The Sprawl: Beta version

A sudden burst of inspiration and vooom.

Fuck yes!

That's the kind of response I like to see! :D

And to think I was just about to print off the Alpha.

Excellent timing and amazing work!

Great! I was hoping the timing wasn't going to mess you up.

I've already received some great feedback, so there will likely be some revisions to the Hunter and Infiltrator pretty soon.

I had a lovely game with the Alpha version that I have yet to remember/motivate myself to collate feedback for. So in case I don't get around to it while it's still fresh enough and I still know where all my notes are, I just want to say thanks a million because it was a blast! But I do hope to get some feedback to you.

Great! I'm glad it worked for you and I'm excited to see what you have to say!

What's the base damage for hand to hand attacks? 1 Harm or Stun?

Also when rolling to Mix it Up (+Meat), what is meant by terrible Harm? Is that the Harm rating of the thing your using to cause the Harm or some kind of extra bonus on-top of it? Same with suffer little Harm.

I was also wondering if in future editions there could be an example of a hacking run as the system is still a little confusing as to how hackers access different systems and what kinds of moves the MC makes in response. Do they only activate routines on 7-9's and 6's? Where/when does ICE usually come in? Is it always there hunting or is it like a giant barrier over the entire system?

Maybe both, neither or 'it depends' probably but still an example could help.

Thanks for catching those omissions, GilboD!

In Apocalypse World Terrible harm and little harm are usually +1 and -1 respectively, but I need to add that in. Thanks for the reminder!

I would say the base damage for hand to hand would be 1 harm.

Routines can activate whether the fiction demands. usually that's on misses and partial hits, but if the hacker does something that specifically triggers a routine then they would activate as well. You are exactly right that this section needs an example run. In fact, the major next step in the process will be adding example sections throughout.

I imagine ICE being activated when routines or alarms trigger, then hunting through the system while the alarm is active. So you could run it like a chase sequence. Like many of the technological aspects of the game, if that doesn't work with the group's conception of cyberpunk computer security, the fictional specifics can be tweaked to taste.

I'll try to get a recording of my groups play for review.

That would be awesome!

You did a great work.
The corporate clocks and the gestion of the missions are just perfect.

Here are my suggestions to improve the game :
- You may add some hazards and hazards moves.
- You may give examples of MC moves (the context is different and their meaning is not exactly the same anymore).
- Some moves have to be slightly modified.
For example, The Hunter has "Dead Bet" and the Fixer "Hard to join" : as a Hunter, I would choose the Fixer move as improvement (+2 max for obligation rolls), not mine (+3 max for obligation rolls).

These are minor details.

The point is we were so enthousiastic that I designed playbooks (illustrations and layout).
I will be glad to share them - just tell me how (it can be on or outside your website and I can modify them as much as you want).

(You may have noticed I am not an english native speaker and I am sorry for the convenience).

Thanks, Macbesse!

Your suggestions are absolutely right. When I get a chance to revise the text again, I'll be adding hazards and hazard moves (particularly how to use NPC security forces and the like). I'll take a look at those two obligation roll moves. Obligations are definitely an area that needs more playtesting.

Playbooks, great! You can either just share them here, or email them to me and I'll make a blog post, whichever you prefer.

(No apologies necessary! It was all perfectly understandable.)

Here is the link to the playbooks : https://www.dropbox.com/s/kzau3y7fsjcdvm5/playbooks-sprawl_v2.pdf

I am glad you propose to publish it on the blog, but I first share it here so you and the players can post a first review. I have also some modifications to do first and I need your advice.

- Most of these playbooks are on 3 pages. It is not rationnal. 2, without the basic moves, or 4 would me much better. Please let me know your preference (frankly speaking, I prefer 4).
- We have to check copyright issues, since I used some illustrations and captures (you'll recognize Deckard and Gaff from Blade Runner) as source for mine, in AW black&white style. The final illustrations are quite far from the original and it may be considered a "fair use" in american law but I would love to be sure of it (for example, in France, it would be considered a "détournement d'oeuvre" and strictly prohibited). You - or a reader - may be more familiar of it.
- The Infiltrator has still no description of his job (it was lacking in your text and I didn't want to make mistakes).
- I am still not satisfied with the Soldier illustration. It is not bad but it doesn't match the others.
- It would be better if I use the same font as the rulebook but I was not able to find it so I chose the Blade Runner one.
- And more, I guess.

Those look sweet!

I'm not really sure on the legalities of using art in this way. I suspect for a set of free playbooks for a playtest version it would be pretty much okay, but that's a hunch with no basis in specific legal knowledge.

That said, I love those illustrations!

For playbooks, I usually prefer having a generic basic move sheet which is not linked to a specific playbook (This is the way AW does it), but some people definitely seem to prefer the way you've done it. So I would have a separate Move sheet with Basic moves on one side and special moves on the other, then playbooks. Does that solve that problem? I know the playbooks come out to quite different lengths, so that's something I'll have to work on as well.

I see what you mean about the Soldier illustration, and agree.

The header font in the game text is AR Destine. I like the Bladerunner one... is that free?
Something to bear in mind is that a lot of the design and layout decisions in the text are purely for my convenience with the barest shade of thematic consideration. Later on in the process I will have the whole thing professionally laid out and then I'll really be making design decisions on fonts and the like.

I haven't really started looking for artists yet, but if anyone knows any good cyberpunk artists, I'm open to suggestions.