If any of you have run one in the past, what worked, and what didn't?

The players all have relatively weak characters (thanks to Blackjack's "humbling" priorities) with little / no money and low attributes and skills. Most are short on cash, ammunition, and clothing.

Now what do I do?

The players aren't in charge of the gang, btw, just medium/high-ups in the structure. The gang isn't any organized crime marvel, just some punks with guns and crack.

Yeah, just tell me about your awesome campaigns...

you might try adapting the corporate rating rules presented in Corporate Shadowfiles (i think they may have shown up ind Download, as well). give your list of gangs stats like BTLs, Chemical Drugs, Protection Rackets, etc.

If you are making a ganger campain, then I suggest you use this link. It could be a time saver.

Shadowrun Random Gang Generator

If you really want to make them sweat, try running the Food Fight scenario from the other side. They're the ones trying to rob the place and run up against unexpected opposition.

And if you have the Shadowrun Companion, take a look at the rules for stealing and fencing cars. That's a good way for them to expand their operations and get quick cash.

The FF idea is great, Flak, I think I'll use that. "It's three AM, and you're hungry for...ROBBERY!"

An oldie but goodie of mine is that some rich girl went out with hr friends and got abducted, abused and then dumped by some gang, you found her on your turf, you were looting her body when a big black towncar blocks off the end of the alley and out gets a big guy in a tan trenchcoat pointing a big revolver at you.

you have 18 hours to survive before her memory comes back and remembers it was the "razorbacks" or some gang from across town.

We did a ganger game, but the GM warned us about a month in advance that he wanted us to be "proactive". He had the plot of his "main" story, but it was up to us to figure out how to get paid. It worked really well, with the pimping and the drug dealing.

As well, expect the PCs to try the line
"Hey, if we fight, you're gonna get hurt, we're gonna get hurt. Healing's expensive,so let's not waste our time"

You'll see it a bit when they're weak. But when they're strong, don't expect the line to work on THEM!

Our story had the Z-zone being shut down (ie. segregated by an extreme Lone Star border). That was really interesting, because little things like food and water became important.

Interresting. Just keeping your crack whores in line and away from the enemy pimps while keeping the drug lab in production sounds like fun.

I tend to use that generator for street gangs and mafiosos, etc. Works pretty well, if you alter the output for your needs

Sadly, three of our players were Grand Theft Auto III regulars - but the GM wasn't. So, 50% of the group was convinced that stealing cars and evading cops was casual - but the GM wasn't.

We didn't steal as many cars as we would have liked.

Actually, what the "gang" did was set up multiple businesses - each person had a "speciality" that they liked, and the rest of the group would help set them up.

Week-to-week, we'd do different "runs" self-designed to promote one member's business.

Whore collecting, pimp smacking one week
Car-jacking, and chop-shop protection the other week.
etc.
Gun running, smack production, Street doc facilities, etc. GADS of fun.

I ran a ganger game sometime ago based in the Columbus-Delaware sprawl in Ohio.

I had the gangers living in a college like campus apartment. There were like 30 members not including the pc's. I sat at work one day and created all of them and their gear and personalities in an access DB.

The main plot was the characters trying to repel a krewe take over from the Cleveland area. They were also lackeys to the local mafia family. They ate at Mama's free when she needed something. She paid well and the fod was FREE. Otherwise i was pretty hard on them when it came to nuyen.

They also had a "guardian angel" on the police force. He was an undercover cop who happened to stumble on a plot by the chief of police to off the gang. He capped the chief and disappeared into the CAS.

Was fun.

Here are a couple of ideas that I wrote up a while back but have yet to play out (hope none of my future players read this )

Vengeance
Gang provides bouncers at strip club, which also pays protection. Rich corp guy became besotted with one girl and when his advances were rejected he raped and beat her. Club owner asks gang to teach corper a lesson so that people won’t start thinking they can treat his girls like that.

PCs do legwork to find out where corp guy can be found, but he has security. He may also be target of an extraction by Shadowrunners and when they hear that the PCs are asking around about him they confront the PCs.

Witness in Hiding
Gang act as pimps and protection to a group of prostitutes. One of the prostitutes, Meala, came under their wing a month ago, she had been in some accident and her face and body showed several cuts still healing up. She carried herself with an air that she was above the gutter though – something special.

Meala was previously a high-class escort, her clients were a select group of rich corpers in Bellevue. One of her clients was murdered by a colleague in his apartment, unbeknownst to the murderer Meala was in the bedroom. The only witness, she panicked and tried to flee, alerting the murderer to her presence. In sheer terror she broke through a window and escaped out onto the streets.

Meala, fearing for her life, found her apartment ransacked and staked out. She fled into the Barrens and now scrapes by as a new street level joy girl. However, recently one of her clients, who was "slumming it", recognised her and has reported this back to the murderer.

The PCs first must defend Meala from a drive by attack, and then must handle a bomb being planted at the brothel. Finally a direct attack comes on Meala by a group of newbie Shadowrunners led by the murderer himself.

Tendril of the Mafia
The Gang has been approached by a number of Mafia made men to discuss the possibility of the gang distributing BTLs and street drugs for the family. The PCs are instructed to act as security while the gang boss discusses the deal with the Mafia.

A contingent of the Yakuza who wish to stymie this expansion by the Mafia, assault the meet hoping to scare off the gangers.

Assuming the PCs protect their boss and the Mafia men, a deal is struck and the PCs are assigned to collect the first batch of merchandise. They are ambushed by Shadowrunners, including a drone rigger, hired by the Yakuza.

Finally, if the merchandise arrives intact, the PCs are instructed to act as cover to the gangers selected to sell the gear on the street. The PCs must help the dealers evade club security, drugged out addicts, and rival gangers.

Finally the PCs are offered the ultimate test of loyalty. The yakuza offer the PCs gear, cyber (including implantation), or magical items worth up to 100,000 Nuyen each and the promise of future work, effectively boosting them up to being shadowrunners. In return they are to plant a bomb in the warehouse being used to store the merchandise, the bomb will be detonated after the next delivery arrives. If the PCs refuse, the Yakuza attack with all they have got, most likely killing the PCs (make it obvious this will happen). The loyal way out is to initially play along and then try and double cross the yakuza.