Deck recommendations

Bojangles · January 7, 2020, 10:20am

To clarify, I mean 12 actions, 12 goods/spells, 12 deeds, and 16 dudes. Ideally 16 of each of the on-value values though.

Bojangles · January 7, 2020, 2:04pm

I really hate the trimming down part - there are always so many cards I want but aren’t allowed to get!

Okay, here are the cards I am pondering. As I said, my thought is 12 actions, hearts, and deeds, 16 dudes.

The list below isn’t how many I’m getting of each, just the ones I’m looking to work with.
You probably don’t need the links provided, but I figured I would anyway.

I hope I’m not driving you nuts with all the advice seeking!

ACTIONS:
K: Point Blank (Point Blank · DoomtownDB)
K: Nightmare at Noon (Nightmare at Noon · DoomtownDB)
8: You had ONE job (You Had ONE Job! · DoomtownDB)
8: This’ll hurt in the morning (I try to avoid getting 4 of any card - much preferring 2, plus I already have a few cheatin’ resolution cards that stay in play, so I also wanted some that were played as a resolution instead) (This'll Hurt in the Mornin' · DoomtownDB)
8: Rite of Profane Abstersion (Rite Of Profane Abstersion · DoomtownDB)
Off-value: Unprepared (Unprepared · DoomtownDB)
Recruitment Drive (Recruitment Drive · DoomtownDB)
Hex Slingin’ (Hex Slingin' · DoomtownDB)
Serendipitious Arrival (surprise summoning!) (Serendipitous Arrival · DoomtownDB)
Rope and Ride (Rope and Ride · DoomtownDB)
Extortion (to help me pay for the dudes) (Extortion · DoomtownDB)

SPELLS/GOODS
K: Raising Hell (Raising Hell · DoomtownDB)
K: Essence of Armitage (Essence of Armitage · DoomtownDB)
8: Gateway (this one I may have 4 of) (Gateway · DoomtownDB)
Off-Value: Fetch (Fetch · DoomtownDB)
Soul Cage (Soul Cage · DoomtownDB)
Summoning (Summoning · DoomtownDB) (I tend to feel recruitment drive is pointless if I have this)

DEEDS (okay, a lot of them!)
K: Bilton Collection Agency (Bilton Collection Agency · DoomtownDB)
K: Open Wound ("Open Wound" · DoomtownDB)
K: Whateley Estate (The Whateley Estate · DoomtownDB)
K: Telegraph Office (Telegraph Office · DoomtownDB)
8: Circle M Ranch (Circle M Ranch · DoomtownDB)
8: Cooke’s Nightcap (Cooke's Nightcap · DoomtownDB)
8: Gomorra Gazette (The Gomorra Gazette · DoomtownDB)
OFF-Value:
Bank of California (Bank of California · DoomtownDB)
Pettigrew’s Pawnshop (Pettigrew's Pawnshop · DoomtownDB)
2nd Bank of Gomorra (2nd Bank Of Gomorra · DoomtownDB)
Mausoleum (Mausoleum · DoomtownDB)
Clanton Ranch (Clanton Ranch · DoomtownDB)
Gateway Station (Gateway Station · DoomtownDB)
Concordia Cemetery (Concordia Cemetery · DoomtownDB)
Flint’s Amusements (Flint's Amusements · DoomtownDB)
Buffalo Emporium (Buffalo Emporium · DoomtownDB)
Hunter Protections (Hunter Protections · DoomtownDB)
Ike’s Place (Ike's Place · DoomtownDB)
Quarantine Tent (Quarantine Tent · DoomtownDB)
Carter’s Bounties (Carter's Bounties · DoomtownDB)
Undertaker (Undertaker · DoomtownDB)
Cochise County Courthouse (Cochise County Courthouse · DoomtownDB)
Grimoires & More (Grimoires & More · DoomtownDB)
Cliff’s #4 Saloon (Cliff's #4 Saloon · DoomtownDB)

Thanks a lot for bearing with me!

jordan_caldwell · January 8, 2020, 1:56am

Will read this fully later.

There is only one solution to making the “trimming down” step feel better, and that is create more decks for / with the cards you eliminate.

But that is a rabbit hole…

davido4015 · January 8, 2020, 5:23am

Also, when you’re tuning decks - put the extras as a ‘sideboard’ -
find someone to hammer decks with you for an afternoon or evening. After each game, do some swap outs and see what does or doesn’t work.

Bojangles · January 8, 2020, 5:28am

@davido4015 Actually, that’s a very good idea! Pick the top dozen or so additional cards and change every so often. Not quite sure why I didn’t think of a sideboard. Thanks

RichCarter · January 8, 2020, 4:33pm

We all know the pain of trimming a deck.

Part of the glory of that hard 52 limit.

Another testing tactic is a notepad with the cards that were kept when others were cut, just a quick tally count when a card shows up (since that is not guaranteed) vs being useful.

Bojangles · January 9, 2020, 7:31am

Yes, good idea @RichCarter. Thank you. There are often cards or card combos that look awesome in theory, but then you don’t end up getting them regularly enough to ever use them properly. It’d be good to have an objective record of how often they have actually been drawn and used.

Antaiseito · January 10, 2020, 12:38pm

An interesting practice i recently heard was (which Carters comment just reminded me of):
If you can’t decide between two cards, put a little paper into the sleeve with the alternative card written onto it for your test games. If you draw the card, note down how often you would have rather drawn the alternative.

… the time i used pondering about these little alternatives instead of just playing a few rounds and noticing that they just don’t work in a certain deck ^^"

Bojangles · January 13, 2020, 1:46am

@Antaiseito That’s a good idea! Too often I plan for cards, and then end up missing great opportunities because of it. Just playing with what comes out is probably best. I ended up creating the core deck, and then last week just quickly chose the rest of the cards right before our game, and it worked really well.

Findegil · March 5, 2020, 8:08am

A sideline on Mason Adler: One of his problems is that while there’s an obvious synergy between his two abilities, this can be short-circuited by your opponent simply leaving the mark out of the defending posse.Even if you’re targeting my strongest shooter (which will often but not always be the case), it can still be worth it for me to use a backup shooter instead if that limits Mason to a 5 Draw.

I kinda feel like the key to a Mason-centric deck is (similarly to Jonah’s Alliance) is to focus on one of the two abilities and treat the other as an optional extra.

Either

A) you build for him to run his solo job, with Sidekicks and other casualty-soaks, plus alternative stud-makers (Bowie Knives, Bad Company, etc…) so that his built-in studifying is just one of several options for this

or

B) you build for him to go on regular jobs/callouts where he makes himself a Stud (which both gives you more control over who you’re fighting, especially if you’re using the FMB home, and also lets you combine him with grit-manipulation like Black Owl and Rosenbaum’s Golem), and just treat the job as something he does once in a while if the top opponent is particularly exposed.

Benni · March 5, 2020, 3:55pm

Great thoughts on an interesting new dude. I would also consider Grim Servant of Death as a tool to drag in his high grid dude at home if he’s trying to keep him out the shootout.
Whatever you do with Mason he’ll always be a high risk, high reward dude. So many classic actions like Sun in Ye Eyes ect. can ruin his day.

Findegil · March 6, 2020, 7:54pm

Absolutely, Grim Servant is brilliant for both these approaches, since if I can target your top Dude, it creates a perfect Morton’s Fork where Mason either becomes a Stud because the top Dude joins the fight or becomes a Stud because that Dude didn’t join.

jordan_caldwell · March 7, 2020, 12:54am

@MadPip uses Black Owl and Rosenbaum’s Golem - who can both raise enemy grit - to force the folks I fight him into counting as “highest grit” etc.

Super annoying!

Bojangles · March 7, 2020, 1:04am

Ah! Very cunning tactic! While the highest grit dude may cower someplace else, you just make another dude the highest grit!