Hello denizens of Paizo!
There's been some interest in Savage Worlds around the forums in the past and I've been both a player and GM on a few occasions. I'm poking around to see if there's any interest in a game set in Pinnacle's Deadlands: Hell on Earth and Lost Colony settings. For those who are unfamiliar with the setting, Deadlands is a pulp western setting with a horror and supernatural flavor added to it with magic and steampunk tech going up against zombies, demons, and other horrors right out of folklore. Set in an alternate timeline where the US Civil War dragged on and a new super fuel called ghost rock revolutionized technology, the time of the old west was a dangerous place with many strange things lurking in the shadows.
Hell on Earth and Lost Colony are both a sci-fi take, each being one part of a larger, interconnected setting. Hell on Earth takes place after the evil spirits manage to set off a supernatural nuclear war and turn Earth into a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Lost Colony takes place on Earth's only extra-solar colony at the time, Banshee, a distant planet with it's own native alien species and it's own troubles.
So think of this pitch as a mixture of post-apocalyptic western and space western with a healthy dose of fantasy mixed in.
Anyone think they have the grit to face down the hellish varmints that ended the world and end them instead?
Call me interested...
I would want to use the Adventure Edition rules. It only takes a few tweaks to adjust Deadlands stuff to the new edition and I did the work a while ago for a home game.
You know I'm interested!
Deadlands... wohee, load your six-shooter and draw your cards!
Definitely interested! I have the Deadlands Reloaded Player's Guide and the Sci-Fi Companion, would I need anything else to create a PC? How are you thinking of mashing the Deadlands with the sci-fi? I've got a Deadland Shaman PC I've never run, how would the sci-fi change him?
There's a separate setting book for Deadlands: Hell on Earth. It was released as a sequel setting to the original Deadlands. I've got the Player's Guide for people who need access to it.
Regular shamans still exist in Hell on Earth, though they're notable rarer.
I do enjoy Savage worlds., Count me interested
Definitely very interested.
Alright then! Since it seems like there is a decent amount of interest, let's roll right on through to getting some recruiting done.
We'll be starting in Junkyard in the Deadlands Reloaded timeline, just after the Battle of Worms. The Iron Alliance has dealt a severe blow to the Combine, but Raven and the Reckoners putting on a surprise appearance blew everything to hell. Now everyone is confused and wondering just who's siding with who anymore. And to make things worse, Raven and the Reckoners both vanished without a trace and the Combine has put Denver on full lock down. The area around Junkyard has been turned into a mass refugee camp were everyone from the Heretic Doomsayers and the Templars to the remains of the Convoy and the road gangs to Combine escapees is gathered, trying to regain their bearings and figuring out what to do next.
If that isn't the perfect time for the Wasted West to find some new heroes, I don't know what is.
Character Creation Rules: Standard Savage Worlds Adventure Edition character creation. The only playable race is human (for now) and you start with 5 Attribute points and 12 Skill points, as well as the 5 Core Skills. NO Veteran of the Wasted West or Operation DAMOCLES Soldier edges.
Weird Heroes: All Arcane Backgrounds from Hell on Earth Reloaded are allowed: Bookworm, Doomsayer, Junker, Syker, Templar, Toxic Shaman, and Witch. The following Deadlands Reloaded Arcane Backgrounds are allowed: Enlightened, Huckster, Metal Mage, and Shaman. Additionally, Harrowed, Cyborg, and Scrapper are allowed. There have been a few changes in how ABs work in Adventure edition, but I will do my best to address any changed power lists and adjusted mechanics as they come up.
Backstory: I'm not asking for a novel, but an explanation of where your character comes from, why they'd be willing to work with the Iron Alliance, and how they got their skills is the bare minimum.
I'll be leaving recruitment open until roughly July 5th, though I know that's a holiday weekend, so I'll be a bit flexible. Looking forward to seeing what everyone puts forward.
I'm just posting this now to get started, it's a Shaman I created a while ago but never played :
ATTRIBUTES
Agility : d6
Smarts : d6
Spirit : d12
Strength : d6
Vigor : d6
DERIVED
Grit : 2
Pace : 6
Parry : 5
Toughness : 5
Encumbrance : 30
SKILLS
Athletics : d6
Common Knowledge : d4
Fighting : d6
Guts : d8
Intimidation : d4
Notice : d6
Shooting : d8
Stealth : d4
Tribal Medicine : d8
HINDRANCES
Vengeful (against those who killed him, and his tribe)
Clueless (-2 to Common Knowledge rolls)
Bloodthirsty
EDGES
Free Human : New Powers : Quickness, Shape Change
Harrowed (free)
Harrowed Edge (free) : Stichin’
AB/Shaman (Powers : Deflection, Smite)
Supernatural Attribute (Spirit)
Advance : Knack / Christmas
Advance : Elan
MAGIC
Power Points : 15
Recharges twice as fast if resting away from “civilization”
Powers : Shape Change, Deflection, Quickness, Smite
GEAR
Colt Peacemaker (2d6+1, AP 1, ROF 1)
Horse
Saddle
Holster
Clothes
Bedroll
Tomahawk (STR+d6)
Spear (STR+d6, +1 Parry, Reach 1)
Bow (12/24/48), 2d6
$25 in-pocket
As you can see, she was created Harrowed and has a couple of extra Advances, so I'll be trimming her down over the next couple of days.
Faceless : there's no mention of the Iron Alliance in my copy of Deadlands Reloaded, can you please explain what they're about so I can figure my PC's backstory? Thanks!
The Iron Alliance is the alliance of most of the factions in the Wasted West who oppose the Combine and the Cult of Doom. It includes Junkyard, the Templars, the Heretic Doomsayers, the Convoy, the Chamber, the Librarians, and smaller groups like various road gangs. They're mainly about preventing the wasteland from being conquered by maniacs like the Combine, so it's mostly a mutual defense kinda thing. They just fought a major battle against the Combine and drove them all the way back to Denver before Raven interfered.
If anyone isn't familiar with the setting, I can share a copy of the Player's Guide with the general info.
Yes, please. None of that is in my Deadlands Reloaded Player Guide.
Yeah, I believe it's in the Hell on Earth setting guide. Also, Hi ZenFox!
I'm working on a huckster, mostly background left to do, hoping I'll have it finished tonight.
Sounds good! One thing to consider is that the majority of hucksters are old enough to have been practicing before everything went to hell, or were taught by someone who was willing to risk still using demon magic when the demons are powered up by the apocalypse. I'm definitely eager to see what sort of waster is still dabbling in games of chance.
Reading through Hell on Earth for the first time and, man, I didn't realise how futuristic this was going to be. I'm into it, I just had been building a character closer to Deadlands Reloaded than to a world more akin to Fallout.
My gut feeling now is that a Huckster would feel out of place - the standard setting has pretty major components of dealing with demons, and having to pose as a gambler and hide the fact that you're using playing cards as a tarot deck, that I think would just be lost here. The playing cards would feel archaic when there are laser guns, and in a world that's already so much more overtly weird and broken, it doesn't feel like it really works to me.
The book even suggests that Mad Scientists and Hucksters aren't really things anymore - since the Manitous already achieved what they want with literal Hell on Earth, there's just no incentive for them to make deals.
I'm right now leaning towards a pretty hard pivot over to Librarian, or maybe Junker? I'm less interested in the "object spirits" part of Junker, but I do like the scavenging and engineering aspect. Either way, it'll be something different!
Yeah, it's set in the 2030s I believe. I'd have to double check the exact dates. It is very much a futuristic post-apocalypse type thing and Fallout is a good comparison.
Hucksters still can exist, but it's riskier to try to muscle the manitous into giving over power and there are other ways to get power that have lower risks of frying your brain. That's why most of the remaining hucksters are older or major risk takers. On the other hand, it does mean that hiding your powers isn't very necessary since everyone has just sort of accepted that magic is a thing now.
Feel free to go with whatever you feel like would be fun for you to play!
It's actually in 2097 which is way out there. I figured it was still like, 19th century, maybe just pushing into the 20th, haha. Yeah, I'm really liking my new (Librarian) character. She's maybe spread a little thin at the moment but I can tighten her niche up a bit more once the party is selected (if she's part of it). Should have something this weekend.
I have been playing Metro too much recently apparently :P
I've got a renegade Anti-Templar turned Law Dog cooked up, just need to get a backstory in order and put it all in a profile. He'll be handy as a close-quarters fighter, and with healing to boot! Should be fun and functional.
Question, would I purchase my athletics based off agility first and then during regular game increase it based off strength if I had brute edge since skills come before edge, or would it retroactively change costs?
Technically, I believe that you're supposed to buy it at character creation based off Agility and it changes if you get advances during play. But that seems annoying and needlessly complicated, so you can base it off Strength during creation.
Appreciate that. Changes how I am building my character a bit with the extra points.
Agility d4, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, Strength d12+1, Vigor d12
Skills
Athletics(Strength) d12
Common Knowledge(Smarts) d4
Fighting(Agility) d4
Intimidate(Spirit) d6
Notice(Smarts) d4
Performance(Spirit) d6
Persuasion(Spirit) d6
Shooting(Agility) d4
Stealth(Agility) d4
Survival(Smarts) d4
Hindrances
Hesitant(Minor)
Loyal(Minor)
Bad Luck(Major)
Edges
Free edge: Harrowed(Harrowed Edge:Cyborg)
Cyborg Directives: Confirmation, Hearts and Minds, Danger Close
Cyborg Edges: Armor Plating, Improved SRU, Samson, Hercules
Edges From Hindrances
Brute
Brawny
Derived Stats
Carry: 1,280 Ibs
Pace: 4
Parry: 4
Toughness: 15(4)
Size: 2
Gear:
Great Axe (made from jagged scrap)
10 Sharpened Hubcaps
Bull couldn't remember who he was supposed to protect exactly, but that didn't matter when the kids found him. Sub human oddities transformed by the radiation bake and the bad mojo of the land. Didn't matter to Bull, he had someone to protect again and a way to get his minder to stop torturing him. He jumped at the chance, they had to be refugees from something after all. At first they were frightened, throwing rocks and bladed hubcaps. Didn't matter to Bull, just had to keep asking what he could do to help... it kept his AI off of his case.
It took a week for Bull to convince the locals he wasn't going to kill them, two more to work out a system by which they could communicate simple requests. Bull toiled hard, protected against roving gangs and creatures of the land, and made a good life of it. But, he couldn't protect them from the plague... all he could do was give them the burials they deserved and say the words to half remembered prayers. Now he had to search again, find new people to help to keep the minder and the beast at bay.
Faceless - how's this for a backstory? I posited an area high in the Rockies that was far enough away from any bombings that life was pretty normal (in a very small area). I've adapted this backstory from the Deadlands Reloaded version of the PC, so if this isn't realistic, just let me know.
Flying Eagle was born into a peaceful tribe located high in the mountains, away from most of the strife that had befallen the land. Being recognized as having special abilities at an early age, he basically grew up with the tribe's current shaman, learning all the old ways (of magic, not the "Old Ways" in Deadlands). His totem became the eagle feather he found one day while doing a walkabout, and his name was changed to Flying Eagle.
By the time he was in his early 20's, he was a full-fledged shaman, and had even found a girlfriend. Life was good.
That all changed the day a posse of mutants rode into the tribe, and killed *everyone*, burning everything to the ground. Having taken a bullet to the shoulder, Eagle lay bleeding on the ground, hearing the cries of babies being burned alive in the teepees, just before lapsing into unconsciousness.
He woke up he didn't know how much later, apparently having been taken for dead by the soldiers. He found his love, dead *and* raped. His rage against the muties was bright-white hot, and he vowed vengeance upon those who had slaughtered his tribe.
With nothing left at the tribe, he wandered down into the madness that was "civilization". Finding that he needed money to survive, he started out as a gun-for-hire, joining teams that needed his prowess with arrows, guns, and a hatchet - all the while hating all mutants. He was always on the lookout for a posse of mutants that were known for attacking Indians, but he never found them. He did, however, eventually hear of Silas Rasmussen and the Cult of Doom, which he vowed revenge on.
Then one day, a group approached him asking for his services, and offering substantially more than usual. Asking why, he found out that they were bandits, pulling jobs from bank robberies to train robberies. Seeing a way to get the means (money) to get back at the mutants that had hurt him so much, he eagerly agreed.
But after a while, when he’d grown rich enough, he left the bandit group, a fairly wealthy man. But he found that the Cult of Doom was far bigger than one Indian with a lot of money, and with nothing to do, he turned to drinking and gambling, and soon was almost broke again.
Also, would you say that any of the new Powers in SWADE are appropriate for a Shaman?
@Havocprince: Seems on point to me. He was one of the PR cyborgs it seems. Unusual for a heavy model, but not unheard of.
@ZenFox42: I think that should work relatively well. His home was likely a reservation before the last war blasted everything to hell, but that's not really uncommon for native characters outside the Souix Nations. Otherwise, the attack from the Cult of Doom and his grudge against Silas is reasonable and gives him a hook to be working for the Iron Alliance since they also oppose the Cult.
For powers, most of them are just tweaks to how powers function and consolidating, with a few new ones added. Your original list is all still mostly the same, though Quickness is now a sub-function of the Speed/Slow power instead of an independent power.
@GM Yeah, I figure his armor would still have the faded star spangled pattern on it as they would have decked him out with a caricature level of patriotic propaganda paint. But, the scuffs and dents and long fade has made the coloring job a sad shadow of the original design. He is trying to win people over to a nation and idea that no longer exists outside of his mind and programming.
Faceless - there's no price in Hell on Earth for purchasing just a horse as a starting item, and their prices are so much higher than Deadlands Reloaded that I'm sure I can't use that. Any ideas?
Also, what I was asking was, would you consider any of the new SWADE powers to be available to a Shaman (such as Illusion, Object Reading, Relief, etc.)? Since Quickness was in his list, would Sloth/Speed be available to him?
ALL - Hell on Earth uses a bartering system for "purchases", based off your Streetwise skill - so be sure to put some points into that!
@Havoc: Sounds like an excellent idea!
@ZenFox: Looking at the price, I think 300-500 for a good quality horse seems fair.
For new powers, I believe Arcane Protection, Relief, Slow/Speed, and Sound/Silence are the new powers that I assigned the shaman.
Also, I should mention that Streetwise isn't a skill in Adventure Edition. It was rolled into Persuasion, with edges to be good at Streetwise stuff like dealing with black markets or shady characters.
Here's my updated version of Flying Eagle :
ATTRIBUTES
Agility : d6
Smarts : d6
Spirit : d6
Strength : d6
Vigor : d6
DERIVED
Pace : 6
Parry : 5
Toughness : 7(2)
Encumbrance : 30
SKILLS
Athletics : d4
Common Knowledge : d4
Faith : d8
Fighting : d6
Intimidation : d4
Notice : d6
Persuasion : d4
Shooting : d8
Stealth : d4
Tribal Medicine : d8
HINDRANCES
Vengeful (against those who killed his tribe)
Clueless (-2 to Common Knowledge rolls)
Bloodthirsty (taken for "flavor", not points)
EDGES
Free Human : New Powers - Sloth/Speed, Shape Change
AB/Shaman (Powers : Deflection, Smite)
MAGIC
Power Points : 15
Recharges twice as fast if resting away from “civilization”
Powers : Shape Change, Deflection, Sloth/Speed, Smite
GEAR
Colt Peacemaker (2d6+1, AP 1, ROF 1)
Holster
Clothes
Improvised armor (+2)
Tomahawk (STR+d6)
Spear (STR+d6, +1 Parry, Reach 1)
Bow (12/24/48), 2d6
$9 “cash”
Please let me know if I got anything incorrect.
I've been in the hospital for a few days for appendicitis, gonna try like Hell (on Earth) to get my character finished within the deadline, though!
If you have room I would be interested, IF I am reading correctly you have
Cyborg
Huckster
Shaman
Law Dog
Does that sound correct are you open for another player?
Here is my Sycker
ATTRIBUTES
Agility : d6
Smarts : d8
Spirit : d8
Strength : d4
Vigor : d4
DERIVED
Pace : 6
Parry : 4
Toughness : 4
SKILLS
Athletics D4
Common Know D6
Notice D8
Persuasion d8
Stealth d6
Psyker d8
Fighting d4
Shooting d6
Gambling d8
HINDRANCES
night terrors
oath of unity
lyin’ eyes
EDGES
Free Human : Arcane Background (Syker) (Mind Link, Mind wipe, Bolt)
Fortitude
New Powers (Mind Link, Mind wipe, Bolt)
MAGIC
Power Points : 10
Powers : Mind Link, Mind wipe, Bolt, Mind Link, Mind wipe, Bolt
GEAR
Colt 1911 (Police Pistol (45) 12/24/48 2d6+1 AP-2
14 Rounds .45 ACP
Spare Clip
Holster
Playing cards
Analog Wrist Watch
Flashlight
$1
Recruitment is still open, so feel free
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Here's a gunslinger named Lt. Thresu.
Male Human
Lt. Thresu appears as a lean man in his early 40s with greying brown hair and a permanent scowl. He is dressed in a decaying military uniform that has been patched in numerous places. His right leg has been replaced by a mechanical prosthetic that is scarred and pockmarked.
Rank: Novice (0 advancements)
Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d6, Spirit d4, Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics: d6, Common Knowledge: d4, Fighting: d6, Notice: d4, Persuasion: d4, Repair: d4, Riding: d6, Shooting: d10, Stealth: d6, Survival: d4
Pace: 5, Parry: 5, Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Code of Honor, Slow (minor), Wanted (minor, Ruler of local town)
Edges: Ambidextrous, Two-Gun Kid
Weapons: Knife/Dagger (Str+d4), 2x NA Sidearm (Custom, 2d6, 12/24/48, AP 1), Unarmed (Natural Attack, Str)
Gear: Backpack (Contains: Mk67 (Modern), Canteen (waterskin), Crowbar, Flint and Steel, Trail Rations, Bedroll (sleeping bag; winterized)), 2x Bullets, Small (50)
Wealth: $12
Language: English (Native)
Books In Use: Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition
MrStr4ng3 - you automatically get 3 Powers with the AB, so you can either choose another Edge, or 3 *more* Powers!
Here is my Librarian!
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Hi there!
Character (just under the wire!) submission from Atlas2112!
I'm submitting a Toxic Shaman. BUT! I'm using one of my favorite favorite aliases for him, because I'm thinking of something special. Specifically, I'm sure there's some kind of stereotype about shamans--their's skull-wearing back-woods witches that are always mumbling about their "ancestors" or "mother gaia" or somesuch tribal tripe.
No.
This is not that.
Think of the CEO of Elite Environmental. They're a company that transports and contains toxic waste. For them pollution is as much a resource as anything else, and they look at it from a level-headed, numbers-based mindset. They're in the business of containing this problem, because it's good for business.
So too, Lord Borak the Despoiler is a Caretaker, sure, but only because he can use pollution as currency to manipulate the spirits with whom he cavorts. Oh sure, he'll clean up all the muck you want, but he knows he's getting something out of it, in the end.
(He's also a Megalomaniac, but that's not a hindrance in SW so I...well read on. =)
Also! He plays well with others. Very well. His two bonus powers are party-based, which, I'm thinking, will make some very hard problems much easier. I did this because sometimes the simplest solution are the easiest. Also! I've never played with Summon Ally in SW before, but I'm looking forward to seeing it work. Some people say it's waaaaay under-powered, and is useless as a spell, but I'd like to see that for myself. Also, Lord Borak enjoys...finding new ways to motivate his minions, so their interplay should be entertaining too. ^_^
Rank: Novice (0 advancements)
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d6, Strength d4, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics: d4, Common Knowledge: d4, Stealth: d4, Notice: d8, Persuasion: d4, survival d4
Toxic Faith!: d10, Shooting: d4, Streetwise d10
Pace: 5/d4, Parry: 4, Toughness: 6 PP: 15, Powers: Bolt, Summon Ally (X-TRa!) Healing, Environmental Protection
Hindrances: Obese[minor] ,
All Thumbs[minor]
Overconfident[major]
Edges: Power Points, X-tra Powers!
Weapons: Knife/Dagger (Str+d4),
Colt Peacemaker (.45) (2d6+1, 12/24/48 AP1)
Armor
Improvised Armor (torso only, +2)
Riot Shield (+2 Parry, +2 Armor vs ranged)
Gear: Backpack, Canteen (waterskin), Flint and Steel, Trail Rations, Bedroll , Bullets, Small (50)
Wealth: $32
@zenFox42 Thanks, the new powers should be Mind Reading and Slumber.
Gavin is a Syker from the faraway campaigns, and wile he was an intel wonk he still saw things that haunt him to this day. He makes his was as a gambler trying to stay one step ahead of trouble. He always wears the black watch cap to cover his bald head, and a bright, if faded Hawaiian shirt, over well worn work jeans and polished engineer boots.
He carries an Old Colt 1911 but mostly because a man without a gun draws attention.
I want to start this post with an apology.
I was trying to get back into GMing with this interest check, but I'm honestly having trouble with getting some stuff together. But I haven't been as able to as I would have liked and I don't think that I can provide a campaign that be particularly enjoyable for me or for the players.
I probably should have called things a few days ago, but I was holding out that I could get back into it and get things rolling, but it just didn't happen. Thank your for your interest and stick with it until the end. I'm sorry that things didn't work out.
Thanks for the update. There is always time for another campaign some other day.
Faceless, if you would be able to play and not GM, I would be happy to gm for the group that is arrayed here.
There are too many good characters for me to let this die.
You are welcome to take over if you'd like. I'm not sure I can play, but I appreciate someone being willing to pick it up.
Havocprince - if you're willing to GM, I'm willing to play!
I would like to play as well
Ok, I will be taking over this game it seems. Give me a bit to put together a game.
Sent out private messages to everyone, set up a discussion thread to finalize characters, first campaign post should be up in the next couple of days. If I missed you with the PM just remind me.
If ya missed it Branding, would still love to have your gunslinger.