So the next custom setting I am working on for publication is an alternate Old West US setting, called Gothic Western, using many of the territories and sovereignties still included, despite an 1871 date. This is a fantasy gothic horror old west setting being designed for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, extensively using the firearm rules, creating archetypes for every class, adding feats, spells and magic items, including many eldritch artifacts.
The Republic of Texas still exists and did not become a state (nor joined the south, and is not a slave state), while they are still in conflict with Mexico, there was no US-Mexican War. Texas is defended by the Texas Rangers.
The Republic of Sonora, established by fillibuster William Walker and a band of mercenaries in 1853 (yes, it really happened, though short-lived) that controls the northern half of the Mexican state of Sonora and the entirety of Baja California, and following a copper strike is even more firmly established, though is not recognized by the US and in conflict with Mexico (because of the 2 republics, all land north of those sovereignties have been cut-off from Mexico and now claimed as abandoned and taken as US Territories.)
California is the only state in the west, though it only consists of northern and central California.
The Oregon Territory is all lands north of California to the Canadian border, currently under a lease to purchase agreement from Great Britain.
The Territory of Deseret is the Mormon state, though unrecognized by the US in its entirety, claims the territories of western Colorado, the entirety of Utah, the southern portion of Wyoming, all of Nevada, the northern half of Arizona and southern California - all the desert waste regions. Deseret is a theodemocratic state, all state officers are also senior members of the Mormon church. Deseret is defended by the Nauvoo Legion (Mormon Militia).
The Territory of New Mexico encompasses central New Mexico into southern Arizona, although held by several private mining companies and several US Cavalry forts, this region is dominated by the local native populations (Apache, Navajo and Comanche).
The Unorganized Territory comprises of Idaho, Montana, and the Dakotas, held by several US Cavalry forts, but is almost entirely dominated by the northern Great Plains tribal nations (Blackfoot, Cheyenne and Lakota/Souix)
The Reserved Lands consisting of eastern Oklahoma, is where the US Army forces native populations into concentration camps called "reservations".
The setting is borrowing real-world conspiracies and secret societies to help color the setting including:
Freemasonry and the Knights Templar - with a Masonic lodge in every town across the Old West (not in every village or road stop, however), this secret society has great social influence in the communities they have lodges. The Knights Templar is linked to the Masonic Order, with high standing among the membership. Rather than being "knights", they are more militant priests whose secret job is to locate, transport and hide the existence of powerful magic items, and eldritch artifacts. The Knights Templar is an inquisitor archetype. (Notably Cabalist Sorcerers are the opposition to the Knights Templar, with a goal to diseminate Eldritch corruption across the lands and peoples of Gothic Western).
Knights of the Golden Circle - southern sympathizers who seek to reestablish the Confederacy, militarily take over Mexico and the West Indies encompassing the Gulf of Mexico (as a golden circle). The James Bros are said to perform robberies for the sole purpose of funding this organization.
Pinkerton Detective Agency - although a privately owned company, this organization serves as the US Secret Service and the forerunners of the FBI, although also serving various US industrialists and business concerns, however, never opposing the US in any way. Pinkertons are of the Slayer archetype.
Order of Oblivion - a ficticious secret society operated by anti-American, European aristocrats and interests served by anarchists, communists, crime syndicates, and with their cabalist sorcerer agents are the primary spread of eldritch corruptions in America (think Cult of Cthulhu).
Texas Rangers - although serving as both the military force and law enforcement of the Republic of Texas, because of the prevalence of undead and aberrations (called the Unclean), they particularly adept at dealing with the Unclean. Texas Ranger is a druid archetype.
Newspaper Journalists - serve to find scoops and write about them, and are a threat to the activities of all the secret societies, even those with a benign purpose. Journalists are an Investigator archetype. (And by design very similar to the Private Detectives of the Call of Cthulhu game).
Another archetype already developed is the Shootist (magus archetype) which was inspired by "Doc Holiday" as an arcane powered, gentleman gamber gunfighter. Among his abilities is being able to deflect a single ranged attack each round, eventually being able to stop a bullet in midair and send back to the shooter (ala Matrix).
We are working on a series of one-shot modules that include setting and crunch material in the appendices. Our first one-shot is Horror on the Gila Express which entirely takes place aboard a steam train, which I've already created as player-friendly encounter scale maps including: locomotive, coal tender, flat bed, box car, livestock car, passenger car, Pullman luxury car and caboose. Action will require PCs to reach the incapacitated engineer in the locomotive and stop a runaway train, then be forced to confront the villain hiding in the caboose - so jumping from roof to roof of each car of a moving train, or fighting among passengers within each car will be the tactics required.
Adventure ideas for Gothic Western:
1. Horror on the Gila Express one-shot module (described above).
2. "Circus comes to town" with a Freak Show, consisting mostly of secret aberrants, the circus management is in league with the Order of Oblivion. In every town on the circus circuit, a local is kidnapped subjected to eldritch experimentation, then forced to join the menagerie having been given an aberrant property (acquired template). One of the more combat oriented PCs will be kidnapped and forcibly given the template, which the rest of the PCs must confront the perpetrators and try to find a means of saving their ally from corruption.
3. Eldritch artifacts brought here by Knights Templar in the early 15th century (preColumbian period) to hideaway and bury these evil arcane devices from corrupting Europe and civilization were brought to the caves in the mountain wastelands of the New Mexico region. One of those sites is the fabled Lost Vaquero Mine, a cursed gold mine sought after by every prospector entering the region of Arizona (western New Mexico Territory). [I'm borrowing from the Lost Dutchman Mine legend.]
4. Ghost Town - there's an entire community of a Texas border town, that was attacked and slain by the Knights of the Golden Circle, while wearing native garb, to implicate the natives as the perpetrators. The entire town is one gigantic haunt, and the only way to lay it to rest is to catch and prosecute the perpetrators.
5. Lonely Waystation on a mountain trail, is being held by a family who was forced to endure cannibalism while snowed-in on a high mountain pass, and have acquired the Wendigo Curse template, which forces them to desire the consumption of humans, which grant a measure of strength and power. (Influenced by the event of Donner Pass, and ideas borrowed from the movie, Ravenous).
I need more ideas for modules, what are your thoughts?
Reminds me of Deadlands (a setting I enjoy).
Other modules might feature sites/situations such as haunted mines, prospecting/panhandling, stagecoach robberies/chases, cattle drives/rustlers, saloon shoot-outs, dam construction sites, bank vaults, bordellos, and native cemeteries.
Quote from: Rose-of-Vellum
Reminds me of Deadlands (a setting I enjoy).
Other modules might feature sites/situations such as haunted mines, prospecting/panhandling, stagecoach robberies/chases, cattle drives/rustlers, saloon shoot-outs, dam construction sites, bank vaults, bordellos, and native cemeteries.
Honestly, the first thing I thought of was Broncosaurus Rex for some reason. The one setting where the Confederacy won, and they went into a cold war with the US, and then they travel into space and colonize a planet of Dinosaurs... The key to enjoying this setting is to not think about it for one single second ever.....
But yes, this sounds cool. My one suggestion is a cool inventor class. Please make a cool inventor class for Pathfinder! I can't believe Paizo (as far as I know) hasn't made one yet, but it has been done. Coglayers of Dragonmech are a very cool class, where you have individual mechanical parts, and you can combine them however you like to do crazy things. You could combine a fog machine with an electric generator to make an electrically charged mist. That sort of inventive insane ingenuity that DM's dread.
Quote from: Rose-of-Vellum
Reminds me of Deadlands (a setting I enjoy).
Other modules might feature sites/situations such as haunted mines, prospecting/panhandling, stagecoach robberies/chases, cattle drives/rustlers, saloon shoot-outs, dam construction sites, bank vaults, bordellos, and native cemeteries.
Its actually influenced by both Deadlands and Call of Cthulhu, but I have experience creating published Pathfinder settings, so it's easier for me to develop using those rules.
I'm introducing a Corruption mechanic - instead of CoC's insanity, though the signs of corruption include both mental deficiencies and physical alterations; aberrant properties. Also using Dante's Inferno (and the Divine Comedy in general) to help create our aberrant beings based on the physical descriptions of the beings of Hell described by Dante - though there are no demon/devils in the setting, all living monsters are aberrants in one way or another. Native curses like wendigo and undead have a presence too, but aberrations seem to be the majority threat - called The Unclean, in the setting.
An inventor class is definitely on my mind, along with some kind of mad scientist. Although most of the effort has been with archetypes (not that inventor couldn't be an alchemist archetype or something), but creating new classes as needed has definitely been a consideration since the beginning.
This is an interesting idea. In a sense HP systems are actually pretty good at simulating gunfights if abstraction is stressed - there's a lot of not hitting one another.
The Unclean angle raises some interesting questions. Since this is alternate history, I assume lots of Clerics worship the Christian god - how will you be handling that with Pathfinder mechanics?
When you wrote "Shootish" before is there any chance you meant "Shootist"?
Quote from: Steerpike
This is an interesting idea. In a sense HP systems are actually pretty good at simulating gunfights if abstraction is stressed - there's a lot of not hitting one another.
The Unclean angle raises some interesting questions. Since this is alternate history, I assume lots of Clerics worship the Christian god - how will you be handling that with Pathfinder mechanics?
Except for spirits worshipped by native Americans, and the various cults and secret societies possibly worshipping Cthulhu (or other aberrant super being), I'm assuming everyone else worships God - the Christian one. I don't see how that would make a difference regarding how spells are granted. Mormons have a place in the setting too, with the Territory of Deseret, but though Mormon politics plays a role, beyond mentioning that some of their practices are incongruous with other Christians of the setting, Mormon religion beyond spells granted by God have no place in the setting. Nothing disparaging will be present in our publications to any real-world religion. Any clerics, paladins and inquisitors of the setting will function as they normally would in Pathfinder. Why would there need to be a difference?
Quote from: SteerpikeWhen you wrote "Shootish" before is there any chance you meant "Shootist"?
Yeah, shootist, is what I meant as in the John Wayne movie of the same name. I wanted a name to imply "gunfighter", that was something other than that or gunslinger (which is a PF class), so while "shootist" is odd, since it was a John Wayne movie, that gives it justification for a differing archetype name whose entire schtick involves shooting revolvers.
Here (though the wording might get tweaked some more) is the Shootist so far:
Shootist (Magus Archetype)
The shootist blends mystical arcane powers, masterful prowess with a firearm as his chosen weapon, and a deck of cards for a spellbook.
Weapon Proficiencies: Shootists are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, and with one-handed firearms.
Arcane Firearm (Su): At 1st level, the shootist gains a pistol as a battered firearm identical to the one gained by a gunslinger. He also gains the deadeye and quick clear gunslinger deeds though instead of expending points from a grit pool to activate these deeds, he expends points from his arcane pool.
This ability replaces cantrips, but the shootist gains the
detect magic and
read magic cantrips and places them in his spell deck. He can cast either of these as 1st-level spells.
Spell Decks: Instead of a spellbook, the shootist begins play with a spell deck that resembles an ornate playing card deck with cryptic symbols and formulae hidden in the numbers, icons and borders of each card. Upon careful inspection, an observer can learn the true nature of a spell deck (DC 15 Perception or Spellcraft). This spell deck otherwise functions in all ways as a standard magus spellbook.
Arcane Pool (Su): A shootist's arcane pool can be used to augment only ranged weapons. At 5th level, a shootist can use his arcane pool to add the following weapon special abilities to ranged weapons: brilliant energy, flaming, flaming burst, frost, ghost touch, icy burst, keen, shock, shocking burst, or speed.
This ability alters arcane pool.
Spell Combat (Su): This ability functions as the standard magus ability of the same name, but instead of a melee weapon the shootist must use a one-handed firearm.
This ability alters spell combat.
Ranged Spellstrike (Su): At 2nd level, whenever a shootist casts a spell with a range of "touch" from the magus spell list, he can deliver the spell through any firearm he is wielding as part of a ranged attack. Instead of the free melee touch attack normally allowed to deliver the spell, a shootist can make one free ranged attack with his firearm (at his highest base attack bonus) as part of casting this spell. If successful, this ranged attack deals its normal damage as well as the effects of the spell. If the shootist makes this attack in concert with spell combat, this ranged attack takes all the penalties accrued by spell combat melee attacks. This attack uses the weapon's critical range, but the spell effect only deals ×2 damage on a successful critical hit, while the weapon damage uses its own critical modifier.
This alters spellstrike.
Ranged Arcana: Any magus arcana which affects melee attacks and melee weapons instead affect ranged attacks and one-handed firearms.
This ability alters magus arcana.
Deflecting Swagger (Su): At 4th level, the shootist gains the ability to alter the trajectory of a projectile fired at him through sheer force of will. He can deflect one successful attack from a ranged weapon per round as if he possessed the Deflect Arrows feat. At 11th level, the shootist's will becomes even stronger, allowing him to completely stop and redirect projectiles as if he possessed the Snatch Arrows feat except that any attack deflected in this way (including those made by a bow or a firearm) can be fired back at the original attacker. The shootist need not have a hand free to use this ability and can use it a number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier.
This ability replaces spell recall and improved spell recall.
Fast Hands (Su): At 7th level, the shootist learns how to further blend his arcane power with his gunfighting talent. When holding two one-handed firearms in separate hands he is considered to possess the Two-Weapon Fighting feat. Furthermore, by spending a point from his arcane pool, the shootist is considered to have a hand free for the purposes of casting spells, reloading, and for using the spell combat ability. If he does cast a spell, then he may not attack with the firearm in the hand he used to complete the somatic components with for the rest of his turn. This benefit lasts for a number of rounds equal to the shootist's Charisma modifier.
This ability replaces medium armor.
Medium Armor (Ex): At 13th level, a shootist gains proficiency with medium armor. A shootist can cast magus spells while wearing medium armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. Like any other arcane spellcaster, a shootist wearing heavy armor or using a shield incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component.
This ability replaces heavy armor.
Greater Spell Access (Su): At 19th level, the shootist gains access to an expanded spell list. He learns and places 14 spells from the bard's spell list into his spell deck as magus spells of their bard level. He gains two of each of the following bard spells not on the magus spell list:
0-level, 1st-level, 2nd-level, 3rd-level, 4th-level, 5th-level, and 6th-level.
He can ignore the somatic component of these spells, casting them without the normal chance of spell failure.
This ability alters greater spell access.
Suggested Magus ArcanaArcane Accuracy, Bane Blade, Close Range, Critical Strike, and Ghost Blade.
Quote from: Rose-of-Vellum
Reminds me of Deadlands (a setting I enjoy).
Other modules might feature sites/situations such as haunted mines, prospecting/panhandling, stagecoach robberies/chases, cattle drives/rustlers, saloon shoot-outs, dam construction sites, bank vaults, bordellos, and native cemeteries.
Other adventure module ideas we're contemplating:
1. A cursed camera able to steal memories from people getting their photograph taken, and even
magic jar their souls onto the glass plate inside. So an investigation adventure searching through a large town tracking this cursed camera and the photographer who doesn't even realize it to buy/steal/destroy the malignant magic item.
2. While pursuing an agent of the Order of Oblivion, the PCs find they have to cross a native burial ground and enter the closed "holy land" canyon behind it to capture their quarry. Of course once crossing the burial grounds, they are tracked by ghosts, encounter haunts, may be given a curse, and the closed canyon behind the burial grounds is affected with a unique property. Positive and negative energy is reversed there - healing harms and vice versa.
3. Boothill Graveyard - a former grand wizard of the Order of Oblivion is buried with an eldritch artifact which is causing instances of undead activity, so his grave will need to be opened, the offending artifact removed and disposed of - of course the former grand wizard is a lich-like mummy, with gun-toting ghasts or other corporeal undead as minions to fight off.
4. A native shaman's apprentice has gone rogue, while protecting a powerful native artifact or other powerful magic item and hiding out in a "holy land" slot canyon in the canyonlands, causes hazards to form like avalanches, flash floods and quick sand, native ghosts and other powerful spirits can be summoned. A forest of saguro cacti becomes an enchanted forest of sorts, and nature becomes supernatural.
5. Celebrating H. P. Lovecraft's
Shadow over Innsmouth, a tiny desert town's entire residential population is acquiring aberrant properties, in various stages of advancement, some just showing odd signs, others completely inhuman. Work being done by an evil cabalist sorcerer in league with the Order of Oblivion.
6. A traveling physician dispensing health care to every community he encounters, while a skilled surgeon is also an agent of the Order of Oblivion, and is some kind of alchemist (or a new class with alchemy as one of his class features), that specializes in the creation of toxins, contagions and eldritch brews that he dispenses to his patient/victims with hypodermic needles. He is in fact skilled in combat using these hypodermic needles gaining a Sneak Attack in using it. The party needs to stop the crime spree of killed patients by capturing or slaying the physician. I'm calling the class or archetype, the Hypodermist.
Quote from: Gamer PrintshopWhy would there need to be a difference?
Well, for example, according to the rules as written, high level cleric is capable of casting spells that summon angels, and stuff like
Commune and
Gate. Spells like this could go a long way to confirming doctrinal truths and falsehoods. Moreover, if these spells function as a Christian cleric expects, and you can actually speak to angels or travel to heaven (or hell for that matter) it essentially confirms that the cosmos is Christian. That's a big deal, right? Because then things like missionary work and the conversion of Native peoples takes on a bit of a different light.
Ah, good question then - there are no devils/demons/angels in the setting. The only outer planes thing that can be summoned or contacted by anyone/anything are aberrations, and nobody "good" wants to do that. Many existing spells are affected in the setting. Some spells do not function at all. Many spells (magic items and other things too) cause Corruption with their use, so should avoid being cast. There will be a list of spells, magic items, and other things that cause Corruption. (Corruption is the equivalent to the Insanity score from Call of Cthulhu, though is a combination of mental and physical changes - insanity plus aberrant properties gained).
Divine spells and magic items that do function are assumed to be powered by God (and is), but as far as proving/disproving that faith and deities are real, aside from the fact that most spells work - its all a matter of faith.
Many existing and new monsters (and templates) in the setting gain attacks that cause Corruption, in addition to their normal abilities and special attacks.
I just got Steerpike to join (he volunteered) the Gothic Western development and writing staff! Thank you, Steerpike and welcome aboard!
Yep, I'm going to contribute a one-shot. I have several ideas - potential titles include The Texas Cakewalk, The Unclean Brand, and Red Light at the Sundown Palace.
Steerpike is currently writing The Unclean Brand one-shot module for 1st level, while I'm writing Horror on Gila Express for 3rd level. Currently, Mike Riter, our main designer is working on new spells, new monsters, and alternate racial traits, having already created many class archetypes and the Corruption rules.
I'm also doing page layout on Horror on the Gila Express, shooting for a standard look to all Gothic Western page layout design. For example I've struggled trying to create a cover design, having scrapped 3 different attempts so far. I've finally settled on emulating a 19th century Harper's Weekly periodical, which appears as a higher quality newspaper in style. While there will be some full color art, most of the art I'm using is 19th century public domain art that's ideal for the period, and using a parchment colored background for every page.
Progress is moving forward...
That certainly sounds interesting.
Seconded!