[DL] Re: deadlands-digest.20041025

[Doplegnger@aol.com]

if you want to tone down the deadliness, throw out more fate chips.   Honestly you have a lot more control than in any other system on how bad you want it to be.   I tend to toss around chips pretty loosely, then when it comes to the fight I look around at the piles.   if they are too large I use my chips as well as I can (I chip up so I make the head shot and force them to burn their chips).   if they are too small I burn fate chips for stupid stuff (no!   I must hit you with my uber-mook-of-doom!   and I spend 2 whites a red and a blue to get a mook with a peacemaker to hit the size 8 guy for a wound)

regarding advancement: deadlands is not nearly as much of an "advancement" system.   the characters start out cool and are not supposed to advance a whole lot(as opposed to other systems (*cough* D20 *cough*) where you start out awful and eventually become good around 6th level or so (25 odd sessions later)).   Emphasize the fact that their characters start out competent at a lot of things and get them to revel in what their characters CAN do, rather than what their characters will EVENTUALLY be able to do (again D20 holdover)

regarding rules: the rules are pretty darn complex and (blaphemy) very poorly done in some cases, but if you read it you'll get an overall feel for how it looks, from which you will have to interpret what your ruling is.   there are a lot of ambiguous cases you will have to make a ruling on, do it and be done.   if you later change your mind, tell them you did and play with it in the new way, don't play with rules you don't understand or like, deadlands requires you to have an overall understanding of the rules otherwise you'll do poorly.

personally, the only major change I did was character creation.   I really didn't like the min-maxing style of creation that they had in the book so I don't use it.   other than that the rules are pretty solid (though again, not specific enough once you get into some of the more esoteric areas).

Finally, anytime anyone questions anything: smile evilly, and tell them you can't tell them why it works that way.   It's the out to any conversation that can give you time to reread the rules and make sure your ruling is correct, adjust the ruling, adjust the rules, or rewrite plotlines to make them better.

I've been Marshalling one guy for almost 4 years now through 2 campaign settings and through it he's learned way more than a player should know, but "I can't tell you that" said in a sly voice with a wide smile still works for any question you don't know the right answer to.

Good luck!