Since I don’t have the history (I often discard the history from Illustrator and Photoshop to reduce the file size) from where I created the basic outline of the sign, I’ll make a new one. First, you need to decide on the orientation and then we can throw some basic shapes together. Or you could purchase some gorgeous panels from Letterhead Fonts (you can see where the American Panel 2 inspired my design).

Step 1 – Basic Shapes

For this tutorial, I’m going to make a vertical panel. So I’ll start by throwing down a rectangle and then I’ll add a couple of circles and an oval (using the Rectangle & Ellipse tools). The stroke is 5 points and I’ve left the fill color as transparent so you can see the different shapes.

Step 1

Step 2 – Add & Subtract

Next, I pick a nice fill color, a medium green (I used #17823E, but you can select whatever you like), and I select all and then Unite (Pathfinder menu) the shapes into a single mass. Next, I’m going to draw a couple of ovals on either side and Minus (Pathfinder menu them from the compound shape.

Step 2a

Step 2b

Step 3 – White Border

Now we’ll select the shape and Offset the path (Object > Path > Offset) by -20 pixels. I like to keep everything in separate layers, so I drag the new shape into a new layer and then set it’s fill to white.

Step 3

Step 4 – Copper & Shadow

This step is nearly identical to step 3. Offset the path by -12 pixels. Then we’re going to pump the Stroke up to 10 and select a copper color (#C7A571) for it and a darker green color (#144221) for the fill.

Step 4a

Now copy this new copper trimmed shape and Paste in Front (Edit). Set the stroke to empty and the fill to our original green color. Now Feather (Effect > Illustrator Effects > Stylize) that fill 50 pixels. This creates that nice worn fade in the color.

Step 4b

Step 5 – Text

Now pick a couple of complimentary fonts and add your titling to one or more new layers. I’m using the Saloon and Billy Argel fonts from dafont. If you have issues with saving after using some fonts, try selecting the text and converting to outlines (Type > Create Outlines or Ctrl+Shift+O).

Step 5

Step 6 – Hooladanders

Scrollwork, flourishes, hooladanders… whatever you call those decorative bits are next. Unfortunately, I didn’t make my own; I bought a couple of vector packs from Go Media Arsenal a when I was working on my degree which I put to use in the Wild West Weeks logo. In this instance I’m using a free vector set from Free-Vectors.com. Though smart use of the Pen tool and it’s Bézier handles and then Reflecting copies would net the same result.

Step 6

Next time, I’ll bring the logo into Photoshop for post processing.

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database
• Legends of the West RPG: Vitality & Experience
• Tunes of the Weird West: Ghoultown
• Wild West Logo Design, Part 1

Listening to: Steve Earle – Copperhead Road – Devil’s Right Hand

Merry Krampus by Steven Austin

Since time before the charlatan they called Christ walked the deserts outside Babylon, I have fed upon the terror and the bones of unruly children. My legend is immortal and I shall continue to feast on disobedient pups and wash my feet in their blood. Though my reputation ensures many a child grows into honorable adults, I fear that there are too many bad apples for me to sink my teeth into. Alas, though my power holds, its reach is not far enough and this world shall forever grow worse under the ravages of bad seed.

Background

The Krampus is a Slasher of Legend and he roams the World of Darkness every Yuletide in search of miserable little juveniles in need of punishment. In the beginning, the Krampus would only visit children in the night and sneak into their rooms to scare them. Though, as his legend grew, so did the terror and ghastly stories connected with him. His legend began to change his method of operation.

Over centuries, the Krampus was shaped by the stories parents told their children to encourage good behavior and he grew from a simple frightener of the night into a horror that fed upon wicked children. What behavior attracts the Krampus variable and depends on the stories parents tell their children. Should a child defy a parent’s wish which was communicated in the Krampus story, then there is a chance the Krampus will attempt to collect the child during Yuletide, though the Krampus prefers the flavor of bullies, liars, and teenagers of any sort.

What exactly constitutes a child in the Krampus’ eyes is determined by the culture, in most areas this begins when the child starts school (around 5 or 6) and ends when they are legally an adult (anywhere between 16 and 21 years of age). The Krampus can appear anywhere, but it is strongest where it’s stories are more prevalent. Austria and Bavaria are predominant in Krampus sighting; however, the Krampus often visits American towns where there is a large concentration of Germanic culture.

Appearance

The Krampus is vaguely human and is covered in short white fur (often splattered with the blood of bad children) and carries a massive wooden bucket chained to his back. The bucket is often filled with the appendages and blood of recent victims and both the bucket and its chain are used as weapons.

The Krampus also has an elongated tongue that constantly lolls out of its mouth and with which he alternatively frightens children or tempts women. He also has two twisted horns protruding from his forehead.

Storytelling Hints

The Krampus can only target children that have defied parents that have threatened their children with his legend. The Krampus is truly immortal as long as his stories continue to be told to children and should he ever be reduced to zero health, he dissipates in a cloud of coal soot and returns to his ways the next Yuletide.

The Krampus believes he is doing the world a favor and that his activities makes the world a better place. He thinks his presence inspires children to grow into good, responsible adults while he culls the bad seed from the world. He often monologues about such things when he claims rotten children to torture.

The Krampus is known for more than his thirst for misbehaving children and is known for his lust for the ladies and his obsession with cleavage in particular. A woman can attempt to persuade the Krampus to leave a particular child alone with a Seduction (p84-85 World of Darkness core rulebook) roll. For this particular roll, equipment rating is determined by the woman’s bust size (Storyteller’s discretion on how many dots).

Bad Bucket of Blood

This bucket can be spun around as an All Out Attack that targets all opponents in a 3 yard radius and it also counts as a Close Combat attack (Strength + Weaponry).

• Damage 4
• Bashing (-2)
• Knockdown 1
• Knockout 2
• Area Affect 3
• Size 4 (-4)
• Two-Handed (-1)

Chains of Castigation

The chain connected to the Bad Bucket can be used as a weapon by itself. A successful attack causes continuous damage as the sins of the victim burn her flesh. The Krampus gains the benefits of specializing in the Bad Bucket, Favored Weapon, and Weaponry Monomaniac as these chains are actually considered part of the Bad Bucket and are just an alternate use.

• Damage 1
• Lethal
• Continuous Damage 1
• Range 3
• Size 3 (-3)
• Two-Handed (-1)

Be sure to visit Nevermet Press as they have kindly commissioned the art and organized the Krampus Karnival.

Listening to: DevilDriver – Beast – Shitlist

Ghoutown with Elvira

Their catchy hymns manage to strike a particular chord of the strange and horrific that is perfectly suited to a Weird West adventure. From tales of drinking with the dead to serial killers aboard trains, you can never go wrong firing up a track from one of their albums.

Life After Sundown

The flavor of their music is firmly in the realm of rockabilly/psychobilly; which means you get a fusion of hard rock riffs and lyrics mixed with blues and classic western guitar twang. Their is also a strong influence from south of border with a strong influx of mariachi inspired brass.

• Boots of Hell – 1999
• Tales From the Dead West – 2000
• Give ‘Em More Rope – 2002
• Live From Texas! – 2004
• Bury Them Deep – 2006
• Life After Sundown – 2008
• Skeleton Cowboys (vinyl) – 2008
• Mistress of the Dark – 2009

Their style eventually attracted the Mistress of the Dark, Elvira, to seek a theme song and video from the psyhobilly rockers from Texas. And for Vampire fans out there, their gig posters actually appeared in the 2004 Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines PC game. Well, enough of my wailin’s, I’ll their music speak for itself.

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database
• Legends of the West RPG: Vitality & Experience
• Tunes of the Weird West: Ghoultown

Listening to:  Ghoultown – Skeleton Cowboys – Hog Trail

Wild West Weeks

I haven’t given up on my 24 Hour RPG, Legends of the West, even though I didn’t make it within the time limitation. Here are two more Traits, Vitality (and Wounds) and Experience. Vitality is integral the Wounds system and determines what kind of beating a character can take while Experience is the currency of character improvement.

VITALITY & WOUNDS

Injury, disease, famine, and other ailments are a daily concern for people living in the frontier. Medicine and doctors are not as ubiquitous as they are in the urban areas of the East. The Trait that governs injury and general health is Vitality. Vitality is calculated from adding a character’s Body Resistance with her size and a static value. The default and minimum static value is five, but Judges can adjust this value to make the game more forgiving. Humans have a default size of five.

Whenever a character suffers injury, if the amount of injury meets or exceeds her Vitality score, then she suffers a Wound. For every Variance of Success, the character suffers an additional Wound. For every Wound, a character must apply a negative one modifier to all Action Rolls. A point of Grit may be spent to ignore Wound modifiers for a single Action Roll.

At the end of the article you can find a Wild West Miniatures Database that compiles 75+ different miniature and terrain lines to fit the needs of anyone gaming in the American Old West. If you know of a manufacturer that isn’t on that list (or find that one of my links are broken), do not hesitate to inform me.

Witchtown Tales

Witchtown Tales documents a private Old West miniature collection. It shows some excellent paint schemes for figures as well as terrain. However, one of it’s best resources is its manufacturer scale comparison page.

Old West Scale Compare

Dixon Miniatures

Dixon has a solid range of figures and considering that the same figure can come with multiple head variants, it makes their line surprising large. I think my favorite mini from Dixon are the Lying Wounded and Lying Dead figures.

Lying Dead

Noon Stage

Blue Moon Manufacturing

Blue Moon’s lineup features a lot of famous names from the legendary West. The Earps, the James, and most of the names you hear while watching Tombstone are there.. I really like the Tombstone Civilians set and the Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane pack. Of particular coolness is Blue Moon’s Wagons Ho! line.

Tombstone Civilians

Wargames Foundry

The Foundry probably has the most expansive selection of Old West miniatures available. I especially like their Townsfolk and Mountain Men lines. For the gamer with deep pockets, they have two excellent army packs. The Plains War Indian Army comes with 99 figures (51 horses), but will set you back $450.

Yellowstone River Mountain Men

Black Scorpion

Black Scorpion has some of the most gorgeous Western themed lines available. They are a little taller than your average heroic sized minis (32mm vs. 28mm), but those extra millimeters allows for some additional detail. Particularly, I like the Billy the Kid and Bobba Fat Mexican sculpts.

Bobba Fat Mexican

Eric Hotz

Hotz’s Whitewash City is probably the most affordable, dynamic and re-usable terrain available for Old West gaming. It’s cardstock, but that means you can easily modify the images to change up the look and feel of building. I also like the game mat they have as a base for building an Old West town.

Whitewash City

Hovels, Ltd.

Hovels provides their resin buildings either plain or already painted. In addition to the 25mm Wild West line, they also have an American Civil War line which could easily be used in an Old West setting. My particular favorite is the Grand Hotel.

Grand Hotel

Roll Your Own

For the crafty gamer, you could also build your own terrain out of balsa wood or cardstock. A tutorial by David Marshall and another from Dave Bezio should give the DIY gamer a good place to begin.

Davestown Balsawood

Wild West Minis DB

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database
• Legends of the West RPG: Vitality & Experience

Listening to: Toy Story 2 Video Game OST – Al’s Penthouse

Another Traits entry for my 24+ Hour RPG, Legends of the West. I added some functionality to Background Traits, which is below, then I introduce Grit and Destiny. Both new Traits allow you to resist the randomness of dice.

Players may also Invoke Backgrounds. To Invoke a Background, the player simply declares that a prop or relationship correlating to her Background exists in the current scene. A prop is any inanimate object smaller than a building that could conceivably exist in the setting. A relationship simply means that a person, location, or object has some kind of tie to the character’s background. Backgrounds may be invoked twice per session.

An example prop would include a Bounty Hunter declaring that a wanted poster with a non-player character’s face on it is tacked to the billboard at a train station. An example relationship would be an Outlaw declaring that the saloon is a safehouse for is gang.

GRIT

Life in the frontier has a way of hardening a person, and Grit is the product of those hardships. Characters can call on Grit to steel and redouble their efforts. Grit may be spent by characters in order to improve their chances to succeed.

Grit is gained whenever a characters gains a new rank in Legend or the player rolls the Devil’s Mark, a Weird, and for every Degree of Variance in failure. The most Grit a character can obtain is equal to five plus her rank in Legend. Characters also begin play with five plus their rank in Legend.

Characters may spend Grit to swap in a Legend Die on an Action Roll, to add two to the result (before the roll) of an Action Roll, to re-roll and Action Roll, or to take an Immediate Action. Grit may only be used on Action Rolls (i.e. not on Damage Rolls). A list of actions along with their cost in Grit can be found in the table below.

Grit Cost Table:

DESTINY

Destiny is usually viewed as an external force of the universe exerting its influence on persons to direct them towards a predetermined fate, which people arrive at regardless of their own actions or the actions of others. Legends of the West views destiny as a guiding force that can be thwarted, redirected, or harnessed.

Every character has two Destiny Traits. These traits are usually presented as phrases, such as Fastest Gun in the West or Vengeance Shall be Mine. Destiny Traits dovetail with Backgrounds, but instead of describing a character’s past, they describes the character’s future.

Character’s also have Destiny points, which allow them to practically change the outcome of events. A character can have no more Destiny Points than their rank in Legend. Character begin play with their Legend rank worth of Destiny Points. Characters gain a Destiny Point whenever they gain a rank in Legend or when coerced into action by the Judge.

Destiny Points may be spent to obtain an automatic success on any Action Roll, and that action counts as if it had one Success Variance. Additional Destiny Points may be spent to increase the degrees of Variance by two. Destiny Points may also be spend to fully negate injury inflicted by a single attack.

Once per session, a character may Invoke her Destiny, much like Backgrounds, and place a prop or declare a relationship in a scene correlating to one of her Destiny Traits. Everyone at the table must agree that the prop or relationship is connected to her Destiny Traits in some fashion.

Finally, the Judge may Coerce a character to perform an action based on her Destiny Traits. An example would be compelling the Fastest Gun in the West to enter a showdown with Billy the Kid. If the player accepts the the Coerce, she receives a Destiny Point. The player may choose to receive the point either before or after the action. If the player refuses, she may not invoke the Destiny Trait involved until the next session.

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database

Listening to: Red Dead Redemption – Red Dead Redemption OST – The Shootist

Well, I failed the 24 Hour RPG challenge, but I’m still going to complete the game. Here are two more Traits, Abilities and Backgrounds. I have four more Traits which are almost finished, Grit, Destiny, Qualities, and Experience.

ABILITIES

Cost: New Rank x 5
Maximum Rank: 5 + Legend

BACKGROUND

A Background is a Trait that represents a character’s history, training, and to some extent, a character’s potential. Background traits allow characters to overcome some of the limitations imposed by the Legend Trait. Backgrounds are usually professions like Cowpoke and Bounty Hunter, may also describe events or geography integral to a character’s history, such as Donnor Party Survivor or New Yorker.

A Background has two key Abilities. The Legend rank limitation for these key Abilities are removed, allowing the character to purchase ranks in those Abilities greater than their Legend rank. Every character begins play with a single Background.

Background Table:

The above table is just a list of example Backgrounds. Judges and Players should feel free to create their own. They’re easy to create, just pick a descriptive name and then choose two Key Abilities. Those Abilities are now free of Legend limitations. However, of special note is the Young’n Background; it allows a player to choose a Background during play. A Judge should only let Backgrounds with this special ability be created after some contemplation.

Cost: All characters receive 1 free Background

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database

Listening to: Ennio Morricone – The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly OST – The Ecstasy of Gold

The following is the first part of the Traits that are available in the Legends of the West, a 24 Hour RPG.

ROLL YER MAKINGS

This section presents the tools necessary for players to create Legends of the West. It describes the Traits common between all characters, explains their mechanical function, and details how to assign ranks to them during character creation and while adventuring in the West That Never Was.

Legends of the West does not employ levels or classes; all characters are built Trait by Trait from the ground up. The currency by which these Traits are increased is called Experience (XP). The Judge will hand out Experience whenever she sees fit, either individually or to the group.

LEGEND

The closest approximate to a level in Legends of the West is your Legend rank. Your Legend sets the upper bounds of every other Trait. Beyond its function as a power limiter, Legend is also a gauge of a character’s fame, or notoriety, depending on your perspective. This means characters of greater Legend in a posse of mixed ranks of Legend will have a target painted on their back when drawing down on rivals. With a high enough Legend, the government may even be pursuing your character. Whether it’s to put you down or to recruit you depends on your past deeds.

Most cowpunchers and settlers have a rank of zero in Legend, but all player characters start out with one rank in it. Ten is the official maximum rank, but Judges may impose limitations on purchasing ranks. The maximum rank of any purchased Trait for a character with no ranks in Legend is five. For every additional rank in Legend, the maximum rank for other Traits increased by one.

Cost: New Rank x 25

Maximum Rank: 10

Showdowns

Showdowns are what amounts to random, non-wilderness, encounters in Legends of the West. A Judge can take them or leave them, depending on what works best for her adventure. Whenever a character rides into town, every day spent there is a cumulative chance that there’s some fellow shows up wanting to test her luck against a Legend. How the upstart goes about challenging the character is variable and can either be determined randomly or left up to the Judge’s discretion for whatever best fits the story.

Calculate the character’s Showdown DR (see below) then make an Action Roll against the Difficulty Rating and add a +1 modifier for every day the character has been in town. Swap in Legend Dice if the character is Wanted (see Reputation) or if a Quality applies to the situation.

Showdown DR = 20 – (2 x Legend) + Reputation

If the roll exceeds the Difficulty Rating, then roll a d6 and see how the rascal plays it out. The Showdown Challenges are sparse, so feel free to add your own.

Showdown ChallengeTable:

MEASURE

Legends of the West uses two Facets comprising of three Attributes a piece to take the Measure of a character. The Facets, Body and Mind, each have a Finesse, Power, and Resistance Attributes. Every Ability or Action has a Key Attribute and its value is added to Action Rolls involving them. The minimum rank one can have in an Attribute is negative five while the maximum rank, like all other Traits, is five plus the character’s Legend rank. Should a character ever be reduced beyond negative five in an Attribute, that character falls helpless and cannot take actions.

Cost: (10 + New Rank) x 4

Maximum Rank: 5 + Legend

Body Finesse

The Finesse Attribute of a character’s Body (BF) covers characteristics such as dexterity, agility, and fine motor skills. This Attribute is most important for targeting opponents, acrobatic feats, maintain your balance, and for avoiding mishaps and area affects.

Body Power

The Power Attribute of a character’s Body (BP) measures brawn and and shear physical might. This Attribute is crucial for inflicting injuring on foes during brawls and for lifting and carry weight, especially while climbing or jumping.

Body Resistance

The Resilience Attribute of a character’s Body (BR) represents physical endurance, stamina, and the ability to fend against disease and sickness. This Attribute is essential for surviving poison, avoiding Consumption, and being able to take a blow.

Mind Finesse

The Finesse Attribute of a character’s Mind (MF) describes the ability to think on your feet and quick wit. This Attribute is necessary for situational awareness and helps a character react to social situations or to danger in combat.

Mind Power

The Power Attribute of a character’s Mind (MP) denotes critical thinking, the ability to learn, and breadth of knowledge. This Attribute is significant whenever information retention is required and for applying knowledge in craft.

Mind Resistance

The Resilience Attribute of a character’s Mind (MR) reflects will and determination as well as the ability to shrug off mind crushing events. This Attribute is key for  resisting insanity, mental fatigue from sleep deprivation, and sustaining a battle of wills.

SAND

A character’s Sand represents her defensive capabilities. How quick can she evade that stick of dynamite, whether he’ll survive that scorpion’s sting, or even if she can keep her wits after chewing on some peyote. Your Sand will determine if you can survive the many perils of the frontier. Unlike the previous Traits, ranks in Sand cannot be purchased; they are derived from your other Traits or may be modified by Knacks and Quirks.

Reaction

A character’s Reaction score reflects the capability for evasion and responding to threats. It’s your reflexes and requires both mental and physical agility, thus the Body Finesse and Mind Finesse Attributes are used in its calculation.

Reaction = BF + MF

Resilience

A character’s Resilience score represents the resistance to fatigue, poison, and disease. It’s your fortitude and is composed of both the Body’s Power and Resistance Attributes.

Resilience = BP + BR

Resolve

A character’s Resolve score measures one’s strength of will. It’s your willpower and the Mind’s Power and Resistance Attributes are used in its calculation.

Resolve = MP + MR

Wild West Weeks

• Welcome to Wild West Weeks
• Wild West RPG Database
• Into the Far West
• Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
• Deadlands Reloaded
• Red Dead Redemption
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Part 1
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Core Mechanics
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits I
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits II
• 24 Hour Old West RPG, Traits III
• Wild West Minis Database

Listening to: Hans Zimmer – Rango OST – Stuck in Guacamole

I’ve nominally decided to call this 24 Hour RPG, Legends of the West. In this post I’ve cooked up a core mechanic that seeds normal distribution (bell curve of success) with the ability for any action to succeed, albeit with slim probability. Later, I’ll add ways to improve chances with additional mechanics.

THE MOTHER LODE

This section explains the principal mechanics that power Legends of the West. Understanding how things operate should help players build characters that can effectively fill the concepts they want to explore. Optional rules are presented in sidebars, but just because this manual doesn’t consider a core rule optional doesn’t mean the players cannot change or ignore something that does not meet their needs. With that in mind, consider all the rules optional.

ADJUDICATION

24 Hour RPG

Today, I’m kicking off a 24 hour challenge where I develop a entire RPG, starting now (noon) and ending tomorrow at noon (EST). The rules of the challenge:

• Must complete within 24 hours
• All work must be done by me
• No pre-work, but can be based on pre-existing ideas

Design Goals

Listening to: Pantera – Cowboys from Hell – Cowboys from Hell