Werewolves: Variation on Mafia, the Group Game

I was first introduced to Mafia in 1995 at a Family Home Evening activity. With only 6-players in our family, we selected one Narrator, two Mafia gangsters (murder one person/night), one Detective (ask the narrator about the identity of one person/round), and sometimes we played with a Guardian Angel (who can save one person/round); everyone else were innocent citizens.

THE WEREWOLVES OF MILLERS HOLLOW

Review and Detailed Explanation

Werewolves is essentially the same game. I played it on Monday night for an FHE activity as well. We played 2 games with 10 and 11 players respectively. Each game lasted about 10-20 minutes. IT WAS SOOO MUCH FUN! I can totally see my immediate family enjoying some of the new rules associated with Werewolves. Here is a list of differences between my family's version of Mafia and the way we played it last night.

Three main differences

1. New Characters
2. Voting is performed by pointing. (Much more efficient.)
3. The game is played with cards that you keep out in front of you.

Optional Rules, I made up

1. (Optional) When "night falls", immediate silence falls upon the crowd allowing for better listening (and mob control).

2. (Optional) To make things more fun, the Moderator can decide who receives what character. Also, the Moderator is the only one who knows which of all the possible characters are assigned.

3. (Optional) No one reveals what their identity is when they are killed. The only way the Villagers know if they have won or not is to wake up and find that there are no more killers.

Traditional Characters

* Werewolves (Mafia) - 2 for 6-7 players, 3 for 8-10 players, etc. (Hint, in large groups, voting against your partner is an effeicve way to deflect suspicion from yourself. Of course, it only works if the Villagers notice.)
* Ordinary Villagers (Citizens) - These guys don't have any special abilities.
* The Seerer/Fortune Teller (Detective) - Each night, the Fortune Teller can see the true personality of one player. The Fortune Teller chooses which player this will be and is identified by the Moderator.

New Characters

* Little Girl/"Peeker" - Is allowed to secretly peek just while the wolves are at play. And Villager can uses their hands or cards, etc., to hide their faces behind. If the "Peeker" is caught in the act, she immediately dies of freight instead of the designated victim. (A very powerful character, but very nerve-wracking to play; don't hesitate to spy.)
* Town Sheriff - Instead of being dealt like the rest of the characters, this card is entrusted to one of the players. Just like a real Sheriff, this player by the people before cards are assigned by the Moderator. Once elected, he cannot refuse. Henceforth, his vote counts 2x. He cannot split his vote. If the Sheriff is eliminated, upon his/her deathbed, the Sheriff names a successor, who then become the new Sheriff. (Important: You can wait several terms before voting on the role of Sheriff, during which time the players can form an opinion about their compatriots. Do not hesitate to nominate yourself for the position of Sheriff. But if you are a Werewolf, do not campaign too openly for the job.)
* Witch (Guardian Angel's Cousin)- This Villager knows how to make two very powerful potions: The first is a healing potion, which can be used to resurrect a player that is killed by a Werewolf. The second is a poison, used during the night to eliminate one player. Each potion can only be used once per game. The Witch can use potions on herself. (This character becomes more powerful at the end of the game - do not waste your potions!)
* Cupid - Cupid is the village matchmaker. He/She received the nickname becuase of his/her ability to make any two people fall instantly in love (including himself.) During the first night of the game, Cupid designates two players who will be "in love" with one another for the rest of the gae. If one of the lovers dies, the other immediately kills him/herself in a fit of grief. A love cannot, even as a bluff, vote to lynch their lover. (Special case: If one of the lovers is a Werewolf and the other one is a Villager, the object of the game changes for these tow players. The pair's only wish is to live together in love and peace, and therefore must eliminate all other players from the game.) They are not allowed to show their cards to one another. If they are both Werewolves, they can win if the Werewolves win, and visa-versa if they are both Villagers.
* Thief - If the Thief is used, two additional ordinary Townsfolk Cards are added to tthe deck at the beginning of the game. After the cards are shuffled and dealt, the two cards are place face down in the center fo the table. During the preliminary turn of the first night, the Thief looks at these two cards, and may trade his/her card with one of these two cards. However, if both cards are Werewolves , the Thief must trade his card with one of them.
* Vindictive Hunter - If the hunter is killed by the Werewolves, or lynched by the Townsfolk, he/she can retaliate. With his/her dying breath, the Hunter will shoot, thus eliminating any one other player.

Pre-Game Setup

a. Choose a Moderator.
b. Moderator takes the appropriate number of selected cards, shuffles them and distributes them, one to each player (face down). Each player secretly looks at their card before placing it face down in front of you.
c. "Night falls, the town is asleep, and everyone closes their eyes."

Setup Round

d. "The Thief wakes up". The Thief silently looks at and chooses between the two face-down cards in the center of the table (see "Thief" above).
e. "Cupid wake up". Cupid decides and the Moderator discreetly walks around the table tapping the loves (keep your eyes closed lovers).
f. "The Lovers wake up, recognize one another and fall back into blissful sleep." The lovers just look at one another. They do NOT show their character cards to one another, and therefore don't know the true personality of their love.

Standard Turn

1. "The Fortune Teller wakes up and chooses a player whose true personality he/she wants to know." (Option: you can just pick a gender for everyone, but then you must stick with it.) The Moderator reveals the identity of the chosen player's character card. (Tip: If the Moderator turns up the card, be sure to go around and fake doing the same to all cards.) "The Fortune Teller falls asleep."
2. "The Werewolves wake up, recognize one another and choose a victim." The Werewolves open their eyes and silently consult each other and designate a new victim. Keep a vigilant eye open for "The Peeker". Then the Moderator says "The Werewolves fall asleep again, after fulfilling their lycanthropic needs" (or something like that).
3. "The Witch wakes up, and I'll show you the victim of the Werewolves. Would you like to use your healing or poison potion?" The Witch indicates by showing a thumbs-up for healing, thumbs-down for poisoning. If poisoning is used the Witch indicates which player is to be poisoned.
4. "The sun rises. Everybody wakes up and opens their eyes... Everyone that is except for the one who was disemboweled last night!" The Moderator now points to the Werewolves' victim. (The Moderator may include here a more descriptive tale of the victim's death.) This player turns his/her card face up and is out of the game. This player cannot communicate with the other players anymore, unless it is the Hunter (see above.) If one of the lovers is killed, the other lover also dies immediately and turns his/her card face up. (Depending on the size of the group, it may be wise to have another game on hand for the two or three who get out first.)

The Great Debate
5. The Moderator moderates and organizes "the angry mob of Villagers". The Moderator can rekindle debates. Discussions typically include talk of strange noises in the night, suspicious behavior, a player that always votes along with another one, etc. The goal of the Villagers is to unmask a Werewolf. The Werewolves try to disguise themselves. The Fortune Teller and Peeker try to help the Villagers without revealing themselves. The Lovers, try to protect one another. All players can pretend to be anything. But you'll always give yourself away in one manner or another. Everyone has a tell.

The Village Votes

6. The players must eliminate a player that they suspect is a Werewolf. Upon a signal from the Moderator, each player simultaneously, points his finger towards a player that they want to eliminate. (Don't forget, the Sheriff's vote is worth two.) The player with the most votes against them is convicted of being a Werewolf and is immediately, lynched, hanged, drowned, shot with a silver bullet and burned (just to be sure.) This player is not eliminated from the game, reveals his/her card and cannot communicate with the other players until the end of the game.
7. "Night falls. The surviving players fall asleep". All players close their eyes. The eliminated players must keep silent as to not reveal the identities of the other players. i.e. "I KNEW IT!" The game resumes with step 1, The Fortune Teller. . .

Winning the Game

*The Villagers win if they manage to eliminate all Werewolves.
*The Werewolves win if they kill the last Townsperson.
*The Lovers win if they are the surviving Villager/Werewolf pair, and all other players are eliminated. (This is similar to shooting the moon at cards.)


Try throwing in some of these new characters to the original mix! For more tips and optional rules, visit the Official Website, www.loups-garous.com See the next blog post down for info on how to join a game of Mafia online!