I was wondering if anyone would like to play in a semi-realistic gritty shadowrun campaign. The team should be professional and gun happy will probably get you caught or killed. Definitive roles for the team are a must. i.e. someone has to step up as team leader, hacker and so on. The champaign will be set in Seattle and it will be ongoing, not a single module. Posting should be once a day to two. Please post concepts first as this will be the starting point for character creation. I only wish to run for 4-6 players but will run lower. We will use this thread to hash out character details and then move on from their. If you have questions on the game let me know here as these will be good for everyone to know.
To clarify:
1. I tend to run gritty and realistic. Every node is not built like Fort Nox, every place you go doesn't have a mage to mess with you, and just because the party has an advantage in a run I don't need to throw them into the fire. People in my worlds act like real people, cops do their job and investigate crimes, security guards are not always cream of the crop, hackers will try to get some paydata on you, and corps are in it for the money. The world is what the world is, part of the fun of the game is pulling off that perfect heist due to good planning, trying not to get caught by the law, and making it to the next run so you can get enough money to pay rent. Did I mention that the pay is more realistic as well
. That being said random things can happen that make things go south. the ally you are parked in that should of been empty has a couple making out, the guard forgot his lunch and is still in the room that you thought would be unguarded, and the Johnson decides it is easier to kill you than pay you. The way I do this is as fair as I can make it. I don't decide when a complication will arise, the dice do. Every time you make a run I will secretly roll a die for every run you have been on including the current one that has not had a complication. If I score a hit then a complication arises. If I glitch then you get a complication in your favor. The security hacker is playing a video game on the clock, someone forgot to lock the back door, or the guy you are looking for just happens to walk into the bar you are sitting at. All in all the world is my version of what I feel the real world of shadowrun should be like.
2. The world is a deadly place. Not only is the damage codes higher for a grittier feel but the reactions to your decisions will be grittier as well. Get caught on film and the cops may try to come to your house and arrest you, piss of a mob boss and he will send some runners to take care of you, and cost a corp too much money and they will try to find out who hired you. on the other hand players in my games tend to have a bit more paranoia while playing and if you don't leave a trail then they can't catch you. I keep a file on everything a character does, who he has pissed off, what laws he broke and which corps would love to find him. This is all above board and by the rules. Leave finger prints at a crime scene and the cops will be able to pull up a sheet on you, if you don't have one good for you, you are now playing the game. I will not go so far as DNA and such unless it is obvious like you spit on the body. I try not to be a prick of a GM, just a realistic one. I will use astral signatures, access IDs, camera footage, finger prints, and so on though.
3. Characters should be detailed. Where do you live, what does your icon look like, does your Fake SINs ID have a job, and do you have a soft spot for redheads. the more detail you give the less I have to ask and the more you get in terms of story. This background is almost more important to me than the numbers on your sheet, which is why I like to get concepts and backgrounds first. Playing on-line give us a chance to slow down and get into the story of the game so why not enjoy it. The story of the game will be something the players create, want to do more B&E then give me characters that can handle it. So far I am seeing a skip tracer theme coming from the characters presented so far. If that is not what you like then let me know so we can give you some time to shine as well. Fun for all is the name of the game and it is my job to entertain you.
4. Rules. I am thinking 400BP/750karma characters are allowed. no rating above 6, no availability above 12, no more than 200BP/375karma in your attributes, and no more than 35 points in either category of quality. basically standard rules apply. There is one exception to this, you may purchase a single fake SIN at rating 6. for ease of refrence on the character sheet, R(+) and F(++) restricted items should be noted with the icon in parenthesis. Lets try to keep our characters in the norm of the core book, no A.I.s, spirits surged and so forth. that being said if you have a kick but concept for one of these I may make an exception for one and only one character to have it.
5. Legality document, I have compiled a document that I use in my NYC game for the legal codes and fines that I use in the game. they are based on old resources in the Shadowrun world and I will let you all have a copy of it if you PM me your E-Mail. I do need to update it for the Seattle game with the Seattle districts, but it is still useful at this point without that. It is what I use for definitions of crimes, punishments, and police reactions in my game.
Optional rules used:
--SR4a--
1. Cap dice pools at 20 or twice natural Attribute + Skill, whichever is higher. typically 20.
2. Increase DV of all weapons by 2. I conceder attack programs and spells to be weapons. Drain and static damage like falling are not.
3. Glitches on damage resistance tests cause critical wounds, something that requires more than a midkit to fix.
4. Total hits can be no more than Skill x 2. for agents and spirits it is Matrix attribute and force respectively.
5. Sometimes you just get lucky, Edge can buy hits or reduce extended test intervals by half. limited to one edge spent only.
6. Each roll on an extended test reduces the dice pool by 1, cumulatively.
--RC--
1.You may build your character using the optional karma build at 750 karma.
2. Up to 15 Karma can be gained by giving a detailed background and notes on your equipment like Fake SINs, matrix sculpting, and lifestyles.
3. Metavarients are rare and only one character per game may have one.
4. A character may choose a Code of conduct.
5. Maintaining contacts, basically if you have a contact with a loyalty higher than 3, you must spend some non-work time with them or the loyalty could drop.
6. Advanced lifestyles
--Street Magic--
1. Acquiring Geasa during play, if you critically glitch on an important magic roll you may gain one.
2. Adepts and Geasa, you may take one for one of your powers and reduce its cost by 25%.
3. Magic Loss, glitches on damage resistance, action while on a stim patch or when being treated medically can cause the loss of magic.
4. Learning Metamagic, you can learn techniques outside of initiation.
5. Aid Enchanting, spirits may help you with your enchanting attempts.
6. Exotic Reagent Requisites, enchanting sometimes needs special reagents.
7. Corps Cadavers and Living Dolls, possession traditions gain watches that have possession.
--Unwired--
1. Full immersion Lifestyle is allowed
2. Using attributes with the following addendum. Nodes use system in place of the program and if you spend edge on the roll your hits are no longer restricted.
3. Security tally
4. forging SINs and IDs
5. Freeware and open source programs are both limited to rating 4 or less and require an appropriate contact. In addition Freeware can not have program options.
6. Software bugs and programming
7. there is a +1 initiative bonus to characters using a tacnet with a DNI
8. Just for clarification Program options are not an optional rule, so they are allowable.
--Arsenal--
More to follow.
Potential players:
mdp- possible bounty hunter
Teyl_Iliar- B&E Specialist
Ethan-
Confirmed player:
Dashifen- Hacker
Triggvi- detective/private eye
Sichr- combat medic
inca1980- Will show in June as a 7th runner for the team.
Waiting list:
Operator
