Death Enters the Saloon

Greta Bellagamba & Daniele Di Rubbo

A weird spaghetti Western role-playing filler about guilt, judgement and the fear of Death

⟨Logo Gre the Owl⟩

Gre the Owl

⟨Logo Geecko on the Wall⟩

Geecko on the Wall

Credits

Design and writing: Greta Bellagamba and Daniele Di Rubbo.

Language of the original text: Italian.

Text revision: Antonio Amato.

English translation: Greta Bellagamba.

Translation revision: Elisa Di Rubbo and Alberto Muti.

Cover and illustrations: Benedetta Falcone.

Layout: Daniele Di Rubbo.

Legal stuff

Death Enters the Saloon copyleft (ↄ) 2023-2024 Greta Bellagamba and Daniele Di Rubbo. Some rights reserved.

The text of this game is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.

Gre the Owl

https://gre-the-owl.itch.io/

Geecko on the Wall

https://www.geeckoonthewall.eu/

info@geeckoonthewall.eu

https://www.behance.net/benedetfalcone

First edition, first print: September 2024.

Community

If you play Death Enters the Saloon and want to talk about your games, you have questions about the rules, or if you just want to share your enthusiasm, please use the game’s community on itch.io:

https://geeckoonthewall.itch.io/death-enters-the-saloon/community

Cataloguing

Rules: original.

Setting: weird Western, spaghetti Western.

Game duration: 40-70 minutes, single session, role-playing filler.

Preparation: none.

Game master: no.

Play equipment: a deck of poker cards, printable game handouts.

Number of players: 3-5.

Recommended age: 16+.

To those who write role-playing games for fun and to their games: the ones that lay in the back of a drawer, the ones half-written, the ones that exist only in their heads. We can’t wait to play them all!

⟨Table of Contents.⟩

Introduction

Foreword

A mysterious presence enters the saloon. None of you know them, although they look familiar to everyone. But when they sit with their back to the bar and begin to scrutinise you patrons, you have no more doubts: they are Death, and they’ve come to claim one of you.

You know you can’t escape them but, out of desperation, you pitch a devious game: asking questions to the other patrons, to unravel their murky pasts, in the hope that Death will choose someone else, anyone else, inside this cursed saloon.

Aim of the Game

The aim of the game is not really to win, since you have no control over who will be ultimately taken by Death. The real purpose is to give voice to the saloon regulars that you will play, to understand who they are, what they have done, and to capture the dark soul of the little western town in which they live.

Content Warnings

The authors distance themselves from any form of discrimination. In the text of the game, the social roles typical of Western aesthetics are associated to neither gender identity nor ethnicity, in order not to emphasise prejudicial stereotypes. If you want to bring some discrimination typical of the Western genre into your game, be careful to do so with sensitivity, and with the full consent of everyone at the table.

Required

A deck of poker cards;
a printed handout for each player;
the “Unwanted” card.

The “Unwanted” Card

Place the “Unwanted” card in the centre of the table. Whenever you feel uncomfortable about a topic in the game, at any time you can take the “Unwanted” card and lift it for everyone to see. When this happens, discuss together on how to change or delete what was said so that it is acceptable to everyone. Always be respectful and do not minimise the discomfort others feel. Also, do not be afraid to be a “party pooper” by using the “Unwanted” card: how safe the players feel is more important than how compelling the story is.

You can also use the “Unwanted” card to point out that a follow-up question you’ve just been asked by another player implies something too heavy on your character, or leaves you with little freedom to answer, and consequently ask for it to be rephrased in a more acceptable way to you (see “Provocative Questions”, ⟨page ?⟩).

Prepare the Deck

Saloon Habitués

Take only the face cards (kings, queens, and jacks) from the deck and shuffle them. Each of them represents a typical character from a weird Western village, as shown in table 1: “Saloon Habitués” (below and on ⟨page ?⟩).

Table 1: Saloon Habitués

K ♥️ — Doctor
Q ♥️ — Prostitute
J ♥️ — Slacker or Gambler
K ♦️ — Mayor
Q ♦️ — Teacher
J ♦️ — Cowboy/Cowgirl
K ♣️ — Judge
Q ♣️ — Saloon Owner
J ♣️ — Sheriff
K ♠️ — Reverend
Q ♠️ — Fortune Teller
J ♠️ — Undertaker

Each player randomly draws one and places it in front of them: it will indicate their character’s archetype. There is no need to name the players’ characters: they will be identified only by their role in the town.

As an alternative rule, you may name the characters. You may also choose the card corresponding to the archetype you wish to play, instead of drawing it randomly.

The archetypes associated with the face cards that have not been drawn may still be called into play as secondary characters (those characters which are not played by any particular player). You can introduce them freely, without using these cards. You can now set the rest of the face cards aside, as you will no longer need them in this game.

Some inspirations for typical roles in an Old West community, which you can use for additional secondary characters, are: cook, blacksmith, outlaw, washerwoman, store owner, ranch owner, saddle-maker.

Discard Initial Hand Cards

Once you have discarded the undrawn face cards, take the remaining cards and remove the jokers. Now, the deck should contain cards of all suits with value A, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. Hand out all the cards in the deck amongst the participants. In some cases, someone will have an extra card: it does not matter.

All participants check their hand of cards and discard all pairs of cards (a set of 2 cards of the same value), placing them in an uncovered discard pile in the centre of the table. In case you have three of a kind (three cards with the same value), discard a pair of your choice and keep the third, unpaired card in your hand; we recommend holding the highest value suit, according to the hierarchy:

hearts > diamonds > clubs > spades

The person left with the most cards in their hand at the end of this phase will have the Gaze of Death focused on them at the beginning of the game (see “The Gaze of Death”, page ?⟩). This character will be called “Doomed” (see “The Doomed”, ⟨page ?⟩).

Example 1
At the beginning of a five-player game, Greta has a hand of eight cards:
8 of diamonds, 7 of hearts, 7 of diamonds, 7 of spades, 4 of spades, 3 of diamonds, 2 of hearts, 2 of diamonds.
Greta discards the pair of 2s; of the triplet of 7s, she elects to keep the 7 of hearts, and discards the 7 of diamonds and the 7 of spades. She also keeps the 8 of diamonds, the 4 of spades, and the 3 of diamonds.

If Someone Runs Out of Cards in Their Hand Before Starting to Play

If someone is forced to discard all the cards in their hand at this stage because every card in their hand pairs with one of the others, withdraw the cards of all the players and deal out a new hand to everyone.

However, in this case, the player who first discarded all the cards in their hand and caused the redraw to happen will start the game as the Doomed. Proceed with discarding the pairs as normal, and identify who is left with the most cards in their hand. If they are not already the player with the most cards in their hand, have them exchange hands with the player who is. Then, the Doomed adds the black joker to their hand and places the red joker in front of them (see “The Gaze of Death”, ⟨page?⟩).

In case there are several players with the same highest number of cards, the appointed Doomed freely chooses with whom to exchange.

The Gaze of Death

When everyone is done discarding, take the black joker and add it to the hand of the player with the highest number of cards left. Also, place the red joker on the table in front of them. Whoever facilitates, or any player, speaks the ritual words to him:

The gaze of Death rests on you.

In the event that two or more players have the same number of cards in their hand, they show everyone the lowest card they have. The one with the lowest card adds the black joker to their hand. Follow the descending hierarchy of values:

A > 10 > 9 > 8 > 7 > 6 > 5 > 4 > 3 > 2

If again two or more players are tied, follow the descending hierarchy of suits:

hearts > diamonds > clubs > spades

Example 2
After discarding cards from their starting hands, Greta and Daniele both end up with six cards in their hands. Greta’s lowest card is the 3 of diamonds, while Daniele’s lowest card is the 3 of clubs. Since clubs, in the hierarchy of suits, is considered lower than diamonds, it is Daniele who has the lowest card. He adds the black joker to his hand and places the red joker in front of him: he will be the first Doomed of the game.

Western is the simplest form of drama: a gun, death.
— Howard Hawks, director (1896-1977), from the book Hawks on Hawks

How to Play

The Doomed

The character of the player who holds the black joker in their hand is targeted by Death: we will call them “the Doomed”. This role will pass to other characters over the course of the game.

The Doomed holds their entire covered hand, including the black joker, for everyone to reach. In turn, clockwise, starting with the player to the left of the Doomed, every player draws a card from the Doomed’s hand.

When it’s your turn to draw a card from the Doomed’s hand, show it to everyone. Three cases can occur:

it pairs with a card in your hand;
it does not pair with any card in your hand;
it is the black joker.

1. If The Card You’ve Drawn Pairs with a Card in Your Hand

Discard the new pair and ask the Doomed a question, using the cue corresponding to the value of the discarded pair, as shown in table 2: “Point the finger at the Doomed” (below and on ⟨page ?⟩). Fill the “***” gap in the questions by choosing another player’s character, picking a secondary character from table 1: “Saloon Habitués” (⟨page ?⟩), or inventing a new one.

After the Doomed has answered your question, the other players may ask them to elaborate on the topic: Starting from the player on your left and going clockwise, each player may ask the Doomed a follow-up question, up to a maximum of two questions in total. Each player may only ask one follow-up question.

If, in asking a follow-up question, someone brings up another player’s character or a secondary character related to theirs, they should discuss their statement with the respective player. In any case, the player of the character brought up by the initial question always has the right to ask the Doomed an extra question (up to a maximum of three), provided that they have not already asked one. Note that bringing up other characters in follow-up questions does not allow the respective players to ask additional questions if they have already asked one.

Table 2: “Point the Finger at the Doomed”

A — You killed *** in cold blood. Why?
10 — You killed someone close to ***. What relationship did they have? Why did you do it?
9 — You tried to kill ***. Why? What went wrong?
8 — You physically hurt ***. How?
7 — You hurt ***’s feelings. How?
6 — You destroyed something that belonged to ***. What was it? What did it mean to them?
5 — You publicly humiliated ***. How? Who witnessed this among the people they care about?
4 — You’ve discredited ***. What false rumour did you spread? How did the community react?
3 — You stole something from ***. What? What was it worth to you? What was it worth to them?
2 — You feel envious of ***. Why?

Example 3.1
In a game with five players - Alessio, Benedetta, Daniele, Greta and Vanessa - Alessio’s character is the current Doomed. Benedetta draws a card from his hand and gets the 7 of spades, which pairs with the 7 of clubs in her hand. She discards the pair and looks at table 2: “Pointing the Finger at the Doomed” in the game handout.
The cue corresponding to 7 is:
You hurt ***’s feelings. How?
Benedetta asks the question to Alessio, whose character is the Undertaker, a lady. This question involves another character, and Benedetta decides to bring up the Sheriff (also a lady!) played by Vanessa:
You hurt the Sheriff’s feelings. How?
Alessio replies:
For some time we had a love affair. She asked me to leave and start a new life together, but I refused, telling her I had never loved her.
Daniele, to Benedetta’s left, asks Alessio the first follow-up question:
So did you just take advantage of her and of the fact that she was in love with you, or were you too much of a coward to leave everything and admit who you really are?
Alessio answers:
The truth is that I loved her, but I always believed I wasn’t enough for her. If I abandoned her, it was because I didn’t want to ruin her life by chaining her to me.
Greta, to Daniele’s left, asks Alessio the second follow-up question:
Do you regret this decision?
Alessio replies:
Although I often think back to her, my answer is no, because she is now a respected person who is doing as much good in this city as she can.
In theory, the round would end here, with two follow-up questions, but since Vanessa’s character, the Sheriff, was brought up by Benedetta’s initial question, Vanessa may decide to ask Alessio a third follow-up question, in addition to the two normally allowed. Vanessa asks:
What is your highlight memory of our love story?
Alessio replies:
I’ll always remember when you brought a flower to your mother’s grave; I was working and I approached you. You told me she died in a bandit attack: that was how you decided to become a Sheriff. In that moment I realised I was in love with you.
The turn passes: Daniele draws a new card from Alessio’s hand, and the game continues.

Example 3.2
In a game with five players - Alessio, Benedetta, Daniele, Greta and Vanessa - Alessio’s character is the current Doomed. Benedetta draws a card from his hand and it is the 7 of spades, which pairs with the 7 of clubs in her hand. She discards the pair and looks at table 2: “Pointing the Finger at the Doomed” in the game support.
The cue corresponding to the 7-value pair is:
You hurt ***’s feelings. How?
Benedetta asks the question to Alessio, whose character is the Undertaker, a lady. This question involves another character, and Benedetta decides to bring up the Fortune Teller (a man) played by Daniele:
You hurt the Fortune Teller’s feelings. How?
Alessio replies:
After an evening spent drinking together, I told him I always believed he was the greatest quack.
Daniele, to Benedetta’s left, asks Alessio the first follow-up question:
Did you only say that because once, during a card reading, I revealed you that you could never be happy with the love of your life?
Alessio replies:
I never believed in your nonsense, long before that prediction of yours. The only person in this town who is really in contact with the invisible is me. When you work with the dead, the veil between yourself and the beyond becomes thinner.
Greta, to Daniele’s left, asks Alessio the second follow-up question:
Have you ever had the spirit of some deceased speak to you?
Alessio replies:
It was a spring Sunday, at dusk, as I was cleaning the graveyard driveway before closing time. I heard an old woman’s voice, even though it came from the grave of the little girl who had died of chickenpox that same year. I was too frightened to understand all her words, but she said something like: ’You will meet Death long before you die’. Only today I do understand what that voice wanted me to be ready for.
No further questions can be asked.
Daniele’s character had been brought up by Benedetta’s initial question and Daniele would have been entitled to an extra follow-up question, if he had not already asked the first one as part of the normal flow of play. The round passes: Daniele draws a new card from Alessio’s hand, and the game continues.

2. If The Card You’ve Drawn Matches No Card in Your Hand

Your character feels a slight bit of mercy for the Doomed. Rather than pointing your finger at them, you just want to prove that you do not deserve death. Add the card to your hand and tell something about your character using the corresponding cue, as shown in table 3: “Clear your name in the Eyes of Death” (below and on ⟨page ?⟩). Fill the “***” gap in the questions by choosing Replace “***” with another player’s character, nickname or with a picking a secondary character taken from table 1: “Saloon Habitués” (⟨page ?⟩), or inventing a new one.

Furthermore, fill the “…” gap with a short description clarifying what happened.

After your narration, the other players can ask you for more details: Starting from the player on your left and going clockwise, each player may ask you a follow-up question, up to a maximum of two questions in total. Each player may only ask one follow-up question.

If, by asking a follow-up question, someone brings up another player’s character or a secondary character related to theirs, discuss your assertion with the respective player. In any case, the player of the character you brought up in the initial statement always has the right to ask you an extra question (up to a maximum of three), provided that they have not already asked one. Note that bringing up other characters in follow-up questions does not allow the respective players to ask additional questions if they have already asked one.

Table 3: “Clear Your Name in the Eyes of Death”

A — I don’t deserve death, because I saved the life of ***…
10 — I do not deserve death, because I defended *** from an injustice…
9 — I am a good person because I testified in favour of *** by dropping a false accusation…
8 — I’m a good person because I helped *** get back on their feet when they were on the breadline…
7 — My life must be spared because *** waits for me at home…
6 — If I died, this community would be lost, because…
5 — I cannot die today because I must keep a promise made to ***…
4 — The divine entity I believe in will not let me die because…
3 — I don’t deserve to die, because *** told me that I have a natural talent for … that must not go to waste.
2 — I won’t die just today, because today…

3. If The Card You Have Drawn It’s the Black Joker

Death’s gaze shifts to your character. Add the black joker to your hand: you are the new Doomed. Take the red joker in front of the old Doomed and place it in front of you.

The former Doomed must look towards you, the new Doomed, and say the ritual words:

The gaze of Death rests on you.

The game continues clockwise, with the player to the left of you drawing a new card from your hand.

If the black joker passes, in this way, through all the players around the table, returning to the player who was first holding it, without anyone discarding a pair or drawing an unpaired card, then Death leaves the saloon without taking anyone’s life. The player who has the black joker in their hand describes Death’s exit. Each player, if they wish, can narrate a small vignette showing how their character’s life changes after their brush with Death. The game ends (see “If the Black Joker Passes Around the Table Uninterruptedly”, ⟨page ?⟩, and “Example 4”, ⟨page ?⟩).

Escaping Death

If you discard all of the cards in your hand, then your character is safe, confident that Death will spare them this time. Describes briefly how you realise Death will leave you be.

During the rest of the game, you will not draw any more cards from the Doomed. As a result, you will no more point your finger at the Doomed (⟨page ?⟩) or clear your name in the eyes of Death (⟨page ?⟩). However, you can still ask follow-up questions when other players point their finger at the Doomed or clear their name in the eyes of Death, according to the usual clockwise direction.

At any time, you may leave the game, describing your character leaving the saloon.

Finale

The game comes to an end in three cases:

if the black joker passes around the table uninterruptedly;
if the Doomed is left with only the black joker in their hand;
if only two players are still in the game, with a total of three cards between them.

1. If the Black Joker Passes Around the Table Uninterruptedly

If the black joker passes through the hand of all the players around the table, returning to the player from whom it was originally drawn, without any pair being discarded or a single card other than the black joker being drawn, then Death leaves the saloon without taking anyone’s life. The player who has the black joker in their hand describes Death’s exit. Each player, if they wish, can narrate a small vignette in which they show how their character’s life changes after their brush with Death. The game ends.

Example 4
In a game with three players – Benedetta, Daniele and Greta – Benedetta’s character is the current Doomed. Greta has just pointed her finger at her and it is now Daniele’s turn to draw from Benedetta, as he is sitting to her left.
Daniele draws the black joker from Benedetta, adding it to his hand. Benedetta tells him: “The gaze of Death rests on you!” and places the red joker in front of him.
Greta, to Daniele’s left, draws the black joker from his hand. She adds it to her hand, while Daniele tells her: “The gaze of Death rests on you!” and places the red joker in front of her.
Benedetta, to Greta’s left, draws the black joker from her hand. She adds it to her hand, while Greta tells her: “The gaze of Death rests on you!” and places the red joker in front of her.
At this point, however, the black joker has gone all the way around the table without any interruptions, i.e. without anyone pointing a finger at the Doomed or clearing their own name in the eyes of Death.
The game draws to a close with Death leaving the saloon without taking anyone away. Players who wish to do so narrate a short vignette for their character (see “Finale”, ⟨page ?⟩).

2. If the Doomed is Left with Only the Black Joker in Their Hand

If the Doomed is left with only the black joker in their hand, Death has decided: they must die. The last interaction is played normally: the player who drew from the Doomed’s hand points their finger at them or clears their own name in the eyes of Death, while the others can ask them follow-up questions.

Then, the Doomed gives a short farewell monologue and describes how Death takes them away. The other characters are safe: each player, if they wish, can narrate a short vignette in which they show how their character’s life changes after their brush with Death. The game ends (see “Example 5.2”, ⟨page ?⟩).

3. If only two players are still in the game, with a total of three cards between them

If only two players are still in the game, with a total of three cards between them (i.e. a pair divided between the hands of the two players plus the black joker), both players begin to fear for their lives. Their characters come out of the saloon to challenge each other to a gun duel, trying to steal the choice from Death.

Note that in this interaction you will not play the standard actions of pointing the finger at the Doomed or trying to clear your name with Death; you only describe your actions in the duel (see “Example 5.2”, ⟨page ?⟩, and “Example 5.3”, ⟨page ?⟩), and follow the rules below for your card draws.

The last Doomed places their two remaining cards face down in front of them. The other character shoots first: their player must choose one of the Doomed’s two cards.

If the chosen card matches the only card in their hand, they describe how the shot hits and kills the Doomed. Death just shows up, and the mortals kill each other. The interaction in which the other player points their finger at the Doomed is not played. The Doomed gives a short farewell monologue and describes how Death takes them away. The game ends: don’t add anything else.
If it is the black joker, the shot misses: the player of the character who fired it describes how.

If the shot misses, the game goes on and the roles are reversed. The other player (who is now the new Doomed) places their two cards face down in front of them. The Opponent shoots, choosing one of the two cards.

If the chosen card matches the only card in their hand, they describe how the shot hits and kills the Doomed. The interaction in which the other player points their finger at the Doomed is not played. The Doomed gives a short farewell monologue describing how Death takes them. The game ends without anyone adding anything else.
If it is the black joker, the shot misses and the player of the character who fired it describes how.

Each character has only one good shot in their gun. If after both characters have fired their shot, no player has discarded the last pair, the characters realise that Death is no longer among them, disappeared just as they appeared. Was Death really there or was it just a dream? One thing’s for sure: now, all the patrons of the saloon know each other way better. The game ends without anyone adding anything else.

Example 5.1
Only Daniele’s character, the Fortune Teller, and Greta, the Mayor, remain in the game. Daniele is the Doomed and has the ace of hearts and the black joker in his hand, while Greta only has the ace of spades in her hand.
The two characters come out of the saloon to challenge each other to a pistol duel. Daniele, being the Doomed, shuffles the two cards in his hand and places them face down in front of him.
Greta’s character, the Mayor, shoots first. She draws one of the two cards in front of Daniele: it is the black joker! She adds it to her hand and describes how the Mayor’s shot misses:
I am not used to shooting, and the gun’s recoil surprises me, throwing me off balance. When I regain my balance, I see that the bullet has lodged in the wall of the emporium, too far to the right of my target.
The roles switch. Greta shuffles the two cards in her hand and places them covered in front of her.
Now it is Daniele’s character, the Fortune Teller, who shoots. He draws one of the two cards in front of Greta: once again is the black joker! He puts it into his hand and describes how the Fortune Teller’s shot misses:
As soon as I raise the gun, I feel the presence of the spirits of the dead enveloping me and guiding my movements. I close my eyes and shoot blindly, relying on them. When I open my eyes again, I realise that the bullet has hit the ground in front of me. I am surprised, but also relieved: the ghosts did not want me to be guilty of murder, or, perhaps, they consider the Mayor worthy of remaining alive.
Each of the two characters used their chance to send the other into the arms of Death and failed. When the two characters look around, they realise that Death has disappeared. The game is over. No one adds anything further.

Example 5.2
Only Daniele’s character, the Fortune Teller, and Greta, the Mayor, remain in the game. Daniele is the Doomed and has the ace of hearts and the black joker in his hand, while Greta only has the ace of spades in her hand.
The two characters come out of the saloon to challenge each other to a pistol duel. Daniele, playing the Doomed, shuffles the two cards in his hand and places them face down in front of him.
Greta’s character, the Mayor, shoots first. She draws one of the two cards in front of Daniele: it is the ace of hearts, which is paired with the ace of spades in her hand.
Greta discards the last pair of the game into the discard pile, in the centre of the table, and describes how the Mayor’s shot strikes the Fortune Teller dead:
I am not used to shooting, and the gun’s recoil surprises me, throwing me off balance. When I regain my balance, I can’t help but be surprised by the effect of my shot: copious streams of blood come out of the Fortune Teller’s waistcoat, at the level of his chest.
Daniele delivers a short farewell monologue for the Fortune Teller and describes how Death takes him away:
The blow empties my lungs and throws me to the ground. I desperately try to breathe. Death leans over me and holds out their hand; I clasp it in mine and rise to my feet. With a bitter smile, I tell her: “Finally, the time has come for me to meet the ghosts that often guided my cards”.
The game is over. No player adds anything else.

Example 5.3
Only Daniele’s character, the Fortune Teller, and Greta, the Mayor, remain in the game. Daniele is the Doomed and has the ace of hearts and the black joker in his hand, while Greta only has the ace of spades in her hand.
The two characters come out of the saloon to challenge each other to a pistol duel. Daniele, being the Doomed, shuffles the two cards in his hand and places them face down in front of him.
Greta’s character, the Mayor, shoots first. She draws one of the two cards in front of Daniele: it is the black joker! She adds it to her hand and describes how the Mayor’s shot misses:
I am not used to shooting, and the gun’s recoil surprises me, throwing me off balance. When I regain my balance, I see that the bullet has lodged in the wall of the emporium, too far to the right of my target.
The roles switch. Greta shuffles the two cards in her hand and places them covered in front of her.
Now it is Daniele’s character, the Fortune Teller, who shoots. He draws one of the two cards in front of Greta: it is the ace of spades, which is paired with the ace of hearts in his hand.
Daniele discards the last pair of the game in the discard pile, in the centre of the table, and describes how the Fortune Teller’s shot strikes the Mayor dead:
As soon as I raise the gun, I feel the presence of the spirits of the dead enveloping me and guiding my movements. I close my eyes and shoot blindly, relying on them. When I open them again, I thank the ghosts for not letting me down.
Greta gives a short farewell monologue for the Mayor and describes how Death takes her away:
A moment before the bullet hits me, I turn towards Death. They are smiling and walking towards me. All I can do is thinking of my sister, murdered by the ranch owner. Finally we will be together again.
The game is over. Nobody adds anything else.

Continue Playing After the Ending

If you still feel like playing after the ending, but you do not want to start a new game, instead preferring to continue exploring the stories of the characters you have just played, you can extend the current game.

Assign a new character to the player whose character has been taken away by Death. They can choose an unused archetype or draw a random character card. All the other players keep their previously survived characters.

Collect all the numbered cards (A, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2) left in your hand that are in the discard pile, shuffle them into a pile and hand them among all the players. Like at the beginning of the previous game, discard all the pairs.

Read out loud:

It has been a year and a day since Death came to the saloon, and now they appear again, ready to take someone else away.

The game begins again with the same rules. The backstories concerning the characters previously in the game will still apply, but now you will be ready to reveal more secrets, and to discover those of a whole new character. Assign the black joker to the player with the highest number of cards in their hand: they will be the new Doomed. Start playing again.

Appendices

Good Game Practices

Provocative Questions

During the game, you will have the opportunity to continually ask provocative questions. When asking these questions, you can be as ’nasty’ as you like in implying truths about other players’ characters or secondary characters related to them.

Generally, each group tends to settle on questions that fit the context of their game: it is difficult to establish rules that work for everyone without knowing the players or the situation. On the one hand, you can ask questions as leading and hard as you deem acceptable; On the other hand, the person receiving the question may feel that it places too much constraints on their choices, or that it introduces topics or themes that they do not wish to be part of the game.

When you are asked a question that constrains your choices too much, or that introduces topics that you do not want to be part of this game, or that makes you feel uncomfortable in any other way, you should use the “Unwanted” card (⟨page ?⟩). Take it, raise it and ask the player who just asked you the question to change it, making it more open or less problematic.

Also it’s important to notice, that everyone can use the ’Unwanted’ card, even if it’s not them on the receiving end of a question being asked. The ‘Unwanted’ card is available for everyone at the table at any moment.

Example 6
Daniele has just drawn from Benedetta, the Doomed, the 7 of diamonds, which does not match any of the cards in his hand, and must therefore clear the name of his character, the Fortune Teller, in the eyes of Death. Daniele says that the Fortune Teller cannot die because his brother, who was a Cowboy, died leaving his wife without means, and now she relies on him to support her children (the Cowboy and his wife are both secondary characters).
Greta is sitting to Daniele’s left; she can ask him the first follow-up question. She asks:
You say you’re doing it in memoriam of your brother, but how long have you been sleeping with his wife?
Daniele is a little uncomfortable with this question. Not because of the sexual implication, but because he feels too constrained in his answer. He takes the “Unwanted” card in the middle of the table and asks Greta if she can rephrase the question in a more open manner.
Greta admits that it was a bit too much of a loaded question and rephrases it:
Rumour has it that you and your brother’s widow are sleeping together: is this true?
This is a sufficiently open question for Daniele, who replies:
No, it’s not true. But the truth is that I’ve always wanted to: I’ve been in love with her since she and my brother were engaged and I have always been envious of him for their relationship. Even though I feel self-loathing about it, a part of me was glad when he died, because then I was able to be by her side.

Embrace Vulnerability

When you receive a follow-up question, don’t give answers that stop the conversation. You could go on to simply answer ’No’, ’That’s not true’, ’I didn’t do it’ or many other similar formulas, but these answers put a barrier to the flow of conversation.

Do not try to imply that your character is a goody-goody: accept that they may be, at least to some degree, a bad person who has something to be blamed for. Be receptive to the cues provided by other players’ questions, enriching them with your own ideas. In short, avoid just saying ’No’: if the question you got is too loaded, use the ’Unwanted’ card, as explained in the ’Provocative Questions’ paragraph (⟨page ?⟩).

When bringing up another main character, always ask the respective player if what you are saying is okay. They always have the final say on what their character has said and done, but should avoid quibbling over purely aesthetic matters.

Example 7
Daniele has just drawn from Benedetta, the Doomed, the 7 of diamonds, which does not match any of the cards in his hand, and must therefore clear the name of his character, the Fortune Teller, in the eyes of Death. Daniele says that his character, the Fortune Teller, cannot die because his brother, who was a Cowboy, died leaving his wife without means, and now she relies on him to support her children (the Cowboy and his wife are both secondary characters).
Greta is sitting to Daniele’s left and can ask him the first follow-up question. She asks:
You say you’re doing it in memoriam of your brother, but rumour has it that you and his widow are sleeping together: is that true?
Daniele replies laconically:
No, it’s not.
Greta calls him to order:
Come on, embrace your character’s vulnerability and add some details!
Daniele admits that his answer was too defensive and that it killed the conversation, instead of spicing it up. He tries to fix it:
You’re right. So… No, It’s not true. But the truth is that I’ve always wanted to: I’ve been in love with her since she and my brother were engaged, and I’ve always been envious of him for their relationship. Even though I feel self-loathing about it, a part of me was glad when he died, because then I could have been by her side.

Make Room for Everyone

After you pointed your finger at the Doomed or cleared your name in the eyes of Death, the other players will have the opportunity to ask up to two follow-up questions (or three, if someone’s character has been brought up and the respective player can and wants to benefit from the extra question).

This means that, playing with five people, not everyone will have the opportunity to contribute with a follow-up question in one turn. Therefore, everyone should be generous in making room for every player in the game, not always imposing their own questions. Remember to ask who comes after you in the round if they want to ask a follow-up question, and sometimes give up asking one yourselves, if you already contributed a lot to the game.

Design notes

Our first design goal was to create a short game, perhaps because we were tired of being told: “It’s already getting late: better a board game”. Another goal was to create a game with very simple rules, perhaps because we were tired of being told: “It’s too difficult for me”. Certainly this game is not perfect, but we are happy with the result, as it fulfilled our main objectives.

Sources of inspiration

The main source of inspiration for Greta are Roberto Grassi’s mini-games. With simple ideas and understandable rules, Roberto can get anyone to play. This was what she was looking for and will continue to look for in future projects. Thank you, Roberto!

Daniele’s main source of inspiration are prompt games, of which The Quiet Year (Avery Alder, 2013), is the most famous progenitor. Other prompt games, descended at least in part from it, inspired Daniele, such as For the Queen (Alex Roberts, 2019) and The Long Knife (Jack Harrison, 2022).

A constant source of inspiration for both are French cards, and their inexhaustible and malleable aesthetic. Their two colours, simple and elegant, can always evoke different worlds for us. Moreover, everyone has a deck of French cards at home: we are glad that a feature of this game is the accessibility of the game materials.

Acknowledgements

This game was born during the car ride back from the CrocoCon Classic 2023 convention in Tuscany, organised by crocodile friends Raffaele “Rafu” Manzo and Barbara “Glenda” Fini. The sparkling but relaxed atmosphere of play and conviviality inspired us to write a new game. Thanks to the organisers and all CrocoCon Classic partecipants! We hope to play together again soon.

The idea of publishing the game independently sounded foolish at first. It still does, to tell the truth; yet, here we are! We are certain we would never have made it without the support of the Italian and international role-playing community, who have shown us their affection by believing in the project and creating a genuine resonance.

A huge thanks to all those who have given us their help, both moral and technical. The first aknowledgment goes to Benedetta Falcone, who believed in us right from the start and, with her artworks, brought the aesthetics of the game to life. Thanks also to Marco Andreetto, for providing us with a discussion space to talk about the game and our journey into self-publishing via the dissemination channel GDR Unplugged. Thanks to our friends from the publishing house NessunDove - Oscar Biffi, Maria Guarneri and Chiara Locatelli - who shared our journey during ZineQuest 2024, and with whom we shared anxieties, hopes and experiences. Thanks to Flavio Mortarino and Vanessa Colciago from Grumpy Bear Stuff publishing: to Flavio for giving us good advice during the campaign on Kickstarter and on the editorial part of the project, and to Vanessa for showing us how to provide effective library cataloging information in the colophon of the game. Thanks to Andrea Parducci, who had some suggestions on the game mechanics, which we implemented to improve the game, and to Federico Franconieri, who pointed out some glaring oversights in the text. Thanks to the Kickstarter supporters who suggested some quotes to include in the text regarding the world of Western, and, in particular, to Keith Stetson, who recommended the quote on ⟨page ?⟩. Thanks to Antonio Amato, who provided us with his expertise in revising the Italian text, despite the fact that he too was working on the publication of his game Un gioco serio at the same time. Thanks, also, to Elisa Di Rubbo and to Alberto Muti, who edited and proof-read the English text, helping us enhancing it.

The game would never have reached this point without its playtesters. First of all, we thank Marco Valtriani, who gave us good tips on how to run effective playtests. A special thanks goes to Martina Silvestrini, a dear friend who does not usually play, and who, despite this, lent herself to the first playtest ever, providing excellent tips for improving the rules. A special thanks goes to the association La Buca del Coboldo (Cremona, Italy), whose members helped us test the game, and to Samuele Dagani, who provided the spaces of the Blue Dojo, his games shop, for the first public playtest. We would also like to thank the Terra Ludyca association (Senigallia, Ancona, Italy), and the person responsible for role-playing games, Martina Sbarbati, for organising a playtest event at their headquarters.

Playtesters

The playtests were numerous, and numerous are the people we have to thank. Below are the names of all those we managed to note down. If we have forgotten you, we apologise; let us know, and we will correct the mistake in future editions. Among the playtesters are friends, relatives, members of the role-playing community, but also people who only knew us slightly and still made themselves available to help us. To all of them, we dedicate a heartfelt thank you.

Marco Andreetto, Andreea Balau, Elena Bassanetti, Gioele Bellagamba, Mario Bellagamba, Davide Bizzi, Gabriele Boldreghini, Sara Boldrighini, Maicol Bolzoni, Jacopo Buttiglieri, Anna Candela, Eleonora Carboni, Matteo Cavalli Pontiroli, Vanessa Colciago, Claudio Concari, Edoardo Cremaschi, Clèmence Daigre, Cecile Daniellou, Maria Chiara Della Salda, Marco Delmiglio, Davide Di Antonio, Andrea Ferrari, Igor Foglia, Giovanni Fuligna, Luca Fuoco, Davide Galletti, Gloria Golfrè Andreasi, Barbara Gozzetti, Roberto Grassi, Andrea Irimia, Anna Despina Koprantzelas, Gaia Latini, Jonas Liebsch, Leonardo Lucci, Marco Marigliano, Elettra Marrone, Alessandro Palumbo, Theo Perrot, Claudio Pierpaoli, Simone Perazzone, Francisco Pettigiani, Antonio (PlayFest 2024), Sara Potena, Tommaso Ratiglia, Andrea Ricciardi, Mauro Samarati, Martina Sbarbati, Marinella Sebastianelli, Tommaso Sebastianelli, Martina Silvestrini, Mauro Sironi, Simone Taraborelli, Davide Torresani, Nicola Urbinati, Mira Lenora Von Der Gracht, Camilla Zamboni, Anna Emilia Ziehl.

Tables and Summary of Rules

Table 1: Saloon Habitués

K ♥️ — Doctor
Q ♥️ — Prostitute
J ♥️ — Slacker or Gambler
K ♦️ — Mayor
Q ♦️ — Teacher
J ♦️ — Cowboy/Cowgirl
K ♣️ — Judge
Q ♣️ — Saloon Owner
J ♣️ — Sheriff
K ♠️ — Reverend
Q ♠️ — Fortune Teller
J ♠️ — Undertaker

Before you start playing, form a deck with only the face cards and hand out one to each player: these will be your characters and the protagonists of the story.

Table 2: “Point the Finger at the Doomed”

A — You killed *** in cold blood. Why?
10 — You killed someone close to ***. What relationship did they have? Why did you do it?
9 — You tried to kill ***. Why? What went wrong?
8 — You physically hurt ***. How?
7 — You hurt ***’s feelings. How?
6 — You destroyed something that belonged to ***. What was it? What did it mean to them?
5 — You publicly humiliated ***. How? Who witnessed among the people they care about?
4 — You’ve discredited ***. What false rumour did you spread? How did the community react?
3 — You stole something from ***. What? What was it worth to you? What was it worth to them?
2 — You feel envious of ***. Why?

Draw a card from the Doomed’s hand. If you draw a card that pairs with one of the cards in your hand, discard the new pair and ask the Doomed a question according to the inspiration in table 2: “Point your finger at the Doomed” corresponding to the value of the pair.

After the Doomed has answered, going clockwise, the other players may ask follow-up questions, up to a maximum of two. If the initial question or answer brings up another character, their player may ask an extra third follow-up question, if they have not already asked one before (see ⟨page ?⟩).

Table 3: “Clear Your Name in the Eyes of Death”

A — I don’t deserve death, because I saved the life of *** …
10 — I do not deserve death, because I defended *** from an injustice …
9 — I am a good person because I testified in favour of *** by dropping a false accusation …
8 — I’m a good person because I helped *** get back on their feet when they were on the breadline…
7 — My life must be spared because *** waits for me at home …
6 — If I died, this community would be lost, because …
5 — I cannot die today because I must keep a promise made to *** …
4 — The divine entity I believe in will not let me die because …
3 — I don’t deserve to die, because *** told me that I have a natural talent for … that must not go to waste.
2 — I won’t die just today, because today …

Draw a card from the Doomed’s hand. If you draw a card that doesn’t match any of the cards in your hand, add it to your hand and tell something about your character, according to the inspiration in table 3: “Clear your name in the Eyes of Death” corresponding to the value of the card you just drew.

After your narration, going clockwise, the other players may ask follow-up questions, up to a maximum of two. If the initial question or answer brings up another character, their player may ask a third follow-up question, if they have not already asked one before (see ⟨page ?⟩).

⟨Play aid.⟩

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