[freddieflatline]

My suggestion for your game is just come up with a basic concept.  Like a snatch and grab.  Then create your NPCs.  Your main NPCs should be detailed including psych profiles and motivation.  Why are they doing what they are doing and how will they react to the PCs actions.  Next come up with a few complications and you are done.

[James McMurray]

There are a couple of things from screenwriting that I like to keep in mind:

1) If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don't put it there. In other words, don't include irrelevant details. If the group hears rumors that the target is working on cyberzombies and never sees a cyberzombie, they'll be confused. That's not to say that everything should always be straightforward, but if you do put something in and then either not use it or use something else then there should be a reason for it. A very good reason is if the players don't look like they care. For instance, if you mention both cyberzombies and a free spirit and the players glom onto the idea of the free spirit, it's ok to leave the cyberzombie out of this particular run (though maybe it should hunt them down later).

This principal also has the benefit of saving you a lot of prep work, since you only have to create the things that matter. However, if the players go off on a tangent your work at the table will be increased dramatically since you'll be adlibbing everything.

2) The writer's job is to chase the protagonist up a tree, throw rocks at him, and then set the tree on fire and watch how he gets out of the tree. Because RPGs involve other people you can't be as cruel as you can be when writing, but it's a good lesson. Your job is to create obstacles, not solutions. It's the players' job to come up with the solutions to the dilemmas you put in front of them.

[Charybdis]

2) The writer's job is to chase the protagonist up a tree, throw rocks at him, and then set the tree on fire and watch how he gets out of the tree. Because RPGs involve other people you can't be as cruel as you can be when writing, but it's a good lesson. Your job is to create obstacles, not solutions. It's the players' job to come up with the solutions to the dilemmas you put in front of them.

This is the biggest single secret 'trick' in my GM'ing style 

I rarely write a single defined solution to any run or RPG scenario. It's the players' spotlight, not mine. I love it when they surprise me with some creative, in-depth plans and strategy, to which I'll modify the scenario on-the-fly to make it cool for all concerned, or even a lucky called shot (with edge and a good roll).

Make it cinematic. Bend the rules to let it work. Make sure your players are the ones driving the story, and prod them along with carrots or cattle-prods as appropriate 

[John Shull]

When I prep a run I don't look at numbers til the very last draft.  I have theme in every scence that drives the action til it changes next scence. Ex: Reunion scence. The players meet a blast from their or at least one of their past.  You can have funny stories how the old runner got them out scrapes, maybe dated a PC, might be a PCs older sibling that inspired them to run, whatever you want to ground them to the runners that has your right feel.  Then tip he is the Johnson and needs a favor 4 old time sake. Working like that I know what gets fast rolled, ie. Fudged, & what I need my abbacus for.  A bar brawl that ensues on big bro Jimmys return home is going to fast roll, PCs rule, due in part because the team is a bunch of shadowrunners and will rock some avg bar denizens & part because it steps on the lead of reuniting.  Even if the team miracles a loss here you make it about Jimmy tucking them back in at their flat an chiding lil bro about he saved him once again like he did from kids back in the streets.  Themes work good for me.

[LonePaladin]

I'm giving John a +1 here. He's got an excellent point: For all the number-crunching and rules that try to cover every eventuality, SR is an extremely story-driven game, and even running a published scenario can result in sessions where a lot gets accomplished with very little die-rolling.

Character creation backs this up, especially when you get to knowledge skills and contacts: if you haven't gotten into your character's head by this point, you pretty much need to do it to fill out these parts. The Karma award system does this too; you don't get Karma based on how many kills you get, or how much loot you gained. It's all about doing the job, roleplaying well, and pulling some seat-of-your-pants heroics when (not if) things don't go as planned.

Unless a mission specifically calls for eliminating targets, it's generally agreed that the most successful runs are those in which the defensive side (read: corpsec, IC, etc.) never realize the runners were doing anything suspicious. Sure, firefights are always fun to play out, but if the team can look back on a run and realize they never even raised an alarm, it's hard to say they didn't do a good job.

[Charybdis]

Unless a mission specifically calls for eliminating targets, it's generally agreed that the most successful runs are those in which the defensive side (read: corpsec, IC, etc.) never realize the runners were doing anything suspicious. Sure, firefights are always fun to play out, but if the team can look back on a run and realize they never even raised an alarm, it's hard to say they didn't do a good job.

The crew I'm PC with at the moment used to be very much 'We were never there' runners.

However during the Ghost Cartel module, they've several times thrown away the Stealth and took the opportunity to bring out LMG's, Armstech GL6's, and on one occasion, LAW's. 

Has been a fun break, and every runner I've played with has appreciated the rare opportunity to blow something up with Marvin-like *Earth-shattering KA-BOOM*   

However, in the long run for Urban campaigns where you live locally, Stealth and deception are more key for me. And again, when GM'ing I let the PC's do most of the thinking here. They put far, far more effort into breaking IN somewhere, than I ever do keeping them out... why? Because I get to Cheat

[CanRay]

One day, I'll come up with a legitimate way to use that Mortar...   

[LonePaladin]

Why wait?

[CanRay]

Right tool for the right job.

But I have a few ideas, including some that will throw off the countermeasures for tracking Mortar Rounds.

[Charybdis]

One day, I'll come up with a legitimate way to use that Mortar...   

Come now...there's ALWAYS a legitimate use for a Mortar

[CanRay]

One day, I'll come up with a legitimate way to use that Mortar...   

Come now...there's ALWAYS a legitimate use for a Mortar

"We have the supplies from the Stuffer Shack, lay smoke!"  "Smoke out.  ...  Splash!"  "Splash con...  THAT'S NOT SMOKE!"  "The only smoke rounds I had left were Willy Pete."  "YOU SON OF A SLITCH!!!"

[Charybdis]

One day, I'll come up with a legitimate way to use that Mortar...   

Come now...there's ALWAYS a legitimate use for a Mortar

"We have the supplies from the Stuffer Shack, lay smoke!"  "Smoke out.  ...  Splash!"  "Splash con...  THAT'S NOT SMOKE!"  "The only smoke rounds I had left were Willy Pete."  "YOU SON OF A SLITCH!!!"

I'm a big fan of any indirect heavy weapon.

Unless the enemy target has eyes on you from a different angle, they give you plenty of time to shoot and skedaddle

[CanRay]

In a game demo I ran at a local convention, I had a Physical Adept use a Grenade Launcher like a Ghetto Mortar from a rooftop.  A Watcher Spirit was being used as a Spotter.

The group's Mage ran after him in the Astral Plane, but the Adept lost him in a block-sized rave.  He popped back into his body with a major hard-on.

[LonePaladin]

Stealing this idea.

[CanRay]

Which?  The Ghetto Mortar or the Rave Runaway?