Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic Western)

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MichaelTumey
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Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic Western)

Post by MichaelTumey »

I have previously posted a Pathfinder magus archetype called the Shootist, and I am at this time working on both a one-shot module and some setting materials for a gothic horror old west setting with some steampunk elements called Gothic Western.

In some ways influenced by Gothic Earth and Deadlands, my setting will use the Pathfinder gun rules, and is an ideal place to run a gunslinger.

The introductory one-shot module with setting material in the appendix that I am currently writing is called Horror on the Gila Express, and the entire one-shot is located inside a steam train going from El Paso, Texas to Yuma in the New Mexico territory. I've already created the player-friendly versions of the entire train (which includes locomotive, coal tender, flat car, box car, livestock car, passenger car, luxury Pullman coach and the caboose - and have posted on DTRPG.

Lands of Gothic Western
Rather than a completely fictional land inspired by the American Old West, I am building an analog/alternate US borrowing elements from earlier in its history (1840s - 60s) and updating it to 1870...

Republic of Texas - includes regions of Texas, western Oklahoma, eastern New Mexico and the southwestern corner of Colorado. Gets along with the US, in conflict with Mexico (there was no Mexican War). Defended by the Texas Rangers.

Republic of Sonora - established by the American fillibuster (freebooter) William Walker and a band of mercenaries in 1853 controlling the northern part of the Mexican state of Sonora and Baja California. Unrecognized by the US, and in conflict with Mexico.

Territory of Deseret - the theodemocratic territory of the Mormon state, encompassing western Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, northen Arizona and southern California. Unrecognized by the US, in constant conflict with the New Mexico Territory and the Unorganized Territory. Defended by the Nauvoo Legion (Mormon militia).

Territory of New Mexico - includes New Mexico and southern Arizona, claimed to be abandoned by Mexico (since no longer contiguous with that nation, being separated by the Republics of Texas and Sonora) and now a US territory. Defended by US cavalry forts, though dominated by native tribes (Apache and Navajo).

State of California - the only US state in the western territories, though consists of north and central California only.

Oregon Territory - all lands north of California to the Canadian border, currently under lease to purchase agreement with Great Britain.

Unorganized Territory - Idaho, Montana and the Dakotas, claims held by several US cavalry forts, though actually controlled by the Great Plains native tribes (Cheyenne, Lakota/Souix and Blackfoot)

The Reserved Lands - native tribes forced by US army into concentration camps called "reservations", located in eastern Oklahoma.

Organizations
I am also including several organizations and secret societies important to Gothic Western:

Knights of the Golden Circle - southern sympathizers that seek to establish a new Confederacy encircling the Gulf of Mexico, by taking Mexico and the West Indies, as well as the southern US.

Knights Templar and Freemasonry - seeking control of local government through its membership, also works to secure eldritch knowledge, artifacts of power and mystery, suppress the knowledge of their existence and bury all such knowledge in their hidden vaults.

Pinkerton Detective Agency - although a privately owned company it serves as the US secret service and the forerunner of the FBI, though also serving various US industrialists and business concerns, it will not support opposition to US in any way.

Order of Oblivion - a fictional secret society consisting of anti-American European aristocrats and concerns, includes anarchists, communists, elements of criminal syndicates, working in opposition to the Knights Templar.

I'm planning (at this point) to create a series of one-shot modules, each including appendices for both setting material and crunch.
MichaelTumey
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by MichaelTumey »

While I didn't have plans to bring in freelance writer/designers to the project, since I was planning to do that myself, Mike Riter, a new published freelancer expressed great interest in help designing for a Gothic Horor Old West setting. He's already designed a druid variant, as the Texas Ranger, and currently working on a Journalist (investigator archetype), Knights Templar (inquisitor archetype) and some new aberrant specie monsters for the setting.

In opposition to the goals of the Knights Templar, are the Cabalist Sorcerers of the Order of Oblivion are also being designed, whose goal is to spread the eldritch corruptions of aberrant species throughout the gothic old west.

We're also creating a 100 scale Corruption table, that works kind of like the Dark Powers chart of Ravenloft.

I've secured a cool font called Bleeding Cowboy for the setting logo, and gotten permission from the font creator (for a small donation) to use it in a commercial product. I've also gotten Mark Hyzer (who has done some of the MtG card art), but who also did many of the pencil illustrations for my published Kaidan setting of Japanese horror (PFRPG), and will be doing the cover art for my intended one-shot module - Horror on the Gila Express (a corpse-like, lich-like train worker holding up a lantern while riding the back balcony of the caboose, and the train is curving with perspective into the distance of the desert scene.

Got other one-shot ideas in the works... a ghost town, where the entire town is a giant haunt (evil organization killed everyone in the town trying to make it look like native Americans did the deed) and repeating events across town continue until the haunt is laid to rest (perpetrators are given justice)... ...alien ship crashes in desert leaving aberrant bodies and equipment, being stored in a cellar in Roswell, New Mexico (we'll do this creepy instead of cheesy)...

I think this setting might fit (slight out of canon) in Gothic Earth setting.
MichaelTumey
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by MichaelTumey »

Interest is spreading like an aberrant contagion! Jonathan Newell on the CBG.org - campaign builders guild (who goes by Steerpike), though only as a single non-creative job with an RPG publisher in the past, has been a long time developer of very creepy settings and adventures as homebrew only posted on that site (and awefully talented at it). He PM'd me that he is very interested in writing for a Pathfinder based gothic western setting, and has joined the staff. He provided ideas for 3 sample one-shots, and is now helping in the development.

So the staff is growing, and our potential for earlier rather than later release of products is greatly improved! We've got some cool and creepy development in the works.
MichaelTumey
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by MichaelTumey »

Jonathan Newell's first one-shot module that he is writing for Gothic Western is called The Unclean Brand.

Ranchers in western New Mexico are loosing their stock to cattle rustlers in growing numbers, and the adventure party has been hired to investigate and catch the culprits. Following the trail of the cattle, one notices the hoof prints seem to change in aberrant ways, finally its discovered that a hidden cell of the Order of Oblivion is hiding in a canyon, planning a range war, and has been applying a cursed and eldritch brand onto stolen cattle that slowly changes them into horrifying bovine monstrosities, that the agents will use on the battlefields to come. A shaman knows of a means to transform the cattle back, but it's going to take the adventure party to convince Grandmother Spider to listen to their request and whether to grant it or not...

I like that its very old west, and getting cattle into a gothic story that works is a brilliant idea, better than another vampire or zombie tale.
MichaelTumey
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by MichaelTumey »

Here's the description for an evil artifact being carried by the villain on the train of Horror on the Gila Express, which the PCs must stop the villain from reaching his intended destination with the artifact, recover the artifact, and safely place under security. However, just being in its presence confers 1 point of corruption per day, while actually handling it for more than a few hours confers 1d4 corruption damage, and its not even a complete artifact...

Archambault's Deck

Said to have been the pupil of the legendary French cartomancer Jean Baptiste-Alliete, the occultist Gilbert Archambault created this deck of cards at some indeterminate point in the 1860s near the end of his very long life, reputedly basing his designs off certain ancient Egyptian writings long since lost. The cards – which resemble a standard 52 card deck of playing cards – bear macabre illustrations that shift and change when shuffled: the images are never quite the same. Inevitably, though, the faces of the Kings, Queens, Jacks, and Jokers bear twisted expressions of madness, horror, pain, or obscene delight. Unusual hieroglyphic marks corresponding to no known alphabet adorn the backs of the cards; these also seem to change subtly when no one is looking.

In most hands, the cards of Archambault’s Deck are simply ordinary playing cards, though when dealt they often generate very unlikely results and seem to have a whimsical will of their own. When placed in certain esoteric configurations, however, the cards have uncanny power. Not only can they be used to divine past and future, they can actually be manipulated to open rifts through time and space to primordial ages long past and black futures yet-to-come, calling forth the consciousnesses of the aberrant denizens of unknown epochs. The unfathomable inhabitants of those alien aeons can possess the bodies of those near to the cards, sometimes at the behest of a deft dealer of the deck – an unskilled dealer will often find himself or herself the host, being the nearest target. As the parasitic consciousness takes hold, it begins to reshape the body of its host as well, warping it into a form closer to its own. Different configurations of cards open different conduits, piercing the ragged veil of reality. Even Archambault himself had not discovered them all. Some have speculated that certain arrays may open permanent rifts to other times and even other universes.

Fortunately, Archambault’s Deck is no longer intact but is scattered amongst occultists, demonologists, magicians, and scholars. Eliphas Levi reputedly collected a full suit of hearts, only to have them stolen in London; Marie Laveau is rumoured to have acquired the Queen of Clubs. The location of most of the cards remains unknown.

What the Villain Has...

Doctor Jacob Ballantine, practicing phrenologist and occultist (Cabalist Sorcerer 4 NE) of Savannah, Georgia, possesses the Jack and Ten of Spades from Archambault’s Deck in his private collection. As a member of the Order of Oblivion he has received private correspondence from a more senior member, that the Yuma cell possesses the Ace, King and Queen of Spades, and are awaiting to join in a royal flush. The doctor is eloquent, but soft spoken and a tad smug
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by Dr Jekyll »

Love playing Savage Worlds: Deadlands Revisted and would be interested in this when it comes out. How will you publish it?
MichaelTumey
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Re: Working on a gothic horror old west setting (Gothic West

Post by MichaelTumey »

Self published under my Gamer Printshop page on DTRPG as PDF products.
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