The Dresden Files > DFRPG

I've never played a table-top, pencil and paper RPG...

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otacon 01:
Well, at least not that I remember (much of)...

But I've played some video game RPGs before.  Should The Dresden Files be easy to get into for me, or is there a learning curve?

(I've thought about getting into D&D lately, but I'm thinking about just waiting for the The Dresden Files.  Two different and new systems might be kind of confusing.)

finarvyn:
There is a bit of a learning curve, but it's not too bad. (Especially if you can find someone to learn with you, or someone experienced to show you the way.)

Basically, all paper-and-pencil RPGs are the same. One person in the group imagines a world (or takes one from another source, such as a book or movie) and the other players create characters to interact with the world. It's kind of like playing "cops and robbers" with your friends growing up, only there are some rules to guide the action to avoid the "shot you!" "did not!" arguments. Some games are heavy into rules and dice rolls, others are lighter on the dice, and some don't use dice at all.

If you're thinking about D&D you might try a game called Castles & Crusades by Troll Lord Games. It's a simplified version of D&D, costs less, and gets rid of the some of the rules-heavy nature of the game. I was a member of the playtest team and I think it's a superior product to D&D, but I admit bias in the matter.

If you're thinking about Dresden Files RPG you might try a game called Spirit of the Century by Evil Hat Games. It uses a system similar to DF except for the magic system which is still a secret.

If you're not sure about RPGs at all, there are some free resources out there that you might try. Google a game called FUDGE or a game called FATE and you should be able to download some freebies to read. (Dresden Files is based on FATE-3.)

There are also places where you can download PDF versions of game rulebooks for about half the cost of a paper copy, so that would be another inexpensive way to get into the hobby.

Most RPG companies also have message boards which you can join for free if you want to talk about their game and ask questions.

In general, RPGs can be pretty inexpensive if you stick to the basics. My advice is not to buy a bunch of modules or sourcebooks for a game until you really know if it's what you want to play long-term.

Hope this helps!

Abstruse:
I always described them as free-form Choose Your Own Adventure books...where you can do whatever you want and aren't just given two or three choices.

First, you create a character.  How you do this varies depending on the rules of the game you're playing, but usually you choose what kind of character you want to play, then generate numerical stats that represent the basic abilities and skills of the character, typically divided into attributes (basic physical stats) and skills (learned abilities).  Attributes would be strength, speed/agility/dexterity, constitution/toughness, intelligence, wisdom, willpower, charisma/appearance, etc.  Skills would be something like fighting, lockpicking, gunfighting, negotiating, etc.

The gamemaster/referee/dungeonmaster (the term varies depending on the game, but it's the same role) creates the basic adventure or uses a published adventure.  This would contain the plot, the stats of any characters the other players don't control, maps of locations involved, etc.  Everyone sits around a table and the gamemaster describes what happens, and the players -- each controlling a character they have created -- tell what their characters do.  If they try to do something that has a chance of failing (trying to attack someone, pick a lock, lie to someone, repair something, etc.), they make a roll using a die or dice (the type depends on the game being played.  Shadowrun uses plain old 6-sided dice, while D&D uses a vast array of multisided dice including dice with 4, 8, 10, 12, or 20 sides and Vampire: The Masquerade uses only dice with ten sides) and the roll of the dice is compared to the skill or attribute appropriate to the task and the result is compared to a target number that varies based on the difficulty of the action.  The results indicate how well or poorly the character has performed.

Here's a brief example of a game using D&D-type rules but set in a modern day:

GM = Gamemaster, P1 = Player 1, P2 = Player 2, P3 = Player 3

GM: You walk into the bar.  Your nostrils burn at the thick cigarette and cigar smoke filling the air.  You glance down at the photograph you were given and scan the bar for the woman.  You can't seem to see her, but it's very dark.

P1: How many people are there?

GM: A dozen.  There's a group of four in the corner, two guys and a girl at the pool table, a blonde at the jukebox, two men at the bar, a bartender, and a waitress.

P2: Can we tell if any of the girls are her?

GM: Make a perception test to see if you can tell.

*The GM sets a target number of 15 based on the smoke and the dim light.  Each player rolls a 20-sided die and adds their modifiers for a perception test.  Player 1 rolls a 12, but he gets +4 to the roll which makes the result 16 and thus meeting or exceeding the target number.  Everyone else also succeeds at the roll*

GM: You look closely around the bar and realize that none of the women here is the woman you're looking for.

P2: I'm going to go to the bartender and ask him.

GM <in a deep, gruff voice playing the bartender>  What can I get you?

P2: Just a coke.

GM: He pulls out a glass that still has spots on it and starts filling it from the gun dispenser.

P2: I slide a fifty on the counter along with the picture of the girl.  Have you ever seen this girl?

GM: He takes the fifty, makes change, then sets it on the counter.  <adopting the bartender voice>  I don't know no one, understand?  I ain't about to tell nothing on anyone that comes in here and we don't like people askin' questions round here.

P3: I let my jacket fall open and show him the gun I'm wearing.

GM: Make a perception roll.

*This time, the GM has set a target number of 10 (very easy) to notice the bartender's hand going under the counter, but also a target number of 20 to notice the men at the bar and pool table taking notice and looking over.  The players all roll modified rolls over 10 but under 20 except for P1, who rolls a modified number of 23.  The GM passes him a note saying that he has noticed the men taking notice so that the others won't know.*

P1: Oh &#^$.

GM: Are you saying that or does your character?

P1: Both.

P2: We're in trouble, aren't we?

GM: You all notice that the bartender's hand has gone under the bar slowly.

P3: I draw my gun.

GM: Everyone roll initiative.

All players: *groan*

*Initiative is a roll, usually based on speed or agility but sometimes including intelligence in order to determine the order everyone takes their actions in.  P1 rolls highest, followed by Pool Guy 1, then Bar Guy 1, then P3, then Bartender, then Pool Guy 2, then P2, and finally Bar Guy 2.*

GM: Okay, what do you do?

P1: I charge at the guy with the pool cue and tackle him.

GM: Which one?

P1: The closest one.

GM: Roll your attack.

*P1 rolls his 20-sided die, adding his modifiers for attacking in order to try to roll higher than the opponent's defense score, which is based on any armor or protection he might be wearing and his ability to dodge attacks.  He rolls a 13, plus a modifier of +3 to attack, gets him a roll of 16.  The GM doesn't tell him the defense score of his opponent though, only if he hit or not.  The man's defense is 14, so the attack succeeds. 

GM: You hit, roll your damage.

*P1 then makes a damage roll based on the attack used to determine how much he has hurt or injured the man he is attacking.  Since the damage roll was high and the circumstances warrant it, the GM rolls to see if the man drops his pool cue, using the stats on his sheet.  The GM rolls his dice behind a three-fold cardboard screen so that the players can't see the roll.  The roll fails, and the thug drops his pool cue.*

GM: You fly into the man, your shoulder driving into his stomach.  He falls against the pool table and you hear a loud crunching noise as his pool cue clatters to the ground.  Next, the man you just hit.  He punches you *the GM rolls an attack roll behind a screen based on the player's defense score of 17 due to his long leather duster that has plates of armor in it.  He rolls a 9, which with an additional +3 to attack still isn't enough to score a hit*  The blow glances off the edge of your coat, and you can barely feel it.  Next up is the bar guy.  He picks up his stool and swings it at you *indicating player 2.  He rolls, and it succeeds.*  Ouch.  He hits you across your back and does *rolls damage* three points of damage.  *the player marks off three points of damage on his sheet, which is out of the 8 points he can take before he's incapacitated or dying*  It's your turn.

P3: Did I already draw my gun?

*Players are typically limited in what they can do in each round of combat, usually one movement-type action and one attack-type action.  Drawing a weapon is usually a movement-type action.  You can usually, depending on the game system, sacrifice one of the two to get an extra of the other, IE not move but get two attacks or not attack, but move twice as far or draw your weapon while moving*

GM: Yes, you got it out before the crap hit the fan.

P3: I take a few steps back and shoot at the bartender.

GM: Roll your attack.

*The player makes his attack roll of 13 plus a modifier of +4, giving him a total of 17.  The bartender's defense is only 14, but the GM determines that since visibility is bad due to the dim light and smoke and since his character is moving, a -4 modifier to the attack is warranted, making the modified roll a 13*

GM: You barely miss, and the bullet strikes the wall behind him shattering a bottle of Johnny Walker.

P3: Red Label?

GM: Black.

P3: Crap!

GM: It's the bartender's attack.  *The GM rolls for the bartender's sawed-off shotgun -- which makes it easier to hit but decreases the damage.  He rolls a 19, plus 6 for his attack roll and modifier from the gun, minus 4 for the visibility and another minus 4 for firing blind from under the bar nets him a final result of 17, which is exactly P3's defense.*  It's a hit, for...*he rolls damage, then winces* 10 points.

P3: Well, it was lovely people.  I'll go to the store for some snacks.  Anyone want anything?

P1: You're out?

P3: Only 7 hit points.  I'm done.

GM: That puts you at negative 3.  If you get medical attention quickly, you might still live.  But you're out of this fight.  I'd like some doritos.

And that's just a basic example.  It'd go on like this until everyone got tired and went home or until the complete story was done.  Notice that, even though his character "died", the GM did whatever he could to make sure that the character didn't die for good.  He may be out of the adventure for now, but he'll be back.  I hope that helps some...and don't worry about the exact rules...I was playing a little loose with them in order to try to keep from re-writing the entire rulebook here.  Have fun!

The Abstruse One
Darryl Mott Jr.

The Last Bean:
yeah, that's a pretty good example of a typical game... only difference between that and my Cthluhu game is that nobody had enough tentacles in Abstruse's bar, and I don't like doritos.

One thing to mention, if you're just getting into pen and paper you might want to consider waiting for Dresden to hit rather than getting started on DnD, especially if Dresden is what you're really interested in playing. D&D and FATE are drastically different systems, and I've noticed that learning one can make it a bit harder to learn the other, especially for people who are new to pen and paper.

For a zombie survival game I ran recently, I used FATE because it was to be a short game full of fighting, and FATE seems to run faster in large-scale combat for me, and is in my experience a little more fun when you're only going to be doing 3 or 4 games and there won't really be much leveling. I ended up with 6 players, four of whom had played DnD extensively. The other two had no experience with pen and paper RPGs.

We were able to do character creation in under 30 minutes and come up with some really interesting characters. I was able to to a rundown of the rules, and take us through all the different aspects of play (mental exercises, skill uses, aspect uses, and combat) during the introductory game, which also brought the party together and set up the plot. The entire time between when I showed up to their apartment and when we switched to homework was only about 3 hours.

The really interesting thing is that the newbies actually picked up the system faster than the DnD players. They were having a really hard time with the idea of rerolls, and it took some of them two games to get the idea of being more descriptive with their character's actions, which is a really important part of FATE, and of the exchange based combat that FATE uses as a basic combat system. ( P3: "What do you mean I take damage? I was attacking him!" DM: "So, that doesn't mean he can't protect himself by throwing his fist into your face. It certainly would be the best way to deal with this.) 

So yeah. If your DM understands what's going on with the system and is good at summarizing you can probably learn FATE in less than an hour of play, a bit longer if your DM lacks the above qualities or is using a more complex set of supplemental rules (like a magic system).

DnD takes a while longer to learn because the rules are much more complex: compartmentalized and situation-specific, as compared to FATE's use of the same basic roll for almost every situation. There's a bit more number crunching and looking through books and tables involved in creating a DnD character, so getting your own copy of the player's handbook is a really good idea. As a player you probably don't need much else unless you're planning to play a summoner-type character or a druid, then you might want to pick up a Monster Manual so you don't have to steal the DM's copy.

As for which one you'll enjoy more, kinda hard to say. DnD is much more of a strategy game. It's balancing numbers and specific abilities, and knowing when to use what to have the best chance of victory. The personality of the character is integral to telling a good story, just as any pen and paper, but such character quirks have little effect on the mechanics. This provides a very stable gameplay experience, and all that is required to keep things balanced is to follow the rules.

FATE on the other hand is almost completely character driven. The numbers aspect of the game is extremely light, with the player's descriptions being very important to maintaining an interesting play experience. in Abtruse's example, rather than P3 simply saying "I step back and shoot the bartender", he would be expected to come up with something more like "I duck behind the nearest table as I unload three shots from my revolver, aiming for the Bartender's hand. I want him alive but I don't feel like being ventilated."  Then he would make an opposed skill roll against the bartender's firearms skill to see who hits who. Success is grey rather than black in white, in this example ranging from hitting the bartender somewhere else, through to taking off his index finger as he reaches for the gun. While the rules make power gaming difficult, without any hard limits set by the rules it is entirely up to the DM to say "no" at the right times to avoid letting things get unbalanced. The task also falls to the players to spend their time trying to make an interesting character and story, rather than trying to beat the system. A level of trust and respect is necessary between players and DM, since most of the ruling is somewhat arbitrary.



However you decide to play, remember that the real goal with any game is to have fun. Don't let yourself get too wrapped up in beating the system or learning every nuance of the rules if they're keeping you from enjoying yourself.

-Ean

otacon 01:
Wow guys, thanks a lot for your posts.  I really appreciate them.

D&D and FATE are drastically different systems, and I've noticed that learning one can make it a bit harder to learn the other, especially for people who are new to pen and paper.

I was kinda worried about that, so I might hang off of D&D for a while.  I'll probably check out FATE or just wait for TDF.

It's supposed to come out this year, inn't?

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