Ok all you shadowrunners out there. We in the biz are often in the position of buying materials of quasi, if not wholly illegal character. We spend our hard earned nuyen on firearms, decks, cyberware, fetishes, programs, ammo, simsense recordings, etc. You name it. If it's made, there's a market for it to some shadowrunner somewhere. Sometimes a single fixer does our business for us, searching for the things we need (for a hearty mark-up, of course). Sometimes we do it ourselves, buying guns from the back of a truck, programs off of a pirate board, magical items from a hole-in-the-wall talismonger. But, believe it or not, I've found a place where you can do it all. Down in the deepest heart of the Redmond Barrens once stood a grand hotel. Leveled and forgotten about decades ago; slowly squatters, joy girls, and all the other street residents began to make use of the three-level, below-ground parking garage left under that block. Today, it's the only thriving economic center in that part of town. So dangerous, the cops don't even go there. So ugly, no corporation markets there. Yet it still fills a necessary niche in Seattle's economy. Not so much a mall, but a swap-meet of all things dark and shadowy. So here's the scoop on the one place you can go to purchase the things you need. Just beware, your life there is even cheaper than it usually is, and there's always a buyer.
*GM's INFO*
This article details a location that can be located in the barrens of Redmond, or most any urban sprawl to be found in the world of the 2050's. Seattle, Atlanta, Denver; it makes no difference. Every urban sprawl has one. A place where things are bought and sold over tables. No taxes paid. No permits requested. Cash on delivery. The vendor you bought from yesterday may never be there again. The goods you buy might range from brand new, not even removed from it's packing, to having been used and abused by countless owners. The goods on sale range from blue jeans that fell off the truck, to the blackest programs, 'ware, firearms, and mojo known to man. Just be aware that there's no complaint department, no refunds, no warranties. All sales are final. The gun you're buying; or maybe YOU, just now sold for the right price by your fixer.
The place described here can be a place to hit up those contacts, buy some gear before a run, hide when the heat is on, or just a quickie one-session shopping adventure. The key to using this place is color & character, and lot's of 'em. Every booth has something the players either haven't seen, or haven't seen presented in this matter. Every barker is trying to unload his pile of stuff on the characters, and get his hands on every nuyen he can. Once in a while they can happen on something truly unique, but this is rare. This location will NOT have the latest, greatest, high-tech firearm. Or cyberware. Or whatever. Or maybe it will.... depends on how hard or easy the GM wants to be. The hook for this place is atmosphere and good, messy fun.
This article will provide general ideas about how the place works, and a number of sample booths, but the rest is up to the GM's free-wheeling imagination. It usually works best when you make up those specifics as you go along. Besides, when was the last time you went to a flea market, and everything was neatly defined in carefully laid-out rows?
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Ok, chummers. The first thing you need to do is get there. The top of the garage (street level) has been cleared of rubble, and surrounded with twelve-foot chicken wire, forming a nice little parking lot for your wheels. There are several armed guards there, making their business the business of running the parking lot. Twenty-five nuyen to park.
>Note to everyone, the 25 is just to use the lot. Slip them an extra 50, and they'll actually keep an eye on your vehicle. An extra 100, and they'll actually go to great lengths to make sure your vehicle's intact when you get back. Trust me, it's worth the bucks to make sure your vehicle's not stripped and on fire when you get back.<
>Walking Man<
Once your vehicle's squared away, there's two stairwells heading down into the "mall." Put on your best cryo-chilled face, because you're up against it now. Beggars, pickpockets, thieves, and cutthroats practically live here. The mall consists of three parking garage levels. You get between levels by using the stairwells, or following the ramps that cars used to drive on. There isn't a single square meter of space that isn't used in some way. Booths with people selling goods & services. Pay toilets. Even a coffin motel. It's always busy. It's always changing. And it's always jam-packed with every dreg of society.
It's also considerably organized for a bunch of booths thrown together in an abandoned parking garage. There's power delivered to every area of every floor, running water for bathrooms and cooking, and even organized security. Just like in corporate malls, it's impossible to conduct business if everyone's robbing everyone else. Therefore, "protection" payments are collected from every booth and business. Sentries are posted at all entrances and exits, and at all key locations (utilities for instance). Troublemakers are summarily shot.
>This doesn't mean you can't have fun. Gang fighting is strictly frowned upon, as is stealing from the shopowners. However, a member of the "Night Hunters" gang once decided to make fun of my elven ears, so I shot him in the head with my elven gun. The guard nearby didn't blink twice.<
>Corson<
While the booths are always changing, there are a few permanent operations that are always running.
-Formed along the entire side of one wall of the first level is a coffin motel. Someone actually drug a bunch of those things down here and set 'em up. Twenty nuyen opens one up for you until 11am, coding your credstick to open the door (can be coin/cash operated). Small trids and matrix access are provided inside, on a pay-as-you-go basis. Five nuyen an hour for trid, ten for matrix (50% chance of being operational). Every morning the doors are automatically opened. If you don't pay then for the next day, you get evicted with the firehose. At least this keeps the cubicles moderately clean.
>This is a great place to store stuff for a short amount of time, as the doors are practically impervious to gunfire, and rather difficult to break into. Chances are your stuff will be there when you get back.<
>Turrock<
>This is also a good place to store bodies of people who tried to pick your pocket, or didn't see your side of a negotiation. At least two or three bodies are removed every morning.<
>Knows-Where-Waldo-Is<
-On the second level, there's actually a formally run bar. The beer is cool & the food's luke-warm, but the bartender knows EVERYTHING goin' on in the mall, and the waitresses never see a thing. There are a number of darkened booths in alcoves here to conduct your next meet.
>The bartender's a kindly, one-eyed ork known as Lucky. He'll pour you a glass, shoot the breeze, and will generally know if a specific item is for sale in the mall, and about where you can find it.<
>MallRat<
-On the third level, way in the back is an area walled off by a streetdoc named Evans. He does it all. Colds, the flu, cosmetic surgery, and black cyberware implantation.
>The doc is actually a little cheaper than others, by about 10%, but he does good work. If you're really strapped for cash, you can sometimes find used 'ware from one of the booths. Be aware doc only guarantees the 'ware he sells you<
>Bargain Hunter<
>Just be polite to the nice streetdoc. My bud once mouthed off to the doc about his long wait. He now goes by the name Harriet, and turns tricks on 27th street.<
>Harry's Friend<
>I found a reference to this guy in a corporate database. Seems he was kicked out of public service for gross malpractice and unlicensed experimentation.<
>Dirt Digger<
>You've got some corrupted data there. My sources tell me this guy is still employed, and some corp is using him to expose the public to new germs and 'ware they've concocted. I talked to one guy who said Evans sold his chummer some 'ware with mind altering chips secretly implanted. If you want your mind and body to stay your own, stay away from this guy.<
>Rook<
Everything else at this mall is at best transient. Booths come and booths go. Sometimes they just move around. Here's a sampling of some of the things you can find there.
-RATBURGERS! Yes, that's right. The longest standing businessman in the mall is an ancient, diminutive, Vietnamese man who makes burgers out of the local vermin (the four-legged kind). While nasty sounding, at least it's fresh. Pick out your own squirming burger. Come back in ten minutes, and chow down. Johnny Wong will also sell you cheap beer to chase it down with. Condiments cost extra.
>No lie. Them is good eats.<
>Dog Boy<
-Bob's Junk. A little dwarven guy selling most every useless piece of hardware known to man.
>Don't let the rust covered drek fool you. I managed to find an accelerator chip in that pile of stuff that nearly doubled the speed of my deck. There's usually at least one gem in there. It's worth the look.<
>Speed Daemon<
-Cyberstuff. Usually older, used cyberware. You'll probably have to scrape the dried blood off (the donors were not willing) but at least it's cheap.
**GM's INFO: 50% off normal prices, but who knows how long it'll last? Or if the original owner will come looking for it (more rules details: Street Sam's Catalog, pg. 100)**
-Ma Bradley's. A little old lady knitting quilts. She sits there all day sewing or knitting her quilts. Be sure to say hey to her. She always has some tidbit of knowledge to give.
>Hey, man, I don't know what the deal here is, but there's something more about that old broad than meets the eye. I assensed her, and couldn't even begin to figure out her aura. Strangest thing I've ever seen.<
>Magic Watcher<
-Fruit. Yep, a fruit stand in the middle of the Barrens. I don't even wanna know where they get it.
-Suzi's Booth Of Ill Repute. Again, the world's oldest profession rears it's head. A booth with the area behind it divided into ten sections. Every vice is played to. You can even get a vid chip of your session.
>Or just look for it on the matrix. All the videos end up there sooner or later, anyway. I'm still confused by the hot little tomato with the six milk bottles.<
>Doctor George<
-Secrets Of The Universe. An elf by the name of Filo standing behind his table all day, dancing around a crudely drawn magic circle, spouting incantations in gibberish, and talking to anyone who will listen. He seems to be recruiting people to his own religion, and talks of the return of the ancient ones. You be the judge. He also sells fetishes and power foci. Just don't count on 'em to be real.
>The Enlightened One, Filo, is here on this planet to bring us peace. His vision can give you the understanding you're seeking, and show you the true path to the next plane. Come, open your mind, and listen.<
>Moon Dancer<
>Bulldrek. His magic circle is a pile of junk he lifted from a rubbish can, and his incantations are lines lifted from an old George Lucas flat movie. This guy's about as magically active as a cinder block, and the light he'll show you couldn't fill a closet. Just smile and nod, and move along.<
>Magic Watcher<
-Guns. Here ya go, boys and girls. Run by a human named Big Marko, this is the stuff every shadowrunner and street punk needs. Everything you need to keep yourself in good health and the other guy in bad health. This guy sells everything from one-shot polymer zip-guns to fully tricked-out assault rifles. Knives. Explosives. Body armor. Good one-stop shopping. I even saw an assault cannon on sale there once. Your own weapons can be customized while you wait. I don't know where he gets 'em, but they're good stuff. Just be sure to bring your credstick. It's a little pricy (+10% usual prices) but it's hearty stuff with no questions asked.
>Don't get any funny ideas about ripping off Big Marko, either. He provides all the firearms to the security guys, so they're very protective of him. Plus, he brings in his own boys, along with all the guns, ammo, and armor they need to hold off a small army.<
>Turrock<
-Moonshine. Two trolls running a still, cookin' up old time West Virginia squeezin's. It's cheap. It burns. And it'll rot your liver.
>If you don't have an ingested toxin filter to begin with you'll need one after drinking this drek.<
>Toonmeister<
>Even if you don't imbibe, buy a jug of the trolls' sour mash anyway. Best fraggin' solvent I've ever used to clean my guns...and it's pretty tasty, too.<
>Dog Boy<
-Yat's Drugs & More. A black-haired elfin guy selling everything to fry your mind and body. If it can be injected, ingested, inhaled, or chipped in, he's got it. Even has an area in back so you can sit in comfort as you burn off those brain cells.
>Good niborg...<
>GAVIN!<
-Baddy's Arcade. Baddy is an old (23 years) burned out deck-head who now runs an arcade in the mall. Drop off the kids (or your decker) here to keep them entertained while you shop. Even has an old-style pinball machine for you purists.
>Pinball?!? Yes! YES!<
>Toonmeister<
>Rumor has it that while Baddy's too messed up to run anymore (thanks to an ugly Azzie run), she still writes and sells some killer programs.<
>iCEpICK<
-Patch's. A one eyed, peg-legged troll named Patch who fixes armor. He'll take care of those bullet holes so you can head right back into the shadows.
-Major Mojo. Mojo is dredlocked Rastafarian who sells fetishes, foci, and ritual materials. This is the real deal.
-Madame Zendra's. Mojo's main squeeze Zendra will read your Tarot cards for 10 nuyen.
>I went in completely skeptical, but everything she told came to pass. I'm a true believer now, and visit her before every run. If she says don't go, I don't. I'm pretty good at aura reading, and she seems to be straight up wiz.<
>Magic Watcher<
-Profanity Guy. Inexplicably, a grisled old man sitting in his chair, cursing & swearing. He insults anyone who wanders by, on as many levels as possible. I have no idea what his damage is, but I was too impressed to just shoot him.
>I was even more impressed when he started swearing at me in perfect Sperethiel. I don't get it. I just don't get it.<
>Corson<
**
This is just a sample of the booths you can find. Many more come and go, selling jeans, hot stereos, car tires, everything. The key to this is to have fun, especially if you visit regularly and build a large number of denizens to populate the mall.