Nightlancer Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1 Introduction
  • 1.1 Game Overview
  • 1.2 Components
  • 1.3 Component Overview
• 2 Setup
  • 2.1 Set Up Game Board
  • 2.2 Set Up Nightlancers
• 3 Game Play
  • 3.1 Prep Phase
    • Draw cards step
    • Downtime step
    • Take missions step
    • Event step
    • End of Prep Phase
  • 3.2 Streets Phase
  • 3.3 Missions Phase
    • Mission traits
    • Mission steps
    • Mission special cases
    • Competing Crews
• 4 Game End
• 5 Features
  • 5.1 Card Anatomy
    • Nightlancer cards
    • Black Market cards
    • Contact cards
    • Other cards
  • 5.2 Key Concepts
    • Paying costs
    • Card terms
    • Challenges
    • Nightlancer status
• 6 Extras
  • 6.1 Optional Rules
    • Cooperative play
    • Solitaire play
    • Cooperative or solitaire
    • Hardened Nightlancers
  • 6.2 The Nightlancer World
    • Recent history

1 Introduction

1.1 Game Overview

Each player takes control of a Nightlancer – an underworld operative. Throughout the game they must guide them through their underworld life. They work with their contacts, trade on the black market and take on shady missions for the big money. They must not forget their end goal though – to give up the underworld and leave it as far behind them as they can.

To begin with the Nightlancers are just getting a foothold. They can invest in their prospects early, but could also focus on improving their abilities with training after missions or improving their equipment by buying from the black market.

As the game comes close to an end they must prepare to leave the underworld life as society crumbles to anarchy around them. They do this by increasing their prospects – either by buying them directly, or investing their earnings into their secret agendas.

Whichever Nightlancer has the most prospects will win the game.

1.2 Components

• Rulebook (1)
• Summary card (2)
• Game boards (2)
• Challenge dice (2)
• Health tokens (20 single, 8 triple)
• Resolve tokens (20 single, 8 triple)
• Money tokens (28 1s, 16 5s, 12 10s)
• Loan tokens (8)
• Nightlancer cards (8)
• Nightlancer agendas (8)
• Nightlancer items (8)
• Nightlancer tokens (8)
• Status tokens (3 each of 4 colours)
• Status slider (1 each of 4 colours)
• Deal tokens (4)
• Contact cards (60)
• Black Market cards (60)
• Skill cards (36)
• Agenda cards (42)
• Early event cards (10)
• Late event cards (10)
• Low profile mission cards (24)
• High profile mission cards (12)

1.3 Component Overview

Game boards. The game boards keep track of player status and help lay out the game components. The game board has a track for Prospects and for Heat. Prospects are used to determine the winner. Heat makes a player more vulnerable to dangerous event cards, and will penalise their Prospects at the end of the game.

Nightlancer cards. A Nightlancer card contains all the key information about the Nightlancer. All of a player's choices revolve around their Nightlancer, so it is important to understand it. See page 17 for details.

Tokens

• Health - The amount of physical wear and tear the Nightlancer can take before they have to retreat. Tokens are worth 1 Health or 3 Health.
• Resolve - The amount of stress and adversity the Nightlancer can endure. Tokens are worth 1 Resolve or 3 Resolve.
• KC - How much money the Nightlancer has, in KC or "caseys". It comes in money chips which are worth 1 KC (grey), 5 KC (blued) or 10 KC (gold).
• Loan - These tokens represent outstanding loans from loan sharks.
• Deal - This token is used to mark when a Nightlancer has an exclusive deal on a mission.
• Status slider - These sliders are used to record the current amount of Ideals a Nightlancer has.
• Status tokens - Each player has three of these for marking Prospects, Heat and Turn Order on the game board.

Cards (for full card anatomy see page 19)

• Black Market cards - Rare, illegal equipment that the Nightlancers will get opportunities to buy throughout the game. This can include guns, melee weapons, cybernetic enhancements, explosives, exotic drugs and body armour.
• Contact cards - Special people who are able to help out the Nightlancers with favours. Nightlancers are constantly connected to the criminal underworld and can meet a variety of contacts, but these relationships are often fleeting and temporary.
• Skill cards - Special training that Nightlancers can undergo to improve their capabilities. They can do this after they complete missions – which reveal to them areas that they need to improve in.
• Agenda cards - Special opportunities that Nightlancers can get access to if they meet the requirements. They provide a variety of options that can improve the options and prospects of a Nightlancer.
• Event cards - Bring in the environment of the Nightlancer world. They set the mission opportunities available to the Nightlancers, but also dangerous events that can interfere with their work.
• Mission cards - Unique missions that a Nightlancer can attempt to complete for a big payday. Each card details three stages which have multiple paths for completion. See page 11 for more information about how to complete missions.

Other components

• Summary cards - The summary cards summarise key information about the process of a game round. It provides broad reminders of how to proceed through the game at a glance.
• Dice - Two specialist six-sided dice are included in the game which are used for Challenges.

2 Setup

The setup and gameplay rules presented here are for 2-4 player competitive games. Solitaire or cooperative games are slightly different, see page 26.

2.1 Set Up Game Board

Lay out the two game boards side by side, then follow these steps for the rest of the game components. (Numbers refer to the labelled areas of the board diagram.)

1. Shuffle the Contact cards, put them here.
2. Shuffle the Black Market cards, put them here.
3. Event deck. Shuffle the Late event cards, then draw 4 and put them here face-down. Shuffle the Early event cards, then draw 4 and put them on top of the Late event cards. This stack is the Event deck for this game. Place the remaining Event cards back in the game box without looking at them. With 2 players draw 5 Early event and 5 Late event cards instead of 4 of each.
4. Shuffle the Agenda cards and put them here.
5. Shuffle the Skill cards and put them here.
6. Shuffle the High-profile mission cards and put them here.
7. Shuffle the Low-profile mission cards and put them here.
8. Put all of the Health, Resolve and KC tokens beside the game board.
9. The Open Black Market is the area in which Black Market cards are placed when drawn.
10. The Open Mission Area is the area in which Mission cards are placed when they are drawn.
11. The Prospects track records the scores of the Nightlancers.
12. The Turn order track records the current order of play.
13. The Heat track records the amount of investigation and scrutiny the Nightlancers are under.

2.2 Set Up Nightlancers

Each player chooses one of the 8 Nightlancer cards and lays them out in front of them. They also take the 3 status tokens and the slider of one of the four colours.

14. Take a number of Health and Resolve tokens shown in the Status area and place them beside your Nightlancer card (15).
15. Place your slider on the Ideals track (17) at the starting position.
16. Take the amount of money tokens shown in the Setup area and place it beside your Nightlancer card.
17. Take the starting Item card and place it above the Nightlancer card.
18. Take the starting Agenda card shown in the Setup area. Also draw two cards from the Agenda deck (4). These become your hand of cards. Only you may look at these.
19. Take your Nightlancer token and also a Deal token. Take two of the status tokens in your colour and place them on the game board. Place one on the Prospects track (11) on 0. Place one on the Heat track (12) on 0.

Starting turn order. Finally, take the remaining status token that each player has left. Randomly place them on the turn order track (13). The player who is placed in the last position takes one extra KC.

3 Game Play

The game is played in a series of rounds. In each round 4 phases are completed in the following order.

1. Prep phase
2. Streets phase
3. Mission phase
4. End phase

Sell items. At any time a player may sell Item cards (Armour, Gear or Weapon cards). To sell an Item discard the card and take half (rounded down) of the KC cost of the card from the supply.

3.1 Prep Phase

During the Prep phase each step is performed by all players before moving on to the next step.

Draw cards step

Turn over the top card of the Event deck and draw the number of Low-Profile Mission and High-Profile Mission that it indicates for the number of players.

Draw 2 Black Market cards for each player, then draw 2 more. Place them face-up in the Open Black Market.

All players draw 2 Contact cards. They Recover any cards they have Spent (see page 21).

Downtime step

Each player takes one Health and one Resolve up to the maximum for their Nightlancer. They take 1 KC. All players that are Shaken flip their Nightlancer token over, they are no longer Shaken.

Then for each Loan token a player has they must pay 1 KC in interest or discard 3 Health and 3 Resolve! After paying interest, for each Loan they may pay 10 KC to discard it. Loan costs are always done last in the Downtime step.

Take missions step

In Turn Order, players choose one option:

• Start a First Crew
• Start a Second Crew
• Join a Crew
• Pass

If a player is Shaken or has 5 Heat then they must pass during this step.

Start a First Crew. If there is no First Crew on a mission then a player may start one. They put their Nightlancer token on the First Crew space for Stage 1. They are now the Boss on that mission, forming a Crew of 1. The top token in a Crew is always the Boss of that Crew.

Some Contact cards give you the option to place your Deal token when you start a First Crew. Doing this stops a Second Crew being formed and competing against you.

Start a Second Crew. A player may start a Second Crew on a mission if the First Crew space is occupied, unless there is already a Second Crew or a Deal blocking the Second Crew space. They place their Nightlancer token on the Second Crew space for Stage 1. They are the Boss of this Crew.

Join a Crew. A player may join a Crew if the Boss of that Crew agrees. If they are accepted place their Nightlancer token beneath all others already in the Crew.

Leaving a mission. A player may leave their position on a mission at any time during this step. Remove their Nightlancer token from the Crew, do not change the order of other tokens in the Crew.

If the Boss leaves a mission, the highest token remaining becomes the Boss. If there is no First Crew remaining, and there is a Second Crew, move the Second Crew into the First Crew space.

Once all players have taken their turn the Take Missions step ends.

Event step

Players that are not on a mission, because they passed or left their mission, regain Health and Resolve up to the maximum for their Nightlancer. They reduce their Heat by one and draw an Agenda card.

The Event now applies to players that are on a mission. This could affect all players or just players that meet certain requirements (such as having high Heat).

In Turn Order players check if the event applies to them and, if so, they tackle it individually. This will involve some sort of Challenge (page 22).

During this step a player does not need to assign a Loadout but cards with the Obvious trait may not be used.

If a player is Shaken by the event then they remove their Nightlancer from the mission they are on. If they are Shaken before they finish the event they are not affected by remaining parts of the Event.

End of Prep Phase

The phase ends when the event has been resolved. Discard any mission cards that have no Crews on them.

3.2 Streets Phase

During the Streets phase players take it in turns to act in Turn Order. On a player's turn they may do one of these:

• Buy a Black Market card
• Fulfil an Agenda
• Take a Loan
• Buy Prospects
• Pass

The Streets phase continues until all players pass consecutively.

Buy a Black Market card. A player may buy one of the cards from the Open Black Market if they can afford the cost. They pay the cost of the card then place it beside their Nightlancer card. Players can not buy a duplicate of a Cyberware or Cyberweapon card that they already have.

Fulfil an Agenda. An Agenda card may be fulfilled if the conditions on the card are met. To fulfil it the costs must be paid in full. When a player fulfils an Agenda they place it face-up beside their Nightlancer card then follow the instructions on the card.

Some Agenda cards increase Ideals. If a player fulfils an Agenda like this but their Ideals track is already at 6, they instead increase their Resolve to maximum.

Take out a loan. A player may take out a Loan as their turn. If they do they take 10 KC and a Loan token. A player may not take a Loan if they already have 2.

Buy Prospects. A player may buy as many Prospects as they can afford on their turn. The amount of KC it costs to buy one Prospect is on the Event card for the round.

Pass. If a player does not want to do anything they can pass. They are still able to take turns later in the phase if play returns to them.

End of streets phase. When all players have passed consecutively the Streets phase ends. Discard all the remaining cards in the Open Black Market.

3.3 Missions Phase

In Turn Order, if a player is on a mission then that mission is attempted for all players on that mission. Once all missions have been attempted, or if no players have taken missions, the phase is over.

Mission traits

• Dirty - All Nightlancers in the Crew who Complete the mission lose 1 Ideal. These missions require the Crew do something especially immoral.
• Incognito - Cards with the Obvious trait may not be used. The mission takes place around intense surveillance or busy crowds, where obvious hardware is a problem.
• Stealthy - Cards with the Loud trait may not be used. The target of the mission will escape or become unavailable if they are alerted.

Mission steps

To attempt the mission follow these steps in order.

I. Gear up II. Stage 1 III. Stage 2 IV. Stage 3 V. Payment

I. Gear up. At the start of a mission all members of the Crew must decide which cards they have in their Loadout. There may be up to three Item cards in a Loadout. All other Item cards they have must be left to the side for the duration of the mission and will not be usable.

II-IV. Stage 1, 2, 3. Each stage of a mission offers a choice of two options for how it can be attempted and a penalty that applies if the chosen option is failed. Each option will be a challenge of some sort (see page 22).

Failing at the chosen option does not mean the mission itself is over. In the event of the chosen option being attempted and failed the penalty takes effect. The penalty can be a combat challenge (see page 24), gaining Heat or having to Abort.

After each step of the mission is complete, move the Crew to the First Crew space on the next Stage.

Crews. When multiple players face a challenge together as part of a Crew, the Boss chooses which challenge. Then the Crew must each choose whether to assist or not before any of them roll.

All of those who choose to assist make the attempt independently. They must each pay any costs of the challenge. Any Contact cards played for this challenge only apply to the player they are played on.

Once all of the Crew have made the attempt, they use the highest score of all attempts as their group Challenge score. If they fail, all Crew members count as having failed the challenge whether they assisted or not.

V. Payment. If at least one player completes Stage 3 then the mission is Complete. All players who are still members of the Crew take the rewards.

Each mission has a different entry for the rewards that are earned for each size Crew. Look at the entry for the Crew members remaining when the mission is Complete.

Each Crew member takes the reward shown. The reward always includes KC and can also include Skill card draws and Prospects. A mission reward may also include increased Heat.

If the mission has the Dirty trait all members of the Crew reduce their Ideals by one.

The number of Skill cards shown is the number of cards that the player draws. They may buy one of the drawn cards and then discard any that they do not buy. Skill cards increase in cost as a player gains more of them. The first Skill card costs 2 KC, each consecutive card costs one more KC.

Once payment is finished players take back their Nightlancer token and discard the mission card.

Mission special cases

Abandoning a mission. A player may abandon a mission at the beginning of any Stage. But once an option has been chosen they must go through with it – they will only next have the option to abandon the mission at the start of the next Stage.

When a player abandons a mission, remove their Nightlancer token from the Crew and return it to their Nightlancer card. If all players abandon the mission, discard the mission card.

If the Boss abandons a mission and other Crew remain, the topmost Nightlancer token remaining shows the new Boss. Keep the order of the remaining Crew the same.

Shaken on a mission. Players that are Shaken on a mission immediately remove their Nightlancer token from the mission and return it to their Nightlancer card, just as if they had abandoned it. Their Crew can not benefit from their involvement in the challenge that leaves them Shaken. If they are Shaken at any point they will not get the reward, even if it happens in the last challenge!

Aborting a mission. An Abort penalty forces a Crew to leave a mission. All members of the affected Crew are immediately removed from the mission card.

Competing Crews

First and Second crew. If two Crews are competing for a mission then, at each Stage, the Crew that is in the First Crew position attempts the Stage first.

If they pass they move on to the First Crew position of the next Stage normally. If they fail their chosen option (but are not forced off the mission) they instead move to the Second Crew position.

After the First Crew has attempted a Stage the Second Crew attempts it. If they pass their chosen option and the other Crew are in the First Crew position of the next Stage, they are put in the Second Crew position. But if the First Crew position is open they instead move to that position and take the lead!

If the Second Crew fail their chosen option and are still on the mission, they move to the Second Crew space on the next Stage. If the other crew is already there, the other crew is moved to the First Crew position first – they keep their lead.

Face-off. If both Crews are still on the mission when they reach Stage 3 then the First Crew can either abandon the mission, or choose how they will fight the other Crew! If they abandon the mission the Second Crew continues with the mission on their own.

If the First Crew decides to fight, they choose Close, Gunfighter or Marksman. The Second Crew must either accept the fight or abandon the mission. If they fight then the two Crews have a Contested Combat Challenge of the chosen type. It's too late for the First Crew to back out now.

Contested Combat Challenge. The First Crew makes an attempt at the chosen challenge type, like attempting a normal combat challenge they must pay Health as usual. Their Challenge Score becomes the Challenge Difficulty that the other Crew must try to beat!

The Second Crew must then face the challenge and attempt to beat it. If they equal or beat the Challenge Difficulty they have passed! The First Crew lose their Health and are Shaken just like losing a combat challenge. The Second Crew continue with the mission.

If the Second Crew fail they lose all their Health and are Shaken. The First Crew can continue with the mission.

End of missions. Once all accepted missions have ended (or if no missions were accepted) the Missions phase ends.

3.4 End Phase

Each step of this phase is completed by all players before performing the next step.

Discard cards step

All players discard cards from their hand until they have no more than 6.

End game step

If there are no cards remaining in the Event deck then the game ends. If the game has ended continue on to Game end below.

Turn order step

The player order markers are moved so they are in the same order as the status markers on the Heat track, with the lowest Heat coming first in the turn order.

If more than one player has the same Heat then the tie is broken by Prospects, so the player with the least Prospects is first in the turn order. If there are still ties then the order of the tied players does not change.

Now begin a new round.

4 Game End

Once the game has ended calculate scores to determine the winner!

Players may sell any number of their Item cards, use their Contact cards and fulfil Agenda cards.

Players can reduce Heat by paying 2 KC for each point. They can discard each Loan for 10 KC.

Then Prospects can be bought for 5 KC each. Each Ideal then gives 1 Prospect.

Finally for each Heat a player has remaining their Prospects are reduced by 1. For each outstanding Loan they reduce Prospects by 5.

Summary, Prospects are adjusted by:

• +1 per Ideal
• +1 per 5 KC
• -1 per Heat
• -5 per Loan

The player with the most Prospects wins. In the case of a tie, the player with the most Ideals wins. If there is a tie for Ideals, the player with the most KC wins. If one or more players are tied on Prospects, Ideals and KC then they share victory.

Techshock and scoring. A player with 0 Ideals (Techshock) can never beat a player that has at least 1 Ideal. If more than one player has Techshock then they may score Prospects amongst themselves.

5 Features

5.1 Card Anatomy

Nightlancer cards

On the back of each card there is a back story for the character and some vital statistics. This does not affect gameplay.

Loadout. At the top of a Nightlancer card is the Loadout area. This is where up to 3 Items (page 19) can be equipped. Cards may normally be moved in and out of the Loadout at any time except during a Mission.

Status. The amount of Health and Resolve shown here is the maximum amount the Nightlancer can have, and the amount they start with. These represent physical and mental endurance. Combat and hazards cost Health and difficult tasks cost Resolve. Running out of either results in being Shaken (page 24).

Setup. This area is only used when setting up and is not used once the game begins (page 5).

Ideals. The Ideals track on a Nightlancer card represents their values, integrity and morals. Ideals can be lost by running out of Health or Resolve, or by doing especially dirty work. If a Nightlancer runs out of Ideals they are in Techshock (page 24). While in Techshock a player can no longer win the game and must regain some Ideals!

Abilities. The ability ratings of the Nightlancer show what they are good at. Each Nightlancer has six ability ratings that are used in Challenges (page 22). They each represent competence with a connected range of activities.

• Covert (Stealth): Evasion, Spotting, Spying
• Streetwise: Deception, Intimidation, Manipulation, Street smarts
• Technical: Repairs, Picking locks, Bypassing electronics
• Close: Melee combat, Short range gunfights, Reflexes, agility and ferocity
• Gunfighter: Middle range gunfights, Tactical positioning, Weapon handling
• Marksman: Long ranged shooting, Sniping, Patience, Timing

Special. Each Nightlancer has a unique special ability that only they may use.

Black Market cards

These cards are drawn each round to the Open Black Market. These are opportunities to get powerful limited-edition equipment. Once bought, Black Market cards are placed face-up beside the Nightlancer card.

These traits may be on black market cards.

• Loud - If a card has the Loud trait, the user gains Heat whenever they use it. It also may not be used if a mission has the Stealthy trait.
• Obvious - If a card has the Obvious trait, it may never be used during an Event. It also may not be used if a mission has the Incognito trait.

Black Market card types

• Armour cards - Armour is used to protect from damage in combat. They only apply in challenges and only one Armour card may be used in a challenge.
• Weapon cards - Weapons allow a Nightlancer to be much more effective in Combat challenges. They only apply in challenges and only one Weapon or Cyberweapon card may be used in a challenge.
• Gear cards - Gear cards are special equipment that can give a variety of special bonuses.
• Item cards - Weapon, Gear and Armour cards are collectively called Item cards. Only 3 Items can be taken on a mission.
• Cyberware - Cyberware is surgically implanted into a Nightlancer's body to make them more effective. Cyberware is always available to use once bought and is not put in the Loadout.
• Cyberweapon - These function as Weapon cards, but like Cyberware they are always available and are not put in the Loadout.

Contact cards

These represent opportunities to make connections with people in the underworld. Contact cards are kept in a player's Hand with Agenda cards. A player may have any number of cards in their hand during the round, but in the End Phase they must discard any excess over 6 cards.

There are 5 types of Contact card:

• Security - People who keep the peace and maintain order.
• Fixer - Fixers are people who are deeply connected in the underworld.
• Smarts - These people know about complex technical tasks.
• Social - Social contacts make interaction with other people their vocation.
• Company - Company contacts work for big businesses, the government, or are self-made entrepreneurs.

These are all used in the same way. They have two positive effects that a player may play on themselves and one negative effect that they may play on opponents. A Contact can be played at any time it can apply.

Other cards

Skill cards. Skill cards may be bought with KC after a mission is completed. They can modify the ability ratings of a Nightlancer or allow extra Contact cards or KC to be taken during the Prep phase. All Skill cards improve Prospects when bought. Once bought, Skill cards are placed face-up beside the Nightlancer card and they are always in effect.

Agenda cards. Agenda cards represent personal opportunities available to a Nightlancer. Each card specifies how to fulfil the Agenda and what is gained for doing so. There are a wide variety of different effects and criteria for them. Some Agenda cards can increase Ideals, these cards are the only way of increasing Ideals. Agenda cards are in a player's Hand while they are unfulfilled. They are kept and placed face-up when they are fulfilled.

Event cards. The Event cards are split into two different decks, with different-coloured borders. One deck is the Early event deck and one is the Late event deck. These are used to form the Event deck for a game. An Event card has three main parts. The number of mission cards to draw, the Event itself (if it has one), and the cost to buy Prospects for the round.

Mission cards. There are two types of mission card, Low-Profile and High-Profile. Missions are the best way of getting KC but are risky. High-Profile missions are harder and not as widely available, but are much more rewarding.

Each mission card has three stages. Each stage has two options (which will be challenges) and one penalty. When attempting a mission a player goes through the three stages in order. At each stage they choose one of the available options. If they succeed at their chosen option they continue with the mission, if they fail they face the penalty – potentially failing the mission. If they pass all three stages, they've succeeded and get paid. See page 11 for attempting missions.

5.2 Key Concepts

Paying costs

When an action requires paying KC it may only be chosen if the player has enough to pay the full cost.

When an action requires discarding Health or Resolve then it may be chosen even if the full cost can not be paid. The player discards as much as they have up to the full amount, but it doesn't matter if they can't discard the full amount. They are, of course, Shaken in such a case.

Card terms

Discard. When you Discard a card place it face-up in the discard pile for that card type. If a deck of cards runs out, shuffle the discard pile to make a new deck.

Spend and Recover. When you Spend a card it stays where it is and is turned face-down. Spent cards can't be used. Spent cards are Recovered (flipped back face-up) in the Draw Cards step and can then be used again.

Challenges

Challenges are the process of performing difficult tasks.

Challenge types (shown by icons on the cards; each uses the named ability)

• Normal challenges: Covert, Streetwise, Technical
• Special challenges (page 22): Cracking (uses Technical), Demolitions (uses Technical), Distraction (uses Covert)
• Combat challenges (page 24): Close, Gunfighter, Marksman (each uses the ability of the same name)

Challenges are shown as a challenge type followed by the difficulty. Example: a Covert challenge of difficulty 3.

Normal challenges (Covert, Streetwise, Technical). When the active player attempts a challenge they first declare the challenge they are attempting to give other players a chance to affect the challenge.

They add the ability of their Nightlancer to any cards they are using to make their Challenge score. Other players may play cards that penalise their attempt.

Cards: Skill and Cyberware always apply. Any number of Contact cards may be used. Any number of Gear cards may be used.

Before rolling for the challenge, the active player announces a 3-second count down to inform other players that they are about to attempt the challenge. Players can interrupt to play cards that affect the challenge. If they are interrupted by other players they should restart the countdown afterwards.

When they finish their countdown they roll the Challenge die. Once the die is rolled then no more cards may be used to affect the Challenge score.

The die roll has a modifier between +0 and +3. This is added to the Challenge score. If the die shows the Resolve symbol then the player must also pay a point of Resolve. If this causes them to be Shaken, they fail the challenge.

If the Challenge Score equals or beats the difficulty of the challenge then the attempt succeeds, otherwise it is failed.

Special and combat challenges function like normal challenges, with some significant exceptions. They are explored more in the following pages.

Special challenges (Cracking, Demolitions, Distraction). These are like normal challenges but require a special ability in order to succeed at them.

If the requirement is provided the challenge is attempted as a normal challenge with the connected ability. Without it any attempt automatically fails.

Some Contacts can be used for Cracking and Distraction challenges. The Black Market has cards that can be used for Demolitions.

For example: a challenge requires a card with Cracking. If they have such a card, they may use it to attempt the Technical challenge of difficulty 4.

Combat challenges (Close, Gunfighter, Marksman). When a player faces a combat challenge they have gotten into a major fight!

In a combat challenge, at most one Weapon or one Cyberweapon card may be used. At most one Armour card may be used. (Even the worst-equipped Nightlancer has a basic pistol and silencer. They're cheap and common enough that you can assume they have one somewhere, and it is concealable and quiet so it can be used on any job.)

When attempting a combat challenge the player must pay Health before they roll the die.

• A Close challenge costs 3 Health
• A Gunfighter challenge costs 2 Health
• A Marksman challenge costs 1 Health

If the combat challenge is failed the Nightlancer has been defeated! The player discards all their Health and they are Shaken (see below).

Group combats. When multiple players face a combat challenge, if none of the Crew facing a combat challenge attempt it or if their highest challenge score doesn't beat the challenge, then they all fail! The entire Crew lose their Health and are Shaken whether they took part in the challenge or not.

Nightlancer status

Shaken. If a player runs out of Health or Resolve they are Shaken. They flip over their Nightlancer token and remove it from their mission if they are on one. They also reduce their Ideals by one. If they are reduced to 0 Ideals they are in Techshock.

Ready Shaken. The player is Shaken until the next Downtime step. While Shaken they can not join missions or take actions in the Streets phase. If already Shaken, a Nightlancer can not be Shaken again, so will not lose another Ideal.

Techshock. A player in Techshock is no longer able to win the game unless they regain at least one Ideal, or all the other Nightlancers are in Techshock too. If a player is Shaken while already in Techshock, they gain a point of Heat.

6 Extras

6.1 Optional Rules

Cooperative play

Players may play entirely cooperatively.

• Players may not compete for missions.
• Players may not play Contact cards on each other.
• If any player enters Techshock then the players all lose.
• The players may exchange KC amongst themselves at any time.

Solitaire play

A single player may play alone. If they enter Techshock they lose the game immediately. They should set up an Event deck as if there are 2 players. During Draw Cards, draw 4 black market cards [and] draw mission cards as if there are 2 players.

Cooperative or solitaire

When a player attempts a Covert, Streetwise or Technical challenge they must draw a Contact card. If the negative effect of the card can apply to the challenge then it does.

When a player chooses to buy a card from the Open Black Market they draw a Contact card. If the negative effect of the card can affect the black market buy, then discard the black market card!

When a player Completes a mission, draw a Contact card. If the card has the negative effect that applies to the target as they complete a mission, then it is played on the player.

When Contact cards drawn like this apply to a player, it is treated as if another player played it on them in every respect. If it doesn't apply at all, just discard it.

Winning cooperative or solitaire play. To win the game, the player(s) must have a combined score of 30 multiplied by the number of players. If they fail to reach this target, they lose.

Hardened Nightlancers

A variant for expert players that want a greater challenge. This can be used in normal, cooperative or solitaire mode.

When setting up the game, all players take a Loan token. They do not get any money for this loan! Players still have a maximum of two Loan tokens at once. For the ultimate challenge, take two Loan tokens during setup instead.

6.2 The Nightlancer World

Cybernetics. Cybernetics are advanced robotics, implanted surgically into a person's body and wired directly into their nervous system. Most commonly used to replace lost biological parts. They can also be made faster, stronger, tougher and more reliable than flesh. The process of installing them is both physically and psychologically traumatic. Many elements of society reject the cybernetically enhanced transhumans in their midst, thinking them inhuman monsters.

Techshock. Called "Transhuman Disassociative Neurosis" clinically. Techshock is most commonly connected to excessive cybernetic implants or performance-enhancing drug use, but trauma or injury can also place an unbearable burden on an individual. Unable to keep up, their mind fragments and they can no longer keep a coherent understanding of themselves or the world around them. The worst are nihilistic, anarchic, violent monsters who have lost sight of any purpose or value in life and live by their animal urges.

Some so diagnosed are harmless, simply lost in their own world cut off from society. Psychiatrists attempt to reclaim those amongst the safe, guarded areas of the city. They try to bring them back into society and normalise them "for their own good". Those in the slums are left to fend for themselves, for good or bad.

Rumour has it that some cases of Techshock are actually political action, to keep troublemakers under control by discrediting them as "ill" and keeping them locked up "for their protection". For these people, disagreeing or resisting control will only confirm the diagnosis.

KC. KC (or "Casey") stands for Kilo-Credit, a thousand Credits. KC are the widely-used unit of currency in the Nightlancer world and Nightlancers use large quantities of them. It is not a legal currency in Britain, but is widely used since there is little that can be done to stop it.

The city of Birmingham. A place rife with criminal activity, immoral corporations, corrupt officials. It's the largest city in England outside of London. Shockpacks rampage the slums. Armed police try to keep order but lack the manpower to keep crime at bay. Private security forces protect anyone who can afford it. Gun and drug trades, amongst much worse crimes, are widespread. The population live in a dangerous place and arm themselves in preparation for the worst.

The police force. Barely able to keep the wealthiest areas of the city in check, with large violent gangs making their lives lethally dangerous, the police force have to meet violence with violence on a daily basis. They have long stopped patrolling the slums of Birmingham actively – only going there in the event of serious crimes, and going well-equipped when they do. They have well-armed assault teams and cybernetically enhanced specialists for when a situation is dire enough.

The underworld. A place of shady bars, back alley trades and fixers making connections between illegal supply and demand. You can find arms dealers selling weapons and cybernetics and back alley surgeons implanting illegal technology away from the prying eyes of the law. It's here that Nightlancers are sought by people who want shady work done and have the KC to pay for it.

The Eurofamily. A huge crime family branching across all of Europe, that has absorbed many crime families from across the region in the past century. They play a major part in the Birmingham underworld and involve themselves in criminal enterprises across the city, not to mention having significant influence in the government.

Street gangs. Street gangs are involved in drugs, guns, street violence and many more crimes. They make the city streets dangerous for all and are constantly at war with the police and terrorising the populace.

• Rivets street gang - A violent street gang that can be identified by the rivets implanted into their foreheads. They're loud and aggressive. They're individually not very well armed or dangerous, but come in numbers.
• Mongrels street gang - A street gang that works with stealth from the shadows and run protection rackets and drug operations. They're not very dangerous head-on, but use guile and traps to get the advantage.

Shockpacks. A shockpack is like a street gang, but far worse. They are composed of members all in a state of Techshock and are more like feral packs of animals than organised gangs. They use exotic combat drugs that make them aggressive, pain resistant and fearless, while implanting cybernetics to make them more dangerous.

• Meathooks shockpack - A brutal, violent gang of savages. They fight to the death amongst themselves for fun and status, implant lethal weapons into their bodies and are fearless and reckless in combat. They are disorganised and don't plan ahead, but they are wildly unpredictable and can cause a lot of damage with suicidal aggression.
• Harmony shockpack - A gang no less dangerous than the Meathooks for all their apparent poise. They use exotic combat drugs to hype them up to inhuman speed, but they are all dangerously unhinged while also deadly and cruel fighters. They use augmented reality implants and superimpose fantastic sounds and images to their reality to make the world "a more beautiful place". They seek to eradicate anything they consider "ugly" or "offensive".

Megacorporations. A large powerful multinational corporation. With enough money and contacts to pay off who it needs to in order to get away with anything. Following are a selection of some relevant Megacorporations.

• Aegis Industries (AI) - A powerful worldwide defence contractor. They can be seen anywhere weapons, armour or military vehicles are in use.
• Assimilatex corporation - Widely known for the bonus packages it offers employees who implant their technology. They produce high quality cybernetic limbs, body plating and other body-improvement implants, while advocating embracing cybernetics as a natural replacement for human body parts.
• ElectraTech corporation - A corporation with its headquarters and labs in the city. They develop new technical innovations, from household electronics to implanted cybernetics. Rumour has it that they use unwilling subjects as test beds for their cybernetic implants.
• Execolux corporation - This worldwide company develops fine professional clothing in a wide variety of styles. It also has a range using advanced fabrics and polymers that are able to protect against weapons fire.
• Fujiya Electric - A Japanese company that is a world leader in electronic innovation. They produce some of the finest cybernetic implants featuring advanced sensors and tools.
• Liontooth Incorporated - This British corporation is an arms manufacturer that develops finely made small arms for personal use. They are yet to step into the market for purpose-built military weapons.
• NeuVita corporation - The NeuVita corporation is focused on advanced medical technology for life-preserving. Their cancer treatments and biological upgrades are highly effective at extending the human life.
• PharmaSynth corporation - A corporation headquartered nearby, with extensive influence in the city. Their speciality is pharmaceutical development, but it's said that they also deal illegally on the black market with expensive and addictive drugs.
• Polygen corporation - Polygen are focused on developing new advanced forms of polymers and finding applications for them. One notable innovation they have is advanced lightweight and cheap polymer plates that can absorb incredible amounts of energy for a short time, giving impressive protection against misfortune.
• Präzisionswaffentechnik (PWT) corporation - After a difficult start in its home country of Germany this corporation trades its high quality military firearms worldwide.
• United Enforcement corporation - A worldwide organisation that involves arms manufacture and development, and private security.

Other factions

• TrueHuman foundation - An organisation with connections worldwide. They strictly support environmentalism, animal rights and a return to human nature. They eschew the use of technology to change the human form, considering it an unnatural violation. They generally only go as far as peaceful protests and demonstrations, but there are members of the organisation that will try to stop transhumanism by force.
• Death cults - Religious sects set upon controlling anyone who disagrees with them, silencing criticism or dissent through threats or violence. Their exact beliefs vary from cult to cult, resulting in them fighting each other as well. They are barely a step from being Shockpacks, differing only in the quasi-orderly belief system, and rarely last long before they self-destruct.

Nightlancers. A Nightlancer is an underworld operative with specialised skills that allow them to pull off a variety of unusual and illegal jobs. The Nightlancers are: The Assassin, The Bombshell, The Cybercracker, The Engineer, The Guard, The Sniper, The Veteran, The Weapon Smith.

Your guides. Anonymous advisers, reputed to be retired Nightlancers: Cerberus and Mongoose.

Recent history

(Transcriber's note: the printed timeline is a two-column table; the assignment of entries to years below follows the extracted reading order and the 2080/2090 split is a best reading.)

• 2050 - Cybernetics come into wider use as rejection issues are solved with biochemical breakthroughs. More substantial implants and replacements become viable.
• 2060 - Bio-oil – oil grown from algae – puts an end to the world oil shortage. Many governments do everything they can to control and regulate its use. Cars, planes, factories and other fuel-burning machines see a resurgence of use. Eco-terrorists strike out against bio-fuel users, claiming it will destroy the planet or that the algae used are dangerous. They try to stop the use of bio-fuel through scaremongering or violence.
• 2070 - Death cults rise striking out against the latest new thing. Some forcibly reverse procedures on people who attempt to improve themselves. Complex communication between brain and machine becomes more deeply understood. Brain implants can transfer information directly from mind to machine, albeit very clumsily at first.
• 2080 - The streets became more dangerous as cases of crazed violence became gradually more common. The first cases of Techshock are recorded. Law enforcement can't keep up. For the first time British citizens have their legal access to firearms increased. Cybernetic implants become more effective. People start electing to implant cybernetic parts to replace biological parts. People who can afford the implants become more advanced.
• 2090 - The first Shockpacks form. Street violence becomes common. Government loses control and the city is split into the secure city centre and the unregulated slums. Violence by TrueHuman activists becomes more common. They increasingly demand a return to nature and an end to violating the sanctity of humanity.
• 2099 - The present.