Messageboard Golem
First Post
The Wild West is coming alive pardner...in d20 style even. So strap on your six-guns and get ready for some hair-raisin adventure.
Sidewinder: Wild West Adventure
Sidewinder, d20 Wild West Adventure
Publisher: Citizen Games
Primary Credits: Eric A. Burns, W.B. 'Bat' Masterson, W. Jason Peck, and Geoff Spakes
Price: $24.95
Pages: 192 total
Yahoo! Group: d20WildWest
I will start out my review of Sidewinder by saying I am a huge fan of gaming in the "historical" Wild West (Louis L'amour, the Magnificent 7, Silverado, etc). Therefore, when I first got word of Sidewinder I was very excited and, I must say, had high hopes and expectations for the product.
In case you don't decide to read to the end, my summary of the product is this: Sidewinder is both an excellent product, and an excellent value for the price. In addition to a full set of d20 Wild West rules, you also get a remarkable amount of historical background (really, a ton of good stuff here), two starting adventures, and a of couple maps of the Old West. In addition to using the d20 system, Citizen Games also acknowledged that they have used portions of Pinnacle's Deadlands d20 Open Gaming Content. I don't own that particular game, so I can't tell you exactly what they used. However, making the two d20 Wild West games somewhat consistant with each other can only be a good thing. (EDIT: read the comment from Geoff below for what items were used from Deadlands. end Edit)
While I have a few items to be critical about the product, overall it gets five stars from me. (Disclaimer, in case anyone cares: I am not affiliated with Citizen Games in any way and purchased my copy of Sidewinder.) On to the full review:
Overall Impressions:
The layout of Sidewinder is generally easy to read, without any background graphics between the lines, ala the Core Rule books from WOTC (which I found annoying). Occasionally their section titles within the chapters get a little confusing, with the sub-section headers larger than the main section headers. I don't know about you, but this is totally backwards from what I would expect. Also, the historical information from 'Bat' Masterson (see below) sometimes gets inserted in such a way that makes it a bit confusing to follow the main rulebook text. Finally, there are a few typos, but nothing drastic. These are small issues, however.
Citizen Games used an interesting and effective devise of having W.B. 'Bat' Masterson join their writing crew. Fans of the Old West will recognize that 'Bat' Masterson is one of the more famous lawmen and gunfighters of the era, and so must be accounted an expert on the subject. (The fact that he died long ago, of course, has no bearing on his expertise.) I found Bat's historical information to be highly entertaining and enlightening, and applaud whoever came up with the idea. Many of Bat's comments are drawn from a book he really wrote, titled Famous Gunfighters of the Western Frontier, and so have an authentic ring to them. Any comments from 'Bat' are in a shaded box, so they are easily distinguishable.
Artwork:
The soft cover book has a glossy cover, that looks like a photo of what a leather book would be. The logo looks like a big, gold, western-style belt-buckle leaving no doubt this book is western through and through. The interior art-work is all black & white. Some are simple line drawings, others have more detail and shading. I think they look pretty good, but I'm not really interested in looking at the pictures -- so let's get on to the good stuff!
Introduction:
This chapter gives a very good introduction of life in the Old West. 'Bat' has many interesting stories to tell regarding the Code of the West and the common professions that can be found there. If you are like me, you will skip this (er, I mean save it for later) and move on to Chapter 1 to see the new character classes. Really, I enjoyed this section, but I came back and read it after I got through Chapter 6.
Chapter 1: Characters & Classes
There are five new PC classes: Maverick, Mountain Man, Rustler, Scout, and Wrangler. And, there are four new NPC Classes: Greenhorn, Hunter, Settler, and Soldier.
When creating a character, you begin by taking a "Background Pack". This consists of choosing one of the new NPC classes to reflect the PC's life before hitting the dusty trails. From this NPC Class you get maximum grit (or hit points, which ranges from d4 to d8), skill points equal to one level of the NPC class (ranging from 8 to 4 in direct opposition to the number of hit points, note: you do not multiply these background skill points by 4), and weapon proficiencies.
After that, you choose your PC class as normal. Since Sidewinder is a "realistic" wild west game, everyone is human and you follow the normal character creation guidelines for humans (bonus feat at first level, extra skill point).
Once you begin to advance levels, Sidewinder provides Class Virtual Feats about every other level, in two groups: Tier 1 and 2 abilities. Each Tier has different things you can choose at the appropriate level. Some item are feats, others are special class abilities. Tier 2 Abilities kick in at 11th level.
Overall, the classes seem well balanced with each other, although I haven't played all of them yet. And, allowing each player to customize his PC by choosing his own Tier abilities means that each Wrangler or Maverick will be very different. For instance, at 8th level a Maverick will have four Tier 1 Virtual Feats accumulated (in addtion to his normal feats that all d20 PC's get). These four Tier 1 VF's will be chosen from a list of 4 special abilities and 18 feats -- allowing for very different combinations.
Chapter 2: Prestige & NPC Classes
I talked a bit about the NPC classes above, since you need them to create a PC. There are also five new Prestige Classes: Brave, Bounty Hunter, Desperado, Gunslinger, and Lawman. These Prestige Classes add new special abilities, but are more defined. Therefore, unlike the base classes you do not get to pick your Tier abilities - they are assigned by PrC level. As with the base classes, these PrC's seem well thought out and fun to play. Be very afraid of a 10th level Gunfighter (overall, a 17th level character since Gunfighter has a prerequisite of +7 BAB) -- the Ranged Threat special ability is very scary. Basically, you get to treat the first range increment of your gun as Threatened (35' for a normal siz-ghooter). AoO's against anyone within 35' who draws one; throw in Combat Reflexes and a good Dex ..... you get the idea. It puts new meaning into "Nobody move!" ;-)
Chapter 3: Skills & Feats
There are 10 new skills and 34 new feats for you to sink your teeth into. Not surprisingly, they deal mainly with guns, gun fighting, and cowboy skills. Fast Draw is one most characters will be looking hard at. Interestingly, it is a cross-class skill for all PC classes so if you want to be quick on the draw it will cost you some skill points. In fact, the only Prestige Classes that have it as a Class skill are the Gunfighter and the Lawman. When we get to Chapter 5 Combat, you will see how important being fast on the draw can be.
New Skills include: Demolitions, Drive, Gamble, Gunplay, and Trailblaze.
New Feats include: Card Sharp, Combat Loading, Tough Hombre, Saddle-Bred, No Time to Bleed, DeadEye Shot, Fan Shot, and Snap Shot.
Chapter 4: Money & Equipment
As you would expect, a breakdown of the cost of common weapons and goods in the Old West. Also included is how to get a fancy six-shooter with Custom Grips (+1 to hit), a Hair Trigger (+1 Fast Draw), and a Shortened Barrel (+2 Fast Draw, reduces range) for you gunfighters out there.
I am finding that the skills Bluff and Intimidate are much more important in Sidewinder, than in a standard D&D game. Gunfights can be deadly (see below) and many a gunfighter has won a battle without drawing his weapon simply by intimidating the crap out of the reputation hunting kid who was facing him.
Chapter 5: Combat
One thing I wondered is: how will they make firearms more deadly? That is always a problem in D&D -- someone could hold a loaded crossbow to your fighter's head and he isn't really worried about it. Citizen Games reportedly wanted to use a split hit point system like Star Wars, but it wasn't part of the OGL so WOTC nixed it, leaving them with a fairly standard hit point system, with hit points referred to as Grit.
Here is what they did instead to make guns more deadly:
Any attack made with a firearm against an opponent who is denied his dex bonus (flat footed, stunned, etc) automatically does damage as if it had scored a Critical Hit (assuming you hit, of course).
This is very significant because they have added a Fast Draw Round to the beginning of combat. This is a partial round where you determine who goes first based on a Fast Draw skill roll. You can draw and fire your weapon as a partial action and if you win the fast draw skill check, your opponent is flatfooted. So, if you are fast on the draw, you will score an automatic critical hit if you hit your target. Once past the Fast Draw round, initiative proceeds as usual.
A normal six shooter does 2d6 damage with a x2 critical modifier, so 4d6 damage if you are flatfooted; Painful to even a fairly high level character. But wait, there's more:
When you are hit by a firearm, you must make a Fortitude save (DC=10+ damage inflicted). If you succeed, everything is fine. If you fail, you suffer 1d4 points of temporary Constitution damage and become fatigued, per the d20 definition.
If you are already fatigued and get shot again, you must make another Fortitude check (DC=10 + the new damage). Fail that and you take another 1d4 temporary Con damage and become exhausted.
Once exhausted, each and every time you are shot you must make another Fortitude check to avoid losing another 1d4 of temporary Con damage. Of course, as your Constitution goes down you lose Grit which just makes your situation worse. If your Constitution hits zero you are dead, no matter how much Grit you have left. So, you may have 80 Grit but if you have a 12 Constitution you could be dead after getting hit three times, with some unlucky rolls involved, no matter how much actual damage you have taken.
So for example, if you lose the fast draw round and get hit by a six-shooter, you will take 4d6 damage and have to make a Fortitude check vs. an average DC of 24 to avoid losing 1d4 Con and becoming fatigued. Keep in mind as well, there is no magical healing to help you recover!
Of course, this explains why bushwhackers are so despised. A buffalo rifle does 2d10 damage with a x3 multiplier! 6d10 damage, anyone? Save vs. DC 43?
They have added a SideStep defensive bonus, that increases with level. Basically it is a dodge bonus that you don't lose even if flatfooted, to help offset the fact that there is no armor in the old west. Even so, gunfights are deadly, which is as it should be.
Chapter 6: The Roundup
In this chapter you will find rules on the effects of alcohol. Also, the various vehicles common at that time and the various maneuvers you can, and cannot, perform. Finally, there are stats for horses of various qualities and other common animals found in the Wild West.
Chapter 7: Dodge City
At this point, we are done with the rules portion of the book. However, Sidewinder has much more to offer as far as background information where you can base your campaign. Dodge City is certainly one of the most famous cities in Old West lore, and virtually every famous individual passed through during it's hey-day (or so it seems.) 'Bat' Masterson, himself a Sheriff of Ford County (which included Dodge) has many interesting stories about his days there, along with his friend Wyatt Earp. Included is a map of Dodge, in case you wish to game there.
Chapter 8: Shootout in Dodge City
This is an introductory adventure for 4-6 PC's (2nd to 4th level). For an included adventure it has an interesting story line, and is fun to play. The one complaint I have is (minor spoilers coming), the situation seems out of place in Dodge City. The plot depends on a low level Marshall of Dodge getting gunned down, and the PC's having to bring the criminals to justice because no one who lives in town has the courage to do it. This seems to fly in the face of the previous chapter, where we heard all about the famous and dangerous lawmen who walked the streets of Dodge; of the gunmen who frequented it's saloons. Yet the adventure claims no one has the guts to go after some two-bit rustlers. The obvious and easy fix is to move the scenario to a less famous town, one where it is easier to believe the locals are not up to the challenge presented.
EDIT: After posting my review I had an email conversation with the author of this chapter. He cleared up a few things for me, that helped me understand his adventure. First, he correctly pointed out that not all lawmen in Dodge were famous, brave, or gunfighters. There were pleanty of average guys who tried to do the job.
Second, he wrote, "The idea (at least in my mind while we were writing it) was to provide an opportunity for Players to create their own stories in a town like Dodge, not necessarily to recreate the history of the Wild West. That's one of the reasons were settled on circa 1875 for the adventure setting: it's right before Wyatt Earp was brought in (historically), so I hoped to create a situation where the PCs can take the place of Wyatt Earp in their Dodge campaign." This is a great idea, that I wish they would have explained in the book itself. I pass it along here, for those who might want to give that a try in a campaign. End EDIT.
Chapter 9: A Dusty Trail
This is a second adventure to get your Wild West campaign rolling. There are some fun twists thrown in, to keep your players a bit confused as to who are the good guys and who are bad.
Chapter 10: Cliffhangers
This chapter is dedicated to short teasers to give you ideas for a game. If you are looking for ideas, you should easily be able to get some ideas here.
Chapter 11: Extra Ammo
Sample characters, including backgrounds that are a great source for ready to go NPC's.
Finally, we get to the Bibliography. Here, Sidewinder lists many, many movies, TV shows, games, fiction and non-fiction books. You can use them to research the Old West or mine them for gaming ideas.
After the Glossary and Index you will find two maps of the Old West, and a Character Sheet. The first shows almost everything west of the Mississippi, and so is a bit hard to pick out details. The second map is a close up of the area where Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas come together and is very easy to read and use. IIRC, this map was created by Geoff Spakes using CC2.
In conclusion -- well, I gave you that up above! If you actually read to the end, thanks for allowing me to share my thoughts.
Publisher: Citizen Games
Primary Credits: Eric A. Burns, W.B. 'Bat' Masterson, W. Jason Peck, and Geoff Spakes
Price: $24.95
Pages: 192 total
Yahoo! Group: d20WildWest
I will start out my review of Sidewinder by saying I am a huge fan of gaming in the "historical" Wild West (Louis L'amour, the Magnificent 7, Silverado, etc). Therefore, when I first got word of Sidewinder I was very excited and, I must say, had high hopes and expectations for the product.
In case you don't decide to read to the end, my summary of the product is this: Sidewinder is both an excellent product, and an excellent value for the price. In addition to a full set of d20 Wild West rules, you also get a remarkable amount of historical background (really, a ton of good stuff here), two starting adventures, and a of couple maps of the Old West. In addition to using the d20 system, Citizen Games also acknowledged that they have used portions of Pinnacle's Deadlands d20 Open Gaming Content. I don't own that particular game, so I can't tell you exactly what they used. However, making the two d20 Wild West games somewhat consistant with each other can only be a good thing. (EDIT: read the comment from Geoff below for what items were used from Deadlands. end Edit)
While I have a few items to be critical about the product, overall it gets five stars from me. (Disclaimer, in case anyone cares: I am not affiliated with Citizen Games in any way and purchased my copy of Sidewinder.) On to the full review:
Overall Impressions:
The layout of Sidewinder is generally easy to read, without any background graphics between the lines, ala the Core Rule books from WOTC (which I found annoying). Occasionally their section titles within the chapters get a little confusing, with the sub-section headers larger than the main section headers. I don't know about you, but this is totally backwards from what I would expect. Also, the historical information from 'Bat' Masterson (see below) sometimes gets inserted in such a way that makes it a bit confusing to follow the main rulebook text. Finally, there are a few typos, but nothing drastic. These are small issues, however.
Citizen Games used an interesting and effective devise of having W.B. 'Bat' Masterson join their writing crew. Fans of the Old West will recognize that 'Bat' Masterson is one of the more famous lawmen and gunfighters of the era, and so must be accounted an expert on the subject. (The fact that he died long ago, of course, has no bearing on his expertise.) I found Bat's historical information to be highly entertaining and enlightening, and applaud whoever came up with the idea. Many of Bat's comments are drawn from a book he really wrote, titled Famous Gunfighters of the Western Frontier, and so have an authentic ring to them. Any comments from 'Bat' are in a shaded box, so they are easily distinguishable.
Artwork:
The soft cover book has a glossy cover, that looks like a photo of what a leather book would be. The logo looks like a big, gold, western-style belt-buckle leaving no doubt this book is western through and through. The interior art-work is all black & white. Some are simple line drawings, others have more detail and shading. I think they look pretty good, but I'm not really interested in looking at the pictures -- so let's get on to the good stuff!
Introduction:
This chapter gives a very good introduction of life in the Old West. 'Bat' has many interesting stories to tell regarding the Code of the West and the common professions that can be found there. If you are like me, you will skip this (er, I mean save it for later) and move on to Chapter 1 to see the new character classes. Really, I enjoyed this section, but I came back and read it after I got through Chapter 6.
Chapter 1: Characters & Classes
There are five new PC classes: Maverick, Mountain Man, Rustler, Scout, and Wrangler. And, there are four new NPC Classes: Greenhorn, Hunter, Settler, and Soldier.
When creating a character, you begin by taking a "Background Pack". This consists of choosing one of the new NPC classes to reflect the PC's life before hitting the dusty trails. From this NPC Class you get maximum grit (or hit points, which ranges from d4 to d8), skill points equal to one level of the NPC class (ranging from 8 to 4 in direct opposition to the number of hit points, note: you do not multiply these background skill points by 4), and weapon proficiencies.
After that, you choose your PC class as normal. Since Sidewinder is a "realistic" wild west game, everyone is human and you follow the normal character creation guidelines for humans (bonus feat at first level, extra skill point).
Once you begin to advance levels, Sidewinder provides Class Virtual Feats about every other level, in two groups: Tier 1 and 2 abilities. Each Tier has different things you can choose at the appropriate level. Some item are feats, others are special class abilities. Tier 2 Abilities kick in at 11th level.
Overall, the classes seem well balanced with each other, although I haven't played all of them yet. And, allowing each player to customize his PC by choosing his own Tier abilities means that each Wrangler or Maverick will be very different. For instance, at 8th level a Maverick will have four Tier 1 Virtual Feats accumulated (in addtion to his normal feats that all d20 PC's get). These four Tier 1 VF's will be chosen from a list of 4 special abilities and 18 feats -- allowing for very different combinations.
Chapter 2: Prestige & NPC Classes
I talked a bit about the NPC classes above, since you need them to create a PC. There are also five new Prestige Classes: Brave, Bounty Hunter, Desperado, Gunslinger, and Lawman. These Prestige Classes add new special abilities, but are more defined. Therefore, unlike the base classes you do not get to pick your Tier abilities - they are assigned by PrC level. As with the base classes, these PrC's seem well thought out and fun to play. Be very afraid of a 10th level Gunfighter (overall, a 17th level character since Gunfighter has a prerequisite of +7 BAB) -- the Ranged Threat special ability is very scary. Basically, you get to treat the first range increment of your gun as Threatened (35' for a normal siz-ghooter). AoO's against anyone within 35' who draws one; throw in Combat Reflexes and a good Dex ..... you get the idea. It puts new meaning into "Nobody move!" ;-)
Chapter 3: Skills & Feats
There are 10 new skills and 34 new feats for you to sink your teeth into. Not surprisingly, they deal mainly with guns, gun fighting, and cowboy skills. Fast Draw is one most characters will be looking hard at. Interestingly, it is a cross-class skill for all PC classes so if you want to be quick on the draw it will cost you some skill points. In fact, the only Prestige Classes that have it as a Class skill are the Gunfighter and the Lawman. When we get to Chapter 5 Combat, you will see how important being fast on the draw can be.
New Skills include: Demolitions, Drive, Gamble, Gunplay, and Trailblaze.
New Feats include: Card Sharp, Combat Loading, Tough Hombre, Saddle-Bred, No Time to Bleed, DeadEye Shot, Fan Shot, and Snap Shot.
Chapter 4: Money & Equipment
As you would expect, a breakdown of the cost of common weapons and goods in the Old West. Also included is how to get a fancy six-shooter with Custom Grips (+1 to hit), a Hair Trigger (+1 Fast Draw), and a Shortened Barrel (+2 Fast Draw, reduces range) for you gunfighters out there.
I am finding that the skills Bluff and Intimidate are much more important in Sidewinder, than in a standard D&D game. Gunfights can be deadly (see below) and many a gunfighter has won a battle without drawing his weapon simply by intimidating the crap out of the reputation hunting kid who was facing him.
Chapter 5: Combat
One thing I wondered is: how will they make firearms more deadly? That is always a problem in D&D -- someone could hold a loaded crossbow to your fighter's head and he isn't really worried about it. Citizen Games reportedly wanted to use a split hit point system like Star Wars, but it wasn't part of the OGL so WOTC nixed it, leaving them with a fairly standard hit point system, with hit points referred to as Grit.
Here is what they did instead to make guns more deadly:
Any attack made with a firearm against an opponent who is denied his dex bonus (flat footed, stunned, etc) automatically does damage as if it had scored a Critical Hit (assuming you hit, of course).
This is very significant because they have added a Fast Draw Round to the beginning of combat. This is a partial round where you determine who goes first based on a Fast Draw skill roll. You can draw and fire your weapon as a partial action and if you win the fast draw skill check, your opponent is flatfooted. So, if you are fast on the draw, you will score an automatic critical hit if you hit your target. Once past the Fast Draw round, initiative proceeds as usual.
A normal six shooter does 2d6 damage with a x2 critical modifier, so 4d6 damage if you are flatfooted; Painful to even a fairly high level character. But wait, there's more:
When you are hit by a firearm, you must make a Fortitude save (DC=10+ damage inflicted). If you succeed, everything is fine. If you fail, you suffer 1d4 points of temporary Constitution damage and become fatigued, per the d20 definition.
If you are already fatigued and get shot again, you must make another Fortitude check (DC=10 + the new damage). Fail that and you take another 1d4 temporary Con damage and become exhausted.
Once exhausted, each and every time you are shot you must make another Fortitude check to avoid losing another 1d4 of temporary Con damage. Of course, as your Constitution goes down you lose Grit which just makes your situation worse. If your Constitution hits zero you are dead, no matter how much Grit you have left. So, you may have 80 Grit but if you have a 12 Constitution you could be dead after getting hit three times, with some unlucky rolls involved, no matter how much actual damage you have taken.
So for example, if you lose the fast draw round and get hit by a six-shooter, you will take 4d6 damage and have to make a Fortitude check vs. an average DC of 24 to avoid losing 1d4 Con and becoming fatigued. Keep in mind as well, there is no magical healing to help you recover!
Of course, this explains why bushwhackers are so despised. A buffalo rifle does 2d10 damage with a x3 multiplier! 6d10 damage, anyone? Save vs. DC 43?
They have added a SideStep defensive bonus, that increases with level. Basically it is a dodge bonus that you don't lose even if flatfooted, to help offset the fact that there is no armor in the old west. Even so, gunfights are deadly, which is as it should be.
Chapter 6: The Roundup
In this chapter you will find rules on the effects of alcohol. Also, the various vehicles common at that time and the various maneuvers you can, and cannot, perform. Finally, there are stats for horses of various qualities and other common animals found in the Wild West.
Chapter 7: Dodge City
At this point, we are done with the rules portion of the book. However, Sidewinder has much more to offer as far as background information where you can base your campaign. Dodge City is certainly one of the most famous cities in Old West lore, and virtually every famous individual passed through during it's hey-day (or so it seems.) 'Bat' Masterson, himself a Sheriff of Ford County (which included Dodge) has many interesting stories about his days there, along with his friend Wyatt Earp. Included is a map of Dodge, in case you wish to game there.
Chapter 8: Shootout in Dodge City
This is an introductory adventure for 4-6 PC's (2nd to 4th level). For an included adventure it has an interesting story line, and is fun to play. The one complaint I have is (minor spoilers coming), the situation seems out of place in Dodge City. The plot depends on a low level Marshall of Dodge getting gunned down, and the PC's having to bring the criminals to justice because no one who lives in town has the courage to do it. This seems to fly in the face of the previous chapter, where we heard all about the famous and dangerous lawmen who walked the streets of Dodge; of the gunmen who frequented it's saloons. Yet the adventure claims no one has the guts to go after some two-bit rustlers. The obvious and easy fix is to move the scenario to a less famous town, one where it is easier to believe the locals are not up to the challenge presented.
EDIT: After posting my review I had an email conversation with the author of this chapter. He cleared up a few things for me, that helped me understand his adventure. First, he correctly pointed out that not all lawmen in Dodge were famous, brave, or gunfighters. There were pleanty of average guys who tried to do the job.
Second, he wrote, "The idea (at least in my mind while we were writing it) was to provide an opportunity for Players to create their own stories in a town like Dodge, not necessarily to recreate the history of the Wild West. That's one of the reasons were settled on circa 1875 for the adventure setting: it's right before Wyatt Earp was brought in (historically), so I hoped to create a situation where the PCs can take the place of Wyatt Earp in their Dodge campaign." This is a great idea, that I wish they would have explained in the book itself. I pass it along here, for those who might want to give that a try in a campaign. End EDIT.
Chapter 9: A Dusty Trail
This is a second adventure to get your Wild West campaign rolling. There are some fun twists thrown in, to keep your players a bit confused as to who are the good guys and who are bad.
Chapter 10: Cliffhangers
This chapter is dedicated to short teasers to give you ideas for a game. If you are looking for ideas, you should easily be able to get some ideas here.
Chapter 11: Extra Ammo
Sample characters, including backgrounds that are a great source for ready to go NPC's.
Finally, we get to the Bibliography. Here, Sidewinder lists many, many movies, TV shows, games, fiction and non-fiction books. You can use them to research the Old West or mine them for gaming ideas.
After the Glossary and Index you will find two maps of the Old West, and a Character Sheet. The first shows almost everything west of the Mississippi, and so is a bit hard to pick out details. The second map is a close up of the area where Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas come together and is very easy to read and use. IIRC, this map was created by Geoff Spakes using CC2.
In conclusion -- well, I gave you that up above! If you actually read to the end, thanks for allowing me to share my thoughts.
Let me preface my comments by stating that I am/was an uncompensated playtester for this book for Crosswalk Press (Geoff Spakes). I am not being compensated for any reviews, and like Max, purchased my copy of Sidewinder.
With that out of the way, I'll point out that I am a fan of western RPG's, first cutting my teeth on the classic TSR Boot Hill (In the small book format, the one like the original D&D booklets) and also own and/or have played many other western RPG's (GURP Old West, FGU's Wild West, Boot Hill in it's many incarnations).
Sidewinder was designed for the "look & feel" of western novels and movies, and to be a d20 successor to the games mentioned above. I never picked up Deadlands d20 (although I know people that have played it and gave good reports on it) due to the impression that there was too much "else" included, and not enough western. Sidewinder avoids that pitfall, it is a pure western game. But being d20, if you want to inject some "strangness" you can easily bring in something from another products but it doesn't have to be the normal state of thing like in Deadlands d20.
I'll also state that Geoff at Crosswalk Press and Rob Stone, Jason Peck and others from Citizen Games were great to work with in developing this product. All of them are very active in the Yahoo Group and quick to reply to things. I would suggest anyone who purchases this join the group for support, ideas, rules questions, errata reporting , etc. It's a great forum for your voice to be heard.
There has also been mentioned on the Yahoo Group by members of Citizen Games of upcoming supplements being developed for Sidewinder, so more material is forthcoming to help out prospective GM's.
Max's review hits the salient points that I would have covered (being a playtester I didn't feel right posting a seperate review of the product). Text density is not overly high in the book, but I actually found this to be a refreshing change from some of the WotC books. The larger text made reading it easier on the eyes.
I will add my agreement to Max. If you are looking for a good, solid product to run a western campaign game ala Silverado, Quigley Down Under, Young Guns, etc. or just looking to roll up some characters and "slap leather" at high noon on a dusty main street, Sidewinder will give you your money's worth!
With that out of the way, I'll point out that I am a fan of western RPG's, first cutting my teeth on the classic TSR Boot Hill (In the small book format, the one like the original D&D booklets) and also own and/or have played many other western RPG's (GURP Old West, FGU's Wild West, Boot Hill in it's many incarnations).
Sidewinder was designed for the "look & feel" of western novels and movies, and to be a d20 successor to the games mentioned above. I never picked up Deadlands d20 (although I know people that have played it and gave good reports on it) due to the impression that there was too much "else" included, and not enough western. Sidewinder avoids that pitfall, it is a pure western game. But being d20, if you want to inject some "strangness" you can easily bring in something from another products but it doesn't have to be the normal state of thing like in Deadlands d20.
I'll also state that Geoff at Crosswalk Press and Rob Stone, Jason Peck and others from Citizen Games were great to work with in developing this product. All of them are very active in the Yahoo Group and quick to reply to things. I would suggest anyone who purchases this join the group for support, ideas, rules questions, errata reporting , etc. It's a great forum for your voice to be heard.
There has also been mentioned on the Yahoo Group by members of Citizen Games of upcoming supplements being developed for Sidewinder, so more material is forthcoming to help out prospective GM's.
Max's review hits the salient points that I would have covered (being a playtester I didn't feel right posting a seperate review of the product). Text density is not overly high in the book, but I actually found this to be a refreshing change from some of the WotC books. The larger text made reading it easier on the eyes.
I will add my agreement to Max. If you are looking for a good, solid product to run a western campaign game ala Silverado, Quigley Down Under, Young Guns, etc. or just looking to roll up some characters and "slap leather" at high noon on a dusty main street, Sidewinder will give you your money's worth!
trancejeremy
Adventurer
Hmmm, from reading your review, it sounds like they used the weapon damages from Deadlands, and a few of the feats/skills (maybe). So while they would generally be compatible, it sounds like there isn't much overlap.
Geoff
First Post
Jeremy, the OGC used from Deadlands basically amounts to a handful of skills, some various weapon rules (like explosives) and the vehicle rules. Very little was carried over from Deadlands with the exception of some stuff that was well written and fit the genre. Suffice it to say with the exception of these few rules, there is very little overlap in the products.
If you're hankerin' for some rootin'-tootin' cinematic western play, Sidewinder is right on the money.
If you're hankerin' for some rootin'-tootin' cinematic western play, Sidewinder is right on the money.
Messageboard Golem
First Post
By Brad Mix, Staff Reviewer, d20 Magazine Rack
This review is for Sidewinder: Wild West Adventure published by Citizen Games. The softbound book retails for $24.95 and is 191 pages including a character sheet. This is written by Eric A.M. Burns, W. Jason Peck, Geoff Spakes and W.B. ‘Bat’ Masterson. Since Bat Masterson is long since dead some of his writings about the Wild West are used. It is nice to see real material included.
The book starts out by defining the “Code of the West.” The code was how you presented yourself and how others perceived you. A reputation as a great gunslinger could go a long way in actually avoiding a gunfight. Bushwhacking, or attacking by surprise, was actually looked down upon. A fair fight in the open street was the best way to handle a dispute.
One of the first things you notice about Sidewinder is that alignment is not used at all. “At best, most deeds in the Wild West were shades of gray. Many people had a tendency to perform heroic acts one day and atrocious ones the next. Though not deemed evil, killing was a fact of every day life and was rarely given a second thought. Many hombres were outlaws on one territory and hired as lawmen in the next. Both heroes and outlaws alike tended to follow the Code of the West.”
Professions are listed and are how most classes make their money. Bounty Hunter, Buffalo Hunter, Cowboy, Gambler, Hired Gun, Local Law, Outlaw, Scout, and Trapper. The Bounty Hunter hunted down outlaws for the reward. Often a dangerous line of work and a lot of travel is involved. Buffalo Hunter would ride the open plains, usually in groups, and kill the buffalo and sell them to merchants or Indians. Cowboys were the cattle drivers of the west. They spent many a week moving their herd to a big city to sell. The Gambler makes his living trying to beat the house at games of chance. Not the most stable profession around. A Hired Gun was usually hired to protect a herd of cattle of a stagecoach making its way to a new city. The Local Lawman had a tough job of keeping the peace when there were not many laws in place. The lawman would usually handle town drunks or go after cattle rustlers. The Outlaw made his money by stealing and cheating. Anything goes for the Outlaw. The Scout was a trailblazer into the West. Often times after a city was established he would go to the previous city and lead people to the next city, for a fee of course. Trappers made their way by hunting and selling the skins of animals to traders. Anyone can follow a particular profession for a while and decide to switch to something else. Most people in the west had several careers.
The different classes available are: Maverick, Mountain Man, Rustler, Scout and Wrangler. The Maverick relies on quick wit and cunning to survive in the west. Tending to live on the edge by selling miracle ointment, or pick pocketing the Maverick is a skilled conman. The Mountain Man sets out to find the next gold vein or fur trapping opportunity. Rustlers often take jobs that no one else wants. They tend to be an ornery bunch and always lookout for themselves. Scouts as a class tend to be scouts as a profession as well. The Scout is adept at being outdoors and leading folks across the prairie. Wranglers are often found leading a cattle drive and have great skills in the saddle. The combination of class and profession allow for almost limitless possibilities.
Some of the differences that you will notice are. Hit Dice are referred to as Grit Dice or Grit for short. The only race allowed is Human. Each class gets a Sidestep bonus. This is a bonus to AC and is not lost even if the character is flat footed. The special abilities are divided into Tier 1 and 2 abilities. These are gained every few levels and are addition to skills and feats that are also gained. Most of these are exclusive to a Wild West setting. Poker face allows for a +2 bonus to Bluff of Intimidation skill. Silver Tongue grants a +4 on all Bluff and Diplomacy skill checks. Mountain Stride allows a character to move through mountains or hilly terrain with out leaving a discernable trail to follow. Pistol Whip gives a +2 bonus to attack with the butt end of a pistol in melee combat.
Chapter 2 details the prestige classes. They are Bounty Hunter, Brave, Desperado, Gunslinger, and Lawman. The Bounty Hunter devotes his skills to tracking quarry and collecting the reward. The special abilities that he gains are Hogtie, adds +8 to use rope skill check. Track Quarry gains a +2 check to all Bluff, Intimidation, Listen, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks. Contacts adds the characters Bounty Hunter level to all Gather Information checks. Subdual Strike does not suffer the usual –4 penalty to attack rolls when trying to subdue an opponent. Weapon Shot does not let the target add his Sidestep bonus to AC.
The Brave gains Feral Senses that allow for a +2 bonus to Listen, Spot, Search, and Wilderness Lore checks. Woodland Stride allows for normal movement through thorns, overgrown areas and briars without suffering damage. Trackless Step lets the Brave pass without leaving a trail. Tribal Chants add bonuses to morale, strength, and dexterity or cause Fear in an opponent depending which chant is used.
The Desperado gains the special ability of being fearsome. His reputation has proceeded him and gains pluses to Bluff and intimidate checks. These pluses go up as the character goes up in level. The Ornery special ability allows for high tolerance for pain and damage reduction from all forms of attack. This ability cannot reduce the damage below 1 though. Clear Line allows the Desperado to ignore some cover if the target is hiding. The target is considered to have one less category of concealment.
The Gunslinger gets Steel-Eyed and gains increasing bonuses to Intimidation checks as he goes up in level. Firearm Focus and Fire Arm Specialization allow for increased chances to hit an opponent when using a certain type of weapon.
Lawman carry a badge an when showing it gain bonuses to Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Intimidation checks. The coolest part of being a Lawman is the ability to form a posse. The number and levels of the posse members goes up with each level. The Shifty ability adds to the Sidestep bonus.
Skills and feats that do not work the same as existing d20 games are detailed. Since there are no spells most of the spellcasting skills and feats are eliminated. Ones like Concentration have been adapted to fit the setting. New skills like, Demolition, Drive, Fast Draw and Gunplay are added.
Chapter 4 explains what items are available and how much they cost. Everything is listed in US dollars for easy reference.
Chapter 5 explains combat in the Wild West. Combat in Sidewinder is much deadlier than in most other games. This is due to the extreme damage of firearms. Characters that are caught flat-footed automatically suffer from a critical hit when hit. Normal damage is 2d6 for a critical. Some weapons allow this to be doubled for 4d6 damage from one shot. In addition to the damage suffered temporary Constitution can also be suffered. If the DC is failed 1-4 temporary Con damage is also inflicted. Anytime the Con becomes 0 the character dies no matter how many Grit points he has left. Recovery of the lost Con points, are at a rate of 1 per day. On the last day, when the last Con point would be regained, a new Fortitude check DC15 has to be made. If the save is failed the last point of Con damage becomes permanent reflecting a crippling or permanent injury. Attack roll modifiers are also listed. The one thing I would have liked to see in combat is where the bullet actually strikes. Say if it his the hand it would then cause a penalty to further attacks with that hand. The same with getting hit in the leg could cause a penalty to the Sidestep bonus.
Chapter 6 deals with horses, mules and wagons and how the character gets around. A few critters are detailed as well. The mountain lion, wolf, wolverine, and viper are flushed out in detail.
Chapter 7, Dodge City, is a city that is detailed that can be the start of a campaign. It includes all of the businesses and personalities of the town.
Chapter 8 is an adventure set in Dodge City and is designed for 4-6 low level characters (2nd to 4th level). The party has a chance to settle a feud between rival families. The adventure requires a lot of roleplaying as the whole Sidewinder game does.
The rest of the book details some NPC’s and includes a glossary for authentic western dialect. Words and phrases like Sam Hill (nickname for the devil) and Strong enough to float a Colt (Very strong coffee) are described. Using this glossary will add to the flavor of an adventure.
Overall this is a well put together book with a lot of historical information that adds to the realism of the setting. Only 2 things are not open content, the text by Bat Masterson and the NPC character names. While this is original in terms of the gaming world, there are not a lot is western settings out there, there is not really anything new that cannot be found in a good history book or novel about that time period. A lot of roleplaying is required and actual combat is very limited. If this is the style that you like then you will like Sidewinder.
To see the graded evaluation of this product, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.
This review is for Sidewinder: Wild West Adventure published by Citizen Games. The softbound book retails for $24.95 and is 191 pages including a character sheet. This is written by Eric A.M. Burns, W. Jason Peck, Geoff Spakes and W.B. ‘Bat’ Masterson. Since Bat Masterson is long since dead some of his writings about the Wild West are used. It is nice to see real material included.
The book starts out by defining the “Code of the West.” The code was how you presented yourself and how others perceived you. A reputation as a great gunslinger could go a long way in actually avoiding a gunfight. Bushwhacking, or attacking by surprise, was actually looked down upon. A fair fight in the open street was the best way to handle a dispute.
One of the first things you notice about Sidewinder is that alignment is not used at all. “At best, most deeds in the Wild West were shades of gray. Many people had a tendency to perform heroic acts one day and atrocious ones the next. Though not deemed evil, killing was a fact of every day life and was rarely given a second thought. Many hombres were outlaws on one territory and hired as lawmen in the next. Both heroes and outlaws alike tended to follow the Code of the West.”
Professions are listed and are how most classes make their money. Bounty Hunter, Buffalo Hunter, Cowboy, Gambler, Hired Gun, Local Law, Outlaw, Scout, and Trapper. The Bounty Hunter hunted down outlaws for the reward. Often a dangerous line of work and a lot of travel is involved. Buffalo Hunter would ride the open plains, usually in groups, and kill the buffalo and sell them to merchants or Indians. Cowboys were the cattle drivers of the west. They spent many a week moving their herd to a big city to sell. The Gambler makes his living trying to beat the house at games of chance. Not the most stable profession around. A Hired Gun was usually hired to protect a herd of cattle of a stagecoach making its way to a new city. The Local Lawman had a tough job of keeping the peace when there were not many laws in place. The lawman would usually handle town drunks or go after cattle rustlers. The Outlaw made his money by stealing and cheating. Anything goes for the Outlaw. The Scout was a trailblazer into the West. Often times after a city was established he would go to the previous city and lead people to the next city, for a fee of course. Trappers made their way by hunting and selling the skins of animals to traders. Anyone can follow a particular profession for a while and decide to switch to something else. Most people in the west had several careers.
The different classes available are: Maverick, Mountain Man, Rustler, Scout and Wrangler. The Maverick relies on quick wit and cunning to survive in the west. Tending to live on the edge by selling miracle ointment, or pick pocketing the Maverick is a skilled conman. The Mountain Man sets out to find the next gold vein or fur trapping opportunity. Rustlers often take jobs that no one else wants. They tend to be an ornery bunch and always lookout for themselves. Scouts as a class tend to be scouts as a profession as well. The Scout is adept at being outdoors and leading folks across the prairie. Wranglers are often found leading a cattle drive and have great skills in the saddle. The combination of class and profession allow for almost limitless possibilities.
Some of the differences that you will notice are. Hit Dice are referred to as Grit Dice or Grit for short. The only race allowed is Human. Each class gets a Sidestep bonus. This is a bonus to AC and is not lost even if the character is flat footed. The special abilities are divided into Tier 1 and 2 abilities. These are gained every few levels and are addition to skills and feats that are also gained. Most of these are exclusive to a Wild West setting. Poker face allows for a +2 bonus to Bluff of Intimidation skill. Silver Tongue grants a +4 on all Bluff and Diplomacy skill checks. Mountain Stride allows a character to move through mountains or hilly terrain with out leaving a discernable trail to follow. Pistol Whip gives a +2 bonus to attack with the butt end of a pistol in melee combat.
Chapter 2 details the prestige classes. They are Bounty Hunter, Brave, Desperado, Gunslinger, and Lawman. The Bounty Hunter devotes his skills to tracking quarry and collecting the reward. The special abilities that he gains are Hogtie, adds +8 to use rope skill check. Track Quarry gains a +2 check to all Bluff, Intimidation, Listen, Search, Sense Motive, and Spot checks. Contacts adds the characters Bounty Hunter level to all Gather Information checks. Subdual Strike does not suffer the usual –4 penalty to attack rolls when trying to subdue an opponent. Weapon Shot does not let the target add his Sidestep bonus to AC.
The Brave gains Feral Senses that allow for a +2 bonus to Listen, Spot, Search, and Wilderness Lore checks. Woodland Stride allows for normal movement through thorns, overgrown areas and briars without suffering damage. Trackless Step lets the Brave pass without leaving a trail. Tribal Chants add bonuses to morale, strength, and dexterity or cause Fear in an opponent depending which chant is used.
The Desperado gains the special ability of being fearsome. His reputation has proceeded him and gains pluses to Bluff and intimidate checks. These pluses go up as the character goes up in level. The Ornery special ability allows for high tolerance for pain and damage reduction from all forms of attack. This ability cannot reduce the damage below 1 though. Clear Line allows the Desperado to ignore some cover if the target is hiding. The target is considered to have one less category of concealment.
The Gunslinger gets Steel-Eyed and gains increasing bonuses to Intimidation checks as he goes up in level. Firearm Focus and Fire Arm Specialization allow for increased chances to hit an opponent when using a certain type of weapon.
Lawman carry a badge an when showing it gain bonuses to Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Intimidation checks. The coolest part of being a Lawman is the ability to form a posse. The number and levels of the posse members goes up with each level. The Shifty ability adds to the Sidestep bonus.
Skills and feats that do not work the same as existing d20 games are detailed. Since there are no spells most of the spellcasting skills and feats are eliminated. Ones like Concentration have been adapted to fit the setting. New skills like, Demolition, Drive, Fast Draw and Gunplay are added.
Chapter 4 explains what items are available and how much they cost. Everything is listed in US dollars for easy reference.
Chapter 5 explains combat in the Wild West. Combat in Sidewinder is much deadlier than in most other games. This is due to the extreme damage of firearms. Characters that are caught flat-footed automatically suffer from a critical hit when hit. Normal damage is 2d6 for a critical. Some weapons allow this to be doubled for 4d6 damage from one shot. In addition to the damage suffered temporary Constitution can also be suffered. If the DC is failed 1-4 temporary Con damage is also inflicted. Anytime the Con becomes 0 the character dies no matter how many Grit points he has left. Recovery of the lost Con points, are at a rate of 1 per day. On the last day, when the last Con point would be regained, a new Fortitude check DC15 has to be made. If the save is failed the last point of Con damage becomes permanent reflecting a crippling or permanent injury. Attack roll modifiers are also listed. The one thing I would have liked to see in combat is where the bullet actually strikes. Say if it his the hand it would then cause a penalty to further attacks with that hand. The same with getting hit in the leg could cause a penalty to the Sidestep bonus.
Chapter 6 deals with horses, mules and wagons and how the character gets around. A few critters are detailed as well. The mountain lion, wolf, wolverine, and viper are flushed out in detail.
Chapter 7, Dodge City, is a city that is detailed that can be the start of a campaign. It includes all of the businesses and personalities of the town.
Chapter 8 is an adventure set in Dodge City and is designed for 4-6 low level characters (2nd to 4th level). The party has a chance to settle a feud between rival families. The adventure requires a lot of roleplaying as the whole Sidewinder game does.
The rest of the book details some NPC’s and includes a glossary for authentic western dialect. Words and phrases like Sam Hill (nickname for the devil) and Strong enough to float a Colt (Very strong coffee) are described. Using this glossary will add to the flavor of an adventure.
Overall this is a well put together book with a lot of historical information that adds to the realism of the setting. Only 2 things are not open content, the text by Bat Masterson and the NPC character names. While this is original in terms of the gaming world, there are not a lot is western settings out there, there is not really anything new that cannot be found in a good history book or novel about that time period. A lot of roleplaying is required and actual combat is very limited. If this is the style that you like then you will like Sidewinder.
To see the graded evaluation of this product, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.
Khur
Sympathy for the Devil
Harkening back to Boot Hill, and sharing shelf space with such worthies as GURPS Old West and Deadlands, Sidewinder is a d20 game based solidly on life in the American frontier. With this book and the Player's Handbook, anyone can play a campaign set in the Old West using familiar rules. But, Sidewinder provides this and so much more. So strap on your shootin' iron and put on your spurs, it's time to see what makes Sidewinder tick.
The thing that struck me first about Sidewinder was how quietly it sits on the shelf. The cover just isn't grabbing. It's done to resemble a leather-bound book with a gold plate displaying the title. Now if it were a hardback with faux leather and gold foil, that'd be a different story. Having seen the images used in Citizen Games' advertising for the game, however, I wondered why they didn't use more vintage photography to draw attention. As it is, Sidewinder might go overlooked by the casual browser, and that'd be that gamer's loss.
Sidewinder is worth the investment just as sheer entertainment. Co-authored by famous buffalo hunter, gunfighter, lawman, and writer, William Barclay "Bat" Masterson, Sidewinder is the best read I've had in a d20 book. For those of you who don't know, Bat was a real man who lived and fought in the West, only to die of a heart attack as a sports journalist in Manhattan. Some of his exploits, along with his recollections of friends, such as Wyatt Earp, are presented in the pages of Sidewinder, as they appeared in Human Life magazine in the early 1900s. More authentic stories of the West one cannot find, and adding this material was a brilliant stroke from Citizen Games' team.
That team also chose a style of writing within the Western theme that makes even the driest of game mechanics enjoyable. The DM is called the Judge, hit points are grit, and Hit Dice are Grit Dice. The flavor continues throughout the work, such as a line from the feat Tough Hombre that reads, "You keep fighting even when your boots are full of your own blood." I could almost hear the Western accent, and I laughed out loud. That was just one of many such moments during my time with Sidewinder.
The mechanics I mentioned are sound too, raising Sidewinder above many other works. The authors must have labored hard to make everything fit into d20, and they succeeded. A unique system of gun combat, including trick shots and misfires, makes shootouts fun, but no matter how much grit your PC has, gun fighting is deadly in Sidewinder, so beware. You can also blow another cowpoke (or your own) up with dynamite or good ol' nitro. Wagon chases, Gatling guns, and nag horses are all here along with rules for quack doctors, snakeoil salesmen, and getting "all liquored up". Yep, a character can get into all sorts of trouble, no matter what his or her profession.
As for those professions, the character classes are unique to Sidewinder, and they're excellent. Player classes include such notables as the hard-drinking and gambling Maverick, the trailblazing Scout, and the rough-and-ready Wrangler. Prestige classes consist of cowboy-movie icons like the Desperado, Bounty Hunter, and Lawman. NPCs come from the ranks of Greenhorns, Hunters, Settlers, and Soldiers. Newness isn't all these classes have; the way they're implemented is different and exciting too.
Sidewinder classes make brilliant use of the "middle" saving throw progression (+9 at 20th level) found in d20 Modern (and its predecessor Shadow Chasers, from the magazine Polyhedron). The player classes don't get set class abilities at each level, but instead can choose from a list of abilities and feats, limited only by the level of the character. Ingenious, I say. Every character is thus a singular individual, despite similar class choices. Characters are made more unique by the "background pack" they get at 1st-level, in which they receive a maximum number of grit points, and a number of skill points, as if they had gained one level of an NPC class. Since the benefits of the NPC classes seem balanced with one another, this serves to make 1st-level characters a little tougher, and a bit more skilled than normal folk.
Sidewinder has a lot of new skills, and novel ways to use core d20 skills. My favorite innovation is Speak Language; language is a ranked skill in Sidewinder, as is literacy. Having always chafed at the language rules in D&D, this was a welcome change to me. Skills like Gamble, Gun Play, and Fast Draw add color to the game, and are worthy additions. A couple of the "new" skills really seem to fall under the purview of new uses for old skills, however. As an example, Trailblaze, while aptly named, is certainly part of Wilderness Lore. Yet, this is a small point of contention in an otherwise finely crafted set of competencies.
Of course, talents can make or break characters in a d20 game, thus the quality of feats is important. Sidewinder's new feats are top notch, making its version of the Old West both heroic and real. The rules presented make clear how to use core feats, and adds no few to the list of potential abilities. They're balanced well, and most are so useful cow punchers will have a hard time choosin' one from t'other. Of course, some D&D feats have no place in Sidewinder, especially the ones related to magic, since there's no magic in this version of the West. Perhaps a future supplement will touch on Indian shamanism, but that's pure hope and speculation.
Speaking of the aboriginal heroes and villains of America, I was disappointed that Sidewinder didn't include more about the natives of the Great Plains and elsewhere. Unlike the other material in the book, there isn't even enough on Native Americans to fuel more research on the subject. It also seems strange to include a token Indian prestige class (the Brave), yet little else. Further, despite an early disclaimer about the dated views, some of the true-life material that refers to Indians is edited for modern political correctness. I think this is unfortunate, because readers deserve to know what the atmosphere of the American frontier was like. There was plenty of ugliness there, as even the movies and books in Sidewinder's own bibliography show.
That bibliography, however, is an extraordinary resource. While the history of Sidewinder is rich in the storytelling vein, it is a bit one sided, since the reader gets most of the direct information from Mr. Masterson, and his friend Alfred H. Lewis. This isn't a fault, I loved it, but the resources listed in the bibliography will help Judges and players get more of a feel for the diversity of the genre. It even records competing (and vintage) roleplaying games. More valuable still, are the synopses of many movies set in the West. Even if one doesn't see the movies listed, the blurbs describing them can serve as adventure seeds.
Citizen Games didn't leave it at that, though. There's a whole chapter dedicated specifically to six story hooks (at least one of which is reminiscent of an old TV show I recall vaguely). For your gaming dollar you also get two full adventures, one for 1st-level cowpokes, and another for 2nd- or 3rd-lvel hombres. The former has so many disparate and cliché encounters that it comes off as contrived, but the latter is pretty remarkable. Further, Sidewinder contains plenty of sample characters (though, sadly, no famous ones, except Bat), a glossary of authentic terms, a vintage map of the western U.S., a postal rate poster, and a timeline. If that weren't enough, Dodge City, a cowtown whose name is up there with the likes of Tombstone, is presented as a campaign setting--and a great one at that.
What's more is the majority of Sidewinder is Open Game Content. That fact leaves me hoping to see a number of support products for the line done by Citizen Games, as well as others. Adventures should be less of a hassle to write than those set in fantasy worlds, because there's no magic as a wild card (yet). Further, the West has no shortage of inspiration and rich history, leaving a lot of room for wide ranging development.
With all the gushing I've been doing, you might think Sidewinder isn't flawed. Well, it is, but only slightly. The editing is first rate, but a few of the errors (sure to end up in errata) make for some possible rules misunderstandings. Further, though Gold Rush Games' Mark Arsenault did a decent job on laying out most of the book, the hierarchy on some pages leads to confusion as to which passages are related to one another, like a colon between two paragraphs that leads to a sidebar on another page. The tendency to copyfit by changing text size and tracking is worrisome, though Sidewinder is not even close to White Wolf products in the use of this questionable technique. I liked the art, but not when images were reused (more than once).
If only the crew at Citizen could have afforded slightly higher quality for the printing. It's okay as is, but the paper and ink combination results in smudges here and there. I'd also like to have seen a limited edition Sidewinder hardback. Then again, I live in a fantasy world where game companies that cater to small markets can afford such things. Ah well, I hope Sidewinder does as well by Citizen Games as it deserves.
I thoroughly enjoyed Sidewinder. Even though I plan on playing it as presented, some of the material will certainly get ported to my other campaigns, even fantasy ones. By virtue of its bar-raising execution and unprecedented amount of Open Game Content (besides Green Ronin products), Sidewinder is worth your time and money even if you never play it specifically. So, saddle up, ride over to your local purveyor of games, and get Sidewinder. It's a "dilly" of a game.
(4.5, nudged to 5, A)
This review was originally written for Gaming Frontiers on 11/16/02.
The thing that struck me first about Sidewinder was how quietly it sits on the shelf. The cover just isn't grabbing. It's done to resemble a leather-bound book with a gold plate displaying the title. Now if it were a hardback with faux leather and gold foil, that'd be a different story. Having seen the images used in Citizen Games' advertising for the game, however, I wondered why they didn't use more vintage photography to draw attention. As it is, Sidewinder might go overlooked by the casual browser, and that'd be that gamer's loss.
Sidewinder is worth the investment just as sheer entertainment. Co-authored by famous buffalo hunter, gunfighter, lawman, and writer, William Barclay "Bat" Masterson, Sidewinder is the best read I've had in a d20 book. For those of you who don't know, Bat was a real man who lived and fought in the West, only to die of a heart attack as a sports journalist in Manhattan. Some of his exploits, along with his recollections of friends, such as Wyatt Earp, are presented in the pages of Sidewinder, as they appeared in Human Life magazine in the early 1900s. More authentic stories of the West one cannot find, and adding this material was a brilliant stroke from Citizen Games' team.
That team also chose a style of writing within the Western theme that makes even the driest of game mechanics enjoyable. The DM is called the Judge, hit points are grit, and Hit Dice are Grit Dice. The flavor continues throughout the work, such as a line from the feat Tough Hombre that reads, "You keep fighting even when your boots are full of your own blood." I could almost hear the Western accent, and I laughed out loud. That was just one of many such moments during my time with Sidewinder.
The mechanics I mentioned are sound too, raising Sidewinder above many other works. The authors must have labored hard to make everything fit into d20, and they succeeded. A unique system of gun combat, including trick shots and misfires, makes shootouts fun, but no matter how much grit your PC has, gun fighting is deadly in Sidewinder, so beware. You can also blow another cowpoke (or your own) up with dynamite or good ol' nitro. Wagon chases, Gatling guns, and nag horses are all here along with rules for quack doctors, snakeoil salesmen, and getting "all liquored up". Yep, a character can get into all sorts of trouble, no matter what his or her profession.
As for those professions, the character classes are unique to Sidewinder, and they're excellent. Player classes include such notables as the hard-drinking and gambling Maverick, the trailblazing Scout, and the rough-and-ready Wrangler. Prestige classes consist of cowboy-movie icons like the Desperado, Bounty Hunter, and Lawman. NPCs come from the ranks of Greenhorns, Hunters, Settlers, and Soldiers. Newness isn't all these classes have; the way they're implemented is different and exciting too.
Sidewinder classes make brilliant use of the "middle" saving throw progression (+9 at 20th level) found in d20 Modern (and its predecessor Shadow Chasers, from the magazine Polyhedron). The player classes don't get set class abilities at each level, but instead can choose from a list of abilities and feats, limited only by the level of the character. Ingenious, I say. Every character is thus a singular individual, despite similar class choices. Characters are made more unique by the "background pack" they get at 1st-level, in which they receive a maximum number of grit points, and a number of skill points, as if they had gained one level of an NPC class. Since the benefits of the NPC classes seem balanced with one another, this serves to make 1st-level characters a little tougher, and a bit more skilled than normal folk.
Sidewinder has a lot of new skills, and novel ways to use core d20 skills. My favorite innovation is Speak Language; language is a ranked skill in Sidewinder, as is literacy. Having always chafed at the language rules in D&D, this was a welcome change to me. Skills like Gamble, Gun Play, and Fast Draw add color to the game, and are worthy additions. A couple of the "new" skills really seem to fall under the purview of new uses for old skills, however. As an example, Trailblaze, while aptly named, is certainly part of Wilderness Lore. Yet, this is a small point of contention in an otherwise finely crafted set of competencies.
Of course, talents can make or break characters in a d20 game, thus the quality of feats is important. Sidewinder's new feats are top notch, making its version of the Old West both heroic and real. The rules presented make clear how to use core feats, and adds no few to the list of potential abilities. They're balanced well, and most are so useful cow punchers will have a hard time choosin' one from t'other. Of course, some D&D feats have no place in Sidewinder, especially the ones related to magic, since there's no magic in this version of the West. Perhaps a future supplement will touch on Indian shamanism, but that's pure hope and speculation.
Speaking of the aboriginal heroes and villains of America, I was disappointed that Sidewinder didn't include more about the natives of the Great Plains and elsewhere. Unlike the other material in the book, there isn't even enough on Native Americans to fuel more research on the subject. It also seems strange to include a token Indian prestige class (the Brave), yet little else. Further, despite an early disclaimer about the dated views, some of the true-life material that refers to Indians is edited for modern political correctness. I think this is unfortunate, because readers deserve to know what the atmosphere of the American frontier was like. There was plenty of ugliness there, as even the movies and books in Sidewinder's own bibliography show.
That bibliography, however, is an extraordinary resource. While the history of Sidewinder is rich in the storytelling vein, it is a bit one sided, since the reader gets most of the direct information from Mr. Masterson, and his friend Alfred H. Lewis. This isn't a fault, I loved it, but the resources listed in the bibliography will help Judges and players get more of a feel for the diversity of the genre. It even records competing (and vintage) roleplaying games. More valuable still, are the synopses of many movies set in the West. Even if one doesn't see the movies listed, the blurbs describing them can serve as adventure seeds.
Citizen Games didn't leave it at that, though. There's a whole chapter dedicated specifically to six story hooks (at least one of which is reminiscent of an old TV show I recall vaguely). For your gaming dollar you also get two full adventures, one for 1st-level cowpokes, and another for 2nd- or 3rd-lvel hombres. The former has so many disparate and cliché encounters that it comes off as contrived, but the latter is pretty remarkable. Further, Sidewinder contains plenty of sample characters (though, sadly, no famous ones, except Bat), a glossary of authentic terms, a vintage map of the western U.S., a postal rate poster, and a timeline. If that weren't enough, Dodge City, a cowtown whose name is up there with the likes of Tombstone, is presented as a campaign setting--and a great one at that.
What's more is the majority of Sidewinder is Open Game Content. That fact leaves me hoping to see a number of support products for the line done by Citizen Games, as well as others. Adventures should be less of a hassle to write than those set in fantasy worlds, because there's no magic as a wild card (yet). Further, the West has no shortage of inspiration and rich history, leaving a lot of room for wide ranging development.
With all the gushing I've been doing, you might think Sidewinder isn't flawed. Well, it is, but only slightly. The editing is first rate, but a few of the errors (sure to end up in errata) make for some possible rules misunderstandings. Further, though Gold Rush Games' Mark Arsenault did a decent job on laying out most of the book, the hierarchy on some pages leads to confusion as to which passages are related to one another, like a colon between two paragraphs that leads to a sidebar on another page. The tendency to copyfit by changing text size and tracking is worrisome, though Sidewinder is not even close to White Wolf products in the use of this questionable technique. I liked the art, but not when images were reused (more than once).
If only the crew at Citizen could have afforded slightly higher quality for the printing. It's okay as is, but the paper and ink combination results in smudges here and there. I'd also like to have seen a limited edition Sidewinder hardback. Then again, I live in a fantasy world where game companies that cater to small markets can afford such things. Ah well, I hope Sidewinder does as well by Citizen Games as it deserves.
I thoroughly enjoyed Sidewinder. Even though I plan on playing it as presented, some of the material will certainly get ported to my other campaigns, even fantasy ones. By virtue of its bar-raising execution and unprecedented amount of Open Game Content (besides Green Ronin products), Sidewinder is worth your time and money even if you never play it specifically. So, saddle up, ride over to your local purveyor of games, and get Sidewinder. It's a "dilly" of a game.
(4.5, nudged to 5, A)
This review was originally written for Gaming Frontiers on 11/16/02.
Teflon Billy
Explorer
I should probably say right off that my gaming group and I are big fans of westerns in general, so to say that there was a bit of excitement on the air when I said I was going to start running Sidewinder as our fallback game (when we couldn’t achieve quorum for our Mutants and Masterminds game…superheroes being our other great passion) would be a gross understatement. Suffice it to say this was a very willing audience for the game.
To be honest though, I didn’t think that D20 would be a particularly good engine for modelling “The Old West”, and I will admit straight up that I was wrong.
Even when I first finished reading Sidewinder I was pretty happily surprised. I thought it gave a decent pass at providing a mix between the “real” old west (Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven for example) and the more cinematic old west (Clint Eastwood's Fistful of Dollars for a different example).
The different classes in the book provide this granularity. Sidewinder's NPC Classes (akin to the Expert, Aristocrat, Commoner etc. from the PH) are best used when the GM wants a true-to-life , low-powered game. They are the Greenhorn, the Settler, the Hunter...this kind of thing.
The “Core” Classes are for use when the GM wants a true-to-life, but higher powered game. These are the Wranglers, Mavericks, Rustlers etc.
The Prestige Classes are for your classic Spaghetti Western stuff...these are the Gunslingers, Lawmen, Desperados, etc.
And I can tell you , the mix of character power levels work well in play. To my mind, the genre almost [i[requires[/i] that a greenhorn be inferior to a Rustler, that wranglers be desperately outclassed by gunslingers and suchlike. And the genre conventions are well-enough known that most any player can guess what to expect (utility-wise) from the various classes.
The damage rules for firearms were a joy, and simple enough that I can’t believe someone didn’t hink of something akin to them earlier. Finally, D20 is given a game mechanic that manages to track how handicapped a person becomes the more wounds they sustain so that you aren't at “peak efficiency” at 1 hp and “completely out” when you lose that hit point.
I know, I know…”D20 has an abstracted combat system and blah blah blah…” I’ve heard it before. I like this system and I think it (or something like it) could very easily be slotted into stock D&D for some very simple to track “gritty realism”-type combat.
Or not. That kind of thing might not be to everyone’s taste, but the mechanic works beautifully for the Old West genre (how’s that for dragging an aside back on track?
)
I didn't much care for the narrative which seemed to take the Public Domain writings of Bat Masterson and meld them with the author's work in a effort to give the impression that Mr. Masterson was involved in the writing of the game. I found it more than a little confusing at first as I had a very difficult time differentiating between Masterson’s writings and those of the author.
The layout also could have used some work...it was often unclear where a paragraph ended and/or began again.
And my final bitch: I wish the authors didn't have such an affection for Doc Holliday. It seemed that Doc was used as the example for nearly any point they were trying to make.
The actual writings of Bat Masterson read really well, and I might go pick up the book from which they were taken.
So, all things considered I think this is a hell of a good game. The author has forwarded me his re-written version of Sidewinder for D20 Modern (Sidewinder: Recoiled) and if it is 90% as good as Sidewinder, I might give it a try with D20 Modern.
But my group is pretty happy with the game in its “1E” version, so that writeup might well not be a playtest review
To be honest though, I didn’t think that D20 would be a particularly good engine for modelling “The Old West”, and I will admit straight up that I was wrong.
Even when I first finished reading Sidewinder I was pretty happily surprised. I thought it gave a decent pass at providing a mix between the “real” old west (Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven for example) and the more cinematic old west (Clint Eastwood's Fistful of Dollars for a different example).
The different classes in the book provide this granularity. Sidewinder's NPC Classes (akin to the Expert, Aristocrat, Commoner etc. from the PH) are best used when the GM wants a true-to-life , low-powered game. They are the Greenhorn, the Settler, the Hunter...this kind of thing.
The “Core” Classes are for use when the GM wants a true-to-life, but higher powered game. These are the Wranglers, Mavericks, Rustlers etc.
The Prestige Classes are for your classic Spaghetti Western stuff...these are the Gunslingers, Lawmen, Desperados, etc.
And I can tell you , the mix of character power levels work well in play. To my mind, the genre almost [i[requires[/i] that a greenhorn be inferior to a Rustler, that wranglers be desperately outclassed by gunslingers and suchlike. And the genre conventions are well-enough known that most any player can guess what to expect (utility-wise) from the various classes.
The damage rules for firearms were a joy, and simple enough that I can’t believe someone didn’t hink of something akin to them earlier. Finally, D20 is given a game mechanic that manages to track how handicapped a person becomes the more wounds they sustain so that you aren't at “peak efficiency” at 1 hp and “completely out” when you lose that hit point.
I know, I know…”D20 has an abstracted combat system and blah blah blah…” I’ve heard it before. I like this system and I think it (or something like it) could very easily be slotted into stock D&D for some very simple to track “gritty realism”-type combat.
Or not. That kind of thing might not be to everyone’s taste, but the mechanic works beautifully for the Old West genre (how’s that for dragging an aside back on track?
)I didn't much care for the narrative which seemed to take the Public Domain writings of Bat Masterson and meld them with the author's work in a effort to give the impression that Mr. Masterson was involved in the writing of the game. I found it more than a little confusing at first as I had a very difficult time differentiating between Masterson’s writings and those of the author.
The layout also could have used some work...it was often unclear where a paragraph ended and/or began again.
And my final bitch: I wish the authors didn't have such an affection for Doc Holliday. It seemed that Doc was used as the example for nearly any point they were trying to make.
The actual writings of Bat Masterson read really well, and I might go pick up the book from which they were taken.
So, all things considered I think this is a hell of a good game. The author has forwarded me his re-written version of Sidewinder for D20 Modern (Sidewinder: Recoiled) and if it is 90% as good as Sidewinder, I might give it a try with D20 Modern.
But my group is pretty happy with the game in its “1E” version, so that writeup might well not be a playtest review
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