Deadlands
RPG
224 pgs [sterling]??
Deadlands' Dime Novel #1 - Perdition's Daughter
78 pgs, [sterling]3.95
Pinnacle Entertainment Group Inc.
For a genre so replete with source material and character archetypes, the wild
west has always been somewhat overlooked by the RPG industry. Deadlands marks
the return of wild west RPGs last seen in the days of Boot Hill, albeit with a
twist. You see, Deadlands is set in the Weird West, an alternate history where
evil spirits called Manitous have begun to plague the U.S. The end result is a
game with all the aspects one wants from a wild west RPG, with extra horror and
Cthulhu-esque elements thrown in.
Written clearly - with only occasional lapses into an ersatz "dance, southpaw,
`fore ah shoots y'all in th'gizzards" prose style - Deadlands is superbly laid
out, and is an almost textbook example of how to structure a RPG. The rules are
presented in a logical order, there is extensive (and correct, lest we forget
"page XX") cross-referencing and numerous useful examples. The artwork, which
includes 17 colour plates, is excellent and maintains a consistent style
throughout.
The gamebook is divided up into "Posse Territory" (the players section,
detailing character creation and the basic rules); "No Man's Land" (covering
the supernatural aspects of the game) and the "Marshall's Handbook" (the
referee's section, including game background, tips of refereeing and specialist
rules). One neat device is the use of totem pole and sheriff's badge icons
throughout the rulebook as cross-reference markers to the two latter
sections.
The core system is unusual but basically pretty good. Characters have a set of
Traits (Strength, Quickness etc.) which are rated by die type (d4, d6, d10,
d12). Aptitudes (skills) devolve from Traits and are rated by a Co-ordination
which determines how many dice of the appropriate type are rolled. Success and
failure are determined by the highest single number rolled being compared to a
Target Number. Combat is unnecessarily complicated with far to much bookkeeping
for my liking, although most cool things you see in westerns are covered by the
rules (with the inexplicable exception of the showdown).
Unfortunately, Deadland's full set of rules is overburdened with pointless
gimmickry which detracts from a good basic system. Character creation,
spell-casting, gizmo invention and initiative are all covered by poker-based
rules involving standard playing cards. Luck (in the form of Fate Chips) is
represented with a poker-chip based system. I don't mind the use of standard or
non-standard cards in RPGs (both Castle Falkenstein and Torg use cards in
innovative ways, without over-complication) but Deadland's use of both cards
and poker chips does not improve play and is annoying and unnecessary. For
example, to begin play you'll need multiple dice, between one and three packs
of playing cards and 10 blue, 25 red and 50 white poker chips. Whatever
happened to "all you'll need are a few dice and some pencils and paper" ?
Deadlands does offer good scope for characters; in addition to all the standard
wild west types (gunslingers, U.S. Marshals, Indian braves, saloon girls etc.),
Deadlands adds in frameworks for playing shamans, mad scientists, undead
characters, preachers (who can cast miracles) and hucksters - sorcerers who use
the occult rituals covertly described in Hoyle's Book of Games. These extra
character types all add to the occult feel of Deadlands, with the exception of
the steam-punk scientists who are completely superfluous and detract from the
strengths of the background. There is an excellent advantages and disadvantages
section ("Mean as a Rattler" has to be my favourite) which captures the feel of
the wild west, and rounds characters out nicely. There are also 12 good
pre-generated characters, with full-colour illustrations, allowing for a fast
start-up if you want to get playing ASAP.
Deadlands does suffer from a lack of detailed background, with only 12 pages
devoted purely to the game world, everything else is given over to rules or
statistics. This is a major failing in my view, particularly given the recent
improvement made in RPGs generally, with the emphasis on background over rules.
This is not to say that the Deadlands background is bad. What there is of it is
quite good, presenting a world slowly succumbing to the fear induced by
malevolent supernatural entities. There are hints of interesting locations: a
huge earthquake has turned the Californian coastline into a waterlogged maze of
canyons and crevices; there's the Sioux Nation and the Confederate and Union
states left over from a Civil War that ended inconclusively upon the return of
the Manitous. Unfortunately, none of the background is detailed enough, and it
looks like referees will have to wait for future supplements or write it
themselves.
One of the better ideas to come out from Deadland's publishers, is its' first
"Dime Novel", Perdition's Daughter. At [sterling]3.95 this A5-size
novel/adventure is great value for money. The adventure (concerning the
machinations of an evil cult) is well-constructed with excellent maps and could
quite easily be adapted to form a beginning scenario. The novel side of it is
merely passable, but at just under [sterling]4, who's complaining?
Overall: Deadlands' excellent presentation and high production values doesn't
really offset its' gimmickry or its' lack of depth. However, it does capture
the feel of the wild west, and its' initial presentation of the world of the
Weird West is promising, if a little scanty. If you want to play in this genre
then Deadlands is exceptional value for money (this goes double for Perdition's
Daughter), but be prepared to simplify or work around a clunky (and irritating)
game system that puts showiness over simplicity.
Review by Simon English
