Link to PDF collectionLink to DiscordLink to IC threadHoi Chummers. For a while I've been playing Shadowrun, but recently it has dried up in my area and I'm finding myself up shit creek without a paddle. So I've decided to take a chance and try to GM it. I'm going to run it play by post here on the forums, mostly for my benefit, but also for yours, as it will allow me to flesh out the setting more and put in more fluff/allow for more RP. For those of you who don't know what Shadowrun is...
Shadowrun is collapsing a skyscraper for the insurance payout.
Shadowrun is puddles of rain mixed with gas, illuminated by a oil drum fire at which a troll huddles.
Shadowrun is putting on a gasmask as the knock out gas you piped into the vents triggers.
Shadowrun is punching a spirit in the face.
Shadowrun is hacking on the fly as the corporate spider launches IC at you in the Matrix.
If you're a sucker for dictionary definitions...
SHADOWRUN
>noun
Any movement, action, or series of such made in carrying out plans which are illegal or quasilegal.
Shadowrun takes place in the so called "Sixth World" or Earth, year 2077. In the year 2011, magic returned to the world. Violently. It was a normal every day commute for people riding the Japanese bullet train. Until a Great Dragon flew past their window. That was the end of our society as we know it. The short story is widespread ecological, social, and economical collapse paved a new future. A dystopian future where megacorporations and the remains of governments worldwide clash heads for the control of our slowly dying planet. Where magic lead to Elves, Trolls, Orcs, and Dwarves to reappear. Where HMHVV, a virus can change you into a vampire or a goblin, or even worse. Where Dragons are not something you get a quest to kill, but are insanely intelligent and nearly impossible to kill, and run Megacorporations or entire nations. For those of you more interested in the fucked up backstory, the
timeline is fascinating, and the
primer is also nice, even if it's a little outdated(it was made for the 2050's and it's the 2070's now.)
But thematically, Shadowrun is very different to your DnD's and Pathfinders. I'll outline the main differences here.
In a lot of games (and most especially D&D) players are the hero of the story. That makes a lot of sense in a fantasy setting. A game about peasants grubbing in the dirt isn't any fun, so the players are the 1%. They're free to go and do as they please, beholden to no man save themselves. And with enough time and experience they end up as gods among men with unimaginable wealth at their fingertips.
This is the exact opposite of Shadowrun.
In the Sixth World players take on the role of criminal mercenaries out to make a buck. Your livelihood comes from committing crimes for people who can't afford to get their hands dirty. You are not a hero... You're a (usually) corporate tool. If you get caught they don't have to worry about denying their involvement. You can't squeal on them because you don't know who they really represent.
These corporations are the true masters of the Sixth World. Their CEOs are the gods among men with unimaginable wealth at their fingertips. And the worst part is... You can't beat them.
I know a lot of GMs out there are reading that and cringing.
How can you just decide that the players can't take down a megacorporation?
I get it guys... You can do whatever you want at your tables, but allowing that kind of action is directly opposed to the idea of a dystopian future. And if the megacorporations could be taken down, wouldn't the Street Legends of yore already done so?So remember... You're not special. You're never going to be a god among men, and you'll probably never have unimaginable wealth. I'm not saying you won't make some good cash along the way. You could live a high lifestyle for the rest of your life. Shadowrunning is a profitable business for both the corporations and those running the shadows. If it wasn't, no one (on either side) would do it.
Shadowrunners exist for one reason and one reason only... It's good for business.
I know that this is going to be a painful discussion. But it needs to be said. Characters die in Shadowrun, quite frequently actually. I've been playing Shadowrun for a few years now, and I've only ever had one character survive until retirement. And, honestly, I bowed out at a High Lifestyle instead of aiming for the Luxury like I usually do.
In a lot of other games, dying is either; not an option (Marvel Classic Superheroes), handled by consensus (Fiasco), or almost unheard of (D&D).
If you don't want to play (or can't handle) a game where you character might die, I recommend you not play Shadowrun. It's a deadly world and literally everything is capable of being killed. Even a Great Dragon, one of the most fearsome creatures in the Sixth World was famously murdered by a team of 'runners using automatic gunfire.
Death is a fact of life in the Sixth World. Remember how I said you weren't special? This is probably one of the most extreme cases of that philosophy in action. If you can murder security guards to achieve your goals, they can kill you to achieve theirs.
Shouldn't a character's death be meaningful?
Not just no, but hell no. Death is rarely meaningful in real life. Why should the Sixth World be any different?
Because it's a game you slot!
Sure. And if you don't want the possibility of character death, play a different game.
There are some great (or so I hear) Shadowrun skinned story games out there that can give you a game set in the Sixth World, but they aren't Shadowrun. Lethality is what has always set Shadowrun apart from the rest of the pen and paper crowd. It's a ruthless game. Complaining about that is like getting a jelly doughnut and being upset that it is filled with jelly when you just wanted the pastry part. You could've had what you wanted, but you didn't choose wisely.
Now, with that being said, there are ways to mitigate the threat of death. Proper research on the run, spending Edge wisely or just flat our burning Edge can all assist you in not dying. But it is assistance, not protection and certainly not immunity.
In quite a few games the order of operations is pretty clear. In D&D it's generally go to the inn, get a job, go into the dungeon, kill the monsters, get the loot, and save the whatever. Clear cut and dry for the most part. Usually there are very few complications along the way. Those that do pop up can usually be killed.
Shadowrun isn't like that.
Yes. It starts with a job. But the job is hardly ever what it is advertised to be. Nothing gets a veteran team of 'runners to groan as much as the person hiring them giving assurances that this is a "milk run". They know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that there is more to the story.
The sad fact of Shadowrun is that no one cares about you. Your friends and your family are the only ones who might, but that’s not a guarantee. The Johnsons that give you jobs sure as drek don't. They only care about you getting the job done.
And sometimes, not often, that job is getting you killed.
That's right. The job can, and sometimes is, a trap meant to entice you into a suicide run.
But that isn't the only thing that can go wrong. Sometimes things aren’t where they are supposed to be. Sometimes the person you’re meant to protect is dead when you arrive and you are framed for their murder. Sometimes there is more security than expected. The list goes on and on… But the point is essentially the same. Things can, and do, go wrong. How you deal with that is a large portion of the game.
So please try and embrace that concept. The sooner you can get over that hurdle the sooner you are to becoming a veteran ‘runner.
This is a hard point to get across. From the very get go new players seem to think that you have to have one of every archetype. And that’s patently untrue. Sure it might take a little more work for the GM to build runs for the team. It’s not that much more work and it’s a fair trade for you getting to play what you want instead of what your team thinks they need. Your team can be effective no matter what archetypes are inside of it.
It’s a level less and classless system. So why do we keep pigeonholing players into archetypes?
On that note…
It’s a really easy concept that’s hard for players to understand.
In a dystopian future you are under nearly 24 hour surveillance. The megacorporations and governments of the Sixth World are significantly more powerful than you in every single way you can imagine. So much so that there’s no way you can cover all of your bases all the time.
And that’s okay. Remember how I said that how you deal with the unexpected is a large portion of the game? This is exactly the sort of thing I was talking about. It’s okay for bad things to happen. Overcoming adversity is the heart of Shadowrun.
The Sixth World is an organic extension of our own. Some of the main themes are racism, greed, hatred, and revenge. Just about every ‘run you’ll ever go on is aimed at gaining someone more money or more power.
It’s a cold hard Sixth World. Governments can’t keep the corporations in check. The corporations can’t keep the government in check. And the dragons can barely keep their own in line, let alone anyone else. The world is, quite literally, out to get you. If you can’t handle that, you might look into the games I’ve already mentioned.
The game has started, but people can still sign up to be in the waitlist to replace runners that get a forced retirement. Check out the discord linked in the post, and I'll keep a waitlist down here. Once you hand me a sheet that works you'll be in the waitlist.
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Topic: Shadowrun 5th edition PbP OOC Thread [6/6] Waitlist open. (Read 14999 times)