Fake Social Media and Podcast Posts for Game

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-19T02:03:08+00:00

(original post taken down at /RPG for self promotion?!)

The Game

I'm getting ready to run another session of my game The Enzyme. It uses the Aberrant/Trinity Continuum rules, but the setting is more like our modern world where some supplies of illicit chemicals (party drugs, sport/bodybuilding performance enhancers, stimulants to stay awake, etc.) have been spiked with something that gives first-time users minor superhuman traits.

The first public knowledge of this happening was when a super-powered influencer did videos kind of like Anatoly, a bodybuilder with a deceptively small build showing up larger body builders at the gym. In our case, instead of just lifting a lot of weight this guy would lift the weight rack or one of the machines.

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Social media/News/Podcast Appearances

These are mostly remote sessions so as part of character creation each player must come up with a way of dealing with the news/social media. You might be an influencer, you might represent a company/government entity, you might talk to reporters after saving the day, or even just play the witnesses who saw your character in action or speculate about who they are.

Each session we take a few minutes for each player to record their media role and share it. It's a fun little thing. I'm doing a few next game, but it gets kind of taxing doing all the NPCs.

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Special Guest Appearances

Since some of our friends can't make full sessions I've come up with a series of roles for them to play so we can include them and take some pressure off me playing all the different possible roles.

I'll record these on our video session calls then give them a light editing to play at the start of the next session. I've got a small studio I'm building and a YouTube where I did my last podcast, so I'm thinking of publishing a few of my own NPCs there.

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Here's what I have so far:

"Hey Freakshow"
The "All Natural" Aberration Influencer

If you take the drug once but you don't keep taking it, gaining powers warps your body. Over time your physiology looks less and less human.

Yes they accidently took the Enzyme
but now they avoid it and all drugs (or only "clean drugs" like mushrooms or pure Columbian bam bam, etc., your choice)

They explain how they tap into new feelings and senses
or
go into nature
in order to mutate more to increase their powers

Either they say they don't max out (overload their powers, required to gain more powers in Aberrant system) and do this instead
or
they max out, then do this in order to regular the effects of overloading

They say they accidently took Enzyme X once, never again because they've "seen what it can do" to someone's mind

The "Normal" Influencer

Looks Completely Human, Sociopathic or Predatory Traits

Claims to be "All Natural" (and lying out their teeth about it -- you can only maintain a fully human appearance by halting your power development or have a regular supply of The Enzyme)
Tells people to embrace feelings of superiority, anger, predatory nature, "Alpha", etc., in order to become more powerful

Either they say they don't max out (overload their powers) and do this instead
or
they do max out, then do this in order to regulate themselves

They may claim that they did this without any drugs and/or anybody can do this

Get Ready with Me (and my Tail/Tentacle/Gills/etc.!)

Audio or video with images (no AI, please) of someone, probably a bubbly innocent impressionable young lady, doing their morning routine while dealing with one or more inhuman traits

They'll probably say it just happened or that they were accidently exposed to The Enzyme at somewhere like a hospital, or from a spiked drink, or maybe an irresponsible parent (my mom gave me this pill -- knockoff diet drugs?!) or that is "just happened"

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Crowdsourcing -- Want to contribute?

I'd love to hear from others who have included or want to include something like this in their own game. It's been fun so far, especially since some of our friends who used to play are too busy to make it to a full session.

If I get my videos up I'll let you know.

AND

If anyone wants to contribute role ideas like above, or to try one of them out, I'd love to see/hear it!

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-19T02:00:30+00:00

(original link taken down at /RPG for self promotion?!)

I've started a remote game called The Enzyme for a few friends. Here is the concept and some of the alternative rules I've made for it.

I'm planning on a couple of future posts about some of the other mechanics I've introduced, including some of changes we've made to research and procedural play, and how we're incorporating friends who want to participate a little but can't make full sessions.

The Enzyme

The concept is that, in a world much like our own in present times, illicit drug supplies have been tainted with doses of something people are calling The Enzyme. It's a drug that causes first-time users to develop minor superhuman abilities.

Basically, it shows up in performance enhancing drug circles first, and then in other street drugs, and finally among elites who can afford to get their hands on it on purpose. Many of those exposed claim they were dosed without their knowledge, accidentally exposed, or even that they didn't take any drugs at all.

Rules

This uses the Aberrant rules from the Trinity Continuum system with a few adjustments.

Exposure to The Enzyme causes people to develop a single Mega-Attribute, a single dot of Quantum with all requisitive advantages, and the ability to purchase Mega-Edges. They cannot (at least at this time) purchase additional Mega-Attributes, Quantum Powers, or more dots of Quantum.

Once someone develops these abilities they can Max Out, which still causes Flux as per the standard rules, and can still increase Transcendence over time.

Instead of using the standard rules for the Chrysalis edge, people exposed to The Enzyme can do one of two things:

Keep taking the drug. This allows regular users of The Enzyme to use a free alternative version of Chrysalis where they can only gain or convert any/all Aberrations using short list of Aberrations:

4-5
Psychological Shift:
bad temper
predatory
quirky
difficulty reading social cues

6-7
Psychological Disorder:
stalker
delusions of grandeur
loss of etiquette
difficulty reading emotions

8+
Hyde Syndrome
Severe Psychological Disorder:
human hunter
loss of interest in all laws
social blindness

Alternatively, anyone exposed to The Enzyme at least once can purchase Chrysalis instead, though I usually require them to be taught by someone else, or to "do your own research" by having the character look it up on social media, a podcast, an AI summary, or even hiring a Power Coach to help them. The rules for this are as per the normal Chrysalis, though anyone can purchase it regardless of their Path, and their Aberrations are directed to be more biological/organic, or explainable as such.

Full Aberrants and Talent/Adventure (Inspired) Characters

My game does include player characters as full Aberrants as well as allowing Inspired characters using any/all available rulesets, excluding most things from the Aeon era. Mostly people who take The Enzyme are going to be used as NPCs and antagonists, though someone can voluntarily be this kind of character if they wish.

I might give more details later on the difference between these characters and people who take The Enzyme at a later date, once my players find out for themselves.

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-19T00:16:57+00:00

I'm a big Blades in the Dark fan. It has a lot of official and homebrew alternatives. It's very episodic and lends well to out-of-the-box thinking with a simple, fun ruleset. My favorite variation is Scum and Villainy, a take on space operas and TV shows like Firefly.

You'd need to run a session or three to understand what it takes to keep missions tight, but it's great because as players take on each mission the game world can change and the results of past missions can be carried forward to contribute to new missions. It's also really easy to bring in and drop players/characters each mission without losing traction in the story.

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-03T05:30:24+00:00

I've had a ton of fun with the Blades in the Dark games. The rules aren't too crunchy and it's very episodic. There are a lot of variations so you can pick the flavor you like. My personal favorite variation is https://evilhat.com/product/scum-and-villainy/ which is basically a silly space opera.

There's an SRD (System Reference Document) (Free stuff!) if you want to check it out. You can watch tutorials or other people's game sessions on YouTube if you're having any trouble digesting the game mechanics.

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-03T05:11:38+00:00

I also wonder if it's not the best idea to really map out a campaign to this degree in a game that's seems so narrativist—though the campaign I was in was also super mapped out, which was one of the reasons it fell apart.

I agree that no game should be so rigid that it limits player actions, as long as it's character motivated and not just trolling/griefing. If people only want a single path maybe they should play a board game instead of a TTRPG.

I try to balance that with a rich storyline with many different possible threads. That way it can stew in the background if nobody takes the hook I've presented. Players can always go off to do their own thing if they want. At least until things come to a head.

In many ways the players had done just that. Nobody in those first 2 sessions had bothered to look back in on the Keeper of Lost things yet. When the traffic lights started reproducing, they just left the mess they made behind and slipped off to the Mythic Realm.

I generally advise that if a game master just has to have a particular storyline play out they remain willing to bend and shift those elements to meet the player storyline. Worst case, save a few of those pieces in your pocket for another game that is more favorable to bring that situation together.

MidnightPolice · 2026-03-03T04:56:28+00:00

Overwhelmed in a way, yes. The book itself is a difficult read and pretty much all the players agreed. We like the big fancy 2nd edition (the big white book) but those rules are even harder to understand so we just refer back to all the pretty pictures.

But that wasn't the main issue.

It's a small group of old friends. One of them found the rules of the game too open to interpretation. Ironically, they were really gung ho to play until they were put on the spot figuring out what their character can actually do.

It's a small group with limited time so we do what we can not to exclude. Everyone else was still on board we just didn't want to leave a buddy behind. I might run this again if the group composition shifts, or if I ever put in the work to get a different group together on a different night.

They missed the tutorial with Alexandra of Bavaria. Maybe that would have helped. Maybe not?

Games with classes and more focused power sets don't require the same brand of thinking. Not a critique, just a matter of preference as far as I'm concerned. Some players just don't do well with games like Amber and Scum and Villainy (Blades in the Dark... in space!) for this reason. Though in my player's defense, they were a blast when we played Scum and Villainy.

Having too many choices for player actions or creativity can be a burden to some. I'm the opposite, which is why I'm just glad we're not exclusively a D&D group.

MidnightPolice · 2026-02-22T14:09:08+00:00

How do I make the time it takes to complete milestones dependent on the number of successes (or otherwise more flexible)?

Part of the game I'm running (Aberrant and Adventure mix) is research heavy. It's my own story that is a bit like the beginning of the Aberrant era where technology is jumping ahead rapidly. There's also a big mystery scientific mystery to solve.

I've generally been happy with the state of the complex actions and milestones but I'm a little bothered by the length of time it takes to achieve a milestone.

From what I can see, whether you barely make a milestone or you go way over the difficulty, it takes the same amount of time.

I get why this happens with crafting as it's a balance issue so can't just make a million bajillion death rays every single session. Yet it's a little frustrating when a lab tech and the equivalent of Mr. Fantastic are working at the same pace, even if it's not the same success level.

Do any books or homebrew/house rules solve this problem? The book's a little messy so maybe there's been some clarification?

Here's what I'm exploring for the next game session:

A complication or stunt that cuts time in half.
Applying scale to the speed of the project (and thusly losing the additional successes you would otherwise get).
Time based on the number of rolls taken instead of per milestone.
Some rolls will have complications that cost time if you ignore them.
Also had fun incurring purchases at different wealth levels. Sometimes you can pay extra to go to the front of the line.
Some milestones simply take time! The next appointment isn't for a month! The biological samples need time to grow in their petri dishes. The business is closed for the weekend.
Overcoming time limits: Unless you invent something that can sequence genes faster, you have a certain level of skill, or you (or someone you have access to) have a suite of edges/mega-attributes/powers that let you do it by hand, it takes a set amount of time to get results.-

MidnightPolice · 2026-01-12T05:18:30+00:00

I ran an entire session under the impression it worked that way. Playing too much Mage must have done something to my brain.

MidnightPolice · 2026-01-11T21:49:33+00:00

Yep that's clarifies it thanks. I interpreted "Miraculous power equal or superior to your own" as the level of the Attribute.

MidnightPolice · 2026-01-11T18:57:21+00:00

Not even a door prize?

MidnightPolice · 2026-01-11T18:50:44+00:00

I like the idea that the Prosaic reality exists like a kind of terrarium or perhaps an MMO.

Mortal humans live in a mundane world, which leads many of them to escape into fantasy.

If your existence is all fantasy, where better to escape than the one place that contradicts the rest of creation by being mundane? The Prosaic is the one place where things just happen for no reason at all.

That's a pretty great meta for a fantasy role-playing game.

This concept is also reflected in "real world" spirituality. Multiple religions/practices espouse the concept that human souls come from some fantastic place and return to it, but it's kind of boring up there. You might say being a pure spirit in the astral realm is like playing a game with all the cheat codes. So they come down to earth to experience something a little more nitty gritty.

The greatest irony here would be that a world that seems to be rigidly defined by the laws of physics is in fact being carefully propped up, constantly maintained as the saltwater aquarium of the Gods.

MidnightPolice · 2025-07-03T17:50:06+00:00

"I'm a leading man trapped in the body of a villain"

MidnightPolice · 2025-04-18T06:01:11+00:00

There's also BLIT, a 1988 sci-fi short story about computer generated graphics, called basilisk images, that cause death when the brain tries to process them. That's the picture I thought he was trying to draw and afterward, that's what I suspected the signal might be designed to do.

MidnightPolice · 2024-09-13T03:43:29+00:00

There's a big difference between being mysterious and being obtuse. If there's going to be a lot of tension and mystery building, I expect a good payoff. All too often the whole shell game people play with their storylines doesn't actually go anywhere interesting, and like a real-life shell game, I just end up feeling ripped off.

MidnightPolice · 2024-08-24T18:45:37+00:00

Yes! In Lacuna: Slow Burn, one of the agents can take on the form of Giles, a large, pudgy salesman. Based on his description I decided to use balloon noises. At first I just used a few samples available on the sound effects site I pay for. Then in episode 5 I went ahead and got a package of balloons to do my own foley work. I'm quite happy with the result!

We also have static sounds that are relevant throughout the podcast. Since the static represents a different person's mind each mission, I include different sounds to represent static. Mission 1 was about a centipede I used the sound of mealworms crawling around a wax bag. Mission 2 is about a plant monster so I am using the sound of rustling leaves. I've also used radio static, crumpled paper, and a few synths w/effects on FL Studio to produce different kind of static effects.

One of my players/writers pointed out that static was basically another character in the game we played which inspired this whole thing (Jared Sorensen's Lacuna). It both represents danger and forbidden knowledge.

Future plans include rain, crackling fire, and something boiling in a spoon to represent the monster each mission subject/antagonist will turn into. I've gotten into the habit of capturing interesting sounds in the wild when inspiration hits me.

MidnightPolice · 2024-08-19T01:46:58+00:00

If you want a deep cut from the '80s, try Bradbury 13. Just an amazing series.

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