Variants

Reduced Difficulty Options

Cold Leads

Play as if the cold lead track extended to 9 or 10.

Clock

Allow yourself an extra round or two to beat the game (in other words, have the game end at 12:30 or later).

Locale

During set-up, place fewer locale tokens than instructed. It may take the removal of 3-5 tokens before you feel a difference here.

Scotland Yard

Adjust the number of Scotland Yard tokens upwards by one or more.

Agents

Play with one fewer agent card.

Henchmen

Play with one fewer henchman card.

Advantages

Each investigator begins play with a random advantage. Do this before setting up lead decks.

Increased Difficulty Options

Cold Leads

Play as if the cold lead track ended at 7.

Clock

Allow yourself one less round to beat the game (in other words, have the game end at 12:00).

Warning: This will make the game VERY difficult.

Locale

During set-up, replace at least one of the blank tokens with one of the numbered tokens. In order to find the locale of the conspiracy, ALL marked tokens must be found. The conspiracy will still be located at the X—think of the numbered locales as staging points or key targets for the plot.

Scotland Yard

Adjust the number of Scotland Yard tokens downwards by one or more.

Agents

Play with one additional agent card.

Warning: This will make the board VERY crowded, which can be a frustrating experience.

Henchmen

Play with one additional henchman card.

Warning: This will make the game nearly impossible.

Setbacks

Each investigator begins play with a random setback. Do this before setting up lead decks.

Thematic Conspiracy Variant:

Set-Up

Do not select a mastermind. Instead, sort the mastermind cards into four piles based on whichever resource they have the most of in their cost; in the case of a tie, use the leftmost tied resource (for example, Svengali is a political mastermind because he requires more politics than any other resource). Do not select a plot. Instead, sort the plots into four piles based on their type in the upper right corner. Select one plot from each pile and set them aside; shuffle the remainder of plots (along with one agent card) into one deck as per the usual set-up rules.

Gameplay

As you successfully follow up leads, do not discard them as usual. Instead, keep them face-up in a pile beside the board. When you would reveal the mastermind, total up each type of lead in the followed up lead pile. Randomly select a mastermind from the pile that matches the lead type with the highest total. Likewise, when you have earned enough deductions to empty the plot deck, total up each type of lead in the followed up lead pile and select the plot that matches the lead type with the highest total. Randomize the remaining three plots and place them face-down on top of the selected plot. If you had deductions remaining when the plot deck was emptied, continue to reveal cards until the remaining deductions are spent.

Option

For added immersion, take the followed up leads of the highest total type and create a short narrative that connects each of them in a line leading to the selected mastermind and plot.