[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Shadowrun_Super_Tuesday_by_Jim_Nelson_2382.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:The civil rights movement has come a long way by 2057.]]

-> "''Watch your back, shoot straight, conserve ammo, and never, ever, cut a deal with a dragon.''"

-> "''A standard mission is 20 minutes of objectives, three days of planning, and 600 seconds of mayhem.''"

''Shadowrun'' is a {{Tabletop Game|s}} from Creator/{{FASA}} that straddles the CyberPunk and DungeonPunk genres.

It's set TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture (first edition in 2050, second edition in 2053, third in 2060, and fourth in 2070), with one major difference: In 2012, on the "zero date" at the end of the Mayan calendar, magic (which has its own, millennia long tides) returned to the world. Humans mutated into various other races [[FiveRaces (elves, dwarves, orks, and trolls)]], dragons awoke from eons-long slumber, and some people gained the ability to cast spells. The Native Americans were the first ones to use magic on a greater scale and they used their newfound power to re-take most of the western North American continent; however, the real movers and shakers are the [[MegaCorp megacorporations]], who have achieved extranational status and are now exempt from most laws. In this world, the players are Shadowrunners, freelance operatives who take jobs that corporations, governments, and other entities can't (or won't) handle themselves.

Probably the most popular cyberpunk [[TabletopGames role playing game]], which pisses off purists to no end (due to the system's blend of cyberpunk [[NoTrueScotsman with fantasy species and tropes]]). [[VideoGame/{{Shadowrun}} Video game adaptations of the setting]] were made for both the SegaGenesis and SuperNintendo in the 90's. The two were very different from each other, and the Genesis version was considered a classic for its console (the reason [[Franchise/DragonAge Greg]] [[Franchise/MassEffect Muzyka]] ''left medical school'' to work for Creator/BioWare), while the less-popular SNES version is thought of as one of the console's hidden gems. There was also a Japan-only game for the [[OtherSegaSystems Sega CD]]. A more recent adaptation, a team-based [[FirstPersonShooter FPS]] for the Xbox 360 and PC, however, has been much less well-received. The primary reason you will find it referenced is the rare use of cross-platform multiplayer between the 360 and PC versions. (This game is also the ''reason'' it is rare, as gameplay was massively unbalanced in the favor of PC players due to superior controls.) A [[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1613260297/shadowrun-returns new game recently started getting funding]] via Website/{{Kickstarter}} and exceeded its $400,000 goal in just 28 hours, making $1,889,416 total. Called ''VideoGame/ShadowrunReturns'', it is being produced by FASA founder and ''Shadowrun'' co-creator Jordan Weisman.

It has a strictly fantasy offshoot, ''Earthdawn''. For a while, it has been stated that ''Earthdawn'' is actually a prequel to ''Shadowrun'' placed in the Fourth Age (''Shadowrun'' being Sixth), but this connection is no longer used officially, as the two games are now managed by different publishers. There's also a SpaceOpera offshoot in the works, ''Equinox'', but it currently looks like VaporWare.

[[Characters/{{Shadowrun}} Has a Character Sheet]].
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!!This game contains examples of:

* AbortedArc: When Dunkelzahn was [[spoiler: killed at his Presidential inauguration, the plot appears to have been part of a tie-in to the Big D preventing the Horrors (from Earthdawn) from returning.]] While this story is still basically assumed to be canon, ever since the publisher split from Earthdawn it hasn't really been referenced.
* AchievementsInIgnorance: More subtle then most examples but this happens a lot when Technomancers first emerge. At least one fixed up her motorcycle before realizing that her comlink was off.
* AdjectiveAnimalAlehouse: Multiple examples in multiple supplements.
* AIIsACrapshoot: Literally; In the first editions (1-3), until 2064 (the 2nd crash), only three AIs existed (Mirage, Morgan/Maegera and Deus - the latter one being the big, bad kind of AI). All of them were extremely powerfull entities but all of them vanished in Crash 2.0 which ended the 3rd edition. In the 4th Edition, starting 2070, lesser AIs started to appear. Self-awareness can't be written into a program; it has to occur on its own. The best that the corps can do as far as creating AI goes is to monitor their most data-intensive programs closely and see what happens. Second, the result may be self-aware but not sapient, like a dog or a cat. Or it could be the very rare third type where it still is somewhat like its original program. These are called xenosapients because they are so alien to metahumanity that they are pretty much StarfishAliens. Then there are the metahuman-like AIs. Some have just spawned from nothing, some from existing programs and others seem to be based on people that got trapped in the Matrix during the Second Crash or later events.
* TheAgeless: Dragons have this as a racial trait, as well as some elves.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Of the {{Mega Corp}}s Ares is this. Sure they smuggle guns, [[WarForFunAndProfit start wars to increase business]], and run the private police but they aren't [[spoiler: bring about the EndOfTheWorld through blood rituals like Aztechnology or trying to do a AssimilationPlot like Horizon.]] They also [[BugWar fought against the Insect Spirits in Chicago.]] [[spoiler: And now use captured Bug Queens to make fleshform insect spirits usuable as guard critters.]]
* AllDeathsFinal: If you die in the tabletop game, you're dead. [[OnlyMostlyDead Not so much]] in the FPS, where you can be resurrected within the same round if your buddies care to do so and have the MP.
* AllThereInTheManual: To be specific the ''Sixth World Almanac''. It explains what happened in the background. This is somewhat necessary because of the [[RetCon RetCons]] from the previous editions, new players getting into it, and just clearing things up. However it's written In-Universe so UnreliableNarrator is in effect. (Also there is several misprints in it too.) Still worth it for background information
* AlmightyJanitor: Somewhat. At least one supplement points out that bribing the underpaid janitors and rent-a-cops at buildings can make a run a lot easier.
* AlternateContinuity: the 2007 videogame - [[WordOfGod according to]] [[http://blogs.ign.com/FASA_Studio/ the developers]]/ TheOtherWiki, it should be considered ''Shadowrun'' InNameOnly.
* AmusingInjuries: Taking the Cursed disadvantage causes this with a character's magic. Rule wise it causes glitches to happen more often when casting magic and causing you to make dice rolls for otherwise automatically successes. An example they give is summoning a water spirit can set your clothes on fire and using Improved Reflex is glitched will result in your character tripping over their shoelaces.
* AncientConspiracy: The immortal Elves and Greater Dragons, together and separately.
* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit - [[TheTriadsAndTheTongs Chinese Triads]] deploy their goon squads based on traditional numerology - [[FourIsDeath Four and Five are unlucky numbers]], Seven and Eight are particularly lucky.
* ArtifactCollectionAgency: the Mystic Crusaders. [[KnightsTemplar take a wild guess who they REALLY are...]]
* AscendedFanboy: Many of the writers of 3rd and 4th edition, who grew up playing 1st and 2nd edition, such as Adam Jury, Steven "Bull" Ratokovich and Bobby "Ancient History" Derie.
* AttackReflector: The Reflective Shielding initiate metamagic ability, first described in ''Awakenings: New Magic in 2057''.
* AugmentedReality: How the Matrix works in 4th Edition.
* AuthorExistenceFailure: Nigel Findley, R.I.P. 1995
* BackpackCannon: The Ballista Multi-Role Missile Launcher, which is also an AwesomeBackpack.
* BadassCrew: Any sufficiently experienced crew of runners that have worked together for a length of time.
* BalkanizeMe: Large countries like China are split into many small countries, Russia is split in 2, Germany into a Confederation of 6, Africa into tribal nations no more then a few miles across. North America is similarly divided, see DividedStatesOfAmerica below.
* {{BFG}}: The Thunderstruck Gauss Rifle, assault cannons, sniper rifles, etc.
* BigBad: The Horrors.
* BigBrotherIsWatching
** If someone is in public, they're on several cameras at once. Everything they buy is put on file, every transaction they make leaves a datatrail straight to them, every ad they show interest in is monitored... All so that the corps get more of their money. Thanks to them, in many places it's illegal - or at least very suspicious - to have your commlink switched off in public.
** Averted in that they point out that while every single inch of the urban landscape is under ubiquitous surveillance, the different owners of all of those surveillance cameras (that is to say, the different megacorps) do ''not'' like to share information with each other. This is how shadowrunners can still survive in a Big Brother world -- by knowing where the invisible borders are and the cracks between them, and crossing them back and forth as rapidly as they can. They also get away with it because there is so ''much'' data recorded, that it's too expensive to process all of it without a good reason, and the Megacorps generally hate spending money without a guaranteed return.
*** Also at least one books mentions that despite thousands of cameras watching you maybe 5 percent of them even get a decent look at you. Even then due to CyberpunkWithAChanceOfRain it's not uncommon or specious to see someone wearing a hat and a respirator. Even then if they manage to get a good look at your face it's still really hard to identify someone.
--> Lone Star Officer: "Oh look another 20 something Caucasian human. Not like we get a thousand of them a week."
* BigGood: Harlequin and Dunkelzahn fill this role, despite being [[BlackAndGreyMorality as ethically-questionable as anyone else in this setting]].
** They're the only ones who seem to be playing the long game against the Horrors, at any rate.
* BizarreAlienSenses: Certain Awakened creatures have thermographic (infrared) vision, including dwarves, trolls, dragons, vampires, centaurs, cerberus hounds and fomorians.
* BizarreBabyBoom: Unexplained Genetic Expression, responsible for the emergence of elves and dwarves among the population.
* BlackMarket
** Hell, in the world of 2070, they're ''this'' close to advertising. Anyone up for a trip to the Crime Mall?
** One sourcebook mentions Hacker House, an online store for illegal hackers' gear that openly advertises its existence. The trick is finding it, then hacking into it in order to use its services.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: Cyberspurs, which can emerge from wrists, elbows, and knees.
* BlandNameProduct: Both averted and played straight in several sourcebooks.
* BlessedWithSuck: The Latent Awakening quality. Why? The Gamemaster gets to pick what you become, and what spell/ability you start off with. If you pissed him off he can screw you over. Also, all of the Infected qualities. All of them.
* BloodMagic: Practiced by Aztechnology mages, and others.
* BloodSport: Urban Brawl, Combat Biker, and Aztec-style Court Ball.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Insect Spirits. Street Magic point out that they can't be called evil since they are incomprehensible to Metahumanity.
* BrainComputerInterface
** Monitors are as dead as print. If you're a sissy, you can use non-invasive neural interface electrodes, like in {{Neuromancer}}. ''Real'' users have input/output jacks '''drilled in their skulls''' - it's the new HD!
** Which have been replaced by electrode headbands and nano-paste, display glasses and ear buds. Everything old is new again!
** The transition from headjacks to display glasses and earbuds is mostly due to the ubiquitous nature of commlinks, and the transition from Virtual to Augmented Reality. Most people use their commlinks as smartphones, and tend to wear them externally with the aforementioned display glasses, earbuds, and fashionably hidden trodes. Hardcore hackers have their commlinks and simsense systems ''implanted directly into their brains''. Technomancers don't even need to use commlinks at all.
* BrainInAJar: Multiple examples
* BrickJoke
** In the 4E core supplement ''Arsenal'' one of the shadowrunners in the [=FastJack=] section was talking about rescuing a Corp's kids. The kid had a single use .22 caliber pistol with a cartoon character on the side. The shadowrunner was amazed at how they cost more than his gun. Later in Augmentation when talking about a nanoforged gun one of the other shadowrunners (Baka Dabora) asked, "Yes but does it have a cartoon character on the side?"
** Things like these tend to show up in the flavor text of a lot of the game's sourcebooks.
** Another one is that in one supplement someone got a Horizon spam virus onto Jackpoint. The next supplement is FlashJack talking about how he finally managed to get rid of it and that the person responsible has been found and banned.
* BritainIsOnlyLondon: The timeline of 3rd edition describes [[OopNorth Teesside]] as part of London.
* BugWar: The Insect Spirits don't want to kill humanity, but given that they need human sacrifice to cross over, it often becomes this when they get involved.
* TheCakeIsALie: What many runs all too often turn out to be. Especially if you've got a KillerGameMaster.
* CanonDiscontinuity: A lot of 1st Edition novels, especially Dunklezahn's death.
* CantStopTheSignal: Some of your contacts and Mr Johnsons can be pirate stations that are dedicated to getting the truth out. These can vary from "The Underpants gnomes are stealing everyone's underwear" to "The {{Mega Corp}}s dirty little secrets hour." Of course this is the Sixth World so the first is probably true and the second is a plant by another Mega Corp. Generally they can't pay you in cash, but information is almost as good if not better in the Sixth World.
* CastFromHitPoints: When magicians cast spells with a Force greater than than their Magic rating, Drain does Physical damage instead of Stun. Also, some uses of Blood Magic.
* TheCatCameBack: Using the Advance Residence rules this can happen with your apartment. No matter how many times you change the locks and passcodes and re-arm the traps, friends and family members keep getting into your apartment.
* ChunkySalsaRule: TropeNamer.
* CityOfAdventure
** Seattle, Hong Kong, LA, Neo-Toyko, Lagos, and the Insect Spirit infected ruins of Chicago.
** Also Denver and New York City (well, Manhattan, anyway. The other four boroughs haven't really been fleshed out all that well). Ironically, the ENTIRE STATE of Montana had a sourcebook written up by fans, created entirely from bits of fluff found in the official books, in case you wanted to see what the NAN was all about. Like, how it's the only place on Earth that actually creates the base materials for Orichalcum. Would've been nice to have had that, FASA...
** For those wondering: [[EldritchAbomination The Horrors]] that did get through have been seen near the start of the Badlands in the Eastern part of the state, Billings is [[OpenSecret the last site of free trade in the world]], the [[KnightsTemplar Mystic Crusaders]] are actively seeking Thor's Hammer, minor dragons exist all over Yellowstone, Great Falls AFB, as in "We fire the 500 intercontinental ballistic missiles laid all over Montana from here!" is under the control of Lofwyr through bartering with the NAN and, to make it absolutely perfectly crappy, if you're Scandinavian you just might express [[BodyHorror UGE]] by becoming either an Aesir (a literal angel, forsaking your physical body to ascent to the Astral Plane) or, [[AndIMustScream A Frost Giant! Like Thrym! Which means]] [[WeaksauceWeakness phenomenal cosmic power, magical abilities, 12' feet tall and double-digit body and strength stats!... and an allergy to anything over freezing point]].
*** To make the point: SEATTLE IS PARADISE!
* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve: While magical power is itself an inborn trait, shamans and hermetic mages are strongly implied to derive their means to shape that power from belief; later supplements, especially ''Awakenings: New Magic in 2057'', seem to make this even clearer, implying that one can base their magic on anything from ancient myths to the cartoons they watched growing up.
* CombatMedic: Doc Wagon High Threat Response Teams and imitators are Combat Medics For Hire.
* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: The adventure ''Harlequin''. The [=PCs=] are on a mission when things go haywire, with corporate police closing in from all directions. A van pulls up beside them and the driver says "So, are you guys going my way or would you rather stick around and wait for your new friends to catch up with us?"
* CocaPepsiInc: The UCAS (United Canadian and American States)
* ConvulsiveSeizures: People afflicted with TLE-x (Temporal Lobe Epilepsy with complications) suffer these. It most commonly occurs in people with Move-By-Wire implants, which jack up the body's reflexes by putting it into a ''constant'' state of seizure regulated by the implant, allowing the user to act inhumanly fast when necessary. Problem is, as time goes on, the implant's ability to control the seizure state diminishes. Therapy and implant upgrades can alleviate the symptoms, but currently the only sure way to fix the problem is to remove the implant (and even then there may still be permanent damage). The disorder can also occur in people who have too many cyber-implants, or those whose nervous systems have been damaged by drugs, toxic chemicals, lethal computer software or magic.
* CorporateWarfare: Primary source of income for Shadowrunners.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: the upper management of pretty much any MegaCorp.
** Lofwyr would eat you for saying that...
* CrapsackWorld: It's {{Cyberpunk}}, what did you expect? That said, it's implied things are getting better, albeit slowly-the current century is sort of the "Age of Piracy", with multiple [[MegaCorp East India Trading Companies]].
* CutLexLuthorACheck: The only reason most Shadowrunners get away. It's said in the sourcebook [[InUniverse by other Shadowrunners]] as long as you keep the damage down and not kill any guards, you get away scot free. Now, if you turn the building into a Creator/MichaelBay set and [[KillEmAll kill the guards]] nothing is going to keep you safe. Generally the more you cost them on damages or replacement personnel the more they ignore the cost of taking you down.
** Also don't steal or do anything that make them want you dead no matter the cost. Reveal Aztechnology blood rituals or steal a set of the Renraku Red Samurai's signature armor, and they might just call down a KillSat on you.
* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: If you install enough cyberware and bioware (performance enhancing thing-a-ma-jigs ranging from computer eyeballs to nanites and so on) to lose all your Essence, you die. That is, unless your MegaCorp of choice zombified you by intentionally overloading you with cyberware, but the subsequent necrosis, literal soul loss, suicidal tendencies, and cancer will force you to roll a new character two or three scenarios afterward under a sensible GM.
** Or; you've figured out Cybermancy. Now you're a D&D lich with a phylactery stone protected by millions and millions of nuyen.
* {{Cyberspace}}: It's even called the Matrix. In 4th edition, it's wireless! Better yet, it finally points out that cyberspace can look like anything its programmed to look like: Systems can use the default {{Tron}}-inspired iconography, but can be programmed to be anything; libraries with books for files and librarians for security to overgrown jungle ruins with treasures for files and angry natives for security. Deckers in turn can discard their TronLines for anything from underage wizards with wands and glasses to BFG-toting commandos. Which leads to the awesome possibilities of Rambo clones getting their asses kicked by librarians or teenage wizards disabling angry natives with butterscotch syrup.
** Also ''Unwired'' mentioned that there are unwritten standards. It says that being a 50-foot dragon in a small tour bus won't crash the node but it causes a whole bunch of graphical glitches and it's just being rude.
* {{Cyborg}}: Cybernetics are common, but the term "cyborg" in the Sixth World is reserved for... Something far less pleasant. Specifically, a cyborg is [[BrainInAJar a metahuman brain implanted into a drone body]], which is kept in a constant state of alert 16 hours a day by a cocktail of hormones and neurotransmitters. Like cyberzombies (see below), making someone a cyborg is ''very'' rarely a consensual procedure, and since adult brains tend to develop severe psychoses more quickly, most corps just [[PoweredByAForsakenChild use the brains of children instead]], since they tend to last longer.
* DamageReduction: Part of the system, everything has it.
* DanBrowned: In-universe: the portrayal of magicians and adepts in popular media leaves the genuine practitioners either laughing or groaning.
** In-Universe several of the Fast Jack poster say that this causes people to get angry at magic users when they can't do what they think they do.
*** Also literally in the case of the novel ''Black Madonna'' which like Dan Brown's ''The DaVinci Code'' is based on ''Holy Blood, Holy Grail''.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Pretty much what a goody two-shoes team of Shadowrunners will be. Also; though counted as Horrors, Spider Spirits run the gamut.
** The Street Magic sourcebook points out that a Toxic Mage or a Necromancer is not inherently evil. However in-between the lines it says that any PC trying to be these better role pay it well.
* DataCrystal: Optical Crystals.
* DisposableVagrant: Targets of the Universal Brotherhood, the corporations and Tamanous organleggers
* DividedStatesOfAmerica: The CSA, Quebec and California are back, plus many Native American states, but Canada joined with the remnants of the US more or less for convenience's sake, thus forming the United Canadian and American States. The Elves also have their own kingdom called Tir Tairngire.
* DoppelgangerSpin: The Double Image spell in ''Magic in the Shadows'' creates a single illusory double.
* DragonHoard: The collective wealth of the dragon Dunkelzahn constitutes a hoard, and his comments indicate that dragons in general tend to accumulate them, whether they want to or not (it's described as a matter of collecting representations of their long memories and pasts). Dunkelzahn makes the rather unusual decision to compose a will dividing and bequeathing his hoard in the event of his death.
* DuelingGames: The First Editions of this game and ''{{TabletopGame/Cyberpunk}}'' were released at about the same time. Sci-fi purists pretty much stuck with ''Cyberpunk'', but there was some degree of crossover appeal between the two. It can be argued that ''Shadowrun'' eventually won out (due to its books being a far more common sight on store shelves, and the near-total consensus of [[FanonDiscontinuity "It doesn't exist,"]] from ''Cyberpunk'' fans regarding that game's Third Edition), but both games enjoy dedicated fanbases to this day.
** However, since ''Cyberpunk'' is getting a big-budget video game adaptation with creator involvement, as well as a (rumored) new edition that disregards the much-maligned 3E, it seems that the duel may be entering a second round.
* EldritchAbomination: The Horrors
* ElementalEmbodiment: Several types
* ElectricInstantGratification: Better-Than-Life chips.
** Some elaboration: In the future, there is trideo (basically fifth or sixth-generation [=HDTVs=]), 3-D VR displays, and then chips which can be inserted into a datajack or other neural interface that, for all intents and purposes, puts you in the action. Actors whose works are recorded to chips must not only be in prime physical condition, but must have absolute mastery over their emotions, because both their physical and emotional experiences are recorded to be experienced by the "viewer". Legal chips have this capacity artificially limited, but BTL chips not only have these limits removed, but the sensory feedback jacked UpToEleven, beyond even real life sensations. BTL chips are illegal not only because of their addictive qualities, but because an overdose of artificial sensation can sometimes be lethal. Can be considered the equivalent of snuff films today, with a side of heroin thrown in for kicks.
*** There are also actual snuff [=BTLs=], recorded from the victim's perspective, which can very well kill the user as well.
* EmotionEater: The Horrors (who also appear in ''{{Earthdawn}}'') and a monster in a ''Ka•Ge'' magazine short story.
* EquipmentBasedProgression: Character progression through equipment/ money (gear) and experience (karma) are equally important. There's actually an exchange rate that Game Masters can use as a guide to convert between the two when deciding how to reward players for their quests. This is unusual in table top games in that gear is a formalized part of the progression system, with the same importance as skills.
** It depends on what you're playing, as well. For Technomancers and Magicians, there isn't a lot that can be done with money, since better hacking skills and spells are paid for in karma, and cybernetics can hurt much more than it helps. On the other hand, hackers have a lot more use for money to buy programs and cybernetics, so karma is much less useful.
* EquivalentExchange: It's pretty much officially established that, at a minimum, the Great Ghost Dance messed up the entire North American weather system for ''decades.'' And see also NiceJobBreakingItHero below.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Written into the rules as of the Aztlan sourcebook. PC Shadowrunners are professional criminals who may do anything from bodyguard work to assassination for cold hard nuyen, but if one chooses to learn BloodMagic, they are immediately turned into [=NPCs=]. Even shadowrunners don't do that kind of dirty.
* EverythingIsOnline: The transition from 3rd to 4th Editions brought about a complete overhaul of the Matrix in which practically everything is wireless and governed by RFID tags.
** Not just everything, but ''everyone''. Unless you live in a total deadzone, you're likely to have at least a basic Commlink. A lot of High-Sec places ''require'' you to have one.
*** Wasn't all that different in 2nd and 3rd, actually; most people were hooked into the net one way or another.
* {{Expy}}: So, there's a guy on The Matrix who uses the handle [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast "The Crawling Chaos"]] and is more concerned with [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything finding out information about the various Horrors known to exist.]] [[spoiler: Oh, Hell - IT'S [[Creator/HPLovecraft NYARLATHOTEP]]!]]
* TheFace: Any character with a high Charisma and Social Skills like Etiquette, Interrogation, Leadership and Negotiation. There is usually one in every party and they are the ones that talk to and negotiate with your Johnson to make sure you don't get screwed. On the missions themselves, they serve as whatever the mission needs a smooth talker for: distraction, subterfuge, seduction, you name it.
* {{Fanboy}}: In-Universe several magic user say that Magic Fanboys are the worst because they will not leave the user alone and beg them to cast magic in a futile attempt to copy them and become a AscendedFanboy.
* FantasticRacism: Elves against most everybody, humans against orks and trolls (though groups like Humanis Policlub will extend it to every metahuman type), Japanese, Native Americans, Non-Native Americans, and Aztlaners at each other's throats, and so on.
** To be fair, most elves aren't racists. And the elven-ruled racist nations have effectively imploded in 4e, to the point where Tir Tairngire is now run collectively by a Great Dragon and an ork.
*** Just over half the population are racist in some way in 3rd edition. Every npc gets a racism stat of 2d6-6 (0 or less means not racist at all) and around 1/6th of all racists are biased against everyone not of their own race. Mostly this is just a bias though. It would be harder to persuade a shopkeeper to sell you a reserved item for example.
*** This isn't changed much for the {{PC}}s in 4th Edition. You can expect ''nearly every group'' to have a specific viewpoint on various races, though it's most notable in a bias for/against Orcs, Trolls, and assorted goblinoids. Usually, this takes the form of a penalty on social checks, though.
* FantasticRecruitmentDrive: People with the ability to use magic are extremely rare. Schools, corporations and magical groups regularly test citizens (particularly children) for magical talent.
* FantasticScience
* FaunsAndSatyrs: Both male and female satyrs have large curling horns like a bighorn sheep. They're implied to be the Awakened version of the wild goat. Their saliva can ferment sugary liquids into alcohol.
** In 4th, satyrs are metahuman; they're an Ork metavariant native to (naturally) Greece and other nearby Mediterranean countries.
* FictionalSport: ''Shadowbeat'' includes full descriptions of the new Sixth World sports of Combat Biker and Urban Brawl, as well as information about how cyberware has revolutionized boxing, baseball, basketball, and (especially!) American football.
* FictionalPoliticalParty: The U.S. is run by the Technocrat, Archconservative and New Century parties.
* FiveRaces: Though the breakdown isn't quite the same as the classic five.
** Also, OurElvesAreBetter, OurOrcsAreDifferent, AllTrollsAreDifferent, and OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame.
* TheFixer: No contact list is complete without one. Fixers can often provide common threads for new runner teams, and most veteran ones know several.
* FutureFoodIsArtificial: Meat is a delicacy, and most settle for krill and similar mass breeding reptiles. Soy products are mentioned often, but the cheapest food available is stated to be [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mycoprotein Mycoprotein]] - and over half the population wistfully speaks of fresh fruit and vegetables. {{Lampshaded}} at one point in an early book when a character reacting to seeing [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment 'artificial cheese substitute']].
* GaiasLament: Pollution and the side effects of magic have spoiled the Earth.
* GambitPileup
** Too damn many to count. Every country, {{megacorp}}, and two-bit astral spirit has a lot of irons in the fire. And then there's the dragons...
** The circumstances leading to the Second Crash. To begin with, you have [[MegaCorp Novatech]], the largest privately owned company in the world, gearing up for an IPO to solve their cash flow problems. In order to accommodate the massive amount of trading that's expected, the East Coast Stock Exchange upgrades their servers. Meanwhile, [[AIIsACrapshoot Deus]], having been disassembled and stored in the heads of his cult members since fleeing the Renraku Archology, decides to take over the [=ECSE=] and use its facilities to compile and upgrade its code, giving it almost complete control over the Matrix. Meanwhile ''again'', [[AnimalWrongsGroup Winternight]], a Scandanavian Luddite terrorist group, has obtained a number of nuclear warheads and has modified them to produce massive [=EMPs=]; with the help of a rogue member of Deus' Otaku cult, they have identified two dozen of the world's Matrix nodes. Disabling over half of these would bring down the Matrix permanently and send the world back to the dark ages. The same rogue Otaku also helps assemble a virus to be implanted directly in the [=ECSE=] servers to do the most damage. On the appointed day, Deus invades the [=ECSE=], takes over, spreads itself worldwide, takes over dozens of other servers and forces them all to work at upgrading his code. At the same time, Megaera, another [=AI=] who had been battling in Deus' "subconscious", breaks free and attacks him. Meanwhile ''yet again'', Mirage, the original [=AI=] who had served as Deus' and Maegera's source code, breaks into the [=ECSE=] servers to eliminate Deus. While they are battling, Winternight's Jormungand virus is triggered, along with a significant number of their [=EMP=] devices. Between the devices destroying vital Matrix nodes, the nigh-unstoppable virus, the battle and subsequent damage caused by three battling [=AIs=], the damage done to the [=ECSE=] servers and dozens of others by Deus, and a Dissonance Pool created by the rogue Otaku to amplify everything else's effects, half in hopes of destroying Deus and half out of spite, the entire Matrix collapses.
*** If you didn't get all that, you're not to blame. For the Shadowrun movers and shakers, [[ButForMeItWasTuesday this was par for the course]], the only difference being the collateral damage.
** Also this can happen during a run too. One story got so tangled up that the runners gave up, shot everyone, and used the MacGuffin as a paperweight.
*** "[[ButForMeItWasTuesday One story]]?"
* GenreBusting: It combines Tolkenesque fantasy with Classic CyberPunk.
* GhostInTheMachine: E-ghosts, after the Crash 2.0, and most notably [[spoiler: [[http://forums.dumpshock.com/index.php?showtopic=29069 Captain Chaos]].]]
* GratuitousJapanese: English has picked up a lot of loanwords from Japanese. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], seeing how [[JapanTakesOverTheWorld Japan took over the world]].
* TheGreatPoliticsMessUp: to its credit, the first edition of ''Shadowrun'' did predict the fall of the Soviet Union -- but they predicted it in ''2030''.
** This issue has been more or less solved in more recent editions by having the Shadowrun timeline explicitly deviate from our own in 1991. In Fourth Edition, the first true break is in 1999.
* GreyAndGrayMorality: On the Shadowrunner side, you have [[GentlemanThief Hoods who steal from the rich and give to the poor]] and [[PsychoForHire absolute psychopaths]]. On the Corp side, you have [[PunchClockVillain security guards who just want to feed their families]] and [[CorruptCorporateExecutive completely amoral bastards]]. Although the books obviously paint shadowrunners in a more sympathetic light, neither side is completely innocent by any means.
** Lampshaded by a Shadowrunner in ''Runners Companion'':
--> "Sometimes we do the right thing. Sometimes we shoot people in the face for money."
* GroinAttack: The Weapon Specialist is depicted sitting in front of a picture which has been shot in the head, chest and groin.
* GunsAreWorthless: Against ''anything'' [[AliensAndMonsters supernatural]]-- unless you have the right ammo. Vampiric and shapeshifter regeneration, for instance, can be crippled by ammunition made of a material they're allergic to (typically something ferrous or silver), and spirits' resistance to normal weapons can be bypassed in part by APDS rounds or "stick'n'shock" taser rounds - or completely by making the bullets from something dual-natured like metals mined from an Alchera.
** Unless you're a [[ImprobableAimingSkills skilled]] shooter with a [[MoreDakka enough firepower]] or [[BigFreakingGun a big enough gun]]. Then you can turn spirits into fine red mist just like anything else. (Of course, with such armament, "anything else" would include concrete walls and [=APCs=].)
** A {{Cyborg}} can't do much to them either. You see, beasties can only be harmed by attacks fueled by HeroicWillpower, and "CyberneticsEatYourSoul"-- unless you use "[[BlackMagic Cybermancy]]" to become a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot cyberzombie]], in which case you'll [[PowerAtAPrice kick supernatural ass, but will probably not live for more than a year]].
* GunKata: Ares Firefight is a martial art completely manufactured by a corp, wherein the practitioner kicks the crap out of people while holding [[GunsAkimbo a pistol in each hand]]. Which he uses. A lot.
* HalfHumanHybrid: Averted. Children of mixed-metatype couples will end up as one of their parent's metatypes, not a mixture of both. Although metagenes can occasionally throw everything for a loop: an orc mother and a human father can have a dwarf baby, for example.
** Also anyone can have a plain human child. It is hinted that this is more common among parents of different metatypes.
* HappyEndingMassage: Played with a sidebar in the Vice sourcebook. It tells a Runner how to disguise a illegal Magical healing operation as one of these. It recommends actually sleeping with the client only if you absolutely have to. The reason you have to do this is getting a license to magically heal people in most countries is harder and leaves a lot more paperwork (which is a very bad thing for a Shadowrunner) then getting a masseuses license.
* HappyPlace: Lots and lots of people retreat from their depressing lives by using Simsense, to the point where Simsense addiction is more common than caffeine addiction.
** Considering that coffee in that place is ''made of soy'' like everything else...
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Dunkelzahn set up his own assassination in order to Ascend to a higher plane so he could stop the Horrors from crossing over to our world. Of course it had its perks like functionally becoming a demi-god.]]
** [[spoiler: The net result of this is debatable at this juncture. Big D probably pulled the strings that set the adventure ''Harlequin's Back'' into motion, which bought Earth some 2,000 or so years. Harlequin makes a point that the Horrors won't be stopped by any action short of their utter annihilation. Oh, and one more thing to bear in mind: The last time the Horrors came through during EarthDawn, they drove ''Gods'' insane.]]
** Played more straight with Captain Chaos, who led a Matrix-based attack against the Jormungand virus in order to save the databases of Shadowland Seattle. [[spoiler:He succeeded, but was unable to jack out and was about to be killed when [[ChekhovsGun Jack-Be-Nimble]], a computer program gifted to him by Dunkelzahn, activated and saved his consciousness as data for later retrieval.]]
*** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Draper For those of you who don't know who Captain Chaos is based on...]]
** One simsense star talk about how she and her cast and crew were filming on the coast when the Twin Earthquakes of 2069 hit. They saw the water go out. The two special effects mages there pretty much burned themselves out getting as many people up the cliffs before the Tsunami hit. For bonus points she watched them get washed away and her simsense recording implants were still on.
* HeroicSecondWind: Your character if you burn all of your edge points to stay alive. Unlike most cases your character is near death and will need time to recover.
* HiddenBackupPrince: Potentially done to the still alive (but goblinized) British Royal Family.
* HigherUnderstandingThroughDrugs: In the fan-written supplement called "Better Living (and Dying) Through Chemistry", The Awakened (magical) version of peyote allows the user to astrally perceive and project as if they were a mage, and gives bonuses for the use of magical skills, thus allowing them to act as if they understood magic better.
* HollywoodHacking: Not only that, but in a different way in every edition!
* HomeFieldAdvantage: Many examples.
** ''Shadowrun Companion''. The Home Ground edge gives a character a bonus on using skills on the character's home turf. This could include the building where the character lives or a computer system a decker is very familiar with.
** ''Tir Na Nog''. Followers of the Ways and the Paths gain bonuses to magic use if they are within the part of Ireland associated with their Path. For example, followers of the Northern Path (Path of the Warrior) gain a bonus die for magic when in the province of Ulster.
** ''The Grimoire''. Druids gain a bonus to summoning and banishing spirits when within a certain distance of their sacred circle.
** Deckers gain advantages when within computer systems they're authorized to use. Their programs always execute properly, they can gain access anywhere they need to go and they don't have to worry about IC attacking them.
* HumanSacrifice: Man, Aztechnology has some dirty secrets.
* IKnowYourTrueName: Knowing a free spirit's true name allows it to be more easily summoned, controlled and banished.
* ImaHumanitarian: Anyone infected with HMHVV (particularly the Kreiger strain, which creates Ghouls) will turn into some kind of monstrous, cannibalistic version of themselves.
* InNameOnly: The XBox360[=/=]PC adaptation was essentially a vehicle for an online, cross-platform multiplayer shooter with the Shadowrun name tacked on. Accordingly, setting elements such as AllDeathsFinal were discarded when they got in the way of making a multiplayer shooting game.
* IntrepidReporter: The reporters ("snoops") described in the ''Shadowbeat'' sourcebook.
* InvadedStatesOfAmerica: What was Mexico invaded what was left of the United States.
* JackOfAllTrades: Jaguar totem shamans in the ''Aztlan'' supplement.
* JapanTakesOverTheWorld: Everyone speaks Japanese and uses nuyen. Including Chinese territories.
* JurisdictionFriction: Law enforcement tends to be contracted out to Megacorps, the areas they cover tend to be somewhat indistinct.
* KarmaMeter: A version acts as the game's ExperiencePoints.
** Though a closer example would be Notoriety, which is gained by failing a run, pissing off the wrong people, and incredibly caustic behavior ("Forget giving the money back to the orphanage. Let the brats starve.") It gives penalties to social tests, except for intimidation, which grants a bonus instead. Both apply only to those that would know of said reputation, of course.
* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GPGQoR6f6w A Night's Work]], the original Shadowrun promo from FASA.
* KillSat: Thor shots and [[FrickinLaserBeams giant lasers]] [[KillSat in space]].
* KissOfTheVampire: The Essence Drain power of some Awakened creatures, such as, well, vampires.
* KnockoutGas: The various Neurostun gasses are often used to take out shadowrunners without killing them.
* LaserHallway: Discussed in ''The Neo-Anarchists' Guide to Real Life''.
* LeyLine: The Mana/Dragon Lines.
* LighterAndSofter - Surprisingly enough, during the transition from 3rd edition to 4th - it's still a cynical {{Cyberpunk}} game, and definitely DarkerAndEdgier than real life to be sure, but 4th edition shakes off the overly grunge-rock motifs of 3rd edition and actually mentions places where life ''doesn't'' suck.
** It's also a lot Lighter And Softer then a lot of Cyberpunk games.
** Also Street Magic says that the Bill Of Rights is still alive and well in the CAS and UCAS. So they can't get a mage to mind probe you or copy your memories out of your implants because they violate the 5th Admendment. (For non US readers that prevents self-incrimination IE the police can't make you confess and testify against yourself.) However {{MegaCorp}}s have no such limitations on their own property.
* LikeCannotCutLike: Monofilament wire and weapons to monofilament armor.
* LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards x ShootTheMedicFirst[=/=]SquishyWizard: Magic is the most powerful weapon available to most shadowrunners. Magic is the only way to heal serious wounds quickly. The most efficient means of making people more resistant to damage is [[CyberneticsEatYourSoul Cybernetics, which Eats Your Soul.]] Result; the aphorism, "[[FutureSlang Geek]] The Mage First".
* LittleUselessGun: Light and holdout pistols. Made a little more balanced in the 4th Edition.
* LongevityTreatment: Multiple forms of rejuvenation. Leonization, the most expensive, restores physical age to approximately 21, a life span extension is a one-time procedure that adds 10 years to your life, while physical vigor simply counters the physical side effects of aging.
* LordBritishPostulate: Harlequin has no stats [[DefiedTrope explicitly because of this]]. [[GenreSavvy The designers knew that "if you give it stats, they will kill it,"]] and that by this point in the story arc, it was entirely possible that the players would want to [[OffTheRails give Harlequin what's coming to him]], so for the sake of the module, [[{{Railroading}} they declared Harlequin to be completely invincible]].
** He has recently been statted-out in ''Street Legends Supplemental'' (that's the second ''Street Legends'' book, BTW), though his list of Knowledge skills is stated as being only partial and for his spells, it simply says that he has any spell available to him when needed. The rest of it (which is too long to go into detail here) certainly borders on game-breaking. Curiously, there's a bit of FridgeBrilliance with statting him now. Right above the statblock, in a long post by Jackpoint user Frosty (who seems to have been Harlequin's apprentice) states that the ritual at the end of the above-mentioned story-arc "took a ''lot'' out of him." So there's no lack of continuity - before the ritual, he was completely invincible, after, he was weakened to the point where a very dedicated team could bring him down - though with how many spells he has permanently sustained on himself at all times and how many he has quickened, any team trying to kill him is going to be in for one hell of a fight.
** [[spoiler: All that power is justified. Harlequin is an immortal elf who lived through the Scourge that occurred in EarthDawn's backstory. He's as old as some ''dragons'', and is the sole survivor of the Knights of the Crying Spire. Dunkelzahn considers Harlequin his knight for a damn good reason.]]
* LuckManipulationMechanic: Edge (Karma Pool in the first 2 editions), a stat which only PlayerCharacters and Dragons have. It's not so much "luck" as it is the little extra ''something'' that lets runners get away with what they do. Dragons have it because Catalyst Game Labs are cheating bastards.
** Well, Catalyst isn't the one who instituted it. The original SR and [=SR=]2 had Edge for dragons, and several Awakened critters. Without the Critter book, I can't confirm it, but IIRC, Edge is actually a Power available to ''all'' Awakened.
** In earlier versions this was called a "Karma Pool", with NPC's having a "Professional Rating" and "Threat Rating".
** In certain 4th Edition campaigns, ''anyone'' can have an Edge stat, if they're important enough to the story. It's just that Dragons can ''directly manipulate it.''
* LuredIntoATrap: In the supplement ''Super Tuesday'', adventure "Ghost Story". Fletcher Quinn lures the player characters to an abandoned sporting goods store with a faked message so he can blow them up with the bombs he's planted inside it.
* TheMagicComesBack
* MagicalDatabase: Lots of these that range from the SIN Database (containing the identity, credit rating and purchasing history of every citizen of the UCAS... Well, legal citizens that is) to the Actually Magical Databases produced by [=MagicNet=], [[WizardingSchool MIT&T]], and various other factions)
** Fourth Edition actually details the methods and limitations of the SIN Database(s) for the first time, so while they are still ''extremely'' accurate, there are now cracks to slip through.
* MagicIsAMonsterMagnet: The insect spirits in Chicago.
* MainliningTheMonster: One supplement's shadowtalk includes posts by a sicko who'd kept an Awakened leopard with HealingFactor captive for years, periodically skinning it alive and selling the pelts. The same poster speculated about the possibility of catching a giant regenerating species of shark and selling its meat over and over again.
* {{Mayincatec}}: Aztlan. Their corporations are even step-pyramids, and guards dress up like natives (with better armor, of course).
** Lampshaded in the Aztlan sourcebook, which calls out the Aztlan upper class's pretentious claims of being proud and noble Mayincatecs: in reality, most of them are ethnic Spanish, while the true indigenous population is poor and exploited.
* MeaningfulName: Mayoral spokeswoman Lotte Krapp in the ''Neo-Anarchists' Guide to North America'' supplement.
* MegaCorp: Let's just say that there are 10 main corporations, and they're all more powerful than any of the national governments, and leave it at that.
* MentalFusion
* MexicoCalledTheyWantTexasBack: The country formerly known as Mexico invades and conquers large chunks of Confederate Texas and independent California.
* MoreDakka: The average character uses an assault rifle. The Weapon Specialist premade character, on the other hand, ''carries'' "Combat Axe; 2 Katanas; Medium Crossbow w/20 Bolts; 10 Throwing Knives; 10 Shuriken; 10 Fragmentation Grenades; Ares Predator IV [w/Quick Draw Holster and 10 clips of Explosive Ammo]; Yamaha Sakura Fubuki [w/ Smartlink, Concealable Holster, and 80 rounds of Regular Ammo]; Walther MA-2100 [w/4 clips Regular Ammo]; Aztechnology Striker ( a rocket launcher); Survival Knife; [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Stun Baton]]."
** However, even with all that arsenal she (a female Arabian elf according to the illustration and skills) gets only two shots or one melee attack per turn, at abysmal dice pools.
* MotorcycleJousting: In the Combat Biker game the Lancebiker player carries a 2 meter long lance that he can use against other players.
* MurderWater: Toxic Water Spirits.
* MysteriousEmployer: Known in the business as "Mr. Johnson" or as just a "Johnson".
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: The Great Ghost Dance, which would have given the Horrors the means to [[spoiler:invade Earth some ''2,000 years'' ahead of schedule]]. The adventure ''Harlequin's Back'' centers on fixing this. And, on a slightly more mundane note, screwed up the weather system in America for '''decades''' to come.
** Also, the first novel trilogy saw Sam Verner unleash the Spider bug-spirit into the world ahead of schedule as he was searching for a cure for Janice.
* NeuralImplanting: Skillsofts are chips that can be inserted into implanted slots in the head to give characters skills.
* NoFEMAResponse: In ''Bug City'', after insect spirits are discovered infesting Chicago and possessing its citizens, most of the city is sealed off to prevent them from escaping. Ares is the only responder, and the Ares BugWar is the setting of one of the books and is alluded to in many a character background.
** Those in more recent books it's been somewhat retconned with the UCAS forces working along side Ares personnel.
* ObviousRulePatch: In the ''Augmentation'' sourcebook they added a rule called Essence pool. It means that if you remove an implant, you don't get the essence back, but any future implants that don't go over the Essence pool limit don't cost you any more Essence. Before, you could kill yourself just by replacing your arm enough times.
* OnceAnEpisode: Just about all of the 4th edition supplements start off with the reader logging into Jackpoint. The log on screen advertise the different supplement in a in-universe style and show little news blurbs of in-universe news.
* OneNationUnderCopyright: Pueblo Corporate Council was founded openly as one, and Aztechnology's dominant position in Aztlan is actually written into ''a classified section'' of that nation's constitution.
* OnlineAlias: Decker use mysterious and cool names if they're established and competent and ridiculous and common aliases if they're newbies.
* OneSteveLimit: Played with and hilariously lampshaded in The Twilight Wars. The joke is really too good to ruin; suffice it to say that apparently not everyone knows there's more than one Kat in the fiction.
* OurCentaursAreDifferent: They have horse-like faces instead of human.
* OurGiantsAreBigger: They're a Troll metavariant native to Germany, Central Europe, and Scandinavia, and have varied in appearance as the editions marched on--currently they're extremely tall and very human-like as trolls go, but with skin having a leathery, almost bark-like appearance.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Caused by a virus, and a flavor for every race.
* OurZombiesAreDifferent: Light sensitive and something of the intelligent Romero type. They are created by jellyfish from the "Deep Metaplanes" that possess corpses and seek to kill everything. Also, Ghouls, which are created by an alternate strain of the same virus that creates vampires.
* OvertRendezvous: Many of the adventures published for the game have runners meeting with their Mr. Johnson in public places such as restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
* ParKourier
* PartialTransformation: Wolfgang Kies in Michael Stackpole's ''Wolf and Raven'' short story "If as beast you don't succeed".
* PeopleFarm: Tamanous and their "fetus farms".
* PettingZooPeople: [=SURGE=] from the passing of Halley's Comet late in 3rd Edition caused animal traits to manifest in certain people, called Changelings. It's mentioned that "cute" Changelings, such as cat-people, can use it to their advantage, while more radically-transformed Changelings - derogatorily called [[FurryFandom furries]] - are subject to discrimination.
** Or, you become [[spoiler:The Matron]] and wind up [[spoiler:clearing out a good section of Chicago... with sentient spiders. Not just any spiders, either, but black widow spiders. That now make up the world's largest undetectable observation network.]]
* ThePlan: Multiple examples; the most devious ones involve dragons.
* PinPullingTeeth: Occurs in the short story "Balance" in ''Shadowland'' magazine #6.
* PirateParrot: Belonging to the pirate Captain Monday of Moro Bay in the supplement ''California Free State''. It may be an Awakened creature called an "eyekiller".
* PointBuildSystem: the most complicated part of the game, at least in the 4th Edition.
* ThePornomancer: TropeNamer. The term is slang for Social Adepts built to throw around 50 dice at any social roll, where ordinarily, an utter grand master of a skill won't get past 25 dice.
* PrivateDetective: Dirk Montgomery is a classic example. In addition, the hard boiled [[FilmNoir Noir]] detective is a PlayerCharacter archetype
** Except that Archetype also has Magic skills. So you're [[Literature/TheDresdenFiles Harry Dresden]].
** Earlier editions had the Investigator, who had no magic ''or'' cyber, but made do with a bajillion contacts.
* QuickDraw: The Quick Draw action in 2nd Edition.
* RashomonStyle: The end part of ''Runners Companion'' has a Rashmon-like story at the end. It shows how a run is ordered, from the briefing, to the run itself and to the poor wage slave whose work is being deleted, to the end.
** Also they show one bounty hunter that is annoyed by a cop, to the cop's perspective where all she wants to do is throw the guy to the ground and have her way with him.
* RazorFloss: Monofilament wires.
* RedAlert: When a [=DocWagon=] Crisis Response Team responds to a "Code Blue" alert.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Several examples.
* ResearchInc: quite a few, MegaCorp labs or freelance.
* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: Otomo drones, no doubt being a ShoutOut to RoboCop.
* RuleOfCool: Monofilament '''''[[ChainsawGood CHAINSAWS]]'''''
* RuthlessModernPirates: Kane, "the most notorious man in the CAS", is wanted in over 17 countries for piracy. His entries in Jackpoint tend to involve colourful boasts about the people he has killed, ships he has successfully destroyed[=/=]survived[=/=]added to his fleet and the profit he makes from both [[HumanResources the slave trade and organlegging]]. [[PeopleFarms The organs are provided in their...original packaging]]. He has expressed a fondness for {{submarine|Pirates}}s and [[MoreDakka excessively]] [[CompensatingForSomething large ships]].
* ScaramangaSpecial: The Century 220ZX light pistol in ''Ka•Ge'' magazine Volume 1 Issue 12.
* ScaryScorpions: The Scorpyrine in ''Paranormal Animals of Europe''.
* SchizoTech: When you mix ''CyberPunk'' with magic, this is ''bound'' to happen.
* ScrewedByTheNetwork: At one point, it looked like Catalyst Game Labs was going to lose the license due to an executive embezzling $850,000 from the company. [[http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/273529-catalyst-game-labs-might-life-support.html]]. Several authors left the line, and books were delayed, but the game itself continues.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: All AAA {{megacorp}}s get this when they reach AAA status. All of their property is now a nation onto itself and anything they says goes. However this can backfire when you steal something, from say, Aztechnology and then escape into a factory owned by Ares. This means they can't crossover without starting one hell of a intercorporate incident
* SealedEvilInACan: The Horrors. Cthon in the Genesis Game.
* SelfDestructingSecurity: The Scramble IC program is often used to protect computer datastores with valuable information. If a decker tries to break through the Scramble and fails, it will overwrite the stored information with random characters, rendering it worthless.
* SentryGun
* SerratedBladeOfPain: The macuitl sword in the ''Aztlan'' supplement.
* ShapeShifterShowdown: Mentioned in an article in ''Shadowland'' magazine #5.
* SharpenedToASingleMolecule: Monomolecular axes that possess a monofilament edge capable of cutting through virtually anything. They tend to lose their edge quickly though. In later editions, other bladed weapons can be outfitted with a monofilament edge. There's also a monofilament whip, noted by 'in character' reviews to be as big a threat to the user as to a potential enemy. From a gameplay standpoint any glitch while using it results in it hitting you instead.
* ShoulderCannon: Available as cyberware.
* [[ShoutOut/TabletopGames Shout Out]]: Multiple examples
* ShrugOfGod: Reading in between the lines in the Flashjack parts of the books seems like this. At one point the Flashjack users are wondering if an EMP would trigger a Cortex Bomb or would permanently disable it. We never get a clear outcome so it's up to the GM to decide.
* SkeletonKey: There are several devices in the game that can bypass electronic locks.
* ASimplePlan: Probably the scariest words any runner can hear is "It'll be easy."
* SocietyMarchesOn: Some of the older products contain odd examples of this, particularly ''Shadowbeat'', which features things like wrestling dying out as entertainment by the 2010s, professional sports becoming co-ed rather than launching womens' leagues, and a complete absence of blogging as an alternative to network-disseminated news.
* SociopathicHero: This would be you. I.e., the {{PC}}s. In some cases, [[VillainProtagonist not really a hero]].
* SolidGoldPoop: In early editions, dragon "bodily fluids" could be used as an exotic material to help in enchanting magic items.
* SpaceIsMagic: [[InvertedTrope Inverted]]. It's more like Space Is A Complete Lack Of Magic - there's no Mana up there, so magic doesn't function, and Awakened characters tend to get antsy, to say the least.
* SpikeShooter: The Volleying Porcupine can fire its quills at opponents.
* SteamPunk: Steampunk clothing is popular in the cyberpunk world of 2073. Wrap your head around that.
* StreetSamurai: A common character archetype.
* StuffedIntoTheFridge: A minor character named [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Shoot-to-Kill]] is reputed to have done this after an argument led her boyfriend to go back to an ex. For bonus points she left him a love letter. He came back.
* SubmarinePirates: ''Cyberpirates''. Some pirate gangs use submarines to attack and loot surface ships.
* SuperHumanTrafficking: Of Drakes.
* SuperReflexes: Available to characters with enhanced reflexes, either via cybernetics, spells, or adept abilities.
* SwissArmyWeapon: The AUG-CSL Weapon System in the 1E/2E ''Street Samurai Catalog''.
** And its 4E replacement, the HK XM30 Weapon System.
** Literally, the Victorinox Memory Blade in 4E. It's manufactured by the modern-day manufacturers of the Swiss Army Knife.
* SwordCane: ''The Neo-Anarchist's Guide to Real Life'' introduced the Barton Arms Gun Cane. It fired a single 8 mm bullet that did light damage to targets at close range.
* TakeThat: [[http://old.shadowrun4.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/SRGEPromo.pdf Shadowrun: Gibson Edition]], the April Fool's joke for 2010. For some background, William Gibson has infamously stated he hates this game for stealing from him and mashing it with [[FantasyGhetto Tolkien]].
-->The Mayans’ Sixth World was ushered in not by the end of days, or the powering of ley lines, mana storms, or dragons, but rather the release of a new cutting-edge novel set in the near future by a totally fictional author named, um, [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed Guilluame Gybsonne]].
* TechnologyMarchesOn: Updates retconned in advancements in RealLife technology which hadn't been foreseen in previous editions, such as computers going wireless. They did get the increased use of RFID tags right though.
* {{Technopath}}: 3rd Edition's Otaku and their Technomancer successors in 4E.
* ThemeNaming: Three humanoid drone models designed for housing cyborg brains are named after manga authors: [[TamayoAkiyama Akiyama]] is a lightweight scout and assassin, [[KatsuhiroOtomo Otomo]] is a RidiculouslyHumanRobot and [[YoshiyukiTomino Tomino]] is a heavy assault drone.
* TheInternetIsForPorn: The Vice supplement talks about this and how there is a huge amount of both 3D HD and simsence porn out there for free. Better then Life porn chips also are widely available. It also talks about how to set up your own porn site.
* ThereAreNoGoodExecutives: Played straight with almost every corporation, but seemingly averted with Horizon. Horizon actually appears to give a crap about their employees, and develops products that benefit metahumanity rather than attempt to control it. They're also nice to the runners they hire, which has led some younger runners to consider Horizon to be the "good" MegaCorp. More savvy runners, however, are creeped the hell out by this, and conclude that Horizon NEEDS to be up to something nefarious... [[spoiler:They're right. And beyond just being right, Horizon's CEO and ultimate corporate objective turns out to be not so much "evil" as "utterly insane".]]
* TranquillizerDart: Darts loaded with Narcoject or Neurostun.
* TransNature: Elves are a subrace of humanity. Some normal humans are "elf wannabees" who want to be elves, and sometimes use plastic surgery to make themselves more elf-like. They're usually looked down upon by real elves.
** And then, there are "ork wannabes". Real orks' opinions on them are varied; some orks hate them, others will accept posers if they're orky enough.
* TheTriadsAndTheTongs: The Triads are in control of what bits of Hong Kong the corps aren't. In Seattle, the Yakuza is at war with them.
* UnEqualRites
* {{Underboobs}}: Illustrations in ''The Neo-Anarchists' Guide to Real Life'' and ''Magic in the Shadows''.
* UndergroundRailroad: In the ''Aztlan'' supplement, the Aztlan Freedom League helps refugees from Aztlan escape to the Confederated American States.
* UnitedEurope. Adverted Heavily. You think the political landscape in North American is bad? Europe has had several wars since the Sixth World started.
* UnusualEuphemism: The earlier editions used terms like "frag" and "drek" and others for the standard cusswords. In Fourth Edition, it's toned down a little, but you're still going to blank a few slots before the day's done.
* VampiricDraining: Many Awakened creatures have the Essence Drain ability, which allows them to drain Essence (life/magical energy) in order to restore the Essence they lose due to their Essence Loss weakness.
* {{Vaporware}}: ''Equinox'', a proposed SpaceOpera sequel set in the Eighth World.
* ViciousCycle: The Horrors return to Earth every few thousand years.
* VictoryByEndurance: The barghest uses its fear-causing howl to drive its prey for long distances until they are exhausted and it can close in for the kill.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Aztechnology is known as one of the cuddliest, nicest corps around as far as the public know. The shadows know that they're villains who mess with blood magic, bug spirits, and Horrors that feed off pain and fear. In the newer supplements, Horizon is this, even to shadowrunners. In true cyberpunk style, they ''are'' hiding something...
** And in Columbian Subterfuge, Horizon's true colors are revealed when they decide to use every trick in the book of propraganda to discredit Aztechnology and Aztlan during the Aztlan Amazonia War.
* VirtualGhost: Ghosts in the machine, people who were logged in during Crash 2.0 and had their minds trapped in the Matrix.
* WarForFunAndProfit: Hey, corps make weapons too. May as well ensure that the market's healthy. You're bound to have a few Shadowrunners who joined in for the carnage.
* WeHaveReserves: Killed a CEO of a Trip-AAA? Don't worry, there's thirty other [=CEOs=]-in-waiting that will take his or her place.
* WhyAmITicking: Cranial bombs are very, very nasty - one's integral to the plot of the SNES game.
** They're bad if you get a cranial bomb stuck in your head. They can be handy if you can find a trustworthy surgeon (good luck!) and have one wired to go off when you want it to. This is great for being a terrorist getting captured and holding everyone around you hostage (your mileage may vary with your willingness to actually blow yourself up), or having a DeadManSwitch that makes everyone want to keep you alive. Of course you can also get one small enough to only destroy your infolink in your head to destroy any data in case of capture.
*** Unfortunately, the so-called "cranial nuke" is just an area bomb. You can't be [[SnowCrash Raven]] without the sidecar.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity / PowerBornOfMadness: Madness Mages. It's never explained if they went mad because of their powers, got powers from their madness, or were insane when they got their powers. No matter what it's a bad idea to mess with them. One reason is because they are insane and you have no idea how they will react. Another is that their powers and spirits are twisted by their madness so you have no idea what they're even doing.
* WolfMan: The "Loup Garou" critter is a human infected with a virus that increases hair growth and recedes his gums, making his teeth look like fangs. His murderous activities aren't linked to the full moon, but follows an even 28-days-cycle.
* WretchedHive: Pretty much every city, especially the poorer sections. The default setting, Seattle, has the Barrens. Lagos is the worst.
** The ''Denver: The City of Shadows'' boxed set described The Warrens this way.
** El Infierno (part of Los Angeles) in the ''California Free State'' supplement.
*** Until the twin earthquakes and subsequent flood of 2069 described in 4th Edition's ''Corporate Enclaves'' supplement. Then it went FromBadToWorse: two thirds of the LA sprawl are now flooded and demon-possessed corpses often lurk in the ruins. Also, the water is extremely toxic and inhabited by all kinds of nasty fauna. [[EverythingsEvenWorseWithSharks Including giant sharks]].
** Chicago is a literal example, being infested with Insect Spirits.
** 4th Edition introduces the Kowloon Walled City of Hong Kong. It's so horrifically bad that even the ''insect spirits'' can't get a foothold there - the Yama Kings eat them. Yes, I said the Yama Kings. The only insect spirit that's gotten a chance is the Ebony Queen Vam Ly.
* {{Yakuza}}: They're pretty damn successful, too. By accident, a Yakuza front company actually began making more money through legitimate business than crime, and eventually became one of the more famous Triple-A corps.
** And in true MegaCorp style, Mitsuhama Computer Technologies has thanked its Yakuza progenitors by largely forgetting that they exist, except for doing them the occasional minor favor. As the ''Corporate Shadowfiles'' supplement put it, "Why should the directors of MCT risk a [[CutLexLuthorACheck multi-billion nuyen corporation]] to help beef up a multi-''million'' nuyen crime syndicate?"
* YourHeadAsplode: Cranial bombs and Manabolt.
* YourHeartsDesire: The Desire Reflection power of certain Awakened creatures.
* YourMindMakesItReal: Justified: In The Matrix, most legitimate users use Cold ASIST(Artificial Sensory Induction Systems Technology), which is exponentially better than current state-of-the-art interfaces and just as safe to use. High-end users such as [[TheCracker deckers]] and computer security people use Hot ASIST, a form of {{Synchronization}} which turns them into {{Technopath}}s while making it possible to fry each other's brains with combat software.
* {{Zeerust}}: The game updates itself every few years to reflect current technological advances. This has the side effect of making the Sixth World's technological advances appear simultaneously hyper-futuristic and five years out of date.
** In all fairness, they were probably distracted by the insect spirits trying to sacrifice them or something.
* ZombieAdvocate: There are a few groups fighting for the rights of Ghouls, but to be fair, not all Ghouls are serial-killing cannibals. The ones that are are usually either feral or just plain evil. The [[VegetarianVampire ethical solution]] is simply to eat the already dead or just old severed body parts.
** It should be noted, however, that Ghouls can only survive on metahuman flesh, and despite Dunkelzahn's efforts there's still no substitute for it.
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