Docwagon, Discussion about Docwagon Options

[BitBasher]

Nezuni is ultimately right, It's all up to the way your GM runs it. Whatever works for your game :D

[fourstring_samur...]

what source book has the SIN ratings in it?

after reading this thread, i'm thinking of implementing a new system in my game,
requiring the players to have a SIN rating of X to qualify for Contract rating Y.

[MrSandman666]

Well, as to whether it's better to be alive and arrested than dead and free is another discussion all in itself. Considering how LoneStar is rumoured to handle SINless inmates I would probably rather be dead. And life with a criminal SIN isn't exactly fun either, however that is a problem that can be solved...

Unfortunately I don't own NAGTRL or know anyone who does so I can't read this section. The only section I know about that contains material about DocWagon is the BBB, but I have a flaky memory so I might just have forgotten. If there's any reference in the newer 3rd Edition source books that I have missed, please do point me at it.

I agree that they are not a small corp that bends to any demands because they have to. I'm just saying they're cooperating in order to not damage their business and drop from AA status to mere multinational because they don't get support from other corps, because the Big 10 start picking on it, because government don't allow them to operate on their grounds (which would be a heavy hit). Let alone all the customers running away when they hear how DocWagon nurishes crime by healing and sheltering known criminals. And these headlines will most definately be in he news as soon as anybody hears about this.

A runner gets shot during a B&E run in a Mitsuhama facility. They manage to escape, of course with Mitsuhama security on their heels. They are taken away by a DocWagon van, causing Mitsuhama to call DocWagon, asking for them to turn the runner over. They refuse. Mitsuhama gets angry and decides to teach this cocky AA a lesson and turns to the press, saying how they managed to prevent a terrorist attack but terrorist is now sheltered by DocWagon. This news will be around the planet in a matter of hours. Let this happen two or three times and consumers are going to start cancelling their contracts by the thousands. DocWagon isn't going to like this. So, whenever somebody wants to have you, they will get you. Or the tissue sample.
It's simply a matter of strategy, not of power or anything.
Of course, if you pay them enough money to remain quiet they will do so. Until someone asks for you.
And most CEOs might be inolved in white collar crimes but those are usually the kinds you don't carry around with you. They are corporate politics crimes. Well, if they are in bad luck they might get shot when coming back from their BTL dealer or something. But what's the chance of that?

Of course, it's ultimately up the GM how to handle this. This is just my way to handle it in my games.

[Fahr]

my .02

some of these arguments are relying on an aspect of capitalism that may not apply here. DocWagon is the biggest most widespread hospital and EMS service that there is. even if they are doing things that are downright illegal, as joe wageslave, are you going to refuse your company provided docwagon contract because you think they are harboring criminals?

what about the people in lower strata, do you think they are gonna cancel cause the Doc kept the star off some criminals back? no way! they are much more likely to GET a contract cause DocW is not turning them in.

as for CEOs and such, they would just as soon not be given to other enemy corps cause the pressure was on..

No from a press perspective, harbouring criminals might actually benefit DocWagons bottom line.

and that ignores all the prople with no choice at all, where it's either DocW or nothing, who is going to choose nothing? They are effectively a monopoly in many places.
Additionally, If you are top Exec at Mitshuma, and you piss of the DocW people, they have YOUR ritual sample most likely too, and wouldn't it be shame if it fell into the wrong hands because you don't like DocWagons privacy policies.... Just cause they offer medical services doesn't mean they don't hire runners on there own to deal with just the sort of press you are talking about.

-Mike R.

[Solstice]

[RedmondLarry]

Solstice, the words you're looking for are Combat Pool dice used for Dodge Test. And a samurai that loses a Surprise Test in an ambush situation to a street punk doen't get to use Combat Pool when shot by that punk. Bullets do find targets, sometimes even in the best runners. DocWagon/Street Docs do have their uses.

[Sunday_Gamer]

[MrSandman666]

Those situations make playing Shadowrun worthwhile! :D

About where I got the stuff with the audible alarm and tracker device from: as I stated above I got it from the Basic Shadowrun Rulebook (BBB or Big Black Book) page 304. However, I did miss the point that this is only true for super-platinum contracts. Everything below that doesn't have a tracker or an alarm.

[RedmondLarry]

In our campaign, DocWagon doesn't care what country you are a citizen of, why you are in town, or whether you have a Passport, Visa, or SIN. Like the phone company, it doesn't turn away anyone who wants to give it money up front for services that may or may not be needed at some future time yet to be determined.

Also in our campaign, DocWagon corporate policy is to fully comply with any and all national, state, and local laws. And those laws state that the Clinic or Hospital that treats a gunshot wound must notify the authorities, not the ambulance service.

Also in our campaign, DocWagon personnel risk their lives for a salary. So when a customer offers to double the salary of everyone on the chopper for the week just to get special treatment or be dropped off somewhere special, they are happy to oblige. Hell, they'll pull the customer's friends out of the fire too if the bribe is right. And write anything in the log book that the customer asks.

Treat your local DocWagon crew as people who see the real world. They see the poverty and misery and gangs and homeless and auto crashes and plane crashes and house fires and suicides and drownings and their corporation tells them not to help anyone other than the rich, pre-paid, customers.

[Fahr]

I actually ran a campaing where the PCs started out as a Docwagon team and ended up quiting because of the Corporate rules about helping those that were not "under contract" was a lot of fun to run from that perspective...

they ended up jumping ship with company resources and hiding out in amazonia...

[Solstice]

[toturi]

[Austere Emancipa...]

[Siege]

The stray bullet lacks any real power -- a kid with 3 dice (say he's defaulting to Quickness) gets his hands on a Heavy Pistol and manages to squeeze the trigger.

He discharges a 9M to his little brother's belly.

By canon, he _might_ be able to stage it up to Serious, but tack on a +2 penalty for defaulting and it becomes highly unlikely.

In reality, this kind of stupidity tends to result in dead kids.

Is this such a huge problem new rules are required? Probably not, depending on how lethal a game you particularly care to run.

As for runners with DocWagnon, I say go for it. It's easier to get the medic to come to you instead of trying to stagger to the medic. And you can be reasonably sure of the quality of your attending doctor instead of the corner street doc who may (or may not) be worth a damn.

In the Mitsuhama example, consider the following:

1. Mitsuhama probably has DocWagon contracts unless they spend a lot of money for a similar in-house service.
2. Overt Assets (uniformed sec guards) firing on uniformed DocWagon employees in the course of their job will result in really nasty repercussions from the Corporate Court -- technically, that could be construed as an act of war.
3. As mentioned before, DocWagon is a megacorp with extraterritorial status. Laws exist in Mitsu, laws exist in DocWagon -- as both are considered seperate countries and laws exist in Seattle. But they don't overlap (much).

So many people came up with the same idea for using DocWagon as emergency cavalry, the errata and subsequent books listed the HTR charges for extracting clients in hot scenarios. They start steep and only go higher.

The DNA sample isn't required (insofar as I can recall) and hardly necessary if you don't have the "custom cloned replacement" insurance. A lot of runners would skip this kind of insurance because of the justifiable paranoia and simply buy a new clone replacement as necessary instead of having a tissue sample sitting in storage.

-Siege

[Spookymonster]

Does Docwagon service clients caught in a hijacked thread?

[Sunday_Gamer]

Well if you're gonna be pedantic =)

That's what the Doc Wagon employee was checking, his credit. When he told him his contract "made no provisions" he meant "You got cash?"

Sunday

[Phaeton]

[MrSandman666]

[Siege]

2. I suppose it depends on where the extraction happens -- does DocWagon cross the international "border" of Mitsu's fence, or do they settle on the border and smoke a cigarette while the bloody runner staggers to the wating ambulance?

As for penetrating borders -- I don't know. It may be that for DocWagon to agree to service Mitsu clients, Mitsu had to agree to "may pass on business" contact, which would give security directors massive headaches.

3. DocWagon does have its own clinics, hospitals and whatnot.

I would imagine you are not required to be treated at a DocWagon facility -- sign a waiver stating you understand you are badly injured, you do not hold DocWagon or any of its employees responsible and they'll unload dump you where you want to go, provided they can touch down -- or they might make you wait until you get to the landing pad and escort you out of the building.

Of course, this raises the "sound mental judgement" argument, so I don't really know.

As for bribing the DocWagon crew -- it's possible, but given the amount of tracking and monitoring of a DocWagon bus, it would have to be a helluva lot of money to convince the crew to take the risk.

Of course, some employees may be greedier than bright, human nature being what it is.

-Siege

[Xirces]

[MrSandman666]

[toturi]

Which brings us to patient-doctor confidentiality... How does it apply in SR3? I mean if that corp exec has to bribe every doc or his doc every time he goes to see him, he'll lose a lot of money.

[MrSandman666]

I believe thinks stay confident as long as they are legal. They only have to bribe if the doctors find anything illegal, like drug addiction or illegal cyber, for example. If you don't want to bribe your doctor every time, well, stay legal. It's that simple. If you can not or don't want to stay legal, deal with the consequences, which will either cost you some money or your carreer.

[toturi]

He doesn't know it is illegal cyber. Maybe you got it from a company doctor before Fuchi collapsed, with all the records lost, he doesn't know if it is legal or not. It is not his place to ask you whether that deck in your cyber arm is legal or not.

[Siege]

I don't imagine DocWagon would make a point to report every instance of illegal cyberware in their clients.

Granted, if you don't tell them about the cortex bomb beforehand, they might be a tad cranky...but on the bright side, you won't care. :grinbig:

-Siege