Paid in product. Options

[FuelDrop]

Most runs are paid for in nuyen. It's a universal currency that's difficult to trace.
However...

Wouldn't it be cheaper for the employer to pay for a run in goods they produce? If the runners agree to it the deal can benefit both parties. After all, that expensive rating 6 software that you want is probably a lot cheaper if you can convince the manufacturer' to take it off your bill at cost.

There are flaws of course, like your employer's company knowing back doors to your hardware and software, but it also means your Johnson can pay you more and have it cost him less.
Thoughts?

[KnightAries]

Why not?
There are actually times in Missions that you negotiate for cash but can get discounts off their goods. They'll sometimes give larger discounts if you take payment in goods instead of (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) .

[Udoshi]

I see this as more an extension of The Favor System that the shadows and the fixers who run them are built on. Its often easier to get a nice piece of gear or tool you need for another job by convincing someone to give you one, than it is to buy it legally.

[SpellBinder]

And it offers a great way for a Johnson to unload a potentially incriminating piece of evidence if he/she is gonna screw the runners over.

Buyer beware.

[ShadowDragon8685]

Remember, at the end of the month, unless you're spoofing your lifestyle, you're gonna need to cough up some cold, hard cash, or your landlord has you thrown out in the street.

[KnightAries]

And it offers a great way for a Johnson to unload a potentially incriminating piece of evidence if he/she is gonna screw the runners over.

Buyer beware.

Most "J's" are not going to pull a stunt like that unless they don't want to use deniable assets anymore. The shadows knows.... Especially when the assets survive.

[SpellBinder]

True, the odds are low, but there's still the chance.

[ShadowDragon8685]

Honestly, the Johnson Doublecross probably costs more than paying the Runners their goddamn blood money would, especially if they've proven to be paranoid fuckers.

[FuelDrop]

Honestly, the Johnson Doublecross probably costs more than paying the Runners their goddamn blood money would, especially if they've proven to be paranoid fuckers.

Agreed. Hiring a bunch of people because they're super resourceful badasses who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty and then intentionally pissing them off is all manner of stupid.

[thorya]

My runners actually really enjoy getting paid in product. One of their favorite runs was a simple side mission that paid in beer. 1500 cases of it. They barter for things a lot and used it as currency with a few of the gangs they work with. Recently had a side job where one of the guys traded some corporate vandalism and arson for connections with an anti-corp terrorist group and a truck load of ammonia nitrate. And a job where the biggest part of the pay was the Yakuza owing them "a favor" that has opened all sorts of doors for them. Though we play much closer to street level, so that might be part of it.

[Umidori]

Agreed. Hiring a bunch of people because they're super resourceful badasses who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty and then intentionally pissing them off is all manner of stupid.

Unless you're corporate, of course.

~Umi

[SpellBinder]

And a couple of thoughts that had come to mind when I made the above post (had to leave so I couldn't flush it out).

What if the Johnson making the payment has been replaced by an impostor who's been hired to screw over the runners?
What if the team didn't do their legwork as deep as they should have or could have with a new Johnson, who happens to be working for a corp the runners really pissed off to the extreme some time prior?

And yes, I do get what you're saying, but it's bound to happen at some point in a shadowrunner's career. The odds are really, REALLY low, but they're not zero.

[Wakshaani]

Johnson can also pay them in Beta Test gear, so fresh that the markets don't even know that they exist yet! Of course, there're a few bugs, so if you could maybe fill out some paperwork for us? That'd be swell.

Access to really wiz gear being held out as a carrot for loyal groups is also VERY handy. Have one of their contacts pull two or three straight runs for, say, Shiawase, then they turn up with some awesome new bit of chrome ... BETA grade! Johnson set 'em up with top of the line doctors and custom chrome!

Good for your deckers, your street sams, heck, you can even seduce your mages with new spell formulae or discount foci.

Fantastic tool.

[_Pax._]

Good for your deckers, your street sams, heck, you can even seduce your mages with new spell formulae or discount foci.

Mages might go for Beta grade or better 'ware, too. Plenty of mages get lightly augmented - eyes, maybe a synaptic booster, etc.

[CanRay]

My group got paid in soymilk once...

[FuelDrop]

And a couple of thoughts that had come to mind when I made the above post (had to leave so I couldn't flush it out).

What if the Johnson making the payment has been replaced by an impostor who's been hired to screw over the runners?
What if the team didn't do their legwork as deep as they should have or could have with a new Johnson, who happens to be working for a corp the runners really pissed off to the extreme some time prior?

And yes, I do get what you're saying, but it's bound to happen at some point in a shadowrunner's career. The odds are really, REALLY low, but they're not zero.

I fail to see how this is a bigger problem when you're paid in gear than it is when you're paid normally. You end up not getting paid either way, right?

[SpellBinder]

Yeah, but that post is supposed to be tied in with my previous post; "Buyer Beware".

What if an impostor Johnson paid the team with gear, which turned out to be stolen (tied to a crime, or whatnot), and suddenly *insert law enforcement Inc.* suddenly shows up at their homes looking for exactly that new gear of their's.

And taking from the story of the Kurokawa from DG & SM, a magical character gets a new and powerful focus and here comes a dragon looking for that tooth (or claw, horn, or whatever body part) of his/hers that was used in said focus's creation.

Just a few examples.

And of course the rare exception from the norm of the Johnson/Shadowrunner relationship.

[FuelDrop]

Point taken. OTOH if the Johnson is going to screw you he'll find a way. Though I grant that your suggestions are very interesting... I'll have to make sure my GM sees them. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Umidori]

My group got paid in soymilk once...

Let me guess: it was a... milk run?

~Umi

[CanRay]

Let me guess: it was a... milk run?

~Umi

No, but it did get the group some major props for delivering it to various people who needed any kind of food or safe drink.

Now I'm thinking of paying the group in keys of Novacoke and waiting to see which one makes like Tony Montana... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

[Speed Wraith]

Nothing wrong with some payment in goods or services from time to time. Someone mentioned you still have to pay the rent, but on occasion receiving payment other than cash makes things more interesting. The natural for Runners is to be hired by someone who has information they want/need for personal reasons.

[Iduno]

Remember, at the end of the month, unless you're spoofing your lifestyle, you're gonna need to cough up some cold, hard cash, or your landlord has you thrown out in the street.

It would help explain why the million dollar sam is running the shadows to pay rent. If you didn't pay for the ware/foci/whatever, the cost doesn't matter that much to you.

[CanRay]

It would help explain why the million dollar sam is running the shadows to pay rent. If you didn't pay for the ware/foci/whatever, the cost doesn't matter that much to you.

Yeah, but would YOU trust a CorpDoc?

...

Well, maybe if Tiny Tony Trog, the Troll Enforcer with a Doctorate in Cybertechnology, was watching to make sure everything went well.

[ShadowDragon8685]

Yeah, but would YOU trust a CorpDoc?

...

Well, maybe if Tiny Tony Trog, the Troll Enforcer with a Doctorate in Cybertechnology, was watching to make sure everything went well.

Whenever your brainpan is getting opened up, it pays large dividends to have a high-loyalty contact who knows enough about cybernetic surgery on-hand to make sure they're not installing any energetic freebies.




I also reckon that the really good shadow clinics explicitly let you bring your friend(s) either into the operating room or into the observation theater, and make a point to shovel any data-collecting devices they may use during the procedure into an EMP generator, in front of you.

[bannockburn]

Even better: have a high loyalty surgeon connection with a shadow clinic (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

As for the OP: I think it happens a lot.
Johnson Ares offers 20k cash or 30k in assorted arms and ammo.

Personally, I'd make sure, the weapons (or whatever you get) are clean afterwards, but in my opinion it's usual for a corp to pay with its products as they have it easier to procure those and the dividend is higher than with money.
Caveat emptor, of course, as has been stated. Doesn't need to be a double cross, but the brand new cyberware you get may actually be a beta test with all kinds of glitchy things. Might just be a well-meaning J with a not so awesome product (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)