target 4-4 Specific Method 4-5 Total Secrecy 4-6 Public Display 5 Espionage: Listeners 5-1 Observation/Assessment 5-2 Exchange/Drop/Retrieval 5-3 Bodyguard 5-4 Counter-Espionage 5-5 Pursuit/Transport 5-6 Negotiation 6 Cell's Preferred/Combination |
36 Mission Twists
| 11 Increased Numbers 12 Broken Coordination/Requires Coordination 13 Multiple Parties Involved 14 Absolute Secrecy 15 Fall Guy 16 Change of Objectives 21 Outdated Info 22 Ambush 23 Counter-Operations 24 Loyalty Test 25 Loved One Involvement 26 Cover for Another Operation 31 False Flag Operation 32 Target in Alternate State 33 Imposters 34 Furthers Alternate Agenda 35 Change of Route 36 Innocents Involved | 41 Different Opposition 42 Countdown to Detonation 43 More Targets 44 On Site Broadcast 45 Clan Operatives Present 46 Quarantine/Contamination 51 Revolutionary Tinderbox 52 Hostages 53 Resources Removed/Destroyed 54 Amnesia 55 Incoming Storm/Natural Disaster 56 Power Drain 61 Highly Mobile Target 62 Blown Covers 63 Turncoat 64 On Site Gala 65 Raid by Authorities 66 Objective Failed, Now About Escape |
Involved Parties
| 1 GOVERNMENT 1-1 The Mikado 1-2 The Shogunate 1-3 Daisho Governors 1-4 Judge Czars of the Doushin 1-5 Prefectural Wardens 1-6 General Nobility 2 ZAIBATSU 2-1 Arasaka (Weapons, Military, Security) 2-2 Oyamado (Food, Infrastructure) 2-3 Goda (Information, Financial) 2-4 Shiroma (Transport, Energy) 2-5 Jinrai (Entertainment, Communications) 2-6 Lesser Corporate Enclaves 3 SHINOBI 3-1 Yagyu: The First Phantoms (Memetic Overlay) 3-2 Igana: The Shadow Wolves (Chi Field) 3-3 Kogate: The Cortex Devils (Psychic) 3-4 Monomi: Shattering Silences (Cybernetics) 3-5 Zanagiri: Syndicate of Wasps (Genocolony) 3-6 Rogue Ninja | 4 LOCAL: CRIMINAL 4-1 Red Yakuza: Daztavny Family 4-2 Blue Yakuza: Kazuma Family 4-3 White Yakuza: M’bendu Family 4-4 Smugglers 4-5 Anarchs 4-6 Lone Mastermind 5 LOCAL: OTHER 5-1 Council Authorities 5-2 Yazgangers 5-3 Wildlanders 5-4 Unionists 5-5 Ronin 5-6 Ordinary Citizens 6 FAITH & WEIRDNESS 6-1 Neo-Ikki Temples 6-2 Agents of the Kami 6-3 Techno-Communes 6-4 Yokai 6-5 Rogue Sources 6-6 Foreign Powers |
36 Key Items
| 11 The Eightfold Lens 12 Decommissioned Cyberbrain 13 Subsurface Transit Schematics 14 Maps of a Lost District of Shanshanyon 15 Synthetic Portal Sensor 16 Hopecutter, the Hellsworn Blade 21 Lost Funds from the Embezzlement of the Jade Mikado 22 The Codified Biwa 23 Lost Poems of Lady Minish 24 Signet Seal of the Atukari Clan 25 Child from the Shogun’s Household 26 DNA Sample a Rogue Genocolony 31 Hyper-dimensional Holo-Key 32 Tea Set of Mistress Tinwan 33 Adamantium Hunter Mask 34 The Orochi’s Eye, a Legendary Jewel 35 List of Undercover Shogunate Agents 36 The White Blade, Lost Ninjato of the Arasaka | 41 Brass Gong of Mount Zahndao 42 Genetic Matrix for Lost Ecosystem 43 Control Module from a P79 Illusion Sphinx Mecha 44 Blueprints for the Shogunate Carrier Methuselah 45 List of Upcoming Jinrai Vid Shows and Salary Offers 46 Cargo Manifest for the Lost Vessel Thantano 51 Spatial Resuscitator 52 Cyberlimb from Igana Ancestor 53 Hacked Multipass 54 Stabilized Isoquantum Battery 55 Disguised High-Power Microexplosives 56 Ivory Hairbrush of the Shiroma Dynasty 61 Holo-Vid of Recent Corporate Retreat 62 Diary of Head of the Blue Yakuza Clan 63 Mistress to the Jonin of the Zanagiri Clan 64 Ident Kits for the Obsidian Inquisitor’s High Guard 65 Batch of Stolen Cybereyes 66 Power Schematics for the Oyamado High Arcology |
36 Key Locations
| 11 Museum 12 Corporate Auction Gala 13 Dense High Story Mall 14 Underground Karaoke Arena 15 Black Market Zaibatsu HQ 16 Seed-Hacker Greenhouse 21 Toxic Dumping Yard 22 Quarantined Neighborhood 23 Gravatic Super-Carrier Crash Site 24 Orbital Elevator 25 Ikko-Ikki Temple 26 Corner Shrine 31 Honored Dojo 32 Education Processing Center (Teen) 33 Workgog Overrun Neighborhood 34 Restricted Ancestral Park 35 Deviant Sports Center 36 Arcology Atrium | 41 Housing Mega-Blok 42 Glam District 43 Prefectural Records Office 44 Collapsed Parking Facility 45 Techno-Meditative Center 46 Secure Borderpost 51 Heavy Transport Hub 52 Floating Entertainment Barge 53 Blacklight Smuggling Den 54 Sleep Cycle Hive 55 Yakuza Arcade 56 Food Grade Material Processing Plant 61 Hydroponics Enclave 62 Nano-Theater Complex 63 Steam-Tunnel Bazaar 64 Noble Household 65 Pleasure District 66 Hospital |
36 Obstacles
| 11 Cyber-Hounds 12 Drone Swarms 13 Psychic Echoes 14 Mono-Whip Monks 15 Genocolony Plants 16 Vapor Bees 21 Primal Regression Fields 22 Intrinsic Field Scanners 23 Hyper-Dimensional Passcoding 24 Quantum Memory Recording 25 Empath Orphans 26 Psychokinetic Yojimbo 31 Gravatic Oscillators 32 Micropressure Sensor Arrays 33 Tengu Mercenaries 34 Subdermal Armaments 35 Sensor Cloaks 36 Blood-Brethren Network | 41 DNA Sniffers 42 Body Doubles 43 Battlefield Veterans 44 Phase Blade Sword Saints 45 Morphic Layout 46 Sentient Art Installation Watchers 51 Phase Trap Art Prints 52 Highly Public Spaces/Open Office Design 53 Mental Parasites 54 Chronoclamps 55 Offensive Temperature Countermeasures 56 Mindraven Flock 61 Hunter-Killer Metapedes 62 Terminal Lockdown Protocols 63 Recursive Gateways 64 Clone Staff 65 Mesmer Broadcast Stations 66 Veiled AI Environment |
36 Key Persons
| 11 Driss Denmaryk, Brawny Gluttonous Scrapman 12 Wave Werewolf, Charming Amateur Club Owner 13 Citadel Twentieth, Limping Famous Parkour Master 14 Brobutl Rachna, Business-like Polite Hacker 15 Patterson Ray, Golden Coarse Robostall Keeper 16 Kanak Strasburg, Articulate Profane Shinobi Sensei 21 Bali Servant, Leering Harmonies Assessor 22 Obufusa Cursed, Lurching Covetous Yoganger 23 Mië Wing, Balding Moody Ikko-Ikki Priest 24 Noriyori Esther, Innocent Cultured Yak Boss 25 Discordant Jurian, Knowing Retiring Corp Headhunter 26 Tomo Worshipping, Crazed Thick-Skinned Smith 31 Grandjean Gothic, Dirty Brazen Cyber-samurai 32 Mind Zilá, Articulate Passionate Coffin Hotel Manager 33 Lachman Azure, Talented Calm Ronin 34 Bitterness Steiger, Business-like Urban Anthropologist 35 Richy Tobin, One-Eyed Pallid Terraformer 36 Hattori Orchid, Weird-Eyed Charmless Sniper | 41 Sundering Hanusa, Well-Defined Covetous Duelist 42 Dalal Praising, Husky Charismatic Lawyer 43 Asia-Asia Shobha, Colorful Sarcastic Psychic 44 Plutus Crawft, Aggro'd Strong-Willed Undercover Op 45 Mikie Ninurta, Lurking Pedantic Yojimbo 46 Tsunami Dolinski, Creamy Black Ops Ripperdoc 51 Al-Tayyeb Gerwin, Hesitant Tight-Lipped Monk 52 Takayoshi Kelly, Elderly Sacrificing Bio-hacker 53 Copper Lila, Hairless Dangerous Doppelganger 54 Mockus Ketaki, Mussed Up Moody Celebrity 55 Alias Serge, Sallow Troublesome Salaryman 56 Kanetsugu Tora, Bland Domineering Noble 61 Bodhisattva Manju, Square-Jawed Suspicious AI Spec 62 Rufus Okita, Slender Amateur Repair Artist 63 Pallavi Serpent, Stiff-Backed Clever Driver 64 Dot Faulkner, Spindly #1 Huckster 65 Sinha Kuranosuke, Greasy Shallow Cybersurgeon 66 Tanya Matsuko, Brawny Promiscuous Transporter |
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