Thanks for the amazing game. It looks like the perfect fit to my needs. I love BitD and this engine builds upon solid foundations while adding a bunch of flavor!
I am about to start the campaign in mid July, we will have the "system switch session zero" where we rebuild characters and define the crew. We have already been running it using BESM 4th and then Fate Condensed. Most of the characters followed tropes and genre-appropriate conventions that are easily ported to RitS. But one is a half hacker, half infiltrator type who uses a cloaking device and is really good at taking the first silenced pistol shot (then the rest of the shots are poor during a prolonged combat).
I was wondering if there was any way to have personal cloaking devices à la Ghost in the Shell.
Did I miss anything in the equipment list?
I did notice an invisibility spell.
I am thinking that maybe a playbook ability could grant the ability to activate the field for 1 edge, spending additional edge to make it last longer. Perhaps it could also allow Special Armor to be spent to activate it once per run at no edge cost, something along those lines.
How would you stat such devices if they were high tier equipment that "anyone could get" with the right contacts/money?
Thanks.
-Olivier, about to port some FATE characters to RitS.
Re: cloaking device and other items. Remember that any PC might have any item. At any time. The players get final say on what they want to achieve with their characters action; now, or in the past. And what specific action they think can pull that off.
That's one of the only rules of the game that should be held close (so much so, it's one of the few Core Rules). Anyways if that's rule one, then rule two is: the GM gets final say how much a description of a PC can achieve, given a particular goal and course of action. Rule 3 is that the GM decides whether a roll is needed and which type. And rule 4 is the players decide how many Karma they earn at the end of the session.
It's also up to the GM whatever else happens in the world as a result of a given action.
Given this, your questions are making it tough to answer. It's best not to set an edge cost for permission to take a particular action. You could set a cost for a flashback that's particularly outlandish, but it might be better to let them attempt that for free, and make a roll instead.
The additional questions that arise from trying to answer your questions indicate the need to discuss your experience and group in more detail. And quite frankly, the best answer for one situation for one group is almost never the best one for another situation, let alone another group. You sound like a conscientious player, with a desire to learn and impress your players! so I implore you to accept the Community Discord server invite included with your download, to better tap into the hive mind and get the help you deserve.
If that's Not possible, do respond here so I can better assist you
I've been in love with Shadowrun since the first edition came out, but the rules are just too crunchy for how I play now. It is the perfect fit for FitD and this is a fantastic conversion. I've been running RitS for my table for several months now and it has really delivered.
This is my first extended time running any FitD game and the first one that took with my group. I really enjoy getting some system mastery over the whole FitD genre.
So, hey thanks for writing a great game! It looks bad ass hardcover printed from lulu as well. I hope you finish the interior art sometime.
Wow! Thank you so much for your success story. You're so welcome
And I do have interior art to share, but I'm currently reviewing how best to present that in a printed form. Stay tuned please and thanks for your praise!
Hi there. I'm a long time storyteller/gamemaster of all dark future roleplaying games and I just wanted to drop in here and let you know how impressed I was by this rulebook. I'm absolutely loving it. I've always said I love the Shadowrun world but want a better ruleset for it. Anarchy was a step in the right direction in some ways, but this is most definitely what I've been looking forward to. Thanks much!
I did want to ask. Is there any update on a print version of these rules? I'd rather have that than a PDF for use at the table.
I expected to get a small guide to using a Blades in the Dark system in a Shadowrun setting. This is so much more than that. It is a full book-length conversion of Blades in the Dark. I own the the Scum and Villainy sci-fi book for Blades in the Dark, which is also fantastic, and this book is at least its equal. I'm amazed to see how much work and care has gone into Runners in the Shadows. If you love the Shadowrun world, but not it's convoluted, slow-playing rule set, this is the book for you.
Wow such praise!You're why I worked so hard! Also the others who want a different but equally-weird fantasy-future Earth. But yea, I am always so thankful and humbled to have readers like you among my fans. And I can't wait to show you all my other fantasy mash-ups using this same framework later! Which I'm definitely taking more chances with the Forged system than I did here..
Hey there Mark, just letting you know that I added full support for both Crew and Runner sheets (except for the more complex shell, spirit, and infected sheets) to the "Character sheet for Any RPG" app via community contribution. I hope that brings you joy.
Encountered a 10 page blank area in my core rulebook, pages 49 - 59 are blank. It looks low I am missing the entire character creation section. Am I missing something?
Thanks for mentioning this! You shouldn't actually be missing any pages though: scroll past those ten blank pages to find Character Creation as expected (but with wrong pagination). Alternatively, download the game again (and replace the one you have).
To explain a bit: The issue you mention was reported privately almost immediately after that 0.998 went out, so I uploaded a hotfix of the PDF almost immediately afterwards, with the pagination fixed (and a weird device specific issue I have to work around from now on as well!) - but to be clear, it was just pagination, not missing pages as it appears.
AH: It does confusingly have the exact same version number! (again, this was not a significant change to the rules, but a repair of an export with Extra blank pages, which caused the page references to break)
I gotta say this too. I love the Recovery and Healing mechanics in Runners In The Shadows, it's closer to Scum and Villainy's rather than Blades In The Dark's.
Thank you so much for this Mark.
I highly highly recommend Runners In The Shadows game guys, cool refinement of the Forged In The Dark system and one of the coolest ones.
Is there any update regarding a print version becoming available in the future? I'm all for PDF's but find them harder to use at the table than dead trees. If plans for a print version get dropped, is there a possibility of going print-on-demand, instead? I really would like to get this game, but again, I'm all about having dead-tree editions, if possible. Should print or POD still be on the table, I have no issue dropping some cash now on the PDF.
I know: it's been way too long! Best info I have now is this is about to be top priority, but things got delayed for important business: IE the first annual the online Forged in the Dark convention we are planning to hold in less than a week! And I promised by now-dead-friend that inspired me to finish it that I would indeed print it.. So stay tuned please, I've just been busy working on this goodness
Yes, some became available just a couple hours ago.
PS My fault for missing last month, I just got sidetracked and the month ran away from me while I was waiting for proofing of this major update to finish. Stay tuned on the blog here to get immediate notifications in the future, and thanks for asking
Me too! I actually wondered if you'd tell me how you liked it, and if you got into a game? I didnt see you join the Discord, but I appreciate you just the same :>
Is there any Community Copy update for this month? The demo sheets have really intrigued me and I'm very interested in seeing the full PDF but money is a bit tight right now.
Oh, dang: Sorry I missed This! I got you though: I just counted them up again and a bunch came out yesterday and today. Hopefully can get one if you are still strapped or whatever :> cheers
This is clearly a labor love by Mark. The writings and languages are clear, being a fully stand alone Forged In The Dark that can often be a hefty tome. Runners in the Shadows is really easy to understand. The playbooks and crewbooks are also easy to understand and suits the setting really well. The explanations on both augmentations and magic are also really well explained.
Great work Mark, thank you so much for making this awesome game. I am eagerly waiting the game's awesome final form haha. Best regards Mark.
thanks for the feedback. Additional visuals are being prepared. Perhaps I should do some more than Blades did in this case. An illustration of the factors (potency, scale, and quality/tier) seems do-able. What do you wish it showed?
I detected a little harshness, but I'm nonetheless interested in helping remedy whatever is unclear. Maybe something like this helps? Not sure what else about the factors can be communicated with a diagram to be honest. Trying :)
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So, what's with these blank images? The game's been out for years, so shouldn't these be filled in by now, or am I missing something?
It's a fine pice of work. Thank you very much! A physical print option would be nice! :-)
Purchased. I look forward to a physical print option!! Keep us posted on the progress toward that option :)
is there any hardcover or sofcover print on demand on this?
The sheet for the Hacker is missing the RitS logo. Has there been any update about getting a printed version of the rules?
Will you add anymore community copies?
Can't seem to find the Extra Materials folder anywhere.
Hi Mark!
I was just wondering if you still put up community copies here and there? Super interested in this from what I've heard about it!
Thanks!
Hey Mark!
Thanks for the amazing game. It looks like the perfect fit to my needs. I love BitD and this engine builds upon solid foundations while adding a bunch of flavor!
I am about to start the campaign in mid July, we will have the "system switch session zero" where we rebuild characters and define the crew. We have already been running it using BESM 4th and then Fate Condensed. Most of the characters followed tropes and genre-appropriate conventions that are easily ported to RitS. But one is a half hacker, half infiltrator type who uses a cloaking device and is really good at taking the first silenced pistol shot (then the rest of the shots are poor during a prolonged combat).
I was wondering if there was any way to have personal cloaking devices à la Ghost in the Shell.
Did I miss anything in the equipment list?
I did notice an invisibility spell.
I am thinking that maybe a playbook ability could grant the ability to activate the field for 1 edge, spending additional edge to make it last longer. Perhaps it could also allow Special Armor to be spent to activate it once per run at no edge cost, something along those lines.
How would you stat such devices if they were high tier equipment that "anyone could get" with the right contacts/money?
Thanks.
-Olivier, about to port some FATE characters to RitS.
Hi Olivier, and thanks for your questions!
Re: cloaking device and other items. Remember that any PC might have any item. At any time. The players get final say on what they want to achieve with their characters action; now, or in the past. And what specific action they think can pull that off.
That's one of the only rules of the game that should be held close (so much so, it's one of the few Core Rules). Anyways if that's rule one, then rule two is: the GM gets final say how much a description of a PC can achieve, given a particular goal and course of action. Rule 3 is that the GM decides whether a roll is needed and which type. And rule 4 is the players decide how many Karma they earn at the end of the session.
It's also up to the GM whatever else happens in the world as a result of a given action.
Given this, your questions are making it tough to answer. It's best not to set an edge cost for permission to take a particular action. You could set a cost for a flashback that's particularly outlandish, but it might be better to let them attempt that for free, and make a roll instead.
The additional questions that arise from trying to answer your questions indicate the need to discuss your experience and group in more detail. And quite frankly, the best answer for one situation for one group is almost never the best one for another situation, let alone another group. You sound like a conscientious player, with a desire to learn and impress your players! so I implore you to accept the Community Discord server invite included with your download, to better tap into the hive mind and get the help you deserve.
If that's Not possible, do respond here so I can better assist you
Cheers,
-Mark
I've been in love with Shadowrun since the first edition came out, but the rules are just too crunchy for how I play now. It is the perfect fit for FitD and this is a fantastic conversion. I've been running RitS for my table for several months now and it has really delivered.
This is my first extended time running any FitD game and the first one that took with my group. I really enjoy getting some system mastery over the whole FitD genre.
So, hey thanks for writing a great game! It looks bad ass hardcover printed from lulu as well. I hope you finish the interior art sometime.
Wow! Thank you so much for your success story. You're so welcome
And I do have interior art to share, but I'm currently reviewing how best to present that in a printed form. Stay tuned please and thanks for your praise!
Some interior arts would be awesome, Mark. I'm looking forward to it too.
Hi there. I'm a long time storyteller/gamemaster of all dark future roleplaying games and I just wanted to drop in here and let you know how impressed I was by this rulebook. I'm absolutely loving it. I've always said I love the Shadowrun world but want a better ruleset for it. Anarchy was a step in the right direction in some ways, but this is most definitely what I've been looking forward to. Thanks much!
I did want to ask. Is there any update on a print version of these rules? I'd rather have that than a PDF for use at the table.
I expected to get a small guide to using a Blades in the Dark system in a Shadowrun setting. This is so much more than that. It is a full book-length conversion of Blades in the Dark. I own the the Scum and Villainy sci-fi book for Blades in the Dark, which is also fantastic, and this book is at least its equal. I'm amazed to see how much work and care has gone into Runners in the Shadows. If you love the Shadowrun world, but not it's convoluted, slow-playing rule set, this is the book for you.
Wow such praise! You're why I worked so hard! Also the others who want a different but equally-weird fantasy-future Earth. But yea, I am always so thankful and humbled to have readers like you among my fans. And I can't wait to show you all my other fantasy mash-ups using this same framework later! Which I'm definitely taking more chances with the Forged system than I did here..
Thanks again for your review, you rock
Hey there Mark, just letting you know that I added full support for both Crew and Runner sheets (except for the more complex shell, spirit, and infected sheets) to the "Character sheet for Any RPG" app via community contribution. I hope that brings you joy.
App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.shustoff.charactersheet
it does! Please join the discord if you haven't already too. Updates incoming. Thanks!
Encountered a 10 page blank area in my core rulebook, pages 49 - 59 are blank. It looks low I am missing the entire character creation section. Am I missing something?
Thanks for mentioning this! You shouldn't actually be missing any pages though: scroll past those ten blank pages to find Character Creation as expected (but with wrong pagination). Alternatively, download the game again (and replace the one you have).
To explain a bit: The issue you mention was reported privately almost immediately after that 0.998 went out, so I uploaded a hotfix of the PDF almost immediately afterwards, with the pagination fixed (and a weird device specific issue I have to work around from now on as well!) - but to be clear, it was just pagination, not missing pages as it appears.
I cannot find the patched version :/
AH: It does confusingly have the exact same version number! (again, this was not a significant change to the rules, but a repair of an export with Extra blank pages, which caused the page references to break)
Download again for best results
Hope this helps!
Also sorry about that!
Oh great, as long as I'm not missing anything it's fine! Thanks for the quick reply, I'm loving this system already!
That IS good news :) can't wait for you to see the finished thing
I gotta say this too. I love the Recovery and Healing mechanics in Runners In The Shadows, it's closer to Scum and Villainy's rather than Blades In The Dark's.
Thank you so much for this Mark.
I highly highly recommend Runners In The Shadows game guys, cool refinement of the Forged In The Dark system and one of the coolest ones.
aw well shucks - thanks for your glowing review of that bit zerodan!
Is there any update regarding a print version becoming available in the future? I'm all for PDF's but find them harder to use at the table than dead trees. If plans for a print version get dropped, is there a possibility of going print-on-demand, instead? I really would like to get this game, but again, I'm all about having dead-tree editions, if possible. Should print or POD still be on the table, I have no issue dropping some cash now on the PDF.
I know: it's been way too long! Best info I have now is this is about to be top priority, but things got delayed for important business: IE the first annual the online Forged in the Dark convention we are planning to hold in less than a week! And I promised by now-dead-friend that inspired me to finish it that I would indeed print it.. So stay tuned please, I've just been busy working on this goodness
Will there be Community Copies added again in the future?
Yes, some became available just a couple hours ago.
PS My fault for missing last month, I just got sidetracked and the month ran away from me while I was waiting for proofing of this major update to finish. Stay tuned on the blog here to get immediate notifications in the future, and thanks for asking
Thank you so much! I’m so excited!
Me too! I actually wondered if you'd tell me how you liked it, and if you got into a game? I didnt see you join the Discord, but I appreciate you just the same :>
Is there any Community Copy update for this month? The demo sheets have really intrigued me and I'm very interested in seeing the full PDF but money is a bit tight right now.
Oh, dang: Sorry I missed This! I got you though: I just counted them up again and a bunch came out yesterday and today. Hopefully can get one if you are still strapped or whatever :> cheers
This is clearly a labor love by Mark. The writings and languages are clear, being a fully stand alone Forged In The Dark that can often be a hefty tome. Runners in the Shadows is really easy to understand. The playbooks and crewbooks are also easy to understand and suits the setting really well. The explanations on both augmentations and magic are also really well explained.
Great work Mark, thank you so much for making this awesome game. I am eagerly waiting the game's awesome final form haha. Best regards Mark.
Thank you kindly.
thanks for the feedback. Additional visuals are being prepared. Perhaps I should do some more than Blades did in this case. An illustration of the factors (potency, scale, and quality/tier) seems do-able. What do you wish it showed?
Anything else you thought needed an illustration?
Edit: Also I'm curious if you are a player or GM?
I detected a little harshness, but I'm nonetheless interested in helping remedy whatever is unclear. Maybe something like this helps? Not sure what else about the factors can be communicated with a diagram to be honest. Trying :)