BANG! Armed & Dangerous Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• The Dangerous Cards
• Dangerous Weapons
• Upgradable Cards and Other Cards
• The Characters
• The Cards
• Notes on Base Game Characters

Contents

• 28 playing cards:
  • 13 Dangerous cards: 9 objects and 4 weapons
  • 9 new brown-bordered cards
  • 6 brown-bordered cards from the basic game
• 8 characters
• 32 Load tokens
• These rules.

This expansion features 8 new characters (which are shuffled together with the original ones) and 28 new cards (to be shuffled with the basic playing cards). Keep the Load tokens in the middle of the table in a common supply: unless specified otherwise, when you have to take a token, take it from the supply. If you spend or discard a token, return it to the supply. During the game, you keep the Load tokens on your Dangerous cards and/or on your character: you will use these tokens to activate your Dangerous cards, the abilities of some characters, and to upgrade the effects of some brown-bordered cards, as we will see later.

The rules of the game remain the same as the original BANG! game, with the following additions:

The Dangerous Cards

All Dangerous cards have an orange border, and they behave just like blue-bordered cards (= weapons and other objects) in all respects, with the following additions:

• Playing a Dangerous card: When you play a Dangerous card in front of you (exception: Bomb can be played on any player), whether it's a weapon or an object, add 3 Load tokens to it.
• Using a Dangerous card: To use a Dangerous card in play in front of you, you first have to pay (i.e. discard) the stated number of Load tokens from the card (see image). If you discard the token(s), you can use the effect specified on the card. If there are not enough Load tokens on the card, the effect cannot be used.
  • Example: pay 2 Load tokens.
• Depleting a Dangerous card: When a Dangerous card in play runs out of Load tokens, discard it immediately.
• Reloading a Dangerous card (or your character): There are two ways to add Load tokens to a Dangerous card in play or to your character:
  1. Playing a blue-bordered card: Each time you play a blue-bordered card, you may add 1 Load token to any of your Dangerous cards in play, or to your character (see also, The Characters). This holds true even when you play a blue-bordered card on a different player (e.g.: Jail), but not when you receive one (e.g.: Dynamite).
  2. Discarding a card from you hand at the end of your turn: Each time you have to discard one or more cards from your hand during Phase 3 of your turn (when the number of cards in your hand exceeds the number of life points you currently have), you may add 1 Load token to any of your Dangerous cards in play or to your character for each card discarded. Remember that you cannot voluntarily discard cards in this phase! Note also that you cannot immediately use the tokens you add in this phase, because Phase 3 ends your turn.

Each Dangerous card may hold a maximum of 4 Load tokens. Any token to be added beyond the 4th are simply ignored. The same limit applies to characters.

If you want to play a Dangerous card but the supply does not have the required number of Load tokens (normally 3) then you cannot play the card.

Since they behave just like blue-bordered cards, Dangerous cards may be discarded by playing Cat Balou, etc. Note that if you play a Panic! on a Dangerous card in play, you take it into your hand without the tokens on it, which go back to the supply (if you later play the very same card, then add 3 Load tokens to it as usual).

The Load tokens on the cards may not be the target of cards or abilities unless explicitly specified.

Dangerous Weapons

These Dangerous cards are weapons in all ways: they have an orange border with no bullet holes, black-and-white illustration, and a number in the sight. They replace and are replaced by any other weapon. Just like blue-bordered weapons, Dangerous Weapons allow you to play a BANG! card from your hand up to the reachable distance. But, each Dangerous Weapon also has a special ability that you can activate by spending the required number of Load tokens when you play the BANG! card (and before the target player reacts, e.g. by playing Missed!).

Important: you may use the special effect only when playing actual BANG! cards, not similar cards such as Gatling, Flintlock, Quick Shot, etc.

Upgradable Cards and Other Cards

Upgradable cards are brown-bordered cards (= play and discard) whose effect may be upgraded by spending the required number of Load tokens. The Load tokens you spend may be taken from any of your Dangerous cards in play or from your character, in any combination. Remember that if you remove the last Load token from a Dangerous card, it must be discarded. Upgrading a card is always optional. You can use the upgrade several times if you want and can pay for it: always choose at the moment you play the card, before carrying out its effects.

Example: A little nip lets you regain 1 life point, and 1 additional life point for every 3 Load tokens you spend. By spending 6 Load tokens when you play the card, you gain a total of 3 life points. If you spend 0 Load tokens, you regain only 1 life point.

You will also find cards that are identical to cards in the basic game: these are added in order to keep the balance among different card types in the deck.

Some cards combine symbols you already know in different ways. Simply follow the meaning of the symbols shown to determine the card's effects. Generally speaking, remember that:

• Any card with a Missed! symbol can be used to cancel the effect of a card with a BANG! symbol.
• When you are losing your last life point, you can only use a Beer to avoid being eliminated from the game. You cannot use other cards with similar effects such as Saloon, Beer keg, or A little nip out of turn;
• You can only play one BANG! card per turn, but you can play any number of other cards which show the Gatling symbol.

The Characters

The Load tokens needed to activate the abilities of some characters may be taken from your character and also from any of your Dangerous cards in play (during your turn only, unless specified otherwise, e.g.: Al Preacher). Remember that each character may hold a maximum of 4 Load tokens.

• Al Preacher: May be activated out of turn. You can draw only 1 card for each blue or orange-bordered card played, even if you can spend more than 2 Load tokens each time. You must activate it before another card is played after the blue or orange-bordered one.
• Bass Greeves: You may add 2 Load tokens to any one of your Dangerous cards or to the character himself, but not to two different cards (one per card).
• Bloody Mary: It does not work with cards that are not actual BANG! cards, such as Flintlock, Quick shot, Gatling, etc.
• Frankie Canton: The Load token you take can come from any Dangerous card in play, whether yours or a different player's, or from another player's character. The 4 Load token limit still applies. If you take the last Load token from a Dangerous card, it must be discarded as usual.
• Julie Cutter: It's just 1 BANG!, even if you lose more than 1 life point at the same time. It is automatic (you don't have to play a BANG! card), it works regardless of the distance, and it can be canceled as usual with Missed!, Barrel, Crate, etc.
• Mexicali Kid: The BANG! is additional, so it does not count for the 1 BANG! card per turn rule and you don't have to play any card. The shot may be canceled as usual with Missed!, Barrel, Crate, etc., and it reaches up to your weapon's reachable distance, but it does not trigger the effect of a Dangerous Weapon. It does not work out of turn (against Indians!, Arrow, Duel, etc.).
• Ms. Abigail: It does not work against cards that affect all players, such as Indians!

The Cards

Ace up the sleeve.

A little nip: Unlike Beer, it cannot be used out of turn.

Arrow: The target player chooses whether to discard a BANG! card or lose 1 life point. You cannot reply with similar effects such as Flintlock or Gatling. Upgrade: All targets must be different.

Bandolier: You may play an additional BANG! card, which must follow the usual distance rules, may trigger the effects of a Dangerous Weapon, etc.

Beer keg: Unlike Beer, it cannot be used out of turn.

Bell tower: It only applies to the next card you play, but you can use it many times during your turn. It works against a Mustang, for example.

Big Fifty: It cancels the effects of cards such as Mustang, Barrel, etc., Julie Cutter's ability, etc.

Bomb: Play this card on any player (with 3 Load tokens on it as usual). At the beginning of your turn, if the Bomb is in play in front of you, "draw!": on ♥ or ♦, pass the Bomb to another player of your choice (who will perform the same check on their turn, etc.). On ♣ or ♠, discard 2 Load tokens from the Bomb. If the Load tokens run out, the Bomb explodes! Discard it and lose 2 life points. The Bomb does not explode if it is drawn or discarded in other ways (e.g., Panic!, Cat Balou, Whip, Squaw, etc.), but it does if the Load tokens run out because of Rust, for example. If you also have Dynamite and/or Jail in play in front of you, check the Bomb last.

Buntline Special: It does not matter if the shot is canceled with a Missed! card, Barrel, etc.

Caravan.

Crate: If you also have Barrel in play, you choose in which order to use the cards if necessary.

Double Barrel: A BANG! with the ♦ suit cannot be canceled, even using Barrel, etc.

Duck!

Flintlock: It is not a BANG! card, so it does not count towards the limit of 1 BANG! card per turn, and it does not trigger the special effect of a Dangerous Weapon. Upgrade: If the shot is canceled (it does not matter if by Missed!, Barrel, etc.), you can spend 2 Load tokens to take this card back into your hand (and play it again immediately after, if you want).

Lock Pick: It only affects the cards in hand, not those in play. It works regardless of the distance.

Quick Shot: It is not a BANG! card, so it does not count towards the limit of 1 BANG! card per turn, and it does not trigger the special effect of a Dangerous Weapon. Upgrade: All targets must be different and at a reachable distance.

Reloading: Take 3 Load tokens from the supply and put them on any combination of your Dangerous cards and/or your character. Remember that a card may never have more than 4 Load tokens.

Rust: Each of the other players must remove 1 Load token from each of their Dangerous cards and from their characters. Add all removed Load tokens to your character, up the limit of 4, and discard the extras.

Squaw: It works regardless of the distance.

Thunderer: It works whether the shot was successful or not, and the BANG! card must be taken back before the target player replies (with Missed! or another action).

Tumbleweed: A just completed "draw!" must be repeated, ignoring the previous result. Can be used on any "draw!", even your own, and can be played out of turn. You may have the "draw!" repeated again by spending additional Load tokens.

Whip: It only affects the cards in play, not those in hand. It works regardless of the distance.

Notes on Base Game Characters

Jourdonnais: His ability may be used to avoid the effect of Flintlock, and also against Mexicali Kid.

Lucky Duke: With the Tumbleweed, he repeats his entire "draw!", so he shows two new cards and chooses the result.