Not my first SR4 character, but the first one I've really been proud of. I haven't had a chance to actually play yet (still trying to track down a local GM) so I was interested in what more experienced players thought of this character.

The basic idea was to make a gumshoe detective-type character who had both the best and worst luck on the planet. Somewhere along the way he merged heavily with the "Sprawl Ganger" sample character, and this is what came out:

NAME: John Barstow AKA: Bad News Johnny
RACE: Troll [40]

-ATTRIBUTES- [210]

BODY: 5 [00]
AGILITY: 4 (6) [30]
REACTION: 5 [40]
STRENGTH: 5 (7) [00]
CHARISMA: 3 [20]
INTUITION: 4 [30]
LOGIC: 3 [20]
WILLPOWER: 4 [30]

MAGIC: - [00]
EDGE: 5 [40]

Essence: 3.9
Initiative: 9
Initiative Passes: 1
Physical Damage Track: 11
Stun Damage Track: 10

-ACTIVE SKILLS- [150]

Close Combat Skill Group 3 [30]
Data Search 3 [12]
Dodge 2 [08]
Firearms Skill Group 3 [30]
Influence 3 [30]
Perception 3 [12]
(Visual) +2 [02]
Pilot Ground Craft 2 [08]
(Bike) +2 [02]
Shadowing 4 [16]

-KNOWLEDGE SKILLS- (21 Free) [0]

Forensic Techniques 3
Local Area Knowledge 4
Security Procedures 4
Underworld Politics 4

-LANGUAGE SKILLS-

English N
Or'zet 3
(Cityspeak) +2
Sperethiel 2

-QUALITIES- [+30]

Addiction (Mild, Alchohol) [+05]
Bad luck [+20]
Gremlins (1) [+05]

-GEAR- (60,000¥) [12]

Low Lifestyle (1 Month) 2,000¥

Survival Knife 50¥
Extendable Baton 50¥
Shock Gloves 200¥
Colt Manhunter 300¥
(w/ 10 Clips Regular Ammo) 365¥
(w/ 1 Clip EX Ammo) 165¥
Hidden Gun Arm Slide 350¥
Remmington 990 550¥
(w/ 80 Rounds Flechette Ammo) 800¥
Concealable Holster 75¥
Lined Coat 700¥
(w/ Fire Resistance 2) 200¥
Helmet 100¥
Sony Emperor Commlink 700¥
(w/ Response 3) 1,250¥
(w/ Signal 3) 0¥
(w/ System 3) 600¥
(w/ Firewall 6) 3,000¥
Stealth Tags (40) 10¥
Certified Credsticks (4) 100¥
Fake CC Weapon Permit (Rtg 3) 300¥
Fake PI Liscense (Rtg 3) 300¥
Fake SIN (Rtg 3) 3,000¥
Glasses 25¥
(w/ Image Link) 25¥
(w/ Flare Comp) 50¥
Earbuds 10¥
Metal Restraints 20¥
Plasteel Restraints 50¥
Plastic Restraints (50) 5¥
Autopicker (Rtg 6) 1,000¥
Maglock Passkey (Rtg 4) 8,000¥
Miniwelder 250¥
Stimulant Patch (Rtg 2) 50¥

-Cyberware- (10,500)

Datajack 500¥
Muscle Replacement (2) 10,000¥

-Vehicles- (12,000¥)

Harley Davidson Scorpion 12,000¥
(w/ Response 3) 1,250¥
(w/ Signal 3) 150¥
(w/ System 3) 600¥
(w/ Firewall 6) 3,000¥

-Software-

Ghost Dog:
Virtual Pet 100¥
Pilot (3) 3,000¥
Attack (3) 1,500¥
Black Hammer (3) 1,500¥
Track (3) 1,500¥

900¥ Remaining

Starting Nuyen: 3d6+9 x 50¥

-CONTACTS- [23]

Sato Kurojuma (Mercenary) (Connection 2/Loyalty 5)
Bartender (Connection 2/Loyalty 1)
Fixer (Connection 3/Loyalty 1)
Jack Tower (Beat Cop) (Connection 3/Loyalty 4)
Street Snitch (Connection 1/Loyalty 1)

-QUOTES-

"Just my fraggin' luck..."

"Nobody fucks with the bike."

"I should warn you, I'm crazy."

"This is either going to be very right, or very wrong..."

-DESCRIPTION-

They say you need luck in this business. John Barstow's got luck, but it isn't always good--trouble follows him like a stray dog. He makes his living as an under-the-table detective, specializing in cases that venture into the shadows. John likes to take chances and do things the old-fashioned way, relying more on luck and gut-instinct than high-tech gadgets. That luck usually holds out, but when things go bad, they do it spectacularly--that's why he carries a gun.

John isn't a very technical guy, but he's not stupid. Hackers who make the mistake of thinking his commlink or his bike are easy targets wind up having to deal with his pet IC, "Ghost Dog."

-BACKGROUND-

John Barstow was born human in the barrens of the CalFree zone. Your average troubled youth, he ran away from home at the age of twelve when his parents joined the Universal Brotherhood. The only things he took with him were a cheap commlink, a pair of vid-glasses, and the virtual pet he got for his fifth birthday.

John took in with a local street gang, only to be kicked out and severely beaten a few years later when he goblinized into a troll. Escaping with his life, John next joined the Spiked Tires, a small metahuman go-gang that operated on the highways between Sacramento and San Fransisco. While a member of the 'Tires, he earned the nickname "Bad News Johnny" due to his habit of getting into (and out of) trouble on an almost comic scale.

Starting in the late 50's, the Spiked Tires got involved with an underground resistance movement smuggling orks and trolls out of Japanese-Controlled cities. It was during this time that he met Sato Kurojima--a young Japanese mercenary working for the Ork Underground. Sato was human, and the Underground used him as a disposable asset--sending him on suicide missions that were too dangerous to risk one of their own.

Sato earned Johnny's respect by completing every mission and coming back alive. Eventually, Johnny saved Sato's life by dragging him to a street doc after he'd been shot up in an ambush, beginning a lifelong freindship.

Despite their work with the resistance, the Spiked Tires were still a gang, and their predatory lifestyle never sat well with Johnny. Eventually he had to come to terms with the fact that he didn't enjoy picking on the weak, and had a softer heart than was healthy for a troll on the mean streets of CalFree.

When the 'Tires geeked a young elf woman and her kid outside of Sonoma, Johnny turned them in. It was a descision that still bothers him, partly due to loyalty, and partly because of the price they put on his head.

The cop he contacted was Jack Tower, a Lone Star officer Johnny had worked with in the resistance. Jack kept him out of the investigation, and arranged a new identity for him in exchange for helping the Star put away his former gang buddies.

Shortly afterwards, the second matrix crash wiped *all* of John Barstow's legitimate records. Finding himself SINless once again, he set up shop as a detective, using the fake SIN and liscense Jack had provided to start a new life in the shadows.

-REPUTATION-

Street Cred: 0
Noteriety: 3
Public Awareness: 1

-NOTES-

Natural Thermographic Vision
+1 Reach
+1 Natural Armor

-----------------------------------

Bear in mind that I'm not that familiar with the setting, so I had to fudge things in a few places that might not be cannon SR history. (Is Sonoma even still there in 2070?) I also left some aspects undefined (such as the name/background of some of his contacts and where he's currently living) so that I could integrate him into the GM's campaign when I use him in an actual game.

As for "Ghost Dog", I realize turning a virtual pet into a black IC isn't technically RAW, but c'mon, that's just a sweet concept: Ganger kid holds onto the virtual pet he got when he was 5, and gets it modded into a black IC attack program? It's like a security blanket with seizure-inducing teeth.

not bad for the most part... the 1 IP does make me cringe, however...

Just FYI, the max cap on a 400 pt character is 200 points for attributes, if you're planning to build according to RAW.

Unless I misread the rules (or horribly botched my "do math" roll), he's ok because edge doesn't actually count towards the 200 points for attributes. so, technically, he could put 30 more points into the attributes...

Yeah, the lack of IP's are gonna hurt you. Invest in some combat drugs maybe until you can get some cyber or bioware to get your IP's up.

Yup he could actually put more points into attributes.

I'd say this character would be good IF you're in the right group. There just isn't much if any munchkin in him. And he's also a generalist. Meaning that if you end up in a team with specialist characters you'll always be worse than somebody.

This is the sort of character that would work best in a small group. Like 3 people max and the GM. And it would have to feature the sort of adventures where a gumshoe would be appropriate. Busting into corps and stealing stuff is not the sort of business where this char will shine.

Also you, personally, will need the mentality of a leader. This is not the sort of character that will do well as a wallflower.

I like the guy, myself: i have a soft spot for the classic gumshoe. 1 IP for a guy whose not doing combat as his first option, IMO, isn't horrible. There is that edge(ok, bad luck is there too)...or a popper if he really, really had to. But i do find generalists are best in smaller groups; but I think this fella could hold up.

And i DO like the idea of the Virtual Pet to Black Ice.

The pet is also plenty RAW. I'd say it's well within the bounds of the sculpting that is often free with ICE/agents.

That's good to know, sunnyside.

Thanks to everybody for the feedback. I agree about the I.P. thing and the fact that he doesn't really stand up in combat compared to more specialized types, but I really wasn't making a combat monster here. I'm a big fan of film noir and the old dime-novel detective stories, and if you think about it, those guys are usually good fighters, but still outclassed by the guys they come up against. What gets them through is a combination of quick-thinking, luck, and a willingness to fight dirty. They also tend to suffer from that "extremely good and extremely bad luck" thing. 9 times out of ten, (or 5 out of 6, in this case) they can rely on luck to pull them through, but that one time when things go wrong, they get totally pooch-screwed and it ends up taking everything they have to get out of the mess they just made.

Admittedly a P.I. is a different type of character from most shadowrunners, who seem to be simply criminals/killers/terrorists for hire, but a shady P.I. who doesn't mind "investigating" rumors of a new project over at Ares R&D or being hired to "protect" a client from mysterious assailants who turn out to be corp/mafia/yak goons trying to keep them from defecting or getting away with stolen goods/paydata...

...that's just a run with a good coverstory.

I wouldn't go for a run with a good coverstory if you can help it. You've got a character that can handle a different sort of job, and I think you should stick with that. (On that note for goodness sake get the +3 perception upgrades, you're an investigator!)

There is a lot of room for PI type work in the SR world. With LS being a corp they're probably even less reliable than modern police in some ways (for example they just don't care about low rating areas). Also the externality and legal issues may effectively prevent them from investigating a wide range of things. Also the person involved may be involved in something they don't want to talk to the star about.

I think there is even some precident in SR adventures. Missing Blood comes to mind if I remember correctly.

2XS by Nigel Findley. Perhaps the best Shadowrun novel ever written. There's been a Detective archetype/sample character in at least 3 of the 4 editions of Shadowrun for a reason.

What I loved about Dirk Montgomery from 2XS, is the fact he relied on his contacts. It wasn't so much about his super skills (he was at best an okay shot, his sleuthing was "passable" and he frequently jsut got lucky or had outside influences looking after him) as it was about his "friends" super skills. He had a drek hot rigger do up his car (as repayment for a favor), a drek hot decker do his data searchs (as repayment for a favor), a drek hot mage with a spirit ally do his magic investigation (as repayment for a favor) and there were others. It taught me how things are done in the shadows.

If any Dumpshocker has not read this novel, they should. I awarded my players an extra 5 karma points back under 3rd edition to read it and give me an "oral" report. They were all really happy they did so even if they hadn't received the award. This novel influenced the flavor of my game probably more than any other single thing.

Vlad

Incidentally, in case you weren't aware of it, Dirk Montgomery also is the main character in House of the Sun.

Nigel Findley, Gone, but not Forgotten.

My next story is going to have one of his characters in it, as an homage. Shadowplay and 2XS were the first books I read about Shadowrun, and are what sold me on the Universe.

I can only hope to run into him at the Big Dinner Table In The Sky.

Oh, well definitely he's a P.I. first and a sort-of-runner second--I'm only saying that in a game where the other players are straight "what dirty job do you want me to do today" types, there'd probably be some subterfuge involed to get Johnny on the team.

I was mainly thinking of Robert Crais' Elvis Cole novels here. The main character is an L.A. detective with a sociopathic mercenary for a partner, who's cases always seem to end with an armed assault on a building. In fact, of the three I've read so far, all three have ended in what could be considered extraction runs.

Certainly I can see him being hired to find a missing kid from the barrens--who's being used for medical research by some corp--and the other runners Johnson sent along for "backup" are really there to steal the research notes on their way out. After all, employers with hidden motives are a staple of the detective genre.

Amen to that.

On the other hand at a mere 11K considering the state of the Sixth World, even someone the size of a troll might like the comfort having wired I.

I'm only suggesting this if he is going to be running with a team of shadowrunners. They tend to attract trouble.

Yeah, I agree that would be helpful--it was mainly a money consideration since I needed alot of Nuyen for his custom bike and "Ghost Dog." I would've given him a cheaper commlink, but it didn't make sense that he'd upgrade the bike that much and not touch his 'link.

Maybe I could knock his maglock passkey down a rating or two--it'd make sense for him to be using an older, not-quite-SOTA model given his aversion to tech. Worse comes to worse he can always use his shotgun to get in...

[edit] Urk, 11k...

...yeah, that's gonna take some serious shoehorning to fit into this guy's budget.

I'd consider going with the drug option but I don't have Arsenal so I've got no clue on prices or availability.

Not that difficult and pretty cheap.

I'll leave it at that until you can get Arsenal.

It'll be awhile, I was lucky just to get Augmentation--it was the only copy of the only SR4 book they had at the >pauses for breath< only gaming shop in town. Some times it really sucks to live in a small community...

...actually, most times it does--the beaches are nice, though.

I am aware and I have read! Thanks, tho'!

It's such a shame that Findley passed away (and at such a young age.) I would have loved to see his input stay with the game. Almost all the sourcebooks and adventures he had a hand in were some of the best written.

And if they EVER decided to make a Shadowrun series or series of movies, this would be the character I would have loved to have it based around.

Heck, 2XS would have made a kick ass movie as is. I think the noir/PI angle would have made it accessible to general audiences, transcending the cyberpunk and hte magic.

*goes off to solicit the SciFi channel for the next great series idea now that BSG is ending*

Vlad

Well, don't forget you can buy the PDF's online. And if you really feel the need for paper in your hands, you can always order the actual book from one of the MANY online gaming stores.

I, too, live in a small(er) city without any gaming stores, anymore. I am an hour away from Indy tho', which has one really decent private shop, The Board Room (tons of used and inexpensive books, and a large selection of major current games, including multiple copies of every SR book on the market) and the chain, Game Preserve (which sucks.)

The Board Room does do business online and I whole-heartedly recommend using them as your online FLGS. They've been in business selling RPGs since 1977; that's dedication! The owner, Gerry, is a grumbly, old, sarcastic gnome of a man, a true vet that has seen it come and seen it go and will give you his opinion on anything and then some. A real character.

Vlad

Yeah, but online business is difficult (usually impossible) without a credit card, and one thing I have in common with my characters is that I don't trust banks--been robbed by too many of 'em.

"I like your style, Dude."

You and your character have my highest endorsement.

Keep on keepin' it real and tell the I.P. haters to shut their whore mouths.

I just wish more people "got" this kind of character.

I'm just finding out now how lucky I was back home. There was only one gaming shop in town there, too, but the owner would special order ANYTHING, and could usually get it.

Even in a big city, with multiple stores, I have issues getting things.

I don't think it's that they don't get it, they're just pointing out an obvious weakness of the design--which is what I was asking for. Honestly, I really considered giving him more IP's somehow, considering how often he's likely to be in combat--but I just couldn't find a way to make it fit the character and the chargen rules.



Well, it was a lot easer when I lived in Sacremento. (Where I grew up) Around here our only gaming store is actually a used record store that absorbed one of the local comic shops and put the other one (the good one) out of business, so gaming isn't exactly a priority for them--unless it's playstation or X-Box games.

A solution to this is to buy a certified credstick... errr, I mean go get yourself a cash loaded disposable "card." These can be had at Walmart or nearly any convenience store. Use it jsut like a credit card.

Another alternative, get yourself a Paypal account and either deposit money to it or attach it to your checking or savings bank account (or debit card, but I am assuming you don't have one of those considering your thoughts about plastic.)

Vlad

Yeah, I've used those pre-paid credit cards before. They're pretty useful, but given the activation fees and what not I generally only get one if I have a major purchase or a lot of smaller items to buy online--I can't see paying a $10 fee plus S&H just to be able to buy one $40 book.

As for paypal, that hasn't worked out so well, since you can't load money to it without attaching it to a bank account--and if I had an account that could do EFT I wouldn't need paypal.

Thanks for the suggestions though, and I love the credstick analogy.