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  • The H-0L0W Drivers, Part 2: Nodes

The H-0L0W Drivers are designed as a module for you to drop into your Cyberpunk campaign.

They are an underground organization of anonymous professional drivers specialized in extraction and interference.

H-0L0W;
Hireable, with zero liability and zero witnesses.

Part 1 explains how the Drivers appear in the world to your players, and now we begin peeling back the layers with how they operate…

HOLLOW Drivers Cyberpunk Gang Module - Banner
Be sure to go brush up on ‘The H-0L0W Drivers, Part 1: Cyberpunk Transporters‘ to learn about the Drivers’ mysterious messages, catalog, and driverless transportation vehicles!

The streets are a dangerous place. People will do almost anything to ensure their own safety and security, and that of those close to them. Criminals that find themselves in hot water may agree to faceless but serendipitous transporters. Others, when in debt to powerful corporations and vicious gangs, may find themselves agreeing to desperate bargains. No matter the issue, the H-0L0W Drivers have a costly way out.

The second entry of our cyberpunk/modern assets is here, and with it comes the second part in our creation of the cyberpunk gang, the H-0L0W Drivers. In this part, we will cover exactly how they operate behind-the-scenes. What is really going on when the Drivers’ catalog appears, where do the cars come from, and how do they know?

Nodes

The H-0L0W Drivers’ nodes are perhaps the closest thing the group has to ‘members’. They are the people who form the network that allows the Drivers to operate by tracking signals and disturbances throughout the city. And most of this is done without the nodes ever realizing.

Creation of Nodes

A node is created when an individual finds themself with a dept that they cannot pay off. This debt might be to a corporation, a gang, or another individual. The reason rarely matters. What does matter is the offer they are sent, which appears as mysteriously as the Drivers themselves. The H-0L0W Drivers give the individual a way out, promising to pay the debt and save them from whatever bloody price the debtor would have extracted. If the offer is accepted, that person’s debt is then owed to the Drivers.

The Drivers request two tasks from those that owe them: a chip in their head and an upload to their vehicle. The former is assured to be painless, discrete, and unintrusive, likely to never even be noticed by whomever it is implanted in. And in the age of augmentation, there is worse they could do. The person simply needs to visit a chosen doctor in the dark alleys of the city and mention their purpose. The doctor, a node themself, asks no questions.

The second task is far simpler. They need only attach a drive to their vehicle’s onboard computer and allow it to upload.

The completion of these tasks designates the individual as a node and binds them and their car to the Drivers’ network.

Cyberpunk Cars map assets - Banner

How Nodes Work

The chips implanted into every node act as scanners in a network that spans almost every street of the city. They create gateways for the Drivers to monitor goings-on through the people themselves and anything else that they might connect to. Their primary function is to detect crimes that are underway. When they do, the Drivers are able to locate the devices of those involved and send their signature message.

Should the message be accepted, the second portion of the nodes’ agreement comes into play. The H-0l0W Drivers take hold of the closest appropriate vehicle, assuming control of it. They then use the network of nodes and other vehicles to monitor and manipulate paths through the city. Traffic, cameras, and security all bend to the Drivers. This is how they are able to provide their services, as well as disappear afterward, so quickly, easily, and reliably. The car is returned to its owner once the job is complete, of course.

As with all dealings in the city, the risk of betrayal or leaked information necessities contingency plans. Fortunately, when your shackles on those working for you are implanted directly into their bodies, the threat of a failsafe is implied. Nodes rarely turn on the Drivers for this exact reason. When they do, there are repercussions.

Should a node go back on their agreement in some way, there are several methods by which the Drivers can release them of their contract. Sometimes, the nature of their deal will allow the Drivers to return the individual’s debt to the initial party and leave them to their original consequences, wiping their own hands clean of the person. More often, however, it is as simple as the Drivers’ leaking information to authorities that links the node’s vehicle to crimes in which it has acted as a transporter, implicating the owner.

More serious cases require equally serious reactions, however, and the Drivers are not above the crimes they assist. Remote control of vehicles allows for easy disposal of traitors under the cover of accidents while driving. The chips themselves are also able to forcibly overheat, destroying their components. This process is painful, though non-lethal, and is only employed when deemed absolutely necessary.

Asset Downloads

You can find modern and cyberpunk assets, including the ones the H-0L0W Drivers were designed for, below…

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This concludes part 2 of 3 of The H-0L0W Drivers. Part 3 will come with the next batch of assets and explain the single figure who built and runs the Drivers…

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About the author

Troy McConnell

Part-time DM and author of 2-Minute Tabletop's encounters, map lore, and characters. Basically, I write about all the campaign ideas that I don't have time to run. All with the assistance of my feline familiar, Wink.

You can support my writing efforts on Patreon.

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  1. Yes yes yes! I love these details and have already added it to my Cyberpunk Red campaign! These are excellent and I love the depth you’ve given the organization. This will make a great secondary threat for my players to deal with if they go astray with some of the larger corps they’re dealing with.

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