[cathartic]

Hi,

I'm currently planning an adventure to demo SR4 for some friends. Since it's only a demo, players will be using pre-gens from the main rulebook.

As one of the opponents, I started statting up a possession mage. He might be accompanied by some security guards, but I initially figured that an entire 5-man shadowrunning team, even if not all of them are combat focused, should have little difficulty. My first plan was for the mage to send a spirit or two (i.e. one summoned, one bound) to possess and enhance security guards, making them tough enemies. The mage would have magic rating 4 (the PC mage has magic 3).

Then I thought - why would he do that? If he just scouted the party in astral, picked out the two lowest essence characters, and sent his spirits in to possess the PCs, then wouldn't this completely screw the party? A force 4 spirit would roll 8 dice to possess, which would beat the defences of most combat focused PCs.A possessed troll could cause havoc by attacking otherr party members, and even if the party manage to incapacitate it, they'd still be down a PC, and the mage could just summon again and repossess. The PC mage could go astral to fight back, but would then either risk losing in astral combat, or having a possessed troll smash his unconscious body.

It just feels like far too nasty a thing to do to a PC party on a demo. Two force 4 materialized spirits would be a decent challenge for the PCs. But two well used possessions could destroy them, and I can't see how players using pre-mades could have much defence.

All I can think of at the moment is to abandon the possession idea.

Does this indicate that possession is too powerful? I notice it's been banned in shadowrun missions.

Any advice?

[Joush]

People don't always do the most efficient thing. Having a summoner act in a sub optimal manner isn't a problem if it makes the story work better.

Ultimately, it's worth remembering that a summoner doesn't know who is coming and might want to go with a low risk plan. Using sprirts to beef up his own servants is safer then sending his backup to attack foes that might know who he is, what he dose, and have countermeasures ready.

Remember, winning the fight is probably second to his own survival for the mage.

[kirk]

A couple of thoughts, not necessarily coherent.

1) resistance to possession is not based on essence or magic. It's Will+Int. The default characters from the book are terrible, but with one exception they've got 7 to 9 dice to resist. That makes success a roughly 1 in 3 chance. Counterspell will (If I recall correctly) add dice to the resistance, and since it's a demo you might nudge the mage to remind him.

2) Remember that if the spirit fails to possess it can't try again with that vessel.

3) Disrupted spirits still count against the mage's summoning limits. Is the mage watching (astrally or otherwise)? If so, don't forget his ticking clock. And that he has to get back to his body to release the spirit before he can summon a new spirit.

4) Speaking of that next summoning, remember spirits have edge. "I summon you to walk into the valley of death, into the teeth of those who just beat the crap out of two other spirits." "You're kidding, right?"  "No, go and get the crap beat out of yourself. Eventually we'll whittle them down." "Eventually? Who we, white man?" [spend edge against summoning.] You don't even have to play this out, just have it happen offstage to explain why the shaman doesn't send round two.

[cathartic]

Some good points. I was figuring  that the mage would see beating the PCs as his best hope for survival. But maybe if I gave him an escape plan... or I guess he could be a coward who would surrender if his chances started looking bad.

3) Disrupted spirits still count against the mage's summoning limits. Is the mage watching (astrally or otherwise)? If so, don't forget his ticking clock. And that he has to get back to his body to release the spirit before he can summon a new spirit.

I'm still not completely familiar with the rules, so I just want to double check so I can look this stuff up. I've found the rules for disrupted spirits in street magic. But I can't find anything about a mage having to go back to his body to release a spirit. Whereabouts is that?

[Joush]

You could give your mage a sheet of armored glass between him and the Shadowrunners during the fight. The LOS but full cover would be rather attractive to him, and he could surrender if it seams like they are about to blow though the barrier or he's too drained to keep fighting, or you could have him bolt for an exit on his side of the armor glass when things get bad.

A good way to make a Boss type character a bit memorable is to make them, if not cowardly, then very aware of their own survival.

[cathartic]

Think I've got it - at least for dramatic effect.

Let the PCs down a couple of security guards, open the door to the area where the mage is, then ask for a Perception check. Those who succeed notice the dead guards getting up behind them...

[kirk]

Some good points. I was figuring  that the mage would see beating the PCs as his best hope for survival. But maybe if I gave him an escape plan... or I guess he could be a coward who would surrender if his chances started looking bad.

3) Disrupted spirits still count against the mage's summoning limits. Is the mage watching (astrally or otherwise)? If so, don't forget his ticking clock. And that he has to get back to his body to release the spirit before he can summon a new spirit.

I'm still not completely familiar with the rules, so I just want to double check so I can look this stuff up. I've found the rules for disrupted spirits in street magic. But I can't find anything about a mage having to go back to his body to release a spirit. Whereabouts is that?

Not completely familiar with spirits myself, so this could be me misremembering the rules. I'll go look.

[Yipyioh]

One thing that worked very, VERY well in a game my friends played before I got into Shadowrun that really added some more depth to the whole "day in the life of a runner" was when they had been hired to take down a CEO in his safe house which was filled with decent guards and hired mercenaries. When they got there it turned out one of the mercs was a through and through combat mage and the PCs went "s*** this guy's good!" so rather than take him head on the party mage messed with him a bit to distract him and the others snuck around back to kill the CEO and then they ran off laughing in the mage's face but after the CEO died he really didn't do anything, he just kinda went, "meh. Job's over."

The thing that really made him solid as a character  for us (and like I said made a great example of day in the life) was that on their next mission they got to the door right before the CEO with his dozen elite guards and came around the corner and... there was that same mage. But this time it turns out the fixer had hired him also as double insurance to go a different way but to do the same job, so the mage (did I mention he was quite literally FF Black Mage?) decided there was no hard feelings since they had beeing slinging fireballs at each other before only because of a job and teamed up with the PCs and with the party's mage managed to posses a guard in the back and make him prime his grenades and explode everyone else in the room with the CEO. The pair went on to have a Legolas-Gimli rivalry and thus far Black Mage has been arguably the best NPC we've ever create.

Moral of the story is, you are the GM and you can make him do whatever you please. Perhaps use him to mess with the PCs and then bring him back later as either a recurring antagonist or, as in Black Mage's case, a new friend.