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Netcrawl

Created by Horse Shark Games

Netcrawl is a TTRPG about adventuring inside a computer system. Everyone goes in, seconds pass in the meatspace as players spend hours conquering a cyber-dungeon - together.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Update Patch October
18 days ago – Sun, Oct 20, 2024 at 09:32:40 PM

First I want to share with you how grateful I am for your support. This campaign was amazing and you all made it happen. As of right now most pledges have gone through with only 15 people having issues with their payment. Your pledges are so important to producing all the great stuff that you helped make possible.

Speaking of that stuff, I've began ordering the stretch goals and backer bonuses that will accompany your orders. So far I've ordered the WorldNet Posters, the Netcrawl bookmarks, and first 48-hours backer stickers. You'll get a look at the sticker & bookmarks in next month's Update Patch. Here's some photos from the printer of the posters. I bumped the size up an inch to 14"x20". I'm not sure if I'll booger glue them into the books or just put them in the box loose. I think most this stuff will arrive before the end of October.


Julian Bernick has finished his first pass at his 4th level adventure, The Battle at the End of Time. I hear it will be ran by Julian at the Goodman Games' Planet of Cyclops Con and by me at U-Con, in Ypsilanti, MI. Brendan recently checked in on his progress. I am organizing the final corpus, dubbed Netcrawl RPG v0.9, working on adventure, and Netcrawl: Arcologies.

Lastly the Ypsi-Arbor Archveults [Gongfarmers Local #420] have been getting together and playing Netcrawl RPG. Big thanks to Donn Stroud, Mark Donkers, Paul & Robin Linkowski, David Serra & George & Justin Davis for their time play testing the game. It's going to be a great winter.

Events

U-Con in Ypsilanti, MI, November 15-17
Friday at 7:00 PM - Token Collect [Netcrawl DCC RPG]
Saturday at 2:00 PM - Token Collect [Netcrawl DCC RPG]
Saturday at 7:00 PM - River of Lies [DCC RPG - Purple Planet] (SOLD OUT)
Sunday at 10:00 AM - Battle at the End of Time [Netcrawl RPG, DCC RPG]

Planet of the Cyclops Con - online, everywhere, November 23 & 24
TBA - River of Lies [DCC RPG - Purple Planet] 
TBD - Netcrawl adventure

Discord

Keep your eyes peeled for online Netcrawl RPG sessions. Things are busy at home right now, but I promise to run something on the server before the year is out. First priority seating goes to Patreon supporting members. Netcrawl Discord link.

Appearances

The October episode of Spellburn will focus on Grimdark style games and invoking Nick Baran! Tune in to Twitch.tv/GoodmanGamesOfficial on October 28th at 9pm Eastern to catch the skin-crawling, puss-spewing, panic-inducing interview*.
* Disclaimer: Neither Nick, nor talking with Nick, actually cause any of those things to happen.

Patreon

This message was posted over on the Netcrawl patreon and each month I will post there first and then I'll get around to sending an update from Backerkit.

It's Over!
about 1 month ago – Thu, Oct 03, 2024 at 06:56:03 PM

Thank you!

Seriously thank you very much for backing Netcrawl RPG. I am honored to have you on the team.

I had a bunch of fun with Joey Royale as we slapped together a little crowdfunding show on Goodman Games Official Twitch. Thanks to Goodman Games for the use of the channel. And thanks to Alana Thompson for engineering the show.

We didn't end up playing through the conclusion of the adventure, but I promise to turn it into a little digital solo zine or something along those lines so you can finish it on your own.

So close to breaking the stretch goal for the GM screen, but I am in no way disappointed. We put it all out there! It has been an amazing campaign and exceeded my expectations. I'll certainly be providing some PDFs of player handouts, reference booklet of important tables, and the screen for you to print at home.

Join Us on Discord & Patreon!

There's been several new people on the Discord and Patreon. Come on over and join us. A new mechanic of Access Control dropped on the Patreon a few days ago. I'm be talking about why and how to use it later this month in the Developer Diary. I'll be posting the Update Patch from the Patreon here every month (usually published on the 20th). 

I'm going to get some rest. Thank you all again. 
<3 
James

Penultimate Day!
about 1 month ago – Wed, Oct 02, 2024 at 11:11:03 AM

Stretch Goal Collect!

Wow! We have surpassed $40K and now there will be a pad of full color character sheets! This character sheet was designed by Colin Richards and just nails that 80s chillwave, grid architecture until your brain melts.

I've also dropped the collab stretch goal at $50K and put an upgraded printing for the Netcrawl RPG main rulebook in its place. There's only a few cycles left to get us there, but a cool spot gloss treatment will make the books pop and some nice colors on the headband and endsheets make for an even nicer looking book.


Shock-tober Surprise!

October 3rd Brian Shutter, Joey Royale and I will get together on twitch and celebrate the end of the Neon Lords Deities and Demi-Bros Supplement and Netcrawl RPGs amazing crowdfunding campaigns. There will be bonus overtime and the backer train (Choo-choo)! We will watch our backer trains rise and fall and wait as our projects come to an end. We will also celebrate the progress (success) of Weird Heroes of Public Access. The campaign launches on October 3rd at 10 am EDT and I'm sure it will be a huge hit and already be funded by the time 8:30 pm eastern rolls around.

Tune into Twitch.tv/goodmangamesofficial at 8:30 Eastern to watch the stream (simulcast on all of our Backerkit pages).

But that's not all! We will conclude the Play by Poll Adventure Twin Split live on air! What has happened after our momentous activation of particle burst and use of burndown, you ask? Check it out:


Adventure By Poll: Twin Split - pt. 6

Seven purple explosions erupt on the wire shark as B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r successfully runs particle burst!
 
Of the successful poll results, the random.org indicated the roll was on the low side (14-15). But we burned down 5 points brining it up to 20 and we added our level and Wits modifier for another 5. Now 25 is not a shabby result the program at that result will deal 4d12+ B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r's level (which is 3rd). But spending 3 points of Hack to bring it up to 28 yields the following:
 
1d6+3 bursts of particle energy that each deal 1d8 + user’s programmer level points of damage. Each missile can be aimed at a separate target to which the user has line of sight. The particle burst never misses.

So we'll bump the program result up to 28. Random.org says B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r created 7 missiles each dealing for 1d8+3 for a total of 7d8+21! More random rolling gives us a total damage of 58 hit points.

The particle burst blows huge craters all over the wire shark's digital form. Pixels explode and darken. I can confidently report that the wire shark is no more!

Using burndown has consequences! (Did I forgotten to mention that? Sorry.) Every time burndown is used, the player consults the burndown table. Luckily random.org rolls a 5 and the effects are not that severe:

Immediately after destroying the wire shark B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r flickers and convulses uncontrollably for an entire combat round. Fortunately, there is only a single ICE in the connection tunnel. So B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r quickly regains his faculties and moves down the tunnel.

What is at the end of the tunnel? Is Castor still running? Who is behind their disappearance?

YOU TELL US!

I will be running the end of this Play by Poll Adventure during the Shock-ober Surprise at 8:30 pm eastern on Twitch.TV/GoodmanGamesOfficial. Your comments could be used for the narrative, so give us your theories as to the fate of Castor!

3 Days Left!
about 1 month ago – Mon, Sep 30, 2024 at 06:32:51 AM


I can believe that October is almost here and that the campaign to bring Netcrawl RPG to life is nearly over. The stretch goal for a pad of character sheets still eludes us. So close.

Spellburn on Twitch
Tonight I will be on Spellburn with special guest Jonathan Snodgrass from Tuesday Night Fiend Club. We will be talking about Star Crawl and other high tech RPGs. Join us on Twitch tonight at 9 pm eastern time.

Adventure Poll
It's time to roll that particle beam program check and burndown! It appears that B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r will burn 5 points of their stats to boost the program. 

Adventure Poll: Twin Split - pt. 5
about 1 month ago – Sat, Sep 28, 2024 at 11:11:00 AM


The trace fails! For cybernauts that means that the algorithms used have become corrupted and difficult to use (burndown will let us cast it again if we really need it).
Worse than that, there was a wire shark hiding in the connection and it's coming straight for B@TB0!D v01ds33k0r!

Now Cybernauts are a little tougher than fantasy wizards, but they are not fantastic in combat. As noted before, cybernauts can utilize their ability scores to increase their program checks by the amount sacrificed. Doing so is called burndown; the points sacrificed for burndown eventually return but it takes 1 day per point.

Hack can be used after the roll, to increase the program check result. However, Hack does not return after it is spent. You recover Hack for cool & remarkable acts at the table or after the adventure is a success.

Here's our courses of action:
Option 1: Run like hell down the tunnel to whatever is there at the end.
Option 2: Bring down some heavy damage by running particle beam on this tracking terror.
Option 3: Option 2, but with some burndown and/or Hack (tell us how many points we'll burn in the comments) to ensure success and hopefully a high program check result.
Option 4: Let's GO! Time to flash that leet light sword we keep for those occasions where leaving it to the random number generator in our programs just isn't an option.