Lock and Load!: The Gunslinger Class Deck Preview

Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Players who joined us last week at Gen Con had an early opportunity to play the Gunslinger, but for those who missed the mayhem, I'm here to deliver everything you need to know about the Gunslinger Class Deck.

One of the first steps I took when preparing to work on the Gunslinger deck was to get my research on. I pored through historical documents (internet wiki) as well as the Pathfinder RPG rules with a singular quest: identify all of the guns we could possibly have, then stuff them all in the class deck. You'll have a full array of lower-technology options such as the Matchlock Hackbut, Wheellock Pistol, and Hand Cannon, as well as examples of the higher end of gunsmithing that Alkenstar might have to offer, by way of the Revolver, Shotgun, and Rifle.


One shot, many kills.

Some of you might be wondering about that Alkenstar reference. Alkenstar is a city-state on the border of the Mana Wastes. Having to survive in that harsh magic-dead region, the alchemists and engineers of Alkenstar invented firearms. In fact, the kingdom still controls the supply of firearms to the rest of Golarion, with 90% of the firearms in the world remaining within its borders. All three of the characters in the Gunslinger Class Deck are from Alkenstar.


Look, ma: no Divine.

Some of you might think of our iconic gunslinger Lirianne as a buccaneer, due to her presence in Skull & Shackles. The Class Deck version of Lirianne focuses more on her history as a shield marshal from Alkenstar that has been flung far from home. Mechanically, she specializes in always having the right gun in hand and making the most of its powers, as well as self-sufficiency to make her a more appealing solo option.


There's a reason she has marshal stars on her holsters.

Each of the three gunslingers in the deck takes inspiration from one of the Gunslinger archetypes in the RPG. Far from home, Lirianne is now a mysterious stranger who roams from adventure to adventure righting wrongs. That inspired me to write a short bit of doggerel (preferably read in your best Sam Elliott impression), which didn't quite fit into the flavor text box for the Mysterious Stranger role card:

When the bad times come, your life's in danger
Then appears the mysterious stranger
Tip of her hat and six shots of her gun
On to her next stop, 'cause your problem's done.


Bring it.

Our next gunslinger was inspired by the Gun Tank archetype. Angban is a dwarf from Dongun Hold, the dwarven fortress in Alkenstar that invented firearms. He is a master of long guns and armor both, making steady progress against the toughest of foes.


Oh, it's already been brought'n.

The third gunslinger is a ratfolk Gulch Gunner whose story is intertwined with Angban's. Both participated gloriously in the Battle of the Warrens, but Skizza's glory has a very different flavor indeed. Skizza is known for his use of bombs and fire, and other alchemical toys. He is tremendously effective, but not the safest of companions.


Not safe for children. Or Veterans.

The class deck includes plenty of new cards, including a new cycle: Ammunition. Like gunslingers in the RPG, card game gunslingers now have the ability to sift through an array of possible options to maximize their shots-to-kill ratios.

Pathfinder really has the most amazing artists, and Gunslinger was the first set in which I personally composed the art order. It was a true high note of my time as a game designer to see the results, so I want to end with callouts to some of my favorite pieces. You can see Ekaterina Burmak's fantastic treatment of Angban above, which delivered on absolutely every detail of my concept and then some. Two other awesome pieces were ally cards done by Suzanne Helmigh:


Illustrations by Suzanne Helmigh

The Gunslinger Class Deck is available August 31. And if you don't already have a Class Deck subscription, there's still time to start your sub with Goblins Fight! and Goblins Burn! and get a pile of goblin promo cards alongside them!

Keith Richmond
Adventure Card Game Designer

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Tags: Adventure Card Guild Class Decks Pathfinder Adventure Card Game Suzanne Helmigh

Oh! Well... yes please.

Dark Archive

Locked and loaded for adventure. These look so cool.

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Continuing our tradition of always picking the cards with issues for the preview blog... Added Poison Bullets to FAQ.


Can't wait for this one. Looks really fun to play with. Especially the Blessing of Alkenstar.

Vic Wertz wrote:
Continuing our tradition of always picking the cards with issues for the preview blog... Added Poison Bullets to FAQ.

When I see something like this I imagine Vic rolling his eyes and hanging his head for a moment before sighing in resignation.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

b(ANGBAN)g?


Does "an effect that increases the difficulty of that check" include effects not from the monster itself, like the Abattoir?

Grand Lodge

zeroth_hour2 wrote:
Does "an effect that increases the difficulty of that check" include effects not from the monster itself, like the Abattoir?

Yes. You can discard the Adamantine Bullet to ignore any effect that increases the difficulty of the monster. Even if there are multiple effects in play.

Sovereign Court

Having played at GenCon with someone using Skizza, that second power is definitely cool.

I'm looking forward to seeing Angban's roles, he certainly looks like he'd be my favorite in the box.

Silver Crusade

I like Lirianne's role card a lot. I didn't love her in Shackles, but I may give this one a shot. I like ranged in place of diplomacy. Given the flavor text, I'm assuming she shoots people's problems, so they like her.


Looks like this deck pushes us into new territory again with some unique boons. Really looking forward to all the different Ammunition cards.

Adventure Card Game Designer

Axoq wrote:
b(ANGBAN)g?

I wouldn't rule it out, but I wouldn't rule it in either.


Vic Wertz wrote:
Continuing our tradition of always picking the cards with issues for the preview blog... Added Poison Bullets to FAQ.

Actually it seems the card is named "Poisoned Bullets", so you may want to de-typo your FAQ Vic.

Just trying to help...

Grand Lodge

Yeah, I really wanted to spend much more time drooling on a copy of this deck while I was there. From skimming, I'm definitely a (b)Angban(g) fan.


Ammunition looks pretty cool. I hope there are exploding rounds because now I'm really looking forward to saying "High Ex" just before I use them to blow something to pieces.

Silver Crusade RPG Superstar 2014 Top 16

Very surprised that the Blessing of Alkenstar doesn't have the Gambling trait.

I'm super excited to try out this deck. I might add Skizza to my "goblins+" group that I'm starting to run through Season of the Runelords... currently it consists of Tup, Ekkie and the Lizardfolk Oracle whose name escapes me at the moment.

Silver Crusade

1 person marked this as a favorite.
cartmanbeck wrote:

Very surprised that the Blessing of Alkenstar doesn't have the Gambling trait.

I'm super excited to try out this deck. I might add Skizza to my "goblins+" group that I'm starting to run through Season of the Runelords... currently it consists of Tup, Ekkie and the Lizardfolk Oracle whose name escapes me at the moment.

Grazzle. (I don't have an oracle problem.)

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

Frencois wrote:
Vic Wertz wrote:
Continuing our tradition of always picking the cards with issues for the preview blog... Added Poison Bullets to FAQ.

Actually it seems the card is named "Poisoned Bullets", so you may want to de-typo your FAQ Vic.

Just trying to help...

Gah!

Fixed. Thanks.


Two things.

One, I am *so* playing that rat.
Two, I'm somewhat disappointed there were no McCree references in the preview.

"It's HIGH NOON ..."

Pathfinder ACG Developer

Zhayne wrote:
One, I am *so* playing that rat.

Skizza is super fun :)

Quote:
Two, I'm somewhat disappointed there were no McCree references in the preview.

I worked on the Gunslinger deck back in September, so I really didn't have Overwatch on the mind.

Sides, I'm more into Soldier 76. Sprint and team heals, as well as firepower.

Liberty's Edge

Squee! I have a ratfolk Gulch Gunner/Gun Scavenger in Roleplaying Guild. He wears a copper colored cloak and has glowing yellow eyes.

Untinni!

Pathfinder ACG Developer

For the curious, Angban and Skizza have pawns in the Pathfinder Society Pawn Collection.

Silver Crusade

Keith Richmond wrote:
For the curious, Angban and Skizza have pawns in the Pathfinder Society Pawn Collection.

Another reason that collaboration was awesome! A lot of Card Game pawns that I may try to incorporate into the game as a stand in for the character cards.

Besides that, excited to see new things in this! I have not been disappointed with any deck I've played so far, with my favorites being the Alchemist and Goblin decks.


For Alkenstar blessing....why would i add a d4 when i could add a d12? most of the time guaranteeing a success is far more important than aiming for that "under 6" sweet spot for the recharge.

The only other reason I could think of is the few abilities that say things like "if you roll a 4 on a d4, count it as 6" or something.

Pathfinder ACG Developer

Precision is a minor theme in the gunslinger. A solo gunslinger or team of gunslingers may want to game their blessings for maximum benefit. Also, sometimes you want to succeed, but overshooting has a cost. This is particularly true in the soon-to-be-released Mummy's Mask.


Of course (it happens each month, after I read one of these blog posts), now I want to subscribe and get the Gunslinger class deck.

Unfortunately, at the moment, the subscription lets you start either with the Goblins or the Warpriest decks. No option to subscribe starting with the Gunslinger.


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Keith Richmond wrote:
Precision is a minor theme in the gunslinger.

There's an example of this theme in the last power of the Mysterious Stranger role. Put the blessing on top of your deck *and* recharge a random card from your discard pile? Might be worth lowballing the die you choose, if the odds are already reasonably well in your favor.


Keith Richmond wrote:
Also, sometimes you want to succeed, but overshooting has a cost. This is particularly true in the soon-to-be-released Mummy's Mask.

Lets see. You like scouting? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that. You like using your awesome powers to their fullest? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that. You like opening the box for a brand new Adventure Path? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that: the cards have been replaced with Asps.

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

Fayries wrote:
Unfortunately, at the moment, the subscription lets you start either with the Goblins or the Warpriest decks. No option to subscribe starting with the Gunslinger.

It should currently offer Gunslinger instead of Warpriest as a starting option. We'll look into it.

Pathfinder ACG Developer

cosined wrote:
You like using your awesome powers to their fullest? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that. You like opening the box for a brand new Adventure Path? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that: the cards have been replaced with Asps.

Whoa - spoilers on the asps. We've got a pool going on the body count, and warning people will ruin it.

That said, those who played the demo at Gen Con got to see this theory in practice. If you defeat a particular enemy by less than 6, you got a random boon. It's pretty similar to recharging the blessing above :)


Keith Richmond wrote:
cosined wrote:
You like using your awesome powers to their fullest? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that. You like opening the box for a brand new Adventure Path? Too bad, because in Mummy's Mask we'll punish you for that: the cards have been replaced with Asps.

Whoa - spoilers on the asps. We've got a pool going on the body count, and warning people will ruin it.

That said, those who played the demo at Gen Con got to see this theory in practice. If you defeat a particular enemy by less than 6, you got a random boon. It's pretty similar to recharging the blessing above :)

So, less 'getting punished', more 'not getting rewarded as much'?

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

Hey, with all this talk about cards that hurt you when you examine them, I have to point out that it's possible to design a card that actually rewards you for examining it.

You know, at least... theoretically.


Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Lost Omens, PF Special Edition, Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Vic Wertz wrote:

Hey, with all this talk about cards that hurt you when you examine them, I have to point out that it's possible to design a card that actually rewards you for examining it.

You know, at least... theoretically.

Like, rewarding you with 1d4-1 damage? Do we have any characters from Nidal? They'd totally think that's a reward!


Vic Wertz wrote:

Hey, with all this talk about cards that hurt you when you examine them, I have to point out that it's possible to design a card that actually rewards you for examining it.

You know, at least... theoretically.

Love where you are going with the game design. Each set is taking an aspect of game play and stretching it. Can t wait for MM to be available

Silver Crusade

2 people marked this as a favorite.

Bring it, triggers! I fear you not!

#StillPlayingAlahazra


Keith Richmond wrote:
Also, sometimes you want to succeed, but overshooting has a cost. This is particularly true in the soon-to-be-released Mummy's Mask.

Curious to see how that will impact a 6 players game. Hope it won't too often lead to a player losing one of his five turns (remember WotR?). Anyway, I'll stick to not-this-Mike very good #3 rule: never comment a rule before you actually run into a specific case during play... So we'll see in October.


So, now we're speculating on what these new cards might be that punish you for scouting them.

Presumably, that's because actually finding out what they say might cause them to trigger against us...

Ok, now my head hurts.


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
MightyJim wrote:
Presumably, that's because actually finding out what they say might cause them to trigger against us..

Verily, printing the Explosive Runes barrier before the Trigger mechanic was implemented represents a missed opportunity.


First World Bard wrote:
MightyJim wrote:
Presumably, that's because actually finding out what they say might cause them to trigger against us..
Verily, printing the Explosive Runes barrier before the Trigger mechanic was implemented represents a missed opportunity.

Aha. The old "Faded Explosive Runes" card.


Is anyone else kind of bothered all the bullets shown are metallic cartridges, but all the firearms are early muzzle-loaders? Just me? Ok.

Pathfinder ACG Developer

As mentioned, the firearms cover the full breadth of options, including metallic cartridge users like the Revolver and Rifle. There's also a bunch more ammunition than just those two options. ;)

I will concede that some of the ammunition pieces might have been more historically accurate as metal balls instead of rimfire or centerfire cartridges, but I'm _super_ happy with the look all the same. Pathfinder alchemists are a pretty inventive bunch :)


Keith Richmond wrote:

As mentioned, the firearms cover the full breadth of options, including metallic cartridge users like the Revolver and Rifle. There's also a bunch more ammunition than just those two options. ;)

I will concede that some of the ammunition pieces might have been more historically accurate as metal balls instead of rimfire or centerfire cartridges, but I'm _super_ happy with the look all the same. Pathfinder alchemists are a pretty inventive bunch :)

My bad, I completely missed that passage... I retract my pedantic complaint, haha.

Pathfinder ACG Developer

Nah, the pedantic comment _was_ appropriate. We just kinda went with rule of cool a bit :)


It still makes more sense than a cutlass being a "finesse" weapon...

Scarab Sages

It's a game; not a simulation.

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