As much as I love Dungeons & Dragons (because it was where I started) and Forged in the Dark (because of its story-forward style), I am a big proponent of trying as many different gaming systems as I can. There is no one "perfect" system, after all: where Forged/PbtA styles may champion story, they fall short when it comes to initiative. Where D&D is great for turning everything into trackable numbers, that degree of math can occasionally lead even the most story-centric player into accidentally metagaming. Discovering new systems with their own strengths is always a delight.
Thus, Fabula Ultima.
I was invited to join an ongoing campaign run by Crunchyroll coworker and magnificent podcaster Paul Chapman, who also ran some previous campaigns I enjoyed. With a little extra time on my hands, I figured I'd go for it, at least to see if the existing party and I got along. And, just as importantly, to see if I got along with the system. It's based heavily on classic JRPGs, with a few twists that make it conducive to extra collaboration between GM and player.
It's a game we play intermittently, so we're on downtime as the players play something else for a few weeks, which gives me time to consider what I think so far. About the system itself, I mean. The party is rad.
Again, thus:
Wow, the character construction is amazing.
The first thing I learned about Fabula Ultima is that you can legitimately build pretty much any character you want to. Unlike D&D and other systems, species/race has nothing to do with the mechanics of your character and is purely cosmetic and/or narrative. More emphasis is placed on classes, and every character will automatically multiclass.
Since this was a new system to me, Paul and I quickly decided that something of my "usual style" would be the best way forward. I imagined a vampire dilletante who, bored of immortality, became a phantom thief. (Any close friends will be rolling their eyes at this point, but give me my fun.) I ended up with an entropist/rogue, combining stealth and thievery with magic that bends reality and luck to her whims.
The rest is similarly straightforward. The main book has tons of special items, as well as easy ways to homebrew signature weapons. And if that's not enough, there are at least three expansions that add more range to what your character can do or wield. At one point, we even toyed with me playing the Doctor, given the very specific quirks for stolen vehicles and not being "of this world" that would combine seamlessly to make that happen.
The player asks for rolls.
Something that's taken a lot of getting used to, but that I don't necessarily dislike, is the idea that the players say which rolls they'd like to do. Due to the types of games I usually play, I'm used to outlining what it is I want to accomplish narratively, then letting the DM/GM piece together what I ought to roll. For example, one long-running D&D character of mind has Bonus Action: Study, which she uses at the beginning of combat to get a read on whatever the party is fighting. But whether that's an Arcana, Nature, or Insight check may not be something I can discern on my own.
In Fabula Ultima, however, rolls are treated more like actions on a JRPG navigation screen. Your character has four base stats: Dexterity, Insight, Might, and Willpower. Each stat has a certain sized die attached to it, with stronger stats having higher dice, and are rolled in pairs (with itself or another stat) to take actions. For example, a physical attack might be Dex + Might, while a Study roll might be Insight + Insight.
While there's naturally still going to be discussion on what a roll entails, it's apparently the Done Thing in Fabula Ultima to dictate your own rolls as you might, say, click an option in a video game. I'm still getting used to this, but with the vibe of this system, it makes sense.
Strategizing is fun.
I'm not a huge strategist when it comes to tabletop game combat. I'm more about social engineering. And it's not because I don't like combat strategy; it's more because I'm just not all that good at it. I'm bad at numbers, mainly. If I'm playing a character who's a strategist, I will attempt to make exceptions, but I know where my weaknesses are. The only time I've been any good at it is seeing where subclasses "click together." Things like multiclassing to stack Sneak Attack and Divine Smite.
The thing about Fabula Ultima is, while I guarantee there's strategic stuff to be done with the numbers side of things, there's a lot of that "clicking together" type strategy thanks to multiclassing by default. When I pick new abilities while leveling up, it's very easy to look at how things are worded and see when and why I could use certain things. For example, an ability in one class that lets me heal a player when they go directly after me in initiative can be triggered by an ability in another class that lets me move a player up in initiative. So building a character that both works and is fun to play feels a bit like assembling a puzzle.
Fabula Points!
Okay, here's the Fun Part: Fabula Points. I'm (as you might already know or have guessed) a big fan of any mechanic that allows for a twist in storytelling. Players earn these points via various narrative scenarios, much as one might earn experience in Blades in the Dark and Tales from the Loop. Spending them, in turn, translates to XP for everyone at the end of a session.
There are several ways to use FP, including boosting rolls through character bonds and activating special class skills. But my personal favorite use for them is to directly alter the story. Obviously this is at the GM's discretion and can't be used to force other player characters into things. However, it can be used to build on what's already there or turn things to your advantage. For example, you could throw down 1FP to say you have a necessary contact or item.
The example I was given before joining the campaign actually comes from the campaign itself before I arrived. The party was stealing an airship late at night, and the GM described the night as being lit by a bright full moon. One player spent 1FP to say it was cloudy, actually... thus ensuring no one could see them clearly.
In short, Fabula Points are two things I love rolled into one: rewards for committing to the story even in the place of failure, and a tool in the players' hands to turn the tide.
Some downsides (but not really).
Any "downsides" I currently see to Fabula Ultima are either a "your mileage may vary" thing or a matter of learning curves. Initiative always seems to be a sticking point in games, as so many people want to reinvent the D&D wheel but we haven't really found things that work better. (My personal favorite so far has been the use of Momentum in Star Trek Adventures.) In Fabula Ultima, it's more like (as ever) a JRPG. Initiative goes back and forth between teams, and it's a group roll on both sides to decide who starts. Characters like mine can use abilities to shake up initiative, either by getting in the equivalent of a surprise round or moving up a teammate directly after them. But by and large, imagine your little sprite sliding forward to throw a spell and then sliding back. It's not bad, but it's not my favorite.
A lot of the crunchier numbers also take some learning. As much as I love the more modular aspect of character building, keeping HP, MP, and IP straight can take some time. Similarly, figuring out how stats go together to build skills can be a tricky one.
But again, those are small things, and they don't cancel out how fun and frankly vast this game is. I am a sucker for anything that lets you experiment and worldbuild and collaborate, and the vibe of Fabula Ultima genuinely lends itself to that.
In short, if you love classic Final Fantasy and games like it, and you love fine-tuning characters whose powers exactly reflect the image you have of them in your mind, this is a great one. There's a Celebration Edition currently taking late pledges on BackerKit, so go grab a copy if you feel so inclined!
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