I know that it's written in a lot of place that certain talent gives you 1 Fate pts, followed frequently by (maximum 5), but when I read the rules about Fate in the Core rulebook, I do not find where it's written that 5 is really the maximum, should I assume it is? Or is it only that when the players gain Fate pts in certain circumstance (character creation package, talent, ect) they cannot go over 5 using those methods?
Sorry of it's a newb question, I'm actually pretty new to this game.
If I remember well, in Ascension it recommends that players should not be given more than 5 fate points. This is a just a recommendation though.There is nothing that explicitly forbids awarding more fate points, but you need to be aware that too many fate points can be a game breaker.
If your players are racking up Fate Points, you're not challenging them enough. (A nice way of saying you're being too nice, you need to take some Evil lessons)
Darth Smeg said:
If your players are racking up Fate Points, you're not challenging them enough. (A nice way of saying you're being too nice, you need to take some Evil lessons)
They haven't racked them up yet, but I do feel like they will if I don't take some classes in Evilness. The thing is… the only way to make them burn Fate, is basically to kill them and since I'm at my 5th session, I still haven't put them in "lethal" situations yet. But, they are beginning Haarlock Legacy's Tattered Fate quest line, which I think will be a nice way to make one or two player lose Fate.
Also, I usually GM Shadowrun, and the Edge system they use is pretty much the same as Fate in DH but… a player can buy Edge with XP, which players can't do in DH. Thing is, I'm still getting used to knowing what is challeging or not in DH and since the GM is the only one to give Fate in DH, I feel that if make them lose Fate too much, I'll just end up giving back those same Fate pts to prevent doing a TPK. Where do I sign for those Evil lessons XD.
PS:Sorry for double posting
I would say be very stingy with fate. I've only seen a PC do something worthy of gaining a fate point once, maybe twice my entire time of running DH. I've generally felt it should be for "right man, in the right place, at the right time, with the right roll" sort of deal. Did a rank 2 acolyte bravely choose to go toe to toe with a purestrain genestealer in order to save the downed party, and not only manage to pass the fear test but actually win?
Big thing number one, fate point gains should be character specific, not given to the whole group. Only time I would say otherwise is if the party is extremely low on fate points, and as a group have achieved the near impossible (e.g. all members have around 1-2 FPs, and have just concluded a "difficult" campaign).
Honestly, as long as someone has a fate point, a TPK is technically not possible. I've heard of GMs ruling that burning a point to survive allows you to get up right then and there and act (only to be killed again and needing to burn a FP). At my table, when a player burns a point, they're protected by narrative until the party can regroup outside of the combat. Therefore, as long as someone has a FP they're willing to burn to keep their character alive, the acolyte cell lives on. They may need to turn tail and beg their inquisitor for new acolytes to join them, but there are plenty of ways to add new characters to a campaign.
That said, it should be entirely expected that a few acolytes are going to die. The inquisition does have a bit of a high turnover rate when it comes to acolytes. Without the distinct risk of a violent and scary death, DH will lose its bite as opposed to other systems. Having 5+ FPs make permanent death near impossible.
Now, if your PCs are constantly doing heroic things, then yes, I would recommend capping the points given at 5, just for the sake of sanity. One thing to consider is a sliding scale of what it takes to actually "earn" a fate point, increasing in difficulty as the player has more of them. Another notion may be to tally the amount of "heroic deeds" before each new one, with the minimum required equal to their current total FPs.
Obviously, these are simply guideline suggestions, not even rule suggestions. The handing out of FPs is solely in the hands of GM fiat, as it should be.
Another thing, if a player asks for a fate point for some deed they have performed, they almost universally should not get one. That said, don't allow this to poison the oppurtunity just because they said it jokingly during a situation that may very well warrant one. Also, I would be slow to give them one during a situation in which they blew through the encounter/skill checks with their fate points. They already won by having a lot of FPs to start with, rewarding them another for showing that fact is hardly appropriate.
KommissarK said:
I would say be very stingy with fate. I've only seen a PC do something worthy of gaining a fate point once, maybe twice my entire time of running DH. I've generally felt it should be for "right man, in the right place, at the right time, with the right roll" sort of deal. Did a rank 2 acolyte bravely choose to go toe to toe with a purestrain genestealer in order to save the downed party, and not only manage to pass the fear test but actually win?
Big thing number one, fate point gains should be character specific, not given to the whole group. Only time I would say otherwise is if the party is extremely low on fate points, and as a group have achieved the near impossible (e.g. all members have around 1-2 FPs, and have just concluded a "difficult" campaign).
Honestly, as long as someone has a fate point, a TPK is technically not possible. I've heard of GMs ruling that burning a point to survive allows you to get up right then and there and act (only to be killed again and needing to burn a FP). At my table, when a player burns a point, they're protected by narrative until the party can regroup outside of the combat. Therefore, as long as someone has a FP they're willing to burn to keep their character alive, the acolyte cell lives on. They may need to turn tail and beg their inquisitor for new acolytes to join them, but there are plenty of ways to add new characters to a campaign.
That said, it should be entirely expected that a few acolytes are going to die. The inquisition does have a bit of a high turnover rate when it comes to acolytes. Without the distinct risk of a violent and scary death, DH will lose its bite as opposed to other systems. Having 5+ FPs make permanent death near impossible.
Now, if your PCs are constantly doing heroic things, then yes, I would recommend capping the points given at 5, just for the sake of sanity. One thing to consider is a sliding scale of what it takes to actually "earn" a fate point, increasing in difficulty as the player has more of them. Another notion may be to tally the amount of "heroic deeds" before each new one, with the minimum required equal to their current total FPs.
Obviously, these are simply guideline suggestions, not even rule suggestions. The handing out of FPs is solely in the hands of GM fiat, as it should be.
Another thing, if a player asks for a fate point for some deed they have performed, they almost universally should not get one. That said, don't allow this to poison the oppurtunity just because they said it jokingly during a situation that may very well warrant one. Also, I would be slow to give them one during a situation in which they blew through the encounter/skill checks with their fate points. They already won by having a lot of FPs to start with, rewarding them another for showing that fact is hardly appropriate.
Thanks for the tips, I'll try to be careful not to make the game too easy for them.
Turtletron said:
Also, I usually GM Shadowrun, and the Edge system they use is pretty much the same as Fate in DH but… a player can buy Edge with XP, which players can't do in DH. Thing is, I'm still getting used to knowing what is challeging or not in DH and since the GM is the only one to give Fate in DH, I feel that if make them lose Fate too much, I'll just end up giving back those same Fate pts to prevent doing a TPK. Where do I sign for those Evil lessons XD.
PS:Sorry for double posting
A clarification, if I may… in regular DH a player cannot buy FPs, but in Ascension with some classes they can.
With that said, I limit players to a maximum of 5 FPs, unless they are an Interrogator or Inquisitor in which case the maximum is 6. If they should somehow be in a position to acquire more FPs above that limit, simply give them extra exp, around 400 or 500. By Ascension it will cost them more than that to acquire more (if they need them, and aren't capped), but it's still something.