Cluedo Rules

What's in the Box?

• 1 Cluedo board (a grand country manor with many suspicious rooms!)
• 6 Character tokens (Miss Scarlet, Colonel Mustard, Mrs White, Reverend Green, Mrs Peacock, Professor Plum)
• 6 Weapon tokens (Candlestick, Dagger, Lead Pipe, Revolver, Rope, Spanner)
• 21 Cards (6 Suspect, 6 Weapon, 9 Room)
• 1 Case File envelope
• 1 Detective notepad
• Dice
• Rules sheet

Setting Up

1. Place the board in the centre and put all 6 character tokens on their starting spaces (even if you have fewer than 6 players).
2. Sort the cards into three piles: Suspects, Weapons, Rooms. Shuffle each pile and secretly place one card from each into the Case File envelope—they are the real culprit, weapon, and room.
3. Shuffle the remaining cards together and deal them out to all players.
4. Each player takes a detective sheet to keep track of clues. Grab a pencil (or quill, if you’re feeling old-school).
5. Youngest player goes first (or whoever last solved a crime, real or fictional).

How to Play

1. On your turn, roll the dice and move any character token (not just your own!) through the corridors and into rooms.
2. When you enter a room, make a suggestion: 'I suggest it was [Suspect] in the [Room] with the [Weapon].'?
3. The player to your left must try to disprove your suggestion by secretly showing you one matching card from their hand, if they can. If not, the next player must try, and so on, until someone shows you a card or nobody can.
4. Use logic, deduction, and your detective sheet to eliminate suspects, weapons, and rooms.
5. When you think you know the answer, make an accusation on your turn. Secretly check the Case File envelope. If you’re right, you win! If wrong, you’re out (but must keep your cards secret and can still disprove other players’ suggestions).

Winning the Game

Be the first player to correctly accuse the guilty suspect, room, and weapon. Only one super sleuth can solve the crime!

Classic British House Rules (Optional, for Maximum Suspense)

• Last Chance Accusation: If you get it wrong, you must dramatically announce your error, e.g. 'Blast! It was not the Candlestick!'?
• Tea Break Card: If you roll doubles, everyone must pause for a biscuit or cuppa before continuing.
• Secret Passage Races: First player to use both secret passages gets to ask any player for one card of their choice.

Quick Reference

• Players: 2–6
• Age: 8 and up
• Average play time: 45 minutes