Preview – Valeria Batten (Doomtown Reloaded: Faith and Fear)

ValeriaBattenHello, and welcome to a new round of previews for Doomtown Reloaded! The first Pine Box, Faith and Fear, will be releasing soon, and we have 4 previews to whet your appetite for it. This week we have a Fourth Ring huckster to add to your lineup.

So, let’s start with her stats. At 4 rock and 0 upkeep she’s prime for a Fourth Ring starting posse. 0 stud makes her a good backup shooter, and 1 influence is good for a cheap dude.  With Huckster 1 she can be another good slot in for a huckster starting posse. In that regard she compares most easily with Wilbur Crowley and Micah Rise. She’s 1 rock cheaper than either one. While she loses Micah’s ability – which is a strong ability – she does gain a rank of huckster. Depending on the deck those two features may make her a better choice. And some decks may even want both available right from the start.

4 value’s a dangerous number to have in a huckster deck, but for a starting dude that’s not nearly as much of a concern. Even putting her in the deck you can risk a few low values, so she might slot in as an extra cheap huckster depending on how risk averse you are.

03015But really the make or break for her is going to be her trait. We don’t know what else will be in the pine box: another strong mystical gadget might make her an auto include. But even right now the only option – the Holy Wheel Gun – is a fairly powerful weapon. Making her a 2 stud is strong. Weakening enemy dudes is also very strong. The only risks are 1) it’s a 6, and we’re probably a huckster deck wanting high values; and 2) she’s likely the only target for the gun, meaning if something bad happens to her we’re left with a few dead cards in the deck.

In all, given another solid Mystical Gadget Valeria could easily become the basis of a new Fourth Ring deck. Or she could be slotted in simply as a cheap huckster. I wouldn’t be surprised to see her making her way into decks, though in what capacity really remains to be seen based on what else the pine box might deliver.

Next Week: something for your Deputies to do.

Good shootin!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.