Werewolf: The Wild West

Werewolf: The Wild West is a tabletop role-playing game in the World of Darkness series, published by White Wolf Publishing on May 30, 1997. It is a spin-off from their 1992 game Werewolf: The Apocalypse, and is set in the Wild West in the 19th century. Players take the roles of werewolves, warring to defending the Pure Lands (the Americas) from corruption in the form of the mighty Bane called the Storm-Eater.

Werewolf: The Wild West
The cover shows the game's logo, stylized as a reflective metal, against a wood background
Werewolf: The Wild West cover
DesignersJustin Achilli, Ethan Skemp
Publishers
Publication
  • Werewolf: The Wild West
  • May 30, 1997
  • Wyld West Expansion Pack
  • June 27, 2014
GenresWeird West
SystemsStoryteller System
SeriesWorld of Darkness

Overview

Werewolf: The Wild West is a tabletop role-playing game in the Weird West genre, where players take the roles of werewolves of various tribes and battle both internally and against the Bane spirit the Storm-Eater's minions. The game uses the Storyteller System.[1]

Production

Werewolf: The Wild West was designed by Justin Achilli and Ethan Skemp, and was conceived as a "savage West" interpretation of the earlier World of Darkness game Werewolf: The Apocalypse,[1] following publisher White Wolf Publishing's model of historical role-playing games based on previous games in the series; the other two were Vampire: The Dark Ages (1996) and Mage: The Sorcerers Crusade (1998). Out of these, only Vampire: The Dark Ages performed well commercially, and so Werewolf: The Wild West was moved to White Wolf Publishing's lower-budget imprint Arthaus in 1998, but it still remained commercially unsuccessful.[2] In 2014, Onyx Path Publishing released Wyld West Expansion Pack, which ports the game to the 20th Anniversary Edition of Werewolf: The Apocalypse.[3]

Books
Werewolf: The Wild West game books
Title Original release ISBN Publisher Notes
Werewolf: The Wild West May 30, 1997[4] 1-56504-340-5 White Wolf Publishing[4] Core rulebook[5]
Frontier Secrets August 1997[6] 1-56504-341-3 White Wolf Publishing[7] Sourcebook for gifts, breed variants, and antagonists. Released in a bundle with a referee screen.[7]
Under a Harrowed Moon: Strange Bedfellows February–April 1998[8] 1-889546-16-X Pinnacle Entertainment Group[8] Adventure module. First in a series of crossovers with Pinnacle Entertainment Group's role-playing game Deadlands.[9]
Under a Harrowed Moon: Savage Passage February–May 1998[8][9] 1-889546-16-X Pinnacle Entertainment Group[9] Adventure module. Second in a series of crossovers with Pinnacle Entertainment Group's role-playing game Deadlands.[9]
Ghost Towns April 1998[10] 1-56504-343-X White Wolf Publishing[11] Sourcebook for ghost towns. Crossover with Wraith: The Oblivion.[11]
The Wild West Companion August 1998[12] 1-56504-344-8 White Wolf Publishing[13] Guide to the game, detailing the setting and expanding on game mechanics[13]
Tales from the Trails: Mexico 1999[14] 1-56504-345-6 White Wolf Publishing[14] Sourcebook for Mexico[14]
Wyld West Expansion Pack June 27, 2014[15] — Onyx Path Publishing[3] Book porting Werewolf: The Wild West to Werewolf: The Apocalypse 20th Anniversary Edition[3]

Reception and legacy
Reception
Review scores
SourceRating
Backstab7/10 (newcomers)[16]
2/10 (WTA players)[16]

Backstab recommended the game for players new to the series, but thought it did not bring enough originality for players who had previously played Werewolf: The Apocalypse.[16]

Retrospectively, Achilli considered it a mistake to have tried to cover as big of a time period as they had in Werewolf: The Wild West. This influenced the development of the 2002 game Victorian Age: Vampire, which rather than taking place across the entirety of the Victorian era was limited to 1880–1897.[17]

A deck of Werewolf: The Wild West poker cards was released simultaneously with the game on May 30, 1997.[4][6] Laws of the Wyld West, a live-action role-playing game adaptation for White Wolf Publishing's game Mind's Eye Theatre, was released in 1999.[18]

References
  1. Green, Paul (2016). Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns (2nd ed.). McFarland & Company. p. 269. ISBN 978-1476624020.
  2. Appelcline, Shannon (2014). Designers & Dragons: The '90s (2nd ed.). Evil Hat Productions. pp. 7–52. ISBN 978-1-613170-84-7.
  3. "Wyld West Expansion Pack". Guide du Rôliste Galactique (in French). Association du Guide du Rôliste Galactique. 2014-06-25. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  4. "White Wolf". Casus Belli (in French). No. 106. Excelsior Publications. June 1997. p. 11.
  5. Lhomme, Tristan (July–August 1997). "Werewolf: The Wild West". Casus Belli (in French). No. 107. Excelsior Publications. p. 26.
  6. "White Wolf". Casus Belli (in French). No. 107. Excelsior Publications. July–August 1997. p. 11.
  7. Swan, Rick (December 1997). "Werewolf: The Wild West game Storytellers Screen". Dragon. No. 242. TSR, inc.
  8. "Pinnacle Entertainment". Casus Belli (in French). No. 113. Excelsior Publications. April–May 1998. p. 10.
  9. Croitoriu, Michaël (May–June 1998). "Savage Passage". Backstab (in French). No. 9. FC Publications. p. 55.
  10. "White Wolf". Casus Belli (in French). No. 113. Excelsior Publications. April–May 1998. p. 12.
  11. Delage, John-Ross (May–June 1998). "Ghost Towns". Backstab (in French). No. 9. FC Publications. p. 52.
  12. "White Wolf". Casus Belli (in French). No. 115. Excelsior Publications. August–September 1998. p. 12.
  13. Poste, Timbre (September–October 1998). "The Wild West Companion". Backstab (in French). No. 11. FC Publications. p. 52.
  14. "Tales from the Trails : Mexico". Guide du Rôliste Galactique (in French). Association du Guide du Rôliste Galactique. 2009-05-08. Archived from the original on 2016-06-30. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  15. Watson, Ian A. A. (2014-06-27). "New release: W20 Wyld West Expansion Pack". Onyx Path Publishing. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  16. Croc (July–August 1997). "Werewolf: Wild West". Backstab (in French). No. 4. FC Publications. pp. 36–37.
  17. Achilli, Justin. "Victorian Age: Vampire". White Wolf Publishing. Archived from the original on 2003-02-07. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  18. "White Wolf". Casus Belli (in French). No. 113. Excelsior Publications. February–March 1999. p. 12.

Further reading
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