Getting out of the Van - White Collar Style

"It is really exciting in the Van." - Neal Caffrey, White Collar

Ahh, the Van. Notice that capital 'V'. The Van is a vital part of Shadowrun. It is how the Crew gets to and from the job. It is where they run surveillance from. It is part home, part smuggling rig, part camouflaged blind, and part escape option. The Van's armor is vital to its comfort for the less squishy characters. It storage capacity is vital to most characters who need lots of guns, drones, reagents, explosives, ammo, and breaching gear. The Van often serves as a rolling hospital, complete with advanced Medkits and auto-docs. Even magical characters benefit from the Van's protection, whether hiding from bullets or astral projecting. The need for a Van, any Van, makes Riggers an almost mandatory addition to any Crew. Sadly, most are trapped in that role, and never get more to do. And many characters simply stay in the Van, never getting out. As GM's, we need to play off of this.

"You guys should invest in some of those Christmas tree air fresheners."

"You don't like the Van. Noted." - Neal and Peter, White Collar

Of the many TV shows and movies Mr. Black has watched, White Collar has the most consistent Van life and the most real. Vans are often used by law enforcement organizations for surveillance. With proper camouflage (usually as municipal/utilities work vehicles) they can hide in plain sight. They are big enough to hold lots of vital electronics. But this come at a price. Imagine the result of half a dozen people spending rotating 12-hour shifts in a confined place for days (or weeks!) at a time. The resulting effuliva of humanity has to be pretty miserable. The 3 B's-Belching, B.O. and Butt Gas-are just stewing in the enclosed space. The occasionally door opening must be like cracking the hatch on a submarine about to run out of air. Remember this next time the party is doing Legwork. Do any of the characters have strange allergies? They are probably being exposed to them in the Van. Did any of them pick Plastic? Clobber them for it in the Van! And if any of them are harboring grudges against each other, it is your job as a GM to remind their players of their shared enmities. They should be bickering like children on a long car trip. And one more thing-they are no bathrooms in the van. If they want to pee in anything but an old soy-caf cup, they need to upgrade to a motor home. And definitively remember those many, many cups of stale urine, with nothing but a feeble McHughs' lid retaining those fluids in place, once the car chase starts...

"It's like a Kardashian. Not very refined, but it has a lot of cargo space. " - Mozzie, White Collar

However, the Van is very useful for any Crew. While we do not have a "Rigger Book" yet, a compassionate GM should allow his Crew to load it out with all the cool items in the "Electronics" section of the Gear. Let them bolt the gear down. Remember that the Van is their home away from home. Allow them to make themselves at home. useful items not in the gear section are soy cookers (hot food helps in cold Seattle), 5-gallon bucket toilets (no more soy-caf cups of piss!), stashes of munchies (Stuffer Shack run!), Gun rack (not "rifle rack"-all those extra weapons aren't going to stow themselves!), cots/racks (someone should be resting while the others are watching), and potpourri sprays. Advanced gear includes drone racks, smuggling compartments, outside spotlights (in both UV and IR), reinforced ram bars and chassis, and the ever-present engine work and handling packages. Many of these have not hit the rules yet, but they are sure to soon. A point of handling or speed should be well within a good rigger/mechanics skills. Just figure out a cost. Let the poor rigger get the most out of his rolling sanctuary. After all, someone has to drive the Crew around.

And the Van is most useful for its camouflage. Usually we are talking about the Bulldog Step Van. This makes it the 2075 version of a UPS truck. And if painted properly, with a properly outfitted crew, just like a UPS van, it is totally ubiquitous, can be parked anywhere, and no one really pays them any attention. And the Van can be repainted to match the mission. Delivery vans, laundry trucks, hazmat/emergency vehicles, swat vans, food trucks and more are possible, and can get the Crew close to their objectives without their targets suspecting anything. After making their escape, they can easily be repainted to hide them or confuse their enemies.

Peter: Jones, Diana, you'll be in the van.
Jones: Always.
Diana: I like the van.

The real challenge is getting the Crew out of the Van. With all that protection, the "squishier" characters are liable to never leave. This is a bad thing. Allowing half of the Crew to stay behind in safety, while the other half goes and faces death, is bound to cause friction and resentment among your players, and can derail a game. So don't let them hang out in the Van. 5th Edition Shadowrun allows hackers to work on the run. So get them out and about. Make them make hard decisions concerning where and when to go hot sim/cold sim, and AR/VR. And the same with the spell casters. Assessing should be a choice, not a default mode. And while having a getaway vehicle waiting and ready with the engine running is favorable, the rigger can do all that wirelessly. And running drones from inside and on-site can be more important that hanging around outside. Good GM's will set up Runs that require the van-hangers to get put and head inside. Not every run. but often enough to take them out of their comfort zone. Remember, never let your players take anything for granted!

Neal: But it's the van. The van's fun.
Peter: You hate the van.
Neal: I like the van when Diana's in it. You're the only thing that smells good in here.
Diana: Then take your last whiff, because I'm leaving.

So let them enjoy it while they can. The players and their characters should appreciate whomever is doing the driving. And next we will talk about tools to get them out and about, and some runs ideas.