%% date:: [[2022-09-28]] %% # [[Fate]] [site](https://fate-srd.com/) Fate is a [[Tabletop Roleplaying Games|TTRPG]] system with streamlined rules, a strong focus on storytelling, and high player agency. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/70njl8wahRA" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe> ## System summary Setting:: any Classes:: No - players choose their own descriptors Races:: No - players choose their own descriptors Tests:: `4d6 + skill mod + invoked aspects + stunt bonuses`, success if >= target difficulty Degree of success:: Yes, for every extra success Attributes:: Skills only, some default but more that are setting-specific Player agency:: High - player-driven mechanics, fate points PC hardiness:: High - hits reduce physical and mental stress, then consequences. High mitigation possible. PC power level:: Setting-specific ## Versions ### Fate Accelerated (aka FAE) Fate Accelerated is the lightest ruleset for the Fate system, and is intended as the quickest way to get started with Fate. They key difference is that instead of Fate Condensed and Fate Core's skills, Fate Accelerated uses "Approaches" instead. Rather than describe _what_ a character is good at, as the skills do (such as "Notice" or "Lore"), approaches describe _how_ a character might do something (such as "Sneaky" or "Forceful"). The streamlined approach to skills makes it easier for new players to pick up and more situationally flexible, but it also makes characters more homogenous as a result: Fate Accelerated characters are not as strongly differentiated as when they have specific skills. ### Fate Core Fate Core is the full official ruleset for Fate. It has been streamlined and redesigned from the ground up. Most notably, it adds better distinction between classes, so that playing each class is a different experience. ### [[Fate Condensed]] Fate Condensed is the newest "version" of Fate Core, intended to streamline some Fate Core mechanics but without stripping away as much as Fate Accelerated did. As a result, it ranks somewhere between Fate Accelerated and Fate Core in terms of complexity. This is the version of Fate most should use, unless there's a pressing need for a system that's as light as possible. ## Distinguishing features ### Aspects An aspect is a characteristic or state of a person, location, object, or monster. Some aspects are set in advance by the players or the GM, and others are applied in the course of battle or interaction. Some examples of aspects are "Good at first impressions", "On Fire", and "If I haven't seen it, I've read about it". [^srd] > The best aspects are double-edged, say more than one thing, and keep the phrasing simple. [^core] #### Creating aspects Each character begins with five aspects: a high concept, a trouble, a relationship, and two free aspects. A **high concept** is the general pitch of who a character is. A **trouble** is a weakness or complication that the character experiences. A **relationship** is a tie to another character. The two **free aspects** can be anything the player thinks would be fun to roleplay. #### Invoking aspects In [[Dungeons & Dragons|D&D]], aspects can sometimes be like backgrounds or conditions, but summarized in a phrase at most and deliberately left open to interpretation. Aspects can then be invoked at opportune moments. A player might invoke one of their character's aspects by claiming that since they are "Good at first impressions", they should be able to pull of a certain acrobatic trick in front of a new person with more ease. If everyone at the table agrees it isn't **bogus**, the player invoking an aspect gets either a +2 bonus to their role or a reroll of all four fate dice. Aspects belong to other persons or places can be invoked as well. Invoking the "Dark" aspect of a cavern might make it easier for a player to pass by unnoticed. Aspects can be invoked to induce both positive and negative effects. #### Compels Aspects invoked by the GM to add a complication to a character's action are called compels. ### Fate points Each character begins a session with a number of fate points equal to their **refresh**, with a minimum of three. #### Usage Fate points are spent and earned through various ways. ##### Add a bonus to a roll Fate points can be used to invoke an aspect after a player has made a (usually unsuccessful) roll. This is best done using the ellipsis method, where a player might begin with "I look for tracks that might indicate where the bear went and...", triggering a roll. If the player does not succeed, they can then continue to spend a fate point and invoke an aspect: "... and I was Raised By Wolves so I have no trouble spotting and following the trail." ##### Invoke an aspect against an enemy When a player invokes a hostile creature's aspect against them, the player gives the creature a fate point. ##### Add a detail to the story Players can also spend a fate point to add an important or unlikely detail to the story. Using a fate point in this way cannot remove or change an aspect that is already in play, but it _can_ add one where none exists. ##### Compel someone's aspect A player spends a fate point to compel another player to invoke their aspect. The compelled player must either invoke their aspect and receive an extra fate point _or_ spend one of their own fate points to refuse. Compels must add complications, but they must not deny all options. The GM can also compel players, but the GM has an unlimited supply of fate points for compulsion purposes. ;) A hostile invocation of an aspect is a mechanical effect (it gives the invoker a bonus against the invoked). A compel is a narrative effect. ### Fate dice The only type of dice in the game are d6s. Every ability check involves rolling 4d6 and then adding any modifiers. Fate d6 are different in that they have 2 blank faces, 2 + faces, and 2 - faces. Each + or - represents adding or subtracting 1 to the total result. While the fate dice do not themselves add anything mechanically, the simplified faces are a recognizable characteristic of the system. ## My impressions of Fate - ## My games of Fate (Condensed) - [[ttrpgs/Starship Avantika/World|Starship Avantika]] (GM): Star Trek-inspired one-shot with custom skills [^srd]: _Aspects and fate points - Fate SRD_. Retrieved in April 2021 from https://fate-srd.com/fate-condensed/aspects-and-fate-points. [^core]: _Making a good aspect - Fate SRD_. Retrieved in April 2021 from https://fate-srd.com/fate-core/making-good-aspect.