The most important thing to remember is that there are 3 ways to win Kill Your Friends

If you only remember 3 things from reading these instructions REMEMBER THESE!

Survive the attacks of your "friends" and win by being the last player left in the game

Each player starts with two lives

Once you lose both you're out of the game!

Beat the reaper and get the win by getting rid of all your cards in your hand before anyone else

Don’t try and be trickster and play the HEAD SWAP card as your last card though as that will just hand someone else the win (Go the CHAOS CARDS section for more about that)

The sneakiest way to win, and the one that most people either forget or fuck up

It doesn’t matter if you have only 1 KILL CARD or 9 KILL CARDS in your hand, just as long as they are all the colour of your character

Be careful not to get too excited though

Revealing all your KILL CARDS must be your final turn

You cannot play a card then reveal your cards

It’s a cheeky way to win but also a tricky one to pull off

You may think you have victory sealed but a lot can happen whilst waiting for your turn to come back around to you to reveal

Megadeaths can be played, you could be hit with a Reaper or a HEAD SWAP or an attack could build up to a number 3 which you are forced to defend

Even if you have a 3 of your color to defend, clearing your attack will count as your turn so you will have to wait again for your turn to come back around to you before revealing

 

To start each player chooses a character to play as and places their two LIFE CARDS in fronhtp-dividert of them with the faces turned over to alive.
 

These represent your two lives in the game

The deck consists of:

KILL CARDS

REMOVE KILL CARDS OF CHARACTERS THAT AREN’T BEING USED IN THE GAME

CHAOS CARDS

and one REAPER CARD
 

 

Shuffle the deck and deal 7 cards to each player before placing the deck face down in the middle

Starting left of the dealer and going around clockwise, each player must either play or pick up a card when it is their turn

You can only do one thing each turn

You cannot play multiple cards or pick up a card and put one down

To play a card, you have the option to attack another player, save yourself or play a CHAOS CARD or the REAPER CARD

If you can’t play a card, or you don’t want to, you must pick up a card from the deck

If there are no cards left in the deck, your turn is skipped

The deck doesn’t empty out very often and when it does it fills up again pretty quickly

KILLER TIP:
Keep an eye out, for when the REAPER CARD is played when the deck is low as you may be able to do a strategic pick up to get a hold of it

 

You can attack other players when it is your turn by playing a KILL CARD of their colour on their life cards

You can play an attack card on any player that is in the game, it doesn't have to be the player next to you but there are a few rules you need to remember

Attacks must start with a number 1 KILL CARD

And attacks must be played in numerical sequence
For example you can’t play a number 2 KILL CARD before a number 1 KILL CARD

Only one attack sequence at a time

Only one attack sequence can be played at a time, so you can’t start another attack on their other LIFE CARD

But you can play the same number card as part of an attack sequence, as long as it matches their colour and is either the same number, or higher

The color has got to match

Only cards that match the colour of the player you are attacking can be played on them

 

You can save yourself by clearing attacks that have been played on your LIFE CARDS by playing a KILL CARD of your own colour when it is your turn

Simple yeah? But of course there are a few rules you need to remember

The color has got to match

You can only use KILL CARDS that are the same colour as your FACE CARDS (character) to save

It has to be the same number

Different number KILL CARDS cannot be played to save

Only KILL CARDS of your character (in the same colour and number) can be played to save

So if you have number 1 and number 2 played on you, you can only play a number 2 KILL CARD of your colour to save yourself and clear your attack, so it’s a good idea to clear the attack early on if you can

Kill cards go to the bottom of the deck

When you save yourself all KILL CARDS are removed from your LIFE CARDS (including the card you played to save yourself) and are put to the bottom of the deck, don’t get too confident though with them sitting down there, the deck will get shuffled again soon

 

When you have a 'Number 3' KILL CARD played on your LIFE CARDS, you are forced to save yourself when it's your turn

If you can't save yourself you lose a life

If a CHAOS CARD is played before your turn, you must action the CHAOS CARD first... Sometimes this can be a good thing if it happens, as you may pick up a card that you needed to save yourself

Losing a life is your turn

If you can’t save yourself then you lose a life (one of your LIFE CARDS gets turned over to dead) and have to pick up two cards

And that’s your turn

Harsh yeah? Even if you pick up a card that could of saved you it’s too late, your turn is over

Once your LIFE CARD is turned over to dead all KILL CARDS that were on your LIFE CARDS are then put to the bottom of the deck

Your LIFE CARDS stay where they are

You are very vulnerable now because...

If both your LIFE CARDS get turned to dead you are out of the game

If one of your LIFE CARDS is already dead and a ‘Number 3’ KILL CARD gets played on you that you cannot defend, then your second LIFE CARD becomes dead and bickety bam you are out of the game!!!

Even in death you still have to wait until it is your turn

If you have ‘Number 3’ KILL CARD played on you that you know you can’t defend you still have to wait until it is your turn before actioning it

Play it cool, who knows, someone might fuck up and play a chaos card which gives you a card that you can save yourself with... long shot but it does happen

When you are out of the game...

All cards that were in your hand are put to the bottom of the deck

You can leave the KILL CARDS that were played on your LIFE CARDS with your two LIFE CARDS that are now turned over to dead

We like to refer to this as a your graveyard

Spit on their grave

Other players can still play KILL CARDS to players who are out of the game when it is their turn by playing it to their graveyard

Great friends hey!

They can only play one card at a time though and no sequence is required

Once a card has been played on a graveyard it is not returned to the deck

 

The REAPER CARD is the MOST important card in the deck

So if you pick it up, don’t make it too obvious that you have it, because someone may have the HEAD SWAP CARD and nab it off you (more on that later though)

Shuffle the reaper back into the deck

Each time the REAPER CARD is played, it is shuffled back into the deck once it has been actioned

It can only be played one way each time it is played though

The REAPER can be played as an undefendable KILL CARD at any point in an attack sequence

Even when a player has no KILL CARDS played on them

Don't action the reaper until it is your turn

The receiving player doesn't action the REAPER CARD until it is their turn

So even though there is nothing they can do to defend they still have to wait until it is their turn

If a CHAOS CARD is played before their turn, they must action the CHAOS CARD first, then action the REAPER CARD played on them on their next turn

When actioned, the player with the REAPER CARD on them are forced to lose a life (turning one of their LIFE CARDS over to dead) and they have to pick up two cards

The REAPER CARD and any KILL CARDS that were on the player's LIFE CARDS are shuffled back into the deck

If one LIFE CARD is already dead, their second LIFE CARD becomes dead and they are out of the game!

A killer tip

If you see another player with one LIFE CARD already dead and you get the REAPER CARD, you have the power to knock them out of the game and there is nothing they can do about it.

We did say this game is ruthless!
 

The REAPER CARD can also be played as save card... It’s a little boring to do this but sometimes necessary

When played as a save card the REAPER CARD removes all KILL CARDS from your LIFE CARDS

This can be done at any point in an attack sequence (when it is your turn) but is most commonly played as a last resort if you have ‘3 Card’ played on you that you can’t defend

The REAPER CARD and any KILL CARDS that were on you LIFE CARDS are then shuffled back into the deck
 

The REAPER CARD can also be played to resurrect a LIFE CARD that is dead already

When played to resurrect, you turn your LIFE CARD back over to alive, then shuffle the REAPER CARD back into the deck

 

Get played once and get played to the middle - except for HEAD SWAP!

CHAOS CARDS are played to the middle (In their own little pile) and are not returned to the deck once played
 

HEAD SWAP

The HEAD SWAP CARD can be the worst or best card in the deck depending on when you pick it up and when you play it

When you play the HEAD SWAP CARD, choose another player and swap all cards in your hand with theirs

So it's good to choose someone with a low hand to swap with and not a great idea to choose someone if you have a lot of cards of their colour in your hand

Shuffle HEAD SWAP back into the deck

Each time the HEAD SWAP CARD is played it is shuffled back into the deck

Don’t try and be sneaky and play the HEAD SWAP card as your last card as all you will be doing is giving someone else the victory as you will get all their cards and they get none which make them the winner
 

Megadeath

You can cause some real chaos with this card

When played all other players pick up 2 cards and you can get another turn

A good one to play when you see other players getting low on cards

Make sure players pick up their two card in order of their turn
 

Death from above

When played the next player picks up 2 cards as their turn
 

Run from your grave

When played it reverse’s the playing order (or skips a players turn if played with 2 only people)

 

The rules above are recommended as the best way to play the game

That’s not to say it is the only way to play the game, these are a few suggestions for alternative game play

SUDDEN DEATH

Have more than 6 players or want a quicker version of the game?

Try playing with only one life card per player

For 5- 8 players players only deal 5 cards to each player at the start
 

KILL JOY

Don't like the unpredictability of the HEAD SWAP card?

Try removing the HEAD SWAP card from the deck or only allow it be played once and not returned to the deck
 

CO-OP

Play in teams of 2 with each team member getting 1 life card of the same colour each

If a team member is killed they are out of the game unless their team member plays the 'Reaper' card on them to return them to the game (The player has to pick up 5 cards from the deck to return to the game)
 

HEAD HUNTER

Want a more inclusive version of the game where no one gets knocked out?

Try awarding points to players each time they kill another player

In this version players aren't knocked out of the game and they do not win by getting rid of all their cards, the only way to win is be the player with the most kills at the end

This works best to set a time limit or a kill target (ie first player to 10 kills wins)
 

HOUSE RULES

Think the game would work better with different rules?

Make up your own rules to the game, but be sure to inform all players of your house rules before playing and if they are awesome tell us about them