SR5: Safer to Crash on a Motorcycle Vs a Van?!

Every time I played Shadowrun 5th edition (SR5) if a crash occurred it was while PCs were within a van. Scratch that. The Shadowrun Missions group I play with had their sole crash while the PCs were riding inside a van. Before my time. My fuzzy memories of the crash rules in Third Edition were that crashes were bad, m'kay. Ergo, all crashes were bad.


So when I skimmed the crash section in the core book, I didn't notice what the damage value is based on. Cause all crashes are bad.


Recently, I learned that wasn't the case. Learned from another gamer on social media that crashes while on motorcycle were different from being in a van.


The crashes are safer.


Yep, a motorcycle crash is less horrendous than a van crash per Shadowrun 5th edition rules.


Don't get me wrong. A van crash is bad. However, one normally doesn't consider a motorcycle crash to be ho hum.


Turns out the SR5 rules base the damage value of a crash based on the vehicles body.


A motorcyle's body will be about the same as a typical shadowrunner. Meanwhile, a van's body is greater than that of the troll tank in the group. Ergo, PCs can conceivably shrug off a motorcycle crash. Van crashes not so much...


Now there's three ways around that:


1) The GM can refrain from invoking the crash test rules, or at least the damage tests, more often in regards to occupants within a van. The occupants probably shouldn't need to make a damage resistance test when ramming some poor chummer...


2) The installation of passenger protection systems, ie seat belts and the like, from Rigger 5 which bolsters damage resistance die pools.


3) Leave the driving to the professional such as those with Control Rigs installed...


And that is new SR5 rule tidbit I learned this week. Kind of bonkers really. However, as a Shadowrun Missions player a rule my group can't easily brush aside...


Happy Gaming!


Next time.