Fate Noosphere: Concept Generation

Making an OOB

When creating an OOB (Order of Battle), a Player is already telling their story just as an actual long form roleplaying post would. Establishing a past provides a future. Compelling OOBs are driven by the weight of history and the pressures of a living world full of neighbors around them. Oftentimes the GM also has a specific time period, aesthete, and/or set of themes he or she is trying to invoke. It doesn't hurt to adapt your ideas to match. As such this process is best as an inclusive group discussion.

Start by considering what the High Concept for your OOB is. It could be modeled in the image of your favorite historical empire or those guys from that Japanese cartoon you really like. Maybe a particular aesthetic appeals to you like gas masked dudes in trench coats, pith helmeted redcoats, steppe nomads, etc. Take these ideas and turn them into the two central aspects for your OOB - the high concept and trouble. Your attributes and other aspects will flow quite naturally from there.

As a warning, overly insular OOBs should be considered carefully. While some of the best Story Debate plotlines have come from insular nations, this did little for keeping a game moving. If a particular concept is unlikely to dynamically engage with wider events, one should think about significantly revising it. Good thing you've got a battery of fellow players to ask for suggestions!

High Concept

The High Concept of an OOB is a phrase or even a brief sentence that succinctly explains the meat of your OOB. What is their deal? What do they look like? Different High Concepts can have significant overlap, so long as there is a distinct difference. If the GM pitches a game where by necessity High Concepts will be outwardly similar, such as princes of a fantasy Holy Roman Empire, good use of Troubles can highlight what it is that is unique about them. Many Players already more or less do this as a matter of habit.

It is an Aspect, the first and most important.

Writing this aspect can be difficult. While you might have a strong image in your head, pulling it together into a single snappy phrase might elude you. Here are a few approaches you can take,

• Start with an adjective, verb, or descriptor and then go from there
• You can throw two (or more) concepts together into a blender and then mix
• One method that rarely fails is adding "In Spaaace!" to a particular concept

These are hardly the only ways to get started, of course. If you are having trouble just put whatever you have to paper for now. There are plenty of other aspects to work on in the meantime and what you have can be refined as you go.

Trouble

Every OOB has some sort of dogged issue. While the High Concept explains the what , the Trouble is often the Why.