Are Horror campaigns DOOMED to fail? ( D&D / TTRPG )

Things to find in a street kids pockets.

Time for another search of some dead souls pockets in a cyberpunk future. Or maybe you are just searching one who's still alive. But we all know which one is more likely.

Things to find in a street kids pockets.

1 – A one use security signal jammer. Lasts for a D10 x 10 seconds then needs a recharge.

2 – Universal charging ring. Has several different ports so it can be plugged in anywhere.

3 – A D6 of protein sticks held together with a rubber band.

4 – A reusable air hypo and a few CO2 packs to power it.

5 – Graphic intense face mask with built in goggles.

6 – Well worn folding multi-tool.

7 – Water purifier tabs.

8 – Small ‘hand can’ of luminescent spray paint.

9 – Neon 3D printed whistle, very loud when blown.

10 – Pair of fingerless gloves with metal studs along the knuckles.

Magic Items - Automatic Candle Snuffers

Automatic candle snuffers. I didn't know these existed until a few years ago. They have been around for quite some time as well. So of course we need some of these with magical effects. 

Automatic Candle Snuffers

1 – A sleep spell is cast when the candle is snuffed.

2 – Creates a sphere of silence when it closes that lasts for four hours.

3 – A one use snuffer that activates a fireball spell stored inside when it closes. Of course it destroys itself in the process.

4 – Causes all other flames within twenty feet to extinguish when it closes.

5 – When open and on a candle it slows the burning process and doubles the candles burn time.

6 – When on a burning candle it purifies the air in the room.

7 – When on a burning candle it causes the light to be twice as bright without making it burn faster.

8 – Causes the candle it is on to burn with a wonderful scent that calms anyone in the same room.

9 – When a person lights the candle it is on everyone in the room is suddenly enthralled and will listen to anything they have to say while it burns.

10 – Will cause the candle to emit a toxic gas when it’s burning.

That Blog, Over There - These Old Games

 

It's that time of the week again. Where I try to point your attention over to another blog that out there on the net which I think deserves some attention. I mean, I prefer blogs over videos, guess I'm just old fashioned. 

This time it's the blog These Old Games which is ran by Phil Viverito. Lot's of old school material here to dig through. Plenty of descriptions, pictures, and all that good stuff. Some really quality material here. So please go check it out and let em know Peter Amthor sent you. 

As usual, if you know of any blogs I should check out please drop a link in the comments. 

Grave Robbers Inc

 

Grave Robbers Inc

Sometimes there are jobs that are necessary but are considered to unsavory for most people to do. One such job is exhuming the dead. Now there may be all sorts of reasons why you need a body dug up, ritual components, resurrection, feeding, whatever... but it's a dirty backbreaking job that just seems to have a bad taint about it. But there is a demand, so of course there are those willing to do the work. That's just what this little posse of losers has done. After being outcasts in a niche of society that is pretty much composed of outcasts these folks got together and carved out their own little pocket by doing what nobody else will do. No questions asked. For the right price.

Of course their prices aren't cheap but what's the alternative, doing it yourself? Nobody wants to do that. So as a base rate to pull a fresh body out of the ground and have it picked up at a location of their choosing you will pay an easy five grand. Add another grand for every week it's been buried. Add a grand if the customer chooses the pick up location. Tag on another two if they have to move the body from the transport and into a location. Just need specific parts of a body? Well that's a grand each.

These guys don't take plastic so be ready to pay cash in hand or bitcoin. On a very rare occasion they have been willing to do the deed for a trade. But whatever you are offering it had better be pretty valuable AND be something they really want.

One thing though, getting in touch with them isn't that tough. If you ask around the various occult circles enough you will hear about them and somebody will hand you a phone number. On the other end of that number will be the sweetest voice you’ve ever heard.

Significant NPC's

Tim Price, aka The Boss

Tim is from a long family line of morticians. He has all the education and apprenticeship necessary to follow that path as well. But he decided to spend some more time in college while chasing after lost bits of occult knowledge. While he possesses no magical or supernatural abilities himself he does know a great deal more than most others and has a nearly photographic memory to boot.

He's the one who started Grave Robbers Inc up. Having the know how and access to the equipment needed for the job put him in the position of being in charge.

Chrissy, aka The Voice

When you need to meet GRI to discuss business this is who you will talk to. All of five feet tall, dressed in black from head to toe with combat boots, she is the stereotype appearance of modern goth. Until she speaks. Her tone and inflection are perfect and anyone listening to her feels immediately at ease, calm and don't have an angry bone in their body. Some say she from a bloodline of muses, but nobody knows for sure. She may not even know herself.

Other members of the crew tend to vary. From a few outcasts just looking to earn some money on the side to jocks from the local college hoping to impress Chrissy. Just disposable guys to work the shovels and do the dirty work.

Artifacts of Note

Privacy Lantern. This appears to be an old turn of the century railway oil lantern. Very worn, dinged up and dented but still functional. When filled with oil, lit and a bit of magic is used it creates an optical illusion. Anything activity within the circle of light is rendered invisible from outside viewing. Used while digging up a grave so that casual passer by or a police patrol can't see the activity happening. This illusion is broken if the lantern is moved more than a few inches.

Piece of your Mind Pipe. This appears to be a long smoking pipe made to resemble a Native American 'peace pipe' or at least what they looked like on television. This is activated when a person loads the pipe up and lights then takes a puff while spending a bit of magic. Then when they hand it off to another and they take a hit that’s when the person who lit the thing says out a number of a days and the person will pass out. When they wake back up they will have forgotten most of the specified number of days. Only some very foggy and faint images will remain.

Story hooks.

If you have a group with player characters who are down on their luck and needing money well here is an option. Tim is always looking for a few good folks to do the heavy lifting. The more they know about the occult and supernatural goings on the more he’ll like them. So time to see if your players can handle a bit of graveyard desecration.

The Graverobbers have dug up the remains of somebody very important. Now there is a price on their head until the body is returned preferably intact. Maybe your group will be the ones hunting them down. Or maybe GRI is paying the characters to get the body back from the people who had them dig it up in the first place. Maybe they didn’t even dig it up in the first place and they are being framed.

Cyberpunk Sunday 1/4/25

 

AI showing signs of self-preservation and humans should be ready to pull the plug.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/dec/30/ai-pull-plug-pioneer-technology-rights

IT specialist hacks wheelchair to unlock features. (German)

https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/hackerkonferenz-39c3-warum-eine-multiple-sklerose-erkrankte-ihren-rollstuhl-hackte-a-169573b3-dbc9-4aed-bc33-1cc39cee6971

Musician cancelled as AI falsely accuses him of horrific crimes.

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/musician-ai-canada-google

Replicant Society Stress Triggers (old post)

 

How about a way back post. This is something that I originally posted fourteen years ago. Was working on a Blade Runner type of game called Replicant Society where the PC's where the replicants trying to survive and hide among the human population. I think somebody has already done something like that since then.

But still some of the ideas I had for stress triggers make me want to try and actually make a little mini game. Really rules light, more about handling stress and surviving in plain sight. Maybe one day. Anyways here's my original thoughts on the matter.

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Been hashing out some ideas for a game based on Blade Runner and the novel it was adapted from 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep'. Currently it's called Replicant Society and the players will be the Androids. This first little bit I posted over on my G+ stream. Might as well do a repost here.

Here are some quick ideas on stress triggers and android model types. This is all just ideas I've been writing down over the last couple of days.

One thing that androids do not have is a lifetime of experience. This is especially true in the area of the minds ability to handle stressful situations. Thus it become necessary to track the various types of stress that they are especially vulnerable to. Now some model types are more resistant to various types of stress than others. Now let's look at the four key stress triggers.

Socialization – This is the ability to handle constant social interaction with a variety of people in multiple situations.

Sexual Contact – The intimacy of sexual contact with a living being.

Combat – This is one stress trigger that androids tend to share with their human counterparts.

Emotional Crests – Intense amounts of any specific emotion. Be it fear, happiness, love.

Now the various model types are listed below. Each has specific triggers that they are more resistant while others they seem more susceptible to.

Administration – Resistant to Socialization.
Pleasure – Resistant to Sexual Contact and Socialization. Susceptible to Combat.
Combat – Resistant to Combat and Emotional Crests. Susceptible to Sexual Contact and Socialization.
Caregiver – Resistant to Emotional Crests and Socialization. Susceptible to Combat.
Labor – Neutral regard with all triggers.
Entertainment – Resistant to Socialization. Susceptible to Combat.