Systems that actualy emulate Western movies?

[HellfireVanWinkle]

I'm currently looking for RPG systems that actually emulate Western Movies, you might be confused because there are quite a bit of Western themed tabletop RPGs out there and that's where my point is actually.
For you see, I consider myself a purist, fan of directors such as John Ford, Sam Peckinpah and Sergio Leone. There are many RPGs where you get to play in a Western setting such as Deadlands, but I haven't encountered a system that truly aims to translate for RPGs the codes and themes found in the classics of the directors I mentionned. To keep it with Deadlands, we have an action horror themed RPG where Wild West is a window dressing for a cool aesthetic, this is not a judgement of taste from me, I'm perfectly fine with people enjoying Deadlands, but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who actually wants to do a Western as a RPG campaign. Though my statement requires nuance, as I think that Savage Worlds is well suited for Spaghetti Westerns, but not so much for the truly american classics.
Is there a system that can actually reproduce the movies of Peckinpah and John Ford? If so which one is it?

 

[Aldarc]

What do you want your purist Western Movies TTRPG emulator to do? How does Savage Worlds, for example, work for Spaghetti Westerns but not for "the truly american classics"?

 

[jdrakeh]

Avalon Hill's Gunslinger sits somewhere between a boardgame and a roleplaying game. You assume the roles of individual gunslingers (historical or created from scratch like in a roleplaying game) and act out gunfights. I've used it to run a (very) short roleplaying scenario based loosely on The Searchers, by basically linking a series of gunfights and using the old school approach of adjudicating everything else with the simple application of common sense and roleplay (as in Original D&D, for example).

 

[payn]

While Aces and Eights does a real good job of providing everything you need for an American West story, I found the mechanics kind of maddening. I'd not recommend it.

 

[Morrus]

I think you'd have to list the things you want this system to do, which other systems don't do. Otherwise, it's not clear what it is you're looking for. Is it dysentery rules and inaccurate six-shooters you're after? Simulation-style physics models for mud? Clarification is needed!

 

[Artamo]

Mechanically, I can’t think of a difference between a Spaghetti western and a John Ford Hollywood western. The differences really come down to the themes which are largely outside the rules. At the end of the day, it’s still the white hat versus the black hat whether that’s Clint Eastwood Vs Lee Van Cleef or John Wayne Vs Lee Marvin.

Also, how would you differentiate Peckinpah’s high violence style from Spaghetti Westerns (also high violence, but less slow-motion blood)?

 

[Piperken]

I'm currently looking for RPG systems that actually emulate Western Movies...
...For you see, I consider myself a purist, fan of directors such as John Ford, Sam Peckinpah and Sergio Leone...
...Is there a system that can actually reproduce the movies of Peckinpah and John Ford? If so which one is it?

Two suggestions come immediately to mind; they're both pretty different:

Tales of the Old West (Year Zero Engine)

Frontier Scum (Borg inspired)

 

[Umbran]

For you see, I consider myself a purist, fan of directors such as John Ford, Sam Peckinpah and Sergio Leone. There are many RPGs where you get to play in a Western setting such as Deadlands, but I haven't encountered a system that truly aims to translate for RPGs the codes and themes found in the classics of the directors I mentionned.

Can you be specific about those codes and themes, rather than just reference entire bodies of work?

 

[Bill Zebub]

I have thought a lot about what I would want in a Western-themed game ("Western" meaning "Cowboys" not "McDonalds") and especially how to model the combat. Because I'm the kind of GM/player for whom RPGing means "group storytelling that periodically, hopefully frequently, devolves into violence".

Curiously (at least to me) the idea I was working on for combat in a Star Wars RPG is also what I want in a western RPG: getting hit should be extremely dangerous, and frequently lethal. So the way you balance that with fun is by having a resource that has to be degraded before you actually take real damage. I.e., you use your Dodge skill and armor rating, augmented by spending Luck points, and when you're S.O.L. you might want to think about surrendering or running away.

Terrain is also critical to Western gunfights: hiding behind water troughs and wagons, dashing across open spaces to try to flank the enemy, climbing to high ground, etc. So I would either need a very well-designed abstract representation of this, or else it's a game for minis and grids.

The other problem with combat in a Western game, IMO, is that having gun battles against other humans with guns is going to feel repetitive after a while, even with interesting terrain. So I don't think I would want to play a strictly historical/real Western game; I want undead or aliens or a Cthuhlu aspect. Something to give me bad guys other than humans to fight.

 

[Greg K]

Sidewinder: Recoiled for Savage Worlds by Dog House Ruels would probably work. It is designed to be a "traditional Western set against the historical backdrop Western expansion." However, the authors say that facts should never get in the way of a good story and that the game maintains "a balance between historical verisimilitude and Western cinematic action" with setting rules to tailor the game and both Reknown edges and Reknown Archetypes with five Edges each to "build and customize" the character to reflect your favorite character from Western movies, TV shows, and novels. Among the setting rules are rules for Showdowns, Staredowns, Gritty Damage, and a Showdown damage variant rule.

David Bezio's Wild West Cinema is also worth checking out. It is designed for "Hollywood" (or Spaghetti) Westerns. It is published on Drivethrurpg by Spectrum Games which is known for its genre emulation RPGs. It is, currently, $2.97