Stunts and powers are great when you are able to use them often.  If a session is heavily focused on investigating scenes and interviewing suspects, how useful are Supernatural Recovery, Speed, Strength, and Toughness?

But there are also some minor talent abilities that do stuff other powers don't and have the capacity to break the game.  Like Psychometry or Cassandra's Tears.  For example, the Police Detective sees a dripping blood path, but the Psychic Forensic Analyst brushes one of the dry spots and sees a man with a limp holding a bleeding arm.

Obviously DNA testing can identify the gender of the suspect, but DNA testing takes days/weeks (and in many labs months because of the massive back log).  But being able to get such a clue quickly makes a huge difference in closing a case (people that are hurt bad tend to get worse fast if not treated and missing people tend to stay lost if not found early on).

To me, a stunt/power is worth the lost fate point(s) if you get to use it at least once a given "refresh" period (in DFRPG it is each scenario, in Fate Core it is each session).  A Fate Point equals +2 on an invoke.  Stunt is +2 on a specific usage.  So, like I said, if you get to use it once per time you get your fate points refreshed/reset, the stunt paid for itself.

But Fate Points used to Invoke or pay off compels are more flexible than stunts, so in a given refresh period, it is easier to "get your money's worth" (which is one reason I lot Fate Core's lower refresh, but refresh each session rule, as it makes it easier to encourage players to not horde points).

In that sense, Minor Talent (just like for Pure Mortal) can be strong.  (Especially in new Fate Core since you can choose to invoke AFTER you roll, so having those "if I need them +2s" from fate points in reserve is pretty sweet.)

However, if a Werebear with Inhuman Strength and Claws is getting into two or three fights each session, it is hard to argue that those 3 refresh worth of powers aren't getting WAY more than their money's worth (Weapon:4 on each attack).  But those are still shifts dependent on success.  So the character may have to use more actions setting up maneuvers instead of just "buying" success by invoking a bunch of things.

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There isn't actually a roll for Power, you just decide how many shifts you want to summon.  You only have to roll for Control.

This.

Edit: Also...

No, this isn't another "does my carefully engineered powergamer loophole to do nasty things with magic escape the metaphysical laws of the universe?" kind of question.

LOL.

You can see my opinion from my signature.

Did you look at Feeding Dependency (YS 190)?

That is all there is.

I would say they need to eat often enough to make them monsters.

If a Red Court Vampire has to addict 10 humans in order to keep well fed (without killing her herd), that seems pretty monstrous.

What about killing indirectly with magic? Using magic to immobilize or knock a person unconscious and then use a mundane method to deal the killing (Like stabbing them with a sword). I'm sure plenty of wardens don't take down targets they intend to kill in a straight up fight but disable them first. Still technically you are using magic as means as an end to accomplish the kill, so should it not already be breaking the law?

As for the lawbreaker losing refresh, your arguments are compelling but I'm still iffy to take characters out of play because they broke an abstract set of laws which they as characters might not fully understand unless they're actually members of the White Council. Remember the White Council isn't everywhere (Especially in the city I'm running, Detroit which is strongly overwhelmed by Vampires, Fae Creatures and other supernaturals, the city is TOO violent for the wardens to enforce!)

Then again so far I don't have a wizards or spell casters in the party yet. Running a single player who is a True Believer and works as a freelance exorcist in the city as she was denied support from the church cause she's a woman and not willing to take the vows of the church to become a member of the church. Not that I could have one as its only at a chest-deep level (7 Refresh, 25 Skill points. Like it cause it has room for growth as I hate games where you start out at max power, it leaves no room for growth for a character, in fact the system does not allow you to get beyond the Full Immersion stage!)

An illusion to trick a person into running over a cliff is a First Law Violation (and possibly a Fourth Law if the illusion was in the mind instead of made of tangible light).  So is a lance of fire to detach the beam a person is dangling from (letting the person fall to their death).

In general, if the spell directly contributes to the death of a person (and it is a direct consequence that can be expected), it is a violation.  If you burn down a building in early morning (like 3 A.M.) with magic and there was a janitor sitting on the toilet, you violated the First Law.  Sure you didn't intend to kill the guy, but you felt justified to be reckless with your power and ruined a building that you didn't check to ensure it was empty.  Now if someone else rifted that janitor into the bathroom after you set the building on fire, it isn't your fault, they intentionally placed the guy there, so they violated the First Law (if they are a practitioner).

Even using magic to restrain a person so that you can lop off his head is also a violation.

Wardens are very careful to not use blocks to restrain a warlock for execution, they do employ blocks to prevent the usage of magic, but without magic, most warlocks are less dangerous than vanilla mortals (notice how neither Victor Sells or Kravos carried a gun?).  And "shutting down" a warlock's magic doesn't kill them, they could still run away.

I do think the Weapon:6 ability on the Warden Sword is kind of a bad precedent, but I think it is there more to make the sword more useful (if it was just 3 uses of a 6 shift counterspell, it is only relevant when you face practitioners, mortal or otherwise).  Without it, the item is just so corner case it might not be worth it.

Think of it as a "Specialization Point Pool" (like how you have a skill point pool) that must structure like you do skills.  However, you have an "Evocation Specialization Point Pool" and a "Thaumaturgy Specialization Point Pool" that are kept separate.

But you can definitely upgrade existing specializations, you just have to maintain your columns.

When the character seems to be killing people unnecessarily and not getting therapy for it?

Doesn't really matter who is doing it (unless they are already sick and twisted).  If it is a White Court Vampire despairing a taken out mafia thug into blowing his brains out, or a Night Shift Pizza Delivery Guy parking his car on the Wicked Witch of the Upper East Side.

But you are technically messing with the time stream, which is also a no-no.

Going backwards is a no-no.  Pushing an annoying gun in San Diego through a Nevernever portal that drops him in T.J. a week later (to him it takes a few seconds) is hilarious.

That is what Belial meant.  Not sending back in time, just getting them out of the way for a bit.