Four-Color FAE: BONUS - Character Highlight: Dr. Pisces, Nefarious Supervillain

As Mike unveils his sample superhero characters for his Four-Color FAE series, he needs a supervillain to throw against him. They will learn to respect the malevolent brilliance of...

Dr. Pisces

Aspects
High Concept: Psionic Bass Bent On World Domination
Trouble: I Must Tell You Of My Unstoppable Evil Plan!
Other Aspects: Infinite Intellect, Diabolical Leader of F.I.S.H, Mind Over Matter

Approaches
+5 Clever
+4 Flashy, Careful
+3 Sneaky, Quick
+2 Forceful

Stunts 

• Because I can Overpower Your Brain, I gain a +2 to Cleverly Attack when targeting an opponent's mind.
• Evil Twin: Once per session I can rearrange ambient water molecules to create an evil duplicate of any singular creature. This evil twin exists for the remainder of the scene and is fully under my control. The evil twin gains the additional aspects Made Of Water, Evil Duplicate, and Goatee.
• As I am a Master Planner, I gain a +2 to Carefully Overcome or Create An Advangate when dealing with logistics or puzzles.
• Mental Prison: Once per session, after a successful mental attack that inflicts 2 or more stress, Dr. Pisces Dr. Pisces can spend one fate point to activate this power. Instead of doing damage, he can instead inflict a Minor Consequence Dominated on the target. The target may spend an action to Overcome with a fair (2) difficulty to remove the aspect. Dr. Pisces can then direct the target to do his will, unless a fate point is spent by the target or the target's Overcome action is successful.

Refresh: 3
Stress: OOO 

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

Power Facts

• Mind Control
• Telepathy
• Telekinesis

Background/Personality/Plot Facts:

FISH, the Formative Institute for Scientific Hydrotransgenetics was a small, well-funded think tank dedicated to manipulating the genes of fish for treating a variety of human diseases. While manipulating the brain tissue of Morone saxatilis, researchers unknowingly triggered a rapid increase of intelligence in one specimen, granting it genius level intellect, self-awareness, and psychic powers. Eventually the bass used his mental prowess to dominate the minds of those workers and installed himself as the leader of the organization, which he renamed as F.I.S.H (Foundation for International Superbeing Hegemony). He took the name Dr. Pisces and built a base at the bottom of the mid-pacific, where he directs his minions in activities to seize control of the entire planet!

Dr. Pisces is typically seen by the most privileged of his of his minions in his natural form, a mean-looking bass within a water-filled levitating jar. For everyone else, he typically appears out of nowhere as an Evil Twin of whomever seems appropriate.

***

Four-Color FAE: Supers Gaming via Fate Accelerated - pt6

Here in Part 6 I move away from discussing game-mechanics and play, towards the sort of features I would like to see as GM in our fictional world.

We will be building the world at the table using the rules provided in Fate Core, but this post was made to 'prime the pump' before we hit the gaming table.


See the whole Four-Color FAE series here


***
Inspirations for our Supers Game

There is ALWAYS a monkey in Fate

First came the Golden Age: the beginning, an age of mystery men and women. An age of hope and optimism; an age of sacrifice and glory.

Then came the Silver Age: an age of boundless confidence. All problems seemed to be but puzzles to be solved by super-science and an unshakable sense of rightness.

This was followed by the Bronze Age. This was the era when the cracks began to show; when heroes were shown to have feet of clay, and when villains and heroes began to blur together and intermingle.

All this was before the dark times; before the Age of Iron. An age dominated by so-called 'heroes' with names like Bloodspawn and Venomreaver; an age of mindless violence and endless cycles of vengeance between what were effectively warring gangs of meta-talented thugs.

Thankfully this time has now past, and a new world is beginning to emerge from the ashes.

A world maybe more jaded and self-aware, but a world that believes in wonder, and a world that believes that right and wrong, in a sometimes hard to discern but very real difference between good and evil.

A world that believes that liberty and justice are not mere abstractions but inherent and eternal truths.

A world that believes in hope.

And this is your world now. And what you will make of it will define the arc of your story, your legacy, and our shared destiny.

--------

My inspirations for our shared game-world are largely from the comics of the late 1990's and the past decade, where a conscious attempt was made to recapture some of the gonzo energy, innocence, optimism and sense of wonder from the previous ages of comics after the lifeless and bland 'grimdark' of the Iron Age.

Inspirations include:

*Monkeyman and O'Brien (pictured)
*Top Ten
*Teen Titans (Wolfman & Perez era)
*Legion of Superheroes (Jeff Moy era)
*Leave it to Chance
*Astro City
*Young Justice (animation)
*Heroes for Hire (seriously!)

This a world where the unbelievable and the mundane, the sublime and the ridiculous rub shoulders with one another. Where no matter how gonzo things might seem to the outside observer, everyone is taking it completely seriously in the fiction.

Questions that could be asked of your hero during character creation:

*What makes you a hero? What is it that motivates you?
*Who are your heroes? Who inspires you? Are you somehow following in their footsteps?
*What is the source of your strength? What is your greatest weakness?

Keep in mind; a great superhero universe is a smorgasbord of seemingly incompatible influences; there are no bad ideas to bring to the table, but only ideas that we need to figure out how to incorporate into the whole.

Looking forward to talking about this more at the gaming table! 

***

Four-Color FAE: Supers Gaming via Fate Accelerated - pt5

The saga continues! I this post, I suggest a new rule for FAE that grants a Fate Point when an action is denied due to an aspect that grants immunity.  

This is largely inspired by a similar mechanic in Mutants and Masterminds that grants Hero Points under similar circumstances. 

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

***
Aspects and Immunities in FAE Supers

It's a common scene in heroic fiction: the hero attacks the Big Bad, only to find the villain completely unphased by his best efforts.

"Your attacks are futile against my (fill in aspect here)!"

This is fun, and is great for building a story where the heroes face insurmountable odds only to overcome the opposition through perseverance, creativity, know how...and a little luck.

But as a player experiencing this, it not fun at all. You just wasted an action that could have been used doing something productive (like creating an advantage, or overcoming an element aiding the villain) on a useless attack action followed by ritual belittlement.

To offset this, I am proposing the following rule; the first time that an immunity aspect is 'invoked' in a scene (this is a free invocation, as the aspect is already true), the opposing party that prompted the invocation is paid a Fate Point.

This sweetens the pot a little bit, doesn't slow down the game, and doesn't break the Fate Point economy. It also creates a cost for taking immunities; you are potentially granting a Fate Point to the opposition that they will surely use against you in other ways.

***

Game Theory: What's on the menu?

Say what you like, Pathfinder's got Class

It's 1985, and my friend Brian (a huge fan of the newly published Dragonlance novel, Dragons of Autumn Twilight) convinces me to purchase the D&D Red Box at the local Toys "R" Us so we can play a game with a similar cast of characters that he had come to love in that series.

Getting back to his house with our newly obtained loot, we open up the box and start reading (after marveling after the odd dice and little crayon included, along with the map). 

We start with the one marked Player's Manual, as it is inscribed with bold yellow letters saying: READ THIS BOOK FIRST! The color, the fact that it's in all caps and with the added '!' indicates that this is an important prerogative, so we dutifully comply. 

Immediately we find that the book gives us a series of options to play characters; this is not some free-form improv-theater piece where you just make up a guy and bluff your way through. It's hard-coded with options that reinforce what sort of characters are expected to appear as protagonists are expected to appear in this world. These options were:

Humans (Yay! We are human, and we get to pretend that we are other humans!)

• Cleric
• Fighter
• Magic-user
• Thief

Demi-humans (Yay! We are human, and we get to play things that are almost, but not-quite human!)

• Dwarf
• Elf
• Halfling

Now, I had bought this game to play a Magic-user - since magic is cool - so I knew immediately what 'Class' of character I wanted to play already (although I looked REALLY hard at the Elf as a option. He gets to do magic AND he's good at fighting? Money.)

So I rolled up my character as per the book, didn't get a high Intelligence (which the book said I HAD to have to even play a Magic-user), so Brian and I agreed that it would be OK to switch some numbers around to facilitate that. 

Time from reading my first RPG to hacking my first RPG? About 1 hour.

From there I picked out a few weak first-level spells, choose some languages I knew, a bought some gear with what little money I had from the gear list, and went into my first dungeon (and somehow survived it, which is a wonder to this day).

Looking at the most recent version of D&D today, although a lot has changed (Elves and Dwarves and Halflings are still there, for example, but they are no longer 'Classes') the fact remains that the system is still very much menu-driven: rather than being given limitless options to make the character you envision, instead you are given a 'menu' of options to choose from, and build around that. 

You choose:

• Your Race
• Your Ability Scores
• Your Class
• Your Skills, Feats, Powers, and Equipment (as appropriate for your Class)
• Your Alignment

Once this is resolved, voila! You are ready to do some D&D. 

Make sure to fill in all the circles, please.

As per the original D&D, the 'menu' concept continues from there as you play; as you gain Experience Points (the meta-resource for the game that enables you to gain new abilities), you are given new options to build upon your abilities. But as offered in character creation, the decision-tree presented for advancement is determined by the original choices you made for your character when you started. The choices you make simply offer new sub-menus with limited numbers of new options you can add to your character.

Every RPG system to date has some form of menu available to choose what sort of character you are playing, and what they can do well or not-so-well. Some of the lists can be bigger and offer more choices than others (GURPS, for example, has a mind-boggling number of options right out of the box), and some smaller (indie-darling Dungeon World has a relatively small menu to choose from vs 4e), but there is still a menu regardless.

Why is this? Why do we want or need a menu at all? Why can't we just say: 'Here's my character, this is what motivates him, and this what he is good and bad at', and hit the gaming table with that?

Well, menus do a few key things for RPG's:

• Menus reinforce genre. Having a game where the options include Cleric, Wizard and Fighter but does not include something like 'Cyborg' tells us a lot about the world the characters are expected to appear in.
• They also help define Party Roles, which is important for team-based play; a state assumed by 99% of the RPG's on the market.
• Menus (in theory..) promote game-balance. By clearly defining what sort of abilities can appear on the table in any combination, you can limit Mary Sue-ism and reinforce party roles, as above.
• Having a menu also helps players to decide what sort of character they will play by defining what sort of character is allowed in the game. If you have no clear idea of what sort character you want or what traits they should have, having a limited list to choose from is of help.

But it's not all gravy. Menus also limit you in some key ways as well:

• They limit your options. Want to play a Fomorian princess-in-exile who can cross between the Otherworld and our own? Too bad; that's not in the book. 
• They limit imagination. You want your wizard to cast a huge spell that impresses the frost giants into aiding your cause? Too bad; you have nothing that allows that on your character sheet. Think of something else.
• They can also create the bizarre netherworld of 'Character Optimization'; a term that comes up often in reference to D&D 4e and her prettier and more popular sister, Pathfinder. Just because you have more than one option to choose from when creating and advancing your character doesn't mean that they are all equally useful. Which segueways us well to the next issue...
• Menus promote samey-ness. If my optimized fighter with optimized gear looks just like your optimized fighter with optimized gear at Gen-Con, it's like two girls in the same dress at the prom. Neither one of us looks very unique or interesting next to the other. 

My current interest in more 'rules-light' systems like Fate or Heroquest is not because I hate all-the-damned-rules; I've happily played and run games with all-the-damned-rules just fine, thank you very much.

The main appeal for me is that these sort of systems allow me to play what my imagination summons up without having to either hack the system, make my own playbook from scratch, or ignore some rule to make it work. In other words; I have the freedom to order something not on a menu.

Dagger-wielding cultists, evil robots, and a zeppelin? Huh, guess it's Wednesday already.

As a GM, I have always had the freedom to make my NPC's as I like with just about any RPG on offer. But as a player I want to have that same freedom when making and advancing my character, and as GM I would like my players to have that same freedom as well.

Note that this sort of freedom is not by necessity limited to 'rules light' systems either; Mutants & Masterminds grants a massive number of options for character creation, and allows the player to pre-flavor them as desired, as does the ever-popular Savage Worlds (although Savage Worlds could be described more as 'rule-medium' at worst).

It's no secret that my current RPG drug-of-choice is Fate. I've been tinkering with it since I first discovered it as FUDGE-hack, and for the same reasons noted above; because it allows me to make the character I want to play at the gaming table straight-out, and not some compromise that some distant game-designer thought I might like to play; nor do I have to wait until I've reached some arbitrary 'level' to play them.

In Fate, for example, if I want to play a wizard with Hands burned by the cold fire of the underworld, who has Shadow-demons that respond to my whispered commands, I can. No hacking required; just add those Aspects, some Skills or approaches to reinforce this, and maybe some Stunts and/or an Extra to back it up, and 'boom!': I'm ready to do some Fate.

For me, this is all-kinds of awesome. I'm now given permission to play what I want at the gaming table, and my friends are as well. 

As noted above, however, there is a trade-off here; by abandoning a menu-based system we have opened the possibility for confusion. With no road-map, with no clear path to create characters, we are now largely left our understanding of the system to create characters; and this is often a scary path for new players and even new game-masters.

In many ways this is the main failure of Fate Core in particular; by not providing a good number of examples for creation of characters (something I think Savage Worlds and Mutants & Masterminds in particular does well), new players are largely left adrift at sea when making sense of what the system can do. That's unfortunate, and I hope that some of my posts here might assist in that regard.

That being said; despite the difficulties involved, for me the effort is worth it to make the characters we want to play appear at the gaming table.

It may be the chef's (game-designers) pots, pans and range we are using, but we get to pick the ingredients now. And we have free-run of the kitchen:

So let's get cooking.

***

Character Highlight: Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner (FAE)

I was listening to one of my favorite artists play one of my favorite songs on the way to work, and it dawned on me: "Wow, this would make a fantastic character for a FAE game, either as a hero or a villain!" Without further ado, here is:

Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner

Aspects
High Concept: Mercenary Ghost of Revenge
Trouble: The CIA Decided They Wanted Roland Dead
Other Aspects: Norway's Greatest Son, Eternal Thompson Gunner, Time Stands Still For Roland

Approaches
+3 Sneaky
+2 Careful, Flashy
+1 Forceful, Clever
+0 Quick

Stunts

• Because I am the Eternal Thompson Gunner, I can become intangible, gaining a +2 to Forcefully Defend against physical attacks from melee or ranged weapons.
• As I Hunted The Continent, I gain a +2 to Carefully Overcome or Create an Advantage when tracking down a target.
• Because I Still Wander Through The Night, once per session I can appear anywhere, provided it is a region locked in conflict.

Refresh: 3
Stress: OOO
Consequences

• Mild (2): 
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

Extras:

Background:

Roland is a Norwegian who becomes embroiled in the Congo Crisis of the late 1960s. He earns a reputation as the greatest Thompson gunner, a reputation that attracts the attention of the CIA in foreign conflicts. Roland is betrayed and murdered by a fellow mercenary, Van Owen, who blows off his head. Roland becomes the phantom "headless Thompson gunner" (reminiscent of the Headless Horseman) and eventually has his revenge on Van Owen, when he catches him "in a bar room drinking gin." After this Roland continues "wandering through the night" as a sort of revolutionary spirit.

Besides the historical references to third-world conflicts around the globe, the 'Troubles' in the Six Counties in Ireland, and the often shadowy involvement of the CIA, the song is a sort of bittersweet rallying cry to the "revolution" in America. The final line of the song, "Patty Hearst heard the burst of Roland's Thompson gun, and bought it..", referring to heiress Patty Hearst's kidnapping and subsequent involvement in the Symbionese Liberation Army, throws a cynical twist into the song's portrayal of a mercenary come back from the dead for justice and revenge.

***

Character Highlight: Redbones and Pest (FAE)

Continuing our series of Cycle of Aea fantasy characters made with FAE, here is Redbones the barbarian, and her companion, Pest:

Redbones, Sakan Barbarian

Aspects

High Concept: Pint Sized Barbarian Dinosaur-Rider

Trouble: You May Be Bigger - But Not Meaner
Other Aspects: Dinosaurs Are A Girl's Best Friend, Beastly Instincts, Barbarism Trumps Civilization

Approaches

+3 Forceful
+2 Clever, Quick
+1 Careful, Sneaky
+0 Flashy

Stunts

• When I am In The Saddle I may assign damage to either Myself or My Mount.
• Because I use am Small and Shifty, I gain a +2 to Cleverly or Quickly Create an Advantage when facing larger foes.
• As I was Born In The Wilds, once per session I may automatically create or edit a scene aspect while out in the wild.

Refresh: 3
Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

Extras

Pest, Battle Axe, Warpaint

Pest

Aspects
Gammalu Hunter, Pack Instincts

Abilities

• Skilled (+2) at: Stalking, biting
• Bad (-2) at: Anything that isn't’ Stalking or biting

Stress: OO

Background:

Redbones hails from one of the many nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes that live on the savage plateau of Saka. Always a feisty competitor, she quickly graduated into the ranks of the Rakabu, the tribal knights who ride into combat on the backs of fierce Gammalu (Deinonychus). She excelled, but being small even for a Pech, constantly felt the urge to prove herself against her larger brothers and sisters, which often got her into trouble. Eventually, when Pest, her unusually intelligent Gammalu companion killed another, she was asked to put him down. Instead, she abandoned her tribe to seek fortune in the wider world.

Though Saka boasts no cities and few settlements, she had traveled to the border trading post of Ah-Khulassa, and was always fascinated with the sights and sounds of civilization. Riding into a broader world, she seeks to explore it to the fullest, seeking fortune and fame however she can.

***

Character Highlight: Lorcan of Muir (FAE)

Continuing my series of FAE fantasy characters, here is the consort and right-hand man of of Queen Nuala, Lorcan of Muir.

He is designed to be 'that one villain' for a starting-level group; as a PC, he would be +1 Major and +1 Significant Milestones.

Lorcan of Muir

• Aspects

High Concept: Demon Swordsman and Prince-Consort of Fomoria
Trouble: Nuala’s love is cold, but it’s all I have
Other Aspects: Bastard of House Balor; I’ll handle it myself!; Anger is both my fortress and my prison

• Approaches

+4 Quick
+3 Forceful
+2 Clever
+1 Careful, Sneaky
+0 Flashy

• Stunts

- Since I am a Demon of the Blade, I gain +2 to Quickly Create an Advantage when in melee combat and armed with a sword.
- My Reflecting Blade technique is to be feared; when I Succeed with Style when defending in melee combat I can inflict an automatic 2-shift hit instead of taking a boost.
- None are safe from my Flashing Blade; when I am in melee combat with multiple opponents I can choose to assign shifts from a successful attack as I like to any opponent(s) within range.
- As Captain of the Fomorian Guard, my legions owe me their loyalty; once per session I may declare that reinforcements arrive on the scene.

Refresh: 3
Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

• Extras

Fomorian Sword, Ancestral dagger, Travelers pack + horse

• Background

Lorcan is a bastard son of King Balor VI (‘of Muir’ means ‘child of the sea’).

Never truly accepted at court, but never quite belonging to the world outside of it, Lorcan suffered a bitter and lonely childhood, building up a resentment that he cannot let go of even today.

Lorcan was one of the conspirators to bring Nuala to the throne. He loves and is loyal only to her, and her wishes are as his own.

But this reversal of fortune hasn’t done much to cool the fires at his core. He has a chip on his shoulder as large and burdensome as a mountain, and is easily goaded into a fight.

***

Lorcan (Google Docs)

Character Highlight: Nuala, Sorceress Queen of Fomor (FAE)

Heroes need villains: otherwise they have little purpose.

With this idea in mind, here is Nuala, the Mighty Sorceress Queen of Fomor via FAE. Note that she is created here as boss-level NPC: as a PC, she would be +3 Major and +9 Significant Milestones.

Nuala, Sorceress Queen of Fomor

• Aspects

High Concept: Avatar of Water & Queen of Fomor
Trouble: The old order must be restored
Other Aspects: Immortality allows for long-term planning; The waters speak to their Queen; I love all of my little pawns, everyone of them

• Approaches

+5 Flashy
+4 Clever, Sneaky
+3 Careful, Forceful
+2 Quick

• Stunts

- Since I have seized the Diadem of Power, I gain +2 to Flashily Create an Advantage when my ability to impose my will upon others can be of use.
- As I am Subtle as I am Beautiful, I gain +2 to Sneakily Overcome in social situations where I can apply seduction or deception.
- When I command my Pool of Scrying, I can ignore distance limitations when viewing remote actions, provided that there is a pool of water at the scene in question.
- As Sorceress of the Waters, I gain +2 to Flashily Create an Advantage where my command of water magics can be of assistance to me.
- While cocooned in my Protective Bubble, I can grant +1 to Defend Against Physical Attacks directed against a single area.
- Once per session I can summon Servants of the Deep; mooks thus summoned can have stress boxes equal to my Flashy Approach.
- Once per session I can create a Great Wave, allowing me to Flashily Attack an entire zone with a huge wave of water.

• Refresh: 2
• Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

• Background

As a young girl, Nuala spent a great deal of time at the shore of the sea: listening and communing with it’s waters, and seeing the great sea of mist that had both protected and imprisoned her people from time immemorial.

The mists seemed to speak with her, always saying:

“Remove us, and embrace your destiny.”

When she reached adulthood, Nuala heeded these voices by first seducing the mighty Fomorian King Balor VI, and then overthrowing him and taking his place as Queen of Fomor: devoted to re-establishing her people as the natural rulers of Aea. 

To this end she used her might to remove the veil that barred her people from the larger world; now they seek to rule the world that had both shunned and forgotten them behind the mists of time and memory.

Queen Nuala believes that her power is proof of her destiny to bring order to the realms. All that is within her all-seeing sight must be brought under her command. Even the Fomor, who she decrees the natural rulers of the world, are but pawns in her larger plans.

As Avatar of Water, Nuala draws upon her awesome powers from an otherworldly source. But the world must always be in balance- somewhere there must be another power that balances or even neutralizes her own, if only it were to be found...

***

Nuala (Google Docs)

Character Highlight: Ailene, Princess of Fomor (FAE)

Here is the third of my FAE fantasy builds: Ailene, Princess of Fomor:

Ailene, Princess of Fomor

• Aspects

High Concept: Princess of Fomoria in exile
Trouble: The throne of Balor is mine by birthright!
Other Aspects: I know a few spells...; Manor-born; The Otherworld ever calls to me

• Approaches

+3 Flashy
+2 Careful, Clever
+1 Sneaky, Quick
+0 Forceful

• Stunts

- When I hold my ancestral blade, the Sword of Conand, I gain +2 to Carefully Defend against melee attacks.
- As I am schooled in Fomorian Magics, I gain +2 to Flashily Create an Advantage when I am allowed to incant a useful spell. 

- My Enchanted Tattoos ever protect me. Once per session I can reduce a physical consequence by one degree.

• Refresh: 3
• Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

• Extras

Throwing knives, Survival kit

• Background

Daughter of Balor VI, Ailene now lives in exile after the deposition of her mighty father and his loyal court. As last of her house, Ailene seeks to regain the throne of her ancestors, stolen from her by the Sorceress Queen Nuala.

The Fomor are the bridge between the physical and spiritual world. Aileen hears the call of this world, which can sometimes lead her into perils unknown to more grounded folk.

Ailene is beautiful and used to a privileged lifestyle and position. She is often arrogant and headstrong when a little caution and humility might serve her better. 

***

Ailene (Google Docs)

Character Highlight: Artimus Grimsngyr (FAE)

Continuing my series on fantasy characters via Fate Accelerated (FAE), here is my character Artimus 'Arty' Grimsngyr using the system.

Arty is a classic Sword & Sorcery character (ex. Grey Mouser) become an epic fantasy character: and he hates it.

I've long wanted to play him in a campaign: but very few systems I like would allow for such a character as a PC. Fortunately, Fate lets you play your character as you like!

With no further ado:

Artimus ‘Arty’ Grimsngyr

• Aspects

High Concept: Ne’er-do-well rogue turned unliving revenant
Trouble: I am but a slave to the blade’s hunger...
Other Aspects: I miss the warmth of the sun and the bodies of others; All that glitters most is surely gold; It is in the shadows that I do my best work

• Approaches

+3 Sneaky
+2 Flashy, Quick
+1 Careful, Clever
+0 Forceful

• Stunts

- Whenever I Take Out an opponent with my cursed sword, Blood-Drinker, I may choose to apply any excess shifts to negate my own stress or consequences up to the gained value instead of taking a boost.
- As I am a Creature of the Night, I gain +2 to Sneakily Create an Advantage when operating in shadows and darkness can be of use.
- With the Eyes of the Vampyr I gain +2 to Flashily Overcome when attempting to bend another to my will.

• Refresh: 3
• Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

• Extras

Well-worn leather armor, Polished daggers, Sakan short-bow & arrows, Traveling kit

• Background

Artimus has been transformed by the sword taken from the cold hands of a Strzygian blood lord. Although at first the weapon’s properties seemed a boon (his own wounds in battle were instantly healed as soon as he wounded an opponent), he soon learned the weapon to be a curse. He now seeks only to be free of the weapon and the cursed existence it has placed upon him.

As part of the curse of the blade, Artimus must feed upon the lifeblood of a warm blooded creature via Blood Drinker periodically or become progressively weakened by hunger. Artimus can only recover by using the sword on a living warm blooded creature.

He is vulnerable to attacks by blessed or holy weapons or devices and holy magic. Divine healing powers might even damage him, for example. Although he needs to neither eat nor drink, he still needs to sleep and breathe to live and function normally. Artimus is also adverse to bright sunlight, although this natural aversion causes no other negative effects. 

Blood Drinker speaks to Artimus, sometimes while he is waking, or via lurid dreams when he is asleep. These dreams can impart useful information at times; but usually it is simply the sword asking for more warm blood- preferably human blood.

Artimus misses his human existence, which mostly consisted of drinking, whoring, and stealing/adventuring as the means to pay for such activities. This is a constantly nagging pang at his soul and can cause complications if he is offered or denied a chance to enjoy his old life...

****

Artimus Grimsngyr (Google Docs)

Character Highlight: Naeriel Bladesong (FAE)

Related to my ongoing Dungeon World posts, here is my PC Naeriel Bladesong via FAE.

I hope to post up some other characters soon to demonstrate modeling traditional fantasy archetypes using Fate Accelerated.

Naeriel Bladesong (FAE)

• Aspects

High Concept: Elvish Blade-Dancer of Andulan
Trouble: The song of the duel is my reason for being
Other Aspects: Acolyte of Master Eangwine; The law of the balance must be maintained; The songs of my people ever guide me

• Approaches

+3 Quick
+2 Forceful, Flashy
+1 Careful, Clever
+0 Sneaky

• Stunts

- As I am Trained in the Sword-Dance, I gain +2 to Quickly Attack with a sword in hand.
- As a Master Duelist, once per session I can Create the Advantage ‘Locked in a Duel’ when facing a worthy opponent.
- Being Schooled in Elvish Lore, I gain +2 to Cleverly Overcome when my Elvish knowledge of nature and ancient records might be of use.

• Refresh: 3
• Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

• Extras

Ornate Elvish Blade, Fine Wood-spun Armor, Darts (hidden in armor), Traveling kit + rations

• Background

Naeriel was born to noble family of Andulan. Even from a young age she loved to dance - in the dance she felt freedom and a profound connection to the Song of Aea.

One day she crept over the wall that shielded to exercises of the school of the elvish Bladedancers - and spying upon the students performing their ancient and graceful katas she was entranced by their fearful dance, and vowed to learn the deadly arts of their order. Under the watchful eye of Master Eangwine she learned to dance in the steps of these masters of swordplay. 

Now a master herself, Mistress Naeriel seeks the lands for worthy opponents to test and practice her skills; to dance the perfect dance, whatever the cost.

***

Naeriel Bladesong (Google Drive)

Character Highlight: FFX via Fate Core

Recently, a poster on Google Plus asked for help with making characters for a Final Fantasy X (Ten) based game using Fate Core.

Having played much too much of this game when it came out, and being a fan of all things Fate in general, I was more than happy to make some suggestions. 

But it also inspired me to make some builds of my own. Presented here are Tidus, Yuna and Rikku from Final Fantasy X via Fate Core. Note that this game allows for two basic Stunts, plus two for Equipment and one for an 'Overdrive', which allows for invoking consequences. Starting Refresh is at 3.

Tidus

• Aspects

High Concept: Star player of the Zanarkand Abes transported to a strange land
Trouble: I just want to go home
Other Aspects: Son of Jecht; Team player; This is my story

• Skills

+4 Athletics
+3 Physique, Provoke
+2 Fight, Notice, Rapport
+1 Deceive, Empathy, Investigate, Will

• Stunts

Play Hard: Tidus’ training in the Blitzball arena carries over to other activities. He may sub Athletics for Fight when he Attacks in melee combat.
Cheer: Tidus wasn’t made team captain for no reason. Tidus may give up his action to grant +1 to the next action of any and all teammates in earshot.

• Equipment

Brotherhood: This sword once belonged to Wakka’s brother, Chappu. It does elemental water damage ranked at Weapon: 2
Knight’s Shield: User may take an additional minor physical consequence when in possession of this shield.

• Overdrive

Swordplay: You’re at your best when the going gets rough. When invoking a consequence on yourself or an opponent, add +2 when making an Attack action.

• Refresh: 3
• Physical Stress: OOOO
• Mental Stress: OOO

Consequences:

• Mild (2):
• Mild (Physical only, 2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

***

Yuna

• Aspects

High Concept: White Mage & Summoner of Bevelle
Trouble: I must defeat Sin!
Other Aspects: Bringer of The Calm?; Daughter of Braska: My journey should be full of laughter

• Skills

+4 Empathy
+3 Lore, Rapport
+2 Contacts, Notice, Will
+1 Athletics, Fight, Investigate, Resources

• Stunts

Cura: Yuna gains +2 to Overcome when using Lore for curative magics.
Aeons: Although not a great fighter, Yuna can take an action to summon any Aeon gained in play to fight in her place. Summoned creatures are mooks with skill ranks capped at her Empathy skill; Yuna must use one of her own actions to give her Aeon commands.

• Equipment

Enchanted Rod: A mystic rod of ancient origins. Grants +2 to Create an Advantage when using Lore to cast magic spells.
Magic Ring: Once per session, Yuna can can edit/remove any situation aspect that limits her use of magic. This effect does not work against the Silence aspect.

• Overdrive

Grand Summon: Once per Exchange, Yuna can invoke a Consequence on herself or an opponent to grant an additional +2 when a summoned Aeon attacks.

• Refresh: 3
• Physical Stress: OO
• Mental Stress: OOO

Consequences:

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

***
Rikku

• Aspects

High Concept: Perky Al-Bhed thief

Trouble: I look after my family and friends
Other Aspects: Oh!! Machina!; Five-finger discount; I hate thunder!

• Skills

+4 Burglary

+3 Athletics, Crafts
+2 Empathy, Fight, Rapport
+1 Contacts, Drive, Lore, Notice

• Stunts

Mug: You may Attack with Burglary in melee combat. Score a success and you successfully steal an item: you may apply additional shifts as physical stress.
Use Item: Gain +2 Create an Advantage via Crafts when using an item gained in play.

• Equipment

Claw: Grants +2 to Attack in melee combat with Fight.
Targe: Gain +2 to Defend vs melee attacks with Athletics

• Overdrive

Mix: Your expertise shines through in the heat of battle. When invoking a consequence (either for yourself or an opponent), gain +2 to Create an Advantage or Overcome using Crafts.

• Refresh: 3
• Physical Stress: OO
• Mental Stress: OO

Consequences:

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

***

Tidus (Google Docs)

Yuna (Google Docs)

Rikku (Google Docs)

Character Highlight: Iron Man via Fate Core

Damn, it's good to be a super hero. 

Ever since I noted that Fate Core supported supers, I've been posting up supers for Fate. 

It's no secret that FAE is my preferred flavor of Fate in general, but I have recently been trying to shore up some love for Fate Core as it is the mothership for the current version of Fate. 

With these ideas in mind, here is my take on Iron Man/Tony Stark using the 'out-of-the-box' rules from Fate Core. Note that the build below assumes a massive +11 Refresh for Stunts/Extras.

Iron Man (Fate Core)

• Aspects

High Concept: Billionaire playboy turned Armored Avenger
Trouble: Smartest guy in the room..and he knows it

Other Aspects: Soul of an artist, heart of palladium; I can make it better!; It’s lonely at the top

• Skills

+4 Crafts
+3 Lore, Resources
+2 Drive, Rapport, Shoot
+1 Athletics, Fight, Notice, Will

• Stunts

Tech Genius: Adds +2 to Crafts or Lore when dealing with high-technology.
Charming Scofflaw: Tony’s reputation as a rake helps in certain circles. Gain +2 to Rapport when dealing with parties that might find a handsome billionaire genius attractive.
Alternate Armor: Once per session, Tony can reallocate his Extras below to represent an alternate armor design, provided that story permissions grant access to his tech.

• Extras

Iron Man Armor: When in his Iron Man armor, Tony Stark has access to the following effects:

• Gold-Titanium-Alloy Armor (3): Grants Armor: 4 vs physical stress. He is also immune to environmental stress up to and including the vacuum of space, provided that his life-support system is online.
• Super-Strength (5): The armors servos greatly enhance the users physical strength. Add +6 to Overcome via Physique while in the armor, and Weapon: 4 to physical attacks.
• Weapon Systems (2): Targeting enhanced weapon systems make the Iron Man a formidable opponent. Add +2 to Shoot at Weapon: 4 when using the armors systems.
• Combat Computer: Add +2 to Fight or Athletics once per Exchange, when used in Defend or Attack actions.
• Spectrographic Scanners +HUD: The Iron Man armor features an on-board computer (JARVIS) driven spectrographic array. Enables +2 to Overcome when sensory superiority can be a factor.
• Terrestrial Flight: The Iron Man armor is capable of Mach-2 speed flight: gain +2 to Create an Advantage via Drive while in the armor.

Refresh: 1
Physical Stress: OO
Mental Stress: OOO-O
Consequences

• Mild (2):
• Moderate (4):
• Severe (6):

****

Iron Man (Google Docs)

Plug And Play: Character Highlight - Fatal Accelerated Enterovirus (FAE)

The world is a disaster of epic proportions. Governments have struggled to respond, and devastated populaces have resorted to violence and looting just to survive. The pandemic of 1918 is small potatoes compared to this viral outbreak. Need a villain for your FAE game? Stand back in awe of the awesome cataclysm caused by the -

Fatal Accelerated Enterovirus!

Aspects
High Concept: Deadly Biosafety Level-4 Viral Pandemic
Trouble: Kills Its Host Quickly
Other:  Highly Infectious, Grotesquely Disfigures Host

Approaches
+3 Quick
+2 Flashy, Sneaky
+1 Forceful, Clever
+0 Careful

Stunts

• Because I am Transmitted Through Airborne Inhalation, I gain a +2 to Sneakily Attack when I am among large groups of people.
• Because I Express Hemorrhagic Pustules, I gain a +2 to Flashily Attack when someone comes into direct contact with my host.
• Because I have a Rapid Incubation Rate, I gain a +2 to Quickly Defend when my host is being treated.
• Because I have a High Mutation Rate, once per session I can remove my highest consequence.
• Because I am Globally Endemic, once per session I can make an attack on any living creature. With success, the creature becomes infected, but not contagious; when I succeed with style, the creature becomes instantly contagious.

Refresh: 3
Stress: OOO

Consequences

• Suppressed (2):
• Vaccinated (4):
• Eliminated (6)

  

Fate Random Tables II: The Randoming

I'm back with more random Fate tables!

Beat Cops and Hired Goons

Goons. Hired goons.

When you've got a bunch of mooks, you can use this table to quickly spice up a few of them. This works well if the PCs need to interact with one (like in an interrogation, or to get past some guards), just to give the poor mechanical speedbumps a little personality. You can adapt these entries pretty easily to fantasy city guards, sci-fi mercenaries, or what have you.

	0	+	+	+	+
0	Snitch / Undercover	Too Dumb to Quit (takes an additional consequence)	One Good Cop / Honor Among Thieves	Hungry Rookie	Don't You Know Who My Father Is?
-	Hiding an Addiction	Looking Out For Number One	Family Man	One Last Job / 2 Days Till Retirement
-	Loves This Job	Nothing Personal	Trapped By Gambling Debts
-	Sadistic Psychopath	Hates This Job
-	Catastrophically Incompetent

Random Quirks

In the same mold, here's a table for quickly determining distinguishing features for random NPCs, so it looks like you planned it all along. Yeah, planned it all along. That's the ticket.

	0	+	+	+	+
0	Crying Game	Bald	Ridiculous Hat	Bad Plastic Surgery	Supermodel and Knows It
-	Ginger	Skinny	Brawny	Tats and Piercings
-	Limp	Twitchy	Ponytail Express
-	Rat-faced	Scarred
-	Shop Class Accident

Putting it Together

Let's give it a few tries and see what we get.

The PCs roll up to the club's side entrance. It's guarded, but there's only one guy out there. Two rolls of 4dF give us a -1, +1, 0, 0, followed by a 0, 0, 0, -1. The guard's a ginger who's looking out for "number one". Maybe he'd angle for a bribe right away, since he's looking out for himself. Maybe if the PCs put on a strong enough show of force the guard won't stick around.

Let's do it again, this time with a +1, 0, 0, 0 and a 0, -1, 0, -1. The guard on the side door now has a limp and is "Too Dumb to Quit". He's probably not going to just back down from the PCs, but they might be able to trick him pretty easily. If they resort to violence, the guy will be tough but with an easily-spotted physical vulnerability they can take advantage of.

I'm not a fan of letting random tables guide the entire story, but when it comes to details that might have otherwise been overlooked or glossed over, I think they can guide your game into places you might not expect. Have fun!

Plug And Play: Character Highlight - 'Lucky' Jak Noghri (AoR)

With the release of Fantasy Flight Games' Age of Rebellion Beta, I was surprised and thrilled to see a whole career dedicated to military commanders. As a fan of Patrick O'Brien, I simply couldn't resist statting one out.

Lucky Jak Noghri

Awesome image from  +Roland Chambers 

Gregarious Fighting Naval Officer
Captain of the CR90 Corvette Surprise

Played By: Russell Crowe
Personality Traits: Energetic, cheerful, deep respect for naval tradition, tactically brilliant
Race: Noghri
Homeworld: Honoghr

Career / Specialization: Commander / Commodore
Obligation (10):  Debt - bad land investments
Duty (40): Combat Victory
Motivation:  Fame (Ambition)
Stats: Br 2, Ag 3, In 2, Cu 3, Wi 2, Pr 4
Defense: Soak 4, Wounds 13, Strain 13

Species Abilities:

• Stalker 1: Add ■ per rank to Coordination and Stealth checks
• Scent: Remove all ■ imposed due to concealment against a target within short range
• Size: Jak has a silhouette of 0
• Skill: 1 free rank in Brawl

Skills: Astrogation 1, Athletics 1, Brawl 1, Charm 1, Cool 1, Gunnery 1, Knowledge (Military) 2, Leadership 3, Melee 1, Outer Rim 1, Ranged (Light) 1

Talents: 

• Command 1: Add ■ per rank of Command to Leadership checks. Affected targets add ■ to Discipline checks for next 24 hours.
• Rapid Reaction 1: Suffer a number of strain up to ranks in Rapid Reaction to add an equal number of success to an initiative check.

Equipment: Padded armor (Soak +2), Comlink (handheld), Extra Reloads, Macrobinoculars, Military Field Manuals, Stimpack, Thermal Cloak, Blaster Pistol [Damage 6, Crit 3, Range: medium, Stun], Vibrosword [[Damage Br+2, Crit 2, Ranged (light), Range: engaged, Defensive 1, Pierce 2, Vicious 1]

Biography:

Master and Commander

After beginning his career in the navy as a young man, Jak is appointed as Master and Commander of the Incom X-4 Gunship Sophie. He then starts on his first task as a convoy escort. Jak proves to be a lucky commander and soon amasses a large number of prizes making him and his crew relatively wealthy.

Jak's predation in CIS space cause Nemodian traders to assign the Munificent-class star frigate Cacafuego to hunt down the Sophie. On their first encounter, Sophie avoids action by a subterfuge; on a later meeting Jak attacks the much larger ship and captures her against all the odds. Despite this triumph, his Captain's justifiable enmity plays down Jak's victory so he does not earn the usual promotion.

Jak is returned to convoy escort but on a voyage to Sluis Van he encounters a formidable Duros squadron under Captain Linois who eventually capture the Sophie. Jak and his officers are taken as prisoners to Pellezara station in orbit around Duro After a short period as prisoners of war, they are exchanged, missing the fighting. Back on Coruscant, Jak must undergo a court-martial over the loss of his ship, but he is cleared of the charges.

Jak is soon given command of the Carrack-class light cruiser Polycrest, an odd ship that was designed to launch a secret weapon. The ship is a structurally unsound and handles poorly. Jak's luck does not prevail, only managing to disable the CIS privateer Bellone, but with no other prizes. Disappointing his Commodore, Jan Dodonna, Jak is assigned to escort convoys.

Financial Troubles

Eventually Jak is ordered to raid the Trade Federation station Chaulieu near Koru Neimoidia. During an engagement, the Polychrest is disabled. Jak leads three of the ship's boats to board the enemy frigate Fanciulla. After a short battle, the boarding party capture the ship and manages to rescue the Polychrest. Jak is offered a ship that is currently being built but will not be ready to sail for six months. Afraid of being seized by his creditors, he declines and asks for a temporary command. He is assigned to the Republic light cruiser Lively. The Lively is then included in an intercept squadron and a quick battle breaks out in the Arkanis Sector. One CIS frigate explodes and the other three surrender.

After the capture of the CIS resource shipment, the Admiralty is debating on how to reward the captains responsible, including Jak. Due to a technicality, the captured ships are declared not to be prizes, and as a result the captains end up with much smaller bounties than they hoped. Upon returning to Coruscant, Jak discovers the Admiralty's decision and is imprisoned as a debtor. 

Post Captain

Calling on favors he manages to get an advance on his grant of money and is released. He receives his first true command, being made Post-Captain and given the CR90 Corvette Surprise. While escorting a group of largely unarmed trade vessels, he spots his old enemy Linois's squadron cruising the Rimma Trade Route. Surprise engages the smallest ship of the squadron, damaging it heavily, then turns and makes speed back to the trade fleet to warn them and organize a defense.

Choosing the largest ships of the trade fleet, Jak disguises them as men-of-war and sends some of his officers to help them fight. The Duro squadron closes on the Surprise and the outgunned fleet. The Surprise turns and engages the largest warship, the Lucrehulk-class battleship Marengo. Jak exchanges broadsides with the heavier ship, but is outgunned and in peril when one of the trade freighters engages the capitol ship from the other side, forcing her to disengage. The damage from the action forces the entire CIS squadron to flee to refit.

Rebel Alliance

Shortly thereafter, the CIS is defeated and the new Empire born. Eventually Jak declares to the crew of the Surprise that he will join the fledgeling Alliance to Restore the Republic, offering them the opportunity to leave, but they all remain loyal to their commander. Now joined with his old nemesis Linois, he incessantly harries the Imperial fleet under Admiral Ackbar's orders.