For the first time since 2017 (I think), I played an RPG in person with friends. We played a few sessions online during the pandemic (other friends) but RPGs have been largely absent from my life for a while now–except for my buying of humblebundles and backing of crowdfunding campaigns of reprints of old favorites.
I’ve never played Deadlands before. This one-shot was organized as a birthday present for someone who used to play this regularly back int he 90s and early 00s.
As it went, it was pretty good. The system is quite enjoyable with the cards and pokerships but also very very swingy. This is Deadlands “classic” I assume from what I could find out about what versions exist. The scenario was pretty simple, get coopted by the marshall into investigating some weirdness the local tribe is being blamed for, find out what it is and then fight the monsters.
We got pregenerated characters due to the original one-shot nature of this (we may continue though) and I was not quite happy with what I got. I had asked for a gunslinger type with lots of bullets and less brains and got a Pinkerton who pretends to be a saloon girl because one character has to have some social skills in a group. But why me? My social battery had been drained by a 2 day work-event the previous days and so this was quite difficult to pull off. Save to say: I didn’t. My partner got a card-slinging huckster magician/poker addict and the other two played two local hunters (I am not sure about the exact details of their characters)
I am definitely asking to change my character if we continue. We’ve put down a date for the next game If we can make time every two weeks that would be awesome. We’ll probably rotate GMs, at least 4 of us 5 on the table last night have enough GM experience. We may also not stick with Deadlands if we can keep it going. There are lot of other systems people are keen to try again (Vampire being at the top of the list).
I am not sure exactly what it is? I was told I was kind of a secret agent of the south or so… and the rulebook says they are a private detective kind of thing.
I generally did not feel comfortable with the both aspects of my character and that is when I am playing with a bunch of close friends.
If you believe Conan Doyle (who went by newspaper reports) and Dashiell Hammett (who worked for them), they were white-hat good guys. If you believe their victims, they were mostly hired union-busters.
(They’ve been in the news recently because Hasbro hired them to get back some Magic cards they’d sent out as samples to influencers.)
Well, I think the rulebook is less than informed and so let’s ignore that one and just say I was a spy with a saloon girl cover identity. that’s certainly less loaded. I used the term I as I was told without knowledge of history.
When I am looking through the rulebook they seem to play quite the role in the backstory for the setting…
In any case I wasn’t happy with the character in any case. I got myself a digital rulebook to figure out what character I would like actually playing.
I find this a very difficult setting and personally wouldn’t have chosen that one but for the others it has a lengthy group history which is what inspired the session in the first place and for a first one shot working with pregens was certainly the way to go.
I am sure I can find some kind of character I feel comfortable playing. Maybe if I mix Maomao (Apothecary Diaries) with Dr. Schultz (Django Unchained), I’ll get something palatable.
If we can make time every two weeks that would be awesome. We’ll probably rotate GMs, at least 4 of us 5 on the table last night have enough GM experience. We may also not stick with Deadlands if we can keep it going. There are lot of other systems people are keen to try again (Vampire being at the top of the list).