To draw attention to their Kickstarter, Pinnacle Entertainment Group (PEG) sent an advanced review PDF of the Deadlands: The Weird West core book. It’s not the final book, it’s not the final art, and the monsters have not been included in this review version, but it gives a brilliant view into how the final product will appear. Using their new new Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWAdE) engine, this crowdfunding campaign is showing incredible interest despite the pandemic. As such, I’m eager to flip through the game and try it out.
MY INTEREST
At d20 Radio, I reviewed PEG’s The Savage World of Flash Gordon RPG (which, at the time, inspired a flash Flash Gordon sale at PEG’s store) and interviewed Scott A Woodard about another Western RPG that includes some crossover ties to Deadlands from PEG, The Sixth Gun RPG. At EN World, I spoke to PEG COO, Jodi Black, among others, about how the Alliance Games Distribution shutdown impacted PEG. One of my handful of RPG credits is for The Dinosaur Protocol (SWAdE) from Battlefield Press. All of that is to say this project has been on my radar and I’m eager to get into PEG’s new tabletop roleplaying game.
MAKIN’ HEROES
First, to be clear, the core book this Kickstarter will produce is intended to be 192 pages. The advanced copy I received is 141 pages, cover included. That’s to say that while my review will likely be close to the finished project, they will have differences as the final product will be larger.
“A copy of Savage Worlds Adventure Edition is necessary to play.”
Because this book is a setting, I’ll lightly touch on the SWAdE engine, but largely stick to what’s in this rulebook. SWAdE uses the standard tabletop RPG dice and a deck of cards. Characters have attributes (Agility, Smarts, Spirit, Strength, and Vigor) that they build up with d4s to d12s in each. Using their attributes, skills, edges (powers), and more they’ll accomplish amazing actions. The pieces to keep in mind are the playing cards are initiative, when you play to your hindrances, you are rewarded with chips to spend for game changing extras, and when you roll maximum on a die, it explodes. It’s a fun, punchy system. Every game I’ve played using Savage Worlds, the system has ramped up the action round after round with big moments leading to outrageous finales. With the right GM, Savage Worlds is ready for any action you can conceive of at the gaming table.
For Deadlands: The Weird West, it’s all you expect from SWAdE with the setting built into the new edges, hindrances, and powers. There are pseudo-Western Concepts like Blessed, Bounty Hunter, Chi Master, Common Folk, Deserter, Drifter, Escort, Explorer, Grifter, Huckster, Immigrant, Indian Brave, Indian Shaman, Law Dog, Mad Scientist, Muckraker, Outlaw, Prospector, and Soldier. As well, there are 10 new Hindrances, 7 new background Edges, 5 new combat Edges, 8 new professional Edges, 2 new social Edges, 3 new weird Edges, and 5 new legendary Edges.
This Kickstarter campaign is hot with fans backing and blowing through stretch goal after stretch goal. After reading the preview, it’s clear to see why: There is no limit to the possibilities to your biggest Weird West tale. Deadlands welcomes tales as large as Western expansion bound up with giant set piece action and monsters never seen in our 1800s. Dragons, undead, railroad barons, all types of evil to save the world from await you in Deadlands: The Weird West.
DEADLANDS, NEW HISTORY
When Deadlands first iteration rolled out 24 years ago in 1996, the view of the Civil War and race relations lacked the nuance and context that is common today. Views of history evolve and that’s no different with the fictional history of any franchise. As such, some of the timeline of the first edition is not as fun for the table as it might have once been considered. Without going into specifics of Deadlands’ timeline, the creators decided to do better than simply retcon the setting’s history, they decided to bring the changes themselves into the meta-narrative. Using an event known as the Morgana Effect, they made changes canon. The short version is a wizard changed history making the backstory of the game more palatable to all audiences. While the core narrative has always been an alternate Wild West that includes supernatural, steampunk, and undead, the current version and the Morgana Effect puts the clock at 1884 with an edited past that limits the racism, sexism, and other terrible building blocks of the era. With these elements downplayed, kept strictly to the villains, this makes for a more open experience for the table.
While the Morgana Effect removed much of the controversial tone of the era, some of the less refined beliefs of the past linger. The aforementioned use of “Indian Brave” and “Indian Shaman” as opposed to “Native American Warrior” or some variation serves as an example. The original feels period accurate coming from the mouths of European-descended individuals of that time; however, the language does not match today’s norms. Since this is still in draft form, PEG has time to consider the names or writing an editorial offering more insight into the terms of the period. In the book, they add this guidance: “Have a frank discussion about these topics before play begins. That way everyone’s comfortable with the game’s tone before it gets rolling.” It’s excellent advice and shows that Deadlands has come a long way in 24 years and PEG should be praised for making the changes they have. Deadlands: The Weird West is making an effort to bring the Old West into the light and to make this a fun game for a wide audience.
GETTING AROUND
Why you want to game using SWAdE to transport your table to the Weird West is simple: Vehicles. SWAdE has a range of vehicle combat options that make robbing a rolling train even bigger than it sounds. You have to get on, commandeer the vehicle, and face everyone that would take back your mobile base and linear dungeon crawl. With options for rocket packs, gyros, and horses, you’re going to have fun going larger than life while overrunning trains and air carriages.
PICTURE THE DEAD
While this is not the final version, the art speaks to what the finished book will be. There are multiple images involving sunsets, steampunk, magic, the undead, and cowboys. These elements are blended in such a way to make the world feel whole and better realized than the parts might suggest. Some of the images have the feel of Thomas Kinkade painting Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, as odd as that sounds but it really is the master of light and the master of the macabre in these images. Beautiful light is not the only type of work, other images show the manic energy that Savage Worlds generates. However, if the art could be summed up simply it’d be something like: The big sky Old West that never was.
DEADLANDS BE JUMPING
Should you back this RPG? Deadlands: The Weird West offers a Wild West that’s wilder than the historic version because of the magical, steampunk, alternate history setting and the engine. SWAdE feels designed for this setting and this setting feels like it inspired SWAdE, it’s that good of a combination. Fans of the Weird West will want to fight wizards, zombies, ranchers, and rustlers and this setting gives enough history for there to be reasons, enough setting for there to be prizes to fight for, and enough familiar yet new in the setting to make Deadlands: The Weird West the location you’ll want for your next gaming night. I cannot recommend checking out the Kickstarter enough.
Deadlands: The Weird West by Pinnacle Entertainment Group
END DATE: Wed, May 13 2020 1:00 AM EDT.
“Deadlands, the original Weird West RPG! Updated for the new Savage Worlds Adventure Edition.”
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