Harry Potter RPG (using FATE)

Using FATE to run a Harry Potter RPG

I tried running a Dungeons & Dragons game set in the Harry Potter universe. It worked… mostly. However, since then, I have come to believe that the FATE Condensed rules (PayWhatYouWant here), are a better rule set to base a Harry-Potter-themed roleplaying game on. In this article, I present my adaptations of the FATE Condensed ruleset to run a roleplaying game set in the Harry Potter universe.

The Harry Potter Skill Lists

The first thing, we modify from the FATE Condensed rules is the list of available skills. For a game set in Hogwarts, or featuring Hogwarts students, we can use three parallel skill lists through which the players determine their characters core strengths and weaknesses.

A basic skill list featuring higher-order abilities like Physique and Will.
A House skill list, in which characters show their abilities in the traits valued by the four Houses of Hogwarts.
A subject skill list. Here, characters can show an aptitude for specific school subjects within Hogwarts, which will also be applicable in adventures outside the classroom.

Each character has a skill rating in each of the skills from each skill list. This makes character creation slightly more complex but the resulting characters have clear strengths and weaknesses in the things that are relevant at Hogwarts.

Here are the lists. Be aware of the distribution of points within each separate list:

Basic skills. Choose: 1x “Great” (+4); 1x “Good” (+3); 1x “Fair” (+2); 1x “Average” (+1); 4x “Mediocre” (+0).

Physique
Will
Rapport
Speak
Investigate
Notice
Resources
Stealth

House skills. Distribute +4 points freely, every House skill must have a minimum of “Mediocre” (+0).

Courage (Gryffindor)
Wit (Ravenclaw)
Ambition (Slytherin)
Loyalty (Hufflepuff)

Subject skills. Choose: 1x “Great” (+4); 2x “Good” (+3); 2x “Fair” (+2); 3x “Average” (+1); 1x “Poor” (-1); 7x “Mediocre” (+0).

Astronomy
Charms
Defence Against the Dark Arts
Herbology
History of Magic
Potions
Transfigurations
Arithmancy
Care of Magical Creatures
Divination
Muggle Studies
Study of Ancient Runes
Flying
Dark Arts
Apparition
Crafts

Option: Higher-year Characters

If you want to start the game with more advanced characters, for example, because they are already higher-year students, consider giving them the following extra points to spend on their skills:

Add 1 extra point to a Subject skill for every 2 years above 1st (Year 3-5 = max. +5 in any skill, Year 6-7 = max. +6 in any skill).

and

Add 1 extra point to a House skill for every 2 years above 1st (Year 3-5 = max. +5 in any skill, Year 6-7 = max. +6 in any skill).

Example Stunts

Stunts for a Harry Potter FATE game are straight-forward. Think of a special talent a character has, or a special item they carry, or a unique magical ability they have. Here are two examples.

Bonus-granting stunts

Because I am a booksmart know-it-all, I get a +2 when I use a Subject skill to create an advantage when I try to recall knowledge.

Rules-changing stunt

Because I was caught in a spell as a child, I can deflect a supernatural attack against me towards a randomly chosen different target, once per game session.

Years as Arcs

FATE Condensed operates in arcs – a series of sessions where plot elements carry over, similar to one half or third of a season of a Netflix show. To couple this concept with a game set in the Harry Potter universe, we can use the school year as arcs. For a faster-paced, montage-style game, one school year might comprise one arc of 4-6 sessions. Alternatively, we can make each of the three terms of a school year into an arc. Here’s how an outline for a campaign like this could look:

The first arc starts on the Hogwarts express and ends with the Christmas holidays. The characters get into trouble with rival students and mean teachers, and start investigating a mystery.
The second arc lasts until the Easter holidays. Here, the characters intensify their investigations into the mystery, and go on expeditions, for example into the Forbidden Forest, in Hogsmeade, or the Lake.
The third arc lasts until the summer holidays. It contains the climax of the school year, as the characters unravel the mystery and confront the final threat of the school year.

Play the Harry Potter RPG to embrace the fiction

Playing in the Harry Potter universe means we are playing in a strong, established fiction. Most players will be familiar with Harry Potter and how the magical world works. Therefore, we as GMs, embrace that story as the driver of our game. The simple mechanics of FATE Condensed are perfect for this. They put story and narrative front and center. With the Harry Potter skill lists, custom stunts, and interesting arcs and milestones, we have everything we need to run a Harry Potter RPG. And running the game can teach us how to embrace the fiction of our games (not just FATE).