Campaign Proposal

• Note: Alternate proposal: A dice pool system like Shadowrun might be more fun for this campaign idea. Not
sure yet. But either way, the rules below cover a lot.
• Note: Cool Idea: Use an image to portray each of the Foundation Stats as a token in Roll20, give them a
Health Bar but label the bar with the name of that Foundation Stat and make it display on the screen so that
everyone can just glance at the "command center map" to see the Foundation status at any time. Arrange
them around a Foundation Symbol on the Hex grid so that all six stats are right there, and use the
Foundation Symbol itself to track Size. That way, the Command Center and all Units are tokens on the grid
that take up exactly seven contiguous spaces and everyone can read a given Unit's full stats and status at a
glance. We could even have the Command Center take up more space but have the O5 Council tokens put on
the inside of the hexagon pattern to simulate sitting around a round table.
•
• Player Characters. The players generate standard Unisystem characters using a Survivor template which will
serve as a member of the 05 Council. The identity of these characters have been utterly expunged from
everywhere. They are like the Men in Black. They no longer exist, and should not have any ties to anything
other than the Foundation.
◦ These sheets matter both if they mismanage things and wind up in personal danger, and for their
personal skills when assigned as an attache to any given Unit (see below for Unit rules). If a player
decides to deploy their personal character, inform them that one of the lose conditions of the campaign is
the death of all members of the O5 Council. The Foundation can recruit people to the O5 at a cost in time
and Resources, replacing deaths. Note that the Foundation starts the game with a number of people on
the O5 Council based on the specific campaign. Typically, the number is 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, or 13, with the
default being 13. The game is on "hard mode" with less members.
• The Foundation. The players must agree on the final distribution of 50 Stat Points to their Foundation. The
Foundation as an entity rolls checks with these stats as though it were a character with no Skills, ignoring the
defaulting modifier in all cases. The Foundation also starts with a number of Resources between 10 and 1000,
typically 100 points. This is set by the campaign and determines the difficulty of the game.
◦ Foundation Stats: Influence. Information. Mobility. Power. Secrecy. Technology.
▪ These stats are rated between 1 and infinity, with most corporate entities rating between 1 and 10
and intercontinental or worldwide entities getting as high as 25 in their highest Stat.
▪ The Foundation can trade Resources equal to ten times the square of a given Stat to increase that
Stat by 1. This also increases that Stat for every Unit in the Foundation. Example: Influence 6 to 7
costs 6*6=36, 36*10=360 Resources. Only one Stat can be upgraded per Management Phase.
◦ As the Foundation grows, it can generate Divisions and Units which each have the same Stats as the
Foundation plus Size stat which starts at 0. Generating Units costs Resources based on how the Unit is
designed; each bonus Stat Point the Unit has above the Foundation Baseline has a cost, and Units must
purchase at least 1 level in Size. The first point to a given Stat costs 1 Resources, the second to the
same Stat costs 2 (but picking a different Stat that has not been leveled costs 1), the third costs 3, and
so on. So buying a Size 5 Division Unit costs 1+2+3+4+5=15 points just for the Size.
▪ Each given Unit can do one thing at once per point of Size. If a Unit is Size 5 or higher, it is a
Division. If it is Size 10 or higher, it is a Facility. If it is Size 15 or higher, it is a Site. The difficulty to
destroy a Unit is based on these classifications.
▪ The Foundation Command Center generally does not get attacked because the Foundation does not
keep SCPs there. If it ever is, it is considered a Command Center (Size 25) with 5 extra points in
every other core Foundation Stat. The Foundation may choose to treat this Command Center as
another Unit and upgrade it if desired.
▪ If a Unit is involved in a Capture or a Breach, it might be destroyed on a failure of the Mission. When
a Unit fails a mission by losing its agents, it takes one point of damage to its Size. Size of a given
Unit can be repaired over time, restoring 1 point automatically per Management Phase, or fixed
immediately for 1 Resources per point repaired. During any mission, the Foundation can Call Backup
to bring more of the troops of a given Unit into that mission. However, if the Foundation Calls
Backup and the Unit still fails the mission by losing agents, it loses an extra point of Size for each
Call Backup the Foundation used.
▪ Similarly, other Foundation Stats of a Unit can be damaged. If a head Researcher dies, the Unit has
taken damage to its Technology. If the top spy dies, damage Information. These are healed in the
same way as Size. Each Stat heals separately, but only one Stat Point of damage is healed for free
each Management Phase. The O5 Council determines which point heals, and to heal Stats faster it
must use Resources.
▪ Foundation Stats being increased always increase the stats of every Unit under its control. If for
some reason the Unit should not have the Stat increased (Gamemaster call), it "unbuys" the Stat
Point that does not go up and refunds the value of that Stat to the Foundation. If the Stat goes to
less than the Foundation's Baseline, the value of that "unbuying" is 1 Resources. This represents the
Foundation not shipping their new technology and supplies to one specific Unit even though
everyone else got it; it saves money, but it might cause some grumbling!
▪ For extra fun, the Gamemaster may give Units a Loyalty Stat as well. If the Gamemaster does this,
treat it as any other Stat, except that it starts at 5 automatically. The Foundation can lower it by 1
for 1 free Stat Point in a different Stat for that unit, or they can increase it to keep a given unit very
loyal. If the Gamemaster thinks an order might cause a Unit – or a character in that unit – to
question Foundation orders, the Loyalty stat is added to the roll to determine what happens
alongside one other Stat of the Gamemaster's choice. Example: An Infiltration Unit questions an
order to go in guns blazing, so it rolls Secrecy + Loyalty to see if it obeys. Hopefully it does, because
the SCP being targeted is deaf and the extra guns from that angle may well save the other Unit!
 ◦ The Foundation also has a starting monthly Income determined by donations from wealthy characters
(which must be acquired in game as rewards for missions or the result of rolls), the value of the
Foundation's Influence core stat, half the value of the Influence Stat of each Unit the Foundation has, and
any bonuses awarded for actions taken in the game (such as earning money off of an SCP's abilities).
▪ However, the Foundation has an Upkeep (a negative income) of 1 for every Unit it maintains plus 2
for the Command Center. Certain SCPs, such as SCP 0076, have massive costs of their own.
Containing such an SCP will cause an Upkeep increase based on the protocol the Foundation uses for
that SCP.
▪ Note that members of the O5 Council are frequently independently wealthy individuals that are true
believers in the mission of the Foundation; every point of the Resources stat a Council Member has
at game start counts as 1 point of Income for the Foundation as long as that character is totally
financially committed to the Foundation. Basically, they count as wealthy donors. If the character is
motivated by power (has a greed or ambition motive), the character contributes one less Income per
point in such qualities. This can even drive the number negative, which indicates the council member
is stealing from the Foundation's coffers. This makes for an excellent plot point.
• Starting Conditions:
◦ Initial SCPs the Foundation has already Contained
▪ SCP 3000
▪ The GM can pick a few more, or random-gen around three dozen SCPs. The initial selection does a
great deal to set the tone of the game. Some of the most dangerous SCPs are advised to be included
in initial containment, like SCP-0682, SCP -0173, SCP-106, and SCP-49. If your players are not
familiar with this game universe, educate them by using the initially contained SCPs so they can see
how it works.
• Game Phases: The game runs through distict sections of gameplay called Phases. During later parts of the
game, many of these happen concurrently, with the Foundation managing several missions at once. During all
of these Phases except Management, the players take on the role of other characters than their main Player
Characters, with the exception that they may Deploy their Player Character to a given mission. A given
character in the game universe can be Deployed to only one event at a time.
◦ NOTE: Always run these Phases in precisely this order, starting with laying out the month, gathering
information, establishing who knows what about whom, modifying attitudes of characters, and then
starting missions to capture SCPS, checking for breaches and defense problems, and running any
combats last before wrapping up the month's events.
◦ Management: The Foundation allocates Units and Resources to various tasks and tracks the state of its
mission. Each Phase that the Foundation will need to initiate this month is laid out in this Phase. If a new
SCP is being hunted, the Foundation lays down the Resources for that SCP's Information Phase, Capture
Phase, and how it is treated in the Containment. The Foundation can designate Units to do a variety of
things, including maintaining secrecy, defending locations, researching, and so on. Each Action a Unit is
assigned costs 1 Resources. If a Phase is paid for but gets canceled (the SCP is not Contained, a Breach
interrupts it, etc), the unused cost is refunded in the next Management Phase. Note that each Unit can
only take action in as many Phases per month as they have Size. If the Gamemaster determines that a
Breach or some other event is going to occupy a Unit's time in a given month, the O5 Council does not
know about it in advance so they still assign their orders now without that knowledge. An Action list
follows.
◦ Information Phase: Rumors and hints allow the tracking of the SCP. Information needs to be gathered
and where to send agents must be determined. The Foundation can also do research to better identify
the traits of SCPs, with points of knowledge accumulating over time. The Foundation does research with
twice as much effectiveness if they are willing to use unsavory means, but this imposes a cost. In order
to hide such actions, the Foundation has to work harder to maintain its secrecy. If the Foundation is
willing to spend lives for information, they can even triple their research effectiveness at an even greater
cost to Secrecy.
◦ Secrecy Phase: The Foundation's reputation is under scrutiny. People are hearing about their activites,
and stirring up trouble. If nothing is done in this Phase, the Foundation may experience an Unrest Phase,
depending on what has been happening in the game world.
◦ Influence Phase: The Foundation attempts to secure additional income to pursue its goals. It sends its
accountants out to make money, or tries to schmooze for donations, or form an alliance with a
government. This may involve striking deals to trade Foundation Units or the use of SCPs for Resources,
which could have consequences. At the end of the Influence Phase, the Foundation receives its Income,
and pays its Upkeep.
◦ Capture Phase: If an SCP has been located and a Unit assigned, a Capture mission can be run. This
involves sending in specialist agents with a high tech team backing them up, Men in Black style. The
specifics vary wildly with the actual SCP and the environment.
◦ Containment Phase: Rarely initiated by the O5 Council unless helpful for dealing with some other
problem, but often initiated by a clever Gamemaster to trouble the Foundation. An SCP may attempt to
escape its containment, causing a Breach. The scale of a Breach varies wildly by the danger of the SCP.
Oftentimes, one SCP escaping causes others to escape as well. The Foundation must survive the Breach
and reinitiate Containment. If a Unit is assigned the Defend action at the location where a given SCP is,
the unit is present to deal with the Breach. Otherwise, the SCP may escape into the larger world and
could cause an Unrest Phase.
◦ Power Phase: If a Breach is ongoing or if the Foundation is engaged with a hostile SCP, character, or
faction, the violence goes down in this Phase. If skill tests from a Defending Unit solved a Breach,
running the Power Phase is optional. If an SCP resists Capture, it is dealt with in the Capture Phase
instead. If an SCP escaped containment in a previous month and is still out there, deal with that SCP in
this Phase.
 ◦ Unrest Phase: This is a special Phase that cannot be initiated by the O5 Council. The Gamemaster
initiates the Unrest Phase prior to a Management Phase if the Gamemaster thinks recent events warrant
it. The Unrest Phase can result from a number of things. One is an uncontained SCP being allowed to
cause noteworthy damage in the game world, outside of Foundation Control. Another is a defection of
agents from the Foundation releasing classified data to the people. A third example is the Foundation
being exposed to the world as existing due to a badly botched stealth mission. Whenever the Foundation
is directly brought harm by the game world, it can Damage the Foundation Stats of the Foundation itself.
Unlike Unit Stats, Foundation Stats do not heal; this is a permanent reduction in the abilities of the
Foundation. However, Units are not damaged by Unrest Phases, and remain at the same Stats they had
before it. When the Gamemaster determines there will be an Unrest Phase, the Gamemaster determines
if the damage that has been done can be resisted. If it can, the Gamemaster sets a Resources cost to
mitigating the damage. If the cost is not paid, the most appropriate Foundation Stat is reduced by 1. In
severe cases, the Gamemaster can cause the damage to be automatic and provide no mitigation cost. A
good example of such an event would be the Foundation allowing SCP-0682 to escape into a city, and
containing the situation by detonating a nuclear warhead on the rogue SCP and that city; the
Gamemaster damages the Foundation's Secrecy Stat by 1 as penance for this.
• Game Milestones: Players are building their very own Foundation in this game. It does not go the same way
as the fiction available online goes. The players have control. Therefore, they set the tone of what they do in
this world, and make many decisions throughout the course of the game that will have future consequences.
◦ The players must assign SCP designations and classifications to the SCPs as they learn the information.
They can give code names and any other designations they wish. They also decide what to classify and
what types of security clearance they use. To do this, paperwork will be a necessary part of the game. At
least one player must be willing to use a text application to copy down the decisions of the O5 Council
and post this information somewhere online or otherwise where it can be accessed by the players and the
Gamemaster. The Gamemaster may use this information to produce documentation for the Foundation,
and so can any of the players as long as the files they make match the established information.
◦ Because the players actually play as field agents in the Capture Phase, the players need to realize that
they will be roleplaying a field agent reading the documentation and mission information they produced.
If they classify nothing, the agent will make decisions based on that. If they classify everything, the field
agent acts based on no knowledge. If the players think they can get away with classifying nothing, they
may want to bear in mind what happens if spies steal their information, or if an infohazard SCP is caught.
• Win Conditions:
◦ Containment Ending. Occurs if all SCPs are contained in a manner which is able to be sustained, and the
Gamesmaster is not planning on adding any more SCPs. Difficulty greatly determined by the
Gamemaster; the Gamemaster should inform the players in advance how much of the SCP universe their
game is going to include. If all of it is included, the Containment Ending is probably not able to be
achieved.
◦ Dimensional Ending. Occurs if the players traverse dimensions to a place where no containment protocols
are necessary and start a sustainable civilization, then close off access to this place to the SCPs.
◦ Neutralization Ending. The players successfully Neutralize all dangerous SCPs, either by understanding
them completely or by destroying them without creating more problems than they cured. Containment is
no longer necessary.
◦ Stability Ending. Occurs if the players establish a total of 10 Units which have Size 25 and at least 20 in
every other Unit Stat, and reach a current Resources value of 25000. The players may count the
Command Center, which is a free Unit specified elsewhere that all Foundations have, if it has the
necessary Stats. With this ending, the Foundation has not won, but it isn't going anywhere even if
discovered by the world. In the SCP universe, the Foundation has already achieved this.
• Lose Conditions:
◦ Destruction Ending. Occurs if a world-ending SCP wins an XK-Class Scenario during a Power Phase.
◦ Incompetence Ending. Occurs if the Foundation's Influence, Information, Mobility, Power, Secrecy, or
Technology Stat reaches 0.
◦ Risk Ending. Occurs if the entire O5 Council perishes. Also occurs if the Command Center and all Units
are completely destroyed.
Plot
• Part I: The Establishment. The players take control of their characters, establish the Foundation, we discuss
what they did in the early years as they contain their initial SCPs, and we do a "State of the Foundation"
summary for where they begin. Then we run the first few Phases.
• Part II: Growing Pains. The Foundation creates and deploys more and more units, encounters more SCPs, and
continue to grow. Finances likely become a huge issue.
• Part III: Structural Problems. The Foundation has grown to the point where its operations begin to conflict
with each other, and resources become extra strained. Interactions between SCPs become more apparent,
and the danger of continued containment continues to increase.
• Part IV. Stabilization. The Foundation solves its fiscal problems sufficiently to ensure long term containment,
and grows its operations. It solves issues with too many SCPs by expanding operations and establishing over
a dozen Sites across the world, containing compatible SCPs alongside one another. The Foundation is troubled
by its own hubris at times, when an SCP thought to be contained displays newfound abilities, and Breaches
become more destructive as Sites expand in size.
• Part V. The Final Stretch. The Foundation has grown so large and powerful that it snaps up every SCP as soon
as it appears, and locks everything down with brutal efficiency. The world has become safe from all but the
biggest threats. The Foundation begins to look inward toward Neutralizing threats more than Containing
them.