Guaging interest/recruiting: Professional Grade, SR4 fixing/behind the scenes campaign Options

[rob]

"You see, the career ladder for a company man is kind of a wierd one... You are indespensible to the organization, you provide essential services, your management skills are useful to every aspect of our company, but you will never head a department. You will never speak before the board of directors. You will usually not be paid by us. The link between you and the company is tenuous.

That is why there are so few applicants to these positions. It's a bitch to raise kids when you can't tell anyone where you are. When you may not actually be legally alive. When you have far more in common with the scumbags you hire and the terrible things you do than with the people who you do them for.

Oh, but there are advantages, too. Up to you to decide what they are."

- Gerome, Company Man, Ares?

Guaging interest for an adventure working on the level in between the corps and the streets, the level of fixers, fences, smugglers, street docs, and cetera. Players will form a team that arranges for large operations, coordinates multiple shadowruns, and facilitates company operations in the Seattle area.

Looking for 4 to 6 players, but flexible in number.

Characters will be built off the BP system, 450 points, 200 pt. attribute max, 50 pt. resource max (except if born rich), max availability 12 (except with restricted gear), etc. as per RAW. Characters will need a lot more contacts than normal shadowrunners.

All characters get one free contact, "Will", a senior company man, connection 5, loyalty unknown, allegiance unknown, whom they have worked with on at least three previous shadowruns or operations as either fixer, johnson, or intermediary. The game will begin with him inviting them into a business deal to set up a new field office in Seattle.

I'm looking for characters who will be useful to a higher level adventure, and players who are interested in the mechanisms of the shadow economy. Though this will certainly involve street work, it will also involve a lot more cerebral work. There is unlikely to be much shoot-em-up, unless yall get made really quickly. Expect a lot of cases where there's some GM and player discretion, as I expect will hit a number of situations not specifically covered by the rules.

Recruiting will last several weeks.

To submit a character, I want to see, in order:
1. a blurb for character concept
2. a vignette showing your character's role on a team.
3. Character sheet
4. 20 questions

[rob]

Players/Characters/Roles:

Accepted:

Characters:
Crizh - Mataglap - Hacker and nanotechnician
Summerstorm - AI armorer
BlackHat - Artisan, society type
Red-ROM - Face
Marwynn - Jarius, face/spy
Mickle - Smuggler
Digital Heroin - Lawyer
Budoka - HUMINT guy
Digital Heroin - lawyer or info broker

Interested Players / concepts
Dumori - Wetwork
Imperialus - Media guy
Method - Drone guy
Pragma - social adept/spymaster/police negotiator

[BlackHat]

Definitely interested. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Will think about it tomorrow and see if I can't at least run a concept past you before Monday.

[imperialus]

I'd be interested, sounds like a great campaign... With the caveat being that August is going to be hella busy IRL for me. I'm getting married on the 22nd, on my honeymoon until Sept 4th, getting accepted into a masters program, and working 50+ hours a week to cover peoples vacations in the interim. I should be able to get a character done up in the next week or so but after that I might need to drop off the radar for a couple of weeks.

I'm thinking a Cover Ops/Light to Moderate Combat archtype. Probably go the Cyber/Bio route rather than awakened. It looks like you're aiming for Black Trenchcoat style?

Also, are we using 4E or 4A? Any sourcebooks/gear ect. that you'd rather not see? Any builds you'd rather not see?

[Branmac]

I like the concept. Count me as interested. I will work up a couple of ideas and see what pops out to play. This sounds like a fun one.

[crizh]

I'd be interested to see what I could do with a Hacker or TM on the opposite side of the negotiating table.

[Dumori]

Like the idea. might go face/wetwork specialist. might as well throw fixer in there.

[Summerstorm]

Hm... always wanted to try this. I am interested. I think maybe of an armory/engineering specialist (maybe AI). Supplying the comunity with weapons, armor, transportation and illegal programs.

[tarbrush]

Interested. Let me work something up.

[Mickle5125]

I've got an idea for a weaponsmith/face/contact man, if you need it.

concept Blurb:
Markus owns a moderately sized weapons shop in town that is known for 3 things: fair dealings, quality products, and somehow acquiring pretty much anything. Markus is personally known for the skill he brings to all aspects of his trade and his willingness to listen to any request before dismissing it out of hand.

[rob]

Reminder - when you think about your characters, remember that yall are setting up a field office for a a pretty high end (connection 5) fellow and whatever organization that exists behind him. Many of the traditional SR4 team functions are too narrow for this kind of op.

Clarifications: SR4 Anniversary rules. I, as usual, reserve the right to kill any build that doesn't fit with the campaign, but I will work with yall first.

A few notes about style and team content:
1. I am a bit of a stick-in-the-mud when it comes to the more exotic character options (cyborgs/AIs/Free Spirits/Shapeshifters/etc.). You can do it, but you better sell me a very good story and convince me that you can play such an exotic character credibly.
2. In this kind of adventure, getting into intense combat probably means you screwed up somewhere or forgot to hire bodyguards. Combat skills are useful, but characters must be able to participate in the 'bigger picture.'
3. Every character in this team will probably need to be at least passably socially competent.
4. For division of labor, consider the following -
4A - someone who can establish the communications infrastructure you'll need
4B - someone who can recruit/vet/meet with runners
4C - someone who knows their way around each major criminal industry.
4D - an intelligence guy (i'm not talking about ninja stuff, I'm talking 'knows what happens everywhere')
5. Note that my 'division of labor' suggestions are exactly that. I don't know exactly how your team will work out, and I fully expect yall to surprise me.

Basically, for everything one of your characters has ever called a fixer for, you either need someone or need reliable contacts with someone who can make that happen, and anticipate snags and opportunities.
"Will" provides your liaison with 'higher' assets and will provide direction and guidance for the first baby-steps phases of the operation.

As for people's individual selections:
Imperialus - What does 'black trenchcoat style' mean?
Crizh - that will be critical to yall's teams' operations.
Dumori - yall will probably be too busy to engage in wetwork yourself, but any wetwork operation will need lots of support. I'm interested to see what you're looking at.
Summerstorm - AI goes on my list of exotic character concepts. Feel free to try it, but also feel bound to impress me.
Mickle - Good idea, and definitely a necessary function, but Markus may be more useful as a high loyalty affiliate of the team.

[Digital Heroin]

I'm tossing my hat in the ring, but as I'm on a public terminal in NZ en route to twenty hours of flying to Ireland I'll have to hold on details. Mind's spinning, though, hopefully fast enough.

Two concepts fire in my head right now:

- former corporate lawyer/negotiator turned Mr.J; or
- the namesake, Digital Heroin, an Adept Savant info-broker/fixer.

Note to self: Always make sure your passport and boarding pass are secure before posting to dumpshock. Leaving said items by a public computer is the purest Edge test ever.

[pragma]

Many of my other games seem to be faltering and, though I fear they will resurge if I commit to this game, I have a certain curiosity.

I have a disgraced police negotiator on the bench who I think would work well in this environment and who deserves more play time than he got. I'm also still fascinated by the intelligence community and the idea of some kind of ex-spymaster has its appeal even though I've sort of explored the idea elsewhere. So too does the idea of some kind of non-traditional social adept -- I've actually never seen one of those played on the boards (probably because people rather rightly feel that kinesics is cheating) but there may be room in the game for a social adept who is also interesting.

I'm stupidly busy this month, so my hat is only tentatively in the ring.

[Dumori]

I was think a former assassin that still gets hired but just passes the job down the ladder or is hired as part of a job to do provide infrastructure. IE you want some one killed you ask a fixer he goes well I know a guy who knows the people you want. He spends his time researching past hits and tactics to help the team he pays to do the job do it well and leave as little evidence behind as he can. Contacts in gen therapy and in clean up teams as well as fake sins and disposable weapons or disposing of weapons (such as providing a sniper rifle for a hit then selling to some low rep runners via a few fake names and secondary contacts). I expect him to be a passable killer but hes a bit lack luster since he started fixing. I guess he fits a bit of 4B 4C and part of 4D

[imperialus]

Been thinking about it a bit more and seeing as how no one seems to keen on playing a matrix specialist I had an idea for a volunteer moderator/security hacker for Shadowsea. He'd be pretty low down on the totem pole but he'd be well known in the community and have access to a metric ton of information about Seattle's shadowscene.

The other possibility, in a similar vein is a classic Neo-A pirate trid operator... Not entirely unlike Ice T's character in Johnny Pnumonic. He'd be a bit more flamboyant than the moderator idea. He is after all a minor celebrity but he'd have access to very similar contacts and abilities. The only big problem would be how to get his anarchic independence to jive with the idea of being a company man.

This might actually be the answer to your question of "what is Black Trenchcoat". The Shadowsea Mod would be a fairly 'black' character. He's more of a stone cold pro who really only cares about getting the job done.

The Pirate on the other hand is much more of a Pink Mowhawk character, a sort of throwback to the earlier editions when "rocker" was an archetype in the BBB and the whole setting was more loose around the edges.

[rob]

Digital Heroin - The former corporate lawyer idea is quite appropriate. I would need some more specifics from 'info broker', which is a nice character in a movie or dime store novel but begs far more specifics for this adventure.

Pragma - any of these ideas work. Only reason I'm able to start this stuff is DITG is so faltery. I have no specific problems with Kinesics, but don't think that a massive social dice pool will make all of my NPCs roll over and do whatever you want. A vendor will still never sell you an item below cost, good dice rolls won't substitute for a fundamentally untenable negotiating position, etc.

Dumori - Roll with it. I like it.

Imperialus - Either of those ideas are very workable within the adventure, and speak to a really useful capability that you could add to the team. Note, also, that you can play a character somewhere in between. If, by "Black Trenchcoat Style,"you mean fairly professional, well, then yes. The title of the game may also serve to imply that.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Branmac]

So far I am considering two options. The first is a transpertation specialist. Basically a smuggler whose skills and connections are good for moving people and equipment. Probably some Bio but designed to be unobtrusive. Might have a bit of rigging ability, but mostly along the wheelman variety.
The second would be something along the lines of a mage specialized in information recovery. So far we have noone mentioning magical information and support and that would be to important not to have someone specializing in it for a group like this. Not a combat mage but an investigator and antimagic specialist.

[Method]

Interesting concept for a campaign. It looks like you have plenty of interest, but I'll throw my hat in as well. There is a character concept I've been thinking about for years that might work in this game. Basically he's a drone rigger that specializes in support roles. An ex-military type, he would be trained in long-range recon and surveillance- the kind of guy that would drop into a location and "live off the land" for weeks at a time while he watches a target site or location in anticipation of a run. He might have a rifle, for when things really go sideways, but he would by no means be a combat character. I picture him as a dwarf for some reason- more compact for better concealment maybe? Anyway thats the general idea.

[rob]

Aight, look at my second post up top, I've listed the names that have piped in with some level of interest and what they are working on. Some good ideas being floated around, and I am beginning to see the outlines of a team coming through.

Given what we've got and what I've heard floating around, these seem to be the roles that people are thinking about. (dude. note, I use the terms guy/dude/etc. interchangeably and in a non-gender-specific context. dude.):
1. Media dude
2. Magic dude
3. Guy who knows the killing people business.
4. Guy with guns.
5. Matrix dude.
6. Drone guy.

I forsee yall to need to the following other functions:
1. Transportation - someone who can handle shipping, receiving, and moving stuff around the AO.
2. Commo - someone who can make sure you've got ways to communicate with each other and teams.
3. Forgery/legal cover - someone who can clearly mark out the region between your legit activities and your illegit...

Note that all these roles can overlap.

[BlackHat]

Still interested, but I am going to be very busy this week, and it looks like you've generated more than enough interest. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Feel free to take my name out of the running, but if I managed to get something together before you close shop, I might put it back in. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Dumori]

3. Forgery/legal cover - someone who can clearly mark out the region between your legit activities and your illegit...

I was think of worming that in to mine.

[Red-ROM]

this sounds like a great idea, how often sre you thinking of posting. Like, how fast a game is this? and are you full up yet?

[Mickle5125]

1. Transportation - someone who can handle shipping, receiving, and moving stuff around the AO.

This is probably something that Markus would have covered, what with the whole over and under the table deals he gets up to.

As a side note, how would you want to handle his shop's stock? me buy it all with starting money, or will there be a "job related" supply of goods?

[crizh]

OK, this is very much a work in progress, particularly gear.

I've not even started on background, I know what it is but it's late and I can't be bothered right now. It ought to be amusing.

Mataglap

[ Spoiler ]

Name: Mataglap
Race: Ogre
Gender: Male

==Background==

[ Spoiler ]

==BREAKDOWN (450BP)==

[ Spoiler ]

Core Attributes: 130 BP
Special Attributes: 75 BP
Race: 20 BP
Active Skills: 144 BP
Positive Qualities: 35 BP
Negative Qualities: 35 BP
Contacts: 11 BP
Resources 50 BP ( XX spent)

=Attributes=

[ Spoiler ]

Body: 5
Agility: 2
Reaction: 2
Strength: 3

Charisma: 2
Intuition: 5
Logic: 4
Willpower: 3

Magic: 5
Edge: 2

Essence: 5.025
Initiative: 7{}
Initiative Passes: 1{4}
Physical Damage Track: 11
Stun Track: 10

Current Karma: 0
Total Karma:
Street Cred: 0
Notoriety: 0
Public Awareness: 0

=Qualities=

[ Spoiler ]

Physical Adept
Codeslinger: Stealth
Analytical Mind
Restricted Gear: Nanoinfectors VI (Universal Nantidotes IX)
Restricted Gear: Nanoinfectors VI (O Cells IX)
Restricted Gear: Simsense Accelerator

---

In Debt: 30000 (Yakuza)
Sinner

=Active Skills=

[ Spoiler ]

Electronics 4
Hacking (Stealth) 6 (+2)
Electronic Warfare (Decryption) 4 (+2)
Assensing 4
Chemistry 4
Demolitions 4
Perception 4

=Knowledge Skills=

[ Spoiler ]

English: N
Japanese 2
Cantonese 2
Or'zet 2
PK: Pirate Networks 2
Ghoul Culture 2
The Shadow Community (Active Shadowrunners) 4 (+2)
Corporate Politics (Executives that sponsor Shadow Ops) 4 (+2)
Engineering (Nanotechnology) 6 (+2)

=Powers=

[ Spoiler ]

Improved Ability: Hacking 3 0.75
Improved Ability: Chemistry 2 0.5
Improved Ability: Demolitions 2 0.5
Improved Ability: Perception 2 0.5
Enhanced Perception 5 1.25
Astral Perception 1
Enhanced Sense - EM Sense 0.25
Enhanced Sense - Echolocation 0.25

=Gear=

[ Spoiler ]

Limbic Neuro-amplifier Nanites III
Neocortical Neuro-amplifier Nanites III
Nanoinfectors VI (Universal Nantidotes IX)
Nanoinfectors VI (O Cells IX)

Sleep Regulator 0.075 10k

Attention Co-processor III, Alpha 0.24 18k
Math SPU, Alpha 0.12 9k

Obvious Lower Left Arm (Second Hand)

Sorayama Case-mod
Sim Module, Hot Sim modified, Sim-sense Accelerator, Skinlink
Nanohive II
Nanohive II
Datajack, Skinlink
Bulk Modification IV
Armour II
Smuggling Compartment
Fingertip Compartment

Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Universal Nantidotes IX)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Oxyrush V)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Universal Nanite Hunters VI)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (O Cells IX)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Implant Medics VI)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Antirad VI)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Taggants, Marker VI)
Autoinjector, 6 Doses - Nanoinfectors VI (Taggants, RFID Marker VI)





()


Luxury Lifestyle, 1 Month (21LP, 19 room-mates, +1200 for +12 Starting Cash) – 3375
Workshops, 1 Month (17LP, 4 room-mates) - 1960
Safehouses x 13, 1 Month (9LP, 4 room-mates) - 6188
Fake SIN 4 (Vehicle, Vehicle Modification and Weapon Permits) – 5200
Mesh Tags, 100 doses - 200
Wireless Adaptors x 6 - 900
Fibre Optic Cable, 100m -500
Disposable Commlink - 300
Medkit Supplies x 10 - 500
Chemical Sealant x 2 - 400
Disguised (-2) Laser Link 6 x 10 - 3000
Disguised (-6) Fiber-optic Waveguides x 189 - 1134
Satellite Link - 500
Response 3/Processor Limit 15 Nexus Core x10 - 22500
System 6/Persona Limit 10 Cracked Nexus OS - 300
Firewall 6/Processor Limit 15 Cracked Nexus Firewall - 225
Tag Eraser -150
Optical Tap - 100

46932

Vehicles

Shiawase Medbot - Spider

Armour 9, Rigger Cocoon, Gecko Tips, Life Support II, Hardening 6

11750

==Lifestyle==

[ Spoiler ]

--Main Residence--

Mataglap lives in a Sim-star ranch in a run down area of Everett. He and two other Hackers provide electronic security for the half-dozen Sim-stars and all the hangers-on that drift through the converted Motel. The label is pretty paranoid about security so Mataglap keeps all his other business dealings off-site.

Comforts: Medium (3LP)
Entertainment: High (4LP)
Necessities: Luxury (6LP)
Neighbourhood: Low (2LP)
Security: Luxury (6LP)

Total: 21LP (Luxury), 15000 pm

with 20 sharing: 2175 pm


--Workshops and server farm--


Mataglap works out of a secure cavern below the Ork Underground that houses a Ghoul enclave with a number of Ghoul Hackers.

Comforts: Low (0LP)
Entertainment: Low (0LP)
Necessities: Middle (3LP)
Neightbourhood: Squatter (1LP), Fringe of the Ork Underground.
Security: High (4LP)

Qualities:

Fung Shui (5LP)
Aspected Domain (5LP)
Workplace (1LP)
Concerned Neighbours (2LP)
Easy-going Landlord (1LP)
Perfect Room-mate (2LP)
Free Access (1LP)

Resident AI (-3LP) -- (I'm thinking something like Holly from Red Dwarf or the AI in the Sheriff's house in Eureka. Means well.... Will need to know it's rating.)
Living by Committee (-2LP)
Black Hole (-2LP)
Worse Neighbours (-1LP)


Total: 17LP (Low), 7000 pm

with 5 sharing: 1960 pm

--Safehouses--

Mataglap pays Yakuza groups for access to a number of safehouses. He has five in Denver, one in each sector, and individual ones in Seattle, New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Berlin.

Usually attached to Bars, Clubs or Brothels they provide secure meeting places he can use to set up runs.

Mataglap's space consists of a private shielded meeting room, often decorated for 'private dances' with an adjacent room behind a bomb proof one way mirror that Mataglap can monitor meets from.


Comforts: Low (0LP)
Entertainment: Low (0LP)
Necessities: Middle (3LP)
Neightbourhood: Squatter (1LP)
Security: High (4LP), The safehouse is looked after by a local Yakuza gang.

Qualities:

Fung Shui (5LP)
Concerned Neighbours (2LP)
Easy-going Landlord (1LP)
Perfect Room-mate (2LP)
Free Access (1LP)

Living by Committee (-2LP)
Black Hole (-2LP)
Poor Condition (-1LP)
Rough Neighbourhood (-1LP)
Worse Neighbours (-1LP)
No Astral Privacy (-3LP)

Total: 9LP (Low), 1700 pm

with 5 sharing: 476 pm

=Contacts=

[ Spoiler ]

Ricardo

Face

Mataglap hires Ricardo to act as a front when he has to hire talent for his own purposes. The little Hispanic Dwarf is a failed Sim-sense actor that Mataglap met through the Studio. While not a talented actor Ricardo is a born Grifter and plays the role of Fixer with consummate ease.

Loyalty: 1

Connection: 1


Warezhouse 24


Loyalty: 1

Connection: 3(8)

[rob]

@Dumori - Go ahead with the forgery thing, but it's also OK if that overlaps with what Pragma's or Digital heroin's characters provide.

@Mickle - I'm still not sold on how the shop owner concept would work out exactly - I don't know what you're thinking here. Give me something like a blurb or vignette, paint me a picture of how you see this character working out, what would do for the team, how he contributes.

@Red-ROM - Not full at all yet. I'm playing it by ear on 'posting rate' - depends on what kind of schedule the team and players can keep up.

@Crizh - Whoa! Brakes! Mas despacio, por favor! ala kayfek, habibi! Before you go munchkinizing some hacking dice pool, send me a character concept and something that lets me know what you're getting at, what he does, how he does it. Right now your character defies both credibility and my interpretation of the rules, so pace back and hit me with the basics before you spend more time on this (unless you derive aesthetic value from a maximized hacking dice pool). Read the spoiler for how I'm thinking:

[ Spoiler ]

There's about a billion things in that character sheet that made me go "como?" when I read them. The short list begins - 8 autoinjectors in one cyberlimb? nope. Grand total of 75 roommates whom he lives by committee with? nope. Reasonably expects a sane company man to want to hire a massively in debt person to start a sensitive business in a new area? Nope. Lower left arm roughly the size of his entire right arm? The list goes on.