Each area your posse visits has its own “Fear Level” - a measure of the relative success of the Reckoners and their minions in turning the world into a living Hell. Unless otherwise noted, assume any locations within a geographic area share the general Fear Level.
Fear Penalty
The Fear Level inflicts a penalty to all Fear checks equal to −1 for each Fear Level above 2, as shown below.
(Supernatural, evil creatures are immune to this penalty.)
| Fear Level | Penalty |
|---|
| 3 |
-1 |
| 4 |
-2 |
| 5 |
-3 |
| 6 |
-4 |
Tale-Tellin'
The best way for your heroes to fight evil is to fight fear. When the posse defeats a deadly abomination, captures a murderous outlaw gang, or rescues missing children, the heroes can round up the locals and give them hope by making a Persuasion roll for gripping oratory or rhetoric, or a Performance roll to sing a song, recite poetry, or dramatically narrate a rousing tale of the group’s victory over the forces of evil.
The epic needs to be recounted to a sizable audience—or at least an influential one, like the local press—and should always be accompanied by an actual recounting by one or more players. It must also be told within the area affected—an audience in Salt Lake City doesn’t care so much what happens in Podunk, Montana.
Don’t penalize a player if he’s not a good storyteller—that’s his character’s job, as reflected by his skill roll and the Tale-Teller Edge—but make him try. The Performance or Persuasion roll is modified by the Fear Level penalty and any other appropriate situational modifiers (his audience doesn’t like him, most don’t speak English, etc.). Multiple heroes may Support the storytelling. And you can certainly give an additional bonus of +1 or +2 if it’s a really good tale. Edges that negate Fear penalties don’t help here, though—that’s a personal thing.
With success the local Fear Level is reduced by 1. A Critical Failure on the Persuasion roll sends the wrong message and does little more than reinforce the notion that people should be afraid of the dark—the Fear Level actually increases by +1!
Conviction
When a hero with the Tale-Teller Edge successfully lowers the local Fear Level, she and anyone who Supports her automatically gain Conviction. This is a major event that steels a posse’s resolve.
Fear Levels
Now that we know how things get scary and how heroes might reverse the trend, let’s talk about each Fear Level’s look and feel.
Fear Level 0
This is happy land, folks. The people are friendly, the sky is blue, and even the little ones can safely walk the streets at night. Only a few of these places are left in the Weird West, and they ain’t easy to find.
Fear Level 1
The locals believe monsters exist, they just haven’t seen any. The sky is still blue, but if you must go out at night, best bring a buddy.
Fear Level 2
No one goes near the creepy old shack on top of the hill. The land looks about the same, but the shadows are just a little bit longer. It’s not really safe to go out alone at night, but your odds are good. This is the prevailing Fear Level in most places these days.
Fear Level 3
Things are starting to get a little weird. There’s an occasional disappearance, and probably more than a few weird creatures live close by (though folks don’t really talk about them). Don’t go out at night without a weapon or a friend.
Fear Level 4
There are mysterious disappearances, and when the bodies are found, it’s piece by piece. The land itself starts to change: the shadows on the cliffs start to look like leering faces, or cornrows always seem to rustle as if something’s hiding within. The winds of the High Plains might whisper your name…and not in a friendly way.
Fear Level 5
There’s no doubt something’s amiss. Folks have seen monsters, and almost everyone’s terrified. Most flowers die, but weeds have no problem thriving. Don’t go out at night without an armed posse.
Fear Level 6 (Deadland)
This is as bad as it gets - a full-blown nightmare landscape. Monsters run rampant, rocks look like skulls—and just might be! Not only do the winds of the High Plains whisper your name here, they do so in your dead friend’s voice. Anyone out at night is dead meat. If the Reckoners have their way, the whole planet is destined to one day become such a place.
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