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Message no. 1
From: Mongoose m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 15:56:58 -0600
Hello there!
My name is Ronnie and I've just recently bought S3 and now I'm wondering
if I could get some advice on what adventures / sourcebooks I should buy /
not buy.

If my spelling is f***ed up, I just blame that on the fact that I'm
swedish.

=======
Congradulations- you are firmly in the bulk of FASA's targeted
demographic, so, with a little patience, things will come out that should
be perfectly suited to your needs. Every item FASA will be
releasing for SR will be aimed dirrectly at players like yourself- just
visit thier web page ( http://www.fasa.com ), and start saving your money.
(At least, that's the theory....)

If you are just learning the game, I would not suggest picking up to
many things right now. "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown",
and
"New
Seattle" are the only post SR3 products. Of those, R:AS is NOT
recommended
for new players, but the other 2 would probably help you.
I don't know how many SR adventures are still in print. The
sourcebook style ones ("Blood in the Boardroom" and "Mob War") should
work
for you, since
they don't depend on SR2 stats (not that those are hard to convert).
Other area and storyline style sourcebooks are more or less useful
depending on what you do with your game.
What I would highly recommend is *gradually* getting the expansion
rules books. VR2.0 and R2 are SR3 compatible, but you may not find much
need for such in depth coverage of riggers or deckers right away. Neither
is, in my opinion, crucial for starting and enjoying a new game.
The Shadowrun Companion is nice, in its place; it does include some
advice for new GM's. DON'T get it- a new version (and much better) is due
out as FASA's next release (in a month or two). DO wait for this new
(SR3) version.
The Grimoire made pretty big difference to our Game, but its SR3
"update" (called "Magic in the Shadows")is due out in mere months- get
that, NOT "The Grimoire".
The other rules type sourcebooks are more or less usable, and not due
for replacement inside 6 MO's. A new Implant tech book (Man And Machine)
is due for this summer, and will cover material from Shadowtech (SR's
oldest book in print, dating to the first edition) and The Street Samurai
Catalog (similarly ancient). I'd suggest waiting for MaM, unless you are
really desperate for more implant tech. They are good books, but MaM has
at least a few minor changes in store. If your game goes anything like
ours did, you will need MaM if you don't want the game to revolve entirely
around magical characters doing all the cool stuff.
"Cybertechnology" is a newer Implant tech book (3 years old?), and few
things in there should change much- it would be the implant tech book to
get, I think.
A new weapon and combat book is also on the horizon, but "Fields Of
fire" is a pretty good supplement, if you need that sort of thing.

Mongoose

gee, I never thought I'd write one of these. Better save it for re-use...
Message no. 2
From: Thomas Faßnacht Arkane@***********.net
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Mon, 01 Mar 1999 00:30:51 +0100
Mongoose schrieb:

>
> (...)
>
> If you are just learning the game, I would not suggest picking up to
> many things right now. "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology
Shutdown", and
> "New
> Seattle" are the only post SR3 products. Of those, R:AS is NOT
> recommended
> for new players, but the other 2 would probably help you.

> (...)

I think thats:
"New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown", and "Shadowrun
Gamemaster
Screen"

Arkane

("New Seattle" is good, but you donīt have to own two of them :-) )
Message no. 3
From: Ereskanti@***.com Ereskanti@***.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 22:43:20 EST
In a message dated 2/28/1999 6:34:03 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
Arkane@***********.net writes:

>
> I think thats:
> "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown", and
"Shadowrun Gamemaster
> Screen"
>
> Arkane

I still think it would be New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology:
Shutdown

-K
Message no. 4
From: Thomas Faßnacht Arkane@***********.net
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Mon, 01 Mar 1999 18:04:57 +0100
Ereskanti@***.com schrieb:

> >
> > I think thats:
> > "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown", and
"Shadowrun Gamemaster
> > Screen"
> >
> > Arkane
>
> I still think it would be New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology:
> Shutdown
>
> -K

I kow it !!!!!!!!!
Itīs New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology: Shutdown AND Shadowrun
Gamemaster Screen :-)

Arkane
Message no. 5
From: Tony Rabiola rabiola@**.netcom.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 11:19:01 -0600
>> > I think thats:
>> > "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown", and
"Shadowrun
Gamemaster
>> > Screen"
>> >
>> > Arkane
>>
>> I still think it would be New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku
Arcology:
>> Shutdown
>>
>> -K
>
>I kow it !!!!!!!!!
>Itīs New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology: Shutdown AND
Shadowrun
>Gamemaster Screen :-)


I would add Cyberpirates and Target: Smuggler's Haven to the list;
both filled with all sorts of fun stuff.

Tony Rabiola
rabiola@**.netcom.com
Fourth and Sixth World Adept
(still working on the Fifth)
Proud owner BABY #972
Message no. 6
From: Twist0059@***.com Twist0059@***.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 12:31:09 EST
In a message dated 99-03-01 12:07:44 EST, Arkane write:

<<
I kow it !!!!!!!!!
Itīs New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology: Shutdown AND Shadowrun
Gamemaster Screen :-)

Arkane >>

Well, now, if you're not a GM you wouldn't NEED the SR3 GM Screen, would you?
Everyone else started out with the original Seattle book, so that's as good a
place for a new player as anyone. The New Seattle book, that is. No point in
wasting money on the ten-year out-of-date one. Personally, if I were just
joining, I'd buy Bug City. Fasa's ending the print run, and IMHO it's the
best product they ever put out. I've shown it to people who haven't even read
the main rules, and they've loved it as a good read. Renraku Arcology:
Shutdown is an attempt to recreate that kind of scenario what with Chi-town
now open and, supposedly, free of bugs. It never quite pays off in the same
satisfying way though, so I'd pick up Bug City first. You won't regret it.



Twist
Message no. 7
From: Mongoose m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 12:22:50 -0600
:In a message dated 2/28/1999 6:34:03 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
:Arkane@***********.net writes:
:
:>
:> I think thats:
:> "New Seattle", "Renraku : Archology Shutdown", and
"Shadowrun
Gamemaster
:> Screen"
:>
:> Arkane
:
:I still think it would be New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology:
:Shutdown
:
:-K
:
:

Bingo- "First Run" was what I was thinking of (and I recommend it- it is
INTENDED for new players). The GM screen is a SR3 specific release, so I
guess that brings the total to 4.

Mongoose
Message no. 8
From: Gurth gurth@******.nl
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 12:45:30 +0100
According to Tony Rabiola, at 11:19 on 1 Mar 99, the word on
the street was...

> >Itīs New Seattle, First Run, and Renraku Arcology: Shutdown AND Shadowrun
> >Gamemaster Screen :-)
>
> I would add Cyberpirates and Target: Smuggler's Haven to the list;
> both filled with all sorts of fun stuff.

This is going where all these threads tend to go: recommending more and
more books to the person who asked which would be handy for a new
player/GM to own...

In that respect, RA:S, Cyberpirates, and T:SH don't seem too handy choices
to me. After the SR3 main rules and the GM screen, I'd recommend you buy
an adventure (or a couple of them). Not Harlequin's Back, The Universal
Brotherhood, or Double Exposure, but most of the others will do; they'll
help the GM form an idea of what a typical Shadowrun adventure is like.

After that, take a look at the way your group is composed -- if there are
lots of magicians, buy a magic book (Grimoire first, then Awakenings if
you want more, or wait for Magic In The Shadows to come out later this
year). OTOH if there's a feeling in the group that deckers, riggers, or
street sams need more stuff, buy Virtual Realities 2.0, Rigger 2, or
Cybertechnology, respectively.

Other books I think you should only buy on an as-needed basis -- you don't
need the Native American Nation books (if you can find them) when you're
not planning on ever having your group travel to the NAN, for example. Bug
City and Target: UCAS are likewise nice books, but if your campaign is set
in Seattle, you don't really need them. OTOH should you want the PCs to go
to Chicago, for example, you _will_ need them.


And download all the net.sourcebooks you can find. They're free
(disregarding the phone bill, if you live in Europe :( ) and contain a lot
of stuff. You may want to chop out some bits you don't want in your
campaign, but that's easily done. A good place to start is by looking at
my signature, and then exploring the rest of shadowrun.html.com ;)

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
"The only mechanoids ever issued with genetalia were those serving
aboard Italian starships" --Kryten, Red Dwarf VIII
-> NERPS Project Leader * ShadowRN GridSec * Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
->The Plastic Warriors Page: http://shadowrun.html.com/plasticwarriors/<-
-> The New Character Mortuary: http://www.electricferret.com/mortuary/ <-

GC3.1: GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+
PE Y PGP- t(+) 5++ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
Incubated into the First Church of the Sqooshy Ball, 21-05-1998
Message no. 9
From: Brett Borger bxb121@***.edu
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 10:24:19 -0500 (EST)
> In that respect, RA:S, Cyberpirates, and T:SH don't seem too handy choices

Agreed. Niche products. Fun niches, but still niches.

> to me. After the SR3 main rules and the GM screen, I'd recommend you buy
> an adventure (or a couple of them). Not Harlequin's Back, The Universal
> Brotherhood, or Double Exposure, but most of the others will do; they'll
> help the GM form an idea of what a typical Shadowrun adventure is like.

Oh, very generous of you to tell the newbie not to get Universal
Brotherhood. :)

[Note to Newbies: Universal Brotherhood was a very early module, with
a significant place in the history of the shadowrun timeline, and thus
of notable sentimental value to many of us. It is also difficult to
find, and when you do find one, difficult to acquire at less than $40
US. So if any of you discover that you just aren't ready to run it
yet, but have one in your possession, I'll step forward and nobly
rescue you from it :)]

> After that, take a look at the way your group is composed -- if there are
> lots of magicians, buy a magic book (Grimoire first, then Awakenings if
> you want more, or wait for Magic In The Shadows to come out later this

I'd just wait for MITS. Grimmy isn't terribly useful since 80% of the
rules need some modification to work in 3rd edition. The sections on
how shamans and hermetics view the world is good, but that's four
pages...

> year). OTOH if there's a feeling in the group that deckers, riggers, or
> street sams need more stuff, buy Virtual Realities 2.0, Rigger 2, or
> Cybertechnology, respectively.

All true.

> Other books I think you should only buy on an as-needed basis -- you don't
> need the Native American Nation books (if you can find them) when you're
> not planning on ever having your group travel to the NAN, for example. Bug
> City and Target: UCAS are likewise nice books, but if your campaign is set
> in Seattle, you don't really need them. OTOH should you want the PCs to go
> to Chicago, for example, you _will_ need them.

Right. New Seattle is a good book to give you enough basics about the
NAN areas to cover most Seattle-based games. FYI, these are other
location books, and are really only needed if you stay in the area:

NAN 1&2: Native American Nations, obviously
Tir Na Nog: What was Ireland
Tir Tairngire: The elven land in what was Oregon
London: duh
Germany: yup
Neo-Anarchists Guide to North America: Covers a few cities about UCAS
and CAS. (Dallas Fort Worth, and Chicago pre-Bug City is all I
remember at the moment)
Target: UCAS: Boston, Detroit, Chicago(post-Bug City)
Bug City: Chicago during bug City
Denver: Covers the divided Treaty City
Target: Smugglers havens: New Oreleans, Siberia
Cyberpirates: Parts of the Ivory Coast, and Carribean League

I think that's all....

> And download all the net.sourcebooks you can find. They're free
> (disregarding the phone bill, if you live in Europe :( ) and contain a lot
> of stuff. You may want to chop out some bits you don't want in your

Like 90% of the munchie gear out there. There are some real gems out
there, but also a lot of ugly rock. Before adding anything to your
campaign(this applies to real sourcebooks too), ask two questions:
1) Does this add something new to my game (not just a more effective
replacement)?
2) Is this appropriate to my group of players?

-=SwiftOne=-
Message no. 10
From: Gurth gurth@******.nl
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 11:50:20 +0100
According to Brett Borger, at 10:24 on 2 Mar 99, the word on
the street was...

> > to me. After the SR3 main rules and the GM screen, I'd recommend you buy
> > an adventure (or a couple of them). Not Harlequin's Back, The Universal
> > Brotherhood, or Double Exposure, but most of the others will do; they'll
> > help the GM form an idea of what a typical Shadowrun adventure is like.
>
> Oh, very generous of you to tell the newbie not to get Universal
> Brotherhood. :)

Hey, that way there's more of them for the rest of us ;) (Not that I need
one. And no, I don't want to sell it :)

> [Note to Newbies: Universal Brotherhood was a very early module, with
> a significant place in the history of the shadowrun timeline, and thus
> of notable sentimental value to many of us. It is also difficult to
> find, and when you do find one, difficult to acquire at less than $40
> US.

<gloat>Roughly US$12 I paid for mine, 1 1/2 years ago...</gloat>

> > After that, take a look at the way your group is composed -- if there are
> > lots of magicians, buy a magic book (Grimoire first, then Awakenings if
> > you want more, or wait for Magic In The Shadows to come out later this
>
> I'd just wait for MITS. Grimmy isn't terribly useful since 80% of the
> rules need some modification to work in 3rd edition. The sections on
> how shamans and hermetics view the world is good, but that's four
> pages...

Yeah, probably true. The only reason I recommended the Grimoire is because
it is available _now_.

> London: duh

It talks a bit about the rest of the UK, too, but mostly London.

> Neo-Anarchists Guide to North America: Covers a few cities about UCAS
> and CAS. (Dallas Fort Worth, and Chicago pre-Bug City is all I
> remember at the moment)

Also Quebec (country and city), New York City, Washington DC, and
California Free State.

> I think that's all....

You forgot California Free State and Aztlan, which are about the countries
with those names. And yes, CFS is described in the Neo-A Guide to North
America; in its own sourcebook, though, it gets a much more in-depth
treatment.

> > And download all the net.sourcebooks you can find. They're free
> > (disregarding the phone bill, if you live in Europe :( ) and contain a lot
> > of stuff. You may want to chop out some bits you don't want in your
>
> Like 90% of the munchie gear out there.

Too true. Now if only I could get that new edition of the Chromebook
Conversions to upload to DR without WS-FTP telling me it'll take 107
minutes...

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
"The only mechanoids ever issued with genetalia were those serving
aboard Italian starships" --Kryten, Red Dwarf VIII
-> NERPS Project Leader * ShadowRN GridSec * Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
->The Plastic Warriors Page: http://shadowrun.html.com/plasticwarriors/<-
-> The New Character Mortuary: http://www.electricferret.com/mortuary/ <-

GC3.1: GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+
PE Y PGP- t(+) 5++ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
Incubated into the First Church of the Sqooshy Ball, 21-05-1998
Message no. 11
From: Kevin Dole kdole@***.vsc.edu
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 09:30:27 EST5EDT
> > Neo-Anarchists Guide to North America: Covers a few cities about UCAS
> > and CAS. (Dallas Fort Worth, and Chicago pre-Bug City is all I
> > remember at the moment)
> Also Quebec (country and city), New York City, Washington DC, and
> California Free State.

Are the Neo-Anarchist Guides (North American and Real Life) still
available?

Could anyone please fill me in on what has been happening in
Quebec. I'm working on a bunch of stuff for Vermont in 2055, and
since the Quebecois are (even now) our rather odd neighbors, I'd
like my work to fit roughly with FASA's story line.


Kevin Dole /:|
kdole@***.vsc.edu
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Dimension/4151/welcome.html
"Once again, we have spat in the face of Death, and his second cousin,
Dismemberment."
Message no. 12
From: Lehlan Decker DeckerL@******.com
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 09:39:37 -0500
>Are the Neo-Anarchist Guides (North American and Real Life)
>still available?

Nope, they've been out of print pretty much forever these days.
The Quebec info is in the North America book. Basically its
become a very draconian, totally french speaking, restrictive
sort of place. Biggest player is most likely Cross Applied
Technologies. The lone star sourcebook may have mentioned
something as well, or maybe that was just included in the
NAGNA. I don't have my books handy at work unfortunately.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lehlan Decker, Unix Admin (704)331-1149
deckerl@******.com Fax 378-1939
Moore & Van Allen, PLLC Pager 1-888-608-9633
Message no. 13
From: Patrick Goodman remo@***.net
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 10:34:27 -0600
>>Are the Neo-Anarchist Guides (North American and Real Life)
>>still available?
>
>Nope, they've been out of print pretty much forever these days.

I think, however, that both Neo-A guides are currently being offered on
www.ebay.com (just do a search on Shadowrun).

--
(>) Texas 2-Step
El Paso: Never surrender. Never forget. Never forgive.
Message no. 14
From: Kevin Dole kdole@***.vsc.edu
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 13:56:04 EST5EDT
Lehlan Decker <DeckerL@******.com>
> The Quebec info is in the North America book. Basically its
> become a very draconian, totally french speaking, restrictive
> sort of place. Biggest player is most likely Cross Applied

So a saber-rattelling, militeristic, expansionist faction taking
control is entirely within the realm of posibilities? Cool.

I'm picturing Vermont (and upper New York, New Hampshire
and Maine) being on a near-war status. Vermont is the most
paranoid, however.




Kevin Dole /:|
kdole@***.vsc.edu
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Dimension/4151/welcome.html
"Once again, we have spat in the face of Death, and his second cousin,
Dismemberment."
Message no. 15
From: Blackadder blkadder@****.net
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 14:07:53 -0500
-----Original Message-----
From: Kevin Dole <kdole@***.vsc.edu>

I'm picturing Vermont (and upper New York, New Hampshire
and Maine) being on a near-war status. Vermont is the most
paranoid, however.


-----Blackadder Adds-----

Nah, I think Maine has become more of a supernatural weirdness
state, sorta the American Gothic tv series meets Stephen King [Oops,
sorry. It's already like that ;-].

Vermont's probably got all sort of toxic critters from the
nuclear plants flowering throughout the whole state, and hosts Shoot &
Ski combat competitions!

Okay, I'm feeling goofy today, but in the words of Mayor Quimby
from the Simpsons: I stand by my racial slur! France do your worst!
Message no. 16
From: Scott Wheelock iscottw@*****.nb.ca
Subject: Newbie Moduals
Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 03:48:46 -0400
"And now, a Channel 6 editorial reply to Kevin Dole."
] So a saber-rattelling, militeristic, expansionist faction taking
] control is entirely within the realm of posibilities? Cool.

I'd say Quebec seems to be more concerned with keeping its
cultural identity intact than going forth and conquering other
lands. If howver, you're talkinhg about such a faction in
Vermont, then I dunno.

] I'm picturing Vermont (and upper New York, New Hampshire
] and Maine) being on a near-war status. Vermont is the most
] paranoid, however.

I haven't read NAGtNA, but I can't see the UCAS and
Quebec being that hostile toward each other. There's
way more reason to hate the natives, since "they got
magic and they kicked us out." Quebec just left, which
is something that was long overdue anyway (not to say
I want them to leave Canada, but just to say it's been an
open issue for decades, at least). If there's tension, it
might be from relocated anglos (did this happen, BTW?)
who're pissed at being shoved out. Maybe they've got
a militant thing going?

Also, I'd say there's a good, good chance there'd be a
separatist movement in the formerly Canadian parts of
the UCAS. That's something else you could play with
if you're campaigning in that area (don't forget the
provinces!)

Scott W

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