Paranoia is one of my favorite RPGs. It's radically different from most other RPGs out there. It's post-apocalyptic, SF, and humor, seasoned with a good hefty dose of inter-party backstabbing and the knowledge that you probably won't survive to complete your mission anyway.
From the back cover of the Second Edition:
Here I'm going to discuss the actual RPG materials -- the handbooks and supplements of the game.
Return link at bottom of page
This edition used percentile dice (i.e. d100) to resolve everything, and there are a lot of percentages in the stats: "to hit: 76%", for example. First Ed also involved "skill trees" instead of skill levels and a bunch of useless mutant powers. (Who would ever be able to use Number Cruncher effectively? Or the Chameleon power, which required you to be naked -- highly suspicious in the world of Alpha Complex!) It also had the Combat Mind mutant power, which was really too powerful. On the other hand, it set the tone and without it there would be no game quite like this out there.
First Ed adventures include
Vapors Don't Shoot Back, the Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues, Orcbusters,
Send in the Clones, and Clones in Space.
Supplements include Acute
Paranoia, HIL Sector Blues, the Gamemaster Screen with three
mini-adventures, Excessory Pack (later known in Second Edition as
the Recycled Pack). Metal miniatures were also available for
a brief time. Descriptions of adventures are below the Editions section.
Second Edition (1987) is "the" edition. In Second Ed, the mutant powers were cleaned up and the dice system changed from percentiles to using a 20-sided die. The skill trees were replaced with skill groups, and the humor quotient was increased. Second Ed came in two forms: a single book (comprising both the players' and GM's information), and a boxed set (the book, a d20, and "The Compleat Troubleshooter" pamphlet). "The Compleat Troubleshooter" introduced Mandatory Bonus Duties and test forms for said duties. The tests are fun, but they do slow down the beginning of the game. In many cases it's best to secretly assign MBDs ahead of time and just act like you're grading the tests (unless someone answers the treasonous questions).
Second Edition was the glory time of the game, with piles of adventures written and produced for it.
On the downside, with the entire Player's section now included in the Second Ed book, it's inconvenient for a GM to have to hand over the book to players. Since an introductory adventure is included in the back of the book, the GM may not want to hand it over anyway!
Second Ed adventures include
Alpha Complexities, Don't Take your Laser to Town, The People's Glorious
Revolutionary Adventure, More Songs About Food Vats, The Computer Always
Shoots Twice, The Iceman Returneth
Supplements include The
DOA Sector Travelogue, Recycled Pack, and Form Pack.
After a few years, West End decided to change Paranoia's direction, so following events in The Iceman Returneth, The Computer crashed and Alpha Complex was dumped into anarchy. These were still Second Edition adventures, but were termed "Post-Crash" due to their setting and all the changes that took place.
Post-Crash is kind of strange. It's the kind of thing that's fun to do for a while, then you start longing to bring The Computer back, because without the Digital Dictator, you just have a post-apocalyptic setting with some odd trappings. After a while the magic just ain't there without The Computer sending Troubleshooters on pointless deathtrap missions. There's a couple of adventures where you have the potential to bring the computer back, but at the time West End said the Computer would never be back. I consider Post-Crash an unofficial Third Edition.
Post-Crash adventures include
Death, Lies and Vidtape, Alice Through the Mirrorshades, Twilightcycle:2000,
and Gamma-Lot.
Supplements include Vulture
Warriors of Dimension X, R&D Catalog, and the Crash Course Manual.
Then it was decided to bring The Computer back, but not completely, so that many clones were still "on the loose". Your PCs could be either free citizens eking it out in Alpha Base, or Troubleshooters serving The Computer in Alpha Complex. If the latter, you might as well just call it "standard Second Edition Paranoia". This setting was called Reboot Alpha and I consider it the unofficial Fourth Edition. Some adventures published during this time deal with Computer-ruled Alpha Complex and make little or no reference to the supposed "free state" of Alpha Base. Reboot Alpha products are heavy on supplements and light on adventures, so you have to make up your own, mostly.
Reboot Alpha adventures include
C^TV/Paranormal and Mad Mechs.
Supplements include the
Bot Abuser's Manual, Paramilitary, and The Paranoia Sourcebook.
Fifth Edition (1995) is kind of a joke -- that they just decided to skip the 3rd and 4th editions (Post-Crash and Reboot, if you want) and go right to Fifth. Oh, how far Paranoia fell with this edition.
You want typos? You got 'em. You want lame attempts at humor? They're here. Bad art? Horrible acronyms and Paranoia name designates? Weak attempts at justifying Paranoia given the "new world order" of the 1990s? Look no further! (Well, Brian Schomburg's art was okay.)
Sure, Second Ed had its problems, but Fifth was downright painful to read. At this point Paranoia devolved into a parody-only setting -- the few products released for it dealt almost entirely with converting genres/cliches/pop-culture references into Paranoia terms. And I personally agree with Ed Bolme, writer of some of the finest Paranoia out there, when he said in 1988's Alpha Complexities, "With all due respect to other designers and their very excellent scenarios, I just don't think it's necessary to have BEMs or wizards or other sci-fi/fantasy props. After all, BEMS are by definition traitors, but what do you do with an empty confession booth?"
And that, to me, is what helped Paranoia to die: the gradual conversion of it into a parody game instead of its own very worthwhile setting. I started feeling obligated to buy Paranoia products to help support the line, but not because I was going to get any use out of them. There might be an idea or two I could steal for my own use, but they're few and far between in Fifth Ed. And I mistakenly thought Russ Steffens' art in much of Second Ed was the nadir -- O, how wrong I was! With the exception of Schomburg, Fifth Ed's art stunk to high heaven. It was painful to look at, sometimes not particularly apropos to the nearby text, and at times a little disturbing in its mediocrity. (The artist in particular will not be named here.)
Having said that, I am sorry that West End Games went bankrupt. They produced a game I've enjoyed for over a decade, as well as the Star Wars system and the Ghostbusters RPG, which I also liked (had the same kinda humor feel as early Second Ed Paranoia) but no longer own. (And after I converted the Real Ghostbusters cartoon characters into RPG stats, too! Oh well...)
Fifth Edition adventures -- well, the only one was Creatures of the Nightcycle. There were no supplements. A product entitled Bug City was in West End's online product listing late in 1998, but when I called about it, I was told it had not been produced, and given "the current situation" -- West End's bankruptcy proceedings -- it was unlikely. As of this writing, Bug City is presumed dead.
These are listed in alphabetical order. Edition and year of publishing are listed, example: First/1985. When possible, I'll mention whether I think the item is out of print or not. ISBNs are listed for those interested in picking up these products. You can also sometimes find them at better stocked gaming stores. Unless otherwise mentioned, adventures are for Red clearance characters. "Pure" means it doesn't parody some other game or genre -- just Alpha Complex Troubleshootin' at its best.
Acute Paranoia by bunches o' folks (First/1986). Get this supplement, citizen! Can be used with any edition of Paranoia. Includes sanity tests, deadly chemicals and drugs, three mini-adventures (mixed quality), seven "Code 7" mini-adventures (same), and a full-length adventure, "Me and My Shadow, Mark IV", which introduces the Mark IV Warbot and is a great adventure to boot. I've run this one several times under Second Ed and it never gets old. Also included are some new secret societies (apart from the Trekkies, not that great, although they all do occasionally make appearances in other modules) and rules for playing robots (try the Bot Abuser's Manual instead). I think it's still in print, despite its age. This should definitely be part of your Paranoia library. ISBN 0-87431-034-2
Alice Through the Mirrorshades by Ed Bolme (Post-Crash/1989). A crossover adventure with R. Talsorian Games' Cyberpunk RPG; includes characters for both systems (with good art by Valerie Valusek). Part one of a time-travel series that continues with Twilightcycle:2000 and ends with Vulture Warriors of Dimension X. Uses the TDC device to jump through time to the cyberpunk days before the asteroid slams into Earth and Alpha Complex as we know it comes into being; the PCs are supposed to destroy the guy who (in The Iceman Returneth) crashed The Computer. ISBN 0-87431-154-3
Alpha Complexities by Ed Bolme (Second/1988). One of the greatest adventures ever written for Paranoia. To keep the PCs alive long enough, they're Green clearance. Some wonderfully cheesy puns, inspired deathtraps, invisible Commies, repeated problems getting to the briefing room -- all this and maps and pregenerated PCs and everything in 48 pages! Plus great art by Greg Guler. If you run Paranoia, you've got to pick this one up. ISBN 0-87431-080-6
Bot Abuser's Manual, The by Ed Bolme (Reboot/1992). I don't use bots that often even in my standard Paranoia adventures, but this supplement is for you if you like bots. The bot character creation process is hilarious, too. Also includes bot secret societies, bot programs, and a mini-adventure for bot PCs. ISBN 0-87431-164-0
Clones in Space by Erick Wujcik (First/1986) Pretty much what it says; The Computer sends the PCs off into space, where they encounter aliens and weird robots. Some very funny artwork by Jim Holloway. The ending is a "What the--?" type (when aliens are after Earth's women... the aliens in question generate big ol' "Huh?"s when I try to run this. You'll understand when you read it). Might be a problem for the novice GM, because all characters' clones are sent along on the ride, so there's about 36 people on this trip, and someone has to run all the NPCs, and it's really easy for all 36 to die at once in space. Some good jokes, though. Probably out of print. Pregenerated PCs based on classic science fiction characters. ISBN 0-87431-042-3
Computer Always Shoots Twice, The by Ken Rolston, Allen Varney and Warren Spector (Second/1988). Two First Ed adventures (Orcbusters and Send In the Clones) are updated for Second Ed and put into this book. The changes between editions are mostly cosmetic; if you play Second Ed and have this book, you don't need to get the First Ed versions unless you're a completist or just want to compare them. All the Jim Holloway artwork has been redone by Russ Steffens, though, which is a bit jarring. ISBN 0-87431-087-3
Crash Course Manual, by bunches o' folks (Post-Crash/1989). This supplement describes the world of Post-Crash Alpha Complex and how all the rules have changed. You really should have this to run Post-Crash adventures. Art is by Rick Lenz (good), Russ Steffens (eh...) and Sonya Obrochta (good). Bret Blevins does very nice art for the "101 Uses for a Dead Computer" section in the back. CCM is a good read. There's some adventure ideas and one full adventure (co-written by the great Ed Bolme), which is decent Paranoia but starts threatening to veer into the parody realm the game later belly-flopped into. This supplement happens right after the Crash, so things are still close to the core of the game. However, this also signals the start of the "wandering band of adventurers who go looking for jobs" phase of Paranoia -- sound familiar, AD&D players? ISBN 0-87431-153-5
Creatures of the Nightcycle by Jennifer Brandes and Chris Hepler (Fifth/1997?) There's no publication date on this really-large adventure (112 pages) that seems like it could have been shorter. Like the Fifth Ed book, there's typos here (in the table of contents, no less), uncorrected problems [p.6 "...the Near Death Experience Table (page XX)" -- turns out it's on page 111] and some bad art. The graphic design of the pages, with a fade-in/fade-out circuit image, makes text difficult to read (black text on dark gray patterned background in the middle of the pages). This adventure isn't subtle about what it's trying to parody -- it even says "A Complex of Dimness Adventure" on the front. Inside is a whole lotta parody of White Wolf's stuff (again! see Paranormal/C^TV entry). PCs become vampires and try to do some missions for the vampire secret society. The occasional great joke or pun doesn't overcome the kludgy, hard-to-read interface or the fact that this is just a parody of horror games. If you already play White Wolf games, and also play Paranoia, maybe it'll mean more to you than it did to me. Not recommended. ISBN 0-87431-172-1
C^TV/Paranormal, by a few folks (Reboot/1994). Things get a little chaotic with this one. It's presented in "flip book" format, so C^TV is on one side and Paranormal's on the other. (You can find some science fiction novellas presented this way.) Greg Guler does a short b/w comic in the front of C^TV. C^TV is parodies of television; Paranormal is parodies of horror and horror RPGs. C^TV includes a cute adventure for ten-year-old Troubleshooters (really!) parodying children's TV. Comes with an activity page and nifty tips for helping PCs get into playing as little kids. The pregenerated PCs are based on independent-comic characters. Brian Schomburg (who wrote the kiddie adventure) also does good art. The second C^TV adventure tries to parody Hogan's Heroes, but does a lousy job if you're familiar with the show. Some good R&D devices, though. Really horrible NPC names -- they couldn't do better than Ima F.R.-U-ITT and KL-I-NQE? How the heck are you supposed to pronounce these? Gone are the days of Lose-R-GUY and Islamic-G-HAD, I guess. Meanwhile, Newkirk (from Hogan's Heroes) is omitted, and PRZ-O-NER and RUN-Y-WAY are added in (huh?). The third C^TV adventure parodies American Gladiators, which I guess is okay, but the premise seems weak. Alpha Annihilators NPCs are provided. (See Paranormal/C^TV entry for the other half of this book) ISBN 0-87431-169-1
Death, Lies and Vidtape by Allen Varney (Post-Crash/1990). A very, very cool "pure" Paranoia adventure. Signals the end of Post-Crash and beginning of Reboot Alpha. PCs are mixed clearances, but in Post-Crash Alpha, that doesn't matter anymore. Great cover and interior art by Francis Mao and Sonya Obrochta respectively. Don't try to run this without the Crash Course Manual. Also has a few supplemental pages to the R&D Catalog, detailing one new weapon and one new armor type. ISBN 0-87431-159-4
DOA Sector Travelogue, The (Second/1989). This is wonderful reading material in its own right. The DOA Sector Travelogue supplement goes over one sector in Alpha Complex in a lot of detail. No maps to speak of in the book, but everything else is covered, from food to housing to cloning to hospitals... everything a sector needs. Adventure hooks are provided with most sections. There's also a generous helping of NPCs, and activities of the secret societies within DOA Sector. This supplement is supposed to come with a big poster map, but I got mine second-hand without the map, therefore I can't tell you if it's any good. The Secret Society Wars subplot starts here (sort of). Artwork is so-so. Enjoy the Random Bureaucracy and Random Pipe Contents tables! This is a valuable addition to your Paranoia library -- technically not necessary, but highly recommended. ISBN 0-87431-078-4
Don't Take Your Laser to Town by Malcolm Mouvis and Vern G. Hargett (Second/1988) Parody of Westerns, including John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, broncobots, and so on. Feels rushed. No pregenerated PCs are included, but only six secret societies are given missions, which gives me the impression maybe PCs were intended but left out. More using the TDC to jump time and dimensions (yawn). If you're a completist, or really like this kind of thing, go for it. Otherwise, save your money. Greg Guler does his usual fine artwork. ISBN 0-87431-104-7
Form Pack (Second/1987?) Forms! In triplicate! With carbon paper! Probably will end up becoming that accessory you never use because you hate to actually write on 'em. Comes with a teeny tiny miniadventure to justify the fact that you're buying a bunch of triplicate forms. Forms include the Equipment Request Form, Equipment Complaint Form, and the Form Request Form. Suggestion: photocopy the top sheet and use that, especially if you actually start using these forms. Or steal ideas from them for use in other adventures. May be out of print, but some of these ended up in the Recycled Pack. ISBN 0-87431-079-2
Gamma-Lot by Grant Boucher (Post-Crash/1990) Parody of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, with some decent artwork by Sonya Obrochta, but unfortunately this one includes the return of Randy the Wonder Lizard (in a sort of reverse Secret of Evermore, I'm probably the only one who doesn't like Randy and never did). This adventure features the previously-also-massively-abused TDC device to transport PCs across dimensions, yada yada. The pregenerated PCs are kinda neat, but why were they based on the Little Rascals for a fantasy adventure? ISBN 0-87431-158-6
HIL Sector Blues by Ken Rolston (First/1986). A campaign pack -- the PCs are Blue Troopers (Alpha Complex police). The advantage to this subsetting is that you can turn any police or detective plot into a Paranoia adventure. If you want to use the pregenerated characters, though, be prepared to convert their stats to Second Ed format. Also includes Paranoia miniatures rules and Cardstock Commies, three mini-adventures, adventure hooks, and ways to use Blue Troopers as NPCs in other campaign subsettings. Art by Jim Holloway, who I think did all the art for First Ed. HIL Sector Blues may be out of print. ISBN 0-87431-051-2
Iceman Returneth, The by Sam Shirley (Second/1989). Another good "pure" Paranoia adventure, this one signals the end of standard Second Ed and the beginning of Post-Crash Alpha. Good art by Valerie Valusek. A High Programmer from the Past is thawed out, and everyone wants him. The PCs get to meet (and maybe kill) Teela O'Malley on live TV, try to reboot the Computer, go through surprise underwear inspections, and, well, what do you think happens? Not mandatory for Post-Crash campaigns, but it's still neat to have. Wat-R-MLN is one of the funniest Troubleshooter concepts I've ever seen. This adventure also sort-of concludes the Secret Society Wars subplot started in DOA Sector Travelogue. ISBN 0-87431-152-7
Mad Mechs by Paul Murphy (Reboot Alpha/1991) PCs go to Australia to find the one guy who can save Alpha Complex from alien attack; this is mostly just an excuse to get the PCs to Australia. After that it's parody time and an excuse to use every Australian cliche in the book. The adventure itself is just okay. Art by Francis Mao; not bad. Includes a big Road Rally map and counters for a big car demolition/race (what else did you expect in a book called Mad Mechs?). ISBN 0-87431-160-8
More Songs About Food Vats by Karl Hughes (Second/1989). This is part of the Secret Society Wars subplot that also appears in The Iceman Returneth, People's Glorious Revolutionary Adventure, and DOA Sector Travelogue, but you don't need those to run this adventure. Fairly pure Paranoia. In theory, the PCs are supposed to guard the Food Vats; in practice, you get to take them on a tour of the food processing areas of Alpha Complex. They may even kill some High Programmers while they're at it! Russ Steffens does the art; let's just say he's not my favorite Paranoia artist. ISBN 087431-151-9
Orcbusters by Ken Rolston (First/1986). Reprinted in The Computer Always Shoots Twice. Parody of fantasy adventures, specifically AD&D. The cover to First Ed Orcbusters mimics the old AD&D modules from the days of yesteryear, and the adventure involves some wizards who accidentally get transported to Alpha Complex. Later the PCs go to the wizards' dimension. Art by Jim Holloway. Introduces Randy the Wonder Lizard (whom I never cared for) and the TDC device, which connects dimensions together (and thereby creating the ultimate adventure-creation crutch). Fun to read. Pregenerated PCs are parodies of fantasy types, ranging in clearance from Red to Green (a real inter-party problem, actually). The characters are hilarious, especially Jahl-Y-ELF. First Edition copy probably out of print; Second Edition copy (in TCAST) should still be available. First Edition ISBN 0-87431-050-4
Paramilitary by Dave Lemon (Reboot/1993). A little disappointing, this supplement deals with the Armed Forces of Alpha Complex in Reboot Alpha. This is fine, except it's not particulary entertaining (with occasional exceptions like Fort RAN). There are also rules for Battle MICs, Paranoia's parody of FASA's Battlemechs. The artwork (by Jaime Lombardo and Ron Hill) is a mix of realistic and slightly cartoony; it's a nice change of pace. ISBN 0-87431-167-5
Paranoia Fifth Edition (Fifth/1995) Avoid this if you can. The combat section -- always a vital part of Paranoia -- is darn confusing after Second's simpler, if probably less realistic, system. The cover art's very cool; the interior... well... Meanwhile, the entire origin of Paranoia -- an old Russian missile ended up nuking the place, so Friend Computer ever after is hunting down Commies -- is tweaked heavily. And what was wrong with secret societies springing up on their own, instead of "being created by the Computer"? Not recommended as long as you can get a copy of Second Edition. ISBN 0-87431-171-3
Paranoia First Edition (First/1984) The one that started it all. If you can't get hold of Second Ed (unlikely but theoretically possible) get this one instead of Fifth. First Ed comprises three booklets (GM handbook, Player handbook, and Adventure book) and Jim Holloway does the art, some of which is later seen in the Second Ed book and some of which was not reprinted but still looks cool. The Player book has a solitaire adventure to get you started in the general feel of the game. The three books' covers, by the way, all share some piece of artwork in a very cool way. This came as a box set, but I don't have the box, so I can't list the ISBN ... sorry.
Paranoia Gamemaster Screen (First/1985). The screen is for First Edition -- all the stats, powers and so on are here, but not real useful for later editions -- but the beauty of this product is the three mini-adventures included. They can be used as filler for regular campaigns, or ideas for your own adventures. Two are pure Paranoia, one's mostly pure. Probably long out of print; no ISBN listed on the screen or adventure booklet. Jim Holloway art.
Paranoia Second Edition (Second/1987) Mandatory and forever. (Bonus points if you recognize which product had that quote! Plus you can call yourself a true Paranoia Geek!) Many, many Paranoia products are written in Second Edition format, which makes this book indispensable. Adventures from Second, Post-Crash and Reboot editions all require this book. Some pretty good art from Jim Holloway, although most of it is recycled from First Edition. Also listed is how to convert First Ed adventures/stats to Second Ed. A full-length introductory adventure is included in the back, with pregenerated PCs, maps, handouts, etc. If you find a used copy of this book for sale, check to see if the pages in the back have been torn or cut out -- the character sheets and handouts were bound into the book. ISBN 0-87431-063-6
Paranoia Sourcebook (Reboot/1992) Updating the world of Alpha Complex for the Reboot. Now your PCs can be part of Alpha Complex, Alpha Base, or some other place within the dome (which is apparently really, really huge -- bigger than ever before hinted-at). Depending on how you want to run the campaign, either the PCs are freedom fighters against Alpha Complex; or defenders of their own mini-nation; or Troubleshooters for The Computer. If the latter, you can start recycling those old Second Ed adventures! (Actuall, at that point, maybe you don't need any Reboot or Post-Crash material at all...) The cover is from the first issue of the Paranoia comic book, which was so-so. (The comic, that is, not the cover art.) Interior art by Francis Mao, with an actual frightening-looking doberbot! Also includes attempts to get Paranoia "with it" by including cyberspace rules, and lots of acronyms formed under the LISA syndrome: "Let's Invent Some Acronym and figure out what the letters mean later." -- for example, INEPT (=Intersector Network for Emergency Protection and Transportation). You get the idea. If you're going to run Reboot adventures, this will be a help. ISBN 087431-163-2
Paranormal/C^TV by several folks (Reboot/1994). Things get a little chaotic with this one. It's presented in "flip book" format, so C^TV is on one side and Paranormal's on the other. (You can find some science fiction novellas presented this way.) Greg Guler does a short b/w comic in the front of C^TV. C^TV is parodies of television; Paranormal is parodies of horror and horror RPGs. The two adventures in Paranormal don't make a lot of sense, even for parodies. In the first, PCs are sent to infiltrate and root out Commies; in the second... heck, I can't figure it out, but it seems to deal with zombies, vampires, werewolves, and parodies of White Wolf's "World of Darkness" games. (See the C^TV/Paranormal entry for information on the other half of this book.) I can only guess that West End was trying to jump on the horror-game bandwagon with this and Creatures of the Nightcycle. ISBN 087431-169-1
People's Glorious Revolutionary Adventure, The by Ed Bolme (Second/1989). Another classic -- the PCs get to play Commies and try to destroy Alpha Complex! Reasonably pure in that it deals solely with Alpha Complex/Alpha State, and gets in a lot of cheap yuks about the Soviets. Pregenerated PCs, all Red clearance, because all comrades in Alpha State are Red... is not true that some are more Red than others, Comrade. Also really funny to read. Decent Sonya Obrochta artwork. Thank you, Mr. Bolme, for making us laugh about Paranoia, again! ISBN 0-87431-150-0
Recycled Pack (Second/1988) A collection of leftover stuff, but still nifty. The cover says it all: "Miscellaneous Forms. 56 Plastic Troubleshooter FIgures. Cardstock Commie (tm) Cut-Outs." The figures are different colors, so you can leave 'em be or paint 'em. Forms are the same as in the Form Pack. Cardstock Commies are from HIL Sector Blues. I don't know if these are still available or not, and the cover does not have an ISBN, so you're on your own if you want this... sorry, wish I could help more.
R&D Catalog, The by Ed Bolme and C.J. Tramontana (Post-Crash/1990). This supplement covers all kinds of items for your PCs to buy or be hurt with. If you want your players to read it, though, you'll have to trust they don't read the "Game Stuff" boxes on the same page (about failures, what the thing really does, etc.). You may want to just provide photocopies of pages without the Game Stuff, but that could get expensive. Most of the art is excellent (four artists on this one -- Sonya Obrochta, the sadly underutilized Rick Lenz, Russ Steffens, and Rob Caswell, who, if I'm identifying his art correctly, also does great stuff). The R&D Catalog's a fun read for the GM and is a reasonably pure Paranoia Post-Crash supplement. There's also a short adventure, which parodies the Song of Roland, kinda (certainly a different realm of parody, even for Paranoia) and uses some of the equipment in the Catalog. ISBN 0-87431-157-8
Send In the Clones by Allen Varney and Warren Spector (First/1985 or 86) I don't have a copy of the First Edition version, just the copy in The Computer Always Shoots Twice. Has a neat-o geomorphic map of Alpha Complex's sewer system. This adventure introduces the Clone Rangers Secret Society and has lots of stuff with bureaucracies, gameshows, and the sewers (kind of like three mini-adventures at once). Pregenerated PCs are mixed clearances from Red to Yellow; they also have reasons for each one to suspect/kill at least one other PC, so if you run less than six players, you might want to create new ones rather than use the pregens. Alpha Complex Songbook included! (No ISBN available for First Edition version)
Twilightcycle:2000 by Sam Shirley (Post-Crash/1990). The second in the Post-Crash time travel series (following Alice Through the Mirrorshades and preceding Vulture Warriors of Dimension X), this adventure is a crossover with GDW's Twilight:2000 RPG. It's helpful to play Alice before this one, but not necessary. Some weird Russ Steffens interpretations of Valerie Valusek-drawn characters. The Alice characters' stats aren't included, but six T2K characters are. For those not familiar with T2K, it's another postapocalyptic game, involving freedom fighters and mercenaries in the nuked-out remains of North America (so I'm guessing based on this module). ISBN 0-87431-155-1
Vapors Don't Shoot Back by Curtis Smith (First/1985). Easily convertible to Second stats, Vapors is for Orange PCs (pregenerateds available) and as a pure Paranoia adventure isn't too bad. The PCs are given missions that, unbeknownst to them, are actually power struggles between various High Programmers determined to show who's smarter by whacking each others' Troubleshooter teams. There's also an aquatic shootout (get those drowning rules ready). Last I checked, this adventure's out of print. ISBN 0-87431-026-1
Vulture Warriors of Dimension X (Post-Crash/1990). The first part of this campaign pack is the adventure "Dr. Whom and the Paranoids of Alpha", a parody (not crossover) of Doctor Who. This adventure concludes the time-travel series of Alice Through the Mirrorshades and Twilightcycle:2000. The Alice PCs' stats are reprinted and updated here. More time-traveling (yawn) and dealing with Doc Whom, and a rogue asteroid with an Evil Entity ruling over weird mutant koalas and kangaroos. (Someone at West End during this time really, really liked Australia -- see also Mad Mechs.) The PCs then get to try to save Alpha Complex again, with a very Ghostbusteresque ending. Neat bit in Russia, though. The rest of the book discusses how to run a Paranoia time-travel campaign, using specially-trained Vulture Warrior PCs who are sent back in time for odd missions and have to avoid screwing up the timeline too much. It's neat, but it's not Paranoia, no matter what they say. Sonya Obrochta's art is great. ISBN 0-87431-156-X
Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues, The by John M. Ford (First/1985). This immense (48 page) adventure won "Best Roleplaying Adventure of 1985" at Origins. However, it is indeed HUGE -- it will probably take several sessions to get through. (Creatures of the Nightcycle may be more than twice as long, but YCBBB is more coherent in a smaller space.) Pregenerated PCs are Yellow clearance, and there's a mysterious black box that everyone in Alpha wants to get their hands on -- what the heck is in it, and why is it so important? Also a fun, fun read. Great puns, too. Probably way out of print, but you can still find sealed copies here and there in game shops. ISBN 0-87431-027-X (yes, X).
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