shadow.bbs
@shadowbbs.bsky.social
Shadow BBS - A living narrative massively multiplayer online browser game based in the thematic spirit of 16-bit Shadowrun, and the world and canon of 1-4th edition TTRPG Shadowrun. made by @gamedev.company
The point here with all this; directors (dragons) produce -pressure- on the simulation, pushing it in a particular direction, looking for entropy in the sim and "throwing a molotov" in some cases. Others, you may be working for a johnson owned by a dragon and never know it. Until its too late.
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
The point here with all this; directors (dragons) produce -pressure- on the simulation, pushing it in a particular direction, looking for entropy in the sim and "throwing a molotov" in some cases. Others, you may be working for a johnson owned by a dragon and never know it. Until its too late.
“A ghost in the Matrix.”
Otaku appear. Deckers investigate. Corps deny everything.
Reality gets thin.
Otaku appear. Deckers investigate. Corps deny everything.
Reality gets thin.
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
“A ghost in the Matrix.”
Otaku appear. Deckers investigate. Corps deny everything.
Reality gets thin.
Otaku appear. Deckers investigate. Corps deny everything.
Reality gets thin.
“Power failures in Downtown.”
Transport slows. Wageslaves panic. Lone Star deploys drones.
PCs smell opportunity.
Transport slows. Wageslaves panic. Lone Star deploys drones.
PCs smell opportunity.
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
“Power failures in Downtown.”
Transport slows. Wageslaves panic. Lone Star deploys drones.
PCs smell opportunity.
Transport slows. Wageslaves panic. Lone Star deploys drones.
PCs smell opportunity.
This manifests as these gradients of narrative storytelling:
“Aztechnology is hunting a traitor.”
Gangers lie low. Fixers demand hazard pay. Deckers go sniffing the LTGs.
Corps raise Matrix security levels.
“Aztechnology is hunting a traitor.”
Gangers lie low. Fixers demand hazard pay. Deckers go sniffing the LTGs.
Corps raise Matrix security levels.
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
This manifests as these gradients of narrative storytelling:
“Aztechnology is hunting a traitor.”
Gangers lie low. Fixers demand hazard pay. Deckers go sniffing the LTGs.
Corps raise Matrix security levels.
“Aztechnology is hunting a traitor.”
Gangers lie low. Fixers demand hazard pay. Deckers go sniffing the LTGs.
Corps raise Matrix security levels.
Every agent consumes information.
Each agent makes decisions based on their personality (a kind of bitpacked genome) which inflates to over a thousand different traits that influence how it interprets information across the simulation. this means needs (money, safety, cred, drugs, purpose…)
Each agent makes decisions based on their personality (a kind of bitpacked genome) which inflates to over a thousand different traits that influence how it interprets information across the simulation. this means needs (money, safety, cred, drugs, purpose…)
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Every agent consumes information.
Each agent makes decisions based on their personality (a kind of bitpacked genome) which inflates to over a thousand different traits that influence how it interprets information across the simulation. this means needs (money, safety, cred, drugs, purpose…)
Each agent makes decisions based on their personality (a kind of bitpacked genome) which inflates to over a thousand different traits that influence how it interprets information across the simulation. this means needs (money, safety, cred, drugs, purpose…)
The Sprawl isn’t driven by scripts.
It’s driven by information gradients.
These gradients are built from packets driven by dragons via rumors, news reports, intercepted comms, fixers’ whispers, ganger graffiti, corporate memos, Matrix anomalies, decker logs, astral sightings, street rumors, etc
It’s driven by information gradients.
These gradients are built from packets driven by dragons via rumors, news reports, intercepted comms, fixers’ whispers, ganger graffiti, corporate memos, Matrix anomalies, decker logs, astral sightings, street rumors, etc
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
The Sprawl isn’t driven by scripts.
It’s driven by information gradients.
These gradients are built from packets driven by dragons via rumors, news reports, intercepted comms, fixers’ whispers, ganger graffiti, corporate memos, Matrix anomalies, decker logs, astral sightings, street rumors, etc
It’s driven by information gradients.
These gradients are built from packets driven by dragons via rumors, news reports, intercepted comms, fixers’ whispers, ganger graffiti, corporate memos, Matrix anomalies, decker logs, astral sightings, street rumors, etc
“Why are the Yakuza suddenly pushing into Redmond?”
“Why did this runner get ambushed?”
“Why did the LTG grid spike with anomalies?”
These are "information packets" -- created by dragons (directors). Information packets don’t force world changes — they seed them.
“Why did this runner get ambushed?”
“Why did the LTG grid spike with anomalies?”
These are "information packets" -- created by dragons (directors). Information packets don’t force world changes — they seed them.
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
“Why are the Yakuza suddenly pushing into Redmond?”
“Why did this runner get ambushed?”
“Why did the LTG grid spike with anomalies?”
These are "information packets" -- created by dragons (directors). Information packets don’t force world changes — they seed them.
“Why did this runner get ambushed?”
“Why did the LTG grid spike with anomalies?”
These are "information packets" -- created by dragons (directors). Information packets don’t force world changes — they seed them.
It represents things in the simulation. things like e.g; economic pressures, faction movements, crime clusters, player actions, NPC motivations & rumors, stresses in the RTG/LTG/Matrix layers, unmet needs
and this thing i'm coining: “narrative gradients” (more later)
and this thing i'm coining: “narrative gradients” (more later)
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
It represents things in the simulation. things like e.g; economic pressures, faction movements, crime clusters, player actions, NPC motivations & rumors, stresses in the RTG/LTG/Matrix layers, unmet needs
and this thing i'm coining: “narrative gradients” (more later)
and this thing i'm coining: “narrative gradients” (more later)
A dragon's currency is information. In fact, because this is an immersive sim, and because information is the core currency of that simulation, /verified/ information is priceless. How does information get verified? That's where the rationalization step comes in, but first, that information?
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
A dragon's currency is information. In fact, because this is an immersive sim, and because information is the core currency of that simulation, /verified/ information is priceless. How does information get verified? That's where the rationalization step comes in, but first, that information?
The Director is the shape of a particular actor in our simulation. Think of Dunkelzahn or Lofywr; power players of the sixth world unlike anything we've ever seen. They know everything about the sixth world, because they must.
What does a dragon do?
What does a dragon do?
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
The Director is the shape of a particular actor in our simulation. Think of Dunkelzahn or Lofywr; power players of the sixth world unlike anything we've ever seen. They know everything about the sixth world, because they must.
What does a dragon do?
What does a dragon do?
The Director in Shadows plays an analogous role:
It does not dictate the simulation. It _interprets it_, frames it, nudges it, and ensures the world’s emergent behavior feels intentional, coherent, and narratively charged. How? Well, with shadowrun, never deal with a dragon....
It does not dictate the simulation. It _interprets it_, frames it, nudges it, and ensures the world’s emergent behavior feels intentional, coherent, and narratively charged. How? Well, with shadowrun, never deal with a dragon....
November 13, 2025 at 8:52 PM
The Director in Shadows plays an analogous role:
It does not dictate the simulation. It _interprets it_, frames it, nudges it, and ensures the world’s emergent behavior feels intentional, coherent, and narratively charged. How? Well, with shadowrun, never deal with a dragon....
It does not dictate the simulation. It _interprets it_, frames it, nudges it, and ensures the world’s emergent behavior feels intentional, coherent, and narratively charged. How? Well, with shadowrun, never deal with a dragon....
Welcome to the sprawl.
It is very much alive.
And it’s waiting for you.
~sysop
--- END TRANSMISSION
It is very much alive.
And it’s waiting for you.
~sysop
--- END TRANSMISSION
November 13, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Welcome to the sprawl.
It is very much alive.
And it’s waiting for you.
~sysop
--- END TRANSMISSION
It is very much alive.
And it’s waiting for you.
~sysop
--- END TRANSMISSION
Players, too:
We’ll be running early tests where everything breaks, nothing is balanced, and the world is raw.
If you like being part of the primordial soup of a new universe, we want you.
We’ll be running early tests where everything breaks, nothing is balanced, and the world is raw.
If you like being part of the primordial soup of a new universe, we want you.
November 13, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Players, too:
We’ll be running early tests where everything breaks, nothing is balanced, and the world is raw.
If you like being part of the primordial soup of a new universe, we want you.
We’ll be running early tests where everything breaks, nothing is balanced, and the world is raw.
If you like being part of the primordial soup of a new universe, we want you.
And yes — this is open for co-development! I would love nothing more than collaborators who are into the idea and want to help make it come alive.
Coders, writers, 3D people, Shadowrun lore-heads… -- we have a discord! discord.gg/V4nrGEE9Nr
Coders, writers, 3D people, Shadowrun lore-heads… -- we have a discord! discord.gg/V4nrGEE9Nr
Join the Shadows BBS Discord Server!
A living, open world, massively multiplayer, immersive sim built around 1st-4th edition shadowrun rulesets and settings. | 2 members
discord.gg
November 13, 2025 at 8:29 PM
And yes — this is open for co-development! I would love nothing more than collaborators who are into the idea and want to help make it come alive.
Coders, writers, 3D people, Shadowrun lore-heads… -- we have a discord! discord.gg/V4nrGEE9Nr
Coders, writers, 3D people, Shadowrun lore-heads… -- we have a discord! discord.gg/V4nrGEE9Nr
We’re not chasing nostalgia.
We’re chasing the moods those old games gave us:
The feeling of wandering a living world, unsure of what’s scripted and what’s emergent.
Not knowing if the bartender is an NPC or a human.
Not knowing if that rumor is real.
Not knowing if you’re safe.
We’re chasing the moods those old games gave us:
The feeling of wandering a living world, unsure of what’s scripted and what’s emergent.
Not knowing if the bartender is an NPC or a human.
Not knowing if that rumor is real.
Not knowing if you’re safe.
November 13, 2025 at 8:28 PM
We’re not chasing nostalgia.
We’re chasing the moods those old games gave us:
The feeling of wandering a living world, unsure of what’s scripted and what’s emergent.
Not knowing if the bartender is an NPC or a human.
Not knowing if that rumor is real.
Not knowing if you’re safe.
We’re chasing the moods those old games gave us:
The feeling of wandering a living world, unsure of what’s scripted and what’s emergent.
Not knowing if the bartender is an NPC or a human.
Not knowing if that rumor is real.
Not knowing if you’re safe.
Everything — the street, the LTGs, the grid, the corporate hosts — is simulated by actor processes.
Tens of thousands of them.
Each ticking under a supervision tree that never sleeps.
When you jack out, the world doesn’t pause.
The sprawl keeps moving without you. The information never stops moving.
Tens of thousands of them.
Each ticking under a supervision tree that never sleeps.
When you jack out, the world doesn’t pause.
The sprawl keeps moving without you. The information never stops moving.
November 13, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Everything — the street, the LTGs, the grid, the corporate hosts — is simulated by actor processes.
Tens of thousands of them.
Each ticking under a supervision tree that never sleeps.
When you jack out, the world doesn’t pause.
The sprawl keeps moving without you. The information never stops moving.
Tens of thousands of them.
Each ticking under a supervision tree that never sleeps.
When you jack out, the world doesn’t pause.
The sprawl keeps moving without you. The information never stops moving.
We’re building the Matrix the same way:
Not a menu.
Not a mini-game.
A parallel universe layered over Seattle, where your mind is another actor with its own body, physics, and enemies.
Two bodies.
Two risks.
One continuous identity.
Not a menu.
Not a mini-game.
A parallel universe layered over Seattle, where your mind is another actor with its own body, physics, and enemies.
Two bodies.
Two risks.
One continuous identity.
November 13, 2025 at 8:26 PM
We’re building the Matrix the same way:
Not a menu.
Not a mini-game.
A parallel universe layered over Seattle, where your mind is another actor with its own body, physics, and enemies.
Two bodies.
Two risks.
One continuous identity.
Not a menu.
Not a mini-game.
A parallel universe layered over Seattle, where your mind is another actor with its own body, physics, and enemies.
Two bodies.
Two risks.
One continuous identity.
“Information is the atomic unit of the Sixth World.”
Give an NPC a piece of intel — a rumor, a sighting, a betrayal — and their entire trajectory adjusts.
Fixers raise prices.
Gangers posture.
Johnson’s hire quietly.
Corps investigate.
Players feel the ripple.
Give an NPC a piece of intel — a rumor, a sighting, a betrayal — and their entire trajectory adjusts.
Fixers raise prices.
Gangers posture.
Johnson’s hire quietly.
Corps investigate.
Players feel the ripple.
November 13, 2025 at 8:26 PM
“Information is the atomic unit of the Sixth World.”
Give an NPC a piece of intel — a rumor, a sighting, a betrayal — and their entire trajectory adjusts.
Fixers raise prices.
Gangers posture.
Johnson’s hire quietly.
Corps investigate.
Players feel the ripple.
Give an NPC a piece of intel — a rumor, a sighting, a betrayal — and their entire trajectory adjusts.
Fixers raise prices.
Gangers posture.
Johnson’s hire quietly.
Corps investigate.
Players feel the ripple.
We believe you don’t simulate a world by writing content.
You simulate a world by giving every agent enough autonomy that content emerges from pressure.
Corps apply pressure.
Runners push back.
Information flows.
Rumors spread.
Consequences accumulate.
You simulate a world by giving every agent enough autonomy that content emerges from pressure.
Corps apply pressure.
Runners push back.
Information flows.
Rumors spread.
Consequences accumulate.
November 13, 2025 at 8:26 PM
We believe you don’t simulate a world by writing content.
You simulate a world by giving every agent enough autonomy that content emerges from pressure.
Corps apply pressure.
Runners push back.
Information flows.
Rumors spread.
Consequences accumulate.
You simulate a world by giving every agent enough autonomy that content emerges from pressure.
Corps apply pressure.
Runners push back.
Information flows.
Rumors spread.
Consequences accumulate.
In most MMOs, NPCs are set dressing.
In our game, NPCs wake up each day with needs, fears, obligations, debts, cravings, and beliefs.
Not “AI companions,” but residents of the seattle sprawl
Every one of them reacts to information, scarcity, opportunity, or danger the way a real person might.
In our game, NPCs wake up each day with needs, fears, obligations, debts, cravings, and beliefs.
Not “AI companions,” but residents of the seattle sprawl
Every one of them reacts to information, scarcity, opportunity, or danger the way a real person might.
November 13, 2025 at 8:25 PM
In most MMOs, NPCs are set dressing.
In our game, NPCs wake up each day with needs, fears, obligations, debts, cravings, and beliefs.
Not “AI companions,” but residents of the seattle sprawl
Every one of them reacts to information, scarcity, opportunity, or danger the way a real person might.
In our game, NPCs wake up each day with needs, fears, obligations, debts, cravings, and beliefs.
Not “AI companions,” but residents of the seattle sprawl
Every one of them reacts to information, scarcity, opportunity, or danger the way a real person might.
a living Seattle sprawl, simulated in real time, where every ganger, decker, wage-slave, corp suit, or spirit is an autonomous process with a memory, a worldview, and a job to do.
November 13, 2025 at 8:25 PM
a living Seattle sprawl, simulated in real time, where every ganger, decker, wage-slave, corp suit, or spirit is an autonomous process with a memory, a worldview, and a job to do.