Recruiting: Guns, Germs & Steel, A game of you. Options

[mallet]

Hey All, I am wanting to start up a game here on Dumpshock and I looking for a few good characters.

I am going to try and make it a bit different from other games currently going on in that the main plotline and spin-off stories will be based on the characters and their background, rather then having a pre-existing adventure that the characters will be placed into.

To facilitate this I am going to be looking for characters that have interesting backgrounds and that have built in "room to grow" and ambitions. This will definitely be "Role-playing" more then "roll-playing". Munchkins need not apply.

All characters can be built using the priority system, sum of 10, or with 125 build points. Edges/Flaws are open-ended, but must be balanced out (i.e. 5pts in edges = 5pts. in flaws). Feel free to use NSRCG and email me the file as an attachment, or send it in word format if you prefer.

Please, no pure deckers or riggers. The setting will be in Seattle to start, but anything can happen after that.

I may be giving extra Karma, gear, skills, etc… to characters with excellent backgrounds to help round them out and/or to balance them out with the other players.

Please make sure your stats, skills and abilities all realistically fit in with your background. I know that it is tempting to just "give" your characters skills that are handy to have in the shadows even if they shouldn't really have them (or at least have them at that level). For example I once had a player make a character who was a 18 year old high-school drop-out, ex-gang member who gave himself a skill of 6 in biotech because he used to do first-aid on the rest of the gang. I don't think so. He might have it at 3, but not 6. In the same vein a special forces-streetsam-deathmachine should not have negotiation at 6. He has spent his life Following Orders and collecting a paycheck, not negotiating business deals and payments. Please use pages 98-99 of SR3 (skill ratings table) to determine what the appropriate skill level your character would have in any skill.

Since the story and antagonists will be tailored to the characters you do not need to have an "ultimate kill machine", a well-rounded character would be much better.

As for time/number of posts a week, etc… it will depend on who ends up playing and what their schedule is like. The more you can post, the better.

Anyways, today is the 16th and anyone interested in playing should try and have his or her characters sent to me by April 23rd or at least let me know that you are interested by that time. I will let people know more details as they send in their characters and full details should be available after the 24th.

PM or post any questions that you have.

Email me at jjparton@hotmail.com (when you email, also drop me a PM so I know to check for it.) Thanks.

[HMHVV Hunter]

I like the sound of this :)

Should I post my concept here (like a short, paragraph-long spiel) or e-mail it?

Either way, I'm interested.

[mallet]

Feel free to post a short outline here to give other players a idea of what you are going for, but email me the more detailed version. This way the other players will not know any flaws, secrets, etc... that your player has. They will have to learn them IC.

[HMHVV Hunter]

I figured I'd better PM it; it contains part of his background.

I just sent it.

[mallet]

Oh, and in responce to some PM's I've gotten: Newbies are more then welcome. Please, don't be shy, send something in.

Also the following is an example of what I am looking for, but by no means does any submission have to be this detailed, but it would be nice. :D

Example Background:

Neil Burnside was born in 2018 in the Renraku Compound of the London sprawl. His parents were both well educated, company mages and with the rarity of magical employees at the time they were treated almost like royalty. Neil, along with his three older siblings (two brothers and a sister) was groomed right from the start to follow in their parent's footsteps.
Neil was very bright and charismatic growing up and he became an almost "golden child" for his parents and the Renraku executives. No expense was spared in his education and training and many great things were expected of him when he reached the age where his magical talent should present itself. Unfortunately things didn't work out quite as well as everyone hoped.
Unlike his brothers and sister before him, Neil did not display any "active" magical abilities. True, he was capable of viewing the astral plane, but he seemed unable to astrally project or capable of casting even the most minor of spells. At first everyone thought he just needed more time and training, but after another year of expensive study he still did not seem capable of these abilities (It should be pointed out that at this time, the early 2030's, Physical Adepts were exceedingly rare, almost unheard of, and the few that were known all had "flashy" abilities.)
Disappointment started to settle in amongst his parents and the Renraku executives, they saw him as being "magically stunted" and given the amount of time and money they had invested in him this wasn't a happy state of affairs and did not make for a good home life for Neil. Of course they did not come right out and say they were disappointed in him, it was always "Don't worry." Or "you're special in your own way." Or "We still love you no matter what." But Neil could see right through that…
In fact the one thing Neil was always good at was seeing through lies. He just knew when someone was lying or hiding something and the pressure of knowing all the fake sentiment and hidden disappointment of his friends and family began to ware him down. He became sullen and withdrawn. Everywhere he went he was surrounded by lies and hidden emotions, even the day-to-day white lies everyone speaks were laid bare before him.
He was 19 when he finally gave up on life in the compound. He dropped out of school, packed his few belongings and left for London proper. To be honest no one was sad to see him go. Sure his parents said they wanted him to stay, but he could see that they didn't and as for the Renraku executives, they couldn't see any reason to bother to try and carouse him to stay. They had already spent too much money on him and his sullen attitude was a strain on the work performance of his parents and siblings. But Renraku, never one to turn it's back on a possible asset, decided to keep an occasional eye on Neil, both for their own and his parent's peace of mind. This amounted to the occasional covert surveillance of Neil by Renraku security.
Life on the streets of London wasn't any better of Neil then in the Renraku compound. The lies and false sentiment were even more prevalent here and Neil started to sink lower and lower into depression and apathy. He drifted north to the Edinburgh sprawl and finally fell in with the lowest of crowds. His days were spent gambling and his nights were spent searching for the bottom of the nearest bottle.
He began to take up a life of petty crime, but eventually left that for what he found to be his true calling… The Con. Neil was great at this, he could read people like an open book, tell when they were falling for it and when they weren't. He could have been the best of all the con artists, but for one problem, he just didn't really care that much. He only took what he needed and then ended up gambling and drinking that money away. The one thing he did do at this time was get an excellent fake id created under the name of Willie Cane that he used for all of his scams, and his caution paid off.
Neil was 24 when the law finally caught up with "Willie Cane". A big scale con went wrong and Neil ended up getting caught by the police. Fortunately the Willie cane ID was exceptionally good and even fooled the police. So it was "Willie Cane" who was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison, and Neil, not wanting to ruin his real name never told anyone he was someone else.
It was in prison, of all places, where Neil finally began to find himself and think that his abilities could be of even greater use. He always had a knack for getting along with people and in the big house his skills were of great use and won him a place with the biggest gang on the inside. His ability to spot a lie and know what people were feeling helped him spot all manner of rats, snitches, and informants for the gang. The leader of the gang, a Frenchman, gave him the nickname Le Eyes (The Eyes, pronounced Lies) and his skills made life in prison much easier. He began working out, taking better care of himself and started to do some research on magic and magical abilities. He eventually figured out that he must be some sort of Physical adept, and the knowledge that he wasn't some freak or "stunted mage" like his parents and Renraku that thought made a big difference on his outlook on life.
When his time was done and he was finally released it was a different Neil Burnside that left prison. He quickly ditched his Willie Cane ID and went back to being himself. He headed back to London and with his newfound self-confidence started to look for the next big score.
He still enjoys gambling and the Con, but his sights are set higher and though he still is living day-to-day it won't be for long. He has started to try and study his magical abilities and to try and increase them. He has also made a few new friends and has found work on both sides of the tracks. Sometimes pulling cons and other times stopping them. Recently he has made the acquaintance of a local Fixer name Neddy who says he may have some "special jobs" lined up…

Anyways, that is just an example character. He's a social adapt, not super good in a fight, but has a lot of roleplaying potential and can work well with other player.

Any questions, just ask.

[Whizbang]

Sent in the bio of my griffin shaman...now to decide how to build him this time around...

[Kaosaur]

My character has the 5 point flaw Amnesia.

:D Is that enough? :D

[Digital Heroin]

Hmm... could play Billy... got all I need for him, just need to re-write his background a little, and re-buy gear... pity I lost MITS...

[mallet]

[Kaosaur]

[Whizbang]

Having it pointed out that the griffin shaman is likely not the best team player, I submitted a decker/B&E specialist. Don't have time to make the necessary modifications now...work is shipping me off to Florida until Friday. Hopefully recruitment will still be open then. At least I got the bio in.

[Kiedo]

I just send off the bio for a human detective/semi-face. I built his for another run that didn't pan out, but I'm going to redo his charsheet before sending it in. He's been working as a PI for the past 20 years and before that he worked for the star 10.

[mallet]

Hey, just a thought as I go over the apps coming in.

One thing I would like is an idea of what the characters are up to in their day-to-day lives. Ie) BG's that just end off "...and he fled into the Shadows of Seattle." don't let me get a handle on what your character is currently up to, what type of run's he takes (or doesn't take), how he pays the bills or how I could work him into the story or create a story for him. (Unless he just got there with in the last few days).

And since I would like to create a game that takes your characters into account as far as plot and story go the more details and story you give me, the better I can make the game.

thanks.

[Digital Heroin]

Two ideas occur to me... well, three... two are reprisals of old characters of mine I never really got to play (a Rookie of the Year Urban Brawler and a thoroughly mundane Hitman)... the third is an Amerind Street Sam who was at one time a Shaman who told his totem where to go...

I just need to deicide which would be more enjoyable to play... and then, damn... there's my pacifist Geko shaman who runs for thrills...

[Johnson]

I have a private detective I just have to add 10 build points and a detail background.

[Gremish]

Hi ide liek to joint eh game as a PC. Im thinking im gonna make a adapt, not sure of all the stats but thinking throwing abilities, not much guns, maybe some hand to hand =)

Ill pump something out asap =)

[mallet]

So the characters are starting to show up which is great, but if anyone out there is interested in playing but has not yet let me know, please feel free to PM or post, even if you do not have the character finished just so I know that more characters are going to be showing up.

If I do not hear from anyone else about their intention to submit with in the next couple of days I might just start going ahead with the characters that have already been sent to me.

So please post or drop me a PM, even if it's only a couple of lines, to let me know that you are interested.

Thanks.

[Kaosaur]

Will you actually let me run that 5 point Amnesia character? :D

[mallet]

Sure. It could be fun. Just PM on how you are going to play him personality wise. Is he going to be a dick? or confused and scared? or will he not really care about his past, until it begins to haunt him? That kind of thing.

[mallet]

Hey all, just doing a quick rollcall of people I have heard from about playing in the game so far. If anyone needs/wants to drop out please let me know.

Also if anyone still wants to join in, please let me know. Still pleanty of time to do so, but give me a heads up if you do intend to submit a character. Thanks.

HMHVV Hunter - Got BG, need sheet
Whizbang - Got your new idea, but still need BG and sheet
Kaosaur - All good, I'll let you know when we are going to start.
Digital Heroin - You've shown interest, but I haven't gotten anything solid
Kiedo - Got the BG, need sheet
Johnson - Got the idea, need a BG and Sheet
Gremish - Got an Idea, need BG and Sheet
Musashi Forever - Got it all, I'll let you know.

Thanks to everyone who has submitted so far and for everyone else who might want to play, please let me know.

Thanks.

[Whizbang]

That idea I sent you pretty much is the background. Was surprised to find an internet cafe...unfortunatly all my SR stuff is at home, so back to Friday/Saturday to get back to work on the sheet.

[gobogen]

I would be very interested in joining...

You said we have until the 23rd so I'll make sure to be done by then.

[Digital Heroin]

I'm still working on my concept... seems my private messages don't want to work today. Question that'll help me decide which character to play... do you allow cash to karma for starting characters?

[Gremish]

Victor "The Rose" Yiev

[ Spoiler ]

Race: Ork

Body 9
Quickness 6
Strength 8
Charisma 1
Intelligence 5
Willpower 6
Essence 6.00
Run Mult. 3
Magic 6
Reaction 5(9)
Init. Dice 1(3)

Active Skills:
Edged Weapons [6]
Throwing Weapons [6]
Unarmed Combat-SR3 [4]
Athletics [6]
Stealth [6]
Biotech [3]

Knowledge:
Criminal Organizations(KNO) [2]
Seattle Ork Underground(KNO) [2]
AC:Art(KNO) [2]
AK:Downtown Seattle(KNO) [2]
English(LAN) [4]
English(LAN) (RW) [2]
Japanese(LAN) [3]
Japanese(LAN) (RW) [1]
IN:Urban Brawl(KNO) [3]
IN:Meditation(KNO) [4]
IN:Legendary Martial Artists(KNO) [4]
Athletics(KNO) [3]
Stealth(KNO) [3]

Armor:
X:Secure Ultra-Vest 14 3 2
X:Armor Jacket 6 5 3

Weapons:
Katana(EDG) (STR+3)M
[10]IPE Offensive HE Grenade (A) 15S
[10]White Phosphorus Grenade (A) 14M/10L
[10]Incendary Grenade (A) (Special)

Cash:
1145¥


Adapt Abilities:
Traceless Walk 0.5000 mits.151:An adept with the traceless walk power can move over soft or brittle surfaces such as snow, sand, or thin paper without leaving any visible traces or noise.

Missile Mastery 1.0000 mits.150:Masy use as throwing weapons such normally harmless items such as pens, credsticks and IDcards become deadly weapons in the adepts hands . . .

Killing Hands STR(Medium) 1.0000 sr3.170:This power uses magic to turn unarmed attacks into medium physical damage.

Imp. Reflexes Level 2 3.0000 sr3.169:This power increases the speed at which you react, just like wired reflexes SR3-301.

Empathic Healing 0.5000 sta2.65:Empathic Healing grants the adept the ability to heal others by transferring their damage onto himself.

Edge/Flaw:
Toughness 3
Quick Healer 2
Biorejection -5



Background:

Victor has spent the last 10 years as a Nekekami, spirit cat. Gaining the skills needed to perform the every day tasks of the skilled and deadly assassin, sabatoger, scout and above all else killer.

Years spent on missions have hardened him, he has spent his life in service to the Yakuza underground called in when a "professional" was needed. After so long taking orders with no questions asked something has happened. The leader of his chapter of yakuza in New York has been murdered, his task at this time was to protect this amn and after the murder Victor has fealt himself a failer. This si the only mission he has not been able to complete and it has begun eating away at him. Like a Shadow he has been able to dissapear formt he Yakuza underground and they frankly think him dead. After several months he has been able to turn up litte information on the killer and he now feels it is his mission in life to find this person and eliminate them for any semblence of honor to be restored to him.

Months of hard work have brought him to seattle, a place he knows vry litle about. Here with little cash and only a wisper to tell him this is the place of the murderer he now stands looking for information and a job that might get him enough cash to gain a standing and able to buy info when needed. Thus he has turned to the shadows for as long as needed.

[Thomas]

mallet - Umm... I didn't make it on your Apr 19 rollcall - does that mean Sledge didn't make the cut?