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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Golden Bee" data-source="post: 9560761" data-attributes="member: 7041055">THE PAPER CHASE!Florence looked at Thaza, then back to the passage in Upstate Academy #7.  “I know the word. It's a piece of slang I don't want to translate. It's rather spicy and I don't think we're that kind of friends."One thing that's amazing about Fate is how quickly you can get into and out of the action.  This was a fun session with a lot of RP, but instead of a blow-by-blow, let’s zoom in on the conflicts and contests.We start in mid February, Skagway Alaska. Negative digit temperatures outside as the players protect Sven “Spin” Ulgaard, a stool pigeon willing to rat on the Yukon mob. Or unwilling to? Tácito and Florence give him the Humphrey Bogart Defiance lecture, while Thaza O'Rourke busts rotted motel furniture to stick in the fireplace. A normal, slightly comedic scene, until Mafiosos with Molotovs arrive at the far end of the parking lot.The players try to escape to their car… before realizing they don't want to cross open ground against gun-toting goons. So they try and sneak into the woods… then Thaza has the bright idea to grab one of the gangsters’ cars, hotwire it, and pick everyone up. Unfortunately, she's a New Yorker (raised by apes), so cars aren't her thing. The vehicle is riddled with bullets before she can make it to the curb. So as the others provide cover, she aims at the mass of mobsters and lets the gasoline do the rest of the work… Then uses her wilderness survival skills to bring the investigators, and the witness, back in time for the trial.The trio head to Japan to investigate a rival agency. Unfaithful Florence Zee makes waves in a geisha bar, and it's a short contest to escape after "talking things out" fails spectacularly. Thaza creates a commotion in the kitchen by knocking over all the equipment, Tácito body-blocks the doorman, and Florence just barely skedaddles away, with the others catching up after. A lot of drama, all condensed into  five minutes of playtime.The biggest fight of the session came when the players snuck into the "abandoned" castle of the rival agency’s chief officer. The Ziegler Security Services team had noticed paper poppets all over the city. Turns out the crafted-creatures were a mystic spy network.This was a fight, but an odd one. Only Tácito, alias the Jade Jaguar, stood any hope of fighting this thing in melee. So Florence tried to soak it in mop water … And Thaza ripped a wire from the wall to electrocute it. Then, realizing that Japanese castles have tons of paper and wood, the group struggled to put the fire out again.  The creature, not possessing tremendous intelligence, decided to leave (and concede), and the players snuck out.The next battle had strange terrain: the dress section of a high-end department store. Instead of sharp paper, the weapons were sharp tongues. Detective Naito fired sexist barbs as Florence played dumb. Tácito flirted and distracted the shop girls who meant to interfere…  And Thaza pickpocketed, but didn't find much incriminating. Without Kabir, Devika or Captain Ivanova, the group didn't have much firepower in the social department! So the group conceded the conflict, earning much needed Fate points but being politely dragged to the enemies’ office stronghold.The group was canny, however. Fate points don't just give bonuses or re-rolls, they allow players to declare story details. The group reached out to their buddy Zelda Saeki, daughter of General Saeki, during their transport to their foe’s skyscraper. And with utmost charm, they pointed out how a witch who controlled origami was a threat to the Empire of Japan. So, instead of being destroyed physically and socially in a boardroom, the players ended up in a firefight between an army unit and an ancient sorcerer.This was (to my surprise) a contest! First, they needed to make it to the elevator. Normally easy. But in the 1930s, paper was king of the office, with every memo, invoice and receipt swirling in a deadly maelstrom.Our heroes barely escaped, covered in cuts. In the elevator, two papercraft ninjas tried to cut the guide cable. Thaza blocked and parried, wrapping her foes’ limbs around the cable and shredding them into confetti.The lobby was a madhouse, with the military preventing anyone from coming in or leaving. Special ops in riot gear. A difficult fight even if JP Diamond, Steel Eagle, and The Invincible Orca were there.The group won the contest.</blockquote>

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