The Art of Character Creation
Creating a character in Deadlands is like writing the first chapter of a legend that hasn't happened yet. You're not just rolling stats and picking skills—you're crafting a person who will face down horrors that would make grown adults hide under their beds, all while maintaining enough humanity to be worth rooting for.
Think of character creation as building a house. The attributes are your foundation, skills are your rooms, edges are your fancy features, and hindrances are the creaky floorboards that give the place character. Without those flaws, you'd just have a perfect, boring house that no one would want to visit.
The Character Creation Process
The process flows like a river—each step builds on the last, creating a character who feels both mechanically sound and narratively compelling. It's structured enough to ensure balance but flexible enough to let your creativity run wild.
Attributes: The Foundation of Your Hero
Attributes in Deadlands represent your character's raw potential—think of them as the natural gifts you were born with. Unlike some games where you distribute points like you're budgeting for groceries, Deadlands uses a system that feels more like genetic lottery meets frontier luck.
The Five Attributes
Deftness 🎯
Covers: Coordination, agility, hand-eye coordination
Real-world analogy: A surgeon's steady hands, a pianist's finger dexterity, or a gunslinger's quick draw
Game impact: Shooting, riding, sleight of hand, most physical finesse
Nimbleness 💨
Covers: Speed, reflexes, dodging ability
Real-world analogy: A gazelle escaping a lion, a dancer's grace, or a pickpocket's quick escape
Game impact: Initiative, defense, athletic feats, stealth
Strength 💪
Covers: Raw physical power and endurance
Real-world analogy: A blacksmith's powerful arms, a weightlifter's raw power, or a lumberjack's endurance
Game impact: Melee damage, carrying capacity, physical challenges
Quickness ⚡
Covers: Mental speed, wit, reaction time
Real-world analogy: A chess master seeing moves ahead, a comedian's quick wit, or a detective's instant deductions
Game impact: Initiative modifier, quick thinking, mental agility
Cognition 🧠
Covers: Intelligence, reasoning, memory
Real-world analogy: Einstein's theoretical insights, Sherlock Holmes' deductive reasoning, or a scholar's vast knowledge
Game impact: Skill points, knowledge skills, problem-solving
Knowledge 📚
Covers: Education, learned information, cultural awareness
Real-world analogy: A professor's accumulated wisdom, a world traveler's cultural understanding, or a historian's grasp of events
Game impact: Academic skills, languages, professional knowledge
Mien 😎
Covers: Personality, leadership, force of will
Real-world analogy: A politician's charisma, a drill sergeant's commanding presence, or a motivational speaker's inspiration
Game impact: Social interactions, leadership, intimidation, some magical abilities
Smarts 🤔
Covers: Practical intelligence, common sense, street smarts
Real-world analogy: A farmer's weather sense, a mechanic's intuitive understanding, or a parent's ability to spot trouble
Game impact: Practical skills, survival, professional abilities
Spirit ✨
Covers: Willpower, faith, inner strength
Real-world analogy: A monk's inner peace, a survivor's determination, or a believer's unshakeable faith
Game impact: Magic resistance, faith-based abilities, mental fortitude
Vigor ❤️
Covers: Health, constitution, toughness
Real-world analogy: A marathon runner's endurance, a mountain climber's stamina, or a soldier's resilience
Game impact: Health points, disease resistance, physical endurance
Rolling Your Attributes
You roll 4d6 for each attribute, but here's the twist—you use a playing card to determine which dice to keep. It's like rolling dice while blindfolded and letting fate decide which results matter. This system ensures that every character has both strengths and weaknesses, just like real people.
Secondary Statistics: The Numbers That Keep You Alive
Derived Statistics
Pace: How fast you move. Think of it as your character's natural walking speed when the situation gets tense. Calculated from Nimbleness and Quickness.
Size: How big and tough your character is. Most humans are Size 6, but this can vary. It's like your character's natural armor rating.
Wind: Your character's endurance and staying power. It's calculated from Vigor and Spirit. Think of it as your character's ability to keep going when everyone else is gasping for breath.
Strain: How much weird science or magical energy your character can channel. It's like having a supernatural battery that can be drained by using unnatural abilities.
The Grit System
Grit is Deadlands' unique take on experience levels. Instead of gaining levels, your character becomes more "gritty"—tougher, more experienced, and harder to kill. It's like emotional calluses that form from surviving in the Weird West.
Grit affects your character's ability to resist fear and adds to damage resistance. A character with high grit has literally seen it all and is hard to impress or intimidate. Think of it as the difference between a greenhorn who jumps at shadows and a grizzled veteran who calmly reloads while facing down a wendigo.
Archetypes: Your Character's Starting Template
Archetypes are like character templates that give you a head start on skills and equipment. They're not classes in the traditional sense—more like career backgrounds that suggest what your character did before the adventure started.
Popular Archetypes
The Gunfighter
The classic Western hero. Fast on the draw, accurate with a pistol, and cool under pressure. They're like the protagonist of every Western movie, but with the very real possibility of facing supernatural enemies.
Key Skills: Shootin', Quick Draw, Dodge
Starting Equipment: Trusty six-shooter, ammunition, cowboy attire
Real-world equivalent: Professional gunfighters, lawmen, or anyone whose job requires being good with firearms
The Huckster
A magical practitioner who literally gambles with demons for power. Every spell is a poker game where losing might cost your soul. They're like magicians, but their tricks actually work and come with terrifying risks.
Key Skills: Hexslingin', Gamblin', Bluff
Starting Equipment: Deck of cards, basic magical components, fancy clothes
Real-world equivalent: Stage magicians, card sharks, traveling salesmen
The Mad Scientist
Inventors who've thrown conventional physics out the window and replaced it with steam, electricity, and pure inspiration. They build impossible devices that work through sheer force of scientific will.
Key Skills: Mad Science, Tinkerin', Academia
Starting Equipment: Basic laboratory, strange invention, protective gear
Real-world equivalent: Thomas Edison meets Dr. Frankenstein
The Blessed
Holy warriors who fight supernatural evil with faith as their weapon. They're like paladins who traded in medieval armor for frontier clothing and divine magic for frontier pragmatism.
Key Skills: Faith, Medicine, Leadership
Starting Equipment: Holy symbol, religious texts, healing supplies
Real-world equivalent: Frontier preachers, missionary doctors, traveling evangelists
Skills: What Your Character Can Do
Skills represent learned abilities—the things your character has practiced and mastered. Unlike attributes, which are mostly fixed, skills can be improved throughout the game. Think of them as the tools in your character's toolbox.
Skill Categories
Combat Skills
Shootin': Using firearms. In the Weird West, this is often the difference between life and death.
Fightin': Hand-to-hand combat. Sometimes you run out of bullets, sometimes the enemy gets too close.
Throwin': Hurling weapons or objects. Useful for knives, dynamite, or improvised weapons.
Physical Skills
Climbin': Scaling walls, cliffs, or buildings. Essential for escaping supernatural threats.
Dodge: Getting out of the way of attacks. Your character's ability to not be where the bullet is.
Ridin': Handling horses and other mounts. In 1879, this is like knowing how to drive.
Social Skills
Persuasion: Convincing people to see things your way. Sometimes talking is better than shooting.
Intimidation: Making people afraid of you. Useful for avoiding fights or getting information.
Bluff: Lying convincingly. Essential for hucksters and anyone who needs to talk their way out of trouble.
Survival Skills
Survival: Finding food, water, and shelter in the wilderness. The frontier is unforgiving.
Trackin': Following trails and reading signs. Essential for hunters and anyone pursuing enemies.
Animal Wranglin': Handling animals. Useful for more than just horses in the Weird West.
Edges and Hindrances: Character Personality
Edges are special abilities that make your character unique and powerful. Hindrances are flaws that make your character interesting and human. It's like the difference between being Superman (who's boring because he's perfect) and Spider-Man (who's interesting because he has real problems).
Edges: Your Character's Special Abilities
Background Edges
Rich: Your character has money. In a world where information and equipment can mean survival, wealth opens doors.
Contacts: Your character knows people. Sometimes it's not what you know, but who you know.
Reputation: Your character is famous (or infamous). Fame is a double-edged sword in the Weird West.
Combat Edges
Quick Draw: Your character is lightning-fast with weapons. The first shot often decides who lives and who dies.
Two-Fisted: Your character can use two weapons at once. Twice the firepower, twice the style.
Trademark Weapon: Your character has a special relationship with a particular weapon. Like a samurai's katana or a gunslinger's Colt.
Supernatural Edges
Arcane Background: Your character can use magic, weird science, or faith-based miracles. The gateway to supernatural power.
New Power: Your character learns additional supernatural abilities. More tools for fighting the weird.
Hindrances: What Makes Characters Human
Physical Hindrances
Lame: Your character has mobility issues. Makes running from monsters more challenging.
One Eye: Your character has depth perception problems. Shooting becomes more difficult.
Elderly: Your character is getting on in years. Wisdom comes with physical limitations.
Mental/Social Hindrances
Phobia: Your character is terrified of something specific. In a horror game, fears become weaponized.
Heroic: Your character always tries to do the right thing. Sometimes heroism is inconvenient.
Wanted: Your character is hunted by the law or other groups. Adds constant tension to the story.
Supernatural Hindrances
Cursed: Your character suffers from a supernatural affliction. Magic always comes with a price.
Talisman: Your character's power is tied to a physical object. What happens when you lose it?
Sample Characters
"Quick-Draw" McGillicuddy - The Reluctant Hero
Concept: A former outlaw trying to go straight who keeps getting pulled into supernatural situations.
Key Attributes: High Deftness and Quickness for gunfighting, decent Mien for leadership
Skills: Shootin', Quick Draw, Dodge, Gamblin', Survival
Edges: Quick Draw, Trademark Weapon (Custom Colt .45)
Hindrances: Heroic (can't ignore people in trouble), Wanted (former gang connections)
Background: Once rode with the infamous Devil's Canyon Gang until a supernatural encounter made him question his life choices. Now he tries to help people, but his past keeps catching up with him.
Professor Cornelius Blackwood - The Gentleman Scientist
Concept: An English inventor who came West to test his theories about supernatural energy.
Key Attributes: High Cognition and Knowledge for invention, good Smarts for practical application
Skills: Mad Science, Academia, Tinkerin', Scrutinize, Medicine
Edges: Arcane Background (Mad Science), Scholar, Rich
Hindrances: Curious (must investigate mysteries), Pacifist (prefers non-violent solutions), Outsider (foreign)
Background: A Cambridge professor who theorized that supernatural energy could be harnessed scientifically. His steam-powered analytical engine can detect paranormal activity.
Character Creation Exercises
Exercise 1: The Attribute Web
Create a character concept, then map out which attributes would be most important for their background and goals. For example, a frontier doctor would need high Cognition and Knowledge for medical training, decent Nimbleness for surgery, and good Mien for bedside manner.
Exercise 2: The Flaw That Tells a Story
Choose a hindrance for your character, then write a brief story about how they acquired it. Was the "Lame" hindrance from a gunfight? A riding accident? A supernatural encounter? The story behind the flaw often defines the character more than their strengths.
Exercise 3: The Gear That Matters
Pick three pieces of equipment for your character. For each item, explain why it's important to them personally, not just mechanically. Maybe the rifle was their father's, the pocket watch is their only reminder of home, or the silver cross was blessed by a saint.
Exercise 4: The Motivation Matrix
Define what your character wants (their goal), what they need (what would actually help them), and what they fear (what drives them forward). Often these three things are in conflict, creating interesting character moments.
Real-World Character Building Lessons
The Competency Trap
In real life, as in Deadlands, being good at everything makes you boring. People are interesting because of their limitations and how they work around them. A character who's amazing at everything has no room to grow or struggle.
The Iceberg Principle
Like icebergs, the most interesting parts of characters are hidden beneath the surface. The skills and attributes are what everyone sees; the background, motivations, and personal history are what make them memorable.
The Growth Mindset
Characters, like people, are most interesting when they're changing. Create characters with room to grow, things to learn, and ways to evolve. A perfect character has nowhere to go but down.