Rules & Variations

- Setting Up -

Assemble a group of players. An odd number is best, although not absolutely mandatory. There should be at least seven players; nine or eleven is better. Twenty or more people might want to form two separate games.

There is a set of cards, one for each player, with a role written on each one:
• One – Moderator
• Two – Werewolves
• One – The Seer
• All the rest – Villagers
(This is the standard setup.)

Shuffle the cards and hand them out, face down. Each player should look at his card but must keep it secret. Only the Moderator reveals his card and shows himself.

(Alternatively, the group can choose a Moderator in advance; the Moderator then takes the "Moderator" card, shuffles the rest, and hands them out face-down.)

Two players are now secretly Werewolves. They are trying to slaughter everyone in the village. Everyone else is an innocent human Villager; but one of the Villagers secretly has the Second Sight (The Seer), and can detect the taint of lycanthropy.

- The Game: Night and Day -

The game proceeds in alternating night and day phases. We begin with Night.

At Night, the Moderator tells all the players "Close your eyes." When everyone does, it is best for everyone to also start humming, tapping the table, or make some kind of sleeping noise (like snoring). This will cover up any accidental sounds that are made by the Werewolves, The Seer, or the Moderator. Also note that all throughout the nighttime proceedings, the Werewolves and the Seer should also keep making a constant noise (don’t stop humming when the Moderator speaks to you).

The moderator says "Werewolves, open your eyes." The two Werewolves do so and look around to recognize each other. The Moderator should also note who the werewolves are.

Here is an important reminder for the Moderator: While you speak to either the Werewolves or the Seer at night, do not make it obvious with your body and your voice who you are specifically speaking to. Do not turn towards them or approach them. My advice is to constantly move around the room speaking in all directions. Of course, another solution to this is to have a permanent place in the room to conduct all of your business...perhaps somewhere that does not require you to move to see all of the action.

The Moderator says, "Werewolves, pick someone to kill." The two Werewolves silently agree on one villager to tear limb from limb. (It is critical that they try to signal as silently as possible. And again, don't stop humming. The other players are sitting there with their eyes closed, and the Werewolves don't want to give themselves away. Sign language is appropriate, or just pointing, nodding, raising eyebrows, and so on.)

When the Werewolves have agreed on a victim, and the Moderator understands who they picked, the Moderator says, "Werewolves, close your eyes." (It’s also a good idea for Moderators to jot down notes for themselves to refer to, especially if it’s a group new to the game and/or each other).

The Moderator then says "Seer, open your eyes. Seer, pick someone you sense is a Werewolf." The Seer opens his eyes and silently points at another player. (Again, it is critical that this action should be entirely silent because The Seer doesn't want to reveal his identity to the Werewolves. And here's another reminder: Seer, don't stop humming.)

The Moderator silently signs thumbs-up if The Seer pointed at a Werewolf and thumbs-down if The Seer pointed at an innocent Villager. The Moderator then says, "Seer, close your eyes."

The Moderator says, "Everyone, open your eyes. It is daytime. And you, (Blank), have been torn apart and killed by the Werewolves." That person is immediately out of the game. He reveals his card and leaves it face-up.

Now, it is Day. All of the living players gather in the village and decide to lynch someone. The Moderator says, “The mob wants bloody justice. Decide amongst yourselves who you will accuse of being a Werewolf and that player will be burned alive. Majority rules. Before the final vote is taken, the accused will have a chance to plead for their life (or lives…there may be more than one accused – but no more than 2!). I will ask for a final vote for one lynching in a couple of minutes."

The players will discuss and ultimately vote on a player (or two) they would like to see lynched. The Moderator then says, “The accused will now plead for his life.” Keep this short and sweet. Lying or telling the truth is up for grabs. Any information can be divulged here, or kept secret. As soon as a majority of players vote for a particular player to die (and there must be a final vote…but don’t slow the game down too much by indecision), the Moderator says, "Ok, you have been lynched. The Villagers have decided to burn you alive. You are now dead. Reveal your card." That player then reveals his card, and the rest of the players find out whether they've lynched a Villager, a Werewolf, or The Seer.

Once a player is lynched, Night falls and the Cycle repeats. Everyone closes their eyes, the Werewolves (or Werewolf) secretly select someone to kill, The Seer (if alive) secretly learns another player's status; then the sun rises, one player is found dead, and the remaining players begin to discuss another lynching. Repeat until one side wins.

- Winning -

The Villagers win if they kill both Werewolves.

The Werewolves win if they kill enough Villagers so that the numbers are even: Two Werewolves and two Villagers (or Villager and The Seer) or one Werewolf and one Villager (or The Seer). At that point, the Werewolves can reveal themselves, rise up and slaughter the Villagers openly.

- Possible Variations -

• Instead of passing out cards randomly, choose a Moderator first, and then let the Moderator decide who play each role. The Moderator passes out cards as he pleases. (This might be fun if the group has played a lot of games together (not necessarily Werewolf) and know what it's like for different people to team up. If the group is new to Werewolf, this isn’t recommended.)

• If there are a lot of players – say, seventeen or more – it might be better to add a third Werewolf. Of course at that point it's also possible to split into two separate games.

• If the number of players is even, you can give the villagers an advantage by granting The Seer a free inquiry, letting the Werewolves recognize each other, and then starting with a day-phase. (Or, equivalently, start with a night but don't let the werewolves attack that first night.) This keeps the parity normal. It's hard to quantify the advantage of a free inquiry, since it's entirely psychological, but at least you don't have an entirely information-free first day.

- Additional Roles -

Villager with Wolfsbane

• If the number of players is small, or even to perhaps improve the Villagers' chances: give one of the Villagers Wolfsbane. The Villager with Wolfsbane cannot be killed by the Werewolves; if he is picked, the Moderator announces, "It's dawn... nobody was killed last night." Of course, the herb is no protection from lynching. Disadvantage: this might screw up the parity, so some games might not end with a lynching. Another variant: one Villager has Wolfsbane, but he chooses which doorstep to sprinkle every night – he can choose himself. If he picks the same person that the Werewolves pick, that person doesn't die. If he picks a Werewolf, nothing happens. Disadvantages: again this might screw up the parity. Note – if the last two players are a Werewolf and the Villager with Wolfsbane, the game can be considered 3 ways: a stalemate, a win for the Villager (the Wolfsbane will always protect him), or a win for the Werewolf (since the original rule is in place for equal number of players…perhaps the Wolfsbane has run out).

Archangel

• An Archangel acts like a Villager (in that he can be lynched or killed by Werewolves). His power is the ability to protect anyone he chooses during the night (1 per round). After the Moderator has asked for the Werewolves to choose and The Seer to guess, the Archangel can have a turn. If they’ve chosen to protect someone that the Werewolves had “killed”, then the following morning the Moderator will announce that “No bodies were found this morning.” Lynchings will still commence, however.

Sorcerer

• A Sorcerer acts like a Villager (in that he can be lynched or killed by Werewolves). But he works with the Werewolves (without their knowledge) and is possibly able to identify The Seer (much like The Seer tries to identify the Werewolves). Again, he will choose whether or not to use his information. The Moderator must choose when to reveal the end of the game with this option, for instance: the game is coming to an end with 1 Werewolf, 1 Villager and the Sorcerer remaining. The game should end here, with the Werewolf and Sorcerer winning.

Devil

• The Devil is basically the same as the Sorcerer, but here with a little more explanation. He has the same powers as the Seer (he gets to find out the identity of one person per night), but is on the Werewolf team. The Devil wins if the Werewolves win, and loses otherwise. The Devil counts as neither a Werewolf nor a Villager for victory purposes; for example, if there are 6 players left, made up of 2 Werewolves, 1 Devil, and 3 Villagers, the game does not end. This also means that the Devil loses if all Werewolves are killed (he can't continue to "represent" the werewolf team by herself). Also note that the Devil does not initially know who the Werewolves are, nor do they know who he is. The Devil can of course find out who the Werewolves are if he is lucky enough to identify them. He may then be able to clue them in that he is the Devil, by making subtle hints during the day -- or he may not, depending on how sensitive the Werewolves are to his signals. The Moderator should be especially alert when the Seer and Devil are both present. In this situation, the Moderator should first ask the Devil to open his eyes but not pick a target, just so that the Moderator can ascertain who the Devil is. The Moderator should then have the Devil close his eyes and allow the Seer to open his eyes and pick a target. Then the Moderator can go back and allow the Devil to pick someone to identify. This way, if the Seer attempts to identify the Devil, or vice versa, the Moderator can tell them the correct role.

Hunter

• The Hunter has the same role as the Villagers, but he will be called upon in the night to “hunt down” or select who they believe to be the Werewolf and kill them. The order of things is tricky here. The Hunter should probably be called upon last by the Moderator so that the killing earlier in the evening still can go through. If the Hunter kills a Werewolf, there will be 2 bodies that morning: whoever the Werewolves killed and the Werewolf himself.

Vigilante

• (Basically the same as the Hunter) The Vigilante is on the Villager team, and has the ability to kill one person at night if he so chooses. He is thus free to act on his own beliefs about who the Werewolves are. The Vigilante is "less powerful" than the Werewolves. If there is only one Werewolf left, and one Vigilante, and the Werewolf chooses to kill the Vigilante, then the Vigilante's kill does not take effect. (He is killed before he has a chance to do his own killing.)

Mafia

• The Mafia players are members of a separate team, in opposition to the Werewolves as well as to the Villagers. The Mafia has the same powers as the Werewolves and should be handled the same way by the Moderator (but of course the Werewolves should not be allowed to see who the Mafia players are, nor vice versa). The Mafia players are "less powerful" than the Werewolves. If there is only one Mafia left, and only one Werewolf, and the Werewolf chooses to kill the Mafia, then the mafia's kill does not take effect. (He is killed before she has a chance to do her own killing.) The Mafia players are more powerful than the Vigilantes, however, so a Mafia kill takes priority over a Vigilante kill. This pecking order also applies with regard to victory conditions. For the Werewolves to win, the number of Werewolves must be equal to or greater than the total number of non-Werewolves (including Mafia but excluding Devil and Spy). For the Mafia to win, the number of Mafia must be equal to or greater than the total number of non-Mafia (including Werewolves but excluding devil and spy). If there are equal numbers of Werewolves and Mafia left, and no other roles (or only Devils and Spies), the Werewolves win. Confusing, yes. It will take practice.

Spy

• The Spy is on the Mafia team. He acts exactly like the Devil, but wins if the Mafia wins. (Like the Devil, the Spy does not count for any team in victory calculations.) As with the Devil, the Moderator should exercise care when calling the Spy (i.e., have the Spy open his eyes but not choose a target, then come back to him after the other identifying roles have gone).

Magistrate

• The Magistrate is on the Villager team, and has the ability to protect one person from being lynched the following day. At night, the moderator should allow the Magistrate to pick someone. (The Magistrate may choose to protect herself.) When day arrives, the Moderator should say, "It is day; so-and-so has been killed, and such-and-such may not be lynched today." The players then proceed as usual, but cannot lynch the protected person. As with the Villager with Wolfsbane, the protection lasts only for one day; the next night, the Magistrate must choose again (although she may choose the same person). Again like the Villager with Wolfsbane, the role may be varied by not allowing the Magistrate to protect himself.

Mason

• The Masons are on the Villager team. At the beginning of the game (on the first night), the Moderator should have the Masons open their eyes and recognize one another. This means the role is essentially meaningless unless at least 2 Masons are included – a Mason's sole "ability" is his knowledge of the identities of the other Masons. The Masons can not "do" anything special. In other words, they are a group of players who know each other to be innocent (not Werewolves).

Cupid

• One Villager is also the Cupid. At the start of the game, he secretly indicates two others players. These players are now a pair of Lovers. The moderator taps the Lovers on the shoulder, and has them open their eyes and see each other. So the Lovers know who each other are, and the Cupid knows who they are – but none of them know (initially) whether the Lovers are human, Werewolves, or one of each. Now: if one Lover dies (day or night), the other dies immediately of a broken heart. Furthermore: if the Lovers are the only two people left alive, even if one is a human and one is a wolf, they both win.

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