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Dumpshock Forums _ Shadowrun _ Junkers

Posted by: Trigger Jan 23 2007, 12:40 PM

I found that a house rule that I like to use in my games for those who don't really car about their wheels and would have bought a junker if possible. The prices in the BBB are for new cars, so I created a modification for junkers.

20% off the cost- The car has the Flaw Gremlins I for any rolls made with it.

40% off the cost- The car has the Flaw Gremlins II for any rolls made with it

60% off the cost- The car has the Flaw Gremlins III for any rolls made with it

80% off the cost- The car has the Flaw Gremlins IV for any rolls made with it

This could also be applied to other vehicles as well.

So any comments?

Posted by: NightmareX Jan 23 2007, 01:01 PM

QUOTE (Trigger)

So any comments?

Looks good. Generally I just eyeball it. One of the most hilarious things came from a player realizing after chargen when he had like a couple thou nuyen left that he forgot to get any transportation. So, I let him have an old junk Harley Scorpion for 500 nuyen, and gave him a free level 1 contact (this was 3rd edition) to boot - Evil Bob, the ork mechanic and junkyard owner. They hated that bike - the thing was broken down more than it was running, but had some hilarious times, like:

Player (needing the bike fixed and lacking money): I'll appeal to Evil Bob's good nature.
Me: Ok, roll Etiquette TN 60

and

Player (trying to escape a bunch of gangers): I get on my bike, gun the engine, and ride away.
Me (rolls some dice): The engine roars to life, makes some horrendous clunking and whinning noises, and dies after you roll about five feet. (you shoulda seen the look on the player's face

)

And as much as he bitched about that bike, despite having the money to get a new one after the first couple runs the player kept the same junk bike for the entire six months of the campaign. The point: junk = good times RPing when done right.

Posted by: eidolon Jan 23 2007, 04:18 PM

Neat system. Looks like it could work (and provide some cool "oh crap" moments in game).

In the past, I usually just presented a vehicle that fit the general description that the player gave (such as "I want a beat up used pickup that's kinda rusty and nondescript" or something) and assigned it "wear" in the form of a box or two of unrepairable damage. But the Gremlins thing is cool so I might have to try it in my next game.

Posted by: Aaron Jan 23 2007, 05:19 PM

My players wanted a cheap step van, so I came up with a quirky van. It's a Bulldog Step Van with no controls, inhabited by a free sprite with agoraphobia. When questioned about where it came from, it responded that "I had a friend for a long time; 6000 milliseconds. Then part of her was overwritten and she crashed." Although my favorite part thus far has been when the team discovered its quirk:

Team Leader: "Okay, take us out into the middle of that golf course."
Van: "No."
Team Leader: "Excuse me what?"

I wish I had cybereyes so I could show you his face.

Anyway, doing it this way requires a bit more advanced planning, but gives the players something to explore (e.g. the van's limits and preferences) and plan around, something to play, if you will (my players aren't just using the van, they're raising it). Of course, there's no reason you can't combine the two (specific quirks, triggered on glitches caused by the Gremlins, for example).

Posted by: Kyoto Kid Jan 23 2007, 08:44 PM

...Yeah, Hurricane Hannah has an old 2062 (pre-crash 2.0) Ford F-350 Club Cab Pickup with the Triton V-10. The paint is faded, dents in a few places, smokes a bit, needs regular attention (she has Mechanic 3 - Wheeled) but usually dependable. As with the aforementioned beater Harley, it was fun to roleplay.

Posted by: sunnyside Jan 23 2007, 09:04 PM

That's certainly easier to handle then all the stress buisness. But how do you actually RP it?

For example if a character takes a gremlins 4 vehicle and they have a decent but not insane dice pool nearly every roll will be a glitch but not a critical one.

Hmmmm. I suppose you could just have an intermitent problem that fires up whenever the glitch comes up. That'd make it easy. And since it'd be regular it would give the vehicle character.

Posted by: Trigger Jan 24 2007, 03:04 AM

Yeah, like the transmission locking up for a second, thus not allowing your car to accelerate as fast as you wanted it to while running from that go gang. Or stalling out at a stop light only to watch another car run the red light coming the other way, thus saving your characters life because the car stalled. It gives the vehicle character and connects your players to the world even more.

Posted by: toturi Jan 24 2007, 03:12 AM

QUOTE (sunnyside)

For example if a character takes a gremlins 4 vehicle and they have a decent but not insane dice pool nearly every roll will be a glitch but not a critical one.

That's why sprites or spirits are your friends.