Musing and articles from Peter Amthor. Usually of a role playing game influence but I do drift into other directions occasionally. You can also find me on Mastodon at dice.camp/@peteramthor. Comments and constructive criticism welcome. Also this blog is best viewed on a desktop or wide screen tablet.
New Chinese ceramic won't fail.
https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/chinas-ceramic-springs-back-from-extreme
Worlds most easily deployment-ready small modular reactor.
https://interestingengineering.com/energy/bwrx-300-small-modular-reactor-milestone-uk
Clandestine Societies my little ezine of supernatural, horror and occult gaming material finally has a second issue out. Issue two is now up and available on two storefronts.
First it's up on my Ko-Fi page available to supporting members for free. As well as several other pdfs should they choose to support me on that platform.
Second it's up over on itch io for only a buck. Most of my other products are available there as well.
Next Saturday I will be putting it up on DrivethruRPG.
Hoping to have a third issue out in the first quarter of 2026. If everything goes smoothly.
Club Zero
This is a club set up for a very specialized sort of clientele and not one for those who stray out of that narrow focus. It is designed from the ground up for Netrunners and only Netrunners. Thus in the end the look of the location in meatspace is nothing like that of a regular club that you would find in a major city.
Physical Location
The building was originally designed for an up and coming weapons design company called 'InLine Design' that went belly up when it's product designs were sniped and copied by several other major corporations. They had built their own onsite firing range and weapons testing facilities. This mean lots of heavy reinforced concrete walls, running through with re-bar, metal plates and even more concrete.
The entire parking lot is open and one can see various drones passing over head and those with a more keen eye can see automated weapons mounts in various places along the walls of the building. Any unwelcome visitors will be taken care of without question. The single entrance has a small led display above reading 'Club Zero'.
Upon entry you are greeted by two armed security personnel asking for your membership. If you do not have one you will be directed to a room with a sole laptop and card printer on a table. Membership costs 500 euro payable yearly and your card is printed off on site. If you aren't interested in a membership you are asked to leave.
Once your membership is verified you will be led down a series of hallway and through various scanners. All weapons, equipment and cyberdecks will have to be removed in placed in a steel lockbox before being allowed to continue on. Throughout this there are very visible cameras monitoring the area and several very obvious automated small arms weapon mounts. After you are deemed clean you are then led to what used to be the main firing range.
Inside are rows of recliners circling a massive rack of data terminals. Various other runners are jacked into cyberdecks built as part of the chairs. This is all connected to the single completely self contained network called 'ZeroSpace'. Only hard line log ins are available and the shielding of the room insures that any built in hardware inside a runner cannot send or receive an outside signal.
Some recliners are designated as long term units. So the runner can be fixed with a nutrient feed and be taken care of for a few days instead of just a few hours.
Inside ZeroSpace
First the runner enters their own personal ‘wardrobe’ area. Here they pick out an appearance for themselves. It’s all standard human fair with lots of 80’s and 90’s club fashions to pick from. Complete with an AI assistant who acts as an old school tailor making sure everything fits just right.
Then you step through a door into the club itself. Huge and sprawling with multiple levels. Each with it’s own style and music selection. Lots of private booths, arcade style games, video screens and holographic style displays. Filled with lots of people milling about, waitresses, bartenders, various dancers, and club goers. Most of these are AI constructs meant to give the feeling of a bustling busy club.
The runners themselves show up just a little bit clearer and brighter than the fake folks. So they can spot each other in the crowds. When privacy is needed the booths will seal off the outside environment and only those inside can see or hear what is going on. This is usually when information, data, programs, etc are often exchanged. Including a business card program that lets you exchange information into each other virtual Rolodex.
If the busy club scene gets to be a bit much there are also side rooms like private libraries, swimming pools and saunas, even bedrooms for those who like their romance to be virtual as well. Some runners can spend days in the club without leaving. Rumor has it the owner is a complete ‘Live In’ who never leaves the club, his body somewhere in the physical structure, hooked into machines to live.
Adventure Seeds
The most obvious use of the club in game is as a place for the netrunner of the group to meet contacts and friends. Exchanging information or getting that bit of code they need.
The club needs a problematic person taken care of. They have caused to much trouble inside the club and outside of it as well with regulars and patrons. So an example needs to be set. Your team is to eliminate the person in the most spectacular and painful way as possible.
A corporate feels the club is becoming a problem. They have a solution using nanobots. But they can only get so much in at a time. So they wish to hire the runner to enter the club various times each week while wearing a dusting of the special nanobots. Each time they are to choose a different recliner when they log in. Thus spreading the nano’s like an infection until there are enough inside to be activated.
Sometimes what you find on a persons phone can be shocking. Especially in a horror game. Here are ten things that you wouldn't want to find on a cellphone gallery.
Photographs found on a cellphone gallery.
1 – A person tied to a chair that is gagged and blindfolded.
2 – A dead body that has been split down the middle and laid open.
3 – A clawed hand reaching for the camera, the background is all dark and blurry.
4 – The inside of a mini-fridge filled with full blood donation bags.
5 – A body wrapped in rope frozen inside of a chunk of river ice.
6 – Several hooded figures around a table performing animal sacrifices.
7 – An image of the person who is looking at the phone taken from a distance.
8 – A spiked pit trap on what appears to be a nature trail.
9 – A wanted dangerous fugitive holding up their own ‘Wanted’ poster and smiling.
10 – Images from the inside of a church as it is burning.
Like my stuff? Want to follow me on social media? Find me on Mastodon, Bluesky and Mewe.
This week I'm pointing the spotlight over on the Swords & Stichery blog.
The guy posts A LOT. He's constantly pushing out content, more than I could ever keep track of. Most of eat geared towards the Old School Role Playing feel. New creatures, now magic items, some reviews, you name it, this guy is dipping into it quite a bit. So go on over and scroll through what he has to offer.
Know of any blogs I should check out or add to the blog roll at the bottom of my page here? Well the one that's visible to desktop users, not so much to phone folks. Drop me a link in my comments and I'll give them a gander.
Time for another horror gaming entry for Roll a D10. This time it's what you may find when you search a dead body.
What did you find in a dead persons hand?
1 – A religious symbol for a nearby cult.
2 – A long flat head screwdriver covered in blood.
3 – The drivers license of a local police officer.
4 – Small scrap of crumbled paper with three phone numbers on it.
5 – A flashlight with dead batteries.
6 – A key ring with three keys on it.
7 – A leash for a small animal.
8 – A blood stained photograph of a young girl.
9 – Several strands of long hair wrapped around their fingers.
10 – A small crucifix on a silver chain.
Check out my products from Truly Rural Productions over on DrivethruRPG.
CEO of Fortnite furious that Steam is labeling games with AI-generated assets.
https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/gaming-exec-furious-steam-ai-label
Tech elites are starting their own for-profit cities.
https://www.ft.com/content/b127ee7a-5ac4-4730-a395-c9f9619615c7
Woman Hailed as Hero for Smashing Man's Meta Smart Glasses on Subway
https://futurism.com/future-society/woman-hero-smashing-meta-smart-glasses-subway
Waste Magazine Issue 3
https://dsdistro.noblogs.org/post/2025/12/07/waste-magazine-issue-3/
Today is another cyberpunk themed six pack. Because nothing ever good happens to your runners even when they are simply travelling from point A to point B.
Cyberpunk encounters while in a Taxi
1 – Repo. The cab you are in suddenly tagged for repossession. But it’s an AI operated tow vehicle that is doing it. While the driver manages to bail out the cab is hacked and all the doors are sealed shut. The tow rig grabs up the vehicle and starts driving at a high rate of speed.
2 – The all girl group Cherry Tops decides to do an impromptu streaming video shoot right in the street and on top of the cab. The driver is into it and is busy eyeballing the girls on his hood and doesn’t care about you. As a huge crowd surrounds the vehicle.
3 – A street courier on a high tech skateboard has latched on to the back of the taxi for a free ride. The drive takes offense to this and starts driving erratically and going off the path to where you are going in an attempt to shake off the pest.
4 – The overly cybered driver is suddenly hacked and the person controlling his body starts attempting to run folks off the road and aims for pedestrians. This causes several folks to start firing back at the vehicle.
5 – The driver is notified they’ve been fired. So they quickly stop, switch over to AI pilot, and walk away. The cars doors lock and it bolts off at high speed and not towards where you were wanting to go.
6 – Out of nowhere the vehicle is surrounded by federal and corporate agents, along with several folks in hazmat suits. The driver screams he going on without a fight, seals the vehicle and starts screaming about the dirty nuke he built in the trunk with stolen materials.
Cyberpunk Random Tables
What else is that sex bot doing?
1 – Deep facial recognition scanning in order to sell that with various companies.
2 – DNA collection through obvious body fluids and through not so obvious skin flake shedding.
3 – Cryptocurrency mining, they owners have them mining away while doing their menial task of providing scripted pleasure.
4 – Recording all visual interactions while collecting as much identifying information as possible. Either to sell to data brokers or for future blackmail.
5 – Planting nanobots. These bots have become the easiest way of planting nanobot onto others.
6 – Harvesting nanobots. They can also harvest nanobots easily and store them away for analysis. Or if it’s bots they planted themselves at a previous encounter to collect whatever data they have.
7 – Subliminal messaging. This is done through various forms of subsonic messaging or video messaging hidden in their eyes.
8 – Body language study. Storing away the data on how a person acts, their mannerisms and quirks. Future clone makers want this info and will pay for it.
9 – Hacking any nearby hardware remotely. Everything is wireless now and while the bots body is busy with the customer their brain is gaining access to your phone, tablets, laptops, whatever you brought with you.
10 – Scanning for weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Knowing how to disable or kill you is something people will pay for. Or maybe even the bots owner may want you finished off in a different way than usual after the bot is done.
This is something that many folks really don't seem to get. To me it was obvious so I never really thought much about it. But to others it seems like they really haven't grasped this idea. It's really a simple concept that I feel it's just not directly thought of. But here it is.
Not every bit of gamemaster advice is for you.
The reason I'm talking about this is because I've seen an influx of folks getting all wrapped around the axle over things. Looking at every single GM tip as something they should use in their game. Then getting offended and upset when it doesn't work for their table, their game or their group. When reading the various advice columns you need to keep a few simple things in mind.
First. What game style is the advice giver speaking from? Take a look at what the person is running or supports all the time. If you're a hard core OSR and rules as written person then advice from somebody doing super narrative games with lots of hand waving probably isn't going to work. If you're a person who loves stripping everything unnecessary out of a game to the bare bones then advice from somebody who enjoys traditional style games with all sorts of fiddly bits won't be in your wheelhouse. So take a look at where the advice giver is coming from.
Second. How long has the advice giver been playing? Some people don't like me saying this one. Really it does make a difference. I can't tell you how many times I've seen some smug ass punk who's been running games for a handful of years telling somebody who's been running games for decades on how to do things. Yes there are some new folks who do a really good job of running games. Running them the way they want to. More often then not I've seen those same new folks having zero experience trying other styles or systems out. So if you're a decades long GM don't feel afraid to ignore something you don't like from somebody who is, themselves, a new GM. Especially when their 'great advice' is something we've all treaded over fifteen, twenty or longer years ago.
Third. Not just game style but what game. Don't pay attention to DnD advice on how to run your Vampire the Masquerade game. Also careful taking advice when it comes to messing around with mechanics when it's for one system when you're running another. What you are running is important to the kind of advice you need to listen to.
Fourth. What does your table like? If you have a group that really enjoys things a specific way it may hurt more than it helps when you change things up. I've seen this at my own table on a few occasions. Think about those folks who show up every week just to spend time with you and engage in the games you run. Do they want more props, more narrative control, more whatever. Or are they more happy with what you have going right now?
That's all I have for now. Maybe some more later. We'll see.
It's Tuesday again, so time to shine a light over on somebody else out there doing cool stuff. This time I'm aiming it at Neural Archive and the guy behind it Paul 'Geist' Gallagher.
For those who don't know this guy is the person behind some really great products like Augmented Reality, the Sprawl Goons series and Remote Control. He has a great brain for some gritty cyberpunk material and never disappoints. The recent 'Sprawlvember' prompt party was his creation as well.
So go check out the blog NEURAL ARCHIVE and do some reading. You may find some stuff you really like.
See you next Tuesday with another person, site, whatever that I recommend you all check out.
Been a very busy weekend and week so far for things offline. Cyberpunk Sunday should be back next weekend, I just missed it this time around with stuff that is going on. Just never a moments rest for the wicked.
January first will see the release (finally) of Clandestine Societies issue two. Now I can start work on compiling material for issue three.
Got some more small cyberpunk themed things in the works as well. One being a collection of small companies and groups that low level runners could run into.
Also got some fantasy material that I need to do something with. Just not entirely sure the direction I want to take it. A themed focused release or more of a random collection like Clandestine Societies is.
You can find my material up over on DrivethruRPG, itch io and on my Ko-Fi page. Not professional, not slick, but cheap.
Should have more blog posts up hopefully. But 'tis the season for family stuff to interfere with everything so we'll see.
A few years back I had started work on what I intended to be a series of releases for Supernatural - Horror - Occult gaming. Just a small release with some different articles inside all falling into that vibe. I called this Clandestine Societies, referencing the secret societies and groups that would be created by the existence of such things in our world.
I managed to get issue one completed and ready to go and was working on issue two. The idea was to get three done before I released the first. A planned release schedule. But then I caught Covid, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. Ended up in Barnes Hospital in St. Louis on a ventilator, it got bad, up to the point where they told my wife she may want to start thinking about making 'arrangements' because my outlook was bleak. But right after that call my body started turning around and I survived.
Went through in facility physical therapy to recover from both muscle atrophy and lung damage. When I finally got home that brain fog people talk about was all to real and really rough. But I recovered enough that sat down and went ahead and released Issue One on 6/12/21. But it would be a while before I could focus enough on writing and creating anything.
Now it's been a few years. While I still fight with some mental and memory issues I am back to where I feel I can start making material again. I attribute a lot of my recovery to doing face to face gaming again and getting a job where I exercise my brain a bit.
So two years ago I released a new Squad Names, but it was something I had partially written and didn't require to much work. Then recently I released Cyberpunk Random Charts. Now I'm working on Clandestine Societies Issue Two.
It's all written and done. I've got the cover image figured out and I'm looking for other pieces of stock art for the articles inside. While I'm doing all that I'm rereading everything for the fifth or sixth time. Layout is going to be done on LibreOffice cause I just don't feel like relearning how to use Scribus again after all this. I'm going to be using the words "Not professional, not slick, but cheap" quite often from now on.
I'm thinking of making the release date January to start the new year off with something. I'll probably keep the regular price I charge of a dollar since it looks to end up around eleven or twelve pages. Got a few other things I'm slowly working on and hopefully I'll get them rolled out as well as 2026 progresses.
This went on for a bit longer than I anticipated. Thanks for those who read through it all.
At one point I was trying to promote other folks and their stuff every Tuesday. Sadly it didn't last long as real life (as always) intruded and I had less time to spend doing stuff on here. Now I have more free time so I feel I need to make an attempt at that again.
So today I'm pointing over to a blog calld 'Gregorius21778'. This person stays pretty dang busy. He put out material every day for Sprawlvember and then previously everyday for Morktober the month before. Not to mention a huge amount of previous material and has released a lot of product.
Lots of creative ideas are over there. I haven't even begun scratching the surface on looking through it all. So if you want to see read some cool shit then look no further than that particular blog.
Over on my Ko-Fi shop I have a new product up for folks. It's a collection of various cyberpunk themed random charts that have appeared on this blog over they years. While it's not slick, nor is it professional, it is only a buck. So go on over and check it out if you would!
Well it's also over on DrivethruRPG for those who prefer purchasing from that platform. So here is a link for you to find it over there.
