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Message no. 1
From: Lorden <westln@***.EDU>
Subject: GMing: Questions
Date: Thu, 5 Jun 1997 15:31:57 -0400
Just a couple of GM questions.

1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
tends to lapse between missions?

2) What is the rate of being double crossed?

3) How much Yen do they get paid?

4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?

For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
job?

--
Nigel westln@***.edu
AKA C. Yossarrian, UPAC Projectionist
AKA Lorden
Speaking for myself, and no one else.
Message no. 2
From: Bull <chaos@*****.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Thu, 5 Jun 1997 16:54:42 -0400
At 03:31 PM 6/5/97 -0400, Lorden wrote these timeless words:
>Just a couple of GM questions.
>
>1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
>tends to lapse between missions?
>
It varies, depending on the situation.

Time in the game world (In both the games I run and the games Tinner runs)
tends to be a bit abstract, but usually averages out to about double real
time. Thus, if we play once a week, it's two weeks or so between runs.
Though this does average out. Sometimes several game sessions comprise one
run, and thus three weeks worth of gaming only takes up 3 days of game
time. Other times, a couple months pass. Usually this is due to the team
taking a break to do things like practice new skills, get cyber and bio
implanted, etc.

>2) What is the rate of being double crossed?
>
Ummm... You mean you don;t screw the players every time?

Actually, this also varies a lot depending on the game you want to play,
and who the players are dealing with. If they will only work with
competent people that they know very well and can trust, then their
Johson/Fixer contact won;t screw them over, and won;t usually set them up
on runs where they get screwed. However, if it's the first time working
for a Fixer or Johnson, then your chances of getting screwed over increases
a LOT. I usually give it a 50/50 chance of being screwed over by a new
contact/johnson/fixer/whatever, and a 10-25% chance with someone you know,
and less than that if it's a well known and well established contact,
especially one we pay well. Most contacts. etc. won't screw over a major
source of income, especially dangerous sources like Shadowrunners. NOt if
they A) Want to keep the biz, B) Want to keep a good rep on the streets,
and C) Want to stay alive.

>3) How much Yen do they get paid?
>
Once again, this varies greatly, depending on the power level of your game.
I've polayed in games where 10K was a lot, and in games where it was
common to get 6 figure paychecks... It all depends on the style of game,
the level of danger, the level of competence in the runners (A group, all
with 300+ Karma, usually won;t work for piddly 1,000 Nuyen runs. Not worth
their time), and the specific run at the time.

>4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?
>
You mean cash wise? It depends... This is one area where having a team
decker is beautiful. I know Early on, I picked up as much money thru
decking (and ripping off datastores and such) as I did from the run itself.
Of course, this brings with it a whole lot of other problems, but what the
hell? It was fun.

>For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
>individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
>someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
>job?
>
Yes, sometimes, though usually that's just an explanation for karma I've
handed out to players between runs for Non-Game related stuff... I've
handed out Karma (Tinner does this too. I pick up a LOT of my SR GMing
habits from him:)) for things like a Good Joke, Getting me Pop when I'm too
lazy to fetch it myself, bringing food to a game session, buying me
supplements and books, and anything else that gets the kids to do whatever
I want :]. Usually this gets explained by having the players give me a
description of what they have done "since last we met" :]

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. 3
From: Matb <mbreton@**.NETCOM.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Thu, 5 Jun 1997 06:48:12 -0700
+-Lorden wrote:
<<For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
job?>>

The player's day job or the character's? Think about it a moment; you
don't see secretaries with Karma Pools (or high Threat Ratings), so day
jobs obviously aren't going to net you karma in any meaningful way.

As far as the player's day job, well, I've always been big on a bit of
separation between character and player. If the character concept is
heavy in one particular direction (say, music), it's less likely he'll
have aquired a high skill in a very different field (say, astrophysics),
even if the player happens to have a doctorate in the field.

Of course, if I chose to run a character who was an astrophysicist, I'd
try and make sure I knew at leastas much as the GM did on the subject

This tends to fade into long arguments, so I'll leap out here.

-Matt
Message no. 4
From: Loki <daddyjim@**********.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Thu, 5 Jun 1997 19:13:14 -0700
---Lorden wrote:
>
> Just a couple of GM questions.

Just a few GM answers... :o)

> 1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
> tends to lapse between missions?

We play once a week on average.

Game time in our group is currently April of 2055. The time that
lapses during sessions can vary. Sometimes one session will cover days
to weeks in game time, other times we've seen three seperate gaming
sessions stretch out just a few hours of game time.

For down time between runs, I usually roll single die (open ended) for
the number of weeks before the next job offer. Unless the group
specifically wants to wait longer (i.e. - surgery, healing, learning
skills, etc.)

> 2) What is the rate of being double crossed?

Seems to be the nature of Shadowrun, doesn't it? A week or so ago, my
players we're trying to count up the jobs they'd had where the Mr.
Johnson had been straight with them. They came up with three. Mind
you, some of these players have been gaming with me for six years.

> 3) How much Yen do they get paid?

This again varies. I'd say the average per job is about 10,000-15,000
per runner. My group has a habit of losing vehicles, gear and other
toys, so income and outflow tend to remain constant.

> 4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?

Do you mean money? Foci? Gear and gadgets?

Money they pick up hear and there, but it's moderate. I'm not the type
of GM to leave 14.5 million laying around in say...a fridge. <wink>

Foci I try to keep rare. Magic is only 10% of the awakened world
afterall.

Gear and gadgets is probably most of what the group gathers on the
fly.

> For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
> individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
> someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
> job?

Actually down time is more where they spend the karma they earned.
Learning or raising skills, learning new spells and so on.

I do however give out karma awards through other means than straight
game play. For example, a book bought and donated to my GM library
earns the dollar value in karma, as you helped enhance the gaming
universe.

@>--,--'--- Loki <gamemstr@********.com>

Poisoned Elves: www.primenet.com/~gamemstr/

If in your adventures, you happen upon the skull of a dragon. Turn and
leave that place quickly. Whatever killed the dragon may still be
around.


_____________________________________________________________________
Sent by RocketMail. Get your free e-mail at http://www.rocketmail.com
Message no. 5
From: Bruce <gyro@********.CO.ZA>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 09:54:17 +0200
At 03:31 PM 05-06-97 -0400, you wrote:
>Just a couple of GM questions.
>
>1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
>tends to lapse between missions?

>>>>>>>> Sometimes weeks pass between runs sometimes three offers
happen in
the same 15 minutes. I think it`s good to mix it up and not get predictable.
"The : Fixer calls,Meet Mr J, Work the streets & contacts,get the gear,do
the job,get screwed over at one of these steps,downtime, Fixer calls, Meet
Mr J" formula is tired and stereotypical and sad and pathetic and I wont do
it.<<<<<<<<<

>2) What is the rate of being double crossed?
>
>>>>>>>>>As I said before its a bit of a cliche especially with
an
established skilled and proffesional team that play by the rules. Read
Fields of Fire for Ha tchetman's perspective on Proffesionalism and the
average 'runner. I dont play with average runners.<<<<<<<<

>3) How much Yen do they get paid?

>>>>>>>>Because my Team is settled they tend to scoop some very
well paying
jobs. In the last year of game time they have earned and stolen and looted
about 1.2milY each. Thats alot but its all blown on food and cars and woman
and drugs and chips (they party hard and discreetly)
>
>4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?
>
>>>>>>>>If theres time they " acquire" if not they
dont<<<<<<<<

>For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
>individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
>someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
>job?
>
>>>>>>>>I feel that down time is when you spend your karma
training for
skills and attribute increases and risking your neck 'running is when you
earn it<<<<<<<<<<
>

Gyr0
>
>
Message no. 6
From: tom Cone <Brother-1@*****.NET>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 02:59:53 -1000
>How often does your team run in game time?
About once a month, but we have several teams.
>between missions?
About 2 and 1/2 weeks.
>Double-crossed?
Hardly ever. ;)
>How much Yen?
about 5K to 10K per person per run.
Message no. 7
From: "Faux Pas (Thomas)" <thomas@*******.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 09:56:57 -0500
At 03:31 PM 6/5/97 -0400, Lorden whispered:
>Just a couple of GM questions.
>
>1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
>tends to lapse between missions?

The Shadowrun Companion seems to think that a run happens about once a
month, but in my campaign, a month or three days can pass between job
offers. It averages out to once every two and a half weeks.

>2) What is the rate of being double crossed?

It depends on what you mean by double-cross. The Johnson or Fixer not
telling the runners the whole story? All the time. They plan to screw the
runners over? Not too often. They don't intend to pay the runners and
decide to kill the runners instead? Not too often.

Thing is, if you overplay the double-cross shtick, your players will be
increasingly paranoid about when they're going to be double-crossed again
and you'll never be able to pull a masterful double-cross. That and the
players will devote far too much time to preventing the double-cross when
it's a straightforward run, extending a "simple" mission out over several
game sessions.

>3) How much Yen do they get paid?

Depends on the mission. Big hazardous stuff gets high pay -- currently
breaking into a compound owned by the Atlantean Foundation and steal an
object: pay is 30,000 per person plus medical expenses from injuries
recieved for the rest of their lifes (if put into a coma, or on life
support). Simple jobs get low pay -- investigate a blackmailer paid around
30,000 total for the team, but by the end of the run, the runners managed
to take home 200,000 nuyen (their biggest haul so far). Before that, it
was about 10,000 per runner for semi-hazardous things. If they pull off
the current mission, it could up their price range.

>4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?

The characters purchase thier equipment. They know (or I hope they know)
that the more that they take and fence, the larger the trail they lead back
to them. It also makes them look a bit more professional if they just do
what the Johnson tells them to do. If he wants them to break into a museum
and deface a painting and leave, just do that. Don't help yourself to the
diamond exhibit, don't steal anything else, don't spraypaint everything
else in the museum -- just deface the painting and run. In the long run,
you'll be thought of as a professional Shadowrunner and get better jobs,
higher-paying jobs.

>For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
>individuals for making good use of their time?

Maybe, depends on their situation. The most I've ever given for downtime
was two points, and that involved some combat where the character almost
got herself killed.

>For example, give someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their
day
>job?

No, because the characters should be doing this with the karma they get
through the course of the campaign. If the players only spend the karma
they get from the runs on skills that help their shadowrunning career,
they'll only develop those skills and leave the other skills that really
flesh out the character to languish. Soon you're character is nothing more
than a "Pistols: 12" statistic.



-Thomas Deeny
Your Guide to Shadowrun -- http://shadowrun.miningco.com -- updated every
Wednesday!
Thomas's World is http://telltale.hart.org -- come visit!

ffFFFTANG!
Message no. 8
From: "M. Sean Martinez" <ElBandit@***.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 11:22:08 -0400
>1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
>tends to lapse between missions?

Since most of my players have real jobs (none of us are students any more) we
generally play once a month. We used to play once a week, but that ended when
school stopped.

The campaign is current set in July 2055, and they will soon be in chicago
<g>

>2) What is the rate of being double crossed?

Depends on the story arch. My team has been double crossed at most 5 times
during the 5 year campaign.

>3) How much Yen do they get paid?

Depends on the mission, Usually 5,000-25,000 per runner. Typically around 6
or 7 thousand.

>4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?

Not as much as they would like. Mostly the runners try to leave no evidence
that they had been in the area, which means fewer gunfights and thefts of
equipment.

>For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
>individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
>someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
>job?

No, but sometimes they do get mini adventures based on what strange events
turn up in the personal lives.

-Bandit

"At my lemonade stand I used to give the first glass away free and charge
five dollars for the second glass. The refill contained the antidote."
Message no. 9
From: "Simon T. Sailer" <Simon.Sailer@****.AC.AT>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 19:53:53 +0100
> >How much Yen?
> about 5K to 10K per person per run.

I used to give them MUCH more... the record was 500k nuyen and at
least 45 karma...
granted, the run lasted 6 months (real life time, we played nearly
every weekend)
but even for shorter runs, I rarely go below 50k . Do you think the
payment should depend on the duration of the run? (I mean in real
time)


ss
Message no. 10
From: "Faux Pas (Thomas)" <thomas@*******.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 13:46:22 -0500
At 03:31 PM 6/5/97 -0400, Lorden whispered:
>Just a couple of GM questions.
>
>1) How often does your team run in game time?

Almost forgot to mention, the runs usually last about three to four days,
although some Mr Johnsons give the runners a definite due date ("object
must be here no later than 6:35, Friday morning") or give the runners over
a month to prepare for the run.


Thomas Deeny
Infobahn Austin
512 320 0556
Message no. 11
From: GRANITE <granite@**.NET>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions -Reply
Date: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 16:21:12 -0700
>1) How often does your team run in game time? How much time
>tends to lapse between missions?

Well..we would usually talk about that at the end of a module..We would
as a group in game time stay down long enough to accomplish whatever
goals we all had..like learning spells/skills/increasing attributes/get
surgery/'do repairwork/whatever..this of course would be different
every time...and would cost in living expenses..if someone in the group
didn't have the cash to stay out of work that long..we would alter
things..sometimes float him a loan..

>2) What is the rate of being double crossed?

High...Well that all depended on if it was a long term Mr J or a new
one..new ones usually turn out to be rats..

>3) How much Yen do they get paid?

That varried widely with the job..The trick is to balance between keeping
the PCs hungry for the next run and rewarding them for the last
one...See "Jonny Mneumonic" and the way his fixer would string him
along for his brain matter reimplantation...

>4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?

Whatever they are smart enough to pick up and carry off...We used to
regularly rent moving vans to cart off everything in sight...we completely
cleaned out a go-gangs club house one time...Didn't make much but it
was fun...and of course their bikes had to be repainted before we could
even unload them through a fixer...

>For the down time between runs, do you award karma to
>individuals for making good use of their time? For example, give
>someone karma to put toward the skills they use at their day
>job?

Nope..that would be a bit of the Monty Hall...
--------------------------------GRANITE"Rock Steady"
===============================================
Lord, Grant Me The Serenity To Accept The Things I Cannot Change,
The Courage To Change The Things I Can,
And The Wisdom To Hide The Bodies Of Those People I Had To Kill
Because They Pissed Me Off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ShadowRunner's Serenity Prayer
Message no. 12
From: Caric <caric@********.COM>
Subject: Re: GMing: Questions
Date: Sat, 7 Jun 1997 07:25:26 -0700
| Game time in our group is currently April of 2055. The time that
| lapses during sessions can vary. Sometimes one session will cover days
| to weeks in game time, other times we've seen three seperate gaming
| sessions stretch out just a few hours of game time.

Hey!!!! I missed Brand's birthday he's 27 now hmmmmm.

| > 2) What is the rate of being double crossed?
|
| Seems to be the nature of Shadowrun, doesn't it? A week or so ago, my
| players we're trying to count up the jobs they'd had where the Mr.
| Johnson had been straight with them. They came up with three. Mind
| you, some of these players have been gaming with me for six years.

Now you see what I have to deal with?!?!?!?!?!

| > 3) How much Yen do they get paid?
|
| This again varies. I'd say the average per job is about 10,000-15,000
| per runner. My group has a habit of losing vehicles, gear and other
| toys, so income and outflow tend to remain constant.

<grunt> constantly in the outflow catagory....haven't made any cash since
dear old brother died.

| > 4) How much do they "acquire" along the way?
|
| Do you mean money? Foci? Gear and gadgets?
|
| Money they pick up hear and there, but it's moderate. I'm not the type
| of GM to leave 14.5 million laying around in say...a fridge. <wink>

Thankfully. ;-)



-Caric

"I was NAKED!!!!!!!!!!!"
-Blackjack our Racoon Shaman when asked why he ran away from one
particular fight."

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