Cyber-Dungeon Classics I: Arcolgies

Zapped by a hi-res laser. Take the red pill. Plug in. Within seconds and the Player Characters are no longer in their world, but another. Somewhere in between, a liminal space of data and information, infinite realities and variations, where corporations hold and protect their data in fortresses and millions work, and even more flock to explore worlds that previously they could only imagine. They no longer are Player Characters, but ‘Users’, shifted out of ‘Reality’ and into ‘Cyberspace’ as ‘Avatars’. Inside this virtual world, this WorldNet, they face not I.C.E. or Intrusion Counter Electronics per se, but Intrusion Counter Entities. Their new world is not so much a virtual world as a cyberdungeon. ICE are not the only dangers the Avatars will face. There is a chance of being detected and worse being noticed by the deities that are the A.I.s. This is the setting for Netcrawl, the cyberspace setting and supplement for use with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic, both published by Goodman Games. Published by Horse Shark Games, it works with other third-party settings such as Cyber Sprawl Classics, Crawljammer, Umerica, Terror of the Stratosfiend, and Star Crawl Classics. Plus, of course, it can simply be a roleplaying setting all of its own. Once zapped into this virtual world, what exactly does it look like?

Netcrawl: Arcologies is a supplement that attempts to address the infinite number of possibilities when it comes to what the virtual reality environments of Netcrawl and the WorldNet look like, what might be found there, and what threats that the Avatars might encounter. It is in effect a dungeon generator for a cyberpunk and virtual world setting that the Judge can use as prompts to develop the space into which the Avatars are cast and bring it to (virtual) reality. The first part of Netcrawl: Arcologies looks at its namesake with a set of tables for defining what a particular arcology is like. The generator determines an arcology’s tone and theme, functionality, appearance, and style, plus the primary form of travel to and within the arcology. So its tone might be disorientating or entertaining, its theme lines and vertices or grimy, functionality a beta release or fortified, and its appearance a polygon or shaped like a vehicle, and so on. In style it could be gridded or circuitry and if a polyhedral shape, a cylinder, cone, or rhomboid prism.

Thematically, one area that the supplement does not do is provide a means of determining who built the arcology and who runs it now. In the introduction, it acknowledges that an arcology can be run by numerous organisations, where that is corporate, governmental, or some other body, and that further this will suggest branding, function, and appearance. The inclusion of such details would have added further depth and detail to any arcology and help the Admin in the creation process.

The ‘System Raid’ tables set up a target and thus the basis of an adventure for Netcrawl. It sets the target as a random system building that is then layered into grids of nodes that are populated with agents or random I.C.E. These include connections, firewalls, agents, security portals, systems, and servers. This provides the target environment to be explored and worked through, but the look and feel of this space should be dictated by the previous Arcology Generator tables. Of course, the target can be determined wholly randomly by simply rolling on the tables, but the advice is to combine it with design choices. The process is not easy in part because although it is creating the equivalent of a virtual dungeon, it does not have the structure of a dungeon traditional to Dungeons & Dragons. So, it is harder to visualise.

The Admin can also personalise the A.I.s in charge of the arcology—or parts of it—with plans and personalities, and even give them hobbies to perhaps give them a weakness that can be exploited. Arcologies can further be populated by rolling the I.C.E. Generator that determines type, general appearance, colour, and form, and even allows for the possibility it could manifest in the outside world, from as ordinary a defence as a swarm of nanobots to a synthetic android.

The supplement takes the Admin to the seamier side of the virtual world with the Undernet, the equivalent of the Dark Web, but here treated like the back streets and alleys with a handful of encounters. Further, it is a bestiary of sorts, if the monsters and other threats are digital. There is Malware, virulent code that compromises a victim’s defences and can alter an Avatar’s appearance temporarily and even permanently reduce his stats, depending upon how badly the player fails his Avatar’s saving throw versus. Some of these are quite complex. For example, once installed, the reactive defensive code attack ‘Heartstopper’ automatically activates under certain circumstances and forces constant heart attacks on the victim, whilst ‘JOBE’ or ‘Joyous Omnipotent Brain Evolution’, grants a bonus to program activation checks and Wits check or Wits-based skill checks. However, if an Avatar succeeds by these bonuses only, it reduces his Hack stat and if reduced to zero, the sufferer is turned into a megalomaniac! In many cases, Malware can be removed with reversion control or quarantine.

The ‘Code’ rules get under the structure under AI, arcology, and Avatar, whilst ‘Exploits’ are malicious code that can be injected into an Avatar. Again, like the Malware, there are basic and more detailed versions. For example, ‘Couch Pirate 3000 (CP3K) – The Slacker Hacker’ is whispered about in encrypted chatrooms or foreshadowed by icons of a worn-out couch appearing on dead servers, and asks the question, “Why burn the system when you can break

it lying down?” Sufferers are forced to lie down on the couch and lose all speed (moving 0#) and suffer a -4 penalty to their Hack. That said, the couch can be moved, so making the Avatar’s allies do yet more hard work! The ‘Zap Generator’ creates Zaps, virtual drug-like experiences that provide temporary boosts, but which can be addictive. They fit the setting, but they do feel like way to get drugs into the WorldNet, whereas ‘Abends’ enforce the weird nature of the setting, all being code written to crash in unusual ways, ending in critical errors and other unexpected ways. For example, ‘nessuna.tmp’ causes intense drowsiness and an hour-long dream state that renders an Avatar vulnerable. Effectively, ‘cybersleep’, it has transcendent effects that make many ciphomorph shamans actually infect themselves and gain prophetic abilities and access to ‘spirit’ realms. Mechanically, after waking up from this state, users are slowed to a zen-like state that means they go last in combat and are slowed to a single action, but do gain access to insight that grants a bonus to an action die, saving throw, or Armour class, which can be changed from round to round. There are only three of these Abends, but these add depth and feel to some of the software to be found in the WorldNet.

Rounding out Netcrawl: Arcologies is a ‘Guide to the WorldNet’ that further develops ideas for its many, many virtual reality environments. This gives tables of rumours, events, and news items to use across various ‘neighbourhoods’ of the WorldNet. They include locations such as ‘The Spine’, the main highway of the WorldNet; the hedonistic, yet upscale VR playgrounds known as ‘Les Loisirs’; and the ‘Nightzone’ is the always-on, always-dark, nightlife district. There are nine such locations, not so much detailed, as brought to reality through the rumours and news in their associated tables. These are full of lots of detail that will help the Admin bring them to life using the tables earlier in the supplement to give structure to her WorldNet.

Physically, Netcrawl: Arcologies is a vibrantly, neon affair. It is not illustrated, but the colours more than make up for it.

Netcrawl: Arcologies starts by selling itself as the equivalent of the dungeon generator for Netcrawl, but it is not as an expansive as traditional dungeon generators are for fantasy roleplaying. It is more focused on limited structures, though these can still be quite large. However, the supplement does not limit itself wholly to that, but adds general details and elements that can be brought easily into play and expand the setting. Ultimately, Netcrawl: Arcologies is more of a companion to NetCrawl providing general support rather just location-building, but that does not mean that it is bad support.

Cyber-Dungeon Classics

NetCrawl does something strange and different. Strange because it pulls the Player Characters into a liminal space, a virtual space known as the WorldNet, an unreality where hours and minutes might pass in seconds in the ‘real’ world, and where they must overcome ICE—Intrusion Countermeasures—in order fulfil their mission in Cyberspace. This might simply be to pull off a robbery or steal some information, locate a piece of software or a person, and so on, but it needs to be done without attracting the attention of the god-like A.I.s which control everything! Different because unlike most roleplaying games that access Cyberspace, such as Cyberpunk Red or Shadowrun – Sixth World, what NetCrawl does is involve all of the players and all of their characters in that translation into Cyberspace, where they will work together to achieve their aims. Netcrawl is a roleplaying game that also works as a supplement for use with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic, both published by Goodman Games. Published by Horse Shark Games, it shifts the Player Characters, or ‘Users’, out of ‘Reality’ and into ‘Cyberspace’ as ‘Avatars’. Inside this virtual world, they face not I.C.E. or Intrusion Counter Electronics per se, but Intrusion Counter Entities. There is not so much a virtual world as a cyber-dungeon. These are not the only dangers in Netcrawl. There is a chance of being detected and worse being noticed by the deities that are the A.I.s. Netcrawl is a setting suitable for one-shots as perhaps the Player Characters from another setting suddenly find themselves transported into a virtual world, hacking into a system in a Science Fiction setting like Mutant Crawl Classics as well as various also third-party settings such as Cyber Sprawl Classics, Crawljammer, Umerica, Terror of the Stratosfiend, and Star Crawl Classics. Plus, of course, it can simply be a roleplaying setting all of its own.

In NetCrawl, the Player Characters are ‘Avatars’. An Avatar has six characteristics—Power, Agility, Vitality, Wits, Psyche, and Hack. The latter enables an Avatar to manipulate the code which runs the WorldNet and its modifier affects critical hits, fumbles, and the like, and points of it can be permanently expended to gain a one-time bonus. It is the equivalent of Luck in Dungeon Crawl Classics, and can only be regained by great acts or courage, the Ciphomorph and Grifter Classes. An Avatar has access to three categories of skills—Security, Investigative, and Code Execution—of which he will typically be trained in one. Security covers breaking into and avoiding hazards in secured systems; Investigative skills provide clues; and Code Execution is exactly that. An Avatar will also have a certain amount of RAM. This varies by Class and Level, but is spent to purchase Daemons or equipment, Mod Chips, Programs, and Scripts.

Netcrawl has five Classes. The Avartarist sees the WorldNet as being alive and can Repattern WorldNet and holographic objects to heal them, receives a bonus Holo Die to run programs, and is bonded to an A.I. The Ciphomorph is native to the WorldNet and gains bonuses when rolling for Execute Program and the use of Hack, as well as being able to share Hack with others. The Cybernaut specialises in running Programs and can Burndown Vitality, Wits, or Psyche score to enhance the Program check. The Grifter specialises as either an Intrusion Specialist, Threat Eliminator, or Data Savant. The Intrusion Specialist is good at breaking into systems and hiding his tracks; the Threat Eliminator can harm ICE; and the Data Savant focuses on finding, analysing, and synthesising data. The Grifter also uses finished Scripts, programs with a static outcome and is also good at using skills. The Wardriver focuses on speed and power, relying on Mod Chips rather than Programs or Scripts, as well as Daemons for offensive and defensive countermeasures. Mod Chips give bonuses in combat and the Wardriver has a number of slots for his Mod Chips, being to swap and activate them, as necessary. There are different models for each type of Mod Chip, each proving a better bonus than the earlier ones and as the Wardriver’s Mod Die improves the better the bonus he gains from the Mod Chip. For example, the Brute Mk. I Mod Chip grants a +1 bonus to unarmed attacks, but the Brute Mk. II Mod Chip gives a bonus to both unarmed attacks and damage. Then with a Mod Die of three, the Wardriver gains +1 to his Armour Class whilst unarmed, whereas with a Mod Die of three, he gains the Armour Class modifier and an additional attack with a fourteen-sided die. The various Mod Chips cover ranged attacks, rate of fire, initiative, and more

What is important here is that this Avatar is a projection of a person into the WorldNet via a mix of hardware, software, and data, together known as a ‘Rig’. This person could be a ‘real-world’ person jacked in, a server in the Cloud, or other virtual entity, and is known as the ‘Host’. The ‘Host’ grants an Avatar a Hack modifier, much like the Star Sign does to Player Characters in Dungeon Crawl Classics. For example, ‘Samurai Mk. VII’ grants a modifier to ‘Daemon melee attack rolls’, whilst ‘Grid Punch Gold’ modifies the Avatar’s ‘Speed’. This is rolled for all Player Characters, including Zero Level Avatars who can then be run through ‘The Gig’. This is an entry-level scenario, the equivalent of the Funnel, one of the signature features of both the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game and the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game that Netcrawl is mechanically based upon—in which initially, a player is expected to roll up three or four Level Zero characters and have them play through a generally nasty, deadly adventure, which surviving will prove a challenge. Those that do survive receive enough Experience Points to advance to First Level and gain all of the advantages of their Class. As entry-level software, the Avatars are essentially network & system software, developer toolkits, and hacker tools.

Avatars wield a variety of Daemons, or items of equipment, which are divided in several categories—Melee, Ranged, Protective, and Support. The weapons and armour are mix of the old and the new, but all with a Cyberpunk theme. Thus, the katana alongside razor claws and the monowire whip. Some of these are nicely adjusted so that nunchuku has a bonus to Fumble rolls and the ICE pick will subvert ICE! In general, the melee weapons are more fun than the ranged weapons, though going into battle with a screamin’ skull that fires a cone attack or a viral gun that shoots malware is entertaining. The Protective daemons are more descriptive, but it is possible to use a Firewall as temporary ablative armour, although some versions reduce a character’s Action die. There are also Datagrams which provide small, one-off boosts to an action, such as ‘Electric jolt’, which forces a target to lose its next action if it fails a Reflex saving throw or ‘Logon credentials’, which grants a bonus to a False Identity check.

In general, combat in Netcrawl works like combat in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game. However, there are some changes to account for the change in genre and setting. This includes ICE being able to enact ‘Traceback’ and track and even attack an intruding Avatar, HupLock an Avatar to prevent it from logging out or a Kick to force a disconnection. Lost Health is regained in Maintenance Cycles, whilst an Avatar reduced to zero Hit Points is de-rezzed, begins to pixelate and lose digital cohesion, but can be re-rezzed, either through certain programs or the Avartarist’s Repattern ability and restored to positive Hit Points. Some Avatars—Ciphomorph or Grifter—can channel their Hacking ability to attack opponents, shatter objects, and even launch a counterattack against program assaults. This requires the expenditure of points of Psyche, the result determined by a roll on the ‘Hacking Result Table’ or compared with the roll made for the program targeting the hacker, this being resolved as per the rules for spell duelling in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game.

In addition, an Avatar can install Mod chips that boost his combat abilities. For example, ‘Punisher’ grants extra damage and deadlier critical hits, ‘Stutter’ glitches an opponent’s movements and actions, and ‘Hardware’ provides defence and protection from special attacks. These are graded from ‘Mark I’ to ‘Mark IV’, as well as ‘Advanced’, and each has a minimum character Level.

Avatars have access to a variety of Programs. There are different types of code in the WorldNet of NetCrawl, but Programs are inert packets of static code that when run generate a variety of different effects in order to complete a specific function. They include Decrypt/Decompile, which makes the source code of a program human readable; Glitch causes a robot, A.I., or computerised target to buzz quietly and do nothing for one or more rounds; and Exploit allows an Avatar to implant malice code—computer virus, worm, backdoor, and the like—and so mechanically, impose a penalty into a creature biological or artificial. When an Avatar wants to execute a Program, his player rolls a Program check and compares the result to the table for the Program being run. A critical roll grants extra benefits, whilst a fumble means that a bug, fault, or critical error has occurred, and the player must roll on the tables for these possible effects. Mechanically, Programs work the same as spells in Dungeon Crawl Classics and mutations in Mutant Crawl Classics, but thematically, they are in some ways very different. Many help with particular skills, such as Pattern Recognition for the Data Analysis skill and some model the effects of classic Dungeon Crawl Classics spells in the WorldNet, like Subjugate works similar to Charm and Clone creates holographic images of the Avatar much like Mirror Image creates images of the casting Wizard. Other Programs draw from the world of computing and hacking, like Crack, a Program that breaks through Intrusion Countermeasures Electronic and other defences through brute force.

There is a list of potential Patron A.I.s, though the Judge is advised that they are optional. They do provide their own Programs, and a bonded Avatar can run Invoke Patron A.I. to trigger further benefits. The main issue with the Patron A.I.s given in NetCrawl is that the Judge will need access to other content, including Mutant Crawl Classics, and both Scions of the Computarchs #1, Scions of the Computarchs #2, and Scions of the Computarchs #3.

There are some notes on visualising the WorldNet and running Netcrawl, and a guide to creating the various A.I.s, Avatars, ICE, Viruses, and Bots. This is because there no generic ‘monsters’ in NetCrawl. There are some examples though along with the tables of options for the Judge to create her own. Of course, this enables a Judge to individualise the threats that here players’ Avatars will face, but it does require more input and thought than using a traditional bestiary would.

Rounding out NetCrawl is the short adventure, ‘The Core Queen Slumber’. It is designed for First Level Avatars, who have to infiltrate a data server and locate a one-eyed wizard who has the information that they are looking for. They will need to manipulate the systems around the data server, hopefully without alerting the Core Queen, in order access it. There is a puzzle element to the adventure, which will definitely take a playing group less than a session to complete. It works as a taster for the setting or as task to slot into a loner and fuller scenario.

Physically, Netcrawl is decently written, but the layout is often jarring because it uses a lot of vibrant colours on black backgrounds which some may have difficulty reading. The switch to the standard layout for spells in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game or mutant powers in the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game for the Programs is also jarring, although more easily red. The artwork is decent and a nice touch for ‘The Core Queen Slumber’ adventure is that the locations are drawn as per the ray-traced depiction of the virtual world a la the film Tron.

Netcrawl is an interesting roleplaying game and setting that expands the format of the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game into a virtual realm. It is well done and is perfect for the Judge who wants to drop her players’ characters into the realms of cyberspace and have them explore its virtual reality.

Yet conceptually, NetCrawl raises two issues. One is technical in nature. This is that there is a radical shift for the Judge and her players, not in terms necessarily of what their Avatars do, since it is suggested that the WordNet is a cyber-dungeon, but in terms of terminology, language, and how they do it. Adjusting to this is going to take some effort upon the part of both player and Judge, especially if they are not overly familiar with the Cyberpunk genre. To that end, examples of play and a bibliography would have been helpful.

The other issue is conceptual. Why play Netcrawl? After all, although not necessarily an unfamiliar genre, it is a niche roleplaying game, and it is not easy to use. This is because there is no ‘real world’ space against which to play the WorldNet off of, which raises questions where the WorldNet is, how it relates to the real world, and why are the Player Characters jacking into it? There is no discussion of motivation in NetCrawl and that is something that the Judge and the players will need to develop to have their Avatars explore the WorldNet. However, the liminality of NetCrawl does open up possibilities as it being a connecting space between worlds, so that a party of Player Characters could find themselves entering the WorldNet and after adventuring there, popping out again in another world, or roleplaying game setting. Alternatively, those worlds or roleplaying game settings could actually be massively virtual spaces within WorldNet itself. So there are ways of using NetCrawl, but as a roleplaying game on its own, it lacks strong underlying Player Character motivations and reasons to explore its setting in the long term.

WorldNet Classics

Cyberspace is enticing. The idea of riding the electrons in the vastness of cyberspace between fortresses of digital data in a cityscape at night, ready make a run on a corporate presence in the virtual world, to unleash demons and code cracking programs all the while dodging or destroying I.C.E. or Intrusion Counter Electronics. Yet as enticing as it is, it has always been a solo affair, something going in virtual space whilst anyone else on the job was hustling time in meat space. It is a problem that has always beset the roleplaying game where hacking played a prominent role, such as Cyberpunk Red or Shadowrun – Sixth World. In these roleplaying games, hacking often becomes a solo game between the Game Master and the Player Character hacker or netrunner, effectively playing a rules subsystem or subgame within the roleplaying game whilst the other players and their characters waited for the hack or netrun to play out. In game time, it might only take a few seconds, but in real time, effectively, too long. In truth, roleplaying games subsequently published since the first Cyberpunk roleplaying game have all attempted to address this issue in one form or another. Typically, making the netrunner or hacker go on the mission with the rest of the Player Characters and need to be on the spot to access the local grid to perform his role. What though, if the whole were need, or could, go on the netrun and work together to perform the necessary in the cyberspace that is the WorldNet? This is the set-up for Netcrawl.

Netcrawl is a supplement for use with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic, both published by Goodman Games. Published by Horse Shark Games, it shifts the Player Characters, or ‘Users’, out of ‘Reality’ and into ‘Cyberspace’ as ‘Avatars’. Inside this virtual world, they face not I.C.E. or Intrusion Counter Electronics per se, but Intrusion Counter Entities. There is not so much a virtual world as a cyberdungeon. These are not the only dangers in Netcrawl. There is a chance of being detected and worse being noticed by the deities that are the A.I.s. Netcrawl is a setting suitable for one-shots as perhaps the Player Characters from another setting suddenly find themselves transported into a virtual world, hacking into a system in a Science Fiction setting like Mutant Crawl Classics as well as various also third-party settings such as Cyber Sprawl Classics, Crawljammer, Umerica, Terror of the Stratosfiend, and Star Crawl Classics. Plus, of course, it can simply be a roleplaying setting all of its own.

An Avatar in Netcrawl have six characteristics—Power, Agility, Vitality, Wits, Psyche, and Hack. The latter enables an Avatar to manipulate the code which runs the WorldNet and its modifier affects critical hits, fumbles, and the like, and points of it can be permanently expended to gain a one-time bonus. It is the equivalent of Luck and can only be regained by great acts or courage, the Ciphomorph and Grifter Classes. An Avatar has access to three categories of skills—Security, Investigative, and Code Execution—of which he will typically be trained in one. Security covers breaking into and avoiding hazards in secured systems; Investigative skills provide clues; and Code Execution is exactly that. An Avatar will also have a certain amount of RAM. This varies by Class and Level, but is spent to purchase Daemons or equipment, Mod Chips, Programs, and Scripts.

Netcrawl has five Classes. The Avartarist sees the WorldNet as being alive and can Repattern WorldNet and holographic objects to heal them, receives a bonus Holo Die to run programs, and is bonded to an A.I. The Ciphomorph is native to the WorldNet and gains bonuses when rolling for Execute Program and the use of Hack, as well as being able to share Hack with others. The Cybernaut specialises in running Programs and can Burndown Vitality, Wits, or Psyche score to enhance the Program check. The Grifter specialises as either an Intrusion Specialist, Threat Eliminator, or Data Savant. The Intrusion Specialist is good at breaking into systems and hiding his tracks; the Threat Eliminator can harm ICE; and the Data Savant focuses on finding, analysing, and synthesising data. The Grifter also uses finished Scripts, programs with a static outcome and is also good at using skills. The Wardriver focuses on speed and power, relying on Mod Chips rather than Programs or Scripts, as well as Daemons for offensive and defensive countermeasures. Mod Chips give bonuses in combat and the Wardriver has a number of slots for his Mod Chips, being to swap and activate them, as necessary. There are different models for each type of Mod Chip, each proving a better bonus than the earlier ones and as the Wardriver’s Mod Die improves the better the bonus he gains from the Mod Chip. For example, the Brute Mk. I Mod Chip grants a +1 bonus to unarmed attacks, but the Brute Mk. II Mod Chip gives a bonus to both unarmed attacks and damage. Then with a Mod Die of three, the Wardriver gains +1 to his Armour Class whilst unarmed, whereas with a Mod Die of three, he gains the Armour Class modifier and an additional attack with a fourteen-sided die. The various Mod Chips cover ranged attacks, rate of fire, initiative, and more.

Daemons are divided in several categories—Melee, Ranged, Protective, and Support. The weapons and armour are mix of the old and the new, but all with a Cyberpunk theme. Thus, the katana alongside razor claws and the monowire whip. Some of these are nicely adjusted so that nunchuku has a bonus to Fumble rolls and the ICE pick will subvert ICE! In general, the melee weapons are more fun than the ranged weapons, though going into battle with a screamin’ skull that fires a cone attack or a viral gun that shoots malware is entertaining. The Protective daemons are more descriptive, but it is possible to use a Firewall as temporary ablative armour, although some versions reduce a character’s Action die. There are also Datagrams which provide small, one-off boosts to an action, such as ‘Electric jolt’, which forces a target to lose its next action if it fails a Reflex saving throw or ‘Logon credentials’, which grants a bonus to a False Identity check.

In general, combat in Netcrawl works like combat in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game. However, there are some changes to account for the change in genre and setting. This includes ICE being able to enact ‘Traceback’ and track and even attack an intruding Avatar, HupLock an Avatar to prevent it from logging out or a Kick to force a disconnection. Lost Health is regained in Maintenance Cycles, whilst an Avatar reduced to zero Hit Points is de-rezzed, begins to pixelate and lose digital cohesion, but can be re-rezzed, either through certain programs or the Avartarist’s Repattern ability and restored to positive Hit Points. Some Avatars—Ciphomorph or Grifter—can channel their Hacking ability to attack opponents, shatter objects, and even launch a counterattack against program assaults. This requires the expenditure of points of Psyche, the result determined by a roll on the ‘Hacking Result Table’ or compared with the roll made for the program targeting the hacker, this being resolved as per the rules for spell duelling in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game.

In addition, an Avatar can install Mod chips that boost his combat abilities. For example, ‘Punisher’ grants extra damage and deadlier critical hits, ‘Stutter’ glitches an opponent’s movements and actions, and ‘Hardware’ provides defence and protection from special attacks. These are graded from ‘Mark I’ to ‘Mark IV’, as well as ‘Advanced’, and each has a minimum character Level. 

Avatars have access to a variety of Programs. Just seven are presented. These are Decrypt/Decompile, which makes the source code of a program human readable; Glitch causes a robot, A.I., or computerised target to buzz quietly and do nothing for one or more rounds; and Exploit allows an Avatar to implant malice code—computer virus, worm, backdoor, and the like—and so mechanically, impose a penalty into a creature biological or artificial. When an Avatar wants to execute a Program, his player rolls a Program check and compares the result to the table for the Program being run. A critical roll grants extra benefits, whilst a fumble means that a bug, fault, or critical error has occurred, and the player must roll on the tables for these possible effects. Mechanically, Programs work the same as spells in Dungeon Crawl Classics and mutations in Mutant Crawl Classics, meaning that each has a table of results and effects of its own. More Programs will be detailed in the full roleplaying game.

Rounding out Netcrawl is the short adventure, ‘The Core Queen Slumber’. It is designed for First Level Avatars, who have to infiltrate a data server and locate a one-eyed wizard who has the information that they are looking for. They will need to manipulate the systems around the data server, hopefully without alerting the Core Queen, in order access it. There is a puzzle element to the adventure, which will definitely take a playing group less than a session to complete. It works as a taster for the setting or as task to slot into a loner and fuller scenario.

Physically, Netcrawl is decently written, but the layout is often jarring because it uses a lot of vibrant colours on black backgrounds which some have difficulty reading. The switch to the standard layout for spells in the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game or mutant powers in the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game for the Programs is also jarring, although more easily red. The artwork is decent and a nice touch for ‘The Core Queen Slumber’ adventure is that the locations are drawn as per the ray-traced depiction of the virtual world a la the film Tron.

Netcrawl has a problem and that is that it a far more technical roleplaying game than either the Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game or the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game, both of which provide the architectural underpinnings upon which it is built. There is a shift conceptually, in terms of what the game is about and what the Player Characters do, and a shift—in some ways a more radical shift—in terms of terminology and language. Both shifts are some things that the Judge and her players are going to have to accommodate when running and playing Netcrawl, especially if they have been playing the other two roleplaying games and also in conceptualising the game. The lack of examples of play and the rules does hinder the shift. Otherwise, Netcrawl is in some ways a standard Cyberpunk roleplaying game except that it is all played within the virtual space and the Player Characters are all Avatars and there is no ‘meatspace’, at least not in the basic version of Netcrawl. Also, this version does not explore who wants the data that the Avatars are after and what it is used for, so there is no push or pull in terms of Avatar motivation. That said, a Judge can easily develop these or explore the genre for source ideas.

Netcrawl contains all of the basic rules needed to explore a virtual world in classic Cyberpunk style. However, it is begging for that virtual world to be developed and presented as a setting that can be explored. Both will be expanded upon the Netcrawl Roleplaying Game and its first supplement, Netcrawl Arcologies.