Deception: Murder in Hong Kong
犯罪现场
The murderer is at the table, and the forensic scientist may only hint with scene tiles.
- 4–12 players
- about 20 min
- Easy to pick up
- Party
- Deduction
- Bluffing
- Mystery & spies
The goal
Investigators must name the murderer's exact means of murder and key evidence; the murderer must last three rounds unnamed.
How it plays
- 1Everyone has 4 blue means cards and 4 red clue cards face up. Roles are dealt secretly: one Forensic Scientist (revealed), one Murderer, and Investigators. With six or more you may add an Accomplice and a Witness.
- 2All close their eyes; the Murderer opens theirs and points to one means card and one clue card of their own. The Forensic Scientist sees and remembers the solution.
- 3The Forensic Scientist may not speak or gesture for the whole game. They answer with 6 bullet markers on scene tiles: cause of death, location, and 4 random scene tiles, marking on each the option closest to the truth.
- 4Everyone discusses and presents in turn. Each Investigator has one badge, which is one attempt to solve: name a player's exact means and key evidence, and the Forensic Scientist says only yes or no. A wrong attempt costs the badge, but you may keep discussing.
- 5At the start of rounds two and three the Forensic Scientist replaces one scene tile with a new one for another hint.
How you win
If any Investigator names both cards correctly, the Investigators and Forensic Scientist win. If three rounds pass or every badge is spent, the Murderer wins. With a Witness in play, a caught Murderer wins after all by naming the Witness.
First time?
- Each marker is the closest fit, not an exact one; don't read it too literally.
- You have one badge; think twice before spending it in round one.
- Murderers do well to lead the theorising; silence stands out.