TEXT: Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  AG2301
  THE SOURCEBOOK OF THE CUT-UPS PROJECT • BY ROBIN D. LAWS
  
  	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Atlas	 Games	 •	 Saint	 Paul,	 Minnesota	 •	 www.Atlas-Games.com
  OVER THE EDGE, OTE, AL AMARJA, CHARTING NEW REALMS OF IMAGINATION and the Atlas Games logo are trademarks of John A. Nephew.  Copyright ©1994, 2013 
  John A. Nephew.  All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction.  Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is strictly coincidental, or perhaps a holdover from 
  some reality rewritten by the Cut-Ups Machine.  This is moose-safe text: No moose were harmed in the writing or production of this book.
  Credits
  Design:	Robin	D.	Laws
  Robert “Doc” Cross designed	by	Robert	“Doc”	Cross
  Editing:	Zara	Lasater,	John	Nephew
  Product Manager:	John	Nephew
  Cover and Interior Art:	Cheryl	Mandus
  Layout and Cover Photography and Design:	John	Nephew
  Interior Titles:	Zara	Lasater
  Digital Edition Version 1.0
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  Weather 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  Likes
  by Robin D. Laws
  Contents
  Meet	The	Cut-Ups	............................................................ 4
  Al	Amarja’s	Cut-Ups	..........................................................................6
  Foes	of	the	Cut-Ups	....................................................... 5
  On	the	Nature	of	Control	Addiction	...............................................6
  The	Chaos	Boys	.............................................................. 9
  The	Coatless	Code	............................................................................4
  Optional	Cut-Up	Rules	....................................................................46
  Cut-Up	Technology	..........................................................................59
  Meaningless	Tissues	...................................................... 64
  Backstory	..........................................................................................65
  Cardinal’s	Chaos	Chancer	...............................................................66
  Getting	In	.........................................................................................68
  Who	Else	Gets	In?	............................................................................70
  Access	to	Elwood	..............................................................................74
  The	Return	of	Elwood	Cardinal	......................................................79
  Follow-Up	.........................................................................................80
  Intersections	.....................................................................................80
  The	Last	Chance	Brains	................................................ 8
  Assault	of	the	Giant	Brains	............................................................8
  The	Mud	Puddle	Explains	...............................................................8
  The	Monster	Under	the	Rock	..........................................................8
  Fifty	Roads	to	China	........................................................................85
  Intersections	.....................................................................................90
  The	Dark	Secret	...............................................................................9
  A	Taste	of	the	Future	......................................................................9
  What	If	Players	Come	and	Go?	.......................................................9
  Other	Encounters	............................................................................9
  Conclusion	........................................................................................94
  Aftermath	.........................................................................................94
  
  4	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  “All	nature	is	but	art,	unknown	to	thee
  All	chance,	direction	which	thou	canst	
  not	see;
  All	discord,	harmony	not	understood”
  — Alexander Pope
  “The	Sultan’s	concrete	wall	develops	bites	
  and	God	fasts,”	says	Mrs.	Brinker,	adjust-
  ing	her	reading	glasses	and	squinting	at	the	
  smudgy	printout	of	the	Cut-Up	machine.		“You	
  know,	I	don’t	know	why	that	fussed	machine	
  has	to	print	on	thermal	fax	paper.”
  “Mo-o-o-o-o-OMMMM!”	whines	her	son,	
  Brain-Melting	Brinker	Twin	Claus.		“We’ve	
  been	through	all	of	this	before	—	just	read	
  what	it	says.”	Claus	is	squirming	in	his	chair,	
  seized	by	his	usual	restlessness.
  “Mrs.	Brinker,	the	Cut-Up	machine	is	based	
  on	sub-random	science,	and	therefore	must	
  be	made	up	of	an	amalgam	of	incompatible	
  technologies.”	This	statement	emanates	from	
  a	sugar	dispenser,	a	tall	glass	and	stainless	
  steel	receptacle	familiar	to	generations	of	diner	
  patrons.		It	is	the	low,	modulated	voice	of	the	
  Really	Quite	Angry	Kid;	she	is	currently	unable	
  to	manifest	in	this	dimension	and	therefore	
  can	communicate	only	through	the	crystalline	
  structures	of	the	sugar.		“If	it	worked	better	it	
  wouldn’t	work	at	all.		If	you	get	my	meaning.”
  “Well,	Really	Quite	Angry,	I	can’t	say	I	do	
  —”
  “MOM!	Shut	up	and	read	the	rest	of	what	it	
  says!”	Claus	swivels	in	his	chair.	
  His	identical	brother	Pere,	who	heretofore	
  has	seemed	to	be	asleep,	opens	his	left	eye	and	
  fixes it on Claus.  “Disrespect for our mother? Is 
  this	what	you’re	showing?”
  Claus	freezes.		The	naked	light	bulb	hang-
  ing	over	the	table	begins	to	gently	sway,	for	no	
  obvious	reason.	
  “N-no,	no,	Pere,”	Claus	stammers.		“That	
  wasn’t	the	situation	at	all	—”
  “It	would	be	unfortunate	if	this	were	the	
  situation.”
  Robert	“Doc”	Cross	leans	forward,	nervous-
  ly	adjusting	his	bandanna.		“Uhhh,”	he	says.		
  Having	gotten	the	attention	of	the	assembled	
  group,	he	pauses	to	draw	a	sip	of	tea	from	his	
  mug.		“Maybe	we	should	start	over	on	this	mes-
  sage	—	the	one	from	The	Machine...”
  “The	Sultan’s	concrete	wall	develops	bites	
  and	God	fasts,”	says	Mrs.	Brinker.		“Empti-
  ness	is	the	position	of	a	prerecorded	violent	
  pain.  Ulceration is potentially beneficial as 
  an	authoritarian	strategy	for	the	reduction	of	
  bridges.”
  “And	that	is	the	entirety	of	the	message?”	
  asks	C.	A.	Radford.		The	smoke	from	his	pipe	
  rises	to	cuddle	with	the	light	bulb;	then	it	forms	
  into	the	shape	of	a	Mayan	mask.		The	mask,	of	
  an	underworld	deity,	has	wild	swirling	eyes;	it	
  sticks	its	triangular	tongue	at	Claus	Brinker.		
  It	says	something	in	an	unfamiliar	language.	
  “What’s	the	mask	sayin’,	C.	A.?”	yips	the	
  Andalusia	Dog.		His	breath	reeks	of	vegetable	
  flavored Milk Bones. 
  Meet The Cut-Ups
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  “I’m	afraid	I’m	not	acquainted	with	the	
  language,”	C.	A.	mutters,	as	the	mask	begins	to	
  spin	about,	reducing	itself	to	scattered	fumes.	
  “He	was	telling	us	to	focus	on	who	the	
  Sultan is,” says Doctor What, fidgeting with the 
  safety	pin	protruding	from	her	bottom	lip.	
  “Gee,	Doc,	I	didn’t	know	you	spoke	ancient	
  Mayan,”	says	Doc	Cross.	
  “Actually,	Doc,	I	don’t,”	she	responds.	
  “So	the	Sultan,	who	would	this	be?”	C.	A.	
  asks,	to	no	one	in	particular.	
  “A	control	f-rrr-reak,	obviously,”	says	the	
  Andalusia	Dog.	
  “Obviously,	but	which	one?”
  A	peculiar	television	set	—	constructed	
  from copper rings, kiln-fired clay, red linen and 
  an	aquarium	full	of	sea	anemones	—	blares	in	
  a	corner.		Flickery	cartoon	images	scoot	across	
  the	red	cloth	screen:	it’s	yet	another	adventure	
  of	Tiffany	Trilobite,	the	favorite	extinct	inver-
  tebrate	of	kids	the	world	over.		Today	Tiffany	
  is	chasing	her	nemesis	Senor	Tapir	through	
  the	musty,	columned	halls	of	the	Spanish	Stock	
  Exchange.		Tiffany	whacks	Senor	Tapir	on	the	
  snout	with	a	bundle	of	pork	belly	futures.		Then	
  she	turns	to	the	group	and	says,	“I’d	bet	it’s	the	
  Pharaohs.”
  “Tiffany,	you	always	think	it’s	the	Pha-
  raohs,”	grumbles	Claus	Brinker.	
  “And	you’re	a	poop,”	Tiffany	replies,	deftly	
  ducking	the	hot	issue	of	Senor	Tapir’s	notorious	
  glue	gun.	
  “Smells	like	Movers	to	me,”	says	Pere	
  Brinker.	
  “Yeah,	but	what	kinda	movers?”	Doc	Cross	
  asks.		“Gladsteins?	Cell	Z?”
  “Cell	Z	is	mythical,”	C.	A.	intones.	
  “Mythical?”	snorts	Dr.	What,	“You	wanna	
  see	the	abdominal	scar	I	got	from	my	last	run-
  in	with	Cell	Z?”
  “Oh	puh-leeez,	we	got	that	scar	memorized	
  by	now,”	Claus	mutters.	
  “Or	Vornites,”	Doc	Cross	continues,	“Could	
  be	Vornites.		Or	Blue	Castle	—”
  “Blue	Castle	Movers?	That’s	a	new	one	on	
  —”
  “Remind	me	to	tell	you	about	it	sometime.”
  “Look,	isn’t	anyone	gonna	just	ask	me	a	
  ‘what’	question?”	Dr.		What	asks.	
  “Right,	sure,”	Doc	says,	“I	always	forget.		I	
  wish	Terry	were	here.		What’s	he	doing	any-
  way?”
  “Scouting	locations,”	Dr.	What	replies	
  frostily.		“That	wasn’t	the	‘what’	question	I	was	
  shooting	for,	y’know.”
  “Okay,	okay,	so	what	does	‘the	Sultan’	
  mean?”
  “Islam	Petri.”
  “The	Reporter?”	Andalusia	asks.	
  “That’s	just	his	cover,”	Pere	says,	“he’s	re-
  ally	head	Neutralizer	on	the	island.		We	don’t	
  usually	have	trouble	with	them,	though...”
  “Well,	maybe	if	we	look	at	the	rest	of	the	
  message...”	Mrs.	Brinker	ventures.	
  “Why	don’t	we	just	ask	the	Doctor	the	
  meaning	of	the	whole	thing?”	says	Doc.	
  “Last	time	we	tried	that	we	overloaded	
  her	fringe	power	and	she	was	in	a	coma	for	a	
  month,”	says	the	Kid.		“That	was	back	when	
  you	were	working	on	that	Tour	Guide	book	of	
  yours...”
  “Very	well,	then,”	C.	A.	harrumphs.		“The	
  Sultan’s	concrete	wall	develops	bites	and	God	
  fasts.		Shall	we	look	at	what	Petri’s	concrete	
  wall	is	—	or	do	we	want	to	ask	ourselves	what	
  exactly	is	meant	by	God?”
  “You mean specifically or in the gener-rrr-al 
  theological	sense,	C.	A.?”
  “I	would	think	one	is	the	key	to	the	other.”
  “Oh,	man,”	pouts	Claus,	“We’re	gonna	be	
  here	till	my	feet	go	numb.”
  The	emergency	meeting	of	the	Al	Amarjan	
  division	of	Chaos	Boys	goes	on	long	into	the	
  night...
  
  6	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Al Amarja’s 
  Cut-Ups
  “You	should	never	wear	your	best	
  trousers when you go out to fight for 
  freedom	and	truth.”
  —Henrik Ibsen
  Mircea ?
  Surrealist Sculptor
  Jailed	for	decades	by	Romania’s	Ceaucescu	
  regime,	the	sculptor	Mircea	?	is	just	now	begin-
  ning to reach a world audience.  He finds the 
  whole	situation	rather	daunting;	he’s	not	used	
  to	being	asked	to	lecture,	give	press	interviews,	
  or promote his work at for-profit galleries.  He 
  isn’t	even	comfortable	with	his	pseudonym,	
  which	was	popularized	by	others	to	publicize	
  his	status	as	a	political	prisoner.	
  The	reason	he’s	shy	is	that	he	doesn’t	
  understand	his	own	work.		He’s	a	intuitive	art-
  ist	who	makes	his	sketches	and	early	models	
  with	a	completely	blank	consciousness.		If	he	
  sets	out	to	create	a	particular	thing,	the	work	
  is	inevitably	a	failure	—	it	seems	sterile	and	
  clichéd.		Only	when	he	lets	himself	go	does	
  he	create	the	startling	works	he’s	becoming	
  famous	for.	
  He’s	subconsciously	attuned	to	the	wave	
  vibrations	the	force	of	Chaos	emits	on	the	
  quantum	level;	this	attunement	allows	him	to	
  create	art	that	makes	Chaos	relevant	to	his	
  time	and	place.		Actually,	he’s	rather	disturbed	
  by	his	own	work	—	if	he	keeps	sculpting	into	
  the	evening,	he’ll	probably	have	a	nightmare	
  featuring	his	own	images	that	night.		He’d	
  rather	produce	serene,	abstract	forms	like	the	
  sculptor	Brancusi.		Instead,	his	subatomic	
  muse	demands	complex,	confusing	works	that	
  mix	media	—	metal,	glass,	wood,	refuse,	plastic	
  —	and	subject	matter.		One	of	his	most	famous	
  works,	the	enormous	“Sorites”,	features	an	es-
  calator	full	of	bored	commuters	going	up.		The	
  figures at the bottom of the escalator are de-
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  picted	with	precise	realism.		But	the	further	up	
  a figure is, the more abstract and monstrous it 
  becomes, until finally the last passengers are 
  —	to	their	silent	horror	—	being	merged	into	
  the	machinery	of	the	escalator.		Presumably	
  they	continue	to	be	part	of	the	cycle	for	eter-
  nity,	becoming	steps	at	the	bottom	to	lure	on	
  more	and	more	of	their	fellows	to	be	devoured	
  by	the	machine.	
  Mircea	?	does	not	live	in	the	Edge;	al-
  though	his	dealer	is	pressuring	him	to	move	
  to	Paris,	he	still	works	from	a	small	village	in	
  Romania.		He	is	sometimes	invited	to	lecture	
  at	D’Aubainne	University.		At	present,	there	is	
  only	one	Mircea	?	piece	in	a	permanent	collec-
  tion	on	the	island,	in	the	private	home	of	Lydia	
  Goodman.		In	accordance	with	her	sense	of	
  taste,	she	picked	one	of	the	more	subdued	of	?’s	
  works,	which	depicts	a	prison	guard	turning	
  into	a	jail.		Its	anti-Control	effect	(see	below)	is	
  one	die	only.	
  Romanian	man,	age	64,	0	cm,	55	kg,	
  scruffy	silver	hair,	quavery	voice.
  Languages:	Romanian,	rudimentary	
  English
  Traits
  Sculptural Technique,	4	dice	—	His	pieces	
  are	technically	stunning,	capable	both	of	min-
  ute	realism	in	the	most	resistant	of	media	and	
  of	bold,	simple	abstractions	that	catch	the	eye	
  while	still	reminding	one	of	their	original	form.		
  (Delicate	hands)
  Chaos Art,		dice	—	When	viewed	either	
  by	a	Control	Freak	or	someone	subservient	to	
  Control,	a	?	piece	can	arouse	profound	doubts	
  about	the	philosophy	of	Control.		These	view-
  ers	get	to	resist	with		dice	(or	more	if	they	
  have	a	trait	like	“strong	will”	or	“fanatical	
  dedication”);	if	they	fail,	they	begin	to	question	
  the	validity	of	their	beliefs.		This	may	manifest	
  as	an	upsurge	of	doubt	at	a	crucial	moment	(a	
  penalty	die	against	a	particular	Control-ori-
  ented action) or the first step on the road to 
  conversion,	at	your	discretion.	
  On	the	other	hand,	viewing	chaos	art	
  affirms the beliefs of a Cut-Up operative or 
  sympathizer.  Upon the first viewing of a piece, 
  the	character	gains	a	temporary	die	in	his	ex-
  perience pool.  It may be saved indefinitely, but 
  can	only	be	used	once.		It	can’t	be	used	to	buy	
  up	a	trait,	only	as	a	bonus	die.	
  Viewers	who	don’t	serve	either	Control	
  or	Chaos	may	be	emotionally	affected	by	the	
  work,	but	acquire	no	penalty	or	bonus	dice.		
  (Works	combine	machine	and	organic	forms	in	
  new	and	disturbing	ways)
  Frail	—	Years	in	prison	have	taken	their	
  toll;	he	suffers	a	penalty	die	in	all	physical	ac-
  tions.  (Shuffles)
  Story Idea
  The	PCs,	assigned	to	guard	a	traveling	
  Mircea	?	exhibit	from	possible	Control	Freak	
  sabotage,	notice	a	well-dressed	older	gentle-
  man	come	into	the	gallery	each	day	to	stare	
  at a particular piece.  At first he just spends 
  his	lunch	hours	there,	but	as	the	days	go	by	
  his	time	in	front	of	the	sculpture	stretches	and	
  stretches.	
  Finally	he	approaches	the	PCs.		“I	never	
  knew	before	who	you	are.		I	never	knew	who	
  I	am.		But	now	I	know.		I	will	tell	you	every-
  thing.”
  He	claims	to	be	a	high-level	member	of	
  both	the	Net	and	the	Movers.		He	offers	to	spill	
  years	of	red-hot	information	into	the	Cut-Up	
  database.		Is	he	for	real,	or	is	he	a	plant?		If	
  he’s	a	plant,	what	sinister	plan	do	his	masters	
  have	for	him?		If	he’s	for	real,	his	former	asso-
  ciates	will	want	to	destroy	him	as	soon	as	they	
  know	they’ve	been	betrayed.	
  Pere Brinker
  Master of Psychic Violence
  The first Brinker to function as an earthly 
  agent	of	the	Chaos	Boys	was	Jeroen	Brinker,	
  who	in	64	attempted	to	use	ritual	magic	to	
  pledge	his	eternal	soul	to	Satan.		His	mystic	
  transmission	was	diverted	by	an	alert	chaos	
  operative,	who	posed	as	the	devil	in	order	to	
  gain	Brinker’s	obedience.		After	unknowingly	
  subverting	the	efforts	of	7th	century	Hol-
  
  8	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  land’s	control	addicts	for	several	years,	Jeroen	
  Brinker	was	arrested	and	burned	at	the	stake.		
  He went to his fiery end still content in the 
  delusion	that	he	had	loyally	served	the	Great	
  Beast.	
  His	young	sons,	however,	were	more	per-
  ceptive.		Although	Jeroen	had	trained	them	
  as	apprentices	in	evil,	they	noticed	that	their	
  bosses	were	both	more	benign	and	stranger	
  than	one	would	expect	hosts	of	hell	to	be.		The	
  Chaos	Boys	revealed	their	true	nature	to	the	
  sons,	who	went	on	to	found	a	dynasty	of	Con-
  trol-fighters.  As generation followed genera-
  tion,	the	Brinkers	became	less	human,	devel-
  oping	hyper-real	attributes.	
  Pere	Brinker	is	the	most	single-minded	of	
  Al	Amarja’s	Cut-Ups.		He	exhibits	no	sense	of	
  humor	whatsoever,	which	is	unheard	of	in	a	
  Chaos	operative.		Cold	and	calm,	he	is	the	least	
  likely	to	underestimate	or	forgive	a	foe.		He	
  treats	his	mother	with	immense	respect	and	
  has	no	patience	for	the	failings	of	his	brother.		
  He’s	uncomfortably	direct	in	conversation,	
  preferring	to	cut	immediately	to	the	heart	of	
  any	question.		Pere	doesn’t	believe	in	wasting	
  words,	and	dislikes	being	in	a	position	where	
  he	has	to	lie.	
  Although	he	allows	her	to	believe	other-
  wise,	Pere	Brinker	is	still	deeply	in	love	with	
  Doctor	What.		He	has	distanced	himself	from	
  her,	fearing	what	might	happen	if	a	lover’s	
  quarrel	gets	out	of	hand	—	he	could	end	up	
  dissecting	her	mind.		She	now	treats	him	as	a	
  friend and confidant, which sometimes be-
  comes	painful	for	him.
  Dutch	man,	4	years	old,	80	cm,	75	kg.		
  Roman	nose,	deep-set	eyes,	receding	hairline,	
  close-cropped	jet	black	hair.		Usually	wears	a	
  plain	black	t-shirt,	black	jeans,	and	motorcycle	
  boots.
  Languages:	Dutch,	English,	Al	Amarjan	
  patois
  Attacks:	4	dice,	X	damage
  Defense:	4	dice
  Hit points:	0	(hyper-real)
  Traits
  Verbal Combat,	4	dice	—	The	pen	may	or	
  may	not	be	mightier	than	the	sword,	but	Pere	
  Brinker	proves	that	the	spoken	word	can	cut	
  just	as	badly	as	a	blade.		When	facing	an	oppo-
  nent he wishes to harm, Pere fixes him in his 
  piercing	gaze	and	begins	to	deduce	basic	truths	
  about	the	dark	secrets	and	contradictions	that	
  his	opponent’s	persona	depends	on.		He	voices	
  these,	precisely	choosing	the	most	devastating	
  words	and	grammar	possible.		Often	his	attack	
  takes	the	form	of	questions.		The	opponent	
  becomes so distraught that he finds it hard to 
  maintain	his	strength,	overcome	by	an	urge	to	
  simply	sink	to	his	knees	and	weep.		His	energy	
  sapped,	his	attempts	to	land	blows	on	Pere	are	
  hampered.		His	vision	is	obscured	by	tears.		If	
  he	fails	to	surrender,	Pere’s	verbal	onslaught	
  can	be	so	upsetting	that	the	victim	suffers	a	
  cerebral	hemorrhage	and	dies.		(Chooses	words	
  carefully)
  Control Freak History,		dice	—	Pere	is	a	
  walking	encyclopedia	of	the	past	operations	
  of	Cut-Up	enemies,	present	and	defunct.		He	
  maintains	a	computer	database	on	the	subject	
  for the benefit of his colleagues, but has com-
  mitted	most	of	it	to	memory.		(Has	the	obscur-
  est of control addict factoids at his fingertips)
  ASL,		dice	—	A	year	ago,	Pere	was	nearly	
  killed	when	ambushed	by	a	deaf	assassin	sent	
  after	him	by	the	Le	Thuys.		Never	one	to	be	
  caught	out	twice,	he’s	been	systematically	
  studying	American	Sign	Language	from	his	
  first day out of the hospital bed.  (Sometimes 
  uses	signs	as	gestures	in	verbal	communica-
  tion)
  Fear of Intimacy	—	Pere	won’t	let	anyone	
  get	close	to	him,	as	he	fears	the	possibly	lethal	
  consequences	of	a	heated	argument.		(Standoff-
  ish)
  Story Idea
  An	Earthling	operative	is	found	dead	from	
  a	cerebral	hemorrhage;	other	clues	point	to	
  Pere	as	well.		Has	he	gone	bad?		It’s	up	to	
  the	PCs	to	investigate.		It	turns	out	that	the	
  Earthling	suffered	from	psychological	dis-
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  orders	similar	to	a	hostage-holding	Maniac	
  whom	Pere	talked	into	the	grave	a	couple	of	
  months	back.		A	Sandman	secretly	videotaped	
  Pere’s	assault,	recognizing	in	the	Maniac	traits	
  of	his	enemy,	an	Earthling	closing	in	on	his	
  Nightmare	ring.		He	then	mailed	a	copy	of	
  the	tape	to	the	Earthling,	who	unsuspectingly	
  popped	it	into	his	VCR	and	was	killed.		The	
  tape	is	still	in	the	man’s	deck.		Now	the	trick	is	
  finding the Sandman and pinning the crime on 
  him.
  Claus Brinker
  Master of Mundane Violence
  As the first Brinker in decades to be born 
  without	fringe	powers,	Claus	has	always	felt	
  inferior	to	his	brother.		He	has	spent	his	entire	
  life	overcompensating.		In	order	to	compete	
  with his brother’s weird harm-inflicting abili-
  ties,	he	has	applied	frenzied	determination	to	
  the	study	of	the	known	ways	for	one	human	
  being	to	damage	another.		In	an	effort	to	deny	
  his	brother’s	hold	over	him,	he’s	become	every-
  thing	Pere	is	not.		Pere	is	quiet;	Claus	is	loud.		
  Pere	carefully	considers	each	word	he	speaks;	
  Claus	shoots	his	mouth	off	without	regard	for	
  the	consequences.	
  Claus	is	a	slightly	wayward	Cut-Up;	a	
  couple	of	years	ago	he	was	suspended	for	get-
  ting	involved	with	a	scheme	to	smuggle	gre-
  nade	launchers	onto	the	island.		He	was	sent	to	
  remedial	chaos	classes	at	Chaos	Boys	Central,	
  where	he	got	into	more	trouble.		He	is	still	on	
  probation.	
  Unlike	the	Koanhead	(p.	7),	Claus	is	not	a	
  control	addict	at	heart.		He	just	has	a	child-like	
  fascination	with	things	that	blow	up	or	cause	
  other	sorts	of	mass	destruction.		This,	coupled	
  with	his	low	impulse	control,	explains	his	
  run-ins	with	the	higher-ups.		He	can’t	resist	
  picking	up	a	contraband	item	like	a	handgun	
  if	he	comes	across	one,	for	example.		He	yields	
  easily	to	temptation,	and	is	especially	suscep-
  tible	to	a	pretty	face.	
  When	caught	out	in	one	of	his	poorly-
  planned scams, he usually finds a way to 
  blame	his	brother.		Pere	feels	that	Claus’s	
  behavior reflects on him, and keeps an eagle 
  eye	on	his	brother’s	activities.		This	does	little	
  to	relax	Claus’	bitterness	towards	him.
  Dutch	man,	4	years	old,	80	cm,	95	kg,	
  receding	hairline,	deep-set	eyes,	long	peroxide-
  blond	hair,	scraggly	beard.		Dresses	in	mis-
  matched	Army	surplus	gear.
  Languages:	Dutch,	English,	Al	Amarjan	
  patois
  Attack:	4	dice,	various	weapons
  Defense:	4	dice
  Hit Points:	9	(works	out)
  Traits
  Combat machine,	4	dice	—	Claus	obses-
  sively	studies	every	form	of	armed	or	unarmed	
  combat	known	to	man,	and	works	out	with	
  fiendish determination.  The only time he 
  shuts his mouth is during a fight, when he 
  locks	his	full	attention	onto	his	enemy	and	
  battles	on	in	concentrated	silence.		(Can’t	re-
  sist listing the full specifications of any firearm 
  seen	on	TV	or	in	a	movie)
  Stealth,		dice	—	After	a	two-hour	martial	
  arts	workout,	Claus	goes	on	to	an	hour	of	silent	
  movement	practice.		(Even	though	he’s	always	
  squirming	about,	noise	issues	only	from	his	
  mouth)
  Infiltration,		dice	—	From	commando-style	
  location	penetration	to	safe-cracking,	Claus	is	
  the	man	to	get	into	an	enemy	stronghold	and	
  out	again	undetected.		(Casually	cases	any	
  unfamiliar	building	he	enters)
  Inferiority Complex	—	Claus	is	a	troubled	
  guy, with more than one flaw.  But ultimately 
  all	of	his	problems	derive	from	his	feelings	
  about	Pere.		These	include	his	general	ob-
  noxiousness,	which	costs	him	a	penalty	die	
  in	social	situations,	and	low	impulse	control,	
  which	makes	him	behave	stupidly	whenever	he	
  thinks	he’s	being	challenged,	or	when	he	has	
  a	chance	to	scam	an	illegal	weapon.		(Loud-
  mouth)
  
  0	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Story Idea
  A	simple	episode	of	downtime	becomes	a	
  crisis	when	Claus	accompanies	the	PCs	on	a	
  night	out.		He	steps	on	the	toe	of	an	equally	
  psychotic	Aries	Gangster.		Words	are	ex-
  changed.  Not long afterwards the group finds 
  itself in furious flight out of the barrio, pur-
  sued	by	dozens	of	whacked-out	Vikings	howl-
  ing	for	blood.
  Mrs. Brinker
  Cut-Up Nurturer and Caregiver
  Though	literally	Pere’	and	Claus’	mother,	
  Mrs.	Brinker	(she	never	uses	her	given	name)	
  has	become	surrogate	mom	to	the	whole	
  unruly	crowd	of	Al	Amarjan	Cut-Ups.		She	
  doesn’t	go	out	on	missions	herself,	but	is	in-
  valuable	to	the	group	because	she	takes	care	
  of	all	of	the	mundane	essentials	of	living	that	
  the	others	are	too	scattered	to	handle.		Chaos	
  Boys	are	rarely	good	at	keeping	a	hideout	
  clean	or	balancing	a	check	book.	
  Mrs.	Brinker	takes	the	hyper-reality	of	ex-
  perience	at	Cut-Up	HQ	in	stride.		She’s	been	
  looking after control-fighters for four decades 
  now,	ever	since	she	was	courted	as	a	young	
  woman	by	a	charming	Dutchman	named	
  Jacob	Brinker	who	could	turn	invisible	at	will	
  and	communicate	with	household	appliances.		
  By	this	point,	she	becomes	more	perturbed	
  by	persistent	moldy	grout	than	the	sudden	
  materialization	of	a	talking	tarantula	at	the	
  dinner	table.	
  Mrs.	Brinker	also	seems	oblivious	to	the	
  constant	whining	of	her	son	Claus,	who	views	
  his	old-fashioned	mom	as	an	embarrassment.		
  If	anything,	she	tends	to	lavish	more	atten-
  tion	on	him	for	it	—	after	all,	Pere	has	his	
  act	together	and	doesn’t	need	it.		(Some	other	
  members	of	the	group	think	Claus	would	be	
  better	off	without	so	much	forgiveness,	but	
  none	would	dare	risk	hurting	her	feelings	by	
  mentioning	the	subject.)		She’s	the	only	one	to	
  see	through	Pere’s	pretended	romantic	disin-
  terest	in	Doctor	What;	when	given	the	chance,	
  she’ll	subtly	try	to	maneuver	them	into	situa-
  tions	where	they’re	alone	together.
  Dutch	woman,	66	years	old,	50	cm,	70	
  kg.		Wears	her	gray	hair	up	in	a	bun;	bifocals	
  hang	from	her	neck	on	a	silver	chain.		Prefers	
  print	fabric	dresses	in	pastel	colors.		Sensible	
  shoes.
  Traits
  Aura of Sweetness,	4	dice	—	Mrs.	Brinker	
  is	such	a	sweet	old	lady	that	the	most	black-
  hearted villain finds it impossible to even con-
  sider harming her.  She can find something in 
  common	even	with	robots	or	incomprehensible	
  aliens.		Shopkeepers	never	swindle	her;	Peace	
  Force officers tear up her parking tickets.  
  She	can	calm	down	distraught	Control	Freak	
  victims	and	convince	potential	suicides	to	
  keep	on	living.		(Has	apparently	inexhaustible	
  supply	of	milk	and	cookies)
  Household management,		dice	—	This	
  covers	everything	from	the	obvious	cook-
  ing	and	cleaning	to	operational	budgeting	
  and	smart	shopping.		(Immediately	attacks	
  smudges	or	spills)
  First Aid,		dice	—	Though	not	a	doctor,	
  her	years	of	living	with	Chaos	agents	have	
  taught	her	everything	she	needs	to	know	
  about	looking	after	minor	scrapes,	cuts	and	
  sprains.		(Her	purse	includes	a	well-stocked	
  first aid kit)
  Noncombatant — Just as others find it 
  impossible	to	harm	her,	Mrs.	Brinker	could	
  never	bring	herself	to	participate	in	an	act	of	
  violence — no matter how justified.  (Won’t 
  touch	weapons,	even	if	they	do	need	a	good	
  dusting)
  Story Idea
  The Ransom of Mrs. Brinker:	The	PCs	
  return	to	Cut-Up	headquarters	to	discover	
  that	Mrs.	Brinker	has	been	kidnapped	by	
  forces	unknown.		After	getting	into	various	
  scrapes	while	fruitlessly	searching	for	clues	
  to	her	disappearance,	they’re	approached	by	
  a	harried	Avan	Bloodlord.		He	apologizes	for	
  taking	her,	and	offers	any	settlement	if	they’ll	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  just	take	her	back.		Seems	her	chronic	nice-
  ness	has	been	softening	Glorious	Lord	morale.		
  Upon	arrival	at	the	Satanists’	Lair,	the	PCs	
  find Mrs. Brinker supervising contractors 
  as	they	redecorate	the	place	into	a	“country	
  kitchen”	look.
  Robert “Doc” Cross
  Cut-Up Recruiting Officer
  Doc,	as	his	friends	call	him,	is	a	reason-
  ably	successful	author	of	adventures	and	
  supplements	for	role-playing	games.		He	
  tends	to	specialize	in	writing	for	game	sys-
  tems	that	are	either	humorous	or	offbeat.		He	
  also	writes	for	gaming	magazines	and	apas	
  (amateur	press	associations).		It	was,	in	fact,	
  via his apa writing that he first attracted the 
  attention	of	the	Chaos	Boys.		While	attending	
  a	gaming	convention,	Doc	was	approached	by	
  a	young	woman	who	he	would	later	know	as	
  Doctor	What.	
  She	said,	“Undulating	chaos	with	ratchet-
  ing	hedgehogs.”
  Without	missing	a	beat,	he	replied,	“You	
  bet!	And	snakeskin	mornings	whistling,	too!”
  From	then	on,	Doc	was	a	Cut-Up.		He	
  moved	to	Al	Amarja	a	few	weeks	later.	
  Doc	lives	in	a	large	apartment	near	the	
  Plaza	of	Flowers.		He	shares	this	apartment	
  with	an	astounding	variety	of	pets,	shelves	
  of	books	and	role-playing	games,	stacks	of	
  records	and	CDs,	,64	bandannas,	count-
  less	toys	and	quite	possibly	the	best	equipped	
  kitchen	on	Al	Amarja.		He	has	guests	over	
  several	times	a	week,	often	to	role-play	or	
  playtest	his	works	in	progress.		Other	nights,	
  he	can	be	found	hanging	around	various	
  places	in	the	Plaza	of	Flowers.	
  Doc’s	principal	duty	as	a	Cut-Up	is	to	
  scout	out	likely	recruits	or	useful	normies	at	
  gaming and science fiction conventions.  He 
  has	been	extremely	successful	at	this,	mostly	
  through	running	games	of	a	decidedly	off-
  the-wall	nature.		In	addition	to	his	recruiting	
  duties,	Doc	also	leads	the	odd	chaotic	comedy	
  
  	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  raid	on	overly	serious	control	freaks	—	the	
  less	deadly	ones,	that	is.		Cream	pies,	seltzer	
  bottles	and	banana	peels	feature	prominently	
  in	these	raids.		Televangelists	and	politicians	
  are	his	favorite	victims.	
  Although	Doc	is	normally	a	freewheel-
  ing,	fun-loving	guy,	that	all	changes	when	he	
  sees	a	child	or	animal	being	abused.		With	
  total	disregard	for	his	own	safety,	he	dashes	
  to	the	victim’s	aid.		This	usually	means	that	
  the	abuser	ends	up	bleeding	profusely	from	
  multiple	wounds	or,	if	Doc	really	loses	it,	dead.		
  Fortunately,	this	doesn’t	happen	too	often.	
  For	the	past	several	years,	Doc	has	been	
  amassing	huge	amounts	of	words	and	phrases	
  that	have	to	do	with	cartoon	characters.		When	
  the	time	seems	right,	he	plans	to	dump	them	
  —	along	with	several	boxes	of	cartoons	on	vid-
  eotape	—	into	the	Cut-Up	Machine.		If	all	goes	
  well,	he	hopes	to	create	an	opening	between	
  Al	Amarja	and	the	Tooniverse.		For	Doc,	this	
  would be like finding a doorway to Heaven.
  White	US	male,	age	9,	77	cm,	5	kg,	
  long	reddish-blond	hair,	red	mustache,	large	
  silver	hoop	earring	in	left	ear,	always	wears	
  glasses	and	a	bandanna	headband.		Dresses	in	
  jeans,	t-shirts	and	red	hightop	sneakers.
  Languages:	English,	some	Spanish
  Attacks:		dice,	X	damage	(knife)
  Defenses:		dice
  Traits
  Game Writer/GM,	4	dice	—	Part	of	being	
  a	game	writer/GM	is	the	ability	to	create	new	
  personas	and	act	them	out,	speak	in	a	variety	
  of	voices/dialects,	create	convincing	stories	
  (or	lie	well)	and	deal	with	the	unexpected	in	a	
  rapid	manner.		(Tells	great	stories)
  Good Fighter,		dice	—	Years	of	traveling	
  and	hanging	out	in	rowdy	places	have	taught	
  him	how	to	take	care	of	himself.		(Always	car-
  ries	a	knife.)
  Funny,		dice	—	Doc’s	outrageous	sense	of	
  humor	has	won	him	lots	of	friends	and	saved	
  his butt when his fighting skills wouldn’t have.  
  (Always	joking)
  Berserk	—	If	Doc	sees	a	child	or	animal	be-
  ing	hurt,	he	is	capable	of	a	murderous	rage	—	
  roll	two	dice	plus	penalty	to	remain	in	control.		
  If	he	avoids	the	rage,	he’ll	be	nice	and	calm	as	
  he	merely	dishes	out	severe	wounds.		(Growls	
  when	he	hears	about	child/animal	abuse)
  Story Idea
  PCs	wishing	to	contact	the	Cut-Ups	will	be	
  able to find out fairly easily from the Al Ama-
  rjan	grapevine	that	this	Doc	Cross	fellow	is	
  the	man	to	see.		He	is	inundated	not	only	with	
  nuisance requests but with would-be infiltra-
  tors	from	Control,	and	has	adopted	a	standard	
  method	of	screening	out	unsuitable	candidates	
  —	he	invites	them	to	play	a	role-playing	game,	
  with	himself	as	GM.		Those	who	play	in	a	fun,	
  loose	manner	get	an	introduction	to	the	other	
  Cut-Ups.		Powergamers	and	the	humorless	are	
  politely	turned	down.	
  Use	this	as	an	opportunity	for	a	mind-
  bending	break	from	your	OTE	series.		Pull	
  out	a	scenario	from	another	game	and	run	it,	
  as	Doc.		(A	certain	cartoon	RPG	published	by	
  a	company	of	friendly	folks	based	in	Austin,	
  Texas,	would	be	ideal,	but	anything	will	do.)		
  You’ll	be	a	GM	running	a	role-playing	game	in	
  which	a	GMC,	Doc,	is	running	a	role-playing	
  game.		And	your	players	will	be	playing	PCs	
  playing	PCs	of	their	invention	in	that	game.		
  Make	sure	they	—	and	you	—	stay	in	character	
  —	or	rather,	characters.		If	your	PCs	play	in	
  a	manner	that	entertains	Doc,	he’ll	introduce	
  them	to	the	Cut-Ups.	
  Later	in	your	series,	when	the	PCs	are	tra-
  versing	alternate	realities,	dump	them	into	the	
  campaign	world	of	Doc’s	scenario,	where	they	
  meet their PCs as flesh-and-blood (or celluloid-
  and-ink)	entities.		If	they	get	back,	Doc	will	be	
  very interested in finding out how to get to this 
  alien	dimension.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  tive.		He’ll	contentedly	yap	away	endlessly	on	
  any	topic	you	care	to	name	—	if	none	comes	
  to	mind,	he’ll	describe	his	day’s	adventures	in	
  excruciating	detail.		It’s	hard	to	hurt	his	feel-
  ings,	but	also	hard	to	get	him	to	shut	up.
  Aside from his official duties, his main 
  interest	is	in	classical	music,	particularly	the	
  harsh,	atonal	sounds	of	the	Second	Vienna	
  School	of	Schoenberg,	Webern	and	Berg.		He	
  has	an	extensive	CD	collection	and	daydreams	
  about	conducting	Paris’	Ensemble	Nouvelle	
  Intercontemporain.
  Andy	was	dubbed	Brownie	by	his	original	
  owners;	after	he	struck	out	on	his	own	and	
  joined	the	Cut-Ups,	he	adopted	a	name	in-
  spired by the classic surrealist short film Un 
  Chien Andalou.		He	reacts	positively	to	those	
  who	catch	the	reference.
  US	mongrel	dog,	40	cm,	5	kg,	medium-
  length	sandy-brown	fur,	fox-like	muzzle	and	
  ears, brown eyes, fluffy tail.
  Languages:	English,	Al	Amarjan	patois,	
  some	German
  Attacks:		dice,	X	damage
  Defense:		dice
  Hit points:	4	(small	dog)
  Traits
  Dog Fighting,		dice	—	Against	humans,	
  he’s	small,	agile	and	hard	to	hit.		Almost	any	
  human	attacked	by	an	animal	feels	an	in-
  stinctive	fear,	which	also	works	to	Andalusia’s	
  advantage:	he	usually	goes	right	for	the	
  throat.		He’s	also	experienced	against	other	
  dogs	—	both	possessive	nonsentients	keeping	
  him	away	from	their	mates,	and	evil	sentients	
  from	other	conspiracies	with	more	arcane	
  motivations.  (Snarls with breezy confidence 
  when	challenged)
  Eavesdropping,	4	dice	—	Andy	is	adept	
  at	posing	as	a	normal	dog	while	he	listens	
  for	juicy	information.		Often	his	targets	end	
  up	patting	him	on	the	head	and	feeding	him	
  goodies	as	he	scams	their	secrets.		(Scampers	
  about	with	apparent	aimlessness)
  The Andalusia Dog
  Cut-Up Cloak
  The	Andalusia	Dog	(a.k.a.	The	Andalusian	
  Dog,	a.k.a	Andy)	is	one	of	the	Cut-Ups’	fore-
  most	information-gathering	operatives.		With	
  his	four	legs,	wagging	tail,	and	cheerful	bark,	
  he	arouses	little	suspicion	as	he	prowls	the	
  streets	of	the	Edge	in	search	of	intelligence.		
  Andalusia	is	often	assigned	to	trail	persons	of	
  interest	to	the	organization;	when	not	follow-
  ing a specific target, he rambles about eaves-
  dropping,	touching	base	with	his	contacts,	
  and	begging	for	the	occasional	scrap.		Many	
  Cut-Up	operations	begin	when	Andy	over-
  hears	details	of	a	Control	Addict	plot	while	
  making	his	rounds.	
  Andalusia	is	a	bit	of	a	ladies’	dog,	with	
  many	paramours	about	the	city.		He’s	sired	
  countless	litters,	hoping	to	one	day	father	
  a	sentient	pup	he	can	train	to	carry	on	his	
  work.		So	far	he	has	been	without	success,	but	
  he’s	always	willing	to	give	it	another	shot.		
  The	gene	for	canine	intelligence	is	recessive;	
  smart	dogs	are	especially	rare	because	the	
  Pharaohs	kill	any	they	run	across.		Andalu-
  sia’s	ancestors	were	the	loyal	companions	of	
  the	Glugs	at	the	height	of	their	civilization;	
  when	the	Pharaohs	suppressed	the	Glugs	
  they	captured	and	slew	almost	all	the	intel-
  ligent	dogs.		Those	smart	dogs	who	avoid	the	
  watchful	eyes	of	Pharaoh	quislings	usually	
  end	up	involving	themselves	in	conspiratorial	
  groups	of	one	stripe	or	another.		The	Chaos	
  Boys	have	always	welcomed	them:	Andy’s	
  father	served	on	their	behalf	in	Vietnam	dur-
  ing	the	sixties	and	seventies.		Less	idealistic	
  types	veer	towards	the	Movers,	attracted	by	
  their	dominance	structure	—	which	appeals	
  to	canine	pack	psychology	—	and	their	opposi-
  tion	to	the	Pharaohs.
  Andalusia	is	a	cheerful,	happy-go-lucky	
  sort;	he	gets	along	equally	well	with	each	
  member	of	the	sometimes-fractious	Al	Amarja	
  Chaos	Boys	chapter.		He	tends	to	be	a	wee	bit	
  loquacious:	after	disguising	his	true	nature	all	
  day	on	patrol,	he’s	usually	dying	for	conversa-
  tion	when	he	meets	up	with	another	opera-
  
  4	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Tracking,		dice	—	Andy	augments	his	
  natural	sense	of	smell	with	deductive	reason-
  ing ability; he can figure out where to pick up 
  again	when	a	normal	dog	would	lose	the	trail.		
  (Sniffs ground like a wine fancier would a fine 
  glass	of	Chardonnay)
  No Thumbs	—	Like	any	dog,	Andalusia	
  can’t	turn	a	doorknob,	dial	a	phone,	or	pull	the	
  trigger	on	a	crossbow.		He	has	no	trouble	with	
  the	buttons	on	his	portable	CD	player,	but	it	
  takes	him	ages	to	wriggle	into	the	headphones.		
  (He’s	a	dog)
  Story Idea
  A	cool,	collected	man	in	an	expensive	suit	
  approaches	the	PCs	and	shows	them	a	poorly-
  focused	black-and-white	photo	of	a	small	
  mutt.		He	claims	that	he’s	searching	for	“this	
  very	valuable	animal”	on	behalf	of	its	wealthy	
  owner.		In	reality,	he’s	the	Pharaoh	quisling	in	
  charge	of	hunting	down	and	killing	intelligent	
  dogs,	and	he’s	after	enemy	number	one,	Anda-
  lusia.		PCs	who	know	Andy	might	help	lure	the	
  hunter	into	a	trap;	others	may	be	suckered	by	
  the $25,000 the man is offering and try to find 
  and	capture	him.
  A Famous Movie Director
  Famous Movie Director
  A	certain	famous	movie	director,	as	
  notorious	for	his	battles	with	know-nothing	
  studio	heads	and	bean-counting	completion	
  bond	companies	as	he	is	revered	for	the	dark,	
  startling visions of his films, is an honorary 
  member	of	the	Cut-Ups.		Although	he	doesn’t	
  endanger	himself	by	participating	directly	in	
  covert	operations,	he	does	occasionally	drop	
  by	the	Edge	to	assist	more	active	members	of	
  the	mob	by	serving	as	a	sounding	board.		He	
  also	supplies	logistical	support	and	money	
  to	the	team	at	times,	though	he	isn’t	able	
  to	marshal	the	amount	of	loot	available	to	
  Claude-Lucien	Rouvier	(see	p.	).		Mostly	he	
  acts	as	spiritual	advisor	to	the	group.		And	
  of course, he fights the philosophical battle 
  against	Control	in	his	movies,	which	are	all	
  on	one	level	or	another	parables	about	Hu-
  manity’s	need	to	abandon	the	jackboot	of	un-
  questioned	rationalism	in	favor	of	the	glories	
  of	the	fantastic	imagination.
  Incidentally,	even	the	OTE	book	makes	the	
  common	error	of	referring	to	him	as	British.		
  Although	his	most	famous	association	is	with	
  a	defunct	UK	comedy	troupe,	and	he	now	lives	
  there,	he	is	in	fact	American.
  US	man,	age	5,	brown	hair,	prominent	
  roundish	cheekbones.
  Languages:	English
  Traits
  Filmmaker,	4	dice	—	Responsible	for	some	
  of	the	funniest,	scariest,	smartest	movies	of	
  the	seventies	and	eighties.		(Dresses	in	“I’m	so	
  powerful	I	can	look	as	casual	as	I	want”	style	
  typical	of	Hollywood	directors)
  Animation,		dice	—	Popularizer	of	anima-
  tion	technique	using	cut-up	images	from	maga-
  zines	to	create	rudely	funny	juxtapositions.		
  (Grimaces	when	he	sees	TV	commercials	still	
  ripping	off	his	style)
  Logistics,		dice	—	Bitter	experience	with	
  the	sheer	brutal	effort	required	to	make	a	big-
  budget	movie	happen	has	taught	him	a	sur-
  prising	range	of	things	about	organizing,	from	
  hiring	truck	drivers	to	dealing	with	adverse	
  weather	conditions.		Includes	lots	of	contacts	
  from	animal	trainers	to	experts	on	explosives.		
  (Carries	black	book	full	of	important	phone	
  numbers)
  High Personal Integrity — A flaw in the 
  Hollywood	context;	studio	heads	are	reluctant	
  to	greenlight	his	pictures	because	he	won’t	
  recut	them	to	resemble	Rocky.		(Pained	expres-
  sion	when	studios	are	mentioned)
  Story Idea
  This	GMC	is	meant	to	be	a	connection	
  between	the	weird	world	of	the	Cut-Ups	and	
  our	own	real	world,	rather	than	an	operative	
  whose	battles	with	Control	leave	him	red	in	
  tooth	and	claw.		Have	him	show	up	at	a	party	
  hosted	by	Doc	Cross,	or	have	him	call	a	Cut-Up	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  PC	from	a	location	shoot	in	Fiji	to	provide	a	
  vital	tip.
  The Really Quite Angry 
  Kid
  Cut-Up Oppenheimer
  The	Really	Quite	Angry	Kid	is	the	product	
  of	a	mixed	marriage	between	a	human	male	
  and	a	transdimensional	parasite.		Her	moth-
  er,	feeling	she’d	been	seduced	under	false	
  pretenses,	attempted	to	keep	her	away	from	
  her	father	during	her	childhood.		This	meant	
  fleeing across the dimensions to keep one 
  step	ahead	of	the	pursuing	father.		The	Kid’s	
  mother	didn’t	anticipate	the	effect	this	real-
  ity-hopping	would	have	on	her	beloved	child,	
  who	was,	after	all,	an	unprecedented	hybrid	
  of	species	thought	to	be	sexually	incompat-
  ible.		The	Kid’s	DNA	became	imprinted	with	
  quantum	uncertainty,	making	her	a	creature	
  of infinite possibilities.
  This	gave	her	some	previously	unheard-of	
  abilities,	but	these	have	come	with	inevitable	
  balancing	restrictions.		She	can	only	exist	in	
  our	dimension	during	months	ending	with	the	
  letters	“y”	or	“t”.		(She’s	affected	by	the	way	
  the	months	are	spelled	in	the	English	lan-
  guage	because	this	was	her	father’s	mother	
  tongue.)	The	rest	of	the	time	she	travels	
  through	a	dozen	other	realities,	where	she	is	
  everything	from	a	pastry	goddess	to	a	musi-
  cian	with	a	price	on	her	head.		This	smorgas-
  bord	of	experience	has	made	her	a	passion-
  ate	advocate	of	diversity	and	creative	chaos	
  —	she	hates	the	Control	Addicts	who	bedevil	
  our	plane.
  Her	handle	derives	from	her	ultra-con-
  trolled,	blasé	demeanor.		Her	relaxed	posture	
  and	low,	mumbly	voice	make	her	appear	to	
  be	lazy	and	imperturbable.		She’s	continu-
  ally	trying	to	explain	to	her	allies	that	she’s	
  in	a	state	of	perpetual	anger	at	the	Pharaohs	
  and	Movers	of	the	world:	“No,	really,	I’m	just	
  livid	right	now.”		“Inside,	I’m	boiling	—	hon-
  est	—	I’ve	never	been	this	angry	in	all	of	my	
  life	as	I	am	right	this	minute.		No	kidding.”		
  For	several	years,	the	Kid	was	on	a	kick	of	
  Anglophilia,	wearing	a	deerstalker	cap	and	
  insisting	that	her	colleagues	refer	to	her	as	
  the	Rather	Quite	Angry	Kid.		Now	she	has	
  switched	back	to	her	original	moniker,	the	Re-
  ally	Quite	Angry	Kid.
  Black	woman,	apparent	age	7,	7	cm,	0	
  kg,	dreadlocks,	wears	dirty	sweatshirts	and	
  track	pants.
  Languages:	English,	Al	Amarjan,	as	well	
  as	Gnerust,	Siwjnsd,	and	other	extra-dimen-
  sional	tongues
  Traits
  Sub-Random Tech,	5	dice	—	On	the	Kid’s	
  other	home	planes,	science	is	based	on	irratio-
  nality,	not	methodical	inquiry.		As	the	First	
  Gnerust	Law	of	Interior	Scarcity	says,	“Dive	
  into	randomness;	below	it	is	the	higher	order.”	
  Sub-Random	technology	is	put	together	intui-
  tively;	although	it	may	not	give	the	result	you	
  want, you just might find you get what you 
  need.		When	she	applies	the	principles	of	Gn-
  erust	or	Siwjnsd	technology	on	this	plane,	the	
  results	are	slightly	more	predictable.		If	she	
  sets	out	to	build	an	item	that	does	a	particu-
  lar	thing,	she	won’t	be	able	to	tell	in	advance	
  what	supplies	she’ll	require	—	except	to	say	
  that	they’ll	be	bizarre.		For	example,	if	she	de-
  cides to create a burglar alarm, she may find 
  herself	needing	a	5mm	camera,	the	bladder	
  of	a	Brazilian	maned	wolf,	baobab	pollen,	a	
  rocket	engine,	and	an	adding	machine.		The	
  result is weird but scientific — once con-
  structed,	it	behaves	in	a	consistent	manner.		
  However,	she	won’t	necessarily	be	able	to	
  duplicate	the	construction	process	—	a	second	
  burglar	alarm	which	does	exactly	the	same	
  thing	might	be	made	of	walnut	wood,	silk,	a	
  TV	antenna,	aluminum,	and	barbed	wire.
  If	one	of	these	devices	breaks	down,	she’s	
  usually	able	to	repair	it	—	but	again,	may	re-
  quire	weird	items	not	in	the	original.		Anyone	
  without	a	background	in	Sub-Random	tech	
  simply	breaks	an	item	constructed	in	this	way	
  if	he	tries	to	disassemble	it.
  The	Kid	can	also	build	things	through	
  the	opposite	mental	process,	starting	with	a	
  
  6	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  pile	of	disparate	parts	and	ending	up	with	a	
  device	that	does	something	completely	un-
  precedented.		This	is	how	she	came	up	with	
  the	Cut-Up	Machine	and	the	Collective	Un-
  conscious	Swizzle	Stick.		For	some	reason,	no	
  doubt	related	to	the	Twelfth	Gnerust	Law	of	
  Jade	Scattering,	these	machines	are	usually	
  more	powerful	than	the	ones	constructed	with	
  a	predetermined	function	in	mind.		They’re	
  also easier to fix.
  The	discipline	of	sub-random	tech	can	be	
  taught,	but	only	in	the	realms	of	Gnerust,	
  Siwjnsd,	and	the	ineffable	Plane	of	Decipher-
  ment.		The	Kid	is	its	foremost	practitioner	
  in	any	dimension.		(Wears	screwdrivers	and	
  inexplicable	instruments	on	a	tool	belt)
  Transdimensional Travel,		dice	—	The	
  Kid	can	spontaneously	pass	between	dimen-
  sions.		She	normally	does	this	on	a	schedule	
  she’s	bound	to	(see	above).		When	adhering	to	
  her schedule, she rolls against two difficulty 
  dice; otherwise, standard difficulty is 5 dice.  
  When	she	fails,	the	winds	of	metareality	blow	
  her	off	course	into	another	world.		(Curses	in	
  odd,	unpronounceable	languages)
  English History,		dice	—	Although	she’s	
  become	disenchanted	with	the	subject	after	
  being	treated	rudely	during	a	recent	London	
  holiday,	the	Kid	has	had	a	long-term	fascina-
  tion	with	all	things	British.		(Unconsciously	
  quotes	lines	by	English	poets)
  2 1/2 Dimensional,		dice	penalty	—	She	
  doesn’t quite fulfill all of the spatial require-
  ments	for	full	-dimensional	status;	she’s	
  much	lighter	than	she	looks,	and	doesn’t	have	
  the	weight	to	put	behind	feats	of	strength	
  —	suffers	a	penalty	die	in	any	such	attempt.		
  (Her	gait	is	a	peculiar	mix	of	slouch	and	light-
  ness)
  Story Idea
  It’s	three	in	the	morning	on	the	coldest	
  night	of	the	year.		The	Kid	is	hard	at	work	
  on	a	device	to	keep	a	squad	of	fascistic	ghosts	
  from	manifesting	themselves	in	the	land	of	
  the	living.		Suddenly	she	realizes	she	needs	a	
  belt	buckle	to	complete	the	machine.		But	not	
  any	belt	buckle	will	do	—	she	needs	the	pew-
  ter	death’s	head	which	is	currently	holding	up	
  the	slacks	of	Molly,	Queen	Mother	of	Baboons.		
  Molly	is	not	likely	to	part	with	it	willingly.
  C. A. Radford
  Embodiment of Chaos
  C.	A.	Radford	suffers	from	an	extremely	
  rare	chronic	disease	called	Chaos	Chancer	(the	
  “h”	is	silent.)	This	condition	means	that	every-
  thing about Radford is in constant flux.  Each 
  time	C.	A.	appears,	roll	dice	to	determine	the	
  origin	of	his/her	condition,	personality,	appear-
  ance,	fringe	power,	professional	trait,	miscel-
  laneous trait, and flaw.
  Origin
  .		The	Chaos	Chancer	is	a	genetic	muta-
  tion; although Radford is one of the first to get 
  it,	it’s	becoming	more	common	as	the	level	of	
  disorder	in	our	reality	increases.
  .		Radford	constructed	Chaos	Chancer	as	
  a	hypothetical	possibility	before	contracting	
  it.		The	process	of	dreaming	up	this	inconceiv-
  able	theory	provoked	a	reaction	on	the	cel-
  lular level, making Radford the first actual 
  victim	of	this	nonexistent	ailment.
  .		Radford	is	a	former	Control	Freak	who	
  was	captured	by	Chaos	Boys	several	decades	
  back.		They	tested	an	experimental	weapon	
  on	him/her,	which	worked	more	dramatically	
  than	even	they	expected	—	Radford	not	only	
  defected	to	their	cause,	but	became	the	living	
  incarnation	of	their	philosophy.
  4.		Chaos	Chancer	is	a	communicable	
  disease.  Radford contracted it during his first 
  sexual	experience,	with	a	non-affected	carrier	
  of	the	virus.		Radford	is	still	searching	for	the	
  carrier	—	not	because	he/she	cares	particu-
  larly	about	studying	the	disease	or	stopping	
  its	spread,	but	because	he/she	is	still	roman-
  tically	obsessed	with	the	object	of	his	early	
  desires.
  5.		Radford	formulated	Chaos	Chancer	in	
  a	lab	while	working	on	a	chemical	weapons	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  project	for	the	military	of	his	nation.		After	ac-
  cidentally	contaminating	him/herself,	he/she	
  fled with the formula, later joining the Cut-
  Ups	in	repentance.
  6.		Neither	Chaos	Chancer	nor	C.	A.	Rad-
  ford	truly	exist.		Both	are	illusions	created	
  in	this	world	as	a	side-effect	of	the	dreams	of	
  the	Child	Vampire	God	Kraajsdruvul,	who	
  lies	in	stasis	in	a	prison/tomb	in	the	core	of	
  the	planet	Mars.		People	“meeting”	Radford	
  become	convinced	of	its	reality	and	behave	
  accordingly	—	no	sentient	being	is	immune	to	
  the	effect.		Lower	animals,	however,	cannot	
  perceive	Radford.
  Personality
  .		Though	blessed	with	a	subtle,	self-dep-
  recating	sense	of	humor,	Radford	is	deeply	
  serious	at	heart,	committed	to	the	Cut-Up	
  cause.		He/she	sees	it	as	a	burden	that	must	
  be borne, and is always the first to volunteer 
  for	an	unpleasant	or	onerous	project.		C.	A.	is	
  the	workaholic	of	the	Cut-Ups,	always	taking	
  on	more	work	than	she/he	can	truly	man-
  age.		He/she	thrives	on	the	workload,	though,	
  and	would	never	consider	complaining	or	
  cutting	back.		Radford	has	the	dress	sense	of	
  an	underpaid	assistant	professor	of	English	
  literature	—	whether	male	or	female	he/she	
  is	never	seen	without	a	corduroy	jacket	with	
  elbow	patches.
  .		Radford	sees	him/herself	as	a	9th	
  century	romantic	hero	—	soulful,	doomed,	and	
  alluring.		Damnably	charismatic,	he/she	goes	
  through	lovers	of	both	sexes	like	Kleenex.		
  At	base,	C.	A.	is	simultaneously	supremely	
  egotistical	and	profoundly	self-loathing.		
  Everything	must	revolve	around	him/her;	all	
  bad	things	that	happen	in	the	universe	seem	
  intended	only	to	increase	his/her	divine	tor-
  ment.		Radford	is	the	most	pessimistic	of	the	
  Cut-Ups,	and	is	addicted	to:	)	alcohol,	)	co-
  caine,	)	MDA	Cubed,	4)	blue	shock,	5)	heroin,	
  
  8	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  or	6)	zorro.		He/she	has	a	pretentiously	dated	
  fashion	sense,	dressing	like	either	Lord	Byron	
  or	Mary	Wollstonecraft	Shelley	depending	on	
  current	gender.
  .		C.	A.	is	the	very	essence	of	the	charm-
  ingly	dotty	egghead.		He/she	loves	to	go	on	at	
  length	in	dense	academic	language	about	the	
  deep semiotic significance of anything under 
  discussion,	from	the	Superbowl	to	dryer	lint.		
  Radford’s	thinking	seems	fuzzy	to	anyone	not	
  versed	in	the	latest	intellectual	theories,	but	
  he/she	sees	him/herself	as	straightforward	
  and	logical.		Ironically,	C.	A.’s	self-image	is	
  that	of	an	equilateral	triangle	—	straight-
  forward,	balanced,	never	changing.		He/she	
  doesn’t	understand	why	his	fellow	Cut-Ups	
  find this amusing.  He/she also doesn’t un-
  derstand	basic	technical	skills	of	everyday	
  living,	like	how	to	operate	a	pump	toothpaste	
  dispenser	or	program	a	VCR.		He/she	dresses	
  very	formally,	like	a	corporate	executive.
  4.		Radford	is	an	emotional	disaster	area	
  —	never	having	developed	basic	social	skills,	
  he/she	is	continually	frustrated	in	attempts	to	
  deal	with	others.		For	example,	he/she	is	a	ro-
  mantic	klutz,	either	alienating	the	subject	of	
  infatuation	by	coming	on	too	strong,	or	failing	
  to	get	their	attention.		He/she	gets	nervous	
  and tongue-tied in difficult situations — if he/
  she	means	to	impress	someone	he/she	can	be	
  counted	on	either	to	accidentally	offend	them	
  or	appear	ridiculous.		Those	he/she	wishes	to	
  insult	or	reprimand	come	away	from	an	en-
  counter	thinking	him/her	a	sweet	and	harm-
  less	pushover.		Only	the	other	Cut-Ups	can	
  see	past	Radford’s	topsy-turvy	behavior	to	the	
  lonely	and	defeated	soul	underneath;	there-
  fore,	he/she	tends	to	cling	to	them	in	abject	
  dependence.		This	Radford	tries	very	hard	to	
  be	fashionable,	but	always	fails	—	the	clothes	
  have	just	slipped	out	of	style,	the	colors	clash,	
  or a nice outfit will be topped with an absurd 
  accessory.
  5.		C.	A.	presents	him/herself	to	the	world	
  as	a	glittering	wit,	sparkling	with	witty	ver-
  bal	repartee	and	a	debonair	manners	—	he/
  she	comes	off	as	a	combination	of	Noel	Cow-
  ard,	David	Niven	and	James	Bond.		Fashion	
  sense	is	beyond	reproach	—	he/she	adopts	a	
  timeless,	classic	look	that	never	seems	trendy	
  or	careless.		On	the	inside,	however,	Rad-
  ford	is	as	cold	and	hard	as	a	diamond.		The	
  problems	of	others	bore	him/her	—	he/she	
  finds it impossible to dredge up sympathy for 
  anyone,	no	matter	how	great	their	suffering.		
  Radford’s	joined	the	Cut-Ups	because	he/she	
  sees	the	struggle	with	the	Control	Freaks	as	a	
  fascinating	game.		It’s	not	the	outcome	of	the	
  fight that matters, but the abstract fun of the 
  chase.
  6.		Radford	is	an	inexhaustible	well	of	hu-
  man emotion.  Overflowing with understand-
  ing	and	positive	thinking,	he/she	will	draw	a	
  companion	into	a	hug	and	a	pat	on	the	back	
  on	the	slimmest	of	pretenses.		“I	know	how	
  you	must	feel,”	is	C.	A.’s	favorite	phrase;	the	
  word	“feel”	is	always	drawn	out	and	empha-
  sized	as	if	it	is	the	most	important	one	in	the	
  language.		Radford	own	reactions	to	events	
  are	never	subdued	—	he/she	weeps	copiously	
  when saddened, and rolls around on the floor 
  in	uncontrollable	spasms	of	laughter	when	
  amused.		Radford	contends	against	the	Con-
  trol	Freaks	because	they’ve	closed	off	their	
  inner children; he/she believes that sufficient 
  good	will	can	heal	their	wicked	ways.		This	
  version	of	Radford	favors	big,	tactile	items	of	
  clothing	—	huge	ropy	sweaters	or	thick-weave	
  cotton	shirts.
  Appearance
  .		Iranian	man,		years	old,	6	cm,	68	
  kg.		Muscular,	square-jawed,	big	mustache.
  .		Nordic	woman,		years	old,	68	cm,	60	
  kg.		Long	brown	hair,	brown	eyes,	small-boned.
  .		Caribbean/Chinese	man,	4	years	old,	
  68	cm,	69	kg.		Sharp	chin,	salt-and-pepper	
  hair,	bad	teeth.
  4.		Serbian	woman,	9	years	old,	58	cm,	
  64	kg.		Straight	dark	hair,	striking	eyebrows,	
  large	hands.
  5.		Somali	man,	8	years	old,	85	cm,	88	
  kg.		Large	forehead,	small	features,	broad	
  shoulders.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  6.		Japanese	woman,	69	years	old,	50	
  cm,	50	kg.		Wide	lips,	snow-white	hair,	wears	
  dentures.
  Languages
  English,	Al	Amarjan	patois,	plus:
  .		Swedish,	Yoruba
  .		Yiddish
  .		Korean
  4.		Spanish
  5.		Punjabi
  6.		none
  Fringe Power
  4	dice	—
  .		Pipe of Dreams	—	Radford	smokes	a	
  pipe	(or,	in	persona	#5,	a	cigarette	in	a	holder)	
  which	gives	off	magical	smoke	of	random	
  properties.		It	may	allow	him	to	channel	an	
  ancient	Mayan	spirit,	to	unlock	a	door,	or	in-
  fect	a	Control	Freak	with	Chaos	Chancer.		C.	
  A.	is	unable	to	predict	or	control	the	effects	of	
  the	Pipe	smoke,	though	they’re	always	useful	
  if	his/her	roll	is	successful.		He/she	has	two	
  slots	in	his/her	power	pool.		(Permeated	with	
  aroma	of	rich	tobacco)
  .		Diatrion Magic	—	“Diatrion”	is	the	
  Ancient	Greek	term	for	the	mystical	number	
  nine.  Radford can magically influence any-
  thing	relating	to	this	number.		For	example,	
  if	nine	Net	thugs	charge	him/her,	he/she	can	
  knock	them	unconscious	or	teleport	them	to	
  Indiana.		He/she	can	divine	any	phone	num-
  ber	containing	a	nine;	if	a	restaurant	check	
  has	a	nine	in	its	total,	the	manager	feels	com-
  pelled	to	give	him/her	the	meal	on	the	house.		
  He/she	can	accomplish	any	magical	effect	
  which	can	be	summed	up	in	a	single	sentence	
  containing	a	nine-letter	word	as	subject	or	ob-
  ject.		I.e.,	“Reverse	that	scorecard,”	can	alter	
  the	course	of	a	sporting	event.		On	the	9th,	
  9th,	and	9th	of	each	month,	and	during	all	
  of September, Radford has five dice instead of 
  four	in	this	power.		He/she	has,	of	course,	nine	
  shots	in	his/her	magic	pool.		(Wears	a	nine-
  sided	polygon	pin)
  .		Clothing Disintegration	—	Radford	can	
  unweave	any	cloth	or	fabric,	whether	natural	
  or	synthetic,	by	gazing	at	it	for	-6	rounds.		
  Once	it	starts	to	go,	it	falls	apart	at	a	rate	of	
  one	square	meter	per	round.		Radford	must	
  gaze	directly	at	the	cloth	in	question;	looking	
  into	a	mirror	doesn’t	count.		He/she	therefore	
  tries	to	avoid	looking	directly	at	his/her	own	
  clothing,	though	sometimes	it’s	unavoid-
  able.		This	power	is	mostly	useful	for	gener-
  ating	diversions	and	distracting	opponents,	
  but	it	works	against	some	forms	of	armor,	
  too	—	duro-trenches	and	bulletproof	vests	
  are	vulnerable	to	it.		(Clothing	looks	faintly	
  worm-eaten)
  4.		Memographic Photography	—	After	
  0-60	minutes	of	meditation	in	a	darkroom	
  with	a	blank	sheet	of	developing	paper,	
  Radford	can	create	a	photographic	image	of	
  any	past	event	he	witnessed	directly.		This	is	
  invaluable	in,	among	other	things,	identifying	
  people	glimpsed	only	for	an	instant,	casing	
  locations,	and	copying	restricted	documents.		
  A	failed	roll	results	in	a	uselessly	blurred	
  picture,	a	botch	creates	a	clear	picture	of	an	
  inaccurate	memory.		(Intent	gaze)
  5.		Elflocks	—	Radford	can	telekinetically	
  manipulate	the	hair	of	any	being	within	his	
  line	of	sight.		This	is	useful	in	obscuring	the	
  vision	of	opponents	and	creating	dramatic	di-
  versions.		(Notices	and	comments	on	haircuts)
  6.		Good Old-Fashioned Magic Sword	
  —	Radford	wields	a	magic	longsword	which	
  emits	an	unearthly	violet	light,	wails	like	a	
  wounded	jungle	cat,	and	strikes	fear	into	the	
  hearts	of	friends	and	foes	alike.		(The	sword	
  does	none	of	these	when	sheathed.)	The	sword	
  strikes	for	X4	damage	and	can	harm	things	
  that	are	invulnerable	to	standard	weapons.		
  Anyone	except	Radford	who	can	see	or	hear	
  the	sword	suffers	a	penalty	die	on	all	actions	
  requiring	morale.		(Wears	scabbard)
  
  0	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Professional Trait
  	dice	—
  (Radford	took	this	profession	before	com-
  ing	down	with	Chaos	Chancer;	although	he	no	
  longer	practices	it,	it	might	come	in	handy	at	
  times.)
  .		Telecommunication Technician	—	Can	
  repair	and	jury-rig	phones,	TV	cable,	modems,	
  etc.		(Always	checks	phone	for	bugs	before	us-
  ing	it)
  .		Gas Station Attendant	—	Knows	basic	
  customer	service,	windshield-wiping,	cash	reg-
  ister	operation,	etc.		(Never	forgets	to	change	
  the	oil	on	a	vehicle)
  .		English Professor	—	Specializes	in	the	
  semiotic	analysis	of	9th	Century	Literature,	
  with	a	sub-interest	in	the	works	of	P.	G.	Wode-
  house.		(Has	worn	paperback	of	classic	novel	in	
  his	pocket)
  4.		Actuary	—	Compiles	statistics	for	in-
  surance	companies.		(Snorts	derisively	when	
  statistics	are	misused	in	the	media)
  5.		Jazz Pianist — Had a fledgling concert 
  career	before	the	Chancer	came.		(Hums	Thelo-
  nious	Monk	tunes)
  6.		Cosmetologist	—	Worked	in	the	research	
  lab of a major cosmetics firm developing new 
  products.		(Tells	people	if	their	make-up	is	
  smudged)
  Miscellaneous Trait
  	dice	—
  .		Shot Put	—	Can	throw	heavy	round	
  things	long	distances.		(Right	bicep	larger	than	
  left)
  .		Javelin	—	Can	throw	long	sharp	things	
  long	distances.		(Right	bicep	larger	than	left)
  .		Card Tricks	—	Knows	dozens	of	magic	
  tricks	using	playing	cards.		(Fast,	delicate	
  fingers)
  4.		Scuba Diving	—	Accomplished	under-
  water	explorer.		(Unfavorably	compares	en-
  emies	to	sharks,	moray	eels,	barracudas,	and	
  so	forth)
  5.		Speedboat Racing	—	Can	pilot	small	
  motorized	boats.		(Thumbs	nostalgically	
  through	Evinrude	catalogues)
  6.		Skydiving	—	Thinks	planes	were	meant	
  to	jump	out	of.		(Unconsciously	reaches	behind	
  him/herself	for	imaginary	ripcord	when	in	
  danger)
  Flaw
  .		Sexist	—	Openly	biased	against	which-
  ever	gender	he/she	currently	isn’t,	costing	a	
  penalty	die	in	social	situations	involving	politi-
  cally	progressive	types.		(Makes	chauvinistic	
  comments)
  .		Spiritually Troubled	—	Feels	guilty	be-
  cause	he/she	can’t	reconcile	his/her	new	chaotic	
  status	with	his/her	religious	upbringing.		Back-
  ground:	)	Roman	Catholic,	)	Presbyterian,	)	
  Mahayana	Buddhist,	4)	Sunni	Muslim,	5)	Wic-
  can,	6)	Scientologist.		(Frames	ethical	debates	
  in	religious	terms)
  .		Obnoxiously Patriotic	—	Can’t	resist	
  opportunities	to	put	down	other	countries	and	
  trumpet	the	praises	of	his	own,	which	often	
  costs	a	penalty	die	in	social	situations.		Trum-
  peted	nation:	)	USA,	)	Russia,	)	Germany,	
  4)	Myanmar,	5)	New	Zealand,	6)	Zimbabwe.		
  (Tie or scarf in pattern of national flag)
  4.		Stubborn	—	Extremely	reluctant	to	
  abandon	a	plan	once	it’s	set	in	motion.		(Cross-
  es	arms	frequently)
  5.		Missing Body Part	—	Has	)	glass	eye,	
  2) artificial leg, 3) hook instead of hand, 4) 
  steel	plate	in	skull,	5)	baboon	heart,	or	6)	voice	
  synthesizer	instead	of	larynx.		For	,	suffers	
  penalty	die	on	tasks	requiring	depth	percep-
  tion,	for	,	,	4,	and	5,	penalty	die	on	physical	
  actions,	on	6	penalty	die	on	social	interaction.		
  (Varies)
  6.		Suddenly Famous	—	Immediately	rec-
  ognized	by	everyone	as	a	Cut-Up	agent;	often	
  interrupted	and	unable	to	work	undercover.		
  (Stared	at	in	public)
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  Story Idea
  C.	A.	Radford	leaves	a	message	for	the	
  PCs	to	rendezvous	with	him	at	)	the	lobby	
  of	Cesar’s	Hotel,	)	D’Aubainne	University	
  Library	reading	room,	)	Bitter	&	Herb’s,	4)	
  Chrome	Dome,	5)	a	lounge	in	Swaps,	6)	the	
  Museum	of	Modern	Life.		Upon	arrival,	they	
  discover	through	)	Radford’s	abandoned	pipe	
  of	dreams,	)	a	talkative	oracle,	)	a	trans-
  mission	from	Tiffany	Trilobite,	4)	a	computer	
  printout	in	a	garbage	can,	5)	divination	us-
  ing	the	Cut-Up	method,	6)	an	unexplained	
  hunch	that	Radford	has	been	abducted	by	)	
  Le	Thuys,	)	Pharaohs,	)	Movers,	4)	Glorious	
  Lords,	5)	the	Democratic	Bureau	of	Investiga-
  tion,	6)	the	Kergillians,	who	have	a	plan	to	
  nullify	the	Chaos	Chancer	and	lock	him	into	
  one	form	—	a	previously	unknown	one.		The	
  group must find the new, unknowing Radford 
  and	reawaken	the	Chaos	within	him/her.		It	
  turns	out	Radford	has	been	transformed	into	
  1) a deaf-mute fighter at Sad Mary’s, 2) one 
  of	Molly’s	baboons,	)	a	duped,	know-nothing	
  instructor	at	the	First	School	of	True	Sensa-
  tion,	4)	Vanna	White,	5)	a	moody	driver	for	
  Giovanni’s	Cabs,	or	6)	a	Safe	’n’	Sound	security	
  guard	stationed	at	Ahmed’s	Kwik	Klinik.
  Claude-Lucien Rouvier
  Cut-Up Fashion Designer
  Rouvier	is	a	normal	human	initiated	into	
  the	ways	of	the	Cut-Ups	by	a	fellow	artist.		
  His	forte	is	aesthetic	trickery;	the	proceeds	
  from	his	lucrative	line	of	clothing	also	allow	
  him to perform a role as financier for other 
  Cut-Up	operations.		He	enjoys	the	spotlight	
  of	publicity	and	the	bohemian	life.		An	in-
  frequent	visitor	to	Al	Amarja,	he	prefers	to	
  spread	more	gentle	surrealism	through	the	
  less-prepared	waters	of	European	culture.		He	
  has	a	crush	on	the	Really	Quite	Angry	Kid;	
  when	he	shows	up	in	the	Edge,	it’s	because	
  she’s	roped	him	into	one	of	her	dangerous	
  plans.		So	far	Rouvier	has	been	lucky	to	avoid	
  trouble,	but	a	recent	operation	might	have	
  raised	the	ire	of	the	Pharaohs.		Someone	
  wanting	to	get	at	the	Cut-ups	would	be	wise	
  to	snatch	Rouvier.
  French	man,	age	6,	75	cm,	68	kg.		
  Handsome;	sports	outrageous	clothes	and	
  hairstyles,	which	change	frequently.
  Languages:	French,	English,	Italian
  Traits
  Fashion Design,	4	dice	—	Though	famous	
  for	his	crazy	runway	collections,	his	mass-
  market	clothing	is	stylish	and	sane.		(Crazily	
  attired.)
  Rich and Famous,		dice	—	Can	supply	
  money	and	contacts	to	the	cause.		(Immedi-
  ately	recognizable	from	gossip	magazines)
  Hoaxing,		dice	—	Experienced	media	
  trickster.		(His	business	card	is	printed	in	
  invisible	ink)
  Counter-Articulate	—	Speaks	charming	
  nonsense	in	long,	convoluted	paragraphs.		
  Suffers	penalty	die	when	trying	to	commu-
  nicate	anything	clearly.		(Enthusiastically	
  misuses	words	and	ideas)
  Story Idea
  Rouvier’s	latest	gimmick	—	Crustacean	
  Wear	—	suddenly	becomes	unavoidable	in	the	
  ritzy	sections	of	town.		This	line	of	clothing	
  involves	plastic	armor	plates	resembling	the	
  exoskeletons of lobsters, crabs and crayfish.  
  It’s	all	a	typical	absurd	Rouvier	joke,	which	the	
  sensation-hungry	have	taken	to	with	gusto.		
  But	the	coral	entities	who	lurk	in	the	lower	
  levels	of	D’Aubainne	International	Airport	
  don’t	get	the	joke	—	to	them,	people	wearing	
  Rouvier’s	clothes	look	like	their	ancient	ene-
  mies,	the	Krkrkrikrk.		The	coral	things	start	to	
  send	out	synthetic	agents	to	kill	any	Krkrkri-
  krk they find.  The PCs must figure out who’s 
  trying	to	wipe	out	the	Edge’s	fashion	plates,	
  and	how	to	stop	them.
  
  	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Tiffany Trilobite
  Beloved Children’s Cartoon Character
  A	burger	steps	into	an	electronics	store	to	
  avoid	a	sudden	rainstorm.		Flickering	across	
  the	store’s	dozens	of	TV	screens	is	an	animated	
  cartoon	featuring	a	character	he	recognizes	
  —	Tiffany	Trilobite,	the	Precambrian	Come-
  dian.		Lately	it	seems	the	image	of	this	cartoon	
  invertebrate	is	everywhere	—	she’s	packing	the	
  shelves	in	every	toy	section	in	America.		Her	
  image	merchandises	everything	from	drinking	
  boxes	to	bicycles.
  The	cartoon	now	playing	is	a	typical	one,	
  entitled	“Art	Surgery.”		Dr.		Tiffany	has	been	
  called	to	the	museum	to	reattach	the	Venus	de	
  Milo’s	arms.		But	Venus	doesn’t	like	the	arms	
  Tiffany	comes	up	with,	and	must	therefore	be	
  chased	through	the	galleries.		Abruptly,	after	
  whacking	the	Venus	de	Milo	with	a	chocolate	
  cream	pie,	Tiffany	turns	to	the	screen.		Instead	
  of	delivering	one	of	her	trademark	witticisms,	
  she	says:	“Be	careful,	burger.		Don’t	listen	too	
  closely	to	news	vendors;	avoid	the	hotel	called	
  E-Z	Sleep.		There	are	a	dozen	conspiracies	who	
  would	love	to	make	you	their	latest	pawn,	and	
  then	chuck	you	away	like	a	styrofoam	cup.		
  And	stop	blaming	yourself	for	your	mother’s	
  suicide.”		Then	she	turns	and	sprays	seltzer	
  water	at	Venus,	who	is	charging	her,	about	to	
  brain	her	with	Rodin’s	“Thinker.”
  It	is	unclear	exactly	how	Tiffany	attained	
  sentience;	if	she	knows,	she	isn’t	talking.		She	
  did	so	three	years	ago,	at	the	height	of	Tif-
  fany-mania	among	North	American	children.		
  Perhaps	their	unconditional	mass	love	for	
  her	triggered	a	power	spike	in	the	collective	
  unconscious.		Tiffany	experiences	the	world	
  through	the	other	side	of	the	television	set;	
  she	can	see	anyone	who	can	see	her.		As	both	
  Claus	Brinker	and	the	Really	Quite	Angry	Kid	
  are	big	cartoon	fans,	she	got	a	prolonged	look	
  into	the	inner	sanctum	of	the	Cut-Ups,	and	
  heard	about	the	nefarious	plans	of	the	Control	
  Freaks.		Like	any	true	toon,	her	allegiance	was	
  obvious	—	she	revealed	herself	to	them	and	
  was	soon	accepted	as	one	of	the	crowd.
  Tiff	—	as	her	name	is	sometimes	short-
  ened	—	is	rather	like	Bugs	Bunny	with	an	
  exoskeleton.		She’s	a	wisecracking	spirit	of	
  anarchy	who	just	wants	to	be	left	alone	to	
  have	fun	—	and	must	therefore	humiliate	a	
  gallery	of	cartoon	poops	who	get	in	her	way.		
  (One	new	wrinkle	in	the	cartoon	universe	is	
  Tiffany’s	spunky	feminism.)		She	deals	with	
  Control	Freaks	the	same	way	—	taunting	them	
  mercilessly	whenever	they	make	the	mistake	
  of	turning	her	show	on.		This	has	more	of	an	
  effect	than	one	might	imagine,	as	Control	Ad-
  dicts	are	notoriously	insecure	and	without	a	
  sense	of	humor.		Her	smart-alec	remarks	have	
  rattled	more	than	one	agent	enough	to	permit	
  his	later	defeat	at	the	hands	of	more	tangible	
  Cut-Up	operatives.
  US	cartoon	trilobite,	height	and	weight	
  not	applicable.		Big	cute	eyes,	bright	red	lips,	
  dozens	of	legs,	carapace.
  Languages:	So	far	Tiffany	has	been	
  translated	from	English	into	French,	Italian,	
  German,	and	Tagalog.		Tiffany	acquires	new	
  languages	with	each	new	market	her	show	is	
  placed	in.
  Traits
  Ubiquitous,	4	dice	—	Tiffany’s	show	is	
  broadcast	at	least	once	a	day	in	every	place	
  with	an	English-language	TV	market,	and	now	
  she’s	taking	over	the	world.		She	can	see,	hear	
  and	smell	anything	in	front	of	any	set	tuned	in	
  to	her	show.		This	gives	her	access	to	an	enor-
  mous	amount	of	raw	intelligence	—	her	fans	
  range	from	the	children	of	many	world	leaders	
  to	Al	Amarjan	lowlifes.		(Drops	the	names	of	
  famous	people	who	watch	her	show)
  Divided Concentration,		dice	—	Liter-
  ally	a	child	of	the	global	village,	Tiffany	can	
  process	all	of	this	information	easily.		She	can	
  even	break	from	the	script	to	talk	to	different	
  viewers	around	the	world	at	the	same	time.		
  For	example,	she	can	simultaneously	tease	
  a	neofascist	in	Lombardy,	comfort	an	abused	
  child	in	Detroit,	and	attend	a	Cut-Up	meeting	
  in	the	Edge.		(Sometimes	interrupts	herself	for	
  late-breaking	bulletins)
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  Fictional	—	Tiffany	is	unable	to	physically	
  manifest	herself	in	the	real	world.		She	exists	
  only	as	animation	cels,	videotape,	or	electronic	
  signals.		And	in	the	hearts	of	kids	everywhere.		
  This	means	she	can	serve	the	Cut-Ups	only	as	
  a	source	of	intelligence,	not	as	an	actual	opera-
  tive.		(Cartoon	character)
  Story Idea
  There’s	been	a	break-in	at	AATV	—	but	the	
  only thing stolen were the film cans contain-
  ing	the	station’s	catalogue	of	Tiffany	Trilobite	
  episodes.		The	AATV	management	speculates	
  that	the	theft	is	the	work	of	unscrupulous	col-
  lectors,	but	the	Cut-Ups	know	better.		Obvi-
  ously	somebody	is	planning	something	big,	and	
  wanted	to	make	sure	Tiffany	couldn’t	observe	
  them.		But	they’ve	tipped	their	hands	—	if	the	
  PCs can find the missing Tiffany reels, they’ll 
  also	discover	which	Control	Freak	group	is	
  plotting	what...
  Doctor What
  Cut-Up Oracle
  Doctor	What	has	limited	omniscience	but	
  knows	nothing	of	her	own	past.		Several	years	
  ago,	she	was	rescued	from	a	burning	ware-
  house	by	Pere	Brinker;	she	had	been	drugged,	
  and	her	hands	and	feet	were	bound	with	duct	
  tape.		When	she	came	to,	she	was	unable	to	
  recall	her	identity;	nor	could	she	offer	any	
  clues	as	to	who	would	want	to	kill	her.		During	
  the	interrogation,	it	became	clear	that	she	had	
  a	weird	fringe	power	—	after	a	few	seconds	of	
  contemplation,	she	could	give	the	correct	an-
  swer	to	any	question	beginning	with	the	word	
  “what.”		Questions	about	her	own	past	were	
  the	sole	exception	to	this.		(Though	another	
  limitation	was	discovered	later	—	see	below.)		
  A	few	days	after	the	rescue,	she	was	able	to	
  remember	that	she	had	been	a	dentist,	and	all	
  of her training in this area came flooding back 
  to	her.		The	rest	remains	a	blank	to	this	day.
  Unable	to	pursue	her	unknown	enemy,	
  Doctor	What	joined	on	with	the	Cut-Ups,	who	
  were	able	to	put	her	oracular	powers	to	good	
  use.  Gaining confidence, she began to go out 
  on the occasional field mission, learning to mix 
  it	up	in	the	rough-and-tumble	of	Al	Amarjan	
  life.		She’s	now	far	from	her	days	as	a	shy,	
  traumatized	victim	—	she	talks	tough	and	
  faces trouble with a confident swagger.  She’s 
  developed	a	sense	of	skepticism	that	makes	
  her	mistrust	new	people.		Even	with	her	close	
  associates	in	the	Cut-Ups	she	projects	a	façade	
  of	emotional	distance.
  She	had	a	brief	affair	with	Pere	Brinker	
  after	her	rescue.		Although	she	and	Pere	now	
  have	a	perfectly	friendly	professional	relation-
  ship,	their	involvement	aroused	Claus’	frater-
  nal	jealousy.		Claus	continues	to	taunt	and	be-
  little	her;	on	several	occasions	he’s	baited	her	
  into	attacking	him.		Each	time	another	Cut-Up	
  had	to	step	in	to	prevent	bloodshed.
  The	Doctor	changes	her	look	three	or	four	
  times	a	year.		Currently	she’s	adopted	the	
  punk	look	of	London	circa	977,	complete	
  with	a	close-cropped	mohawk	and	safety-pin	
  through	her	lower	lip.		Before	that	she	did	a	
  garage	mechanic	look,	with	grimy	overalls	and	
  backwards	baseball	cap.		For	her	next	look,	
  she’s	trying	to	decide	between	90s	Marlene	
  Dietrich	glamour,	or	the	fresh-scrubbed	look	of	
  the	All-American	girl	next	door.
  ??	woman,	50	cm,	60	kg,	blue	eyes,	sharp	
  chin,	high	cheekbones.
  Languages:	English,	Al	Amarjan	patois
  Hit Points:	4	(high	pain	threshold)
  Attacks:		dice,	X	damage	(switchblade)
  Defense:		dice
  Traits
  Limited Oracle,	4	dice	—	When	asked	a	
  question	beginning	with	the	word	“what”,	the	
  Doctor	goes	into	a	brief	trance	and	accesses	
  an	unknown	mystic	information	source.		The	
  answers	are	uncommonly	reliable,	though	they	
  are	not	always	precisely	detailed.
  GM	escape	clause:	If	she	is	asked	a	ques-
  tion	of	too	great	a	magnitude,	Doctor	What	
  suffers	a	psychic	overload	which	knocks	her	
  unconscious.		What	this	means	is	entirely	up	
  to	you;	probably	you’ll	want	to	disallow	any	
  
  4	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  questions	that	a)	are	of	overwhelming	cosmic	
  significance or b) wreck your current storyline.  
  The	amount	of	time	before	recovery	depends	
  on	the	nature	of	the	question.		“What	are	the	
  current	locations	of	all	Kergillian	agents	in	the	
  city?”	might	knock	her	out	for	hours.		“What	
  are	the	names	of	every	conspiracy	member	
  in	Al	Amarja?”	would	put	her	out	for	weeks.		
  “What	is	the	true	nature	of	magic?”	could	cost	
  her	months	of	her	life.		She	does	not	get	the	an-
  swer	to	questions	that	provoke	overloads	even	
  upon	awakening.		However,	she	has	learned	
  to	identify	questions	that	might	do	this,	and	
  block	their	transmission	to	the	mystery	source.		
  To do this, she rolls against two difficulty dice.  
  (Listens	attentively	in	conversation,	as	if	some-
  how	at	risk.)
  Streetfighting,		dice	—	Ferocity	and	an	all-
  out disregard for fair play define the Doctor’s 
  style.		(Shrieks	and	growls	in	combat)
  Dentistry,		dice	—	Although	she	doesn’t	
  practice	regularly,	her	head	is	still	full	of	data	
  about	cavities	and	gingivitis.		If	she	ever	gets	
  tired	of	the	anarchy	business,	she	can	always	
  go	back	to	the	day	job.		(Always	compliments	a	
  nice	straight	set	of	teeth)
  Amnesiac	—	Leaving	aside	the	emotional	
  cost	of	her	identity	crisis,	there’s	someone	out	
  there	who	wanted	her	dead,	and	she	doesn’t	
  know	who	it	is.		(Changes	the	subject	when	
  asked	about	her	past)
  Story Idea
  A	line	of	Doctor	What	dolls	begins	to	ap-
  pear	in	Al	Amarja	stores	—	one	type	for	each	
  of	her	recent	“looks.”	The	Doctor	takes	it	as	
  a	threat,	but	when	she	has	a	PC	ask	her,	
  “What’s	the	purpose	of	these	dolls?”	she	keels	
  over	and	can’t	be	revived.		It’s	up	to	the	PCs	to	
  figure out who’s behind it and what they’re up 
  to	at	the	same	time	they	protect	the	comatose	
  Doctor.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  “If	you	want	a	picture	of	the	future,	
  imagine	a	boot	stamping	on	a	human	
  face	—	forever.”
  —George Orwell
  Control	Freaks	hate	Cut-Ups	even	more	
  than	they	hate	one	another.		At	least	members	
  of	other	control-oriented	conspiracies	behave	
  with	a	certain	amount	of	seriousness.		A	rival	
  Mover	might	have	you	garroted,	but	won’t	em-
  barrass	you	while	doing	so.		Cut-Ups	just	don’t	
  obey	the	rules	of	decency.		Or	any	rules	for	
  that	matter.		This	makes	them	most	irritating.
  The	struggle	for	power	and	dominance	in	
  the	Edge	can	be	seen	as	an	enormous	multi-
  leveled	chess	game	with	dozens	of	players.		
  The	contestants	are	Pharaohs,	Kergillians,	
  government	cloaks...the	usual	suspects.		No	
  one	remembers	when	the	game	began;	the	
  current	players	entered	at	different	times,	and	
  every	so	often	some	leave	to	be	replaced	by	oth-
  ers.		With	multiple	strategies	in	play,	the	game	
  has	become	extraordinarily	slow	and	complex.		
  Now	and	again	there	is	an	illusion	of	move-
  ment	or	a	major	shakeup:	when,	for	example,	a	
  major	conspiracy	embarks	on	a	public	offensive	
  or	gets	one	of	its	networks	exposed.		But	after	
  these	shakeups,	the	remaining	Control	Freaks	
  jostle	into	the	emptied	spaces	on	the	board,	
  like new species quickly evolving to fill fresh 
  ecological	niches.		The	result	is	another	varia-
  tion	on	the	same	old	pattern.		The	game	of	
  power	in	Al	Amarja	is	always	a	couple	of	turns	
  from	utter	stalemate.
  This	is	why	sufferers	from	heavy-duty	pow-
  er	addictions	are	continually	involving	mere	
  burger	in	their	far-reaching	schemes.		With	
  all	other	resources	committed	to	maintaining	
  the	stalemate,	the	forces	of	Control	have	to	
  draw	in	new	dupes	and	operatives	in	hopes	of	
  breaking	the	log	jam.		These	burger	are	almost	
  always	incorporated	into	the	equilibrium	of	the	
  stalemate	as	the	neverending	game	continues	
  —	but	there’s	a	fresh	shipment	of	them	arriv-
  ing	at	D’Aubainne	International	Airport	every	
  day.
  Cut-Ups,	however,	are	frustrating	be-
  cause	they	play	the	game	with	no	intention	of	
  winning.		This	makes	their	upcoming	moves	
  impossible	to	predict.		Any	report	of	a	Cut-Up	
  move	against	your	forces	might	be	either	an	
  actual	threat,	or	just	some	bizarre	feint	de-
  signed	to	waste	valuable	resources	and	just	
  generally	psych	you	out	and	ruin	your	day.		
  Disinformation	is	one	thing	—	Chaos	agents	
  practice	dislogic,	making	their	plans	via	the	
  random	word	method	of	the	Cut-Up	machine.
  Because	their	agenda	makes	no	rational	
  sense,	watchers	assigned	to	keep	tabs	on	them	
  must	be	extra	vigilant.		Intelligence	on	them	
  must	be	considered	unreliable	no	matter	what	
  the	source;	even	if	the	Cut-Ups	understand	
  their	own	plans,	they’re	unlikely	to	stick	to	
  them.		Some	operatives,	like	C.	A.	Radford,	
  aren’t	even	the	same	people	from	operation	to	
  operation.
  Control	agents	assigned	to	Cut-Up	moni-
  toring	duties	usually	have	one	thing	in	com-
  mon	—	they’re	a	bitter,	disillusioned	lot.		The	
  Foes of the Cut-Ups
  
  6	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Chaos	Boy	beat	is	a	dreaded	dead	end	in	most	
  power	hierarchies	—	it’s	hard	and	frequently	
  humiliating.		Few	would-be	dictators	can	bear	
  assaults	on	their	dignity.		And	the	higher-
  ups	in	any	conspiracy	don’t	like	to	even	think	
  about	the	Cut-Ups	—	which	means	they	don’t	
  think	of	the	cloaks	assigned	to	watch	them	
  when	promotion	time	rolls	around.
  Some	embittered	Cut-Up	monitors	drop	
  out	of	their	organizations.		As	a	result	of	the	
  exposure	to	irrationality	they	suffer	on	the	
  job,	they	often	start	to	question	their	own	
  motivations.		Others	just	become	spiteful	
  towards	their	bosses	and	defect	to	the	Cut-
  Ups in order to inflict maximum damage on 
  their	former	comrades.		The	Cut-Ups	get	more	
  legitimate	defectors	than	any	other	conspir-
  acy.		They	also	have	the	least	trouble	with	
  renegades	—	the	Koanhead	(see	below)	being	
  the	only	notable	example	this	century.		Even	
  he	became	a	self-seeking	apostate	rather	than	
  a	member	of	another	gang.
  If	the	Cut-Ups	have	a	primary	strategy,	
  it’s	to	infect	the	thinking	of	their	opponents	
  with	unanswerable	questions.		The	agents	
  in	this	chapter	are	the	last	line	of	defense	
  between	unquestioned	authority	and	mental	
  anarchy.
  Giblets Granberry
  Net Weasel
  Giblets	Granberry	has	spent	his	criminal	
  career	on	the	fringes	of	the	Net.		At	the	out-
  set,	he	rose	to	a	level	above	the	common	street	
  soldier	—	and	promptly	started	to	kick	back	
  and	take	it	easy.		His	main	income	comes	
  from	drug	sales	on	the	D’Aubainne	University	
  campus,	and	a	lackadaisically-managed	stable	
  of inefficient part-time hookers.  Granberry’s 
  failings	as	a	career	criminal	actually	serve	
  to	protect	him	from	the	vicious	competition	
  endemic	to	the	Net.		No	hungrier	crook	is	
  going	to	try	to	edge	him	out	of	his	marginal	
  position,	because	he	doesn’t	pull	down	enough	
  dough	to	justify	the	risk	of	getting	rough.		
  Every	so	often	an	aggressive	Net	middle	
  manager	comes	along	who	wants	to	maximize	
  profits and cracks the whip over slackers like 
  Giblets.		But	these	types	usually	end	up	get-
  ting	promoted	before	they	can	clean	house,	or	
  stabbed	in	the	back	by	other	ambitious	rivals.		
  Giblets	has	long	ago	learned	that	if	he	doesn’t	
  stick	his	neck	out,	no	one	will	think	to	chop	it	
  off.
  However,	he	does	now	and	again	plan	a	
  grand	scam	—	if	he	can	make	a	big	score,	he	
  can	retire	to	a	life	of	glorious	slack.		These	
  schemes	usually	run	towards	complicated	
  frauds	or	smuggling	deals.		They	always	seem	
  to	fall	apart	for	him,	but	he’s	always	managed	
  to	avoid	the	consequences.
  This	is	because	they	usually	end	up	fall-
  ing	on	his	friend	Claus	Brinker.		Giblets	
  is	included	in	this	section	not	because	he	
  means	any	threat	to	the	Cut-Ups,	but	because	
  Claus	is	often	his	own	worst	enemy.		When	
  this	is	the	case,	he’s	usually	planning	some	
  extracurricular	business	venture	with	Gib-
  lets.		Claus	ended	up	getting	suspended	after	
  Giblets	convinced	him	to	hang	onto	all	the	
  weapons the Cut-Ups confiscated from their 
  enemies.		Giblets	planned	to	resell	them	to	
  various shady groups, and use the profits to 
  finance the smuggling of even heavier weap-
  ons	to	the	island.		When	the	Peace	Force	bust	
  came	down,	Claus	was	left	holding	the	bag.		
  Andalusia	was	able	to	break	him	out	of	jail,	
  and	later	wipe	his	record	from	the	computer	
  banks.		But	the	price	was	a	lengthy	retraining	
  period	at	Chaos	Boy	headquarters	for	Claus.
  The	other	Cut-Ups	have	repeatedly	
  warned	Giblets	to	stay	away	from	Claus,	
  but	he	still	dreams	of	using	his	pal	to	strike	
  it	rich.		For	his	part,	whenever	Claus	gets	
  peeved	with	his	comrades,	he	stalks	off	in	
  search	of	Giblets	for	a	game	of	gin	and	some	
  major	kvetching.		This	is	a	recipe	for	further	
  trouble	—	but	until	they	catch	Giblets	red-
  handed,	the	Cut-Ups	are	reluctant	to	squash	
  him	once	and	for	all.
  Al	Amarjan	man,	70	cm,	8	kg.		Polyes-
  ter	suits;	short,	dark,	uncombed	hair;	small	
  mustache.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  Languages:	Al	Amarjan	patois,	English
  Attack:		dice,	X	damage	(knife)
  Defense:		dice
  Hit Points:	
  Traits
  Petty Crime,	4	dice	—	Giblets	knows	the	
  easiest,	safest	ways	to	make	money	illegally,	
  and	has	the	contacts	to	keep	out	of	trouble.		
  (Looks	over	his	shoulder	for	cops)
  Dirty Fighting,		dice	—	Specializes	in	
  kicks	to	the	groin,	punches	to	the	kidneys,	and	
  knives	in	the	back.		Giblets	always	tries	to	
  talk his way out of physical conflict.  This often 
  leaves	opponents	unprepared	for	the	surpris-
  ing	degree	of	ferocity	he	displays	when	cor-
  nered.		(Festooned	with	minor	scars)
  Sleazy	—	No	matter	how	hard	he	tries	
  to	seem	like	a	smooth	operator,	Giblets	just	
  gives	off	an	aura	of	indelible	shadiness.		He’s	
  incapable	of	making	a	favorable	impression	on	
  anyone	higher	than	himself	on	the	economic	
  food	chain.		(Drips	sweat	incessantly)
  Story Idea
  In	conversation	on	another	topic,	Claus	
  Brinker	casually	mentions	the	fact	that	he	has	
  a	“business	opportunity”	going	that	should	net	
  him	a	fair	chunk	of	loot	to	donate	to	the	cause.		
  If	the	PCs	are	suspicious	enough	to	check	this	
  out — and they ought to be — they’ll find out 
  that	Claus	is	investing	in	one	of	Giblets’	hare-
  brained	schemes.		Granberry	has	arranged	
  to “fix” the betting on patient survival at the 
  D’Aubainne	Hospital	and	Trauma	Center.		
  He’s	found	a	nurse	who’s	cross-addicted	to	
  virtually	every	illegal	substance	known	to	
  man,	and	is	keeping	him	in	drugs	in	exchange	
  for	the	occasional	undetectable	kill	of	a	patient	
  who	would	otherwise	recover.		A	quiet	disman-
  tling	of	this	highly	unethical	project	is	clearly	
  in	order.
  The Koanhead
  Renegade Cut-Up
  Cut-Ups	have	almost	no	problem	with	
  defections	—	once	a	mind	is	opened	to	a	true	
  understanding	of	the	gambling	birdhouse	ve-
  locity,	it’s	hard	to	shrink	one’s	worldview	back	
  to	the	petty	greed	of	Control	Addiction.		This	
  means	that	when	one	of	their	number	goes	
  bad,	they	take	it	especially	hard.		No	mercy	is	
  shown	the	Chaos	Boy	who	succumbs	to	a	lust	
  for	power.
  The	Koanhead	was	an	indispensable	Cut-
  Up	operative	during	the	mid-seventies.		But	
  something	went	wrong	in	his	head	at	about	
  the	time	that	New	Wave	bands	appeared,	
  signaling	the	commercialization	and	dilution	
  of	the	punk	movement.		He	started	to	with-
  hold	information	from	the	rest	of	the	group,	
  and began to stockpile confiscated weapons of 
  mass	destruction	in	a	secret	storage	locker.		It	
  was	Claus	Brinker	—	who	had	his	own	temp-
  tations along these lines — who first began 
  to	suspect	that	Koanhead	was	going	bad.		
  Shadowing	Koanhead,	Claus	discovered	that	
  he	was	assembling	a	gang	of	cast-offs	from	
  various	conspiracies	they’d	busted.		Koanhead	
  was	planning	to	seize	the	Cut-Up	machine	
  and	use	it	to	conquer	reality.		Because	the	
  other	Cut-Ups	considered	Claus	an	unreliable	
  source,	they	delayed	in	acting	until	it	was	
  almost	too	late.		The	Koanhead	did	get	control	
  of	The	Cut-Up	Machine	for	a	brief	time	and	
  almost	succeeded	in	his	plans	to	rule	our	di-
  mension.		Though	he	was	eventually	defeated	
  and	exiled	to	another	dimension,	the	cost	
  of victory was high.  The unofficial Cut-Up 
  leader	of	the	time,	Horrors	Count,	was	erased	
  from	existence,	and	The	Machine	emitted	a	
  paradigm	shift	that	swept	Ronald	Reagan	into	
  the	White	House.
  Since	that	time,	Koanhead	has	twice	
  broken	free	from	cross-dimensional	imprison-
  ment	to	bedevil	Al	Amarja	and	its	Chaos	Boy	
  guardians.		In	986,	he	used	the	worldwide	
  anxiety	generated	by	the	Chernobyl	disaster	
  to	overrun	the	Edge	with	a	legion	of	radioac-
  tive	street	preachers.		Four	years	later,	the	
  
  8	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  on.		He	prides	himself	on	never	repeating	a	
  variation.
  Appearance	varies.
  Languages:	English,	German,	Japanese,	
  Walrus
  Attack:		dice,	may	or	may	not	be	armed
  Defense:	4	dice,	Koan	power
  Paradox Pool:	0	shots
  Traits
  Koan Power,	4	dice	—	Makes	paradoxical	
  statements	which	alter	reality	in	an	unexpect-
  ed	way.		For	example,	if	someone	lunges	at	
  him	with	a	knife,	he’ll	say	that	“The	knife	is	
  an	expression	of	love,	for	without	separation,	
  there	can	be	no	unity.”		The	knife	melts	away	
  into	massage	oil,	or	the	assailant	decides	to	go	
  off	to	the	airport	to	hand	out	religious	litera-
  ture.
  When	pursued	by	enemies,	he’ll	stop	at	a	
  locked	door	and	say,	“The	closed	door	is	better	
  than	the	open,	for	behind	the	closed	can	be	
  anything.”	He’ll	then	walk	through	the	door	to	
  a	random	destination	and	lock	it	behind	him	
  so	he	can’t	be	followed.
  Whenever	his	die	roll	is	successful,	the	
  reality	alteration	gives	the	Koanhead	essen-
  tially	what	he	wants.		But	he	has	no	control	
  over	the	nature	of	the	alteration.		If	he’s	
  plunging	off	a	roof,	a	koan	breaks	his	fall,	
  though	he	won’t	be	able	to	choose	whether	
  his	rescue	comes	in	the	form	of	an	updraft	of	
  air,	a	passing	feather	truck,	or	the	talons	of	a	
  giant	eagle.
  A	side-effect	of	his	role	as	paradox	incar-
  nate	is	that	his	looks	are	unstable.		He	can’t	
  control	this,	either;	in	fact,	unless	someone	
  looking	at	him	tells	him	what	she	sees,	he	
  doesn’t	even	know	what	she	thinks	he	looks	
  like.		(Appearance	is	always	the	opposite	of	
  the	viewer’s	expectations)
  Transdimensional Geography,		dice	
  —	Years	of	experience	of	scooting	through	
  doors	to	destinations	unknown	have	given	
  Koanhead	an	extensive,	if	spotty,	knowledge	
  of	nearby	planes	of	reality.		Upon	arrival	
  at	a	random	destination,	he	can	now	make	
  clouds	parted	and	rained	walrus.		Both	times	
  the	Cut-Ups	narrowly	managed	to	contain	Ko-
  anhead;	they	were	also	forced	to	blot	out	most	
  folks’	memories	of	his	actions	so	they	wouldn’t	
  lead	to	widespread	mental	breakdowns.		(Lu-
  nacy	must	be	parceled	out	in	small	doses,	or	it	
  becomes	dangerous.)		After	the	990	incident,	
  C.	A.	Radford’s	Pipe	of	Dreams	locked	Koan-
  head	into	a	sur-dimension,	a	destination	that	
  wouldn’t	occur	to	even	a	seasoned	possibility	
  surfer.		(Sur-dimensions	are	the	quantum	con-
  nective	tissue	that	stitches	incompatible	reali-
  ties	together.)	Although	they	hope	this	is	the	
  last	of	him,	they	aren’t	taking	any	chances.		
  Pere	Brinker	has	decided	to	kill	him	the	next	
  time	he	shows	up.
  The	Koanhead	was	originally	a	human	
  called	Jurgen	Yamakazi,	the	child	of	a	Japa-
  nese	avant-garde	playwright	and	a	Swiss	
  psychologist.		After	spending	a	drug-addled	
  adolescence	in	the	Swinging	London	of	the	
  sixties,	he	turned	to	Buddhism,	where	he	
  discovered	the	teaching	tool	called	the	“koan.”		
  A	koan	is	an	apparently	nonsensical	state-
  ment	which,	when	meditated	upon,	reveals	a	
  mystical	truth.		Jurgen’s	earlier	heavy	experi-
  mentation	with	psychedelics	had,	however,	
  substantially	altered	his	neural	pathways,	
  and	the	contemplation	of	his	master’s	koans	
  had	an	unexpected	effect	on	him.		He	mutated	
  into	a	walking,	talking	incarnation	of	cosmic	
  paradox.		He	seemed	a	natural	Chaos	Boy	
  operative,	so	Horrors	Count	quickly	sought	
  him	out	and	recruited	him.		What	Horrors	
  didn’t	realize	is	that	paradox	cuts	both	ways	
  —	because	Koanhead	was	the	best	possible	
  Cut-Up	operative,	he	also	had	to	be	the	worst	
  possible.
  The	Koanhead	talks	like	a	silver-tongued	
  hipster	con	man,	always	assuring	one	of	his	
  trustworthiness	in	a	manner	that	leads	to	
  exactly	the	opposite	conclusion.		He	loves	to	
  play with names, always firing newly-created 
  nicknames	at	the	listener.		If	he’s	talking	to	
  someone	named	Rick,	he’ll	call	him	“Rickster”,	
  “Rickula”,	“Rickdude”,	“Rickosaurus”,	“Rick-
  mania”,	“Tricky	Ricky”,	“Ricky	Ricardo	and	
  Lucy”,	“Thick	as	a	Rick”,	and	on	and	on	and	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  it	is.		After	all,	there	really	are	no	such	things	
  as	talking	dogs	or	the	ability	to	cause	cerebral	
  hemorrhages	simply	by	saying	cruel	things.		
  The worldwide flap of reports about this Tri-
  lobite	cartoon	character	talking	to	people	is	
  just	another	example	of	mass	hysteria.		All	of	
  the	rumors	surrounding	the	Cut-Ups	are	just	
  that	—	foolish	rumors	invented	by	drug-addled	
  mystics	or	religious	charlatans.		The	Cut-Ups	
  probably	started	as	an	urban	myth,	and	now	
  frauds	like	Doctor	What	and	Claude-Lucien	
  Rouvier	have	taken	on	their	roles.		It’ll	take	
  a dedicated, dogged man to fight this newest 
  flash-flood of nonsense to come roaring through 
  the	always-widening	cistern	of	human	gull-
  ibility.		A	man	with	an	ever-critical	gaze,	an	
  inexhaustible	supply	of	fortitude,	and	a	com-
  plete	grasp	of	the	simple	truth.		A	man	like	
  Evan	MacDonald.
  MacDonald	was	for	many	years	the	head	of	
  the	Edinburgh	chapter	of	the	Society	to	Crush	
  Outrageous	Obfuscations	of	the	Paranormal.		
  SCOOP	is	known	worldwide	for	its	efforts	to	
  debunk	the	claims	of	channelers,	faith	healers,	
  UFO	abductees,	Bigfoot	researchers,	and	para-
  psychologists.		Its	journal,	the	SCOOPtical 
  Enquirer,	can	be	found	in	the	periodical	sec-
  tions	of	most	respectable	libraries,	including	
  that	of	D’Aubainne	University.		They	do	much	
  good	work,	especially	in	exposing	fraudulent	
  prophets	and	psychic	surgeons.
  Because	of	this	good	work,	the	Neutral-
  izers	sometimes	approach	and	recruit	SCOOP	
  investigators,	hoping	to	bring	them	aboard	
  their	own	organization.		This	must	be	done	
  carefully,	because	it	involves	shattering	the	
  central	paradigm	of	the	SCOOPers	—	telling	
  them	that,	obscured	by	layers	of	fakery	and	
  disinformation,	there	really	are supernatu-
  ral	beings	out	there,	ones	that	seek	to	harm	
  humanity	and	must	therefore	be	neutralized.		
  In	a	way,	the	goals	of	the	two	organizations	are	
  similar	—	both	seek	to	expunge	belief	in	the	
  supernatural	from	the	popular	consciousness.		
  One	does	it	to	protect	society	from	false	belief,	
  the	other	from	the	truth.
  The	UK	wing	of	the	Neutralizers	ap-
  proached	MacDonald	after	he	began	to	
  a	pretty	good	guess	as	to	his	location.		He	
  also	knows	the	customs	and	hazards	of	most	
  places	well	enough	to	avoid	trouble,	on	the	
  off	chance	that	he	wishes	to.		(Shows	off	his	
  knowledge	of	exotic	realities)
  Recruit Henchbeings,		dice	—	Koanhead	
  recognizes	his	own	overweening	greed	well	
  enough	to	recognize	and	exploit	it	in	others.		
  Anywhere he can find sentient beings, he can 
  find weak-minded souls willing to do his bid-
  ding in exchange for flimsy promises of petty 
  power.		(Comes	on	like	a	snake	oil	salesman)
  Power Mad	—	The	Koanhead’s	lust	for	
  universal	domination	is	the	very	essence	of	
  his	being;	in	the	end,	his	grand	schemes	fail	
  because	he	can	never	resist	overreaching	him-
  self in the quest for one last fistful of power.  
  (Gloats,	giggles	maniacally	and	delivers	long	
  speeches	when	he	should	be	noticing	his	op-
  ponent	wriggling	free,	sneaking	up	behind	
  him,	etc.)
  Story Idea
  Unable	to	free	himself	from	his	extra-di-
  mensional	prison,	the	Koanhead	manages	to	
  use	his	paradox	power	to	free	history’s	most	
  notorious	assassins	from	their	respective	
  hells	and	plunk	them	down	in	Al	Amarja,	
  each	one	imprinted	with	the	mental	image	
  of	a	Cut-Up	he	must	kill.		Hassan	El	Sabah,	
  John	Wilkes	Booth,	Kreelton	of	Desma,	and	
  several popular fictional villains set about 
  completing	their	missions.		The	weak	link	in	
  the	chain	is	Lee	Harvey	Oswald,	who	would	
  prefer	to	spend	his	time	proving	that	he	was	
  framed	for	the	JFK	killing	by	Cell	Z	Movers.		
  Oswald	approaches	the	Cut-Ups	to	warn	them	
  of	Koanhead’s	plan	and	describe	the	assassin	
  assigned	to	each	PC.
  Evan MacDonald
  Renegade Neutralizer
  Evan	MacDonald	hates	the	Cut-Ups	be-
  cause	they	refuse	to	conform	to	his	conception	
  of	rational	reality.		He	has	vowed	to	destroy	
  their	organization	by	exposing	it	as	the	fraud	
  
  0	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  achieve	media	prominence	deriding	the	crop	
  circle	phenomenon.		They	offered	him	what	
  seemed	to	be	an	academic	position	—	but	was	
  really	a	Neutralizer	job.		Then	they	carefully	
  began	to	prepare	him	for	the	awful	truth.
  No	amount	of	preparation	would	have	
  helped.		MacDonald	is	so	certain	of	his	beliefs	
  that	he	rejected	every	single	piece	of	evidence	
  presented	to	him.		Even	when	a	Neutralizer	
  mage	summoned	a	trapped	demon	in	front	of	
  MacDonald’s	eyes,	the	man	was	incapable	of	
  accepting	the	evidence.		(It	didn’t	help	that,	
  for	some	reason	inexplicable	to	the	mage,	the	
  summoned	demon	was	oddly	shriveled	and	
  immobile,	looking	rather	like	a	half-melted	
  G. I. Joe action figure.)  MacDonald angrily 
  accused	his	new	employers	of	having	gone	soft	
  in	the	head,	and	stalked	out	of	headquarters.		
  He took the file on Cut-Ups — which for some 
  reason	bothered	him	more	than	anything	else	
  he	had	read	—	with	him.
  Although	they’re	not	exactly	allies,	the	
  Neutralizers	and	Cut-Ups	rarely	get	in	one	
  another’s	way.		The	Cut-Ups	don’t,	after	all,	
  want	to	convert	the	entire	population	of	the	
  planet	to	their	ways.		They	just	want	to	keep	
  tipping	the	balance	so	that	Control	Freaks	
  don’t	end	up	in	charge.		When	Cut-Ups	do	
  use	fringe	powers	in	public,	the	results	tend	
  to	be	so	strange	that	even	devout	believers	in	
  crystals	and	rune-throwing	don’t	believe	their	
  eyes.		On	the	other	hand,	the	Cut-Ups	usually	
  appreciate	the	work	done	by	Neutralizers,	
  since	the	evil	sorcerers	and	mutant	vampires	
  they	tend	to	go	up	against	are	also	usually	
  big-time	Control	Freaks.
  The	Neutralizers’	folder	on	Cut-Ups	was	
  intended	solely	for	informational	purposes.		
  But	MacDonald	decided	that	they	were	the	
  worst	possible	example	of	creeping	lunacy,	
  and	had	to	be	stopped.		He	hopped	the	next	
  plane	to	Al	Amarja,	where	he	has	been	a	low-
  level	thorn	in	the	Cut-Ups’	side	ever	since.		
  At	one	point,	owing	a	favor	to	Mrs.	Brinker,	
  Islam	Petri	took	MacDonald	aside	and	tried	
  to	convince	him	to	lay	off.		Since	MacDonald	
  thinks	the	Neutralizers	are	just	as	danger-
  ously	irrational	as	the	Cut-Ups,	he	had	little	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  success.		At	the	moment	Petri	is	trying	to	
  convince	Neutralizer	HQ	that	they	should	do	
  something	about	MacDonald;	since	his	anti-
  magical	powers	end	up	inadvertently	elimi-
  nating	supernatural	menaces	now	and	then,	
  his	superiors	have	been	dragging	their	feet	in	
  coming	to	a	decision	on	this.
  Scottish	man,	6	years	old,	95	cm,	90	kg.		
  Balding,	white	hair,	large	dark-framed	glass-
  es,	tweed	jackets	and	brown	corduroy	slacks.
  Languages:	English
  Traits
  Disbelief,	4	dice	—	Ironically,	MacDonald	
  himself	has	unknowingly	developed	a	men-
  tal	fringe	ability	which	is	useful	against	both	
  magical	and	psychic	powers.		His	certitude	in	
  the	unreality	of	such	powers	is	so	intense	that	
  he emits a psychic damping field that cancels 
  out	any	uncanny	energies	in	his	vicinity.		This	
  is	why	psychics	fail	to	perform	in	his	presence:	
  even the real ones find their spoon-bending or 
  channeling	skills	impaired	when	subject	to	his	
  field of disbelief.
  If	they	fall	sway	to	MacDonald’s	aura	
  of	certainty	(i.e.	his	die	rolls	exceed	theirs)	
  the Cut-Ups find their abilities severely pro-
  scribed.		Andalusia	is	unable	to	speak	in	his	
  presence.  Pere Brinker finds his emotional 
  defenses	too	strong	to	verbally	penetrate.		The	
  Really	Quite	Angry	Kid’s	devices	go	on	the	fritz	
  if	he	examines	them.		Although	MacDonald	
  can’t	alter	the	effect	of	Mircea	?’s	sculptures	on	
  others,	they	don’t	move	him	to	question	any-
  thing.
  For	the	damping	effect	to	work	fully,	
  MacDonald	must	be	consciously	aware	of	the	
  attempted	use	of	a	talent	he	doesn’t	believe	
  possible.		For	example,	if	a	hoodoo	woman	
  from	the	Mississippi	Delta	told	him	she	was	
  putting	a	curse	on	him,	the	curse	would	have	
  no effect; his loud scoffing would activate his 
  anti-magic field.  But if she just went up to her 
  room	and	started	poking	a	hex	doll	without	
  his	knowledge,	he’d	feel	the	effect	of	the	curse.		
  Even	in	cases	such	as	this	his	disbelief	can	be	
  somewhat useful.  MacDonald always finds a 
  rational	cause	for	any	situation.		Here,	instead	
  of figuring he’s being magically assaulted, he’d 
  assume	that	he’s	having	an	attack	of	arthritis.		
  Thinking	makes	it	so	—	the	hex	turns	into	
  a mundane flare-up of joint pain.  (Favorite 
  word:	“Nonsense!”)
  Stage Magic,		dice	—	Before	reaching	
  prominence	as	a	media	debunker,	MacDonald	
  was	a	stage	illusionist,	specializing	in	small-
  scale	sleight-of-hand:	cards,	metal	rings,	
  colored	handkerchiefs,	ball	and	cup	tricks,	and	
  so	on.		He	never	hit	the	big	time,	because	his	
  dour presentations lacked the flair and wonder 
  audiences like with their magic.  He finds his 
  skills	come	in	handy	in	spotting	fake	psychics	
  who	use	misdirection	rather	than	mind	power.		
  (Long graceful fingers)
  Investigation,		dice	—	MacDonald	is	
  especially good at library research, finding 
  scientific data to counter the pseudoscience of 
  paranormal	enthusiasts,	or	using	newspapers	
  on microfilm to expose the unsavory pasts of 
  supposed	mediums	and	channels.		Personal	in-
  terviews	don’t	usually	go	so	well	for	him	—	see	
  below.		(Smells	like	old	books)
  Rude,	penalty	die	—	MacDonald’s	social	
  skills	leave	a	little	to	be	desired.		He	believes	
  that	absolute	certitude	is	the	only	necessary	
  virtue,	and	is	always	bewildered	when	people	
  react	poorly	to	his	contemptuous	dismissal	of	
  views	that	don’t	match	his	own.		(Refuses	to	
  shake	hands	with	intellectual	opponents)
  Story Idea
  The	PCs	awaken	one	day	to	discover	that	
  a	coup	has	toppled	the	Al	Amarjan	govern-
  ment.		Ritual	sorcerers,	probably	Hermetic	
  Movers,	have	imprisoned	the	D’Aubainnes	
  and	turned	the	buildings	of	the	city	into	tow-
  ers	of	writhing	insect	exoskeleton.		They’ve	
  brought	magic	back	to	the	planet	in	a	big	
  way,	and	plan	to	use	the	island	as	a	staging	
  ground	for	world	domination.		Their	juju	is	
  mighty	enough	to	shut	down	even	the	Cut-Up	
  Machine,	turning	it	into	an	only	slightly	use-
  ful	crystal	ball.		All	seems	lost,	unless	a	PC	
  gets	the	bright	idea	of	using	one	adversary	to	
  cancel	out	another.		If	they	can	get	Evan	Mac-
  
  	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Donald	into	the	Hermetics’	sanctum	sancto-
  rum,	his	disbelief	power	will	shut	down	their	
  mystical	power	battery	and	return	the	situ-
  ation	to	normal.		The	problem	is	convincing	
  him	to	cooperate:	he	doesn’t	see	that	anything	
  unusual	has	happened.
  Mary Olekobaai
  Mover Cloak
  Mary	Olekobaai	worked	hard	for	her	
  scholarship	at	D’Aubainne	University.		Born	
  into	a	community	of	nomadic	herdsmen,	she	
  overcame	the	expectations	of	her	own	family	
  to	educate	herself	and	join	what	she	considers	
  to	be	the	modern	world.		Immersing	herself	
  in	campus	life,	Mary’s	brilliance	and	obvious	
  ambition	caught	the	attention	of	university	
  administrator	Erica	Offringa,	a	mid-level	
  Vornite	Mover.		Erica	sponsored	Mary	for	ini-
  tiation;	Mary	must	have	impressed	somebody	
  important	in	the	cell,	because	she	was	quickly	
  assigned	to	a	“vital	post.”
  Mary	continues	to	maintain	a	cover	at	
  the	university	—	she’s	now	a	teaching	assis-
  tant	with	the	African	Studies	Department.		
  (More	experienced	grads	wonder	how	she	got	
  bumped	into	line	for	this	coveted	spot.)	Her	
  real	job,	however,	is	to	take	over	and	main-
  tain	an	existing,	if	rather	frayed	intelligence	
  network.
  This	network	has	been	abandoned	by	a	
  gentleman	named	Qiu	Jinchu,	previously	in	
  charge	of	keeping	tabs	on	the	Cut-Ups	for	the	
  Movers.		Jinchu	hanged	himself	after	becom-
  ing	convinced	that	his	shoes	were	talking	to	
  him.		(The	Movers	have	told	Mary	only	that	
  her	predecessor	has	been	“reassigned.”)	She	
  has	the	formidable	task	of	piecing	together	
  Jinchu’s	network	of	contacts,	winning	their	
  confidence, and getting the intelligence flow-
  ing	again.
  She has been given a full briefing on the 
  Al	Amarjan	Cut-Ups,	though	all	the	informa-
  tion is at least two months stale.  She finds 
  them	intriguing	and	looks	forward	to	learning	
  more.		Mary	is	sure	she	can	turn	them	into	
  obedient	Vornite	initiates	in	time.		In	this,	
  she’s	a	typical	newbie	on	the	Cut-Up	beat.
  Mounia	Qutbuddin	(see	below)	was	aware	
  of	Jinchu’s	network;	some	of	her	informants	
  doubled	for	him	as	well.		She’s	instructed	
  them	to	be	prepared	for	the	approach	of	his	
  replacement,	and	to	let	her	know	when	it	
  comes.		She	sees	Mary	as	herself	forty	years	
  ago;	Mounia	hopes	to	ruin	her	immediately	
  and	spare	her	a	few	decades	of	disillusion-
  ment.		Though	freshly	elevated	from	burger-
  dom,	Mary	may	not	prove	so	easy	to	crush.
  Masai	woman,	4	years	old,	80	cm,	85	
  kg.		Striking	mane	of	coppery	hair,	graceful,	
  wears suede bomber jacket over long, flowing 
  dresses.
  Languages:	Masai,	English
  Traits
  Manipulation,	4	dice	—	Knows	how	to	
  not	only	get	what	she	wants	from	people,	but	
  convince	them	that	it	was	her	idea	all	along.		
  People	want	to	please	her.		Mary’s	striking	
  appearance	—	tall,	exotic,	leonine	—	is	a	
  big	part	of	her	strategy.		Heterosexual	men	
  and	gay	women	want	to	worship	her,	though	
  they	can’t	imagine	summoning	up	the	nerve	
  to	touch	her	perfect	form.		Women	(and	gay	
  men)	want	to	become	her,	to	emulate	her	mas-
  tery	of	men.		Asexuals	are	struck	by	her	as	an	
  abstraction	of	beauty	and	control.		(Goddess-
  like)
  Upward Mobility,		dice	—	Instinctively	
  detects	the	right	people	to	impress,	and	
  identifies the smoothest path to advance-
  ment.		For	example,	she’s	realized	that	Erica	
  Offringa	has	gone	as	far	as	she’s	going	to	in	
  the	Mover	hierarchy,	and	that	the	Cut-Up	
  beat	is	a	potential	career	cul-de-sac.		Cur-
  rent	goals	are	twofold:	she	needs	to	identify	
  her	unknown	patron	above	Erica	and	suck	
  up	to	whoever	it	is	in	a	major	way.		And	she	
  requires	a	quick,	dramatic	success	in	her	new	
  post	that	will	get	her	promoted	out	of	it.		To	a	
  nose like Mary’s, power and influence has an 
  aroma	greater	than	any	cologne.		She	can	spot	
  powerful	people	—	from	her	own	conspiracy	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  
  or	otherwise	—	even	when	they’re	trying	to	
  maintain a low profile.  (Hungry gaze)
  Aura of Distance,		dice	—	This	is	not	a	
  fringe	power,	but	simply	the	image	she	proj-
  ects	of	a	lovely,	unapproachable	creature.		
  Creeps	and	lowlifes	feel	inhibited	looking	
  upon	her,	and	don’t	dare	catcall	or	make	
  passes.		Shopkeepers	are	afraid	to	assault	her	
  dignity	by	asking	her	to	put	out	a	cigarette	
  or	get	something	herself.		Even	enemy	opera-
  tives	don’t	think	to	lay	a	glove	on	her:	they’ll	
  accept	her	polite	surrender	and	just	keep	
  her	prisoner,	never	considering	anything	so	
  gauche	as	gratuitous	torture.		For	her	part,	
  she	keeps	her	noncombatant	status	by	allow-
  ing	herself	to	be	held	safely	captive	until	she	
  can	convince	someone	to	let	her	out.		(Digni-
  fied carriage)
  Overconfident	—	Mary	is	just	as	enrap-
  tured	by	herself	as	are	the	people	who	meet	
  her.		Her	career	path	has	been	meteoric	to	
  date,	but	the	Cut-Ups	always	interrupt	a	
  straight	line...		(Minimizes	the	capabilities	of	
  others)
  Story Idea
  In	separate	incidents,	known	Cut-Up	
  associates	like	Doc	Cross	and	Claude-Lucien	
  Rouvier	are	roughed	up	in	public	by	seem-
  ing	normies.		The	PCs	are	followed	by	others.		
  When	apprehended,	these	mild-mannered	
  accountants	and	data-entry	clerks	steadfastly	
  refuse	to	explain	the	reasons	behind	their	ac-
  tions.		It’s	up	to	the	PCs	to	come	up	with	the	
  common	denominator	between	them.
  It	turns	out	that	they’re	all	patrons	of	
  Confessions,	a	new	nightclub	in	the	Sunken	
  Barrio	owned	and	operated	by	Mary	Oleko-
  baai.  The joint is a bar outfitted with row 
  upon	row	of	old	confessionals;	customers	get	
  the	illicit	thrill	of	stepping	into	a	booth	and	
  revealing	their	darkest	secrets	to	unseen	
  strangers.		Then	they	get	to	step	into	another	
  booth and forgive the unseemly confidences 
  of	another	unknown	person.		Of	course,	the	
  booths	are	all	bugged.		Mary	sifts	through	the	
  tapes to find true and utterly damning revela-
  tions,	which	she	then	uses	to	blackmail	her	
  patrons	into	becoming	her	operatives.		If	the	
  PCs	can	come	up	with	a	way	to	put	Confes-
  sions	out	of	business,	they’ll	deprive	her	of	the	
  steady	stream	of	expendable	surrogates	she’s	
  using	to	keep	them	off-balance.
  Mounia Qutbuddin
  Pharaoh Quisling
  Mounia	Qutbuddin	has	been	in	her	post	as	
  the	Pharaohs’	chief	expert	on	the	Al	Amarjan	
  Cut-Ups for so long that she remembers fight-
  ing	off	the	insane	nonsense	of	several	genera-
  tions	of	the	hyper-real	lunatics.		She	looks	
  nostalgically	back	on	the	heady	days	of	the	
  early fifties, when she was a young woman 
  reveling	in	both	the	newfound	freedom	of	life	
  in	Europe	away	from	her	strict	Syrian	family,	
  and	her	certainty	in	the	imminent	rise	of	her	
  Pharaoh	masters.		In	those	days,	the	Edge	
  seemed	warmer,	its	dirt	seemed	cleaner,	and	
  its	low	life	seemed	charming	and	exotic.		The	
  Cut-Ups	she	was	assigned	to	watch	—	Dr.	
  Bacteria,	Barry	Wackerle,	The	Countess	Salz,	
  Noboru	Komatsu	—	seemed	somehow	quaint	
  and	charming	for	all	their	naiveté.		Life	was	
  a	delicious	combination	of	singapore	slings,	
  clandestine	meetings,	and	plans	of	world	
  domination.
  The	life	of	a	quisling	went	sour	for	Mounia	
  long	ago.		It	became	apparent	that	the	assur-
  ances	of	her	masters	about	the	imminence	of	
  the final rise were not to be relied upon.  She’s 
  been	loyally	in	place	for	decades,	and	through	
  all	that	time	the	rise	has	always	been	mere	
  months	away.		She’s	concluded	that	her	im-
  mortal	leaders	are	never	going	to	make	the	
  move	—	they’re	too	conservative,	too	cautious	
  to	take	the	necessary	risks.		Although	they’re	
  as	insistent	as	ever	about	getting	full	reports	
  on	every	last	whisper	and	cough	discharged	
  by	a	known	Cut-Up,	she’s	decided	that	the	
  more	the	Pharaohs	know,	the	more	paralyzed	
  they	become.
  For	a	while,	Mounia	considered	defecting.		
  She’d	never	go	to	the	Cut-Ups;	to	her,	their	
  
  4	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Story Idea
  Pere	Brinker	receives	a	tip	that	a	confer-
  ence	of	Pharaohs	is	scheduled	at	an	airport	
  hotel.		A	famous	prisoner	of	conscience,	sup-
  posedly	under	house	arrest	in	a	third-world	
  dictatorship	(one	evidently	controlled	by	the	
  Pharaohs)	is	to	be	shipped	to	this	symposium	
  to	be	a	demonstration	piece	in	a	lecture.		The	
  topic is mind-control — specifically, how to 
  break	the	spirit	of	even	the	most	courageous	
  defender	of	freedom;	a	Pharaoh	called	Antonio	
  Truran will mutilate her psyche for the edifica-
  tion	of	the	assembled	group.		The	Cut-Up	re-
  sponse	is	obvious	—	rescue	the	prisoner	before	
  the	address	begins.
  There’s	a	twist	—	Mounia	Qutbuddin	was	
  responsible	for	receiving	the	smuggled	prison-
  er.		She	has	arranged	for	a	Kwik	Klinik	doctor	
  loyal	to	her	to	plant	a	remote-control	bomb	in	
  the	activist’s	chest	cavity.		Mounia,	who	isn’t	
  invited	to	the	lecture,	is	behind	Pere’s	tip.		She	
  hasn’t	yet	decided	whether	she’d	rather	blow	
  up	a	roomful	of	Pharaohs	or	a	Cut-Up	rescue	
  squad.		It	all	depends	on	her	mood	at	the	time.
  Rex
  Le Thuy Theorist
  Rex,	the	Andalusia	Dog’s	evil	half-brother,	
  is	larger	and	darker	than	his	Cut-Up	counter-
  part	—	his	mother	was	a	black	lab.		His	color-
  ation	is	apt:	Rex	is	the	modern	equivalent	of	
  the	black	dog	of	English	folklore,	a	four-legged	
  harbinger	of	ill	omen.
  Abused	by	his	master	while	a	pup,	Rex’s	
  growing	intelligence	led	him	towards	a	desire	
  for	freedom	and	revenge.		After	nudging	his	
  drunken	owner	over	a	cliff	face,	Rex	hopped	
  on	a	cargo	ship	and	began	a	brief	tour	of	the	
  world.		During	his	travels	his	contempt	for	
  humankind	deepened.		Perhaps	if	he	had	met	
  a	noble	glug	at	this	point,	things	would	have	
  turned	around	for	him.		But	he	didn’t.
  Remembering	the	intense	pleasure	he	felt	
  as	his	owner	screamed	towards	his	death,	Rex	
  began	to	seek	out	a	particular	type	of	human	
  companion.		These	new	friends	were	always	
  incomprehensible	antics	are	an	intolerable	
  reminder	of	the	pointlessness	of	her	wasted	
  life.		But	she	has	toyed	with	the	idea	of	going	
  to	the	Movers	or	some	foreign	intelligence	
  agency	with	what	she	knows.		However,	the	
  Pharaohs	would	try	to	kill	her,	and	the	avail-
  able	rewards	aren’t	worth	the	trouble.		No	
  one	can	give	her	what	she	really	wants	—	the	
  return	of	her	wasted	years.
  Mounia	hates	the	Cut-Ups	and	everything	
  they	stand	for.		If	given	the	chance	to	destroy	
  them,	she’d	leap	at	it.		She	wouldn’t	bother	to	
  get	the	go-ahead	from	those	fossilized	immor-
  tals,	either	—	they’d	weigh	thousands	of	op-
  tions	as	the	opportunity	slipped	through	their	
  arthritic fingers.
  Syrian	woman,	69	years	old,	55	cm,	64	kg.	
  carelessly	cropped,	thinning	white	hair,	aqui-
  line	nose,	wrinkles	and	liver	spots	waging	war	
  on	a	once-lovely	face.
  Languages:	Arabic,	English,	Al	Amarjan	
  patois
  Traits
  Intelligence Gathering,	4	dice	—	Maintains	
  a	well-oiled	network	of	contacts	who	supply	
  her	with	great	info	on	Cut-Up	activities,	never	
  suspecting	her	true	allegiances.		(Good	lis-
  tener)
  Cut-Up History,		dice	—	Remembers	past	
  Cut-Up	operations	better	than	the	Cut-Ups	
  themselves.		(If	you	somehow	manage	to	get	
  her	opened	up,	she	has	a	staggering	command	
  of	names,	dates,	and	vivid	sense	descriptions)
  Pharaoh Politics,		dice	—	Decades	of	expe-
  rience	with	her	distant	bosses	have	shown	her	
  how to figure out what’s going on at the upper 
  echelons	of	the	organization	based	on	the	slim	
  clues	contained	in	her	orders.		(Asks	incisive	
  questions)
  Frail,	penalty	die	—	Mounia	is	wearing	
  down	physically	as	well	as	mentally.		She	
  suffers	a	penalty	die	on	all	physical	actions.		
  (Moves	slowly)
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  young	males,	loners	and	losers	—	usually	dis-
  playing	symptoms	of	paranoid	schizophrenia.		
  Rex	befriended	them,	and	eventually,	making	
  sure	they	were	alone	together,	revealed	his	
  sentience.  Refining the technique, he found 
  it	worked	best	to	claim	to	be	the	devil.		Most	
  of	his	new	pals	had	been	waiting	all	their	
  lives	for	a	little	demonic	contact.		It	usually	
  took	less	than	a	month	to	convince	his	friends	
  to	start	their	murder	sprees.		Although	this	
  happened	dozens	of	times,	the	most	famous	
  instance	was	a	serial	killer	in	New	York	who	
  specialized	mostly	in	kissing	couples.
  Rex	continued	his	rambling,	and	a	few	
  years	back	found	himself	in	Vietnam,	where	
  he	met	up	with	a	frustrated	potential	nihilist	
  genius	named	Tramh	Le	Thuy.		Le	Thuy	was	
  eking	out	a	miserable	living	as	an	itinerant	
  salesman,	constantly	gnawing	over	a	set	of	
  disconnected	ideas	about	using	hopelessness	
  and	entropy	for	social	control.		Although	Le	
  Thuy	did	not	meet	Rex’s	usual	criteria,	some-
  thing	about	the	man’s	demeanor	attracted	him.		
  Instead	of	pretending	to	be	Satan,	Rex	ex-
  plained	his	true	nature	to	Le	Thuy,	along	with	
  a	number	of	other	secrets	he	picked	up	along	
  the	way.
  “You’re the first animal I haven’t wanted to 
  dismember	alive,”	Le	Thuy	said.
  “I	feel	much	the	same	about	you,”	Rex	con-
  fessed.		And	a	beautiful	friendship	was	born.
  Long	discussions	with	Rex	helped	Le	Thuy	
  to	articulate	his	nihilistic	theories	and	honed	
  his	persuasive	skills.		Rex	persuaded	Le	Thuy	
  to	move	to	Al	Amarja,	and	the	rest	is	history.		
  Rex	is	content	to	keep	on	wandering,	spreading	
  his	poisonous	message	to	weak	minds	through-
  out	the	world.		He	arranges	to	drop	in	on	the	
  Edge	every	three	or	four	months	to	check	in	
  with	Tramh	and	see	if	he	has	any	missions	
  that	would	be	best	accomplished	by	a	talking	
  dog.
  Rex	met	Andalusia	while	on	one	of	these	
  missions.		Rex	captured	and	tortured	the	
  Cut-Up	operative,	discovering	their	shared	
  parentage	in	the	process.		Andy’s	commitment	
  to	human	freedom	troubles	Rex;	he	has	always	
  assumed	that	any	intelligent	dog	would	share	
  his	beliefs	on	the	irredeemable	corruption	of	
  
  6	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  humankind.		Rex	has	a	profound	need	to	con-
  vert	Andy	to	his	way	of	thinking,	but	each	time	
  they	meet	Andy’s	points	raise	doubts	in	his	
  own	mind.		He’s	beginning	to	think	he	should	
  kill	Andy	before	his	points	start	making	any	
  more	sense.
  US	dog,	5	cm,	0	kg.		Black	dog	with	
  brownish	face	and	feet;	long,	blunt	muzzle,	
  small flat ears.
  Languages:	English,	Vietnamese,	some	
  German
  Attack:	4	dice,	x	damage
  Defense:	4	dice
  Hit Points:	8	(densely	muscled)
  Traits
  Dog Fighting,	4	dice	—	Rex	hasn’t	survived	
  his	travels	by	being	a	pushover.		He’s	big-
  ger,	stronger	and	meaner	than	Andy.		(Bares	
  muzzle	full	of	impressively	big	teeth)
  Persuasion,		dice	—	Rex	can	get	people	to	
  do	what	he	wants	by	playing	on	their	weak-
  nesses.		He’s	also	become	quite	adept	at	pre-
  tending	to	be	demonic.		(Smooth,	patient	voice)
  Psychology,		dice	—	Good	at	identifying	
  and	exploiting	human	neuroses	and	psychoses.		
  (Makes	accurate	guesses	about	people)
  No Opposable Thumb	—	Like	Andy,	Rex	is	
  incapable	of	tool	use.		(He’s	a	dog.)
  Story Idea
  Dzamilla	Chmielinski	is	a	bored	normie	
  with	a	humdrum	job	at	the	local	bottling	plant	
  of	a	leading	soda	pop	manufacturer.		She’s	a	
  regular	attendee	at	university	performance	art	
  events	and	a	big	fan	of	Mircea	?	and	Claude-
  Lucien	Rouvier.		Though	she’s	never	been	
  approached	to	become	an	operative,	her	apart-
  ment is filled with Cut-Up propaganda.
  Dzamilla	suffers	from	clinical	depression,	
  and	in	a	low	moment	is	approached	by	Rex.		
  He	gradually	convinces	her	to	contaminate	the	
  Edge’s	cola	supply	with	Relapse-laced	halluci-
  nogens.		Over	the	next	few	weeks,	many	nasty	
  incidents	occur,	including	several	accidental	
  deaths.		Plant	security	busts	her,	and	she	
  claims	to	be	executing	a	disorder	operation	on	
  the	orders	of	the	Cut-Ups.		Can	the	PCs	get	to	
  the	bottom	of	the	matter	and	repair	the	dam-
  age	to	their	reputation?
  On the Nature 
  of Control 
  Addiction
  “You	don’t	wake	up	one	morning	and	
  decide	to	be	a	drug	addict...You	become	
  a	narcotics	addict	because	you	do	not	
  have	any	strong	motivations	in	any	
  other	direction.		Junk	wins	by	default.”
  — William S. Burroughs
  Since	these	words	were	published	in	95,	
  contemporary	society	has	come	to	understand	
  a	great	deal	about	the	nature	of	addiction.		The	
  study	and	treatment	of	addiction	is	a	growth	
  industry.		The	jargon	and	philosophical	outlook	
  of	the	twelve-step	program	is	now	a	staple	of	
  Western	thought.		Its	evangelists	spread	it	on	
  the	talk	shows,	its	converts	wisely	describing	
  their	former	excesses	as	the	TV	host	pokes	
  his	microphone	into	a	crowd	of	average	folks,	
  seeking	their	mortifying	judgment.		Addiction	
  to	narcotic	substances	turns	out	to	be	merely	
  the	tip	of	an	iceberg	of	compulsions.		You	don’t	
  need	a	substance	to	be	an	addict	anymore.		
  Line	‘em	up:	sex	addicts,	gambling	addicts,	
  porn	addicts!		Fanatical	collectors.		Role-play-
  ing	gamers	who	continue	to	buy	a	neverending	
  supply	of	supplements	and	sourcebooks	put	out	
  by	money-hungry...Uh,	wait	a	minute.		For-
  get	that	last	one.		That’s	clearly	inapplicable.		
  Sorry	for	the	typo	there.
  We’re	all	addicted	to	something	—	if	not	
  crack,	then	cigarettes.		If	not	heroin,	chocolate	
  or	caffeine.		The	lucky	among	us	have	merely	
  chosen	relatively	safe	things	to	get	hooked	on.
  Addiction	has	gone	from	a	pathological	
  condition	to	a	way	of	life.		Consumerism	has	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  crumbled	communism	and	now	embraces	all	
  humankind	—	or	at	least	that	portion	of	it	with	
  money	to	ante	up	for	the	game.		The	world	
  plunges	headlong	into	the	pursuit	of	happiness	
  —	not	happiness	itself,	but	rather	the	unend-
  ing	search	for	it.		An	economy	built	on	instant	
  gratification can sell anything but lasting 
  satisfaction.		The	body	of	the	junkie	consumes	
  junk as a fire consumes firewood.  Once it is 
  gone,	there	is	nothing	left.		More	must	be	ob-
  tained.		The	search	must	continue.		Movement,	
  capture,	release,	movement,	capture,	release,	
  movement...We have become fire — we must 
  consume	or	die	out.
  We	do	not	Control	our	destinies.		There	is	
  no	free	will,	no	predestination.		We	are	billiard	
  balls	tossed	from	an	airplane,	sand	thrown	into	
  the	wind.		We	construct	elaborate	theologies	
  and	ideologies	designed	to	dissuade	us	from	
  this	horrible	truth.		Because	our	minds	have	
  evolved	to	look	at	what	we	see	and	organize	it	
  into	patterns	—	so	we	can	conquer	our	envi-
  ronment	and	survive	in	a	hostile	world	—	we	
  expect the ultimate nature of the reality to fit 
  some pattern, to contain an identifiable mean-
  ing.		Our	perceptions	are	useful	as	a	tool	for	
  persistence	and	propagation,	but	this	does	not	
  mean	they	are	accurate	in	any	objective	sense.		
  There	is	no	objective	reality.		There	is	only	
  chaos,	and	the	necessary	illusions	we	construct	
  to	navigate	our	way	through	it.
  Some	individuals	can	handle	this	essen-
  tial	truth.		They	accept	their	perceptions	as	
  only that, and revel in the infinite variety of 
  possible	experience.		They	are	delighted	to	be	
  carried	on	the	wind,	bounced	from	one	random	
  episode	of	life	to	another.		They	thrive	on	inde-
  terminacy.		They	are	the	Cut-Ups,	the	Chaos	
  Boys,	and	their	sympathizers.
  But	most	can’t	circumvent	the	original	wir-
  ing	of	our	brains,	set	up	as	they	are	to	always	
  find a pattern — whether one truly exists or 
  not.  Drop a vial of iron filings on a white tile 
  floor, and look at them for a while.  Chances 
  are	eventually	you’ll	see	something	—	a	face,	
  an	animal,	an	object.		This	establishes,	sadly,	
  that	you	too	are	susceptible	to	Control	Addic-
  tion.		(Or	it	could	be	a	recruiting	message	from	
  Chaos	Boys	Central	—	in	a	chaotic	universe,	
  nothing	is	certain.		Including	uncertainty.)
  For	most,	a	desire	to	Control	begins	with	
  a	desire	to	be	controlled.		As	children,	we	all	
  need the advice and instructions of parent fig-
  ures.		A	new	little	human	who	learns	solely	by	
  experience	would	become	dead	pretty	quickly.		
  We	learn	the	rules	before	we	are	capable	of	
  reason.		When	the	reasoning	faculty	develops,	
  we	can	test	the	rules	and	decide	when	they	do	
  and	don’t	apply.		But	until	then	we	need	to	be	
  told	what	to	do.
  Society	gradually	weans	children	from	
  most	childish	things.		It	teaches	them	appro-
  priate	decorum	in	bodily	functions.		It	tells	
  them	when	to	put	down	their	toys	and	pick	
  up	briefcases	and	toolboxes.		It	teaches	them	
  compromise,	and	that	one’s	desires	must	be	
  accommodated	to	the	desires	of	others.		How-
  ever,	many	societies	don’t	try	to	weed	out	the	
  need	to	be	commanded.		Social	control	is	much	
  easier	with	a	compliant	populace.		Democratic	
  societies	need	these	impulses	even	more	than	
  authoritarian	ones,	as	they	rely	on	the	peaceful	
  acceptance	of	the	rulers	by	the	ruled.		Shut	up	
  and	watch	your	commercials.
  It	is	comforting	to	be	controlled;	disaster	
  is	not	your	responsibility.		Distressing	ques-
  tions	need	not	cross	your	mind.		Life	is	simple.		
  There	are	solid	rules	to	rely	on.		“I	was	just	
  following	orders.”
  But	what	happens	when	other	people	start	
  to flout the rules you base your identity on?  
  When	they	start	showing	sexual	feelings	for	
  unapproved	partners?		Begin	experimenting	
  with art that flouts the boundaries of public 
  taste?		When	they	explore	those	terrible	ques-
  tions	you’ve	been	working	so	hard	to	repress?		
  Don’t	just	sit	there	—	they’re	breaking	the	
  rules,	darn	it!		Action	must	be	taken!
  And	thus	the	couch	potato	state	becomes	
  the	fascist	state.		The	need	to	be	controlled	be-
  comes	the	need	to	Control	others.		The	Control	
  addiction	begins.
  Maybe	it	starts	with	banning	a	book.		Or	
  shouting	down	someone	with	an	opinion	you	
  dislike.		Or	hitting	your	child.		Or	your	spouse.		
  
  8	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  You	just	do	it	once.		You	don’t	quite	under-
  stand	why	at	the	time.		Maybe	you	even	feel	a	
  little	guilty	afterwards.		But	you	keep	think-
  ing	about	it.		And	gradually,	your	secret	heart	
  admits	something	to	itself.
  It	felt	good.
  Maybe	you	should	do	it	again.
  But	Control	is	like	junk.		There’s	never	
  enough.		The	more	you	consume,	the	more	you	
  need	to	get	that	high	back.		The	more	you	con-
  trol,	the	more	others	will	question	your	control.		
  The	more	they	question	you,	the	further	you	
  must	go	to	put	them	down.		The	further	you	
  go,	the	higher	up	on	the	ladder	of	Control	you	
  end	up.		The	higher	up	the	ladder	you	are,	the	
  more	people	you	must	command.		More	people	
  to	command	means	more	potential	dissenters,	
  more	questions	to	be	slapped	down.		You	must	
  move	further	and	further	up	the	hierarchy	to	
  get	the	power	to	do	this.		But	then	you	need	
  more	power.		And	more.		And	more.
  No	matter	whether	she	calls	herself	a	
  Mover,	or	a	Pharaoh	Quisling,	a	Kergillian	or	
  Le	Thuy,	a	Control	addict	is	a	Control	addict.		
  The	sickness	is	the	same.		They	just	buy	from	
  different	pushers.
  Some	addicts	seek	the	restoration	of	an	old	
  order,	as	do	the	Pharaohs.		Others	construct	
  a	new	thought	system	to	start	at	the	top	and	
  trap	a	whole	new	category	of	followers	—	as	do	
  dozens	of	cult	leaders,	and	anyone	who’s	ever	
  written	a	political	manifesto.		Others,	like	the	
  Kergillians, unsatisfied with the cerebral na-
  ture	of	Control	addiction,	seek	the	visceral	kick	
  of	direct	biological	control	of	other	organisms	
  —	they’ve	turned	it	into	a	physical	need.		The	
  Le	Thuys	seek	the	ultimate	Control	of	reducing	
  all	life	to	an	abstraction	named	entropy.		And	
  the	Movers	have	turned	it	into	their	ideology,	
  wearing	their	addictions	as	a	badge	of	honor.
  Can	Control	addiction	be	cured?	Unlike	
  addiction	to	a	physical	substance,	there	is	no	
  way	to	force	withdrawal.		There	is	no	metha-
  done	for	Control.		Isolate	an	addict	from	his	
  conspiracy	and	put	him	in	a	cell,	and	he	will	
  dream	of	escaping	and	dominating	his	cap-
  tors.		Or	he	will	experience	a	conversion	and	
  seek	to	serve	his	captors	and	rise	in	their	chain	
  of	command.		Or	he	will	become	the	führer	of	
  the	cockroaches	and	ants	that	climb	the	walls	
  of	his	cubicle.		Doubt	is	sometimes	useful	as	a	
  weapon	—	but	doubt	is	just	as	likely	to	provoke	
  a	heightened	need	for	more	Control.		The	ques-
  tions	a	Control	addict	refuses	to	ask	herself	are	
  both	her	fundamental	weakness	and	the	cause	
  of	her	ravening	need	for	more	junk.
  Perhaps	Control	addiction	will	never	be	
  eradicated.		Susceptibility	to	it	seems	to	be	a	
  side-effect	of	our	basic	neural	setup.		But	its	
  worst	sufferers	must	be	contained,	before	they	
  hook	another	generation	of	kids	on	their	poi-
  son.		The	Chaos	Boys	must	be	forever	vigilant.
  This	vigilance	must	be	double-edged.		
  Someone	once	said	that	if	you	cannot	persuade	
  your	enemy,	you	must	acquaint	his	head	with	
  the	pavement.		But	that	someone	was	Leon	
  Trotsky,	a	member	of	a	notorious	gang	of	
  Control	junkies.		The	Cut-Ups	and	their	kin	
  must	not	only	look	for	the	symptoms	of	Control	
  in	others	—	they	must	be	careful	that	they	do	
  not	become	their	enemy	in	their	zeal	to	protect	
  others	from	him.		Blind	violence	is	not	an	ac-
  ceptable	strategy.
  We hope you have been edified by this 
  analysis.		Please,	however,	question	its	under-
  lying	assumptions.		Perhaps	this	entire	essay	
  is	a	shocking	display	of	Control	fever,	as	I	try	
  to	mold	you	into	following	me.		Perhaps	it	is	
  even	a	manifesto,	relying	on	your	passive	ac-
  ceptance	to	infect	you	with	a	thought	virus,	a	
  vulnerability	to	Control.		After	all,	it	displays	
  the	classic	technique	of	the	fringe	tract.		It	
  starts	with	a	current	social	phenomenon	the	
  reader might find alarming and than radically 
  oversells	its	importance.		It	throws	in	pseudo-
  science,	mushing	together	half-understood	bits	
  of	neurology	and	early	childhood	development	
  to	give	it	an	air	of	undeserved	authority.		Great	
  care	has	been	given	to	its	internal	rhythms,	
  which	are	more	important	than	its	meanings;	
  its	forward	drive	and	sweeping	cadences	may	
  be	trying	to	put	you	into	a	trance	state,	to	
  circumvent	your	critical	access	codes	and	hack	
  directly	into	your	subconscious.		You,	too,	must	
  be	forever	vigilant.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  “A.		A	violent	order	is	disorder;	and
  B.		A	great	disorder	is	an	order.
  These	two	things	are	one.”
  —Wallace Stevens
  The	Cut-Ups	are	a	local	branch	of	a	trans-
  dimensional	organization	known	as	the	Chaos	
  Boys.		Little	is	known	about	them	—	or	rather	
  too	much	is	known	about	them.		Or	rather,	
  too	much	contradictory	information	is	known	
  about	them.		Or	rather,	all	contradictory	infor-
  mation	about	them	is	true.		Or	something	like	
  that.
  It	is	easier	to	understand	the	Chaos	Boys	
  from	the	outside	in.		The	organization,	like	
  most	conspiracies,	is	set	up	like	an	onion,	or	
  the	concentric	circles	in	a	tree	ring.		Or	pos-
  sibly	one	of	those	giant	fungi	that	lie	beneath	
  entire	forests.		Or	sort	of	a	cross	between	an	
  echidna	and	a	towel	rack	—	no,	forget	that	last	
  one.		It’s	true	but	too	confusing.		Let’s	stick	
  with	the	concentric	tree	ring	idea.
  The	further	one	goes	through	the	rings	
  towards	the	heart	of	the	tree,	the	more	chaotic	
  the	organization	becomes.		It	starts	with	the	
  mundane	reality	we	would	all	recognize	and	
  progresses	towards	increasing	strangeness	and	
  subjectivity.
  The	outermost	ring	of	the	circle	is	com-
  posed	of	hangers-on:	mostly	ordinary	people	
  who	are	into	surrealism	and	free	thought.		If	
  you’ve read this far into this book, you fit this 
  description	and	are	therefore	part	of	this	circle.		
  Congratulations,	welcome	to	the	organization.		
  The	bill	for	your	introductory	membership	fee	
  will	be	mailed	to	you	on	the	next	business	day.		
  Before	her	disastrous	encounter	with	Rex,	Dza-
  milla	Chmielinski	(see	p.	6)	is	an	example	of	
  this	layer	of	the	organization	—	folks	who	are	
  generally	sympathetic	to	the	forces	of	creative	
  disorder.		They	contribute	to	the	organization	
  without	being	aware	of	it,	beaming	anarchic	
  thoughts	into	the	collective	unconscious.		This	
  background	radiation	enables	many	Chaos	Boy	
  devices	and	fringe	powers	to	operate.		Artists	
  like	Mircea	?	(p.	6)	contribute	more	than	their	
  share	of	this	by	creating	works	that	stimulate	
  the	generation	of	chaos	energy	in	others.
  The	next	ring	is	composed	of	those	sym-
  pathetic	souls	deemed	worthy	of	active	
  knowledge	of	Chaos	agents.		These	people	are	
  sleepers	—	civilians	who	go	about	their	daily	
  lives	without	getting	deeply	involved	in	opera-
  tions	on	a	regular	basis.		They	may	contribute	
  money	to	their	local	Chaos	cell,	or	may	know-
  ingly	disseminate	propaganda	to	further	its	
  philosophical	outlook.		Cell	members	are	aware	
  of	these	sympathizers,	and	may	call	on	them	
  to assist in specific anti-Control actions.  They 
  are	not	generally	expected	to	risk	their	lives	or	
  sanity	to	execute	these	tasks.		Claude-Lucien	
  Rouvier	(p.	)	is	an	example	of	this	member-
  ship	level.
  The	next	ring	is	the	local	cell,	of	which	the	
  Al	Amarjan	Cut-Ups	is	a	prime	example.		At	
  this	point,	there	may	be	a	structure	within	a	
  structure	—	the	organizational	set-up	of	the	
  local	group.		(This	is	where	the	echidna/towel	
  rack	concept	comes	in	handy,	but...well,	never	
  The Chaos Boys
  
  40	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  mind.		If	you	really	need	to	understand	this	
  metaphor,	send	a	SASE	to	a	randomly-cho-
  sen	address	and	ask	the	recipient	to	enclose	
  something	they	no	longer	need.		The	reply	
  will	trigger	an	intuitive	understanding	of	this	
  advanced	trope.)
  For	instance,	the	organizational	structure	
  of	the	Al	Amarjan	Cut-Ups	since	the	erasure	
  of	Horrors	Count	(see	p.	7)	has	become	very	
  informal.  Pere Brinker is its unofficial leader, 
  simply	because	the	others	tend	to	defer	to	
  his	judgment	and	implacable	temperament.		
  However,	most	decisions	are	reached	by	con-
  sensus	—	a	process	that	is	the	very	essence	of	
  chaos	—	and	no	one	is	obliged	to	take	orders	
  from	anyone	else.		(The	reasoning	here	is	that	
  taking orders is the first step on the road to a 
  control	habit,	leading	inexorably	to	the	desire	
  to	give	orders.)		Some	members	are	accorded	
  more	weight	in	discussion	than	others	—	be-
  cause	of	his	checkered	history,	Claus’	views	
  tend	to	be	less	persuasive	than	those	of	his	
  brother.		Operational	ability	also	counts	here.		
  Less	is	expected	of	Doc	Cross,	who	has	no	
  fringe	powers,	than	C.	A.	Radford,	who	has	
  more	of	them	than	he/she	knows	what	to	do	
  with.
  However,	other	local	Chaos	Boy	cells	may	
  have	more	concrete	structures.		An	example	
  is	the	Brotherhood	of	Ch’ien	Ko,	the	Chaos	
  Boy	cell	in	the	Shanghai	Edge.		The	Shanghai	
  Edge	is	a	pocket	reality	created	by	a	localized	
  time	distortion;	in	it	various	elements	of	the	
  Al	Amarja	we	are	familiar	with	are	melded	
  with	others	from	the	Shanghai	of	the	90s	
  and	0s.		In	congruence	with	this	reality	shift,	
  the	Brotherhood	of	Ch’ien	Ko	is	modeled	along	
  modified Confucian grounds, based on a mas-
  ter/apprentice	relationship	of	mutual	respect	
  and	obligation.
  Beyond	the	level	of	the	local	cells	comes	
  the	main	coordinating	center,	Chaos	Boys	
  headquarters.		This	is	where	things	become	
  quite	subjective.		Most	local	operatives	never	
  experience	direct	contact	with	CBHQ,	as	it	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  4
  is	abbreviated.		Even	indirect	contact	from	
  CBHQ	to	local	cells	is	limited.		Usually	local	
  members	are	recruited	by	other	local	members,	
  and	taught	the	tenets	and	objectives	of	the	con-
  spiracy	at	this	divisional	level.		Interference	in	
  chapter	business	is	avoided	by	CBHQ	due	to	
  its	ideological	dislike	of	centralized	control	of	
  anything.
  In	emergencies	it	sometimes	becomes	
  necessary	for	CBHQ	to	contact	a	regional	
  chapter	in	order	to	provide	vital	information	
  or	orders.		These	communications	are	usually	
  indirect.		CBHQ	uses	uncertainty	waves	to	
  transmit	information	over	spatial	or	dimen-
  sional	distance.		Uncertainty	radiation	either	
  occupies	band	space	between	the	positive	and	
  negative	energies	used	in	devotional	magic,	or	
  between	the	real	waves	measurable	by	scien-
  tific observation and the irrational waves that 
  power	magic;	the	actual	facts	are,	of	course,	
  uncertain.
  At	any	rate,	the	CBHQ	uses	uncertainty	
  radiation	for	two	reasons.		First,	it’s	really	cool.	
  Second,	uncertainty	signals	are	impossible	to	
  block	or	jam	because	they	can	be	experienced	
  but	not	measured.		They	can	be	received	by	
  any	device	that	normally	operates	through	syn-
  chronicity.		Synchronicity	is	a	concept	original-
  ly	devised	by	the	Swiss	depth	psychologist	C.	
  G.	Jung,	who	called	it	an	“acausal	connecting	
  principle.”		It	governs	things	that,	according	to	
  linear	analysis,	seem	to	happen	by	chance	but	
  in	fact	seem	connected	by	some	unknown	force.		
  (That	unknown	force	is	uncertainty	radiation,	
  which	Jung	hinted	around	but	did	not	describe	
  in	detail.)	There	is	no	randomness	—	there	is	
  only	uninterpreted	meaning.
  Jung	used	the	I	Ching	to	explore	synchron-
  icity	—	it’s	an	ancient	Chinese	divination	
  method	that	involves	throwing	yarrow	stalks	
  and	applying	the	result	to	construct	hexa-
  grams	of	six	broken	or	unbroken	lines.		Each	
  hexagram	corresponds	to	a	text,	which	is	then	
  related	to	one’s	question	to	arrive	at	an	inter-
  pretation	that	suggests	an	answer.		A	Chaos	
  operative	can	pick	up	a	message	from	CBHQ	
  using	the	I	Ching,	but	many	other	methods	are	
  possible.		Any	traditional	divination	method	
  that	uses	a	degree	of	randomness,	from	the	
  tarot	to	thrown	runes,	can	also	pick	up	uncer-
  tainty	messages.		So	can	die	rolls,	coin	tosses,	
  or	even	eight	ball	toys.		(You’ve	probably	seen	
  these	—	they’re	round	plastic	globes	with	a	
  rubber polyhedron floating in liquid inside 
  them.		Each	side	of	the	polyhedron	has	various	
  answers	to	possible	questions	stamped	in	it.)	
  Typical	fortune	cookies	can’t	function	as	un-
  certainty	receivers,	because	the	slips	of	paper	
  within	them	don’t	have	a	wide	enough	range	
  of	possible	messages	—	they’re	invariably	
  positive.		However,	Dai	Lo’s	Chinese	and	Al	
  Amarjan	restaurant	in	Flowers	Barrio	serves	
  fortune	cookies	which	work	for	the	purpose	
  —	their	messages	are	as	often	negative	as	posi-
  tive.		(Examples	include	“your	mother	will	die	
  of cancer” and “demons shall rend your flesh.”) 
  Incidentally,	Dai	Lo	is	unaware	of	his	product’s	
  Chaos	applications	—	he	uses	these	disturbing	
  messages	simply	to	appeal	to	a	decadent	clien-
  tele	with	a	twisted	sense	of	humor.
  So	for	the	average	Chaos	agent,	the	CBHQ	
  remains	a	distant	force.		Beyond	the	cryptic	
  instructions	it	issues,	it	impinges	little	on	
  her	life.		However,	the	odd	agent	does	travel	
  to	CBHQ	—	usually	when	she’s	violated	the	
  Coatless	Code	(see	below)	and	requires	reme-
  dial	ideological	training.		The	only	current	Al	
  Amarjan	Cut-Up	who	has	been	there	is	Claus	
  Brinker.  Here is his firsthand account of the 
  place:
  “You	know,	like,	when	you	have	one	of	
  those	dreams	where	you’re	back	in	school	and	
  you	show	up	late	and	you	don’t	have	your	
  timetable yet so you go to the office, but you 
  can’t find the office so you just wander up and 
  down the corridors until you finally find it by 
  accident	and	then	you	look	at	your	timetable	
  and	you	realize	you’ve	already	missed	your	
  first class so you run to the second class but 
  you can’t find that because there are albino al-
  ligators in the hallways and they’re all flooded 
  so	you	have	to	take	an	alternate	route	to	get	
  there?		But	when	you	try	to	take	an	alternate	
  route	you	end	up	going	up	this	set	of	stairs	
  that	leads	to	nowhere?
  
  4	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  “So	you	step	off	this	set	of	stairs,	because	
  there’s	no	going	back	—	well,	you	leap	off,	
  really	because	the	albino	alligators	are	be-
  hind	you	and	gaining	speed.		So	you	step	
  off into nothingness, and then you find your 
  identity	dissolving	into	the	cosmic	oneness	of	
  the	universe.		And	then	you’re	Telly	Savalas,	
  and	you’re	in	a	movie	with	Julie	Christie,	and	
  you’re	in	this	nasty	black-and-white	melodra-
  ma	set	in	London	during	the	blitz,	and	Julie	is	
  trying	to	stop	her	old	aunt	from	slowly	going	
  mad	as	the	bombs	drop	all	around	them,	and	
  you	think	you	can	save	them	because	you’re	
  the	caring	American	reporter	but	then	you	
  realize	that	you	can’t	do	anything	to	change	
  things	in	the	movie	because	you’re	only	a	sup-
  porting	player,	and	it’s	really	Kirk	Douglas	
  who’s	the	lead,	which	really	makes	sense	once	
  you	think	about	it	—	I	mean,	hey,	you’re	Telly	
  Savalas,	right?	—	but	you	hadn’t	thought	
  about	it	until	then.
  “Then	you	realize	that	you’re	not	the	boss	
  of	the	universe,	and	that	anyone	who	thinks	
  he’s	Kirk	Douglas	is	fooling	himself	—	even	
  if	you	really	are	Kirk	Douglas,	you’re	really	
  an	actor.		And	all	is	illusion.		And	the	albino	
  alligators	turn	out	to	be	your	own	greed	and	
  vanity,	and	you	can	tame	them	by	tickling	
  their	undersides.
  “And	then	everything	is	all	right	—	you’re	
  back	home,	and	you’re	ready	to	go	again,	hav-
  ing	learned	some	kind	of	big	lesson	or	some-
  thing,	I	guess.		That’s	not	really	what	it’s	like,	
  but	that’s	the	best	I	can	explain	it.”
  Another	operative	would	no	doubt	have	
  had	a	completely	different	experience	of	the	
  CBHQ.		Yan	Kwok-Leung,	an	unruly	ap-
  prentice	from	the	Brotherhood	of	Ch’ien	Ko,	
  perceived	the	head	Chaos	Boys	as	gigantic,	
  telepathic	I	Ching	hexagrams.		The	Brinker’s	
  ancestor,	Jeroen,	saw	them	as	demonic	min-
  ions	of	Satan,	because	that	was	the	only	im-
  age	available	to	him	within	his	frame	of	refer-
  ence.		Earlier	civilizations	have	seen	them	
  as	gods;	the	tribal	forebears	of	these	cultures	
  probably	thought	they	were	animistic	spirits.
  As	well	as	differences	from	perceiver	to	
  perceiver,	C.	A.	Radford	has	advanced	the	
  theory	that	Chaos	Boys	differ	from	reality	to	
  reality.		In	our	reality,	freedom	and	creativity	
  are	everywhere	threatened	by	the	crushing	
  grip	of	Control.		Chaos	reacts	to	this	by	foster-
  ing	a	corps	of	agents	dedicated	to	disorder	and	
  virtue.		But	if	one	can	conceive	of	a	multiverse	
  consumed	by	entropy	—	or	destructive	disor-
  der	—	its	Chaos	Boys	might	well	be	villainous	
  by	our	standards.		They’d	resemble	a	cosmos-
  wide	organization	of	Le	Thuys	with	fringe	
  powers	up	the	wazoo.		The	forces	of	Control	
  might	in	this	case	become	the	good	guys,	
  struggling	to	build	things	—	technologies,	
  societies,	consistent	philosophies	—	and	make	
  them	work	in	the	face	of	the	overwhelming	
  opposition	posed	by	absolute,	unmitigated	
  turmoil.
  The Coatless 
  Code
  The	goals	of	the	Chaos	Boys	—	and	the	
  behavior	they	expect	of	their	members	—	are	
  contained	in	the	Coatless	Code,	which	serves	
  as	a	guide	to	virtuous	action,	an	oath	of	alle-
  giance, and fits very nicely on a placemat.  The 
  Code	goes	as	follows:
  .		Self-righteous	vigilantes	kiss	ventriloquists	
  as	fences	discipline	years	and	nightmare	
  interludes.
  .		James	Brown!	James	Brown!
  .		Bright	indications	singe	cool	undisciplined	
  hours.
  4.		Spot	whinnies	homing	in	on	blandishments	
  of	Vaseline.
  5.		Virus	rape	speedily	advancing	questions.
  6.		JaaaaaAAAAAaammes	BROWN!
  7.		Dream	drapes	the	Emperor	entailing	wake-
  fulness	and	the	drugstore.
  8.		Ladies	and	gentleman,	one	more	time,	the	
  godfather	of	soul,	the	hardest	working	man	
  in	show	business,	JAMES	BROWN!
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  4
  9.		This	is	the	weather	the	cuckoo	likes,	ar-
  mored	division	submissive	to	vernacular	
  the	world	into	a	gambling	birdhouse	veloc-
  ity.
  To	the	uninitiated,	the	Code	requires	a	
  little	explaining.		Generations	of	Chaos	Boys	
  have	pondered	the	true	meaning	of	the	Code,	
  and	a	consensus	has	sprung	up	around	each	
  item.		Applicants	to	the	Cut-Ups	have	these	
  consensus	explanations	given	to	them	as	part	
  of	the	training	process.		It	is	only	when	one	
  truly	understands	them	on	an	intuitive	level,	
  however,	that	one	can	truly	consider	oneself	
  to	have	melded	with	the	principles	of	creative	
  disorder.
  Here	is	a	condensed	version	of	the	com-
  monly-accepted	exegesis	of	each	line.		It	was	
  written	by	Chaos	Boy	Par-Nee-Up-Rush-For-
  More-Ang,	who	is	really	more	of	a	concept	
  than	an	individual.		Along	with	the	Code	
  itself,	you	should	provide	a	copy	of	it	to	PCs	
  who	apply	to	join	the	Cut-Ups.
  .		This	describes	the	current	situation	
  without	the	Cut-Ups	—	Control	Addicts	rule.		
  They’re	described	as	self-righteous	because	
  they always have an inflated view of their 
  own	importance	and	value.		Also	because	
  they	often	masquerade	as	the	upholders	of	
  traditional	family	values	in	order	to	secure	
  their	hold	on	a	populace	they	wish	to	con-
  trol.		Those	who	give	themselves	over	to	be	
  controlled	love	to	do	so	in	the	name	of	moral	
  restraint.		Though	they	differ	in	the	magni-
  tude	of	their	impact	on	others,	the	nosy	head	
  of	the	small-town	decency	league	is	as	much	a	
  Control	Freak	as	the	bloody-handed	dictator	
  of	a	banana	republic.
  Control	Freaks	are	vigilantes	because	
  they	use	violence	to	enforce	their	agendas,	
  clamping	down	on	freedom	in	the	name	of	re-
  ligion,	moral	values,	or	the	rule	of	law.		How-
  ever,	their	actions	are	like	kissing	a	ventrilo-
  quist	—	embracing	a	strange	and	disturbing	
  hoax,	as	bizarre	as	the	illusion	that	a	man’s	
  voice	comes	out	of	a	grinning	wooden	puppet	
  head.		The	puppets	are	the	legions	of	sen-
  tients	willing	to	give	themselves	over	to	the	
  rules	imposed	by	Control.
  Fences	are	another	attribute	of	Control	
  —	they	seek	to	divide	human	experience	into	
  discrete	little	categories,	when	the	real	an-
  swers lie in finding the connections between 
  seemingly-unrelated	phenomena,	like	the	
  words	of	the	Code.		The	fences	seek	to	control	
  years, or the flow of time, which is the best 
  friend	of	Chaos,	always	breaking	down	struc-
  tures	and	throwing	up	new	ones.		Control	
  Freaks	are	conservative	because	they	fear	the	
  flow of time and prefer to keep things as they 
  are,	or	were,	or	would	have	been.		Fences	also	
  attempt	to	control	nightmare	interludes,	the	
  dark	eruptions	of	the	unconscious	mind.		The	
  process	of	enslaving	oneself	to	Control	in-
  volves	suppressing	all	sorts	of	material,	from	
  religious	doubt	to	sexual	impulse.		Repressed	
  material	sinks	down	into	the	unconscious	
  mind,	where	it	becomes	monstrous	when	
  locked	away	from	the	light	of	day.		Control	
  fears	its	return,	but	it	must	return.		The	
  Chaos	Boy	rises	like	a	monster	from	the	sleep	
  of	dreams,	ready	to	smite	Control	with	every	
  dread	they	have	tried	to	imprison.
  .		The	work	of	the	0th	Century	Earth	
  performer,	soul	singer	James	Brown	embodies	
  the	essence	of	Chaos	better	than	any	words,	
  no	matter	how	random,	could	possibly	do.		As	
  the	Coatless	Code	was	formulated	centuries	
  before	Brown’s	birth,	in	another	dimension,	
  it	may	be	that	singles	like	“I	Got	You	(I	Feel	
  Good)”	and	“Papa’s	Got	a	Brand	New	Bag”	are	
  so	numinously	relevant	that	they	have	rocket-
  ed	backwards	and	forwards	in	space	and	time	
  to	permeate	all	levels	of	higher	consciousness.		
  Or	it	may	be	that	0th	Century	Earth	is	a	
  crossroads	of	sort,	the	ultimate	battleground	
  for the final confrontation between Control 
  and	Chaos,	and	the	actualization	there	of	the	
  theoretical	construct	referred	to	as	“James	
  Brown”	is	simply	a	harbinger	of	the	apoca-
  lypse	to	come.		Whatever	the	explanation,	if	
  you’re	incapable	of	grooving	to	“Sex	Machine,”	
  you’re	probably	a	Pharaoh	plant.		(The	Cut-
  
  44	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Up	description	on	p.	5	of	OTE	quotes	Prince	
  rather	than	James	Brown,	but	Prince’s	debt	
  to	the	trailblazing	chaos	funk	of	The	Original	
  Showman	is	widely	acknowledged.)
  .		Line		is	the	antithesis	to	line	,	pro-
  posing	the	mission	of	the	Cut-Ups	—	to	be	
  bright	glowing	spots	of	undisciplined	creative	
  energy,	singeing	(and	singing)	their	way	
  through	bits	of	time	they	have	rescued	from	
  the	destructive	impulses	of	Control.
  4.		This	proposes	the	primary	mission	of	
  Chaos	—	to	be	eternally	on	the	lookout	for	the	
  meaningless	but	incessant	cries	of	Control,	as	
  it	seeks	to	hypnotize	the	masses	into	obedi-
  ence.		Propaganda	is	a	whinny	of	Control.		
  Advertising	is	a	whinny	of	Control.		Political	
  clichés	are	a	whinny	of	Control.		Control	seeks	
  to	repeat	nonsense	so	often	and	so	loudly	that	
  no	mind	can	escape	it.		Critical	thought	is	not	
  so	much	eliminated	as	made	irrelevant	—	one	
  can	watch	a	stupid	commercial,	recognize	it	
  as	stupid,	but	still	continue	watching	and	
  then	go	out	and	buy	the	product.		Which	prod-
  uct	one	buys	is	not	relevant	to	the	ultimate	
  aims	of	Control	—	it	is	the	act	of	buying	that	
  matters.		What	matters	is	the	value	system	
  of	blind	sub-intellectual	response	to	the	small	
  range	of	animal	instincts	that	advertising	
  appeals	to.		When	nonsense	becomes	inescap-
  able	—	screaming	from	every	newspaper,	
  television,	and	radio	—	it	ceases	to	become	
  nonsense.		It	becomes	a	set	of	shackles,	an	
  exclusive	line	of	slave	collars	available	in	the	
  fashion	style	of	your	choice.		When	gobble-
  dygook	becomes	holy	writ,	holy	writ	becomes	
  gobbledygook.		It’s	up	to	the	Chaos	Boys	to	re-
  verse	the	process,	exposing	the	absurdities	we	
  now	take	for	granted	as	the	sane	and	normal	
  foundations	of	society.
  5.		There	is	no	time	to	waste.		One	can’t	
  sit	back	and	wait	for	one’s	descendants	to	
  join	the	clarion	call	against	Control.		Even	
  as	you	contemplate	these	words,	the	forces	of	
  Control	are	designing	new,	more	direct	ways	
  to	colonize	the	human	consciousness.		Your	
  consciousness.		Control	is	like	a	virus	—	once	
  you	give	into	it,	it	spreads	through	your	body	
  and	changes	you	on	the	cellular	level.		You’re	
  rewired	in	order	to	make	it	harder	to	resist.		
  The	thought-virus	is	like	a	mental	rapist	
  —	all	it	takes	is	one	moment	of	acceptance,	
  of	complacency,	and	you	surrender	to	the	
  easy	road	of	obedience	and	servitude	to	the	
  Machine.		Fight	off	the	alien	thoughts	that	
  tell	you	to	go	along	with	everyone	else,	to	sit	
  on the couch and flip channels, to stop ask-
  ing	questions	that	make	you	uncomfortable.		
  It’s	an	emergency!	They’re	coming	for	your	
  soul!	They’re	going	to	take	it	from	you.		Once	
  they’ve	got	it,	they’re	not	even	going	to	bother	
  using	it	for	anything.		It’s	just	that	you’re	so	
  much	more	pliable	without	it...
  6.		It’s	too	funky.		Too	funky	in	here.
  7.		But	there	is	hope!	There	is	always	
  hope!	Despair	is	another	tool	of	Control	—	it	
  depends	on	your	despair	to	keep	you	duct-
  taped	to	your	sofa!	The	power	of	dream	is	un-
  quenchable	—	it	sends	its	feathery	tendrils	to	
  fondle	the	frontal	lobes	of	death-squad	leaders	
  and	moral	crusaders	alike.		The	Emperor	is	
  a	mighty	servant	of	Control,	ruling	the	desti-
  nies	of	millions	of	lesser	vassals	in	exchange	
  for	his	own	subjection.		Protected	all	day	long,	
  he	is	vulnerable	to	his	own	forgotten	soul	at	
  night.		The	Cut-Up	agent	is	a	waking	dream,	
  draping	the	mundane	world	of	drugstores	and	
  strip	malls	with	fundamental	doubt.		If	de-
  spair is fire, doubt is water.  If despair is the 
  grim	face	of	a	fascist	youth	leader,	doubt	is	
  the	coconut	cream	pie	designed	to	be	planted	
  in	its	center.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  45
  8.		Did	we	mention	lately	that	we	really	
  like	James	Brown	around	here	at	Chaos	Boy	
  headquarters?		Give	it	up!		Turn	it	loose!		
  JAMES	BROWN!
  9.		The	weather	the	cuckoo	likes	is	disor-
  der.		Not	destruction,	not	mindless	disruption,	
  but	taking	an	accepted	order	and	shaking	it	a	
  bit,	so	that	the	pieces	come	out	in	a	different	
  arrangement	and	thereby	expose	connections	
  no	one’s	seen	before.		Like	taking	random	
  words	from	a	book	and	putting	them	together	
  in	no	particular	order.		Thinking	about	what	
  this	means	and	discovering	that	they	create	
  an entire philosophy, a way of fighting the 
  forces	that	seek	to	drag	us	down	and	wear	us	
  out	until	we’re	helpless	receptors	of	whatever	
  junk	thoughts	they	want	to	beam	our	way.
  This	creative	disorder,	this	rearrangement	
  of	reality	to	force	it	into	making	sense	—	not	
  logic,	but	sense,	smell,	taste,	feel	—	can	render	
  the	violent	banality	of	an	armored	division	
  submissive	to	the	greater	order	of	the	mind,	
  which	can	take	any	pile	of	disparate	ideas	and	
  connect	them.		The	Cut-Ups	change	reality	
  through	the	power	of	this	process	of	fractured	
  and	reassembled	language,	creating	an	ever-
  changing vernacular to challenge the ossified 
  fake-holy	whinnies	of	Control.		We	want	a	real-
  ity	that	gambles,	that	lives	and	dies	on	the	roll	
  of	a	die,	one	of	increasing	velocity	rather	than	
  an infinite slog into the mud of stasis.  It is a 
  birdhouse	velocity.		It	is	Chaos.		We	must	kick	
  the	habit	of	submission,	the	junk	of	unthink-
  ing acceptance that flows through our veins.  
  We	are	the	Chaos	Boys.		We	are	coming	to	a	
  paradigm	near	you.
  Gonna	have	a	funky	good	time.
  
  46	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Optional Cut-Up 
  Rules
  “These	blasted	Cut-Ups	—	I	don’t	—	I	
  can’t	—	how	am	I	supposed	to	—	@#$%	
  them!	@#$%	them!	They	just	don’t	play	
  by	the	rules!”
  —Qiu Jinchu, former Mover operative
  Jinchu	was	entirely	correct;	Cut-Ups	don’t	
  play	by	the	rules.		Name	a	rule	—	from	the	
  laws	of	gravity	to	the	principles	of	good	taste	
  — and you’ll find at least one member of the 
  gang who flouts it entirely.
  Role-playing	games	involve	an	additional	
  layer	of	rules	—	ones	the	characters	aren’t	
  aware	of.		These	are,	of	course,	the	rules	
  mechanics	—	in	this	case,	the	ones	found	in	
  chapters	one	and	seven	of	Over the Edge™.
  If	you	desire,	you	can	reinforce	the	hyper-
  reality	of	the	Cut-Ups	by	using	an	entirely	
  different	system	to	adjudicate	their	attempts	
  to	do	things.		Although	primarily	intended	to	
  be	a	fun	experiment	in	freeform	weirdness,	
  the system might also be of benefit if one of 
  your	players	submits	a	Cut-Up	in	order	to	play	
  a	powergaming	grossity	loaded	with	fringe	
  powers.		He’ll	still	have	his	fringe	powers,	but	
  he’ll	have	to	do	lots	of	thinking	and	roleplaying	
  to	cash	in	on	them.		This	is	assuming	that	a	
  powergaming	Cut-Up	is	a	problem	for	you	—	if	
  it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
  The	following	system	demands	that	you	
  —	and	any	players	with	characters	it	applies	
  to	—	display	a	high	degree	of	free-associative	
  creativity on the fly.  If you’re not comfortable 
  with	the	idea	of	quickly	generating	interest-
  ing	nonlinear	thoughts,	this	system	is	not	for	
  you.		These	rules	may	also	slow	things	down	
  until	you	and	your	players	get	used	to	them;	
  you	might	want	to	hold	off	on	introducing	them	
  until	you	reach	a	session	of	“downtime”	when	
  PCs	are	taking	care	of	business	between	major	
  plotlines.
  If	you	do	try	the	system,	there’s	no	reason	
  why	you	can’t	later	abandon	it	if	you	so	desire	
  —	inconsistency	is	the	Cut-Ups’	middle	name.		
  Well,	actually	their	middle	name	is	a	hyphen,	
  but	if	it	wasn’t...
  Cutting Up
  When I first hit upon the idea of a group 
  designed	to	counteract	all	of	the	rampant	
  power-grabbing	of	other	OTE	conspiracies,	I	
  thought	of	the	work	of	William	S.	Burroughs,	
  one	of	the	many	writers	of	surreal	fantasy	this	
  game	draws	inspiration	from.		After	writing	
  his	seminal	novel	of	disturbing	visions,	Naked 
  Lunch,	Burroughs	went	on	to	puncture	stan-
  dard notions of fictional creation even further 
  by	developing	what	he	called	“the	cutup	meth-
  od.”	Collaborating	with	the	artist/writer	Brion	
  Gysin,	Burroughs	elected	to	construct	narra-
  tives	using	an	essentially	random	process:	he	
  would	go	through	newspapers	and	magazines,	
  cutting	out	words	with	a	pair	of	scissors.		Once	
  he	had	enough	words	to	go	on,	he	would	start	
  to	pull	them	out	of	a	container	in	whatever	
  order	they	came	to	his	hand.		He’d	read	them	
  into	a	tape	recorder.		Later,	listening	to	the	re-
  sults,	he’d	write	words	to	connect	the	randomly	
  chosen	ones	into	meaningful	sentences	—	or	
  fragments	thereof.		The	results	of	this	experi-
  ment	were	the	novels	of	his	“middle	period”	
  in	the	960s,	like	The Ticket that Exploded.		
  These	are	the	least	accessible	of	his	works.		
  Devoid	of	any	distinguishable	plot,	they	consist	
  of	an	unrelenting	barrage	of	shocking,	jar-
  ring	passages	mixing	explicit	sexuality	with	
  scientific speculation and pulp SF imagery.  If 
  your	gaming	tastes	run	to	the	wild	side,	the	
  images	on	even	a	single	page	of	one	of	these	
  books	should	keep	you	in	disturbing	ideas	for	
  months.
  The	cutup	method	was	the	novelistic	
  equivalent	of	Jung’s	investigation	into	syn-
  chronicity.		Burroughs	wasn’t	the	only	creator	
  experimenting	with	the	interface	between	
  random	determination	and	art.		The	composer	
  John	Cage	explored	indeterminacy	within	the	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  47
  classical	music	tradition.		The	earlier	collages	
  of	Dada	visual	artists	like	Max	Ernst	combine	
  seemingly	incompatible	images	scissored	from	
  magazines	into	new	and	radical	pictures.
  With	the	advent	of	RPGs,	the	integration	of	
  random	results	(action	success	determined	by	
  die	roll)	and	traditional	narrative	has	become	a	
  commonplace	activity	for	thousands	of	gamers.		
  Most	would	never	dream	of	calling	themselves	
  artists,	and	would	be	surprised	to	see	a	line	of	
  descent	drawn	from	Jung,	Cage	and	Burroughs	
  to	Gygax,	Stafford	and	Jackson.		The	parallel	
  is	interesting	nonetheless.
  With	the	Cut-Ups	and	their	particular	
  role	in	the	Over the Edge	setting,	you	have	the	
  opportunity	to	close	the	circle	and	apply	Bur-
  roughs’	cutup	method	to	gaming.
  Agents Firing 
  Lifeblood at Danger
  This	subheading	leads	you	to	think	that	
  this section will begin to develop the specifics 
  of	the	Cutup	Method	rules	system.		It	sounds	
  like	combat	will	be	prominent	—	it’s	obviously	
  a violent image, first of all.  It’s clearly about 
  the	Cut-Ups,	as	it	refers	to	agents	—	and	what	
  other	agents	is	this	book	about?	The	image	
  is	an	intriguing	reversal	of	our	usual	notions	
  of fighting — the agents aren’t just passively 
  bleeding,	but	are	shooting	out	their	lifeblood,	
  defiant of danger.  Our Cut-Ups are willing to 
  make the necessary sacrifices to put down the 
  cruel	schemes	of	Control!
  Although	this	is	indeed	the	section	on	
  applying	the	cutup	method	to	gaming	rules,	
  I	didn’t	write	that	vivid	header.		The	forces	
  of synchronicity did.  I just flipped through a 
  book,	stopped	on	random	pages,	and	selected	
  the first major word on each.  No words were 
  discarded;	the	order	they	appear	in	is	the	
  original	one.		Honest!		While	I	can’t	guarantee	
  that	randomness	will	always	come	for	you	as	
  appropriately	as	it	just	did	for	me,	the	cutup	
  method	can	certainly	add	plenty	of	creative	
  disorder	to	your	series!
  The first step is to come up with a suf-
  ficiently large supply of interesting cutups.  
  (Note	that	a	“Cut-Up”	is	a	character	in	an	OTE	
  game,	while	a	cutup	is	a	word	scissored	out	of	
  a	magazine	or	newspaper.)		A	nice	thick	big-
  city	newspaper	is	probably	your	best	bet.		You	
  want	to	cut	out	words	that	are	large	enough	to	
  easily	handle	and	read.		This	usually	means	
  ones	printed	in	a	typeface	at	least	as	large	as	a	
  newspaper	headline.		You’ll	want	a	big	news-
  paper,	or	several	smaller	ones	—	interesting	
  words	in	headlines	turn	out	to	be	harder	to	
  find than you’d think.  Small functional words 
  like	conjunctions	are	of	little	use;	look	for	
  nouns,	verbs,	adjectives,	and	adverbs.		Some	
  proper	names	of	people	and	places	are	okay,	
  but	these	are	typically	the	hardest	to	integrate	
  into a justification (see below), so go easy on 
  them.		Cutting	up	can	be	a	somewhat	tedious	
  process;	nonetheless,	you	should	collect	about	
  twice	as	many	as	you	think	you’ll	need.		To	
  avoid	repetition,	you’ll	want	to	discard	a	cutup	
  once	it’s	been	used	in	play.		If	the	Cut-Ups	
  are	a	regular	feature	of	your	game,	you’ll	go	
  through	them	at	a	surprising	rate,	especially	if	
  one	or	more	PCs	are	members.
  Note:	All	cutups	used	in	examples	in	the	
  following	sections	were	drawn	randomly.		No	
  cutups	were	discarded	or	altered	in	order	to	
  make	the	examples	work	better.
  Traits
  PCs	and	GMCs	meant	to	use	cutup	me-
  chanics	should	be	created	as	described	in	chap-
  ter	one	of	the	OTE	book,	with	the	following	
  exceptions.		Most	notable	is	that	the	number	of	
  dice	rolled	for	traits	become	the	number	of	cut-
  ups	drawn.		For	example,	the	Andalusia	Dog	
  (p.	)	would	get	4	cutups	in	Eavesdropping,		
  in Dogfighting and 3 in Tracking.
  Rather	than	rolling	dice	to	beat	a	set	
  number or difficulty roll, the Cut-Up’s player 
  draws	the	appropriate	number	of	cutups	for	
  the	trait	when	he	puts	it	into	action.		Let’s	
  say	Andy	is	trying	to	eavesdrop	on	Tramh	Le	
  Thuy	(OTE	p.	8)	as	he	chats	with	a	patron	
  
  48	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  at	his	newsstand.		Andy	suspects	that	Le	
  Thuy	is	trying	to	convert	this	patron	to	the	
  cause.		You	as	GM	have	in	fact	decided	that	
  the	transaction	is	completely	innocuous.		Will	
  Andy	hear	the	conversation	correctly	and	
  realize this? You, as usual, decide the diffi-
  culty	factor	for	this	task.		Le	Thuy	is	speaking	
  in	his	usual	low	tones,	always	wary	of	eaves-
  droppers,	so	you	decide	to	roll		dice.		The	
  number	to	beat	is	.
  Let’s	assume	for	the	sake	of	example	that	
  Andy	is	a	PC.	His	player	pulls	four	cutups	
  from the bin.  They say: park, definite, city, 
  and	Arabic.		It	is	now	up	to	the	player	to	put	
  these together into a sentence that justifies 
  his	potential	success	at	the	task.		Andy’s	
  player	thinks	for	a	moment	and	says,	“I	park	
  myself	in	a	location	where	the	sounds	of	the	
  conversation will be definite against the din 
  of	city	noise,	uh,	being	glad	that	they’re	not	
  speaking	Arabic,	which	I	don’t	understand.”
  You	then	decide	how	many	of	the	words	
  are	used	acceptably.		Each	acceptable	word	is	
  the	equivalent	of	a	die	roll	of	5.		Words	that	
  you decide don’t really fit are assigned a value 
  of	.		Degree	of	success	is	then	determined	
  normally.		For	example,	here	the	attempt	
  to	add	the	word	“Arabic”	is	a	real	stretch	
  —	pretty	lame.		But	the	other	three	come	off	
  quite	naturally.		So	the	result	is	a	6.
  For	GMCs,	this	system	won’t	work	—	you	
  can’t both create the justification and then 
  go	on	to	judge	it	objectively.		It’s	also	a	time	
  consuming	approach	to	take	with	supporting	
  characters.		Instead,	look	at	each	word	drawn	
  and	decide	whether	it	has	negative	or	posi-
  tive	connotations.		You	can	come	up	with	an	
  intellectual justification for this, or just go on 
  the first impulse that comes into your head in 
  respect	to	each	word.		Each	positive	word	is	
  worth five; negative words are worth one.
  Let’s	run	the	same	situation	again,	with	
  Andy	back	in	his	usual	role	as	GMC.	He	
  draws the same words — park, definite, city 
  and	Arabic.		Parks	are	positive	—	nice	and	
  green,	associated	with	relaxation	and	fun.		
  Definite is good, connoting clear understand-
  ing.		You’ve	just	moved	to	a	rural	area	to	get	
  away	from	the	smog	and	stress	of	a	big	city,	
  so	the	word	“city”	is	negative	to	you.		(Person-
  ally,	I	love	urban	life,	so	it	would	be	positive	
  to	me;	subjective	response	is	okay	as	long	as	
  you’re	honest	about	it.)	Arabic	is	a	language	
  long	associated	with	literacy	and	scholarly	
  achievement,	so	you	decide	this	word	is	posi-
  tive.		That’s	three	positive	and	one	negative,	
  so	Andy	again	gets	a	6.
  Some	words,	try	as	you	might,	you’ll	be	
  unable	to	wring	any	value	judgments	out	of,	
  good	or	bad.		Count	these	as	neutral	—	they	
  are	worth		points	each.		Let’s	say	you’re	
  unwilling	to	put	a	value	judgment	on	a	real-
  world	culture,	so	you	can’t	say	the	word	“Ara-
  bic”	arouses	either	strictly	positive	or	totally	
  negative	feelings	in	you.		It’s	worth		points.		
  Andy then gets a 12, which ties the difficulty 
  factor.		The	result	is	inconclusive	—	he	thinks	
  Le	Thuy’s	conversation	was	innocent,	but	he’s	
  left	with	a	degree	of	unfounded	suspicion.		
  He’ll	have	to	do	further	investigations	to	clear	
  up	the	question	once	and	for	all.
  You	may	wish	to	use	the	GMC	cutup	
  adjudication	method	for	PCs	in	some	circum-
  stances	—	if	you	want	to	rush	things	along,	or	
  give	an	inexperienced	or	tired	player	a	mental	
  break.		As	in	the	case	of	gestalt	combat,	the	
  decision	as	to	when	to	switch	determination	
  methods	is	entirely	up	to	you.
  This	method	is	also	useful	in	determin-
  ing	the	precise	effects	of	some	Cut-Up	fringe	
  powers.		For	example,	let’s	say	the	Really	
  Quite	Angry	Kid	(p.	5)	is	attempting	to	use	
  her	Sub-Random	Tech	trait	to	design	a	gad-
  get	to	detect	the	presence	of	Control	addicts	
  within	a	0	meter	radius.		You	decide	this	is	
  really difficult, and roll three dice, for a factor 
  of 11.  Her player draws the five cutups in 
  the	trait:	holy,	salmon-feasting,	show,	lifted,	
  and riverfront.  The justification serves not 
  only	to	determine	success	or	failure,	but	to	
  describe	the	details	of	the	result:	“I	construct	
  a	machine	situated	on	the	riverfront;	it	draws	
  in water and ritually purifies it, making it 
  holy,	with	a	robotic	salmon-feasting	bear	in	
  the	center	of	the	font,	lifting	up	a	Control-
  detecting	antenna	with	his	free	paw.”	Since	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  49
  the Kid’s trait description specifies that she 
  can	make	a	device	out	of	just	about	anything,	
  the GM decides to allow all five words, for an 
  impressive	result	of	5.		With	a	fourteen	point	
  spread between the trait and difficulty scores, 
  this	Control	detector	will	work	like	gang-
  busters, flawlessly picking up even magically 
  or	psychically	cloaked	addicts.
  However, the player’s own justification 
  has	also	ended	up	imposing	a	hefty	restric-
  tion:	the	machine	he’s	described	is	obviously	
  rooted	to	one	particular	spot	on	the	riverfront.		
  Even	if	it	was	small	enough	to	move	—	and	it	
  doesn’t	sound	like	it	is	—	it	would	stop	work-
  ing	away	from	the	source	of	water.		This	is	
  much	less	useful	than	the	little	hand	held	
  Control	detector	the	Kid’s	player	was	proba-
  bly hoping for.  Similarly, you’ll find that this 
  method	serves	as	another	check	on	the	open-
  endedness	of	Cut-Up	fringe	powers.
  Flaws
  Those flaws that would carry a die value 
  under	the	usual	OTE	rules	carry	instead	a	
  cutup	value	here.		For	the	sake	of	discussion,	
  we’ll call these “penalty flaws.”  This will dis-
  tinguish them from flaws which would nor-
  mally	not	carry	a	die	value,	which	we’ll	label	
  “diceless flaws.”
  The former category of flaw requires a 
  penalty	roll	in	certain	circumstances.		A	pen-
  alty flaw under the cutup method requires the 
  drawing	of	a	penalty	cutup	under	the	same	
  circumstances.  Assign a difficulty factor to the 
  attempt,	as	usual.		The	player	draws	his	regu-
  lar	number	of	cutups	and	tries	to	construct	a	
  justifying	sentence,	as	explained	above.		The	
  GM	draws	the	penalty	cutup	and	tries	to	think	
  of	a	way	that	this	word	would	counteract	the	
  effects	of	the	justifying	sentence.		If	such	a	way	
  comes	immediately	to	mind,	the	penalty	value	
  is	6.		If	he	takes	more	than	a	minute	to	come	
  up	with	a	countering	effect,	the	value	is	.		If	
  he	can’t	think	of	one	at	all,	the	value	is	.
  Let’s say the flaw is bad body odor.  The 
  PC	is	attempting	to	bluff	her	way	past	snooty	
  maitre	d’	Raoul	Enescu	(OTE	p.	05)	and	get	a	
  table	at	Sequins.		She	has		cutups	in	Confu-
  sion;	her	player	announces	that	she’s	going	to	
  try	to	get	Raoul	so	befuddled	that	he	gives	up	
  and	lets	her	in.		This	is	the	sort	of	social	situ-
  ation	in	which	this	particular	penalty	cutup	
  applies:	the	GM	announces	that	one	will	be	
  applied.		Moreover,	Raoul	is	probably	the	least	
  likely	person	on	the	island	to	forgive	a	nasty	
  smell;	the	GM	decides	the	task	has	a	very	high	
  difficulty factor, 12.
  The	player	draws	his	three	cutups:	stretch,	
  1991, and dream.  His justification sentence: 
  “She	stretches	his	patience	by	telling	him	
  they’ve	met	before	in	a	dream,	back	in	99,	
  which	she	then	goes	on	to	describe	in	loopy	
  detail	—	the	hope	here	is	he’ll	be	so	freaked	
  out	by	this	that	he’ll	give	her	a	table,	just	to	
  get	rid	of	her.”	All	three	words	integrate	well	
  into	the	situation.		This	would	normally	net	a	
  score	of	5.
  But	the	GM	draws	the	penalty	cutup	for	
  the	B.O.:	the	word	“zone.”	This	word	immedi-
  ately	conjures	up	a	negative	result	in	the	GM’s	
  mind,	permeated	as	it	is	by	classic	pop	culture:	
  “Unfortunately,	Raoul	recognizes	many	of	the	
  details	of	the	dream	you	describe	from	an	old	
  Twilight	Zone	episode.		He	signals	to	a	beefy	
  bouncer,	who	is	clearly	coming	over	to	ensure	
  your	departure.”	In	other	words,	he	assigned	
  the	penalty	cutup	a	value	of	6	because	the	
  word	triggered	an	instantaneous	and	appropri-
  ate	response	to	the	situation.		5	minus	6	is	9,	
  far enough below the difficulty roll to justify 
  the	character’s	immediate	ejection	from	the	
  building.
  Flaws	which,	under	the	usual	OTE	me-
  chanics,	don’t	warrant	a	die	value	are	also	
  adjudicated	using	the	cutup	method.		These,	
  however,	apply	instead	to	the	GM’s	plotting	
  process.  Whenever you decide that a flaw 
  should	come	into	play,	draw	a	cutup	from	the	
  bin.		If	the	word	suggests	something	bad	that	
  could	happen	to	the	PC	in	the	course	of	the	
  session,	plan	to	incorporate	it	into	the	game.		If	
  not,	the	PC	gets	off	the	hook	—	at	least	until	
  
  50	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  the next cutup for his flaw is drawn.  Because 
  this	involves	a	certain	amount	of	pre-planning,	
  you’ll	most	likely	want	to	draw	the	cut-up	prior	
  to	each	session.		If	you	need	lots	of	time	to	plan	
  these	things,	draw	the	cutup	for	a	session	at	
  the	end	of	the	last.		If	you	prefer	to	come	up	
  with	things	as	you	go,	do	it	at	the	beginning	of	
  each	session.		Do	so	also	if	you	want	to	give	the	
  PCs	a	bit	of	a	break	—	as	it’s	harder	to	come	
  up	with	a	negative	effect	relating	to	the	word	
  on the spur of the moment, flaws will come into 
  play	less	frequently	if	you	give	yourself	less	
  time	to	think.
  Alternatively,	you	might	have	fun	psyching	
  out players of PCs with diceless flaws.  Have 
  them draw and announce the flaw cutup to the 
  group!	Then	they’ll	be	sweating	over	what	this	
  might	portend	for	their	characters	as	the	game	
  progresses.		Even	if	the	cutup	doesn’t	inspire	
  you	to	do	anything,	they’ll	have	it	in	the	back	
  of	their	minds	for	the	rest	of	the	session.		Their	
  PCs	will	be	looking	over	their	shoulders,	think-
  ing paranoid thoughts about how their flaws 
  might	trip	them	up.		Which,	after	all,	is	what	
  flaws should be all about.
  For example, the Andalusian Dog’s flaw 
  is	No	Thumbs.		Under	the	normal	rules,	this	
  would	cause	him	a	great	deal	of	inconvenience	
  as	he	performs	his	various	missions.		And	it	
  still	will	under	cutup	rules.		But	he	suffers	an	
  additional	disadvantage,	the	periodic	draw-
  ing	of	a	cutup	to	inspire	plot	events	connected	
  to	the	disadvantage.		At	the	end	of	a	session,	
  the	GM	announces	that	Andy’s	player	(we’re	
  back	to	pretending	he’s	a	PC	here)	must	draw	
  a diceless flaw cutup.  He does so: the word is 
  affengeil,	a	German	expletive	referring	to	pri-
  mate	feces.		(I’m	really	sorry	about	this,	folks.		
  But	I	did	promise	above	not	to	discard	or	alter	
  any	actual	cutups	in	the	process	of	writing	
  these	examples.)
  The	GM	then	spends	his	time	between	
  sessions	thinking	of	a	way	to	introduce	this	
  word	into	the	plot	in	a	way	that	challenges	
  Andalusia.		He	comes	up	with	a	death	trap,	in	
  which	Andy	will	be	stuck	in	a	room.		A	chute	
  will	begin	dumping	tons	of...well,	affengeil	into	
  the	room,	threatening	to	suffocate	our	canine	
  hero	in	a	most	humiliating	manner.		The	
  door	is	not	locked	—	no	agent	with	opposable	
  thumbs	would	have	any	problem	escaping	from	
  the trap.  But it’s been designed specifically for 
  Andalusia,	and	he’s	going	to	be	in	big	trouble...
  You’ll	have	noted	that	the	cutup	method	
  makes the effects of flaws on characters more 
  onerous	than	the	standard	rules	do.		This	
  is	because	a	Cut-Up	takes	on	an	additional	
  degree	of	chaos	in	her	life	when	she	signs	onto	
  the	cause.		Cutups	cut	both	ways.		This	incon-
  venient	paradox	is	the	cost	of	doing	business	as	
  a	Chaos	Boy.		(In	game	terms,	this	also	serves	
  to balance out the flexibility of fringe powers 
  typically	adopted	by	the	players	of	Cut-Up	
  characters.)
  Hit Points
  Hit	points	can	be	determined	normally	
  —	as	7	times	the	value	of	the	best	combat-re-
  lated	trait.		Or,	at	her	discretion,	the	player	
  can	draw	a	number	of	cutups	equal	to	the	
  character’s	best	combat	value.
  For	example,	let’s	take	a	character	with		
  cutups	in	a	combat-related	trait.		His	player	
  draws	three	words:	shoot,	diurnal,	and	pushed.		
  She	then	attempts	to	relate	each	word	to	the	
  state	of	her	character’s	health;	based	on	the	
  strength	of	her	arguments,	the	GM	assigns	a	
  value	between		and		to	each	word.		A	neu-
  tral	word	that	just	can’t	be	related	to	physical	
  condition	merits	a	6.		Words	that	suggest	poor	
  health	get	less	than	that;	robust	words	get	
  more.
  The	player	argues	that	“diurnal”	indicates	
  a	guy	who	likes	to	be	out	in	the	sun,	out	of	
  doors	and	keeps	a	regular	sleep	cycle.		The	
  GM	isn’t	convinced	until	the	player	says	that	
  if	she’d	drawn	the	word’s	opposite,	“noctur-
  nal”, she’d definitely get zapped with a low 
  number,	as	the	word	suggests	an	unhealthy	
  lifestyle.		The	GM	agrees	and	awards	her	an	8	
  for	the	moderate	health	it	suggests.		Then	the	
  player	goes	on	to	“pushed”,	explaining	how	it	
  clearly	indicates	good	upper	body	development,	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  which	means	that	her	guy	works	out.		Again,	
  her	reasoning	is	accepted,	and	she’s	awarded	
  another	8.		However,	the	player’s	convoluted	
  explanation	of	how	“shoot”	means	that	the	
  PC	is	fast	and	able	to	duck	blows	fails	to	pass	
  muster	—	the	GM	rules	it	a	neutral	word,	
  worth	only	6.		So	the	character	ends	up	with	
  	hit	points.
  Note	that	two	players	who	draw	the	same	
  cutup	for	hit	point	determination	—	not	a	
  likely	turn	of	events	—	can	wring	a	differ-
  ent	score	out	of	it.		It’s	the	strength	of	the	
  argument	that	counts!	A	player	who	draws	
  “invulnerable”	can	toss	this	amazing	gift	from	
  fortune	away	through	uncreative	argument.		
  Statements	like	“well,	this	one	is	self-explana-
  tory”	should	yield	an	immediate	and	irre-
  vocable	6,	if	that.		Copying	another	player’s	
  argument	is	also	grounds	for	a	low	hit	point	
  award.		(Since	the	hit	point	arguments	may	
  well	be	taking	place	at	the	beginning	of	a	se-
  ries,	you	might	want	to	be	a	little	forgiving	of	
  inexperienced players; this will be their first 
  exposure	to	the	cutup	method.		On	the	other	
  hand,	they’re	taking	a	risk	by	not	accepting	
  the	default	number	of	hit	points,	so	you’re	
  also justified in being pitiless if that’s the way 
  you	want	to	go.)
  Experience Pool
  Each	Cut-Up	character	begins	with	one	
  cutup	in	his	experience	pool.		His	player	draws	
  a specific word at the beginning of the first 
  session.		He	keeps	the	cutup	with	his	notes,	
  waiting	for	a	situation	in	which	it	might	come	
  in	handy.		He	may	use	it	to	substitute	for	any	
  word	he	draws	in	the	course	of	play.		He	is	
  not	required	to	announce	beforehand	that	he	
  wishes	to	use	his	cutup;	he	may	substitute	it	
  after	seeing	a	batch	of	cutups	he	has	drawn.		
  In	order	to	do	so,	he	lays	the	cutup	on	the	
  table.		If	he	misplaces	the	cutup,	he	loses	the	
  use	of	it	until	the	next	session	begins,	when	he	
  is	allowed	to	draw	a	replacement.
  Once	he	uses	an	experience	cutup,	he	
  discards	that	particular	word	and	draws	a	new	
  one.		However,	he	may	not	use	the	new	cutup	
  in	that	session.
  As	a	character	progresses,	he	will	get	more	
  cutups	in	his	experience	pool.		This	means	he	
  can	substitute	one	cutup	for	each	cutup	in	the	
  pool	per	session.		However,	the	player	must	
  keep	careful	track	of	which	of	the	cutups	in	his	
  pool	he	can	currently	use,	i.e.	which	ones	are	
  replacements	for	cutups	already	deployed	in	
  the	session	in	progress.
  PCs	running	under	the	cutup	system	there-
  fore	require	additional	bookkeeping,	drawing	
  up	a	chart	of	their	experience	slots.		Their	
  players	can	do	this	on	a	piece	of	scrap	paper.		
  Let’s look at a sample chart a PC with five 
  cutups	in	his	experience	pool	might	have	at	the	
  beginning	of	a	session:
  	
  Slot	#	—	summer	
  Slot	#	—	period	
  Slot	#	—	Iran	
  Slot	#4	—	numerous	
  Slot	#5	—	friends
  As play unfolds, the PC finds himself in a 
  sticky	situation	with	a	pack	of	Glorious	Lords.		
  He	has	a	4	cutups	in	his	Persuasion	trait.		He	
  tries	to	convince	them	that	he’s	no	threat	to	
  them.		The	player	looks	at	the	four	cutups	he	
  draws, and figures he’d come up with a far bet-
  ter	justifying	sentence	if	he	could	replace	the	
  word	“horse”	with	“friends.”		He	does	so,	tip-
  ping	the	balance	and	getting	a	positive	result.		
  The	Glorious	Lords	not	only	let	him	go	on	his	
  way,	but	invite	him	to	a	party	later.
  He	discards	the	cutup	that	says	“friends”	
  and	draws	another	—	protagonist.		He	amends	
  his	experience	pool	chart	so	it	looks	like	this:
  	
  Slot	#	—	summer	
  Slot	#	—	period	
  Slot	#	—	Iran	
  Slot	#4	—	numerous	
  Slot	#5	—	protagonist	(USED)
  
  5	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  He marks slot number five as used, be-
  cause	that’s	where	he	got	the	experience	cutup	
  he	just	deployed.		That	slot	is	now	closed	to	
  him	for	the	duration	of	the	current	session.		It	
  becomes	active	again	at	the	beginning	of	the	
  next	session	—	after	that	point	he	can	substi-
  tute	the	word	“protagonist”	for	any	cutup	he	
  draws.		Until	then,	he	can	still	use	any	of	the	
  words	in	the	other	four	slots	at	any	point	dur-
  ing	the	current	game.
  You	may	reject	the	above	bookkeeping	
  system	on	the	grounds	that	it	is	too	much	of	a	
  bother.		However,	it	is	included	to	balance	the	
  extra	control	one	gets	from	an	experience	cut-
  up	as	opposed	to	an	experience	die.		After	all,	
  players	don’t	know	what	the	result	of	a	die	roll	
  will	be	in	advance,	and	aren’t	even	guaranteed	
  a	good	roll.		A	cutup,	however,	can	be	thought	
  about	in	advance	to	maximize	its	effectiveness.
  If	you	decide	to	ignore	the	slot	system,	you	
  might	therefore	wish	to	restrict	the	useful-
  ness	of	experience	cutups.		Make	them	more	
  directly	analogous	to	experience	dice	—	the	
  player	announces	in	advance	of	a	trait	attempt	
  that	he	wishes	to	use	one.		He	then	draws	an	
  extra	cutup	and	is	allowed	to	discard	one	at	no	
  penalty.		This	makes	experience	cutups	less	
  influential on the game — and commensurate-
  ly	less	creative.		Personally,	I’d	prefer	the	slot	
  approach,	but	it’s	your	call.
  Experience	cutups	can	be	converted	to	trait	
  cutups	just	as	experience	dice	can	be	turned	
  into	trait	dice.		Substitute	the	word	“cutup”	for	
  “dice”	in	the	discussion	of	experience,	OTE	p.	
  0.
  The Hand of Fate
  Cutups	can	also	be	a	GM’s	tool	to	make	
  random	decisions.		If	he	wants	to	decide	the	
  result	of	something	in	which	skill	plays	no	role	
  —	like	what	the	weather	will	be	like	on	the	day	
  that	a	PC	has	scheduled	a	date	in	the	park.		
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  5
  Draw	a	cutup	—	let’s	say	it’s	“include.”	First,	
  see	if	you	can	think	of	a	way	that	this	word	
  would	relate	to	a	weather	pattern	if	it	does,	
  that’s	what	the	weather	turns	out	to	be	like.		If	
  the	word	drawn	had	been	“watery”,	the	result	
  would	be	obvious	—	a	downpour.
  In	this	case,	I	draw	a	blank	after	several	
  seconds	of	trying	to	associate	the	two.		So	
  I	move	on	to	method	number	two,	deciding	
  whether	the	word	has	a	negative	or	positive	
  connotation.		Because	of	my	personal	political	
  beliefs,	the	word	“inclusion”	strikes	a	pleas-
  ing	note,	so	I	decide	that	the	result	is	positive.		
  Our	hero	will	get	good	weather	for	his	date.
  You	can	also	use	this	method	to	determine	
  degree	of	result.		How	positive	a	word	is	it?	
  “Include”	isn’t	a	particularly	dynamic	or	vivid	
  word,	so	I	decide	the	weather	is	okay	but	not	
  exceptional	—	mild,	but	a	little	bit	overcast.
  Optional Optional 
  Rules
  For	those	of	you	who	wish	to	pile	confusion	
  on	top	of	disorder,	here	are	some	rules	for	ex-
  treme	successes	and	failures.		You	can	impose	
  these	whenever	you	wish.		If	only	some	of	your	
  PCs	are	Cut-Ups,	and	you	use	the	optional	
  rules	on	p.	0	of	OTE,	the	others	may	feel	
  disadvantaged	if	you	don’t	apply	these	as	well.		
  Or	they	might	be	grateful.		Play	it	by	ear.
  I’d	advise	waiting	until	the	basic	cutup	
  method	is	working	smoothly	before	introducing	
  them,	if	at	all.
  Botches
  A	player	who	is	unable	to	apply	any	of	his	
  cutup	words	to	a	justifying	sentence	that	meets	
  your	approval	has	botched.		The	result	is	the	
  same	as	in	a	standard	botch	—	not	only	does	
  the	result	fail,	but	something	bad	happens	as	a	
  result.
  If	you	want	to	be	especially	cruel,	you	can	
  taunt	the	player	by	choosing	the	bad	result	on	
  the	basis	of	the	words	he	was	unable	to	use.
  For	example,	Arthur	Pendrick	is	trying	to	
  break	through	a	locked	door.		He	gets	two	cut-
  ups	—	stream	and	greater.		His	player	draws	
  a	blank:	“Oh,	man,	uh,	the	greater	a	stream	
  is	the	more	it	wants	me	to	break	down	doors,	
  I	dunno.”		You	rule	that	his	statement	makes	
  no	sense	whatsoever	and	declare	it	a	botch,	
  replying:	“An	incredible	stream	of	water	comes	
  bursting	through	the	door	from	the	other	
  side,	with	greater	force	than	you	would	have	
  thought	imaginable.		It	smashes	you	down	
  the	corridor.		Do	you	have	a	trait	that	would	
  help	you	defend	against	being	damaged	by	the	
  impact?		If	so,	roll	it.”
  Note	that,	due	to	the	unpredictability	of	
  free-associative	thinking,	cutup	botches	are	
  likely	to	be	more	extreme	than	standard	issue	
  ones.		Here,	Pendrick	is	not	only	at	risk	for	
  drowning	and	impact	damage,	but	the	room	he	
  wanted	to	enter	turns	out	to	be	full	of	water,	
  which	means	that	any	clues	may	be	water-
  logged	beyond	recognition.		(Later	the	GM	
  figures out what happened — the coral entities 
  who	built	the	airport	made	a	wee	teleport	error	
  and flooded a room miles away instead of their 
  aquarium	in	the	terminal.)
  Blowing the Top Off
  If a player successfully justifies all of his 
  cutups	in	an	especially	elegant	way,	you	may	
  rule	that	he’s	on	a	roll.		He	may	therefore	
  select	another	cutup	and	attempt	to	add	it	to	
  his existing justification.  If he does this well, 
  he	may	keep	going,	racking	up	an	additional	5	
  points	of	success	for	each	consecutive	cutup	he	
  can	add	to	the	mix.		As	soon	as	he	hits	one,	he	
  stops drawing further cutups.  His final score 
  equals	the	number	of	cutups	he	managed	to	
  successfully include times five.
  Let’s	use	the	same	example	of	Pendrick	
  and	the	door,	with	the	cutups	stream	and	
  greater.  The player comes up with a justifica-
  tion	which	goes	like	this:	“With	greater	con-
  
  54	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  centration	than	he	has	ever	before	exerted,	
  Pendrick	feels	his	body	streamlining	itself	for	
  the	ultimate	blow	against	the	door.”		If	you’re	
  feeling	picky,	you	might	want	to	disallow	the	
  use	of	“stream”	as	part	of	a	compound	word.		
  But	the	GM	is	in	an	expansive	mood	and	not	
  only	approves	it	but	thinks	the	sentence	so	el-
  egant	that	he	tells	Pendrick’s	player	he’s	blown	
  the	top	off.		Time	to	draw	another	cutup.
  The	cutup	drawn:	whales.		The	player	
  continues:	“With	greater	concentration	than	
  he	has	ever	before	exerted,	Pendrick	feels	
  his	body	streamlining	itself	for	the	ultimate	
  blow	against	the	door,	ready	with	the	force	
  of	a	dozen	killer	whales.”	The	GM	rules	this	
  successful	too,	so	another	cutup	is	selected	
  —	rabbits.		Pendrick’s	player	thinks,	laughs,	
  and admits he’s stumped.  So the final score is 
  5.		That’s	still	a	very	good	score	—	the	door	
  easily	pings	off	its	hinges,	not	even	bruising	
  Pendrick’s	shoulder.
  Group Efforts
  The	various	categories	of	group	effort	as	
  described	on	p.		of	OTE	apply	to	the	cutup	
  method	as	well.		When	a	character	operating	
  under	these	rules	cooperates	with	one	operat-
  ing	under	the	standard	rules,	determine	the	
  Cut-Up’s	success	score	as	explained	above.		
  Then	determine	the	non-Cut-Up’s	rolled	score.
  In	simple	addition	cases,	simply	add	the	
  two	scores.
  In	combined	dice	cases,	keep	track	of	the	
  values	assigned	to	each	cutup	drawn.		Look	
  at	each	die	rolled	by	the	standard	character.		
  Take	the	best	numbers,	as	many	as	the	trait	
  of	the	best-rolling	(or	drawing)	character.		For	
  example,	the	Cut-Up	Doc	Cross	(see	p.	)	is	in	
  deadline	trouble	with	his	latest	writing	project:	
  Tiffany Trilobite, the Role-playing Game.		Doc	
  is	way	behind	since	he’s	been	busy	busting	a	
  Mover cell; the difficulty roll to finish in time 
  to	avoid	royalty	penalties	is	a	toughie,	7.		He	
  asks	a	pal,	not	a	Cut-Up,	to	help	him	by	writ-
  ing	some	sidebars.		Doc	has	5	cutups	in	Game	
  Writing,	his	friend	the	default	value	of		dice.		
  Doc’s	player	successfully	incorporates	three	of	
  his	cutups	into	the	description	of	his	writing	
  process;	the	other	two	are	ruled	lame.		This	is	
  the	equivalent	of	a	5,	5,	5,	,		combination.		
  The	pal’s	is	a	GMC,	so	the	GM	rolls	for	him	
  —	a	6	and	.		Doc’s	player	replaces	one	of	his	
  s	with	the	pal’s	6,	for	a	total	of	.		Yet	again	
  he	manages	to	squeak	through	and	get	the	
  manuscript	to	his	publisher	on	time.
  In	either/or	cases,	determine	the	result	
  for	both.		Roll	a	die.		On	an	even	number,	the	
  standard	character’s	score	is	used.		The	Cut-
  Up,	of	course,	is	odd.
  For	cases	in	which	the	worst	roll	should	
  apply,	use	the	lower	value	of	the	two.
  Group	efforts	are	more	complicated	when	
  two	Cut-Ups	get	together:	coordination	of	en-
  deavor	is	not	their	strong	suit.
  Simple Addition	—	Each	player	draws	
  cutups and devises a justification.  However, 
  if the two justifications — while making sense 
  individually	—	don’t	mesh,	the	GM	may	assess	
  a	penalty	die	on	the	action.
  For	example,	Pere	and	Claus	Brinker	are	
  both	attempting	to	move	a	large	stone	that’s	
  blocking	their	progress	in	a	tunnel	—	a	roll	
  of	thirteen	is	necessary	to	move	it.		Both	get	
  two	cutups	in	brute	strength.		Pere’s	player	
  draws	“evolved”	and	“pictures.”	Claus	draws	
  “planned”	and	“preservation.”	Both	characters	
  decide	to	use	mental	visualization	techniques	
  to	give	themselves	an	edge.		“I	create	men-
  tal pictures of early man as he first evolved, 
  imagining	myself	a	powerful	brute	needing	
  to	master	my	environment	to	survive,”	Pere’s	
  player justifies.  Claus’ says, “I think that, 
  I’m	like	an	archaeologist,	who’s	planned	the	
  preservation	of	this	tunnel	site	for	years,	and	
  knows	the	precise,	like,	physics	of	how	you	
  go	about	moving	a	rock	with	the	minimum	
  of	force.”	Both	approaches	are	neat,	the	GM	
  thinks,	but	as	usual	Pere	and	Claus	are	tak-
  ing	opposite	means	to	the	same	end.		Though	
  their	combined	score	would	have	been	0	—	5	
  for	each	cutup,	the	GM	rolls	a	penalty	die.		It	
  comes	out	a	5,	so	there	is	no	change.		But	the	
  incompatibility	of	approach	will	no	doubt	give	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  55
  Pere	and	Claus	something	to	bicker	about	as	
  they	continue	on	their	way	down	the	tunnel.
  Combining Dice	—	Players	draw	cutups	
  as	usual.		However,	they	may	switch	them	
  from	one	player	to	another	—	as	long	as	each	
  is	using	the	number	of	cutups	dictated	by	the	
  trait.		Only	the	most	successful	score	is	used	
  — it already includes the benefits of group ef-
  fort.
  Pere	and	Claus	are	searching	through	a	
  captured	neo-Nazi	computer	for	a	bit	of	crucial	
  information — finding it in time requires beat-
  ing a difficulty of 12.  Pere gets three cutups, 
  Claus	two.		Pere’s	player	gets	“among,”	“wild”,	
  and	“Koonwarra.”		Claus’s	gets	“dinosaur”	
  and	“birds.”	After	a	bit	of	conferring,	cutups	
  are exchanged.  Pere’s justification: “Though 
  this	old	database	program	is	among	the	most	
  notorious	dinosaurs	of	the	computer	indus-
  try,	I	cut	through	its	outdated	code	with	wild	
  inspiration.” Claus’ justification: “I remember 
  hiking	through	the	Australian	town	of	Koon-
  warra,	looking	for	rare	birds,	who	explained	
  the	search	function	of	this	program	to	me.”	The	
  GM	rules	that	all	of	Pere’s	cutups	pass,	and	
  neither	of	Claus’	do.		But	Claus’	failure	mat-
  ters	little,	since	he	gave	a	usable	word	to	Pere,	
  who	used	it	to	boost	his	score	to	5.		If	he’d	
  been	saddled	with	the	impossible	“Koonwarra”	
  he’d	only	have	rated	an	.
  Either/Or	—	Each	player	constructs	a	jus-
  tification from his cutups.  Select the sentence 
  that	best	applies	to	the	situation,	regardless	of	
  its	point	value.
  Worst Roller	—	Each	player	draws	the	
  requisite	number	of	cutups.		These	are	all	laid	
  out	face-up	on	the	table.		The	players	are	then	
  given	a	minute	or	so	to	look	at	them	and	decide	
  on	the	ideal	sentence	containing	their	proper	
  number	of	cutups.		The	GM	counts	down	to	
  three,	at	which	point	each	player	attempts	to	
  grab	the	cutups	he	wants.		Any	cutups	which	
  are torn or severely crumpled (you define 
  “crumpled”)	in	this	process	carry	a	value	of		
  and needn’t be incorporated into the justifica-
  tion.		Players	may	not	speak	to	one	another	
  between	the	drawing	of	the	cutups	and	the	
  conclusion	of	the	countdown	—	no	agreements	
  as	to	who	grabs	what	are	permitted!
  Combat
  Two	hardened	men	of	arms	face	each	other	
  on the dusty field of battle.  Each knows he 
  must	destroy	the	other	if	he	is	to	survive.		One	
  reaches	to	his	side,	producing	a	cup	full	of	cut-
  ups for the other man to dip his fingers into.
  “Them’s fightin’ words,” the other man 
  says,	with	grudging	admiration.
  Movement
  Combat	movement	for	Cut-Ups	is	as	given	
  on	p.		of	OTE.		Use	of	fringe	powers	may	
  alter	these	in	certain	circumstances.
  Initiative
  When the fight begins, each player draws 
  cutups	for	initiative.		Use	whatever	traits	are	
  appropriate	—	Speedy,	Agile,	Guerrilla	Train-
  ing,	whatever.		Lacking	any	such	trait,	draw	
  two	cutups.
  The	players	must	construct	a	justifying	
  sentence	to	explain	why	they’re	faster	than	
  anyone	else.		As	usual,	well-used	words	merit	
  5	points	each,	lame	ones		point.		For	example,	
  Claus	Brinker	gets	four	cutups	for	initiative:	
  writer,	president,	nervous,	netherworld.		His	
  justification: “My fists are faster than the 
  heartbeat	of	the	president	of	the	local	writer’s	
  club	as	he	meets	Mark	Twain	in	the	nether-
  world.”	That’s	four	for	four,	an	initiative	roll	of	
  0.
  For	GMCs,	use	the	negative/positive	con-
  notation	method	to	arrive	at	an	initiative	score	
  —	p.	48.
  Rounds
  The	cutup	rules	use	the	same	round	system	
  as	p.		of	OTE.
  
  56	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Attacks
  A	Cut-Up	attacks	and	defends	with	the	un-
  predictability	of	the	truly	crazed.		The	player	
  of	an	attacking	Cut-Up	draws	the	appropriate	
  number	of	cutups,	and	tries	to	put	them	into	a	
  sentence	describing	his	attack.		Claus	Brinker,	
  having won the initiative in his fight with a 
  Glorious	Lord,	attacks	with	four	cutups:	lyri-
  cal,	characters,	north,	going.
  His justification: “With lyrical grace, like 
  the characters in a Hong Kong sci-fi flick, I am 
  going	to	kick	this	guy	north	of	unconscious-
  ness.”
  The	GM	rules	that	Claus	has	gotten	an-
  other	four	for	four,	or	0	points.		The	Lord	rolls	
  a	defense	of	4,	and	therefore	suffers	6	points	
  of	damage.		Now	he’s	mad;	he	dives	at	Claus,	
  wielding	a	broken	bottle.
  His	attack	roll	is	impressive,	a	6.		Claus	
  draws	another	four	cutups	for	his	defense:	Fili-
  pino,	luxury,	between,	winter.		This	time	an	
  elegant	response	isn’t	so	easy:	“My	speed	gives	
  me	the	luxury	of	moving	between	his	thrusts;	
  he	is	surprised	like	a	Filipino	in	the	winter.”	
  The	GM	rules	that	the	Filipino	in	the	winter	
  business	makes	no	particular	sense,	so	Claus’	
  score	is	only	a	.		Taking	the	satanist’s	dam-
  age	bonus	into	account,	Claus	suffers	8	points	
  of	damage.		He	hopes	for	some	dynamic	verbs	
  for	his	next	attack...
  Again,	GMC	Cut-Ups	should	attack	and	
  defend	with	the	positive/negative	connotation	
  method,	which	is	easier	to	run.		Just	using	
  the	regular	rules	for	GMCs	is	easier	still.		But	
  if	you	want	to	vividly	depict	the	weirdness	of	
  fighting a Cut-Up, there’s no reason to say you 
  can’t use justifications as your descriptions of 
  what	she’s	doing	to	a	PC:	“Making	observa-
  tions	about	how	she	admires	Algerian	torture	
  technique,	she	draws	the	snapping	turtle	from	
  her	rucksack	and...”	You’d	be	rolling	normally	
  or	using	the	connotation	method	(since	you	
  can’t judge your own justifications) while still 
  creating	the	atmosphere	of	free-associative	
  strangeness.
  Predictable Attacks
  Taxed by the justification requirement, 
  Cut-Up	combatants	are	unlikely	to	come	up	
  with	a	predictable	attack.		Poorly	integrated	
  words	carry	more	of	a	disadvantage	than	your	
  average	penalty	die	anyway.
  Damage, Armor, Firearms and 
  More
  Any	section	of	the	combat	system	not	men-
  tioned	here	works	just	as	it	does	in	the	Over 
  the Edge	rulebook.
  Other Randomness
  As a GM, you’ll find uses for cutups that go 
  beyond	judging	the	success	of	Cut-Up	actions.		
  I	always	keep	a	means	of	accessing	random	
  words nearby.  With the fluidity of the Edge 
  as	a	setting	you’ll	never	know	when	you’ll	be	
  caught	out	for	an	answer	to	a	question.		PCs	
  can	roam	about	at	will,	and	eventually	they’re	
  going	to	go	somewhere	you	know	nothing	
  about,	or	approach	a	bystander	you	haven’t	
  given	Thought	One	to.		Cutups	are	a	great	
  source	of	instant	inspiration.
  For	example,	the	PCs	manage	to	capture	a	
  goon after a fight with a group of unknown op-
  ponents.		You	hadn’t	counted	on	a	live	capture,	
  and	don’t	know	anything	about	this	guy	except	
  for	his	combat	stats	and	the	fact	that	he	was	
  hired	by	Sir	Arthur	Compton,	who	he’s	never	
  met.		The	PCs	want	to	interrogate	him.		Now,	
  you	can	play	him	as	your	standard	thug	from	
  central	casting	—	dumb	and	hostile.		But	that	
  still	doesn’t	give	you	much	to	go	on,	and	your	
  players	all	want	to	ask	him	questions.		You	
  don’t	have	much	time	to	think.		Can	you	lift	
  this	typical	genre	scene	from	the	routine?
  Draw	a	cutup	or	two	to	trigger	some	in-
  stant	associations.		Let’s	say	you	draw	“mili-
  tary.”		That	conjures	up	a	past	for	the	man	
  —	he’s	spent	some	time	in	the	military	so	
  he’s	capable	of	basic	discipline	and	probably	
  isn’t	your	complete	incompetent.		He’s	fallen	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  57
  on	hard	times,	you	think,	as	you	continue	to	
  speculate	off	the	cuff,	but	he	still	has	more	
  self-respect	than	the	cliché	thug.		How	is	he	
  going	to	react	to	his	present	circumstances?	
  He’ll	think	about	himself	as	a	prisoner	of	war,	
  and	consider	it	a	matter	of	honor	not	to	reveal	
  anything	about	his	employer.		With	this	in	
  mind,	you	have	a	mental	coat	hook	on	which	
  to	hang	the	answer	to	any	question	from	his	
  haircut	(close-cropped)	to	what	he	was	doing	
  in	974	(covert	missions	in	Laos).
  The	cutup	process	might	cause	you	to	
  revise earlier assumptions.  You’d figured 
  before	that	he	wouldn’t	know	anything	about	
  Compton,	but	the	character	you’ve	just	in-
  stantly	developed	seems	to	have	more	on	the	
  ball than he did at first thought.  Maybe he 
  has	a	position	of	responsibility	in	Compton’s	
  organization;	if	he	won’t	give	out	information,	
  maybe	his	return	could	be	made	a	bargain-
  ing	chip.		Which	might	lead	to	a	negotiation	
  with	Compton	or	one	of	his	bennies,	which	
  in	turn	might	lead	to...who	knows?		If	you	
  get	stuck,	you	can	always	pull	out	another	
  cutup	for	inspiration.		This	method	can	help	
  free	up	your	plotting	process,	allowing	you	to	
  think of the elements of your storyline as fluid 
  and	indeterminate	until	they	are	revealed	to	
  the	players.		This	way	of	thinking	helps	you	
  punch	up	story	elements	as	you	remain	open	
  to	ideas	throughout	the	game,	adapting	your	
  prior	plans	in	progress.
  One	area	in	which	cutups	are	invaluable	
  whether	your	PCs	are	Cut-Ups	or	not	is	the	
  airport	terminal,	especially	when	they’re	wan-
  dering	about	without	a	guide.		Whenever	they	
  open	a	door,	draw	a	cutup	to	decide	what’s	on	
  the other side of it.  Because what one finds 
  in	the	airport	depends	on	one’s	mental	state,	
  you’ll	want	to	connect	the	cutup	to	the	theme	
  of	the	character’s	current	adventure.
  For	example,	our	PC	is	a	shady	type	in	
  the	midst	of	a	scheme	to	rip	off	a	religious	
  pilgrimage.		He’s	trying	to	follow	his	marks	
  through	the	terminal,	but	gets	lost.		You	tell	
  the	player	there’s	a	choice	of	two	doors.		Actu-
  ally,	it	doesn’t	matter	which	one	he	picks,	
  because	you	haven’t	yet	decided	what’s	be-
  hind	either.		He	selects	one	and	his	character	
  walks	through	it.		You	draw	the	cutup	“cloud.”	
  This,	coupled	with	the	theme	of	the	story,	
  puts	you	in	mind	of	cloud	nine,	or	heaven.		
  The character finds himself in a vast expanse 
  of	white,	with	no	doors	—	or	walls	even	—	in	
  sight.		A	disembodied	voice	begins	to	upbraid	
  him for his spiritual deficiencies, booming, 
  “YOU	ARE	NOT	READY	YET.”		Until	he	
  gives	the	right	responses	to	the	mystery	voice,	
  he will not find an exit from the room.  This 
  gives	you	and	the	player	a	chance	for	an	inter-
  esting	character	development	scene,	turning	
  an	ostensibly	random	room	in	the	ever-shift-
  ing	labyrinth	of	the	terminal	into	a	fun	side-
  light	on	the	main	story.
  Should you ever find yourself at a loss for 
  a	plot,	cutups	can	serve	as	a	useful	trigger	to	
  creativity.		Just	draw	three	or	four	cutups	and	
  see	what	thoughts	they	can	inspire.		Here	are	
  just	two	ways	to	do	this:
  Use	the	cutups	as	elements	in	a	title.		
  Let’s	say	you’ve	drawn	bedroom,	welcomed,	
  vicious	and	possession.		String	them	together	
  into	a	title	phrase:	Welcomed	to	the	Vicious	
  Bedroom	of	Possession.		Now,	this	is	not	
  the	most	euphonious	of	titles,	but	that’s	not	
  the	point.		Come	up	with	a	story	to	match	
  it.		“Welcomed”	and	“bedroom”	suggest	that	
  victims	are	being	lured	to	something	with	a	
  promise	of	sexual	adventure.		The	something	
  is	clearly	bad,	given	the	presence	of	“vicious.”	
  “Possession”	is	the	key,	the	thing	that	takes	
  what	could	be	a	mere	criminal	plot	and	turns	
  it	into	the	sort	of	journey	into	uncanny	that	
  makes	an	OTE	adventure.		A	squadron	of	
  aliens	—	let’s	call	them	the	Lecwedmo	—	have	
  crash-landed	on	Mt.	Ralsius,	and	their	bodies	
  are	rapidly	oxidizing	in	Earth’s	atmosphere.		
  With	their	heightened	psychic	powers,	they	
  can	project	a	desirable	image	to	people	look-
  ing	for	casual	encounters.		What	these	dupes	
  don’t	know	is	the	unique	consequence	of	
  Lecwedmo	orgasm	—	they	swap	bodies	with	
  their	partners!		The	Lecwedmo	enjoy	the	
  healthy	human	bodies	as	their	victims	rapidly	
  corrode.		Now	they	can	continue	their	original	
  plan,	hunting	down	their	mortal	enemies,	the	
  
  58	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Finally,	“learning”	—	combining	this	idea	
  with	the	psychological	strangeness	of	Al	Ama-
  rja,	I	think	of	an	experimental	learning	center	
  where	oppenheimers	inject	volunteer	guinea	
  pigs	with	“smart	drugs”	and	then	test	them	for	
  increased	learning	potential.
  Now	all	we	have	to	do	is	connect	these	four	
  scenes	into	a	coherent	storyline.		It’s	usually	
  best	to	do	this	backwards,	coming	up	with	
  the explanation for the final scene and then 
  linking	it	to	previous	ones.		We’ve	already	
  established	Movers	as	the	group(s)	behind	
  this	caper.		The	learning	experiment	seems	
  a	natural	for	Gladsteins.		Let’s	say	that	their	
  experimental	serum	also	contains	a	mind-con-
  trol	drug	conceived	to	turn	users	into	sleeper	
  agents	for	the	Gladsteins.
  Why	is	a	living	girl	giving	off	ghostly	
  emanations?	Because	the	drug	is	boosting	her	
  latent	psychic	abilities.		Her	concerned	subcon-
  scious, fighting off the mind-control effect, is 
  reaching	out	for	someone	to	expose	the	Glad-
  stein	plot.
  Why then is one Mover group opening fire 
  on	another?	Because	the	guinea	pigs	are	giving	
  off	psychic	interference	which	is	messing	up	
  the	plans	of	the	psi-power	wing	of	the	Vornites.		
  It’s	also	rendered	them	violently	unstable,	
  ready	to	use	crazed	brute	force	in	the	place	of	
  their	characteristic	subtlety.
  Now	you	have	a	complete	plot	ready	to	
  unleash,	all	spurred	by	four	random	words	and	
  a	few	moments’	thought.
  Kergillians.		Now	all	you	have	to	do	is	come	
  up	with	ways	to	involve	your	particular	PCs	
  in	this	mess.		They	can	be	tracking	an	enemy	
  who,	unknown	to	them,	has	been	possessed.		
  They	can	be	hired	to	search	for	a	missing	
  person	last	seen	in	the	presence	of	his	dream	
  date.		Or	maybe	the	dream	date	story	makes	
  a	Sandman	or	fringe	oppenheimer	character	
  think	“tulpa”	and	start	to	hunt	them	for	their	
  Dreamweb.		You	can	doubtless	come	up	with	
  other	openings.		(Incidentally,	the	adventures	
  in	this	book	were	initially	inspired	by	this	
  method.)
  The	second	way	to	plot	with	cutups	is	to	
  use	each	word	drawn	as	the	basis	for	a	pivotal	
  scene	in	the	story.		You	then	create	the	plot	by	
  connecting	the	dots	and	coming	up	with	a	way	
  that each scene would flow into the other in a 
  believable	progression.
  Here	we	draw	between,	manifestation,	
  alive,	and	learning.		What	scene	does	each	in-
  dividual	word	bring	to	mind?		Between	makes	
  me	think	of	two	powerful	forces	at	work,	with	
  the	characters	in	the	middle.		Let’s	say	a	war	
  erupts	between	two	Mover	cells	—	one	group	
  pops up at an outdoor cafe to fire a crossbow 
  fusillade	at	the	other	cell.		The	PCs	happen	
  along	and	end	up	in	the	middle	of	the	fracas.		
  The	mover	groups	split	before	the	peace	force	
  arrives,	and	the	PCs	are	apprehended	and	
  blamed	—	but	given	a	chance	to	clear	their	
  names.		(Actually	the	Peace	Force	are,	as	
  usual,	trying	to	get	someone	else	to	do	their	
  dirty	work	for	them	so	they	can	step	in	when	
  the	danger	has	passed	and	take	the	credit	with	
  their	superiors.)
  Next	word,	separate	scene:	manifestation.		
  At	some	point	in	their	legwork,	the	PCs	come	
  across a spectral figure.  She claims to be a 
  ghost	and	gives	them	valuable	information	
  that	will	eventually	lead	them	to	the	strong-
  hold	of	one	of	the	Mover	cells.
  Then	comes	“alive.”	Coupled	with	the	last	
  scene,	this	suggests	a	twist.		A	PC	happens	to	
  come	across	the	young	woman	who	appeared	to	
  them	as	a	ghost	—	but	surprisingly	she	is	very	
  much alive, nibbling on a pumpkin bran muffin 
  at	a	coffee	shop	on	the	university	campus.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  59
  Cut-Up 
  Technology
  “Every	great	advance	in	science	has	
  issued	from	a	new	audacity	of	imagina-
  tion.”
  —John Dewey
  Tech	devices	used	by	the	Cut-Ups	are	ex-
  clusively	designed	by	The	Really	Quite	Angry	
  Kid,	though	this	might	change	if	your	group	
  includes	a	PC	oppenheimer	who	chooses	to	join	
  the	gang.		All	of	these	devices	are	therefore	
  constructed	according	to	the	otherworldly	prin-
  ciples	of	sub-random	tech	—	see	p.	5.		This	
  means	that	they	are	inexplicable	to	normal	
  science.		It	is	generally	impossible	for	even	the	
  Kid	to	tinker	with	them	once	they’re	construct-
  ed;	any	rearrangement	of	their	constituent	
  parts	will	render	them	nonfunctional.		Even	
  if	a	sub-random	tech	device	is	reassembled	in	
  exactly	the	same	form	as	its	original	construc-
  tion,	it	will	either	cease	to	work,	or	—	if	re-
  paired by a qualified SR technician — abandon 
  its	old	function	to	do	something	entirely	new.
  Sub-random	tech	is	different	from	sci-
  ence	and	even	most	forms	of	magic	in	that	its	
  results	are	always	entirely	anomalous	—	they	
  can’t	be	repeated.		No	two	SR	devices	are	alike,	
  even	if	constructed	using	an	identical	method	
  by	the	same	individual.		This	is	because	their	
  function	is	tied	to	the	precise	time	of	its	cre-
  ation.		SR	gear	follows	temporary	physical	
  laws	determined	by	the	exact	amount	of	cha-
  otic flux in the interplanar connective tissue 
  at this time.  Chaotic flux being what it is, it 
  never	generates	the	same	temporary	physics	
  twice.		(Actually	the	Kid	has	theorized	that	
  
  60	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  this	cannot	be	quite	true,	because	this	would	
  then	be	consistent.		But	let’s	not	get	into	that.		
  She’s	also	been	known	to	claim	that	SR	de-
  vices	are	sentient	in	some	limited	senses	of	the	
  word,	but	don’t	communicate	with	us	because	
  they	have	nothing	interesting	to	say.)
  At	any	rate,	the	unrepeatable	nature	of	
  sub-random	invention	means	that	one	must	
  be	extremely	careful	with	these	gadgets.		Once	
  they’re	damaged,	they’re	impossible	to	replace.		
  Sometimes	the	Kid	can	build	another	machine	
  to	do	essentially	the	same	thing	as	a	broken	
  one, but its physical configuration will always 
  be	different.		You	don’t	want	to	break	a	tracer	
  device that fits in a lapel pin if you know the 
  next	model	might	be	the	size	of	a	pygmy	hippo.		
  Unfortunately,	it	is	not	in	the	nature	of	Cut-
  Ups	to	be	careful	with	equipment.		And	the	
  Kid’s	devices	are	usually	made	of	such	bizarre	
  substances	as	to	positively	encourage	break-
  age.		True	Cut-Ups	bear	the	resulting	incon-
  veniences	with	good	humor	—	after	all,	only	a	
  control	freak	would	mourn	the	inevitable	loss	
  of	a	few	material	toys.
  Because	of	this	frequent	turnover	in	their	
  gadget	locker,	there	is	little	point	in	providing	
  a	long	list	of	Cut-Up	tech	items	—	they’ll	prob-
  ably	be	broken	and	replaced	by	the	time	this	
  book	ships	to	its	distributors.		However,	the	
  one	central	device	in	their	arsenal,	the	Cut-Up	
  Machine,	warrants	discussion.		A	few	other	
  instruments	are	provided	as	examples.
  The Cut-Up Machine
  Capabilities:	The	Cut-Up	machine	is	the	
  court	of	last	resort	when	a	longtime	conspiracy	
  finally makes its move and convincingly seizes 
  control	of	world	civilization.		It	can	retroac-
  tively	reorder	reality,	returning	the	correct	
  measure	of	chaos	to	the	power	equation.
  It	is	powered	by	humanity’s	most	power-
  ful	weapon	—	the	word.		Written	words	in	any	
  language	—	in	the	forms	of	books,	magazines,	
  newspapers,	pamphlets	or	any	other	printed	
  matter	—	are	dumped	into	a	hopper	after	
  being	manually	cut	up	into	single-word	units	
  with	scissors.		(If	two	words	end	up	on	the	
  same	cutup,	nothing	disastrous	happens,	but	
  the	machine	fails	to	operate.		Incomplete	words	
  do	not	affect	the	machine;	nor	does	a	cutup	
  with	a	single	complete	word	on	each	side.)	The	
  machine	then	processes	these	words	into	a	new	
  reality.
  As	far	as	they	can	tell,	the	Cut-Ups	have	
  used the machine five times; their enemy the 
  Koanhead	got	ahold	of	it	and	used	it	at	one	
  point as well.  It is difficult to say with cer-
  tainty	what	it	actually	did	on	each	of	these	
  occasions,	because	the	Machine	is	capable	of	
  completely	changing	the	timeline	and	with	
  it	the	pasts	and	memories	of	everyone	on	the	
  planet,	including	the	Cut-Ups	themselves.		
  Pere	Brinker	has	developed	a	nonchronology	
  that	he	feels	comes	as	close	as	is	possible	to	a	
  true	accounting	of	events	involving	the	Ma-
  chine	in	the	past.		He	includes	the	following	
  facts	and/or	speculations:
  Sometimes	the	changes	the	Machine	makes	
  in	reality	are	so	minor	as	to	be	unnoticeable.		
  One	time	it	brought	about	the	collapse	of	the	
  Soviet	Empire,	and	did	so	by	increasing	the	
  appetite of a single field mouse in 1952 Vladi-
  vostok.		Pere	is	still	trying	to	piece	together	
  the	chain	of	cause-and-effect	that	led	to	the	
  rise of Gorbachev and the final failed coup at-
  tempt.  So far he has traced the field mouse to 
  a	power	outage	that	encouraged	the	conception	
  of	an	obscure	Party	functionary.		His	research	
  continues.
  Other	times	the	effects	are	more	far-
  reaching.		The	Andalusia	Dog	still	has	vivid	
  dreams	of	an	alternate	world,	one	in	which	he	
  is	a	therapsid	reptile	and	his	companions	are	
  sentient	humanoids	descended	from	dinosaur	
  stock.		In	this	world,	the	effort	of	industrial-
  ized	nations	to	form	a	single	world	govern-
  ment	turned	out	to	be	a	sinister	plot	master-
  minded	by	a	religious	organization	known	
  as	the	Krkrdid,	and	the	Mary	Tyler	Moore	
  show	didn’t	go	off	the	air	until	the	mid-eight-
  ies.		The	images	from	these	dreams	are	so	
  vivid	—	particularly	the	episode	of	the	Moore	
  show	in	which	Chuckles	the	Clown	is	killed	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  6
  by	a	stegosaurus	—	that	Andy	has	become	
  convinced	that	this	was	once	THE	reality,	one	
  that	was	reordered	by	the	Machine	after	the	
  Krkrdid	got	too	powerful.
  Pere	Brinker	has	concluded	that	the	
  Machine	was	also	once	used	to	put	down	a	
  world-wide	rising	of	the	Pharaohs.		He	thinks	
  it	was	used	another	time	to	quell	a	massive	
  metaphysical	disturbance	in	which	growing	
  numbers	of	Al	Amarjans	became	convinced	
  that they were just fictional figures used by 
  superior	beings	in	something	called	a	role-
  playing	game.
  He	has	also	found	a	mysterious	docu-
  ment	on	the	hard	drive	of	his	computer,	one	
  that	is	written	in	his	characteristic	cryptic	
  prose	style.		Because	he	has	no	recollection	of	
  having	written	it,	he	has	concluded	that	it’s	
  a	remnant	of	an	earlier	reality	that	has	since	
  been	reordered	by	the	Machine:
  “Throck.	device	both	backwards	and	
  forwards	rippling	in	time.		Therefore	conven.	
  methods	of	combat	through	conven.	para-
  digms	inoperative.		Situation	more	and	more	
  desp.	Doctor	What	has	shaved	eyebrows.		
  Says	just	latest	fashion	statement	but	fear	
  otherw.	Dr.	showing	increasing	reactionary	
  powerhead	symptoms.		Have	had	to	kill	Claus	
  for	same.		Last	resort	must	be	adopted	—	am	
  cutting	up	what	few	newspapers	are	still	
  printing	in	prep.
  “But	what	about	Kid’s	theory?	Wish	
  month	ended	in	Y	or	T	to	confer	w/	her.		Are	
  Throck.	device	and	Cut-Up	machine	necessary	
  polar	opposites	of	one	another?	Truly	manifes-
  tation	of	cosmic	balance?	If	so,	what	interac-
  tion	when	switch	thrown?	Possibility	of	closed	
  time	loop?”
  Oddly,	a	directory	check	shows	that	this	
  document	was	created	on	Pere’s	computer	ten	
  years	from	now.		He	continues	to	mull	over	its	
  meaning.
  Appearance:	It	is	a	gray,	boxy	machine	
  about	60	cm	wide,	60	cm	long,	and	80	cm	
  high,	weighing	75	kg.		The	central	unit	is	a	
  modified mimeograph machine with major 
  portions	of	a	paper	shredder	and	a	lottery	
  ball	randomizer.		Syringes,	a	pair	of	wooden	
  rulers, and a balloon that fills up with a gas 
  lighter	than	air	are	inexplicable	extras.
  Energy Requirements:	The	Cut-Up	
  machine	uses	electrical	power	and	can	be	
  plugged	into	the	type	of	wall	socket	standard	
  on	the	island.
  CUSS
  Capabilities:	The	CUSS,	or	Collective	Un-
  conscious	Swizzle	Stick,	broadcasts	thought-
  waves	which	are	picked	up	by	the	subconscious	
  minds	of	those	within	its	area	of	effect.		This	
  area	is	somewhat	larger	than	the	island	of	Al	
  Amarja.		Somewhat	like	the	Cut-Up	machine,	
  it’s	fueled	by	written	material	which	is	dumped	
  into	a	hopper	and	shredded;	the	nature	of	the	
  material	determines	the	images	it	sends	out.		
  For	example,	in	a	caper	in	which	the	Really	
  Quite	Angry	Kid	needed	to	create	rumors	
  of	Glorious	Lord	involvement	in	an	octopus	
  smuggling	scheme,	she	dumped	a	year’s	worth	
  of	Satanic	literature	and	articles	from	scuba	
  magazines	into	the	shredder.		This	created	a	
  variety	of	responses	depending	on	the	psychic	
  awareness	of	the	individual	wave	recipient.
  The	average	Al	Amarjan	simply	became	
  more	disposed	to	believe	rumors	about	the	
  Glorious	Lords,	particularly	ones	involving	
  mollusks.		Several	urban	legends	on	the	sub-
  ject	became	common	currency	within	days.		As	
  usual	with	modern	folklore,	the	original	sourc-
  es	for	these	tales	were	impossible	to	pin	down.		
  (A	furious	Avan	Bloodlord	tried	in	vain	to	do	
  so,	on	account	of	the	scurrilous	tale	involving	
  him,	a	dead	blue-ringed	octopus,	a	shopping	
  bag,	and	a	petty	theft.)	Each	person	telling	
  the	story	would	claim	that	a	friend	of	a	friend	
  —	or	FOAF,	as	the	pattern	is	known	in	folklore	
  studies	—	had	been	involved.		If	you	went	to	
  the	trouble	to	locate	this	FOAF,	she’s	say	it	
  was	a	friend	of	one	of	her	friends,	and	so	on	
  and	so	forth.		Actually,	the	CUSS	device	was	
  secretly	implanting	false	memories	in	some	Al	
  Amarjans	of	having	been	told	these	anecdotes;	
  
  6	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  others,	upon	hearing	them	repeated,	became	
  more	likely	than	usual	to	tell	them	to	others.
  Veteran	mindworms,	however,	experi-
  ence	more	direct	manifestations	of	the	CUSS’	
  power.		The	nature	of	these	depends	on	each	
  individual’s	particular	fringe	power.		A	clair-
  voyant	would	see	images	of	the	Lords	unload-
  ing	suspicious	crates,	from	which	the	odd	
  tentacle would intermittently flick out.  A clai-
  raudient	would	“hear”	Bloodlord	and	company	
  discussing	their	smuggling	operation.		A	tarot	
  reader would find the cards for The Devil and 
  the	six	of	swords	(journey	by	water)	coming	
  up	continually.		These	false	images	are	very	
  difficult for mindworms to detect, used as they 
  are	to	picking	up	accurate	information	through	
  their	fringe	powers.		One	would	have	to	know	
  of	the	existence	of	the	CUSS	to	suspect	their	
  origin,	though	the	nonsensical	nature	of	much	
  CUSS	material	might	make	some	wary	of	it.
  CUSS	emanations	remain	in	the	psychic	
  atmosphere	for	about	a	week	per	usage.		Then,	
  as	quickly	as	they	appeared,	the	visions	and	
  rumors	disappear.
  Appearance:	The	CUSS	looks	like	a	
  miniature	satellite	dish	hooked	up	to	a	small	
  paper	shredder	covered	with	huge	industrial-
  strength	valves.
  Energy Requirements:	The	CUSS	is	a	
  devoted	smoker.		It	operates	on	combustion;	
  one must pour several pounds of fine tobacco 
  into	its	cutup	hopper	before	it	will	run.		It	
  burns	these	off,	emitting	a	cloud	of	nasty	
  secondhand	smoke.		Operation	in	a	well-ven-
  tilated	area,	preferably	outdoors,	is	strongly	
  recommended.		When	ready,	it	begins	to	hum.
  Warning:	Cut-ups	have	no	particular	im-
  munity	to	the	CUSS	effect.		Even	when	one	is	
  told	in	advance	that	it	will	be	used,	its	power	
  is	great	enough	to	blur	the	line	between	hoax	
  and	truth.		For	example,	the	Glorious	Lord/
  Octopus	plan	nearly	went	off	the	rails	when	
  Claus	Brinker,	armed	to	the	teeth,	burst	in	on	
  Bloodlord’s	headquarters	and	demanded	the	
  surrender	of	his	mollusks,	even	though	he	had	
  been	fully	briefed	on	the	use	of	the	CUSS.		He	
  sheepishly	explained	later	that	the	stories	he	
  heard	about	the	Lords	were	so	vivid	that	he	
  had become convinced that the briefing, not 
  the	Bloodlord	information,	had	been	psychi-
  cally	planted.
  The Representer
  Capabilities:	The	representer	is	an	aid	
  to	decision-making.		An	individual	who	is	
  weighing	different	options	can	use	it	to	enter	
  a	psychotropically-created	virtual	world	in	
  which	different	aspects	of	her	own	persona	
  take	opposite	sides	of	the	question	and	present	
  it	to	her	as	lawyers	would	argue	a	case	before	a	
  judge.  This objectification of the pros and cons 
  of	any	question	helps	to	clarify	the	issues,	but	
  the	user	must	still	make	the	ultimate	decision.		
  The	representer	is	not	capable	of	generating	
  facts	or	arguments	on	the	case	that	the	user	
  is	unaware	of.		It	is	merely	an	organizer	of	
  thoughts.
  This	gives	you	as	GM	a	mechanism	to	role-
  play	a	PC’s	thought	process	if	he’s	stuck	in	the	
  midst	of	a	tough	decision.		Instead	of	stopping	
  play	while	he	thinks,	you	can	turn	the	problem	
  into	a	fun	scene,	taking	the	roles	of	advocates	
  on	both	sides.
  For	example,	let’s	say	Doc	Cross	is	trying	
  to	decide	whether	he	should	attend	a	concert	
  knowing	that	a	former	Dunkelberg	Guard	who	
  bears	him	a	grudge	will	likely	be	there.		He	
  hooks	himself	up	to	the	Representer,	relaxes,	
  closes	his	eyes	and	sees	his	idea	of	the	per-
  fect	courtroom.		It’s	a	massive	palace	of	violet	
  marble	from	the	fantasy	period	of	his	imagi-
  nary	world,	the	Dociverse.		He	sits	on	a	high	
  throne,	decked	out	in	ermines	and	silks,	the	
  gold	headband	of	kingship	on	his	forehead.		
  Shapely	maidens	cool	him	with	feathery	fans.
  Two	courtiers	approach.		One	looks	like	
  Doc, and is wearing the fine robes of a noble-
  man.		The	other	also	looks	like	Doc,	and	is	
  similarly	dressed.		They	then	begin	to	argue	
  the	case.
  The first Doc argues that Dara Blake (see 
  Airwaves,	p.	4)	is	not	only	a	major	fab	babe	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  6
  but	a	great	entertainer.		And	that	Doc	has	
  been	working	very	hard	lately	and	deserves	a	
  night	out.
  The	second	agrees	but	says	that	the	guard,	
  a	major	Blake	fan,	will	be	there	and	cause	
  trouble	like	he	did	at	the	last	coffeehouse.		
  He	rattles	off	all	of	the	evidence	of	the	man’s	
  unstable	personality,	and	mentions	his	various	
  known	martial	arts	skills.		He	paints	an	un-
  flattering portrait of Doc’s chances in combat 
  against	the	fellow.
  The first Doc responds to this, favorably de-
  scribing Doc’s own fighting skills and suggest-
  ing	likely,	effective	strategies	to	use	against	
  the	man.
  The	second	rebuts,	noting	that	although	
  Doc	may	not	be	seriously	hurt	in	such	a	strug-
  gle,	he	certainly	won’t	have	a	relaxing	evening	
  out,	thus	defeating	the	purpose	of	the	trip.
  Both	Docs	then	agree	that	their	argu-
  ments	are	exhausted.		Doc	opens	his	eyes	and	
  removes	the	representer’s	electrodes.		Now	
  that	he	has	had	for	and	against	arguments	
  presented	to	him	in	an	organized	manner,	he	
  reluctantly	decides	to	stay	home	and	work	on	
  his	latest	book	project	instead.
  Appearance:	The	representer	is	a	modi-
  fied Commodore-64 computer hooked up to 
  an	8-track	tape	deck,	a	nd	century	Chinese	
  earthquake	detector,	and	a	barbed-wire	fan	
  belt.		Wires	from	the	tape	deck	attach	to	
  electrodes,	which	are	placed	on	the	subject’s	
  forehead.		The	electrodes	stimulate	the	same	
  areas	of	the	brain	affected	by	hallucinogenic	
  drugs,	but	the	content	of	the	visions	is	limited	
  by	the	computer	program.
  Energy Requirements:	The	device	likes	
  Middle	Eastern	foods,	particularly	falafel,	
  shwarma,	and	taboulli	salad.		These	are	placed	
  in	the	middle	of	the	hollow	earthquake	detec-
  tor	(which	looks	sort	of	like	a	giant	Fabergé	
  egg	with	sculpted	dragons	climbing	down	it)	
  prior	to	operation.		If	the	machine	consumes	
  the	food	before	the	user	is	done	with	his	ses-
  sion,	it	stops	dead.		It	is	unable	to	start	where	
  it	left	off	if	it	runs	out	of	power.		This	gives	the	
  representer	an	effective	time	limit	—	the	maxi-
  mum	amount	of	shwarma	the	detector	will	
  hold	gives	you	about	thirty	minutes	of	use.
  Warning:	On	one	occasion	the	machine	
  overloaded	while	Pere	Brinker	was	using	it.		
  Instead	of	constructs	created	by	his	own	mind	
  through	the	machine,	he	found	himself	face-
  to-face	with	versions	of	himself	from	alternate	
  realities.		This	would	have	been	odd	but	not	
  dangerous	if	not	for	the	fact	that	one	of	the	
  Peres	was	a	vicious	madman	imprisoned	in	
  the	high-security	ward	of	the	Sylvan	Pines	
  psychiatric	facility.		The	insane	Pere	talked	
  his	other	counterpart	to	death,	then	turned	his	
  verbal	assault	on	our	Pere.		Although	Pere	won	
  —	barely	—	he	was	shaken	by	the	experience,	
  and	for	several	months	was	more	withdrawn	
  than	usual.
  Various	fringe	powers	might	also	interact	
  with	the	machine’s	hallucinatory	effect	in	un-
  predictable	ways.
  
  64	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  “What	is	the	use	of	a	new-born	child?”
  —Benjamin Franklin
  Elwood	Cardinal,	a	top	Mover,	is	ready	to	
  take	possession	of	a	slightly	used	Russian	SS-
  0	nuclear	missile	when	he	suddenly	discovers	
  that	his	body	is	changing.		C.	A.	Radford	(see	
  p.	6)	has	dosed	him	with	Chaos	Chancer	in	an	
  effort	to	cure	him	of	his	control	addiction.		If	
  some	or	all	PCs	are	Cut-Ups,	Radford	arranges	
  for	them	to	shepherd	the	Mover’s	transforma-
  tion	from	human	agent	of	control	and	oppres-
  sion	into	a	usefully	crazy	member	of	Cut-Up	
  society.		If	some	are	Mover	operatives,	witting	
  or	unwitting,	they’re	ordered	to	either	bring	
  Cardinal	back	into	the	fold	or,	failing	that,	kill	
  him.		If	PCs	are	part	of	another	conspiracy,	
  or	just	free	agents,	they	get	swept	up	in	the	
  events	nonetheless.		When	the	Cut-Ups	are	in	
  play,	anything	can	happen.
  Elwood Cardinal
  High-Ranking Mover
  Elwood	Cardinal	and	a	few	of	his	drinking	
  buddies	from	Edmonton,	Alberta,	have	in	the	
  space	of	little	more	than	a	year	rocketed	near	
  the	top	of	the	Mover	hierarchy.		Originally	
  they	thought	they	were	just	joining	a	local	ser-
  vice	club	with	some	weird	ceremonies.		When	
  Elwood	found	himself	moving	in	the	upper	ech-
  elons	of	the	provincial	government,	assigned	
  inscrutable	but	vaguely	shady	tasks,	he	began	
  to	wonder.		By	subtly	asking	the	right	ques-
  tions	and	using	shrewd	deductions,	he	began	to	
  see	the	outlines	of	the	Mover	operation	touch-
  ing	his	life.		Always	on	the	lookout	for	ambi-
  tious	young	recruits,	the	more	informed	supe-
  riors	in	his	local	circle	brought	him	on	board	
  and filled him in on the details.  Sometimes, 
  however,	the	Movers	select	operatives	who	are	
  too	smart	for	their	own	purposes.
  Sitting	down	at	the	kitchen	table	with	
  his	childhood	friends,	Elwood	explained	the	
  labyrinthine	power	structure	of	the	Movers.		
  “No	one	really	knows	who’s	in	charge,”	Elwood	
  reasoned,	“They	just	take	orders	from	whoever	
  they	think	is	in	charge.		So	there’s	two	ways	
  to	operate	in	this	new	lodge	of	ours.		You	can	
  either	wait	for	someone	you	think	knows	what	
  they’re	doing	to	come	along	and	tell	you	what	
  to	do.		Or	you	can	convince	everyone	else	you’re	
  the	one	they’re	waiting	for.”
  Thus	the	Blue	Castle	Movers	were	born.		
  Elwood	took	the	name	from	the	title	of	a	
  children’s	book	his	niece	was	reading.		He	then	
  began	to	spread	rumors	of	the	mighty	and	
  mysterious	Blue	Castle	Movers,	who	had	sud-
  denly	staged	a	coup	in	the	highest	echelons	of	
  the	leadership.		He	devised	important	details	
  like	the	secret	signals	and	passwords	of	the	
  Blue	Castle,	and	used	his	buddies	to	keep	the	
  fabrication	moving.		Word	spread	even	faster	
  than	he	had	anticipated.		As	he	kept	rising	
  in	the	“real”	hierarchy	—	assuming	there	is	
  such	a	thing	—	he	traveled	around	the	globe,	
  meeting	other	Movers	who	were	suddenly	very	
  concerned about the increasing influence of the 
  Blue	Castle.		Slowly	he	began	to	reveal	himself	
  Meaningless Tissues
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  65
  connections.		(Scratches	the	left	corner	of	his	
  mouth	when	meeting	new	people;	this	is	the	
  sign	of	the	Blue	Castle)
  Chaos Chancer	—	As	we	meet	Elwood,	he	
  has	already	been	dosed	with	Chaos	Cancer	by	
  C.	A.	Radford’s	Pipe	of	Dreams.		This	is	the	
  same	destabilizing	condition	Radford	him/her-
  self	suffers	from.		Its	effects	on	Elwood	are	
  described	below.		(Varied	strangeness)
  Backstory
  Here	is	what	has	happened	offstage	before	
  the	story	begins:
  Cardinal,	traveling	to	the	Ukraine,	turned	
  a	general	in	the	ex-Soviet,	now	Ukrainian,	
  armed	forces	from	Vornite	allegiance	to	Blue	
  Castle	benniedom.		Anxious	to	make	himself	
  useful	to	the	Blue	Castle,	the	general	—	whose	
  name	is	Serhiy	Stech	—	offered	Elwood	a	prize	
  no	power	addict	could	refuse:	his	very	own	
  nuclear	weapon,	an	SS-0.		Stech	has	prom-
  ised	to	arrange	for	the	missile’s	removal	from	
  Ukrainian	soil	and	its	concealment	on	a	cargo	
  vessel	registered	in	Sierra	Leone.		Once	the	
  ship	appears	in	Al	Amarjan	waters,	the	nuke	
  is	Cardinal’s	responsibility	—	he	must	arrange	
  for	its	safe	deposit	and	storage.
  Elwood	hasn’t	actually	got	any	plans	for	
  the	warhead	yet,	but	he’s	sure	it	will	come	in	
  handy	at	some	point.		Of	all	the	places	in	the	
  world	where	a	missile	would	remain	safe	and	
  secret, he figures Al Amarja is most suitable.  
  It’s	close	to	the	world’s	most	interesting	po-
  tential	targets,	and	its	government	offers	only	
  minimal	cooperation	to	nosy	cloaks	from	NATO	
  countries	or	similar	busybodies.		Accordingly,	
  Elwood	arrived	in	the	Edge	two	weeks	ago	to	
  begin	logistical	planning	for	receipt	of	the	SS-
  0.		Initially	he	was	more	than	pleased	—	the	
  place	was	crawling	with	fervent	Blue	Castlers,	
  most	of	whom	he’s	never	even	met	before.		His	
  plan	fell	into	place	before	he	even	knew	he	had	
  one.		Unfortunately,	while	correctly	assessing	
  the difficulties standard cloaks encounter in Al 
  to	these	worried	conspirators,	who	were	more	
  than	eager	to	junk	their	prior	loyalties	for	an	
  entry	into	the	Blue	Castle	cell.		Before	he	quite	
  realized	what	he	was	doing	he	had	accumu-
  lated	a	worldwide	network	of	bennies	ready	to	
  live	and	die	on	orders	from	the	Blue	Castle.
  Sixteen	months	ago,	Elwood	Cardinal	was	
  stuck	in	a	low-level	civil	service	job,	hired	on	
  a	minority	opportunity	plan	but	given	no	real	
  responsibilities.		His	ambition	extended	no	fur-
  ther	than	getting	a	genuinely	interesting	posi-
  tion	in	the	department,	making	a	comfortable	
  living, finding someone to love, and starting a 
  family.		Now	his	heady	rise	to	global	power	has	
  shredded	all	sense	of	proportion	or	morality.		
  He	doesn’t	just	have	a	monkey	on	his	back,	he	
  has	a	lowland	gorilla.		And	its	name	is	Control.
  Metis	man,		years	old,	85	cm,	85	kg.		
  Long	well-groomed	black	hair,	dark-framed	
  glasses,	dresses	either	in	gray	wool	business	
  suit	or	plaid	shirt	and	blue	jeans,	depending	on	
  the	situation.
  Languages:	English,	French	that	would	
  give	a	Parisian	heartburn
  Attack:		dice
  Defense:		dice
  Hit Points:	9	(not	in	top	shape)
  Traits
  Power Structures,	4	dice	—	Brilliantly	
  assesses	the	nature	of	any	hierarchy,	includ-
  ing	its	hidden	rules	of	success,	and	uses	those	
  rules to his benefit.  Persuades people to work 
  for him in return for intangible benefits.  (Sub-
  tly	solicits	rumors	from	those	he	talks	to)
  Rumbling,		dice	—	Growing	up	on	the	
  wrong	side	of	the	tracks	in	Edmonton	taught	
  Elwood	how	to	get	out	of	a	scrape	with	mini-
  mal	damage,	either	by	getting	away	or	hurt-
  ing the other guy first.  His fighting style is 
  far	from	graceful,	but	he’s	done	okay	by	it.		
  (Always	checks	for	an	exit	and	an	impromptu	
  weapon	when	entering	unfamiliar	territory)
  Bennie Network,		dice	—	Has	built	a	
  global	combine	of	Movers	who	swear	secret	
  fealty to the Blue Castle.  Can find allies in un-
  expected	places,	marshal	resources,	and	make	
  
  66	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Amarja,	he	has	not	bargained	for	the	activity	of	
  its	in-house	conspiracies.
  The first thing he failed to prepare for was 
  the	alert	attention	of	a	certain	sandy-colored	
  mutt	as	he	discussed	plans	with	a	top	bennie	
  on	an	isolated	park	bench.		Alarmed	at	what	
  he	heard,	Andalusia	called	an	emergency	
  meeting	of	the	Cut-Ups.		They	decided	to	use	
  random	determination	to	decide	who	would	
  handle	the	case.		As	the	target	of	the	opera-
  tion	spoke	with	a	Canadian	accent,	the	group	
  elected	to	toss	hockey	cards.		C.	A.	Radford	
  flicked his card (an old Dave Semenko from his 
  days	with	the	Oilers)	the	furthest,	so	he	was	
  put	in	charge	of	seeing	that	the	Movers	don’t	
  achieve	nuclear	capability.
  Radford,	incarnated	at	the	time	as	an	over-
  ly	emotional	Somali	gas	station	attendant	and	
  scuba	diver	torn	apart	by	his	deviation	from	
  Scientologist	doctrine,	sought	out	Cardinal	and	
  tried	to	convince	him	to	get	back	in	touch	with	
  his	inner	child	and	follow	his	bliss.		Cardinal	
  put	up	with	him	for	a	while,	thinking	him	a	
  Dionysian	Mover	disinformation	agent,	some-
  one	he	might	be	able	to	turn	to	his	own	purpos-
  es.		The	conversation	ended	badly.		Overcome	
  with	frustration	and	remorse,	Radford	pulled	
  out	his	Pipe	of	Dreams	and	blew	its	smoke	all	
  over Cardinal.  He then fled in tears.
  Since	that	moment,	Cardinal	has	been	
  mutating,	infected	with	the	early	stages	of	the	
  disorder	that	has	made	Radford	an	entirely	
  mutable	being.		He’s	not	taking	it	well.		This	
  makes	the	possibility	of	his	controlling	a	nucle-
  ar	missile	even	more	alarming	than	before.
  Cardinal’s 
  Chaos Chancer
  Elwood	has	been	suffering	from	Chaos	
  Chancer	for	two	days	when	the	PCs	come	on	
  the	scene.		Eventually,	if	its	progress	is	not	
  somehow	reversed,	he	will	become	as	variable	
  an	entity	as	Radford.
  For	the	moment,	however,	he’s	just	fac-
  ing small difficulties of a strange and random 
  nature.		His	personality	and	lust	for	power	
  are	usually	unaffected,	and	he	still	wants	that	
  warhead.		However,	as	any	true	control	freak	
  would	be,	he’s	very	deeply	disturbed	by	the	
  revolt	of	his	own	body.
  You	can	determine	the	results	of	Elwood’s	
  condition	by	drawing	cutups	and	applying	
  them	in	odd	ways	to	his	physical	or	emotional	
  state.		For	example,	if	you	draw	the	word	
  “devised”	it	might	put	you	in	mind	of	the	word	
  “device”,	which	suggests	something	mechani-
  cal.		So	for	a	while	one	of	Elwood’s	hands	
  transforms	into	a	dully	metallic	robot	hand.
  Because	his	condition	hasn’t	advanced	too	
  far	yet,	none	of	these	eruptions	of	the	Chancer	
  are	completely	crippling.		Each	should	carry	
  no	more	than	a	penalty	die	against	certain	
  actions.		His	robot	hand,	for	example,	might	
  carry a penalty against attempts requiring fine 
  manual	dexterity.
  Each	eruption	lasts	roughly	one	to	six	
  hours.		Roll	a	die	to	determine	how	long	they	
  last.		They	don’t,	however,	change	like	clock-
  work	on	the	hour	—	that	would	be	too	orderly.		
  Instead,	let	the	changes	come	when	they’re	
  convenient	to	you	or	create	interesting	twists	
  in	the	plot.		Elwood	never	knows	when	the	
  next	shift	is	coming.		At	this	point,	they’re	
  often	physically	painful.		Whenever	possible	he	
  dashes	to	a	private	or	secluded	place	to	hide	
  his	shame	and	agony	if	he	feels	a	biological	
  shuffling coming on.
  Here	are	some	sample	changes	you	can	use	
  if	you	don’t	want	to	come	up	with	cutup	reso-
  lutions	as	you	go.		As	you	use	them,	replace	
  them	on	the	random	chart	with	cutup-inspired	
  examples	when	you	have	time	and	creativ-
  ity available.  Unless otherwise specified, the 
  penalty	dice	are	applied	against	reactions	from	
  others.		Roll	two	dice.
  	—	Elwood’s	heart	begins	to	faintly	play	hip-
  hop	music.		Most	people	in	the	area	will	
  assume	that	someone’s	playing	a	personal	
  stereo	so	loudly	that	the	sound	is	leaking	
  from	the	earphones.		But	if	you	get	close	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  67
  enough,	you’ll	hear	NWA	and	the	Dispos-
  able	Heroes	of	Hiphopracy	emanating	from	
  Elwood’s	left	ventricle.		He	suffers	a	pen-
  alty	on	all	hearing	rolls.
  	—	Elwood’s	back	muscles	begin	to	crawl	and	
  writhe,	as	if	being	scraped	by	invisible	
  talons.		Penalty	die	on	actions	requiring	
  concentration.
  4	—	Elwood	starts	to	weep	copiously.		The	
  tears	are	maple	syrup.		Penalty	die	applied	
  against	his	vision.
  5	—	When	he	looks	at	anyone,	Elwood	can’t	
  shake	the	thought	that	they	might	be	good	
  to	eat,	and	starts	to	salivate	uncontrollably.
  6	—	Elwood	becomes	completely	symmetrical,	
  his	left	side	becoming	a	copy	of	his	right	
  (all	of	us	have	subtle	differences	between	
  the	sides	of	our	faces	and	bodies.)	This	
  causes	those	who	have	known	him	previ-
  ously	to	suspect	that	he	has	been	replaced	
  by	an	enemy	robot	or	synthetic	being.
  7	—	Elwood’s	voice	sounds	uncannily	like	that	
  of	former	US	president	George	Bush.		Clas-
  sic	Bush	phrases	like	“read	my	lips”	and	
  “thousand	points	of	light”	force	their	way	
  into	his	conversations.
  8	—	A	bullet	hole	appears	spontaneously	in	
  Elwood’s	left	temple,	exposing	brain	tissue	
  and leaking a steady flow of blood.  Al-
  though	this	is	incredibly	painful	as	it	hap-
  pens,	it	seals	up	completely	with	no	perma-
  nent	damage	once	the	next	change	comes.
  9	—	Elwood	balloons	to	a	weight	of	0	kg.		
  Suffers	a	penalty	die	on	movement.
  0	—	Elwood	is	possessed	by	the	irresistible	
  urge	to	drop	everything	in	order	to	rent	
  The Sound of Music on	videotape	and	
  watch	it	repeatedly.	
  	—	Elwood	loses	the	ability	to	write	Roman	
  characters;	whenever	he	tries	to	write	some-
  thing	down	the	result	comes	out	in	Japanese	
  ideograms,	which	he	does	not	understand.
  	—	Elwood	suffers	the	delusion	that	he	is	
  a	space	trader	from	the	future	marooned	
  on	a	primitive	planet	whose	culture	is	a	
  bizarre	parody	of	0th	century	America.
  
  68	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Getting In
  Although	we	can’t	anticipate	the	wide	
  range	of	possible	motivations	for	characters	in	
  an	OTE	series,	we	can	present,	as	examples,	
  reasons	why	some	Al	Amarjan	conspiracies	
  would	want	to	get	involved	in	this	story.		Use	
  these	as	templates	for	groups	not	mentioned.		
  It	is	entirely	possible	that	your	group	contains	
  PCs	who	are	bennies	to	separate	or	even	op-
  posed	groups,	so	that	more	than	one	motiva-
  tion	will	be	in	play,	and	your	players	will	be	
  working	at	cross-purposes.
  The	list	starts	with	the	two	most	obvious	
  groups;	other	examples	are	listed	alphabetically.
  Cut-Ups:	Stage	Andy’s	emergency	meet-
  ing	a	session	or	two	before	you	want	to	run	
  “Meaningless	Tissues”,	up	to	the	point	where	
  Radford	wins	the	hockey	card	draw	and	takes	
  on	the	assignment.		Then	let	them	go	back	to	
  other	business.		Later,	when	you	wish	to	begin	
  the	adventure,	they	hear	a	familiar	theme	song	
  issuing	from	a	nearby	TV	set	—	in	their	room,	
  a	bar,	or	wherever	they	happen	to	be.		It’s	the	
  Tiffany	Trilobite	song.		As	informed	Cut-Ups,	
  they	know	to	pay	attention.
  Tiffany	pauses	from	her	hilarious	attempts	
  to get a lion inside a fishbowl and turns to her 
  comrades	on	the	other	side	of	the	tube:	“C.	A.	
  Radford’s	gone	into	retreat	somewhere.		He	
  said	something	about	coming	to	terms	with	
  his	engrams	or	something	like	that.		Anyway,	
  he	wants	you	to	wrap	up	the	Elwood	Cardinal	
  thing.		Says	it	should	be	real	easy	—	he’s	al-
  ready	dosed	the	guy	with	Chaos	Chancer,	so	all	
  you gotta do is find him, turn him, and stop the 
  nuke	from	falling	into	the	hands	of	Control.”
  The	lion	bursts	from	the	glass	bowl	and	
  nearly	bites	off	Tiffany’s	plated	head.		“Oops,	
  gotta	run	guys!”	She	turns	back	to	the	lion,	
  beaning	it	with	a	conveniently-placed	seis-
  mograph	machine.		She	has	returned	to	her	
  regularly-scheduled	episode.
  The	ideal	result	for	the	Cut-Ups	is	to	ar-
  range	for	the	dismantling	of	the	missile	and	
  the	defection	of	Cardinal	to	the	side	of	Chaos.
  Movers:	If	PCs	are	the	witting	or	unwit-
  ting	agents	of	a	Mover	cell,	their	leaders	will	
  order	them	to	approach	Cardinal	and	volun-
  teer	any	necessary	assistance.		At	the	outset	
  of	the	story,	local	Movers	are	all	convinced	of	
  the	legitimacy	of	the	Blue	Castle	and	want	to	
  curry	favor	with	the	lofty	Mr.	Cardinal.		If	the	
  PCs	report	back	to	their	superiors	after	they’ve	
  discovered	that	all	is	not	well	with	Elwood,	
  they’ll	move	to	cut	Elwood	out	of	the	operation	
  and	grab	the	missile	for	their	own	particular	
  cell,	ordering	the	PCs	to	spearhead	the	caper.
  (Things	are	different	if	there	are	no	Mover-
  driven	PCs.		Two	factions,	one	with	Cardinal,	
  and	one	against	him,	come	into	play.		See	p.	7.)
  Sir Arthur Compton:	PCs	who	are	ben-
  nies	to	Compton	will	be	loaned	to	his	friend	
  Monique	D’Aubainne	—	see	Government,	
  below.		On	the	surface,	it	hard	to	believe	she’d	
  want	nasty	Comptonites	when	she	has	so	
  many	personal	cloaks	and	goons	at	her	dispos-
  al.		The	rationale	Compton	provides	his	hench-
  folk	is	this:	Monique	knows	her	forces	are	full	
  of	Mover	moles	and	wants	to	use	operatives	
  whose	loyalty	is	certain.
  Cheryl D’Aubainne:	If	Cheryl	is	a	PC	
  patron,	she	hears	of	the	government	phone	tap	
  (see	below)	from	a	newly-converted	Sommerite	
  who works as a file clerk in the DBI offices.  
  (The	DBI	is	better	at	acquiring	secrets	than	
  it	is	at	keeping	them.)	Although	espionage	
  isn’t	her	forte,	she	thinks	it	would	be	spiritu-
  ally	harmful	for	her	mother	or	anyone	else	to	
  get the nuke.  She figures the least alarming 
  option	is	for	the	Net	to	sell	it	so	it’ll	at	least	
  end	up	far	away	from	the	island.		Although	she	
  won’t	want	her	people	to	actively	team	with	
  the	Net,	she’ll	want	them	to	work	behind	the	
  scenes	to	this	end.
  Constance D’Aubainne:	See	“The	Net,”	
  below.		Although	a	Dionysus	Cell	member,	
  Constance’s	primary	loyalty	is	to	herself,	and	
  she’s decided a little profit-taking is in order.
  Earthlings:	A	particular	duty	to	clear	
  this	problem	up	is	felt	by	the	Earthlings,	since	
  they	gave	the	Soviets	the	bomb	decades	ago.		
  Aside	from	the	fact	that	an	explosion	of	the	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  69
  SS-0	would	cause	unimaginable	suffering,	the	
  Earthlings	feel	an	obligation	to	help	clean	up	
  the	new	predicaments	caused	by	their	earlier	
  success.		(The	problems	brought	about	by	the	
  collapse	of	the	Soviet	Empire	have	been	keep-
  ing	their	operatives	very	busy.)	If	the	PCs	are	
  Earthlings,	they’ll	be	instructed	to	render	the	
  missile	inoperative	before	its	eventual	owner	
  —	whoever	that	may	be	—	gets	ahold	of	it.		
  They’ll	be	given	the	special	training	needed	to	
  do	so.
  Gangs:		Members	of	gangs,	from	Aries	to	
  the	Glorious	Lords,	may	be	assigned	to	the	
  case	as	a	favor	to	their	drug	suppliers,	the	Net.		
  For	Net	objectives,	see	below.
  Glugs:	Another	member	of	the	DBI	wire-
  tap	team	(see	Government,	below)	is	a	glug.		
  Although	he	can’t	blow	his	own	cover,	he’ll	try	
  to	recruit	other	glugs	or	friends	of	glugs	(i.e.	
  PCs)	to	make	sure	the	missile	doesn’t	blow	up	
  one	of	the	last	glug	enclaves.		If	it	doesn’t	go	off	
  in	their	bailiwick,	they	don’t	much	care	what	
  the	vicious	mutant	humans	do	with	it.
  Lydia Goodman:	If	Lydia	is	patron	to	a	
  PC,	Cheryl	D’Aubainne	will	ask	for	her	help	in	
  achieving	her	objectives.		See	above.
  Government:	To	Monique	D’Aubainne,	
  the	idea	of	a	nuke	on	the	island	is	appalling.		
  Unless	it’s	her	nuke	—	then	it	would	make	a	
  rather	nice	addition	to	her	weaponry	collection.		
  The	DBI	has	tapped	the	supposedly	secure	
  phone	of	a	Matti	Aaltonen,	a	low-level	Her-
  metic,	whom	Elwood	has	deeply	involved	in	the	
  plan	—	see	p.	7.		The	DBI	knows	there’s	an	
  SS-0	heading	to	the	island	from	an	unknown	
  destination,	in	an	unknown	manner.		They	
  know	Cardinal’s	name	and	where	he	is	staying.	
  The	PCs	are	to	pose	as	Blue	Castle	bennies	to	
  get	inside	the	operation,	and	tip	off	the	Demo-
  cratic	Guard	in	time	to	intercept	the	missile	
  when	it	arrives.
  Kergillians:	My,	that	DBI	investigation	is	
  leaky.		Another	member,	secretly	addicted	to	
  MDA-Cubed,	trades	info	about	it	to	a	Kergil-
  lian	dealer	in	exchange	for	a	month’s	supply.		
  Nuclear	weapons	are	primitive	to	a	Kergillian,	
  but	that	doesn’t	make	them	any	less	danger-
  ous.		If	PCs	are	Kergillian-controlled,	they’ll	
  be	sent	to	attach	an	advanced	device	to	the	
  warhead	which	will	transmute	its	plutonium	
  into	an	inert	element.		To	discourage	further	
  missile	shipments	to	the	island,	they’ll	be	
  instructed	to	execute	Elwood	and	anyone	else	
  with	him.
  Le Thuys:	If	Tramh	Le	Thuy	hears	there’s	
  a	loose	nuke	in	international	waters,	he’ll	have	
  a	spontaneous	orgasm	on	the	spot.		If	you	need	
  to explain how he finds out, Rex (see p. 34) over-
  hears	a	Vornite	telling	a	buddy	about	the	arriv-
  al	of	the	Blue	Castle	leader.		Le	Thuy	PCs	are	to	
  get	to	the	missile	by	any	means	necessary	and	
  detonate it.  If possible, they should try to fire 
  it	at	a	major	European	city	—	Rome,	Paris,	or	
  London.		But	if	they’re	not	able	to	aim	it,	Tramh	
  doesn’t	even	mind	if	he	goes	up	in	a	mushroom	
  cloud	with	the	rest	of	the	island.		The	honor	of	
  causing the first A-bomb dropped on an urban 
  center	since	945	is	worth	dying	for.
  The Net:	Constance	D’Aubainne	hears	
  about	the	caper	through	Dionysus	Cell	con-
  tacts,	and	can	taste	a	payoff	already.		Six	
  different	nonaligned	nations	have	standing	
  orders	with	the	Net	to	purchase	any	nuclear	
  weapons	that	become	available	on	the	black	
  market.		Net	PCs	are	initially	authorized	to	
  offer	Cardinal	0	million	dollars	for	the	SS-0,	
  which	he	will	refuse.		He	likes	money	only	as	
  a	means	to	power,	and	a	nuke	is	much	more	
  powerful than any figure in a Swiss bank ac-
  count.		Once	Elwood	refuses,	the	PCs	are	told	
  to	rub	him	out	and	pay	off	the	boat	crew,	buy-
  ing	the	product	directly	from	the	distributor,	
  as	it	were.
  Neutralizers:	Elwood	Cardinal’s	Chaos	
  Chancer	creates	a	weird	trace	pattern	on	Islam	
  Petri’s	magic	detection	equipment,	and	he	
  sends	Neutralizer	PCs	out	to	investigate.		Al-
  though	nuclear	weapons	aren’t	really	up	their	
  alley,	the	group	may	wish	to	thwart	him	out	of	
  simple altruism once they find out what’s up.  
  (C.	A.	Radford’s	more	advanced	Chancer	emits	
  a	different	wave	pattern,	one	they	have	long	
  since learned to filter out.)
  Pharaohs:	Pharaohs	get	very	edgy	when	
  the	mutants	start	lugging	unsecured	weapons	
  
  70	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  of	mass	destruction	about.		But	they	trust	Mo-
  nique	D’Aubainne	to	enjoy	pride	of	ownership	
  of	the	missile	without	actually	using	it.		So	
  quisling	PCs	will	be	assigned	to	help	deliver	it	
  into	the	hands	of	the	government	—	see	above.
  Philosopher’s Stone:	As	Rambeau	is	a	
  Mover,	he	assigns	any	PCs	at	his	disposal	to	
  curry	favor	with	the	Blue	Castle.		See	Movers,	
  above.
  Dr.  Seversen:	Similar	to	the	Neutral-
  izers,	above;	Elwood’s	incipient	chancer	is	
  radiating	waves	which	cause	irritating	audio	
  feedback	to	squeal	from	Seversen	Disruption	
  Field	generators.		They	send	PCs	out	with	a	
  device	to	narrow	in	on	the	source	of	the	emis-
  sions,	with	instructions	to	destroy	it	if	inani-
  mate	and	tell	it	to	move	along	if	sentient.		The	
  best	way	to	get	rid	of	Elwood	is	to	bust	his	
  plans	and	turn	him	over	to	the	Peace	Force.		If	
  D’Aubainne	gets	ahold	of	him,	she’ll	have	him	
  killed	and	deported	—	especially	if	he’s	mess-
  ing	up	her	psychic	disruptors.
  Sommerites:	See	Cheryl	D’Aubainne,	
  above.
  Who Else Gets 
  In?
  Not	all	of	the	above	actually	happens	
  —	unless	you	want	to	juggle	the	actions	of	a	
  dozen	GMC	conspiracies.		Of	the	groups	cited	
  above,	only	the	Cut-Ups,	Government,	Movers,	
  and Net will definitely get involved whether 
  or	not	they	have	PCs	at	their	disposal.		This	
  means	that	the	DBI	investigation	isn’t	really	
  as	leaky	as	it	would	be	if	every	group	were	in-
  volved	in	the	caper.		If	no	PCs	are	connected	to	
  the	Philosopher’s	Stone,	Rambeau	either	fails	
  to	hear	of	the	Blue	Castle	visitor	or	is	preoccu-
  pied	with	research	projects,	and	so	on.
  Even	with	the	cast	narrowed	down,	this	is	
  not	a	linear	scenario.		To	run	it,	keep	in	mind	
  the	capabilities	and	plans	of	each	group	in-
  volved,	including	Cardinal’s	Blue	Castle.		De-
  cide	how	each	one	would	react	to	the	actions	of	
  the	PCs.		This	adventure	should	be	PC-driven	
  —	the	manner	in	which	they	disrupt	the	equa-
  tion	determines	what	the	other	conspiracies	do.
  The	following	sections	give	guidelines	
  on	what	the	involved	GMC	groups	will	do	in	
  certain	circumstances.		Disregard	this	informa-
  tion	when	PCs	represent	a	group.
  Cut-Ups
  Radford	goes	into	retreat,	as	described	
  above.		He	sends	a	message	to	Tiffany	Trilobite,	
  asking	her	to	get	replacements	to	carry	on	his	
  mission.		Unfortunately,	before	she	can	read	
  the	message,	her	none-too-bright	pal	Peter	
  Protozoan	uses	it	to	light	his	cigar.		As	a	result,	
  events	tumble	on	without	the	active	supervision	
  of a qualified Cut-Up.  If needed, a new incar-
  nation	of	Radford	can	show	up	at	the	climax	to	
  either	mess	things	up	further	or	provide	a	deus 
  ex machina,	depending	on	your	needs.
  Government
  As	described	in	the	preceding	section,	the	
  DBI	wiretap	picks	up	the	conversation	of	Matti	
  Aaltonen,	a	Hermetic	Mover	now	working	for	
  Elwood’s	Blue	Castle.		They	know	that	he’s	fol-
  lowing	orders	from	an	Elwood	Cardinal	at	the	
  Bienvenidos	Hotel,	and	that	Cardinal	is	trying	
  to	smuggle	an	SS-0	from	an	unknown	desti-
  nation	by	unknown	means	to	an	unknown	loca-
  tion	on	the	island.		Monique	D’Aubainne	per-
  sonally assigns a trusted DBI officer, Isil Ziya, 
  to find Cardinal and approach him, posing as a 
  Mover	wishing	to	switch	from	the	Vornites	to	
  the Blue Castle.  She’s to seek his confidence 
  and uses it to find out when the nuke is arriv-
  ing	so	the	Loyal	Defenders	can	move	in	and	
  grab	it	at	the	opportune	moment.
  Isil Ziya
  DBI Cloak
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  Isil	Ziya	specializes	in	cover	operations	in	
  which	the	adoption	of	a	false	identity	is	neces-
  sary.		She	is	very	successful	at	this	because	she	
  herself	is	a	deeply	boring	person.		Although	
  intelligent, she has a hard time finding any 
  pursuit	that	interests	her.		Coming	up	with	
  interesting	things	to	say	in	conversation	is	a	
  trial	for	her,	and	she	grows	as	quickly	bored	
  with	people	as	with	things	or	ideas.		Isil	leads	
  a life a more passionate person would find 
  unbearably	lonely;	when	off	duty	she	just	sits	
  in	her	drab	apartment	staring	at	the	walls.		
  She	spends	a	great	deal	of	time	sleeping.		She	
  regards	her	work,	which	outsiders	might	view	
  as	deadly	and	glamorous,	with	no	more	dedica-
  tion than a hamburger flipper in a dead-end 
  food	service	job.		It’s	a	living,	that’s	all.		She’d	
  kill	herself,	but	she	lacks	the	emotional	com-
  mitment	even	for	that.
  Ironically,	it’s	this	lack	of	interest	and	
  dedication that makes her such a good officer.  
  Her	superiors	can	trust	her	absolutely,	as	
  she’s	incapable	of	getting	interested	enough	in	
  her	surroundings	to	betray	them	for	power	or	
  money.		And	because	she’s	a	cipher,	her	targets	
  read	onto	her	whatever	traits	they	want	to	see.		
  As	she’s	not	much	attached	to	her	own	perso-
  na, she finds it trivially easy to play whatever 
  role	is	expected	of	her.
  Turkish	woman,	age	6,	6	cm,	64	kg,	
  short	black	hair,	dark	jacket	and	skirt,	white	
  silk	blouse,	choker	of	fake	pearls.
  Languages:	Turkish,	English,	Al	Amarjan	
  patois
  Attack:		dice	plus	bonus,	X5	(taser)
  Defense:		dice	plus	bonus
  Hit Points:	6	(works	out	to	kill	time)
  Traits
  Tabula Rasa,	4	dice	—	Isil’s	stunted	per-
  sonality	is	a	great	advantage	in	her	line	of	
  work,	as	people	she	meets	tend	to	“write”	per-
  sonality	traits	they’re	expecting	on	her	blank	
  slate.  She finds it tediously simple to live up 
  to	these	expectations	once	they’re	presented.		
  (Varies — in this case, taciturn and efficient)
  Combat Training,		dice	—	Isil	got	the	
  basic	DBI	defense	training	course,	and	keeps	
  sharpening	her	skills	in	the	absence	of	any-
  thing	better	to	do.		(Moves	gracefully)
  Works Out,	bonus	die	—	Hours	in	the	DBI	
  gym	are	also	a	great	time	waster.		She	gains	
  a	bonus	die	on	combat	and	feats	of	strength.		
  (Sturdy	frame)
  Bored	—	Isil’s	disengagement	with	life	may	
  one	day	trip	her	up;	she	suffers	a	penalty	die	
  on	any	tasks	requiring	willpower,	passion	or	
  a	burning	desire	to	survive.		(Never	initiates	
  conversation	topics)
  Movers
  There	are	two	types	of	Movers	on	the	
  island	—	those	who	want	to	jump	on	the	Blue	
  Castle	bandwagon,	and	those	who	are	threat-
  ened	by	his	growing	power.		Elwood	has	found	
  many	Movers	anxious	to	do	his	bidding,	and	
  is	using	his	Bennie	Networking	trait	to	get	all	
  sorts	of	minor	things	done	for	him.		His	main	
  assistant	in	the	operation	is	a	former	Hermetic	
  named	Matti	Aaltonen,	who	has	gotten	this	
  much-desired	access	through	the	simple	meth-
  od of being the first to show up at Cardinal’s 
  doorstep.		Cardinal	is	still	a	little	too	intoxi-
  cated with his sudden rise to world influence to 
  know	when	to	turn	a	potential	servitor	down.		
  Aaltonen	is	not	exactly	the	cream	of	the	crop	
  when	it	comes	to	Movers.
  Matti Aaltonen
  Mover Loser
  Ever	since	he	was	a	child	growing	up	in	a	
  large	family	of	raucous,	brawling	alcoholics,	
  dreamy	Matti	Aaltonen	has	wanted	to	be	a	
  mighty	sorcerer,	rising	above	the	physical	laws	
  that	doom	ordinary	mortals	to	their	pitiful,	
  dingy	lives.		When	his	school	friends	were	busy	
  advancing	their	careers,	Matti	was	attending	
  every	crackpot	mystical	seminar	in	Helsinki,	
  hoping	to	stumble	across	the	path	to	true	oc-
  cult	power.		Finally	he	went	to	a	lecture	staged	
  
  7	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  by	a	traveling	Hermetic	Mover	in	order	to	re-
  cruit	a	new	bennie.		Matti	came	up	to	him	after	
  the	talk,	and	was	soon	offered	a	position	in	the	
  man’s	organization.		This	entailed	a	move	to	
  the	Mover’s	home	base,	the	Edge.
  Of	late,	Matti’s	superior	has	grown	increas-
  ingly	disenchanted	with	him,	and	has	found	a	
  new,	more	competent	servant.		He	hasn’t	cut	
  Matti	loose	but	leaves	him	to	his	own	devices	
  when there isn’t a menial task to fulfill.  Over-
  hearing	talk	of	the	arrival	of	the	Blue	Castle	
  leader	from	his	master,	Matti	camped	out	at	
  the	Hotel	Bienvenidos	on	his	own	initiative,	
  and	has	been	rewarded,	probably	mistakenly,	
  with	a	position	of	trust.
  Finnish	man,	age	8,	7	cm,	76	kg,	droopy	
  mustache,	sandy	hair	greased	back,	leather	
  vest,	t-shirt,	black	jeans.
  Languages:	Finnish,	English
  Psychic Pool:		shots
  Traits
  Occult Quackery, 3 dice — Has filled his 
  head	with	any	and	all	material	on	magic	and	
  the	paranormal	he	could	get	his	hands	on.		
  Knows	lots	of	stuff,	but	makes	no	separation	
  between	reliable	information	and	utter	non-
  sense.  Primarily useful at baffling the uniniti-
  ated,	though	with	an	extra	penalty	die	applied	
  (he	rolls	three	dice,	this	penalty	die,	and	his	
  general	“loser”	penalty	die,	below)	he	can	come	
  up	with	useful	answers	to	mystical	questions.		
  If	he	fails,	he	believes	the	BS	answer.		(Wears	
  pentagram,	ankh,	and	crystal	all	strung	on	
  same	necklace)
  Following Orders,	4	dice	—	Can	usually	
  execute	tasks	which	are	clearly	spelled	out	
  to	him	with	complete	instructions.		(Nods	his	
  head reflexively when listening to someone)
  Third Eye,		dice	—	Ironically,	Matti	does	
  have	an	innate	fringe	power,	but	his	indiscrim-
  inate	wallowing	in	pseudomystical	claptrap	
  has	confused	his	sense	of	focus,	preventing	
  him	from	developing	it.		His	invisible	third	eye	
  allows	him	to	see	the	astral	plane,	but	his	vi-
  sions	are	cloudy	and	diffuse.		Usually	when	he	
  sees	a	discorporate	sorcerer	or	psychovore	he	
  thinks	he’s	got	some	dust	in	his	eye.		(Blinks	
  and	rubs	his	eye	in	the	presence	of	astral	be-
  ings)
  Loser	—	Matti	isn’t	exactly	stupid	or	weak-
  willed,	but	things	he’s	involved	with	just	seem	
  to	mess	up.		Maybe	it’s	bad	luck,	or	an	uncon-
  scious need to confirm his family’s contemp-
  tuous	opinion	of	him	by	continually	failing.		
  Suffers	a	penalty	die	on	all	actions.		(Hangdog	
  expression)
  Cardinal	has	brought	one	Mover	ally	with	
  him	to	the	island,	his	bodyguard:
  Carlos Esquer
  Cardinal’s Bodyguard
  Carlos	is	a	very	disciplined	man	who	
  pursues	his	duties	with	focus	and	determina-
  tion.		He	was	loaned	to	Cardinal	by	a	Hermetic	
  from	Denmark,	who	used	him	for	years	as	his	
  protection	on	the	physical	plane.		A	withdrawn	
  man	when	he’s	not	cracking	skulls,	Carlos	says	
  little	and	refuses	to	let	strangers	draw	him	
  out.
  Peruvian	man,	age	7,	68	cm,	90	kg	of	
  solid	muscle.		Squarish	head,	barrel	neck,	
  crewcut,	polo	shirt	stretched	tight	across	his	
  bulging	muscles,	gray	cotton	slacks,	docksid-
  ers.
  Languages:	Spanish,	English
  Attacks:	4	dice,	X.5	damage	(brass	
  knuckles)
  Defense:	4	dice
  Hit Points:	8	(built	like	a	brick	waste	dis-
  posal	facility)
  Traits
  Busting Heads, 4 dice — Carlos’ fighting 
  technique	is	long	on	strength	and	speed	and	
  short	on	theory.		(Enormous	muscles)
  Spotting Trouble,		dice	—	Keeps	his	eyes	
  open,	is	a	good	judge	of	character,	and	has	an	
  intuitive	sense	for	upcoming	danger.		(Always	
  alert)
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  7
  Physically Intimidating,		dice	—	His	
  stance and confidence as well as his awesome 
  physique	make	him	very	frightening	to	poten-
  tial	opponents.		Anyone	with	less	than	4	dice	in	
  combat	must	roll	their	willpower	against	this	
  trait	to	summon	up	the	courage	to	take	him	on.		
  (Granite-like	posture)
  Lonely	—	Carlos	would	like	to	marry	a	nice	
  girl	and	settle	down,	but	he’s	too	shy	to	even	
  approach anyone he finds attractive.  (With-
  drawn,	especially	around	women)
  On	the	other	side	of	the	Mover	fence,	we	
  have	Mary	Olekobaai	(see	p.	)	who	also	
  headed	to	Bienvenidos	early	on	to	meet	the	
  mysterious	headman	of	the	Blue	Castle.		Her	
  unerring	sense	of	Upward	Mobility	stood	her	
  in	good	stead	—	she	realized	immediately	that	
  there	was	less	to	Cardinal	than	met	the	eye,	
  and	that	allying	with	him	would	be	a	terrible	
  mistake.		She’s	taken	the	case	to	her	Vornite	
  superiors,	who	are	withholding	judgment	on	
  the	Blue	Castle	while	she	tries	to	expose	Car-
  dinal	as	a	fraud.
  The Net
  Constance	D’Aubainne	has	personally	
  assigned one of her most trusted and efficient 
  bennies	to	arrange	for	the	acquisition	of	the	
  nuke.
  Sheila Haywood
  Criminal Criminal Lawyer
  Sheila	Haywood	has	chosen	an	unusual	
  way	of	dealing	with	tragedy.		Several	years	
  back,	as	she	was	distracted	by	an	angry	cel-
  lular	phone	conversation	with	a	client,	her	
  Mercedes	jumped	a	curb,	hitting	and	kill-
  ing	a	mother	and	child.		Since	then	she	has	
  unconsciously	chosen	to	slowly	smother	her	
  conscience	by	falling	in	with	the	Net	(she	went	
  to	the	university	with	Constance	D’Aubainne)	
  and	learning	to	do	progressively	more	horrify-
  ing	things	without	batting	an	eyelash.		Her	
  former	hard-driving,	anxious-to-impress	de-
  meanor	has	been	slowly	iced	over	by	a	calculat-
  ing	detachment	in	which	each	victory	must	be	
  more	appalling	than	the	last.		She’s	exhilarat-
  ed	by	this	mission	—	helping	to	get	a	nuclear	
  missile	into	the	hands	of	an	untrustworthy	
  dictatorship should finally close the coffin on 
  the	last	remnants	of	her	moral	sense.
  She’s	far	from	famous	outside	the	inner	
  circle	of	the	Net	and	those	who	deal	with	it;	the	
  average	observer	won’t	recognize	her	or	peg	
  the	identity	of	her	employers.
  Australian	woman,	age	55,	74	cm,	68	kg.		
  Elegant	features,	soft	skin,	dyed	blond	hair	
  with	dark	roots	showing,	smartly	dressed.
  Languages:	English,	Japanese
  Traits
  Negotiation,	4	dice	—	Specializes	in	com-
  mercial	transactions,	erecting	ironclad	deals	
  for	the	Net	in	both	its	criminal	and	legitimate	
  spheres	of	business.		Good	at	reading	the	
  desires	of	others	and	molding	her	approach	to	
  them.		(Relaxed,	positive	presence)
  International Business Law,		dice	
  —	Knows	how	to	protect	the	Net’s	interests	
  by	manipulating	the	laws	of	many	nations.		
  (Speculates	on	progress	of	grain	subsidy	issue	
  in	ongoing	GATT	trade	talks)
  Butt Protection,		dice	—	Expert	at	main-
  taining	her	position	in	the	Net	hierarchy;	if	
  Constance	were	to	disappear	tomorrow	all	of	
  her	potential	successors	would	need	Sheila	to	
  carry on.  (On first name basis with magnates 
  and	mobsters	alike)
  Cold — Although she gives a good first 
  impression,	most	people	who’ve	dealt	with	her	
  over an extended period find her unlikeable.  
  She finds it hard to get what she wants from 
  people	outside	of	the	business	realm.
  During	this	mission,	Sheila	may	call	on	up	
  to	six	Golden	Knights	should	she	need	physi-
  cal	backup.		Use	the	typical	stats	on	p.	9	of	
  OTE.
  
  74	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Access to Elwood
  Ever	since	he	began	to	come	down	with	his	
  weird	malady,	Elwood	has	become	a	recluse	
  in	his	hotel	room.		He	won’t	allow	anyone	to	
  see	him;	if	he	needs	to	give	instructions	to	
  Matti	or	Carlos	he	opens	the	door	a	crack	and	
  whispers	them	to	Carlos,	who	passes	them	on	
  to	Matti	if	necessary.		His	curtains	are	shut	
  tight,	and	the	lights	are	low	or	off	—	Elwood	
  doesn’t	want	to	see	himself	in	the	mirror,	or	
  even in a chance reflection from a polished 
  surface.		When	the	Chaos	Chancer	strikes	an	
  extremity	like	an	arm	or	leg,	he	wraps	it	up	in	
  a	bedsheet	so	he	doesn’t	have	to	look	at	it.		His	
  terror	has	aroused	a	psychosomatic	reaction,	
  and he’s showing flu symptoms even though 
  he	isn’t	actually	suffering	from	a	virus.		He’s	
  got	the	chills,	which	alternate	with	the	sweats.		
  He’s	also	subject	to	sneezing	jags	and	a	runny	
  nose.  This bout of “flu” provides a convenient 
  cover	with	Matti,	who	doesn’t	suspect	the	true	
  reason	for	his	new	boss’	erratic	behavior.		Car-
  los	doesn’t	consider	Elwood’s	sudden	seclusion	
  out	of	the	ordinary	either	—	his	last	employer	
  would	lock	himself	away	for	weeks	summoning	
  demons	and	sprites	and	so	forth.		This	is	all	in	
  a	day’s	work	for	him.		He	stands	in	the	hallway	
  outside	Elwood’s	room,	arms	crossed.
  The	day	before	play	begins,	hotel	manage-
  ment	phone	Elwood’s	room	to	complain	that	
  Carlos’	presence	out	in	the	hallway	is	intimi-
  dating	the	other	patrons.		Elwood	responds	by	
  renting the rest of the rooms on his floor, the 
  third.		This	gives	Carlos	the	freedom	to	chal-
  lenge	anyone	coming	down	the	corridor.		He	
  politely	turns	away	anyone	who	seeks	to	ap-
  proach	Elwood’s	room.		He	thumps	on	anyone	
  who	does	not	respond	to	this	businesslike	
  request.
  Elwood	has	used	his	various	Mover	con-
  tacts	to	secure	his	temporary	headquarters	
  from	unwanted	intrusion.		He	has	a	white	
  thought	generator	set	up	on	top	of	the	televi-
  sion,	one	that	generates	two	dice	worth	of	psy-
  chic	interference.		Another	device	is	a	gift	from	
  the	Hermetic	magician	who	loaned	him	Carlos.		
  It’s	an	obsidian	amulet	carved	into	the	shape	
  of	a	circuit	board.		It	prevents	third	parties	
  from	tapping	in	on	the	line	—	unauthorized	
  listeners	hear	the	conversation	as	translated	
  into	the	mating	language	of	crickets.
  It	is	possible	to	get	messages	to	Cardinal.		
  The difficulty is in getting a response from 
  him.		He	refuses	to	answer	the	phone	when	
  it	rings,	except	at	the	times	prearranged	for	
  calls	from	Stech.		Matti	picks	up	messages	left	
  for	Elwood	at	the	front	desk	at	about		am 
  and	4	pm each	day.		Carlos	also	accepts	writ-
  ten	messages	for	Elwood;	after	the	corridor	is	
  clear	again	he’ll	knock	on	the	door	and	pass	
  them	through.		Trained	to	be	wary	of	magical	
  attacks,	he	insists	on	examining	each	piece	
  of	paper	to	make	sure	no	one’s	trying	to	get	
  a	written	hex	past	him.		The	PCs	don’t	know	
  that	Carlos	would	never	pass	on	the	contents	
  of	such	a	message,	and	may	be	concerned	
  about	this.
  Elwood	doesn’t	respond	directly	to	any	
  messages	pertaining	to	the	nuke.		While	he	
  might	have	handled	them	with	aplomb	a	week	
  ago,	now	he’s	shaken	enough	that	they	just	
  make	him	nervous	and	fearful.		Such	mes-
  sages	make	him	determined	to	make	sure	he	
  isn’t	spotted	or	followed	when	he	arranges	the	
  unloading	of	the	missile,	no	more.		He	sends	
  Matti	to	any	proposed	meetings,	asking	him	
  to	get	as	much	information	about	the	inquirer	
  as	possible,	while	giving	nothing	away	about	
  him	or	his	goals.		Matti,	being	a	loser,	may	let	
  information	slip,	especially	to	someone	with	
  the	negotiating	skills	of	Sheila	Haywood	—	or	
  perhaps	a	PC.	But	he	knows	no	details	about	
  the	timing	of	the	shipment	or	the	rendezvous	
  point.		If	Matti	is	kidnapped,	Elwood	becomes	
  more	nervous	but	doesn’t	miss	him	enough	to	
  try	to	get	him	back.
  If	some	of	the	PCs	are	Cut-Ups	they’ll	have	
  an	edge	over	their	competitors	for	Cardinal’s	
  attention	—	they	know	about	the	Chaos	Chan-
  cer,	which	is	the	only	thing	on	the	man’s	mind	
  at	this	point.		A	mention	of	his	condition	in	a	
  message,	however	oblique,	gives	Cardinal	a	
  straw	of	hope	to	clutch	at.		He	agrees	to	meet	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  75
  with	anyone	who	seems	to	know	about	his	ill-
  ness	or	Radford.
  If	your	PCs	aren’t	Cut-Ups	and	have	ex-
  hausted	all	possible	ways	of	getting	to	Cardi-
  nal,	you	may	wish	to	provide	them	with	a	way	
  of	learning	about	the	Chancer.		Perhaps	they	
  overhear	a	Tiffany	Trilobite	cartoon	intended	
  for	Cut-Up	ears	only,	or	spy	on	the	Cut-Ups	in	
  some	other	way.
  Or	they	can	interview	patrons	of	the	hotel,	
  asking	people	if	they’ve	seen	Cardinal	leave	his	
  room.		Lots	of	people	in	the	hotel	bar,	restau-
  rant,	or	lobby	saw	and	spoke	to	him	earlier	in	
  the	week.		They	report	that	he	seemed	very	
  friendly	and	interesting.		Many	of	them	took	
  his	business	card,	which	has	an	Edmonton,	Al-
  berta	phone	number	on	it	—	these	people	chat-
  ted	about	business	deals	with	him,	or	turned	
  out	to	have	mutual	friends.		None	of	these	
  casual	acquaintances	Cardinal	networked	have	
  anything	negative	or	unusual	to	say	about	
  him.		From	these	interviews,	the	PCs	learn	
  only	that	he	seemed	very	gregarious,	and	an	
  expert	schmoozer.		All	encounters	of	this	type	
  will	be	three	or	more	days	old.
  A	couple	of	patrons,	however,	will	have	
  stranger	stories	to	tell,	from	the	day	before	
  yesterday.		Let	the	PCs	run	through	enough	
  of the above interviews before they find these 
  witnesses:
  Dominique Nahon,	who	works	at	Vylas-
  ka’s	Party	Favors,	ran	into	him	in	the	morn-
  ing.		“It	was	the	most	peculiar	thing,	I	must	
  say.		This	gentleman,	this	Mr.	Cardinal,	he	
  seemed	very	upset	the	second	time	I	met	him,	
  so	I	offered	to	sell	him	some	uppers	to	make	
  him	happy	once	more.		And	then	his	face	starts	
  to	ripple	like	a	pond	you	have	thrown	a	stone	
  into,	and	then	it	changes	color	to	bright	pink,	
  and	he	lets	out	this	shriek,	and	fuzz,	like	you’d	
  find on an angora sweater — it bursts out all 
  over	his	face.		He	ran	back	towards	the	rooms,	
  making	this	terrible	sound.”
  Andrew Rowland,	gold	prospector,	had	
  chatted with Cardinal on his first day in the 
  Edge	about	investment	opportunities.		He	
  saw	him	again	a	few	days	later,	several	hours	
  after	Ms.	Nahon:	“So	I’m	chattin’	to	the	fellow,	
  talkin’	about	the	East	Pine	formation	and	how	
  even	a	limited	investment	would	pay	off	big,	
  you	know?		Looks	like	he’s	had	a	bad	day,	he’s	
  all	cut	up,	like	he	shaved	real	bad,	you	know?		
  Except	all	of	his	face	was	cut,	like	he’d	been	
  shaving	his	forehead	and	ears	and	everything.		
  So	then	he	doubles	right	over,	grabbing	his	
  gut,	groanin’	like	he’s	gonna	retch.		And	then	
  he	opens	his	mouth,	and	I	get	a	look	at	his	
  teeth.		They’re	like	risin’	up	out	of	his	gums,	
  falling out on the floor.  And new teeth are 
  coming	in	to	replace	them	—	sharp	triangle	
  teeth	like	sharks	have.		And	these	get	pushed	
  up	and	out	by	other	teeth,	made	of	what	looks	
  like	limestone	to	me.		He	covers	his	mouth	and	
  rushes	off.		I	would	too	in	that	situation,	you	
  know?		I	scooped	up	a	bunch	of	the	teeth,	just	
  out	of	curiosity,	if	you	want	some.”
  If	the	PCs	are	making	good	progress,	rule	
  that	GMC	attempts	to	get	ahold	of	Elwood	are	
  unsuccessful.		Sheila	Haywood	sends	repeated	
  messages	to	Cardinal	requesting	a	big	meet-
  ing	and	offering	“$$$”	for	his	“merchandise.”	
  (Enterprising	PCs	might	intercept	some	of	
  these	messages	—	Sheila	tries	leaving	them	at	
  the	front	desk	as	well	as	passing	them	directly	
  to	Carlos.)	The	government	relies	on	a	DBI	
  wiretap	on	the	phone,	not	wanting	to	arrest	
  him	until	they	know	the	nuke	is	within	reach	
  —	all	they	get	though	are	cricket	noises.		Mary	
  Olekobaai	spends	time	in	the	hotel	lobby	and	
  restaurant,	but	is	just	keeping	an	eye	on	the	
  proceedings.		She’s	already	decided	he’s	a	
  fraud	and	has	no	interest	in	approaching	him.		
  None	of	them	suspect	that	Elwood	is	unwell	
  until	the	PCs	do	something	about	it.
  Treatment for Elwood
  The	one	thing	that	gets	the	PCs	a	face-to-
  face	with	Cardinal	is	a	message	mentioning	his	
  malady	and	offering	some	kind	of	explanation	
  or	treatment	of	it.		He	invites	them	up	to	his	
  room,	where	he	sits	in	darkness	with	a	blan-
  ket	drawn	up	over	his	legs.		He	recounts	the	
  meeting	with	Radford	if	asked,	and	describes	
  
  76	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  his	multiple	symptoms.		It	takes	considerable	
  drawing	out	to	get	Cardinal	to	admit	his	cur-
  rent	problem	—	his	groin	area	has	turned	to	
  granite.
  Cardinal	doesn’t	wish	to	discuss	his	rea-
  sons	for	being	in	Al	Amarja,	his	relationship	to	
  the	Movers,	or	the	nature	of	the	shipment	he’s	
  expecting.		To	get	the	truth	from	him,	they’ll	
  have	to	convince	him	of	three	things:	that	they	
  know	what’s	going	on	anyway,	that	they	offer	a	
  promising	treatment	for	his	condition,	and	that	
  they’ll	withhold	that	treatment	until	he	spills	
  the	beans.		Cardinal	is	quite	desperate	—	he’s	
  willing	to	give	up	the	nuke	in	exchange	for	a	
  cure.  After all, he didn’t have specific plans for 
  it	anyway.
  Cut-Up	PCs	need	to	persuade	him	that	
  they	can	get	him	to	Radford,	who	can	prob-
  ably	reverse	the	condition.		(Highly	unlikely	
  if	not	impossible:	there’s	only	a	one	in	six	
  chance	that	Radford	is	currently	incarnated	
  with	the	Pipe	of	Dreams,	and	it’s	not	all	that	
  cooperative when it comes to specific tasks.) 
  Mover	PCs	can	promise	the	services	of	the	
  Philosopher’s Stone in finding a cure.  If 
  they’ve	reported	Elwood’s	condition	to	their	
  superiors,	they’re	ordered	to	get	him	to	Dr.	
  Rambeau	after	securing	the	needed	info	on	
  the	arrival	of	the	nuke.		Government	PCs	can	
  offer	the	services	of	Dr.	Nusbaum	in	exchange	
  for	info	on	the	nuke	docking.		The	Net	doesn’t	
  have	any	genius	medical	oppenheimers	at	its	
  immediate	disposal;	PCs	either	have	to	lie	
  convincingly	or	promise	help	from	a	contact	of	
  their	own.		The	characters	in	your	series	might	
  well	know	a	sorcerer	or	faith	healer	from	the	
  mystic	s—	community,	for	example.		PCs	from	
  other	organizations	similarly	have	to	shift	for	
  themselves	when	it	comes	to	offering	a	credible	
  cure.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  77
  Whatever	the	true	allegiance	of	the	PCs,	
  it	would	be	clever	of	them	to	allow	Elwood	to	
  think	he’s	turned	them	to	the	Blue	Castle.		In	
  his	distraught	state	he’s	ready	to	entrust	the	
  details	of	the	project	to	anyone	he	considers	
  a	competent	bennie.		Carlos	is	not	leadership	
  material,	and	Elwood	is	realizing	that	Matti	is	
  a loser.  Elwood is sufficiently intoxicated with 
  his	meteoric	rise	to	power	to	fall	for	this	scam	
  if	it’s	well-acted.
  Once	the	PCs	manage	to	squeeze	this	
  agreement	out	of	him,	the	next	step	is	to	get	
  him	to	the	treatment	without	being	intercepted	
  by	their	GMC	rivals.
  If	the	PCs	get	stumped	and	it	looks	like	
  they’re	never	going	to	get	a	meeting	with	
  Elwood or figure out the way to get him on 
  their	side,	you	can	get	the	story	moving	again	
  by having one of the GMC groups figure it out.  
  The	PCs,	and	their	other	GMC	rivals,	see	them	
  going	to	the	meeting,	and	spot	them	smuggling	
  Elwood	out	afterwards.		In	other	words,	run	
  the	following	section	with	the	PCs	as	chasers	
  rather	than	chasees.		If	you	have	a	split	party	
  on	different	sides	of	the	scenario,	some	of	them	
  chase	the	others.
  Escape from 
  Bienvenidos
  The	Bienvenidos	lobby	is	now	crammed	
  with	various	cloaks.		Management	is	very	hap-
  py	about	this;	it	always	drives	up	sales	at	the	
  bar.		The	PCs,	however,	won’t	be	so	cheerful	
  —	it	means	that	their	adversaries	all	saw	them	
  going	up	to	meet	with	Elwood,	and	are	await-
  ing	the	results.		It’s	pretty	much	impossible	to	
  get in or out of Elwood’s third floor without be-
  ing	spotted	by	rival	cloaks.		Even	if	your	group	
  comes	up	with	a	great	plan	or	is	able	to	use	
  some	remarkable	fringe	power	to	elude	notice	
  on	the	way	in,	you	should	allow	the	rivals	to	
  successfully	counter	it	in	some	way,	in	order	to	
  allow	for	an	exciting	chase	sequence.		Substi-
  tute	the	forces	behind	the	goons	in	the	follow-
  ing	incidents	as	necessary.		The	feeling	is	more	
  important	than	the	precise	details	given	here.
  Once	Elwood	thinks	that	a	cure	is	possible,	
  he	won’t	want	to	wait	to	get	there.		He	insists	
  on	leaving	the	hotel	immediately.		If	PCs	
  protest that he’ll be seen, he starts to flip out, 
  alternating	sobs	with	hysterical	laughter.		“I	
  need	to	go	now!”	is	the	basic	gist	of	his	crazed	
  monologue.
  Elwood	agrees	to	tell	the	PCs	what	they	
  want	to	know	about	the	nuke	when	they	get	
  him	to	treatment.		So	they	have	to	successfully	
  shepherd	him	through	the	gauntlet	of	enemy	
  cloaks	to	get	the	info.
  Although	PCs	with	different	allegiances	
  have	varying	distances	to	go	to	get	Elwood	to	
  treatment,	distances	don’t	really	matter	in	
  running	the	chase	—	if	you	keep	it	fast	enough,	
  no	one	will	be	calculating	mileage.		The	PCs,	
  with	Carlos	and	Matti	in	tow,	hustle	Elwood	
  out	of	the	building.		The	Bienvenidos	has	two	
  standard	exits	and	another	six	emergency	
  exits.
  The	main	exit	is	through	the	lobby.		If	the	
  PCs	are	silly	enough	to	lug	Cardinal	through	
  the	front	way,	they	see	a	bunch	of	people	dash	
  to	their	feet	and	rush	to	follow	them.		The	
  back	exit	is	also	being	watched:	the	PCs	see	
  at	least	one	watcher	in	a	car	grab	for	his	cell	
  phone.		The	emergency	exits	are	all	attached	to	
  alarms;	these	go	off	loudly	when	the	PC	group	
  charges	through	them.		If	the	PCs	try	to	dis-
  arm	the	alarms	before	they	go,	Elwood	grows	
  impatient	and	just	barrels	through	the	door.		
  “I’m	dying	here,	I’m	croaking,	I’m	turning	into	
  a	washing	machine	for	@#$%’s	sakes!”
  Rival	GMCs	panic	when	they	see	a	group	
  hustling	Elwood	away.		Before	they	can	get	to	
  their	vehicle	(or	hail	a	cab)	a	bunch	of	brawlers	
  from	Sad	Mary’s	appear	and	try	to	surround	
  them.		They’ve	been	hired	by	Mary	Olekobaai	
  to	stand	by	in	case	she	needs	any	rough	stuff	
  done	—	one	of	them	has	a	small	cell	phone	
  on	his	belt	in	case	anyone	wonders	how	she	
  contacted	them	so	quickly.		Each	is	a	-dice	
  fighter with 21 hit points and the personality 
  of	a	towel	dispenser.		They	wield	lead	pipes	
  
  78	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  or	lengths	of	chain	for	X	damage.		There	is	
  one	of	them	per	PC	and	two	for	Carlos.		They	
  demand	that	the	group	come	along	with	them.		
  Elwood	shrilly	orders	Carlos	and	the	PCs	to	
  tackle	them;	Carlos	goes	for	the	nearest	one,	
  preventing	the	PCs	from	considering	their	of-
  fer.  Neither Elwood nor Matti join the fight.
  As	soon	as	the	melee	gets	boring,	or	a	PC	
  starts	to	take	too	much	damage,	the	sound	of	
  gunfire echoes off the buildings of the Plaza 
  of	Flowers.		A	Peace	Force	squad	is	running	
  towards the scene of the fight.  Each of them 
  has an MP5 submachinegun, 3 dice in firearm 
  and	unarmed	combat,		die	of	armor,	and	8	
  hit points.  There are as many peace officers as 
  PCs.  One is firing into the air, ordering every-
  one in the fight to freeze.
  The Sad Mary’s fighters, obviously a little 
  punch-drunk,	decide	instead	to	run	for	it.		The	
  cops start firing their MP5s at the rapidly 
  dispersing	mob.		In	true	cinematic	fashion,	
  although	bullet	impacts	rain	all	around	them,	
  actual	hits	occur	only	on	the	extras	—	Mary’s	
  goons.		Describe	them	falling	down	in	slow	
  motion	with	blood	squibs	going	off,	make	lots	
  of	cool	gun	noises,	and	so	forth.		A	PC	spots	a	
  Total	Taxi	with	its	“unoccupied”	light	on	cruise	
  around	the	corner.		Let	them	dash	for	the	cab	
  with	Elwood	and	get	away	from	the	cops.		If	
  they	want	to	ditch	Matti	and/or	Carlos	at	this	
  point,	they	can	do	so.
  If	no	PC	has	the	$00	surcharge	Total	
  Taxi	levies	for	hot	pursuit,	Elwood	coughs	up	
  the	dough.		The	taxi	rockets	away,	weaving	in	
  and out of traffic.  For some reason, the nor-
  mally	congested	streets	of	the	Edge	are	empty	
  enough	to	allow	for	a	high	speed	chase	today.
  And	here’s	the	reason,	up	ahead	—	it’s	All	
  Sexual	Orientation	Pride	Day,	an	occasion	for	
  a big parade with elaborate floats.  The taxi 
  swerves	through	the	parade,	sending	costumed	
  revelers	darting	out	of	the	way	and	upending	a	
  float with a giant sheep on it.
  Once	they’ve	intersected	the	parade,	a	
  large	green	sedan	pulls	off	a	side	street	and	
  into	pursuit.		It’s	full	of	Net	gangsters,	ordered	
  by	Sheila	Haywood	to	drive	the	taxi	off	the	
  road	and	grab	Elwood.		They	gain	on	the	taxi,	
  and	lean	out	the	window	with	what	look	like	
  super-soaker	squirt	guns.		Actually,	they’re	
  paintball guns modified to look less illegal.  
  They fire paintballs at the taxi, obscuring the 
  driver’s	visibility	by	smearing	his	back	and	
  side	windows	and	outside	mirror	with	bright	
  yellow liquid.  The cabbie floors it, swerving 
  into	a	row	of	market	stalls,	demolishing	them.		
  Clothes,	live	pigeons,	pots,	and	the	obligatory	
  oranges	go	everywhere.
  The	cabbie	announces	that	he’s	near	a	
  company garage and suggests a Chinese fire 
  drill	(OTE	p.	08)	but	insists	on	extra	pay-
  ment to get the paint off his windows.  The fire 
  drill	ditches	the	Net,	and	the	PCs	are	able	to	
  proceed	to	their	destination	uneventfully.		Or	
  you	can	keep	the	pursuit	going,	as	more	Net,	
  Mover,	or	government	forces	pursue.		If	PCs	
  are	chasing	Elwood	instead	of	protecting	him,	
  you’ll	have	to	adapt	to	circumstances	—	the	
  key	is	to	provide	the	same	sort	of	movie-like	
  chase	with	destroyed	fruit	stands	and	upended	
  parade floats, and end up with the PCs in 
  custody	of	Elwood,	whether	they	started	that	
  way	or	not.
  The Nuke
  The	PCs	drop	Elwood	off	at	whatever	treat-
  ment	facility	they’ve	hosed	him	into	going	to.		
  He	tells	them	that	a	cargo	vessel	is	due	to	dock	
  the	next	day	at	a	smuggler’s	cove	on	the	north-
  west	corner	of	the	island.		He’s	arranged	for	a	
  crew	of	Mover	moles	in	the	Net	to	be	there	to	
  supervise	the	off	loading	and	transportation	to	
  a	warehouse	in	Traboc.		He	gives	them	the	pre-
  cise	time	of	arrival,	and	the	passwords	to	use	
  to	get	both	the	ship’s	crew	and	the	Net/Mover	
  smugglers	to	accept	the	user’s	authority.		If	
  the	PCs	have	convinced	him	they’re	loyal	Blue	
  Castlers,	he	expects	them	to	accompany	the	
  smugglers	to	the	warehouse	and	then	report	
  back	for	further	assignments.		If	he’s	agreed	
  to	give	up	the	nuke,	he	tells	them	to	get	the	
  smugglers	to	take	it	wherever	they	want	it.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  79
  He	reveals	that	it’s	not	an	entire	SS-0	
  he’s	due	to	receive,	just	the	warhead.		The	
  entire	missile	is	too	hard	to	conceal,	and	it’s	
  the	warhead	that’s	the	really	valuable	part.		A	
  missile	to	deliver	it	wouldn’t	be	all	that	hard	to	
  construct.
  That	night,	watching	news	reports	of	the	
  chase	on	TV,	the	smugglers	get	cold	feet.		One	
  is	told	by	his	Mover	superior	that	the	alliance	
  with	the	Blue	Castle	is	off,	and	he’s	to	surren-
  der	the	warhead	to	Mary	Olekobaai.		Another	
  reveals	the	time	and	place	of	the	rendezvous	to	
  his	Net	superior	and	is	rubbed	out	for	disloy-
  alty.		A	third	gives	the	info	to	a	DBI	cloak	in	
  exchange	for	a	hit	of	Nightmare.		So	everybody	
  knows, setting the stage for the big finish.
  The	various	GMCs	all	decide	to	wait	until	
  the	warhead	is	off	loaded	to	make	their	moves,	
  figuring that it’s much simpler to seize it when 
  it’s	nicely	in	its	truck.		This	not	only	avoids	the	
  trouble	of	having	to	overpower	the	crew	of	the	
  boat,	but	takes	advantage	of	the	smugglers	to	
  do	the	heavy	work.
  Keep	the	details	of	the	handover	tense.		
  Emphasize	the	silence	of	the	secluded	cove,	
  the	waves	lapping	gently	against	the	shore,	
  the	odd	cry	of	a	gull.		Make	the	ship	arrive	
  a	little	late,	as	the	smugglers	voice	the	fear	
  that	it’s	been	intercepted	by	a	foreign	govern-
  ment.		After	the	boat	arrives,	the	cargo	—	in	a	
  very	large	wooden	container	—	is	unloaded	by	
  crane.		A	gear	slips,	and	the	box	free-falls	for	a	
  moment.		A	smuggler	faints	dead	away	before	
  the	crane	mechanism	catches	again.
  Once	the	box	is	in	the	truck,	the	GMCs	
  make	their	moves.		A	motorboat	full	of	cross-
  bow-toting	Movers	crashes	up	on	shore.		A	
  gaggle	of	Golden	Knights	emerge	from	a	secret	
  compartment	of	the	truck,	with	machineguns.		
  A	government	helicopter	touches	down	full	of	
  similarly	armed	Loyal	Defenders.		A	standoff	
  ensues,	with	everyone’s	weapons	trained	on	
  everyone	else,	especially	the	PCs.		Three	black	
  sedans	pull	up,	bearing	Mary	Olekobaai,	Isil	
  Ziya,	and	Sheila	Haywood.		Negotiations	for	a	
  resolution	to	the	standoff	begin.		Nobody	seems	
  willing	to	give	in.		This	is	where	your	PCs	come	
  in	—	perhaps	they	can	broker	an	arrangement	
  before	a	minor	military	engagement	ensues.
  If	the	negotiations	are	entertainingly	tense	
  and	result	in	a	decision	you	don’t	mind	—	i.e.	if	
  the	disposition	of	the	nuke	doesn’t	upset	your	
  sense	of	campaign	balance,	you	can	end	the	
  scenario	here.		If	they	on	the	other	hand	lack	
  a	bit	of	drama,	or	if	you	want	to	dispose	of	the	
  nuke,	continue	on	to	the	following	sequence:
  The Return of 
  Elwood Cardinal
  A	furrow	of	earth	suddenly	appears,	as	if	
  something	is	tunneling	underground	towards	
  the	truck.		Like	a	famous	cartoon	rabbit	we	all	
  know	and	love,	Elwood	Cardinal	pops	out	of	
  the	ground	nibbling	a	carrot	and	says,	“Ehh,	
  I’ve	come	for	my	nuke,	guys.”
  Obviously	attempts	to	cure	Elwood	have	
  been	unsuccessful	—	the	Chancer	has	spread,	
  so	that	he’s	now	a	spinning	roulette	wheel	that	
  lands	on	a	new,	outrageous	fringe	power	every	
  few	seconds.		His	form	shifts	from	a	misshapen	
  gopher	thing	to	an	iridescent	insect	man	to	
  a	mass	of	seething	twine	to	a	yeti	with	buzz	
  saws	for	hands.		For	this	brief	moment	during	
  the	incubation	of	his	Chaos	Chancer,	Cardinal	
  has	a	5	dice	trait	called	“Rotating	Plot	Device	
  Fringe	Power.”		He	steps	into	the	truck	to	grab	
  the	box,	tossing	it	about	as	if	it	were	paper.		
  Crossbow	bolts	and	bullets	fail	to	harm	him	
  —	one	minute	they	strike	him	to	no	effect,	the	
  next	they	melt	into	apple	butter,	the	next	they	
  turn back and pursue the soldiers who fired 
  them.
  “Whahahhaa!	Nuclear	power!”	he	giggles,	
  pulling	the	warhead	from	the	crate.		“Nuclear	
  power	is	your	friend	—	I	am	a	powered	boy,	I	
  have	always	wanted	to	be	powdered,	gunpow-
  der	changed	civilization	as	we	know	it,	I’m	
  going	to	change	the	way	we	all	know	about	
  civilization	around	here,	I	have	become	chaos,	
  the	mutator	of	worlds,	and	we’re	all	going	to	
  
  80	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  do	the	apocalypso!”	His	free	hand	glows	bright	
  red,	and	he	reaches	for	the	warhead.		Suddenly	
  everyone	realizes	that	this	is	going	to	set	off	a	
  very	unwanted	chain	reaction.
  The	ideal	solution	is	for	the	PCs	to	talk	
  Elwood	through	this	by	convincing	him	to	
  embrace	chaos,	whether	they	themselves	
  subscribe	to	the	Cut-Up	cause	or	not.		They	
  can	either	do	this	logically,	or	distract	him	by	
  tossing	him	free-associative	words;	he’ll	gradu-
  ally	start	to	enjoy	the	nonsense	contest,	which	
  brings about the final change of the Chaos 
  Chancer,	turning	him	into	a	benign	follower	of	
  Chaos.
  If	the	PCs	succeed	at	either	tactic,	Elwood	
  turns	the	warhead	into	a	bouquet	of	waterlil-
  ies	and	toast,	converts	himself	into	a	giant	
  firework, and explodes into the sky.  Actually, 
  if	the	PCs	don’t	use	this	approach,	he’ll	still	
  do	this	eventually	on	his	own,	as	the	Chaos	
  Chancer	infects	his	mind	with	good	thoughts.		
  But	the	players	won’t	feel	like	they’ve	brought	
  about	victory	this	way.
  Follow-Up
  Later	the	PCs	read	news	stories	about	a	
  strange	person	named	Elwood	Cardinal	who	
  does	various	strange	things.		But	he	is	de-
  scribed	differently	every	time	—	as	a	Turkish	
  cruise	ship	director,	a	Spanish	prosecuting	at-
  torney,	an	Israeli	comedian.		If	they	ever	meet	
  him	again,	he’s	another	mutable	personality	
  like	C.	A.	Radford.		He	declines	membership	
  in	the	Cut-Ups,	having	sworn	off	the	world	of	
  conspiracy.		Instead	he’s	devoted	himself	to	
  bringing	little	bits	of	lunacy	and	doubt	into	the	
  lives	of	ordinary	people.		However,	he	might	
  help	out	fellow	devotees	of	Chaos	if	they’re	re-
  ally	in	a	bind.
  Intersections
  Airwaves:	The	hosts	of	“The	Conspiracy	
  Show”	and	“Meet	the	SMOCs”	might	have	
  many	mutually	antagonistic	speculations	on	
  the	Blue	Castle	to	share	with	their	listeners.
  “The Bliss of Death”	(from	the	upcom-
  ing	anthology,	The Myth of Self):	A	blissed-out	
  survivor	of	the	Ralsius	Group’s	assault	on	
  the	Plaza	of	Flowers	could	be	shaken	back	to	
  normality	by	proximity	to	Elwood,	the	extreme	
  psychic	confusion	he’s	generating	being	enough	
  to	cancel	out	the	bliss	effect.		This	could	pro-
  vide	a	clue	to	Elwood’s	mental	state.
  New Faces:	Dr.	Alfonso	Rodriguez	is	an	
  example of a free-floating GMC who might be 
  a	credible	treatment	source	for	Elwood,	if	the	
  PCs	somehow	managed	to	recruit	him	as	a	
  contact	instead	of	killing	him.
  Unauthorized Broadcast:	If	PCs	have	
  a	dose	of	Broadcast	on	hand,	they	can	elude	
  pursuers	by	slipping	one	to	Elwood,	whose	
  tormented	thoughts	are	so	intense	that	they	
  wreck the concentration of peace officers or Net 
  soldiers	with	low	willpower.
  Welcome to Sylvan Pines:	One	place	PCs	
  might	hustle	Elwood	off	to	for	treatment	is	the	
  Sylvan	Pines	facility;	Dr.	Klemp’s	Isoneural	
  treatment	procedures	might	seem	promising	to	
  Cardinal.
  Wildest Dreams:	A	sandman,	sensing	
  torment on the third floor of the Bienvenidos, 
  might	hatch	a	plan	to	break	into	Elwood’s	
  room	and	lay	some	Dreamweb	on	his	forehead	
  to	catch	his	nightmares.		This	can	provide	a	
  red	herring	if	you	need	one.		Or	the	sandman	
  could	tangle	with	and	kill	Carlos	if	you	need	
  him	out	of	the	way.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  8
  “Great	indeed	is	the	sublimity	of	the	
  Creative,	to	which	all	beings	owe	their	
  beginning	and	which	permeates	all	
  heaven.”	
  —The I Ching
  No	matter	who	your	PCs	are,	whether	they	
  owe	allegiance	to	Control,	to	Chaos,	or	to	them-
  selves	only,	they	become	the	last	chance	for	
  the	universe	when	Chaos	Boy	turned	Control	
  Addict,	the	Koanhead,	evicts	a	couple	of	retired	
  Cut-Up	elders	from	their	communion	with	the	
  Primal	Chaos.		Manifesting	only	as	giant	glow-
  ing	brains,	their	return	to	Earth	shatters	every	
  known	paradigm	and	rule	of	physics	—	and	
  paralyses	the	Cut-Ups	themselves.		A	sudden-
  ly-contrite	Koanhead	enlists	the	PCs	to	return	
  the	Cut-Up	brains	to	the	Nirvanic	Maelstrom.	
  Note:		The	following	adventure	contains	a	
  fair	bit	of	what	might	seem	like	prepared	text,	
  particularly	dialogue	by	the	Koanhead.		This	
  is	presented	more	as	a	style	example	for	the	
  GM	than	a	script	for	you	to	read	out	verbatim.	
  Paraphrase	as	much	as	you	can	—	it’s	the	
  overall	feel	that’s	important,	not	the	particular	
  words	and	punctuation.
  Assault of the 
  Giant Brains
  The Nirvanic Maelstrom is difficult to 
  describe	in	words.		Or,	rather,	it	would	be	very	
  difficult for you were I to describe it in words.  
  A	simple	fourteen-word	English	sentence	actu-
  ally	sums	it	up	perfectly,	but	this	is	danger-
  ous.		Exposure	to	this	sentence	among	those	
  who are not metaphysically fit can result in 
  complete	brain	shutdown	in	the	reader.	In	less	
  devastating	terms,	the	Nirvanic	Maelstrom	is	
  the	center	of	the	universe	—	spiritually	speak-
  ing	—	and	the	central	paradox	that	prevents	
  energy	from	collapsing	into	matter,	matter	col-
  lapsing	into	energy,	and	the	plug	being	pulled	
  in	the	cosmic	bathtub.		It	is	Chaos	and	Control	
  melted	down	into	ultimate	harmony.		Many	
  Chaos	Boys	head	to	the	Nirvanic	Maelstrom	
  when	they	achieve	apotheosis,	when	they	be-
  come	so	chaotic	they	run	the	risk	of	becoming	
  Control.
  Two	such	beings	who	are	now	one	with	
  the	Maelstrom	are	Surazal	Namchtud	and	
  Barry	Wackerle,	Cut-Ups	who	operated	in	Al	
  Amarja	in	the	heady	days	of	the	late	forties	
  and early fifties.  In April of 1957 both of them 
  experienced	transcendence	of	the	conventional	
  boundaries	between	Control	and	Chaos	dur-
  ing	a	bout	of	lovemaking.		Their	colleague	Dr.	
  Bacteria	was	able	to	route	their	impossible	
  energies	towards	union	with	the	Nirvanic	
  Maelstrom	before	disaster	ensued.		If	they	
  were	ever	to	return	to	our	plane,	the	basic	
  structures	of	reality	couldn’t	stand	the	strain	
  and	would	either	break	apart	or	just	dissolve	
  into	absence.
  Unfortunately,	the	Koanhead	(see	p.	7)	is	
  just	the	being	to	do	that.		Trapped	for	several	
  years	of	isolation	in	a	sur-dimensional	prison,	
  The Last 
  Chance Brains
  
  8	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  the	Koanhead	has	been	meditating	nonstop	on	
  the	concept	of	impossibility.		Abruptly	he	came	
  upon	a	thought	he	had	never	encountered	
  before	—	“Impossibility	is	merely	the	outline	
  of	the	possible.”		This	koan	blasted	him	out	of	
  prison	and	onto	a	huge	stairway	of	plexiglass	
  hanging	in	space	northwest	of	Jupiter.		He	
  walked	up	the	stairway	and	found	a	doorway	
  at	its	top.		There	was	a	buzzer	installed	be-
  side	the	door,	and	he	pushed	the	button.		A	
  distorted	voice	came	through	on	the	other	
  side,	asking	who	was	demanding	entry	to	the	
  Nirvanic Maelstrom.  Koanhead identified 
  himself,	and	was	told	that	it	would	not	be	his	
  time	for	another	decade.		He	then	repeated	his	
  reality-blasting	koan.		The	two	nirvanically	
  merged	Chaos	Boys	closest	to	the	sound	of	his	
  voice, Wackerle and Namchtud, were fired out 
  of	the	Maelstrom	back	to	our	reality,	to	the	
  place	they	had	called	home	years	before.
  It’s	business	as	usual	for	your	PCs	on	the	
  day	they	return.		Let	them	pursue	their	own	
  agendas	for	a	while,	whether	they’re	pursu-
  ing	their	training,	seeking	vengeance	on	old	
  adversaries,	or	making	new	contacts.		Then	the	
  brains	appear.
  Everyone	in	the	city	looks	up,	even	the	
  blind.		People	indoors	rush	to	the	windows.		
  Hovering	over	the	city	are	two	giant	pulsing	
  brains	the	size	of	dirigibles.		The	weak-minded	
  collapse	in	fear.		Others	experience	religious	
  conversions,	change	their	political	stances,	or	
  grow	unexpected	facial	hair.		The	same	words	
  begin	to	echo	painfully	through		every	sentient	
  mind,	in	each	individual’s	mother	tongue:		
  “Turbulent.		Terror.		Original.		Venerable.		
  Babysitter.		Instant.		Shutdown.”
  Then	pretty	much	everything	goes	away.
  The Mud Puddle 
  Explains
  Although	the	PCs	were	probably	in	sepa-
  rate	places	when	the	brains	arrived	over	Al	
  Amarja,	they’re	together	now.		They’re	stand-
  ing	in	a	grassy	clearing	on	a	sunny	day;	the	
  temperature	is	warm.		A	light	breeze	brushes	
  PC	faces.		The	air	is	cleaner	than	the	Edge’s.		
  On	one	edge	of	the	clearing	is	a	little	brick	
  church	with	a	style	of	architecture	suggesting	
  it	was	built	in	a	small	town	in	North	America	
  at	some	point	in	the	960s	—	if	any	PCs	are	
  that	up	on	their	buildings.		Behind	the	PCs	is	
  a	forest.		Fifty	feet	to	their	right	or	left	there	is	
  literally	nothing	—	just	blankness.		A	couple	
  of	hundred	yards	past	the	church	there’s	also	
  nothing.		If	PCs	thrash	about	in	the	trees,	they	
  almost	fall	over	the	edge	into	nothing.
  Although	it	can’t	be	seen,	the	chirp	of	a	
  robin	is	the	only	sound	breaking	the	silence.		
  Until:		“Hey,	over	here,	pathetic	humans!”
  The	voice	emanates	from	a	mud	puddle.		
  Ask	each	player	what	his	character	would	
  expect	a	talking	mud	puddle	to	look	like;	the	
  face	in	the	puddle	is	as	far	to	the	opposite	of	
  each	person’s	idea	as	you	can	describe.		It	is	
  the	Koanhead.
  When	they	approach	the	puddle,	the	
  Koanhead	asks	them	who	they	are.		He	then	
  explains	who	he	is,	giving	a	rather	slanted	ver-
  sion	of	his	history	in	which	he	is	a	misunder-
  stood	hero	and	the	Cut-Ups	a	bunch	of	jealous	
  amateurs	afraid	of	the	true	implications	of	
  chaos.		(PCs	who	hang	out	with	the	Cut-Ups	
  know	enough	to	be	able	to	contradict	his	story	
  if	they	choose	to.)		Then	he	rather	sheepishly	
  explains	what’s	going	on,	as	best	as	he	can:
  “Shucks,	I	seem	to	have	made	a	bit	of	a	
  boo-boo,	if	you	know	what	I	mean.		Any	of	
  you	familiar	with	computers?		Well,	you	know	
  what	an	operating	system	is	—	it’s	the	basic	
  program	the	computer	uses	to	tell	its	chips	and	
  stuff	that	they’re	part	of	a	computer,	right?		
  And	sometimes	if	you’re	using	the	wrong	kind	
  of	program	it	overwrites	your	operating	system	
  when	it	crashes?		Well,	it’s	like	the	universe	
  has	just	crashed	and	we	have	to	put	all	the	
  information	on	its	hard	drive	back	together	in	
  the	right	order	again.		Think	of	the	universe	as	
  Humpty	Dumpty.		And	I’m	the	king’s	men,	and	
  you’re	the	kings	horses,	and	let’s	hope	we	do	a	
  better	job	of	it	than	in	the	fairy	tale.”
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  8
  He	then	stops	for	questions,	if	any.		If	
  pressed,	he	sheepishly	gives	them	the	story	of	
  how	he	scrambled	the	fundamental	underpin-
  nings	of	the	universe	by	releasing	Wackerle	
  and	Namchtud	from	the	Nirvanic	Maelstrom.		
  He’s	trapped	back	in	his	sur-dimension	again,	
  and	has	no	way	of	getting	out	if	there’s	no	
  universe	to	get	back	to.		So	he’s	willing	to	give	
  the	PCs	the	best	information	he	can,	as	they’re	
  currently	the	only	actual	beings	in	the	uni-
  verse.		Everyone	else	is	on	the	“crashed	hard	
  drive.”		He	can	only	communicate	with	real-
  ity,	or	what’s	left	of	it,	by	appearing	in	brown	
  liquids,	like	the	muddy	water	of	this	puddle.
  What’s	left	of	the	universe	appears	to	be	
  garble	—	bits	and	pieces	of	peoples’	memories	
  scattered	around	according	to	no	particular	
  rhyme	or	reason.		Anyone	else	they	meet	won’t	
  be	real	—	they’re	just	memory	shadows.		At	
  this	point	Koanhead	has	no	idea	why	these	few	
  beings	are	still	left	operating,	but	he’s	going	to	
  meditate	on	it	and	get	back	to	them.
  “For	example,	this	particular	hunk	of	
  memory	is	from	one	of	the	billions	of	people	
  scrambled	on	the	universe’s	hard	disk,”	Koan-
  head	begins.		
  The Monster 
  Under the Rock
  “It’s	a	church	where	this	person,	back	when	
  he	was,	like	ten	or	eleven	years	old,	used	to	go	
  one	summer	for	a	day	camp.		The	day	camp	
  was	run	by	this	counselor	who	turned	out	to	
  be	a	bit	of	a	con	artist	—	he	skipped	out	at	the	
  end	of	the	summer	and	stole	a	bunch	of	stuff	
  from	the	church.		There	was	an	outhouse	back	
  behind	a	big	rock	back	of	the	church	—	you	can	
  see	it	there.”
  And	indeed,	the	PCs	see	what	Koanhead	
  describes.
  “To	make	sure	the	kids	always	went	two-
  by-two	to	the	outhouse,	this	wacko	counselor	
  invented	a	story	about	a	vampire	named	John	
  
  84	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Isidor.		John	Isidor	was	an	all-powerful	mon-
  ster	who	was	eventually	buried	under	that	
  rock,	you	see.		And	that	surveying	stake	you	
  see	poking	out	with	the	red	spraypaint	on	it	
  is	supposedly	the	one	driven	through	Isidor’s	
  heart.		The	kids	were	warned	to	always	be	
  careful,	or	Isidor	would	charge	out	from	under	
  the	rock	and	tear	them	to	shreds.
  “John	Isidor	haunted	this	kid’s	nightmares,	
  even	when	he	was	on	vacation	with	his	fam-
  ily	and	far	away	from	this	loony	counselor.		
  When	he	got	back	to	the	day	camp,	the	guy	
  had	changed	his	story,	saying	Isidor	had	been	
  captured	and	imprisoned	in	this	vault	of	me-
  ter-thick	steel	in	Montreal.		Other	parents	had	
  complained	during	the	vacation,	see,	and	the	
  guy	cooled	the	vampire	crap.	But	because	the	
  whole	thing	didn’t	get	‘resolved’	except	when	
  he	was	away,	in	the	guy’s	unconscious	decades	
  later,	John	Isidor	is	still	there.”
  “So.		I	got	this	theory	and	I’d	like	you	to	
  confirm it by pulling out that stake and killing 
  John	Isidor	once	and	for	all.		Go	ahead,	and	if	
  I’m	right	I’ll	give	you	the	whole	poop.		Go	to	it;	
  I’ll	go	off	and	meditate	some	more	and	get	back	
  to	you	when	you’re	through.”
  Just	as	Koanhead	says,	the	vampire	will	
  erupt	out	from	under	the	rock	—	tossing	this	
  huge	boulder	up	into	the	air	like	it’s	styrofoam	
  —	as	soon	as	they	pull	the	surveying	stick	out.		
  He	attacks	the	closest	PC.
  No	other	action	in	this	memory	realm	
  causes	any	sort	of	reaction.		PCs	can’t	walk	off	
  the	edge	into	the	void;	an	invisible	wall	stops	
  them.		(The	same	wall	is	in	the	way	if	they	try	
  to	toss	Isidor	over	the	edge,	so	to	speak.)		They	
  can	wander	about	in	the	abandoned	church	
  if they want, but won’t find anything out of 
  the	ordinary	there.		They	can	try	to	wreck	the	
  church	by	burning	it	to	the	ground,	but	this	
  won’t	get	them	out	of	here.		Koanhead	won’t	
  return	until	they	deal	with	Isidor.		There’s	
  nothing	to	do	but	eventually	take	on	the	mon-
  ster.
  John Isidor
  Imaginary Vampire
  Isidor,	as	an	amateur	folk	creation,	isn’t	
  very	sophisticated	as	vampires	go.	He	doesn’t	
  have	much	of	a	personality	or	range	of	behav-
  ior.		He	was	turned	into	a	monster	back	in	the	
  800s,	and	kills	viciously	and	indiscriminately.		
  That’s	about	it.		Isidor	was	invented	to	scare	
  young	children,	so	he’s	your	basic	unsubtle,	
  unstoppable	horror	—	he’s	more	an	incredibly	
  potent	bogeyman	than	a	grand	Stoker-inspired	
  villain.  PCs should figure this out after he 
  kills	them	a	couple	of	times.
  Caucasian	undead	monster,	age	,	95	
  cm, 100 kg.  Wears formal outfit of 1860s 
  —	moldy	top	coat,	vest,	off-white	shirt,	brown	
  wool	pants.	
  Language:		English
  Attacks:		4	dice,	X	(claws)
  Defense:		4	dice
  Hit Points:		n/a
  Traits
  Vampire,	4	dice	—	Isidor	is	good	at	killing	
  unsuspecting	people	who	pull	the	surveying	
  stick	out	from	under	the	rock.		He’s	super-
  strong,	capable	of	crushing	a	person’s	skull	
  with	his	bare	hands,	or	eviscerating	someone	
  with his 7 cm fingernails.  And, like vampires 
  of	legend,	he’s	pretty	much	invulnerable.		Like	
  the	Dracula	of	the	B-movies,	even	the	old	stake	
  through	the	heart	just	puts	him	out	of	commis-
  sion	temporarily	—	his	body	doesn’t	decompose	
  but	instead	just	goes	into	stasis.		(Hisses	like	a	
  snake,	baring	5	cm	fangs)
  Imaginary, flaw — Isidor is just an unre-
  solved	memory	from	somebody’s	past.		Con-
  vincing	him	of	this	is	the	only	way	to	destroy	
  him	permanently.	(Narrow	range	of	behavior)
  Isidor	suffers	no	damage	from	any	sort	of	
  attack,	fringe	or	otherwise.		Anyone	mindscan-
  ning	him	gets	a	distressing	jolt	of	pure	primal	
  malice,	with	an	underlying	block	of	equally	
  potent	denial.		(Deep	down,	Isidor	knows	he’s	
  just	a	subconscious	projection,	but	won’t	admit	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  85
  it	to	himself.)		If	the	PCs	get	a	cross	from	the	
  church	(sorry,	it’s	Presbyterian,	so	there’s	no	
  holy	water)	they	can	keep	Isidor	from	coming	
  within	a	meter	of	it.		If	they	jab	him	through	
  the	heart	with	the	stake,	he	goes	back	into	
  suspended	animation.		Other	kinds	of	damage	
  might	earn	them	a	temporary	respite	—	if,	for	
  example,	they	manage	to	decapitate	him	with	
  a	sheet	of	glass	from	the	church	and	then	keep	
  the	glass	between	head	and	torso,	he’s	incapa-
  ble	of	regenerating.		But	there’s	nothing	to	stop	
  him	from	turning	into	mist	and	then	reform-
  ing,	more	furious	than	ever.		None	of	these	
  actions	resolves	anything;	the	PCs	remain	
  trapped	in	this	netherland	of	memory.
  Because	they’re	in	this	netherland,	the	
  PCs	aren’t	exactly	real	either.				Or	at	least,	
  bad	things	that	happen	to	them	in	this	unreal	
  place	are	impermanent.		Isidor	may	be	able	to	
  tear	off	their	arms	but	can’t	permanently	de-
  stroy	their	real	physical	presences	—	these	are	
  trapped	along	with	all	other	matter	in	the	col-
  lapsed	universe.		If	all	of	them	are	slain,	they	
  immediately	reappear	again	in	the	churchyard,	
  in	front	of	the	mud	puddle.		The	rock	is	back	
  on	top	of	the	surveying	stake.		If	they	go	back	
  in the church, it is as it was before they first 
  entered	it.
  “Mmp,”	says	Koanhead,	“looks	like	he	
  gotcha,	huh?		Seems	you	don’t	get	out	of	it	that	
  easy,	though.		Strange,	I	thought	the	vampire	
  would	be	able	to	permanently	wipe	you	out,	
  but	I	guess	we’re	all	just	stuck	in	this	section	
  of	programming	code	—	I	mean,	reality	—	till	
  you	work	the	bug	out	of	it.		Okay,	gang,	back	
  at	‘em.		And	try	to	do	a	less	embarrassing	job	
  of	it	this	time,	huh?”
  The	only	way	to	destroy	Isidor	is	to	get	it	
  to	realize	that	it’s	just	an	imaginary	projec-
  tion.		PCs	can	do	this	by	hectoring	it	as	they	
  scamper	out	of	its	murderous	path.		Shouted	
  taunts	like	“Where	were	you	born?”		“What	
  was	your	mother’s	name?”		“Who	was	president	
  when	you	turned	into	a	vampire?”	will	con-
  fuse	it	badly.		Isidor	wavers	when	confronted	
  with	his	own	unreality,	becoming	temporar-
  ily insubstantial if accused of being fictional.  
  Then	he	attacks	with	renewed	fury.		This	is	
  Isidor’s	dark	secret,	and	he’s	rather	vulnerable	
  to	it	—	reward	the	PCs	with	a	sign	of	potential	
  victory	when	they	start	to	use	it.		Once	argued	
  into	a	corner	on	the	subject,	he	screams	in	rage	
  and	frustration	and	vanish.
  Fifty Roads to 
  China
  Moments later the PCs find themselves sit-
  ting	around	a	round	marble	table	in	an	elegant	
  dining	room.		The	world	around	them	is	the	lu-
  minous	black	and	white	of	a	late-thirties	Holly-
  wood	movie.		The	walls	of	the	dining	room	look	
  like	a	stunning	set;	the	diners	at	other	tables,	
  like	charmingly	unobtrusive	extras.		A	band	of	
  oriental	men	in	tuxedos	plays	Duke	Ellington	
  tunes	with	rip-roaring	abandon.	
  In	front	of	each	PC	is	a	steaming	cup	of	cof-
  fee.		The	only	color	visible	is	the	brown	liquid	
  the	Koanhead	speaks	from.
  “Okay,	okay,	done	some	more	meditating,	
  and	I’ve	come	to	some	conclusions	here.		No	
  applause,	no	applause,	just	doing	my	job	as	a	
  hero	of	reality.		Here’s	the	deal	—	it	turns	out	
  the	universe	is	nothing	but	a	consensus	brewed	
  in a psychic energy field all sentient and even 
  partially	sentient	beings	unknowingly	contrib-
  ute	to	with	their	dreams,	desires,	memories,	
  and	regrets.		Got	that?		Good.
  “The	current	problem	with	the	universe	
  is	that	the	connections	between	all	of	these	
  dreams	and	regrets	et cetera	have	been	erased	
  by	the	appearance	of	the	Giant	Brains	I	acci-
  dentally	released.		Think	of	these	connections	
  as	a	wheel	with	spokes.		The	stuff	that	ev-
  erybody	agrees	about,	reality-wise,	are	at	the	
  hub	of	the	wheel.		You	know:		grass	is	green,	
  the	sky	is	up,	knives	are	sharp,	water	is	wet,	
  the	basic	stuff.		The	further	you	go	out	on	the	
  wheel	the	more	individual	the	memories	get	
  and	the	less	they	have	to	do	with	everybody’s	
  reality	and	just	become	individual	reality.		So,	
  all	the	memories	of	everybody	who’s	ever	eaten	
  
  86	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  food	are	real	close	to	the	hub	—	a	common	
  thing.		Everybody’s	who’s	eaten	with	a	fork	is	
  a	little	further	out.		People	who	believe	that	
  they’re	being	poked	by	demonic	pitchforks	are	
  way	out	on	the	wheel,	that’s	just	not	a	part	of	
  most	people’s	realities.		Got	it?”		(Be	prepared	
  to	ad-lib	more	similar	metaphysical	BS	if	char-
  acters	ask	him	questions.)
  “So	furthest	out	on	the	wheel	of	connec-
  tions	are	the	intensely	personal	memories	
  people	have,	or	dreams	or	hallucinations,	or	
  whatever.		Now,	as	far	as	I	can	tell,	those	con-
  nections	aren’t	permanently	shot,	they’re	just	
  kinda...dormant.		If	we	—	that	is,	you	—	go	
  through	enough	of	these	far-out	individual	
  memories,	the	universe’s	hardware	will	be	
  able	to	recognize	what	they	are,	reconstruct	
  the	connections,	and	shoot	the	brains	back	to	
  where	they	belong.”
  If	asked	by	the	PCs	why	they’re	still	func-
  tioning	when	no	one	else	is,	Koanhead	says	
  he’s	still	meditating	on	that	one.
  “Anyway,	I’m	getting	all	kinds	of	psychic	
  reverberations	from	this	scene	here.		We’re	
  standing	in	the	unresolved	desires	of	an	alien	
  from	Alpha	Centauri.		Her	name’s	Galeia,	and	
  she’s	a	scholar	who	specialized	in	interpret-
  ing	TV	signals	emanating	from	Earth.		She	
  became	obsessed	with	old	movies,	particularly	
  the	one	we’re	in	now,	a	forgotten	thing	called	
  Fifty Roads to China.		Anybody	heard	of	it?”
  The	PCs	haven’t.
  “Figures.		It	was	an	obscure	spy	thriller	
  from	98,	starring	Lita	Lombard	and	Victor	
  DeFore.		It’s	about	an	American	reporter	in	
  love	with	a	White	Russian	singer	in	Japanese-
  occupied	Manchuria.		She	loves	him,	too,		but	
  she’s	with	this	Japanese	general	because	of	
  some	complicated	misunderstandings,	plus	
  she’s	got	this	self-loathing	thing	and	she	
  thinks	she	doesn’t	deserve	a	good	guy	like	him	
  and	he	should	go	back	to	his	nice	American	
  girlfriend.
  “Anyway,	this	is	an	unresolved	desire	for	
  the	Alpha	Centauran	because	the	TV	broad-
  cast	she	picked	up	accidentally	skipped	a	
  crucial	reel,	wrecking	her	whole	thesis	and	her	
  academic	career	with	it.		Lita’s	about	to	start	
  singing	—	her	character	is	called	Satin	Flower	
  —	and	in	mid-number	Victor,	or	should	I	say	
  John	Hazard	—	stumbles	into	the	club,	shot	in	
  the	gut	by	the	Japanese	general’s	number	one	
  lackey.		The	Japanese	burst	in	and	announce	
  that	everyone	in	the	place	is	under	arrest.		
  “Then	the	reel	abruptly	ends,	and	next	
  thing	we	see	Lita,	Victor,	and	his	lovable	
  companions	are	on	a	tramp	steamer	heading	
  for	San	Francisco.		Galeia	is	obsessed	by	this	
  movie	because	she	can’t	see	how	the	plot	could	
  go	from	the	arrest	in	the	club	to	the	tramp	
  steamer.		After	that,	there’s	this	battle	at	sea	
  with	a	Japanese	cruiser	chasing	them,	but	she	
  knows	how	that	all	goes.		It’s	this	break	that	
  keeps her up nights, and you’ve gotta fill it 
  so	we	can	get	to	the	next	stop	in	stitching	the	
  universe	back	together	again.”
  Koanhead	then	tells	them	who	they	are.		
  They’re	playing	the	character	roles,	as	the	ec-
  centrics	who	hang	around	the	club	or	Hazard’s	
  newspaper offices.  Make up appropriate char-
  acter-type	roles	for	each	PC.		For	example,	if	
  there’s	a	mystic	s—	type,	he’s	Count	Zarou,	the	
  Hungarian	stage	magician	whose	act	comes	
  on	after	Satin	Flower’s.		A	combat-oriented	PC	
  becomes	Traps	Kessler,	a	world-weary	mer-
  cenary	with	a	heart	of	gold.		One	with	shady	
  connections	becomes	Ko	Cheng,	the	local	tong	
  leader	who	helps	Hazard	to	spite	the	Japanese.		
  Anybody	with	medical	skills	becomes	coura-
  geous	old	missionary	Dr.	Franzelhurst,	and	so	
  on.		Other	possibilities	include	Willard	Koenig,	
  Hazard’s	hard-drinking	mentor;	Mikey	Wexler,	
  a	young	naïve	sidekick;	François	Connart,	a	
  rakish	gambler,	or	Dixie	Frost,	the	self-sac-
  rificing girlfriend who loves Hazard so much 
  she	wants	him	to	be	happy	with	Lita.		PCs	can	
  play	the	role	of	another	gender;	none	of	the	
  movie	characters	notice.
  Once	Koanhead	has	given	the	PCs	their	
  roles,	Satin	Flower	takes	the	stage	and	begins	
  to	sing.		Several	verses	in,	Hazard	stumbles	in,	
  shot.		It’s	now	up	to	the	PCs	to	steer	the	narra-
  tive	of	the	“movie”	towards	the	embrace	on	the	
  steamer.		They	do	so	by	interacting	with	the	
  movie	characters,	forcing	or	persuading	them	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  87
  along	a	course	of	action	that	gets	Satin	Flower	
  and	Hazard	smuggled	onto	a	boat	being	chased	
  by	the	Japanese.
  PCs can be hurt if they get into fights; 
  if	they	die,	they	go	in	a	big	scene	with	dra-
  matic	last	words	and	violins	swelling	on	the	
  soundtrack,	only	to	reappear	at	the	beginning	
  of	Intersections,	p.	90.		If	they	all	get	killed	be-
  fore	getting	Satin	Flower	and	Hazard	onto	the	
  boat,	they	reappear	at	the	dinner	club	table	
  and	must	start	over	again.		PCs	can	also	“write	
  themselves	out”	of	the	storyline	and	thereby	
  disappear	until	Intersections.		For	example,	if	
  a	PC	is	a	tong	leader,	it	doesn’t	make	sense	for	
  him	to	get	on	the	boat,	so	he	might	see	them	to	
  a	certain	point	and	end	his	involvement	in	the	
  story.		He	vanishes	from	reality	till	the	reel	is	
  completed	or	re-started.		If	they	get	either	Sat-
  in	Flower	or	Hazard	killed,	they	immediately	
  reappear	at	the	club	and	start	over	—	after	all,	
  we	know	Satin	Flower	and	Hazard	survive	to	
  get	on	the	boat.		Koanhead	taunts	them	merci-
  lessly	if	this	happens.
  Play	this	section	by	ear;	if	the	players	are	
  really	getting	into	the	idea	of	playing	their	
  characters	playing	stock	movie	characters,	
  draw	out	the	storyline	by	throwing	lots	of	
  obstacles	in	their	paths.		If	you	want	to	scoot	
  them	through	this	section,	let	them	get	Satin	
  Flower	and	Hazard	on	the	boat	after	a	few	
  tense	scenes.	
  In	portraying	the	characters,	feel	free	to	
  ham	it	up.	Evoke	the	style	of	a	creaky	old	
  movie,	and	use	as	much	cliché	dialogue	as	you	
  can	muster.		Remember,	everybody’s	an	actor	
  playing	a	character,	and	the	reality	is	that	of	a	
  Hollywood	studio.		When	describing	a	location,	
  think	of	it	as	a	set	in	glorious	black-and-white.		
  If	the	PCs	make	it	to	the	ocean,	the	water	
  behind	them	looks	back-projected.
  Descriptions	of	GMCs	for	this	section	in-
  clude	both	the	actor	and	the	part	in	the	script	
  they’re	playing.
  
  88	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Lita Lombard/Satin Lotus
  Low-rent Dietrich/Tragic Bad Girl
  Lita	Lombard	is	a	corn-fed	Indiana	girl	the	
  studio	men	are	trying	to	model	into	competi-
  tion	for	Marlene	Dietrich.		Although	they’ve	
  given	her	Dietrich’s	clothes,	look,	and	roles,	
  her	serious	dedication	to	scenery	chewing	de-
  rails	any	attempt	at	Dietrich’s	iconic	cool.
  Satin	Flower	is	a	White	Russian	singer	
  afraid	to	love	John	Hazard	because	she’s	sure	
  she’s	no	good.		Although	the	Production	Code	
  doesn’t	allow	anything	more	than	hinting	in	
  this	department,	she’s	probably	an	expensive	
  hooker	as	well	as	singer.		She’s	the	classic	
  exotic	beauty	femme	fatale,	sure	she’s	cursed	
  by	fate	to	suffer	the	things	she’s	had	to	do	to	
  survive	in	a	hostile	world.
  American	woman	made	up	as	exotic	Rus-
  sian	beauty,	age	,	67	cm,	6	kg.		Elaborate	
  gowns	with	shiny	fabric,	glowing	features,	
  shimmering	short	blonde	hair.	
  Languages:		English.		(Although	most	of	
  the	characters	in	this	world	of	international	in-
  trigue	should	speak	a	bunch	of	languages,	the	
  scriptwriter	of	Fifty Roads to China spoke	only	
  English,	so	the	closest	any	of	the	characters	
  get	to	another	language	is	a	bad	accent.)
  Traits 
  Alluring,	4	dice	—	Satin	has	an	hypnotic	
  effect	on	any	red-blooded	male	who	looks	upon	
  her.		Some	men	love	her	from	afar	—	others	
  would	die	to	possess	her.		(Close-ups	always	
  impeccably	lit)
  Tragic	—	Thinks	she	deserves	a	rotten	life	
  for	the	things	she’s	done;	she’ll	need	to	be	con-
  vinced	to	go	on	the	boat	with	Johnny.		(Tosses	
  her	head	back	and	throws	the	back	of	her	hand	
  sorrowfully	against	her	forehead)
  Victor DeFore/John Hazard
  Miscast Crooner/Square-Jawed American
  Victor	DeFore	had	his	big	successes	in	
  frothy	musicals	as	the	All-American	boy	you’d	
  be	happy	to	have	your	daughter	date.		In	the	
  late	thirties,	he	was	getting	a	little	long	in	the	
  tooth	for	these	roles	and	tried	to	branch	out	
  into	the	tough	guy	realm.		The	director	fought	
  against	the	choice,	and	tried	to	cancel	out	his	
  vacuous	good	looks	by	having	him	get	beaten	
  up	and	covered	with	dirt	through	most	of	the	
  film’s running time. John Hazard is a reporter 
  who	has	kicked	around	the	world’s	trouble	
  spots	and	gotten	kicked	back.		A	little	too	quick	
  with	the	booze,	he	was	working	on	a	down-
  ward	spiral	until	he	was	enraptured	by	Satin	
  Flower.		He	knows	she’s	a	scrapper	just	like	
  him,	and	they	have	to	grab	each	other	like	life	
  rafts	and	hold	on	tight	if	there’s	any	chance	for	
  happiness	in	this	crazy	old	world.
  US	male,	age	6,	75	cm,	7	kg,	leather	
  bomber	jacket,	two	day’s	growth	of	beard,	ban-
  dage	on	his	left	cheek.
  Attack:		dice
  Defense:		dice
  Traits
  Romantic Gloom,	4	dice	—	John’s	air	of	
  grand	self-pity	is	somehow	attractive	to	oth-
  ers,	who	go	out	of	their	way	to	help	him	win	
  the	woman	he	wants	and	straighten	out	his	
  troubled	life.		(Drinks	alone)	
  Fisticuffs,		dice	—	John	Hazard	might	not	
  be	the	world’s	fastest	man.		Or	the	smartest.		
  Or the strongest.  But he wins the fights that 
  matter.		Because	he’s	an	American,	dammit.		
  (Scar	on	his	chin,	which	migrates	from	side	to	
  side	depending	on	how	attentive	the	makeup	
  guy	was	that	morning)
  Dumb	—	In	order	for	the	plot	to	work,	the	
  scriptwriter	had	to	make	John	a	little	thick.		
  The	character	actors/PCs	have	to	do	his	think-
  ing	for	him.		(Refers	to	himself	as	“this	mug”)
  Gus Thulin/General Yuji-
  moto
  Ethnomorphic Character Actor/Insidious 
  Yellow Peril
  Gus	Thulin	(real	name:	Gunnar	Thulin)	is	
  a	Swede	who	specializes	in	foreign	character	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  89
  Hit Points:		4
  Traits
  Soldier,		dice	—	These	are	typical	name-
  less	movie	goons	—	they	don’t	shoot	too	well,	
  explaining	why	the	hero	can	always	get	away	
  despite the proverbial hail of gunfire.  Their 
  main	strength	is	in	numbers.		(Uniformed,	
  armed)	
  Low Morale	—	None	of	these	guys	are	
  motivated	enough	to	do	more	than	a	basic	job	
  of	pursuit,	especially	as	they	know	they’re	on	
  a	personal	mission	for	Yujimoto	instead	of	
  one	for	the	greater	glory	of	Japan.		(Loll	about	
  when	off-duty)
  Hazard	stumbles	into	the	nightclub	and	
  falls to the floor, shot by the General just 
  outside.		The	General,	with	a	retinue	of	extras,	
  enters	shortly	after	and	announces:		“Like	the	
  dew	is	caught	on	the	web	of	the	spider,	you	are	
  all	under	arrest.”
  Let	the	PCs’	actions	freeform	a	plot	for	you.		
  Anything	they	do	that	would	make	sense	in	a	
  badly-written corny old flick should work here.  
  Describe	any	locations	as	sets.		They	might	go	
  along	with	the	arrest	and	break	out	of	a	dingy	
  prison	set,	or	trick	the	stupid	guards	into	re-
  leasing	them.		Or	they	could	make	a	break	for	
  it	with	Satin	Flower	and	the	wounded	Hazard	
  in	tow,	leading	to	a	blazing	chase	through	a	
  standard	backlot	made	up	to	look	like	an	un-
  named	Chinese	city.		They	might	persuade	
  Satin	Flower	to	use	her	wiles	on	Yujimoto	so	
  he’ll	leave	them	alone	and	let	Hazard	die.		Put	
  together,	the	three	major	characters	are	about	
  as	bright	as	a	box	of	Q-tips,	so	the	PCs	have	to	
  do	all	the	thinking	and	maneuvering.		If	they	
  try	to	go	anywhere	or	do	anything	that	would	
  violate	the	style	of	this	kind	of	movie,	or	the	
  Production	Code	that	censored	mature	content,	
  or	require	too	high	a	budget,	Yujimoto’s	guards	
  come	in	and	arrest	them,	throwing	them	in	the	
  clink	or	at	least	forcing	a	daring	escape	that	
  changes	their	plans.
  roles.		He	was	an	evil	vizier	in	Sinbad	and the 
  Elephant’s Graveyard,	a	brave	Sikh	soldier	in	
  Pass to Oblivion,	and	dozens	of	Indian	chiefs	in	
  dozens	of	backlot	westerns.		He’s	never	played	
  a	Swede,	though.		His	idea	of	sinister	is	squint-
  ing	constantly	and	pursing	his	lips.
  General	Yujimoto	is	a	one-dimensional	
  Asian	villain	of	the	period,	all	leers	and	im-
  plied	perversions.		He	speaks	in	weird	prov-
  erbs:  “Tiger whose tail is salted soon finds 
  himself	wet,	John	Hazard.”
  Swedish	man	made	up	as	Japanese,	age	
  54,	6	cm,	75	kg.		Dressed	in	slightly	inac-
  curate	version	of	Japanese	general’s	uniform,	
  monocle,	tiny	demonic	mustache.
  Attack:			dice,	Mauser	pistol	(X	4)
  Defense:			dice
  Hit Points:		4
  Traits
  Command,	4	dice	—	General	Yujimoto’s	
  word is law in this backward (and largely fic-
  tional)	corner	of	Manchuria.		He	can	summon	
  up as many uniform-clad rifle-toting extras as 
  necessary	to	keep	Satin	Flower	from	escap-
  ing his stifling embrace.  (Barks out orders in 
  pseudo-Japanese)
  Pistol,		dice	—	Unlike	the	good	guys,	Yu-
  jimoto	is	allowed	to	openly	carry	a	sidearm	at	
  all	times.		He’s	not	a	bad	shot	with	it.		(Gun	in	
  side	holster)
  Must Possess Satin Flower	—	His	personal	
  life	has	taken	over	from	his	duties;	he	cares	
  more	about	keeping	his	prize	female	than	his	
  duties.		(Breathes	heavily	in	Satin	Flower’s	
  presence)
  Japanese Army Extras 
  Stony	Korean,	Chinese	and	Filipino	immi-
  grants	play	the	Japanese	army	in	exchange	for	
  a	few	bucks	a	day	and	some	nasty	sandwiches.
  Yujimoto	can	summon	up	as	many	of	these	
  as	he	wants.
  Attack:  2 dice, rifle with bayonet (X7 shot, 
  X	stab)	Defense:			dice
  
  90	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  Intersections
  Once	they’ve	got	Hazard	and	Satin	Flower	
  safely	on	the	boat,	the	scene	shifts	without	
  warning.		The	tone	shifts,	too,	from	ironic	
  parody	to	personal	nastiness.		Think	back	to	
  your	group’s	past	adventures,	and	come	up	
  with	the	worst	mistake	they	ever	made.		They	
  are	now	at	the	site	of	this	terrible	error,	about	
  fifteen minutes before it occurs.
  For	example,	if	in	Unauthorized Broadcast	
  they	sold	out	to	the	wrong	potential	buyer,	
  they find themselves where they were just 
  before	they	entered	the	fateful	negotiation.
  If	in	“The	Bliss	of	Death,”	they	ran	afoul	of	
  Sir	Arthur	Compton,	causing	casualties	that	
  prevented	them	from	dealing	properly	with	the	
  Ralsius Fissure expedition, they find them-
  selves fifteen minutes before the disastrous 
  confrontation	with	him.	
  If	they	helped	Arnold	destroy	Kralepok	in	
  Airwaves and now regret it, they find them-
  selves	given	a	chance	to	do	the	opposite.		If	
  they screwed up fights with the Proteans or 
  Roentgen	Operatives	from	New Faces,	they	get	
  the	chance	to	enter	the	battle	again	with	ben-
  efit of hindsight.  They might find themselves 
  back	in	the	storyline	of	Welcome to Sylvan 
  Pines,	able	to	prevent	Melvin	Peaks	from	kill-
  ing	Niko.
  Or	their	worst	mistake	might	well	have	
  occurred	in	an	adventure	or	improvised	session	
  of	your	own	design.		You	get	the	idea	—	they’re	
  fifteen minutes before the events leading to 
  their	disastrous	error.		Make	sure	they’re	in	a	
  position	to	pause	and	listen	to	Koanhead,	be-
  low.  If you figure the mistake was a particular 
  blow in a fight against a Protean, start them 
  fifteen minutes before entering the area where 
  the fight took place, not fifteen minutes from 
  the	striking	of	the	actual	blow.
  This	sequence	is	therefore	recommended	
  for	groups	with	a	history	in	the	series	—	this	
  won’t make much sense if this is their first 
  adventure	in	Al	Amarja.		
  The	sole	difference	between	this	scene	
  and	the	actual	locale	as	it	was	before	they	
  stumbled	into	disaster	is	a	wire	display	rack	
  containing	a	dozen	gleaming	cans	of	Castrol	
  premium-brand	motor	oil,	and	one	of	those	
  puncture	pour	spouts	mechanics	use	to	put	it	
  into	your	engine.		It	stands	directly	in	front	of	
  the	PCs.
  If they don’t clue in, a muffled voice finally 
  emanates from the first can in the rack.  
  “Let	me	out!		Let	me	out!”	it	calls	impa-
  tiently.		(Clamp	your	hand	over	your	mouth	to	
  deliver	Koanhead’s	in-can	dialogue.)
  Assuming	the	PCs	have	the	sense	to	open	
  a	can	and	pour	it	out	on	a	non-porous	surface,	
  Koanhead	explains,	speaking	to	them	from	
  the spill:  “Man, you don’t know how difficult 
  it	was	projecting	this	image	here.		Anyway,	it	
  looks	like	we’re	making	progress	here.		This	is	
  one	of	your	memories	or	regrets	or	whatever,	
  am	I	correct?		This	means	the	universe	is	get-
  ting	slightly	more	in	order	—	the	wheel	is	or-
  ganizing	itself	around	the	psychic	emanations	
  it	receives	from	you.		A	few	more	connections	
  made	and	the	whole	thing	will	be	good	as	new	
  again	and	we’ll	all	forget	this	ever	happened.	
  “You	do	remember	this,	don’t	you?		This	is	
  when	you	made	one	of	your	classic	bonehead	
  moves	of	all	time.		Now	you	get	to	correct	it.		
  If	you’re	really	lucky,	you	might	even	change	
  it	in	the	universe’s	memory	banks	so	things’ll	
  be	okay	in	real	life.		But	don’t	count	on	it	or	
  anything.”
  (If	you	want	the	PCs	to	be	able	to	really	
  rectify	their	error,	make	it	so.		Otherwise,	this	
  is	empty	speculation	on	the	Koanhead’s	part.		
  If	you’re	feeling	especially	tricky,	you	might	
  give	any	monkeying	they	do	with	the	past	
  unforeseen	repercussions,	so	they	return	to	an	
  unfamiliar	timeline.)
  If	the	PCs	don’t	open	up	Koanhead’s	can,	
  they’ll	go	into	the	upcoming	situation	blindly,	
  without	his	explanation	of	what’s	going	on.
  As	with	the	other	encounters,	this	one	
  restarts	if	all	the	PCs	are	killed,	or	if	they	fail	
  to	achieve	their	objective	—	i.e.	make	the	same	
  mistake	all	over	again,	or	don’t	identify	the	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  mistake	you	intend	them	to	correct.		Slain	PCs	
  vanish	from	reality	until	a	restart	or	the	next	
  encounter.
  If	you	run	a	group	of	disparate	PCs,	each	
  can	appear	in	her	own	separate	reality	pocket,	
  and	you	can	alternate	from	pocket	to	pocket.		
  Each	runs	into	a	display	rack	of	Castrol,	and	
  so	on...		When	characters	solve	their	own	
  dilemmas,	they	can	either	appear	in	the	pocket	
  of	the	other	PC	having	the	most	trouble,	or	
  can	vanish	for	a	while,	depending	on	what	you	
  think	they’d	prefer.		
  The Dark Secret
  As soon as the big mistake is rectified, the 
  PCs find themselves in another scene from 
  their	past	—	or	at	least	one	of	their	pasts.		Go	
  over	the	various	character	sheets	and	decide	
  which	one’s	secret	would	make	an	interesting	
  scene	if	reenacted.		Preferably	this	is	a	secret	
  that	the	character	might	want	to	prevent	from	
  happening	given	what	she	knows	now.		Some-
  one fleeing from the accidental deaths of family 
  members	might	take	the	steps	needed	to	save	
  them.  A character fleeing violent employers 
  might avoid angering them in the first place.  
  A	dimensional	being	sent	into	exile	might	re-
  plead	his	case	before	the	sentencing	court.		It	
  doesn’t	matter	if	the	PC	has	already	made	the	
  secret	obvious	to	the	others	—	in	fact,	it	helps	
  if	it’s	a	secret	the	other	PCs	care	about	too,	and	
  would	feel	good	about	rectifying.
  The	other	PCs	can	help	the	central	one	
  in	changing	his	mistake.		From	this	point	on,	
  they’ll have to find a brown liquid if they want 
  Koanhead’s	advice;	he’s	exhausted	his	powers	
  of	imposition	with	the	oil	rack	stunt:		
  “Excellent,	my	little	potato	bugs!		We’re	
  getting	even	closer	to	reconstructing	the	
  universe’s	memory	lattice.		Another	scene	
  relating	to	one	of	you.		Very	good.		Well,	you’re	
  gonna have to figure out how to resolve this 
  one.		I’m	busy	—	almost	got	cosmic	external	
  drive	controllers	back	on	line.		By	the	way,	you	
  realize	all	this	computer	stuff	is	just	metaphor	
  
  9	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  so	your	poor	little	minds	can	grasp	it,	right?		
  Really	it’s	more	like	pasting	all	the	little	seeds	
  back	on	a	strawberry,	and	—	oh,	never	mind.		
  Just	go	to	it.”
  Many	such	dark	secrets	come	with	their	
  own	opposition	—	a	criminal’s	former	gang,	the	
  court	of	exile,	or	whatever.		But	if	all	a	charac-
  ter has to do is fix an electrical fault to prevent 
  a fire — or something equally simple — his 
  Mental	Regulators	come	into	play.
  Mental Regulators are figures from the un-
  conscious	who	take	advantage	of	the	rewritten	
  rules	of	reality	to	spring	into	solid	being.		They	
  do	their	best	to	physically	prevent	the	PCs	
  from	reaching	their	aim.		The	PC’s	mind	has	
  come	to	depend	deeply	on	his	dark	secret	as	a	
  bedrock	of	his	identity,	and	is	willing	to	send	
  out	agents	to	protect	it.
  Each	Mental	Regulator	has	the	same	
  traits	and	hit	points	as	the	central	PC	in	this	
  episode.		There	are	as	many	identical	Mental	
  Regulators	as	there	are	PCs.		They	can	choose	
  when	to	materialize	and	may	do	so	separately.		
  Once	slain,	they	can’t	be	replaced,	unless	the	
  scene	replays.
  As	before,	this	scene	replays	until	the	
  secret	is	physically	or	symbolically	counter-
  acted.		Slain	PCs	reappear	at	the	beginning	of	
  a	restart	or	the	next	encounter.
  A Taste of the 
  Future
  The	PCs	awaken	in	their	regular	beds,	
  finally separated.  Was it all a dream?  Have 
  they	freed	themselves	from	the	cosmic	tape	
  backup?		Not	quite	—	soon	they	realize	from	
  the	calendars	on	their	walls	that	they’re	a	
  decade	into	the	future.		And	the	news,	whether	
  on	radio,	TV,	or	in	printed	form,	is	quite	differ-
  ent	than	it	used	to	be.
  It’s	Throckmorton	News.		All	of	the	top	
  stories	are	about	the	greatness	of	Clyde	
  Throckmorton,	delivered	by	eyebrow-less	
  anchorpeople.		The	growth	of	world	GNP	under	
  the	Throckmorton	Economic	Plan.		Further	
  successes	in	the	rounding	up	and	killing	of	the	
  last	few	resisting	homosexuals.		Increased	obe-
  dience	of	children	in	school,	and	so	forth.
  When	the	PCs	look	out	the	window,	all	
  they	see	are	Throckmortonized	citizens,	going	
  about	their	business	with	a	stoned,	unthink-
  ing	air,	their	patent	leather	shoes	polished	and	
  their	eyebrows	shaved	clean.
  This	section	of	the	adventure	is	provided	
  as	an	opportunity	for	you	to	foreshadow	the	
  Throckmorton	Device	plot.		Feel	free	to	expand	
  this	if	you	wish.		
  When	they	seek	out	some	brown	liquid	for	
  Koanhead	to	manifest	in,	he	explains:		“Uh-oh,	
  the	reconnecting	process	has	hit	this	snag,	this	
  devastating	future	event.		For	some	reason,	
  my	meditational	sensing	abilities	are	blocked	
  and I can’t see what it is.  Anyway, I figure 
  you	have	to	do	something	about	it,	even	if	it’s	
  a	gesture	or	whatever,	and	that’ll	get	it	out	
  of	the	way	for	now.		If	you	manage	to	work	
  through	this	blockage	somehow,	I	reckon	we	
  can	reboot	the	universe.		Go	to	it,	my	tumbling	
  tumbleweeds.”	
  For	the	purposes	of	this	adventure,	all	
  that	is	needed	is	for	the	PCs	to	each	commit	
  some futile gesture of defiance.  They’ll be set 
  upon	immediately	by	ordinary	Throckmorton	
  citizens	and	beaten	to	death,	or	seized	by	a	
  Throckmorton Behavior Modification Squad 
  and	taken	off	to	cells	where	torture	and	sum-
  mary	execution	await.
  Their	obstacle	in	so	doing	is	the	Throck-
  morton	Device,	which	is	giving	off	radiation	
  inducing	them	to	conform.		They	must	resist	a	
  -dice	mental	attack	every	hour	or	succumb	to	
  Throckmortonism.		PCs	who	succumb	vanish	
  to	temporary	storage	on	the	scrambled	hard	
  drive;	if	all	succumb	the	scene	restarts.
  If	you	want	to	expand	this	into	a	full-
  fledged adventure of its own, you can let the 
  PCs	try	to	assassinate	Clyde	Throckmorton	or	
  commit	some	other	act	of	gross	entropic	distur-
  bance	to	give	the	Throckmortonized	a	chance	
  to	snap	out	of	their	Control-induced	mental	
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  9
  slumber.		Otherwise,	getting	wiped	out	in	the	
  name	of	freedom,	instead	of	surrendering	to	
  the	Device,	gets	the	characters	back	to	real-
  ity.		The	main	purpose	of	this	encounter	from	
  a	thematic	point	of	view	is	to	give	players	a	
  preliminary	glimpse	of	the	Orwellian	horror	
  of	the	Throckmorton	future.		If	they’re	espe-
  cially	clever,	they	might	try	to	gather	some	
  Throckmorton	information	before	they	return	
  to	reality.
  When	they’ve	gotten	out	of	this	section	to	
  your	satisfaction,	they	can	continue	on	to	epi-
  sodes	of	your	own	invention,	or	to	the	Conclu-
  sion,	below.
  What If Players 
  Come and Go?
  If	your	run	of	this	adventure	carries	over	
  from	one	session	to	the	next,	you	might	be	
  faced	with	the	eternal	problem	of	what	to	do	
  when	a	player	whose	character	is	an	integral	
  part	of	one	session	fails	to	show	up	for	the	
  next.		Or	a	player	shows	up	for	the	second	but	
  wasn’t present for the first.  
  Since	the	PCs	are	supposed	to	be	the	only	
  real	people	still	active	in	what’s	left	of	the	
  universe,	sudden	PC	appearances	or	disap-
  pearances	pose	a	bit	of	a	problem.		If	a	player	
  doesn’t	show,	his	character	suddenly	vanishes	
  into	the	scrambled	hard	drive	of	reality.		PCs	
  of	latecomers	abruptly	pop	into	whatever	scene	
  is	in	progress.
  The	next	time	Koanhead	appears,	he’ll	be	
  quiet	puzzled	by	this,	and	offer	up	a	series	of	
  conflicting hypotheses.
  If a PC has simply disappeared with 
  no replacement, he says:		“Uh-oh,	this	is	bad	
  news.		I	think	we	need	to	work	faster,	if	[name	
  of	vanished]	has	been	sucked	back	into	the	cor-
  rupt	hard	drive.		You’ll	all	get	scrambled	into	
  nothingness	just	like	the	rest	of	the	universe	
  if	we	don’t	straighten	this	out.		Hell,	even	I	
  might	get	zapped	into	nowheresville!		Get	mov-
  ing!”
  If a new PC has arrived, he says:		
  “Hmm,	well,	this	is	alarming,	I	thought	I	had	a	
  handle	on	what	was	going	on	here,	but	evident-
  ly	—	hmm,	I	certainly	hope	we	don’t	have	to	go	
  through	one	of	these	memory-solving	things	for	
  everyone	in	the	universe.		Or	even	everyone	in	
  Al	Amarja,	that	would	be	very	time	consuming,	
  and	there’s	lots	of	Al	Amarjans	I	don’t	par-
  ticularly	care	to	run	into	again,	even	from	the	
  bottom	of	a	teacup.”
  If one or more PCs have been replaced 
  by others, he continues:		“On	the	other	
  hand,	perhaps	there’s	some	kind	of	underly-
  ing	mystic	connectedness	between	[name	of	
  latecomer]	and	[name	of	disappeared]	which	
  makes	you	psychically	equivalent	or	some-
  thing.”
  If PCs have simply appeared, he con-
  tinues:		“On	the	other	hand,	this	could	be	good	
  news.		This	could	mean	that	we’re	making	
  progress	and	more	and	more	people	are	being	
  freed	up	from	the	hard	drive	in	non-corrupt	
  form.”	
  In	any	case,	Koanhead	promises	to	medi-
  tate	more	fully	on	this	but	fails	to	come	to	any	
  conclusions.		If	PCs	keep	popping	up	or	disap-
  pearing,	he	comes	up	with	more	questionable	
  theories	to	“explain”	what’s	going	on.		He’ll	
  warn	the	PCs	not	to	concentrate	too	much	on	
  the	question,	as	it	could	collapse	what	remains	
  of	reality	if	they	accidentally	hit	upon	a	too-po-
  tent	paradox.
  Other Encounters
  If	you	and	your	group	are	having	fun	with	
  these	unreal	encounters,	you	can	always	slot	
  more	of	them	in.		Or	if	you	don’t	like	the	ones	
  supplied,		substitute	your	own.		Here	are	some	
  suggestions:
  •		The	PCs	regress	to	their	physical	states	at	
  age	7,	but	retain	their	mental	faculties.		
  They	then	have	to	defeat	a	gang	of	young	
  
  94	
  rObin d. Laws 
  weather the CuCkOO Likes
  bullies	—	childhood	versions	of	their	cur-
  rent	enemies	on	Al	Amarja.	
  •  The PCs find themselves in a possible future 
  scene,	now	aged	to	the	point	of	decrepitude.		
  They	must	face	down	their	enemies	—	who	
  have	survived	the	rigors	of	age	slightly	bet-
  ter than they — one final time. 
  •  The PCs find themselves acting out the 
  roles	in	a	favorite	children’s	book	so	that	it	
  comes	out	as	written	despite	the	appear-
  ance	of	vicious	Le	Thuy	saboteurs.
  •		The	group	appears	in	the	thick	of	things	in	
  the	midst	of	a	historical	catastrophe	—	in	
  the	Enola	Gay,	on	the	Titanic,	on	the	space	
  shuttle	before	it	explodes,	with	Custer	im-
  mediately	previous	to	his	last	stand,	with	
  Jim	Jones	as	the	cyanide	is	poured	into	
  the	purple	Kool-Aid.		Are	they	supposed	to	
  make	things	come	out	better,	or	protect	the	
  integrity	of	the	timeline	by	ensuring	that	
  the	disasters	decreed	by	history	come	off	as	
  usual?
  Conclusion
  Once	the	PCs	have	resolved	enough	tricky	
  memory	chunks,	they	reappear	at	their	origi-
  nal	positions.		Then	the	brains	appear.		Every-
  one	in	the	city	looks	up,	even	the	blind.		People	
  indoors	rush	to	the	windows.		Hovering	over	
  the	city	are	two	giant	pulsing	brains	the	size	
  of	dirigibles.		The	same	words	begin	to	echo	
  painfully	through	every	sentient	mind,	in	each	
  individual’s	mother	tongue:		“Turbulent.		Ter-
  ror.		Original.		Venerable.		Babysitter.		Wrong-
  ness.		Return.”
  The brains explode in a flash of rainbow 
  light,	suffusing	every	Al	Amarjan	with	a	
  feeling	of	primal	dread,	which	is	followed	by	
  a	rush	of	pleasure	and	relief.		Shaking	their	
  heads,	the	residents	of	the	Edge	return	to	their	
  prior	activities.		Within	hours,	it	is	nearly	
  impossible to find anyone who remembers the 
  brief	appearance	of	the	brains.
  A	few	pamphlets	describing	the	event	later	
  turn	up	on	park	benches,	but	these	are	written	
  off	as	the	ravings	of	lunatics.		A	few	attuned	
  minds	recall	the	event,	and	ponder	its	mean-
  ing,	privately.
  Aftermath
  For	all	intents	and	purposes,	the	events	in	
  the	adventure	never	really	happened.		Koan-
  head	remains	in	his	surdimensional	prison,	
  and	reality	is	back	where	it	was	originally.		
  Maybe	there	are	echo	events	that	have	sub-
  tly	changed	things	—	a	PC	has	expunged	his	
  dark	secret,	or	a	prominent	GMC	suddenly	
  announces	a	change	of	sexual	orientation.		
  One of the fictional beings — Satin Flower or 
  John	Isidor	—	might	have	been	released	into	
  reality	and	later	appear	to	surprise	or	harass	
  the	group.		If	a	PC	gets	a	botch	while	trying	
  to	navigate	the	airport	terminal	unassisted,	
  he	might	open	a	door	and	end	up	back	in	the	
  encounter	he	found	most	troubling.
  Most likely, the PCs finish this adventure 
  with	an	image	of	Koanhead	as	a	pesky	but	
  helpful	fringe	being.		This	could	set	them	up	
  for	a	fall	later	if	Koanhead	manages	to	free	
  himself	and	once	more	try	to	assert	Control	
  over	Al	Amarja	and	the	world,	recruiting	the	
  PCs	as	patsies	for	his	nefarious	plans.	
  Bibliography
  Burroughs,	William	S.		Junky.	New	York:	(Penguin	Books,	977.
  Cavendish,	Richard,	ed.		Encyclopedia of the Unexplained.		London:	Routledge	and	Kegan	Paul,	
  974.
  Perry,	George.		Life of Python.		Boston:	Little,	Brown,	98.
  
  Over the edge 
  rObin d. Laws	
  95
  This sourcebook includes:
  • Descriptions of individual Cut-Ups,
  from the Andalusia Dog to noted game
  designer Robert “Doc” Cross;
  • Foes of the Cut-Ups, including the
  unfathomable Koanhead;
  • “The Coatless Code,” which guides the Chaos
  Boys (and also fits very nicely on a placemat);
  • Optional Cut-Up Rules — a completely new
  approach to game mechanics for OTE or any
  other game;
  • Cut-Up Technology, fringe devices from the
  Cut-Ups Machine itself to the Collective
  Unconscious Swizzle Stick;
  • plus TWO COMPLETE ADVENTURES, to throw
  your player characters right into the zany
  fringes of Reality that the Cut-Ups call home!
  OVER THE EDGE, the Atlas Games logo, Al Amarja, and "Charting New Realms of Imagination" are
  trademarks of John Nephew.  Copyright ©1993 John Nephew.  All rights reserved.
  “Dada was the theory;
  we are the practice.”
  — The Cut-Ups’ Motto
  “This is the weather the cuckoo
  likes, armored division submissive
  to vernacular the world into a
  gambling birdhouse velocity.”
  — The Cut-Ups' alternate motto
  The Cut-Ups are the Al Amarjan wing of the
  Chaos Boys, an international (and
  interdimensional) group devoted to thwarting
  the plans of Control Addicts everywhere.  If
  you know Al Amarja, you know it's full of
  Control Addicts!
  The Cut-Ups don’t so much attack the various
  conspiracies they oppose, as strike out instead
  at the very fabric of reality on which all of
  their insidious plans depend.
  As an Over the Edge™ sourcebook, Weather
  the Cuckoo Likes will bring you along on the
  Cut-Ups’ outrageous exploits.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Over the Edge/Over The Edge [2nd ed]/Weather the Cuckoo Likes [oef].pdf