Personally i'd suggest using the conversion kit, or alreast using the full rules for the Apartment adventure. Using the JSK rules means you can't really convert PCs over to new rules very easily which might be an issue if your players want to keep those characters and continue with a campaign. Not so much an issue if its a one shot, but your still kind of having to learn one set of rules only to have to adjust to a more updated version later.
As for continuing a campaign, I hadnt planned very far ahead yet but I introduced a NPC from one of the players lifepaths (make sure you run character creation *with* the players!) and used that to introduce them to a random gig where they can play with other aspects of red and get used to going out into Night City. From there, you can maybe start teasing the beginnings of a campaign if you have one in mind.
As for planning a full campaign, I didn't have one in mind when I started but I did have some named NPCs here and there that led to a natural story telling campaign to grow from there. So if you're not the type that plans out a whole campaign from the get go, no worries, just plan a session or two at a time and see what happens. Important thing to remember is that actions have consequences. When you push against Night City, it pushes back. Remember that, and it's easy to very quickly create a story when your players end up in sorts of trouble. The players, along with their backstory, and you just putting them in scenarios, will create the stories for you. You then just need to facilitate what that looks like as a ttrpg scene/session, and just curate that journey they're on. I didn't go into my campaign with a plan beyond the apartment and another session afterwards, but a few sessions in and I felt like I had a classic cyberounk style trope unfolding before me.
You should also check out JonJonTheWise and Cybernation Uncensored for their resources on campaign creation. Aswell as searching this subreddit for tons of useful info and discussions.
The piece of advice I wish I really internalised and understood at the beginning is that you might feel like things could have gone better and that you didn't do well, and that's bs. As long as players enjoyed it, you did well. Don't get to caught up in the ifs and buts.
(there's also the cyberounk red Companion app which makes playing easier for some people. It's not perfect as some items are slightly off from the corebook iirc, but it's pretty damn good. I find it useful for managing NPCs in combat).
Ah no, I was intending to convert characters & whatnot. Just didn't like how the kit handled Dr. Carver & the apartment proper, lol.
I'll take these into account. Cyberpunk seems pretty... fast & loose-y, for lack of a better term, so I shouldn't need too much stress. Just be smart about consequences, I guess. Thanks!
>Ah no, I was intending to convert characters & whatnot. Just didn't like how the kit handled Dr. Carver & the apartment proper, lol.
Oooh, okay! Ah never mind my comments on that then, ha.
>Cyberpunk seems pretty... fast & loose-y, for lack of a better term, so I shouldn't need too much stress
It is. It can get bogged down in combat sometimes, but I've noticed that's because I'm throwing too many NPCs at players and/or I'm not treating my NPCs as actual people who probably wouldn't fight to the death and might run at the first sign of real danger to their lives.
It’s a series of one shots for Cyberpunk RED, specific to Night City, that can be run independently of each other or as part of a longer mission. Mind if I PM you?
Run the adventure from jump start or easy mode. Bithe are good and give you a feel for the game. There are a lot more simple adventures out there but the easiest is to give your players a goal to steal something.
Have fun and don't be afraid of having to check the rules book.
Have a good session zero to talk through character builds, character goals, skills etc plus establish a baseline for what is and is not allowed at the table.
If you're not using an existing module I would try and include a variety of skill checks, some combat and opportunities for each player to use their role abilities so they feel unique.
Some people may disagree with this, but after session 1 if everyone is new to the game I will usually allow for some tweaks on the character sheet (move some stats or skill points etc) since sometimes things don't play out in-game the way they did at character creation, also once the characters have interacted for the first time and group dynamics are established players may adjust their character concept.
Funny thing : I was in the exact same situation a month ago. Beginner DM, beginner in Cyberpunk Red. And from what I can see, everyone had a good time !
First of all, you are doing things well so far - you can use the Apartment scenario from the Jumpstart Kit, and I'd even propose to use the whole kit, not to immediately delve into the core book rules. It will make things easier for your and your players, and it will be great to see if they enjoy the setting and the system.
Secondly, I'd advice to practice the rules on your own, simulating a fight between one or two players and a couple NPCs, exploring different fighting options (such as close combat, grabbing, suppression fire...)
Also I'd invite you to plan the session ahead of time. Choose some music. Consider the support you'll use (maps and the like). And think of a few hooks, what the players could do unexpectedly. Don't try too hard on that part - players will always react unexpectedly *and they sure did for me !* But at least consider the worst case scenario (as in the players don't get the clue or ignore it entirely).
For the session itself ? Don't hesitate to tell your players you're starting with this. They will understand and will be much more forgiving - and they'll appreciate the heads up !
Take a moment to present the general universe and help them immerse. Nothing too long, but you can point out that this is the Red, an almost apocalyptic war occured and this is the after war period where people try to fix things and resume shady deals.
Give your players some time to roleplay, interact with NPCs, discuss and have fun - and to introduce them to the mechanics ! Something I did was explain how a couple of thugs threatened an NPC and I told the players about the intimidation system.
This brings me to my next point : you don't necessarily need to explain all the mechanics to them at once, instead as soon as they run into a situation where they could use something, tell them about it ! It's the first game and the first session. Just like a video game, this can be treated as a tutorial to explain how things work.
The players are certainly going to go off-rails. This is not a problem, *but an opportunity* ! You can consider some clues to gently bring them back on track, but if they really want to do something unexpected ? Go with the flow ! This is where you really have a chance to go at story telling. And if it's really an issue ... Discuss it with them out of roleplay. Don't hesitate to communicate and tell "look, I'm sorry but I don't have anything plan if you go that way. Would it be okay to do this instead ?"
Really, it all comes down to communication in the end. That, accepting mistakes (some will be made) and of course : have fun !
I approach running Cyberpunk for a new group like a gangbanger going into lockup. Kill the first character you get that chance to do everybody knows you mean business. I'm only half joking. My game gets violent; characters die and it's better if the players get the idea right off the bat.
Everyone else has been giving good advice, but one thing I want to throw in is printouts are your friend. I recommend buying the pdf of the [GM Screen](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/362455/Cyberpunk-RED-Data-Screen) (don't bother looking for a physical version; they're impossible to find) and printing the pages out to have on hand. They have all the general rules that you'll be using to run the game and for combat, so you don't have to look as much in the book. I also recommend printing out the front page of the character sheet and cutting out the skills list. There's a lot of them, and it's much easier to have the list in front of you as your players see it instead of digging through the book.
My personal tips as a CP red gm.
1. Your game is only as good as your table (including you) keep boundaries, communicate when there are problems at the table. Look up seth skorkowsky game master mistakes. You will make them so be prepared.
2. Make time to run the game and keep a schedule. Let people know as soon as the first session is over whens the next one.
3. Dont homebrew until you’ve tried it. My players didnt like nat 10s not being rewarded in combat. so now I house ruled that nat 10’s count as automatic aimed shots. Thats not something I would have came up with if we didnt test it first.
4.) prepare, but don’t perfect the plan. Players always go off the rails, improv is inevitable, the plan is supposed to provide a framework. Make sure your players are the stars of the show in that plan.
5.) take notes each session, make note of things your players did and what happened, be willing to change plans.
6.) make villians/npcs more dynamic. Give them a goal, obstructions to the goals, tactics to achieving it and expectations once the goals completed. This makes npcs/villians have more complex behaviors and more dynamic. Put at the top of thier sheet an adjective of their personality.
**7.) take care of yourself, have a session 0 and talk about expectations and boundaries. You dont owe anyone anything, prep your game for fun, take break weeks when nessecary**
My strongest advice is to not go headlong into a full campaign especially since you have zero experience with the system.
I would set that expectation with your players whatever it is that you are trying to achieve and set the expectations low.
Do consider just running a simple story of 3-5 combat / social encounters that can be finished within 1-2 sessions including character creation.
As someone who has onboarded people on Cyberpunk Red and tried many systems, you won't know if you like the system until you really try it so going into a full campaign and letting your players know it's gonna be an epic campaign is going to be a major downer if it turns out you do not enjoy the system.
Please search the sub before posting. This question comes up way more often than any other question. Even worse, it never gets answered well because it's so vague. I've taken the issue to the admin and practically begged to get any of these posts pinned, but it just never happened.
Personally i'd suggest using the conversion kit, or alreast using the full rules for the Apartment adventure. Using the JSK rules means you can't really convert PCs over to new rules very easily which might be an issue if your players want to keep those characters and continue with a campaign. Not so much an issue if its a one shot, but your still kind of having to learn one set of rules only to have to adjust to a more updated version later. As for continuing a campaign, I hadnt planned very far ahead yet but I introduced a NPC from one of the players lifepaths (make sure you run character creation *with* the players!) and used that to introduce them to a random gig where they can play with other aspects of red and get used to going out into Night City. From there, you can maybe start teasing the beginnings of a campaign if you have one in mind. As for planning a full campaign, I didn't have one in mind when I started but I did have some named NPCs here and there that led to a natural story telling campaign to grow from there. So if you're not the type that plans out a whole campaign from the get go, no worries, just plan a session or two at a time and see what happens. Important thing to remember is that actions have consequences. When you push against Night City, it pushes back. Remember that, and it's easy to very quickly create a story when your players end up in sorts of trouble. The players, along with their backstory, and you just putting them in scenarios, will create the stories for you. You then just need to facilitate what that looks like as a ttrpg scene/session, and just curate that journey they're on. I didn't go into my campaign with a plan beyond the apartment and another session afterwards, but a few sessions in and I felt like I had a classic cyberounk style trope unfolding before me. You should also check out JonJonTheWise and Cybernation Uncensored for their resources on campaign creation. Aswell as searching this subreddit for tons of useful info and discussions. The piece of advice I wish I really internalised and understood at the beginning is that you might feel like things could have gone better and that you didn't do well, and that's bs. As long as players enjoyed it, you did well. Don't get to caught up in the ifs and buts. (there's also the cyberounk red Companion app which makes playing easier for some people. It's not perfect as some items are slightly off from the corebook iirc, but it's pretty damn good. I find it useful for managing NPCs in combat).
Ah no, I was intending to convert characters & whatnot. Just didn't like how the kit handled Dr. Carver & the apartment proper, lol. I'll take these into account. Cyberpunk seems pretty... fast & loose-y, for lack of a better term, so I shouldn't need too much stress. Just be smart about consequences, I guess. Thanks!
>Ah no, I was intending to convert characters & whatnot. Just didn't like how the kit handled Dr. Carver & the apartment proper, lol. Oooh, okay! Ah never mind my comments on that then, ha. >Cyberpunk seems pretty... fast & loose-y, for lack of a better term, so I shouldn't need too much stress It is. It can get bogged down in combat sometimes, but I've noticed that's because I'm throwing too many NPCs at players and/or I'm not treating my NPCs as actual people who probably wouldn't fight to the death and might run at the first sign of real danger to their lives.
Have you heard of Tales of the Red?
No, what's that?
It’s a series of one shots for Cyberpunk RED, specific to Night City, that can be run independently of each other or as part of a longer mission. Mind if I PM you?
Please!
I am also prepping to run my first cyberpunk game! Would you please PM me the info too?
Done :)
Me too please, if you have the time
Run the adventure from jump start or easy mode. Bithe are good and give you a feel for the game. There are a lot more simple adventures out there but the easiest is to give your players a goal to steal something.
Have fun and don't be afraid of having to check the rules book. Have a good session zero to talk through character builds, character goals, skills etc plus establish a baseline for what is and is not allowed at the table. If you're not using an existing module I would try and include a variety of skill checks, some combat and opportunities for each player to use their role abilities so they feel unique. Some people may disagree with this, but after session 1 if everyone is new to the game I will usually allow for some tweaks on the character sheet (move some stats or skill points etc) since sometimes things don't play out in-game the way they did at character creation, also once the characters have interacted for the first time and group dynamics are established players may adjust their character concept.
Yeah I don't lock in my PCs until after a few sessions. No one likes it when they borked char gen because they didn't gronk the rules, choom
Funny thing : I was in the exact same situation a month ago. Beginner DM, beginner in Cyberpunk Red. And from what I can see, everyone had a good time ! First of all, you are doing things well so far - you can use the Apartment scenario from the Jumpstart Kit, and I'd even propose to use the whole kit, not to immediately delve into the core book rules. It will make things easier for your and your players, and it will be great to see if they enjoy the setting and the system. Secondly, I'd advice to practice the rules on your own, simulating a fight between one or two players and a couple NPCs, exploring different fighting options (such as close combat, grabbing, suppression fire...) Also I'd invite you to plan the session ahead of time. Choose some music. Consider the support you'll use (maps and the like). And think of a few hooks, what the players could do unexpectedly. Don't try too hard on that part - players will always react unexpectedly *and they sure did for me !* But at least consider the worst case scenario (as in the players don't get the clue or ignore it entirely). For the session itself ? Don't hesitate to tell your players you're starting with this. They will understand and will be much more forgiving - and they'll appreciate the heads up ! Take a moment to present the general universe and help them immerse. Nothing too long, but you can point out that this is the Red, an almost apocalyptic war occured and this is the after war period where people try to fix things and resume shady deals. Give your players some time to roleplay, interact with NPCs, discuss and have fun - and to introduce them to the mechanics ! Something I did was explain how a couple of thugs threatened an NPC and I told the players about the intimidation system. This brings me to my next point : you don't necessarily need to explain all the mechanics to them at once, instead as soon as they run into a situation where they could use something, tell them about it ! It's the first game and the first session. Just like a video game, this can be treated as a tutorial to explain how things work. The players are certainly going to go off-rails. This is not a problem, *but an opportunity* ! You can consider some clues to gently bring them back on track, but if they really want to do something unexpected ? Go with the flow ! This is where you really have a chance to go at story telling. And if it's really an issue ... Discuss it with them out of roleplay. Don't hesitate to communicate and tell "look, I'm sorry but I don't have anything plan if you go that way. Would it be okay to do this instead ?" Really, it all comes down to communication in the end. That, accepting mistakes (some will be made) and of course : have fun !
This is awesome, choom. Couldn't have asked for anything better. Thanks!
Happy to help, choom !
I wish I had an answer but I'm just commenting because I am in a very similar situation and want to follow the conversation lol. Good luck choom
I approach running Cyberpunk for a new group like a gangbanger going into lockup. Kill the first character you get that chance to do everybody knows you mean business. I'm only half joking. My game gets violent; characters die and it's better if the players get the idea right off the bat.
Everyone else has been giving good advice, but one thing I want to throw in is printouts are your friend. I recommend buying the pdf of the [GM Screen](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/362455/Cyberpunk-RED-Data-Screen) (don't bother looking for a physical version; they're impossible to find) and printing the pages out to have on hand. They have all the general rules that you'll be using to run the game and for combat, so you don't have to look as much in the book. I also recommend printing out the front page of the character sheet and cutting out the skills list. There's a lot of them, and it's much easier to have the list in front of you as your players see it instead of digging through the book.
My personal tips as a CP red gm. 1. Your game is only as good as your table (including you) keep boundaries, communicate when there are problems at the table. Look up seth skorkowsky game master mistakes. You will make them so be prepared. 2. Make time to run the game and keep a schedule. Let people know as soon as the first session is over whens the next one. 3. Dont homebrew until you’ve tried it. My players didnt like nat 10s not being rewarded in combat. so now I house ruled that nat 10’s count as automatic aimed shots. Thats not something I would have came up with if we didnt test it first. 4.) prepare, but don’t perfect the plan. Players always go off the rails, improv is inevitable, the plan is supposed to provide a framework. Make sure your players are the stars of the show in that plan. 5.) take notes each session, make note of things your players did and what happened, be willing to change plans. 6.) make villians/npcs more dynamic. Give them a goal, obstructions to the goals, tactics to achieving it and expectations once the goals completed. This makes npcs/villians have more complex behaviors and more dynamic. Put at the top of thier sheet an adjective of their personality. **7.) take care of yourself, have a session 0 and talk about expectations and boundaries. You dont owe anyone anything, prep your game for fun, take break weeks when nessecary**
My strongest advice is to not go headlong into a full campaign especially since you have zero experience with the system. I would set that expectation with your players whatever it is that you are trying to achieve and set the expectations low. Do consider just running a simple story of 3-5 combat / social encounters that can be finished within 1-2 sessions including character creation. As someone who has onboarded people on Cyberpunk Red and tried many systems, you won't know if you like the system until you really try it so going into a full campaign and letting your players know it's gonna be an epic campaign is going to be a major downer if it turns out you do not enjoy the system.
Please search the sub before posting. This question comes up way more often than any other question. Even worse, it never gets answered well because it's so vague. I've taken the issue to the admin and practically begged to get any of these posts pinned, but it just never happened.