Disciple Detective Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components
• Cooperative Setup
  • How to Hold Your Hand
• Turn Actions
  • 1. Give a Trait Clue
  • 2. Order the Disciple Cards
  • 3. Guess a Disciple
• End of Game
• Lower Difficulty
• Increased Difficulty
• Competitive Setup
  • Goal
  • Competitive Turn Actions
    • 1. Receive a Trait Clue
    • 2. Have Their Hand Ordered
    • 3. Guess a Disciple
  • Competitive End of Game
• Quirks
  • 1. Peter
  • 3. James / 4. John
  • 6. Bartholomew
  • 8. Thomas
  • 12. Judas Iscariot
  • 14. Paul
  • 15. Luke
  • 16. Mark
• The Suspects

Overview

There are two different ways of playing Disciple Detective. The first way is the cooperative version of Disciple Detective where the group tries to determine all the Disciples in the deck before running out of Clue Tokens.

The second way to play Disciple Detective is the competitive version. In the competitive version, each player has their own group of Disciples to deduce before the other players deduce their own.

We will begin with rules for the Cooperative version!

Components

1. 17 Disciple Cards
2. 5 Note Cards
3. 7 Clue Tokens
4. 5 Disciple Reference Sheets
5. 1 30-Second Timer
6. 5 Dry Erase Markers
7. 1 Rulebook

The Disciples (numbered 1-17): Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the Less, Simon, Jude, Judas, Matthias, Paul, Luke, Mark, Lydia.

Quirks (shown on the cards and Reference Sheets):

#	Disciple	Quirk
1	Peter	Afraid: When hand is Ordered, Peter will always be last in Order.
3	James	Son of Thunder: Claims to be the number 2 (even) for Trait and Ordering. (Ahead of Andrew)
4	John	Son of Thunder: Claims to be the number 1 (odd) for Trait and Ordering.
6	Bartholomew	Not False: Cancels out all other Quirks in the player's hand.
8	Thomas	Doubter: Always touch Thomas's Card for Clues, even if he does not have that Trait.
12	Judas	Deceiver: Always say the opposite when talking about his Traits. Order normally.
14	Paul	Injured: Does not have Occupation or Writer Traits.

Cooperative Setup

1. Hand out a Disciple Reference Sheet to each player. These sheets list all of the Disciples in the game, their Traits, and their Quirks.

2. Set aside the 7 Clue Tokens for now.

3. Give each player a Note Card which they will place in their hands to keep track of the Disciples that are no longer in the game or are currently in another player's hand.

4. Decide if you want to use the 30-second timer. Using the timer makes the game more difficult, so we do not suggest using it for your first game.

5. 2-4 players - Shuffle Disciple cards #1-13 and for:

   • 2-player games - Deal 4 cards to each player
   • 3-player games - Deal 3 cards to each player
   • 4-player games - Deal 2 cards to each player

   5-player games - Shuffle the Disciple cards #1-16 and deal 2 cards to each player

6. Remove one of the remaining Disciple Cards from the game without looking at it and set the rest of the cards aside face down.

7. Each player should pick up their cards and put them into their hands, FACE OUT, so that each player cannot see their own Disciples but are able to see everyone else's Disciples. Space the cards apart so that other players can see the symbols on the left hand side of the cards.

8. Spend some time looking at each other's hand. Begin the game starting with the player who wore sandals most recently. (Go around clockwise after that)

How to Hold Your Hand

(Illustrated in the rulebook: cards are held face out so that other players see the Disciples and you do not.)

Turn Actions

At the start of the current player's turn, the player must decide which of these three actions to take on their turn:

1. Give a Trait Clue
2. Order the Disciple Cards
3. Guess a Disciple

If a player has run out of Disciple Cards, and there are no cards left to draw, they may instead choose to pass without using a Clue Token.

When using a timer, if the current player does not begin doing one of the above actions before the sand runs out, they must skip their turn and place one Clue Token back in the box. If there are no Clue Tokens left to return to the box, the players all lose!

Now let's look at each of these actions!

1. Give a Trait Clue

On a player's turn, they may give one Trait clue for all applicable Disciples that they can see (Disciples not in their own hand). To give the clue, the player begins with the player to their left and goes around clockwise, touching each Disciple's Card that has that Trait. While the player is doing this, the other players may make notes on the back of their card whether that character has that Trait or not.

After all of the applicable cards have been touched, place one Clue Token back in the box.

In Disciple Detective, there are six Traits for each Disciple. They are:

• EVEN/ODD: Is the Disciple's number Even or Odd?
• ALIAS: Does the Disciple go by a second name?
• ORIGIN: Do we know from which city they originate?
• FATHER: Do we know their father's name?
• OCCUPATION: Is their occupation known?
• WRITER: Are they believed to have written a book of the Bible?

Lastly, the Disciple might have a special symbol at the bottom of their card. This symbol is called a 'Quirk', which represents a rule changing feature with this Disciple. (See Quirks section)

2. Order the Disciple Cards

Starting with the player to your left and going around clockwise, order each player's hand chronologically, going from the lowest number to highest number, by touching the appropriate cards. Once the player is done with the first hand, go to the next player and do the same until all of them have been ordered.

After all of the cards have been numbered, place one Clue Token back in the box.

3. Guess a Disciple

On their turn, a player selects a Disciple from their hand and guesses their name. If they are correct, the player may then either take a Clue Token out from the box or give a free clue to their teammates (either a Trait clue or an Ordering clue). After doing so, the player draws a new Disciple, if possible, and puts it in their hand to replace the guessed Disciple.

If the player guesses incorrectly, the Disciple is not revealed and a Clue Token must be placed in the box.

End of Game

Disciple Detective continues play until either:

• The team wins by removing (revealing) all of the Disciples in the game.
• The team loses by needing to discard a Clue Token they do not have.

Lower Difficulty

If you want to play an easier version of Disciple Detective you can play without using the Disciples' Quirks. This might make decifering between Thomas and Simon more difficult though.

Increased Difficulty

To increase the game's difficulty, add additional Disciples (those numbered 14 and above) to the deck at the start of the game. Everything else remains the same.

Competitive Setup

1. Hand out a Disciple Reference Sheet to each player. These sheets list all of the Disciples in the game, their Traits, and their Quirks.

2. Give each player a Note Card which they will place in their hands to keep track of the Disciples that are no longer in the game or are currently in another player's hand.

3. Shuffle all of the Disciple cards and for:

   • 2-player games - Deal 7 cards to each player
   • 3-player games - Deal 5 cards to each player
   • 4 or 5-player games - Deal 3 cards to each player

   These cards will form each player's deck, any remaining Disciple Cards should be removed from the game face down.

4. Each player will draw cards from the top of their deck to form their hand. In a 2-player game, each player will have 4 cards in their hand, in a 3-player game they will have 3 cards, and in a 4 or 5-player game they will have 2 cards. These cards will be FACE OUT, so that each player cannot see their own Disciples but are able to see everyone else's Disciples.

5. Space the cards apart so that the other players can see the symbols on the left hand side of the cards.

6. Spend some time looking at each other's hand. Begin the game starting with the player who lost the last game. If that does not apply, then the player who wore sandals most recently goes first. (Go around clockwise after that)

(The Clue Tokens will not be used in the Competitive version)

Goal

The goal of the Competitive version of Disciple Detective is to be the first player to deduce all of the Disciples in their own deck. Gameplay in the Competitive version of Disciple Detective is similar to the Cooperative version of Disciple Detective, so please make sure to read those rules first before reading further.

Competitive Turn Actions

At the start of the current player's turn, the player must begin by flipping the sand timer over. In the next 30 seconds, that player must proceed to do one of the following actions:

1. Receive a Trait Clue
2. Have Their Hand Ordered
3. Guess a Disciple

If a player does not begin doing one of these actions before the 30-second timer is up, they must skip their turn.

Now let's look at each of these actions!

1. Receive a Trait Clue

On a player's turn, they may ask the player to their left to give one Trait clue of the current player's choice for all of the applicable Disciples in the current player's hand.

After all of the applicable Disciples Cards have been touched, let the timer run out and the next player may begin their turn.

2. Have Their Hand Ordered

On a player's turn, they may ask the player to their left to order the Disciples in their hand, going from the lowest number to the highest number.

After all of the cards have been numbered, let the timer run out and the next player clockwise may begin their turn.

3. Guess a Disciple

On their turn, a player selects a Disciple from their hand and guesses their name. If they are correct, the player must draw a new Disciple from their deck (if possible), start the timer over after it runs out, and then take another action of their choice. This could include guessing another Disciple.

If the player guesses incorrectly, the Disciple is not revealed. Let the timer run out and the next player may begin their turn.

Competitive End of Game

Disciple Detective continues until one player has successfully guessed all of the Disciples in their deck and their hand. That player is declared the winner!

Quirks

Some Disciples have Quirk icons after the Trait icons on their card. These Quirks are special rules that must be followed when giving clues, and these Quirks will make it more difficult to deduce the Disciples. Here are the Quirks that you will find in the game and an explanation of how they work:

1. Peter

Afraid: When hand is ordered, Peter will always be last in Order.

Peter had a problem with being afraid when confronted by others. To represent that, when Peter is involved in an Order action Peter will always go last in order (even though he should be first).

3. James / 4. John

James - Son of Thunder: Claims to be the number 2 (even) for Trait and ordering. (Ahead of Andrew)

John - Son of Thunder: Claims to be the number 1 (odd) for Trait and ordering.

James and his brother John were known to be very vocal and they desired to be first and second in heaven next to Jesus. James will always claim to be number 2 and will even put himself ahead of Andrew when being ordered. John will always claim to be number 1 and odd, always making himself first.

6. Bartholomew

Not False: Cancels out all other Quirks in the player's hand.

When Jesus met Bartholomew, Jesus stated Bartholomew had nothing false about him. In game, Bartholomew will also make sure everyone else in his same hand will also not act falsely by canceling out all of their Quirks. For example, Peter will no longer be Afraid, Thomas will not be a Doubter, etc.

8. Thomas

Doubter: Always touch Thomas' card for Clues, even if he does not have that Trait.

Thomas would not believe Jesus was alive until he touched Jesus. So in game, Thomas' card always needs to be touched when giving out a clue, even if he does not have that Trait.

12. Judas Iscariot

Deceiver: Always say the opposite when talking about his Traits. Order normally.

Judas Iscariot was a liar and a deceiver and to represent this Judas will always tell the player opposite of what he is. For example, when giving out Traits he counts as having an Alias, but not as knowing his Father. His Quirk makes him an odd number, but when Ordering characters he still counts as the number 12.

14. Paul

Injured: Does not have Occupation or Writer Traits.

At one point Paul was stoned and left for dead, so in Disciple Detective Paul is unable to work or write while he is Injured.

15. Luke

Healer: If Paul is also visible, Paul is no longer Injured. (Paul has an Occupation and is a Writer)

Luke was a doctor so if Paul is also visible when giving clues, Paul is no longer Injured because he is healed. This happens even if Paul and Luke are in different hands.

16. Mark

Runaway: If Paul is also visible, Mark is considered to not have any Traits. (Mark's number is still Even)

Mark abandoned Paul on his first journey, so when both Paul and Mark are visible Mark is considered to not have any Traits (as if he was no longer there). Mark is still considered to be Even and Order him normally.

The Suspects

*These values may change in game because of Quirks (marked with ).

1. Peter (Odd) - Alias: Simon; Origin: Bethsaida; Father: John; Occupation: Fisherman; Writer: Yes
2. Andrew (Even) - Alias: -; Origin: Bethsaida; Father: John; Occupation: Fisherman; Writer: -
3. James (Odd*) - Alias: -; Origin: -; Father: Zebedee; Occupation: Fisherman; Writer: -
4. John (Even*) - Alias: -; Origin: -; Father: Zebedee; Occupation: Fisherman; Writer: Yes

(Although James and John were called, "Sons of Thunder", they did not have their own unique nicknames. So for in game, they have no Aliases. There is uncertainty whether they also originate from Bethsaida, so they also have no Origin.)

5. Philip (Odd) - Alias: -; Origin: Bethsaida; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: -
6. Bartholomew (Even) - Alias: Nathanael; Origin: Cana; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: -

(Bartholomew means "son of Tolmai", which could mean we know his father. On the other hand, it also has been suggested he instead descended from someone of that name some time ago. Because of the uncertainty, Bartholomew does not have a known father in game. Although Bartholomew is never mentioned as being Nathanael, Phillip is always mentioned with either Bartholomew or Nathanael so it is very likely that they are one and the same.)

7. Matthew (Odd) - Alias: Levi; Origin: Capernaum; Father: Alphaeus; Occupation: Tax Collector; Writer: Yes
8. Thomas (Even*) - Alias: Didymus; Origin: -; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: -
9. James the Less (Odd) - Alias: -; Origin: Capernaum; Father: Alphaeus; Occupation: -; Writer: -
10. Simon (Even) - Alias: The Zealot; Origin: -; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: -
11. Jude (Odd) - Alias: Thaddaeus; Origin: -; Father: James; Occupation: -; Writer: -

(In a couple older Biblical translations, Jude is said to be the "brother of James" and not the son, but later versions have corrected it to son. So in game Jude's Father is known.)

12. Judas Iscariot (Even*) - Alias: -; Origin: -; Father: Simon*; Occupation: -; Writer: -

(Iscariot may mean that Judas originates from the town of Kerioth. This is not certain, though, so in game he does not have an Origin.)

13. Matthias (Odd) - Alias: -; Origin: -; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: -
14. Paul (Even) - Alias: Saul; Origin: Tarsus; Father: -; Occupation: Tent Maker*; Writer: Yes*
15. Luke (Odd) - Alias: (blank as printed); Origin: (blank as printed); Father: -; Occupation: Doctor; Writer: Yes
16. Mark (Even) - Alias: John*; Origin: Jerusalem*; Father: -; Occupation: -; Writer: Yes*
17. Lydia (Odd) - Alias: -; Origin: Thyatira; Father: -; Occupation: Cloth Dealer; Writer: -