I couldn't decide if this would be better to ask here or in the general gaming section, but I am looking specifically for folks to play Shadowrun with and this does get more traffic.
It's been many years since college; I can't canvas my dorm-mates looking for roleplayers. I don't think I want to advertise in the personals section . . .
Full Version: How to find (tabletop) shadowrun groups.
| QUOTE (Local Newspaper) |
| SWM seeks any for SR RP game |
What's a good way to start/join a roleplaying group? I prefer tabletop. I enjoy being able to personally act out my character and react in real-time to others. Eventually if I can't find humans to play with, I will PBP (everyone knows internet people aren't real humans 
).
If you can't find players, make players. Find a point of discussion with any frieds I assume you have, and see if they are willing to read over (or listen to a long monologue about) the basic setting of the game. If it interests them, go from there. If it doesn't interest them, arrange a shared housing with a few other Dumpshockers who are desperate for a real group to play in.
1. Rent a copy of Johnny Mnemonic for your friends.
2. Provide lots of beer.
3. At the end of the film, say, "Wouldn't it be cool to live in a crazy mixed up world like that?"
4. Wait for general agreement.
5. Pull a copy of SR3 from behind the couch where you've hidden it.
6. In a creepy tone, say "Now you can...."
2. Provide lots of beer.
3. At the end of the film, say, "Wouldn't it be cool to live in a crazy mixed up world like that?"
4. Wait for general agreement.
5. Pull a copy of SR3 from behind the couch where you've hidden it.
6. In a creepy tone, say "Now you can...."
Having watched Johnny Mnemonic, you should probably either cut out BEFORE it's revealed that the greatest hacker who ever lived is a friggin' Mil-Spec dolphin or provide LOTS of beer.
Now if you're providing weed, I suggest allowing the dolphin...
Blade Runner suits pretty well for pushing people into the Cyberpunk world. SR is a bit of a stretch (though replicants do seem pretty in sync with what cyberzombies could eventually become) with pretty much all Cyberpunk movies (with flesh-and-blood actors, at least).
If you find any anime fans, most of them are generally willing to at least try it out, especially if they've seen any Cyberpunk-esque shows (I can't name any off the top of my head other than Ghost in the Shell, sorry).
Generally, if you can't find 'em, make 'em.
Barring that, maybe try an IRC group.
If you find any anime fans, most of them are generally willing to at least try it out, especially if they've seen any Cyberpunk-esque shows (I can't name any off the top of my head other than Ghost in the Shell, sorry).
Generally, if you can't find 'em, make 'em.
Barring that, maybe try an IRC group.
I've always been able to find people either through the internet or by posting a notice on a gaming board at the FLGS. I still get people calling or emailing every so often. I should probably take it down.
Personally I play at a gaming club, try and find one, even if nobody plays SR there you some people may be willing to try it.
Alternatively if there is a gaming store that stokes SR near you post a note on there message board (the physical one) saying your looking for players. It is a bit like personals but at least only gamers will read it.
Edward
Alternatively if there is a gaming store that stokes SR near you post a note on there message board (the physical one) saying your looking for players. It is a bit like personals but at least only gamers will read it.
Edward
If you can't find an existing group or SR players in your area, consider converting non-SR gamers you know to SR. If you can convince just two people to give it a shot, odds are they can convince a person or two each themselves. This method worked very well for me.
Check at whatever store you buy your gaming books at (be it RPG-only shop, comic book store, whatever). Look for a bulletin board, see if anyone's looking for players, or see if you can put up a notice of your own.
In my area there are no RPG shops...so the only store that has RPG books is Hastings and they have a big bulletin board in the lobby. You might try that also. ALot of people would probably see it.
The easiesst way to find that elusive SR gaming group is your local Gaming Shop. Most of them have a place where groups can setup and run what ever they want. They also provide a place where people can put up notices if they are looking for a group or looking for someone to join the group.
accessdenied.net it'll help you hook up with Gamers for All different types of Genre's in your area... good luck.
Ugh, if you're going to subject your buds to Sci Fi movies similar to Shadowrun, don't dare use Johnny Mnemonic. Back in the day I thought it was the coolest ever, but watching a part of it recently made me throw up in my mouth a little. I guess when you're young you're impervious to bad acting and bad plots, even if the setting is cool, or at least decent.
Definitely choose 'Bladerunner', or one of my faves that had ties to simsense and/or BTLs and had a vaguely Shadowrun feel was 'Strange Days.' Or just ask them if they've seen the original 'Matrix' movie and if they dug it. That was an actually good Keanu Reeves movie that had a Shadowrun feel. And if asked, just disavow the second and third parts of the Matrix trilogy. I also thought the cartoon 'Batman Beyond' had a Shadowrun feel to it, too, if they're into animation.
Man, somebody needs to make a Shadowrun movie. A good Shadowrun movie.
Definitely choose 'Bladerunner', or one of my faves that had ties to simsense and/or BTLs and had a vaguely Shadowrun feel was 'Strange Days.' Or just ask them if they've seen the original 'Matrix' movie and if they dug it. That was an actually good Keanu Reeves movie that had a Shadowrun feel. And if asked, just disavow the second and third parts of the Matrix trilogy. I also thought the cartoon 'Batman Beyond' had a Shadowrun feel to it, too, if they're into animation.
Man, somebody needs to make a Shadowrun movie. A good Shadowrun movie.
| QUOTE (Weredigo) |
| accessdenied.net it'll help you hook up with Gamers for All different types of Genre's in your area... good luck. |
Not trying to be a jerk but that site is pretty much empty. Kind of useless.
it has it's flaws, but when used correctly can be a big help.
Thanks Weredigo. I'd never heard of accessdenied.net. There are actually a fair number of folks in the metro area listed. Thanks too for the rest of yall. I only know of one FLGS in the area. I'll have to make a trip out soon to see if they have a bulletin board. Now why couldn't I think of something that simple myself. 
| QUOTE (RangerJoe) |
| 1. Rent a copy of Johnny Mnemonic for your friends. 2. Provide lots of beer. 3. At the end of the film, say, "Wouldn't it be cool to live in a crazy mixed up world like that?" 4. Wait for general agreement. 5. Pull a copy of SR3 from behind the couch where you've hidden it. 6. In a creepy tone, say "Now you can...." |
Damn that's creepy...reminds me of someone trying to convience their signigicant other into god-knows-what.
| QUOTE (Da9iel) |
| I only know of one FLGS in the area. I'll have to make a trip out soon to see if they have a bulletin board. Now why couldn't I think of something that simple myself. |
Just because you no longer attend College doesn't mean you can't still advertise there and recruit from it ... or even join one of their clubs. I used to know a lot of people that played in the University and College groups that didn't actual attend the institution.
| QUOTE (GrinderTheTroll) | ||
Damn that's creepy...reminds me of someone trying to convience their signigicant other into god-knows-what. |
I heard that.
Yeah, add my vote to the list for not using JM as the representation for SR. I don't think I've ever used a dolphin in a game, even as flavor. Blade Runner, GitS, Strange Days, Matrix are all better picks.
I might also suggest trying local comic book stores as gamers tend to frequent those stores as well. G'luck!
Do not. I repeat: DO NOT find a bunch of D&Ders and try to recruit them to try a new game. Trust me.
| QUOTE (Dog) |
| Do not. I repeat: DO NOT find a bunch of D&Ders and try to recruit them to try a new game. Trust me. |
That's a pretty unfair generalization to make. Some D&D players will not enjoy SR or will play it like a dungeon crawl game. Others won't. I don't doubt you've had horrible experiences tying to recruit D&D players, but I've had no trouble with D&D players who've played SR with me.
Thanks for clearing that up, otherwise he woulda taken me seriously.... 
Fear not. I keep my saltshaker handy whenever I'm logged onto Dumpshock. (For you non-native English speakers: To take something with a grain of salt means to be skeptical of it.)
if your really willing to go out on a limb go out to a computer store. at best buy just about all the guys who work in computers play SR or roalplaying games of some kind. we had a meet and great there and we started playing games of SR every week after that
| QUOTE (Da9iel @ Mar 22 2005, 06:41 PM) |
| I only know of one FLGS in the area. |
Have you checked the yellow pages?
The "Hobby Shops" and "Comic Books" sections are good bets. Even if you have to drive a ways to get to one, go for it. Chances are the gamers in your area will be doing the same thing. If you want to get really efficient, call up the shops and find out which ones stock Shadowrun manuals then make them top priority.
| QUOTE (Dog) |
| Do not. I repeat: DO NOT find a bunch of D&Ders and try to recruit them to try a new game. Trust me. |
I personally find that to be entirely untrue.
As an ex-AD&D (2nd edition) fan, I can tell you that many D$Ders are willing to convert. After running "supermarket shuffle" or whatever the intro adventure is called, I was hooked. No more futzing with critical hit tables, no more THAC0, no more @#$#@$@# EXP calculations. I was toasted as being a good player not because I could quote every rule and/or not get killed (I'm not so much as a D$D rules lawyer as the rules Attourney General) but because I remembered to grab a Katana and a pistol before the cops came to bust our chops.
I dunno why I prefer shadowrun so much. I guess it was because you can try crazy things, and actually have them work. I was laughing so hard I was sneezing root beer after I managed to save the bacon of an unlucky weapons specialist by hitting the cybermunchie trying to crush her neck with a five-die manabolt, and then killing him with one hit. (I used all the dice from my magic pool, and scored a LOT of successes. He was at least one category above Deadly, maybe two.)
Of course, D$D 3rd edition is more like a bad video game put on paper. Roleplaying has been replaced with Ruleplaying. I pretty much gave up on it after a DM considered a trap to be a dwarf springing out at us when we pulled a lever. Why a dwarf had been sitting around for three hundred years in a tomb, I do not know, but I decided that anything this stupid and commercialized is not worth my time.
....wow. I'm sorry that happend. Guess I've been luckier than I thought.
I would say advertising at gaming shops and colleges are the best bet. You may run into a problem that I had in my hometown with people who play other systems. One team all made PCs with no combat skills and all social skills. Another made nothing but combat monsters and went on a shooting spree. After a few sessions of them getting their collective clocks cleaned, it worked out great. They really started to enjoy it, they just had to get used to a different system.
As someone else said, recruting friends is a good plan. Hmm, Minoraty Report or Equilibrium are also decent cyberpunk movies. (Just watched that last night, I swear the clerics have to have move by wire.)
Good luck.
I would say advertising at gaming shops and colleges are the best bet. You may run into a problem that I had in my hometown with people who play other systems. One team all made PCs with no combat skills and all social skills. Another made nothing but combat monsters and went on a shooting spree. After a few sessions of them getting their collective clocks cleaned, it worked out great. They really started to enjoy it, they just had to get used to a different system.
As someone else said, recruting friends is a good plan. Hmm, Minoraty Report or Equilibrium are also decent cyberpunk movies. (Just watched that last night, I swear the clerics have to have move by wire.)
Good luck.
Ugh. I can't believe you just mentioned Minority Report and Equilibrium in the same breath. I hope Tom Cruise finds you in your sleep and makes you scream like a dying animal.
I didn't say they were both equal.
I mainly liked it for the scenes with the move by wire.
Also, I'm a 1984, farenhight 451, and brave new world fan.
I mainly liked it for the scenes with the move by wire.
Also, I'm a 1984, farenhight 451, and brave new world fan.
Minority Report and Equilibrium are equal in the way that both suck.
If you're trying to recruit people by showing them movies, you should make sure that they are movies that the recruits would enjoy.
Also, getting someone to read SR-ish books could be another great plan. If you manage to find a few people willing to give Gibson a try I'm sure you'll have a few recruits by the time they finish the book.
Having them read the actual SR-novels however, might not be a good idea, I haven't read any myself, but from what I've heard not all of them are worth the read.
If you're trying to recruit people by showing them movies, you should make sure that they are movies that the recruits would enjoy.
Also, getting someone to read SR-ish books could be another great plan. If you manage to find a few people willing to give Gibson a try I'm sure you'll have a few recruits by the time they finish the book.
Having them read the actual SR-novels however, might not be a good idea, I haven't read any myself, but from what I've heard not all of them are worth the read.
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