Play Styles
The Shadow War allows for a number of play styles, depending on the group of players and the world you are trying to emulate. There is no ‘right’ setting, just the one you find most enjoyable.
By The Book
This model best emulates the real world. The focus is on the individual teams rather than the organization as a whole. Their missions focus on the tasks that Special Forces units would undertake: assassinations, kidnapping of targets, destruction of strategic objectives, etc. While the PCs are good, there are others just up there with them, and not all of them are the good guys.
The PCs will have as much support from the government as regulations allow. There are regulations to follow, rules to adhere to, and the PCs must know when to toe the line and when to leave it behind to get the job done. In the field, the PCs are on their own, and are trained to handle themselves. Calling in the cavalry is not an option.
Using Asp in this model is best reserved for special occasions. Much of their involvement will be in supporting rebellions and rogue governments, aiding other terrorist organizations, and amassing wealth. They will be involved in the drugs and arms trade, and maybe even other grim business such as slavery. Asp operatives may not be obvious at first; only after research and intelligence gathering will ties to a greater movement be discovered.
In terms of technology, the PCs should be confined by the current technology of the modern world. Super-science such as Antigrav Sleds, Particle Beam Weapons, and jetpacks should be the focus of missions, not just something that can be acquired with the help of a Gizmoteer. On the other hand, both sides will have the best that money will buy from the modern world. Man-portable heavy weapons, sniper rifles, reactive body armor, and high-tech vehicles are part of the new science of war, and shouldn’t be discounted when offering up gear for missions.
Grim Thriller
This setting turns down the action a bit, in exchange for tension. In doing so, it begins to emulate the spy genre. Special Operations members are isolated teams, with little HQ contact on both ends; What ever organization your characters belong to just happens to be the name of the organization to which they belong. They are given a mission, an allowance for equipment, and told to get the job done. No one has ever heard of their organization, and they want to keep it that way.
This setting is firmly grounded in reality. Fights are visceral and bloody, with no one getting away clean unless they got the drop on someone. Action still happens, but it’s the kind that you see from athletes and Special Forces personnel. High speed car chases, raging gunfights, and perfectly-timed stealth missions are the order of the day.
Asp is a myth in this setting, or at least a very well-hidden organization. Most of the fights the PCs have deal with conventional threats such as terrorist groups, criminals, and even rogue elements within their own organization. The Mafia, splinter cells, and well-armed cults are the targets. As well, they are the hunters; this setting allows for very aggressive villains, who will make moves against the PCs rather than just react.
Technology is on par with the real world. High-tech gadgets do exist, but they are within the realms of modern science. Lightweight body armor, tracking equipment, and advanced computer systems start to push the edge of the technology envelope.
Super-Operatives
This model turns up the action a notch or two on both sides. Special Operations members are the best of the best, and they know it. In addition to by the book missions, they also engage in ‘bigger picture’ projects such as the destabilization of whole governments, the assassination of untouchable political and criminal masterminds such as Saddam Hussein, and more. The focus is still on the player characters, with the organization having a more public face; mentioning the organization won’t get a blank look from the average person.
While still bound by the laws of the United States and the laws of physics, they manage to find ways to break both. Pushing the edge of ‘gun-fu’ fighting, the PCs are given a lot of leeway to attempt crazy actions and to get the job done. Fighting on the roofs of moving vehicles, sniper shots from a mobile platform, and shrugging off damage that would level a normal man is part and parcel of a Super-Operatives game. You can get help from other members of the organization, but you’re the lead of the show.
Asp is an ever-present threat, with vast resources at their disposal. In addition to their support of rebellions, they also take a more direct hand in terrorism. Bombing of buildings, missile attacks, and robberies by Asp operatives are the name of the game. Front companies and organizations exist, and the webs that they entangle the financial and political world with are quite extensive. They are a more visible target, however, and the players can take the fight to them.
Technology is ever-present in the super-operative model. Equipment is available with gadget points, and these extras often make a difference on a mission. Spider-silk body suits that can deflect bullets, jetpacks, and Proteus vehicles just exaggerate the edge that operatives have in the Super-Operative model.
Over The Top
This model has thrown the laws of physics away. Everyone is Gun-Fu Fighting, both the organization and the bad guys. Stopping insidious mind-control plots, the development of genetic supermen, and the mass poisoning of the delegates of the United Nations easily fit into the Over the Top model. Here, SIGMA as a whole takes front stage; the PCs are representatives of well known organization, and may even be known celebrities due to the efforts of Media Relations.
In terms of the law, SIGMA members are the law, with full arrest and police powers. Likewise, no one really gets killed unless it’s important to the plot; vehicles that are damaged flip over in dramatic A-Team fashion and the bad guys crawl out to be rounded up at the end of the combat, and if the good guys lose, it’s only a temporary setback. Amazing coincidences, incredible good fortune, and American fighting spirit carry the day.
Unlike other representations of Asp, the one presented in the Over the Top model leave no room for doubt that they are an evil organization. Their goal is world domination, with no moralistic backstory to even begin to justify it. Asp bases are vast in supervillian fashion, and the High Command take a more direct hand in the running of matters. Asp begins to function less like a terrorist group and more like a standing army, with full uniforms and formalized equipment.
Technology in Over The Top is just that, over the top. Pythons on Antigrav Sleds fly into political fundraisers and kidnap contributors, particle beam lasers cut through bank walls, and Raptor jets strafe at SIGMA members. Everything can be traced back to modern theories and scientific developments, as long as you are willing to take the scenic route.
Saturday Morning Cartoon
This genre is designed to just let the PCs kick butt in an episodic setting. There is no continuity between missions; everyone gets a fresh start. SIGMA is the elite special missions force, Asp is the bad guy, and you are to get in there and get to work, soldier!!! You’ll never see a cop in this kind of SIGMA game. SIGMA members are everywhere, helping out with everything from traffic stops to talking kids out of joining gangs. Occasionally, they go off on missions to deal with Asp, who is bent on world domination! Oh, and yes, many sentences end in exclamation points!
Here, Asp Pythons run around in full uniform, yelling battle cries and trying one crackpot scheme for world domination after another. Snake is a buffoon, the High Command are cool but suffer from the ineptitude in their leadership, and such units as the Serpent Guard and the Pythons are more bark than bite. Asp goes for the gusto in any plan they execute; blow up the Statue of Liberty, teleport the Eiffel Tower away, etc.
In terms of technology, if someone could draw it, it’s in there and is being issued to a SIGMA member. Flying fortresses housing thousands of Asp Pythons, Boa remote drones charging into battle, and hordes of Asp Pythons get taken down by a small band of SIGMA members with guns that shoot like lasers. Every vehicle has an ejection seat; anyone shot never actually gets hit, just winded by the effort to get out of the way. If it’s cool, and it doesn’t look like it would be right out of Star Trek, the tech exists.
