Gomorra Gazette has finished off the week of Outlaw previews with the Outlaw Mask. Now we just have to wonder what CRAZY things might be showing up next week. Does it drive you mad?
Outlaw Mask (from Gomorra Gazette)
The Outlaw Mask fits the current trend for the Sloane Gang. Fight in Town Square and gain lots of bounty. Not anyone can behave like Fred Aims, as long as they stay in the Town Square.
This Goods card sports a new keyword: Attire. You are allowed to wear as many as you want. It is an Ace of Hearts, so it will finally bring some competition to the Pair of Six-Shooters you’ve probably been using this whole time.
The Outlaw Mask will combine well with anything that can boost your bounty. Keep in mind that running a job like Kidnappin’ can earn you two bounty when done at your opponent’s Private location, however, all your dudes will go home booted at the end of the job. They will need a way to move to Town Square or just boost their bounty in preparation for all of your Masks.
Mirror, Mirror (from Team Covenant)
Mirror, Mirror is a very low value spell, but it can give you two options for building around it. As long as you have a dude with a Huckster skill of two or more, you can easily succeed at the first option on this card. It will make your dude essentially match the bullet type and rating of another dude in the opposing posse. If Sloane or Wylie comes into your home, you’ll be able to beef up to their power level. Even better, you can penalize them after this hex with other shootout actions, leaving you with the better shooter.
The second option for this hex would be to run it with Smiling Tom or one of the Sloane Hucksters that gets better in a shootout. Jose Morales would only need one bullet bonus to make the second option feasible to turn your opponent into a draw. Of course, you can always toss a few in a deck that isn’t afraid to miss a few pulls. Slade Lighbody can always pull again if it’s important enough.
California Tax Office (from Alderac)
The Tax Office makes the third deed for the J of diamonds slot. There are now several options for the deeds you may wish to include in a Dead Man’s Hand build. As a government deed, it would allow Rafi Hamid to rush Deputies to any fight there.
The Tax Office is the first deed that comes into play already booted. This prevents any last second surprises from its ability. The ability allows you to choose another player’s dude and make them pay they upkeep right then or lose the dude. If they do pay, they won’t have to pay during next turns upkeep phase. This provides a solid window to defend against dudes such as Steven Wiles that typically come into play for only a turn when the player isn’t planning on paying his upkeep anyway.
Desolation Row (from Strange Assembly)
The first ability on Desolation Row is that all your dudes with 4 or more bounty gain a Control Point. There are plenty of ways to increase your bounty in the game already. Expect to see their use more frequently now. The Evidence and Hunter Protection just came out of the last set and they can each raise a dude’s bounty by 2. Just about any job will get you wanted and The Fixer (below) can go get that for you at the start of the game. This is a Holdup! will probably be the easiest way to increase any dude’s bounty to the point where they gain a Control Point.
If you don’t happen to get a job at the start of the game or don’t run many, don’t worry, Desolation Row has that covered for you as well. It has a built in job that fights in the Town Square. If your leader survives and you win the job, your leader gets 2 bounty added and then you gain Ghost Rock equal to their bullet rating. If you start Sloane or The Fixer, you could easily make four extra Ghost Rock on the first turn and not be as worried about their upkeep costs.
Don’t forget to bring along your bullet bonuses. Shotguns and Bad Company will be great ways to get pretty much any of your dudes up to the 4 bullet mark so you can make some quick cash. While you’re already building those bullets, perhaps you should consider the Legendary Holster.
The Fixer
The Fixer shows us the first in-faction Grifter in the game. He only costs two, but has three upkeep, so he will cost you if you plan to keep him on the table. At least you get two influence out of the deal.
His ability resembles the type of effect most grifters have: manipulating your opening hand. The Fixer can help The Sloane Gang push the limits of early aggression. You get to discard five cards from your deck and put one of them in your hand. If it was an action card that starts a job like Kidnappin’ or Ambush, The Fixer will unboot for the first turn of the game. His four bullets will allow you to easily run a first turn Kidnappin’ by having more bullets than the mark.
If you see a Sloane player starting this guy, you should expect a first turn job against you. The Fixer has a strong ability, but it’s unlikely the player will want to continue paying his upkeep. Expect to see some strong offensive openings that will attempt a Kidnappin’ on the first turn, then lose the Fixer in a shootout or toss him during the next upkeep. There would be a few ways to effectively cover his cost. A successful A Coach Comes To Town would defray his costs for a turn and a Recruitment Drive could get a dude from the discard pile you just made.
The Fixer could also be a 2 Ghost Rock investment to grab one card you want and then not even pay his upkeep on the first turn. His ability will give you a discard pile to start the game. Cards such as Hired Guns can be used to dig through that discard pile.
Keep Yer Eyes Open!
The Fixer just taught us a lot about how the game can change. In-faction Grifters, huge bullets for little cost, and first turn Kidnappin’s will be a lot more common. Check back here for a compiled page during the Week of the Outlaw. You can also see all the spoilers so far with the Week of the Circus and Week of the Law.
