Deadlands - Core - 20th Anniv Ed

Hellstromme is the world’s foremost The lull is good for the tired
“mad scientist.” His incredible inventions survivors of the Rail Wars, but bad for
have led to faster trains, mechanical men, the companies. Most of them staked
and even ornithopters. everything on reaching the coast. Now
they found themselves barely breaking
Hellstromme has an easy time winning even providing service to the towns along
rights-of-ways in the West. He merely their exposed rail lines.
bribes the town’s mayor or citizens
with money or some fantastic device. The Election
When he can’t win a right-of-way so of `76
easily, Hellstromme isn’t above resorting
to terror tactics. He lets nothing stand The simultaneous presidential
in the way of his goals. The murder of elections in both the North and the
fools who stand in his path is completely South captured almost everyone’s
acceptable this obsessed inventor. attention in late 1876 (whether they
wanted it to or not). The elections, and
A Seventh Player? the accompanying military actions of
the so-called November Offensives, did
There is one other railroad that has little to change the status quo of the War
become a player in the Great Rail Wars, between the states.
the Denver-Pacific. This line runs from
Salt Lake City to Denver and has no The Southern Election
chance of running the entire width of
the nation, but its position puts it in a In the South, Jefferson Davis has ruled
prime position to sell itself off to one of unchallenged since the start of the Civil
the “big six.” War in 1860. The election of `76 changed
all that.
Even more interesting, the DP is owned
by the Smith & Robards company, a General Robert E. Lee retired from the
mail-order factory specializing in weird CSA Army in 1870 to help run Dixie Rails,
gizmos (mad science). The owners don’t but received the unsolicited nomination
like Dr. Hellstromme as their ideas often of the reconstituted Whig Party, a loose
compete, and each accuses the other of coalition of factions united by their
constant industrial espionage and patent opposition to Davis, and they did most of
violations. Smith & Robards’ compound the actual campaigning on his behalf.
in the mountains above Dr. Hellstromme’s
factories in Salt Lake City is well-guarded Though smaller in scope and numbers,
or they would have been dead a long the rallies organized in support of Lee
time ago. by the crippled and maimed veterans of
Lee’s army spoke more poignantly for
State of his election than anything else possibly
the Rail Wars could. Only public concern over the
(soon-to-be) 70-year-old former general’s
The Rail Wars heated up in the health seemed to lessen Lee’s chances of
summer of ‘76 with a flurry of confused election, and the more partisan of Davis’
and bloody fights called the “Battle of supporters ceaselessly reminded voters
the Cauldron,” but events in the City of the general’s near-death by heart
of Lost Angels have recently caused attack six years prior.
the railroads to come to a screeching
halt. See The Edict of ‘77 later in this The Northern Election
chapter for all the gory details.
Ulysses S. Grant was the Union
300 Posse  incumbent. Grant was set to step down
and resume command of the Union
Army. In late ’75, however, Generals
Sherman and Sheridan convinced Grant

that only he could remain president
while the Civil War raged on. Letting a
“civilian” run the war would only result
in a quick death for the Union.

Grant’s challenger this time around
was Democrat Samuel Tilden, the
Governor of New York. Tilden, spokesman
of the Union “peace movement,” was
rarely able even to begin a speech,
lacking the incumbent’s Secret Service
protection. In Tilden’s case, hundreds of
wounded Union army veterans shouted
down his every word and were all too
zealous in their efforts to prevent his
supporters from showing up in the first
place.

The November
Offensives

As everyone expected, the Fall of 1876
saw a renewal of the fighting all along
the Mason-Dixon line.

Virginia The Union forces seemed unstoppable
as they advanced on Bowling Green,
November 1st saw the first action of and only the intervention of a collective
the offensives with the Battles of Sixth abomination called The Black Regiment,
Manassas. The Union Army, supported a group of spectral soldiers who live
by a fleet of massive, ghost-rock only for death and destruction, saved the
powered land-ironclads advanced on the Rebel forces from complete destruction.
Confederate lines. At the same time, three
newly constructed Union air carriages As it happened, Sherman was forced
began a bombing campaign over the to retreat his men back into northern
Confederate capital of Richmond. Only a Kentucky, and retired across the river
swiftly brewed home air corp of Rebel into Indiana in late January of 1877.
ornithopters and the unleashing of the
Confederacy’s newly developed terror Kansas
weapon, chlorine gas, saved the day for
the South. While there was no organized offensive
in Kansas as such, the arrival of a force
The fighting and shelling raged of Federal troops there some days before
for weeks (while the ballots were the elections destabilized this powder
counted), but in the end neither side keg of a state completely. Pro-Northern
gained an inch of ground. All that was Jayhawkers and pro-Southern border
accomplished was a veritable feast of ruffians clashed even more than normal.
human misery for the Reckoners. The Federal troops, under General
Sheridan’s command were dispersed
Kentucky throughout the state to restore order, and
turned the tide for pro-Union forces.
Meanwhile, General Sherman led his
Union forces across the Ohio river into
Kentucky, first evacuating, then sacking
the city of Louisville. He then advanced
on Bowling Green, Kentucky, leaving a
swath of destruction in his wake not
unlike the one left by his forces in
Georgia a decade earlier.

In response, the CSA dispatched a Back East
cavalry force under General Gano as an
equalizer. So, ultimately the balance of Here’s a brief run down of the political
power in Kansas has not shifted—there situation Back East. Events there are
are just more people with guns in the often far-removed from the boomtowns
state now. of the Great Basin and the Maze, but they
do affect the Disputed Lands significantly.
Detroit
For more complete details on what
While the Union was on the offensive goes on east of the Mississippi, check
on its southern border, it was forced out the Back East: The North and Back
onto the defensive on its northern one. East: The South sourcebooks.
Confederate saboteurs have been working
out of Canadian bases for several years, The South
and the Union had begun to fortify the
Canadian border as a result. This didn’t In the South, Jefferson Davis has ruled
sit too well with the British, who already since the start of the Civil War in 1860.
have made overtures of support to the The recent election in ‘76 was the first
South. Still, the Union was not prepared real challenge to his power.
for what happened on November 5th,
when a British line division crossed The main reason he proved so
the Canadian border into Michigan and unpopular is because the people are
seized the city of Detroit. The British still suffering greatly from the ravaged
have since fortified their position, as economy. The Northern blockade and
seem to be in the occupation for the long constant raids make food sparse. The
haul. government is little help since Davis puts
all of its money into developing war toys
Sound & Fury or paying its huge armies. That leaves
little left for relief or disaster programs.
After the casualties and the ballots
were all counted, the events of late The cries of fraud are quite correct.
1876 seemed to have produced only Stealing the election was easy for
unintended consequences. President Davis, who saw to it the electoral votes
Grant had sought to rekindle Northern assigned to the western territories were
support for the War by launching the counted and recounted until they added
November Offensives, but he succeeded up in his favor. However, he may find it
only in triggering an international crisis difficult to continue covering his tracks,
with Britain. Nonetheless, he won by a as more people than ever now believe
substantial margin over his opponent, something is amiss with the President.
Samuel Tilden.
Many wonder how this once caring
The results in the Confederacy are man could be so callous to his starving
more controversial. The votes cast in the people.
states went to Lee by a slight margin, but
highly suspect votes from the territories Davis’ Secret
and Disputed Lands tipped the election
in Davis’ favor by a razor-thin margin. The reason why is that he isn’t the
Cries of fraud were heard from every same man who took office at the
part of the Confederacy, and only the start of the war. He’s actually an evil
published personal appeals from Lee doppleganger who’s been in charge for
himself averted a national uprising, and the last several years.
then only just.
In the winter of ’71, Davis toured
302 Posse  the hills of Kentucky to scare up new
regiments to replace those lost in the
Battle of Washington. On the last night,
the President took a lonely walk in the
crisp mountain air to relieve his tensions.
There a sickly, shambling thing with

white, wet skin bushwhacked him and The North
ate him alive. The bloated thing then
crawled into the woods and waited for Things are a lot more straightforward
its bizarre transformation to take place. up north, at least as far as the
By the next night, the doppleganger presidency goes. Ulysses S. Grant
had assumed Davis’ appearance, and remains President of the United States
more importantly, his knowledge and of America. While there was a little
ambitions. behind the scenes influence in the `76
election, it came mostly in the form of
In its original form, the doppleganger staging demonstrations against Tilden’s
is clever but not truly intelligent. When peacenick campaign rather than outright
it assumes a human form, it assumes electoral fraud.
its host’s consciousness, albeit in its
own twisted fashion. The doppleganger The British invasion of Detroit has
who consumed Davis wants to keep had one upside for the beleaguered
the country at war and wreak as much president: it has solidified the people of
devastation as possible on the North. the Union behind Grant and halted (at
Though it has so far been subtle, its least for the moment) what was a rising
designs are causing it to fast lose tide of opposition to the War with the
favor with the mostly unsuspecting Confederacy.
Confederate people.
Despite the complete failure of the
The Jefferson Davis doppleganger’s November Offensives, Grant, backed by
future plans for the war includes the a pro-War congress, intends to continue
continued development and deployment prosecuting the War with the South—
of weapons of mass destruction, most of right after he deals with the British
which would horrify the most ardent of troops messing about on his northern
proponents of the War. border.

With the terror weapons being
developed by Confederate scientists and
another term in office under his belt, the
Davis doppleganger hopes to continue
spreading as much death and misery as
possible.

General Lee

Retired General Robert E. Lee is
suspicious of Davis. He took a position
as a special advisor at the Confederate
Department of War just so he can keep
an eye on the President.

Lee’s recent electoral defeat confirmed
that there was something very wrong
in the Confederate White House, but
the aging military man still has no
idea exactly what. Davis has moved to
distance himself from Lee since the
election, encouraging him to go back to
running Dixie Rails full time.

Lee is unsure what to do now. But he
believes he may have to do something
soon. He knows that if he tried an
outright coup d’etat it might give the
Union forces the opening they need to
crush the Confederacy. And yet he sees
Davis steering his beloved nation down
the path of destruction. For now Lee
waits—and plans

Agents & tapped to head the whole shebang—Allan
Rangers Pinkerton, founder of the PInkerton
Detective Agency!
Now that you know a bit about the
governments that spawned them, it’s Watching the Shadows
time to tell you about the North and
South’s secret weapons in the war on the In addition to watching for sedition,
supernatural: the Agents and the Texas sabotage and espionage, the Agency
Rangers has a much more important function,
just like it’s PInkerton predecessor:
The Agency investigating the paranormal. Agents
never admit this publicly, however. In fact,
In the West, Agency operatives (or most won’t even admit they’re working
simply Agents) are the Union’s elite secret for the Agency.
investigations branch. Originally this duty
fell to the Pinkerton Detective Agency, If word of an encounter with the
but the Union government revoked their strange or bizarre gets out, however, the
contract in early 1877 for more direct “men in black” are usually on the scene
control of operations. within hours, at least in Union territory.

That was the public face of it, at least. Agency Organization
In reality, the branch of the Pinkertons
that handled secret operations was split Agents work on several levels. Full-
away from the Detective Agency and time Agents carry badges. Local sheriffs
absorbed whole by the US government. and town marshals are supposed to
The name changed, but the faces actually comply with them under an executive
remained the same, right up to the man order issued by President Lincoln way
back in ’64, and modified by Grant in `77.
US Marshals are also supposed to comply
with the Agency, but their independent
nature often puts them at odds with
their fellow lawmen.

The Ghost

The Pinkertons’ founder, Allan
Pinkerton, remains in charge of affairs
in the East. In the West, a mysterious
figure known as “the Ghost” is in charge.
Only Allan Pinkerton, President Grant,
Generals Sherman and Sheridan, and a
few other high-level officials know this
operative’s true identity.

The Ghost is none other than former
President Abraham Lincoln. After his
assassination in 1865, Lincoln returned
from the dead Harrowed. He and a few
close associates chose to let the rest of
the country think he was dead—in the
traditional no-talking, no-walking-around
sense, that is.

Over the next few years, Lincoln
mastered his manitou and began to
develop his arcane powers. When he
finally felt he had control, he used his
ability to become incorporeal and slipped
into the White House in February of ’73.

President Grant knew a little about The Weird West 305
the Reckoning from his agents in the
Pinkertons, but having the undead former Edges: Friends in high places: US
president walk into his bedroom nearly government 5, keen 3, “the stare” 1, “the
gave him a heart attack. voice” (soothing and grating) 2

After a few hours of Lincoln’s calming Hindrances: Curious –3, enemy: too
voice and more than a few stiff drinks, many to list here –5, Oath: to heal the
Grant welcomed his old friend back. nation –5
Then Lincoln told him his plan.
Pace: 10
The former President, having Size: 6
experienced the power of the Reckoning Wind: 18
firsthand, wanted to use his dark gifts Special Abilities:
against the bizarre transformation of the
world. Grit: 5.
Harrowed: Dominion: Harrowed 8,
Lincoln would be easily identified in
the East, however, so he traded in his Manitou 2. Powers: Ghost 5, stitchin’
stovepipe hat for a Stetson and headed 2.
west. At Grant’s behest, Allan Pinkerton Gear: Two Colt Peacemakers, 100
officially placed Lincoln in charge of the rounds and a letter of authority from
“Western Bureau” under the false name President Grant
of Andrew Lane. The press has come to Description: The Ghost looks like
call him “the Ghost,” however, and it is Abraham Lincoln, if perhaps a bit
far more appropriate than they know. paler.

The Ghost rules the Western Bureau
with an iron hand. He is sly and
easygoing personally, but he’s strict and
unforgiving in his policies, just as he was
as President in the early years of the
Civil War.

Lately the Ghost has been seen
operating near a mining boomtown in
the Great Maze called Gomorra, along
with a handful of his Agents. He’s been
remarkably close-mouthed about the
situation, only communicating directly
with Allan Pinkerton and Grant himself
about the matter.

The Ghost

Corporeal: D:2d8, N:3d6, Q:3d10, S:4d6,
V:2d8

Climbin’ 3d6, dodge 3d6, drivin’:
steamwagon 3d6, fightin’: brawlin’ 3d6,
horse ridin’ 4d6, shootin’: pistol 4d8,
rifle 4d8, sneak 5d6, swimmin’ 3d6,
teamster 3d6

Mental: C:4d10, K:3d8, M:5d12, Sm:5d12,
Sp:4d10

Academia: occult 4d8, area knowledge:
Illinois 5d8, bluff 3d12, disguise 5d8,
faith: Christianity, guts 5d10, language:
Sioux 2d8, Latin 3d8, leadership
4d12, overawe 7d12, persuasion 3d12,
professional: law 6d8, politics 6d8,
scroungin’ 1d12, scrutinize 6d10, search
4d10, streetwise 2d12, tale-tellin’ 3d12,
trackin’ 2d10

The Spooks of authority from President US Grant
sewn into their clothes.
Lincoln’s handpicked coterie of agents Description: Varies according to the
are collectively known as the “Spooks.” individual, but long black dusters are
All of these agents are intelligent and common.
deadly gunmen, and a few are as undead
as Lincoln. Some have mistakenly Agents
identified them as the Agency’s “Inner
Council.” In truth, Lincoln rules the Agents are the mainstay of the
Western Bureau with complete autonomy. Agency’s personnel. They do the
“average” Agency work: investigating
Lincoln travels with at least five supernatural incidents while obfuscating
Spooks. Another 15 or so are dispatched the truth about what’s going on in the
to trouble spots around the country— Weird West as much as possible.
sometimes even venturing undercover
into the Confederacy. Though the Spooks While not as tough as the Ghost’s
should be treated as individuals, below personal assistants, the spooks, they are
are the stats for a more or less “standard” still usually more than equipped to deal
living agent. A few very trusted Spooks with average supernatural threats
are Harrowed, and you should come up
with their abilities separately. Profile: Typical Agent

Profile: Spooks Corporeal: D:4d8, N:2d10, Q:4d8, S:2d6,
V:2d6
Corporeal: D:4d10, N:3d8, S:3d8, Q:4d12,
V:2d8 Climbin’ 2d10, dodge 2d10, fightin’: brawlin’
3d10, horse ridin’ 3d10, shootin’: pistol,
Climbin’ 3d8, dodge 3d8, fightin’: brawlin’ automatics 4d8, sneak 2d10, swimmin’
3d8, horse ridin’ 4d8, shootin’: pistol, 2d8, teamster 1d10
rifle 5d10, sneak 3d8, swimmin’ 2d8,
teamster 2d8 Mental: C:2d8, K:3d6, M:4d8, Sm:3d8,
Sp:3d6
Mental: C:3d8, K:2d8, M:3d10, Sm:3d10,
Sp:3d8 Academia: occult 3d6, bluff 3d8, disguise
4d8, guts 4d6, overawe 4d8, persuasion
Academia: occult 3d8, bluff 3d10, disguise 3d8, scrutinize 3d8, search 2d8, trackin’
2d8, guts 5d8, leadership 3d10, overawe 3d8
4d10, persuasion 3d10, scrutinize 4d8,
search 3d8, trackin’ 4d8 Edges: Belongin’s: gatling pistol 3,
Friends in high places: Agency 2
Edges: Friends in high places: Agency 4,
sand 3, tough as nails 3 Hindrances: Enemy: Texas Rangers
–2, oath: destroy or contain the
Hindrances: Enemy: Texas Rangers supernatural –3
–3, oath: destroy or contain the
supernatural –4 Pace: 10
Size: 6
Size: 6 Wind: 12
Pace: 8 Gear: A Gatling pistol, a disguise kit and
Wind: 16
Special Abilities: an Agency badge.
Description: Agent’s appearances are
Grit: 5.
Other Powers: A few are hucksters, as varied as their missions. Most of
the time they make an effort to look
one is known to be blessed, and one normal or nondescript.
is even a Sioux shaman.
Gear: Most of the spooks prefer single- Troubleshooters
action pistols, Winchester ’73 rifles,
or shotguns. All carry a secret letter The Agency hires local well-
knowns when full-timers are scarce,
306 Posse  or for missions where they expect high
casualties and are looking for a few
expendables. The Agency invariably
treats troubleshooters like mushrooms:

keep them in the dark and feed them warehouse in the Denver stockyards.
manure. They also aren’t likely to use a On its floor is a circle enclosing a five-
troubleshooter twice in the same area to pointed star. Harrowed are bound with
keep them from knowing too much. rope or handcuffs and placed at the
center of the star. Then the huckster
Though they may be working for engages the thing in a spiritual test of
the Agency, troubleshooters have no wills and tries to bind the manitou’s soul.
authority. Local lawmen often work
with them only if they share the same Binding manitous isn’t a sure thing.
interests. If they don’t, the lawmen When the Agents fail, they usually apply
usually take the opportunity to pay the a flamethrower to the unfortunate host,
Agency back for usurping their authority killing him and his malignant parasite
in the past. forever.

The Star Chamber Only the Spooks and a few senior
Agents know of the Star Chamber.
Senior Agency operatives, like Other full-time agents are told to
veteran Texas Rangers, know of the capture Harrowed characters whenever
Harrowed. They also know some of these they can and bring them to Denver by
individuals can fight the demon inside rail. They are met by the Spooks or
them and regain control of their bodies. its duly appointed representatives, and
When they can manage to stay in charge, the Harrowed prisoner is immediately
the Harrowed can become great allies in whisked away to the secret warehouse.
the fight against the Reckoners.
Binding a Manitou
Once a Harrowed is captured, it’s
difficult to tell who’s in charge. Manitous Once the Harrowed is inside the Star
are clever liars, and they can fool even Chamber, it cannot leave the pentagram
the most skilled interrogators. The or use its powers on anything outside
Rangers rely solely on their judgement, the confines of the circle’s borders. It
but after many years of bloody failure, can fire a weapon, throw things, or do
the Agency has devised a better method: anything else a normal mortal could do,
the “Star Chamber.” but it cannot cast spells, use powers, or
otherwise supernaturally affect anything
A huckster working for the Agency outside the pentagram.
constructed the Star Chamber for sorting
the good from the bad and the ugly. The The manitou gains instant but
Star Chamber is hidden deep inside a temporary Dominion while inside the

pentagram. The mortal soul is repressed If the manitou wins, the interrogator
and cannot later remember the incident. suffers 3d6 damage and can’t ever
attempt to bind this manitou again. If
Once the manitou is trapped in this the manitou loses, it is bound and the
way, the interrogator starts to work. His Harrowed character gains complete
role is to win a contest of wills with Dominion. The undead can lose
the creature. If he wins, he can bind the Dominion normally once the host is
spirit for a while. If he loses, the manitou released, but the mortal soul is given
gains total Dominion over its host. relief from his parasitic tormentor for at
Dominion may be regained naturally if least a while.
the Harrowed somehow escapes, but the
Agents always break out a flamethrower Agents use the Star Chamber only
and the marshmallows if they can’t when they have a worthy subject. It’s
succeed. a dangerous process, and unless the
Harrowed is strong-willed, he would
To begin the binding ritual, the likely just lose control to his manitou a
interrogator begins asking the spirit few months later.
questions. The nature of the questions
doesn’t really matter, as such. The banter The Texas Rangers
is really only symbolic of an incredible
battle of wills. The Confederacy relies entirely on the
military to do its interstate policing in
After two hours of this, the manitou the West. Regiments scattered throughout
and the agent must each make a Fair Rebel states and territories always have
(5) Spirit roll. The manitou’s Spirit can be jurisdiction over local town marshals and
determined by a draw of cards (as per county sheriffs.
the character creation rules) if you don’t
already know it. Now the participants Of the military units, one in particular
each draw five cards plus one for every has free reign over the entire Southwest:
success and raise on their Spirit rolls. the Texas Rangers. These surly fellows
fought as regulars in the early years of
Whoever gets the best poker hand the war, but they were later detached
wins. from the regular military to serve the
Confederacy as mounted police officers.
308 Posse 
That’s all the public knows. Your
average CSA citizen has no idea that
the Texas Rangers have another job:
hunting monsters. Richmond has

charged the Austin, Texas-based The Weird West 309
Rangers with detecting and stopping
supernatural activity in the borders of The Ranger’s Bible
the Confederacy, as well as suppressing
the truth about the supernatural events. Rangers are given a book titled
Their methods of doing so are often a bit Fugitives from Justice in the Confederacy,
less subtle than the Agency’s. though it is more commonly known as
the Ranger’s Bible.
There’s an old saying that goes, “one
riot, one Ranger.” This is true when Published every year, it contains
they’re dealing with outlaws or lynch information about every criminal wanted
mobs. When they’re chasing something anywhere in the South—personal history,
less natural, the wily Rangers travel in known habits, contacts, friends and
packs, much like wolves but twice as family, and anything else that might
mean. prove useful.

The Rangers’ unspoken motto is There’s a second section to the book
“shoot it or recruit it.” You see, there are that’s even more interesting, but only
certain creatures in the world that can senior Rangers get the copies with that
be used to fight the tide of evil that has part. It reports some of the weird or
washed over the Weird West. The Rangers unexplainable events the Rangers have
love to get these dark champions to fight encountered over the last 13 years. This
for them. If they eventually turn against includes a “bestiary” of all the less-
the Rangers—and quite often they do— than-ordinary creatures running around
they quickly find their way back into the the Weird West, and a “rogue’s gallery”
black holes from which they came. of all the people the Rangers feel are a
supernatural threat—from hucksters to
Typical Texas Ranger black magicians and the Harrowed.

Corporeal: D:2d12, N:2d10, Q:4d10, S:3d8, Rangers have come to call this part of
V:4d6 the book “Chapter 13.”

Climbin’ 1d10, dodge 2d10, fightin: brawlin’, Most Rangers know Chapter 13 exists,
knife 3d10, horse ridin’ 2d10, quick but aren’t allowed to even see them.
draw: pistol 3d10, shootin’; pistol, rifle They can only wire their findings to
4d12, sneak 2d10 Ranger’s headquarters and hope a senior
“researcher” there (usually a maimed
Mental: C:1d8, K:1d6, M:3d6, Sm:2d6, Ranger who can’t work the “field”
Sp:3d6 anymore) can figure something out. It’s
just too risky to give these books to all
Area knowledge: Texas 4d6, guts 4d6, Rangers. If one should fall into the hands
language: Spanish 2d6, leadership of a civilian, or worse, the Tombstone
3d6, overawe 4d6, search 2d8, survival: Epitaph, God only knows what havoc it
desert 3d6, trackin’ 2d8 could wreak.

Edges: Law man 5 General King
Hindrances: Big britches –3, enemy:
The Ghost, Allan Pinkerton, and
Northerners –2, obligation: shoot or General William King, commander
recruit the supernatural –5 of the Texas Rangers, are the three
Pace: 10 Americans who know the most about
Size: 6 the Reckoning. They know because they
Wind: 12 report it and record it every day.
Gear: 2 double-action Peacemakers, a
good horse and a Ranger badge. Most King is a no-nonsense man who
keep a rifle or shotgun and some believes firmly in the Ranger’s methods.
dynamite on their horse as well. He isn’t shy about it, either. Young
Description: Rangers keep a low profile Rangers who disagree with him are
until it’s time to get down to business. quickly “transferred” to the CSA cavalry.
Still, most folks can tell by their
demeanor, their long, black dusters
and wide-brimmed hats that they’re
one of “Texas’ Finest.”

A Tour of the The Weird West 311
Weird West
They’re right. Sasquatches are friendly,
Here is a brief overview of some of huge, primordial pre-humans who have
the more interesting people, places, and their own simple language and use tools.
things your posse might discover as they They do not know the secret of fire—
explore the Weird West. The entries are though they are fascinated by it. They are
broken down by region to help give you a truly intelligent—though primitive—and
better idea of what’s going on in the area crafty woodsmen. Sasquatches are also
in which you set your campaign. relentless trackers and elusive prey, using
tricks and simple but clever traps to
The Great throw pursuers off their trail.
Northwest
The sasquatches’ ancient enemies
Washington, Oregon, Idaho are wendigos (detailed below). These
At first glance, the beautiful landscape creatures were common before the
of the Great Northwest is serene and Great Spirit War, and they have made a
peaceful. The mist-shrouded base of dramatic comeback since the Reckoning.
Mount Rainier, the snowy evergreens of
the Cascade range, and the crystal lakes Sasquatches try their best to keep
lure a man into their arms like a siren’s new wendigos from coming into being.
call. Whenever they see a starving human,
Don’t be fooled. The howls in the night they try their best to provide him with
are more than just the wind. sustenance. Sasquatches don’t like to let
The general Fear Level of the Cascades themselves be seen, so they leave their
is 1. In areas where sasquatches or gifts of food along trails where hungry
wolflings are spotted, the Fear Level humans are most likely to find them.
rises to 2. If a wendigo terrorizes a
settlement, the town’s Fear Level jumps As you might guess, sasquatches
to 3 overnight. mercilessly attack any human they catch
consuming the flesh of another.
Sasquatches
Profile: Sasquatch
If the Indians are feeling particularly
generous with their stories, they may Corporeal: D:2d6, N:3d8, S:3d12+2, Q:2d10,
tell folks why the tops of certain totem- V:3d12
poles bear furry, humanoid faces. These
people believe a race of giant, hairy Climbin’ 4d8, fightin’: brawlin’ 4d8, sneak
humanoids resides in the vast uncharted 5d8, swimmin’ 2d8, throwin’: rocks 4d6
woodlands of the Northwest. They
call these creatures by many names. Mental: C:3d10, K:3d6, M:3d8, Sm:2d8,
“Sasquatches,” “brothers of the woods,” Sp:4d10
or “bigfoots” are the most common. The
Salish Indians around Seattle believe the Area knowledge: Cascades 7d6, guts 3d10,
sasquatches live in the hollow trunks medicine: general 4d6, overawe 4d8,
of tremendous, living trees high in the scrutinize 2d10, search 3d10, survival:
Cascade Mountains. They claim the mountains 4d8, trackin’ 3d10
sasquatches have an entire village and
even a hierarchy of leaders, warriors, Pace: 8
workers, and the like. They only venture Size: 8
down to check on their little Indian Wind: 22
brothers and sisters or to see how these Terror: 5
new, pale-skinned folks live. Special Abilities:

Damage: Sasquatches sometimes use
sharp sticks to catch fish (STR+1d4
damage), and they can throw large
stones (STR+3d6).

Description: Sasquatches are large
ape-like humanoids covered in reddish-
brown fur.

Wendigos Flying Wendigo

The mountains of the Northwest grow A rare few wendigos even have wings.
deathly cold in the winter. Survival is These abominations swoop down from
always a trial, especially the quest for the sky and drag their victims into the
food. When sustenance is scarce, folks frigid air. Once they have done so, they
do horrible things. Like consume human fly at such extreme speeds that the
flesh. victim literally begins to burn up from
the friction. Flying wendigos prey on
The Indians of the area abhor the idea. misers who hoard their food from their
When a person resorts to this heinous companions, forcing them to starve to
practice, he sometimes becomes an evil death during harsh winters.
creature called a wendigo. They are huge,
hairy beasts with oversized mouthfuls Flying wendigos are created by food
of jagged teeth, huge claws, and white, misers. Roll a d20 whenever a character’s
pupiless eyes. Their fur can be white or companion starves to death and he hides
black, but never brown like a sasquatch. or hoards food from the unfortunate
victim. Add +1 to the roll each time
Becoming a Wendigo another of the miser’s companions starve
to death.
Should a character ever be forced
to (gag!) consume human flesh in the Profile: Flying Wendigo
Great Northwest, secretly roll a d20. Add
+1 to the roll each time the character Corporeal: D:2d6, N:3d10, S:2d12+4, Q:3d10,
consumes flesh from a new victim, V:2d8
and add another +2 if this incident of
cannibalism occurs during winter. Climbin’ 2d10, fightin’: brawlin’ 2d10, sneak
2d10
On a 20 or higher, the cannibal
becomes a wendigo under the Marshal’s Mental: C:2d10, K:2d6, M:3d10, Sm:2d8,
control. There’s no way to get this not- Sp:2d8
hero back, so the player should make a
new one. Area knowledge 4d6, overawe 4d10, search
3d10
White Wendigo
Pace: 30 (flying); 6 (walking)
Folks who eat the flesh of close Size: 8
friends or relatives become white Wind: 16
wendigos. These creatures are even Terror: 9
bigger and meaner than the black variety Special Abilities:
(which are described in the color bestiary
of this book). Coup: Flying wendigos grant Harrowed
souls the ability to levitate a few
Use the stats for the standard wendigo feet off the ground for 1 Wind per
with the following modifications: raise its round.
Strength to 4d12+8, its Quickness to 3d10,
and it’s Vigor to 3d12+4. A white wendigo Damage: Claws (STR+2d6), bite
has 2 points of Armor. (STR+1d6)

The coup gained for killing a white Night Vision: Can see normally in all
wendigo is different as well. A Harrowed but total darkness.
who sups on a white wendigo’s essence
gains the stitchin’ ability. If he already Weakness—Hot Tallow: As with
has the ability, he gains a level in it, or regular wendigos.
he cuts the regeneration time to five
minutes if he already has the power at Flight: Pace 30
level 5. Grapple: Flying wendigos kill by

312 Posse  grasping their victims from above
and then dragging them through
the wintery air at incredible speeds.
With surprise, the wendigo needs a
single Fair (5) success to pick up a
man-sized character. If the prey is
aware the thing is after her, she can
make this an opposed Nimbleness
test. The creature needs at least
one raise to pick up prey. In either

case, the victim needs at least one Profile: Wolflings
raise on an opposed Strength test to
break free. Corporeal: D:2d4, N:3d10, S:2d10, Q:3d10,
Wind Burn: Once the prey is airborne, V:3d8
he begins to literally burn up and
takes 1 Wind per round until he Climbin’ 5d10, dodge 3d10, fightin’:
dies or breaks free. Note that the brawlin’ 4d10, sneak 6d10, swimmin’
wendigo doesn’t actually move this 2d10
fast—it’s purely a supernatural effect.
Breaking free can be painful—a Mental: C:4d10, K:2d6, M:3d8, Sm:3d6,
cowpoke takes 5d6+25 damage Sp:4d10
when he hits the ground 25 yards
up at a Pace of 30. Still, it’s better Area knowledge 5d6, guts 3d10, overawe
than dying from a friction burn. 3d8, search 3d10, survival: mountains
Description: This kind of wendigo is 3d8, trackin’ 6d10
white and has two huge wings in
place of its arms. Its legs are lanky Pace: 10 (2 legs)/20 (four legs)
but strong and end in two terrible Size: 6
talons. Its head is that of a regular Wind: 18
wendigo, though its teeth are longer Terror: 5
and more jagged. Special Abilities:

Wolflings Damage: Bite (STR+1d6), claws
(STR+1d6)
The settlers and Indians of eastern
Washington agree the many wild wolves Description: See above.
that roam there are dangerous predators.
The locals have more to say about the
beasts, but they say it only in whispers.
Their legends tell of half-human, half-
wolves with coats of pure white. These
feral creatures supposedly live in the lost
valleys of the Cascade Mountains and
venture out only to prey on mankind.

Wolflings are not lycanthropes
or shapechangers. They are simply
intelligent wolves with long, oddly jointed
legs that allow them to walk on two legs
or four. They prefer four for running and
hunting and two for fighting.

The wolf people have fingers and
opposable thumbs and use crude tools
and weapons. They occasionally wear
jewelry, scarves, or other clothing they’ve
taken from their victims.

Wolflings and sasquatches are not
good neighbors. Since sasquatches tend
to wander alone, the wolflings have
preyed on their kind for generations.
This is why the sasquatches became
so elusive and learned to set such
remarkable traps. On the wolflings’ part,
they have honed pack tactics to a fine,
bloody point.

Winter Wars The High
Plains
All types of wendigos retreat into the
snowy mountains during the warmer Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Dakota
months. There they turn their savage The northern end of the Great Plains
attentions to the villages of the peaceful look harmless. Low rolling hills seem
sasquatches. The wolflings side with open and inviting, and the gently
the wendigos, though the latter are swaying grass seems to welcome the
cruel masters who basically chase the weary traveler.
wolflings into the sasquatch villages Nothing could be further from the
more than they actually command them. truth. These storm-swept plains are home
to horrors and chaos beyond imagining.
This epic struggle has lasted for Lurking behind every knoll is a creature
centuries. The Indians claim the in search of prey. In the tall grass, fiends
ancient wars are often the cause of the with bloodshot eyes and dripping fangs
Cascade Mountains’ sudden and violent silently stalk lone travelers for meat—or
avalanches, some of which have been for play.
known to wipe out entire villages. The High Plains has an average Fear
Level of 2. A few areas are much higher,
The Fear Level of these bloody as you’ll see below.
battlegrounds is 4, should anyone ever
stumble across one. The Badlands

314 Posse  Fear Level 4 (average)
There are many dangers in the
Badlands, but two bear special attention.

Death From Above

Some say winged raptors prowl the
twisted valleys and canyons of the
Badlands. Government agents who
investigated the area late in ’75 claim
these are giant condors and warn
travelers to avoid this area.

That’s pure government propaganda,
Marshal. The flying terrors of the
Badlands are devil bats. You’ll find their
statistics and a full-color picture of these
dangerous horrors in Chapter Three of
this book.

The Fear Level in the valley around
their lair is 4. It would be higher if there
were more people around.

Worm Canyon

Fear Level 5
There is an even more sinister evil at
work deep in the Badlands. According to
several prospectors who have explored
the area, there is a labyrinthine section
of the Badlands called “Worm Canyon.”
As you might guess, it is home to a
number of giant worms similar to Utah
and Mojave rattlers.

The worms’ young can be found The Weird West 315
everywhere. A few trappers have taken
to skinning young ones and selling Ursula accepted her fate warmly. Or
their tough hides for use as hatbands. perhaps, “wormly.” She dyed her skin
The price of a single young rattler purple, stopped taking baths in the local
hide can fetch as much as $2 a yard. watering hole, and started making up
The trouble, of course, is the mommas. chants, prayers, and songs in honor of
They don’t much like having their little the worms. Her followers decided to go
ones skinned. And they’re a lot more along with it after she fed those who
intelligent than most people think. didn’t to her huge friends.

Some trappers who have been there Ursula’s greatest challenge is finding
claim a local cult worships the creatures. new sacrifices. There aren’t many visitors
The misguided pagans have dyed their to Worm Canyon (the Sioux give it a
skin a deep purple hue in honor of the wide berth), but the clever witch soon
worms and even make human sacrifices hit upon a plan. Ursula let a few travelers
to the creatures. Even more strange, the pass through her lands safely, but only
images of those who have fallen victim after telling them she was there with
to the cult turn up in the eerie rock her “fellow prospectors” hauling out
formations of the canyon, making the wagonloads of gold. Needless to say,
jagged cliffs resemble twisted human Ursula has had little trouble finding
corpses. sacrifices since then.

Of course the rumors are true. The The giant worms’ statistics and a full-
Cult of Worms is led by “Queen” Ursula, a color picture can be found in Chapter
maniacal sorceress. She and her “coven” Three. Here’s the lowdown on Ursula and
of witches were up to no good out Reno her wackos.
way when they were captured by Nevada
Smith, a famous spy for the Agency. Ursula

Smith’s superiors ordered him to take Corporeal: D:2d6, N:2d8, S:2d6, Q:2d8,
the prisoners back to Washington for V:2d6
study. He took the northern route back,
of course, but halfway along the Oregon Climbin’ 3d8, dodge 3d8, fightin’: brawlin’
Trail, the coven overwhelmed Smith and 2d8, sneak 4d8, throwin’: bolts o’ doom
his hired freelancers and escaped into 5d6
the Badlands.
Mental: C:3d8, K:2d10, M:3d10, Sm:4d8,
Smith barely survived. When he finally Sp:3d12
recovered, he was rushed to the City o’
Gloom (where he continues to foil Dr. Academia: occult 5d10, area knowledge:
Hellstromme’s plots to this day) and Worm Canyon 4d10, disguise 2d10, faith
never got to track the coven down. 5d12, leadership 4d10, medicine: surgery
2d10, overawe 3d10, scrutinize 3d8,
After escaping, Ursula and her twisted search 3d8, survival: desert 2d8
coven found themselves trapped in the
Badlands by giant worms. Ursula used Edges: Arcane background: black magic
her powers to talk to the critters, and 3
the evil horrors surprised her with their
intelligence. But the things demanded she Hindrances: Loco: megalomanic –3
sacrifice one of her companions if she Pace: 8
wanted to live. Size: 6
Wind: 18
Ursula blinked in disbelief for a Special Abilities:
moment, then quickly hurled one of her
surprised coven forward. She cackled Black Magic: Bolts o’ doom 3, dark
with glee as the monsters gobbled up protection 2, stun 3
her sacrifice.
Gear: A long knife (STR+1d4).
Since then, the worms have made Description: Ursula used to be quite
Ursula both their prisoner and their
Queen. If the sorceress and her cult don’t pretty, but her dyed purple skin and
make a human sacrifice once a week, the current lack of hygiene make her
worms eat one of the coven. pretty repulsive right now.

Profile: The Altar of Worms
Fanatical Worm
Cultists Fear Level 6
The cult makes its sacrifices at
Corporeal: D:2d6, N:3d6, S:2d6, Q:3d6, a bizarre altar high on a twisted
V:2d6 peak overlooking the Badlands. The
unfortunate victims are placed on the
Climbin’ 4d6, dodge 4d6, fightin’: brawlin’ altar, stunned or bound, while the
3d6, shootin’: pistol 2d6, sneak 5d6 cultists chant and stamp their feet to
alert the rattlers below. In five minutes,
Mental: C:3d6, K:2d6, M:2d6, Sm:2d6, giant rattlers gather in a great circle at
Sp:2d6 the base of the cliff. In their midst are
hundreds of their young.
Academia: occult 2d6, area knowledge: The sacrifice is pushed off the altar
Worm Canyon 4d6, faith 4d6, overawe and into the squirming mass of worms
2d6, search 3d6, survival: desert 2d6 50 feet below. The victim is cushioned by
the bodies of the worms and then torn
Edges: Arcane background: black magic to pieces by the young’s mouths. When
3 the grisly rite is finished, the rattlers and
their larvae burrow back into the ground.
Hindrances: Loco: worm worshippers –3, The soul of the victim is consumed.
loyal: Ursula –3 He cannot return as a Harrowed, nor be
resurrected by any means. Proof of his
Pace: 6 eternal damnation can be found in the
Size: 6 hills and cliffs of Worm Canyon—the
Wind: 12 image of the victim’s corpse appears
Special Abilities: there over the next few hours. Exactly
what purpose this serves is unknown.
Black Magic: Dark protection 1, stun 3
Gear: A few still keep double-action Little ’Uns
Rattler larvae can be found all over the
pistols, but most rely on their black Badlands. Strangely, all the baby rattlers
magic to bring down their opponents. the trappers kill in the area are about
Description: These slavering fanatics three feet long. The theory is they stay
are all purple and filthy, following the underground until they’re this size, prowl
dictates of their subterranean masters. around the surface for a while, then go
down for further incubation.
Black Magic Trappings
Young rattlers travel in packs of 2–12,
Bolts o’ Doom: Only Ursula has this and have the following statistics:
black spell. Her version resembles a
crimson and purplish energy ray that Young Rattlers
blasts her opponents.
Corporeal: D:1d4, N:3d6, S:3d6, Q:3d6,
Dark Protection: The cultist’s dyed V:3d6
skin works like the giant rattlers’ hides
to repel damage. Fightin’: brawlin’ 3d6
Mental: C:2d8, K:1d4, M:2d8, Sm:2d6,
Stun: Ursula’s horrible stun is an
invisible beam that causes the victim’s Sp:2d6
veins and arteries to writhe and convulse Pace: 6/15 burrowing
like worms. The attack automatically hits Size: 4
any one target within 50 yards. Once the Wind: 12
victim is paralyzed, the cult takes them Terror: 3
to the Altar of Worms (see below). Special Abilities:

316 Posse  Burrowing: Pace 15
Damage: Bite (STR)
Description: These worms look like
miniature versions of their huge
parents.

The Black Hills grizzlies” living in the area. At least one
of the Sioux shamans believed these
Fear Level 3 creatures were friendly nature spirits
The Sioux call these ancient hills, come to save them from the wakansica.
“saha paha.” To them, the hills are a He probably kept believing that right up
sacred place where a brave can come to until the beasts tore him limb from limb.
relax, meditate, and cleanse his soul. At
least before gold and ghost rock were The warlord known only as Kang
discovered there. These days, a brave supposedly defeated the wakansica a
can’t even sit down without landing on a few years ago. The Sioux believed him
grubby prospector tearing the Black Hills and allowed Kang to build a line to
apart. Deadwood.
Under the Deadwood Treaty of ‘75,
miners are supposed to pay a $100 fee to The truth is that the creatures inside
stake a claim in the Black Hills. Most of are the mutated descendents of ancient
them can’t afford the fee until they hit a visitors from the stars. Their entire
vein of gold or ghost rock, however, so warped society lives inside the mountain,
they sneak into the hills illegally until and is detailed in part three of the Devil’s
they get lucky. Tower adventure series, “Fortress o’ Fear.”
The Sioux are ruthless in patrolling
for these squatters. A miner who can’t Kang hasn’t defeated these creatures—
produce his claim is dragged back to he made a deal with them. He maintains
Deadwood without his gear. Rogues who a guard around the tower that keeps
fight back deal with the full fury of the strangers out and little green men in.
Sioux braves. Their corpses are mounted The grizzlies rumored to wander the
on poles along the trail to the Black Hills surrounding plains have long since been
as warnings to other claim jumpers. See put down by Kang’s hired guns.
Deadwood later in this chapter for more
information.

Devil’s Tower

Fear Level 4
The Sioux call it “mateo tepee,” or
“Lodge of the Grizzly.” Devil’s Tower suits
the place just fine. If you’ve never heard
of this geological wonder, Devil’s Tower
is a massive column of rock over 850
feet high with a base around 1000 feet
in diameter. The tower gets its Indian
name from the vertical grooves that
cover its sides. The legend goes that a
gigantic grizzly chased several Indians to
the top of the tower and tried to climb
up, making the grooves with its horrible
claws.
Don’t buy into all that hullabaloo.
There’s something worse going on at
Devil’s Tower than a bunch of angry
grizzlies. A few years ago, the Sioux
in the area spoke in hushed tones of
the “paha wakansica,” or “mountain
devils.” These things are reputed to have
skin like stones, and strange, magical
artifacts that can melt the flesh off a
brave’s bones or freeze the blood in his
veins. There are also some sort of “scaly

Yellowstone and manitous must make Spirit totals
(determine their statistics with the draw
Fear Level 3 of a card) each day they wander outside
Yellowstone was declared a national of this zone. When they fail, the creatures
park by President Grant in 1872. In case are violently drawn back toward
you haven’t heard about this incredible Excelsior and sucked into the Hunting
place, Yellowstone is home to a number Grounds. That particular creature may
of geological wonders. The Black Cliff then not return to the physical world for
is a sheet of pure obsidian over 100 100 years.
feet tall, and a number of hot springs
riddle the land, the steam shrouding Nature spirits never intentionally
the area around them in white mist. Of enter the physical world. They are
course, the most famous wonders are the somewhat absentminded, however, and
geysers. so occasionally become lost in the
These natural phenomena shoot mists surrounding the gate. When they
scalding water high into the air. The most realize they have left the sacred Hunting
violent is Excelsior, which can spit nearly Grounds, nature spirits are angry and
200 feet straight up. The most regular is cruel to any mortals who cross their
Old Faithful. paths. They can rarely be reasoned with
The Indians say spirits and demons and must be led—usually by mortal
dwell in the park. The truth is a Sioux “bait”—back to the gateway. They cannot
shaman discovered a natural gateway be harmed by normal means.
to the Hunting Grounds deep inside the
geyser known as Excelsior. He and others Entering the Hunting
tell his people there are demons around Grounds
Yellowstone because strange creatures
sometimes emerge from Excelsior. Most To enter the Hunting Grounds, a
are minor abominations and animal person must step inside Excelsior and
essences that populate the Hunting make an opposed faith check. Shamans
Grounds that dissipate if they wander may make a ritual/Spirit check instead,
too far from Excelsior. Nature spirits if they desire. The gateway’s faith score
and manitous are far worse when they is determined by drawing three cards
manage to escape from the gateway. and using the highest value as its faith
Either can survive indefinitely up to one (compare the card to the Trait Table from
mile or more away. After that, the spirits the Deadlands Player’s Book.)

If the character loses, he drops The Weird West 319
into the boiling water below and dies
instantly (unless he has some sort of Act, the people of the territory would be
protection from the scalding water). allowed to vote on whether it entered the
Should the character win, he is instantly Union as a free or slave state.
transported to the Hunting Grounds.
It didn’t take long for pro-slavery
We don’t have room to describe the groups from Missouri to filter across
mad Hunting Grounds in this book, the border. Dubbed “border ruffians” by
but it’s a land of incredible beauty and settlers, these groups tried to ensure that
twisted nightmares. Warp reality as much Kansas would become a slave state. Their
as you want should the posse desire to mortal opponents are the Jayhawkers,
explore it. The Ghost Dancers sourcebook Kansan abolitionists.
contains some information on this
strange place. You can even use such Despite the border ruffians’ best
gateways as a portal to our sister games, efforts, Kansas was admitted to the
Deadlands: Hell on Earth or Deadlands: Union as a free state in January, 1861. A
Lost Colony. few months later, the Rebels opened up
on Fort Sumter and the Civil War began.
The Disputed No major campaigns have been fought
Lands in Kansas, but many neighbors harbor
grudges from the earlier fighting, and the
Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Utah war always provides an excuse for a new
The Disputed Lands are those states round of hostilities. Guerrilla fighting is
and territories with no clear allegiance particularly intense along the Kansas-
to either the North or the South. Both Missouri border. The recent influx of
nations may claim they own these troops into the state has only made
states, but in truth the towns and cities things worse.
within switch sides frequently—and often
violently. Due to the large number of murderous
Like the Disputed Lands, the land thieves acting as military raiders, the
itself turns broken and jagged as it Fear Level in the most contested parts of
crawls westward. The plains of Kansas Kansas is 4.
rise slowly to the rolling hills of eastern
Colorado before finally becoming the Profile: Typical Raider
Rocky Mountains and the jagged hills of
Utah. Corporeal: D:2d8, N:3d6, S:2d8, Q:2d8,
The tension and warfare in the V:3d6
unfortunate Disputed Lands keeps the
average Fear Level at 2. When raiders Climbin’ 1d6, fightin’: knife 3d6, dodge 2d6,
strike, a settlement’s Fear Level rises by horse ridin’ 4d6, shootin’: pistol, rifle,
1. If Quantrill’s Raiders, the James Gang, shotgun 2d8, sneak 3d6
or the Revenant strikes, the Fear Level
jumps by 2 overnight. Mental: C:2d6, K:1d6, M:3d6, Sm:2d6,
Fear around Salt Lake City is usually Sp:1d6
3, but Hellstromme’s experiments cause
frequent spikes. Gamblin’ 3d6, guts 3d6, overawe 2d6,
scroungin’ 3d6, search 3d6, survival:
Bloody Kansas plains 4d6

Kansas has been the site of more Edges: None
than 20 years of guerrilla warfare. Back Hindrances: Bloodthirsty –2
in 1854, President Franklin Pierce signed Pace: 8
the Kansas-Nebraska Act, opening the Size: 6
territory to settlement. According to the Wind: 12
Gear: Raiders can be found carrying just

about any weapon imaginable.
Description: Raiders appearances differ

from group to group. Often they wear
some remnant of a military uniform.

Quantrill’s Raiders Profile: Bill Quantrill

One of the most famous Rebel fighters Corporeal: D:3d10, N:2d8, S:4d12, Q:2d10,
was Bill Quantrill. In 1863, he and his V:3d8
boys burned the town of Lawrence,
Kansas, and killed over 150 men, women, Dodge 2d8, fightin’: brawlin’ 4d8, fightin’:
and children. Later the same year, he knife 4d8, horse ridin’ 5d8, quick draw
defeated a small unit of Union cavalry 3d10, shootin’: pistol, rifle, shotgun 5d10,
and put 17 noncombatants to death. It sneak 3d8, speed load 3d10
was rumored that a Union cavalry troop
caught him and put him six feet under, Mental: C:4d6, K:3d8, M:2d8, Sm:3d8,
but folks claim he still rides. And with a Sp:2d10
vengeance.
Bluff 3d8, guts 3d10, overawe 3d8,
Bill Quantrill returned from the dead persuasion 2d8, professional: teaching
Harrowed, but Hell truly followed with 3d8, scrutinize 4d6, survival 4d8,
him, for his manitou manages to keep trackin’ 4d8
Dominion almost constantly. In this
state, Bill is a bloodthirsty and merciless Edges: None
marauder. Even women and children Hindrances: Ugly as sin –1
aren’t safe from his ravages. Pace: 8
Size: 6
He has a single Harrowed power: Wind: 18
unholy host. This power is fully described Special Abilities:
in Book o’ the Dead, but in essence
it lets Bill create a band of undead Harrowed: Dominion: Harrowed 1/
servants. These are Bloody Bill Quantrill’s Manitou 9, Powers: unholy host 5
marauders, murderous undead who kill
for sheer pleasure. Terror: 7
Gear: Two .44 Colt Dragoons, a
On the few occasions when Bill
manages to regain Dominion, he believes Winchester ’73, and a Bowie knife.
his ghoulish followers are actually Description: Quantrill was an ugly man
demons from Hell sent to punish him
for his sins. He doesn’t know how he in life, and death hasn’t done a thing to
escaped from Perdition, but he believes improve his appearance.
his own undead minions are chasing him
to drag him back to the netherworld. Undead Marauders

Unfortunately for Bill, his actions while Use the statistics for veteran walkin’
the manitou was in charge have alienated dead on page 277.
those few who might once have believed
him a hero. They now shut their doors The James Gang
and shutters to the lunatic’s screams.
The James Gang are Missourians who
His last hope is Jesse James. Quantrill frequent the banks, stagecoach trails, and
believes his now-famous friend can rails of Kansas. Jesse and Frank James—
help him fight off the “demons” and as well as frequent cohorts James, Cole,
save his mortal soul. Whenever he gains and Jim Younger—are notorious bandits
Dominion, he heads for Missouri, keeping and thieves. Some believe the dime
to the woods and back roads so he novels’ tales of their “daring” exploits, but
won’t be recognized and lynched for his in truth, these men are little more than
misdeeds. bloodthirsty killers.

When the manitou eventually regains Their troubles began when Frank and
control of Bloody Bill’s soul, it quickly later Jesse joined up with “Bloody Bill”
reunites with its pursuing servants, who Quantrill’s Confederate raiders early in
are always hot on their master’s trail. the Civil War. The ruffians who made up
this band had only one thing in common:
320 Posse  an intense hatred for anything north of
the Mason-Dixon line.

Jesse, in particular, had been nearly
beaten to death by Yankees and wanted
revenge. He got his chance in 1864 when

Quantrill raided Centralia, Kansas. The
gang looted and burned the town, then
massacred over 75 unarmed Union
prisoners.

When Quantrill was reported killed in
’65, the band scattered. Frank and Jesse,
too lazy to dirty their hands with honest
work, turned to thievery. Their targets are
usually banks in the Disputed Lands with
Northern sympathies. They are reported
to have robbed a few stagecoaches, but
their new favorite targets are trains—
especially those of Union Blue.

After one train robbery, the boastful
Jesse even handed the engineer a press
release which stated that the railroad’s
owner, Joshua Chamberlain, was a
Union General, and the gang therefore
considered the train a “military” target.
Why James needed to justify this robbery
is a mystery. He has certainly shown
no compunction about robbing and
murdering just about anyone else who
gets in his way.

The James-Pinkerton War the Disputed Lands down into the
Confederacy. The James gang ensures
Union Blue and an association of that his shipments through the territories
bankers and former victims called on the aren’t raided.
Pinkerton Detective Agency (operating
in their civilian capacity as a private Jesse James
security force) to solve their problems
with the James Gang. Unfortunately, Corporeal: D:4d12, N:4d10, Q:3d10, S:2d6,
a bumbling employee of the usually V:3d8
efficient agency thought he had the
James brothers cornered in their mother’s Climbin’ 1d10, dodge 3d12, fightin’: brawlin’
house. When the brothers didn’t come 3d10, horse ridin’ 4d10, quick draw:
out, the overzealous agent threw an pistol 4d10, shootin’: pistol, rifle 4d12,
explosive gizmo inside and leveled the sneak 4d10
place. The boys’ mother lost her arm, and
their young half-brother was killed. Mental: C:3d8, K:2d8, M:3d10, Sm:3d8,
Sp:2d6
After this incident, opinion in the
Disputed Lands is split over whether the Area knowledge: Disputed Lands 4d6,
James Gang is made up of legitimate artillery: cannons 2d8, disguise 1d8,
Confederate raiders or greedy, cold- overawe 3d10, survival: plains 3d8
blooded killers. These heartless
murderers are even considered heroes Edges: Big ears 1, eagle eyes 1, friends in
across the border in Missouri. high places: friends and sympathizers
throughout the disputed lands 2,
Lately the James brothers have sold friends in high places: KC & LR
their services to a minor rail baron railroad 3, renown 5
named Richard Barney, who operates the
Kansas City & Little Rock rail line. Hindrances: Ailin’: lung injury –1, enemy:
Pinkerton Agency and Northerners in
Barney has absolutely no desire general –3, outlaw –5
to join in the chaos of the Rail Wars,
and is making quite a pretty penny
running contraband smuggled across

Pace: 10 Once his prey is spotted, the Revenant
Size: 6 pats his six-gun, silently challenging the
Wind: 14 law to a duel. In a heartbeat, the lawman
Gear: Two Colt Army revolvers, one is dead, and the Revenant mounts his
pale horse and rides away.
Sharpe’s big 50, a Bowie knife and a
horse. The Revenant has visited Lawrence,
Description: See the picture on previous Abilene, Wichita, Dodge, and Denver.
page. Where he’s headed next is anyone’s
guess.
Denver
The Revenant is an amalgamation of
Fear Level 2 all the dead outlaws of the West. It is the
There’s a saying that goes, “all rails spirit of criminal hatred and disregard for
lead west to Denver.” The Queen City the law gained corporeal form.
of the Desert lies nestled in a valley in
the foothills of the Front Range of the At High Noon on the thirteenth
Rockies. It’s the largest city between of each month, the Revenant rides
Dodge and the City of Lost Angels, and ominously into a town and silently
between Texas and Seattle, making it the challenges the most senior lawman to
perfect place to run a rail to. a duel. The only words it ever utters are
Colorado was only made a state in ‘76, the names of its victims, and these are
with Denver as its capital, and the people whispered in hoarse whispers that only
are prouder than peacocks. Of course, lawmen can hear.
both the North and the South claim
ownership of the state, but this far from Only a duly authorized lawman can
the battlelines, it doesn’t seem like most destroy this abomination. This is not
people care much. Of course, there are an easy task, since the entity has the
always exceptions. collected skills of all those who are a
The best way east or west of Denver part of its dark soul.
is by the Denver Pacific railroad (see The
Great Rail Wars, above). It connects Profile: The Revenant
with three of the major lines in the
Disputed Lands, so it’s accessible to the Corporeal: D:4d12+6, N:2d8, S:3d6,
East. It reaches far west as well, all the Q:4d12+6, V:3d8
way to Salt Lake City where the owners,
Smith & Robards, use it to ship their Dodge 3d8, fightin’ 4d8, horse ridin’ 6d8,
incredible wares. quick draw 9d12+6, shootin’: pistol
10d12+6, sneak 7d8
The Revenant
Mental: C:4d10, K:4d10, M:5d12+4, Sm:2d8,
There is a rumor of a tall cowboy Sp:7d8
dressed in black mounted atop a pale
horse riding from town to town in the Overawe 9d12+4, guts 8d12+4, search 5d10,
Disputed Lands. The papers have named trackin’ 10d10
this grim figure “the Revenant.”
Pace: 8
The Revenant rides into towns Size: 6
searching for lawmen. It isn’t known if Wind: Immune
victims are chosen beforehand or if this Terror: 9
dark stranger simply challenges the first Special Abilities:
lawman he sees.
Coup: A Harrowed who feeds off the
Revenant takes half damage from a
lawman’s bullets.

Damage: Army .44 Navy revolver
(when this weapon is empty, the
Revenant must spend 1d4 actions
spinning its well-oiled cylinder;
each action counts as an overawe);
when the cylinder stops, the gun is
reloaded.

322 Posse 

Immunity—All: The Revenant is either the North or the South. Brigham
immune to all attacks, with one almost says as much in his sermons—but
exception (see below). Even magical never within earshot of representatives
attacks are useless (other than a of the US or CSA governments.
damage-causing hex to the heart
cast by a lawman, of course). As things stand now, neither the Union
or Confederacy can spare the manpower
Weakness—Lawmen: To destroy it, necessary to dispute the Mormon’s
a duly authorized lawman must hit sovereign status.
it in the heart. A called shot does
the trick. Otherwise, there is a 1 in The Doctor is In
4 chance on any gizzards hit or 1
in 6 on any upper guts hit that the Everything changed in 1870. That’s
Revenant was hit in the heart. Other when Professor Darius Hellstromme
attacks may make the entity flinch joined the Mormon community.
or fall down, but they do no real
harm. Hellstromme initially won over the
Mormons by creating a horseless carriage
Description: The Revenent is a tall, that helped them outrun the local salt
nondescript cowboy, its face always rattlers that dwell in the salt flats. The
shadowed by the wide brim of its hat. worms were curiously missed until 1863
or so, but ever since they’ve claimed
Salt Lake City, many pilgrims. Hellstromme’s horseless
Utah carriages allowed the Mormons to cross
the flats easily, outracing this terrible
Mormons, or Latter-day Saints, are threat. Later, his incredible factories
God-fearing folks who believe Christ brought jobs and incredible wealth to his
visited America shortly after his adopted family.
resurrection. They also believe their
first prophet, Joe Smith, was visited by
an angel of the Lord and given a set of
golden plates describing the flight of
God’s chosen people from the Holy Land
to the Americas. Smith was also told
to create this new religion in place of
other misguided religions of the world.
Other than their continuing practice of
polygamy—having more than one wife—
their beliefs differ little from most other
Christians.

The Mormons established several
communities in Kansas and Missouri,
but they clashed violently with their
neighbors and eventually fled as far west
as they could, founding Salt Lake City
in 1847. They survived under the Utah
Territory’s harsh conditions but never
really prospered.

Independent Deseret

In 1866, the current leader, and Joseph
Smith’s successor as leader of the
Mormon people, President Brigham
Young, declared the Utah Territory the
independent “State of Deseret.” While
young declared publicly that Deseret’s
loyalty remained with the Union, few
believe that young wants to be part of

The City of Gloom The Mormons themselves have
weathered the change well. They live
Whatever one thinks of the “Mad in Salt Lake City proper. Even the Good
Scientist of Salt Lake,” thanks to him, the Lord seems to favor them, for they do not
Mormons are the most technologically suffer from the pollution as the “gentiles”
advanced people in the world. Thousands of Junkyard do. You can find much more
of high-voltage wires and pipes bearing information on this incredible setting in
natural gas sprawl through the urban the City o’ Gloom boxed set.
tangle, bringing light, heat, and electricity
to those who can afford it. The city’s ore-mining operations are
carried out on the outskirts of Salt Lake
Salt Lake City’s mechanization comes City. Mammoth conveyor belts miles
at a cost: the once-clean city now lies long transport ore to the city from the
hidden under a pall of dirty smoke. Wasatch Mountains.
It’s also become an attractive spot for
prospectors, former rail warriors, or Another booming industry is salt
settlers down on their luck. They flock gathering. The brine from the Great
to the city for quick factory jobs, hoping Salt Lake is two-thirds table salt.
to work for just a few years until they’re Shallow salt boats trawl the waters
back on their feet. with nets manufactured by Hellstromme.
Fortunately, the salt rattlers can’t seem to
In truth, most of these lost souls never survive in the waters of the Salt Lake.
leave the factory district of the city, the
polluted sprawl called Junkyard. Even in Since meat is in short supply in the
this grimy subsection, life in the city is region, hunters who can bring in fresh
incredibly expensive, so laborers usually game are in great demand, and some
find themselves trapped in an endless are actually insane enough to tackle
cycle of wage slavery. the largest game of all: the rattlers
themselves. Some hunt the great worms
in massive land ships. Smaller crews
scour the salt flats via strange gliders,
dropping sticks of dynamite on their
tremendous prey from the air. Either is
dangerous work, but worm armor and
meat fetches a fair price these days.

Pillar of the Community

Hellstromme has carefully cultivated
a following in Salt Lake City. Brigham
Young and the rest of the Mormon elders
realize Hellstromme’s importance in their
lives. Most are convinced the changes
of the last decade would have wiped
them out were it not for Hellstromme’s
inventions.

Hellstromme lives just south of Salt
Lake, between the urban sprawl and
the ore-rich Wasatch Mountains. His
manor is surrounded by barbed wire,
hired gunmen, and guard dogs. Why a
man who is supposedly Salt Lake City’s
fatherly patron needs such protection is
suspicious to say the least.

Many Salt Lakers believe Hellstromme’s
influence has gone far enough. In fact,
a few citizens are privately forming
a rebellion against him. Several non-
Mormons count themselves among this

secret circle, but no one argues that The Weird West 325
the legendary Mormon Danites are the
cabal’s leaders. The rails around these special
roundhouses act as giant conduits,
The Danites were always a secret conveying fear from the surrounding
society, charged with protecting and areas back to the roundhouse.
serving Brigham Young. Now they are Hellstromme has a laboratory set up at
even more secretive, for those who speak the center of the roundhouse where the
out against Salt Lake City’s continued tracks converge. There he can control
urbanization often wind up dead, hunted the flow of fear by rotating the building’s
down by Hellstromme’s own ruthless central turntable.
and silent enforcers. The Danites hope
to expose Hellstromme’s evil, but know Late at night, Hellstromme probes the
they must have positive proof to make mysteries of the Reckoning by building
their kindred rise against him. In the up the Fear Level within his arcane
meantime, they work as saboteurs to laboratories and observing the odd
thwart Hellstromme’s most vile plans. phenomena which occur in his various
living subjects and unliving apparatus. He
To Brigham and the elders, has had a number of close calls with his
Hellstromme denies that it is his own experiments, but so far he has escaped
people who strike at the Mormon’s unscathed (though some of his guards
“secret army.” Few believe him, but were not so lucky, and some of his
Hellstromme’s power and popularity experiments still roam the Weird West).
keep them from exiling him. Even so, the
elders might have dealt with the scientist Undaunted, the evil doctor continues
in their own way if not for Brigham his quest for knowledge, determined to
Young’s influence. find the truth even if it takes his life (or
at least his last hired hand).
Brigham had a vision that Hellstromme
would destroy the world some day. He Hellstromme’s special rails are known
wants to keep this dangerous man under to have two unintended side effects. The
close scrutiny so that he can draw him first is that, because of the concentrated
away from the darkness and into the love fear flowing through them, they tend to
of God. If he exiles him, Brigham will attract manitous and other creatures of
have no influence on Dr. Hellstromme’s the Reckoning. This causes all manner
incredible schemes. of weirdness to occur directly along the
railroad’s right-of-way. Encounters with
Experiments in Terror abominations are far more frequent
along the rails, and those mortals who
The truth is that the insidious die near them are slightly more likely to
Hellstromme is one of the Reckoner’s come back Harrowed.
favorite playthings. He’s also one
of the few folks who know of the To reflect this, should a character
Reckoning, and one of even fewer who die within 50 yards of Hellstromme’s
have surmised there are sinister beings mysterious rails, draw an extra card to
masterminding the whole thing. see if he becomes Harrowed.

Hellstromme spends day and night The second is that passengers of the
pondering the meaning of the Reckoning. railroad who are sensitive to the spirit
He has discovered fear is definitely a world (basically any character with the
factor, and he performs experiments to arcane background Edge), have very
learn its significance. unpleasant dreams should they happen
to fall asleep during their trip. While
The Wasatch railroad serves two traveling on the Wasatch, treat them as if
purposes for the nefarious inventor. First, they have the night terrors Hindrance. A
it provides him with money to fund his character who actually has night terrors
insane experiments. suffers a –2 penalty to her Spirit roll.

Second, certain areas of his railroad
are home to special “fear laboratories.”
Hellstromme disguises these labs as
“roundhouses.”

The Great Maze commit to a major engagement for fear
of losing their tenuous foothold.
The broken landscape of the Maze is a
magnificent sight. From certain vantage The Union definitely has the upper
points, a person can see thousands of hand, though neither side is strong
settlements. Some are situated atop the enough to force the other out—especially
cliff-top islands and others rest on the with Santa Anna and the French Foreign
rubble below. Legion leering hungrily at the poorly
defended holdings (see below), and
Everywhere one looks, hopeful miners Reverend Grimme’s Guardian Angels
are lowering themselves over the island watching their very move.
tops, chipping away at the canyon walls
for gold, silver, or ghost rock. Below, The City of Lost
ore barges scud back and forth, with Angels
perhaps a Federal or Confederate monitor
guarding them. Fear Level 5
In the wake of the Great Quake of
In the shadows, one might just find ’68, the survivors made their way inland
pirates and raiders. Besides greedy as best they could. It was an incredible
Americans, there are also the colorful journey. Besides the lack of food and
sampans of the Chinese warlords or the fresh water, the ragtag refugees had
heavily armed flotillas of the Mexican to swim across the shark-infested sea
Armada. channels and scale the canyons.
The most successful of these groups
Staring out at all of them is the City was led by a preacher named Ezekiah
of Lost Angels, perched smugly on the Grimme, who somehow managed to
low inland cliffs overlooking the Bay of provide food and water for the entire
Prosperity. motley congregation that followed him
from the ruins. When they arrived at the
The Maze is breathtaking. In fact it inland side of the Maze, Grimme found a
takes some folks’ last breath. natural spring and proclaimed this site a
new home for his “lost angels.”
The constant fighting and paranoia Other refugees eventually wandered
of the Great Maze keeps the average into Grimme’s camp. The town grew
Fear Level at 2. If Santa Anna razes slowly but steadily until the discovery
a settlement, the Fear Level of all of gold, then later ghost rock. When
communities within five miles jumps to 3 the rush began in earnest, Grimme’s
for at least a month. sanctuary became the natural shipping
point for everything coming in and out of
Disputed Maze the Maze.

California is torn by more than just Famine
the aftereffects of the Great Quake. As
in the central Disputed Lands, folks in The problem in the City of Lost Angels
California butter their bread on both has always been food. The inland side of
sides. Merchants contract to ship gold California is dry and vegetation is sparse,
and ghost rock to both sides of the making game too scarce for so many
border, but they rarely talk about it in people.
public for fear of incurring the wrath of
their clients’ enemies. Some villages raise crops, but blights
and other strange plant diseases often
Both the Union and the Confederacy wipe them out. Cattle is also raised in
maintain a Pacific fleet in crude harbors some areas, but Texas fever and prairie
and strongholds scattered throughout the ticks run rampant among the herds.
Maze. They engage in battle frequently, Folks in Lost Angels pay five to six times
though both sides are reluctant to the normal prices for even the rangiest
meat.
326 Posse 

One reason that Grimme became such After his death, Grimme’s gnawed
a beloved figure to the people in the bones lay in a pile near the survivor’s
surrounding area is because his Church camp. That night, a dark miracle
of Lost Angels provides a free meal to occurred. As the horrified cannibals
anyone attending Sunday service. watched, the bones grew bloody. Slowly,
Grimme’s skeleton stitched itself together
The Church of Lost with oozing sinews and gory flesh. When
Angels the spectacle was over, Reverend Grimme
had returned from the dead—tattered
The venerable Grimme still leads his black priest’s suit and all.
congregation. The Reverend’s sermons are
pure fire and brimstone. But this was not the good-hearted
man who had led his errant flock from
Most folks in the city are members the ruins of the Great Quake. This was
of the church, in body at least if not in a full-fledged abomination created by
spirit. Those weekly feasts after Sunday the Reckoners to take advantage of a
services make a lot of friends in the horrible situation.
food-starved Maze.
The new Reverend Grimme embraced
The Two Faces of the practice of eating human flesh.
Lost Angels In fact, he demanded his starving
companions seek out other refugees and
Well, that’s what the normal folk see, murder them for food.
anyway. To truly understand what goes
on in the City of Lost Angels, Marshal, When hordes of survivors eventually
there are a few things you should moved in on the camp, Grimme took a
know about. First of all, the “Savior of more subtle tack. He supplied food and
California,” Reverend Ezekiah Grimme, shelter for them while his inner circle
isn’t the man he used to be. When he quietly took the weak in their sleep.
led the survivors of the Great Quake
inland, many of them starved. Like the Once word of ghost rock got out the
famous Donner party, some resorted to next year, the settlement became a full-
cannibalism. A religious man, Grimme fledged village. Folks migrated to the
refused to take part in it. He died, but the camp from the sundered west coast and
Reckoners saw their chance to create a the ore-hungry East.
powerful new fearmonger in his place.
Within three years, the population hit
20,000. The City of Lost Angels was born,
and Grimme’s secret cultists had gained a
herd of witless cattle to feed their unholy
appetites.

Grimme established the Church of The Edict of `77
Lost Angels to maintain his own power
within the growing community. He Grimme’s next step was a simple one:
secretly does everything he can to keep he declared the City of Lost Angels
food prices high, often using his dark and the area 75 miles around it a free
powers to cause blights in nearby crops and independent state. He abolished
and diseases in cattle herds that enter all semblance of a civil government,
the city. This makes him that much establishing himself as the head of a
more popular when his church serves new city theocracy. All citizens of Lost
a feast of mysterious meats and other Angels were given a simple choice: join
foods to the starving citizens. The nature the Church or get out.
of Grimme’s dark religion prevents his
followers from transforming into ghouls Outsiders may still travel to Lost
or wendigos—the fate of most cannibals. Angels of course, but have virtually no
rights while in the city limits.
Even better for Grimme, his dark
miracles seem divine within the Lost Neither the USA or the CSA recognizes
Angels environs (75 miles out, to be Grimme’s authority or the city’s
exact, after “Bloody Sunday,” see below.) sovereignty, but neither do they have the
manpower to do anything about it at the
Needless to say, Grimme is a present.
popular figure. The Church of Lost
Angels considers him a magnanimous The rail barons are also
benefactor. The Cult of Lost Angels understandably upset. They’ve wagered
knows the dark truth. everything on reaching the Maze and its
priceless ghost rock only to have it shut
Sunday, Bloody Sunday off by a madman.

It all started on a Sunday like any Profile: Lost Angels
other. During Sunday services at the Cultist
Cathedral of Lost Angels, a horde of
“demons” invaded the proceedings, Corporeal: D:3d6, N:2d6, S:2d6, Q:2d6,
slaughtering many of the churchgoers. V:2d6
It appeared to anyone watching that
Grimme drove them off with holy powers. Fightin’: brawlin’ 2d6, fightin’: knife 2d6,
horse ridin’ 2d6, shootin’: pistol, rifle,
In truth, the people killed by the shotgun 3d6, sneak 3d6
demons were all part of a bloody
sacrifice intended to fuel a ritual that Mental: C:2d6, K:2d4, M:2d6, Sm:2d6,
has permanently expanded Grimme’s Sp:3d8
sphere of influence out to about a 75-
mile radius around Lost Angels. Grimme Bluff 4d6, faith 4d8, guts 3d8, overawe
and his cohorts can now use their 3d6, persuasion 4d6, Scrutinize 4d6,
demonic powers freely within that radius survival 4d6, trackin’ 3d6,
and it looks like the work of the lord
God Himself! Edges: —
Hindrances: Oath: Lost Angels
Grimme’s priests can even take chunks Pace: 6
of his altar with them to maintain this Size: 6
illusion further abroad. Wind: 14
Special Abilities:
328 Posse 
Black Magic: Bolt o’ doom 3, dark
protection 3, scrye 2, zombie 1 (see
Bloody Ones)

Gear: An assortment of guns or knives.
Description: These are the dark priests

that often accompany the more
common Guardian Angels on their
spiteful missions. They pose as pious
individuals to the public, but are
actually despicable agents of evil. They
are the lowest members of the “inner
cult.”

The Guardian Angels

The Guardian angels are the police
force of the Church of Lost angels. They
are becoming more common away from
the City these days as they accompany
proselytizing Church priests on their
“crusades.” Angels are organized in
“flights” of five.

Profile: Typical An hour after it is summoned, the
Guardian Angels shambling thing collapses into a pile of
steaming gore. Bloody ones do not speak,
Corporeal: D:2d6, N:2d8, S:2d8, Q:2d6, though they do sometimes emit a slurpy
V:2d6 laugh (hence the high ridicule).

Fightin’: brawlin’ 3d8, fightin’: knife 2d6, Profile: Bloody Ones
shootin’: pistol, rifle, shotgun 2d6,
sneak 2d8 Corporeal: D:3d6, N:3d10, S:3d8, Q:3d10,
V:3d8
Mental: C:1d6, K:1d6, M:1d8, Sm:2d6, Sp:3d8
Guts 3d8, overawe 2d8, persuasion 4d6, Dodge 2d10, fightin’: brawlin’ 4, sneak
4d10
search 2d8, streetwise 3d6
Edges: Law man 1 Mental: C:4d8, K:1d4, M:2d8, Sm:2d8,
Hindrances: Self-righteous Sp:3d6
Pace: 8
Size: 6 Overawe 4d8, ridicule 4d8, search 4d8,
Wind: 14 trackin’ 3d8 (by scent)
Gear: In a flight of five angels, two
Pace: 10
carry double-action pistols, two carry Size: 6
rifles, and one packs a double-barrel Wind: —
shotgun. Terror: 9
Description: Guardian Angels are little Special Abilities:
more than thugs looking for violent
work. They have no idea they are the Damage: Claws (STR+1d6), bite
foot-soldiers of a cannibal cult. (STR+1d6)

The Bloody Ones Undead: Focus—Head
Description: Blood Ones look like
Priests of the cult are sometimes
granted enchanted bones taken from corpses with their flesh gnawed off—
their victims. Grimme gifts them with a which is exactly what happened.
twisted miracle that summons forth a
bloody zombie with putrefying organs,
looking much as Grimme did during his
rebirth. These blood-soaked skeletons are
called the “bloody ones.”

A cultist (or anyone else with the bone
in hand) need only toss the enchanted
bone on the ground to summon the
horrid servants. The bloody one follows
its summoner’s orders to the letter—but
only if the summoner is a flesh-eating
member of Grimme’s cannibal cult. If not,
it turns on the summoner immediately,
devouring him and then collapsing into a
bloody and useless pile of bones.

Maze Pirates The warlords are hardly confined to
the Maze itself. Some, like the infamous
There are five types of pirates present General Kwan, and Wang Ti-P’ing Hsien,
in the Maze: Chinese, Mexican Armada, the so-called “King of the Horizon”
Union and Confederate raiders, and control a fair amount of real estate
rogues. Each has their own kind of ships inland.
and inimitable style in which they harass
and rob the hard-working (if not actually Kang
innocent) miners of the Maze. Of course,
their main targets in this melting pot of Of all the warlords, the enigmatic rail
evil are each other. baron Kang is by far the most powerful.
Kang’s warriors use a strange method
Chinese Warlords of fighting that others say can’t be beat.
They use guns, but they more often
The Chinese warlords of the Maze prefer to kill with swords or even their
build their fortresses high atop small but bare hands!
high-walled islands in the heart of the
Maze. Their success is a result of the Kang’s boats scour the interior of the
white man’s poor treatment of Chinese Maze looking for prospector’s camps.
prior to the Great Quake. When they find one, they send their
spies to find out if the miners have hit
When several warlords from mainland a strike. If they have, the rest of Kang’s
China established strongholds in warriors move in and tell the miners the
California, they brought with them scores land is theirs. Those who realize it’s a
of their own warriors. The Chinese bald-faced lie and are dumb enough to
already living in the Maze, tired of say so soon find themselves swimming
oppression, flocked to their colorful with sharks.
banners by the hundreds.
Shan Fan
Most of the warlords have so many
followers that they cannot hope to house The Chinese warlords can all find
them all in their fortresses. Should you safe haven at one place in the Maze—the
ever spy one of these islands—from afar port city of Shan Fan. Located about 300
I hope—you will see scores of leaky miles north of Lost Angels, the city is
sampans sheltering in the shadows of run by a consortium of Chinese criminal
their more favored brothers and sisters. gangs called triads.

While not as large or important a port The Weird West 331
as Lost Angels, Shan Fan holds its own,
acting as a stop off point for ghost-rock By the way, Admiral Allen
shipments heading south, as well as a Birmingham—the Confederate naval
convenient place for Maze pirates to commander of the Maze—is as honorable
disposes of goods of dubious origin. a man as you could ever meet. He was
field-promoted to his current position
The triads are constantly at each and has quickly risen to the task. He
others’ throats, struggling to control the hates his own raiders and, for the most
city—except when someone from outside part, keeps them from striking civilian
of town threatens their power base. The targets.
triad bosses have a close eye on events
down south in Lost Angels, and are The Mexican Armada
preparing for the worst.
The Mexican Armada consists of two
Union & Confederate parts: the fast clipper ships that patrol
Raiders the coastline, and the sturdy ironclads
that steam through the Maze itself.
The Union and Confederate navies are
undermanned and under-equipped. Both In the open sea, the shipping lanes
sides make up for their shortcomings are menaced by independent pirates
by outfitting small bands of raiders. The commissioned by France. The pirates are
story of the navies and their raiders commanded by “Capitán Sangre,” which
is much the same as it happens to be translates into “Captain Blood,” which is
with the infantry Back East: the Union likely not his real name.
has more men at its disposal, while
the Confederates have fewer but more- Part of France’s master strategy in
experienced crews and better vessels. conquering California is to raid its ore
shipments Back East. Sangre was an
The Northern navy, based out of a infamous pirate along the Barbary Coast,
place called Fort Lincoln in the northern and he was approached to take charge
Maze, treats its raiders as regulars. They of the operation. He eagerly agreed
use small, open boats with steam-driven and quickly put together a fleet of fast
propellers. Their boats do not sport guns clipper ships crewed by ragtag bands
of any kind—the volunteers are left to of undisciplined and merciless French
fend for themselves with their rifles, expatriates, rogue mercenaries, and his
pistols, and wits. Most keep a few sticks own Spanish compatriots.
of dynamite on hand as well.
Wind-powered ships can’t sail in the
These soldiers use stealth to make up Maze. Not every channel has a breeze,
for their lack of firepower. Their favorite and those that do can force even a
tactic is to slip aboard Confederate galleon into the cliff walls in seconds.
ore-haulers by night and hold the crew So the Mexicans, under Maximillian’s
hostage while they remove any ghost guidance, built a fleet of ironclads. These
rock on board. If they can put the crew sport the latest in weaponry: heavy
ashore, Union raiders scuttle or dynamite cannons, flamethrowers, grapnels, and
the ore-hauler once they’ve off-loaded any other gadgets their scientists back in
any valuables. Europe can dream up.

Confederate raiders aren’t quite as Mexican crews man the gunboats in
honorable. Strapped for manpower, the the Maze. They are the opposites of their
Rebels essentially granted letters of uneasy allies in the seaward shipping
marque to some of the most notorious lanes. Where the Spanish pirates are
rogue pirates. Then they gave them a few, chaotic and cagey, the Mexican naval
well-armed and armored experimental crews are highly disciplined and ruthless
boats to go raiding in. These bloodthirsty if not particularly imaginative.
fiends seem far more interested in
violence than loot.

Collectively, the Armada is the terror Santa Anna’s
of the Maze. The few ships of the Union Crusade
and Confederate Pacific Navies are no
match for the flotilla, either within the The self-proclaimed “Napoleon of the
Maze or along the coast. The outgunned West” is General Antonio Lopez de Santa
Americans have won their few minor Anna, former President and General of
victories only through their wits. The Mexico. When Texas seceded from Mexico
usually mortal enemies of the Northern in ’36, Santa Anna was sent to quell the
and Southern Pacific Navies have even rebellion. He lost whatever sympathy the
allied against their common foes on world might have had for his cause when
occasion. he massacred prisoners at the Alamo and
Goliad.
Rogues
The Texans beat Santa Anna at San
In addition to the big boys, there Jacinto, and in true Texas style, took back
are a plethora of independent scurvy with them the leg the general lost in the
dogs looking to loot and pillage. These battle.
“rogues” are sometimes the worst and the
toughest of the lot. They have to be to President Polk was the next American
survive with no one to watch their backs to raise Santa Anna’s ire. Polk and his
for them. concept of “manifest destiny” meant an
annexation of the independent Texas in
Some are honorable and abide by the ’46. Mexico still saw Texas as a province
“code of the sea.” Others are cutthroats in rebellion and moved their forces north
who kill a miner for a handful of ghost to take it back.
rock dust.
Under General Zachary Taylor (“Old
Their ships range from salvaged Fuss and Feathers”), Polk put together a
ironclads to small craft barely larger ragtag army to block the Mexicans, and
than rowboats. the war was on. Though their army was
larger and prettier, at least, the Mexicans
Profile: Typical Pirate were defeated by the Yanks at such
places as Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma,
Corporeal: D:2d6, N2d8, Q:2d6, S:2d8, Monterrey, and Buena Vista. While the
V:2d6 Mexicans were fighting the American
troops in the north, General Winfield
Climbin’ 1d8, fightin: brawlin, cutlass 3d8 Scott landed at Veracruz in the south and
shootin’ pistol, rifle 2d6, sneak 2d8 took Mexico City itself.

Mental: C:1d4, K:1d4, M:1d4, Sm:1d6, Sp:2d6 After the war, Santa Anna went into a
Gamblin’ 2d6, guts 3d6, ridicule 2d6, self-imposed exile. He didn’t emerge back
onto Mexico’s political frying pan until
search 2d8, streetwise 3d6, trade: the French conquered Mexico in 1863. The
seamanship 4d4 French put Emperor Maximillian on the
Edges: Fleetfooted 2 throne and, in a “goodwill gesture” that
Hindrances: Randy –3, vengeful –3 stunned the world, offered control of the
Pace: 8 remaining army to Santa Anna.
Size: 6
Wind: 12 Santa Anna rolled over like a whipped
Gear: Double-action pistol, cutlass. dog and agreed. The rumor is that
Description: These scurvy dogs run the Maximillian has promised to build Santa
gamut of appearances. Most are men, Anna an army with which to invade
however, though there are more than a Texas, but only if he can first conquer
few lusty ladies amid their crews. the ghost rock-rich California Maze.

332 Posse  Santa Anna has far fewer troops than
before, so he has resorted to terror
tactics to force Californians out of their
boomtowns. Many have seen the brilliant
and colorful regiments of Santa Anna

riding through the California wastelands, Profile: Xitlan
but many others claim there is another
army, one that moves only at night. This Corporeal: D:2d6, N:2d6, S:2d6, Q:4d6,
is the Ejército de los Muertos, or “Army V:3d8
of the Dead.”
Bow 4d6, fightin’: knives 4d6, sneak 5d6,
Lately, Santa Anna has been sending throwin’: bolts o’ doom 7d6
out scouts as far afield as Arizona and
the Texas border, and his men have been Mental: C:4d10, K:3d12, M:2d10, Sm:4d8,
sighted on the move along the baha Sp:4d8
peninsula. They seemed to be looking for
something. Just what remains to be seen. Academia: occult 8d12, bluff 4d8, faith
8d8, guts 7d8, language: Spanish 4d12,
Santa Anna’s Army of leadership 6d10, medicine: surgery 5d12,
the Dead overawe 5d10, scrutinize 5d10, search
4d10
Santa Anna’s Ejército de los Muertos is
indeed an “Army of the Dead.” His power Edges: Arcane background: black magic
stems from his new aide-de-camp, Xitlan 3
(pronounced “EET-lawn”), a mysterious
shaman who claims to be a descendent Hindrances: Bloodthirsty –2
of an ancient Aztec sorcerer that lived in Pace: 6
the area when the first Spanish explorers Size: 6
landed on its shores. Wind: 16
Special Abilities:
Santa Anna’s mortal troops bring up
his rear. He mistrusts his soldiers after Black Magic: Bolt o’ doom 4, cloak of
the debacles of ’36 and ’48. The regulars evil 3, forewarning 4, pact 5, puppet
are used only to put on a show for spies. 5, scrye 5, spook 3, zombie 5

His real army is composed of rotting Undead: Focus­—Heart
undead brought back to unlife by Description: Xitlan looks and dresses
Xitlan. These small but deadly creatures
are gruesome cannibals with a taste like an ancient Aztec priest. He looks
for human brains. Xitlan controls the pretty good for a walking corpse.
zombies by use of a special plant mixed
in with their usual diet of raw meat.

Use the normal statistics for veteran
walkin’ dead, but Santa Anna’s soldiers’
Deftness is 3d8, and their shootin’:
carbine skill is 4. Also, add the fightin’:
saber and fightin’: lance Aptitudes at
3 and the horse ridin’ skill at 4. These
creatures wear the uniforms of the
famous Tulancingo Cuirassiers (green
tunics, bright bronze breastplates and
helmets, and black pants), and carry
carbines, sabers, and lances.

Xitlan

Xitlan is what some would call a
liche, an undead sorcerer. He’s neither
Harrowed nor a zombie. He’s entirely his
own kind of abomination.

Great Basin The black riders are not happy about
their fate. They despise all life and kill
Southern California, Nevada any living beings they see.
Southern California and Nevada form
the Great Basin. This arid land is mostly Profile: Black Riders
desert, though a few lakes and rivers
can be found if one knows where to Corporeal: D:4d12, N:2d8, S:2d12+4,
look. There aren’t many settlements out Q:5d12+4, V:3d8
this way, so folks don’t venture into the
Great Basin without a map and enough Fightin’: brawlin’ 4d8, horse ridin’ 8d8,
provisions for several weeks. shootin’: pistol 8d12
The sparsely populated Great Basin
has an average Fear Level of 1. It rises Mental: C:4d12, K:1d4, M:2d10, Sm:3d8,
dramatically along the Ghost Trail to 3. Sp:4d10

Death Valley Overawe 5d10, search 4d10
Pace: 8
Fear Level 5 Size: 6
It’s one of the hottest places on earth. Wind: —
It might even be the hottest. A few local Terror: 9
prospectors who somehow survive in Special Abilities:
the region call it “Hell on Earth.” The
volcanic mountains, particularly the Coup: A Harrowed who takes a rider’s
Funeral range, are bare and colored in essence can instantly detect other
brilliant reds and yellows dotted only by Harrowed by simply looking at them.
an occasional stunted mesquite or lone
cactus. The lower portions of the valley Damage: Ghostly six-guns (ROF 1,
are covered in salt flats, left there from range increment 10, damage 4d10,
the occasional wash from the Amargosa never need reloading)
River, which I’m told actually contains a
few inches of water about three times a Immunity—All
year. Weakness—Blessed Weapons: The

Death Riders riders can only be destroyed by
weapons blessed by an ordained
A handful of prospectors scour the minister. The cloak is insubstantial,
scorching desert of Death Valley in the horrors’ skulls must be shattered
search of borax. A few claim to have to send them back to Hell (by
seen strange black-clad phantoms there, maiming the noggin).
though most dismiss these visions as Description: The riders wear tattered
mirages caused by the incredible heat. black shrouds with a single holster
at their waists. Beneath their black
The black riders are minions of cowls, should anyone get that close,
the Reckoners, one of the first wave are skulls with two glowing red sparks
of “scouts” they have sent to Earth. for eyes.
They were hurtled out of the Hunting
Grounds to see if they could survive The Devil’s
on the ambient fear of the area. They Postpiles
have, though their powers are greatly
diminished until Death Valley becomes a Fear Level 5
Deadland. The Devil’s Postpiles are huge,
octagonal columns of blue, basaltic
334 Posse  rock. Some of them are over 60 feet tall.
Local legend says a corpse buried near
the postpiles will return to life. This has
led many to bury their loved ones at the
feet of these awesome columns. Some
also say that pleading one’s case on the
fallen’s tombstone improves the chances
the “spirits” will return their loved ones
to life.
Scores of graves contain the heart-
wrenching tales of the bereaved. Fathers,
sons, mothers, and daughters are all

jammed into the hard earth here. The Fort 51
Apaches believe in the legend of the
Devil’s Postpiles, but they also claim Fear Level 0
returning from the dead in such a way Fort 51 is the Union’s answer to the
taints the victim’s soul. Confederate base at Roswell. Officially,
however, Fort 51 is an outpost for the 10th
Most of this is true. Cavalry Regiment. These are the famous
Any dead buried in the rocky ground “Flying Buffalos” of Captain Jay Kyle.
near these strange rock formations It was Captain Kyle who bought the
draws 5 extra cards to see if they come group their rocket packs. His men were
back Harrowed. The corpse must be suffering greatly from Apache snipers
fresh, no more than a week old, and situated high on the mountain passes.
completely buried in the stony earth, a Being a wealthy individual, Captain Kyle
task that takes about two man-hours. tried a grand experiment. He ordered five
Unfortunately, the cursed ground gives rocket packs from the newly opened
the Harrowed’s manitou total Dominion Smith & Robards’ Emporium.
when the victim returns from the grave. His men trained with the devices for
If you want to give a hero a chance a few weeks, then went on patrol. When
to come back with Dominion, you can, the column was ambushed, the five
but you should definitely play out his specialists assigned rocket packs bolted
nightmare, and you should make it into the sky. The Apaches ran in terror
harder than Hell. and the buffalo soldiers returned home
victorious.
Walkin’ Dead Now Kyle has trained the entire
regiment to use the rocket packs, of
Whenever anyone spends the night which he now has about 50 functional
waiting for a companion, there’s a chance packs (enough for one troop to use them
the lost souls who didn’t come back rise at a time). Whenever the Federals need to
as walkin’ dead. They don’t pursue their raid south through Apache country, these
prey more than a half-mile from the veterans are their only choice.
postpiles, and they return to their graves The most famous of these is Sergeant
if not destroyed. Benjamin Amos. He’s led more raids
into Apache country than any other. He
Most nights, the smell of fresh brains is respected by both Geronimo and his
causes 3d10 walkin’ dead to rise from Chiricahuas and the jaded Texas Rangers
their graves. who frequent Roswell.

There are 17 scientists on the base, The Mojave
as well as their families. A civilian is Desert
in charge of the scientists. This is “Mr.
Eddington,” a mysterious and secretive Fear Level 4
type who rarely speaks, but keeps his The Mojave (pronounced mo-HA-
nose in every experiment. vee, friends from Back East) is a huge
expanse of barren landscape in southern
Tales of strange lights seen in the California. Part of the desert is hard and
night skies over Fort 51 aren’t flying brittle. A few stray cacti and dry scrubs
saucers or will-o’-the-wisps. They’re the are the only vegetation you’ll find. The
Flying Buffalos in training. rest is made up of shifting sand dunes
and bizarre rock formations.
The Ghost Trail More inhospitable country is hard to
find. Most folks who try to cross it die
Fear Level 3 from lack of food and water. Travelers
The Ghost Trail used to run to Santa who must head into the Mojave for some
Fe, where it turned into the Santa reason must carry enough provisions for
Fe Trail. It came to life in ’69 when themselves and their mounts for several
Southerners forged it bringing loads weeks.
of ghost rock to Roswell for Jeff Davis’
attack on Washington. Since Roswell Mojave Rattlers
exploded, the independent contractors
working for the government truck The Mojave is a barren place, but
their precious loads to the railhead at life exists most everywhere. Some of it
Tombstone instead. defies natural law, and some contradicts
Bandits and thieves are common, as common sense. Mojave rattlers fall into
are the phantoms of those they’ve slain. the latter category.

Unlike most of the monsters of
Deadlands, rattlers are known and
accepted by most folks. They chase
prey they hear walking or riding on the
ground above. Should a cowpoke feel
rumbling in the earth beneath his feet, he
should head for a rocky place as fast as
possible—the critters can’t tunnel through
solid stone. Those who aren’t near a
hunk of stone should stay real still and
start praying. Fighting them isn’t usually
an option, either. Rattler hides are tough
and a little bullet won’t do much damage
to a critter this big anyway.

What only a few folks have figured
out is that the rattlers are intelligent—
far more so than should give anyone
comfort. The Mojave rattlers seem to be
the biggest of the West’s giant worms.
The salt rattlers of Utah are the craftiest.
Those who lurk in the Badlands seem
to have an affinity for magic—and an
agenda to create a new race of beings
with human DNA (see Deadlands: Hell on
Earth to find out if they were successful).

For statistics and more information
about these huge and malevolent worms,
see page 273.

The Wild The Weird West 337
Southwest
The Second Fight
Texas, New Mexico, Arizona
Texas has its fair share of green The next fight at Adobe Walls took
rolling hills, auburn fields, cottonwood place in ’74. Two Dodge City merchants
stands, and scrub plains, but the stark set up a tanning village on the site.
mountains of New Mexico and Arizona Unknown to the hunters, an Indian
really stick in a traveler’s mind. shaman named Isatai had a vision. He
Wild Texans, the war between the said he had been shown how to make
Apaches, Confederates, and Yankees, a shirt that could repel a white man’s
and the constant threat of a combined bullets. Isatai’s chief, Quanah Parker—
Foreign Legion/Mexican invasion keeps later a key member of the Coyote
the average Fear Level at 2. Confederation—wanted revenge for the
The Grand Canyon is Fear Level 3 hunters’ slaughter of the buffalo and
thanks to the Laughing Men and the decided to use the shirts in a raid on the
rumored “City of Ghouls.” new camp at Adobe Walls.

Adobe Walls Parker prepared well for his raid.
He and his braves even practiced their
Fear Level 3 assault on a constructed settlement
High in the Texas Panhandle is a modeled after Adobe Walls. Their
ruined village by the name of Adobe plan was to attack at dawn—gaining
Walls. It was built in 1843 by a trading surprise—and massacre the hunters in
company known as Bent, St. Vrain & their sleep. But a clever saloonkeeper
Company. somehow found out about the raid. He
Bent believed this base would give him even managed to get the town up out
an edge on his competition, the Kiowa of bed early that morning under the
and Comanches, for buffalo hides and pretense that his building was caving in.
stolen horses. The Indians didn’t take (The “pop” of his support timbers that
kindly to Bent’s efforts, and he was sent awakened half the town was more likely
running east with his tail between his made by his pistol.)
legs.
Parker’s warband attacked only to
The First Fight find most of the town wide awake.
Fortunately for the Comanches, Isatai’s
In 1864, Federals withdrew from the magic shirts worked just as the shaman
Santa Fe Trail to participate in the Civil claimed they would.
War. The Comanches and Kiowa took
advantage of their absence to raid and Only the saloonkeeper’s alarm and the
pillage the local settlers. Famed Army clearheaded actions of Bat Masterson
scout Kit Carson was sent to settle the allowed most of the hunters to escape.
bill. Along with him were a number of The post was left in ruins.
New Mexican volunteers, Utes, Apaches,
and five cavalry and two infantry Now Adobe Walls stands bloodstained
companies. and silent in the Texas Panhandle.
Quanah Parker and his warband left
Carson stumbled into a large many dead on the field. The Coyotes
encampment and, after a sharp battle, won’t go near the place, saying it is
retreated to the “safety” of Adobe Walls. haunted by ghosts of all the battles
The Indians were all set to overrun the fought there. Several unfortunates have
startled soldiers when Carson wheeled camped near Adobe Walls since only to
around a pair of 12-pound mountain be found dead the following morning.
howitzers and opened fire. Carson
escaped, harried all the way by the angry The truth is that Comanche Chief
Indians, but he lost many of his troopers Quanah Parker and his braves are
in the bargain. the ones keeping Adobe Walls free
of visitors. They sometimes claim
ghosts murdered travelers who tried
to stay there, but more often the

victims were buffalo hunters poaching The Laughing Men number over
on Confederation territory. This is a 200 dark-hearted souls. They make
convenient way for them to get rid their living raiding Indian and white
of dead white men and keep their settlements from Texas to Colorado. On
relationship with the Confederacy a robbery, the Laughing Men usually
friendly. have 10–30 gunmen, though more may
be waiting nearby to persuade pursuing
The Grand Canyon posses that they’d be better off tending
beeves than following a marshal into
Fear Level 3 certain death.
Truly one of the Seven Wonders of
the World, the Grand Canyon in Arizona The Rangers know the gang operates
is the largest crevasse on earth. The out of the Grand Canyon, but they
Navajos call it the “house of stone and have yet to find the secret camp in the
light.” It is an apt name, for the dramatic area’s scarred landscape. That’s because
shadows and sun-baked canyon walls are Chuckles moves his camp every month
startling to behold, whether from the top or so.
or from the banks of the Colorado River
far below. Traitors and trespassers to his camp
Long ago, the Grand Canyon made a are dealt with in the most entertaining
wonderful campsite for travelers. Whites way possible. Victims are put through
and Indians got along, the view was a gauntlet of traps, critters, and hand-
breathtaking, and the only dangerous to-hand combat with his own men. He
critters were the occasional snakes and promises his victims their freedom if
spiders. These days, the shadowy floor they can survive the gauntlet, but no one
of the canyon seems a shade darker, and has yet to survive to see if the bandit
the echo of a man’s voice rings with an would keep his word.
unearthly cackle.
Profile: Chuckles Ryan
The Laughing Men
Corporeal: D:3d8, N:2d6, S:2d6, Q:2d10,
The most dangerous threat in the V:2d6
Grand Canyon area is posed by a former
Black River gang. The band now calls Climbin’ 1d6, dodge 4d6, fightin’: knife
itself the Laughing Men and holes up 1d6, sneak 5d6, horse ridin’ 4d6, quick
somewhere in the vast canyon. draw: pistol 3d10, shootin’: pistol, rifle,
shotgun 5d8
The leader of the Laughing Men is
“Chuckles” Ryan, a bloodthirsty villain Mental: C:3d10, K:2d8, M:4d10, Sm:3d10,
wanted in every state and territory in Sp:2d4
North America. Little is known of Ryan
except that he’s a cautious planner with Area knowledge: Grand Canyon 4d8,
a raspy, constant laugh and a passion for Artillery 2d10, bluff 3d10, demolition
cheap cigars. 4d8, disguise 3d8, gamblin’ 4d10, guts
4d4, language: Mexican Spanish 2d8,
His band has taken to laughing their language: Apache 2d8, leadership 4d10,
heads off when they ride out of a town overawe 4d10, persuasion 4d10, ridicule
they’ve just robbed—hence the name. 2d10, scroungin’ 2d10, scrutinize 5d10,
search 3d10, streetwise 2d10, survival:
The Laughing Men once worked for desert 3d10, trackin’ 2d10.
the Black River railroad, but they went
rogue after Mina Miles took over from Edges: Levelheaded 5, sand 3.
her deceased husband. Mina put the Hindrances: Mean as a rattler –2
Wichita Witches first in line over Ryan’s Pace: 6
band and the bandits took it personally. Size: 6
Wind: 10
338 Posse  Gear: Army .44 revolver, Winchester ’73,

small knife, 1 stick of dynamite.
Description: Ryan is a thin beardless

man, given to wearing smoked glasses
against the harsh glare of the sun.

Profile: The Weird West 339
Typical Laughing Man
Still, when there’s fighting to be done,
Corporeal: D:2d8, N:3d6, S:2d8, Q:2d8, the Legion is a force to be reckoned
V:3d6 with. These desperate men are cunning
and ruthless in battle. Though France
Climbin’ 1d6, fightin’: knife 3d6, sneak 3d6, and the southern states are on cordial
dodge 2d6, horse ridin’ 4d6, quick draw terms, the Legionnaires scattered along
3d8, Shootin’: pistol, rifle, shotgun 3d8 the forgotten outposts of the border do
their best to wreck the relationship. Out
Mental: C:2d6, K:1d6, M:3d6, Sm:2d6, of greed or sheer boredom, Legionnaire
Sp:1d6 patrols often wander north to raid the
caravans of the Ghost Trail. They rarely
Bluff 1d6, demolition 2d6, gamblin’ 3d6, leave witnesses to their bloody attacks.
guts 3d6, overawe 2d6, scroungin’ 3d6,
search 3d6, streetwise 3d6, survival: The Texas Rangers know which
desert 4d6 outposts are responsible, but they can’t
take action once the “patrols” retreat
Edges: None across the border for fear of spoiling
Hindrances: Bloodthirsty –2 the Confederacy’s already tentative
Pace: 8 relationship with France. The Rangers
Size: 6 could likely win a fight with the Legion
Wind: 12 if they could just catch them. After years
Gear: An assortment of weapons, with of fighting in the deserts of Africa, the
Legionnaires can ride fast, hide in plain
knives and Derringers up their sleeves. sight, and survive the incredible heat
Description: The laughing men are an even better than the Rangers.

assortment of hard-looking thugs and Profile:
ruffians. Typical Legionnaire

The City of Ghouls Corporeal: D:3d8, N:3d6, S:3d8, Q:3d8,
V:3d6
Whispered legends speaks of
something deep in the heart of the Climbin’ 2d6, fightin’: knife 4d6, dodge
Grand Canyon—a set of caves that hold 3d6, horse ridin’ 4d6, shootin’: pistol,
a strange city of the dead. The city is rifle, shotgun 4d8, sneak 3d6
reportedly inhabited by eaters of the
dead—ghouls. Mental: C:3d6, K:2d6, M:3d6, Sm:2d6,
Sp:2d6
No one living has actually seen this
fabled city, but the Laughing Men stay Guts 3d6, language: English 1d6, Language
out of the bottom of the Canyon, just the Spanish 1d6, overawe 2d6, scroungin’
same. 4d6, search 3d6, survival: desert 6d6

La Legion Edges: Tough as nails 2
Etrangere Hindrances: Ferner –3
Pace: 8
When Emperor Maximillian took over Size: 6
Mexico, he garrisoned the northern Wind: 12
border with the refuse of the proud Gear: A Smith & Wesson Frontier pistol,
French Army, the Foreign Legion. While
the Legion has a valiant fighting record, a Winchester `76 rifle, a knife, a horse
there is little denying its ranks are made and a filthy uniform.
up of the rest of the world’s castaways. Description: Legionnaires come from a
wide variety of sordid pasts, and their
Deserters, debtors, and criminals all diverse appearances reflects that.
find homes as Legionnaires. Even the
French officers are lost souls forced
from the regular regiments to France’s
unwanted stepchild.

Nacogdoches, TX Pestilence

Fear Level 1 (Hey, they’re Texans) Three particularly nasty epidemics hit
Residents of Nacogdoches, Texas, claim the Southwest hard this year. The worst
the dead rose from their graves last of them are found deep in the heart of
Halloween. The undead were slow, had Texas, and they’ve very nearly wiped out
a hunger for brains, and could only be entire droves of cattle.
killed by shooting them in the head.
The things besieged the townsfolk Texas Fever
in their homes through the long night.
When morning came and the ornery Texas fever is a cattle disease that has
Texans finally figured out how to kill driven the price of beef through the roof.
the rotting creatures, the Nacogdochans The big ranchers have been hit hardest,
wheeled out the whiskey kegs and took so the smaller cattlemen are taking
turns shooting out zombie brains. advantage of the situation to drive their
The story is as true as it gets, though herds to Dodge before the disease is
most of the West laughs at the tales and wiped out.
the Texas Rangers have sworn to wipe
out “every damn Nacogdochan” if they When a steer’s got the fever it starts
talk to the Tombstone Epitaph. foaming at the mouth and attacking
Here’s how this strange event nearly anything in sight. Anything that
happened. A few days before Halloween, can walk a straight line’s pretty safe,
a B.V. train sped through Texas carrying since the poor animal sure can’t anymore.
vats of a special brew. This experimental Within a day or two, the afflicted critter
formula was devised by Baron Simone collapses to the ground and, soon after,
LaCroix to create the walking dead. dies.
Unfortunately, the bridge over the
Angelina River near Nacogdoches was The only cure for this ailment is the
out, and the train plummeted into the .45 caliber kind.
water. The formula eventually made its
way down to the Nacogdoches cemetery. Tummy Twister
Fortunately, the brew was not one
of Baron LaCroix’s better batches. The The second disease is called the “Texas
undead that arose came out slow and Tummy Twister.” Anyone who drinks
near mindless. The gun-toting Texans had water tainted with this illness feels his
an easy time rounding up their undead insides get all tight. Then the poor sap
relatives and planting them back in their gets real hungry but just can’t seem to
holes. eat enough to fill his innards. A few days
LaCroix continues to send his special later, the victim starts coughing blood,
potions west to make more work crews then gets so bloated his gizzards burst.
as his rail line forges slowly across Most sawbones think it’s some form of
Arizona. It’s only a matter of time before dysentery.
another train wreck creates another
zombie uprising. And next time the The most insidious new plague to
walking dead may not be as easy to wrack the Southwest can’t be fought,
destroy. avoided, or even seen. It’s a microscopic
Meanwhile, the Nacogdochan’s have critter that lives in still ponds and muddy
plan to stage a carnival to mark the swimming holes.
anniversary of the zombie rising.
Anytime a character drinks from a
340 Posse  stagnant Texas watering hole, there’s
a chance he picks up a Texas tummy
twister. The odds are 1 in 4 in southern
Texas and 1 in 6 north of Dallas.

Once in a host’s gut, the twister clings
to the stomach and begins to absorb
blood and water. In three days, the thing
is the size of a fist. In seven days, it’s the
size of a cat.

During this time, the twister grows a
spiny appendage which it inserts into the

spinal column. One week after infection, Profile: Tummy Twister
the host becomes a quasi-mindless
puppet. Corporeal: D:3d6, N:1d4, S:2d4, Q:3d10,
V:2d6
A human under a twister’s control
isn’t particularly bright. The creature can Fightin’: brawlin’ (Deftness based) 4d6
force its host to manage a few words and Mental: C:2d6, K:2d4, M:1d8, Sm:1d4, Sp:1d4
remember its close friends’ names and Pace: 4
whatnot. Anyone who knows the victim Size: 4
instantly sees he is out of sorts, though Wind: 10
it usually appears as if the host is merely Terror: 9
suffering from a high fever or delirium. Special Abilities:

The twister can see poorly through its Damage: Spiny tentacles (STR+1d4)
host’s eyes, but it prefers to peek outside Infection: See description above.
the victim’s stomach whenever it can. It Description: See the picture above.
does this by burrowing out through the
abdominal muscles. This causes a light Prairie Ticks
wound to the host’s guts (the twister
secretes a strange ooze that stops The latest and greatest epidemic is
bleeding almost instantly). Anyone who caused by prairie ticks. Regular ticks are
spies the creature peeking out needs to bad enough, but these suckers are about
make an Incredible (11) guts check. When the size of a man’s fist and like to climb
the twister remains hidden inside, the down throats. They get inside steers,
only visible sign of its hidey-hole is a sheep, horses, and—yes—even humans,
long, oozing scar. and make their happy homes right inside
the host’s guts. Then the critters just sit
The twister’s goal is to impregnate
others with its microscopic children. If
it can lure another host within a few
inches, it lashes out with its thorny
tentacles. If it hits and causes at least
one Wind, tiny tummy twisters race into
the victim’s bloodstream and eventually
wind up in his stomach.

Even the best doctors probably can’t
remove a tummy twister. Their link to
the spine means a medicine: surgery roll
of at least 15. Even then the operation
takes at least 10 minutes, and the twister
won’t just be sitting there waiting to have
its tentacles sawed off. There are a more
than a few doctors in Texas who have
contracted tummy twisters in this way.

The only good way to get rid of a
tummy twister is for the host to eat
something incredibly spicy. Jalapeños
make the nasty critters come crawling
out in a few minutes (doing a critical
but non-bleeding wound to the guts that
can’t be negated by Fate Chips as they
scratch and claw their way out).

Acid also gets rid of them, but doesn’t
do the host much good (unless he’s
Harrowed, but then tummy twisters
can’t live in an undead’s stomach
anyway). Some mad scientists have used
hydrochloric acid to destroy the bellies
of those believed to be infected with the
critters, though.

there and drain blood until they’re about along the Ghost Trail are, they’re worse
the size of small dogs. Next thing you along the more populous Santa Fe.
know, they’re digging their way out. And
that’s the end, friend. Working for one of the civilian
contractors hauling ghost rock is good
Pretty gruesome, huh? Fortunately, work. It’s dangerous, of course, but pays
there’s a cure for this one. Pour some well. Wagon masters pay up to $10 a
castor oil or similar nastiness down your day plus a $25 bounty on the head of
gullet and the thing will come crawling every bandit killed along the way. Some
out your throat. Needless to say, a person folks have made themselves a pretty
wants to take care of his unwanted penny this way, but others simply never
visitor before it gets too big. returned. It’s a long trail with lots of
places for a body to get “lost” along the
The statistics for the prairie tick can way.
be found in the color section of Chapter
Three. The Indian
Territories
Sante Fe Trail
The Indians are an enigma to most
The Santa Fe Trail was once known for whites: at times noble and honorable, at
the murderers and thieves who stalked it. others savage and cruel. In truth, they
These days, its reputation is even worse. are people just like any other. The tribes
have their own cultures, ones that may
Shipments of minerals taken from seem strange to those from more the
the Maze used to come up the Ghost “civilized” parts of the world. Even more
Trail to Santa Fe. Those that went on to confusing to whites, they are as varied
the southern states continued along the as the people themselves.
Santa Fe, and some wagon trains still
follow this route. As bad as the robbers There are literally hundreds of different
tribes in the West, but there are three
groups who have the most influence.
From largest to smallest they are the
Sioux, the members of the Coyote
Confederation, and the Apache.

The Sioux Nations

The Sioux Nations were formed in
’72. The Union’s initial defeat by Davis’
Confederate forces at the Battle of
Washington convinced the Indians of the
Dakotas that this was the time to reclaim
their borders. Sitting Bull started this
movement, but even he could not make
all the various tribes unite under a single
leader.

The tribes’ compromise was to
reinstate the old council of the Sioux
Nations, the “wicasa yatapickas.” The
wicasas are four wise leaders appointed
by the tribes to make decisions on behalf
of the Nations.

The wicasas have absolute authority
in the Sioux Nations. Any formal dealings
with the Sioux must be carried out
through this council of revered leaders.

The four tribes directly represented The Weird West 343
by the wicasas are the Hunkpapa,
Miniconjou, Brule, and Oglalas. The other The shamans believe the Old Ways
tribes of the Sioux Nations, such as the have pleased the spirits, for their powers
Northern Cheyenne and Sans Arcs, must have grown greatly.
make do with winning the ear of one of
the wicasas. The United States military is thrilled
with the Old Ways movement, since it
Relations with the US means the Indians are easy pickings for
their Gatling guns should a war develop.
At the moment, relations between The Army may eat its words if the
the Nations and the US are cool at best. shamans’ powers continue to grow.
Sioux are allowed to travel the northern
states at will, but not in groups of more Custer’s Last Stand
than five individuals. Anything larger is
considered a “raiding party,” and the local Since General Custer’s defeat at
cavalry is usually called on to “escort” the Battle of Little Big Horn, the US
the errant Indians back to their own government has treated the Sioux with
borders—assuming they’re still there by a new measure of respect. Grant, despite
the time the boys in blue show up, of Generals Sherman and Sheridan’s
course, which is rarely the case. contempt for the wicasas, saw Little
Big Horn as proof that the Sioux are
The reverse situation is even more a legitimate nation instead of a loose
stringent. No whites are allowed to cross alliance of individuals. The President
the Sioux’s borders except by means of may not be able to keep the two nations’
the Iron Dragon railroad. Even then, a differences from starting a war, but he is
visitor must head directly to Deadwood dedicated to trying.
or certain regions of the Black Hills
where the Sioux have allowed mining. For more information of the
Non-designated regions of the Black Hills confrontation between the Union and the
are off-limits to outsiders, and anyone Sioux, the battle of Little Big Horn and
foolish enough to violate these sacred details on the Deadwood Creek Treaty,
areas will not likely be seen again. check out the Deadwood section on
page 353.
The locals protested one of these
“murders” to the US government. The Order
President Grant’s only official response of the Raven
to the people of Deadwood was much
appreciated by the Sioux. It read simply, Not every Indian is thrilled with the
“You were warned.” return of the Old Ways. Soon after the
wicasas made the Old Ways law, a quiet
The Old Ways Movement rebellion took place, especially among
many of the younger Sioux warriors.
The wicasas know the world changed
in 1863, but most don’t know exactly These rebels are called the Order of
why. They merely believe the spirits are the Raven. All bear a tattoo of their
punishing them for some misdeed. All namesake somewhere on their body,
but Sitting Bull say the people must usually hidden in the most remote or
return to the “Old Ways.” They must secret place possible.
throw off the “evil” influence of the
white man—guns and other manufactured When the wicasas caught word of
artifacts—and return to nature. the rebellion, they gave all members of
the Sioux Nations one week to burn off
The old Sioux leadership made this any Raven tattoos. From that point on,
idea law back in ’65, and the Sioux anyone caught with the mark would be
Nations have kept it so. Publicly, every put to death. Slowly.
Sioux acknowledges the Old Ways.
Warriors hunt with bows and arrows,
knives are made from stone, and so on.

Sitting Bull and the US Army. This overt mocking
of US power may be what led to the
Sitting Bull is the “Hunkpapa wicasa,” massacre at the Little Big Horn
the leader of the wicasas, and he has his
own ideas about the course the Sioux The unfortunate truth is that Sitting
Nations should follow. His speeches, Bull himself is a Ravenite. Under the
subtle to Indians unused to politicians, advice of the Hooded One (see below),
hint that war is inevitable. he quietly organized those he knew
were resistant to the Old Ways to start
His most memorable speech was acquiring guns and other arms. Some
just after the Deadwood Treaty of ’75. day, Sitting Bull plans to lead his people
While he spoke kind words in English, into battle against the whites, starting
his message in Sioux was less than with the “invaders” in Deadwood and the
gracious. In fact, he called the Union Black Hills. He is waiting for an incident
soldiers murderers and liars. And all to turn popular opinion against the Old
the while Generals Sherman and Terry Ways. Then he plans to depose the other
(not knowing a word of Sioux) just kept wicasas and declare himself “the Great
smiling and nodding their heads. Chief.” The Battle of the Little Big Horn,
and the victory of the Old Wayers over
Needless to say, when the Generals the US cavalry, set him back several
were later told what Sitting Bull had years.
said in front of them, it didn’t do much
to improve relations between the Indians The Hooded One

344 Posse  A shaman known only as the “Hooded
One” has become one of Sitting Bull’s
closest companions. What no one
knows is that this mysterious figure is
none other than Raven. See the Coyote
Confederation section for more
information.

Iron Dragon

The provisions of the Deadwood Creek
Treaty meant Iron Dragon could build a
spur to Deadwood. Sitting Bull , saw a
chance to arm his braves.

Sitting Bull’s cohorts approached Iron
Dragon and set up a meeting between
their chief, Kang, and the Hooded One. In
exchange for Sitting Bull’s influence with
the wicasas, Kang agreed to transport
arms into the Sioux Nations—a direct
violation of both US federal law and the
Great Fathers’ dictates.

Once a month, a private train enters
the Sioux Nations and delivers weapons
to the waiting Indians. These are bought
with fees extorted from unregistered
miners in the Black Hills, jumped claims,
and thievery. Most of the shipments
consist of rifles and ammunition, but
dynamite and a few artillery pieces have
been delivered as well. Sitting Bull’s Order
of the Raven should be well-armed when
he decides to strike.

Coyote The Weird West 345
Confederation
There the three fasted and gave thanks
The Coyote Confederation was formed to the spirits for their victory in battle
in ’74, just a few months after the second while preparing Isatai’s spirit for passage
battle of Adobe Walls. The four principle into the Hunting Grounds.
tribes are the Comanche, Cheyenne,
Arapaho, and Kiowa. Several smaller While Parker and Satanta waited, they
tribes—notably the Kiowa-Apache, what’s talked of the Sioux Nations and dreamed
left of the Cherokee, and a few others— of a new land for their own people. Isatai
are also members, but they don’t have overheard their conversation, and in his
enough population to have any real delirium he experienced an epic vision.
influence.
The spirit of the great Coyote, the
Geographically, the tribes are spread trickster, told Isatai that he would
out over Indian Territory in the Oklahoma live, but only if he created a new
region and maintain their villages in confederation of the People in the
the center of the Confederation. Patrols trickster’s name.
of 10–20 braves (both male and female)
roam the borders looking for intruders. Enigmatically, Coyote also told Isatai
Running into one is bad news. that he must lead the new nation instead
of Parker or Satanta, though the shaman
The leader of the Coyote Confederation must always keep his true identity a
is a shaman known, appropriately secret. Isatai asked why, but the trickster
enough, as “Coyote.” All of the tribal only hinted at a dire fate should Isatai’s
chiefs have Coyote’s ear, but the two true face be revealed.
most influential by far are Quanah
Parker of the Comanche and Satanta of Isatai reluctantly told Chief Parker and
the Kiowa. Satanta of his vision. To his surprise,
they agreed to gather the People together
Coyote and allow Isatai to lead them. They, of
course, would remain by his side and
As far as is known, only Parker and offer their own guidance as well, but
Satanta know Coyote’s true identity. The Isatai, under the guise of “Coyote,” would
shaman wears a long cloak of vermillion, from that day forward be the Great Chief
and his or her face is always shrouded of the Coyote Confederation.
inside its deep hood. Most agree the
Confederation Great Chief is a male Isatai healed as Coyote had said he
from his deep booming voice, but they would, though when he donned his
disagree on whether he is young or old, robe, his seeping wound dyed it deep
Comanche, Cheyenne, Kiowa, or other. vermillion. The wound has not stopped
The truth is Coyote is Chief Quanah seeping to this day, though Isatai is
Parker’s closest companion, Isatai, the stronger than ever before.
engineer behind the attack on Adobe
Walls back in ’74. To his vermillion robe, Isatai added a
deep hood that would forever hide his
Strangely enough, Isatai had not face. Thus was this Coyote, the Great
created a magical vest for himself, Chief of the Coyote Confederation, born
thinking he would stay well back from from the blood of Isatai.
the battle and watch the braves do the
fighting. But one of the whites had Raven’s Plan
deadly aim, and Isatai fell bleeding to the
ground. The unfortunate truth is that the
“Coyote” who gave Isatai his vision was
After the battle, Parker and Satanta actually Raven. He plans on assassinating
sent their warband home and personally Isatai one day and quietly assuming his
took the mortally wounded Isatai to die identity, putting the entire Confederation
on the sacred Black Mesa of Oklahoma. at his command.

Allies it, though since neither have any real
authority there, the hunters ignore them.
Coyote has a deal with the Southern This gives Parker a free hand to deal
states that has become fairly common with the hunters as he sees fit. His
knowledge since ‘76. Warbands serve as cause is just, but he can be a cruel and
Confederate allies, raiding settlements merciless opponent.
or garrisons in Kansas and other border
states. Quanah Parker and Satanta are The Old Ways
often at the head of these raids.
The Sioux’s Old Ways movement
Publicly, Coyote advocates the has caught on among the elders of the
independence of the Confederation and Confederation, including Coyote himself.
the sovereignty of its borders. He sees He has yet to enforce it, most likely
Southerners as kindred spirits, fighting because his close friend Chief Quanah
for their independence from the hated Parker is openly against it. Parker has
“blue bellies.” He does not encourage been known to carry a Gatling pistol on
his people to hate outsiders, but neither occasion, and his closest companions
does he tolerate uninvited visitors in have collected many odd technological
their lands. Most who wander into the devices, “trophies” of their frequent raids.
Confederation don’t wander back out
unless they had a good reason for their Satanta believes strongly in the Old
visit. Ways. He is a very spiritual man and
believes technology is the cause of the
The Buffalo War white man’s greed.

Chief Quanah Parker is the Great The Apache
Chief of the Comanche tribes and one of
the three most important figures in the The Apache are the predominant
Coyote Confederation. Indian tribe in southern Arizona. Raiding
and warfare are a way of life for them,
Chief Parker makes no secret of his and they have gained a well-deserved
distrust of white men. He particularly reputation as fierce warriors. One of the
hates buffalo hunters. He has good foremost warriors among them was the
reason, of course, for the massacres of great Chiricahua leader, Cochise.
the southern herds cause his people to
starve. Cochise was at first willing to live
in peace with the white settlers who
Parker has made it known that came to the area. Then, in 1861, he
buffalo hunters will not be tolerated in was falsely accused of kidnapping a
Confederation territory. Those caught rancher’s son and stealing some cattle.
trespassing meet their fates in the most The soldiers sent to recover the boy
painful ways possible. and livestock tried to capture Cochise
under a false flag of truce. He escaped
Parker’s private war on buffalo hunters and soon thereafter—embittered by his
led to an attack on a skinning camp at experiences—led the Chiricahua Apache
Adobe Walls in ’74. The violent battle was on raids against the white settlements in
so widely reported and reviled by both the area.
sides that it almost sparked a war with
the Confederacy. When the Civil War began, Confederate
forces swept into New Mexico and
The papers call Parker’s semiprivate Arizona. The Union forces, weakened by
feud the “Buffalo War.” If you’re heading the desertion of many of their number to
west to get in on the buffalo craze, the Confederacy, burned their forts and
I’d advise you to avoid the temptation withdrew east. The Apaches thought the
of entering Indian Territory. Both withdrawal was due to their attacks and
governments have publicly forbidden stepped up their raiding, hoping to expel
all white settlers in the area.
346 Posse 
In 1862, a column of Union volunteers
from California entered the territory and
succeeded in driving the Confederate

forces out. After defeating the Rebs and Many of the tribes were defeated
being reinforced by volunteers from and forced to relocate to the Bosque
New Mexico, the bluebellies turned Redondo, a reservation on the Pecos
their attention (in a military manner River in New Mexico. Cochise and most
of speaking) toward the Apaches and of the Chiricahuas fled into the Dragoon
Navajos. They were able to make some Mountains and established a hidden
progress against these tribes until the stronghold there.
West got weird. About 1864 or so, the
Apaches were able to match the soldiers’ After breaking the Apaches’ hold on
firepower with some of a more spiritual the area, Slaughter built and garrisoned
nature. a string of forts along the route used by
the mule trains, to protect the ghost rock
It wasn’t long before the Chiricahuas shipments from attacks by Indian and
began to gain the upper hand in the Mexican raiders. The war in the East was
fight, and the Union troops were forced temporarily stalemated, so Davis risked
to retreat back within the safety of the sending large numbers of troops west to
forts they had constructed. By 1866, the man these forts.
two groups’ roles were reversed. The
Apaches patrolled the area while the Once the Ghost Trail was secured,
soldiers conducted quick hit-and-run Slaughter focused his attention on
raids against Apache encampments. destroying the Chiricahua and Cochise,
the only chief in Arizona Territory who
The Great Quake of ’68 changed things openly defied Confederate rule. Small
dramatically. Beforehand, the majority bands of his warriors would slip down
of the Union forces stationed in Arizona from the hills at night and ambush
were originally from California. Those patrols or destroy livestock and property.
soldiers who didn’t immediately desert
their posts after hearing about the
quake were recalled by the California
state government soon after. Once again,
the forts were burned as they were left
behind, but this time the troops withdrew
west.

Slaughter

For a few short months, the Apache
were masters of their own destiny. Then
Rebel troops from Texas moved in to
back up Jeff Davis’ claim to the Maze and
protect the vital Ghost Trail. They were
led by General Joseph Ewell Slaughter, a
bloodthirsty devil who took a dim view
of any Indian who was still drawing
breath. Needless to say, he took an even
dimmer view of Indians who were riding
around, shooting up his precious ghost
rock convoys.

Slaughter lived up to his name. His
troops carved a bloody swath across
New Mexico and Arizona. Slaughter didn’t
have many men, but those he had, he
drove relentlessly. He hired scouts from
tribes hostile to the Apache to help him
locate and destroy them.

Still celebrating their “victory” over
the bluebellies, the Apaches weren’t
prepared for such a ferocious onslaught.

Slaughter used this as an excuse to kill Slaughter was destined to be
and torture any Apache he could get his disappointed. According to the Apaches
bloodstained hands on, trying to find on the reservation, Cochise died in his
Cochise’s secret lair. But the Indians mountain stronghold on June 8, 1874.
wouldn’t talk.
The final resting place of Cochise’s
Slaughter sent numerous patrols body remains a mystery to outsiders, and
to scour the area in and around the the Apaches certainly aren’t volunteering
Dragoon Mountains. Most of the patrols any information. Not content to allow his
only succeeded in wasting good boot old adversary to rest in peace, Slaughter
leather and getting a few of their number has offered a $2,000 reward to anyone
shot by unseen foes. Cochise’s warriors who brings him the chief’s remains. So
refused to give Slaughter the stand-up far, no one’s taken him up on it, although
battle he wanted, preferring instead to many white bounty hunters have tried
strike from ambush and then disappear and have paid for their efforts with their
into the rugged countryside. lives.

Frustrated and enraged at his troops’ But the truth is the Apaches’ great
failure to find the Apache leader, chief Cochise is not dead—yet. Aging and
Slaughter wired Richmond for more in ill-health, he realized he was no longer
troops. Davis responded by taking half of up to the task of leading his warriors in
Slaughter’s soldiers to use in the attack battle. He consulted with some of the
against Washington. medicine men of his tribe and found
another way in which he could help his
The loss of these additional troops people.
stretched what was left almost to the
breaking point. The unhappy Slaughter’s Aided by the tribal shamans, Cochise’s
forces were deployed in a thin line across spirit has entered the Hunting Grounds
New Mexico, Arizona, and southern to bind a powerful mountain spirit—or
California. For a while, the bloodthirsty “gan”—to his service. Cochise forced the
general was forced to give up his spirit to grant the wilderness walk favor
personal vendetta against Cochise. to the entire Chiricahua tribe and mask
the location of their mountain hideout
The Death of from outsiders. This supernatural aid has
Cochise greatly helped the Chiricahua warriors,
enabling them to easily ambush their
The Battle of Washington created an enemies and then vanish without a trace.
insatiable demand for troops Back East.
The isolated and desperate western Needless to say, the nature spirits do
garrisons continued to escort wagon not grant such requests easily. Cochise
trains through the area, but all offensive may only bind the spirit while his body
operations against the Apache were lives. While his spirit is in the Hunting
suspended. Cochise took advantage of Grounds, his body lies in a cavern deep
this weakness and stepped up his raiding. within the mountains.

Ghost-rock shipments were Tribal shamans tend to his body,
temporarily suspended after the accident sustaining him with powerful potions
at Roswell. During this time, a number and magic. Despite this, his physical
of the forts were abandoned and the form is slowly losing strength and will
garrisons were quickly consolidated. One eventually expire. At the moment of his
of the forts which remained active was death, the gan is freed from service. A
Fort Huachuca. General Slaughter used great earthquake will shake the Dragoon
the strengthened garrison here to resume Mountains and collapse the chamber in
his hunt for Cochise and take down the which Cochise’s body resides, entombing
Apache leader once and for all. him within the heart of the mountain
forever. His spirit will be trapped in the
Hunting Grounds for eternity as a servant
of the gan.

348 Posse 

When running encounters with the The Weird West 349
Apache, remember that the wilderness
walk favor only masks sound and Although weary of war, Geronimo
obscures tracks. It can’t prevent someone knows his people can only live free
from eye-balling an Apache peeking up if they fight for that freedom. He also
from behind a rock. realizes the Apache are not strong
enough to engage the Confederate forces
The Chiricahuas live in a group of in open battle—their superior numbers
caves high in the Dragoon Mountains. and artillery would make short work
The caves are only accessible by climbing of the Chiricahua. Because of this, his
a sheer cliff face via a series of small warriors have become masters in the art
ledges and natural handholds. This is no of ambush and concealment.
problem for a Chiricahua. Anyone else
who tries to climb the cliff must contend The Apache warriors always avoid a
with the gan. fight unless they have the advantage in
either numbers or position. Unfortunately
To climb the cliff, a non-Chiricahua for the Confederate soldiers, this is
character must make three opposed increasingly the case these days. Many
rolls of climbin’/Spirit versus the gan’s of the soldiers tell stories of ambushes
Spirit of 4d10. The character must get at where the Apaches fired on them and
least a raise against the gan to progress then simply disappeared, leaving no trace.
to the next roll. If the mountain spirit Even veteran trackers have often failed to
gets a raise against the character, the find the Apaches’ trail.
climber must back down off the cliff and
start again. If the gan gets two raises
or more, it has managed to mislead the
character in some way, either obscuring
a handhold or tricking the character
into reaching for a nonexistent one, and
the character falls into the gulch below,
taking 10d6+50 falling damage.

Any Chiricahuas who are aware of the
characters’ presence won’t take kindly to
the intrusion, so you may want to apply
a modifier to the characters’ rolls if they
are being sniped at while climbing.

Geronimo

After Cochise’s alleged death, the
mantle of leadership passed to Geronimo.
Geronimo was born a Nednis Apache,
but after losing his family to Mexican
raiders, he came to live and fight with
the Chiricahuas and is now considered
one of them. He is a skilled warrior
and leader and has gained a reputation
among the Chiricahua as one with great
spiritual power.

Geronimo has vowed to take
Slaughter’s scalp in retribution for the
suffering he has caused the Apaches.
Under his leadership, the Chiricahua
continue to raid wagon trains going to
and from the Maze, outlying ranches,
farms, and—now that the railroad has
arrived—trains.