Questions tagged [aspects]
For questions about aspects in tabletop RPGs, particularly those that use the Fate role-playing game system. The Fate engine uses these pithy phrases to define character, place, object, and scenario attributes.
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How do you physically handle aspects at a table to avoid slowing down play?
When running FATE at a physical table, I've run into the following problems:
PC aspects are on the players' character sheets, and therefore not visible to me (the GM) at a glance, so I don't remember ...
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What is the difference between Aspect Permissions and Stunts when it comes to determining what you can or can't do in a given situation?
In Fate, what is the difference between Aspect Permissions and Stunts when it comes to determining what you can or can't do in a given situation?
For example, the supplement "Super-Powered Fate&...
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How can I word an aspect that I can potentially veto being compelled without using an X-Card?
I'm trying to recreate an existing character in FATE, but she has an aspect that I'm unsure how to handle.
This aspect is something that I want to be able to bring up in play, and I mostly see myself ...
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What is an Aspect allowed to do (in addition to Invoke, Hostile Invokation, Compel and Always True)?
Introduction
The common things that can be done with an aspect are:
Invoke it spending a fate point (or by free invocations sometimes) for a +2 or reroll.
Hostile Invocation.
Compel.
Permission. ...
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Aspect Permissions and combat
This question and this other question have excellent answers describing the concept of "aspect permissions". To summarize my understanding of the answers, they explain that aspects shift the ...
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How to Use Aspects in Fate Accelerated [closed]
I recently got into playing and running Fate Accelerated, but there's one thing that's been confusing me, how the heck do you use Aspects?
I get that they're like characteristics of your character ...
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Where Are (Narrative) Aspect Permissions Comprehensively Covered?
Repeatedly, in the context of discussions and questions, including questions asked here, I keep running into the topic of Aspect Permissions. To further clarify, I'm talking not about Extras, nor ...
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What makes Aspect ↔ Boost conversion Stunts worthwhile?
There are multiple Stunts that, under certain conditions, either convert a Boost to an Aspect, or an Aspect to a Boost (usually without changing the number of free Invocations). Now, I know that ...
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When should Passive Opposition be 'free', and when should it cost a FP to create from an Aspect?
I've asked this elsewhere before, and am still in search of an answer that will give me clear guidelines for making such decisions in actual play (whether as a GM or as a player who's making up a part ...
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Identifying and invoking enemy aspects
In Fate Core i know that you can invoke the aspect of your enemies against them like making someone who has Trouble Controlling Strength get the Aspect Overextended by invoking it and saying due to ...
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In which order are aspects invoked when defending in Fate Accelerated?
When a character takes one of the four actions and rolls the dice, they can decide to invoke aspects after seeing the total. For example, when chief engineer Yago Awain is trying to repair the broken ...
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Is using compels to create aspects precedented and balanced?
I recently watched an abridged playthrough of a one-session Fate Core game on Tabletop.
In the session, the GM, Ryan Macklin, uses a version of compel I haven't seen before. Macklin essentially hands ...
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When does an aspect influence the situation?
Let's say there is a slimy floor aspect in the scene. When exactly would this property of the floor be used?
Always - for example all characters have some trouble with moving.
Only when someone ...
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Is it okay to go beyond the rules for Aspects/Boosts?
For example:
Smouldering Cart (scene aspect)
Snow Wolf (opponent): Master of the Tundra.
Gimli (PC): Master of Axes.
Gimli Attacks the Wolf, and spends 2 Fate Points to invoke the Smouldering Cart ...
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Does "everything is an aspect" conflict with Fate philosophy?
For a while now, a group I play with has slowly slipped into a mode of accepting the fact that the GM cannot possibly declare all pertinent details of a scene aspects.
This developed from the notion ...
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Can an aspect contain too much information and therefore be "too good"?
I'm planning on GMing a Fate game with a group of my friends, and recently ran a little test by having one of my friends create a character. The problem I ran into is that he seemed to create aspects ...
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Can you use create advantage to get a free invocation more than one time on the same aspect?
Let's imagine a scenario were the player doesn't want to spend fate points on a combat, so he want to stack several free invocations to go for a big hit in a conflict.
This conflict happens on a old ...
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Can an aspect be active without being invoked/compeled?
I keep finding my players in situations where this doesn't make sens.
Example: There's a gun fight in a room filled with smoke. The players and NPCs have a hard time seeing anything. It feels logical ...
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New to Fate: how to manage all aspects at play
Newbie Fate GM here, I will soon GM my first ever session. Seeing how important being aware of all aspects at play at any given scene is, how do you keep track and announce all the various aspects ...
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Can aspects in FATE have superposition?
I'm pretty enthusiastic about trying out Fate (Accelerated variant), but I have some questions about how to handle aspects.
Can aspects have superposition?
Can attacks have aspects?
Example 1: I ...
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How long do Boosts stay around, if not invoked immediately or obviated by situation-change?
I have looked in several different Fate games' rulebooks, including Fate Core, DFRPG, Atomic Robo, FAE, and Jadepunk, which all describe Boosts as temporary Aspects you get to invoke for free, one ...
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Can a weapon (without an aspect) add "bonus" to a dice roll?
Say a player wants to break down a door and has a weapon that they think could help (a hammer, a small explosive, or something like that), how do you add that to the roll? Just say "sure, you get +2 ...
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What is the difference between Aspects and Invocations?
I'm trying to master Fate core (and probably Dresden Files) for a group because I'm usually the gm, and I'm having a little trouble understanding a few of the mechanics.
What's the difference between ...
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What are the mechanics of removing a "create an advantage" aspect?
Say a character fails to defend against a "create an advantage" action. They now have a situational aspect on them. If they do nothing about it, it'll go away at the end of the scene or whenever it ...
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Can aspects function as "New Action" stunts?
The most basic option for a stunt is to allow a skill to do something
that it normally can’t do. (FC89)
But can an aspect do that too? Aspects are supposed to be permissions for certain types of ...
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What do Aspects do?
When you check things off, you check off whole themes. When you try and do something, you succeed unless your Mistaken stops you. So what's the point of Aspects?
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Can I use non-aspects as narrative permissions?
I'm finishing up my Legend of Zelda Fate Core campaign, and I'm still trying to get a feel for how items should be represented. I know that Fate isn't a game where inventory and money are well-tracked,...
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How to handle potentially debiliating Aspects?
Specifically, one of my players was a Monk who focussed on pressure points to disable limbs or even entire bodies. I handled these through adding a "paralysed" aspect to the target, but this did turn ...
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When can you invoke an aspect twice for free on the same roll?
Pages 14-15 of the Fate Accelerated PDF says this about the Create an Advantage action:
If you're creating a new aspect or discovering an existing one:
...
* If you succeed with style: You ...
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When benefits from an Aspect call for Fate point expenditure and when not?
I find myself in a pinch trying to understand what Aspects do when they are not being invoked. I do know that they are supposed to be narrative tools that describe the character. When invoked, they ...
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Can you put high-power aspects on starting characters in Fate Core?
I have a player who's having some trouble understanding that Fate is not a game about stats. To remedy this issue, I'm considering letting them build a character with aspects that feel like an endgame ...
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Do advantages in Fate Core just "wear off?"
I have a character in my game with the aspect My Father's Sword.
So the guy who plays the character is in his first combat and he's using the sword, invoking its +2 for all it's worth, because, hey, a ...
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How to distinguish and quantify zone aspects in Fate Core
Let's say for example that there's a scene on the rooftops.
Zone 1 has the aspect Slippery Second Story Rooftop, and after a bit of running and sci-fi shenanigans, Zone 2 has Top of a Scyscraper. Let'...
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Can you use assistance actions in combat?
I checked the teamwork rules (YS P. 208) and it seems like it can be used in combat based on the text, but I want to be sure. So I was wondering:
Can teamwork actions be used in combat to create ...
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Armour and shields in Aspect based combat. Fate Core [closed]
Short Version:
What is the correct way to balance a PC having a shield that gives the player additional stress boxes to use. Should this require a stunt or a fate point or use another balancing ...
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Aspects that Interact With Other Aspects in Fate Core
Let's say I have a character with the aspect "The moon brings out my primal fury," and the environment has an aspect called "Full Moon."
Would you allow that character to invoke both aspects to do ...
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Negative Aspect Compels: How often is too often?
I've seen quite a few Fate-powered games where there are Extras that use negative aspects as permissions (such as having "Limited Battery Pack" on a lightning gun, or "Unstable Mutation" for a ...
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Can you free-tag multiple aspects at once?
Assuming you are fighting an opponent one-on-one and they have used consequences to negate stress and placed aspects on themself, could you tag two of those consequences for free on one roll, if they ...
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Aspects implying Resistance/Immunity
I have trouble understanding how to deal with Aspects implying a resistance or immunity to a given category of attacks.
Let's say for example a dragon has the Aspect Can Withstand the Hottest Flames ...
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How can I use anger as an aspect to contribute to fire spells?
My theoretical Wizard has an aspect that has to do anger. Specifically "Fiery Temper."
I'm trying to find a way to invoke that for bonus for fire spells. Would that be acceptable by general rules?
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If aspects are facts, are all facts aspects?
Or worded differently: once i establish longer-lasting facts through narrative or 'create an advantage', are they aspects beyond the scene? If PC finds an item, for example, or some character aspect ...
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Do players have to roll to discover an obvious aspect?
This is a fairly straightforward question, but one that has led to some debate in my group. We know that aspects are generally not reflections of physical reality but rather narrative focus, so things ...
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Can situational aspects describe the same thing as consequences?
In combat, situational aspects sometimes tend to interfere with consequences. In theory, the "create advantage" action allows an opponent to create virtually any aspect, from "Stabbed in the hand" to "...
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When using a fate point to create an aspect, do you have to spend another to invoke it?
I'm running a new game, with just my friend and I on roll20. We're attempting to figure out the mechanics, while running a small game together.
I'm having issues with the Fate Point system. Does ...
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Understanding aspects in combat
I've always been partial to darkmantles, because nobody looks at the ceiling, and because they modified combat without directly affecting hitpoints in D&D.
I would like to use them in an upcoming ...
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How do I know when aspects are "hidden" from my players?
Well, I'm quite new to Fate and today we had our very first session, we had a lot of fun but aspects confused us a lot.
I made the areas so my players would fight a Titan on the forests, one of the ...
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How much should aspect invocations "retcon" the situation?
Shortly, I plan to test a game based on Fate 2e (the self-contained rules set, available here) and the Shadowrun campaign setting, with slight modifications. There have been a few things troubling me ...
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What should happen in a legendarily successful attack against a mook?
Last night, I was GMing a game of Fate Accelerated Edition with my friends, and their characters were up against a gang of mooks: the mooks had only 2 stress boxes each and could not take consequences....
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Must a situation's obvious characteristics be explicitly made into aspects?
I've never played Fate before and am learning from Fate Accelerated Edition with occasional reference to Fate Core. For the most part, it has been straightforward. On the other hand, I am somewhat ...
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Is there any reason to discourage "arms racing" during exchanges?
I find that occasionally during a conflict, when trying to create an advantage or land a successful attack, the players involved will enter into an "arms race" of competing to stack the most ...
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