So I've been really interested in the Dresden RPG for awhile, but it was pretty unlikely that I was going to find anyone running a game for me to play, so I said screw it, I'll GM one. I've never GMed a tabletop RPG before, but I'm a quick learner and good at improvising, and it seemed like the players carry more weight in this system than in most RPGs, so I figured I could do it.

5 of my friends were immediately interested in playing, so I thought awesome, full party.

The night before our first meeting, one of my best friends lets me know he'd also like to play, so that brings us up to 6. Okay, getting a bit large, but I can deal with that.

Then the night of the first meeting, 3 people each bring a friend and say "Oh, I told him about the game and he was really interested, can he join?" without letting me know beforehand. I'm too nice of a guy to send people home, but 9 people is kind of ridiculous for a party, so I start thinking. Finally, I come up with a good idea that everybody loves:

We all did city/character creation as a big group, and the first game session (next week) will be basically a giant action scene involving all 9 of them. The resolution of that play session will reveal a couple different possible campaign leads, at which point the party will decide to split up to tackle both of them simultaneously. I'll be running 2 games a week, one with a group of 5, and one with a group of 4.

For major plot events and action scenes, I'm planning for the parallel campaigns to cross and having all of us meet at once and play together. Most of the players I'm GMing for play World of Warcraft, so I said "sort of like raids" and they were sold instantly.  

I love this idea, and so did my players. I'll be sure to update when we find out if it's a success or a catastrophe.

Or, you know, cast 2 wards both keyed with human blood. One is keyed to only affect humans and is crafted not to reflect anything, and the other affects everything but humans and is crafted to be very lethal.

Sir, I find your ideas intriguing and wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

I'm of the opinion that wards only count if they were designed with the intent to kill. That's what magic is about anyway, intent.

I mean, one somewhat related example I noticed while rereading Changes today:


So basically, I would only count defensive magic as breaking the first law if it's being employed with full intention of lethal consequences.

From Rick Neal's Blog (which is seriously the best source I've seen on DFRPG info):

I’ll let you in on a secret: I’m on the fence about potions. I think they might just be a little too good, compared to enchanted items. See, they work pretty much like enchanted items, with the following differences:

    * You must allocate an enchanted item slot to a potion, but you get to decide every session what potion is in that slot.
    * You only ever get to use a potion once.
    * Anyone can use a potion once it’s been created.
    * You can leave the slot allocated for a potion empty at the start of a session, and fill it with a potion that you just happen to have prepared that fits the situation. Doing this requires you to either pay a Fate Point to have the convenient potion, or succeed at a Lore roll.
    * When you create a potion, or when you use it, you can boost the strength by +2 for every Aspect you invoke (with the normal Fate Point cost). You can even take compels in advance to get this boost.
    * If you allocate extra enchanted item slots to a single potion slot, the strength of the potion you create and carry in that slot increases by one for every extra enchanted item slot allocated.

So, really, the only downside to potions is that you can only use each one once, while the upside is extreme flexibility, far beyond what enchanted items offer. Of course, that may be why Wizards are so famous for their magic potions…

As with enchanted items, any effect you like can be stored in a potion, with the strength limited by your Lore skill. Here are a few samples, again using our example Wizard’s Lore of Great (+4):

   

Quote

Shadow Juice

    This dark liquid makes the drinker hard to see or hear for a scene.

    Duration: One scene

    Effect: The drinker moves with a Stealth of Great (+4) for one scene

Quote

    Bottled Confidence

    While not actually making the drinker more attractive, this potion gives them an air of confidence and comfort that draws people to them.

    Duration: One scene

    Effect: The user gains the sticky Aspect Magnetic Confidence. The first tag is free; thereafter, the user must pay Fate Points, as usual.

Quote

    Aqua Regia

    This powerful, mystic solvent can be sprayed at a target as an attack.

    Duration: Instantaneous

    Effect: Acts as a Weapon:4 attack. It is equally effective against flesh and inanimate material, dissolving both rather speedily and messily. Must be applied with the successful use of a relevant skill.

That's a really good writeup, R_C.