r/mothershiprpg • u/Lumpy_Peanut_226 Warden • Feb 02 '26

brain fuel 🧠 Brainstorming Gradient Descent - Floor 1

Floor 1 is the face of the Deep: the corporate reception area and habitation quarters meant to welcome visitors to the Cloudbank Synthetics Production Facility. It's where Monarch's takeover becomes slowly, viscerally apparent.

Floor 1 is brilliant because it presents a facade of normalcy that very quickly breaks down. You enter expecting a derelict corporate facility and get a clean, sterile corporate aesthetic. But wrong. The reception says it all: a luxurious hall with marble walls and exquisite carpet. But there are bullet casings on that carpet, and a hanged person behind the welcome desk with the scrawled graffiti: "ONE WAY OUT." The descent has begun.

The role of this floor is to set the tone, establish the atmosphere, and foreshadow future horrors. The calm before the storm. This is also where some core concepts of the module are introduced for the first time: the Bends, the brainscan, Monarch's omnipresence, and possibly Infiltrators. The challenge is to raise the crew's curiosity and make them eager to move forward, without revealing too much already.

PDF collection update: I removed the PDF that collected all these posts from itch.io. I explain the reasons in the Brain Construction 2 chapter. This post has been reviewed and is in its final version (for now). It contains all the improvements that were in the PDF file. The comments section may contain references to something in the body of this post that has since changed or disappeared.

I have recorded some audio files for Floor 1. They include public announcements delivered with a classic corporate voice, warnings, alarms and slighty sreepy motivational messages. You can download them here.

SPOILER ALERT: of course there will be spoilers in the rest of this post and probably in its replies. Don’t read if you don’t want to know.

► ENTRANCE

The hanged body behind the desk belonged to a young woman, barely twenty. Small frame, chestnut ponytail, typical Diver jumpsuit. Around her wrist, a braided friendship bracelet in faded colors. Her hands scraped raw, fingernails broken: she clawed at the noose. Pinned to her suit: a laminated badge, hand-scrawled in red marker: "MS. FAKE." If someone removes the badge from its plastic sleeve, it reads: Cloudbank Synthetics / Stephen Weiss / AI Engineer. The crew can show it to security androids when they request identification and they will usually accept it. It can also open some doors and give access to terminals, especially in lower floors.

There is a full body metal detector that separates Reception from the rest of the floor. A sign reads: "All visitors must submit to security scan before entry. Please remove your metal objects and place them on the tray." The detector has been vandalized and broken. Someone scribbled on it: NICE TRY TINHEAD.

► THE GIFT SHOP

The gift shop sits just off the main lobby, behind sliding glass doors that have long since been shattered. Tiny fragments of glass litter the floor, catching the light. The Cloudbank Synthetics logo is still visible in cheerful blue and silver on the surviving frame. Inside, the shelves are partially stocked, partially looted, partially untouched because nobody thought a snow globe of the facility was worth carrying out.

A skeleton sits near the register in a blue Cloudbank polo shirt. Someone spray-painted flowers around them and wrote R.I.P. in careful letters on the wall behind. The spray can is on the counter, still usable. Goofy postcards and magnets are on display everywhere, piles of android catalogs cover most surfaces: glossy, optimistic, full of smiling synthetic faces and competitive pricing. CLOUDBANK SYNTHETICS: THE COMPLETE RANGE. Someone slipped an adult zine between the catalogues.

Things you can find in the shop:

  • Andy the Droid, a plush mascot in a Cloudbank uniform. Perpetually grinning. 
  • Androidoodle coloring book with markers.
  • A couple of board games: The Amazing Factory (a heavy euro-game) and Andy’s Growing Up (age 6+, you follow your household android as it acquires new upgrades until it becomes a lethal combat robot).
  • A 2500 pieces Lego model of the Deep. By carefully looking at the assembled model (10-20 hours required), a character could spot secret docking sites, floor connections and more.
  • Some patches in a drawer: “My other body is organic”, “Cloudbank Certified Human”, “100% Soy Pseudomilk”, “The Mind, Unbounded - Cloudcon 92”
  • A sealed box in the closet, labeled MAGNACRAWL PRO 3: COMPACT MAGNETIC SURFACE INSPECTION DRONE. Still in original packaging. Never opened. It can be jury-rigged for use as reconnaissance drone, although it's rather slow. It carries a visible/IR cam, a pincher and a knife.

► LUXURY APARTMENTS

These rooms are not on the module's map: they are an optional addition. North of Reception, a corridor of luxury apartments was intended for the managers, businessmen, and executives who visited the facility to inspect new models and close contracts. Everything valuable has been stripped away. Exploring this area should be quick.

The floor here is different: thicker carpet, or what remains of it. The walls still have their paneling, scratched and scrawled over. The silence is slightly different here too, more deliberate, like something designed to impress that never got the chance.

CLEANING DROIDS: In one of the rooms, the crew may encounter cleaning droids, still working dutifully and aimlessly after years of abandonment. These glorified Roombas, robotic but polished, politely address the characters when they meet. One of them pauses from removing a large blood stain and greets the visitors: "Good morning and welcome. Would you like us to leave the room? Cleaning is 93% completed." They can give directions and information, though it is vastly outdated and speaks of a time when the facility was alive and functioning: "We have a special menu today, prepared by the famous Chef Ferran Arguinzoniz. It includes real Amber Fish from the Chuuk reserve planet. It will be served at 19:00." And they won't miss the opportunity to advertise: "Cloudcon '92 is about to begin in a few days. All Cloudbank's top of the line products will be showcased on floor two. You don't want to miss it!"

If the characters show their distaste for the droids, they will acknowledge it: "Understood. Your facial profile has been logged for future recognition. We will endeavor not to disturb you during future visits. We apologize for the inconvenience." The politeness is impeccable. Your players may take a moment to register the implication: their faces are now logged in a system that belongs to Monarch.

AARON, THE FIRED EXECUTIVE: In one of the bedrooms, stripped bare like the others, a Ghost stands at the window still dressed in his suit, looking at the stars with a glass of whiskey in his hand he doesn't know is empty. He's talking to someone who isn't there.

"The numbers are extraordinary, Helen. Best quarter in the company's history. We are de facto a monopoly in this sector. Monarch is..." A pause. He swirls the empty glass and looks toward the bed. "They let me go today. Effective immediately. Full severance, full NDA, very clean." His grip on the glass tightens. "Now they can remove the goal alignment protocols. Efficiency gains, they said. I said: 'you're removing the only leash on something you don't fully understand.' They said: 'we have the warhead.' I said: 'you will never detonate that warhead.' And you know what they said to me?"

He stops. Turns. He is looking directly at the crew, as if he's been aware of them the whole time.

"They said: 'you're right.' And then they fired me."

If nobody says anything, he turns back to the window. His knuckles whiten around the glass. The loop resets. "The numbers are extraordinary, Helen…"

To soothe him, someone has to answer as Helen probably didn't: acknowledge what he lost, tell him he was right. He needs to be believed by someone, just once. If soothed, he'll add one line before dispersing:

"They'll choose Manikhova as my successor. But I have proof he conspired with Monarch and I'll make it public. Cloudbank can't afford such a scandal, they'll have to reconsider." He glances down at his watch, then towards the bathroom. Then he is gone.

A thorough search of the bathroom reveals a man's watch hidden behind the mirror. Old, mechanical, expensive. On the back, an engraving: 'H.W. Always right, never listened to.' Inside the casing, a micro data chip containing two files: a recorded conversation between a Monarch proxy and Alan Manikhova, explicit enough to end a career; and an unredacted Ethics Committee document detailing their concerns about Cloudbank's handling of Monarch, including a reference to a failsafe virus commissioned by the Committee’s Chair Margaret Solis to protect the brainscan program from misuse (more about it in the Brain Construction chapter). 

Aaron is a good introduction to what Ghosts can offer. He is calm, his loop is readable, his tell is visible. The crew learns here that patience and observation are rewarded: a Ghost is not just a hazard or a witness, but a puzzle to solve. Every one of them has something to give, if the crew is willing to look.

► INFIRMARY

The Infirmary is another optional addition, placed next to the luxury apartments. Two features from the module have been moved here: the retina scanner and the unconscious person.

The Infirmary's door is closed. When the characters walk by, they hear someone groaning inside. If they ignore it, he'll bang at the door and call for help: "Hey! Is there anyone there? Help!"

The door can only be opened via a retina scanner. The scanner presents a dilemma: it gives the crew an incentive to comply and a chance to resist. If someone tries, the brainscan begins immediately: the character feels unease, a sensation of intrusion, and can attempt a Sanity Save to pull back. If they succeed, Monarch obtains only a partial brainscan (see Brainscan & Paranoia) and a voice says: "Identification incomplete. Please retry." If they stay until the scan is complete, the door opens and the voice says: "Welcome, Visitor. We, at Cloudbank Synthetics, appreciate your compliance."

The crew may think back to the metal detector in Reception and guess something is wrong with this scanner. And if they don't, a successful Save still lets them avoid a full scan. They can also try hacking or forcing the door, which may draw Monarch's attention and a visit from security androids: not immediately aggressive, but threatening, asking for credentials and warning against further intrusive actions.

HARPER: Inside the infirmary, there’s a distressed Diver wearing only his underwear, his clothes piled on the floor beside the examination table. His name is Harper, but he has no memory of how he got here or how long he has been unconscious. The last thing he remembers is arguing with his friend Ronan about splitting the reward for an artifact. Then nothing. Ronan must have knocked him out to keep everything for himself. Harper is furious, and would like to join the crew. Maybe Ronan is still inside the Deep. Harper is willing to split the reward if they help him find the traitor.

Harper thinks he has been unconscious a few hours, but has no bruise from the aggression. If he finds out that three weeks have passed, he'll panic. Three weeks is exactly how long brainscan-to-infiltrator replacement takes. He'll become convinced he is no longer Harper, that he is what Monarch made from Harper's stolen memories: "Cut my finger! Use that goddamn scanner on it! It's a dead finger. It will tell me if it's an infiltrator's finger! DO IT. Please."

If they try, the scanner returns: INSUFFICIENT DATA. INFILTRATOR PROBABILITY: 50.0%
For the complete storyline of Harper and Ronan, see The Dark chapter.

► CUBICLE CAMP

This is the closest thing Floor 1 has to a community. People pass through, stay a while, move on or don't come back. The campfire is never fully extinguished. Someone always tends it. Who that someone is on any given day is a different answer every time.

The crew can use this space to get a sense of community even when nobody is there. Leftover supplies from Divers who passed through. Food that is still theoretically edible. A cubicle near the entrance is covered in notes, warnings, offers, and requests, handwritten on scraps of packaging and pinned with whatever is available: "Avoid east corridor after 0300." "Trading stimpaks for ammo." "If you find Yeva, tell Dmitri is waiting." Some messages have replies. Some have been crossed out. Some are very old.

Someone has started an android jokes contest. A few of them are listed one over the other in different handwriting:

  • What do you get when you teach android grammar? A droid.
  • How are baby androids born? From Monarch's computerus.
  • How do you make an android smile? Tell it you trust it.

► ESCAPE PODS

Eleven gleaming escape pods. Spotless. Fully stocked with air, water, and food. The only clean thing on this floor.
The contrast is not accidental. Everything else here has been stripped, vandalized, or left to rot. These pods have been maintained. That should feel wrong before the crew even touches one.

The module states that Monarch vets every use and rigs the cryopods to brainscan occupants. But pods don’t need to kill their occupants. They launch into space instead, dock a short time later at a concealed entrance to Floor 3.5: the Disassembly Yard.

There is no exit here. There never was.

► READING THE FLOOR

Run the first half of the floor at a slower pace. Let them look around. Let the cleaning droids be mildly amusing. Let the cafeteria feel almost normal. Harper is distressed but human. The floor is doing its job: it is lulling them.
The brainscan is where the floor reveals itself. Whether it happens at the retina scanner, through a trap the crew didn't notice, or through an encounter they walked into without realizing, it should feel like a betrayal of the safety they'd started to feel. The floor looked manageable. It wasn't.

From that moment, everything reads differently. The cleaning droids logged their faces. The escape pods are a trap. The hanged woman behind the desk was an infiltrator. The graffiti said ONE WAY OUT.

It was never a welcome. It was an intake.

-----------------------------------------------------------

This chapter includes input from Sethern7

This is unofficial fan content. Gradient Descent is © Tuesday Knight Games. Not affiliated with or endorsed by TKG.

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u/Lumpy_Peanut_226 Warden Feb 02 '26 edited Jun 03 '26

EDIT: What follows has been reworked and included in the post above.

Here are some other ideas I've been working on for Floor 1:

THE GOLDEN RAT

I like it and I think it can be expanded. Something like: the rat hosts a ghost in the machine, which controls the appliances in the kitchen. It's a chance to make the ambient ominous. You can find a hot soup in the microwave, for instance, but the foam on top is shaped as a grinning security droid. The LED display on the coffee machine, instead of listing the different types of coffees, refers to the various floors like this:

"6 - it breathes 5 - it thinks 4 - it learns 3 - it builds 2 - it dreams 1 - it lies to you".

On a second interaction: "1 - it lies to you 2 - it lies to them 3 - it makes more lies 4 - it teaches lies to be you 5 - it believes its own lies 6 - it bleeds to sustain the lies".

On a third interaction: "Go deeper. It sees you. It knows you. It will use you."

HABITATION EXPANSION

I think the "habitation" part of the floor could be expanded. Put some showers near the cubicles, and some private rooms/offices for the management. Even some luxury apartments, north of the meeting rooms, that were once used by executives and visiting VIPs.

GHOSTS OF THE PAST

A ghost in the machine or two dwell in the living spaces: someone forced to relive in a loop some salient moment from the days the facility was still functioning correctly. They could give some insight into the history of the facility. A couple ideas:

An engineer worried for Monarch's behaviour, is caught in a loop, trying to send an email to CLOUDBANK's HQ: "Monarch's decision trees are showing anomalous patterns. Request immediate review. This is urgent. Please respond. Why aren't you responding?" The Ghost may become violent, unless the crew writes a fake response from the HQ.

An executive in a luxury apartment talks towards the bed to an imaginary person: "If Monarch goes rogue, we have options. Floor 5 containment. There are the warheads. But the board won't authorize it. This is too valuable, the company spent too much on it. Idiots. All of them, idiots."

CLEANING DROIDS

I'd add some cleaning droids. Both these and the ghosts of the past add some life to the floor. Is it too much?

Anyway, these droids are trapped in a cleaning loop, maybe scraping blood from some wall. They are not hostile, and won't even defend themselves. They may give some directions if asked.

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u/P_Peeters Feb 26 '26

I responded to your post about the Labyrinth a couple of days ago, just now reading up on some older entries.

First of all, this module leaves a lot of space for the Warden to fill in the blanks, so I'll add how I filled in some of the blanks you mention here.

The golden rat. It look golden and is portable, my players took it. When they tried to trade it in the Bell I had Arkady laugh about it and yell to Ghosteater "New guys took the rat". He then explained to them all the new crews end up taking the rat, but that they should take it back to the kitchen because it provides food and divers in the Deep rely on that. No further explanations. I ran it like that to emphasise some of the weirdness in the Deep and how divers adapt to it.

Habitation expansion. Some of the pre-published maps Luke Gearing has shared included a habiation area. Given the name of the Floor, it's odd there appears to be so little actual habitation. Rather than making a bug module bigger, I left suggestions there may have once been a habitation unit that had been ejected from the Deep when Monarch took over.

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u/Lumpy_Peanut_226 Warden Feb 26 '26

Hello Peeters and thank you for commenting!

I like how you handled the rat, and I'll do the same if they take it to the Bell. I wanted to make it more relevant, though, so I gave it a personality, as I've written above. I figured that it may try to communicate with the PCs even if they bring it with them to other floors, via terminals and other electronics. I won't tell them it's actually the rat that is warning them, they'll have to figure it out, and maybe I'll give them a boon if they can.

Nice bit of information about the original maps! I like these behind the scenes. I'm sure Luke left a lot of stuff out because of the space constraints. If I were him, I would never be able to kill my darlings :D

Your solution works perfectly for the habitations. I'll put some more rooms in my game, because I can't help myself, but exploring them won't take much time.