Seems I step away for a few days and the thread goes off the ice. To quote Mic from Give me shelter, as he's pleading with the Hells Angels"lets just keep it together people..keep it together"
Ok so Canray picked magic side of things to spell out nothing at all similar with the real world. So lets look at similarity of the real world to the Shadowrun world for a sec shall we. Lets talk about Megacorps Love em hate em Megacorps both worlds have em. So here some quick facts yes i'll give links out so we can all be on the same page. Lets scroll down and read United States and what it says a corp is
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporation 1650. Massachusetts itself was a corporate colony at that time -owned and operated by the Massachusetts Bay Company (until it lost its charter in 1684) Shadowrun calls that a conclave. In Shadowrun Megacorps control countries lets look at our Megas compared to countries
http://www.businessinsider.com/25-corporations-bigger-tan-countries-2011-6?op=1 You all want one real example of a Megacorp where people don't have to leave and actually have thier own police force? Believe it or not, Disneyworld. Check out all the crazy legality's surrounding that spot of land. Believe me they aint the only one.
Speaking of privatized quasi law enforcement with all the gun totting tazer wielding patrol officers in cop cars patrolling neiborhoods that you'll ever need.
http://paladinprivatesecurity.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 Begining of Lonestar anyone?.. maybe. How about privatized Prisons with corps making HUGE paydata from goods and services
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_prison Wait how bout a corp that is its own band of mercenary's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackwater_Security So moving right along lets talk about Shadowrun tech vrs the real world
http://www.popsci.com/ nuff said.
Corps micro-chipping and rfid tags that's definitely Shadowrun I'll throw 2 bones in this mix HR 3200 bill. Real bill talked about micro-chipping the public. Lets hear what mythbusters had to say about RFID chips and what megacorps had to say about it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X034R3yzDhwSo with all that being said and linked shit I missed magic didn't I ok Magic here's a toughy. So I'll throw some wood to the fire on this one. Let's not define is it real or is not for starters, because i am not getting into this whole do you believe in ghosts conversation.What i think we can all agree on is some people believe, so since Shadowrun just put out magical societies lets just go there and call it quits. Keeping it to Shadowrun theme magical societies that have some serious backing and political power here is two. The Golden Dawn had Mr Crowley as a member (congrats if someone gets that double reference) but what isn't well known is Bram Stroker was also a member, yes Canray, bloodsucking vampire writer. Lets go a head and bring the big gun out for the evening
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemian_grove Now can they do the boogety boo? Who knows but some people think they can and do.
All this brings me back to the original thread "why cant missions be more realistic." To me I see this gargantuan ball of yarn of real world stuff that can be spun into the game and played upon. Honestly I thought the reason had something to do with why mythbusters cant ever do their RFID show. Well that and what happened to GURPS Cyperpunk in the 1990's with the whole secret service raiding a role playing game maker over a book.