So I have some new players in my Shadowrun group for the first time in ... maybe five years. Not only are they new to my group, they're new to Shadowrun in general. In order to ease some of the "culture shock" of the game world, I've decided to hand out a fast one-page sheet before every game with some pretty art on it (and some minor shadowtalk where appropriate), done up like an in-world blurb on some facet or other of the game world. I'm doing most of them up as if they're "fast news for teens on the go", under the publication name "FastFAX". For things that are more runner-related, it's some runner's spoof on the brand.

The idea is that each sheet should cover a facet of the game world not easily absorbed from the base material. For instance, I don't need to duplicate "magic and you" type data, because that's right up front in Street Magic. Nor do I need to worry about explaining Commlinks and the wired world, because that's base book material. Instead, this info should be stuff that's harder to get because it's implied, or needs to be culled from several books.

So I need your help, cuz I've been playing Shadowrun forever: I worry I may not think of all the stuff newer players don't know. Or I might try and over-simplify things. Here's what I have so far:

• Seattle Transportation
• Knight Errant Security
• Prime Runners of Seattle
• Tir Tairngire in 2072
• Yakuza of Seattle
• Triads of Seattle
• Denver in 2072
• The Tempo Crisis
• War in Bogota
• The Universal Brotherhood
• Crash 2.0 – The aftermath
• The New Revolution
• The Arcology Commerce & Housing Enclave
• Neo-Tokyo in 2072
• Humanis Policlub & Alamos 20,000

So my question to you, oh dumpshockers: What else would YOU want to see?

Do they want this? The reason I ask is it will influence my answer. If you're selling either an unwilling, or uninterested audience then you sell differently than you would to the willing or indifferent.

I'd consolidate Organized Crime into one paragraph...wait is just having them read "And so it came to pass" not an option?

Yeah, I asked them if this kind of thing would help them be more sure of the world, and they were quite enthused about the idea.

And so it came to pass is a good start in Shadowrun, but it's missing a lot of the meaty details: sure, you might know Knight Errant protects Seattle now, instead of Lone Star. But who IS Knight Errant? Who is Lone Star? How do their tactics and methods differ? Etc, etc.

I would LOVE to see these when you make them. It would be great to have that information in a single word document or something like that just to cover the basics. I'm fairly new to Shadowrun as well and as a result, a good deal of that stuff I don't know about, or want more info about. I look forward to seeing where this goes!

I'm all too happy to do this, as I might have a group of new players in the future and need to have some of this stuff on-tap myself.

Trying to bed down just now, since I have work innnn... 7 hours (minus a bit) but, afer my shift's over, I'll see what I can do.

(edit)

Err, not ALL of it mind, but a page or two.

Los Angeles from the rise of Horizon to after the Twins?

Is all of this relevant to your Shadowrun campaign? I'd give them RELEVANT information that will help them roleplay in their environment. It doesn't really benefit them to learn about Denver if they aren't there.

• Seattle Transportation - This is a great idea, because my players still have questions about this. When do they take a train? When do they take a cab? What is transportation like in Downtown Seattle as opposed to the Barrens? What is the Grid?

• Knight Errant Security - Include Lone Star and hit both of the big boys.

• Prime Runners of Seattle - Is this necessary? Unless you're going to be running into them. It should be enough that they know there are OTHER Shadowrunners out there of varying skill and reputation.

• Tir Tairngire in 2072 - Relevancy to the campaign? Instead I would have a handout on Metahumans in general, perhaps one sheet devoted to EACH major type of Meta Humanity. When you cover the elves, it would be worth mentioning the two Elven nations.

• Yakuza of Seattle - I'd combine this with the Triads and just mention some things about Organized Crime in Seattle.
• Triads of Seattle

• Denver in 2072 - Relevant?

• The Tempo Crisis - Relevant?

• War in Bogota - Relevant?

• The Universal Brotherhood

• Crash 2.0 – The aftermath - Worth mentioning the crash and the transition from Cyberdecks and Datajacks to wireless comm-links. Make them appreciate it whenever they run into someone with "older" cyberware.

• The New Revolution
• The Arcology Commerce & Housing Enclave
• Neo-Tokyo in 2072
• Humanis Policlub & Alamos 20,000

* * *

Two big things I think you're missing is something about Corporations and other nations such as CAS, California, Aztlan, etc.

You probably don't need a writeup on ALL the corporations, but if they're dealing with 1 or 2 of the AAA's in your campaign, a write up on them might be good. You should at least mention the Big 10, but then again the write up that's in the SR4A book might be enough for this.

I'd also include something on the Awakened, and the HMH Virus.

"Ghoul Cab: Don't bother cooking, just baste yourself in BBQ sauce."

Does this imply that you intend to share?

How about "Street drugs for fun and profit" or "The Black Market and you" (a distillation of the chapter from Arsenal that introduces new players to the concepts of availability, fencing loot, etc)?

How many pages is this intended to be?

Alright... got home at 5, had some supper, took a nap a 6, got up at 8, and hammered this out while checking email and watching WWE Monday Night Raw (What can I say? Monday Night Football has a terrible game this week) ... hardly official, and a first draft, but, good enough to print out for a local group.

Driving in the 6th World
(By Pistons)

There was a time when the American Car Culture was at the top of the world. It was a man, a car, an dthre freedom of the road. Hell of a dream, but these days, the dream is dead. The few echoes of it left aren't long for this world, either. So, what killed it? Like so many things in life, a thousand little cuts did what no one blow could. It started back in the Resource Rush, when everyone went grabbing for public land and public oil, then took a hard right when fusion energy was perfected. Why waste rare oil on gas when electric could do the job for a fraction of the cost? When oil crossed 400Y a barrrel, the day of the gas-guzzler was well and truly ended. Add on the country fractures, the fear of VITAS, the rise of teleconferencing and the Matrix being as good as being there … well, everyone parked. These days, most real transport is public, while 'urban scooting' gets you from home to work and back.

CARS
The most common form of day-to-day transport for non-pedestrians, I hate to even call these tamed, neutered things cars … they're eunuchs. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. There're dozens, if not hundreds, of brand names and shapes out there, even a few that still use fuel, but I'll break it down.

Lux – The true elite fly... their time is too valuable to waste it in traffic... but the comfortable wealthy like to use their wealth to stay comfy. Well-armored, luxuriously fitted, sure to have their own driver, with defenses against the poor rabble that might try to touch the ride, luxury cars are also gas-powered, to allow for a big engine roar and a getaway if needed. Expenesive? Sure, but worth it.

Sedans – Suburban specials, a rare few are gas-electric hybrids, but most are pure juice. The choice of 'real' drivers, they combine style with speed, power with durability, but, yeah, they still cost a ton. Most owners never use 10% of what these things can do, they just want the status.

Compacts – The average car these days, making up well over half os all sales by unit, compacts are all electric, with a low top speed but good handling. More importantly, they're small, allowing them use in an urban setting. These are what everyone 'drives', but thanks to autopilots and GridGuide ™, I hesitate to use the word. Telling a car where you want it to go, then sitting back and reading the news while it steers isn't driving! Gorram useless data-pushin'... … … Ahem.

Subcompacts are second by unit sales, just ahdead of sedans. Take a compact and make it even smaller and there ya go. Little urban-only runabouts with a range of fifty klicks or less, some running with thre wheels instead of four like God intended, these weak, whining things are the purse dogs of cars.

TRUCKS
Big Rigs – They still run on real fuel but their days are numbered as Ares has finally come up with some decent low-gear horsepower on an electric engine. Five more years, they'll be put down for good. Damn shame. When long hauls ended, the only thing they had left were short runs and, in today's Sprawl, they just don't make good sense.

Cargo Vans – The new kings of the road, cargo vans are all-electric and have been for decades. Large enough to carry a decentload but small enough to handle urban transport, the utility of the cargo van won out over the bigger and stronger semi and over the smaller personal pick-up. Cargo vans can be easily modified for electrician work, plumbing, hauling building materials, spy on wireless networks … you name it, you can stick it in a cargo van. They're the Shadowrunning team's best bud.

Work Trucks – This includes a wide array of rugged vehicles designed for off-road work. Yeah, there used to be pick-up trucks used by would-be workmen, but that trend died a generation ago. These days, vans take over that role unless you need to use four wheel drive. Most cityfolk are lucky to catch a glimpse, but they're all over native territory. As you can imagine, these are mostly bio-disel.

BIKES
Racing Bikes – High performance gas-guzzlers that take a lot of upkeep, but worth it. The little rockets are fast like nothing else and mobile, but fragile as Hell.

Combat Bikes – Loud, powerful machines that are as rugged as rugged gets, running on gas and usually held together with duct tape and a prayer. Damned hard to kill and every rider picks up enough mechanical skill to keep them running. The wind in your hair, the heavy vibe between your thighs … Gorram, I loves me some combat bikes.

Scooters – Oh sure, you talk to an owner of an electric bike and he'll tell you that it's a Bike, not a Scooter, but the only one they're fooling is themselves. Electric powered, tied in to GridGuide ™ and with a fraggin' autopilot, these gyro-enabled things are ponies at best. Any bike that you can hold on to and tell it to take you to the show while you just hang on for the ride? Gorram Scooter.

GRIDGUIDE ™
For the fifty percent of Seattle that's never owned a ride (you miserable slots), here's the breakdown. GridGuide ™ is a system of computers that works with your vehicle's autopilot to drive it all safe and secure, like the little drone that it is. It makes sure that all the cars move like ducks in a row, accelerating in unison when lights turn green, slowing when yellow, stopping when red, driving you to your pre-selected destination. Hell, modern cars only have steering wheels due to old laws that require a driver to be able to take over just in case, but most so-called drivers wouldn't know what to do if their system went down. They enjoy the hands-free life too much and the low insurance payments that come from barely touching a wheel. As long as you let the car do all the work, your premiums stay down, because GridGuide ™ never frags up. Of course, since it needs to know where everything is to run right, your car has to blast a VPN everywhere. This lets the system know where every car is at every second or every minute of every hour. This broadcast is hardwired and runs separately than the rest of the car by megacorporate law, preventing it from being hacked.

As GridGuide ™ became the norm, it was realized that you could easily track a stolen car by simply giving your name to the police. They'd run a quick search, the car would locate itself, and you could roll in and grab the perp. This, combined with advanced programming to keep hackers out, effectively killed car theft. Chop shops saw their profit margin vanish when nanofaxes went online, able to produce machine parts for next to nothing, on demand, giving every mechanic a limitless supply of spare parts in a closet-sized space. These days, some get grabbed for a short joyride until the car's autopilot cries out for help and uses the internal PanicButton ™ to bring the heat down, but few ever bother. You can steal some old gas-burners from the Barrens... Cars made before '62 don't have any wireless in them, but, they're junkers at best and have no resale value. Most are owned by poor slots who can barely pay rent in a bad part of town where GridGuide ™ don't go or are junkers slavaged by gangers for driving around and causing mayhem. God bless 'em.

Most people in the 'plex use public transport, obviously, or just walk everywhere. The era of the car is over, and the few of us left that truly know what it means to Drive are dying off. Damn shame.

Apparently the Cisco Web Reputation Filter system we use at work has Dumpshock blocked as "malware or other DNS problem", but only for one location - my friend that works in our QA building can still access it fine... Which is why I haven't responded sooner.

So, in order:

Murrdox:
1) Yes, all entries will be relevant to the game, even if they may not seem so. Denver may not be where the game is set, but Ghostwalker + Denver at large is a pretty big thing to remind players about. Same is true of Prime Runners in Seattle: people need to know who they share a city with, professionally.
2) Corporate entries at large are less than necessary unless the players need to know about a sub-endeavour. They know the basics for each megacorp, which is pretty much all these sheets are supposed to be - the basics.

Method:
Yeah, I intend to share. I'm a big believer in throwing stuff out there for anyone to have. I remember I promised you some NPC dossiers and such too: I have those, it's just that the game died after 6 sessions, because the new players were feeling very lost. This is the reboot, set in the same timeline, with different characters but the same players. Street drugs & black market info is definitely a good addition, though. Those go on the list.

Paul:
One page at about 11 point or 12 point, depending on the typeface. Or more accurately, half a page, when you account for images, header, et cetera. It's short, and to the point. If people want in depth info, I'll just loan them a book.

Wakshaani:
Holy crap, thats exactly the thing I was looking for. That's exactly it! Do you mind if I use that?

> The bright side to compact cars is that they're everywhere. Another C-N Jackrabbit (or a knock-off) isn't going to raise any notice at all. On the downside, the back seats are damned near worthless, and the trunk space barely holds a Dwarf's body. The engine compartment is also pretty tight, but there's some multi-fuel crate engines on the market that you can blueprint nicely to get some real performance out of them. Watching the cops look in horror as you outrace their police-modified Ford AmeriCar's V-8 Hybrid is priceless. On the downside, too many posers with suped-up compacts that are in street racing. I'll take a Sedan modified to be like an old-style muscle car over them any day.
> Money

> Sub-compacts are not designed for Trolls of any size. Especially my size. I'm bigger than most of those things. Despite the rain, I go with a combat bike. Fits my image as well, as I got a nice German Repro-Coal Scuttle Helmet.
> Tiny Trog

Happily! That one's a freebie. I need the practice, and I'm working on some GridGuide thoughts, so it helps to drop it out. (Please note! I don't know anything about real cars. You might have to sigh and correct lots of that stuff.) Also, change "Pistons", who I always think of as a rigger due to the name, to someone else. This is the kind of background stuff that I live for. I'll probably churn another one off during the Daily Show/Colbert Report.

Also, many thanks to CanRay for tossing in some RIght Proppa Shadowtalk.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Like most of us, you don't have a car. Too expensive to keep up, too frustrating to be caught in gridlock, and your apartment complex doesn't have parking, so you have to use a garage to rent out a spot... why bother when you can take the bus? While some municipalities have outsourced their buses to private corporations, largely Mitsuhama Computer Technologies, most retain their lines in the actual city budget; it seems that the profit margins are too low for most corporations to bother with. The bus is dirt cheap, efficient, and allows you to drag on fairly sizable cargo, like your groceries, with minimal fuss. Of course, you need a valid SIN, and you're at the mercy of the preset driving schedule, but as long as you learn what lines to get on at what hour, the bus lines will get you where you need to be.

The trains are another option, with major cities having lines over, or under, the streets, while cross-country travel is by high-speed rail for those who can't afford to fly. In the city, trains run night and day, making them available when buses aren't, but they aren't as safe. After sunset, gangers routinely play around in them, so, watch yourself. Train tickets, like bus passes, can be purchased for a day or, for a discount, a month.

When you have to go somewhere the public options don't, or won't, you need to hail a cab. There're dozens of cab companies and car rental units in the city... Yellow Cab, Emerald City, and, of course, GridCab, unique for there being no driver, just a wireless pay meter for your 'link and an autopilot to run on GridGuide ™ … needless to say, GridCab doesn't go into the Barrens. For those daring enough, Jamaican Cab, RiotRides, and GhoulCab will take you absolutely anywhere, but brace yourself for the price. GhoulCab in particular will charge you an arm and a leg.

You'll find that the city's better areas are lined with walking and bike paths, while even the crummiest slums sport sidewalks... just make sure to stay out of alleyways. Anything less than twenty blocks is considered walking range for most folks, but I know a few deckers who won't leave their chair. Corporate areas, including shopping malls, have enclosed walking areas that allow credtsicks to walk around while staying dry, but Seattle's less wealthy areas leave you exposed to the ever-so-famous weather that we love so much.

Oh, and an additional note... Knight Errant still has that 'new contract smell' and is quick to drop down on traffic violations, including the infamous “Walking while Tusked”. Make sure that your ride, and style, matches the area you're in. Taking a Westwind to the barrens will bring out gangs, while a smoke-sputtering old beater in an upscale area will draw rentacops in equal numbers. Make certain that your Commlink is broadcasting in proper public mode and that you have a liscense for any restricted stuff you carry, including and especially a self-defense sidearm. KE doesn't blink at someone with a Colt America, but expect a closer sniff if you carry around a Predator. Sure, they're both legal, but they tend to distrust a heavy gun. If you're a tusker, go unarmed and save yourself the headaches. Trust me on this one.

I've thrown up a thread in Community Projects where I'm gonna dump my handouts. So far all I have are the dossier files for the first round of NPCs, and two of them aren't the most up-to-date ones anyway.

(Note, the dossiers are statless. If you're like me, having a statted up NPC is less useful than knowing who they are.)

As usual, the Daily Show/COlbert Report gives me time to sit and type.

KNIGHT ERRANT
by Hard Exit

A few of us are working on a bigger update, but, I keep getting poked about Knight Errant, ever since they took over from Lone Star, so, here's a shorter write-up while we go through the detailed files. First and foremost, Damien Knight's baby is top of the line in terms of corporate security and has a great many soldiers on the payroll; Ares military assets and security assets are interchangeable and those who start on a military career path can switch to corporate contracts with ease. In terms of actual law enforcement, however, they're still lacking. This isn't to say that they're bad at it, so much as to say that it isn't where the budget goes. KE is all about the show of force, using shock and awe to cow the perp into submission, or to bristle with so much raw firepower than no one would ever think of breaking in. The grunt work of gathering evidence, interrogating suspects, going to court … it's such a hassle. They do it reluctantly, but they've been doing it for nearly forty years now, so have some talent.

First off, you'll find that KE operates in units, or Patrols, rather than partnerships. Footsloggers group up in 10 man units, with a sergeant, a corporal, and eight privates. They can split into two five-man units, but they simply don't go smaller than that. Mechanized units, which are the norm for law enforcement, are four-man units instead, each given one vehicle. This allows a greater leverage of force in an area, but hampers their ability to spread out over several crime scenes. KE's philosophy is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and that, by showing raw power, they snuff crimes before they can happen. KE never has to worry about showing up to a crime scene and being outgunned, so, you'd better be gone before they get there.

Detective assets, in contrast, are understaffed, overworked, and underpaid. It's weird to say that Lone Star is a more skilled police force, but it's true. KE brings better firepower and technology to the streets, but they're lacking in crimefighting. If it can be solved with a bullet, however, they're aces, and nobody ends riots like KE can. Detective assets aren't given the respect of combat assets, nor the pay, but have a professionalism that makes it harder to bribe them than you might think. They take it personally, but, they can be more easily talked out of arrests if you don't offer cash. Lone Star's culture of corruption meant that you had good odds that any officer could be flashed twenty Nuyen and would walk off … with KE, that don't fly, but if you can convince them that you're doing something not worth the time to disrupt, or that might be helpful, they'll look the other way.

Now, right about now, you're grinning from ear to ear, thinking that these guys are gonna be easy pickings. Well, wipe that grin off your face. While it's true that KE detective services are thin, they've pulled out all the stops for Seattle, having rated the contract a huge 'get' and wanting to bump up against Brackhaven, in case he gets presidential again. KE's sent in their A-listers, including Todd Walker, the vice-president of Urban Servicing. Walker's the real deal, and he's bringing the best of his personal team with him. Expect some major crimefighting for a year or so, until the message gets sent, before they pull the plug, move him back to Detroit, and cut the overall operations budget by half. They're operating at a loss for now, but that won't hold for the long term.

KE's computer crime division is passable, with technology better than training, using military cast-offs. You'll never get anything too flashy from them, but in terms of raw computing power, they're hard to beat; the shielding for you ECCM types is military-hardened, so forget it. Magical assets are, as always, lacking at KE, and they were desperate to scoop up Lone Star's magical assets when the contract switch happened; most kept their seniority and moved to other Star locations, but a handful did come over. Linda Chou in particular, a former Wuxing geomancer, jumped ship to KE early on and brought some of her co-workers. She's been promoted to captain for that.

The typical KE trooper is wearing medium security armor, a helmet full of sensors, a four-star commlink with ample communication and ECCM gear, an Ares assault rifle, a Predator sidearm, a couple of grenades, but not much in the way of a taser or sprays. Once again, in contrast with Lone Star's bullyboys and mechanics, KE doesn't have a power trip where they rough people up for shits and giggles; they draw firearms, order you down on the ground, and pistolwhip you if you don't comply. They don't have any sort of 'less lethal' firing school, so when they open up, it's to terminate. Once again, KE wants to stop crime by simply showing up and standing there in combat gear. If it stops, they want to end it. They tend to rely on Ares' excellent PR system to keep them out of the negative news reports, but that's much easier in Detroit, where they own everything, than in Seattle, which has a long history of Neo-Anarchy.

KE really shines in riot supression. In addition to the usual array of plexi-shields and rubber bullets, KE has a wide array of tanks... pardon me, armored instigation-supression vehicles … that mount 'Pain Rays' to sweep over a crowd, microwave dishes that boil the water in the top layer of skin to cause agonizing pain but no long-term injury. They also have several sonic transmitters that fire off enough decibels to drown out a chanting crowd, and have been testing lasers that can 'temporarily' blind protesters, even through clouds of tear gas. Blinding lasers might be against international rules of war, but law enforcement never got that memo. Portable fences break up groups into smaller, easily-contained groups, which are then herded via pain or sound, rounded up, then shipped off for processing. KE forces also excel at breaking down camps and, obviously, providing security at large venues and events, such as political rallies.

When dealing with Knight Errant, what you mainly need to know is this: In a direct confrontation, they will destroy you. As such, you need to be gone before they arrive, and if you can sic them on another group, so much the better. KE forces don't take to challenges well, pushing back fast when compliance isn't immediately given. Get them tied up with the corporate security of another triple-A, they'll be far too busy getting their spine up to chase you down, and their detective assets are too thin to track you after the fact. They also look to the bottom line, and if you're too expensive to catch, they won't bother. Never try to bring down an authority when KE has the streets, however, as they can absolutely bring the hammer down like no one else.

I'll let the others chime in, now, and give a few of their personal insights.

Damn, man. You keep doing this, *I* won't have to write any.

Well, I need the practice, and really I'll need things like this if I start up a campaign in the Spring, so, hey. If nothing else, if I can get in the swing of writing for an hour a night, it'll get to be a habit, which'll really help. It helps get some of my geekery out of the way and get some loose ideas out and about. Keep in mind that this is just my personal take on things, not anything official. KE might wind up being some super-smooth bunch of high-tech CSI-like cops by the time the official word comes down... until then, I like them as stormtroopers that do great when firepower's needed but come up short when forensics comes up.

The Yakuza will probably get rolled up into a general "Criminal syndicates" thing, leaving room for you to use names for bigwigs as you'd like, rather than the officials ones which, I confess, I'd have to look up. My resources are impressive, but my memory, not so much. I use Philly for my home campaign, which has a much larger blank slate to work with.

I don't plan on doing stuff for Tempo, Denver, Neo-Tokyo, etc, should anyone else want to join in. Out of the list you gave, let's see...

Criminal Syndicates (IE, the Yakuza, the Triads, and teh Mafia), the Humanis Policlub (One of my fave factions), and the Tir (drool) are all things that still catch my eye. Things that you don't mention would include lifestyle (What is life like for Joe Datapusher?), modern media, and how meeting with Mr Johnson works. That last one, I think I do differently than most others, mind, so you might want to punt it for someone else's more standard hiring style.

Hopefully, other people will be able to take a bit away from it as well (And contribute!), and it helps hone my skills, so, win all around.

THE SYNDICATES
by Star Loner

Seattle's crime scene is multi-layered, with the majority of criminals being unaffiliated losers, just as you see all through history. The usual datapoint is that 2% of the population commits 80% of the crime, a number that varies somewhat but is a good rule of thumb. Your career criminals are the usual suspects that are so often rolled up, while the remainder are one-offs... your shoplifters that are scared straight, domestic murders, drug arrests that stay clean, and so on. Out of the affiliated criminals, the gangs have the raw numbers, with dozens of gangs in action around the city, ranging from large, professional franchises like the Ancients or the Cutters to single-street 'gangs' that are littl emore than a band of jobless teenagers who sit on porches and talk shit.

And then there are the syndicates.

The syndicates are criminal organizations, effectively local companies that draw resources and expertise from international corporations of crime, complete with 'franchises' of gangers who serve s footsoldiers and salesmen who hope to break into the 'big leagues' some day. The population of the syndicates is smaller than the media would suggest, thanks to this franchise system, As a rule of thumb, for every ten thousand people in the population, you have one syndicate member, so there are only around six hundred in Seattle, depending on the current blood loss from warfare and arrests. They have a weight far in excess of their raw numbers, of course, due to the raw resource level they bring.

The Yakuza are the top dogs of Seattle, the infamous Japanese Mafia that has been in media for decades now. The Yaks are marked by their tatoos, with the first applied when they first join, then more are added as they move up the ranks; seasoned obyan (captains) feature full sleeves and their back completely covered with tatoos, which are quite often mixed with metamagic techniques. Keep in mind that the Yakuza keep their tatoos 'sedate', able to be covered up in normal life and, as such, rarely go lower than mid-forearm, let alone the neck or face. The Yakuza are also well known for a policy of no-excuse failure; it doesn't matter if there were suddenly officers at a location, if the object you were after was moved an hour before you broke in to steal it, if that hapless store owner you were shaking down for protection money had a nephew show up who went all PhysAd on your footsoldiers and beat them silly... you failed your task. Failure demands apology, sacrifice, and a great loss of 'face'. The worst failures include the Yakuza member in question removing part of his body, to present to his lord, to show how apologetic he really is; this is the infamous 'finger cutting' ritual, leading to many long-time Yakuza members missing several fingers and having invested in cybernetic replacements. The Yakuza use some magic, but rely more on high technology, and have both a racist streak and a distrust of women in power. You'll find plenty of Ork muscle or female prostitutes attached at the edges, but the core leadership is Japanese human male after Japanese human male.

The Mafia are number two, having been rocked back on their heels by the sudden appearance of the more violent, higher-tech Yakuza, but are firmly entrenched and have no plans to soon leave. Where the Yakuza are entwined with the JapanCorps, the Mafia are in deep with civic institutions and what few unions are left. They also support many small businesses, finding them easier to shake down than companies, let alone corporations, but it should be remembered that the higher-ups have quite a fortune and keep it invested in profitable enterprises; this results in senior Mafia members having an excellent stock portfolio, but never enough to have a controlling interest in anything. The Mafia keep their power through physical strength, but also smooth social operation, networking, and corruption. Fear keeps the little people in line while schmoozing keeps the powerful lined up. The Mafia are magic-adverse and distrust women almost as much as the Yakuza, but that's been changing.

The Triads are third in the region, but the gap between them and the Mafia is quite large. The Triads rule Chinatown, but have had little luck expanding beyond this. The upper eschelon are content with this small fiefdom, but the younger, hungrier members would love to go large. The Triads haven't the wealth of the larger syndicates, with poor technology, but make up for that with powerful magics that make a mockery of the larger syndicates' mystical strength. One of the best-known examples of this mystical strength is the loyalty oaths that they take when allowed membership; these oaths result in the gruesome death of any Triad member who betrays his organization or reveals secrets to the authorities. With a general philosophy that beggars can't be choosers, the Triads are welcoming to women and metahumans, with those who have magic being able to reach leadership positions.

The Seoulpa Rings are an interesting group, composed originally of Koreans that were purged by the Yakuza from their membership a generation ago. The purging was bloody and the survivors of this purge swore revenge over the warm bodies of their brothers; they're still a criminal ring that wants money and power, but they're willing to set aside either if the chance for revenge against the Yakuza comes up. Of course, as the old guard die off, the new generation never went through the purge and are more focused on the profitable side of things. In another generation, it's entirely possible that the Blood Debt will be forgotten. The Rings are focused almost exclusively on computer crime and still have a large swath of hardware from their Yakuza days. Of course, since then, they've become masters of ad-hoc networks and making dirt-cheap technology do things that they were never supposed to do. The Rings are the only criminal org open to Technomancers, and, like the Triads, are too small to exclude metas or women from their ranks.

The Vory are a Russian mob that has traditionally been small in Seattle, but has a lot of growth opportunity as the other syndicates battle it out. The Vory have a distinct Russian/Eastern Europe ethnic composure, giving them strong influence in the shipping/docks section of Seattle, and tend towards enabling crimes more than the rest; no one can match their gun running operations, often selling weapons to both sides of a gang war. They seem to be content with their status of supplier, rather than try and take over and face the other syndicates in direct competition.

There are three ethnic 'mafias' in Seattle that have tried to gain traction but have never really found a good footing. The Ancients have long served as the 'Elven Mafia', but the revolution in the Tir, and the outing of the Ancients as a tool of the Tir princes, caused an actual Elven mafia to spring up. Based in Tarislar, the Elf Mafia is still young, focused on prostitution and protection. The Ork Underground has a more evolved criminal syndicate that borders on legitimacy, since they serve as police and civic support... bringing electrical, water, and Matrix services by tapping the surface city, for example, or providing firefighting services. The current movement towards the Ork Underground gaining legitimate status in the Seattle metroplex government is going to stress them highly. Lastly, there have been vague rumors of a 'Dwarven Mafia' for years, with former governor Julius Strouther as some sort of 'don', but no evidence of this organization has ever been found ad Lone Star never investigated it.

All the syndicates use basic drug and BTL-running, protection rackets, and influence peddling, with the Yakuza having the best gambling rings and prostitution (including Bunruku parlors), the Mafia having political influence, the Seoupla Rings having computer crime better than even the Yakuza, and the Triads mastering talislegging and opium-based drugs. While all have gun running sides, the Vory alone have access to military-grade wepaons, which they happily sell to the others. The Rings are expert SIN forgers, the second-largest source of income after datasteals and hacking. The Triads and the Vory both have large human-smuggling opeerations, while the Yakuza are best at kidnapping and recruiting runaways, both categories of which often wind up in their prostitution rings.

You keep this up, and I'll have to make a PDF of it.

My pleasure! Just keep making neat little add-on shadowtalk for 'em and it's a deal.

OK, when you get enough, I'll pull out my ol' list of Shadowtalkers and do just that.

AND NO ONE COMPLAIN ABOUT BIG MURPHY AND THE WAY HE TALKS!

THE HUMANIS POLICLUB
By 2XL

If you listen to the golden boy, Kevin von Schlaeger, the Humanis Policlub is simply a pro-human, not anti-meta, organization, dedicated to 'preserving human jobs' and 'human culture' … like we're the ones trying to wipe them out! Lying fragger...

But I digress.

The Humanis Policlub started forming in the wake of UGE, Unexplained Genetic Expression. Back in 2011, UGE struck thousands of people across the world, their babies being born with pointy elves or different bone structure … “Elves” and “Dwarves” in other words. Years later, Goblinization struck, turning fully ten percent of the overall population into tuskers and trogs, often painfully and sometimes explosively. These changes, along with the return of magic, were too much for certain closed-minded types to take, and they lashed back first with fearful violence, then with cold calculation. Fact is, they outnumber us and are far well better positioned; society is made around certain Human expectations, which makes life at 3 meters tall an ever-lasting reminder that you're an outlying member of society at best. Clothes, cars, houses, glasses, prices on food... none of it's made for you. You get stared at, singled out, picked on, forced out … racism is alive and well, the the Humanis goons make certain that you remember this.

Now, it's easy to think of the Humanis as a bunch of backwoods hillbillies getting' there hate on. Yeah, you can find those types in their numbers, but the dangerous ones are the thin guys with mustaches, the guys who think and go out of their way to fight against the 'scourge of metahumanity'. They have lots of access to the highest levels of power and equally are wealthy and skilled at public speaking. When Joe Sixpack sees these guys talking, he doesn't see a hatemonger … he sees an average, ordinary guy like himself, who's asked to compete unfairly with Metas. How can a young human kid have a dream of playing football, knowing that the Orks and Trolls with a fraction of his talent can rend him limb from limb? How can a girl think of being a model when Elf girls glide around with impossible figures and flawless skin? Add to this a PR firm that's as slick as snot and you see what we're up against.

Some of the campaigns that you might have seen the past few years include “My son, the teenaged elf poser” about a suburban Seattleite who got into the world of Elf posing, slowly starving himself to attain an 'Elven build', engaging in unsafe recreational drugs and sex, then dying during a beat-in of an Elf ganger. Grannie Guthrie's annual plea to donate to the Humanis policlub, so that their researchers can finally find a 'cure' for Metahumanity and bring her grandson back to her is a known tear-jerker. There's even Steven Tom's journey from datapusher to supervisor after an “Ork Reduction Surgery” from the kind specialists at Mitsuhama Medical. Resculpting his jaw, getting his skin lightened, softened, and his thick hair removed, eyebrows plucked, voice box altered to have a voice that registers just as bass, brow ridges softened, tusks removed … he's passable as a human by the end of it, and gets his promotion that he never would have had before.

And that's how they see us … diseased. Lesser. An abberation that needs to be fixed. Preying on their children. And they push those points relentlessly, day in and day out, in the Matrix, in print, on Trideo … they never stop. Governer Brackhaven is one of the worst, and he leads the damn Metroplex! Quite a few corporations are right there with him, happily sandblasting any Meta that they can.

And then there's the Alamos 20,000.

For a terrorist group that's had three recorded incidents, ever, they cast an enormous shadow. Wher ethe Policlub seeks to legally restrict metahumans to being out of sight and out of mind, Alamos wants us all to stop breathing. They're the boogeyman in our closet, waiting to spring out and do terrible things to us in the night. They want us dead, and each time they step up, hundreds, if not thousands, of us do.

Luckily, these guys are in the minority. Most folks are a little bit racist, but they don't want you eradicated … they just don't want you around them or their kids. You get used to getting your food last when ordering (If you can get seated and if a waitress will take your order, of course.) … your food will be wrong as well. Overdone, underdone, the wrong thing on the plate, or assumptions about what you want before you even order. I had a lunch with an Elven friend once, and she had a light salad and a veggie fruit drink thing before even looking at a menu. She's a bigger carnivore than me, but that racist tripe that Elves are all vegans continues to cause her issues even today. (Don't get me started on the idea that Orks have litters. Fraggin' litters!)

There are also groups that look out for our kind. Mothers of Metahumans, or MOM, is the biggest and best known, originally a circle of parents whose children had UGE or Goblinized back in the day, a support group that could help one another through what they were facing. Since then, they've become a central force in helping out, providing help for those who undergo sudden changes, directing young metas to outreach programs, heling Ork mothers with large families stretch their money, and so on. Lots of humans in MOM, which gives a real rainbow vibe to the whole thing.

Of course, for those who want a more militant push back at the Huamnis goons and their racist friends, there are groups like the Sons of Sauron who happily engage in anti-human operations. You can find no less than three Elven nations, each fiercely proud, a Troll kingdom, and the Ork Underground of Seattle for meta-heavy areas. There are meta-enclaves all over the place, where you can be with your own kind, actually finding things sized for your world and taking your views into account … if you've never been an ostracised minority, you can't really understand how powerful it is just to go to a club and hang out with your own kind for a few hours. I'd go crazy if I only saw humans all day, and, extreme videos aside, I could never date one. There are just too many … problems.

Lastly, keep an eye out for Humanis … they're more dangerous than the Alamos 20,000, despite the Alamos having a bodycount. Humanis gets to operate in public, with respectability, and the ability to influence public discourse. They're smart, they're well-funded, and they have a receptive audience. Things like “Bubba the Love Troll”, who waits for humans in prison showers, or how dangerous “Ork Barrens” are, are just small examples of the kind of racist crap that they shovel every day. Walk through that much, it starts to stick … Hell, there are days when I wonder if maybe I did break somebody's foot by accident, even if I know better.

Oh, and invest in some pepper-proof glasses and taser-resistant clothing. You're welcome.

> Don't get me started on Alamos 20K. Really, don't.
> Money

> Really, don't! Last time it happened the body count was in the double digits, and I can't say for sure that it wasn't him! It wasn't me, that's for sure. And, for the record, both Money and I are Human. And both get behind the MOM deal. People are people, doesn't matter the metatype, forget the race, creed, religion, and all that other drek that's gone on over the... Forever.
> Rick O'Shey

> I have a game I play with Humanis. I try to punt them over the burning crosses they keep lighting on my front lawn. So far, I just can't seem to be able to do it. Someday, maybe... If I train hard enough.
> Tiny Trog

> To be fair, those types give us a bad name. There's Ork and Troll Support Groups (ORC), there's Dwarf Support Groups (Stonecutters), there's Elf Support Groups (Too many to damned well count), why not a Human support group? Honestly, we're just looking out for our own like everyone else is. We all got our bad groups that hang along. Sons of Sauron anyone?
> Pride

> Damn, a comment I can get behind with Pride. I think the apocalypse is about to happen.
> Tiny Trog

> Bubba Da Love Troll iz realz. He'z in Cell Block C a da Hallywuud Cerektunshuns. A cousin a' mine went dere an' found dat out. He'z likez da Elfies better dan da humies anyhow, dey scream louda. Oh, also confirmy by an Elfie dat didn't get noze prison rapies. Big props ta him.
> Big Murphy

These are downright glorious. I almost wish I played in the vanilla world now just so that I could use these.

Oh well. Nothing a little mangling tweaking creative reinterpretation can't fix.

Your informant fails to mention it, but KE has at least several team of mages who typically operate in background counts of -6 or worse. They are scary. Don't make yourself a problem that they need to resolve.

Care to let me in on the Shadowtalk?


> Background count of HOW MUCH now?! Aren't we talking about Void-level BC?
> - Mr Nicks

> Seriously, get me that Steven Tom guy, a baseball bat and a roll of duct tape. When I'm done, I'm gonna tie a nice large bow on him and dump him in San Bernardino. Good luck explaining you're an ork to Los Verdugos, fuckwad.
> - Seriously Mike

> That's our Mikey. Say the H-word and he's going ballistic. Can't say I blame him.
> - Kestrel


> Aw, I apparently missed the party. No problem, if you ever come over to LA, give me a heads-up, I'll source a grenade launcher and we can have some "fun".
> - Seriously Mike

Yes. It's sometimes best if anyone dual-natured who follows you home finds it really uninviting. If you get someone annoyed enough to set one of those FireWatch teams on your ass you are unlikely to live happily ever after.

Anyone mind if I copy these over to my gaming group's wiki? (will be credited, of course)

PETS OF THE SIXTH WORLD
by 2XL

Yeah, I have a soft-spot for critters. I'm also two hundred kilos of mother-fraggin' Troll, so, keep that in mind before crackin' wise. It always breaks my heart to see Shadowrunners out there, never knowing what it's like to have a dog, a cat, or a house hippo waiting for you when you get home. Unconditional love, man... it's strong stuff. No matter how bad your day was, no matter how many “How's the weather up there?” crap, no matter the waitress getting your order wrong … again … not even knowing that you have to pull a few light rounds out of your dermal plates thanks to the lovely machine pistols of the local go-gang... when Master gets home, the lil' fuzzballs are thrilled to see you and do what they can to make the day a little more tolerable. Overall, there are a couple of categories to keep in mind.

Suburban Critters
This is where you find the usual cats, dogs, and hamsters. The 'burbs give enough room for them to run around the house, or even grace you with a yard for them, and it's sort of expected to give the brats something to play around with. We're talking pets here, not true guard animals, but most dogs will raise a ruckus if somebody they don't kow gets near, so keep an eye out. Cats tend to be a bit more free-wheeling and, every since Yamatetsu introduce Glo-Kats back in the 30's, bio-mod cats have been a big seller. (Glo-Kats were cats with jellyfish DNA inserted, to give them a radiant glow. Originally just in green and purple, they eventually covered a wide of colors, but the fad died off after five years, when the adorable kitties grew up into boring old cats.) In the 50's, they gave us Glo-Kits, the same thing but with genetic tinkering that kept the little buggers from growing; they stayed kitten-sized for their entire 2-3 year lifespan. These adorable things were popular enough to spawn a whole array of 'Runts', with puppies following after kittens. Not my cup, mind you, as the problems that come from adult animal brains in a baby animal body, but, they keep selling every year, so, cute wins I guess.

Urban Critters
Dogs and cats are around the metroplex, but tend to be a bit harder. Your back-alley dogs, your Bodega cats, and quite a few of us Tuskers look to Devil Rats for some hardy companionship. (You heard about the old Ork lady who thought her new pet chihuahua would get sick from being so wet, so put him in the microwave to dry it out? Afterwards, the two had a pizza. G-harf, g-harf.) There's a ton of pigeons around of course, so you can find aviaries on top of quite a few buildings, Over in Atlanta, some guys started importing Hyenas, to give the local gangs some African legitimacy, but that didn't end well. Coyotes and foxes are in every plex in the UCAS, but the one that a bunch of people missed was the addition of mountain lions. More properly called sabertooth pumas, these guys are about the size of a German Sheppard, give or take, and while you can tame them, they're not domesticated, so it doesn't pass down to the kids. You can find a bunch of Orks breeding them these days for small fighting circles or keeping them penned in around their house for security. Vicious bastards, they are.

Genetic Freaks
Middle class and up only, please. The upkeep costs for these things is high as they've been tweaked into some pretty unnatural ways. Aside from your one-of-a-kind geneblends, the most popular are replications of popular show animals (Electric rats will follow me to Hell, I think.) or Evo's new “House Zoo” line of animals … House Hippos, Tiny Giraffes, Mini-Lions, and so on. At full size, they fit into the palm of a human hand, but only live a couple years. Evo also skipped ahead on the Novobrisk research and rolled out widescale releases of the SibFox line or fully domesticated silver foxes. They're working on a red line to drop in a year or two.


Virtual Pets
While suburban animals are, by far, the most common pet, and while the GeneFreaks are the most profitable, virtual pets occupy a happy middle ground, earning nuyen for the mother corp but not bieng too terribly expensive to purchase. They also don't take up any room, a big deal for the urban crowd. This has resulted in them being an ever-expanding field, with new designs cropping up every three months. NeoNET is the big winner here, but they're hardly the only player. Virtual Pets are mostly AR-based, letting you flip your lenses into place to see 'em, but there remain a few that are completely virtual. The AR ones are cute, and dirt-cheap, but good luck finding one that feels warm when it curls up in your lap and purrs. The virtual ones allow for that, but the mods that are out there are way beyond creepy. Nasty fraggers. Keep an eye on MCT's new line of AR pets... they only cost 10Y to download, cheap enough to toss at the brats to keep 'em quiet, but you have to feed them, which costs another 1Y a day... and if you skip a day, your little buddy gets sick. Skip two, he barely moves and whimpers. Miss a third, and he's dead... and the brats will do anything to prevent that. Add in all the other micro-payments for clothes, hair bows, grooming tools, toy planes they can ride on, diving suits, and so on and so forth and you can see why they expect big profits from this one.

I love that this has gone crazy with submissions. Rest assured, these are all being saved and will be thrown into PDF format as soon as time allows.

I figure that an hour every day or three is good to keep the fingers loosened up. The pets one is kind of out of nowhere, but, it wanted to be free, so, it was.

Trying things a tad different this time, closer to the format actually requested by the OP. Oops!

THE ARCOLOGY COMMERCE & HOUSING ENCLAVE
FastFAX – for the facts you need to know!

That ginormous building that ou see in Seattle's downtown area is the arcology commerce and housing enclave, or ACHE. Formerly the Renraku Arcology, the artificial intelligence that ran it went rogue in 2060, naming itself Deus and taking over the facility. It took until the second Crash, but Seattle national guard troops, backed by the UCAS military, was able to retake the facility and put an end to the threat once and for all. Unfortunately, this left Seattle with a square kilometer complex in the middle of downtown. Fortunately, this was a solution in search of a problem! Taking the now defunct arcology off Renraku's hands, in return for not launching lawsuits, the Seattle government transformed it from a war-torn complex to today's modern living enclave.

A large number of citizens had their lives upended by the second Crash, losing their home, their savings, even their SIN, and the ACHE provided a place for these poor souls to call home. In exchange for housing and feeding them, the metroplex government required the citizens to become employed, undertaking one of the many, many jobs provided by the facility … some work the retail areas that were once Renraku malls, others provide needed civic expertise, as teachers, security, or governmental officials. There's always a need for construction and repair of course, and in the past decade, all but the top quarter of the facility has been returned to a friendly, hospitable environment. Those who sign up to take advantage of the generous housing plan sign a ten year contract, and are restricted to the facility grounds for the duration, to ensure that they don't accidently stray outside, where the sheltered citizens would be easy prey for more hardened street elements.

As of the fall of '72, the mayor of the ACHE is Kentamora Mochitoko, a Renraku citizen who survived the fall of the Arcology and has sworn to oversee the arcology return to its former glory. Kentamora-san was a protege of Sherman Huang and has kept the facility operating smoothly during his entire tenure. Seattle citizens are welcome to visit the shopping areas, and the visitor centers, of the ACHE, but are forbidden from entering the rest of the facility, for the safety of the residents there.

> What a load of Bulldrek. The top floors are still off limits alright … some still have Deus toys running around, both without, and with, a heartbeat. That's also where the executive floors were, the best labs, and, as you might imagine, the paydata. The UCAS military still has forces up there, running commando raids under the nose of everybody. I don't know if it'll ever be brought down.
> Renraku Fox

> You're behind the times, Foxy. They cleaned it out after Crash 2.0 but have kept the rumor of ongoing trouble to keep nosy people like us out. All the data, plus prototypes and delta-grade augmentations, were scooted out five years ago. These days, it's used to house political prisoners that need to stay blacked out. What, you thought they killed off those unification guys? No, they're all locked down in the upper floors, where nobody can see them and no lawyers know they exist.
> Plan 9

> There are many voices inside the walls. There are many legs as well.
> Man-of-Many-Names

> The ten-year contracts will start resolving soon. When they do, we'll get some first-hand accounts that don't get scrubbed by Big Brother. Until then, it's a prison and a homeless shelter at the same time.
> Aufheben

THANK JESUS Cisco Web Reputation Filters are no longer blocking Dumpshock at work. I can actually siphon this shit off during downtime now!

Matrix use during work hours?

Tsk.

Human Resources will be dropping some data into your files, now.

Well, it got locked out again, because I keep forgetting to email Redjack and ask why Cisco hates Dumpshock and thinks it's more of a threat than 4chan. ( No, seriously. Compare the two. )

Gonna try and get all your stuff up before I leave for Mexico on Saturday, Wakshaani.

Keen! I can do up some more today and tomorrow, since I have the day off.

Anything in particular? I was thinking "How do Fixers work", but, your call.

This is why: http://cbl.abuseat.org/lookup.cgi?ip=173.255.201.199
IP Address 173.255.201.199 is listed in the CBL. It appears to be infected with a spam sending trojan or proxy.

It was last detected at 2011-12-29 23:00 GMT (+/- 30 minutes), approximately 6 hours, 30 minutes ago.

Word! That's a really good idea, now that I think about it.

That's a really interesting idea, my take has always been a fixer is a guy with one foot in the shadows and one in the legit world but mostly they are people who know lots of other people, all of whom owe them something or at least have an interest in doing business. In my game these guys have ranged from small time like the local bar tender to big time criminals (either connected to a syndicate or not) to Corporate Lawyers to Sports Agents. The point is none of them officially list their job title as "fixer", they always have a legitimate sounding cover and frequently that also is a hint about their clientele, but if they are well networked it may not provide much of one.

The question I'd have is how do they end up not getting killed as part of the cleanup given how the fixer knows both the runners and the Johnson, and both the Johnson and the runners know who the fixer is. If you get a runner they might not be able to tell the person persistently asking them questions exactly who the Johnson was, but they can tell them about the fixer who can tell them. Essentially you have a guy who recruits people to launch raids against the megas. It seems like an even more dangerous line of work than being a runner.

The obvious answer is blackmail, if the fixer has enough dirt on both sides and the ability to distribute it then they might be able to protect themselves. Probably safe to bet that your fixer is also friends with some of your enemies, and knows it and uses it. If I were statting a fixer out they would definitely have high Intuition, Logic, and Charisma you'd have to to play that game.

Adding to the thoughts above, fixers probably do get killed pretty frequently, probably part of how they justify getting their cut.

I plan on covering that, in fact.

Short form, remember that Mr Johnson is rarely the Client. He's a go-between, to keep distance between him and the runners.

In essence, Vice President of Media Relations Flanders has his secretary send for 'Bob in Accounting', who is a cover for Mr Johnson. He fills Johnson in on what he needs, is tol dthat Bob will take care of it, and goes back to doing Executive Things, like sniffing novecoke off of a prostitute's hinder. Johnson files the mission away, goes back to his office, and makes a few calls, trying to find fixers from his little black book that have teams available.

The fixer's often aware of who Johnson works for, or at least has a rough idea, but professional courtesy keeps that wrapped up. Fixer gets the call, checks *his* books, finds a few guys, or an established team, that meets the criteria, and gets them and Johnson together to talk. The fixer's there for this chat, to make sure everyone knows it's square and to provide both sides some cover. Johnson runs through the people each Fixer coughs up, picks the ones that are most likely to do the job right for the best price possible, then calls the fixer back. Tells them to get the team to a second location becaus ethey have the job. He passes over a 'finder's fee' at this time, for services rendered.

Team meets with Johnson who now give sthe full details (Before, it was "I need data aquire from a local company. Small job, needs to be done quietly, but I expect no complications) ... now, he give sgreater detail. (Mother Maple's Donut Emporium has a new flavor due out next month. You need to find out what it is and get me the data with no one the wiser.Here's a cash advance. You get more when the job's done and a bonus if they don't even know they were broken into. Any questions?)

If the team gets screwed, the Fixer knows who did it and gets the word out, so Johnson's rep is mud. If the team screws over Johnson, their fixer gets blackballed and Johnson might take a fall, but the actual client is removed so remains untouched. Everybody has an escape plan, in effect.

This is a really rough form, hammered quick. More details in a couple hours. (Going to go get supper, but I'll type up the big version when I'm back.)

Welp, looks like I spent my evening drinking sidecars, and not working on Shadowrun stuff. What can you do? Y'all will have to wait until I get back.

A rookie's guide to Fixers
By Bull

Alright you little fraggers, you've gotten a little water behind your ears, you've managed to survive a couple of runs, and now you're seeing little Nuyen symbols dancin' in front of your eyes as you think you're God's gift to the shadows. Well, let ol' Bull tell you how it is. Every year, dozens of you kids roll into the shadows. Every year, most of you get rolled right back out. Me? I've had to bury too many kids. Never sits right with me, so, time to drop a little paydata on you and hope that you learn from it. The first lesson, of course, is to get out while you can; you're young, you got options, and there ain't no point throwing that away against a wall of MCT auto-guns. But, if you're gonna do somethin' so damn fool-headed as get in the game, I'm gonna have to give you some rules.

First off, we're gonna talk fixers. No I'm not giving out names, ya slots! I'm tellin' you about what kinds of fixers there are, what kinds of people you're gonna meet, and how not to frag it all up. So, get your personal secretary ready, 'cause I don't repeat myself.

Types of Fixers
A guy who knows a guy – These are the first ones you meet. You know a guy who knows a guy. You can score some chips, get a cracked copy of that new sim, slip you a fake ID, get you into the bar, whatever. Callin' these guys fixers ain't right, but close enough. It's a guy who can get you stuff based on who he knows. This is the way that things work out in the shadows, where your rep and who you know are gonna get doors open that you didn't even know existed. These guys are all one-note wonders, but they can get you started. Keep an eye out for low-ranking gang members, street hustlers, college kids, and that time-honored stand-by, the bartender. These are all people who can't get you what you need, but can get you to the guy that can get you what you need. They're the baseline. Cultivate 'em.

Talent Scouts – What, you think only urban brawl scouts talent? Please. Some of these guys do double-duty, sniffing around bars for undiscovered bands, or trying to land corp contracts for magic talent that's fallen through the cracks, but there's a ton who hunt out rookie runners and pass them up the chain. If you're lucky, you get a goo done who can get you to a real fixer and good jobs. If you're like most, you get fed in as an 'expendable asset' and your career ends up in a ditch or, worse, behind bars. Don't believe me? There's a guy named Johnny Franklin, down in Redmond. He used to be a 'runner, until the Grey Men got ahold of him. These days, he's so fragged in the head, he can't even think about defending himself if a bunch of gangers try to roll him. He's good people and I owe him. Drop by sometime and be sure to drop off some supplies in exchange for his stories. Karma'll come back to you.

Street Fixers - Or just 'Fixers'. We're the bridge between you and Mr Johnson. Our job is to keep a stable of runners, of guys we know have the skills, the talent, and the professionalism to see a job through. You burn your bridges with us, you're fragged... our life revolves around who we know, not what we can do, and if you've got a hoop for a head, we'll blackball you before you can blink. Me? I'm a fraggin' pussycat compared to the hardboys out there that'll chew you up and spit you out. Like I said, dozens of you kids drop in here every year. You can be replaced. I thin kit's important to treat you right, cultivate you, help you grow from street trash to legit shadowrunners, but other guys ain't so forgiving. Your fixer finds you work, gives you leads, and is your back-up if things go sour. No, he won't charge in there with guns ablazing to bail your sorry hoop out, but, if Johnson screws you, everybody's gonna know it. Nobody works for those guys, or, at the least, if they do, they charge way more. Suits are all about the bottom line and if an asset costs them too much, he gets reclassified as a liability. And we all know what that means.
Suppliers - Overlooked by most rookies, the suppliers are just what it says on the can … they supply you with stuff. Yeah, you can ask me to get you the new wizbang gear, but I gotta go through somebody, and he's gotta go through somebody else, and every step along the way, somebody gets a cut of the action. You get yourself a supply fixer, you can get that stuff wholesale. Some of 'em even give you a spin of prototypes if you're trusted enough. Seen the Ares Predator V yet? No? I know a guy who has one. Still a bit buggy, but he got an early peek because he's got himself a supplier. These guys don't get you jobs, but they get you tools for the job, and that's almost as important. There're all kinds of suppliers, of course … some focus on military-grade gear, some decks and programs, some on talismans and fetishes for spellcasters, Beetles, whatever. The more focused, the better their gear in their chosen field

Fences – The other side of the coin, fixers help you get rid of drek. Learn who can unload what you need unloaded. Paydata? Probably goes to Mr Johnson, but it's good to have another option if things happen. But what about that gun? You know, the one you shot a guy with? KE will have the ballistics on file, so you need to burn that thing. A good fence can get you some scratch, then turn around and sell it to another country, getting everybody ahead. Sometimes you need to unload a commlink, or some cyberware, or even a body... knowing somebody who'll not just get rid of it for you, but can get you paid? That's huge. For you lucky slots who run at a high level, getting rid of fine art requires a good fence, otherwise it just builds up in your place, collecting dust and not getting you rich.

­Forgers - These guys have one focus … getting documentation. A new SIN when yours is used up, paperwork in order for your restricted gear, a keycard for some research lab, or even just tickets to the big game this sunday … whatever. Like usual, you can go to a one-stop fixer like me, but if you keep a forgery guy in your circle, it'll save you a bundle and your wait time is lower.

Service Providers - These guys are big deals but are always overlooked by rookies because services aren't plasticrete like the other guys give you. Used to, it was easy to have a cop on your payroll; frag, Lone Star worked bribes into their payroll calculations; but Knight Errant's a whole different story. Still, you need to keep a few service guys in your rolls. A guy who can get a band to perform at your nephew's Bar Mitvah, or get you advance knowledge of when a venue will be used, or get you in as a roadie … this is huge. If you know a guy that can get you free Matrix access, or one that makes sure you can get real vegetables at a price, you cultivate 'em, but those guys are just contacts, not fixers. A service-providing fixer might have an 'in' with the local alderman, or who can call up a gang to cause a ruckus, or get you training when your skills get rusty.

Agents - Somewhere between talent scouts and all-around fixers, you get agents. These guys handle negotiations for you and tend to keep groups under retainer. You get an agent, you don't work with other fixers, you just work through him. In exchange, he handles payment for you, driving harder deals and arranging things that you might not be able to do on your own. A few Johnsons only work with agents … some kind of exclusive deal, but they usually blow it off as 'trusted talent', while others see teams without an agent as rookies and, as such, expendable instead of deniable. There's always talk about unionizing (frag me!) and trying to get all of us under a few agent brands, but Shadworunners tend to be a bit … freedom-loving. Working for a paycheck, with health benefits and dental? Chummer, if I wanted that, I'd be workin' for fraggin' Novatech. Or NeoNET. Or whatever the frag Villers is calling it these days!

What I'm trying to tell you is this; while you can survive with a single fixer getting you jobs and buying your drek, you're better off building several relationships. Who knows? Maybe you'll wind up a fixer yourself.

More fixers than that, but that's a good assortment for the low attention span of today's 'runners.

I know I'm missing a bunch, but my brain turned sideways last night.

Feel free to fill in the missing spots!

> Depends on how high you like your profile, chummer.
>
> -- 00 Lace --

>>Ah the good old days, when having a LS Sergent in your pocket meant something. I have one parcel of advice on bribing KE security, and that's don't bother. Apparently policy is to regularly preform financial audits on all personal higher then patrolmen and lower then Captain.
~Lindt