Using Street Magic in Missions, Custom Spell Design? Options

[the_dunner]

Here's a quick preview of the key part of an article that will be appearing in the (now late) July 2006 issue of Commando Quarterly.
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The vast majority of the book is available to Shadowrun Missions characters, as soon as players purchase it. This includes all of the new traditions, adept powers, mentor spirits, metamagics, qualities, skills and spells. Of course, existing characters cannot switch their tradition or mentor spirit, but new characters are welcome to use those. The bad news is that GMs are encouraged to also use the new Focus Addiction and Geasa rules.

There are two key items that aren’t well suited to a worldwide campaign, and those have to be noted. GMs who are using Missions for their home campaigns have the right to do as they wish. However, if a character is to remain portable for convention play, these need to be excluded.

1. Shadowrun Missions characters cannot use any of the NPC traditions or metamagics outlined in the Magical Threats chapter. Those abilities just aren’t designed for balanced PCs, especially in a worldwide campaign with different GMs.
2. For now, we will not be implementing the spell design rules for PC use. There’s simply too much room for GM interpretation to allow us to give PCs that much leeway. However, if folks propose new spells on the Dumpshock Shadowrun Missions forums, we may include a list of additional Shadowrun Missions spells in a future issue of Commando Quarterly. All such spells will be subject to review by the Shadowrun Missions writing team.
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If you'd like to design a new spell for your Missions character to use, this is as good a place as any to post it. :)