Opinions on recent releases..., Are they worth buying, or passing over? Options

[Eindrachen]

Okay. I'm doing the shopping thing, and wanted to know you guys'/gals' opinions.

I've got Magic In The Shadows. It's actually pretty darn good; I've cranked out some rather specific PCs for players with finnicky tastes in magic-types, but without a lot of headache. I also like the Enchanting rules; I can keep the whole team busy for many adventures, just tracking down various substances and whatnot.

What about Rigger 3 (Revised), and Matrix? I'm very, very interested in doing vehicles, and if Matrix makes the new decking stuff more exciting (and easier on me to run), then I would like to find more ways to make decking part of the campaign.

Any other books you guys recommend, or would warn me away from?

[Tanka]

If you feel like being a very evil GM after your players have quite a lot of karma under their belts (Or if you just want to be flat-out mean), I highly suggest Threats 2. The stuff in there gives my GM nightmares, and he does some seriously evil things to us.

[Kanada Ten]

Rigger 3 is "almost" enjoyable from the vehicle construction standpoint. If you're in the mood and have an idea, it can be great. If you're trying to make a craft a day before the game and only have a rough idea on the rules...

My understanding is that VR2 is close enough to Matrix to not "require" purchase should you have the former. That said I've passed over Matrix the last eight book purchases. If my players had interest or I finally got to play, Matrix would rocket up in desired book list.

Now, what exactly do you game for?

I found SotA:63 marvelous though the Keeping the Rabble Out section was mostly review if you have Corporate Security. A definite for Mercenary games. The magic section is nice. I felt the genetech was sparse on actual mods, but the basics are there and hooks up the wazzo. Culture Shock is the best part of this book for normal games, and a fabulous intro section into the SR world.

Dot6W, YotC, SoNA, SotA:63, T2, SSG, T:SH, T:WL, Cyberpirates, CD, T:AL, NS.
In order of love.

[Skeptical Clown]

There are recent releases?

...

Oh, I kill myself.

I basically liked SOTA and Sprawl Survival Guide. Dragons and its accompanying adventure weren't so hot. The other stuff has been out for quite awhile.

[Eindrachen]

[Synner]

A little more info in reverse order of release:

Sprawl Survival Guide is the lifestyle book people have been asking for for ages now. It includes quite a bit of material on both everyday life, life in the shadows and life in other places around the Sixth World.

Dragons of the Sixth World is a take it or leave it book depending if you like this aspect of the SR Universe. However it was written keeping in mind the average player and non-epic campaigns and many of the story hooks (of which there are a lot) are geared so anyone can use them in their games. A must have if you want to know what the Scaly Ones are up to (think of it as a Corporate Download for Dragons....) and much better recieved than I originally expected.

Survival of the Fittest is a globe-hopping campaign which involves most of the major dragons duking it out over something with the players acting as the go betweens and agents of one of the parties involved.

Wake of the Comet three adventure pack set in 2062 and follows the second phase of the Comet Probe Race introduced in YotC.

SotA:63 is the first of the SOTA books which replaces FASA's "themed" rule books. SOTA includes both lots of background and hooks as well as rules updates and "plugins" for a number of things. The 2063 issue includes Genetech, New Magic, Merc Ops, Corporate Security and Culture Shock all of which have both extensive fiction and new gear and mods.

Target: Wastelands is probably not the most useful of books but one of my personal favorites. We get to see what's going on in the extreme environments of the Sixth World: Toxic, Desert, Arctic, Undersea and Space. All of the above include extensive new material and new gear and rules to boot.

Shadows of North America the first in the Shadows of... series of books obviously covers most players backyard, North Am. IMHO it successfully compresses the juice from previous sbs (Tir Tairngire, NAN1, NAN2, Neo-Anarchist's Guide to North Am, Calfree State and Target: UCAS) many of which are no longer available. If you're planning on moving your players around this is a must have.

Threats 2, this follow up to the original Threats is significantly different in several respects. It introduces possible Threats and adversaries for the player characters in a very practical manner (whereas the previous one didn't always do this) and scaled so they can actually be used in a variety of settings and campaigns. Most are completely original, some (notably the Shedim, the Network and Pax) follow on from recent metaplot storylines.

Target: Awakened Lands is another take it or leave it book. 3/4 of the book are actually dedicated to Australia although a number of other places getting passing mention. It also introduces some optional (and relatively rare) magic rules.

YotC a metaplot book that covers a huge number of events taking place during 2061 while Halley's Comet crosses the sky. The variety and volume of plothooks and new developments in huge and the book shakes the foundations of some long established SR elements (notably Imperial Japan and California) as well as introducing completely unique (and controversial) new elements (such as SURGE, Ghostwalker and the Shedim).

Aside from those setting wise Corp Download, Target:Matrix (decking gets a whole new light) and New Seattle are invaluable for setting info. In terms of rules only the holy trinity (Man&Machine, Magic in the Shadows and Cannon Companion) are really necessary. Matrix requires some familiarity with SR3 Matrix rules and builds on them (rather than replaces them) and Rigger 3 (Revised) does the same for Rigging rules. Move on to them only after your familiar with the basics otherwise you risk becoming overwhelmed.

[Squire]

Most of the stuff is actually pretty damn good and rather useful.

The one I really didn't like is the supermunchkin Survival of the Fittest. If you like to have way over the top adventures where you do ten impossible things before breakfast without ever breaking a sweat, meddle in the affairs of great dragons, get the world handed to you on a silver platter and never feel challenged- SOTF is for you.

The rest of us should avoid it like herpies.

I found Dragons of the Sixth World to be pretty useful for GMs.

Sprawl Survival Guide is a great sourcebook for everyone.

Shadows of North America and Target Wastelands are both very usefull location books.

Threats 2 absolutely rocks. Provides lots of plot hooks you can adapt as you see fit for your campaign, or ignore as you see fit. And you can set the power level as necessary. Damn good book.

Target Awakened Lands had massive potential that got lost in the shuffle between FASA and FanPro. Still worth picking up, it's got some useful stuff, it just didn't live up to it's potential.

Year of the Comit has several adventures. A bit on the easy side given their goals, but not too bad, and fairly easily adaptable.

Anyway, those are my opinions.

[Fortune]

[252]

Okay, well I loved Dragons of the Sixth World.

I feel that it throws in a ton of ideas for adventures for any level of character. Because Dragons are like Corporations, they can have channels just as interlinked and chaotic as the Megas.

So like I think it was Synner said, this is "Dragons Download," I think it rocked. Plus it gives a lot of information on the world.

I like YoTC, and I also liked SoNA; both of which seem to interlink the other books and give a ton of updates(if you are an older gamer(I can't believe I'm applying I'm an older gamer.) and have most of the second edition books.) or just flat out gives you a lot of information that you had never had any idea about.

As a player, I use those details. Because I'm the kind of player that tries to actually tries to have a goal. These books can give all sorts of goals for different characters.

[Squire]

[KosherPickle]

[TinkerGnome]

Provided you already have the basics (Man and Machine, Cannon Companion, etc), what you get after that should depend on what your PCs are interested in. I wouldn't try to run a rigger without access to Rigger 3 (revised for preference) or a decker without Matrix. Both books are very useful in expanding section sof the main rulebook which aren't really that well defined or playable.

After that, you probably want SOTA, SONA, and SSG. All three are nearly invaluable for setting info (SSG, SONA) or expanded gear and rules (SOTA's carrying equpment and security rules).

[Jérémie]

SOTA 63 isn't *near* 'invaluable' state. Corporate Download, Magic in the Shadows, SSG may be there.

[TinkerGnome]

If you don't have the Corporate Security Handbook, the expanded maglock and other security system rules are well worth having if you ever do runs approaching the "typical shadowrun". Of course, I also believe that most of the good stuff in SOTA should have been in the main book, anyway (carrying gear and security equipment stuff).

[BIG BAD BEESTE]

Hmmm, Ok if you're going to be GMing then Rigger 3 and Matrix are useful, not only for the new rules and toys(you know how players get when they see a gear list and have nuyen to spare), but for the background information of how each of those "areas" interacts within the Sixth World. Yup, its the first chapter or so that gives you the GM a lot of relevant information about how to handle the technology and how it has changed and been integrated into mainstream society. Having the lowdown on this stuff is quite eye-opening and essential if you wnat to round out the whole futuristic atmosphere.

Just make sure you're players are introduced to the concepts too. There's nothing worse than them not knowing about how the world works adn then getting stuck in an obvious encounter that they should have avoided. IE: Thinking that they can just drive out of Seattle without passports and NAN visas, all because they didn't understand the status of the Metroplex as an enclave. (Hey, I was young and it sort of skipped my mind to tell them). Its the same with technology - just think of what you can do today with the Internet that you would have thought impossible twenty years ago. Sprawl Survival Guide also has a good section on this sort of thing too, but centred on the everyday lifestyle of the modern metahuman in 2060. Interesting and useful reading.