Shadowrun_5E_Boundless_Mercy_(Missions_Compilations).pdf

S H AD O W RUN

BOUNDLESS MERCY INTRODUCTION. . . . . . . . . . . . 4 RECON. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 SEARCH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 RECOVER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 DESTROY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 PLAYER HANDOUTS. . . . . . . 62

© 2015 The Topps Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Shadowrun and Matrix are registered trademarks and/ or trademarks of The Topps Company, Inc., in the United States and/or other countries. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the Copyright Owner, nor be otherwise circulated in any form other than that in which it is published. Catalyst Game Labs and the Catalyst Game Labs logo are trademarks of InMediaRes Productions, LLC.

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First Printing by Catalyst Game Labs, an imprint of InMediaRes Productions, LLC PMB 202 • 303 -91st Ave. NE, E-502 Lake Stevens, WA 98258

BOUNDLESS MERCY

CREDITS Writing: Ray Rigel, Beth Miller Assistant Line Developer: Peter M. Andrew Jr. Product Development and Editing: Robert McKittrick Cover and Internal Layout: Matt Heerdt Art Direction: Brent Evans, Kat Hardy Art: Balixa, John Emmons Maps: Mauro Peroni, Sean MacDonald and Eric Trautmann Dedication: To my wife Shelly: For not killing me in my sleep. The Kaladi Brothers for giving me a place to write. Pete for trying to keep me focused and on track-ish. And the rest of the Shadowrun community for encouraging me to keep doing what I love. Stay in the shadows. Robert M

Find us online: [email protected] (Shadowrun questions) http://www.shadowruntabletop.com (Catalyst Shadowrun website) http://www.shadowrun.com (official Shadowrun Universe website) http://www.catalystgamelabs.com (Catalyst website) http://shop.catalystgamelabs.com (Catalyst/Shadowrun orders)

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BOUNDLESS MERCY

3

S H AD O W RUN

INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION The following adventures were originally part of the Shadowrun Convention Missions campaign. They were run at various conventions and tournaments. Full information on the Shadowrun Missions campaign is available at http://www.shadowruntabletop.com/missions and includes a guide to creating Missions characters and a regularly updated FAQ. Player handouts and other playing aids are found at the end of this book.

characters’ actions, and so forth. It also covers the setting of the encounter, going over environmental conditions and other properties of the location as well as providing any descriptions of important items.

•

Pushing the Envelope looks at ways to make the encounter more challenging for experienced or powerful characters and other ways you can add some “extra spice” to the scene. This subsection should usually only be used for home games, or games where time is not a factor. At most convention and Open Play events, gamemasters should omit this information. It adds to the scene but does not contain important information.

•

Debugging offers solutions to potential problems that may crop up during the encounter. While it’s impossible to foresee everything that a group of player characters might do, this section tries to anticipate common problems and other suggestions for dealing with them.

PREPARING THE ADVENTURE The adventures are intended for use with Shadowrun, Fifth Edition, and all character and rules information refers to the Fifth Edition of the Shadowrun rules.

ADVENTURE STRUCTURE The adventures consist of several scenes. These scenes form the basis of the adventure, which should be completed in approximately four hours. If you are running short on time and are in an organized play environment, you should streamline each and be a little more generous with clues, target numbers, and other requirements to aid in guiding the players through the adventure. If you are playing at home, make the adventure as long or as short as you would like! Each scene outlines the most likely sequence of events, as well as how to handle unexpected twists and turns that inevitably crop up. Each one contains the following subsections, providing gamemasters with all the information necessary to run it. • Scan This provides a quick synopsis of the scene’s action, allowing you to get a feel for the encounter at a glance.

•

•

Tell It to Them Straight is written to be read aloud to the players, describing what their characters experience upon entering the scene. You should feel free to modify the narrative as much as desired to suit the group and the situation, since the characters may arrive at the scene by different means or under different circumstances than the text assumes. Behind the Scenes covers the bulk of the scene, describing what’s happening, what the non-player characters are doing, how they will react to the player

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BOUNDLESS MERCY

RUNNING THE ADVENTURE Gamemastering is more of an art than a science, and every gamemaster does things a bit differently. Use your own style when it comes to preparing and running the adventure and do whatever you feel is best to provide the best Shadowrun game you can for your players. These adventures were originally designed to run in a standard four-hour convention time slot. Please keep this in mind when running the adventure. When running at a convention, you should leave at least 15–20 minutes at the end of the time slot to complete any necessary paperwork and pass out the players’ Debriefing Logs. (Make sure that you have enough copies of the Debriefing Log for this adventure to give one copy to each player after running the adventure.) This section offers some guidelines you may find useful in preparing to run any Shadowrun Missions adventure.

STEP 1: READ THE ADVENTURE Carefully read the adventure from beginning to end. Get a feel for the overall plot and what happens in each scene. That way, if something different happens, you won’t be caught off guard and you can adapt things smoothly.

STEP 2: TAKE NOTES

NON-PLAYER CHARACTERS

Take notes for yourself while reading through the adventure that you can refer to later on. Possible things to note include: major plot points (so you can see them all at a glance), the names of various non-player characters, possible problems you notice, situations where you think a particular character can shine and other things you’ll want to keep in mind while running the adventure.

Non-player characters (NPCs) are essential to any adventure. They are the allies, antagonists, and background characters in the adventure that interact with the player characters. NPCs in this adventure have already been created and can be found throughout the adventure. Minor NPCs are found in the individual scene that they appear in and generally have a brief write up, noting only their important skills and the gear they are carrying. Major NPCs can be found in the Cast of Shadows at the end of the adventure and have more detailed write ups including most of the skills and gear they should be able to employ. The NPCs in this adventure should generally stand up to the average player character but may need some adjustment to suit a particular group of characters, especially a more experienced and powerful group. The scenes and NPC descriptions offer tips on adjusting the NPCs to suit the abilities of the characters in your group. To adjust the power level of an NPC, refer to the Building Prime Runners section of SR5 (p. 385). Take the player characters’ abilities into consideration when assessing the NPCs in this adventure and modify them accordingly.

STEP 3: KNOW THE CHARACTERS Prior to the start of the adventure, examine the PCs’ record sheets and Debriefing Logs for your reference and have basic information about their important abilities handy so you can refer to it during play. Also go over the characters and keep their previous events listed on the Debriefing Logs in mind when determining non-player character actions in various scenes if such a dynamic has been included.

STEP 4: DON’T PANIC! Gamemastering involves juggling a lot of different things. Sometimes you drop the ball and forget something, or you just make a mistake. It happens, don’t worry about it. Nobody is perfect all of the time, and everybody makes mistakes. Just pick up from there and move on. Your players will understand and forget about it once you get back into the action.

GENERAL ADVENTURE RULES Shadowrun Missions adventures use the rules presented in Shadowrun, Fifth Edition (SR5). Standard rules such as success tests, the Rules of One and Six, and other common mechanics are described in SR5 and are not repeated in this adventure. Please keep in mind when preparing for the adventure that the PCs will not necessarily compose a balanced party. It’s entirely possible that the party will be made up entirely of technomancers or back-to-nature shamans. If the characters run into a brick wall because of such complications, show flexibility and use your best judgment in how you lead them back to the plot.

MISSION DIFFICULTY Gamemasters are encouraged to use their own judgment and to adjust the difficulty of the encounter to take into account the abilities of the players. If the players have no magical support, replace magical defenses with mundane ones. If the players are weak on combat, reduce the number of enemies by one or two. Conversely, if they’re steam-rolling the opposition, add one or two enemies to the fight. Missions should be a challenge to the party, but should never be insurmountable for a team playing it smart.

A NOTE ON COMMLINKS By 2077, commlinks have become a universal appliance. Because just about every NPC is going to have one, they won’t always be statted out in the adventure text. For NPCs who do not have a statted commlink, assume it has all necessary ratings at 3. These commlinks will not contain any valuable paydata.

BOUNDLESS MERCY

5

>> BOUNDLESS MERCY <<

PAPERWORK After running a Shadowrun Missions adventure (if they are being run at a convention or other organized-play environment), there are several important pieces of paperwork that need to be filled out. The first is to make certain to distribute a copy of the adventure’s Debriefing Log to each player. As the gamemaster, please make certain to fill this out and sign off on it for each character. In the interests of time, you may have each player fill out the sections, with appropriate values that you give them. Please consider the PCs’ actions in the scenario when providing Reputation modifiers, per those rules (p. 372, SR5). The second is to make sure that all players have updated their character’s calendar. PCs are allowed to go on one run per week. The calendar is used to track the character’s monthly lifestyle expenses, adventures, and their downtime exploits.

SCENE 0: NEW KIDS IN TOWN SCAN THIS This scene is designed to transport runners from any campaign into the settings for these missions. While there will be travel involved in this series of missions, they start in Seattle, so getting the players there will allow for the ball to start rolling.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Here are a few ways to get your team to the area if they aren’t already there. A: Two days ago, your fixer set you up on an out-oftown job. It sounded simple, a bodyguard mission for some high-ranking corp salaryman. Your travel was arranged and they even managed to smuggle your gear here. It’s never that simple, though, and by the time your plane touched down at Sea-Tac Airport, your mark had already been taken out. Without a job to do, you picked up your gear, grabbed a hotel, and decided to see the sites, blowing the meager retainer you’d been given for making the trip. After all, you’re

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BOUNDLESS MERCY

shadowrunners, this is Seattle, and this town gave birth to the shadowrun. So for the last couple days, you’ve been on vacation. You’ve visited Underworld 93 and Club Penumbra, stopped to check out the ACHE, cruised by the Redmond Barrens (wearing full body armor and guns firmly in hand), beat up a few Halloweeners, and even visited the infamous Crime Mall. You were out late last night after bribing the doorman to let you into the third level of Hell at Dante’s Inferno, and had planned to sleep it off before heading back home today. However, it’s barely noon when your commlink buzzes. You flip it on, and see the face of your friendly neighborhood fixer on the other end. B: Your last run was a resounding success/failure with the heat from the corps picking up as they investigate. Your fixer thinks this might be a good time to lay low out of town. Seattle is nice this time of year, and he knows how to get you some work while you’re there. C: Riots are entertaining. Riots you started, not so much. Leaving town just seemed like a logical choice. Your fixer says he can get you work anywhere. So out of town you go. Next stop Seattle, the city that started shadowruns. D: The job was supposed to be cake, VIP protection for some local rapper. Everything was locked in, chartered flight for you and your gear, transport once you arrived, valet service … it was going to be nice for once. Then a damn Pineapple Express blew in off the coast and your flight got delayed. By the time it finally started boarding, your fixer commed you the bad news: The J was short on time and had to look for other talent to keep his VIP safe. Drek! Well the good news is that you’re in Seattle with all your toys, and your fixer promises that he’ll find you some work that’ll make it worth your time.

BEHIND THE SCENES This is just a transition for players bringing their characters in from other campaigns. Modify it to fit your party, particularly if the runners are already in Seattle following a different mission or already live in the Metroplex.


BOUNDLESS MERCY

7

S H AD O W RUN

RECON MISSION SYNOPSIS Several years ago, an old friend of Laurent Nazaire was attacked by a nosferatu during an investigative mission she was performing on behalf of the Illuminates of the New Dawn (IoND) while she was a member of the local chapterhouse. She subsequently became Infected and withdrew from society to haunt the streets of Capitol Hill. In the process, Elizabeth Nunn became Our Lady of Mercy, feeding on the Essence of the suicidal and the dying. Laurent, through his ties to the shadows, kept a rough track on her whereabouts. When a job came through against the Outer Order Circle, Chapterhouse 13 (his old friend’s former chapterhouse) he sent a team of runners to her to provide some solid information. Not so incidentally, the move opened the door for Laurent to regain contact. After the destruction of the chapterhouse, Laurent contacts her to tell her of the incident. She had always suspected that her accident was nothing of the sort, and now that she is confident that her former brothers and sisters in the Illuminates will no longer hunt her, she tells Laurent of her

ELLIOT’S Elliot’s is a first-class French restaurant located on the waterfront of Seattle’s downtown district. The views of the waterfront and the Sound are spectacular, particularly at night, with the tables lit by candlelight, making this a great spot for a romantic dinner. Elliot’s fortunes improved considerably after Tom Cantrelli bought the place a few years ago and brought in Chef Sooki Dulane, who works wonders in the kitchen. Cantrelli also replaced a lot of the staff, getting rid of their undeserved snobbery and making his establishment considerably more inviting. Cantrelli achieved his dream with financial assistance from the Gianelli Family, something they don’t let him forget, even though he’s successfully paid his debts. Members of the family are known to dine here, and Cantrelli can’t turn them away, particularly since their presence has thus far kept away other influences such as the Seoulpa Rings.

8

RECON

suspicions. He decides to do something about it. Laurent contacts the runners and asks them to investigate the ruined chapterhouse outside of Auburn for any information they can find that would indicate that she is right, and if she is, who is responsible for the fire. The ruins were abandoned by the Initiates after they scoured it for any useable artifacts and telesma, but a group of Spectres, a local wiz-gang, are squatting there at the moment. They are not very tough in and of themselves, but they managed to seed the woods surrounding the lodge with some pretty potent spirits. The building itself is in shambles and dangerous to navigate. A device providing access to the host is in the basement, tucked away in a utility closet that is partially buried and hidden behind some rubble. There is no power going to it, so a decker must power it up, log into it, and discover the private correspondence from Magus Tyrone Girardi and his protégé, Magus Jason Stackowski, who was the former ritual leader of OOCC13.

SCENE 1: THE JOB SCAN THIS The team meets with Laurent Nazaire, who hires them to sift through the remains of Outer Order Chapterhouse 13 to find any information regarding their research that may have survived the destruction of the house.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Your afternoon started uneventfully enough. You got up, scratched whatever itched, shaved whatever needed it, and showered off everything else. After eating breakfast at a time almost anyone else would consider a late lunch, your fixer pings your comm with just one word—“Biz”—and a commcode to call. Her timing, as always, is perfect. “I hope I am not contacting you too late,” the dark-skinned dwarf says with a thick accent. French perhaps. “But if you are available, I think I have a job for you. Meet me at Elliot’s on Pier 60 at 1900 this evening, and we’ll discuss it. Please be sure to dress appropriately.”

BEHIND THE SCENES If the runners have encountered Laurent Nazaire before, they recognize him when he appears on their commlink. Adjust the dialogue accordingly if the runners have played any of the other Boundless Mercy missions or worked for Nazaire. Elliot’s isn’t the most upscale restaurant in Seattle, but it’s far enough up there that the rich and famous wouldn’t be ashamed to be seen eating there. If the runners arrive sporting obvious armor or weapons, they will be turned away at the door. MAD scanners at the door (Rating 7, built into the decorations just inside the door) alert security, who discreetly asks the runners to check any hidden weapons it detects unless the runner has ties to the Gianelli Family. When the runners approach the maître d’, he looks down his nose at them if they are not wearing decent attire and points out a nearby clothing store. If they mention Nazaire, he leads them to a secluded table in the far corner of the restaurant. It’s a tight fit if the entire party attends. A gnome waiter in a neat white shirt, black pants, and black apron struggles to bring over one more chair to fit any troll party members, but it’s secluded and reasonably private. If any of the runners did not take the hints about their garb from Laurent and the maître d’, Laurent comments gently, “If I remember correctly, I had warned you to dress appropriately. I do believe Jamieson is unhappy with us now.” After everyone orders, Laurent explains he wants to hire the runners to explore the abandoned ruins of an old hunting lodge and find any surviving data files the former occupants might have left behind, but he won’t give them any details on the files or the location until they agree to the job. He offers the team 5,000 nuyen each. If they comment on the low pay, he tells them they are welcome to either keep anything else of value they may happen to find, or bring them to him for a fair price (forty percent of list price, nonnegotiable). If they make an effort to negotiate, he offers an additional 500 nuyen per net success (maximum of 5 net hits) on an Negotiation + Charisma [Social] Opposed Test, but he won’t be able to pay as much for any loot they bring back to him (standard fencing price of twenty-five percent of list price, non-negotiable). Once the team agrees to the job, Laurent gives them the location of the ruins and tells them they were a former chapterhouse of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. He has

reason to suspect they were involved in experimenting with HMHVV and its different variants by intentionally allowing people to become infected and then studying them. He wants the team to bring him any data they can find regarding this practice. He knows everything in the Legwork section regarding the IoND and will share if they ask. He will not reveal anything about his information source, a woman named Elizabeth Nunn. She was an old friend of his before she became infected with HMHVV-1A. They lost touch after that, but she looked him up after he sent a runner team to her to pick her brain about the local chapterhouse of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She now lives in an abandoned church in the Capitol Hill area, where she is known to the locals as Our Lady of Mercy for her habit of only attacking people who already want to die. She has since learned that her infection wasn’t an accident. She was intentionally infected during a mission for the chapterhouse and asked Laurent to hire a team to find out why she was set up and who was responsible. Laurent agreed to do it as a favor for an old friend. The chapterhouse was an old hunting lodge in the forest on the far-east side of Auburn. Laurent admits he doesn’t know what shape the building is in or if there’s even anything there to find.

CAPITOL HILL The neighborhood was once home to Seattle’s “Millionaire’s Row” along 14th Avenue E. It’s now just a fancy place in the heart of Seattle Metroplex and has many luxury apartment buildings and condominiums. The most avant-garde of Downtown’s neighborhoods, Capitol Hill is where you can find independent cafés, secondhand and vintage clothiers, occult and specialty bookshops, galleries, and chic boutiques. It has also long been the center of Seattle’s alternative sexuality subcultures, including several neighborhood bars, nightclubs, and hangouts.

RECON

9


PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

TOMMY, BUSBOY

This is a straight “meet the Johnson” scene. If the party decides to cause trouble or a fight breaks out, Knight Errant will be called in. If they manage to suppress or incapacitate the first responder, heavier units will be summoned (p. 383, SR5). There may also be further repercussions with the mafia at a later date.

(PROFESSIONAL RATING 1)

KNIGHT ERRANT RESPONDER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 3) B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

M

3

3

4

3

4

4

4

4

6

6

10 12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 6 8 + 1D6 Clubs 5, Law Enforcement (Professional Knowledge) 3, Perception 3, Pistols 5, Unarmed Combat 5 Armor jacket (12), commlink (Device Rating 3), 2 sets handcuffs Colt America L36 [Light Pistol, Acc 7, DV 7S, AP +1, SA, RC —, 11(c), w/ gel rounds] Defiance EX Shocker [Taser, Acc 4, DV 9S(e), AP –5, SS, RC —, 4(m)] Stun baton [Club, Reach 1, Acc 4, DV 9S(e), AP –5]

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skills Gear Weapons

DEBUGGING The only things that could really go wrong here are if the team gets feisty with the maître d’, Jamieson, or refuses the job for such low pay. If they choose to not accept the deal, Laurent thanks them for their time and the mission ends. If the runners start any trouble, Jamieson mentions the establishment’s guidelines and ducks into the kitchen. The sous chef and the busboy come out to ask the runners to leave. If they’ve already made their way to Laurent’s table, the sous chef whispers to Laurent that his guests are not welcome here and ask him finish his transaction quickly. As a consequence, Laurent will not include the offer to fence any loot.

MARIA, SOUS CHEF (PROFESSIONAL RATING 2) B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

4

4

4

4

4

4

3

4

6

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skill

Qualities Gear Weapons

10

10 6 Physical 6, Mental 5, Social 6 8 + 1D6 Artisan (Cooking) 6 (8), Blades (Knives) 8 (10), Etiquette 8, Intimidation 8, Leadership 5, Throwing Weapons (Knives) 7 (9), Unarmed Combat 7 None Chef’s jacket w/ hat (6), Sony Emperor commlink (Device Rating 2) Specialty knife [Blade, Acc 6, Reach —, DV 6P, AP –1, w/ personalized grip]

RECON

B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

4

2

3

3

3

2

3

2

6

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Initiative Skills Gear Weapons

10 0 Physical 5, Mental 4, Social 5 6 + 1D6 Blades 8, Clubs 7, Etiquette (Street) 6 (8), Intimidation 7, Sneaking 7, Unarmed Combat 8 Metalink commlink (Device Rating 1), uniform (0) Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1]

SCENE 2: EN ROUTE SCAN THIS The runners come across the guardians that the Specters have deployed in the woods for an early defense.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Heading east out of the Auburn sprawl of industrialization, buildings begin getting sparse. Eventually a lone road (that is overgrown and seldom traveled these days) leads towards the chapterhouse. The constant background of AR chatter fades to almost silence the further away from the sprawl you go, making things drab and boring for anyone who isn’t the back-to-nature type. The paranoid might think things are quiet—maybe too quiet. The lack of buildings and fences leaves no visual clues for borders; the Salish-Shidhe border is close at hand.

BEHIND THE SCENES This is a fairly straightforward not-s- random encounter scene. Feel free to play up the foreign nature of the woods over the sprawl. A few random Perception tests for wildlife would not be out of line. Apply a Noise Rating of 4 to any Matrix actions due to the static zone in the woods, and a Noise Rating of 3 once the party is in the clearing surrounding the lodge itself. There is a watcher and a total of three beast spirits (Force 8) patrolling the woods. The watcher is easily spotted by an Assensing + Intuition [Mental] (1) Test, and one of the beast spirits can also be seen with an Assensing + Intuition [Mental] (3) Test. They will not molest the runners until they get within view of the ruins, and then the beast spirit materializes and attacks the runners while the watcher goes to fetch the other two spirits. The first arrives in time to participate in the second Combat Turn, whether the runners succeed in defeating the first spirit in that time or not. The second spirit also arrives during the second Combat Turn, but not until the second Initiative Pass. The spirits will choose astral combat with any magically active characters before materializing and attacking everyone


else. Should they materialize, play up how easily they shrug off the physical damage (thanks to their hardened armor). Each spirit has two services remaining. After alerting the beast spirits, the watcher returns to the mage who lead the ritual summoning it—who happens to be a member of the Specters.

WATCHER (FORCE 8) B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

*

*

*

*

6

6

6

6

Physical n/a, Mental 8, Social 9 16 + 1D6 Assensing 16, Astral Combat 16, Perception 16 Astral Form, Manifest, Search, Sapience

Limits Astral Initiative Skills Powers

A

R

10

9

8

Condition Monitor Limits Physical Initiative Astral Initiative Active Skills Powers

Optional Powers (Choose 2)

(PROFESSIONAL RATING 4) B

A

R

5

4

5

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skills Augmentations Gear Weapons

SPIRIT OF BEASTS (FORCE 8) B

SALISH-SHIDHE SCOUT PATROLS

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

10

8

8

8

8

8

4

8

12/12 Physical 13, Mental 11, Social 11 16 + 2D6 16 + 3D6 Assensing 16, Astral Combat 16, Perception 16(18), Unarmed Combat 17 Animal Control, Astral Form, Enhanced Sense (Hearing, Low-Light Vision, Smell), Fear, Materialization (Hardened Armor 16), Movement, Sapience Concealment, Confusion, Guard, Natural Weapon (DV 8P, AP—), Noxious Breath, Search, Venom

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE If the party has too easy of a time of it with the astral threats, add a string or two of monofilament tripwire around the perimeter of the clearing. It requires a Perception + Intuition [Mental] (3) Test to spot the wire, which causes 8P damage. The Salish-Shidhe is close and patrols along the border are not uncommon. If the runners go too far east, are causing large explosions, or are just causing trouble, introduce them to the Salish-Shidhe border patrols or possible smuggler activity near the border. Salishe-Shidhe border patrols are usually on foot in deep woods and quite at home in that terrain. A patrol make-up is usually 2 Leaders, 3 Scouts and a Combat Mage. One of the Scouts is generally a Rigger.

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

5

4

3

3

2

3.3

3

11 10 Physical 6, Mental 4, Social 4 8 + 2D6 Firearms skill group 11, Gymnastics 8, Navigation 7, Perception 7, Sneaking 9(11), Survival (Woods) 11 (13), Throwing Weapons 10, Unarmed Combat 13 Cybereyes [Rating 1, w/ low-light, smartlink, thermographic], plastic bone lacing, wired reflexes 1 Chameleon suit (9), Maersk Spider (Device Rating 4) AK-97 [Assault Rifle, Acc 5, DV 10P, AP –2, SA/BF/ FA, RC —, 38(c), w/ smartlink, regular ammo, 3 spare clips] Ares Predator V [Heavy Pistol, Acc 5(7), DV 8P, AP -1,RC 0, SA, 15(c), w/ smartlink, regular ammo, 3 spare clips] Tomahawk [Throwing Knife, Acc 6, DV 6P] Unarmed [Unarmed Combat, Acc 6, DV 6P]

MCDONNELL-DOUGLAS NIMROD HANDL

SPEED

ACCEL

4

4

5

BODY

ARMOR

PILOT

SENS

4

6

3

3

VTOL, 2 weapon mounts, software upgrades Autosofts: Clearsight 3, Defense 2, Electronic Warfare 1, Maneuver 3, Target (Pistols) 3 Ingram Valiant [LMG, Acc 5(6), DV 9P, AP –2, RC 2(3), BF/FA, 100 (belt) w/ smartlink, regular ammo]

Upgrades Programs Weapons

SALISH-SHIDHE PATROL LEADERS (PROFESSIONAL RATING 5) B

A

R

5

5

7

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skills Augmentations Adept Powers Gear Weapons

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

6

5

4

4

3

6

3

6

11 11 Physical 8, Mental 6, Social 6 11 + 3D6 Archery 13, Gymnastics 8, Navigation 9, Pistols 13, Perception 7, Sneaking 10(12), Survival (Woods) 11 (13), Throwing Weapons 8, Unarmed Combat 11 None Enhanced Accuracy (Archery), Improved Reflexes 2, Improved Strength, Mystic Armor 2 Chameleon suit (9) GA Combat Bow [Bow DR 6, Acc 7, DV 11P, AP –2, w/ Armor Piercing arrows, 30 arrow quiver] Colt Government [Heavy Pistol, Acc 6, DV 7P, AP –1, RC —, SA, 14(c), w/ smartlink, regular ammo, 3 spare clips] Tomahawk [Throwing Knife, Acc 6, DV 7P]

RECON

11


BEHIND THE SCENES

COMBAT MAGE (PROFESSIONAL RATING 3) B

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Spells Gear Weapons

10 9 Physical 5, Mental 5, Social 6 7 + 1D6 Astral Combat 8, Automatics 6, Conjuring skill group 9, Counterspelling 9, Gymnastics 8, Perception 7, Pistols 8, Sneaking 8(10), Spellcasting 14, Survival (Woods) 8(10), Unarmed Combat 8 Armor, Clout, Increase Reflexes, Levitate, Lightning Bolt, Manaball, Manabolt, Physical Barrier Chameleon suit (9) AK-97 [Assault Rifle, Acc 5, DV 10P, AP –2, SA/BF/ FA, RC —, 38(c), w/ smartlink, regular ammo, 3 spare clips] Ares Predator V [Heavy Pistol, Acc 5(7), DV 8P, AP –1,RC —, SA, 15(c), w/ smartlink, regular ammo, 3 spare clips]

DEBUGGING If the team does not have any magical support, reduce the spirits to Force 6.

SCENE 3: SHAKY GROUND SCAN THIS The runners reach the crumbling remains of the chapterhouse. A half-dozen members of the Specters have camped out to pick over the bones to see if anything worthwhile was left behind after the Illuminates sanitized the site.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT That was … unpleasant. Now that you’ve got a chance to actually look at the building, or what’s left of it, at least, you realize that calling it a ruin is accurate. It’s a one-story wooden structure, with several distinct scorch marks along one of the walls and countless bullet holes. Something major must have happened inside the building from how precariously the whole building seems to lean on its far side. The whole thing gives the impression that it would all collapse if a troll breathed too close to it. The front doors have been blown off their hinges, and their fragments lie on the ground.

This hunting lodge was the scene of a rather large firefight, and wooden buildings are not designed to deal with battle damage. The walls are Armor 0, Structure 1, and the floor is Structure 3. An Architecture + Logic [Mental] (2) Test or Perception + Intuition [Mental] (4) Test will let the player know that any fighting inside the building might result in structural collapse. Any character with Body of 6 or more or Body 3 or more with aluminum or greater bone lacing, need to roll an Edge test (that is, simply roll dice equal to their Edge attribute, including spent points). Each success is the number of minutes before the floor collapses and they fall into the basement. A Perception + Intuition [Mental] (2) Test is required to notice the creaking and popping of the floorboards pending collapse. Should the floor collapse, the character suffers falling damage (DV 5S, AP –4, resisted by Body + Armor) from falling onto the debris in the basement. The Specters arrived earlier that day to scavenge any loose telesma the Illuminates team might have left behind. They haven’t found anything and haven’t had a chance to explore the basement by the time the runners arrive. A pair of the Specters and the ritual leader are physically standing guard, while the other four are astrally projecting from a house in downtown Redmond about thirty kilometers away, protected by a Force 6 Circle of Protection and with an additional ritual leader and pair of gangers standing physical guard at that location. Anyone who enters the lodge astrally is immediately attacked by the entire gang, no questions asked. Otherwise, there are seven more members more than willing to talk instead of fight, especially after the runners have defeated their spirits.

SPECTER GANG MEMBERS, HERMETIC MAGES (PROFESSIONAL RATING 2) B

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10 12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 6 8 + 1D6 8 + 3D6 Assensing 6, Astral Combat 7, Conjuring skill group 9, Counterspelling 9, Leadership 7, Pistols 5, Ritual Spellcasting 7, Spellcasting 10 None Detect Life, Light, Physical Barrier, Powerbolt, Silence, Stunball Armor jacket (12), Renraku Sensei commlink (Device Rating 3), Spellcasting (Combat) focus (Force 2) Fichetti Security 600 [Light Pistol, Acc 6(7), DV 7P, AP —, SA, RC (1), 30(c)]


KANDER, SPECTER RITUAL LEADER, HERMETIC MAGE

THE SPECTERS


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10 12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 7 9 + 1D6 10 + 3D6 Assensing 9, Astral Combat 7, Conjuring skill group 11, Leadership 8, Pistols 5, Sorcery skill group 11 None Bugs, Influence, Physical Barrier, Powerball, Silence, Stunbolt, Watcher Ritual Armor jacket (12), Mage sight goggles (10m), Renraku Sensei commlink (Device Rating 3), Spellcasting (Combat) focus (Force 2) Fichetti Security 600 [Light Pistol, Acc 6(7), DV 7P, AP —, SA, RC (1), 30(c)]

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE If the party defeats the Specters fairly unscathed, have another pair of Force 6 beast spirits inside the cabin with the gang. One spirit only has one service remaining, the other has three.

SPIRIT OF BEASTS (FORCE 6) B

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Optional Powers (Choose 2)

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10/10 Physical 10, Mental 8, Social 8 12 + 2D6 12 + 3D6 Assensing 12, Astral Combat 12, Perception 12(14), Unarmed Combat 13 Animal Control, Astral Form, Enhanced Sense (Hearing, Low-Light Vision, Smell), Fear, Materialization (Hardened Armor 12), Movement, Sapience Concealment, Confusion, Guard, Natural Weapon (DV 6P, AP—), Noxious Breath, Search, Venom

DEBUGGING If the encounter is too difficult, start all the gangers off with 3 stun damage on each of their Condition Monitors from spellcasting, or remove the ritual leader.

Most wizzergangs tend to be of the “flash and bang” variety, where a bunch of wiz-kids learn how to throw some fireballs or lightning bolts and get high off the mayhem of just blowing things up, at least until the cops catch up with them, or their own egos set off a power struggle that finishes off the gang in a spectacular fireworks display. The Specters are apparently smarter and lower key than that. They focus most of their activity on the astral plane, operating primarily in spirit form, with their physical bodies safely stowed somewhere else. This lets them engage in astral surveillance (for later blackmail or sale of the information), carrying messages, some astral vandalism or “haunting” (and the associated extortion for them to stop), and even some magical security or bodyguarding. Their colors are silver and green. They operate primarily in the Seattle Metroplex and are quite familiar with the ins and outs of the local astral footprint and ecology.

SCENE 4: UNDERGROUND SCAN THIS Having gotten past the Specters, the runners gingerly make their way into the basement to find the late Illuminates’ storage device tucked away in a utility closet.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Now that you’ve dealt with the squatters and their retinue, it’s time to start looking for that storage device. The structure before you is barely recognizable as a building. The first floor is essentially a poorly portioned space, which only leaves the debris-strewn basement. Looks like this will be a challenge to navigate, let alone find an intact device.

BEHIND THE SCENES Even though the IoND came in and cleansed the area, the cleanup team missed the storage device, which is inside of a utility closet that is in turn almost hidden behind a set of tumbled-down shelves. The only person aware of the device is Magus Tyrone Girardi, and he was too busy evacuating the more sensitive Seattle IoND operations to remember its existence. This device happens to be a backup for the Seattle based chapterhouses and should not have been forgotten. As the OOCC13 hunting lodge is little more than ruins, searching it is dangerous. A successful Structural Engineering + Logic [Mental] (2) or Architecture + Logic [Mental] (3) test assists the team in negotiating the ruins more safely; each hit above the threshold adds an additional die to Gymnastics tests.

RECON

13


Successful navigation through the ruins requires a Gymnastics + Agility [Physical] (3) Test. Failure results in possible damage from debris (debris falls, feet go through holes, character brushes into sharp debris). The runner must resist either 3S or P damage (gamemaster decision). Assuming no one has fallen through the floor into the basement already, a successful Perception + Intuition [Mental] (6) Test (teamwork applies) reveals a door to the basement in the kitchen floor (number 4 on map). A Body + Strength (2) Test opens the door, revealing a dark space below the cabin. The stairs leading down are missing several steps and won’t sustain much weight. The runners either negotiate their way down (successful Gymnastics + Agility [Physical] (3) Test) or climb down (successful Gymnastics + Strength [Physical] Test, 2 meter distance). Another successful Perception + Intuition [Mental] (6) Test (teamwork applies) locates the utility closet with the node. There is no power to the node, therefore, the runners need to remove it or supply power somehow. Removing it is easy (Hardware + Logic [Mental] (2) Test). Hooking it up to a power source does not require a test (vehicle, safehouse with power, etc. suffices).

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE A mother barghest, her mate, and their litter of pups have taken up residence in the basement.

BARGHEST (ADULTS) B

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12/10 3 Physical 9, Mental 5, Social 7 11 + 2D6 10/30/+4 Intimidation 13, Perception 11(13), Running 11, Tracking 11(13), Unarmed Combat 13 Armor 3, Dual Natured, Enhanced Senses (Hearing, Smell, Sonar), Fear, Immunity (Barghest Howls), Natural Weapon (Bite: DV 8P, AP –1), Paralyzing Howl

DEBUGGING If the team does not find the hidden door (or falls into the basement), allow the players to make a Logic + Intuition [Mental] (2) Test to remember seeing busted-out windows

14

RECON


in the foundation and realize that there is a basement there. Additionally, a surviving Specter could reveal the location.

SCENE 5: READING BETWEEN THE LINES SCAN THIS After obtaining the device, the runners hack into it. The device contains private correspondence between Magus Tyrone Girardi and his protégé, Magus Jason Stackowski, detailing the infection and surveillance of Our Lady of Mercy.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Once you get the device up and running you are amazed by the volume of information contained within it. This device has the motherload of paydata, even if you don’t know what half of it means. Maybe it needs a closer look.

BEHIND THE SCENES Once the runners (or a hired decker/technomancer) hack into the node they begin searching for information related to experiments with HMHVV. The runners discover files mentioning the study of HMHVV patients and its practical applications. All patients are listed as codes. Attempts to cross-reference the codes to patient names find a seriously corrupted file that cannot be fixed or recovered at this time. The node contains several communications between a Magus Tyrone Girardi and Magus Jason Stackowski. They refer to active surveillance on an escaped patient in Seattle and the difficulties in maintaining surveillance of the patient. The patient escaped from a local facility, though the exact location is not mentioned. In addition to the basic information concerning HMHVV patients and the private communications, there are a few intact video files. Most of the video files mean nothing to the team; however, Laurent and Our Lady of Mercy will be interested in them. Note that the video files contain several different clips, some of which show a precious assault on the chapterhouse. Feel free to make up a variety of different scenes that have nothing to do with the current mission (as far as the runners know). If the runners turn over the extra video feeds to Laurent, he pays them an additional flat rate of 1,000 nuyen each, without negotiation, because the runners are welcome to sell it elsewhere. Any other contacts offer them 500 nuyen, but allow a Negotiation test that provides 100 nuyen per net hit, to a max of 1,000 nuyen extra. There are a total of five clips worth selling.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE The envelope-pushing can happen elsewhere, so no additional pushing is needed in this scene.

DEBUGGING If the team does not have a decker or a technomancer who can extract and decrypt the data, they should be able to hire one who can with little difficulty, for perhaps 200 nuyen for a relatively simple job. Alternately, if they return the node to Laurent, he can get it hacked and decrypted.

OOCC13 HOST RATING

ATTACK

SLEAZE

DATA PROC.

FIREWALL

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Installed IC: Blaster, Tar Baby Slaved Devices: n/a Spiders: n/a Sculpting: Stone tower, lit with a giant candelabra in the ceiling. Files are all represented by large, dusty tomes. Size of the file is reflected in the size of the book.

SCENE 6: MERCIFUL SCAN THIS The runners return to Laurent with the data. After asking them to stick around while he reviews it, they are introduced to Elizabeth Nunn/Our Lady of Mercy.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT The church looks like it’s been abandoned for decades. The stained-glass windows have been replaced with plastiboard. The walkway leading up to the main entrance is cracked, but it looks like new flowers have been planted. Laurent awaits you at a cellar door. The door hinges squeak as you open it and peer into the darkness. At the bottom of the stairwell you find another door that opens into what can only be described as a surprisingly clean crypt. Candles light the bouquet-filled crypt and another door stands wide open on the other end. You see a beautiful dark-haired woman dressed in an elegant, professional outfit through the open doorway, obviously straightening the room. The room appears both comfortable and welcoming. Laurent’s female friend asks you to have a seat and offers you refreshments. In a beautiful voice, she asks you to call her Elizabeth.

BEHIND THE SCENES The team contacts Laurent, who asks them to meet him at an abandoned church in Capitol Hill. He mentions that he will introduce them to Ms. Johnson. The runners arrive and meet Laurent outside the church. He leads them through the crypt and into Our Lady of Mercy’s inner sanctum. Our Lady of Mercy cast Physical Mask on herself, appearing as an attractive dark-haired woman. She also maintains masking at all times. Laurent introduces her as Elizabeth Nunn (not Our Lady of Mercy).

RECON

15


Laurent and Elizabeth review the data, which confirms their suspicions. However, when they get to the videos, Elizabeth takes greater interest, as she has proof that Girardi is alive. Elizabeth thanks the team profusely for their work and lets them know that Laurent will be in contact with them in a few days if they find additional information on the device. Laurent pays them the agreed upon amount and confirms that he will be in contact with them should additional work come up.

You will earn a flat amount of Karma and nuyen, regardless of how well (or poorly) the players do, listed below. For other missions results and rewards that you track on the Debriefing Log (objectives completed, reputation and contacts earned, etc.), take the average results of the group you’re gamemastering for. So if four out of six players earned a point of notoriety, you will earn one as well. If only two players out of five earn a +1 Loyalty with Simon, though, you would not get that +1 Loyalty..


REPUTATION

This is just the wrap-up up meeting with the Johnsons for the runners to hand of their data and get paid. No envelope pushing required.

During the adventure, runners may perform actions that will add to their Street Cred, Notoriety, or Public Awareness (p. 372, SR5). Besides the scenario specific gains listed below, gamemasters should consider the characters actions throughout the game and award additional points as appropriate. If a player earns Public Awareness or Notoriety, don’t be afraid to give them extra points. • +1 Street Cred if the players defeat the Specters in a fight

DEBUGGING The only real thing to go wrong here is if the runners attack Elizabeth. If they do, Laurent will jump in on her side and, if he can’t convince the runners to back down, will assist her in destroying them without prejudice. She will be a major factor in the next several missions, so even if the runners seemingly manage to kill Elizabeth, she will find a way to survive.

PICKING UP THE PIECES MONEY •

5,000 nuyen each (+500 nuyen per hit, maximum of 5) for recovering the data files

• •

1,000 nuyen each for video feed (if sold to Nazaire) 500 nuyen each (+100 nuyen per hit, maximum of 5) for video feed (if sold to someone other than Nazaire)

KARMA • • • • •

2 Karma for surviving 2 Karma for defeating the Specters 1 Karma for defeating the Barghests 1 Karma for finding IoND node 1 Karma for finding video feed on node

GAMEMASTER REWARD When running this adventure, you may choose to count the Mission as “played” for their personal Shadowrun Missions character. You must choose to do this the first time your run this Mission only, and take the optional results to match those the team you gamemastered for earned. You may not choose to wait for a better attempt to choose your rewards. You’re on the honor system here, so please don’t skew the adventure to help the players gain extra rewards just so that you can get better results.

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RECON

•

+1 Public Awareness if the team sells off the paydata to someone other than Nazaire

CONTACTS Successfully completing objectives or performing the actions listed below will earn characters specific Missions contacts at a Loyalty of 1, and players should be given the Contact Sheet included at the end of this book. If they already have that contact, they gain a +1 Loyalty to that contact (up to a maximum of 4). Characters might interact with NPCs not specified by the Mission and may earn these NPCs as a contact at Loyalty 1. They may also work with non-Mission specific contacts that they have already earned or that they bought at character creation, and gain a +1 Loyalty to these contacts, with a maximum Loyalty of 4. Gamemasters should not grant these lightly, and players should have to work to earn these contacts by going the extra mile to impress the NPC, offering up favors, or paying them well above the standard rates for information or services. • +1 Loyalty (up to a maximum of 4) with Laurent Nazaire (Connection Rating 5) completing the mission.

•

+1 Loyalty with Elizabeth Nunn (up to a maximum of 4) (Connection Rating 3) for completing the mission.

LEGWORK When a PC gets in touch with a contact, make an unopposed Connection + Connection Test for the contact. The results of this test determine how many ranks of information the contact knows about the question. If the relevance of the subject is a specialty of the contact, they get +3 to this test. The player then makes an unopposed Charisma + Etiquette + Loyalty test, the results of which determine how many ranks of


information the contact is willing to divulge for free, up to the max ranks of information they know. If the contact knows more, they will require a payment of 500¥ – (Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 100¥) per rank of information they still know. If the PCs have worked all of their contacts, and are still missing important information, they may request that a contact ask around. If they do so, have the Contact make an extended [Connection + Connection (20 minutes)] Test. Additional information will be available at a cost of 1,000¥ – (Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 200¥). A Matrix Search action (p. 241, SR5) may also be utilized to gather information from the following charts, using the appropriate thresholds and search times.

LAURENT NAZAIRE

ATLANTEAN FOUNDATION Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Laurent Nazaire, Fixer

Contacts Matrix Search 0 0

Information They help those displaced in floods if I remember right.

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1 minute

The Atlantean Foundation seeks out arcane artifacts and knowledge. Not much is known about them.

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5 minutes

They compete with the Draco Foundation, a rival organization.

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30 minutes

They have a dwarf in Seattle, Laurent Nazaire. He’s the area head. He’ll do anything to try to stay a step ahead of the Draco Foundation.

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They sent a strike team against the Illuminates of the New Dawn for some artifact thefts.

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Nazaire is using their considerable resources to help a friend out of some trouble.

Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Fixer, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman, Mafia, Tamanous


Information How do you pronounce that again?

Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Atlantean Foundation’s Seattle Branch. He’s a Haitian dwarf with a strong accent. He was pretty active in the foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts.

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You can keep asking around, but nobody has any dirt on this guy. Down-to-earth? Open? Honest? I don’t trust anyone like that myself. Gives me the jitters, you scan? The guy is obsessed in his quest to acquire and study arcane artifacts before the Draco Foundation can get their hands on them. He’s got a personal rivalry with them. I hear he’s helping an old friend out with some personal problems, something to do with the Illuminates of the New Dawn. According to rumors, his friend is not a run of the mill metahuman, there’s something off about her.

ILLUMINATES OF THE NEW DAWN (IOND) Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman


Information Your plates will illuminate the room! Try our new Dawn dishwash detergent.

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Sure, sure. They’re big into “magocratic progressivism”— basically, they believe hermetics mages are way superior to everyone else, and so they should be in charge.

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“The local Outer Order circle’s headed up by some New Century Parts apparatchik called Tyrone Girardi. Word is he sometimes walks on the shadowy side of the line.”

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Heard their chapterhouse in Bellevue was pretty well destroyed in a nasty dust-up recently. Sounds like their leaders are going to ground.

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They apparently made enemies of the groups that were part of the whole artifact rush.

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Word is that the Lady of Mercy is on a warpath against them, and she has Nazaire backing her.

RECON

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OUR LADY OF MERCY/ ELIZABETH NUNN Contacts to Ask: Squatter (Capitol Hill area), Store owners/ employees (Capitol Hill area), Hospital personnel (Group Health Central Hospital)

Contacts Matrix Search Time Information 0 0 You into the neo/ancient/goth thing or what?

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She hangs out in the Capital Hill area and is pretty spooky.

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Hear that the local squatters love her because she protects them from unsavory types.

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This fixer, Laurent Nazaire, is helping her in a vendetta against the Illuminates of the New Dawn. Apparently, they are old friends.

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She used to be a member of the IoND until there was a falling out with her local chapterhouse.

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Word has it she is some sort of vampire.

THE SPECTERS Contacts to Ask: Gangers, Any Arcane, Magicians, Knight Errant

Contacts Matrix Search Time Information 0 0 Is it Halloween already?

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They’re a wiz-gang out of Seattle

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They tend to be less flashy than some of the other gangs out there, maybe smarter.

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They mostly operate in the astral, stashing their bodies someplace safe and being real good about not being followed back to them.

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It would take a real big score to get them to come out in the meat. Either that, or some pretty desperate gangers. Heard tell that a few of them are picking over the bones of some abandoned magicians’ clubhouse.

CAST OF SHADOWS LAURENT NAZAIRE Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Seattle Atlantean Foundation branch. A Haitian dwarf with a French-Quebecois accent, he’s open, down-toearth, and seemingly very honest. This makes many in the shadow community nervous because they don’t believe it, but thus far, no one has been able to dig up any dirt on him. He’s been a key figure in the Atlantean Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts, and he is obsessed in his quest to study these artifacts and discover everything about them. He knows that if the Draco Foundation gets their hands on the artifacts, they’ll lock them up tight away from the world, so he knows he needs to get to them first B

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Bound Spirits

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RECON

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10/12 8 Physical 5, Mental 8, Social 8 7 + 1D6 8 + 3D6 Banishing 9, Binding 10, Blades 4, Conjuring 10, Counterspelling 1, Computers 4, Gymnastics 3, Enchanting skill group 4, Etiquette 9 (Corporate +2), Leadership 9, Negotiation 10, Perception 7, Pistols 4, Ritual Spellcasting 10, Spellcasting 10 Arcana 4, Corporate Politics 3, English N, French 5, Magical Groups 3, Security 3 (Magical +2), Wines 4 None 3 Masking, Shielding, Psychometry Commlink (Device Rating 6), sustaining foci x 3 [Small golden lizard pin (Rating 5), emerald tie pin (Rating 4), and a small silver rose pin (Rating 4)], power focus (1meter-long gnarled mahogany staff topped with a large pearl, Rating 3), Zoe Executive Line suit (8) (longcoat, shirts, trousers) Analyze Device, Analyze Magic, Armor, Astral Window, Catalog, Detect Magic (Extended), Fashion, Flamethrower, Heal, Improved Invisibility, Magic Fingers, Manabolt, Physical Mask, Sterilize, Stunbolt, Trid Phantasm Spirit of air (Force 6, 5 services), spirit of earth (Force 5, 3 services), spirit of man (Force 5, 4 services), spirit of water (Force 4, 4 services) None


OUR LADY OF MERCY/ ELIZABETH NUNN Our Lady of Mercy has already lost her hair and taken on the pointed teeth common to nosferatu. Her skin is pale, and she has a slight odor of earth about her. When she plans on visiting the hospital, she wears nurse’s smocks and uses Physical Mask to disguise her features. When she is searching the streets and alleyways, she wears a long lady’s overcoat and a lady’s hat. Our Lady of Mercy was once an up-and-coming member of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She was very attractive and goal-oriented, but she contracted HMHVV 1A during an operation for the Illuminates. Once her circle members discovered her infection, they decided to earn a little extra cash and attempted to turn her in for the bounty. She barely escaped, and hid from them for several years until recent events brought her out of hiding. Her affliction has caused her to look at life differently, and she believes she is helping those who are about to die pass peacefully to the afterlife.

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10/11 12 9 + 1D6 Physical 6, Mental 7, Social 8 (varies with Essence) Banishing 4, Binding 4, Summoning 4, Disguise 4, Etiquette 4, Leadership 4, Negotiation 4, Perception 7, Sneaking 3, Counterspelling 2, Ritual Spellcasting 6, Spellcasting 6, Unarmed Combat 4 English N, Illuminates of the New Dawn 9 None 1 Masking Commlink (Device Rating 4), nurse’s smocks, Lady’s Greatcoat (12) Control Emotions, Detect Life, Manabolt, Mind Probe, Physical Mask Compulsion, Enhanced Senses (hearing, low-light vision, thermographic vision), Essence Drain*, Fear, Immunity (age, pathogens, toxins), Infection, Influence, Natural Weapon (bite), Regeneration, Sapience Allergy (sunlight, severe), Dietary Requirement (meta-human blood), Essence Loss (every 6 months). Bite [Reach –1, DV 5P, AP —]

* The maximum Essence that a nosferatu can drain is equal to three times its natural maximum Essence.

RECON

19

S H AD O W RUN

SEARCH MISSION SYNOPSIS Our Lady of Mercy discovered Magus Tyrone Girardi is responsible for her infection and had her under surveillance. Laurent Nazaire arranged to get the server files decrypted and found clues (specifically, a video) showing Girardi escaping from the an Illuminates of the New Dawn chapterhouse. Our Lady of Mercy wants him taken alive so she can interrogate him. The files indicate that an IoND safehouse is located in Puyallup. Nazaire sends them to find it. The team goes to Puyallup and discovers the location of the safehouse. When they get to the destination (a dilapidated hotel), they find no activity beyond patrolling watchers. The team infiltrates the hotel only to find it deserted in haste. Searching

BACKGROUND COUNTS Background counts impose a negative dice pool penalty equal to their Rating for all tests that are linked to or utilize magic in any way (i.e., spellcasting, summoning, assensing, any test made while astrally projecting, and any active skill that benefits from active adept powers such as Killing Hands, Critical Strike, Great Leap, Improved Skills, etc.). Dual Natured creatures and spirits suffer this penalty to all actions. Aspected background counts grants a boost to any limit that utilizes magic in any way (see above) to any metahuman, spirit, or dual-natured creature that matches the aspected domain. This includes spellcasting Force limits, so spellcasters need to be careful, as it can be hard to control the additional surge of mana. Any magically active being that does not match the aspected domain should treat this as a normal background count and suffer penalties. Background counts above 12 are called either a flux (for aspected domains) or a void (for magically dead zones), and they are dangerous. Any being that is magically or astrally active in any way (dual natured, astrally perceiving, casting a spell, has an active adept power, has an active foci, etc) takes background count – 12 unresisted Stun Damage each turn that they are active and exposed to the flux or void (if the number is zero or a negative, no damage is experienced).

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the hotel uncovers the magical/medical experiment rooms and subjects in various states of life and death in the lower level of the hotel. Unfortunately for them, the IoND left behind several booby traps (alchemical preparations) to slow down or disable enemies. Searching the lower level reveals an escape route via the sewers. The IoND is not far away. The runners enter the sewers and catch up with the rear guard of fleeing IoND. The team captures a member who reveals Girardi had been there, but he fled to another safehouse. Unfortunately, the next safe house is a bust, as far as finding Girardi goes, but they face a much larger force of IoND. The runners either sneak, deceive, or force their way in and discover Girardi has escaped town. They find he fled to his patron’s compound (either through decking or interrogation) The runners meet with Lazaire and Our Lady of Mercy. Should the runners reveal the existence of the hotel lab to Our Lady of Mercy, she is deeply upset and tells them that she must see the abandoned hotel for herself. They arrive at the hotel, and she is filled with horror and disgust. This steels her resolve to track Girardi to the ends of the earth. Should the runners not mention the horrors of the lab, she informs the runners that she must discuss some things with Nazaire and will be in contact with them over the next couple of days.

SCENE 1: MEET RINSE REPEAT SCAN THIS The team (or another team) successfully retrieved the Illuminates of the New Dawn (IoND) server from the ruined chapterhouse in the first mission in this book, Recon. Nazaire arranged to get the server files decrypted and found clues (namely, a video) showing Girardi escaping. Our Lady of Mercy wants him taken alive so she can interrogate him. The files indicate there is a safehouse to which he fled. Nazaire sends them to Puyallup to find and capture Girardi.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Read to runners who participated in the Recon Mission: Your commlink chirps, and you see you have a message from

Laurent Nazaire. It’s been a few days since your last run for him, and you finally recovered from your encounter with that wiz-kid gang out at the lodge. The message is short and to the point. You are to meet at the abandoned church after the sun goes down. Read to runners who did not participate in the Recon Mission: Your commlink chirps with an incoming text only. Your fixer has forwarded a message from one of his Johnsons with a job offer. The forwarded message is short and to the point: “Please send trusted associates to the attached address after the sun sets.” A quick search shows the address is an abandoned church in Capitol Hill. Once the runners arrive at the church, read the following to all: The church has definitely seen better days. The stainedglass windows have been replaced with plastiboard. The walkway leading up to the main entrance is cracked, but it looks like new flowers have been planted. A dark skinned dwarf, Laurent, awaits you at a cellar door. He nods wordlessly and opens the door. The door hinges squeak as you open it and peer into the darkness. At the bottom of the stairwell you find another door that opens into a surprisingly clean crypt. Candles light the bouquet-filled crypt, and another door stands wide open on the other end. You see a beautiful dark-haired woman dressed in an elegant, professional outfit through the open doorway, obviously straightening the room. The room appears both comfortable and welcoming. Laurent’s female friend asks you to have a seat and offers you refreshments in a beautiful voice.

BEHIND THE SCENES The runners arrive and meet Laurent Nazaire outside the church. He leads them through the crypt and into Our Lady of Mercy’s inner sanctum. Our Lady of Mercy cast Physical Mask on herself, appearing as an attractive dark-haired woman. She also maintains masking at all times. Laurent introduces her as Elizabeth Nunn (not Our Lady of Mercy). Nazaire had a decker examine and decrypt the files from the server recovered from the IoND chapterhouse for clues. To his surprise, video surveillance showed the head of the chapterhouse (Magus Tyrone Girardi) escaping. The server indicates he might have gone to a local IoND safehouse.

Our Lady of Mercy (Elizabeth Nunn) asks the runners to locate the safehouse and take Girardi alive for questioning. She offers the team 6,000 nuyen each. Each net hit (capped at 5 hits) on an Opposed Negotiation test increases the pay by 500 nuyen per net hit, with a maximum increase of 2,500 nuyen. Our Lady of Mercy informs the team the safehouse should be in the Puyallup Barrens, but nothing more could be gleaned from the data due to the amount of corruption.

DEBUGGING There should be nothing to debug at this time.

SCENE 2: FINDING THE ILLUMINATES IN THE DARK SCAN THIS The team must work the neighborhood to find the safehouse. All clues point to an abandoned hotel.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Ah, the Puyallup Barrens. Very few places are below even the lowest expectations, but here you are. Rotting garbage assaults your sense of smell as you pass what can just barely be called buildings. The air hangs heavy with grey soot and ash, not even the light, acidic drizzle can remove enough particulates to make breathing easier, making a filter or breather required. This is a dismal neighborhood with an even more dismal population. This is just the place for a member of a not-so-secret magical society to hide.

BEHIND THE SCENES The Puyallup Barrens is a large area. There are numerous abandoned buildings in which the IoND could be hiding. The runners have very little to go on besides a picture of Girardi. The air will cause discomfort if breathed without a filter of sorts; a simple scarf will help for a short time.

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The team will have to get out and start talking to the residents. The majority of residents have no clue what the IoND is. It will take a fair amount of bribery and actual legwork to get some useful information from them. This can be handled a couple of different ways or even through a combination of methods. Legwork in this case can be handled as an Extended Etiquette Test with a threshold of 8. Teamwork is allowed. If the face of the party steps forward and really roleplays well, feel free to award the player with the location. A decker may attempt to hack traffic cameras or other devices. Unfortunately, most of the Puyallup Barrens surveillance devices have been disabled due to vandalism, violence, and theft. The decker will be able to find one functioning device that will show Girardi in the passenger seat of a grey van heading in the general direction of the hotel. Note that the Barrens have a general noise Rating of 2.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE While working the streets, a local street gang, the Lords of Chaos, decides to target the runners for some harassment. There is one ganger per character for less-experienced teams, otherwise two gangers per runner.

The team may take an inordinate amount of time to find the appropriate information. Feel free to adjust the information they receive in order to move the storyline forward, but not so much that the face feels useless.

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SCAN THIS The team must infiltrate the hotel to find Girardi, but they find it deserted in haste. The runners come across booby traps (alchemical preparations) left behind, which means it wasn’t abandoned that long ago. The lower level of the hotel has several magical and medical work rooms. The lower level has access to the sewers which were used to evacuate the IoND personnel.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Perseverance and enough nuyen succeeded in revealing the Illuminates of the New Dawn safehouse. Finding that the safehouse is a large, three-wing dilapidated hotel really came as a surprise. It looks more like a festering sore with the overrun weeds and rusty steel covered windows. Ash covers the grounds with almost the deathly pallor of winter.

BEHIND THE SCENES

DEBUGGING

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skills

SCENE 3: SHINING A LIGHT ON THE ILLUMINATES

10 9 Physical 5, Mental 4, Social 5 6 + 1D6 Blades 8, Clubs 7, Etiquette (Street) 6 (8), Intimidation 7, Pistols 8, Unarmed Combat 7 Toughness Armor vest (9), Meta Link commlink (Device Rating 1), 1 dose each of cram and jazz Browning Ultra-Power [Heavy Pistols, Acc 5 (6), DV 8P, AP –1, SA, RC —, 10 (c)] Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1]

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NOTE: The ground floor and upper levels is a domain aspected to members of the Illuminates of the New Dawn at Rating 2. The lower level is also aspected at Rating 3. Some of the exam rooms have a separate background count Rating of 3-5 due to the experiments. The IoND used the hotel as a secret base of operations for various experiments. It is large enough to hide much of what the IoND doesn’t want to be seen. The hotel has three floors (ground level, first, and second floor) as well as a basement area. Ground-level windows are covered with rusted corrugated steel, whereas the upper levels have mostly intact windows. The IoND wanted the hotel to maintain as much of its abandoned look as possible while remaining functional. After the assault on the chapterhouse, the IoND is afraid they are the target of a bigger plan and are moving as many of their assets out of town as possible. External security consists of camouflaged video cameras. However, the IoND is in the final phases of evacuating, so no one is monitoring them. There are also two watchers patrolling the perimeter. The building does not have wards in place, though more sensitive areas have them. The upper levels have rooms set aside as quarters, ground level has quarters, communal use areas (showers, entertainment, food preparation, and dining). Cursory examination reveals the inhabitants departed recently (within the last hour, unless the characters have been observing the place longer). If the runners have been observing the building, they will note no one left the building for the duration of their surveillance. The lower levels have been converted for both ritual magic and medical experimentation. Several of the rooms still have subjects strapped to the tables sitting in the middle of


magic circles. Some subjects are dead, others dying, still others are … something like healthy? The IoND didn’t just leave everything for grabs though. They have left behind a few mystical booby traps, alchemical preparations. All the booby traps are on the lower level (or on the steps down to) the lower level. The booby traps can be discovered with a successful Arcana + Intuition [Mental] (1) Test or with a successful astral Assensing + Intuition [Mental] (1) Test. In order to “disarm” the booby traps, the character must touch the preparation and make a successful Opposed Disenchanting + Magic [Astral] Test vs. the preparation’s Force + the alchemist’s Magic Rating (in this case, dice pool of 12). Each net hit reduces the preparations potency by 1 (p. 307, SR5). Booby traps (alchemical preparations, p. 304, SR5) have been left in various locations left up to gamemaster to challenge runners. Possible locations include steps, doorframes, door handles, etc. The traps consist of a Fireball, Force 6, Contact trigger, Potency 4 (initial) preparation. The booby traps will last for an initial 8 hours, and will lose 1 point of Potency each hour thereafter. When triggered at full Potency, the booby traps roll 10 dice. The IoND used the sewers to make their escape. When the team searches the lower level, they discover the access point and can make out noises in the distance with a suc-

cessful Perception + Intuition [Mental] (1) Test with a –3 dice pool modifier due to distance. Audio enhancement applies, but not visual.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE In the rush to evacuate, one or more of the subjects are loose and attack the first thing they find (the runners).

DEBUGGING The runners may take too much damage from the booby traps. Adjust them as necessary to allow the team a chance to complete the run. Teams may not search the entire lower level to find the escape route; use Perception checks as necessary to move the runners in that direction.

WATCHER, FORCE 6 (2) B

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IOND ABANDONED HOTEL HOST

BEHIND THE SCENES

HOST: IOND

The last four IoND members are escaping via the sewers. They stayed behind to set the booby traps and are confident that no one will pursue them. The team is able to easily sneak up on them as long as they use stealth. Make an opposed roll against the IoND’s Perception (teamwork test). When the team captures one or more of the IoND, they may freely interrogate the captive. Have them roll Intimidation + Charisma [Social] against Charisma + Willpower. The existing applicable modifiers are: hostile and harmful (–6 dice pool modifier to interrogator). Apply appropriate modifiers beyond these from p. 140, SR5. Should the team fail to leave an IoND member alive, they find the location on one of the IoND’s commlinks—he had it pulled up in a navigation application.

RATING

ATTACK

SLEAZE

DATA PROC.

FIREWALL

3

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6

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Installed IC: Black IC, Probe, Tar Baby, Track Slaved Devices: Physical security (cameras exterior only) Spiders: None Sculpting: Security room

Running through the lower halls on all fours resembling a large horned mastiff. Suddenly it roars at spotting the party it rises to it full height revealing a troll in tattered coveralls. Mystic sigils have been carved into its flesh, and wires have been attached at various points. It is a strange hybrid of man, machine, and magic.


RAMPAGING TROLL TEST SUBJECTS (PROFESSIONAL RATING 6) B

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SCENE 4: HUNTING IN THE DARK SCAN THIS The runners go into the sewers and catch up with the rear guard of the escaping IoND. If they are able to capture one alive, they discover Girardi was there but fled to another safehouse.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT The dilapidated hotel just above your head felt like a fivestar hotel compared to the sewers below. You thought the Barrens above reeked of human waste; well, this is human waste in the raw. If you didn’t hear the obvious sounds of metahuman movement up ahead as well as see flickering light, nothing could force you to come down here.

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A basilisk has taken up residence in the sewer system. The IoND disposed of their “waste” in the sewer system, which drew and kept the basilisk in the area. The initial sewer traffic caused it to stay a distance away, but now it’s quieter so it decides to investigate.

DEBUGGING The runners may balk at going into the sewers; they have to in order to get the next location’s address.

IOND OUTER ORDER MEMBER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 4) B

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Qualities Gear Spells

11 12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 6 6 + 1D6 (10 + 3D6) 6 + 2D6 Alchemy 10, Arcana 8, Assensing 7, Banishing 9, Counterspelling 4, Gymnastics 6, Etiquette 8, Perception 10, Ritual Spellcasting 12, Spellcasting 12, Summoning 9 Analytical Mind, Focused Concentration 4, Quick Healer, SINner Armor jacket (12), commlink (Device Rating 3), ear buds (Rating 1), glasses (Rating 1, w/ image link), reagants (50 drams) Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Improved Invisibility, Increase Reflexes (cast at Force 4 with 4 hits and sustained with Focused Concentration), Fireball (alchemical), Flamethrower, Manabolt, Watcher ritual, Ward ritual


BASILISK B

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SCENE 5: TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER SCAN THIS Unfortunately, this safehouse is another bust, but the group faces a much larger force of IoND thugs. Once they infiltrate the compound, trick the IoND members, or assault it, they discover Girardi has skipped town. They also discover he went to his patron’s compound, either through decking or interrogation.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT So, the hotel was a bust. Girardi seems to be one step ahead of you. However, the information you received from the sewer rats seems solid. This safehouse is much nicer than that old hotel and in a prettier neighborhood. The safehouse is a three-story Victorian style home with a wraparound porch. It reminds you of those houses you see in trids about farms, or horror flicks. It would seem almost tranquil if it weren’t for the half-dozen IoND members putting boxes into the back of those panel trucks and the other half-dozen heavily armed guards attempting to stay hidden around the property.

BEHIND THE SCENES The team has an idea where Girardi is located. They make their way to the safehouse and see that it too is in the process of evacuation. However, the evacuation is obvious from the vehicles being loaded and the sheer amount of activity. The team has several options: covert infiltration, talking their way in (deception), or brute force. If the team does not take necessary precautions to remain hidden or blend in, the IoND members will take swift, violent action. Infiltration: Successful infiltration and search of the compound reveals Girardi is not there. Should the team remain successfully hidden long enough, they will be able to gain enough knowledge from listening to the IoND members to ascertain this information. If the team listens to enough discussion (Perception + Intuition [Mental] (8, 10 minutes) Extended Test, the group may use teamwork to gather the data quickly. An alternative is to snag an IoND member and interro-

gate him/her. A successful Intimidation + Charisma [Social] vs. Intimidation + Willpower Opposed Test (p.141, SR5; the New Dawn members have a dice pool of four) will reveal the need to speak with Magister Tamera Plinick to get the answer the team seeks. To get past the IoND guards, have the infiltrating character(s) make a Sneaking + Agility [Physical] Opposed Test vs. the guards’ Perception + Intuition [Mental] (the guards have a dice pool of 11). Apply any appropriate modifies for light, Invisibility spells, or spirit powers. Sneaking around inside the safehouse requires a successful Sneaking + Agility [Physical] Opposed Test vs. the IoND members’ Perception + Intuition [Mental] (the guards have a dice pool of 10). Deception: Successful deception and discussion with enough IoND members will reveal Girardi is gone. The team may decide to either con their way in or attempt to impersonate an Initiate of the New Dawn. Conning their way in would require a Con + Charisma [Social] Opposed Test (+1 dice pool modifier for IoND members being distracted) vs. Con + Charisma [Social]; the dice pools are 4 for guards and 3 for members. Attempting to impersonate IoND membership would require an Impersonation + Charisma [Social] test vs. Perception + Intuition ([Social] with a dice pool of 11 for guards and 10 for average members. A second Con test against an New Dawn member will reveal that Magister Tamera Pinick knows where Girardi has gone. Brute force: A team may decide to shoot first and ask questions later. Taking a live IoND member and interrogating him/ her is optimal in this option. The Outer Order members will start to head for the vans in this event, allowing the guards to handle the attackers. To discover Girardi’s location, the team must interrogate the right IoND member, which requires them to speak with or interrogate Magister Tamera Plinick (see Cast of Shadows). The team should discover the person to whom they need to speak via any of the above methods. An alternative would be hacking into the safehouse host, which provides the general location of Girardi’s patron. Magister Tamera Plinick will not give up the information easily. If the team is not able to subdue her quietly or come up with a really good reason a lowly member of the organization would need this information, she will raise an alarm and bring everything she can to bear against the runners. Her spirits will variously attempt to protect her directly and eliminate any threats to her wellbeing. She can generally be found on the safehouse’s upper floor, although she will flee toward one of the vans if the players enter with guns blazing.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE Another group discovered the problems the IoND are experiencing and decided to take advantage of it. They hire a pair of snipers to shoot anyone on the property, which includes the runners.

DEBUGGING There are several things that could go wrong here—in a tournament situation, let them happen. The best team moves forward, those who do not handle the situation well will

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earn their struggles. For home or less competitive games reduce the number of Outer Order numbers by half to facilitate the party reaching Magister Tamera Plinick.

IOND OUTER ORDER MEMBER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 6) B

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11 12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 7 6 + 1D6 (10 + 3D6) 6 + 2D6 Alchemy 10, Arcana 8, Assensing 7, Banishing 9, Counterspelling 4, Gymnastics 6, Etiquette 8, Perception 7, Ritual Spellcasting 12, Spellcasting 12, Summoning 9 Analytical Mind, Focused Concentration 4, Quick Healer, SINner Armor jacket (12), commlink (Device Rating 3), ear buds (Rating 1), glasses (Rating 1, w/ image link), reagents (50 drams) Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Fireball (alchemical), Flamethrower, Improved Invisibility, Increase Reflexes (cast at Force 4 with 4 hits and sustained with Focused Concentration), Manabolt, Watcher ritual, Ward ritual

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IOND GUARDS (PROFESSIONAL RATING 4) B

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11 18 (fire 22, non-conductivity 24) Physical 9 (10), Mental 6, Social 6 9 (11) + 3D6 Automatics 18, Clubs 16, Gymnastics 13, Heavy Weapons 16, Intimidation 14, Perception 11, Sneaking 19, Unarmed Combat 19 (all betaware): Cybereyes (Rating 4, w/ eye recorder unit, flare compensation, image link, low light vision, smartlink, thermographic vision, vision enhancement 3, vision magnification), cyber safety, muscle replacement 3, wired reflexes 2 Commlink (Device Rating 5), AR gloves, ear buds (Rating 1), subvocal microphone, SWAT armor w/ helmet (18) (Fire resistance Rating 4, Nonconductivity Rating 6) Ares Alpha [Assault Rifle, Acc 5 (7), DV 11P, AP –2, SA/BF/FA, RC 4, 42 (c), w/ cyber safety, integral smartlink, gas-vent 3, shock pads] Grenade launcher [Grenade Launcher, Acc 4 (6), DV 10S, AP –4, SS, RC —, 6 (c), w/ airburst link, flash-bang grenades] Stun baton [Club, Acc 4, Reach 1, DV 9S(e), AP –5]


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TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Girardi seems one step ahead at each turn, but just barely. It is obvious he is on the run and fears for his life. You meet Laurent Nazaire and Elizabeth to provide the information you have on his departure and possible whereabouts. It is obvious that Elizabeth is upset he had departed Seattle. She thanks you for your hard work, provides your pay, and asks you to be prepared for another try at Girardi in the near future.

BEHIND THE SCENES Our Lady of Mercy/Elizabeth is upset that Girardi slipped their grasp. If the runners tell her about the abandoned hotel, she is visibly upset and pays them the agreed-upon amount and tells them to be ready for a follow up job offer. If the runners avoid telling her about the horrors, she pays them their agreed amount and tells them to be ready for a follow-up job offer.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE There is no need to push the envelope at this point.

DEBUGGING There shouldn’t be anything to debug.

SPIRIT OF WATER #2 (FORCE 5) B

runners that she must discuss some things with Nazaire and will be in contact with them over the next couple of days.

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SCENE 6: EVENING CHURCH SCAN THIS The runners meet with Lazaire/Our Lady of Mercy. If the runners tell her about the abandoned hotel and what they found, Our Lady of Mercy is visibly upset. She informs the


6,000 nuyen (+500¥ per success, maximum of 5 net hits) for investigating the safehouse and providing Our Lady the information that Gerardi has left town.

KARMA • • •

2 Karma for surviving

•

2 Karma for taking Our Lady to the first safehouse

1 Karma for finding the second safehouse 1 Karma for obtaining the information that Girardi skipped town

GAMEMASTER REWARD When running this adventure you may choose to count the Missions as “played” for their personal Shadowrun Missions character. You must choose to do this the first time your run this Mission only, and take the optional results to match those the team you gamemastered for earned. You may not

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choose to wait for a better attempt to choose your rewards. You’re on the honor system here, so please don’t skew the adventure to help the players gain extra rewards just so that you can get better results. You will earn a flat amount of Karma and nuyen, regardless of how well (or poorly) the players do, listed below. For other missions results and rewards that you track on the Debriefing Log (objectives completed, reputation and contacts earned, etc.), take the average results of the group you’re gamemastering for. So if four out of six players earned a point of Notoriety, you will earn one as well. If only two players out of five earn a +1 Loyalty with Simon, you would not get that +1 Loyalty. Along those lines.

• •

Karma Earned: 6 Nuyen Earned: 7,000

REPUTATION During the adventure, runners may perform actions that will add to their Street Cred, Notoriety, or Public Awareness (p. 372, SR5). Besides the scenario-specific gains listed below, gamemasters should consider the characters’ actions throughout the game and award additional points as appropriate. If a player earns Public Awareness or Notoriety, don’t be afraid to give them extra points.

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+1 Street Cred if the players reveal the IoND activities at the first IoND safehouse to Our Lady

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+1 Notoriety for any player who hides (or failed to inform) Our Lady of the activities at the first safehouse

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+1 Public Awareness if the team goes in guns blazing at the second IoND safe house

CONTACTS Successfully completing objectives or performing the actions listed below will earn characters specific Missions contacts at a Loyalty of 1, and they should be given the Contact Sheet included with this Mission. If they already have that contact, they gain a +1 Loyalty to that contact (up to a maximum of 4). Characters might interact with NPCs not specified by the Mission and may earn these NPCs as a contact at Loyalty 1. They may also work with non-Mission specific contacts that they have already earned or that they bought at character creation, and gain a +1 Loyalty to these contacts, with a maximum Loyalty of 4. Gamemasters should not grant these lightly, and players should have to work to earn these contacts by going the extra mile to impress the NPC, offering up favors, or paying them well above the standard rates for information or services.

•

+1 Loyalty (up to a maximum of 4) with Laurent Nazaire for providing him with the information that Girardi skipped town.

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+1 Loyalty with Elizabeth Nunn (up to a maximum of 4) for providing her with the information that Girardi

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skipped town. –1 Loyalty with her if they fail to obtain the information

•

+1 Loyalty with Elizabth Nunn (up to a maximum of 4) if they reveal the horrors of the first IoND safehouse. –1 Loyalty if they did not reveal the horrors of the first IoND safehouse to her.

LEGWORK When a PC gets in touch with a contact, make an unopposed Connection + Connection Test for the contact. The results of this test determine how many ranks of information the contact knows about the question. If the relevance of the subject is a specialty of the contact, they get +3 to this test. The player then makes an unopposed Charisma + Etiquette + Loyalty test, the results of which determine how many ranks of information the contact is willing to divulge for free, up to the max ranks of information they know. If the contact knows more, they will require a payment of 500¥ – (Loyalty*100¥, minimum 100¥) per rank of information they still know. If the PCs have worked all of their contacts, and are still missing important information, they may request that a contact ask around. If they do so, have the Contact make an extended (Connection + Connection (1 hour)) test. Additional information will be available at a cost of 1,000¥- (Loyalty*100¥, minimum 200¥). A Matrix Search action (p. 241, SR5) may also be utilized to gather information from the following charts, using the appropriate thresholds and search times.

LAURENT NAZAIRE Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Fixer, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman, Mafia, Tamanous

Contacts 0

Search Time 0


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Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Atlantean Foundation’s Seattle Branch. He’s a Haitian dwarf with a strong accent. He was pretty active in the Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts .

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You can keep asking around, but nobody has any dirt on this gut. Down-to-earth? Open? Honest? I don’t trust anyone like that myself. Gives me the jitters, you scan?

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The guy is obsessed in his quest to acquire and study arcane artifacts before the Draco Foundation can get their hands on them. He’s got a personal rivalry with them.

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I hear he’s helping an old friend out with some personal problems,


something to do with the Illuminates of the New Dawn.

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According to rumors, his friend is not a run-of-the-mill metahuman. There’s something off about her.


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Information They help those displaced in floods, if I remember right.

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ILLUMINATES OF THE NEW DAWN (IOND)

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They apparently made enemies of the groups that were part of the whole artifact rush. Word is that Our Lady of Mercy is on a warpath against them, and she has Nazaire backing her.


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Information You into the neo/ancient/goth thing or what?

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She hangs out in the Capitol Hill are and is pretty spooky.

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I hear that the local squatters love her because she protects them from the unsavory types.

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Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman

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Information Your plates will illuminate the room, try our new Dawn dishwashing detergent!

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Sure, sure. They’re big into “magocratic progressivism”— basically, they believe hermetic mages are way superior to everyone else, and so they should be in charge.

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The local Outer Order Circle’s headed up by some New Century Parts apparatchik called Tyrone Girardi. Word is he sometimes walks on the shadowy side of the line.

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Heard their chapterhouse in Bellevue was prettly well destroyed in a nasty dust up recently. Sounds like their leaders are going to ground.

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CAST OF SHADOWS

OUR LADY OF MERCY/ ELIZABETH NUNN

LAURENT NAZAIRE Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Seattle Atlantean Foundation branch. A Haitian dwarf with a French-Quebecois accent, he’s open, down-toearth, and seemingly very honest. This makes many in the shadow community nervous because they don’t believe it, but thus far, no one has been able to dig up any dirt on him. He’s been a key figure in the Atlantean Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts, and he is obsessed in his quest to study these artifacts and discover everything about them. He knows that if the Draco Foundation gets their hands on the artifacts, they’ll lock them up tight away from the world, so he knows he needs to get to them first B

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Our Lady of Mercy has already lost her hair and taken on the pointed teeth common to nosferatu. Her skin is pale, and she has a slight odor of earth about her. When she plans on visiting the hospital, she wears nurse’s smocks and uses Physical Mask to disguise her features. When she is searching the streets and alleyways, she wears a long lady’s overcoat and a lady’s hat. Our Lady of Mercy was once an up-and-coming member of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She was very attractive and goal-oriented, but she contracted HMHVV 1A during an operation for the Illuminates. Once her circle members discovered her infection, they decided to earn a little extra cash and attempted to turn her in for the bounty. She barely escaped, and hid from them for several years until recent events brought her out of hiding. Her affliction has caused her to look at life differently, and she believes she is helping those who are about to die pass peacefully to the afterlife. B

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MAGISTER TAMERA PLINICK Magister Tamera Plinick is the head of Outer Order Circle Chapterhouse 12 (OOCC12) which is located in Seattle. She reports to Magus Tyrone Girardi and is concerned about the recent hit on the OOCC13 hunting lodge and the Bellevue chapterhouse. When Girardi instructed her to clear out as quickly as possible, she didn’t hesitate in getting the members of her chapterhouse moving. B

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9/11 8 Physical 3, Mental 7, Social 7 9 + 1D6 12 + 2D6 Archery 4, Assensing 3, Athletics skill group 7, Binding 7 (Water Elementals +2), Close Combat skill group 4, Counterspelling 3, Gymnastics 3 (Climbing +2), Electronics skill group 4, Etiquette 3, Locksmith 4, Perception 3, Spellcasting 7 (Illusion +2), Stealth skill group 7 (Sneaking +2), Summoning 7 (Water Elementals +2), Tracking 3 Corporate Politics 4, English N, Finance 3, Fine Cuisine 4, Modern Literature 3, Safehouses 4, Security Systems 3 Catlike, Day Job, Magician, Natural Athlete, SINner 3 Masking, extended masking, flexible signature Actioneer Business Clothes, cellular glove molder (Rating 3), chameleon suit, AR gloves, ear buds (Rating 1), electronics kit, glasscutter, goggles (Rating 4, w/ flare compensation, image link, smartlink, ultrasound), Hermes Ikon commlink (device rating 5), keycard copier (Rating 5), lockpick set, subvocal microphone, Sustaining focus (Health, Force 5: currently sustaining Increase Agility, 4 hits), Sustaining focus (Illusion, Force 5: currently unused), 8 spare crossbow bolts Analyze Device, Catalog, Detect Life, Ignite, Improved Invisibility, Increase Agility, Levitate, Mass Confusion, Physical Mask, Stealth Spirit of earth (Force 5, optional power: Confusion, 4 successes), spirit of water (Force 5, optional power: accident, 3 successes), spirit of water (Force 5, optional power: Binding, 3 successes) Heavy crossbow [Heavy Crossbow, Acc 5, DV 10P, AP –3, Modes: SS, RC —, 4 (m)]

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S H AD O W RUN

RECOVER INTRODUCTION Recover is a Shadowrun Missions living campaign adventure. Full information on the Shadowrun Missions living campaign is available at shadowruntabletop.com/Missions and includes a guide to creating Missions characters and a regularly updated FAQ. All maps, player handouts, and other playing aids are found at the end of this document.

MISSION SYNOPSIS Laurent Nazaire and Elizabeth Nunn, known as Our Lady of Mercy, arrange for a coyote to get the runners to Montreal


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to find the location where Magus Girardi of the Illuminates of the New Dawn is currently located. Though they know the general location of the compound, they don’t know the exact location. The runners are in a different city and need to work the streets/local fixers/runners to find it. Legwork brings them into contact with Hellbent, the area leader for the Hellsouls, who can provide them the necessary info … for a price.

SCENE 1: FETCHEZ LA VACHE SCAN THIS Nazaire and Our Lady of Mercy meet with the runners at Elizabeth’s hideout in Seattle to give them the details of this mission.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT If the runners have previously completed the Search Mission: As promised, you received a commlink message from Nazaire asking you to meet him back at the abandoned church in Capitol Hill. It still feels odd to enter a church for biz, especially one converted into a home, but apparently Elizabeth likes meeting here. Once again, you enter the crypts and are astounded at the cleanliness of it. Elizabeth is in a better mood than when last you saw her, but she also appears full of restrained energy. If the runners have NOT completed the Search Mission: Another day, still no nuyen. The sky is just starting to darken toward dusk when your commlink chirps with a call from your fixer. “Got any big plans for the evening? Didn’t think so. That’s good—means you’re available for some work. I got a Mr. Johnson wanting a few boys and girls for some well-paying shenanigans. The meet’s in an hour, at the old Catholic church in Capitol Hill.”

BEHIND THE SCENES The runners meet Nazaire and Our Lady of Mercy at her abandoned church/lair to discuss the next step in capturing the elusive Girardi.

Our Lady is anxious to get started and is slightly frustrated that previous attempts have failed to locate your quarry, though they revealed previously unknown information. The task is to get to Montreal, work the local scene to discover Girardi’s exact location and capture him. Our Lady of Mercy will not accompany the team, but she will want to be kept up to date with their progress. She is obviously very anxious for information—any information—but is keeping her cool. A Judge Intentions (3) Test (p. 152, SR5) will tell the runners that she wants Girardi dead and will also give them a +1 dice pool modifier to their Negotiation test, if they attempt to gain a larger payment. She realizes the last portion of the task requires travel and is more risky, so she offers the runners 8,000 nuyen each. Each net hit will increase the final pay by 500 nuyen, with a cap of 4 net hits (2,000 nuyen extra each). Nazaire arranges travel to Montreal via a coyote. The team may take any equipment with them, except large drones and/ or vehicles. He instructs the runners to meet his contact, a coyote and sometime smuggler who goes by Wild Willy, at a set of coordinates at 2100 hours. Should the runners check the coordinates, mapsofts display nothing but a pasture surrounded by trees.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE There is no need to push the envelope.

DEBUGGING It’s assumed that the runners are currently in Seattle. If they are not, the meet can be handled virtually. Our Lady of Mercy will not be part of the virtual meet, but Nazaire will be. The coordinates for the meet with Wild Willy will change to a similar setting closer to their location.

SCENE 2: GO TIME SCAN THIS Nazaire provides a coyote to get them to Montreal where Girardi is currently hiding.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Arriving at the provided coordinates, you are able to go as far as a trailhead on the far north edge of Seattle. Everett, to be exact. You grab your gear and make your way into the already dark woods as a light mist falls. After a short trek, the woods open onto a clearing with a large, dark shape sitting to one side, as if hiding near the trees. A tall, broad figure steps from the side of the dark shape and nods in your direction. A better look at him reveals an ork with hair that may have never been touched by a brush, a shirt which appears to have been buttoned in the dark, pants that look inside out, a combat boot on one foot and a sneaker on the other. This must be Wild Willy.

BEHIND THE SCENES Nazaire’s coyote contact is a member of the Cascade Orks named Wild Willy. Willy has been running the NAN/Everett border for years and knows every kilometer like the back of his hand. He runs a GMC Banshee for his trips and is ready to depart when the runners arrive. The runners follow the coordinates until they reach a trailhead for a walking trail. The GPS shows the meet point is another 100 meters in the woods. The runners discover a field in the middle of the woods with a GMC Banshee resting in it. Wild Willy assists loading and stowing their equipment, speaking only when asked a direct question. Unless the question has to do with vehicles, the answers are unintelligible or nonsense. Once everyone and everything is aboard, Wild Willy takes off and points the GMC Banshee toward Montreal, at around 2200 local.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE It’s the woods at night, and a group of hell hounds crossed the border looking for prey. The runners look pretty tasty as they load the Banshee.

DEBUGGING The runners may have a hard time with the hell hounds if they show up in the Pushing the Envelope section. Have Wild Willy pull out a sawed-off shotgun and take out a couple of hell hounds.

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If the runners attempt to hijack the Banshee, let its anti-theft system take care of it. The vehicle has a biometric lock on the ignition, and it will send an 8S(e) pulse through the crew compartment once every fifteen seconds until deactivated through a manual key input entry into the sensor control board.

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The Draco Foundation heard the Illuminates of the New Dawn evacuated many of their safehouses and believes the runners took some artifacts to Montreal. Unfortunately, the Draco team received bad information and mistakenly attacks the party, believing they are part of the Initiates.

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11/10 2 Physical 8, Mental 4, Social 6 10 + 3D6 x2/x6/+24 Exotic Ranged Weapon 4, Intimidation 3, Perception 3, Running 4, Sneaking 5, Tracking 5, Unarmed Combat 3 Armor 2, Dual Natured, Elemental Attack (Fire), Enhanced Senses (Hearing, Low-Light Vision, Smell), Fear, Immunity to Fire, Natural Weapon (Bite: DV 7P, AP –1)

SCENE 3: BIENVENUE A MONTREAL SCAN THIS Though the runners know what city the compound is in, they don’t know the exact location. They are in a different city and need to work the streets/local fixers/runners to find it.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Ah, Montreal. Well, an abandoned airstrip outside Montreal, at any rate. Not much to see except the lights of the city in the distance. If this were a sightseeing trip, you’d be demanding your money back from the tour guide. But, seeing as how you’re sneaking into Quebec illegally, having nothing around to see means you’re not going to be seen either. Probably.

The main thing that could go wrong here is if the runners decide to do something silly, like attack Willy or try to steal his ride. In that unhappy event, the Banshee will have biometric locks on the ignition to keep them from stealing it, and La Gendarmarie will show up to arrest the runners (if they don’t wise up and flee in the Eurovan) as attempt to hack it. Use the Draco Foundation Hirelings stats for the Gendarmarie officers. The other possible issue would be if the runners try to arrange their own transportation and housing in Montreal. Unless one of the runners is local to the city, their contacts will all be at –2 on any legwork rolls due to the fact that it is unfamiliar territory. Laurent is the exception, but he will remind the runners that he has already made arrangements for them and, if the runners don’t find them satisfactory, he’d be more than willing to hire someone else who would find them less objectionable.

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BEHIND THE SCENES The five-hour ride from Everett to Montreal went smoothly, touching down around 0600. Wild Willy sets the Banshee down at a semi-abandoned airstrip—apparently smugglers frequent it. Nazaire arranged ground transportation through Wild Willy. The runners must figure out where the compound is, and they have very little to nothing for information. Willy points at a nondescript Renault-Fiat Eurovan that has obviously seen better days and grunts that the address for a safehouse is already programmed into its autopilot. “Safe” is a relative term, though, as the place is in West Island, one of the more rundown neighborhoods in Montreal.

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SCENE 4: HOPE YOU GUESSED MY NAME

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11 14 Physical 7 (8), Mental 6, Social 6 12 + 3D6 Athletics skill group 8, Blades 11, Gymnastics (Defense) 13 (14), Etiquette (Street) 7 (9), Firearms skill group (Pistols) 12(14), Perception (Visual) 12(14), Pilot Ground Craft (Car) 15(17), Unarmed Combat 13 Ambidextrous Attribute Boost (Agility) 1 (Active, 2 hits), Combat Sense 2, Critical Strike 1, Improved Ability (Blades) 1, Improved Ability (Pistols) 2, Improved Reflexes 2, Killing hands Armored jacket w/ helmet (14), AR gloves, commlink (Device Rating 3), contact lenses (Rating 2, w /image link and smartlink), fake SIN (Rating 4), quick draw holsters 2 x Colt Governments [Heavy Pistols, Acc 6, DV 9P, AP –2, SA, RC —, 14(c) w/ internal smartlink, EX ammo] Sword [Blade, Acc 6, Reach 1, DV 9P, AP –2] Unarmed [Acc 8, Reach 0, DV 5P, AP —] Combat knife [Blade, Acc 6, Reach —, DV 8P, AP –3]

SCAN THIS The safehouse Nazaire arranged for the runners is in one of the worst neighborhoods in all Montreal, West Island. Here they will meet Hellbent (see Cast of Shadows), the area Hellsoul leader, who provides them the information they need—for a price.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT The coordinates Wild Willy gave you drops you off in a rundown neighborhood known as West Island. Besides the few AROs that pop up in French, it would be as if you hadn’t left Seattle. The neighborhood looks almost the same as the Puyallup Barrens, only more soul sucking.

BEHIND THE SCENES West Island is the absolute worst neighborhood of all Montreal. Gangs, Gabriel hounds, the Infected, shadowhounds, and even incubi roam this area. This is an area rife with dan-

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gers and the team must find a way to get the information they need without the inhabitants consuming them. The West Island area suffers from a Noise rating of 2 due to the ramshackle infrastructure and the lack of local Matrix support. There is no background count, but the entire area has a desperate undertone to it. The safehouse is a low-rent flop on the second floor over a pretty rough bar. It’s not the clubhouse of any particular gang, but enough members of the Hellsouls drink here that theirs are the only gang colors visible. Other patrons include a few locals, a couple of prostitutes, and a scared looking pair of college kids that obviously walked into the wrong bar but are too proud to walk out the door again. The runners must meet Hellbent, the area Hellsoul leader (see sidebar). The Hellsouls don’t like strangers in their territory, unless those strangers are useful. In this case, Hellbent sees the runners as useful and expendable. There are at least a couple dozen Hellsouls hanging around the clubhouse ready for action, but they will not attack strangers unless a clear threat is present or is made. Legwork to locate Hellbent can be handled as an Etiquette + Charisma [Social] (8, 30 minutes) Extended Test, with teamwork allowed. If the face of the team steps forward and really role-plays well, feel free to award the player with the name. Conducting the negotiations in French lowers the threshold by 1 for every French-speaking character that is assisting, up to a maximum modifier of –5. The other way to get an introduction would be to successfully beat down the Hellsouls, either in a bar brawl or single combat. Actually killing any of them will make any negotiations with Hellbent suffer a –2 dice pool penalty for the rest of the mission, but there is no penalty for beating either the address of their clubhouse or an introduction to Hellbent out of the gangers. There is the same number of gangers drinking at the bar as there are runners. Hellbent is aware of the compound and wants the Illuminates gone. Unfortunately, previous attempts to oust the current residents proved unsuccessful. He is more than happy to send the runners in the right direction, but not without getting something out of the runners.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE There are several options here. A glitch on any part of the Etiquette test will result in some of the gang members attacking to defend their club’s honor. One of the gang’s groupies could drunkenly stumble into one of the runners, spilling her drink him, and her equally drunk boyfriend will jump in to defend her. Additional gang members could be coming in to drink and jump into the fray. La Gendarmarie could raid the bar.

DEBUGGING If the runners can’t locate the clubhouse on their own, a bartender with a black eye and split lip (compliments of a drunken Hellsoul) could discreetly slip the location to the quietest, least obviously armed of the runners.

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HELLSOUL HUMAN GANGER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 4)

THE HELLSOULS The Hellsouls are still the biggest, most powerful motorcycle club in Montreal. The Hellsouls evolved from a true motorcycle club into an organized-crime group running a city from small local beginnings. The words “gang” and “club” are freely interchangeable when describing this organization. They accept members from any metatype or ethnicity, Francophone or Anglophone. Largely responsible for decimating the Mafia at the turn of the century, they have since been at war with other potential usurpers, bloodily bringing down club after club that has tried to dethrone them. Nothing really happens in Montreal without the Hellsouls’ say-so. They sit atop a feudal pyramid of smaller clubs and even more street gangs, all of which distribute drugs, chips, and guns while controlling prostitution and extortion rings.

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SCENE 5: RULES HAPPEN TO OTHER PEOPLE SCAN THIS Having located the Hellsouls, the runners negotiate with their leader for the location of the compound.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT The home of the Hellsouls is just as rundown as every other building in West Island, though the graffiti makes it one of the most colorful—if you’re into scenes of devils and damnation, at any rate. The palpable aura of menace keeps the cartoonish images from being even a little humorous. The three guys lounging around outside the door and making no effort to hide the heavy pistols hanging from waist or shoulder holsters also add to the ambience. The smugly confident looks on their faces, despite the fact that they are outnumbered and probably outgunned, make it completely obvious that they’ve got plenty of friends waiting inside. When you enter, there is a troll with devil-style horns and red-tinted skin inside. He is armed with a bow styled like flames and wears a ballistic mask styled into a devil’s face. He steps out of your way to reveal a room in disarray. At the far end sits Hellbent, lounging on a sofa. The room is scattered with gang members deep in conversation, cleaning weapons and sorting drugs; they eye the runners suspiciously.

BEHIND THE SCENES Hellbent wants the Initiates out of the compound, but he is a good enough leader not to throw his own members under that particular bus and a smart enough leader to try to kill two birds with one stone. He will agree to provide the location of the compound to the runners if they manage to adulterate a shipment of simsense chips that his sources tell him are due to ship out of a warehouse two days from now. That warehouse is in an area not claimed by the gang, and they’d like to change that. Hellbent is smart, though, and knows that destroying the warehouse will only serve to reduce the potential income of the area. This way, when he controls the area, he can charge protection money to keep such dastardly deeds from occurring on the property again. No Negotiation test is necessary to get Hellbent to agree to this arrangement, but he will not be easily intimidated into just giving it to them. He receives +3 to resist Intimidation, because he has spent most of the day steeling his spine. His people will not initiate hostilities without Hellbent’s say-so, but they will also not be caught by surprise. If things deteriorate, Hellbent will give the runners one last chance to think about the wisdom of their actions, pointing out how they need him. He will also remind them that they are overwhelmingly outnumbered, and a long, long way from home.

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When they agree to the job, Hellbent tells them that the chips are a shipment from a pissant little corp in a nowhere little town off of Lake Erie. The routing number for the chips is Yukon … something or other. He didn’t catch the actual number, but he knows it relates to the point of origin somehow. If the players play nice, Hellbent will offer them an extra job if they can get as many of the chips altered as possible. He will not offer the extra funds if they have killed any of his men or tried to pick a fight with him. Hellbent gives them a small black box and tells them to put each tray of chips inside the box, then he presses the nondescript button on the side to wipe and re-write the chips inside. It takes about 12 seconds. Each tray holds one hundred chips. There are fifty trays in a case, so it should take ten minutes to wipe an entire case. There are six cases total, and Hellbent will pay an extra 500 nuyen per runner for each case they completely rewrite.

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PUSHING THE ENVELOPE A hungry pack of ghouls raids the gang’s base of operations and attacks everyone indiscriminately. There is one ghoul for each player character and one for every two gangers in the building; they will have already slain the two outside.

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1

13 18 Physical 9 (11), Mental 4, Social 3 6 (8) + 3D6 Archery 5, Blades 6, Pistols 3, Running 1, Unarmed Combat 4 Allergy (seafood, moderate), High Pain Tolerance (Rating 2), Toughness Aluminum bone lacing, cybereyes [Rating 2, w/ flare compensation, low-light, smartlink, thermographic], dermal plating 2, skilljack (Rating 3), skillwires (Rating 3), synaptic booster 2 Armor jacket (12, fire resistance (Rating 3), non-conductivity (rating 3)], ballistic mask [armor +2, trodes], commlink (device rating 6, sim module), English linguasoft (rating 3), fake SIN (rating 4), sneaking activesoft (rating 3), subvocal microphone, Survival activesoft (rating 3), Throwing Weapons activesoft (rating 3), 100 rounds APDS heavy pistol ammunition, 100 rounds explosive ammunition, 40 barbed arrows (rating 7) Bow [Rating 7, Acc 6, DV 10P, AP –3, SS, Barbed Arrows] Ares Predator V [Heavy Pistol, Acc 5(7), DV 8P, AP –5, SA, RC —, 15(c), w/ APDS ammo, 3 spare clips] Combat axe [Blade, Acc 4, Reach 2, DV 12P, AP –4] 3 x Frag grenades [DV 18P(f), AP +5, Blast –1/m] 3 x Thermal smoke grenades [Grenade, DV —, AP —, Blast 10m radius]

DEBUGGING The only real thing that could go wrong here is the runners getting in over their heads, either from provoking the Hellsouls or from Pushing the Envelope. If pushing the envelope, the Hellsouls will obviously fight on the runner’s side, though their priority will be protecting their leader. The ghouls should be chased off after the second full Combat Turn, if any have survived. If the runners decide to take on the Hellsouls, despite all the warnings and the knowledge that they can’t find the Illuminates without working with him, then the gamemaster may leave them to their fate. Any survivors that aren’t smart enough to run away will be left at a suitable location: the steps of the local precinct of La Gendarmarie, outside the door of the safehouse, Nazaire’s hotel room, etc. They will retain their weapons, but not any ammo that isn’t specifically in a hidden compartment, and they will have a new flaming pitchfork tattoo on the side of their face. If they do pick a fight and are smart enough to run for it, they can still talk their way back into Hellbent’s good graces with some suitable reparations and continue the mission. Otherwise, no amount of legwork will get them the information because no one is brave enough, or stupid enough, to cross the Hellsouls to talk to them. Nazaire will be willing to arrange their transport home, but he won’t pay them without the location.


SCENE 6: STOP, CHILDREN, WHAT’S THAT SOUND?

at the dock. Canisters are stacked and scattered across the dock, some three canisters high. Time to find a valuable little needle in a very well-protected haystack.

SCAN THIS

If the runners scout the building during the day, they will see a busy industrial complex. Two guards are stationed in each guard shack. The cranes are operated remotely by employees in small shacks at the base of each machine. A half-dozen dock workers load and unload cargo from the containers inside each of the two warehouse buildings. The site manager is in his office, and a single clerk is working in each office in the other two buildings. If the runners scout the building at night, they will see the place virtually deserted except for a set of six guards, one in each guard shack and three patrolling the grounds, as well as a single Force 6 bound air spirit. The spirit is controlled by one of the guards. It takes about fifteen minutes to complete a patrol; the rest of the time the patrolling guards are either in the break room or chitchatting with the gate guards. Also on site at night are the night manager, three dockworkers, and a single drone rigger. The night manager is in the office in the front building, and the others are all asleep in the on-call room.

The runners get the opportunity to scout out the warehouse.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT The warehouse on Rue St. Maurice is far enough away from the St. Lawrence River that only someone with olfactory enhancements would notice by the smell. The logos on the sides of the buildings and cranes state the facility is owned by the François Sea Freight. This area of town is an older section; the age shows in the narrowness of the streets and the obvious number of coats of point covering every building. Cobblestone shows through the concrete in patches where time has not been kind to the road and scavengers have not found it worthwhile to pry up. From the outside, the warehouse compound is a set of one-story industrial structures surrounded by a chainlink fence. A pair of cranes stand ready to transport cargo containers to and from the ships

BEHIND THE SCENES

RECOVER

39


The simsense chips are in container YU8-9832. On the side is a large Yukon Shipping logo. There are several ways of locating the container. If the runners hack the warehouse node, a successful Computer + Intuition [Data Processing] (2) Test in the warehouse node would get the location of a pallet shipped in from Cleveland, Ohio. Any appropriate Geography + Logic [Mental] (1) Test or Mapsoft would let the players know that Cleveland is on Lake Erie if they don’t already know that. An (appropriate knowledge skill—History, Trivia, or Useless Knowledge, for example) + Logic [Mental] (3) Test will let that runner remember that phone numbers back in the early days of the Ma Bell and home phones began with letters instead of numbers. In this case, YU would be “Yukon”. Physically locating the pallet will require a Perception + Intuition [Mental] (42, 5 minute) Extended Test. A successful Edge + Intuition [Mental] (3) Test by a single player can cut the threshold in half because they chose the correct building the first time. Splitting the party and searching both buildings simultaneously would reduce the threshold to 21, but each half of the party would be working toward that threshold independently. Any of the clerks, managers, or dock workers can get into the system to find the location of the chips, but the dock workers would have to know the container number in order to find it. The clerks can find the container number, but not the location. The managers can find all the information. Anyone slotting the chips before they are wiped will experience a personal jam session with Johnny Banger, rocker to the stars. Anyone slotting the chips after they are wiped will experience a workout session with three other little old ladies, set to polka music and lead by an overly cheerful little old man with a poofy cloud of white curly hair on his head and wearing super-short shorts.

WAREHOUSE HOST ATTACK

SLEAZE

DATA PROC.

FIREWALL

8

9

8

10

11

MUNDANE GUARDS (PROFESSIONAL RATING 3) R

4

4

4


40

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

3

3

2

3

3

6

10 12(14) Physical 5, Mental 4, Social 5 7 + 1D6 Automatics 3, Etiquette 3, Perception 4, Pistols 4, Running 3, Unarmed Combat 3 Armor jacket [12 w/ Non-conductivity 2], commlink (Device Rating 3) Colt Cobra TZ-120 [SMG, Acc 4(5), DV 7P, AP —, SA/BF/FA, RC 2(3), 32(c)] Fichetti Security 600 [Light Pistol, Acc 6 (7), DV 7P, AP —, SA, RC (1), 30(c)] Stun baton [Clubs, Acc 4, Reach 1, DV 9S(e), AP –5, 10 charges]

RECOVER

B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

M

3

4

4

3

4

4

4

3

6

6

10 12(14) Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 6 8 + 1D6 8 + 3D6 Assensing 4, Astral Combat 3, Conjuring skill group 6, Counterspelling 4, Leadership 3, Pistols 2, Spellcasting 4 Armor jacket [12 w/ Nonconductive 2], mage sight goggles (10m), commlink (Device Rating 3), Spellcasting (Combat) focus (Force 2) Detect Life, Light, Physical Barrier, Powerbolt, Silence, Stunball Fichetti Security 600 [Light Pistol, Acc 6 (7), DV 7P, AP —, SA, RC (1), 30 (c)] Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1]


Gear

Spells Weapons

AIR SPIRIT (FORCE 6) B

A

R

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L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

4

9

10

3

6

6

6

6

6

3

6

Condition Monitor Physical Initiative Astral Initiative Skills Powers

10/11 16 + 2D6 16 + 3D6 Assensing 6, Astral Combat 6, Exotic Ranged Weapon 6, Perception 6, Running 6, Unarmed Combat 6 Accident, Astral Form, Concealment, Confusion, Elemental Attack, Energy Aura, Engulf, Materialization, Movement, Sapience, Search +10 meters/hit when sprinting

DRONE RIGGER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 2)

Installed IC: Blaster, Tar Baby Slaved Devices: Three cargo cranes (Device rating 3) Spiders: n/a Sculpting: Default industrial

A

(PROFESSIONAL RATING 3)

Special

RATING

B

AWAKENED GUARD

B

A

R

4

3

5

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Matrix Initiative Skills

Qualities Augmentation Gear

Weapons

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

3

4

5

2

2

3.2

10 12(14) Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 4 7 + 1D6 8 + 3D6 (hot-sim 8 + 4D6) Automotive Mechanic 8, Blades 1, Computer 4, Gunnery 3, Hardware 6, Industrial Mechanic 4, Pilot Ground Craft 6, Pistols 2 Juryrigger Commlink (Device Rating 3), Control rig (Device Rating 2) Armor jacket [12 w/ nonconductive 2], automotive mechanic shop, miniwelder w/ spare fuel canister Yamaha Pulsar [Taser, Acc 5, DV 7S(e), AP –5, SA, RC —, 4 (m)] Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1]


WAREHOUSE MANAGER

HELL HOUNDS


A

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C

ESS

4

4

3

4

3

2

5

3

6

10 0 Physical 5, Mental 4, Social 5 8 + 1D6 Blades 4, Clubs 3, Etiquette 3 (Corporate +2), Intimidation 4, Pistols 4, Unarmed Combat 3 Toughness Renraku Sensei commlink (Device Rating 3) Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1] Stun baton [Clubs, Acc 4, Reach 1, DV 9S(e), AP –5, 10 charges]

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Initiative Skills Qualities Gear Weapons


A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

2

3

3

3

3

2

3

2

6

10 0 Physical 4, Mental 4, Social 4 6 + 1D6 Electronics skill group 3, Etiquette 4 (Corporate +2), Unarmed Combat 2 Commlink (Device Rating 2) None

Gear Weapons

DOCK WORKERS (PROFESSIONAL RATING 2) B

A

R

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W

L

I

C

ESS

2

3

3

3

3

2

3

2

6

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Skills Qualities Gear Weapons

A

R

6

4

5

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Movement Skills Powers

S

W

L

I

C

EDG

ESS

M

6

4

2

4

3

3

6

5

11/10 2 Physical 8, Mental 4, Social 6 10 + 3D6 x2/x6/+24 Exotic Ranged Weapon 4, Intimidation 3, Perception 3, Running 4, Sneaking 5, Tracking 5, Unarmed Combat 3 Armor 2, Dual Natured, Elemental Attack (Fire), Enhanced Senses (Hearing, Low-Light Vision, Smell), Fear, Immunity to Fire, Natural Weapon (Bite: DV 7P, AP –1)


OFFICE CLERKS

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Initiative Skills

B

10 0 Physical 6, Mental 4, Social 4 6 + 1D6 Blades 4, Clubs 3, Etiquette 2 (Street +2), Intimidation 5, Pistols 2, Unarmed Combat 4 Toughness Large wrench, Meta Link commlink (Device Rating 1) Knife [Blade, Acc 5, Reach —, DV 5P, AP –1] Wrench [Clubs, Acc 4, Reach 1, DV 9P, AP —]

A pair of Force 6 spirits of air are patrolling both day and night. In addition, the patrolling night guard(s) have hell hounds that they will let off the leash if the runners are spotted.

DEBUGGING The biggest thing that could go wrong in this scene is for the runners to not find the container at all. As this is the main thrust of the mission, they should have to spend some time puzzling out how to find the information. If necessary, allow one of the employees to be bribed or bullied into getting the required information for them. Don’t make it too easy on the players, though!

SCENE 7: FINAL COUNTDOWN SCAN THIS Hellbent gets confirmation that the runner’s actions were successful and provides the coordinates of the Illuminates’ compound.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Well, that could have gone worse. Any run you can walk away from, right? When you get back to the Hellsouls’ little slice of heaven, it looks as if you’ve never left. Same broken windows, same surly gangers, same pervasive stench, same everything. Hellbent is waiting inside when the guards wave you in. The smile on his face makes it pretty obvious that he knows what happened, but he’s gonna make you say it anyhow. “Well?” he asks, his upper lip curling a little slyly. “What do I get to reward you with? The information you seek? Or the friendly attentions of mes amis?”

RECOVER

41


BEHIND THE SCENES If the runners managed to successfully corrupt some of the chips, Hellbent will ask for the device back. After checking it to see how many chips were wiped with it, he will hand over a data chip containing the location of the Illuminates’ compound. If they earned it, he will also provide credsticks to each of the runners with their bonus pay. The data chip is not encrypted. If the runners don’t manage to get their hands on the chips, or are not able or willing to hand over the device to Hellbent to show that they had doctored the chips, he will give them a chance to leave out of respect for Nazaire. If the runners don’t leave, the entire gang will attack the runners.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE At this stage, there’s really nothing to push. Either the runners completed the job, or are able to convince Hellbent that they completed it, or they didn’t. If they didn’t, then there is a likely to be a very nasty fight on their hands.

DEBUGGING The device keeps track of how many chips it has over-written, not what was previously on those chips. A successful

42

RECOVER

Hardware + Logic [Mental] (3) or Software + Logic [Mental] (3) Test will let the runner who is examining the device know that. A decent face should be able to talk their way past Hellbent, if the team thinks to re-write some other chips, without getting caught in a lie.

SCENE 8: YOU LOAD SIXTEEN TONS AND WHAT DO YOU GET? SCAN THIS Laurent and Elizabeth meet up with the runners to collect their paydata and give them their nuyen.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Running around playing gofers for a bunch of foreign gangers is not the easiest way to make a few nuyen but, admittedly, it’s not the hardest either. Nazaire seemed pleased when you called him to arrange the important part of the festivities—you getting paid—and he gave you an address that is in an actually decent part of Montreal.


When you arrive at the location, a fairly nice hotel with a restaurant, Nazaire is waiting for you at a table in the back with a glass of red wine in front of him and a plate of appetizers in front of the empty chairs. Sitting next to him is Elizabeth Nunn. A hungry, eager look lights her eyes as she watches you walk in.

BEHIND THE SCENES Nazaire wanted to meet with the runners in person, rather than having them send the location electronically, because Elizabeth wanted to be closer to the compound when she finally founds out where it is. It also gives her and Nazaire the opportunity to feel out the runners and assure themselves that the runners aren’t playing them. When the runners hand over the datachip, Elizabeth will just about snatch it out of their hands to slot it into a commlink and appear to study it fervently while Nazaire finishes the business arrangements with the runners. Any remarks directed to her will be answered in a brisk, distracted manner.


GAMEMASTER REWARD When running this adventure you may choose to count the Missions as “played” for their personal Shadowrun Missions character. You must choose to do this the first time your run this Mission only, and take the optional results to match those the team you gamemastered for earned. You may not choose to wait for a better attempt to choose your rewards. You’re on the honor system here, so please don’t skew the adventure to help the players gain extra rewards just so that you can get better results. You will earn a flat amount of Karma and nuyen, regardless of how well (or poorly) the players do, listed below. For other missions results and rewards that you track on the Debriefing Log (Objectives completed, reputation and contacts earned, etc.), take the average results of the group you’re gamemastering for. So if four out of six players earned a point of notoriety, you will earn one as well. If only two players out of five earn a +1 Loyalty with Simon, you would not get that +1 Loyalty. • Karma Earned: 6 • Nuyen Earned: 12,000¥

This is the payoff scene. There is no reason to push the envelope.

REPUTATION

DEBUGGING

During the adventure, runners may perform actions that will add to their Street Cred, Notoriety, or Public Awareness (p. 372, SR5). Besides the scenario specific gains listed below, gamemasters should consider the characters actions throughout the game and award additional points as appropriate. If a player earns Public Awareness or Notoriety, don’t be afraid to give them more than one point. • +1 Street Cred if the players successfully sabotage the simsense chips

The only thing that could go wrong here is if the runners try to lie to Laurent and Elizabeth by passing off a bogus address on them. If either of them succeed with a Judge Intentions test against the runners, they will be sent packing without a single nuyen.


8,000¥ (+500¥ per success, maximum of 4) for delivering the location of the Illuminates compound to Nazaire and Nunn.

•

3,000¥ (500¥ per case) for sabotaging the simchip shipment for Hellbent

KARMA • • • •

2 Karma for surviving

• •

1 Karma for defeating the Hellsouls

1 Karma for obtaining the location of the compound 2 Karma for sabotaging the simchip shipment 1 Karma if they got in and out of the warehouse without being detained 1 Karma for defeating the Warehouse guards

• •

+1 Notoriety for any player who fights the Hellsouls +1 Public Awareness if the team fights the Warehouse guards

CONTACTS Successfully completing objectives or performing the actions listed below will earn characters specific Missions contacts at a Loyalty of 1, and should be given the Contact Sheet included in this book. If they already have that contact, they gain a +1 Loyalty to that contact (up to a maximum of 4). Characters might interact with NPCs not specified by the Mission, and may earn these NPCs as a contact at Loyalty 1. They may also work with non-Mission specific contacts that they have already earned or that they bought at character creation, and gain a +1 Loyalty to these contacts, with a maximum Loyalty of 4. Gamemasters should not grant these lightly, and players should have to work to earn these contacts by going the extra mile to impress the NPC, offering up favors, or paying them well above the standard rates for information or services.

RECOVER

43


•

+1 Loyalty (up to a maximum of 4) with Laurent Nazaire for providing him with the compound location

•

+1 Loyalty with Elizabeth Nunn (up to a maximum of 4) for providing her with the compound location. –1 Loyalty with her if they fail to obtain the location.

•

When a PC gets in touch with a contact, make an unopposed Connection + Connection test for the contact. The results of this test determine how many ranks of information the contact knows about the question. If the relevance of the subject is a specialty of the contact, they get +3 to this test. The player then makes an unopposed Charisma + Etiquette + Loyalty test, the results of which determine how many ranks of information the contact is willing to divulge for free, up to the max ranks of information they know. If the contact knows more, they will require a payment of 500¥ – (Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 100¥) per rank of information they still know. If the PCs have worked all of their contacts and are still missing important information, they may request that a contact ask around. If they do so, have the Contact make an extended (Connection + Connection (1 hour)) test. Additional information will be available at a cost of 1,000¥ – (Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 200¥). A Matrix Search action (p. 241, SR5) may also be utilized to gather information from the following charts, using the appropriate thresholds and search times.


Contacts 0

1

2

3

4

2 hours

5

—

+1 Loyalty with Hellbent for successfully sabotaging all six cases of simsense chips.

LEGWORK

Search Time 0


1 minute

Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Atlantean Foundation’s Seattle Branch. He’s a Haitian dwarf with a strong accent. He was pretty active in the Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts .

5 minutes

30 minutes

44

You can keep asking around, but nobody has any dirt on this guy. Down-to-earth? Open? Honest? I don’t trust anyone like that myself. Gives me the jitters, you scan? The guy is obsessed in his quest to acquire and study arcane artifacts before the Draco Foundation can get their hands on them. He’s got a personal rivalry with them.

RECOVER

I hear he’s helping an old friend out with some personal problems, something to do with the Illuminates of the New Dawn. According to rumors, his friend is not a run-of-the-mill metahuman, there’s something “off” about her.


Contacts 0

Search Time 0

Information They help those displaced in floods if I remember right.

1

1 minute


2

5 minutes


3

30 minutes


4

2 hours


5

—


ILLUMINATES OF THE NEW DAWN (IOND) Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman

Contacts 0

Search Time 0

Information Your plates will illuminate the room—try our new Dawn dishwash detergent!

1

1 minute

Sure, sure. They’re big into “magocratic progressivism” basically, they believe hermetics mages are way superior to everyone else, and so they should be in charge.

2

5 minutes

The local Outer Ordercircle’s headed up by some New Century Parts apparatchik called Tyrone Girardi. Word is he sometimes walks on the shadowy side of the line.

3

30 minutes

Heard their chapterhouse in Bellevue was pretty ad well destroyed in a nasty dust up


recently. Sounds like their leaders are going to ground.

4

2 hours

5

—

They apparently made enemies of the groups that were part of the whole artifact rush. Word is that the Lady of Mercy is on a warpath against them and she has Nazaire backing her.


Contacts 0

Search Time 0


1

1 minute

She hangs out in the Capitol Hill are and is pretty spooky.

2

5 minutes

Hear that the local squatters love here because she protects them from the unsavory types.

3

30 minutes


4

2 hours

5

—

—

Word has it he wants to get rid of an out of town group that set up shop in his neighborhood, something Dawn.

HELLBENT Contacts to Ask: Any Street type, Any Gang Member

Contacts 0

Search Time 0

Information Sounds more like a sad attitude or synth metal band than a name.

1

1 minute

He’s a gang leader in Montreal, not sure for who though.

2

5 minutes

I hear he’s the West Island area leader for the Hellsouls—pretty powerful group, they are.

3

30 minutes

His headquarters is an abandoned car-parts warehouse. There are loads of gangers there all times of the day and night. I heard he worked his way up from legbreaker.

4

2 hours

He enjoys making people fight for his pleasure. Acts almost like one of those Roman Emperors with gladiators. Watch out for his champion Hellrazor.

5

—

Hellbent wants to purge this compound in his area, but his guys haven’t been up to the task. Apparently his gang is pretty light on magic types right now due to a recent dust up with the guys in the compound.


FRANCOIS SEA FREIGHT

Contacts to Ask: Any street type, Any gang member

Search Time 0

5


HELLSOULS Contacts 0

Information You part of a religious group? If so, I know a few with catchier names.

1

1 minute

One of the biggest, most powerful clubs in Montreal.

2

5 minutes

They accept anyone as a member. It doesn’t matter if they’re a troll, dwarf, Anglophone or Francophone.

3

30 minutes

Hear they run everything in Montreal. Nothing major goes down in their city without their knowledge and approval.

4

2 hours

They have area leaders in each of Montreal’s main sectors; a nasty fellow named Hellbent runs West Island.

Contacts to Ask: Any Corporate type

Contacts 0

Search Time 0

Information Sounds like a freight company.

1

1 minute

The company specializes in containerized shipments although some facilities handle palletized cargo as well. The stock price has remained pretty steady over the past three years, but the dividend is drek.

2

5 minutes

Their biggest hubs are in Northeastern North America. They are a multinational corporation, but they’re too small be part of the Corporate Court system.

3

30 minutes

Their Montreal and Nova Scotia facilities have Awakened security assets, but most of the rest don’t.

4

2 hours

They have contracts with Wuxing

RECOVER

45


5

—

and Maersk to handle overflow shipments or to handle small markets their megas aren’t interested in.

CAST OF SHADOWS

Overall, it is a clean organization, but there are a few employees that can be convinced to help ship small items in containers with the right offer. I have a contact in the Cleveland office if you need an origination shipment from there. Nothing explosive though.

Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Seattle Atlantean Foundation branch. A Haitian dwarf with a French-Quebecois accent, he’s open, down-toearth, and seemingly very honest. This makes many in the shadow community nervous because they don’t believe it, but thus far, no one has been able to dig up any dirt on him. He’s been a key figure in the Atlantean Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts, and he is obsessed in his quest to study these artifacts and discover everything about them. He knows that if the Draco Foundation gets their hands on the artifacts, they’ll lock them up tight away from the world, so he knows he needs to get to them first

LAURENT NAZAIRE

B

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C

ESS

EDG

M

4

3

3

4

7

6

4

5

6

3

9



Spells

Bound Spirits

46

RECOVER

Weapons



OUR LADY OF MERCY/ ELIZABETH NUNN

HELLBENT Hellbent is the West Island area leader for the Hellsouls.

Our Lady of Mercy has already lost her hair and taken on the pointed teeth common to nosferatu. Her skin is pale, and she has a slight odor of earth about her. When she plans on visiting the hospital, she wears nurse’s smocks and uses Physical Mask to disguise her features. When she is searching the streets and alleyways, she wears a long lady’s overcoat and a lady’s hat. Our Lady of Mercy was once an up-and-coming member of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She was very attractive and goal-oriented, but she contracted HMHVV 1A during an operation for the Illuminates. Once her circle members discovered her infection, they decided to earn a little extra cash and attempted to turn her in for the bounty. She barely escaped, and hid from them for several years until recent events brought her out of hiding. Her affliction has caused her to look at life differently, and she believes she is helping those who are about to die pass peacefully to the afterlife. B

A

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EDG

M

4

4

4

4

5

5

5

5

7

3

6



Weaknesses Weapons

B

A

R

5

5

5 (6)

Condition Monitor Armor Limits: Physical Initiative Active Skills

Knowledge Skills Languages Qualities Adept Powers

Gear

S

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L

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C

ESS

EDG

M

5

3

3

3

3

6

4

5

11/10 12 Physical 7, Mental 4, Social 5 8(9) + 2D6 Archery 4, Athletics skill group 4, Blades 4, Clubs 4, Computer 1, Con 1, Disguise 1, Escape Artist 4, Etiquette 2, First Aid 2, Intimidation 4, Lockpicking 3, Negotiation 1, Outdoors skill group 1, Perception 3, Sneaking 3, Throwing Weapons 9, Unarmed Combat 9 Kung Fu 7, Montreal Parkour 7, Montreal Squats 6, Quebec Gangs 5 English N, French N Bilingual, Code of Honor, Double Jointed, Natural Athlete, Pain Resistance (rating 1) Critical strike (Unarmed combat) (Blades), Improved ability (Unarmed Combat) (3), Improved Reflexes (1), Improved Senses (low-light vision), Killing Hands, Light Body (1) Armored jacket (12), climbing gear, fake SIN (Rating 1), flashlight, glasses [Rating 1, w/ image link], lockpicks, Meta Link commlink (Device Rating 1), respirator (Rating 1), Squatter Lifestyle (2 months), survival kit


RECOVER

47

S H AD O W RUN

DESTROY MISSION SYNOPSIS Simply put: This is the final chapter and boss fight. Legwork from the Recover Mission provided to Laurent Nazaire and Our Lady of Mercy reveals the location of Girardi’s compound in Montreal. Before the runners assault the compound, Elizabeth Nunn has a short task for them to accomplish. Our Lady of Mercy has an acquaintance in Montreal who is having problems with children being abducted from the clinic she works in. Our Lady convinces the runners to assist her in discovering the abductors and stop them. The runners discover a ghoul mage leading a group of feral-turning ghouls, and they need to stop them with extreme prejudice.


48

DESTROY

The runners scope out the compound and must figure out how to get to Girardi. The runners observe the compound and note that Girardi will not leave it. Our Lady of Mercy will be as patient as possible, but her patience can only go so far. At some point, it’s time for action. The runners may decide that they need more equipment to take the compound. This section allows them to interact with Hellbent, the leader of the Hellsouls from Recover, on a more professional level. Hellbent’s position grants him the ability to acquire practically anything the runners wish—with a mark-up, of course. The runners assault the IoND compound. They finally reach Girardi and see him in a heated discussion with a mysterious figure. Unfortunately, the mysterious figures escapes, but the runners should be able to capture Girardi. Our Lady of Mercy finally faces the person who was responsible for her condition. She uses her Mind Probe spell on Girardi and discovers the truth behind her condition. In a fit of rage—and because the feral changes are kicking in—she drains him dry in front of the runners. The horror of this action may lead the runners to attack Our Lady of Mercy, or they may cheer her on, or they may end up doing something unexpected. As runners are wont to do. The final scene could end in a couple of different ways. If the runners did not attack Our Lady of Mercy, she will either cryptically reveal that there are far worse victims out there than her, and possibly inform them pointedly that greater threats exist. She will pay them the agreed-upon amount, and they will travel away to wherever they are based. If the runners attacked and killed Our Lady of Mercy, they’ll end up stuck in a foreign country without friends and possibly some dangerous enemies (Nazaire, other IoND chapters, maybe some other loose entity).

SCENE 1: FINAL MEET SCAN THIS Nazaire and Our Lady of Mercy meet with the runners to give them the details of their next mission.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT If the runners have previously completed the Recover Mission: As promised, you receive a commlink message from Nazaire asking you to meet him in VR. If the runners have not completed the Recover Mission: You receive a commlink message from your regular fixer notifying you of a chance for an out-of-town run. He lets you know that you can meet Mr. Johnson via VR right now. Once all runners have entered the virtual room: Entering the meeting identification into your device, your icon appears in a small conference room displayed in high resolution. Seated at the head of the conference table is a dark-skinned dwarf dressed in a professional business suit. A beautiful darkhaired woman dressed in an elegant, professional outfit is sitting to his right. Laurent introduces himself and then introduces the woman as Elizabeth.

BEHIND THE SCENES Nazaire and Our Lady of Mercy went to Montreal to plan the final step in capturing the elusive Girardi. They will utilize any runners already in Montreal and bring in additional talent as necessary. The virtual meet duplicates a conference room in a nice Montreal hotel. Though Nazaire would prefer a sit-down meeting, he knows he has to coordinate with runners in different countries, so this is the next best alternative. Our Lady is anxious to get started and is slightly frustrated that previous attempts have failed, though they revealed previously unknown information. The task is to raid the IoND compound and capture Girardi alive. Our Lady of Mercy will accompany them to the area but

will not engage the IoND directly. She leaves it to the runners to do the legwork and heavy lifting. Once the compound is secure, she expects the runners to call her in to “speak” with Girardi. She realizes the last portion of the task may require travel and is more risky, so she offers the runners 8,000 nuyen each. Each net hit on a Negotiation + Charisma [Social] Opposed Test will increase the final pay by 500 nuyen, with a cap of 5 net hits (2,500 nuyen extra for each runner). Nazaire arranges travel to Montreal via a Coyote, for out -of-town runners. The team may to take any equipment with them, except large drones and/or vehicles. He instructs the runners to meet his contacts. For runners already in Montreal, Laurent provides them the GPS coordinates to the landing zone, an abandoned airstrip outside Montreal, so that they may meet the new runners. He informs the runners that the out of town group should arrive around 0600 hrs. The runners will have a Renault-Fiat Eurovan to use.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE This is early in the Mission, and there’s no need to push the envelope just now.

DEBUGGING The runners are in this line of work because they want money, so hopefully they will behave like professionals. In the end, if they don’t want the job, they don’t want the job. No one can force money into their pockets!.

SCENE 2: BEING (MORE) HUMAN SCAN THIS Elizabeth has an additional task for the runners to complete before the raid on the compound. A children’s clinic has been having problems with critter attacks, and she would like the runners to clean out the critter nest.

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49


TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT


All members of the team are now in country. It’s time to do some surveillance on the mage’s compound. The commlink chirps, and you see Elizabeth’s face on the screen. “I have a small task for you, of a personal nature. I understand that you were not commissioned to do this, so I’m willing to pay extra. What do you say?”

The children’s clinic is located in West Island, the worst neighborhood in Montreal. Characters who participated in Recover have already had a chance to start getting their bearings about the area. The redbrick, three-story structure has definitely seen better days. It looks like it was once a momand-pop store of some kind that has been converted into a depressing clinic. The security guard stationed outside looks more like a mall cop than a deterrent. Entering the clinic, you find the walls painted in warm bright colors with pictures of trees and animals. In one corner of the lobby is a play area with a few well-worn, faded toys stacked in a brightly colored toy chest. Elizabeth stands just inside the door, waiting for your arrival. Elizabeth then leads you through the clinic to the second floor where you find brightly colored patient rooms with children attached to various medical devices. Out of the corner of your eye, you notice Elizabeth unsuccessfully holding back tears.

BEHIND THE SCENES During Elizabeth’s dark period in life, which was not so long ago, she frequented the local hospital to identify those who were dying and provided them a means to end their suffering. While visiting the hospital she came to meet several of the nurses and become acquainted with them. Shortly after arriving in Montreal, she discovered that one of the nurses, Kay St. Jacques, transferred to a local children’s clinic that treats terminally ill children. A mage, now a recently turned ghoul, leads a small group of ghouls who are turning feral near the clinic and have started abducting these children in the middle of the night. Local authorities have not been able to discover the ghouls’ nest and do not have the manpower to provide a security detail. The clinic’s security guards have not been able to stop the intrusions either and are at a loss as to how it is happening. Elizabeth contacts Kay and offers to resolve the situation for her with the use of the runners. Elizabeth offers the runners an additional 4,000 nuyen apiece. Each net hit on a Negotiation + Charisma [Social] Opposed Test increases the final pay by 500 nuyen, with a cap of 5 net hits (2,500 nuyen extra per runner). Once negotiations are complete, Elizabeth informs you to meet her at the clinic at 2000 hours.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE Again, we’re still in the early stages, just getting the work lined up. No need to amp up things just yet.

DEBUGGING It is possible that the runners do not want to do this task. Elizabeth stresses how important it is to assist these poor children. Though the children are terminally ill, they should be treated with dignity and respect while being provided a comfortable transition from this life. What kind of monster would take advantage of dying children?

SCENE 3: CHILDREN’S PLACE SCAN THIS The runners meet with Kay St. Jacques to discuss the situation and figure out how best to resolve it.

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DESTROY

BEHIND THE SCENES The West Island area suffers from a Noise rating of 2 due to the ramshackle infrastructure and the lack of local Matrix support. There is no background count, but the entire area has a desperate undertone to it. When questioned, Kay St. Jacques reveals what few details she has concerning the abductions. • The children were abducted at night.

•

The security guards have no recollection of what happened and have no injuries after the abductions.

•

Security footage reveals nothing. There are two cameras, one focused on the lobby and another over the back door.

•

The abductions do not occur on a regular basis, i.e. not every five or six days or anything like that. They appear random.

• •

It has been four days since the last abduction.

•

The reason they have so little security is because the Hellsouls (a Montreal-based gang) provide an additional layer of security for free. However, the Hellsouls have been occupied in several operations recently and have not been able to stop these abductions.

The clinic employs two guards; one works the day shift, and the other is on at night.

Questioning either guard reveals the same information. A Judge Intentions test (p. 152, SR5), with no resistance from either guard, will reveal they are telling the truth, unless there is a glitch or critical glitch. There are two ground floor entrances, the main door to the lobby and an employee entrance in the back. Both are monitored by a camera. If the runners examine the locks, which are old fashioned key locks, a successful Locksmith + Intuition [Mental] (2) Test will reveal none were tampered with.


If the runners review the security footage, a Perception (Visual) + Intuition [Mental] (4) Test will notice a shadow created when the front door is opened, but no one enters the lobby. Prior investigators missed this. If the runners question the guard about it, he does not remember opening the door for any reason other than going to the bathroom. The fact that he enters to use the bathroom is readily evident during the review of the footage. Assensing the area does not reveal a magical effect, as it has been four days after the last problem. This very night (around 0100 hours), the ghouls will make their move.


keep the pace moving as they have a major encounter to complete that may take up most of their time. If playing a home, or untimed game, let the players take whatever time you feel in appropriate.

SCENE 4: GHOULISH BEHAVIOR SCAN THIS The ghouls are getting hungrier and need to take another child. Therefore, they attack the same night that the runners arrived at the clinic.

Be patient. Things are about to go down. Hold off until then.


DEBUGGING

It is a quiet night in West Island, not a soul stirs except for the devil rat pack in a nearby dumpster. The few streetlights left functioning are pools of bright in the otherwise empty sea of black. 0100 hours in Montreal feels the same as 0100 hours back in Chicago, or the Barrens of Seattle, or wherever. You hope something happens, anything to break the boredom of waiting.

The runners will probably assume that the guard is assisting the abductors and apply a tremendous amount of pressure on him. He truly does not know what is going on. The team may spend a tremendous amount of time planning their actions. If playing this adventure during an event,

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BEHIND THE SCENES

GHOULS (7)

The ghoul mage and his follower ghouls make their move on the clinic. The mage summons a spirit and has it use its Concealment power on himself and his group (–8 on Perception tests). The entire group sneaks towards the clinic. When the mage is close enough—that is, within twenty meters—he casts Influence on the guard to get him to open the door. Once they grab a child, they use the same tactic to exit the clinic. So far, it has worked exceptionally well, so the ghoulish gang is rather confident and not overly cautious. If the players have set themselves up in the lobby or near the door, they will not miss the security guard turning and opening the door wide, as if he is a bellhop.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE The gamemaster is always free to make the ghoul gang larger, or to have a few of them hanging outside the clinic, ready to ambush the PCs after the main fight.

Once again, this should not take an inordinate amount of time, so make sure to move the pacing along so the players have enough time to finish the assault. Should the runners have problems eliminating the ghouls, have the ghouls retreat as soon as half of them have been incapacitated. If the group has trouble with the ghouls, local Hellsouls can show up to lend a hand.

SYNTHALLIX, GHOUL MAGE A

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ESS

EDG

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7

3

5

6

5

2

4

3

6

3

6

Initiative 9 + 1D6 Condition Monitor 12/11 Physical 8, Mental 5, Social 6 Limits

Weaknesses

Gear

1 Alchemy 4, Arcana 4, Assensing 4, Banishing 3, Counterspelling 4, Gymnastics 1, Etiquette 4, Perception 9, Ritual Spellcasting 6, Spellcasting 6, Summoning 3, Perception 5, Running 3, Sneaking 3, Unarmed Combat 7 Armor 1, Dual Natured, Enhanced Senses (Hearing Smell), Natural Weapons (Claws; DV 7P, AP –1), Sapience Allergy (Sunlight, Moderate), Dietary Requirement (Metahuman Flesh), Reduced Senses (Blind) Reagants (50 drams) Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Improved Invisibility, Fireball, Flamethrower, Influence, Manabolt

Spells

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3

5

6

5

2

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1

5

1

9 + 1D6 6/12/+2 Condition Monitor 12 Limits Physical 8, Mental 5, Social 5 Armor 1 Skills Assensing 4, Perception 7, Running 3, Sneaking 3, Unarmed Combat 6 Powers Armor 1, Dual Natured, Enhanced Senses (Hearing, Smell), Natural Weapon (Claws: DV 7P, AP –1), Sapience Allergy (Sunlight, Moderate), Dietary Requirement Weaknesses (Metahuman Flesh), Reduced Senses (Blind) Spells Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Improved Invisibility, Fireball, Flamethrower, Influence, Manabolt Initiative Movement

(5 SERVICES) B

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9

8

10

6

8

8

9

8

8

8

Initiative Astral Initiative Limits Active Skills Powers

B

Powers

A

7

SPIRIT OF MAN (FORCE 8)

DEBUGGING

Armor Skills

B

Optional Powers (Choose 2) Spells

18 + 2D6 16 + 3D6 Physical 11, Mental 13, Social 11 Assensing 8, Astral Combat 8, Perception 8, Spellcasting 8, Unarmed Combat 8 Accident, Astral Form, Concealment, Confusion, Enhanced Senses (Low-Light Vision, Thermographic Vision), Guard, Influence, Materialization, Sapience, Search Fear, Movement, Psychokinesis Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Improved Invisibility, Fireball, Flamethrower, Influence, Manabolt

SCENE 5: ENEMY CAMP SCAN THIS The runners scope out the compound and must figure out how to get to Girardi. If the runners observe the compound, they will note that Girardi will not leave it. Our Lady of Mercy will be as patient as possible but will only allow a certain amount of delay.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Laurent and Elizabeth provide you the location of Giradi’s hideout in order to scope it out. Once reconnaissance is complete, you are to report back to Elizabeth with your findings.

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It’s a large facility with a faded sign that reads Krieger Distribution Center. A fence surrounds the facility, but parts of the fence are gone. Cargo containers and old Krieger trailers (without their landing gear or rear tires) sit where the holes in the fence are. It looks like there’s an old entrance, which is blocked with “armored” buses. Beyond the perimeter, you make out two separate buildings, one smaller and one much larger.

BEHIND THE SCENES Note that the entire compound is domain aspected to members of the Illuminates of the New Dawn at a Rating of 2. The main building is also aspected at a Rating of 2. Some of the exam rooms have a rating of 3 to 4 due to the experiments. With the information from Laurent, the team easily locates the Girardi’s hideout. The compound is definitely a step up (security wise) from the previous locations. Our Lady of Mercy will go into the compound once the runners have secured Girardi. She does not actively attack unless she is attacked first. The compound used to be a Krieger Distribution Center (groceries) and encompasses two separate buildings. A fence surrounds the entire perimeter but is rusty and missing large sections. To make up for this, cargo containers and old Krieg-

er trailers have been placed against the fence line (landing gear and wheels removed), so they sit on the ground. There is a central entrance in the northeast portion of the property with “armored” buses blocking them. Exterior cameras are mounted on the corners of the buildings; an IoND spider monitors the incoming visual data. Cameras are few and far between on the interior. To make up for that, the spider uses roving drones. The interior of the main warehouse is dark and filled with rows of empty pallet racks that extend from floor to ceiling. A portion of the central offices were converted into more experiment rooms as well as cages. The runners and Our Lady of Mercy find many failed subjects. The patron uses the IoND members as guards and has a large force at his disposal. After Girardi’s problems, the guards have been alerted to watch for signs of trouble. The six IoND Outer Order Members are in the main facility and perform a variety of functions, meaning that, they may be encountered individually or in small groups anywhere in the compound. IoND snipers and their IoND Outer Order Member spotters are located at the end of the buildings as well as the center of the main building (four snipers and four IoND members total). Two IoND guards man the main gate and two are located at the main office entrance. Two IoND guards patrol the perimeter on foot. In addition to the snipers, guards, and

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IoND members, there are two Force 6 watchers patrolling astral space. The watchers have been instructed to notify the nearest IoND mage of intruders. Elizabeth accompanies the team to the compound but does not engage the enemy. She leaves it to the runners to eliminate any threats. She reminds the team that Girardi must be taken alive and that she wants to speak with him once he is captured.

IOND GUARD (6) (PROFESSIONAL RATING 2) B

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6 (9)

5 (7)


Initiative Condition Monitor Limits Armor Skills

Honestly, there shouldn’t be a need to push the envelope as this is the final chapter. If you feel the team has had an easy time, go ahead and add a few wandering feral ghouls or even a crazed feral vampire that escaped.

Qualities Augmentations

IOND OUTER ORDER MEMBER (10)

Gear

Weapons


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4

2

3

3

5

4

3

4

6

6


Qualities Gear

Spells

6(10) + 1(3)D6 11/12 Physical 5, Mental 6, Social 7 12 Alchemy 4, Arcana 4, Assensing 4, Banishing 3, Counterspelling 4, Gymnastics 3, Etiquette 4, Perception 7, Ritual Spellcasting 6, Spellcasting 6, Summoning 3 Analytical Mind, Focused Concentration (Rating 4), Quick Healer, SINner Armor jacket(12), commlink (Device Rating 3), ear buds (Rating 1), glasses [Rating 1, w/ image link], reagants (50 drams) Analyze Magic, Analyze Truth, Fireball (alchemical), Flamethrower, Improved Invisibility, Increase Reflexes (cast at Force 4 with 4 hits and sustained with Focused Concentration), Manabolt, Watcher ritual, Ward ritual

DESTROY

L

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5 (8)

5

4

4

5

1.45

IOND SNIPERS (4) (PROFESSIONAL RATING 4) B

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6

6 (9)

5 (7)

5 (8)

5

4

4

5

1.45


Qualities Augmentations

Gear

54

W

9 (11) + 1 (3)D6 11 Physical 7(10), Mental 6, Social 6 18 (Fire 22, Non-conductivity 24) Automatics 6, Clubs 3, Gymnastics 2, Heavy Weapons 1, Sneaking 4, Intimidation 4, Perception 3, Unarmed Combat 6 None (all betaware): Cyber safety, cybereyes [Rating 4, w/ eye recorder unit, flare compensation, image link, low-light vision, smartlink, thermographic vision, vision enhancement 3, vision magnification], muscle replacement 3, wired reflexes 2 AR gloves, commlink (Device Rating 5), ear buds (Rating 1), subvocal microphone, SWAT armor w/ helmet [18, Fire Resistance (Rating 4), Nonconductivity (Rating 6)] Ares Alpha [Assault Rifle, Acc 5 (7), DV 11P, AP –2, SA/BF/FA, RC 4, 42 (c), w/ cyber safety, gasvent 3, integral smartlink, shock pads] Grenade launcher [Grenade Launcher, Acc 4 (6), DV 10S, AP –4, Modes: SS, RC —, 6 (c), w/ airburst link, flash bang grenades] Stun baton [Club, Acc 4, Reach 1, DV 9S(e), AP –5]

DEBUGGING Don’t bail the runners out here. They have a tough job to do, and they need to rise to it. If they make bad decisions, they need to live with the consequences.

S

9 (11) + 3D6 11 Physical 7(10), Mental 6, Social 6 18 (Fire 22, Non-conductivity 24) Longarms 6, Clubs 4, Gymnastics 2, Automatics 1, Sneaking 4, Intimidation 4, Perception 3, Unarmed Combat 6 None (all betaware): Cyber safety, cybereyes [Rating 4, w/ eye recorder unit, flare compensation, image link, low-light vision, smartlink, thermographic vision, vision enhancement 3, vision magnification], muscle replacement 3, wired reflexes 2 AR gloves, commlink (Device Rating 5), ear buds (Rating 1), subvocal microphone, SWAT armor w/ helmet [18, w/ Fire Resistance (Rating 4), Non-conductivity (Rating 6)]


WATCHER, FORCE 6 (2) B

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—

4

4

4

4

6

6

12 + 2D6 10 Physical —, Mental 6, Social 6 Assensing 6, Astral Combat 6, Perception 6 Astral Form, Manifest, Search, Sapience

Astral Initiative Condition Monitor Limits Skills Powers

HOST: IOND RATING

ATTACK

SLEAZE

DATA PROC.

FIREWALL

3

4

3

6

5

Installed IC: Black IC, Probe, Tar Baby, Track Slaved Devices: Physical security (cameras exterior only) and drones (see above) Spiders: See above Sculpting: Large warehouse

IOND SPIDER (PROFESSIONAL RATING 3) B

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4

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5 (7)

3

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5

2

2

3.2

Initiative

7(9) + 1D6

Matrix Initiative

8 + 3D6 (hot-sim 8 + 4D6)

Condition Monitor

10

Limits

Physical 5(6), Mental 6, Social 4

Armor

9

Skills

Armorer 5, Electronics skill group 2, Engineering skill group 3, Etiquette 3, Gunnery 5, Perception 3, Pilot Aircraft 7, Pilot Ground Craft 7, Pilot Walker 6, Pistols 3

Qualities

Juryrigger

Augmentations

Commlink [Device Rating 6) w/ hot-sim module], control rig 2, reaction enhancers 2

Gear

Aeronautic mechanic kit, armor vest (9), DocWagon contract (Gold, 1 year), fake licenses (gun, drone, all Rating 4), fake SIN (Rating 4), goggles (Capacity 4, w/ image link, smartlink, thermographic vision, vision magnification), miniwelder

Vehicles

Aztechnology Crawler [Walker Drone, Handling 4, Speed 3, Accel 1, Body 3, Armor 3, Pilot 3, Sensor 3] Cyberspace Designs Dalmatian [VTOL Drone, Handling 5, Speed 4, Accel 3, Body 5, Armor 5, Pilot 3, Sensor 3] GM-Nissan Doberman [Tracked Drone, Handling 5, Speed 3, Accel 1, Body 4, Armor 4, Pilot 3, Sensor 3, weapon mount (AK-97)] Lockheed Optic-X2 [VSTOL Drone, Handling 4, Speed 4, Accel 3, Body 2, Armor 2, Pilot 3, Sensor 3] 2 x MCT Fly-Spy [Aerial Drone, Handling 4, Speed 3, Accel 2, Body 1, Armor 0, Pilot 3, Sensor 3] MCT-Nissan Roto-Drone [Rotary Drone, Handling 4, Speed 4, Accel 2, Body 4, Armor 4, Pilot 3, Sensor 3, Raiden)] weapon mount (Yamaha MCT-Nissan Roto-Drone [Rotary Drone, Handling 4, Speed 4, Accel 2, Body 4, Armor 4, Pilot 3, Sensor 3, weapon mount (Yamaha Pulsar)] 2 x Shiawase Kanmushi [Walker Drone, Handling 4, Speed 2, Accel 1, Body 0, Armor 0, Pilot 3, Sensor 3] Steel Lynx [Wheeled Drone, Handling 5, Speed 4, Accel 2, Body 6, Armor 12, Pilot 3, Sensor 3, heavy weapon mount (Stoner-Ares M202)]

Weapons

IOND KRIEGER DISTRIBUTION CENTER

Ares Predator V [Heavy Pistol, Acc 5 (7), DV 7P, AP –1, SA, RC —,15 (c), w/ 75 rounds regular ammo] GM-Nissan Doberman: AK-97 [Assault Rifle, Acc 5, DV 10P, AP –6, SA/BF/FA, RC —, 38 (c), w/ 100 rounds APDS ammo] MCT-Nissan Rotodrone 1: Ares Alpha [Assault Rifle, Acc 5 (7), DV 10P, AP –2, SA/BF/FA, RC 2, 42 (c), w/ 250 rounds regular ammo] Ares Alpha grenade launcher [Grenade Launcher, Acc 4 (6), DV 16P, AP —2, SS, RC —,6 (c), w/ 12 highexplosive minigrenades] MCT-Nissan Rotodrone 2: Yamaha Pulsar [Taser, Acc 5, DV 7S(e), AP –5, SA, RC —, 4 (m)] Steel Lynx: Stoner-Ares M202 [MMG, Acc 5 (7), DV 11P, AP –4, FA, RC —, 100 (belt), w/ 150 rounds explosive ammo]

SCENE 5A: TOYS, TOYS, TOYS SCAN THIS The runners may decide they need more equipment to take the compound. This section allows them to interact with Hellbent on a more professional level. Hellbent’s position grants him the ability to acquire practically anything the runners wish for a mark-up.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT Wow, that compound has a tremendous amount of security, and the gear you have just doesn’t seem adequate. It sounds like it’s time to go shopping, and there’s only one person you know in Montreal with the right connections: Hellbent.

BEHIND THE SCENES The runners scoped out the Krieger Distribution Center and found that they need additional equipment. Since they are in a foreign, unknown city, they have no contacts from whom to acquire equipment. They met one person that can help them, and that’s Hellbent. Should the runners return to Hellbent, he gladly assists them, but for a price. He can get most anything the runners desire for 150 percent of the book price (max availability of 20). Let the runners have fun, but let them know he can only acquire weapons, ammunition, and armor. He does not have access to magical equipment, cyber/bioware, or vehicles/ drones. If the runners take advantage of this opportunity to acquire more toys for this mission, it will take Hellbent twenty-four hours to get them.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE There is no need to Push the Envelope in this section, as the assault will take up a fair amount of time.

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DEBUGGING


The runners may decide to threaten Hellbent, but remember, they are in a foreign city with no allies. He wants the IoND gone, but he’s not going to be pushed around.

Girardi has been a slippery eel, but persistence paid off. You spot him in a heated discussion with a tall, dark-clad figure wearing a robe with the cowl pulled over his head. Oddly, the figure turns and looks directly at your team.

SCENE 6: DRAMA SCAN THIS As the team finally gets to Girardi, they see him with a darkclad figure. The other person, his patron, decides it’s time to part ways with Girardi and the IoND. He leaves Girardi to his fate when he turns to mist form and escapes through a nearby ventilation duct. Our Lady of Mercy finally faces the person who was responsible for her condition. She uses her Mind Probe on Girardi and discovers the truth behind her condition. In a fit of rage (and because the feral changes are starting), she drains him dry in front of the runners. The horror of this action may lead the runners to attack Our Lady of Mercy, or they may cheer her on, or, as runners are wont to do, something unexpected may happen.

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DESTROY

BEHIND THE SCENES The runners make it through the compound and capture Girardi. If the runners have not encountered the remaining IoND members, this is the time to have them show up to protect their leader. The runners may get a little trigger-happy and try to kill Girardi. If necessary, have them roll a Memory check (Logic + Willpower) to remind them he is to be taken alive.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE Really want to make life tough? Add IoND members at will.

DEBUGGING The team will probably attempt to kill the patron as well. He is not meant to be an NPC (a powerful mage/vampire), just a story plot. If the team sneaks into the compound, roll some dice


to represent the patron’s Perception tests. He will succeed, of course, and look in their direction while preparing to turn to mist. He will use a point of Edge to Seize the Initiative. In the event of a tie, assume he has an Initiative Score of 12. Allow the players to open fire on him, cast spells, etc. He will escape, though (or maybe appear to die and his body will not be there when they search for it). Be as dramatic as necessary, but not cheesy. He has enough Edge to burn to come back another day.

SCENE 7: THE FINAL CHAPTER … FOR NOW SCAN THIS

to Seattle (or their home town). She lets them know she will have work for them in the future. Option 2: If the runners attack and kill Our Lady of Mercy, they are stuck in a foreign country without friends and possibly some dangerous enemies (Nazaire, other IoND chapters, maybe a loose entity). Nazaire will not pay the runners for the mission.

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE If you have time and the inclination, either Our Lady of Mercy could summon some friends to help her out. Throw in a few vampires (p. 406, SR5) to keep the players hopping.

DEBUGGING

Elizabeth leans over Girardi and places her hands on both sides of his head. She closes her eyes and mutters under her breath.

It is possible that the team kills Girardi. If so, Elizabeth is extremely upset (read: livid). She has no desire to engage the runners, but the news rattles her to the core and her sustained spell wavers momentarily. She feels she must get away from the runners or else she will lose control so she departs the area on foot. She will summon a spirit if necessary to provide herself concealment while she leaves. Should the runners contact Nazaire and inform him of the outcome, he will give the runners half the agreed upon amount and no more.

Read if Girardi is conscious: Girardi’s eyes go wide with fear as Elizabeth continues to mutter. He attempts to squirm, but the restraints and her strength keep him still.

PICKING UP THE PIECES

This scene could end in a couple of different ways. Either the runners leave Our Lady of Mercy to her vengeance or they attack and kill her.


Read if Girardi is unconscious: Girardi’s limp form shakes as Elizabeth continues to mutter. Continue reading this part as the results of the Mind Probe spell enter Elizabeth’s mind: Elizabeth’s face goes through several different emotions as you watch her hold Girardi’s head. You see satisfaction change to anger, which then changes to horror. She wrenches her hands free of his head, and she suddenly leans into his neck. She opens her mouth as she reaches his neck and her form flickers and suddenly transforms. What you see before you is a creature with no hair, extremely pale skin, long hard nails, and sharply defined teeth.

•

8,000 nuyen each (+500 nuyen per hit, maximum of 5) for successfully capturing Girardi

•

4,000 nuyen each (+500 nuyen per hit, maximum of 5) for assisting the children’s clinic

KARMA • • • •

2 Karma: Surviving the Adventure 3 Karma: Overall Adventure Challenge 1 Karma: Capturing Girardi alive 1 Karma: Eliminating the threat to the children’s clinic

BEHIND THE SCENES

GAMEMASTER REWARD

Our Lady of Mercy uses Mind Probe on him to discover his secrets and drains him dry. The horror and anger Our Lady of Mercy feels is palpable. She is disgusted with the Illuminates of the New Dawn and with the secrets she discovered. Her reaction to the truth horrifies her as well and she is unsure as to the reason for it. This scene could end in a couple of different ways. Option 1: If the runners did not attack Our Lady of Mercy, she will either cryptically reveal that there are far worse victims out there than her (if they don’t ask) or if they do ask, she will inform them pointedly that greater threats exist. She will pay them the agreed upon amount and they will travel back

When running this adventure you may choose to count the Missions as “played” for their personal Shadowrun Missions character. You must choose to do this the first time your run this Mission only, and take the optional results to match those the team you gamemastered for earned. You may not choose to wait for a better attempt to choose your rewards. You’re on the honor system here, so please don’t skew the adventure to help the players gain extra rewards just so that you can get better results. You will earn a flat amount of Karma and nuyen, regardless of how well (or poorly) the players do, listed below. For other missions results and rewards that you track on the De-

DESTROY

57


briefing Log (Objectives completed, reputation and contacts earned, etc), take the average results of the group you’re gamemastering for. So if four out of six players earned a point of Notoriety, you will earn one as well. If only two players out of five earn a +1 Loyalty with Nazaire, you would not get that +1 Loyalty. Along those lines. • Karma earned: 7 • Nuyen earned: 14,000

REPUTATION During the adventure, runners may perform actions that will add to their Street Cred, Notoriety, or Public Awareness (p. 372, SR5). Besides the scenario-specific gains listed below, gamemasters should consider the characters actions throughout the game and award additional points as appropriate. If a player earns Public Awareness or Notoriety, don’t be afraid to give them extra points.

• •

+1 Street Cred if the players capture Girardi

•

+1 Notoriety for any player who attacks Our Lady of Mercy/Elizabeth

+1 Street Cred for eliminating the threat to the children’s clinic

CONTACTS Successfully completing objectives or performing the actions listed below will earn characters specific Missions contacts at a Loyalty of 1, and they should be given the Contact Sheet included with this Mission. If they already have that contact, they gain a +1 Loyalty to that contact (up to a maximum of 4). Characters might interact with NPCs not specified by the Mission and may earn these NPCs as a contact at Loyalty 1. They may also work with non-Mission specific contacts that they have already earned or that they bought at character creation, and gain a +1 Loyalty to these contacts, with a maximum Loyalty of 4. Gamemasters should not grant these lightly, and players should have to work to earn these contacts by going the extra mile to impress the NPC, offering up favors, or paying them well above the standard rates for information or services.

•

+1 Loyalty (up to a maximum of 4) with Laurent Nazaire successfully capturing Girardi

•

–2 Loyalty with Laurent Nazaire if the runners attacked Elizabeth Nunn

•

+1 Loyalty with Elizabeth Nunn (up to a maximum of 4) for successfully capturing Girardi

•

–2 Loyalty with Elizabeth Nunn for attacking her

58

DESTROY

LEGWORK When a PC gets in touch with a contact, make an unopposed Connection + Connection Test for the contact. The results of this test determine how many ranks of information the contact knows about the question. If the relevance of the subject is a specialty of the contact, they get +3 to this test. The player then makes an unopposed Charisma + Etiquette + Loyalty test, the results of which determine how many ranks of information the contact is willing to divulge for free, up to the max ranks of information they know. If the contact knows more, they will require a payment of 500¥ – (Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 100¥) per rank of information they still know. If the PCs have worked all of their contacts, and are still missing important information, they may request that a contact ask around. If they do so, have the Contact make an extended (Connection + Connection (1 hour)) Test. Additional information will be available at a cost of 1,000¥ –(Loyalty x 100¥, minimum 200¥). A Matrix Search action (p. 241, SR5) may also be utilized to gather information from the following charts, using the appropriate thresholds and search times.


Contacts 0

Search Time 0


1

1 minute

Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Atlantean Foundation’s Seattle Branch. He’s a Haitian dwarf with a strong accent. He was pretty active in the Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts.

2

5 minutes

You can keep asking around, but nobody I know has any dirt on this guy. Down-to-earth? Open? Honest? I don’t trust anyone like that myself. Gives me the jitters, you scan?

3

30 minutes

The guy is obsessed in his quest to acquire and study arcane artifacts before the Draco Foundation can get their hands on them. He’s got a personal rivalry with them.

4

2 hours

I hear he’s been helping an old friend out with some personal problems, something to do with the Illuminates of the New Dawn.

5

—

According to rumors, his friend is not a run-of-the-mill metahuman, there’s something off about her.



Contacts 0

1

Search Time 0

Information They help those displaced in floods, if I remember right.

1 minute


2

5 minutes


3

30 minutes



Contacts 0

Search Time 0


1

1 minute

She hangs out in the Capitol Hill area and is pretty spooky

2

5 minutes

Hear that the local squatters love her because she protects them from the unsavory types.

3

30 minutes

This fixer, Laurent Nazaire, is helping her in a vendetta against the Illuminates of the New Dawn. Apparently, they’re old friends.

4

2 hours

ILLUMINATES OF THE NEW DAWN (IOND)

She used to be a member of the IoND until there was a falling out with her local chapter house.

5

—

Contacts to Ask: Any Arcane, Talismonger, Magician, Street Shaman

HELLBENT

4

2 hours

5

—

Contacts 0

1

Search Time 0

1 minute

They sent in a strike team against the Illuminates of the New Dawn of some artifact thefts. Nazaire is apparently using their considerable resources to help a friend out of some trouble.

Information Your plates will illuminate the room, try our new Dawn dishwash detergent! Sure, sure. They’re big into “magocratic progressivism”— basically, they believe hermetics are way better than everyone else, and so they should be in charge.

2

5 minutes

The local Outer Order circle’s headed up by some New Century Party apparatchik called Tyrone Girardi. Word is that he sometimes walks on the shadowy side of the line.

3

30 minutes

Heard their chapterhouse in Bellevue was pretty well destroyed in a nasty dust up recently. Sounds like their leaders are going to ground.

4

2 hours

They apparently made enemies of the groups that were in that whole artifact rush.

5

—

Word is that Our Lady of Mercy is on a warpath against them, and she has Nazaire backing her.

Word has it that she is some sort of vampire.

Contacts to Ask: Any Street type, Any Gang member

Contacts 0

Search Time 0

Information Sounds more like an attitude than a name.

1

1 minute

He’s a gang leader in Montreal, not sure what gang though.

2

5 minutes

I hear he’s the West Island area leader for the Hellsouls, pretty powerful group they are.

3

30 minutes

His headquarters is an abandoned car parts warehouse, loads of gangers there all times of the day and night

4

2 hours

He enjoys making people fight for his pleasure. Acts almost like one of those Roman Emperors with gladiators. Watch out for his champion Hellrazor, though.

5

—

Hellbent wants to purge this compound in his area, but his guys haven’t been up to the task. Apparently his gang is pretty light on magic types right now due to a recent dust up with the guys in the compound.

DESTROY

59


CAST OF SHADOWS

MAGUS TYRONE GIRARDI

OUR LADY OF MERCY/ ELIZABETH NUNN Our Lady of Mercy has already lost her hair and taken on the pointed teeth common to nosferatu. Her skin is pale, and she has a slight odor of earth about her. When she plans on visiting the hospital, she wears nurse’s smocks and uses Physical Mask to disguise her features. When she is searching the streets and alleyways, she wears a long lady’s overcoat and a lady’s hat. Our Lady of Mercy was once an up-and-coming member of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She was very attractive and goal-oriented, but she contracted HMHVV 1A during an operation for the Illuminates. Once her circle members discovered her infection, they decided to earn a little extra cash and attempted to turn her in for the bounty. She barely escaped, and hid from them for several years until recent events brought her out of hiding. Her affliction has caused her to look at life differently, and she believes she is helping those who are about to die pass peacefully to the afterlife. B

A

R

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

4

4

4

4

5

5

5

5

7

3

6



Weaknesses

60

Weapons

10/11 12 9 + 1D6 Physical 6, Mental 7, Social 8 (varies with Essence) Banishing 4, Binding 4, Summoning 4, Disguise 4, Etiquette 4, Leadership 4, Negotiation 4, Perception 7, Sneaking 3, Counterspelling 2, Ritual Spellcasting 6, Spellcasting 6, Unarmed Combat 4 English N, Illuminates of the New Dawn 9 None 1 Masking Commlink (Device Rating 4), nurse’s smocks, Lady’s Greatcoat (12) Control Emotions, Detect Life, Manabolt, Mind Probe, Physical Mask Compulsion, Enhanced Senses (hearing, low-light vision, thermographic vision), Essence Drain*, Fear, Immunity (age, pathogens, toxins), Infection, Influence, Natural Weapon (bite), Regeneration, Sapience Allergy (sunlight, severe), Dietary Requirement (meta-human blood), Essence Loss (every 6 months). DESTROY Bite [Reach –1, DV 5P, AP —]

An African-American elf from Manhattan, Tyrone suffered through high school due to his puny build. When he tested positive for magical ability, however, his attitude changed; he went from being a victim to having a strong sense of entitlement. He genuinely believes that the Awakened are simply better than mundanes, and that hermeticism is the correct form of magical practice. However, his time at MIT&T and as an organizer for the New Century Party taught him to hide his contempt for these “lesser people.” He is the undisputed leader of this IoND team, and he uses his Leadership skill to give them a tactical advantage, as well as using spells like Influence to turn the tide of battle. He mostly uses his bound spirits for personal defense. B

A

R

4

4

4

Initiative Condition Monitor Limits Armor Active Skills

Knowledge Skills

Languages Qualities Initiate Grade Metamagics Gear

Spells Bound Spirits

Weapons

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

4

5

5

5

5

7

3

6

4 + 1D6 11 Physical 3, Mental 5, Social 7(10) 8 Arcana 4, Assensing 7, Binding 7 (Spirits of Earth +2), Computer 3, Counterspelling 3, (Disenchanting 3), Gymnastics 3, Etiquette 7, Leadership 7, Negotiation 7, Sneaking 3, Intimidation 4, Perception 3, Pistols 3, Spellcasting 9 (Manipulation +2), Summoning 7 (Spirits of Earth +2) Fine Dining 7, Frat Houses 4, Megacorp Interests 4, North American Politics 4, UCAS Law 7, UCAS Politics 7 (New Century Party +2) English (N), Latin 3 Day Job, First Impression, Prejudiced (mundanes, outspoken), SINner 4 Centering (Latin chanting), Masking, Quickening, Sensing Zoé Executive Suite Line (Long Jacket, Shirt, Trousers), Hermes Ikon commlink, AR gloves, subvocal microphone, contact lenses Rating 3 (flare compensation, image link, low-light), ear buds, Sustaining Focus (Health, Force 5: Increase Charisma, 5 successes), spare magazine for Yamaha Pulsar (4 taser darts), concealable holster. Alter Memory, Compel Truth, Control Actions, Fashion, Healthy Glow, Increase Charisma (sustained with 4 hits), Influence, Makeover, Mob Mood Spirit of earth (Force 5, optional power: Concealment, 3 services); spirit of earth (Force 5, optional power: Confusion, 2 services); spirit of earth (Force 4, optional power: Fear, 5 services), spirit of earth (Force 6, optional powers: Elemental Attack & Engulf, 4 services) Yamaha Pulsar [Taser, Acc 5(6), DV 7S(e), AP –5, SA, RC 1, 4 (m), laser sight, personalized grip]


HELLBENT Hellbent is the West Island area leader for the Hellsouls. B

A

R

5

5

5(6)

Condition Monitor Armor Limits Physical Initiative Active Skills

Knowledge Skills Languages Qualities Adept Powers

Gear

Weapons

S

W

L

I

C

ESS

EDG

M

5

3

3

3

3

6

4

5

11/10 12 Physical 7, Mental 4, Social 5 8 (9) + 2D6 Archery 4, Athletics skill group 4, Blades 4, Clubs 4, Computer 1, Con 1, Disguise 1, Escape Artist 4, Etiquette 2, First Aid 2, Intimidation 4, Lockpicking 3, Negotiation 1, Outdoors skill group 1, Perception 3, Sneaking 3, Throwing Weapons 9, Unarmed Combat 9 Kung Fu 7, Montreal Parkour 7, Montreal Squats 6, Quebec Gangs 5 English N, French N Bilingual, Code of Honor, Double Jointed, Natural Athlete, Pain Resistance (rating 1) Critical strike (Unarmed combat) (Blades), Improved ability (Unarmed Combat) (3), Improved Reflexes (1), Improved Senses (low-light vision), Killing Hands, Light Body (1) Armored jacket (12), climbing gear, fake SIN (Rating 1), flashlight, glasses [Rating 1, w/ image link], lockpicks, Meta Link commlink (Device Rating 1), respirator (Rating 1), Squatter Lifestyle (2 months), survival kit Bow (Rating 5) [Bow, Acc 6, DV 7P, AP –2, w/ 10 arrows (Rating 5)] Club [Club, Reach 1, Acc 4, DV 8P, AP —] Extendable baton [Club, Reach 1, Acc 5, DV 7P, AP —] Knives (2) [Blade, Reach —, Acc 5, DV 6P, AP –1] Survival knife [Blade, Reach —, Acc 5, DV 7P, AP –1] Throwing knives (2) [Throwing Weapon, Acc 7, DV 6P, AP –1]

DESTROY

61

LAURENT NAZAIRE

LAURENT NAZAIRE

LAURENT NAZAIRE

Laurent Nazaire is the head of the Seattle Atlantean Foundation branch. A Haitian dwarf with a French-Quebecois accent, he’s open, down-to-earth, and seemingly very honest. This makes many in the shadow community nervous because they don’t believe it, but thus far, no one has been able to dig up any dirt on him. He’s been a key figure in the Atlantean Foundation’s hunt for ancient magical artifacts, and he is almost obsessed in his quest to study these artifacts and discover everything about them. He knows that if the Draco Foundation gets their hands on the artifacts, they’ll lock them up tight away from the world, so he knows he needs to get to them first.



LAURENT NAZAIRE

LAURENT NAZAIRE

LAURENT NAZAIRE

President of Atlantean Foundation, Seattle Faction: Atlantean Foundation Male Dwarf Connection Rating: 5 Loyalty:



Key Active Skills: Conjuring Skill Group, Negotiation, Sorcery Skill Group,



Knowledge Skills: Arcana, Corporate Politics, Magical Groups, Security (Magical)



Uses: Jobs, Corporate or Magical Information, Magical Gear



Places to Meet: Fine restaurants, exclusive night clubs



ELIZABETH NUNN

ELIZABETH NUNN

ELIZABETH NUNN

Elizabeth Nunn was once an up-andcoming member of the Illuminates of the New Dawn. She was very attractive and goal-oriented, but then things went wrong on an Illuminates operation, and she had a falling out with her former colleagues. She barely escaped, and hid from them for several years until recent events brought her out of hiding. She has come to believe that her mission is to help those who are about to die pass peacefully to the afterlife.



ELIZABETH NUNN

ELIZABETH NUNN

ELIZABETH NUNN

Former Illuminates of the New Dawn Member Faction: Independent Female Human Connection Rating: 3 Loyalty: Key Active Skills: Perception, Ritual Spellcasting, Spellcasting Knowledge Skills: Illuminates of the New Dawn Uses: Jobs, IoND Information, Street Info Places to Meet: Hospitals and clinics, abandoned churches, out-of-the-way locations



Elizabeth Nunn, a delightful woman who happens to have an odd habit of hanging out in hospitals and abandoned churches, has a grudge. A deep grudge. The kind of grudge that requires professional help to work out, and we’re not talking about a psychotherapist. She needs shadowrunners, and if they’re willing to take on the job, they’ll encounter fierce gangers, wild critters, and members of a secret magical society who fiercely guard their mysteries. If the runners can survive, they can find out just what Nunn is mad about—and how far she is willing to go for her revenge. Boundless Mercy is a series of Shadowrun Missions that were first run at major conventions. Featuring four linked adventures with complete game information, this book offers plenty of resources for gamemasters— and some steep challenges for players. Boundless Mercy is for use with Shadowrun, Fifth Edition.

Under License From ®

www.catalystgamelabs.com © 2015 The Topps Company, Inc. All rights reserved. Shadowrun, Shadowrun Missions, and Matrix are registered trademarks and/or trademarks of The Topps Company, Inc., in the United States and/or other countries. Catalyst Game Labs and the Catalyst Game Labs logo are trademarks of InMediaRes Productions, LLC. Printed in the USA.

Shadowrun_5E_Boundless_Mercy_(Missions_Compilations).pdf

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