The Dresden Files RPG is a FATE 3.0 based system set in Jim Butcher's modern-magic and hardboiled-detective world.

learn more… | top users | synonyms

10
votes
2answers
129 views

Infiltration trapping in Burglary

I am translating certain portions of the rules of The Dresden Files RPG to my native language (because there is no official translation), and I fail to understand what exactly the Infiltration ...
10
votes
2answers
332 views

Prolonging spells in Dresden Files

I have 2 questions on spell duration for the Dresden Files RPG: Is it possible to cast a shield spell that has no duration as a rote, but then prolong the shield on my next turn? Can you prolong an ...
10
votes
3answers
254 views

When changing a PCs actions based on an aspect, is it better to Compel or Invoke for Effect

We had an interesting combat last night; the PC was a very tough Changeling in the back of a limo glamoured not to be visible, and he was attempting to protect another passenger in the back of the ...
10
votes
2answers
296 views

Enchanted objects in Dresden Files

Can a magic user make a weapon for anyone to use? Specifically, a weapon that shrinks down to a pendant so that the non-magic person can carry it with them and call upon it at will.
10
votes
2answers
176 views

Neverwhere game with Dresden rules

I want to run a Neverwhere style game (kind of an underworld fantasy) where players start as regular humans trapped in the Neverwhere where their refresh is their connection to the mundane world but ...
10
votes
2answers
598 views

How would healing magic work in Dresden Files?

So, I have a player in a Dresden Files game I'm setting up who loves playing healing and support characters. Good aligned clerics in D&D, medicine excellencies in Exalted, you get the picture. ...
10
votes
1answer
337 views

Dresden Files Evocation question

This is my first time playing The Dresden Files RPG so I'm trying to figure things out. In the book, it states that to do an evocation you can put in a number of shifts (x) which makes the attack ...
10
votes
2answers
552 views

Are there any examples of modeling “Competence Porn” in FATE?

I was reading Leverage, and listening to a podcast on it, and came up with the idea of modeling this in FATE, or perhaps even in the non-critical parts (non-magical and non-combat) of my Dresden Files ...
10
votes
2answers
309 views

How does adding Aspect Scope in Dresden Files change the feel of the game?

I was listening to a podcast for Diaspora, and they were talking about aspect scope. Basically, in Diaspora, this sets scope on the Aspects available, and only one Aspect per scope can be used on any ...
9
votes
3answers
206 views

In the Dresden Files RPG, does an Evocation shield have a reactive utility to it?

Say that Player X is 2nd in the initiative. 1st is the Black Court vampire that is in a rage and taking a swing at Player X. Player X gets a built in defense [Athletics/Fists + 4dF] but can Player X ...
9
votes
3answers
286 views

Asynchronous Character Creation?

So in the Dresden Files RPG, character creation is meant to happen collaboratively in a unified manner. However, in our party, there are frequently times where one player or another cannot make it on ...
9
votes
1answer
308 views

Are Changelings With Sponsored Magic subject to the Laws of Magic?

In Dresden files, say you have a Changeling with Seelie Magic. The Changeling has a positive refresh, and thus has free will. If the changeling uses Seelie Magic to kill another mortal, have they ...
9
votes
1answer
389 views

Where can I find a foldable character sheet for The Dresden Files

I saw a question on Area 51 for the proposed questions for this site about "What's the point of the foldable character sheet that is available for Diaspora?", and it was flagged as a good question, ...
9
votes
1answer
76 views

How to handle combination attacks

This is a topic that the book doesn't really talk about, or if it does i missed it. During one of our fights, our siccomancer (air magic) used a spell to launch our were-tank (he's got a ring that ...
9
votes
1answer
240 views

How do you heal Mental Stress?

Does the Recovery power only heal physical stress and not mental? Is there a way to heal mental stress besides taking a consequence?
9
votes
1answer
396 views

Dresden Files Item Creation Using Focus Items

Hi guys here's one I would like answered that my GM and I had a long discussion about. Please help. If I take ritual instead of thaumaturgy and get Crafting, and I make a focus item for it, what ...
8
votes
5answers
222 views

Is making someone afraid a social or mental attack?

I'm reading the Night Fears adventure, in which a group of teenagers dare each other to spend a night in a haunted house. The ghosts in the house attack the teens' mental stress tracks, and the result ...
8
votes
3answers
596 views

Skill Point vs. Refresh Progression/Ratio in Dresden Files RPG?

We started our characters at 6 refresh and 20 skill points. The suggested progression is 1 skill point at the end of every scenario (a significant milestone) and 1 refresh + 1 skill point "when a few ...
8
votes
2answers
250 views

How does stress for magical effects work outside of a conflict in the Dresden Files?

In The Dresden Files RPG, mental stress is accrued for casting spells. As you cast spells, you become more mentally fatigued. The mental stress track is cleared at the end of the conflict- so if you ...
8
votes
1answer
123 views

Margin of Success on skill checks in The Dresden Files

Another week, another episode of our Dresden Files game. In this particular situation, the PCs were in a completely alien setting, and trying to get information. They were in the mind of a hedge ...
8
votes
2answers
335 views

Creating encounters for a DFRPG party

I've got a 2-person party and i'm having some difficulty with balancing encounters for them. It seems that what i'm making is either way too easy, or harder than i really want it to be (ie, they're ...
8
votes
3answers
215 views

How much does the Sponsor help someone using Sponsored Magic in Dresden?

So, the party is in a fight with one of the Knights of the Faerie Courts (Winter, in this case) and a couple of wildfae mercenaries. During the fight, the Knight started casting some unseelie ...
8
votes
1answer
393 views

Legends of Anglerre, and FATE, skill questions

In a follow up to my last question, I'm trying to now decipher some inner working of skills in general. First and foremost, I saw the skill system in Dresden Files RPG, which has a skill stack rather ...
8
votes
2answers
155 views

Does backlash reduce the targeting number when casting a spell?

An interesting question came up last night in my Dresden Files campaign. The practitioner was conducting (casting) electricity from himself to a hapless white court vampire to fry the poor chap. He ...
8
votes
2answers
112 views

Acquiring Stunts Multiple Times

In Dresden Files there are stunts that mention that you can take them multiple times, e.g. "High Quality Workspace". For stunts that don't state that, can they be taken multiple times? In particular, ...
8
votes
2answers
265 views

How does the Catch affect your Stress Track in relation to Supernatural Toughness?

Last night, my players were battling a hob, who had 4 stress boxes, plus 4 more from his inhuman toughness. One of the characters hit the Hob before they knew it was fae and did 5 stress. The ...
8
votes
1answer
154 views

How does Grapple interact with Attacks?

I grapple a guy and am able to hold him down. The rule in the book says a grappled enemy can't do anything unless he beats the grapple. Does this mean that if members of my party attack him he doesn't ...
8
votes
2answers
421 views

Are faeries better than wizards?

I have a changeling goblin in the group, and for one of his abilities, he chose Glamours YS166. It seems like with the phrase …use your Discipline or Deceit to oppose efforts to discover the ...
7
votes
2answers
202 views

What skills would a DFRPG PC roll when playing a video game?

In an upcoming session, one of the PCs will be babysitting a pre-teen video gamer. I expect that we'll be modeling a PvP scenario and want to roll some dice; whether as a conflict or a contest I don't ...
7
votes
2answers
211 views

Modeling poison in FATE (Dresden Files)

How does poison work in FATE? Secret, previously administered poison (say, in a drinking class) is an aspect that, like most investigation aspects, doesn't expire 'next turn' but will sit and wait. ...
7
votes
2answers
162 views

What does Mythic Speed do?

I don't have the book in front of me at the moment, but a part of the power Mythic Speed states something along the lines of "Opponents don't get to make checks against you." What does this mean? Do ...
7
votes
2answers
308 views

Picking a lock with wind magic

In the book, one of the examples given for wind magic is that you can pick a lock with it. Now my question is, should using wind magic to pick a lock just be a minor use of magic and not require a ...
7
votes
4answers
241 views

How do I get my dresden files players involved in city creation?

I've tried to involve my players in city creation a few times through the course of the game, usually whenever they are about to finish up a story arc, but I usually all I get are just get a few ...
7
votes
1answer
189 views

What happens when an undead character is “Taken Out”

I tried finding this in the books, but I couldn't figure anything out. If you have an undead character, what happens when their physical stress track is filled and they don't take a consequence? Are ...
7
votes
2answers
186 views

How does using The Sight work?

In The Dresden Files novels, The Sight is something that's taken seriously and not done frivolously because (1) you can't tell what you might see and what it might do to you, and (2) you keep what you ...
7
votes
1answer
122 views

Thaumaturgy power gathering

So if I have this right, when one of my characters is using a thaumaturgical ritual, lets say creating wards, then the ward strength and length are determined by how many shifts of power, in total, ...
7
votes
3answers
130 views

Does the Poisoned aspect stack?

The "Venomous" effect (a [-2] optional addon for the Claw power) lets the character maneuver to place the "Poisoned" aspect on a target. In each subsequent exchange, the target must roll ...
7
votes
3answers
382 views

“Sharing” enchanted items in Dresden Files RPG

One of my players brought up the example of the Warden's Sword as an enchanted item. For those not so familiar with the source books, these are powerful enchanted swords made by Captain Luccio, the ...
7
votes
2answers
120 views

How do vampires work exactly?

Do they have to be feeding to use their abilities? Or do they only feed to recover from Hunger stress after using their abilities and failing the stress attack at the end of the scene?
7
votes
2answers
184 views

How does a skill modify another skill?

In a couple of instances we’ve seen in the rules that state that you can use a skill to modify another skill. I think the main one that we’ve seen so far is inhuman strength. It says something about ...
7
votes
1answer
140 views

Are Red Court Vampires/Infected affected by the saliva of other Red Court Vampires/Infected?

In The Dresden Files RPG, Red Court Vampires(RCV)/Infected have the supernatural power Addictive Saliva (YW162). The power itself does not say anything about it conferring immunity to the saliva of ...
6
votes
4answers
272 views

How long does True Shapeshifting take in Dresden Files?

There are a bunch of powers labeled "Shapeshifting" in dresden files, and in general they are pretty easy to understand and use. It even mentions that, unless otherwise mentioned, shapeshifting is a ...
6
votes
6answers
184 views

In a Neverwhere style game how do I keep players connected to the surface world?

In a Neverwhere style setting, how do I keep the players interested in staying connected to the surface world? How can I make their connections to the mundane world matter to the players and ...
6
votes
2answers
145 views

How to hide the system in FATE (Dresden Files)

In the past when introducing a new player to roleplaying games I have found they understand it much quicker if I handle the mechanics of the game, and let them experience the story and play without ...
6
votes
2answers
105 views

How do you model opposed Thaumaturgy, such as “Scry vs. Anti-Scry”?

How is opposed Thaumaturgy handled? Opposed Evocation is straightforward: treat it as Attack vs. Block, or simply opposed Discipline checks. But Thaumaturgy has fixed target numbers, and no measure of ...
6
votes
2answers
151 views

What is the physical stress cap for a Diminutive Size creature with Claws?

Consider the lowly garden gnome. He's got the Diminutive Size [-1] power, which means he is Wee. [...] When your size is a factor in combat, you can only inflict 1 physical stress per attack (but ...
6
votes
2answers
192 views

How would a character jumping off a building and landing work?

In our last session, a character decided that he wanted to run and jump off a 3-story building, land and use might to prevent damage, and then continue running. I’m not entirely convinced it really ...
6
votes
1answer
261 views

What kind of goals are valid in Social Combat in the Dresden Files?

I've been attempting unsuccessfully, or at the very least unsatisfactorily, to integrate social conflict into my Dresden Files campaign. It came to a head last night, when one of my players initiated ...
6
votes
2answers
112 views

Transplanting Fortitude Trappings to Other Skills

Presence, Conviction, and Endurance all have a Fortitude trapping that indicates how many stress boxes the character has on the appropriate track, i.e. Conviction has Mental Fortitude that affects the ...
6
votes
1answer
168 views

How can I turn invisible?

I'm learning DFRPG, having no prior experience with the FATE system. One thing I really like is the idea that we can --and should-- create our own stunts and powers... but I'm not sure I've really got ...