To clarify, yes, we will be playing the 2007 FPS version of Shadowrun. There's no simple way of explaining the game and all of it's content. It was basically designed to be one of the most competitive team based shooters, although I can understand if players disagree with certain mechanics. Shadowrun is a class based team shooter that is a cross between Counter Strike and Halo CE combined with magic and technical abilities. It's a round based game with a deep economy system very similar to CS. Each class has different stats and a unique trait.
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Elves are fast, have low health, low strength, lots of magic and can regenerate health. Not designed for head on fights but to get in an out. In this game, players have one life but their bodies will remain on the ground. All classes can purchase a skill called resurrect, which will revive the player and lock up 4 of your magic points as long as the player is alive. I say this because Elf would be the dedicated "medic" or player who rez's
Humans are a jack of all trades, medium speed, medium health/strength, decent magic, starts the game with an extra $500, receives and receives no penalty for using the tech such as glider, enhanced vision, wired reflexes etc. This class does it all, heals, flanks, supports, is the main damage dealer etc.
Trolls are your heavies! Very Slow, Very Strong (no movement penalty for holding heavy weapons) low magic, ok health. Has a unique trait called "harden". As long as the troll has magic to spare his skin will become harder with each bullet fired reducing the damage he takes. It's better to pace single shot weapons on him than spray with a SMG/Minigun.
Dwarves are typically not used in private matches or tournaments unfortunately, but are a TON of fun. The oddjob of Shadowrun. These little guys are similar to humans but with more strength and slightly less health. They have the most magic, but it takes the longest time to regenerate that magic. Instead, the dwarf's unique trait is that it can drain others of their magic essence when in proximity. When combined with a close range weapon you can trap other players so they don't have enough magic to escape, or you can drain the trolls magic so he can't use his ability, allowing you to kill him incredibly fast. These guys are also immune to headshot damage, any shot to the head will deal the same damage as a body shot.
This barely scratches the surface of this game! I hope it helps provide some insight on what you can expect. If anyone wants to learn more or give it a shot at the event we would be happy to help teach you both Shadowrun and Halo CE. I can link to a bunch of references online or help out at the event. B4nny here had sent me some great resources on getting into competitive TF2!
For the record, we are playing the console version of Halo CE on original xboxes and CRT's. These boxes have been modded with whats called Halo Neutral Host Edition. As odd as it sounds, there is a big host advantage on LAN, and this mod eliminates this by allowing a third xbox to be used as a "dedicated server" or neutral host. To achieve this, it was extremely more difficult than it sounds as there were numerous issues with adding a 5th player to the game beyond the surface level. As of right now, the classic competitive maps are all available, but there is one brand new map that you guys may have never seen before called Downrush. Downrush is a remake of Aerowalk from Quake, that has been scaled for Halo. It plays phenomenally.