Northern Gateway: smuggling, hunting, and other endeavours- UCAS:Alg/Man Council:Québec Options

[pbangarth]

THE SITUATION: Fall 2072, New Liskeard, Algonkian-Manitou Council

In the Ottawa River Valley, north from the old Canadian capital, spreads Lake Temiskaming at the centre of a fertile valley that provides some of the best agriculture between Sudbury and James Bay. This valley lies astride three nations, the United Canadian and American States, the Algonkian-Manitou Council, and Québec. A spur of land that belongs to the Algonkian-Manitou council juts south through this valley, separating the other two nations for hundreds of kilometers. Certainly the economic benefits of having such productive land within their borders figured heavily in the calculations of the old Algonkian Council when the borders were redrawn, as did access to the major highways in the region that carry so much trade among the nations. (Highways 11 and 17 form major parts of the boundary with the UCAS.)

Not all of that trade is legal. Where the borders of three nations come so close to each other, opportunities abound for entrepreneurs who are willing to take risks. The authorities of all three nations patrol this area heavily, but the open farmland is surrounded by dense forest, and those who know the secret paths can make good money.

Félix Monague is a rancher at the north end of the valley, near Round Lake (48 degrees North, 80 degrees West - check Google Earth for pictures and an idea of the lay of the land). He has made a good living for years from cattle and sheep, and is a canny businessman. He knows people all through the valley and beyond, and crosses borders regularly. His herding dogs are the best anywhere, and some say there is magic involved in his connection with them. The police have suspected Félix for years of adding smuggling to his other business endeavours, but he has never been caught.

Of course, the community knows much the police do not. Félix has often had occasion to employ locals in his businesses, legal and otherwise, and he maintains an excellent relationship with the broader community through charitable organizations and through traditional rituals of wealth sharing. He is a pillar of the community. A man would be socially suicidal, if not physically so, to rat on Félix.

The fall season is well under way. Winter's first tendrils have already been felt. Good hunting can be had in Québec, where paranormals still carry high bounties. Hunters need to cross borders without tarrifs and license fees. So do drugs, weapons and technology. Félix has put out his usual, discrete call for some help. He is looking for some good people to do some potentially nasty work.

THE GAME

I am looking for a few PbP players who want to experience the north woods and the wilds, as well as some wild times dodging authorities while carrying contraband. Among other, typical SR talents, the characters should have some of the following skills (the team should have most if not all): outdoors skills, languages of the (broader, international) region, negotiation, paranormal biology, personal local background or strong local connections (for references and referral), and various forms of piloting. The characters will come up against hostile environment and creatures, determined authorities, conniving buyers, and anything else I can dream up. There may be the odd run in Toronto or Montréal.

Félix will be the final arbiter of who makes up the team. He is experienced (and may on rare occasion accompany the team) and knows what he needs. Attrition is possible, so in the off chance that there are more characters available for play than Félix can use at one time... just wait. 'Vacancies' may very well appear.

PCs are to be made using the SR4A rules (see below*), all books, 400 BP. I don't fear any PC, no matter how freaky, but understand the milieu. This is an agricultural community that borders a xenophobic society that pays bounty on things that 'don't look right'. Your vampiric, gnome voodo magician will have a seriously difficult time walking down the street, much less avoiding paranoid authorities. Félix will keep these factors in mind when hiring. I reserve the right to veto anything, even if it is in the books.

And your PC better like border collies.

I will happily reward players who go the extra mile and develop their character's backstory (20-questions-level of depth) and who aid in moving the story along through things like getting to know the region yourself and helping with geography, etc.

I will be sporadically away from my computer between now and New Year's Day, but hope to get something going in January. I have had bad luck as a player with PbP games dying, and would really like to keep this one going, with forewarned breaks for things like holidays, etc.

So... watcha got, people?

*A note on Matrix actions: I want to keep things simple for me. Tests will be LOG + Skill, with hits limited by software rating. This will apply to the opposition as well, of course. Sorry ahead of time to any 'purists' in the crowd.

THE PLAYERS (so far)

Trigger - Old Wolf - Wolf Druid/ Outdoorsman
ravensoracle - JD - Ranch Hand/ Outdoorsman
Foxx - Vixen - Southern girl/ Ex-military/ testing her metal (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)
Karoline - Longshot - Surged/ Augmented Hunter

EDIT 31 Dec 09: added PLAYERS so far

[ravensoracle]

I have been hoping for a game like this for so long. Something out of the city. You can definitely count me in as an extremely eager player. Not sure what type of character I would play yet but will think on it.

[Karoline]

Sounds like fun. I think I'll make a survivalist of sorts (Survivor Man and Man vs Wild types). Likely to be a sharp shot with a rifle and decent with a knife. How high tech is the area likely to be? Will chrome be on the rare side thematically?

[Trigger]

I have some awesome ideas for a character for this.... I will have something for you soon. (Probably a talismongering wilderness mage).

Question: Do you allow players to start with a purchased critter from Running Wild?

[Karoline]

Question: Do you allow players to start with a purchased critter from Running Wild?

Part of me hopes so because it would be so cool. Part of me hopes not because then I'll be tempted to get RW so I can have a pet falcon.

[ravensoracle]

OK, I think I am going along the lines similar to a Ranch hand/ Hunter. He can deal with animals, drive the trucks, is a decent sot with a rifle and knows his way around the outdoors. Most likely give him some knowledge skills along the lines of back trails and smuggling routes for the area

[pbangarth]

How high tech is the area likely to be? Will chrome be on the rare side thematically?

Certainly rarer than what you might find in the concentration of a big city. But one could be a homeboy returning from a stint in the military, a girl fresh out of paramedic training hoping to make a go of it in her hometown, a rowdy man who fell in with the wrong crowd .... gimme a story.

Question: Do you allow players to start with a purchased critter from Running Wild?

I dunno. Weave a tale that makes sense. Félix certainly has critters... two border collies trained to the hilt. And a bunch of sheep and cattle.

[pbangarth]

I have been hoping for a game like this for so long. Something out of the city.

Yeah, me too. I finally bit the bullet and sat on the other side of the table. If we have some good fun here, maybe others will get enthused.

[horvagab]

Are there any books you could suggest that would be useful for setting? I'm not the greatest on SR geography, especially rural areas. Don't know what I'll play yet, is Tir Tairngare far from there? How would the locals react ot an elf, or maybe a banshee?

[Gmoz]

Time to watch some nature shows heavily featuring Canada. Sounds like a blast.

[Trigger]

Are there any books you could suggest that would be useful for setting? I'm not the greatest on SR geography, especially rural areas. Don't know what I'll play yet, is Tir Tairngare far from there? How would the locals react ot an elf, or maybe a banshee?

The Tir is on the other side of the Country, here.

Elves probably aren't going to be uncommon, as they really aren't uncommon anywhere. A Banshee could be hard to play though due to the game probably not being too sprawl based (that's what it sounds like), so it is going to be hard to feed regularly (if you don't feed on animals. But beware, the animals may be awakened and want to feed on you.)

[ravensoracle]

You need to make sure Banshees don't have a bounty on their heads in this area also.

[BlackHat]

Very unique concept. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Depending on how much free time I have over the next week's holidays, I will try to get something in for consideration.

I'm curious how you see the presence of law enforcement. Part of the writeup makes it sound like the three nations would be patrolling the area heavily (looking for smugglers, I assume), but other parts make it sound more wildernessy where you might be able to get away with some stuff that you couldn't in a big city. I think it could be a fun opportunity to use some gear that you'd normally have a hard time bringing with you to a meet in a AAA neighborhood, but I might be getting the wrong idea about how often our characters would be under the border-patrol's microscope.

[Foxx]

Seeing as we getting a few die hard survivlist, I think I'll go with the ex-corperate merc train to get the job done no matter the locale. Chrome and trained to take the fight to whoever the former corperate overlords demanded. Of course, they had a falling out and this person decided to relocate; somewhere distant and out of the way. Will do a proper write up once I get it written out.

[BlackHat]

The Tir is on the other side of the Country, here.

This map might help too: http://www.shadowrun4.com/resources/sr4/sr4_namap.pdf

Tir is on the west-coast, between Seattle and California. I think the area this game takes place in would be north-east of Michigan where those three contries (UCAS, AMC, and Quebec) come together.

[Dr.Rockso]

Sounds interesting. Might throw might hat in depending how my schedule looks. Running near home might be fun (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cyber.gif)

[pbangarth]

The Algonkian Council became the Algonkian-Manitou Council after the elven Manitou (tribe? Nation? - have to check) lobbied for status. So there will be lots of elves around. I'd be careful about something like a Banshee. You might have a bounty on your head in Québec. And locals may want to collect that bounty by smuggling your hide across the border.

SR4A has a good map in the back. The game will center in the little spur of the A-M Council straight north of Buffalo. Same latitude as Seattle but way east. If you have access to Google Earth, then search for New Liskeard Ontario, and you will zoom in on the game area. There are photos there that will give you an idea of the terrain in the valley and in the forest around.

Hmmm... books for the setting. Shadows of North America has some good stuff on the AMC, in fact reading it just now I am learning some cool stuff, political and otherwise. Native American Nations Vol. 2, while older, has more detail. The Neo-Anarchist's Guide to North America has a good section on Québec, including a small bit on bounties. I thought I saw a list of bounties in some book. I will look for it.

EDIT: Found the bounty list: Shadows of North America, p. 112. Also, Paranormal Animals of North America and Running Wild are good resources.

EDIT2: 50,000 nuyen for a Free Spirit pelt? How do you get a 'pelt' from a Free Spirit? Hmmm... ideas percolate!

[ravensoracle]

Very unique concept. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Depending on how much free time I have over the next week's holidays, I will try to get something in for consideration.

I'm curious how you see the presence of law enforcement. Part of the writeup makes it sound like the three nations would be patrolling the area heavily (looking for smugglers, I assume), but other parts make it sound more wildernessy where you might be able to get away with some stuff that you couldn't in a big city. I think it could be a fun opportunity to use some gear that you'd normally have a hard time bringing with you to a meet in a AAA neighborhood, but I might be getting the wrong idea about how often our characters would be under the border-patrol's microscope.

One thing to remember if we are going to be smuggling stuff is that it helps a lot if you blend in. Carrying around F items will more likely get you in more trouble out here than in the cities. I mean in the barrens you're expected to be caryying some heavy firepower. Out in the country it's just one more way to stand out. Plus think that most people in the area know each other and word gets around to everyone much quicker. I guess the question to ask here is what is the feel of the game going to lean toward? Pink or Black?

And if we are really going out in the wilderness, you have to really plan on how you're gonna transport some of that gear. Depending on how deep in the woods we go will be the limiting factor as to whether you can have a truck, a horse or motorcyle, or your own shoeleather.

On a side note I put this map together real quick. I think it is the area pbangarth is refering to.

Quick Map

[pbangarth]

One thing to remember if we are going to be smuggling stuff is that it helps a lot if you blend in. Carrying around F items will more likely get you in more trouble out here than in the cities. I mean in the barrens you're expected to be caryying some heavy firepower. Out in the country it's just one more way to stand out. Plus think that most people in the area know each other and word gets around to everyone much quicker. I guess the question to ask here is what is the feel of the game going to lean toward? Pink or Black? And if we are really going out in the wilderness, you have to really plan on how you're gonna transport some of that gear. Depending on how deep in the woods we go will be the limiting factor as to whether you can have a truck, a horse or motorcyle, or your own shoeleather.

Think plaid shirts, baseball caps and pickup trucks. Quads and snowmobiles for the thicker bush. Snowshoes for the really thick stuff in the winter.

On a side note I put this map together real quick. I think it is the area pbangarth is refering to.
Quick Map

Exactly.

[pbangarth]

OK, this is cute. Our kitten is attacking the mouse pointer on the screen. Hmm... the cuteness is wearing off. Claws and LCD don't mix.

[Foxx]

Obey the kitten.

[BlackHat]

One thing to remember if we are going to be smuggling stuff is that it helps a lot if you blend in. Carrying around F items will more likely get you in more trouble out here than in the cities. I mean in the barrens you're expected to be caryying some heavy firepower. Out in the country it's just one more way to stand out. Plus think that most people in the area know each other and word gets around to everyone much quicker. I guess the question to ask here is what is the feel of the game going to lean toward? Pink or Black?

That is a good point. I guess I was thinking along the lines of the hint at hunting jobs - where nobody is likely to know if you toss a nice illegal gun in the back of your truck, and take it out into the woods... as opposed to your typical run where you're in a city, and driving around with an AK in your backseat is a bad idea... and pulling it out is out of the question until you're already over your head.

A lot of the games I have played on Dumpshock have started in high-profile areas (I have to admit, I hadn't even thought about the barrens) so it seemed like the relative remoteness of the area might afford you some allowance in terms of not needing to have air-tight alibis and licenses for all your fun toys just to be able to have them on hand for the job.

Another example might be a weapon mount on a vehicle. They are rating F items, and in a city, there is almost no good reason for you to have one installed on your car (meaning PCs pretty much have to take the concealed versions, which push the availability up to high to be usable). In the wilderness, though, where all mannor of paranormal critters could come attack you while you're driving through or making camp... it wouldn't take much explaining as to why you might have a weapon-mount on your 4x4.

*shrugs* But, yeah, in terms of smuggling, once you reached the border, it would still draw attention, and probably garuntee that your truck gets searched thoroughly.

[ravensoracle]

I just wish the designers wouldn't have short changed the sporting rifles like they did. But that is a discusion for another time. The hunting jobs, especially for paranormals require some heavy firepower but the sniper rifles are all F items so that limits hunting with assault rifles. Which fluff wise doesn't fit as well as a rifle.

I guess what I am saying is if you are going to have F items, you may want to have legal backups for when we have to do the smuggling part. Of course it all depends on what and how we're smuggling the stuff too.

[ravensoracle]

Think plaid shirts, baseball caps and pickup trucks. Quads and snowmobiles for the thicker bush. Snowshoes for the really thick stuff in the winter.

You say it's Fall in the game. Just how much snow would be on the ground and how soon before it gets thick? I think we all need to know to adjust our gear selection.

[Karoline]

You say it's Fall in the game. Just how much snow would be on the ground and how soon before it gets thick? I think we all need to know to adjust our gear selection.

Good question. Also, is there even a snowmobile of any kind in SR4? I can't say I recall one off hand, though a hover vehicle could certainly manage it.

From what I know you shouldn't have to worry too much about snow until November, but once it comes it is going to be huge amounts from December to January and it will start to slow down (but stay on the ground) by around February. Expect to start thawing out around April.

Could be wrong, I only have a vague knowledge of areas about the same latitude but further west.

Oh, and why would we need Sniper Rifles to hunt paras? For the most part they don't have armor that requires that sort of weapon to get through, or am I wrong? My paranormal critter knowledge is minimal at best.