Quality, Scale, and Potency are used to determine the effect level. Quality is measured by Tier and gear quality, meaning it can have a numeric value. Scale is the size, magnitude or number of people. Again a value can be given for this. Potency takes into account weaknesses, risk taking, and pushing yourself, all of which are difficult to measure.
So question 1 is how do you measure potency?
My second question is how do you compare these 3 factors?
It seems heavily weighted towards scale, where 40 people (aka 40 in scale) could overcome a tier 5 faction (a 5 in quality) relatively easily. It also means that exploiting a weakness (a 1 to potency) has a very limited effect on anything.
Potency is essentially the situational counterpart of Quality/Tier–it reflects favorable circumstances rather than exceptional tools or assets. This can be due to magical effects (e.g. a lightning hook vs. a ghost), environmental effects (e.g. trying to remain unheard near a raging waterfall), or things like taking extra time or risk.
Remember there are no “values” for effect factors; you either have dominance, advantage, disadvantage, or nothing. “A 1 to Potency” is a meaningless concept, as is “a 40 in scale.”
With that in mind, it’s easy to see that the factors are weighted evenly: advantage in one can be canceled out by disadvantage in another, and vice versa. It’s only when you get into extreme disparities (e.g. dominance) that one factor outshines the others.
Here are a few worked examples:
1) A gang of 40 Tier I bruisers gets into a rumble with a gang of 20 Tier III killers. The larger group has advantage in scale but disadvantage in Quality, so their effects balance out to standard; they’ve brought enough raw muscle to overcome the better gear the smaller group is carrying.
2) That same gang of 40 Tier I bruisers manages to corner the leader of a Tier V faction alone, without any bodyguards or support. In this case, Scale is the dominant factor; one person, no matter how well trained and equipped, can’t have more than limited effect at best (and that probably only on a critical) on a group of 40 people.
3) Surprise! That lone, cornered Tier V faction leader turns out to be an earth demon in disguise. Since the Tier I mob has brought no anti-demon countermeasures, the GM declares that in this scenario, Potency is the dominant factor, and the demon has it in spades. Even on an extremely lucky roll, the mob can’t even scratch the thing.
Naturally, the line between a factor giving advantage vs. being dominant depends on the specific circumstances of the fiction and the tone your group wants out of the game. If you want a more high-action game where the scoundrels can cut through mooks like no tomorrow, you might say that Scale isn’t dominant in the second example there.
Thank you, Travis Stout! This was an understanding I was stumbling toward, and your explanation helped me crystalize it in my head.
There are tier rules for how big a gang is suppose to be. T0 being like 5 guys, T2 being like 20. I think the rule of thumb is you either give higher tiered crews advantage in quality or scale, but usually not both.
Examples being… Lambblacks usually take advantage with scale; lots of legbreakers but not very good gear. The Red Sashes take advantage with quality; not as many fighters as the Lampblacks, but they are all trained and have wicked cool swords.
Lightning hook gives you potency against ghosts… but ghosts also have potency against humans just in general. So with lightning hooks I usually say they cancel each other out and its standard effect. To not have lightning on your side is to fight with reduced effect. Then usually if a whisper gets involved I’ll give them potency over the ghost.
Yeah, excellent explanation, Travis Stout! You’ve helped me see a better way to write this in the text, too. So thank you!
Also well said, Aaron Berger.