"Cover art of the 'Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars' game depicting a ghostly figure above a train wreck, with a man flying forward from the locomotive's explosion, set against a dramatic blue and orange sky."
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Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars (1997)

Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

“Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars” is a horror Western board game based on the Deadlands role-playing game. The game is popular and significant due to its unique blend of genres, rich storyline, and engaging gameplay.

Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

Deadlands is a genre-mixing alternate history role-playing game that combines the Western and horror genres, with some steampunk elements. The game is set in the year 1876 in an alternate version of the American West, where evil beings known as the Reckoners exert control over the Earth via their armies of unseen Manitou and the more concrete Abominations. The game has won nine Origins Awards, including Best Role-playing Rules of 1996 for Deadlands and Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Miniatures Rules of 1997 for Deadlands: the Great Rail Wars.

Game Components of Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

The game includes heroes and posses of miniatures, strategy game boards, and rules for fast-playing and easy-to-learn skirmish-level gameplay.

Game Setup of Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

Players pit their heroes and posses of miniatures against each other in battles to determine the fate of the Weird West. The game is set on fictional rail lines, many of which have colorful names like Vermillion Bayou, Union Blue, and Black River.

Gameplay Mechanics of Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars is a skirmish-level game that combines elements of strategy and miniatures gameplay.

Game Objective of Deadlands: The Great Rail Wars

The objective of the game is to control the railways and secure territories in the alternate Wild West setting.

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