"Revenant movie - and suggestions for adventure gaming?" Topic

Guys,

I saw the movie Revenant a few days ago, and just loved it (as did my wife).

This has me thinking of delving into some Old West adventure gaming, possibly with Wargames Foundry minis as the starting point.

If anyone has any ideas on figs, format(s), rules (was thinking Muskets & Tomahawks might work, which I like very much), or has done "frontier/mountain men" gaming for the Old West already, I would truely appreciate any guidance that might be suggested.

Foundry did some Mountain Men.

Along with Foundry Mountain Men (excellent, btw) try French and Indian War Coureur du Bois. Front Rank are nice.

Then give the dude a LOT of hit points.

"Song of Drums and Tomahawks" is ultra-low-level skirmish gaming, almost role-play, with individual figure activation. Good for 3 to 6 figures on a side.

Savage World would be perfect.

Or, if you aren't set on larger scale, Blue Moons Texican-Mexican range can be readily adapted to the Mountain Man era. I know I'm traveling that road.

Several years ago I bought the Foundry Mountain Men because Man In The Wilderness with Richard Harris had captured my imagination. The Foundry figures are beautiful. I'm looking forward to seeing Revenant. I saw the trailer at a theater a few weeks ago, and I could feel the cold coming off the screen.

So looking forward to this movie.

Thank you guys for these excellent suggestions!

Hey – War in 15MM, we saw the movie at the early show at our local theater during a weekday this week, and they didn't have the heat on in the cinema for like an hour+! Of course, lots of us older, retired, grey-haired viewers filled the seats this morning……we suffered along in the cold watching Hugh Glass (DiCaprio) drag himself through the snow (it was more "real" than we expected – or wanted to experience that is)!!!

(btw, not a viewer left the movie the whole time)

Jeremiah Johnson is also well worth a watch.

Here are some books to look at:

TMP link

I had a nice Foundry collection, but no one was interested in the era, so I sold everything off. I used simple homemade rules and gave the Indians some varied and conflicting victory conditions so they couldn't coordinate some bounding overwatch type assault. One Indian may want to be the first in hand to hand combat, another may want to get the horses or pack animals, another may want to be the first to get a scalp, while others are allowed to do as the player wants. You can throw in some random events or a "Bad Medicine" card.

79thPA, you should have called me. I love the Western fur trade era. I would have played.

I have a game of mountain men. I use home done rules.

Besides Foundry, some of the Old Glory Cowboy Wars figures work well for mountain men. I have been using Foundry plains Indians. None with Winchesters or Sharps of course. Mostly bows, but some muskets. I have a group of Foundry Blackfoot in blanket coats, etc., but have not painted them yet.

Tom

The 1980 film The Mountain Men is excellent too. It has a great evocation of a rendezvous.

And here are some pictures of painted Foundry Mountain Men. These are really nice figures.

I highly recommend this movie to everyone.

Very sharp Samurai Elb!

I wouldn't be opposed to trying to do this in 15mm either, and having the figures more as generic representations (as Early morning writer has mentioned being a possibility above).

At the moment, I've got four major groups in mind that could represent forces to collect, and to mix together for crafting scenarios from (these being modeled from the era's competing interests/peoples circa the mid-to-late 1820s):

"The Company" – Trappers in the employ of the American Fur Company.

"The Opposition" – Those employed by competing fur trapping/trading firms trying to stay in business against the ruthless AFC.

"The Indians" – Arikara & Black Foot Indian tribes (which opposed the riverine and overland routes and incursions into their lands). Some tribes at times being encouraged/used by the fur companies to attack their competition's trapping parties.

"The Army" – To impose "peace", and the safe conduct for these interests, to exploit the frontier for its prized pelts.

Not a group, but one gathering point (and scenario nexus) for the groups above:

"The Rendezvous" – Where all manner of rough-and-tumble characters could come together to barter and sell, and a powder keg stoked by whisky, women, and the tension of the trade.

Any other groups that could be added here?

Depending on the year, if you are doing the Southwest fur trade you need to worry about the Spanish or Mexican army, because a lot of trapping was done in New Spain and, if memory serves, you needed a license from the government, and just about no one bothered to get one.

If you are gaming in the Pacific Northwest, you have the Brits of the Hudson Bay Company, as well as the Russians of the Russian-American Company, both of whom were in direct competition with the American brigades.

There are also friendly Indians, as well as Free Trappers, who were independent and did not belong to a brigade.

Proposed other groups:

The Royal Tourist – Erzherzog Engelbert Friedrich Ludovicus Fahrzenschiz, Hereditary Glagolitic Elector of Eeniemeenia, a very minor German state, is on a grand tour of the American province of Far West with an entourage of guides, cooks, porters, gun-bearers, scientists, anthropologists, artists, mistresses and sycophants. He is thrilled to attend a genuine Rendezvous. He may make himself a nuisance to the Army by claiming protection, assistance, diplomatic immunity, the Major's youngest daughter, etc.

The Spies – Don Ignacio Gorgonzola, with an entourage of greasy footpads and several wagon loads of firearms and ammunition, presents himself as a merchant adventurer up from Santa Fe, seeking new markets. In reality he is an agent of Felipe the Feeble, the Great Pretender of Spain, who wishes to destabilize the United States, starting in Far West, and claim as much of North America as possible for a restored Spanish Empire and the Bonbon dynasty. Don Ignacio will trade guns and ammunition to the Indians, or to anyone else who might make bad use of them. He will suborn American soldiers and merchants with Spanish gold, and he also has an eye for the Major's daughter.

The Whores – Mme. Rosey Palmer and her five frisky daughters: Thumbelina, Pixie, Birdie, Ginny Ringo and Pinky, provide the highest quality entertainment to gentlemen of means from their mobile, uh, establishment. They are also sell medicines that cure many ailments of the flesh, some of which they also spread.

The Hosers – Two Mountie officers, dispatched from the Hudson Bay outposts to infiltrate Rendezvous and gather intelligence, or more likely stupidity. Disguised as wandering lumberjacks. "Blend in, don't attract attention, learn as much as you can about the latest American plans for conquering Canada." You bet. The men who would like to be kings, but are too polite and shy to say so.

Great stuff you two, and some wonderfully fun ideas here!!!

Both of you sound like you've already put a lot of thought into gaming this era. Do you have any links to scenarios previously presented, or gaming resources you might have prepared or found particularly useful for gaming the period?

I have done a lot of reading on the subject. I used to have a very part time seasonal business selling books on American Indians, the West, and the fur trade. I (sometimes joined by my dad) would dress in period clothing and set up shop at rendezvous.

I was inspired to keep, and even paint up some of my Foundry figures following a visit to Fort Bridger in Wyoming.

As I recall Fort Bridger was initially set up as a trading post in the 1840s but was occupied a few years later by the Mormons on their journey west. So another group could be a religious faction determined to introduce a more righteous environment.

I'm afraid you've mistaken me for someone better organized and more productive. I am a simple lover of Americana and student of American history, as first presented to me by Walt Disney on network television, back in the halcyon days of the early 1960s. Jimminy Cricket! Did you ever see a horse fly?

The Boatmen – The rip-snortin'est, toughest, meanest crew of half-horse, half-alligators you ever saw. Under their Captain Mike Funk, they were paid for poling other peoples' freight up the Missouri, but really came to Rendezvouz to have fun intimidating those wussy little Mountain Men. Psychotics to a man, they get away with it by sticking together, especially out west, where there are few police and the Army usually doesn't have cannon. The Boatmen like to start mass fistfights for fun and a little light exercise. These work out better in formal saloons, where there are glassware and furniture to smash up, rather than in the wilderness, where there's nothing but logs and rocks to break over heads. "Oh, that's gonna leave a mark. Put some ice on that and walk it off, walk it off, son."

Howard Brothers Frontier Freight – Moe, Larry and Curly brought a boatload of notions, gimcracks, gee-gaws, Jews-harps and jaw-breaker candy up the Missouri to Rendezvous. The Jews-harps are selling especially well, and you can't get those anywhere else, so it looks like their fortunes are made, if they can just get their booties safely back to St. Louis. And yeah, they'll deliver any package, anywhere you name, on time! Uh, as long as the package fits in the boat. And the destination is St. Louis. And you don't want it to get there real fast…Of course the boys are in direct competition for the freight business with the Boatmen. Don Ignacio sees possibilities here. What is in that locked chest that he brought from Santa Fe? Nyuk-nyuk-nyuk.

The Religious Nutters – An advance party of Reformed Satanists (the Reformed Satanists don't do the human sacrifices any more) is seeking land far, far from civilization to form a colony where their people can practice the Ancient Wisdom free from persecution. Converting all the Indians, as prophecy foretells, would be a big bonus.

I can keep this up all day, as long as I have an audience and the beer holds out. kyote was going on a beer run. I'll kick in a finf. Bring me back one of those kippered steaks, or a Slim Jim if that's all they have, 'kay?

The Mountain Man era was 1820-30s mostly. Not alot of military out there at that time. Might not make a great group.

The US Army fought the Arikara War in 1823, to re-open the upper Missouri to the fur trade. Of course they didn't get all the way to the Rockies at that point…but mighta, coulda been:

link

Well I'm certainly enjoying the input – good suggestions on a Religious Group too!

Zippy, that's exactly the period I'd be collecting for (and part of the inspiration background for Revenant).

79thPA, I've got a friend who's been doing Rendezvous reenactments for a long time. Recently, I asked him if he was busy such-and-such weekend for doing some gaming, and he said he was busy, he and the wife were attending a Rendezvous that date. I said, hey, why don't you skip that and come to the game instead? He said he would, but "the wife" had her mind set on going to the encampment! I've heard some stories about how friendly the re-enactors can get over the years swapping tent canvas and such……(sayin' no more)!

Well, I just saw Revenant today and it would never influence me to play that era. Just so much misery.

Give me The Mountain Men with Charlton Heston and Brian Keith, or Across the Wide Missouri with Clark Gable.

Tom

Why has nobody recommended "Flashman and the Redskins"?
Errr, no. It's not about the Washington football team.
Flashy encounters Mountain Men, early Geronimo, and takes part in quite a few scenarios to game.

I suppose Flashy could be a faction all by himself, but you could lumber him up with enough entourage to bulk up a "Drums & Tomahawks" scenario. C'mon John, show us your creative side, gin us up a Team Flash.

The Long Hunters From Tennessee – Frontier legends Davey Crockett, Simon Kenton, Daniel Boone, Mingo the Indian, The Lone Ranger, and Frankie Avalon guest starring as "The Kid", were on their way to Texas, to see the Big Sky, where a man can be truly free, 'cuz there ain't no wimmin ta civilize him and cramp his style. And to investigate rumors they've heard about the beauty and personal charms of the long-horned cattle. But they got turned around somewhere on the Natchez Trace, went the wrong direction at the Santa Fe-Denver interchange, and now they find themselves at Rendezvous, looking for a gas station that gives away maps for free. Luck wid dat. Pure-hearted righters of many a frontier wrong, the Long Hunters are the nemesis of the Boatmen, and have opposed them in many a friendly fun-filled exchange of fisticuffs.

When is kyote supposed to get back with that beer? It's getting kind of dry around here.

Quite the energy level here! : )