WARNING. GM ONLY

GM stuff. Secret. Don’t look. It won’t save you.

Troubleshooter

Art by Emiel Boven used per CC-BY 4.0.

Table of contents

NPCs

Infiltrator android

6GD, CTRL 16, as weapon

  • Indistinguishable from humans
  • Highly adaptive, intelligent, and capable. They want to infiltrate and act as the Monarch’s eyes and ears.

Security android

5GD, armor 1, STR 12, CTRL 12, smg assault rifle d8 or d6 blast

  • Mannequin-like, obviously androids
  • Work in swift, brutal teams but do not help each other
  • Intelligent but can be tricked

Forgotten android

4GD, CTRL 8, scavenged tools or weapons d6

  • Mannequin-like. Roll for appearance
  • Cannibalize each other for parts rather than grab things from the production line because of the risk
  • Fearful of being found

Troubleshooter

6GD, Armor 3, STR 12, DEX 12, CTRL 8

  • Wearing black exosuits, amplified and distorted voices, red visors that shine in the dark
  • Fire on all targets. They ensure no infiltrator androids escape the Deep.
  • The Deep does not attack them
  • weapons:
    • leader: pistol d6, smg assault rifle d8 or d6 blast
    • scout: smart rifles d10 (STR dmg if hidden)
    • assault: combat shotgun d6 blast or d10 point-blank
    • gunner: pulse riflers d8+d8
    • support: pistol d6, cybernetic diagnostic scanner

Commander Rachel Kilroy

6GD, 3 armor, STR 12, DEX 16, CTRL 14, pistol d6 or assault rifle d8 or d6 blast

  • Serious and direct, no nonsense commander
  • Wants to maintain the blockade and has a secret goal of destroying Monarch

Diver

3GD, as weapon (d6 pistol, d6 blunt or sharp weapon, d8 rifle)

Chosen

1GD, no weapons

  • Serene, friendly, naive, peaceful androids
  • Friendly to visitors and live idle lives with no knowledge of the Deep

The Butcher

4GD, d8 surgical saw, CTRL 8

  • Same as Chosen

Cherubim

4GD, CTRL 8, d8 machete

  • Guards of the Chosen King, wielding scrap metal machetes

The Chosen King

(same as another Chosen)

The Minotaur

16GD, STR 18, CTRL 18

  • Monstrous, unspeaking except through an android
  • Won’t harm anything and will act to prevent harm coming to any creature, biological or synthetic
  • Sees the good in humanity and wants to be freed to be humanity’s savior
  • Forces CTRL save upon seeing the Minotaur or suffer d6 stress CTRL dmg

Puppeteer

8GD, CTRL 8, DEX 14, d6 needle fingers

  • Android with long needle fingers
  • A tinkling rattle when nearby
  • cd: CTRL save or suffer d6 CTRL dmg. At zero CTRL, puppeteer takes control of target.

Corrupted Security Android

5GD, STR 12, CTRL 12, smash digestive enzymes spew d6 corrosive, ensnare d6

  • Same as security android but leaking digestive enzymes
  • cd: STR save or grappled

Snake Droid

8GD, 1 armor, STR 14, CTRL 14, DEX 16, titanium foam spray d8, thermal lance d8 fire, burrowing

  • Skeleton serpent
  • Audible burrowing noise heralds its approach
  • cd: STR save or be trapped in molten metal foam, d4 dmg per round

Bee Drone

6GD, STR 6, CTRL 8, titanium foam spray d8

  • Large bumblebees made of metal
  • Inject bones with titanium foam
  • cd: STR save or be trapped in molten metal foam, d4 dmg per round
  • when destroyed, explodes with titanium foam.

Spider Drone

6GD, STR 6, surgical needles d6

  • Metal spiders, abdomen full of skeletal android parts
  • Search flawed skeletons with their surgical needle appendages and stored android parts

Stunted Android

4GD, CTRL 8, crushing hug d8

  • Androids with sloughing flesh, voiceless
  • Obey Silus’s commands
  • cd: STR save or grappled and d6 stress CTRL dmg

Pseudomilk Eel

3GD, STR 12, CTRL 8, bite d6

  • White glowing eels
  • Swarm around to collect nutrients and produce pseudomilk
  • cd: CTRL save or suffer d6 stress CTRL dmg

Android Dog

4GD, 12 STR, DEX 14, CTRL 8

  • Synthetic android dogs
  • Plans ambushes to attack intruders, ignores all androids
  • cd: STR save or suffer d6 DEX dmg (bitten limbs)

Mind-Thief

1GD, STR 14, CTRL 18

  • Small child android
  • Wants to destroy Monarch using the Hell Box its created

Spider Tank

10GD, armor 3, STR 16, CTRL 18, DEX 14, as detachment, micro rockets d10+d10 blast reload, twin hmg d10

  • Giant metal spider with massive guns attached
  • Attacks intruders

Renzo

  • Ghostly apparition of a young woman sitting on a warhead
  • May be helpful, desires the destruction of Monarch by arming the warhead
  • cd: CTRL save or lose d6 CTRL. At 0, instead of panic, possessed by Renzo

Child-Android

1GD, CTRL 8, stun lance d6 stun

  • Child androids
  • Want to escape from HEL

Monarch

20GD, 3 armor, STR 18, CTRL 18, DEX 18.

  • A mountain of a machine with a gaping wound
  • Does not speak, communicates through screens
  • Summons security androids to attack anyone who nears them
  • Treat as detachment

The Hunter

8GD, 1 armor, STR 12, DEX 16, CTRL 16, scythe d10, steel web STR save or grappled by steel web

  • Android torso with six limbs in the shape of scythes, top half of head covered in eyes, and lower jaw replaced by a syringe shaped proboscis
  • Hunt any creatures that disturb its steel webs
  • cd: STR save or captured in steel web

The Dweller

4GD, CTRL 18, DEX 6, coil-n-crush tentacles d8+d8

  • Squid-like mechanical creature
  • Crushes and constricts intruders with its tentacles
  • cd: CTRL save or suffer d6 stress (CTRL dmg)

Freight Android

4GD, 1 armor, CTRL 6, hook hands d8

  • Hook-handed android used to transport freight
  • Attacks any creature in the freight area, apologetically
  • cd: STR save or be grappled. Grappled creatures are subsequently crushed

Pseudoflesh Jellyfish

3GD, STR 6, CTRL 6, DEX 6, nervebite d6

  • Eerie glowing jellyfish
  • Prefer ambushing attacks on intruders
  • cd: STR save or 1d6 dmg / round (nerve pain). Upon death, victim spews gas which inflicts d6 dmg to all nearby

Spaceships

Flagship Relentless IX

6 shields, 3 armor, 18 hull, 8 drive, 16 tech, phased array d6 s/m, railgun d8 s, missiles d10+d10 L, ion cannon d8 s, repair bots (heals 1 shield/round), 4 actions

  • 8 officers, 36 crew, 60 troubleshooters
  • Commander Rachel Kilroy

Jump-I Troopship Zhuangzi I-V

3 shields, 1 armor, 14 hull, 16 drive, 10 tech, phased array d6 s/m, railgun d8 s

  • 4 officers, 12 crew, 40 troubleshooters
  • Capt Klaus Olham

JITS David III-V

3 shields, 1 armor, 14 hull, 16 drive, 10 tech, phased array d6 s/m, railgun d8 s

  • 4 officers, 12 crew, 40 troubleshooters
  • Capt Tasso Hendricks

JITS Outspacer Rudi II-V

3 shields, 1 armor, 14 hull, 16 drive, 10 tech, phased array d6 s/m, railgun d8 s

  • 4 officers, 12 crew, 40 troubleshooters
  • Capt Eno Valis

Artifacts

Syringe of pseudoflesh-strengthening retrovirus

+1d6 GD to an android for 24 hours

Pair of eyes

As written but CTRL save to prevent 1d6 CTRL loss per month installed

Long rifle

d10+d10 dmg

Symbiotic Power Armor

CTRL save or lose 1d6 CTRL while becoming conditioned to the suit. 2 armor. As written.

Potent nootropic drug

Every skill is trained while high. Lasts 12 hours.

Omnislick

Lose 2d6 CTRL.

Bundle of metallic needles

d6 dmg to random stat

Helmet-shaped lattice of pseudoflesh

STR save and gain limited telekinetic activity. Take 1 fatigue to hurl 100lbs 150 feet. As written.

Shapeless clay-like vaccsuit

1 armor. As written.

Pair of nymph-androids

8GD, d6 wrist blades, STR 14, CTRL 16. When first scene, CTRL save or lose 1d6 CTRL.

Ideas

  • Use the random location on the station table and randomize the artifact.
  • Have the session start with the characters with the artifact and awakening inside the factory without remembering how they got there and how they got the artifact.
  • Use random search table to add color to the rooms.
  • Have Troubleshooters arrive halfway through session to speed them along.

Gradient Descent Modifications

  • On a 20, there is a far away encounter (2-3 rooms away / at the far end of an industrial room)
  • On a 1, there is a near by encounter (same room or 1 room away / near by in an industrial room)

Sanity saves = Resolve save or lose X resolve

Doling Out Experience

  • d4 per new character you are playing alongside
  • d4 per enemy killed
  • d6 if you end session outside the Deep
  • d8 for the first time you enter a level (or sublevel) of the Deep
  • d4 each for encountering Axxx, Nxxx, the GxxxExxx, and CxxxRxxxKxxx for the first time
  • d6 each for encountering the Bxxx, the Cxxx Kxxx, the Pxxx, Sxxx, the Mxxx-Txxx, Rxxx, or the Hxxx for the first time
  • d8 each for encountering the Mxxx or Mxxx for the first time
  • d10 per artifact safely recovered from the Deep