"Loot the bodies !" – Mask ( after a firefight)
Creative Looting
By Mask
Lesson 1.
Hoi chummers, if you are like most runners your idea of looting a body stops at his/her cred stick, interesting chips, spell foci, weapons and maybe armor. But wait…. How about his shoes? "His shoes?" you may ask. Yeah, I answer, his shoes. I mean, why waste nuyen for the procurement of information from a squatter when a new pair of shoes will get you the same info and will earn ya the undying gratitude of a guy who's feet are freezing from the lack of a good pair. Another plus is that it drives the Star crazy to find a stripped body. It also confuses the scene since the Star is sure that it must have stripped long after ya left. After all why would runners strip a body? But really, think what that Armani suit will bring in. (if ya haven't shot it full of holes) It may get ya a lot more that his Streetline Special.
And how about his watch? When was the last time ya saw some suit with a Timex? Uh uh…. not them. It's Rolex all the way. When was the last time ya priced one of the suckers? Your fence is a handy guy for a lot more than just fencing weapons.
Ok, admittedly most of us will never have the leisure to do this and maybe not even the opportunity to strip a suit. But the point of this little exercise is to make ya think creatively.
For instance… your jandering down the street and ya hear a scream from the alley. Ya look in and ya see some slag get geeked. The ganger who mugged the guy runs off when he sees ya. What do ya do?
Well …..
1. Ya could just shrug and walk off.
2. Ya could call the Star and get hauled in for questioning (nah, not in this lifetime.)
3. Ya could take advantage of this opportunity that Raccoon has dropped in yer lap and make a few nuyen before placing a anonymous call to the Star. ( all of this supposing he doesn't have a Doc Wagon screamer going off. If he does that is another lesson entirely.)
Me I choose 3. So how do ya loot a body efficiently?
Very simply, ya think like a coon. If ya don't have much time, go straight for the high nuyen items. Jewelry and credstick. Spell foci, if there is any, and of course any chips.
With more time comes more creativity and more nuyen.
First go through the pockets. Jewelry is next. Then weapons and armor. Finally, if ya have time, clothes and shoes. If you're a real sick puppy, you could even think about cyberware. And a truly sick puppy might even consider a body cavity search. After all extremely sensitive data needs a good hiding place.( More on this is covered in Lesson 2) And there are always his gold fillings as well.
Start at the top and work down. Move quickly but thoroughly. Simple huh?
This should give the beginners something to think about for now. Check back later for Lesson 2. Where to look. -Mask (12:05:27/ 11-06-57)