Shadowrun game -- Pod extraction

[iago]

We've been given a mission to break into a top-secret facility and extract a new security product, a huge pod.  At first, we thought it was impossible, but the more we work on it, the more possible it seems.  So far, it's gone for 2 game sessions, and will probably take 2 more to finish it. 

Here is the first session, mostly legwork:

Wow a run that is going to span multiple sessions, funky.  Anyway here is what the cast of characters have to work with, let the planning begin!

Jack->Wolfsrevenge->Face
Katharine->captaincharisma->Hacker
Flynn T. Stone->iago->Mage
Max Criddle->thatdarncat->Technomancer
Cierra Kraham->Seri->Illusionist

Contact: Fixer
Mission Type: Product Extraction
Mission Objectives:
- Extract the research pod (2m x 1.5m x 1m 0.5 Tonnes)
- Get the offline research data
- Get any hard copy research data that is available (Optional)
Pay: 2,000,000¥

The product is a prototype security device, specifications unkown, that the Johnson wants for his company.  Only problem: it's Aztechnology's new toy, and they really don't like sharing.

Listed here is what information the team has available (you guys really should come up with a team name):
- Target is an Aztechnology research complex
- Said research center is located in a Tacoma office building
- The building is three floors of above ground offices with a helipad on the roof
- The roof has elevator access
- The building is all glass and steel exterior, with one door on the south wall
- Plans from the Seattle Fire Department show a completely different building
- Security seems "light" for the top three floors (it's still the offices of a AAA Corp)
- The basement is warded off from the outside world (rating 9+ at least)
- The area of town is rated A, Lone Star response times (like they'd be allowed into the building) are estimated at 2-3 minutes for recon drone, 5-10 minutes for a squad car.
- Response times for Aztechnology are unknown

Floor plans as avail from a drive by with quick astral look-see:
<removed for brevity>

Second session (note, this may not be exactly chronological, since a lot of stuff happens assynchronously):

Our first idea was to force them to move the product, by burning down the building or something.  We realized that they might have an underground tunnel that they'll move it through, so I conjured up an earth elemental to check out the situation.  Surprisingly, we found a network of underground rooms, stretching out over a radius of 4 city blocks.  My elemental couldn't penetrate them, but we got a map of where the rooms and tunnels are located.  The only exits are to our target building. 

We made up a bunch of lapel pins with a company logo that we were selling for charity.  We put a tiny camera and microphone in a few of the pins, and sold them to employees (with Jack's social skills and my mob mood spell).  We managed to get 6 rigged pins into the main building, and 1 into all the buildings around it (a total of 15 rigged pins).  Jack wants to set up a pyramid scheme selling these pins to employees.  Don't ask.  The pins showed us that no employees go downstairs, to the secret base, and the employees likely don't even know that it exists.

As far as we could tell, it's mostly self-contained.  It has a power-plant, likely nuclear.  They have hydroponics to grow food, and recycled air.  The only thing they need to get delivered is supplies.  Since there are only two entrances (the front door and the helipad), we set up drones and watcher spirits to monitor the doors.  Sure enough, a couple nights later, a helicopter showed up.  It was cloaked astrally, physically, auditorily (?), and thermally, and had a large assortment of sensors.  It was likely very well-armed and full of mages.  It packed the elevators full of supplies and sent them down.  This helocopter seems impossible to stop, without completely destroying it.  See below. 

We decided it was important to know a little more about Aztechnology, so we subcontracted another runner group.  Their target was another Aztechnology base, one that is better known.  We provided them with a shopping list of objectives, and offered to pay per completed objective.  The total money they can make is close to 100,000nuyen.  We figure, with the data they're collecting for us, that we can flip it for more than 100,000nuyen, making our money back but also getting a whole bunch of intelligence on Aztechnology at the same time.  The runners have not yet completed their mission.  They have 7 days, and we hired them on day 2. 

Just to make sure we weren't going to get burnt, we checked up on the Johnson.  His comlink indicated he works for Saeder-Krupp, and there's no evidence to contradict that.  There is a reference to our run in his comlink that leads back to a system in South-Africa.  There was too much IC there to attempt to glean information at the time, but on a later date we're confident that we'll be able to get in, with the help of the real hackers. 

Obviously, there are many ongoing objectives.  Additionally, we tossed around several ideas of how to breach the actual complex.  The best idea we can think of so far is:
- Tunnel up to the ward with an earth elemental, which leaves us about 30cm of concrete.  This takes less than an hour. 
- Send down a drone to drill through the concrete.  It has to be done silently and carefully, so it will take several days. 
- Once a tiny hole is made, send a fiber-optic cable through to have a look around.  If the place looks like a good site, send down an antenna and an Eye-Spy (I-Spy?) drone to look around. 
=> Targets (in order of importance): Computer systems, pod storage, nuclear (power) plant
- Once we find the computer systems, we'll need to gain access to them.  The idea is to send a drone down who can plug into them.  We'll probably piggy-back the drone on a maintenance drone, or something.  It'll download the data from the computer, get back to the entry-point, and transmit the data back.  The drone also has to be able to be burnt, no attachment to us if it gets found.  Once we have the data, we may have a better idea of how to get the pod
- To get the pod, we'll use acid to burn through the concrete in a safe place.  We'll need a drone to (somehow) get the pod up to the tunnel, and as far out the tunnel as possible, past the astral ward.  Once it's outside the ward, a ice elemental can lubricate the tunnel and a wind or earth elemental can push it out. 
- Once we've retreived the pod, sabotage the nuclear plant.  Cause a massive meltdown/explosion/whatever
- If possible, time the explosion for when the chopper is on the roof.  The EMP wave from the nuke should be enough to fry the chopper.  Have another team ready to extract the it. 
- Get the HELL out of Seattle

So far, that's our plan.  It will need to be revised as we go, of course. 

[Blaze]

Neato. :)

[Hitmen]

You guys are nuts. But that does sound like a ton of fun.

[Sidoh]

Very cool! :)