NEON CROSSES is a zine-format mini-expansion I created for the cyberpunk tabletop RPG CY_BORG, drawing inspiration from Lithuania's famous Hill of Crosses. I developed this project for the URBN_LGND.exe event, channeling the uncanny atmosphere and folk stories from this unique cultural landmark into a gritty cyberpunk setting.

What's in the Box

This little expansion pack includes:

• A complete, ready-to-run adventure that GMs can drop into their campaigns

• A cast of NPCs with backstories and game stats to bring the story to life

• Some cool custom items and gear with unique mechanics

• Artwork that mashes up religious symbolism with cyberpunk vibes

How It Came Together

This was my first crack at making a zine - those small, self-contained booklets that have become a big thing in the indie TTRPG scene. The project exists thanks to a community event launched by the Swedish creators behind MÖRK BORG and its futuristic equivalent CY_borg.

Both of these games are absolutely oozing with style and flavor. I originally purchased MÖRK BORG more as an art book rather than an RPG, but it quickly became one of my favorite systems to run. Compared to today's RPG giant like Dungeons & Dragons 5e, these games felt like a gust of fresh air - pure, unrivaled artistry.

The brief for the Urban Legend jam was intriguing, and I jumped at the chance to craft something outside my usual aesthetics. The Hill of Crosses offered the perfect unusual landmark to transform into something that would fit CY_BORG's dystopian world while maintaining its eerie, unsettling quality.

The Approach I Took

I kicked things off with a massive brain dump - just getting all my ideas about the Hill of Crosses and how it could fit into CY_BORG's world onto paper. No filters, no organization, just raw concepts and weird connections.

Once I had nailed down the key elements I wanted to include, I started expanding on them and messing around with different art approaches. The visual style of CY_BORG is so distinctive that I wanted to honor it while still bringing my own twist to the table.

The next step was crucial - getting the initial copy to proofreaders to make sure this thing actually made sense outside my head. There's nothing like having someone else read your work to spot the places where you've made mental leaps that no one else could possibly follow!

Finally, I pulled together the layouts and sent the whole package out to alpha testers. Their feedback helped me refine the adventure and make sure it was actually fun to play, not just cool to look at.

Going Public

The final step was mildly nerve-wracking - submitting my first project to itch.io and letting it loose out in the wild. After all the brainstorming, writing, designing, and testing, I was finally pushing my creation out of the nest to see if it could fly.

It was incredibly endearing (and a huge relief) to see that the official review was very positive. Getting featured on https://cyborg.exlibrisrpg.com - the community hub for CY_BORG content - felt like a real validation of the work I'd put in.

The review praised the project:

Writing: A mix of darkly ominous and tongue-in-cheek tones that hew closely to the core Cy_Borg spirit.

Art/Design: Mostly black-on-white spreads with one to two columns of content, with almost every page complemented by neon hand-drawn and glitch-art graphics.

Usability: Consistent presentations of text and page layouts with distinct content sections make for easy perusal and identification of desired information.

Having my work included in the community's collection of approved expansions felt like crossing a threshold from being just a player to becoming a contributor to a game system I admire. It's opened the door to thinking about what other projects I might want to tackle in the future - maybe exploring more unusual landmarks or folk traditions through the distorted mirror of cyberpunk.

Most Neon Lights

In addition this entry has won the most neon lights nomination in the jam which was pretty sick.