First game of 'Exploit Zero - Mission Critical'

Expolit Zero - Mission Critical by Patrick Todoroff is a set of miniature wargaming rules designed for small-scale, fast-paced sci-fi skirmishes. Designed for two players, the game is intended for use with various sci-fi settings between elite three-person teams - known as Direct Action Units (DAUs).

Each player commands a DAU comprising a Ronin (ranged specialist), a Razor (melee expert), and a Specialist (medic/hacker). Players engage in missions with hidden objectives, meaning each team may pursue different goals within the same environment.

The game employs a streamlined action system where each operative has access to three dice - a D6, D8, and D10 - allocated to perform actions such as movement, attacks, or hacking attempts. Successes are typically achieved on rolls of 4 or higher. Also, a free movement action is allowed as well and this can be substituted for other actions.

The game incorporates stealth deployment, allowing units to remain concealed until specific actions reveal their identities. The game is played on a 2x2-foot area, requires six miniatures - three per side - and spans six turns. Additionally, certain terrain pieces are interactive, serving as hackable objectives that can influence the mission's outcome.

Team ABC

SpecialistABC, RoninABC & RazorABC

Team 123

Ronin123, Specialist123 & Razor123

Turn 1

Specialist123 drummed his fingers on his desk, staring at the endless scroll of data cascading down his terminal. There was only so much surfing, hacking, and low-level mischief he could pull off from the confines of his City Block apartment. Where was the thrill? The danger? The high-stakes action?

That’s when boredom pushed him over the edge. On a whim, he signed himself and a few friends up as a corporate Direct Action Unit. A DAU. Mercs with digital masks, weapons, and just enough plausible deniability to keep things interesting. It was a joke. A lark. A way to kill time.

Until the message came.

DAU ACTIVATED.
MISSION PARAMETERS ATTACHED.

The cryptic burst transmission hit his secure line, demanding decryption. His heart pounded as he ran the protocols, his screen flickering with an urgent mission brief. Their first op: infiltrate a secured sector 'Net Node,' and upload a payload of malware. A black-ops data strike, corporate warfare in its purest form.

One by one, he pinged his teammates - Razor123 & Ronin123. Within minutes, Team123 was kitted up and en route, slipping into the neon-drenched sprawl of the city, their destination locked.

But something was off.

No corporate job was ever this simple.

Unbeknownst to them, the moment their activation code was issued, another encrypted missive was dispatched to a rival unit. Team ABC. Their orders? Eliminate the intrusion at all costs.

Now, two DAUs were on a collision course - each oblivious to the other’s true objective. In the tangled shadows of the megacity, one thing was certain: only one team would walk away from this mission.

The downtown sector was a maze of flickering neon, cheap low-rise accommodation, and steaming noodle joints crammed with late-night workers and synth addicts. The streets hummed with the low thrum of passing skycabs, while rain slicked the pavement, reflecting the jagged glow of corporate billboards.

Both DAUs deployed at opposite ends of the sprawl, their objectives hidden from one another.

RoninABC moved first, slipping through a narrow alley and ducking into a noodle bar, weaving between packed tables and the distracted patrons. Without breaking stride, she emerged into the doorway on the far side, rifle raised, optics scanning - watching. Overwatch set.

Meanwhile, Ronin123 ghosted through the shadows, hugging the urban sprawl, using neon signs and cluttered shopfronts to mask his advance. He moved with purpose, unseen.

Razor123 tried to follow his lead - but one misstep was all it took. He veered too far, crossing the wrong line.

A single shot cracked through the humid night.

RoninABC had her mark.

The impact sent Razor123 reeling - a sharp bloom of pain racing up his side. He was still standing, but he wouldn’t last long in a firefight.

But the shot had cost RoninABC her overwatch.

Specialist123 seized the moment. While his teammate staggered into cover, Specialist123 sprinted forward, vaulting a low divider and skidding to a halt in front of the 'Net Node.' He dropped to one knee, fingers flying across his deck as he jacked in, launching intrusion protocols.

What Team123 didn’t realize was that they weren’t alone.

In the deep shadows of a nearby alley, RazorABC and SpecialistABC were waiting. Watching.

The ambush was set.

And next turn, all hell was about to break loose.

Turn 2

RazorABC struck like a ghost from the darkness.

Before Razor123 could react, three precise flicks of a monoblade found their mark - cutting deep. A sharp exhale, a stagger, and then silence. Razor123 crumpled, his body hitting the rain-slick pavement with a dull thud.

Wasting no time, RazorABC surged forward, closing the gap between himself and Specialist123. The hacker barely had a chance to register the approaching threat before RazorABC was in his face, blade raised. There was no rule for it, but we decided that if an enemy made it to base-to-base contact, hacking would be disrupted. And now, Specialist123 was cut off mid-intrusion.

That’s when Ronin123 moved.

He sprinted across the battlefield, boots slamming against concrete. With a fluid motion, he raised his combat knife and swung. The kinfe tore through RazorABC’s armor, staggering him, crimson splattering onto the pavement.

But the chaos wasn’t over.

From the side, SpecialistABC burst from cover - a blur of motion and steel. He drove his combat knife into Ronin123’s side, the blade biting deep. Ronin123 gritted his teeth, feeling warm blood trickle beneath his gear.

The fight had exploded into a brutal melee, blades flashing in the neon-lit night.

And it was far from over.

Turn 3

By now, RoninABC had sprinted across the square, her boots splashing through rain-slick puddles as she rounded the corner - only to stumble upon a brutal melee in progress. Blades flashed in the dim glow of streetlights, the unmistakable glint of combat steel clashing in close quarters.

She raised her rifle instinctively, but the angles were all wrong - no clean line of sight on Team123. Swearing under her breath, she ditched the gun, flipped her combat knife into a reverse grip, and lunged into the fray.

Ronin123 barely had time to register the new threat before pain lanced through his side—her blade finding its mark. Wounded but still standing, he clenched his teeth and fought back. He had a McCoy med pack, but the house rule was clear: no using gear in base-to-base combat. If he wanted to survive, he’d have to do it the hard way.

Desperation fueled his next attacks, but luck wasn’t on his side - each strike met only air or the quick deflection of RoninABC’s blade.

Then SpecialistABC made his move.

He pressed the assault, his own combat knife a blur of motion. Strike after strike, relentless and precise. Ronin123 staggered, blood pooling beneath him. One final thrust - and it was over.

Team123 was down to their last operative.

Meanwhile, RazorABC turned his attention to Specialist123. A quick, ruthless strike - hits landed. But the keyboard warrior wasn’t as helpless as he looked. Twisting with unexpected agility, Specialist123 absorbed the blows, his armour holding firm as he blocked the attack.

Then came his counter.

For all his time spent in cyberspace, Specialist123 knew how to handle himself in a fight. With a sudden, calculated movement, he struck back - his own weapon slicing through RazorABC’s defenses, drawing blood.

The battle wasn’t over yet. But with only one member of Team123 left standing, the odds were stacked against him.

Turn 4

This turn, Specialist123 was up first. Each DAU operative had a combat augmentation - a cybernetic edge that could turn the tide in an instant. Initially, we debated whether augments could work in direct physical proximity. But this was cyberpunk. Who’s to say it was just a program?

With that settled, Specialist123 activated Hard Drop.

A surge of raw electromagnetic energy exploded outward from his cyberdeck, disrupting neural links and scrambling tactical overlays. The blast sent shockwaves through the area, forcing every hostile in range to drop to their knees as their combat augments short-circuited. All of TeamABC hit the ground, struggling against the paralyzing interference. Their Action Dice Pools took a brutal -2 penalty, and any failed rolls meant they’d lose actions in their next activation.

And fail they did.

Disoriented and slowed, TeamABC could do little more than drag themselves upright, their movements sluggish as their systems recalibrated.

Turn 5

As TeamABC struggled to recover, they took turns trying to stop Specialist123 from finishing the hack.

But Hard Drop’s lingering disruption still rippled through their systems—motor functions lagged, targeting reticles flickered, and every movement felt sluggish, like wading through static-choked data. Their attacks came in staggered bursts, wild and imprecise. Every strike missed.

Then came the opening Specialist123 needed.

He turned his attention to RazorABC.

With calculated precision, he struck - an augmented blow that slipped past RazorABC’s failing defenses. The impact was brutal. RazorABC reeled, then dropped. Eliminated.

Turn 6

The fight raged on, a brutal, desperate melee under the neon glow of the city. Blades clashed, fists flew, and cybernetics sparked as the three remaining operatives struggled to land a decisive hit. But neither side could find an opening - each move countered, each strike blocked.

The streets were no longer empty.

A growing crowd had gathered, drawn by the chaos. Bystanders whispered, recording on cheap optic implants or burner devices. Too many eyes. Too many witnesses.

Then, in the distance - a siren.

The unmistakable wail of approaching law enforcement cut through the night. The city's law enforcers didn't care who started a fight - only that someone paid for it. And with two dead operatives from Team123 and one from TeamABC lying in the streets, the cost would be steep.

There was no time left.

Without a word, the survivors broke away, slipping into the shifting mass of pedestrians. In the neon-lit sprawl, it was easy to disappear. Within seconds, they were gone - vanishing into the city’s pulse, leaving behind nothing but bodies, blood, and the echo of a fight unfinished.

Exploit Zero - Mission Critical uses Asset Points to determine the winner, but in our game, things took a turn for the brutal - quickly devolving into a vicious knife fight where points were hard to come by.

Team123 managed to score a point by eliminating an enemy operative, but they quickly found themselves in the negative. With two of their own team members falling in the heat of battle, they lost a total of two points, ending the round with a net of -1.

On the flip side, TeamABC turned the tide. While they lost one of their operatives in the skirmish, they successfully took down two members of Team123. That earned them a net gain of 1 point.

In the end, despite the bloody exchange, TeamABC emerged victorious, with just enough points to claim victory in this fast-paced, high-stakes cyberpunk clash.

Epilogue

This was our first run-through of Exploit Zero - Mission Critical, and it was a blast. We spent about 90 minutes on the game, though that included some lively debates over the rules and how best to apply them. With Exploit Zero - Mission Critical coming in at just 16 pages, it's a streamlined experience compared to other entries in the Exploit Zero series - so some mechanics and options were pared down to keep the game fast and slick.

One of the things we spent some time discussing was the activation rules. The game allows a model to perform any or all of their available actions when they activate, but we house ruled that some actions - specifically Interact, Interface, and Use actions - would be unavailable during base-to-base (melee) combat. After all, it’s a bit tricky to apply a med pack or hack into a system when someone’s trying to stab you with a combat knife!

What we really enjoyed about Mission Critical were the hidden objectives that added layers of tension to the game. It was never clear if our actions were actually aligned with our true mission, which made for some great moments of suspense. Another highlight was the optional crowd rules, which brought a new dynamic to the table - civilians moving around, creating cover, and making the environment feel alive.

We definitely plan on playing again, and we feel like the game can be wrapped up in about an hour once you’re familiar with the mechanics. The simplicity of the rules combined with the tension of the missions made for a fun and engaging experience.

And at just $8, Exploit Zero - Mission Critical is a steal. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a quick, tactical cyberpunk skirmish game.