[Resk]

Long time lurker, first time poster here, so please bare with me! (and hopefully this is in the right place)

I've been a Shadowrun GM for several years now, and one of the things that I've always found difficult is keeping track of everything in my campaigns. My runs tend to be on the epic side of things, so having a method of organizing all that information is important - doubly so when you start creating campaign sequels (or in my case, a trilogy).

Thus, I set about creating a resource that would be useful for both me and my players. The result is a fictional database complete with character/enemy bios, intelligence, and campaign summaries. What makes it cool, however, is the presentation. In my campaigns, I've developed an agency (like the FBI or MI6) that investigates mysterious phenomena around the world, and recruits Shadowrunners to help (the GSI). The database that my players can access is used by the NPCs in the campaign, and players log onto the database using their character names. I could explain it a lot more in-depth, but that's the gist of it.

I've been using it with my campaigns for a few months now, but I'd love to get some outside feedback on it (either positive or negative). Bare in mind I've taken some serious liberties with the Shadowrun fiction, but for the most part I've attempted to keep everything tied to Shadowrun canon to make things plausible (most of my players don't know tons about the Shadowrun universe to begin with).

If you're curious to check it out, you can log onto the website here with the Username: Guest, Password: GSI (this is a generic login that I use for showing the site off).

[Elektrycerze3]

I got this:

[Error][Database] Failed to initialise database: Can't connect to local MySQL server through socket '/var/lib/mysql/mysql.sock' (2)
Warning: mysql_close(): supplied argument is not a valid MySQL-Link resource in /home/transcol/public_html/dev/gsi/class_database.php on line 23

The login page looks awesome) But why don't you use something like Obsidian Portal. Comes in quite handy in my games.

[Resk]

Odd. The link works fine for me. What browser are you using? I do know that the site tends to have issues if you're in anything other than Firefox or Chrome.

Originally, I considered a wiki or some other form of online data management, but in the end, creating this from scratch seemed a better way to go for the functionality (the site's primary function is information, not campaign management).

[Elektrycerze3]

Odd. The link works fine for me. What browser are you using? I do know that the site tends to have issues if you're in anything other than Firefox or Chrome.

Originally, I considered a wiki or some other form of online data management, but in the end, creating this from scratch seemed a better way to go for the functionality (the site's primary function is information, not campaign management).

Chrome 26.0.1410.64 m under Windows 7.

I'm really looking forward to seeing your site: the login page hooked me =)

[Resk]

Are you getting the above message after trying to login? You're putting in the right info? Reason I'm asking is I just tried it and could log in fine with no issues.

[Hein]

Worked fine for me. I'm using Firefox and Ubuntu.

It looks pretty cool (and if I ever get to GM again, I'm totally stealing the GSI, although not the HQ, but rather a branch situated in Germany  ).

[Resk]

Haha, awesome. Funny enough, so far I've created branches in Denver (main HQ) and London. I've got a number of missions in development in south america though, so I probably need a new branch down there at some point. Moscow is also on the list for possible expansion.

One of the reasons I created the GSI in the first place was a fascination I had for Ghostwalker. Considering his other "projects" in Denver, I thought it might make sense that he'd have his own "save the world" division. Plus, anything to play a bit more with Halley and SURGE is always welcome.

[Hein]

Funny thing: The first thing I thought about when I read GSI was "Gruppen för särskilda insatser" a Swedish TV-series about a special crimes unit in Göteborg 

Yeah, in my game the office in London would probably send a field agent to Hannover (nominally the capital of the AGS) to establish a small field office. For which the players would work sometimes.

[Warmachinez]

The whole website is really awesome. It has a professional look and all the relevant information is quickly accessible. Congrats on a great immersion tool for your players. I envy their game.

When SR5 comes out I believe I will need to start something similar, because when I GM I improv alot and add all types of characters and connections and I never really know where my players are going to bring the game (We have a very co-op roleplaying approach, I build a basic idea but they decide what to do with) and after a while I start forgetting who I introduced and what their personality was... A website with that information seems like a great idea and yours seems perfect!

[Resk]

Glad you liked it! Yeah, it has worked out really well for my teams. I also teach Shadowrun in a school environment, so using the database helps to get the groups up to speed on story details for the previous campaigns.

One thing that I like about it as well is its adaptability. When SR5 comes out, we'll be jumping ahead a few years in time (where the GSI is currently in early 2073). Further campaigns can easily be worked into the database to keep things fresh.