Has anyone here had any experiences with the current edition of Shadowrun? I bought the 20th Anniversary book around Gen Con and am going to be running a one-shot for my gaming group this weekend (we're evaluating several systems to determine what our next campaign is going to be).
Any pitfalls I should avoid? Any helpful hints to make the game go more smoothly for both a GM who hasn't run it before and Player's who've never played it before (several of whom had never HEARD of Shadowrun before)?
I like Shadowrun 4E core system a lot more than 3E or previous editions. The dice mechanic has been notably improved, in my opinion.
But there are some aspects I am less fond of, but if it was to me, I'd always start with Shadowrun 4E as a baseline.
That said - I haven't played Shadowrun 4E often so far. I'd love to play it more though.
Pitfalls:
The number of initiative passes a character has is very important in combat. That is true in all editions. 4E has the advantage the number is fixed, while 3E already fixed that high initiative characters got to act 3 times before the rest acted even once.
But unfortunately, it is still unsatisfying to act only once when the rest is acting twice or three time times per round.
I don't generally recommend house rules on your first try with any game system, so I won't here, either. Just make it clear to your players that they should look at ways to boost their reflexes, be it with cyberware, adept powers or with spells.
It is common in Shadowrun that Deckers (or, in 4E, Hackers) becomes an NPC role, since they take a lot of time to resolve their actions, but they are not with the rest of the PCs. Shadowrun 4E tries to fix that by giving more opportunities to hack during a regular shadowrun, attacking your enemies electronics and so on. I am not convinced of this approach - the rules for hacking are still different from the rest of combats, and there seems to be little reason to hack in the midst of combat if you can do it before during the approach (or even planning stages.) And it also feels a little ridicilous that every guy is running around with wireless hardware that can be easily hacked and having them lose control over their weapons or cyberware.
Magic can be very powerful, as typical. But please, don't overcompensate with high background counts or similar tricks. That's just inviting frustration. I don't think it's too bad.
Modifiers. There are lots of it applying in any combat situation. Sight modifiers, cover, concealment, range, recoil and so on. 4E removes some problems of handling modifiers, but mostly in regards to achieving sensible numbers (3E used variable DCs for a roll, a rolled 3 could be a hit - or a rolled 12, requiring you to roll 3 6 in a row with a d6. And you usually need more than one success for a good effect).
You still need to account for a lot. Don't overdo it. I think I am instituting my own guideline: Use the highest modifier that seems to apply, and then add a -1 dice pool modifier for every 2 conditions that seem to apply in total. So you at least don't have to add various different numbers.
Combat can be very lethal. PCs have resources like Dodge and spellcasting defense to avoid taking all the lethality. (And of course, armor.) But if they deal with equally strong enemies, they will probably die sooner than later. So don't use them too much.
Wound modifiers were worse with the old d6 system, but they can still be nasty.
Equipment and knowing how to use it matters. That has always been the case in Shadowrun. It's not just about the biggest gun and heaviest armor. You need to know when and how to use them. Don't fire grenades when you want to be silent. Consider using a shield if you have to move carefully through a trapped area (or enemy fire.)
You roll a lot of d6 in Shadowrun.
For a one-shot less important, but might be more important later: Advancemend in Shadowrun is slow. After completing a run, you might be able to improve a single skill or ability score (usally just a low one).
Cyberware is expensive. Weapons less so. Spellcasting requires Karma for learning spells, initiation and binding foci, and it requires money for learning spells, initiation and binding foci.
It seems generally advisable in character creation to think about:
o Get cruicial equipment - especially cyberware and bioware - now. You will have less opportunities to do it later.
o Reflexboosting cyberware, adept powers or spells are cruicial. Don't leave character creation without them.
o Generally good starting stats a good idea. They are the slowest to improve after character creation. In 3E they were important for bonus pools, in 4E they are directly important for all your skills.
o Specialization is possible and a good idea. Pick the skills you find define your characters ability and pick them high. Don't spread out too much. Stealth, Athletics, First Aid, Etiquette are usually good skills to learn regardless of your focus.
o Typical "Roles" in Shadowrun might be
- Street Samurai. Heavily cybered and armed.
- Spellcaster: Shaman or Hermetician or anything else doesn't matter. Important is that he can cast spells and conjure spirits. It's advisable to have a fully fledged spellcaster to also get to visit the astral space.
- Melee Guy: Might be the Street Samurai, might be a Troll Adept with a two-handed Axe. It's a good idea to avoid overspecializing. A decent ranged weapon option is always useful. Maybe a Bow if you have a high strength?
- Face: Can be anyone, but might want less cyberware than others. Someone with a lot of social skills to do the legwork. If you spend a little less on cyberware or magic and more on skills, you should be able to still have someone with at least some specialized combat skill without losing out on the social front.
- Rigger: Sometimes an NPC. A good tranpsport car and some combat drones that can accompany Street Samura and Melee guy are highly recommended.
- Decker/Hacker: Typically an NPC. Useful for gathering information in the Matrix or hacking enemy security systems. Might also be a Rigger or vice versa.
- Techie: This might also be a Rigger, Decker or Hacker. He should have lots of technical skills for breaking and entering. He certainly accompanies the rest on runs in enemy territory, so he should have some ability to defend himself. Talentsoft is very useful for this kind of character, since he can quickly cover every speciality skill the team might need.
I don't remember at the moment if Shotguns are still broken or are now weak-sauce.
In 3E, the trick was to open the choke as wide as possible and see people being murderized by shotgun ammo. _Unless_ they had hardened armor, when they would just laugh at you. Until you put in solid slugs.
