Moving to Denver, GM seeks advice... Options

[codemonkey_uk]

Hi,

Background: I've recently started a Shadowrun game, I am GM, I and all he players are new to the system and setting. We have played 2 sessions, I have a 3rd prepared. We defaulted to the Seattle setting because that's what seemed appropriate, and that's where the free adventures I could find online at the time were set.

Problem: I want to move the players to Denver so I can use the Shadowrun Missions (02/Denver free downloads) as source material. I need advice on getting the move is done in a way that is appropriate to the setting. I have a simple story hook to get them to come (Brandeen who they saved in Food Fight, and put on a train "to go stay with her family" will call them from there, and offer them work "with her family" - and it'll turn out she is a sister/daughter of a Denver Fixer).

Could the players drive? I expect they will want too, as they have a van and a car between them, that they'll not be happy to leave behind. If they can't drive, how would they get there? If they do drive what would they likely encounter on they way? How hard / expensive should it be for them to get from Seattle to Denver, and what will they need to do when they get there?

Getting the tone of the journy right is important to me, as it will set the tone for the rest of the campaign.

I have TWO DAYS left to prepare for them leaving Seattle!

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

EDITl

First Draft of the Seattle to Denver Road Trip Adventure, posted to gather feedback and comments. ** GMs EYES ONLY **

http://homepage.mac.com/codemonkey_uk/SR4/RoadTrip.pdf

[Wasabi]

They could just fly into the UCAS sector from Seattle using a cargo plane.
Clearing UCAS Customs wouldn't apply if it was a direct flight since both are UCAS jurisdiction.

[Mäx]

They could just fly into the UCAS sector from Seattle using a cargo plane.
Clearing UCAS Customs wouldn't apply if it was a direct flight since both are UCAS jurisdiction.

But there would still be a security sheck at the airport, meaning all forbidden stuff is straight out and even restricted gear might straw too much attention if they have a lots of it.

[codemonkey_uk]

But there would still be a security sheck at the airport, meaning all forbidden stuff is straight out and even restricted gear might straw too much attention if they have a lots of it.

And how much would/should it cost? What would the SIN check threshold be at the airport? What if the fake SIN fails the opposed test?

[Mäx]

And how much would/should it cost? What would the SIN check threshold be at the airport? What if the fake SIN fails the opposed test?

I really cant say, but its better to avaid the airport and just arrange a transportation abort the smugglers that are on their way to Denver.
Their fixer should be able to arrange that, especially if their just moving their base of operations and not getting the hell out of dodge.

[LurkerOutThere]

If you want them to denver make it as painless as possible to do so. Their new fixer employer offers to charter the plane and has a friend at the airport that will get them through without a security check. Just make sure to do it subtlety and have some tension so it doesn't seem like hand waving.

The other option would be to have a route planned for a road trip, their going to have to pass through some fairly awakened territory and either go through or bypass several national checkpoints but it is certainly doable, especially with the help of local coyotes.

My advice: Give them options and have a plan and challenge for either, generally when my campaigns change venue it generally takes one or two sessions.

[Doc Chase]

Denver has enough of a smuggling community that getting the team in with their gear shouldn't be a problem. Just as long as their patron wets Ghostwalker's beak (and I'm sure he would), then they'll take a relaxing T-bird flight through Pueblo lands and arrive in the dark of night.

[LurkerOutThere]

The problem is most t-birds are not equiped to haul a vehicle let alone multiples. Then again depending what's on the vehicle it may be easy to ship compared to the runners themselves and the rest of their gear.

[Doc Chase]

The problem is most t-birds are not equiped to haul a vehicle let alone multiples. Then again depending what's on the vehicle it may be easy to ship compared to the runners themselves and the rest of their gear.

Neither are most passenger craft, which makes things a PITA. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif) They'd have to ship their vehicles via car hauler, but as long as they aren't abnormally heavy or visibly illegally modified there shouldn't be a problem through the checkpoints.

[sabs]

How are you going to handle their Karma/BP bought non-matrix contacts?

[Doc Byte]

Im my SR universers there's an old school train running from Seattle to Denver with a few wagons for cars at the end of the train. But I think officially there's some highspeed railroad.

Or one might find a smuggler with a Skytrain.



I've created some connections in Seattle:

The 'Commander' owns a flying club / bar with some discarded airforce simulators and a privat airfield. He collects old planes (including a Spitfire and a Tomcat) and rents out his hangars to other collectors and smugglers. He had a rejuvenating treatment, but if you're digging deep enough, you might find him on old NASA pictures.

Floyd's a femal dwarf smuggler and pilot with a modded Osprey.

And Carlos owns a travel agency. In his backroom he shipps Shadowrunners around the globe.

[Fatum]

The problem is most t-birds are not equiped to haul a vehicle let alone multiples. Then again depending what's on the vehicle it may be easy to ship compared to the runners themselves and the rest of their gear.

Ahem, Hawker-Ridley HS- 950 Skytrain, ahem.

[naga-nuyen]

This could be usefull, from 6WA

>
There is a smuggler outfi t called Technicolor Wings that runs around Boston. They
were able to get me in and out of the city discreetly awhile back.
> Netcat

> ‘Cat, leave the smuggling tips to the pros. Technicolor Wings specializes in
delivery anywhere, anytime—provided you have the cred, or course. They have
offi ces in Vladivostok, Seattle and New Orleans, but for enough coin will pick you
up or drop you off wherever.
> 2XL

It may cost some bucks, but could be worth it to get all the gear to denver!

[Mooncrow]

This could be usefull, from 6WA


It may cost some bucks, but could be worth it to get all the gear to denver!

Hrm, I think there's actually a bigger write up on that group in one of the books. I haven't read 6WA yet, but I know I've seen fluff on them before. I think they're basically a loose group of rigger contacts that you have to pass some type of test to join?

Time to go digging though the library.

But yeah, they deliver anything, anywhere. If you have the cash and want a group of reliable pros, they're probably the best (if memory serves).

[Chance359]

I'd just have a smuggler hire them as extra security for his convoy. You could set it up very Smokey and the Banditish where some of the runners act as mobile recon for security patrols ect. Have the convoy attacked about halfway through and the smuggler get killed. The runners then have the option of bringing the shipment in for him, if they do they get his fixer as a contact in denver.

[sabs]

Chance, your icon reminds me of one of my favorite archetypes that are gone. Company Man.

[Mäx]

Hrm, I think there's actually a bigger write up on that group in one of the books.

TECHNICOLOR WINGS
This is another group of shadowrunners masquerading as
legit businessmen. The company advertises itself as an
express delivery firm with offices in Vladivostok, New
Orleans and Seattle. It’s chip truth that they ship to these
places, but the way they do it sure ain’t legal. Wings is a fullscale
smuggling network made up of several T-bird and boat
crews. The crews get their cargoes from one of their offices
and then hustle the stuff to other locations around the world.
Wings claims they can deliver anything, anywhere, for a
price. That’s probably true, but you’re better off asking them'
to run your package along one of the regular routes. The
group operates airstrips and ports along the Big Dance
(Seattle to Denver) and the Gauntlet (St. Louis to New
Orleans). From their new office in Vladivostok, they’ve also
begun recruiting smugglers who know the quickest routes to
San Francisco. Wings crews also make the South American
stroll from Texas to Amazonia, but that kind of biz will cost
you more than it’s worth.
The group subcontracts the bulk of its work to private
crews who’ve proven they can handle the biz. It’s no stroll
to get into this club, either. A boat or T-bird crew gets a
specified amount of time to run a package along one of the
better-known smugglers’ routes and check in at a handful of
“challenge stations” along the way. So far as I can tell, the
challenge stations are a series of traps designed to slow the
crew down.
> I can attest to that. They give you a crate about the size of
an ork and tell you that if you open it, you’ll be automatically
disqualified. Then they make you stop at the stations, which
are nowhere near the actual route. After the first station, we
realized we had serious blue heat on our tail. Turns out the
station was a police scanning zone. Part of the test was managing
to get away from the police.
> Crash
> It’s the same way at sea. On my first run, the checkpoint
turned out to be a pirate hideout. Needless to say, we cut
and ran without dropping anchor. The pirate crew we’d
stumbled on chased us for the rest of the day.
> Daredevil
A paying job for Wings usually means smuggling precious
items for corporate officials who’d rather not declare
their plundered treasures to Customs. The FBI thinks this
team has been smuggling weapons and explosives to La
Venta and the Tupac Amaru, but they don’t have enough
hard evidence to prosecute.
> Assumption is not evidence. If it were, we’d all be in jail by
now. Odds are that the people running Technicolor Wings
have enough lawyers and accountants on their side to make
sure the numbers all add up and the government gets its cut.
> Poly Tick
> Can you imagine that? A smuggler paying taxes on his
haul!
> Racer X
> A Technicolor Wings crew will move anything they can fit in
a LAV. It’s not personal, just business. So long as the nuyen is
proportional to the risk, they’ll get the job done.
> Jammer
Membership in Wings has its privileges. People in the
know tell me Technicolor Wings maintains docks and
airstrips across the world, complete with mechanics and
shops. Members park free at crew hideouts, but better bring
a credstick if you need repairs.

There you go.

[Mooncrow]

There you go.

Ahah! Thanks =) I've been reading through my most likely suspects but I always get distracted: "ooh, this would be neat to use in the next section of the campaign..."

[Mäx]

Ahah! Thanks =) I've been reading through my most likely suspects but I always get distracted: "ooh, this would be neat to use in the next section of the campaign..."

It helps that i was 99,9% sure that the entry in question is in Loose Alliances. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

[Wasabi]

If they palletize their forbidden items and move it to a covered truck straight from the plane who is going to see it? Not UCAS Customs - Its not an international flight subject to inspection.
Land at some backwoods landing strip bada-boom-bada-bing. If you want to be paranoid use parachutes and scuba gear and have an advance party have a cigarette boat loitering in the dropzone. Use smuggler compartments. I mean c'mon people, I'm not suggesting an AirTran Faresaver here, we play Shadowrunners.

[codemonkey_uk]

Hello again! My group finished "On The Run" yesterday, so I need to go ahead with this next week, means I need all my prep done in time for next Thursday.

Some great tips guys, but of the suggestions given, I like the "Hired as security for a smuggling run" set up (suggested by Chance359) the most. It give them a good reason to go that moves them nicely into the "new face in Denver" story stuff you get at the start of the Missions campaign material.

If anyone has any suggestions for the route they'd take and things they can encounter along the way (flavour or challenges), I'd love to hear it - I still feel quite green on the SR setting, and making the challenges interesting for the whole team (gun slinger+samurai+mage+rigger-hacker) is going to be work enough for me! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/spin.gif)

(of course I'm not asking you to design my adventure for me - just asking for tips / brain storming!)

Google maps gives the road trip route from Seattle to Denver as follows, what (if anything) would be *significantly* different, in the world of SR4 2070:


1. Head southwest on Madison St toward 4th Ave 200 ft
2. Take the 1st right onto 4th Ave 302 ft
3. Take the 1st right onto Spring St 0.1 mi
4. Turn right onto the I-5 S ramp to Portland 0.9 mi
5. Follow signs for I-90 E/Bellevue/Spokane and merge onto I-90 E
Passing through Idaho, Montana
Entering Wyoming, 979 mi
6. Slight right at US-87 S 0.4 mi
7. Continue onto I-25 S Entering Colorado 389 mi
8. Take exit 210A for US-40/US-287/Colfax Ave 0.2 mi
9. Turn left at W Colfax Ave/I-70 BUS E 1.5 mi
10. Turn right at Broadway 449 ft
11. Take the 1st left onto E 14th Ave 0.1 mi

It's a roughly a 1 or 2 day (24h) drive. Obviously steps 5 and 7 are the most significant ones. Key locations are Seattle, Montana, Wyoming, & Colorado, then Denver. Right?

What do I need to know / where can I find out more, about those locations in SR/2070?

Thanks! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[codemonkey_uk]

Okay, had some time to research the setting a bit further using 6th world wiki, and it seems like the way to go is exit south seattle, through Salish-Shidhe land to Boise (8h drive), then cross Pueblo Corporate Council territory to Denver (12h drive).

[Neurosis]

How are you handling the three to five border crossings?

I feel that the rules for "Quickly Simulating Border Crossings" in the 4E Denver missions are really convenient for when you just want to handwave players on to the next plotpoint. They are highly forgiving, even of glitches and failures. Plus Charisma + Ettiquette + Fake SIN rating is a sizable pool of dice.

Interestingly, my team has also been splitting their time between Denver and Seattle (with stopovers in New York) largely because those (with the exception of New York) are the most well established Shadowrun settings.

[codemonkey_uk]

@Neurosis - yes, "Quickly Simulating Border Crossings" is the plan, though I may up the threshold a bit, as written it's silly easy. The story I have planned gives them an experienced smuggler as escort though, so I'll dress it up with RP about "hitting the border at the right time" (for an easy crossing) or pre-paid bribes / smugglers friend on patrol / etc.

[codemonkey_uk]

Road Trip Adventure for SR4 (8 page PDF):

http://homepage.mac.com/codemonkey_uk/SR4/RoadTrip.pdf

I would REALLY appreciate it if some more experienced GMs or adventure writers would give this a look over and see if they think it's okay. Hopefully it's enough to fill a 4 hour session (with a bit of shopping, spending last weeks karma, and RP before we start properly).

Regarding power levels, the team it's designed for is a 4-strong (Gun Slinger Adept, Mage, Rigger/Hacker, and Samurai) team and has accumulated roughly 45 karma since chargen, but hopefully the encounter can scale.