We didn’t have Gen Con last year and we’re months away from this year’s edition, so instead of waiting for the con, now seemed like a good time for an update on where the Shadowrun line is and where it’s going. So here it is!
Recent releases
This year started with Collapsing Now, which looked at some people and organizations shadowrunners need to know about if they want to survive and thrive. Then we moved to the core magic book for Shadowrun, Sixth World, which is called Street Wyrd. It includes spells, adept powers, spirits, a spell construction system, and more. It was accompanied by a deck of spell reference cards called Mobile Grimoire, featuring cards from both Street Wyrd and SR6. Then we recently had the release of Power Plays, which runs down of the current state of the Big Ten AAA corporations of the Sixth World—with some hints about plot developments to come.
Upcoming
Three products are in the printing and shipping pipeline, so they will be available before long:
Johnson ‘Dex: Mr. Johnson provides critical jobs and money, as well as lies, double-dealing, and treachery. This deck of cards offers profiles, game stats, and plot hooks for about twenty Mr. Johnsons. Works great on its own or with the Shadowrun, Sixth World Gamemaster’s Screen.
Shadow Points: A backdoor cyberclinic. A fast food joint. A police station. These are places shadowrunners might encounter across the globe, wherever they get their work done. Shadow Points features thirty such locations on handy cards, with an illustration to provide the basic look of each building, along with information entrances and exits, security profile, people who might be present, special features, and fun ways to use the location in your game. These can be dropped into any city where the gamemaster needs them to keep the game moving.
Assassin’s Night: This campaign book drops runner teams into the city of Barcelona and asks them to chase rumors that something big is about to go down. By maneuvering through the chaos of the city and getting to know some of the local runners, gangsters, and power brokers, the runners can find out what’s happening—and then figure out what they want to do about it. Their efforts will build to a world-shaking conclusion!
Then there are two items about to go to the printer:
Double Clutch: Riggers love toys, and we love riggers! This book contains dozens of vehicles and drones, as well as modifications, new actions, Edge boosts, qualities, and more. And to top it all off, it has rules to allow riggers to construct their own custom vehicles.
Rides Deck: Want a card deck full of boats, cars, planes, and drones? This deck is for you! Each card has game stats and a vehicle illustration to help riggers keep track of their toys.
Beyond that, we have more books planned. Here’s a glimpse into the near future:
The Kechibi Code: Hmmm, we don’t want to say too much about this one, because it will be best experienced as the plot unfolds through the book. It’s a globe-trotting plot book, moving through the Scotsprawl, Lagos, and St. Louis, all in pursuit of expanding digital vandalism targeting businesses and major markets. Who is behind it, what are they trying to do—and what will the runners decide to do about it?
Emerald City: Seattle has experienced dramatic changes recently, breaking free of the UCAS and going its own way as a free city. Independence can be exhilarating, but it also brings stresses and danger, and this book will look at how Seattle is changing and what that means for people working in the shadowrunning capital of the world.
Anarchy 2050: Do you love Shadowrun: Anarchy? Do you want to play classic Shadowrun plotlines from the early era of the game with these streamlined rules? Then Anarchy 2050 is for you! This book will offer all you need to play Anarchy in the era of the wired Matrix, huge cyberdecks, and all the scuzzy neon you could ask for.
The Third Parallel: Where Man meets Magic and Machine—that was Shadowrun’s tagline from way back, and this campaign book explores how those three aspects of the Sixth World interact and overlap. Taking place in the Denver sprawl, this books bounces players back and forth from the meatworld to the Matrix to the astral and back again, looking at what changes and what stays the same as they try to uncover a plot that brings all three worlds together to possibly highly destructive effect.
Fiction
Shadowrun fiction moves ahead with new releases from talented writers!
Shadow Dance by Aaron Rosenberg takes readers to Denver, where a small-time shadowrunner named Cole Danvers finds the past is not easy to escape from.
Tourist Trapped by Bryan CP Steele drops readers into the Toronto blackout for a fast-paced ride through the growing chaos of a city ripping apart at the seams.
See How She Runs by Jennifer Brozek sees an ambitious courier plunge into deeper shadows than she was prepared for. Can she survive—and finish her delivery?
Be sure to visit the fiction page of the Catalyst store for the full range of fiction options!
Plotlines
As always, there are plenty of things happening in the Sixth World. While we want each book to be stand enough on its own that you can have fun playing it without needing a lot of other background knowledge, plot elements continue from book to book so you can get a richer experience by following the developing story. The first plot book for Shadowrun, Sixth World, called Cutting Black, introduced a whole lot of plot developments that will continue playing out as books continue. Here is a quick guide to some of those plot elements:
Blackout: When Ares decided to leave the UCAS, the UCAS decided to repeal the Business Recognition Accords. After that decision, they were hit by blackouts in cities across the nation, and some cities and territories decided to leave the UCAS in the aftermath. Cutting Black and 30 Nights described the main events of this plotline, and Slip Streams showed some of the investigation into this. Look for more plot developments in this line in The Third Parallel, and catch fiction about it in Tourist Trapped.
Disappearance of III Corps: The UCAS also sent the army to Detroit, only to lose an entire corps, having it entirely vanish. The disappearance happened in Cutting Black, then the soldiers started returning in Slip Streams. That book also connected some disappearances to a metaplane called Dis, which will figure in The Third Parallel and a subsequent plot book.
Independent Seattle: Seattle declared its independence as part of Cutting Black, and this event figured into the plot of Free Seattle. The effect of independence will be explored in Emerald City.
Reprints
Some items are running low on stock and require reprints. We hope to avoid lags in supplies in these items, but in case you have trouble finding any of the following in the near future, rest assured: reprints are on the way!
Shadowrun, Sixth World Gamemaster’s Screen
Sixth World Tarot: Arcanist’s Edition
That covers where things stand! Watch your back, shoot straight, conserve ammo, never deal with a dragon, and have a ton of fun!