From:	Lloyd Vance ljvance@*******.edu
Subject:	Shadowrun Novels
Date:	Mon, 19 Jul 1999 14:29:07

At 02:52 PM 7/19/99 -0500, you wrote:
>> In a message dated 7/18/99 1:24:37 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
>> jarmokaronen@***.fi writes:
>> While all campaigns are going to be unique to a certain extent, most
>> people
>> will play in teh main universe. While it is fine to preface every new
>> development with "change it if you wish" all future products will
assume
>> that
>> event took place. For example, if I had set my campaign in Chicago, where
>> Dunkelzhan was the master mind behind a huge plot to bring the horrors
>> across, that is my prerogative. However, why buy anything new for
>> shadowrun,
>> sinc ethey will be operating under a totally different set of parameters?
>> The products need to leave leeway for individual campaigns, if
>> everything
>> comes down to "ignore this at will" than the GM is doing all the work,
and
>>
>> has no need to buy new stuff. (may seem like an extreme example but..)
>> While a developing universe is good, you need to keep major world
>> altering
>> events in check. It is a given that you can ignore anything you want, but
>> eventually it just means you are ignoring everything.
>>
>Again, why must I keep major world altering events in check? I don't really
>see this as ignoring everything. For instance, if I run a low level ganger
>type campaign in Seattle, I can interact with thousands of various runners,
>gangers, corp powers, etc. and never touch anything FASA has published. In
>fact, I did this for several years back in 1st. ed. As new sourcebooks came
>out, they filled in the world a little more, provided detailed info on areas
>left uncovered. As I read them, I incorporated them into the SR world, but
>they still didn't affect my players.

I get your point. I have in the past ran people through an 'alternate'
world, using the Shadowrun rules, but very little of the world. In the
long run, it is much more complicated and required a boatload more work on
the side of the GM.

On the other hand you can use the main rulebooks, and not the sourcebooks
nor the adventures, and have a great game, which is what I think you are
getting at.

To make it somewhat short, there is nothing to stop you. You are the GM.
Do what you want, and scr*w what other people think.

The Hamm