Fast West
Fast West Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 80 Action Cards (divided into 10 sets of 8 cards)
- 16 Target Cards
- 14 Gunslinger Cards
Goal of the Game
In Fast West you find yourself in the middle of a legendary Wild West shootout. As an experienced gunslinger, you use your weapons and skills to get out alive. Turn by turn, you secretly choose your move and try to guess your opponents' moves: you decide whether to fire a shot with the revolver or the winchester, whether to try to dodge or bounce the attacks of the other gunslingers, and so on. Once everyone's moves are revealed, an exciting shootout follows, full of twists. Intuition and unpredictability are your best weapons.
The goal of Fast West is to eliminate the other gunslingers and remain the last gunslinger in play.
Important: each gunslinger has three lives. When a gunslinger loses all of their lives, they are eliminated.
Setup
Take the Fast West deck and divide the cards by type, so that you have 1 Target deck, 10 sets of 8 Action Cards divided by color, and 1 Gunslinger deck.
Give each player one set of Action Cards, and return any unused sets to the box. They will not be needed in this game.
Place the Target deck face down in the center of the table.
Shuffle the Gunslinger deck and deal one face-down card to each player. After looking at it, each player takes it without showing it to the others and places it face down in front of themselves, with the three heart symbols facing up. Return the remaining Gunslinger cards to the box without looking at them.
The group chooses a dealer, whose task is to turn over the top card of the Target deck each turn.
Each player takes their own bullet card from their Action set and places it on the table to the right of their Gunslinger card, oriented with the number 1 facing up.
How is the bullet card used?
The bullet card shows how many bullets the gunslinger has. The number of bullets owned must always match the number at the top of the bullet card. To increase or decrease their bullets, the gunslinger rotates the card to the right or to the left. When a gunslinger loads their fourth bullet, they flip the card to its other side, which shows the numbers 4 or 5, always keeping the number at the top. A gunslinger cannot have more than 5 bullets.
Example: Federico (yellow) has only 1 bullet, so he decides to play the Reload card, which will add one. He rotates his bullet card counterclockwise. Simona (red) plays the Revolver card instead. Having 4 bullets, she flips her card to the other side, showing 3 at the top.
Gameplay
Fast West is played in turns in which the players (the gunslingers) play simultaneously. Each turn is divided into two phases:
- Revealing the Target Card
- Shootout
In addition, at any moment of the game a gunslinger may reveal their identity by turning over their Gunslinger card and applying the effect of their character (see Gunslinger cards below).
1. Revealing the Target Card
In this phase the dealer turns over the top card of the Target deck and places it face up in plain view in the center of the table. This card shows each player whether their target will be the gunslinger on their right (eliminated gunslingers do not count) or the gunslinger on their left, and from which of the two they may receive an attack. Target cards indicate the direction in which the shots of the played weapons will travel, using one or more arrow symbols. The arrow symbols are:
- One arrow, right or left: the gunslingers shoot in the direction indicated by the arrow.
- Both arrows: the gunslingers shoot both to the right and to the left at the same time.
- Two crossed arrows: the gunslingers may choose the direction in which to shoot.
A Target card may also show an event that characterizes that turn. The event is resolved before the shootout phase (see the individual events below).
The Target card layout shows the card name, the shot direction, and the description of the event, if any.
2. Shootout
Each gunslinger selects an Action card from their hand and places it face down in front of themselves. When all gunslingers have placed their card, everyone turns them over at the same time, and the various effects are resolved. Played Action cards do not return to hand; they are placed face down in front of the player to form their discard pile.
If the played action is a weapon (Revolver, Winchester or Dynamite), the gunslinger shoots in the direction indicated by the Target card. If the Target card lets the gunslinger choose the direction in which to shoot, they must choose it before revealing their card. To do so, they place the weapon card face down with the crosshair pointing in the chosen direction.
Once the Action cards are revealed, check that each gunslinger has the bullets needed to pay the card's cost (if required) before applying its effect. If a gunslinger does not have them, the card goes to their discard pile without its effect being applied. If one gunslinger shoots another and the latter has no useful countermove to avoid the damage, the target gunslinger loses one or two lives, depending on the weapon used.
If two gunslingers shoot each other at the same time, not always do both shots hit:
- If they shoot with the same weapon, both shots miss the target.
- If they shoot with different weapons, only the weapon with the higher bullet cost hits.
Example: the Target card Salsola with the direction choice is turned over. Federico wants to shoot Simona, who is to his left. So he plays a Winchester card with the crosshair pointing left.
Be very careful when you reveal your Action cards: the cards must be turned over along their long side, not their short side. If you turn them over along the short side, the crosshair will point in the opposite direction to your choice.
How to Track Lives
The Gunslinger card shows the number of lives the gunslinger has. The gunslinger has as many lives as there are heart symbols at the top of the card. The card is rotated counterclockwise when lives are lost. If a gunslinger rotates the card to the skull side, they are eliminated from the game and become a spectator.
Action Cards in Detail
Reload Play the Reload card to gain one bullet and take back into your hand all the Action cards in your discard pile, including the Reload card. You can add the bullet you gained by rotating your bullet card according to the number of bullets you have.
Warning: a gunslinger can never have more than 5 bullets. If you have 5 bullets and play Reload, you gain no bullets but still recover the discarded cards.
Dodge Play the Dodge card to avoid an enemy shot fired from a Revolver or a Winchester. The shot misses. Then take back one card of your choice from your discard pile, except the Dodge card.
Warning: Dynamite cannot be dodged.
Revolver Use the Revolver to hit an opposing gunslinger. The Revolver costs 1 bullet (remember to rotate the bullet card back by one). If the shot hits, the target gunslinger loses 1 life.
Winchester Use the Winchester to hit an opposing gunslinger. The Winchester costs 2 bullets (remember to rotate the bullet card back by two). If the shot hits, the target gunslinger loses 1 life.
Dynamite Use Dynamite to hit an opposing gunslinger. Dynamite costs 5 bullets (remember to rotate the bullet card back by 5 by flipping it). If the shot hits, the target gunslinger loses 2 lives.
Warning: Dynamite hits its target even if the target plays a Dodge or a Bounce.
Bounce Use Bounce to redirect an enemy shot fired at you with a Winchester or a Revolver onto the next gunslinger in play, following the direction of the Target card (right or left). If the next gunslinger has also played a Bounce, the shot passes to the gunslinger after them, and so on.
Warning: in the rare case that all gunslingers play Bounce, the gunslinger who fired the shot first would be hit by their own bullet! Bounce has no effect on Dynamite.
Miscalculation Use Miscalculation to repel one or more Dynamites thrown at you, redirecting the effect to the gunslinger who threw them, who will lose the lives. Miscalculation costs 2 bullets.
Warning: when you use Miscalculation, you can still be hit by a Winchester or a Revolver.
Example: the dealer reveals the Target card "Flashback". The clash begins. Federico uses the Revolver to shoot Simona, going from 2 bullets to 1. Simona plays Bounce, and the bullet ends up on Emma, who plays Dodge, making the shot miss. Meanwhile Maddalena shoots Federico with the Winchester, and he loses one life.
Target Cards in Detail
Tumbleweed (Salsola) When the man with the rifle meets the rolling tumbleweed... nothing happens. In this turn nothing happens.
The Priest Passes By When the priest passes by, by tradition everyone stops shooting and greets him, and the cleverest ones reload. All gunslingers gain 1 bullet.
Close Range At point-blank range, you singe your hair. You cannot use the Dodge card.
Open Field In the middle of the desert there are no frying pans. The Bounce card cannot be used.
That Handy Barrel In the shade of a sturdy barrel it is cooler... and reloading is easier. A gunslinger who reloads gains one extra bullet.
Rain of Bullets Hey, didn't you run out of shots? Weapons do not consume bullets, but to use them a gunslinger must still have the number of bullets they require.
Flashback Before each shootout, one's whole life flashes before one's eyes... All gunslingers recover one card from their discard pile.
How to Use Gunslinger Cards and Their Powers
Besides showing the number of lives a gunslinger has, Gunslinger cards also show their secret identity. Each player begins the game with their face hidden, meaning their Gunslinger card is on its face-down side. At any time during the game (unless the card states otherwise), a gunslinger may reveal their identity. By revealing their identity, the gunslinger can use their special ability.
There are two types of ability:
- An ability that applies only once, at the moment the identity is revealed.
- An ability that can be used an unlimited number of times during the game after the character has been revealed.
When a gunslinger reveals their identity, they keep their lives unchanged. However, some identities have only two lives once revealed. In this case, if the player chooses to reveal their identity while they have three lives, they lose one life and place the Gunslinger card visible on two lives.
Gunslinger Card Details
Only the Gunslinger cards that need additional explanation beyond the text printed on the card are presented here.
The Cheat (Il Baro) From now on, once all gunslingers' Action cards have been revealed, you may replace the weapon you played with one from your hand. You must pay the cost of both weapons. If you change weapon, you may also change the direction in which it fires.
The Ninja From now on, if you are reloading, you may discard a Dodge to avoid being hit by a Revolver or a Winchester. The discarded Dodge is not returned to your hand by the effect of the Reload you are currently playing.
What Happens If I Am Eliminated?
Once your gunslinger loses all their lives, you are eliminated and become a harmless, respectable, unarmed man in the West who may bet on and cheer for a gunslinger still in play. How? First, remove your Gunslinger card and your bullet card from the table, but keep your set of Action cards. During the shootout phase, declare aloud which gunslinger you are cheering for, and try to guess which Action card they will play, placing your chosen Action card face down on the table. Once the Action cards are revealed, if you guessed the card played by the gunslinger you declared, you strengthen their Action card in the following way:
- Reload: reloads 2 bullets instead of 1.
- Winchester and Revolver: win tie situations.
- Dodge: recover 2 cards from the discard pile instead of 1.
- Dynamite: immediately after playing Dynamite, the player plays an extra Reload.
- Bounce: the shot bounces back to the sender, hitting the gunslinger who fired it.
- Miscalculation: take the card back into your hand immediately after playing it.
If you do not guess the card played, nothing happens.
Warning: cards played by spectators have no normal effects in the game. More than one spectator may choose to help the same gunslinger, but the boost applies only once (it does not stack); spectators simply have more chances to help that gunslinger.
End of the Game and Victory
The game continues until only one gunslinger remains in play. That gunslinger is the winner and gets to go home alive for the day! If no gunslinger is left standing, the West wins.
Additional Rule: A Gringo Passes By
This additional rule is recommended for games with 2 or 3 players. With this rule, 1 or 2 neutral gunslingers are added to the game (2 neutral gunslingers are recommended in 2-player games, and 1 neutral gunslinger in 3-or-more-player games).
For each neutral gunslinger, take two unused sets of Action cards.
- From one of these sets take: 1 Revolver, 1 Winchester, 1 Dodge, 1 Bounce, 1 Reload.
- From the other take: 1 Revolver, 1 Winchester, 1 Bounce, 1 Miscalculation.
Shuffle these cards together: this will be the deck of one of the neutral gunslingers. Do the same with two other unused sets of Action cards if you want a second neutral gunslinger.
Place the neutral gunslingers so that each always has 2 players beside them, one on the left and one on the right: at the start of the game, there cannot be two neutral gunslingers next to each other.
Each neutral gunslinger receives a Gunslinger card placed face down: neutral gunslingers cannot reveal themselves during the game, nor can they use their special power.
During the shootout of each turn, reveal the top card of the neutral gunslinger's deck and apply its effect according to the normal rules. Neutral gunslingers have unlimited bullets: they neither reload nor spend bullets when they shoot.
Used cards go to a discard pile and are reshuffled into the neutral gunslinger's deck when the "Reload" card comes up, as usual.
Warning: the neutral gunslingers could win. Spectators may also choose to cheer for the neutral gunslingers.