Cypher Shorts are special one-shot adventures designed for single sessions of three to four hours. Using a simplified character creation process and streamlined setup, Cypher Shorts are perfect for situations where:
- the entire gaming group isn’t available
- the group wants to experiment with a new genre
- someone new wants to act as GM for a session
- when the GM or PCs need a palate cleanser before resuming the normal campaign
The following Cypher Shorts are setting agnostic, although the GM is encouraged to tailor where these scenarios take place as they wish, and can be used as standalone one-shots or as low-prep inspiration for sessions in an ongoing campaign. The character creation guidelines for Cypher Shorts are provided later in this supplement, but existing characters can be used if the group prefers and the GM is comfortable.
Cypher Shorts are a supplement for the Cypher System and require an Underground Oracle Publishing setting ($3 on our Patreon), the free Cypher System Rules Primer, or the Cypher System Rulebook to play.
This Volume of Cypher Shorts Includes:
- The Cleansing of Cinder House: In this gaslamp gothic short, the characters have been called upon to investigate possible supernatural phenomena—and purge them as necessary—from the estate of the Levari family. Will they find the source of the paranormal events or will their investigation, like so many before them, go up in smoke?
- Strange Homecomings: In this modern paranormal short, the characters have returned to their hometown during college break to find that things don’t seem exactly as they remembered. Missing person reports, weird behavior, and eerie vibes all combine to make them question everyone that they know. Can they find the source of these strange happenings before the Earth falls prey to a secret invasion?
- The Tomb of The Frostfire King: In this traditional fantasy short, the characters are exploring the ruins of the fortress of Mearisgar, the legendary Frostfire King. Will they gain the treasure and glory they seek within his forgotten halls or will they fall prey to the same curse that befell the frozen monarch?
- Cypher Shorts Guidelines: The simplified rules that you need to run and create characters for your Cypher Shorts.