If you are tired of your key dude being sent home with a Pistol Whip, Bones of the Earth is the Totem that you should honor.

of course, if Bones of the Earth is your plan, then you probably shouldn't be running Pistol Whip or Mariel Lewis yourself.

The Shootout action is always your choice (or I guess Either player's choice, if both have a Shaman). If the gains outweigh the losses, hit all of the non-shaman dudes for -1 bullets. Or just wait until after you entreat the Spirits to use a shootout action like Black Hills Guardians to bring your non-shaman shooter into the firefight.

Low value and low difficulty, but it does not pass itself, so you will want some shaman skill and maybe only splash the fours to limit your risk of failure.