A few questions...

[beardOsaurus]

Alright, I've been thinking about what I'm going to do for my campaign.

First, and foremost, I've been trying to convince my friends to join in, because not everyone is sold on the idea of a Dresden Files game, which is insane because I think it's a fantastic idea.

Second, I've been trying to go over the system as best I can to familiarize my self with it. Does Spirit of the Century use the same core rules as Dresden will? Or, is something different?

Okay, now onto the actual campaign. Comments will be greatly appreciated here.

It's going to begin in California somewhere, possibly a small town, but leading to San Francisco, and of course Alcatraz. There's a power struggle happening on the streets, (a supernatural power struggle) between three gangs. El Toros, Circle of the Serpent, and the San Fran Brand.

Each of the different groups have different things they want to do.

Now, here's where I'm running into problems. I would like for San Fran Brand to consist of nothing but Changelings, but would Changelings work together for something like that?

Next, El Toros, I would like to be some sort of shape shifting Bull monsters, do we know if anything like that is going to exist in the world?

And third, Circle of the Serpent is basically a group of really strong Wizards. Definitely White Council material, but not Senior Council, and their main goal is to try and open the Gates, and unleash the Old Ones. Now, when it comes to something like this, would Ramirez make an appearence because of something this large scale, and California is his territory... And if so, is someone like a Ramirez going to have a stat block premade for him, or will I have to make the stats for him and his trainees?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[TheMouse]

SotC runs on FATE 3rd edition, or at least an incarnation of it. DFRPG will also run on an incarnation of FATE 3rd, but the folks at Evil Hat seem to be doing a lot of work to get it to run exactly right for DFRPG. So, same core, similar implementations of some things, different implementations of others. We only have some of the particulars of what's going to stay and what's going to change, so we fan folk can't get terribly specific. It will likely help to at least give SotC a read.

Regarding Changelings:

They're individuals. You can't say that all individuals will or won't act a given way. It's pretty likely that there are at least a few of them who'd join a gang. This idea seems to fly.

Regarding bull shape changers:

I can't say for sure whether that would work. From the snippets they've showed us, it looks as though the system is pretty flexible. My uninformed guess is that you could probably do it.

Regarding wizards:

That would draw more than Ramirez. The Gatekeeper would be on that like ants on honey. Opening the Outer Gates is one of those very, very big things, so it'll draw heavy hitters to shut it down but quick.

As for stats, we know that they're giving stats to at least some of the DF folks. Whether this includes Ramirez, I don't think there's been any official word either way.

[beardOsaurus]

Sweet, thanks.

I know that was a lot of stuff. Thanks for trolling through it.

[finarvyn]

First, and foremost, I've been trying to convince my friends to join in, because not everyone is sold on the idea of a Dresden Files game, which is insane because I think it's a fantastic idea.

Second, I've been trying to go over the system as best I can to familiarize my self with it. Does Spirit of the Century use the same core rules as Dresden will? Or, is something different?

Basically, don't let these issues get in your way. If you want to run a particular type of campaign, go for it. The players will come around because there are always more players than there are game masters. 

1. If they aren't into "Dresden Files" perhaps you can suggest something similar enough so that when you insert a Dresden storyline they'll never know what you've done to them. Really most modern-urban fantasy settings are pretty similar overall, so maybe something like Charmed, Underworld, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or something similar will appeal to them. Once you get them started with vampires, you can toss in wizards or demons or anything else Dresden you think of.

2. I'd suggest you start with the free download at fate.com and then spend a few bucks on SOTC. (Fred never turns down a few bucks.) This will give you the feel for the most important elements of DFRPG. Now, we know that some things will be different because pulpy action isn't quite the same as wizardy action, but those parts of the rules can be figured out when the DFRPG rulebook hits the shelves. (The playtest docs show some differences between DFRPG and SOTC but I think they're improvements considering the setting and all and will be easy enough to assimilate when the time comes.)

Use whatever rules you like. If the "Dresden" thing turns them off, fake 'em out until you get 'em hooked and then reel them in. 

[TheMouse]

Use whatever rules you like. If the "Dresden" thing turns them off, fake 'em out until you get 'em hooked and then reel them in. 

There's no need to even fake them out. There's nothing wrong with running a Dresden inspired generic modern fantasy type game. Lots of stories out there draw from the same sources of inspiration Jim did when writing the books.

I could very easily see running an X Files type story in the Dresdenverse. Likewise, a Supernatural type game could fly quite well. Or give them holy weapons and have Mother Church send them out to cleanse the world. Or any number of other things that would fit within the general idea of the world without coming into contact with Harry.

[thausgt]

Alright, I've been thinking about what I'm going to do for my campaign.

First, and foremost, I've been trying to convince my friends to join in, because not everyone is sold on the idea of a Dresden Files game, which is insane because I think it's a fantastic idea.

What do your friends like to play? Assuming that they're gamers to begin with, of course. If they're a pack of loyal D&D-ers (or Star Wars nuts), you might have a bit of a challenge, less so if they're White Wolf fans. It might help us give better advice if you could establish which players are for the idea and which are against, and why each individual feels so.

Second, I've been trying to go over the system as best I can to familiarize my self with it. Does Spirit of the Century use the same core rules as Dresden will? Or, is something different?

Same system. Support the Evil Hat and shell out for a copy of the rules, if your budget will allow...

Okay, now onto the actual campaign. Comments will be greatly appreciated here.

It's going to begin in California somewhere, possibly a small town, but leading to San Francisco, and of course Alcatraz. There's a power struggle happening on the streets, (a supernatural power struggle) between three gangs. El Toros, Circle of the Serpent, and the San Fran Brand.

Each of the different groups have different things they want to do.

I might suggest that you describe each organization's broad goals. No need to give away too many secrets, in case your players are also members of this board. But you could share what the raw recruits from the three groups think their respective groups want, since any group of PCs worth their character sheets will probably at least ask that question.

Now, here's where I'm running into problems. I would like for San Fran Brand to consist of nothing but Changelings, but would Changelings work together for something like that?

Changelings are not bound to Courts as tightly as full-fledged Fae are. I suggest that their members who make their Choices (in either direction) might remain useful allies to the gang, but that remains up to you. They might have "Winter" and "Summer" alignments, but they might make a point of not taking it too seriously... since doing so means sacrificing the freedom of choice they get from their mortal parent.

Next, El Toros, I would like to be some sort of shape shifting Bull monsters, do we know if anything like that is going to exist in the world?

Given that Fool Moon establishes that there are several different types of werewolves, and given that world mythology includes shapeshifters of virtually every type of animal, I toss in my vote for "go ahead and do it if you think it would be cool". Even if (heaven forbid) the books eventually exclude such creatures from canon mythology, there's nothing that says they couldn't be something else, using the shape-shifting Bull form as some kind of smoke screen to keep their enemies from figuring out what their real weakness(es) might be.

And third, Circle of the Serpent is basically a group of really strong Wizards. Definitely White Council material, but not Senior Council, and their main goal is to try and open the Gates, and unleash the Old Ones. Now, when it comes to something like this, would Ramirez make an appearence because of something this large scale, and California is his territory... And if so, is someone like a Ramirez going to have a stat block premade for him, or will I have to make the stats for him and his trainees?

Briefly, this kind of thing would be Ramirez' business as Regional Commander of the Wardens by definition, since it clearly violates the Seventh Law of Magic. As far as his stat block goes, you've given yourself a valuable "cheat" in the structure of your campaign: Ramirez might not even get directly involved (to the point that stats are necessary) for quite a few game sessions. You could invoke "Gamemaster fiat" and adjust a few events so that he doesn't need to get involved until the main book is published.

In slightly more detail, how would you arrange the 'magical street gang' structure so that they don't attract the Wardens' attention while still working to achieve the Circle's goals? What kind of kids would they recruit for gang-activities? Just how sharply do they draw the line between the expendable street troops and the ones trying to open the Gates? On the one hand, the Wardens are supposed to monitor and investigate any magical aftershocks accompanying violations of the Laws of Magic, and even a passive search for 'spooky books' might be enough to trigger their interest.

On the other, the Wardens are still stretched pretty thin, given the war with the Red Court. Certain levels of obviously-magical mayhem might have to be ignored, because they just can't spare the boots on the ground to investigate anything that isn't an obvious violation of the Laws.

Going a step further, though, the Circle might take a draconian "use magic sparingly, leave no witnesses" policy, since the Red Court themselves might investigate magical activity for their own reasons...

Excellent idea for a campaign! Please keep us posted!