[The Wyrm Ouroboros]

Nuke 'em all, let Arleesh sort 'em out.

[Sendaz]

I would LOVE if, in the attempt to get JRJ International, if Evo slipped in and snatched it out from their noses for the Golden Ticket, but still have NeoSpIn gain a Seat.  It'd definitely be interesting to have Villiers and Spinrad needing to kick permanently into high gear in order to stay a AAA.

So how might that work?
Daughter Caroline somehow wrangles control of JRJ and jumps ship to Evo becoming Buttercup's BFF.
Daddy Richard pulls something out of the hat to entice a merger with Spinrad to form NeoSpin (love that name btw).
Evo gets a much more secured place on the playing field.
NeoSpin is going to have a helluva time selling it to the CC that they still deserve their spot though.

Not impossible, but it will be a hard sell I think.

Especially as Lofwyr has no love for Spinrad and SK has two Justices sitting currently while Kenta Merushige for Renraku is the son of the man who was Head of Security during Miles little fake defection, so probably is not a fan of Villiers and Co. 

Edit: Meanwhile Laniers is prowling around as the CFD bogeyman.

Samantha is still dead.... or is she?

[Plan-9 Mode Engage] Samantha was chummy with Nadja who has been known to use body doubles.  Could Nadja have set up Sam with some of her own and it was actually a look alike that took the hit and she is laying low doing spirits know what in the background.
What's even scarier is what if Daddy Richard sent Caroline into Evo's arms using the only thing that could possibly buy her way in, while he gets NeoSpin running around with a target on it's back to draw fire because he does do his best work under pressure and Sam is playing around behind the scenes because who suspects or even plans for the dead lady?[/Plan-9 Mode disengage]

[Mirikon]

I like how everyone talks about "the one" corp dying. Singular.

Well, the last time more than one AAA went down at the same time, it was thanks to Crash 2.0 (Novatech and Cross). While Boston is bad, it isn't Crash 2.0 bad, not yet. The situation hasn't gotten bad enough that it will take down two AAAs. Sure, take one down, and seriously wound a couple others, but taking down more than one? I just don't see it. Especially since most of the parties involved have golden tickets. If it was a situation involving EVO and Horizon, then yeah, I could see it. But EVO, Aztechnology, and NeoNET? Two of them will gang up to push the blame on one, and while the two left standing will be bloody, they'll still be in the game. That's my read on the situation.

[carmachu]

I like how everyone talks about "the one" corp dying. Singular.

Well, the last time more than one AAA went down at the same time, it was thanks to Crash 2.0 (Novatech and Cross). While Boston is bad, it isn't Crash 2.0 bad, not yet. The situation hasn't gotten bad enough that it will take down two AAAs. Sure, take one down, and seriously wound a couple others, but taking down more than one? I just don't see it. Especially since most of the parties involved have golden tickets. If it was a situation involving EVO and Horizon, then yeah, I could see it. But EVO, Aztechnology, and NeoNET? Two of them will gang up to push the blame on one, and while the two left standing will be bloody, they'll still be in the game. That's my read on the situation.

Because your thinking linear. Only in terms of CFD as the downfall. Could be one of the ones you listed plus......Ares for example. Bugs infested, fighting against itself. Knight decides to leave, Vogel is trying to push Ares in another direction.

I'd think it suck, but its possible to have 2 fall down for 2 different reasons.

[CitizenJoe]

I've already explained this.

The PCC corp Iris Firmworks develops prototype wireless matrix for the Athabascan Council. 

Iris gets bought out by Renraku for their AI project in the SCIRE. 

Dunk bites it and puts Lanier into Renraku.

Lanier steals the wireless tech and sabotages Renraku to cover his tracks.  Deus goes into the wild, hiding in the Athabascan Council's wireless matrix to avoid the planned Crash. 

Lanier takes the stolen tech to Villiers Novatech. 

After the Crash, Novatech has the wireless solutions from the stolen tech.  Celedyr signs on and shows up in Albuquerque. 

CFD symptoms start showing up as a result of the poor cross over from the Otaku based matrix protocols originating from the stolen Iris/PCC architecture and designs.  Technomancers appear in the wild as a biproduct and possible engineered design of the Iris architecture. 

Boston blows up with the nanites and the PCC enacts its right to inspection on the Celedyr labs in Albuquerque.  They discover proof of the stolen technology.

NeoNET, under assault from all sides for this public health hazard, is then slapped with a Corporate Court tribunal for stolen tech.  Backed by their now chummy buddies of Aztlan and Aztechnology, PCC wins the lawsuit.  Celedyr eats Villiers as part of a settlement package and delivers JRJ International into the hands of the PCC. 

The PCC becomes the new AAA and then strives to regain control over the CFD virus becoming the savior of the world.  Just for kicks, they take a day to reincarnate Dunkelzahn from his e-ghost.   

[Lorebane24]

I sincerely hope that EVO isn't the one to fall. As others have alreday said, they make sense from a worldbuilding standpoint. Ares...well...meh, i don't think so, i mean they are the gun corp and the insect hunter corp, but they are not really essential, we can do without them

I don't think Ares is going anywhere, and frankly, I'd hate to see them drop out as well.  I think that they're being set up to be more than just a gun manufacturer in the future.  I find it hilarious that they're doing Apple-style branding in their new line of consumer products (the idea of an aLink or an aCar is adorable and ironic), and reading through Market Panic, I have some fresh interest in seeing them develop.  Just like Aztechnology has fantastic public opinion, I would like to see Ares become a corp that is still known as "they guys who made my gun" to shadowrunners, but that has a radically different image and portfolio that they present to the common consumer.  I'd like to see a world where the average Joe thinks "Yeah, I guess when I hear "gun" I think "Ares," but I like them because they made this cool commlink case, they have high-end cars, and, most importantly, they're American."

I think that they're angle as the big American corp (even if they're just one of many now) is underutilized, and I'm trying to play it up a little more in the game I'm running, making it a large source of brand loyalty in the UCAS and the CAS.  The mafia don in my game is going to turn out to be one of Ares's largest local shareholders, because becoming a mid-level executive is a good exit strategy if he needs one, and he at least wants to work with an American corp.

Plus, Ares has got the whole bug thing, which could get fun.  Just like they brought Deus back into the metaplot in this edition, maybe they could strike another nostalgic chord by doing something big with the bugs in SR6.

[CitizenJoe]

If Ares goes down it is because of a bug infestation.

[Mirikon]

I like how everyone talks about "the one" corp dying. Singular.

Well, the last time more than one AAA went down at the same time, it was thanks to Crash 2.0 (Novatech and Cross). While Boston is bad, it isn't Crash 2.0 bad, not yet. The situation hasn't gotten bad enough that it will take down two AAAs. Sure, take one down, and seriously wound a couple others, but taking down more than one? I just don't see it. Especially since most of the parties involved have golden tickets. If it was a situation involving EVO and Horizon, then yeah, I could see it. But EVO, Aztechnology, and NeoNET? Two of them will gang up to push the blame on one, and while the two left standing will be bloody, they'll still be in the game. That's my read on the situation.

Because your thinking linear. Only in terms of CFD as the downfall. Could be one of the ones you listed plus......Ares for example. Bugs infested, fighting against itself. Knight decides to leave, Vogel is trying to push Ares in another direction.

I'd think it suck, but its possible to have 2 fall down for 2 different reasons.

Honestly? It takes a helluvalot to bring down a AAA. Hell, the backlash from the whole SCIRE incident only rung Renraku's bell, globally speaking. It butchered their North American division, but they didn't lose AAA status. In Crash 2.0, both Novatech and Cross had been engaged in brutal corporate wars and were already weakened. Ares and Cross had been trading shots for years, going back and forth like two heavyweight boxers. The only reason there even was a Novatech IPO to jumpstart the Crash was because Arty-boy had been systematically butchering Novatech with a kind of single-minded hatred seen in true zealots.

What else is going on in the world?

Ares has bug problems. They've had bug problems for two decades now, and they haven't bit the dust yet. And Knight will NEVER jump ship. They've had troubles, but they're already starting to recover from them. They just haven't been punished enough to go down without something major happening.

Horizon got serious backlash from the Az-Am war and the TM massacre, and got a black eye for their trouble, but nothing big enough to shake their spot.

Saeder-Krupp got knocked around plenty during the Dragon Civil War, but that's done, and there isn't anything else on the board that looks to be causing major trouble for Lofwyr.

Wuxing is quietly shipping things all over the place, making steady money. There were a few ripples during the Artifact plot, but that's four years ago, in game.

Renraku is making money hand over fist, and is generally keeping away from things that are likely to blow up in their face.

Mitsuhama is still being brutal with their zero zones and butchering TMs, but that's nothing new, and there isn't any sign that things are going to change anytime soon.

Shiawase has family drama like you wouldn't believe, but that's been the case since the megacorp was FOUNDED.


Basically, there just isn't any groundwork for a big fall that we've seen, other than the CFD/Boston situation. The seven other AAAs all have their share of problems, more or less, but that's business as usual. Things have to be very much NOT usual for a AAA to fall. Without some groundwork, it would be similar to Horizon coming out of nowhere, with no rhyme or reason for it.

[Lorebane24]

In this case, though, we probably wouldn't have a new AAA just "coming out of nowhere."  In the 4th ed core books, you mostly saw the AAAs mentioned, with a AA popping in as a manufacturer of a new piece of gear now and again.  Relative to that addition, I feel like Spinrad, Monobe, and Zeta-ImpChem have been getting named drops like crazy in the last several SR5 campaign books.  And Hard Targets discusses mergers that seem to be setting one of these three up for an ascension.  Personally, I hope that it's Zeta-ImpChem, because their name is fun to say and I think they could fill a commercial niche that isn't at the forefront of any of the current AAAs.

[Mr. Grey]

With the audits, who's to say that something might come up to plunge a dagger in a corporate back or two?

Right now, my guess is that Ares will split up and their golden ticket taken by somebody in the larger AA pool while the AAAs and bugs gobble up the rest. Neo-net will split with SpIn getting that golden ticket. I think Evo is doing the right thing to keep itself safe. Horizon might also be on the chopping block as the bigger AAs get even bigger.

[Mirikon]

If Ares was going to split up, it would have done so earlier, when their troubles were in full swing. Knight controls the golden ticket, and he's not going anywhere. Especially since Ares seems to be on the road to recovery from the Excalibur debacle. Really, barring some catastrophic event like System Failure that destabilizes the entire planet, there are only a couple scenarios that lead to Ares getting the ax: 1) Detroit becomes Bug City 2.0, or some similar mass outbreak of bugs that is directly linked to Ares, or 2) Knight is assassinated. Now, there's problems with both points. For the first, we already have one sprawl under siege, and they tend to keep major metaplot arcs like that to one at a time. For the second, assassinating a board member of an AAA is damn tough, taking out the CEO is near impossible. Not completely so, however. Really, Knight getting killed is the only realistic way Ares goes down, as things currently stand. Now, things could develop that pushes Ares into a corner, and allows people to jump ship, but Vogel is the only one with enough clout to even dent Ares if he jumped, and it isn't clear just how much of the company he could take with him, since this isn't like Fuchi, where three people pooled their companies to make a mega. It is a lot harder for someone to just walk off with a chunk of the company. Knight's death, however, would mean his controlling stake in the company would be up for grabs, and NO ONE knows how that would play out.

Seriously, we're talking about companies that make Disney, Ford, Coca-cola, Delta Airlines, and Colt all put together look like preschoolers in comparison. They don't just collapse out of nowhere. They have to be vulnerable first. And the only ones that are really vulnerable right now are the three responsible for CFD and the Boston Lockdown. Look through the entries in Market Panic. Really, other than NeoNET and Evo, the other megas aren't in a vulnerable enough position to be brought down, not yet. Aztechnology would need a bit more of a push, such as NeoNET and Evo putting the blame for Boston on them, while something else happens. The AAAs are like great dragons. They can take a whole lot of pummeling before they go down, and eight of ten still have most of their hit points.

[Rosa]

Yeah Ares won't fall, and it's true what Lorebane24 said, the Whole Apple style rebranding thing is sort of funny "Player:...Sigh....ok....i Draw my aPredator ...comeon do i really have to call it that!?!...GM: Well thats what they are called now

No it will be Neonet...sigh...another Villiers corp bites the dust....which Villiers corp will we have NeXT i Wonder? Quite likely NeoSpin as some have suggested, i just wish they would retire Villiers tbh, it's starting to Wear a Little thin....or maybe...Off Richard, make Caroline disappear or off her too, have JRJ go to reclusive Darren Villiers and see what he does with it, that could be interesting.

On an unrelated note, how long do you Guys think Mitsuhama will stay at the top before Lofwyr claws the spot back? And do you think it will only happen behind the scenes or will we see some official adventures and stuff dealing with these Things?.

[Lorebane24]

I hope MCT stays top dog for at least one edition.  They've always been my favorite "we are just fucking evil" mega, and having a ruthless zaibatsu as the big dog for a while tugs at some nostalgic heartstrings.

I don't mind at all if NeoNet bites the dust.  I've said it before, but besides Villiers and Celedyr being attached, and now their CFD thing, they just seem to whiff a little thematically when compared to their other corps.  With their current portfolios, Renraku, MCT, or Horizon could easily become the new "matrix corp," but I can't see anyone who could really step in and fill the transhumanist gap that Evo would leave, which would just be a shame.  I, for one, hope they let Horizon really click into their role as the popular all-accepting guys and have Evo start pushing their old "let's see how far we can push the metahuman form" agenda.  Maybe the could recover from this by getting a new CEO who favors this approach, obsessed with unlocking the full potential of metahumanity while starting to place less value in free spirits and AIs?  Unlikely, but it sure would be fun!

As far as Knight goes, he is getting oooooold, and Leonization can only do so much.  I feel like if he makes it through this edition, he'll have to bow out by the end of SR6 or he's just going to be some ruthless corporate Elminster.

[Wakshaani]

While taking out a CEO is darned hard to do with a bullet, it's something that can happen with a ballot.

What does Knight do if the board replaces him as CEO, having already lost the Chairman position? WIll he be content to "just" be a butt in a seat at the table? And if he doesn't have the protection of a CEO, it'd be easier to take him out...

[PiXeL01]

Knight would barricade himself so far inside KE and AresSpace that he would be even harder to get at than now. From the way Market Panic is written no one seems to be on the verge of dying. Instead it looks like CC might be expanding instead.

Personally I would love for Wuxing to get ousted by Spin/Maersk