Sixth Game Of Christmas 2017

Previous Games Of Christmas: Traveller, Heavy Gear, Exalted, Mutants & Masterminds, Rifts

I dig Fate. I know, big surprise. The fun part of Fate, for me, is that it is a very malleable system. You can really play around with the mechanics and really push what is possible. Last year I broke down my views on Fate Core for last year's Games of Christmas. This year I will be digging into a specific version of Fate Core that pushes into interesting territory. Then lets dig into...

Hunters of Alexandria

Before we get started this game was designed by a friend of mine and uses a system I helped design. I will try to remain unbiased, but it may be difficult. I love the setting a great deal and the ideas present in the game. I like the game, and I would like it even if it wasn't written by +Paul Mitchener. So I am pretty excited about it.

Peritextual Elements

The book is pretty slim, especially considering it has the full rules to play in it as well as a complete setting and an adventure in the setting. There is a lot packed into this. The art is pretty sparse, but it is adequate for the purposes and fits the style of the game. There is also a very nice map of Alexandria in the first century. By and large the look of the book is serviceable.

Mechanics

The basics of Fate are the same here as in other Fate games. You roll four Fate(or Fudge) dice and add a skill rating t the result. In Hunters f Alexandria you have professions rather than the normal skill list in Fate. You begin with up to five professions out of a total of ten professions. Professions work a lot like broad areas of aptitude as well as lose definitions of who your character is within the world he inhabits. I like professions a lot, We used them in Jadepunk, but it was a smaller list than in this one. I like this concept, with a larger list and a narrower choice, it allows for more niche style play, while keeping the number of choices lower. I think I will play around with that idea a bit in some of my future designs, but that is tomorrow's challenge. It also uses a stripped down version of the Assets system from Jadepunk. You build custom extras for your character, either devices, techniques, and supernatural abilities. Basically these are variable cost stunts that allow for all sorts of magical shenanigans.

Setting

The setting is a fantastical version of first century Alexandria. You play members of the Venetores roman monster hunters. Basically you are cleaning p the mess made by monsters and magicians of the city and surrounding area. There is a solid breakdown on the demographics of the city as well as the various religions and factions and how they interact. There is also a solid breakdown of the geography of Alexandria and how the city is arranged. It also has a solid breakdown of the major personalities in the town and the monsters you might face. It is a solid setting, full of interesting fun. When I first read through it it was Like Paul had been inside my head, I had been running a very similar to a bunch of games I ran back in the nineties. I like it.

And there is my take on Hunters of Alexandria. Next up...

Stars Without Number