SuspectGuess Rules

Quick summary

• You play with 4-12 players in a room.
• Each round, 1 player is the Impostor (does not know the word).
• Everyone else knows the secret word and must describe it without giving it away.
• You vote to kick a suspect.
• Innocents win if they eliminate the Impostor. The Impostor wins by surviving and causing miselimination/confusion.

Goal

Identify the Impostor without revealing the secret word. It’s a balancing act: too clear and you help the Impostor; too vague and you can’t convince anyone.

Setup

Players

SuspectGuess is designed for 4 players per match. One will be the Impostor each round.

Secret word

The game picks a secret word. All Innocents see it. The Impostor does not.

Rounds

A match lasts up to 5 rounds. Roles are re-assigned each round.

How a round works

• 1) Round start
  Roles are assigned. Innocents see the word. The Impostor sees that they have no word.
• 2) Answers (one clue per player)
  Each player writes a short clue related to the word (or fakes it if Impostor).
• 3) Discussion
  Clues are revealed and you debate: who sounds like they’re improvising?
• 4) Voting
  Each player votes to kick someone. Majority decides.
• 5) Result
  The kicked player is revealed. If it was the Impostor, Innocents win the round. If not, the Impostor stays in.

Clue rules

Allowed clues (best practices)

• A trait, context, or association (not a definition).
• Something an Innocent would understand, without giving the word away.
• Consistent: it should fit alongside other plausible clues without being identical.

Banned / poor clues

• Writing the word (or an exact substring of it).
• Direct synonyms, obvious translations, or dictionary definitions.
• Meta clues: “I can’t say it”, “it’s the word”, “starts with…”.
• Player-targeted clues (“Dani”, “the red one”, etc.).

Voting and elimination

After discussion, each player votes. The player with the most votes is eliminated and stops participating in that round.

What about ties?

If there is a tie, the room should follow its tie-break depending on implementation.

Win conditions

Innocents win

Innocents win the round when they eliminate the Impostor.

Impostor wins

The Impostor wins by avoiding elimination and pushing the group into eliminating Innocents through doubt and misdirection.

Strategy (common mistakes)

• As Innocent, be helpful but not obvious—definitions are basically a giveaway.
• As Impostor, don’t overcook it. Your clue should read like a timid Innocent.
• Watch patterns: who aligns naturally vs who adapts late.
• Don’t chase noise: a weird clue can still be Innocent if the word is ambiguous.

Conduct and fair play

• Do not share the secret word via chat/voice.
• No external info (searching the word, side DMs, etc.).
• Respect time: short clues beat essays.
• If the word gets leaked, restart.

FAQ

Can we talk during the clue-writing phase?

No. Write first, then talk.

Can I use numbers, initials, or letters as clues?

You shouldn’t. It’s a cheap way to narrow the word.

What if someone doesn’t vote?

The game may auto-vote or count it as abstention depending on implementation.