[Mithlas]

My last few attempts to play a game have fallen through, but I'm having some difficulty on a science-fiction story I'm writing. I mentioned to one of my meatspace players that Shadowrun could easily handle my setting, so I'd like to try running it here. Wild Card Squadron will be heavily role-play and reward good RPing, and due to its more overt setting (a destroyer in space most of the time) would lean more towards pink mohawk than black trenchcoat, though ground operations will happen if players are interested enough to keep playing past the first mission.

Due to the different (sci-fi) setting, there won't be any magic or technomancers and the availability limit for items on character creation are much higher. The inclusion of laser carbines as a common weapon won't mean melee combat is out. Characters would either be recently-transferred career Terran Alliance military, recently-transferred career Private Military Company men, or recently hired "troubleshooters and consultants" contracted by PMCs. It might be difficult to balance aliens as a new player metatype as far as Karma cost, so I'm going to prefer that players go with humans (though "elves", "orks", and possibly "dwarves" could pass as variations on expression of genetic manipulation). Also note that this is not Star Trek - space fleets evolved out of modern earth's Air Forces, not navies.

The game would be played on these boards, using Invisible Castle for dice rolling.
Characters would be built on 825 karma and would use the core books (including Arsenal, Augmentation, Runner's Companion, and Unwired if players don't mind a GM with limited experience in running the Matrix).
Negative qualities will be treated like flaws in Mutants and Masterminds where they add character flavor and a little karma each time the character struggles through one in a scene. Instead of getting the karma "all up front", you wait until a negative quality applies to a scene and 1 will be awarded then.

IC thread here.
OOC thread here.
Character sheet proposals go here until approved, when I'll direct you to post it on the OOC thread and update the list of approved characters.

Edit: much of the conflict (military or social) will involve Terrans against aliens, so characters will have to be capable of handling that. Terran doctrine also evacuates internal atmosphere on combat alert, so all full body armour (or combinations like FFBA+helms) would be considered "atmosphere sealed" once the helm is locked on in order to mesh with Isle background. Thermographic sensors are common on external (in space) sensors, though there are several masking mechanisms (including thruster baffling) to reduce thermal signatures.

Edit 2: the common houserule "free knowledge points as with BP Gen" will be used. Due to the setting, all characters will be treated as having permanent Medium lifestyle. Full Body Armour (or Light Military body armour) will be available to characters as soon as the campaign opens (though these will be expected to be checked into the armory when not expecting battle alert). PCs already with Milspec or FBA will be offered some free modifications to "come up to spec" to balance.

[Mithlas]

Character Creation
Free knowledge and contact points will apply, just like they would to standard BP Gen. Note that contacts might not have as much use as a typical shadowrun game given the smaller setting (to start with), so don't sink a lot of points into a handful of 6/6 contacts. Certain contacts (like medlab's doc, the chief armorer) will come free as part of the setting. However, if you want to be a trusted 'old friend/advisor' to the Captain (rather than just one of his/her rank and file) then that would require a contact.

Starting item availability is 16, Restricted Gear might be treated as ignoring any availability limitations on one particular item. Keep in mind that I don't want characters to be too distant from each other in general terms, so keep things like Initiative Pass boosting to 2, 3 for exceptional characters if that's your primary shtick.

If your character has Sensei PQ, then one of the NPCs in the immediate unit will be trusted and qualified in the relevant skill (group).

By default, characters are presumed to have a SIN and all necessary licenses.

Negative Qualities will be handled as Complications ala Mutants & Masterminds:

You can take as many complications as you wish, although the GM may set limits for the sake of being able to keep track of them all. Complications are also self-limiting, in that you only earn hero points Karma for those complications that actually come into play. So even if you have more than a dozen, if the GM can only include a couple in a game session, then those are the ones that earn you hero points Karma for that game. You can—and generally should—look for opportunities to include your hero’s complications and offer suggestions to the GM, who makes the final decision on which complications come into play at any given time.

The GM also decides what complications are appropriate for the game and can overrule any particular complication, based on the style and needs of the story and the series. Keep in mind the adventure needs to have room for all of the heroes’ complications, so individual ones can only come up so often.

For example, if your character has Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, you wouldn't get karma up-front but would when you're making the styrofoam cups squeak because you're re-arranging the stacks to be even while the sergeant is trying to give the briefing, that could grant a karma point. If your character has Combat Paralysis, you'll "freeze up" in that first pass and you'd get a karma if you survive combat (if not your next character would get it), though this karma would not be given in zero-threat situations like martial artists sparring. If your character has Gremlins, the gyrojet pistol would work fine but changing the setting on an adapted alien laser rifle with the intention of switching to Burst Fire might accidentally instead eject the power cord and you'd get a point of karma. These points will be granted immediately as the complication comes and is dealt with rather than waiting until the end of the adventure, and will likely result in faster accrual than the scant end-mission karma rewards recommended in Shadowrun Missions.

Character Advancement
There will be "rest stops" during the adventure during which characters can spend karma on skills or work on their gear and 'ware. Attributes will still take roughly 1 month of training and appropriate workouts (allowing interruptions and "weekends"). Skill advancement will be reduced by one step (taking days*rating instead of weeks*rating, allowing interruptions).

Skill groups are transient and may be broken or recombined at will.

Setting Details
For the sake of simplicity, the Terran Alliance uses English as its official language and all characters would be expected to have it as either Native or higher than r4 (because at some point before this mission your character would've had to have either used Influence Group or "talked shop" which requires a strong grasp on the language). Other modern major languages (German, Japanese, Russian...) can be used as 'home planet dialects' for character flavour. Some Terrans have had enough contact with some of the several alien races enough to have learned their "trade/official language":

• Bentu is the tongue of a somewhat friendly race with a major blood enemy Terrans have not conclusively identified yet. It is not an uncommon language for spacers to know in case they run across them and don't want to trust to an autotranslator, particularly when Terrans and the Bentusi subtly accuse the other of espionage.
  
• Halpan have factionalized kingdoms of which some are frequently involved in piracy. The alien enemy sparking the Second Contact War, Halpan is considered important for security in the same way that Russian (or English) was during the Cold War.
  
• Klenta is a distant, imperial state with active mercenary units. Their military forces have a reputation as 'gun lovers', though characters with expertise in physics would also know that they have renowned scientists. They categorically deny accusations of piracy and espionage.

Much of the setting will take place in a space cruiser. While this will mean characters familiar with zero-g operations are likely they are not necessary as Terrans have artificial gravity. However, Terrans evacuate atmosphere during combat to prevent decompression and fires so all full body suits will be treated as air-sealed. They will be considered to have an emergency 'foam' capable of stopping vacuum exposure (except in the case of a critical glitch on damage resistance), so secondary layers are optional and aspects like sonic or olfactory sensors will not find use as often.

Knowledge skills can be used to aid certain actions like a supporting skill. For example, a hacker attempting to break into an unknown alien computer network would be operating at a hefty penalty because of the language (and programming language) difference, but could use Linguistics (Academic) to try to piece together what the interface they're looking at is supposed to mean. A field medic with extensive knowledge of Xenophysiology (Academic) could use his knowledge to guess at the vital points of an unknown alien might be. An ex-ganger PC with a strong background in Lip and Body Reading (Interest) might be able to guess at the movement and therefore current position or intended destination of an unknown alien.

[olg707]

This sounds fun, but what about using roll20.net? This allows for rolls in game chat, as well as supporting voice chat. Regardless of the format, I would like to play.

[Scawire]

Sounds like it would be fun.

I do have a question, I know you said no magic but would you let me play an adept, as a martial arts expert that is a chi master and that is where all his adept abilities come from. Since to really get the full range of martial arts chi master abilities and adept is needed. If not I could still go with a different character build idea, your call I'm fine if you don't want any magic.

Let me know.

[Triskavanski]

Well, I could be interested as well. The lack of magic/technomancy does put a slight damper on things. Not too much though, if I could possibly play something involving SURGE, or make a highly augmented individual.

I don't have too much knowledge about 4e though, as much as I do 5e.


EDIT: Now that I think about it, I really wouldn't have wanted to be a mage or technomancer anyways.. Too much new stuff to learn since 4e is pretty different aside from Adepts.

[Scawire]

I've started making a character for fun, I'd be total fine with out using the adept idea I started with. This will be a rare thing since I most always play mages or mystic adepts, but I have an addiction to making characters and it is about time I try a non-mage.

I know you said you where new to the matrix but I still think I will make my guy a bit of a hacker, with other skills too.

[Mithlas]

This sounds fun, but what about using roll20.net? This allows for rolls in game chat, as well as supporting voice chat. Regardless of the format, I would like to play.

I don't have a roll20.net account, and based on checks its shadowrun games are not as active as here. I also don't have the hardware necessary for voice chat, even if it sounds like an interesting idea.

Technomancers and mages both have something of their own baggage, which in a strict Shadowrun setting I think works because of the fluff (and crunch) of the setting. Unfortunately, as soon as that setting is displaced even a little that can throw those unique sets of rules and expectations out of whack in a way.

...would you let me play an adept, as a martial arts expert that is a chi master and that is where all his adept abilities come from. Since to really get the full range of martial arts chi master abilities an adept is needed.

I'd be total fine with out using the adept idea I started with. I know you said you where new to the matrix but I still think I will make my guy a bit of a hacker, with other skills too.

Martial arts would be something that any military or PMC character would have access to. There are two problems with any magic in space, 1) the setting is science fiction, which generally is mutually exclusive with magic, and 2) the fact that space is a rating 12 mana void would constitute an unfair disadvantage to Awakened, and I would rather characters be able to operate on comparable levels in a combat or teamwork situation. If everybody's mundane or augmented, that's easy to do, but without those fantasy elements it's harder to balance the Awakened.

I wouldn't have a problem with a hacker character - as long as you're aware that you'd be hacking through alien computers more than Terran computers.

[Triskavanski]

Would it be possible to play with a SURGE character?

And what are the rules for spending those 800 points? Currently I'm using the basic rules on how I can use it.

[Mithlas]

Triskavanski, I'm willing to look at SURGE characters, though augmentation is something that could be easily incorporated. If you're wanting SURGE, send me your ideas before you go too far in creating a character - I'm going to want to restrict things that might be possible in the Shadowrunverse that don't exist in Isle of Dreams. Things like powered exosuits worn by infantry are not uncommon in militaries, and Bicardiac might represent something more likely surgically or otherwise artificially implanted, but things like Bone Spikes or Functional Tail don't exist in the setting.

Almost 10% of humans have been influenced somehow through direct genetic engineering, and in the military or PMCs augmentation is present in over 25% of personnel. Their roles stretch from marines to doctors, engineers, pilots, and linguists with EWar training.

[Triskavanski]

Well, I'm probally going to go heavy cyberizations then.

[Scawire]

I was wondering a few things.

1)You said that the restriction level has changes then the standard R6 and Ava: 12 So what are you going to set them to. (I'd say look at the restricted gear quality and gauge something like that, or have some equipment give to the group as military issue at the start of the game after we have handed in our characters to you.)

2)Also since we work for the military do we start with SINs and not need Fake SINs.

3)Do we get the karma bonus for our negative qualities at character gen if not how is it going to work. (Since I was not clear on what you had said above about it.)

4)Do we get any Free knowledge skills or contacts. (ie a contact CO for the group.)

I'm fine with my character not being an Adept, I am still working on my street sammy Hacker but he looks good so far. He is turning out to be a nice hacker solider. Might be cool if one of the other guys is good with bombs, just an idea.

EDIT 5) Since I'm making my Military Hacker on Chummer is that how you want us to send our characters to you? If you have the program it will make it alot quicker for you to check them out.

[Triskavanski]

If we're coming from Private Military companies, are they all ones that have been per-determined on how the view their troops and the like?

[Mithlas]

1) I'm thinking that availability goes up to 16, with possible variance dependent on the character backstory. A career hall pounder and sergeant of the ship's marines might be given Restricted Gear for the purposes of heavier armour, for example.

2) The default assumption would be that everybody has SINs - like basic knowledge of computer use in Shadowrun standard. PMCs might have characters hired from criminal backgrounds and operating under fake SINs if you want that, but the default is that since everybody here is not just a merc but a soldier or merc skilled enough to have been watched and found good enough to be invited along. All military characters would have default skill in moving in zero-gravity environments (which exist outside the ships, Terrans having artificial gravity), though some mercs might not have such background.

3) Edited the explanation for negative qualities. Just as hero points in Mutants & Masterminds are given at the end of each scene that a complication is tackled, the same thing would apply here. A character has combat paralysis? Each battle scene is a karma gained for good handling of the drawback. Addiction? Every scene or couple that has good handling of the craving and symptoms is another karma. Simsense Vertigo? Every scene the character is in VR or making use of AR (including the smartgun integration to the heads-up display) and dealing with the discomfort can be a karma. I plan on handling this like the bonus karma I give in my meatspace group where good snap decisions or jokes are given karma right there instead of waiting until the end of the adventure. Like Heroes or M&M, all characters will be expected to have at least 1 flaw or negative quality that helps flesh out the character - if you want more that's up to you, if you only want that minimum that's fine too (it just would act as fewer opportunities to get additional karma).

4) Free knowledge and contact points just like BP Gen. PMC characters will have a section manager/team leader and the privilege of being able to argue orders they consider stupid or recklessly dangerous but wouldn't have unrestricted access; military characters will have a Lieutenant or Second Captain (the rank of the head of engineering, medical, and base security in the event of planetside operations) and generally unrestricted access to all areas of the ship or base but also would be expected to follow all orders given. Some supplies (like free ammo, replacement of full body armor, or priority repair of milspec armor) will also be granted as part of the position or contract. The ship/base will also always have an armory (armorer's facility equivalent), "equipment shop" (hardware facility), medlab (medical facility) and likely also have an appropriate garage for vehicles available to the PCs. Replacement weaponry would also likely be available, but the armory only stocks standard weapons and wouldn't have the customizations that characters can have.

5) I have chummer, so I should be able to receive your files.

PMCs come in a variety of flavours, with the one on the starting ship setting being ones with personnel that all either specialize or strongly include close-quarters (short-range appropriate to ship-to-ship) battles, though some have personnel with experience in planetside operations. Some mercs only have combat skills as a secondary and have more focus on medicine, engineering, EWar, piloting, or others. Full Body Armor is something all of them would have access to, and the heavier more front-line-combat-oriented ones could have Milspec armour. They have a code of contract followed to varying degrees depending on the person, with most inclined to "get the job done, get paid, and always be ready to party when the sirens aren't wailing. Their relationship to their personnel is much like their relationship to the governments they contract to: staff have the right to do anything they believe appropriate, but reputation can make or break contracts and consequences follow any decision.

[Triskavanski]

what level of cyber/bioware is available? Still just Basic/Alpha?

My current idea is a character who's been bio-engineered for speed and reconnaissance through biotech and genetic manipulation by  the PMC he was created for called Keroberos

Baring that, I'm thinking of a full body prosthetic. Would there be a suite available for that?

[Mithlas]

Standard, alpha, and beta grades are available on character creation. Terrans have nanoware, but check with what you want.

The closest thing to a full body prosthetic would be a cyberlimb-suite including a cybertorso (and usually 2 paired limbs, though exceptional cases like characters wounded in battle or industrial accidents might have a cybertorso and 3 limbs which would still considered part of the package). There aren't a lot of spacers who have more than 1 cyberlimb following injury - in space combat, you tend to either survive with "minor" wounds or you die outright.