Werewolves of Millers Hollow
| Type: | brain game, communication game |
| Number of players: | 7 or more, best between 10-20 |
| Location: | sitting on a table |
| Equipment: | playing card OR pen and paper OR nothing |
| Duration: | between 10 to 30 minutes per round |
| Preparation: | none |
Werewolves of Millers Hollow is a more complex, commercial variant of the game Mafia.
Equipment
You need special playing cards to play the game (Werewolves of Millers Hollow, by publisher Asmodee). Of course, normal playing cards, self-created cards, or simply some slips of paper will suffice as well.
Procedure
Each player gets one card. He takes a look (and remembers) the symbol and thus his role in the game, and then hides the card. Each player represents a citizen of a village; most of whom are normal "citizen", some have a special role ("seer", "witch", "Cupid", "huntsman", etc.), and a few are werewolves. All roles are "good" (supporting the citizen), only the werewolves are villain.
One referee moderates the game - he cannot take part in the game, as he knows many of the secrets of the village. Two phases alternate, the phases of night and day. During night, all players have their eyes closed - except those "woken up" by the referee. It is important that nobody cheats during the night! During day, all players have their eyes open and try to identify the werewolves.
The basic routine is the following:
- During night, the werewolves are woken up by the referee. They decide on a victim (e.g., by pointing at him). The referee remembers the victim, the werewolves go to sleep again.
- Several other roles might be active at some point during the night, see below.
- During the day, first, the referee tells who got killed at night (and what his role was). Then, the surviving citizen (of course, including all special roles and werewolves) discuss whom could have committed this crime at night, who is a werewolf. They decide upon one person, who is imprisoned (or killed); of course, the role of this person is unveiled, too.
The two opposing groups - "good" citizen including special roles, versus werewolves - try to kill the other group. The werewolves are much less in number, but have the advantage of on kill each night and they know each other, while the citizen superior in number can't be sure who is good and who is villain, and have to find out in discussions, with the help of some of the special roles. The surviving group wins the game.
Special roles
- Seer: During each night (usually before the werewolves), he can unveil the identity of one other person (he is free to chose). The referee then tells (or rather: indicate) whether the person is a werewolf or not. Usually, the role of the person is not unveiled in detail. The seer has to transmit that information to the group of citizen during the discussions at day, without arousing suspicion by the werewolves who would definitely like to kill this powerful person.
- Witch: After the werewolves have selected their victim, the witch is woken up. She has two magic potions she can use throughout the game (each one only once): with one, she can rescue the victim of the werewolves, with the other, she can kill a person of her choice. Doing so, she can influence the game in a way that in the next morning, between zero and two people can end up dead.
- Cupid: He can designate a lover's pair. Both are told they are in love by the referee (well, not the usual way to fall in love, but ...). On the other hand, they don't know each other's roles (could be two citizen, or a citizen and a werewolf, or two werewolves; only in the last case, they know each other's role for sure). They may not accuse each other in the discussions or try to kill each other in any other way (e.g., a werewolf killing his fiancé, a witch killing (or not rescuing) her lover, etc.). If one of the two dies, the other immediately dies as well (due to lover's grief). However, it is their aim to survive and win the game together. In a matter of speaking, they are a third fraction in the war between citizen and werewolves.
- Huntsman: When he dies - due to whatever reason - he can shoot one other living person as last action of his own life, taking the victim to death alongside himself.
- Little girl: The little girl is explicitly allowed to cheat during the werewolves-phase at night. It may try to glimpse and to identify the werewolves. She must be very careful doing that, as the werewolves are eager to find her and would kill her if they recognize her.
- Other roles can be added to the game, of course! There are official expansion sets and independently developed roles.
