Miscellania

Concept: “A collection of Sixty-Six profile images for punks in Cy_Borg. Generated using prompts for the AI image generator DALL-E 2. Images chosen for their stylistic properties.”

Content: Portraits of a diverse variety of punk characters perfect for CY residents.

Writing: Each image is labelled/named descriptively with the DALL-E 2 prompt that generated it, which offers an expressive sense of the goals for generating it.

Art/Design: Hand-drawn aesthetics (despite being AI-generated) suggest a DIY/custom creation effect that might speak to many players.

Usability: Very easy to navigate to the image(s) that seem interesting from their descriptions for examination & use.

Concept: “The fields. Monoculture deserts of genetically enhanced crops like wheat 4.6, ultra-maize, and soykin. Spliced to perfection. All earth is sterile. Killed by an unhallowed mix of unfiltered UV-radiation and the most potent poisons. Only hard fertilization keeps the masses alive and fed. Traveling through the cultivations is not without peril. Chemships puke their concoctions onto the plants; mechanic harvesters that have never seen an animal or human cut down all in their path.”

Content: A treasure trove of rules (miseries, glitches, mutations), gear, location/site summaries and generators, map hexes, random encounters, enemies, classes (“Mutant” and “Elektron Rohre”), job seeds/contracts, and even a dungeon to explore.

Writing: Intense, vivid, and wry descriptions that bring to life the sprawling wastes that surround Cy.

Art/Design: A mix of collage, pixel art, graffiti, graphical user interfaces, print reports, and more to frame each page/spread uniquely but feeling comfortably in line with the official/core Cy_Borg aesthetic. Map hexes provided as additional file.

Usability: Wide variety of layouts, font choices/sizes/colors, and organization can slow down reading and navigation (e.g., class info interspersed among NPCs), but hyperlinked table of contents aids with identifying desired details.

Concept: “More in-depth intel on the rulers of Cy. The Corp info appendix ripped straight out of the CY_BORG book. Includes the main Corps and their leaders, businesses, HQs and possible adventure sparks.”

Content: Four pages of corporation names, logos, slogans, business ventures and holdings; important NPC info; inter-company rivalries and tensions; and other juicy tidbits to flesh out the world.

Writing: Crisp, concise details speak a wide range of possibilities into the imagination, from political machinations to secrets to violent conflicts, without limiting how to realize or incorporate them into a game.

Art/Design: Black-and-white flat design scheme of software application windows melds contemporary aesthetics with text-centric retro UIs.

Usability: Alphabetized organization of each corporation’s set of windows is consistent and easy to navigate, with key terms/names/etc. bolded for quick identification of desired info.

Concept: “A virtual maelstrom of Net posts, viral feed spam and other in-world messages regarding the main antagonists; the corporations and the cults. Don't believe everything you read. Be vigilant.”

Content: A treasure trove of plot hooks/seeds presented as assorted in-universe social media posts and headlines that each relate in some way to one or more of the major corporations in CY.

Writing: Extremely engaging hints at, and outright accusations of, a wide variety of reasons to take down each of the big corps–not that a PC needs more reasons to do so.

Art/Design: Translucent text boxes that resemble software application windows over a dark background with paint and graffiti patterns scattered across it, Several text-centric message windows are positioned around each corporation name and logo presented in its own window.

Usability: Significant font size and type differences across windows can slow down the navigation and reading experience (and evokes the noise of net traffic), but high-contrast window borders visually distinguish the parameters of each message and, thanks to some window overlap, which nearby corporation it relates to.

Concept: “All my Mörk Borg/Cy_Borg fanart can be used freely by anyone, without having to ask me and without crediting me!”

Content: A range of brightly colored images, mostly portraits, that fit into the world of CY.

Writing: Each image is accompanied by a brief description by the creator about the subject's name or occupation.

Art/Design: A gritty neon take on the cyberpunk “high tech, low life” juxtaposition as filtered through the harsh and messy Cy_Borg aesthetic.

Usability: Images are incredibly high resolution when clicked on from the gallery view.

Concept: “All my Mörk Borg/Cy_Borg fanart can be used freely by anyone, without having to ask me and without crediting me!”

Content: A range of grayscale images, mostly portraits, that fit into the world of CY.

Writing: Each image is accompanied by a brief description by the creator about the subject's name or occupation.

Art/Design: A stark black-and-white take on the cyberpunk “high tech, low life” juxtaposition as filtered through the harsh and messy Cy_Borg aesthetic.

Usability: Images are incredibly high resolution when clicked on from the gallery view.

Concept: “A women's magazine set in a cyberpunk world, inspired by Cy_Borg from Stockholm Kartell.”

Content: A twelve-page magazine issue that might be found in CY, complete with paywalled pages available only to premium subscribers/readers.

Writing: Fleshed-out articles provide considerable depth to elements of life in CY that may not get much attention. 

Art/Design: Primarily single-column white-on-black color scheme with pink headings and colorful AI images (generally portraits, but a few fuller-body images are provided as well).

Usability: High-contrast text is easily readable, with headings and callout boxes visually distinct for quick identification of desired information.

Concept: “CY_OPS is a 66 page A6 player-facing CY_BORG zine presented as an in-universe punk zine. No mechanics, no stats, just a chaotic little zine full of worldbuilding, quest hooks, items and a bunch of other cyberpunk stuff for your players to use in your CY_BORG games.”

Content: NPCs full of personality quirks, unique equipment ideas, and scenario/adventure ideas casually scattered across hectically organized spreads mixing hi- and lo-fi design and tech aesthetics. "Activity" pages offer even more direct involvement with the document.

Writing: Infectiously fun, engaging ideas presented as in-universe media, from QR codes to other CY_BORG material to instruction manual pages to chat transcripts and more. “Worldbuilding” feels like an understatement.

Art/Design: Two-page spreads stand mostly independent of one another, with some common fonts and illustration styles that draw attention to a wide range of character, occupation, and gear-related concepts that open up even more possibilities for immersing a party in CY. 

Usability: Different spread layouts may not assist with consistency, but text is mostly high-contrast and readable (some pages’ white on pink might be difficult for some readers, as is text perpendicular to main orientation). Sheer amount of content is likely to keep readers interested and closely perusing each page.

Concept: “Modern design layout of the metro systems of Cy including over 60 stops, express lines and an accompanying shitty mobile app to route yourself around Cy. What more do you want?”

Content: A browser-based “transit terminal” that provides users with a text-based breakdown of the stops involved from Point A to Point B. Accompanied by a PDF of the city transit system map.

Writing: Succinct and direct explanation of the route from starting location to the desired destination.

Art/Design: Browser functionality provides a simple, terminal-like functionality with two selection lists and a button to generate the output. System map closely resembles many metro transit systems’ official maps, complete with multiple routes distinguished by different colors.

Usability: Incredibly easy to use both components, although many are likely to have a personal preference for the presentation/function of one over the other.

Concept: “A collection of d100 profile pictures for punks in Cy_Borg. Generated using  the AI image generator Stable Diffusion with prompts by me.  Great for rolling up characters or for NPC's.”

Content: A range of prompt-based, AI-generated art in a black-and-white illustrative style. Each image focuses on a profile/headshot of a potentially downtrodden resident of CY. Every single one of the profile pictures across these four volumes is impressive.

Writing: N/A

Art/Design: Portraits span a variety of ethnicities and gender expressions. Most have some sort of cybernetic eyewear.

Usability: Images are easy to extract and browse. Files are helpfully named from 1-100 to reflect d100 roll result.

Concept: “[Multiple] collection[s] of d66 profile images for punks in Cy_Borg. Generated using prompts for the AI image generator DALL-E 2 [and/or Stable Diffusion]. Images chosen to match the theme.  Great for rolling up characters or for NPC's.”

Content: A range of prompt-based, AI-generated art in a variety of styles, from ink pen to colored chalk to painting. Each image focuses on a profile/headshot of a potentially downtrodden resident of CY. Each collection has a different set of portraits.

Writing: N/A

Art/Design: Each image conjures exciting possibilities to mind and suggests a different way of envisioning PCs and NPCs alike.

Usability: Images are easy to extract and browse. Files are helpfully named/numbered based on roll results.

Concept: “Original maps for the CY_BORG introductory adventure "Lucky Flight Takedown" for use in virtual tabletop programs. Maps are 100px to a tile, and are separated into individual maps and a larger combined map with the rules reference sheet for first time players.”

Content: VTT maps provided in PNG and WEBP format, both individually and as a combined file of maps.

Writing: Condensed rules reference sheet helpfully provided in the combined map version.

Art/Design: White and light green on a transparent or dark green background.

Usability: Map files easy to implement in VTT environment. Rules reference sheet is not accessible due to being in an image.

Concept: “The negacity Cy is ever expanding, ever changing. A living, dying leviathan. Find your way around its sectors, isles and alleyways with this map. Comes in two sizes; big and huge.”

Content: High-resolution map of CY useful for GMs and players alike.

Writing: Neighborhood/region names overlaid on the map as well as in a key at the bottom of the map.

Art/Design: Harsh, eye-popping colors and grainy black-and-white satellite aesthetics bring the dystopia to life.

Usability: Map is available in PDF and JPG formats. Color-coded regions/sectors are helpful for a quick glance of geographical relationships and proximities, although text labels for neighborhoods etc. can be difficult to read over the map details.

Concept: “Digging through the graft of society, very few things appease the eyes, so feast on these that bring to sight what only resided in the mind. Mörk_NET Illustrated Catalogue follows with this purpose, bringing out high quality artwork with the destructive punk aesthetic known to the scenario while being consistent between each piece, perfect for Virtual Tabletop's weapon icons and inventory management. The pack currently contains nine images, covering the basic Melee Weapons in the system, each of them packaged individually in .png format and transparent background for ease of use.”

Content: A set of images for several melee weapons included in the Cy_Borg rulebook, provided with and without colorful backgrounds.

Writing: N/A

Art/Design: Hand-drawn style is augmented effectively by colorful spray paint-like accents.

Usability: Files are descriptively named and image formats make for easy implementation in VTT or even in-person games.

Concept: “There is a new drug on the streets called Ambrosia.  It will make you see the gods. Are these GODS real? There are dozens if not hundreds of people seeing them. They are looming over CY like falling planets, ready to steal your soul. Group hallucination? A bug in the system? Does it matter?”

Content: A smorgasbord of fever-dream content: drugs that manifest perceptions of gods (who give unique blessings with killer mechanics!); player classes for a ronin, private eye, amateur wrestler, and moonpunk; tables of people to meet on the street or items to find in the trash; NPCs to fight; drugs, food and gear; and even poetry.

Writing: Thematic punches of flavor that spice up concise and clear mechanical effects. An author’s note indicates some text was generated/aided by AI.

Art/Design: Two-page spreads with unique layout schemes that feel in sync with the aesthetic of the official Cy_Borg rulebook. An author’s note indicates some art was generated/aided by AI, and the variety of styles applied to the book’s spreads is impressive.

Usability: While there is a wide range of fonts and colors on each page spread, high contrast makes the vast majority of content easy to identify and navigate. Text is not embedded (except on a small number of pages), so screen reader and searching/copying/pasting functionalities are mostly unavailable.