Ok, here's the deal: My character has just moved into a 'Very Nice Neighborhood ™', and wants to get involved in the local community (She's pretending to be a trust fundee with a good hunk of spare time on her hands, and she figures that getting the community on side is a decent investment). To that end she's joining the neighborhood watch, helping out her neighbors with their cars ect (she's got the mechanic skill and tools) and her room-mate (the rigger) will be helping out with anything computer or matrix related (We're considering this to be part of the 'crash pad' quality. We also have the quiet neighborhood and friendly neighbors qualities, it that's important). We're both using rating six SINs which have never (and hopefully will never) been associated with criminal activity, and we have a rating 6 Agent with rating 6 spoof (along with an assortment of other programs) that makes sure that any tests on those SINs don't ping them as fake. This same Agent is responsible for spoofing our lifestyle and providing our home system with matrix security, and uses our free access to spoof the lifestyle so that it's harder to trace back to us.

Anyway, my questions are:
1) What kind of responsibilities are implicit as part of the neighborhood watch?
2) As a group contact, what kind of benefits would the neighborhood watch grant? (i already have some ideas on this one, but i'd like other people's suggestions)
3) How big a risk is this community work for a shadowrunner?
4) Any suggestions on other ways to get our neighbors on side?

I'd also make sure they are using "clean" commlinks and software.

But this can be handled several ways. I'd consider it like a day job and no contacts yet. Voluntary Neg quality they can choose to give up w/o paying Karma
Gives plenty of RP and adventure opportunity though.
Someone gets robbed and sparks a side adventure w/ no pay to retrieve the stolen goods.
Maybe the person who got robbed happens to be a low level corp exec or something then they become a loyal 1 contact.
That contact just happens to sideline with a certain group. Needs a favor and asks. No loyal 2 or 3 and gain group contact loyal 1
Later their association with group is found out by the corp they work for. You have to extract them. Loyal up to 3 or 4
etc... Great RP and adventure op.

What kind of character?

(1) mostly, "if you see something suspicious, call the police" - so you'd better be careful WRT your own activities, and your guests' as well.

If you have any especial skills, you could possibly turn them to the Watch's benefit; a melee-specialist Adept could hold weekly or monthly "self defense" classes, for example.

(2) Rumors in the neighborhood. Lookouts for trouble headed your way. Character witnesses at your next criminal trial (oops).

(3) Like I said above - be careful about your own activities in the neighborhood, and that of your guests. The hours you keep, too. Be careful what your guests look like. Basically, "Nosy Neighbors" would model a neighborhood watch quite well.

(4) Make them see you as an asset they don't want to go without. For example, if you're a mage - let them know, and make sure they see the benefit of having a mage neighbor and maybe friend: offer them magical healing (gratis for emergencies, low-cost for aught else - maybe pick up Cure Disease while you're at it); make a show of setting Watcher Spirits to help patrol the neighborhood; take the time to find out if any of the neighborhood kids might have the Gift, and if any of them do, help find them reputable instructors (or take on a few apprentices yourself). If they see you as someone who has THEIR back? They'll have YOURS, by and large.

I'm confused. "Very nice neighborhoods" hire mechanics and security personnel. I just don't see Donald Trump on a neighborhood watch.

Think the remainder of the middle class, not the upper class. They need safe neighborhoods too.

People like Donald Trump don't live in neighborhoods at all. They live on expansive, sprawling Estates.

I am reminded of the episode of "Dexter" where his neighbors start a neighborhood watch and install security lights and start patrols which makes it very difficult (and kind of hilarious) when he tries to sneak out. If you wanted to run a whole session or two dedicated to the Neighborhood Watch, movies like "Neighborhood Watch" or "Attack the Block" look like good inspiration for what would happen when a serious threat (say insect spirits) attempts to move in. Other than that though, just the day-to-day activities of a neighborhood watch would rank fairly low on the list of challenges runners would otherwise face. I mean, in your B or higher areas, it would basically be stuff like calling the local security provider when gangers and youths are breaking into cars or tagging things.

I think in this instance, it would be a little like being a superhero with a secret identity. You'd want to be effective enough that you're helping your neighbors and 'hood to be a safer place, but no so effective as to invite comment or attention. You wouldn't want people asking why the trust fund kid who just moved in knows judo and apparently owns Neuro-Stun grenades.

One possible benefit is you're going to get a lot of dirt on your neighbors. You're going to find out who's sleeping with whose spouse, who's sneaking out a night, who's got a barely under control chip addiction. Not saying that's going to necessarily be useful, but who knows?

This part i really like. I can't really think of a better way to put it.
Thanks everyone for your feedback, keep it coming!

Heck yes!
Now I just need to turn this information to my advantage. Suggestions?

I would just make sure to keep it in mind. When you make a mistake and someone notices, you can tell them you will turn a blind eye to what you've seen if they do the same for you. I'm sure they just got confused and thought they saw a hostage when you were really helping bring your sick friend from out of town back to your place to rest. Just like you're sure they weren't actually sneaking over to visit the neighbor's wife several times in the last month.

Even if several people have seen things, they would have to talk to each other to put it all together.

Dirk once commented that "Neighborhood Watch" in his area meant that the locals kept score on the gunfights in the streets.

No, they usually live in cities. In large expensive units, like the $88 million Central Park West, NYC co-op unit sold to Ekatarina Rybolovleva a little while ago, or the 140 million pound Penthouse at One Hyde Park, Knightsbridge in London. Those are the current records, they usually go more more reasonably priced units, like 5-20 million dollars or pounds in NYC or London.

"Sprawling estate" can also mean "I own the top three floors of my building. Go ahead, try to get up there, Mister Common Street Thief."

Maybe not the common street thieves... But second story men now work twenty stories up.

That's what the TASER-brand antitheft windowsills are for. And, if the thief doesn't have an auto-deploying parachute ... that's why the city has street-cleaning machines for, too.

^_^

I'm reminded of the club level from Max Payne III now.

LoL

Not sure how an agent can stop your fake SIN from getting caught out (once it's being scanned, it's being scanned), but RAW be damned, a R6 Fake SIN *shouldn't* get caught out for routine checks ever. Just make sure you load up a different fake SIN when you're on a job and you should be golden. I'm also presuming it is a fairly nice Medium/High lifestyle pad from your description.

1) Attending yawn-worthy meetings, and going on patrol X evenings a week/month.
2) Not much I can think of offhand, I guess it depends on who else is a part of the NW group and what skills/employers they might have. I guess getting ammo and security systems attached to your pad won't look so suspicious, and perhaps your local gun/security devices store might give Neigbourhood Watch folks a discount to start with at least.
3) Pretty negligable if it is a nice area, I would think. Should the NW patrol come up against a thief or a few gangers, I would think the hardest part would be acting like a trust fund brat rather than a lethal killing machine shaddowrunner.
4) Taking over a home-baked pie might go down well ... Seriously, if you have the hacking skills to discretely check them out, you might find out about that passion for such-and-such an Urban Brawl team for the old "I happen to have some tickets ..." line of bribery or whatever ...

Sounds like quite a sweet set-up though. Good luck with your neigbourly relations!

Well here's a possible, and classic method for you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08QH3rVqokw