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Blackpool
The short blerb in the back of Feral Cities says that it will include a GM screen, player reference cards, maps, NPCs and adventure in a boxed set. Anyone have any information at all?
Wesley Street
It's the GM screen, the Contacts and Adventures booklet, and On the Run. All were printed by Fanpro back when SR4 was initially released. Catalyst is reissuing all of them as a single package. I think they may be throwing in printed versions of the Quick Start rules as well.
Ancient History
I'm just going to sit here and quietly cackle to myself. You'll have to trust I deserve it.
Kanada Ten
It's actually just a pack of gum, cigarettes, a lighter and a pair of pliers.
Blackpool
Noting AH's comment, I'm going to assume there may be more to this than just some repackaging of Fanpro material. Honestly, I was hoping that it was more than that and I was starting to think that it didn't make much sense to do from a business stand point. So I guess I'll just trust in AH and sit back and wait for more official news.
Hagga
When you unfold the toolkit it punches you in the stomach, takes your wallet and mails it express to Catalyst labs. Then it holds you so they have time to fill up your credit cards.
Cain
It also includes a teaser for Shadows of Latin America. devil.gif
The Jake
QUOTE (Wesley Street @ Jan 27 2009, 06:22 PM) *
It's the GM screen, the Contacts and Adventures booklet, and On the Run. All were printed by Fanpro back when SR4 was initially released. Catalyst is reissuing all of them as a single package. I think they may be throwing in printed versions of the Quick Start rules as well.


No.

- J.
tete
Only the Universal Brotherhood knows the truth wink.gif
AllTheNothing
QUOTE (Hagga @ Jan 28 2009, 01:20 AM) *
When you unfold the toolkit it punches you in the stomach, takes your wallet and mails it express to Catalyst labs. Then it holds you so they have time to fill up your credit cards.

No problem, I have no credit cards and my wallet is always empty, all I have to do is start going around with some armor to protect the stomach. biggrin.gif
BishopMcQ
QUOTE (tete)
Only the Universal Brotherhood knows the truth

And the Powers that Be at CGL...beyond that is rumors, speculation, and hearsay.

My cousin's friend knows a guy who was told that it included rules for PC Drop bears.
JeffSz
I already have On The Run, the GM's Screen and it's companion booklets, etc.

If there is new material also included in a package with this old material, it would be very discouraging, as I would be forced to either go without the new material or pay for stuff I already own.

I really hope CGL doesn't do something like that, as I suspect it would deal a heavy blow to their own popularity with the SR4 fanbase.

Wouldn't it make more sense to package old material for new players, or else all new material, and not both together?

EDIT: After reading the short and to-the-point "No." from The Jake and Ancient History's cackling, I'm hoping their responses were referring to the ENTIRE speculation being wrong, and not just one part.

I've got my fingers crossed that it's all new material.
Prime Mover
GM screen,
player reference cards, NPCs, maps, adventures, and more.

A new GM screen with new material and MORE.....now what is the more?

Edit: The important question is....until what quarter of this year will I have to wait for a critter book? wavey.gif
Warlordtheft
QUOTE (Prime Mover @ Jan 27 2009, 09:38 PM) *
Edit: The important question is....until what quarter or this year will I have to wait for a critter book? wavey.gif


Yeah, I want to dump the PCs into a vat of water filled with Abrams lobsters!!! devil.gif
crash2029
QUOTE (BishopMcQ @ Jan 27 2009, 08:21 PM) *
And the Powers that Be at CGL...beyond that is rumors, speculation, and hearsay.

My cousin's friend knows a guy who was told that it included rules for PC Drop bears.


I heard that it actually comes with a 12oz package of NERPS. Although, someone else told me that it was Amber Gel instead of NERPS.

I'm also pretty sure it has a copy of the Cleopatra skillsoft inside.
Adam
QUOTE (JeffSz @ Jan 27 2009, 09:54 PM) *
I've got my fingers crossed that it's all new material.

It's not all new material; but there's a substantial amount of new material, and re-issues/upgrades of material that should stay in print but we don't want to reprint in the exact same form as before.

We look at the Runner's Toolkit as a package of stuff that the gaming group buys together; a bit of stuff for the GM, and a bit of stuff for the players to use as reference during the session and to help get new players into the game and world more easily.
The Jake
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 28 2009, 06:15 AM) *
It's not all new material; but there's a substantial amount of new material, and re-issues/upgrades of material that should stay in print but we don't want to reprint in the exact same form as before.

We look at the Runner's Toolkit as a package of stuff that the gaming group buys together; a bit of stuff for the GM, and a bit of stuff for the players to use as reference during the session and to help get new players into the game and world more easily.


I happen to be one of the people who own On The Run and the GM Screen.

I sincerely hope its not a rehash of existing product with maybe a sliver of new content slipped inbetween... ? frown.gif

- J.
Adam
Jake, didn't the post you quoted just say there was a substantial amount of new material? smile.gif And all the reprinted material has been upgraded -- you'll want to keep the new stuff and hand off the old stuff to someone else in your group.
BlueMax
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 27 2009, 11:16 PM) *
Jake, didn't the post you quoted just say there was a substantial amount of new material? smile.gif And all the reprinted material has been upgraded -- you'll want to keep the new stuff and hand off the old stuff to someone else in your group.


Adam,
Blame marketers. Many other products, both inside the game industry and out, use the word substantial where only superficial changes have been made. Consumers are now trained to be wary of anything but specifics. I have faith that the team can produce great books. My scale is odd. If its like the hardcover books, I will love it. I have yet to embrace any of the soft covers this edition, only collect.

This is not a request for specifics.

PS if its not done, please consider adding some of the hacking tests to the GM screen. I don't remember seeing them and I am one of the nutjobs who likes handy stuff on the GMS screen.
Cardul
Well, at least Catalyst has been much better about things then Fan-Pro was....Which begs the question: Did the stories that were going to be in Ages of War(advertised in the back of my Total Warfare) ever make it to Battlecorps, or are they still in limbo somewhere?
The Jake
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 28 2009, 07:16 AM) *
Jake, didn't the post you quoted just say there was a substantial amount of new material? smile.gif And all the reprinted material has been upgraded -- you'll want to keep the new stuff and hand off the old stuff to someone else in your group.


Actually no it didn't.

What it said was it was re-badging a bunch of old material effectively and throwing in a printed copy of the Quick Start rules (which I'm happy to go without).

- J.
Muspellsheimr
QUOTE (The Jake @ Jan 28 2009, 04:09 AM) *
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 28 2009, 01:16 AM) *

Jake, didn't the post you quoted just say there was a substantial amount of new material? smile.gif And all the reprinted material has been upgraded -- you'll want to keep the new stuff and hand off the old stuff to someone else in your group.

Actually no it didn't.

What it said was it was re-badging a bunch of old material effectively and throwing in a printed copy of the Quick Start rules (which I'm happy to go without).

- J.

QUOTE (The Jake @ Jan 28 2009, 12:58 AM) *
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 28 2009, 12:15 AM) *

It's not all new material; but there's a substantial amount of new material,
<snip>


?
Adam
QUOTE (The Jake @ Jan 28 2009, 05:09 AM) *
What it said was it was re-badging a bunch of old material effectively and throwing in a printed copy of the Quick Start rules (which I'm happy to go without).

I'm sorry, you're combining something that someone else said with what I said and drawing the wrong conclusion. The Toolkit is not just a reprint of the GM Screen + OTR + Quick Start Rules -- it doesn't have the Quick-Start Rules, but it does have new stuff that I think a lot of people will really like.

I'll talk to the people upstairs and see if we can make the contents of the Toolkit public knowledge.
Chrysalis
QUOTE (Blackpool @ Jan 27 2009, 08:14 PM) *
The short blerb in the back of Feral Cities says that it will include a GM screen, player reference cards, maps, NPCs and adventure in a boxed set. Anyone have any information at all?



I thought it involved a balaclava, pliers, a switchblade, bailing wire, duct tape, and a pair of sneakers. Maybe I was looking at the wrong tool kit?
MK Ultra
I thought it would be a Body Cavety Kit containing dice and pens and everything, so whereever you are, you could pull an SR adventure out of your ... you get the idea wink.gif
Chrysalis
You can make your own with a plastic cigar tube, small dice, a thin pencil, and silk paper.
Wesley Street
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 28 2009, 06:51 AM) *
I'll talk to the people upstairs and see if we can make the contents of the Toolkit public knowledge.

Aw, c'mon, Adam, you already leaked the GM screen bit back in August, post GenCon. Just tell us the rest. It feels good to share secrets, right? It'll be a total load off your shoulders.

QUOTE (Ancient History @ Jan 27 2009, 06:06 PM) *
I'm just going to sit here and quietly cackle to myself. You'll have to trust I deserve it.

I swear this board feels like a second grade classroom sometimes. "I have a seeee-cret, and yoooUUUuuu doooOOn't."

Edit: From October Chat.

QUOTE
Peter_Taylor> but in fact it’s more general and will appeal to a lot of groups. This product will be a small boxed set that includes a new screen, On The Run, and a bunch of extras including cheat sheets and other goodies.


Sooooo... On the Run's confirmed as part of the toolkit as well. Bwa-ha-ha-ha! devil.gif I assumed the cheat sheets referred to a print version of the Quick Start Rules but you can see what happens when one assumes.
BishopMcQ
QUOTE (Wesley Street @ Jan 28 2009, 10:24 AM) *
I swear this board feels like a second grade classroom sometimes. "I have a seeee-cret, and yoooUUUuuu doooOOn't."
It's an endemic problem with human nature and NDAs I think.
BlueMax
QUOTE (Wesley Street @ Jan 28 2009, 09:24 AM) *
I swear this board feels like a second grade classroom sometimes. "I have a seeee-cret, and yoooUUUuuu doooOOn't."

Only sometimes? And its way beyond second grade and into 9th. Why else would there be a cool clique?

BlueMax
/Long haired, leather jacket wearing , loser-hessian clique
//Fine, I cut my hair for the job but its still part of me.
///Reference is circa 1989, yeah that dates me
JeffSz
I'm concerned about On The Run's inclusion; an extra GM screen (especially updated) would be welcome enough; extra copies of the adventure hooks and NPC's wouldn't be HORRIBLE either, as they are useful.

I found On The Run disappointing as a published adventure the first time around. It's not something I would keep a new edition of and hand the old edition off... I don't plan on ever using it. It's my understanding that this is a common opinion on DS - am I correct?

Unless it's so substantially updated (read: rewritten) that it's a different adventure now... I'm not looking forward to it.

On the other hand, even if it were a fantastic adventure of unparalleled quality, I wouldn't hand an old version to someone else in my group - they might read it and ruin the surprises!
Kurai
Well, I need a GM screen. It can't be obtained in stores in Sweden as far as I know. However I allready own OTR and another is kind of wasted. And I am the one in the group who buys everything that is released.
Wesley Street
QUOTE (JeffSz @ Jan 28 2009, 03:47 PM) *
I found On The Run disappointing as a published adventure the first time around. It's not something I would keep a new edition of and hand the old edition off... I don't plan on ever using it. It's my understanding that this is a common opinion on DS - am I correct?


Pretty much. I was able to make it work and had no problems but a lot of DSers didn't care for it.

On the other hand I've been buying a lot of beat up copies of 1st and 2nd ed. canned adventures and have found that they suffered from some of the same (a few even worse) problems. Railroading, nonsensical and unresolved plot lines, requiring the GM to flat out tell the players what they should be doing, obvious plot holes, etc.
BlueMax
I would prefer print versions of the Denver Missions over another print of On the Run.

Wesley, my personal issue with On the Run was that it was not "ready to run". If I need to spend more than 10 hours prep for a session, I just roll my own. Same applies to some of the older adventures too.
Wesley Street
QUOTE (BlueMax @ Jan 29 2009, 10:43 AM) *
I would prefer print versions of the Denver Missions over another print of On the Run.

Ditto.
QUOTE (BlueMax @ Jan 29 2009, 10:43 AM) *
Wesley, my personal issue with On the Run was that it was not "ready to run". If I need to spend more than 10 hours prep for a session, I just roll my own. Same applies to some of the older adventures too.

OtR was the first Shadowrun game I ever GMed and I did it (pretty much) off-the-cuff. I can see sticking it into an already-existing campaign being a total pain though.
BookWyrm
If Runner's Toolkit is stuff I already have, I'm not picking it up.
Adam
As I've said several times now, Runner's Toolkit has a bunch of new content. We'll have a formal announcement about what it is when it's off to press.
kanislatrans
Personaly. I'm just happy to have Catalyst reworking the Gm screen. As you guys haven't let me down yet I have high hopes for the new one. anything else is sprinkles and frosting. grinbig.gif

I bought the last GM screen and although it was adequate. I think it still needed a little work. At the moment I am using it as a folder to keep run ideas and misc notes in.

Kinda on topic, the wife just asked me if there were any books I wanted as we have a tax refund coming in a week or so. I have added enough "slush money" to my estimate to cover Runners Toolkit when it gets here.

Of course she asked me the expected question. grinbig.gif " 250$$???? How many books are you getting??" grinbig.gif grinbig.gif


nylanfs
QUOTE (Kanada Ten @ Jan 27 2009, 06:23 PM) *
It's actually just a pack of gum, cigarettes, a lighter and a pair of pliers.


What no duct tape?
Cain
QUOTE (nylanfs @ Jan 29 2009, 06:06 PM) *
QUOTE
It's actually just a pack of gum, cigarettes, a lighter and a pair of pliers.

What no duct tape?

That comes with the Deluxe edition.
Hagga
Twenty dollars extra.

Give them a break. Thus far they've been a *lot* better than the previous publishers, I'm sure they'll swing us a bone. Innocent until proven guilty. Once.
Tachi
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 29 2009, 05:30 PM) *
As I've said several times now, Runner's Toolkit has a bunch of new content. We'll have a formal announcement about what it is when it's off to press.


Don't repeat yourself then. Say it once then stand back and watch them flop around like a bunch of beached crappie. It's more amusing.
Roy Fokker
i hope you guys get news of this out soon. i just recently started gm'ing SR4 and i really need a GM screen. i'd much rather get a new one from you guys than buy a used one online!
BookWyrm
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 29 2009, 07:30 PM) *
As I've said several times now, Runner's Toolkit has a bunch of new content. We'll have a formal announcement about what it is when it's off to press.


OK Adam, thanks. I'll quit griping now.
Chrysalis
QUOTE (Adam @ Jan 30 2009, 02:30 AM) *
As I've said several times now, Runner's Toolkit has a bunch of new content. We'll have a formal announcement about what it is when it's off to press.


Some people are dyslexic, and some just can't read. Some think their balls are the size of a sperm whale and happiness would mean being killed as the blood rushes to the wrong end.

We shall see what kinds of fun and games the new toolkit will supply.
AllTheNothing
As long this toolkit incudes an Ares Predator, some smartlinked contancts/glasses/goggles, a comlink, a fake SIN and some body armor I think that many runners will find it usefull (sorry chummers, the ammo is not included).
Chrysalis
Does the gun come with a (M-14) clip?

-Chrysalis
AllTheNothing
QUOTE (Chrysalis @ Jan 31 2009, 12:56 AM) *
Does the gun come with a (M-14) clip?

-Chrysalis

In the basic kit the gun comes with one detachable magazine, and it's manteinance kit, in the Deluxe version it comes with two spare magazines, a scope (no I don't know why), Nerps and an instruction manual for making Voodoo dolls.
Caine Hazen
QUOTE (AllTheNothing @ Jan 30 2009, 06:46 PM) *
As long this toolkit incudes an Ares Predator, some smartlinked contancts/glasses/goggles, a comlink, a fake SIN and some body armor I think that many runners will find it usefull (sorry chummers, the ammo is not included).

Exactly what I need... ANOTHER Predator sitting around the arms locker... I still need to find a proper sized holster for the first one.
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