The only thing better than XP!, Karma and the giving of... Options

[Fortune]

[hahnsoo]

[Fortune]

And my point was that I disagree that Karma is awarded for any type of behavior, be it good or bad. in my opinion, whether the characters act like total sociopaths or true professionals, they get Karma if they complete the task at hand. Of course, there are other considerations besides Karma that are affected by the characters' actions, and such actions should have the proper consequences.

What point is it that I am missing again?

[Gilthanis]

[Fortune]

In what way did I say I was always right? At what time did I say I knew every single thing? I merely stated that I have had extensive experience with the Shadowrun system, and have strong opinions about certain aspects of it. I do have every right to have my own opinion.

I was told by someone that doesn't know me at all that I don't have a good grasp of a certain portion of the rules, and that I had not used the rules he was defending, so my opinion was invalid. I was merely correcting any misconceptions the poster may have had.

Go flame someone else!

[Gilthanis]

[Fortune]

The statement may have been 'general', but it implied that since I had stated my experience (I notice that you snuck in your 11 years of gaming experience), that somehow made me an know-it-all. If you have seen some of my posts here on Dumpshock you would know that is not the case. You then went on to state that "This is truly the mark of the insecure gamer with no better come back", disregarding the fact that I did indeed have an appropriate response.

[Gilthanis]

Yup my mentioning how many years I have gamed was to prove how insignificant it means because no matter how long you game it is unimportant to the topic being argued most of the time.

[Brazila]

Oh well back to topic......

[Crimson Jack]

I've done 'running karma' a couple of sessions. That is, handing out karma as the group and individuals earn it. That seems to foster a sense of competition that I don't really care for between the players sometimes. Everyone starts getting karmalust glossing over in their eyes when I do this.

[TeOdio]

Karma? You actually give your players Karma! ;)
I'll take to the defense of Fortune here a bit. I read a lot of the optional Karma rules when they were first published and I thought they were total bunk. I run a SHADOWRUN game, not Champions or Evil Villains Incorporated. Granted there is opportunity in the setting to do a Pirate campaign, Lone Star, Mercs, etc, but in a typical Shadowrun your only real contact with your employer's true motives is the Johnson, and they aren't going to tell you what they are truly trying to accomplish. I've had my runners work for EVERYONE. Insect corrupted criminal organizations, Aztechnology, Ares, Fuchi, etc, etc. I prefer that each player makes that personal character choice on what they will and won't do. Some don't do wet work, others are callous bastards that see any wage slave as being cogs in the machine. Having cross purposes between your players really adds to the drama of the game. But, in my game there is no "uber" villain. No black and white. Every faction in my campaign has their own motives, and do both "good" deeds and "bad" deeds. In the end, I'll leave it up to the players to decide if they think the "bad" outweighs the "good" and whether or not they want to act on it. I give out Karma on what they accomplish, for ill or for good. (somes folks ills are other folks goods). I'm not saying the amoral (or moral) campaign couldn't be fun, but it doesn't sit well with my vision of the struggle-for-survival nature of the game.
:nuyen: :nuyen: :nuyen:

[The White Dwarf]

Heres how I do it.

Threat level of run= 1-4 pts
If the PCs are effectivly immortals this is 1, if theyre just ahead of death the entire run its 4.

Playing your character= 1 pt
If you used your characters abilites, and made an effort to at least think like they do and roleplay a little, you get this one.

Jonny on the Spot= 1 pt
One of the guys coined this, been so long I forget where. But anytime a player is able to use some skill or ability to totally turn the tables, right place right time right skill right plan etc, they get this. Its rare but it has come up.

Plot Subpoint= 1-2pt ea
Depending on the run, if theres important sub points they can achive, they get this. Like if extracting the guy is the run, and they manage to both get his data and his prototype out with him, thats 2 subpoints.

A typical run is like 2-3 for threat, 1 for playing the character, and 1-2 for a subplot so like 4-7 total. We had one crazy run (multi session, blood magic, initiatory groups, dont ask) that actually got to 20 pts, and likewise a few that were only worth 3.

But tbh if youre not getting at least 4 or 5 a run it takes too long to see any meaningful advancement. I prefer trying to get up to the 6-7 category but runs on that scale dont always finish easily in 1 sitting, which makes them less karma than 2 smaller runs. It can be a lot to balance.

[Joe Outside]