passages_staff: (Doorway)
Passages Staff ([personal profile] passages_staff) wrote2017-05-19 10:45 am
Entry tags:

Aspects





Aspects | Compels | Story Points | IC Things




Aspects

What are aspects?
Aspects are short sentence descriptions that describe a character. To quote from the Dresden Files Role Playing Game: volume one (around page 98):

Aspects cover a wide range of elements and define what makes your character unique - basically, they describe the core of your character's identity.

Examples include:

  • Relationships: He's my mentor, unfortunately; His non-existent wife.

  • Beliefs: Nothing I do matters; Only by the gods' will I survive.

  • Catchphrases: "There's no such thing as a bad idea"; "I didn't mean to"

  • Items: the Sword of Dragons; Moogie's safety pepper shaker

  • Things that paint a vivid picture of your character: Alien Angel with a flaming baseball bat; Ancient as the mountains, wild as the woods


How are they going to be used in game?
In addition to being used in the game's application, the aspects will be used for plot purposes as well as ways for players to give their characters things. This can be any thing from pets or items from home to being able to add new known rooms to the Inn or introducing major changes to the world around the Inn.




Compels

What are compels?
Compels are when someone - be it the mod or another player - offers a chance to use the character's aspects, changing their behavior in a way they might not have initially do and earning story points.

For example Adrian has the Aspect "There's no such thing as a bad idea". In a thread someone suggests that he does something that the player decides that maybe they don't want to do, that Adrian thinks that it's a bad idea. However, the mod offers the player a story point saying "Well, Adrian has that aspect of 'There's no such thing as a bad idea so he should do it'" It's up to Adrian's player to accept the story point and have Adrian indulge in doing something that could be a bad idea and the consequences of it or not take the story point thus not having anything possibly horrible happen to Adrian but also not gaining the story point.


How are they going to be used in game?
They are a device to create interactions, problems for characters and plot. They're a way for a player to say "I'm not sure what to do, how can my character's aspects give me a direction"? They're plot makers.

Do I have to be compelled?
NO. Absolutely not. The compels are just a mechanic to make play interesting for characters. Give them an incentive to do something they might not normally do/or give into those bad impulses. However, if this is something that you don't want to deal with then you don't have to deal with.

Compels are a completely out of character mechanic. They represent natural but key parts of a character's personality and attitude, not any sort of outside influence affecting or influencing the character's thought process.

Unlike in the Fate games you don't need to use story points to resist compels. Once you have a story point it's yours until you spend it for things.

Can I compel other players or NPCs:
Yes. But only with permission. Compels are not excuses to god-mod other characters. They're a way to create new forms of interaction. Compelling others without permission is not allowed and will earn a warning and possibly getting kicked out of the game.

There will be a post at the beginning of every month where people can ask for and offer help with compels.


Story Points

What can I use story points for? You can redeem them for stuff! Items from home, mystery items, a chance to change or have your ideas become part of the setting!

How else can I get story points?

Story points can be gained by activity, helping others with compels, coming up with plot ideas and using your aspects without needing to be compelled.


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