Gaming in the Wild, Wild West!

 Today's game, as foreshadowed earlier, was a wild west gunfight (it was two games, in fact!) 

She's so mean but I don't care
I love her eyes and her wild, wild hair
Dance to the beat that we love best
Heading for a gunfight
Gaming in the wild, wild west!

(The card above is one of those I created on Thursday evening)

The first game prior to lunch was a "learning game" because, although most of us have played the rules before, its been quite a while since we did so. For this game, Rick allowed me to use one of my female figures (the character above) and my mate Andrew also chose to use one of my figures. For the purposes of the game, any character who died too quickly, was replaced, so that the player was not hanging around for an hour doing nothing!

GAME ONE

The town of Athena, Kansas, the scene of today's action

The stock yards and railroad

The 3:20 fom Zuma!

Ellen started the game at the Marshalls office (the figure is intended to be a female sheriff, so I thought it was appropriate!)

This was the figure Andrew chose to use - he christened her Selma after a well-known Mexican actress!

Not sure why Andrew chose to start the game on the hotel balcony.....

Ellen quickly left the Marshals office and headed around the back of town

These are fast and bloody rules - Mark lost his first figure - Honest John the Sheriff, to Old Man Taylor, a bushwacking Septuagenarian who shot him in the back from the cover of one of the rail cars (don't worry though, the dirty varmint was soon sprawled in the dust, leaking blood from a gut and groin shot!) The figure above is Marks second character, who had just exited the saloon (we decided on the spur of the moment that all respawn characters would start in the saloon)

Selma took a shot at Marks figure from the vantage point of the hotel balcony but to little or no effect.

Meanwhile, Ellen took a shot at Chris's character, Texas Jack Vermillion, knocking him to the ground with a minor wound.

But Selma was not so lucky, being shot dead by the guy from the saloon!

Andrew chose to respawn as ANOTHER Mexican lady - this time an actual Gunfighters Ball figure with her own card and everything!

Unfortunately, due to the respawning rule we made up on the fly, she was immediately in the sights of Marks figure, and when the smoke cleared from the resulting blaze of gunfire. Maria Luisa lay slumped on the saloon floor, gravely wounded in an unmentionable place!

Hearing gunfire from the street, Ellen sprinted to the corner of an alley, just in time to witness the near demise of Maria Luisa. Seized by a wave of empathetic sisterly rage, she charged along the boarded sidewalk, coming upon Marks figure as he peered into the smoke-filled saloon, looking to add the coup de grace to the fallen Senorita. (Mark had rather sportingly pointed out he had no more action cards left, so I basically had a free shot at him!) Ellen placed the muzzle of her Colt Peacemaker against her rivels temple and gently squeezed the trigger.....

Meanwhile, John had respawned, (due to the timely demise of his first character, the villainous Old Man Taylor!) again inside the saloon. As Ellen still had a second action, she took a blind shot through the saloon doors and with some excellent dice rolling, put a 45 slug straight through her second targets heart - he dropped stone dead on the sawdust strewn floor!

Ellen wasn't finished yet - she headed to the rear of the livery stable, entered through the open back door, and took a shot at Barrys figure (who had recently accounted for Old Man Taylor)

After an exchange of gunfire in the musty interior of the gloomy building, both Ellen and her rival were on the floor, badly wounded. Ellen used her last remaining bullet to take a shot at Texas Jack Vermillion, who was closing in for the kill, but in her badly injured state, her aim was off. Then, Barrys figure dragged himself across the floor of the stable and wrapped two calloused hands around Ellens slender neck. She struggled to use her concealed dagger, but it was to no avail, the brawl roll-off resulted in a 10 - 5 win for Barry, and the last breath was chocked out of the female gunfighter. 

 Texas Jack Vermillion- Chris - then finished off Barrys figure. We called the game at this point - technically, a draw - because Maria Luisa was still clinging to life in the corner of the saloon, and we decided not to spend another ten or fifteen minutes resolving that one as everyone else was dead!

INTERMISSION

The view of the Waitemata Harbour (west coast of Auckland) from Barrys deck where we took luncheon, a lovely crisp winters day (temp was about 6-8 dec C)

GAME TWO

Rick had an actual scenario in mind for the second game, so my female figures were banished from the table! 

Each of us had two figures this time - I had Doc Holiday and Virgil Earp

Mark had Wyatt and Morgan Earp - needless to say - we were the goodies!

We had Ike Clanton (I think) locked up in the cell of the marshal's office, with Peg Leg the jailor and Virgil inside to keep an eye on him. Doc Holiday was in the saloon, sinking a quick bourbon, whilst Wyatt or Morgan was getting a shave at the towns barber shop!

Meanwhile, various good fer nuthin' Clantons and their ilk approached town, intent on springing the head of their family from lawful custody!

But first to arrive at the Mashal's office was Honest John, a sheriff from a neighbouring county, come to warn the Earps of the raid and offer his assistance to his fellow lawmen.

The interior of the marshal's office, with Ike in the cell to the right and Peg Leg the jailor in the adjacent rear office.

Doc Holliday exited the saloon and strode purposefully along Main Street, heading back to Virgil at the Marshal's office.

Wyatt and Morgan confer in Main Street as a distant stagecoach approaches town...

Doc peers round the corner of the Marshal's office as the villainous crew approach from across the open prairie

BUSHWACK! The miscreants force an honest citizen to stop his wagon. Intent on searching the vehicle, Johnny Ringo cold-bloodedly puts several bullets into the harmless driver's body, dropping him stone dead.

Honest John and his side kick engage the outlaws from in front of the Marshal's office!

The exchange of gunfire echoes around town

Doc Holliday plus two of the outlaws are dead and both the remaining members of the Clanton Gang are wounded!

In town, the passengers of the stagecoach were revealed to be Mysterious Dave Mather and a hired gunman, Wilson. Dave had dismounted from the coach and Wyatt had jumped in to talk to Wilson - who tried to draw on the lawman! But with his extraordinary skill with a handgun, Wyatt overcame his rival with little more to show from the encounter but a scratch. Kicking the lifeless body of the would-be assassin contemptuously onto the dust of Main Street, the wily sheriff dropped from the stage and went in search of Mysterious Dave - his true intentions a mystery no more! After trailing Dave to the back of the lawyer's office, Wyatt surprised the villain and put a well-aimed shot straight through his head!

The scene at the marshal's office as the game ended. Wounded bodies of both outlaws and lawmen litter the street - but the criminal Ike Clanton remains safe in jail and his family and their allies (those who are still alive) beat a hasty retreat!

Well, that was all good, clean fun, and writing the narrative of the games was quite enjoyable too. I expect it will be a while till we play again, but Rick did express a desire to actually play in the game next time - which seems reasonable! He has bought all the buildings and provides 95% of the figures etc, but because it's all his idea, he has always been the game master so far, and has never rolled a Gunfighters Ball dice in anger - next time, we will probably change that!

Thanks for visiting and I hope you enjoyed the read and the photos. Next time it will probably be back to newly painted GNW units!