D20 Western
- Thread starter Wystan
- Start date
punkorange said:
I've been working on an OGL game that's a lot like this, but it does use guns.
Rules: http://mythmere.tripod.com/sgp.pdf
Yahoo group: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/sorcerygunsandplunder/
When it's a bit better playtested, I'm going to release it with a GNU-type license that will allow free distribution of the core rules and a lot of the product identity.
Latest intro:
The tides of chaos have pushed humankind to the brink of destruction, most of its survivors living in a few cities shattered by plagues, demonic possession, and anarchy. It is only in the last few years that the tide has turned, and a battered human race has set itself to the goal of recapturing the chaos-tainted wilderness beyond its borders. Humanity has fought desperate and savage wars for centuries against the advancing forces of chaos, while its civilization rotted from within from the influences of chaos – disease, madness, leprosy, demon possession, and corruption. Ancient kingdoms have fallen and the feudal system has been swept away, leaving a multitude of impoverished nobles as refugees in the crowded cities, begging for scraps of food and scheming to recapture lost lands and riches.
There are many possible reasons for the recent victories against chaos. Some say that the forces of chaos are simply gathering strength for the final battles. Others point to the recent innovation of gunpowder weapons as the reason why the final onslaught has been staved off. The benefits of gunpowder are, however, hardly significant. Large siege cannons have served to defend a few major fortresses, but they are unreliable and even dangerous. Personal firearms such as muskets and pistols cannot be manufactured in the numbers needed to arm even a small army, and they are barely more dangerous than crossbows. The main benefit of firearms has been to supply a few elite troops with a ranged weapon that can be fired easily from the back of a mount, and inflicts slightly more damage than a bow. Gunpowder weapons provide an advantage to humanity, but not enough of an advantage to explain why the grip of chaos has lessened in recent years. Wise heads consider this moment in history as a brief interval, a natural fluctuation in the tide of chaos that cannot be maintained unless humanity seizes the moment to reorganize and to take back lands that have been lost. This time is a time of opportunity, the moment for humanity to seize a last, desperate chance for survival.
Land is the key to everything. In the teeming, overcrowded cities, peasant refugees dream of farms, veteran soldiers dream of owning taverns and mills, merchants dream of new markets and caravan routes into a newly-reclaimed countryside. Only a few have any concept of the dangers involved in wresting control of the wilderness from the grip of chaos – for the beasts and minions of chaos have not retreated or weakened in these wild places, they have merely stopped advancing. Every acre of land will be bought in blood, for the wilderness is poisoned with the taint of chaos. Safety will be a hard fought commodity. Certainly, though, there is no shortage of pioneers. The cities are full of refugees, vagabonds, and landless peasants who have sought refuge there; life is a cheap commodity, and the hope of a better life will draw thousands to march into the wilderness. Most of them, unfortunately, will become food for the chaos denizens awaiting them there.
And who is to rule these new lands as they are pried from the grip of chaos? So far, there is no clear answer to this question. The first successful settlements have turned into a patchwork of baronies, free towns, and petty kingdoms, most of them claiming the right to govern gigantic tracts of land far beyond the borders they actually control. Minor wars have already been fought between some of these new states, and worse violence is certain to follow. Many “Emperors” have declared themselves based on complicated legal documents and family trees, claiming to be the true inheritors of one of the various empires of the ancient days, and the refugee nobles are in a ferment of activity in an attempt to retain the lands they abandoned. Every cult and temple dreams of founding a great theocracy, and every knight sees himself the lord of castles and lands. Of course, not all plans for the wilderness are so benign; many humans are already the bought and sold creatures of chaos themselves. Evil cultists, the possessed demontaken, and other sinister individuals are heading out to the frontiers for their own purposes and the purposes of their masters. The servants of chaos may be planning to act as saboteurs, or they might just be following their original course of corrupting humanity from within; it probably depends upon which Chaos Lord is the servant’s master.
Not all the pilgrims are seeking lands, of course. There are many veteran soldiers of the wars against chaos, and every frontier settlement will need protectors and law enforcement. Also, of course, some view these unprotected settlements as sources of ill-gotten gain, whether through banditry or fraud. The new lands are completely lawless, with the exception of what laws can be enforced at the point of a sword.
And the pilgrimage continues. Groups of peasants in rustic carts, columns of religious fanatics in somber garb, minstrels in motley, scarred veterans in well-worn armor, shifty-eyed pickpockets, and fat merchants gather in caravans almost daily to gain fame and fortune in the lands of Chaos.
I should note that the game I wrote is definitely not a d20 game, even though it's OGL. It's older-school in that there's no skill system, and feats work differently. THere's also a different magic system. Anyone who's looking for a straight up d20 western won't (probably) be interested in it. I posted it because of the earlier mention of a fantasy-western fusion.
Well,Kenzerco is putting lot of effort into their "Aces and Eights" game. It will not only be a game, but come with modules and other support. The already have *12* releases planned.
Unfortunately, the RPG itself will not be out until early next year. But they do have their first supplement out...
http://www.kenzerco.com/rpg/acesandeights/
I don't have 'showdown', but I have been impressed with the effort and attention to details I have seen in their other products. And this has the advantage of not being just a 'one-off' of the genre.
Unfortunately, the RPG itself will not be out until early next year. But they do have their first supplement out...
http://www.kenzerco.com/rpg/acesandeights/
I don't have 'showdown', but I have been impressed with the effort and attention to details I have seen in their other products. And this has the advantage of not being just a 'one-off' of the genre.
Kanegrundar
Explorer
OGL Westerns was ok, but Sidewinder: Recoiled is awesome.
Spellslinger is great for mixing the Wild West with D&D. Fun book.
Spellslinger is great for mixing the Wild West with D&D. Fun book.
Odhanan said:
I agree with everyone that Sidewinder: Recoiled is a great book. Why? For me, there are a couple big reasons. First, have you ever been annoyed to read a book that was poorly edited and hard to read? Well, Recoiled is a joy to read because the writing is well done, with just enough western flavor to be entertaining (without getting annoying). Editing is top notch.
They used the d20 Modern rules as a base, and that seems to work well for the old west. It gives lots of variety when creating your cowboy, gunfighter, wrangler, etc. (plus they added new feats, 19 advanced classes, old west weapons, etc).
Finally, product support. The DHR gang is supporting Recoiled with product supplements (including some free ones) to help build a western campaign. The supplements are also high quality stuff. They are very active on their own forums, if you have questions. http://www.doghouserules.net/
There are a few EN World reveiws if you want to read more:
http://www.enworld.org/reviews.php?do=product&productid=118994
Recoiled was nominated for 3 Ennie awards in 2004, winning one. DHR was also nominted for 2 Ennies this year for some of their Recoiled supporting products, although they didn't win.
Max
I really like Spellslinger. It is presented as Western D&D, but it could easily simulate a more historical game, too. I ran a nice little Spellslinger mini-camapign using a few Dungeon adventures. It was very fun, but the genre just didn't have long-term appeal to my players. I loved it since I had really wanted to run a Western game for some time. Spellslinger, like the rest of the Horizons line, is a very portable game. It is easily adaptable to the d20 rules set.
I had the original Sidewinder, but I didn't keep it. It was interesting to read with Bat Masterson as a ghost writer. It wasn't portable enough for my taste. I never got the Recoiled version as I didn't keep d20 Modern either.
Deadlands d20 also had portability issues. It would have been too hard to use other d20 resources with it for me. It pales in comparison to the original. I hope the new version using the Savage Worlds rules will raise the bar for Western RPGs.
Don't discount simply using the alternate technology levels for campaigns, including firearms rules, in the DMG for a Western d20 game, either. That's really the missing element from D&D to Western. Many of the PHB skills & feats are just as applicable to a Western setting. There are even rules for dynamite right in there. If I had it to do over again, I would run an all-human mostly historical game straight from the core books with some magic elements thrown in for flavor. I would probably use the expert & warrior classes from Arcana Unearthed (they are a little stronger than the NPC classes of the same names from the DMG). I would make Craft-Sundry, Profession-Cowboy & Knowledge-The West represent any of those varied skills a character may need. Use Device catches all technology such as telegraphs & trains. Then, all the PCs have to do is ride tall in the saddle & shoot straight as they encounter various mundane adventures like cattle rustlers and the occasional fantastic ones like the fountain of youth or el dorado.
I had the original Sidewinder, but I didn't keep it. It was interesting to read with Bat Masterson as a ghost writer. It wasn't portable enough for my taste. I never got the Recoiled version as I didn't keep d20 Modern either.
Deadlands d20 also had portability issues. It would have been too hard to use other d20 resources with it for me. It pales in comparison to the original. I hope the new version using the Savage Worlds rules will raise the bar for Western RPGs.
Don't discount simply using the alternate technology levels for campaigns, including firearms rules, in the DMG for a Western d20 game, either. That's really the missing element from D&D to Western. Many of the PHB skills & feats are just as applicable to a Western setting. There are even rules for dynamite right in there. If I had it to do over again, I would run an all-human mostly historical game straight from the core books with some magic elements thrown in for flavor. I would probably use the expert & warrior classes from Arcana Unearthed (they are a little stronger than the NPC classes of the same names from the DMG). I would make Craft-Sundry, Profession-Cowboy & Knowledge-The West represent any of those varied skills a character may need. Use Device catches all technology such as telegraphs & trains. Then, all the PCs have to do is ride tall in the saddle & shoot straight as they encounter various mundane adventures like cattle rustlers and the occasional fantastic ones like the fountain of youth or el dorado.
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Angel Tarragon
Dawn Dragon
Sidewinder: Recoiled is an absolute gem.
Odhanan said:
It handles gunfights well, the classes don't feel at all out of place, and it's got a nice balance of cinematic feel with historical accuracy. For me personally, the fact that it's built on d20 Modern is also a big plus, YMMV.
I'll also chime in with a honourable mention for Spellslinger, which given the limitations of the Horizons line (short book and d20 rather than OGL) is a really good effort. Somewhere I've got some notes on converting the Spellslinger brands into talent trees for use in Sidewinder: Recoiled, it's not much of a jump really. Brands are the mechanic whereby Spellslinger introduces magical abilities to the wild west, so making that conversion allows for an easy way to turn Sidewinder: Recoiled into a weird west-type game.
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