| From: | korishinzo@*****.com (Ice Heart) |
|---|---|
| Subject: | The Shadowrun NPC Wiki is now open! |
| Date: | Wed, 13 Jul 2005 12:35:57 -0700 (PDT) |
> including Shadowrun - especially if you have to work out the NPC's
> equipment, cyberware, bioware and/or magical powers. In my
> experience, writing up the NPCs can often take up as much time as
> creating everything else for an adventure, if not more so.
[SNIP]
First of all, let me say this is a nice idea. It will probably help
a lot of GMs. Kudos.
Now, on to my contention (inevitably I suppose).
Why are people detailing NPCs like they are characters? Putting that
much effort into an NPC means two things. First, you are going to be
slotted off if a lucky couple of shots from the impulsive idiot
sammie waste the NPC before you even finish describing her wizzer
outfit, let alone start speaking in the cool accent you came up for
her. Second, you are going to end up forcing this NPC into
interaction with the PCs. So the 'apparent' crazy SINless bag lady
approaches and starts dropping important plot hints to the PCs... and
they freak out, burn their safehouses, and flee to Denver. You
players are going to throw dice at you, justifiably IMO, if your
Immortal Elf/bag lady/major plot device shows up in Denver. There
are around six billion people in the Shadowrun world, and your PCs
should have some chance of running into any one of them (admittedly,
far less chance if said person lives on the far side of the globe
with no Matrix connection). Still...
So what is the solution? How do you avoid spending hours making NPCs
who get ignored/instantly wasted/actively avoided/etc? How do you
maintain the illusion that the players can march their character up
to anyone in the world and find all the myriad depths of a real
metahuman? Well, it takes a little discipline, a little memory, and
a healthy does of creativity. This is what I do, and it has surved
me well.
First, keep either a stack of 3x5 cards, a text editor on your
laptop, a legal pad, or any other convenient blank note taking device
easily accessible. Now, any time you describe anyone in the game
world to your players, think of a few distinctive keywords about
them. "Female" "dwarf" "brass finish datajack"
"taciturn"... this
can pretty well cement the person in your short term memory. If the
players decide to approach the dwarf, you already have some basic
descriptives to use. Write them down. Add a name if the PCs ask.
Write down the one she gives. If she becomes important, you can fill
more notes as needed. Maybe the PCs push some interaction, and you
need an attribute/skill/etc number. Pick it. Write it down. "Chr
3, Negot 4, Intimid 3" These number get rolled, so stick to them.
But don't commit to numbers until they are needed. Did you just roll
7 dice for a Chr test? Okay, why? Oh, she's got tailored
pheremeones. Write it down. Work out the reasons, the backstory, as
youy go. Be consistent. Next time (if there is a next time) roll 7
dice again. But never worry about putting down on paper anything you
don't end up needing for that NPC.
Now, the most common NPCs rquired are killable drones in combat.
These are the worst NPCs to spend a ton of time on. They are
expendable and recyclable. Suppose your PCs wander into some gang
turf. You decide that the gang is the Jdub3's, a predominantly
Chinese gang, made up of mostly humans and orks, with the odd dwarf
or troll. This sentence goes into its own note. The J33's just
became part of your game world. Now you decide they are jumped by an
appropriate handful of toughs (maybe 1.5 or 2 to 1 odds). 4 humans,
2 orks, and a troll... you decide... making quick 1 line entries in
your notes. A slender/twitchy/dark haired human... a tall/broad
shouldered/bald human... an aggressive/short/muscular/female human...
etc. Quick notes so you can describe them and keep them straight in
your head. Now comes the fun part. The numbers. It is easier than
it looks.
The average reaction across low BP characters (which gangers will
usually be) is 4-6, with 2D6 for initiative (boosted reflexes are
cheap). Want one to have a higher reaction? Lower something else,
like Str or Wil. As you roll, you notes become 4+2D6, 3+2D6, 6+1D6
(uh oh, this one is probably awakened), and so on. The same approach
works for skills. As with attributes, averages fall in the 3-4
range. If someone has a 5 or a 6, then some other skill suffers,
being very low or non-existant. The watchword is consistency. Your
gangers are going to ahve combat pools in the range of 6 or so.
Karma pools should not be more than 1 or 2. Gear is easiest of all.
SMGs are usually around 6L, and typically fire burst. Pistols, 6L or
9M. Clubs and knives are based on Str, so pick an attribute number
that makes sense. At the end of a fight, an NPC (whether
dead/fleeing/surrendered/or victorious) will look something like
this:
Member of Jdub3's
Tall/Asian/Human/Female - physically twitchy/emotionally calm
Att: 3/5/3/4/5/4 (7+2D6) CP 7/KP 1 [Wired 1,Eyes w/low,heat,flare]
Pistols 4(9M) Smrtlnk 2/Pred 3 Bal 6,Imp 3
Edged 4 (4M) Cougar Long longcoat, form fit 2
Unarmed 3 (Karate), Intimidation 4
This will have been generated on the fly as the combat scene
developed and a stat was needed. In my head, I have a more complex
image of the ganger by now. Why she fights, who she is, etc... but
the players will probably never know. She is a walk-on extra in a
fight scene. Here is the real beauty of the simple notes. Next game
session, the players end up fighting a few human security guards. I
rifle through my notes and copy a few things to a new section.
DeveCorp Sec Guard
Short/Powerfully Built/Human/Male - strong/a bit of a bully
Att: 4/4/6/3/3/4 (5+2D6) CP 5/KP 2 [Wired 1,Eyes w/low,flare,disp]
SMG 4(7L) Smrtlnk 2/Ingram Bal 7,Imp 4
Club 3 (7M Stun) Snap baton L sec, form fit 2, helm
Unarmed 4 (Boxing), Intimidation 4
A couple of number changes and I have recycled an NPC. However, the
players are not confronted with a twitchy Asian woman. And they
never see that the stats are almost identical. So I have nearly
infinite supplies of expendable grunts. By the end of a long game, I
have not had to do more than come up with new descriptions in dozens
of sessions. I have a stat set for almost any concievable NPC.
Now suppose the Asian woman surrendered. They (the PCs and her) get
to talking. Find out she is a Triad wannabe, because that is what
her older brother did, and he's vanished. She wants to find him.
Turns out, she knows the area pretty well, and has a knack for
forgery. The PCs call on her the next time they need some forgeries,
or a bit of info from her turf. They haggle to a price, and a
contact is born. Someday, maybe they even get a run that leads them
across the path of her brother. That is all for the future. For the
moment, I have edited my above entry a little:
Kaya - no other name known, cell phone number known
Runs with Jdub3's, Contact 1
Tall/Asian/Human/Female - physically twitchy/emotionally calm
Att: 3/5/3/4/5/4 (7+2D6) CP 7/KP 1 [Wired 1,Eyes w/low,heat,flare]
Pistols 4(9M) Smrtlnk 2/Pred 3 Bal 6,Imp 3
Edged 4 (4M) Cougar Long longcoat, form fit 2
Unarmed 3 (Karate), Intimidation 4, Computers 4, Negotiation 3, Know:
Forgery 5, Know: Local Rumor 4, Know: Kingsgate Area 4
Triad groupie, searching for lost older brother - Triad, Surrendered
to team after gang fight
Because I have played her a few times now, her
personality/history/motivations/appearance/etc are easier and easier
to remember. I refer to my notes less and less, except a quick
consulation to roll some dice. And I can still use her stats a
hundred times over with only minor edits.
For me, at least, this approach is vastly superior to reams of
pre-fab NPCs I have spent hours of my week generating. YMMV.
======Korishinzo
--doesn't have more than an hour or so to prep for game sessions in
any given week :)
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