Shadowrun
Shadowrun Play => Character creation and critique => Topic started by: CanRay on <03-10-11/1446:27>
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Made this using a spreadsheet-based character generator, what do you guys thing as a generalist build? (Note: Some pieces might be missing due to the Copy/Paste job...)
His storyline starts in early in 2060, when he was 25, and an up-and-coming accountant for a major firm that dealt with AA-Level Corporations and double-checking their finances for errors and embezzlement. One day, he gets home, and his door won't recognize him. He starts shouting at his door, "Come on, House, let me in, I've been leasing you for two years now! You know me!" and is jumped from behind by someone with a garrote.
Long story short, the best he can figure out is that he's seen something that he shouldn't have. Something so dangerous that not only does it require that he be killed for knowing it, but his entire history be erased. Needless to say, he survived the assassin through a mixture of luck and pragmatic combat moves that they just don't have counters to in Karate 4.0. (Such as using a car door to break the guy's arm.), and had to move to the fringes of society in a hurry.
Pawning his Registered Credstick for a Certified Credstick with half the amount on it, he moved to the Barrens, where he moved from being a homeless, almost helpless bum on the streets into a respectable Shadowrunner over the next decade, starting out with a few runs headed up by the infamous pacifist Shadowrunner, "Twist".
Over the years, he's honed his body and mind to give him the ability to actively partake in Shadowruns. His role varies from team to team, being a generalist, but is often used as a "Soft Infiltrator", due to his upbringing in "The System" allowing him to know how to behave around average Wageslaves, a valuable asset that is sorely lacking in the Shadows. He's also so generic and bland that he is easily forgotten by people, and often underestimated as a threat. His favourite technique is to pose as a deliveryman, as they are everywhere, and have access to almost anywhere. His only "Abnormal" skill is training in "Parkour", the French-Vietnamese Martial Art designed for rapid and unusual movement techniques in an urban terrain, which he uses to extract himself from situations, as well as a combat multiplier. (One story that gets told about him often in the Redmond Barrens is the time he was standing in front of an aggressive Troll, and then kicked him in the back of the head twice before hitting the ground, breaking both horns.).
Whatever system that was put into place to erase all traces of him somehow survived Crash 2.0, which means that all records connected to him are removed from the Matrix constantly, and are often corrupted even as they're stored, making him next to impossible to find in person (Due to his ability to blend in) or online (As everything is erased, including his CommCodes from his friend's CommLinks). He has taken to using online newspaper classified ads in code to contact his Fixer and other contacts that he doesn't see in person/online. He tried to get out of the Barrens, but the rental companies kept evicting him, forcing him to stay in the areas where rent is collected in person, and often pays in advance. How he's able to keep a MSP ongoing is a mystery even to himself.
He often has nightmares of being attacked from random places and people, and has, on occasion, had assassination attempts made against him. Every time he's interrogated the survivors of the attempts, however, they have all been a case of mistaken identity. A downside to having "That kind of face".
A strong case of "Parents should have a license to name their children", his real name actually is "John Quincey Public", but he's often referred to as "The Suit" on the street, having once been one of the faceless masses of Wageslaves (And the repeated attempt to give him the handle of "Wageslave" often ended with a fight.). He dresses appropriately for the situation to best blend in, but always meets with Mr. Johnsons wearing a Three-Peice black Actioneer Business Suit with a spotless white shirt and blood red tie (Which is a clip-on.).
Name: John Quincy Public (The Suit)
RACE: Human
CONCEPT: Wageslave whose life and SIN was stolen from him.
ATTRIBUTES
Body: 3
Agility: 4
Reaction: 4
Strength: 3
Charisma: 4
Intuition: 3
Logic: 3
Willpower: 2
EDGE: 5
Phys Init[P] 7
Passes 1
Essence: 5.43
Walk/Run 10/25
Phys Boxes 10
Stun Boxes 9
DAMAGE RESISTANCE
3 + Armor
Body (3) + Cyber/Bio (0) + Dmg.Rst. (0)
ARMOR
SecureTech Vitals Protector
Bal/Impact 1/1 [1]
Mods
Urban Explorer Jumpsuit
Bal/Impact 6/6 [6]
Mods
Urban Explorer Helmet
Bal/Impact 0/2 [2]
Mods
Forearm Guards
Bal/Impact 0/1 [1]
Mods
Actioneer Business Clothes
Bal/Impact 5/3 [5]
Mods RFID Tag Eraser,Fire Resistant (4-6) 6
Lined Coat
Bal/Impact 6/4 [6]
Mods RFID Tag Eraser,Concealed Holster,Fire Resistant (1-3) 3
COMMLINK
Type Hermes Ikon
Resp 4
Signal 6
OS Type Custom
Firewall 6
System 4
Programs:
Decrypt 4
Spoof 4
Analyze 4
Browse 4
Edit 4
Encrypt 4
Scan 4
ACTIVE SKILLS
Gymnastics (Parkour) 2 (+2)
Intimidation 1
Close Combat (Group) 2
Firearms (Group) 3
Influence (Group) 3
Stealth (Group) 3
Dodge (Ranged Combat) 2 (+2)
Pilot Ground Craft 1
Running (Urban) 1 (+2)
KNOWLEDGE SKILLS
Hangouts (Safehouses) 2
Economics 4
Law (Accounting Laws) 2 (+2)
Physics 3
Accounting (Money Laundering) 4 (+2)
Languages
English N
Japanese 3
Standard Qualities
Blandness 10
Erased (7 days) 5
Guts 5
Obscure 5
Photographic Memory 10
Nano Intolerance -5
Prejudiced (Specific, Biased) -5
Compulsive - Moderate -10
Allergy (Common, Mild) -10
Weak Immune System -5
Cyber/Bioware:
Datajack
Math SPU
Damper
Troll's Eyes
Sleep Regulator
Flare Compensation
CONTACTS
Fixer (Loy. 2 Con. 4) (Felix the Fixer)
ID Manufacturer (Loy. 2 Con. 2)
Shark Lawyer (Loy. 2 Con. 3) (Mr. Underbridge, Troll Lawyer and Businessman. Pillar of the Puyallup Community.)
Street Doc (Loy. 3 Con. 1) (Doctor Dishemo. Lost his SIN in Crash 2.0, and John helped him get on his feet. Runs a small Street Doc shop out of an old storefront on his own.).
GEAR 450¥
Low for 3 months. (Apartment he calls "The Closet")
Squatter for 12 months. (Shipping Container he calls his "Bolthole")
2 x Fake SIN (1-6) Rtg 4
200 x Regular Ammo (Ammo for AK-97)
50 x Regular Ammo (Shotgun Slugs)
10 x Shock Lock Rounds (Shotgun)
200 x Regular Ammo (10mm Caseless for Pistol and SMG)
3 x Medkit R (1-6) Rtg 6 (1 in Apartment, 1 in Car, 1 in Bolthole)
14 x Spare Clips (Various types for pistol, SMG, and assault rifle)
24 x EX-Explosive Rounds (For Colt Asp)
3 x Speed Loader (For Colt Asp)
5 x Nanopaste DisguiseSmall
2 x Maglock R (1-6) Rtg 6 (1 on Apartment, 1 on Bolthole)
Morphing License Plate (On Car)
Spoof Chip (For Car)
10 x Datachip
10 x C-Squared (Spread between apartment, car, and bolthole)
Subvocal Microphone
Printer
Glasses (1-4) Rtg 4
Image Link
Earbuds (1-3) Rtg 3
Audio Enhancements
Select Sound Filter
Spatial Recognizer
2 x Disposable Commlink
WEAPONS
Name Shock Gloves
Reach 0
Ap -half
DV 5S(e)
Name Cougar Fine Longblade
Reach 0
Ap -1
DV 4P
Name AZ-150 Stun Baton
Reach 1
Ap -half
DV 7S(e)
Ranged Weapons
Name Defiance T-250 (Under couch in apartment)
Type Shotgun
Mode SA
Armor Piercing -1
Damage Value 7P
Recoil Comp 0
Short Range 0 - 10
Medium Range 11 - 40
Long Range 41 - 80
Extended 81 - 150
Concealability +6
Ammo 5(m)
Name Beretta Model 70 (In closet in apartment)
Type SMG
Mode BF/FA
Armor Piercing 0
Damage Value 5P
Recoil Comp 0
Short Range 0 - 10
Medium Range 11 - 40
Long Range 41 - 80
Extended 81 - 150
Concealability +4
Ammo 35(c)
Name Colt Asp (In bed holster in Bolthole)
Type Light Pistol
Mode SA
Armor Piercing 0
Damage Value 4P
Recoil Comp 0
Short Range 0 - 5
Medium Range 6 - 15
Long Range 16 - 30
Extended 31 - 50
Concealability --2
Ammo 6(cy)
Name Income Statement (Modified Colt Government 2066, carried at almost all times)
Type Pistol
Mode SA
Armor Piercing -1
Damage Value 5P
Recoil Comp 1
Short Range 0 - 5
Medium Range 6 - 20
Long Range 21 - 40
Extended 41 - 60
Concealability 0
Ammo 14c
Modifications: Laser Sight (internal), Integral Silencer, Melee Hardening
Name The Great Balancer (Modified AK-97, disassembled and hidden in car's smuggler's compartment)
Type Assault Rifle
Mode SA/BF/FA
Armor Piercing -1
Damage Value 6P
Recoil Comp 5
Short Range 0 - 50
Medium Range 51 - 150
Long Range 151 - 350
Extended 351 - 550
Concealability +7
Ammo 38c
Modifications: Easy Breakdown (Manual), Electronic Firing, Melee Hardening, Gas Vent 3 (Barrel), Foregrip (Underbarrel), Laser Sight (top mount)
VEHICLES
Mercury Comet
Pilot 4
Body 10
Maneuver 2
Handling 0
Sensor 2
Accel 15/30
Armor 10 Concealed
Firewall 6
Speed 132
Run Flat Tires (4)
Anti-Theft System
GridLink Override
Fuzzy Logic
Smuggling Compartment
Engine Cust. (Speed)
Encrypt Program Rtg. 4
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I don't see anything that's a rule conflict. I like the low willpower on a former wage-slave.
Erased and Obsure seem a bit redundant, but that's fine I guess.
Personally I never liked those qualities not so much because you can't be tracked, but because being tracked often times results in some of the most climactic, heart-pounding, fear-inducing, bad-ass scenes. The ones your players talk about for ages. At least, that's how it pans out in my games.
Like the time a player stole a motorcycle after a run in with the scatterbrains, and didn't check for a RFID tag. He woke up that night to the sound of 6 chain saws starting in unison, and looking out the window showed his own bike trashed and AR graffiti tagged to make it look like he would be riding a giant penis. Oh, but it gets better. The glow in the dark surge troll charges down to kick some ass and bumps into Giggles who pumps him full of SnS. He wakes up in his underware with his hands cuffed behind him, laying on the floor of a dirty delivery van. Giggles decided killing him would be no fun, instead they're going to make him run across a minefield/mortar training yard on the outskirts of Fort Lewis, oh and they're going to shoot a few shots at the mortar embankment to make sure that all attention is out there towards the glow in the dark troll running for his life in the dark, practically naked.
He lived. And by the time he reached the fence on the other side, Giggles and the crew had stopped firing at him and were cheering. They swung around and picked him up, deciding to make him a member of the crew.
You're missing out man ;D
Oh, and thanks, for now I've got the image of a man in a business suit carrying a briefcase doing a cartwheel off a park bench over a baby carriage. Where the heck does an Accountant learn parkour? ::)
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His backstory (Which it would have been nice to post, you'd think!) was that he saw something at his workplace that was so secret that not only did it necessitate that he die, but that he never have existed in the first place. He had his SIN destroyed in 2060, and whatever program it is that's killing his records survived Crash 2.0. That's why he has both those items.
As for Parkour, he was on the Gymnastic Team in University, and learned Parkour on the Streets.
And, yes, he does wear a suit when the need to look like a professional comes into play. So he might just do that "Over the Baby Carriage" jump, his AK-97 broken down in that case.
OK, found the history write-up I did for him, I'll edit the original post to include it.
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a classic story, and sort of sad also; something in this guy reminds me of blade runner´s deckard. interesting skill package also: one would probably never suspect the guy is a runner. nice work!
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I'm pretty sure he's not a Replicant. :P As for the story, I'm hard on my characters. People feel really sorry for the ones I write about.
And that's the whole point behind the character, he's so bland and forgettable that he can sleaze his way into any environment. And he knows the Corporate and Wageslave Culture, which is a rare skill with the mostly Born SINless characters that make up most Shadowrunner teams. Got the idea from quite a few movies: Falling Down, Collateral, and B13 ("District 13" in English) are three of them.
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Ok, posting the backstory really helped me take this character seriously again. :)
All in all I like it. Especially working under Twist.
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Yeah, I wonder if Twist survived Crash 2.0. He might even be a Technomancer now, with the magic burned out of him, screwing his life up even more. :P
Also, the story you gave would also have affected John (Other than glowing in the dark, unless he was painted that way, which a gang might do.), as they were tracking the RFID tag on the bike, not anything to do with him.
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Falling Down, great song, great movie.
Looks good. Are you gonna wirte a story featuring him?
I doubt Twist survived long after his story ended. The injuns probably saw his knowledge of the GGD as a threat to their security and killed him. I hope anyway.
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I saw the title of the thread and thought 'who created the demon chasing Nic Cage in Drive Angry?'. Yeah he was a demon called The Accountant who was in charge of making sure everyone in hell stayed there. He was the only good thing about that awful awful experience. :'(
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Got one story written for something that will hopefully be publish, and he'll be a secondary character in my next story involving Nas.
And, no, I did not base him off that movie at all. Haven't seen it yet.
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I doubt Twist survived long after his story ended. The injuns probably saw his knowledge of the GGD as a threat to their security and killed him. I hope anyway.
He survived quite awhile after that. I think he was in "Sprawl Survival Guide" or something. That was Mid-2060s.
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I thought that was a female who happened to have taken the same streetname. Too bad my books are being shipped or I could look it up, now it's going to bug me.
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Nope, it was him. Talked about how he only took on 'Runs that didn't require death, only carried a Narcojet Pistol, whole nine yards.
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Twist appeared in Sprawl Survival Guide, being interviewed by Zoe (6-18-2062). According to the interview, he was still running and still abiding by his "non-lethal" code.
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Thanks FJ.
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>:( >:( :'( >:( >:(
I think I had blocked that from my mind... I hate him so.
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Better than some protagonist characters.
Anyhow, I wanted someone that had some moral boundaries and might be recognized by someone who knows the universe to guide my character... So I chose Twist.
I would have chosen Dodger, but who knows where that fragger got off to.
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I think Argent would make an awesome mentor.
Twist just annoys me, he's a decker!, he's a shaman!, he's a massive prick who unleashed spider into this world! In my mind he's a very inflexible and judgemental, seeing himself better than those around him even though he is doing the same things.
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Argent only works with Peg, however. :( So that option was out. Also, he probably wouldn't hire someone as green as "The Accountant From Hell" as he was back then, or even now. Maybe a small contract for some Forensic Accounting, but that's it. Dirk would have been another option, but he's more a Lone Wolf. Wolf Larson is another possibility, but something told me that he wouldn't be a good match for TAfH. Wolf and Raven, same issue as Argent, too high-powered.
Twist is a Decker... Who sucks. Twist is a Shaman... Who burnt out. Twist unleashed Spider... Who isn't that bad a Totem in the end, after all, she eats Bugs. He sees himself better than others despite being in the same drekky sewer... So do a lot of Shadowrunners. He's a believable character who isn't a Marty Sue in a lot of ways, but doesn't quite go all the way into Butt Monkey either. A nice median. Really, but the 2060s, the only "unique" thing about him is his moral code about not geeking everyone.
Of that all, yeah, Spider, admittedly a mistake, but dick move, Twist. Dick move.
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I think Argent would make an awesome mentor.
I thought Argent was dead?
Killed in one of the novels ages back. Something about a retired female decker, a newb wolf shaman (who finds out he's a shaman half-way through the book), and tech regarding eavesdropping on Fibre-optic comms?
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I think Argent would make an awesome mentor.
I thought Argent was dead?
Killed in one of the novels ages back. Something about a retired female decker, a newb wolf shaman (who finds out he's a shaman half-way through the book), and tech regarding eavesdropping on Fibre-optic comms?
Nah. He's alive and well in the 2060s. Gets his own novel. "Run Hard, Die Fast" by Mel Odom. Pretty good, and he gives full props to the character's creator, Nigel Findley.
It was a novelist that made the mistake of researching the Shadows too closely that got killed, who was also a contact of Wolf Larson ("Lone Wolf"). The novel you're talking about is "Shadowplay", BTW, and my first introduction to Shadowrun.
"2XS" nailed the universe for me and started me on the hunt for a group that would let me play that continues to this day. All Findley books, BTW, and available in digital formats for those unable to find paper copies. I'm going to have to break down someday and get "Shadowplay" in that format, as I was able to get the rest in Dead Tree Format.
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Found a Mini for The Accountant From Hell (http://www.rafm.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=RAF&Product_Code=RAF02816&Category_Code=USXMin).
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Nice mini good character & background
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I saw the title of the thread and thought 'who created the demon chasing Nic Cage in Drive Angry?'. Yeah he was a demon called The Accountant who was in charge of making sure everyone in hell stayed there. He was the only good thing about that awful awful experience. :'(
Finally got to see the movie. Decent enough action flick, in a '80s style which made me nostalgic in a lot of ways. The Accountant (from Drive Angry) makes me think of a Mystical Adept who has a Gaes about flipping that Silver Denarius of his to work spells. ... You know, I wonder if there's 29 more of them. ;)
That said, I'm going to be studying that character a bit, I think to nail the character down pat. Only a lot less emotional and human. I'm going to play with the *ICE* Cold Emotionless character with him. Creepily so.
I handed my backstory for the character off to a few friends to edit, and one just looked at me when they handed it back going, "Dude, that is so totally... Yeah." Take into consideration this is the same person that has stated, "When the Apocalypse happens, I'm hiding behind you."
The scary part is, he didn't state what kind of apocalypse. Truth? I don't think it matters. He's already got his bets down between me and any type of Apocalypse. :P
At this rate, however, it's looking like he'll never be used as a PC, as THREE groups have fallen apart on me in less than the same amount of months... :(
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Zombie resurrection, I know...
In my exploration of the game, and going off the concentrations provided, what you need for Parkour is as follows:
- Climbing (Buildings/Urban);
- Gymnastics (either Tumbling or Jumping; a kind GM will allow you Urban/Parkour);
- Running (Urban);
- and Interest (or Street Knowledge): Parkour.
Please note that both Parkour and free running, while they have similarities in movement shared by movement-intensive martial arts (Ninjitsu's jumping and evasion techniques and Capoeira's full-body agility and dancelike movements come immediately to mind), are not actually martial arts; any display of traceurs or traceuses kicking tail while in the midst of a run (District 13, we're talking about you) are more a matter of other martial experience, choreography, and story. If you want to run, take the above; if you want to boot head while you do it, add Capoeira.
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It's been determined that I'll never be able to use this as a PC, so it doesn't really matter any longer. :(