F@#$ Bang!

Bang!

Plot:  Spaghetti Western.  Kill the Sheriff and the Deputies if you are the Outlaws, kill the Outlaws if you are the law, kill everyone if you are the Renegade.  The theme is fun, the cards reference Western movie cliches, and everything is written in Italian with English subtitles.

Gameplay: 

Only the sheriff is known.  Every other role you have to figure out via actions.  The mix is set depending on how many players, I played 7 player, and the role distribution is 1 sheriff, 2 deputies, 3 outlaws, and 1 renegade.





Besides your role, you also have a character.  The character provides some kind of exception, my first character allowed me to pick cards from the discard.  This was amazingly powerful.  My second character allowed me to draw immediately if I ran out of cards.  This was pretty meh.



A turn consists of drawing 2 cards, playing whatever you can, then discarding down to your current health.

Most cards are self explanatory.  Draw new cards.  Force someone to discard.  Steal a card from someone.
 
Shooting someone requires some explanation.

First, you need a Bang! card.  Without specific exception cards (gear or character) you can only play one Bang! card a turn.

Second, target needs to be in range.  Default range is 1, so that means your left and right hand neighbors only.  There are gear cards that increase your range.

After revealing a Bang! card, target gets a chance to reveal a Missed! card.  If no Missed! card is revealed, you do 1 damage, and get to raise your hands in the air as if there are no repercussions.

Review:  This game plays 7+ well, which is a pretty rare feat.  Also, the table I played at was pretty fun.  People were very likely to just start shooting, which speeds up the game.  With the wrong table this game may really really suck.  There's not much to the strategy except to make sure you draw good cards, so long analysis of who may be who can make a beer and pretzels game drag.  But as long as no one takes it very seriously, its nicely paced with just a hint of strategy and tactics.

Tips:  The only thing I have figured out really, is that if you are a deputy, it's worth your while to start shooting immediately.  In 7 player, you have a blind 80% chance of hitting someone opposing you.  Outlaws should be more cautious but the law should spray the lead.