[Jafaro6]

Hey all, I've got a conundrum I've been working around for years with my crew, but I am about to run smack into at our session next week (We're running the published adventure, Dawn of the Artifacts - Dusk). That is, how to deal with player characters who want to go into a place that is doing cyberware / MAD scanning at the door  that have weapons that are not so easily surrendered, such as cyberlimbs with built in hand blades.

I have not been able to find an "in-world" example of this would be dealt with in a secured neutral area or by a security team for Mr Johnson; ie: not a police checkpoint where they're likely to be arrested or a place they're trying to break into, just a place they're willingly going into and would willingly agree to give up their weapons for the duration of their time there. Pistols and melee weapons are easily handed over for safekeeping, there's even equipment for Mages that amounts to a bracelet that is worn that detects magical energy and emits a shock to the user, but I haven't been able to find an equivalent for cyber weapons.

My strategy in the past has been just to sidestep this issue. If Mr Johnson is truly afraid they might try to kill him, then he'll meet them online in a Matrix chatroom or, once, I had my players consent to being handcuffed for the duration of the meet when it was in a private location. Unfortunately, those stategies don't work for the upcoming session where the players will be scanned on their way into a public viewing room for a high value, black market auction they've been invited to. My only option I've been able to come up with besides "Player A gets stuck outside waiting until the scene is over" (not my favorite solution) is to just make something up based on the mage cuffs idea, which is not my preference if there's an actual solution provided in any of the source books that I've missed.

Any ideas are much appreciated!

[GiraffeShaman]

It's fairly standard for Johnsons to just ask the establishment to escort the "dangerous" person back to his backroom, at least in most games I've been in or ran. This doesn't just happen with cyberweapons, but with all dangerous seeming cyberware that gets scanned. Just letting someone really fast near you is dangerous, especially in prior editions. He might kill you with an improvised weapon or his bare hands.

Some Johnsons rely on bodyguards, but mostly they rely on two things. One, a runner team associated with the death of a Johnson for no apparent reason would pretty much be dead in the business. Their noteriety would shoot through the roof. Two, the full threat of a pissed off Megacorp stands behind every Johnson. Runners not being important enough for the Megacorps to squash only lasts until a runner does something that causes them to need to be made an example of.

Doing something like handcuffing a runner seems extreme as well. Just as the runners shouldn't insult the Johnson, most Johnsons will not purposely insult runners. (With the exception of certain Mr. Bunrakus from MCT, who will usually be somewhat subtle about the insults or speak in another language)

Now there are cases such as some fancy restaurants where they just our right won't let the guy with the cyber arm weapon or wired reflexes inside. But if such a thing becomes a huge problem for a Johnson he will probaly just move the meet somewhere else. Remember, he does want his shadowrun done, no less, and no more than the runners want to be paid.

Is this a shadowrun meet with a Johnson or something else?

[Jafaro6]

Is this a shadowrun meet with a Johnson or something else?

In this case, its not a meet but the players getting an invitation to an underworld, black market, auction. The individual putting on the auction has invited numerous parties first to view his collection of artifacts on display in a secured building and then later for the actual auction of said artifacts. As written in the adventure, his security is scanning and securing the weapons of all individuals coming to the viewing / auction to ensure there are no problems that erupt between the myriad of collectors, corp reps, warlords and terrorists in attendance.

As you say, most Johnson's are typically pretty safe just because their death would represent a death mark on the party and my players are pretty good about avoiding those sorts of issues. In this case, its a question of "in world" how would this scene be handled rather than a "I'm afraid my players might try X and I want to prevent them from doing so" kind of situation.

[GiraffeShaman]

As you say, most Johnson's are typically pretty safe just because their death would represent a death mark on the party and my players are pretty good about avoiding those sorts of issues. In this case, its a question of "in world" how would this scene be handled rather than a "I'm afraid my players might try X and I want to prevent them from doing so" kind of situation.

Give him a minder or a babysitter. This kind of thing happens often. For example, when my PCs were going to meet an elven fixer in the elven Tarislar neighborhood in Puyallup, they gained some elven militia escorts, even if the didn't want them.

[Jafaro6]

I suppose a babysitter of sorts might work ok for this situation. I wonder how police handle detention of heavily cybered criminals. Maybe they just remove their arms. 

[GiraffeShaman]

I suppose a babysitter of sorts might work ok for this situation. I wonder how police handle detention of heavily cybered criminals. Maybe they just remove their arms.

Depends on the prison. One common method is to throw the cybered character in with the Trolls. They also sometimes just remove  it. There are also devices that disable cyberware, but I'm not sure that can be done with an arm. (Maybe you can make it non functional. Or take it off and return it, kind of like how they take your personal items, then return them on release)

And sometimes Megacorps decide they have a suicide mission for just such a Shadowrunner. The corps love finding talented people who are completely out of options.

[Jafaro6]

There are also devices that disable cyberware, but I'm not sure that can be done with an arm.

I'd be interested to know where you saw such a device. I checked SR4A, Augmentation, Unwired and Arsenal source books, but wasn't able to find anything that described that kind of functionality.

[All4BigGuns]

There are also devices that disable cyberware, but I'm not sure that can be done with an arm.

I'd be interested to know where you saw such a device. I checked SR4A, Augmentation, Unwired and Arsenal source books, but wasn't able to find anything that described that kind of functionality.

I've never seen them in books, so I assume they're more "fluff" related, but I have seen such things used. Had a GM back in SR3 that had every bar, restaurant and night club require people to put on little bracelets that disabled things like cyber-spurs and other weaponry implants.

[Black]

The original Harliquin campaign had these shock-cuffs which electricuted the user if the activated their cyberware.  It was used for international travel.

[GiraffeShaman]

I don't think they were just fluff, at least in 3rd edition, but I don't have the books I need here to confirm. I think the devices were in whatever book magemasks were in. All the main SR 3 book appears to have are jackstoppers and devices to shut down skillwires.