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View Full Version : Easy to get into Steampunk settings



Kato
2017-01-15, 09:30 AM
I promised my brother to help him and his friends get into pen & paper. Since I've got a bit of experience I offered to GM and they could pick a setting. And apparently they went for Steampunk which is something I have no proper material for.
We're going to use Savage Worlds rules to get them started but that doesn't matter much. I have become decently able to adapt material as long as I have a basis to work with. But curiously, I don't have one for steampunk. I could hardly name a steampunk movie or story, weirdly enough.

So, long story short, anyone has a suggestion on a steampunk setting that is easy to pick up? With maybe a little magic mixed in, is what they asked for. System doesn't matter, I can change the things around as needed. Even a book or a series would be fine, I'm sure I could make something of it. I mostly need a starting point to work with.

Grod_The_Giant
2017-01-15, 10:17 AM
Deadlands is a pretty neat magic/steampunk setting that's already all set up for Savage Worlds...

caden_varn
2017-01-16, 09:51 AM
There is also a Space: 1889 adventure book for Savage Worlds out there, which has setting rules & a full campaign.

Re. Deadlands - be aware it is a horror setting. It's decent enough, but I remember encountering some issues - particularly things where you can only deal with them by magic, which I was not a great fan of.

Fri
2017-01-16, 10:38 AM
Arcanum: Of Steampunk and Magic Obscura? It's the only steampunk setting explicitly with magic from the top of my head, and it's already a crpg, so adapting it to tabletop shouldn't be that hard.

It's a computer rpg. Since you're going to gm an indenpendent tabletop game, you could read up the story and setting and just start up from there instead of learning the detail of the plot and such too much.

Mutazoia
2017-01-17, 02:09 AM
Iron Kingdoms is a Steampunk game with magic thrown in, so you can crib a bit from that. As far as setting only info, there's a ton of matieral to steal from use as inspiration:

Crimson Skies (board and video game) and Sky Captain and the world of tomorrow (movie) have about the right feel, though they are technically diesel punk. The book "The Differential Engine" is pure steam punk (and the book that coined the name of the genera). Anime, such as "The Last Exile" and "Steam Boy" would be good to check out.