Sep 20, 2020 10:08 pm
SAGAS & SIX-GUNS
Genre: Nordic Western Fantasy? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
System: Savage Worlds Adventure Edition.
Number of Players: 4 to 6.
Posting Rate: 3 to 4 times a week.
Tone: Mildly serious but punctuated with plenty of lightheartedness and Norse-style dark humor.
THE OLD WEST MEETS THE OLD NORSE
Howdy, drengr! Sagas & Six-Guns is the genre mix that you never knew you wanted. It's a mash-up of the 1800s American Wild West and Viking Age Scandinavian cultures. The game takes place in a fictional uninhabited frontier that has been settled by the Norse. This vast monster-filled wilderness is known only as "Western Midgard" or "Westgard". Cowboys, bank robbers, and law men exist side by side with rune-casting prophets, mead-drinking Jarls, and Valkyries. Ranchers worry about trolls as much as they do cattle rustlers, and gunslinging vikings hunt draugr to gain Glory in the hopes of joining the Gods in Valhalla. Magic and the supernatural exist in this setting, giving it a very similar "Weird West" feel to the Deadlands RPG, another Savage Worlds property. Likewise, 19th century steam technology is prevalent, which leads to an interesting fusion of magical runes and modern industry.
Although the game isn't based in the actual American Old West, many of the setting's locations are inspired by real places. Dødved (Deadwood) and Gravstein (Tombstone) are examples.
THE RULES
This setting uses the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE) ruleset, so you'll need access to the SWADE core book. You'll also need a copy of the Sagas & Six-Guns core book. The PDF is available on DrivethruRPG and is currently Pay What You Want.
THE CHARACTERS
Imagine if a duster-clad Beowulf decided to take on Grendel with a trusty pair of six-shooters, or if Doc Holiday stormed the OK Corral wielding a rune axe and shouting oaths to the Allfather. That's the general idea behind Sagas & Six-Guns. The setting leans toward Norse and Cowboy tropes more than historical realism, so expect some artistic liberties in that regard.
Options encompass any number or combination of Wild West and Viking character concepts. Are you a steely-eyed Hólmgänger (gunslinger) who settles weregild disputes with a draw of the pistol? Are you a troll-slaying Gunmaiden in service to the local high plains Jarl? Are you a wandering Law-Thegn doling out punishment in the name of Tyr, the Norse God of War and Justice? Are you an ill-tempered Valkyrie who is trapped in Midgard due to the machinations of one of Odin's enemies? Are you an eccentric Rune Engineer who blends science with futhark runes for incredible (and sometimes disastrous) effects? Are you a piano-playing Skald who travels from saloon to saloon spreading tales so epic that they actually come into being? Lots of possibilities.
Last edited September 26, 2020 4:53 am
