Fate Core Venture City Stories Review

Venture City Stories is a supplement for the new Fate Core game by Evil Hat Productions. It is a 34 page book written by Brian Engard and edited by Joshua Yearsley. Tazio Bettin handled both the cover and interior artwork while art direction and layout was helmed by none other than Fred Hicks himself.

The book opens right up with describing Venture City, a Fate campaign setting designed mostly for street and city level heroes. Well, superheroes really, but not necessarily of the Justice League or Avengers caliber. The city itself is one of contradictions with vile villains and shining heroes. All of that amidst varying shades of grey.

I should point out that Venture City Stories calls itself an adventure toolkit rather than a campaign book. This is because it is filled with gaming goodness and ideas that you can pick and choose. Choose to play it wholecloth and you will find, once players have been introduced and decisions have been made, the world takes on a life of its own. And, that is part of the beauty of Fate.

Within the book, several example issues—otherwise, plot ideas or hooks are introduced. There are also a number of factions and descriptions of important places and people you’re likely to run into one way or the other in the fictional city. The issues are handled in Venture City Adventures just as they are within Fate Core, with the suggestion to select two immediate issues, two impending issues, or one of each. Some of the sample issues presented include: Not safe after dark, Are supers still human?, Gangland powderkeg, and Citywide blackout. There really isn’t any explanation for these issues and that’s okay. They are pretty self-explanatory and they are meant to get the creative juices flowing. So, if you’re looking for someone to plan out your entire adventure or even the beginnings of one for you, this isn’t where it is going to happen. There is one example where they take one impending issue and one immediate issue and show how the two work in conjunction to lay the groundwork for an interesting and exciting game.

Factions, places, and people are all part of the same section, although separated out. And, with so few pages, it makes sense. The Fate Fractal is toyed with here a little bit. Factions are defined not only by their descriptions, but by new aspects including the slogan and secret aspects. Factions also have up to six skills: Bureaucracy, Security, and Violence being three of them. Each of the Factions also include a location which includes a new issue. They also include people which could be villainous NPCs or supporting cast members. There isn’t a hard and fast rule on how the Factions should have their skills figured as far as how many points should be spent on them. That might have been nice to have, but figuring it is all relative, your group’s game might have various Factions with widely different skill spreads to show different levels of helpfulness or threat yet be completely different from someone else’s game’s Factions.

The book continues with the example setup used earlier to show how issues can be used, now adding in factions, places, and people. One thing I noticed is that Faction skills are represented numerically with +3, +6, etc. However, the people are rated by the adjective associated with their level of competency: Superb, Great, Good, Fair, and Average. I know this might look neat to a lot of people—something besides boring old numbers, but it is one thing I always disliked. Put the numbers in parentheses next to the adjectives if needs be, but give me the numbers to make it faster and easier, especially when I am someone who doesn’t play Fate all the time.

While the section on Factions, People, and Places is excellent background fodder, providing things to slide into your game and giving you some neat ideas, my main course is served up on page 23 of the PDF. Here, the team goes into talking about character creation and super powers. I don’t want to give away too much, but it is very well done. Powers are based on stunts from Fate Core, but they are also something much more. They go into detail on adding special effects, drawbacks, etc. This is topped up with yet more sample characters—all neat and original.

While this book is PWYW (Pay What You Want), I’d definitely say it’s worth more than the $0 many will surely put into the box. It is a great read and it is put together very well. It goes quickly, but I think, if you’re into this sort of thing or even just hacking Fate Core, you will find yourself turning back to this resource more than a few times in the future.

Fate Core RPG Weapons

Many have heard me drone on before about how I hate the fact that, in many games, a gun is a gun is a gun.If you’re into combat and martial arts and action movies and paramilitary/espionage RPGs like I am, that just doesn’t work. There is a reason someone picks what weapon they want for their characters and it’s not just based on because it looks cooler. That is to say, when you look at it like I do. Yes, surely sometimes, it’s just flavor. But to limit it to only flavor is a bit…meh, in my mind. So, what can I do with weapons in Fate Core? It turns out a lot, really. I thank the Fate Core G+ Community and especially +Robert Hanz  and +Jacob Poss for their guidance with this. And, admittedly, this would be better done if I collaborated more with the likes of them and +Jonathan Henry , +Robert Brumbelow , +Gerardo Tasistro , and +Douglas Cole if not for their familiarity with Fate, their familiarity and understanding of combat and a variety of modern weapons.

Diamond Edged Sword

Because the diamond edged sword is so sharp, it grants +2 to forcefully cut through objects.

The diamond edged sword is dangerous in the wrong hands.

Sniper Rifle

Because the sniper rifle is scoped, it grants a +2 to carefully create advantage when aiming.

Made for long range, not close quarters.

Multi-scope

With various view options the multi-scope provides +2 to carefully overcome obstacles when aiming.

Delicate and expensive.

Full Auto Machinegun

Because it is capable of full automatic gunfire, the weapon provides a +2 bonus when trying to forcefully create obstacles with suppressive fire.

Great weapon, when it doesn’t jam.

Playing with Fate Accelerated

Fate Accelerated and Fate Core

I see a number of games coming out that offer an expansion to meet Fate Accelerated, but I am always reminded of a post by +Fred Hicks on how the two are not different games. Fate Accelerated tones down some of the options, but not by actually toning them down. Instead, it says if you want to know more about this or that, check out the thicker book (i.e., Fate Core). I have been wanting to try out Fate Accelerated for a while now and I finally got a chance the other night. I ran a game.

Now, not to blow my own horn or anything, but it sucked. I didn’t hit on a lot of the Fate-esque things. We barely touched aspects, compels, setting up advantages, etc. But, I did do what I set out to do. I got to see how approaches work. Now, admittedly, I do one thing a little differently. And, in talking with +Robert Hanz , it is probably better this way. The book for Fate Accelerated talks about players choosing which approach to use based on their description of the action. I submit, however, that the GM should be able to declare which approach is best based on the description of the action. Sure, players can and should suggest what approach they believe is best, but it should be finally decided upon by the GM.

As an RPG, Fate Accelerated allowed me to do some things that I’ve been trying to do for some time now. Take, for example, the modern espionage or GI Joe type role playing game. There are actually a lot of ways to do it. However, even with Fate Core, players are left having to play with modified rules or fewer options than usual, because you would expect characters who are all part of an elite military force to have certain skills and abilities. Want to try d20? Look at all the feats and levels one would have to acquire. Even the d20 spin-off Spycraft leaves you wanting as you could spend 10+ levels and never be able to make Snake Eyes. Savage Worlds has the same kind of flaws, but isn’t too far off, especially with rules modifications built into the system. Cortex Plus comes in as a close second.

Fate Accelerated, which still the same game as Fate, makes a difference with approaches. Here, the descriptors (or aspects) you give your character encompass a wide variety of skills and abilities. Where we would normally have skills and traits, we instead have approaches, which equate more to how our characters go about getting things done rather than what they can accomplish. This allows me to run a game of paramilitary specialists without having people feel like they are playing anything near the same character or spinning their wheels in an attempt to create the character they really want to play.

For fun, I’ve even created a handful of GI Joe RPG characters using FAE below.

Mutt & Junkyard

G.I. Joe M.P.

Which one is Mutt again?

Junkyard is meaner than Leroy Brown

Jungle warfare training

Spec Ops security specialist

Careful Superb  (+5)

Clever Good (+3)

Flashy Fair (+2)

Forceful Great (+4)

Quick Average (+1)

Sneaky Good (+3)

Because Junkyard is meaner than Leroy Brown, Mutt gains a +2 when creating an obstacle with his loyal companion.

Because Mutt is a Spec Ops security specialist, once per session, he can easily work around one security checkpoint or piece of security equipment without having to roll.

Stress X X X

Consequences:

Mild (2)

Moderate (4)

Severe (6)

Refresh: 3

Firefly

Mercenary frequently allied with Cobra

If you can tell who did it, it wasn’t me

The Faceless Master

False Arashikage, true Koga

Always a way out

Careful Good (+3)

Clever Great (+4)

Flashy Fair (+2)

Forceful Average (+1)

Quick Good (+3)

Sneaky Superb (+5)

Because Firefly is the Faceless Master, he gains +2 to sneakily create obstacles whenever others are trying to discover his identity.

Because Firefly knows there is Always a Way Out, once per a session he can concede a conflict and manage to escape without further penalties.

Stress X X X

Consequences:

Mild (2)

Moderate (4)

Severe (6)

Refresh: 3

Can Daring Comics Pull off a Fate Supers Game?

This morning, I awoke at an odd time and I did what I always do shortly after I wake up. I checked my email. Sitting there, in all its glory, was an announcement from +Rich Knight  that the Kickstarter campaign for the Daring Comics Role-Playing Game had begun. Those who know me know that I have a certain love for supers, RPGs, and the Fate system by Evil Hat Games. I was excited and decided to hop on over to the Kickstarter and have a look.

Now, those who have read my blog before know that I have a tendency to be a bit stingy with my money and harsh on those who ask for it. At the same time, I am the first to sing the praises of those who impress me. It saddens me to say that this particular project failed to do just that. I mean, there were some solid ideas presented along with the project, but there were also several concerns raised.

First, in the very beginning, there is an explanation for why the Kickstarter campaign page lacked the video that many of us have come to expect. It is understandable, really. Apparently, the artist had been paid to put the video together, but delayed and eventually pretty much vanished. It happens. If I had to count the number of artists—particularly comic book and RPG artists—I have seen flake out over the years, I’d be here all night. Okay, but why not have a backup plan? You’re a publisher, you’ve almost assuredly dealt with this before or at least know it’s a risk. You could’ve planned ahead. You could’ve come up with a plan B. You could have put together a video using a slideshow application and a microphone. But, that wasn’t done here. The project needed to get out the door so money could be made. So, what other excuses will we see during production and what other shortcuts will we take in the name of a product getting out the door.

As a writer, I know I am far from perfect. I often say that, as a writer, I’d have a fool for a client if I were to also serve as my own editor. However, there were some editorial issues with the Kickstarter. As a writer, I also hate being told “it could have been better” without anyone offering any specifics. And yes, this blog post could have probably been better, but I’m doing it for free, in my spare time, and not asking for any money. Take, for example, a line right from the announcement on G+: “But we didn't stop there, just as you can expect to see rules for building your own Stunts, we also provide you with the rules for building your own powers, special effects, and limits using the same basic Fate rules.” Why wasn’t “But we didn’t stop there” its own sentence. Okay, maybe I’m being picky and confusion grammar for stylistic choices, but things like that leave an annoying ring in my brain, like most people experience with nails on a chalkboard. “Heroes like you!” is great, but it lacks build up and connection. And, there are certainly more I could point out, but it probably is better to just say “it could have been better.” The Daring team didn’t ask for me to critique or edit every last word, and I’m not trying to pick on them here. Hopefully, they and others will understand I’m really just offering up some constructive criticism here.

And, let’s face it, when you read what they plan on doing, this is a massive project. They’ve spent two years working on it so far and have made adjustments to make it more compatible with the most recent version of Fate. Boasted features of the product include:

• 100 pre-built powers
• More than 100 special effects and limitations
• Full color artwork
• Series and settings creation
• Sample archetypes to enable fast play
• And more

It sure seems to be a massive undertaking. And, it seems to have everything I would expect and/or want from such a project. I’m actually a bit excited about it. But, these initial problems have me a bit concerned. The fact that this project was posted about 7 hours ago and already has more than 30 backers and $2000 under its belt says something to me. And, like Kickstarter advises, I do a little internet sleuthing. Their domain has been around since 2009, although the posts go back as far as late 2011 and refer to the previously successful Kickstarter project World of the Dead for Savage Worlds and this game here. The blog updates have been sporadic—mostly a week or two, but sometimes a month or two between. The Google Plus community had 88 members (now 89, because I do want to follow this). I’m hoping to see more activity here as there are a few earlier posts, but the ones related to the Kickstarter release talk about pricing or the video. The video isn’t considered a big deal. Then why open the Kickstarter page with it?!? And, it can’t be compared to the Fate Core pricing model, but why? I’m absolutely basing the value of this project off of related projects.

That being said, it is a bit pricey. For all they plan on adding, it might be a fair price. Let’s have a look at that. They have gone through the process before and learned at least one or two lessons the ahrd way, but they group seemed to keep people updated throughout the way—something we know not all Kickstarter projects do. There delays from that previous product didn’t seem too bad either. These are both good things.

They were apparently Arbor Productions which apparently made a name for itself, but since changed names. From a business perspective, this sets off warning bells—if the business was doing well, why change it? They boast of publishing close to 70 products, although it seems a number of these were part of the adventure series related to their last Kickstarter. That’s good, because they support stuff instead of run off roughshod from project to project and I can’t speak to the quality of those products because they’re in a line that simply doesn’t interest me or as to whether they should be considered 70 or so different products or really just mostly one big project that was released over time.

Looking over the provided artwork, it is decent. It isn’t anything stellar that reaches out and grabs me, though. For a supers RPG, I think it needs to do just that. And, once money comes in and artists can afford to dedicate more time, I would be hopeful that we’d see the work get better. But, it leads back to the part about the video—why not put the best foot forward right off the bat?

They also provided a brief into by gathering dev notes and putting them into a PDF. This was an interesting read. I seem some of the same stylistic and editorial choices that leave me a bit luke warm. They talk about the campaign scope and creating the setting. I was a bit let down that they didn’t deviate more from standard aspect creation for the super heroes, but that’s a personal choice, really. I dig the rogue gallery overview, but is that going to be too much work and turn off people that love the fast and easy way of Fate? They start using points to do skills and stunts and powers, which takes away the pyramid a bit. I don’t have a problem with this, although I’ve seen a number of people stomp their feet at the mere suggestion of such a thing. Powers definitely get a bit more complex as the discussion goes on, leaving me feeling less like I am looking at a Fate book and more like something from other systems, or at least a cross between the two. I get it, but am not totally sure I like it. To me, it fails to encapsulate Fate.

That was actually the deal breaker for me. I could possibly look past everything else. But, when I realized I was seeing something that was less and less Fate, I realized I have tons of supers RPGs that are not Fate already at my disposal.  It may end up being an awesome game, but I’ll have to wait and see once it is out rather than jumping on the Kickstarter bandwagon. I wish the team all the luck in the world. Not everything is for everyone, though, and I think we can all understand and agree on that.

Cool Fight Scenes for Your RPG

I’ve been doing a lot of jabbering about fighting and doing cool stuff in RPGs recently. Anyone who saw my recent post about making a game more about what players can do and less about what they cannot saw one clip I shared from the cinematic trailer for Elder Scrolls Online. Yes, that’s the kind of stuff I want to see (or, at least imagine) during a roleplaying game. But, there are certainly others.

Awhile back, I first saw Now You See Me. It had a great cast of mostly up and coming actors and was a solid movie. I’d definitely recommend it for +Jonathan Henry or anyone else looking to run a heist style game. However, the main fight scene they had starring Dave Franco opposite Mark Ruffalo was awesome. I can totally see doing this with Fate Core. At the same time, I’m almost reminded of a well-flavored D&D thief, particularly DnD 4e. I like it, because we see no damage is being done really, but the characters are both fighting, working toward a goal. I don’t see that a lot in RPGs, but I wish I did—not only for the “damageless” combat, but the creative maneuvers.

Next up is a movie I saw some years back. Equilibrium is set in a dystopian future where emotion has been outlawed, because it is the root of all evil. Even fine art and music is contraband. Everyone takes a Prozac-like drug. But, it also brought in the “gun kata” which is funny and ridiculous in its own right (although, I have seen several firearms instructors speak as to how it could work in real life), but what is roleplaying if not fun, over the top, and unbelievable. The final fight scene here with Christian Bale and Angus Macfadyen has it all. A 45 in one hand, katana in the other, the maneuvers make for some visually stunning effects. I like this and want to see more of it in RPGs, because the fast paced action and complexity of the moves being able to be watered down mechanically to pull it off so we could actually envision this would just be awesome. Check out the beginning part where he slides the magazines across the floor strategically too. Tell me your favorite gun bunny shouldn’t be able to do that!

Now, I’m up for a good kung fu movie just about whenever there is an option. I happen to like Jet Li. In Unchained, he plays a prize fight who really only know how to fight. It was actually a very well done movie, though. The acting and script were good and it totally wasn’t what I was expecting. The cool thing about this martial arts flick, though was how a lot of the fighting was so brutal and animalistic. It wasn’t all style and form, but had a lot of street fighting in it. That was pretty cool and I think, when we have the brute that isn’t some sort of kung fu master, we forget how awesome and entertaining their fighting can be. That isn’t always the case, especially when there is a military guy in the group, but it often is. This compilation of scenes shows how awesome street fighting really can be made to look, and it’s worth keeping in mind for describing cool fighting stuff even if you aren’t playing some wandering sword master of the 9^th clan of the 9^th moon.

Along the same lines, checking out Fighting with Channing Tatum is worth it. It’s not a good script, but the acting is decent enough. The fight scenes are brutal. At one point, someone’s head hits a linoleum floor and I and about three other guys cringed at the sound when we heard it in the theater, because it was so spot on. That shit hurts, too. This level of realism, where getting punched actually hurts and—if you don’t do it right—can hurt your hand, where fighting leaves bruises and torn muscles—it makes sense and is something to keep in mind, especially for grittier campaigns and is a good reason many characters might avoid a fight, because—well, fighting hurts.

Now, there’s a lot of cool stuff out there and maybe you have some of your own you’d like to add to the list down in the comments. I know I could think of more, but there’s only so much room on the internet and all. Of course, with martial artists, action film buffs, etc., there tends to be more description that goes into the fighting. That’s been my experience, anyhow. And, there can come a time when that individual kind of steals the spot light. As a GM, I find it important sometimes to have them hold their thought when only part way through, so others can have a turn. There is a certain balance required here. It can be done. Let them start in, as it gets a little too long, ask them to hold on, because other players are acting at the same time in “fast paced combat” and all. You’;ll come back to them after others have gone or t least started to go. I’ve actually had it work quite well and the pause gives players a chance to modify and make their character’s actions even cooler, sometimes by playing what others in the group are doing.

To me, that’s a big chunk of what RPGs are—stories about cool people doing cool stuff. There are lots of variations on a theme there, but—I strong believe—if you’re going to do it in a game, you need to do it “awesomer.” It’s like +Robert Hanz  is always talking about framing the scene and making it interesting and I know +Joshua Macy  often talks about, if it isn’t interesting, why is it in the game?

Yes, And...

Admittedly, I really struggled with coming up with a title for this blog post. I settled on a term that many gamers and GMs love to toss around these days. I can’t count the number of times +Jerrod Gunning  has used it while describing gaming and running styles. He’s also used numerous times in the handful of games I have been luckily enough to join in while he was running. Yes, Jerrod runs a lot of games, but my schedule tends to be a bit goofy. Anyhow, moving right along.

I was fortunate enough to sit in on a play test of D&D Next being run by +Tom Morris . I’ve had the playtest documents and played a few games, but everything had trouble getting off the ground. Tonight, I was a little late to join in the fun myself, but I was invited to sit back and watch. +Cavin DeJordy  was there with his natural impishness—he’s a lot more macabre in game than I remember. Then, +Shoe Skogen  was playing a character that was just downright brutal. +Lloyd Gyan was there with a proper and studious healer. The fray exploded early amongst these and other players.

I realized a few things here. Over the years, I have played an enjoyed a great many games—everything from Dungeons & Dragons Advanced Second Edition to Rifts (yes, I put them next to one another on purpose), Rolemaster, Fate, and so many more. Over time, my tastes have changed somewhat and in some cases, it was really because I didn’t know what I wanted. I found on more than one occasion I found an RPG I didn’t know I loved until I tried it, like asking someone if they enjoy chocolate when they have never had it. +Joshua Macy's SFX is a perfect example of this.

With DnD 3x, I enjoyed feats and skills, but it became clunky. I later experimented with +Mark Knights  running Pathfinder and I finally realized why I moved away from d20. D20 and DnD are built off a single, simple rule, a roll of a d20. However, there are literally hundreds of rules exceptions. Fate Core came out and I enjoyed it, but there was a lot of applications of rules—it was like peeling back an onion. With SFX! everything revolved around “does this makes sense?” Genius!

My point is, I’ve been trying a lot of games out over the past year and I have seen what I live versus what I don’t like. What I have really been doing is testing systems to see what they could and couldn’t do. I really wanted to push the envelope for what I was used to seeing in tabletop games. I wanted the high flying cinematics without having to memorize a thousand rules or find a way to make it work within a system—have it just work out of the box with just a roll or two, without and fudging or modifications. The cool trailers we see for video games—yeah, that’s what I want our characters to do…all…the…time.

Take a look here for a perfect example of what I mean (especially the archer dude near the end):

Watching this game of D&D Next get played, however, I was seeing the exact opposite. Testing out rules, you play a system as designed. You ignore the golden rule of gaming to “use what you want and discard the rest.” I heard more than once that the system simply wasn’t designed to do what the players wanted it to. Players pleaded with the DM for another player to be able to do something just because it would be cool. They worked something out, she did. It was awesome. They tried to encourage it to be more awesome and my take away line for the night was “There are no suplexes in Dungeons & Dragons.”

Meanwhile, I look at games like Fate where people are supposed to have fun making their characters and what their characters do “more awesome.” SFX is build the same way. The difference being in Fate, there are some pretty solidly established ways to do things. In SFX, you determine your desired end result and roll for that, everything else is just window dressing. +Adam Dickstien has a modified version of D&D he’ll hopefully run for me soon that, every time I hear about it, it makes me drool. He says that your characters are supposed to be mythic fantasy heroes. Meanwhile, D&D is often built more around what you can’t do.

At the same time, I heard a lot of meta gaming going on in the D&D Next play test. The healer of the group was trying to figure out how many hit points his companions had so that he could do cool stuff. Fate suffers from this a bit as well, as you make decisions based on Fate points. That’s thinking out of game. As Macy will tell you, just as in SFX, gaming should be done from the character’s perspective. What would they do or what would it make sense for them to do in certain situations? You shouldn’t be worried about this otherwise non-existent arbitrary facets that are included by the rules. Now, I still like to roll, so I’m not a diceless roleplaying guy. I don’t enjoy Gossamer & Shadow or Fiasco. I do, however, enjoy being in the moment and not worry about how many HP or or power points my character has and dealing with some archaic, otherwise intangible currency.

So, “yes, and…” makes a lot more sense to me now than it did way back when. I’m seeing the flaws in the games I grew up with. I still enjoy them for what they are, but I also find myself looking toward what else there could be. I have taken situations and videos to GMs and designers from different games. How would you do this with XYZ system? I get answers like it can’t be done or that you have to either ignore certain rules or follow a laundry list of rules that add so much table rolling, you can easily get lost. Then, I also get answers like “that’s easy, just blah, blah, blah.” So far, however, the only one that has really held true and made sense for me is SFX’s rule of “does it make sense.” Trying to work that into other games now, and I’ll have to see how the players respond to it, because it does require a certain bit of arbitrary ad libbing. And, even I am one who likes codification. It is an interesting conundrum with two diametrically opposing forces needing to play nice with one another.

Street: Chase Zones

Boys and girls, I just can’t stop tonight. I’ve been working not so secretly on Street, my street racing hack for FATE Core. I have a lot of ideas and some great people have been helpful.

This idea came from +Jacob Poss  last night during our discussions. It still needs a bit of work, but I’m trying to wrap my head around it and figure out how it will work. Essentially, Street will make use of a currency called Chase Zones. The GM will set a limit for a given chase.  Short chases should be about 3 zones. Medium, or standard races would be 6 zones. For long races—races that will probably take an entire gaming session—12 zones.

Once the race has begun, it needs to end within that allotment. It can end with a winner or as a tie. Players and NPCs will roll to create advantage and outmaneuver one another during the race.  It works somewhat like a contest, but different. If anyone ever has three or more successes, they win the race by a good clip. Even by one or two successes, if the Chase Zones have been all used up, the winner…well, wins.

By spending a FATE point, a character can lengthen the race. They add a chase zone. Now, this should only be when it makes sense. In a city chase, they might hop on the freeway trying to get away from their opponents.  They may force the race down a narrow canyon in the desert. This gives them the opportunity to win a race they may have otherwise lost or win by much more than they would have otherwise, which can sometimes make a difference. More on that when I get into the other race rules for FATE.

FATE Core: Retconning Advantages

FATE Core gives us a great many options as a role-playing game. Sure, there are a lot of RPGs out there that people like to modify, tweak, and otherwise hack, but FATE Core seems to be designed for it. Those of you who have been unfortunate enough to come along my little place on the internet before may be aware that I am currently working on a FATE hack tentatively titled Street. It’s a racing game, in which I am trying to emulate modern street racing movies that have been so popular, but also older ones including many Burt Reynolds movies, Cannonball Run, Death Race 2000, and more.

I found myself reminiscing about parts in older action shows. It maybe something they have gotten away with totally in more modern shows, although I know I saw it last in the remake of Knight Rider. This is the moment when the chips are down. The bad guys are about the get away. The good guys are about to get creamed. Then, someone comes over the radio and reminds the hero about the upgrade they put in earlier that day. Oh, there is that rocket launcher add-on, super charger, or something else. It kind of comes out of nowhere and it makes all the difference. That change, modification, or addition made earlier in the story that was not revealed until the moment it was needed most.

In FATE Terms, setting up this special gadget or clever plan would be considered creating an advantage. Here, I propose that players be able to retcon advantages. Retcon is the commonly accepted term for  “retroactive continuity.” This is essentially a way to go back and change the story, alter previously established facts.

I have set up the Retcon Advantage like this:

A player may spend 1 FATE point to pause game time. They then narrate what happened previously, off camera, so to speak. They make the roll, which could be a Modding roll to enhance a vehicle, a Family roll to have a pre-established ambush set up, etc.

Simple enough, no? What does everyone out there in Internetlandia think?

FATE Skills for Street Game

I’ve been thinking a lot about the “skills” I want to use in the STREET game I am working on for FATE. I tried to do a cross between skills and approaches. I may come up with some better names for things, but I think this pretty much covers what characters would need as far as that’s concerned in the game. I am pretty sure it is going to have more stunts, especially with stunts coming from cars as well as characters. However, I think this pretty much lays it out. I wish I was cool, so I knew what all the cool street terms were for things nowadays. Heh…

Aggression (attacking)…this may be renamed to Aggro or Rage

Cred (a cross between contact and influence, more street cred you have, more likely it is for people to help you)

Boost (essentially replaces Burglary, also includes planning on committing a crime)

Family (I got a guy…)

Feel (Both for reading people and emotions as well as persuading them that one is being earnest or impressing upon them important concepts).

Grit (willpower, staring down the odds, etc.)

Modding (supercharging, enhancing, and otherwise modifying vehicles)

Moves (the ability to move, athletics, dodge, etc.)

Notice

Stealth

Style (looking good and playing it cool)

I am thinking capping the pyramid at Good (+3), since we're working with fewer skills.

I am certainly more than open to suggestions

FATE Core: Fast & Furious Style

Ah, I don't care what anyone says, Fast & Furious is a movie series I enjoy. Except for the second one--that one I never even made it through the whole thing. And, as +Jacob Poss pointed out, a much better show would probably be with members of the opposite sex racing around all these exotic locations, but we gots what we gots...for now.

Anyhow, many discussion have led to this point. I finally started putting the digital ink to coded paper to work on a bit of a FATE game. Actually, I'm working on two or three simultaneously. But, this one is for a street racing game. There were some clever ideas shared in a brain jam session (not as scrumptious as it might sound to you zombie lovers) last night.

However, I need to refine what I'm doing with skills before sharing it, so this is the beginnings.

Not much there at all, although I am a big fan of setting the aspects to the genre. I'm not sure these aspects work 100%, but they are a start:

Street

There is another world that exists just below the one you know. In this world, power is achieved by those who take it, respect is given to those who have earned it, and currency is a wicked combination of speed and skill.

For some, it is a dangerous past time. They call it illegal street racing, although it has been known as other things in the past. For those who live in the world hidden within the shadows of steel skyscrapers and concrete overpasses, the race is all that matters. They found a place where they belong, where they can call home.

This is a modification for the FATE Core game. I have combined some aspects from both FATE Core and FATE Accelerated Edition published by Evil Hat.

Character Aspects

High Aspect. This is the overreaching character definition. It is the foundation upon which the rest of the character is built. Examples: Undercover cop turned street racing criminal, Gearhead trying to fit in, Champion of the underground circuit

Trouble Aspect. In this life, trouble seems to be the one thing you can never outrun…for long. It follows your characters from race to race, city to city, even continent to continent. What is it that always seems to be pursuing them, throwing a monkey wrench in their plans? Examples: On the run from a controlling family with too much money, Johnny Law has my number, Owe the Yakuza money

Behind the Wheel. What is your character like when they are behind the wheel? Everybody can drive, what makes them so special? Examples: Monster behind the wheel, Virtuoso with a V8, Fast and dangerous

On the Street. This is the reputation your character has earned for themselves in the racing circuit. It might be all hype or it might be 100% accurate. What do people say about your character? Mad man with a bad temper, He lost…once, Takes care of his family.

Philosophy. Everybody has a story behind how they got into the life. This aspect covers the root reason your character melds rubber and asphalt. Why do they race? Do one thing and do it well, I got no place else to go, I live my life a quarter mile at a time.

Skills

What?!? A racing game without a Drive skill?!? That’s right. It is assumed since the game centers around street racing that all the main characters are excellent drivers. Everyone has the driving skill at an apex level. But, that can get kind of boring. Instead, we got rid of the drive skill altogether. Characters will make use of different skills/approaches while driving as well as stunts and extras to pull off some amazing maneuvers. This will be done through a modified content model. But, it is safe to assume, it has wheels, characters can drive it and the only time they worry about wrecking a car is during a contest or when they do it on purpose.

Meanwhile, I have also gone through and changed up the skill list somewhat in an effort to better emulate the genre. This is not all just terminology and semantics, as some things have been completely gutted and redesigned.

But, more on that in a little while…