I think this is tricky because the list, while exhaustive, has so many different flavors. Telling one player to watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and another to read "30 Days of Night" might create a disfunctional gaming team since they have such different notions of what a vampire might be in a Dresden campaign.

As such, I would try to limit the list to the essentials rather than expand it to everything which could be somehow modified with magic to become Dresden-ified.

When I talk to my non-enlightened players I list off a few key sources, with the idea that popular is better than obscure.

They could watch (pretty much in this order):
1. Dresden Files (TV series)
2. Charmed (TV series)
3. Supernatural (TV series)
4. Buffy and/or Angel (TV series)

If they want to read about this kind of thing, I add a few books (pretty much in this order):
1. Dresden Files by Jim Butcher (duh)
2. Diana Tregarde trilogy by Mercedes Lackey
3. Vampire series by Fred Saberhagen
4. Rachel Morgan series by Kim Harrison
5. Anita Blake series by Laurel K. Hamilton

Again, long lists can be neat if you are trying to come up with every idea you can use to create a campaign, but for players I'd try to limit to a small list of the best....

Just my two cents.

Is this going to be a system that will be easily used and welcomed by players familiar only with a small handful of systems (mostly D20, nWoD, SWD6, and GURPS)?

Short answer: no.

You are going to have to train your players a little first. The game systems you listed off are somewhat traditonal RPGs with a lot of rules and charts to work from. FATE (derived from the old FUDGE system) is more open-ended and gives both players and GM a lot more options. FATE is more "storytelling" in nature as well, and players who are used to mindlessly rolling dice based on a character sheet full of numbers will find that FATE won't make sense at first.

My training was in 1970's OD&D, before the rules explosions occured and rulebooks became encyclopedias of rules and exceptions. Many RPGs today are like legal documents and rules lawyers interpret and enforce the rules to the letter of the law. My players never really did this so the jump to FATE was a pretty smooth one, but if your players are rules-sticklers they may object at first. Traditional RPGs give you lines of data. FATE, FUDGE, and similar games tend to have you use actual words (or catch-phrases) to describe what you can do and allow the players and GM to interpret your abilities as play unfolds. Scary at first, yes, but worthwhile at the end.

Storytelling games are at their heat about trust in the GM. As a situation develops the GM has to decide on-the-fly how difficult the task or how significant the modifier, and there aren't pages of charts to rely upon. Players have to trust that the GM will make a good ruling and play can continue. At the saem time, the GM has to trust that players will run a character instead of a pile of numbers. The game becomes more collaborative as the GM gives up some control of the story and the players embrace it.

A different question would have been "will my players enjoy FATE?" and I suspect that the answer is "yes". Most players I have encountered have to be re-taught a little first, but they seem to really enjoy the FATE experience once they figure out how it works.

So ... what can you do? Go to the FATE website, download FATE for free, and give it a look-over. Or pick up a copy of Spirit of the Century, which uses a similar system, is by the same basic creative team, helps line their pockets will much-needed cash, and will give you a feel for how FATE works.

Hope that helps a little. 

Pretty cool stuff, Savage. Thanks for sharing them with us! 

This is an excellent thread! 

On one hand you've got Dresden ... no one knows about this stuff.

On the other hand you've got Fringe or X-Files ... the government knows and is covering it up.

Throw in a pinch of Delta Green and you've got a supercampaign!

Brilliant!

I don't think folks really think about how tough the game stores and game publishers have it at the moment. I have a friend who owned a bookstore that sold games and the amount of product that "mysteriously vanished" during a year was staggering. And then places like B&N and Sam's Club would sell a new book at the same or cheaper cost than what she could get it from the distributors. No profit that way! Finally she had to close up, which was a huge loss to me and people in the area.

Personally, I like to support the smaller game companies like Evil Hat, Troll Lord Games and Rogue Games and local stores like Games Plus in Mt. Prospect, Illinois. (1) The smaller companies make good stuff. (2) The smaller companies tend to appreciate the customer more. (3) Hasbro is big enough and offers enough non-RPG titles that they don't need my money that much.

So ... while I could buy discount games I tend not to.

Just my two cents.

I know that Fred & Co. are already busy putting the final touches on the rpg and have no time for this, but here goes anyway.... 

When I go to game conventions I love to wear t-shirts that support whatever game I'm "into" at the moment. I think it is great free advertising and helps spread the word about a game because sometimes folks will stop and ask about the shirt.

What we need are DFRPG t-shirts, and the shirts being sold on Jim's website just don't grab me. I'd like to see one of the McGrath book covers on a shirt, or the image that will be used on the RPG cover. Something that would grab attention and really announce the arrival of the game at Origins (or whatever con people get to go to).

Just me talking out loud. Anyone listening? 

I was also considering using the DFRPG for other custom game settings, and was trying to feel out the crunch levels involved in converting other source material.

This is always a tricky thing to address. The quick answer is that it would be great for other custom game settings.

The longer answer is that it would require some tweaking, depending upon how exotic the setting. If you want to run Anita Blake, Buffy, Diana Tregarde, or other modern magic settings it should be a pretty quick conversion, but keep in mind that some of the balance might be off slightly. In other words, since DFRPG was designed for the Dresdenverse, certain elements might vary from one setting to another. For example, Ghouls in the Dresdenverse seem a heck of a lot nastier than in Anita Blake's world, but vampires are pretty comperable in both settings. It all depends upon what you're trying to do with it.

I'd just go with SotC rules as "quick start", knowing that magic won't quite fit. If you look at SotC you'll see that there are some rules at the front of the book and then much of the same material is repeated and expanded with more exhaustive detail. One could think of the first part of the book as QS rules. The basics of SotC and DFRPG will be similar enough that those same rules will work for you, at least for a while.

Looking at "Book 1, Playtester Prototype" rules I note that The Basics is pages 16-22. Here's what I see:
* Things you should have (generic supplies)
* What Are Fudge Dice?
* The Ladder
* Rolling the Dice
* Difficulty
* What's On Your Character sheet (skills, aspects, mortal stunts, supernatural powers)
* FATE points
* Refreshing FATE points
* Earniung new FATE points as you play

So far, pretty standard FATE stuff.

The "What's On Your Character Sheet" section has some example aspects, but otherwise not too much that's secret. In orther words, the obvious QS pages 16-22 wouldn't contain much new information that you can't get from the FATE download and/or buying the SotC rules. The "aspects" material is roughly 20 pages, and that wouldn't be in a QS rules set. Skills are about 25 pages. Stunts & Supernatural Powers another 40+ pages. Magic & Spellcasting another 80 pages. The best that a QS rules set could do is toss a sample couple your way, and that wouldn't comver many of the character options at all.

Just trying to put things in perspective. Go download FATE or buy SotC and "wing it" for a couple months until the final stages are complete....