The main bulk of the gameplay in Last Chance Saloon revolves around these special cards known as 'mission cards'. At the start of each game, every player is issued a certain number of these cards. You can have a maximum of five, but the amount of cards handed out depends on how difficult the players want the game to be. A comfortable number, on average, would be three mission cards per game.
In the most recent version of Last Chance Saloon, mission cards have displayed on them, in this order from top to bottom:
The characters title (i.e. 'The Gunslinger')
The characters name
The 'mission' (written in a short block of flavoured text giving some background to what the mission is about)
What the player is trying to achieve by 'succeeding' at the mission (again, in flavoured text)
A random selection of three different die faces (Players will get three chances at rolling three dice at once. If a dice roll they take corresponds to any number displayed on that card, they are one step closer to 'succeeding'. If they do not achieve all three numbers, their turn ends and they gain nothing.)
Their reward should they succeed on that mission.
If a player manages to get all three numbers displayed on the card in their dice rolls, they 'succeed' at that mission. They then take a golden token from the pile in the middle of the table and place it on that card, demonstrating to the other players that they have succeeded in that particular mission. The golden token also serves as a reminder to the player themselves that they can use the reward stated on that card.
This method of gameplay stems mostly from version 1.2 of Last Chance Saloon, where the mission cards and their purposes were originally introduced. Since then, their design and purpose have evolved slightly, although they practically remain the same.
The text in italics has been taken from the master game project proposal document and explains in more depth how the cards are meant to work, although some of this content has since been adapted or changed:
"Every player has a list of ‘missions’, formerly known as ‘goals’. The difference between version 1.1 and 1.2 is that there are many more missions than goals, depending on the difficulty of the game. Also similar to the previous version is that each player is trying to achieve the ‘missions’ of that character. This version capitalises on this.
This version keeps all of the information and ideas from the previous version, which is completely ideal.
At the beginning of the game, every player starts off with their characters mission cards in a mission pack. The number of these determines the duration and difficulty of that game. The number can be adjusted to the player’s wish.
1. Cards have displayed on them the respective character’s name, the name of that particular mission, some description explaining why this mission is relevant to that character and why they want to achieve that goal, the correct dice roll in order to achieve that goal, a space to place their ‘success’ token or card, and the reward for succeeding.
2. The characters must achieve the correct dice roll in a maximum of 3 tries. If they don’t succeed after their third try, it counts as a failure and the next player starts their turn.
3. The different types of characters, their backstories, their missions and the story background all remain the same, which is ideal for me.
4. The ‘Sheriff’ and the ‘Mayor’ are two appointed roles that anybody can assume. Players who is who by the token that both the ‘Sheriff’ and ‘Mayor’ are given when appointed. Each role has different buffs to improve that player’s chances.
5. The higher number of dice it takes to complete a mission, the more difficult that mission is.
6. Depending on how short or long the players want the game to last, a higher or lower amount of mission cards are assigned at the beginning of the game."
Because these cards make up most of the gameplay of Last Chance Saloon, and because there are six characters in total, a large number of mission cards need to be made for each character so the gameplay doesn't get repetitive. At one meeting, we decided on making twenty mission cards for each character, but later on during game production, other manufacturing and designing issues arose. So, to provide more time for other concerns, I am now in the process of designing, writing and printing fifteen mission cards for each character.
Underneath this text is an excerpt from my black sketchbook, of which all physical work can be found on page 9.
The text below is a series of general notes on ideas for each characters missions. The tally marks represent how many missions I currently have for each character. I find that writing missions for some characters is much easier than others, since I generally understand more about some characters than others. Some missions may have taken some influence from various well-known Western films.
Gunslinger: II
Win at a game shooting competition for both being the fastest draw and shooting the most game
Defend a small town from bandits
Cowgirl: III
Driving cattle, fixing fences, breaking horses
Killing vermin, winning brawls
Finding a lost herd of cattle for a farmer
Cavalry Sergeant: III
Guard an old fort
Re-stock your battalion's supply of munitions
Hunt to feed your fellow soldiers back at base
Prospector: III
You are running low on funds and must trade some of your own supplies with some other prospectors
Locate a viable water source in the wilderness
Travel further into the cave in search of rare minerals at your own risk
Gambler: III
Win at a high-stakes poker game
You set up another professional gambling table at a prestigious event
Pay the rent and licensing fees for the riverboat you host a table at