SUMMARY
The following information details an alternate character creation process designed for use with Cyberpunk 2020. It incorporates new rules for buying skills, creating older characters, an advantage and disadvantage system, and a new way to figure out starting funds. Character roles are not used. This will allow responsible players more flexibility with character creation.
Any part of this system can be adapted for GMs and players who wish to keep using the regular CP2020 system roles. The elimination of roles is not an essential part of this system, although it is an important step, and the rest of this variation will assume that they are not in use. Feel free to use whichever parts you feel comfortable with.
This edition (version 3.3) has been updated slightly. This is reflected in a more standardized cost system for advantages and disadvantages, as well as several new advads and disads. Many of the old advantages and disadvantages have been reworked and/or clarified. Some of the lifepath details have been altered slightly, and I've made a few additions. Overall, things work just like they used to. There's just a little bit more to work with.
ATTRIBUTES
Attributes are generated in any of the methods listed in the CP2020 rulebook. In my case, I roll 6D10+30, and distribute the points. No attribute may be greater than 10 or lower than 2. Alternately, for a grittier, more down-to-earth feel, give players 54 points to allocate to the nine attributes. They'll hate you for it, trust me.
LIFEPATH
A character's lifepath can be generated in any way the player or GM sees fit. I have included my own lifepath charts later in this document (page 15). I generally use these charts before skill points are assigned, since certain results may affect which skills, advantages, or disadvantages I take. Usually, I offer the lifepath to players as an option. Since some of the entries can be quite permanent, like the occasional "Disaster Strikes!" result, some players are uncomfortable with the uncertainty involved. Another option is to let players roll on the chart as many or as few times as they want, within the guidelines of the character's age. It helps if they state how many rolls they will make. The GM should enforce the player's decision.
SKILLS
In CP2020, characters receive 40 SP's to be distributed among 10 Career skills and the total of their INT+REF to be spent on Pick-Up Skills.
In this modified system, characters still receive the base 40 SP's, but they do not have to spend these skills on a "Career Package," since there are no Roles. Points can be spent on any skill desired. Pick-Up Skill Points are granted depending on age (in lieu of INT+REF=Pick-Up SP's), and since older characters should be far more experienced than younger ones, the number of Pick-Up SP's increases with age. Pick-Up SP's can also be spent on any skill.
Here's how it works:
AGE SP's Per Year TSPs 16 3 3 17 3 6 18 3 9 19 3 12 20 2 14 21 2 16 22 2 18 23 2 20 24 1 21 25 1 22 26 1 23 27 1 24 28 1 25For every year after 28, add one more SP to the running Total Skill Points (TSP's).
| DIFFICULTY | MODIFIER |
| Easy | +2 |
| Average | +0 |
| Difficult | -2 |
| Very Difficult | -4 |
| Near Impossible | -6 |
| Impossible | -8 |
Version 1 (CP2020) Version 2 (Modified CP2020)) Name: Leon Name: Leon Character Points: 58 Character Points: 58 Age: 24 Age: 24 Role: Solo Occupation: Computer Security Specialist Starting Money: 2000 Starting Money: 6000 INT: 6 INT: 6 REF: 6 REF: 6 TECH: 8 TECH: 8 COOL: 5 COOL: 5 ATTR: 7 ATTR: 7 LUCK: 6 LUCK: 6 MA: 5 MA: 5 BODY: 8 BODY: 8 EMP: 7 EMP: 7 Run: 15m/turn Run: 15m/turn Leap: 3.75 m. Leap: 3.75 m. Lift: 80kg. Lift: 80kg. SKILLS - SKILLS - Athletics +5 Athletics +5 Awareness/Notice +4 Awareness/Notice +4 Handgun +5 Handgun +4 Brawling +4 Brawling +4 Melee +3 Melee +3 Rifle +4 Rifle +3 Programming +2 Programming +2 System Knowledge +2 System Knowledge +4 Electronics +2 Electronics +3 Electronic Security +2 Electronic Security +5 Library Search +2 Library Search +4 Cyberdeck Design +2 Cyberdeck Design +2 Submachine Gun +3 Strength Feat +4 Weaponsmith +3 Streetwise +3 Stealth +5 Persuasion/Fast Talk +4 Combat Sense +4 Interface +3 ADVANTAGES - Combat Sense +2 (4 SP Cost) DISADVANTAGES - None
| Cost | Legal/Common | Prescription | Type C | Type B | Type A |
| 1-150 euro | -2 | -3 | -4 | -5 | -6 |
| 151-300 euro | -3 | -4 | -5 | -6 | -7 |
| 301-450 euro | -4 | -5 | -6 | -7 | -8 |
| 451-600 euro | -5 | -6 | -7 | -8 | -9 |
| 601-750+ euro | -6 | -7 | -8 | -9 | -10 |
01 - 20: Legally Employed (Roll 1D100):
01 - 06: Accountant 07 - 13: Clerk (Retail or Otherwise)
14 - 19: Construction Worker 20 - 25: Courier
26 - 31: Doctor/Nurse 32 - 37: Engineer/Technician
38 - 44: Janitor 45 - 50: Pilot
51 - 56: Secretary 57 - 61: Scientist
62 - 68: Social Worker 69 - 75: Student, College
76 - 80: Student, K-12 81 - 87: Teacher, College
88 - 93: Teacher, K-12 94 - 00: Truck/Bus Driver
21 - 35: Street Trash (Roll 1D100):
01 - 02: Assassin 03 - 07: Bartender
08 - 11: Bodyguard 12 - 15: Bouncer
16 - 20: Cab Driver 21 - 23: Con Man
24 - 26: Convict 27 - 28: Counterfeiter
29 - 30: Drug Cooker 31 - 36: Drug Dealer
37 - 40: Ex-Convict 41 - 44: Fixer/Fence
45 - 49: Gang Member 50 - 53: Hooker (Non-Licensed)
54 - 58: Junkie 59 - 62: Mercenary
63 - 65: Netrunner 66 - 69: Nomad
70 - 72: Prostitute (Licensed) 73 - 74: Ripperdoc
75 - 78: Ronin 79 - 82: Smuggler
83 - 88: Street Vendor 89 - 90: Techie
91 - 94: Thief/Burglar 95 - 00: Vagrant
36 - 50: Legal/Emergency (Roll 1D100):
01 - 05: Bounty Hunter 06 - 20: Cop (Go To 1.1)
21 - 36: Fireman 37 - 40: Lawyer
41 - 55: Paramedic 56 - 61: Prison Guard
62 - 75: Private Investigator 76 - 90: Rent-A-Cop
91 - 95: Retired Cop (Go To 1.1) 96 - 00: Vigilante
51 - 65: Organized Crime (Roll 1D10):
1: Assassin 2 - 3: Bodyguard
4: Bookie 5: Counterfeiter
6 - 8: Enforcer 9: Minor Boss
0: Netrunner
(Go To Chart 1.2)
66 - 79: Corporate (Roll 1D10):
1: Assassin/Ninja 2: Corp Cop/Security
3: Doctor/MedTech 4 - 5: Employee (Clerk, Secretary, etc)
6: Junior Executive 7: Senior Executive
8: Netrunner 9: Samurai
0: Technician
(Go To Chart 1.3)
80 - 89: Entertainers (Roll 1D10):
1: Actor 2 - 3: Artist
4: Athlete 5: Disk Jockey
6: Media (Go To 1.4) 7 - 8: Rocker
9: Dancer 0: Writer
90 - 00: Government (Roll 1D10) :
1: LEDiv Agent (Go To 1.5) 2: Assassin
3 - 6: Military (Go To 1.6) 7: Netrunner
8: Official/Politician 9 - 0: Techie
FE&C Subchart 1.1 - Types of Police| Rank (How much authority you have) | Cost |
| Soldier | 0 |
| Sergeant | 1 |
| Lieutenant | 2 |
| Captain | 3 |
| Leader | 4 |
| Clan Favor (How many people will back you up) | Cost |
| No one likes you | 0 |
| You have few friends within the clan | 1 |
| Well respected | 2 |
| You have few enemies within the clan | 3 |
| Well liked by all | 4 |
| Clan Size (How many members your clan has) | Cost |
| 10-100 members | 0 |
| 101-200 members | 1 |
| 201-300 members | 2 |
| 301-400 members | 3 |
| 401-500+ members | 4 |
| Clan Resources (Your clan's wealth) | Cost |
| Destitute - Your clan has no resources | 0 |
| Struggling - Your clan has few available resources | 1 |
| Poor - Your clan has some resources | 2 |
| Comfortable - Your clan gets by with some to spare | 3 |
| Wealthy - Your clan has very few pressing needs | 4 |
| Rank | Cost |
| Greenie | 0 |
| Punk | 1 |
| Homeboy | 2 |
| Bloodboy | 3 |
| Gang lord | 4 |
| Gang Reputation | Cost |
| You're everybody's bitch | 0 |
| You have few friends within the gang | 1 |
| Well respected | 2 |
| You have few enemies within the gang | 3 |
| You're everybody's ace kool | 4 |
| Gang Size | Cost |
| Tiny Gang (1-5 Members) | 0 |
| Small Gang (6-10 Members) | 1 |
| Mid-Sized Gang (11-25 Members) | 2 |
| Large Gang (26-50 Members) | 3 |
| Huge Gang (51-100 Members) | 4 |
| Gang Turf | Cost |
| No Turf | 0 |
| Couple of Buildings | 1 |
| One City Block | 2 |
| Two or Three City Blocks | 3 |
| Four to Six City Blocks | 4 |
| Rank | Cost |
| Clan Member | 0 |
| Sergeant | 1 |
| Lieutenant | 2 |
| Captain | 3 |
| Tribal Elder | 4 |
| Favor | Cost |
| No one likes you | 0 |
| You have few friends within the clan | 1 |
| Well respected | 2 |
| You have few enemies within the clan | 3 |
| Well liked by all | 4 |
| Workgang Size | Cost |
| Tiny Gang (1-5 Members) | 0 |
| Small Gang (6-10 Members) | 1 |
| Mid-Sized Gang (11-25 Members) | 2 |
| Large Gang (26-50 Members) | 3 |
| Huge Gang (51-100 Members) | 4 |
| Workgang Resources | Cost |
| Destitute - A few skin suits, not much else. | 0 |
| Struggling - Gang owns a flitter or work module. | 1 |
| Poor - Gang possesses an old OTV. | 2 |
| Comfortable - Gang has a couple different space craft. | 3 |
| Wealthy - Gang owns a small habitat and several craft. | 4 |
| Skill Level | Cost |
| Unskilled (5+1D10) | 0 |
| Average (10+1D10) | 1 |
| Professional (15+1D10) | 2 |
| Expert (20+1D10) | 3 |
| Reputation | Cost |
| 0-2 | 0 |
| 3-5 | 1 |
| 6-8 | 2 |
| 9-10 | 3 |
| Availability | Cost |
| Seldom (Must Roll 9+) | 0 |
| Sometimes (Must Roll 7+) | 1 |
| Often (Must Roll 5+) | 2 |
| Always (Must Roll 3+) | 3 |
| Reliability | Cost |
| Unreliable (Betrays On 3+) | 0 |
| Reliable (Betrays On 5+) | 1 |
| Very Reliable (Betrays On 7+) | 2 |
| Super Reliable (Betrays On 9+) | 3 |
| Position (Your rank in the company) | Cost |
| Wage Slave - You share a cubicle with someone, $20,000/year | 0 |
| Assistant Manager - You have your own cubicle, $30,000/year | 1 |
| Manager - You have a somewhat larger cubicle, $45,000/year | 2 |
| Junior Executive - You share an office with someone, $55,000/year | 3 |
| Executive - You have your own office, $65,000/year | 4 |
| Department Head - You have a larger office, $75,000/year | 5 |
| Division Head - You have a large corner office, $90,000/year | 6 |
| Junior Vice President - You have a huge office, $120,000/year | 7 |
| Vice President/Executive VP - You have a gigantic office, $150,000/year | 8 |
| Chief Executive Officer - You have your own floor, $200,000+/year | 9 |
| Respect (How your co-workers feel about you) | Cost |
| No one likes you. | 0 |
| You have a few friends. | 1 |
| Well respected by most. | 2 |
| You have few enemies. | 3 |
| Well liked by all. | 4 |
| Corporation Size (The company's influence) | Cost |
| Local Mom & Pop Company (10+ employees) | 0 |
| Small National Corporation/Large Local Company (500+ employees) | 1 |
| Large National Corporation (10,000+ employees) | 2 |
| Small International Corporation (100,000+ employees) | 3 |
| Large International Corporation (500,000+ employees) | 4 |
| Financial Status (How the company is performing) | Cost |
| Nearly Bankrupt (Pay Multiplier x 1/3) | 0 |
| Struggling (Pay Multiplier x 1/2) | 1 |
| Stable (Pay Multiplier x1) | 2 |
| Thriving (Pay Multiplier x1.5) | 3 |
| Prosperous (Pay Multiplier x2) | 4 |
Advantage Cost
Acute Sense 2 SPs
Ambidextrous 6 SPs
Artistic 2 SPs
Athletic 4 SPs
Balance 4 SPs
Bilingual Background 4 SPs
Born Healer 4 SPs
Brawny 4 SPs
Brotherhood Varies
Chemical Youth 4 SPs
Combat Reflexes 2, 4, or 6 SPs
Combat Reflexes ('Net) 2, 4, or 6 SPs
Computer Aptitude 4 SPs
Competent 4 SPs
Connoisseur 2 SPs
Contacts Varies
Cool Under Fire 2 SPs
Cyber-Affinity 10 SPs
Danger Sense 2, 4, or 6 SPs
Direction Sense 2 SPs
Double-Jointed 2 SPs
Eidetic Memory 6 SPs
Empathy 4 SPs
Fashion Victim 2 SPs
Fast 2 SPs
Favor 2, 4, or 6 SPs
Friends 4 SPs
Hard Hitting 4 or 6 SPs
Hard to Kill 6 SPs
High Pain Threshold 6 SPs
Human Calculator 4 SPs
Imposing 2 SPs
Lady Killer 4 SPs
Light Sleeper 2 SPs
Lucky 2, 4, or 6 SPs
Marksman 6 SPs
Musical Aptitude 2 SPs
Natural Leader 2 SPs
Natural Linguist 4 SPs
Plain 2 SPs
Quick Healer 6 SPs
Recognition 4 SPs
Resources Varies
Salesman 4 SPs
Scientific Aptitude 4 SPs
Strong Stomach 2 SPs
Talented 4 SPs
Technical Aptitude 4 SPs
Tough 6 SPs
Vehicle Zen 4 SPs
Voice 4 SPs
|
Disadvantage Cost Allergies -2, -4, or -8 SPs Bad Temper -2 or -4 SPs Blindness -4, -6, -8, or -12 SPs Close Personal Tie -2 or -4 SPs Clumsy -4 or -6 SPs Compulsion -2, -4, or -6 SPs Compulsive Liar -6 SPs Cowardice -4 SPs Criminal Record -2, -4, or -6 SPs Cyber-Rejection -10 SPs Debt (Financial) -2, -4, or -6 SPs Deep Sleeper -2 SPs Divided Loyalty -4 SPs Domineering -2 SPs Drug Addiction -2 to -10 SPs Ego Signature -2 SPs Enemies -2 SPs Estranged -4 SPs Flashbacks -2, -4, or -6 SPs Glass Jaw -2 SPs Greedy -4 SPs Hearing Loss/Deafness -2, -4, -6, -8, -10 SPs Hemophilia -6 SPs Honesty -2 or -4 SPs Honor -2 or -4 SPs Illiteracy -4 SPs Illness -4, -6, or -10 SPs Impaired Vision -2 SPs Impulsive -2 SPs Kleptomania -6 SPs Lechery -2 or -4 SPs Masochism -2 SPs Missing Limbs -4 SPs per limb Moral Qualm -2 or -4 SPs Mute -4 or -6 SPs Nightmares -2 SPs No Pain Tolerance -6 SPs Old Injury -4 SPs Overconfidence -4 SPs Pacifism -4 or -6 SPs Paranoia -6 SPs Phobia -2, -4, or -6 SPs Poor Sense -2 SPs Rebellious -2 SPs Rival -2 or -4 SPs Sadism -4 SPs Sterility -2 or -4 SPs Uncouth -4 SPs Unmistakable Feature -2 SPs Vendetta -2, -4, or -6 SPs Weak Stomach -4 SPs |