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Getting Back to Shadowrun

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golan2072

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« on: <05-05-12/0755:26> »
Greetings!

After a hiatus of 5 or so years, I'm seriously considering getting back to Shadowrun, this time using SR4A and setting the game in 2073 Chicago. My last SR game, in 2006-2007 (using SR4), was set in the Barrens of Seattle and served to introduce my girlfriend (now fiancée) to role-playing in general, which she greatly enjoyed. After that we played a D&D 3.0E campaign, then switched to the lighter BFRPG rules. In the meanwhile, I also did some freelance writing for Traveller.

Anyhow, I am thinking about a sand-box-y SR4A campaign set in 2073 Chicago, with various plot hooks spread across the sprawl, from the more "traditional SR" Chicagoville, through the Barrens-type Corridor to the S.T.A.L.K.E.R-style CZ. Between faction wars, mob wars, corporate competition and remnant bugs, things could be very interesting. This will probably be a single-player campaign, with me as the GM and my Hannah (AKA the Gecko) as the player.

Now my first question is about source material. Currently, after some moving and some book-selling, I have the following:

Hardcopy
SR4A Core Book
Sixth World Almanac
Bug City
Renraku Arcology Shutdown
Runners' Toolkit (en route)

Digital (bought from DTRPG)
Feral Cities
Street Magic
Arsenal
Manhattan Sourcebook
SR Missions 3rd Year

What additional books would you recommend me to get for my Chicago 2073 campaign? I'm looking for, say 2-3 additional PDFs that would be worth their price tag.

All4BigGuns

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« Reply #1 on: <05-05-12/1144:00> »
Augmentation, Runner's Companion, Unwired, War!, Attitude, Spy Games.... Heck, just get them all, that way your players can actually have an enjoyable time. Limitations are only fun for the GM.
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Crash_00

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« Reply #2 on: <05-05-12/1247:21> »
Well for starters, assuming you have a budget for this kind of thing, I'd recommend Augmentation. It's really helpful for most characters (even adepts and mages can benefit from some ware). Second should probably be Runner Companion. It adds more qualities and a few race options to the mix. It's not vital, but most characters will like the extra options. Then there is Street Magic, it's a good boost for mages. Unwired helps out hacker/technomancers a lot, but it really only helps them out. If you group is more hacker focused  than magic focused, switch the last two.

Really though, it will depend on what your group is wanting to play. For a group with no hacker, you can probably skip unwired. Groups without magic users probably won't need street magic as much.

I'd recommend starting out with a few books to get everyone used to the rules and easing new books into the picture.


rasmusnicolaj

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« Reply #3 on: <05-07-12/0258:55> »
Way of the Adept if you plan on using one of those.
Else i second Runner's Companion, Augmentation, Street Magic and Unwirred. Attitude is also great.

Oh, and safehouses before CanRay comes by and tries to sell it to you  ;D

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Critias

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« Reply #4 on: <05-07-12/1157:22> »
For what I'd consider "must have" books for almost any campaign, you're most of the way there.  Street Magic and Arsenal open up most of the options characters are likely to want.  If you pick up Augmentation you'll have the other of the "big three," in my opinion, offering up a plethora of goodies if your player is interested in some artificial muscle or some outright chrome.  Unwired helps out with the Matrix-sorts, but I'm not (personally) entirely convinced it's the same level of gotta-have-it book (perhaps because no one in my group's really been eagerly reading through it, despite having access to it).  Really, that'll depend on what sort of character Gecko's making.

But really, after those basic expansion books?  It's going to come down to what sort of campaign you've got, with what sort of character.  If you're interested in espionage and the subtler side of the shadows, Spy Games will be right up your alley.  More into the in-your-face street side of things, with a lot more flavor from the Sixth World's tv shows, musicians, etc?  Attitude.  Thinking about a run to Vegas, or staying on the cutting edge of the Horizon metaplot?  Twilight Horizon.  Interested in London, or having her tangle with shadowy groups with secret agendas (instead of your usual clean-cut corporate Mr. Johnson)?  Conspiracy Theories might be what you're after.  As a long-time fan of the game, maybe you're interested in Street Legends to set the stage with some of the old fiction characters and other shadowrunning elite, to let her new character rub elbows with some of the more (in)famous NPCs out there.  Is she making an adept?  She'll love you forever if you help her out with Way of the Adept (as someone already mentioned, which I appreciate).

Etc, etc.  Once you get past the "second-tier core" of Augmentation, Street Magic, and Arsenal, it all comes down to what specifically you're interested in focusing on, in my opinion.

Augmentation, Runner's Companion, Unwired, War!, Attitude, Spy Games.... Heck, just get them all, that way your players can actually have an enjoyable time. Limitations are only fun for the GM.
Not all of those are going to be applicable for every campaign, though, and -- more importantly -- it's not up to the GM to have to buy them all so that their players "can actually have an enjoyable time."  He's mostly just running a game for his gal, here, it's doubtful he's going to need every page of every book ever released in order to keep her from being miserable throughout the campaign.  ;)

golan2072

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« Reply #5 on: <05-07-12/1216:55> »
She wants to play a Hacker, either a Combat Hacker or a B&-specialist Hacker, a Hacker/Drone-Rigger or a Hacker/Face, so I've bought the Unwired PDF from DTRPG; once I read it cover to cover, I'll possibly buy it in hardcopy as well for her. As she's unfamiliar with the hacking rules, however, I'm going to start with the SR4A Core Book rules only and slowly add in new material from Unwired.

Also, do Conspiracies and Street Legends cover people related to Chicago and its metaplot?
« Last Edit: <05-07-12/1219:35> by golan2072 »

Crash_00

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« Reply #6 on: <05-07-12/1220:58> »
I believe most of the Chicago stuff is SR3 books still. Very little seems to be happening there in 2072.

golan2072

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« Reply #7 on: <05-07-12/1226:35> »
I believe most of the Chicago stuff is SR3 books still. Very little seems to be happening there in 2072.
Well, there is Feral Cities... Which makes the setting look interesting. Nothing else for SR4A tied to the Windy (and Buggy) City? In case it only gets a good treatment in Feral Cities, which SR3 books would you recommend me to get for it given the fact that I already have both Bug City (hardcopy) and Feral Cities (DTRPG PDF)?
« Last Edit: <05-07-12/1228:42> by golan2072 »

Crash_00

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« Reply #8 on: <05-07-12/1230:53> »
Not that I'm aware of, some of the Freelancers may be able to point out a few references in their work, but unless I'm missing something (which I often do) those are the only 50 pages on it in SR4. That said, I have a hard time reading the setting books in PDF form, so I haven't actually managed to slug all the way through them (usually just peruse what I needed info on).