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Re: [DL] Newbie help


On Jul 26, 2004, at 10:22 PM, Glen Engel-Cox wrote: 
(Er, I'm assuming that people are familiar with the "Ticked Off"
scenario since it's posted on Pinnacle's web site.  I probably should
put spoiler space in here just in case there's them dern fool posse
members reading this and not a bunch of marshals . . .
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Okay, the prairie tick makes an "opposed fightin': brawlin' roll" to
see if he can jump inside the gunslinger's mouth.  I'm assuming that's
just a normal hand-to-hand combat kind of thing.  So, starting with a
TN of 5, you add the Gunslinger's aptitude for fightin': brawlin' (say
2), for a total of 7.  Modifiers for the tick to hit?  Men are size 6,
ticks are size 2.  Does that mean a -4 for the tick?  Also, the tick's
trying to go for the mouth...does that mean the tick has to get a 20
on the Hit Location chart or do I just go with the description that
says one raise means he makes it?

First point I want to make is: Don't worry too much about modifiers. Some people need this advice, some don't, but I generally ended up fudging modifiers most of the time anyway for anything beyond the normal.

Next, 'Opposed' generally means both parties roll the appropriate skill (not necessarily the same skill but in this case they are the same).. I have to admit I can't remember what raises are calculated off of at the moment... I'm having a lapse since i haven't run or played Deadlands in nearly a year.


On the other side, the gunslinger's going to want to blow that varmint
to bits.  The tick's size is 2, but the description says that it's the
size of a man's fist.  What's the penalty for that?  The difference in
sizes is 4 (man 6 - tick 2), but the Small Target section indications
that the penalty would be -10 for size 1 or smaller, not -5 (man 6 -
size 1).

I think 'size' got played with a lot... One failing of the deadlands rules is that they can break down a bit for anything that isn't humanoid or at least quadraped.

For things like Prairie ticks I recommend using some variant on the 'quick wounds' segment described in the Marshall's Handbook. My personal preference was basically, roll to hit and roll for location, but treat the lesser NPC monsters like D&D characters with hit points equal to size x 5 or 10 (depending on lethality level desired).


I apologize in advance if these questions are too simple for ya, but
I'm still trying to get a handle on this here system.

No problem. The Deadlands classic system is good, but it is complex... I wouldn't have minded seeing reloaded be a bit more of a hybrid between Deadlands Classic and Savage Worlds as opposed to being SW with a dollop of Deadlands, but that's life. Basically, remember that Deadlands isn't like the stereotypical old-school D&D where the guy running the game feigns impartiality while plotting to kill and maim the player characters. It's more like the good D&D games where there was actual character growth for those that wanted it, and the GM was there to set a story in motion and keep it moving.
--
Brett