don't BITE THE HAND that feeds you

This is the beta version of Bite The Hand, a cyberpunk TTRPG built on Mothership's Panic Engine. 

In Bite The Hand, one player takes the role of the Warden, controlling and voicing the world and the non-player characters (NPCs) who inhabit it. All other players create player characters (PCs) and describe their character’s actions as they fight for survival, vengeance, and justice in a cyberpunk dystopia. The city is harsh and unforgiving. This is not a power fantasy where armies of grunts can be cut down with ease. No, it is a brutal game where victories will be suspenseful, bloody, and not guaranteed.

While this is a beta with a few items and one class redacted, it is fully playable and ready to use for both one-shots and long campaigns. Like Mothership and other Panic Engine games, BTH is a lightweight, theater of the mind system. The Core Rulebook contains all the information both players and game masters will need. It features a big catalogue of cybernetics, weapons, NPCs, downtime mechanics, and all the rules and advice you need to play. There's even a simple one-shot already made for you to run in the back of the book!

The download is a zip containing a pdf of the rulebook plus a form-fillable character sheet pdf. Read and/or play it and give me feedback in the comments if you're feeling cool. Give me really detailed feedback, and I can credit you as a playtester. You can do this in the comments below, or join the SBG community Discord.

WHAT’S IN THE BETA?

• Three Player Classes: The sneaky Rogue, the tough Soldier, and the crafty Technician.
• 38 unique types of cybernetics to modify your characters with.
• Over 50 weapons, armors, vehicles, and other items to kick ass with.
• A full suite of rules for combat, wounds, downtime, stealth, hacking, a “wanted” system called Heat, and a modified version of the Stress and Panic systems from Mothership.
• Several pages of Warden (game master) advice and tools, including how to build a campaign, worldbuilding guidance, eight NPC stat templates, and tips for making good homebrew and house rules.
• A one-shot campaign module featuring a mission to assassinate a man trying to become immortal.

WHAT’S COMING IN THE FULL VERSION?

• Everything already in the beta, with improvements based on playtesting and feedback, PLUS:
• One more player class: The manipulative Turncoat.
• More vehicles and armor, including stealth suits and heavy tanks.
• Six more types of cybernetics for your PCs and NPCs to get weird with.
• More NPCs for wardens to send into battle.
• ART!

Will you bite the hand that feeds you?

Will you stay down on your knees?

CONTENT WARNING & CREDITS

Bite the Hand is a dark game for mature audiences. It contains violence, harsh language, references to s*x, drug use, depictions of mental health struggles, and body horror that may not be suitable for all audiences. Play with discretion.

Writing, Design, & Layout: Alexander Vigna

Temp beta cover art: stock photo from Pexels edited by Alexander Vigna

©2025 Alexander Vigna and Spellbook Gaming LLC

https://www.spellbookgaming.com/

This game will be free for the duration of the beta (a few months), but if you want to give me money so I can buy food I won't stop you.

AI STATEMENT: Bite The Hand's art was made by its author Alexander Vigna by manipulating stock photos sourced from Pexels. No generative AI was used in the creation of any images or text.

Looking for more Panic Engine stuff from me? Check out my Mothership module: Proxy Error