| From: | "Faux Pas (Thomas)" <thomas@*******.COM> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Re: [SR] I'm new. Very new. Very new indeed.... [long-ish..] |
| Date: | Thu, 15 May 1997 10:48:44 -0500 |
>I have never played shadowrun. I found out about shadowrun on ral
>partha's web site (a miniatures manufacturer) and I have been checking
>out some stuff on the net about it.. (shadowrun archive namely)
>in fact, I have never played an RPG before in my life (at least, not
>in the proper sense of the word.. I am sure ZELDA doesn't count :))
>anyway, someone at school was showing me AD&D, and I thought it looked
>cool..
>exept it is set in a fantasy world ages ago.. bleagh!
>so I found out all this stuff about shadowrun and all, and I rekon it
>all sounds pretty cool..
As most people will tell you, Shadowrun is a great role-playing game.
Well, most people on this list.
>What do I really need to get started?
>
>What books should I get?
>Idon't want anything fansy, just essentials..
>Is there some way to set the campaign in australia? do I need a
>special "source =book" thing?
>I heard something about setting int in germany.. and setting it in
>autralia would be more fun (hey, it's where I live, don't knock it :))
>
>How many people would be required for a fun game?
>
>yer, well, that's about it, what books should I get and how many
>freinds should I get round to play..
The only book you need to get to play is the main rule book. The only
other sourcebook I'd get right away is the Grimoire - it expands on the
magic section a great deal. If you want a decker in the party, I'd suggest
getting the VR 2.0 sourcebook, it replaces most of what's in the Matrix
section of the main rule book.
If you can get ahold of the GM's screen, I'd grab that as well - most of
the charts you'll need to use for the game are printed on there. Just
remember the sheet with the matrix rules in the GM's screen is out of date.
Another good book to get if starting out in 2050 is the Street Samurai
Catalog (I know about two months ago I said not to get this book, but I've
reconsidered that). And at the end of summer, the Rigger's Black Book 2 is
coming out. You might want to check that out - it's one of the most
eagerly awaited sourcebooks that's actually coming out. Another most
eagerly awaited sourcebook is the Australia Sourcebook. But that's been
put on the back burner, turned on high, caught on fire, and we'll probably
never see it. Hope is not lost! Lady Jestyr (and others) are compiling an
Australian Sourcebook. It's at
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1503/ausbook.html
Other books you might want to look at (if you're GMing) are Threats (a
synopsis is at http://www.arc.unm.edu/~james/shadowrun/Threats.html) -
which shows some forces that move in the background of the Shadowrun game
world - and the Underworld Sourcebook (a review of it is at my Mining
Company web site). Threats is IMHO a GM only book. It lists about 13
different movers and shakers that are powerful enough to change the face of
Shadowrun's game world. Underworld Sourcebook is a breakdown of the four
major criminal organizations in the 2050s.
<plug>
I have some information on gamemastering and roleplaying games on my new
web site at The Mining Company. It's over at http://shadowrun.miningco.com
. Head to Previous Features (and ignore the header and silly viking -
we're getting that changed) for the articles I've written. Each week (on
Wednesday) I'm putting a new column up. One of the articles is (once
again, IMO) the best description on the web of what a role-playing game is.
</plug>
Also, Blackjack also has several good columns about GMing and gaming. He's
over at http://www.interware.it/users/blackjack/index.html , and from there
you can get to Blackjack's Corner - another complilation of columns by BJ.
Buy lots of six-sided dice. Be able to roll a dozen in one hand (more if
you're playing a decker) - most gaming stores have these small plastic
boxes with 36 dice in them. Almost made just for Shadowrun.
People in the group - I've found that the size I'm comfortable with is
three to five players. Any more and the game slows down - especially with
new to rpging players. I'd also suggest getting a published adventure to
run for the first time. Most of FASA's adventures tell the GM what skill
tests should be made and when to make them (things like "Have the
characters make a Perception (8) test and check the successes on the
following chart").
Other bits of advice - have the other players read over the Plus la Change
story in the main book before picking out a character. It illustrates
several of the PC archetypes (including a Physical Adept, who isn't listed
in the Archetypes section, but can be found in the Magic section). Also
have them read over the So It Came To Pass... section. And when the
characters are creating thier characters, make sure they write down the
answers to the 20 Questions. Personally, I'd disallow any character that
is either an orphan or hates all corporations.
And welcome to ShadowRN mailing list!
-Thomas Deeny
Your Guide to Shadowrun - http://shadowrun.miningco.com
Thomas's World is http://telltale.hart.org - come visit!
"... what character deserves to be left alone more at the end of the world
than that idiot Ash?"
-Bruce Campbell on the dropped ending for _Army of Darkness_
