How to Play Werewolf (Party Game)

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Werewolf is a super fun party game that can be played with a large group of people. The object of the game is to identify and kill the werewolves amongst the villagers. Start by shuffling and dealing out the game cards, making sure to include 2 werewolves, a Doctor, and a Seer card. There are also wild cards that can be played such as the Drunk, the Witch, and the Alpha Werewolf. Then, the night phase begins and the moderator has the werewolves choose a victim, the Doctor is allowed to save 1 person, and the Seer gets to guess at 1 person they suspect of being a werewolf. When the night round ends, the day round begins and the players discuss their characters and then take a vote on who they believe is a werewolf. That player is then killed and the night round begins again. The game continues until either the werewolves or the villagers win. A popular version of the game called One Night: Ultimate Werewolf has even more roles that can be played.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Dealing the Cards

1
Assemble at least 7 players. Werewolf is meant to be played with a large group of people. Gather up a minimum of 7 players and have them sit in a line on the ground or at a table so they can drum during the night phase.^{[1]
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- An odd number of players is best, but it isn’t mandatory for a game.
2
Choose a moderator for each game. The moderator does not play in the round but is responsible for keeping the game flowing smoothly. They will shuffle and deal the cards and will know the role of each player. It’s their job to walk the rest of the players through the phases of the game.^{[2]
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- Take turns being the moderator in several games of Werewolf.
- If there are a large number of players, the moderator can use a notebook to write down the role of each player and who has been killed to keep track of the game.
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3
Select the number of cards that there are players. The cards represent the role that the player will take during each game of Werewolf. Count the number of players and choose enough cards from the Werewolf deck so each player gets 1.^{[3]
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- Set aside the remaining deck of cards.
4
Include Seer, Doctor, and Werewolf cards in your selection. All of the players have a role in the game, but the Seer, Doctor, and werewolves have special functions and keep the game interesting. It’s important that you have a proper cast of characters so the game can proceed smoothly.^{[4]
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- There must always be 1 Seer, 1 Doctor, and 2 werewolves.
- The remaining cards should be villagers.
- Swap 1 villager for an additional werewolf for games of 16 or more players.
Tip: If you don’t have the Werewolf deck, you can use scraps of paper to play the game. Write or draw villagers, werewolves, a Seer, and a Doctor on strips of paper and have people choose them out of a hat.
5
Add wild cards to make the game more intriguing, if desired. You can choose to include the wild cards that are included with the Werewolf deck to add additional roles to the game. You can also use them to replace a missing card, if necessary. Replace a villager card with a Drunk, Witch, or Alpha Werewolf card to add an extra element to the game.^{[5]
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- The Drunk behaves like a regular villager throughout the game, but they can only communicate with gestures or noises. If they talk at all, they automatically die. Other characters, like the werewolves, can pretend to be the Drunk as a strategy.
- The Witch also behaves like a villager throughout the game, except they have the ability to use 1 healing potion and 1 poison at any point during the game. When the Witch is added, the moderator will wake them up separately during the night round and allow them to poison or bring 1 player back to life.
- The Alpha Werewolf behaves like a normal werewolf, but they must say the word “Werewolf” at least 1 time during the day round. This will become difficult because other players may actively avoid saying the word in order to identify the Alpha Werewolf. If they don’t say the word during the day round, they automatically die.
6
Shuffle the cards and deal them out face down. After you’ve pulled the appropriate number of cards and characters from the deck, shuffle them up well. Then deal them out so that each player gets 1.^{[6]
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- Each player should look at their card, but they must keep their role a secret from the other players.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Entering the Night Round

1
Tell all of the players to close their eyes. The first phase of a game of Werewolf is the night round. After the cards have been dealt to the players, the moderator announces the beginning of the night phase by saying, “Close your eyes.”^{[7]
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- If any player opens their eyes or cheats, then they are out of the game.
2
Slap your knees or table to cover up the noise. The game of Werewolf is set up so that the players don’t know what role the other players have. To further add to the mystery, have each player drum on their knees or the table to muffle any sounds coming from other players.^{[8]
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- Try to have the players drum in rhythm together to make the sound louder.
- Each player should keep their eyes closed when it isn’t their turn.
3
Have the werewolves choose who they want to kill. While the players are drumming their hands, the moderator says, “Werewolves, open your eyes.” The werewolves then open their eyes and point to who they want to kill. The 2 werewolves must agree on 1 villager.^{[9]
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- The werewolves should keep drumming while they decide so the other players don’t suspect them.
- When the werewolves make a decision and agree on a victim, the moderator takes note of who is being killed and says, “Werewolves, close your eyes.”
Tip: Use any gesture, such as a nod, a raised eyebrow, or a motion of the head to indicate which player will be killed off.
4
Allow the Doctor to save 1 person. With the other players continuing to drum, the moderator says, “Doctor who would you like to heal?” The person with the Doctor card then opens their eyes and chooses 1 person that will survive if the werewolves decide to kill them. The moderator takes note of who they select and the Doctor closes their eyes again.^{[10]
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- The Doctor can choose to save themselves if they want.
- The Doctor should not know who the werewolves chose to kill.
- If someone was chosen to be killed by the werewolves and the Doctor chose to save them, the moderator will say, “Someone has been saved,” at the beginning of the day round.
5
Let the Seer try to identify a werewolf. After the Doctor has made his choice and the players are drumming with their eyes closed, the moderator says, “Seer, open your eyes. Seer, pick someone to ask about.” The person with the Seer card then opens their eyes and points at 1 player that they think might be a werewolf. The moderator uses a silent gesture to let them know if they have identified a werewolf. The Seer then closes their eyes.^{[11]
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- The moderator can give a thumbs up or shake their head to let the Seer know if they guessed correctly.
- In some versions of the game, such as One Night: Ultimate Werewolf, the Seer is allowed to view the card of the player of their choice instead of simply identifying whether a player is a werewolf or not.
- Make sure you play as silently as possible so the Seer isn’t identified to the werewolves.
- The Seer can only make 1 guess per night.
6
Allow the Witch to poison or heal 1 person if they want. If you’re playing a game with the Witch card, the moderator will say, “The Witch comes awake.” The moderator then says, “The Witch brings someone back to life,” then they say, “The Witch poisons someone.” During either statement, the Witch player can point to 1 person to either poison or bring back to life.^{[12]
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- Even if the Witch is killed, the moderator will make the announcement every round to keep the Witch’s identity a secret.
- The Witch can only use each potion 1 time, but they can use it whenever they want to.
7
End the night round and identify who was killed. Once werewolves, Doctor, and Seer have made their choices, the moderator says, “Everybody open your eyes, it’s daytime.” The moderator then tells the person who was killed that they are out of the game. The player returns their card and does not reveal their identity.^{[13]
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- Have fun role playing the event! The moderator can make up a story about how the player was killed. In addition, the player who was killed can perform dramatic death throes.
- An alternative rule you can use is to have the person killed reveal their character to the rest of the players.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Playing the Day Round

1
Have each of the players introduce themselves. The day phase begins by having each player take a turn talking about themselves in the character of a villager. The werewolf, Doctor, and Seer players are trying to deceive the others into believing that they are normal villagers.^{[14]
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- Role playing is a big part of the game, so have fun with it!
- For example, when it’s your turn, you could say something like, “Hi, I’m Chris, the local blacksmith. I’ve got a bunch of pitchforks sharpened and ready to hunt werewolves!”
Tip: Have each player stay in character the entire game to make the discussion and vote more interesting!
2
Take a vote on which player to kill. After each of the players has introduced themselves, they need to discuss who they believe is a werewolf. The players can say whatever they want. They can promise, swear, lie, try to conceal something, or tell wild stories about who they are. The moderator then takes a vote, and the player that the majority of players believe is a werewolf is killed. That player is now out of the game.^{[15]
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- Though there does not have to be a limit, to keep the game moving, set a 5-minute time limit for the day phase to force the other players to make a decision as to who they want to kill off.
- If the village runs out of time or they can’t reach a majority vote, then the round ends, nobody is killed, and the opportunity to potentially kill a werewolf is missed.
3
Begin the night round again and play until there is a winner. After the players vote on who they want to kill, that person is out of the game and the next cycle begins. The players close their eyes and drum on their knees or table. The werewolves choose who they want to kill, the Doctor picks 1 person to save, and the Seer tries to find out if 1 person is a werewolf. The game continues until there is a clear winner.^{[16]
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- If both werewolves are killed, then the villagers win the game.
- The werewolves win the game if they kill enough villagers to make the numbers even. So if there are 2 werewolves, then they win if there are 2 villagers remaining.

Community Q&A

Question

How do you "kill" a player as a werewolf?

Community Answer

It depends on your rules. You can make it so if they touch the player, they die, or pretend to bite.
Question

How does the Seer find out the information allowed and how does the witch poison the werewolves?

Community Answer

There should be a narrator figure who is always awake and helps conduct the game. The character who need to kill or save someone must silently let the narrator know during the night so the narrator can proclaim what happened at dawn.
Question

What good is it to be the Seer?

Itsnotreallyhomestuck

Community Answer

As the Seer, you can view someone's card each night and therefore learn their role. This is useful to find werewolves or people you can trust.