Opening Scene for Something Wicked This Way Comes

Every campaign starts at a particular time. Mine usually start after blood has been drawn.

I've always written out the first scene of a campaign. I start campaigns in media res, which is a fancy phrase that means "in the middle of things". To start in the middle requires a beginning. That beginning requires some exposition. Said exposition may require the PCs to sit quietly while the opening scene of the campaign is played out. Asking a player to have his character sit quietly while all sorts of shenanigans are going on is an impossibility. Writing out the opening scene tends to save me from players wanting to act or say something after the first sentence is read.

When the exposition of the opening scene is done, the characters become player characters. At that moment, the PCs can start interacting with the game world.

Plus, no one wants to listen to a GM as he mumbles through an entire page of exposition. It's easier to read.

Here is what I have for the opening scene for Deadlands: Reloaded: Something Wicked This Way Comes.

"It’s Monday, June 30, 1879. You’re on a train heading for the town of Dark Horse, Kansas for whatever reason. It’s midafternoon, and you’ll reach town before sundown. Most trains don’t run at night anymore. There are too many bandits and . . . other things out there.

There are several travelers in the one passenger car with you. The only one of note is a slovenly and drunk priest.

The train slows to take a curve, and you see a group of masked riders appear from a thicket of trees. They ride hard for the train. You’re expecting a classic train robbery, so you start making your usual preparations. However, one of the riders, a well dressed individual and obviously the leader, throws a small wooden box through an open window. The box hits with a thud, whatever is in it must be heavy.

The rider shouts, “Father O’Henry, prepare to meet to your Maker!”

Then gunfire erupts as the riders start peppering the passenger car with bullets. This is obviously not a simple robbery.

Suddenly, there is a whooshing sound from the small wooden box. Smoke boils out of the box and your nostrils are assaulted by the stench of sulfur. Out of the smoke steps a creature of nightmare and lunacy. It’s dressed like a cowboy, all in black: black cowboy hat, black cowboy boots, and a long, black duster. It grips a wicked pair of black shooting irons in its hands. Whatever is wearing those accoutrements, though, is no cowboy, or even human. At least eight feet tall, it stoops to avoid hitting the ceiling; it has green skin, oversize nose and ears, and a forked tongue that hangs out of its mouth.

The creature aims its two guns at the slovenly and drunk priest. Blasts of hellfire leap from both barrels and hit the holy man in the chest. He goes down in a heap.

[Time for Fear Checks and let’s Deal Initiative!]"


Tim

The Elevator Pitch

Elevator pitches are short, no more than a paragraph, yet comprehensive statements that summarizes your campaign. It's meant to quickly convey what the campaign is all about: the expectations, types of characters, etc. It's also meant to be a hook to actually make people want to play in your campaign.

Here is the elevator pitch that I used for my Day After Ragnarok campaign:

• "Two-fisted heroes in a fantastical, post-apocalyptic world, circa 1948; or Conan with a girl in one arm and a submachine gun in the other, facing off against an insane Serpent worshipping sorcerer in a Tiger tank."

Here is the elevator pitch for my new Deadlands: Reloaded: Something Wicked This Way Comes campaign:

• In the Weird West, Something Wicked This Way Comes. The posse must find a way to stop this evil and their only clues are the ravings of a madman. The heroes' search for answers will carry them across the width and breadth of the Weird West. The Posse must gather up their horses and six shooters; they must prepare their hexes, gizmos, and miracles; as they will fight dark cults and savage Indian tribes that are preparing the land for the arrival of Something Wicked.

It's probably a little long. However, it conveys that the posse doesn't really know what they're facing, at least initially. It provides a hint for the first session in the "ravings of a mad man." It also shows the promise of an epic, wide-ranging campaign against a variety of enemies.

My hope is that the campaign lives up to the promise of the elevator pitch. I'm looking forward to Friday night and the first session of Something Wicked This Way Comes.


Tim

The Heroic Hindrance

One of the house rules I've made for the Deadlands: Reloaded: Something Wicked This Way Comes campaign is that every Posse member must take the Heroic Hindrance in addition to the usual 1 Major and 2 Minor that a character is allowed. In return, the PC gets a 0 XP, Novice Rank Advance.

I have at least three reasons for this:

1) Deadlands is predicated on the idea that the Posse will fight the Reckoners, often for no other reason than because there is evil out there that must be defeated. Giving everyone the Heroic Hindrance means that the Posse will get rewarded with Fate Chips if they do the right thing, regardless of consequences.

2) Making all of the Posse members heroic also helps explain why a diverse group of people get together and stay together. The formation of a Posse, just as with the formation of any kind of party in any game, is often artificial. What do a vaquero from Texas, a huckster from St. Louis, and a gunslinger from the Maze have in common? If they all have the Heroic Hindrance, they share at least one common trait.

3) Finally, I've mentioned before that my group tends to be of the "kill them all, the GM will know his own" mentality. Forcing the Heroic Hindrance on them gives me some leverage when the Posse starts making plans to dynamite an entire town to take down the one Harrowed NPC that they don't like. I also can't help but think that eventually the Posse will actually join the Reckoners. I suppose that there's nothing wrong with that, but it's not the kind of campaign that I'm looking for.

As a separate point, D&D has alignments. The general expectation is that a typical party will be fighting evil and that most characters will be Good. The Heroic Hindrance functions in much the same way as the Good alignment. Likewise, Bloodthirsty  functions much like the Evil alignment. Hindrances, however, are not absolute. There not even incompatible. One could have both the Heroic and Bloodthirsty Hindrances. In Deadlands, a cowpoke might have the Heroic Hindrance, but only have it apply to white folk. The Bloodthirsty Hindrance would apply to Indians. Or vice versa.

I plan to use the Heroic Hindrance to drive the Posse and the campaign forward. We'll see how it goes.


Tim

Deadlands: Reloaded: Something Wicked This Way Comes

The name of our Deadlands: Reloaded campaign is Something Wicked This Way Comes. Anytime I start creating a new campaign, I look for a name that nicely captures one or more of the themes of a campaign. Some names come easily. For the Legends of Steel Campaign, "Shadows of Yar" foretold of plots and skullduggery by an evil, sorcerous, demon infested land. Some names do not come easily. For Mars, I wanted a wide-open, sandbox campaign. I eventually went with "Under the Moons of Mars" because I couldn't come up with anything original.

For Deadlands, the name of the campaign actually came before any campaign themes or adventure ideas. I was brainstorming and writing things down; surfing and googling the net, looking for inspiration for the campaign and first adventure. I stumbled upon the phrase, "Something Wicked This Way Comes." The phrase clicked with what I wanted: a plot point campaign against a Big Bad Evil Guy (or Big Bad Evil Something, in this case). The setup seemed easy enough: a cult or other evil organization is tying to summon something evil. The Posse finds out about the plot and does their best to stop Something Wicked from coming this way.

I wanted to lay out a number of premade scenes that the Posse would run through whenever it seemed appropriate. In between the plot points, the Posse could explore the Weird West or work on character goals.

I'm still working on the actual writing of the scenes for the plot points, but I have an outline of what the Posse will need to work through.

I have the first adventure laid out.

- It takes place in the southwest corner of Kansas. Bloody Kansas is a free state, claimed by the US and the CS; it borders Indian country, the Coyote Confederation; and it lies between two railways, Black River and Dixie Rails. Any kind of character would have reason for being in the area.

- All of the characters will be on a train headed for Dark Horse, Kansas. Any character with the Old Ways Oath (Major) is screwed. I'll have to figure something out if this happens. The characters may or may not know each other. I'll leave that up to the players.

- The very first scene will be a fight on the train. Assuming that we avoid a TPK, the post-fight cleanup will reveal evidence that Something Wicked is coming this way and certain elements of humanity are making preparations to welcome it. It's up to the Posse to stop it.


Tim

When the Stars Are Wrong

I GMd a a fun episode of Cthulhu/Northern Crown last Friday night. Only two players showed up. One created a crazy witch hunter and one played a scout/wilderness warrior. I started the characters at 20 XP, but the players had to draw cards on the Veteran o' the Weird West table from Deadlands: Reloaded. The crazy witch hunter ended up lame while the scout ended up forsaken.

I ran a modified version of Drake Manor from the Realms of Cthulhu book. The characters started in Innsmouth, Massachusetts. They dispatched a group of cultists and their fishman allies. Then they travelled to Arkham to seek out the dread book, the Necronomicon. The PCs ultimately ended up burning down Drake Manor. The scout died at the very end of the session, collateral damage from a blast of blunderbuss fire from the witch hunter. Good times.

Horror definitely works with Savage Worlds. However, I don't think Cthulhu/horror is going to work long-term for our group. We've always played Savage Worlds as gonzo and over the top. I've always generously awarded Bennies to the players. For the Cthulhu/Northern Crown/horror session, though, I deliberately restricted the number of Bennies awarded to give a different vibe to the game. It was fun, but not as fun as most of our other sessions.

Most of my players belong to the school of "kick in the door and kill anything that moves, and some things that don't. The GM will know his own." I tend to encourage that style when I GM to be truthful. I also tend towards action the on the seldom occasion that I play. I'd like to return to Northern Crown someday, but it would be more of a Solomon Kane type setting.

 

Moving onwards, I'm starting a Deadlands campaign. Several years ago, my intro to Savage Worlds was via Deadlands. I ran eight or so sessions, including a couple of one sheets and Coffin Rock. Then that particular group broke up. I was lucky enough to find my current group soon after.

Tim

 

When the Stars Are Right . . .

My group is finishing up a Mars (the one from Adamant) campaign. It's time to start a new campaign and the players expressed a preference for horror. So I dove into my many books and PDFs of Savage Worlds goodness and came up with the beginnings of a campaign.

After much debate, I've decided to go with colonial North America. There are number of campaigns out there that would support a colonial era campaign without any trouble. There is a d20 campaign setting called Northern Crown which offers an alternate and fantastical history for colonial America. There is Solomon Kane, which fits into the time period. There is Pirates of the Spanish Main. There is Totems of the Dead for the Native American tribes (called the First Ones in Northern Crown). Take all of these great setting, add horror (the Guts skill and the Sanity stat), and blend with the antics of my players until desired consistency is achieved. That is a recipe for awesomeness.

I'm thinking that the PCs will be European settlers or explorers. The campaign will include not only wilderness adventure, but city ones as well. First Ones might not integrate well into urban adventures or a dinner party at the Governor's Mansion.

I'll be using the maps for Northern Crown and most of its alternate history. The maps were once available for free from Atlas Games website, but I don't see them there anymore.

- The year is 1699, but the history is not our own.

- North America is called Northern Crown.

- The Salem Witch Trials took place in 1691, but in this world, the Puritans were right. They uncovered a real coven of witches. These witches (called Witchlings in Northern Crown) fought back, ousted their overlords, and established their own state in Salem, which has been renamed Naumkeag.

- The Glorious Revolution took place in 1688, but was led by Gloria, the half-fey daughter of Queen Elizabeth.

- James II fled not to France but to Northern Crown. He established the Kingdom of Carolingia in what in our world would be the Carolinas and Georgia.

- Massachusetts declared independence from both Queen Gloria (for being fey) and King James II (for being Catholic, or Holy Roman in Northern Crown).

- There is a Kingdom of Vinland to the north, established by Vikings centuries ago.

Mechanically, here are some thoughts:

- From the Realms of Cthulhu book: "Fate is Unkind. Any time a player rolls snake eyes, they may spend no further bennies on the roll in question. This rule reflects the fact that the cosmos does not always favor the fortune of the investigator. We’re certain Lovecraft would approve.

- Arcane Background: Magic exists. We'll use the slow/ritual casting that we used in Shadows of Yar.

- AB: Weird Science exists and is a new phenomenon. It's called Natural Philosophy in Northern Crown.

- No AB: Miracles or Psionics.

- We'll go with the Heroic Horror option from Realms of Cthulhu. This means that combat and physical damage will play out normally. Mental Anguish can also be Soaked.

- Bennies will be awarded sparingly, as in one or two at most per session.

- PCs will start at 20 XP, but must draw from the "Veteran o' the Weird West" table in the Marshal's Handbook for Deadlands. No Harrowed results if you draw a red joker, though. I'll come up with something else.

I'm thinking that the campaign will start in the fishing village of Innsmouth in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The heroes are tasked with taking a dozen magical staffs or muskets to the First Ones city of Onandaga, which is part of the Five Nations Confederacy. The Confederacy is currently allied with the Commonwealth against the dastardly French, who are based in Canada. Naturally, before their mission even begins, the heroes are attacked by people or monsters related in some way to the dastardly French and to the Cult of Cthulhu. The campaign will spiral out of control from there.

Tim

Under the Moons of Mars: Sample Adventure

I rolled up an adventure using the adventure generator that I posted earlier. I doubt that I'll be able to run this for my group, but I may flesh it out to run as a one-shot at a convention.

1-3	Villian   Adjective   Race	Noble   Rich   Red Martian	Nastor Lar - a rich Baltan noble
4	Villian's Goal	Discover	Wants to discover the secret of the Black Sphere, which lies half submerged in water in a cavern deep underground. The water is part of the Last Ocean. The cavern is located underneath the city of Rev Del.   There is a wall full of ancient Martian symbols in the cavern. Nastor hopes that the writing tells how to open the Black Sphere.   Nastor has kidnapped Jad Sorolian, a beautiful red Martian female archaeologist, who is an expert on ancient Martian symbols. The Baltan noble hopes that Jad can decipher the symbols  on the wall.   Jad's work site has been unexpectedly attacked by an invisible enemy.
5	Heroes' Hook	Rumor	The party hears rumors that their friend Jad Sorolian,  has been kidnapped by Nastor Lar, a Baltan noble with a reputation for cruelty. It is also rumored that Nastor Lar has found a Black Sphere, one of the legendary ships of the Yellow Martians.
6	Heroes' Goal	Destroy/Hunt	Hunt for the archaeologist Jad Sorolian, a friend, or destroy the Baltan noble, Nastor Lar.
7-8	Locales and Modifiers	Villain's Lair - NPC hostile	The Green Tower on Mount Jeddum, leads to the Dark Below and the Last Ocean  - Zand Hamek, a red Martian merchant, delusional
7-8	Locales and Modifiers	Exotic Land - Mystery	The Dark Below/The Last Ocean - A mysterious black sphere.
7-8	Locales and Modifiers	Small City - Trap/Ambush	Red Martian city of Rel Dev, mansion belonging to Nastor Lar - Floria will try to ambush the party.
9	Villainous Lt.	Spy/Seducer	A beautiful red Martian woman, Floria Tah
10	Guest Star	Mystic	Borrell, a yellow Martian male. (Yellow Martians are the Atlanteans of Mars: aquatic).
11	Guest Star Goal	Destroy/Hunt or Conquer	Destroy any intruders who seek knowledge of the Black Sphere.
12	Victim	Damsel or Dude in Distress	Jad Sorolian, a beautiful red Martian female. Archaeologist, expert on ancient Martian symbols. Captured by Nastor Lar.
13	Obstacles	Secrecy	Party must maintain secrecy. A war has started between the Baltan Confederacy and the green horde of Kovash Korak. Rev Del lies in Baltan territory. Anyone in the area is subject to conscription (by the Baltans) or eaten (by the green men).
14	Twists and Turns	Shock Revelation	Borrell serves an aboleth/fish god