Why does virtually everyone wear a long-coat? Yes, I know that it adds to the concealability of you're weapons. But it sticks out like a sore thumb, except for in winter, or perpetually cold/rainy locations. And the fact that it makes it easy to conceal a weapon means that anyone wearing one is going to be looked at more.

Wearign a T-shirt, jeans and vest, with a pistol securely tucked into a concealable holster is IMHO, 100% better. You don't stand out that much, so the authorities have less of a reason to look at you carefully. And when you're drawing attention, you're already losign that "concealable" edge.

Consider dropping to a less obvious weapon. I do it all the time.

Notice that Seattle is prepetually rainy But yes, clothing should be determined by your environment. Notice that wearing your trench coat to the black tie dinner won't do either.

^shrug^ I don't know. I thought it looked cool when I saw it in all the vids. I guess I just fell in to the Fad.

Scully and Mulder looked good in their trenchcoats. Remember it is alos wise to wear a longcoat in windy places too.

Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix) showed us that you can have a lot of style wearing a long coat. And Keanu Reeves showed us you can have a lot of guns.

asking questions like that is like asking "why do Mexican mariachi bands wear sombreros?"

Because everyone wants to be their favorite Matrix character, of course.

If they have katanas and MAC-10's while doing it, all the better! Granted, doing something like that in my game means the Hand of God comes down to slap you rather than save you.

Hate katanas...so much...

Ditto. Katanaphiles...gah. Too many through my game.

I wear a trenchcoat sometimes, when its cold or windy. No one seems to look at me. Saying trenchcoats get you funny looks is like saying "You can put a small gun in a boot, so anyone wearing boots will be looked at strangely."

Yeah. When it's cold or windy. But other than that, why? And maybe you're lucky. But 'round here, trench's get you the "trenchcoat mafia" comments.

but I guess style is what's important when running. Style is what keeps your ass alive.

I wear a full length leather trenchcoat year round. Though I live in Wyoming, the wind here absolutely sucks, so it's a bit more accepted here than say, oh...Arizona.

On a social end, it goes with pretty much anything I wear. When I used to go clubbing a lot, I'd usually wear it with a black wifebeater underneath. I also used to do independent/freelance marketing. Combine the trench with black, pin stripped suit, and my leather fedora hat, and it's actually very professional.

Just my 0.02

You make a good point with blending in with one's surrondings, but if the game is in the basic setup of the seattle sprawl that t-shirt and jeans will look out of place most of the year.

http://www.beautifulseattle.com/ws02cli.htm has some resources as to what to expect weather wise.

It's driest time of year is last half of July, early August. The longest stretch of days where it's usually not raining is three to four weeks during this time.

The prevalance of long coats is a very good idea, this rain isn't exactly our rain. It's not something you're gonna wanna go singing in...

And it's usually stays overcast even when it's not raining.

Plus it's all about style. Especially with all the wanna-be runners.

Hey, I'm wearing my trenchcoat right now! I'm freaking cold, and supposed to be writing a report for English class...

The rain here is this perpetual mistlike drizzle that has the ability to get absolutely everywhere, and tends to ignore short coats. We don't carry umbrellas much, because they don't do any good. Long coats will do the trick better than windbreakers, that's for sure.

Besides which, there's lots of styles in long coats. Businessmen in khaki longcoats, as eveningwear, and so on. They're not all the tommygun trench.

Long coats are just like pants. You can wear them everywhere most of the year and there's a style that fits any occasion.


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Oh, and they work well at hiding those awesome katanas!!!!

Are you people insane? It hit 60 the other day and we ran out and rejoiced in the not-freeking-raining weather. I will be lucky if the mercury pegs 80 all summer. All two fraging months of it. *mutters*put off summer, take you out back and shoot you.

if everyone wears longcoats, then do they really stick out?

Well, personally I almost always wear a long coat of some sort irl, or a frock coat or long suit jacket. And yes, I stick out.

That said, alot of subcultures dress in specific ways and many of them incorporate long coats of one kind or another. As someone else mentioned, it is rainy in Seattle, and with acid rain I would think there's been an increase in coats treated to resist chemicals (like the Greatcoat and the Ulysses, for instance, if you're wealthy). However, if you are indoors or if you happen to be in Miami during the summer, wearing a long coat will make people look twice at you...

Yeah, insane. With six weeks of 100+ days, and rarely seeing a say from May til the end of September that's under 90, what sane person wouldn't want this?

Yeap sure is something to look forward to, and combined with the average of a half an inch of precipitation during these five months, sure makes it wonderful.

*mutters* welcoming summer, take you out back and shoot you.

Edit: It'd look a lot better if I didn't take my time and two people didn't post while I was writing

When the weather's cold, windy and rainy, (quintessential Seattle weather, as I understand it) it won't stick out so much. If it's 40 celcius and humid, you will draw attention like flies to shit, if not from the cops, from every person you walk by. Not to mention from the corporate security you talk to.

Like snowRaven said, acid rain will play into this. More people, especially those wearing expensive suits and the like, will walk around in water proof coats. With umbrellas too. IMHO, if you're out and about in a C-or lower-rating area, a cheap water-proof poncho may help you fit in better than a 500 nuyen coat.

I used to have a trench coat I wore everywhere, but in Atlanta it was more of a teen fashion statement than any real practical use.

Now I wear a barn coat if it gets cold -- not nearly as stylish, but so very warm.

And it does help present a better image than what I used to do.

-Siege

Wear your lined coat over some tres chic clothing and it looks less like you're hiding something and more like you're professional and fashion-conscious. Plus, with some form-fitting AND the coat, you're relatively safe to recieve fire and return it.

I never really thought of a long coat as a way to hide a weapon from a search but it was more of a way to hide some serious firepower before a hit. Sure your going to stick out like a sore thumb but the average dude walking down the street isn't going to do anything no matter how much you stick out as long as they don't see a weapon. The long coat also allows you to quickly change your apperance after the hit. You walk in the long coat uncover a nice shotgun do the dirty deed and ditch the shotgun coat and concealling hat you were wearing as you leave and sure you stood out on the way in but you blend in on the way out and no one suspect you.

I should also point out that long coats, given the gritty, almost sometimes noirish tone of the 2060s world, are much more in fashion that are now, and resultantly stick out much less. Given Seattle's rather notoriously rain-prone climate, doubly so.

Let's not forget that personal armor is fairly common in 2060 and long coats cover your legs.

I regularly wear a trenchcoat whenever it's chilly or drizzling, or even if it looks like it might drizzle. I got some odd looks and comments when I was still in High School, but most people had already pegged me as most likely to go on a killing spree and so it wasn't much different. That might've had something to do with the time I spent half an hour on a bus talking with a friend about various Shadowrun firearms and then noticed that our half of the bus was dead silent and everyone was staring at us.

But yeah. Unless the weather's particularly nice, no reason a longcoat would stand out.

~J

Heh, here in hawaii, at least in the urban areas, its generally atypical to wear any type of coat at all. Long coats especially. I used to be something of a wierdo in highschool, I had a nice black leather jacket bought in vegas, and a nice black trenchcoat. Wore em both, stood out all the time.

Heh, they were both daaaamn useful when I moved to Tacoma for school and work post-college though.

SR resources (Well, the 1 adventure they had in the kingdom of hawai'i) seem to indicate weather and temperature are pretty much the same as in real life, so forget about wearing that armored jacket or coat unless you really want to stand out

I almost always wear a coat or jacket of some kind, even when it's warm out. Mainly so I can put stuff in the extra pockets.

But after wearing sandals all winter, then wearing a coat and shorts, I think people have gotten used to how I dress at this point.

Well i normaly wear regardless of weather is a coat down to the knees, which is over a hoodie with the hood down (keeping my neck warm) Plus i know a lot people who are into there metal and goth stuff to always be wearing long black coats (mainly of leather)

Up here in the frozen north, prime runners wear parks most of the time while on business. Its warm and conceals lots of weapons. I keep a pistol under my toque.

I did it just the other day. And i was looking pretty delectable, if i do say so myself.

"Long coats" aren't just trenchcoats, either. Naval pea coats, navy greatcoats, and suit overcoats are all "long". So are evening overcoats.

Long, to me, says at least mid-thigh. Not necessarily below the knee. Keep in mind that every "long" coat isn't going to be the same color, length, style, thickness, etc. So although the may be more than a few people tramping around in "long" coats, they're not all in Neo-style battle dress. They may, in fact, look nothing alike.

Doesn't the long coat description say its like a duster? I don't think a Peacoat would qualify. Most of those I've seen end at the waist.

LIKE a duster, yes. How long a duster, i would say, is up to the purchaser. Just like the color, style, and all that from my last diatribe.

It is, but a duster must be at least knee length. Any higher and we're talking about a different article of clothing. Dusters are also traditionally much lighter than true long coats.

I still wouldn't call a peacoat a long coat. I'd call it an Armored Jacket.

And you would be right as a result of that.

For my part, in San Diego wearing a trenchcoat gets me put in the "freaking weirdo" column. But in 2063 Seattle, I have a runner turned fixer who will hand out Secure Longcoats and sunglasses to runners that are fashion roadkill. It does help that Seattle is perpetually rainy and/or overcast though...

You mean a 'light' coat that comes down to at least the thighs and is used to cover your Easter dress?

Hey, who you sayin' wears dresses, punk? That's just for Saturday nights.