| From: | Brett Borger <bxb121@***.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Fixers (long) Part 2. |
| Date: | Sun, 6 Jul 1997 16:34:19 EST |
that the Fixer knows exactly what was paid, gets a percentage of any
bonuses as well, only gets paid if you take the job, and only gets
paid AFTER the job is done.
Roll 1d6 and add the Fixers Price Rating
-2: 50%
-1: 30%
0: 15%
1: 15%
2: 15%
3: 10%
4: 10%
5: 5%
6: 5%
7: 1%
8: 1%
9: Fee Waived.
Direct Hire
***********
This is when the fixer is hired, and he hires the runners. The
Fixers advantage here is complete knowledge of the run, and the amount
paid. If done with enough time, he may even be able to hire a second
team if you all fail. The disadvantage is that the Johnson holds him
directly responsible.
Roll 1d6, add Price Rating AND Loyalty Rating.
-5: Will rip runners off
-4: 1%
-3: 5%
-2: 10% Assume percentage includes bonuses unless -1:
20% otherwise stated.
0: 30%
1: 35%
2: 40%
3: 45%
4: 50%
5: 55%
6: 60%
7: 65%
8: 70%
9: 80%
10: 90%
11: Full Payment, minus bonuses
12: Full Payment, plus bonuses
Finding Runs
************
Sometimes the fixer contacts the runners with a job, other
times the runners ask the fixer for work. There are two ways a runner
can ask for work: Type specific or General.
Type Specific
*************
Most often, a runner or team of runners are particularly
skilled at a particular type of assignment. Extraction, Muscle,
Magical opposition, etc. The runners can request a type of job from
the fixer. To find out whether the fixer has any jobs like that
waiting, or can find one, roll the Fixers resource rating (modified
for the type) against a target of 6. Every two successes (round down,
so you need two successes to get the first possible run) indicate a
possible run. Some fixers (Normal or less) will charge a minor fee
((6-(1d6+Price Rating)*100 Y) for this search, in addition to getting
the finder's fee or percentage. (If the fixer is using direct hire,
then he already knows about the job and no search is needed. He
doesn't have to tell the runners that (Loyalty < Normal), and can
charge away.)
General Search
**************
If the fixer fails to have jobs of the type the runners are
searching for, they can request (usually out of desperation) ANY jobs
the fixer has available. The number of jobs the fixer has is equal to
the number of successes in a: Resource Rating [4] test. (Use base
Johnsons and Runs Rating, and avoid saying he has runs in areas he is
poor/bad in). In this case, the fixer is not searching for jobs, but
looking at what he knows is available, and almost never charges for
the search, content to take whatever his other fee is.
Getting Info
++++++++++++
A fixer is the ultimate source of information. Huge
databases of information lay at his fingertips, and contacts with more
info are just a phone call away. But does a fixer know what you need?
Can he get it?
Whenever information is asked for, first determine whether the
fixer can get the info. Roll Info Resources [target based on
difficulty of getting knowledge]. Compare successes to the chart
below. Don't allow the fixer to get impossible/ridiculous knowledge.
0: I'll get back to you. (he doesn't)
1: It'll take some time. (24 hours)
2: Null persperation,. (12 hours)
3: Just a minute... (1 hour)
4: Got that right here (1 minute)
5+: I thought you'd ask that. (instantly)
Another thing to consider is price. Fixer's don't get
wealthy and powerful by giving everything away. Die rolls can't do
all of this, you have to consider:
-The difficulty of getting the info
-Whether giving this info to the runners will make money for
the fixer. (He is more likely to give them the info free if
they need to know it to succeed in the run where he is netting
50%)
As a base price, try 4-(1d6+Price Rating-target# of info)*100
Nuyen.
Contacts
++++++++
Whenever the skills of a team aren't sufficient, they need to
call in backup. If their direct contacts aren't enough, it's time to
hire some others. This is where the fixer steps in. With his web of
contacts and runners, be it where the runners act as a Johnson, or
just getting the runners to meet with a contact.
The first thing to do is to determine whether the fixer has
the approprite contact. Simply roll Resources with a target number
based on the intricacy of the contact. Here are some samples:
4: generic talent (decker, rigger, etc)
6: Expert: (Parazoologist studying dracoforms)
8: Rare Expert: (Parazoologist studying dracoform
toenails.)
10+: Specific Individual.
Success indicates a contact. More successes can raise the
skill of the individual (in non-idividual cases) or decrease the time
needed for a meet. Assume a base time of 72 hours, and
Archtype/Contact skill levels for generic types, 6 for experts, 8 for
rare experts, and use individuals as they merit. Additional successes
can "raise" the contacts' skills one point for every two successes.
Successes are split between time and skill, they don't count towards
both.
Simply having a contact doesn't guarantee a meet. The
contact represents a person, and the character must provide a
reason for the contact to be interested in meeting, just as the
characters would demand a reason.
Normally in this the runners will be acting as a Johnson to
the contact, and the fixer would charge a Finder's fee or percentage
as he would for the runners. Remember, sometimes the Johnson pays the
Finder's fee, so...
Working as a Fence
++++++++++++++++++
The basic SR rules provide details for finding and meeting a
Fence. Sometimes, runners would just rather pass the hot material on
to the Fixer to deal with. While not as profitable, it helps the
runners get rid of something before it burns them. The fixer, in
turn, either takes it to a fence or does the work of a fence himself.
Use the standard rules for deciding the money the fixer has
available, and what material he has an interest in. For payment
though, subtract (20%-(Price Rating *10%))from the final payment.
(This may result in better prices, but rarely. You may consider Price
Rating in this case to be modifyable as slots for Favors and Buddies.)
Shadowbanking
+++++++++++++
Bankers tend to be anal. Particularly when it comes to
money. One thing they tend to really dislike is having accounts for
the SINless. Runners can get around this a few ways. They can have a
false ID/credstick, and thus have a legit account at the corner bank.
They can bribe a bank manager. They can use only scrip. Or, they can
use a shadowbank. If you don't have a false ID (or just don't want to
have to answer to the IRS), a shadowbank is the logical way to go.
Fixers are the most common shadowbankers (or middlemen for
shadowbankers.)
A shadowbank allows the characters to have functional
credsticks (certified, for financial purposes only), and protects your
funds in a manner similar to a normal bank. It also allows Johnsons
and others to transfer money to you. Without going into much detail,
through bribes, blackmail, and decking, many banks provide certain
accounts that don't seem to follow normal rules. Fixers/Shadowbankers
use these accounts to keep runners funds.
Doesn't this mean your fixer has a strangle hold on your
money? Sure it does. But you can transfer funds out of that
account to safe, anonymous accounts on Zurich-Orbital, for example, if
you are willing to pay the account creation fee. Plus, few fixers are
going to play with your funds lest word get around. Still, to be on
the safe side, most runners keep accounts under several fixers, not to
mention a few Swiss and Z-O accounts, and a few legit accounts under
false ID's.
Fixers normally take off ((1d6+Price Rating)/3) * 10% of any
money they put in a Shadowaccount.
False ID's
++++++++++
Few people have the resources and the skills to create false
ID's. To work with these few, runners go through Fixers.
Rules for False ID's/credsticks appear in the Neo-Anarchists
Guide to Real Life.
A fixer usually has a few "blanks", that is, low-level
credsticks that he can edit to fit just about anyone...but they will
only pass cursury inspection. For anything above a level three, or
above half(round down) a Fixers Resource rating (whichever is lower)
the fixer must contact his provider. A fixer cannot get a credstick
rated higher than twice his Resource rating...he simply doesn't have
the connections. He can try and go through another fixer, but that
involves it's own complications, among them is spreading the word that
you are getting this false ID, not to mention raising the price. A
fixer typically demands ((1d6+Price Rating)/3) * 10% of the cost of
the credstick for getting it to you. (negatives mean no charge)
Acquire Gear
++++++++++++
Runners use stuff up. Ammo, Magical Supplies, medical
supplies, vehicles, etc. Rather than hunt about to get material
themselves, runners usually try and get it through their fixer. The
advantage of this is the Fixer rolls his resource rating against the
availability of the item (always use the Street Availability and
Index) instead of the runners (often) miserable social skills. The
disadvantage is, you guessed it, the price.
Use standard rules to find material, only use the Fixer's
Resources rating instead of the runners Etiquette skill, and increase
the price by ((1d6+Price Rating)/2)*10%. (negatives do indeed drop the
cost below Street cost)
Special Arrangements
++++++++++++++++++++
You need your highly illegal heat-seeking elephant gun
shipped into the Tir where you can get it. You need the blueprints to
the VP's private mansion. You need a car to pick you up at such and
such a place. Everything your fixer does for you that is beyond the
keyboard in front of him is likely the result of other runners he has
hired to do that job. In such a case, he is doing a Direct hire of
those runners. Think about how much your players would want for that
job. Add in the Fixers amount. The total is how much it will cost
the runners.
Role Playing the Fixer
++++++++++++++++++++++
First, every fixer has motivation, just like every runner.
Sometimes they were runners, and can't calm down enough to retire.
Maybe they love feeling all-powerful. Maybe they're greedy. Decide
what motivates your fixer.
Make him a round person...he isn't going to reveal
everything to the players. He has hidden agendas.
The fixer shouldn't be the ultimate answer for the runners. He
can sell them out, send them bad info, or decide he's tired of waiting
for the runners to pay back that favor. Sometimes the runners he
hires fail, and that may affect the players' mission.
III. Credits
------------
My thanks to the ShadowRN Mailing list, from whom I have
profited a great deal as a player and as a GM.
Please email me with any comments concerning this document. I
certainly consider it a work in progress, and any suggestions are
welcome.
-=SwiftOne=-
