Author Topic: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG  (Read 11498 times)

Offline Elf_NFB

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #45 on: June 24, 2012, 11:05:35 PM »
I think what helps is playing the one Shots first.
Give people premade characters, story ect, and then let them see how the system works.

I'd say Read Small Favor first. Its the first book I started with. It gives you all the good stuff (Thomas, The Knights, Denarians, Fae ect) and then Butcher does a good job of explaining it without Info Dumping.
WE talked about doing this exact thing. Our group is going through one of those "no one can get together" times. But hopefully in the next week or so. :)

Offline Orladdin

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #46 on: June 26, 2012, 01:44:25 PM »
I think what helps is playing the one Shots first.
Give people premade characters, story ect, and then let them see how the system works.

I'd say Read Small Favor first. Its the first book I started with. It gives you all the good stuff (Thomas, The Knights, Denarians, Fae ect) and then Butcher does a good job of explaining it without Info Dumping.

What?....  WHAT?!  NO!!!

Spoil ALL of the surprises and suspense up to that point?  Seriously?

Never, EVER suggest this to someone.  Start on book 1.
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Offline Orladdin

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #47 on: June 26, 2012, 01:50:20 PM »
WE talked about doing this exact thing. Our group is going through one of those "no one can get together" times. But hopefully in the next week or so. :)
I killed my game. :)

I made a number of mistakes in getting the game up and running. First and for most, no one other than myself had ever read the Dresden Books. We wanted to try FATE but I Was the only one willing to run and THIS was the flavor I wanted. Then there was trouble with Character Creation. We were all more than a little unclear as to how to tie the characters together. Add to the mix a bunch of players more used to Burning Wheel and with no good working knowledge on how to drive a story in FATE.
...

Where you guys not clear on the guest star phases?  That's the biggest deal.  My group has actually been doing it for years without even realizing it.  Rather than drop it in the storyteller's lap on session 1 when everyone is trepidacious about the new campaign, everyone just "already knows" eachother.  Straight to the action.  Straight to the cool.

Did your storytellers not understand how to use compels?  It can be a little daunting at first, but generally after reading through Your Story it should be pretty clear.  Those make getting the party together so trivially easy I almost didn't need the Guest Star phases.  5 minutes of "candy-lined" story hooks and everyone's together.
« Last Edit: June 26, 2012, 01:52:01 PM by Orladdin »
There is never a blanket answer to an ethical question.  This includes the Laws of Magic.

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Offline fantazero

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #48 on: June 26, 2012, 03:06:30 PM »
What?....  WHAT?!  NO!!!

Spoil ALL of the surprises and suspense up to that point?  Seriously?

Never, EVER suggest this to someone.  Start on book 1.

Actually Book 2 is a better Starting point. I've lost more people with book 1. Book 2 seems to be a better starting point for Newbies.

But if you want them to just "get the game" Small Favor is a good place.
A lot of people dont have the time/energy to read a new series. Then there's the burn out factor. If your reading Dresden and playing Dresden you might just get sick of it.
We just wrapped up our Year and a Half long Dresden Miami game, we had a couple of people who were not familiar with the book, and they got it, after  a fashion.

As for why Dresden games fail.
1. Social Contract
-Make sure everyone is on the same page. if you want to do a loosey goosey Vampires of the Masqurade-esqe Dresden and someone else is your group is looking for Munchkin Crunchyness, then you gonna clash.
-If you arent comfortable with Torture, Rape, or __________ Make sure people know that. Because Dresden can go from my little pony, to Pulp Fiction Gimp scene pretty fast
2. Not getting Compels/Aspects/ The Magic System
- Aspects took me forever. FOREVER. To get. You gotta come up with something that 1. Defines your character 2. Has to be worded in such a way that you can compel it and it can be compelled. 3. Has to be more than just a positive Aspect  (i.e. I've seen "Lucky" used too often) 4. Some Older Gm or more Traditional GMs arent used to the player having so much Feedback/Influence /Control over the world/their character
3. Not engaging people
- This gets worse with larger parties. If you 5 people and 3 hours to play thats not much time per person.
- Your story stinks or is too on rails. Sorry that happens.
4. Motivation
-Why would be Policeman character risk everything to help some wizard do something that benefits no one but that Wizard?. This goes back to character creation/ city set up. Give your group a REASON to work together. Also. Stick together.
---We had a character in our group who basically just kept wandering off or avoiding our group, which is fine I guess but basically he was just wasting his time, and not letting us further his story.

Offline Elf_NFB

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #49 on: June 27, 2012, 12:51:49 PM »
Where you guys not clear on the guest star phases?  That's the biggest deal.  My group has actually been doing it for years without even realizing it.  Rather than drop it in the storyteller's lap on session 1 when everyone is trepidacious about the new campaign, everyone just "already knows" eachother.  Straight to the action.  Straight to the cool.

Did your storytellers not understand how to use compels?  It can be a little daunting at first, but generally after reading through Your Story it should be pretty clear.  Those make getting the party together so trivially easy I almost didn't need the Guest Star phases.  5 minutes of "candy-lined" story hooks and everyone's together.

In short... yes...
I'm not saying this flavor of FATE is "bad" or anything. I'm saying I (as the GM) had trouble with a different style of gaming. I've mainly run 3.5 and Pathfinder with a smattering of Savage Worlds. I've played a LOT of Burning Wheel and some Fiasco. None of this helps me get my head around Dresden Files RPG. I get a LOT more out of "How To Run A Game" by paying in one. I've unsuccessfully attempted to get into a Dresden Game at GenCon for the past few years. And THAT is the extent of my ability to get into such a game. But I REALLY wanted to play Dresden and felt my only shot was to run the game myself... and I wasn't very good. It wasn't all my fault and I think we will come back to the game. But we are going to get back on our feet, cleanse our gaming palate, and then see what can be done. I THINK we will have to re-do Character Creation (at least one new player and a better handle now on the system). i think we will do a one-shot to help me get INTO running a game without worrying over storylines. And then we will see.

Offline Orladdin

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #50 on: June 27, 2012, 01:59:00 PM »
In short... yes...
I'm not saying this flavor of FATE is "bad" or anything. I'm saying I (as the GM) had trouble with a different style of gaming. I've mainly run 3.5 and Pathfinder with a smattering of Savage Worlds. I've played a LOT of Burning Wheel and some Fiasco. None of this helps me get my head around Dresden Files RPG. I get a LOT more out of "How To Run A Game" by paying in one. I've unsuccessfully attempted to get into a Dresden Game at GenCon for the past few years. And THAT is the extent of my ability to get into such a game. But I REALLY wanted to play Dresden and felt my only shot was to run the game myself... and I wasn't very good. It wasn't all my fault and I think we will come back to the game. But we are going to get back on our feet, cleanse our gaming palate, and then see what can be done. I THINK we will have to re-do Character Creation (at least one new player and a better handle now on the system). i think we will do a one-shot to help me get INTO running a game without worrying over storylines. And then we will see.

Ah, yeah.  I get'cha.  The biggest problem with d20 games is they only teach you to play d20 games, and d20 games aren't all that unique or complex.

The downside with uncommon RPGs is finding an experienced group to play with and learn from.  I was lucky to have gone to a major university that had a huge gaming population to learn from and network with.  I'd recommend you try a local university's gaming group.  You might have some luck.
There is never a blanket answer to an ethical question.  This includes the Laws of Magic.

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Offline darkstarj13

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #51 on: June 28, 2012, 02:57:55 AM »
last game i played ended in a major fight in the nevernever.

the sesion rounded out to our characters, a caboomomancer warden, a weresnow leopard warden, a formerly vanilla mortal turn partial wendigo(from supernatural, that was later dubbed the winnebago spirit after a slip of the toung), a monster hunter with the blessed gun of teh Rosevelt... (not mispelled ... and another story), and an npc murphy xp cop, raiding the wearhouse hideout of a paramilitary conspiricy group that believed the grey cloaks...(wardens) worked with aliens that were trying to take over the earth.

we busted in at the same time a group of red court vampires did and turned things alittle crazy, after several round we started to get a measure of control just as a skinwalker in zenomorph...(aliens) fashion and cut through most of the remaining opposition, we managed to draw the skinwalker into the nevernever before the cops could raid the building and took the fight there, minus the npc cop, we called on a fae queen of the midnight court that we had dealings with before and that my character... the caboomomancer had to offer to become her knight to get to join the fight, we ended up with an almost total party kill sans my character but it was a really good fight all around.

Offline UmbraLux

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #52 on: June 28, 2012, 03:27:21 AM »
...we called on a fae queen of the midnight court that we had dealings with before...
Midnight court?  I'd like to hear more...  ;)
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Offline Elf_NFB

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #53 on: June 28, 2012, 11:53:17 AM »
Midnight court?  I'd like to hear more...  ;)

Yeah.. sounds cool! visceral... imaginative.. simple... I LIKE!

Offline darkstarj13

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #54 on: June 28, 2012, 01:28:46 PM »
Midnight court?  I'd like to hear more...  ;)

the midnight court was a good case of our gm playing off our aspects to further his story, my character had a connection with the little folk and often called on two nicknamed google and beltaine, they were pranksters and a little perverted is some cases, at one point in the game the leader of the local little folk called scoot scoot (who we thought was one herself) called in a favor owed to...i think it was google, we had further dealings with her throughout the campain and later found out she was a lesser queen (less powerful than even the ladies of summer or winter) i cant remember what her real name was anymore. most of her followers were... think bob mixed with toot toot, and add prankster to the mix and youve got the followers of the midnight court, but they played a good sized role in several of our campains.

Offline SergeiVolkov

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #55 on: June 28, 2012, 05:14:49 PM »
My last session was a mixture of side-sessions that ultimately ended with our characters getting the aid of the Yeti (and Sasquatch, and Big Foot, and etc) and a group of Tibetan Monks and with my character getting a Temple Dog puppy because I can speak dog thanks to Echoes of the Beast. His name is Vagabond if anyone is curious.

Offline wolff96

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #56 on: June 29, 2012, 09:03:49 PM »
The last session was amazing.

Our group is a pure mortal (venatori probationary member), a fledgling member of the White Council, a Harbinger of Morpheus, and a were-hawk ex-military member.  Remarkably, that last character tends to be the peacemaker of the group. 

Morpheus showed up (in a dream, naturally) and told his Harbinger to, essentially, throw a party.  His 'siblings' were getting together for a meeting and all of them would be represented by a mortal servant, avatar, or other representative.  The harbinger needed to pull together security, refreshments, and a location -- Accorded Neutral Ground, of course.  Not being much of a social butterfly, the Harbinger pulled in all of his friends.

While they mulled over the guest list (Death, Despair, Delirium, Dream, Destiny, Dream, and possibly Destruction) and the bizarre method for letting each guest know the location, they researched methods for finding ANG in Dallas.  There were a couple of locations possible, not to mention the option of going to the fairies to either temporarily or permanently get a place declared ANG.

But the real gem of the session -- and not something I could have planned for -- was the Harbinger making a thoughtless remark to the Wizard.  She's the prime financial backer of the group, an orphan who considers them her family and supports many of their endeavors from her own pocketbook.  She also has the wonderful Aspect of "Nice when Needed, Bitch when Necessary".  One quick compel later and the Harbinger was trying (fruitlessly, his dice HATED HIM) to hold his own in a social conflict within the group.

We probably spent an hour and a half dealing with a social conflict and the resultant fall-out.  The roleplaying was brilliant on all sides, with the other players either helping or hindering as they saw fit. 

...We'll see how things go next time, with the Harbinger of Morpheus potentially on his own in setting up this party with only eight days left on the clock...   ;D

Offline Robin Cary

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Re: Tell me about your game! Your last session and experience with DFRPG
« Reply #57 on: July 05, 2012, 10:34:38 PM »
Our last session was rather quiet but  no less interesting.

The Knight of the Cross (me),  Ectomancer Cop  and Apprentice Wizard with confidence issues went to go find out why Bounty hunters where offering an obscene amount  of money to get the Emissary of Winter (Who's a very low refresh Sidhe) Pc and the NPC/minion Spirit of intellect in the group.
 This is while there's downtime in  the investigation on discovering who exactly  stabbed  the mission control NPC with a cursed Claymore, so of course they where on a time limit.

The cop failed at  looking threatening, The knight finally got good use of the  4 Rapport I gave her back  when she was just a pure mortal and the  Apprentice's long silence almost had the hunters  walk off before telling us the information we needed.
Some quick words later, The bounty hunters  explain  that  the Spirit and the Sidhe managed to cause a Jail break and the Ectomancer Cop told them  that they hung around  at the address of the old base of operations which is no longer in use due to being trashed due to the events of the last chapter.

Naturally this jail Break was in the Never Never, The prisoner was a monster even Fae decided to imprison. Ecto cop is furious.
The spirit (cursed into the body of a puppy after he and the wizard PC pissed off winter too many times..)
My Knight swore to protect  the Spirit as it has been helping her learn about the Real world and er new duties. (Only been aware  of the  supernatural for three months and  just got her sword the near end of the last chapter) and naturally of course had a bargin to complete with  the Side in order to protect a child.

Naturally the  Knight sujjested they find the monster themselves,  the Cop is giving the Side and spirit 24 hours to spill or he'll turn them in.

Then  the session ends on a tense note after both Knight and cop explain their promises.