Playing BANG!

Role objectives, health, turn phases, card effects, range and elimination.

Roles

The role mix depends on player count; setup lists it. The Sheriff is the only player who reveals their role at the beginning.

Characters and bullets

Each character has a special power and a starting number of bullets. Bullets track life and your hand limit at the end of your turn. The Sheriff receives one extra bullet for all purposes. You may never rise above your starting life total. The card text defines each character’s ability; read it aloud during setup.

A turn

The Sheriff starts. Turns proceed clockwise in three phases:

1. Draw two cards from the deck. As soon as the draw pile is empty, shuffle the discard pile to make a new deck and continue drawing.
2. Play any number of legal cards, one at a time.
3. Discard until your hand size is no greater than your current bullets.

The general limits are one BANG! card per turn, one copy of each named card in play, and one weapon in play. A new weapon replaces the old one. Other card effects that produce a BANG! symbol are not themselves BANG! cards and do not count against the one-card limit.

Card borders and timing

Brown cards resolve their effect and go to the discard pile. Blue cards remain face up in front of a player and keep working until removed or their effect expires. Jail is blue but is played in front of another player. Missed! and Beer are the key cards that can be played outside your own turn; the exact timing of each response is explained in combat and recovery.

Distance and weapons

Distance is the minimum number of living seats between two players, counting around the circle. Eliminated players are ignored. The Colt .45 printed on each board reaches distance 1. A weapon card replaces that maximum with the number shown in its sight; it does not change seating distance. A Scope reduces the distance you see by one, and a Mustang increases the distance others see to you by one. These modifiers combine.

BANG! and Missed!

Play a BANG! at a player within your current weapon range. The target may immediately play Missed! to cancel it; otherwise they lose one bullet. A cancelled BANG! still goes to the discard pile. Volcanic allows multiple BANG! cards in your turn, but only at distance 1. Slab the Killer makes a shot require two Missed! cards; a Barrel’s successful draw counts as one Missed! for that check.

Combat and recovery

Beer restores one bullet, but never above your starting total. Normally play it on your turn. If a hit would remove your last bullet, you may immediately play one or more Beer cards to survive. Beer has no effect when only two players remain. Saloon heals all living players, but cannot save you from a lethal hit outside your turn.

Duel makes the two players alternate discarding BANG! cards until one cannot; that player loses a bullet. Indians! requires each other player to discard BANG! or lose a bullet. Gatling gives every other player a BANG! effect regardless of distance. These card effects do not count as playing a BANG! card.

Other play effects

• Panic! takes a card from a player at distance 1, counting distance modifiers.
• Cat Balou makes any player discard a card, without a range limit.
• General Store reveals as many cards as living players; each player in turn order chooses one.
• Stagecoach draws two cards; Wells Fargo draws three.
• Jail is played on another player. At the start of that player’s turn, they reveal a card: a Heart lets them proceed; otherwise they skip the turn. The Sheriff cannot be jailed.
• Dynamite stays in front of a player until its start-of-turn draw check; on a 2–9 it explodes for three damage, otherwise it passes clockwise. Check Dynamite before Jail.

Use the symbols printed on the card as well as its text. The Cards & Components guide lists the faces and marks unprocessed faces.

Card and character effects

Publisher card faces and character text are listed below; each component entry links directly to its effect. Effects are concise paraphrases of the printed face and expansion rules.

Barrel

The Barrel allows you to “draw!” when you are the target of a BANG!: - if you draw a Heart card, you are Missed! (just like if you played a Missed! card); - otherwise nothing happens

Dynamite

Play this card in front of you: the Dynamite will stay there for a whole turn. When you start your next turn (you have the Dynamite already in play), before the first phase you must “draw!”: - if you draw a card showing Spades and a number between 2 and 9, the Dynamite explodes! Discard it and lose 3 life points; - otherwise, pass the Dynamite to the player on your left (who will “draw!” on his turn, etc.). Players keep passing the Dynamite around until it explodes, with the effect explained above, or it is drawn or discarded by a Panic! or a Cat Balou . If you have both the Dynamite and a Jail in play, check the Dynamite first. If you are damaged (or even eliminated!) by a Dynamite , this damage is not considered to be caused by any player

Jail

Play this card in front of any player regardless of the distance: you put him in jail! If you are in jail, you must “draw!” before the beginning of your turn: - if you draw a Heart card, you escape from jail: discard the Jail , and continue your turn as normal; - otherwise discard the Jail and skip your turn. If you are in Jail you remain a possible target for BANG! cards and can still play response cards (e.g. Missed! and Beer ) out of your turn, if necessary. Jail cannot be played on the Sheriff

Mustang

When you have a Mustang horse in play the distance between other players and you is increased by 1. However, you still see the other players at the normal distance

Remington

Weapon: reach distance 3 when you play a BANG! card. You may have only one weapon in play.

Rev. Carabine

Weapon: reach distance 4 when you play a BANG! card. You may have only one weapon in play.

Schofield

Weapon: reach distance 2 when you play a BANG! card. You may have only one weapon in play.

Scope

When you have a Scope in play, you see all the other players at a distance decreased by 1. However, other players still see you at the normal distance. Distances less than 1 are considered to be 1

Volcanic

with this card in play you may play any number of BANG! cards during your turn. These BANG! cards can be aimed at the same or different targets, but are limited to a distance of 1

Winchester

Weapon: reach distance 5 when you play a BANG! card. You may have only one weapon in play.

Bang!

BANG! cards are the main method to reduce other players’ life points. If you want to play a BANG! card to hit one of the players, determine: a) what the distance to that player is; and b) if your weapon is capable of reaching that distance

Beer

This card lets you regain one life point – take a bullet from the pile. You cannot gain more life points than your starting amount! The Beer cannot be used to help other players. The Beer can be played in two ways: • as usual, during your turn; • out of turn, but only if you have just received a hit that is lethal (i.e. a hit that takes away your last life point), and not if you are simply hit. Beer has no effect if there are only 2 players left in the game; in other words, if you play a Beer you do not gain any life point

Cat Balou

Force “any one player” to “discard a card”, regardless of the distance

Duel

With this card you can challenge any other player (staring him in the eyes!), regardless of the distance. The challenged player may discard a BANG! card (even though it is not his turn!). If he does, you may discard a BANG! card, and so on: the first player failing to discard a BANG! card loses one life point , and the duel is over. You cannot play Missed! or use the Barrel during a duel. The Duel is not a BANG! card. BANG! cards discarded during a Duel are not accounted towards the “one BANG! card” limitation

Gatling

The Gatling shoots “a BANG!” to “all the other players”, regardless of the distance. Even though the Gatling shoots a BANG! to all the other players, it is not considered a BANG! card . During your turn you can play any number of Gatling , but only one BANG! card

General Store

When you play this card, turn as many cards from the deck face up as the players still playing. Starting with you and proceeding clockwise, each player chooses one of those cards and puts it in his hands

Indians!

Each player, excluding the one who played this card, may discard a BANG! card, or lose one life point. Neither Missed! nor Barrel have effect in this case

Missed!

If you are hit by a BANG! you may immediately play a Missed! - even though it is not your turn! - to cancel the shot. If you do not, you lose one life point (discard a bullet). Discarded bullet go into a pile in the middle of the table. If you have no more bullets left, i.e. you lose your last life point, you are out of the game , unless you play immediately a Beer (see next paragraph). You can only cancel shots aimed at you. The BANG! card is discarded, even when cancelled

Panic!

The symbols state: “Draw a card” from “a player at distance 1”. Remember that this distance is not modified by weapons, but only by cards such as Mustang and/or Scope

Saloon

Cards with symbols on two lines have two simultaneous effects, one for each line. Here symbols say: “Regain one life point”, and this applies to “All the other players”, and on the next line: “[You] regain one life point”. The overall effect is that all players in play regain one life point . You cannot play a Saloon out of turn when you are losing your last life point: the Saloon is not a Beer !

Stagecoach

Draw two cards from the top of the deck

Wells Fargo

Draw three cards from the top of the deck

Bart Cassidy

Each time he loses a life point, he immediately draws a card from the deck

Black Jack

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)

Calamity Janet

She can use BANG! cards as Missed! cards and vice versa. If she plays a Missed! as a BANG! , she cannot play another BANG! card that turn (unless she has a Volcanic in play)

El Gringo

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

Jesse Jones

During phase 1 of his turn, he may choose to draw the first card from the deck, or randomly from the hand of any other player. Then he draws the second card from the deck

Jourdonnais

He is considered to have a Barrel in play at all times; he can “draw!” when he is the target of a BANG! , and on a Heart he is missed. If he has another real Barrel card in play, he can count both of them, giving him two chances to cancel the BANG! before playing a Missed!

Kit Carlson

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

Lucky Duke

Each time he is required to “draw!”, he flips the top two cards from the deck, and chooses the result he prefers. Discard both cards afterwards

Paul Regret

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

Pedro Ramirez

During phase 1 of his turn, he may choose to draw the first card from the top of the discard pile or from the deck. Then, he draws the second card from the deck

Rose Doolan

She is considered to have a Scope in play at all times; she sees the other players at a distance decreased by 1. If she has another real Scope in play, she can count both of them, reducing her distance to all other players by a total of 2

Sid Ketchum

At any time, he may discard 2 cards from his hand to regain one life point. If he is willing and able, he can use this ability more than once at a time. But remember: you cannot have more life points than your starting amount!

Slab the Killer

Players trying to cancel his BANG! cards need to play 2 Missed! . The Barrel effect, if successfully used, only counts as one Missed!

Suzy Lafayette

As soon as she has no cards in her hand, she draws a card from the draw pile

Vulture Sam

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

Willy the Kid

He can play any number of BANG! cards during his turn

Deputy Sheriff

help and protect the Sheriff, and share his same goal, at all costs! If the Sheriff eliminates a Deputy , the Sheriff must discard all the cards he has in hand and in play

Outlaw

Eliminate the Sheriff. Any player eliminating an Outlaw (even if the eliminating player is himself an Outlaw!) must draw a reward of 3 cards from the deck

Renegade

his goal is to be the last character in play

Sheriff

Must eliminate all the Outlaws and the Renegade, to protect law and order. If the Sheriff eliminates a Deputy , the Sheriff must discard all the cards he has in hand and in play

Binocular

When you use a Binocular, you see every other player at distance one less; they still see you at the normal distance.

Hideout

While Hideout is in play, other players count their distance to you as one higher; you still see them at the normal distance.

Springfield

Discard Springfield and one other card from your hand to play a BANG! against any one player, regardless of distance.

Tequila

Discard Tequila and one other card from your hand so one player of your choice, including you, regains one life point.

Whisky

Discard Whisky and one other card from your hand to regain two life points. You cannot exceed your starting life total.

Base summary card

Reminds each player of the basic actions and symbols. Seven copies share this face.

Wooden bullets

Track remaining life points. Your current bullets also set your hand limit at turn end.