Colt Express: Marshal & Prisoners Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Object
• Setup
• Prison Car and Brilliant Idea
  • The Prison Car
  • The Brilliant Idea Card
    • New Draw rule (Phase 1: Schemin')
    • Brilliant Idea Action
• The Prisoners
• The Marshal
  • Basic Rules Modifications
  • Marshal's Goal Cards
    • Special Targets
    • Arrest Warrants
  • Marshal's Action cards
    • Move + / Floor change +
    • Capture
    • Shoot
• Marshal's Bullet Cards
  • Extended Penalties (until the end of the Round)
  • Instant Penalties
• End of the Game
• Round Cards
  • Special Turn: Jarring
  • End of Round Bonus: Schemin' for a Rainy Day
• Events
  • Events Modified from the Base Game
  • Optional Rules for Choosing Event Cards
• Mei: A New Bandit
• Mixing the Expansions
  • Marshal and Ride card
  • Marshal and Stagecoach
  • Marshal and Shotgun

Contents

• 1 Prison car (assemble before your first game, using the enclosed instructions)
• 2 Character sheets
• 1 starred Marshal figure
• 1 Horse figure (for use with 7 bandits when playing with the Horses & Stagecoach expansion)
• 2 Mailbags worth $200 or $1200
• 1 Purse worth $250
• 7 Prisoner cards
• 7 Brilliant Idea cards
• 7 Wanted Posters
• 18 Mei cards
• 23 Marshal cards
• 14 Marshal's Goal cards (7 Arrest Warrants and 7 Special Targets)
• 13 Round cards (5 cards for 2, 3, and 4 bandits; 5 cards for 5, 6 (and 7) bandits; 3 Train Station cards)
• 3 Brawler cards (Gold Punch, Silver Punch, Bronze Punch)

Note: The yellow figure from the base game (originally the Marshal figure) is now Mei's figure (the new bandit in this expansion). The starred figure is the new Marshal figure.

Object

Hate lawlessness? In this expansion, 1 player gets to be the Marshal!

The Marshal has 5 Goals he wants to complete. If he accomplishes at least 4 of them, he wins the game! If (and ONLY if) he fails, the richest bandit wins.

Note: In this rule-book, each player will be referred to as either the "Marshal" (the lone Marshal player) or a "bandit" (the other players).

Setup

Each player removes the Marshal card from his deck and returns it to the box. It won't be used in this expansion.

Each player removes the Ride card from his deck and returns it to the box. It won't be used unless you're playing with the Horses & Stagecoach expansion.

Each bandit adds the Brilliant Idea card of his color to his deck.

Each bandit displays the Wanted Poster that shows his character ($500 side up).

Choose the player who will be the Marshal. That player takes the Marshal's sheet. Place the 3 Brawler cards (punch side down) in a pile on the Face zone of the Marshal's sheet with the Gold Punch card on top and the Bronze Punch card at the bottom.

Shuffle the Marshal's Action cards and place them face-down on the Deck zone of the Marshal's sheet.

Place Bullet cards in 2 piles of 6 in ascending order of number of bullets to form 2 cylinder piles.

Return the Arrest Warrants of any bandits not being played to the box. Shuffle the remaining Arrest Warrants and draw 2, but do not look at them!

If you are playing with 2 or 3 bandits, return the Full of Lead and Arch Enemy Special Target cards to the box. Shuffle the remaining Special Target cards and draw 3 without looking at them. Now shuffle these 3 Special Targets together with the 2 Arrest Warrants.

Put these 5 cards face-down on the Upcoming Goals zone of the Marshal's sheet. At this point, the Marshall may NOT yet look at his goals!

Setup of the train (the caption beside the diagram reads "Setup of the Train for 5 players (4 bandits and the Marshal)"):

If you are playing with 2, 3 or 4 bandits, use the locomotive, 4 train cars, and the prison car. With 5, 6 or 7 bandits, use the locomotive, 5 train cars, and the prison car. The prison car is always the caboose.

Instead of the usual strongbox, place the 2 mailbags with their value hidden in the locomotive.

Draw 3 Prisoner cards, regardless of the number of players. Place them face-up behind the prison car. Return the remaining Prisoner cards to the box.

Place the Marshal figure in the locomotive as usual. He is Player 1 for this expansion, the player on his left is Player 2, and so on. All bandits with even numbers place their bandits in the car next to the caboose, and all bandits with odd numbers place their bandits in the next car forward. Unlike the bandits, the Marshal does not start with a $250 purse.

The Marshal starts the game as the First Player. Then at the beginning of each new round, the player on the current First Player's left becomes the new First Player.

Prison Car and Brilliant Idea

The Prison Car

Extract from the Manual for the Perfect Pirates of the Far West, p. 247: "Sooner or later, a bandit will find himself in a cell. A true Pirate of the Far West would never think of that cell as an end, but rather as a transition point. One must commune with the cell; be one with its hopes and dreams; understand its struggles for meaning and purpose. BE the cell!...and find the flaw in its cheap construction."

"Free" bandits on the prison car can only be in the corridor or on the roof. You cannot choose to enter the cell. Only captured bandits can be in the cell.

You cannot shoot or punch a bandit in the cell (even if he deserves it!). You cannot move a bandit into the cell by punching or shooting him.

If you are in the cell of the prison car, move either into the corridor or to the roof, your choice.

If you are on the roof of or in the corridor of the prison car, choose 1 of the following:

• Free a prisoner; take 1 Prisoner card from those placed behind the prison car. You cannot choose this option if you already have a Prisoner card.
• Free another bandit; move 1 bandit from the cell to your space. He must give you 1 loot token of his choice if he has any.

The Action cards of a bandit in the cell have no effect during the Stealin' phase, except for the Brilliant Idea card.

The Brilliant Idea Card

Extract from the Manual for the Perfect Pirates of the Far West, p.165: "Take a look at the crooks you know, both the successes and those behind bars. What's the difference between triumph and failure? The brilliant idea. In the nick of time, the brilliant idea pops into the successful bandit's head, and saves him from desperate situations."

New Draw rule (Phase 1: Schemin')

The basic draw rule is modified. You can now choose 1 of the following:

• Draw 3 cards from your deck and add them to your hand.
• Search your deck (or discard pile if you are playing with the Expert Variant) for a Brilliant Idea card and add it to your hand. Then shuffle your deck.

You must declare which of these 2 options you are choosing before drawing.

Brilliant Idea Action

How this action works depends on where your bandit is on the train.

If you are neither on nor in the Prison car (not on the roof, not in the corridor, and not inside the cell), copy the last Action card played by a bandit which is not a Brilliant Idea.

It might be necessary to look a few cards back in the stack if Marshal's cards or other Brilliant Idea cards were the last cards played. If there is no bandit's Action card to copy, the Brilliant Idea card has no effect.

Example: Tuco is playing his Brilliant Idea card just after the Marshal's turn. However, a Marshal's Action card cannot be copied. The last bandit that played a card is Ghost, and he chose the Punch action. Therefore, Tuco must copy the Punch action with his Brilliant Idea.

Advice - To facilitate use of the Brilliant Idea cards during the Stealin' phase, do not immediately give Action cards back to their owners after the card is resolved. Place them in a pile in order of resolution. This way, you can easily determine which Action card you have to copy with your Brilliant Idea.

The Prisoners

Extract from the Manual for the Perfect Pirates of the Far West, p. 599: "If you carefully follow all the wise advice in this manual, you should quickly become an infamous bandit. You will know you've arrived when lesser villains ask if they can be your trusty sidekick."

A bandit can have only 1 prisoner at a time.

Each prisoner is the trusty sidekick of one of the bandits in Colt Express (as indicated on each Prisoner card), regardless of whether or not that bandit is actually being played.

Your freed prisoner will give you 1 of 2 abilities, depending on whether he is your trusty sidekick or that of another bandit:

• If your prisoner is not your trusty sidekick, he gives you the character power as his corresponding bandit. This power takes effect the moment you free that prisoner, and remains as long as the prisoner stays in your possession.
• If your Prisoner is your trusty sidekick, you can take 2 loot tokens when you rob. This ability will only work if there are actually 2 loot tokens to pick up!

At the end of the game, you get $200 if you have a Prisoner card.

Note: If Belle and a bandit with Belle's trusty sidekick can both be targeted by a Shoot or Punch action, Belle's ability takes precedence over the prisoner's.

The Marshal

Basic Rules Modifications

In this expansion, if the Marshal encounters a bandit, the bandit does not take a Neutral Bullet card and does not escape to the roof. Nevertheless, keep the Neutral Bullet cards handy: they may be needed for some events.

Now a bandit can (and should!) shoot the Marshal, move to his location, and even punch him! Character powers that affect bandits also affect the Marshal.

When you punch the Marshal, take the top Brawler card from his Picture zone and flip it over. You now own a Brawler card that will give you extra money at the end of the game. Then move the Marshal to an adjacent car of your choice.

Marshal's Goal Cards

To win the game, the Marshal must have at least 4 goals completed at the end of the game. At the beginning of each round, the Marshal moves the top card from the Upcoming Goals zone to the Current Goals zone. The Marshal may, at any time, secretly look at the cards in his Current Goals zone, but never at those remaining in the Upcoming Goals zone.

(Diagram labels on the Marshal's sheet: Upcoming Goals zone, Current Goals zone, Achievement zone.)

Special Targets

Only a Flesh Wound! This goal is completed if, at the end of the game, the Marshal still has at least 1 Brawler card on his Picture zone.

Dodge Bullets! This goal is completed if the Marshal has no more than 2 Bullet cards from a single bandit in his deck.

Golden Bullet Award This goal is completed if there are no cards in at least 1 of the Marshal's cylinder piles.

The Mail Must Go Through! This goal is completed if the Marshal has at least 1 mailbag in his Achievement zone. Note: The Marshal cannot drop a Mailbag when punched.

Throw Away the Key! This goal is completed if the Marshal has at least 2 Prisoner cards in his Achievement zone.

Full of Lead This goal is completed if each bandit's deck contains at least 1 Marshal's Bullet card.

Arch Enemy This goal is completed if at least 1 bandit's deck contains at least 4 Marshal's Bullet cards.

Note: Use these 2 last Goal cards only if you are playing with at least 4 bandits (5 players).

Arrest Warrants

Each Arrest Warrant corresponds to 1 bandit in the game.

This goal is completed if the Wanted Poster of the bandit named on the Arrest Warrant is in the Marshal's Achievement zone at the end of the game (the Marshal arrested him at least once - see the Capture action).

It isn't necessary for the bandit on the Arrest Warrant to still be in the cell at the end of the game: once is enough!

Marshal's Action cards

The Marshal's deck contains: Move (x2), Change Floor (x1), Shoot (x3), Move + (x1), Change Floor + (x1), Capture (x2), plus Ride (x1) when using the Horses & Stagecoach expansion.

Move + / Floor change +

If the Marshal plays a "+" card on a standard turn (no tunnels, speeding-up, switching, turmoil, jarring) during the Schemin' phase, he can immediately play an additional card from his hand. The additional card is resolved in order during the Stealin' phase as usual.

The Marshal cannot draw cards instead of playing the additional card.

It is possible to play 2 "+" cards in a row, which would allow the Marshal to play 3 Action cards in a single turn!

If the Marshal plays a "+" card during a special turn (tunnel, speeding-up, switching, turmoil, jarring), he cannot play a second card. In all cases, the Move or Change Floor action is resolved as usual during the Stealin' phase.

Capture

The Marshal chooses 1 bandit in his space and places that bandit in the cell of the prison car. The Marshal takes the Wanted Poster of the captured bandit, flips it over to the captured side, and places it in his Achievement zone.

A bandit can be captured multiple times, but after the first time, the Wanted Poster remains with the Marshal for the rest of the game.

Shoot

If there are 2 or more bandits in the Marshal's line of sight, he can shoot 2 bandits with the same Shoot action. The Marshal chooses 1 Bullet card from the top of each of his Cylinder piles to place on the targets' deck. If the Marshal shoots only 1 bandit, he can choose 1 Cylinder pile to take the Bullet card from (a bandit cannot take 2 bullets from the same action). Belle's power allows her to avoid being shot by the Marshall only if there are 3 or more bandits in the Marshal's line of sight or if there are 2 bandits and the Marshal shoots only 1 bullet.

Marshal's Bullet Cards

Bullets shot by the Marshal are added to a bandit's deck just like bullets shot by another bandit. Each of the Marshal's Bullet cards has a penalty that affects the bandit shot by the bullet.

Extended Penalties (until the end of the Round)

When the Marshal shoots a bandit, if the bullet has an extended penalty, place the Marshal's Bullet card in front of that bandit as a reminder of the bullet's penalty. At the end of the round, the Bullet card is shuffled into the bandit's deck.

Disarmed Until the end of the round, this bandit's Shoot cards have no effect.

Wounded Knee Until the end of the round, this bandit's Change Floor cards have no effect.

Shoulder Injury Until the end of the round, this bandit's Punch cards have no effect.

Note: If a bandit plays his Brilliant Idea card after being shot and affected by a penalty, he can use it to copy a Shoot, Punch, or Change Floor card played by another bandit.

Instant Penalties

Got 'Im! If the shot bandit has a Prisoner card, the Marshal takes it, flips it over, and places it in his Achievement zone.

Drop That Bag! If the shot bandit has a mailbag, the Marshal takes it and places it in his Achievement zone.

Golden Bullet Award No effect.

Reminder: Using this Bullet card might be one of the Marshal's goals.

End of the Game

At the end of the fifth round, any Prisoner cards still behind the prison car are flipped over and placed in the Marshal's Achievement zone. Any mailbags on the train (not held by bandits) are also placed on the Marshal's Achievement zone.

• The Marshal reveals his 5 Goal cards. If at least 4 of the 5 goals have been completed, the Marshal wins the game, regardless of the wealth of the bandits.
• If the Marshal has not completed at least 4 of his goals, the richest bandit wins the game as normal.

There are now 7 ways for a bandit to gain wealth:

• Loot (purses, jewels, strongboxes, mailbags).
• Gunslinger prize: $1000 if you shot the most Bullet cards.
• Wanted Poster: $500 if the Marshal never captured you during the game.
• Prisoner: $200 if you still have a Prisoner card.
• Hostage's ransom (if you playing with the Horses & Stagecoach expansion).
• Brawler prizes: 3 prizes of $800, $500, and $300 for punching the Marshal.
• Some Train Station cards' effects (Hostage Conductor, Sharing the Loot, etc.).

Round Cards

Feel free to mix and match the Round cards from this expansion with those of the base game and the first expansion! If the Round card has an effect that specifically affects bandits, it has no effect on the Marshal. Round cards which mention the Marshal might have their effect modified, however (see pg. 10).

Round cards with this icon are used when playing with 2, 3, or 4 bandits.

Round cards with this icon are used when playing with 5, 6, or 7 bandits.

Special Turn: Jarring

The train's jarring makes it difficult for the players to aim accurately; players cannot play Shoot or Punch cards.

Note: The Brilliant Idea card can still be used to copy another bandit's Shoot or Punch card.

End of Round Bonus: Schemin' for a Rainy Day

Some of the Round cards in this expansion have a new icon (shown to the right). At the end of the Schemin' Phase, each player may choose to keep 1 card in his hand for the next round. This bonus does not apply when playing with the Expert Variant.

The chosen card is not shuffled into the player's deck during the Stealin' phase and counts toward the player's hand in the next round. For example, if Mei reserved a card last round, she would draw 5 cards plus the reserved card for a total of 6 cards in hand.

Events

Safekeeping Move all loot tokens inside the Marshal's car to the roof, regardless of whether the Marshal is on the roof or inside the car.

Rumors The Marshal randomly reveals 1 Goal card in his Current Goals zone.

Reflex Action Players do not place unused cards onto their decks at the end of the Schemin' phase. At the end of the Stealin' phase, starting with the First Player and proceeding clockwise, each player may play and resolve an action card from his hand. Then each player places any unplayed cards remaining in his hand on top of his deck.

Guilty Conscience If the Marshal wins the game, the poorest bandit also wins. If multiple bandits are tied for poorest, only the Marshal wins.

Deadly Fall If you punch a character on the roof, you may choose to knock that character off the train instead of moving him to an adjacent car; remove that figure from the train and do not resolve any of that character's remaining Action cards. If the Marshal or a bandit is knocked off the train, he cannot win the game.

If Django shoots a character on the roof of the locomotive or caboose, he may choose to knock that character off the train instead of moving him to an adjacent car.

Crime Doesn't Pay! A bandit in the cell at the end of the game cannot win the game and does not count as the richest bandit.

Events Modified from the Base Game

Angry Marshal When playing with this expansion, the following replaces the effect of the Angry Marshal event: At the end of the round, the Marshal may resolve 1 Shoot action and then 1 Move action without playing the cards.

Marshal's Revenge This event affects bandits inside or on the roof of the Marshal's car.

A Shot of Whiskey for the Marshal When playing with whiskey from Horses & Stagecoach: If a whiskey flask is in the Marshal's space, he takes it and places it on his character's sheet. He can use as though he were a bandit.

If the Marshal drinks an old whiskey flask, he can play a maximum of 2 Action cards that turn, even if he plays the Move + or Change Floor + cards this turn. If the Marshal is punched, he cannot drop his flask.

Optional Rules for Choosing Event Cards

At the beginning of the game, the players choose (from all available cards) 7 Round cards and 3 Train Station cards that correspond to the number of players. Draw 4 Round cards and 1 Train Station card from among them to form the Round deck.

Mei: A New Bandit

Mei is an accomplished acrobat and an agile climber.

When you play a Change Floor card, you can move "diagonally" to the other floor of an adjacent car.

When Mei leaves the cell, she cannot move to the adjacent roof.

Mei can be used in the base game without playing with the rest of the Marshal & Prisoners expansion, allowing the game to be played with 7 bandits. The rules of the game are otherwise unchanged.

When playing with Mei but not the Marshal & Prisoners expansion, Mei cannot move to an adjacent roof when escaping the Marshal.

When playing with the Horses & Stagecoach expansion, you cannot move "diagonally" to or from the stagecoach.

Mixing the Expansions

While Marshal & Prisoners is fully compatible with Horses & Stagecoach, we only recommend combining them if all players are familiar with Colt Express.

Marshal and Ride card

Unlike the bandits, the Marshal always begins the game in the locomotive. The Marshal can use his Ride card to move using horses.

Marshal and Stagecoach

The Marshal can move inside or on top of the stagecoach. He does not take a hostage when he enters the stagecoach.

Marshal and Shotgun

The Marshal cannot be affected by the Shotgun, but the Shotgun does block the Marshal's line of sight. The Marshal can stay in the Shotgun's space but cannot capture him.