Robbers' Roost: New Blue Cards to Enhance Gaining or Retaining Cards

NOTE: Now that RR has gone through significant revisions, all these cards have been eliminated. Too many blue cards were seen to bog down the game and benefit Mr. Delgado far too much. They may reappear sometime in the future as "accessory cards." This post is kept here for historical purposes (tracking RR's development) alone. For the characters actually in the RR expansion, go the official page.

Following up on my last post on new guns in Robbers' Roost, I thought I would introduce some of the other blue cards that will be introduced into Robber's Roost. I'll probably do this over three posts. Today, I will show blue cards that provide benefits in terms of gaining or retaining cards.

Ammo Belt. Increases the maximum amount of cards you can hold (your card limit) by 1. NOTE: There will be 2 of these in the Robbers' Roost expansion.	Cowboy Boots. All your Missed! count as Dodge (you draw a card from the deck whenever you play a Missed! card in response to an attack).	Hammock. If you don't play or use any cards during your turn, draw a card at the end of your discard phase.
Lucky Dice. If your second card drawn is a club, you may show it to draw another card.

Robbers' Roost: 4 New Guns

NOTE: Now that RR has gone through significant revisions, the Colt Lightning and Robert Wheeler have been eliminated. Only the Bulldog and James Dougall remain in a modifed form. This post is kept here for historical purposes (tracking RR's development) alone. For the cards actually in the RR expansion, go the official page.

Now that I have finished the Alpha release of Death Mesa, which I hope many will enjoy (as well as critique and improve), I can return to working on Robbers' Roost. I have already shown the orange cards that will be added, and many of the characters I am suggesting to add to the game, but I have not shown any of the blue, green, and brown cards I also think could be fun to add to the game. Today, I wanted to share the 4 guns I plan on adding to the BANG! deck. There would only be one of each of these guns in the deck. All but 1 have special abilities, while the 1 has a limitation that I think you might find interesting.

Colt Lightning. 2-5 Range. You cannot shoot any player you see at distance 1.	James Dougall. 1 Range. 2 Missed! must be played to avoid BANG! fired from this gun.	Bulldog. 2 Range. Discard 2 BANG! to Gatling.
Robert Wheeler. 1 Range. You may play 2 BANG!, but they must be shot at the same target.

Death Mesa (Alpha Version) Officially Released

As promised, Death Mesa (Alpha Version) is officially ready for release! I have updated the cards, the Death Mesa page, and Death Mesa Guidebook to incorporate new changes that I have made. The expansion is available in one large 8 megabyte zip file, or as a series of 9 PDFs. Download according to your preference. I recommend downloading the Guidebook first to determine your production method, and from thereon downloading the files that you need. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this expansion, and I hope that the quality of it will gear you up for Robber's Roost!



Download the Death Mesa Expansion (Alpha Version) now.

For those who download and play with Death Mesa, please give me some feedback on the expansion, so that I can consider how to improve it for future releases. You can simply post your feedback on this post, or e-mail me.



While Death Mesa is currently only available in English, I am considering a Spanish translation (and perhaps an Italian translation) for the future. Devuelve en el futuro para la traducción!

Character Guide: Vulture Sam

Character Name: Vulture Sam.

Inspired by: Some outlaw gangs were referred to as "vultures," suggesting their tendency to scavenge, pillage and steal other's loot.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral.

Ability: "Whenever a character is eliminated from the game, Sam takes all the cards that player had in his hand and in play, and adds them to his hand."

Activation: When another player dies, and has cards in play in front of them and/or in their hand.

Cards enhanced by Vulture Sam's ability: Dynamite, all attack cards (killing hits bring a greater reward).

Ideal Roles for Vulture Sam: Sheriff, Renegade (Vulture needs to survive to use his ability).

Characters who counter Vulture Sam well: Offensive characters who target him right away (Slab the Killer, Willy the Kid).

2-player value: It depends on your initial setup when the 2-player fight begins. If you gained a good card base from the eliminated players up to that point, then yes; if not, you are at a severe disadvantage.

General Strategy for Vulture Sam: As Vulture Sam needs other players with cards to die for him to gain them, Vulture Sam needs to outlive his opponents to benefit. And the more players in the game, the more potential cards Vulture Sam can scavenge from their deaths (so he is typically better in larger games). Thus, Vulture Sam's initial goal should be create a defensive base: get out a Barrel through drawing or stealing one, gather Missed!, Beer, and make sure to have a BANG! in hand at all times to avoid hits from Indians! Vulture Sam should try to get a Mustang, and use Cat Balous/Panics to control his distance from other players by affecting their gun cards. As other characters lose health (2 or less), Vulture Sam may wish to switch to an offensive base. This is especially true if he is not an Outlaw. Vulture Sam should try to get an attack combo (consisting of some mix of Duel, BANG!, Indians!, Gatling) and then pop off the other player in hopes that he is an Outlaw. That way Vulture Sam gets both their cards and the 3 card bonus. Even if Vulture Sam is an outlaw, it is nice to get their cards a little bit sooner. Vulture Sam will usually get some blue cards that he can use right away. While the 3 card bonus is useful, unless Vulture Sam has a Volcanic he will often have to discard some of his bonus cards. If there are several players with lower health, Vulture Sam should target the player that is his enemy, or an ally who will not survive (whose usefulness is expended), who also has cards in play in front of him that Vulture Sam could benefit more from (a Mustang, or Scope, for instance, or a gun with a specific range or ability like a Volcanic).

After Vulture Sam has eliminated a player, he should try to switch back some to a defensive base (as long as their are other players shooting at each other), as attention will be drawn to him now that he has gained so many cards. Once another player's life is down, Vulture Sam can switch again to the offensive and get their cards. I recommend throwing out Dynamite as Vulture Sam has little chance of being hit by it, and if it blows up on another player, there is a high chance of that player dying and giving Vulture Sam a lot of cards. Players that die from Dynamite tend not to have already expended all of the cards in their hands, and so Vulture Sam can get a much greater reward from their deaths. As a quick aside, Vulture Sam does not pick up the Dynamite in front of a player when it explodes and kills them. The BANG! FAQ specifies,

Q14. If the Dynamite explodes eliminating a player, does the character Vulture Sam draw the Dynamite along with all other cards of the player eliminated?
A. No. To complete the effect of the Dynamite you have to discard it after it explodes. So when Vulture Sam gets all the cards of the player killed, the Dynamite is already in the discard pile.

Even if Vulture Sam is a Sheriff and kills his Deputy with the Dynamite, he is not seen as culpable and so gains all of the Deputy's cards (so while not the best scenario, it is better for Vulture Sam than it would be for other character Sheriffs). Vulture Sam does need to worry about killing his Deputy with other cards, however. He does not get to kill them accidentally, discard his cards, and then pick up their cards. He draws their cards and then all of his are discarded. There is no "easy way out" for killing the Deputy this way. The BANG! FAQ explains:

Q18. If Vulture Sam eliminates a Deputy, as a Sheriff, does he discard all his cards before or after getting the cards of the Deputy just eliminated?
A. First Vulture Sam gets all the cards from the Deputy just eliminated. Then, he discards all of his cards (which now include the cards just obtained from that Deputy).

As players get eliminated, Vulture Sam should become very powerful and get a Volcanic. Eventually, there will not be many players to snatch cards from anymore, and Vulture Sam will need to make a pretty aggressive transition. By using the cards he gets with a Volcanic, he should be able to start knocking out other players. If Vulture Sam can chain their deaths and get card pick ups, he should be very well fortified and have a good stock of ammo. Vulture Sam needs to make sure if he gets down to 2 players left, then he needs to have a strong base, because if you doesn't, his ability can no longer help him. Vulture Sam becomes a character without an ability, which can be very dangerous in 2-player.

Playing against Vulture Sam: Excluding any really small games (and you may wish to even then), kill Vulture Sam first (or at least very early on). At least shoot at him, and don't let Vulture Sam "turtle up" and then switch to an offensive mode when another player's health is low (Duels are good for this). If not, always pay attention to the cards in play in front of other players whose health is getting low. You know that if/when they die, those cards will by default go to Vulture Sam. If one of those cards is really dangerous (ie, a Volcanic) try to Cat Balou those cards promptly before their death so that Vulture Sam does not get it. Vulture Sam can have quite the onslaught if he gets those cards and a card bonus in conjunction with a Volcanic. He can be a killing machine that racks up more and more cards if you are not careful. Although this is not typically done, you may wish to Cat Balou or Panic (and then discard) a Dynamite if it is in play, as chances are it will not explode on Vulture Sam and then significantly advantage him when it kills another player. If Vulture Sam does pick up a bunch of cards, try to Jail him when he is strong, and try to play cards that will deplete his stronghold in between his turns (Indians!, Cat Balou, BANG!, Panic). This is absolutely necessary when the amount of living players is low. Knock him down to have few advantageous cards, and if you two end up being the only left, he is now at the disadvantage (even if you have about the same card base). For now he has no character ability and you have one (that is hopefully useful in 2-player gameplay). As long as he does not get really lucky with his cards, and you play with yours right, you should have a good chance of beating him and winning the game.

Dodge City Characters that Counter Vulture Sam Well: Pat Brennan (His ability to steal crucial cards from Vulture Sam and players before they die can be really rough), Belle Star (Vulture Sam cannot turtle against her), to some extent Herb Hunter (He is less vulnerable to Vulture Sam upon a player's death, since he also draws 2 cards).

Vera Custer and Vulture Sam: The Dodge City FAQ explains what occurs when a player is eliminated when both Vulture Sam and Vera Custer are in play, and Vera Custer had copied Vulture Sam's ability:

Q03. If Vera Custer has currently the same ability of Vulture Sam and another player is eliminated, who takes his cards?
A. The cards of the eliminated player must be divided between Vera Custer and Vulture Sam. Who among Vera and Sam is next to the killed character, in clockwise order, chooses the first card (either randomly from the hand of the killed character, or among her “in play” cards). Then, the other one takes another card, and so on, until all cards of the eliminated player have been distributed between the two.

General Strategy Adjustments for Vulture Sam: The Dodge City expansion is generally favorable towards Vulture Sam. The green cards help further the turtling up strategy used in the regular game. Now, he can play the green cards in front of him, helping build both defenses and an offensive arsenal. There are other helpful cards in the expansion too, such as Hideout and Binoculars. Like before, Vulture Sam should not try to draw attention to himself. He should try to let the other players do the fighting, and prep himself with a good offensive combo. Then, when a player is really weak, he should pop out and try to take the kill. With Dodge City, Vulture Sam might also be able to grab a few more cards when players are eliminated. The green cards, not subject to the card limit when in play in front of players, are transferred to Vulture Sam on the event of their owner's demise. They may have been played before the player's death, but there is at least some chance that he will get them. After all, most of the green cards take a round to activate. After gaining the spoils of a kill, Vulture Sam should judge whether or not it is worth trying to mow down another player, or if he should relax again and turtle up. This may not work well once people see how much of a threat he is. As a last thing to point out, the probability of drawing Dynamite is up with Dodge City, so try to get Dynamite in play.

General Strategy Adjustments against Vulture Sam: Few things change for the Vulture Sam's rival in Dodge City. You simply have new cards to execute what you were doing before. Use the new stealing and discarding cards to weaken Vulture Sam's card base if he is able to build it up. Use offensive combos to knock him out early in the game, or when his card supply runs low. The green cards can be to your favor and against you with Vulture Sam. If a player has green cards left over when he is eliminated, then those cards go to Vulture Sam. On the flipside, they help protect you from elimination and from Vulture Sam if he guns at you after picking cards up. There is another Dynamite in Dodge City to watch out for, so try to remove it from play without it exploding on someone.

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Character Guide: Black Jack

Character Name: Black Jack.

Inspired by: "Black Jack" Ketchum, member of the Hole in the Wall Gang.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral.

Ability: "during phase 1 of his turn, he must show the second card he draws: if it’s Heart or Diamonds (just like a 'draw!'), he draws one additional card (without revealing it)."

Activation: During his drawing phase.

Cards enhanced by Black Jack's ability: Duel, Volcanic.

Cards more effective when played against Black Jack: Prison.

Ideal Roles for Black Jack: Good for all.

Characters who counter Black Jack well: Jesse Jones.

2-player value: Decent if you have some health. 50% turns you will get more cards, but with your opponent knowing one of your cards at this juncture in the game, it can be really bad too.

General Strategy for Black Jack: With drawing 1 more card approximately 50% of your turns Black Jack can store up more cards he needs, as well as play more cards. Depending on Black Jack's role, he may want to gather a more defensive or offensive blue card base (and offensive combos) before he attacks (if the other players don't make him respond immediately). Then Black Jack can store up for a Volcanic, wait for when he draws a lot of bang during a draw phase and then unleash the fury on a weaker opponent. Since the second card in Black Jack's hand is shown to his opponents, unless he has a good reason for storing it, I often would have him play it to show that the revealed knowledge gain from having to show it was not as valuable. They would have known anyway. They can do unfortunate things with that knowledge--Black Jack doesn't want an Indians! panicked from his hand. Similarly, if Black Jack is over his card limit and the card shown wasn't that useful, he should discard it so that his opponents don't learn anything else about his hand.

Playing against Black Jack: Since Black Jack's ability activates during his drawing phase, Jails are more effective against him, as well as cards or abilities that snatch cards from Black Jack's hand. You may want to attack Black Jack early on, so he does not start building up card combos or create a strong card base. Put Black Jack on the defensive so he can't easily set up a stronghold and try to overwhelm you. Duels early on are nice, as well as Indians!, especially when you are dealing with a defensive Black Jack. Pay attention to the second card that Black Jack must show every drawing phase--it tells you one of the cards in his hand, and can let you know how effective a variety of actions can be against him--Indians!, duel, BANG!, Panic, Cat Balou, etc. This showing is even more useful to you when Black Jack has almost no cards in his hand, from depleting his cards or being restrained by his card limit. Of course, it is also better when the second card shown is black (clubs or spades) for then you know a higher share of his hand.

Dodge City Characters that Counter Black Jack Well: Belle Star (the extra card Black Jack gains to play in front of him won't do him any good on her turn)

General Strategy Adjustments: Dodge City makes Black Jack a better character I believe, and this is because he has many new cards (especially the green cards) that he can play in front of him. This allows Black Jack to build a stronger base before pursuing his objectives and before his opponents will likely attack him. When he draws 3 cards, it also makes it easier for him to play the cards that require discarding a card to play them. He may be able to use excess cards (cards over his card limit) to play these cards.

General Strategy Against Adjustments: Follow the same general strategy against Black Jack as outlined above. Always pay attention to the card he must show you on his drawing phase, and from their plan how best to attack him.

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Character Guide: Kit Carlson

Edit (3/29/12): Adding in Dodge City Info and edited some strategy against Kit Carlson.

Character Name: Kit Carlson.

Inspired by: Kit Carson, American frontiersman and colonel who battled the Navajo.

Life Points: 4.

Ability Type: Neutral.

Ability: "During phase 1 of his turn, he looks at the top three cards of the deck: he chooses 2 to draw, and puts the other one back on the top of the deck, face down."

Activation: During his drawing phase.

Cards enhanced by Kit Carlson's ability: Dynamite, Duel, Volcanic, draw cards.

Cards more effective when played against Kit Carlson: Prison.

Cards less effective when played against Kit Carlson: Dynamite, Barrel.

Ideal Roles for Kit Carlson: Good for all.

Characters Kit Carlson counters well: Jourdonnais.

Characters who counter Kit Carlson well: Jesse Jones

2-player value: Great, you can pick the right cards to let you survive and win, and give your opponent cards that will work less effectively against you.

General Strategy: A key point to remember about Kit Carlson's ability is that when he looks at the top 3 cards of the deck and picks 2, the card he does not choose is not discarded, but placed on top of the drawing deck (see the thread with Emiliano Sciarra's approval of this Kit Carlson interpretation). Many people play with the last card being discarded, which is an interesting way to play, but it is not technically Kit Carlson's ability, and really changes the strategy with him. For if the card was discarded, Kit Carlson would not be able to set others up, and two, and other players might easily read Kit Carlson's hand and intentions from the card that he discarded.

With that out of the way, let me move on. Kit Carlson is very good at gathering the cards he needs in either an offensive (gathering BANG! for Duels/Volcanic, or for planning combos like Duel-Indians!-BANG!) or defensive mode. On top of this, Kit Carlson also controls the next card on top of the deck. Initially, you might think that this only affects the next player's draw phase, but there is more to it than that. Think of how this could apply to Dynamite! If Kit Carlson survives a Dynamite "draw!", he gets to draw 3 cards that he might potentially put on top of the deck. Within a round or two, there is a good chance that of those 6 cards that one of them will be a 2-9 of Spades, and then Kit Carlson can basically guarantee that the player to his left has the Dynamite explode on them if he so desires.

Furthermore, Kit Carlson can plan ahead to shoot a character who has a Barrel or Jourdonnais, and guarantee that their "draw!" will fail by not choosing a card with a heart suit and placing it at the top of the deck. I am sure there are even wackier strategies than this; imagine Kit Carlson setting up a Volcanic for Bart Cassidy, then shooting at him, Bart Cassidy taking the hit, and picking the Volcanic up! Kit Carlson's ability is very versatile and the smart player needs to be aware of this. Every drawing phase will require some planning. If Kit Carlson is not going to create a "draw!" or some card draw by some other ability or card (Conestoga, Wells Fargo, General Store), then he needs to consider which card he is going to give to the player to his direct left. If it is an opponent Kit Carlson will want to give him cards challenging his plans; with an ally, he will want to give him cards helping his plans. This can sometimes come in conflict with his capacity to gather cards that are less common and allow you to build a blue card base. Of course, at the beginning of the game there is more of a "grace period" for this worry, but it is still problematic.

In general, however, I would start Kit Carlson with searching for blue cards that he can play in front of him, and then placing them down. Then, gather up a defensive (a mix of Missed!, Beer, BANG!, Prison, Cat Balou) or offensive hand depending on your goal, as you balance out considerations with the card you handing the next player. As you can imagine, having a wider selection than other players on your draw phase, you can get more BANG! for an attack with a Volcanic. On the flip side, people will likely know you are storing up cards, and may use Duels, Cat Balous, and Panics to deplete Kit Carlson's stash. Mustangs are always a good protection from theft. When attacking players with Barrels, remember the strategy I discussed above.

Playing against Kit Carlson: Since Kit Carlson activates his ability during his drawing phase, placing him in Jail nullifies his ability. Since he will be storing up cards, it can be a good idea to Cat Balou or Panic cards from his hand. If you are playing against a defensive Kit Carlson, playing a Duel against him can be a good idea as he will likely have less BANG! in his hand; follow it with an Indians! if you can. If you are directly to his left, you may want to be very frank about your role if he is your ally, so then he can give you cards to help you out. If you are not his ally, deception can be a good strategy, as then he can give you cards than you can then turn against him. Of course, that will be a one time deal, because once you turn on Kit Carlson he will not make that mistake again. If you do not opt for the deception route, be very careful with what you discard/pick up in General Stores; try to fake him out that way to get what you need.

Finally, pay attention to when you can discover what cards Kit Carlson is opting not to take into his hand; this can give you some idea of how his hand is built. You will most likely discover these cards during your own draw phase if you are to his immediate left. "Drawn!" cards can also be helpful, but take them with a grain of salt if they seem clearly designed to affect the "drawn!" result.

Dodge City cards enhanced by Kit Carlson's ability: the extra Dynamite and the extra Volcanic.

Dodge City Characters that Kit Carlson Counters Well: Belle Star (Greater card selection makes it easier for him to get cards to protect him against Belle) and Apache Kid (Greater card selection makes it easier for him to get non-diamond cards to hurt Apache Kid).

Dodge City Characters that Counter Kit Carlson Well: To some extent Elena Fuente (Whatever card Kit stores up for Elena for her draw phase she can play as a Missed!).

General Strategy Adjustments for Kit Carlson: There are not many strategy adjustments for Kit Carlson in Dodge City. The additional Dynamite can make your ability to stack a "drawn!" result for the player to your immediate left more likely. You can provide some useful cards for new characters, such as stacking a Beer up for Tequila Joe, a blue card for Jose Delgado, or an out of turn playable card for Molly Stark.

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Character Guide: El Gringo

Character Name: El Gringo

Inspired by: Ross Logan, the vengeful gringo in Requiem for a Gringo

Life Points: 3

Ability Type: Defensive

Ability: "Each time he loses a life point due to a card played by another player, he draws a random card from the hands of that player (one card for each life point). If that player has no more cards, too bad!, he does not draw. Note that Dynamite damages are not caused by any player."

Activation: When El Gringo is hit

Cards enhanced by El Gringo's ability: Missed!, Beer

Cards less effective when played against El Gringo: All attack cards, Volcanic

Cards more effective when played against El Gringo: Dynamite

Ideal Roles for El Gringo: Sheriff, Renegade

Characters El Gringo Counters Well: Willy the Kid

Characters that Counter El Gringo Well: Jesse Jones, Suzy Lafayette (potentially)

2-player value: Good, depending on the amount of health you have.

General Strategy: El Gringo is one of the best characters because of his defensive ability, especially when El Gringo is Sheriff. He must learn the best times to take hits, such as when El Grango can disrupt the strategy of his opponent. For the former, you can imagine an opponent playing an Indians! or Gatling before attacking El Gringo's ally with a BANG! El Gringo may then opt to take the hit to take a card out of his opponent's hand that may disrupt his attack. Similarly, El Gringo may consider taking hits from duels. The quality of cards El Gringo will pick up depends on the intelligence of his opponent, but El Gingo will often get Missed! since these are difficult cards to discard. Taking hits is a great idea when El Gringo has a Beer in hand, as he can steal a card and then he can get his health back.

El Gringo can help limit the amount of times when he can consider taking a hit by getting some helpful defensive cards in play such as Mustang and Barrel. The defensive sight modification will limit the amount of shots fired his way and the Barrel can be a nice buffer for some of the shots. If he wants to take a hit, he can not utilize the Barrel. Finally, I wouldn't play Dynamite as El Gringo, as he is the character most likely to suffer from it. El Gringo doesn't get any cards for being blown up by a Dynamite blast, and as a 3 life point character, the Dynamite will probably be fatal.

Playing against El Gringo: When El Gringo is in the game, be very careful of the order in which you play/use your cards. Whenever you play a card that can hurt El Gringo, you run the risk of losing cards from your hand. Thus, before you play any potentially damaging card for El Gringo, play other other cards first: blue cards, panic, cat balou, often Beer, Wells Fargo, Conestoga/Stagecoach, and often General Store. Once these are out of the way, you still need to consider the order in which you play these potentially damaging cards, as you do not want El Gringo to pick up certain cards over others. Thus, I suggest the following order for playing cards against El Gringo:

1. Gatling or Indians! (This is a toss up, so you may need to pay close attention to the cards that have been picked up and others' behavior; generally, Gatling can be more powerful as there are more BANG! than Missed!)

2. Gatling or Indians! (see above)

3. Duel

4. BANG!

Sometimes it is beneficial to deplete all of your cards down to 1, and then attack El Gringo. He doesn't get any cards when you do so, but then again, you also leave yourself wide open unless you have the right defensive setup. It is often valuable to Cat Balou from El Gringo's hand to knock out any Beer he may have stored up. Also, Cat Balou or Panic his Mustang so others can finish him off if you happen to weaken him. Dynamite is also a fantastic thing to throw out on El Gringo because (1) he is a 3 life point character and so the blasts are more devastating, and (2) he doesn't pick up any cards for losing life from Dynamite even if he happens to survive. Keep other general strategy items in mind, such as not playing Saloon (except in dire circumstances) when El Gringo is below full health.

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Character Guide: Paul Regret

Character Name: Paul Regret

Inspired by: Paul Regret, a gambler in the John Wayne film, The Comancheros

Life Points: 3

Ability Type: Defensive

Ability: "he is considered to have a Mustang in play at all times; all other players must add 1 to the distance to him. If he has another real Mustang in play, he can count both of them, increasing all distances to him by a total of 2."

Activation: Continuous, but surmountable

Cards enhanced by Paul Regret's ability: Mustang, blue cards

Cards less effective when played against Paul Regret: Panic, Volcanic

Cards more effective when played against Paul Regret: Duel, Indians!, Gatling

Ideal Roles for Paul Regret: Sheriff, Renegade

Characters who counter Paul Regret well: Rose Doolan, Willy the Kid

2-player value: Great if you can remove your opponent's gun.

General Strategy: Paul Regret's main benefit is his distance, and this can work especially well early game, even if Paul Regret's turn begins towards the end of the round, as few characters will be able to reach you. Paul Regret's distance ability makes most blue cards (obviously not Prison or Dynamite) more useful for him, as they are not likely to get stolen (there is only 1 scope, and what is the chance the persons right next to you will get it?). Paul Regret only has to worry about those 3 Cat Balous. Try to get a Mustang out to stack with Paul Regret's ability, and other defensive cards like Barrels are good ideas too. You may wish to get a gun to shoot over those who are right next to you, so as to not make enemies with your immediate neighbors who will be more able to attack you. In general, the whole purpose with Paul Regret is distance control: shoot at those who cannot shoot you, and make as many people unable to reach you as possible. Paul Regret's opponents will likely use a Duel to reach him, and in this case I often recommend taking the hit, since his card limit is lower, making Paul Regret have fewer BANG!, and thus more likely to get slammed by an Indians! before he gets to have another turn. But you can always gauge the cards in your opponents' hands and make the best judgment here.

Playing against Paul Regret: Since Paul Regret only has 3 life points, a lot of cards that hit all other players (Gatling, Indians!) are really effective against him, since Paul Regret's card limit is lower. Duels are also more effective against Paul Regret, as he is less likely to have a lot of BANG! cards. If you can do so, hitting Paul Regret with Duel-Indians!-Bang! (or similar) combos is the way to go. To help you reach Paul Regret, try to grab guns or a scope. Since panics won't be very effective against Paul Regret, use Cat Balous instead, especially if Paul Regret has a Mustang (making him terribly difficult to reach). If Paul Regret is your main target, consider even storing up a Cat Balou for when that Mustang will pop out. If you are having a really hard time getting Paul Regret, a Dynamite (which is always more fatal for 3 life point characters), can be a good idea to throw out.

Dodge City cards enhanced by Paul Regret's ability: Hideout, the extra Mustang.

Dodge City cards more effective when played against Paul Regret: Howitzer, Buffalo Rifle, Springfield.

Dodge City cards less effective when played against Paul Regret: Derringer, Punch, Knife

Dodge City Characters that Counter Paul Regret Well: Belle Star (Paul Regret cannot increase his distance further from her), Pat Brennan (he can immediately steal a gun, scope or binoculars to reach Paul Regret to shoot/steal from him, as well as remove Paul Regret's distance modifiers like Mustang and Hideout).

General Strategy Adjustments: Paul Regret does not scale well for Dodge City. Many players online have debated about increasing Paul Regret's life points up to 4 to compensate, but Emiliano Sciarra says that the adjustments only place him to about 3.5 life points. But since there is no half a life point, and the powers that be round down, he has stayed at 3 life points. It is often difficult to balance the 3 life point characters, because the main issue with raising them to 4 life points is how powerful they will be as a 5 life point Sheriff. Often, it is decided that they should remain a 3 life point character, but then they only tend to be decent as a Sheriff. I guess the hope is that in the other roles team mates will help them (sorry Renegades!).

Anyway, Paul Regret has trouble in Dodge City due to producing difficulties in managing distance between players. Dodge City adds a distance 3 Remington, a distance 4 Rev. Carabine, and a Binoculars (which stacks with a Scope) to the deck. Heavy to manage against a Scope and a Binoculars will be particularly difficult. There is, on the flip side, another Mustang and a Hideout (which stacks with a Mustang) to bring some distance away. But more Cat Balou, the Can Can, and Brawl have been added to the deck to remove players. The new Rag Time steals a card from any player at any distance, so Paul Regret is not as panic-immune as before. Unfortunately, there are also cards that attack at any range added to the deck, which are deadly for Paul Regret, namely Springfield, Buffalo Rifle, Howitzer, and of course more Indians! Since these cards are not BANG!, they can be combined with BANG! and others (Duel, Gatling) to hit Paul Regret several times in one turn. Finally, there is another frustrating Dynamite added to the deck.

Of course, things are not all bad for Paul Regret with Dodge City. Some new cards he is generally immune to, such as the Knife, Punch, and Derringer which all only reach at distance 1. Unfortunately, this just does not balance things out. Paul Regret should still try to follow the strategy generally outlined above, trying to steer himself as best as possible with these new cards. He now will definitely want to try to grab some defensive green cards to get in play in front of him before jumping to the offensive. And stacking his Mustang with a Hideout would be fantastic if it is possible.

General Strategy Against Adjustments: Dodge City turns things in your favor for eliminating Paul Regret. Supplied with more guns, a Binoculars, several cards that reach at any distance (Springfield, Buffalo Rifle, Howitzer, more Indians!), and another Dynamite, you have even more ammo than before to hit Paul Regret. Probably even more importantly, you can combine those cards to hit Paul Regret several times in a turn, and your team mates (if you have any) should have a greater ability to help you out. Use the new Rag Time, Can Can, and Brawl to remove cards from in play in front of Paul Regret, especially to remove his distance modifiers. If he has none of those, and no defensive green cards in play in front of him, use those cards and Cat Balou to remove cards from his hand before you and your allies attack him. A good combo or tag team could knock him out in 1-2 rounds. Of course, this is wishful thinking where the stars align for your good. Paul Regret is still a threat in Dodge City, it is just that if you pay close attention you should have greater opportunities to eliminate him than before.

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