Let's play Fate! (Pen & Paper RPG)

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121

[QUOTE=RoOsh]
The Novel #3:

David Fandango in * The Dave: Just PLAIN Wanted! *:

This is it! This is the one you’ve been waiting for action fans, the thrilling conclusion to the The Grim Fandango- WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE?.
We pick up with our Heroes clearing up David Fandango’s name with the Police, and apologizing for the breaking out from Prison. They’ve proven that David wasn’t the man who staged an accident to allow an ingenious heist to take place, but now they’ve got to find the REAL Culprit! After all, The Dark Specter isn’t called The Spirit of Vengeance for nothing! The Grim Fandango and The Dark Specter will enter to notorious underground world of black market crimes, all in pursuit of the culprit that took advantage of David Fandango!
Mr. Z tells the Daring Duo that the TRUE Criminal that night was after a mysterious and ancient artifact, known only as Lost Jeweled Sword of Clan MacGuffin! The true thief was able to steal a clue to get one step closer to the Sword, and has even managed to get the best of the notorious and beautiful cat burgler known only as Lady Lynx! It is a mountainous task, filled with seedy pubs, dark alleys, and a dangerous chases! Thankfully, the Duo has gained a new and mysterious contact to help to traipse this deadly terrain thanks to Mr. Z! The Man known only as The Mountain Goat! Wait, wait! Don’t put this book down! The Dave swears this new amazing man of mystery is well worth his nickname many times over! Plus, it was all The Dave could afford! The Dave promises twice the explosions and three times the Awesome in this adventure when three of the most Awesomely Amazing Characters in Action Novels today collide!
It takes a thief to catch a thief! And so with the Mountain Goat at their side, our adventurers set out to find the Master Thief, and they find themselves getting closer and closer to learning about the Curse of the Lost Jeweled Sword of Clan MacGuffin! But are they TRULY on the right path? Or is every step bound to take them away from the REAL Thief? Who can Tell, actions fans? You’ve got to read this novel to find out- just who set up our hapless David Fandango, and WHY?

[/QUOTE]

Sounds great. (Nice dust jacket blurb, BTW) At some point, I envision a car chase where The Dave grabs the keys out of my hand and hops in the driver seat of “The Escape Goat”–I’ve decided that’s what I’m officially calling the car–saying something to the effect of how a situation like this requires a professional. Let’s just say it’s a good thing my character has a high resolve, or he probably would have taken his chances with jumping out of the car while it was in motion rather than staying in it during the chase.

However, should it come to it, he’ll probably never let you drive the car again.

Anyway:

Aspect 7: The Escape Goat (A reliable and decently fast mid-size coupe. It pretty much looks like any other car out there. However, The Escape Goat includes a homing signal enabled GPS and a advanced anti-theft and anti-break in system. It also carries around my surveillance equipment and climbing gear and other various thieving sundries that won’t quite fit on the Utility Belt.)

Aspect 8: Mr. Z. (He originally thought to call himself Mr. X, but that name was just too cliched for even him. A contact and quasi-father figure, he helps MG with jobs and fencing items. Claims that he works in finance by day as a broker or investment banker or similar. Heads up a confederacy of criminals of various types; size unknown. Most members never even know who the other members are. On the rare occasion members work together, specifics of each’s business arrangements with Z are not discussed. It’s better for everyone that way. A very mysterious man with a lot of secrets, but always keeps his word.)

122

Alright. I’m working on the setup. How about this?

A troll shaman. He was a producer on the Dungeons and Flagons film doing a cameo at the time of the change, so he actually has a little insight into what happens. He also has an vendetta against a rival wizard, the man who was the set director, who he holds responsible for bringing him to this world. He’ll be well-off as far as money and might serve as a benefactor for some of the others.

Thoughts?

-d

123

Also, is there a list of Stunts? I couldn’t find one in the Fate 2.0 pdf.

124

[QUOTE=danar]
Alright. I’m working on the setup. How about this?

A troll shaman. He was a producer on the Dungeons and Flagons film doing a cameo at the time of the change, so he actually has a little insight into what happens. He also has an vendetta against a rival wizard, the man who was the set director, who he holds responsible for bringing him to this world. He’ll be well-off as far as money and might serve as a benefactor for some of the others.

Thoughts?

-d
[/QUOTE]

The mystic troll idea is fine, but I’m not wild about using the D&F set: that particular set has been in a state of flux since the incident, and none of the crew or actors who were on site have been openly discovered, leaving most of L.A.'s inhabitants with little idea of what happened: the fact that the incident began at the D&F set was inferred from the fact that things become progressively more unstable, establishing that particular set as the epicenter for the incident. Copies of the director’s purchases and receipts were found in the accounting office, which was largely unscathed: accountants and attorneys both seem to be oddly resistant to the changes, and while many residents jokingly stock the resistance up to a lack of imagination of the part of the accountants, nobody can figure out why the lawyers avoided the brunt of the spell.

In any event, I’d be more comfortable with a character whose origin was focused away from the world’s creation, and more on the fictional setting from which they originate.

Oh, and while we’re here: since he wasn’t present for the initial shuffling of guest stars, once he decides on and is comfortable with a well-defined character concept, could I get two volunteers to star in **Danar’s ** novel? You won’t get additional Aspects for it, but it’ll be fun.

In the same vein, Danar, after your Novel is written, you need to find two people whose novels you like, and ask them if you can guest star in theirs. :slight_smile:

125

Okay, final character sheet (I will also PM this):

Real Name: Alan J. Reyes
Pulp Name: The Mountain Goat
Occupation: Grand Larcenist

Aspects
1.: He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day.
2.: Could sell ice to an Eskimo, at least until the Eskimo remembers he’s surrounded by it. (Good at convincing people, but has a tendency to tip his hand sometimes.)
3.: Floats like a butterfy, and stings like one too. (Very agile and dexterous, but physically weak)
4.: Jack Dawkins and Charles Peace eat your hearts out. (Larcenist)
5.: Don’t leave me! (Abandonment issues)
6.: Killing is bad for business.
7.: Cashmere Utility Belt (Carries most of his standard equipment. Has a knack for having just the right tool for a job.)
8.: The Lost Jeweled Sword of Clan MacGuffin.
9.: The Escape Goat (Carries the heavier equipment that won’t fit on the belt.)
10.: Mr. Z

Skills
Superb: Burglary
Great: Athletics, Stealth
Good: Resources, Alertness, Resolve
Fair: Deceit, Rapport, Sleight-of-Hand, Endurance
Average: Investigation, Contacting, Drive, Empathy, Weapons

Stunts
Danger Sense
Acrobat
Criminal Mind
Mental Blueprint
Smooth Recovery

Equipment/Lifestyle:
Cashmere Utility Belt containing a multitool for overcoming security systems (multitool contains both electronic and standard lock picks as well as being able to jam various electronics), another multitool with more mundane functionality (side cutters, wire stripper, pliers etc.), mirrors for deflecting laser beams and looking around corners, emergency grappling hook with attached monofilament line, room for four flash grenades (typically he takes two that are of the throwing type and two that are motion sensor triggered), mace, a lightweight and shatterproof halogen bulb flashlight, glass cutting knife, four suction cups with releases, homing transmitters, electronic bugs, night vision goggles, and sometimes other things than he typically doesn’t carry with him.

Escape Goat holds cameras and other surveillance equipment in its trunk, motion sensors and other various security measures in case he actually has to protect something rather than break in, and climbing gear. It also has a GPS with an integrated homing receiver and various anti-theft devices of its own.

He rents an apartment in the middle-rent district. The apartment itself has it’s own security measures similar in level to what the car has. He also has a safe that he uses as temporary storage should he need it.

(I would say since he lacks the resources for a truly top of the line security system, but since he himself has superb burglary skills he can improvise to improve things, his car and safe probably having a security rating of superb–cars and safes being considerably cheaper to protect than apartments, and his apartment has a security rating of great. This is ultimately a GM call, though.)

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[QUOTE=danar]
Also, is there a list of Stunts? I couldn’t find one in the Fate 2.0 pdf.
[/QUOTE]

Here ya go. :slight_smile:

127

[QUOTE=danar]
Also, is there a list of Stunts? I couldn’t find one in the Fate 2.0 pdf.
[/QUOTE]

Ahhh, that’s because we’re using 3.0 Fate Spirit of the Century. It’s considerably boosted in power for starting characters (e.g. in SotC, characters start with 35 skill points, which would be the equivalent of almost 9 character creation phases for 2.0, and we have 10 aspects, which would be the equivalent of 10 character creation phases for 2.0), since it’s based around pulp novels.

The SotC System Resource Document can be found here: Crackmonkey.org -- Non Sequitur Arguments and Ad-Hominem Personal Attacks

And count me in as a volunteer to be in danar’s story.

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[QUOTE=Hoopy Frood]
(I would say since he lacks the resources for a truly top of the line security system, but since he himself has superb burglary skills he can improvise to improve things, his car and safe probably having a security rating of superb–cars and safes being considerably cheaper to protect than apartments, and his apartment has a security rating of great. This is ultimately a GM call, though.)
[/QUOTE]

I think I can allow that… and your sheet looks fine, so consider yourself set. :slight_smile:

129

I will volunteer to be a guest star in danar’s book.

I will be using the “I Work Alone” and “His secret lair” aspects for Wanted Dead or Alive

ArrM’s going to be guesting in my book and me in one of his so I was thinking we could do like Pollux and Hoopy and have a true crossover event. You get to meet Aunt Mable and I get to do something stupid because I am too stuborn to listen to your advice.

(Aspect’s “Aunt Mable” and “My Way Right or Wrong”)

130

Hey Omi, talk to me about my skills for a second. Do I need to bump Resources up higher on my list for my character to be the playboy that I am seeing him as?
1 Superb skill: Fists
2 Great skills: Guns, Investigation
3 Good skills: Alertness, , Athletics, Endurance
4 Fair Skills: Resourses, Deceit, Contacting, Intimidation
5 Average Skills: Resolve, Might, Empathy, stealth, Academics

I am willing to have Resources trade spots with Alertness, or if I need to I can make it my Superb skill and bump everything down one row (Guns would drop to good and alertness would drop to fair.)

What do you think?

131

Naf, if I meet Aunt Mabel, can I be a boarder in her house for a bit? Trying to become accustomed to earth life and all that? Then, when she gets kidnapped… Well, “The Humans Need Me!”

132

[QUOTE=NAF1138]
Hey Omi, talk to me about my skills for a second. Do I need to bump Resources up higher on my list for my character to be the playboy that I am seeing him as?
1 Superb skill: Fists
2 Great skills: Guns, Investigation
3 Good skills: Alertness, , Athletics, Endurance
4 Fair Skills: Resourses, Deceit, Contacting, Intimidation
5 Average Skills: Resolve, Might, Empathy, stealth, Academics

I am willing to have Resources trade spots with Alertness, or if I need to I can make it my Superb skill and bump everything down one row (Guns would drop to good and alertness would drop to fair.)

What do you think?
[/QUOTE]

Hmm, that’s a tough call, especially because the 3.0 rules are a little inconsistent in how they conceptualize wealth in terms of the Resources skill. A skill of Fair would typically be assigned to someone who was connected to a powerful organization: you’d have above-average buying power on your own, but for purchases that exceeded your bankroll you’d have to contact the organization and attempt to enlist their support… for a general idea of how each level correlates to real wealth, take a look at this table.

If it’s purely to justify your story, I would be happy to accent Fair with some in-character explanation (maybe you have a really strict business manager, or your Aunt Mable guilts you into being conservative with your money?). If you’d like your Resources to be a major part of your character’s skills, however, you probably want to go with Great or above.

The chart is really your best bet for deciding… the Resources rule basically says that your character can automatically afford anything whose price is at or below your score, since characters with the Resources skill often have a tendency to throw their money around (as I imagine playboys do), you’d want to consider how you’re going to be using your money.

Before you think about replacing higher tier skills though, it’s worth noting that your Millionaire Playboy aspect would be of unquestionable use when making Resource checks, so if you took a lower Resources score you could always bump it up when making critical checks.

133

Okay, I’ve got a tentative aspect list now after thinking out some of the questions. In essence, the Martian super-science had devolved to the point that it was looked at as a religion on Mars; it had priests and rituals, but no one knew how anything actually worked. The Cosmic Eye moved in from a farther world (I’m thinking pluto, just as a nod to Lovecraft) and -did- know how things worked, thus enslaving, and eventually devouring, the martian populous.
Before and during the time of the Cosmic Eye invasion, Mars could be easilly pictured as a parallel to, say, the more savage areas of Melnibone or Cimmeria, with a little extra Tarzan thrown in for good measure.

The aspects I’ve chosen:
“The Humans Need Me”
Blazing Spear (weapon of Destiny)
Predatory mind
“Stranger in a Strange Land”
Noble Savage
Seen by the Cosmic Eye
Alien Physiology
“Closer than your own shadow”
“Science is just another deity”

And… Well, this one just sounded cool, but I’m not sure how it’d work as an aspect:
“A Good Day to Die.”

134

So could I, say, explain it as I pump all of my personal money into the Dark Spectre and Aunt Mable provides the funds for my Charles Montgomery self, therefore I have few actual resources of my own, but Aunt Mable has Resources at the legendary level and doesn’t mind sharing?

135

[QUOTE=Omi no Kami]
Hmm, that’s a tough call, especially because the 3.0 rules are a little inconsistent in how they conceptualize wealth in terms of the Resources skill.
[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I noticed that, too. The way I’m viewing it, and I think we could “house rule” it that way, is your resources skill directly translates into the quality of what you can buy.

So for example, with my resources of Good, I have a “good” car. It’s probably going to something along the lines of a higher end Honda Accord. And my security systems would be what a high-quality standard system would be. However, due to my knowledge of burglary tactics, I can improve them a bit based on the complexity of what it is I’m trying to protect. So I figured I could bump my apartment up 1 level, and give the car and safe 2 levels of improvement each.

Now if I had an electronics or security skill (which, SotC doesn’t include, probably because it is originally set pre-tech revolution, but if someone wanted to make a character that had a tech background of some sort, we could probably house rule the appropriate skill as well), I could probably go much higher than just 1 or 2 steps since I would specialize in creating the systems, not just bypassing them. For example, if I were GM I would probably let someone with a security systems background to raise the apartment at least 3 levels and the safe and car 4 levels.

So I can see Naf’s lower resources being a non-issue if his character is a monetary tightwad. He can afford more, but he chooses not to. However, when he sees something he really wants to buy, he uses his aspect to help him out. It works from both a mechanics and flavor standpoint.

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[QUOTE=NAF1138]
So could I, say, explain it as I pump all of my personal money into the Dark Spectre and Aunt Mable provides the funds for my Charles Montgomery self, therefore I have few actual resources of my own, but Aunt Mable has Resources at the legendary level and doesn’t mind sharing?
[/QUOTE]

Exactly. That way you could keep your Skills focus on your combat and detective abilities while helping the party cover equipment costs, and if you need something big (bribing an official, an aircraft carrier) you could spent a fate point to use your Millionaire Playboy or Aunt Mable aspects to add to your check.

137

[QUOTE=Hoopy Frood]
So I can see Naf’s lower resources being a non-issue if his character is a monetary tightwad. He can afford more, but he chooses not to. However, when he sees something he really wants to buy, he uses his aspect to help him out. It works from both a mechanics and flavor standpoint.
[/QUOTE]

Yea, I like your thinking for the house rule. It seems like the spirit of the skill is that your Resources determine the quality of your purchases and the ease with which you can make them, so I’m all for finding ways to RP or fudge around the problems the base system has with it.

138

[QUOTE=Omi no Kami]
Exactly. That way you could keep your Skills focus on your combat and detective abilities while helping the party cover equipment costs, and if you need something big (bribing an official, an aircraft carrier) you could spent a fate point to use your Millionaire Playboy or Aunt Mable aspects to add to your check.
[/QUOTE]

Cool, that’s how I think I will play it then.

139

[QUOTE=NAF1138]
So could I, say, explain it as I pump all of my personal money into the Dark Spectre and Aunt Mable provides the funds for my Charles Montgomery self, therefore I have few actual resources of my own, but Aunt Mable has Resources at the legendary level and doesn’t mind sharing?
[/QUOTE]

Yep. And if you want, you can use both the Mabel and the Playboy aspects to boost Resources by spending a fate point for each, depending on how Omi wants to rule how that would work.

140

[QUOTE=Hoopy Frood]
Yep. And if you want, you can use both the Mabel and the Playboy aspects to boost Resources by spending a fate point for each, depending on how Omi wants to rule how that would work.
[/QUOTE]

I was about to suggest the same thing, so I can say that I’m more than happy to let you stack up Aspect bonuses for your Resources, as long as you spend a fate point for each Aspect that you call into play.