This will be the OOC thread for the entire campaign. Right now, I need you guys to compare notes and build a history together. You'll need to establish trust and friendship, fraternity and camaraderie. You've all worked together as a group for years, and are intimately familiar with each other, both in terms of character and capabilities. Add new chapters to your background to include your teammates. Share contacts. Learn to respect each other. You guys are going to start as one of the best shadowrunning teams in Seattle, and I'll be trusting you to act accordingly.

While you're working on that, I'll be dealing with your character sheets one by one and email or PM any problems to you. From now until the IC thread for the first run is up, you have the option of changing things on your sheet around if you decide that there is a need for it.

One last thing: you guys also need to figure out amongst yourselves who is going to lead the group. The game will not start until you've reached a unanimous decision.

Well, I guess I'll start off, I'll post up Blaze's history and we can figure out how to all work each other into it.

Appearance & Personality:
Blaze is short for a human; she stands only 154 centimeters, roughly five feet tall, and weighs in at a slight 40 kilos. She has a perpetually small frame from living on the streets through puberty, though she has filled out slightly. Her red hair is usually worn cut short, barely falling to the nape of her neck, it frames her heart shaped face. Her eyes are a pale blue. Blaze wears only the most fashionable clothing available, she does tend to dress down if she is going to be on the streets, mostly discrete Kevlar lined skin tight jeans and tops, with a Leather jacket to top off the rest of the outfit. She wears quite a few pieces of jewelry, though all of those have mystical significance. A silver ring on her right hand is capable of sustaining her heightened reflexes that put her on even footing with some of the fastest reflexes money can buy. A ruby locket focuses defensive energies for her to wield with her advanced knowledge of spell defense. There are also a variety of other minor rings and earrings serving as fetishes, but the other thing of note is a belt pouch that doesn’t leave her side containing quite a few expendable foci.

Blaze is almost always accompanied by an orange tabby cat, or by an athletic red haired man. This is actually her familiar spirit, Sparks, whose astral form is that of a fiery phoenix. She dotes on Sparks, treating him as a friend and confidant, even occasionally as a lover. Sparks is almost the opposite of Blaze in temper, where Blaze is impulsive, temper-mental, and rash, Sparks, is almost always calm and serene, not to mention playful.


History:
Samantha lived on the streets for as long as she could remember; first, eking out an existence by begging and scavenging as well as from missions, her childhood was a constant search for food, for shelter, and to avoid the predators that stalked the weak. At the age of 9 or so, she started to hang around with members of a gang called the Asphalt Kings, especially one of the lieutenants, a large elf going by the street name Banister. Over the next few years, as Sam grew up part of the gang, they started to pimp her out, lord knows there is enough depravity on the street for pedophiles to thrive. The Kings also got Sam hooked on Bliss. To her, this was all just living on the streets, she didn’t see it as wrong, and she really did consider the Kings her friends, and even family.

The Kings made it big when they hooked up with a mid-level crime boss named Caruzzi who dealt in pornography, especially sim chips. Naturally they set Sam up to be part of it, taking her to a street doc to get implanted with all manner of sim-ware. As the surgery started, Sam’s body violently rejected the touch of the cyberware, and the doctor not wanting to torque of Caruzzi called in a favor with a mage he knew to find out what was going on. The Magician, a specialist in the element of air, named Falcon, was able to read Sam’s aura and determine that she was awakened. The kings were pleased with this, they figured they could get Falcon to train her, and then they’d have a lot more magical muscle. Falcon quickly disabused them of the notion, and with a few threats, she was able to carry Sam off to her coven. A heal spell was enough to undo the damage that the incomplete surgery had done to her body, leaving her essence whole and un-inhibited by cyber.

Sam spent the next 15 days in a withdrawal-induced haze of pain, fading into and out of consciousness. On dawn of the 15th day, Sam truly awoke, for the first time in a long time, completely clean. She slipped into a steaming bathtub, and washed away the sweat and filth of the streets. Next to the bed was a pair of Jean and a t-shirt in Angel’s size, which she quickly put on, along with her jacket. That’s when she noticed that she wasn’t alone; Falcon had entered the room, as well as another pair of women who introduced themselves as Stone and Roan. They explained everything to Sam, and she quickly agreed to being taught to use magic and join the coven.

Each of Sam’s tutors had their own style and personality. All of the coven were Elemental mages specializing in different elements, the elements that suited their personality most, Falcon was the most thoughtful, always asking questions. Stone was a dark skinned human woman big enough to be a troll, who could be as stubborn as her namesake. Roan was an elf whose grace was almost as fluid and smooth as water, a true master of Illusions.

Over the course of the next two years, the coven taught Sam all the magical skills that she would need, and on the 2-year anniversary of joining the Coven, she was fully initiated into the group, taking the name of Blaze. The coven lives together in a large building in a middle class area of the city. The building serves as a workshop, living quarters for the group, and as a business office. The group operates a magical supply shop as well as contracting out work in warding and summoning elementals. Since her first initiation, Blaze has been a full member of the coven. The coven has a few strictures, mainly fraternity, all of the members of the coven treat each other as sisters, bonded to each other by more then blood, they also all pay to maintain the coven’s home. Since Blaze’s first initiation at 19, she has started to run the Shadows for excitement, and also for the simple pleasure of having money after her life on the streets. It was actually the Asphalt Kings who introduced her to her team of runners; she was visiting with them when the runners hired the gang to provide a distraction. She was picked up for the rest of the run when the team’s shaman was too injured to continue the run. She has worked with the team ever since.

Blaze has continued to advance in her magical abilities with the help of the coven, and has only recently initiated again, taking on the immense responsibility of summoning an Ally spirit. Blaze is quite pleased by her Ally Spirit, Sparks, who resembles a firebird in his astral form. She spent over a month making sure that everything went just right in his summoning, and she dotes on him like a parent.

The Paladin

Description
Even for an Ork, Paladin is a large customer, but for all his muscle and bulk, he can move like a cat. He used to have a fairly average look about him, but a year ago that all changed, the SURGE took him. It wasn’t like Paladin to leave his phone unanswered for so long, so someone in the group decided to go check up on him. What the found was quite the sight. Paladin’s skin had changed to a pitch black tone. His eyes changed to a glittering gold hue. His hair was like gold wires and small golden scales grew across his forehead, shoulders, elbows, and the back of his hands. But none of that compared to the most shocking change of all, he was now Dual Natured. Since the change took him, Paladin has taken to wearing bulkier clothing to cover him when he goes out. He added a large hood to his long coat to keep his features hidden as much as possible. When on a run, it normally doesn’t matter, as he wears a full body camo suit with ruthenium built into it.

Personality
Paladin has always been trustworthy and caring to all his friends. He holds strong to his ethics of no wetwork and puts every effort into making sure he doesn’t have to kill anyone on a run. All gloves are off though when it comes to the scum of the underworld. Paladin has made a hobby of tracking down the worst of the worst and ‘dealing’ with them. Paladin is a named feared by all serial killers, rapists, and their like. His ethics and skill have earned him a superior street reputation.

Skills
Paladin is 5th grade Adept. His skill with a pole arm is incredible and he can hold his own with a pistol any day. He has some skill in kung fu, but prefers to use his staff in melee. Paladin spent quite a lot of time, outside of his physical training, mastering the mystics of meditation. In his study, he has become quite adept in both Psychometry and Divining. He is adept in athletics and a master with stealth. He has studied the Ork Underground for years and knows it like the back of his hand. His knowledge is magical Threats is surpassed by few. Paladin is also fluent in English, Spanish, and Japanese. As far as his adept powers go, he is blindingly fast, impossible to sneak up on, leaves no trace wherever he walks, can quick draw weapons that he should be able to do so with, and has many improved senses. He also has a rare power of Tracking.

Gear
Paladin does have a light amount of cyberware and bioware, rare in the awakened. His most prized item is his staff. It was a gift from the leaders of the Ork Underground, for his years of service to their cause. It is a level 2 foci and highly customized. At one end of the staff there is a retractable spear point and at the other end a retractable sword blade. The rest of his gear consists of a pair of Predator 3s, his ‘stealth suit’, a highly customized ATV, plus a few other odds and ends.

Contacts
Orc Underground:
Just after going AWOL, Paladin exposed himself to the one man he thought he could trust, the man he was sent to kill. His name turned out to be Martin, but his last name was Cole. Paladin explained to Cole what he was sent to do and also why he decided not to. A great friendship was born that day. Paladin took to working at Cole’s bodyguard at rallies and helping guard the Underground from attacks.

Lone Star Officer:
Paladin had taken upon himself to be a kind of vigilantly. If he hears anything on the news about a serial killer or a serial rapist, he does what he can to try to find that person and make them suffer for their crimes. Lt. Ralph Dickens was hot on the trail of the Tacoma Torturer, one of the sickest mass murderers that Seattle had ever dealt with. When he finally tracked the killer to his underground lair, he found Paladin beating the killer to a pulp. Paladin agreed to hand the murderer over to the Lt. and take him into custody. Ever since that day, the Lt. has had a great deal of respect for Paladin and the two often do favors for each other.

Fixer:
If you work in the Shadows, everyone knows a Fixer. Paladin met Leo Gettz through a friend, having heard that Leo doesn’t deal in jobs that involve wetwork, which is something Paladin respected. They have a working friendship. Paladin knows he can trust Leo not to send him on bogus jobs and Leo knows he can trust Paladin to get the job done.

Armorer & Weaponsmith:
The Smith Brothers have a shop in the Orc Underground. They can make just about any type of armor or weapon you need to get your hands on and have a rep for being guys that keep their mouth shut. Paladin gets all his weapons and armor from the Smith Brothers.

Detective:
Mr. Walker is a private dick. When people can’t find something, they go to Mr. Walker to have it found. Paladin has used Mr. Walkers services a few times when he was trying to track down where any of his vigilantly targets live.

History
Asset DC598 always loved his job. He was cold, calculating, and fast. He was the best assassin Ares had. Then they sent him someplace he wouldn't ever return from.

The job was a simple one. There was some leader down in the Orc Underground, some modern day Martin Luther King Jr., was causing problems. He kept claiming that Ares was a racist company and in return, Ares wanted him eliminated. Being that Asset DC598 was an Orc, he seemed the perfect assassin to go into the Underground. That was their mistake. Asset DC598 tracked the leader's every move for a month. Also during that time, he heard every speech and message the orc leader had to give. It spoke to Asset DC598, the message reached him, down to his soul, and told him that what he was doing was wrong.

Asset DC598 went AWOL. He left his old life of assassination behind him and decided to take the high road. He used his time and skills to help those who couldn't help themselves. He went to O.R.C. demonstrations and stood up for the rights of his people. He was doing what was right and with his old life dead, so was his name. Now he was Paladin.

Since joining up with the team, Paladin slowly let them know of his history. With Ares hunting him down, he thought it best that they know, in case the old enemy shows up. Thus far he has been able to elude the corporation with only a few close calls.

Belmont

IC Excerpt

"This isn’t one of those geeky goth-kids-grows-up-to-be-a-hero stories. It’s not one of those coming of age through magic stories, either. I wish it were. I wish to whatever gods there are that it were. This is just my life. I live it every day, and every night. I don’t hate it, but I don’t love it, either. If you think you know shadowrunners, you don’t know me. I do the work that most teams are too prissy to take. I do the work that would make a hardened street sam wet himself. I handle the scary drek. My name is Belmont, and I’m a hunter.

"I’m that guy you sometimes see walking alone in the streets at night, and you think, “time to cross to the other sidewalk.” I might not be that big, but I know trolls who can’t bring themselves to look me in the eye. I wear sunglasses most of the time because people say my eyes scare them. Don’t know why. Guess they’ve just seen too much. ‘Course, you can’t see much at night with sunglasses on, so I kind of peer over at least one of the lenses. I think that must scare folks worse. Maybe it’s the hat. I keep my hair short. You won’t believe the drek I’ve been up to my eyes in.

"I bet you’ve seen trids or chipped sims. I bet you know what hunting paracritters is all about. Let me tell you, it’s not so glamorous. When you climb out of whatever hole you’ve just been in, there’s no helicopter waiting, no Rolls Royce with a wet bar around the block, and no babe waiting for you back home in a hot tub. There’s just my bike, unless some gangers stole it, and a sealed box I can keep whatever godforsaken animal’s head I’ve just taken in until I can claim the bounty. Then it’s home to my doss, where I can at least try to get clean, but you try sleeping. I don’t know if the dreams get better with time. So far they haven’t. And that’s when things have worked out right. When you’re down in a storm drain after a pack of ghouls, they’re the least of your fears. First you’ve got the drek, then the filthy syringes, then the razoredge tin cans folks have dumped. Use plastic, you fraggers! It’s the goddamed future!

"I’m a cynic. You got that right."

Quick Profile

Belmont is a shaman (Wild Huntsman) and an expert in para-affairs (magical theory, parabotany, parazoology, etc.). He is slightly more brains that brawn, but can hold his own in a firefight.

Rather than relying on his magic for strength, he uses it to gain a tactical advantage, preferring to immobilize prey before taking it out with his mundane skills. He is a man who has known fear and prevailed. He is a man who has seen both sides of the sanity coin, and is (so far) keeping his life under control. You can expect well-reasoned behavior and coolness under fire from Belmont. Although by nature a loner, his experiences with Terpsichore have nudged Belmont into a team player.

Recently, Belmont has joined with the Terpsichore magical group (fairly well-off academic types, mostly Idol-totem shamans, with an agenda which entails capture and destruction of paracritters) and initiated twice with the group.

Specs

Belmont is competent with the shotgun and net gun.

List o' spells (spell, exclusive/fetish) force:

Stunbolt 4
Detox (E) 6
Heal 4
Detect Life (E) 3
Physical Mask 4
Levitate (E) 4
Laser (E) 4
Detect Magic 3
Detect Enemies 5
Translate (E) 5
Chaotic World 5
Sterilize (E) 3
Glue Strip (E) 5
Mass Agony 5
Heal (E) 5

Metamagics: sheilding, masking

Contacts

Lv. 1 "Melon" (A barrens tech wiz who has seen gangs come and go in his neighborhood, but always maintained a soft spot in his heart for the weaker members of the gangs. A comely ork, Melon keeps to his own, making a living doing repairs for gangers and residents. His name comes from a head injury sustained during a motorcycle race. He argues the wound has merely added to his genius)

Lv. 1 Dr. Krevslavsk (A shadowy figure of the finest kind, the good doctor is a professor of biothaumatology at Seattle U. In addiiton to his public life as a professor and academic, Krevslavsky has a burning interest in the occult. A fire-bringer shaman himself, Krevslavsky is dedicated to understanding the biological processes involved in para-expression)

Lv. 2 Terpsichore (Terpsichore is a magical society, in which Dr. Krevslavksy is a major player. Belmont has joined forces with the group to enhance his own powers and aid them in advancing their agenda.


I'd rather not be the leader of the team. Belmont can be a little bit sulky, and is not the most motivating person. He offers support, not leadership.

edit: this is the magic-heavy group I've always wanted to be part of.

Blaze specs:

• Grade 3 Initiate
• Fire Elementalist
• +2 to combat Spells
• -1 to illusions

Metamagics

• Centering
• shielding
• masking

Foci

• Shielding 3
• Force 1 Sustaining Foci (Reflexes +3)

Spells

• Mana bolt 6 (Fetish)
• Spiritbolt 6 (Fetish)
• Stunball 6
• Fireball 6 (Exclusive)
• Increase Reflexes +3; 1
• Heal 6 (Exclusive)
• Improved Invis. 6 (Fetish)
• Fashion 4 (Exclusive)
• Armor Force 6 (Fetish)
• Control Thoughts 5 (Fetish) [traded for levitate and a fetish on armor]

Sparks

• Force 4 Ally Spirit
• 3 Karma Pool dice
• Fireball 6
• Heal 6
• Firebird (Phoenix Form)
• Orange Tabby Cat form
• Human form (a very athletic, and especially attractive brown haired form)

So is this an open game...and if it is...you guys willing to put up with a newbie like me? I have a good share of world knowledge from freeform games on RP boards, but my only practice with the rules has been the past three Dragon*Cons.

And I still can't believe Shadowrun isn't in the forum spell checker...

Sorry, players have already been picked out for this one.

I'll offer up Paladin to take the slot as Team Leader. He has experiance as a leader within the Ork Underground (he headed up their security for a while). He's also got the good rep to back it all up. If someone comes along that is better suited for the role though, I've got no problem with that.

Darn...guess I have to be quicker...wish there was an easier way to tell which threads are recruiting...

Usually the first post will give guidelines for character creation and ask for people to submit characters, etc... At the moment I don't think anyone has a new game open, but keep a look out for new threads. You can also subscribe to the forum so you know when new threads are opened up.

BACKGROUND:

The individual born as Nathan Edward Sutton has had a somewhat confused existence. Born in London to English parents, he lived there for but a year before moving with them to Washington DC. The move was part of a Staff Exchange program between the British “Transys Neuronet” and a small Washington company specializing in high-tech items.

As it turned out, the normally “well-behaved” Transys had set up the entire situation to snare for themselves one of the other company’s greatest meat-assets, sending out the Sutton family as rather poor compensation.

Alas, for young Nathan, his father was charged with being an accessory to kidnapping when the scientist could not be found (his lawyers having failed to convince the jurors of any corporate culpability). He went to prison for a mere 6 years, but that was enough for the rest of the family – mother and son – to create a life there in the UCAS. Once out of prison, the father rejoined them and they decided to remain in the states rather than return to the dubious embrace of their parent corporation.

Having suffered the “loss” of his father at such a young age, Nathan or “Ned” grew up quite independent, his mother seldom spending enough time with him. Even after the family was once again whole, he would stay away from home for long periods and, once he was old enough, frequently travelled to whatever countryside could be found to hide himself away amongst the trees. That’s not to say of course, that he was a “back to the land” freak, though…

Ned had a curiosity with “appliances” from an early age. He would take them apart and put them back together. Then he would repeat the process until he could make them work again. He started – as tinkerers are wont to do – with the light things like toasters and kitchen appliances, but soon he had graduated to highly technical items like the family trid unit – and had a discount card for the local Electronics Hardware Store.
What with his taste for the outdoors and his affinity for fixing things, it seemed a natural course for him to think about things like associated careers. Both the Military and the path of a Scientist of some description were considered. He, of course, decided for the most glamorous of all – a delivery driver.

Working almost every hour he could, Ned started to amass good savings from his job at the Hardware store he so loved. What with his staff discount, he quickly managed to get his hands on some amazing toys and started to develop skills he would later employ as a Shadowrunner – by performing “innocent” tasks like putting spy cameras in the ladies changing rooms at the local pool. But it did not end there.

He quickly found that he liked the rush of doing “questionable” things with his toys. It became an all-encompassing hobby. That is until he found he could make hard cash with it.

As a young man who would not be recognised as a member of the local shadow community, Ned was approached by a Shadowrunning team and asked to place some cameras for them as part of a run they were involved in against a low-rent casino and it’s dodgy owners. Although he was initially (and understandably) concerned, he gave in – and found that he enjoyed the work almost as much as the cash they gave him for it!

He now had a vocation to set his heart on.

Job after job started to come his way – not just the criminal but the mundane too – and a small fortune of gear was eventually amassed in his doss, his van, and inside his skull as he went under the surgeon’s knife more than a few times. As the “shadier” jobs came and went he became more and more embroiled in that lifestyle until he was a wired-up, gun toting maniac… well, almost. He made a living with his technical skills, expanding to fill the role of a “battlefield medic” for his team as well.

Even now, with a goodly number of runs under his belt, Ned – also known as TekNed or Cypher – still considers himself fairly innocent, and far more of a “Technical Coordinator” than anything else – and he certainly wouldn’t claim to be a combative expert.


Personality:

Ned is a compulsive tinkerer. He will sit in his down-time with a cigarette in his mouth and his hands all over a dismembered machine. Not interested enough in vehicles to be a rigger or computers for decking, he is primarily interested in things that make life easier – from sandwich toasters to illegal entry equipment.

In terms of his demeanour, he can be very changeable. He will switch at little notice from being bright, playful and quippy to being sullen and withdrawn. The only thing that can be certain is that he will always rise to a technical challenge.

A note on his tri-fold name:

“Cypher” is the name by which he goes in professional circles. Although it is more appropriate, probably, to one whose profession is more computerised, he just likes the sound of it. It also fits with his hobby for collecting linguasofts.

“TekNed” is the name he goes by in social circles – the sort of monicker he would use in a team. Since “Ned” is a contraction of his first two real names, it denotes his comfort with a person or persons that he introduces himself thus. The “Tek is for obvious reasons.

The “Fat Controller” nickname (and tattoo) were bestowed upon him by the first SR crew with whom he worked. The Leader of the team said the youngster needed a “code name” and the jest stuck. But when he joined the team at a post-run drinking binge, the decker got his hands on him – and an old screenshot – and the rest is history. Generally, he only takes kindly to very good friends and family calling him this name.

Question for the group at large, what exactly do we have in the range of abilities?

1 Fire Elemental Specialist (Full Mage)
1 WildHuntsman Shaman (Full Shaman I believe?)
1 Uhh? Rigger? Decker? (what exactly is he?)
1 Adept heavy on the combat(melee)

What are these guys in terms of archtype?
Lance Hemmingway
Kolas

On a side note, I am going to redo Blaze's karma expenditures. With Belmont only being grade 2, we can't really cover everyone with Shielding, and if this adventure is as tough as I believe people have said it is we will need it, and I'm not entirely certain on the whole Ally spirit anyway. I'll use the Karma to initiate 5 times then pick up some more spells to cover what we don't have. At a loss for exactly which 5 metamagics to take, I know the first 3, Masking, Shielding, and Centering, but after those 3, not sure, maybe cleansing and filtering? What do you guys think, it seems like we have divination and psychometry covered.

Kolas is a face, light combat, light rigging. More to come this evening... computer is being difficult.

November 10, 2062--Personal Journal.

Well, it's official, I have made it to twenty-four. The gods only know how I got this far. I may be over-exaggerating, but I feel entitled...it's been a long week--Hell, it's been a long couple of years. I probably shouldn't waste time rehashing things that I already know but if I have to write in this thing, I may as well say what's on my mind.

The complications started about two years ago when I left the Draco Foundation to become an independent. If I had been smart enough to follow the track my parents laid out for me, I would already be married with a son crawling around the nursery. But we know how well-laid plans go when they are exposed to life. Growing up in Seattle, I figured I would be a shoe in for the corporate track--I spoke three languages, was classically educated, in addition to my strong understanding of how corporations played together in the Corporate Court. What I never counted on was the reality of the myth behind "Shadowrunning"...

Within four years of working for the Draco Foundation, I had gotten to the point that I was meeting independently with runners for my supervisor when she didn't have time. Looking at the budgets that were allotted to such activities, I realized what a person could actually do with that kind of money. All the modifications I could make to my Brumby...or the clothes I could buy...

Those budgets finally pushed me to make the choice to run the shadows, but unlike some of the people that I had hired in the past, I was going to be the runner with a heart of gold--use it as a sideline job until I hit it big. I'm still waiting for the big payoff, Jessica never seems to be offering the same amount that I saw in the budgets when I worked for her.

October 28, 2062--Personal Journal

Koji came through for me! The worm he slipped into the Ballefour system just completed its payload dump and shut the system down. The team and I are about to make the hit. I never thought this would all build up from me pointing out the two goons in the car down the street from Mr. Yin and his Johnson du jour. Apparently that one had made the mistake of screwing over a few runners, and the data trail led back to some pets of Ballefour. Let's just pray that Mama Fortuna was right...

September 19, 2062--Personal Journal

I sent a bottle of the wine I picked up from San Remo over to Kelly. The new paint job came in for the Brumby, it is so sweet--I can change the color to match my outfit. I just need to go pick up my baby this afternoon. Work's been slow--Dragonsclaw was fun, completely unrealistic but fun. A dragon filling her lair with nuclear bombs, what's next an IE who drags a bunch of runners into the Astral planes? Streets of Rage was good though--that and the question of intevention in the Yucatan were all the buzz when I was in the "Whiskey Sour". Now there's a bar that I could get used to...Old Fashioned gentleman's club...only problem is that it's on the East coast, which is a little far for a drink after work.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Born in Vancouver, Kolas moved south to Seattle at age 6. Both of his parents are still alive. They live in Seattle and work for the Draco Foundation, but have disowned their son due to his choice to become a criminal rather than stay within the corporation.

At 5'10" and in his mid-20s, he looks like a thousand other people. His off-setting differences are the clean lines and perfect posture that but for a genetic tic, would have made him a model. Kolas is very classic in his dress choice, warm fall and rich winter colors accent the tones of his skin. His major quirk is that the muscles around his mouth don't work in unison all of the time--this gives his smiles the sense of a playful smirk.

He lives in Capital Hill. A small 2 bedroom on the north side, it has the perfect acoustics to hear his neighbors screaming at 2 am.

Kolas is the type of person that believes the Shadows are a money making scheme. That said he won't go out of his way to kill or maim corp guards or innocent bystanders because they all have families like his own. The groups of Organized crime all know what they signed up for when they chose their lines of work--may God have mercy on their souls.

I just noticed, guys, that I failed to give a physical description… but to answer your question first:

Ned is sort of a… well… he’s an… erm…

I dunno. He’s not a decker by any means, though he does have a ‘jack. He’s got a big van, but no VCR (and a Car skill of 1, so no combat there, thanks…). Conceptually, he’s a mish-mash of various themes taken from my own imagination as well as the TV and Film world. Probably a little less "uber" than the rest of the characters, I invisage him as a jack-of-all-trades backup and support character. If you want pointers, try these:

“Aliens:” Ghorman co-ordinating the fire-teams from the safety of the APC, and the “Hudson – run a bypass” quote. Ned is both these things as required – B&E and RL (non-decking) over-watch, as well as a competent medic.

Add into that a good dose of jungle survivalist, and a big fraggin’ shotgun (hey, even if he doesn’t think of himself as a combat specialist, doesn’t mean he’s a wimp…) and a tendency to fiddle with tech on whimsy, with an eye for pranks.


Okay, here’s the description:

Male human, approximately six feet tall with shoulder length sandy-blonde hair. Although his eyes used to be blue, the cyber replacements have black irises, lending them a little mystery (or so he thinks).

Ned keeps in good shape, although he is neither as strong nor as sturdy as he could be. He takes pride in his appearance and is by no means ugly – though he hasn’t the social confidence to be a “face” type.
He has two tattoos - the Fat Controller (from "Thomas the Tank Engine") on his left buttock and a male, warrior aspected Angel on his right bicep – like a stylised “Michael.”

He’s a chain smoker, although he has enough will to avoid it on the job, and is never without ciggys and a lighter.

Finally, he has an obnoxious item of clothing that he always wears – a reversible armoured jacket. Black on the “inside” for sneaky jobs, but the normal, everyday side is covered with bright red and yellow checks. A real pain to the eyes.

For those who have posted your histories already: you're going to need to link it up with at least one other member of the team. Every extra person beyond the first will be worth 1 karma point. Stuff you'll probably want to include would be how you two met, your previous dealings with each other, and why you decided to run together. Work it out here if you want the rest of the team to know, or by PM or email if you want to keep it private.

Oh yeah, karma. Karma will be awarded as per the standard guidelines. Posting at least once a day will net you a point a week. Consistent quality posting will be worth 3 per run. I also reserve the right to hand out karma on the spot for pulling off stunts that are just plain cool.

Copied and pasted from my sheet.

LONG STORY SHORT
The full bio and whatnot is below. This part sums up who Lance is and what he does. Handy for people who just want to skim or don't want to read long paragraphs.

Physical Appearance: Tanned skin troll with grey hair and beard, green eyes. 2.4m tall, extremely buff. 40+ years old.
Personality: Okay...for a troll samurai. Had some teeth removed as well as horns. May speak as humans. Protective of his team. Would dive on a grenade to save the team, and has done so in the past. Is always cautious because former corp team always died on him.
Biography: Orphaned and picked up by understanding parents. Parents get killed in paranormal animal attack. Lance wanders off and kills all responsible paraanimals. Law reels him in. Drafted into Megacorp as soldier. Survives on hellish missions others don't. Finally goes solo after half his life. Rescues a kid on the street, comes full circle. Needs money to run.
Archetype: Troll Tank / Parahunter. Technically samurai. Should be able to help in spirit battles with elemental laser. Other than that, the usual heavy stuff applies - HMGs, assault cannons, etc.

Biography
Lance’s story is a well-known one, almost akin to a bad trid action drama. Orphaned at an early age, the Troll was picked up by a wealthy altruistic family who sympathized with metahumanity. They lived relatively well for several years. When Lance was 10 years of age, they tried very hard to get him into a school but always in vain. Around this time, the father of the family’s startup business was dying, slowly edged out by the megacorps. Besides that, repeated attacks by the humanis policlub forced the family to move into a regular apartment of the sprawl. Lance was 12 by then, and spent the days looking for a job and self-teaching himself what little he could.

On a very lucky break, he landed a gritty job at the docks moving about heavy cargo for peanuts in salary. But it was still a job. His own family struggled to regain employment, and Lance was all they had. Lance did what he could – he loved his family and even at that young age, felt that it was his fault they had to move. He worked as hard as he possibly could.

Then one day, on his 13th birthday, Lance came home to find the house in an utter mess. Panicking, he dropped his groceries and ran through the small apartment, eventually finding his way to the master bedroom where he saw what little bloody pieces remained of his foster parents. At that moment, he snapped.

The star came by to investigate. It was, after all, a good neighbourhood all in all. They promised Lance justice would be done. They threw the case out the moment they stepped out of his door, and Lance knew it. The troll wandered back into the bedroom, counting back the clues the officers gathered and searching around on his own. Paranormal animals, they said.

Lance had no money left to pay rent, not that it mattered to him anyway. His parents were dead and he had nothing else to live for in life. He wandered into the streets with naught but the clothes on his back, lost in fear, despair and anger. He lost his way in the streets, grew cold and hungry, found a nice corner to sit and rot with the rest of the trash.

Something woke him up. Something snarled in the shadows. The troll opened his eyes wearily, getting to his feet. He was alone in an alley in the worst part of the sprawl in the middle of the night, unarmed and unarmoured. The snarling grew louder, and out of the darkness a pack of hellhounds descended upon the troll. The paw prints left marks in the sandy concrete much akin to the ones left on the carpet back in the bedroom.

Suddenly Lance didn’t want to die anymore. But the hounds sure as hell were going to.

The young troll let loose a horrible warcry as fury consumed him. The first hound leapt at him and clenched its’ razor sharp jaws around his left thigh, not letting go. The troll didn’t even flinch, heck, he didn’t even feel the pain. With a massive hand he grabbed the skull of the hound and slowly placed more and more pressure, crushing it slowly between his hands. The hound whimpered, and it’s skull shattered in twain. Two more hounds lunged at him, but the troll bat one out of the air and tore off the other that grabbed his arm, then threw it out of the alley with incredible force. The hound sailed through the air and landed on the road, promptly reduced to roadkill by the late night traffic.

Lance’s fury continued a good three minutes as he fended off the entire pack with his bare hands and a little help from a rusting steel pipe. He beat the carcasses until there was nothing left to beat, the entire alley filled with blood. Then he felt a sharp pain on his back, and collapsed into unconsciousness.

He awoke in an interrogation room at Lone Star’s police headquarters. They had received reports of a troll on a rampage and sedated him. It might have been the drugs, but Lance didn’t feel angry anymore. He felt, cold, detached and unfeeling. He barely answered as the officers asked him questions, his sight lingering lazily beyond them. His SIN checked out and the officers were about to release him when a corporate walked through the door. The corper was a young elf in snazzy shades and sharp threads and an apparent snarky attitude when he fingered the officers out of the room.

“So, troll.” He began, taking a seat on the other side of the interrogation table. Lance stared back blankly, silently, as if he was on drugs or didn’t speak English.
“I saw a trid security cam feed of your stunt, and for an amateur like you that was very impressive.” The suit sounded genuinely impressed. The troll’s expression didn’t change.
“…Alright. Alright, I’ll cut to the chase. My company has need of assets like you, capable young men who can take care of themselves and their opposition. I know you don’t have a job, and you’ve lost your family – may their souls rest in peace” The suit makes a sign of the cross “So I am here to offer you a job, another chance at life.”
“Sell my soul to a corp?” The troll finally spoke up in a slow, slurred voice, his eyes now shifting onto the elf before him. The elf responded by raising his hands in the air.
“Well, my friend, I will admit it will take time to pay off the debt when we train you and issue you cybernetics and equipment necessary for the job…”
“Huh. Yer letting a troll earn his pay back?”
“I am a man of my word. You shall have it in writing.”
“I’ll take it.”

Lance was absorbed into Ares. He picked up skills very quickly and had all manner of Miltech ware installed in him. His personality was already shattered, and all the metal in him didn’t make him any cheerier. Lance wasn’t a smart man, but he was cunning, and he had common sense. With his wage and pay he would never pay off his debt to Ares, but he negotiated with his superior, the elf who recruited him, anyway. The suit scoffed at his requests but when Lance kept coming back alive from suicide assignments in one piece when the rest of the firewatch team was obliterated, he began to take notice.

The suit slowly gained a fascination with this strange troll. He sent him to the furthest reaches of the Earth to protect Ares’ interests and other … assignments. From Cuban jungles to the volatile Southeast Asia to black ops in the heart of Tir territory, the troll refused to die when everyone around him did. The pay, both hazard and regular, and the bounty slowly began to build up. Hundreds upon thousands of dead enemies and paranormal threats were to his credit. The troll cared nothing for his environment, his comrades or his work. He focused on the study of paranormal critters and threats, everything else was secondary.

It only took him half his lifetime to pay off the million he owed in debt. Usually in these circumstances the suit would screw you over and force you to work with the company, but this elf suit in particular was impressed. And he was indeed a man of his word. Of course, the fact that the department was getting nervous of the this troll that refused to die didn’t help matters. Firewatch even formally requested that he be ejected from the corp. And so, 25 years later, Lance emerged from the corporations with his body and sanity still just barely intact.

Lance was 37 years old now, getting on in the years as a troll. His hair was turning gray and his beard grew ever longer. He tried to use his remaining wealth to get a place to sleep and eat, but he felt just as detached and cold as he was before. He had killed thousands of creatures in his line of duty, sentient or otherwise. Even as the bodies piled and razed before him, the troll found little peace in revenge.

One fine day, he walked out of his home to shop for food, and stumbled across a scene that he had seen many times before in his life. A metahuman kid was being picked on by a gang of larger and older guys. Imagine that, a little dwarf girl on the ground right in front of you being kicked mercilessly by half a dozen troll gangers. He would have walked away, back on duty such occurrences didn’t warrant a single sliver of attention from him. But he wasn’t on duty anymore.

If he had been carrying a weapon the entire gang would have been dead.

He wasn’t sure why he was doing it anymore. He wasn’t sure of anything. He was just as lost as he was when he had lost his parents in a freak accident. But when you’ve beaten down an entire gang with nothing but your massive fists, you aren’t really thinking anyway.

The gangers lay sprawled and bloody on the pavement around him. Saying nary a word, he pick up the bloodied girl and cradled her carefully in his arms, and walked all the way to the closest public hospital. Naturally people were skeptical when a hulking troll walks in with a bloodied girl in his hands. They draw guns on him and wheel the girl away for emergency. Lance looked at the officers before him with the same soulless stare he has perpetually on his face. He didn’t care anymore. He saved a life…and he felt better.

That was the first time in 25 years he felt at peace with the world. He looked down at his bloodstained hands and the expression stare gave way to a soft smile. He had made a difference in his own little way.

It seemed his life had come full circle. His SIN checked out and the suit actually came down to the station to pay him a visit. The suit had shown little signs of aging compared to the troll. They stopped to chat after that, the suit still very interested in how the life of this particular troll would unravel and was quite surprised to find him more alive than he had ever been in his 25 years of duty.

The next day, Lance headed down to the hospital. The girl was abandoned in the barrens with no parents or SIN and was under life support. Lance paid her medical bills and got her legally registered with a SIN, then fronting a bit of cash, adopted her. He would have left her with a foster family, but the little girl would absolutely not let the troll out of her sight. In truth, Lance was glad and wouldn’t have it any other way.

Years passed and Lance is in his twilight, but still as fit and strong as can be, with a teenage daughter who looks up at him as some kind of hero. He has softened up and regained his humanity nicely in the years but he lacks things to do at home. His daughter, who had taken the name Ally Hemmingway, was making many friends in school. Through her many connections, she came to know a fixer, who then became her boyfriend. Lance took a liking to her fixer boyfriend, a smooth talking ork named Fredrick. Freddy explained how he was a fixer, and after hearing about Lance’s altruistic streak from the girl he saved, offered him a job…

Looks and Personality
Lance looks like he’s getting on in the years. He is by no means an attractive person by any standards, but he isn’t exactly the hunchback of notre dame either. He has grayed hair and a bit of a moustache, but otherwise keeps himself cleanly shaven. His horns and front canines are gone from a required surgical op done during his firewatch days so his head could fit into a fragging helmet. His eyes are green and his skin is very tanned from all those years in the great outdoors. Usually when he goes out, he leaves all his weapons behind except for his hardliner gloves and Ares Redline. I guess he does look pretty bland, in a trollish kind of way. People tend to underestimate him due to the way he looks and his age, though.

Right now, Lance is a certified metahuman being. He isn’t cold, heartless or detached anymore. He has a family (albeit with only one other member) which he cares for, and he looks out for the less fortunate if he can. He isn’t a fool though – he knows when to get involved and when not to. Otherwise, he comes across as being generally friendly with warm smiles and such. Pity about the troll stereotype.

Here are my thoughts on how I would like to link blaze in with the rest of you, tell me if it doesn't jive with what you guys are thinking.

Blaze would have been the last to join the group being the youngest, she is pretty much the image of a Wizkid. The group, in some iteration, was hired for a run, and they needed a distraction so they hired a local gang to provide it, the usual mayhem. Blaze was with the gang at the time, and she was able to deal with a few unexpected surprises with her magic. In the course of the run, Belmont (or his predecessor on the team) is injured very seriously, so Blaze heals him with a spell, and also steps in to cover the magical end for the rest of the run while the shaman finishes recovering. After he finishes recovering, Belmont tells the others exactly how powerful Blaze is, and between that, her conduct on the run, and because of her reputation in the community for healing those who can't afford, or don't have the SINS to get into hospitals, as well as the reputation and influence of her coven, the team offers her a spot.

The reason Blaze accepts is because the group seems to genuinely like each other, and the group proves to her on that very first run that they are a team and will take care of each other, a rare thing to someone who grew up on the streets. In the course of her first run with the group, she was pinned down dealing with a pair of Hearth Spirits summoned by the wage mages, and she didn't notice the Sec Guards coming up behind her. Paladin however did, and he leapt in among them striking about with his staff, giving her the time to defeat the spirits.

A few runs later, she was the one to find Paladin after his surge, and she has been doing everything she can to help him adjust and be comfortable with being dual natured. (Ecclesiastes, unless you wanted him to have masking before the surge, Blaze could teach it to him)

Blaze does have a built in reason for knowing Belmont as well, she works in a talismonger shop, while she doesn't have the patience for the actual enchanting and artificing, she does a lot of her group's warding services as well as summoning elementals for security duty. So she could know him through the shop, if you want.

Hmm... connections...

Here are some possible avenues for Ned to have encountered various persone: let me know if any of them are appealing:

Blaze: not a lot, other than potential for Ned installing a Security system in the shop to cover the mundane aspects - can't convict a shoplifter with testimony from an elemental!

Paladin: best way I can think of is to have been introduced through the Detective - all detectives require surveillance equipment, and that's a speciality.

Belmont: via Melon, obviously. The shared career specs of myself and your contact allow for easy introduction - if Belmont needed a "hands on" techie for a job, and the vaguely disabled melon could not assist, Ned would be a perfect replacement.

Kolas: from the journal entry it seems like Kolas would be one to "hire in" external help if needed, possibly through a fixer. If this is the case, Ned could be available that way.

Lance: as with the above, the only thing I can think of is that he would be introduced via Frederick for a specific task.


In all, I am of the opinion that unless someone wants to take on the mantle of having being in "the team that initially found Ned," I'll have to make an addendum to the background that shears him away from them and out as a freelancer - in order to fulfill any of the encounter scenarios I have laid out above.

What say y'all?

Drain Brain-- precisely what I was thinking.

Paladin and Kolas--About a year and a half ago, Kolas was hired on by Glen (Ork Fixer within the OU) to infiltrate a burgeoning Humans First group called the Sons of Adam. After collecting the information necessary, he called in the cavalry. In the resulting firefight, Paladin dealt with the melee engagement while Kolas picked off the outlying group and softened up the melee combatants with his pistol.

Ned and Kolas--Hired on as additional support, Ned played a good counter balance for Kolas. While Kolas dealt with numbers and figures, Ned brings the balance of each number equals a person. Overwatch could be done from either Ned's van or Kolas' SUV.

Belmont and Kolas--One of Kolas' last assignments for the Draco foundation before going independent was to track down a group of suicidal smugglers who were bringing critters, ugly dual natured fire breathing type critters, into Seattle. Belmont tracked them down and dealt with them quickly enough to earn the bonus. When Kolas dropped off the corporate radar, he looked up Belmont and offered his services as a negotiator and face in exchange for a few shadow introductions.

Lance--What kind of Face doesn't need a big troll on his side? The fact that Lance can also hold a conversation and doesn't come across as the "mmm, brick...." type works even better. They could have been brought together on a run, or just be shadow acquaintances when Kolas needs someone to look tough.

Blaze--Have I ever mentioned that I enjoy playing with fire? I could have been introduced to you by Mama Fortuna (Very disagreeable gnome, talismonger and diviner). From there magic talent is always useful on runs...

I'm going to second Paladin for team leader. I make a good second, but I'd prefer to not be in charge.

Important Notes:

MA:Brawling(STR)~[5]
MN:Evasion
MN:Close_Combat
Pistols(QCK)~[6]
Athletics(BOD)~[5]
Stealth(QCK)~[6]
Etiquette(CHA)~[8]
Leadership(CHA)~[5]
Negotiation(CHA)/Bargain~[5/8]
Computer(INT)~[6]
Car(REA)~[4]
Small_Unit_Tactics(INT)~[5]

Good Reputation 1
Vehicle Empathy

Company Car:
Nissan-Holden_Brumby
Sensors_[8]
Anti-Theft_System_[10]
Electric_Shock_System
Proximity_Alert
Chameleon_Paint

I third Paladin for leader

Sorcery 6
(spell casting) 7
(spell defense) 7
Conjuring 6
Centering 4
Pistols (Sliver Gun) 4/2
Stealth 3
Etiquette 5

English 6
Latin 6
Magic 6
Spirits 6
Dragons 4
Prostitution 3
Pornography 3
Gangs 5

Bonus Attribute Will
Focused Concentration
Impulsive
Bio-rejection (Magic Active)

I'd also go with Paladin as top dog - got the skills, the experience and the "mystery man" thing going for him...

Also, as a rough idea:

Athletics [2]
Biotech/First Aid [4/6]
MA: Brawling [4]
Car [1]
Computer [2]
Electronics [7]
Electronics B/R [7]
Etiquette/Street [2/4]
Lock Picking [1]
Pistols [3]
Shotguns [6]
Stealth [6]
Wilderness Survival/Forest [2/4]


Yes, there's method behind my madness...I wanted to pick skills that were background-appropriate but not munchkinny... apart from the Shotguns skill which was improved through Karma...



Edit: I'd go with Lance as a leader too, if he's up for it, purely from a seniority and experience point of view - think he'd be a great "father figure" for the team. I can see great interplay/friendly power strugle here as well - or Paladin in the top spot with Lance as the wise sage advisor...

Shalimar--Works for me, Mama Fortuna introduced us and I've used you as a regular contact for Magic 101.

I don't have much time to read through everything this weekend, but I'll get to it on Monday. I did see that everyone agreed that Paladin can be leader (which surprised me, cause I also recomend the Face for such things, I just didn't know we had one when I offered up Paladin). I'll read through everything tomorrow though and see how I can fit Paladin in with everyone.

Ecc--I was backing Paladin for leader because he seems to be solid and much more team driven. Kolas makes a great second in command as he deals with figures and can occasionally forget that a number on a piece of paper is equivalent to someone's life.

Which is something Paladin wouldn't do. Ok, I'll change a few points around and pick up a few points of Negotiation and maybe a little Leadership (though I've never understood how to use that skill).

Ecc-- I have plenty of negotiations and some leadership...I figured you tell me what to do, and I will get it done...

Okie dokie.

Lance isn't a team leader. Zero leadership or face skills. While I won't play him as a stupid oaf (5 Int), don't expect him to make any social skill rolls. I'm fine with Paladin. I'm also fine with the ties everyone has made with Lance.

Ways for Paladin to know the group:

Blaze: Not sure yet, any suggestions?

Belmont and Lance: Paldin has dealt with every form of magical threat (Blood, Toxic, Bug, Vamp, etc). Through-out his hunts, he has called on friends who are of like mind to help him deal with things when he didn't feel ok doing it solo. You are both prime canidates for friends he has called on to join him in a Hunt.

Kolas: I like the idea of the Sons of Adam thing, works very nicely.

Ned: Paladin hired you to setup some survailance and security systems in the Ork Underground. He liked your work and later on hired you a few more times when he was trying to track down the habits of certain unethical men that are no longer living.

I made a few changes to Paladin. I dropped his Divining skill down to 4 (was 6), used that karma and some that I had leftover to pick up a 6th grade, some Negotiations, and a little Intimidation.

Take a look at his sheet.

Kickshot: I changed the Geas, let me know if this one is ok. I'll also have the history write-up for Martin Cole to you soon, things got busy over the weekend and I didn't get it finished.

I’ve got an idea as to how the team came together; let me know what you think.

__________________________________________________________________

Just over a year ago, everyone got a phone call from Paladin.

“There is some real foul drek happening in the shadows and I’m gunna need some help putting it down. I can’t even begin to tell you how nasty this is, you’ll have to see for yourself. Meet me at the warehouse at the corner of Elm and Oak, down by the docks.”

One by one, you showed up and were witness to the carnage that took place that night. Paladin met you out front with a warning that you were about to see something horrid, even to those he knew had a strong gut for such things.

Inside was a massacre. Not a soul was left alive. It looked like it was some sort of party that was taking place, based off the DJ equipment setup in the back of the warehouse. What could only be hundreds of bodies littered the floor, faced twisted in rage. Looking closer you could see that they had all killed each other. Something happened here, all these people had torn each other to shreds. And they were all Changlings.

“I got a call from a friend of mine, all he got out was that the place went insane and everyone was killing each other. It wasn’t a second later that I heard him yell something at someone and then I think he dropped the phone. Anyway, he is over in the corner, mouth covered in blood where he tore out someone’s throat with his teeth.”

He pauses for a moment looking around.

“I don’t know what happened here, but we’re gunna find out and put a stop to it.”

___________________________________________________________________

Two weeks later it was all over. The team was able to discover that the cause of the killings were from the summoning of a special type of spirit called a Nomad. They possess people and fill them with a killing rage. With each kill they grow stronger until it reaches a point where it splits into two spirits and they continue the process.

A group of toxic Adversary Shamans were responsible and with some great teamwork, we were able to track them down and put an end to their lives.

After it was all over, Paladin felt like we all worked together in a great way and aired the suggestion that we stick together and form a team. He’d always run the shadows solo, but realized that it was the work of the team that really made things happen for this case.

Evidently, you all agreed.

(edit: the run idea is taken from the game currently in session, Extrassis. Give it a read if you want to get out some really good storytelling on the part of Buddha72.)

Sweet. Ties together the little groups that have been forming into one large group.

I like. It also meant that all we each have to do is link ourselves to Paladin - anything else is candy...

I can't think of a way to first meet Paladin, but, you posted up that you wanted one of us to be the ones that find him when he Surges, I'd like it to be Balze unless you have some objections. I'd like to have her helping him to deal with the changes of suddenly being dual natured.

A way to get her involved in the Nomad Spirit run without her knowing Paladin would be to have Belmont injured on the run and needing healing. Blaze would do the healing and then, being as she is interested in spirits (Spirits 6, a generalist), and because another Magician would be useful when dealing with a threat like this, she volunteered to help cleaning up the mess.

Otherwise, really, none of the PCs are really the type she would meet, maybe Lance if he needed his daughter healed or whatever, but he has a SIN so why bother with an unlicensed Healer?.

I like the idea of Blaze finding Paladin when he SURGEd and helping him through it. It could have been something as simple as they happened to be in the same bar and he collapsed, then Blaze recognized what was happening to him and helped him out. I like it. It would also lend to Paladin and her becoming good friends, as Paladin always helps out those who help him out.

Masking was his first Metamagic.

Its quite possible that when he collapsed in the bar, that you knew who he was. He has a Good Rep 2. Maybe some guys in the bar were gunna rip him off and you took care of them for him, gave him a place to crash for a few days while he went through the change, and afterwards you and he became friends as you taught him about the Astral. I'm just throwing out ideas though, I'm up for anything.

Thats fine, she put Paladin up after his change for a few days, looking him over on the astral etc, what with all the hype going on everywhere, sounds like something a curious person would do.

Ok, that gets me connected with everyone, which makes for a team. Though feel free to create stuff between yourselves.

Kickshot, besides the history for my level 3 contact, do you need anything else from me?

Nope, that's it for you.

On a side note, my computer is acting up again. Depending on how bad it gets, I might be away for the next few days.

A little IC reminiscing to clarify the connection between Belmont and Kolas:

I never expected to see that young J again, but then again life is full of surprises. I was hunting some smugglers, or rather, a pack of flame jackals that some smugglers had been lucky enough to ship out of Vostock all the way to Seattle. I wasn’t sure if it was just a front at the time, but the dragon pin the J was wearing made the whole hunt make sense. The first step was to find the smugglers. “Crispy-fried” is the expression that comes to mind. They must have thought they could’ve fetched a pretty penny for the pelts, but failed to take into account what would happen if the sedation they had the dogs under wore off unexpectedly. I found the pack in no time—when you think like a jackal you can catch a jackal. I joked to the J that I just followed the smell of barbeque around the docks.

The hunt was good, and the cred was more than enough to get a new jacket (when the J saw that my leather was severely singed, I could almost see a look of sorrow in his eyes—maybe less for me, and more for the coat, but the compassion was appreciated all the same).

So imagine my surprise when the J shows up at my doss looking to meet some people. I know he’s on the level because he’s run as a J before and only a suicidal fragger would come snooping around if he weren’t square. Kolas and I don’t see eye to eye on everything, but we both know enough to appreciate how valuable each other is. He finds me work, and I find him work. He’s also a lot nicer than I am. Might as well be honest about it. I admire that. Not everyone would take time to get to know a guy like me.

Since we’ve been working together, I think I’ve shown Kolas a lot more heavy things than he ever really wanted to see. Welcome to my world, eh, chummer? He tends to see other ways to solve problems that wouldn’t have occurred to me—like actually talking to the associates of a vampire, rather than stalking them through the night. He’s also a lot slicker on the tarmac than I am. I still owe him for running down those ghouls (even though I did sterilize the truck and offer to pay to have the scratch marks removed).

Here is Blaze, the first webpage I ever put up so hopefully the links all work, pretty sure they Do, Still trying to figure out how to get the picture to actually show up, shrug.

Blaze

Blaze Image

One thing everyone: Try to take a Personal Comm Unit at Rating 6, that will include the comm, plus all the encryption and ECCM (which any pro team would have).

Now you tell us.

Yeah, sorry bout that. I'm not used to building team characters and I just realized that it would be a good idea if we all were on the same level with comms.

I'll grab it....

How do people feel about a Team Karma pool? I'd be willing to throw 5 pts at it...