Starting with Shadowrun

[Dovius]

So, my friends and I've been dabbling in RPG's for a while now (Although dabbling would only describe the variety of the stuff we've played, since while we've only played DnD 4e so far, we've been running that for about a year through several adventures), and since a few of them have expressed interest in it, I'm thinking of starting up a Shadowrun game.

The problem being that, while I know some stuff of the game and the whole theme it runs on, I don't actually have any of the books.

So, to get to my core question; what edition would be best for first time Shadowrun players coming from 4E, and what books would be necessary for it?

[Andrewmoreton]

None of the systems are mechanically similar to D+D4.
So your best choice is either
a) Buy 4th edition
b) wait for 5th edition which is due out later this year.

As you don't have any previous experience with 4th edition some published scenario would probably be useful as an introduction.
For 4th edition I think you may be best starting out with just the Core book , Consider the Runner's toolkit as it has some useful stuff to aid character design and a decent intro scenario.
I would not consider running a campaign without the Runner's companion (extra character design options) , Augmentation (Extra Cyberware), Arsenal(more toys), Street Magic and Unwired(if a hacker player is involved) BUT that is because I have run shadowrun for ages in multiple editions and am used to having all those options. If I was just trying it out I think I would go with just the core book. (Note the predesigned characters are awful, you may want to try the www.shadowrun4.com website forums for better predesigned characters)
The Shadowrum Missions scenario's available as PDF's can serve as a cheap framework for a campaign if you want scenario ideas and they are not bad although the design for convention time slots leaves them a little rigid and smart players can leave you having to think on your feet when they go out of the box.

[Alejandro]

I'd wait for June (I think) and pick up the new edition. Alternatively, if you want to save money, prices on 4th edition Shadowrun books might go down once 5th is out. (Or they go up, if it's bad :) )

[Dovius]

*snip*

Alright, I think I'll give 4th edition a shot, then, if only to have a much bigger source to expand into once we get out of that first adventure and the players want to start getting all kinds of weird stuff :D


I'd wait for June (I think) and pick up the new edition. Alternatively, if you want to save money, prices on 4th edition Shadowrun books might go down once 5th is out. (Or they go up, if it's bad :) )

Just asking, but is the skipping-advice related in any way to 4th Edition's quality or is it because of something else?

[Andrewmoreton]

There are some flaws in 4th edition, but there have been flaws in all editions (and IMO all RPG rule sets).
The Hacking rules are often considered to be confusing (I have never had a Hacker PC so I am reflecting other peoples opinions, but I found the rules in previous versions also confusing)
There is a bit of an issue sometimes between the cost of things at character design and the different karma costs in play which can encourage min-maxing in character design.

Also 4th edition changed how the rules worked fairly radically compared to 3rd edition so there are some areas which could have been done better, 5th ed may well address those as it looks to be a more refined version of the 4th ed concept.

Any background stuff you get for 4th will be usable under 5th , however rules supplements will not (easily). I will continue using 4th for another year or 2 waiting for all the core supplements to come out which is what I did when 4th came out.
The best reason for waiting for 5th is that it will be an improvement over 4th , not that 4th is bad and that as it comes out so soon you may feel you should have bought 5th instead (if you are not some sort of compulsive RPG collector who buts way too much stuff like me :smallredface:)

[Alejandro]

Alright, I think I'll give 4th edition a shot, then, if only to have a much bigger source to expand into once we get out of that first adventure and the players want to start getting all kinds of weird stuff :D



Just asking, but is the skipping-advice related in any way to 4th Edition's quality or is it because of something else?

No, no quality reason. Just that 4th probably won't see any further items or development after 5th comes out, so I'd start with the new line.

[Kaun]

The hacking rules in 4e were a little tedious at times. They weren't so much difficult it was more the time spent confirming you were using the right skills* in the right situation that made it slow.

Also i hope they stream line hacking a bit for 5e. While i enjoyed the complexity, it would slow a session down way to much at times, especially if a hacker had the time to be "professional" about his eInfiltration.

*by skills i mean stats/programs/blah blah blah what ever, you know what i mean.

[Dynodragon]

My girlfriend had an old 2nd edition book lying around so around christmas started reading it as I had never seriously played before. Now I running the game for my group for the first time and whilst the system has a few kinks and holes its going well. The biggest deviation from D&D is the mindset required from players, some do not get that you are not told everything from the get go or that legwork(contacts) can provide a useful pile of information.

Just a couple of weeks ago they decided that the 4 of them would attack a corp base just by climbing over the fence, no help or diversion required. A short time later they wake up chained to a guerney in said corp med bay for a nice discussion about reparations for damage caused.

Its about as far from a dungeon crawl mentality as you can get.

[Dovius]

My girlfriend had an old 2nd edition book lying around so around christmas started reading it as I had never seriously played before. Now I running the game for my group for the first time and whilst the system has a few kinks and holes its going well. The biggest deviation from D&D is the mindset required from players, some do not get that you are not told everything from the get go or that legwork(contacts) can provide a useful pile of information.

Just a couple of weeks ago they decided that the 4 of them would attack a corp base just by climbing over the fence, no help or diversion required. A short time later they wake up chained to a guerney in said corp med bay for a nice discussion about reparations for damage caused.

Its about as far from a dungeon crawl mentality as you can get.

This is the biggest reason that my group wanted to start playing it. It'd be a nice change of pace to throw them off balance instead of their current complacency.

Well, that, and some of them want to cut through buildings while playing cyber-Connor MacLeod.

[comicshorse]

This is the biggest reason that my group wanted to start playing it. It'd be a nice change of pace to throw them off balance instead of their current complacency.

Well, that, and some of them want to cut through buildings while playing cyber-Connor MacLeod.

My first Shadowrun character ( and this was back with 1st Edition before Physical Adepts existed) was an Elven Street Samurai who had based his look on Ramirez from the first Highlander movie.
Was a bit embarassing when he ran into the actual Kurgan......

[Lost Demiurge]

Alright, I think I'll give 4th edition a shot, then, if only to have a much bigger source to expand into once we get out of that first adventure and the players want to start getting all kinds of weird stuff :D



Just asking, but is the skipping-advice related in any way to 4th Edition's quality or is it because of something else?

No, fourth edition is great!

It's just that fifth edition is due out next month. So if you buy heavy into fourth and fifth turns out to be more to your liking, you'll have wasted money.

My advice, which others have already offered, is to pick up the core book to fourth alone. (20th anniversary edition is the one you want.) The core book will let you get started and do a lot, and then after fifth is released you can look it over and see if you want to switch. If you want to stick with fourth, you can pick up the supplement books pretty cheaply... (Most RPG books go down in value when a new edition is released. And a lot of gamers trade them in to used book stores, so if you don't mind scavenging a bit and waiting a bit, you can get them for a good price.)

Of course, most of the 4th ed big supplements are fun reads anyhow, thanks to the fluff. When I started doing a lot of fun stuff with 4th, I would hunt and buy 2nd and 3rd edition books on the cheap as I found them, just for the fun of reading them, and integrating past history into my game's vision of the Shadowrun World.

[LibraryOgre]

And, in fact, I'd add that getting 4th from a used book store is the way to go. It's a good game without the supplements, and will let you sink your teeth into it without too much of a buy in.

[Hawriel]

Check out the web sight to see what 5th edition has to offer.

http://www.shadowrun.com/shadowrun-tabletop/