And The Gunslinger Followed is a solo TTRPG where you play as a chosen character archetype chasing a villain known as the Cowboy across the desert. It's plain to see for everyone where my inspirations lie. This particular game is heavily inspired by The Dark Tower series by Stephen King, as well as many western tropes.
You can find And the Gunslinger Followed at https://michanikos.itch.io/and-the-gunslinger-followed
BDDC logo by @TeapotFox
Music by @DungeonGlitch and can be found at https://gemmedfirefly.com/pages/dungeonglitch-music
You can find us on Twitter @bddc_pod
You can support us on Patreon here
Hello, and welcome to lonely TT RPG, the actual play and review podcast
SteelStash:for solo, TT RPGs, I'm steel stash.
SteelStash:And today we are going to play and the gunslinger followed by hypnos
SteelStash:it should be plain to see that the biggest inspiration for this game
SteelStash:is the dark tower series by Stephen King, the gunslinger, the kid, and the
SteelStash:cowboy are archetypes taken directly from the pages of those novels.
SteelStash:A large piece of the story is also the reason the game is designed as it
SteelStash:is huge spoilers for the dark tower series in the paragraph, right after
SteelStash:this, the tower endlessly draws the gunslinger toward it, but it's a
SteelStash:loop, a quest that seems never ending.
SteelStash:But with slight variations between each one, this is why the game is
SteelStash:designed in this way to mimic how the dark tower works in the story.
SteelStash:You can play through the game over and over again, with the
SteelStash:same character and same events and have different outcomes occur.
SteelStash:The quest for the characters never ends.
SteelStash:It loops endlessly.
SteelStash:There is always a gunslinger and there is always a cowboy.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So, , this game uses dice.
SteelStash:So when you attempt to perform an action that has some element of risk, , where
SteelStash:success is not guaranteed, you make a role when a role is required, you roll a D six.
SteelStash:If you decide your role, isn't high enough, you may roll an additional D
SteelStash:six and you must add it to your total.
SteelStash:So one is a failure.
SteelStash:Two to four is a success with a cost five to six is a success.
SteelStash:And seven plus is a failure when you get a failure and there is no penalty already
SteelStash:listed in the event, you must either add a condition onto yourself or move the
SteelStash:clock of the Cowboys escape forward one.
SteelStash:When you get a success with a cost, you can add a condition onto yourself.
SteelStash:Lose a useful or important item or move the clock of the Cowboys.
SteelStash:Escape forward one.
SteelStash:So to play this game, you roll 2d six.
SteelStash:Check the match results on the random event table you read the event.
SteelStash:Describe how your characters archetype will handle it, attempt to roll if
SteelStash:necessary and then journey from that point onward as if the character were
SteelStash:recounting their event in writing, do this five times with five events.
SteelStash:If you make it through all five, without filling up the clock,
SteelStash:you have reached the cowboy.
SteelStash:When you reach the cowboy, all of your roles against them have minus one
SteelStash:for each condition you have gained.
SteelStash:If you fail, the cowboy might kill you, or they might just
SteelStash:taunt you as they escape yet.
SteelStash:You do not track damage or HP instead as different situations where you
SteelStash:down, you have different penalties that happen the most common one is that you
SteelStash:gain a condition when you fail a role, think about the fiction and decide
SteelStash:what the most likely outcome will be.
SteelStash:And the clock, sometimes things go wrong during the travel event and the
SteelStash:cowboy gets just a little further ahead.
SteelStash:Every time the cowboy gains distance on you advance the clock once.
SteelStash:when the clock reaches for the cowboy has escaped your grasp yet again, it'll be a
SteelStash:long time before you can ever manage to get back onto their trail and catch up.
SteelStash:Now this game was designed first and foremost for solo play.
SteelStash:If you're playing the solo, you journal from the point of view,
SteelStash:recounting the event in their journal.
SteelStash:If you fail to reach the cowboy, fail your motivation after reaching them or succeed.
SteelStash:Once you reach them, journal about that too.
SteelStash:for example of a solo play as the gunslinger look at the next page.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:And then we've got a little example of play, some more
SteelStash:examples, some more examples.
SteelStash:this game does have a co-op mode where one player declares an action.
SteelStash:They want to take the player to their left takes on a pseudo GM role for that action.
SteelStash:Instead of journaling in between encounters talk between the characters
SteelStash:about what happened about what you will do when you catch the cowboy and about
SteelStash:what you think will happen afterwards.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So we're going to go ahead and transition to game players.
SteelStash:We talk about the gunslinger and their allies.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:, after all, I can't show you the entire book.
SteelStash:, that would be mean.
SteelStash:, so the gunslinger, their allies, it is assume that each character carries items
SteelStash:that would make sense for them to have
SteelStash:each one of them also carries a firearm as it is dangerous to travel without one.
SteelStash:So the gunslinger gets a plus one bonus rolls regarding firearms.
SteelStash:If you roll a seven, it is still considered a success.
SteelStash:Only once you may reveal and then perform something that you were taught
SteelStash:by your ancient gunslinger order, motivation, the cowboy betrayed you.
SteelStash:You won't stop until they are dead.
SteelStash:The kid gets a plus one bonus to rolls where you attempt to gather information.
SteelStash:, same thing.
SteelStash:If you roll a seven on this, it is still considered a success.
SteelStash:Only once the kid can take a piece of information or an ability
SteelStash:they know from their world and apply it to these situation.
SteelStash:Motivation, the cowboy knows more about how you got into this world than you do.
SteelStash:You need this information?
SteelStash:, the badge gets plus one to rolls where you nonlethal handle violent situations
SteelStash:, only once you may call in a single favor from local law enforcement and for your
SteelStash:motivation, the cowboy has committed many crimes and needs to serve their sentence
SteelStash:in prison for the preacher you get.
SteelStash:Plus one bonus, to rolls where you help somebody non-violently, , once
SteelStash:you may pray for a minor miracle and have it happen, your motivation,
SteelStash:the Cowboys committed many wrongs.
SteelStash:They need to repent or be stopped at any cost.
SteelStash:The doctor gets plus one rolls to medical knowledge.
SteelStash:, once they may remove a condition and the motivation you saved the life
SteelStash:of the cowboy and they did great evil, you have to fix your mistake.
SteelStash:Killing is the very last resort and for the witch, which is the last
SteelStash:character type, you have a plus one.
SteelStash:Bonus to magical knowledge.
SteelStash:, , , once you may craft a powerful nature-based spell, this spell requires you to either
SteelStash:gain a condition or sacrifice an item.
SteelStash:And for your motivation, the cowboy has magic running through their veins.
SteelStash:Their body could be used for powerful reasons.
SteelStash:, in addition, there's a random Oracle table and to get your random result from
SteelStash:the Oracle table, roll 2d, six, read the numbers from left to right, and look at
SteelStash:the results connected to that number.
SteelStash:For example, if you roll a three and a five, your result
SteelStash:would go to 35 on the table.
SteelStash:If you roll the same event that you have already rolled you reroll until you
SteelStash:land on an event, you have not yet done.
SteelStash:, sometimes a condition or event ending will be listed.
SteelStash:Other times the event is more freeform.
SteelStash:If you feel the event ending list that doesn't fit the narrative that is
SteelStash:building feel free to ignore completely.
SteelStash:There will sometimes be something written underneath the prompt in another font.
SteelStash:You should not read these until you have already chosen your
SteelStash:course of action and rolled for it.
SteelStash:, and in bold, a character archetype name will be written.
SteelStash:If you are playing that character, you can read that section.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So skimming past all of the table.
SteelStash:We get to the final event after five travel events, you
SteelStash:finally reached the cowboy.
SteelStash:They wield incredibly powerful magic.
SteelStash:They have guns at their disposal as well.
SteelStash:They will attack if they feel threatened, but maybe reasonable if they are
SteelStash:allowed to go free afterwards, if any of the following conditions are on the
SteelStash:character, an alternative may happen.
SteelStash:, so charmed, cursed objects, fractured mind.
SteelStash:And then credits.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So let's go ahead and get into this.
SteelStash:, all right.
SteelStash:So first of all, we are going to need to set up our clock.
SteelStash:So, , we are just going to go ahead and do a very simple,
SteelStash:very simple.
SteelStash:Clock of zero to four.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:Before we get started.
SteelStash:I want to give a huge shout out to dungeon glitch for the music on this.
SteelStash:, you can find them on Spotify, , and find their playlist.
SteelStash:It is awesome.
SteelStash:I will put a link down in the bottom.
SteelStash:Also, if you enjoyed this, then please, , please give us a, like,
SteelStash:give us a subscribe, give us a review.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:Those things help out visibility a lot.
SteelStash:Also, if you really want to support us, we do have a Patrion link down
SteelStash:below, , for just a couple bucks.
SteelStash:You guys get some early access AMAs stuff like that.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So let's get into it first and foremost, we need to decide what character
SteelStash:we're going to be now as is usual.
SteelStash:We are going to do this randomly.
SteelStash:So let's see, we got 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 different character types.
SteelStash:So let's go ahead and roll one D six to find out what type of
SteelStash:character we're going to be.
SteelStash:And we've got a two that means we are going to be the kid.
SteelStash:So the kid remember, plus one bonus to gathering information.
SteelStash:, once we can take some information or, and we know that, or we know the cowboy knows
SteelStash:more about us and how we got to the world and we need to know that information.
SteelStash:Outstanding.
SteelStash:So now that we have that all in play, let us get started.
SteelStash:so for gameplay, like I said, we are going to,
SteelStash:for gameplay, we're good to roll on the Oracle table.
SteelStash:We are going to find out what our thing is.
SteelStash:And we are going to attempt to overcome that obstacle or gather
SteelStash:that information all in attempts to catch up to the cowboy and.
SteelStash:That is how things will go.
SteelStash:Like I said, we are the kid.
SteelStash:We have come into this world.
SteelStash:We are unsure what is going on out in the distance.
SteelStash:We have seen the cowboy.
SteelStash:We finally spotted him after all this time and we must catch him.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So rolling 2d six, we got two and six.
SteelStash:So 26.
SteelStash:So going to the Oracle table, for 26.
SteelStash:A small crowd has gathered around a hastily built stage on the stage
SteelStash:is a person dressed in clothes of a wanderer, a banner above them.
SteelStash:Proclaims this as the last gunslinger's performance.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:We come up on a stage and we see that there appears to be a wander saying that
SteelStash:this is the last gunslinger's performance.
SteelStash:now we're the kid.
SteelStash:We know the gunslinger and this isn't the gunslinger.
SteelStash:So we're going to go ahead and confront him and we're going to try
SteelStash:and get some information from him.
SteelStash:And so we are going to go ahead and roll one D six for information.
SteelStash:And we got a three, , which is actually a four, , which according to
SteelStash:our chart is a success with a cost.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:, since we're rolling for information, we'll do that.
SteelStash:So there was some more texts underneath this for 26.
SteelStash:, it says if you attempted to discern the truth and succeed, you learn
SteelStash:that this person started the training and left in the dead of night.
SteelStash:They are cocky and tell you, it doesn't matter what you tell people
SteelStash:because they won't believe a stranger.
SteelStash:, So that sounds about right.
SteelStash:This is a, a, this is a harsh world.
SteelStash:This is a harsh world full of hard people.
SteelStash:. Can't say that I blame them for that though.
SteelStash:I do blame them for their, I do blame them for their lies, which is not good.
SteelStash:Having traveled with the I do try to warn them off that things will not
SteelStash:go well if they run into an actual gunslinger, but now I have a cost.
SteelStash:And
SteelStash:let's see when you get a success with the cost, you can add a condition,
SteelStash:lose a useful important item or move the clock of the escape forward.
SteelStash:Hmm..
SteelStash:All right, we'll go ahead and we'll go ahead and move the clock forward one.
SteelStash:So.
SteelStash:Yeah, we'll go ahead and move the clock forward.
SteelStash:One.
SteelStash:I wasted a little bit of time on this fake gunslinger and hopefully that
SteelStash:doesn't come out to bite me in the end.
SteelStash:So for our next event,
SteelStash:6, 3,
SteelStash:you pass through the town.
SteelStash:Uneventfully outstanding.
SteelStash:Luckily after that, I managed to I managed to keep my nose down.
SteelStash:Obviously the very cynical opinion and losing a little bit of time with the.
SteelStash:With the fake gunslinger made me realize that I have to focus.
SteelStash:I'm going to put my I'm going to put my head down.
SteelStash:I'm going to pull my brim down low and I'm just going to strut.
SteelStash:So that brings us to turn three,
SteelStash:all right.
SteelStash:So gonna roll two D six for the next turn and we get ourselves a three, two.
SteelStash:So three, two, a couple of bandits catch you in between towns.
SteelStash:There are only three of them in their weapons are nothing more
SteelStash:than retooled farming equipment.
SteelStash:They demand all of your food or your gun and all its bullets.
SteelStash:Man, look, I'm going to call their bluff on this.
SteelStash:Well, I know you think you got me dead to rights.
SteelStash:I know you think that three to one is pretty good odds on your part, but
SteelStash:I'm here to tell you I ain't the one.
SteelStash:So we're going to go ahead and roll our one D six and see how we do on this
SteelStash:nonviolent resolution calling their bluff.
SteelStash:And that is a five.
SteelStash:That is a success.
SteelStash:We call their bluff, they hang their heads in shame.
SteelStash:They kind of kick it the dirt and they run off.
SteelStash:They R U N N O F T.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So that's gonna bring us up to turn four.
SteelStash:We are at turn four.
SteelStash:Now we have almost caught the gunslinger.
SteelStash:He is right in our grasp.
SteelStash:I can see him.
SteelStash:Let's see what happens here.
SteelStash:2, 2, 2, 2 on the Oracle table.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:, you pass by the town crier who describes a devious person, matching
SteelStash:the description of the cowboy going in a different direction out
SteelStash:of town from the one year going
SteelStash:look, , I'm hot on the Cowboys trail.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:I got this guy dead to rights.
SteelStash:He is in my sites.
SteelStash:I call BS on this, that he's going in a different direction.
SteelStash:I'm going to check to make sure I'm going to try and get
SteelStash:some information out of this.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:And that is success with a cost.
SteelStash:So the additional thing that goes with this is after you have decided
SteelStash:which way to go roll a D six, if it was even they were wrong,
SteelStash:if it was odd, they were right.
SteelStash:So,
SteelStash:Yeah, I'm calling BS on them.
SteelStash:I got I got success with a cost.
SteelStash:We're going to go ahead and advance that clock forward.
SteelStash:One more tick, but we're going to roll one more D six.
SteelStash:It doesn't explicitly state.
SteelStash:What happens if the crier was wrong or right.
SteelStash:I'm going to assume I lose another piece on my clock though.
SteelStash:So that is how I'm going to play this.
SteelStash:And it was odd.
SteelStash:The town crier was right.
SteelStash:I was wrong, man.
SteelStash:That clock advances to three,
SteelStash:but it is turn five.
SteelStash:All I have to do is survive.
SteelStash:This, all I have to do is survive this and I catch the cowboy.
SteelStash:1 6, 1 6.
SteelStash:Hopefully we do.
SteelStash:All right on this.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So you were stopped on the outskirts of town by a person with a strange
SteelStash:carts, set up various useless looking odds and ends lie in the cart.
SteelStash:They claimed that they are powerful, magical ingredients they offer to give
SteelStash:you just one to aid on your quest,
SteelStash:you know what?
SteelStash:I'm real close.
SteelStash:I'm real close.
SteelStash:And that cowboy, he got some mighty powerful magic on him.
SteelStash:I'm going to do it.
SteelStash:I am going to do it.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:So if you choose to take an item where like D six, if the result is a six,
SteelStash:you took the only magical item, it allows you It allows you to do the
SteelStash:witch's nature-based spell ability once.
SteelStash:Alright, so let us roll our one, d six
SteelStash:and it is a five.
SteelStash:I did not get it.
SteelStash:So I'm going to assume I picked up a cursed item.
SteelStash:Again, it doesn't explicitly state.
SteelStash:However we are looking for we are looking for some stuff to do so
SteelStash:we're going to go ahead and add that curse item to our inventory.
SteelStash:But that is five turns out is five events.
SteelStash:As I take off from the cart vendor clutching this magic item,
SteelStash:I find him, I find the cowboy.
SteelStash:He is sitting under a misquite tree with his hat, pulled over his
SteelStash:eyes, a smile curling his lips.
SteelStash:He doesn't even move is I come walking up to him and instead just kind of
SteelStash:drawls out the side of his cigarettes.
SteelStash:Well, kid, what can I do for you?
SteelStash:Let's see.
SteelStash:So after.
SteelStash:So I'm going to look him.
SteelStash:I'm going to look him, get in the eye.
SteelStash:I mean, first of all, I'm going to tell him to lift up his brim
SteelStash:so I can look him dead in the eye.
SteelStash:And I'm going to say now, mister I hear tell that, you know how I got here to
SteelStash:this world and I need to know that, and I need you to tell me right now.
SteelStash:I need you to tell me right now, and we are going to call this a day and
SteelStash:you can go on your way and I can go on my way and I'm going to brandish that
SteelStash:magic item that I got, but because it's cursed, the cowboy lifts up his
SteelStash:brim and sees it and he looks afraid.
SteelStash:So that's going to give me a plus one to non-violent roles.
SteelStash:Let's roll R one D six.
SteelStash:And because I'm asking for information and I get a plus one, because I got
SteelStash:this cursed item, I get a plus one.
SteelStash:So that is a plus two which is great.
SteelStash:Cause I rolled a three.
SteelStash:So that plus one plus one gives me five that is a success and that cowboy
SteelStash:he's going to stare down that cursed item and he's going to shuffle on back
SteelStash:tighter against that misquite tree.
SteelStash:Now boy, I reckon, I reckon you think you, might've powerful holding
SteelStash:that item in your hand and truth to tell I wouldn't blame you.
SteelStash:So this is what I'm going to do.
SteelStash:I'm going to tell you that.
SteelStash:Yes, you are not originally from here, you are from a far off place.
SteelStash:You are from a far off place and a different time.
SteelStash:And you were brought here for your ability.
SteelStash:Your ability to talk and your ability to get the type of information that you need.
SteelStash:That a mighty powerful ability, my boy, mighty powerful ability ability that will
SteelStash:come in quite handy to one such as myself.
SteelStash:If you will put down that little trinkets you got in your hand
SteelStash:and I go my way and you go yours and maybe, maybe one day soon.
SteelStash:I will give you a call and we just might see if we can work out some type of deal.
SteelStash:Now mister a deal is a deal.
SteelStash:And I did tell you that if you told me, I would let you go on your way
SteelStash:and I'm going to go ahead and pocket that curse item, and I'm going to turn
SteelStash:heel and it's not walking into the sunset, leaving the cowboy where he is
SteelStash:now that ladies and gents is, and the gunslinger followed
SteelStash:all right.
SteelStash:So initial thoughts on the game.
SteelStash:All right.
SteelStash:I definitely played it a lot more Western than I think was intended.
SteelStash:I have not read the dark tower series.
SteelStash:I am a horrible nerd.
SteelStash:I will admit that, but even as a, even as a chase game,
SteelStash:the mechanics aren't that bad.
SteelStash:It's a good thing that this is intended to be played as a loop because that
SteelStash:gameplay experience is very short.
SteelStash:Some other things I wish that I wish that there were more
SteelStash:conditions included in the game.
SteelStash:Because you have the option of a cost and assuming a condition.
SteelStash:And the three conditions that are listed in the final event are charmed,
SteelStash:cursed object and fractured mind.
SteelStash:And those all sound interesting, but.
SteelStash:If you were supposed to take a condition at some point, , a little more variety
SteelStash:of those conditions would be nice.
SteelStash:Just to give you something else to feed off of.
SteelStash:But outside of that, outside of that, , the prompts were nice.
SteelStash:I like the, I like the amount of variety.
SteelStash:I like the fact that it's not deck based I've been getting kind of burned
SteelStash:out on deck based stuff, and I got it.
SteelStash:I'm going to only run into so many different game styles, but.
SteelStash:The fact that it was roll for your prompts.
SteelStash:I thought that was, I thought that was good.
SteelStash:I thought that was interesting.
SteelStash:The prompts in there were nice.
SteelStash:It also did have.
SteelStash:Some nice add-ons for the character.
SteelStash:Like certain prompts had stuff that related solely to the characters
SteelStash:and to the various archetypes and
SteelStash:that added interests a bit of flair to it.
SteelStash:Now
SteelStash:it does get a little bit it does get a little bit difficult when the only
SteelStash:like actions you were given allusion to are based on the bonuses you get
SteelStash:in, based on the bonuses you get in the character archetype descriptions.
SteelStash:So that made approaching various situations difficult because
SteelStash:it's, I defaulted to trying to get information because I was playing
SteelStash:somebody who is good at information.
SteelStash:And I think, I think a lot of that's on me.
SteelStash:I know that personally I have issues with.
SteelStash:If the rules don't say it, that doesn't mean that it's not allowed.
SteelStash:You know, part of that's a part of, that's the problem of being a soldier
SteelStash:because we have rules for everything and if there's not a rule for it,
SteelStash:you probably shouldn't do it anyway.
SteelStash:At the very least you're going to get yelled at for it.
SteelStash:And then they're going to make a new rule.
SteelStash:So.
SteelStash:Not having, not having a list of available things that you could do,
SteelStash:even if it's a non-inclusive list.
SteelStash:Made my gameplay more difficult.
SteelStash:I did find myself pausing a lot more My Oracle roles, trying to
SteelStash:think of what I wanted to do.
SteelStash:I didn't necessarily want to do a pacifist run on this for lack of
SteelStash:a better term, I kind of fell into it again, being someone who is good
SteelStash:at information, but also the only.
SteelStash:The only situation that really warranted violence that I ran across
SteelStash:was the three quote unquote bandits.
SteelStash:And that was described as enough of a non threat that I was relatively confident
SteelStash:that I could just scare them off.
SteelStash:So
SteelStash:again, it probably works out better if you've read the dark
SteelStash:tower series Still all in all, not a bad experience, a fun game.
SteelStash:Definitely check it out.
SteelStash:Definitely check it out if you like Stephen King, if you liked the dark
SteelStash:tower series and even as a, even as a chase and a Western still very good.
SteelStash:Still very good.
SteelStash:So you can find, and the gunslinger followed on itch at
SteelStash:M I C H a N I K O s.itch.io/and the gunslinger followed or go to itch
SteelStash:and search for, and the gunslinger followed it is $3 on there.
SteelStash:So by all means, go check it out.
SteelStash:It is definitely worth $3 and it is definitely worth a.
SteelStash:It is definitely worth the half hour of your time.
SteelStash:It'll take to run through a game.
SteelStash:And if you like it by all means, play several games.
SteelStash:And if you do pick it up, please make sure to leave them a review and tell them
SteelStash:that steel stash sent you so that we can get more of our word out there because.
SteelStash:After all the sooner people start sending me games to play
SteelStash:the easier this job becomes for me, but I have been steel sash.
SteelStash:And thank you for listening to the lonely TT RPG.