[martinchaen]

Hoi, chummers!

I'm sure that by now you've heard there's a lot of nuyen to be made in Chicago, and that fixers like me are always looking for talent to take on work in the CZ. Make no mistake about it, this is seriously dangerous drek, and if you can't hack it you're either dead or worse; and trust me, you don't even want to know what "worse" is up here in Chi-town.

Interested? Apply below, and let's get this show on the road...


The Essentials!
All right, here's the deal; I have been wanted to run a game in Bug City for a while now so I'm hereby officially recruiting for a Play-By-Post game set in Chicago. We will be using custom character creation rules which will be based on the Prime Runner rule set with a twist of Military / Mercenary options. Essentially, this means the following:
1. You will get 50 karma to be spent after character creation
2. Availability limits will be upped to 16
3. The Resources priority will be twice the normal rate for Prime Runners (so, an easy 1,000,000¥ for Resources A, 750k for B, 420k for C, etc)

I will also be using my own Rigger Revamp houserules to allow riggers a more direct role in combat; feel free to ask any questions about these rules in linked topic to avoid cluttering this thread.

There are going to be some caveats for the above freedoms, however...

1. As you are expected to be a highly trained team who has worked together for a relatively long time (1 year at the very least), each team member will have to have a specific primary and secondary role. There will be 4+ of you, and this is definitely not a "first come, first serve" kind of game; I'll be choosing the character concepts I feel are most appropriate for the team, so feel free to submit said concepts regardless of what others have posted until I've updated the main post with which roles are filled.

2. I expect all players to familiarize themselves with the Small Unit Tactics chapter of Run & Gun, and for all characters to have some measure of skill in this area; successful teamwork is the key to success for any military unit.

3. Your character should not have any significant shortcomings in terms of their stat line; see this post where I provided suggestions of what I would expect a military operative (in this case, a Ranger) to look like if created in the Shadowrun universe. I will favor characters who have average (meaning base +2 or better) attributes across the board with a significant focus on skills, as I firmly believe military operatives are best represented with a specialization in one role as well as secondary and even tertiary areas of expertise.

The Team!
Now that all of that is squared away, these are the roles I want filled (taken straight from Run & Gun). Note that multiple Direct Combatants may be allowed, while I am only looking for one Team Leader (obviously (hopefully)), one magical support character, and one decker/rigger:

Team Leader: 1 of 1 filled; closed
Captain Antala "August" Marquis, Callsign-1 (played by rednblack)
Primary role: Combat leader, decision maker
Suggested Secondary role(s): Face, shooter

The character: The team leader needs to remain calm and collected when the team comes under fire, and to have the clarity of mind to skillfully direct his team during engagements. This person needs to be capable of seeing opportunities where they present themselves, and to be able to listen to team specialists when they have information that could be critical for the mission. This is not your average gun-bunny psychopath; this is a consummate professional who gets the job done no matter what. When the team leader says go, the team follows.

The player: You should have a good grasp of the unit tactics rules from Run & Gun, and be able to formulate short and concise orders. You are expected to lead the team, so knowledge of military tactics is preferable but not required. Unlike most games, however, your orders are expected to be obeyed, so most importantly don't be a power-hungry dick; respect your team and their strengths and weaknesses, and they will respect you back. Negotiation skills are less likely to be an issue in this game, as you will be dropped into the game having already accepted the mission. That doesn't mean you should completely skimp out on these, as there may be NPC you'll want to interact with along the way who needs to be tricked, negotiated with, or intimidated.

Special Considerations:
You get the Small Unit Tactics knowledge skill and the Leadership active skill at Rating 6 with an appropriate specialization at no cost.

Magic Support: 1 of 1 filled; closed
First Lieutenant Thomas "Nightingale" Robards, Callsign-2 (played by reyjinn)
Primary role: Force multiplier
Suggested Secondary role(s): Astral recon, Combat medic

The character: The magic support person should be able to assist the team with various combat maneuvers. Being able to enhance the teams infiltration abilities will be key, as the team won't be able to take on all of Chicago by itself; quietly getting into position before a strike can be crucial. A dedicated magician should also be prepared to boost a teams effectiveness in creative ways; using barriers to force melee attackers into prepared fire lanes is a good example of a magician acting as a force multiplier, as is being able to detect the enemy before they detect you. Of course, a combat magician like this will also need to be able to fire a weapon and take a hit.

The player: You'll need to be more than "just" a magician in this game; expect to take hits, and expect background counts. Think carefully about what your spells can do not just for you, but for the team as a whole. I don't need a dedicated combat mage for this team, but someone who can augment the team in creative ways, as well as sling the odd combat mojo will be incredibly useful.

Special Considerations:
You will be allowed to initiate up to two times but must find the Karma for it the usual way
Up to 100,000¥ can be converted to Karma at a 1 Karma : 2,000¥ ratio

Matrix and Drone/Vehicle Support: 1 of 1 filled; closed
Chief Warrant Officer Jack "Wires" Willes, Callsign-3 (played by Ravensoravle)
Primary role(s): Information Gathering (ISTAR), Transport
Suggested Secondary role(s): Any

The character: The matrix monkey for this team needs to be able to deal with noise and protect the teams gear. Top-of-the-line hacking skills will be less critical than in many "normal" gamesm but that doesn't mean that this person is a complete newb, just that the decker in this case is going to be more combat oriented than usual. Since the Matrix support is less of a focus, this person also needs to be the team pilot; able to drive and fly almost any vehicle, this person can provide physical fire support and recon not usually expected in somewhere like downtown Manhattan.

The player: This person needs to be a little bit of a do-it-all; a cross between a dedicated decker and a dedicated rigger, the team Matrix / Vehicle specialist should be able to competently deck and rig, though not (often) at the same time. There will be no dedicated high-end hosts in the Chicago CZ what with there barely being stable matrix connectivity and the fact that most of the old corporate servers haven't been upgraded to the new Matrix protocols yet, so decking will be mostly relegated to keeping the team leader informed about the situation around the team. Rigging will be important, as you'll be the eyes and ears of the team physically; the shooter may be in charge in close proximity of the team, but you'll be able to tell what's going on beyond line of sight. You'll also need to really read and understand the house Rigger Revamp house rules linked above. Post in that thread or PM me with questions.

Special Considerations:
I've got a special treat for you; your very own GMC Banshee T-Bird, complete with a mounted Ares Humvee (aka stats of the Rover Model 2072)! They're not yours alone, of course; the team has been able to afford these toys through various sponsorship and so you'll have to be damned careful with these highly expensive toys. Since you'll need to fulfill both Matrix and Rigger roles, the cost of these two vehicles are included in the role, so all you need to worry about is upgrades for them, as well as the gear to use them and protect them.

Weapon mounts and weapons are not restricted by availability, as they are supplied by Vulcan International

Direct Combatant: 3 of 3 filled, closed
Staff Sergeant Charles Ray "Chuck" Mitchell, Callsign-4 (played by Koshnek)
Sergeant Jane "Weedy" Smith, Callsign-5 (played by Poindexter)
Sergeant Thomas "Jack of Hearts" Calhoun, Callsign-6 (played by Blazrath)
Primary role: Shooter, weapons specialist
Suggested Secondary role(s): Combat medic, scout, other

The character: The direct combatant is the team's muscle in a firefight; this person knows all the tricks in the books when it comes to guns and then some. Charged with keeping an eye out for danger in the physical world and to keep the mage and the matrix monkey safe while they do their thing, the DC will need to be a mix of offensive and defensive abilities. Downtown Chicago is a dangerous, lawless place, and it's not uncommon for elite ground forces to pack heavy munitions going into the Zone; the Direct Combatant should embrace this and feel free to bring out the big guns.

The player: Ever wanted to bring out the heavy weapons? Well, this is your chance; you'll be dropped in a target rich environment, and you'll have the tools to deal with the situation. A military team doesn't need a Rambo, however, so you need to be able to protect your team mates while they do their thing; covering fire can be the name of the game, as can versatility.

Special Considerations:
You, and only you, get to buy gear with availabilities up to 20; yep, that means you can pick up that assault cannon or missile launcher you've always wanted, or those augmentations that have been out of reach forever. It also means you can pick up heavy mil-spec armor, but keep in mind that those things will slow you down; also remember that some bugs love to hunt food with hard outer shells so they can crack the exterior to get to the softer squishy bits. You have been warned

EDIT: One person (Poindexter) gets to buy a single weapon (with ammunition) with no availability limit, but must buy all other gear using normal 16 availability limit if this option is chosen

The game!
I'm expecting an average of at least 1 post per working day (Monday through Friday) from each team member; weekends are busy for many of us, so I have no expectations here. If you can't commit to this very basic requirement; don't apply. I'm on Houston time, but have no specific preference in terms of what time zone you're in.

As for game length, I have a very defined mission arc for at least two distinct "missions". I'm working on a third, but depending on your actions in the first two this could very well be a suicide mission . I don't really think it's realistic to keep this going for more than the three ops I've got in mind, but you all may surprise me so I won't discount it.

Please post character concepts only at this stage; I'll want character sheets eventually, but for now just give me the following:

Alias:
Real Name: (Smith will be assigned if your character never knew his or her last name)
Age and Metatype:
Desired Role:
Short Background (two paragraphs):
Short Physical Description (one to two paragraphs):

And with that all said, let the games begin!

[martinchaen]

Reserving a post for house rules.

Until further notice, all current core books (SR5, Run & Gun, and Street Magic) are allowed.

The following supplements will also be allowed: Assasin's Primer, Gun Heaven 3, Stolen Souls.

I will consider any and all SR4 equipment / rules requests when we get around to actually creating characters.

House Rules:
1. Riggers and Drones/Vehicles
Rigger Revamp (all "preferred" rules apply)
2. Cyberlimbs
   a. A character is considered to have 5 limbs for the purpose of determining averages; two legs, two arms, and a torso.
   b. Cyberlimb stats affect physical limits only if the limb is used as part of a tests
   c. Cyberlimb stats are averaged with natural stats to determine movement speed
3. Recoil
   a. The errata recoil rules apply
   b. In addition, the "one point of Recoil Compensation" that is gained "when a user begins firing" always applies (SR5 p175)
4. Toxins
   a. The highest rating protective gear/system per vector adds to the Toxin Resistance Test
   b. Immunity to one vector halves the Power of toxins with two vectors
5. Armor modifications
If wearing multiple layers of armor, only modifications made to the outer layer applies except for the following:
   Chemical Seal, Chemical Protection, and Thermal Damping
6. Dice Rolls
   a. Orokos.com will be used as dice roller
   b. Feel free to always roll full dice pools with assumed modifiers; we're on an honor system, so if I need to subtract more dice I'll just do so from your roll, or roll more on my own.
7. Licenses
Licenses are only needed for item categories (Chummer5 is a good guideline for this, but ask if you're unsure)
8. Gear
The Ares Super Squirt, DMSO, and Capsule Rounds will likely be vetoed; against quite a few foes in the CZ these weapons are unlikely to be very effective anyway.
9. Quickened spells
Quickening a spell cost a minimum of [Force] Karma

More to come as you bring them up.

[rednblack]

I'm very interested in this.  A couple notes on a few of your requirements.  Posting M-F is no problem.  Realistically, I will miss a day here and there, but I usually know beforehand when things go to drek, and maintaining an average of one post a day will not be an issue.  I have R&G and the core rule book, but I don't have Gun H(e)aven, or any of the other books, so I will be limited there.  I am familiar with Small Unit Tactics from R&G, but I've never applied them in game.  Thought you should know.

Name: Antala Marquis
Alias: August

Desired Role: Team Leader

Short Background (two paragraphs):
"The dogs of war are sated
Our hearts in our pride do swell
Our enemies lie bleeding at the gates
To rot with our children as well"
-- From graffiti found on a Venezuelan office complex,  signed "August 2049"

Washed up?  A relic?  Too old for the game?  These things are probably true, but if August knows anything it's himself.  After the wanton killing in South and Central America over the decades he's tried the pacifist route, changed his name to Broken Spear, even made his way back to the UCAS to try his hand at family man and eke out what existence he could.  For awhile Chicago looked like as attractive a spot as any, but when 2055 hit, August lost his wife in the chaos that followed, and he knew that if he wanted to stand any chance of protecting his infant twin daughters he was going to have to get out of the CZ and dust off the ordnance.  And it worked.  One man with two children strapped to his back, and he made it out, but not without a trail of bodies in his wake, some of whom were only refugees such as himself trying to protect their own families. 

In 2073 August was idly surfing the news feeds when a picture from Chicago brought him to his knees.  Jen?  It was undoubtedly her.  His wife had aged, but there she was in the corner of the frame, warming her hands by a cook stove.  August spent every last ¥ he had, put the kids with his wife's sister, and went scouting full-time.  Nothing came up.  Nobody seemed to know anything about some aging street rat in Chi-Town.  It was to be expected.  Not knowing what else to do, August signed up with Vulcan International, and while his resume was a few decades dusty, he was able to find some steady work and a team he could trust.  And now he's doing what he does best a midst his new family, caring for them in the way he wishes he could his own blood, but until he knows what happened he can never go home.

Short Physical Description (one to two paragraphs):
Of Caribbean stock, August is lean, almost wiry, and well into his mid-forties.  He has a prominent shrapnel scar starting at his right temple that extends to his shoulder.  He keeps his hair cropped short, doesn't wear a beard, is left-handed, and keeps a row of tattoos up his left arm that proclaims the name and age of every soldier who's ever died under his charge.  On his left hand, he has a tattoo of a circular Greek shield and the text, Νίκη ἢ Θάνατος — ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς, a reminder to him: either with your shield or on it.  He has obvious cyber-eyes, a cyber right hand, and a hearty laugh for someone of his frame -- when he finds occasion to use it. 

[Poindexter]

question about ware grades; are we still limited to used, std, and alpha at gen?

Also, I'm down for the direct combat/scout role. I've got a couple ideas kicking around.

I'm going for a cross between
http://www.writeups.org/img/fiche/2263a.jpg

http://predatorpongleague.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/sonnylandham.jpg

and

http://www.unificationfrance.com/IMG/jpg/mad_max_fury_road_tom_hardy_et_charlize_theron_dans_une_course_mortelle_2.jpg

[Triskavanski]

On the layers of armor, Why doesn't insulation and non-conductivity stack in there? I could see the fire resistance one a bit since the outer clothing could burn.

[Koshnek]

I'd. Sry much like to play the shooter / combat medic! Will post more later tonight when in off work.

[martinchaen]

rednblack
Awesome concept, man! I love it.

Poindexter
I'll have to review the beta and delta grades to make sure, as I believe the availability bumps those grades apply might put some of the higher end stuff out of reach, but tentatively I'm drawn to say that any grade goes.

Triskavanski
The reasoning behind that was that anything that affects direct combat (elemental DV, essentially) would have to be placed on the outer layer of armor, like a greatcoat worn over a jumpsuit. I decided the chemical mods and thermal dampers should be allowed to be worn underneath, as those can be hard to achieve otherwise.

Now, I haven't actually revised that rule after run & Gun was released, so I'll need to do that, but as of right now it stands as is.

Koshnek
Cool as cool, post up your concept. Like I said, no first come first serve, and we might have room for more than one direct combatant.

Also, feel free to come up with suggestions for a name of the outfit; you're not military, so anything goes. Keep it at least somewhat clean, though :-)

[Poindexter]

Alias: Weedy
Name: Might as well be Weedy for all she knows
Race: Ork 
Role: Direct Combat/Scout
Short Background: Abandoned as a child in the 2050's shortly after everything turned to shit in chicago and forced to raise herself on the streets, Amid the chaos. She was small, quick, fast, and nimble, so she could fit into places and climb up things that most people couldnt. That alone would have allowed her to survive longer than most, but she was also incredibly intelligent, crafty, and creative, allowing her to not just survive on her own, but to thrive. She made a living for herself scavenging equipment from dead soldiers and mercs sent into the combat zone, then selling it back to their employers. It wasn't long before she'd amassed a decent amount of money for herself, as well as a substantial knowledge of not just the city and the various dangers that inhabit it, but also the tactics of those brave enough to venture in, both wise and foolhardy. She decided to spend a huge chunk of change to upgrade herself and begin selling her services as a guide to these men intent on going in. That's where the real money was, especially considering she could continue to do her scavenging business on the side. Not only that, but now she's got a simrig and can start recording and selling her adventures as well. She's all about that jing.

It's been four years since then. Four highly profitable years. She's made good connections with most of the local names on the who's who list, not due to her congeniality, but her reputation, which is immaculate. Never once has she even been accused of fucking up, getting someone killed, leading a group into a trap, nothing. Eventually, her name was heard by August, who hired her on as a temp to perm consultant, eventually becoming permanent. She and August have in the 2 years since then become the best of friends, trusting eachother implicitly. More than anything, she wants to retire peacefully on a ranch and watch horses or sheep or whatever all day from her porch, drinking iced tea like those old ladies in the commercials, but there never seems to be enough money to do that the way she'd like to. Plus, she loves August like the family she never knew by now and if he's going back into bug city, he damn sure aint going without a guide.

It aint all been money and friend makin though. Shit is rough out there in the CZ, and always has been. In her quest to always be faster, always be stronger, she's developed a couple addictions. Y'know? First ya need something to give ya that edge, then ya need somethin ta take it off. Few years go by and you're a regular customer. Could be the fucked up childhood, the fucked up adulthood, or all the drugs, but she hasn't been sleeping very well lately either, despite the fact that she sleeps far more safely these days than she ever has before. Within the last couple weeks, she's also started to get into BTLs. Mainly tripchips, but she also really enjoys moodchips.

Short Physical Description: She's short and small framed, even for an elf, but is covered in taught, cut muscle hardened over years of hard work. Her hands are calloused and she's always bleeding from some minor cut or scrape somewhere on her head, hands, knees, elbows, or something all the time. She wears a minor scowl most of the time, giving off an aura of cold hearted, emotional void although she actually has a warm heart underneath it all. She's one of those elves that just looks like a 14 year old human, and probably will till she starts getting some wrinkles, and she hates it, so she over accentuates her muscular arms and shoulders in her clothing whenever she can, trying to seem very masculine. She's even gone so far as to wear a bright green mohawk up until recently, but since shaving it off 4 days ago, she just has a green streak going down the middle of her buzzed off black hair and is considering growing an afro, but isn't sure how practical that would be. She has dark ebony skin and bright green eyes, a wide short nose, high cheekbones, and a strong wide jaw. 

Not that you'd know what her real face looks like anyway. Realizing that the predominant demographic of mercs and the employers thereof were men and that they had alot more respect for the battle prowess of orks than elves, not to mention far less sexual fetishization thereof, she's been an ork impersonator for about 4 years now. Had the tusks and everything implanted along with the chrome. She's short for an ork, but her Or'zet is flawless. No one, i mean NO ONE, not even August knows she's really an elf. I mean sure, the doc knows, but he's in another country, and frankly, couldn't care less.

August
In a lake of gasoline, if August said "light a match" she'd do it. Take a bullet? sure. jump on a nade? yup. Snatched up in the jaws of some egg laying horror? If it meant gettin him out? without a second thought. She knows he'd do the same thing for each and every member of the team... and he'd think about it less. August is the only person in the world she truly loves, and she secretly hopes that if he can find his wife out there and reunite his family one day, that they'll let her be a part of it.

Chuck
She wasn't sure what to think of the cigar smoking "good ol boah'" with the cold eyes when she first met him, but she's figured enough out about him to like him. She doesn't know what he's seen or what he's done, she just knows it was bad enough that he doesn't talk about it BUT that he was too tough to let it snuff out that light in him all the way, like it does most people. She'd never accuse him of it, but she believes he still just might be an idealist underneath all the bullshit. She's never met one of those before.

Jack of Hearts
On one hand, Jack is cool for a human male. He's obviously paid his dues and if his files are accurate, he's seen some shit no one should ever see and came out of it. He's reliable in a fight, and he does his frakkin job without a big deal being made about it. Somethin bout him though. Weedy can't tell if it's his model good looks, his over poetic way of putting everything, the frakkin dragontooth necklace he CANT WAIT to tell you about and show ya the scar from, or the fact that he cares so much about expensive clothing. But something about him rubs her the wrong way. There's no ill will between them, she just knows they're cut from different cloth.

Wires
Weedy didn't know orks could GET as old as Wires claims to be and she means to soak up all the wisdom he has to offer before he's out of time. She looks at Wires like a big brother, and the two of them constantly talk shit, slap box, wrestle, and generally fuck with eachother. Wires is really the only one who can make her smile. On the few occasions that Weedy goes out to socialize, it's cause Wires insisted.

Nightingale
Nice to have a medic around, and it's even better when he's a mage. Gale keeps it real professional, like you can tell he's used to being the only one around who HAS any professionalism and leading by example. Weedy likes him cause despite a history of being run through some of the worst wringers this world has to offer him, he still has a decent heart in him. She doesn't really know much about him though as he hasn't really been here long.

[grid_hopper]

Did you consider the team member makeup of ongoing games. greenfield was all prime runner options.....

[martinchaen]

Nice work, Poindexter; I like it. Definitely a Vasquez type hardass, huh? Awesome :-)

fenris_shonen
I'm not sure what you're asking; would you mind rephrasing the question?

As far as considering other games; no, I did not. This is a game I've had in mind since it was first announced that Season 5 missions would be set in Chicago, and I went back and read the precious source material I had on it. It got me thinking that it would be a cool setting for the team.

[Poindexter]

cool, ill start writing her up.

Just to review...

-prime runner rules
-avail 20 for guns
-double starting cash
-50 extra karma after all is said and done.

right?

[martinchaen]

The shooter gets to go Availability 20 for anything, not just guns. Other than that, spot on.

I'd hold off writing the character up completely until after all positions have been filled. Of course, I'm not going to stop you building a character but I'd like everyone to know who their team members are going to be before we delve into character creation.

Unlike a team of (most) runners, these guys and girls are going to be a close-knit team of professional mercs; there might be a hardass or a joker or whatever in the group, but they'll all trust in each other's ability to keep the team alive and get the job done. Because of this, I'd prefer it if everyone held off on building fleshed out characters until they know who the other members are, so the team is built with that in mind instead of as separate components.

Sound good?

[Poindexter]

deal

[Poindexter]

Will we be using the "Team Lifestyle" rules from page 375 of the core book, since we've been together and closely knit for so long?

[martinchaen]

Ah, good question.

Leave aside lifestyle for now; there's not going to be any luxury or even high lifestyles available to a team of mercs in the in or around Chicago, so I may let you all come up with something or I may design something for you based on the merc company you all may end up working for.

I haven't quite decided if you'll be attached to a bigger organization yet or be freelancers, so any thoughts you all have on this would be appreciated. There'll be pro's and con's with both, of course.