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Werewolf

The village sleeps, the werewolves choose. By morning someone is gone.

group7-20 playersschedule20-45 min

No app, no setup. Everything you need is on this page.

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Objective

Most players are villagers. A few are secretly werewolves. Each night the werewolves pick someone off, and each day the village argues and votes someone out. Villagers win by finding every werewolf; the werewolves win once they equal the villagers in number.

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How to Play

  1. Pick one person to moderate. They do not play, they run the night and keep the roles straight.
  2. Deal one card per player: two werewolves for seven to eleven players, three above that, plus a seer and a doctor if you want them. Everyone looks at their own card only.
  3. Night. Everyone closes their eyes. The moderator wakes the werewolves, who silently agree on a victim, then wakes the seer, who points at one player and learns whether they are a werewolf.
  4. Day. The moderator announces who did not make it. The village discusses, accuses, defends, and votes one player out. That player reveals their card.
  5. Repeat until every werewolf is out or the werewolves equal the villagers.
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Pro Tips

  • The moderator should keep the night short. Long silences make it obvious who is moving.
  • Eliminated players stay at the table but stay quiet. Watching is half the fun, and they will want the next round.
  • Play somewhere everyone can see everyone else. It is a game about faces, and a scattered room makes it much harder.
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Variations

  • No special roles: just werewolves and villagers. Faster, and the best way to teach it in a single round.
  • Mafia: the same game with different names. Mafia, detective and doctor, in a town instead of a village.
  • One-night version: a single night and a single vote, five minutes in total. Good when there is a queue of people waiting to join.

Questions people ask

How many players do you need?
Seven is the realistic minimum. Twelve to fifteen is where it is best. Above twenty, split into two games rather than stretching one.
How many werewolves should there be?
Roughly one for every four players: two at seven to eleven players, three at twelve to sixteen, four above that.
What is the difference between Werewolf and Mafia?
The names, and nothing else. Same structure, same phases. Pick whichever one your group already knows.
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