Twisted Mages, worse than hired killers?, Ham-fisted morality in Street Magic... Options

[Rad]

I just picked up a copy of Street Magic today. I loved every part that I read--until I got to the section on The Dark Paths.

I could almost understand the D&D-esque "Player-Characters can't be evil, but your gamemaster can always change the rules, wink wink" bit. Role-playing games get a lot of crap from conservative nutcases who see them as recruiting tools for Satan--so it makes sense to dodge some fire with a "we don't advocate evil" disclaimer, even if it does seem a little thin in a game where you're playing professional criminals.

What really pisses me off though, is the spew of blantantly BS propaganda that fills the chapter on twisted magicians. The writers are bending over so far for conservatives who would never play the game anyway, that they need to sustain a levitate spell to keep from sitting on their heads!

...

You have no idea how many times I had to edit that sentence to stay in keeping with the TOS. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohplease.gif)

My problem is this: This is Shadowrun! The closest thing to a "good guy" is a character who doesn't stab his friends in the back--in their sleep--if he can absolutely help it.

Look at the sample characters in SR4: You have a mob enforcer, an eco-terrorist, (with 10 kilos of high-explosives) and a ganger who's first description line calls him an "urban predator!"

If these guys were awakened, they'd be twisted at least.

That's not even counting the Combat Mage, Gunslinger Adept, and Street Samurai, whose job description boils down to: "Kill people for fun and profit." Even if they're not hired specificly to assasinate someone, their purpose on the team is still to frag gaurds and otherwise use violence to aid in the comission of a crime.

I guess the part that pisses me off the most is the sidebar on page 138.

...Though not as deranged as toxic magicians, the twisted typically exhibit strong asocial tendencies, socio- or psychotic behavior, and varying degrees of schizophrenia. Most twisted are contemptuous of and disaffected by society's rules, values, and morality, and do not balk at crimes such as murder, rape, or defilement.

Emphasis mine. What pisses me off is that they're basicly describing all shadowrunners with the italicised statement, and parts of it could apply to the people who play shadowrun as well. I didn't realize being contemptuous and disaffected by society's rules made me a schizophrenic psycho, though I've heard a few prozac salesmen argue that point.

(I've also read an article in National Geographic that described love as a mental disorder best treated with prozac--incidentally one of their frequent sponsors--hence my contempt for society.)

...For example, blood magic is a ruthless practice that involves the cold-blooded murder of a living creature for fleeting empowerment. It is the kind of heinous act only a completely callous, unscrupulous, or highly-disturbed individual might mommit. Despite some runner's reputations, such activities are not conductive to a long career and acceptance in the shadows...

Right. So the Street Sam who slices a corpsec guard to gain access to a facility is just your average Joe, while the mage who slices the guard and then uses his blood to resist drain on an invisibility spell is unscrupulous and disturbed?

I mean, killing a guy is one thing, but having his death serve an actual purpose besides just getting him out of your way? That's messed up, man.

It's interesting to see the devs displaying the same prejudice and fear towards the awakened that they warn us about in earlier chapters.

...Additionally, the twisted gain acess to obscure arts and unique metamagic techniques that can be potentially unbalancing in a player's hands; gamemasters should carefully consider before allowing them into a game...

Ah, so now we come to it. Two pages of prejudice, character assasinaton, and bullshit, just to get to the fact that twisted magicians are potentially unbalanced as player characters. Why not just say that, like you did in Augmentation with Jarheads and cyberzombies, instead of insulting everyone who plays the game?

By this book's definition, I am twisted. And if I was awakened, I'd be trying to use my copy of Street Magic as a sympathetic link to sling some really nasty ritual mojo at the devs intead of bitching about it on the forums.

Hell, with the new spell creation rules, I could probably make some really good ones. "Jock Itch of Insanity" anyone?

[edit]

Fixed the post, apparently it got cut off for some reason.

Also, after reading the section on toxic mages, I'm probably closer to the toxic Havoc agenda than just twisted. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)