Cooper's Gunslinger Kit

Advanced

Desperados 3

Status: Released
Year: 2020
Genre: Strategy
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux

1. Summary

Cooper's Gunslinger Kit is a flexible combat-and-distraction ability kit built around fast close takedowns, reusable ranged knife elimination, unlimited coin lures, and two revolvers that can be fired separately or together through Showdown Mode. The system lets one character alternate between quiet setup, precise isolated kills, and loud multi-target bursts, while ammo, retrieval, noise, target validity, and short cross-ability lockouts prevent the kit from solving every encounter at once.

2. Tags

advanceddocumented

3. Design Intent / Job Story

When I need one operative to solve a mixed stealth encounter, I want a kit that can distract, silently eliminate at short range, recover its thrown weapon, and optionally spend loud ammunition on simultaneous shots, so that I can adapt between low-profile infiltration and decisive synchronized takedowns.

4. Role in Gameplay Loop

Provides the squad with an all-round tactical toolkit that bridges stealth setup, melee control, and ranged lethality.
Creates repeatable distraction openings through a coin lure that can redirect guards or environmental attention.
Adds a recoverable silent ranged takedown option through the throwing knife, rewarding safe body access after use.
Adds high-impact loud ranged eliminations through two revolvers, trading stealth safety for immediate neutralization.
Expands Showdown planning by allowing two gun targets from the same character and enabling gun-plus-knife multi-target sequences when valid.
Supports mission traversal and cleanup through standing body carry, climbing, rope traversal, and swimming access.

5. Preconditions

The operative owning this kit is present, alive, controllable, and selected or available for Showdown planning.
The selected ability is available in the character action bar and not blocked by cooldown, ammo, missing knife state, or invalid target state.
A melee or knockout target is within close interaction range and is not protected by a rule that prevents the takedown.
A throwing-knife target is within valid throwing line/range, and the knife has not already been thrown without retrieval.
A revolver target is within weapon range, ammunition remains in the shared gun resource, and firing is allowed by the current mission state.
The player accepts the noise/alarm risk before using revolvers in hearing range of enemies.
Showdown dual-shot use requires Showdown Mode to be active and two valid gun targets or a valid double-shot target.

6. Parameters

Parameter	Value	Type	Notes
Melee kill duration	2.0s	duration	Fast close lethal takedown timing recorded in the current spec.
Revolver range	17.0	distance	Tooltip value shown for Cooper's revolver during the Dual Shot tutorial.
Revolver noise radius	18.0	distance	Tooltip/tutorial evidence shows revolvers are loud and can alarm guards who hear them.
Revolver cooldown	12.0s	duration	Tooltip value shown for the revolver action during the Dual Shot tutorial.
Revolver dying duration	3.2s	duration	Tooltip value shown for the revolver action during the Dual Shot tutorial.
Gun ammunition pool	Shared	resource	Both pistols use the same ammunition economy according to guide evidence.
Dual-shot target count	2 targets	integer	Showdown Mode allows two gun targets for the kit owner at the same time.
Knife retrieval	Required after throw	state	Tutorial states the knife must be retrieved after it is thrown.
Coin charges	Unlimited/reusable	resource	Guide and tutorial evidence treat coin as a repeatable distraction rather than ammunition.
Gun-to-knife lockout	2.0s	duration	Current spec records knife throw being briefly unavailable after firing a gun.
Knife-to-gun lockout	2.0s	duration	Current spec records both guns being briefly unavailable after throwing the knife.
Body carry posture	Standing	enum	Tutorial/current spec states this kit can carry one body while standing.
Traversal permissions	Ladders, ivies, ropes, swimming	enum set	Tutorial evidence lists climb and swim passives for Cooper.

7. Core Rules

Coin use creates a distraction stimulus at the target point; affected enemies react according to their enemy type, alert state, and distraction susceptibility.
The coin is reusable and should not consume ammunition or charges.
Melee attack can resolve as lethal knife takedown or non-lethal knockout depending on the selected sub-action.
Throwing knife performs a ranged lethal takedown only against a valid target and then leaves the knife in the world/body until retrieved.
The throwing knife cannot be used again while it is unretrieved.
Each revolver shot consumes ammunition from the kit's gun resource and creates a loud noise event that can alert enemies inside the hearing radius.
The two revolvers function as separate gun actions for input/planning but draw from the same ammunition economy.
Showdown Mode can assign both revolvers at the same time, allowing two simultaneous gun targets or two shots into a target that requires multiple hits.
Using a revolver briefly locks out the throwing knife, and throwing the knife briefly locks out revolver use, preventing instant uninterrupted chaining.
All ranged attacks must respect target validity, line/range affordances, cooldown availability, and active game state.
Body carry and traversal passives change where the kit can reposition after a takedown but do not bypass enemy perception or alarm rules.

8. BDD Scenarios

Scenario: Distract a guard with the coin

Given: the kit owner is selected and the coin action is available
When: the player throws the coin to a valid point within distraction reach
Then: affected guards react to the sound or point of interest according to their distraction rules
And: the coin remains available for later use

Scenario: Throw and retrieve the knife

Given: the throwing knife is available
When: the player throws the knife at that enemy
Then: the target is taken down lethally
And: a valid enemy is within throwing range and line of effect
And: the throwing knife becomes unavailable until it is retrieved from the target or world location

Scenario: Fire a loud revolver shot

Given: at least one revolver shot is available
When: the player fires a revolver
Then: the target is shot
And: a valid enemy is within revolver range
And: ammunition is consumed from the shared gun resource
And: enemies inside the noise radius can become alerted by the gunshot

Scenario: Queue dual revolver shots in Showdown Mode

Given: Showdown Mode is active
When: the player assigns each revolver to a target and executes Showdown
Then: both queued gunshots resolve as synchronized actions
And: two valid gun targets are available
And: the shared gun ammunition resource is reduced for the shots fired

Scenario: Cross-ability lockout prevents instant chaining

Given: the player has just thrown the knife or fired a revolver
When: the player immediately attempts to use the opposing ranged weapon type
Then: that opposing action remains unavailable until its short lockout expires

Scenario: Non-lethal close control

Given: a valid enemy is within close takedown range
When: the player selects the non-lethal close action
Then: the target is knocked out instead of killed
And: normal body-control rules apply to the incapacitated target

9. Edge Cases

A thrown knife target dies in a watched area, making retrieval tactically unsafe and leaving the knife unavailable until recovered.
A revolver shot kills the target but triggers nearby listeners, converting a successful takedown into an alarm risk.
Only one revolver has a valid target in Showdown Mode, so dual-shot planning must allow a partial plan or clearly reject the second assignment.
A target leaves range, line of sight, or valid status between planning and execution, so the queued action must cancel, miss, or fail according to the game's action-resolution rules.
The player attempts to use the knife during the post-shot lockout or guns during the post-knife lockout, requiring clear disabled feedback.
Shared ammunition reaches zero while one or both gun slots are visible, so both revolver actions must reflect the depleted resource.
An enemy type reacts less strongly to coin distraction, shortening the available opening.
The kit owner is carrying a body, swimming, climbing, or otherwise busy, so combat and distraction actions should be unavailable until the state allows them.
A body with the thrown knife is moved, hidden, or becomes inaccessible, so retrieval must remain tied to the actual knife location rather than the original throw point.

10. QA Notes

Verify the action bar exposes coin, melee/knockout, throwing knife, and two revolver actions with correct hotkey, cooldown, ammo, and disabled states.
Verify the coin can be reused and produces distraction reactions without consuming a limited resource.
Verify throwing the knife disables further knife throws until the knife is retrieved from the target or world location.
Verify revolver shots consume the shared gun resource and update both gun actions consistently.
Verify revolver noise alerts enemies inside the displayed/defined noise radius and does not alert enemies outside it.
Verify Showdown Mode can queue two revolver shots from this kit and resolves both on Execute when targets remain valid.
Verify gun-to-knife and knife-to-gun lockout timing matches the specified short cooldown behavior.
Verify lethal and non-lethal close actions resolve differently and feed into body-control rules correctly.
Verify traversal and standing body-carry passives do not allow ability use during incompatible animation or movement states.
Verify target invalidation between Showdown planning and execution gives readable feedback and does not spend resources incorrectly.

11. Mechanic Dependencies

Showdown Synchronized Planning (Dual revolver targeting and multi-action gun/knife sequences depend on Showdown synchronized planning to queue and execute simultaneous actions.)
Squad Character Ability System (This kit is an instance of the squad character ability system: selection, action slots, cooldowns, resources, and character-specific passives determine when each ability can be used.)
Takedown and Body Control (Melee kills, knockouts, body carry, and thrown-knife retrieval after a takedown depend on takedown and body-control rules.)
Enemy Perception and Alarm AI (Coin reactions, gunshot hearing, target detection, and alarm escalation all depend on enemy perception and alarm AI.)
Lethal and Non-Lethal Combat Resource Limits (Revolver ammunition, cooldowns, lethal versus non-lethal outcomes, and ability lockouts use the game's combat resource-limit framework.)
Distraction and Noise Manipulation (The coin is a reusable distraction tool, and revolver noise creates sound events that feed into distraction and noise-manipulation rules.)
Movement, Terrain, and Cover Navigation (Standing body carry, climbing, rope traversal, and swimming are traversal passives that determine where the kit can reposition before or after using abilities.)

12. UI Links

Character Roster And Selected Portrait - The Character Roster And Selected Portrait UI identifies when the kit owner is selected, which drives the visible action bar contents and ability context.
Character Action Bar - The Character Action Bar exposes this kit's coin, melee/knockout, throwing knife, and two revolver actions, including hotkeys, counters, cooldown, ammo, and disabled states.
Showdown Mode Execution Interface - The Showdown Mode Execution Interface is required to queue and execute dual revolver shots or broader synchronized gun/knife plans from this kit.
Tactical Spatial Markers - Tactical Spatial Markers communicate targeting lines, valid or invalid ranges, noise and distraction areas, queued-action markers, and enemy vision risk while using the kit.

References

1.
Desperados 3 Let's Play Gameplay Walkthrough Pt 1 Prologue & Byers Pass [1440p w/ Commentary] (15:13-15:51)
2.
Desperados 3 Let's Play Gameplay Walkthrough Pt 1 Prologue & Byers Pass [1440p w/ Commentary] (15:51-16:48)
3.
Desperados 3 Let's Play Gameplay Walkthrough Pt 1 Prologue & Byers Pass [1440p w/ Commentary] (17:20-18:00)
4.
Desperados 3 Let's Play Gameplay Walkthrough Pt 1 Prologue & Byers Pass [1440p w/ Commentary] (18:14-18:43)
5.
Steam Community :: Guide :: Character guides and tricks. (L0-69 of 167)
6.
Steam Community :: Guide :: In-Depth Character Guide (L0-104 of 336)