[Kerberos] The Royal Dinosaurs (and others)

(Cross-posted on ArcDream.com.)

Well! It certainly took longer to follow up that last post than I'd intended. I can blame the holidays, right?

In any event, below is a sampling of dinosaurs that ought to cover nearly every dinosaur-related need for your Kerberos Club (FATE Edition) game. I've included a selection of what are, to me, archetypal dinosaurs. When I think "Dinosaur!" I think of these guys. However, with a little tweaking here and there, they can easily represent a much wider variety of dinosaur species (and/or kaiju, if you want to go that way).

I'm pretty accustomed to building skills in Strange FATE by now, but you know what made this even easier (and more fun) for me? Dustin Swede's totally amazing Custom Skill Generator. Go check that out, because it's awesome.

Anyway -- on to the dinosaurs!

Iguanodon (Adversary)
Biped:

• Aspects:
• Bulky Herbivore
• Toothy Beak
• Thick Scaly Hide
• Ungainly Run
• Skills:
• Superb (+5): Brawn (E)
• Great (+4): Prodigious Size (E)
• Good: (+3): Beak and Claws (E), Alertness
• Fair (+2): Powerful Legs
• Unique Skills:
• Prodigious Size (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Resolve; Minor Snag: Resolve trapping only applies to obviously physical threats)
• Beak and Claws (Strike)
• Powerful Legs (Move)
• Tier Benefits:
• Weapon 1 [Health]
• Armor 1 [Health]
• Gifts:
• Thumb Spike (Deadly x2: Weapon 2 [Health], Aspect: “Thumb Spike”)
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO (Armor 1)
• Composure OOO

Quadruped:

• Aspects:
• Gigantic Herbivore
• Toothy Beak
• Thick Scaly Hide
• Slow and Strong
• Skills:
• Superb (+5): Brawn (S)
• Great (+4): Prodigious Size (S)
• Good: (+3): Beak and Claws (E), Alertness
• Unique Skills:
• Prodigious Size (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Resolve; Minor Snag: Resolve trapping only applies to obviously physical threats)
• Beak and Claws (Strike)
• Powerful Legs (Move)
• Tier Benefits:
• Weapon 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Health]
• Gifts:
• Thumb Spike (Deadly x2: Weapon 2 [Health], Aspect: “Thumb Spike”)
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Composure OOO
• Trifling (P): 

Notes: The paleontological record includes several species of Iguanodon, at least one of which, i. bernissartensis, was native to England, and discovered in the 19th century. The Royal Dinosaurs, many (if not all) of which were brought over from the Brazilian Empire, also include a few Iguanodons. Relatively speaking, it’s one of the more common species of dinosaur a Kerberan might encounter. Two different stats are given here, one for young bipedal Iguanodons, and one for adult quadrupeds. Despite being bipeds, young Iguanodons could only run about as fast as the average adult human, which makes that Fair (+2) Powerful Legs skill a bit of an exaggeration. And adults were even slower (note the lack of a rated skill for movement), albeit stronger and larger -- probably between 30 to 45 meters long, and weighing in at about 3.5 tons. The thumb spike is an interesting case. Odds are pretty good that Iguanodon used it for self-defense, which is why it gets weaponized here. Victorian reconstructions of the species, however, located the spike on the nose, so if you want a more period-authentic (though scientifically inaccurate) version of Iguanodon, feel free to change that Thumb Spike to a Nose Spike. As an herbivore, an Iguanodon won’t hunt down Londoners in the street, but the panic-driven property damage would likely be... significant.

Tyrannosaurus (Adversary)

• Aspects:
• Ravenous Thunder Lizard
• Dagger-Like Teeth
• Apex Predator
• Terrifying Roar
• Keen Eyesight
• Skills:
• Fantastic (+6): Thunder Lizard (S)
• Superb (+5): Apex Predator (E)
• Great (+4): Powerful Legs
• Good (+3): Alertness
• Unique Skills:
• Thunder Lizard (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Physical Force)
• Apex Predator (Strike, Notice, Stress Capacity [Composure], Menace + Zone, Willpower; Major Snag: Willpower only applies against obviously physical threats, Major Snag: Armor [Composure] only applies against obviously physical sources of Composure stress)
• Powerful Legs (Move)
• Gifts:
• Impact: Thunder Lizard
• Tier Benefits: 
• Weapon 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Composure]
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Composure OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Trifling (P): 
• Trifling (M): 

Notes: What collection of dinosaurs would be complete without a T. Rex? These same stats can be used to represent any large theropod predator, including Giganotosaurus, Allosaurus, Megalosaurus, and Spinosaurus, without little (or no) variation. The Victorians thought Megalosaurus was a quadruped, so for a little period authenticity, downgrade Powerful Legs to Fair (+2) or below. Despite not being able to run faster than a human (an athletic one, anyway), T. Rex is obviously an attractive candidate species for the Royal Dinosaur Cavalry. If you like your T. Rexes (Rices?) a bit on the faster side -- say, able to keep pace with a horse or automotive -- simply up the Power tier on Powerful Legs from Mundane to Extraordinary. Everyone loves a good chase, right?

Triceratops (Adversary)

• Aspects:
• Sturdy Build
• Deadly Horns
• Protective Armor Frill
• Crushing Jaws
• Skills:
• Superb (+5): Thunder Lizard (S)
• Great (+4): Three-Horned Face (E)
• Good (+3): Alertness
• Fair (+2): Gallop (E)
• Unique Skills:
• Thunder Lizard (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Physical Force)
• Three-Horned Face  (Strike, Parry)
• Gallop (Move; Minor Snag: No free movement unless charging or chasing)
• Gifts:
• Head Frill (Protective x2: Armor 2 [Health], Rugged: +1 Health stress box, Deadly: Weapon 2 [Health]; Minor Snag: Armor only applies to attacks defended against with Three-Horned Face)
• Theme: +1 to Three-Horned Face after moving at least 1 zone, Ignore penalties to movement from physical zone borders, Use Thunder Lizard instead of Resolve to defend against fear and intimidation
• Tier Benefits: 
• Weapon 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Health]
• Move 1 zone for free when charging or chasing
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO O (Armor 2)
• Composure OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Trifling (P): 

Notes: And you can’t have T. Rex without Triceratops horridus. (I can't, anyway.) Nearly 30 feet long, 10 feet tall at the shoulder, and a hefty 13 tons, Triceratops is a living tank. Plus, it can run as fast as a racehorse (making it another excellent unit for the Royal Dinosaur Cavalry). The paleontological record indicates that those sweet-looking head horns and armored frill were probably used more for dominance displays than for combat, but it’s hard to imagine including Triceratops in a game without someone getting gored. With a slight alteration, this can also serve as a rhinoceros -- just rename Three-Horned Face and eliminate that Head Frill Gift, and you’re good to go.

Ornithomimus (Fair Minion)

• Fair (+2): Physical (E)
• Average (+1): Mental
• Aspects: 
• Speedy Theropod
• Desperate Sprint
• Toothless Beak
• Gifts:
• Swift Legs (Well-Made: +1 Physical when covering ground, Well-Made: +1 Physical when rolling initiative, +1 Physical when dodging)
• Fate Point Cost: 2

Notes: Ornithomimus (“bird mimic,” so named for its birdlike footprints) is a relatively small theropod, in that it’s the size of a horse. (Which might also make it suitable for riding....) Think of it like a big, prehistoric road runner.

Apatosaurus (Adversary)

• Aspects:
• Earth-Shaking Sauropod of the Jurassic
• Long, Flexible Neck
• Whip-Like Tail
• Complication: Lumbering Beast
• Skills:
• Fantastic (+6): Thunder Lizard (A)
• Superb (+5): Stampede (S)
• Great (+4): Tail Whip
• Good (+3): Alertness
• Fair (+2): Powerful Legs
• Unique Skills:
• Thunder Lizard (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Physical Force)
• Stampede (Strike + Zone; Minor Snag: Must follow movement)
• Tail Whip (Strike + Zone + Ranged [1 zone], Menace + Zone + Ranged [1 zone])
• Powerful Legs (Move, Minor Complication: Lumbering Beast)
• Tier Benefits:
• Weapon 3 [Health]
• Armor 3 [Health]
• Remove one Trifling Physical consequence per scene
• Gifts:
• Impact: Stampede
• Theme: +1 to Stampede when moving as a supplementary action, Ignore penalties to Powerful Legs from zone borders, Use Thunder Lizard instead of Resolve to defend against fear/intimidation
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO (Armor 3)
• Composure OOO 
• Trifling (P): 
• Trifling (P):

Notes: You may know it as Brontosaurus, but its real name is Apatosaurus. (I know this because my toddler watches Dinosaur Train.) At an average length of 75 feet and weighing some 25 tons, it was one of the largest land animals known to Man. Amazingly -- to me, anyway -- young Apatosaurusi were able to stand up and run on their hind legs; you can easily reflect that mechanically by boosting Powerful Legs from Fair (+2) to Good (+3). These numbers are also good for any similarly sized sauropod, like Diplodicus and Brachiosaurus (or the even-huger Supersaurus). Computer simulations run by modern-day Renaissance man Nathan Myhrvold suggest that Apatosaurus could snap its tail like a whip to create a sound as loud as a cannon -- or, possibly, a sonic boom. Now, there’s some uncertainty about this in the scientific community, but cool trumps science here, so I say let’s use it. Like other large herbivores, the main danger a rampaging Apatosaurus would pose to Victorian London would be its sheer destructive size.

Plesiosaurus (Adversary)

• Aspects:
• Long Neck
• Dagger-Like Teeth
• Cunning Marine Predator
• Powerful Flippers
• Keen Eyesight
• Skills:
• Fantastic (+6): Gigantic Reptile (S)
• Superb (+5): Marine Predator (E)
• Great (+4): Powerful Flippers (E)
• Good (+3): Alertness
• Unique Skills:
• Gigantic Reptile (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health], Physical Force)
• Marine Predator (Strike, Notice, Stress Capacity [Composure], Willpower; Major Snag: Willpower only applies against obviously physical threats, Major Snag: Armor [Composure] only applies against obviously physical sources of Composure stress)
• Powerful Flippers (Move + Unusual: Swimming; Minor Snag: Only in water)
• Gifts:
• Impact: Powerful Flippers
• Tier Benefits: 
• Weapon 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Health]
• Armor 2 [Composure]
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Composure OOO OOO (Armor 2)
• Trifling (P): 
• Trifling (M): 

Notes: While Theropods like T. Rex are the apex predators of the land, marine carnivores like Plesiosaurus rule the ocean. The classic Plesiosaur has four flippers, a short body, no tail fin, and a long, flexible neck. The most likely place to find one of these creatures, of course, is just outside Inverness, Scotland, but no doubt the Atlanteans have some means of taming or controlling them. The prospect of a submarine armada of Atlantean-controlled Plesiosaurs ought to put the fear of God into any right-thinking Kerberan. Not all members of Plesiosaurae have that characteristic long neck, but if you really want to differentiate between Elasmosaurus and Pliosaurus, simply drop the “Long Neck” aspect, and you’re good to go.

Pteranodon (Fair Minion)

• Fair (+2): Physical (E)
• Average (+1): Mental
• Aspects:
• Sharp Beak
• Power Dive!
• Burst of Speed
• Wide Wingspan
• Gifts: 
• Theme: Skyborn Predator (Well-Made: +1 Physical with flight, Well-Made: +1 Physical with beak, Deadly x2: Weapon 2 [Health] with beak)
• Fate Point Cost: 2

Notes: Technically, Pteranodon is a pterasaur, not a dinosaur. Whatever -- your players won’t have time to worry about that when one of these beasts is coming at them like an earth-bound rocket. Pteranodon (or, as the Victorians probably would’ve called it, Ornithochirus) is among the largest flying reptiles, with a wingspan of nearly 20 feet, but its North American cousin Quetzacoatlus dwarfs it at over twice that size, with a wingspan measuring more than 50 feet from tip to tip. On the ground, Pteranodon is a quadruped, and some speculate it could swim, as well. There’s a bit of controversy within the scientific community over just how Pteranodon was able to fly -- the general consensus is that it launched itself into the air with its forelimbs -- but the same can be said of no small number of Kerberans, so it should fit right in.

[Kerberos] A Small Menagerie

(Cross-posted on ArcDream.com.)

You may be aware of an incredible event that took place recently. If you were there, one day you will tell your grandchildren about it. If you weren't, you've no doubt heard about it by now. I'm speaking, of course, about the live Q&A chat-thingie Benjamin Baugh and I participated in last week on the RPG.net IRC channel. The topic, of course, was The Kerberos Club (FATE Edition).

(Incidentally, there's a sweet sale going on through December 15th -- $10 off on the print-and-PDF bundle, or, if you already own it, trade in your first printing for the second printing for only $10+s/h. Click on the link up there for more details.)

Going in, I'd fully expected to just sit back and watch the questions for Ben roll by, but to my surprise, I had to do a lot of typing. A lot of fast typing. Moderator Dan Davenport had a bunch of questions to keep me busy, and there were plenty flying at me from everyone else. So yeah -- good times. It's always gratifying to see other people's enthusiasm for the book.

One thing that came up was that people wanted to see some write-ups for animals. There's already a horse write-up in there (on page 98) -- something of a "hero" horse, complete with skills, stress tracks, and consequences. But unless you count Archibald Monroe, Kemnebi Meti, or the Pre-Human Horror, that's the only animal in there. And I don't know about you, but I have entirely too much respect for Dr. Archibald (and fear of the other two) to think that.

So here is the first of at least two posts of statted-out animals. Season to taste, as always.


Sewer Rat (Average Minion)
The bane of civilized society

• Average (+1): Physical
• Aspects:
• Ravenous Vermin
• Swarm! Swarm!
• Swimming in Disease
• Gifts:
• Impact: Physical scope

Notes: Individually, of course, rats aren't a big deal. It's when there's a whole swarm of them that they pose a danger. Terrifyingly so, in fact. To reflect this, put more than five of them in a group. Their Impact Gift can give them a reliable advantage in combat. The consequences they deal should involve disease more often than not, although the specifics, of course, are up to the GM.

Wolf (Fair Minion)
Savage forest hunter

• Fair (+2): Physical (E)
• Average (+1): Mental
• Aspects:
• Pack Mentality
• Dogged Pursuit
• Keen Senses

Notes: Is it really so unreasonable to find wolves in London? Not werewolves, mind you -- just regular ones. Hyde Park is huge, for one thing. Who knows what's in there? And I saw a fox once by St. Paul's, so it seems likely enough to me.

Gorilla (Adversary)
Imported from the Dark Continent

• Great (+4): Brawn (E)
• Good (+3): Athletics (E), Intimidation
• Fair (+2): Endurance (E), Alertness, Survival
• Aspects:
• Powerful Arms and Jaws
• Daunting Displays of Dominance
• Fearsome Teeth
• Gifts:
• Theme: +1 Survival in native environment, Use Intimidation instead of Resolve to defend against fear/intimidation, Use Brawn instead of Fists when fighting unarmed
• Equipment: Teeth (Deadly x2: Weapon 2 [Health], Aspect: Ripping and Tearing)
• Impact: Brawn
• Tier Benefits
• Weapon 1 [Health] (Weapon 3 [Health] with Teeth)
• Armor 1 [Health]
• Move 1 zone as a free action (run/leap/climb)
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health: OOO OO [Armor 1]
• Mental: OOO

Notes: An adult silverback is going to be a challenge for a great many Strangers; the average Londoner, of course, doesn't stand much of a chance. You'll notice that the Equipment Gift has been used here to quantify something that's most definitely not mere Equipment -- the gorilla's teeth. Using Equipment like this is a good way to give your animals a little more fine-grain detail. If you want to get a little more Howardian about it, give it an aspect of "Albino Man-Eater."



Great Cat (Adversary)
Suitable for all manner of lions and tigers

• Great (+4): King of the Jungle (E)
• Good (+3): Alertness (E), Stealth
• Fair (+2): Brawn (E), Endurance, Survival
• Unique and Strange Skills:
• King of the Jungle (Strike, Dodge, Move, Leap, Climb, Menace + Zone)
• Aspects:
• The Incomparable Grace of a Jungle Cat
• Claw/Claw/Bite
• Intimidating Roar
• Majestic Beast
• Gifts:
• Theme: Use King of the Jungle instead of Resolve to defend against fear/intimidation, +1 Survival in native environment, +2 Stealth with maneuvers
• Equipment: Teeth and Claws (Deadly: Weapon 1 [Health], Well-Made: +1 King of the Jungle with Strike)
• Impact: King of the Jungle
• Signature Aspect: Majestic Beast
• Tier Benefits
• Weapon 1 [Health] (Weapon 2 [Health] with Teeth and Claws)
• Move 1 zone as a free action (run/leap)
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health OOO OO
• Composure OOO

Notes: If you're a purist, you'll want to make some adjustments to differentiate between lions and tigers (tigers are generally larger and fiercer), but unless you're having a lion-vs.-tiger cage match, this write-up should do fine for either of them.

Anaconda (Fair Minion)
Sinister serpent of the Amazon

• Fair (+2): Physical (E)
• Average (+1): Mental
• Aspects:
• Huge Aquatic Snake
• Tightening Coils
• Strong as Steel Cable
• Gifts:
• Equipment: Constricting Coils (Deadly x1: Weapon 1 [Health], Well-Made: +1 Physical)

Notes: While this anaconda is a Minion, it's pretty easy to turn it into an Adversary if you want something more like a giant anaconda (which probably doesn't exist, but whatever). Keep the same aspects, use the gorilla's skill pyramid (I realize this sounds crazy, but it works) and Theme Gift, and give it a Minor Invulnerability to physical strength. This is a weird one, I know, and not how we usually use Invulnerability, but it means that whenever it has someone in its coils, its Brawn defense against that person's escape attempts is two Power Tiers higher. Because it is a giant anaconda.

Elephant (Adversary)
Asiatic or African, as you please

• Superb (+5): Tough Hide (E)
• Great (+4): Stampede (E)
• Good (+3): Resolve, Alertness
• Fair (+2): Brawn (S), Survival
• Aspects:
• Prehensile Trunk
• Tough Hide
• Ivory Tusks
• Massive Size
• Stampede!
• Unique and Strange Skills:
• Tough Hide (Resist Damage, Stress Capacity [Health])
• Stampede (Move, Strike + Zone; Minor Snag: No free movement unless using also Stampede to attack in the same round)
• Minor Invulnerability: Bludgeons
• Gifts:
• Equipment: Tusks (Deadly: Weapon 2 [Health], Alternate Use: Use Brawn instead of Fists for unarmed combat)
• Theme: +2 Brawn with maneuvers, +1 Survival in native environment, Ignore penalties to movement from barriers/physical obstructions equal to or less than Great (+4) Stampede
• Tier Benefits:
• Weapon 2 [Health] (Weapon 4 [Health] with Tusks)
• Armor 1 [Health]
• Move 1 zone as a free action when attacking with Stampede
• Stress and Consequences:
• Health: OOO OO [Armor 1]
• Composure: OOO O

Notes: If you have a rampaging elephant in the streets of London, you pretty much need a Kerberan if you want something done about it. (Preferably, not the Kerberan who was responsible for putting it there in the first place.) Its Theme Gift basically lets it charge wherever it wants without much regard for walls or anything else that might be in its way.

Next time: dinosaurs!

[Greyhawk] Clerical Turning

The effect of a Cleric (or Paladin) turning Undead is implemented as a Social Combat attack by a Cleric versus a one or more Undead, opposed by the Resolve skill.

A turning is accomplished by a cleric using the "Turn Undead" stunt, where the cleric's Resolve skill (with a trapping of Faith) is substituted for Intimidation.

Use of the Turning Undead stunt counts as an Action by the cleric as per normal.

Upon resolution of the Turning attack, there are the following possible outcomes:

Successful:

The cleric has done sufficient stress to generate a Consequence, which could then force the undead to offer a Concession or be Taken Out.

Partial Success:

Social stress was generated, but not enough to generate a Consequence. The undead cannot attack the cleric physically and is now considered "held at bay" and the Intimidation battle can continue. Note that if the undead chooses to disengage from the Intimidation battle and try to attack someone else, it can still be Intimidated by the cleric.

There's been the suggestion that a fragile aspect could be placed on an undead trying to disengage from a Turning, "trying to tear his eyes away from the Cleric", but playtesting will determine if that holds up.

Failure:

No stress shifts were generated, and the cleric can no longer attempt to Turn any undead present in that scene.

Epic Failure:

No stress shifts were generated, and the Undead generates Spin. The cleric cannot attempt any further Turning in that scene to any Undead present and the Undead with Spin gets the +1 as per normal. Have something appropriately nasty happen to the cleric! The cinematic idea of the undead grasping the cleric's holy symbol and having it burst into flames might be fun!

Requirements for Turning

A Turning requires that the following:

• Stunt "Turn Undead" (only available to the Cleric or Paladin class)
• A material component (the cleric's holy symbol)
• Somatic component (the cleric actively brandishing the holy symbol)

(See below for an option to add a verbal component.)

Consequences from Being Turned

If an undead can accept a social Consequence, it can then choose to either:

Accept A Turning Consequence

Something like "Cowering", "Driven to its Knees", "Covering its Eyes", "Shrieking in Agony" or even a physical consequence like "Blistering Skin" would be appropriate. The consequence could then be tagged as per normal.

NOTE: Use of Grit Rules (or Undead "Grit"):

Certain NPCs or monsters can potentially have Grit, a number usually at 1 or 2. The number represents how committed the entity is to the conflict. That value represents the number of Consequences the character will elect to take before offering a Concession.

Grit is contextual as most monsters "will not go to the mat over trivial matters."

EXAMPLE: A vampire out wandering around may have no Grit, whereas when protecting their coffin, they could have a Grit of 2 (very committed).

Remember that Grit is not a matter of how many Consequences are available, but rather how many Consequences they will accept before offering a Concession.

Offer a Concession

In the event that the Undead chooses not to accept a Consequence it can offer a Concession to the cleric. If an undead CANNOT accept a Consequence, there's no opportunity to offer a Concession and you go right to "Taken Out".

The nature of the concession offered by the undead depends somewhat upon the alignment of the cleric:

Undead Concession Offered to a Good-aligned Cleric:

Undead who offer a Concession to a cleric of Good alignment will compel the creature to move directly away from the cleric and stay as far away as possible for the rest of the scene, moving at full speed for the duration if at all possible. After the scene, the turned undead will be able to come back again, but they are subject to further turning by the cleric. Any Consequences on the undead in later scenes could be tagged for an improved Turning.

Undead Concession Offered to an Evil-aligned Cleric:

Undead who offer a Concession to a cleric of Evil alignment will cause the creatures to take a neutral attitude to the party and the cleric for the rest of the scene.

Neutral undead will ignore the cleric and his or her party. This Concession is only valid as long as the Undead are not the subject of a hostile act by the party or the cleric. Examples of hostile acts are:

• Entry into an area which the undead were created to guard.
• Attempts to remove guarded items or treasure which the undead were created to guard.
• Preventing the undead from carrying out commands from which they were created to guard.
• Outright attacks (physical or magical).

Taken Out Result from Turning

In the event that a Concession is not offered or is refused by a cleric, the Turning continues. Note that a refusal of a Concession should be taken into further consideration later on (see below). In the event that a Consequence CANNOT be absorbed by the undead, it is considered "Taken Out". While the exact circumstances of the Taken Out result are up to the cleric, they should obey the following guidelines:

Taken Out by a Good-aligned Cleric:

Undead who are Taken Out by clerics of Good alignment, are then considered destroyed.

Taken Out by an Evil-aligned Cleric:

Undead who are Taken Out by clerics of Evil alignment, are then at the mercy of the cleric's discretion--they can be destroyed or are automatically considered Minions for a period of time that depends on "how bad" they were taken out.

• The rest of the Scene (overflow of 0-1)
• The rest of the Day (overflow of 2)
• The rest of the Adventure (overflow of 3)

Once that period of time passes, the undead will either need to be re-controlled, destroyed, or otherwise turned. The GM should keep in mind that undead that have a degree of free will likely keep in mind their treatment for purposes of assigning any grit.

Turning-related Attack Modifiers

"Powerless before my Faith!"

In the event that a Cleric's Resolve / Faith skill (without any modifiers) is greater than the target's Social stress track (without regard to any existing damage) by 3 or better, no die roll is needed--they are automatically Turned, and the cleric receives a Concession.

If a Cleric's Resolve / Faith skill (without any modifiers) is greater than the target's Social stress track (without regard to any existing damage) by 5 or better, no die roll is needed--they are automatically Taken Out (as described above).

Adding a Verbal Component

In addition to the Material and Somatic components, a cleric can choose to add a Verbal component. If the cleric chooses to (and is capable of) speaking holy names, etc in a strong projecting voice, allow the cleric a +1 modifier.

Diametrically Opposed Alignment

It is possible to tag a target's diametrically opposed alignment (Law vs Chaos and Good vs Evil) to gain a +2 on the turning. This tag cannot be used for defensive purposes.

A Cleric with Skill of Intimidation

Having the skill of Intimidation might qualify as a bonus (complementary skill) on the Turning, but it cannot be substituted in place of Resolve / Faith.

Undead Tagging an Environment Aspect

If there is some aspect of Evil within the location or the Scene, the undead will be able to utilize a free tag for their opposed skill. However an evil cleric within the same area could tag that Aspect and earn the +2 for purposes of Control, instead of the Undead using it to resist. Similarly, an aspect of Good upon the environment or scene could be tagged by a Good cleric for use in Turning.

Repeated Turning

When dealing with multiple undead in a group, as long as a clerical turning is successful against ANY of those undead, the cleric may attempt to Turn any remaining undead as his next action until such time as the group is entirely turned, or he fails to turn any.

Note that undead minions under an undead leader, may use their leader's resistance to Intimidation.

Cleric Incapacitation

Any clerical compulsion (Turned or Controlled via "Taken Out" result) will be nullified in the event that the cleric who did the turning is killed or otherwise rendered unconscious (except for normal sleep). If this occurs the GM will consider the following factors when determining the actions of the freed undead:

• Are the undead mindless or do they have a certain amount of free will?
• What was their treatment at the hands of the cleric?
  
• How much risk were the undead subjected to?
• Possible reactions could range from mindless undead simply doing nothing, losing all animation and direction to vengeful undead attacking an incapacitated cleric and/or his party.

"Duelling Clerics"

Any clerical Turning or Taken Out result could be countered by another cleric (evil or good). However as stated previously, controlled undead would then be using their leader's Resolve / Faith as their opposed skill instead of their own.

EXAMPLE: A good cleric turned a group of undead and they began to flee. An evil cleric gaining control of those turned undead would then have countered the good cleric's prior turning and could use them as minions within that same scene.

EXAMPLE: An evil cleric with undead minions are being Turned by a good cleric. The undead will resist the turning based upon their leader's (the evil cleric) resistance to the good cleric's Intimidation.

Spirit of Greyhawk - Monster Translation "Hellhound"

(It was mentioned in the comments of a prior post of mine that I ought to share what I ended up using as my first attempt at a Spirit of Greyhawk Hellhound. So, enjoy!)

Source Material Reference: MM, p.51 (published 1977-1978)

Disclaimer: This was an "on the fly" translation; I didn't plan this one out. The party was looking for a way to break into a mansion occupied by 4 Iuz clerics and their staff. The PC's had decided to break in via "an exterior root cellar entrance", and so to make things interesting, I decided to turn the root cellar into a converted oubliette / Hellhound doghouse.

Hellhound (a la "Spirit of Greyhawk")

Stress: 4
Skills: Stealth (+4), Melee (+4, claws / fangs), Missile (+4, see Special Attack, below), Alertness (+4)
Consequences: Minor, Moderate
Special Attack: Flame Breath (Missile Attack, same zone, Aspect "Hellfire Breath")
Aspects: "Denizen of Hell (LE)"

Notes: Typically encountered in groups of 2-8

Translation Notes:

• My standard guideline of 2 HD = 1 Stress Box was adjusted a bit by the source material's AC4. So rather than add "Light Armor" to the creature, I upped the overall toughness a bit.
• I consider this particular translation represents the "high end" of a hellhound's range.
• You could probably half the stress / skill (possibly consider dropping the consequences to just 1) and get your entry-level hellhound.

They're also strong enough that I played them as separate creatures, rather than as "pack mooks". They've got enough skill to able to successfully manuever aspects onto PCs, that the other hellhounds in the pack will then tag.

Adventure Side Notes:
In case you're interested, the root cellar had a scene aspect on it of "low ceiling" which meant the PCs had to fight in a crouch the whole time against two of the hellhounds as listed: which meant one character was crouching behind his shield (helped with the flame breath), jabbing (somewhat ineffectively) with his broadsword. Meanwhile, the other Acrobatic PC was pretty hindered, which ended up with him on his back under one hellhound--essentially shanking it while it struggled to get off him (resultingly the PC was also able to tag the "low ceiling" aspect to make it harder for the hellhound to get off him).

Once the PCs managed (barely) to defeat the Hellhounds, the Acrobatic (ex-Assassin) PC was heard to quietly exclaim in glee that "now we've got the PERFECT place to dispose of bodies!!"

It was so sincere and the player playing the Paladin PC was so disgusted and I was laughing so hard I couldn't help but award a Fate point for staying in character.

"What are you looking at me like that for? Wait... hey, come back--what are you so upset about? I just meant: who'd think to look here, amiright?"