I was poking around the other day and came across this post on a site called From the Sorcerer's Skull, which was new to me. It had two cool maps, on of Tombstone and one of Deadwood. The Tombstone map is from a book and very accurately depicts the town at the time, but the Deadwood map was more of thing of art. It is a very beautiful black and white illustration that sparks the imagination.
I was at school with some time to kill so I started messing around with the map, giving it some color and a parchmenty feel. Once I was finished I couldn't help but think that this map would be great for my upcoming Aces & Eights campaign.
However, since the campaign will be taking place in New Mexico primarily I doubt they will ever get up that way. Then I figured with a little work I could "file the serial numbers off" the map and re-tittle and re-label it for my own purposes. I thought I'd share the blank edited version in case anyone else was similarly inclined. Please note that I don't own this map. As I said above, I didn't make it. So I can't give you permission to use it for X, Y, or Z project.
My group's second annual camping trip came to a conclusion this Sunday and I'm happy to report that it was even better than lest year. This year we changed things up. The Professor was behind the screen rather than me, we placed Aces & Eights rather than Hackmaster, and we were in Sturbridge MA rather than Plymouth.
The Campground Last year we stayed at Myles Standish state park near Plymouth MA. I have a laundry list of complaints about it, including things out of its control like the weather being absolutely freezing. They had a designated Fire area, which was tiny, ensuring all of us were chilled to the bone the entire time. Let me just say, I grew up in update Vermont on the Canadian border... I know cold. Hell I like cold, but this was too much even for me. Bear got sick on the trip and spent most of the time sleeping, I got an ear infection and everyone else came down with a cold or the flu. Despite all that we had a good time, but I wouldn't say we spent much of the weekend comfortable.
This year was totally different. Wells State Park provided us with two isolated tent sites. The weather was absolutely perfect, and despite being much warmer there were still less bugs. The layout of our adjoining campsites couldn't have been better suited to our needs. We had an excellent area around the campfire with which to do our gaming and a couple of picnic tables where we had our battlemat for when a shootout broke out. I couldn't have been more comfortable... I had great food, a great game, and great friends. More than ever I highly recommend your group look into its own weekend camping getaway. It is cheap and easy for everyone and as I said, it is a great time.
The Game
As I said we took a break from our usual realm of Fantasy and delved into the mythology of the Old West with Aces & Eights. Those who haven't had the pleasure of playing the game really should check it out. It covers all the great Western tropes; horse chases, cheating card games, trials, drinking games, cattle drives, gunfights and more!
The Professor opted to forgo the alternate history that the game presents and focus on the real history of the West. The game was set in 1870 in San Antonio. The Legendary Texas Ranger, Richard Morrison, had died under suspicious circumstances. The four PCs were summoned to the reading of Morrison's will as he left them something.
These characters were pre-generated by the GM, but each player was allowed to submit three character concepts ahead of time which the GM used as a model. I played Augustus Bachman, a young bounty hunter with a "by any means necessary" philosophy. Revil was playing Davis, a handsome and charismatic gambler with a silver tongue to keep him out of trouble. Trip was playing a southern gentleman gunfighter named Doc, though one could only call him a true gentleman by having a very loose definition of the term. Finally Bear was playing Gustav, a German immigrant and gunsmith.
Smith and Wesson Russian
As I said each of these characters gathered at the Bank in San Antonio to hear the last will and testament of their friend and Hero Richard Morrison. He left most of his processions to the great state of Texas or to the Rangers themselves, but he did leave some very queer items to each of the characters. Augustus inherited a boxed limited edition cavalry colt, Davis inherited a railroad lantern, Gustav a book complete with maps, and Doc got a beer stein. Within each of these items a clue had been hidden, which our characters worked out eventually. These clues pointed us to the New Mexico territory.
Before we could head out that way to investigate though we had a lead on a known criminal who was suspected to be involved. We rode out of San Antonio in pursuit but before we could reach the criminal, Smalls by name, we came across one of his allies. Things got heated when we accused him of lying about his intentions and Augustus reached for his Smith and Wesson Russian and shot the "lying bastard" in the gut. The man west flying off his horse and the gun he had been trying to draw had flown from his grasp. Just that fast, the fight was over.
It was awesome.
We didn't have long to brood on our victory, however. The Gunshot had warned smalls of our approach and sent him into flight. We rode in hot pursuit... the Chase was on! This is another cool mechanic that A&8 has. It relies on playing cards to simulate the various types of terrain that one encounters. Different cards mean different things depending on the type of terrain you are riding through. As we were riding through plains very few cards would present obstacles. Poker chips are also used to keep track of your mounts various resources like agility and stamina. A lot comes into play in a chase. Your horse, your skill at riding, the terrain, and a multitude of other factors. It all makes for an exciting experience as you try to close with your prey.
Davis, having a fine Arabian mount chased down smalls well ahead of the rest of the group, but it was Augustus who whipped out his Sharps Carbine Conversion and shot Smalls off his horse as Davis closed the distance. Davis wanted to take Smalls alive and give him a chance to surrender, but Smalls was drawing a shotgun and forced Davis' hand. Davis fired off a round from his pistol but missed the outlaw by about two feet. Before any other member of the group could catch up Smalls drew back the hammer on his Parker Shotgun and pulled the trigger. Those who have played A&8 before know how this story goes... Davis was torn to pieces and killed instantly. Smalls fired the other barrel at Doc as he drew close, but missed. Doc returned fire but also missed. Augustus closed the last bit of distance on foot and loosed a barrel from his Colt 1868 Shotgun. He did not miss. Small, like his last victim, was blown away and killed.
With that lead now a dead end we focused on riding out to the New Mexico territory to follow Richard Morridon's clue. We battle some Comanche on the ride out there and likely would have been killed had it not been for the fact that they were all armed with some of the worst weapons (single shot musket) in the game. After they expended their single shot they came at us with tomahawks, but were quickly gunned down. After that we rode on in relative peace and found the secret Morrison had tried to lead us to, his secret family stashed away on a quiet lake in the New Mexico territory. With their help our PCs were able to confirm that Morrison's long time enemy, Carson, had been the one to kill him.
We rode back to San Antonio equipped with this new knowledge and even some evidence, but as Morrison's friend and attorney Charles confirmed for us, it was not enough to convict the man. With the legal option out the only road open to us was good old fashion Western Justice! A gunfight just seemed too risky though. Carson had a number of armed men in his Victoria street residence so we knew we would be outgunned. Allowing Morrison's killer to live simply wasn't an option so we decided to splurge on a plan that just wouldn't fail.
We spent all the money we had accumulated on TNT, loaded up a wagon and ran it into Carson's house while he was sleeping.
The End.
It was awesome.
The Excursion We use our Sunday to take a trip to a local attraction. Last year we went to King Richard's Faire, a renisance fair near the Myles Standish. This year we opted for Old Sturbridge Village, a recreation of the New England town as it appeared around the 1840s. It was a lot of fun, and set in a time period close to the time when our weekend's game was taking place. We had a great time and even learned a great deal about the time period.
Bear and Trip at Sturbridge Village
We stopped for dinner at the Piccadilly Pub Restaurant on the way back, reminiscing about the weekend and looking forward to future trips. It was a great experience and I can't wait for next year.
Like many videogame fans I was eagerly anticipating Rockstar Games' new sandbox western, Red Dead Redemption. The game was highly touted by critics and had visuals that put me in mind of my favorite Western RPG, Aces & Eights. I have always enjoyed Rockstars' flagship tittle, Grand Theft Auto, getting plenty of playing time with GTA 4, even going back to it for a time after having finished it.
All this adds up to a mad rush on the 18th to go get the game at the store. I was lucky enough to secure a copy and headed home right away to give the game a whirl. At first it was great, just as advertised. But something odd happened while playing the game, I stopped liking it. Now that's not to say that I hated it, but even before I was done with the game I was tired of it. I only did the main quests for the most part and the game was only about 22 hours long, but I'd say about half way through I just wished it would end.
How did it fall so fast? I have some theories. The first is that I played too much GTA and RDR is more of the same. At time it can almost feel like you are playing GTA 4, and I don't mean that in a good way. The physics engine is called on to handle a lot but is very glitchy. Some of these are minor and some make you want to tear your hair out. Like GTA RDR isn't a shooter, at least not a good one. As I feel a western should be more about gunfights I really wish this aspect of the game would have been improved. Unlike GTA the voice acting in this game is not great. In fact, some of it is downright bad. The characters themselves are, for the most part, no better. Some are funny, but that's about it. The main character himself is a terribly dull character, lacking the charm of a repentant hero that Clint Eastwood portrayed in Unforgiven. The story is also pretty bad, and very boring. It wouldn't be so bad if you could skip to the action, but for hours on end you will be called to ride next to whoever gave you the quest and listen to bad dialog that you can't skip.
While this piece focuses on the negative aspects of the game, those that caused me to be disappointed by it, I will say it isn't a bad game. All the classic Western elements can be found; wagon chases, train robberies, holdups at gunpoint, shootouts, duels andhttp://www.kenzerco.com/aces_n_eights/ high noon, and all the other great stuff you would expect in a western. Unfortunately my expectation for this game couldn't be higher, had I tempered them perhaps my opinion would have been different.
My advice to you is twofold... First, temper you expectations. Second, rent the game.
Ah, the Western. An great genre when done well, but unfortunately it has been done badly and with more repetition than anyone would care to remember. When it comes to westerns and gaming I never thought the two mixed all that well. But that was before the release of Aces & Eights. That game truly blew me away, and if you haven't checked it out you really should.
With my favorite western RPG in mind, here is the list of the top 10 Gamer Westerns of all time.
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TOP 10 GAMER WESTERNS
10. Firefly (Series) - This one might take people by surprise, but if you haven't seen it believe me, Firefly really embraces the western genre. Yes they are in space some of the time, and yes this might appear on another list, but come on! This show did less with a full seasons than most shows do with several seasons.
9.High Noon - I originally saw this film in my Film Study Class. Classic film, with a basic but powerful premise, a showdown at High Noon.
8.Once Upon a Time in the West - Can you believe this movie was a financial flop in the US? Me neither. Many people consider this to be one of the greatest westerns of all time, and for good reason. The cast of this film is amazing.
7.The Searchers - John Wayne... nuff said.
6.Fist Full of Dollars - One of Eastwood's "Man with No Name" films. There is a reason there is more than one. The formula works and Eastwood is awesome.
5.3:10 to Yuma - Either one. Both the original and the 2007 remake were both good. Wow... you can't say that very often.
4.The Magnificent Seven - Was a movie ever so set up to be a gamer movie? Seven men are brought together to protect a small village from a band of outlaws. Sounds like a great game to me.
3.The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly - This was my father's favorite western and we used to watch it a lot when I was a kid. In many ways this movie exemplifies everything that a western is. This movie is an enduring classic, and is heaped with praise even by modern filmmakers. Quentin Tarantino has said that he believes the film is the best directed film of all time.
2.Deadwood (Series) - This show was like a long running Aces and Eights game. This was a great series and is available on DVD. If you are planning on running or playing in a A&8 game, go pick it up.
1.Unforgiven - In my opinion the ultimate western. Eastwood is nothing short of amazing in this movie. It is gritty and realistic, and cuts through a lot of the glamorizing of how things were in the old west. This movie shows that one doesn't call his enemies out to the center of town, he waits until he is drunk and shoots him in the back. A Must See.
Skip It
Once Upon a Time in Mexico – TERRIBLE.What else can I say?
Texas Rangers
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
However, since the campaign will be taking place in New Mexico primarily I doubt they will ever get up that way. Then I figured with a little work I could "file the serial numbers off" the map and re-tittle and re-label it for my own purposes. I thought I'd share the blank edited version in case anyone else was similarly inclined. Please note that I don't own this map. As I said above, I didn't make it. So I can't give you permission to use it for X, Y, or Z project. 
