Weapon Scavenger Hunt

[2coolbaby]

We are debating on whether we should change our Weapon Card System. Right now we have clues that lead to hidden weapon cards. Then we have Action Cards pulled from a hat or bowl. We were thinking of simplifying things a little by combining these. Removing the Clue driven scavenger hunt and just have weapon and action cards combined and pulled from a hat or bowl.

We have also decided that we would provide a link in the Host Guide and Weapon Instructions to download and print the scavenger hunt for those that still want to go that route. We get daily calls and emails from those that get confused by this option or they are overwhelmed by it.

We would like your input before we make this decision!

[accl110779]

Definitely, simplify the weapon/action cards portion of the games. Actually, my guests felt a little tired after the scavenger hunt.

~a

[Guest]

NOOOOOOOO the scavenger hunt was a lot of fun and the guests really enjoyed it!

[Guest]

Maybe have the scavenger hunt available as a free option online for hosts to print and use it in their parties for those that feel comfortable with the idea. Some people get overwhelmed by it and that is not something we want. Any thoughts?

[darleneandersen]

I think that you should include both the scavenger hunt and the option to draw from a hat and leave it up to the host as to which option they would rather use. I like both options and sometimes one would be a better fit than the other.

[2coolbaby]

That is how we have it now. We include it and provide instructions for not using it. Too many people tend not to read everything or they are confused by this part of it.

The Scavenger hunt portion seems to be overwhelming to so many of the hosts. Thus a large part of our time is spent helping people understand it, by phone and email. We want our games to be easy to host and this seems to have made them more difficult for a large majority of customers. Not everyone of course, but too large of a percentage are uncomfortable with it.

I am thinking of providing the scavenger hunt online for guests and putting the information as an option in the Host Guide, along with a link to get the free scavenger hunt, if that is what they want, instead of including it in the game. This way those more comfortable with hosting a murder mystery party, can include the scavenger hunt with no problem if that is what they want. This leaves the game more simplified for those that do get easily overwhelmed.

[Lil Bug]

Greetings,

I hosted my first MM Party almost one year ago. Death by Chocolate with all girls. We didn't do the scavenger hunt. We drew out of a bowl.

In a couple weeks I'll be hosting Murder at the 4 Deuces and we will be including the scavenger hunt.

After I've done both, I can give you input.

[wadewilk]

What we did, was have everyone answer the questions. We gave something like 5 or 10 minutes. For every correct answer they got, they got that many selections out of a hat. It was fairly easy, we just put the number of blanks needed to equal it out.

[flappergirl]

I really liked the scavenger hunt. I actually elaborated on the scavenger hunt you gave us. I put the weapons and the action cards together in the hunt, instead of drawing the action cards out of a hat. I also added blank pieces of paper in some hiding spots to create more mystery. If a player saw another player get a piece of paper from under a clock then they would automatically know they had a weapon, with the blank cards they still wouldn't know if they got something good or a blank.

I did have one guest that ended up finding 2 weapons and the immunity action card. She kind of ruled the game.

[rlmiller90]

I've hosted two of your parties. One of the things that makes the game interesting is the scavenger hunt for the weapons. In my first game one of the weapon cards wasn't discovered until late into the game, and thus added a new twist to the happenings.

I didn't find the scavenger hunt difficult. And the person I had helping run the party the second time enjoyed finding difficult places to hide clues. Almost as much as the geusts enjoyed the search. They were already forming alliances with each other about sharing weapons, before they even found any. It was a fun part of the night, and the game wouldn't gain as much momentum in the beginning without it.

Also as everyone is looking there are so many people searching, and everyone is so focused on their own hunt that they don't see other people find the weapons. I pulled a weapon card from the back of a picture frame while another geust looked behind the pictures right next to me and she didn't see me find the weapon. If you drew from a hat it would be harder to hide if you have a weapon because you'll have a reaction when you look at the peice of paper you pulled out.

Please don't get rid of the scavenger hunt option in the kits.

[SirVenom]

I solved all but one of the puzzles, but all of them were found before I got to them. But, all the same, this is a great part of the game! Keep it!

[jennybean16]

Our guests loved the scavenger hunt and so did I. However, I can see where this activity could be confusing for some. In some cases, you may want to skip it to have time for the rest of the party. I like the idea of keeping the scavenger hunt, but as an option. This way, hosts could decide if they wanted to do it or not. For those who like it, it's available and for those who don't, they can skip it.

[rachl323]

We did Murder at the Four Deuces last weekend and we did the scavenger hunt. I think it went really well and everybody enjoyed solving the riddles and then hunting for the weapons. I think the scavenger hunt added more to the game, and if someone saw another player get a weapon, well that's just one more secret you have about them to use to your advantage!!! We had one player find two weapons and then buy a third one. She then sold two in two separate deals and used the last one on an unsuspecting victim!

[AlphaSquirell]

The scavenger hunt, set up correctly, can work very well.

Of course, at least 1 clue in the two hunts I've done was something that was SO out of place (a prop put into place in a room it wasn't in normally) that it was a giveaway. One time, I found a weapon by sheer luck, glancing down to see it, and checking to see what it was out of curiosity.


I think the scavenger hunt is a nice option, but the basic kit would run better if they were assorted randomly. (with other things, so that players ended up roughly even after the draw, even if most didn't have weapons)

[alaurence]

We used the scavenger hunt for Four Deuces, so we couldn't use it for Death by Chocolate since the riddles were the same. This year we put all the weapons in the hat with the action cards and blanks to draw. This worked better since we had 23 people anyway. It was definitely fun doing it the first year (I'd never seen these women run so fast). I say keep it as an option, but make the riddles different for each game or people can't continue to do it.

[2coolbaby]

Our riddles are different for each game... except for Death by Chocolate and Murder at the Four Deuces. I had not realized that and I thank you for pointing it out! I will have to add that to my To Do List. We don't want the clues to be the same. So sorry about that.

[szuko08]

I hosted a party a few weeks ago...and I thought the scavenger hunt was definitely one of the best parts of the game. I think my guests really enjoyed it because it gave them an opportunity to do something a little different. I did end up writing my own clues though to go better with the location we were in and also because I think I wanted it to be a bit more challenging for my guests. I also didn't give them a time limit since the clues were harder. They were allowed to find cards as long as there were still cards to be found.

But one of the main reasons I ended up picking one of your games was the scavenger hunt element!

[2coolbaby]

We are not looking to remove it completely, but instead make it a free download option. We just get too many people confused by the scavenger hunt and they tend to get irritated, which most people do when they feel overwhelmed. This is not what we want with our games, so we are in the process now of this being a free option, not the norm.

[canyongal_03]

Two years ago we did the Killer Reunion just as it was written. Since the murder was committed before the party started we didn't have to wait for someone to die. I followed the directions and handed out the puzzles and when the time was up they found the clues right away and forgot my appeal to not murder indiscriminately; they murdered the first people they saw. With four dead right away (one was the real murderer and there were several other important characters) it was a mess. Since it was a church party, I pretended I was Jesus and made them all come back to life.

The next year with my theater group, we did the Santa Claus murder. Way before the party, I re did all of the character booklets (partly because there were some bad typos) and added these paragraphs.

There will be three Weapon Cards. You MUST have a Weapon Card to commit murder. During the evening, your host will have you draw cards from a container. Most will be blank but there will be three murder cards. If you draw a weapon, it is a very good idea to keep this fact a secret. This will insure you do not become a suspect if the card is used in a murder. These will be very valuable commodities!

As in real life murders should only be committed as a last resort and should be planned out carefully. If you really want to murder someone and don’t have a murder card perhaps you can extort a card from someone. Where there is a will, there is a way.

This year we are doing Murder at the four Deuces and I am doing it the same way.
Barbara Hofmeister, Gold Canyon, Arizona

[2coolbaby]

We spent the last year fixing typos in our games.

The first paragraph that you said you added, is already in everyones backgrounds.

We have found that sometimes characters improvise and decide that they can best reach their goals by committing murder! To this end, we have developed a system for committing murder:

There will be four Weapon Cards. You MUST have a Weapon Card to commit murder. During the evening, your host will give you a Clue Sheet that will contain puzzles and riddles, whose answers indicate where weapon cards are located. You will have 10 minutes to decipher riddles before the hunt begins. If you do find a weapon, it is a very good idea to keep this fact a secret. This will insure you do not become a suspect if the card is used in a murder. These will be very valuable commodities!

You added the second paragraph, which is pretty much in the Host Announcement that you read at the beginning of the night:

Your character booklet instructs you on how you can commit murder in this game if the need arises. Please use this option wisely. Only commit murder if you feel it is your only option and you think you can get away with it. In order to commit a murder, you MUST have a weapon’s card. I am the acting host, so if you commit a murder, you must come tell me you did so and where the ‘body’ can be found.

I think we already cover it pretty well.