Shadowrun 4th Edition (Shadowrun (Catalyst)) [Hardcover]

Catalyst Game Labs (Author)

Book Description

Series: Shadowrun (Catalyst) | Publication Date: February 1, 2008

Shadowrun Fourth Edition
The Shadows Have Evolved
The year is 2070. The world is not only Awakened -- it's wired. Cyber and bioware implants make your meat body better-than-flesh, while the wireless Matrix enhances your perceptions with hyper-real senses. Deals are made in steel and lead more often than gold or nuyen; success and failure live only a razor's edge apart. Creatures of myth and legend walk the streets, while the arcane skills of spellslingers are in high demand. Above it all, monolithic megacorps bleed the world dry, sabotaging each other in covert cutthroat competition as they go to war over the bottom line

You're a shadowrunner, a street operative, scratching out a living on the mean sprawl streets. You may be human, elf, dwarf, ork or troll. From lethal street samurai to well-connected info brokers, spell-slinging mages or code-cracking hackers. No matter what, you're a professional --corporate pawn or "deniable asset," you get the job done.

Shadowrun, Fourth Edition offers a completely new rules system that is simple, integrated and accessible. The state-of-the-art has also been advanced, introducing a new level of augmented reality, new gear, new magical discoveries, and more.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs; 4 edition (February 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 097920478X
• ISBN-13: 978-0979204784
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #539,058 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally a new edition worth buying., February 27, 2009

By 

Shaun L. Hall "Firefly Fanatic" (Lynnwood, Washington USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shadowrun 4th Edition (Shadowrun (Catalyst)) (Hardcover)

A new edition of the rules for a role-playing game usually spells death for the company making the release. It happened to FASA, ICE and many others. The reason is that the fans see it as just another attempt to get them to buy a game they already own, and usually that's true.

In 4th Edition Shadowrun we have something special. The revisions of the rules actually make the game better than earlier editions. In fact with the exception of the character creation system (which could use some work) this edition is head and shoulders beter than earlier editions and well worth the investment.

Add to that the fact that given the publishing arrangements it seems unlikely that a 5th edition will be showing up just around the corner and it looks like you could get several years use out of this product.

For a few specifics, combat flows better and is less lethal across the board. The magic system has been revised to allow spell casters to buy a spell and cast it at whatever force level they choose instead of buying the spell once for each force level that might interest them. Cybernetics have been revised to allow enhancements without overwhelming advantage.

The people that revised this game really had an eye to making the system more playable. For perhaps the first time I feel the new edition is well worth your time and money.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A worthy new edition, June 2, 2009

By 

Phelanar (Albuquerque) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Shadowrun 4th Edition (Shadowrun (Catalyst)) (Hardcover)

I've been a big Shadowrun fan for a long time. I owned every second edition rulebook, as well as many first and third edition books. In addition to the novels and video games. So when I first looked at this new 4th Edition book, I was a bit skeptical. A great many things had been changed, both in terms of setting and mechanics, and I didn't know if I liked them.

Having now played the game for several months, I can say that most of my worries were unfounded. The mechanics have been greatly improved while still retaining a fair amount of detail and complexity. However, it will still take someone new to the system a while to learn completely, even players who are otherwise experienced gamers. The setting has, in large part, been updated to reflect some of these mechanical changes. Though I'm not a fan of all of the changes that have been made, by and large they seem natural enough and I can live with them.

Overall, the classic Shadowrun feel is there despite the changes. Dirty gritty cyberpunk fused with the mysterious and unusual magic in a way that makes sense and is more fun to actually play than it has been in a long time.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Runners Unite...in the back alley.., March 3, 2009

By 

Jessica L. Rosfeld - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shadowrun 4th Edition (Shadowrun (Catalyst)) (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful extension of the original Shadowrun (or Shrun by some folks)that has very detailed explinations of what abilities do, examples of how to use them, and excellant pre-made characters.
We started by using the pre-mades just to see how well done they were, and are still using them months into the campaign, giving them their own personalities and quirks.
I recomend this book to anyone who is a Shrun Veteran, plus anyone who is just starting to find out that Mr. Johnson IS their best friend! Sit back and enjoy the adventure!