This article is a brief start to a number of discussions on the nature of how mechanics from the Fate Core Roleplaying Game can be used to augment general principles of roleplaying and tabletop gaming, particularly with GMing games. This first article is mostly a review of content present in the FATE reference document but formulated in such a way as to be independent of the system.
In design, Fate Core is an incredibly concise, simple, and effective system for tabletop roleplaying. My experiences with actual play of the system (e.g., with a variant of the game in Diaspora) around a table has had my feelings rather unsorted on its viability for actual play and enjoyment.
What I think that Fate Core definitely has value for is to provide inspiration for ways to better scaffold games, both in their management and in their creation. This particular article focuses on taking elements of Fate Core as inspiration for providing an organized framework to create adventures, regardless of any roleplaying system. What should be noted, too, is that this article will discuss concepts very much in the abstract due to the nature of Fate’s very large scope. Continue reading