Deadlands: Lost Colony

Deadlands: Lost Colony

Deadlands: Lost Colony cover
Designer(s)	Shane Lacy Hensley, John R. Hopler
Publisher(s)	Pinnacle Entertainment Group
Publication date	2002
Genre(s)	Alternate history, science fiction, horror
System(s)	Custom

Deadlands: Lost Colony is a genre-mixing alternate history roleplaying game which combines the science fiction and horror genres. The tropes of Western fiction are also prominent. It was written by Shane Lacy Hensley and David D Hillman and originally published by Pinnacle Entertainment Group.

Plot

Shortly before the Last War, a devastating nuclear war that allowed the Reckoners to ravage the Earth and turn it into a nightmarish wasteland (see Deadlands: Hell on Earth), a trans-dimensional gateway called the Tunnel was created between Earth and a distant planet called "Banshee". Small outposts were established in order to harvest raw Ghost rock from the planet and ship them back to Earth. On Banshee, the human colonists had a number of run ins with the local species, called Anouks, causing a war of their own. As the Last War heated up on Earth, the Tunnel was closed, leaving no way for the colonists on Banshee to return to Earth. Now they must make new lives on the hostile planet, surrounded by hostile Anouks and Human radicals. Uneasy tensions and a long, grueling war have left the human colonists and Anouks with massive death tolls, and fights occasionally still break out between the two. In addition, horrific supernatural monsters are beginning to appear on the planet as a consequence of the Reckoners, who (unbeknownst to the Banshee colonists) have found themselves also stranded on Banshee. (Because of this, you will find that most sykers of the far away war have harsh feelings toward the eathers)

Character types

Meant as a continuation of Deadlands: Hell on Earth, Lost Colony features a number of similar character types to both the Weird West and Hell on Earth. Of particular note as Sykers, Harrowed, and Cyborgs are available as playable options. While not expressly stated, many other characters, such as Hucksters, Martial Artists, and perhaps Blessed, are also playable. Ironically, since Lost Colony is a continuation of Hell on Earth, only a few character types are available from that setting, as many of those arcane backgrounds developed after the Tunnel collapsed. However, there are a few new character options unique to Lost Colony.

• Colonial Rangers - Similar to the Law Dogs from Deadlands: the Weird West, the Colonial Rangers are an organized collective of law enforcers. The Rangers are the body of law for the human colonists on Banshee. Their numbers and equipment are stretched thin, and some miners and companies simply ignore them. However, the group is very influential in the game, and are one of the "Big Player groups" of the setting.
• Mutes - This new arcane background centers around the reconstruction of objects. Mutes, or Transmuters, use a special nanobot implant to reshape items from one form to another. A Mute needs a roughly similar number of components in order to construct something, and must have a schematic for the desired loaded into his cybernetic systems. Different from both Mad Scientists and Junkers, Mutes have their own hangups and dark secrets.
• Anouk Warriors - Lost Colony is unique in that humans are no longer to sole playable character type. Anouk Warriors form the bulk of the Anouk tribes. Physically stronger and more magically attuned than humans, Anouks have a series of abilities that allow them to manipulate a common substance called Tannis. While most Anouks are similar to Indian Braves from Deadlands or Savages from Hell on Earth, some Anouks opt for human equipment instead of traditional arms.
• Anouk Shamans - In addition to Anouk Warriors, tribal Shamans can be played. On top of the Warriors' Tannis-related abilities, Shamans get a series of other powers.
• Banshee Born - An odd potentially magical character type, Banshee Born are humans born on Banshee, instead of being from Earth. The Anouks say that these Banshee Born humans are more favored by the planet, and some have manifested magical powers. Players can either choose the free Banshee Born edge at character creation, or opt for the more special, more expensive version of the edge. The more expensive edge increases the potential of gaining these new magical abilities.

Status

Lost Colony had a bit of an unfortunate history. The game first saw many delays (originally meant to be launched in 2000). The game was released during a troubled period in Pinnacle Entertainment Group's history, and shortly before the original release of Savage Worlds. As such, the setting only saw a single sourcebook (called Lost Colony Companion) in addition to the main book. The game was preceded by the card game Deadlands: Lost Colony - Showdown and by the Clay and Susan Griffith novel called Banshee Screams.

Lost Colony exists in a kind of limbo at the moment, having not gained a lot of steam before the Deadlands line was originally discontinued. With Deadlands: Reloaded having been released, and Hell on Earth: Reloaded expected in 2010, Pinnacle Entertainment Group has stated that Lost Colony will also receive a Reloaded release in the future.

External links

• Official site for Pinnacle Entertainment Group