๐ Major Story Arcs
Hierarchical narrative campaigns: Arc โ Chapters / Quests โ Sub-Quests & Tactical Steps.
The Search
๐ญVivian Kaine, the CEO of โ๏ธAether Materials Dynamics (AMD), is leading Arc 1: The Search, using corporate resources and the player party to locate an old computer virus capable of remotely controlling cybertech. The players are tasked with proving their abilities and loyalty to Dr. Kaine, without knowing her true motives or the nature of what she is seeking.
The following is a proposed sequence of seven generic mission plot points designed to establish the party's credentials, gather fragmented data on old technology, and culminate in locating the virus's containment site, thus transitioning into Arc 2: Securing the Virus.
๐ฏ Standalone Missions, Side Quests & Faction Contracts
Independent bounties and character hooks operating outside main storyline arcs.
The Double Bind
A desperate mother in North Heywood has hired you to find her missing son, Leo. But what should have been a standard street rescue turns into a paranoid, high-stakes thriller. The boy's father, ๐ญDavid Smith, is a โ๏ธLazarus Security officerโand he's the very guard you choked out during your recent warehouse heist. David is currently in his living room, coordinating with his corporate superiors to trace the intruders, entirely unaware that the prime suspects are sitting on his couch.
The Double Bind - Option A - The Frame-Up
๐ต๏ธ The Angle: The Counter-Forensics Gambit
Rather than shooting your way through Lazarus Security, the crew decides to manufacture an airtight scapegoat for the warehouse breach. If Lazarus's internal affairs concludes another gang pulled the heist, David's investigation closes, and the heat on the crew vanishes.
Primary Objectives:
- โ Fabricate Forensic Signatures: Forge cyberware telemetry or ballistic markings matching a known local gang (e.g., Tyger Claws or Iron Circle renegades).
- โ Infiltrate the Lazarus Precinct Data Relay: Plant the digital false trail directly into the central evidence repository before the 12-hour facial match runs.
- โ Feed the Lead to David Smith: Subtly tip off David or leave the breadcrumbs where his team will "discover" them first.
๐ Scene Breakdown: Running "The Frame-Up"
1. Dramatic Question
Can the crew successfully fabricate and plant the forged evidence before David's facial recognition algorithm finishes scanning, without alerting Lt. Vance that his leverage is slipping?
2. The Setup & Three-Pronged Plan
Give the party three distinct paths of action during this scene:
- The Tech / Netrunner Play (The Digital Ghost):
- Check: Interface / Hacking DC 15 to splice forged security camera timestamps into the Lazarus server.
- Complication on Failure: Triggers a passive ICE trace, speeding up the facial recognition timer by 2 hours.
- The Street / Social Play (Planting the Physical Evidence):
- Plant physical burner gear or encrypted chips on a low-level ganger or in their hideout.
- Requires stealth or street deception (DC 14). If successful, Lazarus strike teams mobilize toward the fake target.
- The Feed to ๐ญDavid Smith:
- The crew must leak this to David without looking like the source. If David smells a rat, he runs a manual cross-reference on the party's voices/builds from the heist.
3. Twist: Lt. Vance Panics
- When the fake evidence hits the precinct network, Lt. Peter Vance realizes the narrative is escaping his control.
- Vance suspects someone inside is playing games. Instead of letting the investigation resolve, he orders Leo moved to the Storm Drains early (directly setting up Path C - Storm Drain Recon / Climax).
- Reward / Advantage for Climax: If the crew succeeds here, David and his unit raid the false gang hideout, leaving Vance completely isolated and without Lazarus backup when the crew hits the Storm Drains!
4. Fallbacks & Branch Transitions
- If Completed: Switch status to
Completedโ party gets clean surprise advantage during the finale. - If Failed / Blown: Switch status to
Failedโ Vance realizes he's being set up and threatens to execute Leo in 30 minutes; party is forced into a desperate hot pursuit!
The Double Bind - Option B - The Clean Sweep
A mission contract in Night City.
The True Antagonist: Lieutenant Peter Vance (๐ญDavid Smith's direct supervisor at โ๏ธLazarus Security). Vance is a corrupt middle-manager who took a massive bribe to leave the warehouse security light on the night of the heist, expecting a clean job. Because your crew went loud and the prototype went wild, Continental Brands is launching a forensic audit. Terrified his backdoor will be exposed, Vance kidnapped Leo to force David to steal the local database encryption keys. Vance plans to use the keys to wipe his own digital trail and frame local street gangersโand if David gets caught, David takes 100% of the fall.
Hidden Motive of Quest Giver: Maggie Smith has no secrets; she is just a terrified mother who used her street contacts to hire independent Edgerunners. However, her husband David is hiding the ransom note because he knows โ๏ธLazarus Security would initiate "collateral damage protocols" rather than negotiate.
Core Dilemma & Ticking Clock: ๐ญDr. Vivian Kaine (AMD) has temporarily paused the Lazarus facial recognition search query, but gives the crew a strict 12-Hour Ultimatum: wipe your digital traces and silence eyewitness reports before the algorithm matches your faces and ties the heist back to AMD.