Sports in SR? Options

[Hunter_Maddox]

Oi!,

I don't have ready access to SR but will be playing in a local game starting today.I was wondering what sports "real world" & fantasy sports are common in the SR universe ? I'm especially interested in Football (the REAL football NOT American rules),Rugby & Australian rules Footie.Any help is appreciated.Plus any info on how technology (Cybernetics) effect the game.Thanx,
Hunter Maddox

[Steampunk]

The old "Shadowbeat" covered most of it, at least for the 2050s. Unfortunatly, BattleCorps doesn't have it as .pdf.

[sunnyside]

I forget the details. Some sports allow heavy cyber and some make you run off the rack. They also vary on if they allow awakened or metas in I believe.


New sports on the scene are:

Combat Bikers. A bit like roller derby on motorcycles as I recall.

That ancient aztec ball sports. Ok that's technically old, but it's back and bloody. Lots of adepts in there.


Urban Brawl It's a bit like playing capture the flag, but "real" The rules were actually pretty elaborate and well thought out. You could actually have your players do a game, especially under SR4 rules where you tend to get knocked unconsious instead of dead. And if you google around you can find the rules. The only trick is that it'd take too long to run a whole game using SR rules. So you'd have to only have the players in for a play or two.

It'd make a fair video game though.

[Hatspur]

If you're looking on teams from the PL, the London Sourcebook is a pretty good source (even though it isn't canon, and one useless hacker saw fit to plug Man U like the cheeky little ***'s need it). It lists all the major teams from League two and up. My beloved Spurs are still around.

The biggest thing with footy is that metas, magic, and cyber are NOT allowed at all. Which makes sense given a keeper with Wired refelxes 3 or a Striker with two decked out cyberlegs. Only the pure may still play the game at a professional level.

Keep in mind that large parts of Denmark and Amsterdam are under water/toxic sludge so large parts of the Eredivisie and superliga are missing. I believe the German Bundesliga is organized differently (as far as I'm concerned Berlin is still a free city).

[CanRay]

Formula-1 allows modifications to drivers. NASCAR doesn't.

This is a major plot point to one of my characters, Nas.

[sunnyside]

Formula-1 allows modifications to drivers. NASCAR doesn't.

This is a major plot point to one of my characters, Nas.

I think the spelling is a little different. But still, with a name like that a character should really have "god givin @$$"

[Riley37]

Here's a PC background story that involves Urban Brawl. The PC is a high-physical-stat Troll with lots of Gymnatics (Jumping), Running (Sprinting) and Unarmed Combat (Grapple). Also has basic driving skills and a control rig; those plus high Reaction make him a passable getaway driver.

James Fletcher was a skinny lad, but quick and bright. He claimed disdain of his "jock" peers, but was secretly envious of their size, their confidence, and their popularity with girls. He wished that he could be big and strong... even if only for a day.
When the day came, he began to understand the saying "Be careful what you wish for, because you might get it." At first it was a growth spurt and a series of mood swings; his parents suspected steroid abuse and sent him for a physical exam. They had a hard time handling the diagnosis of UGE. They kept him in mainstream school as long as they could, long enough for him to get a GED, a dateless prom, a lot of hostile-but-scared glares from the jocks, and a lesson in which friendships ran deep. The size advantages weren't so much fun given that Security was watching him for the slightest shove in the hallways, and he wasn't eligible for the sports teams. Within a year he jumped, or was pushed, off the fast track.
James chose one of the riskier pursuits his new size enabled: Urban Brawling. He quickly learned the rules, the ways to break them, and how to take full advantage of his physical gifts. Once he captured the flag, the other team had few ways to get it back. He got sponsored by an Evo subsidiary, under the handle "Juggernaught". This gave him the cash to enhance his already-impressive athleticism with muscle replacement and a reflex booster. He even became an Evo citizen/stakeholder, with a SIN under the name Jim Martin. (Although properly issued, it is illegimate in that Evo would revoke it if they knew he also had a SIN issued by NeoNET. Fortunately, the biometrics of his NeoNET SIN have little resemblance to his adult physique.) He understood that he was being exploited as a source of ticket sales, ad revenues, and endorsements. He lived by Machiavelli's dictum that if you can't be both loved and feared, settle for being feared. It was, for a time, enough.
Jim came to understand that the luckiest Brawlers aren't always the ones who make it to stardom and sponsorship. The luckiest are those who leave before they are killed, crippled, addicted to stims, addicted to painkillers... or addicted to victory, which also leads to desperation. For a year, he watched himself ascend towards burnout, because he just didn't see any other options.
It was driving that saved him. One of his teammates, a member of the Bad Bones Bike Brigade, invited the Jug along on a road trip. The offer of friendship beyond the field and locker room was the true miracle. The wind in his hair, though, the purr of the motor, the grip of the controls, all reminded him of something he'd thought long lost. Jim brushed up on his wrench skillset, became the Bad Bones mechanic, eventually an honorary BB member, and started saving up for a troll-sized hog. Frag it - why settle for less - a troll-sized, rig-enabled hog!

[CanRay]

I think the spelling is a little different. But still, with a name like that a character should really have "god givin @$$"

???

[Snow_Fox]

baseball, football and basket ball are still big with various lelvels of cyber for muscle tone and augmentation. 'smart ball' technology and limb extentions. there's a gentlemen'sd agremeent between teams no to hire too many orks or trolls for football.

Elves tall builds help in basket ball, but same idea.

Dwarves lose out on the majors.

It's not cannonical but with the return of NAN cutrlure i would htink horse sports-racing, steeples chaces and polo would be big. In SB London they talk about protestors ambushing fox hunters so that blood sport is still going on in the UK so Fox chasing it probably still going on in the CAS.

Martial arts sports would still be big and with the rise of the Japanocorps Sumo might be doing very well. Big ol' red necks might like it if they didn't "have to where them funny diapers" As I think on that, with the Japanese dislike of Orks and Trolls Sumo might work well for 'big' people looking to hide. An ork or troll who could pass for human might use it as a way to blend in.

Kendo has a spiritual element that never made itinto western fencing so that would probably also do well.

[CanRay]

And let us not forget the illegally broadcast shows of Aztlan Blood Sports, and Court Ball (Where the Captain of the Winning Team DIES before the year is out!).

And, my personal favourite, DESERT WARS!

GO BLACK DEVILS!

[Rasumichin]

The Olympics are also still around and disallow cyber and magic as well.
In fact, adepts are banned from a lot of pro sports except for urban brawl, combat biker and the American major leagues (and even there, adepts are allowed absolutely no cyber at all, to even the odds for mundanes).

The old Germany SB also covered hoverball, which was like combat biking on jetskis.

[DWC]

SOTA:2064 also had some tidbits on sports, most notably the update concerning Formula 1 adding weapons to the cars.

[ravensmuse]

SOTA:2064 also had some tidbits on sports, most notably the update concerning Formula 1 adding weapons to the cars.

...like they need it.

And baseball still exists, as does the Yankee / Red Sox rivalry. Thank you System Failure!

(looks like the Yanks are still whiny overpaid babies though (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) )

[CanRay]

"Wolf and Raven" explained a lot about Baseball as well.

I like what the author suggested. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Snow_Fox]

That was a weird cyberized variant that I can't see existing to replace main line baseball. it's the one serious misstep from that writer.

And let us not forget the illegally broadcast shows of Aztlan Blood Sports, and Court Ball (Where the Captain of the Winning Team DIES before the year is out!).

That is so unfair. That is just a conincidence. a terrible tradegy that has befallen national sports heros that the liberal media has made an unfair claim against witho ut any supporting evidence at all!

[Kronk2]

Combat sports would be big. I like the idea of Racing Rays from Mark L Van Name. Basically they are genecrafted racing machines. Think Horse racing combined with This Also Rocket racing rocket planes racing, and they would have NO problem with adepts and rigged pilots.

and for the budget impared Micro race cars. basically rigged ultra high performance race cars. From the driver's point of view its the same as running full scale, from the sponsor's, its MUCH less expensive. (say 100k for the entire team, not just the engine.) And this means that the drivers are MUCH more aggressive.

[CanRay]

Drone Football! Either type of Football! With GUNS!

[Daddy's Litt...]

I know the books say combat sports are big, but I think in real life they would not work out. It is a world full of violence and security. I think seeing it as a sport as well as the evening news would be too much. People want to get away from the violence. A ball game in the park is going to be more popular than a shoot up by gangs on the 6 O'clock news followed by a shoot up between teams on Wide World of Sports at 8.

[CanRay]

Ah, but you forget the tastes of The Mob, and their lust for Blood!

It's a violent world in a lot of cities, yet Pay-Per-View Boxing is still big business!

Not to mention Hockey, but the US Players keep whining and trying to sissify the sport. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif)

[ravensmuse]

Ah, but you forget the tastes of The Mob, and their lust for Blood!

It's a violent world in a lot of cities, yet Pay-Per-View Boxing is still big business!

Not to mention Hockey, but the US Players keep whining and trying to sissify the sport. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif)

Spoken like a true Canadian. Next you'll be trying to "fix" American football.

(Note: I have no real knowledge of either hockey or football. I'm more a racing / baseball / bicycling guy)

[CanRay]

Damn stright! Hockey used to be a Masculine sport! Now it's almost like figure skating!

And I won't even go into the idea of the glowing puck! I'm sorry, it's black, on white ice. If you can't see it, it's time for glasses!

As for fixing American Football... I don't think there is a way to do that. Might as well tear it down and start from scratch. I suggest that when the next aircraft carrier is retired, it be turned into the first US Football Field!

[Hunter_Maddox]

Thanx for the imput. I'll read more in depth what I can.I'd still like to know about Rugby, Real Football aka Soccer for us yanks & Aussie Footy .

[Hatspur]

Kendo has a spiritual element that never made it into western fencing so that would probably also do well.

Having been a Western fencer for 8 years, the spiritual element is definetly there although it lacks the incredible amount of (required) screaming. The image of the foppish duelist who fights with his words more than his blade is not really what fencing is all about. It literally is the art of stabbing or slashing someone and it requires lots of the "Zen" mindset.

[CanRay]

Hmmmmmmmmmmm... Zen Combat Cycle...

[Chrysalis]

Combat sports are probably the most mediafied sports, but I suspect that if you go to a village anywhere south of the U.S. border everyone will be playing football. I suspect that assisted cybernetics are allowed, no more problems of having your star player out of the field for a year while the knee heals.

Polo, cricket, rugby, football, ice hockey, and gridiron will be still your big crowd pleasers.

Formula 1 has a ruling from 1984 barring all computer assisted methods in racing. Considering that a formula 1 car costs in the range of 20 million dollars including evolution phase of that model of car I really do not see them being outfitted with weapons. Demolition derbys are for guns and cheap beer. Not 50 caliber machineguns on the Monaco course thankyouverymuch.

I think that baseball will have big issues with illegal cybernetic enhancements more than with game fixing.