GMing SR for the first time., Any advice? Options

[Jack Kain]

I'm going to take my hand at GMing shadow run for the first time (4th edition).
Everyone in my gaming group is rather new to the shadow run game, Only been playing it for a couple of months now.
I'm thinking of putting my game in Seattle for three reasons.
We already have a shadow run game going on in Denver, the GM is using the fanpro missions. If I go through with GMing it will give him a chance to play shadow run for the first time instead of GMing.
Second I have runner's haven.
And third I still play the sega genesis shadow run game.

I'm thinking of "centering" my campaign around the team working for a Mysterious Mr. Johnson known only as Al. Though they will still get work from other sources.
Al is not an A.I though I'm sure my group will come to that conclusion at some point. He is however an elite hacker.

An example run could be the team is sent to break into the XYZ corp and steal a package. A standard B&E. But as a twist they are also droping off a secret package. A tap that would be used to help get around things like Wi-Fi Negation, the low-signal rating method etc.
One thing I'm sure the party will question in that type of run. Is the package intended for Al? or someone who hired Al. Or was the package just a smoke screen to keep the tap a secret longer.
The paydata runs would be little in run bonus or come from seperate Johnsons.
They'd never meet Al in person he'd contact them via drones in out of the way locations.

Al's backround will remain mostly a mystery but these are things they may be able to pry out of him.

Al was born in 2011 and was one of many elves born during the UGE. At 63 years old Al has been calling himself a hacker for the past 50 years. He survived the Crash Virus of 2029 and the Matrix crash of 2064. Al has the greatest kind of fame a shadowrunner can have. That of an urban legend, many know of him few know he exists, and with hundreds of poseur pretending to be Al. Its likly that Al will keep hacking until a future matrix crash frys his brain.

[Fortune]

Sounds fine. Exactly what kind of advice are you after?


As an aside, this thread would probably be better served if it was located in one of the actual Shadowrun Forums. This one is mainly used for forum games themselvees, and as such have a smaller traffic flow. It's possible that one of the Admins will move it to a more appropriate Forum though. ;)

[Jack Kain]

[nezumi]

Make sure you are comfortable with the rules before you start. With SR3, I'd recommend dropping magic, decking and rigging until you're comfortable with everything else, but SR4 is a little simplier, having a single die mechanic. Regardless, make sure you feel comfortable with the rules. Make sure the players know your word is law, so even if you are wrong, your word is law (period). Rules lawyering can wait 'til after the game.

[Fortune]

[Fortune]

[eidolon]

Topic moved to SR4 for more exposure. Thanks, Fortune, for the heads up.

[Paul]

Do:

• Have fun. That's the ultimate goal right? so nothing else matters as long as you guys have fun. Believe me it's easy to forget.
• ...not be afraid to stop the game, and think. Strategic placed breaks give you time to go "Oh crap, how do I deal with this?"
• Hide your die rolls. Not because you want to cheat or make them think you are, but because it helps you send the message that dice aren't the important part of the game. It also serves the secondary purpose of cheating, which can go either way-for the players, if you think they need it, or against them if you think it's necessary.
• Be consistent. If you make one guy do it, make them all. Don't make rule changes in mid game, just save it for the next one.
• Take notes. Write down what they do, you never know when it might come in handy.

Don't:

• Make the game more complicated than it needs to be. If you guys use one rule in five, and still have fun, then so what? If your goal is to eventually use them all, add stuff each session.
• Rail road the players. If they throw a wrench into the middle of your finely tuned machine, so what? It's their game too right? roll with the punches, and save what you made for another time, which might come sooner rather than later.
• ...be afraid to kill a player character. It happens.
• ...be afraid to cheat to not kill a player character-after all dead men tell no tales. Have them raped, captured, humiliated, beaten, or what not.

I won't offer much more than to be honest. It's not everything or even the most important things, just some ideas for to mull over.

[BookWyrm]

I agree with Paul, but also add this: Be Patient with your players, but also Be Calm. If a player gets upset over what happens to their character, have everyone take a break & cool down.

[Paul]

Communication is our stock and trade as Gamer's. Remember when communicating with people:

• Keep an open approachable posture.
• Ask leading questions. Why are you angry? How did that happen? What can I do to help?
• Remember that communicating in a clear concise manner is important, don't make the conversation an intellectual debate.
• Don't be afraid to take it outside, away from others to talk. A little break to save face is never a bad thing.

[Jack Kain]

Oh I know to hide my dice rolls! I learned that from DMing D&D for the past 10 years. Can't let the PC's know how skilled there enemy is. The thing is shadowrun is a whole new ball game from D&D in terms of style of adventures.
I actually have an SR4 dice roller on my laptop, it shows the results of each d6 and orders them from highest to lowest. Tells me if there is a glitch or critical glitch. Should really speed things up on my end when dealing with 3 or 4 enemies at once.

[Mintro]

roll dice at random to keep your players paranoid...

smile at them them, from time to tiem even if nothing is going on

keep it simple for now dont make things overcomplex in the begining

and remember midgets are people too

[knasser]

Role-play like a mad bastard. Lots of wild descriptions, vivid NPCs, do accents and the occasional squinting hunchback.

Look - it's easier to start crazy and turn it down, than it is to begin boring and get interesting.