RPG: ‘Margin Calls’ Is Shadowrun’s Latest Book – But What Is It, Exactly?
Catalyst Game Labs released a new Shadowrun book today, but pinning down what it is seems as elusive as Mr. Johnson.
Shadowrun has a new “plot sourcebook” out, called Margin Calls, that has some players trying to figure out what exactly that means. With references to a still smouldering shadow war, the plot seems to be thick. But what can players or GMs expect out of it? Let’s take a look.
Margin Calls Raises More Questions
Listen, I get it. Shadowrun is a game about subtle implications and information that can topple empires, trying its best to stay out of the hands of an ork with a pink mohawk and a minigun blazing away into the night. But the latest release for Shadowrun has me (and a few other folks) puzzled because it is light on the details.
Not that you need to spoil everything. But it helps to get an idea of what you can expect in some more concrete terms. Things like “six new player archetypes” or “256 new guns” are the kinds of bullet points you might see. Or perhaps something a little more florid like “dazzling new cutting-edge chrome that will make your street samurai sizzle.” You know the type.
Instead, well, here’s the blurb for the new book:
“In the wake of a recent shadow war, the corporate landscape has been forever altered. There were winners, losers, and people who felt lucky just to break even. Giants fell, others rose from the ashes like a phoenix, while still others remained in the shadows because this game is never over; the rules simply shift.
The corporate landscape always holds opportunities for those with the guts to seize them. But opportunity always comes with risk, because sometimes the market is a boom, other times it’s a bust. And if at the end of the day, when the margins are called and it’s time to square up, there’d better be enough assets to cover … or it’s game over.
Margin Calls is a plot sourcebook for use with Shadowrun, Sixth World.
And really, it’s that last part that raises the most questions because the corporate stuff – that makes sense. I get the impression that this is going to focus on whatever the megacorporations like Ares Macrotechnology, Aztechnology, or whoever else are getting up to. But what is a plot sourcebook?
It doesn’t sound like an adventure. Or even necessarily a campaign setting guide type of thing. The closest thing I can think of is that Battletech lorebook that came out late last year, Battletech Universe. But even that gave a slightly more detailed outline:
“Dive deep into BattleTech lore with this look at the factions of the Innner Sphere, Clans, and Periphery, and learn about key events, personalities, and conflicts for each. Whether you enjoy titanic battlefield clashes, high-stakes covert ops missions, cloak-and-dagger political intrigue, or any other kind of story, you’ll find it in the BattleTech setting.”
Again, not that I’m saying everyone needs to be led by the hand or anything. But is this a book of corporate lore? Is it plot seeds? Pre-made adventures whose plots are in the sourcebook? Does it have updates on the corporations of the 80s, or is it a deeper dive into what could be happening and how to use it in your game? Maybe it’s just me! Check it out for yourself at the link below.
Maybe it makes a kind of meta-sense. Shadowrun’s corporate plots are often hard to understand until they spill out of the shadows!
