Hey hey. Welcome to the game.
OOC threadPlay threadPlayer/character list:
Xzylvador -
Devoted (elf) [Mystical relic hunter]
inca1980 -
Machete (human) [Aztlaner urban tracker and guide]
Crossbow -
Digger (Dwarf) [Mafia bagman and tunnel-runner]
Reserves:
Free -
Gardener (Ogre changeling) [Zone trader]
Free -
Jack (elf) [Smuggler, Gunner and Face]
Deceased:
Ruckus (human) [fireteam leader]
CodeMonkey (Haruman) [Technical support specialist & rigger]
If you're interested in playing, and your name isn't included above, that doesn't mean you don't have a shot at getting in on the game. As deaths occur, while current active players will have priority for rolling up new characters, some people may just die from inactivity or bow/rotate out, so if you want to play and there's no current opening, that doesn't mean you won't get an opportunity. Anyone can feel free to post up a sheet and get put on the reserves.
Alright, that out of the way, let's get down to the character-building rules. Characters should be made with 350 BP with a maximum of 175 of those points spent on regular attributes (magic and edge aren't included in this cap, natch.) Gear will be limited to availability 8 (the restricted gear quality will allow for one item of up to avail 16. As normal, you can take it up to 3 times,) and starting cash will be limited to 200,000 nuyen. All sourcebooks are open for your use. Lifestyle costs will cover most mundane items like flashlights and such. Most any unrestricted item whose cost is 10% of your lifestyle or less can reasonably be considered to be in your possession as part of your normal living situation. For instance, you pay 1000 bux a month for rent and such, then common programs costing less than 100 nuyen can just be assumed. No sweat. You need credsicks, RFID tags, zip ties, mapsofts, a bottom-shelf comlink with a garbage OS, whatever. That's all covered by lifestyle. Finally, in addition to whatever other contacts you pick up on creation, you'll all start with the same 3/3 fixer/fence contact, Wild Mike.
Remember that you are not making jet-setting shadowrunners. This is meant to be a team of mercenary-level hardasses who creep through old buildings looking for valuables. Naturally, more than that will be happening here as you advance, but that's all about who you will be. For now, who you are is a bunch of guys who are crazy/desperate enough to make a living going places which sane people don't even think about. Keep that in mind as you work on your background. Also, speaking of background, expect many places to have background counts of 1-2 with occasional spikes of 3+. Welcome to the bad place.
Character advancement will be instant. Karma will be awarded per scene and may be spent immediately to raise whatever you like, so you could very easily pick up a specialization by the time the first scene is through. This isn't tabletop where we can crank through 4-6 hours of play and be done with a run. I've done enough PbP to know that you can go for more than 6 RL months of playtime without seeing a single point of karma. Not here. I want you guys to feel like your characters are growing, otherwise their personal stories will never come out. Once again, plan accordingly.
Background info:
Background post 1Background post 2Helpful links:
Damian Knight's latest spreadsheet Don't trust nuyen totals to be accurate when you're kitting out your gear. Sometimes they're right, but mostly, they're not. Close is good enough for me though. Check the settings tab and you can input the creation guidelines as listed above.
Fastjack's character posting code This should help you post up your stats for the rest of us to see.
EDIT: Helpful hints! If your character can't climb for shit, make sure that they are light enough to be pulled up. Getting up vertically will be a thing. Lowlight and thermal are going to save your ass a lot. Additionally, lowlight flashlights won't attract the kind of attention that a regular lamp will. Respirators and gas masks -> IMPORTANT.
Q&A Section!Matrix access: Most of the abandoned sites are filled with pre-crash tech. That means that they will not be hooked up to the modern matrix. That doesn't mean you can't be or your opposition won't be. One satellite uplink (p 328) should be able to provide the whole team with access to the rest of the matrix. Additionally, as long as you are in signal range of each other, your comms will work. That said, if we have two hacker/riggers on the team, I'll accommodate you with things to do. That's my job. You make the characters you want to play, and I'll give you a game.
Magic inside the CZ: Man, this place is effed up. As mentioned above, there's enough trauma all throughout the containment zone to provide levels of background count most everywhere. In addition to the mere inconvenience of BC, there are still active clouds of FAB III, the strain of fluorescing astral bacteria that eats magic. Finally, there are areas which are either toxic or have been tainted by the presence of Insect spirits where calling up a non-bound spirit can result in unexpected and nasty ghosties showing up instead of what you intended. The good news is that if you bind such a spirit, it's generally aspected toward the BC in that domain, so you'll not have to worry about the BC dropping its force.
