The Dresden Files Accelerated Playtest Is Open

[HumAnnoyd]

Does it seem like it will take a lot of work to port over an existing game to the FAE version?  We have 5 years of campaign history and I am hoping it won't be a headache to translate all those characters. 

[Sanctaphrax]

How customize-able are the characters?

One thing that's always put me off FAE is that the characters feel same-y to me, I'm hoping the Dresden Files variant manages to avoid that.

[Haru]

On a general note, the whole thing is still beta, as the name says, and a few things aren't implemented yet, so keep that in mind. I also can't get too specific, obviously, but I'll try to answer you as best I can.

Does it seem like it will take a lot of work to port over an existing game to the FAE version?  We have 5 years of campaign history and I am hoping it won't be a headache to translate all those characters. 

Well, as with all transitions between games, I would probably do them by creating the character new in the other system the way the character is now. That should work well here, as quick and easy as that works, especially since you've got the aspects already, which can often take quite a while when coming up with new Fate characters. You'll probably be done in a few minutes. There are aspects of grown characters that might not translate to the system as it is now, but solving exactly that issue is put up under "to do".

Looking at the characters in the games I run, I don't think I'd need to stretch things too far to convert them satisfactorily right now.

How customize-able are the characters?

One thing that's always put me off FAE is that the characters feel same-y to me, I'm hoping the Dresden Files variant manages to avoid that.

Well, we're talking FAE, so we've got the 6 approaches, and there's only so much variance in that. If that's what has you worried, there's not really a way around it, I suppose.

In our test game, we've created a medic, a pixie and two wizards. Despite the wizards only differing in one stunt, they already feel very different. However, they draw a lot of that difference from their descriptions and their aspects, not so much the mechanical side. The pixie and one wizard have exactly the same approaches, when it comes to numbers, but will use them vastly different, so that should work out as well. So far, nothing about any of the characters feels same-y, not the same character types like the wizards, but definitely not the different ones, there's a lot to make them very unique. I'll see if that changes once we get into the action, but I doubt that.

The option to create your own stunts/powers is still there, as well, which should give you plenty more opportunities to customize, if need be.

[Sanctaphrax]

So what exactly makes them feel different?

Aspects? Stunts?

Because standard FAE has both of those and I don't find it to be enough.

EDIT: This came out more negative than I intended it. In case it's not clear, I'm not saying FAE characters are "objectively" homogeneous or anything like that. But the base game's not to my taste, and I'm concerned that the Dresden Files version won't be either.

[Haru]

No worries, I know what you mean.

Aspects and stunts are not the only thing, there's more, but I'm not sure how far I can get into that at this moment, sorry. I really like what I see, but from what I know from how our play styles differ, I would assume that DFAE might indeed not be to your taste.

[InFerrumVeritas]

I'm sure thing changed since the first playtest, but the way that DFAE handles characters of vastly different power levels was very interesting the first beta, dealing with degrees of success rather than odds of success.  I think the mechanic allows Harry and Butters (pre-all the things that are spoilery) to adventure together without one feeling useless.

Skills are the approaches, powers are...well an entirely different mechanic (and greatly simplified) that I don't know is what you're looking for.

If you want heavily customizable characters, DFRPG or FC are probably more to your tastes.  You're not going to be tweaking numbers the same way with any version of FAE.  Ultimately it's much more rules light, and designed for players who want that.  Given that you spend a good portion of time coming up with hoserules and homebrew, I don't know if it'll be your thing.

[zaboron]

How customize-able are the characters?

One thing that's always put me off FAE is that the characters feel same-y to me, I'm hoping the Dresden Files variant manages to avoid that.

you still have the high concept, trouble and three additional aspects so there's enough space for customization. The numbers on your sheet don't really matter much anyway.

[Sanctaphrax]

The numbers and the Refresh investments are actually pretty important. That's why they're there. If they didn't matter, we'd get rid of them.

[InFerrumVeritas]

The numbers and the Refresh investments are actually pretty important. That's why they're there. If they didn't matter, we'd get rid of them.

Arguably that's what FAE does.

[Sanctaphrax]

No, that's what Aspects-Only Fate does. FAE has approaches and stunts for a reason.

[zaboron]

Yes but real customization happens in with the aspects.
Just look at DFRPG (which is actually quite an awful rpg by Fate standards):
Skill- and Stuntwise two wizards are going to look very similar, there's not much choice left what regarding stunts at most refresh levels and for skills discipline and conviction has to be rather high anyway so the "number" template is very much interchangeable.
FAE actually improves that because now you can build two wizards with two completely different approaches.
But differentiation has always happened mainly in the aspects of a character.

[Sanctaphrax]

FWIW, I think DFRPG is significantly better than any of the other Fate implementations I've seen. That's why I'm here, and not somewhere else.

Even ignoring Aspects, I find the mechanical differences between two Wizards in DFRPG more significant and more interesting than the differences between a Wizard and a time-travelling gorilla cyborg in FAE.

But this isn't the place for that argument.