House Rules
The following are house rules and clarifications specific to Night City MUSH. These rules exist alongside the standard Cyberpunk Red ruleset and the Edgerunner Mission Kit. Where a house rule conflicts with the core book, the house rule takes precedence. Where the Edgerunner Mission Kit conflicts with the core book, the Mission Kit takes precedence unless a house rule states otherwise. When in doubt, ask staff.
Rule 1 — Default Neuroport
Summary: All characters begin play with a Neuroport installed by default.
Given that the game takes place in 2076 — well into the era of widespread cyberware adoption — all player characters receive a Neuroport as a default starting implant at no cost. This reflects the setting reality that neural interface technology is commonplace in Night City by this point in the timeline.
Players who wish to begin play without a Neuroport may reject it via their Lifepath in exchange for 500 Eurodollars. This option exists for players who have a specific character concept that requires it.
Staff Note: We advise against taking this exchange in most cases. The Neuroport is foundational to a significant amount of the game's cyberware ecosystem and its absence will limit your character's options meaningfully. If you are considering rejecting it please speak to staff first.
Rule 2 — Standard Ammunition
Summary: Standard ammunition is not tracked on Night City MUSH. Specialized ammunition is.
Standard ammunition for conventional weapons is not counted or tracked on Night City MUSH. This is a deliberate quality of life decision to reduce the administrative overhead and bookkeeping burden on players and staff during scenes and downtime.
Specialized ammunition — including but not limited to Smart Ammunition, Rockets and Grenades — is tracked and must be purchased and accounted for normally. These ammunition types have significant mechanical effects that justify the additional bookkeeping.
Players who wish to track and pay for standard ammunition for personal or roleplay reasons are welcome to do so. It is simply not required.
Rule 3 — Apartment Rent
Summary: Rent is handled via a monthly balance check rather than automatic deduction.
Apartment rent on Night City MUSH operates as a monthly minimum balance check rather than an automatic deduction from your account. If your rent is 1,500 Eurodollars per month the system will check at the end of each month whether you have at least that amount in your account. If you do, you keep the apartment. If you do not, the system will evict you from the apartment automatically (its the cyberpunk future and computers can be jerks).
This system is designed to avoid situations where a character is unexpectedly evicted due to timing issues with income and expenditure during active play.
Players also have the option to purchase their apartment outright, eliminating the monthly check entirely. Speak to staff about pricing for outright purchase of your current residence.
Rule 4 — Crafting by Role
Summary: All roles except Solo receive a crafting ability appropriate to their role.
Night City MUSH extends crafting capabilities to all roles in a manner consistent with but less powerful than the Tech role's existing crafting system. This reflects the reality that professionals in each field develop the ability to produce the tools of their trade.
| Role | Crafting Capability |
|---|---|
| Netrunner | Can create Programs, Demons and ICE. |
| Medtech | Can create Drugs and medical compounds. |
| Nomad | Can make and acquire Vehicles. |
| Media | Can make and edit Braindances. |
| Tech | Full crafting system as per core rules. |
| Fixer | Fixers do not craft so much as they have the most broad item/services range for purchases via their normal Role Bonus. |
| Rockerboy, Exec, Lawman | For now these roles do not have a specific crafting specialty but may acquire goods based on their background, company affiliations, and job. An easy example would be Rockerboys and Drugs, Lawmen and fake permits or guns taken from evidence, and Execs and temporary access to specific Corporate equipment like drones. This is more contextual than hard ruled. Staff/GM may deny as needed but it is encouraged to be creative. |
| Solo | No crafting role. See note below. |
Solo Exception: The Solo role does not receive a crafting ability. This is intentional. The Solo role is combat-focused by design and already receives several significant combat bonuses. Adding a crafting capability would create an imbalance. This may be changed over time.
Rule 5 — Armor and Helmets
Summary: This is a clarification rather than a house rule. Most armor includes a helmet.
Most armor available in Night City MUSH is considered to include a helmet as part of the standard equipment package. Players do not need to purchase a helmet separately if the armor they are wearing carries the keyword Head in its description — which the majority of available armors do.
Check the armor's keyword listing before purchasing a separate helmet. In most cases it is already included.
Rule 6 — Luxury and Super Luxury Equipment
Summary: Equipment above V.Expensive cannot be purchased at vendors or in chargen. It must be acquired through play.
Any equipment rated Luxury or Super Luxury is not available for purchase at any in-game vendor or during character generation. This tier of equipment represents items that are rare, tightly controlled or simply not accessible through normal commercial channels in Night City.
Equipment at this tier must be acquired through one of the following means:
- Other players with Roles and capabilities that make acquisition plausible within the fiction.
- Player-run plots where acquisition of such equipment would be a logical and earned outcome.
- Staff-run plots where normal gear acquisition rules get wonky and are at Staff Discretion.
Staff Note — High End Exotics: Specific items of exceptional rarity — including but not limited to weapons such as the Malorian Arms 3516 — may be denied by staff regardless of how they are acquired. If you are interested in pursuing a piece of equipment at this tier please speak to staff before investing significant time or resources into acquiring it. We would rather have that conversation early than disappoint you later.
Rule 7 — Setting Priority: Edgerunner Mission Kit
Summary: The Edgerunner Mission Kit takes priority over the Cyberpunk Red core book in most cases.
Night City MUSH uses the Edgerunner Mission Kit as its primary setting reference. In the majority of cases where the Edgerunner Mission Kit and the Cyberpunk Red core book present conflicting information, the Edgerunner Mission Kit takes precedence.
Exceptions to this exist where a specific house rule states otherwise. When you are uncertain which source applies to a given situation, ask staff for a ruling.
Rule 8 — Cyberware Generations
Summary: Night City MUSH uses the Edgerunners book's generational cyberware framework. Gen 4+ is staff-plot only and carries severe consequences.
Night City MUSH uses the cyberware generation framework as described in the Edgerunners book. The generations are defined as follows:
| Generation | Era | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 | Early Corporate War era | Borderline museum pieces. Early era cyberware that predates modern installation standards. Rare, unreliable and a conversation piece more than a functional augmentation. |
| Gen 2 | Late Corporate War / Time of the Red | Older cheap ware. The kind of chrome your mother might have had chipped when she was young. Still functional but dated. Available on the budget end of the market. |
| Gen 3 | Modern era — 2076 standard | Modern standard cyberware. What most Night City residents are running in 2076. The baseline of current installation technology. |
| Gen 4+ | Military specification — restricted | Military specification. Highly regulated. Extremely dangerous. Not commercially available under any circumstances. |
GEN 4+ WARNING — READ CAREFULLY
Gen 4+ cyberware is attainable only through staff-run plot and will in most cases be a one-off custom item rather than a catalogued product. David Martinez's experimental Sandevistan is the clearest example of what Gen 4+ cyberware looks like in practice -- and what it does to the person running it.
A single piece of Gen 4+ cyberware would make a character extremely deadly by any standard measure. Staff will not hold back on applying the full consequences of chipping Gen 4+ hardware.
Humanity Cost Escalation for Multiple Gen 4+ Installations:
| Pieces Installed | Humanity Cost Rate | Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Piece | Normal (x1) | Extremely dangerous. Proceed with full awareness of consequences. |
| 2 Pieces | Double (x2) | Humanity bleeds rapidly. Full Cyberpsychosis is not a distant concern. It is an immediate one. |
| 3 Pieces | Triple (x3) | We do not expect anyone to attempt this. If you do, you do so with full understanding that your character is almost certainly already in Cyberpsychosis or will be within a very short time. |
| 4+ Pieces | Quadruple (x4) and beyond | At this point the conversation is not about if your character loses their mind. It is about how dramatically it happens and how much of Night City they take with them. |
This cyberware is highly sought after, insanely expensive and profoundly dangerous. If you pursue it through play and acquire it, you do so with full knowledge of what it costs.
You have been warned.
Questions about any house rule should be directed to staff via the Newbie channel or a page to Mnemosyne. We would rather answer a question before it becomes a problem than deal with the fallout after.