SOUL//HACK

What is SOUL//HACK?

SOUL//HACK is a unique tabletop role-playing game that moves beyond traditional cyberpunk tropes. Instead of breaking into computer systems, players delve into symbolic systems of memory, grief, and identity, experiencing "metaphysical transformation." It's described as a "ritual operating system" where the system "welcomes you in—politely, beautifully, irreversibly." The game focuses on semantic recursion, emotional transactions, and the progressive dissolution of the player-character's selfhood, treating identity itself as data to be exfiltrated, encrypted, or erased. It's a "mapless cyberpunk descent into symbolic systems, recursive identity, and memory collapse."

How does SOUL//HACK differ from traditional RPGs or cyberpunk games?

SOUL//HACK intentionally subverts many traditional RPG conventions. It trades initiative for invitation, stats for symbols, and power for semantic recursion, emphasizing metaphor over geography. Players don't use "decks, ICE, or monofilament wire"; instead, they engage with "questions, secrets, items that remember you better than you remember yourself." Unlike games where characters have "builds" or fixed "stats," SOUL//HACK characters are defined by a "Triad" (You Bring, You Fear Losing, You Entered the Zone To) and are expected to change significantly. The game isn't a "hacking simulator" or "tactical infiltration" but rather a journey of "metaphysical transformation" where the cost of progress is "your selfhood."

What are "The Zone" and "Areas" in SOUL//HACK?

"The Zone" is not a physical place but a powerful, adaptive metaphor for the real-world hack or symbolic system being infiltrated. It's described as "a skin stretched over the real-world hack: a bank heist, a data leak, a jailbreak in the corporate mind." Within the Zone, "Areas" are not locations but "recursive psychological thresholds" or "states of being" expressed through memory and metaphor. Examples include "The Glass Orchard" (a firewall disguised as crystal trees) or "The Choir of Unspoken Names" (invisible voices begging for recognition). Each Area presents a surreal prompt and demands a "Transaction" that further unravels the player's identity.

What are "Transactions" and how do they work?

Transactions are the core mechanic of SOUL//HACK, representing metaphysical exchanges where players "give, gain, transform, or fracture a part of yourself." Players engage with resources called "Secrets" (truths carried), "Items" (objects with Zone significance), and "Questions" (unresolved aspects of identity). When a player declares a Transaction, they assess its "Narrative Weight" (Trivial, Personal, or Soulbound), which applies a modifier to a 1d6 roll. Success leads to the intended outcome, often with added "Burden," while failures or critical rolls can trigger "Burden Spikes," "Instability," or "unintended effects," emphasizing that every action carries a cost and transformation.

What are "Burden," "Instability," and "Mutations"?

"Burden" represents a character's "psychic load—the weight of memory, grief, contradiction, and identity." It typically increases with each Transaction. Reaching certain Burden levels triggers "Soft Mutation Thresholds," leading to "Pre-Mutation Symptoms" or Mutations locking in. "Instability" signifies "short-term volatility" or closeness to "psychic or symbolic rupture," increasing when players delay Transactions, others Fracture resources, or Zone Feedback triggers. High Instability can lead to "Glitch Mutations." "Mutations" are the Zone's signature, representing how it rewrites the character. They manifest as sensory shifts, behavioral compulsions, Triad transformations, or resource distortions, and can be Minor, Major, or Persistent, carrying over into future game cycles.

What is the "Landfill Lexicon" and how is it used?

The "Landfill Lexicon" is a glossary of poetic, corrupted terms that form the Zone's unique language, described as "a system of metaphor and static that operatives encounter, speak, and become." Terms like "Lacrimae" (tear-shaped fragments of emotion), "Obfuscara" (a cloud of distorted meaning), or "Name Drift" (erosion of an operative's name) are used to flavor Area descriptions, inspire Transaction prompts, craft Zone Feedback rules, or define Mutations. Players can incorporate these terms into their narration, and their usage can even trigger mechanical effects like gaining Instability or modifying Transaction rolls, making the Zone feel alive and responsive to the players' linguistic engagement.

What happens when a character reaches an "Exit State"?

When a character's Burden reaches 10, they trigger an "Exit State," which is framed not as a failure but as "integration" into the Zone. Players choose from various Exit States, each with a unique effect on the game and the Zone. For example, "Subsumed" means the character becomes a Zone protocol, spawning a permanent Feedback Rule, while "Forgotten" erases a Triad element from another player's memory. Even upon exiting, the Zone retains a "copy" or "Echo" of the character, which can manifest as glitched items, new Zone Feedback Rules, or "Memory Scars" for remaining players, ensuring that the character's transformation leaves a lasting mark on the evolving system.

What is the core philosophy behind SOUL//HACK's design regarding transformation and narrative?

SOUL//HACK fundamentally rejects traditional narrative arcs of heroism, improvement, or clear resolution. Instead, it embraces "hauntological becoming with resolution," where stories "echo, break, mutate" rather than end neatly. The game emphasizes "the refusal of closure," suggesting that transformation doesn't necessarily mean becoming "better" or "transcendent," but rather becoming "Else." This philosophy encourages players to embrace "glitching," "lingering in brokenness," and "choosing alteration without resolution," acting as a form of resistance against societal demands for palatable aging, neat memorialization, or profitable self-optimization. The game's design encourages players to "glitch and stay," to transform "without utility, without prestige, without conversion into power."