Giving 4e another go Options

[tete]

I am a long time GM and played Shadowrun since early 2nd edition, my wife hates Shadowrun because of the groups she has played with went very badly. Shes also not a fan of Gibson style cyberpunk but she does like Ghost in the Shell: SAC. I tried to run 4e once but it failed miserably. She has agreed to a one on one session to help me hammer out the rules and her to understand the game better. I have decided to run the mission adventure Parliament of Thieves and she has decided to play the pre-gen smuggler (perhaps with a couple modifications) so I can focus on the rules and she can not get frustrated by character creation (she likes things like Vampire, Warhammer Fantasy RP and other things with "classes" not GURPS)

So my question is what rules do I need to be most aware of for this scenario? Will I need to tone down any parts for 1 starting character to be able to survive? Any other things I need to look out for?

Thx

[paws2sky]

There's at least one encounter that need toned down or played somewhat differently:

[ Spoiler ]

The scene where the PCs are supposed to get stuck in traffic and are confronted by the Yakuza and Triad members. Its one of the bigger fights in the adventure. You'll need to either tone down the opposition (maybe the named NPC plus one mook) or allow her to trick them into fighting each other which she slips away.

On the other hand:

[ Spoiler ]

I'd definitely include the optional scene with the hacker as its mostly a social encounter.

Everything else should pretty much play out as is. As a solo runner, she'll almost certainly want to be as discreet and sneaky as possible. Too bad the Smuggler doesn't actually have a bike...

Spoiler tags included so as to not, you know, spoil it for folks unfamiliar with the scenario. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

-paws

[MaxHunter]

I would definitely give the smuggler a suzuki mirage or something; never mind bps or anything, it's a test run!

Cheers,

Max

[Bashfull]

I'd also recommend the free download scenario from Catalyst, based around the original Stuffer Shack scenario from 1st Ed. If working out mechanics is what you're after, that could be one way to go.

[Aaron]

Item the First: Vampire has classes?

Item the Second: At the risk of tooting my own horn, have you got a copy of the cheat sheets?

[paws2sky]

Item the First: Vampire has classes?

Well... it has Clans and Bloodlines. Which, I suppose are more like races, really... Still, if you meet a typical Brujah or Toreador, its a good bet that whatever stereotype you have about those Clans will prove to be at least partly true.

*shrug*

-paws

[Backgammon]

Ah ha! You see, I'm not completely crazy.

Guess I have to get around to actually doing something about my idea then...

EDIT: just to add to the conversation at hand, you could maybe convert her Smuggler archetype into a magic user, and have her pick from the list of Mentor Spirits.

[tete]

Item the First: Vampire has classes?

Item the Second: At the risk of tooting my own horn, have you got a copy of the cheat sheets?

Clans are basically D&D classes with a few more options. It is not a level based system however. She likes classes not levels.

Which character sheet are you referencing? I do have a SR4 character sheet.

[Aaron]

Which character sheet are you referencing? I do have a SR4 character sheet.

I mean the cheat sheets. They're on my Shadowrun Resources site.

[ArkonC]

Clans are basically D&D classes with a few more options. It is not a level based system however. She likes classes not levels.

Hmmm, clans aren't classes, they make certain things easier to do, but they don't limit you from doing the rest...
But I guess I can understand what you mean...

For her character, you might consider taking one from the redone version somewhere here on the boards, someone else might provide the link, I don't have access to my bookmarks for the moment...

[tete]

Hmmm, clans aren't classes, they make certain things easier to do, but they don't limit you from doing the rest...
But I guess I can understand what you mean...

Not all classes system stop you from doing the rest, D&D 3 allows you to spend skill points and buy feats to customize your character. You can be a wizard in full plate who has the ability to pick locks; just like you can be a Nosferatu with Presence/Majesty and high social skills (both are not great ideas or maybe they are from a strictly roleplaying standpoint)

Some class baised systems
Traveller
Warhammer FRP
Mongoose Runequest
Vampire
Werewolf
Mage
D&D
Burning Wheel

[tete]

I mean the cheat sheets. They're on my Shadowrun Resources site.

Yup the do this then this will come in very handy. THANKS!

[Aaron]

Yup the do this then this will come in very handy. THANKS!

My pleasure. Let me know if there's anything else you'd like to see there.

[ornot]

I ran a solo character through The Parliament of Thieves story, who also used a slightly modified version of the smuggler. It ran through really very nicely indeed without me needing to tweak the adventure at all. I did drop a couple of the later scenes for length, but mostly the smuggler was so good at driving that they outran any and all attackers.

[Ryu]

For her character, you might consider taking one from the redone version somewhere here on the boards, someone else might provide the link, I don't have access to my bookmarks for the moment...

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