Omaes: My SR4 game has survived an amazing three sessions now and is making its way, albeit limping, along to the fourth session this upcoming weekend. We've had our snags which was to be expected with me as a new GM and everyone pretty much new to the SR4 system and setting. Now I'm battling a terrible monster: actually getting into the rules and combat.

Basically, I'm having a hard time pressing my players to roll for things. I feel like this may detract for them some if whenever they want to do something that may require using some skills, I just let them know if they can or can't depending on fair weather factors. Originally I didn't see an issue with it as long as we weren't in combat, no stress, take your time, no roll. Now I think there could be an issue with it and players may not enjoy it as much if they can't roll all of those dice all of the time!

I'm also having a hard time generating some good combat for the group. It just seems like I can't find a middle ground. It's either too much for them combined or anyone of them can lay out what I toss at them with just one action. How can I find my center here? Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks

Be sure to determine if your players actually WANT to roll dice. Some players don't, and that's okay. I love rolling dice, my wife hates it. In games I run, I generally head for the middle ground, rolling when the result doesn't seem immediately obvious, but hand-waving a lot.

As for combat, I haven't played SR4, but in general with Shadowrun, combat is pretty deadly and you have to excercise tactics in order to maximize benefits. Do your players seem like they use good tactics? Do your NPCs? The impetus for this lies on your shoulders. Make some low-level characters use good tactics and watch how combat changes. One of my favorite battles was a group of gangers outfitted by a corp, who had an ambush site they knew the party had to go to (to save a trapped astral mage). The corners were guarded by gangers (low skill) with rocket launchers (big boom) in upper-level stories, set back so they couldn't be seen from the street, gangers in sniper positions with LMGs and AKs, and a few high-level elementals, plus a scattering of mines and some combat bikers hidden in little hide-aways off the main drag. It was big, loud, and a lot of fun, even though (except the elementals) none of the NPCs had any relevant skills above 3.

personally i dislike making everyone ueber to match the PCs, so my advice is to apply modifiers liberally (cover, movement, etc. etc. especially visual mods for the mage) and keep in mind all those -1 one gets from defending more than once a round. This at least can cause the PCs to break a sweat before they break down the door to the great dragons bathroom. But they are PCs afterwall so Joe Sandwich guard schouldn't keep the down too long.

Rolling should only ever come into play if the situation is stress-full. else it is assumed they CAN actually simply succeed by taking their sweet time. Then you just do some rolls to figure out HOW LONG it actually takes for them to succeed.
As for Combat?
SR is a game of Glass-Cannons. Most people are easy to kill and most people can kill just like that.
Which is pretty close to how weapons should work in my opinion.
This DOES make it pretty hard to not accidentally get someone killed you don't want dead.
Even IF dealing stun-damage is most times better than physical because less track and armor to get around.
I'd sugggest running the Food Fight scenario with them. Railroad them into it. Some mage was playing a Trick on them with some kind of Spell and now they all crave . . something they have to get at the next stuffer shack.
And have them decide to go all together for the fun of it. Or because they are scared of the neighbourhood.
Throwing Groups of weak enemies at them doesn't work too well either, because of teamwork-tests.

It's not the NPC stats. It's the tactics and situation. The exact same group of NPC opponents run in various levels of intelligence and styles can achieve results from killing the PCs to dying from the PCs without knowing what happened.

Nothing wrong with not rolling dice. In fact, that's what the Buying Hits rules are for.

Hum. The best thing I ever did was throw 4 groups of identical NPCs and my PCs. Each group stepping up its tactics. The first 5 ran in shooting and promtly died in a combat turn or two. Then next fired form cover (shooting round the door frame and cover farther back) killed by a grenades and shooting throw the trolly they where hiding behind. The nest lobbed to flash packs in then a frag used suppressive fire shooting round the door frame they did much more damage though the where taken down with nades again. The final wave did the same but with the 3 throwers rushing the room after the first turn of havoc the where much less efective on the first turn as then runners hit the deck as soon as the could how ever as then still had momentum on the side the stormed the room and did major damage. The run was the protection of a vault.