"Another murder? I swear this city has lost its damn mind."
Basics on How to Play the Game:
Spoiler:
For the most part, the above video nails how the game is played on tabletop. However, to allow for better Forum play, there are a few modifications...
For starters, the expansions of the game have all been introduced into game setups. This includes the following roles:
Murderer - unchanged
Clever Accomplice - replaces the Accomplice, gains the ability to frame a player for the crime- threatening an instant win
Inside Man - A third, "Lost Wolf" type role that gains a one-use ability to remove a player's "guess", also on the Murderer's team
Forensic Scientist - Is fully spoiled on the game, and will not be able to post on the Game Thread at all times.
Witness - Knows the identities of the Murderer and Clever Accomplice, but not the Inside Man
Protective Detail - Knows the identity of the Witness, on the Witness team
Consulting Detective - Can sacrifice their "guess" in order to reveal their role to all players, on the Witness team
Lab Technician - Has a one-use ability to discover whether or not a specific Means/Clue card was involved in the murder, on the Witness team
Investigators - All other roles on the Witness team, no special abilities, unchanged.
All players, aside from the Forensic Scientist, will possess 6 Means cards and 6 Clue cards, instead of 4 each.
The game's phases are outlined in the following order:
1. Murder Phase
2. First Investigation
3. First Confrontation
4. Second Investigation
5. Second Confrontation
6. Ally Phase
7. Third Investigation
8. Third Confrontation
9. Final Investigation
10. Final Confrontation
11. Trial Phase
The game begins with the Murder Phase, which for all intents and purposes is the setup of the game. The Murderer chooses which Means/Clue they used to kill the victim. The Accomplice then chooses a frame job by picking a Means/Clue owned by a player OTHER than the Murderer (if ever guessed by a Witness Team member, the game immediately ends in a Witness Team Loss), and the Witness/Protective Detail are given their needed information.
Then, the Forensic Scientist will draw their first six tile cards, and give all players an important detail for each card. This begins an Investigation Phase, in which the game thread will be open and players can freely discuss which items they think were involved in the murder.
After Investigation Phase ends, a brief, short, Confrontation Phase begins, where the Game Thread is closed, but each player can communicate once in a single message containing 1000 or fewer characters. After everyone has done this, or after time expires, the Forensic Scientist draws a new tile, replaces one of the old tiles, and places a new important detail for that new card. After this, a new Investigation Phase begins.
Halfway into the game, an Ally Phase will begin. The Inside Man and Lab Technician gain a one-use power during this. After both are used, a new Investigation Phase begins.
The Witness team has until the end of the Final Confrontation phase to correct identify the Murderer and the Means/Clue they used to kill the victim. If they do not, or cannot possibly identify all of this information (because all badges have been used), then the Murderer team wins.
If, however, the Murderer is identified, then a brief Trial Phase begins. The Murderer must name one person they believe to be the Witness. If they fail, then the Witness team wins the game; but if they succeed, then the loss is reversed and the Murderer team wins.
How Phases work:
Spoiler: Murder Phases
Once the game begins and all role cards have been sent out, the Game Thread will be closed. All players will receive their role cards, and all players other than the Forensic Scientist receive their 6 Means and Clue cards. These cards are public knowledge and are known to all players at all times.
The Murderer will then choose how the murder occurred, and then the Accomplice will choose someone to frame for the crime.
Once this is done, the Forensic Scientist will be informed of the crime and the frame job, and then begin drawing and placing clues onto the first tiles of the game.
Investigation Phases
This will be the only phase in the game when the Game Thread will be open.
During this time, all players other than the Forensic Scientist may freely interact with each other. This is the time when players are allowed to discuss what they think is happening, who they think is guilty, how they might have done it, and any overlooked threats to be worried about. It is also alright for players to make possible requests and suggestions to the Forensic Scientist, but the Forensic Scientist is strictly prohibited from responding in any way.
The Murderer Team will not be able to communicate outside of the thread in any way. Any direct communication they use between each other will happen during this phase.
The Investigation Phase can be skipped if agreed to by the players by majority vote: this can be done by bolding /skip Investigation
Confrontation Phases
These will be short phases where the Game Thread will closed.
All players will be given the opportunity to provide a 1000 character summary of the events as they understand it during this phase. They can also decline this opportunity. Each player's responses will be added to the thread as I receive them, but each player can only do this once in the phase.
Once I've received all responses/refusals, or once time runs out, the next Investigation Phase begins after the Forensic Scientist replaces one of the tiles.
Ally Phase:
This will be a short, midgame phase.
The Inside Man will direct me in private to remove a player's badge.
The Lab Technician will also ask the Forensic Scientist whether or not a Means/Clue owned by a player was involved in the murder, in private.
Once both actions are submitted, the Third Investigation begins. Any actions not submitted by the deadline will be used at random.
Trial Phase:
This will also be a very brief phase where the Game Thread is closed.
This phase will only begin if the Murderer is ever correctly identified before the end of the Final Confrontation. This will only occur if the correct Means/Clue card is identified.
The Murderer will, without the help of the Inside Man or the Accomplice, tell me which player they believe to be the Witness. They win if the guess is right, and lose if it isn't.
AT ANY TIME BEFORE THE END OF THE GAME:
All players, with the exception of the Forensic Scientist, are in possession of a badge once Murder Phase begins. At any point after the Murder Phase, they may sacrifice their badge in order to guess which Means/Clue cards were involved in the murder. This can happen during any phase, even if the Game Thread is closed.
If the guess was wrong, the badge is lost, and the player loses this ability for the remainder of the game.
If the guess was correct, Trial Phase begins, even if the Murderer/Accomplice/Inside Man were the ones who used their badge to begin this phase.
If the guess was wrong, AND if the guess was not made by the Murderer's team, AND if the guess exactly matches the framed player's Means/Clue card, the Murderer team instantly wins.
Investigation Phases will be 24 hours long or until skipped, and all other phases will be 12 hours long or until completed.
I'll be looking to run 10 player setups.
Would anyone be interested in giving this game a try?