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 SOTA 2063 and 2064, How good are they |
 Jun 14 2006, 04:12 PM
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#26
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Manus Celer Dei  Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 16,898 Joined: 30-December 02 From: Boston Member No.: 3,802  |
I dearly hope not. Maybe every five years or so they could publish one, but a new SOTA book every year (or even every two) is an instant recipe for power creep.
Hm. Though I guess it doesn't matter for me anymore. Still weird realizing that. ~J |
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Jun 14 2006, 04:15 PM
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#27
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Prime Runner Group: Retired Admins Posts: 3,929 Joined: 26-February 02 From: .ca Member No.: 51 |
I wouldn't expect to see another SOTA book for a couple years, but there's been nothing official said about whether they'll continue being published or not.
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Jun 14 2006, 04:45 PM
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#28
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...being a lover of intrigue, I used what I could apply and had to basically hack out the details. As mentioned in previous posts my Rhapsody arc had a good deal of espionage flavour and required a delicate (stealthy) approach to many situations in what was a potential international powderkeg. Consider, an adept with Facial Sculpt, Menalin Control, Voice Control, Linguist, Cool Resolve, & Kinesics. Next give them Disguise skill, some minor implants (1 power point worth) such as Induction Datajack, Transducer, a little headware memory, and maybe some visual or hearing mods, then have the tools of their trade disguised as everyday common items. On top of this give them a heap of Language skills, a generalised Etiquette, with some social based knowledge skills, the Friends Abroad and Friendly Face Edges. You have a pretty good covert operative. |
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Jun 14 2006, 07:08 PM
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#29
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
hahahaha You just described my Social Adept's best friend sans the cyber. Except you forgot to add "…plus 20 years of experience in espionage and counterintelligence field work for the CIA and Knight Errant."
The drugs rules suck, and have always sucked. I'd be very happy for them to stay as far from them as possible. As for intelligence-gathering, they wouldn't be needed if the social skills got more than a page and a half of barely-complete rules. |
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Jun 14 2006, 09:04 PM
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#30
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...actually this was off the top of the head from one of the NPCs I had in the scenario I ran. This character also had extensive experience in espionage and psychological warfare. I agree, the active social (and social knowledge) skills need better detail. When you look at it, these are what basically allow an operative to blend in to the woodwork so to say. My Fallen Angel character that I ran a while back, while not an adept, was also very heavy on the Social, Cultural and Linguistic skills. She also had a boatload of contacts along with the Friends in High Places, Good Rep and Friendly Face edges. She also had a lot of fun spy toys designed using the concealing items rules. |
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Jun 14 2006, 09:16 PM
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#31
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ghostrider Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,196 Joined: 16-May 04 Member No.: 6,333 |
He meant the pdf file. I guess the need to snark overpowered your reasoning faculties? ;) It happens to the best of us. Oh, and Kage, nothing says the SoTA stuff has to exist in your game. That said, one a year might be a bit excessive. Besides, it won't matter that much to anyone that's sticking with 3rd. I suppose if they're fluff heavy one could always convert the stats, but it's likely more trouble than it's worth. |
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Jun 14 2006, 10:13 PM
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#32
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
No, actually I saw the word excerpt and the idea of it referring to the PDF did not even occur to me.
That said, the PDF isn't from anywhere. The book and chapter, if you look carefully, don't exist. It's an illusion, and apparently a pretty good one. |
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Jun 14 2006, 11:03 PM
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#33
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 174 Joined: 21-May 06 Member No.: 8,583 |
I personally preferred the bioware section of SOTA '63 and the Old World Magic section of SOTA '64.
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Jun 14 2006, 11:42 PM
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#34
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ghostrider Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,196 Joined: 16-May 04 Member No.: 6,333 |
That illusion looks pretty good. I haven't had time to read it completely, but the layout and such is damn nice.
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Jun 15 2006, 12:08 AM
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#35
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Manus Celer Dei Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 16,898 Joined: 30-December 02 From: Boston Member No.: 3,802 |
Actually, something might very well say that everything in every SotA book published has to exist in my game. That's because, contrary to appearances, I don't always GM when I play. And new players? Do you expect them to immediately know to forbid all new SotA books? ~J |
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Jun 15 2006, 01:01 AM
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#36
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,379 Joined: 16-April 02 From: the LI shadows Member No.: 2,607 |
Yes, that's what I meant about the PDF. |
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Jun 15 2006, 03:52 AM
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#37
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ghostrider Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,196 Joined: 16-May 04 Member No.: 6,333 |
Everything you mention is up to the GM to regulate. If all of it is available, and you're playing, then why would it be a big deal? It's not up to you to keep track of all of it at that point, it's up to the GM. And if as a player it still bothers you that much, walk. New players? Why would a new player not know ahead of making his or her character what books were or weren't available? Unless the GM isn't going his/her job, that isn't likely to happen. If you're GMing, and you want to ban the SoTA books, that's your call, but it's up to you to make that known. |
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Jun 15 2006, 05:21 AM
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#38
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Manus Celer Dei Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 16,898 Joined: 30-December 02 From: Boston Member No.: 3,802 |
Did you just stop reading or something?
Unless, just maybe, the GM is a new player? Hint: I'm not talking about my group. I mean, sure, you can ban all the power-creep-inducing books, but it makes a piss-poor advertisement to say to new players "you should really try this game, but make sure you don't let your players use anything from SotAs 2066-2069." ~J |
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Jun 15 2006, 06:02 AM
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#39
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
It better be considering that it took me 10x as long to make it look good as it did to write the article (30-40 minutes for the text, 3.5 hrs for the layout). |
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Jun 15 2006, 06:04 AM
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#40
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 308 Joined: 1-June 06 From: Nova Scotia, Canada Member No.: 8,631 |
From what I read in the rulebooks, a standard Shadowrun in the essence of Shadowrunners would be like the A-Team for example. The Secret Ops stuff, yes it can add flavor, sort of like the way with the two xXx movies or even the Dragonheart saga and such. I'm not saying it was out of place in the way that it shouldn't have been there, as the previous line said it gives more flavor for the game. |
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Jun 15 2006, 06:28 AM
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#41
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ghostrider Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,196 Joined: 16-May 04 Member No.: 6,333 |
Ha. Which one of us is missing the point exactly? You aren't in those groups. It doesn't matter to you. And a new player is GMing? You think SoTA is the biggest worry a new GM has? That's rich. Maybe they could put a warning label in the front cover:
Warning, there are other books with other rules that are compatible with this game. Kagetenshi would like to make sure that you know that as GM, you are allowed to allow or disallow whatever you'd like in your game. We know we state this pretty much explicitly in every RPG ever made, but he didn't think you'd catch on. Ooh. Or maybe they could just avoid publishing anything other than the BBB? That would solve "power creep" pretty nicely wouldn't it? And think of how many new games there would be to choose from if all of the designers and authors could only make one book per game! All I'm saying is it seems that you're the one with SoTA issues. Your not wanting "power creep" seems a silly reason not to continue a nifty series of books. |
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Jun 15 2006, 07:51 PM
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#42
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Incertum est quo loco te mors expectet; Group: Dumpshocked Posts: 6,546 Joined: 24-October 03 From: DeeCee, U.S. Member No.: 5,760 |
Speaking for myself, I can agree with kage that power creep is a genuine concern. On the flip side, the main shadowrun books have a fairly narrow focus unfortunately. As I've said, espionage is largely ignored, which has always upset me. The SOTA books gives them a chance to write books that expand the Shadowrun universe in a particular area - international travel and rings, espionage, politics, law enforcement, etc. without having to build an entire book JUST on that topic. That I do enjoy.
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Jun 15 2006, 08:34 PM
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#43
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ghostrider Group: Retired Admins Posts: 4,196 Joined: 16-May 04 Member No.: 6,333 |
That's one of my favorite things about them. The topics have done nothing but expand our knowledge of the world that's already there, in a way. A lot of it is the type of stuff that probably won't/wouldn't come up unless you were specifically running a game that dealt with it directly (espionage, etc.).
On "power creep" though, I don't really see any one thing upping the power level any more than another. If a character has genetech, another has cyber, and another has bio. All of it pales in comparison to a decently powered mage anyway ;). |
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Jun 15 2006, 10:05 PM
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#44
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
Indeed. One of these days there may actually be something official written about how it works beyond ZOMG TEH TOYS!!11!!!LOL!11!!11 |
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Jun 16 2006, 12:33 AM
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#45
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Midnight Toker Group: Members Posts: 7,686 Joined: 4-July 04 From: Zombie Drop Bear Santa's Workshop Member No.: 6,456 |
Or you could have a magician adept with genetech, trauma dampner, a litle bit of cyber and the Virtuoso Metamagic. RPG power creep doesn't come from new options on their own. RPG power creep comes from combining new options with those that already exist in ways that the writers did not think of at the time. |
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Jun 16 2006, 12:43 AM
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#46
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,379 Joined: 16-April 02 From: the LI shadows Member No.: 2,607 |
OK, so where is the PDF excerpt from???
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Jun 16 2006, 03:20 AM
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#47
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
It's not from anywhere.
I wrote it myself. I then ripped off the layout design by photoshopping the header from my Loose Alliances PDF, figured out how to duplicate the footer, had the arrow buttons for the comments made for my own use years ago and applied those, and then used FrizQuadrata for the font before I saved it as a PDF in Word. Like I said. It took me about 3-3.5 hours for the layout. The actual content pretty much wrote itself in about 30 minutes, plus another 15 to get the tone of the comments right since most of the posters are other peoples' PCs. |
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Jun 16 2006, 06:59 AM
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#48
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,379 Joined: 16-April 02 From: the LI shadows Member No.: 2,607 |
NICE job, SL James. The works had me fooled completely, & I'm not easy to fool. I'm adding it to my hardcopy files. :ok: 8)
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Jun 16 2006, 10:05 AM
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#49
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Shadowrun Setting Nerd Group: Banned Posts: 3,632 Joined: 28-June 05 From: Pissing on pedestrians from my electronic ivory tower. Member No.: 7,473 |
I just wish I didn't have to write it.
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Jun 16 2006, 03:42 PM
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#50
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,379 Joined: 16-April 02 From: the LI shadows Member No.: 2,607 |
But you did excellent work. Be proud of that, at least.
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