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So, hearing about Interface Zero on Atomic Array* i had a momment of geekgasm. My experience of true20 starts and ends with a copy of blue rose, which i love conceptually, but have never gotten to do anything with.

So, what i would like to know is this; Is Interface Zero any good. Does the spirit of classic cyberpunk translate into the game. Everything that was spoken about on the podcast sounded cool but does it live up to the possiblities and does it still have its soul in actual play.

*Just started listening, you guys rock muchly by the way.

Is Interface Zero any good. Does the spirit of classic cyberpunk translate into the game. Everything that was spoken about on the podcast sounded cool but does it live up to the possiblities and does it still have its soul in actual play.

*Just started listening, you guys rock muchly by the way.

And now... IZ.

Rone and I never feature a product we don't like. Interface-Zero is no exception. In fact, Rone and I were originally going to be writing on the project that became IZ, but various things conspired against us. We were thrilled to watch Hal, Matt and Pat develop the final product since they are steeped knee-deep in cyberlore.

IZ has all the elements of classic cyberpunk - the street samurai, the seedy hacker, the gun bunny in the employ of what turns out to be an AI. But IZ goes a little beyond that. As Pat Smith, one of the developers, said:

"Cyberpunk, pure cyber punk, is retro. When Gibson did his thing in the 80's, he couldn't even imagine cellphones. In some ways we're way beyond the technology available to Case and Molly today. So the future needed an update."

Take your classic cyberfare and open the field up to augmented reality, combat hackers, genetic upgrades, and similacrum butlers. Take the ability to play a street mercenary, but also give them the option of playing the corp who hires them. Include the ability to play a campaign where the whole goal is to get into that corner office. Do all this, and you can see where IZ takes cyberpunk.

What some people don't know is that the team actually had its very own mad scientist (Smith) who currently has a Master's degree in Computers with a specialty in Machine Learning (a subset of Artificial Intelligence). He was able to craft a network layout with elements that looks forward to what computing might look like in 20 years.

The IZ designers drew on the classics (Gibson, Shadowrun, et al), but then updated the tropes to include the hard science of today, and the tech we're likely to see in a dystopic near future. I definitely recommend checking it out.

Zombieneighbours wrote:

Is Interface Zero any good. Does the spirit of classic cyberpunk translate into the game. Everything that was spoken about on the podcast sounded cool but does it live up to the possiblities and does it still have its soul in actual play.

*Just started listening, you guys rock muchly by the way.

Last thing, first: Thanks for listening to our show. We love to hear comments, so keep them coming. Make sure you subscribe to our feed so you never miss an episode.

And now... IZ.

Rone and I never feature a product we don't like. Interface-Zero is no exception. In fact, Rone and I were originally going to be writing on the project that became IZ, but various things conspired against us. We were thrilled to watch Phil, Matt and Pat develop the final product since they are steeped knee-deep in cyberlore.

IZ has all the elements of classic cyberpunk - the street samurai, the seedy hacker, the gun bunny in the employ of what turns out to be an AI. But IZ goes a little beyond that. As Pat Smith, one of the developers, said:

"Cyberpunk, pure cyber punk, is retro. When Gibson did his thing in the 80's, he couldn't even imagine cellphones. In some ways we're way beyond the technology available to Case and Molly today. So the future needed an update."

Take your classic cyberfare and open the field up to augmented reality, combat hackers, genetic upgrades, and similacrum butlers. Take the ability to play a street mercenary, but also give them the option of playing the corp who hires them. Include the ability to play a campaign where the whole goal is to get into that corner office. Do all this, and you can see where IZ takes cyberpunk.

What some people don't know is that the team actually had its very own mad scientist (Smith) who currently has a Master's degree in Computers with a specialty in Machine Learning (a subset of Artificial Intelligence). He was able to craft a network layout with elements...

Incidentally, on a more mechanical point, can melee characters, built in the style of molly actually keep pace with gun bunnies? One of the problems of CP2020 for instance, was the inability of more such characters to actually keep pace with ranged combat. It might have been a game about style over substance, but sometimes style got you very dead.

ZN, we wrote to the guys and asked them to come here and talk about the juicy details. :) Can't beat the horse's mouth. Well you can, but it tends to get him all kicky.

ZN, we wrote to the guys and asked them to come here and talk about the juicy details. :) Can't beat the horse's mouth. Well you can, but it tends to get him all kicky.

So, what i would like to know is this; Is Interface Zero any good. Does the spirit of classic cyberpunk translate into the game. Everything that was spoken about on the podcast sounded cool but does it live up to the possiblities and does it still have its soul in actual play.

We spent a lot of time discussing ways to capture the feel of classic cyberpunk while also taking into account how our understanding of technology has changed over the last twenty-five to thirty years. The sense of alienation is still there. Technology has tranformed humanity and the society it inhabits in countless ways, some for good others for ill. Powerful organizations, mega-corps and others, still exert an almost overwhelming influence on the planet.

But Global Warming has happened. There's no more oil. Terrorists have used dirty bombs. A "nuclear autumn" following an exchange between India and Pakistan triggered a decade long famine called the Death. The US has fallen apart through civil war waged between religious and secular factions. China is on the rise (it even landed people on Mars). Brazil, empowered by its preservation of the rain forest (and enriched by the genetic bounty it has provided) now stands ready to take on the world.

Nearly every human being on the planet has a direct sensory link to the virtual world. They perceive two realities, one tangible and one virtual, and consider both of them valid. For instance, controls for machines, vehicles and just about everything else are intertwined through both realities. This means the start button for something might only exist on the virtual interface.

People without a TAP (the brain interface you need to access the virtual world) have trouble functioning. On the other hand, they're never vulnerable to viruses or the other predatory memes that exist only in the virtual environment.

Most countries have signed the Omega Protocols designed to keep computers from evolving beyond human understanding (a Vingian Singularity). However, some people actually want to bring this about, and create their own God, heaven, and hell...

It's definitely cyberpunk, dystopian and uncertain, but it also plays on the themes of the post cyberpunk writers like Charles Stross, Neal Stephenson, and Ian MacDonald.

(I'm a huge SF nerd so you'll find the influence of many of these genre writers throughout the text)

Zombieneighbours wrote:

So, what i would like to know is this; Is Interface Zero any good. Does the spirit of classic cyberpunk translate into the game. Everything that was spoken about on the podcast sounded cool but does it live up to the possiblities and does it still have its soul in actual play.

Admitedly I'm biased, but I think it's pretty good :)

We spent a lot of time discussing ways to capture the feel of classic cyberpunk while also taking into account how our understanding of technology has changed over the last twenty-five to thirty years. The sense of alienation is still there. Technology has tranformed humanity and the society it inhabits in countless ways, some for good others for ill. Powerful organizations, mega-corps and others, still exert an almost overwhelming influence on the planet.

But Global Warming has happened. There's no more oil. Terrorists have used dirty bombs. A "nuclear autumn" following an exchange between India and Pakistan triggered a decade long famine called the Death. The US has fallen apart through civil war waged between religious and secular factions. China is on the rise (it even landed people on Mars). Brazil, empowered by its preservation of the rain forest (and enriched by the genetic bounty it has provided) now stands ready to take on the world.

Nearly every human being on the planet has a direct sensory link to the virtual world. They perceive two realities, one tangible and one virtual, and consider both of them valid. For instance, controls for machines, vehicles and just about everything else are intertwined through both realities. This means the start button for something might only exist on the virtual interface.

People without a TAP (the brain interface you need to access the virtual world) have trouble functioning. On the other hand, they're never vulnerable to viruses or the other predatory memes that exist only in the virtual environment.

Most countries have signed the Omega Protocols designed to keep computers from...

Omega Protocols = turing police?

Is there a gattaca = gene rich/gene poor divide?

Mention of 'other predatory meme' makes me think of global frequency.

Going with direct man/machine interface with the TAP to provide enhanced reality was kind of ballsy, even shadowrun had not gone that far i don't think.

It all sounds super cool.

For what it's worth, I think this book rocks. I can't imagine you being disappointed.

Incidentally, on a more mechanical point, can melee characters, built in the style of molly actually keep pace with gun bunnies? One of the problems of CP2020 for instance, was the inability of more such characters to actually keep pace with ranged combat. It might have been a game about style over substance, but sometimes style got you very dead.

First off, hey, thanks for the kind words.

In the melee vs ranged debate... I've got, um, 3 points, one of which is a new feat. The feat is non-canonical, which means attempting to use it in tournament play will result in revocation of the offending player's license, as well as possible excommunication. You have been warned.

One. In the real world, most gun fights happen at ranges of 30 feet or less. I forget where I heard that, and can't confirm it's truth, but it strengthens my argument -- it must be true. Also, if a sword saint charges a bunch of machine gunners on a flat, featureless plain, she deserves what she gets.

Combat in IZ should always be in office buildings after hours -- or office building during hours (what kind of cover does a secratary offer?). In half-demolished abandoned hospitals at night with heavy fog and a nest of mutant flesh eating dogs adding to the fun. Across four lanes of rush hour traffic from the back of a Honda. That's on fire. Dangling form the under side of a . . . well, you get the idea.

In these kinds of environments, range is much less important than stealth and speed. Tell you GM not to hold combats in featureless environments - a good solid desk in the middle of a room can give your Martial Adept all the cover she needs to close with the idiot with the pea shooter. As an added bonus, rifles, shotguns and such should be at a substantial penalty to hit when used in melee.

Two: The Vicious Spike. One of the inspirations -- the inspiration -- for Gun Santos is Spike of Cowboy Bebop. When he went toe to toe with the sword-wielding Vicious, they were evenly matched. You could argue about the physics of the situation or the skill and spirit of the characters, but the truth is that they were nemesis (nemesii?) and they needed to be evenly matched.

This is a game you're playing, and while it's great to get it to be completely true to the real world, if line of sight or lighting and visibility get in the way of telling a good story, they get cut.

Three: new feat:
---------------------------------
Close the distance (Expert)
Prereq: 6 or more ranks of Acrobatics

A Hero with Close the Distance can make a standard charge action across virtually any kind of terrain he can reasonable cross using acrobatics.

The usual restrictions apply: he must move in a straight line, he must stop as soon as he can strike the opponent, he must make a melee attack at the end of his charge, his attack is (+2) and his defense is (-2). However, the charge can be made across office furniture, through (or on top of) crowds, even (assuming the GM rules the hero in question is skilled enough to do it) across four lanes of traffic.

In certain circumstances (the under riggings of a bridge, for example) the GM may require Climb instead of Acrobatics. The rank requirement can be met with upgrades or tools that increase the Acrobatics skill.

Note: the Hero must still cross the intervening distance. If there are foes in his path, handle this the same way you would usually handle slipping past enemies. If he's charging by jumping from car to car in traffic, the GM should demand the same Acrobatics roll he would for trying this kind of crazy s**~ while not in traffic. You might even want to slap a (-2) on the skill check and attack to reflect that the Hero is doing both in one round. And if traffic is zipping along at 160 KPH, the Difficulty is probably going to be REAAALLLLLYYY high.
-----------------------------

Standard charge, by the way, allows the character to move twice his normal combat move (this ends up being 60ft for most of us) and make a melee attack at (+2). It's a full round action, and your Defense is (-2) for a round. It's listed under "Actions" in the "Adventuring" chapter of the basic True20 book. They're doing a new edition, so I won't bother with page numbers.

Alright, be nice to everyone (even mean people) and buy our product. Or cut out the middle man and just send us money. Either one is find by me.

Love that you dealt with the Block countries(so many G8 residented just completely ignore the 'threat' of the block).

Omega Protocols = turing police?

Is there a gattaca = gene rich/gene poor divide?

Mention of 'other predatory meme' makes me think of global frequency.

Going with direct man/machine interface with the TAP to provide enhanced reality was kind of ballsy, even shadowrun had not gone that far i don't think.

It all sounds super cool.

I wrote a piece of fiction that has yet to be published - Matt has it on his desk and I think he's going to work it in some where. My thought was the Omega Protocols had an oversight/compliance monitoring body, and when the AI's started killing people, they got troops.

The protocols I envision like the FBI: good and bad, heroes or villains, they're cool. Samuel "the Monk" Patel and Jessica Dane are wandering investigators, and.... well, like I said, I hope it see print.

The gene thing is tricky because if having rich parents means 8 points in attributes instead of 6, no one will be below the poverty level.

I will say we were discussing genetic warfare - enemy states kidnapping citizens, infecting them with DNA changing retro viruses, and releasing them back into the population. If the changes increase fertility and lower intelligence . . . in some areas these programs have been going on for decades.

Balls on, BTW - you're on the Frequency. Did you know there was a half hour pilot made for a TV series? Piracy is wrong, and the pilot is out there. in internetland.

As for the Augmented Reality - thanks, man. That was my baby. Any faults are mine, any thing good happened because I was beat about the head by my co-authors when I said stupid stuff.

I am aware of the most veiwed show that never aired and would dearly like to see it.

I guess you guys have convinced me. I didn't need much to be honest, but i think i will have to pick it up and maybe see about getting the I-zenes as well.

With regards to the range thing, I totally get that cyber-punk combat shouldn't be happening in the middle of an open field.

I certainly did not want street sam's to charge down the streed and not die, but as long as i can make a molly style razorgirl function without instantly dying in a full auto burst, i am happy.

I guess you guys have convinced me.

If you do, post a comment on Atomic Array, as well, so other listeners can read your thoughts.

Zombieneighbours wrote:

I guess you guys have convinced me.

Let us know what you think, OK? A review (*looks up*) would be cool.

If you do, post a comment on Atomic Array, as well, so other listeners can read your thoughts.

Oh whats up coming on the array?