[rednblack]

So, Baby Hardcore is coming along, but I have a few questions.

1. Is Sum to 10 a valid char gen option?

2. I'm not sure what firearms skill to have BH use.  I know this is Chicago, and a street game at that, so can I pump up longarms and put a few points in pistols for the few times he'll be in polite company, or would I be better off with something more concealable?  I'd like to avoid automatics for flavor reasons. 

3. For Knowledge Skills, I'd like to take Corporations (misdeeds).  From BH's perspective pretty much anything a corp does is going to be a misdeed, but can we make a common sense ruling on when that specialization would apply? 

4. Also on knowledge skills, have you made a decision about freebie points?  Will those kick in for the player ready version, as opposed to the baseline version of the characters?

5. Is Code of Honor (Ganger) ok to reflavor as neo-anarchist?  I'm also considering Made Man but re-flavoring as neo-anarchist if you would prefer. 

[8-bit]

1. Is Sum to 10 a valid char gen option?

I second this question, since it would be greatly beneficial to, and is a fairly drastic part of, my character.

As for what group my character is going to be in, I think I'm moving towards Swimming Stone over Failed Parent. Is that all right for you, Ryo?

[Tecumseh]

OH YEAH, I forgot those new character gen rules just came out in run faster!

Well, i spose if anyone wants to use one of those, i have no problems with that either. I just wanna make sure everyone is on an appropriate power level for their concept to work. NOTE: This does not mean a balanced power level with the rest of the group. I kinda hate worrying balance, actually. It makes it harder for me to really immerse myself in the story, as VERY LITTLE if anything at all in the real world is balanced.

I took this to mean that Sum to 10 was kosher. I used it too.

[rednblack]

OH YEAH, I forgot those new character gen rules just came out in run faster!

Well, i spose if anyone wants to use one of those, i have no problems with that either. I just wanna make sure everyone is on an appropriate power level for their concept to work. NOTE: This does not mean a balanced power level with the rest of the group. I kinda hate worrying balance, actually. It makes it harder for me to really immerse myself in the story, as VERY LITTLE if anything at all in the real world is balanced.

I took this to mean that Sum to 10 was kosher. I used it too.

Cool.  Thanks Tec for the find.

[Poindexter]

2. I'm not sure what firearms skill to have BH use.  I know this is Chicago, and a street game at that, so can I pump up longarms and put a few points in pistols for the few times he'll be in polite company, or would I be better off with something more concealable?  I'd like to avoid automatics for flavor reasons. 

3. For Knowledge Skills, I'd like to take Corporations (misdeeds).  From BH's perspective pretty much anything a corp does is going to be a misdeed, but can we make a common sense ruling on when that specialization would apply? 

4. Also on knowledge skills, have you made a decision about freebie points?  Will those kick in for the player ready version, as opposed to the baseline version of the characters?

5. Is Code of Honor (Ganger) ok to reflavor as neo-anarchist?  I'm also considering Made Man but re-flavoring as neo-anarchist if you would prefer.

2- They're tools in a tool box. Pick the job, pick the tool, put the tool away. This is all personal choice on you dude, but keep in mind, and this is for EVERYONE, not just you, but keep in mind that once character gen is over, most shit, ESPECIALLY ammo is gonna be more expensive than it is in the book. Shit is still a little wild west out there.

3- Well, I like to do info skills like that a bit more specific. A few ways I'd phrase what I think you're looking for are...

a- Corporate policy (exploitative)
b- Corporate history (genocidal)
c- Corporate personnel (infamous)

and then, of course, you could also go skills like

a- EVO policy (exploitative)
b- Renraku history (genocidal)
c- SK personnel (infamous)

These skills are more limited in scope of course, but will require fewer hits for the same level of info.

4- Yeah, there's gonna be some, but i aint figured out what/when/how much just yet, but you will be given some free points worth of interest skills.

5- Code of honor works better for me. Go ahead and post up exactly WHAT that code of honor entails at some point.

[Poindexter]

I've also decided that unless your concept is wrapped up in being a local, I don't think I want any of yall to be from Chicago. Whether your character has ever been there before is up to you, but i'd prefer if none of the PCs actually LIVE there. UNLESS of course, it's part of your whole concept.

[Ryo]

I've also decided that unless your concept is wrapped up in being a local, I don't think I want any of yall to be from Chicago. Whether your character has ever been there before is up to you, but i'd prefer if none of the PCs actually LIVE there. UNLESS of course, it's part of your whole concept.

Aha, so I should probably ditch Home Ground for Chicago, then? Aside from that, nothing about my concept is specific to Chicago.

So how powerful do you want us to be in stage 2? You said its a time difference of 8 years or so, which is actually a really long time in terms of potential experience gain. Even if you assume a modest 1 run per month earning an average of 5 karma per run, that's 480 karma.

I certainly won't say no to 480 bonus karma, but that'd easily put us in the prime runner/street legend region.

As for what group my character is going to be in, I think I'm moving towards Swimming Stone over Failed Parent. Is that all right for you, Ryo?

Sounds fine by me. That means Cyrus will be The Failed Parent, having turned somebody into an Infected and now feels responsible for them.

[Tecumseh]

I wouldn't say that my concept is based around Chicago, but many of the Syndicate Kid's Wicked Atoner goals were.

He sees parallels between the situation in Chicago - where the government declared bankruptcy and most of the officials resigned following Crash 2.0 - and the origins of the Sicilian Mafia, which was formed to provide extralegal arbitration and protection in the absence of a permanent police force in post-feudal Italy. Thus, as part of his "atonement" arc, the Syndicate Kid is beginning to think about how his organization might be used as a vehicle for societal improvement, providing stability and order, instead of just personal enrichment. This arc would make more sense in Chicago than elsewhere, given its nature as a feral city.

[8-bit]

Another question..

I plan to owe money to the Yakuza (aka, In Debt). How is this going to work? If I fled to Chicago, I assume they can still find me. Am I able to pay it off in the second stage? Kind of ruins the whole purpose of the quality.

I am also taking the Wanted Quality, but I'm not set on who actually has a bounty on my head. I would be inclined to think the college, or some law enforcement agency, but I could go with the Yakuza as well.

[rednblack]

I wouldn't say that my concept is based around Chicago, but many of the Syndicate Kid's Wicked Atoner goals were.

He sees parallels between the situation in Chicago - where the government declared bankruptcy and most of the officials resigned following Crash 2.0 - and the origins of the Sicilian Mafia, which was formed to provide extralegal arbitration and protection in the absence of a permanent police force in post-feudal Italy. Thus, as part of his "atonement" arc, the Syndicate Kid is beginning to think about how his organization might be used as a vehicle for societal improvement, providing stability and order, instead of just personal enrichment. This arc would make more sense in Chicago than elsewhere, given its nature as a feral city.

What a cool idea.  I dig this.

I've also decided that unless your concept is wrapped up in being a local, I don't think I want any of yall to be from Chicago. Whether your character has ever been there before is up to you, but i'd prefer if none of the PCs actually LIVE there. UNLESS of course, it's part of your whole concept.

I'm iffy on this.  I think of BH as someone who's really into his neighborhood, and I'd like "mom" and "dad" to be important NPCs in his life -- considering making dad a "Sensei" from Run Faster.  Also, with how big a presence the ABC is in Chi-town, I like that link for him as well.  One possible way I see this playing out is if BH, and mom and dad are trying to bring on "the revolution," and they figure the best way to do that is within the neo-anarchist framework already in place in Chicago.  I'm gonna have to think about this.

As for Code of Honor: Ganger, it's on page 26 of Run Faster.  The short and dirty is, Must always wear gang colors -- neo-anarchist patches, etc. for Baby Hardcore, and give half earnings above lifestyle to gang, in this case the ABC.  I also see Baby Hardcore working security for ABC functions, helping with teach-ins, whether they're of self-defense, urban gardening, or of the radical education variety.  While the ABC isn't a "gang" itself, I also see there being some tension between the ABC's self-identified noble aims, and the aims of the gangs that do control various parts of the city.

[Poindexter]

I wouldn't say that my concept is based around Chicago, but many of the Syndicate Kid's Wicked Atoner goals were.

He sees parallels between the situation in Chicago - where the government declared bankruptcy and most of the officials resigned following Crash 2.0 - and the origins of the Sicilian Mafia, which was formed to provide extralegal arbitration and protection in the absence of a permanent police force in post-feudal Italy. Thus, as part of his "atonement" arc, the Syndicate Kid is beginning to think about how his organization might be used as a vehicle for societal improvement, providing stability and order, instead of just personal enrichment. This arc would make more sense in Chicago than elsewhere, given its nature as a feral city.

This is all awesome and i love it all.
You could have JUST arrived in chicago with these goals in mind. What do your bosses in the syndicate think about your goals?

I plan to owe money to the Yakuza (aka, In Debt). How is this going to work? If I fled to Chicago, I assume they can still find me. Am I able to pay it off in the second stage? Kind of ruins the whole purpose of the quality.

I am also taking the Wanted Quality, but I'm not set on who actually has a bounty on my head. I would be inclined to think the college, or some law enforcement agency, but I could go with the Yakuza as well.

They can totally still find you, but the people willing to chase you there will be more rare and thus, more skilled. Naw, no paying it off in second stage. I agree that it ruins the purpose. As for the wanted quality, I dont think Yakuza would work. Feels redundant.

I'm iffy on this.  I think of BH as someone who's really into his neighborhood, and I'd like "mom" and "dad" to be important NPCs in his life -- considering making dad a "Sensei" from Run Faster.  Also, with how big a presence the ABC is in Chi-town, I like that link for him as well.  One possible way I see this playing out is if BH, and mom and dad are trying to bring on "the revolution," and they figure the best way to do that is within the neo-anarchist framework already in place in Chicago.  I'm gonna have to think about this.

As for Code of Honor: Ganger, it's on page 26 of Run Faster.  The short and dirty is, Must always wear gang colors -- neo-anarchist patches, etc. for Baby Hardcore, and give half earnings above lifestyle to gang, in this case the ABC.  I also see Baby Hardcore working security for ABC functions, helping with teach-ins, whether they're of self-defense, urban gardening, or of the radical education variety.  While the ABC isn't a "gang" itself, I also see there being some tension between the ABC's self-identified noble aims, and the aims of the gangs that do control various parts of the city.

Sure, Baby Hardcore can be the exception. Go for it. He's the main reason I included exceptions in the request.
As for the code of honor, I dont like just re-skinning the one from a gang. Go head and whip something up yourself. I could take a swing at it if you dont feel like it...

[rednblack]

I'll take Corporate Policy (Exploitative) for my knowledge skill.  Thanks.

I'm going to sit on the Code of Honor for a day or two.  I want to make sure I give it a good shake.

[Tecumseh]

You could have JUST arrived in chicago with these goals in mind. What do your bosses in the syndicate think about your goals?

This is possible, and something I was contemplating the last night. I need to do more research. I picked up Feral Cities yesterday. It's from 2071 so things could have changed in the last 4+ years, but last we checked there was a Mob civil war in progress. Only a skeleton crew made it through the containment zone / quarantine, so when the city re-opened outside players rushed in and immediately started butting heads.

Currently, the Chicago mob is split, disorganized, and
feuding. McCaskill’s Milwaukee organization has their hands
full dealing with rival soldati coming in from Detroit, who are
loyal to Don Roland ‘Th e Greek’ Stephanopoulos. With the two
Dons distracted, a number of small crews of made men see the
opportunity to start up their own small operations in Chicago. The
most powerful and influential of these is Capo Jules MacAvoy,
Quinn’s former second-in-command and a native Chicagoan.
After a series of drive-by shootings and example killings, the
fronts hardened, and the families are now competing over the
various markets and districts.

When made men travel, they traditionally introduce themselves to the local don as a matter of courtesy and respect. In this case, the presence of another made man (the Syndicate Kid) from a different city could be viewed more as threat, or interference in local matters.

In any event, I'm guessing the local players would be too busy fighting among themselves to seriously entertain the notion of the organization providing social stability. Alternatively, they love the idea, but only if the stability comes about via the elimination of their rivals.

[Ryo]

So we each have some idea of what our characters are, maybe who they are, but how do they know eachother? What past ties do they have, why did they go their separate ways for 8 years, and what's bringing them back together in Chicago?

Cyrus was a hitman, an interrogator, and a cleaner. He got paid good money to make certain people stop being problems for the powerful and well connected. He could easily be a mercenary, just as likely to be hired by Mr. Johnson or accept a contract from a syndicate or gang. I don't think we're going with a common history where we all come from the same organization, so I assume contract work where we all ended up on the same job once or twice is the thread that binds us together.

Any ideas on that?

[Tecumseh]

I'm feeling like I could use some more direction about how much shared backstory we're supposed to have. Was it just that we all worked together at one point and are now willing to do so again? Or was there some thinking that we might have been working together consistently over the last 8 years?

I'm also unsure about how to approach things like Lifestyle, both because we have a two-step chargen process and also because it sounds like we'll be visiting Chicago, not living there. Should we even bother with Lifestyles?

On a similar note, what about possessions? Should I be buying a rich kid vehicle that would be sensible in a non-feral city, like a Rover Model 2072, or should I be buying a Chicago-appropriate vehicle, like a Roadmaster? And if I buy it but we're not "starting" in Chicago, will I be able to get it there? I'm just trying not to waste ¥50,000 on something that won't be available for use.

My current version of Marco swaps out Trust Fund (because of the Lifestyle concern mentioned above) and takes Rank instead. I figure he would be a capo for the Mob. I can imagine him hiring Cyrus for syndicate work, perhaps because the (round one / early version) Wicked Atoner identifies with wicked trolls with wicked axes.

Depending on some of the answers, I still might have Marco based out of Chicago. It makes the most sense for the concept and requires the least shoehorning and peg-hammering.