History TabletopGame / CyberPunk

* {{Spacers}}: People who were either born in or who spend most of their lives in space are referred to as "highriders." These were workers in space who live aboard space stations and gradually developed a unique shared culture, dialect customs and traditions, mostly derived from East Africa. In 2022, during the Fourth Corporate War, they declared independence from all Earthside governments and corporations as the Highrider Confederation, seizing control of all orbital stations and the two lunar colonies from the ESA. Since then, they've remained neutral toward all affairs on Earth.

* WanderingCulture: The Nomads are descendants of the US citizens who chose not to reintegrate into the NUSA after the collapse of the original United States. Instead, they band together in large clans and rove the wastelands that span the space between megacities of North America in heavily-customized cars and trailers.

* {{Spacer}}: People who were either born in or who spend most of their lives in space are referred to as "highriders." These were workers in space who live aboard space stations and gradually developed a unique shared culture, dialect customs and traditions, mostly derived from East Africa. In 2022, during the Fourth Corporate War, they declared independence from all Earthside governments and corporations as the Highrider Confederation, seizing control of all orbital stations and the two lunar colonies from the ESA. Since then, they've remained neutral toward all affairs on Earth.

** [[GadgeteerGenius Techies]] are tinkerers and builders who make a living by fixing items or, in the case of [[TheMedic Medtechies]], people. They can use their ''Jury Rig'' or ''Medical Tech'' to patch up things or people.

** [[CowboyCop Cops]] are, well, beat cops and detectives who try their best to uphold the law and protect citizens from gang violence and cyberpsychos. Their ''Authority'' makes them extra intimidating for criminals of all kinds.
** [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Corporates]] are executives who juggle between climbing the company ladder and work on more or less legal "department projects". The corporation's assets can be requisitioned for their use with their ''Resources''.

** [[DesertPunk Nomads]] are wanderers who live on the roads in what's left outside of the cities, part scavengers, part traders and part bandits. Like Corporates above, they can use their ''Family'' resources to help them.

* BadassPreacher: Father Kevin of the Holy Angels Catholic Church is a military veteran who enforces his church as a TruceZone for people to talk out disputes.

* ApocalypseHow: The Fourth Corporate War between Militech and Arasake together with the [=DataKrash=] destroying the NET led to a Class 1 disaster. The war destroyed the majority of shipping lanes so global supply lines became obstructed, making goods and people harder to move across the globe. Major economic crash, lawlessness and violence rose after the immediate years of the war. Night City in specific was hit with a Class 0, as the Corporate District was hit by a nuclear bomb while the rest of the city fell into anarchy until the Nomads saved the city. By ''Cyberpunk RED'' the city is still recovering from the aftermath and many parts of the city are still destroyed or affected.

A videogame set in the ''Cyberpunk'' setting was announced by Creator/CDProjektRed, known as ''VideoGame/{{Cyberpunk 2077}}'' and appropriately released in 2020. An anime by Creator/StudioTrigger in collaboration with CDPR, called ''Anime/CyberpunkEdgerunners'', was released in 2022. For the franchise as a whole, see [[Franchise/{{Cyberpunk}} here]]

The first edition, retroactively titled ''Cyberpunk 2013'', was published in 1988. ''Cyberpunk 2020'' was released in 1990 and gained much more success. The non-canon GaidenGame ''Cybergeneration'', centred around kids with strange superpowers, came out in 1993. ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was published in 2005 and took the setting into more PostCyberpunk & transhumanist themes, but received [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks heavy criticism]] and has been [[CanonDiscontinuity declared non-canon]]. The most recent edition, ''Cyberpunk Red'', was published in 2020 and seems to have gotten the series back on track with good reception, releasing not only traditional paid splatbooks but also free monthly "DLC" =[PDFs]= that add new and reworked content & mechanics.

The first edition, retroactively titled ''Cyberpunk 2013'', was published in 1988. ''Cyberpunk 2020'' was released in 1990 and gained much more success. The non-canon GaidenGame ''Cybergeneration'', centred around kids with strange superpowers, came out in 1993. ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was published in 2005 and took the setting into more PostCyberpunk & transhumanist themes, but received [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks heavy criticism]] and has been [[CanonDiscontinuity declared non-canon]]. The most recent edition, ''Cyberpunk Red'', was published in 2020 and seems to have gotten the series back on track with good reception, releasing not only traditional paid splatbooks but also free monthly "DLC" PDFs that add new and reworked content & mechanics.

The first edition, retroactively titled ''Cyberpunk 2013'', was published in 1988. ''Cyberpunk 2020'' was released in 1990 and gained much more success. The non-canon GaidenGame ''Cybergeneration'', centred around kids with strange superpowers, came out in 1993. ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was published in 2005 and took the setting into more PostCyberpunk & transhumanist themes, but received [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks heavy criticism]] and has been [[CanonDiscontinuity declared non-canon]]. The most recent edition, ''Cyberpunk Red'', was published in 2020 and seems to have gotten the series back on track with good reception, releasing not only traditional paid splatbooks but also free monthly "DLC" pdfs that add new and reworked content & mechanics.

* ArtificialLimbs: All over the place and often used to replace lost limbs, though cloned (or possibly stolen) limbs may also be used. The prosthetics are also presented somewhat more realistically than usual, with the guide correctly noting that a pair of cyber-arms would not give you SuperStrength, as just because your arms are strong, doesn't mean your spine is.

* CloudCuckooLander: [[TalkativeLoon Rache Bartmoss]], one of the most brilliant [[TheCracker Netrunners]] of the setting. Also, he's [[BewareTheSillyOnes far less harmless]] harmless than most examples of this trope, if he is to [[UnreliableNarrator be]] [[ThroughTheEyesOfMadness believed.]] In ''Cyberpunk Red'' it's revealed he died in a corporate raid but in his [[CrazyPrepared wisdom]], he had set a DeadMansSwitch that triggered the [=DataKrash=] virus to be [[TakingYouWithMe unleashed on the whole internet]] two weeks after he died. [[ApocalypseHow It crippled 78.2% of the internet]] as it stood in 2022 and the world in universe never fully recovered as of 2077's opening with the Blackwall representing a barrier from the wider web and local networks in Night City.

* AscendedExtra: Due to HistoryMarchesOn, China and the megacorporation Kang Tao are now superpowers in the world stage.

* CatGirl: Possible with biosculpting. ''Cyberpunk RED'' has "Danger Gal", an ''entire megacorporation'' of Cat Girls [[PrivateDetective Private Detectives]].

* BadassPreacher: Father Kevin of the Holy Angels Catholic Church is a military veteran who enforces his church as a TruceZone for people to talk out disputes.

** Morgan Blackhand was originally killed in ''Firestorm: Shockwave'', survived in the non-canon ''Cybergeneration'' set after it, and then survived for real in both ''Cyberpunk Red'' and ''Cyberpunk 2077.'' Johnny Silverhand's death was also changed in ''Cyberpunk 2077'', though this may be UnreliableNarrator.

!! This game provides examples of:

* AllHailTheGreatGodMickey: In ''V3.0'', one of the Alternate Cultures or "[=AltCults=]" is the Desnai, a tribe of HumongousMecha pilots who rule "Desnai World."
* AlternateContinuity: ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' has since become one of these due to the {{Retcon}} that the Fourth Corporate War did not result in the destruction of the Arasaka Corporation and rise of a more PostCyberpunk {{Transhumanism}} society. Instead, ''Cyberpunk Red'' is now the "official" timeline leading to ''Cyberpunk 2077.''

* ApocalypseHow: The Fourth Corporate War between Militech and Arasake together with the [=DataKrash=] destroying the NET led to a Class 1 disaster. The war destroyed the majority of shipping lanes so global supply lines became obstructed, making goods and people harder to move across the globe. Major economic crash, lawlessness and violence rose after the immediate years of the war. Night City in specific was hit with a Class 0, as the Corporate District was hit by a nuclear bomb while the rest of the city fell into anarchy until the Nomads saved the city. By ''Cyberpunk RED'' the city is still recovering from the aftermath and many parts of the city are still destroyed or affected.

* BadassPreacher: Father Kevin of the Holy Angels Catholic Church is a military veteran who enforces his church as a TruceZone for people to talk out disputes.

* CallARabbitASmeerp: ''Cyberpunk RED'' introduces Agents, which are smartphones. This is because of the original game's {{Zeerust}} where nothing similar to a smartphone existed in the year 2020.
* CatGirl: Possible with biosculpting. ''Cyberpunk RED'' has "Danger Gal", an ''entire megacorporation'' of Cat Girls [[PrivateDetective Private Detectives]].

* CloudCuckooLander: [[TalkativeLoon Rache Bartmoss]], one of the most brilliant [[TheCracker Netrunners]] of the setting. Also, he's [[BewareTheSillyOnes far less harmless]] harmless than most examples of this trope, if he is to [[UnreliableNarrator be]] [[ThroughTheEyesOfMadness believed.]] In ''Cyberpunk Red'' it's revealed he died in a corporate raid but in his [[CrazyPrepared wisdom]], he had set a DeadMansSwitch that triggered the [=DataKrash=] virus to be [[TakingYouWithMe unleashed on the whole internet]] two weeks after he died. [[ApocalypseHow It crippled 78.2% of the internet]] as it stood in 2022 and the world in universe never fully recovered as of 2077's opening with the Blackwall representing a barrier from the wider web and local networks in Night City.
* ColonyDrop: UsefulNotes/{{ESA}}'s controlled lunar massdriver was used to lob a substantial lump of rock at Washington DC. The rock was deflected by orbital defences, and instead hit Colorado Springs (or rather "Colorado Sprung"). ''Cyberpunk RED'' backstory mentions more lunar rocks having been lobbed that way and other strikes from orbit, Rache Bartmoss having been killed that way by Arasaka.
* CorporateWarfare:
** The Fourth Corporate War between two of the biggest companies in the world, Arasaka and Militech, is a major background event. This results in the end of ''Cyberpunk 2020'' and the beginning of ''V3'' and later ''Cyberpunk Red''. Earlier on there were others, starting with the one between Petrochem and [=SovOil=].
** A large chunk of the setting is based around player characters doing jobs for the various corporations that involve sabotage, assassination, or espionage.

* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Sort of for the megacorps EBM, [=InfoComp=] and IEC. WordOfGod states the first tried a coup in the time between both games and was wiped out of the face of Earth as a result while the second one, being dedicated to trafficking with information, was bankrupted by the [=DataKrash=] virus and the third one caught in the crossfire of the war between Arasaka and Militech and destroyed.

* GrandFinale: ''Firestorm: Shockwave'' serves as this for ''Cyberpunk 2020'' with the assault on Arasaka Tower resulting in the death of multiple signature characters, the (presumed) destruction of the Arasaka Corporation, the death of Kei Arasaka, and the players potentially rescuing Yorinobu Arasaka from the resulting firestorm.

* LighterAndSofter:
** ''Cybergeneration'', being a GaidenGame, is this to ''Cyberpunk 2020'', with more focus shifting towards younger teens and added superhero aesthetics despite it being set in post apocalyptic ZombieApocalypse-like settings.
** ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was this to ''Cyberpunk 2020'' because the Arasaka Corporation had been destroyed and the megacorporations as a whole were far weaker with a focus on transhumanist technology.
** ''Cyberpunk Red'' compared to ''Cyberpunk 2077'' despite them coming together around the same time. ''Cyberpunk 2077'' emphasizes Night City as a WretchedHive with no social safety net and the uncaring omnipresent power of the corporations. ''Cyberpunk Red'' highlights that the Fourth Corporate War actually ended in both Arasaka as well as Militech being weakened as well as the reconstitution of the United States. Which, compared to the ''Mad Max''-esque post-Collapse world, was a major improvement for most citizens. The fact both are canon means that much of this progress is DoomedByCanon.

* MiniGame: ''Cyberpunk Red'' introduced for April Fools 2021 Elflines Online, an in-universe VR MMORPG with it's own rulebook on how to create characters and have MMO-style adventures.

** In ''Cyberpunk Red'', mini-missile launchers are a ubiquitous heavy weapon of the setting, available both as a regular weapon and as an option for cybernetic limbs.

* PrivateDetective: Danger Gal is a corporation of CatGirl Private Detectives operated by Michiko Arasaka, granddaughter of Saburo Arasaka.

* {{Retcon}}:
** ''Cyberpunk Red'' removes ''Cyberpunk v3'' and its apocalypse setting in favor creating a prequel setting for ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077''. However, it will reintroduce some of the technology that was previously established in ''Cyberpunk v3'''s rulebook as well as new technology from the real world that's been developed since then such as 3D printed pistols.
** Originally, the destruction of Arasaka Tower by Morgan Blackhand, Militech, and Johnny Silverhand resulted in the destruction of the Arasaka Corporation and the end of the Fourth Corporate War. It also was reasonably well contained. Instead, the ''Cyberpunk Red'' supplements describe the FCW going on for two more years and Arasaka being weakened but eventually resurging.
** Morgan Blackhand was originally killed in ''Firestorm: Shockwave'', survived in the non-canon ''Cybergeneration'' set after it, and then survived for real in both ''Cyberpunk Red'' and ''Cyberpunk 2077.'' Johnny Silverhand's death was also changed in ''Cyberpunk 2077'', though this may be UnreliableNarrator.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: ''Cyberpunk Red'' does this for the nuclear destruction of Arasaka Tower that was originally treated as a big action setpiece's ending with minimal collateral damage. In the revised timeline, a quarter of a million people die from radiation poisoning as well as follow up deaths from the blasts that result in much of Night City being rendered uninhabitable. It also permanently poisons the public against the [=NuUSA=] due to them lying about it being the work of Arasaka Corporation.

A videogame set in the ''Cyberpunk'' setting was announced by Creator/CDProjektRed, known as ''VideoGame/{{Cyberpunk 2077}}'' and appropriately released in 2020. An anime by Creator/StudioTrigger in collaboration with CDPR, called ''Anime/CyberpunkEdgerunners'', was released in 2022. For franchise as a whole, see [[Franchise/{{Cyberpunk}} here]]

A videogame set in the ''Cyberpunk'' setting was announced by Creator/CDProjektRed, known as ''VideoGame/{{Cyberpunk 2077}}'' and appropriately released in 2020. An anime by Creator/StudioTrigger in collaboration with CDPR, called ''Anime/CyberpunkEdgerunners'', was released in 2022.

* CatGirl: Possible with biosculpting. ''Cyberpunk RED'' has "Danger Girl", an ''entire megacorporation'' of Cat Girls [[PrivateDetective Private Detectives]].

* PrivateDetective: Danger Girl is a corporation of CatGirl Private Detectives.

The first edition, retroactively titled ''Cyberpunk 2013'', was published in 1988. ''Cyberpunk 2020'' was released in 1990 and gained much more success. The non-canon GaidenGame ''Cybergeneration'', centred around kids with strange superpowers, came out in 1993. ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was published in 2005 and took the setting into more PostCyberpunk & transhumanist themes, but received [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks heavy criticism]] and has been [[CanonDiscontinuity declared non-canon]]. The most recent edition, ''Cyberpunk Red'', was published in 2020 and seems to have gotten the series back on track with good reception, releasing not only traditional paid splatbooks but also free "DLC" pdfs that add new and reworked content & mechanics.

The first edition, retroactively titled ''Cyberpunk 2013'', was published in 1988. ''Cyberpunk 2020'' was released in 1990 and gained much more success. The non-canon GaidenGame ''Cybergeneration'', centred around kids with strange superpowers, came out in 1993. ''Cyberpunk V3.0'' was published in 2005 and took the setting into more PostCyberpunk/transhumanist themes, but received [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks heavy criticism]] and has been [[CanonDiscontinuity declared non-canon]]. The most recent edition, ''Cyberpunk Red'', was published in 2020 and seems to have gotten the series back on track with good reception as they continue to release supplemental content in the form of traditional books and once a month free "[=DLC=]s" pdfs that add new and reworked content & mechanics for the recent edition.

A videogame set in the ''Cyberpunk'' setting was announced by Creator/CDProjektRed, known as ''VideoGame/{{Cyberpunk 2077}}'' and appropriately released in 2020. An anime by Creator/StudioTrigger in collaboration with CDPR, called ''Anime/CyberpunkEdgerunners'', was released 2022.

* CallARabbitASmeerp: ''Cyberpunk RED'' introduces agents, which are smartphones. This is because of the original game's {{Zeerust}} where nothing similar to a smartphone existed in the year 2020.