You are genetically engineered Operatives addicted to

Biotech, a glowing gel that gives you superhuman powers.

The world is being invaded by extraterrestrials known as

Interlopers.

You have been employed by a megacorp to ensure that the

aliens don't win, and that if they are stopped, it's you who
does it, and not some rival corporation.

Winning won't be easy. But it also won't be

enough.

The right corp must get credit.

Can you stop the aliens? Will you sabotage the military to
steal equipment and defense contracts from your compet-
itors? How many Operatives will you lose before you taste
victory?

Cyberrats, an illuminated RPG.

++1
cyberrats
by aLEx rinehaRT
This game is Illuminated, and is made using the LUMEN system
created by Spencer Campbell of GilaRPGs. This game is not affil-
iated with Gila RPGs.

inspiratIons
As with everything I make, Cyberrats is a product of millions of experiences
and interactions, most of which I am incapable of identifying. However, a few
stand out for this project. They are:
• Shadowrun • Atlas Reactor
• XCOM • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
• Band of Blades • Animorphs

thanks
This game would not be possible without the following people:
• Illustration, concept art, and writing contributions: Patrick Sinnott
(@Boog_Tweets / http://inkandrubbish.com).
• Layout, design, writing, and editing: Rachel Bennett (@RaeDoesThings)
• Clarity Testers: Samantha Leigh (@GoblinMixtape), Ty Pitre
(@eldritchmouse), Derek Gustafson (@Degustafson).
• Playtesters: Mari (@Mari42B), Jeffrey (@JeffreyJeffrawr), Lynette
(@PetiteDraculina), Amanda (@akrogers_az), Patrick Sinnott
(@Boog_Tweets), Jacob Wallraff (@thyeggman), Joseph Henrich
(@crimsonknave), Kyle Fischer, Coleton W, Lindsey Musel, Nick Musel,
Mel Nanke.
• The Gila Monsters and Hartlanders of Discord and all the people I asked
about basebuilding: Nathan (@CatusCetus), Jake, Chris (@chfogerty),
Spencer Campbell (Gila RPGs).
• A Couple of Drakes, for their inspired downtime mechanics in HEDGE.
• Dyer Rose (@BasiliskOnline) for the wonderful Endgame tech used in the
final Interlopers mission.
• Ty Pitre (@eldritchmouse) for creating OAR tech.
• Everyone who offered encouraging words along the way.

But most of all this book is dedicated to my wife Courtney, who reminds me to
eat when I’d rather be making games about giant rats, and who is always willing
to play pretend and roll some dice.

Fonts: Neogrotesk Pro, Skippy Sharp, Boston Skyline, Chainprinter.

Lock by Mello from NounProject.com
Radioactive Barrel by YANDI RS from NounProject.com
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ or send
a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.
You won't do this (because honestly, who sends a letter to a company these days), but it
sure is nice to know that you could do this if the urge took you.
This book was published in 2022.
 Hey there, recruit!

Welcome to the first day of

a journey that will carry you
through the rest of your life.

Today, you are joining a team

of the boldest and brightest
rat-mutant-abominations this
side of the 50's!

Together, you will fight for

the continuation of our proud
history of selling our precious
life hours as labor and our flesh
and blood as commodities.

It won't be easy— you are up

against some stiff competition.

Don't worry, buddy. I'll be here

to help you out along the way.
Just look for my helpful tips
throughout the book and don't
despair! You're on company time,
and despair is not a valid reason
for a ˝day off".

This training manual is proudly

sponsored by the beverage most
purchased from our vending machines,
Drank®, now available in a thrilling
CoolFist flavor!
Drank! It's Wet!®

++4
 TabLE of Contents
The Basics 6
Employee Handbook 9
Character Creation 12
Megacorps 14
Mutators 15
Background 17
Attributes 18
Ammo and Armor 20
Ranges 21
Company Store 24
Tags 26
Careers 28
Vector 30
Trenchy 32
Mindjob 34
Ratter 36
Playing the Game 38
Mission Briefing 39
Loadout and Mission 40
Performance Review 42
Downtime 42
Spending Scrip 45
Basebuilding 48
Assistants and Adversaries 51
Missions and Campaigns 55
Losing 56
Evacuating 56
Injury 57
Winning 59
Powers 60
Combat 61
The Enemy Phase 63
Roleplaying 65

Company History 69
Manager Advice 76
Adjusting Difficulty 82
Campaign Mode 83
Mission Briefing 84
Terrain 92
Campaign Playbooks 94
Combat 102
form
r uni fee
Faction Drops 104
Enemies 105
! Yo u
e
Enemy Types and Tags 106
n ' t forget maintenanc alance
o b
The Military 107
√ D ement and x® account xt of
procu ur DrankB even by ne Saving
r u
Valdivian 108
,
and yo nrefundable it, recruit! it life
Interlopers 109

are e it or lo e double-dig
n o s
Ephemera 110 kin. Us people with
is for ancies!√
Clarifications 110

expect
Cheat Sheets 118
Glossary 121
Character & Campaign Sheet 122
The Basics
Safety TOols:
Cyberrats is a game about incredible violence. It encourages
you to explore the lives of soldiers and the tender moments
they share in order to survive. We recommend safety tools
in all games, but specifically for Cyberrats we recommend
agreeing on a level of detail with respect to violence, and
using lines and veils to fade to black or gloss over sensitive
scenes. Games are only fun when everyone is comfortable.

RuLEs Lite:
Cyberrats is a rules-lite RPG. There are rules in here, but they
intentionally do not cover every possible scenario.
Ultimately the only rule that matters is the core mechanic.
We may provide suggestions for how we see interactions
playing out (like how doubling Harm should always be the
last step— it makes everything feel cooler).
But you can ignore our suggestions or make rulings on the
fly. We didn't detail every interaction of every possible ability,
and that's by design. If there's confusion, use common sense,
make a judgment, or poll the table.
The goal is fun and consistency, not tedium. When in doubt,
do what's coolest, most believable, or most fun. If you’re
really itching for a ruling, check the Clarifications section on
page 112.
Finally, Cyberrats is a tactical roleplaying game, emphasis on
tactical. This isn’t the kind of game where you can bribe your
way into the Military. It's a game about making hard choices
and playing out combat-focused missions as superpowered
giant rats.

++6
You Will Need:
• 4–6 people. One of them will act as the Game Manager
while the rest will control Operatives.
• At least 1 six-sided die, or d6. Ideally 3–5 d6 per
person.
• Character sheet, campaign/ basebuilding sheet,
pencils.

CycLE of Play:

Cyberrats takes place in a campaign over a series of days.

Each day consists of four sections:
mission briefing, loadout, missions, downtime
In the Mission Briefing, players learn what missions are
available to them and decide which to pursue.
Then, in the Loadout phase they choose which Operatives
to send and how to equip them.
The bulk of play occurs during the Missions Phase, where
actions are resolved by rolling a number of d6 equal to
an Operative’s Attribute score. The highest die is kept. A
5–6 is a full success, a 3–4 is a mixed success, and a 1–2
is a failure.
After the mission, Operatives decompress during
Downtime, spending time reflecting on their day and
comforting those around them.
Between missions, Operatives become more powerful,
gain Assistants, and improve their headquarters by
purchasing rooms.

++7
++8
 cyberrats
you must survive.

Employee Handbook

RISe up, gutter rat.

TOday’s your lucky day.

This is your chance// your chance to shrug off your debt // to

prove yourself // to escape // to try something new // to try.

The year is 2096. The situation is dire. All thought has

been delegated to computers. Most of humanity works
for one of the three megacorps. After all, you gotta serve
somebody, right?
Until now, you’ve probably been a worker drone. You're
nothing special, just someone marginally cheaper to
train than a machine is to program.
But things are changing now that the invaders are here.
There’s a lottery for soldiers and your number’s just
come up.
Will you survive long enough to become a soldier?
Or just long enough to realize what they’ve done to you?

++9
the game in brief
You will control two Operatives and send them on missions
against the invading alien Interlopers, the Military who
fights them, and the Valdivian security firms that supply and
support the Military.
As you fail missions against these factions, they get closer to
victory and, more troubling, their Threat Level increases. As
Threat rises, forces become even more dangerous to engage
with.
Missions are quick and deadly, but if you survive you’ll gain
experience and materials that will be critical to your efforts.
This experience can be spent to buy powerful weapons and
armor, learn new powers, recruit Assistants, or construct
new rooms in your base that unlock better gear, powers, and
passive bonuses.
Each faction has a special story mission associated with it.
These missions unlock after that faction has been defeated
three times. The story missions must be accomplished in
order: first gathering intel from the Military, then disabling
Valdivian, and finally taking the fight to the mothership
to defeat the Interlopers. Once the third story mission is
complete, the campaign will be won, and the game will be
over.
It won’t be easy. But that’s why we hired you.

Starting Out
you don't get The cOol stuff yet.

welcome new recruit we care about you not just for insurance we
are obligated to it sells well we have values company values dont
ask us what

You are an intern. You don’t have a Career until after your
first mission. You have 4 HP and 3 Biotech. Biotech is repre-
sented by this symbol . You will be sent on missions where
you can use actions (like attacking), powers, and items (like
grenades).

++10
The only powers you have are those granted by your
mutators and your corp. In both cases, you will be
choose one power from the options presented. You can
never have more than 1 power from the same row of any
table.
After each mission, you will gain Scrip. Scrip is awarded
like this: You get 1 Scrip if you survived, 1 Scrip if you got
at least 1 kill, and you get 1d6 additional Scrip.
There are many ways Scrip can be spent. For the
complete list, see page 47. Here are the most common
ways:

1.
It can be spent to buy new powers or upgrade existing
ones. Powers in the first row of a Career table cost 0
Scrip. The second row costs 1 Scrip, the third 2, and so
on.
While you can choose powers from any of the special-
izations for your Career, you can never have more than
one power from the same row, and you cannot take
powers from different Careers. You must buy powers in
sequential row order.
For example, it would be fine for a Mindjob to take both
Oomph (a cost 0 Kinner power) and Refuel (a cost
1 Scanner power). They could not take Oomph and
Predictable, as those are both level 1 powers, and they
cannot take Refuel without taking a level 1 power first.
Nor could they take any powers from Ratter or any other
Career.

2.
Scrip can be used to buy new gear or upgrade existing
gear. Each Gear Part costs 1 Scrip and Gear Parts can be
spent at the Company Store.

3.
Scrip can be used to pay off debt. Every Scrip equates
to 1 debt. Once you’re paid off, you’re free to leave with
your life and all you’ve learned. Good luck.

++11
CHARACTER CREATION
(briefly)
1. Choose your megacorp. Choose one of the two powers.
2. Choose your mutator. Choose one of the three powers.
3. Choose your motivation (it’s debt) and roll for debt.
4. Distribute 5 points among your three Attributes.
5. You can choose to take additional debt, up to a max of 20.
6. Any new debt that you take gets you Gear Parts that you can
spend on equipment. (Buy or build some now. )
7. Add details like name and next of kin.
8. As an intern, you have 4 HP and 3 .
9. After your first successful mission, choose a Career and spend
Scrip.

it’s just that easy!

++12
In Depth
You will be creaTing two Operatives.
for each Operative, follow These steps.

mutators & megacorps

Each megacorp provides a choice between two powers.
Pick a corp, and pick one power. Do the same from the
mutator options. After this, you’ll have two powers total,
and you can roll your starting debt of 10 + 1d6.
attributes
You have three stats, Smash, Cyber, and Sly. Smash is
used for aggression and force, Cyber is used for mental
and practiced actions, and Sly is used for quick and
stealthy actions. Whenever you take an action, you’ll
choose one of these approaches and roll a number of
dice equal to your score. Split five points between these
three Attributes. No Attribute may have more than 3
points. You can have 0 in an Attribute, but if you would
ever roll 0 dice, instead roll twice and take the lower
number. Interns start with 4 HP and 3 .
gear
You can choose to increase your debt up to a max of 20.
For every additional point of debt you take, you get one
Gear Part, which can be used to buy armor and weapons.
If you started with a debt of 16, you could increase your
debt to 20 to start with 4 Gear Parts. You’ll be able to
buy other things (including powers) later, but for now,
get some armor and a nice weapon or two. Armor is
just as important (perhaps even more important!) than
a weapon. Without a weapon, unarmed attacks deal 1
Harm at Close range. Without armor, your Operative will
almost certainly die.

TIPPY SAYS:
YOUR TWO OPERATIVES CAN HAVE DIFFERENT MEGACORPS
FROM EACH OTHER, OR FROM OTHER OPERATIVES.

++13
Megacorps
ChOosing a capTOr.

theres only three companies theres always been three three is

enough the best number why would you want more arent you
happy

gargoyle
Software, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, manufacturing, data;
All consolidated under Gargoyle, one way or another. No one
knows what all they control. Even their accountants can’t
keep track of all the shell companies.
+ Tracked: + Bandage:
1 . Roll an extra die on all 1 . Heal yourself or a
attacks this turn. Close ally 2 HP.

dorsey
What started as a small entertainment company has become
the largest of the conglomerates, with a gloved finger in the
pies of every sporting event, social media app, video game,
and 3D movie in existence, as well as hooks in the education
industry.
+ DaZZLE: + just like on 3v:
1 . Choose a Close 1 . Move yourself and up
enemy. Reduce all Harm to one ally one range band.
dealt by that enemy by 1
until the end of the round.

goldencalf
Started by J.T. Goldencalf, this company owns all of finance.
Loans, banking, stocks, and everything else you can use to
barter. By extension, they probably own you as well.
+ Loaded: + InvISibLE haND:
Passive. Weapon and 1 . Until the end of the
Armor upgrades and round, steal one weapon
tags cost 1 less for you tag from a Close ally.
(minimum 2).

So who’d you sell out TO? and just what

did you get in return?
++14
 Mutators
How They have changed you?

enlightened rat swarm

Pay enough money and you can dump anything into
the rivers. Sometimes it interacts with the local wildlife.
That’s you. One consciousness, split over a swarm of
rats. Congratulations. Welcome to the corporate world.

+ Cull The weak: + Split: + Scout:

1 . Reduce your Max 2 . Take an extra 1 . Unlock a door, hear
HP by 1. Regain all HP. action this turn. dialogue on the other
Max HP resets at the side of a wall, disable
end of each mission. a security system for
a round, or perform a
similar feat.

++15
Mutators
How They have changed you?

brute
Were you rat or were you human? It doesn’t matter, really.
What matters is what you are now. And now you are big. So
very, very BIG. 10 feet tall and all rat from tip to tail. Except
for the intelligence. Why were you bred? Does it matter
anymore?

+ BruISer: + Bulwark: + Opening:

2 . Your next two 1 . Gain 2 Soak until 1 . You make a hole
melee attacks deal the end of the round. or door in any material
double Harm. that is big enough for
you to fit through.

cyborg
They’ve shoved you in a human suit, pushed you to your
biological limits, stuffed you full of leased chrome, and
pumped in enough chemicals and drugs to make it all barely
work. But it does work.

+ scan Flaws: + explaNTor: + Masquerade:

1 . Until the end the 2 . Deal 3 Harm to 1 . Your actions do
round, all your attacks one Close target and 1 not generate more than
gain the Bleed tag and Harm to yourself. 2 total Awareness this
deal +1 Harm. round.

++16
Background
What moTivates you?

so many options to choose from which will it be why would

you choose to enter this life this so exciting life of serving
what was your

debt
The crushing kind. Could be medical expenses, or paying
blackmail, or a naïve belief that you can make enough to
afford a new life. A better life.
Start with debt equal to 10 + 1d6. You can take additional debt
later, not above 20.

debt
Maybe you’ve got a friend with a brother who knows a
guy who runs a farm. Or another corp that’s looking for
grunts, if only you can earn enough to travel.
Start with debt equal to 10 + 1d6. You can take additional debt
later, not above 20.

debt
You have to believe that what you don’t have is better
than what you do. There’s no other choice.
Start with debt equal to 10 + 1d6. You can take additional debt
later, not above 20.

TIPPY SAYS:
VALDIVIAN? WHO TOLD YOU ABOUT VALDIVIAN?
WE DO NOT TALK ABOUT VALDIVIAN.

++17
attributes
how do you approach life?

it doesnt matter what you do only how you do it will you smash
will you riot rebel rise up or will you grow complacent eating what
they feed you believing their lies choose sly

You get five points to distribute among your three Attributes.

Whenever you take an action, you roll a number of dice equal
to the score of the Attribute that most closely matches the
approach you’re taking.
You can put 0 points in an Attribute: if you ever need to roll 0
dice, you roll two dice and take the lower number. Otherwise,
you keep the highest number.
1–2 is a failure, 3–4 is a success with consequences, and 5–6
is an unmitigated success.
Any action you take that has a risk of failure uses your
Attributes. Most often this is attacking with a weapon. Using
powers and items does not require an Attribute roll, and
neither do simple actions like reloading a weapon or opening
a door.

consequences
Rolling a 1–4 has two consequences: one based on the
Attribute used, the other based on the situation (see page
66). The Attribute consequence for Smash is losing 1 HP, for
Cyber is losing 1 , and Sly is gaining either the Painted or
Taunted condition.

++18
cyber
Cyber is for methodical approaches. Most mental tasks
have been offloaded to computers. You’ll use this to
defuse bombs, hack computers, heal allies, and do
anything else that requires mental prowess.

smash
Smash is used for aggressive, powerful actions. Frontal
attacks, destroying machinery, and other straightforward
and direct shows of force all use this Attribute.

sly
Sly is for those times you need to be dexterous, stealthy,
or otherwise circumspect. It’s the times you slip in unno-
ticed, or slide your blade between an unsuspecting pair
of ribs. It can be slow or swift, but it’s always lithe.

++19
Ammo and Armor
armor
Armor contains Soak, Shard, and Barrier. These are essential
to keeping Operatives alive.
Soak applies first, and reduces incoming Harm.
Shard applies next, and eliminates all Harm and then is
destroyed.
Barrier is the last thing applied before Operatives lose health.
It represents the health of the armor. Every time it gets hit,
Barrier decreases by the amount of Harm dealt.

Assume Cheesecake has armor with Soak 1, Shard 2, and

Barrier 3. If Cheesecake gets attacked for 8 Harm, the Soak
will decrease it to 7, then the first Shard will absorb the rest
and break.
Suppose the next attack against Cheesecake deals 1 Harm:
her Soak takes it, and her remaining Shard is untouched.
A third attack comes in for 3 Harm: Soak reduces it to 2, then
the final Shard is destroyed.
Now Cheesecake has Soak 1, Shard 0, and Barrier 3. If she’s
attacked for another 5 Harm, Soak will reduce it to 4, her
Barrier will be destroyed, and she will lose 1 HP. Now she’d
better be careful: the next attack will be Soaked 1 and the
rest is coming out of her health!
True Harm bypasses Soak and Barrier.
Suppose Roadkill has armor with Soak 2, Shard 1, Barrier 5. If
he’s attacked for 5 True Harm, his Shard will absorb it all and
break. If he’s attacked again for 5 True Harm, it would bypass
both his Soak and his Barrier, affecting his HP directly. True
Harm is very dangerous!

AMMo
An Operative will never run out of ammo in the field; they can
carry an infinite amount of ammo. But a gun only holds so
much ammo before an Operative needs to spend their action
reloading. You can upgrade your clip size to reload less often,
or take upgrades to reload without spending an action.
++20
 adding range to a melee weapon:
If you take the Range upgrade on a melee weapon, give
it Ammo 1 and a range of Near or Far. The ammo is only
ever spent if the weapon is used at a range other than
Close. If the melee weapon is used as a melee weapon,
it does not trigger effects (like Desperate) that reference
its Ammo.
Taking the Range upgrade multiple times does not
increase the ammo, but adds an additional range at
which it can be used.
Taking the Ammo upgrade increases the number of uses
before an action has to be spent to “reload” (or retrieve)
the weapon.

Ranges
Cyberrats has three ranges: Close, Near, and Far. These
ranges are rough approximations that describe the
distances between two locations.
Range bands are relative. They describe the relationship
between a point of origin and target, rather than applying
globally.
Close means within stabbing distance, Near is the same
half of a basketball court, across a room, or near enough
to throw a basketball at. Far range is like the opposite
side of a large gymnasium, or about the distance you
could throw a baseball.

These two Interlopers are

at Close range to each other
but Near range to the Closest
Operative, Maude.
If Maude throws a grenade
at either of the Graybrains,
it will hit both the Graybrain
she threw it at and any other
enemies that are Close to the
target.

++21
 Two enemies could also be at Near range to an Operative
without being Close to each other. Imagine a hallway with
the Operative in the middle and an Interloper at either end.

Some objects will be further away than “Far” range. These

normally can’t be interacted with via powers or attacks, and
will be described as a certain number of moves away.
For example, if the Operatives sneak into a Military base and
want to sabotage the supercomputer in the basement of the
Armory, that supercomputer may be described as being five
moves away: once the Operatives move two range bands,
the computer will be two moves away, at Far range. Assuming
there aren’t walls in the way, the Operatives will be able to
use powers on the device.

playing with a grid

We encourage Cyberrats to be a tactical-lite game, where
ranges are defined as Close, Near, and Far. This allows for
fast combat that doesn’t require a grid or need enemy posi-
tions to be precisely mapped out. A simple sketch showing
relative positions is often sufficient.
If you prefer to play with a more exact grid, the conversion is
easy:
Close would refer to any creatures on adjacent squares, Near
would be about 2–5 squares away, and Far would be about
6–8 squares apart. One movement is four squares.
Using a grid like this will slow down combat, but may allow
for more precise measurements and may resolve arguments
about what counts as Near vs Far.

++22
Details
As an intern, you have 4 HP and 3 .
You’ll need to decide on a name; you won’t earn a nick-
name until after your first mission.
While you have some debt now, you can take additional
debt (to a max of 20 total) and use it to buy gear. You’ll
definitely want some armor, and interns who don’t take
weapons usually don’t come back alive.
Any additional debt you take can be used to buy Gear
Parts. One point of debt buys one Gear Part. After this
stage of character creation, you can never take debt
again. If you ever pay it off, your character retires!
As an intern, you cannot buy Construction Pieces for
basebuilding, nor can you buy powers or otherwise
upgrade your character. These options will be unlocked
after the first mission, when you choose your Career.
Good luck!

next of kin
Record the name of another Operative (including one
not yet in play). When your Operative dies, any unused
Construction Pieces and Gear Parts will be transferred
to that Operative, along with a sentimental personal
token, like dog tags or a branded company coffee mug.

TIPPY SAYS:
WHAT DID YOU SAY YOUR MOTHER'S MAIDEN NAME WAS
AGAIN? I NEED IT FOR UHH...YOUR INTAKE PAPERWORK, YEAH.
THAT'S IT.

++23
Company Store
Gear||armor||Upgrades
Building armor is easy. Start with a base, then use Gear Parts
to buy tags and upgrades. Entries with a symbol are not
available for purchase until certain rooms (like the Armory)
are built. Tags can only be taken once and are defined on
page 27. Gear Parts cost 1 Scrip each.

base upgrades tags

Shoddy: Cost 1. Barrier 3
Padded: Cost 1. Soak 1
Nice: Cost 2. Barrier 2,
Soak 1
Durable: Cost 3. Barrier 5,
Soak 1
Glass: Cost 3. Shard 3
Plated Glass: Cost
4. Shard 3, Soak 1,
Percussive
Infused: Cost 3. Barrier
4, Soak 2, Stealthy
Powered: Cost 3.
Barrier 5, Soak 2, Flight,
Capacitive
Barrier: Cost 1. Increase Tags are defined on page
the Barrier by 2. Can be 27.
taken multiple times. Absorbent: Cost 1
Beacon: Cost 1. If at least
Capacitive: Cost 2.
one Operative evacs after
a mission is completed or Charging: Cost 3.
abandoned you also evac, Flight: Cost 2.
even if Injured.
Mobile: Cost 2.
Juiced: Cost 2. The
first power you use in a Percussive: Cost 1.
combat is free. Spiked: Cost 1.
Soak: Cost 1. Increase Stealthy: Cost 1.
Soak by 1. Each time
Twisted: Cost 2.
you take this, the cost
increases by 1.
Shard: Cost 2. Add 1
Shard. Can be taken
multiple times.
Sturdy: Cost 1. After
falling to 0 HP, you die in
6 rounds instead of the
usual 4.

Company Store
Gear||Weapon||Upgrades
Building a weapon is a lot like building armor. Start with a
base, then use Gear Parts to buy upgrades or new tags.
Entries with a symbol are not available for purchase until
unlocked. Tags can only be taken once. Tags are defined on
page 27. Remember, one Scrip can be used to buy one Gear
Part.
++24
 base
Handgun: Cost 1. Ammo:
6, Range: Close/Near,
Harm: 2
Shotgun: Cost 1. Ammo:
2, Range: Close, Harm: 3,
Tags: Spread
Sniper: Cost 3. Ammo: 1,
Range: Far, Harm: 6
Rifle: Cost 2. Ammo: 8,
Range: Close/Near, Harm:
3 Quick: Cost 1. You can
Grenade Launcher:
Cost 3. Ammo: 2, Range:
Near, Harm: 4, Tags: Burst,
Boom, Shrapnel
Knife: Cost 1. Range:
Close, Harm: 2, Tags:
Pierce
Sword: Cost 3. Range:
Close, Harm: 4, Tags:
Pierce, Bleed
Arcsword: Cost 4.
Range: Close, Harm: 4,
Tags: Arc, Shred
Plasgun: Cost 5.
Ammo: 5, Range: Close/
Near/Far, Harm: 4, Tags:
Beam, Lethal
THE GIGAKNIFE:
Knife;
Upgrades: Desperate, Range
Tags: Boom, Bleed, Momentum
It is oen cheaper to upgrade
a weapon than it is to replace
one. New interns should allocate
their Scrip accordingly.
upgrades tags
Ammo: Cost 1. Every time Tags are defined on page
you take this upgrade, 27.
double the ammo.
Arc: Cost 3.
Hefty: Cost 1. Reroll one 1
Beam: Cost 2. Cost 3
each attack.
for Melee.
Precise: Cost 1. Add one
Bleed: Cost 2. Can be
additional die to attacks
taken multiple times.
made with this weapon.
You can take this multiple Boom: Cost 1.
times. Brutal: Cost 1.
Burst: Cost 2.
reload this weapon once
Knockback: Cost 1.
per combat without
spending an action. You Leech: Cost 3.
can take this multiple
Lethal: Cost 2.
times.
Momentum: Cost 1.
Desperate: Cost 2. When
this weapon only has one Pierce: Cost 3.
ammo left, it deals double Reliable: Cost 2.
Harm.
Ricochet: Cost 2.
Frontloaded: Cost 2. The
Shock: Cost 2. Melee
first attack you make with
this weapon each combat only.
and after each reload Shrapnel: Cost 2 to
deals double Harm. remove this tag.
Multishot: Cost 2. Each
Shred: Cost 2. Can be
attack costs 2 ammo but
deals double Harm. taken multiple times.
Spread: Cost 2.
Range: Cost 2. Add one
additional range to this Sticky: Cost 1.
weapon. Can be taken
Taunt: Cost 1.
multiple times (not
beyond Far). Tech: Cost 2.
Sharpened: Cost 2. Deal
+1 Harm. Can be taken
multiple times.
Greedy: Cost 3. You can
make 2 attacks with this
weapon as one action.
Rapid: Cost 3. It doesn’t
cost an action to reload
this weapon.
++25
Company Store
Gear||items||EquipMent
Items are single-use items that reset every mission. It never
costs an action to use an item. You can use as many items
as you have on each mission. Just like weapons and armor
items can be improved by buying upgrades. Each instance
of an item has its own set of upgrades: if you buy 3 medpacs
but only 1 Enhanced upgrade, only one of the medpacs is
Enhanced.

Adrenal Shunt: Cost 1. Cost 1. Increase the the combat are pulled
Ignore the next source of Barrier by 1. Can be here. The next attack or
Harm you would take. taken multiple times. power that targets one
robot instead targets all
Bioinjector: Cost 2. EMP: Cost 2. Apply the
of them.
Restore 2 Biotech to Shocked condition to up
Upgrade. Cost 1: The
yourself or a Close to 3 enemies with the
next 2 attacks or
Operative. Robot tag at Close or
powers that target a
Upgrade: Enhanced. Near range.
robot instead targets all
Cost 1. +1 Biotech Flare Gun: Cost 1. Apply robots.
restored. Can be taken the Painted condition to
multiple times. Medpac: Cost 1. Restore
2 targets or the Screwed
2 Harm to yourself or a
Combat Stims: Cost 1. condition to one target.
Close Operative.
Your next attack or power Grenade: Cost 1. Toss to Upgrade: Enhanced.
that deals Harm deals Near range Tags: Boom, Cost 1. Choose a condi-
double Harm. Burst, Shrapnel, Shred 2. tion like Bleed, Painted,
Upgrade: Specialized. Upgrade Cost 1: Weapon or Shocked. This
Cost 1. Choose a tag. tags can be purchased. Medpac also removes
Your next attack or
Jetpack: Cost 1 You can that condition. Can be
power also gains that
move to a Far range from taken multiple times.
tag. Can be taken
multiple times. where you are. Smoke Bomb: Cost
Magbomb: Cost 3 2. Until the end of the
Dome Shield: Cost 2 You
Throw this to a Close or round, you and all Near
and all Close allies gain
Barrier 2. Near location. All robot and Close allies gain 2
enemies presently in Soak.
Upgrade: Enhanced.

R
TATO
A M P- U
THE Sword; ey
H
ades: k
Upgrags: Shoc MEDPAC:
T
eational use.
Not for recr
++26
Tags
None of that basic shit for you

Certain attacks, powers, and enemies will have tags.

Some of these have immediate effects, while others
change how powers interact with them. All tags and
upgrades are permanent once purchased.

attacks Momentum: You can move after this

Arc: This attack targets all enemies
at one range.
Beam: This attack targets one enemy
at Close, Near, and Far ranges.
Bleed: Target loses 1 HP per Bleed at
the start of their turn. Any power that
restores Harm can instead remove
all Bleed.
Boom: If an attack with this tag kills
the target, all Close creatures take 2
Harm.
Brutal: Deal double Harm if you roll a
6 on the attack.
Burst: All creatures Close to the
target take 1 Harm.
Knockback: You can move any
targets 1 range band after they are hit
by this attack.
Leech: If this attack kills a target,
recover 1 Harm.
Lethal: This attack ignores Barrier
and the Resilient tag.
attack.
Pierce: This attack ignores Soak.
Reliable: You can reroll 1s when
attacking with this weapon
Ricochet: If this attack kills the
target, repeat it against another
enemy Close to the original target.
Shock: Applies the Shocked
condition.
Shrapnel: Do not generate drops for
enemies killed by attacks with this
tag.
Shred: After the attack, remove one
Soak from the target.
Spread: This attack can hit 2 targets
at the same range, as long as both
targets are Close to each other.
Sticky: The target cannot move until
the end of the round.
Taunt: Applies the Taunted
condition.
Tech: Recharge 1 for each enemy
you kill with this attack.

DE DIPPED
SWITCHBLINACLEANER:
IN DRA
Knife; ned
arpe
Upgrades: She, Sticky
Tags: Pierc
ves make do.
Broke Operati

++27
 conditions
Barrier #: A creature with Barrier 5
ignores the first 5 points of Harm
directed to them, then the Barrier
breaks. If multiple Barriers are
applied, the total is added together.
Barrier is applied after Soak and
Shard.
Bleeding: At the start of their turn,
a Bleeding creature loses 1 HP per
Bleed effect applied to them.
Painted: A Painted target is marked
for death. They take +1 Harm from all
attacks. The Painted condition can
be applied multiple times.
ORGONZOL
MANAGERETG INDICATOR:
TARG
Sniper
U pg ra de s: Greedy, Amlemed
B ru tal, B
Tags: Pierce,
tional. Do no
Cup holder esops we’re talking about
at head. Uer nl
hen aim at he
Interlop s. T
armor
Absorbent: After you are hit with an
attack, you can move 1 range band.
Barrier: As the condition, but it
resets at the start of each combat.
Capacitive: When your Barrier runs
out, all Close creatures take 2 Harm.
Charging: When your Barrier runs
out, restore 3 .
Flight: You can fly.
Mobile: Whenever you take the move
action, you can move 2 range bands.
Percussive: When you are hit with
an attack, all Close creatures take 1
Harm.
++28
Screwed: All Harm applied to a
target with this condition is doubled.
Shocked: The target deals -1 Harm
on its next attack. Shocked wears off
at the end of a creature’s turn.
Soak #: A creature with Soak 2
reduces all incoming Harm by 2.
Multiple instances of Soak add
together. Soak is applied first, before
Barrier or Shard.
Taunted: A Taunted creature can
only attack the creature that Taunted
it. A new Taunt overrides the old one.
Taunted ends when the Taunter dies
or when the mission ends.
A’S
o
t aim
ad.
Shard: A Shard absorbs all Harm
from 1 hit and then is destroyed.
They reset at the start of combat.
Shard is applied before Barrier, but
after Soak.
Soak: As the condition. If Soak is
ever reduced, it resets at the start of
each mission.
Spiked: When you are attacked with
a melee weapon, deal 1 Harm to the
attacker.
Stealthy: Doesn’t show up on
cameras, and neither does its wearer.
Twisted: When your Barrier breaks,
your next attack/power deals double
Harm.
 TO: depar
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++29
CAREERS
how are you superIor?
Your Career represents your specialization and focus. You
won’t start with one, but will be able to select one after your
first successful mission. Your Career will determine your
starting HP and , as well as the powers you can choose
from.
Until you succeed on that first mission, you have no Career.
You are an Intern. Interns have 4 HP and 3 .
To choose a Career, simply choose a 0-cost power from
one specialization on your choice of Career. You can only
purchase powers from one Career, but are free to mix and
match specializations. Powers must be purchased in order
(one from the first row must be purchased before one from
the second row, and you cannot buy a power from row 3
without first buying a power from rows 1 and 2).
While you are free to take powers from any combination of
specializations (e.g. both Hacker and Droner), you can only
ever have one power from any row.

Nicknames
What do They call you?

When you get a Career, randomly roll for a nickname, create

your own, or let your fellow Operatives choose one for you if
you're feeling especially brave.

++30
d66 Name d66 Name
11 Tapper 41 Gecko
12 Frenzy 42 Goliath
13 Roadrage 43 Bunny
14 Dancer 44 Pepperoni
15 Cupid 45 Ballerina
16 Rustbucket 46 Tealeaves
21 Mousetrap 51 Caterpillar THE OTHE PLAS
NE MA
22 Gumdrop 52 Radio S HAND SHOT Y
Upgra PRAYER SED PLAST
23 Shithouse 53 Roadkill Tags S des: Fr HOTG MATIC
pread, o U
Ricochntloaded, RN
24 Gizzard 54 Spiral Name et, Ta apid
applied changed a u nt, Le
to ens nd war thal
25 Priestess 55 Thumper ure OS ning la
HA com bels
pliance
26 Hormone 56 Southpaw .
31 Isotope 61 Inkstain
32 Keepsies 62 Whisper
33 Boomer 63 Pitstop
34 Cupcake 64 Dogwhistle
35 Ratcatcher 65 Pinocchio
36 Pisser 66 Bloodstain

NICE UH... GRENADE?

Aer careful analysis,
the lab is 69% sure this
is probably a grenade.

TIPPY SAYS:
NO MATTER WHAT YOUR CREW CALLS YOU, I'M
PROGRAMMED TO CALL YOU "BUDDY". ISN'T THAT NICE,
BUDDY? DON'T YOU FEEL MORE VALUED ALREADY?

++31
 Vector
You're a-hacking The machines
HP: 6 --- Biotech: 6
Hackers. They seem to see the world differently than we do. They talk
to their computers and the computers... Well they seem to take note.
No datastream, no drone, no source of electricity is safe. Assume
they know all our secrets, and that nothing can be trusted around
them.

++32
 hacker
0 Blind spot: Passive. You
don’t appear on security
cameras. Spend 1
to make up to 5 others
disappear for one round
as well.
1 Involuntary Sharing: 2
Choose a Close ally. Until
the end of the next round,
that ally loses 1 tag (their
choice) off of one of their
weapons. Your attacks gain
that tag.
Upgrade. Cost 1. It is now
your choice of tag.
2 Data Loss: 0 . Deal up to
3 True Harm to yourself or
an ally. Recover that much
. apply the Painted condition.
Upgrade. Cost 1. If you
target an ally, you both gain
the . deal 1 Harm to the target the Painted condition, apply
3 Isolate: 2 . Apply the
Screwed condition to one
target at any range until the targets at any range.
end of the round.
4 Corrupt: 1 . Apply the
Weakened condition to
one target at Near or Close
range until the end of the
round.
5 Binary Slash: 3 . Deal 5
Harm to one Close target. If
this is fatal, you may move
and repeat the attack.
Each time you make the
attack, it deals 1 less Harm.
6 Light ‘em up: 3 . Apply
the Painted condition to
every enemy at Close,
Near, and Far range. If they
already have the Painted
condition, apply Screwed
instead.
Shocker Droner
Sizzle: Passive. All Air Support: Passive. Gain 1
your melee attacks and Soak.
Shocker powers that
deal Harm apply the
Shocked condition.
Overclock: 1 . Until Hijack: 3 . Choose an
the end of your next enemy at Near or Close range
turn, double all Harm with the Robot tag. Deal that
you deal and all Harm enemy’s Harm to a target of
that is dealt to you. your choice. The Manager
activates 1 fewer enemies this
round.
Upgrade. Cost 1. Instead use
any of the enemy’s moves.
Lightning Strike: 1 . Paint the Targets: Passive.
Deal 4 Harm to one Near All your ranged attacks and
or Far target. Vector attacks that deal Harm
Upgrade. Cost 1. When
you use this power, you Upgrade. Cost 2. Whenever
may choose to instead you Harm a creature who has
4 times. the Screwed condition.
Chain Lightning: X . Swarm: X . Deal X True
Deal 1 True Harm to X Harm to 1 target.
Siphon: 3 . Deal 2 Targeted Strike: 2 . Deal 3
True Harm to up to 3 Harm to one target and either
targets at Close range. apply the Painted condition
Recover HP equal to to up to 3 targets or deal 2
half the total HP lost. Harm to all creatures with the
Painted condition.
Pulse: 2 . Fly into Balm in Gilead: 3 . All allies
the air and deal 3 Harm at Close or Near range recover
to every creature you 3 Harm or 3 .
can see, knocking them
down.
Electrocute: 2 . Protective Flock: 3 . Gain
Deal True 4 Harm to 2 Shard and apply Taunt to all
all creatures with the Close enemies
Shocked condition.
Upgrade: Cost 1. Allow a Close
or Near ally to gain the effects
of this power instead.
++33
 Trenchy
gunner knifer grenadier
0 High Ground: Passive. Amateur Slice: Passive Smoke Bombs: Passive.
All weapon attacks deal Increase the effect of all All your Grenadier Trenchy
+1 Harm. your Bleed tags by +1. powers create 1 cover after the
effects are resolved.
Upgrade: Cost 1. All Upgrade: Cost 2. Add
Trenchy powers that 1 Bleed to all Trenchy Upgrade: Cost 2. They create 3
deal Harm deal +1 Harm powers that deal Harm. cover instead.
as well.
1 From the Hip: 1 . On the Run: 1 . Move Big Boom: 1 . Deal 3 Harm
Deal 2 targets at Near up to 1 range and deal one to a Near target and 1 Harm to
range 2 Harm. Close target 2 Harm. everyone Close to that target.
Destroy any cover or terrain
Upgrade: Cost 2. Deal 2
Close to the target.
True Harm instead.
Upgrade: Cost 2. After the
attack, push all creatures
affected by this power 1 range
band.
2 Quick Draw: 2 . Shielding Blade: 2 . Time Delay Bomb: 2 .
You can make an Gain Barrier 5. Choose up to 3 Near enemies.
additional attack this At the start of your next turn,
Upgrade: Cost 1. Or apply
round. each of those enemies takes 3
Barrier 5 to a Close ally.
Harm, and each creature Close
to them takes 1 Harm.
3 Old Grudge: 1 . Your Arterial Slash: Passive. All Bigger Boom: 2 . Deal 6
next 2 attacks deal your melee attacks gain Harm to a target and 3 Harm to
+1 Harm and gain the the Bleed tag. everyone Close to that target.
Reliable tag. Destroy any cover or terrain
Close to the target.
4 The Blunderbuss The Caesar Special: 3 . Sticky Grenade: 2 . Choose
Special: 2 . Deal Deal 3 Harm to 1 Close a Near target and attach a
3 Harm to one Close target. All Close allies can grenade to them. At the start of
target and knock them make immediate melee the next ENEMY PHASE, the
to Near, or deal 2 Harm attacks against the target. grenade explodes, dealing 5
to 2 Close targets. Harm to the target, and 2 Harm
to all creatures Close to it.
5 Snipe: 2 . Deal 5 Gut: 1 . Deal 3 True Triplets: 3 . Toss 3
Harm to 1 target at Far Harm to 1 Close target. grenades. Each grenade deals
range. If this is fatal, Apply one additional 3 Harm to all creatures Close
deal 2 Harm to another Bleed. to where it lands.
target at any range.
6 Just Like the O.K. Warcry: 2 . Until the Caution: Passive. Grenadier
Corral: 3 . Deal 2 end of your next turn, weapon attacks and powers
Harm to every enemy whenever you kill a target, only Harm enemies. All
at Close or Near range. increase your Soak by Trenchy powers that deal
Recover 1 for each 1. Soak gained this way Harm deal +1 Harm and gain
enemy killed this way. lasts until the end of the Boom tag.
the mission, or until it is
removed by Shred.

++34
You're a GriZZLEd vet and weapons
specialISt
HP: 9 --- Biotech: 4
There’s soldiers and then there’s Trenchies. They can use anything
as a weapon, but they have preferences. Wouldn’t you? They can
fly across a battlefield, ripping an opponent to shreds, or place a
grenade as accurately as any sniper places a bullet. Just be grateful
they’re on our side.

++35
 Mindjob
ALL BAT:
THE BRAINSB
Sword ecise
Upg ra de s: Hey, Pr back
Te ch , B urst, Knock
Tags:
for
reprimanded
Tippy has besenthat the Interlopers
telling intern by puns. (The
y totally
can be killedgh. You should try it.)
can, thou
kinner
0 Oomph: Passive. All your
attacks and Mindjob
powers that deal Harm
gain the Momentum tag.
1 Shield: 1 . Give yourself
or an ally Barrier 2.
2 Mind Weight: Cost 2. Your
next 2 attacks gain the
Sticky tag.
3 Gravity Ball: 2 . Pick a
point. All creatures Near to
that point are pulled to be
Close to that point. Then,
all creatures Close to that
point take 3 Harm.
4 Debris Slam: 2 . Deal 3
Harm to up to 3 different
Near or Close targets.
5 Pin: 2 . Deal 3 Harm to
one Near target and move
them to Close or Far. Apply
the Painted condition.
6 Unnerving: Passive. All of
your Mindjob powers that
deal Harm deal +1 Harm,
and you deal 2 less Harm
to all allies.
++36
Scanner Freak
Predictable: Passive. Gain Resentful: Passive.
1 Soak. Whenever you take Harm,
all creatures Close to you
take 1 Harm.
Refuel: 1 . Restore 1 Torment: 2 . Deal 3
to a Close or Near ally. Harm to a Close target and
1 Harm to all Close allies.
Teleport: 2 . Teleport Focused: 1 . Deal 1 less
behind a Near or Close Harm to allies this turn.
enemy. Make an extra
attack this round.
Fear: 2 . Non-Robot Aura: 3 . You and all
enemies cannot attack you Close allies gain 2 Soak
until the end of your next until the end of your next
turn. turn.
Dominate: 3 . Choose a Stun: 3 . Choose a
non-Robot enemy. It deals Close or Near Enemy. It
its Harm to a creature of cannot be activated in the
your choice. next ENEMY PHASE.
Motivate: 1 . Choose a Mental Javelin: 2 . Deal
Close or Near ally. They 4 Harm to a target at Near
get an extra action on their or Far range and apply the
turn. Screwed and Shocked
conditions.
Allocate: 3 . Choose Revenge: 3 . Until the
an ally. Their next power end of your next turn, track
is free. Your next power all Harm that you take. At
is also free. The cost the end of your next turn,
of Allocate cannot be each creature that dealt
reduced. you Harm takes Harm
equal to the amount you
took +2.
You're a Psychic experiMent
HP: 5 --- Biotech: 7
Sometimes the job breaks you. Snaps your mind. Other
times it awakens something. Something that lets you
read thoughts, contort gravity, materialize shields out
of brainwaves, and chuck enemies like confetti.

++37
 Ratter
You're a Master of modern humanity
HP: 8 --- Biotech: 5
Sometimes an Operative goes rogue. That’s when the Ratters are
called in. Mutated beyond mutation, they know how to get any job
done...no matter how distasteful they may find it.

TIPPY SAYS:
THE RATTER SPECIALIZATIONS MIRROR THE MUTATIONS, BUT
THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU HAVE TO MATCH THEM UP. GET WEIRD
AND WILD WITH IT. NOT ONLY IS IT ALLOWED, IT'S ENCOURAGED!

++38
 Swarmer
0 Scavenge: Passive. When
hit, you may choose to lose
instead of HP.
1 Undermine: 1 . Your next
attack gains the Pierce and
Burst tags.
2 Ravage: 2 . Shrapnel,
Burst. Rat swarms drag
an enemy into a sewer or
other hatch. Deal 5 Harm
to a target at any range.
3 Swarmstorm: 3 . Deal
3 Harm to all enemies at
Near range.
4 Feeding Frenzy: X . Shredder: 3 . Your next
Deal X Harm to a target at
any range and repeat the
attack against a different
target. Each time you
repeat the attack, reduce
X by 1. If a target is killed
by this attack, increase X
by 1. When X is 0, end the
attack.
5 Rabid: 2 . Your next 3
powers cost 1 less to
use.
6 Living Flesh: Passive. You
gain 2 Soak.
Brute
Brawny: Passive.
Whenever you deal Harm
from a melee attack or
Ratter power, apply the
Painted condition to that
target.
Throw: 1 . Deal 2 Harm
to a Close target and move
them to Near.
Beatdown: 3 . Deal 4
Harm to a Close target
and apply the Screwed
condition. If this attack
was fatal, apply the
Screwed condition to all
Close enemies instead.
Tail Whip: 2 . Deal 2
Harm to all Close enemies.
2 attacks deal double
Harm and gain the Shred
tag.
Clobber: 3 . Throw a
Close enemy into a Near
enemy. Both take 4 Harm.
For each creature that
died from this attack, deal
1 True Harm to all enemies
Close to where the target
was thrown.
Smackdown: 3 . Bleed,
Boom, Burst, Momentum,
Shred, Ricochet, Sticky,
Taunt. Deal 5 Harm to a
Close target.
Cyborg
Tactical: Passive. All your
ranged attacks and Ratter
powers that deal Harm add
the Burst Tag.
Eviscerate: 1 . Deal 3
Harm to a Close target
and apply the Painted
condition to all Close
enemies.
Soften: 1 . All Close
Enemies lose 1 Soak.
Upgrade: Cost 1. If 2 or
more Soak was lost, give 1
Soak to yourself or a Close
ally. If 4 or more Soak was
lost, instead give a Shard.
Recharge: 1 . Until the
end of your next turn, all
your weapons gain the
Tech tag.
Zap: 2 . Shock, Shred,
Ricochet. Deal 3 Harm to a
Close or Near target.
Come and Get It: 2 .
Deal 2 Harm to all enemies
at Near range. Apply the
Taunt condition to each of
them, and move them to
Close.
Upgrade: Cost 2. Also
target all enemies at Close
range.
Mainline: 3 . Recover 5
and 1 Harm. Mainline
can only be used once per
round.
++39
Playing the game
the loop
what we do
over and over again and again we repeat the same actions
going through the motions this is the life we lead learning
new things

01. mission briefing

You will be presented with 3 missions. Choose one to
automatically fail, one to resolve with a single die roll,
and one to play out.

02. loadout & mission

Choose which of your Operatives will go on the mission.
Select their weapons and gear, and then play out the
mission to see what happens.

03. performance review

Both your Operatives will get some Scrip. Now is your
chance to spend it on upgrades or debt. The Manager will
adjust Victory and Threat based on your performance.

04. downtime
Describe what happens after the mission. Cool off, relax,
and blow off some steam. Share a tender moment with
another Operative.

TIPPY SAYS:
OR MAYBE YOU WANT TO SHARE A TENDER MOMENT WITH YOUR
GOOD BUDDY TIPPY INSTEAD! WE COULD GET SOME COOL,
REFRESHING DRANK®, PROUD SPONSOR OF OPERATIVE ORIENTATION.

++40
 01.
mission briefing
seLEcTive failure

mISsIon one mISsIon two mISsIon three

target: valdivian target: military target: interlopers
type: extraction type: sabotage type: exterminate
tags: none tags: stealth tags: none

You will be presented with three missions. Each mission

has one or more targets, a goal, and possibly some tags.
Your Manager should tell you the current Victory Meter
numbers as well as the current Threat Levels for each
target. You can also track these on your campaign sheet.
As a team, you will choose 1 mission to fail, 1 mission to
resolve by a single dice roll, and 1 mission to play out.
Remember, every time you fail a mission, the target
faction’s Threat Level increases by 1. If that faction has
an associated Victory Meter, it increases by 3. If you
succeed at a mission and there was one target, that
target’s Victory Meter decreases by 2. If there were two
targets and you succeed, both Victory Meters decrease
by 1. Conversely, if there are two targets and you fail, both
Victory Meters will increase by 2.
There is no Victory Meter for the Military, so failing a
Military mission does not have any consequences aside
from raising their Threat Level.
Succeeding at a mission against the Military decreases
the Valdivian Victory Meter by 2 and increases the
Interloper Victory Meter by 2.
Enemies from different factions drop different rewards.
Interlopers drop the most Biotech , while the Military
drops Gear Parts, used for upgrading gear.
It is possible to have multiple missions that target
the same faction, or one mission that targets multiple
factions. Either way, all effects of succeeding or failing
missions should be applied.
GOod luck.
++41
 02.
loadout and mission
gearing up and taking down
do what youre told its just a mission one last job its always the
last one its never the last one why not try something new maybe

Once you’ve selected your mission, it’s time to choose who

is going to execute it. Choose one of your two Operatives
to send to the mission. The other Operative will be headed
to the secondary mission, the one resolved by a single roll.
Remember: Injured Operatives cannot go on the primary
mission.
First, choose what gear each of your Operatives will be taking.
Then, choose what powers your primary Operative will have
equipped. They can only have 5 powers active at a time. If an
Operative used a passive power during the last Downtime
phase (such as Loaded to make gear cheaper), that power
must be equipped on the following mission.
Now you’re ready to start your main mission. After the
primary mission is resolved, you can roll for success on the
secondary mission and process the success and failure
conditions for all missions.
Missions are resolved in the following order: primary mission,
secondary mission, failed mission.

++42
secondary mission dice pool
In order to process the secondary mission, you need to
assemble your dice pool. Start with 1 die.
• For every 2 Operatives that have a Career, +1 die.
• For each Injured Operative, -1 die.
• For each Operative with a weapon or gear with 3 or
more tags, gain +1 die.
• For each Operative with a power from a row labeled
3, 4, 5, or 6, gain +1 die.
• If there are only interns on the mission, -1 die.
• If any of the target factions have a Threat Level of 3
or higher, -1 die.
• If you have no dice, roll 2d6 and take the lower.
• There can never be more than 5 dice in this pool.

Now that you have assembled your pool, roll it and keep
the highest number. If you rolled a 5-6, you succeed on
the mission. Congrats. One Injured Operative on the
secondary mission can become un-Injured.
On a roll of 3–4, you succeed, but there is a cost. One a
roll of 1–2, you fail and there is a cost.
In either case, the cost is the same: Either 1 Operative
assigned to the mission dies, or 2 Operatives assigned to
the mission become Injured.
Operatives who were already Injured cannot become
Injured again.
If the mission has the Dangerous tag, a roll of 6 is required
for full success.

assistants on the secondary mission

While Assistants do not help the secondary mission
succeed, if a secondary mission is failed, an Assistant who
accompanied on that mission can be sacrificed instead
of Injuring or killing any one Operative. Additionally, any
mission with the Assistant tag can only be attempted if
an Assistant is present on that mission. See more about
Assistants on page 53.

++43
 03.
Performance review
get scrip and adjust tracks

After the mission, it’s time for your Performance Review! If

your primary mission was completed without retreating, all
Operatives who survived get 1d6 + 1 Scrip, plus an additional
1 Scrip if they killed at least one enemy.
If the primary mission was not successful (i.e. the team
retreated without completing the objective), then the only
Scrip rewarded is 1 Scrip for each Operative who killed at
least 1 enemy. All Operatives who went on the secondary
mission get 2 Scrip.
After Scrip is handed out, the Manager will adjust the Victory
Meters and Threat Levels. Any failed missions will make
enemies more powerful and bring them closer to achieving
their goals.
Then, players can spend Scrip. Scrip can be spent on new
powers. If any interns were on a mission, they should pick up
a Career now by claiming a cost 0 power.
Remember, you can only have one power from each row of
any table, you can only take powers from your Career table
(but from any specialization), and each row of powers costs
1 more Scrip than the row above it.
Scrip can also be spent to remove debt, bring players closer
to retirement, upgrade gear and equipment, or to construct
new rooms in your base that make all characters stronger. A
complete list of options begins on page 47.

04.
downtime
cOoling off after a mISsIon

After each mission, it’s important to reflect on what just

happened. This is a good opportunity for both the Manager
and other players to ask each other questions. What went

++44
well on that mission? Who pulled their own weight? Who
didn’t? How did the mission change you? Were you ever
worried?
Downtime is also an opportunity to share tender moments
with other Operatives. Where in the base do you spend
time after a mission? Are you alone?
Each Operative should get a scene here, either by
themselves, with an NPC, or with another Operative or
Operatives.
These are soldiers, sure, but more than that, they're people.
At the end of the day they clock out, and they spend time
in corporate housing with other employees.

passing the die

Every player gets 1 Downtime die that they must pass to
another player. This die can be used on the next mission
to add to any dice roll before the roll is made. At the end
of a mission, any unused downtime dice expire. If a player
ends up with multiple downtime dice, they can use them
all on one roll, or split them up between rolls however they
see fit.
The Downtime die can be passed to any other player
for any reason: a clever tactic in the previous mission, a
particularly moving Downtime scene, or anything else.

passive powers
If you use a passive power after a mission (such as using
Loaded to buy gear at a discounted price), that power
must accompany you on your next mission, where it
counts against one of the 5 power slots you’re allowed to
fill during the Loadout phase.

resetting
After a mission, all effects applied wear off: is reset to
normal, and health, Soak, and Barrier return to their default
values. Any temporary tags that were applied wear off.
Operatives will return good as new for the next mission
(unless they were Injured, of course).

++45
downtime
QuesTIOns TO ask
There’s no limit to the questions you can ask, but here are
some ideas to get you started. Players should feel welcome
to ask each other questions, act out scenes, or chat with
NPCs around the base.
• Where is the first place you go
after the mission is over?
• What injury did you sustain in this
combat?
• What did you think about while you
were dying?
• Who’s the first person you check in
on after the mission?
• What surprised you about that last
mission?
• Who carried their own weight
during that last fight?
• Who wasn’t pulling their own
weight, and leeched off the team?
• What would have happened if we’d
lost that mission?
• Where are you sleeping tonight?
Are you alone?
• How do you blow off steam?
• Who’s to blame for how the
mission went?
• How did that mission change you?
• What are you going to dream about
tonight? Will this be a recurring
dream?
• Do you trust your teammates more
or less than you did before this
mission?
• How will you improve or prepare
yourself for the next mission?
• What are you eating?
• Who seems most relieved to see
you’re alive?
++46
• What’s missing from this space,
what would really bring it together?
• What would you do if you could
retire tomorrow?
• Were we in the wrong on that last
mission?
• Do you have any worries about
what you’re doing?
• How well are you sleeping?
• When you didn't think we'd make
it, who or what were you thinking
of?
• What will you do when the war is
over?
• In what way did you realize you
were broken today?
• How do you distract yourselves
from the horrors of what you've
done?
• What haunts your nightmares?
• Who have you lost?
• Who can you not remember as well
as you wish?
• Do you have family? What do they
think of you?
• What’s a secret you confide in
another Operative?
• What sentimental item do you
keep? Why is it important to you?
• When was the last time you felt
joy?
• What scars, physical or otherwise,
did you gain today?
Spending scrip
Growing more powerful

After finishing a mission, Operatives will be rewarded

with Scrip as part of their Performance Review (see page
44). This Scrip can be spent in a variety of ways.

debt
You can spend 1 Scrip to pay off 1 debt. This gets your
character that much closer to retirement. It does not,
however, help them survive.

sabotage (collective spending)

Any Operative or Operatives can collectively spend
2 Scrip to reduce one Victory Meter by 1 point. They
can also spend Scrip to reduce the Threat Level of any
faction. The cost to reduce a Threat Level by 1 is the
current Threat Level: reducing Military from 3 to 2 costs
3 Scrip. No Threat Level can ever go below 1.

assistants
You can spend 1 Scrip to unlock an Assistant. At the
start of a mission, you can choose one Assistant to
accompany you. Whenever you recruit an Assistant,
the Manager also chooses one Adversary to unlock.
Assistants and Adversaries can attend any mission and
provide either passive bonuses or additional actions to
their side. Be careful— Adversaries can attend missions
even without an Assistant present, and both Assistants
and Adversaries can be killed.

TIPPY SAYS:
SPENDING SCRIP CAN HAPPEN AT THE END OF THE PERFOR-
MANCE REVIEW OR AS A PART OF DOWNTIME IF PLAYERS
WANT TO ROELPLAY SHOPPING.
++47
 character improvements
You can spend 1 Scrip to:
• Increase HP by 1
• Increase by 1
• Permanently improve any one power that deals Harm to
deal +1 Harm
• Permanently improve any one power that grants healing to
heal +1 HP
• Permanently improve any one power that gives Barrier to
give +1 Barrier
You can also spend Scrip to purchase powers; each power
costs 1 Scrip per row (the first row costs 0 Scrip each, the
second row costs 1 each). You can buy powers from any
specialization of your Career. You cannot buy powers from
other Careers. You cannot buy more than one power per row.
Some powers will allow you to pay Scrip to upgrade them.
These upgrades are permanent to the power once the Scrip
is paid.
Finally, you can improve Attributes: Increasing an Attribute
costs Scrip equal to the new rank. As an example, increasing
Cyber from 2 to 3 costs 3 Scrip.

gear and basebuilding

You can spend 1 Scrip to buy 1 Gear Part. These can be spent
on buying new weapons and armor, or upgrading the same.
You can spend 2 Scrip to buy 1 Construction Piece. These
can be spent to buy new rooms that give bonuses to all
Operatives or unlock new gear and powers.

TIPPY SAYS:
HEY, I CAN BUNK WITH YOU FOR AWHILE, RIGHT, BUDDY? I PROMISE,
YOU'LL BARELY KNOW I'M THERE, AND YOUR PLACE WOULD BE
PERFECT FOR THE LINE-DANCING REHEARSALS I LEAD ON TUESDAYS!

++48
++49
BASEBUILDING
dont you want a place to call your own isnt it worth working for
what a goal to have and on top of that you get to share it with all
of your closest friends

Between missions, Scrip can be spent to purchase

Construction Pieces. Two Scrip can be exchanged for one
Construction Piece, which can be used to excavate space
for rooms or buy rooms. Alternatively, some enemies will
drop Construction Pieces directly.
These Construction Pieces can be used to build different
rooms. Some of these rooms add passive effects— like the
Smith, which increases the Harm of all Melee weapons.
Others unlock new powers, weapons, tags, or abilities for
Operatives to use or buy. For example, the Clinic allows Injured
Operatives to be healed outside of missions without relying
on a successful secondary mission, while the Detonatorium
unlocks grenades and the grenade launcher. Other rooms
make it easier to manage Victory Meters, or provide other
benefits. A complete list of rooms can be found on the next
page.
Before a room can be purchased, there must be space for
it. At the start of a campaign, one rooms can be purchased
for each of the two empty spaces on the campaign sheet.
This represents currently unused space within your base.
After those two rooms, excavation will need to be done. Each
space excavated has a cost ranging from 1 to 4. This is the
cost in Construction Pieces that must be spent to excavate
that area before it can hold a room, and is separate and addi-
tional to the cost to purchase the room.
Each room fits in one space, regardless of the room’s cost.
The effects of rooms take place immediately after they are
purchased.

note: there is not enough space to purchase every

room. choose wisely.

++50
Rooms
You can spend 2 Scrip to buy one Construction Piece.
You can spend Construction Pieces to unlock new rooms.
Sometimes these rooms give passive benefits for the
whole team. Other times they unlock new weapon up-
grades or powers to buy. Each room can only be built once.
Armory: Cost 2
This is where we keep the BIG guns!
Unlocks all of the armor and armor tags for
purchase.
Auguary: Cost 3
We use 10% of the brain, but 100% of the
budget.
Unlocks the Augury powers (p.48) for
purchase by any Operative.
Clinic: Cost 2
It’s like Grandma always said, a dead intern
is no use to anyone!
Allows Injured Operatives to be healed by
any Operative(s) spending 2 Scrip during
downtime. Each time any Operative uses
the Clinic, the cost increases by 1 Scrip.
Debt House: Cost 3
All Operatives are paid equally, but some
are paid more equally than others.
All Operatives on the primary mission roll
an extra d6 for Scrip.
Detonatorium: Cost 2
The stuff we keep in here makes C4 look
like Silly Putty.
Unlocks the Grenade Launcher Weapon
and Grenade item.
Engineering Lab: Cost 2
We didn’t authorize this, but some
engineers built it overnight and it’s really
cool.
Unlocks the Arcsword, Plasgun and all of
the weapon tags for purchase.
Gambling Den: Cost 2
Company-approved paycheck spending.
Operatives on the secondary mission roll
1d6 for Scrip instead of always gaining 2
Scrip.
Gym: Cost 2
Showers cost extra.
Operatives can buy one cost 0 power from
any other Career.
Intel Center: Cost 1
Really just an intern monitoring the Military
Twitter feed.
Succeeding at Military missions only
raises the Interloper Victory Meter by 1.
Interloper Ops: Cost 1
We’re 70% sure they can’t monitor us back.
Failing a mission where the Interlopers
are the only target only raises their Victory
Meter by 2.
Intern Recycler: Cost 1
Intended for interns, but gear works too!
Unwanted gear can be converted to Gear
Parts equal to half the total cost (including
tags and upgrades) rounded down.
Plasma Lounge: Cost 1
Lava lamp meets Hookah bar.
The Arc and Beam tags can be applied to
grenades.
Refinery: Cost 1
Better ingredients, better weapons.
Requires Smith. Melee weapons can now
have multiple instances of the Bleed tag.
Each instance after the first costs 2 Scrip.
Smith: Cost 1
Only a poor stabber blames their tools.
Melee weapons deal +1 Harm.
Training Grounds: Cost 2
These techniques are too dangerous to
practice on full time employees.
Unlocks the Training Grounds powers for
purchase by any Operative.
Trauma Ward: Cost 2
Having one of these on campus cuts our
insurance premiums in half!
Unlocks the Trauma Ward powers for
purchase by any Operative.
Valdivian Ops: Cost 1
Thanks to a legal loophole, it’s not
*technically* corporate espionage.
Failing a mission where Valdivian is the
only target only raises their Victory
Meter by 2.
++51
base powers
When each of these rooms is purchased using Construction
Pieces, their associated powers become available for
purchase.
Each of these powers costs 2 Scrip. All three powers from
each room can be purchased by any Operative.

trauma ward powers

+ salve flow: + bone barrier: + healing beam:
2 . You and all 2 . You or one Close 2 . You or one ally at
Close allies recover 1 ally loses 1 HP and Close or Near range
Harm. gains 1 Shard. recover 3 Harm.

auguary powers
+ psy-bar: + beam cannon: + arc blast:
3 . You and all 2 . Lethal, Shred. One 2 . Lethal, Shred,
Close allies gain enemy at Close, Near, Shock. All Close
Barrier 3. and Far takes 3 Harm enemies take 3 Harm.
and gains the Painted
condition.

training ground powers

+ upheaval: + ricochet: + BlasTOff:
1 . Toss a Close 2 . Your next weapon 3 . Deal 2 Harm to all
enemy into the air. Deal attack targets 1 extra Close enemies, then
1 Harm and apply the enemy. teleport to any location
Painted condition. at Near or Far range.

++52
assistants and adversaries
friends...
Assistants can be recruited for 1 Scrip each. During
the Loadout phase, the Operatives can choose one
Assistant to accompany the team on either the primary
or secondary mission.
Each Assistant provides either a passive bonus that
affects all Operatives, or provides a power that Operatives
can activate by using an action on their turn. These
passive bonuses only exist as long as the Assistant is
alive and on the mission currently.
All Assistants have 1 HP and 2 Shard.
assistants on primary missions
An Assistant can be targeted like anyone else. If an
Assistant hits 0 HP, they die. Assistants do not drop loot.
assistants on secondary missions
Though Assistants do not help the secondary mission
succeed, if a secondary mission fails, an Assistant who
accompanied on that mission can be sacrificed instead
of Injuring or killing any one Operative. Additionally, any
mission with the Assistant tag can only be attempted if
an Assistant is present.
Trisha Young Max Croissant* Tristan Rosario
Mousy haired woman Freakishly tall boy Moody banker.
with a beak for a of 14. Add 1 to all loot rolls.
nose. Action: Gain a Kirby
All Operatives act grenade. It expires at A deeply loyal nature
with +1 Cyber. the end of combat. lover.
*If Max would ever
Gaëtan Hudson be killed, he instead Action: Move two
Freckled teen. changes his name, and range bands.
Action: Apply opens a coffee shop.
Stella the Solicitous
Screwed to one Moritz Baranova First in All.
target. Impossibly old Whenever an
Felipe Rosebaur woman. Operative moves,
Unreasonably All attacks gain the they can move an
attractive man of Boom tag. additional range
indeterminate age. Ella Mile band.
All Operatives gain Cat lover.
+1 Soak. Action: Your next
power costs 0 .

++53
 ...and foes.
Whenever the Operatives recruit an Assistant, the Manager
gets to recruit an Adversary. Adversaries can accompany
any mission. Some missions with Adversaries will have the
Adversary tag, but they can show up on any mission. Only
one Adversary can appear on each mission.
Each Adversary provides a passive bonus that affects all
or some enemies and is always in effect. Like Assistants,
if Adversaries die or are not actively on the mission, they
provide no bonus.
Adversaries can be targeted like anyone else. If an Adversary
hits 0 HP, they die. Adversaries do not drop loot.
All Adversaries have 1 HP and 2 Shard.
Juliette Brochard Mr. Hands Richard Trochowfski
All business, all the Hasn’t laughed since There are lax legends
time. ‘30. of a dead man.
Using a power costs Enemies can attack Enemies don’t drop
Operatives 1 action. from one range band loot.
further.
Montserrat Dean Jeff St. Clair
Protective and “Handsome” Milton Runs the best cocktail
defensive. Smith bar in the city.
All Operatives Covered in glitter, Enemies gain +1 Shard
are Painted. After tears, and blood.
Montserrat is killed, Robots deal +1 Harm. Tarrat Essej
all Operatives are By the time she
Screwed for the Léonie Cervantes predicts the future, it
remainder of the Middle Manager for will probably already
mission. life. have happened.
Biotech costs are Enemy attacks ignore
Alfred The Corrupt increased by 1. Soak
Runs an ice cream
truck.
Operatives cannot
reload.

TIPPY SAYS:
THESE PEOPLE ARE DEFINITELY ALL COMPLETE ASSHOLES,
SO THERE'S NO REASON FOR ANY OF THOSE WEIRD "ETHICAL
CONCERNS" OR "MORAL QUESTIONS" I'VE HEARD ABOUT.

++54
how does this thing
work?
playing The game
Cyberrats is a LUMEN game. If this is your first LUMEN
game, here’s a primer:
LUMEN specializes in power fantasy, often inspired by
video games. The games are tactical-lite, meaning they
don’t require grids or precise maps.
LUMEN characters have 3 Attributes. In Cyberrats those
Attributes are Smash, Cyber, and Sly. Whenever you
take an action that has a chance of failure, you roll all
of the dice associated with the corresponding Attribute.
Smash is for powerful or destructive approaches, Cyber
is for practiced or methodical approaches, and Sly is for
fast or stealthy approaches.
If the action has no chance of failure (like reloading a
gun), there is no need to roll. After you roll, you keep the
highest die and check for success. If you would ever roll
zero dice, you instead roll two and keep the lower.
Look at the die that you kept. If you rolled a 5 or a 6, you
succeed without consequence. Congratulations! If this
was an attack, deal your Harm. On a 3 or 4, you succeed
with a situational consequence. In combat, this usually
means an opponent gets activated: either it deals Harm
to you, or it takes another move. On a 1 or 2, you have
failed to do your action AND there is a situational conse-
quence (see page 66). Don’t roll these.
In addition to the situational consequence, like leaving
an opening for an enemy, there is an Attribute conse-
quence based on the Attribute used. Rolling a 1–4 on a
Smash roll means losing 1 HP, on Cyber means losing 1 ,
and on Sly means gaining either the Painted or Taunted
tag, as you’ve made yourself an appealing target. The
Manager chooses which tag is appropriate, as well as
which enemy has you Taunted, if applicable.

++55
 On their turn, an Operative can take two actions and use as
many powers and items as they’d like. The ENEMY PHASE
happens after all Operatives have taken a turn during
combat. This is more of the same: the Manager gets to acti-
vate a number of enemies equal to the number of Operatives
+1. Each activated enemy can move one range band, and
then inflict Harm or use a move.
Harm is how damage is measured in LUMEN games. It’s never
a variable amount, but a flat, predictable number. An enemy
dies if they reach 0 HP. If they didn’t Explode (or die from an
attack with the Shrapnel keyword), they will generate a drop
during the ENEMY PHASE. Drops contain HP and resources
(such as to fuel powers, or Gear Parts to upgrade equip-
ment). Operatives can distribute these resources amongst
themselves.
If an Operative hits 0 HP, they become Injured and risk dying.
They cannot take actions unless they are healed, and they
may need to be evacuated from the mission.
Powers are different than attacks. They cost instead of
actions. You can use as many powers on your turn as you
can afford, and they can be used alongside other attacks or
actions.
Cyberrats takes place over a campaign that requires defeating
multiple factions and balancing various lose conditions and
resources to advance. Interns advance quickly, but they start
out much weaker than other LUMEN characters.

d the ord er of things ming Harm

re: harm an , th e y re d uce all inco
lue
s a Soak va ppens.
a target ha ing that ha
Whenever is is th e fi rs t th
m one atta
ck
by that valu
e. T h
a b so rb s all Harm fro
s Shard, it
a target ha
Whenever m oved. t absorb 3
and then S
hard is re
B a rrier 5 migh
its va lu e : a 2 more Harm
r a b so rb s Harm up to e n it c a n only absorb
A Barrie ack, and th
the first att
Harm from r.
king. fore Barrie
before brea . S h a rd h appens be
ens before
Shard incoming
Soak happ n s a ft er all other ut
curs, ha p p e alculated, b
g H a rm , when it oc P a in te d ) has been c a rm .
Doublin (e.g. from rd that H
the attack plied towa
Harm from is c a lc u lated or ap
nse
++56before any defe
Missions and
campaigns
geTTing shit done.

The core loop of Cyberrats is:

1. Gear up for a mission
2. Go on a mission
3. Spend Scrip
4. Reflect

There’s a little more to it than that (this doesn’t cover

secondary missions, for example), but it should be clear
that missions are critical to gameplay; they’re where
most of the action happens.
Cyberrats is a tactical lite game. There’s no need for a
map, and combat is fast and lethal. Missions should take
on the order of minutes, not hours, and it should be fun.
It is the core of the game after all.
There’s no concept of turn order in Cyberrats. Operatives
can take their turns in any order, even changing from
round to round, but each Operative can only go once in
a round. Once everyone goes, it’s time for the ENEMY
PHASE, where the Manager responds and the enemies
retaliate.
There are many types of missions, with many different
goals. Some missions are just “go to this place and elim-
inate all the hostiles.” Others have goals like defusing
bombs, surviving a number of rounds, or extracting a
particular asset or target.

++57
Preparing to lose
There are two ways to fail a mission: evacuating and dying.

evacuating
Operatives can evacuate from a mission at any time. The
Operatives retreat, and the mission is considered a failure.
Any Operative who killed at least one enemy gets 1 Scrip.
In order to evacuate, all Operatives have to make it back to
the evac zone. Any that are left behind are considered Dead.

where is the evac zone?

Usually, the evac zone is wherever you came in. Sometimes,
it may be at Far range, or even farther, up to 5 moves away,
at the Manager’s discretion. Other times, it may be closer to
where the end goal is. It’s also possible that the evac zone
can move: you can imagine a mission where the Operatives
must make four moves to a bomb and disable it. Until they
reach the bomb, the evac zone might be where they came in,
so the easiest path to retreat is backwards. Once the bomb
is defused, their escape vehicle can move in closer, and the
Operatives simply have to survive three rounds until the exit
is near. It’s even possible that an evac zone is unavailable
at certain times (or on some missions entirely), though the
Manager should make this decision rarely.

dying
If you fall to 0 HP, you will die in four rounds unless one of
your fellow Operatives does one of the following:
1. Removes Harm from you. This can be done by using
certain powers or by assigning an HP drop during the
ENEMY PHASE. In order for an HP drop to take effect, a
Close Operative must succeed on a Cyber check to heal you.
This costs one action.
2. Carries you to the evac zone. An Operative who is carrying
another Operative can move and use powers, but cannot
take other actions.
3. Completes all mission objectives. Some mission objec-
tives require returning to the evac zone.

++58
If you fall to 0 HP and do not die, you will come back
as Injured. Permanently reduce your max HP by 1 (min
1). Injured Operatives cannot participate in the primary
mission.
Operatives become Injured if they fall to 0 HP at any
point on a mission, even if they are healed.
If an Operative dies, their player will need to make a new
intern. If both of a player’s Operatives are Injured, one of
them will have to die.
Any gear a dead Operative had is lost. Any unspent Gear
Parts or Construction Pieces go to the next of kin, along
with a sentimental token chosen by the deceased, such
as dog tags, a locket, or company badge.

injury and healing

Operatives that fall to 0 HP during combat become
Injured, assuming they survive. The easiest way to bring
an Operative back into the fight after they drop to 0 HP
is by assigning an HP drop to them during the ENEMY
PHASE. After this is assigned, a Close Operative must
succeed on a Cyber check to bring the Operative back
into the fight. Multiple HP drops can be assigned to an
Operative, but only one Cyber check is needed to apply
all of the drops. Making the Cyber check costs one action.
Injured Operatives cannot participate in the primary
mission, but can still go on the secondary mission. Each
Injured Operative on the secondary mission incurs a
penalty to that dice pool.
If the secondary mission roll is a success (a 5 or a 6), one
Injured Operative who was assigned on the mission can
become un-Injured. Until the Clinic is built, this is the
only way to heal an Injured Operative.
Some powers (including some provided by the Trauma
Ward) allow Operatives to remove Harm from each other.
If healing is done through a power or item, there is no
need to make a Cyber check: this bypasses the need for
an action.
Operatives at 0 HP cannot take actions or use powers.

++59
 At the start of a campaign, all players will make two
Operatives. Both of these Operatives will begin as interns,
and will not have a Career.
Players will send one of these Operatives on the primary
mission (which is resolved in play), and the other on the
secondary mission. The Operative that is sent on the primary
mission will receive more Scrip and become more powerful.
There is no requirement that the same Operative be sent
on the primary mission each time; players are free to assign
either Operative to any mission.

how do i lose
Right now, the Military is fighting a bunch of alien invaders—
the Interlopers. And they’re doing a fairly decent job of it.
There’s just one problem: They’re doing it using Valdivian’s
tech. Valdivian is that other megacorp, the one competing
with the one you work for. The three megacorps that aren’t
Valdivian (Gargoyle, Dorsey, and Goldencalf) have teamed
up to try and disrupt Valdivian’s operations.
Basically, the Interlopers have a Victory Meter. It’s currently
set to 0. If it ever gets to 10, Earth has lost the war, and you
lose.
But Valdivian also has a Victory Meter, currently at 4. If it ever
reaches 10, the Military has decided exclusively to purchase
Valdivian tech to fulfill their defense contracts— an outcome
that is equally unacceptable, and again, you lose. You need to
make Valdivian look bad enough that they lose the contract.

Target Succeed Fail

INTerlopers Interlopers Victory Interlopers Victory
Meter goes down by 2. Meter goes up by 3,
Threat increases by 1.
valdivian Valdivian Victory Meter Valdivian Victory Meter
goes down by 2. goes up by 3, Threat
increases by 1.
military Valdivian Victory Military Threat
Meter goes down by increases by 1.
2, Interlopers Victory
Meter goes up by 2.

++60
hoping to win
how do i win
Personally, retirement is probably your best option. If you
spend your Scrip on paying down your debt, before too
long, you’ll be able to hop on out of here and onto a new
life.
If you want your corp to win the war, well that’s a different
scenario altogether. For that, you need to complete the
campaign.
To do that, you need to keep both Valdivian’s and the
Interlopers' Victory Meters low long enough to build up
your power, and then complete three special missions.
Each of the three missions are associated with one faction
(Military, Valdivian, Interlopers), and the story mission
for one faction becomes available after you succeed on
three missions targeting that faction. Once unlocked,
these three missions are always available, in addition to
the other three. They will never be automatically failed,
but completing one does mean that two other missions
will have to fail (as you can still only choose one primary
and one secondary).

The three mISsIons must be compLEted in

thIS order:

1. Get intel from the Military about where its next major
operation is.
2. Shut down Valdivian to delay the op.
3. Infiltrate the mothership and take out the Interlopers,
giving credit to the correct megacorps.

TIPPY SAYS:
IF ANY VICTORY METER REACHES 10, YOU IMMEDIATELY LOSE.
VICTORY METERS CAN NEVER GO BELOW 0.

++61
powers
what IS biotech and how do I use it?
Biotech is the currency of the game. It’s a green-gray goop
that shouldn’t be allowed to be dumped into rivers. It comes
in glowing vials and is the byproduct of radioactive waste
and decades of experimentation.

you’re addicted to the stuff.

Biotech is how you use powers. You start with a certain

amount of based on your Career. This amount resets each
mission. You can get more each round of combat as well—
certain enemies (especially Interlopers) will drop it after they
die.
Biotech enhances your biology, bringing out latent psychic
powers, bulging muscles, and occasionally prompting other
mutations. Don’t ask too many questions. The appropriate
bribes have been paid, and it does feel good to use.
The cost listed on a power is how much is needed to
use that power, NOT the cost to buy that power. A power
is purchased with Scrip based on the row that it is in. Once
you’ve purchased a power, you can use it as many times as
you want, provided you have the to spend.
Most powers can be upgraded with Scrip to deal extra Harm
(see page 48). Some powers have other upgrade tags: spend
the amount of Scrip listed, and the power is improved in the
way listed.
While there is no limit to the number of powers an Operative
can know, only 5 powers can be active at one time, and only
active powers can be used on a mission. It’s likely that you’ll
build loadouts— groups of powers that work well together—
that you will re-use for certain types of missions.
Remember, using powers doesn't cost an action, only a vial
of . So drink up, inject away, and use your powers for the
good of the company!

++62
Combat
ranges & movement
Cyberrats does not use a grid for moment, and does not
have precise locations. Combat happens in 3 ranges:
Close, Near, and Far. Close means a few steps away,
within melee range. Near means across the room, no
more than a quick sprint away. Far is anything beyond
that but still visible, if barely. Anyone who is farther away
than Far cannot be targeted by any attacks or powers.
Pretend they don’t exist... At least until they come closer.
Sometimes, (mostly in extraction missions) we’ll refer
to an objective being "X moves away". This just means
a character must move X times from one range band to
the next. Usually Operatives can move from one range
to another adjacent range (Far to Near, or Near to Close).
There may be exceptions to this, like for flying enemies
who can perpetually stay at Near range from any
non-flying enemies.

actions
Each of the Operatives takes their turn before the ENEMY
PHASE. The order doesn’t matter, and can change round
to round.
Operatives get two actions on their turn. The most
common actions are moving and using or reloading a
weapon, but an action can be anything: defusing a bomb,
hacking a terminal, holding a door shut from incoming
attackers, or leaping from one catwalk to another.
Actions that can’t fail (moving, reloading, Help, etc.) do
not require rolls.
Whenever you make an action, choose which of your
Attributes best fits your action or approach, and roll that
many dice. Keep the highest die and check for success.
Don't forget that you can always use Downtime dice if
you have them.
On a result of 5–6, the action succeeds with no conse-
quences. On a result of 3–4, the action succeeds, but

++63
 there are complications and consequences. On a result of
1–2, the action fails and there is both a situational conse-
quence (see page 66) and one based on the Attribute that
was used. Rolling a 1–4 on Smash has a consequence of the
Operative losing 1 HP, rolling 1–4 on Cyber results in losing 1
, and rolling 1–4 on Sly results in gaining either the Painted
or Taunted tag (Manager’s choice).

the help action

Any Operative can take the Help action to give an extra die to
a Close ally or themselves on their next action.

cover
As an action, Operatives can dive behind existing cover (like
the walls of a cubicle) or create cover (like kicking over a
table). The Manager should choose a value between 2 and 4,
depending on how solid the cover is. Then, they should add
Soak equal to that number to any targets behind the cover.
Every time the barrier is shot through, regardless of who is
doing the shooting, reduce the number by 1. When it hits 0,
the cover is destroyed. Don't forget, cover works both ways,
and it may help enemies as well as Operatives.

powers & items

You can also use powers and items. Using a power never
costs an action. You can use as many powers as you want
(even the same power multiple times!) as long as you can
pay the cost to activate each one. As you kill enemies, they
will generate drops, which may include .
At the start of a mission, you’ll pick up to five powers to have
active. Only those active powers can be used on a mission.
Powers never require a roll— they automatically succeed.
Using an item never costs an action and never needs a roll.
Items automatically succeed. You can use each item you
bring with once on a mission. There is no limit to the number
of items you can bring. Items can also be upgraded. Items are
not permanently consumed; you get them back at the start
of your next combat. You can use items and powers along-
side actions, including attacks.
++64
the enemy phase

After all Operatives have taken their actions, it’s time for
the ENEMY PHASE. This phase happens at the end of
the round, and is a chance for the enemies to respond to
the Operatives actions. During the ENEMY PHASE, the
Manager does three things: React, Change, and Drop.
First, they trigger reactions. Each enemy has three moves
they can choose from, as well as Harm it can inflict. For
each Operative that went on this mission plus one, the
Manager will activate one enemy. Whenever an enemy
is activated, it can move one range band, as well as use
a power or inflict Harm. Most often, this means that the
enemy attacks, inflicting Harm on an Operative at the
appropriate range.
Sometimes, it won’t make sense for the enemies to inflict
Harm, and the Manager can instead have the enemy carry
out one of their listed moves.
Second, the Manager will change the battle in a mean-
ingful way. On a mission with the Stealth tag, the Manager
will check awareness. Otherwise, the battle will change.
Maybe an alarm goes off or reinforcements swarm.
One easy way to dramatically change a mission is to add,
remove, or change a mission tag (see page 89 for more
on building missions). For example, after the Operatives
defuse a bomb, they must survive for 3 rounds until an
evac can come.
The Manager has a lot of freedom here. They could have
an enemy blast open a reservoir of Biotech, flooding
the battlefield with an explosive goo that also applies
the Biorich mission tag. In Biorich missions, powers get
cheaper, but an attack might set off an explosion!
Another easy way to change the battle is to assign nega-
tive tags on Operatives or their weapons: Consider Dry,
which makes an Operative's weapon out of ammountil
they reload. Or, the Manager could add existing tags like
Painted, Explosive, or Shrapnel. The Manager can also
make up new tags— perhaps something like Jammed

++65
 could force a reload after every shot, or Corrosive could deal
1 Harm to the wielder after every use. You could even have
everyone swap current or Health with another player in a
Freaky Friday situation. Make it weird.
Finally, the Manager will generate drops. For each enemy
that was killed (other than those with the Explode keyword,
or those that died by an attack or power with the Shrapnel
keyword), the Manager will generate a drop based on the
faction type.
Operatives can decide amongst themselves who gets what
items from the drops, update their sheets, and then continue
to the next round. Drop tables for each faction can be found
on page 106.

situational consequence
The ENEMY PHASE isn’t the only time enemies get to act!
Whenever a player attempts an action, they will roll the
number of dice associated with one of their Attributes
and keep the highest die. If that number is 1–4, there is an
Attribute and a situational consequence. In combat, the situ-
ational consequence is usually activating an enemy, in the
same way that has been described: either they inflict Harm,
or they activate a move, taking advantage of the opportunity
the Operative presented, but there could be other effects
such as destroying cover or blocking an evac route. Follow
the narrative and do what makes an interesting scene.

++66
Roleplaying
But when do we act?

roleplay opportunities
Like most LUMEN games, Cyberrats is a combat-focused
game. Most of the action takes place on missions. But
it’s also a roleplaying game, and some players may be
as invested in characterization as they are in beating up
aliens and other super soldiers. While there are ways to
include roleplaying opportunities in combat, you may
find that having specific roleplaying scenes rounds out
your game and appeals more to those players.
The Downtime Phase exists as an opportunity to explore
the roleplaying side of the game. During Downtime,
players ask questions and Operatives share tender
moments. Of course, there are always opportunities for
further roleplay.

++67
 in combat
First off, making characters and yelling cool lines is
roleplaying!
This is very much a Saturday morning cartoon action vibe
rather then a deep introspective character study. But we can
go further.

speech phase
One of the easiest ways to add roleplay to combat is by
including a Speech Phase after the ENEMY PHASE. Give all
of the players (and a handful of enemies) a chance to narrate
what their character is doing, yell out a taunt, or devise a
strategy. This can also be an effective technique for speeding
up combat for groups that spend several minutes discussing
and deliberating: move as much talking as possible to the
speech phase.
To add an extra sense of pressure, this is the only time
Operatives are allowed to speak, and they are limited to five
words.
For a less hectic pace, allow up to five words on their turn,
and up to a sentence in the Speech Phase.

other options
The enemies’ moves are intended to be theatrical, with
implied mechanics. While most enemies will do Harm during
the ENEMY PHASE, activating and describing a flavorful
move can aid immersion in your combat scenes.

dedicated scenes
You can have roleplaying scenes at any point in a Cyberrats
game, but some places make more sense than others. Do you
have a specific officer (or manager) giving mission briefings?
What does she sound like? Consider acting out the briefings
as a logical place for more roleplay.

++68
Once the team is briefed and they are traveling to the
mission site, have a scene en route. Ask how the charac-
ters are feeling, and encourage players to drop a couple
lines of dialogue or chat with the pilot. Perhaps a concern
or worry, a claim of empty bravado, or simply sharing a
thought that passes by. Ask questions of the players.
Similarly, after a mission the Operatives may need to
be debriefed, or might want to recap what happened to
the Operatives who couldn’t attend. This can be a great
way to end the session, as people tend to enjoy instant
reminiscing and session highlights. This technique can
also be used to add flavor to the secondary missions, as
players imagine how the success or failure was earned.
Finally, feel free to challenge some of the assumptions
we’ve made.
We hand-wave away the purchasing of items and
building of gear, and we don’t focus too much on the new
rooms. But surely people work in those areas, and maybe
specific engineers build and sell the upgraded gear.
You’re more than welcome to zoom in on the areas
we’ve glossed over and spend time with shopkeepers
or mentors instead of just having Operatives gain new
powers and gear. Maybe every room has to be bought
from Ivark, the chief Architect, and Suzanne the armorer
sells weapon upgrades.
It’s your game, do what it takes to enjoy it!

TIPPY SAYS:
THE ONLY ROLE YOU NEED TO WORRY ABOUT PLAYING IS THE
ROLE OF PERSON-WHO-FOLLOWS-ORDERS. ALL THIS SOUNDS
LIKE RECREATION, WHICH IS TO SAY: NOT PROFITABLE.

++69
++70
 Company History

Hey there, buddy!

It's your pal, Tippy!
Aer numerous reviews of new hire
preparedness, we thought it would be super
fun and cool√ to let you know a little more
about who you are working for and who is in
the industry right now.
I know what you're thinking. "Wow! That's so
incredibly thoughtful and helpful of you!"
You're right, Operative, and this service is
provided to you free of charge out the the
goodness of our considerably good hearts.
So learn a little more about the exciting
corporate journey you are undertaking!
Or don't, I'm not your boss.

* This section of employee training and this disclaimer are legally mandated as a result of
settlement of the case 519 RT.A3.6766.04g.

How did all of this

start anyway and now
that we are in it who is
calling the shots
wait is anyone calling
the shots?
++71
 Who do we work for?
Megacorp leaders
Dorsey
As the sole heiress to The Bends: Underwater
Excitement Park™, Octavia took control after her
father died conspicuously in intercorpo-waters. She
owns world's largest puzzle box collection, and she
is also rumored to be five octopuses in a skin suit.

Gargoyle
The new CEO of Gargoyle is something of a wild card.
The last guy, Johannes Gargoyle (no relation) was a
right bastard, but he stepped down once the board
realized that hiring someone because they had the
right last name was a terrible business strategy. And
so they brought in Emma Rose Hobberstad, also
known as The Ice Queen.
The nickname isn't just because of her personality,
though she is cold, calculating and collected (at
least to those who work for her). To her menagerie
of animals she's positively delightful, especially
when talking to Echo, the albino leopard gecko that
frequently perches on her shoulder. But to mere
humans? Well, it's not hard to see her Viking lineage
in the way she runs her business.
Sure, no one has ever seen her get emotional, but
her nickname goes beyond that. She has tattoos of
snowflakes under each corner of her eyes, almost
as if the one time she ever shed a tear they froze
in place. Tattoos of snowflakes dance up her arms,
while Norwegian tribal tattoos dot the rest of her
skin.
It's rumored that the heat seems to leave every room
she enters, as if even warmth itself fears her pres-
ence. Probably it's just location-based air condi-
tioning, but the rumors are that she can control ice;
summon it, contort it, manipulate it however she
sees fit. But surely those are just rumors, right?

++72
 Hobberstad's motto is that there is no rose
without thorns, and more than one of her subor-
dinates has been found wondering what exactly
their boss thinks is rosy about any of this.

Goldencalf
Her Royal Majesty, Queen Mellinefarious is
convinced she is a bee queen in exile. All upper
management workers are required to be dressed
as bees and communicate exclusively through
dance at all times. Noncompliance results in
entombment in the ever growing HnyCmb/
HoneyComb. Technically, this is a part of
Goldencalf's carbon-offset initiatives.

Who do we fight?
Enemy leaders
Valdivian
A fan of ancient abominations and a student of
the occult, Nigel Vetuson is a really weird guy.
Don't mess with him.

Military
Aleksander was a cybercurrency market cap
director and grew tired of playing with other
people's money. He founded Ob Corp as a way to
get people to give him their money. They will sell
you anything for the low, low price of your data.
When you purchase a book or a TV from OB, your
bits and bytes of data are forfeit to Ob Corp, as
is the maximum legally allowable memory. Ob
Corp will helpfully install cybercurrency mining
software in that space you weren’t using. Ob Corp
boasts a robust network of delivery services that
necessitates fleets of ships and aircraft. So many,
in fact, that if they were a nation, they would have
++73
 the 11th largest Navy and 9th largest Air Force in
the world. They even have a space force with their
internet satellites, though of course those are not
armed, as that would violate several international
laws. With his experience commanding a force this
large, a meteoric rise through the Military ranks was
almost unavoidable.
Aleksander seems to be able to be everywhere at
once. There are rumors that he is actually a brain in
a jar in the corner of his library, controlling a series
of clone bodies that seem to never end.
These rumors are clearly ridiculous, but the
numerous reports of his death in wild stunts,
followed by his inevitable reappearance after a
short while in rehab, has sure led some people to
have questions.

Interlopers
BARBATUS is a ruthless, cybernetically-enhanced
human clone of an average 21st century Joe (but
with way more robot arms). He'd love to tell you
about all his cool robot arms if you'd just stop with
all this resistance nonsense. You too can have as
many robot arms as you want if you surrender, and
universal health insurance covers 100% of the
extraordinarily painful grafting!

++74
 how did we get here
the story so far
profit is king. law is mutable. rats are
cheap.
In the early 21st century, workers demanded
rights. Corporations, ever eager to cut costs,
rebelled. They sought cheaper options. Rodent
options. That’s how you came around.
Many of the chemicals that these corpora-
tions were already dumping into streams and
rivers were causing mutations. So they simply
stopped paying to cover them up, and instead
doubled down, selectively mutating rats into
ideal workers.
Some jobs could be automated, but robots
are hackable. Rodents understand fear and
motivation. Take their mind and cram it into a
suit of flesh and tin, promising them a return to
normalcy at a nebulous future date.
The robots are still used, of course. But they
have subsystems. They have cameras, heat
vision, and thirteen other ways to detect
movement. They have guns, backup guns, and
intricate explosives wired to their core. Their
stability is less important than ensuring a rival
doesn’t capture the plans and reverse engi-
neer them.

Can a rat sign a contract? What an odd ques-

tion. It assumes the legal system has teeth.
Teeth that can’t be filed down by the precise
application of crisp dollar bills.

++75
 RUNOFF PARK

CORPORATE CAMPUS
LOGISTICS AND OFFICE SPACE
WAREHOUSING AND SERVICES
2265 EGEST DRIVE

++76
RUNOFF PARK
Runoff Park is situated mere minutes from several main
thoroughfares. Our offices will quickly come to feel like
a beloved home away from home. In fact, employees of
businesses headquartered in Runoff Park take an average
of 36.7% fewer vacation days.
Enjoy 2400 acres of lush, carefully maintained parks,
paths, walkways, fountains, and landscaping. You'll
forget all about the park's checkered past as you soak in
the sunshine in one of our greenhouses or delight in our
sculpture garden.
Reap the rewards of a campus full of like-minded,
business-oriented, successful people. Meet a mentor,
friend, rival, or brief meaningless lover in one of our shared
dining experiences.
And take some time to say hello to our resident family
of Dyuks® at the Alluvium Pond, generously furnished by
Goldencalf®.
++77
manager advice

role of the
manager
Ultimately the Manager’s job is to challenge and
engage the players. The Manager will directly control
all of the enemies and will act as the final arbiter when
a rules question arises. The following pages are filled
with advice on how to do this, but the biggest priority
is to be consistent and reasonable. If an Operative
wants to roll with Sly when you think Smash is
more appropriate, ask how the narrative (what their
Operative is doing) supports that mechanic. If they’re
running between enemies and screaming, you can
insist on a Smash roll.
In addition to controlling enemies, the Manager is in
charge of offering three missions and building out
whichever one the players choose. While you can
flesh out dozens of missions in advance and drop
them in fully realized, we recommend providing
a skeleton (a location, an enemy, and a goal) and
solidifying the details after the players have made a
choice.
Don’t worry! It’s easier than it sounds, and the next
few pages are filled with advice to help you out. If you
do make a mistake and make a mission too easy or too
hard, that’s okay! The Operatives can lose missions,
and the game won’t break if they get a cakewalk or
some extra Scrip now and again.
The Manager’s job is to know the rules and make
rulings in areas of confusion. We’ve got some cheat
sheets at the back of the book for the important bits.
As for the rest: well, by definition they aren’t that
important.
You’ll make mistakes or bad calls. They happen. If
they’re devastating, correct them. Otherwise, let
it ride and see what happens. More than enforcing
++78
 rules, your role is to keep things moving and keep things
fun. Fast and wrong is better than slow and correct. And,
like all things, the more you do it, the better you’ll get.
If you’re really wanting a “canonical” answer to ques-
tions, there’s a Clarifications section on page 112. We’ve
answered some questions that might come up with how
we’d rule them. But that’s all they are: our opinions. Make
up your own, ignore that section, or use it as much as it
helps you. The game is out of our hands now.

roleplaying enemies
While you can have enemies be stiff, emotionless
mannequins that only act when acted upon, there are
some techniques you can use to bring them to life.
Instead of having NPCs be mindless sacks of HP, give
them goals. Most of the time this goal will reflect the
mission objective. But here’s the critical step: telegraph
those intentions wildly. The players only hear what’s
spoken aloud, and your NPCs aren’t a hive mind.
They should yell things and indicate their intentions.
Things like “Retreat!”, "Get the giant rat!" or "Move to
flank!" all add character and a breath of realism.
If the enemies have an explicit objective (like kidnapping
an informant or cutting down the Space Needle with a
giant laser), have them vocalize that plan, or deviations
from it. "Forget the Needle, kill the intruders!" or "I'll
handle the intruders, we need this Needle DOWN!"

Mission Objectives
If the enemies do have an explicit objective (abducting
or killing a VIP, destroying a landmark, or taking down a
power generator), then the mission ends as soon as that
objective is reached. There’s no need to stick around and
have them run away or continue to fight: the Operatives
have lost, and the mission ends. The same thing is true
++79
 if the Operatives meet their objective: MISSION SUCCESS.
There’s usually no need to play out the rest.
We say usually because there might be a second stage. They
may need to assassinate the target and escape, or defuse
the bomb and return to the helicopter, but if that second
step is neither interesting nor challenging, skip it entirely.
Depending on what the objective was that was lost (or won!)
this is a great chance for a follow-up mission: steal the arti-
fact back, rescue the VIP, destroy the New Needle they put in
its place, and so on. If they instead saved the Space Needle,
it can return in a second mission: turn it into a space laser, or
stop them from corrupting its force.
This not only helps generate missions, it also acts as a sort of
passive worldbuilding as recurring components appear.

Running the game

enemy types
Like all LUMEN games, Cyberrats revolves around enemies
dropping resources. Some enemies in Cyberrats (those with
the Explode tag) do not generate drops. Use these enemies
sparingly.
Keep the number of unique enemies in a mission low. Never
have fewer than 2 or more than 4 different types of enemies
out at one time. Instead utilize waves, like a mech coming
out only after the soldiers and turret rat have been defeated.
Variety is nice, but it can quickly get overwhelming.
Don’t introduce more than 2 new types of enemies in one
mission.
Enemies will never attack Operatives at 0 HP.

mission choices
Don't have all 3 missions be from the same faction, and
normally don’t include more than one Military mission. The
idea is that the Operatives have to balance the various
Victory Meters, which becomes hard to do if they don’t have
a variety of mission options.

++80
 Military missions generate more upgrades for players
(by dropping more Gear Parts and Construction Pieces),
but the Military does not have their own Victory Meter.
Failing a Military mission does not affect the Victory
Meters, while succeeding at one raises the Interloper
meter and lowers the Valdivian meter. Players should
feel like they can safely ignore Military missions, and that
taking one on is a rewarding risk. Keep in mind that the
first story mission is only unlocked once the Military has
been defeated 3 times, and that the story missions must
be completed in order.
Multi-target missions should be rare as well, as players
may feel like they have no choice but to tackle that
mission. No more than one such option should be offered
at a time.

enemy phase
During the ENEMY PHASE, the Manager is responsible for
doing 3 things: activating a number of enemies equal to
the number of Operatives (including Injured Operatives)
plus one, changing the battle, and generating drops.
Two of those are straightforward: When you activate an
enemy, they can move one movement band and then
either inflict Harm or use one of their moves.
For the drops, consult the faction drop tables.
To do something that dramatically changes the feel of
the battle, create an “oh crap” moment. Alarms blaring
or reinforcements charging in is good. Everyone making
way for a newer, bigger enemy type is better. Have the
enemies adapt new tactics, run away with the MacGuffin,
or change the environment: a pipe bursts, a fire starts, or
an airlock blows. All of these create memorable environ-
ments and experiences.
If you can’t figure out a compelling way to change the
environment based on where the mission is taking
place, add or remove destructible terrain, impose a
condition on every Operative, or look at the effects that
Adversaries can impose for inspiration. An Adversary is
like an ENEMY PHASE effect that the Operatives can

++81
 easily end. Duplicating the effect or having an Adversary
arrive are both within scope of what you can change.
Moves help enemies behave in believable, consistent ways.
Enemy moves are written as flavor, but should have game
effects as well: steal Biotech means that a player should
lose one. Very few moves are written out in terms of game
mechanics. Use your best judgment. Keep it scary, impactful,
and realistic. If a move IS purely theatrical, have them deal
Harm alongside the description.
For example, the Graybrain’s Daze an Enemy move might
give an enemy -1 action, while the Slag’s Point at a target and
Utter Alien Phrases move might activate a group of allied
troops, or Paint the Operative in question.
If one of the moves is Give Orders, it’s perfectly reasonable
for the orders to be “Move, move move!”, allowing multiple
other units to move to a more effective or advantageous
range (whether that’s fleeing from a rat swarm with a sword,
or advancing to a range where units can deal more Harm).
Only rarely should you use one activation to allow multiple
units to attack. Instead, apply tags like Painted to an
Operative and then make one, more effective attack. Moves
that give other enemies actions should feel fair: free attacks
often feel cheap to players, whether or not they are balanced.
Free movement or adding a tag is harder to complain about,
as these don't cause direct damage.

adversaries
Adversaries exist to inconvenience and distract Operatives.
Keep them out of direct combat, so they take a move or
two to reach. Ideally, eliminating an Adversary should take
two turns, so players are debating if the inconvenience is
worth it. Let the Adversaries be loud; have them mock the
Operatives and call out orders. Let them be feared, and let
them run away to act as recurring villains. The Operatives
should know their names and feel a personal sense of
rivalary, if not all out loathing, toward them.

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++83
Adjusting Difficulty
Cyberrats is meant to be a difficult game, but sometimes
losing isn’t fun. If players are struggling early (or you want to
make stronger characters at character creation), give them 3
extra Scrip and let them start with a Career.
If the struggle is later in the campaign, cap Threat at 3 and
add an extra 2.5 Threat Level that acts as 2. In this way, the
Threat Level rises more slowly from dangerous to deadly.
On the other hand, if the missions are too easy, you have a
number of options to increase difficulty. The most obvious is
to add more, stronger enemies. But you can also get creative:
give the enemies more conditions, like Glowing Red, Green,
or Blue, meaning they can only be Harmed by attacks using
Smash, Cyber, or Sly (respectively).
Add powerful Adversaries, either from the book, or create
your own.
During the ENEMY PHASE, apply the Painted condition
to the Operatives, or force their weapons to jam and need
to be reloaded. Pull in effects from various Adversaries, or
change the terrain to make accomplishing the goal more
difficult. If Operatives are hitting for too much damage and
one-shotting foes, give those foes traits like Keen, Shard, or
Reflect.
There’s no end to the ways you can make enemies stronger
or put Operatives at a disadvantage. Just remember to keep
things fair: the Operatives shouldn’t have an easy victory, but
winning should still be possible. If you dramatically change
the behavior of an enemy, clearly show that change so the
players aren’t completely blindsided by the new abilities.

A specific example:
If one Operative has a ton of Soak and can’t be hit, let them
soak a bunch of attacks. Narrate enemies realizing they can’t
harm the Operative. Let the player feel smart and rewarded
for their choice. Then change things up.
If the Operative with Soak is not Taunting, beat up their
friends. Start introducing enemies with True Harm, Pierce,
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 or Shred tags. Make the ENEMY PHASE swap Soak and
Barrier. Challenge your players’ assumptions and their
builds. Like always, foreshadow what you do: nothing
feels more unfair than what’s perceived as an arbitrary
change to shut down or spite a player.

campaign mode
enemies
Each faction includes 8 standard enemies. In general,
they get more difficult as you progress from top left to
bottom right, with the first two enemies being signifi-
cantly easier than the rest. Introduce them in the order
presented, one or two new enemy types at a time. Each
faction also introduces one special enemy that will only
appear on the story missions (see below).

story missions
There are 3 story missions that must be completed
in order for the Operatives to win the game. Each
story mission is unlocked after 3 missions have been
completed targeting the corresponding faction. The
story missions do not have to be unlocked in order, but
they must be completed in order.
Ignoring the story missions does not incur any penal-
ties: no Victory Meters or Threat Levels are adjusted.
Opting to complete a story mission does require failing
one more mission than usual, as there will be 3 other
missions available, and Operatives can still only take on
two at a time (one primary and one secondary). The story
missions must be primary missions.
Failing the first or second story mission should be
handled just like failing any other mission: adjust Victory
Meters and Threat Levels. Operatives can try these story
missions again at any future point. Failing the final story
mission results in a loss for the Operatives: they took on
the aliens and did not win. The game is over.
Each of the factions contains one special enemy, the last

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 on the page. These enemies only appear during the story
mission as the biggest of the bads. Hype them up. Players
should fear these enemies and have some idea that they are
going to be present.

mission briefing
The first stage of the cycle of play is the mission briefing.
This is a chance for the players to choose which mission
they want to attempt.
As the Manager, you’ll present players with three missions
and ask them to choose one to fail, one to play out, and one
to resolve with a dice roll. These missions don’t need to be
fleshed out entirely, just an enemy or two, a location, a goal,
and a number of tags.
For example, one set of missions might be:
Interlopers, Sewers, Shield Generator, Bomb Defusal
Valdivian, Strip club, extract VIP, High Civilian Count
Military, Warehouse, Stealth, Hacking, Dangerous
This tells the players what they’re getting into at a glance.
After you’ve presented the missions, detail each of them out
like you’re providing intel in a spy movie: What knowledge
do we have? How did we get it? What’s the goal? You can
provide a brief overview of the situation.
A maintenance worker called us earlier this morning with a
promising lead. The Interlopers have set up bombs in the
sewers beneath the town square. It looked like the bombs were
protected by shield generators, so we have to act fast. Disable
the shield generators and defuse the bomb. If you encounter
resistance, eliminate them, but the primary objective is the
bomb.
We’ve received news that a senior officer within Valdivian is
looking to defect. Unfortunately, Valdivian is also aware of
this information. Find the VIP in the Lucky Rose strip club and
extract him before Valdivian does. He should come willingly.
Be careful, there will be many civilians present and we don’t
want to cause a scene. It’s expensive and leads to bad PR.

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 This is a golden opportunity. We’ve learned the location
of a Military black site that houses supercomputers full
of data about their recent encounters. This could give us
an edge in future fights. This is their home turf, so we are
horrendously outgunned. Your best bet is to go in quiet and
not be seen. Gain access to a terminal, clone the hard drive
and get out. But first you might want to make sure your will
is up to date.

stealth missions
Things will get loud. The question is how long can you
keep them quiet? Sometimes things get worse when
they get loud, other times it means total failure. Either
way, you can never stay hidden forever.
Some missions have the Stealth tag. For these, the
Manager will keep track of enemy awareness during
combat and will introduce extra events during the
ENEMY PHASE. Each Operative that appears on camera
generates 1 awareness each round. Explosions (anything
with the Boom tag or an Explode enemy dying) generate
5 awareness. If the awareness gets above 10, extra
reinforcements arrive, or an additional complication
emerges. Some missions might fail automatically if a
certain awareness threshold is exceeded.

mission types
There are dozens of different types of missions you might
create. A mission can be as simple as a target, a location
and a goal. Here are some sample goals:
• Extract an agent
• Kill the targets
• Steal a piece of intel
• Falsify records to discredit Valdivian
• Sabotage a Valdivian weapons cache
• Sabotage a Military warehouse
• Survive [#] rounds
• Defuse a bomb

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 • Perform recon on a site
• Escort a VIP to a location
• Assassinate a protected target
• Protect a landmark. In [#] rounds, the Interlopers will
destroy a landmark with lasers.
• Stop the enemies from destroying 3–5 power generators.
• Destroy three batteries before the laser fires.
• Steal an artifact
• Swarm: a flood of weak enemies that can’t be stopped by
conventional means
• Showdown: defeat one extremely tough enemy who is
protected by an ever-respawning group of low-tier foes.
Some of these missions may overlap. For example, a recon
mission may actually be a survive 3 rounds mission, or it
may combine with a stealth mission (see page 87). The
most common mission is directly engaging with enemy
forces (neutralize all targets), but add variety to keep things
interesting.
Certain missions (especially assassination and bomb
defusal) have time limits, where an objective needs to be
reached in a certain number of rounds. Always state that
clearly in the mission briefing— these tend to add higher
difficulty, which may discourage Operatives from engaging
with them.

choosing a target
It may not always be obvious which faction or factions a
mission is targetting. Sabotaging a Valdivian warehouse
may be a Valdivian mission, a Military mission with Valdivian
opposition, or a dual-target mission targetting both Valdivian
and the Military.
Similarly, there may be missions that fight Interlopers and
Valdivian, as Operatives strive to steal credit for their work.

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multi target missions
If you are doing a two-target mission, limit yourself to
only one type of enemy from each faction at a time, or
occasionally two weaker “grunt” units from one faction
and one big scary type from the other.
For added chaos, have enemies attack each other in a
crossfire, team up or betray each other during the ENEMY
PHASE, or have both factions change targets and goals.

enemies per mission

Determining how many enemies should be on one
mission is, unfortunately, more of an art than a science.
LUMEN games aren’t concerned with balance as much
as they are with fun, and Cyberrats is no exception.
Operatives should not generally be so thoroughly
outnumbered by enemies that it becomes a slog to mow
them down. If you do outnumber Operatives in this way,
ensure that you’re doing it with weak enemies rather than
extremely strong ones. Remember that not every enemy
gets to attack each round.

mission tags
Mission tags, like weapon tags, are a great way to quickly
communicate to players what to expect on a mission.
They can act as a proxy for both the difficulty and flavor
of a mission, which can help your players decide which
mission to fail, which to take on directly, and which to
send the secondary Operatives on.
There is no definitive list of mission tags. You should feel
free to create your own and communicate them to your
players.
The goal is to provide information at a glance. Here are
some suggested tags:
• Assistant: An Assistant must attend this mission or it
is automatically failed.
• Ambush: The first ENEMY PHASE happens before
Operatives get to act.

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 • Biorich: Powers here cost 1 less.
• Biodesert: Powers here cost 1 more.
• Corporate Strike: This mission hurts Valdivian more than
usual.
• Crossfire: Multiple factions may be here, sometimes
targetting each other.
• Cyberfied: Cyber rolls with +1 die, all other stats roll with -1.
• Deadly: The enemies here are stronger than what
Operatives are used to (possibly acting as a higher Threat
Level, or just more dangerous types)
• Electronic: Enemies here will be mostly or entirely robots.
• Extract / Sabotage / Assassinate: Tags like this tell players
what is expected of them in terms of win conditions.
• High Civilian Count: The opportunity for casualties
is high. Lose too many innocents, and the mission is a
failure in the eyes of PR, regardless of other success.
• Homeland Defense: This mission hurts the Interlopers
more than usual.
• Hostage: Operatives must save a certain number
of hostages. There may be eight hostages, and the
Operatives must save at least three. If an Operative ends
their turn next to a hostage, the hostage flees. Otherwise,
enemies may execute hostages as a reaction. In an
ENEMY PHASE twist, one of the hostages could turn out
to be an android in disguise.
• Indirect: The target of the mission (for determining
Victory Meter and Threat Level updates) is different than
the faction the Operatives are fighting.
• Sneak #: If the Operatives generate more awareness
than this number, they will lose the mission. The number
may not always be known in advance.
• Stealth: If the Operatives make too much of a scene,
there may be consequences.
• Survive #: Enemies won’t stop coming, and the Operatives
must survive # rounds before evac is available. This may
be the final stage of a complex extraction mission.

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• Swarm: Expect more enemies than usual here.
• Timer #: This mission must be completed in # rounds
or it will be lost.
Don’t include more than two or three tags on a single
mission. You don’t want to overwhelm with information.
These tags and changes are also an easy way to add
more difficulty to the story missions, if you feel that is
appropriate.
Not every mission needs to have a tag, and you can reveal
“hidden” tags after the mission starts. Do not blindside

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 your players too often like this, or the choice of mission
becomes meaningless. The ENEMY PHASE is a great oppor-
tunity to add new tags in a manner that feels fair. You can
always randomly generate tags and situations. Don’t include
more than one mission at a time with the “Assistant” tag
unless the Operatives have an abundance of Assistants. In
general, this tag should be reserved until the third or fourth
mission, once the Operatives have had a chance to recruit
an Assistant.

mission locations
Missions take place in a variety of interesting locations.
Even if you aren’t using a map, this provides for descriptive
scenery and ideas for tactical terrain, as well as twists to
include in the ENEMY PHASE. Missions can take place abso-
lutely anywhere, though we tend to focus mostly on urban,
suburban, and industrial environments. Go wild with it!
Below is an incomplete list of location ideas. Attach these
to a mission the same way you would a tag, and ask players
what kinds of hazards or changes might be present here.
• Shipyard / Dockyard • Industrial park / gas
• Airport works
• Water tower • Biotech refinery
• Monorail tracks • Jungle
• Construction site • Across multiple boats
• Bowling alley • Palace / mansion
• Shopping mall • Near an active volcano
• Gas station • Research lab
• Circus • Over a canyon
• Train / subway station • Ice / hockey arena
• Junkyard • Hardware Store
• Town square • Strip club
• Trainyard • Cathedral
• Water park • Museum
• Football stadium • Eiffel Tower / Space
Needle / Great Pyramid
• Warehouse

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 In addition to the hazards, keep in mind the ways
the environment might change, as well as the unique
features of each place: heavy machinery, open pits,
skylights, ice, wobbly statues, explosions, etc. Adding a
table or pit of lava allows Operatives to get creative with
cover and tactics, and makes players feel smart.

Killing with Kindness

If one Victory Meter is close to full, only present one
mission from that faction. The players should have a
chance to combat it without feeling like they automat-
ically fail, or that the campaign has to come down to a
single dice roll.
Each faction has a Threat Level ranging from 1 to 4. These
roughly correspond to the danger levels of:
1: Bad
2: Dangerous
3: Deadly
4: We’re Screwed
Be clear about Threat Levels: every time the players fail a
mission, that enemy gets scarier.
This means that if a group has been ignoring a faction,
the first time they face them may be overwhelming if the
Threat Level is at 3 or 4. Make it clear to your players that
the enemy is scary (the Dangerous tag is a quick way to
accomplish this, as is noting High Threat as its own tag).
Missions change every round. This keeps things vibrant
and interesting. If you can’t think of an interesting change,
ask what is the most devastating / helpful / compelling
thing that could happen and roll with it. Pretend you’re
writing for a soap opera. If it’s remotely plausible, do it.
Bring back reincarnated ex-Operatives, long-lost family
members, huge explosions, and absolutely everything
else. These changes don’t have to make the mission
harder, but they should make it compelling. The more
you play, the better sense you’ll get for when your players
are overwhelmed, and when the battle is hectic enough.

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 In both cases the “change the combat” step can be ignored,
or can be implemented in a way that helps the Operatives
(or at least evens the field). Do this sparingly; missions are
meant to be lost.

Keeping the Challenge

Some missions are too easy. If the goal is to assassinate a
key figure, and that figure is just standing around unguarded,
with a clear path from the Operatives, the mission will end
quickly.
Instead, have the VIP be far away (but not more than 4 range
bands away, or it becomes a hassle), inside a building, or
heavily protected. If the VIP is reasonably close, introduce
a number of challenges on the way to take them out on the
way back to the evac zone. After all, it’s not enough to merely
assassinate the target; the Operatives must escape after-
ward! In this way, you can establish subgoals that must be
accomplished before the main goal.
The ENEMY PHASE is a great time to change the environ-
ment or add another complication that makes success
harder than simply completing the mission.

bringing terrain to life

destructible environments
Once you’ve decided on the location, it’s time to actually
map it out. Cyberrats doesn’t need a detailed map, but it’s a
good idea to have different “zones” where enemies can be.
A military base, for example, might have tents full of troops,
rooftops, and open areas where patrols wander.
Don’t forget verticality! Adding paths above or below most
enemies gives players fun tactical options like jumping down
from catwalks or bursting through vents. Because movement
is limited, keep the area fairly tight— no one wants to spend
2 rounds getting the drop on an enemy.
Have blockable doorways, lockable doors and destructible
walls to give players (and enemies!) creative ways to shape
the battlefield. They can seal off avenues of attack or create

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 new ones, and in the ENEMY PHASE you can do the
same. Operatives who took the Scout power will also
appreciate the added utility.
This same mindset works for inserting hazards. No player
sees a lava pit or a bed of pitch without immediately
wanting to shove an enemy into it.
Narrate the enemies flipping up tables (to take advan-
tage of the cover rules on page 64) and it won’t be long
before players follow suit.
Encourage players to manipulate, create, and destroy
terrain and they’ll be quick to join in on the fun. After all,
there’s a reason why sliding down a mainsail or swinging
from chandeliers is a trope; it’s fun as hell! All it takes is
flexibility as a Manager, interesting props, and an example
or two.

enemy locations
There’s an added bonus to interesting terrain: enemy
locations. No one wants to play in a game where all of the
enemies are exactly the same distance apart, or using
the same two stat blocks.
Have your snipers up high in the catwalks. Players can
climb up to fight them head on, shoot out the support
chains to tumble them to the ground, or activate the
computer terminal to lower the winches slowly. Space
out the enemies and let them shine at their own ranges.
As an added benefit, they won’t be clustered up where
a single well-placed grenade or shotgun blast can
decimate your ranks.
If the players do take cover or engage in flanking maneu-
vers, give them a bonus: an extra -1 or +1 Harm from
powers, some temporary barrier as the table gets blown
apart, or a bonus die on an attack. As long as you’re
consistent, this will really bring the environment to life
and create memorable missions that naturally encourage
tactics.

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Campaign playbook
Campaign example
Every campaign will look different, but here’s some examples of
how I might set up a campaign.
For the first mission, I wouldn’t offer the Military, as they’re too
dangerous. Instead, I’d offer 2 Interloper jobs and one Valdivian
mission. I probably wouldn’t do too much at this point to differ-
entiate the two Interloper jobs. Maybe I’d have one of them be
eliminate all targets, and the other one be survive three rounds.
No matter which mission my players choose, I’d keep it simple
with just two enemy types. For the rest of this example, I’ll
assume the players chose Interlopers: Eliminate. I would only
use the first two enemies (Little Green Men and Graybrains).
I would include two more enemies than I have players. This
makes it a very easy mission, but allows them to learn the ropes.
Since they don’t have powers at this point, there’s still some
risk involved. I’d have an equal number of Little Green Men and
Graybrains. The Graybrains do more Harm at a distance, so I’d
start with them at a mix of Near and Far range, with the Little
Green Men mostly being at Near or Close. I wouldn’t use any
waves; let this victory be easy and clean. The Operatives won’t
get that again.
After the mission, the Operatives have a chance to get new
powers and Careers, which means we can up the challenge. For
the next mission, I’d offer another Interlopers, a Valdivian, and a
Military. I still want to discourage them from picking Military as
the primary mission, so I’d give that mission a Dangerous tag.
Remember that the Operatives failed at least one mission last
time, which means the Threat Level of one faction increased.
If the Operatives chose to fight the Interlopers again, I’d want to
start introducing new threats. It’s okay to let them plow through
a wave or two of enemies they were just struggling with before
bringing out something new. In this case, I'd introduce the
Quadreps. Quadreps work best when they have other enemies
to back them up, as they have the Favored tag. I’d bring one or
two of these out in the first ENEMY PHASE, along with another

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Graybrain or two, if the numbers are getting low.
If you decide to keep only the same enemies as the first
fight (which might be appropriate if the Interloper Threat
Level increased), then increase the numbers or add a
second wave. My suggestion in either case is to have the
first wave be almost exactly the same as it was the first
fight. This gives the players a chance to try out their new
powers and feel their growth. Then BAM, bring in the
level 3 enemies (the Quadreps here) and a handful more
of the level 2 (Graybrain).
But what if the Operatives don’t pick the same faction
twice? No worries! Shelve this second mission for
later. It’s perfectly okay to recycle missions from round
to round. If they’re fighting the Valdivians, use a similar
approach: introduce the easiest two enemies first and
make a quiet introduction.
Remember, the Military is much harder than the other two
factions. I would advise against giving the option for the
first mission, and make it clear that they are dangerous
when you do offer them.
As for numbers, something like two times the number
of Operatives is appropriate at one time. Any more than
that can be overwhelming. It’s definitely okay to start
with 8 enemies and bring out more (or a bigger one!) in
the ENEMY PHASE.
For the third mission, I’d offer my first double mission:
in this example, the Operatives have only fought the
Interlopers, so I’d offer one mission either that’s Valdivian
/ Interlopers with a crossfire tag or Military / Valdivian
with the sabotage tag (and maybe stealth, if I felt like
my players wouldn’t be overwhelmed by all the new
mechanics), a second mission that’s just against one
target (probably whatever one isn’t on the joint mission),
and a third that’s against the Military.
This lets the players explore different mechanics,
and exposes them to the rules about fighting multiple
factions. Hopefully by now the losses have caused some
interesting results both in terms of Threat Levels and for
Victory Meters!
++97
The Military
Story Missions
The first story mission targets the Military and is a Stealth/
Cyber mission. The Operatives must break into a base, hack
a computer, and find the intel they need. Use three enemy
types here. The first should be an easy enemy to serve as
grunts, like knife specialists or soldiers. The second type
should be a Military enemy the group has met fairly recently
and should occupy the inside of the building and the more
secure areas. The third type should be something formidable
and new, and may only come out if the group triggers an
alarm.
Once the mission is over, the Operatives learn the location of
the Valdivian research sector.
Once there, they can disable Valdivian forces and learn the
secret location of the Mothership.

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Using the boss monster:
While <Classified> can show up during the fight, an
excellent use of the ENEMY PHASE is to have soldiers
fleeing in terror, yelling “It’s escaped!”. This approach
works if the Military is a challenge: if the Operatives are
steamrolling, have a general unleash the enemy on them
instead.
The walls of REDACTED are a great way to create
interesting and destructible terrain, and to separate
Operatives from each other.
<Classified> can siphon a bit of from all Operatives,
making powers less viable than in other fights. It can
also activate a large number of lackeys, which can
make escaping this mission extremely dangerous. The
Operatives can easily be surrounded and have to sustain
a flurry of attacks.
<Classified> is most effective at Far range, so keep it
elevated above the battlefield, possibly on a pedestal
of REDACTED. It takes more than simple movement to
climb the stuff, and should enable the monster to hound
the Operatives, even if they try to escape.

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Valdivian
Story Mission
The second story mission involves shutting down Valdivian
and learning where the Mothership is. This should be an
assault against the corp, and should feature big hitters:
consider using bio-enhanced soldiers, RAT SWARMs, and
Mobile Turrets. The goal here is to wade in, eliminate some
enemies, and get out. The Operatives need to find The
Custodian, a secret figure who keeps the location of the
Mothership on his person.
I recommend having consecutive rooms to fight through,
each with a locked door. Imagine a corporate environment,
filled with cubicles, a copy room, a kitchenette with a little
coffee machine. Each of these walled off and filled with
enemies. A fight on a staircase adds a level of verticality, as
the Operative fight their way in... and then back out.
This breaks the mission into a discrete series of waves: clear
one room, unlock the door, repeat.
Ranged enemies can be on adjacent high-rises, or on
window-washing lifters. And what’s more satisfying than
kicking someone off a roof while waiting for an escape
helicopter?

Using the boss monster:

The Custodian is most effective at Close range, wading in to
deal with Operatives himself. He has an incredible amount
of Soak, as well as Barrier and Shard to ward off blows. A
true tank, the Custodian is not be underestimated; even as
he shrugs off Harm, his Recoil power ensures he’s dealing it
right back to his attackers.
The Custodian’s moves are all about reducing mobility.
Locking doors and spilling water makes it hard for Operatives
to leave the close-quarters brawl with him.
Other enemies (like the Mobile Turrets) can help add ranged
support while he dishes out the Harm.

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Interlopers:
The Mothership

Story mission
The third mission should feel like the ultimate challenge.
The Operatives need to find the self-destruct sequence
by defeating enemies, and then use it to blow up the ship
and escape. In this mission there is no retreat or evac.
Run the mission as endless waves of increasingly harder
foes. Operatives have to infiltrate the mothership, get to
the center, plant a bomb, and escape with their lives. Use
stealth rules to manage the difficulty of enemies at any
given point, and treat this not as one big battle, but as a
series of small ones; what do the Operatives find as they
move towards the center of the mothership?
The outer ring might only have Graybrains and Quadreps,
but the inner ring should be full of Kysers and Slags. Be
careful not to overwhelm players with too many different
enemy types at a time, but this is your chance to really
make them fight for their lives. Err on the side of more
enemies rather than fewer.

Using the boss monster:

The Mother is an absolute horror. She only gets less
scary the closer you get, if you can survive the spores.
What do those do? Nothing pleasant, I’m sure. Perhaps
they daze all nearby Operatives, knocking them down to
a single action per turn.
Keep a line of bruisers (like those Slags from above).
She’s glowing green and Keen, which means powers
aren’t any good here, only Cyber.
Speaking of futile powers, all her attacks are draining, so
will be a coveted resource. It’s going to take a lot to
destroy her, so keep the Operatives at bay and let her
shine in all her gross glory.
Monsters other than the Mother operate on a different
loot table than normal: on a 5–6, they drop a piece of the
self-destruct sequence.
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 Once the Operatives have all three pieces, they can acti-
vate the sequence and toss a bomb in for good measure.
Then it’s time to escape.

Escape
Once the bomb is placed, the rest of the scene should
be a chase scene. The Operatives have definitely won,
but can they outrun the bomb they placed and escape
alive? While everyone loves a sacrifice story, if they can
manage to pull it off and escape with their lives, even
better!
Make an escape meter with a number of check boxes
equal to 2 + the number of Operatives. If the Mother is
still alive, add an extra check box.
On their turn, Operatives can defend their friends by
attacking the swarms of enraged enemies, or they can
further the escape.
To escape, the Operatives roll an Attribute or use an
appropriate power and narrate what they are doing. For
each success, mark a check box. Succeeding represents
something like getting ahead of enemies, sealing a bulk-
head or door, or starting an escape vehicle.
If it makes sense in the narrative, a power can be used
for a free checkbox, but each power can only be used
once in this way.
Whenever someone attempts escape, the Manager
should activate an enemy, usually targeting one of the
Operatives defending the others. If the Operatives
manage to check all boxes before three rounds have
passed, then they successfully escape.
On the other hand, if the Operatives can’t escape in
three rounds, the aliens are still defeated, but our heroes
go out with them.

++102
++103
Combat
picking targets
Assume that enemies are smart and are out for blood.
Enemies will typically attack those who are Taunted, then
Screwed, then Painted, and then by choosing Operatives at
random. Enemimes are always seeking to maximize Harm.
Enemies should not ignore the Taunted condition, and
should try to bring down Operatives. Don’t be afraid to focus
fire and drop an Operative. They’re meant to be disposable
and to feel threatened. Operatives have ways of surviving
injuries, and Cyberrats is intended to be a hard game. If one
Operative has already been Injured this fight and you have a
chance to Injure another, do that. Spreading out Injuries is
good.
To recap: focus on one Operative until they are Injured, then
focus on another. Operatives that are Screwed, Painted, or
are otherwise taking increased Harm should be a tempting
target. If someone uses a power like Overclock that increases
Harm dealt to them, take advantage of that!
Sometimes clever positioning means that only one target
is valid or logical. In that case, it obviously makes sense to
follow the fiction. Try not to get into a situation where one
Operative never gets to act because they keep bouncing
between 0 HP and getting healed. If this happens, remind
the players that their Operatives can take their turns in any
order, as long as they each act once before the ENEMY
PHASE.

ending combat
Knowing when to have a mission end is tricky, and there’s
no easy answer to it. It’s something you’ll learn over time,
and it’s largely a matter of balancing pacing and reading the
room. You want to make sure your players are engaged.
For early missions, a short combat is okay (where short

++104
means only having 1 or 2 waves of enemies). Even on long
missions, you want to ensure your players have a goal
(like defusing a bomb or eliminating a VIP), and aren’t
just slogging through endless waves of enemies.
Everything you do as a Manager should be clearly tele-
graphed. If it looks like you end a mission on a whim for no
reason, the players might not feel threatened. But if you
have alarms blaring that say things like, “any remaining
personnel make your way to the docks,” it will be clear
the fight is almost over. Don’t be afraid to have enemies
yell out things like, “the mech is almost ready,” or “we’re
down to our last 3 turrets,” or “where is my air support?”
to signal what’s coming.

++105
Faction Drops
At the end of every combat round, in the ENEMY PHASE, the
Manager will roll drops for every enemy that died. Players can
distribute these drops among themselves. HP and drops
are applied immediately, and it does not require an action to
do so. The exception to this is if an Operative wants to heal
an Operative at 0 HP. In that case, the HP drop is applied to
the downed Operative, who does not recover until a Close
Operative succeeds on a successful Cyber check to heal
them. This check takes an action.
Note: if you’ve played other LUMEN games, CYBERRATS
drops include less HP than you may be used to.
If you get a drop that cannot be used immediately, such as
HP when no one has been Injured, or when no one has
used a power, that drop is wasted.

Interloper VALDIVIAN MILITARY

1 Biotech Biotech Biotech
2 Biotech Biotech HP

3 Biotech HP HP
4 HP HP Gear Part
5 HP HP Gear Part
6+ Construction Piece Gear Part Construction Piece

++106
Enemies
Interlopers
Extraterrestrial Invaders

A bunch of aliens trying to take our planet and mine it for resources.
They came looking for a fight. They got one.
» Fight them and win using our tech
» Stop the invasion to save the planet
» Maybe even get promoted

"They came for our planet, for our people, for

our resources. No one else can exploit our
citizens!"

Valdivian
Incorrigible Megacorp

Valdivian is that other megacorp. The one dealing in robotics,

spaceships, and defense contracts. Stop them.
» Don’t let them quell the invasion
» It must be us, even if the aliens win
» Sabotage their equipment and ops

"It’s not enough for the invasion to be stopped.

It must be good, honest companies stopping it."

Military
Foreign Destabilizers

The main forces fighting against the Interlopers. Unfortunately,

they’re doing it with Valdivian Tech. Unacceptable.
» Destroy evidence lionizing Valdivian
» Sabotage equipment and gear
» Win those contracts at any cost

"Ultimately it’s always the military doing the

fighting, so what matters is whose gear they
use to do it."

++107
Enemy types and tags
Each of the three factions Operatives will face (Interloper,
Valdivian, Military) has a Threat Level. At the start of the game,
the Threat Level is 1 for each of those factions. Whenever you
fail a mission, the target of that mission increases its Threat
Level by 1. A faction’s Threat Level can never go above 4.
Enemies have tags just like weapons, items, and armor.
Some of these have additional effects, others are modified
by powers.
Each faction has eight normal enemies, which should be
introduced in order, and one special enemy which will only
appear in the final story mission for that faction.

Bleed #: Adds # Bleed to the Pierce: This attack ignores

target. Whenever the target
activates, they lose HP equal to
their total Bleed. Stacks.
Draining: Attacks remove 1 . attacker.
Explode: When this creature
dies, all Close creatures take
1 Harm. Enemies that Explode
don’t generate drops.
Favored: When this creature
is attacked, apply the Painted
condition to the attacker.
Flying: No one without the
Flying tag can move to Close
range with this creature. This
creature can still move to Close
range with any target.
Glowing <color>: Can only
be harmed by attacks of the
corresponding Attribute (Red:
Smash, Green: Cyber, Blue:
Sly).
Keen #: Before attacking,
Operatives must remove # dice
from their pool.
++108
Soak.
Recoil #: When this creature is
attacked, it deals # Harm to the
Reflect: When this creature is
dealt Harm, it deals 1 ⁄ 2 of that
Harm back to the attacker.
Resilient: This creature can
only die if it has 1 HP. If it would
die otherwise, it is instead
reduced to 1 HP.
Robot: This creature drops 1
Gear Part in addition to normal
drops. This applies even with
Explode or Shrapnel keywords.
Shielded #: After this creature
takes Harm, it gains # Barrier.
Shred: After this creature deals
Harm, it removes 1 Soak from
the target.
True Harm: Harm dealt
bypasses Barrier and Soak, but
not Shard.
Interlopers
Little Green Man Flying Saucer Roboreps
Lowly troops for unimportant Autonomous Drones. Robotic Quadreps. What
tasks. HP: 3 + [Threat Level] purpose do they serve?
HP: 2 + [Threat Level] Close: 1 Harm HP: 3 + [Threat Level]
Close / Near: [Threat Level] Near / Far: 2 + [Threat Level] Shard: 2
Harm Harm Close: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
Tags: Keen 1 Tags: Flying, Robot, Explode, Near: 3 Harm
Moves: Shielded 3 Tags: Robot, Resilient, True
• Give orders Moves: Harm
• Duck into cover • Zip between targets Moves:
• Track a target • Take aerial reinsurance • Run to the side of
• Tractor beam friends or foes another Interloper
Graybrain to new ranges • Growl menacingly
Tactical experts, possibly • Dig a tunnel or hole
mind readers. Slag
HP: 1 + [Threat Level] Humanoid, scaled in molten Kyser
Soak: [Threat Level] glass. Spiked shock troops. Deadly
Close: 1 Harm HP: 3 + [Threat Level] with a jab.
Near: 1 + [Threat Level] Harm Barrier: 2 HP: 7
Tags: Draining Close: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm Soak: 1
Moves: Near / Far: 3 + [Threat Level] Close: 4 + [Threat Level]
• Daze an enemy Harm Harm
• Recharge ray gun Tags: Draining, Reflect, Near: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
• Convert an Assistant Glowing Blue, Bleed 2 Tags: Recoil 2, Resilient,
Moves: Keen 3, Pierce
Quadreps • Glow ominously Moves:
Quadrupedal reptilians, favored • Flicker and pulse with • Charge an enemy
pets. angry energy • Grow spikes
HP: 5 + [Threat Level] • Point at a target and utter • Pull back for a vicious
Soak: 1 + [Threat Level] alien phrases stab
Close: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
Tags: Favored, Bleed 1 Cyborg The Mother
Moves: Humanoid robots. Were they Undulating and pulsing with
• Drool an uncontrollable human once? energy.
wave HP: [Threat Level] HP: 10 + [Threat Level]
• Sharpen its spikes with its Soak: 2 + [Threat Level] Soak: 4
tongue Shard: 1 Barrier: 8
• Sizzle menacingly Close: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm Close: 5 Harm
Near: [Threat Level] Harm Near: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
Tags: Robot, Recoil 1, Keen 2 Far: 5 + [Threat Level] Harm
Moves: Tags: Keen 1, Glowing Green,
• Pump with hydraulic True Harm, Draining
steam Moves:
• Chase down a target • Explode a burst of spores
• Destroy cover • Snag an Operative with an
improbably long tentacle
• Disable all weapons

++109
Valdivian
Office Worker
They didn’t sign up for this.
HP: 3
Close / Near: [Threat Level]
Harm
Moves:
• Retreat
• Dive into cover
• Plead for surrender
Conscripted Soldier
They’re contractors. It makes
insurance easier.
HP: 4 + [Threat Level]
Close / Far: [Threat Level]
Harm
Near: 2 + [Threat Level]
Harm
Tags: Shielded [Threat Level]
Moves:
• Give orders
• Reload with special
ammo
• Give a short speech
Gunner Drone
The models that didn’t sell,
re-purposed.
HP: [Threat Level]
Soak: 1 + [Threat Level]
Near: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
Far: 2 Harm
Tags: Flying, Robot, Reflect
Moves:
• Take off into the sky
• Lay down suppressive fire
• Play the Valdivian theme
song
++110
Mobile Turrets
Banned in 26 countries.
HP: 5 + [Threat Level]
Near / Far: 2 + [Threat Level]
Harm
Tags: Robot, Explode,
Shielded [Threat Level]
Moves:
• Plant themselves in
ideal positions
• Swivel menacingly
• Blare alarms if enemies
approach
Enhanced “Humans”
Soldiers for the corp, just like
you.
HP: 6 + [Threat Level]
Soak: 2
Close / Near: 2 + [Threat
level] Harm
Tags: Resilient, Reflect,
Pierce
Moves:
• Give orders
• Hunker down
• Sneak to a strategic point
RAT SWARM
Too many to count.
HP: 5 + [Threat Level]
Close: 3 + [Threat Level]
Harm
Tags: Favored, Keen 1, Bleed 1
Moves:
• Scuttle noisily
• Erupt out of vents
• Climb towers and drop
like rain
Bio-enhanced Soldiers
Kicked out of the Military for
being too violent.
HP: 5 + [Threat Level]
Soak: [Threat Level]
Shard: 1
Close / Near: 2 + [Threat
level] Harm
Far: 3 Harm
Tags: True Harm, Draining
Moves:
• Inject
• Slap another soldier,
yelling something like
“Get back in there!”
• Scream profanity
Middle Management
Looking to burn off some rage
and earn a raise.
HP: [Threat Level]
Soak: [Threat Level]
Close: 2 + [Threat Level]
Harm
Near: [Threat Level] Harm
Tags: Favored, Recoil 1,
Keen 1
Moves:
• Smash nearby technology
• Yell at underlings
• Threaten to call the CEO
The Custodian
Leaning on a broom.
HP: 6 + [Threat Level]
Soak: 8
Shard: 1
Barrier: 8
Close: 5 Harm
Near: 2 + [Threat Level] Harm
Tags: Recoil 5, True Harm,
Bleed 2
Moves:
• Spill mop water
• Summon darkness
• Lock all doors
military
Knife Specialist Spider Drone Medic
Up close and personal. Valdivian’s best. Still less busy than the
HP: 1 + [Threat Level] HP: 1 + [Threat Level] hospital floors.
Barrier: 3 Soak: 1 + [Threat Level] HP: [Threat Level]
Close: 2 + [Threat Level] Near / Far: 5 + [Threat Level] Barrier: 3
Harm Harm Harm: < does no Harm >
Near: 1 Harm Tags: Flying, Robot, Explode, Tags: Favored
Tags: Bleed 1, Pierce Sticky Moves:
Moves: Moves: • Heal an ally for 2 HP
• Charge into battle • Drop ammo for allies • Provide a Shard to an
• Pull out an even bigger • Swoop from unseen ally
knife heights • Drag Injured soldiers
• Run a blade against a • Build a sticky mechanical away
metal pipe web
Turret Rat
Sniper Anti Biotech Personnel Hunkered down and spitting
This is their day job. Trained to take down your lead.
HP: 4 + [Threat Level] type. HP: 5 + [Threat Level]
Soak: 2 HP: 5 + [Threat Level] Soak: 1 + [Threat Level]
Close: 1 + [Threat Level] Harm Soak: 2 Close: 2 Harm
Far: [Threat Level x 2] Harm Shard: [Threat Level] Near / Far: 3 + [Threat Level]
Tags: Bleed 1 Close / Near: 1 + [Threat Harm
Moves: Level] Harm Tags: Reflect, Keen 2, True
• Paint a target Tags: Draining, Favored, Harm
• Chant a marching song Keen 2, Shred Moves:
• Disengage to Far Moves: • Swivels around for a new
• Appear behind an enemy target
Super Soldier • Disable a power • Pings enemy locations
Just enough Biotech to stave • Apply the Shocked • Applies the Screwed
off addiction. condition to a target condition to a target
HP: 5 + [Threat Level]
Soak: [Threat Level] Mech <Classified>
Shard: 1 Human piloted, robot powered. on a
Close: 3 Harm HP: 5 + [Threat Level] HP: 8
Near: 4 + [Threat Level] Harm Soak: 4 Soak: 5
Tags: Resilient, Keen 1, True Barrier: 2 Shard: 1
Harm Shard: 3 Close: 5 Harm
Moves: Close: 3 + [Threat Level] Near: [Threat Level] Harm.
• Steal a vial from an Harm Far: [Threat Level x 3] Harm
opponent Near: [Threat Level] Tags: Sticky, Resilient, Keen 3
• Roar and beat chest Tags: Robot, Shielded, Moves:
• Grab a gun off a corpse Reflect, Resilient • Siphon from
Moves: everyone
• Destroy all Barrier from • Activate 3 allies
one Operative • Create a wall of
• Throw an enemy
• Protect an ally

++111
clarifications
• Barrier, Soak, HP, , items, and most other stats refresh
at the end of each mission. If you lose HP or change your
max HP total, or are hit with an attack that lowers your
Soak, or if you throw a grenade, the next time you go on a
mission these will be reset. Effects generally only affect
the current mission.
• Items are chosen by specific Operatives. You cannot use
items carried by another Operative, even if that Operative
is Injured or dead. Gear and items that were on a dead
Operative are considered lost.
• You are not your own ally. If text refers to an ally, it means
someone other than you.
• Assistants are allies.
• When choosing debt during character creation, you do
not get to spend all 20 debt, only the additional debt you
take on. This additional debt can only be spent on Gear
Parts.
• Interns are very killable. Good armor is just as important
as a good weapon.
• Effects that happen “at the start of your turn” (like Bleed)
occur at the start of the ENEMY PHASE if they are applied
to enemies.
• Some powers target all enemies, others target all crea-
tures. All creatures means everyone: allies, enemies, and
potentially yourself.
• Some powers refer to melee or ranged attacks. Ranged
attacks are those made using a ranged weapon, such as a
gun. Melee attacks are those using something like a knife
or sword. With upgrades, it’s possible to use a melee
attack at a range other than Close, or a ranged attack at
Close range.
• You can always do less than a power says. If it says deal
2 targets 2 Harm, you can choose to only deal 1 target
2 Harm, but you cannot choose the same target twice.
Some powers let you choose the same target twice:
these will say something like “You throw 3 grenades...”

++112
 There is nothing stopping you from throwing 3 grenades
in the same place.
• Some powers tell you to pick a point and affect creatures
Close to that point. While there’s no need for a grid, the
Manager should be generous and allow Operatives to
pick points that affect multiple enemies. A crude sketch
of locations may be useful.
• Can I just use my best Attribute for everything? If you
can justify it, sure! There will definitely be times where
it won't be appropriate, and the Manager has final say.
You'd have a hard time arguing that you're using Cyber
to stab someone for example, or that you're using Smash
to sneak into a warehouse. But there's no reason you
can't fire a gun using Smash or Sly, unless the situation
suggests otherwise.

++113
 • Items and powers don’t take actions. Movement and
reloading do cost actions, but do not require rolls.
• You cannot split up your turn (e.g. by taking one action,
letting someone else have a turn, and then taking your
second action).
• Conditions stack with each other, but do not stack with
themselves (except for Bleed and Painted). So if a crea-
ture is Screwed twice, it's still only double Harm. But if
it's Painted and Screwed, it's Harm + 1, then all doubled.
If a different power or condition would cause Harm to be
doubled, then it's definitely possible for it to be 4x, 8x, or
even higher. This is pretty much a guaranteed death.
• Enemies only take actions during the ENEMY PHASE
(where the Manager will activate 1 more enemies than
there are players), and if an Operative rolls a 1–4 on their
highest die while attempting an action.
• Winning a secondary mission against a faction still counts
as a success for unlocking the story missions, though the
story missions themselves must be primary missions.
• Even if your weapon attack targets multiple enemies, you
just roll once.
• If a power mentions Harm even if it doesn’t directly deal
Harm, that Harm can be increased by spending Scrip. For
example, Higher Ground passively increases the Harm of
all weapons.
• While the Interlopers' Victory Meter starts at 0, Valdivian’s
starts at 4.
• Threat Level can never go below 1 or above 4.
• Victory Meters can never go negative.
• Effects like Draining or Bleed occur even if all Harm is
Soaked.
• Glowing enemies can ONLY be Harmed by the corre-
sponding color attacks, not by powers.

++114
Huh.

I honestly did not believe you

would make it this far.
You didn't just flip to this page
at the end, did you? Because
that's bullshit and I have real
money on the line here.
Seriously, I bet Dara 20
Drankbux® that you would stop
reading before page 81. So for
real, you read it all?

Huh.

Well, in that case, congrats

recruit! You are well on your way
to dying to protect capitalism!

Look, I know it seems unfair

and all, but if you don't sign on,
who knows what'll happen. The
Interlopers could put squiggly
shit in all of our brains, or
maybe the Military would nuke
the sun until it explodes.
Or maybe, worst of all, your
corp would have a bad PR day.

Anyway, you got this buddy! I

believe in you.
And hey, unrelated, you got any
spare Drankbux®?

++115
Mission Log

Date - Faction - Objective - Location - Status

++116
Obituaries

here lies

a real piece
of shit.

try jumping.

R.I.P

In Peace

in death
as in life;
inexplicably
damp.

++117
Thank you
our kickstarter backers
Derek Gustafson, Cody Garett Wells, Eliot & Ressie Lyons,
Chris Fogerty, Jon Koliner, Avri, Isaac McNeely, Josh Rosing,
Thomas Sosebee, Jason Vanhee, ron beck, Spencer Campbell;
Gila RPGs, Anthony Frandsen, Alex Stone-Tharp, Travis D.,
Justin Saber, Gnoll, Mel Nanke, Steve "Fitz" Long, Joshua
Pevner, Joseph Sinnott, Dylan Malenfant, Mona Bourbia,
Shawn Carpenter, Preeti Mohan, Jake Long, Mari Bigler, Jeff
Schmidt, Tristan Chandra Harness,
Isaiah Galaviz, Mitchell, Aaron Lamp, cyberrats wi

Rise o
Matthew Wilkins, Anthony D Stoke,

bri
Dr. Tyler Brunette, Samantha Leigh,
Tad K, Colin J, Drew Wendorf, Eric &
Noah Hobberstad, Zac Goins, Taylor
Carlson, Lewis Gillingwater, Charlie
Etheridge-Nunn, David Morrison,
Hakeem Alfarraj, Adam Vass, Jacob

bast
Wallraff, Cosgrove, Satya, Alexandria
RPG, Puck Malamud, LiveBait,
BARBATUS, Finite State, Jen
Bonczar, Jessica Engman, Andrea
McKenzie, Ebest, Josh Medin,
Arizona Plant, Dale Blackburn, Matthew Molina, Nick Bate, The
Wrong Room, Mitchell Salmon, Alex Jay, Greg Lambert, Tony
Williams, Rattrap, Samhain2057, Drenky & Fleem, Andrew Cain,
José Feliciano, Kal, Grant Liberman, Isabellah Garsal, Greg Jones,
Carl Matthews, Aaron "Great Ktulu" Bolyard, Glen R. Taylor,
Mitchell Daily, Noah "Auto" Reynolds, RICHARD BARNHOUSE
III, Reynold Chen, Vinh Ton, Charlie Boatner, Tristan Hubert,
Robinson Fulcher, Gavin and Aine Moore, John Gronquist,
merlin clark, Allen Gould, Lynette Ann/PetiteDraculina, Brett

++118
 Volz, Ashe C. Addams, Anthony Pirrotta, Manh Simon Ho, Ella
Watts, GremlinHours, Julie Pietak, Svend Andersen, Rossuthela
“Ross” Brunner, Sam Benke, Ryan Brunner, Jack Lund, Brandes
Stoddard, Shea Bohland, Meusel Family, Gwathdring, Lachlan
Fergusson, Sam "Haunting" Thompson, Alex Davies, Logan
Dean, Matt Richardson, Peter Norton, Cranium Squirrel, Marshall
Mowbray, Mike Daniel, Jake Hartman, Allan Tucker, Đorđe
Eremić, Caadium, Mason, Andrew Cherry, Dan Schweizer, Elliot
Davis, Takumi Izumo, Mike Dean, Emma Gallegos, Nate Lee, Sean
Hoelscher,Squirrel, Anabasis, Sam Morstan, Spencer Brown,
Joe S, Bastien, Josh Hittie, Eric Guzman
ll return in: Skotnitsky, Benjamin Schelnberger, Dan

f the
Suptic, Jacob Wynn, Mikailos, Sam Hing,

ny
Rowan Irelia, Mark R. Lesniewski, Jessica
Marcrum, Panu ”Possessed” Laukkanen,
Lars Ohnesorge, Jesse Woods; year of the rat,
Zain Shah, Ty Pitre, Scott Philips, Nick Berry,
Brady Bednar, Sanae, frank martin, McGregor
Crowley, Josh Newton from Tabletop

Ards
Journeys, Raymond Bennett, LucasJ. Cifranic,
Jim Ortiz, Ashley Kronebusch, Nathan Alms,
Sasha De'ath, Sarah Harker, Dan Phipps &
Kali Lawrie, Austin Sudtelgte, Stillmellow,
McGravin, Owain Langford, Jonathan
"Buddha" Davis, Sandwich King Marc Casteel, Matthew Nevers,
Justin Yoder, Aymeric Goutain, Courtney Rinehart (Alex's WIFE),
Skyler Stewar, Dominic Lopez, Frosty X. Wolter, Rem Augustine,
Yez T. Wicked, Jacob T. Dickmann, and Lexy 'Anubins' Robinson.

you're great
we couldn't have done it without you

++119
haNDouts, references, and cheat sheets
the ENEMY PHASE
01: apply bleed
Enemies with Bleed effects lose 1 HP per Bleed tag at the
start of the ENEMY PHASE.

02: trigger reactions

Pick a number of enemies equal to the number of Operatives
+1. Each of them can move a range band and either inflict
Harm or execute one of their Moves.

03: change the battle

Have something dramatic happen. A pipe bursts, reinforce-
ments come, a fire breaks out, the floor collapses, all of the
robots merge together into a bigger, scarier robot. An orbital
ship starts charging an enormous laser, the room is filled
with smoke and darkness. Look at the list of mission tags for
inspiration.

04: generate and distribute drops

Enemies with the Explode keyword don’t generate drops, nor
do enemies that were killed with an attack or power using
the Shrapnel keyword. Enemies with the Robot tag always
drop 1 Gear Part in addition to normal drops, even if they
exploded. Operatives distribute drops among themselves.

05: remove Interloper VALDIVIAN MILITARY

conditions 1 Biotech Biotech Biotech

Conditions that 2 Biotech Biotech HP

apply until the 3 Biotech HP HP

end of the round 4 HP HP Gear Part
or until the end 5 HP HP Gear Part
of an enemy’s 6+ Construction Piece Gear Part Construction
turn should be Piece
removed now.

++120
haNDouts, references, and cheat sheets
Combat, HARM, Dying, and
Healing
Combat
• Operatives get 2 actions
each turn.
• Powers and items do not
use an action.
• Each Operative can have
5 powers active at one
time.
Consequences
• Smash: Lose 1 HP
• Cyber: Lose 1
• Sly: Gain the Painted or
Taunted condition
Applying harm
When Harm is applied,
first reduce it by Soak,
then apply any Shard,
then subtract it from any
Barrier, finally subtract it
from Health.
Soak → Shard → Barrier
→ Health
Dying
• If you fall to 0 HP, you
die in 4 turns unless the
mission is completed,
you are healed by another
Operative, or someone
carries you to the evac
zone.
• If you fall to 0 HP and
live, you are Injured and
cannot attend the primary
mission.
• Operatives at 0 HP cannot
use powers or actions.
• Healing from a power or
item is automatic.
• Assigning an HP drop to
an Operative with 0 HP
requires a Close ally to
make a Cyber check. This
takes an action.
• While carrying an Injured
ally, Operatives can only
move and use powers.
They cannot make attacks
or take other actions.
++121
haNDouts, references, and cheat sheets
missions
Core Mechanic
Roll d6 equal to your Attribute, keep the highest.
• 5–6: Unmitigated success.
• 3–4: Partial success. Usually, an enemy makes a move or
deals Harm.
• 1–2: Failure. Enemy makes a move or deals Harm.

Succeeding / Failing a MISsIon

• If a mission is failed, the Victory Meter increases by 3, Threat
increases by 1.
• If a mission is succeeded, the Victory Meter goes down by 2.
• If a Military mission is succeeded, Valdivian goes down by 2,
Interlopers goes up by 2.
• If a mission targeted 2 factions, adjust each Victory Meter by
1 less than normal (increase by 2 on a failure, decrease by 1
on a success).

Gaining Scrip
• Operatives on the primary mission get 1d6 + 1 Scrip, +1 if they
killed one or more enemies.
• All Operatives on the secondary mission get 2 Scrip.

SecoNDary mISsIon
• When rolling for the secondary mission, the dice pool is: 1
• +1 for every 2 Operatives with a Career.
• -1 for each Injured Operative.
• +1 for each Operative with a weapon or gear with 3 or
more tags.
• +1 for each Operative with a power with a Scrip cost of
3 or more.
• -1 if there are only Interns on the mission.
• -1 if Threat of is 3 or higher.
• If it has the dangerous tag, a 6 is required for full success.
• There can be a maximum of 5 dice.
• On a failure, two Operatives assigned to the mission are
Injured, or one is killed.
• On a 5 or a 6, one Injured Operative becomes un-Injured.

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Glossary
Absorbent: Can move 1 range after you
are hit with an attack.
Arc: Targets all enemies at one range.
Barrier: Applied after Soak and Shard.
Ignore 1 Harm per Barrier, then remove
that Barrier.
Beam: Targets one enemy at Close,
Near, and Far.
Bleed: Lose 1 HP per Bleed at start
of turn. Can be removed in place of
healing.
Boom: All Close creatures (not the
attacker) take 1 Harm if attack is fatal.
Brutal: Deal double Harm if you roll a 6
on the attack.
Burst: All creatures adjacent take 1
Harm.
Capacitive: When your Barrier runs out,
all Close creatures take 2 Harm.
Charging: When your Barrier runs out,
restore 3 .
Draining: Attacks remove 1 . Shocked: Deals -1 Harm.
Explode: Doesn’t generate drops, on
death all Close take 1 Harm.
Fatal: The attack killed a target.
Favored: Apply Painted condition when
attacked.
Flight: You can fly.
Flying: Non-flying creatures can’t move
to Close range.
Glowing: Target can only be Harmed by
attacks using corresponding Attribute:
Red-Smash, Green-Cyber, Blue-Sly.
Keen: Attacks against this enemy use
one fewer die.
Knockback: Move the target 1 range
band after the attack.
Leech: If fatal, recover 1 Harm.
Lethal: This attack ignores Barriers and
the Resilient tag.
Mobile: Can move 2 ranges instead of 1.
Momentum: You can move after this
attack.
Painted: Take +1 Harm from all attacks.
Stacks.
Percussive: All Close creatures take 1
Harm when you are hit.
Pierce: This attack ignores Soak.
Recoil: When attacked, deals Harm to
attacker.
Reflect: Deals half of Harm back to
attacker.
Reliable: You can reroll 1s.
Resilient: Can only die at 1 HP, other-
wise drops to 1 HP.
Ricochet: If fatal, repeat the attack
against another enemy Close to the
target.
Robot: Drops a Gear Part in addition to
normal drops.
Screwed: Takes double Harm.
Shard: Applied before Barrier, but after
Soak. Absorbs all Harm from 1 hit and
then is destroyed.
Shielded: Gains Barrier after taking
Harm.
Shrapnel: Enemies killed do not
generate drops.
Shred: After the attack, remove one
Soak from the target.
Soak: Applies before Barrier or Shard.
Reduce incoming Harm.
Spiked: Deal 1 Harm to melee attackers.
Spread: This attack can hit 2 targets
Close to each other.
Stealthy: Invisible to cameras.
Sticky: Target cannot move until the
end of the round.
Taunted: Can only attack the creature
that Taunted it until the end of the
round.
Tech: Gain 1 for each enemy killed.
True Harm: Bypasses Soak and Barrier
(but not Shard).
Twisted: First attack after Barrier breaks
deals double Harm.
Weakened: All Harm dealt is halved
(round down).
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