Preparing for the Game: Your Approaches

[Crion]

This stuff isn't Dresden specific, but from prior FATE experience.

(1.)What are your approaches for teaching new players the various mechanics, from Aspects to Thaumaturgy?

Give a quick intro on the basics, then get to the rest in play. The basics are skill rolls and how to invoke Aspects, mostly.

Then, once play begins, ask people to tell you the type of actions they'd like to do without using game terms. So someone might want to prevent someone from running out of the room with the magical tome of stuff. At that point, I quickly explain the block action. Someone with high knowledge skills wants to help in a fight, I quickly tell them about how they can use that to slap Aspects on the target of the group's tank. Etc.

(2.)How do you explain such things to a group that is more familiar with number crunching than writing a backstory?

I just get to playing. Back story is fine if it is emergent during play. It's also fine if someone's not interested in that but would rather get to playing their guy. As long as everyone's having fun, it completely doesn't matter if one dude has an extensive background and the other has, "My dude was a thug in Chicago. Can we play now?"

(3.)How much thought do you put in a backstory, or expect your players to put into the story of their characters?

I find a concept to be more important. Know who your dude is now and what he'd like to do. Answer the whys of things as they come up or as inspiration hits.

I'm very improvisational, both as a player and a GM, so this approach might not be great for people who don't think that way. It's just what works for me.

(4.)Do you have a preferred character creation approach?

Spot something cool that gives me a concept. Make a dude out of that concept. Think of something cool for that dude to do. Reword that something into a goal. Make the guy. Play.

This means that I hit the ground with a character I think is cool who wants to do something in which I'm interested. This motivates me to invest in the character.

(5.)As a GM, do you have suggestions for a cheat sheet, whether for the new players or even for yourself?

The one GoldenH posted looks very cool. It's got most of the important rules stuff, at a quick glance.

I make sure to record all PC Aspects. An index card works the best for me. When in doubt, I can glance down and see if something leaps out at me.

(6.)If you have ever made said cheat sheets, would you care to give an idea as to what is there and how it was done, what inspired it, etc?

I don't tend to make cheat sheets. Instead, I get neurotic about memorizing everything. This is, a. not for everyone, and b. not necessarily healthy for the brain.

(7.)Do you have a cap for a set number of players, so as to not go overboard, drag down play, or even keep the system intact?

I prefer three to five. This is a good, "Enough, but not too much," range for me. Two is okay if the players are really motivated. Six isn't too much if the players play well with others. I'm not generally good with one on one, and I often get distracted with big crowds.

This will vary from group to group and GM to GM. Go with what feels comfortable for you. Be willing to experiment a little. The more comfortable you are with the group and with the rules, the more likely you'll be comfortable with larger crowds. The more you and your players are willing to grab things and go, the more likely you'll be good with smaller groups.

Sound approaches overall, so thank you.

My experiences with party sizes are somewhat similar to your own, and my current player base does seem to be floating in that 3-5 range, but it could potentially be larger if I opened the doors. I've run other games with up to 15 players during my time in college, and swore never again. Some games are great for and even enjoyable with larger numbers, others, not so much. Personally, Fate doesn't seem like something that would "work" with a group larger than five, thus why I'm asking what others have experienced.

I do have to ask about the player back story and your own view of it: when you do things like that, would/do you use the on-the-fly method for character creation? The "standard" method for Fate seems to require the story and guest appearances, so having just the note on being a thug and playing from there seems to almost require the use of the on-the-fly method.
Or am I missing something here?

Thanks again for sharing your thoughts here!

--Crion

[Crion]

Yep. Or Resources if you own the building (which a PC actually did, though he was busy casting Thaumaturgy in the basement), or Craftsmanship used as a Knowledge skill to recognize them as loose...

Any way you did it, you could definitely make them Unbalanced as well as there fairly easily as a Declaration. But his Magic Item is a 4 shift effect, and thus automatically successful in putting a Sticky Aspect on the scene...and hence somewhat better.

Ah. Thanks for the extra elaboration on that. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the idea of putting a Sticky Aspect on a person/scene requires you to beat their defense with leftover shifts when you perform an maneuver (for a person) or by making a declaration and beating a set difficulty (in the case of a location)?

It never came up, he used them purely to Maneuver, pinning people under them. Though i likely would've gone with Weapon: 2 or so. They were metal shelves, and heavy, but nothing spectacularly deadly.

When it comes to pinning as a sticky aspect, you use it like a grapple, or did it just give the characters that edge to bring harm to them when invoking?


And now this gets me to thinking. . .how much detail to you put into your locations? I don't mean description detail, but in the way of Aspects. Do you make a list of one or two, followed by a slew of potential declarations/assessments?


Sorry if I seem really dense/out of it with this. Sleep deprivation is finally catching up to me >_>
Thanks for bearing with me everyone!

[Deadmanwalking]

Ah. Thanks for the extra elaboration on that. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the idea of putting a Sticky Aspect on a person/scene requires you to beat their defense with leftover shifts when you perform an maneuver (for a person) or by making a declaration and beating a set difficulty (in the case of a location)?

Correct in regards to maneuvering against people. And he had to do precisely that when pinning people. Putting Aspects on a scene sans Magic with a Maneuver has no set difficulty, but is usually really hard to justify. With Magic, any Maneuver requires 3 shifts (or 4 to make it Sticky*) minimum, but doing it to a scene is actually easily justifiable. Declarations are whatever duration Aspect they would be logically, and Assessments figure out existing Aspects, obviously.

When it comes to pinning as a sticky aspect, you use it like a grapple, or did it just give the characters that edge to bring harm to them when invoking?

Nah, they just get the Aspect: Pinned, which they can remove with a Might roll if they like, and is easily Taggable on attacks against them. No other effects, though for reasons of logic, they'd likely face a Barrier raing to movement (not that that mattered, since they all had guns).

And now this gets me to thinking. . .how much detail to you put into your locations? I don't mean description detail, but in the way of Aspects. Do you make a list of one or two, followed by a slew of potential declarations/assessments?

Not really. I'm honestly new at this and didn't have any on that Scene beyond those the players put there (though I probably should've), but the second just sounds like a bad idea generally. Having one to three Aspects the scene just has is good, but players should be free to be inventive and imaginitive with Declarations at the least.

Sorry if I seem really dense/out of it with this. Sleep deprivation is finally catching up to me >_>
Thanks for bearing with me everyone!

No worries man, I was there and thus am not even noticng how much I'm probably leaving out, since my brain fills in the gaps for me.


*There's a bit of debate on this point, between Duration and making something sticky. My interpretation is that while an Aspect has Duration it can't be removed, but each exchange of that costs a shift of power, making it Sticky is just one shift, but it can be removed with an appropriate skill roll (though you'd need time and a Craftsmanship roll to remove "Unstable Shelving").

[digital3lf]

digital3lf, you have a good point with the idea of ignorance when it comes to a new setting, especially in the supernatural genre. It is a nice way of slowly introducing people into things, but I don't think the method would work at the moment with my current cast. I'm currently looking at putting the bar just high enough to allow Wizards at the table; it keeps me from feeling guilty about throwing the really strange things at the party while giving them the options of power to keep them interested in playing.
(Last game I tried to have a Vanilla Mortal approach in a supernatural game, everyone was eying up what they were gunning to become and we never even got through character creation).

But I do have to ask. . .with that approach of yours, do you just ignore the milestones and just bring them to the next point of power, or do you just offer more Major Milestones instead?

Sorry this is long, and a little presumptuous. If this comes off as a ramble, please disregard.

I think you can get away with 8 or even 10 refresh characters and still maintain "newness" about the setting. Although you may find you're handing out more information to successful Lore or other knowledge checks (since the PC's might know more about the setting than the players actually do). It sounds like your players are looking at the supernatural powers as more of a shopping list than a list of character options with pros/cons. You know your group best, but I would try to impress the idea that supernatural power in this game causes a loss of fate points, and, in story terms, their free will. Maintaining humanity (weaknesses included) is a major theme of the setting. As soon as they "succeed" in becoming an uber powerful supernatural, the character is in negative refresh. It can be a difficult task to get in to the mindset that PCs are not the superpowered beings that they are in many other RPGs. It may help if everyone approach it as though they are intended to be the underdogs, and that is what makes them better than the monsters they face. If you or they have any experience with Hunter or Call of Cthulhu, think that style of underdog.

As far as milestones go, I am again blessed with a group that is tolerant of ad hoc experience rewards. I expect that Minor and Significant Milestones will be about as frequent as the books suggest, but Major Milestones will be given at times that are appropriate to support the dramatic flow of the game. I'm envisioning awarding a Major milestone just before the "final showdown" with a bad guy, or perhaps just after they defeat a significant Lieutenant or "right hand" of the big Bad. This way, it's both appropriate for them to advance their supernatural power slightly, and they can immediately bring it to bear against an enemy that used to be too "big" for them (and, with any luck, thoroughly deserves the PCs wrath)!

Starting at a low refresh has the additional benefit of seeing characters grow quite a bit without becoming so powerful as to sunder the planet. If players are digging the game, you can continue giving them boosts at a decent pace without having to scale up the opposition to ridiculous levels. Mind you, those types of godlike enemies can be great, but this is the case, IMO, because of what I was saying about being the underdog!

[Crion]

Correct in regards to maneuvering against people. And he had to do precisely that when pinning people. Putting Aspects on a scene sans Magic with a Maneuver has no set difficulty, but is usually really hard to justify. With Magic, any Maneuver requires 3 shifts (or 4 to make it Sticky*) minimum, but doing it to a scene is actually easily justifiable. Declarations are whatever duration Aspect they would be logically, and Assessments figure out existing Aspects, obviously.

*There's a bit of debate on this point, between Duration and making something sticky. My interpretation is that while an Aspect has Duration it can't be removed, but each exchange of that costs a shift of power, making it Sticky is just one shift, but it can be removed with an appropriate skill roll (though you'd need time and a Craftsmanship roll to remove "Unstable Shelving").

Glad to see I wasn't/am not entirely off my rocker.
I can see how that is a point of debate between the two. I can see how some sticky Aspects can be considered as part of the duration, but something as described seems to me as an effect that causes the sticky (i.e. Luck to say "Hey, the shelves are unstable!"). It's like using Evocation to set something on fire; the fire doesn't go away from the duration as long as you weren't fueling the fire solely by your thoughts, which I can see that "Aspect" vanishing when the fire does at the end of the duration.

Did that make sense at all, or am I being a little more out of it than expected?

Nah, they just get the Aspect: Pinned, which they can remove with a Might roll if they like, and is easily Taggable on attacks against them. No other effects, though for reasons of logic, they'd likely face a Barrier raing to movement (not that that mattered, since they all had guns).

So, the "Pinned" Aspect would have counted as a barrier to move over, which would have been Athletics to get "over," as per moving, correct? And if a player chose to, could they have invoked the "Pinned" Aspect to aid in their defense rolls from being shot at, claiming line of sight/leverage, correct?
And the Might roll you mentioned is to break free is the concept of performing a maneuver or just overall doing something to counter the effects?

Not really. I'm honestly new at this and didn't have any on that Scene beyond those the players put there (though I probably should've), but the second just sounds like a bad idea generally. Having one to three Aspects the scene just has is good, but players should be free to be inventive and imaginitive with Declarations at the least.

Sounds like a similar approach to what I do. Just wasn't sure if there are people out there that need to be paranoid enough to consider every Aspect possibility (and yes, I had a GM do something akin to that in a different game). Again, just seeing what others do and how they view things.

[Deadmanwalking]

Glad to see I wasn't/am not entirely off my rocker.
I can see how that is a point of debate between the two. I can see how some sticky Aspects can be considered as part of the duration, but something as described seems to me as an effect that causes the sticky (i.e. Luck to say "Hey, the shelves are unstable!"). It's like using Evocation to set something on fire; the fire doesn't go away from the duration as long as you weren't fueling the fire solely by your thoughts, which I can see that "Aspect" vanishing when the fire does at the end of the duration.

Did that make sense at all, or am I being a little more out of it than expected?

Nope. That's exactly what I meant.

So, the "Pinned" Aspect would have counted as a barrier to move over, which would have been Athletics to get "over," as per moving, correct? And if a player chose to, could they have invoked the "Pinned" Aspect to aid in their defense rolls from being shot at, claiming line of sight/leverage, correct?
And the Might roll you mentioned is to break free is the concept of performing a maneuver or just overall doing something to counter the effects?

Correct, and correct. And it's a Maneuver to remove the Aspect in question.

Sounds like a similar approach to what I do. Just wasn't sure if there are people out there that need to be paranoid enough to consider every Aspect possibility (and yes, I had a GM do something akin to that in a different game). Again, just seeing what others do and how they view things.

Understood. 

[Crion]

Sorry this is long, and a little presumptuous. If this comes off as a ramble, please disregard.

I think you can get away with 8 or even 10 refresh characters and still maintain "newness" about the setting. Although you may find you're handing out more information to successful Lore or other knowledge checks (since the PC's might know more about the setting than the players actually do). It sounds like your players are looking at the supernatural powers as more of a shopping list than a list of character options with pros/cons. You know your group best, but I would try to impress the idea that supernatural power in this game causes a loss of fate points, and, in story terms, their free will. Maintaining humanity (weaknesses included) is a major theme of the setting. As soon as they "succeed" in becoming an uber powerful supernatural, the character is in negative refresh. It can be a difficult task to get in to the mindset that PCs are not the superpowered beings that they are in many other RPGs. It may help if everyone approach it as though they are intended to be the underdogs, and that is what makes them better than the monsters they face. If you or they have any experience with Hunter or Call of Cthulhu, think that style of underdog.

As far as milestones go, I am again blessed with a group that is tolerant of ad hoc experience rewards. I expect that Minor and Significant Milestones will be about as frequent as the books suggest, but Major Milestones will be given at times that are appropriate to support the dramatic flow of the game. I'm envisioning awarding a Major milestone just before the "final showdown" with a bad guy, or perhaps just after they defeat a significant Lieutenant or "right hand" of the big Bad. This way, it's both appropriate for them to advance their supernatural power slightly, and they can immediately bring it to bear against an enemy that used to be too "big" for them (and, with any luck, thoroughly deserves the PCs wrath)!

Starting at a low refresh has the additional benefit of seeing characters grow quite a bit without becoming so powerful as to sunder the planet. If players are digging the game, you can continue giving them boosts at a decent pace without having to scale up the opposition to ridiculous levels. Mind you, those types of godlike enemies can be great, but this is the case, IMO, because of what I was saying about being the underdog!

No worries digital3lf; this is not very long (I'm prone to rambles, so I'm used to longer posts), nor is it very presumptuous. If anything, it's a nice view and something I needed to see.

My players and I have often been at odds with how games "should" be played. I like the idea of "growing" into something (i.e. I'd personally start off with a concept like "ThreEye Junkie turned Sorcerer" as per an idea I had recently, or a skeptic with the Aspect "A Little Close to the Truth" to get started) and then going from there, while they dislike starting off with "farmer's stats" (a term so endearingly started in a D&D session). I know I'd lose quite a few potential players by keeping them in the dark and starting them off as Vanilla Mortals. . .although the idea of Changelings, Minor Talents and Focused Practitioners might be rather fun. . .

I am familiar with Hunter (Hunter's Hunted, Hunter the Reckoning, and did some light reading on Hunter: The Vigil), and I enjoyed being the underdog. Never had a chance to play CoC, but I know you will "lose" at some point, which is fitting for Lovecraft.
Sadly, my players aren't keen on this either, so we're back at square one.

Anyway, onto greener pastures. . .

With what you are doing here, are you starting everyone off as a Vanilla Mortal that comes into something else (Sponsored magic, Red Court Infectee, learn to be a Wizard, etc), as a "minor player" in the Supernatural community that just gets better (kind of like The Alphas), or are you using and entirely different approach?

I do agree that it is a great theme of holding onto your humanity/free will when it comes to Refresh, I'm not entirely certain how many people will see it as such. When I mentioned the game to a friend, he already started to figure out how he was going to have a White Court Vampire who could incite emotions from a range and have more than one. This was all before I even mentioned the power level I was thinking of using, which does show me what I'd need to at least consider for running the game here.

Overall, I like your idea, and with the right group I can REALLY see it working. At the moment, I'm not able to bank heavily into it, but I will be keeping it in mind, so thank you for that.

[Victim]

It hardly seems surprising that players are more interested in playing characters more on the level with the major characters from the books.  Or that mechanically, it's more interesting to have room to customize a template than to just grab one.

For example, Billy is -7.  And even a sucky, early Billy is going to bear most of that refresh cost.  Most of his growth would seem to be in skills, and in making use of Beast Change to get better sensing and combat skills - he certainly didn't seem to have Superb dodging in Fool Moon.  Michael is -9.  Harry starts at -9.  Murphy is -4, and champion everything.  Thomas is -8.  Ramirez is -9. 

It's not like that's a world shaking level of power - starting Harry bumbles along, stopping an evil sorcerer trying to be a drug dealer. 

[digital3lf]

I was planning to introduce the game with the players quite young, around high school age. Buffy style. A lot of us liked that sort of show. Refresh would be as low as is reasonable to play, 6. They're welcome to have any supernatural in mind (or make their own up). I'm sure someone will want to play a wizard, and that is still completely available, but their power has just started to show, so they would choose what part of the wizard powers they want to have (or replace evoc/thaum with channeling/ritual if they so choose). Pure mortal is of course always an option if that suits someone. I'm also going to give them the option to play a pure mortal but let me secretly plant some supernatural in their past/future that can haunt (and change) them as the story progresses; but it's dealer's choice! They won't know what they are becoming until it starts to happen, but I'll try to match up the nastiness they take on with their character concept.

I'm hoping that matching the setting with the knowledge of the players will help everyone "enjoy their ignorance" of the setting. Both PCs and players will know little of what they encounter until they encounter or research it in character. I think this is a really good way of allowing people to slowly get in to the game and hopefully the challenge will be fun (maybe scary) too. I really don't think this prevents anyone from playing a book character, but it would be more like playing a Dresden that was still an apprentice under Justin. It could add perspective to the nature of the characters if pulled off right.

As far as the book characters power levels, Dresden SOLO'ed Storm Front. If there were 5 of him (a table of PCs), I don't think the wayward Mr. Sells and his fanatics, constructs, and bound beasties would have been nearly as much of a challenge. This actually brings up another benefit of starting small. I will be able to gauge what sorts of challenges are appropriate for a group more easily. I'll be learning how to do my thing just as the players are learning to do theirs!

I freely admit, this is not a method that would work for all groups. I'm lucky to have awesome, dorky, friends. If a group is ok with this method though, I think it's a great way to bring newbies into the Dresdenverse. Let them see it with the wonder of a child and they'll never forget.

[Crion]

I was planning to introduce the game with the players quite young, around high school age. Buffy style. A lot of us liked that sort of show. Refresh would be as low as is reasonable to play, 6. They're welcome to have any supernatural in mind (or make their own up). I'm sure someone will want to play a wizard, and that is still completely available, but their power has just started to show, so they would choose what part of the wizard powers they want to have (or replace evoc/thaum with channeling/ritual if they so choose). Pure mortal is of course always an option if that suits someone. I'm also going to give them the option to play a pure mortal but let me secretly plant some supernatural in their past/future that can haunt (and change) them as the story progresses; but it's dealer's choice! They won't know what they are becoming until it starts to happen, but I'll try to match up the nastiness they take on with their character concept.

A Buffy style game can be horribly enjoyable, whether due to some random slapstick/gallows humor or to the mystery and need of intelligent roleplaying. The whole "supernatural mystery in the past/future" is also a classic (and something I often sprung on my World of Darkness players), and would be plenty of fun to toss at my players once again.

As it is, the characters would be stepping away from most/all full-blown templates, and instead "grow in to" their powers with a slightly accelerated (and perhaps a bit more sporadic) refresh boost, correct? Again, just trying to get a feel for your approach.

I may have to use a similar idea with most of my players. While those that gripe about "Farmer's Stats" are options, they aren't the actual primary candidates (as they aren't even showing a real interest in the game). Currently, I have one guy sizing up a White Court Vampire and another looking at being a wizard/practitioner of sorts. The others are still on the fence until I get the chance to meet with them, so let's see what happens. . .


So, any other thoughts, ideas, or suggestions?

[digital3lf]

As it is, the characters would be stepping away from most/all full-blown templates, and instead "grow in to" their powers with a slightly accelerated (and perhaps a bit more sporadic) refresh boost, correct? Again, just trying to get a feel for your approach.

I may have to use a similar idea with most of my players. While those that gripe about "Farmer's Stats" are options, they aren't the actual primary candidates (as they aren't even showing a real interest in the game). Currently, I have one guy sizing up a White Court Vampire and another looking at being a wizard/practitioner of sorts. The others are still on the fence until I get the chance to meet with them, so let's see what happens. . .

That's exactly the plan. The low powered "high school age" is the opening of what could be a larger campaign, depending on interest/enjoyment. I don't suspect they'll go up against anything more powerful than a ghoul, if that. I'm going for a horror theme, both from facing unknown monsters, and the PCs themselves transforming (even if it's just in the psychological sense and they remain mortal). After the characters come into their own I'd likely do a time jump into the next big chapter where the tone would change.

"Farmer stats" in this game just don't strike me as all that boring. Less powerful, for sure, but not boring. I'm sure a good RP'er can stat out a very entertaining, worthwhile, and 3 dimensional "farmer".

Undecided WCV's and Wizards are easily done. I explained how a wizard can come into their power, probably being contacted/apprenticed by a White Council member along the way. The potential vamp would need to have one parent (the vamp) be unknown to them, or at least be keeping secrets from them. This way even if they change their mind about being a WC virgin, it was never implicitly stated that they were one. They could do a twist and end up a changeling instead without ever needing to retcon any of your story.

[Crion]

That's exactly the plan. The low powered "high school age" is the opening of what could be a larger campaign, depending on interest/enjoyment. I don't suspect they'll go up against anything more powerful than a ghoul, if that. I'm going for a horror theme, both from facing unknown monsters, and the PCs themselves transforming (even if it's just in the psychological sense and they remain mortal). After the characters come into their own I'd likely do a time jump into the next big chapter where the tone would change.

"Farmer stats" in this game just don't strike me as all that boring. Less powerful, for sure, but not boring. I'm sure a good RP'er can stat out a very entertaining, worthwhile, and 3 dimensional "farmer".

Undecided WCV's and Wizards are easily done. I explained how a wizard can come into their power, probably being contacted/apprenticed by a White Council member along the way. The potential vamp would need to have one parent (the vamp) be unknown to them, or at least be keeping secrets from them. This way even if they change their mind about being a WC virgin, it was never implicitly stated that they were one. They could do a twist and end up a changeling instead without ever needing to retcon any of your story.

Good idea and plan overall. I think I will actually be swiping it for this group (if I can ever get them together, that is), as I am the only one familiar with Dresden, and the growing power idea is something I was trying to do in my last game but couldn't pull off due to scheduling conflicts with half of my party.

As for the "farmer," I know it's doable, as I've done it elsewhere and had a blast. I just know some of my players like those high numbers, and since Fate removes the number crunch, it isn't as clear as to how "powerful" your character is without really looking at how they are, and can be, played.



So now I have to ask: what sort of prep work do you do for your cities? (Or do you think I should shift this question to a new thread?)

[digital3lf]

So now I have to ask: what sort of prep work do you do for your cities? (Or do you think I should shift this question to a new thread?)

This is where I stopped myself from doing my usual prep work. I started with researching a Baltimore suburb thinking the campaign could grow into the Baltimore setting in the book, but after getting the framework done I set it aside. I'm putting my faith in the game developers and am going to pick/develop a city of my group's choosing as part of the 1st session. "City/Character creation IS playing!", as they said. I don't know if that would work for most groups but my group does enjoy that sort of thing. If you think your players might enjoy making the city I'd say give it a shot. It seems like a great way for them to directly influence/choose the sort of mood they're looking for. Still, it's probably be wise to have some framework for a city on standby - in case your players are shy or disinterested.

Rather than prepping a lot of city info, you can just come up with various encounters that would be appropriate. Things YOU want to see represented in the game. The important thing to keep in mind with anything you come up with, is it'll need to be able to apply to any PC. This is sort of challenging since they aren't made yet! More encouragement to procrastinate...

Personally I'm planning to have a young, repentant WC virgin NPC that will likely be victimized by a rival WC family, and likely driven to suicide (all very tentative on what intrigue the PCs discover/actions taken). For action, I'm planning to have a "monster" (a young Rawhide & Bloody Bones fae) that is killing off (absorbing) local housepets as it grows. With colorful descriptions I'm sure I can freak/gross out my players. Both of those are to illustrate aspects I want the story to have, Personal/Transformative horror and monstrous, unknown horror - and they should hold at least some interest to anyone (regardless of PC Aspects).

[newtinmpls]

I like the idea of starting slow - but different PC's have different ideas of what "slow" is. I have 4 players, which is 1 more than I really would like, but it's going okay.

I have a couple of RCV plotlines; one of them is the "turn some folks, have them get 'help' from St. GIles for the sole purpose of mocking the tattoos"; the idea is that if the RCV can create the fleshmask to look however they want (usually cute), they can feign tattoos and actually be a vamp. Since the sight is rather hazardous to use, this should be good for a surprise or two. The other one is a RCV who has taken over a local microbrewery, tainting the product with saliva; not AS addictive as the pure thing, but anyone taking a liking to this beer will be less resistant (or some such).

I have one PC who is playing a long-time mage who was lost in the nevernever for years; his apprentice is a PC that actually took full magic, but doesn't know how to use it yet, so she's currently only playing as for channeling & ritual.

dian

[bibliophile20]

Holy thread necromancy, Batman!

And my prep work usually consists of one, maybe two pages of notes on events, and four to five pages on major NPC stats.  From there... everything is improv.