The stage is set in 1892; the bank at Repentance Springs has been robbed. Many fine up-standing citizens have been killed and the brutal Colty Gang has gotten away.But don't worry our hero, Colonel Ned McReady and his men are up to the task. Though the odds are against them, they will bring down these evil-doers.
This Wild West two player game pits one player against the other in a gunfight to the finish. Will Colonel McReady and his lawmen save the day or will the Colty gang get away to continue their murderous ways?
Components / Set - Up
From the tin to the cards, everything about the game is beautiful and of high quality. There are five battle field cards that are placed in the middle of the playing area. They are placed in this order: The Bank of Repentance Springs, Whiskey Canyon, Buzzard Point, Rattlesnake Creek, and 3:15 Express from Rattlesnake Station.
The turn marker is a small wooden white cylinder. It is placed on the "1" space on The Bank of Repentance Springs card. At the end of the row of battlefield cards, next to the "3:15 Express from Rattlesnake Springs card," the "Derail the Train" card is placed.
The True Grit tokens show a white cowboy hat with the number 1. The Power tokens resemble a white poker chip and have a +1 on them. These tokens are placed in the supply at the beginning of the row of battlefields.
The Cards
Now the "Colty Gang" player places in front of them the sixteen bandit character cards. These show the members of the Crow's crew. They also take the Mexican border card, and put twelve tokens on the card. A True Grit token is placed on the Skinny Landell card. Both players also take their deck of cards. The Colty Gang cards say "Wanted Dead or Alive" on the top of the card while the Colonel McReady cards have a sheriff badge. Shuffle these cards and draw five to form your hand.
Both decks have the same anatomy.
The top of the card shows the name of the card. The poker chip shows the Firepower value. Under the poker chip the cards show the cost to play the card. This space will also show additional tokens to place on this card when it comes into play and information.
At the bottom of the card, there may be written, some special rules and actions. The card type is also located here.
Bandit Character Cards
The Colty Gang player has 16 bandit character cards. When he has to take a causality from either the play of cards by the Colonel McReady player, or as a result of the Attack phase, he must choose one of these characters.
Battlefield Cards
Between both players are five battlefield cards. These represent places where both enemies meet.
It also represents a progressive timeline within the story of the game: starting with the Bank at Repentance Spring and ending with 3:15 Express from Rattlesnake Station.
The top of the card shows cocks the cocks with the "-" are extra turn space that can be used through card play of the Colonel McReady player. The regular turn spaces have numbers. For the Rattlesnake Creek battlefield there are extra spaces that can be used by killing "Kittens" and "Skinny." The bottom of the battlefield shows a poker chip that is the base Defense power of the Colty Gang player. The battlefields name is also on the bottom of the card.
Object of the Game
This game is won when one player meets the following conditions: The Colonel McReady player wins if every member of the Colty Gang is killed. The Colty gang player can win one of two ways. First, if Jack "The Crow" Colty reaches and survives the 3:15 Express from Rattlesnake Station battlefield turn space 4. Also they win when they are able to remove all twelve tokens from the Mexican Border card.
Game Play
The game is played in turns. Each player completes his entire turn before play passes to the opponent. Play passes back and forth in this fashion until one player wins. The Colty Gang player always starts the game by taking the first turn.
Turn Sequence
A turn is divided into four phases:
- Advance turn makers (only the Colty gang player)
- Draw two cards
- Play cards
- Attack (only the Colonel McReady player)
Note: The spaces with the "-" are only used when the cards move the turn marker before space "1". If the turn marker is on such space move the marker to the next space.
Note: The spaces with the faces on Rattlesnake Creek Battlefield are only used when "Kittens" Mackenzie and / or Skinny Landel are killed.
In his first turn the Colty Gang player doesn't advance the turn marker and skips this phase.
2. Draw two cards: Draw two cards from you deck and take this into your hand. There is no hand limit.
3. Play Cards: You may put any number of cards from your hand into play on your side of the current battlefield card (the card with the turn marker on it). To play any card from your hand, you must pay the cost of that card. (e.g. by discarding cards). Pay the cost by discarding that number of cards from your hand into your discard pile. These cards are placed face-up into your discard pile.
There are three types of cards. Firepower cards, Row-blocking cards, and one-shot effect cards. Firepower cards have a white or black poker chip in the top left corner of the card. The number on the poker chip indicates the firepower (attack) value of the card. Firepower cards are placed at your side of the playing area. Row-blocking cards have an orange border and are placed at the battlefield in your opponents playing area (maximum of 2 row-blocking cards per battlefield). One-shot effect cards have special effects; players follow the instructions on the card and place it on the discard pile.Cards are always placed at the current battlefield (unless the text on the card states differently). Imagine there's an imaginary column below and above each battlefield where the cards are placed.
The Colty Gang player has a three card limit. This means he can place a maximum of three firepower cards at each battlefield.
Once three cards are placed he may not place any more cards at that battlefield (unless he removes one of his own firepower cards already in place there or a card stats differently).
The Colonel McReady card has no limit.
Many cards have special rules described in their text. All text takes effect immediately when the card is played. These rules are applied to the current battlefield (unless the card stats differently). The cards in play stay at a battlefield for the rest of the game and may not be moved to another battlefield. There are a few exceptions to this rule. A player may choose to discard one of their firepower cards in play at the current battlefield and put it into the discard pile. An opponent may take a card out of play. Or you may play a card that specifically says you can move a card to another battlefield or discard it.
Derail the Train: On-board the 3:15 Express the Colty Gang player can activate the "Derail the Train" card. This will cause a horrendous train crash: everything will be destroyed (discard all cards on both sides of the playing area and all still living bandit characters). If the Colty gang player wants to save someone (he must do this or he's lost), he has to discard one card for each bandit character he saves. The Colonel McReady player can't save any cards he has in play. After the "Derail the Train" card has been activated it is removed from the game.
True Grit: Some characters gain - when entering play or during the game - a true grit token. This means this character has an extra life. When this character is killed the first time remove the token on this card and leave the card in play. Next time when he's killed he'll be removed from the game.
4. Attack: During each turn that the Colonel McReady player takes, he can try to kill a bandit using his firepower. It is important to note that each turn, not only in this phase, that the Colonel McReady player does not kill a Colty Gang member one token is removed from the Mexican border.
To attack, first each player determines their total firepower at their side of the current battlefield. The Colonel McReady player sums his firepower (contributed by lawmen, buffalo, etc.) The Colty Gang player does the same and adds the defense power, black power chip in the bottom left corner of the current battlefield to this total.If the McReady's total power is greater than the gang's at the current battlefield, then the Colty gang player must take a casualty.
End of the Game
Play continues as described until one of the objectives has been meet. That is if every member of the Colty gang is killed the Colonel McReady player wins.
If Jack "The Crow" Colty reaches and survives the 3:15 Express from Rattlesnake Station battlefield turn space 4, the Colty Gang player wins. Also the Colty Gang wins when and if he manages to remove all twelve tokens from the Mexican Border card.
Revolver is an impressive game. There's a lot of value (A $30 dollar list price!) in the box. The components are of great quality, as is to be expected with Stronghold Games. The tin great! I wasn't sure if I would like the tin but I do like games that fit well in their box with useful inserts and room for possible expansions. This tin definitely meets those criteria. I also love the artwork, the battlefield scenes are beautiful and really help players to conjure up those images of the Old West.
This brings me to perhaps my favorite part of this game: the theme. Revolver really brings you into the theme. You are playing cards in a desperate race to either save the day or escape with the cash. The cards, the battlefields, the poker chips, the Mexican border slowly getting closer and closer makes it feel like a gunfight in 1892. There is a lot of strategy in the card play. Do you play this really good card now or wait to later in the game? Is it better, as the Colonel McReady player, to add more cards to the current battlefield or do you add the Apache Scout to an upcoming battlefield with a +1 firepower. It's the kind of tension I enjoy because it won't last a long time. The game is quick. Usually you are so involved in the game play you don't notice the time. A true mark of an immersive, fun game. And the game is a lot of fun.
I like the asymmetrical nature of the cards. Both decks are totally different and each player has a distinctive strategy that would only work for their side. Asymmetry is rare in boardgames. I know many dislike asymmetry in games. I, on the other hand, really enjoy it when it is done as well as it is in Revolver. It's needed to make the game work as well as it does. It's a different game depending on which side you play.
I really enjoy playing this game with my husband and I'm glad he made me sit down and play that demo at Origins. It wasn't a game that was even on my radar before that moment. Because Revolver is easy to learn, quick, and fun I'll add this one to my "Recommended to Play with Significant Others list." As long as they like the theme!
It does take some time to get to know the decks and the strengths of the cards. This may mean you play a card instead of saving it for later, or you don't get the cards you need. This really is a race against time for both players and mistakes can hurt deeply.
The price point, the theme, the artwork, and the strategy combine to create a game that is not only fun but an experience and a great addition to any collection.
Photo Credits: From www.boardgamegeek.com: Jonny de Vries (Nekrataal), Henk Rolleman (henk.rolleman), Mark Chaplin (Yugblad),W. Eric Martin (W Eric Martin), Henk Rolleman (henk.rolleman)
Please note that I didn't take the photos in the blog, I thank all the wonderful gamers out there who care so much about board games that they take such wonderful pictures.
Quick Stats:
Designer: Mark Chaplin
Artist: Chechu Nieto
Players: 2
Publishers: REXhry, Stonghold Games, White Goblin Games
Time:45 minutes
Ages: 12 and up
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