Guide to Old Mexico

Special Travel Edition Vol. 1, No 1. Sunday, May 23, 1880

Requires Deadlands
& the Savage Worlds
Horror Companion
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 D eadlands : T he W ei rd W est

Devil’s Night
By Shane Lacy Hensley

Credits & Acknowledgements

Additional Material: Clint Black, Matthew Cutter, Piotr Korys
Deadlands Brand Manager: Matthew Cutter
Cover Art: Richard Pollard
Interior Art: Jordan Peacock and Alberto Froche
Deadlands Reloaded Layout and Graphic Design: Aaron Acevedo, Travis
Anderson, Simon Lucas; Devil’s Night Layout: Shane Hensley
Deadlands Created by Shane Lacy Hensley

This document may be printed for personal use.

It may not be distributed, either electronically or in print.

WWW.PEGINC.COM

Savage Worlds, Deadlands: the Weird West, and all unique characters, creatures,
and locations herein are ©, Great White Games, DBA Pinnacle Entertainment
Group.

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 Devil’s Night

Doctor Herbert Langston knew Instead, he found his house and the
something about ore. In the steel mills giant reducer in his backyard had been
of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he created vandalized by the local children.
a machine that could extract ghost rock It was a disaster. Crude insults about
from even the crudest raw materials. the “carpetbagger” and his daughter
The machine—he called it “the were painted on the sides of the reducer
reducer”—worked well for almost two and even his house. Rotten vegetables,
weeks. But on the 13th day it suffered a spoiled fruit, and smashed eggs were
spectacular and catastrophic explosion everywhere. Langston began to scream
that killed 17 workers and maimed and go into a rage. Daphne attempted
dozens more. to comfort him but the mad scientist
Langston gathered the only other slapped her in blind anger.
thing he’d ever cared about, his daughter Langston’s horror at his own reaction
Daphne, and fled town. The pair didn’t only worsened when he saw the Dixie
stop running until they reached Wichita, Rails carriage had arrived. His guest had
Kansas. With the last of their savings, witnessed the entire event—Langston’s
he bought an old house and a junkyard rage, the humiliation at the hands of
that used to belong to the Black River local children, and striking his own
Railroad. daughter—the one “creation” he always
There Langston began to rebuild the believed he’d gotten right.
reducer. In weeks he had a prototype and The representative sighed, shook his
caught the attention of representatives head, and left.
from Dixie Rails. One of their most Shortly thereafter, Daphne left as well.
esteemed scientists promised to visit, Langston silently packed her bags, put
evaluate the machine, and—Langston her on a train, and watched her steam off
hoped—offer him a hefty sum for the to her aunt in Pittsburgh.
design. Perhaps he would even offer Langston went back to his lonely
Langston a chance to orchestrate the home. This wasn’t his fault, the voices in
building of multiple reducers across the his head whispered. It was those rotten
Confederacy. children. The ones who’d destroyed his
The morning of the visit, Langston dreams on Devil’s Night.
rose, ate a hearty breakfast, and walked
outside—eager for the arrival of the
representative from Dixie Rails.

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Soon after, Little Jimmy Peck, the

Das Ebon Schleier ringleader of the teens who had
Langston wanted revenge. Science had vandalized Langston’s house, was out at
betrayed him, but the old house he’d the Hangin’ Tree with his two rowdies
purchased once belonged to someone planning their mischief for Devil’s
named Cooper Whateley. Whateley Night—just two nights away.
had left in a hurry, it seems, or perhaps From out of the darkness came the
just vanished, because his belongings thunder of hooves and iron wheels, and
remained in the house when Dr. the unearthly laugh of the coachman!
Langston bought it from the county.
The boys fled in all directions but
In one of the many assortments of the Coachman was too fast. The next
macabre collections was an old and morning, the comatose forms of Peck
dusty book called Das Ebon Schleier, and two of his cronies lay sprawled
or The Ebon Veil, written by a German along the prairie.
sorcerer named Johannes Goetz.
Their relatives gathered the boys
Inside this blood-stained grimoire and took them to their homes, but the
was forbidden lore concerning the local sawbones couldn’t explain their
summoning and control of demons. condition.
Over the course of the year, Langston
collected the components the book
The Setup
claimed he needed to call “The Black
Coachman.” On Friday, October 29th, This adventure takes place on the
he was successful in his ritual and the outskirts of Wichita, Kansas, but can
creature arrived at 13 minutes past be placed anywhere the Marshal is so
midnight. inclined to move it.
The posse has arrived at the Dead
Horse Road House on the outskirts of

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Wichita the morning after the attack at it was chased ‘em in all directions but
the Hangin’ Tree. As they enter, Doctor none of ‘em got very far.
Reg Palmer, sawbones from Wichita, has The Pony Express rider found ‘em all
just come from the Peck house. He sees face-down in the grass this morning as
the heroes and, on a hunch, asks them he was ridin’ through. They’re all alive—
for help. but in a kinda coma or somethin’. I’ve
You look like folks who’ve seen a little never seen anything like it. Nothin’ at all.
trouble and maybe figured out how to And I was at the Battle of Washington
deal with it. Well, these folks out here and the Cauldron.
have got some. If you’re inclined to help, They’re all pale and cold—like they’ve
I’ve got three boys lyin’ lifeless in their had the life sucked right out of ‘em but
beds because o’ somethin’ that happened ain’t dead yet. I have little doubt they
last night. Somethin’ I can’t rightly will be soon though if I can’t get to the
explain. bottom of this. Will you help?
Doc Palmer won’t pay—he’s doing a
Assuming Doc Palmer isn’t turned favor being out this far already—but he
away, he continues. does have something he picked up at
There’s a group o’ kids who—frankly— the Battle of the Cauldron, a cross worn
ain’t exactly pillars o’ the earth ‘round by Father Pedro Valdez. Father Valdez
here, but don’t deserve what happened fell in the service of Dixie Rails fending
to ‘em just the same. Best I can tell they off some unnatural horror unleashed
was meetin’ up at the ol’ Hangin’ Tree by Bayou Vermillion. Palmer took his
when something attacked ‘em. Whatever crucifix and could swear that ever since

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that day he’s felt protected by the padre’s That’d be Doc Langston. Strange fella
holy spirit. In fact, the crucifix grants +2 from Back East. Came out here two years
Toughness to any basically good mortal or so ago with his daughter, but she up
who wears it. an’ left him and we didn’t see much of
If the posse will help these boys, him after. I’m told he built some kinda
Palmer believes the “heroes” can make big machine out by the old Whateley
better use of it than he as they continue house he bought. It’s right near the Black
their adventures. River scrapyard so I guess that’s what he
used to make his contraption.
The Investigation The Whateleys are a notorious family
of black wizards. Any huckster in the
Here are the places the investigators
group can make a Common Knowledge
are likely to start poking around, and
roll at +2 to recognize the name. Hank
the events that happen when they do.
Krumm doesn’t know anything more
Around Town about the Whateley House or Dr.
The “town” is really a few dozen homes Langston, but he knows someone who
and the Dead Horse Road House on the might—Doc Palmer.
outskirts of Wichita, which is about six See “Back to Palmer” below.
miles northwest. If anyone questions the
local farmers, they’re relatively clueless The Hangin’ Tree
and refer the strangers back to Doc The old tree was used to hang a horse
Palmer. rustler once. No one knows what his
name was, and he was left to rot until
At the Dead Horse Road House, a few
animals finally dragged his corpse down
travelers heading in or out of Wichita are
and devoured the remains. Most all the
playing cards. Most know nothing about
locals know the legend if asked.
what happened but rumors are starting
to spread of witchcraft, demons, and The grass is disturbed around the
even the plague. tree and there are numerous cuts in the
bark that bleed red sap (from the boys
One of the card players, however,
throwing knives at it). It’s unnaturally
is Harvey Crabb. He roams the West
quiet here—the ghost of the accused
looking for junk to sell to the numerous
rustler doesn’t rest easy—but that’s a tale
“New Scientists” who have popped up
for another day.
in the West and might reveal a tale over
a game or two of cards. There are numerous tracks around
but it takes a professional to sort out
There use to be a Black River stockyard anything of use. With a success on a
here. I came to see if it was still around Tracking roll, the investigator discerns
and maybe make an offer on their heavy hoofprints and wagon tracks in
scrap, but it had already been bought by a zigzagging pattern through the grass.
someone. With a raise, he also finds impressions
I went to see him—see if he wanted to indicating where all three boys fell. Two
pass on whatever was left—but his house are fairly close to the tree while the third
seemed abandoned. (Jimmy Peck’s) is about 50 yards distant
to the west.
If the barkeep, Hank Krumm, is asked There are no traces of blood or other
about the house, he adds the following: physical evidence.

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Peck’s Place
“Little” Jimmy Peck is what you might
call “ironic.” The “kid” is 17 years old
and big as a house. His father, “Big” Jim
Peck, is even bigger. Big Jim served as
a hired gun for Black River in the Rail
Wars and is angry as hell since losing
that very lucrative work. He’s even more
angry that something got his son’s soul.
Big Jim saw a lot of strange things as
an enforcer and knows all too well that
magic and witchcraft are real. He thinks
Little Jim was cursed by his former lover,
Jezebel Harkin. He hasn’t seen her since
she caught him with one of the doves in
Wichita, but “she always was a vengeful
sort.”
Of course Jez is a red herring. She is a
witch, but she’s off serving Mina Devlin
in the Maze and has nothing to do with Professor Mathias’ Old Time
this particular deviltry. Elixirs
If asked if his son had any enemies, Big Professor Mathias isn’t the third doctor
Jim says: of this tale because he isn’t a real doctor
of any sort. He’s a traveling snakeoil
Ah reckon there was a lotta folks ‘round
salesman. He hawks completely useless
here didn’t take so well to mah boy. He
tonics and elixirs from the back of his
always was a rough sort. Takes after me,
fancy red wagon.
I guess. But he ain’t done nothin’ of late.
I was workin’ some discipline in ‘im Mathias is currently parked out by
so he could maybe get work with Dixie the old pond, hoping to catch anyone
Rails. I used to work for Black River ‘til passing by the crossroads and sell his
they moved on West. It’s good pay, but wares for a few days before heading into
a fella’s gotta be ready to get his hands Wichita.
dirty, if y’know what I mean. Mathias knows nothing of the
Coachman, though he certainly
Big Jim doesn’t know anything about
believes his miracle tonic should be
Little Jim’s tangle with Doc Langston.
applied liberally to the boys and that its
The families of the other boys, Bill amazing powers will eventually “rouse
McDowell and Freddie Turpin, have no them to their full and natural state of
leads. Their ruffians weren’t particularly consciousness and vigor!”
loved around town, but they’re more
Mathias is, of course, another red
normal folk and don’t believe in magic
herring, but since he has a coach, he’s
and monsters. They think their sons
likely to be more of a suspect. When this
have caught some nasty disease and are
subject arises, allow any character who
hoping for a cure—perhaps from the
examined the Black Coachman’s tracks a
snakeoil salesman who’s been hanging
Tracking roll. With a success, he thinks
out at the mill pond (see below).
Mathias’ wagon didn’t leave the tracks

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at the Hangin’ Tree. With a raise, or if The furniture and fixtures are quite
Mathias’ wagon is taken to the site and valuable to the right buyer, but would
compared, he’s sure of it. be very difficult to sell locally due to the
Whateleys’ reputation.
Back to Palmer Upstairs, two rooms have been used.
Information at the Dead Horse Road One is obviously decorated for a lady but
House (see above) reveals that a stranger all personal effects have been removed
named Dr. Langston now lives in the old in the last year or so. (This is where
Whateley House, and that Doc Palmer Langston’s daughter slept.)
might know more about it. Here’s what The other room was once a grand
he says: master bedroom with a canopied bed.
The chest of drawers has a few articles of
Cooper Whateley. Now there was a clothing—mostly black pants and white
strange one. Had six daughters with shirts—and the wardrobe holds a few
three different wives—so folks say—and moth-eaten jackets, dress coats, lab coats,
sent ‘em all off to work for Mina Devlin’s and more shirts.
outfit.
At the foot of the disheveled bed is a
He kinda disappeared, and then small trunk, lying open with numerous
this fella from Back East moved in a papers and trinkets lying around it. It’s
few years later. Professor Herbert... obviously been rifled through and the
something. Langston, yeah, that’s it. Not contents left lying where they happened
sure what happened there. About a year to land. Among them are letters to a
ago his house and some contraption he woman named “Amelia,” Langston’s
was workin’ on got vandalized. Next ex-wife, discussing pleas for more money
thing y’know, his daughter up and left. or arguments about someone named
It was the strangest thing, ‘cause he Daphne returning to Pittsburgh.
doted on that child like she was the most
Other documents include a diploma
important thing in the world.
from Pennsylvania Technical College
in Metallurgy, various obscure patents
The Whateley House including one for a clockwork man, letters
Eventually, the posse will trip out of recommendation from superiors at
to the old Whateley place. When they various steel mills, and finally a once-
get there, it’s locked and abandoned. crumpled notice of termination for gross
Professor Langston has fled to the negligence.
“safety” of the junkyard and a “friend” The last parcel of mementos is a
he has there who might protect him loosely-bound collection of drawings
from the Coachman. bound together by a pink ribbon. These
Inside the house are old but ornate are drawings made by a younger Daphne
furnishings—most left over from the of her family. Stuck to one of them with
Whateleys. A Tracking roll (or Notice at a bit of sorghum is a lock of silky blonde
–2) reveals someone has been living here hair.
but seemed confined to a few areas of the There are no further clues at this
house. The rest is covered in dust and location, but as the party searches
shows stark disuse. A Tracking roll at –2 through the property, one of them
notes the thickest areas of dust haven’t happens to peer through the window
been disturbed in years. and notices movement at the scrapyard.

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lot and fell into a deep sleep. The “scrap
The Scrapyard monster,” left to its own devices, sat in
the chair—imitating its beloved master—
Some deeply buried and still-rational
and crushed poor ol’ Langston into a
part of Dr. Langston’s mind refused
crunchy mess.
to believe the demon he spent a year
summoning was actually real. When it The scrap monster doesn’t know what
arrived and carried out its grisly task, to do now. It has a vague awareness that
Langston fled in a panic to the scrapyard something isn’t right with its “father”
and the lone friend he had left in the and occasionally tries to move his limbs
world. While he had been waiting for the into some semblance of life, but this only
arrival of his summoning components, causes more damage and more rage.
Langston spent his spare time in the By the time the confused thing is
junkyard creating a “mechanical man.” found, it attacks to the death—either of
Unfortunately, while the “flesh” was itself or its prey.
strong, the “mind” was weak. Sometime
earlier this very day, Langston collapsed
in the large chair he’d dragged out to the

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Scrap Monster Das Ebon Schleier’s forbidden lore

The scrap monster is a construct pertains to demons in general, and
of bits and pieces gathered from the provides intimate knowledge (+4 to
former Black River scrapyard. Knowledge (Occult) rolls) of the legend
of the Black Coachman.
It’s imbued with life via mechanical
and arcane rituals performed by Dr. The grimoire contains two spells. Both
Langston. It isn’t evil, but it is single- must be cast as rituals (see the Horror
minded in protecting its creator. It won’t Companion), and require the gathering
stray from the confines of the junkyard, of components as detailed below. The
even if Langston’s corpse is somehow spells do not require Power Points—they
removed. are powered by the magical grimoire,
the ritual, and the components that must
Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d4 (A),
be gathered.
Spirit d6, Strength d12+2, Vigor d12
Summon the Black Coachman:
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8,
This is the summon demon spell with a
Notice d6
few twists. If successful, no binding,
Pace: 4; Parry: 5; Toughness: 14 (4) bargaining, or warding is needed by the
Special Abilities summoner. The Black Coachman seeks
• Armor +4: The thing is made of iron out its targets that very night. After that,
and steel. it roams free for 13 nights, reaping the
• Construct: +2 to recover from being souls of anyone it chooses except those
Shaken; No additional damage from forbidden by the caster by name.
called shots; Immune to poison and Thus Langston could say “Do not harm
disease. Doctor Palmer or my daughter Daphne,”
• Fear: Anyone seeing the scrap but he could not direct the coachman to
monster must make a Guts check. ignore “the people of Wichita, travelers
• Pummel: Str+d10. upon the road,” etc., because they are not
named.
• Repair: The creature can repair
all its wounds if given an hour per The ritual must be cast between
wound and access to parts (such as midnight and 12:59 a.m., and requires
those found in the junkyard). the eyes of two pure black stallions to
form the hellish steeds, 13 pounds of
• Size +2: The scrap monster stands
wood from a blackened tree to form the
seven feet tall.
coach, and the blood of the summoner to
form the coachman.
The Bigger They Are... When the demon arrives, the
Once the scrap monster is destroyed— summoner may name up to 13 targets.
or lured away—the posse can investigate The coachman begins to seek them out
the remains of Dr. Langston. Clutched immediately, reaping the soul of one
in the mad scientist’s broken and bloody target each night. It is also more than
arms is Das Ebon Schleier. happy to collect any other random souls
it encounters as well—except those it is
Das Ebon Schleier expressly forbidden to harvest.
The book is a grimoire and also Banish the Black Coachman: If a
contains forbidden lore as described in character spends some time reading
the Savage Worlds Horror Companion. this spell—in German, remember—he

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discovers the spell doesn’t actually
banish the creature. Banishing the
Instead, it calls it to the caster and Coachman
makes it material. If it is then defeated
within 13 minutes, the coachman is As soon as the heroes begin casting
sent back to Hell. If it is not, it returns the Banish the Black Coachman ritual, they
to its immaterial form and tries to slay hear the sounds of hooves in the distance.
whoever attempted to destroy it before Each round of the ritual (successful or
fading back into the night or chasing not), the hooves sound closer and closer,
after its next victim. until finally the Black Coachman arrives.
This ritual must be cast between When it arrives it instantly begins
midnight and 12:59 a.m. It requires reaping the souls of those it encounters
something of great value to the and does not stop until everyone it can
summoner, the blood of the souls to see is claimed.
be reclaimed, and the presence of the Since this is Devil’s Night, the
Coachman. Coachman has also been given a little
The thing of great value in this case help from the powers of darkness—a
is the lock of Daphne’s hair found in pack of five hell hounds.
the Whateley House. The blood of the The statistics for both the Black
souls to be reclaimed is a few drops of Coachman and the hell hounds can
blood from the boys who the Coachman be found in the Savage Worlds Horror
claimed. The presence of the Coachman Companion.
occurs the moment the posse begins the
ritual.

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 The Savage Worlds Horror Companion
adds new rules for Signs & Portents,
Ritual casting, setting rules, gear, over
a hundred new monsters useable for any
Savage Worlds campaign—and more!

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