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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules $0.00
Average Rating:4.2 / 5
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Megan R. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 02/17/2015 08:03:31

Designed to give a flavour of what Shadowrun is all about, this opens with 'Everything has a price' - the mantra by which the mercenary world of the shadowrunner operates. It then presents the romantic view of shadowrunners as the brave few who won't dance to the megacorporations' tune and aid their pursuit of profit above all else.

It then dives straight in to an outline of how the game works, written with the complete beginner in mind. Pre-generated characters are provided, but there's a clear run-down of all the main components of one: metatype, attributes, qualities and skills, although it doesn't explain how to actually create a character - after all, this is designed to give you a flavour of the game. The task resolution process (or 'test') is explained quickly but clearly with examples, along with a short concise summary of the combat process.

Next, the 'awakened world' of magic is covered with explanations of how to cast spells and how to defend against them with counterspells. For those who prefer the technological, this is followed by details of the wireless augmented reality world in which the characters live, in constant realt-time communication with the Matrix (the beast into which the Internet has evolved). And that's everybody, not just the deckers whose specialist skills enable them to explore and warp the Matrix in ways never intended.

Armed with this rather breathless yet comprehensive overview of game mechanics, you are then provided with a short scenario, 'Fast Food Fight', in which you can try them out using the pre-generated characters provided. For reasons adequately explained this revolves around a brawl in a fast food restaurant, a place which makes the burger joints we're used to sound like fine dining. A plan of the place is provided as well as clear descriptions of every location (and the hazards therein). NPCs are also provided, and there is even a copy of the establishment's menu... along with some rules to determine if anyone eating from it gets food poisoning!

Although simple, the adventure does provide plenty of action. There are suggestions throughout for running it and even for digging a bit deeper and taking it to a full-blown adventure, as well as some hints for more astute players to develop some interesting tactics during the brawl. There's even a sheet of handy tables to use as a Gamemaster Screen.

A nice introduction to playing the game, suitable even for newcomers to role-playing never mind Shadowrun, but an experienced Gamemaster would be advantageous, if you have one. If you are interested in shifting editions of Shadowrun, you'll have to decide where the differences lie between this and the edition(s) you are used to playing, as there is no indication here. But overall it gives a good feel of basic shadowrunning and ought to leave players ready to get to grips with the full game.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Michael H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/26/2013 12:59:19

A good look at how the game will run. The quick start contains enough to get the flavor of Shadowrun and shows how the changes in the rules help everything go along. It would be possible to play quite a bit with just these rules.

And free is a very good price, chummer!



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Alexander L. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 07/15/2013 09:20:03

Originally posted at: http://diehardgamefan.com/2013/07/15/tabletop-review-shadowrun-fifth-edition-quick-start-rules/

What can I say? While I’m knee deep into my review of Shadowrun, Fifth Edition, it’s easier to churn out a quick review of the new Quick Start Rules for the game. Think of it as a starter to the main course. So why should you care about the Quick Start Rules when you can just get the big honking 400 page Fifth Edition Core Rulebook? Well, there are lots of reasons. The first is that the QSR PDF is free, while the Core Rulebook costs money. This way, you can get a glimpse of the changes to the game and decide if you want to sink money into a new edition or stick with an older one like 2e or 20AE. The second reason is that with the QSR, you can get an overview of the rules and jump into an adventure with one of the premade characters it contains. That way, if you have chummers who are long time vets of the Sixth World and you’re a relative newcomer, you can use this to have a basic grasp of the game and join in the fun rather than sit out wondering why your pals get together with torn up sheets with a bunch of scrawled statistics on them and hucking a massive load of dice around a table.

So why care about these new Quick Start Rules when CGL just released a Free RPG Day 2013 set along with Battletech: A Time of War QSRs on the flip side of the booklet? Well, that’s a good question. If you picked up the Free RPG Day 2013 set, you’ll find that it’s mostly the same thing. The Free RPG Day 2013 set had 35 pages, while this new QSR only has 31, so obviously something has changed. What’s changed is primarily the layout, font, a TINY bit of wording, and some new sideboards. I really prefer the layout and style of this new set of QSR, although I do find it odd that we have two sets of the them coming out a month apart from each other with wildly different styles.

Like the Free RPG Day 2013 version, this set of QSR comes complete with an adventure entitled Fast Food Fight, which gives players a chance to use one of the included pregenerated characters and slag it out in a McHughs eatery with a few antagonists. The adventure is throwaway filler to be sure, but it’s a great way to experience the mechanics of combat in Shadowrun first hand. The adventure is forgettable but fun, and it does its job of making a very deep and complex game easy enough for a brand new gamer to get into and comprehend the basics of how things work and what to roll when and why.

One tiny change worth nothing that makes this version of the QSR so much better than last month’s physical release is this version has a DECKER! DECKER DECKER DECKER DECKER DECKER! Not a HACKER, but a DECKER. Sorry about that, but it had to be said. It’s great to see the return of the term and character type, as it is such an iconic part of the game. I also think the art in this new set of QSR is massively improved over the Free RPG Day 2013 set. Especially the Street Shaman. There is some great art in here, and it’s a great example of the pretty pictures you see in 5e should you choose to purchase the core rulebook.

About my only complaint with the QSR is that there aren’t any rules for character creation in it. Most QSR sets including character creation rules. We’ve seen this with everything from Tunnels and Trolls to Call of Cthulhu or Vampire: The Requiem. This is mainly because the rules for a lot of other games, both character creation and gameplay-wise, are simpler and easier to cut through than Shadowrun. Shadowrun isn’t RIFTS level complicated, but even with the new streamlined character creation rules for 5e, there’s no way to have done an accurate character creation set of rules for the game without increasing the page count big time. So, although I’d love to see that in a set of Shadowrun QSRs, it’s not going to happen unless you do first or second edition rules, and what’s the point in that?

All in all, the latest set of Shadowrun Quick Start Rules are by far the best in a long time and well worth picking up. I really do feel Fifth Edition Shadowrun is a huge improvement over 20AE, and the entire system feels like a blend of the best both Second and Fourth Editions had to offer. If you’ve ever been interested in trying the tabletop version of Shadowrun, now is the time to do it. Grab the Quick Start Rules and, if you like what you see, buy the core rulebook and start ‘running!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Quick-Start Rules
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Kyle W. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 07/11/2013 20:19:25

The Shadowrun Fifth Edition Quick-Start rules are a great asset for people who just want to play a quick game or those who want to see what's changed and if Fifth Edition is right for them. It's short, clocking in at 31 pages (technically 30, since the last is a Fifth Edition ad), but it includes an adventure as well as basic rules for the game.

It's obviously not Fifth Edition itself, with the full set of rules, but it encapsulates the things that have changed to make Fifth Ed. better than its predecessors. It's also a very pretty preview, with high-quality art and typesetting throughout.

If you're not sold on Fifth Edition, download this, and it will most likely convince you to jump on the bandwagon; the updates and improvements over Fourth Edition will be immediately apparent.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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