- Can you teleport us there?
- Do you have any magic items that could help us?
- What's the mission instigator's alignment?
- X
? Is that each? - Can we get that up-front?
- Who else is going to be trying to get Y?
- What's the Johnson look like on the astral?
Full Version: What do you always ask?
In D&D (the RPGA, anyway) the questions are always:
General
"Are there any time restrictions or time-related elements to this job?"
"Does anyone involved in this job need to remain alive/uninjured/conscious and (if it's not obvious) why?"
"Does the opposition need to remain ignorant of any of our actions?"
"What are the consequences of any of the above requirements (or any other requirements) not being met?"
The terrain:
"Do you have maps/blueprints?"
"What is the security like?" (this usually leads to a lot of other questions)
"Can you arrange transportation?"
"When, where and how will we be able to leave the job site?"
The opposition:
"How many are there?"
"Do they have any reason to suspect that we're coming?"
"How are they equipped?"
"Do they have magical support?"
"How long would it take them to be reinforced?"
"What races are represented and in what proportions?"
"Who are they affiliated with? Do they have any unusual affiliations?"
"Do they all have a single uniform?"
The package:
"Is it radioactive? Flammable? Magical? Alive? Toxic? Explosive? Solid/liquid/gas?"
"How much does (s)he/it weigh? Dimensions?"
"Does (s)he/it have any tracking devices that you are aware of?"
"Does (s)he have any reletives/close friends that you know of?"
"When and where was (s)he/it last seen?"
"Does (s)he use any other identities?"
"Does (s)he have any cyberware/bioware/magical ability?"
Questions for the more cautious runner:
"Might we be contacted by any of your associates and if so who, when, where and how? How will we verify their identity?"
"Who else is aware of this run and what do they know about it?"
One of the most important questions however is the one you ask yourself and your fellow runners:
"What do we do if ____________ goes wrong/slots up/turns out to be false?"
"Are there any time restrictions or time-related elements to this job?"
"Does anyone involved in this job need to remain alive/uninjured/conscious and (if it's not obvious) why?"
"Does the opposition need to remain ignorant of any of our actions?"
"What are the consequences of any of the above requirements (or any other requirements) not being met?"
The terrain:
"Do you have maps/blueprints?"
"What is the security like?" (this usually leads to a lot of other questions)
"Can you arrange transportation?"
"When, where and how will we be able to leave the job site?"
The opposition:
"How many are there?"
"Do they have any reason to suspect that we're coming?"
"How are they equipped?"
"Do they have magical support?"
"How long would it take them to be reinforced?"
"What races are represented and in what proportions?"
"Who are they affiliated with? Do they have any unusual affiliations?"
"Do they all have a single uniform?"
The package:
"Is it radioactive? Flammable? Magical? Alive? Toxic? Explosive? Solid/liquid/gas?"
"How much does (s)he/it weigh? Dimensions?"
"Does (s)he/it have any tracking devices that you are aware of?"
"Does (s)he have any reletives/close friends that you know of?"
"When and where was (s)he/it last seen?"
"Does (s)he use any other identities?"
"Does (s)he have any cyberware/bioware/magical ability?"
Questions for the more cautious runner:
"Might we be contacted by any of your associates and if so who, when, where and how? How will we verify their identity?"
"Who else is aware of this run and what do they know about it?"
One of the most important questions however is the one you ask yourself and your fellow runners:
"What do we do if ____________ goes wrong/slots up/turns out to be false?"
Payment:
Equipment expense?
A portion up front, the rest on completion?
(we usually save individual cuts for later discussions)
Package:
*The catch-all question: any specific or special considerations regarding the package?
*How/when/where do we contact you?
*How/when/where do we communicate success or hand off the package?
Mission
*Parameters for success?
*Any restrictions on the mission?
*Do you have any operational intelligence regarding the target site?
*Do you have any operational intelligence regarding opposing forces?
*Creatures on site -- yes, no? Normal, paranormal?
Team planning
*Points of entrance
*Points of exit
*secondary re-group area if everything goes to frag
*Capability of on-site team to enact retaliation strike (can they scramble air support to hunt down escaping runners?)
*Nearest point of reinforcements?
Strategic planning: METT-T (Mission, Enemy, Terrain, Troops, Time)
Tactical planning: OCOKA (Observation: fields of fire, Cover/concealment, Obstacles: reinforced, existing, Key Approach)
Ok, I'm done rambling.
-Siege
Equipment expense?
A portion up front, the rest on completion?
(we usually save individual cuts for later discussions)
Package:
*The catch-all question: any specific or special considerations regarding the package?
*How/when/where do we contact you?
*How/when/where do we communicate success or hand off the package?
Mission
*Parameters for success?
*Any restrictions on the mission?
*Do you have any operational intelligence regarding the target site?
*Do you have any operational intelligence regarding opposing forces?
*Creatures on site -- yes, no? Normal, paranormal?
Team planning
*Points of entrance
*Points of exit
*secondary re-group area if everything goes to frag
*Capability of on-site team to enact retaliation strike (can they scramble air support to hunt down escaping runners?)
*Nearest point of reinforcements?
Strategic planning: METT-T (Mission, Enemy, Terrain, Troops, Time)
Tactical planning: OCOKA (Observation: fields of fire, Cover/concealment, Obstacles: reinforced, existing, Key Approach)
Ok, I'm done rambling.
-Siege
| QUOTE (Mr. Man) |
| "Can you arrange transportation?" |
Uh, wha? You have the Johnson arrange for your transport? Christ, the people I used to game with would have walked if that'd been suggested. Way to trusting for them, not nearly paranoid enough. But this was the crew where my character would only turn on their mobile phone to make outgoing calls, so you could say we were at the high end of the scale.
Bah, the cell phone/pager thing is pretty standard. And whether or not the Johnson arranges transport is based on where you're going, and what kind of hoops you have to jump through to get there. If you're going to another country and don't have the resources to make it (or make it on timeframe), sometimes you have to get the Johnson to do it. Rarely, but sometimes.
No, that's when you make your own arrangements and ask the Johnson for the cred to cover the costs as operating expenses. I remember one run we had to make into the Tir and the Johnson and team had a bit of a history and didn't really like/trust each other. We didn't have time to set up the insertion but we demanded a returnable lump sum to cover the costs of hiring a panzer-jock to drive us out if they dropped us. That way if they did try to abandon us we had options and they got their money back, minus five/ten percent as a non-refundable retainer for the rigger being on call. Just about everyone was happy, or at least grudgingly satisfied.
| QUOTE (FlakJacket) | ||
Uh, wha? You have the Johnson arrange for your transport? |
First of all, the original post doesn't specify whether you're talking to a Johnson or a fixer. In our game we will often get all the info on a job from a fixer (more security for the Johnson that way).
Secondly, if Mr. Johnson wants to screw you he doesn't need to know a damn thing about your transportation to do it. "Did I forget to mention the unmarked mine field?" comes immediately to mind, but since he schedules the meets why should he leave anything to chance?
Third, in our game NPCs are much more inclined to part with goods and services than cold hard nuyen. They do this for the same reasons that most businesses IRL offer discounts rather than rebates.
Finally, recently in our games we have done a couple of runs in which the Johnson already had pre-planned insertion methods (including fake identities) for us. This is practical for the meta-game reason that it speeds up play (no more spending six sessions planning our own insertion -- we get right to the meat of the run).
| QUOTE (FlakJacket) | ||
Uh, wha? You have the Johnson arrange for your transport? Christ, the people I used to game with would have walked if that'd been suggested. Way to trusting for them, not nearly paranoid enough. But this was the crew where my character would only turn on their mobile phone to make outgoing calls, so you could say we were at the high end of the scale. |
Wouldn't have mattered in our campaigns. We had this Johnson who seemed to be a vampire (don't ask) and I was the face. I had random cellphones popping up in my pockets left and right. I'd lock 'em in my freezer, or keep my hand on them, and there was just nothing I could do about it.
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