[HoE] Re: Darkfall & World of Aden (believe it or not)

[PEGShane@aol.com]

Hey ListServ gang,

A fellow named Andrew Ross wrote me a very kind letter concerning my work on
SSI's World of Aden line. My answer contains some of the seeds that were later
sewn into Deadlands. If you're interested, here it is. If not, then press the
Delete. . .

In a message dated 2/21/99 10:24:09 AM Eastern Standard Time, Draxus writes:

<< Mr. Hensley:

Let me start by saying what an enormous fan of your work I am. It has been
quite rewarding watching your talent develop and grow, starting with Torg
and Shatterzone, World of Aden, and now Deadlands. The progression
and development of your ideas on the nature of fear in a gaming setting have
been very enjoyable.

As for the World of Aden, I've had the sourcebook for some time but only
recently was I able to get my hands on a copy of your novel Darkfall.  This
was, IMO, one of the best gaming-related pieces of fiction I've ever read and
went a long way towards giving me a better sense of what Aden is like.

But.

In the novel you tossed out a number of hints regarding the Darkfall and
 the mysterious Renegade. At the end of the book you make reference to
 "the Dead One and the false victory of the Seven," as well as the fate of the
 seers and something about the "punishment" of those who stood against the
 Darkfall. But no details. We also never learn the circumstances under which
 Ikarius Sylth was involved in bringing about the Darkfall.
  >>

Hey Andrew,

Thanks for the kind words! It's much appreciated.

I designed a "grand storyline" for the Aden products that would be revealed
over the following three years. Unfortunately, Thunderscape was rushed out the
door after SSI's purchase by MindScape, and its poor sales cast doubt on the
entire line. Only one other game, Entomorph, was produced.

The story I had set up went something like this. There were once 8 "gods" on
Aden. One of them, the "god" of dark emotions (who would later be called the
Renegade), got in a fight with another and basically tore the world to pieces.
The rest of the Gods punished by the Renegade by tearing him to pieces, then
scattering his bones about the earth (he was immortal but scattering his bones
kept him from ever "rising" again). Then the Gods said "we shall no longer
meddle in the affairs of man, nor walk upon the earth in the flesh." This is
why Aden has no gods.

But the Renegade had not made such a deal. Somehow (I don't recall if we
figured out how or not), he wasn't able to directly affect the world of the
living, but he could still draw power from dark emotions (fear, hate, and so
on). His minions (demi-gods) caused the Darkfall and dedicated themselves to
giving him energy by causing as much misery and strife as possible.
Eventually, their cultists would gather all the bones of the Renegade and he
would walk the Earth unopposed (because the other Gods had banished
themselves).

I'm sure I'm getting some of this wrong--it's been a while and I don't have my
"bible" here, but that was the gist of it. As you can see, I liked the idea
and kept it when Aden died and we decided to do Deadlands. The power of a
villain like the Reckoners/Renegade is that they basically allow the
GameMaster to create *any* kind of monster he wants. It also means that
defeating the creature helps the world, no matter how humble or mundane the
adventure may seem. This allows a GM total freedom in structuring his
campaign. He doesn't have to run a "save the world" campaign if he doesn't
want to, but his group will have a positive effect on things anyway.

Shane