Hey everyone!
I've been a Shadowrun player since 1st ed, and have played in "pickup games" over the last 20 years, but I've never run an SR game that wasn't a published adventure.
Well, recently, my 2 1/2 year gaming group decided to close out our D&D 3.5 campaign and play something different. I suggested Shadowrun (as that's what we played for the 1st year), and its my turn in the GM rotation.
That having been said, however, I'm trying my hand at making up some runs on my own. I'd like some help from y'all to "debug" the debut run for the team, and make sure I've got my bases covered. I've run my ideas past my wife and our roommate (both have played SR in the past), but I want to make sure I'm not missing anything.
Is this the right forum to do it in, or is there another part of the forum specifically set up for this?
Danke,
LO
Full Version: New here, need some help debugging.
Sure! Fire away. I'm sure the peanut gallery (and other assorted nuts) will have plenty of things to say. *grin* In all seriousness, I think this is the appropriate forum. Just make sure that your players aren't also reading these forums.
OK, here goes:
The 5 man team is comprised of
- A military-trained combat medic
- An Ork Dog Shaman specializing in investigations (magical and mundane), and non-lethal spells
- A security hacker/rigger
- A smuggler/faceman
- A Street Sam
The setup:
A Ms. Johnson referred by the teams' trusted contacts with contract them to do a job. She will speak to them via disposable comlink at one of the contact's locations. She will lay out a run with 3 objectives-
1.) Between 10:40pm and 10:50pm two days later, break into the residence of a Mr. Leon Kaminsky, and incapacitate him. Optimally, this should look as much like a random B&E gone bad, or at least one that can be easily attributed to other factors. Address will be provided.
2.) Insert a computer program provided by Ms. Johnson into Mr. Kaminsky's personal computer, which is off the grid and not wireless enabled.
3.) Accomplish the first 2 objectives and exit the residence within 10 minutes of entry, leaving Mr. Kaminsky in an unconscious but stable condition.
Base payment for the run is 7,500 total, half up front.
Mr. Kaminsky -
Running data searches on this guy will reveal that he used to work for Renraku, lost a brother in the Arcology shutdown, then was extracted to Evo soon afterward. He's been retired since '67. He's a computer programmer specializing in drone control protocols and sensor data analysis. His current address is a home on a family-run farm in Snohomish, approx. 3/4 mile from the main road. His official capacity is as Matrix-master and IT for the farm.
The Farm -
The Hillis Farm in Snohomish is a 160+ year old family farm, currently known for its organic crops, including wine grapes, which fetch premium prices in Seattle, the SSN, and the rest of the UCAS. They are part of a co-op with other local, family run farms competing against the large Agri-corps. This co-op was formed to pool resources for sales and distribution, as well as security and protection. They have 2, 4 man patrols on-site, and share a road-bound patrol with the other local co-op farms. They also have un-armed spotter drones patrolling the area, used for both security and to monitor agricultural readings such as temperature, humidity, etc. Their effective use of drones is one of the main reasons they have been so successful in the last few years.
The house -
Typical 1 story, 2BD, 2BA farmhouse. PanicButton and motion sensors for security. If caught by surprise, Mr. Kaminsky will be unarmed and unarmored. However, his comlink is set to activate the PanicButton and deploy 2 armed drones inside the house if his vitals are severely disrupted or he flatlines.
The program - If the team decides to investigate the program, the will find that it is an encrypted half of an executable file. Further investigations into the program will uncover clues which point to Ingersoll & Rand, an Agricorp. If they're really good, they will find that the program is designed to disburse and embed into existing files, then reassemble when the other half is loaded on the computer.
What the team doesn't know - Another runner team has been hired by Ms. Johnson to pick up Mr. Kaminsky and insert the 2nd half of the program. The 2nd team will show up at 11pm, in the guise of a DocWagon HTR team and execute their mission. They have not been informed of the 1st teams actions (having only been told that "Mr. Kaminsky will be incapacitated"), and will act the part of a DocWagon team if the 1st team is still there. They will give warning via hacking into Mr. Kaminsky's Trideo and give any occupants the chance to leave immediately. The 2nd team will be a veteran runner team and can easily overpower the players. My hope is that it doesn't come to this, by giving the PCs warnings such as the 2nd team's hacker and astrally projecting Mage are much more powerful.
Hopefully, this will all go well, the team will get out, contact Ms. Johnson, and receive the rest of their payment. There are elements in this run that I will use for later runs, depending on how this goes.
OK, everyone. Debug this for me. As me some questions and help me make it good for my PCs!
The 5 man team is comprised of
- A military-trained combat medic
- An Ork Dog Shaman specializing in investigations (magical and mundane), and non-lethal spells
- A security hacker/rigger
- A smuggler/faceman
- A Street Sam
The setup:
A Ms. Johnson referred by the teams' trusted contacts with contract them to do a job. She will speak to them via disposable comlink at one of the contact's locations. She will lay out a run with 3 objectives-
1.) Between 10:40pm and 10:50pm two days later, break into the residence of a Mr. Leon Kaminsky, and incapacitate him. Optimally, this should look as much like a random B&E gone bad, or at least one that can be easily attributed to other factors. Address will be provided.
2.) Insert a computer program provided by Ms. Johnson into Mr. Kaminsky's personal computer, which is off the grid and not wireless enabled.
3.) Accomplish the first 2 objectives and exit the residence within 10 minutes of entry, leaving Mr. Kaminsky in an unconscious but stable condition.
Base payment for the run is 7,500 total, half up front.
Mr. Kaminsky -
Running data searches on this guy will reveal that he used to work for Renraku, lost a brother in the Arcology shutdown, then was extracted to Evo soon afterward. He's been retired since '67. He's a computer programmer specializing in drone control protocols and sensor data analysis. His current address is a home on a family-run farm in Snohomish, approx. 3/4 mile from the main road. His official capacity is as Matrix-master and IT for the farm.
The Farm -
The Hillis Farm in Snohomish is a 160+ year old family farm, currently known for its organic crops, including wine grapes, which fetch premium prices in Seattle, the SSN, and the rest of the UCAS. They are part of a co-op with other local, family run farms competing against the large Agri-corps. This co-op was formed to pool resources for sales and distribution, as well as security and protection. They have 2, 4 man patrols on-site, and share a road-bound patrol with the other local co-op farms. They also have un-armed spotter drones patrolling the area, used for both security and to monitor agricultural readings such as temperature, humidity, etc. Their effective use of drones is one of the main reasons they have been so successful in the last few years.
The house -
Typical 1 story, 2BD, 2BA farmhouse. PanicButton and motion sensors for security. If caught by surprise, Mr. Kaminsky will be unarmed and unarmored. However, his comlink is set to activate the PanicButton and deploy 2 armed drones inside the house if his vitals are severely disrupted or he flatlines.
The program - If the team decides to investigate the program, the will find that it is an encrypted half of an executable file. Further investigations into the program will uncover clues which point to Ingersoll & Rand, an Agricorp. If they're really good, they will find that the program is designed to disburse and embed into existing files, then reassemble when the other half is loaded on the computer.
What the team doesn't know - Another runner team has been hired by Ms. Johnson to pick up Mr. Kaminsky and insert the 2nd half of the program. The 2nd team will show up at 11pm, in the guise of a DocWagon HTR team and execute their mission. They have not been informed of the 1st teams actions (having only been told that "Mr. Kaminsky will be incapacitated"), and will act the part of a DocWagon team if the 1st team is still there. They will give warning via hacking into Mr. Kaminsky's Trideo and give any occupants the chance to leave immediately. The 2nd team will be a veteran runner team and can easily overpower the players. My hope is that it doesn't come to this, by giving the PCs warnings such as the 2nd team's hacker and astrally projecting Mage are much more powerful.
Hopefully, this will all go well, the team will get out, contact Ms. Johnson, and receive the rest of their payment. There are elements in this run that I will use for later runs, depending on how this goes.
OK, everyone. Debug this for me. As me some questions and help me make it good for my PCs!
Alrighty, let's see if everyone has something to do:
- Combat medic: Check on the condition of Mr. Kaminsky, see if he's okay, provide information on how to keep him KO'ed
- An Ork Dog Shaman: No astral threats... might be bored.
- A security hacker/rigger: upload the file, check on electronics, hack security systems
- A smuggler/faceman: Erm, breaking and entry, debugging (when things go wrong)? Doesn't seem there's much for this character to do other than negotiate for payment.
- A Street Sam: No good physical threats. Again, doesn't seem like there's much for this character to do.
It looks like this adventure can be run by just two people out of the entire team.
I would add a reasonable magical threat so the Dog Shaman feels useful. Watcher spirits, a patrolling earth spirit, something. If the Dog Shaman can handle him/herself in combat, a patrolling earth spirit or wagemage (a member of another part of the co-op, not combat trained) might be reasonable. If not, watcher spirits should be enough of a threat.
I'd also add some sort of encounter so that the Street Sam can beat up stuff, unless the Street Sam is more of a stealth monkey who prides himself on sneaking in and out of places. Otherwise, he'll just sit there polishing his guns and have nothing to do. Anything from a rival farm hiring a gang to come in and burn some crops (alerting the drones if the Shadowrunners don't do something about it) to farmers with shotguns (who need to be taken down non-lethally for the run to succeed).
The smuggler/faceman can easily go into the farm for a "wine tasting" or something for advance intel, but you may need to provide him with a solid hook to do so (if he's a new player).
- Combat medic: Check on the condition of Mr. Kaminsky, see if he's okay, provide information on how to keep him KO'ed
- An Ork Dog Shaman: No astral threats... might be bored.
- A security hacker/rigger: upload the file, check on electronics, hack security systems
- A smuggler/faceman: Erm, breaking and entry, debugging (when things go wrong)? Doesn't seem there's much for this character to do other than negotiate for payment.
- A Street Sam: No good physical threats. Again, doesn't seem like there's much for this character to do.
It looks like this adventure can be run by just two people out of the entire team.
I would add a reasonable magical threat so the Dog Shaman feels useful. Watcher spirits, a patrolling earth spirit, something. If the Dog Shaman can handle him/herself in combat, a patrolling earth spirit or wagemage (a member of another part of the co-op, not combat trained) might be reasonable. If not, watcher spirits should be enough of a threat.
I'd also add some sort of encounter so that the Street Sam can beat up stuff, unless the Street Sam is more of a stealth monkey who prides himself on sneaking in and out of places. Otherwise, he'll just sit there polishing his guns and have nothing to do. Anything from a rival farm hiring a gang to come in and burn some crops (alerting the drones if the Shadowrunners don't do something about it) to farmers with shotguns (who need to be taken down non-lethally for the run to succeed).
The smuggler/faceman can easily go into the farm for a "wine tasting" or something for advance intel, but you may need to provide him with a solid hook to do so (if he's a new player).
Thanks,
The way I see it, someone's gotta knock out Kaminsky, and that will fall to the Shaman (who has Stunbolt and Stunball) or the Street Sam backed up by the Combat Medic. Maybe I'll entice the Shaman's interest by putting some Astral blocking bacteria in the walls of certain rooms of his house... I'm going to drop hints that drones are this guy's bread and butter, so they'll probably want to send the Sam in to provide physical protection. I like your idea about having a roving spirit, though, or a co-op magical spotter patrolling the area in astral.
The smuggler is the getaway man, and if I sense the player is getting bored I'll have an encounter with the road patrol... or maybe he'll notice a suspicious DocWagon van while he's waiting for the team's extraction call. He's also a veteran player, so he'll probably do some advanced intel like you mentioned.
The way I see it, someone's gotta knock out Kaminsky, and that will fall to the Shaman (who has Stunbolt and Stunball) or the Street Sam backed up by the Combat Medic. Maybe I'll entice the Shaman's interest by putting some Astral blocking bacteria in the walls of certain rooms of his house... I'm going to drop hints that drones are this guy's bread and butter, so they'll probably want to send the Sam in to provide physical protection. I like your idea about having a roving spirit, though, or a co-op magical spotter patrolling the area in astral.
The smuggler is the getaway man, and if I sense the player is getting bored I'll have an encounter with the road patrol... or maybe he'll notice a suspicious DocWagon van while he's waiting for the team's extraction call. He's also a veteran player, so he'll probably do some advanced intel like you mentioned.
QUOTE (hahnsoo @ Nov 27 2009, 01:37 PM) 
Alrighty, let's see if everyone has something to do:
- Combat medic: Check on the condition of Mr. Kaminsky, see if he's okay, provide information on how to keep him KO'ed
- An Ork Dog Shaman: No astral threats... might be bored.
- A security hacker/rigger: upload the file, check on electronics, hack security systems
- A smuggler/faceman: Erm, breaking and entry, debugging (when things go wrong)? Doesn't seem there's much for this character to do other than negotiate for payment.
- A Street Sam: No good physical threats. Again, doesn't seem like there's much for this character to do.
It looks like this adventure can be run by just two people out of the entire team.
I would add a reasonable magical threat so the Dog Shaman feels useful. Watcher spirits, a patrolling earth spirit, something. If the Dog Shaman can handle him/herself in combat, a patrolling earth spirit or wagemage (a member of another part of the co-op, not combat trained) might be reasonable. If not, watcher spirits should be enough of a threat.
I'd also add some sort of encounter so that the Street Sam can beat up stuff, unless the Street Sam is more of a stealth monkey who prides himself on sneaking in and out of places. Otherwise, he'll just sit there polishing his guns and have nothing to do. Anything from a rival farm hiring a gang to come in and burn some crops (alerting the drones if the Shadowrunners don't do something about it) to farmers with shotguns (who need to be taken down non-lethally for the run to succeed).
The smuggler/faceman can easily go into the farm for a "wine tasting" or something for advance intel, but you may need to provide him with a solid hook to do so (if he's a new player).
- Combat medic: Check on the condition of Mr. Kaminsky, see if he's okay, provide information on how to keep him KO'ed
- An Ork Dog Shaman: No astral threats... might be bored.
- A security hacker/rigger: upload the file, check on electronics, hack security systems
- A smuggler/faceman: Erm, breaking and entry, debugging (when things go wrong)? Doesn't seem there's much for this character to do other than negotiate for payment.
- A Street Sam: No good physical threats. Again, doesn't seem like there's much for this character to do.
It looks like this adventure can be run by just two people out of the entire team.
I would add a reasonable magical threat so the Dog Shaman feels useful. Watcher spirits, a patrolling earth spirit, something. If the Dog Shaman can handle him/herself in combat, a patrolling earth spirit or wagemage (a member of another part of the co-op, not combat trained) might be reasonable. If not, watcher spirits should be enough of a threat.
I'd also add some sort of encounter so that the Street Sam can beat up stuff, unless the Street Sam is more of a stealth monkey who prides himself on sneaking in and out of places. Otherwise, he'll just sit there polishing his guns and have nothing to do. Anything from a rival farm hiring a gang to come in and burn some crops (alerting the drones if the Shadowrunners don't do something about it) to farmers with shotguns (who need to be taken down non-lethally for the run to succeed).
The smuggler/faceman can easily go into the farm for a "wine tasting" or something for advance intel, but you may need to provide him with a solid hook to do so (if he's a new player).
Hmm. If they're robbing him, why would they leave his personal computer behind? Even if they "had to bug out because it went bad" the crooks would still grab as much as they could, especially the high dollar stuff like electronics. Make it his headware commlink which has the wireless turned off so the hacker has to physically plug into his head and hack it. Then they can steal his stuff for extra cash. Just a thought.
There are two computers in the home. One of them is in the 2nd bedroom and has a wireless link... obviously his computer he uses for "work". Cursory investigation will uncover a good amount of paydata in the form of the control protocols for the farm's climate and water control systems. If they're smart, they'll hack this computer and take stuff to make it look like this is what they were after all along.
The computer they need to insert the program on is in the basement... the walls and ceiling of which is covered by RF inhibiting materials and possible some astral impeding bacteria. This should give them the clue that they are dealing with something odd. When they actually get down there they'll find a huge mainframe that is isolated from the Matrix. Due to future plot items, it needs to be a computer and not the guy's headware.
Thanks for the input, though. I'll probably seek to emphasize the paydata either through the Johnson or one of the PC's contacts as being good cover and a potential source of extra cred.
The computer they need to insert the program on is in the basement... the walls and ceiling of which is covered by RF inhibiting materials and possible some astral impeding bacteria. This should give them the clue that they are dealing with something odd. When they actually get down there they'll find a huge mainframe that is isolated from the Matrix. Due to future plot items, it needs to be a computer and not the guy's headware.
Thanks for the input, though. I'll probably seek to emphasize the paydata either through the Johnson or one of the PC's contacts as being good cover and a potential source of extra cred.
QUOTE (Tachi @ Nov 27 2009, 02:53 PM)
Hmm. If they're robbing him, why would they leave his personal computer behind? Even if they "had to bug out because it went bad" the crooks would still grab as much as they could, especially the high dollar stuff like electronics. Make it his headware commlink which has the wireless turned off so the hacker has to physically plug into his head and hack it. Then they can steal his stuff for extra cash. Just a thought.
I see... It's a LARGE, "Two Trolls and a Truck moving company" type computer, makes sense now. I was picturing a desktop.
Is that the entire run? That seems awfully short to me. That's more like one scene from a run than a whole run. Maybe your group goes at a different pace, but my group would be done that scenario in about an hour at most and be wondering what else they need to do.
For a first run, not having too many moving parts is not a bad idea. It kind of lets the players get to know their characters and get a feel for the system before it's all cyberninjas and rogue AIs and toxics and bugs, oh my.
This is their first run after the group's hiatus of about a year, and they've made all new characters. I'm keeping is simple to that they can get the feel for their characters, and make minor tweaks to their sheets afterwards. We're all veteran RPGers, but most of the players are relatively new to Shadowrun. We're also playing the characters as relatively new to the runners' lifestyle (though not necessarily the shadows).
Also... we're all primarily LARPers, as well. What seems like an hour to you will probably take up a full session or two for us, simply because we get into our characters and generally like to act things out IC rather than planning OOC. There has been much laughter and memorable quotes from our last Shadowrunning sessions.
Finally, this is intended to be integrated into a larger plot arc that I'm putting together, and this is also a test by the Johnson to see if she can trust them with more complex stuff. Behind the scenes, Ms. Johnson has hired 3 different teams to work on separate aspects of an overall mission. Maybe the runners will get a glimpse of what's going on now... if they do, and I can pull it off right, they'll have no idea what this was all about until a later run starts piecing it together.
At the players' request, this one is KISS, the next one will be a more "traditional", multi-stage run.
Also... we're all primarily LARPers, as well. What seems like an hour to you will probably take up a full session or two for us, simply because we get into our characters and generally like to act things out IC rather than planning OOC. There has been much laughter and memorable quotes from our last Shadowrunning sessions.
Finally, this is intended to be integrated into a larger plot arc that I'm putting together, and this is also a test by the Johnson to see if she can trust them with more complex stuff. Behind the scenes, Ms. Johnson has hired 3 different teams to work on separate aspects of an overall mission. Maybe the runners will get a glimpse of what's going on now... if they do, and I can pull it off right, they'll have no idea what this was all about until a later run starts piecing it together.
At the players' request, this one is KISS, the next one will be a more "traditional", multi-stage run.
QUOTE (Malachi @ Nov 27 2009, 08:35 PM)
Is that the entire run? That seems awfully short to me. That's more like one scene from a run than a whole run. Maybe your group goes at a different pace, but my group would be done that scenario in about an hour at most and be wondering what else they need to do.
welcome to Dumpshock!
What does the program do after it reassembles and what are the ramifications if the team cracks the progam and copies it?
Along the same lines if your group is just coming off a long stent of D&D (or "The game that causes cancer" as we like to call it) you might want to consider how you intend to handle looting. In this adventure it's not a big issue (it will make the b&e look all the more legitimate) but it is a common issue GMs face when makeing the switch in settings.
What does the program do after it reassembles and what are the ramifications if the team cracks the progam and copies it?
Along the same lines if your group is just coming off a long stent of D&D (or "The game that causes cancer" as we like to call it) you might want to consider how you intend to handle looting. In this adventure it's not a big issue (it will make the b&e look all the more legitimate) but it is a common issue GMs face when makeing the switch in settings.
The quick answer is: nothing that the characters will find out about for a few runs.
It's part of a catalyst program designed to awaken the intelligence in the mainframe... either a proto-AI or an eGhost, I haven't decided yet.
They're more than welcome to copy it and ponder it, but since its only half the total code, and none of the PCs have a level of theoretical Matrix technology that this program is, they won't be able to figure it out... that's what the Ingersoll & Rand "fingerprint" is there for, to hopefully get them to stop looking if they break through the first level of encryption.
As for the loot... well, I was always the loot-monkey, so that's something I always take into consideration. I'm always going to give them opportunities to earn a little extra cred through fencing of property and paydata, but I'm going to also take copious notes of what they took and who it was sold too, so that if they go too far overboard without consequences.
For example, if they keep a copy of the program, and flash it around with their contacts without discretion, Ms. Johnson will hire a team to teach them a painful, but non-permanent lesson after making sure all copies are destroyed.
It's part of a catalyst program designed to awaken the intelligence in the mainframe... either a proto-AI or an eGhost, I haven't decided yet.
They're more than welcome to copy it and ponder it, but since its only half the total code, and none of the PCs have a level of theoretical Matrix technology that this program is, they won't be able to figure it out... that's what the Ingersoll & Rand "fingerprint" is there for, to hopefully get them to stop looking if they break through the first level of encryption.
As for the loot... well, I was always the loot-monkey, so that's something I always take into consideration. I'm always going to give them opportunities to earn a little extra cred through fencing of property and paydata, but I'm going to also take copious notes of what they took and who it was sold too, so that if they go too far overboard without consequences.
For example, if they keep a copy of the program, and flash it around with their contacts without discretion, Ms. Johnson will hire a team to teach them a painful, but non-permanent lesson after making sure all copies are destroyed.
QUOTE (Method @ Nov 27 2009, 10:34 PM)
welcome to Dumpshock!
What does the program do after it reassembles and what are the ramifications if the team cracks the progam and copies it?
Along the same lines if your group is just coming off a long stent of D&D (or "The game that causes cancer" as we like to call it) you might want to consider how you intend to handle looting. In this adventure it's not a big issue (it will make the b&e look all the more legitimate) but it is a common issue GMs face when makeing the switch in settings.
What does the program do after it reassembles and what are the ramifications if the team cracks the progam and copies it?
Along the same lines if your group is just coming off a long stent of D&D (or "The game that causes cancer" as we like to call it) you might want to consider how you intend to handle looting. In this adventure it's not a big issue (it will make the b&e look all the more legitimate) but it is a common issue GMs face when makeing the switch in settings.
QUOTE (LivingOxymoron @ Nov 28 2009, 02:59 AM)
It's part of a catalyst program designed to awaken the intelligence in the mainframe... either a proto-AI or an eGhost, I haven't decided yet.
E-ghosts are personalities of people who have died while jacked into the Matrix (mostly during the Crash 2.0, although earlier canon examples exist). Unless you intend to have the target jack into the mainframe, suffer a Crash-like event, and then get stuck in the mainframe as an E-ghost, It's far more likely to be a proto-AI of some sort.
The "E-ghost" can have been encoded earlier and be simply stored dormant - or even damaged - in the mainframe, it doesn't need to be "fresh".
Decent for a first run, it will allow time to familiarise with the system and the flavor you want to give the universe.
You may want to throw in some fight in the preparation phase. For exemple (if he has the skills for that) a hand-to-hand duel between the sammy and a ganger to impress the lot into delivering some infos on the target area, or negociate a safe retreat through the gang's territory.
Decent for a first run, it will allow time to familiarise with the system and the flavor you want to give the universe.
You may want to throw in some fight in the preparation phase. For exemple (if he has the skills for that) a hand-to-hand duel between the sammy and a ganger to impress the lot into delivering some infos on the target area, or negociate a safe retreat through the gang's territory.
7500 is a painfully low payout for 5 players. That sort of payment is better suited to a gang, (who would do something similar just for kicks) than for even new-to-the-scene shadowrunners. The job you're asking them to do requires a bit of finesse and stealth, so the pay should be a bit more to reflect the fact that they have talents more than your simple goon squad. Even if it is a trust building run, trust works both ways. When your players realize that they can steal and fence Kaminksy's car and/or the drones for more than the payout of the run, you're not only going to start having problems with wholesale looting later on, but you're going to get a "why should we risk our asses on this complicated run when we can just steal a Nightsky with minimal sweat?". Even at 7% of book value (a lowish rate for modern day chopshops) a fancy car pays more than this run.
A street sam will always be bored if a run goes off smoothly. It's why a well built Sam has a backup role (stealth, face, something). Coming from D+D, this may not be obvious to your players; I'd allow a ret-con after the mission unless you plan to build more "forced" combat into your runs.
A street sam will always be bored if a run goes off smoothly. It's why a well built Sam has a backup role (stealth, face, something). Coming from D+D, this may not be obvious to your players; I'd allow a ret-con after the mission unless you plan to build more "forced" combat into your runs.
Well, I assumed the two combat drones were meant to be the Mage and Sammy's concern, but only if the rigger can't spoof the guy's biomonitor signal. And I assume the guy shouldn't be allowed to spoof the guy's biomonitor signal since the DocWagon HRT guys are a part of the master plan.
My thoughts:
Brutality is easy. Force Majeure is comforting. Lethal force is industry standard in home invasions. If their part in this is supposed to look like a robbery that was interrupted, then their mark should look like a corpse. Give your players some background for why this isn't the case. Maybe the team is meant to be emulating a known "gentleman-thief" burglar. Stealing some specific valuables (honestly the payout for this run is insultingly low for professional work done on short notice and with "need to know" only information,) and planting the burglar's calling card. The Johnson should explain to them that if the guy's vitals go flatline, then his mainframe goes meltdown. That should explain to them why the soft touch is needed without involving them in the DocWagon part of the scheme.
Also, because this guy is "retired" corp sci, that should mean that his brain is hooked up to some sort of neural inhibitor to keep company secrets out of competitor's hands. This specific hardware brain blocker could explain why the team rigger can't just pop in and spoof the guy's biomonitor signal, thereby avoiding the security drones, the DW:HRT, and their time window. Maybe the guy's signal has a rotating hardware encryption so that it can be intercepted and spoofed, but it will change without warning at a designated time, setting off the events as you've planned them. You've got to corral your players in a little. Using the fact that this guy's brain is former corp property should do a bit to explain their limited options.
Finally, a 5 man team to work a rustic home-style B&E is ridiculous. Cops seeing so many boot prints are going to know that this isn't a burglary. If Old Man Vino has the opportunity to review his security footage or spots any of the team before he gets blacked out, he's going to suss out the subterfuge and ruin the whole plan. So, how about this - The face plays the part of the thief, having to go in alone with the doc and hacker-in-the-car on technical and emergency info backup. Meanwhile, if the sammy isn't too chromed, he and the mage can go to the local watering hole and start a fight to draw off the local security attention. Maybe the doc physically goes with them while advising the situation back at the house over image link. Point being to have the local security guys run them out of the area. You could easily have the Johnson suggest these things. They're not being given enough time to really plan this job themselves, so having a semblance of a plan handed to them, as well as restrictions such as, "absolutely no killing, only one person enters the house, " should give them a framework for the pilot run. The direct action guys get to get bloodied up and patched up, and the sneakers get to break into a secured place and play cat and mouse with a couple of security drones. Everybody has fun and gets paid doing it. That's really what SR is about.
My thoughts:
Brutality is easy. Force Majeure is comforting. Lethal force is industry standard in home invasions. If their part in this is supposed to look like a robbery that was interrupted, then their mark should look like a corpse. Give your players some background for why this isn't the case. Maybe the team is meant to be emulating a known "gentleman-thief" burglar. Stealing some specific valuables (honestly the payout for this run is insultingly low for professional work done on short notice and with "need to know" only information,) and planting the burglar's calling card. The Johnson should explain to them that if the guy's vitals go flatline, then his mainframe goes meltdown. That should explain to them why the soft touch is needed without involving them in the DocWagon part of the scheme.
Also, because this guy is "retired" corp sci, that should mean that his brain is hooked up to some sort of neural inhibitor to keep company secrets out of competitor's hands. This specific hardware brain blocker could explain why the team rigger can't just pop in and spoof the guy's biomonitor signal, thereby avoiding the security drones, the DW:HRT, and their time window. Maybe the guy's signal has a rotating hardware encryption so that it can be intercepted and spoofed, but it will change without warning at a designated time, setting off the events as you've planned them. You've got to corral your players in a little. Using the fact that this guy's brain is former corp property should do a bit to explain their limited options.
Finally, a 5 man team to work a rustic home-style B&E is ridiculous. Cops seeing so many boot prints are going to know that this isn't a burglary. If Old Man Vino has the opportunity to review his security footage or spots any of the team before he gets blacked out, he's going to suss out the subterfuge and ruin the whole plan. So, how about this - The face plays the part of the thief, having to go in alone with the doc and hacker-in-the-car on technical and emergency info backup. Meanwhile, if the sammy isn't too chromed, he and the mage can go to the local watering hole and start a fight to draw off the local security attention. Maybe the doc physically goes with them while advising the situation back at the house over image link. Point being to have the local security guys run them out of the area. You could easily have the Johnson suggest these things. They're not being given enough time to really plan this job themselves, so having a semblance of a plan handed to them, as well as restrictions such as, "absolutely no killing, only one person enters the house, " should give them a framework for the pilot run. The direct action guys get to get bloodied up and patched up, and the sneakers get to break into a secured place and play cat and mouse with a couple of security drones. Everybody has fun and gets paid doing it. That's really what SR is about.
Heh. Again, this is the group's first SR game (at least in a while), and it is implied that some of the folks are new to Shadowrun. I agree with Mercer's assessment... try not to make it too complicated, so that all the potential issues can get worked out in the time allotted. The more planning is done and the more the game bogs down, the less fun it will be. I feel that as long as everyone has at least one definite thing that they can do to contribute, you are doing your job as a GM. Let the players come up with their own complexities. Keep your own plans simple.
Lots of great input here, thanks. I hadn't thought about a neural inhibitor, nor the explanation of a mainframe wipe if the guy flatlines.
The DW:HRT team is actually another Runner team being given an equally narrow time window and aren't relying on a bio monitor signal for them to move in... they just know that they need to show up at a particular time. Their job is to insert the second part of the program, pick up Kaminsky, "clean" the scene, then take him to the closest hospital, and drop him there. En route, their mage tinkers with his memories to cover everyone's tracks.
The DW:HRT team is actually another Runner team being given an equally narrow time window and aren't relying on a bio monitor signal for them to move in... they just know that they need to show up at a particular time. Their job is to insert the second part of the program, pick up Kaminsky, "clean" the scene, then take him to the closest hospital, and drop him there. En route, their mage tinkers with his memories to cover everyone's tracks.
QUOTE (Saint Sithney @ Nov 28 2009, 05:06 PM)
Well, I assumed the two combat drones were meant to be the Mage and Sammy's concern, but only if the rigger can't spoof the guy's biomonitor signal. And I assume the guy shouldn't be allowed to spoof the guy's biomonitor signal since the DocWagon HRT guys are a part of the master plan.
My thoughts:
Brutality is easy. Force Majeure is comforting. Lethal force is industry standard in home invasions. If their part in this is supposed to look like a robbery that was interrupted, then their mark should look like a corpse. Give your players some background for why this isn't the case. Maybe the team is meant to be emulating a known "gentleman-thief" burglar. Stealing some specific valuables (honestly the payout for this run is insultingly low for professional work done on short notice and with "need to know" only information,) and planting the burglar's calling card. The Johnson should explain to them that if the guy's vitals go flatline, then his mainframe goes meltdown. That should explain to them why the soft touch is needed without involving them in the DocWagon part of the scheme.
Also, because this guy is "retired" corp sci, that should mean that his brain is hooked up to some sort of neural inhibitor to keep company secrets out of competitor's hands. This specific hardware brain blocker could explain why the team rigger can't just pop in and spoof the guy's biomonitor signal, thereby avoiding the security drones, the DW:HRT, and their time window. Maybe the guy's signal has a rotating hardware encryption so that it can be intercepted and spoofed, but it will change without warning at a designated time, setting off the events as you've planned them. You've got to corral your players in a little. Using the fact that this guy's brain is former corp property should do a bit to explain their limited options.
Finally, a 5 man team to work a rustic home-style B&E is ridiculous. Cops seeing so many boot prints are going to know that this isn't a burglary. If Old Man Vino has the opportunity to review his security footage or spots any of the team before he gets blacked out, he's going to suss out the subterfuge and ruin the whole plan. So, how about this - The face plays the part of the thief, having to go in alone with the doc and hacker-in-the-car on technical and emergency info backup. Meanwhile, if the sammy isn't too chromed, he and the mage can go to the local watering hole and start a fight to draw off the local security attention. Maybe the doc physically goes with them while advising the situation back at the house over image link. Point being to have the local security guys run them out of the area. You could easily have the Johnson suggest these things. They're not being given enough time to really plan this job themselves, so having a semblance of a plan handed to them, as well as restrictions such as, "absolutely no killing, only one person enters the house, " should give them a framework for the pilot run. The direct action guys get to get bloodied up and patched up, and the sneakers get to break into a secured place and play cat and mouse with a couple of security drones. Everybody has fun and gets paid doing it. That's really what SR is about.
My thoughts:
Brutality is easy. Force Majeure is comforting. Lethal force is industry standard in home invasions. If their part in this is supposed to look like a robbery that was interrupted, then their mark should look like a corpse. Give your players some background for why this isn't the case. Maybe the team is meant to be emulating a known "gentleman-thief" burglar. Stealing some specific valuables (honestly the payout for this run is insultingly low for professional work done on short notice and with "need to know" only information,) and planting the burglar's calling card. The Johnson should explain to them that if the guy's vitals go flatline, then his mainframe goes meltdown. That should explain to them why the soft touch is needed without involving them in the DocWagon part of the scheme.
Also, because this guy is "retired" corp sci, that should mean that his brain is hooked up to some sort of neural inhibitor to keep company secrets out of competitor's hands. This specific hardware brain blocker could explain why the team rigger can't just pop in and spoof the guy's biomonitor signal, thereby avoiding the security drones, the DW:HRT, and their time window. Maybe the guy's signal has a rotating hardware encryption so that it can be intercepted and spoofed, but it will change without warning at a designated time, setting off the events as you've planned them. You've got to corral your players in a little. Using the fact that this guy's brain is former corp property should do a bit to explain their limited options.
Finally, a 5 man team to work a rustic home-style B&E is ridiculous. Cops seeing so many boot prints are going to know that this isn't a burglary. If Old Man Vino has the opportunity to review his security footage or spots any of the team before he gets blacked out, he's going to suss out the subterfuge and ruin the whole plan. So, how about this - The face plays the part of the thief, having to go in alone with the doc and hacker-in-the-car on technical and emergency info backup. Meanwhile, if the sammy isn't too chromed, he and the mage can go to the local watering hole and start a fight to draw off the local security attention. Maybe the doc physically goes with them while advising the situation back at the house over image link. Point being to have the local security guys run them out of the area. You could easily have the Johnson suggest these things. They're not being given enough time to really plan this job themselves, so having a semblance of a plan handed to them, as well as restrictions such as, "absolutely no killing, only one person enters the house, " should give them a framework for the pilot run. The direct action guys get to get bloodied up and patched up, and the sneakers get to break into a secured place and play cat and mouse with a couple of security drones. Everybody has fun and gets paid doing it. That's really what SR is about.
So what's a good rubric to use for payout? I've looked through the book, but can't really find any good suggestions. I figured 1500 per runner was good for a single night's work, but what do other people use?
QUOTE (Octopiii @ Nov 28 2009, 02:23 PM)
7500 is a painfully low payout for 5 players. That sort of payment is better suited to a gang, (who would do something similar just for kicks) than for even new-to-the-scene shadowrunners. The job you're asking them to do requires a bit of finesse and stealth, so the pay should be a bit more to reflect the fact that they have talents more than your simple goon squad. Even if it is a trust building run, trust works both ways. When your players realize that they can steal and fence Kaminksy's car and/or the drones for more than the payout of the run, you're not only going to start having problems with wholesale looting later on, but you're going to get a "why should we risk our asses on this complicated run when we can just steal a Nightsky with minimal sweat?". Even at 7% of book value (a lowish rate for modern day chopshops) a fancy car pays more than this run.
A street sam will always be bored if a run goes off smoothly. It's why a well built Sam has a backup role (stealth, face, something). Coming from D+D, this may not be obvious to your players; I'd allow a ret-con after the mission unless you plan to build more "forced" combat into your runs.
A street sam will always be bored if a run goes off smoothly. It's why a well built Sam has a backup role (stealth, face, something). Coming from D+D, this may not be obvious to your players; I'd allow a ret-con after the mission unless you plan to build more "forced" combat into your runs.
To me, 1500 nuyen per runner for starting shadowrunners sounds appropriate, especially if there's the provision that they can loot and fence any personal equipment they find. If the "no looting" provision is in effect, the pay probably should be increased slightly. But there are several Shadowrun Missions adventures that pay around that much for a starting runner.
For a more generalized procedure, Shadowrun Missions uses a "Table Rating" format, where newbies are TR 1 and prime runners are TR 6, with pay scaled as a multiple of TR. For example "The runners will be paid 2000 nuyen times TR each". You can find Shadowrun Mission downloads here:
http://www.shadowrun4.com/missions/downloads/
EDIT: For an example, the first Shadowrun Mission "Parliament of Thieves" pays the following:
"Compensation will be provided half now and half by the recipient. The job pays (2,500¥ + 500¥ * TR) per ‘runner. He asks for all of the ‘runners to agree before continuing. Each net hit on a negotiation test will increase the payment by (100¥ *TR)."
For a more generalized procedure, Shadowrun Missions uses a "Table Rating" format, where newbies are TR 1 and prime runners are TR 6, with pay scaled as a multiple of TR. For example "The runners will be paid 2000 nuyen times TR each". You can find Shadowrun Mission downloads here:
http://www.shadowrun4.com/missions/downloads/
EDIT: For an example, the first Shadowrun Mission "Parliament of Thieves" pays the following:
"Compensation will be provided half now and half by the recipient. The job pays (2,500¥ + 500¥ * TR) per ‘runner. He asks for all of the ‘runners to agree before continuing. Each net hit on a negotiation test will increase the payment by (100¥ *TR)."
There is considerable debate on the boards here about what is "typical payment" for a run. The topic pops up about every other week (there was a post yesterday in fact). If you run a search for "payment" or "typical" you can read through the various ideas on the subject. But as mentioned above if you are asking the characters to risk their lives you better make sure you pay them more than they can make stealing cars, or hacking commlinks, or selling organs, or whatever.
QUOTE (LivingOxymoron @ Nov 28 2009, 06:46 PM)
So what's a good rubric to use for payout? I've looked through the book, but can't really find any good suggestions. I figured 1500 per runner was good for a single night's work, but what do other people use?
If you play up the future employment side of things, you can keep the initial pay lower, but you've got to remember, the Runners here aren't just being paid to risk their necks, they're also being paid to not ask questions. All the mystery around their employer and their true purpose means that the price has to go up. The two day time limit and ten minute window means that the price has to go up. These players are being asked to trust a stranger and walk blindly into a situation to accomplish something, which, for all they know, could result in a hostile takeover of millions of ¥ of valuable land or a lifetime's worth of corporate secrets.
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