What's the best system to make a campaign set in/based on the Wild West? I'm talking high noon duels, shootouts in canyons, groups of constables going around jailing outlaws that are stealing all the town's women, that kind of stuff.
>>43855526
GURPS and Savage Worlds both handle it well. Just don't use d20.
I'm not familiar with any specialised western games, although there are some, so I can only comment on how generic systems will work.
Savage Worlds is good if you want fairly powerful PCs and enjoy combat with miniatures. If you prefer gritty realism and more abstract combat (and stuff other than combat), BRP or GURPS will be better. If you want abstract but quick and heroic combat, maybe the D6 system would work best.
I'm going to go into a bit more detail about GURPS, because it's the system I know best and the one with the largest list of sourcebooks and optional rules to get the right feel.
GURPS has a lot of support for late nineteenth century stuff, especially gunplay. If you care about the difference between the various types of single-action revolver, this is the system for you. It can be gritty and realistic or over-the-top, but tends to do better at the former.
Recommended GURPS supplements:
The Action series: Action 2 has rules for abstract ranged combat and chases, which fit a western game very well. Action 4 is a modular character creation system which includes some specific 'wild west' choices.
Gun-Fu or Tactical Shooting add more detail for over-the-top or realistic gunplay, respectively. Both of them feature some examples from the era.
High-Tech is the equipment book for the period. Adventure Guns is the appropriate supplement to add even more guns. If you're interested in things like farming and wilderness survival, it might also be worth checking out Low-Tech Companion 3.
Pyramid magazine has a couple of relevant articles: the most obvious is issue 74 which is all about the wild west, but issue 47 is also pretty good for anyone who wants to handle blowing strongboxes open with dynamite.
Aces & Eights: Shattered Frontier
>>43855526
There's Deadlands, the game Savage Worlds grew out of. It's a Weird West setting of decent quality. As far as Wild West RPGs go, it's the only one worth mention. Unless you want to play Mormon Marshals in the mostly civilized West, then use Dogs in the Vineyard.
But you can simply use any generic crunch that deals well with firearms. Things like BRP, ORE, or Unisystem will do the job. The question becomes what you want the mechanics to rule over. Do you want them to track mental stability, luck, or intuition? Do you want the resolution to include a gamble rather than just a roll? Do you want it gritty or heroic?
Then you just have to bolt it down between the tropes you want to use. Depending on the era of Western this will differ quite a bit. It is probably the most straightforward genre, there's lots of great literature on its boundaries. And you can translate that into game dimensions.
>>43855526
Boot Hill
>>43855942
What edition of GURPS is best?
>>43858366
4th is 3e streamlined and refined, it's not like D&D. Some things have disappeared, changed or were added, but it's 98% the same game, with a better Basic Set (core) book.
There's also a 3e Old West GURPS book, there aren't much stats or anything, it's mostly fluff.
>>43855526
Simple answer: Savage worlds.
More elaborate: FFG Star Wars, when de-spaced, makes for a great western.
>>43860145
I have actually done both. They are both super fun. I had more fun with FFG, but it's a little more work.
>>43860145
>FFG Star Wars
>>43855526
you could check this one if you want. It's a homebrew, but I'm nearly done with it
>>43851571
>>43866883
It's fun. I really enjoy it.
