August 2010 Entry : Brushy, Kansas - 1873

[mearrin69]

I feel you on the D&D-only vibe. My co-GM and I switch off running 'big' games while the other does short side games from time to time. Usually we manage to squeeze in non-fantasy in the side game slots...but the main game is always D&D. It gets really tiresome sometimes. Switching back and forth really helps though - as does our GM-only game, which lets us play stuff our players would never try...or would try to overpower (I'm running a Star Wars Legacy game for them where they're both playing Jedi...something ripe for abuse).

Honestly not sure which version of Deadlands we're playing (I look over someone else's shoulder since I don't have my own book. It's an early version, I think (i.e. not GURPS, not D20). Stats were determined by cards, etc.
M

[Xyll]

You are playing the original version. Love that version. Takes me back to old times when each game had there own unique systems warts and all. That was the origin of savage world system. Have fun done right it is a blast.

[mearrin69]

Agreed. The use of playing cards and poker chips gives the game an interesting feel that's very appropriate to the game/genre. I don't think the game would be as fun with the rules-heavy feel of D20 or GURPS. I am surprised, however, how decent Call of Cthulhu is using the D20 rules (also running this for my GM-only group) - I doubt hardcore CoC fans would agree but it's great for a pulpy horror game (with the right players at least).
M

[ravells]

I love the vegetation...it's got that slightly deserty feel without going over the top. I also like the design of the signboard (few bullet holes through it or is that just a bit too cliched?), but I wonder if it would work better with a different duotone than black & white?

[mearrin69]

Thanks. I'm actually going to knock back the vegetation a bit when I clear out the spaces that see foot traffic. Just going to tone it down or brown it up in what I imagine would be the drier areas (and maybe boost it in a couple of others). Right now it's all pretty uniformly colored...so some variation from greens to brown would probably be an improvement.

Hmmm. Have to think about bullet holes. Not sure how to make them or if they'd interfere with the text, but I'll check it out. The text could definitely use a different style now. I went with that when it was just text over the map. Now it's a little bright against the light wood (and my little black underlay hasn't helped much).

What do you think about just using the board for the town name and nowhere else? It's a bit heavy really. I still haven't decided whether I like it or not.
M

[mearrin69]

Little more work on this. The changes are pretty subtle, I guess. Started texturing roofs. Fixed up some of the roof shading to represent vertical fascia on the boardwalk buildings. Also penciled in the boardwalks themselves. The road's a lot better than before, with ruts and grass and less definite outlining. Still flip-flopping about the signboard.

Edit: I've been doing a lot of flipping between versions as I map these days. It's amazing to me how quickly you get to something that looks pretty great (e.g. the first pic I posted which only took a couple of hours) and then how much extra time you have to put in for incremental improvements (e.g. the map on this post, which has a *lot* more hours in it). If you open up the first pic and this one in different tabs you can see what I mean. The differences are subtle...until you flip between them. Still...show them both to my mother-in-law with a 30 second delay and I doubt she could tell the difference.

### LATEST WIP ###

[Ascension]

I can see the differences but, then, I'm cool like that. Heh This is lookin good, man.

[Jaxilon]

I was wondering if that was just me. I've spent so much stinking time going back and forth on a texture or a slight color shade it's ridiculous. I was recently telling my wife how I almost prefer just doing my work on paper by hand because you can't really jerk around with it like you can digitally. You just do it and it's good or it's not. There isn't the endless testing and changing. The perfectionist in me has to be kept in check or I would never finish anything.

[mearrin69]

Ah, but then, when you scan it, you can make all sorts of changes to your paper version! I ended up spending several hours mucking about with my Haibianr scan...cleaning up, moving buildings, retouching lines, etc. You just can't win...at least not if you have OCD.
M

[tilt]

nice mearrin, I'd change the boardwalk colors to a light wooden color unless they are old in which case a darker wooden color. Of course if they used larch the boards would go silver with time. The roof texture seems better on the three houses close to the river. And I'm FOR the boards behind the text (actually thought of suggesting that at the first post in the thread), but if you use the boards, then remove the shadows on the text so it looks painted on the boards instead of suspended above it.
And Jax - what is a good westen town without laser toting fairies