Tabletop RPG Club Season 2: Fate Core vs Savage Worlds

It’s time to kick off the second season of the Qt3 (Virtual) Tabletop RPG Club! This season will run from February 1st through April 30th, and we’ll be playing either Fate Core or Savage Worlds. If you’re interesting playing or just want more info, head over to the previously linked main thread - there’s a sign up form to be included in future groups, and if the season’s already started you can always see if there are any games that could use another player.

Now, let’s get down to brass tacks: which system are we tackling this season???

OPTION 1: Fate Core

. http://www.evilhat.com/home/fate-core/
Pay What You Want PDF ($0+) or Print + PDF ($25)
Fate Core is an evolution of the FATE rules that serve as the basis of games like Spirit of the Century and Dresden Files; these revised Fate Core rules have been used since then to run everything from the Atomic Robo comic book, post-human science fiction, and even wuxia/martial arts. A generic, storytelling-based system using “Fate dice” that roll between -4 and +4 alongside GM-and-player-chosen Skills, player-written descriptive Aspects, and the in-game currency of Fate Points to keep the story moving, Fate is great for high-action, fast-paced pulpy adventure in any genre! It was also the subject of a recent Qt3 Podcast. . . starring me!

##Option 2: Savage Worlds
https://www.peginc.com/product-category/savage-worlds/
PDF or Print+PDF ($9.99)
Savage Worlds is a–and I quote–“Fast! furious! and Fun! rules system for any genre of roleplaying game.” Like Fate, it’s generic, with existing game properties like the weird west Deadlands, the zombie-riffic Weird War II, and the Nordic-inspired Hellfrost already out there, plus it’s totally able to be extended into almost any setting you can imagine. Featuring an “increasing dice” pool-based system (where you buy up from d4s up to d12s!) with stats, skills, and Fallout-esque “Edges” and “Hindrances” to min-max to your heart’s content, plus moderately tactical combat, Savage Worlds is a little “crunchier” than Fate, but hey, its in-game currency is called Bennies, which is just delightful!

##The Vote (Open Until 1/15/17 @ 12N EST)

  • Fate Core
  • Savage Worlds

0 voters

##The Winner: Fate Core!!!

##Groups
For this season, we will run 3 tables of 1 GM + 4-5 players, organized based on a complicated matrix of preferred time commitment (weekly vs. biweekly, short sessions vs. long sessions), timezone, and blood type. If you wish to participate in future seasons, please submit all required documentation back up the main thread for tabulation, then keep an eye out for announcements about forthcoming seasons!

GM Selection was done via randomized choice based on participants who voted to be available to GM in the signup form, and after winnowing out folks who couldn’t do it this time around, we’re left with the following groups:

Group 1: GM ArmandoPenblade

  1. ineffablebob
  2. mtthwcmpbll
  3. Otthegreat
  4. Tin_Wisdom

Group 2: GM CraigM

  1. Brad_Grenz
  2. CF_Kane
  3. glimjack
  4. malkav11

Group 3: GM Galadin

  1. CaseyRobinson
  2. rhamorim, if he wants in :)
  3. Richard_Holt, when available
  4. rowe33
  5. sungnif

Last Season, we wound up organizing via Discord chat mostly, but of course, groups should feel free to use whatever they’re most comfortable with. In any case, here’s an Invite link to the Qt3 Discord server, where there are already rooms setup for the three expected “tables” of games :)

I mean how could I vote otherwise after your fantastic podcast.

EDIT: also the system narrative flexibility is, to me, not a small bonus.

I remain curious about Savage Worlds, but from what I can tell from actual plays, it relies heavily on minis on a map to determine ranges of effects and whatnot, and I think that is going to be trickier than Fate to run online. Roll20 does have tools, but I for one do not want to mess with that. And it’s long past time I tried Fate.

Well I’ve come across Deadlands before in passing. And it seems like a really fun setting to work in, for sure. So while I am curious about Savage Worlds for that reason, I also have no great attachment.

I think Deadlands is way more interesting than the system it uses, TBH.

Savage Worlds is definitely a little more, ah, bookkeeping-intensive than Fate, but I wouldn’t generally say it’s on the level of, say, Pathfinder or GURPS personally.


I’m gonna do an obnoxious thing and tag a bunch of people who’ve seemed interested in tabletop gaming before, whether because they posted in the original RPG Book Club Thread or have talked about it with me elsewhere on the forums.

Get in here and vote/participate, y’all!

@tomchick @telefrog @Brooski @galadin @Rob_O_Boston @merryprankster @Shellfishguy @Brad_Grenz @rhamorim @Fishbreath (yes it’s possible I have kept a mental bookmark on this thread for the better part of a year in case I ever got the chance to organize RPG shenanigans and suck some of those people who seemed interested in)

Apparently there’s a Mention Limit per post. . .
@charmtrap @Otthegreat @Chronic @JackBurton @rowe33 @Kelan @marquac @sillhouette @SadleyBradley @Tom_Mc

But that’s okay because I don’t mind spamming my own freakin’ thread

@ineffablebob @Thraeg @Left_Empty @RichVR @tylertoo @Tin_Wisdom @Tortilla @divedivedive @Djscman

Wait what? Who are you people? Why have I been invoked? What the heck is a Fate Core?

Psh, get with the program, Pogue MaLameeee I mean @divedivedive http://www.quartertothree.com/fp/2017/01/05/qt3-games-podcast-armando-penblade-fate-core/

It’s the daggum Qt3 RPG Book Club, and we’re here to play some dang ol RPGs on the internet highways together!

Hey look, I appreciate the enthusiasm dude, and I mean that. But I know nothing about old school pen 'n paper RPGs, like I have literally never played one. It’s probably the biggest gap in my nerd feed. So I don’t know if I can help much.

I will admit some small measure of disappointment ;)

Lookie here! Fresh meat!

Hey, understand that this is true for a bunch of us. I know that in my group from the first group, that most of us had played, at most, one face to face RPG. I think @Otthegreat and @mtthwcmpbll said they had played none, and @rhamorim only some with his kid. So… you would be in good company ;)

Haha, so, seriously, like I said a couple posts up, I literally just mind-bookmarked a thread where we talked tabletop RPGs once and saw that you were one of the people who expressed a casual interest in the topic. No obligation implied in my tagging you, but I want this season to be a success, so I kinda went nuts :)


That said, you don’t really need to know much at all to join us in this venture! The point is to play games that are new to most in the group, changing systems out every few months to keep things fresh, with people GMing or playing at their particular comfort level and leisure. Some groups will (digitally) meet more often, others less so. Some will be very low experience-level, I suspect, and others, higher.

So, if you are interested, and even think you have a couple nights free a month to experiment, go ahead and sign up, man! What’s the worst that could happen?

Of course, if Galadin or Malkav feel unable to GM this go-around, you’d be next on the docket no matter what. But I’m hoping my mass-tag will bring a few more folks than the last go around :-D

Sure, why not? After listening to the podcast, I’m interested to see what a Fate Core game would be like. Besides, @ArmandoPenblade made the effort to take my name in vain, seems silly not to follow up. I’ll be limited in 'net access for the next week or so, but back to full Internet immersion by February when things are supposed to start.

So I voted, but it’s really likely that I’ll have to skip this season (unless I manage to be in a group playing on weekends) due to my timezone. Brazil is currently 6 hours ahead of PST, which complicates things. After February/March it will go down to a 5 and then 4 hour difference (which is easier to manage), but even then, it depends on who will play.

So I’ll most likely sit this one out, despite how much I want to play. Maybe next season. :(

@rhamorim what timezone are you on right now? As I recall, a goodly chunk of us are US East, which is currently UTC-4H (through mid-March, when it flips back to -5), which might not be so bad. And of course, some groups could well play weekends. The one I run likely won’t, but we’ll save that sorta scheduling stuff till later on in the month when the game’s picked and @mtthwcmpbll helps me navigate the signups spreadsheet :)

Glad you and @ineffablebob are at least here, though! :-D

UTC-2, presently. Will go back to UTC-3 (standard time) by the end of February, I think.

Do you think you can invoke my name and I will come running like some common djinn or president-elect twitter account?

All right, I’m in. I guess I ought to read the previous thread.

I’m certainly not opposed, just saying maybe you ought to give preference to folks who may not need so much babysitting.