OBJECTIVE OF COUP: The objective of Coup
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2 to 8
MATERIALS:
Welcome to Coup. A game of deduction and deception. Made by Ethan Chen. Coup is a board game and the ninth game played on Table Flip. Hosts Barry and Suzy are joined by regular guests Arin and Ross as well as new special guests Ash and Criken. The series was released on Polaris on May 24th, 2014, and has yet to see a YouTube release. See full list on ultraboardgames.com.
- 6 characters in 4 copies each (from 3 to 6 players, only 3 copies of each character are used)
- 8 game aids (1 per player)
- 24 silver coins, 6 gold coins (1in = 5 silver coins)
TYPE OF GAME: secret roles guessing game
AUDIENCE: teen, adult
OVERVIEW OF COUP
Coup (also called ‘Complots’ in French) is a hidden role-playing game where each player tries to guess the characters of his opponents in order to eliminate them, while bluffing to avoid revealing his own characters.
SETUP
In each game, only 5 characters are used: you have to choose between the Ambassador and the Inquisitor.
The Ambassador is advised for the first games.
Deal the 15 cards (3 copies of each character): 2 cards per player placed face down in front of them.
Players can look at their own cards at any time, without showing them to others.
The remaining cards are placed face down in the center and constitute the Court.
Give 2 coins to each player. The players’ money should always be visible.
GAMEPLAY
Clockwise
Actions (one per turn)
A player during his turn must choose ONE of the following 4 actions:
A) Income: take 1 treasure coin (the action cannot be countered)
B) Foreign aid: take 2 coins (can be countered by the Duchess)
C) Coup: Pay 7 coins and kill an opposing character (the action cannot be countered)
If a character starts his turn with 10 coins, he must make a Coup (action C).
D) Using a character power: Here is the list of powers associated with each character.
Coup Card Game Vs Bot
- Duchess: takes 3 coins (cannot be opposed except with a challenge)
- Assassin: pays 3 coins and assassinates an opposing character (countered by the Countess)
- Captain: takes 2 coins from an opponent. (Countered by a Captain, Ambassador or Inquisitor)
- Ambassador: draws 2 cards in the Court and puts 2 of his choice back in the Court. The deck is then shuffled.
- The inquisitor: can be used in only 1 of the following 2 ways:
- a) draw a card in the Court, then discard a card in the Court, face down. The cards in the Court are shuffled.
- b) allows to look at an opponent’s character card. The targeted opponent chooses which card to show, then the Inquisitor chooses either to return it or to have it discarded (in which case the card is shuffled in the Court and the targeted player draws a new card).
Questioning a character
When a player uses a character’s power, an opponent may question it, i.e. question the fact that the player actually owns the character’s card. If more than one player wants to question it, the fastest player who has spoken will be able to do so.
The challenge is then solved:
a) If there was a bluff, the character chooses one of his characters and turns him face up, the latter is dead. The power effect is also cancelled.
b) If there was no bluff, the player owns the character, shows it, then mixes it with the Court and takes a new one. The power of the character is applied, and the player who had doubted loses the challenge: he chooses one of his characters and reveals it – this character is dead.
Countering a character (with another character)
To counter a character, all you have to do is announce that you have the right character. This can be true or bluff, and it is possible to question a character who counters. Any player can question a character who counters another (not just the player whose character is being countered). If the counter succeeds, the action automatically fails.
Characters who can counter:
- Duchess: counters the action Foreign Aid
- Countess: counters the Assassin. The action fails, but the coins are lost anyway.
- Captain/Ambassador/Inquisitor: they all counter the Captain, thus preventing him from stealing 2 coins.
END OF GAME
When there is only one player left with unrevealed character(s) in front of him/her, that player wins the game.
Enjoy! 😊
VARIATIONS
Rules for 7 or 8 players
The rules are the same except that 4 copies of each of the 5 chosen characters are used (instead of 3 copies).
Rules for 2 players
The rules are the same with the following setup changes, after selection of the 5 characters:
- Separate the cards into 3 piles containing one copy of each character.
- After shuffling one of these piles, deal a character card from that pile to each player, face down, and place the other three cards in the middle to make up the Court
- Once players have looked at their cards, they each take a remaining pile and can then choose another character. The remaining 4 cards from each pile are not used.
- Players now have two starting characters and can start playing
- TWO PARTY GAMES THAT ARE NOT CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY - January 22, 2021
- GREAT GAMES FOR SMALL FRIEND GROUPS - December 23, 2020
- BEST GAMES TO PLAY THIS HOLIDAY SEASON - December 23, 2020
If you’ve played any of the other games in The Resistance lineup, you will probably already know that the latest installment, Coup, has at least something to do with deception. You would be correct in that assumption, but the manner in which Coup differs is that deception isn’t mandatory.
In other Resistance games, if you are a spy or a Minion of Mordred, you can’t escape looking into the shifty eyes of a close friend and telling him a bold-faced lie. Some of you may be so good at beating the social lie detector test that your friends have even nicknamed you “cylon.” (That would never, EVER happen to me.)
Coup very successfully turns this template upside down (or at least stirs it up), allowing anyone to play a successful game by telling the truth. Quite simply there just isn’t a “You are the ‘Bad Guy’” card. Now it’s doubtful the tactic of being 100-percent honest would be an infallible strategy, but the virtuous among us need not worry about drawing a card that triggers heart palpitations, twitches and beads of sweat.
Temptation
Paradoxically, despite being able to approach this game honestly, Coup somehow manages to dangle the temptation to deceive even more than the games preceding it. That little cylon voice inside your head will likely tell you that you can get away with it. Over and over again! It just will not go away!! Okay, maybe that’s just me.
In Coup you are dealt two cards from a deck 15. On each appears a character. There are three of each character type in the deck, for a total of five different characters. The game refers to these character cards as your “influence.” This means it is possible to be dealt two cards of the same type. You will keep these cards hidden.
What you need to know is that to each character (or influence) in the game is tethered a unique action and/or counteraction. On your turn, you’ll be taking one of these actions. Here’s the kicker: You can take ANY action! Honest play be damned! (I apologize for the shouting. All Around the Watchtower is blaring.)
By taking an action on your turn, you are announcing to the other players (up to six others, in fact) that you very truly — cross-my-mechanical-heart-hope-to-die — possess the character card conferring the action you’ve announced. Maybe you have the card; maybe you don’t. If everyone is cool with you taking that free action, you either just got away with murder (and murder is an action), or it’s just another day of honest political maneuverings in the not-too-distant future. Play proceeds clockwise.
There are three other actions you can take on a turn, regardless of the personalities you have in-hand, making a total of seven actions you can take. What are these actions?
“Don’t mind me, just hoarding coins. Move along.”
If you’re the Duke, you can Tax — take three coins from the pot. If you’re the Assassin, you can kill off a face-down character card at a cost of three coins. If you are the Ambassador, you can exchange cards with the draw pile if you desire a different character. If you are the Captain, you can steal two coins from another player. And finally, if you are Contessa, you possess the counteraction that allows you to block an assassination attempt against you.
Other non-character-related safe actions you can take involve taking one or two coins, or the action to end all other actions, the very reason you’re taking coins in the first place, the Coup action. The Coup action costs seven coins, and there is no way to counter it. Pay seven coins, point your Chili Cheese Fritos® finger at a player with a smug look on his face, and he is forced to reveal one of his remaining face down cards. Say goodbye to your influence, my friend. When both cards are flipped face up, you’re out. The last player standing is the winner, or as the back of the game box says, “…destroy the influence of your rivals and drive them into exile.”
You’re Not Going To Take It Anymore!
If at any point someone wants to challenge your sweet, innocent face (and I always do, to my quick, inevitable demise), they may do so. Yell, “I challenge you!” This is risky, especially with a mouthful of fun yellow-colored, greasy, yet crunchy snack rings. A challenge means the player taking the action must flip her card over to prove her guilt or innocence. If the challenger is wrong, he is punished by having to flip over one of his own cards. The innocent victim merely draws another card and keeps it face down. “Surely the next words out of her mouth will be a lie. Let’s find out!”
There’s yet another layer of intrigue to this game — all but one of the above-mentioned influence personalities also have counter-actions, which you can choose to use any time. And just like taking actions, you may or may not actually have the influence in-hand you are claiming.
(You want to learn how to Lie Like a Champ? Yeah, I wrote about Board Games and Deception, too.)
Drink, Lie and Be Merry
There is plenty here for fans of deception and political intrigue. The concepts in Coup are simple, and this is very much a social game. Like The Resistance games before it, Coup is most elevated when playing with people who can take the heat. Your inherent duplicity is appreciated.
It’s also a game for gamers who simply enjoy watching the always entertaining and unexpected interplay unfolding across the table. Finally, it makes for a good game to play while drinking. (But of course it does!) I found that by the third game, I was accusing pretty much everyone around the table of trying to deceive us all. I mean, one should stand up for what’s good, morale and just, shouldn’t he?! I issued some officially-sanctioned in-game challenges with exasperated cries for help, “Doesn’t anyone else care these people are lying? Do I have to take care of everything myself?” This fell on deaf ears. It turned out they weren’t lying. My two influence cards were the first to flip over.
Coup Game Cards
See All Results For This Question
Categories: Reviews