About The Fate Codex

by Mark Diaz Truman

One of my favorite parts of editing The Fate Codex is seeing all the weird, unusual, and downright innovative stuff that people submit. Fate Core is a toolbox—not a specific one-size-fits-all system—but some tools push the boundaries a lot more than others. It’s one thing, for example, to take out stress or reframe aspects; it’s another to upend the very concept of how scenes are framed in a Fate game or bring some truly weird setting materials to Fate’s pulp ethos.

This month’s issue is all about these kinds of innovations. From Steve Radabaugh’s musical conflicts—seriously, who wouldn’t want to sing out their battles?—to Kira Magrann’s new cyberpunk Building Block, Issue 3.3 is pushing boundaries in new ways. And I love it! Fate has so much potential, and I can’t wait to see what our readers do with all these new tools.

I’m especially excited by Philippe Saner’s lifepath system, a new way to generate characters that turns random rolls into interesting characters. I was extremely skeptical that it was possible to create a system that would both center around randomness and stay true to Fate’s “character first” norms, but he knocked it out of the park, delivering a system that’s both specific and interesting. I think it’s exactly the kind of thing The Fate Codex should publish every month.

As unique as Philippe’s piece is, I think it’s easy to overlook how effortless Nicole Winchester’s Quick Start flaunts the rules as well. She’s set up a system of scenes in which players alternate between secret agents and the FBI detectives assigned to catch them, effectively setting up the players as their own antagonists without sacrificing the tension and drama that a Cold War setting can produce. Amazing stuff.

Thanks again, patrons, for making this all possible. Our writers and staff very much appreciate your support!

Editor in Chief
Mark Diaz Truman