CordialUltimate2 has some cool ideas, but I thought I'd throw something else into the mix. How about if the base premise is banal, but in the background there are additional, darker plot seeds? For example, a Firewall agent sets up an op under false pretenses that gets the group into the party. The real motive: stalk an ex-boy/girlfriend. Or get a meeting with a celeb. Setup the op so there are red flags, but rather than those being the typical foreshadowing of impending doom, make it the opposite. So players see these red flags, and are trying to figure out what's really going on, only to eventually discover the whole situation is a farce. But by coincidence, due to the nature of the assembled group , there might be something worth investigating later, though the op itself is a joke.

uwtartarus wrote:

How often are Sentinels used by Proxies for non-official biz? The fragmented and cell-based nature of Firewall makes it seem like it would be easy for a Proxy to spin up operations for their own personal business, in order to profit from it somehow, or to advance personal politics.

I guess "whenever they feel like it". Usually they have full information about the context of a job. So everybody knows the risks, the stakes and the context. If a proxy keeps it that way instead of sending sentinels blind to eliminate the guy he thinks it's obnoxious it is tolerated. Also remember that sentinels have a pretty big autonomy when it comes to their actions. So just don't be a dick and you can get away with a lot. All that considered keep your priorities straight. Survival of humanity over your own personal glory and influence. Recently my group got an tip from a veteran agent. Take down arms dealer who is in bed with oversight. You get money for weapons informant gets dealer's stack. Firewall gets possible intel. On the risks side: they're surprisingly low, something goes wrong we simply walk away. Everything goes right: we do not shoot a single bullet and dealer gives us his life all by himself. I won't elaborate on details. So if you want to give Your sentinels a breather or advance the timeline just lossen the railroad leash and give them tips like that. On the other hand if you want to explore Firewall as an organisation, highlight problems, strenghts and structure of the Firewall servers, give your sentinels a proxy or a crow that has his priorities a bit mixed up but is a not a rogue agent. What they will do with him? Join his agenda? Report and stand back? Eliminate on the grounds of to high risk of opsec breach? How Your Firewall handles things like that? Peer review? Dedicated "gardener" server (in a biblical sense)? Let him run around and use him as a target practice for other organisations with your sentinel as his hidden proxy handler? Possibilities are endless.