Colt Express
BGG Rank: 543
Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: 6+, Best: 6+
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 1.83 / 5
Mechanisms: Action Queue, Hand Management, Memory, Programmed Movement, Take That, Turn Order: Progressive, Variable Player Powers
Family: Components: 3-Dimensional (3D), Components: Wooden pieces & boards, Digital Implementations: Board Game Arena, Game: Colt Express, States: New Mexico, Theme: Mystery / Crime, Theme: Teaching Programming
Designer: Christophe Raimbault
Publisher: Ludonaute, asmodee, Asterion Press, Broadway Toys LTD, Fantasmagoria, Games4you, GateOnGames, Gém Klub Kft., GoKids 玩樂小子, Happy Baobab, Hid Konem (Хід Конем), Hobby Japan, Ideal Board Games, KADABRA, Kaissa Chess & Games, Lautapelit.fi, Lifestyle Boardgames Ltd, Lord of Boards, MeepleBR, MINDOK, Rebel Sp. z o.o., Siam Board Games
On the 11th of July, 1899 at 10 a.m., the Union Pacific Express has left Folsom, New Mexico, with 47 passengers on board. After a few minutes, gunfire and hurrying footsteps on the roof can be heard. Heavily armed bandits have come to rob honest citizens of their wallets and jewels. Will they succeed in stealing the suitcase holding the Nice Valley Coal Company's weekly pay, despite it having been placed under the supervision of Marshal Samuel Ford? Will these bandits hinder one another more than the Marshal since only the richest one of them can come out on top?
In Colt Express, you play a bandit robbing a train at the same time as other bandits, and your goal is to become the richest outlaw of the Old West. The game consists of five rounds, and each round has two phases:
Phase 1: Schemin' Each player plays 2-5 action cards on a common pile, with the cards being face up or face down depending on the type of the round. Instead of playing a card, a player can draw three cards from her deck.
Phase 2: Stealin' The action cards are carried out in the order they were played, with a player's best laid plans possibly not panning out due to mistakes and oversights!
The game takes place in a 3D train in which the bandits can move from one car to another, run on the roof, punch the other bandits, shoot them, rob the passengers, or draw the Marshal out of position. The train has as many cars as the number of players, and each car is seeded with gems, bags of loot or suitcases at the start of play.
Each player starts a round with six cards in hand, with each card showing one of these actions. At the start of a round, a round card is revealed, showing how many cards will be played; whether they'll be played face up or face down, or individually or in pairs; and what action will occur at the end of the round (e.g., all bandits on top of the train move to the engine). You can pick up loot, gems or suitcases only by playing a "steal" card when you're in a train car that holds one of these items — but since everyone is planning to get these goods, you'll need to move, punch and shoot to get others out of your way. You can punch someone only in the same car as you, and when you do, the other bandit drops one of the goods he's collected and is knocked into an adjacent car.
Each player's character has a special power, such as starting the round with an extra card, playing your first card face down, or pocketing a bag of loot when you punch someone instead of letting it hit the ground.
You can shoot someone in an adjacent car or (if you're running on top of the train) anyone in sight, and when you do, you give that player one of your six bullet cards; that card gets shuffled in the opponent's deck, possibly giving her a dead card in hand on a future turn and forcing her to draw instead of playing something. If the Marshal ends up in the same car as you, likely due to other bandits luring him through the train, he'll be happy to give you a bullet, too.
At the end of the game, whoever fired the most bullets receives a $1,000 braggart bonus, and whoever bagged the richest haul wins!
| Average Playing Time | 1-2 hours |
|---|---|
| Best Player Count | 5 Best, 6 Best |
| Collection | Kevin |
| Difficulty | Opener/Closer |
| Played | Played |
| Recommended Player Count | 3 Players, 4 Players, 5 Players, 6 Players |
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Players: 0 - 0, Recommended: -, Best: -
Playing Time: 0 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 0.00 / 5
Silk, the new Colt Express bandit…
… For whom you can choose or make up your own power!*
You can choose one of the three following special powers:
Move power: Move 1 or 2 Cars, whether you are inside the train or on the roof.
Dodge power: Give to the player of your choice the Neutral Bullet you get when you encounter a Lawman (Marshal or Shotgun) and then change positions as specified in the rulebook.
Block power: You block the rear door entrance. No other Character (Bandit or Marshal) can enter that Car through the rear door.
All players must agree on the power of Silk before choosing their Bandit.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: 6+, Best: 6
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.19 / 5
Colt Express: Horses & Stagecoach, the first expansion for the 2015 Spiel des Jahres winner Colt Express, introduces a 3D stagecoach that rides alongside the train from the base game. The bandits now have horses that they can ride to move faster between the cars, and these horses allow them to jump into the stagecoach as well. The stagecoach is protected by a guard with a shotgun, but a punch in his face would be enough to eject him toward the roof of the train. From there, though, he will annoy the bandits on the roof.
Once the stagecoach is free of the guard, the bandits can collect a new strongbox. Inside the stagecoach, they will also find some hostages who will be worth a ransom at game's end. Careful though, as each hostage has a negative effect that will annoy the bandit for the rest of the game.
Horses & Stagecoach also features new round cards and a new event to add more fun to the game. Whiskey flasks spread inside the train also enhance the faculties of the bandits.
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Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: 6, Best: 6+
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 1.81 / 5
The Time Travel Car can be used with or without the first expansion: Horses & Stagecoach.
The Time Travel Car is placed in front of the Locomotive.
The Time Travel Car is considered as adjacent to the roof and the inside of the Locomotive. So your Bandit can enter it thanks to a Move action or a Horse action if you play using the Horses and Stagecoach expansion.
Several Bandits can go in the Time Travel Car at the same time, but in order to trigger the action, your Bandit has to be alone in it at the end of a round (after applying the event, if the current round has one).
If this condition is met, all of the other players close their eyes. In the meantime, you must take your Bandit pawn and hide it below the Locomotive; below one of the Cars; or below the Stagecoach (if you are playing with the expansion). Then, the next Schemin’ phase is played and none of the other players know where your Bandit is. The Bandit’s location is disclosed at the beginning of the Stealin’ phase and the pawn is placed inside the Car where it was hiding. Then all of the actions are resolved.
At the end of the game, after the event is resolved, if one Bandit is alone inside the Time Travel Car, the player receives $500 and all of the loot that may be contained inside.
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Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: 3, Best: 5
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.67 / 5
Contained in Brettspiel Adventskalender 2015 for Day 3.
A single card of the stop type: North Pole Station
At the end of the game, each bandit gives his highest purse to the imp.
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Players: 3 - 8, Recommended: 8, Best: 8
Playing Time: 0 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.50 / 5
The Colt Express: Marshal & Prisoners expansion contains three new components:
It adds another character "Mei", a martial arts lady.
The players can free prisoners from the prison wagon that is added to the end of the train.
One player can play as the marshal, who has two decks of bullet cards and three specific items.
The Marshal has got four hidden and random objectives, he must achieve it to win the game (i.e. shoot every bullet from one gun, catch a Bandit, Shoot at every Bandit, ...)
Freeing junior bandits from the prison car gains their help (i.e. a secondary ability for your character)
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Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: 3, Best: 5
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Cursed loot will have you risk it all only to find out the brief case contains $10.
Fake jewelry worth $5 and purses with some change in them will make you curse your bad luck.
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 5, Best: 4
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Belle expansion, Belle is looking for jewels. She always moves towards the place where there are the most jewels. She has two specific actions:
Theft, which allows her to take one jewel for every bandit in her location.
Charm, which makes move all the bandits towards her location.
The Marshal also has a thing with Belle, so she can stay in the wagon where the Marshal is located.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 5, Best: 4
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Cheyenne expansion, Cheyenne has traded her gun for a bow. Beware, as she is a better shot with her arrows, especially as they are poisoned. When Cheyenne uses her bow, all the targeted bandits receive a poisoned arrow. If they are not able to pick up an antidote before the end of the game, they automatically lose, no matter how rich they are.
Cheyenne moves faster than any other bandit. When she ends movement at a location where there are other bandits, she takes one purse from each of them. Cheyenne wins if she is the richest bandit among the non-poisoned ones.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 5, Best: 4
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Django expansion, Django has a thing with dynamite. Don't come too close to him...
At the beginning of each round, Django drops dynamite where he is located. Django has an explosion action that triggers all the dynamite in the train. Every bandit who is inside or on the roof of an exploding wagon is ejected. They give Django their Wanted token and must use their next action to board the train once again. Django wins the game if he succeeds in getting all the bandits' Wanted tokens.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 5, Best: 3
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Doc expansion, players compete to gain the respect of Doc, but not in a friendly way. When a bandit shoots or punches Doc, they take Doc's respect card. The bandit who has this card makes all decisions in Doc's place.
Doc fires with special bullets, with each of them triggering a different effect during the current round. Doc has another specific action: the poker game. When this action card is played, all the bandits must participate and hand over one of their loot. The player with Doc's respect distributes two loot to Doc and one loot to each other Bandit except one.
Doc wins the game if he is the richest bandit.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 5, Best: 5
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Ghost expansion, Ghost has always dreamed of getting this valuable suitcase. Ghost's move always makes him get closer to the special suitcase. Ghost's Fire and Punch hit all the possible targets, Belle included. The Heist action makes Ghost get the special suitcase.
If Ghost has the suitcase at the end of the game, he wins, whatever the loot held by the other bandits.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 5, Recommended: 4, Best: 3
Playing Time: 60 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.00 / 5
Each one of the six Colt Express: Bandits expansions allows the players to compete against the game itself, which is operating under the rules of that particular expansion. A new story is told each time as every expansion creates a specific goal and new actions for the bandit played by the game. That bandit may win, and if that happens, all the players lose. Thus you need to work together against this "bot", while keeping in mind that in the end, there is only one winner — the richest bandit, of course.
In the Tuco expansion, Tuco does not want to meet the Marshal, his former friend, against whom he bears a grudge.
Tuco's Fire and Punch hit all the possible targets, included Belle. The Swap action swaps Tuco and the Marshal's places, while Tuco's Marshal action takes the Marshal away from Tuco. If a player plays an action that brings the Marshal to the same location as Tuco, he receives a Wanted token (worth $500). At the end of the game, Tuco's loot is worth $250 per bullet he has shot.
—description from the publisher
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Players: 2 - 6, Recommended: -, Best: -
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 0.00 / 5
This promo can be used with or without the expansions Horses & Stagecoach and Marshal & Prisoners. It contains:
1 Elf standee to be assembled and 8 tokens (4 Gift and 4 Empty).
Set up:
Place the Elf standee in the third Wagon from the back of the train. Take as many tokens as there are Bandits, half Gift and half Empty. If there is an odd number of Bandits, take an Empty token of more than Gift Tokens. (Example: with 5 Bandits, take 2 Gift and 3 Empty).
Shuffle the selected tokens face down and give one to each Bandit. These tokens must remain hidden from the opponents throughout the game. If you play with the Marshal & Prisoners expansion, do not give the marshal a token.
Rules:
The Elf moves only following the bandits in motion.
When a Bandit starts his movement triggered by an action Change Floor or Move from the position where the Elf is, move the Elf with the Bandit.
The Elf can park on Marshal’s position.
The Elf is not moved if the Bandit’s move is due to a Punch, an encounter with the Marshal, a Django shot or an end of round event.
The Elf can not be targeted by a shot or a punch.
If you play with the Horses & Stagecoach expansion, the Elf follows the Bandits in the Ride Action. He can enter and leave the stagecoach. He can park on the Shotgun’s position.
If you play with the Marshal & Prisoners expansion, the Elf does not follow the Bandits in prison. He does not follow the Marshal either. If the Marshal does not win the game, the end-of-game rule below applies as with the basic game.
End of game:
The Gunslinger prize is awarded then all Bandits reveal their Gift or Empty token.
If the Elf is in the Locomotive or the Car adjacent to the Locomotive (inside or on the roof) at the end of the game, the winner is the richest Bandit among players with a Gift token. Players with an empty token are automatically eliminated.
If the Elf is at least two cars away from the Locomotive, the winner is the richest Bandit among those with an Empty token. Players with a Gift token are automatically eliminated.
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Players: 3 - 8, Recommended: 8, Best: 8
Playing Time: 0 minutes
Weight (Complexity): 2.50 / 5
The Colt Express: Couriers & Armored Train expansion brings a breath of fresh air to the 2015 Spiel des Jahres-winning Colt Express. Players now work together as teams to try to become the wealthiest bandits in the Wild West, and what's better than a second train containing precious documents to spice up the adventure? As soon as they hear this, our famous bandits do not hesitate for a second, jumping from train to train to try to steal these documents on top of everything else up for grabs — but the shotguns roam wild and the Gatling on the roof does not bode well. On top of everything else, bandits have to be back on the starting train at the end of the last round if they want a chance to win.
This expansion introduces a new 3D train with special cars, two new bandits (Misty and the Twinz, each with new powers), a double team mode with the possibility of betraying your team or not, and an AI Bandit, Il Professore, to allow you to play with an odd number of players and a new action card to nudge a bandit from your team.
bigmac33070 rated:
Great fun! This is almost the perfect gateway game. The programming movement is easy to teach and the 3D pieces are just the icing on the cake. Gripes, with my large hands, I am knocking over the meeples and train cars on just about every turn. Also, I wish the jewels were variable values as well, just like the money bags. Looking for expansions.
ericbjohnson rated:
Gaming:
Kristin0711 rated:
2015 - 05
Sorp222 rated:
Essen14/Gencon.
stofke rated:
R020
minus4 rated:
6 manna
Peyo61 rated:
wait for DeLuxe version ? (it has to come...) club has the 1st edition
Axelfudge rated:
This will be hard to find but I must get a copy of it. Components and theme just look to make this the perfect game for my group.
fralim rated:
With Horses & Stagecoach expansion
israperrillo rated:
Extremely fun for casual gamers and challenging for core ones. Awesome party game!!
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