Dark West session four recap

 

Third session down. Still using the WaRP OGL rules from Atlas Games as the engine powering the game. I've come to realize that I never introduced the characters on here. Figure I need to do that. 

Pim. Retired outlaw trying to give up the gun and do right. Doesn't even carry a weapon. 

Jebidiah. Young wanna be gunslinger with a big mouth.

Jasper. Bartender extraordinaire. 

Diego. A vaquero who seems to drink a bit to much. 

Taking place a week or so after the last session so characters could lick their wounds and heal up a bit. Everything has been quiet for our band of four. Pim stayed out at the Morgan Ranch and healed up, Jasper laid low at the bar simply doing his job staying out of trouble while Diego and Jebidiah finished up the little house out on the pile of rocks they have started calling 'Rattlesnake Ranch'. 

But things weren't quiet for long. Pim got a visit from a member of an old rival outlaw gang he used to fight with. One who wore a scar across his face that Pim had placed there. Told him that when he heals up they have a score to settle. Leaving Pim on his toes for the rest of the game tonight. 

Jeb and Diego got a side job as riflemen escorting the wagon hauling the gold from the mines into the town. While nothing happened they did discover that the company that laid the road to the mines ran it straight through a graveyard, knocking the markers aside and had even burned the church that used to be there some years before. They really did not like this and after working one day were considering never going back and finding other work. 

Later they found the old man Jeb has harassed before was one of the folks who used to attend that church, the Silent Hills church and cemetery. But the company violently took the land and left some of the townsfolk dead as a result. Then in a rant about the owners of people behind that will suffer the wrath of God the old man slammed his cane against the ground and thunder sounded in the distance. 

Then in a search for more answers about the supernatural elements taking place in the town the four make their way into the section of the city occupied mainly by Chinese workers and their families. After asking around and buying a few trinkets they really don't find out much of anything. Then Diego hears there is a tent on the outskirts of the city that sells fireworks. Something he really wants to see and mess around with. 

Arriving at the big red and blue tent among the tent city with a table out front where a merchant is selling his wares. Mostly fireworks but some other explosives and gunpowder related items as well. Diego buys a small bundle and is ready to leave when they are approached by a group of local thugs in blue outfits demanding they pay them in order leave that section of town unharmed. 

That goes over about as well as you can imagine. Guns are pulled Jasper takes off running the hell out of there.

In the resulting gunfight Diego flips a table over, takes part of his bundle and lights it with a lantern.... then tosses it into the red and blue tent. The one filled with all the fireworks and explosives. The GM says "um.. oh shit... okay". Then he takes off running, Jeb and Pim seeing their tough as nails friend running figure something is up and they chase after while still trying to keep themselves alive. 

First the fireworks start going up, the tent is in full blaze within seconds with fireballs shooting out in all directions... in a tent city. People are panicking and running about trying to fight the flames. The characters get behind a wagon for a but then decide they need to be further away and they start running away again. Then the explosive go up, everyone is thrown to the ground, completely deafened by the blast as pieces of wagons, tents and people fly through the air. They manage to get to their feet and make their way back to the other side of the town while in a state of near shock. 

The next morning they find out the death total is at least thirty people dead. Mama's had been used as a triage center to help treat the wounded. Maybe over a hundred injured. Glass shattered and broken through a large portion of the town. Chunks of rubble and debris had rained down over the entire town. The area around the crater was still smoldering and burning. They were even checking the rails at the nearby railroad to make sure they weren't shifted by the sheer force. 

Nobody is sure of what happened at this point. They know there was a gun fight just before the explosion. But it's believed most of those involved may have been killed in the blast. Those who may have seen exactly what happened may have also been killed as well. A town in a state of complete shock is trying to come to it's senses on the disaster that occurred. 

So in one action may western game started to resemble a Knights of the Dinner table comic. 

Dark West session three recap

 

Third session down. Still using the WaRP OGL rules from Atlas Games as the engine powering the game. I've come to realize that I never introduced the characters on here. Figure I need to do that. 

Pim. Retired outlaw trying to give up the gun and do right. Doesn't even carry a weapon. 

Jebidiah. Young wanna be gunslinger with a big mouth.

Jasper. Bartender extraordinaire. 

Diego. A vaquero who seems to drink a bit to much. 

Jasper was finally able to crawl out of bed after being sick for several days (the player was unable to make the last session) and was finally able to start working the bar at The Saloon. Pim continued to work at the Morrigan Ranch and collect information on any odd occurrences. While Jebidiah and Diego worked on their little homestead built on a pile of rocks between the ranchers. 

Besides a few odd sightings nothing really bad happened during the day. Come dusk they all settled back in town to relax a bit. Although Diego got everybody curious when he finally spoke up about noticing the complete lack of seeing any children in the town or even a schoolhouse anywhere. The others thought this a bit odd and when they began asking around most said they really never noticed. Others pointed out that this town isn't a good place for kids and maybe the families just moved out. After all there is always a constant stream of people arriving and then hopping on the train to leave shortly there after. 

As the PC's got their drink on the night went to very dark quickly. Then as they stumbled their way back to Mama's to get some shut eye. But instead a group of shady individuals decided to give Jebidiah a bit of a warning. Telling him to leave town tonight. Of course ole Jeb didn't kindly to that and told them he would sleep on it. They laughed and said he's going to have trouble with that. 

While Diego and Pim stayed outside to keep watch Jeb and Jasper locked the room up. Then the lights in all the other buildings started to go out, shutters were slammed shut and the temperature dropped down enough that they could see their breath. In short order they could see shambling ragged figured walking towards Mama's. The dead who were crucified outside of town had pulled themselves down and were now heading straight towards Jeb. 

As they engaged the ghouls that were trying to make their way into the building. Things got pretty hairy from then on out. Especially whenever Jeb popped his head outside gunmen on top of nearby buildings were taking shots at him. But they quickly discovered that a shot to the head stops the walking dead, they also found out that under stress Jeb isn't that good of a shot as he accidently grazed the side of Diego who was locked in hand to hand with a dead guy. Once Pim discovered that there were gunmen on the nearby feed store he started pouring some lantern fuel all over the base of it but was shot in the back for his trouble. He did manage to strike a match and get the fire lit. 

As Jasper, Jeb and Diego finished fighting off the rotting attackers inside of Mama's the Fortune Teller and her workman picked up Pim and pulled him into their wagon. Moving him out of the line of fire and patched him up. Diego runs outside to look for anymore attackers and tosses a couple of sticks of dynamite into the burning feed store. 

Suddenly the temperature rises back up, lights begin coming on inside of buildings and people start scrambling outside. Many screaming fire as they attempted to save the collapsing inferno with a bucket brigade. In all the confusion the bodies of the walkers vanished but their grisly remains that were splattered about remained. The sheriff expressed some interest in talking with Diego and Jeb since they were shot, assuming that whoever the culprits who sat the feed store on fire probably shot them. They simply replied it was dark and they never clearly saw who attacked them. 

Dark West session two recap

 

Well this session the group was joined by another person they know who fled the dying the town they are all from. One player couldn't make it so their character caught a bug and stayed in their room at Mama's boarding house sick as a dog.

More strange events are afoot in the town of Shibboleth. 

In the center of town just outside of the Saloon was a street preacher going on about the evils and sin of alcohol. A hour or so later all the lanterns and candles suddenly go out while every drop of said drink goes bad, including unopened bottles. There was a near riot as the people blamed the preacher for this and are ready to string him up. But one of the players helps pull him to the safety of the sheriffs office. A day or so later he walks out in the morning and abruptly disappears. 

Out on the Black Jack Ranch they are having troubles with some of their workers vanishing while out working the cattle. One turns up on the Morrigan ranch staked out on the ground with their organs removed and laying about. This has led to some finger pointing and accusations but nothing serious has happened about it yet. The sheriff and mortician retrieve the body and take it to be buried. 

A young man who killed another in a gunfight last session is hung. His body replacing one of those rotting on the crossing outside the city limits. 

As for other things happening. One of the PC's bought some unwanted rocky and unusable property between the two ranches and started building a house there. Another has started working for the Morrigan Ranch and is using that as a way to gain information and collect rumors. One got some practice using dynamite to help bust up some rock and clear an abandoned well. An offer to be a sheriff deputy is turned down. Then somebody pissed off an old man who has lived in the town since it was started decades ago. 

I probably missed a few things, or left them out intentionally, so stay tuned for more. 

Dark West Session one Recap

 

The first session of my Dark West game using the WaRP OGL rules is now under my belt. Had three players show up and character creation went pretty smoothly so we were able to get some gaming in as well. We have a former bartender, a former outlaw and a gunslinger. 

The basic set up is the players are leaving a boomtown that has dried up. So they all pitched in on a wagon and horses to head over to the next big bustling town called Shibboleth. This town has much more potential as the mines a few miles away have really started to produce, the other side of the town goes from hills into plains and has attracted a couple of good sized ranches. Oh and the railway line runs through there also. 

Upon approaching the town on the outskirts the characters are treated with a grisly scene. Three men crucified and rotting about thirty feet off the side of the road. There is a different sign hanging on each one, "Bank Robber", "Murderer" and "Sinner". This does not sit well with them at all.

Over the day they meet the sheriff, the owner and employees at one of the saloons (aptly named "SALOON") and find a place to rent a room and stable their horses. They check on job leads and look around at the other local businesses as well. At nightfall they witness a shootout in the street in which the 'winner' is jailed in case the other person dies from his wounds. Then later are introduced to a fortune teller who has set up shop in the town.

After a discussion with the fortune teller the characters are urged to take a second look at the bodies crucified outside of town. So in the middle of the night they ride out on horseback light up a lantern and one of them stands on the back of their best trained horse to take a look. On that rotting carcass they discover the eyes have been covered with circular pieces of glass and once a lantern is brought closer the eyes begin to move around and then stare directly at them. 

Needless to say they were spooked down to their boots. After another uncanny encounter with a crow in their room they decide to bed down for the night. The former outlaw deciding against the room and returning to the wagon to sleep there instead. 

Many thanks to KnA games for letting us use their back room to run this game.