[SeriousOne338]

So I've been thinking of starting another PbP game. I find running the fun-ish as I am still waiting to join a game as a character. So my questions are how to begin the game, what level to start the characters, and do you think it would be fun? Also I am trying to think up the story as a campaign (more than one run). So anyone have some ideas that can help?

[Cass100199]

Southeast Asia doing a "Rambo", "Men of War" mercenary type thing? Lots of riverine type stuff?

[beowulf_of_wa]

tropic thunder.

i'd say play it as serious as you can, and let them have a ton of fun with the spoofery.

[The Big Peat]

Hah! You and me both. I've been kicking around ideas too...

First up, I would absolutely love to play a maritime based game, and have a marine nearly built just waiting to join.

I do think you should define what exactly you're looking for - out and out pirates? Shadowrunners on the water doing piratey things? Water based mercenaries? Makes bit of a difference. Also, where in the world - interfering with the war in Amazonia? Bobbing around SE Asia? Bad deeds in East Africa? There's plenty of choices...

Level? I'd go with the starting book, unless you have a strong inclination for more or less power. Only slight difference I'd make is pirates need a lot of money, as the big transports are not optional, so maybe be kind there and give a little more. Maybe just give a slush fund to the whole group for a ship.

Starting? Again, nothing wrong with the classic 'Mr Johnson/Fixer's got a job to offer to all of you', although an alternative could be survivors of a law enforcement/pirate attack having to work together. I'd probably go with the former.

Personally, I'd go with SR/Mercs on the water (anywhere you can do piracy tends to be fairly rough) - so sometimes stealing cargos, sometimes hunting down pirates, sometimes delivering valuable goods through pirate infested waters, the odd piece of hostage extraction, watching an Atzlan convoy on behalf of Kane and so on. Keeps things nice and varied. And vary missions between out where there's no law, and anything goes, and going back to town to flog the gear and then suddenly being asked to bug the Duc d'Enghien's luxury yacht prior to his soiree tomorrow night...

Well. That's how I'd do it. Hopefully that gives you some ideas.

[SeriousOne338]

Thanks that does give me many ideas and a good place to start the game off with. Also I found my old book Cyber Pirates, great book loads of fun stuff.

[CitizenJoe]

Note that a lot of stuff is shipped via zeppelin, huge zeppelins, particularly over land.  There is also some talk in I think the original Seattle Sourcebook that F-B is using very large 'Herd Animals' so that one rigger can lead a whole herd of planes across the Pacific. 

That leads to the possibility of Sky Pirates!

[SeriousOne338]

Ahh Crimson Skies, how I miss you. That might come in later but this is a naval campaign

[Kylen]

I'd suggest researching that great anime Black Lagoon. It's chock full of run ideas and set ups for a pirate/merc company in the East Asian seas.

And how I miss Crimson Skies, or rather, miss the fact that I didn't get a chance to try it. Oh well, that's what Leviathans will be for, hopefully.

[Crash_00]

Yes Crimson Skies was great. I fondly remember snapping my wings off in defiance most battles though. Damn those high stress maneuvers.

[crisses]

Interesting piece of Real Life™ info that might suit a campaign like this:

Current global warming is melting the north polar ice cap -- in US Gov't documents they expect that the North Sea will be safe for sea travel within 20 years (of 2011), and currently all countries bordering the North Sea are scrambling in private closed-door non-NATO non-UN talks to draw their borders in land -- uh sea -- formerly thought to be worthless.  Expectation is that China will be shipping to Western Europe via the North Sea as soon as it's open to traffic....  AND under the sea are masses of oil waiting to be exploited (hence all the border-drawing...).

By Shadowrun game-time, this avenue would be open, many vessels going into the North Sea -- unless somehow they woke up and smelled the global warming coffee and it outweighed government & corporate greed.  Oh wait, that would only happen in a fantasy world.  Yeah, they probably let global warming ride until the North Sea opened....

So there's a good chance for piracy up there.  Oil, manufactured goods being shipped to Europe....

Up to you, boss.  The US document on this is long and contains a lot of other stuff -- it's the US government's projection on world affairs in the next 20+ years....

[SeriousOne338]

well I am aiming for more of a south pacific campaign or maybe raids on a china shipping channels. But I have an enemy, a goal for the team to go after, and monsters planned.