Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: SRUN: A few observations
From: bkreed@oread.cc.ukans.edu
Date: 29 Aug 92 14:42:27 CDT
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Serces

In article <1992Aug26.210233.27209@uwm.edu>, aragorn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Strider) writes:
> v125qj86@ubvmsb.cc.buffalo.edu (Jeffrey B Rogers) writes:
> : 
> : 	1) Regarding FASA's modules for the game - I used practically all of
> : them as this was the first system i ever GMed. My friends have identifed a 
> : common plot pattern to these things that they disagree with. It goes like this
> : ---job offer, legwork, doing the job, getting paid/getting screwed over. It
> : is the last part that bugs them, because they don't expect every single job
> : they perform to have some ulterior purpose _that attempts to affect them per-
> : sonally_. By my understanding, they seem to be interested in playing runs
> : that are exactly as straightforward as their employers claim they are. My
> : opinion is that underlying sneaky plots are part and parcel of it being a 
> : cyber-punkish game. Opinions?
> 
> This would follow the same thread that my fav Shadowrun GM here in Milwaukee
> follows.  I think more playing and GM'ing will change this, but it could be
> for the same reasons that you stated: SR modules *are* basically the same.
> So, what does one do?  One tries to be more creative than whomever wrote the
> original SR modules.  Who says that every single adventure HAS to be a
> patron/client run?  Maybe the adventuring group just wants to go out and
> raise some hell for a while ... this would be my fav type of adventure.
> Just let the GM allow things to run free for a few gaming sessions and see
> what happens ... of course the GM will need to be *very* prepared with
> source material (maps, NPC's et al) and also know the rules quite well.
> Also, a fairly creative group of gamers would be needed to come up wwith
> things to do besides just doing whatever a patron wants done.  Ya know, now
> that I think about I'll have to mention this to Dave.  I'd LOVE to play a
> few runs like this.
> 
>>>[STUFF DELETED]<<<

> Steve J. White		|	Reality is for those who can't handle	|
> aragorn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu|	roleplaying games.			|
> skeptic@large@9600bps	|		- t-shirt at GenCon		|
-- 
Another thing that our group does is use a background generator (we
adapted the one from Cyberpunk).  We get a list of friends, enemies
and some interesting things that have happened in our characters lives
before this point.  While these things don't allways have to be the
crux of an adventure, they can really make things interesting.  One of
my characters managed to piss off his girlfriend and she took off.
This just happend to be at the same time that he was dealing with a
shaman that had a major vendetta against him.  So besides dealing with
the shaman, he had to find his grilfriend before the shaman did. Made
for quite of an adventure.
Other characters in our group have been hunted by the mafia, yakuza
and about every corp (or cop) that you can think of.  But the best are
the personal vendettas.  When things get personal, they get
intersting. 
The one thing that we have noticed is that a sense of continuity
helps.  If you know the characters history, friends and enemies helps.
But add to that two or three recent runs with leftovers that keep
coming back to haunt the characters.  Let them make friends and
enemies.  Maybe even give them a sense purpose.

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There are very few personal problems  |	Ghostrider@f120.n280.z1.fidonet.org
that cannot be solved by suitable     |      bkreed@oread.cc.ukans.ed
Aplications of plastic explosives.    |            EGARC/BKREED
   ---Anonymous                       |          Bryan Kennedy Reed
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Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc