[Other] Savage Worlds - Deadlands: Hell on Earth (Post Apocalypse) - The Siege of Crooked Cre

[Effete]

@TaleTeller Out of curiousity, how did you plan to handle rolls? Because with the exploding dice mechanic and the inclusion of the Wild Die, things can get complicated quickly.

I ask, because after some tinkering with the dice roller and some kind help from the staff, I discovered a tag that handles exploding dice fairly well. You need to input each die separately, but it works. You can check out some of my tests here and here.

[Silk]

Atta's done.

Though except for the ending, I don't really like her background so I might go back and change it if I get up the gumption to do so. I'll let it percolate in the back of my mind for a time to see if any ideas come to me.

[taleteller50]

Originally Posted by Effete

@TaleTeller Out of curiousity, how did you plan to handle rolls? Because with the exploding dice mechanic and the inclusion of the Wild Die, things can get complicated quickly.

I ask, because after some tinkering with the dice roller and some kind help from the staff, I discovered a tag that handles exploding dice fairly well. You need to input each die separately, but it works. You can check out some of my tests here and here.

Originally I was just going to let the players figure this out for themselves but I'll give you credit, your formula looks like it works. I plan on using it myself but others are encouraged to do so as well provided they understand how it all works. Here's 10 XP for you

[Effete]

Originally Posted by taleteller50

Originally I was just going to let the players figure this out for themselves but I'll give you credit, your formula looks like it works. I plan on using it myself but others are encouraged to do so as well provided they understand how it all works. Here's 10 XP for you

Thanks!
I'm thinking about making a dedicated thread in the General Discussions section with explanations on what the tags mean, how they work, and even a table of pre-made tags for easy copy/pasting. That way anyone running a Savage Worlds game can just link to the thread if they want. Hoping to get it up in the next day or two.

Welp, I made the thread last night. It's posted in the Game Advice/Player Support section and you can access it from here.

[taleteller50]

OK Wastelanders, we're coming down to just past the halfway point and we have some mighty fine chummers so far. Applications will still be open till the 28th but I am considering starting the game a little early to get the ball rolling. However, until the starting gun is fired I have something to help keep those creative juices churning (not to mention to check if you all are still out there).

Here are two questions for you to answer to gain some bonus experience. The Value of each will be noted next to the question and I encourage you to consider these even if you don't care about XP as they will help me to create a more customized and enjoyable experience for all of you.

Question 1
Name up to 3 things you would like to see or experience in game. Each answer will be worth 5 XP and can include monsters/locations specifically from the Deadlands setting but also specific game mechanics, tropes from Post-Apocalyptic media, or specific inspirations for movies/other media.

Did you really like the chase scene from Mad Max: Fury Road and would love to have your character participate in something similar? Put it down.

How about some base/settlement building like in Fallout 4 (Minus one Preston Garvey bugging you about side quests)? Get it on your list.

Maybe you just want face a cybernetically enhanced Stone riding a Rattler size Diablo while surrounded by an army of Doombringers? My first question is who hurt you but then I'd say to add it to the list.

We may not get to everything but it will give me an idea of what you would find fun and what you expect from the game.

Question 2
What is your character's deepest, darkest Fear? What, at the mere thought of it, would cause your character to break into a cold sweat and panicking if it ever really happened. Some have likely already encountered something that scared them to their core and it could definitely be a part of their Greatest Fear but you'll want to look really deep and try to find why that specific event scared them to truly discover that nerve that should not be plucked.

This will be worth 5 to 15 XP depending on how deep you really go down this rabbit hole. A short, one sentence description will only net you 5 while a truly juicy dive into your character's psyche would get you the full 15.

[Effete]

Originally Posted by taleteller50

Question 1
Name up to 3 things you would like to see or experience in game. Each answer will be worth 5 XP and can include monsters/locations specifically from the Deadlands setting but also specific game mechanics, tropes from Post-Apocalyptic media, or specific inspirations for movies/other media.

I've always felt that survival/horror settings worked best when the players didn't know what to expect next. The suspense the characters are experiencing can be made palpable to the players too. There are plenty of horror/post-apoc tropes to draw from, and numerous ways to subvert expections of each. I'd love to experience a thrilling high-speed chase through a desert storm, or brave the corridors of an abandoned prison still inhabited by a few inmates, or try to survive through the night in a farmhouse while undead clammor at the windows and doors... but I've seen those movies and I've played those video games. I'd like to get a little taste of the familiar, then WHAM!, something unexpected.

I'm sure we all have the utmost confidence in your ability to tell us a compelling story. I don't think you need to try to cater to our preferences or expectations. We knew what we were getting into when we signed up. There! Now that I've ruined it for everyone else, I'll take zero points on this question. Additionally, I'll donote 5 points of my own to each player that gets accepted.

Question 2
What is your character's deepest, darkest Fear?

Gonna have to go secret on this one. No offense, everyone else, but ya'll have to find out the hard way.

[taleteller50]

As much as you believe you are circumventing my first question Effete your answer is actually telling me a few things. First, you're looking for an experience more based in suspense and tension rather then goofy action or power fantasy. You don't need to be winning to feel excited but instead want to be clinging to the edge of your seat with anticipation until finally being hit with a curve ball you didn't expect.

You also don't want the same story you've already experienced before. You want something new and unexpected; a twist upon the foundation of the familiar. You're not interested in a chase scene against raiders but a chase scene in the middle of the night? Pursued by ghostly apparition you can only see occasionally? That might be more interesting. Especially if it ends in a way that you couldn't see coming.

This question isn't just about discovering specific events or scenes which the characters want to recreate from their favorite media. It's about discovering what you as a player would find fun in this game. I could just tell a story and drag your characters through it but that might not be as much fun as an experience that caters to your own tastes a little more. This wasn't about what main ingredients I would be using while cooking up the game but instead the spices that would make it interesting and you have given me an idea of what your palate is like

10 XP.

Now if you still want to gift XP to others that's up to you but I still find your answer acceptable.

[Effete]

I'm a man of my word.

My character may not be...

[Cap Ut]

Originally Posted by taleteller50

Question 1
Name up to 3 things you would like to see or experience in game. Each answer will be worth 5 XP and can include monsters/locations specifically from the Deadlands setting but also specific game mechanics, tropes from Post-Apocalyptic media, or specific inspirations for movies/other media.

• Moral challenges for the characters, having them face difficult choices or adversaries that can put to the test their ethics and principles, or even put the characters at odds with each other.
• Sporadic more light-hearted "episodes" between one horror/conflict and the other, a bit like "The Next World" for The Walking Dead and "The Ember Island Players" for Avatar, to let the characters catch a breath from time to time and give them the chance to interact and develop in relatively peaceful situations.
• Okay, this one is evil: time travel (few meaningful instances top, no need to overuse it). The theme is difficult to pull off in a consistent and satisfying way even with full creative control, with the PCs being literal wild cards under the control of the players, it should be even more challenging for a DM. (Of course, I'm not referring to temporal jumps so large that the before and after may very well be completely separated universes, that would be too easy)
  OR some really wacky stuff in the style of Legion or Doom Patrol.
  OR even both together, if daring enough.
  

[taleteller50]

Obviously the first two shouldn't be too hard but surprisingly your third option, time travel, is a part of the Deadland lore as well. I don't know if you'll ever get to it but it is possible.

+15 XP

[Cap Ut]

Question: can a Survival Knife also be used as a melee weapon? Does it count simply as a Knife (Str+d4)?

Also, I added the description of the PC's Bolt device in the Build section.

Now time to answer question 2:

Originally Posted by taleteller50

Question 2
What is your character's deepest, darkest Fear? What, at the mere thought of it, would cause your character to break into a cold sweat and panicking if it ever really happened. Some have likely already encountered something that scared them to their core and it could definitely be a part of their Greatest Fear but you'll want to look really deep and try to find why that specific event scared them to truly discover that nerve that should not be plucked.

To lose Nimue. Samuel sees her as his sister, so obviously he cares deeply about her, furthermore, she's pretty much the only family he has left, and the idea of family is what has basically kept him going in the post-apocalyptic world to this point: at first he stayed with his father and took care of him when his health was worsening, then, when Jack passed away, he clinged to the hope that Morgan was still out there alive and traversed the wasteland to find her; when he did, he stayed and helped her with Nimue, but once again things go south and he loses his mother too; now it's only him and his sister. She's thus the last surviving beacon in his life, and if that goes out too, he would find himself in dark and uncharted waters, utterly unprepared to face the psychological fallout of an eventuality he struggles even to ponder.
Moreover, he's the one responsible for her, the one appointed by Morgan to look after her: if something goes wrong, it would be his fault in his eyes, and hardly anything would be able to convince him otherwise. He couldn't save his father in then end, nor his mother: losing his sister would be another heavy burden to add to the stack, and someone can only withstand so much before crumpling under the weight of his perceived failures, especially if these failures correspond to the loss of loved ones for a person who ultimately lives for them.

[Effete]

I added tables for exploding rolls so players can quickly copy/paste the formula they want. I may expand the tables in the future, but for now they cover all the basics. If anybody thinks there's something I should add or improve, please feel free to PM me.

[taleteller50]

@ Cap Ut - A Survival Knife will count as a Bowie Knife in combat. Also 10 xp for your Fear.

@ Effete - Thanks again

[Effete]

@taleteller Not a problem! It was more of a personal pursuit while I learned the dice roller tool. I'm one of those "hands-on" learners, so it was really killing two birds with one stone. Besides, once I get more comfortable with how PbP works, I'm thinking of starting up a Savage Worlds game of my own, so this is just laying the groundwork.

[Cap Ut]

My application is pretty much complete. For the gear, I counted an extra ~2 lb to encompass all the stuff without a listed weight (or negligible if taken individually), it seems about right.