Coup
You are head of a family in an Italian city-state, a city run by a weak and corrupt court. You need to manipulate, bluff and bribe your way to power. Your object is to destroy the influence of all the other families, forcing them into exile. Only one family will survive...
In Coup, you want to be the last player with influence in the game, with influence being represented by face-down character cards in your playing area.
When you take one of the character actions – whether actively on your turn, or defensively in response to someone else's action – that character's action automatically succeeds unless an opponent challenges you. In this case, if you can't reveal the appropriate character, you lose an influence, turning one of your characters face-up. Face-up characters cannot be used, and if both of your characters are face-up, you're out of the game.
If you do have the character in question, you reveal it, the opponent loses an influence, then you shuffle that character into the deck and draw a new one, perhaps getting the same character again and perhaps not.
The last player to still have influence – that is, a face-down character – wins the game!
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A quick search would tell you that a “coup” is the sudden overthrow of a government. And now thanks to the same people who brought us Avalon, Flash Point, and The Resistance it is also a quick playing card game of bluffing, bribery and manipulation for two to six players.
Components
A lot of folks may be put off by the tiny box, and may be even more put off by what they find inside. A simple rule book, 15 character cards (3 each of the 5 characters: The Duke, Assassin, Ambassador, Captain, and Contessa), 6 player cards, and a bag full of tokens.
That’s it.
And this would be an issue if the game was $30 or $50. But it’s not. Most places sell it for $10-$15. And while there is not much in the box, the cards are of good stock, feature nice artwork, and the tokens should be more than durable to hold up to multiple games. Additionally, the player cards give a quick reference of what actions can be made and by who. This is a nice feature when you are playing with newer gamers who feel they can’t generate strategy if they have to constantly ask about a rule.
Also, the minimalist nature of the game makes is super portable and that there is little to no set-up.
Set-Up
To get started, give each player 2 “coins” (the cardboard tokens) and a player card. Next, shuffle the 15 character cards and deal 2 to each character face down. Place the remaining tokens in the center of the table to form the coin pool. You are now ready to play Coup.
Whoever won the last game goes first.
Game Play – Basics
The goal of Coup is to destroy the influence of your rivals and drive them into exile. A players influence is determined by the character cards they have face down in front of them.
Play is done in turns clockwise around the table. On a player’s turn they may perform one of 7 actions.
Income = Take 1 coin from the coin pool
Foreign Aid = Take 2 coins from the coin pool
Coup = Pay 7 coins to the centre of the table and choose a player to lose influence
Tax = Take 3 coins from the coin pool
Assassinate = Pay 3 coins to the centre of the table and choose a player to lose influence
Exchange = Draw 2 new character cards from, and decide if you’d like to replace one of you character cards with one of the new cards
Steal = Take 2 coins from another player
If a players plays an action that causes an opponent to lose influence, the opponent must reveal one of their character cards face up. Play continues until only one player has influence left.
Based on the above, the game would sound really simplistic, with a series of pointless actions. Why would a player try to gain enough coins to perform a coup when they can assassinate a character for less than half as many coins? Here’s where the bluffing, bribery and manipulation.
Only the Income, Foreign Aid, and Coup actions can be performed LEGALLY by ANY of the 5 characters.
The other 4 actions can only be performed LEGALLY by certain characters.
Notice I said legally? Well that’s where the fun begins.
Game Play – Advanced Tactics
Of the 7 actions, four of them are character specific.
Tax = Performed by The Duke.
Assassinate = Performed by the Assassin
Exchange = Performed by the Ambassador
Steal = Performed by the Captain.
So why have your character cards face down?
Because you can bluff on your action and pretend to be a character.
Want 3 coins? Say you are The Duke and take them! Want to take influence away but don’t have 7 coins? Assassinate them! But beware, because not only are their character specific actions, there are character specific counteraction!
After a player takes an action, another player may decide to counteract that action.
Block Foreign Aid = Performed by The Duke.
Block stealing = Performed by the Ambassador and the Captain.
Block assassination = Performed by Contessa
Keep in mind though, there is a down side to bluffing…your opponent has the right to call your bluff. If a player challenges your ability to legally perform an action or counter action you must either reveal that you do have the character, or lose one of your influences.
But remember to be cautious of accusing a player of bluffing. If they are not, YOU lose one of your influences.
Theme
Indie Boards & Cards describes their game like this:
“In the not too distant future, the government is run for profit by a new “royal class” of multi-national CEOs. Their greed and absolute control of the economy has reduced all but a privileged few to lives of poverty and desperation.Out of the oppressed masses rose The Resistance, an underground organization focused on overthrowing these powerful rulers. The valiant efforts of The Resistance have created discord, intrigue and weakness in the political courts of the noveau royal, bringing the government to brink of collapse. But for you, a powerful government official, this is your opportunity to manipulate, bribe and bluff your way into absolute power.”
And while that sounds cool…theme is not a strong part of the game. The option is there if your group of gamer’s really gets in to playing characters, but if not don’t expect to be blown away be theme.
Replay Value
The box for Coup suggest a game can be played in 15 minutes. With 4 or more players I’d say this is a fair estimate. With less? You could be in for a VERY short game.
But is that a bad thing? No.
The game places briskly and provides players with enough different actions and counters to keep you entertained through out the game. And because their is value in determining which characters your opponents control, the game does a great job of keeping your attention.
Is this a game you build your game night around? Probably not. But it is a very way to start a game night and get everyone in the right mindset…or as a way to kill time between a larger player elimination game.
Over All Impression.
Indie Boards & Cards seems to understand the value of a lot of game in a little box. Much like Avalaon & The Resistance, this is another fast, social game that creates “light” tension. Player’s who dislike deception games will do well to stay clear of this one, but for anybody who is in to bluffing and deduction this is a great way to get a quick game fix. At the $10-$15 price point, this is a must buy.
Coup premiered at Essen 2012. Designed by Rikki Tahta it went on to be a huge success and pretty soon unfortunately went out of print.
Skip forward to early 2013 and Indie Board & Cards announced that they had picked up the rights to a re-theme and re-print setting it in their Resistance universe, a sort of cyberpunk dystopian future world deal. Having played this fiendish little game and loving it, but not owning a copy, I jumped at the opportunity to pick it up and backed the project.
So I’m now very excited to report that popping through my post box this morning was my pimped up Kickstarter exclusive version of this cool little game.
While Indie sensibly hasn’t messed with the rules; they have given this the Resistance makeover. Personally I liked the originals simple art style and while this isn’t a slouch in the visuals department, I enjoyed the earlier version.
This is a bluffing and push your luck style of game, and if you have played Love Letter and enjoyed that then you should just go and pick this up right now. It’s also very quick to explain and set up and is ideal filler material. These sort of games are my home groups bread and butter and having dined out on many an evening of Love Letter, I know this will be a huge hit.
The base game uses just a deck of 15 cards made up of 3 each of the following types.
The Duke, Assassin, Captain, Ambassador and Contessa. Each of these has specific powers that we’ll get to in a moment. To play you shuffle up and deal everyone two cards that are kept face down by the players (their influence). The remaining cards make up the Court deck.
You also get a set of summary cards with all the characters powers and actions you can perform. Helpful for the first couple of games as it’s hard to bluff if you can’t remember what the card you were pretending to have.
The idea is to win the game by eliminating the influence all the other players have over the court. You do this by removing their cards from play. But how you may ask do I do this? Well rather like poker by getting a tell on the other players and bluffing, a lot of bluffing.
Each turn you get an action, it can either be to take coins, the basic is one but you can select to claim foreign aid and receive two. If at any point you have 7 or more coins in your hand you can stage a coup on a player of your choice and they instantly lose one influence. If you’re not doing any of that, then you can choose to use one of the characters actions and this is when things get interesting.
You can choose to play it safe and pick one of the characters in you hand and play that action, or pretend you have a power that takes your fancy. Once you’ve announced your intentions, the other players decide whether they want to challenge or counteract that action.
The challenge is the most dangerous move because somebody is probably going to lose a card. When you issue a challenge, you select a player who has just made an action with a character and call them out as being a liar. They then have to prove that they have the card they said they did, by showing it.
If successful then the challenger loses one influence and must reveal one of their cards. Now they are in a tricky situation as you don’t get any more and must play on with their remaining card, this also paints a big bulls-eye on you for the others. The player who successfully repelled the challenge gets to replace their shown card from the Court deck.
And so it continues until everyone else is knocked out.
Right let’s take a look at these cards and what they do:
The Duke
He will allow you to take three coins from the Treasury.
And blocks foreign aid. (handy if somebody is starting to accumulate wealth)
The Assassin
Can assassinate one of the other players.
You pay three coins and pick a player. Unless they successfully block this move, they lose one influence.
It’s a dangerous card for players to bluff with, if caught out, they lose an influence for the failed bluff and then the assassin takes out their other card.
The Captain
Can steal two coins from another player.
And he also blocks any attempts to take from you, a very powerful card if you are building that wealth up for a coup attempt.
Ambassador
Can exchange cards with the court deck. Handy if somebody thinks they know what cards you are holding and make you a wild card at the table. And then you can lie about whatever you like.
He can also block a player attempting to steal from him.
Contessa
She blocks any assassination attempt. It’s a very useful card to hold. As blocking an assassination attempt with a bluff can be a very dangerous game.
As you can see all the actions are pretty easy, the fun comes from trying to work out what cards everyone else is holding and whether they are just a big fat liar. Remembering who did what in previous turns is essential. A Player, persistently bluffing and going unchallenged will eventually make the silly mistake of claiming a third card type they can’t realistically have unless the first two actions were both bluffs! It soon turns into a minefield with players bluffing a bluffing player. But once cards start to be flipped, and you can see what’s out of the deck then the tactics change gear and everyone has to play things very tight.
It’s marvellous fun, deceptively simple and a joy to play.
As I have the pimped out Kickstarter edition, it also came with an additional character card for mixing up games. And that’s the Inquisitor.
He has a couple of choices.
He can either exchange a card with the deck or look at one of his opponents cards and then choose whether he will force them to change it. I’d suggest leaving him out for your first few games. The opportunity to know what an opponent is holding does give you significant power over them.
Additionally he also blocks anyone with a captain attempting to steal from him. (If you play with him, he replaces the Ambassador)
If your a fan of these types of filler games then this is a must buy. The retail version should be hitting pretty soon, be aware this is just the base game and is missing some of the extra cards found in the Kickstarter edition.
If you can hunt it down in addition to the inquisitor and the shiny coins you also get 12 additional cards, 2 each of the roles but with alternative art, these allow you to play with up to 10 players.
Whatever version you do get, this is still a very cool little game and I can’t recommend it highly enough.
Okay so imagine The Resistance was hanging around a bar one night and Love Letter walked in, they smiled, they laughed, they shared a few drinks, and BAM! the next morning they woke up and somewhat awkwardly promised that they’d call each other (they didn’t). Well that happened, and nine months later Coup was born.
I couldn’t be happier.
Basically, Coup is like Love Letter, but with the possibility of bluffing.
Each player has two unrevealed influence cards, these are the people that they have influence over. These people have abilities that can be played. You can play these whether you have them or not, it’s up to your opponents to decide whether you do or not. Your job is to try and reveal the influence that the other players have, thus negating it. Once both your influence cards are revealed – you’re out the game.
So what’s so good?
Firstly, it’s small. This game is small enough to carry by hand or get thrown in a handbag. That’s a big deal for my fiancé and I as we like to take a game with us when we go out to dinner. It’s just 15 cards which appeals to me.
Secondly, it’s fast. The average game takes just a few minutes (the more players, the longer it takes).
Third, it’s fun. Bluffing feels great. Getting away with bluffing is greater still, and catching your friends trying to bluff you is the greatest. You will laugh.
Fourth, it’s pretty, the art is great (the tokens are meh).
Lastly, it’s easy to teach. Really easy. This is thanks to a very well written booklet, and simple mechanic. It took me under five minutes and one or two practice hands and we were sorted (TIP: for the first hand when teaching, keep one of each cards face up next to the reference cards, it’s much easier for the noob to make the connection).
So what are the downsides?
Well, as I do compare it to Love Letter, I do wish it came in a similar sized carrier. The cards are slightly oversized which just adds unnecessary bulk – you also have a lot of tokens, when in reality each player could just have a D10. The reference cards are also pretty large.
It’s very fast. That’s why LL has a “best out of X” aspect to it – this needs the same, no big deal, decide on the number before you play.
Lastly, it’s not super strategic, but really, that’s never what filler games are about.
Coup is a super portable game that’s one part filler / one part party game – what more could you want?
This game was the first thing I’ve ever funded on Kickstarter and it was a good decision.
This game is from the same company that brought us The Resistance and Avalon. (Coup actually takes place in the same universe as Resistance.)
RULES
The game is super simple to learn the rules. Slightly less simple to develop a good strategy but we’ll get to that.
Basically there are five characters in the game, and three cards of each of them.
Each character has an action and counteraction associated with them.
Everyone gets two. These are the people they influence in this future government where everything is corrupt.
You want to destroy your opponents influence, i.e. make them lose their cards.
On your turn you get one action.
The crazy thing about this game is that you can take the action of any card in the game whether you have it or not. It’s up to the other players to decide if they want to call you out on it or not.
You might say you have the captain and steal two coins from another player when actually you only have the countessa and the assassin. If no one challenges you you get away with it.
If they do challenge you and you can’t show you have the card you claim, you lose an influence, if you win the challenge, they lose an influence.
It’s as simple as that.
Well once you start playing you’ve got to read people and try and decide whether to bluff or not and who to target with your attacks and whether you should challenge other people’s actions and things get wonderfully crazy.
It’s a lot of fun.
I’m personally having a hard time bluffing. It’s scary to bluff!
You only get two influence and once you lose both you’re out of the game!
If you’re not a fan of player elimination in games you might wanna pass this one by.
But not really. Games go by pretty fast. Usually between 10 and 30 minutes.
If you’re a fan of bluffing, deception, and deduction games Coup is a must have.
If you need a fun quick game to fill a spot in your life you need it.
This game is really fun and I imagine the more you play and learn when to bluff and when to take certain actions the game will only increase in fun as time goes on.
Why did we get it?
We have friends that really enjoy playing Werewolf, but we rarely get a large enough group to make that game worthwhile. We backed the Kickstarter and got Coup and the Resistance in one swing, and both have been great.
How do you play?
Each person is dealt two character cards, and these are the people in the court with whom they have influence. Every turn you have the option of taking Income (1 coin), Foreign Aid (2 coin), Launch a coup (costs 7 coins) or use a character action.
You could have the Duke, who allows you to rake in extra cash through Tax (3 coins) and block other players from taking Foreign Aid. You could be the Assassin and pay 3 coins to take out one card another person controls. But perhaps they are the Countessa who can block assissination! Or maybe they’re just pretending to be… or maybe you’re just pretending to be the Assassin!
When you start to doubt whether or not someone is really holding the card they say they are you can challenge. If you’re right, they’ll lose one influence. If you’re wrong, YOU lose an influence. Lose both and you’re out.
Is it worth it?
The components are nice, the cards are a good size with great art. The box is a weird shape for the contents, but it all fits in nonetheless. Ours also came with double-sided player cards indicating what each role could do and what actions you could take on your turn, which is really helpful.
The game itself is great, especially if you need something quick to warm up the group. It only takes a few minutes to explain the game, and the game itself is only 10-20 min so we usually end up playing at least twice whenever it comes out. Who doesn’t like bluffing, stealing and assassination?
Even if you don’t like player elimination, this game can still be ok as it is usually very quick, so you’ll mostly be taken up trying to figure out who really does have which cards. It’s a bit like Love Letter, with the bluffing and different character actions, but it can accomodate a larger group.
TL;DR The game is full of action and counteraction, challenges and assassination. Never a dull moment while you’re plotting your Coup.
Set in the world of The Resistance (one of my favorite games), Coup takes a very simple collection of 15 cards and game mechanics and turns it into an advanced class on intrigue. When do you lie? When do you call your opponent’s bluff? Time is very limited and the political landscape of the dystopian future is cutthroat — often literally.
Usually I jump straight into the mechanics, but I have to say this first: Coup is beautiful. The Resistance never really drew me into its world on a level beyond “vaguely sci-fi corporate megalopolis,” but Coup does it in five pieces of character art (there are three of each character in the deck) and one currency chip. From the emo-punk minimalist Assassin to the neo-Elizabethan Contessa, the art of Coup ignites my imagination and gives real weight and heft to the dystopia setting. The cards are heavy stock and feel nice in your hands, and the hexagonal cardboard currency chips feel appropriately futuristic. I even dig the shiny silver box! Coup is a very small game, but they really nailed the presentation on this one.
Mechanically, Coup is a very simple game. There are a limited number of actions and reactions you can make, usually dictated by the cards you hold in your hand (two to start, and one if you lose influence in some way). The catch is simple: you can do these actions and reactions at any time, regardless of the cards in your hand. Of course, your opponents have the right to challenge any move you make, and if you cannot reveal a character capable of that move from your hand, you will lose influence, dropping to either one card or out of the game entirely. But, should they call you out and you do have the character that enables that action, they will be the ones to lose their influence.
Coup games are fast and excellent filler. With multiple players, it can sometimes become a drawn-out web of lies, but usually a game is over in under ten minutes. Despite its somewhat intimidating learning curve (the game looks very complex to a new player), the quickness of the games means most players will learn the system well enough to be fairly adept at the game in less than 30 minutes. And though there is plenty of logical information to be gleaned from the moves and countermoves of the Coup aristocracy, much of the game comes down to reading your opponents’ body language, expressions, and playstyle (though admittedly, the iOS version of the game is still pretty fun).
Despite all that, the limited number of options can sometimes make you feel forced down a path once you’re familiar with the game. Someone piling up currency with a Duke? Steal with a Captain. Steadily taking the safe 1-per-turn income? They’re scrimping and saving to pay their Assassin. Of course, they could always be lying, but I apparently play with a very honest group, judging by the abysmal success rate of my challenges.
Political and social games — bad as I may be at them — are my favorite genre of games, and Coup fits very neatly into the microgame slot of the genre. It’s a quick and dirty struggle for control of a darkly elegant world, and it’s always welcome at my table.
Coup is a bluffing game. Players get two cards face down and declare an action from an action list, most of which revolve around collecting money to spend on a Coup. A coup is an action which forces a player to discard one of their two cards. Other players can block actions and both blocks and actions can be contested, which means a player doesnt believe that another player has a card that allows them to take that action. Players who correctly contest an action/block that is taken by a player who does not have the card that allows that action/block forces the other player to lose a card. The overall goal of the game is to be the last player with a card.
All i gotta say is I love this game. I am not big on bluffing games but this one is one of the greatest games I’ve ever played. Very quick rounds, replay value is off the charts, and overall it really brings out the ruthlessness in some of my friends… I LOVE It. If you have 5 friends or more that are willing to play then this game can be very very fun… I highly recommend it for any group that enjoys quick competitive games.
Okay, I will admit it; Love Letter sparked my interest in small, portable card games. I read several good reviews of Coup, and I picked up a copy. I should have looked more closely at those reviews, however. Most of them mention “bluffing”, but I paid them no mind. Bluffing is a concept I understand, and I “get” the idea. But the execution is where I stumble and fall. I don’t see things as black or white; I think there are infinite shades of gray. But when I play a card or board game, I try and do what the rules and components of the game dictate.
Without bluffing, the game of Coup is just mechanical and dry. Love Letter works so well for me because the cards dictate a player’s actions. There are choices to make, but each card’s abilities and limitations are clearly spelled out on the card itself. Honesty about one’s hand is essential in Love Letter. Coup’s cards also define each role’s abilities. But a player can say he has any card he chooses, so the makeup of one’s hand doesn’t seem to matter. Maybe I have played too many rounds of Love Letter.
When I look at my hand and see a “Captain” and an “Assassin”, I have difficulty invoking the powers of a “Duke” or an “Ambassador”. I can’t explain why I struggle with bluffing. The rules permit and encourage it. It is really essential to the game! Why do I struggle so with the concept of bluffing..? I am no literalist; I am no saint. But something in my constitution and my thought processes keeps me from being able to enjoy this game. There is nothing wrong with the game of Coup, but it relies on a mechanic I cannot embrace. The cards and their artwork are first rate, and the instructions are clearly written.I simply can’t pretend I have a card other than the cards in my hand. Coup, It’s not you, it’s me. I promise.
In the near future, the government has become a ‘Corporatocracy’, the CEOs of the multi-national corporations forming a new ‘royal class’. Their greed has widened the divide between rich and poor until eventually, The Resistance grew out of the oppressed masses, dedicated to the overthrow of their corporate rulers. The efforts of The Resistance have not been in vain, sowing discord, intrigue and weakness in the political courts of the ‘noveau royal’, bringing the government to brink of collapse. With government so weak, now is the time for a powerful government official to manipulate, bribe, and bluff his way into absolute power.
This is the set up for Coup, a card game of secret identities, deduction, and deception set in the same universe as Indie Boards & Cards’ The Resistance in which the players, as ambitious government officials, plot to be the one to overthrow the current regime. It is designed to be played by two to six players, aged thirteen and up, in roughly fifteen minutes. To win a player must end the influence of his rivals and force them into exile—there can only be one man to take the reins of government in this tempestuous time.
The game consists of fifteen character cards, six player reference cards, a bag of fifty coins, and an eight-page rules booklet. The fifteen character cards consist three each of five characters—The Duke, the Assassin, the Ambassador, the Captain, and the Contessa. Each of the characters can legitimately perform one or more actions, but often these actions will be ‘illegitimately’ performed by other characters. If caught doing so and challenged, then the player controlling that character will lose Influence. Lose enough Influence and the player is forced into exile and knocked out of the game.
At game’s start, each player receives two coins, two character cards, and a reference card that explains the actions that each player can undertake on their turn. The two character cards are laid face down and remain hidden until challenged. Certain actions allow a character card to be replaced, but because the two character cards represent a player’s Influence, if both are eliminated, the player is forced into exile.
On his turn, a player can conduct one of seven actions. The Income action allows him to take one coin from the bank. The Foreign Aid action allows him to take two coins, but the Duke can block this action. The Duke can also be used to conduct the Tax action and gain the player three coins. By expending three coins, a player can use the Assassin’s Assassinate action to remove one of a rival’s characters and reduce his Influence. The Assassinate action can be blocked by the Contessa—the Contessa does not have an action of her own, only this blocking action. The Ambassador’s Exchange action allows him to replace one of characters with a new one from the Court deck. The Captain’s Steal action enables him to take two coins from another player, though this can be countered by another Captain or the Ambassador. Lastly, by expending seven coins, a player can launch a Coup and remove one of a rival’s characters and so reduce his Influence. If a player accumulates ten or more coins, he must launch a Coup on his next turn.
Once a player has selected and announced his action, his rivals are free to respond with a challenge or a counteraction. This is where the game becomes interesting. A player can conduct the Income, Foreign Aid, and Coup actions with impunity (though Foreign Aid can be blocked), but every other requires that state that he has the appropriate character to conduct that action—the Captain to Steal, the Duke to claim Foreign Aid, or the Assassin to Assassinate, for example. Similarly, when issuing a counteraction, such as the Contessa’s ability to block Assassinations or the Duke’s to block Foreign Aid, a player must state that he has that character.
I love this game so much. I only learned how to play this online and then I got a group of friends to play it for the first time and it was fun as ****.
The bluffing aspect is something that people are thinking about all the time. Are they bluffing or telling the truth? Find out and you can risk lots. That aspect alone makes the game very intense.
The artwork for this game is absolutely superb. I love the fact that this game takes place in the same universe of Resistance, another game that I really enjoy. I also find that this game is very well balanced, especially for all the influence special abilities.
Even with the Reformation add-on some would think that the Inquisitor is totally OP but with the addition of the changing factions option as well as the embezzlement action, it really balances thing quite well.
A lot of thought went into this game and I find that it will be a hit with all groups. A must buy for those who enjoy large group games.
I bought this game at DCC in the gaming hall. It sounded different from my usual fare, and something I could get my non-gamer friends to play. I was right. The bluffing element and minimalistic deck appeals to everyone.
What I like:
1)The explanation in the rule book was a bit confusing, but the game itself is ridiculously simple.
2)Doesn’t take much space to play. I’m not even sure you need a table…
3)Don’t take this the wrong way, but there is a lot of psychological manipulation inherent in this game.
What I didn’t like:
1)We didn’t grasp the spirit of the game from the rules. We had to play it once to “get it”.
2)Relatively quick game play. Don’t plan on any longform strategizing.
First question- Do you like games that require you to convincingly bluff friends and family? If you don’t or are really bad at it this is not the game for you. Second question- Are you looking for a light, quick card game to fill time at a game session? Then this may be for you. You start with a small deck of cards each of which has one of many different roles on it. There is of course more than 1 copy of each role so it is possible to have the same role twice. Each role has a game power. These cards are kept hidden. On your turn announce who you are and gain the benefit unless someone challenges you. If you are challenged you have to show the card of that role. If you cannot you lose one card and have only one left. If you lose both cards you are out of the game. If, however, you have the card and show it your challenger loses permanently one of their cards and you place the revealed card into the deck, shuffle it and draw a replacement role card. Last person with any roles left wins. The variation in the game comes from what the roles do but again if you can’t bluff convincingly you will lose.
Everything about this game is great! good components, high replay ability and good social interactions. One of the few games that I have that gets consistent table time from everyone I play it with. In the short time that I’ve had it I have played it over 40 times. If you are looking for a game that will allow you to lie to your friends and a game that rewards the “coolest” head this is a masterpiece.
There are very few games I will give my seal for as readily as this game.