Intrigue

Full rules

1. Overview
2. The cards
3. Setup
4. Your turn
5. Blocking
6. Challenging
7. Losing a card
8. Winning
9. Tips for beginners
10. Variants

Overview

Intrigue is a game of bluffing and nerve for 2–6 players. Each player has two face-down cards – their influence – and a few coins. Each card is a role with a special action, but you may claim any role you like, whether you hold that card or not. Anybody who doesn't believe you can challenge you: whoever turns out to be wrong loses one of their cards. Lose both cards and you are out. The last player with a face-down card wins.

• Players: 2–6 (7–8 as a variant); best with 4–5.
• You need: 15 cards from one standard deck (see below) and about 40 coins, chips or matches as the bank.

Intrigue is our own adaptation for an ordinary deck, inspired by Coup (Rikki Tahta, 2012). The names and texts are our own. It has not been playtested yet.

The cards

Take the Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10 in three suits – for example ♠ ♥ ♦ – so that you have three of each rank, 15 cards. The suits don't matter. Everything else goes back in the box.

An easy way to remember them: the King collects taxes, the Jack carries the dagger, the Queen protects, the 10 is ten quick fingers, and the Ace is the Ace up your sleeve.

Setup

1. Shuffle the 15 cards and deal 2 cards face down to each player. Look at your cards, but keep them hidden. These two cards are your influence.
2. The remaining cards go face down in the middle. This pile is the court.
3. Each player takes 2 coins from the bank. With 2 players, the start player takes only 1 coin. The bank never runs dry: if it is empty, use extra tokens.
4. Choose a start player. Play goes clockwise.

Your turn

On your turn you take exactly one action. You may not pass.

Actions anybody can take (no claim, can't be challenged)

• Income: take 1 coin from the bank. Nobody can stop this.
• Foreign aid: take 2 coins from the bank. Another player may block this by claiming the King.
• Coup: pay 7 coins to the bank and choose a player. That player loses a card. Nobody can stop a coup. If you start your turn with 10 or more coins, you must make a coup.

Role actions (you claim a role)

Say which role you are using – "I'm the King, I take tax." You don't have to hold that card.

• Tax (K): take 3 coins from the bank.
• Dagger (J): pay 3 coins to the bank and choose a player. That player loses a card – unless they block it with the Queen.
• Steal (10): choose a player and take 2 coins from them (only 1 if they have only 1). You may not steal from a player who has no coins. They can block it with the 10 or the Ace.
• Exchange (A): draw 2 cards from the court. Now choose which 2 of your face-down cards and the new ones you want to keep, and put the other 2 back into the court without showing them. Shuffle the court. (With one face-down card left, keep 1 and put back 2.)

Blocking

Some actions can be blocked by claiming a role – again, you don't need to hold it:

• Foreign aid can be blocked by any player who claims the King.
• A Dagger can be blocked by its target, claiming the Queen. The 3 coins stay paid.
• Steal can be blocked by its target, claiming the 10 or the Ace.

A blocked action simply doesn't happen; the turn is over.

Challenging

Whenever somebody claims a role – for an action or for a block – any other player may say "I challenge". (If several want to, the first one to speak challenges.) Then the claimed player must show whether they have that card:

• They have it: they show it. The challenger loses a card. Then the player puts the shown card into the court, shuffles the court and draws a new card face down – so they keep two secret cards, and nobody knows whether they still hold that role.
• They don't have it (or don't want to show it): they lose a card, and their action or block fails. If they had paid for a Dagger, they get the 3 coins back.

Nobody may challenge Income, Foreign aid or a Coup itself – only claims of a role.

The order of events

1. The active player announces an action (and a target).
2. If it is a role action, anybody may challenge it.
3. If the action still stands and can be blocked, a player may claim a block.
4. Anybody may challenge the block.
5. If the action was not stopped, carry it out.

This means a player can lose both cards in one turn: for example by wrongly challenging a Dagger and then being hit by it.

Losing a card

When you lose a card, you choose which of your face-down cards to turn face up. It stays face up in front of you for the rest of the game – everybody can see it, and it no longer counts as influence. When both your cards are face up, you are out: put your coins back in the bank.

Winning

The last player with at least one face-down card wins.

Example: A few turns into the game, Anna and Ben have 2 coins each and Carla has 3. Anna says "King – tax" and takes 3 coins (5 in all); nobody challenges. Ben says "10 – I steal from Anna". Anna says "I block with the Ace". Ben doesn't believe her: "I challenge." Anna has no Ace, so she turns one of her cards face up (a Queen). Her block fails, and Ben takes 2 of her coins: Anna has 3, Ben 4. Carla now says "Jack – Dagger on Anna" and pays 3 coins. Anna has already shown a Queen, but she may hold another one. She claims "Queen – I block." Carla thinks it over and doesn't challenge. Her 3 coins are gone – she has none left.

Tips for beginners

• Pick a story and stick to it. If you took tax twice, people believe you have a King – blocking foreign aid later is then very convincing.
• Face-up cards are clues. Three of each card exist. If two Queens lie face up, a third Queen claim is suspicious.
• Challenge carefully. A wrong challenge costs you a card; with only one card left, it costs you the game.
• Watch the coin counts. A player with 7 coins can make a coup next turn; a player with 3 might use a Dagger.
• Telling the truth is allowed. Sometimes the best bluff is to use the roles you really have.

Variants

All optional – agree before you start.

• Big table (7–8 players): use all four cards of each rank (20 cards).
• Match: play several games; the winner of each game scores 1 point, and the first to 3 points wins the match.