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Message no. 1
From: Can I play with madness <MKNABUSCH@******.BITNET>
Subject: Aztlan
Date: Sat, 22 Jan 1994 18:38:31 -0500
Anyone know if they are planning to tackle this area
in a source book and when? Can someone with tDLoH's phone
number ask him in a session of Q/A? I think this area is going to
undergo drastic changes. I don't remember (if someone can quote me
the area) but not much is heard of runners that go in there.
Message no. 2
From: "J.D. Falk" <jdfalk@***.GWU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan
Date: Sat, 22 Jan 1994 21:59:14 -0500
Don't know anything about the book, but thought I'd mention that
in Palladium's RIFTS game (pretty good system, but Shadowrun's better) all
of what used to be Mexico is now populated with Vampires.
Not sure why.

"We all agree that your theory is mad. /--------------------\
The problem which divides us is this: | J.D. Falk |
is it sufficiently crazy to be right?" | jdfalk@***.gwu.edu |
-Dr. Neils Bohr \--------------------/
Message no. 3
From: Unix_Kurs7044 <c7044@*****.RZ.UNI-REGENSBURG.DE>
Subject: Aztlan ?
Date: Tue, 24 May 1994 20:01:32 +0200
Aztlan is another Blind Spot!
I know, there is some material about Aztlan in KaGe, but I don't have
those KaGes. My questions are:
Why does Aztlan not like the Tir (to put it in thiese words)?
What is the background of the Civil War they obviously have down
there (Matador says something like this on FoF.)?
Why is Aztlan such a sad place. I'm refering to the comments on the
WRAITH on Paranimals of Europe, where a guy says he saw a wraith in
Tenochtitlaan DNTCS.
Who runs Aztlan, what has Aztech to do with it (if they have to do any-
thing with it)?

Please might someone have mercy and fill in my gaps,
Curious St.Willkofer
Message no. 4
From: Gurth <jweste%smtp@******.HZEELAND.NL>
Subject: Aztlan ? - Reply
Date: Wed, 25 May 1994 18:30:47 +0200
>What is the background of the Civil War they obviously have down
>there (Matador says something like this on FoF.)?
>Why is Aztlan such a sad place. I'm refering to the comments on the
>WRAITH on Paranimals of Europe, where a guy says he saw a wraith in
>Tenochtitlaan DNTCS.
>Who runs Aztlan, what has Aztech to do with it (if they have to do any-
>thing with it)?

>From what I've been able to piece together, Aztechnology is rumored to
run Aztlan. Of course, if this is the case, they run the government like
a holding corp (i.e. they control it, but nobody knows about it). But
think about it. If this is the case, the country isn't going to be a nice
place, with Aztechnology controlling it. Aztechnology isn't a corp known
for its friendly behavior, so if they would run a country, they'd
probably treat it the same way they treat their competitors and
opponents. That would probably lead to huge slums (on which the wraiths
can thrive), which in turn leads to massive unrest => civil war.

> have mercy and fill in my gaps,

This is getting naughty...
Message no. 5
From: Ivy Ryan <ivyryan@***.ORG>
Subject: Re: Aztlan ?
Date: Wed, 25 May 1994 10:35:15 -0700
On Tue, 24 May 1994, Unix_Kurs7044 wrote:

> Aztlan is another Blind Spot!
> I know, there is some material about Aztlan in KaGe, but I don't have
> those KaGes. My questions are:
> Why does Aztlan not like the Tir (to put it in thiese words)?

Much cut for brevity.

> Curious St.Willkofer
>

Well, that's the whole thing about the way FASA is publishing SR. They
won't tell anyone anything "so the GMs can have fun too." and this leaves
all of us in the dark.

Wish I could help.

Ivy K
Message no. 6
From: "J.D. Falk" <jdfalk@************.ORG>
Subject: Aztlan!
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 1995 23:36:42 -0400
Got the chance to flip through the new Astlan book earlier today
(Nigel Findley's last sourcebook, unfortunately.) Very nice. The layout
is much like Bug City, which isn't surprising -- but what /is/ surprising
is the layers of commentary. Besides the expected shadowtalk, there's
also commentary from a group of people brought together by none other than
The Big "D" -- probably Dunklezahn himself!
Also, just to screw with our minds, they've thrown the occasional
http in the mock file addresses. But, they put in lots of hideously ugly
backslashes, so they aren't real URL's.
As for the content, it looks good. Lots of stuff about blood
magic (I /really/ didn't need that added to the game -- hopefully our GM
won't bother learning the rules about it before I do), politics, etcetera.
Seems that, just as we'd suspected, Aztlan is even more fragged (from our
point of view) than /either/ Tir. But not much. *grin*
I'd always wanted to know more about Aztlan, and this book is
certainly it. Whew.

Overall, though, I must agree with some of the recent comments
that FASA is turning Shadowrn a bit too far towards the strange magical
phenomenae. Sure, they're interesting and all, but I always preferred the
sociological stuff...the nameless, faceless drudges working tirelessly for
the corps that rule their lives (but every now and then they break loose,
and that's the stuff legends are made of.) The street punks railing
impotently against the megacorps they can never reap the benifits from.
And the special ones who work their way between the walls and the rules,
the few who get out of the race -- the Shadowrunners.
IMHO, the interaction is very cool. And when you add bugs to the
mix, it's just not as much fun any more.

---------========== J.D. Falk <jdfalk@************.org> =========---------
| "That wanker Claudius. He poured fucking poison in my fucking ear!" |
| -The Skinhead Hamlet, Act I, Scene IV |
----========== http://www.cybernothing.org/jdfalk/home.html ==========----
Message no. 7
From: Matt Hufstetler <gt2778a@*****.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 1995 02:28:42 -0400
Well lesse here....

We have:
Big 'D'
Hecate
Wordsmyth
The Laughing Man(I'll give ya three guesses here and th first two don't count)
Lady of the Court
Jungle Cat
and
Umsondo


Any guesses as to their identities?

Big D is pretty simple as is The Laughing Man, but I haven't a clue as far
as everyone else.


Matt 'Comatose Raspberry' Hufstetler
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta Georgia, 30332
uucp: ...!{decvax,hplabs,ncar,purdue,rutgers}!gatech!prism!gt2778a
Internet: gt2778a@*****.gatech.edu
Message no. 8
From: "J.D. Falk" <jdfalk@************.ORG>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 1995 03:32:01 -0400
On Sun, 16 Jul 1995, Matt Hufstetler wrote:

> Lady of the Court

Somebody from one of the Tirs -- not sure which, or who she is.

---------========== J.D. Falk <jdfalk@************.org> =========---------
| "Are you calling me crackers? |
| Are you saying I'm a large, sodium-covered square, |
| here to nourish you?" --Animaniacs |
----========== http://www.cybernothing.org/jdfalk/home.html ==========----
Message no. 9
From: "S.F. Eley" <gt6877c@*****.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 1995 11:18:42 -0400
Matt Hufstetler asks:

> Any guesses as to their identities?

Well I haven't bought Aztlan yet, nor am I likely to since DragonCon left
me in poverty yesterday (wanna swap sourcebooks sometime, Matt?) but I'll
give it a shot.. Keep in mind this guesses CANNOT be in context to what
these people are talking about, and guesses that these are all characters
that have been mentioned in modules or books:

Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)
Hecate I'm stumped here. Probably a female mage.
Wordsmyth Ehran?
Laughing Man Harlequin
Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_
Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_

Blessings,

_TNX._

--
Stephen F. Eley (-) gt6877c@*****.gatech.edu )-( Student Pagan Community
http://wc62.residence.gatech.edu|
My opinions are my opinions. | Ask me about the
Please don't blame anyone else. | Invisible Pink Unicorns...
Message no. 10
From: Andrew <wadycki@********.UIUC.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 1995 10:23:18 -0500
> Big 'D' -- Dunkelzahn
> Hecate -- this sounds familar, just can't place it
> Wordsmyth - Ehran (he mentions something about the Tairngire, and who
else could be a word smith)
> The Laughing Man(I'll give ya three guesses here and th first two don't count)
> Lady of the Court -- Brane Deigh (Queen of the Seelie Court)
> Jungle Cat -- My guess would be the elf jungle king from Nosferatu
> and
> Umsondo -- a Watcher (?) your guess is as good as mine

-Andrew
Message no. 11
From: Jason Salem <jsalem@********.NET>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 1995 13:34:35 -0500
>Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)

given :)
>Hecate I'm stumped here. Probably a female mage.

My theory: the blood queen, Jenna whassit
>Wordsmyth Ehran?
>Laughing Man Harlequin
>Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_

yup ^3 .. hints were dropped like bricks on all thre of those.
>Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)

no idea. I never read the striper books. I do know that this elf is in
south america, Amazonia to be more precise, from the context. But aside
from that, no idea.

>Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_

That's what I thought too. The characters read the same way. They have
similar 'mannerisms' so to speak. Plus, I think Umsondo makes some
reference to the outback in Aztlan. Maybe it was an indirect reference...
ah. Barrenness is fertility. Make of it what you will...

jds
Message no. 12
From: Gurth <gurth@******.NL>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 11:45:41 +0200
>Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)
Obviously

>Wordsmyth Ehran?
Likely, I'd say.

>Laughing Man Harlequin
See Big 'D' :)

>Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_
>Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
Not really, I think. She doesn't want anything to do with anyone, going by
Who Hunts The Hunter, and I think probably the last she'd do would be to get
mixed up in Aztlan-like politics if she can help it.

>Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
He's dead, isn't he? This son of one of the Tir Princes killed him, if I'm
right.


Gurth@******.nl - Gurth@***.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Not so alone...
Geek Code v3.0: GS/AT/! dpu s:- !a>? C+(++) U P L E? W(++) N K- w+ O V? PS+
PE Y PGP- t(+) 5 X R+++>? tv+(++) b+@ DI? D+ G++ e h! !r(--) y? Unofficial
Shadowrun Guru :)
Message no. 13
From: robert frazine <shade@*****.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 08:28:41 -0400
On Sun, 16 Jul 1995, Matt Hufstetler wrote:

> Well lesse here....
>
> We have:
> Big 'D'
> Hecate (I think this is the Blood Queen)
> Wordsmyth (Ehran The Scribe)
> The Laughing Man(I'll give ya three guesses here and th first two don't count)
> Lady of the Court (Tir Na nOg Queen)
> Jungle Cat (No Clue)
> and
> Umsondo
>
>
> Any guesses as to their identities?
>
> Big D is pretty simple as is The Laughing Man, but I haven't a clue as far
> as everyone else.
>
>
> Matt 'Comatose Raspberry' Hufstetler
> Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta Georgia, 30332
> uucp: ...!{decvax,hplabs,ncar,purdue,rutgers}!gatech!prism!gt2778a
> Internet: gt2778a@*****.gatech.edu
>
Message no. 14
From: Andrew <wadycki@********.UIUC.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 08:20:48 -0500
On Mon, 17 Jul 1995, Gurth wrote:

> >Wordsmyth Ehran?
> Likely, I'd say.
Laughing man refers to him as his good friend and everyone says how they
don't often agree. So that is a pretty certain.

> >Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
> Not really, I think. She doesn't want anything to do with anyone, going by
> Who Hunts The Hunter, and I think probably the last she'd do would be to get
> mixed up in Aztlan-like politics if she can help it.

There is no way it is striper, she wouldn't have anything to do with
these magic people, and I doubt she would be on the net either.

> >Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
> He's dead, isn't he? This son of one of the Tir Princes killed him, if I'm
> right.

I don't remember that, I thought Urdli just kinda disappeared from that
affair.

Here is another name everyone has advoided, Brightlight. Any guesses? I
was thinking maybe Laverty, he seems like the know things if he wanted to
type.

-Andrew
Message no. 15
From: robert frazine <shade@*****.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 09:28:19 -0400
Yeah I'd agree from the clues that Laverty is Brightlight...since
Ehran (wordsmyth) didn't seem to like him...also...did any one
notice they called Lofwyr by name?
Message no. 16
From: Andrew <wadycki@********.UIUC.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 08:40:04 -0500
On Mon, 17 Jul 1995, robert frazine wrote:

> Yeah I'd agree from the clues that Laverty is Brightlight...since
> Ehran (wordsmyth) didn't seem to like him...also...did any one
> notice they called Lofwyr by name?

I wonder if Brightlight is his real name or an alias, seems they
mentioned Lofwyr by name since he wasn't there, so why not Laverty by his
real name. There is also reference to Brightlight writing papers in
Milan and Venice, I wonder what he has been doing these last few years.

-Andrew
Message no. 17
From: David van Nederveen Meerkerk <D.N.M.vanNederveen@***.RUU.NL>
Subject: Aztlan
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 15:58:10 +0200
As far as I know, this is not the last book of Nigel Findley.
Before this one, he also wrote the book about Organized Crime.
It will be out somewhere in autumn I think. He also didn't understand
why they waited so long with, while they wanted to give out Aztlan about
4 months after he finished it (at the time he told me, he had finished
it one month before and it was still due to be out in may).

Quin
--
This is not a signature, I type it every mail again.

David "42" van Nederveen Meerkerk
Warande 128
3705 ZK Zeist
Netherlands
tel: +31 (0)3404 51487
D.N.M.vanNederveen@***.ruu.nl
Message no. 18
From: Mark Steedman <RSMS@******.EEE.RGU.AC.UK>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 15:56:32 GMT
> From: Andrew <wadycki@********.UIUC.EDU>

> On Mon, 17 Jul 1995, robert frazine wrote:
>
> > Yeah I'd agree from the clues that Laverty is Brightlight...since
> > Ehran (wordsmyth) didn't seem to like him...also...did any one
> > notice they called Lofwyr by name?
>
> I wonder if Brightlight is his real name or an alias, seems they
> mentioned Lofwyr by name since he wasn't there, so why not Laverty by his
> real name. There is also reference to Brightlight writing papers in
> Milan and Venice, I wonder what he has been doing these last few years.
>
very true. No real idea on Brightlight and yes they did mention
Lofwry by name. The ref to Milan and Venice was after a comment about
a 'Dr' that had written a paper against the 'turing test' and they
very strongly implied the said gentleman was actuall Brightlight
going by another name to hide in society. I therefore suspect this is
a ref to earlier folks we 'mortals' consider great folks who were
actuall yBrightlights aliases in the fifth age in the SR universe.

Note the comment on Lofwry having Nukes! they seemed to think one of
there kind controlling such an environment polluting weapon rather
amusing.

> -Andrew
>
Mark
Message no. 19
From: "S.F. Eley" <gt6877c@*****.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 1995 12:16:41 -0400
> >Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
> He's dead, isn't he? This son of one of the Tir Princes killed him, if I'm
> right.

Do you mean Estios? No. Wounded him, and screwed up his evil plans.

(Which is all I'll say, for the benefit of those who haven't read the
trilogy yet.) >8->


Blessings,

_TNX._

--
Stephen F. Eley (-) gt6877c@*****.gatech.edu )-( Student Pagan Community
http://wc62.residence.gatech.edu|"If the human brain was so simple that
My opinions are my opinions. | we could understand it, we would be so
Please don't blame anyone else. | simple that we wouldn't." - Emerson Pugh
Message no. 20
From: Robert Watkins <bob@**.NTU.EDU.AU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 16:56:39 +0930
S.F. Eley wrote:
>
> Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)
> Hecate I'm stumped here. Probably a female mage.
> Wordsmyth Ehran?
> Laughing Man Harlequin
> Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_
> Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
> Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_

Ah... Stiper's computer illiterate. She gets others to do even elementary
tasks. Urdli probably is as well, he seems to me like he despises all
things modern.

--
Robert Watkins bob@**.ntu.edu.au
Real Programmers never work 9 to 5. If any real programmers
are around at 9 am, it's because they were up all night.
*** Finger me for my geek code ***
Message no. 21
From: Robert Watkins <bob@**.NTU.EDU.AU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 17:01:18 +0930
Gurth wrote:
> >Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
> He's dead, isn't he? This son of one of the Tir Princes killed him, if I'm
> right.

I'd have to re-read "Never Trust An Elf", but it strikes me that Urdli, who
wipes out that Elf enforcer of the Professor (the one who always hassled
Dodger), wouldn't sweat it too much fighting that rather wimpy (until he
got hold of the dragon talisman) prince. I'd say he was still around.

--
Robert Watkins bob@**.ntu.edu.au
Real Programmers never work 9 to 5. If any real programmers
are around at 9 am, it's because they were up all night.
*** Finger me for my geek code ***
Message no. 22
From: Gurth <gurth@******.NL>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 10:34:22 +0200
>> >Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
>> He's dead, isn't he? This son of one of the Tir Princes killed him, if I'm
>> right.
>
>Do you mean Estios? No. Wounded him, and screwed up his evil plans.

No, I meant in Never Trust An Elf, I thought Glasgian (that's the name I was
looking for) killed Urdli, but I seem to have been mistaken. I was looking
through the book just now and I can't seem to find it. Maybe he killed
someone else and I've got the two mixed up :)


Gurth@******.nl - Gurth@***.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Wish (n): something which doesn't come true
GC3.0: GS/AT/! dpu s:- !a>? C+(++) U P L E? W(++) N K- w+ O V? PS+ PE Y
PGP- t(+) 5 X R+++>? tv+(++) b+@ DI? D+ G++ e h! !r(--) y? Unofficial
Shadowrun Guru :)
Message no. 23
From: "Brian A. Stewart" <bstewart@***.UUG.ARIZONA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 09:29:42 -0700
>S.F. Eley wrote:
>>
>> Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)
>> Hecate I'm stumped here. Probably a female mage.
>> Wordsmyth Ehran?
>> Laughing Man Harlequin
>> Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_
>> Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
>> Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
>

Jungle Cat cannot be Striper, because they address Jungle Cat as a male (ie.
refering to him as a he).

Another point of reference for all these individuals. Big 'D' states they
were all asked to join because they represent different cultural factions in
the Sixth World. Big 'D' = dragons
Hecate = ?, They refer to her in a dark light
Wordsmyth = The Tir
Laughing Man = His own faction
Lady = Tir Nan Og
Jungle Cat = They make referrences to Amozonia
Umsondo = ?, They call him the observer.

Brian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Bl
essed are the young,
For they shall inherit the National Debt.

-Herbert Humphrey

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
bstewart@***.uug.arizona.edu
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Message no. 24
From: "Brian A. Stewart" <bstewart@***.UUG.ARIZONA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 08:53:26 -0700
Previously J.D. Falk wrote,

> Overall, though, I must agree with some of the recent comments
>that FASA is turning Shadowrn a bit too far towards the strange magical
>phenomenae. Sure, they're interesting and all, but I always preferred the
>sociological stuff...the nameless, faceless drudges working tirelessly for
>the corps that rule their lives (but every now and then they break loose,
>and that's the stuff legends are made of.) The street punks railing
>impotently against the megacorps they can never reap the benifits from.
>And the special ones who work their way between the walls and the rules,
>the few who get out of the race -- the Shadowrunners.

I concur and congratulate the late Nigel Findley for an excellent source
book, very intriguing. I love magic, I am constantly adding new ideas to
the system, but I feel FASA seems to be pulling Shadowrun away from its
genre, Cyperpunk with a twist. Having the bugs and the horrors is fine,
but an equal amount of effort needs to be spent on tech. Toxic dumping,
megacorps, cyborgs, AI's, BTL, drugs, clones, all these things can be as
dangerous and dark as the horrors if presentedd correctly. I have sent
chills through my players spines with tech as often as with magic.

Brian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Pa
lm speaks red to bent back,
Till flesh answers with angry words.
And worlds crumble,
And children scream,
And footsteps play alien keys;
In the hollow night.
Behind family doors, the eyes close.

-BAS (excerpt from Footsteps Play Alien Keys)
bstewart@***.uug.arizona.edu
Message no. 25
From: "Brian A. Stewart" <bstewart@***.UUG.ARIZONA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 11:14:31 -0700
>S.F. Eley wrote:
>>
>> Big 'D' Dunkelzahn (yeah, yeah, we know..)
>> Hecate I'm stumped here. Probably a female mage.
>> Wordsmyth Ehran?
>> Laughing Man Harlequin
>> Lady of the Court Lady Bran Deigh, _Choose Your Enemies Carefully_
>> Jungle Cat Striper the Assassin (if she's that important)
>> Umsondo Urdli the guardian, _Find Your Own Truth_
>

Jungle Cat cannot be Striper, because they address Jungle Cat as a male (ie.
refering to him as a he).

Another point of reference for all these individuals. Big 'D' states they
were all asked to join because they represent different cultural factions in
the Sixth World. Big 'D' = dragons
Hecate = ?, They refer to her in a dark light
Wordsmyth = The Tir
Laughing Man = His own faction
Lady = Tir Nan Og
Jungle Cat = They make referrences to Amozonia
Umsondo = ?, They call him the observer.

Brian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blessed are the young,
For they shall inherit the National Debt.

-Herbert Humphrey

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
bstewart@***.uug.arizona.edu
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Message no. 26
From: "Brian A. Stewart" <bstewart@***.UUG.ARIZONA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 11:14:45 -0700
Previously J.D. Falk wrote,

> Overall, though, I must agree with some of the recent comments
>that FASA is turning Shadowrn a bit too far towards the strange magical
>phenomenae. Sure, they're interesting and all, but I always preferred the
>sociological stuff...the nameless, faceless drudges working tirelessly for
>the corps that rule their lives (but every now and then they break loose,
>and that's the stuff legends are made of.) The street punks railing
>impotently against the megacorps they can never reap the benifits from.
>And the special ones who work their way between the walls and the rules,
>the few who get out of the race -- the Shadowrunners.

I concur and congratulate the late Nigel Findley for an excellent source
book, very intriguing. I love magic, I am constantly adding new ideas to
the system, but I feel FASA seems to be pulling Shadowrun away from its
genre, Cyperpunk with a twist. Having the bugs and the horrors is fine,
but an equal amount of effort needs to be spent on tech. Toxic dumping,
megacorps, cyborgs, AI's, BTL, drugs, clones, all these things can be as
dangerous and dark as the horrors if presentedd correctly. I have sent
chills through my players spines with tech as often as with magic.

Brian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blessed are the young,
For they shall inherit the National Debt.

-Herbert Humphrey

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
bstewart@***.uug.arizona.edu
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Message no. 27
From: robert frazine <shade@*****.EDU>
Subject: Re: Aztlan!
Date: Tue, 18 Jul 1995 15:20:57 -0400
uhm..not to burst the anit-magic bubble or anything...but I think
they are just balancing things out. They have Bug City and Atzlan and
then they have the cyborg book and all the other tech books. as to
why they are pulling away from the cyberpunk genre--they are growing.
they are trying to show the whole world...not just the inner city of
a major sprawl.

(please flame me privately.)
Mr. Shade
Message no. 28
From: "Damion Milliken" <dam01@***.edu.au>
Subject: Aztlan
Date: Mon, 22 Jul 1996 19:37:14 +1000 (EST)
I finished reading the Aztlan sourcebook the other day. I can strongly
recommend it to you all, it is the best "place" book that I've read so far
(and I've read over 2/3 of them). The book itself is about 50% larger than
any other SR "place" book, and takes a little time to get through. Anyway,
I won't review it as (a) I'm too lazy (b) I've forgotten half of what's in
it (c) it's been done before.

--
Damion Milliken University of Wollongong E-mail: dam01@***.edu.au

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Message no. 29
From: "Andre' Selmer" <031ANDRE@******.wits.ac.za>
Subject: Re: Aztlan
Date: Wed, 24 Jul 1996 12:19:07 GMT + 2:00
@ I finished reading the Aztlan sourcebook the other day. I can strongly
@ recommend it to you all, it is the best "place" book that I've read so far
@ (and I've read over 2/3 of them). The book itself is about 50% larger than
@ any other SR "place" book, and takes a little time to get through. Anyway,
@ I won't review it as (a) I'm too lazy (b) I've forgotten half of what's in
@ it (c) it's been done before.

All that I can say about that book was that it caused our players
to go through more torture and mayhem then we ever have before. Try
getting lost in the Aztland jungle for 2 weeks with Naga's, were-
panthers, water-elementals, blood something-or-the-other's, somesort
of dragon spirit (oricalucum spirits prehaps) etc. etc. etc. etc. ;)

It was one of the best games we've had in a while.

Andre'

-- We exist because you want us to, because you are
|__|__ afraid to face the facts. We are what you fear
/\ /\ \ in the deep recesses of your soul, yourselves.
|\ /\ /| | It is there in the shadows of your soul and those
|/ \/ \| | of the street that we exist. Through the use of
\/__\/ might, magic, cunning, blood, sweat and tears we
protect you from your fears, from youselves, from
others and keep your utopia, not ours, intact.
Message no. 30
From: Sebastian Wiers m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject: Aztlan
Date: Wed, 29 Sep 1999 03:56:19 -0500
> Hey guys, just a question, what is it whith Aztlan anyways, i read the
> Sourcebook, and I must admit I was impressed, it was quite close to
reality
> but then again some things werent. So I wanted to ask you what are your
> opinions about thee subject. why are we the bad guys, any reasons are well
> accepted just dont ofend remember there are some of us here, and nothing
> will do any harm.
> thanks.
> ATTE el MORRIS

If you didn't get it from the Aztlan sourcebook, you need to pick up on
the "ancient history" of Shadowrun, also known a "Earthdawn".
Basically,
Aztlan's most powerful blood mages are in league with entities that would
loove to destroy all metahuman life, or at least render them all mad. This
was a big thing in Shadowrun when that book was written, but the danger
posed by those entities has since been greatly reduced; it a plotline FASA
doesn't want to take any farther.
So, really, Aztlan and Aztechnolgy are not "bad guys" any more than Tir
Na Nog or Saeder Krupp. The sourcebook does paint an ugly picture of blood
magic and give the impression that blood mages run the country, but recent
events and products reduce thier impact. Sure, they are scary, but every
mega has its dirty tricks.
Of course, Aztechnolgy IS the corporate descendant of the current day
central american drug cartels, and thier associated miltary, paramilitary,
and spooks. They were into shadowruns (or at least nasty violent coercion)
as part of thier birthright, so to speak, and they still do them very well.
Of course, so does Cross...
Also, theres the simple fact that they kick ass in magic; they don't
just have powerful "bad magic", but also more "normal" magic firepower
than
any other corp. Aztechnolgy has LOTS of normal and intiated mages and
shamans, and uses them more heavily than any other corporation.
Plus, theres the fact that they are just plain economically powerful;
they are number one (or close to it and gaining) in several areas, including
food production. I dunno, that's kind of scary in itself...

Mongoose

Further Reading

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Thwap!