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Game rules

The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow rules: how to play and how to win

Reviewed on 13 October 2026 against the publisher’s rulebook. How we check

The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow plays 8 to 18 players, plus a moderator: a hidden role game played entirely by talking. There are no points: one team wins. Here are the essential rules, setup and win conditions, based on the official rulebook.

Players
8 to 18, plus a moderator
Play time
About 30 minutes
Winner
One team: the Villagers or the Werewolves

The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow quick rules

The goal
A moderator runs the game without playing, and each player secretly receives a character card. Most are Villagers, a few are Werewolves. Each night, the Werewolves devour a Villager; each day, the village debates, then votes to eliminate a suspect. Each team wins if it eliminates the whole other team.
The characters
The Simple Villager has no special power: they watch, debate and vote. The Seer discovers a player’s true identity each night. The Hunter, when eliminated, immediately eliminates another player. Cupid designates two Lovers on the first night, possibly including themselves: if one dies, the other dies of grief, and a Lover never votes against their partner.
Witch, Little Girl and Thief
The Witch has two potions, each usable once: healing saves the Werewolves’ victim, poison eliminates a player. She may heal herself and use both on the same night. The Little Girl may peek to spy on the Werewolves, at the risk of being devoured instead of their victim. On the first night, the Thief may swap their card with one of the two cards in the center.
The Sheriff
The village elects a Sheriff by vote, and nobody can refuse. The Sheriff’s vote counts as two, and on a tie, the Sheriff casts the deciding vote. If eliminated, the Sheriff names a successor with their dying breath. The moderator can wait a few turns before holding the vote.
The night
All players close their eyes, and the moderator calls the characters one by one: each opens their eyes, acts in silence, then closes them. On the first night, the moderator first calls the Thief, Cupid, then the Lovers, who recognize each other. Then, every night: the Seer, the Werewolves, who silently choose a victim, then the Witch, who is shown the victim.
The day
The moderator wakes the village and points to the night’s victims: one, two or none, depending on the potions. An eliminated player reveals their card and no longer communicates. The village debates (accuse, defend, bluff, pretend to be someone else), then everyone points at the player to eliminate. The most votes is eliminated; on a tie without a Sheriff, the village votes again; if the tie persists, no one is eliminated.
The end of the game
The Villagers win as soon as the last Werewolf is eliminated; the Werewolves, as soon as the last Villager is. An eliminated player still wins with their team. If the two Lovers are a Werewolf and a Villager, they both win, and only them, if they eliminate everyone else.
Beginner traps
For the moderator, giving away a clue: speak to the whole village, and pretend to turn over every card when the Seer picks a player. Talking after being eliminated. Forgetting the Lovers, who never vote against each other. With the Little Girl in play, nobody lowers their head or covers their eyes.
With New Moon
New Moon adds five characters: the Village Idiot, who survives the vote but can no longer vote; the Elder, who survives the Werewolves’ first attack; the Scapegoat, eliminated on every tie; the Defender, who protects a player each night, never the same one twice in a row; the Piper, who wins alone once every player still in the game is charmed. Event cards can also apply each morning.

How to win The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow

No points
There are no points: at the end, everyone reveals their team, and one team wins. Eliminated players win with their team.
The Villagers
They win as soon as the last Werewolf is eliminated.
The Werewolves
They win as soon as the last Villager is eliminated.
Lovers from opposite teams
A Werewolf and a Villager in love win alone, together, if they eliminate all the other players.
Victory for the Piper (New Moon)
The Piper wins alone, against everyone else, once every player still in the game is charmed.
Solo victory (Characters)
The Angel, if eliminated on the first turn; the White Werewolf, as the sole survivor; the Prejudiced Manipulator, when the whole other group is eliminated.

Example ending

With 10 players, Jake and Mia are the Werewolves. Alex is devoured on the first night; the village eliminates Jake on day two, then Mia on day three. The last Werewolf is out: the Villagers win, Alex included, even though she was devoured on the first night.

Common mistakes

  • Counting eliminated players as losers: they win with their team.
  • Keeping the Lovers in their original teams when they’re a Werewolf and a Villager: they play for themselves.
  • Forgetting that a Lover dies of grief when the other is eliminated: it can end the game at once.
  • With New Moon, forgetting that the Piper plays against everyone.

How to set up The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow

The number of Werewolves depends on the number of players, not counting the moderator; there’s no first player. Expansions are added when you choose the characters.

The moderator

  1. Choose a moderator, by agreement or at random: they don’t play, they run the game.For the first few games, pick someone who knows the game or has read the rules. The moderator doesn’t count in the number of players.

The characters

  1. Prepare one character card per player, not counting the moderator.To learn the game, the rulebook recommends the basic mix: Werewolves, the Seer and Simple Villagers.
  2. With 8 to 11 players, take 2 Werewolf cards.
  3. With 12 to 17 players, take 3 Werewolf cards.
  4. With 18 players, take 4 Werewolf cards.
  5. Add the Seer.
  6. Fill up with Simple Villagers, until you have one card per player.Basic mix: 5 Simple Villagers with 8 players, 6 with 9, 7 with 10, 8 with 11 or 12, 9 with 13, 10 with 14, 11 with 15, 12 with 16, 13 with 17 or 18.
  7. With players who know the game, replace some Simple Villagers with special characters.The Hunter, Cupid, the Witch and the Little Girl. With new players, introduce them gradually.
  8. If the Thief is used, add 2 Simple Villager cards on top of all the cards chosen.After the deal, 2 cards will be left over: place them face down in the center of the table.

The deal

  1. Shuffle the chosen cards and deal one card face down to each player.
  2. Each player secretly looks at their card, then places it face down in front of them.
  3. Keep the Sheriff card aside: it will go to the player elected by the village.The Sheriff comes on top of the player’s character. The moderator can wait a few turns before holding the vote.

The first night

  1. The moderator puts the village to sleep: all the players close their eyes.Players lower their heads, unless the Little Girl is in play: then nobody lowers their head or puts their hands in front of their eyes.
  2. The moderator calls the characters in play, one by one: the Thief, Cupid, the Lovers, then the Seer, the Werewolves and the Witch.The Thief, Cupid and the Lovers are only called on the first night. With the basic mix, go straight to the Seer.

With the expansions

  1. New Moon: choose which of the 5 new characters you add.The Village Idiot, the Elder, the Scapegoat, the Defender and the Piper. They are Simple Villager cards with a sticker: each game, the moderator decides whether they play that role.
  2. New Moon: to play with events, shuffle the 36 event cards and place them face down between the players.Each morning except the first, the most recently eliminated player reads the top card aloud. The first few times, draw only every 2 or 3 mornings.
  3. Characters: choose the new characters you add, and reread their ability in the expansion rulebook.The basic rules don’t change. Don’t add too many at once: the night calling order is on the back of the expansion rulebook.

Frequently asked questions

How many werewolves with 10 players in The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow?

Two. The rulebook recommends 2 Werewolves for 8 to 11 players, 3 for 12 to 17 players and 4 for 18 players, not counting the moderator.

What happens on a tied vote in The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow?

The Sheriff casts the deciding vote. Without a Sheriff, the village votes again between the tied players; if the tie persists, no one is eliminated.

Who wins if the Lovers are a werewolf and a villager?

The two of them, and only them, if they eliminate all the other players. Their goal is no longer their team’s.

Ludingo’s The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow sheet was last reviewed on 13 October 2026, based on: asmodee.net 1, asmodee.net 2, asmodee.net 3, asmodee.net 4, BoardGameGeek.