I realize this is from way back in the thread (which I am only slowly reading through), but I just had to thank you for so perfectly encapsulating exactly the way I feel about most narrativist games, and FATE in particular, in that one sentence.
I've been using the fighting styles rules from the Fighter's Handbook for a long time, and have never had any problems. Weapon proficiencies are valuable, and spending one on a style specialization is not getting you anything for free. A style specialization will come in handy sometimes; other...