Discuss A Western Idea

[Dmitri_Dragoon]

For a long time now, I have been brooding over an idea that I can't seem to get off the ground.

I have been wanting to create an RPG set in the "Wild West" era. I know this isn't a particularly popular form of RPG, but I always like to go a different way than most.

I already have a small inclination to the plot, but it isn't much. So far I have two brothers, names of Eric and Gary Dalton. They are failed bankers from Ohio who move to some Arizona town, probably a fictional town, and become outlaws.

Basically the two become sort of the "Anti-Hero". What I have yet to figure out, is what they are going up against, and who will go up against it with them. I was wanting to try and avoid as many cliches as possible. I understand, though, how that will be difficult.

I am open to any and all suggestions, questions, etc.

[DeadSeraphim]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=1][COLOR=Indigo]Hmm... anti-heroes, huh? Anti-heroes are always fun. Especially when though go all Riddick on you and are thrown into a situation that they can't avoid but could save thousands. Then things get interesting. But as you're trying to avoid cliches, that idea can be put on the shelf.

I think, if I were you, I wouldn't portray your protagonists as good men doing bad things, but bad men doing bad things. And loving it. Like, holding up banks, cold-blooded murder, etc. etc. To further put a spin on it, you could have a rival gang, who were slowly killing off gang members (assuming the Dalton's are travelling in a gang, that is) until they [b]have to[/b] confront the other gang, to save their lives. Throughout this you'd have the standard stage coach robbery and what have you going on, of course.

Obviously that's a rather serious concept, heheh. Using the Western theme, you could spin a huge comedy element on it to, in the form of the bumbling, inexperienced outlaws. Screwing up at every turn, lol, but somehow making it through all right. That's a bit of a cliche concept though, heh.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Arcadia]

[size=1]I like the idea of a western. I've always been partial to a quick draw, anyway. Although I have to say that I think it's really pretty hard to get away from cliches in the western genre. You can most certainly try, but some of the charm comes from that in the first place. Personally, I think it would be kind of cool to include a few as throwbacks to John Wayne and other famous westerns. You could easily create some humorous elements out of that, if you wanted - like mini parodies, if you will (think Blazing Saddles).

Having the good guys be outlaws is a cool idea, too. To follow up on the Riddick idea, maybe the town's sheriff and his law enforcement buddies could be the bad guys, continuing the whole role-reversal thing. I'm sure you could easily fit the anti-hero idea into that somewhere, or mix the whole concept up a little so it fits whatever else you've got in mind. I definitely suggest renting some old westerns to get a feel for the genre as a whole, though. It might even give you some more ideas. ^_~[/size]