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Moral dilemmas

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brasso

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« on: <12-03-17/2026:48> »
Hi guys - does anyone know of any good premade adventures which have decent moral issues in them? If not a published adventure, then a quick outline is fine. I'm just looking to challenge the murder hobo mentality :)
The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall

Reaver

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« Reply #1 on: <12-03-17/2239:11> »
Moral choices are fairly easy to put into your game, and if you look close almost ALL published adventures have some moral choice involved. Even if it's just "To be a Dick, or a decent human being".

Tracking and wetwork jobs are good for this. No one cares if the players wack a mobster for cash. What about a mother of 3 whose only crime is she missed church once 7 years ago??
(Now why is there a hit on her?? Maybe her brother is a douchebag that owes the Mob a ton of money?? Mob wacks the sister. "Real sorry your Sis is dead. How many kids she got? 3? Wow. Shame is something happened to one of them... about that money you owe...")

My GM put us on a run that if we completed would have meant hundreds of dead kids if we completed it...

Extorsion and blackmail are also good choices for this type of material.

Where am I going? And why am I in a hand basket ???

Remember: You can't fix Stupid. But you can beat on it with a 2x4 until it smartens up! Or dies.

Kwai

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« Reply #2 on: <12-03-17/2248:23> »
Divided Assets ( if they care about kids) : Elven Blood charts differently moralled paths (somewhat like a Bioware rpg) - most adventures have moral issues if you choose to see it that way (and if you find a way to convince murder hobo players to not be murder hobos, I am all ears).

brasso

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« Reply #3 on: <12-04-17/0754:03> »
Thanks guys, I'm not really trying to convince my players of anything really, just to kind of hold up a mirror so they can see just how awful they are! Sometimes it's fun to play the bad guys, and that's cool, but I'm just trying to anchor them as characters in the campaign setting. After all, even hitmen must love their mum!

I've seen some published adventures with some decisions in, such as who to sell the scandalous data to, but mostly they seem to be "hired gun" type adventures.

I guess I'm not really wanting them to be outright hired to murder an old lady (they'd probably enjoy it!), but maybe learn as they go that they need to kill a valued contact's mum, maybe because she's a witness to their crimes. From there, it's just how far they'll go to finish the deal, maybe even have to torture her for information (who have you told?)  etc

I'm ok to write something, but I just wondered if there were any classic examples from the Shadowrun history books :)
The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall

brasso

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« Reply #4 on: <12-04-17/1009:07> »
I'll check out Divided Assets, looks interesting :)
The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall

SunRunner

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« Reply #5 on: <12-04-17/1104:54> »
Moral issues are easy in this SR setting, Its easy to moralize stealing from the Megas and what not as they are the bad guys. Its weather the guys even look at what they are doing. I mean getting hired to steal some data from a corp is pretty common, its weather you bother to look at the data and realize your stealing a targeted retrovirus that could be used to deliver a specific virus to specific people. Then maybe make it obvious they are being hired by Los Almos 20k or some of the well know terrorist organization. I like Los Almos because its almost a guaranteed that you have some Meta Human players and they at least should be asking themselves do they want Almos to have that capability. I mean a virus they can be widely disperse in say the city water supply or from crop duster type drones that WILL only infect elves with a new non communicable VITAS strain ect (alter the meta type to be one of the players type). If they bother to look at the data you can have executive summaries and stuff so that they can figure out whats going on with out silly ratings in Bio Tech and Medical skills. If they decide to not pay attention or be greedy in a week or two when they have to start making disease resistance checks vs that new power 20 VITAS strain well you did WARN them and give them a chance to NOT have it happen to them.

Its not too hard really, another one is the Crime hits on people who are obviously innocent and have nothing to due with the shadows or the megas. Due to debts from relatives or as consequences for saying no. Reaver out lined it pretty well, but the mob/yak/triad probably wont  hide why they are doing the hit if the runners bother to do any leg work about the target at all. You look into the target and find out her Father is a civil engineer with the city of Seattle and he shut down some big development project and if you trace it further you find that he crime family was heavily vested some how in the development and that hey engineer guy turned down huge bribes and free all access passes to the family joints because the project had horrible repercussions on the local orphanage or Red Cross charity medical station etc.

Hell you REALLY want to give the murder hobos a mirror start with a new Johnson that pays stupid good for very low quality missions like you have 48 hours to bring us 10 random people who will not be missed by local law enforcement or Corps. The Johnson is paying 50k nuyen PER person they bring them in and they can bring more up to say a max of like 50 if they can get them. Dont care about age, gender, health or anything except that no one is going to come looking for them. Cook up a few more missions on this vein and then start with the twisted stuff where they grab some high profile targets but they are given back up that if they pay attention to will be the people they grabbed earlier. When the drek hits the fan the back up deals with it very fast and very harshly and bonce bullets of their chests and stuff doing it. Thats when they start to realize Johnson is an insect shaman and they are doing runs to support a new Hive that is building up. 

Or Make it a toxic shamman and alter the milk runs to be toxic type stuff like take this Tank here and go to this junction in the sewers and set the timer on the control, when they see the news the next morning they realize it was a chlorine gas canister or some other type of toxic waste/chemical they dropped off under a nice relatively well to do apartment complex and that hundreds of people are now dead.

I mean this stuff is endless, heck get them working for Tamanous and reuse the bring us people who wont be missed thing only on the 3rd or 4th drop they get to bring the delivery all the way in and see that all the people they are grabbing are basically being dismembered piece by piece while being kept alive so the ghouls can have nice fresh meat, Fresh tastes best and the ghouls will pay a premium to be able to cut some ones arm off and chow down right there with it nice and fresh and still steaming. While some ghoul medics start immediate medical care to keep the person alive so their other limbs can be used the same way.

Anyway hope this will give you some ideas to get started.

brasso

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« Reply #6 on: <12-04-17/1802:22> »
Thanks for the response, I'm thinking of doing the insect spirit meme. The key I think is to get them to care about the NPC they're going to kill/ torture/ deliver to ghouls. Our group has accidentally thrown grenades in a coffee shop, or run over people before now, and it's not really caused them any concern. If they have to kill someone they think is a random nobody, but turns out to be a contact's sister, it would probably give them more to think about. Just remembered that there's a dragon in Seattle who pays for kidnapped kids...
The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall

SunRunner

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« Reply #7 on: <12-06-17/0939:52> »
It can be tough, its about playing up and setting the horror scene up properly. When they get to watch a ghoul cut some ones arm off and start chowing down while the medics go to work and they can see other people restrained with various body parts missing ect. Even then it will roll of the backs of some players like water off a ducks back. You can try adding kids to the mix and if they are just really blase and PAY me about it when they keep going make one of their contacts end up on the table for lunch when they make a delivery. If it really dont sink in eventually the Ghouls with either try and kill and eat them because they have decided they know too much about what is going on with their operation or they will try and turn them for the same reasons. Heck if you really want to be EVIL have a vamp or a nos behind the operation and eventually they get offered some refreshments (Soykafe/soda/mundane everyday beverage) while they have to wait a few minuets for the boss to show up and pay them. The catch is the drinks are spiked with Renfeild or Amrita. If you have not figured it out when my players go Blacker then Black, I go there with them too and I bring out the really mean and evil drek.

Shadowseer Kim

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« Reply #8 on: <01-03-18/0330:04> »
When the extraction target for the latest creeper Mr. Johnson turns out to be a 6 year old girl.  Do they deliver her trustingly or do they hide her away to try and figure out what he is up to?

Rarely do the Mr. Johnsons give you all the whys of what they want done.  Nuyen is usually enough motivation.
     

Medicineman

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« Reply #9 on: <01-03-18/1048:58> »
Thanks for the response, I'm thinking of doing the insect spirit meme. The key I think is to get them to care about the NPC they're going to kill/ torture/ deliver to ghouls. Our group has accidentally thrown grenades in a coffee shop, or run over people before now, and it's not really caused them any concern. If they have to kill someone they think is a random nobody, but turns out to be a contact's sister, it would probably give them more to think about. Just remembered that there's a dragon in Seattle who pays for kidnapped kids...
than get a hold at/on Queen Euphoria.
SPOILER_ALERT !

It starts as a Usual Run (Kidnap this Simsense star for a few Days but don't harm her )
in which the Chars get in Contact with their Victim .When You're a good GM you get them Connected to Euphoria .
than, after the Return she gets kidnapped again by an Ant Shaman who wants to transform her into his Ant Queen .
And the Chars have to prevent that.
Loots of Room for Drama !
(and also room for Aliens(the Movie) Like Action ;) )
But the Module needs some Workout from the GM (as with lots of those old SR2/3 Runs) to "smooth out the Edges"

with a dramatic Dance
Medicineman
« Last Edit: <01-03-18/1051:58> by Medicineman »
http://english.bouletcorp.com/2013/08/02/the-long-journey/
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