Hard West 2 Gin Carter: Skills List & Loadout

Hard West 2 is a brand new Tactical Turn-based RPG that was developed by Ice Code Games and published by the Dutch Publishing company Good Sheperd Entertainment. The game is a sequel to the first Hard West, released back in 2015. After a deal goes terribly wrong, the game lets players control a band of cowboys on the run from supernatural demons and entities. Each of these gunslingers has its own skills and arsenal. Gin Carter is one such character, so let’s briefly discuss his Best card skills and the ideal weapon load-outs in Hard West 2.

The level design is so intricately designed and boasts a sheer sense of mastery when it comes to solving the many battle encounters. Players will end up spending quite a lot of time figuring out the optimal strategy to take down their opponents during each encounter.

However, you will need to be aware of each party member. They all have specific traits and abilities that you need to be aware of at all times. Utilizing these abilities in the correct instances will reward you for your quick thinking tactics. So without further delay, let’s check out the skills and essential info about Gin Carter in Hard West 2.

Here’s a quick summary of information on Gin Carter: 

Who Is Gin Carter In Hard West 2?

Hard West 2’s party roster is quite a handful of personalities to handle. These characters have their own stories to share throughout the game, along with motives that are stark contrasts to each other in comparison. These include the sly undead Old-man Bill as well as the ominous woman shrouded in darkness, Flynn.

However, Gin Carter is one such party member who feels like the entire pack’s leader. He feels like a proper rogue cowboy out on adventures for thrills and glory. Unlike protagonists in other cowboy games like Arthur Morgan from Red Dead Redemption 2, Gin is a dubious con man possessed by his guilt to confront his actions.

He is unmatched when it comes to the fastest drawing hand in the Wild West. But his ego and charisma will lead the other party members to know the hard truth about him; his pride swallows his sense of humanity.

He’s got a glorious array of skills that showcase his prowess in gunslinging and marksman mastery. As long as you literally play his cards right, you will find that he is an excellent addition to use in various battles. It is also worth keeping in mind that since he’s the leader of the gang, he does have any available Loyalty Perks.

Best Gin Carter Weapon Loadout & Card Skills

As mentioned previously, Gin is a character that primarily focuses on his gunslinger skills. So it goes without question that his perfect weapon load-outs will mainly be comprised of Pistols and other available guns. There isn’t a lot to mention about the load-out, but the only important information to keep in mind is the following:

• Weapon Load-out: Gin has access to two types of weapons in his main slots. The handguns are in his main slot, while a rifle is in the secondary one. You can boost the damage and trait qualities of these weapons using the card perks we need for the skills. These will enhance his critical stats with the weapons as well as improve his overall performance. Due to this weapon load-out, he is best suited for medium-ranged combat.

Now, the core aspect of these characters revolves around their skills. As stated above, the skills improve your character’s stats as well as weapon properties. They are derived from equipping a different set of Poker Cards in the “Cards section” of the character menu. So let’s go over each of the skills and their description in short detail.

Shadow Barrage

The following is the main skill of Gin that you will have access to early on in the game and use most of the time. You will start with Shadow Barrage 1, so it will have different tiers where it will become more powerful and potent in action. These tiers can go up to a total of 4 levels with increasing benefits.

The skill allows Gin to fire demonic-blazed shots in a straight direction line. It is also worth mentioning that the skill has armor-piercing rounds, meaning it can penetrate through most surfaces or objects, including enemies. It is honestly the handiest skills that you will need for Gin Carter in Hard West 2.

The different levels of the skill maximize its potential; they are nothing too complicated, but it is worth investing in them so you can further upgrade the DPS on it:

• Level 2: Total damage of the skill is bumped from 6 to 7 points per hit, nothing too significant. You will need a poker card set that contains a “Straight” hand, which is Five cards of the same type but different ranks.
• Level 3: The third level will boost damage to +8 points as well as inflict burning status damage on your shots. You will need a “Four-of-a-Kind.”, which are four different cards of the same rank in hand.
• Level 4: Lastly, the final tier will increase the damage to +9, and the range stats are increased to 18 points. You will need a “Five-of-a-Kind” set which is five different card types but of identical rank.

Horseback Riding

The skill is yet another default one that players can have access to without using any Deck combinations. It grants Gin a movement boost on the battlefield alongside resistance to the Burning and Crippling status ailments if he is in the mounted state. Furthermore, you also gain 25% reduced chances of getting hit by enemies.

It is a pretty useful skill specifically tailored for the mounted status. It will undoubtedly benefit players looking to maneuver quickly during difficult circumstances where Gin gets cornered by enemies.

Those With Loaded Guns

You can get your hands on this skill by equipping the “Pair” of Poker Hands. It is achieved by inserting two cards that have identical ranks, like two cards of 4 hearts and four clovers will create a pair.

The skill increases your weapon damage by +1 while in the Bravado Status. You can gain the status by killing an opponent during your turn. Each character will have three action points to spend on their turn but killing an enemy during these turns will replenish back your spent action points.

It is a simple yet powerful game mechanic, one that encourages pre-planning from the player. However, it is an essential feature that can end up trivializing the game and lets you quickly destroy your foes on the battlefield.

Lucky Bastard

The skill is granted when you have Two Pairs in your card slots. It essentially means that you will need four cards in total with two pairs, as we mentioned before, needing to be identical in ranking only. It does not grant you any bonuses aside from increasing your luck by 25+ points which is extremely useful for boosting your crit damage.

Pistolero

It is here where things get a little tricky since you will need a “Three-of-a-Kind” card set. The skill increases Gin’s handgun damage by +1 point. It might sound like a useless upgrade, but trust it, as the ability will increase your overall DPS a lot once you begin to notice the differences in certain battles.

Gambler

It is a simple skill that you can equip with a “Flush” card combo. The cards need to be of the same type, but they all must follow a subsequent ranking order. The highest should be the King or Queen of whatever sort. It will be followed by decreasing units such as 9, 7, and 4. The skill itself mainly raises your resistance against the Jinx status debuff during combat.

Gunslinger

The gunslinger skill is one that many players might be interested in investing in later on in the game. It raises Gin’s overall handgun critical damage by 5%, which is extremely good considering it is his primary weapon.

You can acquire the skill by slotting in a “Full House” poker hand. It is pretty easy to understand this combination because you need three cards of the same rank and two cards of another, like eight clovers, eight hearts, eight diamonds, and two 7s of any type.

Dances With Bullets

The following skill grants Gin the Duelist buff status. You will need to kill an enemy when in cover. Players will need to equip the “Straight Flush” combination of cards. First, you will need the highest card, just like a ‘Flush,’ but the only difference is that the descending order must be precise like a Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, in that sequence.

Rifleman

For the Rifleman skill, players will need to use a “Royal Flush,” which is one of the highest poker hands. Players will need to acquire a specific suit of cards of the same type consisting of an Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and a Ten. The skill will boost your Rifle damage by +1, which is pretty beneficial.

Check-Raise

For the final skill, Check-Raise, you will need to have a “Five-of-a-Kind” equipped. You will essentially have to set up five different cards of the same rank but of different types, such as Three Clovers, Three Hearts, Three Diamonds, and a Three of Spades. You can also swap for a Joker Card in the last place to complete the Hand.

This is definitely the best skill that most players will want to work towards as soon as possible. It grants Gin a +10% Bullseye chance when slightly in the cover position.

Summary

Gin is an excellent DPS character with the main skill that can clear a mob in a few situations if used wisely. It is recommended that you opt to get a “Straight” as early as the first Chapter of the game. It will ensure Gin Carter’s Shadow Barrage is upgraded to Level 2 since it will be his primary skill to use in Hard West 2.

However, later on, it is advised that you lean towards assembling Poker Hands that will grant you the Gunslinger or the Rifleman skills. Having access to more secondary weapon damage or Crit chance is always viable.

Hard West 2 is available now on Steam. The game is the perfect addition to the genre of critically acclaimed tactical RPGs such as the XCOM or Wasteland series. So let us know if you plan on jumping into Hard West 2 now that it’s finally out and if you do, make sure to let us know your thoughts on Gin Carter and his badass skills!