Game: Cowpoker

Thread: Cowpoker - A Review

Craig_H — 2008-09-08T00:25:25+00:00

Cowpoker

Designers: James Ernest & Mike Selinker
Publisher: Steve Jackson Games
Year: 2006
Players: 2-4
Ages: 10+
Playing Time: 15-20 minutes

The Idea
Cowpoker is a light card game that serves as a good filler on a gaming night. It’s a mix of a trick taking card game and poker with a healthy dose of wild west thrown in for theme. Players represent one of four different ranches and are trying to get points by making a number of poker hands as they recruit people into their gang (by playing cards in front of them) and win tricks (which represent a wild west gunfight or cattle roundup) throughout the game. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

In the Box
Cow Poker is a card game and is made up of 54 game cards and 12 “Ranch” cards. The cards are a reasonable quality cardboard and will stand up to a reasonable amount of use.

The Ranch cards are made up of three sets of four cards. One set will be used to identify the players and the ranch they represent. The remaining eight Ranch cards are used to randomly determine some decisions during the game.

The game cards each have a number of common features. To begin with each card has a small regular playing card on it. These are used to make up poker hands at the end of the game (and occasionally during the game).

Most of the cards will belong to one of the four ranches in the game and are easily identified by their colour (yellow, red, green or blue). The exceptions are the cards with which contain the face cards (Jack, Queen, King and the two Jokers). These cards are purple “Town” cards which don’t belong to any of the players ranches and have special rules associated with them (printed on the cards).

Next the cards contain three number values on them. The first value is “Points” and is sometimes used for determining the value of a group of cards. The Point value of your gang will constitute a large part of your final score. The last two values are called “Roundup” and “Gunfight”. These last two values will be used in the trick taking part of the game.

Finally each card will contain some special rules text. This text may call for a trick taking round or may allow you to do some special action like stealing a card from another player.

The final component of the game is the rules sheet. It’s a double sided black and white sheet and it explains the rules quite clearly. Diagrams are used to clearly explain the cards and the layout of the cards during game play. It also contains a summary of the ranking of poker hands for those who aren’t sure of their poker rules.

Basic Game Play Summary
The game starts with each player taking one of the ranch cards to identify their ranch. If there are fewer than four players playing, the other ranches become what are called in the game “Deadwood Players”. They will act like virtual players with their card plays being done by drawing the top card off the draw pile. The Deadwood players allow the game to adjust quite well to either 2, 3 or 4 players.

After shuffling the game cards (and not the ranch cards) each player receives a hand of 5 cards. The rest of the cards form a draw pile. In their turn each player will draw cards until they have 5 cards in their hand and then play one card into their gang by placing it face up in front of them.

If the card played to their gang matches the player’s ranch or is a town card then the special effects of the card (as directed by the rules text on the card) comes into play. This will usually instigate a trick taking round (either a Gunfight or a Roundup).

To have a Gunfight or Roundup, players (including Deadwood players) take turns playing one card from their hand with the player who instigated the Gunfight or Roundup going last. The winner of the trick is determined by the appropriate value on the cards played (either Gunfight or Roundup as appropriate) with ties going to the player who played their card last. The cards won in tricks are then placed face down into the player’s “Cellar” (unless a Town card’s special rules text says otherwise). These cards cannot be looked at until the end of the game.

Deadwood players have their turn each round just like “Live” players by drawing off the top of the draw pile.

The game immediately ends when the final card of the draw pile is drawn. Your base score will be calculated from the points value of all the members in your gang. Then you need to make up three poker hands. 6 bonus points are awarded to the player with the best poker hand made up from their gang cards. 6 bonus points are likewise awarded to the players with the best poker hands in their Cellar and the cards remaining in their hand. Finally the player with the fewest points on their Cellar cards will lose 6 points. The player with the most points after these calculations wins.

Who Would Like It
First of all, poker fans won’t necessarily like Cowpoker. Cowpoker has none of the bluffing and betting that makes poker such an interesting and popular game. The poker is simply another part of the theme of the game. And the western theme of the game does work reasonably well so fans of westerns may well enjoy an occasional game.

While there is some strategy to how you play your cards to maximise your potential poker hands while limiting your opponents’ poker hands, luck plays a very big factor in the game. So if a strong luck factor usually turns you off games then you may want to pass on Cowpoker.

Ultimately Cowpoker will appeal most to people who enjoy irreverent humorous games such as “Fluxx” (from Looney Labs), “Lord of the Fries” and “Show Me the Brains” (from Cheap Ass Games) and of course many of the other games from Steve Jackson Games (such as “Munchkin”).

Where to From Here?
If you have enjoyed Cowpoker then the humorous games mentioned above will probably also appeal to you. In particular, “The Good, the Bad and the Munchkin” (from Steve Jackson Games) combines both the light humour and the western theme which Cowpoker touches on.

For a slightly more serious western themed card game (but still pretty light) you could check out “Bang!” (from daVinci Games). For more of a boardgame / wargame style game you could try “Cowboy: The Way of the Gun” (from Worthington Games).

Thread: Re: Tie for Special Effects?

garygarison — 2008-06-04T22:41:18+00:00

FlatOnHisFace wrote:
Better yet is "If there is a tie, starting with the active Player and going clockwise, give the card to the first Player tied for smallest Gang."

I like this suggestion. Think I'll try it next time.

Thread: Re: Tie for Special Effects?

FlatOnHisFace — 2008-06-04T02:39:17+00:00

Just seems too random to me. Except for turn order, most players usually have the same-size Gang, up until they start stealing dudes from each other. It pretty much favours going to the Player that is last in turn order.

That is to say if in the first turn, Doc is played by:
Player 1, equal chance to go to anyone
Player 2, equal chance to go to Players 2-4
Player 3, equal chance to go to Players 3, 4
Player 4, must go to Player 4

Repeat thru each turn until someone collects an extra card in this way or from stealing. So I'm not a fan of this "Goes to the Player with smallest Gang" nor the breaking ties randomly. Better yet is "If there is a tie, starting with the active Player and going clockwise, give the card to the first Player tied for smallest Gang."

Personally, I think it would be better if it went to the Player with the smallest Cellar, since taking only one trick in the game gives only 4 cards and you always get a multiple of 4 whereas poker should have 5 cards. Also, turn order doesn't have much effect at all on who has the smallest Cellar.

Lastly, you can just ignore the wording completely and give such a card to whoever played it.

Thread: Re: Tie for Special Effects?

garygarison — 2008-06-02T15:49:03+00:00

Ah, thanks.

Thread: Re: Tie for Special Effects?

Karlsen — 2008-06-02T12:14:24+00:00

garygarison wrote:
Example of Special Effect: "However he is played, Doc Flinch always goes to the gang with the fewest cards."

If more than one player has the fewest cards, how do we determine where Doc goes? Randomly, with the ranch cards?

Yes, ties are always determined by drawing one (or more depending on the tie) Ranch cards.

Thread: Tie for Special Effects?

garygarison — 2008-06-01T22:08:11+00:00

Example of Special Effect: "However he is played, Doc Flinch always goes to the gang with the fewest cards."

If more than one player has the fewest cards, how do we determine where Doc goes? Randomly, with the ranch cards?

Thread: Make It Last

FlatOnHisFace — 2008-05-03T18:47:14+00:00

I like this game, but I do think that it is too short and about the time you spot some cards that'll work well together for poker hands or combination effects, the game ends and you never get them to synch. You might very well end up without 5 cards in your Gang, Cellar, and Hand at the end. (According to the rules, you'll always have less than 5 in-Hand.)

Turns out there is a lot to consider in Cowpoker as far as what to play, when to play, and what to hang on to. Don't forget to leave some good poker cards in your Hand! Of course, too many late Gunfights or Round-ups can break up your Hand's poker potential....

I wonder if it should be played double-deck. Maybe then it should end when the deck is less than 10 and everyone fills out their Hand so they can make an actual 5-card poker hand? Being a huge fan of Doomtown, I'm no stranger to the less-than-5-card poker hand, but this would allow the double-deck to come to an end before every card is used twice.

Maybe Cowpoker will jump on the Expansion Pack stagecoach and a follow-up will do just that. There are plenty other nifty effects that haven't yet been explored. Sure, for a light fare, it doesn't really warrant a Part Two, but if done well, it might break away from light filler to full meal.

Thread: Re: Showdown in Centerville

FlatOnHisFace — 2008-05-03T18:42:12+00:00

I'm mostly unclear about that "However it is played" stuff myself. Usually, if this happens early, no-one has anything yet, so there is a three-way tie for worst poker hand or points. Actually, I think such rules should be ignored.

Otherwise, Mike, I think that Deadwood players can't get the worst-Cellar-penalty. Isn't that just for live players?

Getting a bunch of Aces at once is pretty darn good use of a single card. I also like using the Steal A Card effect to match a good poker hand, or break up one from someone else and get some points. The other good one is when you can get an awesome effect and follow it up with a card that lets you play an effect in your Gang.

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SoliDeoGloria — 2007-07-18T03:31:53+00:00

the guy on the bottom left is named after me!

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SoliDeoGloria — 2007-07-18T03:30:03+00:00

the head honchos

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SoliDeoGloria — 2007-07-18T03:28:59+00:00

the ranch cards

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Goodsound — 2007-07-02T09:50:59+00:00

German Cover

Thread: Re: A Great Lite Gem - Excellent Filler

fightcitymayor — 2006-12-12T03:47:00+00:00

It is fast, it is fun (if you like the theme), but it's also almost completely random. About the time you start to set yourself up with even a rudimentary strategy... the game is over. Still worth playing though. Especially in a non-gamer crowd. And i'll echo a point brought up elsewhere: In a 2-player game, the Deadwood players stand about as good a chance as you do of winning.

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klellingson — 2006-09-10T01:27:14+00:00

A Game at ConQuest SF

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puppi — 2006-09-05T09:56:04+00:00

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puppi — 2006-09-05T09:55:57+00:00

Thread: Showdown in Centerville

KineticKill — 2006-08-15T02:54:16+00:00

My wife and I were hankerin' for a quick filler before bed. So we dealt out the four ranches, she and I took opposite sides with the deadwoods between us, dealt out our hands, and had it out.

Deadwood: Masterson started (Masterson always starts). Several times this game, we ran into a multiple ties for special "however this card is played" cards. We came up with a house rule for now that in case of such a tie, the card should go to the gang with the lowest points.

Janelle: San Joaquin 14 (+6+6)=26
Deadwood: Gallagher 9 (-6)=3
Mike: Davila 13 (+6)=19
Deadwood: Masterson 9 (+0)=9

Janelle started the second round. I discovered a card that can be very powerful in the right circumstances. The Fours all let you steal the highest card for a particular gang from every player's gang. This can end up adding four cards to your gang with one play! The deadwood's empty cellars had them splitting the -6.

Janelle: San Joaquin 26 + 12 (+6)=44
Deadwood: Gallagher 3 + 23 (-3)=23
Mike: Davila 19 + 31 (+6+6)=62
Deadwood: Masterson 9 + 14 (-3)=20

Deadwood: Gallagher started the third round. I lucked out and was able hold onto my Four again and use it as my last play for more big points!

Janelle: San Joaquin 44 + 24 (+6)=74
Deadwood: Gallagher 23 - 4 (+6-6)=19
Mike: Davila 62 + 30 (+6)=98
Deadwood: Masterson 20 + 4 (+0)=24

I was hoping I could pull off the Four thing one more time, but my wife ended up with my four, and she had been getting all the Aces except mine. The final round ended up as follows:

Janelle: San Joaquin 74 + 17 (+6+6)=103
Deadwood: Gallagher 19 + 12 (-6)=25
Mike: Davila 98 + 19 (+6)=123
Deadwood: Masterson 24 + 12 (+0)=36

Thread: A Great Lite Gem - Excellent Filler

KineticKill — 2006-07-31T06:01:59+00:00

Howdy All, and welcome to those thrilling days of yesteryear. We’re back in the days of those black and white westerns some of us old timers remember. You know the ones, where Cow Pokes hire out to the ranches around town for roundups, spend their free time playing poker in the saloon, leading to the inevitable gunfight.

In Cowpoker, you find yourself in the town of Centerville. You run one of the four ranches outside of town. You want to build up your gang to dominate the town and the surrounding area. You also want to compete against the other ranches in Roundups and Gunfights as well.

GAME PLAY

Cowpoker is a card game for 2 – 4 players. Each player plays the leader of one of the four ranches surrounding the town. The ranch you lead is determined randomly by drawing from a set of four ranch cards. If there are less than four players, the open positions are played by Deadwood Players (dummies) that simply play the top card off the deck.

Each Live Player (non Deadwood) is dealt a hand of five cards to start. The cards come in five suits, one for each ranch, and an extra one for the town. Each card has the following elements depicted on it: Suit, Poker Card value, Point value, Roundup value, Gunfight value, and Special Effect.

On your turn, Live Players draw back up to five cards. They then play one card to the table. If that card’s suit matches your ranch or is the town suit, you follow the Special Effect instructions on the card. After that, the card is placed in front of you into your Gang (Note: some cards effects break this rule). The cards in your Gang at the end of the hand are worth the total of their Point values. However, cards may get taken from your gang by other cards, so don’t count your points until the hand’s done.

Deadwood players simply play the top card off the deck. If that card’s suit matches the Deadwood’s ranch or is the town suit, the Special Effect is invoked as normal. If a choice is called for by the Special Effect, a card is drawn from a special mini-deck that makes that choice for the Deadwood player.

Some Special Effects invoke a Roundup or a Gunfight. If this happens, each player (starting with the player to the left of the player who invoked the Roundup or Gunfight) must play a card. If this is a Roundup, the player who plays the card with the highest Roundup value takes the trick and places these four cards face down into his “Cellar” for later scoring. If two or more players tie for highest card, the last high card played takes the trick. Gunfights work the same way, but use the Gunfight value of the cards instead.

A couple of Special Effects need to be noted. Some cards have a Special Effect that says “However this card is played…” and specifies where the card goes. If played into a Gang, first determine where card goes, then carry out their listed Special Effect. If played as part of a trick for a Roundup or Gunfight, you ignore the Special Effect, but still follow the “However this card is played…” directions to determine where the card goes. If you have an Ace in your Gang, this Ace lets you invoke the Special Effects of cards of that suit as well as your own and the Town’s, just like you were playing that Ranch.

Play continues around the table until someone can’t draw any cards (If you can draw even one card you keep playing, and you just have to make due with what you’ve got.)

Once play ends, it’s time to score points. You score points based on three sets of cards: The cards face up in your Gang; The cards face down in your Cellar, and The cards remaining in your Hand.

Your base score is the sum of all the Point values of all the cards in your Gang. Note that some of these may be negative!

Now the other aspect of the game happens (remember those Poker Card values!) You now make three Poker hands from each of these three groups of cards. The player with the best poker hand built from their Gang scores 6 extra points. The player with the best poker hand built from their Cellar scores 6 extra points. And the player with the best poker hand built from the cards remaining in their Hand scores 6 extra points. There will always be less than five cards left in you Hand at the end of play, so if the best you have is a pair, you could have the best hand! The rules have a list of the possible hands and their rank from lowest to highest (and state that Aces can be high or low).

But it’s not that simple. Besides some cards with Joker Poker Card values, there are some cards that make other cards wild (like threes). These cards only affect the set of cards they are in (Gang, Cellar, or Hand), and do not have to be part of the Poker hand itself to have their effect.

And there is one final kicker: The player who’s Cellar has the lowest total Points loses 6 points. Note: the points in your Cellar are never scored; they are only used to avoid this penalty. If there is a tie for any of these (possible, but not likely) the points are split evenly between them (for both bonus points and lost points!)

Play as many rounds as desired. The winner is the player with the highest score. We found four rounds worked fine.

OUR EXPERIENCE

We found the game to be fast and fun. You want to play high scoring cards to your Gang for the points (unless somebody steals them with another card!) Yet you also want to try and build a good hand for your gang too. Sometimes it can be hard to win any tricks, and an empty Cellar almost guarantees you’ll lose some points. You have less control over your Cellar's Poker hand. Even what’s left in your hand at the end counts!

Another thing that can slam you is each Roundup and Gunfight before your turn pulls a card out of your hand. This can leave you with some tough decisions about what cards to try and save for your Gang vs. what to play to win a trick.

All in all, our group found Cowpoker a lite and fun game with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting and exciting. I see it hitting our table every now and then for years to come.

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rossum — 2006-07-09T20:37:26+00:00

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mike selinker — 2006-05-04T13:56:04+00:00