Making the Smart Choice
The aim here is to help out with the first of those barriers. Constructing top tier decks is a far more complex endeavour, but this will at least prime the pump on the journey there. On that same note these aren't laws of deck construction but general guidelines to be ignored with experience.
The first step is to figure out a faction you want to play and a basic 2-3 card combo you want to try out. Sloan Hucksters with Shotgun, Corporeal Twist and Pinto, or Legendary Holster Law Dogs with low A's,2's, and 3's are two fine examples. The values of those cards are going to form the core of your deck.
This is often called a 3:16 deck. This means you are going to have 16 cards from the 3 different values from your combo. While this means you will cheat more your draw structure will be incredibly consistent.
While you will want 4 each of your combo cards, each of the different suites should be built in a slightly different way. Starting with Dudes, put 4 different dudes in at each value if possible. As the vast majority of dudes are unique this prevents dead dudes from cluttering up your hand. Don't be afraid to go out of faction here either.
For actions, start with any potential shootout actions you have access to. Going into a shootout empty handed is a very risky proposition and shootouts will eventually happen. Movement is key too, as are any way to eliminate key opposing dudes. Ride Them Down, Kidnap, Ambush or a Bounty Hunter are all solid cards here. Don't be afraid to build a 3-1 split for your actions either. The versatility is nice and you don't always need to see a card as often as 4 will have you.
Deeds, much like Dudes are unique so a wide selection is best here too. Sadly, there still aren't 4 unique locations for each value. Avoid locations with high cost, powerful abilities or high control. High cost locations are difficult to play. They also puts all your eggs in a single basket, a basket that may be more of a boon to your opponent then to you. Remember that your opponent denies you the money, takes the control and gains access to the action if they have more influence at that location. More influence only requires a single Dude. Paying 4+ Ghost Rock to give your opponent an opportunity to cripple you isn't the smart play.
Goods are the last of the suites to pick from. If you can find some movement here, either in horses or dogs snatch it up. Otherwise just pack the deck with 4 of the best card you see at that value. They aren't likely to be used, but its a trade off you'll be happy you made in a shootout.
The starting posse then needs to be determined. Start with at least 4 Dudes in play, a single grifter, 4 influence, a single upkeep, a high value superstar and ... if that wasn't tricky enough at least 5 ghost rock.
This ties into playing with cheaper locations. Doomtown heavily rewards your ability to play your hand out each turn as you always redraw to a full hand. All too often newer players don't start with enough money or spend too much on a big location for their opponent to hang out at. Starting with 5 ghost rock and including more locations that are easy to play allows your board position to develop nicely while you both play and see more cards.
Thankfully this is all easier than it sounds. Smiley and Trevor come in at 4 ghost rock total with no upkeep, include a grifter and 2 influence. From there its not too hard to have it fall into place.
Finally, astute readers will have noticed that 3*16+4 = 52. Yes, playing a pure 3:16 deck doesn't give you any wiggle room. If there are other cards you want to include, cutting back some of the weaker slots is a possibility though don't cut below 13. Cuts should mostly come in the form of Dudes and Goods as well. You need your economy to be consistent and this comes from locations.
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