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Message no. 1
From: John D Tarter <shintaro1@****.COM>
Subject: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:07:32 EDT
Mr. Bull Sir,

In the past 4 years that I've been playing SR, I have played almost all
types of Characters. Just this weekend I got VR2 on loan from a friend
because I told him I would like to Experience the life of a decker when I
retire my current character Shintaro who is a physad. Knowing you as a
vetran of many runs, and a personal buddy of DK himself, I thought you
might give this humble player some advice on how to survive the Matrix so
I can become rich and famous like you. :-))

~Shintaro

P.S. Any other comments or words of encouragement from others would be
greatly appreciated as well<G>
Message no. 2
From: stephen wolfe <twowolfe@*******.NET>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Wed, 4 Jun 1997 18:36:36 -0700
> P.S. Any other comments or words of encouragement from others would be
> greatly appreciated as well<G>

Anyways watch your back

And you cant ever have too much help in the matrix

Maybe I'll see you in the matrix

Wildthing/Elven Decker
Message no. 3
From: L Canthros <lobo1@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 21:33:36 EDT
On Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:07:32 EDT John D Tarter <shintaro1@****.COM>
writes:
>Mr. Bull Sir,
<snip the biggest bunch of kissing-up and boot-licking I have ever seen:)
>
>P.S. Any other comments or words of encouragement from others would be
>greatly appreciated as well<G>


You know, John, brown-nosing the other list members isn't necessary to
attract attention. It helps:) but it isn't necessary.


--
-JP, otherwise known as the immortal Canthros
And ye shall know the truth, and lobo1@****.com
the truth shall set you free. canthros1@***.com
--John 8:32, KJV
http://members.aol.com/canthros1/
Message no. 4
From: Michael Broadwater <mbroadwa@*******.GLENAYRE.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 15:21:22 -0500
At 02:07 PM 6/9/97 EDT, John D Tarter wrote:
>Mr. Bull Sir,
>
>In the past 4 years that I've been playing SR, I have played almost all
>types of Characters. Just this weekend I got VR2 on loan from a friend
>because I told him I would like to Experience the life of a decker when I
>retire my current character Shintaro who is a physad. Knowing you as a
>vetran of many runs, and a personal buddy of DK himself, I thought you
>might give this humble player some advice on how to survive the Matrix so
>I can become rich and famous like you. :-))
>
>~Shintaro
>
So, Bull, I have to ask, after reading this, is that ork butt of yours
chapped or what? <g>


Mike Broadwater
"I don't care if you don't like my manners. I don't like them much myself.
They're pretty bad. I grieve over them on long winter evenings."
Message no. 5
From: Raven <florian.goll@******.UNI-WEIMAR.DE>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 00:09:46 +0000
> On Mon, 9 Jun 1997 14:07:32 EDT John D Tarter <shintaro1@****.COM>
> writes:
> >Mr. Bull Sir,
> <snip the biggest bunch of kissing-up and boot-licking I have ever seen:)
> >
> >P.S. Any other comments or words of encouragement from others would be
> >greatly appreciated as well<G>
>
>
> You know, John, brown-nosing the other list members isn't necessary to
> attract attention. It helps:) but it isn't necessary.
Hey... the old Bull just loves it... he's old at 22 and if you don't
do it he gets out his walking Cane(the one with a sword in it) and
beats you like a ... :)
Known it ... did it to me
-----------


>>>>>[ Just because you are Paranoid doesn't mean the Bastards aren't after
you ! ]<<<<<
- Raven <No time/Date Stamp>
Message no. 6
From: Bull <chaos@*****.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 10:31:09 -0400
At 02:07 PM 6/9/97 EDT, John D Tarter wrote these timeless words:
>Mr. Bull Sir,
>
Ok, before I continue, let me just say that I am now THOUROUGHLY
embarrassed...:] Even MY ego ain't this big...:]

Shintaro, Buddy, pal... Just Bull, ok? :]

>In the past 4 years that I've been playing SR, I have played almost all
>types of Characters. Just this weekend I got VR2 on loan from a friend
>because I told him I would like to Experience the life of a decker when I
>retire my current character Shintaro who is a physad. Knowing you as a
>vetran of many runs, and a personal buddy of DK himself, I thought you
>might give this humble player some advice on how to survive the Matrix so
>I can become rich and famous like you. :-))
>
Ummm... Luck?

In all honosty, I can say that Bull is still alive and (sort of) healthy
due to decent roleplaying on my part and a sadistic streak on the part of
my GM. See... He thinks that if a character is dead, then you can't
torture him anymore. And right he is...:]

Ok, In character...

A) Keep your head down when the bullets fly. Don't be a hero. You're the
brains and the deck, not the muscle.

B) Branch out. Don;t just learn decking skills. Because you WILL have to
step outside your house/apartment/whatever, and when you do, you WILL be
shot at and attacked by something, whether it's the Cops, the Mafia, or the
little old lady that lives up the hall.

C) Spend some (but only some) of your free time upgrading your hardware
personally. Don;t rely on store bought programs. Write your own!

D) Get a LIFE! Tehre is more to life than Shadowrunning. Think about the
future. oplan to retire someday. Set a goal. find a woman. get married,
have kids. (Not necessarily in that order:)). It gives your GM more to
torture you with :]

E) Make friends. Don't be a cocky ass. it gets you killed.

F) Be honest with your employers and contacts. Life is easier when you
stop screwing them over, because often, they won;t do it back then.

G) never deal with a dragon. It's not pretty.

H) Never trust an elf. They're weedy :]

I) Johnson is never their real name.

J) Avoid Wetwork. Gives you a bad rep, or at least, the wrong rep. The
jobs get a LOT harder when you start down that road.

K) Get athletics. This is the worlds ultimate default when it comes to
anything physical.

L) Learn your territories. As a decker, learn the Matrix, as well as the
stgreets. Ettiquette skills are VERY important if you want to get ahead.
You may also wan to consider taking a bit of Corp Ettiquette, for those
times you need to run a corp system, and have to deal with corp flunkies.

M) Read VR 2.0 several dozen times, make sure your GM reads it at least
twice that many times, and then "play test" the rules so you get the hang
of them. Makes decking much faster in a group if you both know what's
happening.

N) Personalize your character's Icon. What does it look like? How do the
programs look when they are used? Does the char have a theme to him?
Nothing looks tackier in the matrix than standard icons...:]

O) Learn a second trade. Deckers lend themselves quite naturally to
Rigging, as teh concept is similar. This is something that you won;t want
to do for a while, but is something to shoot for.

P) BRB. i gotta Pee... <grin>

Q) Ummm, there's a Q?

R) Well, I've obviously run out of tipes, so... Go back to A :]

>~Shintaro
>
>P.S. Any other comments or words of encouragement from others would be
>greatly appreciated as well<G>
>
Bull
--
Now the Offical Celebrity Shadowrn Mailing List Welcome Ork Decker!
Fearless Leader of the Star Wars Mailing List
NEW HOME PAGE!: http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Cavern/3604/home.html

Bull, aka Steven Ratkovich, aka Rak, aka a lot of others! :]

"The best Ork Decker you never met"
-Me, in the upcoming "Target: UCAS" Shadowrun Sourcebook!
Message no. 7
From: John D Tarter <shintaro1@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 14:47:32 EDT
On Wed, 11 Jun 1997 10:31:09 -0400 Bull <chaos@*****.COM> writes:
>At 02:07 PM 6/9/97 EDT, John D Tarter wrote these timeless words:
>>Mr. Bull Sir,
>>
>Ok, before I continue, let me just say that I am now THOUROUGHLY
>embarrassed...:] Even MY ego ain't this big...:]
>
>Shintaro, Buddy, pal... Just Bull, ok? :
]
Sorry about that! :-) I thought that type of message would get a response
and gee I was right!
>>
>Ummm... Luck?
>
>In all honosty, I can say that Bull is still alive and (sort of)
>healthy due to decent roleplaying on my part and a sadistic streak on
the part
>of my GM. See... He thinks that if a character is dead, then you can't
>torture him anymore. And right he is...:]

(BIG hint to my GM Canthros the Shapeshifter Mage)

>
>Ok, In character...

A) Keep your head down when the bullets fly. Don't be a hero.
You're the brains and the deck, not the muscle.

You just have to remind the sammies of that 10 times a day. :-)

>C) Spend some (but only some) of your free time upgrading your
>hardware
>personally. Don;t rely on store bought programs. Write your own!

Time! Never enough of it in the day! Damn! <G>

>D) Get a LIFE! Tehre is more to life than Shadowrunning. Think about
the future. oplan to retire someday. Set a goal. find a woman. get
married, have kids. (Not necessarily in that order:)). It gives your GM
more to torture you with :]

My GM is very very evil!
>
.
>
>M) Read VR 2.0 several dozen times, make sure your GM reads it at
>least twice that many times, and then "play test" the rules so you get
the
hang of them. Makes decking much faster in a group if you both know
what's happening.

I wish we had more than 1 copy, as it would make life easier for all of
us.

Thanks for all the tips man. From now on it's just Bull..... well then
again :-)

See ya in the Matrix!

~Shintaro
Message no. 8
From: Raven <florian.goll@******.UNI-WEIMAR.DE>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 22:45:17 +0000
> I) Johnson is never their real name.
Sometimes it is and thats your worst nightmar EGML
-----------


>>>>>[ Just because you are Paranoid doesn't mean the Bastards aren't after
you ! ]<<<<<
- Raven <No time/Date Stamp>
Message no. 9
From: John E Pederson <lobo1@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 1997 01:29:32 EDT
On Wed, 11 Jun 1997 10:31:09 -0400 Bull <chaos@*****.COM> writes:
>At 02:07 PM 6/9/97 EDT, John D Tarter wrote these timeless words:
>>Mr. Bull Sir,
>>
>Ok, before I continue, let me just say that I am now THOUROUGHLY
>embarrassed...:] Even MY ego ain't this big...:]


Shintaro was feeling ignored, he wanted to make sure he got your
attection:)


>Shintaro, Buddy, pal... Just Bull, ok? :]
>
>>In the past 4 years that I've been playing SR, I have played almost all
>>types of Characters. Just this weekend I got VR2 on loan from a friend
>>because I told him I would like to Experience the life of a decker when
I
>>retire my current character Shintaro who is a physad. Knowing you as a
>>vetran of many runs, and a personal buddy of DK himself, I thought you
>>might give this humble player some advice on how to survive the Matrix
so
>>I can become rich and famous like you. :-))
>>
>Ummm... Luck?


LOL!


>In all honosty, I can say that Bull is still alive and (sort of) healthy
>due to decent roleplaying on my part and a sadistic streak on the part
of
>my GM. See... He thinks that if a character is dead, then you can't
>torture him anymore. And right he is...:]


<EGMLOL>


>Ok, In character...
>
>A) Keep your head down when the bullets fly. Don't be a hero. You're
the
>brains and the deck, not the muscle.


Also a good tip for the magic-users, unless perhaps they're troll
burn-outs:)


>B) Branch out. Don;t just learn decking skills. Because you WILL have
to
>step outside your house/apartment/whatever, and when you do, you WILL be
>shot at and attacked by something, whether it's the Cops, the Mafia, or
the
>little old lady that lives up the hall.


A good tip for all characters.


>C) Spend some (but only some) of your free time upgrading your hardware
>personally. Don;t rely on store bought programs. Write your own!
>
>D) Get a LIFE! Tehre is more to life than Shadowrunning. Think about
the
>future. oplan to retire someday. Set a goal. find a woman. get
married,
> have kids. (Not necessarily in that order:)). It gives your GM more
to
>torture you with :]


Again, a good idea for all characters, and something I'm working on
emphasizing.


<big snip>
>M) Read VR 2.0 several dozen times, make sure your GM reads it at least
>twice that many times, and then "play test" the rules so you get the
hang
>of them. Makes decking much faster in a group if you both know what's
>happening.


Well, I know what I'm reading when I get done with Threats (and get VR2.0
back from Shintaro:)


>N) Personalize your character's Icon. What does it look like? How do
the
>programs look when they are used? Does the char have a theme to him?
>Nothing looks tackier in the matrix than standard icons...:]


Shintaro: Hint, hint:)


<snip>


--
-Canthros
And ye shall know the truth, and lobo1@****.com
the truth shall set you free. canthros1@***.com
--John 8:32, KJV
http://members.aol.com/canthros1/
Message no. 10
From: Bull <chaos@*****.COM>
Subject: Re: Calling Ork Decker Bull
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 1997 14:06:19 -0400
At 02:47 PM 6/11/97 EDT, John D Tarter wrote these timeless words:
>>Ok, before I continue, let me just say that I am now THOUROUGHLY
>>embarrassed...:] Even MY ego ain't this big...:]
>>
>>Shintaro, Buddy, pal... Just Bull, ok? :
>Sorry about that! :-) I thought that type of message would get a response
>and gee I was right!
>
<grin> no big deal, really...:]

>>>
>>Ummm... Luck?
>>
>>In all honosty, I can say that Bull is still alive and (sort of)
>>healthy due to decent roleplaying on my part and a sadistic streak on
>the part
>>of my GM. See... He thinks that if a character is dead, then you can't
>>torture him anymore. And right he is...:]
>
>(BIG hint to my GM Canthros the Shapeshifter Mage)
>
<chuckle>

>>
>>Ok, In character...
>
>A) Keep your head down when the bullets fly. Don't be a hero.
>You're the brains and the deck, not the muscle.
>
>You just have to remind the sammies of that 10 times a day. :-)
>
Yuppers... They tend to think you can hang with the Combat Monsters just
because you usually have a low essence...;]

They don;t realize that the cyber is going elsewhere...;]

>>C) Spend some (but only some) of your free time upgrading your
>>hardware
>>personally. Don;t rely on store bought programs. Write your own!
>
>Time! Never enough of it in the day! Damn! <G>
>
Tell me about it...

The way I did it was I sat down and used the Deck Construction rles to
build a deck. It ended up, after B/R tests and such, that it was going to
take over a year to build the full deck.

So I bought a mid-level deck, and then started working on the "good" deck.
I would ask my GM how much time had passed between runs, and then subtract
2/3 of that time from my Deck B/R time... Sometimes I would take off less
time if something unusual was up (Like family vacations, Hospitilization do
too extensive Bandersnatch Mauling, etc.).

The best part is, my deck is still in the original casing. It's now better
than the standard Fairlight, but looks like an Ares Alpha :]

>>D) Get a LIFE! Tehre is more to life than Shadowrunning. Think about
>the future. oplan to retire someday. Set a goal. find a woman. get
>married, have kids. (Not necessarily in that order:)). It gives your GM
>more to torture you with :]
>
>My GM is very very evil!
>
GM's should be... that way, they are interesting/...:]

>>M) Read VR 2.0 several dozen times, make sure your GM reads it at
>>least twice that many times, and then "play test" the rules so you get
>the
>hang of them. Makes decking much faster in a group if you both know
>what's happening.
>
>I wish we had more than 1 copy, as it would make life easier for all of
>us.
>
Go buy it! Make Mike happy! :]

Seriously, just take your time... Keep the runs light in the beginning
until you both have a good feel for the system...;]

>Thanks for all the tips man. From now on it's just Bull..... well then
>again :-)
>
<grin>

>See ya in the Matrix!
>
>~Shintaro
>
Glad to help...:]

--
Now the Offical Celebrity Shadowrn Mailing List Welcome Ork Decker!
Fearless Leader of the Star Wars Mailing List
NEW HOME PAGE!: http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Cavern/3604/home.html

Bull, aka Steven Ratkovich, aka Rak, aka a lot of others! :]

"The best Ork Decker you never met"
-Me, in the upcoming "Target: UCAS" Shadowrun Sourcebook!

Further Reading

If you enjoyed reading about Calling Ork Decker Bull, you may also be interested in:

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