Deathwick

1. The Setup

The Supplies

Ratio: 1 Standard Deck (52 cards + Jokers) for every 2 players.

• Jokers in the pool (by player count):
  • 1–2 players: 2 Jokers
  • 3–4 players: 4 Jokers
  • 5–6 players: 6 Jokers
  • 7–8 players: 8 Jokers
  • 9–10 players: 9 Jokers
  • 11–12 players: 10 Jokers
  • 13–14 players: 11 Jokers
  • 15–16 players: 12 Jokers; then +1 Joker per 2 extra players.
• Decks:
  • 2 players: 1 deck
  • 3–4 players: 2 decks
  • 5–6 players: 3 decks
  • 7–8 players: 4 decks
  • 9+ players: scale accordingly (1 deck per 2 players).
• The Shuffle: Shuffle all decks and the correct number of Jokers together to create one massive pool.

Card backs

The game uses three card-back designs so you can tell decks apart:

The Circle & The Start

1. Sit in a circle.
2. Deal exactly 27 cards (half a deck) to each player. This is your Candle.
3. Place any remaining undealt cards Face Up into THE DARK (Discard Pile) to start the game.
4. Each player draws 3 cards from their Candle into their hand; this is their starting hand.
5. Turn order: Decide who goes first (class selection will follow this order—see The Calling below).
   • Physical (choose one): Last person to light a candle goes first; or last person to tell a ghost story goes first; or last person to watch a horror movie goes first. Alternatively, The Chilling Touch: all players touch the hand of the person to their left—the player with the Coldest Hands goes first.
   • Digital / online: Host chooses who starts, or Random.
6. CONCURRENT FLAMES (6+ players):
   • With 6 or more players, multiple players take a turn at the same time.
   • 6–8 players: 2 players act simultaneously; 9+ players: 3 (or more) act simultaneously.
   • Play proceeds clockwise from each starter so everyone gets one turn per round. See the Concurrent Flames table at the end for which player numbers act together.

The Calling (Class Selection)

Once turn order is set, each player must accept a curse. Class selection follows turn order: the player who goes first picks first, then the next in order, and so on. Each is offered 3 random classes and chooses one (the last to pick sees all previous choices—minor advantage).

2-player games: These classes are excluded from the 2-player pool because they play poorly or feel unsatisfying with only 2 players: The Mime, The Watcher, The Occultist, The Lich, The Plague, The Vulture, The Witness. The digital game and the Random Selector below remove them automatically when you choose 2 players.

Classes available by group size

• Choose player count for the pool: Use the table above. For 2 players use the restricted pool (29 classes). For 3–6 players draw from 35 classes; for 7+ players, all 38 classes.
• Digital: The game uses the correct pool (2 players = restricted; 3–6 = 35; 7+ = 38). Turn order is decided first, then class selection follows that order.

The Empty Candle Rule

Agree before play how an empty Candle (no cards left to burn) is handled.

• Standard ritual:
  • You must start your turn with at least enough Candle to burn for all your ghosts (1 card per ghost). If you have fewer Candle cards than ghosts (e.g. empty Candle and 1 ghost, or 1 card and 2 ghosts), you are Consumed immediately—no action.
  • If you have enough, you burn (one per ghost), then draw 1 only if you have Candle left; otherwise you take your action without drawing. Empty Candle is also checked at end of turn—if still empty then, you are Consumed.
• Dark ritual:
  • If your Candle becomes empty at any moment (e.g. during Burn or no card to Draw), you are Consumed immediately (no chance to act).
• Digital: choose Standard or Dark ritual when starting a match (after class selection).

2. The Ritual Circle

Who plays when: In a 2–5 player game, one person takes a turn at a time (clockwise). In a 6–8 player game, two people play at once; in a 9+ player game, three or more play at once. Each concurrent group does Burn, Draw, One Action, and Discard in parallel; then the round advances clockwise. For which player numbers act together (6–20 players), see the Concurrent Flames table at the end of the manual. The diagrams below show where each player sits and which seats start the round (❄️ starter, 🔥 concurrent starters).

Shadow layout (3+ players): In games with three or more players, each player’s Shadow is shown split: ghosts on the left are from your left neighbour (who Haunted you from that side), and ghosts on the right are from your right neighbour. This lets you see at a glance who Haunted which ghost; especially useful for classes like The Sealbinder (whose Haunted ghosts cannot be moved or Recalled) or The Clown (whose Haunted ghosts can only be Banished by Face or Cleanse). In a 2‑player game there is only one opponent, so the Shadow is a single zone.

3. The Passage of Time

Neighbours

The two players immediately to your left and right in the circle. You can only Haunt, Drain, etc. a neighbour unless a card says otherwise.

Shadow

The player area in front of you where ghost cards reside. For each ghost there, you Burn one card from your Candle at the start of your turn.

Burn

Take the top card of your Candle and put it face up on top of The Dark.

Suit tier

For tie-breaking: ♠ > ♥ > ♣ > ♦ (Spades, Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds).

The Haunting

Look at your Shadow. For each ghost in your Shadow (Walls do not cause Burn), burn 1 card from the top of your Candle (place it face up on top of The Dark). The Haunting phase can be skipped if you invoke the Ace (Reprieve) at the start of your turn: play the Ace to skip Burning this turn, then Draw and perform the Ritual as normal.

The Draw

Draw 1 card from the top of your Candle into your hand.

The Ritual

Perform exactly one of the following actions, or Abstain:

The Burden

Discard down to your hand limit (usually 5 cards).

Am I Alive?

Candle check: If your Candle is empty, you are Consumed by the Darkness and are eliminated.

Possession check: If you have 3 or more ghosts of the same suit in your Shadow (Walls do not count as ghosts), you are Possessed and lose immediately. In the Dark ritual, this is checked as soon as you receive a third ghost of the same suit (e.g. from a Haunt, BOO!, or ghost pass), not only at end of turn.

When you die: When you are eliminated (Consumed or Possessed), any ghosts in your Shadow are split evenly between your two neighbours. If the number is odd, you decide who gets the extra ghost. See FAQ: When a player is eliminated for details.

Note: At the start of your turn (The Haunting), you burn one card per ghost before you draw. If your Candle is empty when you must burn, you are Consumed then. If your Candle becomes empty during your turn, see FAQ for the optional ruling.

4. The Grimoire

Card art shown is ♠ Spades only. Effects are the same for all suits.

Card	Rank	Name	Effect
	A or 1	REPRIEVE	At the start of your turn you may play the Ace to skip the Haunting phase (you do not Burn this turn); you then Draw and perform the Ritual as normal.
	2	GREED	Draw 2 cards to your hand.
	3	SCARE	Choose a neighbour. They shuffle their hand and blindly discard 2 cards to The Dark (The Sadist: 3 cards to The Dark; you pick which).
	4	DRAIN	Choose a neighbour. Take the top card of their Candle and put it on top of your Candle.
	5	SALT	Reaction: Cancel any player’s Action (except the Ace); your Salt and their card go to The Dark (see Salt section below). You can also play the 5 as a number card to Haunt (strength 5) instead of holding it for Salt.
	6	SIGHT	Choose a neighbour; view their hand and take one card of your choice to your hand. The Watcher: view both neighbours’ hands and take 2 cards from either (or one from each). The Extortioner: take 2 cards instead of 1.
	7	CLEANSE	Destroy 1 ghost from your Shadow (to the top of The Dark, or to the bottom of your Candle if Siphon: your 7’s suit matches the ghost’s suit; ♠ cannot be Siphoned).
	8	RECALL	Take a ghost from any Shadow and add it to your hand.
	9	POSSESS	Move a ghost from your Shadow to a neighbour's Shadow (The Occultist: any player's Shadow).
	10	REKINDLE	Take the top 3 cards from The Dark, add them to your Candle, then shuffle your Candle.
	J	MIRROR	Choose a neighbour and swap your Shadow with their Shadow.
	Q	MEDIUM	Choose: take 1 number card from The Dark to your hand (you cannot take a Joker), OR take the top 2 cards from The Dark, add them to your Candle, then shuffle your Candle.
	K	PURGE	Banish all ghosts in your Shadow (to the top of The Dark; Siphon if suit matches the King’s suit and not Spades; Siphoned ghost to bottom of your Candle).
	JOKER	BOO!	Each other player Burns from the top of their Candle until they reveal a number card (burned cards go to the top of The Dark; the number card becomes a ghost in their Shadow). Each targeted player may use their own Salt to avoid the Burn for themselves only.

Quick reference (card effects)

Compact list for quick lookup.

5. The Cursed (Classes)

6. FAQ & Edge Cases

When in doubt: Use your best judgement in a way that favours the worst-case scenario (e.g. rule against the player who could gain, or in favour of the defender).

Siphon

Siphon is one of the rules: when you remove a Ghost from your Shadow in the right way, you can Heal: put that Ghost on the bottom of your Candle instead of sending it to The Dark. You get a card back; your Candle lasts longer.

• When do I Siphon? When you Banish a Ghost: play a card from your hand that meets or beats the Ghost (value, and suit tier on a tie). If your card’s rank matches the Ghost’s rank (e.g. your 7♥ on a 7♣ Ghost), you Siphon: the Ghost goes to the bottom of your Candle. If the ranks don’t match, you still destroy the Ghost but it goes to the top of The Dark (no heal).
• Siphon when suits match (Cleanse 7): When you Banish a Ghost with a 7 (Cleanse), you can also Siphon if your card’s suit matches the Ghost’s suit (e.g. 7♥ on a 3♥ Ghost), the Ghost goes to the bottom of your Candle. Spades ♠ still cannot be Siphoned; only Hearts ♥, Clubs ♣, and Diamonds ♦.
• Same rank and same suit (e.g. 7♥ on 7♥): In games with 3 or more players, you use multiple decks, so two identical cards can exist. You can Banish a 7♥ Ghost with your 7♥ (equal value). Since rank matches and suits match, you Siphon; the Ghost goes to the bottom of your Candle. Not if the Ghost is a Spade ♠.
• Face card ghost (e.g. from The Warlock’s Haunt): If someone Haunted you with a face card (J, Q, K; e.g. The Warlock using a face as strength 10), that ghost is in your Shadow. You can Banish it with a 10 or with any face card (J, Q, K count as 10). If your card’s suit matches the ghost’s suit, you Siphon: the ghost goes to the bottom of your Candle. Spades ♠ cannot be Siphoned.
• Spades ♠ can never be Siphoned because they are cursed by the darkness. You can Banish a Spade ghost (destroy it), but it always goes to the top of The Dark. Only Hearts ♥, Clubs ♣, and Diamonds ♦ can be Siphoned (whether by rank match or, with Cleanse, suit match).
• Do I still use my card when I Siphon? Yes. You discard the card you played; only the Ghost is healed to the bottom of your Candle.
• Panic and Joker: If you Panic and flip a Joker, you Siphon the Ghost (unless it’s a Spade).

Banish (how you remove Ghosts)

• Banish = play one card from your hand onto one Ghost in your Shadow.
• Your card must have equal or higher value than the Ghost; on a tie, suit tier breaks it: Spades ♠ > Hearts ♥ > Clubs ♣ > Diamonds ♦.
• You may Banish with a face card (J, Q, K): they count as value 10; suit tier breaks ties. Required for The Clown’s ghosts (only face or Cleanse (7) can Banish them).
• The Ghost is destroyed. If rank matched (or, for Cleanse 7, suit matched) and the Ghost wasn’t a Spade, you Siphon it (Ghost goes to the bottom of your Candle (see Siphon above).

Salt (reaction)

• Salt (5) is a reaction: keep it in hand and, when any player performs an Action, you may reveal Salt to cancel that Action (your Salt and their card go to The Dark; their turn ends). The only Action that cannot be Salted is the Ace (Reprieve)—it is played at the start of your turn and is not an Action in the same sense. You can also play the 5 as a normal number card to Haunt (strength 5) instead of saving it for Salt.
• Optional rule—Salt only when targeted: You may agree before play to limit Salt to actions that target you (Haunt, Scare, Drain, Sight, BOO!, etc.).

• What can be Salted? Anyone’s Action can be cancelled by Salt—including King (Purge), Joker (BOO!), Haunt, Scare (3), Drain (4), Sight (6), Rekindle, Flicker, class actions, and any other card or ability played as an Action. The only exception is the Ace (Reprieve), which is played at the start of your turn to skip the Haunting phase. So you can, for example, Salt someone’s King or Joker to stop Purge or BOO!. The Silence’s actions cannot be Salted.
• When the defender uses Salt: The defender's Salt and the attacker's card both go to the top of The Dark. The attacker's turn ends immediately. The defender does not lose their turn; the interrupt happens during the attacker's turn.
• Counter-Salt: The attacker may respond with their own Salt to "counter" the interrupt. If they do, their Salt and the defender's Salt both go to the top of The Dark, and the defender may interrupt again with another Salt (if they have one). This can repeat as long as both players have Salt in hand. The last player to play Salt decides the outcome: if the defender played last, the action is cancelled (attacker's card and defender's Salt to the top of The Dark, attacker's turn ends). If the attacker played last (or the defender allows), the original action (e.g. Haunt) goes through.

When a player is eliminated (death)

When a player is eliminated (Consumed by the Darkness or Possessed), the ghosts in their Shadow do not vanish—they pass to their neighbours. Distribution is even between their two neighbours:

• Split ghosts evenly between left neighbour and right neighbour (e.g. 4 ghosts → 2 each).
• If the number is odd, the eliminated player decides who gets the extra ghost (e.g. 5 ghosts → 2 to one, 3 to the other; the dead player chooses which neighbour gets 3).
• If they have no ghosts, nothing is passed. If they have only one neighbour (e.g. 2-player game and one just died), all ghosts go to that remaining neighbour.

In the Dark ritual, Possession is checked as soon as a ghost is added—so if receiving ghosts from a dead player’s distribution gives you 3+ of one suit, you are Possessed immediately (see Possession).

Consumed by the Darkness

When does an empty Candle eliminate you? It depends which ritual you agreed at setup (see The Empty Candle Rule).

Summary:

• Standard ritual — We only check at start of your turn and end of your turn. If you run out of Candle during your turn (e.g. after an action), you are not eliminated until end of turn; you finish your action, The Burden, then we check. So you get a last turn.
• Dark ritual — If your Candle is empty at any moment (e.g. when you must Burn, when you must Draw, or mid-turn), you are Consumed immediately. No second chances.

Standard ritual in detail:

• Start of turn: If you have fewer Candle cards than ghosts (e.g. 0 cards + 1 ghost, or 1 card + 2 ghosts), you are Consumed immediately—you do not Burn, Draw, or act. If you have enough, you Burn one per ghost, then Draw 1 only if you have Candle left (otherwise you act without drawing), then do your Ritual and The Burden.
• End of turn: If your Candle is empty after The Burden, you are Consumed. If your Candle became empty during your turn (e.g. you had 1 card and used Rekindle), you still finish the turn; we check at end of turn and then you are Consumed. Most groups play it this way so the player gets their full turn.

Dark ritual in detail: The first moment your Candle is empty when you need a card (to Burn, to Draw, or because an effect used one), you are Consumed. You do not get to finish your action or take a last turn.

• The digital version lets you pick Standard or Dark ritual when starting a match.

Possession

• At the end of your turn (after your one action and after discarding down to hand limit), check your Shadow.
• If you have 3 or more ghosts of the same suit, you are Possessed and lose immediately. You have your whole turn to Banish, Siphon, Recall, or otherwise reduce your Shadow before this check.
• Dark ritual: Possession is also checked immediately whenever a ghost is added to your Shadow (e.g. from a Haunt, BOO!, Possess, Plague, or when a dead player’s ghosts pass to you). If that addition gives you 3+ of one suit, you are Possessed and eliminated at that moment.

Cast vs Summon

• You Cast number cards (A or 1 through 10): discard the card to The Dark to use its effect (see the Grimoire).
• You Summon face cards (J, Q, K) and Jokers: discard to The Dark to use the effect. These cards are not used to Haunt; they have unique effects (Mirror, Medium, Purge, BOO!).

Other common questions

• What does “once per turn” mean? It depends on whose turn is relevant. For your own abilities (e.g. a class action like The Pyromaniac’s “Once per turn”), it means once per your turn; it resets at the start of your next turn. For reactions to another player (e.g. The Unseen cancelling a Haunt, or The Hex cancelling with a matching rank), it means once per that other player’s turn; so each different attacker has one chance per their turn to be cancelled; The Unseen can cancel once per attacker per round. See the Edge cases below for Haunt vs The Unseen / The Hex.
• What if I can’t play a valid action? You may Abstain from your Ritual action. This is especially common when your hand is all face cards/Jokers and you are not The Warlock (so you cannot Haunt with them).
• The Silence and Salt: The Silence's actions cannot be interrupted by Salt (5), including when they Summon BOO! (Joker). If The Silence plays a Joker, defenders cannot Salt it.
• Salt vs BOO! (Joker): When someone plays BOO! (Joker), each other player is targeted separately. Each of those players must Burn until they reveal a number (that number becomes a Ghost in their Shadow)—unless they use their own Salt. Each person who wants to avoid the Burn must Salt the BOO! themselves: your Salt only protects you, not the other players. If you use Salt when BOO! targets you, your Salt goes to The Dark and the BOO! has no effect on you (you do not Burn). The only exception is The Silence—if they played the Joker, no one can Salt it.
• The Mime and Salt: When The Mime redirects a Haunt to you (you are their other neighbour), that redirect is an action targeting you. You may use Salt (5) to cancel it: your Salt and the Mime’s discarded card go to The Dark, and the ghost does not enter your Shadow (it stays in The Mime’s Shadow).
• The Grimoire of Rejection: Writing a card name is your action (you may do nothing else that turn). You may reveal it whenever you want to cancel any player’s play of that card. The cancel cannot be interrupted by Salt. You cannot change the written name until it has been consumed (activated); then you may write a new one as an action on a later turn.
• The Voodoo Doll: When The Voodoo Doll burns during the Haunting (start of their turn), the reflection strikes: for each ghost in their Shadow that is Clubs ♣ or Diamonds ♦, the player who Haunted that ghost must also Burn 1. So the person who Haunted the Voodoo is affected each turn (when the Voodoo burns), not only once when the Haunt happened. Only ghosts that were added by a Haunt (number card from hand) are tracked. Spades and Hearts have no effect.
• Voodoo Doll vs Mirror (J), Possess (9), or BOO! (Joker): The reflection applies only to ghosts that were Haunted onto the Voodoo (so the haunter is tracked). Mirror, Possess, and BOO! do not add a “haunter” in the same way, so they do not trigger the Voodoo reflection when the Voodoo burns. If a card leaves the Voodoo’s Shadow and later re-enters via a Haunt (♣ or ♦), that Haunt is tracked and the attacker will burn 1 each turn when the Voodoo burns.
• When a Joker (BOO!) is played, how does the Burn work? Each other player is affected separately: each must Burn from the top of their Candle one card at a time until they reveal a number card (A–10); that number becomes a Ghost in their Shadow. (Face cards and Jokers go to The Dark and they Burn again.) If their Candle runs out before a number, they are Consumed. Each player who wants to avoid the Burn must use their own Salt—one Salt only protects the person who played it, not everyone. (Exception: if The Silence played the Joker, no one can Salt it.)
• If two effects happen at once (e.g. death and “when a neighbour dies”), who resolves first? The active player’s triggers resolve first, then clockwise. If still unclear, favour the worst-case (e.g. defender).
• Concurrent Flames: do the two (or three) players take turns with each other? No. Each concurrent player takes one full turn (Burn, Draw, One Action, Discard) in parallel; they do not interrupt each other’s turn.

Edge cases

• Voodoo Doll + Mirror / Possess / Joker. See FAQ above: reflection happens each turn when the Voodoo burns; only ghosts that were Haunted onto the Voodoo (♣/♦) cause the haunter to burn. Mirror, Possess, and BOO! do not trigger it.
• Mirror (J) or Possess (9) vs The Gatekeeper. Blocked; card not spent.
• Recall (8) or Possess (9) vs The Sealbinder. Ghosts that The Sealbinder Haunted cannot be moved (Possess) or returned (Recall). The play is blocked; card not spent.
• Banish vs The Clown. Ghosts that The Clown Haunted can only be Banished by a Face card (J, Q, K) or Cleanse (7). Number cards other than 7 cannot Banish them; the play is blocked.
• Walls (The Cryptkeeper). Walls are face-down cards in The Cryptkeeper’s Shadow. They cannot be Banished, Recalled, Cleanse, or Possessed; they can only be discarded by The Cryptkeeper to cancel a Haunt onto them (ghost and Wall both go to The Dark). Walls do not cause Burn; only ghosts do. You cannot Panic against a Wall.
• Mirror (J) vs The Cryptkeeper. The Jack (Mirror) can target The Cryptkeeper. You swap your entire Shadow with theirs, so you can trade your ghosts for their Walls (they get your ghosts; you get their Walls). Walls still cannot be Banished, Recalled, or Cleanse.
• The Doomreader. Up to once per turn, you may discard 1 card to The Dark to swap any card in your Shadow (that you choose) with any ranked card (A–10) from The Dark. You choose which ghost to swap and which number card from The Dark; the two are exchanged.
• Drain (4) vs The Skeptic. The Skeptic is immune to Drain. The effect fizzles (no card is taken); the 4 is still discarded to The Dark.
• The Plague. When a ghost that The Plague Haunted is Banished (and not Siphoned), that ghost goes to the Banisher’s other neighbour’s Shadow (the neighbour who did not receive the ghost). If that neighbour is The Plague, the ghost goes to The Dark instead (The Plague cannot receive from this effect).
• The Witness. The Witness cannot win. If only two players remain and one is The Witness, both lose (no winner). In a 2‑player game with The Witness, there is no winner.
• Haunt vs The Unseen. Once per that attacker's turn, when a neighbour would Haunt The Unseen, they may discard 1 card to The Dark to cancel the Haunt (both cards go to The Dark). One cancel per attacker's turn, not only once per round.
• Haunt vs The Hex. Once per that attacker's turn, when a neighbour plays a number card to Haunt The Hex, they may reveal a matching rank from hand to cancel it (both cards go to The Dark). One cancel per attacker's turn, not one per round.
• Hand limit (e.g. The Hoarder 8): Discard down at end of your turn. Effects that add cards can push you over until end of that turn.
• “Top of Candle” effects with no cards: Effect fizzles (e.g. Drain does nothing).

Concurrent Flames table (6–22 players)

When 6 or more players are in the game, the players listed below take their turns at the same time (each does Burn, Draw, One Action, Discard in parallel). After they finish, the round advances clockwise to the next group. In the digital version, the game adjusts when players leave the circle (elimination), so the active group may differ from this starting layout.

Full deck — all ranks and suits

Every playing card in the deck, by rank and suit. Click a card to preview it.

Rank	♠ Spades	♥ Hearts	♣ Clubs	♦ Diamonds
A
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
J
Q
K
★ Joker