Vrock_Summoner
2021-05-23, 09:45 PM
This is a weird one, folks, so I'm curious to see if you have any input!
Basically, I'm about to run a one-on-one Fate game meant to simulate Steven Universe. And I'm quite happy with the rules hacking I've done for most of it - I've got an alternate Approach/Skill list I'm happy with, my own variation on some of the other rules, my own rules for fusion, rules to make musical numbers important and distinct from the rest of gameplay, a bunch of great stuff like that.
However, something important is missing, and it's something I'm having a very hard time finding advice for, in part because it's so counterintuitive for an RPG to facilitate this, and partially because it's almost un-Google-able for a bunch of reasons.
Namely, characters do a lot of stuff just because they want to, whether that's playing with friends or visiting places or the like, and the interactions that they have based off of that, or the wrinkles that occur when magic derails those moments, can be excellent fodder for larger stories as well as great moments for developing characters and their relationships.
However, that can be really hard to integrate into an RPG, even as just short scenes building up to a larger story, for two main reasons. One, where a TV show can show the main character doing something because they're already setting up for the twist to come, a player playing a main character isn't necessarily privy to that information, and thus naturally wouldn't be inclined to go do that stuff if they don't think an interesting twist on the scenario will happen. Second, and the reason the first matters as much as it does - even stuff that's fun to watch and fun to be part of can be boring to play out if there isn't a mechanical mechanism through which to make it engaging for the player.
So I want to fix those problems such that pursuing fun for the character can be fun for the player as well. Having outlined our two main problems, the next step is to solve them.
The first one seems comparatively easy, especially given the kind of game Fate is - discuss with the player during session planning if we want to do a story featuring a particular place, character, or inciting event, and then boom, the character can go towards that element for fun, while the player knows that some twist is coming and can relax and play full tilt into their unaware character as it builds up. Boom, easy as pie.
The second one is harder, though. Rewarding taking time to have fun as your character is easy, and reasonably well-covered by Fate - it's easy to frame that in terms of creating Aspects that represent positive emotional vibes with the person you're spending time with, or personal happiness because you did something you like, or if you roll poorly maybe you get stomach cramps after eating too much pizza, or whatever. However, I worry that that may not be engaging enough. But on the other end of the idea spectrum, representing it as contests or conflicts where the enemy to be defeated is boredom or stress seems... maybe too silly to work, but possibly promising? I dunno.
So I'm really curious to hear what you guys think! Any ideas of your own, or input on the things I've tossed out so far, would be greatly appreciated.
Basically, I'm about to run a one-on-one Fate game meant to simulate Steven Universe. And I'm quite happy with the rules hacking I've done for most of it - I've got an alternate Approach/Skill list I'm happy with, my own variation on some of the other rules, my own rules for fusion, rules to make musical numbers important and distinct from the rest of gameplay, a bunch of great stuff like that.
However, something important is missing, and it's something I'm having a very hard time finding advice for, in part because it's so counterintuitive for an RPG to facilitate this, and partially because it's almost un-Google-able for a bunch of reasons.
Namely, characters do a lot of stuff just because they want to, whether that's playing with friends or visiting places or the like, and the interactions that they have based off of that, or the wrinkles that occur when magic derails those moments, can be excellent fodder for larger stories as well as great moments for developing characters and their relationships.
However, that can be really hard to integrate into an RPG, even as just short scenes building up to a larger story, for two main reasons. One, where a TV show can show the main character doing something because they're already setting up for the twist to come, a player playing a main character isn't necessarily privy to that information, and thus naturally wouldn't be inclined to go do that stuff if they don't think an interesting twist on the scenario will happen. Second, and the reason the first matters as much as it does - even stuff that's fun to watch and fun to be part of can be boring to play out if there isn't a mechanical mechanism through which to make it engaging for the player.
So I want to fix those problems such that pursuing fun for the character can be fun for the player as well. Having outlined our two main problems, the next step is to solve them.
The first one seems comparatively easy, especially given the kind of game Fate is - discuss with the player during session planning if we want to do a story featuring a particular place, character, or inciting event, and then boom, the character can go towards that element for fun, while the player knows that some twist is coming and can relax and play full tilt into their unaware character as it builds up. Boom, easy as pie.
The second one is harder, though. Rewarding taking time to have fun as your character is easy, and reasonably well-covered by Fate - it's easy to frame that in terms of creating Aspects that represent positive emotional vibes with the person you're spending time with, or personal happiness because you did something you like, or if you roll poorly maybe you get stomach cramps after eating too much pizza, or whatever. However, I worry that that may not be engaging enough. But on the other end of the idea spectrum, representing it as contests or conflicts where the enemy to be defeated is boredom or stress seems... maybe too silly to work, but possibly promising? I dunno.
So I'm really curious to hear what you guys think! Any ideas of your own, or input on the things I've tossed out so far, would be greatly appreciated.