u/Antipaladin814

bit of a lore question, but when people perceive someone using magic, what are they actually seeing? Unlike in something like D&D, Shadowrun mages don't have to make hand gestures or say magic words, so how does someone who isn't actively using astral perception notice when someone is using magic that isn't something visually obvious like a fireball?

I am a GM that normally runs 5th edition Shadowrun. I like running 5e but was curious if anyone had any recommendations for an alternate systems to run that fixes some of the issues I have with it like the terrible editing and poor scaling of magic. I would love to hear about some recommendations for alternate systems and the pros and cons of each. Thanks!

TL;DR: Dragons are the coolest part of the lore you are actively discouraged from using because of the hype around them and that really sucks because Shadowrun dragons are cool

I have been running Shadowrun for a few years now, and I have noticed a pattern that the inclusion of dragons in a campaign tends to make them worse or even derail them completely. I think it comes down to their fearsome, albeit well deserved, reputation both in and out of universe. Most of the players seem to be of the opinion that they should just roll new characters if a dragon is even in the same post code as the team, even when they are a background detail that never actually effects gameplay directly. Hell, half the time I don't even want to mention Saeder-Krupp due to Lofwyr being the CEO. I don't want to pretend dragons just don't exist because they are so iconic to the setting, but they seem more trouble than they are worth to include in a campaign. any advice on how to resolve this problem?