[Poindexter]

There's been one guy in the group i run who makes sure he takes a few hours before every run applying disguises to every member of the team. As a result, they have never been identified visually (eye-witness, camera, etc) and things have been a bit easier for them than they would have been without the disguises. So far so good.

Well now, some of the others have been griping and grumbling about the extra set up time it makes for the job, as they don't ever really SEE the tangible benefits.

How can i show these fools how useful the disguises have been all this time without being a dick about it?
I mean yeah sure, i can send them all out on a run with no time for disguises and have them all get ID'd and tracked all over town and whatnot, but that just feels like a dick move, y'know?

Any other ideas for making players actually see the invisible benefits of their actions?

[ZeConster]

You could always make their team their fixer's second choice for their next run - the team that was first choice got in trouble because one of them got caught by a hidden camera (someone was trying to catch whoever kept grafitti'ing their car, or something like that), and he wasn't wearing a disguise, so that team has to lay low for a few weeks until the heat dies down.

[Poindexter]

great idea!

[Taejix]

Do they have any sort of nemesis or enemies? Have them stroll past the PCs and not even notice they're there. If they have no living enemies, consider using law enforcement for this purpose - they can even be explicitly looking for the perps behind the players' last run.

There is the chance the PCs will just open fire anyway though.

[Noble Drake]

Police sketches of their disguised characters being on the nightly news doesn't drive the benefit home already?

Some people just can't grasp certain concepts - don't try to hard to force 'em.

(Imagine, if you will, the unassuming guy sitting in the bar that has the look of a well-experienced runner - yet no one knows his name, and nobody says "yeah, that's the guy that did that job," and nobody is gunning for him... at least, nobody realizes they are gunning for him - a guy about his height, but with a stronger jaw, darker skin, a lot of scars, and I think he might have been a hobgoblin, that guy better be sure not to show his face in the 'plex again unless he wants it scraped off with a rusty metal ashtray.).

[Senko]

Bzzzz bzzzz bzzzzz
Hello?
Hi, its me Sam got a job lined up meet Mr Johnson at 34 Eelwick drive, Sihaea Sushi, 8:15 Pm.

A few hours later

Greetings you've been recomended to me for a job. An experimental device was stolen from one of our labs. We wish an example made of the thieves and the device retrieved or destroyed. Here are their detaila (uploads them) as you can see on the video file their faces were clearly visible so theres no excuse for failing to find and terminate them. You will be paid 3,000 per member terminated and an additioal 3,000 if the device is destroyed, 10,000 if retrieved.

The twist is they were the ones who did the job ans its their altered appearances that are supplied as the targets.

[Khenti]

As much as every GM would love for their players to pick up on (and quite often USE) subtlety, it can be difficult to convey some things without a bludgeon.  I'll freely admit I use a little time after my own games to laugh about this or that, and speak about what I found entertaining or innovative.  This has let me flat-out tell some people that they did things during the game that made everyone's life easier during the run, whether they realized it at the time or not.

If you'd prefer to keep it in the narrative, I think you may have an easy time of it just by having some minor little bounties pop up if they happened to leave any witnesses or get caught on camera during a run.  If they're properly disguised, there's no chance they'll be targeted, and everyone can get a good chuckle and apologize for grousing at the guy putting the effort into it.

Preventative measures like this are just that - preventative.  They're never useful until they are.

[Michael Chandra]

Also, you can put a Wanted poster on the tv while they're waiting for the Johnson, with an alert the criminal is in their area, then witness the guy getting mowed down by the cops.

[Noble Drake]

Also, you can put a Wanted poster on the tv while they're waiting for the Johnson, with an alert the criminal is in their area, then witness the guy getting mowed down by the cops.

I like it...

"Aww man! Jessie, get in here and check this. Next time you put on that disguise you made, you're going to be a ghost - some guy that looks exactly like your disguise just got greased."

[Emperors Grace]

As much as every GM would love for their players to pick up on (and quite often USE) subtlety, it can be difficult to convey some things without a bludgeon.  I'll freely admit I use a little time after my own games to laugh about this or that, and speak about what I found entertaining or innovative.

Reminds me a bit of a 1st (2nd?) Ed run for my character "Mako" where the GM went off after session how f****d we were in the next adventure because we'd been caught on camera in the warehouse.

I countered that I was fine even if the group wasn't.  He was a bit testy and asked why I thought I was getting off the hook.

I reminded him that on that run I had been wearing full body armor with an enclosed helmet.  He countered that it didn't matter as I had a distintive paint job (mako shark icon) on my helmet that they could ID.

I then reminded him that he had previously ruled that the paint job of my armor was ruined (he knew my character took pride in it) when a fire elemental engulfed me momentarily in a fight at the edge of the grounds (prior to entering the warehouse).

He got pissed and (not sure if it was connected, but) never ran another session (though he did play with us a few times under a new GM).

[SlowDeck]

Emperor's Grace, I personally would have awarded you a point of karma or edge for that.

You would still be screwed because they'd likely be able to identify you by you having a record of running with the group if this wasn't their first run, but you would have an opportunity to talk your way out of it since they don't know for certain that it was you.

[Emperors Grace]

Oh, there were ways around it, given that Mako was a head or more (6'4" not in armor) taller than the rest of the group would have made him suspiciously identifiable in any case had the group been caught as a group.  Also, that group was sam heavy and tended more towards very ... direct methods.  Part of why Mako wore full armor and a helmet. 

(The other reason for the helmet was that (in an earlier game) I saw the same GM have a rent-a-guard with a revolver waste a PC troll in body armor with a single head shot as the PC refused to wear a helmet.  Mind you, I'm not even sure that was even possible under RAW back then but then the GM was not fond of the PC's player)

[Senko]

Sounds like you may have had other troubles with that GM. Also "I"m telling you that's a troll look at how big the helmet is. . . well its either a troll or Dark Helmet but its not me."

[OneofSorrow]

(The other reason for the helmet was that (in an earlier game) I saw the same GM have a rent-a-guard with a revolver waste a PC troll in body armor with a single head shot as the PC refused to wear a helmet.  Mind you, I'm not even sure that was even possible under RAW back then but then the GM was not fond of the PC's player)

Yeah I always wear a helmet when I go on a run because it works to protect your identity as well as protect your noggin from head wounds and with some armorer+logic you can get to look like whatever you want as well as adjust it to cover your identity.  Although with the ballistic mask from Run and Gun is the new helmet or head ware of our team. 

[Emperors Grace]

Sounds like you may have had other troubles with that GM.

Most definitely, but he was our only option for SR at that point. It was college. He introduced us to SR, he owned the books, and was willing. We put up with a bit of us vs him attitude until  we found a better GM.