Cutting Black is now available. Options

[Wakshaani]

For those who missed it, the latest Big Book o' Plot is now available.

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/300822...ook?src=hottest

It's a big one. A whole lotta things, and people, get broken in this one. The status quo is upended, maps change borders, and, well, have a read for yourself.

[sk8bcn]

Could we have a quick summary?

[Wakshaani]

Could we have a quick summary?

Hoo buddy.

Cutting Black covers around 8 months of chaos in the UCAS. It kicks off with Ares going for a Master Plan to deal with the bug threat once and for all, with Detroit used as ground zero for the operation.

It... does not go well.

As chaos spills into the streets and open war between Ares, bugs, and a third faction break out, the UCAS has had it. Chicago, Boston, and now Detroit?

Colloton rips up the Business Rights Accords and tells the Corporate Court that the UCAS will no longer honor corporate extraterritorality. She fires up the UCAS military and sends nearly a third of it to Detroit.

Before they get there, the military convoy just up and vanishes. Needless to say, people flip their shit.

Meanwhile, several corps let the UCAS know that they are NOT happy with this announcement and Are, in particular, says, "Screw you," and pulls out of all contracts with the UCAS, packing up from military bases, and several facilities, and heads to the CAS.

On Halloween, Philadelphia is struck by a massive EMP out of nowhere. No one claims responsibility and people panic.

Then Baltimore is hit. Then another city. A half dozen in a single night, and another dozen over the next week or so. What's left of the military is called in to try and restore order but without the assorted support that Ares had been giving them, and missing a third of the soldiery, they're overwhelmed. COlloton asks the UN for help but they dither.

With the UCAS vulnerable, Quebec makes a move to take some of Canada back from the UCAS. This doesn't go well.

Then the NAN strike, rolling across the Sioux border, and Manitoba, rolling up one border community after another. Several cities simply surrender rather than try to fight, and one Colnel Red Cloud, in particular, just embarrasses the few ICAS forces that are available to combat him.

And then things get worse.

Needless to say? It's one wild ride.

[Nath]

Cutting Black events take place between July 2080 and March 2081.

I saw President Angela Colloton mentionned. Just realized it means after being elected in 2068 and reelected in 2072 and 2076, those events should have taken place in the midst of her fourth campaign, prior to her becoming the first President of the Union to serve four terms (after being the first woman elected to the presidency).

[Wakshaani]

Cutting Black events take place between July 2080 and March 2081.

I saw President Angela Colloton mentionned. Just realized it means after being elected in 2068 and reelected in 2072 and 2076, those events should have taken place in the midst of her fourth campaign, prior to her becoming the first President of the Union to serve four terms (after being the first woman elected to the presidency).

*grumble*

*waves hand vaguely at COnstitution*

*grumble*

As an aside? Looking at all the posters in this one? Nath, I owe you a dinner sometime. You poor man.

[Nath]

*waves hand vaguely at COnstitution*

For those worried by good ol' 22nd Amendment, it had been settled a while ago in Shadowrun.

The Neo-Anarchist Guide to North America
Road to Denver
[...] It says something about the desperate mentality of the country that Jarman was returned to office in 2020 despite a disastrous first term. Then came the 29th Amendment to the Constitution, which allowed a president to serve an unlimited number of terms in office. This radical development could have come about through the powerful control that the corporations exerted over government and the people's confusion in the midst of chaos. Jarman won the election in 2024, becoming the first three-term president since Franklin D. Roosevelt.

UCAS GOVERNMENT - THE CONSTITUTION
[...] The president and vice president are elected to four-year terms, but by a simple majority of the popular ballot. The UCAS has no electoral college. There is also no limit on the number of terms a president may serve.

[Sendaz]

Except Colloton didn't get a fourth term.


Colloton declared a State of Emergency in November 2080 and requested a delay in the election until 30 days after the blackouts were sorted. (Pg 82)


In April 2081 a new President takes the seat. (pg 94)

So yeah they could have had a fourth term like Nath pointed out, but they didn't.

[Nath]

So President Colloton had the UCAS withdraw from the Business Recognition Accords with immediate effect, what, two months before the election, then postpone the election, then reinstate the BRA before leaving office. I may find the events in Washington more interesting to flesh out and play than that insect spirits thing.

[SpellBinder]

Cutting Black events take place between July 2080 and March 2081.

I saw President Angela Colloton mentionned. Just realized it means after being elected in 2068 and reelected in 2072 and 2076, those events should have taken place in the midst of her fourth campaign, prior to her becoming the first President of the Union to serve four terms (after being the first woman elected to the presidency).

Second President, actually, if she were to run and gets another re-election. F.D.R. actually got re-elected three times; voted into office in 1932 and re-elected in 1936, 1940, & 1944. He died 11 weeks into his fourth term, 12 April, 1945. His time in office is just so close to 12 years that most everyone just thinks it was only three terms.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt

Hell, if Colloton steps down at the end of March she still serves less time than F.D.R. did.

[Wakshaani]

You have no idea how much I love you people at times.

[Sengir]

For those worried by good ol' 22nd Amendment, it had been settled a while ago in Shadowrun.

To expand on that, according to NAGNA the UCAS constitution includes the Bill of Rights, but the rest may have been incorporated into the main text, simply dropped, or even reversed. The 13th amendment to the UCAS constitution does not abolish slavery, it's the Fugitive Slave Act for wageslaves.

[Tecumseh]

To expand on that, according to NAGNA the UCAS constitution includes the Bill of Rights, but the rest may have been incorporated into the main text, simply dropped, or even reversed. The 13th amendment to the UCAS constitution does not abolish slavery, it's the Fugitive Slave Act for wageslaves.

Is there a reference for this that I could look up? Just yesterday I made a joke to my players about the 13th Amendment of the UCAS Constitution, "presuming they kept that article". Sounds like maybe it's different than I thought. I like to keep my worlds as canon as possible, so if anyone knows where the UCAS Constitution is described then that would be awesome.

[Sendaz]

Is there a reference for this that I could look up? Just yesterday I made a joke to my players about the 13th Amendment of the UCAS Constitution, "presuming they kept that article". Sounds like maybe it's different than I thought. I like to keep my worlds as canon as possible, so if anyone knows where the UCAS Constitution is described then that would be awesome.

Like Sengir mentioned it's in the Neo-Anarchist Guide to North America, specifically page 82 which shows as follows:

THECONSTITUTION
We, the people of the United States of America and the Dominion of Canada, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, restore domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and procure the blessings ofliberty and security for ourselves and our posterity, in spite of all enemies foreign and domestic, and the travails ofour two nations, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United Canadian and American States.


So goes the preamble of the UCAS Constitution. Though similar to the old U.S. Constitution, its differences are telling enough to reveal the terrifying social disorders that gave birth to the Act of Union and the establishment of the UCAS.
Many amendments to the U. S. Constitution were incorporated into the body of the UCAS document. Deadwood was eliminated, including the 18th and 21st Amendments (Prohibition and its repeal).
The president and vice president are elected to four- year terms, but by a simple majority of the popular ballot. The UCAS has no electoral college. There is also no limit on the number of terms a president may serve.
The UCAS legislative branch is constituted much as it was under the U. S. Constitution, with a Senate and House of Representatives. Each state, and Seattle, elects two senators to six-year terms. Representatives are elected by districts of approximatelymately 50,000 full citizens and reapportioned based on a census held every ten years. Neither probationary citizens nor out-and-out SINIess inhabitants count toward congressional districts, and they cannot vote.
The federal judiciary is structured exactly as it was in the U.S., and U.S. Supreme Court decisions are consid- ered binding precedents in UCAS law.
The UCAS can suspend habeas corpus and various other civil rights in time of war, insurrection, or declared national emergency. Over the past two decades, various regions of the country have been declared in a state of emergency for periods of up to two years.
The first ten amendments of the U. S. Constitution exist unchanged in the UCAS Constitution, and are still referred to as the Bill of Rights. Much of their effectiveness has been weakened by recent Supreme Court decisions, however.
Other amendments to the UCAS Constitution in- clude:
• 11th Amendment—The rights of UCAS citizenship, by birth or naturalization, are not to be denied to any individual due to race or creed.
•12th and 15th Amendments—Expanded powers to state and local (i.e., Metroplex) governments. The central power of the UCAS government is greatly reduced.
•13th Amendment—UCAS recognizes contracts between corporations and their employees as binding. Upon due process of law in a Contract Court, corporations may extradite persons found guilty of unlawfully breaking their employment contract.
•14th Amendment—The so-called "SIN Amendment," ratified in 2036, established the System Identifi- cation Number, requiring the registration of every UCAS citizen. Individuals residing in the UCAS without SINs are defined as "probationary citizens," with sharply limited civil rights. Probationary citizens are not permitted to vote in federal elections. Species other than Homo sapiens are eligible for probationary citizenship in UCAS, but full citizenship may be granted to a non-human/non- metahuman only by act of Congress.

[Tecumseh]

Like Sengir mentioned it's in the Neo-Anarchist Guide to North America, specifically page 82 which shows as follows:

Ah, thank you!

My brain couldn't parse what Sengir meant by "NAGNA" but now, of course, it's obvious. I cracked open my copy and found what Sendaz quoted.

Thank you again.

[Sendaz]

Glad to help. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[saithorthepyro]

According to reddit, Insect Spirits lack the Inhabitation power and so can only exist on the astral, and don't have immunity to natural weapons or even Hardened Armor anymore

https://www.reddit.com/r/Shadowrun/comments...stral_but_dont/

I can't confirm this because I haven't decided to get the book yet, and my friend with it is asleep, but I'm guessing this is true.

[Sendaz]

nm

[JanessaVR]

I rather agree with Jaid's analysis of this book/storyline in the Sixth Edition thread. I picked up about half the books for 5e, but it looks like I'll be giving 6e a hard pass entirely.

At this point I'll just focus on filling in the holes for my collection of 1e to 5e, and that will be Shadowrun for me.

[binarywraith]

According to reddit, Insect Spirits lack the Inhabitation power and so can only exist on the astral, and don't have immunity to natural weapons or even Hardened Armor anymore

https://www.reddit.com/r/Shadowrun/comments...stral_but_dont/

I can't confirm this because I haven't decided to get the book yet, and my friend with it is asleep, but I'm guessing this is true.

More than likely this is just the result of the usual level of CGL 'proofreading' that cut a line off their stats.

[Stahlseele]

Nobody had better ever again complain about the silly german stuff . .

Also, isn't the sea dragon taking over seattle as ghostwalker did with denver missing?

[Sengir]

Also, isn't the sea dragon taking over seattle as ghostwalker did with denver missing?

She didn't conquer Seattle like Ghostie did with Denver, Seattle was already going towards independence and she showed up offering protection...as well as (literally) tons of gold.

[Jaid]

She didn't conquer Seattle like Ghostie did with Denver, Seattle was already going towards independence and she showed up offering protection...as well as (literally) tons of gold.

it's a dragon. assuming the shadowrun team haven't screwed up another thing royally, it was the kind of offer that a mafia don makes (ie the kind you don't refuse). and the gold is probably being given to the city only in the sense that the dragon now owns the city, therefore it is essentially giving the gold to itself.

again, assuming the devs didn't just get the brain worms and now dragons are all friendly and helpful without expecting more in return.

this is the kind of situation where you should have learned a lesson from Vir Cotto: some favours have too high a price.

[Stahlseele]

Babylon 5 reference, nice!

[Sengir]

it's a dragon. assuming the shadowrun team haven't screwed up another thing royally, it was the kind of offer that a mafia don makes (ie the kind you don't refuse). and the gold is probably being given to the city only in the sense that the dragon now owns the city, therefore it is essentially giving the gold to itself.

again, assuming the devs didn't just get the brain worms and now dragons are all friendly and helpful without expecting more in return.

Of course she probably has other motives than just the kindness of her lizard heart, although I'm not so sure she's after a direct profit.


But my point was that she didn't walz into the place like GW did in Denver, but instead supported an existing independence movement in return for a just bit of real estate, which does not seem exceedingly valuable. Which sounds much more like the hyper-intelligent creatures with a planning horizon of millennia that dragons are supposed to be than Ghostzilla.

[Jaid]

Of course she probably has other motives than just the kindness of her lizard heart, although I'm not so sure she's after a direct profit.


But my point was that she didn't walz into the place like GW did in Denver, but instead supported an existing independence movement in return for a just bit of real estate, which does not seem exceedingly valuable. Which sounds much more like the hyper-intelligent creatures with a planning horizon of millennia that dragons are supposed to be than Ghostzilla.

i dunno. ghostwalker pretty much owns a city, which he can now use as part of his plans for future millenia.

the sea dragon does not.

it's a bit hard to argue that ghostwalker is the dumb one at this point.

if the sea dragon agreed to protect the city and gave them a bunch of money for crappy real estate (considering the *standard* trade would be a smaller amount of money for crappy real estate that nobody wants, with no requirement for a promise to take on potential armies with tanks and fighter jets and such), and isn't getting a ton more in exchange, they've done a pretty bad job of depicting that dragon in my opinion.