This is a collection of four adventures originally written for convention use, but equally interesting for any game. These take the shadowrunners out and about, visiting remote islands, New York and South America, providing plenty of travel as well as opportuntities to make a few nuyen and get into trouble.

The adventures are set up in the standard format used by all Shadowrun Missions scenarios, one which is easy to follow and makes it easy for the GM to run the adventure flexibly in response to character actions yet keep it on track. As they are designed for conventions, they can be run in a standard four-hour convention slot but if you are not constrained for time they can be run over a longer period (or of course in a single session, as suits). They can be used as a one-off or as part of a campaign.

It appears that - despite the wide geographical spread of the actual adventures - it's been assumed that the characters are in Seattle to start with, as before the adventures proper there's a one-page Arrival section which gives you some ideas for getting 'runners from elsewhere to Seattle.

Well, the first adventure - Lost Islands Found - concerns a small chain of islands that has mysteriously appeared in the Puget Sound, so being in Seattle already puts the characters handy to be hired to 'collect' an academic their patron wants to help investigate what's going on. Of course, other people are likely to object, and there's always that little bit extra, the task added on to the one already accepted... What starts off as a fairly straightforward and standard 'extraction' gets more interesting with the opportunity for a boat ride and a spot of archaeology thrown in.

The next adventure is Deconstructing Patriots, and involves another extraction, this time of a senior corporate executive in downtown Manhattan, who is apparently a fugitive from justice wanted in UCAS. If they are not in Manhattan already, you will have to get the 'runners there, probably as a result of the initial call offering them this job. The scene is well set and there are opportunities for researching their target, all too necessary if he is to be acquired without too much difficulty. This is a fairly straight-line adventure with the characters obliged to go to certain locations because that's where the target (or information about him) happens to be, but has an interesting twist in a counteroffer made by the target's employer... overall, though, this is a standard shadowrun, albeit a good one with some interesting twists.

Then comes Congressional Conspiracies, which can be run as a follow-up to Deconstructing Patriots as hints are dropped in that about another target involved in the same bit of bother and also with a price upon his head. The political background is quite complex, and the actual tasks which end up being offered to the 'runners are somewhat different from what they might have been expecting, but profitable nevertheless. Different openings are provided depending on whether or not they played Deconstructing Patriots and what happened there, and then we're off, with a spot of hostage rescue and investigation of a covert ops team to keep everyone entertained.

Finally, Stormcrow Undone takes the 'runners to Bogotá in Colombia, to collect evidence of wrong-doing (and to try and avoid any riots...). The set-up is decidedly original, bringing them to Cartegena for completely different reasons and then stranding them there, the real job that is the meat of this mission being a way for them to save themselves from the mess you've just dropped them into. Neat, and a good opportunity to enjoy watching your players' faces as this unfolds. All the difficulties of travelling and operating in what, to the average shadowrunner, are decidedly primitive conditions are well presented, and this adventure should prove to be an original and memorable one.

A well-supported set of adventures that should be good for dropping in when you need a self-contained 'run whatever the main plot arc of your campaign might be.

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Reviewed: 19 February 2015