Chain Murder Death

Murderous Telephone is the best training for your teamwork. One person has the plan and the other is guessing in the dark. The audience watches as the info slowly sinks into chaos.

The Scenario: The Gibberish Filter

Four players and three rounds. While the others wait outside you get three suggestions from the audience. A location and an occupation and an object. The object becomes the absurd murder weapon.

The golden rule is: Forget charades. It is not about acting out words. You have to build a situation where your partner has no choice but to understand the right thing.

The Structure: Location and Occupation and Weapon

To stay on track stick to the order. We work from big to small.

Location: Where exactly are we? Build the room. Is it hot or is it cramped? Does it smell weird here?

Occupation: Who is the person in front of you? Treat them so they realize who they are supposed to be.

Weapon: The harmless object comes into play. Why is it here and how does it kill someone?

Gibberish and Gromolo

It is cheap cheating if you are the one who knows and you bend your gibberish so people recognize real words or familiar sounds. Stop doing that. As the guesser you are allowed to trick and use specific sounds to check your theory. A quick vroom vroom is a clear test for a race car driver for example. If the endower does that at the start it is cheating. If the impulse comes from the guesser it helps sharpen the focus fast. Do not use this as a standard but only as a last resort if you both get stuck. Explain with your body instead of your voice.

How to give Feedback

You have to pick up your partner's impulses and show them clearly when they are on the wrong track. If they start putting on skis even though you are at the beach then take the skis and hand them the sunscreen. Accept what they offer but steer them in the right direction immediately with charm. If they think they are a pilot even though they are driving a bus then laugh at the mistake and show them the ticket machine. Do not make it harder than it needs to be when they almost have the solution. Once you see the penny has dropped give them the signal for the grand finale.

The Murder and Recap

Enjoy the deaths at the end of each round. The game usually ends with everyone standing at the edge of the stage and the host checks the facts with the last criminal. It is fun to get the audience to shout loud Noes for wrong assumptions. The host works their way back through the line until the right answer is found.

The Variation

It is a lot of fun to put a volunteer from the audience directly into the chain. It is best to use them as Player C because they receive clues first and then pass them on themselves. That gives them enough time backstage with a pro to get the basics and the order explained. Celebrate the volunteer's mistakes at the end. They should always leave the stage as a hero and never like a dummy. Laugh with them and definitely not at them.

Coach's Tips

Be specific: A vague gesture helps no one. If you have a needle in your hand then hold it like one.

Gibberish is not a code: Do not try to change words so they are recognized. That is cheating. Use the emotion in your voice. An annoyed gibberish tells more than a thousand hand signals.

Celebrate the misunderstanding: If the next person gets it all wrong then go with it. The game lives through the distortion. Trying to keep control kills the fun.

The Reveal: At the end the host reveals from back to front. Own your nonsense if the answer is totally wrong.

The Goal: Stay in the scene and take every offer and fail with flying colors. Do not be smart just be there.