Welcome to the game! This is where players can ask the GM (me) out-of-character questions about stuff like actions they want to take, rules to work over, etc.

My World's Lore: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/aelladore-rune-knight
My World's Pinterest Board (for Inspiration): https://www.pinterest.com/inkyblackshadow/aelladore/

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This message was last edited by the GM at 03:22, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

Minor announcement to those of you who've already RTJ'd: I realized my mistake in setting the PCs apart from one another on a power scale, and have instead decided to establish a universal skill cap of +5 and Fate/Refresh of 4, regardless of who you play as. The Avatar of the Dark God needn't worry, however, for I have created an Extra just for them; it should prove effective at conveying that "demigod" feeling.

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The players who have been accepted into the game are as follows:

• DreamSequence - Taphrodel (Avatar of the Dark God)
• RayFaustus - Lachlann Allaway (Companion)
• Dr. Schadenfreude - Astraea "Redblade" Heartfire (Companion)

I will be adding each of you into the game immediately after this announcement, so don't worry.


Additionally, I've seen a GM from another game offer a position to other players "on the bench" just in case there is attrition, so I would like to do the same. To those listed below here, understand that accepting a position on the bench does not guarantee you a place in the game anytime soon or possibly even ever; while any of you would be the first people I go to if someone has to drop out, please try not to expect anything - as a wise man once said, "Keep your expectations low, boy, and you will never be disappointed".

• LoonyLadle - Akasha

Alright, everyone! Without further ado, I think we can hit the ground running and start on finalizing the character creation process. Each of you have pretty much already gone ahead and assigned your skills and stunts, which is great, but the important thing we need to do before we can jump into the campaign proper is to do the Phase Trio.

Before we do that though, I want each of you to introduce yourselves in this thread, and to give a short synopsis of your character so that we're all on the same page. Just a paragraph should do, and you can all learn more about the nuances of your characters as we go along.

This is the time to get your characters in order, ask me questions about things that may become relevant, figure out how mechanics of things are going to work, and stuff like that. As stated before, don't hesitate to speak up if there's something you're unsure of.

Astraea, I will be posting an Extra for your character's sentient weapon immediately after this: go ahead and give it a review, and tell me what you think.

And that's all for my starting spiel; I'm excited to be going on this adventure with you all!

Hello my beautiful -minions- I mean Companions!  ;)

Here's the super quick physical description of Taphrodel from my RTJ:



How well are we all acquainted at the start of the game?  I've been imagining Taphrodel as a creature created rather than born, she's only existed for a very brief period despite physically looking like she's somewhere in her late teenage years.

Also I should mention here that I'm familiar with the FATE system more in theory than in actual practice, my experience is limited to two games here on RPoL that fizzled within the first couple of weeks.  So I've built a couple of characters but never really gotten into the actual meat and bones of gameplay, and I'll probably need a bit of handholding and kind tolerance while I figure out what the hell I'm doing.  :)

Super thrilled to be joining you all and very curious to see where this all ends up going!

You know, I think we somehow ended up with all of the players having pretty much the same level of experience with Fate. How coincidental.

So here's how it's going to go: Taphrodel was just created a few weeks or a few months ago - exactly when is unimportant to the narrative. Nihlia joined her pretty much immediately after, and then they began to do some roaming around and soon enough encountered the other two characters.

Once we're done with introductions, we'll finish the character creation process by doing the "Phase Trio", where each of you will briefly describe the beginning of a mini-adventure, and then the other characters will contribute to that story to develop their aspects and create bonds with each other.

This is why I've given us a leeway of a few weeks or a few months; it gives the characters time to have met and experienced these mini-adventures to create those bonds, so that you're all a (mostly) cohesive team of adventurers who (mostly) want to look out for each other, at least.

Since Nihlia is a major companion NPC, I'm thinking of adding her to the roster for the Phase Trio, so once we get to that point I'll be able to give you an example of what it looks like in PbP.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:43, Sun 21 Nov 2021.

Greetings oh great and benevolent (?) overlord.

I hadn't actually finalised a description at the time of getting into the game and I'm sure I'll tweak this before locking it in, especially if I can't find a profile pic I like that fits:


Essentially she's someone who sold her soul to right an injustice and has regretted it ever since. Mostly. She's doing her best to find the upsides anyway.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:32, Mon 22 Nov 2021.

Hello everyone and hail to thee chosen vessel of the Dark One, long may you reign.
I will be playing Lachlann Allaway a charming stranger who just so happens to actually be the awakened spirit of a mandrake who has outlived its original master by drinking the blood of sorcerers.  After many years of this the alraune has become rather jaded and misanthropic, believing that the Dark One's vision of a dead world might be the best outcome.

Here is a little description of Lachlann's current appearance:

As the GM mentioned this will be my first time with the Core Fate rules so I beg your forbearance if it takes me a little while to really get how the system works.

Very interesting descriptions!

So am I reading you guys correctly, that you guys are imagining a very battle-skills character, and a very social skills character?

Something like that, yeah. Astraea is a mercenary turned household guard turned avenger with a mind-warping demon sword that thirsts for blood and carnage.

I'm not for a second thinking about playing a character who is all about combat or some kind of murder-goblin, but warfare and bloodshed are kinda unavoidable aspects of this character's nature and struggles.

You've got it.  Lachlann is meant to be very socially adept thanks to a mixture of skills and his glamour.  He's not nearly so capable in a fight, but I can use Magical Creature to poison people's minds, or in emergencies, unleash the Mandrake's legendary scream.

And to complete the trifecta, Nihlia is your resident tank/support, with an unnatural vitality and strength alongside her hexes and curses.

So, I'll explain the Phase Trio now, and once I can get to my computer I'll set it all up so we can knock it out.

As I described before, the Phase Trio is where each of you will begin a mini-adventure for your character, give them an aspect based on their experiences, and then hand that mini-adventure over to the next player so that they can have their character contribute. Were we at a physical table, we would be writing these down on index cards and passing those around, but I have developed a (mostly) foolproof way of keeping it organized in PbP.

So here's what going to happen: I'm going to create a thread for each of the party members, and name it "[name]'s Index Card". This is the imaginary index card upon which you will write a short description - about one (1) paragraph - of the beginning of your mini-adventure, leaving it open for the next character to jump in and complicate things. The important thing to note here is that whenever you contribute to the story of a mini-adventure - either starting your character's own or complicating another character's - your character is the one who gains an aspect.

Now, some of you may already have thought of what your additional three aspects will be (cough cough lachlann cough); that is perfectly alright - in fact, it's perfect. Simply use the name of your intended aspect to inform the events in such a way that your character gets that aspect during whatever mini-adventure they are affecting.

If there's anything you're still unsure of, maybe see if the entry in the SRD will help: https://fate-srd.com/fate-core/phase-trio. Otherwise, you can ask me. Like I said, I will be able to show you what I mean once I get Nihlia's index card written up.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:53, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

Alright, the index cards are up. when it comes to contributing to other's cards, don't be afraid to ask for suggestions if you're stumped, or to collaberate with whoever's card you're working on to come to an agreeable outcome.

To make sure I understand how this works: my choice for this first aspect has to be explored through a story that could feasibly involve Taphrodel (i.e. have occured within the last few months, not before)?

That is the general framework, yes - it needs to happen during a time when the other PCs can be included. If you're looking to make an aspect about something that happened to your character before then, a simple way to do that is to show the effects of her past experiences informing her recent behaviors and decisions.

If that doesn't work, then we can discuss whatever it is in more detail to see if we can come up with an exact solution. Should that be the case, simply tell us what aspect you are trying to achieve and we can go from there.

That's totally fine. I was just looking to make sure, not raising it because it was an issue.

Btw, what do you think of the write-up that I did for Deavante? Is there anything that you think should be changed, or is it close enough to what you were imagining?

First time actually using the Phase Trio system so let me know if that should be more in-depth or anything needs changing.  I tried to leave it open so the next person can take the story in whatever direction they wish to.

Those prompts were great, thank you Lachlann. I will say, the child sorceress thing definitely took it from 0 to 100 real fast, but I'm confident it will turn out fine for all parties.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:04, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

Heh, I'm glad they work at least.  I figured if you're going to have an aspect about being a monster you might as well make it's associated story address what that could mean and explore the morality of it a bit.

Just in general I'd prefer that we take the story somewhere other than actually killing the little girl since that pushes way more toward true malevolence than the sort of resigned contempt for human vice that I'm aiming for.  We could just as easily get pulled away by something else or find another source of magically infused blood he can sustain himself on.  I just thought it made for a good motivational push to explore the limits of what we as a group consider 'too evil' and start building our dynamic.

Hey all.

Unfortunately I probably won't be getting anything up any time soon. I'm sending this from bed because as the day's gone on I've come over exhausted and shivery despite being all bundled up, and as is I've spent most of the last couple of hours in and out of sleep despite it only being the middle evening.

Hopefully this'll pass and I'll be more alert in a bit, but the rest of the day might be a write-off :(

That's alright, take all the time you need to recover.

Booooo, sick sucks.  Get better soonest!

Well that was far from my most restful sleep but I definitely feel better for it. Not totally better but better nonetheless, so that's nice.

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I've only got 2/3 of my entries up as I'm still thinking about my approach for the third and how to make it fit with the Aspect I have in mind. Later today hopefully.

It'd be no problem for me to go back to my own starter and round it out to actually have a defined ending, but I thought it might be more interesting/helpful to let other people decide how the party resolved the situation.

Great entries, Astraea.

During the Phase Trio, each player is only meant to contribute to any one index card a single time - including their own. This means that you begin your character's mini-adventure, but you need to trust and cooperate with the people who define it's middle and ending.

As you can see from the table, Nihlia (I) will be finishing off Astraea's mini-adventure, and Astraea happens to be finishing off Nihlia's mini-adventure in turn.

I'm the slacker!  :)

But I'm working on mine this afternoon, I should have it posted tonight.

I'm glad to hear you're feeling at least marginally better Astraea!

No rush Taphrodel, though I'll admit that I'm very curious to see how the Messiah handles the little party dispute happening on my card.  ^-^

It's my turn at Taphrodel's index card now; I should be able to get a post up later today.

Right, okay. I think I badly misunderstood the example in the rulebook and thought it said the person who started the story set out how it ended at the same time, with the other two taking steps to explain how it got there.

Thanks for clearing that up :)

I'm not entirely certain I'm doing aspects exactly right, feel free to offer suggestions for improvements if anybody has any!  :)

I think you're in the right sort of ballpark. Aspects certainly aren't easy, and I had to run mine by the GM a few times (and 'borrow' some of their ideas) before I felt at all happy with them.

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It isn't the same as the one you've put forward so might not fit the design space or characterisation you're going for, but I saw yours and came up with:

Aspect: “Six feet of pure concentrated catastrophe”

Invoke: When wielding power without a hint of restraint or regard for the consequences; When seeking to intimidate or inspire others through a show of overwhelming force; When no-selling threats through inhuman will alone.
Compel: When others turn against you for fear or hate; When you cause meaningful collateral damage in your recklessness; When you arrogantly overstep and fall afoul of unforeseen dangers.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:51, Thu 25 Nov 2021.

... omg, I like your version -so- much better  :D

Thankies. Obviously I'd want to check with the GM to make sure that's okay and not stepping on your Extra's toes at all, but I felt like there was more mileage in the image of a terrifying force of nature that obliterates everything in its path, all the while marking itself as something that must be dealt with and breaking things a lighter touch would have spared.

That new aspect looks good to me. I'm just confused about one thing:
I'm unfamiliar with the term "no-selling", could someone explain?

Sort of like shrugging something off.  Taking a hit but looking completely unaffected.

Wrestling term. Wrestlers have to 'sell' moves to the audience to make them look impactful as they're not actually trying to hurt each other, so to no-sell an attack is to simply not do that and make it look utterly ineffective.

It's that classic trope where anime big bads shrug off techniques that have felled previous antagonists or an implacable killer is barely slowed by being riddled full of bullets. We know that the incoming attack is supposed to be dangerous, so to see the target come out the other end all but unscathed puts across how tough/powerful/inhuman they are. Makes them look unstoppable.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:04, Thu 25 Nov 2021.

So I confess I'm having sort of a block, coming up with a third aspect for the last chapter of Lachlann's story.  Anyone have any fun suggestions?  :)

I'm not sure where you envision taking the character yet, but from my reading you currently have aspects that describe her nature (Otherworldly), and methodology (Six Feet of Pure Concentrated Catastrophe), but maybe the last one could speak to her motivations or goals?  That could help to define her relationship with her creator's ideals or even just express more of what she thinks about the future of her crusade.

EDIT Just spinning ideas out in that direction, but if you wanted to underscore the nihilistic aspects of the Dark One something like this might work:

Angel of Absence
Invoke:  When bringing silence to the world; When stillness can win the day; When expressing her divine mandate
Compel: When her burdens overwhelm her; When the chaos of the world enrages her; When she longs for the world to be silent.

This could lead to something as simple as the argument bothering her and pushing her to offer an immediate alternative.  Take some power from Nihlia or Taphrodel herself and just keep moving.  Don't let squabbles get in the way of the big picture.  It's really up to what sort of leader you want her to be though.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:57, Fri 26 Nov 2021.

It's good to see you guys helping each other out; one of my favorite things about Fate is how it encourages collaboration like this.

I like that general idea Lachlann, it's sort of slightly tangentially aligned with how I'd been envisioning Taphrodel's fundamental motivation in my RTJ:


I'm imagining now an aspect describing her impatience to keep the party always in motion towards resolving the Big Quest, her compulsion to keep the group's focus on task and her annoyance with frivolous distractions.  I'll get something like that moving this morning.  :)
This message was last edited by the player at 13:06, Mon 29 Nov 2021.

Heh, I like that quite a lot.  Sort of a sulkier more teenaged-sullenness inspired version of nihilism.  I can't figure out how to phrase it in a snappy way, but the concept is quite fun.  "When I gazed into the abyss, it shrugged."  ...and maybe rolled over.

That's going to be fun given that Astraea is team "Hey maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing if we failed at the whole destroy the world business..."

... yeah, that's going to be interesting.  Taphrodel is absolutely a 100% True Believer.  :)

To be honest it shouldn't be that much of an issue given that Astraea's chief virtue is loyalty. She's sworn to serve and will ultimately always cede to your will (however begrudgingly) even though she's someone whose ideals and motivations are far more attached to the evil that hates evil aspect of the Dark God than the world's demise. Deep down she expects us to fail and that she'll face a reckoning for her sins, or at least hopes for it, but that doesn't mean she'll actively go seeking that end or undermine the efforts of the power that actually gave her the strength to change the world.

Well, it would appear that we are finished with the Phase Trio. Congratulations, everyone!

I've already finished most of the prep for the first Scenario, so I should be able to get the introductory post for the game done in a few days from now. Until then, discuss as you like, ask some more questions before we begin in earnest, or simply hold tight.

We make an interesting spectrum, since Lachlann is sort of on the pragmatic side of the crusade.  As a creature that was created to exploit human foibles and weaknesses he's developed into a dedicated misanthrope over the years and really just wants all of humanity (and it's various cousins) to stop.  He'll be unfailingly devoted to the Messiah so long as he believes she can bring that silent future just a little closer.  It helps just a little that she's a powerful magical being as well.  As a former familiar/fetch/servitor spirit he's very comfortable falling into old habits and tending to a master.  The lack of direction that came of not having someone to guide him may or may not be one of the primary reasons he fell so deeply into ennui in the first place.

Since it's something I mentioned to the GM before the game started, if Taphrodel would prefer her companions to be more of a matching set Lachlann can very easily change to look like a woman.  The creature underneath is quite literally a dried up old root so the fixings don't matter to it in the slightest.

Definitely don't change your character on my account!  Neither Taphrodel nor I are particular either way.

Heh, then for the sake of not messing pronouns up too often in my writing I'll leave Lachlann as a he for now.  Glamour restructuring is still available if a roving band of dark priestesses is ever needed at some point though. ^-^

No game post quite yet, friends, but I do have a few updates to give you.

After being notified of a discrepancy and then thinking it over, I've decided to take the Drive skill and split it into two different skills - Ride and Sail. Ride is for controlling mounted steeds and animal-drawn carriages, while Sail is for helming waterborne vessels and doing other naval activities; operating airships and their like, however, is a niche specialty requiring dedicated training, and will thus require a stunt. I don't see any of you having or needing airship skills, and I'm thinking the stunt will be locked to those who are Veil-Touched anyway, so don't worry about that too much.

With this new change to skills, I'll allow you all to change what you need to in order to accommodate for it; you'll probably only need to change the word "Drive" to the word "Ride", if you even had it in the first place.

I haven't been spending all of this time doing nothing; the main thing I've been working on fleshing out before I make the first post is the lore on the first region you'll be finding yourselves in. It is mostly finished, so if any of you are interested then you can go ahead and take a look through the following link.

Dracarys Lore: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/a...ocation?preview=true

For the final note of this update, I recently remembered a story element that I was thinking of implementing to add a potential little story thread. For now, I'm calling it The Book of Demons - a codex of all of the demons that your party is looking to help, as well as their last known area of summoning/spawning and maybe a few clues for each. It's just a little thing, but it will be an object with an aspect all it's own which we'll be able to invoke and compel as we need to. Nihlia would have been holding it initially and may likely still be holding on to it for the rest of you, but she would have given it and/or will give it to Taphrodel if she ever asked/asks.

And with that, I've finally finished the prep enough to get us started! Make sure to introduce your characters - describe how they look, have them talk with each other a bit, things like that - keep in mind, though, that I'm only allowing each of you to take one (1) action, if any, before the party flotilla arrives. Gotta keep the pace going somehow, after all.

Quick update: it would seem that I was not on quite the same page with Astraea, so I'm going to be editing out Deavante's dialogue. For now, treat it as if he never spoke.

In case some of you weren't aware, I finished editing the introductory posts a while ago; you are all free to post now.

I'm aware people are probably waiting on me, I'm typing up a post this morning.  No problems or anything on my end, our official Game On moment just happened to fall at the start of a super crowded weekend.  :)

I'm not waiting for anyone per se, I just needed a bit of a space after everything the GM and I talked about behind the scenes on Saturday and then yesterday was A Lot.

I'm also aiming to get something up today.

Just trying to get a litmus test for how everyone was doing; I certainly took the time I needed to get ready, and I'm more than happy to extend you all the same curtesy.

Weekends tend to be very busy for me, so I haven't had a chance to think about what I'd like to be doing for my first post yet.  Once Taphrodel has had a chance to answer Nihlia I'll be all set to start though!

Okay. I have a post ready but I'm very happy to shelve it and make edits/start over if someone else (Taphrodel?) wants to go first and set the tone and direction.

Just lemme know tomorrow if anyone wants priority - or post in-character if you'd rather get the message across that way. That'd work too.

Beat me to it, GM. I was going to ask here if we had any roundabout idea of numbers but you've saved me the trouble :)

I just realized that we haven't discussed how OOC chat in the IC threads should work, so I've devised a method that should let you guys talk about actions you want to take and dice rolls you've made in your posts while still maintaining the narrative flow for any readers, which I like to try and keep in mind.

I've added each of you to Private Group 1, which I've named "OOC"; when you want to say stuff that would normally be "orange text" info, you should be able to make it Private to Group OOC. Doing so will let I and all of the other players see it, but not any readers.

I'll try and use it for you guys right below here, so if any of you don't see a private message here, then tell me.

As for your action, Taphrodel, you can certainly Take It All In right now, and I'll include the flotilla in that ping. Go ahead and roll Notice v.s. passive opposition of +2.

If you're unfamiliar with how to use the dice roller for Fate dice - or if any one else is - the dice used for Fate are a unique type referred to as "fudge" dice. You can either use those, or just roll d6s, which Fate has a simple conversion for; either way, make sure that it's "4dX+X", and that the "show each die" option is toggled on.

EDIT: Actually, I just discovered that I can set the default settings for the dice roller, and I've gone ahead and set it to do 4 die Fudge; all you have to do from now on is plug in the reason for your roll (including the skill you're using) and we can just add any bonuses after (usually just your skill bonus as a base).
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:38, Tue 07 Dec 2021.

I can see your Private Group note just fine.  :)

Taphrodel rolls to use her stunt...

09:40, Today: Taphrodel rolled -1 using 4 Fudge dice with rolls of 0, -1, 1, -1.  Notice to "Take It All In".

... with a Notice skill of +2 is a total of +1.

Thanks. Looks like you'd have to spend another Fate point to add a +2 or reroll if you want to succeed, otherwise I'm afraid you won't glean anything much for this use of Take It All In. You don't have to spend another Fate point; just emphasizing that choice so that you can properly weigh your options.

Oooo.  How much do I have to succeed by to get the benefit?

I can see the message as well.  Seems a nice tidy way to keep things separate.

EDIT:  Would it be possible to roll Lore or something to try and recall how Dracarys' leaders have reacted to aggression in the past?
This message was last edited by the player at 17:47, Tue 07 Dec 2021.

Taphrodel, you had to get a +2 or higher, so invoking for a +2 bonus would get you over the hurdle. Invoking to reroll the dice would be a gamble, but has the potential of adding more aspects to the scene (though you'd still only receive a free invocation on one of these aspects, as noted by the stunt). Whatever you choose, make sure to edit your character's "biography" to reflect how you've spent at least one Fate point.

Lachlann, you can do that, yeah. Lore to Overcome; the better you roll, the more detail I'll give you.

Sounds good!  I'll insert the roll into my post in a private line for the practice, but the total with my Lore is +4.  Just so I can conceptualize the system a bit better, would it be appropriate to then take that knowledge and make a plan based on it using Create Advantage or would that be a different sort of action?  If there were an appropriate Aspect already on the 'nation' of Dracarys (so to speak) would that be found with Overcomes like this?

Your result is considered "great", Lachlann, so I'll give you some "great" information.

In this specific case, your target isn't really a part of Dracaryan aristocracy; he's just a well-known mercenary, so his name carries only about as well as the nobles that he's invited to the party. Attacking him isn't really an affront to any of the Dragon Knights, and even slighting any of the low-level players who are also attending would really only gain the ire of their individual clans - it's not like a full-fledged Dragon Knight will be there, after all.

In general, when your party arrives at a settlement, you'll have to maintain a low profile if you don't want to be bothered. Mostly staying in city underbellies or traveling through surreptitious bylines and passageways will be your normal mode of travel from point A to point B in these places. You will be able to venture into wealthier and more patrolled areas often enough, though, and as long as you don't alert a Dragon Knight to the fact that a group of powerful dark magic users are making moves in their territory, then you should be fine.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:57, Tue 07 Dec 2021.

Overcome is used for uncertain outcomes where it must be decided whether or not something happens, or how well something is done: can you jump the fence, can you convince the guard, things like that.

Create an Advantage (or CaA, for short) is used for both creating new aspects and for exposing an aspect that already exists on an applicable target.

When you create a new aspect, it lasts for exactly as long as it would logically last, which may mean that it's only there for a scene or two, or that it lasts for multiple sessions and even Scenarios until it ends up being resolved.

When it comes to exposing an existing aspect, all aspects in the game should technically be available for you all - as players - to see, as well as to invoke and compel for Fate points. The way I reveal most aspects that are in play is when I invoke or compel them - I'll say something along the lines of "I'm invoking this character's aspect related to X".

Using the Create an Advantage action does three things: it makes your character look cool and competent, it allows you to invoke a certain aspect a number of times for free, and it also gives a strong narrative reason/foreshadowing for the aspect to be invoked and compelled in the first place.

To answer your question about the nation itself and it's aspect(s), I hadn't thought yet about what aspect to put on Dracarys as a whole, but I think there would be at least one that goes something along the lines of One Nation, Many Rulers.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:00, Tue 07 Dec 2021.

Sure, I'll spend one more for +2, as long as I'm already here.  :)

Well that took a lot longer than I'd expected/hoped. Sorted now anyway.

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I'm wondering if I could perhaps use my action to get some more information on Vulcan K'sarak, mercenaries being one of Astraea's fields of expertise after all. Maybe some details that might help flesh out a sense of his influence, achievements, common backers etc to give us an idea of what we could be up against in the longer term if he and/or his buddies remain a threat.

I'm not sure what I'd be rolling for that sort of thing though. Any advice?

Ooh ooh ooh!  I know this one!

I think?  xD  Let's see how well I've absorbed the rules!

You could either roll a straight-up Lore roll, or invoke your Warhound aspect to know good stuff about mercenaries automatically?

Taphrodel, for your success on Take It All In, you may discover or create one (1) aspect for the scene, and you gain one (1) free invocation on that aspect for when you need it. I haven't created any specific aspects on this scene quite yet, so why don't you create one? It could be something about how the river is acting today, the nature/condition of the flotilla of ships, something about OE of the noble attending, or even something new about Vulcan himself, or anything else you can come up with.

Astraea, Taphrodel's guesses are correct; Lore would be a reasonable choice, but I can also see tings like Contacts for having heard from others before, as well as Empathy to say that you've actually witnessed or even met him before. Whichever you choose, it would be the Overcome action, I think. You also have the option of spending a Fate point to establish a story element - which I'll note, all of you have the ability to do at any time if you so choose - in which case you could add to or change an aspect on Vulcan.

Dice are rolled an stuck in the thread (+3/Good).

I could've gone with Empathy and got a better result but it didn't feel to me like Astraea would have any particularly recent contact with this guy given her circumstances. Not looking to improve that roll with Aspects or anything.

What sort of scope should I be looking at for an aspect I get to invent?  Like, how about this for an aspect for the flotilla:

Bacchanalia!
It's not just a birthday party, it's a birthday PARTY.  Mostly everyone is...  "very festive" indeed, and likely easily distractable, if not already conveniently pre-distracted, by their various drinking and dallying.

My apologies for not replying sooner, everyone, I had a few busy days there.

Astraea, you got a Good result, so I'll give you some Good information. In the mercenary industry, Vulcan is a mid-tier player compared to his competitors; he's well-off enough, but he hasn't quite become an expert, not to mention a legend.
He's known for taking the riskiest and/or most high-paying jobs, obviously focused on earning glory to his family name, and has also been known to be bribable, to an extent.
Judging by his reputation, then, he likely has few truly loyal backers. The people most likely to come to his aid after a particular slight are his family and his clan, Megala, or perhaps a mentor or confidant.

Taphrodel, that aspect sounds great. I had to Google what Bacchanalia was, and I'm going to be taking the aspect as extreme hyperbole because of the... problematic rumors about the event the word was named after. It's alright; aspects are a meta story element - the bridge between the players and the game - so it's all about how we as the players interpret it, not whatever it may exactly mean or harken to.

I must be confused; is everyone waiting for me to post with a continuation of the scene? Either that, or we've all been a little busy.

I think we're just waiting to see if Nihlia or Taphrodel have anything to add right now.  Astraea and I both seem to be inclined toward a subtler approach, but who knows, the spirit of the Bacchanalia could take over and turn it into an ecstasy of bloodletting.

Our Lore rolls indicate that we could attack outright and probably not receive too much flack for it, but I'm waiting until someone else speaks before chiming in with that.

So sorry here people, my power has been out since yesterday!  I'm in the middle of all the high wind zone, my whole subdivision is dark.  I'll have time to post from work tonight though, I'll try to make that happen in the next few hours.

I'm relieved that it's only technical difficulties. Let's see... it looks like everyone but Nihlia has taken their action before the flotilla arrives, so I'll just roll her into my eventual post once you guys are done with the rest of your small banter here.

Aaaaand my power is still out, and accordingly my whole life is pretty much chaos.  Sorry for the brevity of my post there, I'm typing from my phone but wanted to just get -something- up to keep things moving.

Hah!  Apparently the cosmos was waiting for me to post, my power just came back on finally  :D

It's my birthday today, so I'm taking some time to relax. I'll look at the post tomorrow, though, for sure.

Happy birthday!  :)

And so, our journey continues...

I finished the lore page for Dracarys, having added the "Native Appearance" section so that you can all get a sense of the general fashion elements of Dracaryan culture. I also started a Pinterest board with complimentary images for said fashion, as well as a music "playlist" so meager that it has only one song - the song is pretty great, though, and I might even say that it's the theme of the nation in my headcannon.

Dracays (Finished) Lore: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/a.../a/dracarys-location
Pinterest Board: https://pin.it/5592t4P
Dracarys Theme: https://youtube.com/playlist?l...4ViYTR38Y_7WPFCL5ln0
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:14, Sun 19 Dec 2021.

I'm trying to think of how to introduce the new noble and it would be helpful to have a title or at least a nearby land that she could theoretically be from.  Are there any nearby nations with plenty of lesser aristocrats that might be trying to curry favor with Dominion mercenaries?

I've actually been working on some more regions to add to the world, so yes; you could say that she's from the Gallorean Alliance, which is a confederacy of city-states who banded together a long time ago for trade and security.

I don't have an official lore entry for it yet, but I know a good deal about it so if you have any questions then just ask.

EDIT: You mentioned needing a title; for now, your standard medieval Europe noble titles will work. Something like Duchess, Baroness, or something.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:37, Mon 20 Dec 2021.

Does anyone have a method in mind for getting to the ships from shore?  Lachlann can theoretically swim and arrive looking completely dry (glamour clothes don't look wet if he doesn't want them to), but the rest of the party might not want to rock that drowned-rat-chic.

EDIT:  If nobody minds I might just assume we stole a sloop or something and used that to get out to the party?
This message was last edited by the player at 17:39, Mon 20 Dec 2021.

Personally, I was thinking that the flotilla could just happen to be coasting rather close to the shore, just to make it easier.

Though, now that I think about it, getting onto the ships really just warrants a roll. How about we have your group roll Stealth, and that will determine how serendipitous your passage is? I think a passive opposition of +3 is good, since the flotilla isn't particularly solid ground, surrounded by water, and relatively well-protected. I'll roll an individual Stealth check for Nihlia, since she's on her own mission.

In fact, I was just thinking about how you're going to want to roll Deceive right after that in order to convince the guards that you're legit, and I thought to myself: why don't we make it a Challenge?

Here's a link to Challenges in the SRD: https://fate-srd.com/fate-core/challenges

In this case, the rolls would go in this order:

• Stealth v.s. +3
• Deceive or an Attack skill, depending on your success with the first roll; opposition +4
• A skill of your choice to actually find your target amongst the flotilla, opposition +5

Depending on your overall level of success, you might find Vulcan undetected and while he's at a disadvantage, you might find him and he immediately knows something is wrong, or something else might happen, like finding another patron of the party who interrupts your journey in some manner.

Make sure to take advantage of the teamwork rules: https://fate-srd.com/fate-core/teamwork

As implied by the way teamwork works, only one of you will technically be the main "roller" of each skill check, so make sure to decide who that is and then add bonuses and/or create advantages around that. The way I see it, it would be most advantageous to have Taphrodel roll Stealth, Lachlann roll Deceive, and then you would choose whoever's best for the skill you choose at the end.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:36, Mon 20 Dec 2021.

That sounds interesting, it will perhaps give us a better idea of what the scene looks like when we arrive on the flotilla, so I'm all for it.  It looks like we only need +1 (Average) in a skill to be able to add ourselves as teamwork helpers.

Taphrodel if you're doing Stealth, I can offer a plus +1 teamwork bonus.

For the sake of completing the trifecta do you have a particular skill that would work well for the 'find our target' roll Astraea?  I can offer +1s in any of Rapport, Lore, Empathy, Deceive, Notice, Investigate, or Provoke.

I had already rolled a Deceive check to start setting up for a post, should I use that one for this or make a new roll as part of the challenge and leave the old one for gauging interactions onboard?

Just use the Deceive roll you already made, that should be simpler. Thanks for being so involved, Lachlann; I'm sure Taphrodel is just having more problems with their power going out, but still I appreciate you keeping the conversation going.

I find chatting about character concepts and trying to keep an open line of communication even if you don't feel like writing in the moment is a good way to stay engaged and interested in a game.  I'm always happy to just chatter away about what makes a character tick or how they can grow and change as the story moves forward.  Keeps things fun.

For the Deceive (+4) roll, I had:
13:37, Today: Lachlann Allaway rolled 1 using 4 Fudge dice with rolls of -1, 0, 1, 1.  Animus as Deceit: Overcome (I'm just a human courtier, really).

Which makes for a total of +5 before any teamwork bonuses the others might offer, so a success and possibly a 'succeeds with style' if both accomplices are at least averagely deceitful.

Sorry, I've been a bit out of it lately.


My best choice to that end would likely be Notice, with Provoke being on par but probably not ideal if we're trying to stay low profile. Going straight to intimidation isn't the most subtle approach.

That Notice roll is going to be the most difficult, so you might want to have Lachlann and/or Taph make Create an Advantage actions instead of simply providing a +1. Up to you guys, though.

I'm trying to think of the best way to support someone observing the crowd and my ideas so far are either add supplemental information that can point Astraea in the right direction or maybe use Rapport to try and create a spectacle that will have everyone distracted so she can investigate more easily?  Could I do an Empathy roll to try and Create Advantage of "All Eyes on..." to sort of gauge the crowd and know where the important people are?

Empathy sounds like a good choice, yeah.

OKey dokey, here's my roll:  11:12, Today: Lachlann Allaway rolled 1 using 4 Fudge dice with rolls of -1, 0, 1, 1.  Empathy - Create Advantage (All Eyes on...).
Which gives a total of +5 on the Create Advantage.  If successful I'll hand off the free invocation to Astraea and if stylishly so, I'll hold onto the second one for later use.

Merry Christmas, everyone! I know we're having a little bit of a slow start due to the business from the holidays and some technical difficulties on the side, but I just wanted to express how I'm unusually optimistic when I think of the possibilities for our game here together.

Why don't each of you take a free Fate point, on me? My little Christmas gift. :)

I know the holidays must have been really hectic and busy, especially on the leadup to Christmas and New Year's, but I'm starting to worry about things.

This is my request for a roll call to see how many of you are still here. I'll wait for about a week (until January 8th) or until everyone returns to get a gauge on our current situation.

I'm hoping this is just a small bump on our journey, but at the same time, I'd understand if things didn't go that way.

It's been a hectic couple weeks that's for sure!  Still around and happy to continue, just needed some time to get set up since we got sent back to a partial work-from-home setup.

Alright everyone, sadly, I looked at the date today and came to the sudden realization that this game had already died in my heart. It was nice while it lasted, but I'm afraid this particular game is over.

As per standard policy, I must refrain from officially deleting the game for one whole week, but in the meantime, please treat it as if it were already gone - in other words, I won't be replying to messages or continuing the story.

Thank you all, and I'm sorry that it turned out this way.

The game will be deleted on 1/14/2022.