1.2 - What Do You Do?
Alpha State
This game system, and the setting in which it takes place, are both in active development. Everything on this site is subject to change. Please hard refresh pages when you visit to ensure you're viewing the latest versions.Sure, you know who you are, but what are you good at? Are you the toughest bitch on the block? The smartest man alive? The coolest cat that's ever walked the stars? What kind of training have you had? What sorts of things interest you? All of this shapes the sorts of things you're good at and, by extension, what you suck at. It's okay, most people suck at most things.
An equally important part of all this is your sense of self, your connection to others, and your conception of reality; in short, your humanity. NeoNeuro tells the stories of people who have that spark to push back, or even fight back. If you lose yourself to corporate brandwashing, or if you forget the difference between what's real and what's not, or if you stop seeing other people as people, you're lost. This is the story of people who fight that emptiness.
What you're good at usually has a lot to do with the kind of person you are. If you're a big tough bast-ard, you'll approach situations differently than if you were the Techie type. This is represented by Styles.
Using Styles
There are 5 Styles, and everybody's got some of each. Each time you do something, roll the die for a relevant Style. You can read more about how dice rolls work in CodeBlock 2.1 - NeuroSystem Rules, but here's a breakdown of what each Style actually means:
Tough
This is used whenever you need to be physically or emotionally strong, imposing, or resilient. That could mean raw physical strength or endurance, but it's also about strength of will to carry on through the hard fight. Mental and emotional fortitude, the willingness to push past your own limits, and the like. If you're a tough person you might be a solid mass of muscle, or you could just have an exceptionally strong will.
This doesn't mean that a person who isn't Tough is weak in body, mind, or spirit (tho it could, you never know). It means that's just not their focus. It could be that someone who isn't Tough sees no reason to power through difficult situations, and prefers to find a different way through (or around).
Some examples of being Tough:
- Enduring pain without flinching
- Holding down someone trying to escape
- Lifting a heavy object
- Making an up-close physical attack
- Doing anything when your Resolve is gone
- Overpowering someone physically
- Pulling yourself together after heavy loss
- Pushing someone off of you
- Enduring the pain of radiation poisoning
Quick
This is used whenever you need to be fast and accurate, physically or mentally. It could be you have nimble fingers and quick feet, or you're mentally very sharp. It's about noticing the things around you, and flowing with the people and things happening in the area. If you're a quick person you might be quick-witted, very agile, or a combination of both.
This doesn't mean that a person who isn't Quick is dull-witted, clumsy, or the like (tho it could). Being Quick just isn't their focus. They might simply prefer to use patience in all things, and could be happy to wait out any situation and not act rashly.
Some examples of being Quick:
- Realizing someone is following you
- Catching something in mid-air
- Slipping an object out of someone's pocket
- Twirling a butterfly and not cutting yourself
- Dodging falling debris
- Telling a lie you thought up on the spot
- Noticing someone's eyes flicker when they lie
- Driving fast through heavy traffic
- Shooting at target with little or no warning
Cool
This is used whenever you need to keep a cool head or just be the coolest person on the deck. It's a mix of your sense of self, fashion, and charisma, but also mental focus, and an ability to stay calm. Cool is a matter of self control, but it can also simply be that you've got ways of keeping your shit together.
This doesn't mean that a person who isn't Cool is a dork or has low self-esteem (tho it might). It could be that they're not worried about appearances, and self-assurance comes from their other strengths. Or maybe they're a frazzled, high-stress person, who knows!
Some examples of being Cool:
- Making slow, steady movements to be silent
- Convincing someone to do something
- Smooth-talking through a social fumble
- Making a long-range shot that requires focus
- Giving a memorable performance
- Staring someone down in a tense moment
- Staying calm when your Resolve is gone
- Telling a lie you've planned out (a long con)
- Holding too steady for motion sensors
Techie
This is used when you want to use complex technology, whether than means using it for things it wasn't intended for, using its more advanced features, designing it, improving it, or anything of the sort. Anyone can use a computer, but using it to bypass a security system or write an app would.
This doesn't mean a person who's not Techie is ignorant about technology or doesn't know how to use it (tho it could). It could be that someone who's not Techie has more interest in other things, or is fine with their tech's basic functionality. Not everybody needs to reprogram everything all the time.
Some examples of being Techie:
- Reprogramming a drone
- Writing or modding a functional app
- Operating large vehicles in risky conditions
- Identifying different circuit types
- Repairing damaged equipment
- Ripping code apart to breach a firewall
- Installing new parts in a drone or android
- Identifying a piece of tech's manufacturer
- Installing, modding, or upgrading cyberware
Smart
This is used when you need to think carefully or just be knowledgeable. It's partly education, but it's also your ability to think critically or creatively. It's a matter of being able to parse your thoughts in an effective way so you can understand complex things and express them in a way others can understand.
This doesn't mean someone who's not Smart is stupid, or doesn't know anything (tho it might). It could be that other tasks simply come easier, or are more comfortable for them; or maybe they just find peace in having no thoughts in their pretty head. It's not about IQ (even if IQ wasn't bullshit), it's a focus on the application of memory and methods of thinking.
Some examples of being Smart:
- Remembering what someone said weeks ago
- Measuring what you know about a topic
- Understand fine print in a contract
- Having a realization about a mental puzzle
- Memorizing a series of numbers or stats
- Doing advanced math in your head
- Parsing the specifics of a social theory
- Reciting something from memory
- Knowing how to keep your meat sack healthy
Swapping Styles
People can change, but it's not easy. Your Styles can't be increased, but can be swapped. By spending 2,000 XP, you can swap two Styles; the die rating of one becomes the die rating of the other, and vice versa. You can swap any of the two; swap Tough and Cool, swap Techie and Smart, any pairing you want.
Like other XP groups, swapping Styles gets more expensive. Each subsequent swap costs +100 XP. This cost increase applies only to Styles, not other XP groups, but it can't be bypassed or reduced in any way. Changing how you approach the world doesn't get easier.
The things you're good at are often defined by the training you've had. Maybe you learned from strict instruction, or you read from an old tech manual you found in the trash, or figured things out on your own. No matter where you got the training, it provided you knowledge that applies to all relevant situations.
Using Training
There are 10 Training groups, and most people focus on a few of them. Whenever you try to do something that's relevant to something you're trained in, you roll the relevant die and add it to the Style die you rolled.
Capped Training & Knowledge
Some Training and Knowledge are restricted by corporate control; they're not illegal, just locked behind paywalls. If you can't afford that access, it's hard to learn them.
The total dice value of all capped Skills and Interests (marked with ($)) can't be higher than your $. So if you have 17$, the total maximum dice value of all capped Skills and Interests can't be higher than 17. They can be any mix, so long as the total value isn't higher than your $.
If your $ drops for some reason, it doesn't reduce your Training or Knowledge. It does mean you can't improve any capped Training or Knowledge until you up your $ enough to cover the cost.
Awareness is keeping your eyes and ears open. It could be about seeing something hidden in a messy room, noticing someone's nervous tic, hearing footsteps of someone sneaking up on you, or anything similar.
Combat involves anything to do with trying to cause or avoid harm. From firing a gun, swinging a sword, ducking behind cover, or deflecting a punch, it's all combat and it all applies.
Education ($) is about how much you know. Whether it's corporate procedure, the difference between a turtle and a tortoise, or the history of cyberware, if you can learn it from a book or in a school, this Training applies.
Fitness involves using your physicality to perform difficult tasks. Could be lifting something heavy, climbing up a wall, jumping across a gap, or anything else related to difficult physical efforts.
Hardware is about using, modifying, repairing, designing, assembling, or disassembling any piece of technical hardware. From cars, to droids, to the latest cyberware, this Training applies to all physical technology.
Medicine ($) involves healing injuries, using meds that will have specific desired effects on the human body, or anything else related to any type of medical practice. From first aid to surgery, it all applies.
Social involves any social interaction. From negotiating a contract, to convincing your best gal to let you eat the last donut, to talking down an active shooter. If it involves interacting with other people, it's Social.
Software is about using, modifying, or writing any type of computer code. This could mean simply using a search engine as effectively as possible, or it could be writing an entirely new app to achieve a specific result.
Subtlety is about being sneaky. You might be outright lying, sneaking an object from someone's pocket, or you could be giving someone a signal without alerting anyone else around you. It's all about not being noticed.
Vehicles involves any kind of vehicle that's ever been built. Revcycles, cars, trams, slicers, starships, tanks, and more. If it's machine you can drive, then this Training applies.
Increasing Training
As you survive more dangers and learn more things, you can increase your Training with experience. By spending 1,000 XP, you can increase 1 Training group by 1 die step. You can increase any Training, up to a maximum rating of d12.
Like other XP groups, increasing Training gets more expensive. Each subsequent increase costs +100 XP. This cost increase applies only to Training, not other XP purchase groups, but it can't be bypassed or reduced in any way. Neuroplasticity has its limits.
Everyone is fascinated by certain things, whether personally or professionally, and these often add to the knowledge and skill you bring to the table. If you're interested in guns, that knowledge applies to different situations than an interest in corporations.
Using Knowledge
There are 33 listed Knowledge groups below; if you feel like one is missing, work with your Narrator to decide what to call it. Knowledge groups are narrower than Styles or Training groups, but shouldn't be too specific. A knowledge of gambling is useful, a knowledge of poker is less useful. If you invent one, make sure your Narrator agrees.
When you try to do something relevant to one of your Knowledge groups, you roll that die and add it to the Style and Training dice you rolled. If more than one of your Knowledge groups are relevant to the attempt, pick the most relevant one.
Brawling is your ability to take hits and deal them out; no weapons, no tricks, no bullshit. Well, maybe some bullshit.
Bureaucracy ($) measures how much you know about corporate rules, regulations, & red tape.
Computers measures how much you know about old school manual computers.
Corporations ($) measures your knowledge of corporations and what they do.
Cyberware is the tech that augments, replaces, or enhances natural bodily functions.
Deception is your ability to pull one over on other people; verbal, written, or otherwise.
Fashion is how stylish you are; knowledge of current trends and how to dress for purpose.
Firearmsis how much you know about firearms—kinetic or otherwise—and about their use.
First Aid ($) is knowledge about patching up injuries on a quick, short term basis.
Gambling is how much you know about games of chance, or how boldly you play.
Hacking is about finding ways around a computer system's security measures.
Handweapons is knowledge of handheld weapons like bats, swords; anything used up close.
History ($) is anything that happened before now, usually written down by the people in charge.
Insight measures how well you're able to read other people, especially the things they're not saying out loud.
Investigation is about finding info; including info that someone doesn't want you to find.
Machinery means things with gears, chains, levers, grease, and big clanky metal.
Micro-Grav is your familiarity operating in micro-gravity, and how to account for different movement within it.
Navigation is about your knowledge of plotting courses; any map can apply, but usually it's about interstellar travel.
Performance is your ability to act, sing, game, tell stories, or otherwise entertain.
Persuasion measures your ability to convince others of things; politely, severely, or otherwise.
Revcycles are 2-wheeled vehicles that you have to balance, and carry only one or two people.
Ripping is the practice of unraveling or tearing apart the security of a computer system.
Security relates to locking systems, objects, or areas from unauthorized access.
Shuttles are 3- 9-person vehicles built with non-atmo propulsion and limited anti-grav, built to carry small cargo volumes.
Slicers are 3- 5-person vehicles built on revtech and fitted with anti-grav, usually lacking any non-atmo propulsion.
Starfighters are 1- 2-person vehicles built solely with non-atmo propulsion and designed for strike combat.
Stealth is not necessarily your ability to remain unseen, but unnoticed. There's a difference.
Strategy ($) is about long term planning, trying to find the best path forward to a distant goal.
Streets measures how much you know about the ins and outs of deck-plate strees, what do to, what not to do, and who knows what.
Surgery ($) is the knowledge to perform invasive procedures without doing a murder.
Tactics is about short term planning, whether that's in a fight or organizing a warehouse.
Thievery is all about taking things people don't want you to; keys, wallets, pants, whatever.
Transports are 2- 3-person vehicles with only non-atmo propulsion, built to carry moderate cargo volumes.
You might not believe it, but you've got more in common with other people than you have differences. Nobody will actually tell you that anymore, but it's true. There's basic commonalities shared with all sentient beings; and yes, that includes synthetic intelligence and manufactured people. "Can androids be human," or "are replicants people," are questions we answered ages ago. We answered it several times, in fact, and the answer was always "yes." That's past.
Nobody bothers asking "can they be human" anymore, in fact nobody much bothers asking "what is a human." These days the only thing that matters is: can you hold onto your humanity? When every waking moment is spent fighting back the tide of advertisements and bloody news, when every community you're part of wants to remake you in their image, when the comfortable people and places you build for yourself online start to feel better than the madness that is reality, the question gets difficult to answer. In an age of endless systems designed to crush everyone in its wake, can you really, honestly hold onto your humanity for very long?
Using Humanity
There are 3 core stats and 1 support stat, described below. Everyone has these four stats, each in varying amounts, and when things get tough you measure them against Apathy and Dissonance.
Identity is your knowledge of self, the strength of your convictions, and belief in your ideals. The things about you that mean the most give you a sense of identity. Identity is contrasted by Apathy. If ever your Identity is reduced to 0 you lose your sense of self and become a narrator character; you've lost sight of who you are, overtaken by brandwashing or community needs, and you exist now in a state of blank survival.
Empathy is your ability to understand the feelings of others, and to have compassion for their views and struggles, recognizing that other people matter is critical to fighting for them. Empathy is contrasted by Apathy or Dissonance. If ever your Empathy is reduced to 0 you lose your attachment to other people. You either stop feeling anything for any other people and become a dangerously violent, abusive, or destructive narrator character, or you no longer believe other people are real and become an equally dangerous narrator character.
Clarity is your ability to discern between digital and physical, like seeing the truth behind memory implants or fake people and objects piped in through your ICS. It's partly about knowing what's real, but it's also about knowing why that matters. Clarity is contrasted by Dissonance. If ever your Clarity is reduced to 0 you no longer care what's real and become a narrator character; you've lost all sense of perspective, now living a life built entirely of fictional friends and events, eventually forgetting your body entirely.
Resolve is your strength of personality, emotional reserve, force of character, focus, and sense of purpose. It's the fire inside. Resolve isn't contrasted by anything, but shores up other Humanity stats. Every time you Measure one of your Humanity stats, add your current Resolve to the stat being measured to determine how many dice to roll for the measure.
Resolve can also be spent like a resource. Whenever you push an STK Check, it costs you 1 Resolve. You can't reduce your Resolve below 0 in this way; and while your Resolve is 0, you are depressed and exhausted. You regain 1d4 Resolve at the start of every Scene.
Increasing Resolve
Spending time on yourself, getting a solid grip on your Identity, Empathy, and Clarity can have a profound impact. By spending 1,000 XP, you can increase your maximum Resolve by 1, up to a maximum of 10.
Like other XP groups, increasing Resolve gets more expensive. Each subsequent increase costs +100 XP. This cost increase applies only to Resolve, not other XP groups, but it can't be bypassed or reduced in any way.
Measuring Humanity
Humanity stats aren't measured during normal gameplay, but at the end of downtime. Whenever a new Scene begins you can choose to skip that Scene for downtime, or perhaps your entire group decides to take a rest. Downtime works like any other Scene, but is often a solo affair.
When you take downtime, you spend the entire Scene in meaningful interaction with a Tether or a Comfort. Or both, but there's no additional benefit to doing so. Roleplay the scene, or just describe what you spend your time doing. At the end of the Scene, Measure one Humanity stat. You can Measure whichever you like, but you can only measure one stat per downtime. If you're measuring Empathy, choose to contrast it with Apathy or Dissonance.
If your Measure is an overall win, regain 1 point lost from the Measured stat (if any, up to its original maximum) and reduce its contrast by an amount equal to the positive span of the Measure (to a minimum of 0). Your downtime has helped you reconnect with yourself, or with others, or with why reality matters. It can have lots of different meanings depending on you, who and what you interacted with, and what you were struggling with. Work with your Narrator to describe the emotions of it.
If your Measure is an overall loss, lose 1 from the stat that you Measured (to a minimum of 0) and reduce its contrast by an amount equal to the negative span of the Measure (to a minimum of 0). Your downtime just wasn't enough, for whatever reason, and you feel yourself slipping a little more. Maybe something about your downtime just didn't help the way you'd hoped it would, or maybe the things you're struggling with are just too big.
Tethers and Comforts in Regular Scenes
Sometimes one of your Tethers might show up in a regular scene, or you might visit one of your Comforts. Even though you don't measure Humanity at the end of a regular scene, there is one small benefit to interacting with your Tethers and Comforts. At the end of a regular scene during which you interact with a Tether or a Comfort, you get a Humanity Boost. This is 1 bonus die that you hold in reserve; you can only hold up to 3 Humanity Boosts in reserve at a time. Whenever you Measure Humanity during downtime, regardless of which stat you're Measuring, you can spend any number of reserved Humanity Boost dice, adding them to the stat you are Measuring. Once used in this way, a Humanity Boost is spent. You can gain more later.