Saturday 30 May 2015

In The Works: Tombstone - A Wild West Role-Playing Game

Tombstone RPG - Corey Ryan Walden/ Erik Wilson
Some of you may be aware that I have a Wild West RPG in the works (tentatively titled Tombstone). It's been an on/off project for me over the past 8 months or so. The playtest version is nearing completion and I intend to provide a free (limited) download when the time comes. I imagine it will be artless or low-art, and released for the sole purpose of receiving suggestions for improvement. Thereafter, when Tombstone has been refined somewhat I intend to release a full version. The full version will be in colour - either softcover or hardback, though I'm still unsure of specifics. 

Given my general busyness currently I can't speculate on an initial release date, nor do I wish to. I work best when there is no pressure of a deadline, and this has been a project I do not want to rush. However I will say a few preliminary things about it.

Firstly, as you can see by the image to the left, I have commissioned some high quality artwork by Erik Wilson. He's done a fantastic job at capturing my vision for the project, and I cannot wait to show you guys the other pieces.

It should be mentioned too, that I've attempted to capture the spirit of Boot Hill without the game simply being a retro-clone of Boot Hill. I have created a completely independent set of mechanics, and it is indeed an entirely different game. The guiding principle in designing Tombstone has been that it needs to be easy to play, deadly and immersive. I feel like I've succeeded on those fronts thus far - if the playtests and con games can be indicative. The other purpose is that a Referee needs to be able to run this game with about 10-15 minutes of prep time. For this reason I think it makes an excellent episodic game played every now and then, over the course of a few months. Characters can likewise be made within 5-15 minutes, and this is important because they'll die often! My gaming group have a side campaign of Tombstone that we pick up between other campaigns, or when we want a break from fantasy or sci-fi. This game has been a perfect filler during these downtimes. I can literally have an idea and run an evening game with an idea or two. There will be options for "levelling" of course, though this is more subsidiary to the exploration and adventure components, which are the game's main foci.

Anyway, hopefully this gives a little taster of what's in the pipeline, and I hope to get this thing finished within the next year at most. 


Tombstone RPG - Corey Ryan Walden/ Erik Wilson



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