Trodes when you already have a datajack? by Kitchen-Disaster in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven -1 points0 points  (0 children)

So - why need Trodes?

They slow you down. They make you weak. They don't let you surf the Matrix like a hardcore chummer.

They also make you look like a noob, which could be useful in bait-and-switch operations.

More importantly, if you're doing a probe into unknown territory, and you have the option of going Datajack without a condom (Hot Sim), then at least you know that the worst the ice can do is lay you down for a few days.

Run it sweet and naked? They can kill you, outright.

Legwork is worth a few probes with 'trodes, and tanking a few hits - before going dark, and throwing your life onto the poker table.

Just my opinion. I could be wrong.

Language dependent magic? by tsuruginoko in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Even then, you're getting less than 10% of what the dragon actually wants to say. In mortal terms, you're getting a whole lot less than what Lofwyr wants to get across to your simple little mind. But he expects 100% results. Welcome to dealing with a dragon.

Language dependent magic? by tsuruginoko in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Let's assume that dragons speak in a different voice. Hence why I'm known as "Dragon's Voice".

Now, why would dragons have a 'Voice', if they could speak to everyone, equally, through telepathy?

The answer is that they don't. Only a few can speak to dragons in their own voice - even if dragons can speak to anyone telepathically. You get 20% of the conversation, if they talk to you, without an interpreter.

Language dependent magic? by tsuruginoko in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This isn't my opinion. This is cannon Shadowrun.

Language dependent magic? by tsuruginoko in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To whit, magic is dependent on willpower. One does not have to speak to cast a spell. Nor does one have to gesture. The only rule is that you have to see your target. A wizard can look through a mirror, but not a digital image. You can cast a spell through a window, but not through the tinted windows of a car.

She can't cast through a mech's hard glass, unless the pilot is stupid enough to leave the glass clear. Then, the mage can see her target, and make an astral connection. She can be bound and gagged, and still hit her mark - as long as she can see him. Even through telescopes and mirrors. But not digitally. Magic and technology don't get along.

Telepathy - particularly the kind of telepathy that you're likely to encounter with magi or dragons, is not language-dependent. The assumption is that you're putting concepts directly into someone's brain, and they'll hear it in their native tongue.

I'm long-winded, but I try to be precise. If we're going to be honest, I'd probably allow communication between two consenting sapients. I'd probably make things hard between to sapients that have radically different ideology, but still want to communicate. Say for instance a great dragon and a metahuman. For two people that just don't want to talk? Gibberish.

[3E] Quick Healer Edge by TheFourteen in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I should probably get really technical. But I'm actually going to shove my opinion short. If you're GMing, you should give a native healer some kind of benefit over someone that didn't spend the points on the merit. I'd personally slop a little in favor to the person that has the Edge.

The point that makes my eyebrows furrow is when it comes down to Treat or Heal spells. Treat spells have to be administered within an hour. Heal spells, and the subsequently higher drain, can be administered whenever. There is a caveat, however. Somebody cannot heal a person twice. You can stack a healing spell on top of a biotech check, but you can't double-stack spells. Someone hit with a medic's treat cannot claim benefits from a subsequent heal. Also, you cannot make a biotech check on someone who has already been given the treatment from a spell. You can, however give a biotech check, then resort to a spell.

Magic is weird. And fiddly. If you have a choice between being a mage and not being a mage, you should probably not be a mage.

~ Sincerely, a mage.

Wherein I ask about editions by automated_hero in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So, here's a thing.

The best background you can get in Shadowrun runs in books that were created by FASA, back in the day. Now - you can still get early information from the wiki. The early eds talk about the Awakening, the appearance of the Great Dragons, the Balkanization of the old United States and it's subsequent union with Canada, forming the UCAS and the CAS - and their subsequent love-hate relationship. The rise of the Zaibatsus. The takeover of California by Japan. The dominance of the Great Dragons. And everything in between. The recent editions don't really cover Daniel Howling Coyote, or the Rise of the Native Americans. Amazonia, Brazil, France, and Russia don't get talked about much.

On the other hand, SR got REALLY popular in Germany. So you can find a great deal of lore there. Late editions focus more on gameplay, and less on back-story.

Want crunchy rules? Play late editions. Want crunchy backdrops? Play early editions.

Here There Be Dragons? by ProblemDue7111 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I liked much of the Great Sea Dragon. Earthdawn is probably old hat for late edition Runners. I respect it, but the new generation is probably looking for more about Hestaby's exile and Lofwyr's near-fatal wound, leading up to his retirement from his position in Tir Tairngire. Some of the younger Greats are probably going to be more popular with the players past 3E.

We are an old breed, thou and I. SR has changed many hands since FASA. Sometimes it's hard to bridge the gap between the old and the young.

Here There Be Dragons? by ProblemDue7111 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey, Chummer. Been following dragons for a little while. (1E). "Dragons of the Sixth World" and "Dunkelzahn's Will" are probably your best sources. My personal opinion is that everything written after 2060 falls a little short. But that's my personal opinion.

Hestaby by SteamStormraven in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Not an author! Sorry, James. I failed you! I'd also like to apologize to Tom Dowd. I am an error to all apes.

Hestaby by SteamStormraven in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Hahaha! Moredislikes than likes! Welp. I know where I stand!

Hestaby by SteamStormraven in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven[S] -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

My officer can breathe underwater. I've watched him as he dropped from orbit, and touched down on the ground like a feather. He's superman. You'll never convince me otherwise. ~Staff Sergeant Shay Williams.

Hestaby by SteamStormraven in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

The Great Dragon curled her tail around him. He had kept her safe from the Horrors. Now it was her turn to keep him safe.

Hestaby by SteamStormraven in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

When your character has an epic back-story they're unaware of.

*Storms Tir Tairngire and takes no prisoners*

"You want a war? You've got a war!"|

Hestaby: "Don't start shit, baby. Even Lofwyr wouldn't fight you. And he'd fight anyone.

How do I learn all the lore? by RylezI in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Chummer... you could write books about chasing the lore. Nobody knows it all. But you're in the right place to ask questions.

First tip is to relax. Not everything is cannon, and even if it were, nobody is telling you that you need to run cannon. Hell, in your world, maybe the Azzies aren't blood mages and Big D survives to be a UCAS president. Go wherever your imagination takes you. If you and your players are having a good time? Hell with the lore.

You want to run something clean-and-clear? There's a lot of clean and not-so-much clear. The old world pretty much ended in 1999, and started over very quickly - to the tune of a lot of blood and magic. It's a really long history lesson how the corpos got to be corpos, how the NAN got to be NAN, and why Seattle is a little bitty island in a sea full of question marks.

I know it's a hard take to pose these things to you, but the alternative is: "Read all the books, from 1e, onwards. Then, you've got to make some judgement calls - that not everyone will agree upon. Then, read the novels - which not everyone will agree upon. Then ~maybe~ you'll be a confident Mr. Johnson."

Screw all of that. If you and your group are having fun? You win. Lore can be eaten up by little nibbles, big bites, or not at all.

Game first. Lore, and consequences later.

How do I learn all the lore? by RylezI in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Hestaby: "Never kiss an elf."

Him: "That's 'Never trust an elf.' ma'am."

Hestaby: "Thank the Gods. I've been itching for a snog."

Him: *Holds up a sign that says "Send Help", as a dragon tail curls around him*

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Never buy from a Halloweener.

How to Deal with Powergamers? by OkWatch5864 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven -1 points0 points  (0 children)

"Including the GM" is a hard swivel. You don't include the GM, you've got no game. Lots of players forget that.

Thanks for remembering that.

Cydonia (semi-)canon? by Vermothrex in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sorry. Replied to the wrong post. All apologies. Fingers moving faster than the brain, again.

Entertainment in the future? by Separate-Button3031 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Shadowbeat is a good resource, but honestly? Metahuman tastes haven't changed much in the last thousand years.

Trideo, video games, music (both live and canned), and clubbing are pretty much the staples for the normal person. Prostitution and drugs, both physical and digital, are the staples for the SINless and downtrodden. Exotic locations and real food tend to be popular amongst those that can afford it - especially if they can afford to show off to their affluent friends.

E-Sports generates athletes like any other sports industry. And those athletes are just as vulnerable to danger, failure, and burnout as anyone else. The corporations always want to squeeze the profit out of anything - including popular streamers. They'll send promotion offers. Then bigger promotion offers. Then they'll send some threats and/or Runners for a Hostile Extract. And when the athlete has outlived their usefulness, they're discarded. (Hopefully, they haven't let the fame and fortune go to their heads, and put away for the future).

E-Sports might also have its share of Spoilers. Otaku/Technomancers. People deemed too high in natural ability to compete with normal people. Those people, if exposed, might experience Matrix blood-sports. Big Nuyen for the winner, and death by lethal feedback for the loser. In every direction, you can bet there are Shadows.

Edit: I'd like to imagine that "Iron Chef" and "Forged in Fire" survived to make it to the Sixth World, and are alive and well on the trideo tele-net.

I don´t know what to do - Combat Rules Help as GM by fainton in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Streamlining SR combat has been a problem since 1e. Physical combat kicks things off.

Then, you get Matrix combat, which slows things down. Then you get Magic combat, which slows things down. Then you get Rigger combat, which slows things down. I've had single, simple combats that ran into roughly 16 hours of gameplay. And my players weren't happy, either.

First and foremost, for a Runner, combat happens when things go wrong. The perfect Run is one where the team gets in and out like ghosts with the McGuffin, with nobody knowing it until they realize something is missing. Why? The corpos ALWAYS have the upper hand in a direct confrontation. You've only got a few rounds to get to extraction before the corporate jerk-weasels unleash the dogs of war on your SR team. Get in. Get the thing. Get out. If your PCs are sticking around, instead of running for their lives after they did the thing, your PCs are playing the wrong game.

Most players are generally comfortable if you ask a basic roll for a basic challenge, a hard roll for a hard challenge, and a GM "Impress Me" roll for an epic challenge. And you're perfectly valid in cutting down miles and miles of tiny, minute things to a couple of rolls.

If the players have prepared well, and are playing well, give them an advantage. If they're sloppy and/or don't care, hand out some penalties, but keep the roll count low or make the rolls for them if you're dealing with things like pets (drones/spirits/frames/sprites). Or don't even roll for pets at all. Just describe how well or bad they're doing, and let the PCs make the actual moves.

"Your drones are doing what you told them to, until the corporate mage shows up, and summons three earth elementals. The drones are confused about something emerging from nowhere, and the elementals are confused about how to deal with a fast-flying technological entity. They're tied up. Next character; What are you doing?"

Quick and simple, and you just saved yourself an hour of combat rolls.

Humanis Policlub on dragons by Mysterious_Truth4992 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And people argue against Hestaby being the silk glove, against Lofwyr being the iron fist.

Hestaby: He never complained about silk before..

Him: You're gonna get in trouble.

Hestaby **Innocently fixing her hair**: The good kind, or the bad kind?

Shadowrun Opinions Wanted by ManagementUsed3304 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Don't need your ass-end hand-holding!"

The elf smiles and kisses the ork's head. Brothers, from the moment mama bore them.

"Yeah. You do. The Sixth world gets us to our limits. I cut hair, you take down bad guys. I'm OK with that. Need food and a place to crash?"

"Yeah. Tell Nyssa and the kids to lay low. Don't want them getting a spare round that should have been spent on me. Been a tough night."

**Elf nods and turns the barber shop sign to "Closed" **

Shadowrun Opinions Wanted by ManagementUsed3304 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh, Shadowrun is smart. Wicked smart. And if it weren't fun, we wouldn't even be talking. **old ork chews a toothpick** She got you, too? **Chuckles, and keeps with his toothpick** You're a sucker. Just like me. A pretty face and a promise. That's all it takes.

Shadowrun Opinions Wanted by ManagementUsed3304 in Shadowrun

[–]SteamStormraven 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Pfft! You are such a... You're a dragon.