How to Play FATE (Core System)

If you have been looking for a tabltop RPG that isn't too heavy on the rules, and lets you get a little more creative, boy oh boy do I have the system for you! Fate (Core System) is lighter on math, with more creative and free-flowing rules. Plus, you can adjust it to any setting you can dream up!
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - INTRO
1:10 - FATE IN A NUTSHELL
3:22 - SKILLS
4:42 - ASPECTS
9:32 - FATE POINTS
11:30 - STUNTS
13:55 - ACTIONS & OUTCOMES
16:55 - CONFLICT
19:00 - STRESS AND CONSEQUENCES
24:24 - MILESTONES
26:18 - EXTRAS
27:34 - CONCLUSION
Link to the Outcomes graphic: drive.google.com/file/d/1lcUa...
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[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Sorry the video is a little long. I struggled between wanting to make something super quick and wanting to make something super in depth. I settled somewhere in the middle (leaning toward long, obviously) and tried to give you all a video that would really cover all of the basics of Fate Core in enough detail that most folks would feel comfortable trying to play after watching. Let me know if I missed anything important, Fate players, and I'll be sure to try to like and pin that comment! I know the video isn't perfect, but my goal is to help make this amazing game even more approachable for anyone interested. Thanks all, and if you have a chance, go check out some of my other videos and let me know what else I could do and how I could improve.

[@Barquevious_Jackson]

I thought it was a fine length. I can sit through a 5 hour documentary if it's compelling, which your content is. If your quality is good, a video can be whatever length it needs to be to get its points across at what depth remains interesting.

[@Dracopol]

Is my comment in the main comment list blocked? It's getting no reaction for some reason.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

@@Dracopol Just scrolled down and it is not blocked. I don't make a habit of blocking comments until they are offensive or scams.

[@ruolbu]

@@Dracopol It's a year old video on a small channel and your very late post was a weird wall of text without any real incentive to reply to it, just an opinion that made it obvious, you consider all of this meaningless and dumb and bad, and that the playstyle you prefer is better and valuable and good. Why exactly would you expect a reply after only a couple days? Nevertheless, here you go.

[@Dracopol]

@@ruolbu The problems I have uncovered with the Fate system are valid. I am not responsible for your lack of reading comprehension; that's on your educational system.

[@ollywright]

The clearest explanation of (some of) the rules of FATE i've seen on KZbin. And i've looked a lot! Thank you for making it.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thanks! It was a real balancing act of what to include and what to cut. Came down to including everything I thought a player would need to know, and making sure I didn't drone on for more than half an hour lol

[@bernardosilva7306]

Agreed! Same thing, I play Fate for a long time and I always struggle to find good tutorials for beginners. This video just became my default one, thanks!!!

[@emerynoel567]

"This is a metaphor. So .... ...... .... so good." 🤣

[@Patar15]

I wish you made this video YEARS ago. All other FATE Core tutorial videos on youtube are really terrible and it's been difficult explaining how this game works to my friends so much so they refused to play this system. Now after this video maybe they might play FATE Core! So I thank you!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thanks! I got the idea to make this video precisely because I've had a hard time getting my friends into Fate in the past. I'm super happy other folks at least tried to help people understand Fate, so I wouldn't want to throw any shade. I just have the advantage of having a background in video editing and structuring. I'm really happy my approach has been connecting with so many people!

[@zuce007]

I'm his DM and after this video I will try FATE core!

[@ihatealllife]

I came over here to say much the same thing. 🙂

[@Patar15]

@@zuce007 and yet you still haven't tried it very sad :(

[@villainsbridgeclub5268]

Agreed

[@zac2314]

I've seen quite a few videos attempting to explain Fate Core but this is by far the closest I've come to "getting" it. Thank you!

[@panedole]

Many thanks, I been tryin to find out about "free lotto wheeling system" for a while now, and I think this has helped. Have you heard people talk about - Weyoralyn Winning Willingly - (search on google ) ? Ive heard some great things about it and my cousin got great results with it.

[@Idengard]

@@panedole wot

[@Majo_Ellen]

This is still the greatest guide to FATE of all time.

[@moffie-moff5044]

Oh my god I finally found a system that can work with the inter dimensional circus setting I’ve been thinking about

[@carsonlenore]

I've been intrigued by Fate (as someone who likes rules-light, narrative-focused games in general) but every time I tried to read the rules I got confused and overwhelmed. You made them make perfect sense and now I really want to play!

[@DJWidget]

"Look at all that math! Look at those detailed rules and classes!" *flipping through the DM's guide* That bit made me laugh and definitely hooked me. Thanks!

[@lcva9822]

This is really great! You guys should make more FATE videos covering character creations and examples of play. This is really great! Greetings from Brazil

[@kinsmen8521]

I was invited to join a homebrew Fate Core. I was given a bunch of information, but was so confused. This video really explained the basic premise of Fate Core. Thank you.

[@thomascoull2019]

I've been playing fate on and off for years, even currently running a longer campaign in the system. THIS video is now my go to for remembering rules I get confused on, or throwing the way of new players. Thank you!

[@icet1100]

That was short, clear and entertaining. Great job!

[@AlystrZelland]

Very concise and well thought out. Well designed. Thank you very much

[@Sojournin82]

I am sharing this with all my potential players! Really well done and, honestly, the only explanation of Fate that I have found. Thank you sir! It was fun and well done! Now if only I can teach my characters to use their imagination...

[@lucasmartinez1619]

Thank you! It was super clear and fun to watch. I'll be sharing with anyone I play with :)

[@NedInYaHead]

This looks like a very cool system. I like how it's rules-lite but strategy-heavy in how you influence the story, so you aren't as much playing as the character as you are trying to navigate them safely as a narrative collaborator with the DM, arguing for and against certain story beats or actions and using fate points to bargain.

[@mdforbes500]

I love your voice - I imagine its Chris Parnell reading this to me - perfection!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Hehe I get that a lot, and I am absolutely flattered every time! Love Chris Parnell!

[@GregMossage]

Fantastic rules video. The length is great. The information is clear. Great for new players or a quick refresh if coming back to the rules after some time away in other systems. Very well done!!!! Thank you for putting this out there. It’s nice to see a more recent video for such a great system.

[@awlafferty]

This is the best explanation of Fate Core I have ever seen! Thank you for your work!!

[@CalebWillden]

Fantastic video! Well paced, excellent transitions, and a touch of engaging comedy. I think I have a much better understanding of the system now in this half hour than I did trying to read and reread the SRD.

[@hasaiah]

Incredible work! Thank you! Always wanted to step into Fate and this made it so much easier :D

[@kevinvanloo2049]

This is a great video! Good explanation, and great humor. I only play FATE and no other systems (yet) but I'll watch more of your vids soon, any system. Great stuff! Subbed!

[@vurrunna]

Thank you for this! I've always loved FATE as an idea, but always struggled figuring out how all the Aspects and such worked-trying to piece together all the different sections of the book and visualize everything just made my head spin. By contrast, your tutorial was super easy to follow, and explained things thoroughly, even in places where you mostly just scratched the surface. I always knew FATE was an incredible system, and this video was exactly the resource I needed to finally unleash its potential. Time to start planning my next campaign!

[@paoloabella412]

More Fate videos please!! Just learning the system and after hours of scouring the Tube this is probably the best explanation of the system. Thank you!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thank you! While I plan to cover a number of systems and ttRPG accessories on this channel, Fate is one of my absolute favorite systems, so I promise, there will eventually be more Fate content!

[@harjutapa]

I am so glad someone finally made something like this. Exactly what I've wished for for years!

[@ApatheticImagination]

I've gotta say, this is the first good intro to FATE vid that I've ever seen. A lot of the others don't really seem to 'get' how Fate is meant to run, or frame things in D&D terms that don't really apply. It's good enough that I sent this to my players prior to our new FATE campaign. Great work!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thank you so much! I'm always happy to hear when my videos are helpful to folks. Makes it feel worthwhile and keeps me going

[@jadenburrell8253]

Thank you so much! This is wonderful quality. My usual crew and I are very used to crunchier systems so we've been having trouble getting exactly how fate works, but this helped me out a ton!

[@matttillyer8046]

Very new to RPG and bought this rulebook. Thanks for the great video. Hopefully I can get started

[@dawne2780]

This was a brilliant explanation! I love the Fate Core system and had a lot of fun with it a few years ago. Needed a refresher while I was driving around and this was perfect. Thanks for doing it!

[@ihatealllife]

While I always appreciated the concept behind Fate, I've never really grasped how it actually worked. I tried reading the rules, and discussions about the rules, and I just couldn't grok it. It seemed so rules-dense for a system that pats itself on the back for being rules-lite. This video changes everything. I wish I had this video years ago. I'd have bought the game years ago if I had. Thanks so much for presenting the information in such an easy to understand way. 🙂

[@ihatealllife]

I just bought Fate Core, the corebook just arrived in the mail. I finally pulled the trigger on that because of this video. Now I find myself listening to it again, probably for the fourth time, as I'm reading my own copy of the rules. 🙂 Thank you for your efforts.

[@gypsyfreak6666]

This is a first-class explanation. Thank you for making this!

[@adammckinney5891]

This is a very informative video with good pacing and and humor that doesn't get in the way. Thank you for making this.

[@KirinKeys]

This was a great run through. Thanks.

[@barboll2604]

Very good dynamic video, it cleared a lot about Fate to me.

[@matthewmulvaney6987]

Love this video! I will be showing it to my new Fate group!

[@jameshenderson4876]

Really tremendous video. Very well done and helpful. Thank you.

[@tonithezombie]

Thank you so much!! I'm starting our first campaign and have been struggling to understand the entire system, even after listening to fate podcasts and reading the books and website! So glad you made this video, you've save my GM butt!!!

[@Yombleflobber]

This was really helpful to me, as someone who ran a campaign without knowing probably half this information. It cleared up a few points I was wondering about conflicts and health, especially.

[@GoobleDip]

Awesome explanaition! Congrats, you have a great channel!

[@alexandercandicedad1355]

I'm constantly trying to get people to play Fate with me. This is a great intro, and saves me a lot of explaining! Thank you!

[@denghazi]

This is the best video of seen describing FATE and how it works. Thanks.

[@HeadHunterSix]

Thanks for the overview - I was struggling most with Aspects, how to choose useful ones and how to apply them in-game.

[@VanDavis]

BEST Explanation of Fate on the net, hands down. You have a new subscription, my man!

[@Barquevious_Jackson]

Good Work explaining the system, not a lot of content like this. You are a good presenter who can stay on topic without getting too off topic with goofy asides. I'm looking forward to more content from you.

[@dotsonpaper]

Best explanation I've seen.

[@TheBrianJ]

I'm about to start playing FATE with some friends and the rule book was really intimidating; you did such a fantastic job summing everything up here. Thanks for the awesome video!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thanks so much! I'm always happy to hear when I've helped someone get into this game!

[@JonathanAwesomeify]

This is amazing. Thanks for making it!

[@Ryod4n]

Great job ! I have not played since a while and I'm about to. Thanks to this video I remembered everything. Length is fine. Cheers !

[@hashtagPoundsign]

Thank you so very much for this.

[@pogigwapo5093]

Really looking forward to trying this out

[@GarredHATES]

Taught so well. this is cool, I really wanna try this system now.

[@teddynoteddie6826]

Adding a comment again because I’m watching this again before becoming a FATE player today. You are so good at this! Thank you!

[@coffeegoblynn]

This system is wild and I love it

[@villainsbridgeclub5268]

Absolutely number 1 Fate Core video.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

You are too kind! Thank you!

[@EurrikkeEdward]

thanks for the detailed explanation!

[@TowelGamingHammer]

I'm still struggling to keep all of the concepts in my head and how they work, but using this video alongside the core manual, I'm hoping it will stick at some point. Very well done video!

[@innapropriateshow]

Great video brah. Trying to get into fate, this really helped.

[@alphadogg5682]

Great video!

[@benjones1452]

Great video thanks!

[@alexdamado]

awesome cliff note : ) Thanks

[@GeekPsychology]

Thank you for explaining!

[@wemz2782]

amazing video... tysm!

[@neokobepizza8611]

Thank you so much for this video, the one game I and my players couldn't wrap my head around. For those who want to run this game, I'd suggest looking at FATE Condensed as it's MUCH clearer than the core rulebook, and gives you a prebuilt chassis that you can then use the core rulebook as a repository of alternate rules, kind of like the system toolkit...

[@sassquatched]

Great video. I am your 350th subscriber! I'd love more Fate Videos. I'm interested in Fate Condensed.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Definitely something I plan on covering. My plan is to use this channel to cover all things ttRPG, looking at all kinds of systems, virtual tabletops, etc... Buuut I also want to do more content around the systems I love most, and Fate is very possibly my favorite system of all, so you can definitely expect more Fate content in the future.

[@Denor123]

I am Italian and I play Fate. This video is very well done. Make more about Fate, if you can. Well done :)

[@dm4life579]

10:37 you hit me with a wave of nostalgia there ...sneak attack!

[@warmmilk9480]

I really love your content! It's easy to follow and understand and some pretty funny jokes thrown in there help to prevent it getting boring. I see your channel's been around a little while now, but it's still newer than many TTRPG channels, so I hope you're able to expand it and get your videos in front of more viewers' eyes! Looking forward to whatever else you make. Hopefully covering the PEAK of TTRPG design... Maid RPG. I'm kidding. My profile picture does NOT help portray that as a joke, so uhh... Keep up the good work!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thank you so much! And I've actually played Maid, so who knows lol

[@0whatman]

this sounds great I really want to play it

[@RobertAKAMrBag]

I really enjoyed Fate when I played but that was quite a few years ago. I’m putting together a Power Rangers themed game to GM for my friends and this video was really helpful in terms of freshening up my memory. Much appreciated.

[@Kazesuna2]

Last year I tried to run a similar campaign with Fate (after a rather succesfull animal cartoon themed campaign with the same system). This time I tried to use some supplement books with it (Mecha vs. Kaiju and its Super Sentai add-on) but it only complicated things to the point that I just killed the campaign after two sessions. Maybe someday I'll try it again with a better group and fewer extra rules (i.e. sentai powers are just an Extra, not some mishmash mechanic from a third-party book). How is your campaign going so far? Hopefully much better than mine. :D

[@garygreen5670]

Nice video, and not easy to explain in 5 minutes. I tried making a FATE rules easy to refer to at a glance-chart, but it turned out to be more difficult than I thought. I'd love to use FATE as a writing tool, but I never really got to grips with it. Risus' mechanics are even simpler - and I can just about grasp those. But I'm inspired to have another go at Risus after seeing this.

[@zara888zara]

This vid's quality of production deserves a higher likes to views ratio

[@craigsisco1894]

You Succeeded with Style on this summary of Fate Core! And gain the Boost “Liked on KZbin”. 🤣

[@anastasiadolgaya9175]

Thank you very much for such a good explanation. And I really wonder that I understood it without any problems despite I'm not so good in eng

[@Frederic_S]

I would love to see more fate content

[@xmontaufray]

Merci, très clair!

[@JohnMiller-te4ov]

Awesome Job

[@tulip5210]

"The player can suggest compells to the gm," so in otherwords assure our own doom ourselves, well well well sir I like the way you think!

[@arleyantes9321]

Great video

[@cerosis]

HOW DARE YOU WITH THOSE PUNS Truly though I've been considering jumping back into fate so this is a great refresher

[@lkim100]

great guide, and if anyone is interested, might i suggest an rpg whose system i think is very similar to fate: disco elysium. but back on track, after reading most of the core book and having a good grasp on the mechanics, your guide helped to calcify and elaborate on those mechanics.

[@Perzyn]

13:05 It's all in the reflexes.

[@alexsgamingshow2474]

Mecha Vs Kaiju is my favorite setting for the Fate system. It draws inspiration from the Japanese art of film making known as Tokusatsu which includes Godzilla, Gamera and Ultraman whilst also combing the idea of Japanese giant robots!

[@ItsTheJits_]

This was so fucking good. 10/10.

[@niqscr3547]

Shiny, crystal clear.

[@Polskie_Erpegowanie]

Greetings form Poland! :D I dunno why u have only 572 subs :O Great montage, nice voice man. Our channel its about tabletop RPG too, but we usually talk about games from our country.

[@vnkslv]

Привет! (Hello) Thanks for this video! I'm young gamemaster in this system, and your video - it's real brilliant for me!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

No YOU'RE BREATHTAKING if you're running this awesome system! I hope it goes well!

[@Tertion]

Two years later its still the best Fate tutorial out there...

[@JamesSmith-rb5lv]

I keep making new RPGs and then I find out someone else did the same mechanics but better and I somehow copied them without knowing. Very cool video though! I might try out Fate soon!

[@Badass_Torchic]

Nice.

[@paintknight]

@TheDungeonNewbsGuide Hi Klaus! Just wanted to say that I loved this video; thanks a ton for making it. I thought it was great, and very helpful. I actually enjoyed it so much that it got me to jump on your Patreon! 😄 I had a few questions for you that I sent through Patreon's messaging system; some ideas I think you might enjoy, as well as a question relating to your community Discord. Thanks and hope to talk soon!

[@supersnackbros2423]

I want to set a campaign in the skypunk world of the under-recognized Little Tail Bronx video games. I can't wait to get people to try it using this engine.

[@megameleeplus]

I would love a video like this for the cypher system!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I plan to do a number of these "How to Play ____" videos, and Cypher is actually next on my list, as it is one of my all time favorite systems. There may be other videos coming out in the meantime while I work on that one, because, as I've learned, making a How to video for these games takes a lot of time!

[@alexsgamingshow2474]

This was a great help! Looking to run a campaign of Mecha Vs Kaiju which is a setting for Fate that brings Kaiju and Japanese Anime/Manga giant robots to the mix!

[@Kazesuna2]

I tried to run Mecha vs. Kaiju with its Super Sentai add-on. After two sessions I decided to quit the campaign, partly because the players were incompatible with each other and partly because I felt that MvK just complicated an otherwise simple game a bit too much. Maybe I'll try it again but with better players and much less (if any of the) MvK rules. Hopefully your game goes much better than mine.

[@alexsgamingshow2474]

@@Kazesuna2 I could run it! :D

[@dice_knight]

Wonderful video! Very informative, really enjoyed. Actually, helped to start playing Fate core system. When I tried to search the same amount of information on KZbin in my native language, I couldn't find anything that short and convenient. So, may I ask a permission to translate your video in Russian. All the translation and video I'll do myself and, surely, will mention your channel, as well as the video in the description. I think that way more people would know more about fate core. Thanks in advance

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I'm all for getting this information out there, so please feel free! I'm glad to hear it was helpful

[@darienb1127]

Coming here after the Wotc OGL disaster. I've been looking for a game that is heavier on roleplay and being creative and I think this might be the one! This video gives me a bit of the idea, but there's still a bit of stuff i'm confused about. That might just be me needing some hands on experience though.

[@TowelGamingHammer]

Geek & Sundry has an excellent video where they played a one-shot of FATE Core with one of the designers of the ruleset as the DM. So if you've finished watching this video, I highly recommend checking out how they played a session, it's a huge help: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hICpiad3fcxqrLc

[@bigtastyben5119]

I would personally like to see a how to play fudge in the future, I think it would be interesting to compare and contrast between the fate and its grandpappi.

[@zapman6528]

Funny how I am trying to make my own ttrpg, and when I decided to add a mechanic called Fate tokens, I remembered that sounded familiar and turns out I was nearly remaking this.

[@Glaswalker1001]

How hard fate is to get into, you ask? After running 100+ hours of FATE (parts here on KZbin, scapegoats raid or die, look it up if you speak German), im still watching a "how to play fate" video… It's so different to other systems…

[@Katie-hj5eb]

Interesting, seems like a nice system for a GM who wants play to be a more collaborative effort in story telling. Ill need to pick up the basic rulebook sometime!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Honestly, one of the best things about it is the post all of their stuff for free at fate-srd.com/. I'm actually working on some learning focused one-shots with the guy who runs the SRD too!