Terra the Gunslinger
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese
western steampunk tabletop role-playing game.
during the American Old West
. Its theme is frontier spirit. The setting is fictitious, but actual historical Americans also appear as non-player character
s. They include Thomas Alva Edison, Nikola Tesla
, Jesse James
and Belle Starr
. There are guns and steampunk items representing lost technologies (for example, phlogiston generators or aether
ic drives). Players face monsters called the Dark. Player character
s may be automata
, bounty hunter
s, gunslinger
s, preacher
s, saloon girls, steam-mages, U.S. marshals
and other archetype
s as they ride the transcontinental railroad
on their way to the far western frontier.
Another roleplaying game, Tenra War
pits Terra against the setting of Tenra Bansho.
role-playing game (as well as the American game Castle Falkenstein)
, playing cards are used instead of dice. The suits of cards correspond to four abilities: Spade (♠) is spirit, heart (♥) is hope, club (♣) is cool, and diamond (♦) is desire. The card motif is meant to bring to mind a game of poker
, as often seen in western movies.
noted that he liked the look of Terra the Gunslinger.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
western steampunk tabletop role-playing game.
Setting
The game takes place in Terra, a fictional continent modeled after North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
during the American Old West
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
. Its theme is frontier spirit. The setting is fictitious, but actual historical Americans also appear as non-player character
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
s. They include Thomas Alva Edison, Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
, Jesse James
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
and Belle Starr
Belle Starr
Myra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr , better known as Belle Starr, was a notorious American outlaw.-Early life:...
. There are guns and steampunk items representing lost technologies (for example, phlogiston generators or aether
Aether
-Metaphysics and mythology:* Aether , the material that fills the region of the universe above the terrestrial sphere* Aether was the personification of the "upper sky", space and heaven, in Greek mythology-Science and engineering:...
ic drives). Players face monsters called the Dark. Player character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
s may be automata
Automata
Automata is the plural form of automaton, a self-operating machine. It may also refer to:* "Automata", a short story by E. T. A. Hoffmann* "Automata", a hardboiled science fiction crime series by Penny Arcade...
, bounty hunter
Bounty hunter
A bounty hunter captures fugitives for a monetary reward . Other names, mainly used in the United States, include bail enforcement agent and fugitive recovery agent.-Laws in the U.S.:...
s, gunslinger
Gunslinger
Gunfighter, also gunslinger , is a 20th century word, used in cinema or literature, referring to men in the American Old West who had gained a reputation as being dangerous with a gun...
s, preacher
Preacher
Preacher is a term for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies. A preacher is distinct from a theologian by focusing on the communication rather than the development of doctrine. Others see preaching and theology as being intertwined...
s, saloon girls, steam-mages, U.S. marshals
United States Marshals Service
The United States Marshals Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice . The office of U.S. Marshal is the oldest federal law enforcement office in the United States; it was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...
and other archetype
Archetype
An archetype is a universally understood symbol or term or pattern of behavior, a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated...
s as they ride the transcontinental railroad
Transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies...
on their way to the far western frontier.
Another roleplaying game, Tenra War
Tenra War
is a Japanese mixed-genre tabletop role-playing game designed by Jun'ichi Inoue and FarEast Amusement Research. It was released in April 2007. It is a triple crossover product, based on an oriental science fantasy RPG Tenra Bansho, steampunk western RPG Terra the Gunslinger, and post-apocalypse...
pits Terra against the setting of Tenra Bansho.
System
As in the Tokyo NOVATokyo NOVA
is a cyberpunk role-playing game with a long history in Japan. It is currently in its fourth edition: Tokyo NOVA The Detonation. It is possible to play stories in the cyberpunk, hardboiled crime fiction, and contemporary fantasy genres....
role-playing game (as well as the American game Castle Falkenstein)
Castle Falkenstein (role-playing game)
Castle Falkenstein is a steampunk-themed fantasy role-playing game designed by Mike Pondsmith and originally published by R. Talsorian Games. A GURPS version and several supplements were later published by Steve Jackson Games. The game is named for a legendary unbuilt castle in the Bavarian Alps...
, playing cards are used instead of dice. The suits of cards correspond to four abilities: Spade (♠) is spirit, heart (♥) is hope, club (♣) is cool, and diamond (♦) is desire. The card motif is meant to bring to mind a game of poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
, as often seen in western movies.
Other information
On a trip to Japan, noted game designer Greg StaffordGreg Stafford
Francis Gregory Stafford , usually known as Greg Stafford, is an American game designer, publisher and shaman.-Glorantha and gaming:...
noted that he liked the look of Terra the Gunslinger.