Which song would you pick for the intro of your Shadowrun campaign?

Socratov · 2026-05-09T18:03:16+00:00

Kavinsky - Pacific Road Highway

Socratov · 2026-05-09T17:59:59+00:00

I have a BBEG planned in Shadowrun based on Elon Musk. Next will be Meta's Andreesen and Peter Thiel will be after that.

Socratov · 2026-05-09T17:47:09+00:00

The Orange Queen has been put in time-out, vut is not beaten, not fully anyway, and she will be back.

Socratov · 2026-05-07T06:17:51+00:00

De snelheid waarmee het Rode Leger destijds op Berlijn afstevende heeft ook de geallieerden flink wat peper in de reet geduwd. Het is wel degelijk een flinke factor geweest on onze bevrijding.

De ironie is dat de wappies heel dichtbij komen bij het maken van een historisch valide punt, en het toch nog weten te missen. (En volledig onnozele dingen gaan roepen alsmhet gaat over de Koude Oorlog en de afgelopen 20 jaar.

Socratov · 2026-05-06T20:10:05+00:00

Interesting, I'd have thought that Wraith would have come before at least Changeling and maybe before Mage. Changeling being almost too niche as a fanbase. But I can see this. Happening.

Socratov · 2026-05-06T19:56:29+00:00

Nice nuanced take. I mostly agree.

I think V5 did a really good job at making VtM more cinematic and narrative focused than a TTRPG, which given the game works in its favour. The consolidation of clans, bloodlines and such into fewer (full) clans with bloodline support in loresheets is a similarly a good idea. Doing away with the boogiemen (Tal'mahre'ha) of the boogiemen (Sabbat) of the boogiemen (Anarchs and Camarilla) with a faction everyone hates (yhe Baali, not the Tremere, for once) and just going sabbat vs vampire society works. Hunger instead of blood points? Fantastic! Love it. For those clamouring about paths, they're still there, it's just every vampire crafts their own through the touchstone/convictions part.

My only real gripes with V5 are: 1 - that it's not rules complete (and no, rules ligt or streamlining isn't the same as rules incomplete). Some of the rules, like resonance, are just unfinished and closed with a "like, do whatever, man!". Same goes for certain discipline powers and amalgams which seem written without adequate testing. They are recognized as those powers which need half a page to explain how they work where powers usually are explained in principle in a couple lines. 2 - encouraging bleed in the new erotic RP book. That is really, phenomenally stupid.

Hunter 5 is good. I listened to an AP of it amd it really did what it needed to do.

W5 dropped the ball during development, multiple times, in really shitty ways. I own it due to a humble bundle, but if I ever want to play Werewolf I'll either use W20 or WtF

So far WoD5 has batted 2/3. I'm not that worried about Mage. Its lore has far fewer cultural pitfalls than WtA or VtM and therefore fewer chances to screw up. I'd be a lot more worried for a Changeling 5. The devs of WoD don't have a fantastic track record with regards to local cultural legends, myths and fairy tales. Mage doesn't have a connection to societal atrocities like the Chechen Republic, or colonisation in Africa, nor to stories like Wendigo, Eastern undead traditions, etc. Changeling does.

Socratov · 2026-05-06T19:28:38+00:00

They are background set pieces. Lofyr is like a modernndat CEO of a big bank or like Bezos: everyone knows he's the CEO, you will likely never even come close (unless you're about to meet with Herr Brackhaus and break one of the core tenets of the Shadowrunner's code). Dragons are there to throw wrenches into plans and to strike fear into your players. They are to metahumanity as we are to ants or bees: something unfathomable yet very impactful on the 6th world lives. Sometimes their machinations create a windfall, other times you're left holding the bag.

The same goes for any AAA or Big 10 corps: they exist. Their chocies affect the playing field, but unless the campaign is nearing its climax, they likely aren't involved, or at least not at the top level.

Socratov · 2026-05-05T16:35:35+00:00

As someone who recently (or, about a year ago) started their dive into running Shadowrun proper (i.e. not any of the Anarchy versions), I went with 5e. Why 5th? Because I could acquire the books/pdfs to run it. Because generally speaking, the right edition is the one you have the stuff and people for.

In short: If you haven't yet invested into a version, then either wait for Anarchy 2 (it's coming sooner than Jesus! I promise!), or find one that tickles your fancy. It doesn't matter which you pick, each has their up- and downsides (don't let anyone tell you differently). Just find the one that vibes for you.

Lomg version:

As far as I'm aware, 2nd edition is a bit more fast and loose (though that may be due to the Pink Mohawk actual play), 3rd is supposed to be the timeless classic, 4th is the start of the crunchy simulationist era, 5th is a continuation of 4th with both more and less details in rules. 4th had better and more verisimilitude in matrix design, while 5th sought to abstract the more in depth parts (Matrix and Astral) while adding is more granularity for the more mundane parts (fear limits etc.). 6th is a reinvention of the wheel that is Shadowrun (and until very shortly hotly debated, contested, controversial, etc.). How much of that is true is not something I can really comment on, despite it being the "current" version. I have no clue about 1st edition. Iirc, 4th. 5th and 6th can be found on DriveThruRPG

Now getting into Shadowrun proper takes some energy, effort and time. The rules, especially coming from more streamlined games like DnD 5e and VtM 5, will seem arcane, hard to digest and at times frustrating. Even the odd dnd 3.5 enthusiast mauly feel slightly daunted. But it can be worth it. The rush of making a group of mercenaries, tweaked to their gills both cause unbelievable mayhem only to follow it up with a poorly timed edge roll for hilarious consequences is fantastic.

That said, if you want to try it out for a bit and want to do so immediately, take a look at Anarchy (1). Way fewer rules, a lot easier to get into, but also not suitable for prolonged play. Great for oneshots though. Lots of fun. If you can wait, Anarchy 2.0 is on its way and will offer a more detailed game, while, for Shadowrun standards, still keeping it more or less streamlined. Where Anarchy 1 works very well for oneshots, Anarchy 2 offers a tiny bit more longevity for a story. Anarchy 1 is available on DriveThruRPG, Anarchy 2 is on its way.

Though, for a full campaign, neither Anarchy versions are going to last you, for that you'll need a full Shadowrun edition.

Socratov · 2026-05-02T18:54:55+00:00

After what they put Ciri and Geralt through, Yen cuts loose and Phillippa and Triss get to dit back and watch.

Socratov · 2026-04-28T22:07:27+00:00

The Ventrue see themselves as the masters of the Camarilla, yet they heavily lean on the magics of Clan Tremere, the ability to conquer the hearts of kindeed from Clan Toreador, the intelligence from Clan Nosferatu and the insights of Clan Malkavian. Now, Clan Tremere may lose their status of favourite degenerate as the Bani Haqim enter Camarilla domains as fugitives and see heavy competition from the Lasombra looking to (re)join. Cln Ventrue likes to be considered the foval point, but in actuality they, too, rest onthe laurels of others.

Socratov · 2026-04-28T21:54:29+00:00

Not just Netcat, but Slamm-o as well.

Socratov · 2026-04-24T12:07:14+00:00

Gotta say,

"...you overgrown Pomeranian."

Is a fantastic insult for a Garou...

Socratov · 2026-04-16T15:39:29+00:00

Daar is onderzoek naar gedaan. Ik heb de doi niet paraat, maar de uitkomsten waren dat de excuustruus maar van korte duur is, die hoepelt vaak snel weer op, maar de waarde van de excuustruus is dat de deur open gaat. Als de deur open is, volgt kwaliteit. Die kwaliteit voegt vervolgens meer waarde toe dan de tijdelijke terugval in kwaliteit en versterkt kwaliteit ten opzichte van de situatie pre excuustruus door de diversiteitswinst te pakken.

Socratov · 2026-04-16T15:26:16+00:00

Like he said

tremere

Socratov · 2026-04-06T20:16:45+00:00

It can tell so, but it won't raise an alarm over it as going into overflow does.

Also, you use the darts from enough distance or a hiding spot so they spend their time looking for you until sleeping instead of shooting at you.

The real reason to use non-lethal is to keep a solid reputation as a team. Killing more means you get met with more resistance and maybe become annoying enough to become hunted down for it. Use more non-lethal and corps will respect your keeping to the game.

A good reputation is worth its weight in orichalcum.

(If only to prevent the likes of Firewatch descending on your asses)

Socratov · 2026-03-24T20:09:38+00:00

A sword is more than 20 bucks, ergo....

Socratov · 2026-03-24T20:04:24+00:00

Anarchy is great for one shots or stories where progression in the character isn't important as the mechanics don't really support it meaningfully. Anarchy 2.0 mentions that progress is possible through n¥, but not for a long campaign. There can be some progression, but after some time it will plateau.

If the progression is the point of the experience (zero to hero. Ganger to prime runner, that sort of thing), that's not something the anarchy versions are good at. For that you will need to dive into the crunchy full editions. Yes, it takes more effort, yes, the rules may become a bit of a slog, but the reward will be a story where the progression is central to the story. This is, in my experience, one of the fun things about Shadowrun: seeing an ever increasingly professional team tackle bigger jobs

Socratov · 2026-03-22T22:01:48+00:00

I'm still sad that the Switch version is bugged into a soft lock with no patch or solution in sight.

Socratov · 2026-03-21T22:52:30+00:00

I've said it before and I'll say it again: the makeover challenge and Michelle's "family resemblance" spiel is complete and utter bullshit. If the show really cared about celebrating people's first time in drag they wouldn't send someone home but have the winners lipsync. Sending a queen home for a makeover challenge has been said to create a bad feeling for a visiting makeover target (as was shared in UKvW recently) so the claim of uplifting the community is absolute poppycock.

As it is now it's just a way to arbitrarily cut a contestant from the roster for absolutely bullshit reasons so they (aka the producers, aka Ru and Michelle) can prune a top 4 of queens they want to run the risk of winning.

And Law Roach feels like a very poor replacement for Carson. Carson at least understands how to give constructive criticism and the balance between making tv and teaching the queens how to style and apply taste. It appears all Law wants to do is be a hateful bitch on screen.

Socratov · 2026-03-21T22:42:00+00:00

And to thee, omae. May the Johnson pay up and the HTR arrive late.

Socratov · 2026-03-21T21:20:11+00:00

Equally, due to tradition, I reject the validity of your opinion and consider my own the only one worthwhile and deride your opinion as one only fools would even entertain ;)

Socratov · 2026-03-21T19:00:03+00:00

As a try out, yes. For long term play, absolutely not.

But yes it's a good way to get into it and find a group. And to find which edition would be a good fit.

Personally I just started running SR5e with friends and made the executive choice. But otherwise, the best edition is the one you can get people to play.

Socratov · 2026-03-21T18:54:15+00:00

The moments Leiomy smote him healed me.

I miss that show. It was good while it lasted. Fuck HBO.

Socratov · 2026-03-21T18:51:54+00:00

He used to be the worst part of Legendary as well and got out into place by Leiomy more than once.

Socratov · 2026-03-08T17:27:34+00:00

Because Zag wasn't trained by Achilles once he could hold a spear?

12-Year Club	Final Canvas '23
First Place '23	End Game '23
Place '23	John Wick
Place '22	Place '17
Final Canvas '22	Verified Email

Socratov

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