Before implanting the knowledge of CY_BORG, I would like to thank Free League Publishing who sent us a review copy of the manual. It is a tabletop RPG derived from the award-winning Mörk Borg, but which abandons the dark fantasy setting in favor of a cyberpunk one. This product was born thanks to the ruleset created by Christian Sahlen, the design curated by Johan Nohr, and Stockholm Kartell.
In case you are interested, know that the manual is available on the official Free League store at a price of around 40 euros; in addition, you can also decide to integrate the purchase with the approximately 35 euros of the Asset Pack, which I will tell you about later since I am pleased to have this available too.
It is important to specify that, although it derives from it, it is not absolutely necessary to know or possess Mörk Borg; in any case, if you want to fill this serious lack, I’ll leave you my review of that TTRPG as well.
CY_BORG fully embodies the genre to which it belongs and, as we are about to see in this review, proves to be cyberpunk to the core.
The Setting and Context
The world is in ruins, this time devoured by its own inhabitants: humanity. Capitalism and the exploitation of the environment have dragged the world towards an ever more extreme drift, a non-return of unlivability as the end of everything gets closer. The most powerful and least scrupulous industries have caused nuclear disasters, pandemics and every other form of pollution and poisoning; feeding on the carcass of the world, they have evolved to become true corporations.
Those who belong to these ruthless realities live in areas called Hills, as if to reaffirm their superiority; the others, those who are crushed and exploited by the system, are confined to the Slums. But all together they constitute the city of Y!̸͆̅̌”̶͌̉#̸͇̞̻̌̚”̶̨̻̘̇̉̊͆̈́͒̌̆̓̕͜#̶̖̣̘̻͖̥͕̙̀̃̈́́̄̕̕͜͠2̶̧̻̺̝̥̮̣̒͒̂͐͐̍́́͘̕̕4̴̿̌’̷̛̙͍̠̙̿ (known as CY), the rich setting of the game. Many specific places and inhabitants (some of which are direct references to Mörk Borg) are described across the pages of the CY_BORG manual, and while they are extremely well characterized, I will not list them in this review.
In this context, however, there is no choice; in a hacked city that is based on the repetitiveness of exploitation, the protagonists can do nothing but fight against the system, even though they are aware that the effort cannot really put an end to decay.
After all, they live in a system corrupted by lies, where the media is in the hands of the powerful. Every night the narrator rolls a die (which can vary from d4 to d100) and, in case of a result of 1, a Miserable Headline occurs; in other words, news of a heinous act that alters the narrative spreads, only to be belittled and passed off as a meme or fake news. After 6 similar occurrences, it is announced that the world is just a simulation… And actually it resets.
Review of the CY_BORG Aesthetics
And what better way to make the most of such strong themes than the absurd and sublime style of Johan Nohr? If the art and layout of Mörk Borg already seemed crazy to you, don’t worry… It’s much more weird here!
CY_BORG‘s illustrations, as you can see from the images included in this review, perfectly convey the sensations of this corrupt, sick and tremendously interesting cyberpunk world. The style that distinguishes them varies a lot, but the common thread is made up of extreme subjects, depicted with a stroke full of the despair that permeates the setting. Moreover the dominant colors are many and never banal; the ones we find most frequently are yellow, fuchsia, red, blue, black and white. To show how corrupt the game world is, many pages contain distortions typical of the classic representation of hacking. An antivirus is recommended before reading.
Even the lettering sometimes has the same kind of distortions (so no, the way I spelled the long name of CY wasn’t a mistake); the font varies from page to page, without ever being trivial or repetitive. Luckily I’ve never found it difficult to read; kudos to Johan for averting the major risk of using such a bizarre style.
Of course, the layout is also totally out of the ordinary. The approximately 150 pages that make up this manual do not follow a precise approach, but still manage to create a solid underlying consistency. Of course, lovers of a classic and uncluttered style may not like it, but CY_BORG wants to shake off any kind of convention, at any cost.
The Protagonists of the Game
With such a delirious aesthetic, could the characters be ordinary? Absolutely not.
Their capabilities revolve around five characteristics. To carry out any test, the player must roll 1d20, add the relative characteristic (and any modifiers) and obtain at least a result of 12. This Difficulty Class (DC) could vary according to the tests to be faced; moreover, a 1 is always a Fumble, while a 20 is a Crit. Here are the characteristics:
- Agility: dodging, driving, sneaking, and using autofire.
- Knowledge: science, use of technology and Apps.
- Presence: Shoot, snipe, use Nano, and persuade.
- Strength: Melee strike, grapple, lift, and throw.
- Toughness: Resist falls, poisons, and the elements.
These values are obtained by throwing 3d6 each and comparing the result with a table, assigning then a score from -3 to 3. Thanks to the Self-Improvement (the level up established by the master, based on the events), the characteristics can vary from -3 to 6; and I say “vary”, not “improve”, because change is fickle and ruthless, just like CY. Aside from a few small resource finds, the only other benefit of Self-Improvement is the chance to increase one’s Hit Points. Spoiler: they won’t be enough to save your life anyway.
The outcome of the tests can be altered by Glitches, which cover the same functions as the Omen of Mörk Borg. They make tests easier, allow for rerolling, undo catastrophic failures, or more; however, they are recharged only after having used them all (and after a rest), thus pushing to use them without fear.
To give even more dynamism to the narrative, each character randomly determines a debt he owes to someone powerful. That’s a simple table that can easily become a great game engine.
Review of “Magic” in CY_BORG
If in Mörk Borg the characters could draw magical power from mysterious scrolls, in this review I am now talking about the technological equivalent present in CY_BORG.
First of all, those who have the appropriate equipment can use the Apps; they are literally plug-in cassettes that impart specific interactions with the technology. Some examples are taking control of turrets, opening an electronic lock or activating a tracking system. Using an app requires a DC 12 Knowledge check and increases the chance of a Fumble when using it; this leads to a Backlash, such as catching a virus or suffering a shock.
The other method is the Nano-Powers, a parasitic menace that grants unique abilities; it is said that they are an alien threat arrived via nanorobots, but there is no certainty about it. For example, they allow you to repair tissues or consume matter and, if it is a corpse, you can acquire its last memories. Activation requires a Presence check with difficulty 12 and failing to use it deals damage to you; a Fumble (increasingly probable with multiple uses) instead leads to a Infestation (with one immediate and one permanent effect). Another way to take an Infestation is to take massive damage.
It is therefore clear how dangerous these skills are and how easy it is to get hurt. So bad. For this reason the characters can (obviously for a fee) install prostheses. The bravest ones can also decide to install Cybertechnology, enhanced grafts that replace parts of the body. The benefit is great, but the risk of falling into Cy-Rage also increases; it occurs when the grafts have the upper hand on the owner’s psyche at the extreme end and induce him to an uncontrollable state of increased strength and speed, however causing him to completely lose control.
An Extra Level of Customization
There are also two additional options to give more depth to the characters without losing the immediacy of the game.
The first consists in using the six proposed Classes. They do not make the protagonists stronger, but only more diversified; they raise some characteristics and lower others. Above all, however, they grant unique items or abilities and further increase the style in a game in which it already abounds. Who wouldn’t want to be a nanomancer altered by alien substances with a second mouth instead of a navel? Or maybe a hacker totally consumed by his ability to tamper with people’s cyber parts and make them live waking nightmares is better?
The second additional customization option affects the mechanics less, but can have a big impact on their characterization. Other random tables (very present in the CY_BORG manual due to its OSR nature) allow you to outline the style, features, desires, foibles and obsessions; few words and already the character is much easier to visualize.
The usefulness of this tool is especially noticeable when you have to generate and insert characters into the narrative on the fly (which, given the mortality rate, is not uncommon at all). In this regard, there is also a very useful site for the random generation of characters; just one click and you have a sheet complete of mechanics and characterization!
Review of the CY_BORG‘s Tools of War
In the previous paragraphs of this review I have deliberately left out one last element in the CY_BORG characters creation: the equipment. Through tables and random dice rolls, weapons, armor and miscellaneous items are given. Armor, as you can imagine, decreases the damage taken. Weapons, on the other hand, are characterized by damage and secondary effects. The abundance and variety of the latter amazed me; in fact they manage to make the war tools original and different, not a simple reskin for which the only change is the size of the damage die. The other items can grant mechanical or narrative advantages, but always be careful which ones are considered illegal.
Each character then has a RDC (Retical Com Device), an optical device that is used to interface with any technology and with the data network. It also allows you to send messages and multimedia content but, like everything else, it can be hacked.
There are also alternative tools to exploit in combat (but not only). Some characters have the good fortune (or credits) to own vehicles; they range from simple motorcycles to military armored exoskeletons. Other punks instead have drones of various kinds at their service; after all if someone’s going to explode it better be them, right?
Also because the enemies to face are decidedly deadly. Through the streets of CY we will find other punks, agents of the corporations, enhanced beasts, androids and nanite-infected creatures.
The Art of Guerilla
The combat mechanics build on the solid foundation of Mörk Borg and expand upon it. Time is divided into rounds and the initiative can be launched as a group or individually, with a simple d6. You don’t need a combat grid: during your turn you can move one area and perform an action. When a character attacks or defends, they roll 1d20 and add the related characteristic: Strength for melee, Presence for ranged weapons, Agility for autofire and Defense. A Fumble on offense damages the weapon, while on defense doubles the injury taken and damages the armor. A Crit instead doubles the damage when attacking and grants a counterattack when defending. As it is therefore easy to understand, the enemies almost never make dice rolls.
CY_BORG, as you may have already noticed from the previous paragraphs of this review, proves to be a more articulated role-playing game than Mörk Borg. If players prefer a more technical approach, the fight can in fact be expanded thanks to some optional rules. They occupy a single page of the manual, but introduce cover, aiming, ranges and suppressive fire mechanically.
After each fight there will be many wounded and you can take a breather to recover some Hit Points. When it is not sufficient, a longer rest can be used, but without food it results in a malus.
If any character reaches 0 Hit Points, he must roll a die and find out if they will recover, be overwhelmed by Cy-Rage, crippled, or die in slow agony. If their Hit Points are negative, they die instantly, unless they have the credits to receive emergency assistance.
Telling a Story in CY_BORG
Now I want to spend a few lines in this review for the CY_BORG material dedicated to the narrator. Considering the style of this TTRPG, mechanically not much else is needed. On the contrary, I recommend deepening the lore, the backbone of the sessions (together with the style)!
The most useful tool is, in my opinion, the Mission Generator. Starting from the randomly generated debt during character creation, a series of tables guides us towards the construction of an entire quest. With the roll of the dice, the principal, the reward, the job, the place, the opponents and the complications are established. A very useful tool because, just by creating a story for each character, you can give life to an adventure full of twists.
Then follow other random generators built in the same way; this time they are dedicated to corporations, cults and events.
The last pages of the manual are instead dedicated to Lucky Flight Takedown, a pre-made and introductory adventure. The plot is simple: a businessman named Charlie hires the characters to solve the problems that a casino causes in his neighborhood; he doesn’t know much else, except that the debt record is held in an offline database in the building and needs to be cleaned out. It’s a very simple and short adventure, but excellent for testing the game and calibrating the next adventures; I found it very interesting that it presents the various attractions of the casino, both when the business is closed and when it is operational; the setting is intriguing and stimulates exploration.
I also advise you to keep an eye on the official website to have access to free material; moreover, there are also the legal terms if you want to publish material compatible with this roleplaying game.
Review of the CY_BORG Asset Pack
In addition to the CY_BORG manual, I also thank Free League Publishing for additional material to include in this review: the Asset Pack. It includes two bundles of sheets and two posters useful for playing this RPG. As with the basic manual, the quality is superb here too.
The Location Pad contains 34 places in which to set up your sessions; they are printed three times in order to be able to use it directly in session. Each place has a dedicated map and lots of useful information, such as its function, who occupies it, what secrets it contains and what can be found of interest; each of these aspects has multiple options, so you can adjust it to various circumstances.
The second bundle of sheets, on the other hand, is a collection of beautiful colored character sheets. With these maybe I will be able to overcome my obsession with not using the purchased material to write on it. Perhaps.
The first poster is a huge high resolution map of CY; being much larger than that of the basic manual, it also contains more names, especially of districts. On the back we find instead a roundup of corporations with their mottos.
The second poster is instead another short but enthralling adventure. On one side we find a beautiful illustration in pixel art; on the back instead all the information necessary to play Reaper Repo. In a large building some wrestlers are participating in a party that has been going on for days. However, one of them has mechanical legs whose design was stolen from Doc Joy; the doctor does not accept it and hires the characters to recover them!
Conclusions of the CY_BORG Review
Like every other Free League Publishing manual, the protagonist of this review, CY_BORG, does not disappoint either. Also considering the very high quality materials, the manual is aesthetically and structurally almost perfect. I noticed only one flaw: the lack of both an index and the bookmark cords; at least one of these two elements would have greatly helped the consultation of a deliberately (and rightly so) eccentric manual.
Born as a hack of Mörk Borg (pun intended), it pays homage to its basic mechanics but expands from many points of view. Despite this, however, it manages to maintain its immediacy, if you want; in the alternative case, optional rules can be introduced and the combat acquires a decidedly more tactical connotation.
In my opinion it performs best when used for short adventures, given the very high mortality. But nothing prevents you from using it even for longer campaigns; after all, the last Miserable Headline of disinformation does not permanently kill the world, but resets it and gives very interesting narrative cues.
The topics covered can very easily be deeper than those of Mörk Borg; the cornerstones of the cyberpunk genre alone make one reflect on environmental damage and human ambition. Then if you just want to take up guns and chainsaws and exterminate corporations you will have fun too!
For all these reasons, I recommend trying CY_BORG; unleash the punk in you!
