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View Full Version : DM Help Shadowrun: Cooler Plot: finding a hidden Drake or rediscovering Obsidimen



Justanotherhero
2020-07-25, 04:29 PM
Hi !

I am runnning a Shadowrun adventure soon:
The Players have boarded a ship on behalf of Johnson to save his son. The son decided to act on cooperation insider information to gather pay data from a top secret project. But only knows that the project cost alot of money and is on the ship. What would you like more as a player: finding a hidden Drake or rediscovering Obsidimen ?

LibraryOgre
2020-07-25, 04:41 PM
I think hidden drake would be more fun, simply because it fits better with Shadowrun.

If you're rediscovering Obsidimen, then you're going to be thrusting a bunch of 'runners into a first contact situation, which could be cool, but sort of out of their wheelhouse. If they discover obsidimen, then they have to decide what DO with this particular discovery, and try to make their plans happen. And this particular discovery is an entire race of people... and, depending on what you decide, their decisions may become meaningless ("Sure, you discovered a bunch of obsidimen, and started making plans... but they started coming out of Life Rocks all over the world, and you've now accomplished nothing. Chumps.").

But a Drake? It ties into the current stories, and is something understandable. It immediately hooks them into a big conflict, while putting an immediate and personal face on the problem... it's not "This race of people" it's "Bob."

Kaptin Keen
2020-07-26, 04:49 AM
Dragons lost all flavor to me many years ago - they're RPG oatmeal.

But obsidimen? A race only ever seen in one game (by me, at least)? Hell yea. And you don't get obsidimen without a life rock. And life rocks are cool, and didn't aztechnology have one of those? I'm ... oh, ever so slightly hazy on the details, this was many years ago, but I seem to recall a module hinting that the aztecs had some sort of special, magical rock they drew power from.

So yea, my vote is definitely on the obsidimen.

Ignimortis
2020-07-26, 09:58 AM
Hi !

I am runnning a Shadowrun adventure soon:
The Players have boarded a ship on behalf of Johnson to save his son. The son decided to act on cooperation insider information to gather pay data from a top secret project. But only knows that the project cost alot of money and is on the ship. What would you like more as a player: finding a hidden Drake or rediscovering Obsidimen ?

I would vastly prefer finding a drake. Obsidimen are from Earthdawn, and my inquiries into ED mostly made me sure that I don't want them to cross over with SR. Drakes, though, are an established element of the setting, and a cool one at that.

Xervous
2020-07-27, 07:13 AM
As much as I dislike squandering dragon related stuff on smaller scope things I am not your players. This general concept of uncovering a rare entity in hiding puts the players in a position of power over something whose scope is fully under your control with minimal mandatory impact on the greater narrative. It easily leads players to greater narrative involvement if they buy in on this experience which they can personalize through their actions.

If for whatever reason the idea of a drake is not appealing to you or whoever else is reading this down the road, substitute an AI a la Ghost in the Shell, a vampire, an escaped clone of someone exceptional who is working off someone else’s SIN in a GATTACA sort of situation...

Kaptin Keen
2020-07-28, 08:43 AM
I would vastly prefer finding a drake. Obsidimen are from Earthdawn, and my inquiries into ED mostly made me sure that I don't want them to cross over with SR. Drakes, though, are an established element of the setting, and a cool one at that.

They're obviously the same world though. Dunkelzahn is Mountainshadow, Harlequin is Harlequin, and so on.

Telwar
2020-07-28, 10:38 AM
Drakes are at least in the Shadowrun setting, with stats that you can use (None yet for SR6, but I know there are 4&5 stats). They're rare, but not unknown, and do have a tendency to try to hide.

There have been hints of obsidimen in the shadowtalk, usually ridiculed, which is of course the point of the joke. Note that you'd also have to make up obsidimen stats, though you can use ED as a guide.

Xervous
2020-07-28, 11:39 AM
Drakes are at least in the Shadowrun setting, with stats that you can use (None yet for SR6, but I know there are 4&5 stats). They're rare, but not unknown, and do have a tendency to try to hide.

There have been hints of obsidimen in the shadowtalk, usually ridiculed, which is of course the point of the joke. Note that you'd also have to make up obsidimen stats, though you can use ED as a guide.

Are people actually playing 6e? The twenty page plus analysis/discussion on dumpshock left me with the impression they had a rusted, perforated spoon of a product.

Telwar
2020-07-28, 02:44 PM
Are people actually playing 6e? The twenty page plus analysis/discussion on dumpshock left me with the impression they had a rusted, perforated spoon of a product.

I did really like the gun book, though I couldn't find it in my FLGS and had to order from Catalyst.

Beyond that, I suspect it's not as terrible as people think, but it's probably close; having to adjudicate Edge every single damn action is going to suck. It was okay when we ran the beginning box, but it didn't do anything significantly better than SR4.

Ignimortis
2020-07-28, 10:41 PM
They're obviously the same world though. Dunkelzahn is Mountainshadow, Harlequin is Harlequin, and so on.

Of course. I don't deny that they're the same world, intentionally so. However, I don't like ED concepts and would prefer for SR to stay away from them for a long while, possibly forever.


Are people actually playing 6e? The twenty page plus analysis/discussion on dumpshock left me with the impression they had a rusted, perforated spoon of a product.

Someone is playing it, I guess, but it's not good and it didn't achieve anything CGL claims to have set out to do. There are some simplifications which remove basic logic from the game mechanics (armor, damage, etc), and some areas that desperately needed streamlining (three rolls per attack? yuck) and yet they didn't do anything about them.

aglondier
2020-08-03, 03:46 AM
Years ago I was a player in a campaign where drakes were sprung on us. We had been playing as a team for a while, with a slow escalation of magical events happening in the background. Then things began ramping up, we were getting dragged into dragon politics and mage politics...it was getting nasty. We were working, as often as not, for Dunkelzahn.
On our final run, we stumbled on an archaeological site dating back to the 4th age (not that we knew what it was). We got caught up in a firefight between Saeder Krupp and Aztlan corporate military assets over possession of the site, when we accidentally set off some artifact hidden inside. Four members of our team spontaneously transformed into drakes (1 pc and 3 npcs), and found ourselves the focus of the battle for ownership. Nasty, but a lot of fun.

Having a pc or npc team member suddenly shift can throw all kinds of fireworks into a game.

Justanotherhero
2020-08-03, 06:12 PM
I think hidden drake would be more fun, simply because it fits better with Shadowrun.

If you're rediscovering Obsidimen, then you're going to be thrusting a bunch of 'runners into a first contact situation, which could be cool, but sort of out of their wheelhouse. If they discover obsidimen, then they have to decide what DO with this particular discovery, and try to make their plans happen. And this particular discovery is an entire race of people... and, depending on what you decide, their decisions may become meaningless ("Sure, you discovered a bunch of obsidimen, and started making plans... but they started coming out of Life Rocks all over the world, and you've now accomplished nothing. Chumps.").

But a Drake? It ties into the current stories, and is something understandable. It immediately hooks them into a big conflict, while putting an immediate and personal face on the problem... it's not "This race of people" it's "Bob."

Making choices matter is something I do not always do perfectly. And I tend to think in systems so Maybe a more personal approach would be good. I will do that.
Let's tone it down to one Drake a young orc boy.


Dragons lost all flavor to me many years ago - they're RPG oatmeal.

But obsidimen? A race only ever seen in one game (by me, at least)? Hell yea. And you don't get obsidimen without a life rock. And life rocks are cool, and didn't aztechnology have one of those? I'm ... oh, ever so slightly hazy on the details, this was many years ago, but I seem to recall a module hinting that the aztecs had some sort of special, magical rock they drew power from.

I very much get the RPG oatmeal part particularly because I think without the demonic threat there is little reason why humanity is not actively trying to kill dragons.
The are immortal inhuman wizards that decided to spend gold to part enslave humanity by buying corporations. Why are we not killing them?
High Charisma helps a lot I admit but a lot of dragons at least in description are being well not nice ..
Now with the earthdawn demon threat there role changes significantly....
What exists in Shadow run but not in other settings is the sea dragon Leviathan so I think he will be a Leviathan Drake that has not yet manifested his powers yet. Partly because triggering it might mean you have to drown the poor guy.


I would vastly prefer finding a drake. Obsidimen are from Earthdawn, and my inquiries into ED mostly made me sure that I don't want them to cross over with SR. Drakes, though, are an established element of the setting, and a cool one at that.

My problem tends to be I like earthdawn alot. Shadowruns fluff is better but in earthdawn I feel like I want to be a warrior and it's not a stupid choice.
Shadowrun should be shadowrun nonetheless.
So Young Leviathan Drake Ork boy is being held because Drake's are immune to hmmv. They don't even know he is a Drake nor does he.
The group is employed be Neonet so the people holding him captive are employees of the Ordo Maximus that also are shareholders of Neonet and are looking for a cure for HMMV. So I can make some of the people onboard HMMV positive and have fun with that. Also the idea of a vampire scientist begging the PCs to let him save the world appeals to me. ;-)


As much as I dislike squandering dragon related stuff on smaller scope things I am not your players. This general concept of uncovering a rare entity in hiding puts the players in a position of power over something whose scope is fully under your control with minimal mandatory impact on the greater narrative. It easily leads players to greater narrative involvement if they buy in on this experience which they can personalize through their actions.

Handing power to players is something I like doing so I think making the Leviathan aura visible to the player's should get that done. While the Orc boy Leviathan realistically has no chance of escaping on his own should give them cause to act without brutally forcing them to.


Years ago I was a player in a campaign where drakes were sprung on us. We had been playing as a team for a while, with a slow escalation of magical events happening in the background. Then things began ramping up, we were getting dragged into dragon politics and mage politics...it was getting nasty. We were working, as often as not, for Dunkelzahn.
On our final run, we stumbled on an archaeological site dating back to the 4th age (not that we knew what it was). We got caught up in a firefight between Saeder Krupp and Aztlan corporate military assets over possession of the site, when we accidentally set off some artifact hidden inside. Four members of our team spontaneously transformed into drakes (1 pc and 3 npcs), and found ourselves the focus of the battle for ownership. Nasty, but a lot of fun.

Having a pc or npc team member suddenly shift can throw all kinds of fireworks into a game.

This idea I like very very much.
I am thinking our young orc hears a calling of the sea and if the player's bring him to Leviathan she will reward and maybe after they have done enough heroic deeds even offer to transform them into tiny dragons. NeoNet of course offers vastly more direct financial rewards. Or should a Drake have the right to be free?

Thank you all for your input! I think definitely have something I can work with.
If you have some input into that current plot idea I will gladly hear it.

Martin Greywolf
2020-08-08, 04:06 PM
First of all: why the hell are you asking us? Ask your players.

A lot of what we prefer is based on personal preference or taste, and that by definition will depend on particular people. Sure, you will give them slight spoiler, but that's a small price to pay for your players not being bored with what's going on.

Second issue is, it doesn't matter which you pick, the cooler adventure will always be the one you can execute better. High concepts like this are never a good gauge for quality of anything, that is always in the details. On one hand, if you like one adventure more than the other, wou will be happier playing it and able to execute it better, but this is a double-edged sword, because you will be more likely to push players in a direction you want, or possibly even resent them for ruining your story.

Kaptin Keen
2020-08-09, 04:57 PM
I very much get the RPG oatmeal part particularly because I think without the demonic threat there is little reason why humanity is not actively trying to kill dragons.
The are immortal inhuman wizards that decided to spend gold to part enslave humanity by buying corporations. Why are we not killing them?
High Charisma helps a lot I admit but a lot of dragons at least in description are being well not nice ..
Now with the earthdawn demon threat there role changes significantly....
What exists in Shadow run but not in other settings is the sea dragon Leviathan so I think he will be a Leviathan Drake that has not yet manifested his powers yet. Partly because triggering it might mean you have to drown the poor guy.

One thing I liked in Earthdawn was that dragons have actual personalities, agendas, goals and motivations. They play long games - against each other, or Horrors, or whatever - and all that I find interesting. It's the giant fire breathing flying lizard part of dragons I find to be ... 'oatmeal'. Dragons are overdone, there's no reason all those plots and goals and motivations couldn't belong to some less cliché race.

So .. I'm disenchanted with dragons, but I like what Earthdawn (and Shadowrun for that matter) have managed to do with the stereotype. Because I dislike dragons so much - I've never used them in Shadowrun, despite liking what they've done with them.

It's ... complicated =)