Character Guide: Julie Cutter

 

Character Name: Julie Cutter.

Inspired by: Unknown for now.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral (Defensive trigger, but offensive effect).

Ability: "Each time a player makes you lose at least 1 life point, 'draw!': On reds (hearts or diamonds) they are the target of a BANG!"

Thus, if a player makes you lose more than 1 (i.e. Aim) it doesn't trigger twice. Dynamite/Rattlesnake would not trigger a BANG! at the player, because they didn't force you to lose a life point.

NOTE: Her retaliatory BANG! reaches target regardless of distance. I equate this BANG! with a BANG! card.

Activation: When any card is played that directly forces Julie to lose a life point: not Dynamite, Rattlesnake, other indirect form of losing a life point. It would apply to Indians!, Gatling, etc.

Cards enhanced by Julie Cutter's ability: Saved! (she takes the hit for another player, gets the card bonus, and bangs! the attacker), Shotgun/Buntline Special (retaliatory BANG! can cause them to discard a card if hit/cancelled), Bounty (play on a player, if they shoot you, you have a chance to not only BANG! them but also draw a card), Beer family cards (take hits to trigger your retaliatory infinite distance BANG! with less worry)

Controversy: Can Big Fifty's special ability be used out of turn with her retaliatory BANG!?

Cards weakened by Julie Cutter's ability: Her retaliatory BANG! makes the need for Missed! effect cards less relevant (as well as gun cards); they're definitely still valuable, just less so for her than for many other characters

Cards less effective when played against Julie Cutter:

Any cards potentially causing immediate loss of life directly (BANG!, Springfield, etc.) or indirectly (Gatling, Indians!, etc.)

Cards removing BANG! from her hand (Bandidos, Indians!, Panic!, Cat Balou, etc.) as her ability requires no BANG!

Volcanic (you need a lot of BANG! in your hand to make the Volcanic meaningful, but then this also means you lack defensive cards in your hand -- if you happen to hit Julie, you're giving yourself a 50% chance of getting hit yourself too)

Jail (she can still bang! you out of turn)

Cards more effective when played against Julie Cutter: Few cards truly weaken Julie Cutter (versus just being more relevant to play against her, such as Dynamite or Rattlesnake), but The Big Fifty does stand out, as it cancels the target player's character ability and cards in play (so it can cancel out her ability to retaliatory BANG!; the Armed and Dangerous rules clearly spell this out), Barrel (as she will more frequently be banging! you when you attack)

Ideal Roles: Sheriff, but decent at other roles.

Characters Julie Cutter counters:

Characters proficient at dealing damage: Slab the Killer, Willy the Kid, Bloody Mary, Colorado Bill (she doesn't need to avoid the shot as much as others, as she can punish him back), Jackie Murieta/Mexicali Kid/Doc Holyday (BANG! conversion can be retaliated against), Evelyn Shebang, Black Flower, Der Sport-Burst Ringer

Distance manipulators: Rose Doolan/Paul Regret (she can hit them anyway with her retaliatory BANG!)

Card thiefs: Pat Brennan/Jesse Jones/Flint Westwood

Risky card converters: Chuck Wengam

"Draw!" driven: John Pain (she is less likely to feed him cards)

Big Spencer (his inability to play Missed!, and inability to use distance to protect himself from Julie's retaliatory BANG! makes her "cuts" really hurt)

Subset of Other Defenders: Mick Defender (his ability doesn't protect from BANG!), Elena Fuente (makes Elena think twice when attacking her, as it can quickly deplete her hand), Molly Stark (defending herself against a retaliatory BANG! occurs during her turn, which keeps her from gaining the benefit of her ability -- she will not get to draw a card), Immunity driven characters (her retaliatory BANG! lacks values) for Apache Kid/Ms. Abigail

Characters who counter Julie Cutter well:

Mid-Position Offense/Defense: Calamity Janet (easier time giving and receiving fire back), Don Bell (extra turn makes his hand management easier to counter her on), Sean Mallory (if he gets enough cards, he'll be a beast), Jose Delgado (extra cards can help him have the right hand mix)

Defenders: Jourdonnais (can more easily defend himself against her retaliatory BANG!), Teren Kill (survivability against her BANG!)

2-Player Value: Great. Retaliatory attacks in a 2-player situation really helps.

Armed and Dangerous value: The retaliatory BANG! defense might prevent you from discarding a Missed!, enabling you to more easily discard from hand at end of your turn, and thus gain load tokens.

Gold Rush Value: Solid. Whenever your ability causes another to lose a life point, you'll draw a gold nugget.

General Strategy: Julie Cutter is the last of the 3 lasses included in Armed and Dangerous which has universal value outside of the expansion. Whenever she takes damage, she has the guaranteed opportunity of inflicting payback. This ability provides Julie with some choices -- there may be times in which she wishes to take a hit, to create the potential for the attacker to also take a hit, especially if the attacker is her target and they are out of the range of her gun. In that case, she might choose not to play a card with a missed! effect. If the attacker is not her target, the value is substantially less, and the value of foregoing playing the card with the missed! effect is unlikely to occur. If she has Beer (or another means of increasing her life points), and is already at full health, Julie might also willingly take the hit and replenish her life point after the exchange.

Bounty can be useful on player characters targetting Julie, even if they are not her direct target. Her retaliatory BANG!, when successful, will cause her to draw a card from the Bounty.

Since you know characters will be looking to nab your gun card to keep you out of distance until they want or can deal with you, Julie will want to choose carefully when to play her gun card. Ideally, she would not do so unless he can also make use of that gun on a desired target. There's no reason to just put it into play for the sake of it, if it can be avoided (especially if you can discard over to gain some load tokens instead). 

Playing against Julie: Unless you must initially deal with Julie (she is your definite target, say the Sheriff and you are an Outlaw), you might choose to save Julie for later to deal with other threats. This can be done if you are able to restrict her gun cards and keep her out of range. As long as you do not attack her, she will not be reactively attacking you.

Once she is your target, you will need to manage your cards with missed! effects appropriately so you can avoid taken damage. While the chance is only 50% that she will retaliate, it's still likely to get you soon enough. A Barrel will be particularly helpful in providing defenses against her. You don't want to have to deplete your missed! effect cards during your turn as you deal with her, as you'll then have no defenses outside of your turn when she (or another player character) attacks you. You can predict this somewhat through the restriction of her gun cards again. You'll know she can reach you when you attack, and most likely not when it is on her turn (unless she should draw a gun card or have cleverly hid it). The same here can be said of Jail, of managing when she can attack you.

Of course, if you can get your hands upon and use the Big Fifty, this will be of big help in cancelling out her retaliations. Indians!, while causing retaliation, are nonetheless useful in depleting attacks she might otherwise initiate on her turn. Then, "indirect damage" cards such as Rattlesnake or Dynamite can also be very potent against Julie Cutter, as their initial player will not trigger any retaliation should those cards end up damaging Julie Cutter.

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Character Guide: Bloody Mary

Character Name: Bloody Mary.

Inspired by: Mary Tudor, who took the British throne in 1553, reigning as first queen regnant of England and Ireland. Seeking to return England to the Catholic Church, she persecuted hundreds of Protestants and earned the name "Bloody Mary." The term is now mostly known for the alcoholic drink.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Offensive.

Ability: "Each time your BANG! card is cancelled, draw 1 card from the deck."

Activation: Playing a BANG! card against another player during Bloody Mary's turn.

Cards enhanced by Bloody Mary's ability: BANG!, Bottle, Bandolier, guns (especially Lemat -- converts card in hand to BANG! -- Volcanic, Buntline Special, Shotgun, and Thunderer), Scope, Tornado, Bell Tower, Ace Up the Sleeve, Gun Belt, Gold Pan, Pickaxe

Cards weakened by Bloody Mary's ability: Duel, Aim, Big Fifty

Cards less effective when played against Bloody Mary: Any cards cancelling the BANG! (Missed! family - Missed!, Dodge, Evade, Sombrero, Cappello, Iron Plate, Bible, Duck), Barrel, Horseshoe, Crate, General Store

Cards more effective when played against Bloody Mary: Indians!, Arrow, Duel, Bandidos, Panic!, Cat Balou, Whip, Poker, Lock Pick, Squaw, Saved! in response to her BANG!, Jail, Boots, Beer, Rucksack, Calumet

Ideal Roles: Deputy, Outlaw, Renegade.

Characters Bloody Mary counters:

Calamity Janet (BANG! she plays as Missed! enable Bloody Mary to draw cards), Elen Fuente (cards she discards to play Missed! enable Bloody Mary to draw cards), Jourdonnais (draws cards when his ability cancels her BANG!), Lucky Duke (draws cards when a lucky "draw!" cancels her BANG!), Mick Defender (no benefits defending against BANG! with his ability), Sean Mallory (he may store up defensive cards, but they will not hold her back as much), Chuck Wengam (he may burn health to gain cards, but the canceling cards he plays will be less effective), Pixie Pete (He may draw 3 cards, but she'll be able to deplete his LP's)

Characters who counter Bloody Mary well:

"BANG!/Distance Depleters": Pat Brennan (pull her gun cards to limit her distance and ability to apply her BANG!), Big Spencer (he can take the hits), Jesse Jones (pulling cards from her hand can deplete her BANG!), Flint Westwood (trade a non-BANG! to get 2 of her cards, likely grabbing her BANG!).

"Alt-Defenders" -- Paul Regret (use distance as a defense versus Missed! cards), Bart Cassidy (more likely to just take a hit to draw a card), El Gringo (he can take the hit and then draw a card from her hand), Sid Ketchum (use discards to drink Beer instead of evading her BANG!), Tequila Joe/Lemonade Jim (use Beer as defense versus cancelling her BANG!), Molly Stark (draws a card along with Bloody Mary when she cancels a BANG! out of turn), Teren Kill (his last life point doesn't need as much protection), Julie Cutter (50% chance to make Bloody Mary target of a BANG! when she loses an LP), Ms. Abigail (she ignores the effects of royal BANG!, which is not the same as cancelling them), Madam Yto (she draws cards when Beer is played), Don Bell (more turns = more chance to gain what he needs, Beer or otherwise), Apache Kid (diamond BANG! have no effect)

"Best Defense is a Strong Offense": Slab the Killer, Willy the Kid, Greygory Deck, Lee Van Kliff

2-player value: Good. Keeping the cards coming when your opponent cancels your BANG! helps you maintain your position.

General Strategy: Bloody Mary is one of the 3 gals included in Armed and Dangerous which has universal value outside of the expansion. Her ability is "old school," sliding nicely in with the base game characters and any group of expansions you play with. It feeds her cards when her BANG! or cancelled, which means you really want to use your BANG! and get a gun with proper range so you can reach your intended target with those BANG!. You can use them more freely, as when they're cancelled you'll get to draw another card. You're less prone to Indians! than Slab.

You're still subject to the one BANG! draw limit so finding cards (Volcanic, Bandolier) that extend that BANG! limit, or that stack well with her ability (Buntline Special, Thunderer) are a great pick. Try to keep a Panic! handy as your opponents will try to control you by removing your gun cards and Scope. Use Bell Tower to close the gap if you're given the chance. Tornado and General Store can also be your friend for acquiring the right cards (guns or BANG!). Be careful when you draw a Duel card yourself; unless you can't reach the target you wish and you have lots of BANG!, they are so useful to keep that I wouldn't expend your BANG! in a Duel just to take your chances.

Your real trick will be trying to get folks to cancel your BANG! and not your non-BANG! attacks (Punch!, Tomahawk, Aim, Gatling, Quick Shot, Fanning, Flint Lock) so you still get a bonus. Don't draw attention to your green attacks in play in front of you, but the smart player will use that to determine when they should cancel a card. Of course, you could fake them out so they take the hit from your BANG! and then you don't play a secondary attack.

Playing against Bloody Mary: Since Bloody Mary keeps her cards replenished when you cancel her BANG!, your best bet is to keep her in your range, while keeping yourself out of hers. A trusty Mustang or Hideout should do the job; just try to keep Bloody Mary from getting/keeping a gun or scope (use those steal and discard cards, and pay attention when the General Store is played). She's pretty vicious with a Volcanic or Buntline Special.

If Bloody Mary has you in range and shoots at you, judge carefully when to play cards that would cancel an attack. Since her ability only applies to BANG! cards, you'll have no penalty for cancelling a green card (which you'll be able to see if she has in play), or other brown attack card (i.e. Gatling). You might consider taking the hit from a BANG! to cancel her attack on another card and not give her an extra card. Successful "draws!" from Barrels do enable Bloody Mary, but at least they're entirely effective in cancelling her shot (say, versus Slab the Killer). Saved! is a great card to play against one of the targets of her BANG!. While you'll take the hit, you'll get the benefit of drawing 2 cards, the target won't take the hit and the BANG! isn't cancelled so she doesn't get anything out of it. Calumet is an amazing defense, as the diamond BANG! she plays against you won't be cancelled, but rather will have no effect on you. She'll likely try to discard/buy this away from you.

To keep Bloody Mary less prone to attacking you (or your ally), try using BANG!-depleters to remove fire power from his hand. Duels, Indians!, Arrow and Bandidos are especially useful. If she isn't careful with her BANG!, you can do some great damage against her this way. While Jail is always useful to play against an opponent, it is more useful to use against Bloody Mary since her ability is only activated during her turn.

Character Guide: Ms. Abigail

Character Name: Ms. Abigail.

Inspired by: Unknown for now.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Defensive.

Ability: "You may ignore he effects of brown-borders cards with values J, Q, K, and A if you are the only target." She can choose for the effects to occur if she so wishes -- she can, say choose to enter a Duel if she views it as favorable.

Activation: When a brown bordered card that targets only Ms. Abigail is played.

Cards enhanced by Ms. Abigail's ability: Duck (she can save and return it for when she actually needs it, which is less frequent than for other players), Crate (also save up needed Missed!)

Cards weakened by Ms. Abigail's ability: Her optional immunity makes the need for Missed! cards and Escape less relevant; they're definitely still valuable, just less so for her than for many other characters

Cards less effective when played against Ms. Abigail: Here are the list of royal brown bordered cards that target a single player:

• BANG!: K, J, K, Q, A, Q, K, A (28.5% of base + DC game BANG!; 27.5% with A&D)
• Springfield (DC): K
• Backfire (VOS): Q
• Tomahawk (VOS): A
• Flintlock (A&D): A
• Duel: Q, J (2/3; only 1 can necessarily engage her)
• Cat Balou: J, K (2/5 with base + DC; 2/6 with A&D)
• Panic!: J, J, Q, K (4/5 with base + DC)
• Also weakened are Buntline Special (indirectly weaker; royal BANG! she does not cancel, but is rather immune to them she does not have to discard in those cases), Double Barrel (her immunity is not a cancellation, weakening Double Barrel on the diamond BANG! played, of which there are 4 royals), and Volcanic (royal BANG! have no effect); mass discards (Bandidos) are less effective against Ms. Abigail due to her natural defenses. Jail is also less relevant when played on her.

Cards more effective when played against Ms. Abigail: Few cards truly weaken Ms. Abigail (versus just being more relevant to play against her), but some stand out: The Big Fifty, as it cancels the target player's character ability and cards in play (so it can cancel out her optional immunity to brown royals); and the Lemat (since any card in the hand can be played as a BANG!, play non-royal cards as BANG! against her). 

Ideal Roles: Sheriff.

Characters Ms. Abigail counters:

BANG! driven offensive characters: Slab the Killer, Willy the Kid, Bloody Mary, Colorado Bill (she doesn't need to avoid the shot for her immunity to be valid)

"Draw!" driven: John Pain (she is less likely to feed him cards)

Characters who counter Ms. Abigail well:

"Card Depleters": Pat Brennan (pull her gun cards to limit her distance and ability to apply her BANG!), Jesse Jones (pulling cards from her hand can deplete her offenses and Beer), Flint Westwood (trade a royal card to her that you couldn't affect her anyway to get 2 of her cards, likely grabbing relevant cards she has stored), Youl Grinner (her immunity make her likely to have more cards than Youl Grinner and have to hand a card over), Gary Looter (immunity makes her likely to hold on to cards and go over her limit),

"Alt-Offenders": Doc Holyday (discard BANG! have no value), Belle Star (cards she in play in front of her are irrelevant on Belle's turn; her immunity is still relevant), Suzy Lafayette (she can still play her ineffective browns to draw more cards), Lee Van Kliff (he can repeat the effect of a card by discarding a BANG!, the value is no itself repeated, nor the value of the discarded relevant, allowing him to step around her ability), Black Flower (any club she can play as an extra BANG!, so she can more easily play non-royal BANG!), Der Spot-Burst Ringer (She is not immune to Gatling, as it targets more than one player), Evelynn Shebang (draw refusal for BANG! conversion means the BANG! are valueless, and thus Ms. Abigail's immunity is not triggered), Jacky Murieta/Mexicali Kid (resource converted BANG! are valueless, which Ms. Abigail is not immune to)

"Card Converters": Calamity Janet (convert your royal BANG! into Missed! and your non-royal Missed! into BANG!)

"Card Acquirers" (they have a higher chance of getting cards that will affect Ms. Abigail): Black Jack, Kit Carlson, Sean Mallory, Pixie Pete, Don Bell (when he gets his second turn), Jose Delgado, Tuco Franziskaner, Raddie Snake, Pedro Ramirez (he can see if the discard pile card is a non-royal value, and then draw it if he so chooses), Chuck Wengam/Bill Noface

2-Player Value: Great. Immunity is cards in a 2-player situation really helps.

Armed and Dangerous Value: Solid. Immunity allows her to hold on to cards with Missed! effects and then discard them on her turn when over her hand limit to gather load tokens.

Gold Rush Value: Solid. While she's not great at gathering gold nuggets, she is good at restricting other player characters from gaining gold nuggets by attacking her.

General Strategy: Ms. Abigail is another of the few characters included in Armed and Dangerous which has universal value outside of the expansion. Her ability most resembles Apache Kid, who is immune to the effects of diamonds played by other players. Similarly, she may be immune to the effects of royals (J, Q, K, A) where she is the only target. The may is relevant, or she'd be immune to cards she might play that target herself, or she'd be less able to willingly enter into a Duel. Notice how Apache Kid's ability still protects him from multiple target cards like Indians!, while Ms. Abigail does not have that luxury.

The net effect of this is Ms. Abigail is roughly immune to about 25% of the attack cards in the game (and her ability is easier to plan around than Jourdonnais' as it is guaranteed), and she is especially difficult to remove cards from. It's easier to discard, rather than steal from her, but they are both very difficult. Ms. Abigail should use this to her advantage, looking for blue and orange (dangerous) cards she can get out into play. Green cards are also valuable, especially as allowing her to offload her hand of defensive cards and focus more on offensive options -- she can use them only when needed, applying her immunity to any foolish player using a royal against her. General Store will be very helpful in nabbing these, as well as Tornado.

Duel's are less advantage for Ms. Abigail to participate in. For one, it allows her opponents to actually use royal BANG! against her by discarding them, while prior they would have no effect. She'll also be able to more likely keep high range gun cards in play, so the distance benefits are less relevant.

She should make sure she can counter multiple target attack cards well -- grabbing them when they appear in a General Store, and keeping a BANG! in hand to ward off Indians! and Arrow.

A clever Ms. Abigail player could also card count, and determine which royals have been played, as well as those that are in her hand, so she can get a greater sense of her probabilities of being affected.

Playing against Ms. Abigail: In some ways, knowing that Ms. Abigail is immune to your royal browns that target only her helps orient your behavior -- you don't waste your time playing them against her, say, versus Jourdonnais' where there's just a chance they won't affect him. Use that knowledge to your advantage. Use royals to feed the activation costs for other cards or abilities (Dodge City cards, card conversion abilities). When Indians!, Duel, or Tornado is played, discard the royal. Keep your eye on non-royal browns appearing in the General Store.

Since her ability only protects her for cards targeting only her, multiple target attacks that are royal are very valuable (I'm looking at you, Indians!, which has an A and K of diamonds). Note that when the game drops to 2 players, that immunity will suddenly kick in...

If you're paying attention to the card distribution of royals, you'll notice that is very hard to Panic! and Cat Balou cards from Ms. Abigail. This means that you need to play the cards that do steal/discard cards from her very wisely (Whip, Squaw, Brawl, Ragtime, Bandidos). Don't waste them on a green card; use them on something really meaningful. 

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Character Guide: Gary Looter

Character Name: Gary Looter. 

Inspired by: Gary Cooper, who starred in numerous famous western, such as when he played as Marshall Will Jane in High Noon. 

Life Points: 5. 

Ability Type: Neutral. 

Ability: "He draws all excess cards discarded by other players at the end of their turn." 

Activation: During other players' discard phases. 

Cards enhanced by Gary Looter's ability: Wells Fargo/Stagecoach/Pony Express (higher card limit makes it easier for him to hold on cards drawn from playing these cards), Duel (higher card limit gives him a greater capacity to hold BANG! to use during Duels), General Store (besides causing greater card selection, it also causes all other players to draw an extra card, making it more likely for them to exceed card limits by their discard phases), and Tequila/Whisky/Springfield/Brawl/Rag Time (higher card limit makes it easier to discard a card from his hand to play these cards). 

Cards less effective when played against Gary Looter: Wells Fargo and Pony Express (extra cards drawn make it more likely that you will exceed your card limit), Dynamite (base 5 life points make Dynamite less likely to eliminate him), Indians! (higher card limit gives him a greater capacity to hold BANG! to respond to Indians!), Duel (higher card limit gives him a greater capacity to hold BANG! to use during Duels), and General Store (card causes all other players to draw an extra card, making it more likely for them to exceed card limits by their discard phases).

Ideal role for Gary Looter: Sheriff (especially in larger games). 

Characters that counter Gary Looter well: Sean Mallory (he is very unlikely to exceed his card limit), Willy the Kid (lack of BANG! limit makes it easier for him to not have to discard during phase 3), Calamity Janet (able to use Missed! and BANG! interchangeably allows her to better manage her hand so that she does not exceed her limit), Sid Ketchum/Doc Holyday (Their abilities allow them to voluntary discard cards during their playing phases to create effects, undercutting Gary Looter's ability to draw cards from them), Lee Van Kliff (BANG! replication ability makes it unlikely that Gary Looter will be able to get cards from him), to some extent Big Spencer (while his life points are high, his high card limit makes him incredibly resistant to phase 3 discards), and Youl Grinner (syphoning off cards from other players makes it less likely that Gary Looter will get cards from those other players). 

Characters that Gary Looter counters well: Clause the Saint/Uncle Will (abilities cause all other players to draw an extra card, making it more likely for them to exceed card limits by their discard phases), Pixie Pete (base 3 card limit in combination with drawing 3 cards a turn makes it difficult for him not exceed his card limit), defensive 3 life point character such as Paul Regret/El Gringo/Elena Fuente/Apache Kid/Teren Kill (defensive stance with 3 life points make it more likely that they will exceed their card limits), Bill Noface (he draws more cards when his life points--and therefore card limit--are lower, making it very difficult not to exceed his card limit), and to some extent Chuck Wengam (dropping life points to gain cards lowers his card limit, creating a greater risk of having to discard during phase 3). 

2-player value: Depends on the amount of life points he enters in with, but all things being equal, his life points give him a nice advantage. Nonetheless, with only 1 opponent it will be difficult to gain cards since they will likely make sure to expend their cards so that Gary Looter cannot get any extras.

General Strategy as Gary Looter: To other players Gary Looter is an annoying character, and depending on his role, also an intimidating character. Players always have to think about whether or not they will go over their card limits. New players will not immediately recognize this, and even seasoned players will forget from time to time. Since Gary Looter is a nuisance, he is more likely to be a target. It is very important that Gary Looter's team mates recognize their ability to almost freely give him cards whenever they are over their limits. This can be used to aid Gary Looter when he is in trouble or to help him achieve strategic objectives, such as eliminating a player that Gary Looter can see but his team mate cannot. One could pass him a Volcanic to use to annihilate one of his adjacent players. 

At the beginning of the game, it is also a useful means of securing a decent card base for Gary Looter if he is having trouble. Gary Looter should try to keep valuable card-feeding allies alive. Of course, if Gary Looter is a Renegade, the chances of him getting high power cards from other players is slim. Gary Looter can play in such a way as to try to maximize his ability to gather other players' cards. For instance, playing General Store has the added benefit of increasing the amount of cards in all players' hands, on top of the better card selection for him. This can help allies pass cards and make it hard for rivals not to discard cards at the ends of their turns. 

Gary Looter should also be mindful of playing/using cards that require discards from all other players, such as is the case with Indians!, Gatling, and Howitzer. Since these cards can create many players to drop in their life points, and therefore card limits, Gary Looter can gain many cards within a round as a result. Of course, there is the possibility that the other players will have the right discards, making it therefore less likely for Gary Looter to draw cards from them during their discard phases. Gary Looter should pay attention to the number of cards in his rival's hands, as well as their playing styles, to judge whether or not playing such cards is momentarily worth it.

Gary Looter can also make it difficult for other players not to discard cards. This can be done by increase his distance from other players, so that unusable BANG! build up in their hands. It can also be done through who Gary Looter chooses to attack. If he has 2 rivals, and 1 is more defensive, ignore that rival and focus on the other. The build up Missed! and other defensive cards in that player's hand will make it hard for him not to exceed his card limit. The same goes with players who only have 3 life points. Finally, if there is clear evidence of a player having far more cards than his card limit, Gary Looter may not want to put that player in Jail, as he will then have no discard phase to pass the excess cards on to him. Besides this, Gary Looter can use his higher number of life points to his advantage to play Dynamite (it exploding on him is far less devastating) and also build strong offensive combos to take out a rival in one turn if possible. If he has a more defensive objective, he should try to make sure he has decent defensive cards in play before he does so. 

Playing against Gary Looter: Always remember how Gary Looter impinges on you. Whenever your discard phase arises, if you have to discard a card because you are over your alotted limit, Gary Looter picks it up. Try, therefore, to use as many cards as are necessary to get you below your card limit before your discard phase. Of course, you will always want to try to have a Missed! and a BANG! in your hand for defensive reasons, but try to make sure your hand is not getting bogged up with cards you can't play.

Make sure you can play many cards before playing a Wells Fargo or Stagecoach. Otherwise, Gary Looter might inherit many of your cards. If you are too defensive, you will start having defensive cards in your hand that you cannot play since (perhaps) no one is attacking you; you will soon have no option but to hand cards over to Gary Looter. Be more offensive, so that your rivals cannot ignore you. Also, make sure that your BANG! are playable. If you cannot see a rival, you will only be able to play BANG! on your allies or likely have to pass a card(s) to Gary Looter on your discard phase. Try to secure a gun or offensive sight modifier, so that does not become an issue. Replace guns, so that gun cards do not get stuck in your hand, unless it very adversely affects your gameplay. Be wary of duplicate cards that can also get stuck in your hand.

If you are playing with Dodge City, you may be able to play a card that requires discarding another to get rid of the duplicate. If you have any abilities that allow you to freely discard cards, use these to circumvent the card limit problem as well. Besides being cautious of your hand, also be careful when playing General Store, and cards that either reduce the card limit or increase the amount of cards in all other players' hands. These could potentially greatly benefit Gary Looter. Gary Looter is rarely a solo opponent. Be aware of his team mates and how they are feeding cards to him. If one ally is feeding him a lot of cards, focus fire on him, and try to play cards that could greatly reduce the amount of cards in his hand. Duel is the best example of that, but many other cards are useful for this (Panic! and Cat Balou when they target his hand). It may be to your advantage to eliminate Gary Looter's team mates before moving on to him, so consider it. All you have left to worry about is Gary Looter's greater number of life points. This is a problem, but not unsurmountable if you play carefully as outlined above. Just put the pressure on Gary Looter and use offensive combos where possible. Dynamite can work to your disadvantage depending on the number of life points Gary Looter has.
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Character Guide: Teren Kill

Character Name: Teren Kill.

Inspired by: Terrence Hill, an Italian action who starred in many spaghetti westerns.

Life Points: 3.

Ability Type: Defensive.

Ability: "Each time he would be eliminated 'draw!': if it is not Spades, Teren stays at 1 life point, and draws 1 card." It should be clarified that this moment is upon his "would be elimination," so a player can choose to play a last chance Beer and not undergo the "draw!" (see WWS FAQ Q18). However, the instruction cards explain that if a person voluntary foregoes playing the last chance Beer and "draws!" for Teren Kill's ability instead, he cannot afterwards play the last chance Beer if it is unsuccessful.

Activation: When he would otherwise be eliminated.

Cards less effective when played against by Teren Kill: Dynamite, and all damaging cards to some extent.

Cards more effective when played by Teren Kill Dynamite (he is less likely to be eliminated by its random mechanism than his peers).

Good role for Teren Kill: Renegade.

Characters that counter Teren Kill well: John Pain (for everyone of Teren's "draws!," he has a good chance of picking up a card too), Lee Van Kliff/Willy the Kid/Doc Holyday (they can easily make 2+ attacks during their turns, and so have a good chance of eliminating Teren Kill when he is down to his last life point), and most importantly Kit Carlson (he has a fair chance of stacking a spade against Teren Kill when he is at his last life point, and then attack him; if Teren has to "draw!" he is guaranteed to die).

Characters that Teren Kill counters well: Greg Digger/Herb Hunter/Vulture Sam (these characters' abilities activate upon player elimination; since Teren Kill will tend to not be eliminated easily, it makes it more difficult upon them), to some extent Pat Brennan/Belle Star (They can ignore (on Star's turn)/remove cards in play in front of Teren Kill, but it won't affect his native defensive ability, not to mention the card he draws into his hand if his "draw!" succeeds), and Slab the Killer (Slab's attack still only adds up to 1 life point lost, and so while it might blunt Teren Kill's defensive cards, it doesn't affect his ability).

2-player value: Excellent. His life retention ability will be very helpful when his opponent can no longer utilize Beer to regain life points.

General Strategy as Teren Kill: Teren Kill's ability gives him a 75% chance of remaining alive and drawing a card when he would be eliminated. The "drawing!" for this outcome does interact with event cards (Curse causing his immediate demise) and characters abilities (John Pain's, for instance). Of course, when Teren Kill is attacked in succession during another player's turn, his chances of survival are above 75% on the whole. The "draws!" probabilities remain relatively the same (the "drawing!" mechanism never gives a perfect a priori probability due to it only applying to the values of the cards remaining in the deck, so it is different from rolling a 4-sided die; cards in play are not reshuffled back into the deck until discarded, also changing probabilities), but the card drawn by Teren Kill upon a successful "draw!" increases his chances of survival. Thus, he could gain a card that can ward off BANG! or Indians!, or gain a Beer to play in a last chance sense. If a card takes off 2+ life points, Teren Kill does not have to "draw!" for each life point, just once. See Q12 of the Wild West Show FAQ:

Q12. If Teren Kill is eliminated by Dynamite, how many times does he have to "draw!" to stay alive? A. Just one time; if it is a card of Spades he is out, otherwise he stays at 1 life point (and draws a card from the deck).

While this defensive ability is quite powerful, it does have an irritating side to it: it only activates as a "last resort" before elimination. Any moment before then, his ability has almost no application. And he doesn't want to intentionally lose life points to use the ability since this move affects his card limit. He, of course, will try to build a hand and get cards in front of him that don't require him to use his ability. This, in essence, makes his ability pretty boring until he gets to his last breath, and it could still be boring if on his first "draw!" he gets a spade. If he survives, he has a fair chance of recovering another life point with likely having 3-4 cards in his hand at the beginning of his next turn. This make the card limit issue slightly less problematic. There is one exception to the Teren Kill's rather bland gameplay: Dynamite. Teren Kill should try to play it whenever possible. Since the chance of it exploding on him and eliminating him is quite low in proportion to the other players, and the damage it inflicts on others is so great, Dynamite is Teren Kill's best friend. Of course, this works far less effectively if Teren has to worry about blowing up his team mates, so he should consider the mix of player roles.

Playing against Teren Kill: Teren Kill is not a powerful character in an offensive sense. With a defensive ability that only activates upon his nigh elimination, and a 3 card limit, it is relatively easy to knock down his life points/card limit. But that shouldn't make you suppose that Teren Kill is weak. His stubborn persistence to live makes the battle with him one of attrition. His weaker offensive edge can still take you in the end if you do not put him down. However, since he is weaker offensively, you might consider ignoring him until you can eliminate one of his easier-to-off allies. If Teren Kill is Sheriff and you are an Outlaw, this does lead to a bit of a conundrum: do I still try to make a strong offensive burst at Teren Kill with my fellow outlaws, or do we try to knock out the Deputies/Renegades first? This is a toss up, but the tide of the battle is seriously against you in 7-8 player games (with 3-4 other non-Outlaws). The burst may be the only viable option, even though it would be extremely lucky for it to succeed. In a 6 player game, things are different. However, if Teren Kill is not the Sheriff (say, an Outlaw), eliminating his allies first makes far more sense. Whether or not you ignore Teren Kill momentarily, watch out for when Dynamite is in play. This card has a lot higher chance of doing damage to you/your allies than it does to Teren Kill. In most cases, you will want to steal, discard, or otherwise remove it from play, so that your team's position isn't compromised. Once you focus on Teren Kill, apply the same general offensive strategy until he gets to his last life point. Teren Kill will try to compensate during early-mid game by building up some defensive cards in his hand and in play (Mustang, Barrel, etc.). Use steal/discard abilities and cards to remove the defensive stronghold and pummel him down to his last life point to decrease his card limit. To finally eliminate him, chances are that a strategically orchestrated attack is necessary. This means either that you and your teammates attack him in succession before he has a turn, or that you can hit Teren Kill with an offensive combo, so that he has to "draw!" to keep his life multiple times. Of course, desperate times call for desperate measures, so this ideal orchestration may not be a feasible reality. Just keep shooting, then! Odds should require you to only make him "draw!" 4 times, but you can never tell. The battle with Teren Kill could be epic, or laughable (he "draws!" a spade the first time).

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Character Guide: Youl Grinner

Character Name: Youl Grinner.

Inspired by: Yul Brynner, famous actor best known for his role as Mongkut in The King and I. However, he acted in numerous westerns, such as when he portrayed Chris Adams in The Magnificent Seven.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral, although its power offensively/defensively will depend on his playing style and those of other players.

Ability: "Before drawing, players with more hand cards [cards in their hand] than him must give him one card of their choice."

Activation: Before other players' drawing phases, after they resolve Dynamite, Prison, and event cards.

Cards enhanced by Youl Grinner's ability: non-BANG! attacks besides Indians!/Duel (as he can quickly play them during his turn to drop the amount of cards in his hand), green defensive cards (Sombrero, Iron Plate, Bible, Ten Gallon Hat), Canteen, Barrel, Mustang, and Hideout. General Store can be great in helping increase the amount of cards in others' hands.

Cards weakened by Youl Grinner's ability: Duplicates of cards in play and defensive cards that remain in the hand (Missed!, Dodge), as he cannot voluntary play them to drop the amount of cards in his hand. Gatling and Indians! can still be powerful attacks, but by often lowering the amount of cards in all other players' hands, he may be weakening his leaching ability.

Cards less effective when played against Youl Grinner: Steal and discard cards targeting his hand (Panic!, Cat Balou, Can Can, Brawl, Rag Time, Conestoga).

Ideal role for Youl Grinner: All. As a Renegade it doesn't often matter whose cards he steals, as a Sheriff he can get hooked up from his Deputy with great cards, and as an Outlaw he will almost always being syphoning off cards from the Sheriff who tends to have more cards in his hand (5 life point character usually).

Characters that counter Youl Grinner well: Pat Brennan (he can steal cards Youl Grinner and others have in play instead of drawing cards, allowing him to control his the amount of cards in his hand well), Suzy Lafayette (she can pass on cards creating hiccups in her chain-drawing ability--typically, Missed!, to draw many more cards during her turn), Bill Noface (his ability is maximized by starting his turn with fewer cards in his hand due to card/life point constraints and then picking up a lot during his drawing phase; he may be able to mostly avoid giving cards to Youl Grinner), Willy the Kid (ability to dispose of BANG! makes it hard for Youl Grinner to have fewer cards in his hand than Willy the Kid; however, it does make it hard for Willy the Kid to store up BANG!), Sid Ketchum/Doc Holyday (transmutable abilities allow them to drop down the amount of cards in their hands), Lee Van Kliff (depleting BANG! to replicate cards in his hand helps drop the amount of cards in his hand), and Teren Kill (living on the edge ability makes it unlikely for Youl Grinner to steal cards from him).

Characters that Youl Grinner counters well: Sean Mallory (storing up cards for his card limit benefit makes it so that he will likely always have to hand cards over to Youl Grinner), Big Spencer (if he can store up cards due to his amount of life points, chances are he will always have to give cards to Youl Grinner while his life points are high; however, since Missed! are worthless to him, Big Spencer can pass those on easily in some occasions), Jesse Jones (if he uses his ability against Youl Grinner, Grinner has fewer cards in his hand, making it easier for Grinner to nab cards from others), El Gringo/Bart Cassidy (while losing life points makes them gain cards, they will likely have to hand the gained card to Youl Grinner at the beginning of their turns), Slab the Killer (who will draw Missed! from other players, and so playing 2 to avoid Slab the Killer's BANG! is both doable and beneficial for his ability), Flint Westwood (card swapping ability increases the amount of cards in his hand, making it easier for Youl Grinner to steal cards), John Pain (drawing on "draws!" makes it likely he will hand cards to Youl Grinner at the beginning of his turn),

2-player value: Excellent; the card pressure will force his opponent to use cards or pass them to him. However, his rival would be wise to pass non-efficacious Beer in their hand to Youl Grinner.

General Strategy as Youl Grinner: Youl Grinner's ability has a stronger effect on the players whose turns follow closely after his. Since he only gains cards when players have more cards in their hand than him, he will (all things being equal) be at his lowest card amount at the end of his own turn. Then, during the next couple of turns, he will pick up cards from players to his left. In larger games, players to his right may hardly feel the impact of his ability until later on in the game. This can be really good or bad for Youl Grinner depending on whether or not his allies (if he has any) are on his left or right sides. If his allies are to his left, then his team should work on making Youl Grinner their main attack force. As the store up defensive cards, they can pass on their most powerful offensive cards to Youl Grinner. Grinner can use them to deal out damage and deplete his cards to pick up more from his allies. Of course, when needed, defensive cards may also be passed.

If his rivals are to his left, he is in great position to drain them if he lowers the amount of cards in his hand. However, defensive cards may be necessary as they will hate his constant leaching. This can be best compensated by getting green defensive cards, a Barrel, and defensive sight modifiers in play. That way if he plays several offensive cards, he still has a defense if they want to quickly retaliate. Fortunately, as long as they have more cards than him, he will always get at least 1 additional card before he is attacked. He should be careful with expending all of his BANG!, though. All the cards he puts in play will do little to deflect Duel or Indians! played against him. Ideally, he should try to get down to a BANG! and a Missed! (or have a defensive card in play) by the end of his turn. This will maximize his leaching ability, while still protecting him.

With his discard/steal cards, he should likely make sure not to waste them on players with more cards than him (as he will likely steal from them anyway). Otherwise, he may end up losing the card he would have stolen from them anyway. This danger is increased when the discard/steal cards are Conestoga or Can Can. He should try to use them on players that already have fewer cards than him to compound their weaker situation.

Playing against Youl Grinner: Youl Grinner is another one of the irritating characters in Wild West Show that affects the way all other players play and manage their hands. With Gary Looter, most players could make sure that they did not exceed their cards limits, so Gary Looter tended to only benefit when people wanted to hand him cards (which works obscenely well when he is Sheriff). Of course, with both Gary Looter and Youl Grinner, players had to be somewhat careful when playing draw cards like Wells Fargo and Stagecoach. However, Youl Grinner is more irritating because you are not only monitoring the amount of cards in your hand more closely, but also the amount of cards in Youl Grinner's hand. Generally speaking, you will not want to have more cards in your hand by the end of your turn than Youl Grinner if it appears that you will have more cards in your hand them him by your next turn (turn order, as explained in the previous section affects this quite a bit).

When you do end up giving cards to Youl Grinner, look at the cards he has in play and those that you have seen him pick up/play to try to give him a less advantageous card. Also consider the card(s) you will be playing during your turn. If you are going to play an Indians! or Duel against Youl Grinner, you will probably not want to hand him a BANG! to defend against them.

In some ways, Youl Grinner's ability can be exploited. If you want a player to your left to lose a card if he has the same amount of cards in his hand and Youl Grinner, see if shooting at or discarding/stealing a card from Youl Grinner might remove a card from his hand. He may opt to take a hit instead of drop a card (or deflect it with a green defensive card or Barrel), but maybe not. Then, at the next player's turn, he will have to give a card to Youl Grinner. This could be used advantageously both as a rival or an ally of Youl Grinner.

Often with Youl Grinner, killing him is about prioritizing. Since he is leaching cards from players close to his left, think about whether or not those players are his allies. If he is a Sheriff, those other players will be of huge benefit to him, and so you may not be able to ignore them if you are an Outlaw. You might want to kill them first. Even if he is not the Sheriff, killing off his allies can be a great move. Since defensive cards will tend to sit in his hand, this can increase the amount of cards in his hand if Youl Grinner is not targetted. While a smart Youl Grinner will try to use more offensive cards to compensate, this will still make his ability activate less often. This will work even better if you adjust his sight constraints, so that he cannot easily use BANG! against his rivals. Your steal/discard cards will work well against the cards he has in play as they will not modify the amount of cards in his hand. Using a Jail on Youl Grinner when his card limit is maxed out (or the amount of cards in his hand is higher than others) can also help. After nuking out his allies, you will have to focus on Youl Grinner.

Once Youl Grinner is your direct target, you can avoid his ability in some ways. Get defensive green cards, defensive sight modifiers, and a Barrel in play, and then become more free with depleting your hand (made easier with a Volcanic). Offensive combos can also be powerful, but they have the difficulty of being stored up. If played correctly (and luckily), as Youl Grinner's life points drop, you will still tend to have in your hand less than or equal to the amount of cards in his hand.

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Character Guide: Flint Westwood

Character Name: Flint Westwood.

Inspired by: Clint Eastwood, who played in famous roles such as Joe (the man with no name) in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral, although more powerful in an Offensive sense.

Ability: "During his turn, he may trade 1 card from hand with 2 cards at random from the hand of another player." The card from his hand is not at random. As the Notes card provided in the expansion explains, "The card from your hand is your choice, not at random."

Activation: During his phase 2, whenever he has at least 1 card in his hand. This ability may only be used once during his turn. This is only cleared up in the FAQ:

Q27. How many times can Flint Westwood use his ability during his turn?
A. Only once.

Cards enhanced by Flint Westwood's ability: BANG!, Indians!, Buffalo Rifle, Derringer, Knife, Pepperbox, Howitzer, Springfield, Punch, Gatling, Duel, Cat Balou, Brawl, Panic!, Rag Time, Can Can, Conestoga, and General Store.

Good roles for Flint Westwood: All.

Characters that counter Flint Westwood well: Jourdonnais (native defensive ability built in against Flint Westwood), somewhat El Gringo (after having cards stolen and taking a hit, he will steal a card back Flint Westwood), somewhat Slab the Killer (he only needs 1 BANG! to dish out damage), Calamity Janet (losing a BANG!/Missed! to Flint Westwood is less problematic when you can use them interchangeably), to some extent Pat Brennan (he can gather defensive cards to have in play, and remove Flint Westwood's offensive sight modifiers), at times Bill Noface (losing health to Flint Westwood can help his card drawing, which he can expend all mostly during his turn), Youl Grinner (Flint Westwood's card swapping ability won't work well against Youl, as forcing him to have fewer cards will just make Youl accumulate more until his turn), Teren Kill (native defense makes it difficult for Flint Westwood to finish him off, and less important for Teren Kill to have cards in his hand to be stolen), and John Pain (card swapping with him won't hurt him much if "draw!" cards are in play).

Characters that Flint Westwood counters well: Elena Fuente (His ability will remove at least 1 card she can use as a Missed!), Suzy Lafayette (He can stack in her hand a card that she cannot use during her turn--cards from the Missed! family), Willy the Kid (Flint Westwood can pillage his built up BANG! supply), Pixie Pete (destroys his card bonus ability, and weakens his defensive hand), Sid Ketchum/Doc Holyday (removes cards they can use to convert to regain life points/play BANG!), Tequila Joe (can steal his stored up Beer quite easily), Molly Stark (he can steal a majority of the cards that she would play out of turn for a bonus), Uncle Will (General Stores played point out to Flint Westwood who to steal from), Big Spencer (can remove any stored up life point modifiers/efficacious defensive cards from his hand), and Lee Van Kliff (deplete BANG! and replicatable cards from his hand).

2-player value: Excellent. Card advantage will help him a lot here. However, his rival would be wise to store non-efficacious Beer in their hand for Flint Westwood to pick up.

General Strategy as Flint Westwood: Flint Westwood is another very OP character added in Wild West Show. Think of him as a better version of Jesse Jones meeting a better version of Pixie Pete. Flint Westwood can always draw 3 cards a turn like Pixie Pete: 2 from the deck and another from another player (the 1 card for 2 balances out a 1 card gain). This works well in providing him the additional card cost for cards like Springfield, Brawl, and Rag Time. However, unlike Pixie Pete he has 4 life points. Secondly, his third card bonus significantly hurts another player. Like Jesse Jones, he steals from a player's hand. He steals 2 at random instead of 1, and while he must give 1 card from his hand to that player, that card is of his choice. This means he can pass a card that will not be that advantageous to that player (or to himself) for 2 that that player has been storing up. In essence, Flint Westwood is quite the hooker.

Due to being OP, Flint Westwood should expect that he will be a greater target. If Flint Westwood is on a team, it will likely be to his advantage to declare his allegiances through his actions earlier on, so that his own allies do not try to weaken him out of fear. Of course, he may still wish to wait somewhat before revealing his role through his actions, so that his allies have some time to build a hand/card base, but it should be quick. When using his ability in the early game, Flint Westwood needs to recognize that it will make enemies. Try to swap cards with those who cannot reach Flint Westwood with BANG!, and swap with multiple players so that the pilfering is equally balanced. Flint Westwood doesn't want to hurt your allies too much, after all. When swapping, Flint Westwood should always have 2 things in mind: (1) Do I need this card? (2) Is this card very useful for the target player's setup? The answers to these questions should typically be "no" if Flint Westwood is going to swap out a card for 2 of another player's.

While role revelations are still getting sorted out, Flint Westwood should try to get some defensive cards in play. General Store can be useful to gather powerful cards. He can first pick up a useful card for himself, then use his swapping ability to have a good chance to steal a powerful card picked up by another player. Defensive cards in the hand are less important to focus on gathering. Flint Westwood tends to pick up Missed! with your card swapping abilities since those cards are defensive, played out of turn, and cannot easily be discarded. So gathering those is actually not that difficult. If Flint Westwood needs a Missed!, he should swap with someone he hasn't swapped with in a while. If he wants to get rid of a Missed!, he shouldn't swap up with a player he is trying to kill. Otherwise, Flint Westwood knows that firing a BANG! at him will immediately be ineffective.

Once a defensive base is established, Flint Westwood can shift towards using his swapping ability in a very offensively powerful way. Upon picking his target, Flint Westwood can look at what attack cards he has in his hand that he wants to use against his rival. Then, he can swap out a card that cannot defend against his attack cards for 2 that potentially could. A good card for Flint Westwood to swap out would be a weaker gun card if his opponent already has a stronger gun card in play. If he has other discard/steal cards in his hand, then he can deplete his opponent's hand even further. After this, he can now play his offensive cards. This should likely make his target take significant damage. For instance, say Flint Westwood had a Duel, BANG!, Indians!, and Missed! in his hand. He could swap out the Missed! for 2 cards from his rival. He picks up a Missed! and a BANG!. Then, he plays an Indians! and the Duel. With no BANG! in his hand, the rival takes 2 hits. Flint Westwood also knows afterwards that his opponent has a Missed! in his hand; he should use this knowledge for future decisions. He should be able to finish off opponents pretty quickly this way. When he needs Missed! to cover himself, simply swap from other players' hands as needed.

Playing against Flint Westwood: Flint Westwood is a very strong rival, but there are some things you can do to play well against him. First, recognize that Flint Westwood's ability only targets cards that are in your hand. As a result, it will be key for you to have cards in play to combat him. This means gathering green offensive and defensive cards, so that you can prepare against his attack after swapping with you. If he grabs your BANG! and plays Indians! or Duel you are out of luck, but you can protect yourself against his other attacks through green defensive cards, Barrel, and defensive sight modifiers (Mustang, Hideout).

Also, since he tends to grab half of your out of turn hand (potentially more if you have a 3 card limit, potentially less if you have 5+ card limit), do not store up cards that you typically would. For instance, there is sometimes a desire to store up Beer for "last chance" opportunities. Since Flint Westwood has such a good chance of nabbing that away, use the Beer as soon as it can be efficacious. That way he will not be stealing it from you. Other powerful cards such as Panic! and Cat Balou you should not store up. Use them on your turn, or expect Flint Westwood to steal them from you and then use them immediately on you again to further devastate your hand or the cards you have in play.

You may try to build a hand that is more resistant to the Flint Westwood's card swapping. For instance, you could try to keep duplicates of cards in play in front of Flint Westwood in your hand, so that Flint Westwood grabs them but cannot use them. The difficulty with this is that he could steal the other cards in your hand and leave you with just the duplicates: then you are wide open. So that strategy is risky at best. What of other hands to build? Since he grabs about 50% of your cards, the most resistant hand would consist of 2 Missed! and 2 BANG! if you are a 4 card limit character. However, it will be rare for you to be able to have such a hand. Building up the Missed! cards may or may not be that difficult. Upon drawing them, you cannot get rid of them easily. This means they will tend to build up in your hand. As a result, you will have to expect Flint Westwood to steal them. This isn't too problematic if Flint Westwood is not being attacked himself, since he will likely be swapping Missed! from his hand to gather cards. When he is being attacked, he will be less likely to hand out the Missed!, so then you need to be more concerned. This is where your defensive cards in play will be very useful. BANG! are more frequently drawn than Missed!, and with them you will have to decide whether to expend them so Flint Westwood does not pick them up, or keep them in your hand as a defense. If you have 2 BANG!, I recommend keeping them in your hand defensively. If you have 1, I recommend expending it. Of course, part of that decision will depend on the other characters and rivals that are in the game. Not having BANG! in your hand does open you up to special attacks.

Some last considerations will be obvious: since Flint Westwood's card swapping ability applies during his turn, placing him in Jail can give your reprieve from his ability for a round. When Flint Westwood (or anyone else) plays a General Store, be careful what you pick up. Flint Westwood will be examining the cards drawn by other players, and if they are powerful he will probably try to use his card swapping ability on them. If you are before him in the order, there is nothing to worry about as long as you play or put into play that card on your turn. If you are after him in the order, all bets are off. If you have what he wants, you may be his target.

Character Rebalance: If you think Flint Westwood is too OP (he is), try out some of these rebalances:

• Once during his turn, he may select 2 cards at random from a player's hand. He may exchange a card from his hand for 1 of the selected cards. Otherwise, the selected cards are returned to their owner.


• Once during his turn, he may discard a card from his hand to draw 1 card at random from the hand of another player.


• Once during his turn, he may give 1 card from his hand to another player. Then, he selects 2 cards at random from that player's hand. He keeps all brown cards; all others are returned.

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Character Guide: Greygory Deck

Character Name: Greygory Deck. 

Inspired by: Gregory Peck, western actor who starred in films like Big Country. 

Life Points: 4. 

Ability Type: Neutral. 

Ability: "At the start of his turn, he may draw 2 characters at random. He has all the abilities of the drawn characters." However, the Notes card included in Wild West Show specifies (as well as the WWS FAQ) that "The only valid characters are those from the basic game" [i.e. Dodge City, The Bullet, Wild West Show, Gold Rush, Valley of Shadows, and Armed & Dangerous characters are excluded]. The amount of abilities Greygory Deck has do not compound (2 more a turn), but rather the 2 he possesses can be swapped out for another 2 at the beginning of his turn. The Notes card states, "At the beginning of your next turn, you decide whether to keep the characters or to change them. If you choose to change them, you must change both of them." So Greygory Deck first opts whether or not to keep his current 2 abilities at the beginning of his turn. If he opts to swap them, he must swap them both out. However, he does have the opportunity to draw them both again, as the Wild West Show FAQ states:

Q1. When Gregory Deck opts to change the characters whose abilities he is using, does he set aside the character cards whose abilities he was using, or does he shuffle these cards back with the rest of the others so that he might potentially draw them again? A. Gregory Deck must mix these character cards in with the others, and then randomly draw 2 (which could also be those he just discarded).

Activation: At the beginning of his turn, before his drawing phase, but after resolving Jail and Dynamite. It also activates at the beginning of the game (regardless of whether it is his turn or not), as the Notes card explains: "This ability also applies at the beginning of the game." Special Considerations for the Combinations drawn from the Basic Game Characters: The Wild West Show FAQ specifies how to resolve certain ability combinations that might throw you off when it comes to Gregory Deck:

Q31. What happens if the abilities of original game characters drawn by Gregory Deck contradict one another or influence a similar aspect of the game, such as how to draw during a drawing phase? A. If the two skills are in absolute conflict, Gregory Deck picks only 1 of them to use (he does not get to draw another character). If the conflict is not absolute, then combine the abilities. For example: 1) If the 2 characters drawn are Jesse Jones and Kit Carlson: You can take a card from the hand of a player (using Jesse Jones' ability) and then see the first 3 cards from the deck and choose the second card that you wish to draw. 2) If the 2 characters drawn are Jesse Jones and Pedro Ramirez: You have the choice of drawing your first card from the deck, a player's hand, or from the top of the discard pile. 3) If the 2 characters drawn are Kit Carlson and Black Jack: Look at the top 3 cards of the deck, select 2, and show the second one you selected. If it is red, draw a third card from the deck.

Cards enhanced by Greygory Deck's ability: Depends on the abilities he copies. 

Cards less powerful when played against Greygory Deck: Depends on the abilities he copies.

Cards more powerful when played against Greygory Deck: Jail; besides this, it depends on the ability he copies. 

Good roles for Greygory Deck: All. 

Characters that counter Greygory Deck well: It depends on the abilities he copies. 

Characters that Greygory Deck counters well: It depends on the abilities he copies, but on the whole he will always be better than his copycating partner, Vera Custer. 

2-player value: Excellent; he does not have the copycatting constraints that Vera Custer has in being only able to copy from the living characters in play, nor does he have the 3 life point disadvantage. He can swap out his 2 character abilities for ones that are more valuable during 2 player (get rid of Vulture Sam's for instance). 

General Strategy as Greygory Deck: Greygory Deck is the most OP of the Wild West Show bunch, gaining a distinctive advantage over other BANG! characters by always possessing 2 character abilities. While these are from the basic game alone, there are still very powerful abilities and combinations that he can be dealt. Furthermore, when he is in a scenario where his current set of abilities is not particularly useful, he swap out those abilities for 2 random ones. Pretty crazy! 

He also lacks a lot of the downsides of Vera Custer. He has 4 life points, making him far less defensively weak, and giving him a strong advantage when copying 3 life point character's abilities (Paul Regret, El Gringo). Second, he doesn't have to copy abilities from those living in play. Thus, he doesn't have to worry about the 2-player showdown. He doesn't have as good an ability to choose the ability he copies (Vera Custer can directly select one), but he does have a bigger pool to choose from than Vera Custer. He gets 2 abilities; she gets 1. When Greygory Deck is put in Jail, he retains his 2 character abilities. When Vera Custer is in Jail, she lacks an ability until her next turn. Vera Custer has no ability at the beginning of the game making her an easy target for early game aggression; Greygory Deck starts with 2 character abilities at the beginning of the game. Vera Custer's only real benefit is being able to copy non-basic game character abilities if non-basic game characters happen to be in play. Doesn't sound fair, does it? Well, it's not. It's wild. 

Strategy for Gregory Deck is more sporadic due to not only the abilities he copies, but also by the fact that the abilities dealt are random. Of course, at the beginning of the game he will want to try to gamble and get defensive abilities (Paul Regret, El Gringo, Jourdonnais, Lucky Duke, Sid Ketchum, Bart Cassidy; Calamity Janet's is also useful) or neutral abilities granting greater card accrual or selection (Black Jack, Kit Carlson, Pedro Ramirez). Abilities of these types will give Greygory Deck some time to build a hand and get good offensive and defensive blue/green cards in play before bullets start flying. 

Whether or not to transition from the character abilities he currently has depends much on his role and the position of his allies. Typically, once the defensive base is in place, he should try to transition to more offensive and offensively capable abilities (Slab the Killer, Suzy Lafayette, Willy the Kid, Rose Doolan, Calamity Janet, Jesse Jones). The player elimination bonus of Vulture Sam would be particularly useful at this time as well. If he has expended a lot of cards or is hurting, making a gamble in hopes to transition back to defensive abilities isn't a bad idea either. Try to remember your gambling probabilities: 4/16 original game characters are clearly offensive, 6/16 clearly defensive, and 6/16 neutral. Of course, these probabilities change when there are characters from the base game already in play. He should pay very close attention to how that can affect his chances of getting a nice setup. 

Playing against Greygory Deck: One obvious strategy for handling Greygory Deck is "meta" -- the fewer characters you allow to be drafted by players (say you removed the Dodge City, Bullet, etc. characters), the more likelihood you'll hand them out original game characters, and as life point counters, which may impede Greygory Deck's character choices, especially if you nab the strongest ones. House rules for getting to pick from 2, enables you to restrict him from getting the strongest ones.

Since Greygory Deck's abilities are randomly dealt to him, he is a difficult character to anticipate. He may choose to swap out his abilities and end up with a far better or far worse combination when it comes to helping him complete his goals. Despite his sporadic nature, since he possesses 2 abilities at all times he will be a very powerful ally or enemy. Make sure that you do not weaken him too much at the beginning of the game (he could be your ally), but do give him some pressure to reveal his role. That way you can no if you should be spending any of your time on him. Once he is determined to be your rival, play close attention to the abilities he possesses at any given time, and form your strategy against him based on those abilities. This requires a lot of familiarity with the base game characters, so make sure to read those character cards, and the character guides I have written about them if you have the chance. Jail can always be a useful card to play against Greygory Deck, in making it likely for him to be unable to swap out his abilities for a round. This hang up can work out somewhat nicely when Greygory Deck needs to transition to a new set of abilities to accomplish his goals (or stay alive), or if he has been randomly dealt a very non-complimentary setup.

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Character Guide: John Pain

Character Name: John Pain. 

Inspired by: John Wayne, enough said. 

Life Points: 4. 

Ability Type: Neutral. 

Ability: "If he has less than 6 cards in hand, each time any player "draws!", John adds the card just drawn to his hand." 

Activation: When any player causes a "draw!" or resolves a "draw!" due to a card a player played (event cards excluded). 

Cards enhanced by John Pain's ability: Barrel, Jail, and Dynamite. 

Good roles for John Pain: All. 

Characters that counter John Pain well: Pat Brennan (he can remove heavy "drawing!" Barrels and Dynamite), characters with defensive abilities not dependent upon "draws!" (Molly Stark, El Gringo, and Elena Fuente), most card transmutation characters that can discard Barrel and Dynamite in useful ways (Jose Delgado, Sid Ketchum, Doc Holyday; not Uncle Will), characters that constrain the number of cards in hands (Youl Grinner and Gary Looter), and Vera Custer (she can copy his ability and if closer in a clockwise direction from the player with the "draw!" triggering card or ability, she nabs the cards instead -- see WWS FAQ Q11).

Robbers' Roost: Queen Anne/Lela Devere (they can remove heavy "drawing!" Barrels and Dynamite), Turd Ferguson (inherent Missed! makes him less dependent on Barrel), Josey Bassett/Julie Bulette (hand efficiency abilities makes them less dependent on Barrel), Crazy Bull/Eva Place (strong defense outside of "draws!")

Characters that John Pain counters well: Jourdonnais (anytime he "draws!" for a BANG!, John Pain will likely draw the card), Lucky Duke (John Pain draws both cards that Lucky Duke "draws!"), Teren Kill (picks up the "drawn!" card when resolving whether Teren lives or not), Belle Star (see explanation below), Uncle Will (General Store will reveal too many "draw!" cards), 3 life point characters that desperately need Barrel (Sean Mallory, Pixie Pete, and Claus the Saint), Big Spencer (needing a Barrel for defense, John Pain can draw many cards as a result), and characters that depend on Dynamite strategies (this often goes with player elimination abilities, like with Vulture Sam, Greg Digger, and Herb Hunter).

Robbers' Roost: Job Musgrove (anytime he "draws!" in response to an attack, John Pain will likely draw the card), Anne Rogers (copying cards with "draw!" trigger only empowers John Pain further), Maggie Mae (swapping Barrel around doesn't get rid of the "draw!" trigger), Laura Billion (her "draws!" will occur on every next turn where she has used a card, significantly empowering John Pain)

Special Consideration with Belle Star: Belle Star's ability makes card in play in front of other players have no effect on her turn. However, this does not mean that cards in play in front of other players cannot be utilized on her turn. Why would this be useful? Because John Pain can still "draw!" cards from his and other players' ineffective Barrel "draws!" -- in other words, while a heart "drawn!" from a Barrel will not provide a missed! when Belle Star attacks someone, John Pain can still gain the "drawn!" card. 

2-player value: Okay. Depends on the "draw!" cards he has and and can get into play. 

General Strategy as John Pain: John Pain is a nuisance like many of the Wild West Show characters in altering how the rest of the other BANG! players play. Youl Grinner often makes players expend more cards, while Gary Looter encourages players to insure they use cards so that they do not have cards over their limit during their discard phases. John Pain makes players be concerned whether or not they have cards affecting "draws!" in play--namely Barrel, Jail, and Dynamite. This is very difficult on characters that need the extra defenses a Barrel provides, or the havoc that Dynamite creates. It also constrains abilities that are dependent upon "draws!" such as Jourdonnais, Lucky Duke, and Teren Kill. John Pain's goal should be for him (and his allies) to get high "drawing!" cards in play: Dynamite and Barrel. This, of course, means that John Pain should try to gain steal cards and use them whenever necessary to steal those from an enemy. General Store can be especially useful in getting 1 of these "draw!" cards for himself or one of his allies. 

With Dynamite, John Pain needs to remember that 2 Dynamites can be in play simultaneously, as the Dodge City rules specify (see specific Dynamite rules). 2 Dynamite are never in play in front of 1 player; rather, 1 Dynamite hops over the player with a Dynamite already in front of him. Dynamite is the best time for John Pain to draw cards because players have no choice but to "draw!" in an attempt to resolve it. Since he will be racking up tons of cards, he should try to use as many cards as possible during his turn to gather more. This is because he has a 6 card limit for this drawing bonus, and so he should try to maximize the amount of cards he can get from it. A Volcanic will be very useful here, in helping both get rid of BANG!, while also helping John Pain accrue tons of ammo to fire at his rivals. 

When rivals have Barrels (or a "draw!" ability), John Pain could try to shoot at them and see if they are willing to "draw!" on his shots. Smart ones will decline the opportunity. There may also be situations where John Pain could shoot at a well defended ally who possesses a Barrel. If John Pain really needs to get a better card, he could expend the BANG!, have his ally "draw!" and then hope to get a better card with the "drawn!" card. Of course, the ally might have to still expend a defensive card, but it could be useful depending on John Pain's needs and sight constraints. The Barrels in front of John Pain and his allies also create a diversion for John Pain's rivals. Each time they shoot at one of them who has a Barrel, John Pain will draw a card. Fire will likely be directed to the ally without the Barrel as a consequence, so John Pain should prepare for that. 

Playing against John Pain: Tread carefully when playing against John Pain. Consider the situation very carefully before playing a Barrel, and do not automatically use it as you are prone to do. Weigh how a "drawn!" card could benefit John Pain before you utilize the Barrel. The same goes with "draw!" abilities like Jourdonnais and Lucky Duke. Look at the consequences before using their abilities. Teren Kill doesn't have a choice with his, so he is simply out of luck when "drawing!" for his last life point. You must also be concerned about firing at John Pain or his allies when they have Barrels in play. Since they are guaranteed to use the Barrel, so that John Pain can gain the card, decide whether you should shoot at that player and not another lacking the Barrel instead. Using a Volcanic+BANG! on a player with a Barrel seems like an especially bad idea in most scenarios. Try to remove those Barrels wherever possible. 

When it comes to Dynamite, I would recommend never playing it when John Pain is your rival. If you have a card transmutation abilities (like Sid Ketchum's), discard it for the extra benefit. If another player puts a Dynamite into play, try to discard it immediately, or steal it, and discard it during a discard phase. You fortunately have 1 round before the Dynamite activates and the "drawing!" begins, but hurry up since John Pain will about to become a demon. Remember that you cannot knock out 1 Dynamite by putting another Dynamite into play. While Jail activates a "draw!", it is only a 1 time occurrence, so I would not fret too much. It can be a good means of silencing a John Pain who has already racked up 6 cards. Throw him in Jail, and he cannot gain the "draw!" benefit. He will have to sit in Jail for the following round unable to gain any new cards either.
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