Tracking Organizations

[UmbraLux]

I've been trying to come up with a simple method of tracking organizations for use in a game.  It's primarily a set of aspects and notes to make using it in play easy.  Here's the base template and a couple examples.  Any ideas on improving it?  Streamlining it?

Light Keepers

• Goal / Theme:  Destroy all things Magical
• Type:  Secret Society
• Resources:  Returns from long term investments, Corporate Ownership, Heavily Involvement with Defense Contractors
• Faces:  Hunter Becker, Johann de Haarven
• Membership:  Cell system, typically a five person cell making a squad.
• Notes:  Light Keepers believe technology is the “Light” and the height of civilization while magic represents darkness, despair, and domination of humans by inimical powers.

<local biker gang>

• Goal / Theme:  One Percenter Anarchists
• Type:  Criminal Gang
• Resources:  Dirty Money
• Faces:  ?
• Membership:  Mostly men, skinheads, and other fringe society members.

.
The basic template...ideas on adding or removing anything?
template

• Goal / Theme:  ?
• Type:  ?
• Resources:  ?
• Faces:  ?
• Membership:  ?
• Notes:  ?

[devonapple]

No organization template would be complete with sections for Allies and Enemies, as well as Patsies/Suckers and Rivals.

Per the FATE fractal concept, you *could* build Organizations the same way you would metacharacters, with Skills, Stress Tracks, and up to 7 Aspects.

Light Keepers
High Concept: Pro-Technology Secret Society
Trouble: Destroy All Things Magical
Aspects: Cell Organization; Friends in High Places; Long-Term Investments (Old Money? Immaculate Finances?)
Skills:
Great: Resources, Contacts
Good: Deceit, Presence
Fair: Discipline, Scholarship

Biker Gang
High Concept: Biker Gang
Trouble: Criminal Activity
Aspects: One Percenter Anarchists; Dirty Money; Live Free or Die;
Skills:
Great: Endurance, Guns
Good: Weapons, Conviction
Fair: Resources, Presence

[UmbraLux]

Hmm, I like portions of that better than what I'd started with.  Though I'll keep Faces and drop Skills.  I'm treating organizations more like a City than a Character.  Thanks for the feedback!

[Todjaeger]

Have you taken a look at the Fate-based game Strands of Fate?  There is a chapter there on creating organizations.  Since Strands of Fate is a sort of generic Fate-based system, being setup for use in either/both scifi and fantasy settings, the system is a little different than Dresden, but the overall concept and layout looks like it would work for Dresden.

It starts out like this:

1. Think about your Organization’s concept and pick out a cool name for it.
2. Determine the Organization’s Influence Level
3. Select five Organization Aspects.
4. Purchase the Organization’s Abilities.
5. Select a number of Asset Aspects equal to its Influence +2

Now the 2nd step, determine the organization's influence is talking about a chart with ranks 0 to 10, with 0 influence being a single member/character, to 10 being a galaxy-spanning empire.  Based off my reading of the chart, I would say that most supernatural nations top out at ~6 Influence, being the equivalent of a large multi-national conglomerate.  7 influence is a intercontinental empire (pre-World War I British Empire) or an interplanetary corporation. 

From there an Organization will have four basic Aspects which are roughly analogous to the High Concept, Trouble, Background and Rising Conflict aspects of a character.  These aspects are to cover the core purpose of the organization, the theme/feel of the organization, what threats to the organization exist, and how the organization was formed.

In addition, the Strands of Fate rules have additional Asset Aspects for Organizations, with a total number of these equal to Influence +2, and these can be used to represent additional/special knowledge, resources or abilities available to the organization based upon who the members are. 

On top of these aspects, that are also abilities open to the Organzation, and this covers things like crafting, knowledge and resourcse.  These are analogous to the Skills Craftsmanship, Lore/Scholarship, and Resources.  Basically it covers things that the Organization can make, buy, find out, etc when the abilities and assets of the members are put together to work towards something.

If/when I get a chance, I will post some of the organizations I'm working on as a sort of comparison.  Incidentally I've been working on trying to stat out some of the know Dresdenverse organizations like the White Council, the Wardens, the Paranet, etc.  I'm just sort of afrain that the upcoming sourcebook will have a specific format for the Dresden Files and cover some of these organizations...

-Cheers

[UmbraLux]

Have you taken a look at the Fate-based game Strands of Fate? 

I've got the pdf but haven't dug into it yet...looks like I need to!  I'll look forward to seeing your examples.  Thanks!

[Todjaeger]

Okay, so I sat down with some of the books to come up with a (partial?) list of the various organizations active to some degree or another in the supernatural world.  Some of these organizations will have subsidaries.

The White Council*
  The Wardens

The Fellowship of St. Giles

The Church (Roman Catholic)
 

(click to show/hide)

Ordro Malleus

from the short story Warrior
  The Swords of the Cross

The Vampire Courts*
  The White Court
    House Malvora
    House Raith
    House Skavis
  The Red Court
  The Black Court
  The Jade Court

The Faerie Courts*
  The Seelie Court
  The Unseelie Court
  The Wild Hunt

Venatori Umbrorum

Order of the Blackened Denarius+

Marcone's Outfit+

Ferrovax+

Ordo Lebes

Monoc Corporation/Donar Vadderung+

The Archive/Ivey+

Vlad Drakul+

Semi-imortal Ukrainian shapeshifter+

The Fomor+

The Streetwolves

The Jotuns?

?= suggested by the novels and short stories, not yet confirmed/canon
*=Signatory of the Unseelie Accords
+=Freeholding Lord

Of the rather smaller groups, which ones would people like to see me try and stat first?

-Cheers

[UmbraLux]

I'd be curious to see Marcone's organization in SoF style.  Though I think it may be more detailed than what I'm looking for...that chapter seemed fairly involved.

Here's what I've settled on so far:
Lazarus Society

• High Concept: Hidden Search for Eternal Life
  
• Trouble: Unscrupulous Methods No One Else Will Condone
  
• Aspects: Secret Society; Corporate Movers and Shakers; Corrupt Politicians;
  
• Faces: Bradly Morrison (County Judge), Patricia Manning (CEO Blackthorne Inc), Joseph P. Hinson (CEO Levitha Inc)
  
• Membership: Rich men and women who are willing to do anything to continue living.
  
• Notes: ...
  

[Todjaeger]

I'd be curious to see Marcone's organization in SoF style.  Though I think it may be more detailed than what I'm looking for...that chapter seemed fairly involved.

Okay, here's my take on The Outfit in Chicago.  Keep in mind it's the first time I've used Strands of Fate to 'build' an organziation and the system does work a little differently than the DFRPG.

I'm inclined to set The Outfit as follows:
Influence: 5
Fate Point Refresh: 4
Abilities: 25
Max Ability: Fantastic (+6)

Such a ranking is comparable for a national corporation, world-spanning cult, or port city.  Chicago is a major port city, and it is largely under Marcone's control...

Now for Aspects.  Strands of Fate goes off a system using five Aspects, unlike the seven used in Dresden Files.

These are:

• Defining Aspect
• Attitude Aspect
• Background Aspect
• Core Purpose Aspect
• Danger Aspect

Now, my take on these is that Defining Aspect and Core Purpose Aspect are both about the same as High Concept Aspect.  The Background Aspect is the same as the Background Aspect from Dresden, and the Danger Aspect is the same as the Trouble Aspect.  Going with just the five, I come up with the following:

Defining Aspect:  If it's Corrupt and in Chicago, We have a Piece of It
Attitude Aspect:  Children are Not to be Touched
Background Aspect:  Built with Bullets and Blood
Core Purpose Aspect:  Profit before Bloodshed
Danger Aspect: Everyone Wants to Take Us Down

Now, Strands of Fate has three categories of abilities, these are Physical, Mental and Social.  Each of these has three subabilities with effects similar to their names.  An * indicates an ability which effects the number of Stress boxes

Physical:

• Logistics
• Perception
• Security*

Mental:

• Craft
• Knowledge
• Morale*

Social:

• Relations
• Connections
• Resources*

For The Outfit, I would most likely arrange them like this:

Physical:

• Logistics Fair (+2)
• Perception Good (+3)
• Security Great (+4)

Mental:

• Craft Average (+1)
• Knowledge Average (+1)
• Morale Fair (+2)

Social:

• Relations Mediocre (+0)
• Connections Superb (+5)
• Resources Fantastic (+6)

Stress Tracker are determined by adding the Influence and the appropriate ability rank together.

Stress Tracks:
Physical 5+4=9
Mental 5+2=7
Social 5+6=11

Now The Outfit will also have seven (Influence 5+2) Asset Aspects.  I will need some more time to think what these should be, but the first ones which comes to mind, and what they principally impact are.
Monoc Security Consultant on Retainer (Security)
Executive Priority Health (Connections)

Well, that's a start anyway.

-Cheers