 |
| (No longer called Gunslinger and no longer being developed for D&D 3.5) |
But I'll tell you more about it later. For now, let's hear how the first play session went!
Meet the Characters
Heather Mayfield Bly (NG Changeling Hedge Witch 1) -
Heather Bly (28) is a recent widow and the mother of an eight-year-old daughter, Annabelle. Modest, calm, and practical, she served her hometown as a midwife and skilled herbalist. Since the death of her husband she preferred to live and work on the outskirts of town, in a cottage at the edge of the forest. Something about the deep woods calls to her. When Annabelle ran away from home, however, Heather packed up her things, joined up with Blair and Face in town, and set out to find her. She is unaware of her fey ancestry.
(She is not the half-hag changeling available in Pathfinder, but a half-fey changeling - a homebrew race I am developing. My Patreon patrons who pledge $3 or more already have a playable version of the changeling race.)
Blair Solomon (NG Tiefling Oracle 1) -
Ex-holy man Blair Solomon (23) has lived most of his life with a cult-like church. Unfortunately, it was discovered that he was having an affair with the young High Priestess and Blair was cast out of the order. Guilt-ridden and heartbroken, as well as frightened of his blossoming oracular powers, Blair isn't quite sure what to do with himself. His eyes are red and in stressful situations he can only speak abyssal. He doesn't realize that he's a tiefling or an oracle--he just knows something about him is wrong, in his very nature, and he's certain he's headed straight for Hell no matter what anyone else says.
Lady Filia, aka "Face" Sinclair (LG Human Paladin 1) -
Filia "Face" Sinclair (17) grew up on the mean streets of the city of New Thebes. Raised by her sister, Face was less-than-taken with the shady lifestyle she was born into, and at fourteen left to seek her fortune. Three years later and now known as the Pigtailed Paladin, this tiny avenger (she's 5'0") will not stop until every ounce of good to do in the world has been done. She's taken Blair under her wing as sort of a sidekick and refuses to believe he's as damned as he claims. Face has memorized all 356 "Rules of Paladindom" and always has a piece of sage advice for her companions, should they choose to take it.
The Story
Blair aimlessly wandered the countryside after being kicked out of his temple. As a result of his fiendish heritage, he believed himself to be a monster, and feared that he was evil - perhaps even the Devil incarnate. When he happened on Face and realized she was a paladin, he asked her to smite him. When divine providence stayed her hand, Face realized that Blair was not evil, and suggested instead that they head west in search of good deeds that need doin'. After all, nothing soothes a troubled soul like helping people.
Heather, meanwhile, was preparing to go on an adventure herself. Her daughter Annabelle had gone missing, presumably run-off by orcs. She was resolved to find her daughter and rescue her from the savage greenskins. Before she left, she stopped in at Ray's Hotel and Saloon, the only tavern in the dried up old mining town of Sunbeam. It was the largest building in town, and looked like it used to be a lot fancier than it was now. There she encountered the odd pair of Blair the mopey tiefling and Face the tiny paladin.
Soon enough, trouble came to the bar, as it so often does wherever three or more PCs are gathered. Three men and a gnome burst into the saloon. Their leader, a dark man with a face all of scars and stubble and a thick black caterpillar moustache, called out, "I'd like ta ask all y'all ta leave, forthrightly! Me an my boys've got some drinkin to do, an we like ta do it alone! Barkeep, gimme some bottles a whiskey an git out!"
Dergan, the mutton-chopped dwarven bartender, resignedly poured them some whiskey and nodded to the trio of adventurers, silently signalling for them to leave. However, our heroes refused to budge. The ruffians, whom Heather knew to be the Trembull Gang, a minor scourge on the area, continued to act abusively toward the staff and the adventurers until finally their threats became too much and a fight broke out. The three level-one adventurers did not fare well against the hardened bandits; their fists flew, but their dice did not cooperate. Soon all three PCs found themselves unconscious and on the brink of a Total Party Kill (It's been a while since I've run a game for 1st level characters). They were only saved by the bartender, Dergan, who shooed the bandits off with the twelve-gauge shotgun he kept under the bar. The Trembull Gang vowed to return that night to burn the whole town to the ground, starting with the saloon.
Dergan splashed a bucket of water over the unconscious adventurers and explained the situation to them. They, of course, offered to help defend the bar, though they had only hours to prepare. Just then the sherriff arrived. Shamuel Flant was a mustachioed old man in a big round hat, and his deputy, Garrot Welch, was a scrawny and unimposing man. Neither of them looked capable of enforcing any peace - perhaps why the Trembull Gang had been able to run roughshod over the town. They, the bartender, and the adventurers all agreed to make their stand at the saloon. They threw some tables up in front of the windows and doors, and hunkered down to wait until nightfall.
The bandits swooped in on horseback (or burro-back, in the gnome's case) as the sun set, whooping and throwing torches onto the roof as they circled the building. Then they stopped and dismounted, guns drawn, outside the bar and called for the bartender to come out. They were met with a hail of gunfire, and dove for cover behind their mounts. The adventurers were firing out of windows and from behind overturned tables, Heather wielding her .38 revolver, Blair with a 20-gauge shotgun, and Face with two sawed-off shotguns. The bandits were also armed with .38s, except the gnome, who carried an old pepperbox pistol, and Calvin Trembull, who favored his 12-gauge. One by one the bandits were picked off, or their horses were shot, causing their only cover to flee. When Calvin Trembull's horse bolted, he took one of his bandit's horses as cover, kicking him out to be shot up by the defenders. Soon, the petty bandit lord's reign was ended when he took a bullet to the head. All but the gnome - who fled into the night - were killed.
The old sherriff was impressed by the way the party handled themselves, and offered them a job: "The way you dealt with them Trembull gang was real impressive. Listen, me an my deputy need ta stay around town here for… security reasons an all. But there's a situation come up recently in the pass. The ol' mine all played out up the road is come a hole-up fer goblins an such. T'ain't harmed the town much, but they hassle traffic through the pass somethin'. If you could clear that out, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'd probably appreciate it somewhere along the lines of 500 gp for the each of you."
So, after outfitting themselves at the old general store, the adventurers set out the next day for the Sunbeam Silver Mine.
The party first searched the creaky, abandoned cabin, but found only cobwebs and broken crates. Had they poked around further, they might have found some old dynamite sweating nitroglycerine that, when combined with the minecart at the mine's entrance, might have raised a whole heap of trouble for the mine's inhabitants.
As they entered the mine, they came under fire from two kobold bandits shooting derringers from covered positions. The party ducked behind the mineshaft support beams and shot the kobolds and they poked their heads up over the crates and rubble they were using as cover. They advanced down the shaft into a large open cavern lit by a bonfire and strewn haphazardly with charred bones and filthy hide bedrolls. As they entered, two more gunslinging kobolds dove behind crates and barrels while three other kobold miners in filthy rags cowered in the center of the room. The party charged in, guns blazing, and took out the kobolds, but one of the miners fled back into the rear tunnel, screaming warnings. They followed him and found a tough hobgoblin overseeing three more kobold miners gathering freshly mined silver ore. The kobolds charged the party, picks raised in the air, and the hobgoblin backed them up with his 20-gauge shotgun and a warhammer. The party handled themselves well, blasting and hacking their way through their cornered opponents until the mine was cleared of bandit scum.
The party continued searching the mine for other dangers, taking out a nest of dire rats and some disorienting flash beetles which they had a hell of a time trying to shoot. Finally, they found a section of the mine that had been blocked off by a cave-in. They were about to turn away from the dead end when they heard a voice from beyond: "Help! You're not those kobolds are you? Dig us out!" The party was naturally suspicious and inquired further. The voice explained, "We were illegal miners. We had it on good authority that this mine wasn't actually played out, so we came in here to see for ourselves. Sure enough, after a bit of digging, we found fresh silver veins, but we were so greedy that we forgot to brace the tunnel and it collapsed. My companions perished, but my legs are trapped under the cave-in."
The party spent a solid hour clearing enough rubble away to get through. On the other side, they found a desiccated corpse with its legs trapped under the rocks. A silvery apparition rose up to greet them: "Thank you for freeing my body, but my spirit will remain bound here until you free my companions." He gestured further into the tunnel, where three corpsified miners were shuffling to their feet, each brandishing a pickaxe. The party rushed in to face the undead abominations, but they were pretty sorely bruised and bleeding from all their prior combat in the mine and had few resources left to them. The zombies shambled forward and swung their pickaxes, taking Heather out and almost dropping Blair as well. At this point, the bold adventurers decided that discretion was the better part of valour and took off, dragging unconscious and bleeding Heather with them. They holed up in the ruined cabin outside the mine and rested until daybreak. Reinvigorated, they returned to the zombies (who were too mindless to crawl through the rubble) and finished them off.
In the mine they found several hundred silver pieces worth of unsmelted ore, which they took back to Sunbeam as proof that they had cleared the mine out and, strangely, that the mine seemed to not be as played out as everyone had thought.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've done a lot of work onGunslinger Guns of the Western Kings, but it's not in a totally playable state yet. I was at the point where I couldn't do any more development without some actual playtesting, so when our friends Jane and Tess (who played Kat and Daphne in the Sandbox campaign) came over to England for a visit, I decided to run a simple adventure to test out some aspects of gameplay. I wanted to keep things simple, both for playtesting purposes, and to demonstrate the feasibility of a classic D&D scenario in a world ruled by the gun. As such, I went with the standard 'you all meet in a bar' opening, followed by the old clear-out-the-kobold-infested-mine routine.
I have to say it worked really well. Everyone had a blast and I got a good feel for how gun-heavy d20 combat works. I can't wait to start running this for more people on a semi-weekly basis. If you like the sound of this whole "Guns of the Western Kings" thing, I'll probably be posting more about it in the near future.
-your wild west wizard d20 despot
Guns of the Western Kings is (c) Jonah Bomgaars and d20 Despot
(She is not the half-hag changeling available in Pathfinder, but a half-fey changeling - a homebrew race I am developing. My Patreon patrons who pledge $3 or more already have a playable version of the changeling race.)
Blair Solomon (NG Tiefling Oracle 1) -
Lady Filia, aka "Face" Sinclair (LG Human Paladin 1) -
The Story
Blair aimlessly wandered the countryside after being kicked out of his temple. As a result of his fiendish heritage, he believed himself to be a monster, and feared that he was evil - perhaps even the Devil incarnate. When he happened on Face and realized she was a paladin, he asked her to smite him. When divine providence stayed her hand, Face realized that Blair was not evil, and suggested instead that they head west in search of good deeds that need doin'. After all, nothing soothes a troubled soul like helping people.
Heather, meanwhile, was preparing to go on an adventure herself. Her daughter Annabelle had gone missing, presumably run-off by orcs. She was resolved to find her daughter and rescue her from the savage greenskins. Before she left, she stopped in at Ray's Hotel and Saloon, the only tavern in the dried up old mining town of Sunbeam. It was the largest building in town, and looked like it used to be a lot fancier than it was now. There she encountered the odd pair of Blair the mopey tiefling and Face the tiny paladin.
Soon enough, trouble came to the bar, as it so often does wherever three or more PCs are gathered. Three men and a gnome burst into the saloon. Their leader, a dark man with a face all of scars and stubble and a thick black caterpillar moustache, called out, "I'd like ta ask all y'all ta leave, forthrightly! Me an my boys've got some drinkin to do, an we like ta do it alone! Barkeep, gimme some bottles a whiskey an git out!"
Dergan, the mutton-chopped dwarven bartender, resignedly poured them some whiskey and nodded to the trio of adventurers, silently signalling for them to leave. However, our heroes refused to budge. The ruffians, whom Heather knew to be the Trembull Gang, a minor scourge on the area, continued to act abusively toward the staff and the adventurers until finally their threats became too much and a fight broke out. The three level-one adventurers did not fare well against the hardened bandits; their fists flew, but their dice did not cooperate. Soon all three PCs found themselves unconscious and on the brink of a Total Party Kill (It's been a while since I've run a game for 1st level characters). They were only saved by the bartender, Dergan, who shooed the bandits off with the twelve-gauge shotgun he kept under the bar. The Trembull Gang vowed to return that night to burn the whole town to the ground, starting with the saloon.
Dergan splashed a bucket of water over the unconscious adventurers and explained the situation to them. They, of course, offered to help defend the bar, though they had only hours to prepare. Just then the sherriff arrived. Shamuel Flant was a mustachioed old man in a big round hat, and his deputy, Garrot Welch, was a scrawny and unimposing man. Neither of them looked capable of enforcing any peace - perhaps why the Trembull Gang had been able to run roughshod over the town. They, the bartender, and the adventurers all agreed to make their stand at the saloon. They threw some tables up in front of the windows and doors, and hunkered down to wait until nightfall.
The bandits swooped in on horseback (or burro-back, in the gnome's case) as the sun set, whooping and throwing torches onto the roof as they circled the building. Then they stopped and dismounted, guns drawn, outside the bar and called for the bartender to come out. They were met with a hail of gunfire, and dove for cover behind their mounts. The adventurers were firing out of windows and from behind overturned tables, Heather wielding her .38 revolver, Blair with a 20-gauge shotgun, and Face with two sawed-off shotguns. The bandits were also armed with .38s, except the gnome, who carried an old pepperbox pistol, and Calvin Trembull, who favored his 12-gauge. One by one the bandits were picked off, or their horses were shot, causing their only cover to flee. When Calvin Trembull's horse bolted, he took one of his bandit's horses as cover, kicking him out to be shot up by the defenders. Soon, the petty bandit lord's reign was ended when he took a bullet to the head. All but the gnome - who fled into the night - were killed.
The old sherriff was impressed by the way the party handled themselves, and offered them a job: "The way you dealt with them Trembull gang was real impressive. Listen, me an my deputy need ta stay around town here for… security reasons an all. But there's a situation come up recently in the pass. The ol' mine all played out up the road is come a hole-up fer goblins an such. T'ain't harmed the town much, but they hassle traffic through the pass somethin'. If you could clear that out, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'd probably appreciate it somewhere along the lines of 500 gp for the each of you."
So, after outfitting themselves at the old general store, the adventurers set out the next day for the Sunbeam Silver Mine.
 |
| "Outside the mineshaft is a cleared area that looks like it was once a mining camp, but now the tents are all gone and the wooden walkways are rotting into the ground. Tucked into a few brushy pines is a wooden structure that is missing its windows and doors. The mineshaft beyond is wide, and braced with thick beams. Two rusty minecart tracks lead out, merging into one for the last 5 ft, where a weather-worn minecart rests." |
As they entered the mine, they came under fire from two kobold bandits shooting derringers from covered positions. The party ducked behind the mineshaft support beams and shot the kobolds and they poked their heads up over the crates and rubble they were using as cover. They advanced down the shaft into a large open cavern lit by a bonfire and strewn haphazardly with charred bones and filthy hide bedrolls. As they entered, two more gunslinging kobolds dove behind crates and barrels while three other kobold miners in filthy rags cowered in the center of the room. The party charged in, guns blazing, and took out the kobolds, but one of the miners fled back into the rear tunnel, screaming warnings. They followed him and found a tough hobgoblin overseeing three more kobold miners gathering freshly mined silver ore. The kobolds charged the party, picks raised in the air, and the hobgoblin backed them up with his 20-gauge shotgun and a warhammer. The party handled themselves well, blasting and hacking their way through their cornered opponents until the mine was cleared of bandit scum.
The party continued searching the mine for other dangers, taking out a nest of dire rats and some disorienting flash beetles which they had a hell of a time trying to shoot. Finally, they found a section of the mine that had been blocked off by a cave-in. They were about to turn away from the dead end when they heard a voice from beyond: "Help! You're not those kobolds are you? Dig us out!" The party was naturally suspicious and inquired further. The voice explained, "We were illegal miners. We had it on good authority that this mine wasn't actually played out, so we came in here to see for ourselves. Sure enough, after a bit of digging, we found fresh silver veins, but we were so greedy that we forgot to brace the tunnel and it collapsed. My companions perished, but my legs are trapped under the cave-in."
The party spent a solid hour clearing enough rubble away to get through. On the other side, they found a desiccated corpse with its legs trapped under the rocks. A silvery apparition rose up to greet them: "Thank you for freeing my body, but my spirit will remain bound here until you free my companions." He gestured further into the tunnel, where three corpsified miners were shuffling to their feet, each brandishing a pickaxe. The party rushed in to face the undead abominations, but they were pretty sorely bruised and bleeding from all their prior combat in the mine and had few resources left to them. The zombies shambled forward and swung their pickaxes, taking Heather out and almost dropping Blair as well. At this point, the bold adventurers decided that discretion was the better part of valour and took off, dragging unconscious and bleeding Heather with them. They holed up in the ruined cabin outside the mine and rested until daybreak. Reinvigorated, they returned to the zombies (who were too mindless to crawl through the rubble) and finished them off.
In the mine they found several hundred silver pieces worth of unsmelted ore, which they took back to Sunbeam as proof that they had cleared the mine out and, strangely, that the mine seemed to not be as played out as everyone had thought.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've done a lot of work on
I have to say it worked really well. Everyone had a blast and I got a good feel for how gun-heavy d20 combat works. I can't wait to start running this for more people on a semi-weekly basis. If you like the sound of this whole "Guns of the Western Kings" thing, I'll probably be posting more about it in the near future.
-your wild west wizard d20 despot
Guns of the Western Kings is (c) Jonah Bomgaars and d20 Despot
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