questions about characters pc and npc

[epicice]

Im terribly sorry if there is already a post for this somewhere but i didnt see one so i thought i would make one so anyone can come and ask about characters. I personally was wondering about characters found in the dresden universe that dont get alot of coverage like dragons, old gods, jade court, etc. Will archetypes be given for these kinds of characters so gm's will be able to include them in games?

[Ihadris]

Fred and the other writers have said that they dont want to step on Jim's toes and so are only including information in the game that has been in the books. As such, because things like Dragons and the Jade Court have featured in barely more then name there isn't enough information to build archtypes to put in the game.

However, theyve also stressed that once we begin a campaign that setting is ours to do with as we wished so you could create your own!

[epicice]

Thanks that was just my personal question i also wanted to make a thread where anyone could come ask about characters or npcs

[iago]

We try to speculate where we have any basis for speculation, and flag it as such.

[epicice]

So one of my friends had a question. The Archive is there favorite character and they were wondering is she would be given stats?

[iago]

So one of my friends had a question. The Archive is there favorite character and they were wondering is she would be given stats?

We talk about what she's capable of, but she also exists on a Plot Device scale of power, so that means the stats are a little on the light side: you don't take on the Archive, you figure out how to deal with the challenge the Archive represents.

[epicice]

Thanks alot

[SoulCatcher78]

NPCs as plot devices bring up another question.  How necessary is it to stat out NPCs?  If Joe the bartender has one real role in the story (giving the PCs specific information) do we need to waste energy on developing him?  The opposite is true for long running NPCs (Joe owns the bar that the PC lives above and will have more than a single interaction with him/her), developing reoccuring NPCs over time can be important to a campaign (or any multi session game).

One Shot Joe Aspect:
"knows where the bad guy is hiding but is scared to give the information out"

Long Run Joe Aspects:
"knows where the bad guy is hiding but is scared to give the information out"
"related to someone involved"
"pays for his mother's nursing home"
"enjoys poetry"


Over time we can get to know Joe better and find some of the other things out but if he's only going to be around long enough to get his arm twisted for the location of the bad guy, does it really matter?

[ClarkValentine]

Over time we can get to know Joe better and find some of the other things out but if he's only going to be around long enough to get his arm twisted for the location of the bad guy, does it really matter?

You pretty much have the right of it. If he's just there as a tool for the GM to funnel information to the players, he might need no stats at all. Bare bones would be an aspect or two and a few skill ranks - "Aspects: 'Big Honkin' Sawed-Off 12 Gauge' and 'I Didn't See Nuthin.'  If the PCs try to intimidate him for information, he resists with his Average (+1) Discipline, he might lie with his Fair (+2) Deceit, but if he gets really pissed off he's pretty handy with that sawed-off shotgun he keeps under the bar: Fair (+2) Intimidation (invoke the aspect to make it +4), Good (+3) Guns, Weapon:2 shotgun. "

And it's easy to just make that stuff up on the fly.

[Ancalagon]

any system where a GM can make up an NPC's stat on the fly has a really good thing going for it!  I rather spend more time thinking about NPC's motivations etc and less over complex character stating.

[SoulCatcher78]

any system where a GM can make up an NPC's stat on the fly has a really good thing going for it!  I rather spend more time thinking about NPC's motivations etc and less over complex character stating.

Exactly, some systems (D&D 3.x I'm lookin' at you) took the NPC stat thing way to much importance.  If I want a single shot NPC I should be able to do so (and not feel like I'm shorting the players).  The more I read about how this is supposed to be used/played, the more excited I get to see the final product.

[Ancalagon]

To get back on track...

There are a few supernatural creatures that have been better covered that may make good PCs. 

(click to show/hide)

Ms. Gard

is probably a Valkyrie. 

(click to show/hide)

Glau (spelling?)

was a half Djinn I believe.  I saw someone on a blog that was listed to this site where a ghoul was used...   Would all this work easily in the game?

[iago]

A valkyrie would be tough -- the way we see her, she's got a refresh cost of -13, at least.

A jann might be easy, might not be -- we know very little about what their capabilities are.

A ghoul is technically an option with a refresh cost (as we estimate it) of -7 ... but dude, "Ghouls can go through 40 to 50 lbs of meat a day, preferably human."  So, ew. I'd find it a tonal mismatch for my own game, but that doesn't mean you can't lobby your own GM. (Meat bribe?)

[Ancalagon]

I admit its' rather hard with the first two, since we've only met two individual of their race... and we don't know if they are average, exceptional or "runts of the litter". 

The meat... yeah I had forgotten about that bit.  I'll note that it's a "can" not a "must".  The body count otherwise from ghouls would be horrendous, there is no way they could hide.   I'm just re-reading the series now, and I haven't reached ghouls yet, so I will need to refresh my memory (and take notes!)

[iago]

The meat... yeah I had forgotten about that bit.  I'll note that it's a "can" not a "must".  The body count otherwise from ghouls would be horrendous, there is no way they could hide.   I'm just re-reading the series now, and I haven't reached ghouls yet, so I will need to refresh my memory (and take notes!)

It's must-ish. They have very poor control over their appetites.