Gambling Regulators - Gencon 2017 World Championship: Top 4

published Aug 22, 2017 | | |
Card draw simulator
Draw: 1 2 3 4 5 6 9 all Reset
Odds: 0% – 0% – 0% – 0% more
Derived from
None. Self-made deck here.
Inspiration for
None yet

sholder 83

I went 6-0 during Swiss with this deck, losing in the top 4 to Rich Carter (who eventually won).

This started as a basic "use Calling The Cavalry to boost your hand ranks" idea, but The Gambler's Gun and Inner Struggle are what make it really come together. Standard opening is to use Gina to discard a horse (or something else if you've got no horses) and draw. Between Gina, lowball, and (sometimes) Henry Moran, you're almost guaranteed to have a horse in your discard on action 1, so Maggie runs her job to put it on Buckin' Billy for free effectively making him a 2 influence/ 2 stud starter. Home ability gives you another stud (usually Henry) and 6 cards in hand to start.

I usually play things fairly cautiously, looking for Gambler's Gun, Calling the Cavalry, and preferably an Inner Struggle or two before starting fights - use Buckin' Billy and Ridden Down to make it hard for them to come after you. Between Maggie and the card draw from Billy, you should have horses on pretty much everyone after 2-3 turns which makes Calling the Cavalry a monster even against other decks running horses. Stick to legal draw hands if at all possible, use Pedro & expendable dudes such as Gina to eat casualties if needed, and don't be afraid to run after a round - my loss in the top 4 came from forgetting that plan.

The structure is loose enough that I had a pretty good lowball win rate, but was still able to pull decent shootout hands. With all the horses and the home ability, you've got a ton of movement options. Doris Powell won me one game (at time) between her influence to keep me alive and her ability to grab a couple of extra CP.

I don't think I ever used the LeMat Revolver; I'd consider swapping it for another Sun in Yer Eyes and maybe Jael's Guile for another Gamblers Gun. Nathan Shane works well with a gun on him, but my man Warren G is really only there for theme and should probably be replaced.

9 comments
Aug 22, 2017 Harlath

Congratulations! An excellent performance from a skilled player with an interesting tweak on cavalry decks. I really enjoyed both of our matches - keenly contested while remaining good fun.

The Gambler's Gun really makes a big difference here, giving you the hand rank book to last an extra round. Not many decks can face down a Calling The Cavalry followed by a second round boosted by The Gambler's Gun.

Do you think it is worth considering Run 'Em Down! or Kidnappin' as targeted force removal to help against slide/Spirit Fortress/Showboating decks etc? Or does this risk diluting the draw structure too far and Morgan Regulators is enough of a weapon against these decks?
Aug 22, 2017 sholder

Thanks @Harlath - I definitely had a great time in every game, everyone was a pleasure to play against.

I didn't run into any real slide/fortress/showboating decks, so this is mostly theory, but Run 'Em Down! is a good idea as a replacement for the LeMat Revolver. I'd be inclined to avoid Kidnappin' mostly because you probably want to keep your dudes mobile instead of ending up booted at home afterwards.

Thinking about it, swapping the Mustang for another Pinto might be a good idea as well. I don't think I ever played the Mustang, even with Maggie Harris's discount its on the expensive side compared to everything else.
Aug 23, 2017 Prodigy

I really like this deck - loose structure + Calling the Cavalry + Gamblers Gun + Inner Struggle makes for some fun times! I'm not sure that even if I made that pull with Rev Perry in our last game of swiss, that I probably would have lost any way.

Have you considered running Putting The Pieces Together? You tend to get enough studs to avoid cheating in shootouts, and Henry is there to save you during lowball.

Great showing, and always a pleasure to play against you!
Aug 23, 2017 Harlath

@sholder - good thoughts on Run 'Em Down! v Kidnappin', seems silly to sacrifice the maneuverability advantage horses give by all going home after a job, albeit Morgan Regulators can help a little here. I normally split 3x Run 'Em Down v 1x Kidnappin' in horse decks as the latter helps against Clementine Lepp or Danny Wilde.

Thanks for laying out your other thoughts, which I'm largely in agreement with. Well done again. :)
Aug 23, 2017 sholder

@Prodigy I hadn't thought about Putting The Pieces Together, but thats a good idea. I'd be a little concerned about the upkeep cost, but it fits well enough with how the deck works that its worth throwing a couple in and seeing how it plays out.
Aug 24, 2017 jordan caldwell

I like this deck. Never thought of using Genesee "Gina" Tailfeathers in conjunction with Maggie Harris - nice idea.

Why no 6-value dudes?
Aug 24, 2017 jordan caldwell

I like this deck. Never thought of using Genesee "Gina" Tailfeathers in conjunction with Maggie Harris - nice idea.

Why no 6-value dudes?
Aug 24, 2017 sholder

@jordan caldwell no master plan - it was mostly due to the 6-value Morgan dudes being Mad Scientists with abilities that weren't terribly useful for this deck. Skimming the list of dudes now, a couple of out of faction dudes could make sense. Elliot Smithson in particular wouldn't be too expensive & would work well with Maggie Harris.
Aug 24, 2017 sholder

@jordan caldwell no master plan - it was mostly due to the 6-value Morgan dudes being Mad Scientists with abilities that weren't terribly useful for this deck. Skimming the list of dudes now, a couple of out of faction dudes could make sense. Elliot Smithson in particular wouldn't be too expensive & would work well with Maggie Harris.