I like the Tactical Turtleneck, where the missions have realism and hard gritty consequences, but there are plenty of room for laughs and incompetency on the players and NPCs sides.
New to Shadowrun
I've been DMing games for over a decade, but the change to shadowrun 5 has been interesting for me. The lore and rule system is unique and different from DND like I'm used to , so each game will have room for both myself and players to learn. With this in mind, constructive criticism and helpful tips on the rules is very appreciated! Please made use of the GM feedback form on my runs to help me understand where I can improve.
Pick Policy
Folks who fit the rough threat of a run and make up a good dynamic team comp
Folks who are lore or RP wise a good fit for the run
Folks who are overall good sports and bring a positive attitude to on and off table roleplay.
Declining the Meet
I won't take players who will decline the meet up front. Disagreeing with the J is alright, but if you aren't interested in the run, then I would prefer not to waste either of our time. This way more people who are genuinely interested in sinking a few hours of their day on my table will actually be enjoying themselves.
Thwarting the J and derailment
Sometimes you meet a J that turns out to either be shady or wants real, real skeevy stuff. In the event this happens, I'm more than happy to help either work on the fly or use prepped content for the runners to acquire rewards anyway! Be forewarned, betraying the J will always have consequences.
When it comes to derailing the entire run, refer back to my section on declining the meet. Unless the run turns into a comedy of errors and things start to fail due to dice rolls or lack of common sense cards, I hope my players come with the expectation that we're here to accomplish the goals in good faith. If you're feeling like total derailment even still, please confirm with me before taking an action that may derail things.
Realism
I appreciate games that have a good story and solid realism, however as a new GM to shadowrun 5, especially Shadowhaven in general, I think There will be some hiccups here and there. For now, there will be some skimming over topics and subjects that I'm still learning! As such, if you are a player and can offer assistance, I'll gladly appreciate your input.
Failure
There will be times when your runners fail. This is normal, and part of the game. If there is a situation where a run fails, we can talk about RVP negatives that fit the narrative of the run, as well as things that are good obstacles for your runner to overcome. Embrace failure as a learning experience, but know that I'm not inherently out to get you! Good stories include both wins and loses.
Runs
I just stole this from Sleevey, Archtmag, Ed. Thanks palls!