INTRODUCTION

The Cortex Hack is a hack of The Black Hack RPG Framework to allow for play in a
far-future hard science fiction world, where humanity (if you could even still call it
that), has colonized the Solar System, and achieved immortality. The Cortex Hack is
inspired by Eclipse Phase, Altered Carbon, The Expanse, and Voice of the Whirlwind.

THE CORE MECHANIC

When a player character attempts something they might be able to do but there’s also
some chance they’ll fail (and they couldn’t just safely keep trying until they get it right),
they make a test. Make a test by rolling less than or equal to a relevant attribute on a
d20. A roll of 1 is always a success, and a roll of 20 is always a failure.

Non-player characters and creatures do not make tests. If an NPC or creature attacks a
character or uses an effect that would trigger a “saving throw” to avoid negative
consequences in a traditional RPG, a player character must avoid this attack or effect
by making a test. The only time the GM rolls (on behalf of opponents) is to roll for
damage.

ADVANTAGE/DISADVANTAGE
Some situations or abilities may grant a PC an advantage or disadvantage in particular
situations. For instance, holding high ground in a firefight might grant an advantage to
DEX tests to shoot, but being shot at from high ground might grant disadvantage to
DEX tests to avoid being shot.

When a character rolls dice with an advantage, they roll an extra die of the same type
being rolled and choose the best result. When they have disadvantage, they roll an extra
die and choose the worst result.
CHARACTER CREATION SUMMARY
To create a character, do the following:
●​ Roll for (some) attributes
●​ Choose a class
●​ Choose a morph
●​ Choose a background (optional)
●​ Start with HP equal to Constitution
●​ Spend credits to buy equipment and augmentations

ATTRIBUTES
All player characters have six attributes—three associated with their body, known as a
morph, and three associated with their mind, known as the ego. Morphs can be changed
almost as easily as changing clothing, but the ego is the core of personality and
memory, consistent as long as a character keeps a backup. The six attributes are:
Strength (STR) is used to make melee attacks or attempt to resist damage that
cannot be dodged.
Dexterity (DEX) is used to make ranged attacks or attempt to resist damage that
can be dodged.
Constitution (CON) is used to perform feats of endurance and to resist physical
debilitation, and determines your starting hit points.
Intelligence (INT) is used to operate technology, analyze details, or resist
unnatural thought manipulation from technological or psi effects.
Wisdom (WIS) is used to perceive details, judge the character of others, or resist
deception or trickery.
Charisma (CHA) is used to persuade, deceive, intimidate, or resist persuasion by
others.

Generate your character’s ego attributes by rolling 3d6 in this order: Intelligence (INT),
Wisdom (WIS), and Charisma (CHA). If the attributes all add up to be below average
(under 30), reroll the lowest as 2d6 + 6. Once all attributes are generated, you may swap
the highest with the lowest if desired.

Your morph attributes are determined mostly by the body you wear. There’s quite a bit
of variety even in mass-produced morphs, especially since so many are pre-owned,
and getting used to a new body can range from surprisingly comfortable to fairly
traumatic. As such, when you find yourself in a new morph, you roll 3d6 all over again
for your STR, DEX, and CON. Add your CON score to your level (which starts at 1) to
determine your hit points in any given morph. No Attribute may be above 18.

BACKGROUND
When you perform an action that seems like it should be something someone of your
background should be able to do, suggest this to the GM. If it’s something that normally
requires special training, you may be able to roll without any disadvantage. If it’s
something that most humans could do, but you’re likely to be especially good at, roll
with advantage.

The following table suggests a non-exhaustive list of backgrounds you might choose
from or roll (d6) to select, with suggestions for things they would be good at. Specifics
are open to interpretation during play.

1.​ BELT MINER. Asteroid miner in The Asteroid Belt.

2.​ EXER. Higher-up at an Exocorporation.
3.​ CRIMINAL. Gangster or mercenary.
4.​ WORKER. Downtrodden Exocorp employee.
5.​ ROAMER. Born in the wastelands on Earth.
6.​ TERRAFORMER. Spent whole life helping terraform Mars or Venus.
7.​ INDENTURE. Your body is leased to you by an Exocorporation.
8.​ MILITARY. You were part of the Stellar Consortium Navy or Marines.
CLASSES
Your Class determines specific areas of expertise. There are five classes, Warrior, Hacker,
Techie, Psion and Shinobi. Regardless of Class all Characters have a 50% chance of
beginning in a Flat Morph or a 50% chance of beginning in a Spacer Morph.

WARRIOR
ATHLETIC: When rolling for Strength, Dexterity or Constitution in a New Morph, re-roll
any 1s.
ENDURANT: Once per Combat, ignore the damage of one physical attack.
ARMORED: Can wear Power Armor without penalty.

HACKER
HACKING: Can make an INT Check to hack devices or targets within sight (disadvantage
on targets with 14 or more WIS). Devices can be forced into doing whatever the Hacker
pleases, hacked Targets take 1d6 damage and roll with disadvantage for 1 minute.
ILLUSION: Make an INT Check to place an illusion in The Weave in a desired location. All
Characters believe it unless they are able to make a WIS Check.

TECHIE
WIREHEAD: Advantage on Checks to modify or repair technology.
LINKED-UP: Control Drones in Combat without sacrificing movement.
GREASER: Advantage on Repair Attempts in Combat.

PSION
PSIONIC: You have a number of Psi Slots per day equal to (INT - 10) / 2 (rounded down).
At the beginning of each day, choose Psi Powers to fill Psi Slots with, each time a Psi
Power is activated, the Slot is lost for the day.
STRAIN: You can activate additional Psi Powers each day, but you take 1d4 damage.
SHINOBI
BACKSTAB: Deal double damage to unaware targets.
COORDINATED: Re-roll any 1s when rolling Dexterity in a New Morph.
SNEAKY: Advantage to deceive, disguise or sneak.

MORPHS
Biological bodies, or Morphs, come in many shapes and sizes. All Morphs have at least a
central nervous system, and are implanted with a Cortexode and a Weave Link.
Cortexodes are implants that take over the memory and personality emulation
functions of the Brain, and store a detailed back-up of their memories and personality
in Quantum Substrate, allowing their consciousness to be removed and transferred
between physical bodies. Cortexodes are durable, and while not difficult to destroy,
destroying them unintentionally is difficult. Resleeving from or into a body under the
age of 18 is illegal. Due to the No Cloning Theorem, making copies of Cortexodes is not
possible.

Biological bodies are either naturally born (Flats) or genetically enhanced Clones.
Clones are generally incredibly expensive due to the time required to let them age
naturally. Biological bodies are generally bought from Body Banks, criminals with
sentences of more than 10 years have their Stacks removed and stored, while their
bodies are sold off by the Government. After their sentence expires, they are resleeved
into whatever Morph is available.

Synthetic Bodies are much cheaper to make than clones, and only include an organic
central nervous system. Monthly maintenance that takes a day and costs 1000 Credits
is required. Synthetic Bodies do not breathe or eat, and can survive up to 6 hours in
vacuum, but do still require sleep and charging (generally done at the same time). In
addition, Synth Bodies are immune to poisons and radiation.
FLAT (&50000): No Special Abilities.
SPLICE MORPH (&75000): Strong or Dexterous.
SPACER MORPH (&60000): Radiation Resistance. Vacuum Resistance.
ONI MORPH (&150000): Smart. Radiation Resistance.
RONIN MORPH (&300000): Dexterous. Radiation Resistance. Vacuum Resistance.
Armored.
CHARMER MORPH (&250000): Persuasive.
ODACHI MORPH (&500000): Strong. Dexterous. Radiation Resistance. Vacuum
Resistance. Armored. Tank.
SYNTH MORPH (&25000): Robotic.
HULK MORPH (&500000): Robotic. Strong. Armored. Tank.

STRONG: +2 to Strength Generation Rolls. Maximum 18.

DEXTEROUS: +2 to Dexterity Generation Rolls. Maximum 18.
RADIATION RESISTANCE: Survive up to 1000 Rads with no negative effects.
VACUUM RESISTANCE: Survive up to a minute in Vacuum before taking damage.
SMART: +1 to INT while inhabiting the body.
ARMORED: +1 AP while in the Morph.
PERSUASIVE: +1 to CHA while inhabiting the Morph.
ROBOTIC: Survive up to 6 hours in vacuum. Immune to radiation and toxins. Does not
need to eat or drink. Must recharge for 4 hours every 48 hours. -2 Charisma
TANK: +5 Maximum HP.
SHIP CREATION
●​ Choose a Hull. Note Mass, Crew, Life Support, Armor and Cost.
●​ Choose a Drive. Note G Maximum.
●​ Choose Modifications (Optional). Note Effects.
●​ Choose Weapons (Optional). Note Range and Damage.
●​ Choose Defenses (Optional).
●​ Name the Ship.
●​ Soar across the stars!

HULL
HULL MASS CREW LIFE DEFENSE TYPE COST
SUPP.

Juniper-Class 10 1/2 1 0 Skiff 10000

Raptor-Class 25 1/4 2 1 Skiff 50000

Asinus-Class 50 2/8 8 1 Frigate 100000

Canid-Class 50 2/8 8 1 Frigate 500000

Niloticus-Class 75 2/16 8 2 Frigate 1000000

Orcinus-Class 100 8/32 12 2 Cruiser 5000000

Imperator-Class 200 8/60 12 3 Cruiser 10000000

DRIVE SYSTEMS
There are two Drive Systems commonly employed by modern Spacecraft, the
JOTUNHEIM Drive and the NIDAVELLIR Drive. The JOTUNHEIM Drive is a
Deuterium/Helium-3 Fusion Drive capable of providing up to 1G constant thrust for a
standard Frigate, and up to 4G for short periods of time. The NIDAVELLIR Drive is an
Antimatter-catalyzed Fusion Drive capable of providing up to 2G constant thrust for a
standard Frigate and up to 8G for short periods of time.
 DRIVE SYSTEM SKIFF G FRIGATE G CRUISER G COST

JOTUNHEIM 1.5 1 0.75 50000

NIDAVELLIR 6 4 2 5000000

Each day, a point of Fuel is consumed equivalent to the G the ship is accelerating at.
A point of JOTUNHEIM Fuel consumes 1 Mass and costs &1000.
A point of NIDAVELLIR Fuel consumes 4 Mass and costs &10000.

MODIFICATIONS
MODIFICATION DESCRIPTION MASS COST

Spin Gravity Generates 0.2G when not Accelerating. 10 25000

Atmosphere Land and leave planets with a significant 20 50000

Operation atmosphere.

Gas Refinery Refine one point of JOTUNHEIM fuel per day 25 100000
from Gas Giants.

Armor Plating +1 Defense. 10 25000

Nano-Repair Regain 1 Defense per day. 30 200000

Hydroponic Doubles Life Support. 25 50000

Garden

Enhanced Drive +0.5 Maximum G. 10 50000

Radiation Shield Allows safe operation between 1-3 million 25 50000

km of the sun.

Mining Drones Allows asteroid mining. 10 10000

Stealth Tech Allows the Ship to “Go Dark” 30 100000

Ship Bay Hold a Fighter/Frigate. 25/75 100000

WEAPONS SYSTEMS
WEAPONS SYSTEM MASS HIT DAMAGE RANGE COST
CHANCE

Xaser, Tier 1 25 30% 1 Long 50000

Xaser, Tier 2 25 50% 1 Long 100000

Railgun, Tier 1 10 50% 1 Close 10000

Railgun, Tier 2 25 50% 2 Close 25000

Kamikaze Drones 25 60% 1 Close 50000

Missiles 35 75% 2 Long 200000

Shrapnel Cloud 35 85% 1 Close 50000

Shipkiller Nukes 40 75% 3 Long 5000000

DEFENSE SYSTEMS
DEFENSE SYSTEM HIT CHANCE MASS EFFECTIVE AGAINST COST
REDUCTION

PDC -30% 10 Missiles, Kamikaze 25000

Drones, Nukes

Jammer -15% 5 Missiles, Xasers 75000

Reflective Plating -25% 20 Xasers 50000

SPACE TRAVEL
Ships accelerate halfway to their destination, before decelerating the other half, the
formula to determine travel times is: T = 2√(d/a), where T is time in seconds, D is
distance in Meters from start to finish, and A is Acceleration in m/s^2.
SPACE COMBAT
In Space Combat there are three roles, Pilot, Gunner and Engineer. Pilots control the
Ships Maneuvers, Gunners control the Weapons Systems and Defense Systems, and
Engineers are tasked with keeping the Ship operational in Combat. Combat can only be
conducted within 0.025 AU.

Space Combat is conducted in a number of steps:

1.​ Each Ship’s Pilot announces Maneuvers. Ships begin at Long Range to one
another.
2.​ Each Ship’s Gunner announces Weapons Systems used. Each Weapons System
may be used once per round.
3.​ Each Ship’s Gunner announces Defense Systems used. Each Defense System may
be used once per round.
4.​ Hits are calculated with a d%, using the base Hit Chance of a Weapons System,
modified by Defense System Penalties and Maneuver Penalties. If a Ship is hit,
damage is dealt per Weapons System.
5.​ Engineers announce Repair Attempts, and a WIS Check is made to see if they
succeed.
6.​ Restart from Step 1. Combat ends when only one side of the conflict is left
standing.

MANEUVERS
There are a number of Maneuvers a Pilot can take in Space Combat:
●​ EVASIVE MANEUVERS: Perform a High-G Burn. -5% chance to be hit per G
burned. Weapons Systems cannot be activated in the same round as a Burn.
●​ CHANGE RANGE: Move from Long Range to Close Range or Vice Versa.
●​ FLEE: Attempt to Flee. Choose a G and Burn. If your enemies take a Pursuit
Maneuver, divide your G by their G and multiply by 100, and then roll a d% under
that number, if successful, you have escaped.
●​ PURSUIT: Pursue a fleeing Ship, choose a G for your Ship and burn.
DAMAGE AND COMPLICATIONS
Whenever a Ship takes damage, its Defense is reduced by 1 permanently. If a Ship
reaches 0 Defense, each point of Damage thereafter inflicts a Complication.
1.​ Drive Disabled. Acceleration/Deceleration impossible, and no Maneuvers can be
taken until repaired.
2.​ Drive Destroyed. Acceleration/Deceleration impossible, no Maneuvers can be
taken. Cannot be repaired, and must be fully replaced.
3.​ Reactor Disabled. As Drive Disabled, but Weapons Systems and Defense Systems
cannot be activated.
4.​ Reactor Destroyed. As Drive Destroyed, but Weapons Systems and Defense
Systems cannot be activated.
5.​ Weapons System Disabled. A single Weapons System is disabled.
6.​ Weapons System Destroyed. A single Weapons System is destroyed.
7.​ Defense System Disabled. A single Defense System is disabled.
8.​ Defense System Destroyed. A single Defense System is destroyed.
9.​ Comms disabled. Cannot receive or transmit communications.
10.​Radiators destroyed. Ship must be abandoned within 1d6 hours, or else all on
board will die of overheating.

REPAIR ATTEMPTS
Engineers can make repair attempts to attempt to repair disabled Ship components. A
WIS Check can be made at Disadvantage to determine success.

HIGH-G ENVIRONMENTS
Each round spent in a G above 2, Characters must make a CON Check or take 1d6
damage per G above 2. ​
DETECTION, COMMUNICATIONS AND STEALTH
Ships can detect and identify other Ships within an AU, as all Ships broadcast an
identifying signal outwards to make communications easier. While Ships can turn this
signal off, they can still be easily detected by their Drive Signatures.

There are two types of Communications in Space, Open and Direct, Open
Communications can be picked up by anyone tuned to the right frequency, while Direct
Communications are end-to-end encrypted and can only be opened by a specific
target, a device or Spacecraft, and require a Disadvantage INT Check to decrypt.
Communications can only travel as fast as light, it takes about 8.3 minutes for a
message to cross an AU, meaning that communications are generally text or video
messages, rather than “calls”.

Ships equipped with Stealth Tech can “Go Dark”, allowing them to remain undetected
so long as their Drive and Communications remain off, while their heat and radar
signatures are absorbed by the tech, and nanotech covering the hull hides the ship
itself by mimicking the black void of space. A Ship can only “Go Dark” for up to 12 hours
at a time, before heat build-up forces them to operate normally for 4 hours to release
heat.