Dumpshock Forums > Guaging interest/recruiting: Professional Grade

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rob

Jul 31 2009, 11:08 PM

QUOTE

"You see, the career ladder for a company man is kind of a wierd one... You are indespensible to the organization, you provide essential services, your management skills are useful to every aspect of our company, but you will never head a department. You will never speak before the board of directors. You will usually not be paid by us. The link between you and the company is tenuous.

That is why there are so few applicants to these positions. It's a bitch to raise kids when you can't tell anyone where you are. When you may not actually be legally alive. When you have far more in common with the scumbags you hire and the terrible things you do than with the people who you do them for.

Oh, but there are advantages, too. Up to you to decide what they are."

- Gerome, Company Man, Ares?

Guaging interest for an adventure working on the level in between the corps and the streets, the level of fixers, fences, smugglers, street docs, and cetera. Players will form a team that arranges for large operations, coordinates multiple shadowruns, and facilitates company operations in the Seattle area.

Looking for 4 to 6 players, but flexible in number.

Characters will be built off the BP system, 450 points, 200 pt. attribute max, 50 pt. resource max (except if born rich), max availability 12 (except with restricted gear), etc. as per RAW. Characters will need a lot more contacts than normal shadowrunners.

All characters get one free contact, "Will", a senior company man, connection 5, loyalty unknown, allegiance unknown, whom they have worked with on at least three previous shadowruns or operations as either fixer, johnson, or intermediary. The game will begin with him inviting them into a business deal to set up a new field office in Seattle.

I'm looking for characters who will be useful to a higher level adventure, and players who are interested in the mechanisms of the shadow economy. Though this will certainly involve street work, it will also involve a lot more cerebral work. There is unlikely to be much shoot-em-up, unless yall get made really quickly. Expect a lot of cases where there's some GM and player discretion, as I expect will hit a number of situations not specifically covered by the rules.

Recruiting will last several weeks.

To submit a character, I want to see, in order:
1. a blurb for character concept
2. a vignette showing your character's role on a team.
3. Character sheet
4. 20 questions

rob

Jul 31 2009, 11:09 PM

Players/Characters/Roles:

Accepted:

Characters:
Crizh - Mataglap - Hacker and nanotechnician
Summerstorm - AI armorer
BlackHat - Artisan, society type
Red-ROM - Face
Marwynn - Jarius, face/spy
Mickle - Smuggler
Digital Heroin - Lawyer
Budoka - HUMINT guy
Digital Heroin - lawyer or info broker

Interested Players / concepts
Dumori - Wetwork
Imperialus - Media guy
Method - Drone guy
Pragma - social adept/spymaster/police negotiator

BlackHat

Aug 1 2009, 03:42 AM

Definitely interested.

Will think about it tomorrow and see if I can't at least run a concept past you before Monday.

imperialus

Aug 1 2009, 04:19 AM

I'd be interested, sounds like a great campaign... With the caveat being that August is going to be hella busy IRL for me. I'm getting married on the 22nd, on my honeymoon until Sept 4th, getting accepted into a masters program, and working 50+ hours a week to cover peoples vacations in the interim. I should be able to get a character done up in the next week or so but after that I might need to drop off the radar for a couple of weeks.

I'm thinking a Cover Ops/Light to Moderate Combat archtype. Probably go the Cyber/Bio route rather than awakened. It looks like you're aiming for Black Trenchcoat style?

Also, are we using 4E or 4A? Any sourcebooks/gear ect. that you'd rather not see? Any builds you'd rather not see?

Branmac

Aug 1 2009, 05:58 PM

I like the concept. Count me as interested. I will work up a couple of ideas and see what pops out to play. This sounds like a fun one.

crizh

Aug 1 2009, 08:24 PM

I'd be interested to see what I could do with a Hacker or TM on the opposite side of the negotiating table.

Dumori

Aug 1 2009, 09:22 PM

Like the idea. might go face/wetwork specialist. might as well throw fixer in there.

Summerstorm

Aug 1 2009, 09:56 PM

Hm... always wanted to try this. I am interested. I think maybe of an armory/engineering specialist (maybe AI). Supplying the comunity with weapons, armor, transportation and illegal programs.

tarbrush

Aug 1 2009, 09:59 PM

Interested. Let me work something up.

Mickle5125

Aug 1 2009, 10:38 PM

I've got an idea for a weaponsmith/face/contact man, if you need it.

concept Blurb:
Markus owns a moderately sized weapons shop in town that is known for 3 things: fair dealings, quality products, and somehow acquiring pretty much anything. Markus is personally known for the skill he brings to all aspects of his trade and his willingness to listen to any request before dismissing it out of hand.

rob

Aug 2 2009, 05:33 AM

Reminder - when you think about your characters, remember that yall are setting up a field office for a a pretty high end (connection 5) fellow and whatever organization that exists behind him. Many of the traditional SR4 team functions are too narrow for this kind of op.

Clarifications: SR4 Anniversary rules. I, as usual, reserve the right to kill any build that doesn't fit with the campaign, but I will work with yall first.

A few notes about style and team content:
1. I am a bit of a stick-in-the-mud when it comes to the more exotic character options (cyborgs/AIs/Free Spirits/Shapeshifters/etc.). You can do it, but you better sell me a very good story and convince me that you can play such an exotic character credibly.
2. In this kind of adventure, getting into intense combat probably means you screwed up somewhere or forgot to hire bodyguards. Combat skills are useful, but characters must be able to participate in the 'bigger picture.'
3. Every character in this team will probably need to be at least passably socially competent.
4. For division of labor, consider the following -
4A - someone who can establish the communications infrastructure you'll need
4B - someone who can recruit/vet/meet with runners
4C - someone who knows their way around each major criminal industry.
4D - an intelligence guy (i'm not talking about ninja stuff, I'm talking 'knows what happens everywhere')
5. Note that my 'division of labor' suggestions are exactly that. I don't know exactly how your team will work out, and I fully expect yall to surprise me.

Basically, for everything one of your characters has ever called a fixer for, you either need someone or need reliable contacts with someone who can make that happen, and anticipate snags and opportunities.
"Will" provides your liaison with 'higher' assets and will provide direction and guidance for the first baby-steps phases of the operation.

As for people's individual selections:
Imperialus - What does 'black trenchcoat style' mean?
Crizh - that will be critical to yall's teams' operations.
Dumori - yall will probably be too busy to engage in wetwork yourself, but any wetwork operation will need lots of support. I'm interested to see what you're looking at.
Summerstorm - AI goes on my list of exotic character concepts. Feel free to try it, but also feel bound to impress me.
Mickle - Good idea, and definitely a necessary function, but Markus may be more useful as a high loyalty affiliate of the team.

Digital Heroin

Aug 2 2009, 06:24 AM

I'm tossing my hat in the ring, but as I'm on a public terminal in NZ en route to twenty hours of flying to Ireland I'll have to hold on details. Mind's spinning, though, hopefully fast enough.

Two concepts fire in my head right now:

- former corporate lawyer/negotiator turned Mr.J; or
- the namesake, Digital Heroin, an Adept Savant info-broker/fixer.

Note to self: Always make sure your passport and boarding pass are secure before posting to dumpshock. Leaving said items by a public computer is the purest Edge test ever.

pragma

Aug 2 2009, 07:47 AM

Many of my other games seem to be faltering and, though I fear they will resurge if I commit to this game, I have a certain curiosity.

I have a disgraced police negotiator on the bench who I think would work well in this environment and who deserves more play time than he got. I'm also still fascinated by the intelligence community and the idea of some kind of ex-spymaster has its appeal even though I've sort of explored the idea elsewhere. So too does the idea of some kind of non-traditional social adept -- I've actually never seen one of those played on the boards (probably because people rather rightly feel that kinesics is cheating) but there may be room in the game for a social adept who is also interesting.

I'm stupidly busy this month, so my hat is only tentatively in the ring.

Dumori

Aug 3 2009, 12:56 AM

I was think a former assassin that still gets hired but just passes the job down the ladder or is hired as part of a job to do provide infrastructure. IE you want some one killed you ask a fixer he goes well I know a guy who knows the people you want. He spends his time researching past hits and tactics to help the team he pays to do the job do it well and leave as little evidence behind as he can. Contacts in gen therapy and in clean up teams as well as fake sins and disposable weapons or disposing of weapons (such as providing a sniper rifle for a hit then selling to some low rep runners via a few fake names and secondary contacts). I expect him to be a passable killer but hes a bit lack luster since he started fixing. I guess he fits a bit of 4B 4C and part of 4D

imperialus

Aug 3 2009, 02:20 AM

Been thinking about it a bit more and seeing as how no one seems to keen on playing a matrix specialist I had an idea for a volunteer moderator/security hacker for Shadowsea. He'd be pretty low down on the totem pole but he'd be well known in the community and have access to a metric ton of information about Seattle's shadowscene.

The other possibility, in a similar vein is a classic Neo-A pirate trid operator... Not entirely unlike Ice T's character in Johnny Pnumonic. He'd be a bit more flamboyant than the moderator idea. He is after all a minor celebrity but he'd have access to very similar contacts and abilities. The only big problem would be how to get his anarchic independence to jive with the idea of being a company man.

This might actually be the answer to your question of "what is Black Trenchcoat". The Shadowsea Mod would be a fairly 'black' character. He's more of a stone cold pro who really only cares about getting the job done.

The Pirate on the other hand is much more of a Pink Mowhawk character, a sort of throwback to the earlier editions when "rocker" was an archetype in the BBB and the whole setting was more loose around the edges.

rob

Aug 3 2009, 04:09 AM

Digital Heroin - The former corporate lawyer idea is quite appropriate. I would need some more specifics from 'info broker', which is a nice character in a movie or dime store novel but begs far more specifics for this adventure.

Pragma - any of these ideas work. Only reason I'm able to start this stuff is DITG is so faltery. I have no specific problems with Kinesics, but don't think that a massive social dice pool will make all of my NPCs roll over and do whatever you want. A vendor will still never sell you an item below cost, good dice rolls won't substitute for a fundamentally untenable negotiating position, etc.

Dumori - Roll with it. I like it.

Imperialus - Either of those ideas are very workable within the adventure, and speak to a really useful capability that you could add to the team. Note, also, that you can play a character somewhere in between. If, by "Black Trenchcoat Style,"you mean fairly professional, well, then yes. The title of the game may also serve to imply that....

Branmac

Aug 3 2009, 04:26 AM

So far I am considering two options. The first is a transpertation specialist. Basically a smuggler whose skills and connections are good for moving people and equipment. Probably some Bio but designed to be unobtrusive. Might have a bit of rigging ability, but mostly along the wheelman variety.
The second would be something along the lines of a mage specialized in information recovery. So far we have noone mentioning magical information and support and that would be to important not to have someone specializing in it for a group like this. Not a combat mage but an investigator and antimagic specialist.

Method

Aug 3 2009, 04:13 PM

Interesting concept for a campaign. It looks like you have plenty of interest, but I'll throw my hat in as well. There is a character concept I've been thinking about for years that might work in this game. Basically he's a drone rigger that specializes in support roles. An ex-military type, he would be trained in long-range recon and surveillance- the kind of guy that would drop into a location and "live off the land" for weeks at a time while he watches a target site or location in anticipation of a run. He might have a rifle, for when things really go sideways, but he would by no means be a combat character. I picture him as a dwarf for some reason- more compact for better concealment maybe? Anyway thats the general idea.

rob

Aug 3 2009, 08:22 PM

Aight, look at my second post up top, I've listed the names that have piped in with some level of interest and what they are working on. Some good ideas being floated around, and I am beginning to see the outlines of a team coming through.

Given what we've got and what I've heard floating around, these seem to be the roles that people are thinking about. (dude. note, I use the terms guy/dude/etc. interchangeably and in a non-gender-specific context. dude.):
1. Media dude
2. Magic dude
3. Guy who knows the killing people business.
4. Guy with guns.
5. Matrix dude.
6. Drone guy.

I forsee yall to need to the following other functions:
1. Transportation - someone who can handle shipping, receiving, and moving stuff around the AO.
2. Commo - someone who can make sure you've got ways to communicate with each other and teams.
3. Forgery/legal cover - someone who can clearly mark out the region between your legit activities and your illegit...

Note that all these roles can overlap.

BlackHat

Aug 3 2009, 08:53 PM

Still interested, but I am going to be very busy this week, and it looks like you've generated more than enough interest.

Feel free to take my name out of the running, but if I managed to get something together before you close shop, I might put it back in.

Dumori

Aug 3 2009, 09:32 PM

QUOTE (rob @ Aug 3 2009, 09:22 PM)

3. Forgery/legal cover - someone who can clearly mark out the region between your legit activities and your illegit...

I was think of worming that in to mine.

Red-ROM

Aug 4 2009, 01:36 AM

this sounds like a great idea, how often sre you thinking of posting. Like, how fast a game is this? and are you full up yet?

Mickle5125

Aug 4 2009, 01:50 AM

QUOTE (rob @ Aug 3 2009, 03:22 PM)

1. Transportation - someone who can handle shipping, receiving, and moving stuff around the AO.

This is probably something that Markus would have covered, what with the whole over and under the table deals he gets up to.

As a side note, how would you want to handle his shop's stock? me buy it all with starting money, or will there be a "job related" supply of goods?

crizh

Aug 4 2009, 02:31 AM

OK, this is very much a work in progress, particularly gear.

I've not even started on background, I know what it is but it's late and I can't be bothered right now. It ought to be amusing.

Mataglap

[ Spoiler ]

rob

Aug 4 2009, 05:27 AM

@Dumori - Go ahead with the forgery thing, but it's also OK if that overlaps with what Pragma's or Digital heroin's characters provide.

@Mickle - I'm still not sold on how the shop owner concept would work out exactly - I don't know what you're thinking here. Give me something like a blurb or vignette, paint me a picture of how you see this character working out, what would do for the team, how he contributes.

@Red-ROM - Not full at all yet. I'm playing it by ear on 'posting rate' - depends on what kind of schedule the team and players can keep up.

@Crizh - Whoa! Brakes! Mas despacio, por favor! ala kayfek, habibi! Before you go munchkinizing some hacking dice pool, send me a character concept and something that lets me know what you're getting at, what he does, how he does it. Right now your character defies both credibility and my interpretation of the rules, so pace back and hit me with the basics before you spend more time on this (unless you derive aesthetic value from a maximized hacking dice pool). Read the spoiler for how I'm thinking:

[ Spoiler ]

Digital Heroin

Aug 4 2009, 06:10 AM

The corporate lawyer would be just that. He'd have been a prosecuter early in his career, with a shift towards finance in the end. He would be a negotiator/contact type. The emphasis for contacts would be mixed between corporate types and a lot of law enforcement, with a smattering of organized crime types in there. I'd be spending a metric tonne on contacts for him.

Digital Heroin is a touch more esoteric. He'd be a Social/Savant Adept tuned towards gathering large amounts of information and making sense of them. His contacts would be more wide spread in a whole mess of fields. On the ground he would be much more perceptive, and he'd have some hacking ability as well, but wouldn't be an uber-hacker.

I'm still fleshing things out, but I've been on a plane for the better part of four days, and need to hit the ground here and do some enjoying of my holiday. Tonight I shall have more.

crizh

Aug 4 2009, 12:31 PM

Uh, yeah sorry, I was tired and was cutting down one character to form this one as I went along, not sure it all makes sense now.

I forgot you were wanting other stuff before character sheets, sorry. I'll get to that now.

edit

Mataglap

QUOTE

The Japancorps have never been big on the Goblinized but some have a more practical approach than others.

Mataglap was one of the lucky ones. Shipped off to a subsidiary in Seattle that ran an orphanage for victims of the Night of Rage and other such tragedies.

Here children were indoctrinated to love the Corps that looked after them but that they could never truly be members of.

When they were old enough, those that believed were offered the opportunity to serve by acting as intermediaries between the corps and the Shadow Community

The Shadows are a useful tool but also a threat, every team is looking for an angle and will double cross you in a heart beat if there is any Nuyen in it.

Mataglap trained in corp subsidized charity schools as an electronic security expert.

He also crossed trained in Nanotechnology, Chemistry and Demolitions.

He is an expert in monitoring meets, planting misinformation, tracking and monitoring a team whist they are on the job and disposing of them if they become a problem.

While he most often works behind the scenes for various fixers that his main corporate contact brings to him, occasionally he operates on his own using Ricardo as a front.

I'll post a short piece later this evening and I'll start making changes to the character sheet.

Red-ROM

Aug 4 2009, 10:23 PM

I'm hashing out an Idea for an 80's style, coked up power broker guy. dealing a lot in Laundering money, and dealing with drug smugglers, or smuggling in general. A lot of organized crime contact, and some loose corperate ties(Aztechnologies?). maybe a smattering of smaller gangs and smugglers on both sides of the Seattle/Salish border.

crizh

Aug 4 2009, 10:46 PM

He examined himself in the rest room mirror, he often came up out of the dark with dirt, blood or food smeared all over his face. The caverns he shared with his cannibalistic friends were completely unlit and he was often down there for days at a time, days in which personal grooming often suffered quite badly.

It didn't pay to turn up to a meet looking like you had just crawled out of a dumpster. He had a rep for professionalism to maintain.

This was a new Johnson he hadn't worked with before and, his contact told him, was a virgin in dealing with the shadows.

He already had a clean 'link prepped for him but he couldn't start work on his decoy link until he learned more about the mission, it's targets, objectives and potential pitfalls. He also needed to know who should get the blame and whether this was a part of the objective. It was one thing if passing the blame on to Ares was just expedient or part of the overall plan. In the first case it didn't matter who got stuck playing patsy, any random unconnected corp would do in a pinch. In the second the bread crumbs needed to eventually lead to precisely the correct door, a much more difficult task.

Subconsciously he clenched and unclenched his artificial left hand as he cleaned his face with a damp cloth. He could feel the slight tingle of electrons flowing along myomer bundles and the swoosh of millions of tiny machines flowing through the two nano-hives built into his shiny silver forearm.

He had often puzzled over the moral choices the world had made in the wake of Deus. It had tortured and killed tens of thousands of loyal corporate citizens and made technological leaps as a result that would have taken decades to achieve in a moral manner. He wondered if it was right to profit from such misery but concluded that it was morally imperative that those that gave their lives be honoured by using the tools they had suffered and died to create. Let their sacrifice not be in vain.

He often imagined that each of the tiny machines that ran through his blood were the like the re-incarnated embodiment of the victims of the Arcology. He liked to give them names when he tinkered with them in his nano-hives, personalities that died but could live on as tools for the betterment of mankind.

Choices, always choices.

He examined his brutish twisted features and thought 'I don't remember being given a choice about this ugly mug' and his lip twisted into a snear.

His Mana Studies lecturer had gone on about choices at great length when he'd come into class one day with a 'new' cybernetic forearm. It had actually been an interesting debate about the pro's and con's of augmentation for the magically active, focussing mostly around reducing the invasiveness of the implant and synergy from choosing implants that did things magic couldn't do or wasn't very good at. He'd carried that debate when he revealed he had chosen the arm for no other reason than the two nano-hives it contained.

He laughed to himself, that lecturer would not have been so easily convinced if he had known the source of the arm. He had been slumming in the Underground for months getting to know the sort of people he was going to be expected to work with. It always amused Mataglap that the Ghouls he wanted to meet were the ones who supplied the device that allowed him to walk amongst them without fear.

He always figured if you were going to generate embarassing bodies you ought to dispose of them in a sustainable way...

An AR display warned him that his time was up and, after checking over his appearance one last time, he headed out into the train station to meet his new employer.

----

Later in the darkness he reviewed the meeting.

Mr J was going to need a lot of help. The water was running out from behind his ears, which was presumably why Will had sent him to Mataglap.

You can't just let any Tom, Dick or Harry start running Shadow Ops without a little bit of oversight. The Company needs to be protected.

Of course some people need more oversight than others.

They always shook your hand. Even the experienced ones. There was something about meeting an Ogre in a business situation, they didn't want to appear rude or unprofessional.

Idiots.

At least the dose of Nanites he'd given him would prevent anyone else doing the same for at least a week. The Activators had let him straight into the man's 'link and let him dig up everything a Shadowrun team would have learned about their Johnson, his Corp and the job they were being asked to do.

Now he had work to do. A team to find, three fake 'links to create and an innocent corportate exec to frame for it all.

Busy, busy, busy.

Mickle5125

Aug 5 2009, 02:05 AM

QUOTE (rob @ Aug 4 2009, 12:27 AM)

@Mickle - I'm still not sold on how the shop owner concept would work out exactly - I don't know what you're thinking here. Give me something like a blurb or vignette, paint me a picture of how you see this character working out, what would do for the team, how he contributes.

I'll work on that for you. If I can't come up with anything of a suitable nature, do you mind if I throw out another concept?

Summerstorm

Aug 5 2009, 08:55 PM

Ok, should be the final now:

Wayland, the Smith: AI, Metasapient, 8 months old. Armorer, Rigger, Data Miner. Overall provider for things that go boom. (Or beep-beep)

Vignette: (My first one in a long time, sorry. Just ask if you want a longer, better one)

[ Spoiler ]

20 Questions. (As answered in character-fake interview style)

[ Spoiler ]

Build Points breakdown:

[ Spoiler ]

Attributes and core progams:

[ Spoiler ]

Qualities:

[ Spoiler ]

Skills:

[ Spoiler ]

Equipment: (Umm... prepare for overkill *g* )

[ Spoiler ]

Contacts: (Get described in detail in 20 questions)

[ Spoiler ]

rob

Aug 6 2009, 04:03 AM

Mmm... neat ideas. Still looking for the rest of the team.

@Summerstorm - AI. Neat! Why? What? Huh? I have no particular aversion to the concept, aside from the fact that I'm a stick in the mud. I don't much know about AI rules - send me a PM with kind of a description of where you wanna go with this guy(?)/what you want to play/what kind of roles he(?) plays on the team.

Good job with the gear. Got some math to revise (for example, you can't afford an armory facility). In between that and the PM, you've got a concept working here.

@Mickle - Don't mind if you throw out another concept, but don't go fishing for one unless you have a clear idea of how you'd work in this adventure.

BlackHat

Aug 6 2009, 03:46 PM

Decided to throw my hat (after dusting it off) back into the ring.

First, I'll throw the concept out there, in case its not really what Rob is looking for (vignette to follow, tonight or tomorrow, assuming I am not missing the mark by miles). I don't think this concept steps on anyone else's toes, but if it does, I apologize. The concept may need some molding, too - I am open to that (particularly having trouble balancing the shadow-persona with the public one). The "public-awareness" level of this character might be too high for this (or any) game, but it seemed like the idea of being just above the level of actual runners would afford us some leeway, as far as public opinion is concerned - and this might be a fun opportunity to play around with that. In this case, being in touch with a celebrity who can pull a lot of strings, with big-name movers-and-shakers around the world, might be a really good thing to have on a team.

"Artisan" - human awakened artist, collector, and (known to very few as a) forger and programmer (with black-market connections, and various shadow contacts at a fairly "hands-off" level, as well as a large social network outside of the Shadows)

Expanded concept:

[ Spoiler ]

A little background... My wife has been making me watch a lot of E and Style programming lately, so its sort of been soaking in - and I thought it would be a lot of fun to take this sort of "celebutante" idea to the extreme and focus on some of the things that would get crazy if they continue escalating for a few years (like the P2.0 stuff, which I don't particularly like for normal shadowrunners, but which I think might fit a game like this very well - or the Evo Worldwear line of wear-once-and-throw-it-away clothing).

As far as what this character could provide for a team, he could probably function as a hacker, in a pinch, but wouldn't be the best at it and the same goes for functioning as a face or a negotiator - his skills would lie in his contacts, and ability to open doors by throwing his considerable social clout around among people who would not normally associate with Shadow-types. He might function as a fence, or at least as a middle-man to a fence, though his black-market contacts. He also considers himself someone who knows anybody who is anybody - so he might have connections with Runners who build reputations for themselves, particularly those who are known outside of the shadows (having thier own P2 feeds, for example) - which could be useful for finding talent, or keeping an ear close to what's happening in the Shadow-scene.

If some of his contacts (or the people his contacts put him in touch with - as a favor) found themselves in need for a custom built program, or a bullet-proof forgery (allowing time for Artisan to create such a work of art) then they would be hard-pressed to find someone with a better eye for detail, passion for his work, or creativity that they might bring to the task.

Like I said, this might not fit what Rob is looking for, and if so, that's no problem. I'm willing to wiggle the concept around a bit if making Artisan more or less legitimate would work better (for example, he could be famous mostly among Shadow-circles - or he could be entirely legitimate, but still be useful because of his connections). Also, it looks like a lot of ideas have been thrown out, already, so I won't be surprised if he won't make the cut.

rob

Aug 6 2009, 11:27 PM

@All - Meet "Will.":

[ Spoiler ]

Red-ROM

Aug 7 2009, 02:49 AM

Vignette:
Everything is put on hold, gotta hold on, big cheese on line one.. its all good, all systems go.Max pulled his chair over to the office node and checked the encryption. He ran a finger under his nose with a sniff, gave a quick shake, and answered the call. With his normally huge smile stretching wider, his super white teeth could blind anyone nearby, he answered the man in shadows on the other end of the comm,"Big Sam! Sam the man, I have the ball rolling your way com padre! You have 1,500 shares Of Jade investments, which I can guarantee Will be eagerly gobbled up by Friday for a Net gain of 75%, less my commision of course" Max glanced back to his commlink at the other end of the desk, not really looking at the screen just visually referencing it as he went through the content in his head. "Your Grandson's gift has also been ordered and should arrive at his house in two days"
Talking in code seemed almost unnecessary, but this isn't the place for almost. The man on the other end said nothing. Just nodded in the dark and hung up. Max slid back to the other end of his desk and brought up the AR from his current commlink. In front of him were 5 windows. Three commcalls on hold and two chats waiting for replies. He started typing as he answered the first call,"Gwen, My Lady, How's the team holding up?"
The AR gloves didn't exactly complement his newest Zoe suite with its alternating blue and orange cuffs. But it did allow him to recline as he typed to his contact in the Bushers gang outside of Aberdeen. <<If your guests tamper with the gifts, they'll have to be dealt with>>
Gwen seemed somewhat irritated, but she was always on edge when they got in the thick of it. "they're hold up somewhere near Aberdeen for the night, I got a good feel from these guys at the meet, but what if they get curious?"
"It's all about checks and balances Baby-doll. The Bushers are gonna keep them in line, and your team is hot enough to keep the Bushers from getting greedy. Now I gotta jet babe, I got customs on hold for tomorrow, And some serious cred to spread, so hit me up after the Party. "
If all goes well Maxi, you'll be nipples deep in Nuyen by the weekend.

Mickle5125

Aug 7 2009, 04:24 AM

Ok, Markus wasn't turning out as beautifully as I was hoping. However, the idea for Tallon, a member of a smuggling ring has been sticking in my mind recently. I think that he fits the idea for this a little better than Markus did.

Smuggler: Tallon has spent the past several years making contacts and paving the way for his smuggling business to expand into Seattle. Now, after all that time, his company has stepped in and made quite a reputation for themselves in a fairly short span of time. They're known to be able to move anything for the right price, no questions asked. Whether it's across Seattle or around the world, Tallon and his crew can make sure it gets there.

Inconsequenti_Al

Aug 7 2009, 03:28 PM

Think this sounds like a cool idea. I'd be interested, if you don't object to a newbie to online Shadowrunning?

My rough concept would be a spellslinger with organised crime connections. Most likely a metahuman hermetic - depending on how the creation process goes... Thinking a former Mafia associate who was put out of work when their syndicate was taken over by a traditionalist.

Would bring in some magical talent - thinking a focus on conjuring - some magical security and some (backup) aura reading. As well as good organised crime/magical contacts.

pragma

Aug 9 2009, 07:04 AM

The next two weeks will be hectic for me; I'm unlikely to get a concept fleshed out. I'd be happy if I got one done, but please don't wait up for me.

BlackHat

Aug 9 2009, 04:32 PM

Busy week is hopefully wrapping up today, so I should make some progress on the vignette (and slightly revised concept) tomorrow.

Fastball

Aug 9 2009, 05:42 PM

I know I'm a little late, but I'd be happy to fill a role I think you are missing.

Character Concept:
Magical Consultant - A magician whose passion is in magical research, but offers consulting services for a corporation to fund his expensive habit.
Services Provided to the Corporation:

Talismongering/Fencing Magical Goods

Magical Security Analysis
Magical Recruitment - Assensing of potential awakened runners
Astral Oversight - Spying on recruited runner teams to prevent betrayal.

Edit - By the way, small world, I am also getting married on the 22nd and will be gone on a honeymoon between Aug 29 and Sep 5. I'll start working on the character just for fun, but let me know if I should bother submitting him.

BlackHat

Aug 11 2009, 01:02 PM

Slightly revised since last post, after some feedback from Rob - let me know if I didn't quite hit the mark you'd like, yet.

1. a blurb for character concept

[ Spoiler ]

"Artisan" - human awakened artist, collector, and socialite (with a large social network outside of the Shadows, as well as black-market connections and various shadow contacts at a fairly "hands-off" level )

Despite his presence at many exclusive social events, Artisan has managed to stay out of the media's eye (well, for the most part). That isn't to say he is not talented, or interesting. I see him as a uniquely creative, inspired, person. He considers himself a bit of a Renaissance man of the artistic world and seems to have his fingers in a lot of areas - but seems as eclectic and fickle in his artistic interests, as the artistic world seems to be in everything else. The general public might not recognize him, but those in the artistic, fashion, and entertainment circles, who are worth knowing, will have been introduced to him at one time or another. Artisan enjoys the "exclusive" feel of his social circle, and the unusual amount of privacy that his lifestyle affords him - and goes to great expense to keep himself (and some of his more discrete clients) out of the limelight.

He will be something of an inner-circle socialite. I see him as someone who is heavily into the P2.0 scene, and as someone who not only lives and breathes art and fashion, but is the sort of person who (indirectly) helps determine just what is in fashion from one moment to the next. Your average consumer wouldn't know, or care, what he thinks, but he has the ear of a number of top designers and critics. He lives a luxury lifestyle - occasionally jet-setting around the world to attend various galas and premires, surrounding himself with the finest things as long as they are in fashion, and then discarding them as soon as they fall out, always dressed in the up-to-the-second trends from around the world (Evo Worldwear Contract, AR accessories), and rubbing elbows with other famous and influential people (generally on the legitimate side of things, but could be useful contacts, none the less - not to mention a number of shady characters who consider themselves upper-class socialites, as well). Although he is an artist, himself, he would be far more likely to be seen attending someone else's event - or wearing someone else's designer outfit - than parading his own art around, which gives more credibility to the public perception that he is

He is always into what is new (and looking for the next new thing, at least until something old becomes new again) and is currently interested in various digital forms of expression - from AR artwork, to simsense, to a new artistic scene emerging in the Matrix involving creative programming structures and cryptosense-sculpted icons. He might consider himself pretty tech-savvy, but he would never call himself a hacker. He can write code (in fact, he prides himself his ability to create art in almost any medium) and the structures he creates are beautiful to behold - at least for those who appreciate this avant-garde artistic medium. They are elegant, and creative, but not necessarily optimal or efficient - and certainly not mass-produced. Each program is written once, usually for a particular specific client (who pays through the nose for this one-of-a-kind program). He certainly wouldn't find himself "in the weeds" slinging it around VR, like some lowly "Runner".

Artisan tends to be fairly "hands-off" when it comes to his dealings with less-than-legitimate clientele, but gets a certain amount of thrill from being a part of a scene so "exclusive" it doesn't officially exist. He often puts his networking to use putting various contacts in touch with one another, and he keeps an eye on any Runner-talent that begin to build reputations for themselves. More than once, his artistic eye has been turned towards the art of forgery - which, although he would never publicly say so, is among the mediums in which the muses inspire him. His own artistic collection includes a number of known forgeries, which he selected for that very reason - seeing them as works of art in their own right, in the medium of imitation. While building up his collection, Artisan has made a number of black-market contacts, through such dealings - and more than once has been used as a middle-man to get rid of a particularly hot item. Only the most high-paying clients, would approach Artisan for a forgery of his own creation - and, of course, the price would likely be disproportionate to its value on the open market, since Artisan would be unlikely to take credit for the creation - despite his many public claims that such rigid concepts as "legality" have no business constraining the creative expression of artists, such as himself.

2. a vignette showing your character's role on a team.

[ Spoiler ]

The call went out around 7pm, and, unpredictably, Artisan did not answer. Mr. J's contact, who had given him the number, had warned him that this "Artisan" character would be screening the call, but to make sure he mentioned where he got the number, and he should call back. The automated message was short, but still carried an air of superiority - Mr. J could imagine the guy staring down his nose at him. "If you think I should know you, leave a message. <BEEP>" J, cool as ever, didn't miss a beat. He quickly mentioned the name of his contact, and before he could get around to asking for a callback, or mentioning what he wanted, he heard someone pick up on the other end. "Ah, yes, Mister Jay, I've been waiting for your call." Both parties had the video-feature disabled, but the man's voice sounded almost jovial, and there was a significant amount of noise in the background - was that people laughing? Encryption programs on both ends began hand-shaking, and in a second, he received the usual icon from his commlink that indicated the line was secure. Artisan seemed to be waiting for the same thing, because after a pause, he continued. "I owe our friend a favor or two, so tell me what I can do, for you."

"I've got a client who needs something done in LA."

"Of course he does. Beautiful city. Lots to do."

J appreciated that the man didn't inquire about what needed to be done, or who this client was. "... and I was told you could put me in touch with some local talent."

"I know anybody who is anybody in LA. Whatever you need, I'll arrange it while you're in town. Just say the word."

The two men went on like this for another ten minutes, dancing around the topic and slowly approaching an understanding. J, of course, didn't want to provide too much information about what he needed done, and yet needed to make sure the people who showed up for the meet had the skills to get things done. Artisan, on the other hand, seemed to go between treating J like an old friend who would be visiting town for the weekend and treating him like a talent-scout who was looking for fresh blood.

When their conversation ended, J was rather pleased. He had a couple of names to look into - Shadowrunners who were building reputations in the LA scene - and a reservation at an upscale restaurant to use for the meet, where their privacy would be assured. Transportation had been arranged, from the airport, as well as security. His contact in LA seemed to carry a lot more clout than J had given him credit for - that, or this "Artisan" fellow was greatly exaggerating his influence.

J would find out in a couple of days.

3. Character sheet

[ Spoiler ]

This is a very rough draft. I haven't had a lot of time to play around with it, but I did notice that the "luxury trust-fund" quality that Rob came up with may or may not be necessary. It would actually be 10-20 points cheaper if I just turned those points into cash, and purchased a luxury lifestyle the old-fashioned way... assuming the game isn't likely to span more than a month or two (frankly, I've only been in one PBP game that has). If it does, it wouldn't really be possible, without being unfair, for Artisan to keep up the payments, so I would appreciate the quality. If not, those point would likely just go into more contacts. I've already set aside 41 points (was planning to set aside the full 50 bonus points we were getting) but after looking at the expanded contact rules, again, even treating them as group contacts I can expect each one to easily eat up 15 points a piece.

Again, always open to suggestions - although I am taking a long-weekend/vacation Thursday through Tuesday, where I doubt I will have internet access.

rob

Aug 11 2009, 06:54 PM

@All

Word. Starting to get the outline of a team, but there are a number of gaps that will need filled.

Digital Heroin, Red-ROM, Mickle, Fastball, Inconsequenti-al, pragma, etc.: If you've posted a "I have this great idea..." I'm looking forward to seeing some more development from you.

@Crizh/Blackhat/Summerstorm: Yall are sitting in the preferred category right now, because I've seen characters from you. I've spoken to each of you about some minor revisions, but the chracters will be considered as they stand - with or without them, once I get enough development to put a team together.

I want to start moving this along by next week.

Red-ROM

Aug 12 2009, 01:55 AM

Concept:

[ Spoiler ]

Vignette:

[ Spoiler ]

Everything is put on hold, gotta hold on, big cheese on line one.. its all good, all systems go.Max pulled his chair over to the office node and checked the encryption. He ran a finger under his nose with a sniff, gave a quick shake, and answered the call. With his normally huge smile stretching wider, his super white teeth could blind anyone nearby, he answered the man in shadows on the other end of the comm,"Big Sam! Sam the man, I have the ball rolling your way com padre! You have 1,500 shares Of Jade investments, which I can guarantee Will be eagerly gobbled up by Friday for a Net gain of 75%, less my commision of course" Max glanced back to his commlink at the other end of the desk, not really looking at the screen just visually referencing it as he went through the content in his head. "Your Grandson's gift has also been ordered and should arrive at his house in two days"
Talking in code seemed almost unnecessary, but this isn't the place for almost. The man on the other end said nothing. Just nodded in the dark and hung up. Max slid back to the other end of his desk and brought up the AR from his current commlink. In front of him were 5 windows. Three commcalls on hold and two chats waiting for replies. He started typing as he answered the first call,"Gwen, My Lady, How's the team holding up?"
The AR gloves didn't exactly complement his newest Zoe suite with its alternating blue and orange cuffs. But it did allow him to recline as he typed to his contact in the Bushers gang outside of Aberdeen. <<If your guests tamper with the gifts, they'll have to be dealt with>>
Gwen seemed somewhat irritated, but she was always on edge when they got in the thick of it. "they're hold up somewhere near Aberdeen for the night, I got a good feel from these guys at the meet, but what if they get curious?"
"It's all about checks and balances Baby-doll. The Bushers are gonna keep them in line, and your team is hot enough to keep the Bushers from getting greedy. Now I gotta jet babe, I got customs on hold for tomorrow, And some serious cred to spread, so hit me up after the Party. "
If all goes well Maxi, you'll be nipples deep in Nuyen by the weekend.

Character:(edit +50bp)

[ Spoiler ]

Mickle5125

Aug 12 2009, 06:54 PM

Vignette:

"It's done. Seattle is ready for the taking."

Having delivered his message, Tallon ended the call and leaned back in his synth-leather chair, grinning to himself as he takes a puff from his cigar. It had taken years, but Tallon had done his job well. He had enough business connections in Seattle to ensure that his smuggling ring would be able to survive and prosper on its mean streets. His crew had already moved into town and set up shop. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the clients he had informed to call.

"Hey, chief! Incoming call!"

Well. That was convenient timing. Tallon called up the message in AR and smiled charmingly as he said, "Discretion Delivery. How may I help you?"

"Tallon, this is Will. I have a package that I need transported across town immediately."

"Not a problem. We can have someone to you within the hour. The driver will work out the details with you. Where can he meet you?"

"Have him meet me at Freddy's on Elm in 45 minutes. I'll be waiting in a private room. Good evening."

'Well,' thought Tallon, 'That could have gone worse. No matter.' He quickly called up one of his employees. "Aves, in town delivery. Client's at Freddy's on Elm in 45 minutes. Private room. Be professional, will ya? This one's important!"

Aves' reply was predictably professional. "Fuck you, Tallon! I'm as professional as they come, chief! How big's the package?"

Tallon pondered for a moment. "Take the Hermes. Johnson didn't say, but it's probably not anything too big, so ka? I'm leaving most of the negotiations up to you this time. Don't forget the checklist."

Tallon could almost hear Aves' jaw drop. "You're letting me handle the negotiations? You never let anyone handle the negotiations!"

Tallon grinned to himself. "And I'd be handling this one, too, if I didn't think you needed the experience." The fact that he'd already had an in depth discussion with this client about prices, Tallon kept to himself. "Just remember the checklist, include all necessary fees, and don't try to rip off the client. We need repeat clients at the moment more than we need the money."

Aves' excitement was palpable. "Aye aye, boss! I won't let you down! Later!"

Tallon smirked to himself and glanced at the antique clock on his wall. Close enough. He stood up and exited his office, calling out, "Mara! Finish up whatever you're doing. We're going to lunch!" He grinned at the pretty redhead glaring at him and made his way over to another office. "Chin,drop that gun! You're in charge around here till we get back. Have Ghent keep an eye on Aves during his run."

Chin looked up from the Nitama Optimum II he was inspecting and threw a half-hearted salute towards Tallon. "Aye, chief. I'll handle things, but hurry up. This shipment needs to be delivered to the Yaks by Thursday, and I'm barely halfway through it."

Tallon shrugged. "If you need to, you can bring Markus in to help, but his pay is coming out of your share."

Chin shrugged back as Tallon ducked back out of his office and made his way over to join Mara by the door. "Ready, my dear?" He opened the door and grins at her disdainful huff. He followed her out the door with a grin.

Watch out, Seattle. Tallon's here to stay.

Mickle5125

Aug 13 2009, 01:52 AM

Rob, are you using the 10,000xrating activesofts or the cheaper version from before?

rob

Aug 13 2009, 05:45 AM

10K per point. Going SR4A all the way.

Inconsequenti_Al

Aug 14 2009, 11:30 AM

Hi, will have something up over the weekend!

Was hoping to have it done today, but been roped into running a game of Dark Heresy at no notice. Dagnamit!

Mickle5125

Aug 14 2009, 06:16 PM

emotisofts work per RAW or are you houseruling them to be less powerful?

rob

Aug 14 2009, 07:49 PM

@Red-ROM - Max Broman? hilarious. Concept works, useful contacts.

@Mickle - I don't like emotisofts, but I see their utility. I house rule their effectiveness by starkly limiting what social interactions they're useful for and what they can possibly do for one. For example, emotisofts can't help you make a first impression. Nor will an emotisoft ever fundamentally change a person's behavior (they won't allow you to convince a salesman to offer you a price below his cost, for example). They would be most useful to help with sense motive/gauge intentions checks

The way I think about purchases like that is: based on the text description of the tool (rather than the game mechanics), can you imagine Tallon wanting to buy such a thing? Ignore the game mechanic, and just think if ownership makes sense for the character.

Your vignette is fine, and I like how you incorporated your old concept. Explain to me when you write (and explain) your character sheet what Tallon's smuggling operation does, and where it fits in between all the other smuggling operations in Seattle.

@Summerstorm - Let me know what you think about the edits

Red-ROM

Aug 16 2009, 11:30 PM

wow, forgot the 450BP , and made my character w/ 400. I guess I'll be adding a little bit

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