Fistful Of Lead Reloaded 2nd Edition???

[fred]

Wounds and Shock are cumulative, so a figure can have several of each.

Down is a status so a figure only gets this once. We tend to lie the figure down to represent this.

[Dubar]

Sounds right to me, thanks fred!!!

[Dubar]

I played a short game yesterday where 2 tough (D12) bad guys came into town with a goal to kidnap the good doctor's daughter for ransom.  They holed up in the hotel then tried to sneak around the back and down to the doctor's office.

But 5 of the townsfolk (1 D12, 1 D10, 3 D8) were ready for them.  One spotted them as they tried to make their way around the back of the hotel and quickly notified sheriff Matt.  The others came running and split forces, 3 went around one side of the hotel and the other 2 took off around the other side to head them off.

One of the BGs kept getting Shaken and the other took a Wound and went down, it was all over in just a few turns.  BGs need to practice their tactics a bit more if they want to pull off another heist!!!

Being I'm still learning I didn't take any photos, sorry.

I normally use three 2ftx4ft tables for WW2 gaming but for westerns I use only 2, making a 4x4 table area.  On this I placed 4 locking sections of anti-fatigue matting that I painted desert yellow, making a 3ftx3ft playing area. I did manage to snap a photo of that:

[Dubar]

I also bought the FfOL Core Rules to try them playing WW2 squad level games.  Seems like most/all of the weapons are covered so should be fun to try.

I was against trying to use rules that incorporated cards and dice.  The rules I've been using used dice for everything, but I was also using lots of markers to represent what actions each figure was taking.  Worked fine but after playing a few games using the Ffol rules and cards it has given me a new outlook on the card system.

[FifteensAway]

Taken as a whole, I loath card driven games.  However, FFOL (basic and Bigger Battles) are an exception.  The rules just work too well overall to ignore.  And let you cover any period of history, fantasy, or sci-fi you want to try.  Excepting for larger battles, you can use these rules for everything. 

I do like the Bigger Battle rules but I wouldn't use them with too many players with very many units each.  For that sort of game I use Rank and File.  Two sets of rules.  Much less 'brain clutter'.

[Dubar]

I'm playing solo and find that more than 5 on a side can be overwhelming.  I spend more time looking for that 1 figure I haven't activated yet than actually playing the game.  Also, started with a 4'x4' table and cut back to a 3'x3'.  4x4 gives you a lot of ground to cover if starting from the edge whereas a 3x3 gets you in the action pretty quickly.

Yesterday I played a WW2 game with 5 U.S. soldiers vs 3 Germans, 1 with a MG-42.  I had some lousy dice rolls, so bad the poor MG gunner spent every other turn reloading!!!  I think I wore out one of my out of ammo markers 

I added in some Traits to several of the characters and need to remind myself to look at their data sheets when activating.

OOPs! Sorry for getting carried away with talking WW2 in the Old West forum!

[Dubar]

Question...Are the Queen of Hearts, Queen of Spades, and Sixes the only cards that allow you to still use 2 actions in a turn?  The other "Special" cards don't mention it, just the two Queens and 4 Sixes.

[Malamute]

Question...Are the Queen of Hearts, Queen of Spades, and Sixes the only cards that allow you to still use 2 actions in a turn?  The other "Special" cards don't mention it, just the two Queens and 4 Sixes.

The answer to your question is these give a free action at the start of the figures activation before they do anything else.

 For example your Cowboy who rolled a 1 and emptied his six gun last turn activates this turn on the six of spades, he gets to reload his pistol immediately for free. He then gets his normal two actions after that. So he can move, blast away, aim etc.

 Its the same for shock removal (Spades) and Wounds (Hearts). If the figure has a wound, when you activate him on the queen of hearts, he immediately heals one wound then gets to use his two actions as normal.

The other special cards are either add bonuses to combat or shooting or re rolling or rolling two dice and picking the best.

The Ace can be played as any card in the deck. So it could be a Queen of Hearts to heal a figure. Remember if you declare it as the Queen of Hearts and your opponent has the real Queen of Hearts he will go before you, but you can still play it as the Queen of Hearts.

Hope that helps.

[Dubar]

Thanks for the response.  I thought that's what it meant but sometimes I read more into something than is there, or not there. 

[fred]

A couple of suggestions around tracking activated figures

1) use markers to note when a figure has activated. We find this very useful as after a couple of turns it can get very complicated to recall did a figure activate at the end of last turn, or the start of this one. I just use plain MDF markers, they blend pretty well with the desert cloth I use. But you could use almost anything.

2) if you have stat cards for each figure, then ‘tap’ or rotate the figure’s card once it has activated. Less clutter on the table, but effort in making the stat cards!

And when playing solo any thing to help track statuses is good, as you don’t have another player to correct any mistakes.

[Dubar]

Fred,
I have some colored tokens I use in one of my other rule sets, they certainly could be used as you suggest.

I have character cards for each character, made using an Excel type spreadsheet, printed on cardstock and laminated using a laminator made by Scotch.  When I activate a character I place the card that was dealt on top of the character card to remind me which character activates.

What I'm finding is I have to remind myself to not just look at what dealt card has been placed, but I also need to READ them too, else I miss the benefits of the lower number cards like the sixes and twos.  I've been cursed with rolling 1s lately, getting to use a automatic reload is crucial if you want to keep your characters alive!

The 28mm western figures I have, I've given them names (Matt, Gordo, Peg-Leg Pete, etc) and have them printed on labels, cut out and stuck to their bases.  I used some Avery Mailing labels, printed several names on each label, then cut them apart.  For WW2 I use Squad numbers, position in the squad, rank, and name (S1-1, Sgt Wilkins).

[fred]

Yes, 6s to reload can be super important, but I often get them in turn 1, when they aren’t much use!

Putting the playing cards on the character cards is a good idea.

You can get official FFoL card decks which have the special rules on the cards.

[NickNascati]

I was thinking of getting white, plastic shower curtain rings to use in marking figures who have activated.  I like to push the numbers a bit, so keeping track does become problematic.

[Dubar]

I've got a bowl full of pennies I could use. Already paid for, easy to pick up, and won't slide around on the table!!!  I even have some I painted that I used when I first started wargaming. 

[BaronVonJ]

Fistful of Lead Tips & Tricks