3 TALES OF THE RED+ Upgraded Megabite upgradedme gabit e upgradedme gabit e The Lost Kids would rather run than fight, so there’s not much of a chance of them seeing combat in Bathed in Red. Still, we know GMs might want to use the nasty, upgraded cyberware package against their Crew on another occasion so here are the rules for how the blood sucking function works. The upgraded Megabite installed in the Lost Kids has a special function in combat: a suction pump. The kids won’t use this unless they have no choice, but it functions like the Choke Action. First, the attacker uses the Grab Action to grapple their target. Then they can use an Action (no Check needed) in subsequent Rounds to bite into the neck and drain blood, doing their BODY STAT directly to the target’s HP, ignoring armor. Unlike Choke, this attack is fully lethal. The process is extremely messy. Additional NPC Stats ad d i t ionaln p c s tat sad d i t ionaln p c s tat sad d i t ionaln p c s tat s To make our page count, we held back a few stat blocks. Here’s the missing NPC stats. The page number on the side refers to Tales of the RED: Street Stories and not this document. name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 5 REF 6 DEX 6 TECH 4 COOL 8 WILL 5 MOVE 6 BODY 6 EMP 8 STATS weapons armor skill bases Etan Sim (Rep 8) Exec: Teamwork 4 (Covert Operative - O. Riddle) 20 6 40 None — — None — — None — L Armorback (Body) — Accounting 9•Acting 14•Athletics 12•Brawling 10•Bureaucracy 7•Business 9•Concentration 9•Conversation 14 Dance 10•Drive Land Vehicle 8•Education 11•Evasion 12•First Aid 8•Handgun 8•Human Perception 14 Language (Streetslang) 7•Language (English) 11•Lip Reading 9•Local Expert (Little Europe) 9 Local Expert (Upper Marina) 7•Perception 9•Personal Grooming 14•Persuasion 12•Wardrobe and Style 14 GEAR Agent•Plush conapt•Closet full of perfect, tasteful outfits•Self-inflicted broken heart cyberware Contraceptive Implant•Enhanced Antibodies see page 185 for biography
4 TALES OF THE RED+ name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 8 REF 6 DEX 6 TECH 3 COOL 6 WILL 5 MOVE 7 BODY 6 EMP 5 STATS weapons armor skill bases Fixie (Rep 5) Fixer: Operator 6 20 6 40 Heavy Pistol ROF2 3d6 Light Melee Weapon ROF2 1d6 L Armorjack (Head) SP 11 L Armorjack (Body) SP 11 Athletics 14•Brawling 14•Business 14•Concentration 12•Conversation 9•Education 12•Endurance 11 Evasion 12•First Aid 7•Forgery 10•Handgun 12•Human Perception 12•Language (English) 12•Language (Hindi) 12 Language (Streetslang) 12•Language (Urdu) 12•Lip Reading 12•Local Expert (All Night City Districts) 12 Perception 14•Persuasion 12•Stealth 10•Streetwise 12•Trading 12 GEAR Heavy Pistol Ammo x16•Agent•Bag full of water and snacks cyberware Contraceptive Implant•Enhanced Antibodies see page 185 for biography name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 8 REF 4 DEX 4 TECH 8 COOL 4 WILL 4 MOVE 5 BODY 5 EMP 4 STATS weapons armor skill bases Lotus LeMarch (Rep 2) Tech: Maker 8 ( ) 18 5 35 Popup Very Heavy Pistol ROF1 4d6 None — — None — None — Athletics 6•Basic Tech 17•Brawling 6•Concentration 10•Conversation 7•Cybertech 17•Education 13 Electronic/Security Tech 17•Evasion 6•First Aid 13•Handgun 6•Human Perception 7•Land Vehicle Tech 11 Language (English) 14•Language (Street Slang) 12•Local Expert (Little Europe) 10•Perception 13•Persuasion 7 Science (Physics) 13•Stealth 9•Weapons Tech 17 GEAR Very Heavy Pistol Ammo x8•Agent•Anti-Smog Breathing Mask•Duct Tape x2•Flashlight•Tech Bag cyberware Cyberarm x2 w/ Popup Very Heavy Pistol (left) and Tool Hands (both)•Cybereyes x2 w/ Image Enhance and MicroOptics Neural Link w/ Interface Plugs see page 188 for biography Fabrication Expertise 4, Invention Expertise 6 Field Expertise 2, Upgrade Expertise 4
5 TALES OF THE RED+ name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 6 REF 6 DEX 6 TECH 3 COOL 8 WILL 7 MOVE 5 BODY 6 EMP 4 STATS weapons armor skill bases Michael Deckard (Rep 4) Exec: Teamwork 7 ( ) 23 6 45 Excellent Quality Medium Pistol ROF2 2d6 None — — None — Kevlar (Body) SP 7 Accounting 12•Athletics 8•Brawling 8•Bureaucracy 12•Business 12•Concentration 9•Conversation 11•Deduction 12 Education 12•Evasion 10•First Aid 5•Handgun 8•Human Perception 11•Language (English) 10 Language (Streetslang) 8•Lip Reading 12•Local Expert (Exec Zone) 8•Perception 10•Personal Grooming 12 Persuasion 14•Science (Biochemistry) 10 GEAR Medium Pistol Ammo x8•Businesswear Jewelry•Memory Chip x2 cyberware Biomonitor•Cyberaudio Suite w/ Internal Agent•Cybereye w/ Chyron Company Driver - Jeeves Covert Operative - Anna name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 6 REF 7 DEX 8 TECH 3 COOL 5 WILL 7 MOVE 5 BODY 6 EMP 4 STATS weapons armor skill bases Major Veronica Stiles (Rep 7) 23 6 45 Excellent Quality Heavy Pistol ROF2 3d6 Light Melee Weapon ROF2 1d6 L Armorjack (Head) SP 11 L Armorjack (Body) SP 11 Accounting 12•Athletics 10•Brawling 14•Bureaucracy 12•Business 12•Concentration 9•Conversation 7 Deduction 12•Education 12•Evasion 14•First Aid 5•Handgun 13•Human Perception 10•Language (English) 10 Language (Streetslang) 8•Local Expert (NorCal Military Base) 8•Melee Weapon 12•Perception 12•Personal Grooming 7 Persuasion 10•Shoulder Arms 13•Stealth 13•Wardrobe and Style 7 GEAR Heavy Pistol Ammo x12•Agent•Businesswear Jewelry• Disposable Cellphone x2•Smart Glasses w/ Chyron, Image Enhance, and Targeting Scope cyberware Biomonitor•Neural Link w/ Sandevistan and Subdermal Grip Exec: Teamwork 4 (Company Technician - Sall3 Smite) Solo: Combat Awareness 4 see page 193 for biography see page 189 for biography
6 TALES OF THE RED+ name role Seriously wounded Death save HP INT 7 REF 5 DEX 5 TECH 4 COOL 8 WILL 7 MOVE 7 BODY 5 EMP 5 STATS weapons armor skill bases Trace Santiago (Rep 6) Media: Credibility 6 20 5 40 Heavy Pistol ROF2 3d6 None — — L Armorjack (Head) SP 11 L Armorjack (Body) SP 11 Athletics 7•Brawling 9•Bribery 14•Composition 13•Concentration 9•Conversation 13•Deduction 13 Drive Land Vehicle 10•Education 12•Evasion 11•First Aid 8•Handgun 11•Heavy Weapons 10•Human Perception 13 Language (English) 9•Language (Spanish) 12•Language (Streetslang) 9•Library Search 12•Lip Reading 11 Local Expert (Badlands) 13•Local Expert (Upper Marina) 9•Perception 13•Persuasion 14•Photography/Film 10 Pilot Air Vehicle 10•Shoulder Arms 10•Stealth 9•Wilderness Survival 10 GEAR Heavy Pistol Ammo x8•Agent•Disposable Cellphone x2•Remote Camera Drone•Compact Groundcar cyberware Biomonitor•Contraceptive Implant•Cyberarm w/ Shoulder Cam•Cybereye w/ Chyron Display, MicroVideo, and TeleOptics see page 193 for biography More Bonus Content t h e bonu s con t e n t s c r e a ms h e e t sm a p sand tok e n s For the next few pages we’ve put together a collection of different goodies to use at your table. • First are screamsheets designed to go with five of of the missions in Tales of the RED: Street Stories. • Next, you’ll find larger versions of the various maps* from the book. We’ve taken off the labels so you can show them to your players. • Finally, there’s a page of tokens you can print and cut out for on a combat grid. *Cartography by Alex The Mapmaker, Borja Alonso, Derek Ruiz (Elven Tower), J Gray, Jon Abbiss (Paper Griffin), Matt Henderson, MikaelsMaps, Niels E. Wisth, Saga Mackenzie, and Zovya RPG BY BAD MOON ART STUDIO
4:45 PM GOSSIP OPINION weather tech lifestyle local business world Addiswood Directors Coming to Night City by Ziggy ‘Front’ Page Famous Addiswood directors Teresa and Fanta Senait arrived last night in Night City to prepare for what might be a month or so of location-based shooting. Their current period project The Parisian Hostess features a script written by Ziggurat power-player Akira Sato, and involves a star-studded cast that includes dented heartthrob Etan Sim and up-and-coming leading lady Mael Cartaret. The supporting cast includes vid-sim luminaries such as Shingo Hamasaki, Reona Kuroyama-Marshall, Faye Woo, Morgane Sonnentag, and Night City native Reid Govea. The Parisian Hostess is set in the early days of Arasaka’s ascendancy in Night City, and while the Senait Sisters have remained fairly close-lipped about the plot of their script, some juicy leaks indicate that this is going to be an actionpacked romance about a Solo falling in love with an indentured hostess in a Yakuza-owned Victorian-themed hotel. Aspiring actors should be on the lookout for casting calls as the Senait sisters seek to pack their scenes with authentic Night City flavor. Link: Eskista Films Link: Highriders Driving Demand in Movie Industry No Popcorn? No Movie! by Continental Brands Relaxing after a hard shift with a vid-sim? Enhance your experience with Continental Brands’ Popcorn Kibble, available in Original Butter Flavor and new Caramel Crunch, for that old-time movie theater experience! Containing 12 Creotic Amino Acids and proprietary muscle-builders to put the pep back in your step while you unwind. Disclaimer: Do not eat with Smash. Do not eat after midnight. Do not eat while soaked in CHOOH2 . Do not mix with Kiwi Kibble. You have been warned. Link: Continental Brands Popkorn Kibble Etan Sim a Free Man! by Jericho Hunt Actor Etan Sim is finally free of his tempestuous marriage to now ex-husband Darrel Marchant. The two filed for divorce recently, citing irreconcilable differences after Sim’s much-publicized fling with then-costar Gwen Beaufort, on the set of Hearts of Chrome. Rumors first exploded about the affair just before the debut of Hearts of Chrome and led to a bidding war on Etan Sims-related merchandise. “The next few months are going to be filled with reflection and meditation,” Sim said on the way out of the Glen courthouse. “Largely on how I failed Darrel, and our marriage vows. I’m not proud of myself right now.” Darrel Marchant, on the other hand, waved this reporter’s questions off with a frosty “No comment.” Marchant is no stranger to the media either, having once starred in Net54’s reality series In The Line of Fire, where competing crews of Edgerunners seek to overcome handpicked teams of bodyguards to “assassinate” a VIP. Marchant’s team were the Season 3 victors, beating out twelve teams of Edgerunners to see their simulated VIP safe and unharmed despite creative assassinations that included polonium-laced beverages, mono-wire strung swimming pools, and a sabotaged Mister Studd implant. Link: Etan Sim Caught in Affair with Costar Link: Etan Sim boxers going for big bucks at Midnight Market Bring on the sunshine, Bring on the smiles, Hello Cutie is here! Wash away that cyber-psycho frown, Grab your best gat in town, Hello Cutie is here! Link: Sanroo HelloCutie Good for 5eb off your next Hello Cutie Purchase for use with a bucket full of popcorn-flavored kibble
1:03 AM GOSSIP OPINION weather tech lifestyle local business world Continental Brands Cops to Spill by J.E. Munroe Continental Brands today acknowledged earlier reports from the Night City Water Authority that a sudden outflow of industrial microbiota overflowed South Night City’s Wastewater Treatment Plant and pushed a flow of untreated waste into the city storm drains. Speaking online, company representatives said that the microbes are designed to bind to toxins in nutrient baths and are “food-grade components that pose no risk to those exposed,” but that they may cause concentrated pockets of collected toxins if they accumulate in a location that resembles their intended environment. Residents are warned to avoid areas of standing, brackish water until the city can trace the flow and clean up the residue. Link: Continental Brands Runs Kibble Sale Link: Cactus Water Sales On the Rise Residents Return to Trackside Apartments by Jericho Hunt Trackside Apartments, badly damaged when the land underneath it suddenly subsided four months ago, has reopened. There was concern that the whole block would have to be re-zoned or even permanently cordoned off after surveys suggested that voids had opened in the fill materials beneath it. The loss of many civil project records in the DataKrash heavily complicated Night City’s reconstruction, with unexpected instabilities or structural failures going undiscovered until well into or even after construction. Fortunately, engineers were able to stabilize the area by injecting stabilizers through deep boreholes. Many former residents have moved on to new homes, but enough holdouts have returned to throw an impressive block party, with Spin Khalid and Dee Deej providing music. City engineers remind residents in the newer parts of New Westbrook, Little Europe, and South Night City to report unusual foundation cracking, settling, or shaking. Link: New Sinkhole Sinks Food Truck’s Business South Night City JobJa Board from JobJa Seeking Beach-Combers: Need extra kibble money? Need folk willing to get muddy. Keep what you find. Low risk, good pay! Click the link for details. Link: JobJa JGORFFL.AA3 Faisal’s Customs by Faisal’s Customs Are you in need of that special gun? Looking for a vehicle that screams you? Well then you are in luck with Faisal’s Customs. If you can imagine it, Faisal’s team can produce it. Disclaimer: Faisal’s Customs is not legally responsible for death or injury as a result of using his products. Faisal’s Customs cannot guarantee that they can indeed produce the product that customers can imagine. Faisal’s Customs will not produce weapons of mass destruction. So, no asking for nukes. Link: Faisal Farah, Entrepreneur of Night City for use with drummer and the whale
12:26 PM GOSSIP OPINION weather tech lifestyle local business world Wedding Blitz Causes Problems by Jericho Hunt An unexpected upswing in matrimonials has left Night City’s tailors and houses of worship scrambling to keep up with increased demand. “We have seen a thousand more weddings this year than we would in a normal year,” says Shears, a tailor at the Night City institution Torrell and Chiang, “and it’s only September. We’ve run out of off-the-rack tuxedos and navy-colored suits, and most of us working the bespoke end have been pulling 20 hours of overtime per week to try to meet demand. Something is eventually going to have to give, and our clients are not the kind of people who will.” Father Stephen Ly of the Diocese of Night City approves this uptick in weddings, however. “It cheers my heart to see more young people entering into holy matrimony instead of living in sin. However, I will agree that the demand is forcing a change in Church procedure, as I myself have had to leave one set of nuptials shortly after officiating it, to solemnize yet another union.” Link: Unexpected Rise in Divorces Leads to Violence Apprentice Tailors Wanted by Torrell and Chiang Good with a sewing machine? Skilled with alterations? Perhaps you might consider a career as an apprentice tailor with Torrell and Chiang, tailors of bespoke and custom suits. Now offering a 500eb signing bonus and an additional eb per hour for night shifts! Prospective applicants must have a basic understanding of sewing, both by hand and using a sewing machine. They must be open to learning and expanding their tailoring skill set. As an apprentice, they will be trained to perform the alterations required by our many customers, and will learn to become proficient at using industrial sewing machines, blind hem machines, sergers, and steam presses. They will also learn to work with our in-house marking and pinning system, and learn to log alterations performed on our ticket system. If the above all sound like things you can do, drop off a digital copy of your resume at our Garden Patch. Link: Torrell and Chiang Garden Patch Deliveries Grind to a Halt by Ziggy “Front” Page Several Night Markets and street businesses have suffered a temporary supply-side shortage as deliveries by Fixie’s Couriers have been halted. This stoppage began at 3:24 this morning, after gunfire was heard issuing from their warehouse and logistics center in the Haywood Industrial Zone. At the time of publication, Fixie, the couriers’ leader, was not answering calls to her Agent, and most of the couriers have declined to comment on their current work stoppage. Anonymous sources suggest that this is yet another hostile takeover on the streets of Night City, following Revere Shipping’s acquisition of Two Choombs and A Truck Logistics last May. If that is the case, then one should expect deliveries to resume within the week — hardly good news for anyone who has sent something perishable via their services. Link: Two Choombs Takeover Ends with Two Dead for use with haven’t got a stitch to wear
2:19 AM GOSSIP OPINION weather tech lifestyle local business world New Hotspot Plagued by Rats? by Jackie McGee Free admission. Personalized concerts. Any flavor kinks. Delirium promises the ultimate virtual reality experience and, for many, delivers customized entertainment night after night. Funded by Night Corp, Delirium has been drawing crowds ever since it opened three months ago. Its patrons have become enamored with the club’s menu of services delivered through virtuality headsets. When worn, patrons interact with other headset wearers to dance until they’re deliriously happy, shrouded in personalized sound, shape, and color schemes called “enviros”. Got a thing for splatterpunk? Riot Grrrl? Or glam-punk? If you can name a subgenre of punk, Delirium probably has it on their menu. What’s more: The first enviro of the night is always free for the legal drinking age crowd. Between its impressive music archive and its zero-tolerance bar fight policy, patrons claim Delirium is almost perfect — except for the rats. Located in Little Europe, rumors have been swirling that Delirium is a haven for street kids who need a safe place to chill. Though no incidents have been reported, a few influencers are ditching Delirium for the time being. “Somebody’s gotta hire an exterminator for them rats, yo,” quipped Blue Dawg. “You let everybody in? Only a matter of time before somebody bleeds, and it not gonna be me.” Link: Haggard Crowned King of New Club Delirium Catcus Water Boss in Thorny Situation by Jericho Hunt Lilah Deckard, founder and CEO of Cactus Water Inc, announced yesterday that the company earned record profits. Lilah credits her company’s success to the grassroots movement to drink Cactus Water, her company’s flagship product, instead of her competitors’. Founded just two years ago, Cactus Water’s popularity skyrocketed among naturalists and technophobes when Rockerboy darlings the Digital Devas were spotted drinking from emerald-green bottles on stage. Since then, the water has developed a cult following among fitness enthusiasts and clean-living advocates. Not all feedback has been positive, however. According to an anonymous source at Trauma Team, several patients were admitted with severe nausea, headaches, and kidney failure. When confronted with this news, Lilah Deckard confessed she was aware of the reports but was quick to point fingers at Continental Brands, who recently came out with their own brand of homeopathic water. “We believe our competitors to be engaged in a vicious war of bottle switching and we will pursue this case with both legal and extralegal strategies as needed.” Link: Infused Water. Hoax or Miracle Cure? Suck it Up! The Dead Don’t Care! by Dee^3 The headline says it all, doesn’t it? Look, it’s true that Night City police have their hands full. It’s also true the Lawmen can’t possibly hunt, interrogate, and capture every citizen they suspect of thieving — they’d never solve any murders, investigate corruption, or finish patrolling half our neighborhoods. Of course, I understand! You’re reeling from the news your son/wife/grandparent/cousin/sister’s dog was flatlined. The last thing you want to hear is that all their worldly possessions are missing, too. Hard truth: You should be worrying about the living. Ever think of who might need dead grandma’s grocery money? You think the occasional corpse is a bonanza for thieves, but you know who I’m talking about: Those teenage street “rats” you keep ignoring and don’t want tax dollars to help. Rummaging through a corpse’s pockets is not an easy job. Think about how desperate you’d have to be. Stripping them of their clothes? Their gear for some Ripperdoc? Imagine being on “the line”, trying to survive, night after night, and you find a corpse. Thank God. Now you can eat. It wasn’t like that Lawman was gonna share their doughnut. So suck it up, citizens. You want the police to keep you safe? Okay. I can get behind that. But the dead? Honey, they really don’t care anymore, and maybe you shouldn’t either. Link: Night City Victims Stripped of Valuables Link: Grieving Families Beg Thieves to Respect the Deceased for use with bathed in red
1:45 PM GOSSIP OPINION weather tech lifestyle local business world New ConApts Cater to NeoLuddites by J.E. Munroe Sandwiched between the offices of Pursuit Security Incorporated and Mister Rice Guy, a new eight-story brick building stands in defiance of the modern age. The Pleasant Valley Apartments promotes features only naturalists and NeoLuddites would love. For starters, the building is powered by its own 20th-century generator. Even its security measures are old school: Residents can sign up for self-defense classes or pay a monthly fee to utilize the complex’s private guards. Despite several nature-based amenities and street-level storefronts, including a pond filled with koi, an aviary on the top floor, and a juice bar, the locals wonder how profitable it will be. Does Night City have enough health nuts, fundamentalists, and hipsters to fill an entire building? Only time will tell. Link: Organic Extremist Group Hunts for New Home Rocklin Augmentics Announces New Direction for RockXotics by Angie Wu 3.0 Rocklin Augmentics has issued a statement declaring that they are redesigning the first product in their new RockXotics cyberware package line, the vampire-themed Megabite. Marketing representative Alice Chan said: “We have decided to sunset Megabite and have spent resources engineering its successor, Fangtastik. Watch for Fangtastik to hit the streets sometime next year.” Ms. Chan did not give a reason for the redesign, only stating they felt “the product could be a hundred times more extreme an experience for the user”. Rival Biotechnica issued a statement, stating “the exotic market is a tough one. We wish Rocklin luck. They’ll need it.” Link: Rocklin Augmentics Enters Exotic New Field for use with one red night
NPC Tokens np c tok e nsnp c tok e nsnp c tok e nsnp c tok e ns Whether you’re playing at a physical table or a digital one, tokens can help y ou keep track of the action. To help, we’ve created a token for each NPC who has a portrait in Tales of the RED: Street Stories. Of course, many of them aren’t likely to show up in a combat scenario but you’re free to use them tp represent different NPCs in other missions as well.