This page inserted for easier double-sided printing.

BLOOD DRIVE!
BY JOHN GOFF

DEADLANDS CREATED BY SHANE LACY HENSLEY

WWW.PEGINC.COM

Deadlands, Savage Worlds, all unique characters, creatures, and locations, artwork,
logos, and the Pinnacle logo are © 2021 Pinnacle Entertainment Group.
 CREDITS

WRITING & DESIGN: John Michael Goff

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL: Shane Hensley, Matthew Cutter, Piotr Korys

EDITING: Shane Hensley, Jessica Rogers

ART DIRECTION: Aaron Acevedo, Alida Saxon

INTERIOR GRAPHIC DESIGN: Karl Keesler

LAYOUT: Jessica Rogers, Shane Hensley; design by Karl Keesler

COVER ART: Tomasz Tworek

INTERIOR ART: Tomasz Tworek, Alida Saxon

OPERATIONS & LOGISTICS: Jodi Black

CUSTOMER SUPPORT: Jodi Black, Christine Lapp

PRODUCTION MANAGER: Simon Lucas

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations,

and events portrayed in this book are either products of the
author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
 CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION5 THE HOME STRETCH 51

A Trestle Too Far��������������������������������������������������� 52
ROUND-UP8
Job Offer������������������������������������������������������������������ 9 DIRTWATER BLUES 57
An Unwelcome Visit��������������������������������������������� 13 Dirtwater��������������������������������������������������������������� 58

HEAD 'EM UP 17 OPENING VOLLEYS 63

Bayou Vermilion Attacks������������������������������������� 19
A Long, Dry Spell������������������������������������������������� 19
Shooting Stars...& Bars�����������������������������������������21
Vengeful Return���������������������������������������������������� 24
NO MAN'S LAND
Sign of the Territories������������������������������������������ 26
Legal Troubles������������������������������������������������������� 28
The Battle of Gault's Gulch���������������������������������� 30
A Pox Upon You���������������������������������������������������� 63
Daily Business��������������������������������������������������������67
Bayou on the High Plains�������������������������������������67
Wolves in the Fold������������������������������������������������ 68
A Long Shot����������������������������������������������������������� 68
Rustle, Rustle��������������������������������������������������������� 69
26
Wolves in Wolves' Clothing��������������������������������� 70
Strangers in Town������������������������������������������������� 72
Man-Eating Cow!������������������������������������������������� 72
To'sarre's Lair�������������������������������������������������������� 73

NORTH TO WYOMING 35 CONFRONTATION75

Change o' Plans����������������������������������������������������� 35 Iron Dragon Steps In�������������������������������������������� 75
Outbreak�����������������������������������������������������������������37 The Flames of War������������������������������������������������ 76
At the Gates of Hades������������������������������������������� 38 Falling Star������������������������������������������������������������� 78

INTO THE NATIONS 45 FRIENDS & FOES 81

A Plague of Undeath��������������������������������������������� 46 Rascals���������������������������������������������������������������������81
Varmints����������������������������������������������������������������� 88
Creatures���������������������������������������������������������������� 89

“WHERE THE LEATHER IS SCARRED,

THERE’S A GREAT STORY TO TELL.”
–Jimmy Tart
 INTRODUCTION

Grab a spot by the chuck wagon, Marshal,

and get ready to start your posse heading
’em up and moving ’em out! Your cowpokes
are about to take part in one of the longest,

RANK: SEASONED
danger-fraught cattle drives in the Weird VAQUERO
West, one that spans the United States and Hola, amigo. I have her
the Sioux Nations. Along the way, they’ll ded cattle all over the
Southwest, and have seen
many strange things I
cross paths with virtually every major cannot explain.
railroad, bloodthirsty border raiders, Indian
ATTRIBUTES
war parties, and of course, nightmares of
the sort found only in a land ravaged by the Agility d8 pAce 6
SmArtS d6 pArry
horrors of the Reckoning. Spirit d6 toughneSS
6
Strength 6
d6
This book follows the posse as it rides Vigor d8
herd on an epic cattle drive starting in
SKILLS
southwest Texas and ending in Wyoming,
where the heroes find themselves embroiled AthleticS
com. Knowledge d4
d6
in a full-blown range war. They’re sure to Fighting d8
make an ally or two, as well as at least one heAling
intimidAtion
d4
d4
dogged enemy. lAnguAge (engliSh) d6
notice d6
perSuASion d4
PICKING POSSES riding
Shooting
d6
d8
SteAlth d4
Blood Drive can be played with both a
relatively mundane posse or a more typical
group of Deadlands characters. In either
event, the Twilight Legion—known or
unknown to the heroes—knows the people
of the Great Maze are starving. Moving
Archetype Cards available in print or PDF
livestock from places like Texas to the
directly from Pinnacle!
stockyards is critical to controlling outbreaks
of faminism, riots, and other violence that

5
 gives power to the Reckoners. Whether the
heroes know this or not is up to you, Marshal,
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
but through various manipulations, they’ve
arranged it so our heroes are in the right
place at the right time to join Bill Sutter’s
Lazy S trail drive.
If you want a more traditional Western
experience, at least to start, players should
create heroes without Arcane Backgrounds
or other “weird” abilities. If you’re using
our Archetypes, we recommend the Bounty
Hunter, Cowgirl, Muckraker, Native
Scout, Sawbones, or Vaquero from Set 2. If
you have access to Set 3, try the Wrangler,
Buffalo Hunter, Gun for Hire, Ranch Hand,
Desperado, Drifter, Tinhorn, or Camp Cook.
A more traditional posse of mad scientists,
hucksters, shamans, and the like also fit
right in. Sutter needs any help he can
get and doesn’t mind if his hands are a
little “eccentric,” as long as they can get
the job done!
Of course all those professions don’t
matter now. Once the characters sign on
with the Lazy S they’re “drovers,” men and
women who push thousands of steers from
places like Texas to the stockyards in Kansas,
New Mexico, or Colorado.
Here’s a quick overview of the action:
PART ONE:
BAD NIGHT ON THE GOODNIGHT
The party hires on to help Bill Sutter and his
niece, Abigail “Abby” Morton of the Lazy S
Ranch, drive a herd of Texas longhorns north.
Sutter hopes to sell his beeves in Roswell or
Denver, depending on the market. The West
Coast is hungry and beef’s what’s for dinner.
After some ropin’, ridin’, and general
carryin’ on, the posse runs afoul of Bayou
Vermilion and a renegade shaman in their
employ named To’sarre. Turns out Bill Sutter
is the last surviving member of the posse that
brought the raider to justice a few years back,
and the shaman wants vengeance. Things
get ugly quick and lead commences to fly.
To’sarre escapes, but redoubles his efforts to
ruin Sutter and anyone close to him.
6
Trouble as powerful as Bayou Vermilion
isn’t something to laugh at, so Sutter decides
to put spurs to flanks and the drive begins.
To’sarre follows and catches up with the
heroes in an ambush a few days later.
After that, the Lazy S must drive through
the north Texas scrub plains. A long, thirsty
march pushes the heroes and the herd to
their limits before they finally plunge into the
cooling waters of the Colorado River.
A few nights later, a “falling star” turns out
to be a Wasatch Rail spy with a rocket pack
escaping from the secret government base
at Roswell. The spy doesn’t make it, but the
secret plans found on his corpse are the start
of a whole passel of troubles that plague the
drovers throughout the campaign.
Unfortunately, relations with the local
buyers have soured, so Bill decides to move
the Lazy S herd on to Denver, Colorado.
To’sarre and his warband trail along behind,
raiding the group’s flanks and using hoodoo
to haunt and torment his enemies.
Next up is a run-in with stubborn land-
owners plagued by a bandit named Gault,
said to be in league with Black River Railroad.
One thing leads to another, and while the
party is drawn off on a rescue mission, the
camp is attacked. Many of the ranch hands
are killed and the entire herd is rustled. The
big finale takes place in the bloody Battle of
Gault’s Gulch.
PART TWO: HIGH PLAINS DROVERS
After recovering their herd from Gault’s
rustlers, the party finds themselves just
outside Denver. The price of beef has
bottomed out here, too, so Bill Sutter decides
to press on for Wyoming Territory and set
up a new ranch. There he plans to grow his
herd and wait out the current market. Those
who help him get where he’s going receive
an ownership stake as well.
After dealing with a nasty outbreak of
prairie ticks, the drovers move on and are
quickly caught up in a game of intrigue
between Empire Rail and Wasatch Railroad,
all over those mysterious plans the heroes
found back in Roswell. Steam and steel
collide with flesh and bone as the Reckoners’
due is paid again in blood.
The next leg of the trek takes the crew
of the Lazy S through the Sioux Nations.
Relations are tense, however, and the heroes

Part 1-Introduction
and their herd are driven into the shelter
of a dilapidated and abandoned fort full of
forlorn settlers. The posse discovers a band
of plague vampires hiding among the settlers
and—hopefully—send ’em to their final
reward. To’sarre, spying on the bloodbath,
winds up infected with the vampires’ blood
and vamooses to meet an ignominious end.
With the vampires slain, the Sioux allow
the drovers to leave their lands. Next up is
a harrowing trip through the Wind River
Canyon and an encounter with a ghostly
remnant of the Great Rail Wars.

PART THREE: RANGE WAR

Bill Sutter and crew finally reach southern
Wyoming and the large parcel of land he
bought back in Denver. Of course the seller
neglected to tell Bill his ranch puts him right
up against an onerous son-of-a-horse-thief
named Randolph Logan of the Northern
Star Ranch.
Tensions mount and several of Sutter’s
ranch hands are killed. Bill takes sick,
diseased wolves stalk the herd, and Logan’s
men cause constant trouble and sabotage.
Even Iron Dragon Railroad gets in on the
action, caught up in a Northern Star scheme
that might not work out so well for the
duplicitous cattle baron!
But the real threat is once again To’sarre.
The shaman perished back in the Nations and
arose as a pestilent pox walker. He’s fixated
on the Lazy S and won’t stop stalking them
until he’s put down. With a little ingenuity,
the party can turn the tables and hunt the
abomination and finish him once and for all.
The adventure ends with a final confron­
tation between the Lazy S and Northern Star,
and the latter’s secret weapon—a resurrected
devil bull controlled by one of Logan’s hands,
a brilliant but deadly mad scientist!

THE ORIGINAL BLOOD DRIVE TRILOGY

FOR DEADLANDS: RELOADED, 2012.

7
 CHAPTER
1

ROUND-UP
PART ONE: BAD TIMES ON THE GOODNIGHT

The adventure begins in early spring in a
small town in southwest Texas called Sutter’s
Flats. Through schemes and manipulation
or outright request, the Twilight Legion has
ensured the posse is in town at just the right
time. Maybe some of the heroes are riding
through on their way north from Laredo, or
maybe they’ve been drawn near the border
hunting down a bounty. Or they might be on
the run—it’s hard to get much farther out of
the way than Sutter’s Flats!
SUTTER'S FLATS
FEAR LEVEL: 2
Sutter’s Flats is located a mere 10 miles from
the Mexican border, roughly 100 miles west
of San Antonio, Texas. The town rests in a
region of low, grassy hills dotted with the
occasional scraggly cottonwood tree.
Although the Bayou Vermilion railroad
passes relatively nearby, there’s no direct
rail access to the town and no regular stage
routes service it. In short, Sutter’s Flats is not
a regular stop for anyone.
What town there is consists of a livery,
general store, and a small saloon named
The Lonely Crow. These few establishments
serve as a supply point and news source for a
few local ranchers, and a place for their
hands to spend money on Saturday
nights. Sutter’s Flats isn’t even large enough
to support a part-time marshal. Folks here
tend to their own problems and are the very
definition of “rugged independence.”
Any stop in town inevitably leads to a
visit to either the general store or The Lonely
Crow, mainly because there’s nowhere
else to go.
THE LONELY CROW
This watering hole also has two dusty rooms
for rent by the day, week, or month. The
rooms are nearly always unoccupied. On
alternate Sunday mornings, a circuit-riding
preacher commandeers the main room
of The Lonely Crow to host his sparsely
attended sermons.
The Lonely Crow serves coffee, lunch,
and dinner. Both meals consist generally of
beef and beans, though sometimes it may
have another type of beans, and on special
occasions, beans with a hunk of bacon. The
bar sports a wide range of alcohol from
watered-down whiskey to watered-down
tequila…and nothing in between.
PETTINGER'S SUPPLY
The general store’s owner, Frank Pettinger,
has most common items on his shelf at a 25%
mark-up due to the difficulty of keeping
them in stock.

8
 Sutter offers $30 a month in pay, plus
JOB OFFER meals and a bed in his bunkhouse until
the drive starts. A successful Persuasion
Not long after the travelers have availed roll convinces him to up that to $35, but no
themselves of all Sutter’s Flats has to offer— higher. The rancher also loans any cowpoke
in other words, about five minutes after they in need a string of five riding horses for the
arrive—they’re approached by Bill Sutter. duration of the drive.

Part 1-Round-Up
The town is named after his father, the first
Bill’s guess is the drive will take one
settler in the area. He knocks trail dust off his
to two months. He figures on spending
clothes and introduces himself:
another month here finishing his round-up
“Howdy, strangers. Name’s Bill Sutter. I and getting the steers fat and healthy before
know most everyone hereabouts and I didn’t heading out, but hopes to cut that short if
recognize you, so I wanted to say ‘Welcome possible. If the party agrees, he provides
to Sutter’s Flats.’ Just to clear things up, the directions to his ranch and tells them they
town’s named after my daddy. He was the start work tomorrow morning.
first settler in this area, but that’s as far as
my connection goes. GETTIN' STARTED
Round-up is the busiest time around a ranch.
“Aw, Hell. I ain’t no good at small talk.
The hands stay busy from dawn till dark
I’m lookin’ for some extra hands. I’m gettin’
and often beyond, gathering stray cattle and
ready to pull up stakes. Bayou Vermilion has
horses, branding, and readying their gear for
got a stranglehold on the cattle trade ‘round
months on the trail. Experienced cowboys
these parts, due to being the only railroad
say it’s rougher work than the actual drive.
within hundreds of miles, and calling the
prices they offer highway robbery is an Sutter is working on an accelerated
insult to bandits.” timetable since he wants to hit the trail as
soon as possible, so the Lazy S hands work
Bill pauses to gauge the strangers’ reaction,
then continues.
“That bein’ the case, I’m gonna take my
herd and leave, so to speak. I’ve got a solid
crew, but I’m shy a few hands. I’m lookin’
for experienced trail riders, but I’ll settle for
anybody who knows which end of a gun the
bullet comes out of. Pickin’s is gettin’ slim
and I want to get on the trail before we get
too far into spring.
“Nobody comes to Sutter’s Flat if they’ve
got anywhere else to be, so I figured I’d make
you the offer.”
Sutter explains he’s planning to head
north into the Great Plains. He’s ridden the
Goodnight-Loving Trail before and plans to
generally follow it for most of the trip. If the
heroes ask about other, closer destinations,
such as Dodge City, Sutter explains that a
recent glut of cattle in Kansas and Oklahoma
has bottomed out prices, making those
destinations far less appealing. That leaves
places like Roswell or Denver, but he’ll
figure it out as he heads north and hears the
latest news.

9

TAKING CARE OF BILL
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
Bill Sutter is a central character
throughout most of the Blood Drive
series. As owner of the Lazy S herd, he’s
the one who keeps the crew on track
as the events of the adventures unfold.
With that in mind, we’ve done our best
to make him hardy enough to weather
most of the scrapes encountered during
the course of the drive. His stats can be
found on page 82.
Keep in mind Fate may conspire to
bring Bill to an untimely end despite
the posse’s best efforts. We strongly
encourage you to do what’s necessary
to keep him alive, but if he does die
unexpectedly during the course of the
series, Abby takes over ownership of the
herd. Unless a hero steps up to provide
solid leadership, she continues in her
uncle’s footsteps, allowing the series to
continue with few changes required.
six-and-a-half days a week. He allows his
men a half-day off on Sunday mornings
for those who feel the calling to hear a
sermon by the circuit preacher. Most of the
cowboys instead choose to sleep in, some to
recover a little from the work week and the
rest to recover from cards and whiskey on
Saturday nights.
The work is tiring and often brutal—and
it doesn’t end with nightfall either. Each
cowpoke is expected to spend two hours a
night riding the edges of the herd to keep
it together and protect it from predators—
animal, human, and
otherwise.
A cowpoke is
Fatigued by supper
(around 6 p.m.)
assuming she pulls her
weight. It fades after a
good night’s sleep—just in
time to wake up and start all
over again.
FOREMAN
LUKE CANTON
10
RANCH LIFE
Sutter starts the crew with ordinary chores.
At the start of each day, roll on the table
below to see what each character’s chores
are. Those who roll the same number work
together—the rest are assigned the work
with one of the 14 other ranch hands.
Let the players narrate a brief tale of the
chore she’s assigned, who she does it with,
and something interesting that happens in
the process. This isn’t an Interlude, it’s just
a chance to emphasize and imagine the hard
life of ranching and do a little storytelling
and roleplaying.
In between these chores, Bill Sutter assigns
hands two additional tasks as well—see
Saddle Broken and Sore Findin’ Lost
Doggies, below. Run them in the middle of
these other tasks.
Ranch Hands: Let the party help you
create the other hands as they discuss their
chores, using the form at the back of this book
or our website to record their name, where
they’re from, and a personality note or two
(use the Allied Personalities Table in Savage
Worlds if you like). Encourage the player
characters to develop a few friends, a few
rivals, and maybe even love interests. Having
attachments to the rest of the Lazy S crew
will take your campaign to the next level.
D10 CHORES
1 Brand steers.
2 Round up sick or wounded animals and
decide what to do with them.
3 Aid in a calf’s birth.
4 Slaughter animals to feed the crew.
5 Gather and bail hay from the fields to
feed the animals. On the drive, groom
or shoe the horses.
6 Oil and maintain the tack, harnesses,
saddles, etc.
7 Clear out a rattlesnake den that
threatens the herd.
8 Can or dry food for the upcoming trip.
On the drive, hunt additional food or
fetch fresh water for the crew.
9 Deal with a hand’s personal issues
(drunk, depressed, lost, injury).
10 Deal with a conflict between two of the
hands that threatens to get nasty.
 ROPIN' & RIDIN'
Blood Drive starts as a traditional Western
with lots of roping, riding, and other cowboy BUSTIN' BRONCOS
work. Here’s how to handle such tasks as “Breaking” a horse means getting it to trust its
they arise along the long drive. handlers, accept a saddle, understand basic
commands, and finally take a rider.
CONTROLLING CATTLE Trust starts from birth. The rest usually
When the game isn’t in rounds, controlling
begins when the horse is between two and
cattle is a Quick Encounter using Riding.
three years old, and typically takes several
Failure means it takes a while to get the
months of daily work. Training wild horses
herd going in the same direction but they
isn’t usually worthwhile, but there are
eventually get moving. A Critical Failure
always exceptions.
results in Bumps & Bruises for those involved.
The Lazy S crew have been raising a herd
To control animals in a tactical situation,
of horses for a while and the mounts are just
such as in the middle of a fight, use the
about ready for the final steps. This is a Quick
following rules. Note that when using
Encounter a single cowboy may attempt once
Intimidation to control cattle, modifiers
per day. Success means the animal resists but
that rely on human intelligence (such as the
the wrangler can try again tomorrow. A raise
Menacing Edge) have no effect.
means the mount is ready to ride. Failure
„ CONTROL: A wrangler can control a steer means Bumps & Bruises, and a Critical
by making an Intimidation or Riding roll Failure causes a Wound! Bustin’ broncos is
(her choice if mounted) as an action. If dangerous work, friend.
successful, the animal becomes an ally
and generally acts as the cowboy wants
as long as he stays within 5” (10 yards)
HORSING AROUND
or so. This can’t be used to move a steer Want to add a little extra personality to your
more than its allotted Pace in any one horse? Let each player roll on the Allied
turn, however. Personality Table and the Special Traits
below for each of his horses. Players should
„ ROPING: Lassoing a steer is an action that
name the horses and record any special notes
requires an Athletics roll. If successful, the
on the sheet at the end of this book.
cowboy adds +2 to his rolls to control it
(see above). The rope generally remains D20 HORSE TRAITS
intact unless the cowboy rolls a Critical 1–10 Nothing special.
Failure to control the animal.
11 Steady: The horse confers the Steady
Hands Edge to its rider.
STAMPEDES
12 Agile: Agility d10, Athletics d10.
Anyone caught in a stampede must Evade
(Riding if mounted) as an action on their 13 Smart: Smarts d6 (A).
turn or take 2d6 damage (more from certain 14 Spirited: Spirit d8.
critters, as listed in their description). Add 15 Strong: Strength d12 +1.
a bonus d6 if the cowpoke Critically Fails
16 Vigorous: Vigor d10, Toughness 9.
to Evade. It usually takes three successful
Evasions to escape the tide of a typical herd, 17 Fast: Pace 14.
but shorter sprints to solid obstacles like 18 Warrior: The horse’s kick causes Str+d6,
rocks or buildings might also carry one away and its Fighting is d6.
from danger. You don’t have to make all 19 Biter: Bite Str + d4. All horses bite, but
three Evasion rolls in a row—just three total. this one bites like a tiger!
20 Player’s choice.
Rounding up cattle after a stampede
usually takes a few hours for the unlucky
cowpokes responsible for them.
 SADDLE BROKEN & SORE
Sutter’s crew has been training horses for the
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
inevitable drive for a while, but six rowdy
mustangs need to be put through their final
paces. At the end of the second day, foreman
Luke Canton escorts the newcomers to
the corral and points at a rowdy group
of mustangs.
“I haven’t officially greeted you yet, so
welcome to the Lazy S. Work hard and you’ll
be rewarded. Slack off and you’ll get the boot.
Bill’s a hard man but fair, and shares the
wealth when he can.
“You’ve been pullin’ your weight with
the odd chores so far, but here’s your first
real job. See those six mustangs over there?
We’ve been breaking a mess of horses for the
upcoming drive for a while but that bunch is
particularly ornery. Get in there and finish
breakin’ ’em. And be careful of that one with
the weird look—we call her Devil Eyes.”
Five of the six mustangs are ordinary if
spirited animals, but the sixth was caught
wild. It won’t leave but doesn’t want to be
ridden. No one’s been able to break “Devil
Eyes” so far, and she seems to take hellish
pleasure in throwing off riders who try.
Though they won’t admit it, the Lazy S
cowboys think there’s something more to
Devil Eyes than usual and are scared of it.
Use the rules for Bustin’ Broncos on page
11 to break the mustangs (this takes a few
days in between other tasks). Breaking the
stubborn Devil Eyes incurs a –2 penalty and
anyone who rolls a Critical Failure when
doing so takes an extra Wound as Devil Eyes
gives him an angry stomp.
If a cowpoke bests Devil Eyes, Bill Sutter
gives her to him permanently. That hero
gets a tough and loyal mount through
the end of the campaign (or as long as the
mustang lives).
c LUKE CANTON: See page 81.
„ HORSES, RIDING (5): See Savage Worlds.
„ DEVIL EYES: See page 88.
12
FINDIN' LOST DOGGIES
After the regular chores the following day,
Luke asks the newcomers to round up the
scattered herd.
“We let the cows roam free over the
winter to find the best grazing grass. Then
round ’em up in spring. The boys have been
bringing them in for a week but there are a
few wayward steers unaccounted for.
“Concentrate on the area southwest of the
ranch near the Rio Grande. The cows tend
to congregate at the water but the crew ain’t
found too many along the shore. I reckon
they’re probably trapped in one of the box
canyons out that way.”
The party can stay together or separate
as they see fit. Each group then makes
a Survival roll at –2 for the day’s search.
Apply modifiers as you see fit, rewarding
clever tactics or powers and penalizing lazy
characters, tinhorns, or others as befit their
particular Hindrances and personalities.
Each success and raise locates a missing
steer. The more they bring back, the happier
Bill is with their work.
CREEPY CRAWLIES
The same task awaits the next day. Ask
the heroes if they’re staying together or
splitting up to cover more ground. If the
group separates, repeat the Survival roll
for one group. The other group finds two
young cows late in the day, caught in thick
brambles. As the cowboys head back with
the steers, they pass through a cottonwood
grove and see a number of desiccated cow
corpses. Soon after, they discover exactly
what caused the carnage:
A hairy black spider the size of a dog
suddenly bursts from the ground! The
repulsive critter latches onto one of your
rescued steers. The animal screams piteously
as it loses its footing and topples to its knees.
A heartbeat later the other steer breaks
through the ground, dropping into a small
pit. Out of the pit swarm hundreds of palm-
size spiders, flowing over the thrashing cow
and out onto the surrounding ground.
The terrantulas are perfectly content with
the hamburger they’ve already procured.
They don’t attack any of the characters unless
a sodbuster attacks them or tries to save one WHO'S WHO ON THE LAZY S.
of the cattle. If the heroes are willing to write
Here’s a list of the various cowboys and
off the two young steers they can easily ride
workers on the Lazy S cattle drive.
away without suffering any attacks.
Intervening on behalf of the steers quickly c BILL SUTTER: Owner of the Lazy S herd
and head honcho of the cattle drive. See
draws the mama spider’s attention. The

swarm follows thereafter, flowing like a
biting carpet of pain toward the largest
concentration of horses and heroes. On the
spiders’ turn, another mama spider pops up
out of its hidey-hole and attacks! Allow it a
Stealth roll versus its prey’s Notice to get The
Drop on this first round.
Once the spiders are defeated, a quick
search of the grove discovers over a dozen
drained carcasses of Lazy S cattle along with
a few deer and other, smaller animals. The
other cowboys likely completely missed them
because the husks are so desiccated they’re
only visible from within the grove itself.
„ LARGE TERRANTULA (2): See page 91.
„ TERRANTULA SWARM: See page 91.
AN UNWELCOME VISIT
Part 1-Round-Up
page 82 for his stats.
c ABIGAIL “ABBY” MORTON: Bill’s
headstrong niece, and youngest
member of the crew. Her stats are on
page 82.
c LUKE CANTON: Sutter’s most trusted
employee, Luke is trail boss for this
crew. He’s a leathery old cowboy
who’s seen it all and takes no guff. See
page 81.
„ JAVIER ORTEGA: A former Mexican
soldier, Javier cooks food for the crew
and drives the chuck wagon. See page
81.
„ LAZY S COWBOYS: An additional 14
cowboys are employed on the cattle
drive. Their stats are on page 81, and
a page to keep track of them all can be
found at the back of this book and on
our website.

Run this encounter the next night, just before

chow. As the crew gathers at the chuck
wagon outside Sutter’s house, a small group
of riders approaches. There are six rather
surly looking gunmen following a better-
dressed man sporting a pair of shiny Colt
revolvers. Off to one side is a seventh man, a
BARTHOLOMEW
hard-looking Indian dressed in a threadbare
Army jacket decorated with a smattering of PHELPS
bangles and fetishes—To’sarre. A Notice
roll at –2 sees several old bullet holes in the
blue cloth.
The well-dressed gunman calls out to
Sutter, who picks up a shotgun and holds it
in the general direction of the new arrivals.
The fancily dressed spokesman says,
“Good day to you, Mr. Sutter. My name
is Bartholomew Phelps and I’m here as
a representative of the Bayou Vermilion
Railroad. I’m authorized to purchase
your cattle at the agreed-upon price of $5
per head.”

13
 Sutter screws up his face and snarls. “Like
I told them other fellers from your railroad,
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
you can pound sand. That ain’t half what
they’re worth on the open market!”
Phelps sneers. “Ah, but this isn’t an open
market. I understand no one hereabouts will
purchase cattle with your brand and I’m
afraid my employer’s stock cars are booked
up for the foreseeable future. I’d recommend
you take the offer before prices drop further.”
Sutter turns suddenly serious as a
preacher. “Prices ain’t the only thing about
to drop around here, if you and your lot
don’t head out pronto.”
With that, Sutter thumbs back both
hammers on his shotgun. Phelps looks
around at the growing crowd of ranch
hands drawn to the argument. Sutter’s men
outnumber the Bayou Vermilion riders, so
Phelps tips his hat, turns his horse, and leads
his gang out. To’sarre is the last to leave. He
lingers a long half-minute, glaring at Bill
Sutter with cold, obvious hate.
Despite that, the enforcers don’t start a
fight under any conditions. Even if the heroes
feel froggy and skin their smokewagons, the
BV gunmen flee.
14
c BARTHOLOMEW PHELPS: Use Gunman,
Veteran, page 83, Taunt d8. He’s armed
with two Colt Peacemakers (Range
12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1).
„ BAYOU VERMILION GUNMEN (2, plus 1 per
hero): Use the Gunman profile on page
83.
c TO’SARRE: See page 86.
c THE LAZY S CREW: Bill Sutter, Abby
Morton, Luke Canton, and all 14 ranch
hands. See page 82.
WHO'S THAT?
If the posse asks about the Indian with the
enforcers after they depart, Sutter tells them,
“His name is To’sarre. He’s an old
Comanche raider from hereabouts. Me and
him got a little history. I was part of the
posse that ran him to ground back in ‘73.
“No doubt Vermilion hired him on ‘cause
he knows the area…and ain’t likely to balk
at pointin’ the business end of a gun at any
of the locals. ‘Specially me.”
Later that evening when the majority of
the ranch has gathered for dinner, Sutter
addresses the group.
 “I apologize I didn’t say nothin’ before
about Bayou Vermilion. They sent an agent
out with an offer a couple days ago to buy
the whole herd at $5 a head. As you know
we can get a lot more from anyone trying
to ship the beeves to the Maze. So I said no,
that I was gonna drive ’em north to the big
stockyards. They implied we’d never make
it and I don’t like bein’ threatened. We
can handle what they got now, but if they
send for reinforcements we’ll be in trouble.
Especially if some of the rumors I’ve heard
about ’em are true. So I’m gatherin’ the herd
and headin’ north in three days. There will
likely be trouble. If that’s more than anyone
signed on for, now’s the time to cut out.”
Sutter doesn’t offer any additional pay or
terms despite the revelation. The ranch hands
signed on for a cattle drive and nothing has
changed but the timetable. He understands
if someone wants out—everyone’s heard
the gruesome gossip about some of Bayou
Vermilion’s stranger employees—but
otherwise there were always going to be
rustlers and other troublemakers and he
expects those who stay to do their duty.
SUPPLY RUN
The next morning Sutter gathers up the
heroes. He’s sending his niece Abby into
Sutter’s Flats with a buckboard to pick up
the last of the supplies needed for the drive
and wants them to go along to help load the
wagon. Out of Abby’s hearing, he adds that
he doesn’t trust Phelps or Bayou Vermilion
further than he can spit, and knows To’sarre
is bad news with a vengeance. Bill adds,
“I ain’t got nothin’ against the Comanche.
Spent a whole summer livin’ with ’em once.
But that bastard is made of nothing but hate
and vengeance.”
The trip into town passes uneventfully.
Once there, Abby produces a list of supplies
and heads to the general store, pulling one
or more of the heroes along with her to help
carry the load. Those who get tapped for
the duty quickly find themselves standing
idly by as Abby calls out items for the
shopkeep to fill.
YOU AGAIN!
After Abby’s been in the store about five
minutes, Phelps and a band of Bayou
Vermilion gunhands converge on anyone
waiting outside. Phelps sizes up the
posse, likes his odds, and announces in a
mocking tone:
Part 1-Round-Up
“I commend you folk on your stubbornness,
if not your common sense. Most would have
cleared out ahead of the storm that is surely
coming. Instead, you chose to leave the Lazy
S where you held, at least for the moment, a
numerical advantage.”
If one of the posse has a reputation—or
hankering for a reputation—as a gunslinger,
Phelps calls him out. Should the hero take
him up on the challenge, use the Dueling
rules from Deadlands: The Weird West. Phelps
prefers to Taunt for any Tests.
Defeating Phelps causes his men to back
down… for now. If he wins the fight, his men
open up on the posse, declaring an unfair
fight, ambush, or other foolishness. If none
of the cowpokes choose to duel Phelps, he
and his men find another excuse to open fire.
Once Phelps or more than half his gunmen
are Incapacitated or killed, any survivors flee.
Abby (and any posse members) inside
the store at the time respond the round
following the outbreak of gunfire. If you’re
feeling generous, Marshal, you can allow any
heroes inside the store a Notice roll to catch
wind of the confrontation just before the lead
starts flying.
c ABBY MORTON: See page 82.
c BARTHOLOMEW PHELPS: Use Gunman,
Veteran, page 83, Taunt d8. He’s armed
with a Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1).
„ BAYOU VERMILION GUNMEN (2, plus 1 per
hero): Use the Gunman profile on page
83.
“I’M GONNA ENJOY THIS. IT’S BEEN A
WHILE SINCE I HAD A CHALLENGE.”
–Phelps
15
 DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

16

HEAD 'EM UP
FEAR LEVEL: 2
Following the dust-up at Pettinger’s Supply,
Sutter is more determined than ever to get
the herd on the trail. The next day is spent
on final preparations, both for the herd and
the cowboys themselves. For safety reasons,
Sutter keeps all his hands close to the ranch.
Once the herd rolls out, everyone is given
a specific job on the drive. Sutter makes all
the major decisions, but Luke, as the most
knowledgeable on the route, is the trail boss.
His job is not only to find the best trail for
the herd, but also to ride ahead and locate
watering holes and campsites.
SWING, FLANK, & DRAG
The Lazy S riders are split between riding
point, swing, and flank (see the illustration
on the following page). The point riders are
the most experienced hands outside the trail
boss. They have the coveted spot at the head
of the herd and keep the lead steers headed
in the right direction. They also set the pace
for the drive. Luke Canton is almost always
assigned to one of the point positions.
Swing men ride in pairs, one on each side
about a third of the way back along the herd,
and keep things moving. The flank riders
are usually positioned in a pair about two-
thirds of the way back and are responsible for
CHAPT
ER
2
PART ONE: BAD TIMES ON THE GOODNIGHT
wrangling in cattle that drift off to one side or
the other of the main body.
As the least experienced (at least at the
Lazy S), the posse is given the job of “riding
drag” on the drive—which means they
follow directly behind it. Drag riders are
responsible for rounding up any stragglers
and driving the slower cattle at the herd’s
pace. They also get to breathe the dust and
flatulence of several thousand cows and
beeves, so it’s pretty much the bottom of the
totem pole on the drive.
There’s another reason Sutter places the
heroes in the drag position. It’s the most
likely direction for Indian raiders, rustlers, or
outlaws to strike the herd, as they can often
get in and back out before the rest of the crew
even realizes an attack is underway. Sutter’s
hands may know cattle, but they’re not all
seasoned gunhands. The rancher is banking
that at least a few of the posse are—that’s
why he hired them, after all!
THE REMUDA
Abby is given the job of tending the crew’s
extra riding horses. She keeps them fairly
close to the chuck wagon during the day
and ties them off in a rope corral near the
campsite at night. Each trail hand has a
group of additional horses for the ride.
Collectively, these are his “string.”
17
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Cowboys in this part of the country more the like. A water barrel is strapped to one
often use the Spanish term “remuda.” It’s side of the wagon and what looks like an
common for a rider to have horses he favors upright cabinet is affixed to the rear.
for certain jobs: a hardy animal for daily
The cabinet is Ortega’s rolling kitchen. A
riding, a swift one for round-up purposes,
hinged lid lets down to form a work table,
and a surefooted, canny mount for riding
exposing an array of drawers and cubbies
night watch. All told, this amounts to several
holding everything from salt and lard to
dozen horses under her care.
tobacco and castor oil. Underneath the
Since it’s unlikely any of the heroes had a wagon, another box—called the boot—holds
half-dozen or so mounts at the beginning of the skillets, pots, pans, and Ortega’s prized
this adventure, just assume Sutter sets them Dutch oven.
up with a stake of five loaners for the drive.
Ortega doesn’t pull night watch, but still
has the longest working day of anyone on
CHUCK WAGON the drive. He’s up in time to prepare an early
The heart—and more importantly, stomach—
hot breakfast in the morning and typically
of the trail crew is the chuck wagon. The
doesn’t bed down until after the last hand
chuck wagon is the sole responsibility of
settles in for the night. His last job each
Javier Ortega, a former Mexican soldier
evening is to point the tongue of the wagon
who guards that authority closely. No one
toward the North Star to orient the herd the
is allowed to touch the wagon or its contents
next day in case the morning sky is overcast.
without his approval—and usually his close
supervision as well. The chuck wagon normally rides ahead of
the herd to give Ortega time to set up camp
The wagon carries not only the foodstuffs
and prepare dinner in time for the crew’s
for the trail, but also any gear too bulky to
arrival. Sutter might assign a rider or two to
fit on the cowboys’ mounts, such as
accompany Ortega if he senses trouble ahead.
bedrolls, tarps for bad weather, and

18

GET IN THE KITCHEN!
If one of the heroes is well-suited to the role
of trail cook, you may have Sutter assign that
character to the position. In that case Ortega
doesn’t join the drive. The player character
assuming the role also takes on all the duties
noted for Ortega, and is put in charge of the
fully stocked chuck wagon for the duration
of the drive.
BAYOU VERMILION ATTACKS
The first few days of the drive are rather
humdrum. Most of the posse’s time is likely
spent figuring out just exactly what they’re
supposed to be doing besides learning to
breathe dust and swatting flies. Feel free to
throw in a few run-of-the-mill complications
like stray cattle or a frisky horse to keep them
on their toes (see the Ropin’ & Ridin’ sidebar
on page 11).
On the third night out of the Lazy S, a band
of Bayou Vermilion gunmen catches up to
the herd, intent on collecting a little payback
for Phelps and his men. This time the Lazy
S crew is far enough from any potential
witnesses that the railroad feels comfortable
sending some of its “special troops” in
addition to the normal hired guns.
Early in the day, Sutter and Luke ride out
ahead of the herd to scout for the next day’s
watering hole. They’ve not returned yet, but
Sutter warned the crew ahead of time they
would likely not be back before the next
morning. At the time of the attack, four Lazy
S cowboys are out of camp riding the edges
of the herd.
The Bayou Vermilion gang assaults the
camp around midnight. Check for Surprise
(–2 for those who are sleeping) to detect the
bushwhackers before they spring the attack.
The walkin’ dead focus on the cowboys
and heroes. Half the warm-bodied gunmen
attempt to chase off the cattle by shouting and
firing guns in the air while the rest support
the attack on the main camp. To’sarre
supports the attack from the rear with boost/
lower Trait or fear when possible, occasionally
firing his Winchester at Long Range to pick
off anyone who shows their head.
The gunmen fight until half their number
are dead or Incapacitated, then either
surrender or flee. To’sarre retreats with the
gunmen or if he suffers a Wound. In either
case, he uses shape change to take the form of
a crow and flies into the night to ensure his
Part 1-Head 'Em Up
escape. Not surprisingly, the walkin’ dead
fight to the bitter end.
Once the shootout is finished and the
wounded tended to, the Lazy S crew—posse
included—spends the rest of the evening
recovering any cattle scattered by the Bayou
Vermilion gunmen.
c THE LAZY S CREW: Abby Morton, Javier
Ortega, and all remaining ranch hands.
Bill and Luke have scouted ahead and
aren’t present. See page 81.
c TO’SARRE: See page 86.
„ BAYOU VERMILION GUNMEN (2, plus 1 per
hero): Use the Gunman profile on page
83.
„ WALKIN’ DEAD (2, plus 1 per hero): See
page 91.
A LONG, DRY SPELL
After the Bayou Vermilion attack, things
pass peacefully for about two weeks. Draw
for daily encounters (see Encounters in
Deadlands: The Weird West), run an Interlude
(see Savage Worlds), or gloss over this time
as you see fit, Marshal. As time goes on, the
land becomes drier and water sources fewer
and farther between. On the sixteenth day of
the drive, the herd hits a region of desert. The
herd is on the trail before the summer heat,
so it’s not the blast furnace it will be in the
next couple of months. Still, it looks to be an
unpleasant ride.
At a small watering hole that’s only about
two steps from a mud pit, Sutter warns there
isn’t likely to be much water for the next
week or two. He has the trail cook fill his
water barrels, but even so, there isn’t enough
water for full rations for the crew.
Over the next two days, the reduced water
rations mean the characters have to make
Vigor rolls each day to resist the effects
of thirst. Any who fail suffer a Fatigue
19
 level as described in Savage Worlds. Due
to the severe conditions, even a successful
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
Survival roll doesn’t completely offset this
effect, as any efforts amount to little more
than collecting morning dew. Instead,
success provides a +2 to one character’s
Vigor roll (or five cowpokes with a raise).
ANY SPRING IN A DROUGHT
On the third day, the herd finally arrives
at the first watering hole on the route. The
water in question is found in a small well at
an abandoned homestead and barn located
in a stretch of God-forsaken wilderness.
Fortunately, this keeps the cattle and horses
from fouling it by wading into the source,
but it also makes getting sufficient water
from the well for the entire herd and crew a
tiring and time-consuming task.
Sutton details the crew to shifts lifting
the water out of the well in buckets. The
water level is approximately 50 feet below
the surface, so this quickly becomes an
arduous job and takes the better part of a
day to accomplish. When they’re not on
shift hauling the bucket up, the cowpokes
alternate between riding the fringe of the
herd and free time.
While it’s a long and tiresome day, at the
end of it all the animals are able to slake
their thirst. The Lazy S cowboys can also
drink their fill and refill canteens. The bad
news is it’s another four days to the next
source of water.
NOBODY'S HOME...
While the other cowhands take no interest
in the abandoned homestead, it’s likely at
least some of the heroes do. Any exploration
reveals something strange is afoot. The
door is barred from the inside and all the
windows are shuttered. There’s no response
to knocks or yelling. Forcing the door takes
a Strength roll (–2). The posse can make this
roll cooperatively or just use a horse and
rope if needed.
The interior and contents of the small
two-room house seem virtually untouched.
Several items of sentimental value and some
monetary worth remain, including a
small box of jewelry (worth a total of
20
$50), a loaded and unfired Evans Old Model
Sporter rifle, and $32.
The inside of the house is covered by a
layer of dust, and prior to the entry of the
characters, unmarred by any tracks. More
puzzlingly, there are two plates set on a small
table in the main room—complete with the
desiccated remains of a meal long uneaten.
A successful Survival roll at –2 tells the
investigators the house has sat undisturbed
for at least six months. There’s no sign of the
inhabitants or what became of them.
The barn, though filled with the usual tools
and accouterments of a small farm, is empty
of any animals and all the stalls are closed
and latched.
Should the cowpokes report what they
find to Sutter, he’s mildly puzzled but not
overly concerned. After all, he says, the farm
is days from any other civilization and well
into Comanche territory. There’s nothing
that indicates the farmstead was raided by
anyone; in fact, every bit of evidence they
saw seems to indicate no one has been to the
farm since its inhabitants left.
Ultimately, there’s no explanation for what
happened to the former inhabitants. It’s clear
they’re gone, though, so Sutter tells his crew
to salvage what tools and supplies they can
and move on.
There’s no answer provided, Marshal,
unless you want to add your own. It’s just
another mystery of the Weird West that
might cause the party a little unease.
ONCE MORE INTO THE DUST
Sutter decides to push on at night to reduce
the effect of thirst on the animals. The
additional distance offsets the gains though,
so Vigor rolls are once again required as
above for each character, and Survival
rolls only provide a bonus to the roll—not
necessarily relief.
That night, allow the riders a Notice roll
at –2. Those who succeed spot a lone wolf
or coyote shadowing the herd at a distance.
If a cowpoke attempts to chase it down, it
disappears into the wilderness, seemingly
without a trace. It’s actually To’sarre using
shape change and wilderness walk to follow the
Lazy S, awaiting a chance for revenge.
 After four more days and nights of travel,
the party finally reaches a tributary of the
Pecos River. The lead longhorns smell the SNAKE SWARM
water long before the crew can see it and the
Snake swarms aren’t intelligent enough to
cows become restless.
do anything but move and bite. They can’t
The posse has to help keep the animals take Multi-Actions, make Tests, etc.

Part 1-Head 'Em Up

under control (see the Ropin’ & Ridin’
Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d4 (A),
sidebar on page 11), with a –2 to their
Spirit d12, Strength d8, Vigor d10
rolls due to the herd’s extreme thirst. Roll
Skills: Athletics d6, Notice d6
a Group Support roll for the other hands. If
Pace: 10; Parry: 4; Toughness: 7
the Quick Encounter is failed, the longhorns
Edges: —
stampede (see the Ropin’ & Ridin’ sidebar
Special Abilities:
on page 11) to the watering hole, losing a
„ Bite: The snakes inflict hundreds of
couple dozen of their number to exhaustion
tiny bites every round, hitting auto-
or trampling.
matically (unless Shaken) and causing
2d4 damage to everyone in the tem-
SNAKES ALIVE! plate at the end of their turn. Damage
The water is shallow enough that getting the
is applied to the least armored loca-
herd across isn’t too much effort. The cattle
tion (those in completely sealed suits
don’t balk at entering it thanks to their thirst,
are immune).
and the river is little more than a stream with
„ Swarm: +2 to recover from being
delusions of grandeur at this point. Sutter
Shaken, Parry +2. Cutting and pierc-
sets the posse to simply shepherding the
ing weapons do no real damage. Area
animals across rather than actually driving
effect attacks work normally. Snakes
them. The crew can also take the opportunity
can’t be stomped on in water.
to refill their canteens, the chuck wagon’s
water barrels, and water their horses.
Halfway through the crossing, have
everyone make Notice rolls. Whoever rolls
“It’s been a hard ride so far. Given the state
lowest is surprised by a mass of water
of the herd, I’m gonna head to the Army base
snakes rising to the surface, stirred up by
and try to sell our stock now. If that doesn’t
the passing of the herd. The reptiles aren’t
work out I’m gonna talk to Lone Star. Their
large or poisonous, but they are agitated by
main line runs through here and they might
the sudden arrival of the cows and extremely
can handle this kind of capacity.
aggressive!
“I’m takin’ Abby and a couple others with
„ SNAKE SWARM (4): See sidebar. There are
me. Luke, you’re in charge of the rest till we
four Medium swarms (they don’t split).
get back. Keep your heads down and stay
outta trouble.”

SHOOTING STARS...& BARS An hour later, Sutter, Abby, and any two of
the other hands ride north to Roswell.
A week later, the herd arrives south of
Roswell, New Mexico. There’s very little to LOOK, UP IN THE SKY!
distinguish this patch of wilderness from the
The action starts later that same night. Read
desert they just left other than the growing
the following to the players when you’re
depth of the Pecos, but just knowing there’s
ready for the next encounter:
a sizable town nearby is reassuring.
A distant rumble from the west seems
There Sutter sets up camp and has the crew
to foretell an approaching thunderstorm.
lead the herd into a shallow box canyon on
Some of the more experienced cowhands
the east side of the river. Once that’s done, he
fetch canvas tarps from the chuck wagon,
rounds up the crew and tells them,
grumbling about a long, wet night

21
 ahead. A flicker of light at first appears to be evening. There are a few clues here to hint
a lightning flash on the horizon, followed by that something’s amiss if the posse takes a
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

more rumbling. Then the flickering becomes moment to look.

a steady glow, which abruptly rises off the
First off, the rocket pack sports several
ground, toward the clouds to the west…
bullet holes. It seems likely that’s what was
The restless longhorns begin to stir at the responsible for the mishap (a Repair or Weird
strange goings-on. Their mood worsens by Science roll confirms this).
the second as the arc of the strange object
The “soldier” is unfortunately dead
streaks into the sky like a rocket and turns
from the crash, but a Notice roll finds a
toward the Lazy S herd. Shortly thereafter, it
bullet hole in the jacket of his uniform
rises into the clouds, and although its rumble
with corresponding wound (the jacket was
can still be clearly heard, at least its glow
taken from a dead soldier for the spy’s
ceases to threaten the skittish cows.
disguise). A Common Knowledge roll for any
Suddenly, there’s a flash and the object, character with a military background tells
now clearly jetting flame and smoke, the adventurer the man’s pants, while they
plummets back out of the clouds and hurtles initially look like standard issue, are actually
toward the ground about a mile or so from just common trousers dyed to look like an
camp. Luke Canton quickly sets the crew Army uniform.
to calming the cattle before a full-fledged
An inquisitive hero who searches the body
stampede can materialize. He turns to the
finds two items of interest. The first is a
posse and says,
small roll of Deseret bank notes. A Common
“You greenhorns git over there and find Knowledge roll lets the characters know
out what that thing is! I don’t want you these are seldom seen outside of Deseret
muckin’ things up tryin’ to rein in these itself, so it’s a tad unusual to find them on a
bullheaded brutes in the dark.” dead body in New Mexico.
The second is single piece of paper with
IDENTIFIED FALLING OBJECT precise drawings of what appears to be a
The object’s landing point isn’t hard to find. mechanical man, along with cryptic notes
Small fires lit by the impact serve as beacons consisting primarily of chemical formulae
as the cowboys make their way through the and engineering calculations. A Weird
sparsely vegetated countryside. Science roll instantly realizes what these are.
For years, practitioners of the New Science
The object lies on flat ground near the river.
have wondered how Dr. Darius Hellstromme
There they discover the object is actually
creates his amazing—and terrifying—
a man in a United States Army uniform
automatons. Clockwork men are one thing,
wearing a large rocket pack! Or, rather, was.
but the automatons are somehow able to
The man’s landing left a lot to be desired, not
think and react. Worst of all, when they’re
the least of which was his own survival. The
disabled their heads explode, taking the
rocket pack suffered a similar fate and now
secret of their weird intelligence with them.
is capable of flying only if tossed off a cliff—
and then only as long as it takes to reach (Of course we know the secret, Marshal.
the ground. Automatons can “think” because
they’re controlled by zombie brains! Dr.
This encounter leads to all sorts of trouble
Hellstromme doesn’t want his competition
down the road, so make sure it happens and
to have such devastating weapons of war,
the ranch hands are given a few minutes
though, nor does he want to deal with the
to look over the body before the next event
public’s reaction to such news!)
happens in Step Away from the Jet Pack!
A raise on the Weird Science roll recognizes
ALL DRESSED UP that whoever wrote the notes hasn’t deduced
The man was actually a Wasatch spy “the secret of the automatons” either, but is
who’d infiltrated the U.S. Army clearly trying to do so. What the mysterious
research facility at Roswell earlier this rocketeer was doing with them is anyone’s

22
guess. The truth is he’s a Wasatch spy, sent by
Dr. Hellstromme to see if the US Army had
somehow captured an automaton without
detonating its head case (they haven’t). He
took the notes to show his boss the Army is
still off-track, but was discovered. He stole
evidence any of the crew were involved in
the break-in.
If Callahan finds anything incriminating—
say if one of the posse members insisted on
bringing the damaged rocket pack back to
camp—he immediately threatens to arrest

Part 1-Head 'Em Up

a rocket pack and tried to flee, but a lucky
everyone present. Callahan doesn’t really
shot hit him, then another hit the rocket pack,
want to do that though, so let the player
sending him careening into the sky like a
characters talk him out of it after they
shooting star.
sweat a bit.
STEP AWAY FROM THE JET PACK! However the encounter plays out, relations
After the posse’s been at the crash site for are soured and the Army passes on buying
a few minutes, a squad of Army soldiers Sutter’s herd. At the railhead in Roswell,
emerges from the darkness and begins firing. Lone Star also passes, perhaps concerned
Check for Surprise and deal Action Cards! about relations with the Army. Resigned to
the situation, Sutter has the crew round up
The soldiers are part of a quick-reaction
the cattle and Luke leads the herd north at
force dispatched to apprehend the spy. They
daybreak the next morning.
assume the party’s in cahoots with the thief
when they find them all at the crash site and c CAPTAIN CALLAHAN: Use the Soldier,
immediately open fire. Officer profile, page 86.
There’s a full squad of 10, plus Captain „ SOLDIERS (10): See page 86.
Callahan, a hard-ass but reasonable veteran
of numerous scrapes with bandits, outlaws,
and raiders.
CROSSING THE CANADIAN
About a week and a half after the disastrous
The soldiers aren’t sure who the spy was
events near Roswell, the crew faces its first
working for or what he’s stolen. Damage
major river crossing: the Canadian River
control is therefore their first concern—
they’re under orders to let no one escape
under any circumstances. Unless the
characters immediately drop their firearms
and surrender, the soldiers fight till it’s clear
they can’t win.
If the posse surrenders to or parleys with
the soldiers, they’re taken into custody and
held for several days at the U.S. Army fort
near Roswell. Most of the time is spent
with sacks over their heads (to prevent
them seeing any other secret projects) or in
grueling interview sessions with Captain
Callahan. Eventually, their stories are
confirmed through Sutter and the rest of the
Lazy S crew and they’re released.
If the posse wins the shootout or sends
the soldiers running, Callahan arrives at the
camp the next morning with a company of 80
men. The heroes spot the approaching troops
in plenty of time to hide any incriminating
evidence. Despite Sutter’s protestations, the
soldiers tear the camp apart looking for

23
 north of what will one day be Tucumcari,
New Mexico. Normally it’s a slow-moving
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
stream banked by mud flats, but this late in
the season the Canadian is beginning to swell A day after crossing the Canadian, Sutter
with snowmelt and spring rains. Getting the pushes the herd north toward Colorado.
herd across it safely poses a fairly significant Ahead of the crew loom the eastern foothills
obstacle to the trail hands.
Sutter scouts the river a day early and
finds a relatively solid fording point. The
herd doesn’t understand this, of course, so as
drag riders the posse is tasked with pushing
the cattle forward into the river. Longhorns
aren’t known for their amphibian prowess,
so the cows prove reluctant to enter the
rushing water.
The posse must drive the animals forward
as a dangerous Quick Encounter (see Ropin’
& Ridin’ on page 11). This is a big herd
with a deep river and excitable longhorns, so
the rolls are made at –2.
QUICKSAND!
Sutter did a fine job scouting the ford, but
longhorns are notorious for finding ways to
get into trouble. As the main body of cattle
crosses the Canadian, one hapless steer
manages to find a patch of quicksand. Once
again the drag riders get the dirty end of the
stick. It’s their job to pull the beast out.
Fortunately, the quicksand is actually
closer to a thick mud and very slow-working.
The animal only sinks a few inches a minute,
giving the crew plenty of time to haul it out.
The viscosity of the quicksand works against
them though, holding the steer fast.
Extracting the beast with a horse and lasso
requires success on a Riding roll (lassoing it
is automatic since it can’t move). The rescuer
has to make a Riding roll to pull the steer free.
Only one rider can make the attempt, though
others may Support as usual.
The mud is thick and the cow is panicked,
so this roll is made at –4! After five attempts,
the unfortunate animal is too mired in the
mud and slowly slips below. A Critical
Failure means the poor steer is mortally
injured in the attempt to free it—possibly
breaking its neck or a limb. The cowboy can
remove his rope and try again if he wants,
but the animal is done for.
24
VENGEFUL RETURN
of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Sutter
explains one night around the campfire that
most traffic into the Great Plains heads up
through the Raton Pass. A rather enterprising
entrepreneur, “Uncle Dick” Wooten, set up a
toll road there over a decade ago. Wooten’s
toll for the herd would likely gobble up the
majority of Sutter’s grubstake, so he instead
heads for nearby Trincheras Pass.
To’sarre has been trailing the party to
this area where he hopes to rendezvous
with some of his former warband. He also
paid a visit to the mysterious Black Mesa
nearby, where he was gifted a flock of dread
night ravens!
BAD DREAMS
While To’sarre waits for his companions, he
softens Sutter and his hands by summoning
a flock of night ravens. A dozen of the
abominations flock to the edges of the
herd, plaguing the hands for three nights.
Each night, the heroes must make a Fear
check as they’re tormented by terrible night
terrors, with a cumulative –1 penalty to the
roll for each night after the first. This is a
good chance to run an Interlude (see Savage
Worlds), perhaps summing up all three nights
in one thematic tale.
By the end of the third night, the crew is
physically exhausted from lack of restful
sleep and suffers a level of Fatigue that
can only be removed by a week free of the
nightmares.
Should the posse somehow discover the
birds (the abominations must be within 16
yards of their victims to use their Nightmare
Special Ability), it’s a small matter to frighten
them off as the ravens avoid physical combat.
Doing so negates the need for a Fear check
that night, and perhaps more importantly,
resets the cumulative penalty for the
next night.
„ NIGHT RAVENS (12): See below.

NIGHT RAVEN
These night ravens serve To’sarre. They stalk
his enemies while they sleep and enhance
their victim’s nightmares to soften them up
for some impending confrontation.
the Area Effect Power Modifier (and Range if
needed), then signals his warband to attack.
Once combat is underway, To’sarre uses
either fear or boost/lower Trait to best hamper
the heroes or assist his warriors. Half the
warband remain prone, hiding in the scrub

Part 1-Head 'Em Up

Night ravens flee when detected and
and firing their rifles on the trail hands from
confronted.
the darkness. The other half rush to pick off
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6 (A), any lone victims in hand-to-hand combat.
Spirit d8, Strength 1, Vigor d6
The war party fights until more than two-
Skills: Athletics d4, Notice d10, Stealth d12
thirds their number are Incapacitated or
Pace: 2; Parry: 2; Toughness: 1
captured. To’sarre attempts to flee if the war
Special Abilities:
party retreats, he suffers a Wound, or has
„ Fear: A night raven can cause Fear as an
less than 5 Power Points. He saves the latter
action, gazing into the eyes of a foe in an
for emergencies, casting shape change to turn
attempt to scare him off.
into raven form and fly away.
„ Flight: Pace 20”.
„ Nightmares: A night raven must be Do your best to make sure To’sarre escapes,
within 12” (24 yards) of a victim to link Marshal. Although this is the last the posse
into his dreams and turn them into sees of him for a while, he’ll be back soon.
nightmares. Each night it does so, the For now he retreats to nurse his wounds and
victim must make a Fear check. When plan bloody revenge. He takes that Vengeful
failed, the victim has a level of Fatigue (Major) Hindrance seriously!
for the next 24 hours. This can’t cause
Assuming he’s defeated, To’sarre’s
Incapacitation, but the longer it goes on,
warband turns their back on their mad
the more the victim evidences faint scars
friend. The shaman fumes at their cowardice
and injuries from his nightmares. This
and slays them all. Once he’s recovered, he
continues until the night raven is killed
returns to trailing the Lazy S herd in animal
or the victim perishes in some unrelated
form across the Great Plains, looking for his
way.
next opportunity to strike.
„ Size −4 (Tiny): These birds are indistin-
guishable from other ravens. c THE LAZY S CREW: Abby Morton, Javier
Ortega, and all remaining ranch hands.
TO'SARRE ATTACKS Bill and Luke aren’t present. See page
81.
The next morning, Sutter and Luke Canton
leave the posse in charge while they ride c TO’SARRE: See page 86.
ahead to scout for the pass. They rejoin the
„ TO’SARRE’S WARBAND (8, plus 2 per hero):
herd somewhere along the way the next day.
See page 88.
Unfortunately, To’sarre’s warband has
arrived and he plans to attack that night (he
doesn’t know Sutter isn’t in camp). Around
1 a.m., the shaman and his companions creep
“THE NIGHT RAVENS ARE ON OUR
up through the herd. To’sarre also brings a SIDE. OUR ENEMIES WILL BE TOO
swarm of bats, courtesy of his beast friend
power, to serve as a useful distraction.
TIRED TO FIGHT. WE WILL BE
Once To’sarre and his warband get
VICTORIOUS. NOW RIDE. USE YOUR
within about 20 yards of the chuck wagon RAGE. LEAVE NONE ALIVE.”
(or wherever most of the resting cowboys –To’sarre
have gathered), he sends in the bat swarm.
He follows up with the fear power, targeting
the largest concentration of trail hands with

25
 CHAPTER
3
NO MAN'S LAND
PART ONE: BAD TIMES ON THE GOODNIGHT
FEAR LEVEL: 2
After surviving another assault by To’sarre,
the rest of the trip up and through the
Trincheras Pass, New Mexico, is uneventful.
The terrain is not overly steep and the trail
skirts the edges of a few draws and never
becomes particularly challenging. In fact, the
transition is so gentle the heroes are almost
through the pass before they realize they’re
crossing the apex. On the other side lie the
wide open plains of Colorado.
SIGN OF THE TERRITORIES
After a day driving north of the pass, the
Lazy S crew passes the burnt remains of a
small homestead. The Fear Level here and in
the immediate vicinity ratchets up to 3.
A cursory look at the ruins immediately
notes the home was fired in the last week or so.
A closer examination reveals more disturbing
facts. Behind the homestead, a tripod has
been lashed over the remains of a small fire.
A large, bulging bag of fresh skins hangs
from it. Opening the bag requires a Fear
check against nausea as a horribly twisted
body tumbles out.
Anyone examining the body may
roll Healing to determine the cause of
26
death—the victim was sewn up in the bag
alive and then suspended over the fire. The
heat simultaneously cooked the poor soul
while causing the leather to dry and constrict,
crushing him while he roasted!
Those with experience in either the Great
Plains or Southwest know that some Indian
tribes use similar methods to kill captives. A
Survival (tracking) roll quickly reveals the
tracks of over a dozen horses, but all of them
were shod. Most Indian war parties ride
unshod animals.
Digging through the ruins turns up
no items of any worth in the debris. The
homestead was clearly stripped of valuables
before it was set afire.
This was actually the work of local rustler
Socrates Gault—fairly evident by the shod
horse tracks. Gault and his gang made it look
like the work of Indians in case the law got
on their tail, but everyone knows the dead
homeowner, Gerald Moore, recently fought
with Gault’s raiders. The party can find this
out when they later talk to some of the locals.
KEEP OFF THE GRASS!
Two days later, the posse are at the rear of the
herd when they hear the sound of a gunshot
further ahead. Cresting a small rise, they see
another homestead, this one slightly larger
than the last. The lead steers begin to scatter
and wander while several Lazy S riders try
to get the animals under control.
The cause of the confusion—and likely the
Uncooperative (see Persuasion in Savage
Worlds). If their reaction is improved to
Neutral, they let the herd pass for a $500 toll.
If it’s improved to Cooperative, they agree
to let the herd pass for free, but escort the

Part 1-No Man's Land

source of the gunshot—appears to be a pair
strangers while they’re on their land just to
of men standing a short distance in front
make sure they don’t get up to any trouble.
of the wandering cattle. If the heroes move
closer, they see both men holding long guns. At some point during the conversation,
Two of the Lazy S crew are talking to the Gail mentions Gault again. If asked to
men, but even at a distance it’s clear things elaborate, he says:
aren’t going well.
“Gault’s a dirty former border raider with
Assuming the player characters approach a couple dozen gunmen in his gang. The
the parley, they hear one of the strangers locals might have pitched in against him
shouting at Sutter. but he’s got connections with Black River
and none of us need that kind of trouble.
“I’ll be damned if I let you trample my
You ever hear of the Wichita Witches? No
field with a bunch of stinkin’ Texas cows! It
thank you, sir. I ain’t keen on bein’ blasted or
ain’t enough we got to contend with border
turned into some kinda toad or something.”
raiders from New Mexico, home-grown
guerillas, Injun raidin’ parties, and Gault’s Gault’s connection to Black River is a
bunch, but now you want to go draggin’ lie—the bandit started the rumor himself to
a thousand head o’ cattle across our land. make it less likely any of his victims would
Ain’t no way that’s happenin’, mister! I’ll fight back!
stampede them cows all the way back to
Should the heroes mention the burned
Santa Fe if I hafta!”
homestead they encountered a few days
Once engaged, the men identify ago, the brothers say
themselves as Earle and Gail Farley, two that’s likely Gault’s
brothers. They and their families settled this
area about five years ago. The Farleys are
used to having to fight off raiders of all sorts,
so they’re more than willing to stand up
to Sutter and his crew. The
brothers won’t attack the
GAIL FARLEY
trail hands unless they’re
attacked first, but they’re
clever enough to retreat from a
gunfight—stampeding the herd
with a few shots as they go.
„ FARLEY BROTHERS (2): Use the
Cowboy profile on page 81, but
increase Strength and Vigor to d8.
Earle Farley has Persuasion d8, and
his brother Gail has Persuasion d6.
Each is armed with a double-barrel
shotgun (Range 12/24/48, Damage
1–3d6, RoF 1) and a Colt Frontier
(Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1,
RoF 1, AP 1).

SPEAK YOUR PIECE, MISTER

The Farleys are adamant about
protecting their land, making them

27
 work. Gault hasn’t tried to raid the Farleys’ were arrested by the town marshal yesterday.
spread yet, but they’ve heard tell of the gang A round of drinks, a decent tip, and a
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

slaughtering entire settlements to the north Persuasion roll encourages the bartender
and figure it’s only a matter of time. of the town’s only saloon to whisper the
following:
LEGAL TROUBLES
A few days after the herd passes the Farley
homestead, Sutter comes to the party with a
special assignment. He says,
“I sent a pair of hands off to Dog Leg—
that’s a small town a day’s ride to the west—
to scout for provisions. They ain’t come back
yet. I’m more than a little worried they’ve
run afoul of Indians, border raiders, bandits,
or even that Gault fellow them Farley boys
mentioned. Y’all are a bit more competent
with trouble than the others, so how about
y’all ride over to Dog Leg and see if you can
find them yahoos.”
Bill adds that he’s going to keep the herd
moving north. If the heroes are delayed or
lose the trail, he’ll wait for them outside
Exposition, a town a few days to the north.
DOG LEG
FEAR LEVEL: 3
After an uneventful trip through
the Farley’s ranch, the posse
arrives in Dog Leg. As advertised,
it’s a small settlement with around
100 residents. The town’s business
district consists of a livery, a
saloon called “Boston’s,”
Jen’s General Store, and
the marshal’s office, so
looking for signs of the
missing trail hands
should be a fairly
easy matter.
If the group
enters the
general store or
saloon first, they
quickly learn the
missing wranglers
MARSHAL WILCOTT
“Your boys are in the jail. Supposedly
for bustin’ up my place, but they didn’t. It
was Marshal Wilcott and his boys. They’re
Socrates Gault’s men. He runs a big gang
somewhere outside of town. I hear he works
for Black River. The old town marshal tried
to stand ‘im down when he first got here and
got a bad case of lead poisoning. So Gault
installed his henchman, Dalton Wilcott, as
the new marshal. You’ll want to be careful
around them, friends.”
Wilcott and two other lackeys run the town
for Gault. The townsfolk are afraid to stand
up to them due to the size of the gang and
alleged (but false) ties to Mina Devlin’s Black
River Railroad.
THE "MARSHAL"
Whether it’s their first stop or they’re led
there after visiting another establishment
in Dog Leg, the posse’s trail inevitably
ends at the town marshal. The office is
a rather unremarkable wooden building
with a freshly—if crudely—painted sign
announcing MARSHAL. Those who enter note
a marked absence of bars on the windows or
any other sign of reinforcement.
The door to the marshal’s office stands
slightly ajar. Inside, Marshal Dalton Wilcott
sits behind a desk with his feet up and hat
down. Near the back of the office the two
Sutter trail hands sit on the floor chained
to a metal eyebolt. Both men look worse for
wear, sporting bruises and scrapes, and one
of them has a black eye.
Marshal Wilcott tips his hat up as the
heroes enter. A pair of unkempt outlaws
shaming deputy’s badges eye the posse from
the other side of the room. Wilcott looks the
newcomers over and growls in a surly voice,
“What can I help you with, strangers?”
If the heroes admit any connection to the
imprisoned cowboys, Wilcott says,
“Well then we got us a little problem.
These fellows got drunk and busted up my

28
 favorite waterin’ hole. Me an’ the boys had BAD NEWS BEARERS
to take ’em into custody—for the good o’
The heroes return to the campsite and
the town, of course. Before we can let ’em
instantly see there’s been trouble. Only a
go, we’d need restitution for the damages
few steers remain, the chuck wagon’s gone,
to local establishments. I’d say a hundred a

Part 1-No Man's Land

and Abigail, Luke, and a few drovers kneel
head oughtta do it.”
over the bodies of four others. Abby rushes
frantically to the posse when she spots them
NEGOTIATIONS and spills the beans.
Wilcott demands $100 per man to secure
“Gault’s raiders struck not long after you
the the Lazy S cowboys. He’s already
left. We put up a fight but...” Abby looks
interrogated them and figures Sutter might
back at the bodies on the ground and wipes a
have enough grubstake to pony up that
tear from her eye. “There were just too many
amount. A successful Persuasion roll and
of ’em. A few of us rallied up in that stand
cash on the barrelhead means Wilcott can
o’ cottonwoods over there, but Gault just
be talked down to $75 per man, or $50
ignored us and took everything. He also got
with a raise.
Bill, Javier, and several of our boys.”
The marshal doesn’t really care if the posse
The characters note only Abby, Luke
can pay his ransom or not. He’s already
Canton, and a half-dozen other trail hands
sent one of his men to inform Gault there’s
remain—roll randomly to see which ones
a sizable herd moving through the area.
from the list. Bill Sutter, Javier, and the
Wilcott knows Gault is probably going to try
remaining drovers were taken along with
to seize Sutter’s cattle and anything else of
most of the herd. Though perhaps ill-advised
worth soon anyway. If he can pad his own
given the size of Gault’s gang, Abby urges
pockets a little beforehand, that’s just gravy.
an immediate and terrible reckoning. If the
Even a cursory investigation of the town buckaroos agree, Luke protests:
finds no evidence or witnesses to the trail
“That bastard’s got 30 shootists or more. I
hands “bustin’ up the place,” and of course
know you’re hot stuff, but that’s too much
the cowboys deny it. This information is
even for you. I think we oughta ride to the
of little use to the posse, except as proof of
next town and hire some guns of our own.”
Wilcott’s ill intent. If the party seeks allies
in town, no one agrees to action against If the party agrees with Luke, run
the marshal for fear of what Gault will do Unexpected Allies, below. If they set off
in response. In fact, most actively try to after Gault directly, head to The Battle of
talk the heroes out of confronting Wilcott Gault’s Gulch.
and his men!
“We have to live here afterwards,
UNEXPECTED ALLIES
FEAR LEVEL: 3
you know.”
The next town is Exposition, a six-hour ride
Should the party pay the money, Wilcott
away (four if the heroes are willing to bet a
releases the men and lets the group return to
Riding roll against Fatigue that lasts until the
the herd. If the heroes decide to free the Sutter
cowpoke gets at least eight hours of rest out
cowboys by force, the outlaws don’t hesitate
of the saddle).
to let their guns do the talking. Wilcott fights
until he suffers at least two Wounds and then Exposition lies at the end of a rail spur and
surrenders. His henchmen only surrender if Luke knows it has a telegraph office. The
he does, or if he’s Incapacitated. citizens look nervously at any strangers who
enter town, and soon after, a band of armed
c DALTON WILCOTT: Use the Gunman,
men and women emerge with the business
Veteran profile on page 83.
end of their firearms pointed in the posse’s
„ DEPUTIES (2): Use the Gunman profile on general direction. A cold-eyed woman at the
page 83. front of the group shouts,

29
 “That’s far enough! Drop your weapons
and get your hands up!”
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
A Persuasion roll from any of the heroes
is enough to calm the situation before lead
starts flying. Should none of the posse speak
up, Luke or Abby defuses the gunfight—
barring a particularly bloodthirsty posse.
The leader of their would-be captors doesn’t
immediately apologize for the mistaken
identity, but she does order her troops to
lower their weapons.
It turns out they’re a band of Black
River enforcers guarding the railhead in
Exposition. Word got back to headquarters
in Memphis that Gault’s been preying on the
local population and claiming the railroad
is behind him. Mina Devlin is no one’s idea
of a saint, but she takes serious umbrage to
someone else making use of her reputation.
Her gunhands have standing orders to take
the outlaw down.
The leader of the enforcers is a battle-
hardened veteran of the Great Rail Wars
named Constance Merit. She’s not one of the
famed Wichita Witches—this tussle hasn’t
escalated to that level yet. Merit assumed
such a well-heeled party was part of Gault’s
gang—hence the unfriendly welcome. If
the party tells Merit they’re going after the
outlaw, she’s clearly eager to join.
Merit agrees to send 10 of her enforcers
with the posse for the low price of 50 head
of cattle. She has to stay here and protect the
railhead with the rest of her gunmen—which,
despite the name, are primarily women. A
successful Persuasion roll talks her down to
30 head and a raise gets her to accept 20 cows.
Merit’s real goal is to impress her boss—the
rest is gravy.
c CONSTANCE MERIT: Use the Gunman,
Veteran, profile on page 83.
„ BLACK RIVER ENFORCERS (10): Use the
Gunman profile on page 83.
THE LAW, OR LACK THEREOF
If the posse tries to drum up support for an
attack on Gault from somewhere besides
Merit’s enforcers, it has little luck. Although
there’s a wanted poster advertising a $1,000
30
bounty on Gault, no one in town seems to
have much interest in trying to claim it.
There’s only a single marshal in Exposition
and he has no jurisdiction over—or interest
in—crimes committed outside the town’s
borders. His only concern is keeping the
peace in Exposition and staying on the good
side of Merit and her enforcers. No one’s seen
the Colfax County sheriff in days, and there’s
no US Marshal within a hundred miles.
Likewise, the townsfolk have little interest
in pursuing Gault. Raiders have become an
accepted fact of life in the Great Plains, just
like thunderstorms and twisters. Most folks
don’t see the percentages in a shootout with
a band of hardened killers.
That said, particularly persuasive parties
can muster up a few hardy souls. With a
successful Networking roll at –4, the posse
can find five townsfolk willing to help rescue
Sutter. A raise on the roll gets them another
five, but the crew cannot raise more than 10
locals no matter how hard they try.
„ TOWNSFOLK (5 or 10): See page 88.
THE BATTLE OF GAULT'S GULCH
Whether they immediately go after the raiders
or gather reinforcements from Exposition,
finding Gault’s gang isn’t particularly
difficult. After all, a few thousand cows tend
to leave a trail! The posse doesn’t even need
to make a Survival (tracking) roll to follow it.
The wide swath of hoof prints and cow
pies leads about a day’s ride east of where the
raiders attacked the Lazy S camp. The cattle
are corralled in a steep box canyon, blocked
at the entrance with a simple rope fence (see
map at the end of this chapter). Gault and his
men are camped close by. A guard sits atop
each bluff near the canyon mouth. Dozens of
outlaws can be seen milling about, all armed
to their rotting teeth.
EVENING THE ODDS
No matter how they go about it, taking on
Gault’s gang is a big fight! A clever posse
may find several ways to offset the rustlers’
numerical advantage though.
 Part 1-No Man's Land
First, Gault hasn’t killed any of the captives. c COLONEL SOCRATES GAULT: See below.
He hopes he can parlay the hostages into
a ransom at some point, and has them tied c GAULT’S LIEUTENANTS (1 per hero): Use
the Gunman, Veteran, profile on page
up to the south of his main camp. Freeing
83, or create an original posse if you
them gives the posse another five fighters
want to increase the challenge!
and Sutter himself. Obviously, none of the
captives are armed at the moment. „ RAIDERS (40): Use the Gunman profile on
page 83.
Second, although the gang has posted
lookouts atop the bluffs, the men are bored
and inattentive. Stealthy heroes should be cColonel Socrates Gault
“Colonel” Gault was never really a colonel. In
able to slip up on them and take them out,
fact, he never served in either the Union or
giving their allies the element of surprise.
Confederate forces. He’s just an ambitious
Finally, the rescuers might try stampeding outlaw who’s drifted across the Great Plains
the stolen cattle. By circling around the camp, for years, using the war as an excuse for
they can drop into the eastern end of the looting and pillaging with whichever border
canyon and approach the herd from behind. raiders would take him.
Cutting the rope fence unnoticed requires a
Not too long ago, Gault settled into the
Stealth roll, but surprise isn’t necessary once
southern Colorado area. Soon he’d raised
the cows start stampeding—right through
a sizable band of outlaws, murderers, and
the raiders’ camp! The stampede lasts 10
even a few disgruntled former soldiers.
rounds and devastates the ill-disciplined
He wasted little time in using his band to
rustlers. Of course the Lazy S crew has to
effectively seize control of a small portion of
round up the longhorns afterward, but a day
the war-torn state.
or two in the saddle is better than an early
date with the grave.

31
 Gault is a canny tactician, but he has posse and Abby). None of the crew argues
a tendency to let ambition overtake his openly if the characters decide to try to claim
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

means. He seldom considers the long-term it for themselves. This action may hurt the
consequences of his actions—a trait that has heroes rapport with their fellow trail hands
sent him running with his tail tucked more later on, though.
than once.
Once the cattle are gathered, the drovers
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, set out again for Denver. Sutter stops at
Strength d8, Vigor d10 Exposition to resupply and give the tired
Skills: Athletics d6, Battle d6, Common men a night to unwind. The posse can also
Knowledge d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, attempt to collect the $1,000 reward on
Notice d6, Persuasion d4, Riding d8, Shoot- Gault at this time. Unfortunately for them,
ing d8, Stealth d4, Survival d4 the surviving enforcers and townsfolk have
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 7 already claimed a cut. That said, the marshal
Hindrances: Bloodthirsty, Ugly (Minor), kept $500 for the heroes.
Wanted (Major—Great Plains)
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Command, Nerves
of Steel, Harder to Kill
TRAIL'S END
Gear: LeMat Revolver (Range 12/24/48, The herd spends two weeks getting fat on
Damage 2d6, RoF 1, AP 1) & shotgun the tall prairie grass between Exposition and
(Range 5/10/20, Damage 1–3d6, RoF 1), Denver. Feel free to throw in an encounter
saber (Str+d6), horse, chaps, saddle. or two, Marshal, or give the team a little
rest as you see fit.
AFTERMATH Once they reach the “Mile High
After the heroes defeat Gault, Sutter City,” Sutter halts the herd a few
and the other captives thank them miles outside of town. The crew
for the rescue. If the Black River makes camp and Bill heads
enforcers came along, they into Denver to try and make
return to Exposition, taking the the sale. The ranch hands
agreed-upon number of cattle are allowed to venture
with them. Any townsfolk into the city as well, as
the heroes mustered to their long as enough remain to
cause leave as well. Sutter ensure the herd is
keeps the crew at the box properly tended.
canyon for the next few days,
The posse has
both to recuperate and to
a few days to relax,
round up any cattle scattered
have a drink, and spend
during the firefight.
some of their hard-earned
Digging around the outlaw cash before things get rolling
camp turns up Gault’s stash in the next chapter.
of ill-gotten gains. A trunk
in his tent holds $1,500 in
bills and $400 in gold dust. COLONEL SOCRATES
Sutter suggests dividing
half the money among the
GAULT
cowboys on the rescue
party (including the

32
 DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

34

NORTH TO WYOMING
FEAR LEVEL: 3
The herd is settled in about half a day’s
ride southeast of Denver. It’s been milling
about the same area for the better part of a
week while Sutter gets a feel for the local
cattle market.
Most of the time, the crew—including the
posse—is either riding the edges of the herd,
rounding up stragglers, or simply sitting
around the chuck wagon swapping stories.
The hands even get cut loose now and then to
go into Denver for supplies or just to whoop
it up a little. Compared with driving the
stubborn longhorns over a thousand miles
of hostile wilderness, the last few days have
been heaven. Of course, nothing this easy
ever lasts long in the Weird West.
CHANGE O' PLANS
After a few days, Sutter returns to the trail
crew’s camp wearing a frown. He gathers all
the cowboys around who aren’t riding herd
at the moment and says he has some news.
“Turns out we got here a little late.
Between herds comin’ down from Wyoming
Territory and Texas herds that already hit
the market in Dodge, the price o’ beef is in
the outhouse. It’s only a snake’s belly above
CHAPT
ER
4
PART TWO: HIGH PLAINS DROVERS
what them Bayou Vermilion varmints were
offerin’, and this time, that’s across the board.
“Now, after cogitatin’ on it a piece, I
figure that’s both good and bad. It’s bad
in that I ain’t headin’ back to Texas a
rich man—at least not right away. It’s
good in that there’s another herd here in
a bad spot that I was able to buy up for a little
more than a song. On top of that, a feller sold
me a land grant in the Bighorn Basin up in
Wyoming that’s a fair sight larger than my
spread on the Brazos. I’m sick of dealing
with those Bayou Vermilion hooligans, so
I sold my spread in Texas by telegraph and
took him up on it. Wyoming gives us a better
shot at supplying the Maze with beef, and
you know those folks are always hungry.
“So, I plan to take both herds north and
start a new ranch. Any who want to ride
with me are welcome. Those who don’t, I
fully understand. You’re welcome to any pay
that’s owed you with no hard feelings and no
questions asked on my part.”
Sutter’s plan is to follow the Overland
Trail north out of Denver, cut the western
corner of the Sioux Nations, and forge north
through Wind River Canyon. He offers $45
dollars a month to those who stay on with
the Lazy S. Some of the cowboys agree to
remain, but a few decide to ride back to
Texas (you can choose which, Marshal).
35
 Obviously, Sutter’s niece Abby is headed
north with him.
A SPY IN WRANGLER'S CLOTHING
One particularly garrulous fellow seems
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Sutter pulls the characters aside after the especially dedicated to signing on with
rest of the trail crew sorts itself out. He says,the Lazy S. He talks to everyone in the
camp, including the heroes, and seems a
“You folk have done right by me and Abby
friendly enough sort at first. The would-be
from the get-go. To tell the truth, this here
cowpuncher gives his name as Jay Goodman
deal has put a dent in my wallet and I’ll have
and claims to have ridden on several drives,
to hire more hands too. I’m willin’ to cut
mostly on the Texas and Chisholm Trails.
you in for a tenth ownership of my original
Any of the caballeros with experience on
herd, divided amongst yourselves, in lieu of
either of the two trails finds Goodman’s
payment, if you choose to stay on with us.”
story square. He seems to know both routes
Sutter’s original herd numbered and all the well-known hazards along them.
approximately 1,500 head of cattle. That said, anyone who spends time with him
Accounting for losses on the trail and a gets a Notice roll at –2 to feel like Goodman’s
few sales along the way, the crew arrived holding something back.
in Denver just shy of 1,300 beeves, so the
Which is true! Goodman works for Empire
rancher is offering the posse about 130 head
Rail, an arm of the US Army in all but name.
of cattle. (When sold in a favorable market,
Remember that incident with the spy back in
each longhorn might bring as much as $40.)
Roswell? (See Look, Up In the Sky! on page
He’s come to value the heroes’ contribution 21.) Captain Callahan wired ahead about
highly, so the characters can bargain with the funny business and the US Army still
him for a better deal. With a successful thinks there might be a Wasatch spy working
Persuasion roll, he increases the offer to 200 with the Lazy S.
head. On a raise, he goes all the way up to a
If there’s a mad scientist in the group, he
quarter of the original herd—325 beeves! He
or she’s their number-one suspect. Whether
isn’t willing to cut them in on the new herd
the rest of the crew are in on it or not is also
just yet, though.
a point of conjecture.
Goodman is good at infiltration. He chats
COWBOYS FOR HIRE up each member of the crew and spins yarns
The new herd Sutter purchased totals around easily, recalling any number of anecdotes
2,000 head. This more than doubles the size of from his experiences on the trail.
the original Lazy S herd. Managing all those
Once Goodman feels he’s established a
animals also leaves the Lazy S shorthanded.
rapport with the group, he slowly turns
Of the original cowboys, about a half- the topic to the drive up from Texas. He
dozen choose to remain with the herd lets heroes talk for a while, but focuses in
(including Luke Canton, assuming he’s on Roswell if they mention it. If they don’t,
still alive). Bill plans to bring that total up he asks them directly if they passed near it,
to 20 riders—including the posse—before adding that he had a “mix-up” with the Army
the herd heads north. He puts out a call for there once and barely escaped with his life.
experienced hands. Goodman hopes his tale spurs the strangers
into talking about their experience there.
It’s not long before drifters begin to
mosey in looking for work. Most are honest, After Goodman’s spent some time with the
hardworking cowboys just looking for any posse, he starts wrapping things up. He asks
job they can find, but Luke warns some the crew to keep him in mind if work comes
might be bandits or rustlers taking measure up, and goes back to Denver to file his report.
of the crew and scouting out defenses for He doesn’t believe the crew is affiliated with
their gangs. Wasatch, but others in Empire Rail aren’t
convinced and decide to keep monitoring the
herd’s progress a while longer.

36
 steer isn’t breathing. Whatever’s moving
SOMETHING'S FISHY isn’t the steer itself.
It’s possible the heroes realize something’s
amiss with Goodman. If confronted, he With a raise the investigator also finds

Part 1-North To Wyoming

denies any accusations, insisting he’s just an
innocent cowboy looking for honest work.
Under extreme duress (or certain powers),
Goodman admits to being an Empire Rail spy.
He initially claims he’s just making sure the
crew is who they say they are since they’re
near the Empire Rail main line (this is true).
If pressed even further, Goodman admits
they’re worried the mysterious “rocketeer”
back in Roswell had an accomplice who took
whatever secrets he stole off his corpse.
„ JAY GOODMAN: See page 84.
a few small lacerations on the lips of the
animal. They’ve begun to heal and are likely
at least a week old. (This is where the tick
first crawled into the steer’s mouth.)
About this time—or shortly after the first
animal falls if the posse didn’t investigate
it—the sound of snorts and squeals go up
throughout the herd as more of the cattle
fall victim to a similar fate. All told, nearly
a dozen suddenly drop, leaving the Lazy
S hands scratching their heads…but only
for a moment.

THAT'S NOT RIGHT!

Within moments of the sudden collapses
OUTBREAK (or whatever time feels best for your game,
Marshal) the culprits behind the deaths
Through a combination of a little bit of good expose themselves—by bursting out of the
animal husbandry and a whole lot of luck, bellies of the afflicted longhorns! Engorged
none of Sutter’s original herd have thus far and gore-covered ticks tear their way out of
been afflicted with any serious parasites. The screaming steers and cows all around the
previous owner of the cattle purchased in posse, slinging bits and pieces of the animals’
Denver wasn’t so lucky. That herd ran across entrails in all directions.
a nest of prairie ticks on its way to market
The gruesome scene is enough to require
and several of the beeves were infected. Now
a Fear check (–2) for nausea from even the
Bill Sutter isn’t so lucky either.
most jaded of saddletramps. The good news
As the Lazy S nears the South Platte River is there’s no fight as the disgusting critters
a week or so northeast of Denver, one of the are bloated with cow’s blood. Their bladders
heroes spots a longhorn stagger to a stop are literally filled to bursting and it’s all the
and fall over. A stumbling steer isn’t all that tiny abominations can do to crawl out of
unusual, but the cattle have been moving the carcasses and onto the ground. Iron-
through good grazing country. There’s stomached dudes who make a Fear roll can
been no shortage of water and the pace simply walk up and stomp the little buggers,
has been fairly leisurely the last few days. although doing so bursts the blood sac all
Given the situation, the event is a little out over the character’s chaps.
of the ordinary.
„ PRAIRIE TICKS: See Deadlands. These
ticks are too bloated to fight and can be
AN IMPROMPTU AUTOPSY stomped without resistance.
Anyone who decides to check out the fallen
steer finds the animal lying on its side. Its
abdomen moves spastically in and out,
WHATEVER YOU DO, JUST DON'T...
The worst—and for many posses, most
fluttering as if it’s struggling for breath.
likely—response is for one of the crew to
Have characters examining the beast make whip out a gun and start blasting away.
a Notice roll. Success means the examiner is That guarantees killing any tick successfully
sure the animal is already dead. Its eyes have targeted, but it’s also an incredibly bad idea
rolled back in its head, its lips are pulled in the middle of a herd of Texas longhorns
back from its teeth, and its tongue protrudes already on the far side of nervous thanks to
slightly from its mouth. Its nostrils and chest the smell of blood and cow guts. If any
don’t show any movement, indicating the

37
 pistolero cooks off even so much as a single
shot, the cattle panic and stampede!
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
If you’re feeling particularly bloodthirsty,
don’t forget there are over a dozen other
cowboys around—most of whom are also
packing smokewagons and capable of
popping off a shot at one of the ticks in a
moment of shock or fear.
Since anyone examining one of the
downed beeves is in the middle of the herd,
they’re probably in a world of hurt. See
Ropin’ & Ridin’ on page 11 for details.
In that eventuality, the crew’s first priority
(after surviving) becomes getting the animals
back under control. If necessary, this process
takes the hands the rest of the afternoon.
Once the herd settles down, the posse
can try to weed out any remaining beeves
carrying the parasites. This takes a long
bloody day of hard work by all the crew.
38
AT THE GATES OF HADES
With the transition to mid-summer, the
weather takes a turn for the milder, lessening
the threat of challenging river crossings. The
crew easily fords the South Platte River at a
stagecoach stop known as Latham Station,
and the way north toward the Wyoming
Territory seems clear.
After a couple days travel through
relatively gentle rolling terrain with no
gunfire or stampedes, the characters probably
begin to relax.
North of Latham Station, the herd passes
its closest point with the most well-guarded
strongpoint of the Wasatch Railroad east
of the City o’ Gloom—Camp Hades. Camp
Hades is heavily armed, and rightly so. It
guards the eastern entrance to the Plutonian
Express, running from the eastern slopes of
the Rockies all the way to California!
Fortunately, the Overland Trail runs some
distance west of the Wasatch encampment.
Sutter believes this distance is sufficient
to prevent any unwanted entanglements
with the various rail enforcers in the area.
Unfortunately, Hellstromme’s rail gang has
taken a personal interest in the Lazy S.
SPY GAMES
Not surprisingly, nearly every other Rail
Baron has armed detachments or spies in
the area to keep an eye on Hellstromme’s
activities. If you want to keep the posse on
its toes, let them make a Notice roll to catch
sight of a group of heavily armed gunmen
briefly shadowing the herd from high ground
in the distance. These are scouts from one or
more Rail Barons monitoring any unusual
activity in the area. They quickly determine
the Lazy S crew poses no serious threat and
move on—but possibly not before making
the trail hands a bit jittery.
One band that pays a little extra attention
to the herd is Empire Rail. Forewarned by
its spy, Goodman, the railroad’s enforcers
have been on the lookout for the Lazy S
crew. Empire Rail is still on the fence about
whether the party is working with Wasatch,
but its gunmen are keeping their hands on
their gun butts just in case.
 WASATCH COMES A-KNOCKIN'
About two days after crossing the South
Platte, the heroes spot a steam wagon
churning across the rolling terrain toward the
herd. The vehicle is bulky, oddly-shaped and
moving slowly. Clearly, it’s not a standard
Smith & Robards catalog model.
If they don’t take the initiative themselves,
Sutter directs the heroes to intercept the
contraption before it startles the cattle.
When the steam wagon gets close, the
cowpokes see the reason for the contraption’s
strange silhouette. The vehicle is heavily
armored, with even the driver’s bench
surrounded by steel plating. A Gatling gun is
mounted behind the driver’s compartment—
and manned. The gunner doesn’t exactly
track the heroes with the weapon but makes
sure they always get an eyeful of the business
end of the weapon’s barrels.
TROUBLESHOOTER
The steam wagon stops a short distance
from the posse. A tall, thin man dressed in
a long, steel-gray coat steps down from the
passenger side. His gaze is solely focused on
the Lazy S crew—and the posse in particular.
Jurgen Emmerich started out as an
inventor in Wasatch’s research facility, but
the railroad quickly realized he was much
better suited to the battlefield than the lab.
Emmerich has a knack for solving problems.
He’s ruthless and impossible to deter from
a course until he’s accomplished his goal.
As an added bonus, he sees other people
as either tools or obstacles, to be used or
disposed of as the situation warrants.
Reports have reached Wasatch that their
spy in the Army skunk works, Roswell,
attempted to escape with an important
piece of intelligence. Wasatch believes the
Army is close to deciphering the secret of
Hellstromme’s automatons and that the spy
had vital information on their progress. (As
noted in Look, Up in the Sky! on page 21,
the Army is completely off-track.)
Just like Empire Rail, Wasatch heard their
spy was killed and the Lazy S herd was just
happened to be the first to reach his body—
and whatever information he might have
had on him.
Wasatch sent Emmerich to get a feel for the
party and recover anything they might have
found. Emmerich, in his madness, made it
Part 1-North To Wyoming
his personal crusade to get the information at
any cost. He makes it seem like his employers
are the eager ones, but it’s his own mania
driving the conflict.
STRONG-ARM TACTICS
Emmerich dismounts and marches
determinedly up to the characters. The man
radiates the warmth and personality of a cold
piece of steel.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.
My name is Jurgen Emmerich and I am a
representative of Wasatch Railroad, a wholly
owned subsidiary of Hellstromme Industries.
I’m sure you’re familiar with my employer.
“It has come to our attention that you
or one of your fellow…’cowboys’ is in
possession of property of an intellectual
nature that belongs to us. We believed
you recovered it somewhere near Roswell,
New Mexico, off a certain unfortunate
‘rocketeer,’ no?
“This property is of tremendous value to
my employer and he would like it returned
posthaste. Of course, the perceived value
of the property warrants I render adequate
remuneration on his behalf for your efforts
in seeing it safely here.”
Should the group ask what information
he’s talking about, Emmerich seems
exasperated, as if he thinks the characters are
trying a ploy of some sort. He explains briefly,
“The exact nature of said property is
not something I am at liberty to discuss.
However, a…courier in our employ was en
route to deliver this property when he ran
afoul of misguided Army interdiction forces.
Our sources have informed us that the Army
did not recover our property.
“The same sources have also provided that
this herd—the ‘Lazy S,’ correct?—and its
crew were the only others in the vicinity
at that time. Again, we would appreciate
the return of our property. Failure to do
so would not be looked upon favorably,
of course.”
39
 If the party inquires as to the amount
of reward Emmerich is offering, he says
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
the railroad is willing to pay $1,000 for
the information. That sum is not up for
negotiation; Wasatch set the amount and
Emmerich has no influence over it. No
amount of Persuasion or Intimidation
directed at him can alter the reward.
Sadly, the delusional Emmerich has
already decided the Lazy S crew must be
eliminated, even if they actually provide the
spy’s documents. After all, he has no way
of knowing if they understood it or made
copies or if they’re even selling him the
actual information the spy stole.
If the heroes turn over the real documents
they found on the spy, Jurgen briefly scans
them then throws them to the ground, calling
40
them obvious forgeries. He knows the secrets
of Hellstromme’s automatons and realizes
the Army plans have nothing to do with it.
He also recognizes the designs are unfeasible
and assumes the party is trying to pull a fast
one. The enforcer gives a disappointed look,
turns sharply, and returns to the wagon.
Moments later, it departs in a cloud of
dirt and dust.
If, on the other hand, the discussion
escalates to a rhubarb (that’s a fight,
Marshal), Emmerich runs to the wagon and
tries to escape. If he escapes, he returns the
next day as noted in Death From Above on
page 41. Should the group manage to send
him to Boot Hill instead, there’s no attack by
Wasatch forces the next day.
Being the mean, stubborn, vengeful
sourpuss he is, giving the Lazy
S a hard time is Emmerich’s
own idea. As long as the
cattle drive doesn’t linger
near Camp Hades, there’s no
further Wasatch intervention.
c JURGEN EMMERICH: See
page 84.
„ STEAM WAGON CREW (2):
Use the X-Squad profile on
page 88.
ARMORED STEAM WAGON
This armored model is
manufactured by Hellstromme
Industries exclusively for use
by Wasatch rail crews. The
wagon is open-topped and
heavily armored, which results
in a vehicle that’s stronger but
also slower than the Smith &
Robards version.
Armored Steam Wagon: Size
4 (Large), Handling –1, Top
Speed 50 MPH, Toughness 15
(8), Crew 1+5.
Weapons: Gatling gun (Range
24/48/96, Damage 2d8, RoF 3,
AP 2).
 EIGHT LEGS, AGAIN property. I would hate to see any further
calamity befall your efforts.”
Around midnight, the cowpokes hear the
snorts and lowing of frightened cattle coming Regardless of the posse’s response,

Part 1-North To Wyoming

from the western edge of the herd, about half Emmerich believes the Lazy S crew is
a mile away. Should they investigate, the withholding information from him. He
cowboys find several longhorns dead, with doesn’t offer a reward this time. Even if
large holes in their sides—not unlike those they hand over the documents, nothing
animals that fell victim to the prairie ticks they say or do convinces him otherwise. He
recently. eventually departs, warning them he has
little patience for their “foolish obstinance.”
Anyone taking a closer look can make a
Healing roll to note that, unlike the wounds Less than an hour after Emmerich’s
from the parasites, these appear to have steam wagon departs, the buckaroos smell
been caused by trauma from the outside. A smoke. Flames are visible a minute later,
Survival (tracking) roll at –2 finds small, approaching rapidly from the east.
heavy indentations in the dirt all around
The Lazy S cowboys have to react quickly
the dead cattle—larger and deeper than the
to keep the cattle from stampeding away
prairie ticks made.
from the flames. See Ropin’ & Ridin’
A short while later, another group of on page 11.
beeves raises a ruckus not far from their
The prairie fire was set by a Wasatch
location. If the posse rushes to the sounds,
X-Squad armed with flamethrowers. By the
they find the animals being attacked by three-
time the crew gets the herd under control
foot-tall, eight-legged, mechanical horrors.
and away from the grass-fed inferno, the
The clockwork tarantulas don’t take notice of
enforcers have long since departed. If the
the new, two-legged arrivals unless attacked,
posse investigates, a successful Survival roll
instead focusing on spraying jets of acid at
(–2) tells them the fire was set deliberately.
the longhorns. As soon as the characters
A raise on the roll gives them enough
intervene, the artificial arachnids turn on
information to guess flamethrowers or
them! The devices fight to the end, exploding
similar devices were probably used to ignite
in a burst of acid upon their “deaths.”
the blaze.
„ CLOCKWORK TARANTULAS (1 per hero):
See page 89.
DEATH FROM ABOVE
The morning after the wildfire, Emmerich
WILD PRAIRIE FIRE returns once again in his steam wagon. Sutter
Emmerich returns the next day to attempt has reached the limit of his patience with the
another parley. If the group confronts Wasatch scientist. He dispatches the party to
him with accusations about the clockwork speak with him, but this time he sends an
tarantulas, his initial response is to ask to additional 10 cowboys as a show of force.
see the “alleged contraptions,” knowing full
The implication isn’t lost on Emmerich. He
well the devices are little more than puddles
doesn’t dismount from the vehicle, opting
of goo. He tires of this game quickly and
instead to address the group from the open-
presses his not-so-subtle accusations from
topped driver’s compartment. His patience
the day before—this time with the added
has also worn thin and he’s past any pretense
threat of further mishaps.
or subtlety.
“Perhaps some of our inventions fell into
“I see there were some… further difficulties.
the wrong hands and were released on your
I truly wish we could have reached an
cattle. That would be a terrible event if it
accommodation. Unfortunately, the truth is
occurred, of course. Having seen how dire
my employers could never have been certain
possible outcomes from these circumstances
of our discretion even if we came to an
can be, I’m sure you can understand my
agreement. So, I suppose, this outcome
interest in recovering my employer’s
was inevitable.”

41
 With that, he raises his left hand, the signal „ ARMORED STEAM WAGON: Size 4
for the attack to begin. (Large), Handling –1, Top Speed 50 MPH,
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Toughness 15 (8), Crew 1+5. It’s armed

THE BATTLE IS JOINED with a Gatling gun (Range 24/48/96,
In response to Emmerich’s signal, a large Damage 2d8, RoF 3, AP 2). Use the
group of X-Squaddies streaks up into the X-Squad profile on page 88 for the
sky from behind a hill about 50 yards away, gunner and driver.
lines of smoke streaming behind their
„ X-SQUAD TROOPERS (10): See page 88.
rocket packs as they leapfrog toward the
They’re equipped with rocket packs,
herd. Simultaneously, an auto-gyro appears
light armored vests (+2, –2 damage
around the base of the hill, flying only a
from bullets), and Gatling rifles (Range
few dozen feet above the ground as it closes
24/48/96, Damage 2d8, RoF 2, AP 2).
on the herd.
The posse has one round before the FROM BAD TO UGLY
Wasatch enforcers arrive. On Emmerich’s Three rounds after the X-Squads engage the
turn, he engages the crew with his electro- posse, a new combatant enters the battle.
static gun from the passenger’s seat, using Chugging over the same rise behind which
bolt or burst as appropriate. The driver the other Wasatch forces hid comes one of
attempts to move away from the posse (at Hellstromme’s most feared creations—an
least 15” or 30 yards) and the gunner opens automaton!
up with the Gatling.
The unholy union of necromancy and
The steam wagon provides Emmerich steam technology began moving at the same
and his gunner with Medium Cover, and time as its airborne compadres but only
the driver with Heavy Cover. The X-Squad now reaches the high ground. The iron-clad
troops and the auto-gyro reach the battle at juggernaut is 25” (50 yards) away when the
the same time. When the X-Squads arrive, posse first catches sight of it. It chugs forward
they immediately engage the Lazy S using at Pace 4, throwing a deadly hail of lead
their Gatling weapons. The auto-gyro along the way.
makes a pass every two rounds. On each
Emmerich continues the fight until eight
pass, the pilot drops a bundle of two sticks
X-Squaddies and the automaton are taken out.
of dynamite (Damage 2d6+2, MBT) on the
Should Emmerich himself fall in the fight, the
largest clump of Lazy S hands and/or posse
rest of the human enforcers begin retreating
members. (They have three bundles total.)
on their next action. The automaton, on the
Not surprisingly, the commotion startles other hand, fights to the death—or in its case,
the longhorns and triggers a stampede the booby-trapped explosion!
(see page 11). Sutter and the remaining
hands have their hands full dealing with the c AUTOMATON (1): See page 89.
panicked cattle, leaving the posse and their
10 cowboys to face the Wasatch force. HERE COMES THE CAVALRY!
The odds are definitely stacked against the
c JURGEN EMMERICH: See page 84. Lazy S in this battle, but let the heroes have
„ AUTO-GYRO: Size 1, Handling +2, Top a chance to triumph in the fight on their own.
Speed 75 MPH, Toughness 7(1), Crew Clever tactics and luck may win the day.
1+1. Use the X-Squad profile on page
If the party is overwhelmed, all is not lost.
88 for the crew. The gyro is armed with
Thanks to Goodman’s report, Empire Rail
a Gatling gun (Range 24/48/96, Damage
has been keeping close tabs on the Lazy S
2d8, RoF 3, AP 2).
crew since Denver—especially as the herd
neared Camp Hades. A small contingent
of the railroad’s cavalry enforcers, led by
Goodman, has been nearby for the last few
days. Once it’s clear the posse isn’t in bed

42

with Wasatch, they jump at the chance to mix
it up with Hellstromme’s lackeys!
We’ll leave it up to you to decide when—if
at all—the posse could use a hand from the
boys in blue. Once you decide things are
barreling downhill like a hoopsnake racing
a rockslide, the Empire Rail force arrives
to help out.
If Empire Rail becomes involved, let the
players control the Extras as allies.
Should the caballeros manage to whip the
Wasatch goons on their own, the Empire
Rail troops still arrive, but this time just to
provide congratulations and a hearty slap
on the back!
„ JAY GOODMAN: See page 84. He’s
mounted on a sturdy riding horse (Vigor
d10) and sporting a Deputy Marshal
badge—his “other” line of work.
„ EMPIRE RAIL ENFORCERS (10): Use the
Soldier, Veteran profile in Deadlands: The
Weird West. They’re mounted on riding
horses (see Savage Worlds).
Part 1-North To Wyoming
ESCAPE FROM HELL
Once the Lazy S cowpokes overcome the
Wasatch forces, the railroad decides to
cut its losses. Emmerich is either dead or
embarrassed by his defeat and removed from
any position of authority. Wasatch decides
that if the Army has cracked the secret of
the automatons, it’s already too late to close
the barn door. And after their knock-down-
drag-out fight with the X-Squad, Empire Rail
is convinced the posse isn’t in cahoots with
Hellstromme.
The rest of the trip to the Wyoming border
passes uneventfully—unless you want to
throw a few complications of your own at
the sodbusters, Marshal. Don’t forget the
Encounter Tables in Deadlands: The Weird
West, too. There’s all kinds of trouble there
if you want it!
43
 CHAPT
ER
5

INTO THE NATIONS

PART TWO: HIGH PLAINS DROVERS

FEAR LEVEL: 4 try to slip in at night and count coup or take

a horse or steer as toll for our crossing. If you
Central Wyoming is the portion of the drive
see ’em, get in their way, but for God’s sake,
that most worries Sutter. After leaving the
don’t attack. First off, we’re on their land
Overland Trail, the Lazy S has to cross
and that wouldn’t be right. Second, there’s
a portion of the Sioux Nations. It’s a well-
a whole lot more of ’em then there are us.
known fact the Indians are notoriously
However many you see tailin’ us remember
protective of their land. They’re also
there’s a dozen villages within a few hours
protected by the “Old Ways.” Some of the
ride of us. Comprende, muchachos?”
hands might laugh at that, but not Bill. He
knows full well the Sioux’s protective Bill waits for each of his crew to signal they
enchantments are all too real. understand. It’s important, and he doesn’t
want any trigger-happy yahoo getting
„ The Old Ways: Everyone inside the Sioux
folks killed. If a character catches a warrior
Nations has the All Thumbs Hindrance
slipping into camp at night to count coup or
when using manufactured goods.
steal an animal, the Sioux smiles and quickly
Bill tells the crew he hopes to skedaddle retreats into the night.
across the corner of the Nations and get into
„ SIOUX WARRIORS (20): See page 84. The
Wind River Canyon before the Sioux even
leader is a Veteran Indian Warrior.
know they’re there. But Sutter’s herd is just
too large. The second day after crossing into
the Nations, a roving Sioux patrol catches SINKING SAND
sight of the Lazy S herd.
Another complication comes three days later
The Indian warriors keep their distance when the herd reaches the North Platte River
but don’t remain unseen. They shadow the near the Oregon Trail. If any of the posse
intruders from a distance, clearly visible rides point, allow her a Notice roll at –2. With
and always watching. If anyone attempts to success the sharp-eyed outrider spots a patch
approach them, they quickly ride off into the of quicksand on the banks of the river. If the
wilderness only to return sometime later. unlucky buckaroo rolls a Critical Failure the
poor sap still finds the hazard—by stepping
Bill warns the crew not to engage:
into it herself!
“They’re gonna tail us. Keep us honest and
movin’. Some of the younger ones might even

45
 Being the Weird West, even quicksand is
more dangerous than normal. Any creature
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
caught in the mud sinks completely in three
rounds unless it’s pulled out. Mounted
cowpokes get an additional two rounds after
their unfortunate animal perishes.
The pool is about twelve feet in diameter.
Freeing a character from quicksand requires
a Strength roll—either by the victim or
her friends, and each may Support the
other normally. Critical Failure means the
character goes straight under. Success means
she doesn’t sink that round, and a raise
means she’s free. Support rolls are made at
–2 if the victim is a horse or cow (because of
their mass).
Once beneath the surface, the victim starts
to drown (see Drowning in Savage Worlds)
and must be pulled out by someone on the
surface; she can’t extricate herself.
Should the point rider not detect the
quicksand (guaranteed if one of the other
Lazy S hands is at the head of the herd), 1d4
cattle stumble into the deadly pool before the
hands divert the rest. In this case, Sutter asks
the posse to rescue any trapped cattle and/
or cowboys.
After it’s identified, the wranglers can
divert the cattle around the quicksand with
little effort.
WAGONS HO!
Shortly after crossing the North Platte, the
point rider for the herd crests a rise and gets
his first look at the Oregon Trail. It’s not an
awe-inspiring sight by any stretch, consisting
of wide-open prairie and deeply rutted
wagon wheel tracks. More awe-inspiring is
the large contingent of Sioux (a hundred or
more) on the opposite side of the ruts that
blocks the herd’s progress north. Sutter says,
“I reckon they want us to follow the
trail. Maybe that’s how they want folks
passin’ through?”
Clearly, fighting the Indians is a losing
proposition as they outnumber the Lazy S
hands more than five to one—and that’s just
the warriors the cowpokes can see!
46
Once the herd is moving along the Oregon
Trail, the Sioux flank the cattle to the north
and south just out of rifle range and a rear
guard follows along behind. Any sodbuster
who strays from the route finds warriors
converging quickly on his position. As
long as the crew keeps to the vicinity of the
trail though, the patrol seems content to
pace them.
Make a Survival (tracking) roll for any
saddletramps riding point. Success tells the
sharp-eyed cowpuncher that a rather sizable
group of wagons, horses, and even folks on
foot passed along this section of the trail
within the last few days. A raise on the roll
gives the tracker an estimate of six or more
wagons in the group.
A PLAGUE OF UNDEATH
While passing through Laramie, a member
of a wagon train fell victim to a rare critter
in the Weird West—a “plague vampire.”
The creature chose a weaker member of the
caravan as its prey, an elderly grandmother
named Mildred Bower. Mildred’s
constitution, already compromised by
disease and the hardships of the trail, broke
under the added strain of the monster’s
feeding. She died on the trail shortly after the
group departed town.
The rest of the wagon train took her
sudden failing health as a sad but inevitable
consequence of her age and the difficulties of
the frontier. She passed within two days and
was buried beside the trail.
That night, she arose as a vampire spawn
and quenched her unholy thirst on other
members of the group. Worse, her feeding
spread the unholy disease to her prey. The
new victims were assumed to have taken ill,
but no one guessed the true nature of their
affliction. Mildred crept from her grave
again the next night and pursued the wagons,
feeding again on her chosen prey.
By the third night, the wagons had
traveled too far from the grave site for her
to reach them, but the damage was already
done—two more members of the group
were infected.
 Nature spirits told the Sioux shamans
about the infected settlers. To prevent the
undead plague from spreading further,
they’ve pushed the pioneers into an old
abandoned fort. That very night, the two
dying settlers finally succumbed to the illness,
then rose again as vampire spawn. The two
new bloodsuckers crept from the grave and
were all too happy to find themselves trapped
in the fort with a veritable smorgasbord!
More trouble brewed outside the fort.
To’sarre finally licked his wounds and caught
up with the Lazy S. The shaman sweet-talked
his way into the Sioux patrol and now serves
them as a scout. Once he learned about the
settlers trapped in the old fort, he convinced
the Sioux to lure the new intruders in too.
He hopes the vampires will make short
work of the cowboys, but if not, he’ll try and
manipulate his new friends into an attack.
FORT DESPERATION
A night after the Sioux steer the Lazy S onto
the Oregon Trail, the point riders catch sight
of a fort. Smoke rises from inside the walls,
indicating the outpost is likely manned. A
number of trail hands cheer at the sight.
As the Lazy S crew nears the fort, however,
it becomes clear any rejoicing was premature.
Though difficult to see in the fading light,
it’s clear the structure is in bad repair. There
are significant holes in the palisade and the
gates are propped up. Although figures are
visible atop the walls, none of them look to
be soldiers. A spyglass reveals they’re simply
pioneers or frontiersmen who’ve taken
shelter in the army post’s remains.
Lead riders reaching the ramshackle fort
find the Sioux blocking further progress. The
Indians continue to drive the main body of
the herd toward the fort, simultaneously
widening their cordon. Eventually, the Lazy
S hands find themselves and their herd
trapped inside a roughly one-mile-diameter
circle centered on the ruins of the fort—and
ringed by a growing horde of Sioux warriors.
The fort is every bit as ramshackle inside
as out. Nothing of the interior buildings
remains standing beyond an occasional
wall or door frame. The pioneers sleep in or
under their wagons, or in one of half-a-dozen
tattered tents.
In several places, large sections of the
Part 1-Into the Nations
palisade have fallen down. The settlers have
moved wagons in front of the these breaches
and posted guards atop the remaining wall
sections, but so far the Sioux have shown no
intention of attack.
WHO'S MINDING THE FORT?
Once hailed, the folks inside eagerly open the
gates to fellow settlers. A small group of men
comes out holding torches for light. They’re
led by a gray-bearded man in a flannel shirt
and weathered plainsman hat. All are clearly
pioneers trapped here by the same Indians
that escorted the Lazy S. Oddly, they stop
about 20 feet from the party—a little farther
than usual (they know they may be infected
and don’t want to give it to possible allies).
The bearded man, Rudolph Jovich, is the
first to welcome the hands of the Lazy S.
“Howdy, strangers! Are we glad to see
you! First bit of luck we’ve had in a while.
I’m Rudolph Jovich, wagon master.”
The man tips his hat and points out at the
distant line of Sioux warriors.
“Those Injuns corralled us here a few days
ago and we ain’t seen anyone else since.
They ain’t attacked us, not even a feint.
They just sit over there in the distance and
watch us starve. Anyone who tries to leave
gets feathered with so many arrows he might
could fly.
“Now who might you be, and what brought
you to this God-forsaken place?”
Jovich listens, then tells the strangers he
has nearly 30 settlers camped inside the fort.
Then he frowns and spills a few more beans.
“I said we was happy to see you, but you
may not be happy to see us. We’ve had more
than a few deaths even before this mess.
One of the families lost a grandmother to
consumption just outside of Laramie. Soon
after we buried her, a couple other folks
came down with somethin’. Maybe smallpox.
That’s why we’re keepin’ our distance from
you, friends.”
Rudy removes his hat and adds:
47
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
“I’m sorry to say six of our folks are
presently showing symptoms. We have
’em sequestered in a tent at the back of the
ruins. Four have succumbed since we got
trapped in here.
“We’re takin’ precautions to stop the
spread, but I reckon them Injuns is plannin’
to keep us bottled up until we eventually die.
Then they can just burn the whole shebang
down and keep it from spreadin’ to their folks.
“Of course now that you’re here I don’t
believe we’re gonna starve to death. We’ll
be happy to pay you for a few of your steers,
of course.”
DEATH BY DAWN
Understandably, Sutter and the rest of the
Lazy S are reluctant to shelter in the fort
with a group of folks likely brimming with
disease. The boss tells the hands to set up
camp a short distance outside the ruins and
set watches for the evening. Then he orders
a couple of cows slaughtered for the settlers,
free of charge.
Let the heroes tour the fort if they’re
inclined, talk to the settlers, or whatever
else they want. The only thing they
can’t do is leave. If they try, the Sioux
48
converge on them quickly. A veteran posse
might actually be able to defeat the Sioux,
but Sutter reminds them they aren’t here to
make war on the Indians. This is the Sioux
Nations, after all, and the Lazy S wasn’t
exactly invited. Even if they win the fight, it
might spark a war that gets lots of other folks
killed all around the Nations’ borders. Sutter
wants no part of that.
MIDNIGHT SNACKS
That night and each night following, the
plague vampires rise to feed. Slaughtering a
settler just results in the bloodsuckers being
discovered and killed the next morning when
they’re at their most vulnerable, so until that
situation changes, the creatures attempt
to feed on sleeping victims and return to
their graves unseen. This produces 1d4 new
infected victims each day.
Daytime at the ruins consists largely of
trying to stay out of the blistering sun as
much as possible. There is no nearby water
source and the pioneers have begun to run
low on their own supplies. Although the
Lazy S chuck wagon has a full water barrel,
it’s not capable of supporting even just the
trail crew for more than a few days.
 If the posse hasn’t rooted out the vampires
by the second night, one of the Lazy S hands
winds up getting bit in the middle of the
night and wakes up covered in smallpox.
The news makes the rest of the trail hands
understandably nervous; smallpox usually
doesn’t move that quickly!
EXHUMATION EXAMINATION
If any of your hombres decide to spend
their time examining the sick or deceased
pioneers, allow them a Healing roll. Success
confirms the afflicted is indeed suffering
from smallpox, albeit an extremely virulent
form. With a raise, the sharp-eyed sawbones
spots a pair of puncture wounds in a cluster
of pox blisters on the victim’s neck (or wrist
or ankle if you want to be creative, Marshal).
Anyone who comes in contact with any
of the pox victims must make a Vigor roll.
Failure results in smallpox, a Chronic Disease
(see Savage Worlds).
Sharp-eyed—and suspicious—hombres
may put the clues together and guess that
vampires are to blame. If they exhume the
bodies of the four earlier plague victims,
good for them! Exposed to sunlight, the
creatures instantly burst into flame and
burn to dust.
Eventually, the posse should figure out
what’s going on either through examining
the afflicted, using powers, or setting traps.
FANGS IN THE NIGHT
At some point, the heroes should either
figure out what’s going on and dig up
the corpses (now vampires), or catch the
vampires slipping in among the sleeping
settlers at night.
The vampires are far more dangerous
at night, of course. By day, they suffer the
damage listed in their Weakness to sunlight
(see page 90).
Also, if the posse doesn’t clear away any
lookie-loos, the gathered civilians panic and
run in all directions, likely getting in the way
and becoming casualties (not to mention
possibly catching smallpox).
Given their Invulnerability, plague
vampires can be a handful for unprepared
parties. If the posse doesn’t have someone
to bless their weapons, one of the settlers
reveals himself as a former preacher who
can just manage to cast smite. If things get
really bad, the heroes and settlers have to flee
Part 1-Into the Nations
out into the herd. At that point the Sioux get
involved, charging in on horseback to save
their collective bacon (and later demanding
300 steers for their efforts and to allow the
settlers to move on).
TO'SARRE'S RETURN
Regardless of when or how the final
confrontation with the vampires occurs,
To’sarre gets involved. He’s watching in
raven form from the nearby ramparts and
sees this as a golden opportunity to whittle
down his troublesome foes.
Deal the shaman in normally. On
his action, he flutters in the face of any
particularly effective hero (an Athletics Test).
His involvement should be more hateful and
dramatic than useful, because it’s setting
To’sarre up for some poetic justice. Read the
following when the posse is just about to
finish off the vampires:
There’s no doubt this fluttering raven is
To’sarre, the vengeful Comanche shaman
who’s dogged you all the way from Texas.
You know he can change shape, and you can
see his presence in the hateful thing’s coal-
black eyes.
The raven screeches at you as it flutters
back and forth, keeping you off-balance while
you try to fend off the deadly bloodsuckers.
Then To’sarre gets a taste of his own bad
medicine—literally. One of the grotesque
vampires spins in place from the lethal
wound you gave it, spraying its foul blood
in a wide circle. The raven is soaked in it, so
much so that it almost falls out of the sky.
The shocked look in its all-too-human eyes
tells you it knows something terrible just
happened. It squawks in rage one last time
and flies over the ramparts into the night sky.
To’sarre has just picked up a lethal case of
smallpox. The effects of that won’t be seen
till later in the campaign, but it’s bad news
for the shaman—and the posse!
49

AFTERMATH
Once the vampires are dispatched, the sick
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
must still be taken care of. The healing power
with the Neutralize Disease modifier does
the trick, or they might be nursed back to
health naturally. Either way, the outsiders’
bravery convinces the Sioux to let them go.
The settlers and Lazy S are escorted on into
Wyoming from a safe distance.
„ PLAGUE VAMPIRES: See page 90. There
are four on the first night. There might be
more after that!
EPILOGUE
As the outsiders round up the herd and
move on, the player characters are treated to
To’sarre’s final disgrace.
The Sioux patrol rides at a safe distance
far from the herd. As you watch, you see an
Indian ride up to the leader. It’s To’sarre. He
rides slumped in his saddle, clearly ill from
last night’s incident.
50
You pass around Bill Sutter’s telescope
for a closer look. There’s no mistaking
it. To’sarre is covered in pustulent boils.
Smallpox. And it’s whatever strain the weird
creatures you slew last night were carrying.
To’sarre must have picked it up in raven
form, when he was dowsed in that monster’s
foul blood.
You can’t hear what they’re saying, but
the Sioux leader is clearly chastising the evil
shaman. He yells something unkind and the
points to the southern horizon, away from
the interior of the Sioux Nations.
To’sarre turns his horse—a staggering
white mare also covered in boils—and rides
away from the war party. You focus in tight.
You can see his hate-filled face. He’s covered
in oozing boils and looking right at you with
nothing but seething rage in his vile heart.
Then he turns southeast, out of the Nations,
and rides slowly along until you lose him in
the tall prairie grass and rolling hills.
Despite the pox, something tells you the
Lazy S hasn’t seen the last of him.

THE HOME STRETCH
The herd leaves the boundaries of the Sioux
Nations at the foot of the Owl Creek and
Bridger Mountains. The two ranges are
separated by Wind River Canyon. North of
the canyon, the river is commonly referred
to as the Bighorn, but in southern Wyoming
most folks know it as the Wind River.
The ranges pose a nearly insurmountable
obstacle to a herd the size of Sutter’s, but
the canyon itself—although narrow—offers
what the rancher hopes to be a shortcut to
the Bighorn Basin and his new property, to
the north.
At the southern mouth, the river flows
through a canyon nearly 20 miles long.
Narrow paths run along both sides of the
river in most places, and it’s generally
shallow. But here and there the cliff walls
close in on the river, forcing travelers into
deeper water and even whitewater rapids.
Given the size of the herd and the
numerous breaks in the trail alongside the
river, it’s not an easy route by any stretch.
DEATH ON THE WING
The drive begins well enough. Some of the
herd stick to the paths while others wade
cautiously into the shallow stream. Inside
an hour, however, the river’s rocky bottom,
dropoffs, and chokepoints mean the Lazy
CHAPT
ER
6
PART TWO: HIGH PLAINS DROVERS
S crew must constantly push the stubborn
longhorns forward. By the end of the first
long and tiring day, the herd has only made
it five miles into the canyon.
That night, the crew gets an unwelcome
visit from the night sky. About four hours
after the trail hands bed down, a fair-sized
colony of devil bats that roost in the canyon‘s
cliffs descend on the camp. The beeves are
too large for the nocturnal predators to
snatch up, but cowboys are just the right size!
Check for surprise—those sleeping have
a –2 penalty. The bats aim to scoop up a
victim and drop him on the rocks of the
canyon floor. They like their food broken,
squishy, and unable to fight back! They only
hover and fight if somehow restrained from
flying away.
The creatures fight until more than half
their number are Incapacitated, at which
time the rest soar away into the darkness.
The good news is the confined nature of
the canyon works to the Lazy S cowboys’
advantage. Due to the lack of open space,
the danger of a stampede is largely negated.
The cows can only travel north or south and
it’s fairly easy for the crew to round them up
after the battle—no rolls needed.
„ DEVIL BATS (15): See below.
51
 (and is no longer Entangled himself). A
Bound result means he forces the bat to
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

ground low enough to drop safely. The

bat can never Bind a foe while flying.
„ Fear: Devil bats are freakish creatures
with massive wings and snarling faces.
They provoke a Fear check.
„ Flight: Pace 16”.
„ Sonar: Devil bats “see” by sonar. If its
prey has the guts to stand still among
other obstacles (like rocks and such), the
thing subtracts 2 from its Fighting roll.
This requires a Fear check at −2. Failure
means the victim flinches or moves,
allowing the bat to “see” him and elimi-
nate the penalty.

A TRESTLE TOO FAR

The next day, Sutter sends the heroes riding
ahead in the hopes of avoiding dead-ends
and backtracks as the herd moves farther
into Wind River Canyon. About midday,
scouts hear the sound of sustained gunfire
echoing down the canyon from the north—a
lot of sustained gunfire.
DEVIL BATS Whether they approach stealthily or charge
These nocturnal predators hunt in flocks. in, the posse is greeted with the sight of an
They dive down from the night sky and grab intense battle taking place in the canyon:
prey with their taloned feet. If successful, the
Two heavily armed groups—one toting
bat races into the air and drops its prey from
flamethrowers, Gatling weapons, and other
the apex of its swoop, dashing it to death
outlandish mechanical devices, and the other
on the ground below. The things then settle
not so well-equipped but holding a decided
down to devour the victim, whether it’s dead
advantage in sheer numbers—have squared
or merely stunned.
off under a railroad trestle that crosses the
Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d8 (A), Wind River. The battle seems fierce and
Spirit d8, Strength d12+1, Vigor d8 relentless, the kind that doesn’t end with
Skills: Athletics d10, Fighting d10, Intimida- prisoners.
tion d10, Notice d8, Stealth d12+2
Neither side takes any notice of the
Pace: 4; Parry: 7; Toughness: 6
group’s arrival.
Edges: Quick
Special Abilities:
„ Claws: Str+d4.
OLD WOUNDS
Three years ago, a detachment of Iron
„ Death from Above: Devil bats attack by
Dragon enforcers was dispatched to stop the
making a Fighting roll. If they hit with a
construction of a railroad trestle by Wasatch.
raise, they Entangle their prey as well.
Initial reports indicated the railroad was
On its next turn, the bat soars into the
trying to flank Iron Dragon and cut off Kang’s
air and drops its prey for 4d6 damage.
Montana line from the south. In reality, the
If the victim goes before the devil bat,
entire operation was an elaborate scheme by
he can try to hang on by making a Grap-
Hellstromme to decoy Kang from looking
pling roll. An Entangled result means
too closely at Camp Hades—where they
theprey hangs on and can’t be dropped

52
might have caught sight of the first tests of physical contact with any of the fighters
the “Hellbore” Hellstromme used to tunnel produces an unsettling result: the hombre’s
under the Rockies. The trestle was nothing hand passes right through the figure. The

Part 1-The Home Stretch

more than an enormous, wooden sleight-of- group is on a battlefield filled with ghosts!
hand built in the middle of nowhere.
It’s time for Fear checks when the
For days, Kang’s forces tried to seize unnatural existence of the rail gangs is
control of the bridge from Wasatch revealed! The spirits take no notice of the
defenders who were just as determined to living among them—much less act against
hold it. Between the advanced weaponry them—but it’s more than a little unnerving
available to Hellstromme’s men and the to be surrounded by dozens of wraiths and
superior numbers of Iron Dragon, the two phantoms. And there’s no way the trail
sides proved remarkably effective at killing hands can move a herd of skittish cattle
each other. By the end of a week, the only through the ghostly combat zone.
survivors were those too wounded to hold a
There is one last—and possibly lethal—
rifle or the carrion birds that quickly picked
complication as well. Although the ghosts are
the corpses clean.
immaterial and take no notice of the presence
Now, whenever the spirits sense living of the heroes, the bullets they fire are as
beings they reappear, throwing themselves deadly as they were when the two gangs
again and again into the meat-grinder that first fought over the bridge. When the group
claimed their lives. gets within 20 yards or so of the Wasatch
enforcers, make periodic d6 Shooting rolls
against a random player character. Don’t
THE LAST COMMAND worry about exactly how often to check, just
The herd arrives on the Wasatch side of the roll often enough to instill a sense of urgency.
river. The party sees two tents, a low wall, Anyone hit takes 2d8 damage from a stray
and a torn flag bearing their colors. rifle shot.
The Iron Dragon troops are entrenched in
a similar setup on the other side.
A COMMANDER'S LAMENT
The only standing “structures” on the
Troops on either side take occasional battlefield (other than the trestle itself) are
potshots at each other. The Wasatch forces the clusters of tents on opposite sides of the
strafe the enemy bank with three steam river. The Wasatch tent is closest and easiest
Gatlings. Iron Dragon responds with to approach since it doesn’t require crossing
occasional rockets that soar over the river the river.
and explode against the cliff wall.
Moving closer finds a field hospital has
None of the rail warriors seems to pay any been set up around the command tent.
attention to the party’s approach. In fact, the The “dead” and “dying” are laid out on
posse can ride right up to the command tents the ground almost haphazardly behind the
without being challenged. It’s almost as if the stone wall, and a corpsman wanders among
heroes weren’t even there… them in a vain attempt to somehow ease their
suffering. The men’s wounds are horrific
BATTLEFIELD O' THE DAMNED and were obviously mortal in life. Anyone
FEAR LEVEL: 4 passing by must make a Fear check against
nausea or suffer Fatigue.
Sutter asks the posse to scout ahead and see
if the Wasatch troops intend to let them pass. Read the following when the group
He has a bit more faith in the heroes’ ability reaches their goal:
to negotiate at this point.
The command tent is tangible, unlike the
That’s easier said than done, though—the ghostly combatants. The fabric is long faded
combatants completely ignore them. Even if and tattered, as if the tent has somehow
spoken to directly, none of the enforcers pays stood for years against the elements. The
the slightest attention. Attempts to make Wasatch banner outside is likewise badly

53
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
weathered and frayed, and the pole from
which it flies is sun-dried and cracked.
Inside the tent, the phantom of the
Wasatch commander speaks to another
enforcer. The commander seems weary,
almost saddened, at the carnage taking place
in the canyon, but resigned to do his duty.
“Our orders are to hold the Dragon forces
here as long as we can,” the commander says.
“We can hold them until Hell busts loose,
but I don’t think we can beat them,” the
other specter answers. “There’s just too
many of them and they ain’t showin’ any
signs of retreat. As long as that bridge
stands, we keep fighting.”
The Wasatch enforcers were tasked with
keeping Iron Dragon occupied without
destroying the trestle. Everyone knew
Warlord Kang was too proud to back
down easily, so the valley became a deadly
meat grinder.
If the party doesn’t go near the tent, feel
free to improvise the scene another way.
Perhaps the Wasatch commander walks the
riverbank with his subordinate and conveys
the same information, emphasizing
54
again that, “As long as the bridge stands, we
keep fighting.”
A BRIDGE TOO FAR
Hopefully, the players key into the fact that
the trestle acts as an anchor, keeping the
spirits tied to this area. An Occult roll can
also convey the information, or confirm it if
the players figure it out themselves.
A Repair roll (or Science –2) notes the
bridge is poorly constructed. Wasatch put far
more effort into making it look viable than
in actually making it functional. Sufficient
damage to the trestle anywhere in its lower
midsection is likely to bring the entire
structure crashing down.
Even so, it’s still a rather large structure
and requires a fair amount of explosives to
bring down. Dropping the bridge quickly
requires destroying several of the middle
supports at once. This translates to a single
attack dealing at least 25 points of damage
in an area equal to a Large Blast Template,
or three dedicated explosions of 14 damage
each. All must be Heavy Weapons. A
character with an Arcane Background and
the blast power can give it a go as long as she
uses the Heavy Weapon modifier.
Dedicated (or bulletproof) folks can also
hack away at the timbers with an axe or saw,
but that takes 30 man-hours, all the while
dodging the ghostly missiles discussed under
Battlefield o’ the Damned.
A little searching along the bank finds
some of the physical remnants of the original
fight. There are tons of shell casings, bones,
and old rags—and a case filled with 45 sticks
of old dynamite!
A Notice roll—or automatic if asked—notes
the dynamite is coated with more than a few
drops of clear liquid. Time and moisture
have weakened the dynamite—what’s left is
enough to cause 4d6+12 damage in a 12” (24
yard) radius.
A Science roll (or Common Knowledge for
any hero with a background in the military,
mining, demolitions, or railroads) notes the
dynamite is “sweating” nitroglycerin and
highly unstable. The same roll also reveals
there’s more than enough explosive to bring
down the bridge if at least half the sticks
are used at once. A Critical Failure while
handling the dynamite, getting caught in
an area effect attack that causes at least 4
damage, or a roll of 1 on a d6 if a character is
hit by a stray shot, means it detonates. Great
care must be taken to handle the dynamite or
the party might wind up joining the ghosts in
their eternal battle!
The main problem, then, is getting the
dynamite to the trestle. It’s a long way from
the bank to the center of the river and the
trestle foundation. It’s time for a Dramatic
Task (see Savage Worlds), Marshal!
THINGS JUST GOT REAL...DANGEROUS!
There’s no time limit to this Dramatic Task
(see Savage Worlds), but the shooting is more
intense here. Make a Group d6 Shooting roll
against whoever’s carrying the dynamite (or
managing a horse or mule if it’s on its back).
Whoever’s carrying the dynamite is the
lead on the task—other party members can
tag along and Support the lead.
The first part of the task requires four Task
Tokens, using Athletics to wade or swim out
to the center of the trestle while wrangling
the 30-lb box of dynamite. (Use Riding if
managing a mount. Characters who can
Part 1-The Home Stretch
somehow fly can ignore this part of the task
entirely!)
Once there, the party is horrified to
discover they aren’t alone! Lying dormant
beneath the trestle is a horrible ‘glom! It
rises up as soon as the posse approaches and
attacks without mercy. Check for Surprise,
make some Fear checks, then let the party
figure out how they want to handle this
soggy new wrinkle.
The heroes can deal with the ‘glom first if
they want, or some of the party can battle
it or lure it away from whoever’s planting
the dynamite. The latter takes six Task
Tokens using Repair to properly set and
secure bundles at three different points in
the timbers.
There aren’t any blasting caps for the
dynamite, so the posse must shoot one of
the bundles they placed to detonate it (–4
Shooting given the size of a bundle). Hitting
one bundle detonates the others. Obviously
the group wants to be out of the 12”(24 yard)
blast radius when it goes off!
Complications during either part of the
task might be strong river currents or heavy
fire. Failure during a Complication means
one of the ghostly shots hits the dynamite
and KABOOM! Fortunately, the bridge blows,
but the gunslingers likely have to make some
wicked Soak rolls.
A resourceful posse can kill two birds with
one stone by luring the ‘glom near the trestle!
c ‘GLOM (1): See below.
c 'Glom
A ‘glom—short for conglomerate—is a group
of corpses joined together into a horrifying
mass. This one is made up of five corpses.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
Strength d12+1, Vigor d12+1
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d8, Intimida-
tion d6, Notice d10, Shooting d6, Stealth d4
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 14
Gear: It uses rusted firearms as clubs (Str+d6).
Special Abilities:
„ Clubs: Str+d6.
55
 „ Fear (−2): Anyone seeing a ‘glom must
make a Fear check at −2.
WIND RIVER TRESTLE'S FALLIN' DOWN
Assuming the heroes are ultimately
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

„ Fearless: ‘Gloms are immune to Fear

successful in bringing down the bridge one
and Intimidation.
way or another, it collapses dramatically into
„ ‘Glom: For every additional corpse
the river, flooding both banks with timbers
a ‘glom incorporates (this takes one
and debris. When the dust clears, a profound
round), it gains a die type in Strength
silence falls over the battlefield. The ghosts
and Vigor and +1 Size. A ‘glom may
look curiously at the strangers, then, almost
grow as large as 10 corpses; after that is
as one, lay down their arms and fade from
splits into two equal ‘gloms. A ‘glom can
sight. The canyon is now open to passage.
take three Wounds, plus one additional
Wound for every corpse after the third.
This ‘glom can take five Wounds before END O' THE TRAIL
it’s destroyed.
It’s barely another day’s travel to the northern
„ Size 4 (Large): This ‘glom is made of five
end of the canyon. There the Wind River
corpses.
leads into the Bighorn River Basin where
„ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover
Sutter’s land grant lies. The land lies near
from Shaken; ignore 1 point of Wound
Dirtwater, a small town on the Bighorn River.
modifiers; Called Shots do no extra
On arrival, Sutter settles up with any trail
damage; doesn’t breathe; immune to
hands who want to depart—including the
disease and poison.
posse—while leaving the option to remain in
„ Weakness (Head): A Notice roll at −1 for
his hire open to any who wish to do so. After
each ’glommed body (−4 max) reveals
all, raising a ranch isn’t a one-man task and
which of a ’glom’s many heads is the
Bill’s happy to get what help he can.
primary. If it’s destroyed the entire thing
dies instantly. If the posse accepted his offer for a portion
„ Coup (’Glom): Deaders who absorb a of the original herd, they’re likely invested
’glom’s mojo can absorb one corpse. This in the well-being of their own cattle. In that
takes a full round. case, Sutter welcomes them to stay, and in
return for their assistance in building the
“WELL...THAT...THAT WAS SOMETHIN’.” ranch, their cattle can graze the land as well.
–Abigail Morton

56

DIRTWATER BLUES
FEAR LEVEL: 3
Until recently, most of the land in the
Wyoming Territory was “public use”—that
is, owned by no one and available for grazing
purposes. Anyone who wanted to park a
mass of cows on a stretch of grassland could,
as long as no one owned it. And for the most
part, no one owned land in the territory.
The rise of the Sioux Nations has
caused property values in the area to rise
considerably, particularly those lands
capable of supporting herds of cattle. To
promote expansion west and development
of its own beef industry, Washington began
granting land deeds at low cost to folks
willing to brave the Indians and elements on
the off chance of turning a profit. Sutter got
his deed from just such an entrepreneur.
The seller neglected to tell the Texan
exactly why he was so eager to part ways
with the property. The land, nearly 65,000
acres, sits just north of a tiny frontier town
by the name of Dirtwater. More importantly,
it’s smack dab in the middle of a stretch of
grazing ground that a particularly ornery
rancher named Randolph Logan considers
his own by squatter’s rights.
NORTHERN STAR RANCH
Logan has gone so far with his land grab that
he’s offered a right-of-way to Iron Dragon to
CHAPT
ER
7
PART THREE: RANGE WAR
lay tracks into the town, which he promised
them will become a major source of cattle.
One of Kang’s agents, eager to score a
coup by finding a convenient and relatively
cheap supplier for the Great Maze, jumped
on the deal without looking too deeply into
the legality of Logan’s claims. Now, just as
construction is getting started in earnest, in
rides the Lazy S, not only holding a legal
deed to prime cattle land, but also straddling
a part of the right-of-way Logan recently sold.
The owner of Northern Star, needless
to say, is not pleased with the arrival of
Sutter’s herd. Arousing Kang’s ire is a
dangerous prospect!
SWEETWATER COUNTY: BATTLEGROUND!
Sweetwater County takes up most of the
central portion of Wyoming, stretching
from Colorado to Montana. When the Sioux
Nations extended into Wyoming, it split the
county into northern and southern portions.
In 1884, the majority of the county lies
between the Bighorn Mountains to the east,
the Absarokas to the west, and the Owl Creek
range (and Sioux Nations) to the south. Its
isolation has thus far kept a small population
in the county—barely a few hundred folks
call it home.
That doesn’t mean the area is a
quiet place to retire and kick off
57
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

your boots, though. Otherworldly horrors
occasionally slink through a portal to the
Hunting Grounds, hidden in the geysers
of Yellowstone only a few dozen miles to
the west. The notorious Hole in the Wall
hideout leads plenty of hard men with little
respect for the law to the region. And finally,
although the Bighorns aren’t technically part
of the Sioux Nations, some tribes hold places
in the mountain range to be sacred and look
poorly on folks who trespass.
All that withstanding, Sweetwater County
represents an opportunity for brave souls—
willing to face the dangers it holds—to grind THE LAW IN DIRTWATER
out a living there.
DIRTWATER
FEAR LEVEL: 3
Dirtwater is one of the few towns in
Sweetwater County, which is really saying
something since Sweetwater County covers a
fair piece of the northern Wyoming Territory.
It owes its current existence almost entirely
to Northern Star Ranch—at least until
the arrival of the Lazy S cowboys. In
fact, Dirtwater takes its name from the fact
that every time Northern Star cattle crossed
the nearby Bighorn River upstream from
the town, folks claimed, “A man could walk
across on the dirt in the water.”
The promise of a railhead in town has
drawn a few hardy souls to Dirtwater, but
even with the recent addition of an Iron
Dragon worker camp, the population has
yet to break into triple digits. Nonetheless,
it’s the largest population center along the
Bighorn River.
The state of local government in Dirtwater
might be summed up in three words:
there is none.
Well, that’s not exactly true. The locals did
figure out they needed someone to corral the
occasional serious offender and make sure
things don’t get too out of hand on Saturday
nights. To that end, they hired a town
marshal, and by “hired” we mean they found
a gunhand willing to work for whatever he
could bring in from fines and reward money.
Rory Tate, a one-time outlaw from Arkansas,
now keeps the peace in Dirtwater.

58
 Since there aren’t any official city
ordinances for him to draw fines on, Tate is
prone to make one or two up whenever his
STANDING
wallet gets light. Most of his income comes The people of Dirtwater are cowed by

Part 1-Dirtwater blues

from a “consideration” from Randolph
Logan to make sure he turns a blind eye to
any Northern Star business. While some of
the local business owners aren’t thrilled with
this arrangement, there’s not much they can
do about it.
Tate is more than happy to stretch the
definition of the law when it benefits him
or Northern Star. He’s also prone to using
his authority to harass or even jail members
of the Lazy S once matters come to a head
between the two ranches. Heroes can try
to thwart his heavy-handed and biased
enforcement practice by succeeding at a
Persuasion or Intimidation roll—either, in
this case, modified by the posse’s Standing
(see sidebar to the right).
Tate holds serious offenders, like
murderers and cattle rustlers who aren’t
lynched by Logan’s cowboys, until the
circuit judge arrives to hold court—usually
once a month except during winter months.
Of course, jailbirds can also appeal to Tate’s
greed by offering a bribe—which he calls
“bail.” A successful Persuasion roll (–2) grants
a release, with each $25 giving a +1 bonus
to the roll.
Sweetwater County does have an elected
sheriff who’s not beholden to Logan’s will.
Unfortunately, he operates out of Greenriver
on the other side of the Owl Creeks—and the
Sioux Nation—and seldom visits Dirtwater.
Randolph Logan and his enforcer, town
marshal Rory Tate. Newcomers who poke
at Logan’s interests are likely to cause
them great trouble. It might even get some
folks killed.
For that reason, the people of Dirtwater
have an Unfriendly attitude to the crew
of the Lazy S (see Persuasion in Savage
Worlds). If the heroes are careless and get
some of the locals injured or killed, the
townsfolk become Hostile.
Exactly when and how the scales tip back
in the posse’s favor is subjective, Marshal.
Bringing a few of Logan’s toughs to justice
or tangling with Iron Dragon’s enforcers
just aggravates the locals—the strangers
are stirring up a hornet’s nest. But if they
prove successful several times, especially
over significant odds, that attitude starts
to change. Spending significant money
or doing other good deeds should have a
similar effect, Marshal. Let the strangers’
actions determine which way the wind
blows and how long it takes to change the
town’s opinion of Sutter’s crew.
Individual nonplayer characters might
also improve their attitude toward the
heroes if they’re saved or protected by
them, so don’t be shy of tracking such folks
individually.

c Rory Tate DIRTWATER LOCALES

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Unless otherwise noted, Dirtwater citizens
Strength d6, Vigor d8
use the profile for Townsfolk in Deadlands:
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6,
The Weird West.
Fighting d6, Intimidation d10, Notice d8,
Persuasion d6, Shooting d10, Stealth d8
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6
BARBER
Identified by the unmistakable red-and-
Hindrances: Grim Servant o’ Death, Mean,
white-striped pole in front, Dirtwater’s
Ruthless (Minor)
barber, Horatio England, doesn’t get much
Edges: Duelist, Guts, Quick, Quick Draw,
call for his primary trade. He worked in field
Reputation (Bad)
hospitals during the war and now does a
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
fairly brisk business as the only “dentist” for
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
several days in any direction. In a pinch, he’s
‘73 rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1,
a fairly capable medic as well.
RoF 1, AP 2).

59
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
„ HORATIO ENGLAND: The barber has
Healing d8 in addition to the usual
Townsfolk skills.
BIG LUCY'S GAMBLING HALL
Big Lucy’s is what passes for a gentleman’s
club in Dirtwater. That means it boasts a few
soiled doves and an occasional poker game
in the parlor. The proprietor is Lucinda
Hayes, a former dance hall girl recently
arrived from St. Louis. She might be a few
years and a hundred pounds or so past her
physical prime, but few understand her line
of business better. Lucy hates Logan and his
cowboys, seeing them as bullies of the worst
kind. But she keeps her feelings to herself as
she understands all too well how much of
her establishment’s income is derived from
the pockets of Northern Star cowpokes.
CHURCH OF DIRTWATER
Twenty-nine days out of 30, this building sits
empty and is at best only about half-occupied
on the other day of the month. That’s
when Vernon Griffith, a circuit-riding
preacher (although not a blessed),
60
holds service. And that’s not because the
church is particularly large—it only seats
about 30 before folks begin bumping elbows.
Organized religion isn’t really catching on
in Dirtwater, although a few of the more
respectable citizens put in a lot of hard work
to get the structure erected in the hopes it
would. The plan is for the church to serve
as a schoolhouse once there are enough
children to warrant a teacher, but for now
it’s largely unused.
CLARK'S FEED STORE
For over a year, outside of an occasional
purchase from small-farm owners in the
area, Logan has effectively been Bertram
Clark’s only customer. As such, he is deeply
in Logan’s corner and keeps the rancher
informed of all goings-on of which he is
aware. Even once the Lazy S begins doing
business with him, Clark remains a staunch
backer of Logan, although he does so from
behind a false front of friendliness toward
Sutter and his cowboys.

DIRTWATER LIVERY
Owned by Josiah Johnson, the Dirtwater
Livery also serves as the town’s stagecoach
three Winchester ‘73 rifles and a double-
barrel shotgun for when the marshal needs
extra firepower.

Part 1-Dirtwater blues

depot, although both the Watering Hole c RORY TATE: See page 59.
and Winslow’s Hotel are jockeying to steal
that honor away. Johnson has a good eye
for horseflesh. Any mount bought from him
TERRITORIAL BANK OF WYOMING
The bank does little business, but its
costs 50% more, but gains a die type in one of
proprietor—and sole employee—Noble
either its Spirit, Strength, or Vigor attribute
Vincent, hopes Iron Dragon will change that
(buyer’s choice, don’t roll on the Horse Traits
soon. His only customers are a few local
table on page 11). He never has el cheapo
businessmen. Randolph Logan keeps most
horses for sale.
of his funds in a Laramie bank, maintaining
only a token account with Vincent.
GLAUSER'S DRY GOODS
One of the older establishments in Dirtwater,
Glauser’s has been around for nearly two
TRAIN STATION
A small contingent of Iron Dragon workers
years. The owner, Thomas Glauser, sees the
is here every day to erect the station. The
opportunity the Iron Dragon line offers, but
process takes about three weeks from the
is hedging his bets by keeping his profits
time the posse first arrives in Dirtwater
as high as he can until things settle out. He
to complete. After that, the workers are
doesn’t have a dog in the fight between
reassigned to laying track and the station
Northern Star and the Lazy S, just as long
sits empty.
as there’s someone left at the end to buy
his wares.
WATERING HOLE SALOON
Most common items (except dynamite) are The Watering Hole is the oldest building
available in his store, but at twice the listed in Dirtwater, having originally served as a
cost—wares are hard to come by out here. He trading post back before Logan and his crew
typically has a couple of shotguns, a handful arrived. After some extensive remodeling,
of six-shooters, and a rifle or two for sale, but the saloon now sports a large downstairs
at the same mark-up. He’s happy to order drinking hall and a few upstairs rooms
more exotic items or firearms, but charges that are available for rent. The dirt and
three times their normal price. questionable stains in each are free amenities.
The owner, Rufus Burke, long ago figured
LAND OFFICE out the Northern Star cowboys weren’t the
One of the newest arrivals in Dirtwater is
only ones buttering his bread, but also the
Milton Fisher, the local representative of the
ones bringing the bread and butter to the
Government Land Office. Fisher has been
table in the first place. While he doesn’t cut
sent to oversee the administration and sale
them any breaks on his whiskey prices, he is
of public lands in this part of the Wyoming
very likely to take their side in any argument
Territory. Although Logan has filed his deeds
or altercation—at least until he gets a taste
with Fisher, the agent hasn’t taken the time to
for the color of Lazy S money, that is.
review them for accuracy.
„ MILTON FISHER: The local land agent WINSLOW'S HOTEL
has Research d6 in addition to the usual Because it’s the only respectable place to rent
Townsfolk skills. a bed in Dirtwater at the moment, Daniel
Winslow takes advantage of his monopoly by
MARSHAL'S OFFICE charging $5 a day for a room with a simple
This one-room building serves as Rory straw mattress. He does little business with
Tate’s office. A cot in one corner makes up Logan and his men, though, so he’s less
the total of his living quarters. A pair of biased than some local merchants.
barred cells occupies the back third of the
building. A rack just inside the door holds

61
 IRON DRAGON WORK CAMP ENFORCERS
FEAR LEVEL: 3 Kang’s enforcers are housed in the largest of
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

the tents, near the western edge, and enjoy

A recent addition to Dirtwater is a cluster
considerably better living conditions than
of tents to the northeast of Big Lucy’s and
the average laborer. Each enjoys a much
the Watering Hole Saloon. Here reside
larger living area and most are partitioned
several dozen or so of Kang’s workers who
with privacy curtains. Additionally, they are
are building the town’s new train station
paid much better than the common laborers
and laying track to link up with the main
and spend most of their off hours at Han’s
operation coming from Montana. A few of
saloon tent.
his enforcers are also on hand to protect his
interests and keep the workers in line. The gunmen are led by Li Zhin, an
experienced martial artist. Li finds the
A small Chinatown of sorts has grown up
prejudice of Northern Star ranch hands
on the western edge of the camp to provide
unpleasant, but honors his employer’s
the rail workers—most of whom originally
agreement with the rancher. Once Logan’s
hail from the Far East—some familiar, if
claims are proven false, he takes a much
minimal, comforts. All told, the population of
more belligerent stance. As a result, Li can
the work camp rivals that of Dirtwater itself.
become a valuable ally for the posse later in
During the day, the tent city is virtually this adventure.
empty with the exception of those workers
either too sick or injured to contribute, and c LI ZHIN: See page 85.
a couple of armed enforcers who protect „ IRON DRAGON ENFORCERS (5): See below.
what meager property there is. After dark,
the area bustles with workers, some involved IRON DRAGON ENFORCERS
in cooking or similar mundane task, while This far from home, Iron Dragon’s
others socialize or engage in exotic games enforcers are riffraff who have only learned
of chance. rudimentary martial arts. They’re more likely
to rely on their pistols in a real fight, but are
Across the main drag from the Dirtwater
all too happy to practice their hand-to-hand
Livery sits a collection of four tents the town
skills by ganging up on someone and beating
residents refer to as Canvas Chinatown.
him senseless.
These are owned not by Kang, but by
individuals who, for lack of a better word, Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d6,
are basically camp followers. One of the Strength d6, Vigor d6
tents specializes in providing spices and Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d4,
foods uncommon in the average Western Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, Per-
settlement, like snake, duck, and even suasion d6, Shooting d6, Stealth d6
sparrow. Another provides laundry and Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
seamstress services. Hindrances: Mean, Poverty (Minor)
Edges: Martial Artist
„ HAN’S SALOON: The tent that attracts the
Gear: Club or knife (Str+d4), Colt Frontier
most attention—both from Dirtwater
(Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP
and Kang’s workers—is Han’s Saloon.
1).
The owner, Hu Shou Han, is a very
canny entrepreneur. By providing more
traditional beverages and gambling tables “YOU THINK YOU CAN SCARE US?
featuring dice and tile games, he draws
plenty of customers from the rail gang—
HAVE YOU NOT HEARD OF OUR
as well as the more adventurous local GREAT AND RAVENOUS WARLORD,
folk.
KANG, MASTER OF A THOUSAND
ANCIENT TORTURES?”
–Li Zhin

62

OPENING VOLLEYS
This twist in the tale of the Blood Drive kicks
off shortly after the Lazy S herd—of which
the heroes are likely part-owners—reaches
its destination just north of Dirtwater.
After arriving in the area, the first order
of business is to get a bunkhouse and
other necessary outbuildings constructed.
Although it’s only late August, winter comes
quickly on the Wyoming plains. Sutter
wants to make sure lodgings are laid in as
soon as possible. Wood’s not in abundance
in the area, so the majority of the cowboys
not riding herd are dispersed far and wide
looking for suitable trees to fell.
Although Randolph Logan was aware of a
large herd passing near Dirtwater, he didn’t
think they’d actually have the temerity to
settle on “his land.” Once he discovers the
Lazy S plans on establishing a permanent
operation he’s spoiling for a fight.
CONFRONTATION
Shortly after Bill Sutter picks a permanent
site for the ranch, he heads out with a couple
cowboys to ride the limits of his land grant.
If the posse members are part-owners of the
herd, Sutter leaves them in charge, but it’s
understood his niece Abby speaks for his
interests. Otherwise, while the rancher is
away, Abby is left in charge of the crew.
CHAPT
ER
8
PART THREE: RANGE WAR
About a day after Bill leaves the fledgling
ranch, a band of riders from Northern
Star approaches the camp. The group isn’t
actually looking for Sutter’s herd. They
stumble onto the Lazy S while hunting their
own strays.
The cowboys are a little belligerent,
accusing the Lazy S of squatting. They’re
outnumbered and not foolish enough to look
for a real fight though. Should it look like
tempers are about to flare, they back down
and ride out, but not before warning,
“You ain’t heard the last of this!”
„ NORTHERN STAR COWBOYS (5): Use
Gunman profile on page 83.
A POX UPON YOU
Sutter doesn’t return as scheduled the day
after the tussle with the Northern Star riders.
Given the parting threat, Abby is more than
a little concerned for her uncle’s safety. She
waits till around noon then asks the posse
to ride out and find him. She knows he was
headed generally west, and points to a low
range of hills in the distance.
Finding Bill requires a successful Survival
(tracking) roll at –2 (–6 at night), with each
attempt taking four hours.
63
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

When they’re eventually successful, the Initially, he’s a bit confused, but once his
group comes across Sutter’s campsite. The head and vision clear, Sutter recognizes his
riders had set camp in a slight depression in friends. He says,
the hills, no doubt to protect it from the stiff
“We was attacked in the night. Damn
winds that often blow across the basin.
Injun got Rusty with an arrow before he
The corpses of the two men riding with could warn us. I was just lucky he went after
Sutter are in the camp. One has an arrow poor ol’ Lancaster next. Cut the man’s throat
square in the chest while the other is still in before he even got his eyes open. His gurglin’
his bedroll, dead from a cut throat. There is woke me up, though, so there’s that, I guess.
no immediate sign of Sutter, although his
“I tell you, I’d swear it was that old
saddle and bedroll are lying near the ashes
Comanch, To’sarre—but he looked real sick.
of a day-old fire.
He was covered in sores and looked closer to
Examining the corpses quickly leads the death than an undertaker’s boots. I pulled
cowpokes to the conclusion the body with my hogleg, but the sneakin’ bastard jumped
the arrow was likely on watch. Anyone who me before I could draw a bead. I caught wind
looks at it closely gets a Notice roll. Success of him and it was like breathin’ in rot and
reveals the projectile is covered in filth and corruption.
a variety of noxious substances. The same
“While I was still gagging, he lit out,
slime is evident around the wound on the
laughin’ all the way—at tormentin’ me, I
other body as well.
reckon. I chased him out to here but ran out
of steam, I guess.”
SICK & TIRED
A Survival (tracking) roll at the campsite Sutter has been lying on the hill for the
uncovers a pair of booted footprints heading better part of a day. He insists he’s just
off into the short grass. Following it a short “tuckered out,” but a persistent cough and the
distance to a small hillock, the heroes find blisters dotting his flesh tell a different story.
Sutter lying on the ground near a small
Sutter is right—it was To’sarre who
clump of brush.
attacked him. The vengeful shaman died of
Bill is unconscious but responds groggily if the plague he got from the vampire blood
anyone shakes him or makes a loud noise. If at the abandoned fort and has returned as
anyone gets close enough to touch him, she a deadly pox walker. To’sarre blames Sutter
spots a few small blisters on his neck and the whole Lazy S crew for his hideous
and hands. existence and intends to kill or infect every

64
one of them. He let Sutter live both to torture
him and in the hope the rancher would
spread the pox to more of his cowboys.
SUTTER'S FATE

Part 1-Opening Volleys

Up to this point in the Blood Drive story,
CONTAGIOUS we’ve been using Sutter and his niece
Any sodbuster who comes in direct physical Abigail largely as tools to keep the herd
contact with Sutter has to make a Vigor roll moving forward. Now that the Lazy S
or contract a Chronic Disease (see Savage is settled in Wyoming, they’re no longer
Worlds). Symptoms manifest a day later, nearly as important to the tale. At this
and can then be spread to others as well point in the adventure, though, it’s up to
(but ignore the −2 penalty when contacted you whether you want to keep them in
by someone other than the pox walker). your game, Marshal. If the posse’s built
The disease is magical in nature, so even a strong relationship with either or both,
Harrowed may be infected—though they and it enhances your game, by all means
can’t spread it. keep them.
The trip back to the ranch is uneventful If you think your heroes are ready to
other than Bill’s constant cough. It’s pretty leave the nest and handle the upcoming
clear the cowpokes’ partner is in sorry fight without any pointers from Sutter
shape. Abby immediately hustles him into or Abby, feel free to cut them loose. The
the main building and sets to nursing the pox walker’s disease may force the Texan
ailing rancher. to head for more favorable climes or seek
more advanced medical care. Or if you feel
it’s a stronger conclusion for the character,
PEACE TALKS perhaps he falls victim to To’sarre’s pox
The next day Abby hunts up the heroes and is buried on the Wyoming plains.
and tells them she’s concerned about
Either way, Sutter—or Abby, if the
the recent run-in with the Northern Star
rancher passes away—offers the cowpokes
hands. She asks the wranglers to ride over
a deal they can’t beat: When the herd is
to speak to the owner. She hopes it’s just a
sold, if they’ll send him his share of
misunderstanding a little parley can clear up.
the profits, he agrees to sign over the
If the cowpokes have spent any time in ranch to them!
Dirtwater, odds are they’ve already got a
good feel for where Northern Star is located.
Otherwise, they have to detour briefly into
the little boomtown to get directions.
SO MUCH FOR DIPLOMACY!
The trip to Northern Star takes After an uncomfortable five-minute wait,
approximately half a day, but the posse Logan emerges from the house with his pet
encounters no problems en route (unless you scientist, Barnabas Morley, in tow. Although
want ’em to, Marshal). Upon their arrival at he feigns civility at first, the facade lasts
the competing ranch, they’re met by a group only as long as it takes to mention his riders
of well-armed riders. When they reveal the visiting the Lazy S a few days ago. At that
reason for their visit, they’re escorted to the point, the man’s true colors show. He snarls,
main house. One of the cowboys heads inside
“As far as I’m concerned, you all are
while the rest remain within spitting distance
nothing but flea-bitten squatters. You and
with their hands always near their shooting
your mangy beasts have three days to get off
irons. The Lazy S riders are kept near the
my range.”
front porch and not allowed to roam the rest
of the grounds under any circumstances. Logan’s in a tough spot and he knows it.
The Lazy S is in the right legally but he’s
„ NORTHERN STAR COWBOYS (4): Use
already cut a deal selling land he didn’t
Gunman profile on page 83.
technically own. Worse, he’s spent
a fair chunk of the proceeds from

65
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
that financing Barnabas Morley and his
experiments. As he sees it, his only hope is
to try to bully Sutter and his crew off the land
just like he did the original owner.
If anyone mentions the land grant that
Sutter holds, Logan becomes nearly irrational
and shouts:
“I don’t care dog spit about no stinkin’
piece of paper! I tamed this here land and
there ain’t nobody tellin’ me who owns
it. Me and my boys’ll ground that scrap
of writin’ into the dirt just as quick as we
do you if you’re still there when we come
a-knockin’!”
With that, he orders his men to roust the
posse from his ranch. The Northern Star men
don’t draw their weapons unless the heroes
do first, but make it very clear there’s no
further discussion on the matter. Should the
characters decide to try to start a fight, point
out they’re deep in the heart of Northern
Star territory and Logan has a small army
on hand. They might also get charged with
murder, tainting or even forfeiting the Lazy
S forever. If they can’t take the hint, let ’em
reap what they sow, Marshal!
Initially, there’s one cowboy per hero, but
if lead starts flyin’, two more arrive each
round until there are a total of four per
player character. Logan and his men use
cover from the buildings whenever possible.
Morley uses his fear and zombie powers as
appropriate.
66
The Northern Star men don’t surrender
unless Logan is incapacitated. They also
don’t initially pursue any cowpokes who flee
the fight, figuring they can take care of the
troublemakers soon enough.
c RANDOLPH LOGAN: See page 85.
c BARNABAS MORLEY: See page 85.
„ NORTHERN STAR COWBOYS (up to 4 per
hero): Use Gunman profile on page 83.
A TRIP TO TOWN
When the cowpokes notify Sutter of Logan’s
response, he falls into a coughing fit. Once it
resolves, he makes it clear he has no intention
of vacating the range. He asks the heroes
to do two further tasks for him while he’s
recuperating.
First, he wants them to ride into Dirtwater
the next day and order up as much barbed
wire as they can from the dry goods store
(about $250 worth). Sutter explains he
intends to fence off his property. Second, he
wants them to take his deed to the land office
and have it recorded, as he says,
“So everything is nice and legal when we
kick Logan’s butt!”
If any posse members balk at getting
involved in a fight between the Lazy S
and Northern Star, Sutter is disappointed
but doesn’t try to convince them
otherwise. He says,
 “Well, I figure it’s likely to get nasty and Dirtwater. They should serve to confuse
if that ain’t your cup of Arbuckles, I can’t the trail for the posse a little, as well as give
hold it against you. As for me, I’m done with them a look at exactly how dirty Randolph
runnin’ from bullies.” Logan is willing to get to accomplish his

Part 1-Opening Volleys

goals. Although you can throw any or all
If the heroes are part owners of the herd,
of them at your cowpokes in any order, we
Sutter goes so far as to offer to buy them
recommend you use them all before moving
out of their share, at a fair price of $5 a head.
on to the next chapter.
(This, of course, likely ends the characters’
involvement in the adventure as well!)

BAYOU ON THE HIGH PLAINS

DAILY BUSINESS
Run this encounter anytime one or more of
the player characters heads into Dirtwater,
In spite of Logan’s threats, the Lazy S has no
perhaps to record Sutter’s deed or just gather
trouble from him right away. This is likely
supplies. In town, they see an odd-looking
a relief to the heroes as more of their own
fellow wearing a top hat and tattered tailcoat
hands start contracting the pox from contact
walking into the Watering Hole. The observer
with Sutter (or To’sarre can sneak in and do
also notes the man has several unusual rings
the same if needed). Hopefully, by this point,
and talismans. Those who ask around and
the posse has figured out to stay clear of the
succeed on a Persuasion roll catch wind of
infected folks, but if not, feel free to keep
rumors about a group of “strange southern
having them make the appropriate Vigor
fellas” who rode into town last night. A
rolls until they get the hint.
raise reveals the bunch is connected to some
Over the coming weeks, To’sarre continues railroad named “Bayou something-or-other.”
to prey on lone Lazy S cowboys, either killing
It’s very possible for the posse to assume
them outright if he can catch them alone,
the Bayou Vermilion enforcers are there
or secretly infecting them with the pox by
looking for Sutter and the Lazy S—especially
tainting their food in bird form—we’ll leave
once they learn the railroad men are asking
the specifics to your imagination. Within a
about anyone who recently arrived from
week or two, none of the hands is willing to
the south!
ride night watch without a partner—or three!
They’re in town trying to track down
If no one else suggests it, Abby eventually
Barnabas Morley, however. Not too long
sets up a large tent to quarantine the infected
before joining up with Logan, Morley
hands. By that time, nearly half of them are
expressed a little too much scientific interest
down with the pox, leaving less than a dozen
in the Baron’s special enforcers—the undead
to keep the ranch functioning. Unfortunately
ones—and LaCroix wants to make sure he
for the characters, this means a lot more time
didn’t make off with any trade secrets.
handling the mundane work. The heroes
spend their morning putting up barbed wire The railroad men are very circumspect
fences, then take on a chore from the Chores about their questions and reveal nothing
Table on page 10. A cowpoke is Fatigued about who they’re specifically looking for.
at the end of her chores, though it fades after No one in Dirtwater knows about Morley’s
a good night’s sleep. past except Logan, and he’s not talking. If
the posse does nothing, the Bayou Vermilion
Altogether this should reinforce the idea
thugs poke around for a couple days then
of how hard ranching is, and that they’re
leave. On the other hand, if they provoke a
quickly getting short-handed. No one in
fight with the enforcers, the posse finds them
Dirtwater comes to work for them either, so
more than willing to tango!
they’re on their own until the range war with
Logan is settled.
The rest of this chapter provides a
variety of encounters around the ranch and

67
 Of course, if they get into a shootout in
town, heroes may have some fast talking to
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
do to avoid running afoul of Marshal Tate.
„ BAYOU VERMILION LEADER: Use the Cult
Leader profile in Deadlands: The Weird
West. He’s armed with a Gatling shotgun
(Range 12/24/48, Damage 1–3d6, RoF 2).
„ ENFORCERS (5): Use the Gunman profile
on page 83. They accompany their
pistols with sawed-off double-barrel
shotguns (Range 12/24/48, Damage
1–3d6, RoF 1) instead of rifles, however.
They do their work messy.
WOLVES IN THE FOLD
A night or two after your cowpokes begin
extra duty, something gets the cattle stirred
up and nervous. This can take place while the
wranglers are bedded down trying to recover
from the labors of the previous day, or while
they’re on night watch out in the grassland.
Either way, they’ve not had enough rest to
recover any Fatigue from the previous day.
Investigating the herd’s agitation quickly
reveals its source. A pack of particularly
THE WSGA
The Wyoming Stock Grower’s Association
is an alliance of cattle barons based in
Laramie. It was once the most influential
group in Wyoming, shaping the course
of territorial policy and even, in some
cases, that of everyday life. The rise of the
Sioux Nations significantly cut into their
range land and hamstrung most of their
political clout.
Northern Star Ranch is one of the largest
remaining members of the WSGA, and
Logan holds a fair amount of influence
in the group’s decision making. Logan is
also the only member in the central valley,
leaving him somewhat removed from the
full weight the WSGA might otherwise
bring to bear against his rivals.
68
gutsy wolves has downed one of the bulls
and is tearing the poor beast limb from limb.
The wolves are beyond rabid in their ferocity
and don’t flee at any point. All fight to the
death—or in this case, beyond it.
„ Weird Wolves (2, plus 1 per hero): See
below.
WEIRD WOLVES
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A),
Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Fighting d6, Notice d10,
Stealth d6
Pace: 8; Parry: 5; Toughness: 9 (2)
Edges: Fleet-Footed
Special Abilities:
„ Armor +2: These critters’ hides have
developed scales underneath their fur!
„ Bite/Claw: Str+d4.
„ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover
from Shaken; no additional damage
from Called Shots; doesn’t breathe;
immune to disease and poison.
TAINTED MEAT
After the posse puts the abominable critters
down, a quick examination tells them
something is definitely wrong here. The
wolves are particularly large, and a successful
Notice roll while examining a carcass notes
the beasts have thick, scaly hides under their
mangy fur.
The heroes probably think the wolves were
tainted by To’sarre, but they weren’t. In truth,
the mongrels feasted on the carcass of one
of Barnabas Morley’s experiments and are
now more than a little tainted. Head over
to Morley’s Madness on page 78 to see
exactly what the scientist has been up to.
A LONG SHOT
This particular tale works best after the Lazy
S crew has finished running barbed wire one
day and are heading back to the ranch for
their next chore.
Shortly after they leave, Northern Star
riders sneak in and cut the wire. They’re
careful to make sure no one’s watching so
there’s no direct evidence, and they don’t
steal any cattle (yet). Their intent is to set the
stage for the coming range war.
Logan contacted some of his friends in
the Wyoming Stock Growers’ Association
(see sidebar on page 68) back in Laramie
for some extra muscle to use against Sutter.
Although it takes the other barons some
time to raise any real numbers of gunmen,
they’re able to scrounge up a small number
of “independent contractors” willing to pull
a trigger for the right amount of money.
LYING IN WAIT
The shortage of able-bodied hands at the
Lazy S means the heroes end up having to
repair the damaged wire themselves. The
first couple times they have to restring the
barbed wire, it only means some extra
blisters and lost daylight. The third time the
posse has to repair the damaged fencing, one
of Logan’s hired shooters ambushes them.
By the time the group arrives at the scene
of the cutting—a wide-open stretch of prairie
with no real terrain features nearby—the
gunman is already in position atop a distant
hill. Once the posse dismounts and begins
work, he opens fire. The shooter spends a
full round Aiming and his rifle is equipped
with a newfangled Smith & Robards 2x
telescopic sight, reducing the total penalty
from Extreme Range from –8 to –2.
The sniper is well hidden, lying down in
tall grass, and over 500 feet away (85”). After
each shot, the heroes can make opposed
Notice rolls against the gunman’s Stealth to
attempt to spot the bushwhacker.
He keeps firing on the posse until he puts
them all down, they retreat, they close to
within medium range (48”), or he’s Shaken
by an attack. At that point, he runs down the
backside of the hill to where he’s hobbled his
own horse and attempts to flee.
If captured alive, a successful Intimidation
roll elicits the following:
“I was hired by some fella in Laramie to
come out here and put the fear o’ God into
you squatters.”
The Wyoming Stock Grower’s Association
hired the former buffalo hunter through
an agent, so he doesn’t actually know he’s
working for Logan—but a canny group of
saddletramps can probably guess!
„ SNIPER (1): Use the Gunman, Veteran
Part 1-Opening Volleys
profile on page 83. Add the Marksman
Edge. He’s armed with a Bullard Express
rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d10,
RoF 1, AP 2) with a Smith & Robards
telescopic sight (2x).
RUSTLE, RUSTLE
This encounter is best employed after—or
during—the previous tale, A Long Shot. A
small band of outlaws who’ve holed up in
the nearby Bighorn Mountains have recently
taken to stealing cattle now and again from
Northern Star. With the arrival of the Lazy S,
they decide to expand their acquisitions to a
new frontier.
The gang was briefly thwarted by the
barbed wire the cowboys strung, wire
cutters not being part of the standard outlaw
kit. While it was easy enough for them to
circumvent the fencing on foot, it was too
much hassle to breach it for horses or cattle.
Now that Logan’s sniper covers anyone
trying to repair cut wire, all bets are off!
Morton Walsh and his gang start pilfering
Lazy S cattle, a few head here and there at
first, but as time goes on, the gang begins
pulling larger groups. After about a week,
the rustlers cut 20 or more cows at a time.
Eventually, the ranch hands notice the
missing animals. (This might even happen
the first time your cowpokes become aware
of the damaged fence line, Marshal.)
THE FINGER OF BLAME
Before the Lazy S can figure out who’s
nabbing their cattle, a small band of riders
from Northern Star shows up at their
doorstep—with Marshal Tate in tow.
The foreman of the group starts tossing
accusations at the heroes and the rest of the
Lazy S crew. Marshal Tate puts on a weak
facade of the peacemaker and intervenes
between the two groups before trouble
breaks out. He says,
“These are some serious accusations,
folks. I’m sure you won’t mind if I
69
 examine your herd—you know, to make the posse succeeds in capturing any of the
sure there’s not been accidental mingling rustlers alive, they gain Standing in town.
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

of cattle.”
„ THE WALSH GANG (2 per hero): Use the
If they allow it, the marshal finds no Gunman profile on page 83.
Northern Star animals in the Lazy S herd.
Walsh and his gang have been preying on
Logan’s ranch for months. He just decided WOLVES IN WOLVES' CLOTHING
to use this as an opportunity to make trouble
for Sutter, and Tate was easily convinced to
Run this encounter anytime after Wolves
play along.
in the Fold, preferably at least a couple of
Logan’s cowboys are badly outnumbered nights later.
and have no plans to start a fight. Tate
One of the party members, chosen
has absolutely no jurisdiction outside
randomly, is out late finishing up her chores
of Dirtwater, so if the group chooses to
when she hears distant gunshots and a cry
stonewall him, he puffs up his chest but
for help. Whatever she chooses to do, two of
eventually rides off with the Northern Star
the Lazy S hands are about a half-mile out
hands. As long as the posse doesn’t slap
from the ranch in serious trouble.
leather, the encounter resolves with a lot of
talk and no bullets. A genuine, dyed-in-the-wool pack of
werewolves live among the citizens of
c RORY TATE: See page 59. Dirtwater. Perhaps driven by some kinship
„ NORTHERN STAR COWBOYS (up to 4 per with the wolves the party killed a few nights
hero): Use the Gunman profile on page prior, they decide to lope across the Lazy S
83. spread and see what kind of trouble they can
cause. Of course their kind of trouble is all
STAKEOUT fangs and claws and crimson death. Using
Tracking the rustlers proves hopeless. The their infravision to strike at night likely puts
gang rousts the cattle across miles of open our heroes in deadly straits.
prairie, no small portion of which is grazing
The werewolves toy with their victims
land for Northern Star. The tracks are
for a full minute, giving the posse six whole
quickly intermingled with and obliterated
rounds to gather their companions and head
by those of the larger herds. The only way to
out. If they don’t, or don’t get there in time,
stop Morton Walsh’s gang is to catch them
the lycanthropes savage the cowboys and
in the act.
leave chunks of bloody meat strewn across
The posse can do this by setting up a the field.
stakeout near one of the broken sections of
If they do get there in time, assign the two
fencing. (Doing this might expose them to
cowboy Extras to players, deal out Action
Logan’s sniper if they’ve not already dealt
Cards, and let the fur fly. Oh, and yes, of
with him!) The gang only strikes at night
course it’s a full moon, Marshal.
but isn’t too worried about getting caught.
Unless the heroes do something foolish like „ WEREWOLVES (4): See below.
build a fire or sing lullabies to the cows,
allow them a chance to surprise the good- WEREWOLF
for-nothing cattle thieves. Since the fight’s Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
taking place at night, don’t forget targets Strength d12+2, Vigor d10
aren’t visible beyond 10” and there’s a –4 Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge
penalty to attack rolls. d8, Fighting d12+2, Intimidation d10,
Notice d12, Stealth d10, Survival d10
The gang fights until more than half of their
Pace: 8; Parry: 9; Toughness: 8
number are Incapacitated, then surrender to
Special Abilities:
take their chances with the legal system. If
„ Bite/Claws: Str+d8.

70

„ Fast Regeneration: Roll natural healing
every round unless the Wounds were
caused by magical or silver objects.
„ Fear (−2): All lycanthropes cause Fear.
„ Infection: Anyone slain by a were has a
50% chance of rising as one themselves,
involuntarily transforming every full
moon. Most gain control after 1d6 years.
„ Infravision: Halve Illumination penal-
ties when attacking warm targets.
„ Size 1: Werecritters are hulking brutes.
„ Coup (Wolf’s Heart): Harrowed gain
+1 Toughness but take +4 damage from
silver weapons.
STRANGERS IN TOWN
While some or all of the heroes are visiting
Dirtwater, they catch sight of a man driving
a steam wagon down the street. The man
is dressed in work clothes, with a long coat
and bowler, and wears a pair of brass wind
goggles. With a successful Notice roll, a
Part 1-Opening Volleys
cowpoke spots a number of dark stains where
the driver’s pants emerge from beneath his
coat. They could be anything from oil to mud
to blood (it’s a little of all three).
A local resident comments as the
contraption trundles past:
“Now, there goes an odd duck! He’s s’posed
to be some sort o’ expert Logan brought in.
You know, to help with his herd. Logan sure
has lost a bevy o’ cattle to hardship over the
last few years. Apparently, he bought some
o’ them fancy Euro-pee-an cows. Guess they
weren’t up to the Wyomin’ winters. He
might o’ been some fancy officer back in the
War, but that don’t mean he can raise cattle.
“The expert’s handle is Barnabas Morley.
He’s supposed to be helpin’ Logan with
his herd somehow. I don’t know what he’s
s’posed to be doing. Fact is, I’m not sure that
dude knows a heifer from a bull.”
Morley ignores the Lazy S cowpokes
and heads into the local saloon for
71
 a drink. He’s accompanied by a far more Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
aggressive companion, however—gunslinger Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), $150.
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Matt “Ricochet” Reynolds.

I'M CALLIN' YOU OUT! MAN-EATING COW!

Randolph Logan sent for hired guns through
the WSGA and they’re starting to trickle in. This encounter can occur day or night, at
One is an experienced killer named Matt the ranch proper or while the posse is riding
Reynolds (he earned his sobriquet when he the range. It works best if it happens on
missed his opponent, but the shot bounced Lazy S land, but you can even spring it on
back and hit him from behind—or so it’s told). your cowpokes as they’re riding to or from
Dirtwater. If it occurs at the ranch, the heroes
Matt sees the party’s arrival as an
are roused by exclamations of shock and
opportunity to earn a bonus from Mr. Logan—
surprise from some of the hands who’ve not
and to increase his reputation. He looks for
fallen ill. Otherwise, they simply ride upon
a way to interact with the Lazy S champions
the scene while traveling the wilderness.
and turn it into a duel. Reynolds chooses the
most competent-looking gunslinger of the An unusually large steer stands over the
lot. He wants to make an impression, and body of a cow. At first glance the intimidating
if doing so cuts the strongest bull from the beast appears to be protecting the fallen one,
herd, all the better. Use the rules for Duelin’ but after a moment the creature dips its head
in Deadlands: The Weird West if he’s successful, and takes a bite from the carcass beneath it!
and let the blood fall where it may. And while it’s possible some of the characters
may not be the most experienced cowboys,
Once the dust clears, the town marshal
even the greenest of the group realizes this
steps in…but not a second before. If a posse
isn’t normal behavior for cattle.
member fired first, Marshal Tate is quick
to throw her in a cell. With a successful The crazed bull eyes the posse for a
Persuasion or Intimidation roll, the rest of moment then lets out a bellow that borders
the heroes can produce enough witnesses to on unearthly and charges. The beast fights to
prove their amiga’s innocence. On the other the death or until the adventurers flee. This
hand, if Richochet is the last man standing, isn’t meant to be a dangerous encounter—
their friend is out of luck and Tate rules it a although this is Savage Worlds so anything
case of self-defense. can happen—but it portends greater threats
ahead (see Morley’s Madness on page 78).
c Matt Reynolds Should the posse succeed in killing
Reynolds really did earn the “Ricochet”
the critter, a number of things regarding
sobriquet honestly, but is extremely sensitive
its appearance strike them as odd. It has
to folks claiming he shot his opponent in the
the same scaly hide as the wolves they
back. Add +2 if anyone attempts to Taunt
previously encountered (see Wolves in the
him about that.
Fold on page 68). Its hooves and horns
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, bear a nearly metallic sheen. Its wounds
Strength d6, Vigor d8 slowly ooze a thick, blackish fluid rather than
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6, blood, and its eyes are sunken and white
Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d6, with cataracts. Finally, there’s a prominent
Persuasion d4, Riding d8, Shooting d10, Northern Star brand on its flank—which may
Stealth d6 warn the characters something’s amiss on
Pace: 5; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6 Logan’s ranch, but may also make them leery
Hindrances: Grim Servant o’ Death, Mean, of saying anything after the recent rustling
Vengeful (Minor) accusations thrown their way!
Edges: Duelist, Marksman, No Mercy, Quick
„ MAD COW: See page 89.
Draw

72
 There’s no prescribed way for the posse
TO'SARRE'S LAIR to catch To’sarre and end his reign of terror.
They might use magical abilities to find him,
FEAR LEVEL: 5 set a trap, or simply scour the land until

Part 1-Opening Volleys

they find him. Dedicating too much time
To’sarre, ever cautious, lairs in a series of
to his pursuit interferes with the ranch’s
craggy hills and dying trees 20 miles north
operations, of course. You can emphasize
of the Lazy S. That’s far enough away the
that through Bill and Abby’s protests, steers
cowboys aren’t likely to discover him, and
going missing (Northern Star rustlers and
close enough he can prey on them—which is
occasionally others who take advantage of
exactly what he does.
the posse’s distraction), or Bill might even
To’sarre lurks along the edges of the Lazy S, collapse one day from working too hard to
picking off ranch hands whenever he’s able. cover the heroes’ absence. It’s okay to make
He doesn’t attack directly, but instead sends this a hard choice, Marshal. Decisions like
infected animals after the hands. Whether the these are part of owning a ranch, and letting
animals are victorious or not doesn’t matter— the players argue over how to handle all the
the pox walker cares only that the creatures demands on their time is part of the fun.
infect their prey.
Roll a d6 every day. On a 1–4, To’sarre
ONE SICK DOG
If the heroes catch To’sarre in the open, he
doesn’t encounter any of the hands that day.
tries to fly away to his lair. Keen-eyed heroes
On 5–6, two hands, chosen randomly, are
can follow his flight, however, and see he
out stringing wire when they’re attacked by
heads for a line of craggy hills to the north.
“rabid” animals. (See To’sarre’s creatures on
page 74 if you want to know what attacked If he can’t flee for some reason, the fight
them, Marshal.) takes place on rutted ground with a few
scraggly trees and rocks around—create
To’sarre never shows himself, but lurks
whatever battlefield you think is appropriate.
nearby, watching in human form if he can
hide well enough, or animal form (usually a For dramatic effect, try to stage the final
raven) if not. fight at the shaman’s lair. A few Survival

73
 rolls in the northern hills quickly turn up Edges: Brute
footprints leading into a gulley. A squat tree Special Abilities:
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

with dozens of thick roots overhangs the end „ Bite/Claws: Str+d6.

of the gulley, forming a kind of cave. The „ Infection: Anyone Shaken or Wounded
plants for 50 yards in all directions are brown must make a Vigor roll at –2 or con-
and wilted, and the disease-ridden corpses of tracted a Chronic Disease.
numerous animals—wolves, two moose, and „ Resilient: The bear can take a Wound
even a grizzly—lie scattered about. before it’s Incapacitated.
„ Size 2: The grizzly weighs over 1,000 lbs.
There’s no doubt this is the lair of the
pox walker.
DISEASED MOOSE
Assuming he’s present, To’sarre waits until Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4 (A),
the party gets close to the overhang then Spirit d8, Strength d12, Vigor d12
gives rise to his minions. The wolves, moose, Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d6, Notice d6,
and grizzly rise with piteous roars. Time Stealth d4
for Fear checks, and then deal the Action Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 10
Cards, Marshal. Edges: —
Special Abilities:
If he’s about to be slain, To’sarre doesn’t
„ Bite/Horns: Str+d6. May charge.
hesitate to try to escape again. You want
„ Infection: Anyone Shaken or Wounded
this to be his last stand though, Marshal, so
must make a Vigor roll at –2 or con-
encourage the heroes to figure out a way to
tracted a Chronic Disease.
keep him from running away, let him stick
„ Resilient: Each moose can take a Wound
around a round or two more than he should
before it’s Incapacitated.
(it’s his lair, after all), or give the party a
„ Size 2: These moose weigh over 1,200
chance to shoot him if he changes into a
lbs.
raven and tries to escape.
c TO’SARRE, POX WALKER: See page 87. DISEASED WOLVES
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A),
„ TO’SARRE’S MENAGERIE: The shaman
Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
has five wolves, two moose, and a grizzly
Skills: Athletics d6, Fighting d6, Notice d10,
under his control—all infected with his
Stealth d6
deadly pox.
Pace: 8; Parry: 5; Toughness: 9
Edges: Fleet-Footed
DISEASED BEAR Special Abilities:
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6 (A),
„ Armor +2: These critters’ hides have
Spirit d8, Strength d12+2, Vigor d12
developed scales underneath their fur!
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d8, Notice d8,
„ Bite/Claw: Str+d4.
Stealth d8
„ Infection: Anyone Shaken or Wounded
Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 10
must make a Vigor roll
at –2 or contracted a
Chronic Disease.

74

CONFRONTATION
By this time, the heroes should have a feel for
how Logan likes to play his hand, but they
don’t know the half of it yet. Real trouble
is just getting up a good head of steam and
barreling down on them like a runaway train
around a blind curve!
IRON DRAGON STEPS IN
A month or so after the Lazy S puts down
stakes in the area, or when you’re ready to
move on, Marshal, Li Zhin visits the camp
with several of his henchmen. Iron Dragon’s
rail gang is nearing the edge of the ranch’s
property and its scouts reported the fencing
the Lazy S crew recently laid. Zhin has been
working under the impression that Northern
Star sold the railroad a legitimate right of
way to Dirtwater. As a result, he believes the
heroes and the rest of the Lazy S are nothing
more than a bunch of squatters sitting in
the way of his employer. And Iron Dragon,
like most of the other rail companies, does
not have much patience with squatters on
its property.
Zhin is a bit more level-headed than most
of Kang’s enforcers, but that’s a relative
term in this case, so his initial approach to
the situation is to ride in along with several
armed men and posture. He announces in a
loud, commanding voice:
CHAPT
ER
9
PART THREE: RANGE WAR
“You’re trespassing on Iron Dragon land!
Leave now!”
The posse can certainly draw down on the
enforcers, but after all their run-ins with Rail
Barons’ cronies over the past few months, it
might not hurt to remind them the railroads
always have more hired guns to send. Should
they go ahead with an attack, Zhin attempts
to retreat if half his men are Incapacitated.
Whether he survives or not, Iron Dragon
sends another contingent with twice the
enforcers next time (led either by Zhin or
another rail boss). The railroad continues
until either the Lazy S succumbs or the posse
manages to negotiate. How difficult you
want that to be is entirely up to you, Marshal!
c LI ZHIN: See page 85.
„ IRON DRAGON ENFORCERS (8): Page 62.
LET'S TALK
If the heroes take a more restrained approach
and explain the Lazy S holds a legal deed
to the land, Zhin is momentarily thrown
back on his heels. Once the posse presents
the deed, the enforcer boss mutters angrily
in Chinese. He already had a pretty low
opinion of Logan and his malcontents, but
even he didn’t expect the rancher to actually
try to swindle Kang!
75
 It takes a successful Persuasion roll to HOT TIME IN DIRTWATER
convince Zhin the deed is legal. Once he gets
The first group of thugs heads to Dirtwater
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

a handle on the situation, Zhin is more than

with a single goal: burn the land office to the
a little peeved with Logan. He’s just proud
ground, along with all the documents stored
enough not to apologize, but even though
inside. Since Logan doesn’t hold any official
he doesn’t show it he feels tremendously
title to his own land, he’s got nothing to lose
embarrassed for falling for the swindler’s game.
and everything to gain by eradicating the
He immediately dispatches messengers to
records of everyone else—particularly the
Northern Star to express his displeasure—and
Lazy S. His men don’t have specific orders to
to demand the return of Iron Dragon’s payment!
shoot up the town, but because the majority
The enforcer explains he must view the of the lot are former border raiders or just
records at the land office to verify the Lazy plain hired outlaws they’re likely to take a
S deed before he can engage in negotiations, good deal of criminal initiative once things
but he agrees to temporarily halt the track- get rolling, particularly if anyone gets in
laying operation. In reality, Zhin realizes his their way.
goose is cooked if word gets back to Kang
If any of the heroes are in town, they’re
that he got taken in by a two-bit land scam.
immediately alerted that trouble’s afoot
He’s actually trying to buy time to get the
when a gang of masked gunmen rides into
affair straightened out—and the money
town hooting and hollering. The men head
back—before his boss catches wind of it.
straight to the land office, chasing Milt Fisher
out by throwing lead at his heels. As soon as
the clerk’s shoes clear the doorway, they get
THE FLAMES OF WAR to work sparking a blaze.
Give your cowpokes a chance to intervene
This encounter occurs after the heroes prove
before the fire really gets going. The Northern
the Lazy S owns the right-of-way Logan
Star gunmen are intent on making sure the
sold to Iron Dragon. Li Zhin, rightfully
building burns and make their point with
angered, confronts Logan about his illegal
their shooting irons. Anyone brave enough to
real estate practices. The railroad enforcer
stand up to them gets a single warning, and
tells the rancher he’s seen the deed and
then it’s shoot to kill.
that it was recorded in the land office in
Dirtwater (assuming the posse got around The characters don’t necessarily have to
to that detail). Logan reacts in his usual hot- fight alone, though. If they’ve managed to
headed—and ill-considered—manner. win over the locals, some of them might join
in the fight as well.
Shortly after the run-in with Li Zhin, the
reinforcements from Laramie Logan has „ HIRED GUNS (5): Use the Gunman profile
been waiting on arrive. He decides to end on page 83.
the competition with some direct action.
„ NORTHERN STAR HANDS (8): Use the
Logan divvies up his forces and sends one
Cowboy profile on page 81. One of
group toward town and one riding straight
them is a Wild Card with the Command
at the Lazy S.
Edge.
Depending on how you want to play out
the penultimate battles in the range war— MARSHAL LAW
as well as how close-knit your posse is, Once the fire gets going or a shootout begins,
Marshal—it’s possible they only participate Marshal Tate emerges from his office, pistol
in one of the two shootouts. If you must drawn. Initially, he approaches the situation
choose between the two, run the fight at the as if the heroes are at fault, calling for them
Lazy S so they can play a role in preserving to put their guns down and surrender. His
what’s theirs. On the other hand, it’s also bluster lasts for all of one round, ending
possible to stage the ruckuses so your high when one of the Northern Star hired guns
plains drifters can thwart Logan’s assumes he’s trying to intervene and
gunmen at both objectives if you want. stop them.

76
 Tate is bought, but he’s not that bought.
The next round he switches allegiances
SHOOT 'EM UP
Once the herd clears the ranch, the Northern
and joins the fight against the raiders. The
Star gunmen ride in. The group hopes to use
marshal’s biggest contribution isn’t his
the confusion and destruction caused by the
gunhand. He involves himself more with

Part 1-Confrontation
stampeding cattle to catch the Lazy S crew
organizing a bucket brigade to try to quench
off-guard. Although the heroes and cowboys
the fire Logan’s men have started.
might be unprepared for a shootout, at least
The gang loses its nerve and tries to flee everyone’s probably up and moving by the
when more than three-quarters of their time Logan’s gun hands ride in!
number are dead or Incapacitated. If the
Luckily for the posse, Sutter’s cowboys are
heroes manage to defeat or chase off the
an experienced lot, having faced everything
gunmen in five rounds or less after Tate
the Weird West could throw at them from
changes teams, the townsfolk manage to save
Texas to Wyoming. Even if the characters
the land office.
don’t suggest it, a group of the Lazy S
Should the posse manage to capture any cowboys immediately head out to wrangle
of the Northern Star hands—or just take a the rampaging longhorns back under control.
gander at any who fell in the fight—someone With the losses to To’sarre’s pox and Logan’s
from town immediately recognizes them as assassins there are only five cowboys left to
Logan’s men. The hired guns from Laramie, help out against the Northern Star raiders,
on the other hand, are complete strangers but even a few of the trail-hardened Texas
around Dirtwater. Captured Northern Star veterans are nothing to sneeze at!
cowboys are more than happy to confess that
The Northern Star men stay on horseback,
Logan put them up to the attack if they think
trying to use their increased mobility to their
it helps their own situation. Furthermore,
advantage. Of course, that means they lose
they also pass along the rancher’s plan to
the option of taking cover in return, but
attack the Lazy S. They say he’s overextended
most of these thugs aren’t used to facing an
his resources and left very few hands back at
enemy that fights back—much less one that
Northern Star ranch to hold down the fort.
fights back smartly. Once the attackers lose
c RORY TATE: See page 59. more than half their number the Northern
Star regular hands drop their guns and try to
surrender. The hired guns, on the other hand,
BACK AT THE LAZY S do their best to flee, as they figure they’re
At roughly the same time, the other half of facing the business end of a hanging rope if
the Northern Star crew attacks the Lazy S, they get caught.
intending to burn it to the ground. You can
As with the arson attempt in Dirtwater,
let your cowpokes go from the frying pan
any of the Northern Star ranch hands who
into the fire and give them enough time to
are captured don’t hesitate to sell out Logan
ride back to their ranch before all Hell breaks
in exchange for their own hides.
loose there.
„ HIRED GUNS (5): Use the Gunman profile
STAMPEDE AT THE RANCH on page 83.
The Northern Star riders start their assault
„ LAZY S COWBOYS (5): See page 81.
by stampeding some of the Lazy S herd right
through the center of the ranch. Give any „ NORTHERN STAR HANDS (12): Use the
saddletramps present a Notice roll to hear Cowboy profile on page 81. One of
the distinct rumble of the approaching cattle them is a Wild Card with the Marksman
in time to get to cover. Otherwise, they’re Edge.
caught with their drawers down when the
stampede rumbles into the ranch. (See the
Ropin’ & Ridin’ sidebar on page 11.)
Immediately after the stampede, the fun
really starts!

77
 still around as well, but he’s already got his
FALLING STAR hands full—as the party soon discovers.)
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

When the heroes show up to Northern

After the attack on the Lazy S, it’s possible
Star, Logan rightly assumes his scheme for
the posse has had enough of Logan’s
chasing them out of the territory failed. He
shenanigans and lights out after the
doesn’t waste time trying to talk his way out
megalomaniac on their own. If they don’t,
of this one—he and his men start shooting
folks from Dirtwater step forward to ask
as soon as they see the posse. While some
the heroes to run Northern Star out of the
of the hands are in the open, at least half—
area. The rancher’s attack on the town and
including Logan himself—fire from cover in
trouble with Iron Dragon has convinced
either the bunkhouse or main building.
them—even Marshal Tate—the man is a
hazard to everyone. c RANDOLPH LOGAN: See page .
Li Zhin doesn’t weigh in publicly on „ NORTHERN STAR HANDS (10): Use the
behalf of Iron Dragon. He’s afraid doing so Cowboy profile on page 81.
would damage his honor, as he originally
had business dealings with Logan. If
approached on the matter he makes it as
MORLEY'S MADNESS
clear as possible—without saying so—that A while back, Morley managed to get his
persuading Logan to close up shop would be hands on the carcass of a devil bull (see
well-received. And he’s awfully loose with Los Diablos in Deadlands: The Weird West).
his definition of “persuading.” Using some rather creative applications of
his weird technology, he succeeded in not
Sadly, popular support doesn’t necessarily
only preserving the monstrosity but actually
translate into much physical support. Most of
reanimating it. He implanted an electrical
the townsfolk draw the line at actually going
device in the skull of the undead beast
with the heroes to confront Logan. Marshal
containing what he calls a “trapped spirit.”
Tate is suddenly very cognizant of the exact
It’s actually a manitou that was thrilled to
limits of his jurisdiction. If the posse has
have access to the power and fury of the
managed to win over most of the town by
corpse of such a powerful abomination.
now, they can use Persuasion to sway five
stalwart townsfolk to back their play. With constant monitoring and adjustment,
Morley was able to keep the manitou under
If the characters get the idea to field
control. He also found that infusing Logan’s
their own army from the surviving Lazy S
herd with small doses of whatever passes
cowboys, odds are they find their resources
for Diablo blood resulted in a much hardier
in that department running low. Of the
stock. You can probably guess where this is
trail hands who survived the tussle with
headed, Marshal. It also resulted in a much
Logan’s hired guns, only half are available
more aggressive—and carnivorous—breed.
as reinforcements. Although all are likely
But the scientist convinced his employer that
champing at the bit to get their licks in, the
all advances come with certain hurdles.
remaining cowboys are needed to tend to the
ranch and herd. Two rounds after the shootout gets
underway—or as soon as any posse member
enters the barn—all Hell breaks loose. Well,
EMPTY NEST maybe not all of it, but more Hell than any
Logan’s two-pronged attack left Northern sane person would want to experience!
Star almost completely unguarded. Worse,
Barnabas Morley, left to tend his
most of the cowpokes left on his payroll
experiments by himself, lost control of the
are either out on the range tending cattle or
abomination he’s been nurturing in the
took the opportunity to slip away into the
Northern Star barn. The undead, augmented
wilderness during the recent excitement.
diablo breaks free and decides to repay its
Only Logan and 10 hired guns from
creator with a good-old fashioned goring,
Laramie remain at the ranch. (Morley’s
with a trampling or two thrown in for interest.

78
 If any of your saddletramps break into
the barn early, they get to watch Morley’s
demise. Otherwise, the posse is treated to its
first glimpse of the diablo as it bursts through
the doors of the bar, carrying a few chunks
the bunkhouse or main building barely slow
down several tons of rampaging undead
muscle and horns. Any Northern Star
cowboys in the building are killed in the
stampede. Logan himself is knocked out of

Part 1-Confrontation
of the erstwhile scientist! In either case, this the fight as well.
calls for a Fear check. (The Fear Level here is
4 thanks to Morley’s shenanigans.) THE DEVIL'S ROUND-UP
The remaining ranch hands are temporarily
MAD COWS stunned by the scale of the violence, but start
Morley’s creation sets about sowing as much shooting at the demonic cattle the following
death and destruction as possible. And it’s round. The resurrected horror then turns its
not alone—the abomination has control of all attention to the biggest remaining threat—
the cattle infused with its blood as well! the posse! The majority of its minions focus
on their former masters and only a few break
There are a dozen or so of the super­
off to aid El Diablo. Even so, this is likely a
naturally altered animals near the ranch at
very tough fight for the heroes.
the moment. Even a small herd of satanic,
meat-eating bovines is a collection of four- Though there are relatively few of the
legged, armored death. The only silver lining altered cows on hand, hundreds roam the
in this storm cloud of unpleasantness is that nearby area. The characters are doomed
the monsters turn their first burst of rage in any war of attrition against the devil’s
upon Northern Star and its riders. mutated herd. Luckily, as tough as Morley’s
reanimated El Diablo is, it isn’t as powerful
The herd quickly gathers behind El Diablo
as it was in whatever passes for life with
and charges full steam at wherever Logan
is currently holed up. The wooden walls of

79
 hero-killing devil bulls sent straight from AFTERMATH
the Reckoners.
If the heroes vamoose, El Diablo and its
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Fortunately, this reincarnated critter isn’t herd are content to vent their aggression on
invulnerable—any cowpoke can (try to) kill the few surviving Northern Star men. That
it. Also, the electrical box Morley installed leaves the locals with an undead horror
is integral to the beast’s survival. If it’s roaming the plains, backed up by a few
destroyed, the manitou trapped within is hundred man-eating beeves!
banished and the abomination falls lifeless
On the other hand, defeating the devilish
to the ground.
herd saves all the local ranches—and is
When the monster is destroyed, the worth a little tale tellin’ to lower the Fear
infusion pumping through the veins Level! If the party isn’t already aligned with
of the altered cattle becomes toxic and the Twilight Legion, someone from that
they immediately fall dead—wailing like esteemed organization shows up soon after
nothing any mortal has heard before—the and indoctrinates the party in the further
following round. horrors of the Reckoning.
Eliminating Logan’s tyranny on the high
c Undead Diablo plains opens up the area for others to try
This critter largely resembles its living
their hands, which in turn contributes to the
counterpart: a massive, brawny bull covered
growth of Dirtwater. The posse’s role in the
in scaly hide. Decay has started to creep in
town’s ascension doesn’t go unnoticed either.
though, hinting at its undead state, and a
The heroes may find themselves called on to
small electrical box is implanted between
assume leadership positions or otherwise
its horns.
help shape the town’s future.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Li Zhin is more than happy to negotiate a
Strength d12+4, Vigor d12+2
reasonable deal for a railroad right-of-way
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d10, Intimida-
with the Lazy S. Logan’s demise gives him
tion d12, Notice d8
a plausible reason for having to spend more
Pace: 7; Parry: 7; Toughness: 20 (6)
of Kang’s money and he gladly takes it. He
Edges: (Imp) Frenzy
shows his gratitude by negotiating a very
Special Abilities:
favorable contract to purchase stock from
„ Armor +6: A sheath of thick scales cover
the ranch, far better than Sutter could have
the creature.
otherwise achieved.
„ Fear (–2): You know what’s scarier than
an enormous bull from Hell? An enor- This doesn’t have to mean the end of
mous, undead bull from Hell, that’s what. your posse’s adventures in Sweetwater
„ Fearless: The abomination is immune to County, though. The WSGA has a long
Fear and Intimidation. memory and a war coffer to fund reprisals.
„ Horns: Str+d6. A single mountain range separates the Lazy
„ Size 3: The bull is a massive creature. S and Dirtwater from the Sioux Nations.
„ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover Finally, not far to the west the hot springs of
from Shaken; no additional damage Yellowstone hide a gateway to the Hunting
from Called Shots; ignores 1 point of Grounds themselves, letting all sorts of
Wound modifiers; doesn’t breathe; creepy-crawlies slip into our world!
immune to disease and poison.
„ Weakness (Control Box): A Called Shot
to the control box (–6) ignores the crea-
ture’s Armor. The box is Hardness 10. If “I THINK I’M DONE WITH BEEF
it’s destroyed, the abomination immedi-
ately falls to pieces.
FOR A WHILE.”
–Luke Canton

80
 CHAPT
ER
10

FRIENDS & FOES

The following characters appear in the THE LAZY S CREW

adventure either to lend a helpin’ hand or try
to clean the posse’s collective plow.
c Luke Canton
Luke is a 28-year-old man of African descent.
His parents escaped slavery in Mississippi
RASCALS when he was young, then fled West. He grew
up on the prairie, roping and riding and
working ranches, and managed to stay out of
COWBOY the Civil War and the Great Rail Wars. He’s
seen some trouble and doesn’t back down
Only the toughest and most reliable ranch
from a fight, but he’s a good man and has
hands are still in Sutter’s employ. The rest cut
thus far managed never to fire his weapon at
out early on when it was clear Sutter planned
another person.
to tussle with LaCroix’s thugs. Those who
remain have stood by the rancher through Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
fights with rustlers, outlaws, and even Santa Strength d8, Vigor d8
Anna’s troops. They’re in for the long haul. Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowl-
edge d6, Fighting d6, Intimidation d6,
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Riding d8, Shoot-
Strength d6, Vigor d8
ing d8, Stealth d6, Survival d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6,
Pace: 5; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6
Fighting d6, Gambling d4, Notice d6, Persua-
Hindrances: Code of Honor, Pacifist (Minor)
sion d6, Riding d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d4,
Edges: Born in the Saddle, Guts, Steady
Survival d4, Taunt d6
Hands
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Hindrances: Loyal, Poverty
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
Edges: Steady Hands
‘73 (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1, RoF 1,
Gear: Colt Army revolver (Range 12/24/48,
AP 2), lariat (Parry –1, Reach 2), a fast horse
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester ‘73
named Nightwing (Pace 15).
rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1, RoF
1, AP 2), lariat (Parry –1, Reach 2).

81
 c Abigail "Abby" Morton
Abby is the youngest of Sutter’s crew, barely
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
18 years old. She’s Sutter’s niece who moved
out West to live with her uncle after her
parents died in a cholera outbreak less than
a year ago. Not having much experience
with raising young women, Sutter has been
treating her more or less like a slightly favored
ranch hand, although he is quite fond of her.
The young woman is trying hard to adapt
to her new life, and as a result, often asks
about three questions too many on any given
subject. She’s likely to latch on to a hero who
seems competent—or even just confident—
as a surrogate for her parents (although she
never admits it).
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6,
Spirit d8, Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d8,
Fighting d6, Healing d4, Notice d6, Persua-
sion d6, Riding d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d4,
Survival d4
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Big Mouth, Curious, Loyal
Edges: Attractive, Luck
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
‘73 (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1, RoF 1,
AP 2), lariat (Parry –1, Reach 2).
JAVIER ORTEGA
Javier was once a proud member of the elite
Tulancingo Cuirassiers, a heavy cavalry unit
in the Mexican Army. Javier despises Santa
Anna for consorting with dark powers, and
after he was given an illegal order to kill
prisoners, he fled north. He’s been with Bill
Sutter about two years, and is an excellent
cook who can whip up tasty grub with only
a few sparse ingredients.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl-
edge d6, Driving d6, Fighting d8,
Gambling d4, Notice d6, Persuasion d4,
Riding d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d6, Sur-
vival d4, Trade (Cook) d10
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Wanted (Mexican Army)
Edges: Born in the Saddle, Soldier
Gear: Colt Army revolver (Range
12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1).
82
c Bill Sutter
Bill Sutter is as tough as the land where he
makes his home. He served in the Kansas
militia during the Civil War, trying to keep
the peace between the various bands of
border raiders that plagued the state. He
still walks with a limp from a raider’s ball he
caught in his lower leg.
After that he moved out West, trading
with Comanches at times and warring with
them at others. He’s tough, but fair and
open-minded toward the changing nature of
the world.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d6,
Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d6, Battle d6, Common
Knowledge d8, Fighting d8, Intimidation d6,
Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Riding d8, Shoot-
ing d10, Stealth d4, Survival d6
Pace: 5; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Code of Honor, Slow (Minor),
Stubborn
Edges: Guts, Harder to Kill, Level Headed,
Steady Hands, True Grit
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), double-barrel
shotgun (Range 12/24/48, Damage 1–3d6,
RoF 1).
LAZY S COWBOYS
Though they’re called cowboys, Sutter
welcomes women as easily as men. All he
cares about is whether or not a hand can
do the job. The worriers ran off some time
ago when Bayou Vermilion started causing
trouble, so those who remain are tough and
loyal to Sutter and his foreman, Luke Canton.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6,
Fighting d6, Gambling d4, Notice d6, Persua-
sion d6, Riding d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d4,
Survival d4, Taunt d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Loyal
Edges: Guts, Steady Hands
Gear: Colt Army revolver (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester ‘73
rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1, RoF
1, AP 2), lariat (Parry –1, Reach 2).
 GUNMAN shaved head—due to an obsession about
head lice—and a cloth breathing mask that
Use these profiles for most of the desperadoes
he’s never without.
the posse runs into.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d6,

Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl-
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6,
edge d6, Fighting d6, Driving d6, Healing d8,
Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, Per-
Notice d6, Persuasion d4, Science d10, Shoot-
suasion d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Taunt d6
ing d6, Stealth d4, Weird Science d10
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 7 (2)
Hindrances: Greedy (Minor), Ruthless
Hindrances: Delusional (Major—Germo-
(Minor)
phobe), Habit (Minor—Neat freak)
Edges: Guts, Quick Draw
Edges: Arcane Background (Mad Scientist),
Gear: Colt Frontier (Range 12/24/48,
Guts
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
Powers: Boost/lower Trait (adrenal injector),
‘73 rifles (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1,
fear (amygdala bomb), zombie (spinal acti-
RoF 1, AP 2).
vator). Power Points: 15
Gear: Doctor’s bag, repair kit, light armored
c Gunman, Veteran vest (Armor +2).
A few gunmen stand out from the herd and
usually wind up leading the rest.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6,
Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d8, Per-
suasion d6, Shooting d10, Stealth d8
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Greedy (Minor), Ruthless
(Minor)
Edges: Fan the Hammer, Guts, Menacing,
Quick Draw
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
‘73 rifles (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1,
RoF 1, AP 2).

c BARNABAS MORLEY
Morley is Logan’s ace-in-the-hole. Unlike
many inventors, Morley has turned his
focus to biological matters. The mad scientist
promised the rancher he could boost his
stock’s survivability and has delivered—in
a sense. Morley is committed to following
his theories to their absolute conclusion and
utterly amoral in accomplishing his goals.
BARNABUS
Oddly, his scientific focus has led to a
MORLEY
near-mania regarding personal contact
with biological contaminants. Morley is
in his late 40s and surprisingly fit, thanks
to an almost religious regimen of vitamins,
exercise, and exotic chemical additives. His
severe appearance is accented by his closely-

83
 INDIAN WARRIOR
These Sioux warriors practice the Old Ways.
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowl-
edge d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation d6,
Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Riding d8, Shoot-
ing d6, Stealth d6, Survival d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Old Ways Oath, Stubborn
Edges: Block, Steady Hands, Woodsman
Gear: Bow (Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6,
RoF 1), tomahawk (Str+d6), horse, native
shield (medium).
JAY
GOODMAN
84
c Indian Warrior, Veteran
Any group of five ore more Indian warriors
is led by a “war leader.”
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d10, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6,
Fighting d10, Intimidation d8, Notice d6,
Persuasion d6, Riding d10, Shooting d8,
Stealth d8, Survival d8
Pace: 8; Parry: 8; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Old Ways Oath, Stubborn
Edges: Block, Fleet-Footed, Frenzy (Imp),
Steady Hands, Woodsman
Gear: Bow (Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6,
RoF 1), tomahawk (Str+d6), horse, native
shield (medium).
c JAY GOODMAN
A former Pinkerton agent, Goodman does
fieldwork for Empire Rail. He’s a master of
disguise and infiltration. A true “gray man,”
he is utterly nondescript and unimposing,
which allows him to ease into virtually
any role necessary. He’s both highly
intelligent and a trained observer. When on
a mission, he works hard to avoid physical
confrontations. But if push comes to shove,
Goodman is quite handy in a fight.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl-
edge d8, Fighting d6, Notice d10,
Persuasion d6, Riding d6, Research d8,
Shooting d8, Stealth d8, Thievery d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Cautious, Enemy (Minor—
Opposed rail warriors)
Edges: Dodge, Investigator, Level Headed,
Streetwise
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester
‘73 rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1,
RoF 1, AP 2).
c JURGEN EMMERICH
Emmerich is a veteran enforcer for
Wasatch and a fairly capable inventor in his
own right. One thing he isn’t is a “people
person.” He’s as bad-tempered as a wet
polecat, which might make him well-suited
for the battlefield, but not so much for public
relations. c RANDOLPH LOGAN
Like Sutter, Logan was also formerly an
He favors a weapon of his own creation,
officer in the Civil War. He served his time in
a pistol-like device attached to a backpack.

Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES

the Union Army, but he learned all the wrong
The backpack stores up electrical energy
lessons from his stint. Logan is domineering
which the gun can deliver in a variety of
and so used to getting his way he believes it’s
forms: single shot, a short arc, or a ball of
the only way. He rides his men harder than
St. Elmo’s fire–like energy that erupts at a
he ever rode a horse, and only the fact that
preset distance.
he pays so well allows him to keep even the
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d6, most desperate of hands in his employ.
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d10,
Skills: Athletics d4, Common Knowl-
Strength d8, Vigor d8
edge d6, Fighting d4, Notice d4,
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl-
Persuasion d4, Repair d8, Science d8, Shoot-
dge d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation d10,
ing d6, Stealth d4, Weird Science d10
Notice d6, Persuasion d4, Riding d8, Shoot-
Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 7 (2)
ing d8, Stealth d4, Taunt d8
Hindrances: Madness (Absent Minded,
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Delusion), Mean, Stubborn, Vengeful
Hindrances: Mean, Stubborn, Vengeful
(Major)
(Major)
Edges: Arcane Background (Mad Scientist),
Guts
Powers: Bolt, blast, stun (all electrical energy
effects from Electrostatic Gun). Power
Points: 20
Gear: Light armored vest (Armor +2), resto-
ration elixir (1 dose), electrostatic gun.

c LI ZHIN
A talented martial artist, Li Zhin has worked
his way slowly up through the ranks to the
position he holds today. He’s been entrusted
with handling the building of the Dirtwater
spur and has every intention of completing
it. While his personal ethics are sometimes
at odds with those of Iron Dragon, he
nonetheless takes his responsibility very
seriously.
Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d8, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d8, RANDOLPH
Battle d6, Fighting d10, Focus d10, Intimida-
tion d6, Notice d6, Persuasion d8, Stealth d6
LOGAN
Pace: 5; Parry: 6; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Cautious, Code of Honor, Out-
sider (Minor—Chinese)
Edges: Arcane Background (Chi Master),
First Strike, Guts, Martial Arts
Powers: Boost/lower Trait, deflection, smite.
Power Points: 10
Gear: Katana (Str+d6+1).

85
 Edges: Combat Reflexes, Command, Connec-
tions (WSGA), Guts, Level Headed, Soldier, c
Soldier, Officer
Officers are trained at a military academy
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

Strong Willed
or promoted from the ranks. They’re
Gear: Colt Peacemaker (Range 12/24/48,
responsible for their men’s lives, the army’s
Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1) Winchester ‘76
success, and any trouble their troops cause.
rifle (Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8, RoF 1,
AP 2), Bowie knife (Str+d4+1, AP 1), horse, Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
saddle. Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Battle d8, Common
SOLDIER Knowledge d8, Driving d6, Fighting d6,
Gambling d6, Notice d8, Persuasion d4,
United States soldiers, often cavalry patrols
Riding d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Sur-
on horseback, are encountered throughout
vival d6
the Weird West. Former Confederate soldiers
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
are common as well, looking for a new
Hindrances: Obligation (Major—US Army)
cause to serve.
Edges: Command, Hold the Line!, Inspire,
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, Soldier
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Gear: Colt Army (Range 12/24/48, Damage
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl- 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), saber (Str+d6).
edge d6, Driving d4, Fighting d6,
Gambling d4, Notice d6, Persuasion d4,
Riding d6, Shooting d6, Stealth d6, Sur- c TO'SARRE
vival d4 To’sarre is a renegade Comanche shaman.
Pace: 6; Parry: 5 or 6 (bayonet); Toughness: 5 For years, he raided settlements in and
Hindrances: Obligation (Minor—US Army) around Sutter’s Flats until the rancher and a
Edges: Soldier, Steady Hands (for cavalry) posse of locals hunted him down. During the
Gear: Winchester ‘76 (Range 24/48/96, war he signed on with the Confederate Army
Damage 2d8, RoF 1, AP 2), bayonet (Str+d6, in exchange for a pardon, but was drummed
Reach 1, Parry +1). out in less than a year for killing several
Union soldiers under a flag of truce.
SOLDIER, VETERAN Recently, the shaman found a home with
These men have seen the elephant and lived
Bayou Vermilion when the railroad was
to tell the tale. Whether it’s against Mexicans,
laying track through west Texas and New
Indians, or other Americans, they’re
Mexico. In the railroad’s employ, To’sarre’s
experienced combat veterans and have the
cruelty and viciousness has proven not a
scars to prove it.
liability but an asset. Although voodoo is
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, more commonly practiced by LaCroix’s
Strength d8, Vigor d8 magicians, To’sarre’s formidable mystical
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6, skills as a shaman are highly valued by
Driving d6, Fighting d8, Gambling d6, Intim- the railroad.
idation d6, Notice d8, Persuasion d4,
Although Sutter doesn’t know it, he’s
Riding d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Sur-
the last surviving member of the posse that
vival d6
captured To’sarre. The shaman intends to see
Pace: 6; Parry: 6 or 7 (bayonet); Toughness: 6
he doesn’t enjoy that status for much longer…
Hindrances: Obligation (Minor—US Army)
Edges: Marksman, Soldier, Steady Hands Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d10,
(for cavalry) Strength d6, Vigor d8
Gear: Winchester ‘73 (Range 24/48/96, Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6,
Damage 2d8−1, RoF 1, AP 2), bayonet Faith d10, Fighting d8, Healing d10, Intim-
(Str+d6, Reach 1, Parry +1). idation d8, Notice d6, Persuasion d4,
Occult d6, Riding d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d8,
Survival d8
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6

86
Hindrances: Cautious, Mean, Outsider those in a Small Blast Template with
(Major), Vengeful (Major) pus. Each spatter victim must make a
Edges: Arcane Background (Shaman) Vigor roll (–2) or contract the pox.
Powers: Beast friend, boost/lower Trait, fear, „ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover

Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES

shape change, wilderness walk. Power Points: from Shaken; no additional damage
15 from Called Shots; ignores 1 point of
Gear: Bow (Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6, Wound modifiers; doesn’t breathe;
RoF 1), 20 arrows, Bowie knife (Str+d4+1, immune to disease and poison.
AP 1), horse, saddle. „ Virulent Breath: To’sarre can breathe a
virulent cloud in a Cone Template, so
anyone grappled by him risks infection.
c TO'SARRE (POX WALKER) Anyone within the template must make
To’sarre becomes even more dangerous after a Vigor roll (–2) or be infected with a
he becomes a pox walker. Chronic Disease.
„ Coup (Cure Disease): A Harrowed who
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d10,
absorbs a pox walker’s coup may cure
Strength d6, Vigor d8
another’s diseases by taking the infec-
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowl-
tion into himself. He uses an action to
edge d6, Fighting d8, Healing d10,
lay hands on the victim, then suffers one
Intimidation d8, Notice d6, Persuasion d4,
level of Fatigue for the next week. At the
Occult d6, Riding d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d8,
end of that week, the disease is flushed
Survival d8
from his system.
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 8
Hindrances: Cautious, Mean, Outsider
(Major), Vengeful (Major)
Edges: Arcane Background (Shaman), Brave TO'SARRE
Powers: Beast friend, boost/lower Trait, fear,
shape change, wilderness walk. Power Points:
15
Gear: Bow (Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6,
RoF 1), Bowie knife (Str+d4+1, AP 1).
Special Abilities:
„ Fear (–2): To’sarre’s ravaged flesh pro-
vokes a Fear check.
„ Fearless: To’sarre is immune to
Fear and Intimidation.
„ Disease (−2): Each time a
victim comes into close
contact with To’sarre, or is
Shaken or Wounded by one
of his tainted weapons, he must
make a Vigor roll at −2 or contract
a Chronic Disease. Symptoms manifest
a day later, and can then be spread
to others as well (but ignore the −2
penalty when contacted by someone
other than To’sarre). The disease is
magical in nature, so even Har-
rowed may be infected—though
they can’t spread it.
„ Spatter: If a cowpoke’s attack
comes up snake eyes while
attacking To’sarre, several of
his sores burst, spraying all

87
 TO'SARRE'S WARBAND
These are young warriors from a variety of
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
tribes, all of whom have become frustrated
with the Old Ways and the elders’ inability
to stand up to the whites’ demands. To’sarre
finds it particularly easy to influence these
young hotheads.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6,
Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, Riding d8,
Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Survival d6
Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Vengeful (Major), Vow (Major—
serve the Raven cult)
Edges: Fleet-Footed, Guts, Marksman
Gear: Winchester ‘76 rifle (Range 24/48/96,
Damage 2d8, RoF 1, AP 2), Colt Peacemaker
(Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP
1), tomahawk (Str+d6), horse.
TOWNSFOLK
This profile represents the tough pioneers Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d8, Notice d6,
who have braved the West in search of a
better life.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d4, Common Knowledge d4,
Fighting d4, Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Shoot-
ing d4, Stealth d4, Trade d8
Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: —
Edges: —
Gear: Items appropriate to their trade. Most
own a firearm or knife (Str+d4).
X-SQUAD
Hellstromme Industries has its own force
of hired guns, loaded for bear with devices
fresh off the assembly line. The setup
below is typical, but X-Squads are given
whatever infernal devices they need to fulfill
their mission.
Any group of five or more X-Squaddies is
led by a Wild Card “captain” with the Mr.
Fix It Edge.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Strength d8, Vigor d6
Skills: Athletics d6, Common
Knowledge d6, Driving d6, Fight-
88
ing d6, Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Piloting d6,
Repair d6, Riding d6, Shooting d6, Stealth d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 7 (2)
Hindrances: Ruthless (Major)
Edges: Rock and Roll!, Steady Hands
Gear: X-Squads are outfitted with “Devil’s
aprons” (Armor +2, −4 damage from
fire), armed with Gatling weapons or
flamethrowers, and other infernal devices
depending on the mission and terrain.
VARMINTS
c Devil Eyes
Devil Eyes is a large, coal-black mare the
Lazy S cowboys captured near the Mexican
border during the round-up. She’s spirited
and just a tad mean, but for the right rider
she’ll charge the gates of Hell.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A),
Spirit d8, Strength d12, Vigor d10
Taunt d8
Pace: 10; Parry: 6; Toughness: 10
Edges: Brave, Fleet-Footed
Special Abilities:
„ Kick: Str+d4, to the front or rear as
desired.
„ Size 3: Devil Eyes weighs nearly 2,000
pounds.
„ Unbreakable: Devil Eyes receives +2 on
Spirit rolls to resist being broken to the
saddle. If she is ever broken, the ability
is lost, but any rider except the one
who broke Devil Eyes still suffers –2 on
Riding rolls to mount and ride the mare.
RIDING HORSE
Next to his sidearms, few things are more
important to a cowboy than his horse.
They provide not only transportation, but
companionship on long, lonely rides. Horses
might also detect threats trying to bushwhack
their riders.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4 (A),
Spirit d6, Strength d12, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d4, Notice d6
Pace: 12; Parry: 4; Toughness: 8
Edges: Fleet-Footed
Special Abilities:
„ Kick: Str+d4.
 „ Size 2: Typical quarter horse of about
1,000 lbs.
MAD COW
Bigger, meaner, and a whole lot more
carnivorous than the usual breed of cattle,
these monsters are the result of Barnabas
Morley’s experimentations with infusions
of El Diablo blood—specifically the blood
of a reanimated El Diablo. Hey, he is a mad
scientist after all.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4 (A),
Spirit d6, Strength d12+2, Vigor d12
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d6, Notice d6
Pace: 7; Parry: 5; Toughness: 14 (2)
Special Abilities:
„ Armor +2: A sheath of thick, scales are
barely covered by its hide.
„ Horns: Str+d6.
„ Size 2: Longhorns are large creatures,
weighing well over half a ton.
„ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover
from Shaken; no additional damage from
Called Shots; ignores 1 point of Wound
modifiers; doesn’t breathe; immune to
disease and poison.
TEXAS LONGHORN
Longhorns are rangy and tough, with horns
that average around six feet from tip to tip.
They’re natural survivors capable of finding
food, water, and even shelter in bad weather
on their own.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4 (A),
Spirit d4, Strength d10, Vigor d10
Skills: Athletics d6, Fighting d6, Notice d6
Pace: 8; Parry: 5; Toughness: 9
Special Abilities:
„ Horns: Str+d6.
„ Size 2: Longhorns weigh over half a ton.
CREATURES
AUTOMATON
Hellstromme Industries builds these
mechanical abominations in the City CLOCKWORK TARANTULA
o’ Gloom and deploys them all over the Clockwork tarantulas stand about three feet
Weird West to protect its various interests. tall and resemble enormous, mechanical
Automatons are roughly humanoid in shape, versions of their namesakes. Eight gear-
consisting of a large torso housing a ghost driven legs, each over a yard long,
rock boiler, piston-driven limbs, and a emerge from the bulbous, armor-
vented, cylindrical head. One arm ends in a
pincer-like claw while the other terminates
in a Gatling gun or flamethrower attached
at the elbow.
Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES
The key to the automatons’ intelligence is a
zombie brain! Hellstromme reanimates dead
brains and installs them into his automatons,
making them heavily armored walkin’ dead.
The metal monsters can’t be reasoned with,
can’t be bargained with, don’t feel pity or
remorse, and absolutely will not stop until
their foes are dead. You get the picture.
Hellstromme has no desire to see the
inner workings of its invention exposed.
Each automaton is wired with a powerful
explosive that destroys the brain and most of
its internal parts should the automaton suffer
a fatal Wound or be captured.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
Strength d12, Vigor d12
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d8, Intimida-
tion d6, Notice d6, Shooting d8
Pace: 4; Parry: 6; Toughness: 13 (4)
Gear: Gatling gun (Range 24/48/96, Damage
2d8, RoF 3, AP 2), 100 rounds of ammo.
Edges: Brute
Special Abilities:
„ Armor +4: Heavy Armor. Automatons
have thick iron plating.
„ Claw: Str+d8.
„ Construct: +2 to recover from Shaken;
ignore 1 point of Wound penalties;
immune to disease and poison.
„ Fearless: Automatons are immune to
Fear and Intimidation.
„ Gyrostabilizer: The automaton suffers
no recoil penalty when firing its Gatling.
„ Hardy: A second Shaken result does not
cause a Wound.
„ Self-Destruct: If an automaton is Inca-
pacitated, it explodes in an area equal to
a Medium Blast Template, inflicting 3d6
damage on anyone within.
„ Size 1: Automatons are considerably
bulkier than a human.
89
 plated body. Within this hard steel carapace examines it. Others are more stealthy,
are the pistons and devices that give the feeding off sleeping victims night after night,
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

creature “life.” The head contains a set of “milking the cow” rather than slaughtering it,
sharpened, hollow tubes that function as the so to speak.
mechanism’s primary weapons, or “fangs.”
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
The mechanical arachnids are terrifying Strength d12+1, Vigor d8
opponents, made more so by the potent Skills: Athletics d8, Common Knowledge d6,
acid they inject or spray at targets. Should Fighting d8, Intimidation d8, Notice d6, Per-
a clockwork tarantula be defeated, its suasion d6, Stealth d12
remaining acid is released to destroy the Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 8
creature, thus concealing the method of its Edges: Frenzy
construction. Special Abilities:
„ Bite/Claws: Str+d4.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4 (A),
„ Fear (–2): Seeing one of these plague-rav-
Spirit d4, Strength d6, Vigor d6
aged undead provokes a Fear check.
Skills: Athletics d6, Fighting d8, Notice d6,
„ Infection: Anyone Shaken or Wounded
Shooting d8, Stealth d8, Survival d6
by a plague vampire must make a Vigor
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6 (2)
roll at –2 or become infected with what-
Gear: Acid sprayer (Range 1/2/4, Damage
ever disease the monster carries.
2d6, RoF 2, AP 5). A target Shaken or
„ Invulnerability: Plague vampires can
Wounded by the attack takes 2d4 damage
only be slain by sunlight, fire, or a stake
at the start of his next turn.
through the heart (see those Weak-
Special Abilities:
nesses, below). They may be Shaken by
„ Acidic Bite: Str+d4. A target Shaken
other attacks, but never Wounded.
or Wounded by the attack takes 2d4
„ Sire: Anyone slain by a plague vampire
damage at the start of his next turn from
has a 50% chance of rising as a plague
a painful inject of acid!
vampire the following night.
„ Armor +2: Clockwork tarantulas are
„ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover
covered in metal plates.
from Shaken; no additional damage from
„ Construct: +2 to recover from Shaken;
Called Shots; ignores 1 point of Wound
immune to disease and poison.
modifiers; doesn’t breathe; immune to
„ Fearless: Clockwork tarantulas are
disease and poison.
immune to Fear and Intimidation.
„ Weakness (Fire): Plague vampires take
„ Self-Destruct: When a clockwork taran-
normal damage from fire and fire-based
tula takes a Wound, it releases acid into
attacks.
its braincase to dissolve the brain.
„ Weakness (Holy Symbol): A charac-
„ Size −1: Clockwork tarantulas are the
ter may keep a plague vampire at bay
size of medium dogs.
by displaying a holy symbol. A plague
„ Wall Walker: A clockwork tarantula can
vampire who wants to directly attack
walk on vertical or inverted surfaces at
the victim must beat her in an opposed
its full Pace, and may run.
Spirit roll.
„ Weakness (Holy Water): A plague
PLAGUE VAMPIRE vampire sprinkled with holy water is
A plague vampire is spawned when it feeds Fatigued. If immersed, he combusts as
on a victim afflicted with a serious disease if it were in direct sunlight (see below).
such as cholera, smallpox, or typhus. The „ Weakness (Invitation Only): Plague
vampire is immune to the disease itself, but vampires cannot enter a private dwell-
transmits it to anyone it bites. It also takes ing without being invited. They may
on a horrific appearance, bearing pus-filled enter public domains as they please.
sores or pockmarks on its pale, exposed skin. „ Weakness (Stake Through the Heart):
A plague vampire hit with a called shot
Some plague vampires kill their prey,
to the heart (–4) must make a Vigor roll
leaving a festering corpse that may
versus the damage. If successful, it takes
transmit the disease to anyone who

90
 damage normally. If it fails, it disinte- Special Abilities:
grates to dust. „ Ambush: Terrantulas of this size dig
„ Weakness (Sunlight): Plague vampires trapdoor-covered holes near trails,
burn in sunlight. They take 2d4 damage which may be spotted with a Notice roll

Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES

per round until they are ash. Armor pro- at −4. The terrantula gets The Drop on
tects normally. anyone unaware of its trap.
„ Bite: Str+d6.
TERRANTULA „ Fear: Terrantulas provoke a Fear check.
„ Poison: Those Shaken or Wounded by
SMALL TERRANTULA SWARM the terrantula’s bite make a Vigor roll
The terrantula has two growth stages, the first against Lethal Poison.
similar to the common tarantula. These small „ Size −3 (Small): These terrantulas are
spiders—roughly the size of a grown man’s the size of a small dog.
palm—are mere hatchlings. But they’re still „ Spring: Terrantulas can spring up to 3”,
capable of overcoming much larger prey. gaining a +2 bonus to their first Fighting
roll when they do so.
Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d4 (A),
„ Wall Walker: A large terrantula can
Spirit d12, Strength d8, Vigor d10
walk on vertical or inverted surfaces at
Skills: Notice d6
its full Pace, and may run.
Pace: 10; Parry: 4; Toughness: 7
Special Abilities:
„ Bite: Terrantula swarms inflict hundreds
WALKIN’ DEAD
of bites each round, hitting automatically Walkin’ dead aren’t slow or stupid in the
and causing 2d4 damage to everyone in Weird West. They might act mindless to
a Medium Blast Template. get close to a victim, but these suckers are
„ Split: Terrantulas split into two Small mean and clever. They use guns and knives,
swarms when Wounded. hurl insults, demand more delicious brains—
„ Poison: Anyone Shaken or Wounded anything to spread terror.
by the swarm makes a Vigor roll versus
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
Paralyzing Poison.
Strength d6, Vigor d6
„ Swarm: Parry +2. Hatchling swarms
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d4,
cover the area of a Medium Blast Tem-
Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4, Per-
plate. Cutting and piercing attacks inflict
suasion d4, Shooting d6, Taunt d6
no damage. Area effect weapons work
Pace: 4; Parry: 5;
normally, and a character can stomp
Toughness: 7
to inflict his damage in Strength each
Gear: Walkin’ dead fight with whatever
round. The swarm is foiled by immer-
weapon they can find.
sion in water.
Special Abilities:
„ Wall Walker: A terrantula swarm can
„ Claws: Str+d4.
walk on vertical or inverted surfaces at
„ Fear: Walkin’ dead cause a Fear check.
its full Pace, and may run.
„ Fearless: Walkin’ dead are immune to
Fear and Intimidation.
LARGE TERRANTULA „ Undead: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover
Picture a hairy spider as big as a dog, and
from Shaken; Called Shots do no extra
twice as mean. That’s your adult terrantula.
damage; doesn’t breathe; immune to
Territorial critters, they hunt similarly to
disease and poison.
trapdoor spiders. Luckily they also hunt each
„ Weakness (Head): A Called Shot to a
other, so few terrantulas grow to giant size.
walkin’ dead’s head does the usual +4
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4 (A), damage.
Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d8, Fighting d8, Notice d8,
Stealth d12
Pace: 10; Parry: 6; Toughness: 3

91
 ENCOUNTER TABLES
Below are the Encounter Tables from Deadlands: The Weird West you can use to beef up the trail
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST

drive—pun fully intended, Marshal! The trail drive starts in the Wild Southwest till it cross
the New Mexico border. Use the Great Plains table until the drive enters the Sioux Nations,
then switch back to the Great Plains once the Lazy S reaches Wyoming.

WILD SOUTHWEST ENCOUNTERS

d20 Spades|Enemies Hearts|Strangers Diamonds|Treasure Clubs|Obstacle
1–4 Bloodwire 2d6 Indian Warriors Shelter Heat
5–6 Carcajou 2d12 US Cavalry Food Tainted Water
7 Chupacabra Stranger Infernal Devices Epidemic
8–10 Desert Thing 2d8 Outlaws Currency Ghost Town
(Use Gunman)
11–12 2d6 Prairie Ticks 2d4 Veteran Outlaws Ghost Rock Detour
(Use Gunman)
13 Rattler Hexslinger Lost Treasure Infernal Devices
14–17 Large Terrantula Badman Abandoned Mine Abandoned Mine
18–20 1d6 Tumblebleeds Territorial Ranger Vehicle Drought

GREAT PLAINS ENCOUNTERS

d20 Spades|Enemies Hearts|Strangers Diamonds|Treasure Clubs|Obstacle
1–2 Rattler 1d6 Prospectors Lost Treasure Epidemic
3–6 1d8 Devil Bats 2d12 US Cavalry Food Storm
7–8 1d4 Dread Wolves 2d8 Rail Warriors Vehicle Tainted Water
9–10 Bloodwire 2d6 Indian Warriors Currency Ghost Town
11–12 2d4 Outlaws 2d8 Townsfolk Ghost Rock Knifegrass
(Use Gunman)
13–16 1d8 Pit Wasps 2d4 Buffalo Hunters Shelter Heat
17–19 2d8 Prairie Ticks Indian Shaman Abandoned Mine Abandoned Mine
20 2d6 Rattler Young ’Uns Badman Infernal Devices Good Samaritans

SIOUX NATIONS ENCOUNTERS

d12 Spades|Enemies Hearts|Strangers Diamonds|Treasure Clubs|Obstacle
1–6 1d4 Devil Bats 2d12 Indian Warriors Shelter Storm
7 Pox Walker Prospector Lost Treasure Epidemic
8 Uktena Stranger Abandoned Mine Blizzard
9 Poison Woman Badman Vehicle Ghost Town
10–12 2d6 Walkin’ Dead 2d8 Veteran Indian Food Knifegrass
Warriors

92
 RANCH HAND SHEET
Use this sheet to keep track of the Lazy S crew. The party can assign personalities and other
traits as you go, you can use the Allied Personality Table from Savage Worlds, or a little of both.

LAZY S COWBOYS
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Athletics d6, Common Knowledge d6, Fighting d6, Gambling d4, Notice d6, Persua-
sion d6, Riding d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d4, Survival d4, Taunt d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
Hindrances: Guts, Loyal
Edges: Steady Hands
Gear: Colt Army revolver (Range 12/24/48, Damage 2d6+1, RoF 1, AP 1), Winchester ‘73 rifle
(Range 24/48/96, Damage 2d8–1, RoF 1, AP 2), lariat (Parry –1, Reach 2).

NAME PERSONALITY / NOTES

BILL SUTTER OWNER, BOSS OF THE LAZY S. TOUGH BUT FAIR.
ABIGAIL "ABBY" MORTON BILL'S YOUNG AND HEADSTRONG NIECE.
LUKE CANTON BILL'S RIGHT HAND. STRONG, QUIET, AND COMPETENT.
JAVIER ORTEGA "COOKIE." CAMP COOK. HIS EGGS ARE ALWAYS RUNNY.

OTHER HANDS
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____________________ ______________________________________________________
DEADLANDS: THE WEIRD WEST
AFTERWORD
By John Goff
The idea for Blood Drive had been in my head
for nearly two decades when I finally got
the chance to put it into print. It goes back
nearly to when I first started writing for the
Weird West, which was so long ago we were
putting a different pair of numbers in front
of the year than we are now.
Shane and I gamed together in college
(a lot—and I had the GPA to prove it). We
played AD&D®, GURPS®, Chill®, Torg®,
Call of Cthulhu®, and just about any other
game we could get our hands on. We even
talked every now and then about trying to get
something published with a game company.
After graduation, I went into the military,
and when I got out, I looked him up to
see what he was doing. It turned out he’d
followed up on our dreams and not only
been published, but started his own company.
He said, “We just released this game called
Deadlands, and I’d like you to take a look at
it.” I did, and I was hooked. How could I not
be? He’d even included rules for one of my
favorite scenes in True Grit: when Rooster
Cogburn cocks his rifle with one hand by
spinning it.
94
I called him back and said, “We love it!”
He replied, “Great—I remember our
games from college, and I’d like you to try
writing something for it.” He had a partner,
so I had to climb the ladder like everyone else,
but a few projects later, and I was writing
for Deadlands fairly regularly. In a couple
of years, I even ended up the line developer
for a while.
I’ve always had a love of westerns, and
writing for Deadlands gave me an excuse
to pursue that affection under the guise of
“research.” I read western novels, watched
western movies, and basically devoured
anything with a cowboy or six-gun in
it. During that period, I came across a TV
miniseries that I had missed while I was in
the military, Lonesome Dove.
The miniseries based on a Larry McMurtry
book of the same name, and if you’re
a Deadlands fan and not seen it, I highly
recommend it. It stars Robert Duvall and
Tommy Lee Jones as retired Texas Rangers
Gus McCrae and Woodrow Call. The two
embark on one last great adventure leading
a herd of cattle from the Mexican border to a
ranch in Montana.
It’s a great epic western that is basically a
fictionalization of the Charles Goodnight and
Oliver Loving cattle drive, punched up to
make it more cinematic. My wife and I both
fell in love with the story and characters. In
fact, to this day, I still name all my dogs after
characters from the tale. It has all the great

Part 1-FRIENDS & FOES

western tropes: an old nemesis, revenge,
wanted bandits, a lost love, a special horse,
birthrights, the lone hero…you name it,
odds are it’s in Lonesome Dove.
But all of it is set against and framed
by the cattle drive and the unique
challenges it poses.
I wanted to find a way to bring that to
the Deadlands universe, but even when I
was steering the wagon, there just never
seemed to be anywhere to fit it in. The
Weird West is a big place, and there were
a lot of stories that needed to be told first.
Fast-forward more than a decade, and
I was talking to Matt Cutter, who’d long
since taken over the reins of the line (and
done an amazing job of riding herd on
probably the biggest stories and events to
ever occur in it). He was looking for some
mid-length adventures to publish as PDFs
between the major releases.
I hope I did both the Goodnight-Loving
I pitched him the idea of a series of and Lonesome Dove justice, and if you’re
adventures that could join together to form familiar with the latter, I’m sure you’ll spot
a mini-campaign or be tackled individually an homage or two! At the end of the game
based around a Goodnight-Loving—or as and drive, you and your players will forge as
I thought of it, McCrae-Call—cattle drive, many long-lasting memories as I did helping
wrapping up with an old-fashioned range bring it to the page.
war at the end.
(Un)Happy Trails!
He loved the idea, and Blood Drive was born.
Actual, honest-to-goodness cowboying
-JOHN GOFF
was something we really hadn’t paid that DECEMBER 2020
much attention to yet, and in addition to
the adventure, it presented the opportunity
to explore that a little. I had an idea for the
narrative, but I wanted to make sure I got the
facts of a drive right. I invested a good deal
of my efforts into research on the day-to-day
life on a cattle drive and the route. (Since its
initial version, Shane’s actually gone on a
real cattle drive, so I’m sure he’s fact-checked
and refined it even more.)
When I learned it was going to see actual
print, I was surprised and enormously happy.
That meant it was getting new maps, new art,
and a general overall polish to make it the
best it could be.

95
 INDEX
A J S
Abigail “Abby” Morton 82 Javier Ortega 13, 82 Small Terrantula Swarm 91
Abigail “Abby” Morton 13 Jay Goodman 84 Snake Swarm 21
Automaton 89 Jurgen Emmerich 84 Soldier 86
STAMPEDES 11
Sutter’s Flats 8
B L Sweetwater County 57
Barnabas Morley 83 Large Terrantula 91
Battlefield o’ the Damned 53 Lazy S Cowboys 82, 93
Bill Sutter 13, 82 Li Zhin 85 T
Bustin’ Broncos 12 The Lonely Crow 8 Texas longhorn 89
Luke Canton 13, 81 To’sarre 86
To’sarre (Pox Walker) 87
C To’sarre’s Lair 73
Clockwork Tarantula 89 M To’sarre’s Warband 88
Colonel Socrates Gault 31 Mad Cow 89
Townsfolk 88
Cowboy 81 Matt Reynolds 72

D N U
Undead Diablo 80
Devil Bats 52 Northern Star Ranch 57
Devil Eyes 88
Dirtwater 58
O V
Diseased Bear 74 Veteran 83, 84, 86
Officer 86
Diseased Moose 74
Diseased Wolves 74
Dog Leg 28 P W
Walkin’ Dead 91
Pettinger’s Supply 8
Weird Wolves 68
Plague Vampire 90
E Werewolf 71
Encounter TAbles 92 The WSGA. See Woming Stock
R Grower’s Association
Ranch Life 10 Wyoming Stock Grower’s
G Randolph Logan 85 Association 68
‘Glom 55
The Remuda 17
Gunman 83
Riding Horse 88
Ropin’ & Ridin’ 11
X
X-Squad 88
I Rory Tate 59
Indian Warrior 84
Iron Dragon Work Camp 62

“WHEN MY TIME COMES, JUST SKIN ME AND PUT ME UP THERE ON

TRIGGER, JUST AS THOUGH NOTHING HAD EVER CHANGED.”
–Roy Rogers

96