Brainstorming: A Wild-West D&D game...

[Remathilis]

"The paladin rode into town, his six-shooter and wand by his side"

Paladins and Druids. Cowboys and Trainrobbers. Monks and Magic. Indians and Gold-fever.

This is a brainstorming activitiy. What would D&D be like if it was set in the American Old West? Not a d20 game in the wild west, but actual D&D stipped of its medieval flavor and replaced by the romanticized wild west mythos.

Both are similar on a superficial level: bad guys in black, heroic wanderers. Horses. Saloons/bars. Rugged environments. Primitive Cultures. Ect. The myth of the cowboy is very close to the classic heroic journey of the fantasy knight, so other paralells shouldn't be too hard to find.

Less Lord of the Rings, more The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

So, give me some thoughts on any or all of the following:

1.) How would the classic D&D races (elves, dwarves, gnomes, etc) fit into this setting? How would they have changed in culture, temperment, and possible relations?

2.) How would the standard 11 core classes evolved? What would there roles in society be?

3.) How would religion/core deities have changed in attitude or portfolio? Would new deities exist? Some fail to adapt?

4.) How would advances in technology (firearms) and less dependance on archaic methods (metal armor) affect class balance? By the same token, what other equipment considerations beyond obvious weapon, armor and advanced tech? What about magic items? Gold pieces?

5.) How would divine magic and arcane magic have affected society? How much impact would typical D&D level magic affect the daily life of people in this setting?

6.) What monsters would work best in this setting? Which would be prominantly featured?

7.) What would become of the D&D staples: "Dungeons" and "Dragons"?

8.) What rules modifications (defense bonus, etc) would be necessary to create a suitable feel while maintaining game balance?

9.) What cultural elements (spanish conquerors, the Union, Native Tribesmen) would need to be altered or replaced to fit with the D&D mythos.

10.) Other thoughts or considerations I didn't think to address.

I want as many ideas as possible.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

See the 1E DMG for a discussion of mixing Boot Hill and AD&D. "Six-Guns and Sorcery", IIRC.

 

[scourger]

Spellslinger kind of does what you're describing. There's also another thread going about how to run a western game in which I posted many thoughts, so I won't repeat them all here.

In short, in the western genre, I think a little bit of the fantastic goes along way. Sort of like "High Plains Drifter."

 

[Piratecat]

You really, really want to talk to Silver Moon or read his story hours. He's run this sort of setting for years.

 

[Steve Jung]

You mean these?
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=115136
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=99053
http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=28906

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Heh, the first time I heard the name Paladin it was for a western T.V. series - Have Gun, Will Travel.

Have Gun Will Travel reads the card of a man.
A knight without armor in a savage land.

His fast gun for hire head's the calling wind.
A soldier of fotune is the man called Paladin.

Paladin, Paladin
Where do you roam?
Paladin, Paladin,
Far, far from home.

The Auld Grump

 

[Cthulhudrew]

1.) How would the classic D&D races (elves, dwarves, gnomes, etc) fit into this setting? How would they have changed in culture, temperment, and possible relations?

Native Americans= Elves. You can have them be "primitive", "back to nature" types, or you can have them be as the standard elves, but faced with the encroaching humans and similar RW dilemmas.

Humans= Settlers in the "New World" of the elves. These are the pilgrims, the cattle-rustlers, the peasants, the outlaws, etc. Fill their "traditional" role as the newcomers to the lands.

Dwarves, gnomes, halflings- don't really know where to put these offhand. Perhaps they are slave races or indentured servants from the "Old World"- like the Africans or Chinese in RW US history? Dwarves could be put to work building the railroads and other labors.

Alternatively, working off of some standard fantasy cliches, the gnomes could be the big bankers behind the settlement of the New World (and thus be in a rather unique position of power from their traditional roles- here they're the movers and shakers), the dwarves could be the craftsmen and engineers (designing the cities and things), and the humans could be the slave race from the Old World.

2.) How would the standard 11 core classes evolved? What would there roles in society be?

Barbarians and Sorcerers would be the "primitive" classes of the elvish natives. Sorcerer would be the likely favored class of the elves (as, IMO, it always should have been). Probably a lot of druids (shamans) as well, and Rangers. Rangers would also be suitable bounty hunters in the "lawless" territory- as well as good classes for "Gaucho/Cowboy" type characters.

Clerics would be the theologists of the human societies. Seeking to either spread their faith through missionism (by the book or by the sword), or else simply through philosophy (native cultures picking and adopting those elements that best suit them. Like how Hinduism and Buddhism spread throughout SE Asia). Paladins would fill their traditional roles as strong arms of the church, or just the general "good sheriff" type role. For a good example of a paladin in a western-era setting, check out Robert E. Howard's "Solomon Kane" stories. (Yes, he's not in the old west, but it's a similar era and similar sensibilities- people on the fringes of "civilized" society.)

Fighters and Rogues fill their traditional niches.

Bards would be somewhat different, IMO. Not the "song and dance" types, but their means of performance would be more literary- stories, poems, ballads- they'd fill the "newsman" and "pulp" writer roles. I might be inclined to alter their magical powers, possibly.

Wizards would represent the scholastic ways of "civilization." Their powers come from cataloguing and codifying the ways of magic, as opposed the the sorcerous "natural" way. They could either be viewed as threats by the clergy, or work in conjunction with them, bringing the light of education to the masses.

Monks... well, they can fit in a lot of ways. In the thematic "asian" sense, they could be found among indentured laborers brought to the "New World" (like the chinese who worked on the railroads). They could also simply represent monastic traditions of the clergy, if you want to get away from the stereotypical asian feel. Caine from "Kung Fu" would be a good example of a monk character in a western setting.

4.) How would advances in technology (firearms) and less dependance on archaic methods (metal armor) affect class balance? By the same token, what other equipment considerations beyond obvious weapon, armor and advanced tech? What about magic items? Gold pieces?

I think reduction of metal armors would probably make classes that don't rely on armor much (wizards, sorcerers, rogues, bards, etc.) more "powerful" at lower levels, certainly. When fighters and others are just as likely to get hit as the wizards, they have lost one of their most valuable assets. I don't really know how it could work out from a playtest standpoint, but if it seemed to be too disadvantageous, I would probably implement some kind of Armor Bonus by class type, such as in Unearthed Arcana.

As for the gold thing, one of the "features" of the Wild West genre is the search/quest for gold- ie, everyone has a hope/dream of finding something valuable that will make their fortune and ease the poverty they suffer. It's one of the main things that drew the Old Worlders to the New World. I'd be inclined to go from a copper or silver based system, and make gold and platinum quite rare. Otherwise, you should come up with a suitable alternative for people to strive to acquire- some rare mineral found in the New World, or something.

For an example of a "fantasy equivalent", the original Savage Coast materials by Bruce Heard (in the pages of Dragon magazine #171-172) would be a good inspiration. The Savage Coast (pre-Red Steel boxed set) had a poison in the soil that made the people that lived there gradually more deficient mentally, and reduced their lifespan (kind of like lead poisoning, almost). There was a rare magical ore, cinnabryl, that was found in areas of the Savage Coast, and in its "undepleted" form, when touched to the skin, it countered the effects of the poison. It would gradually deplete from contact with living tissue, however, so a constant supply was needed to stave off the ill effects. As a result, the people of the Savage Coast were more brutal, warlike, and territorial than elsewhere, and cinnabryl was more valuable than gold.

I've toyed with implementing this under 3rd Edition rules, but haven't quite hit on a really good method yet. Something sort of like the Taint rules (from Oriental Adventures or Unearthed Arcana) would be a good start.

5.) How would divine magic and arcane magic have affected society? How much impact would typical D&D level magic affect the daily life of people in this setting?

This really depends on what sort of level of magic you want in your campaign. If you assume the "typical" level of magic in standard D&D fantasy, then you would have quite a different sort of campaign than you would have if you want a more traditional western feel.

7.) What would become of the D&D staples: "Dungeons" and "Dragons"?

I wouldn't see too many dungeons in this sort of setting, if you try to model a "Real World" feel". The native americans didn't really build any sort of large buildings and cities that would have a lot of dungeon crawls. The only things I can think of offhand would be places like Chaco Canyon and Canyon de Chelly that were sort of large city type dwellings. Chaco was abandoned long before the arrival of the Europeans for reasons that are still very mysterious (though there are numerous theories).

As for dragons- the "new world" might be their last refuge, like the elves. They may exist in large numbers- perhaps living and working with the elves, worshipped by the elves- or they may be very rare.

 

[Turanil]

Try to google Internet for a free netbook called "Cowboys and Dragons", maybe it's still available for download somewhere around... It is an adaptation of D&D 3e to a Wild West feel.

 

[DarrenGMiller]

Heh, the first time I heard the name Paladin it was for a western T.V. series - Have Gun, Will Travel.

Have Gun Will Travel reads the card of a man.
A knight without armor in a savage land.

His fast gun for hire head's the calling wind.
A soldier of fotune is the man called Paladin.

Paladin, Paladin
Where do you roam?
Paladin, Paladin,
Far, far from home.

The Auld Grump

Your age is showing. I loved the scene in "Stand By Me" when they start singing that. Stephen King was a big fan of HGWT.
DM

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Yeah, I liked HGWT as a kid too, though I liked Gunsmoke better.
Gunsmoke
Makerick
HGWT
Wild, Wild, West (I wanted to go and kill everyone involved in the movie version...)
But gods I hated Bonanza...

The Auld Grump