Monster My Neighbor

Overview

Monster My Neighbor is a social deduction card game where one player secretly holds the Monster card while others try to identify and expose it using Hunter cards. Through card exchanges, the Monster’s identity shifts constantly. The Monster player wins by playing the Monster card on their last turn; Hunters win by forcing the Monster to be discarded. The game is played over 5 rounds with VP scoring.

Components

• 5 Monster cards (Vampire, Werewolf, Goomiho, Mermaid, Mandrake)
• Hunter cards
• Hide cards
• Wanted cards
• Villager cards
• Dog cards
• Rumor, Gossip, Steal, Friend, Fog, Deal cards
• Victory Point (VP) tokens

Setup

1. Shuffle the 5 Monster cards and set them aside face down as the Monster deck.
2. Place VP tokens near the Monster deck.
3. Make a general deck with remaining cards.

Round Setup

1. Take 1 Hunter, 1 Hide, and 1 Wanted from the general deck as the starting deck.
2. Draw additional cards from the general deck based on player count and add to the starting deck.
3. Take 1 random Monster card from the Monster deck and add it to the starting deck.
4. Shuffle the starting deck and deal 4 cards to each player.
5. Place remaining general deck in the center.

Turn Structure

1. The player with the Wanted card plays it first (no effect, just determines start player).
2. Play proceeds clockwise. Each player plays exactly 1 card per turn, placing it face up in front of them.
3. Players do NOT refill their hands – each round lasts a maximum of 4 turns per player.
4. The round ends when the Monster card is played or forced to be discarded.

Actions

Key Cards

Card	Effect
Hunter	Choose a player; if they have the Monster, they must discard it. Cannot be played on the 1st turn
Monster	Can only be played on your last turn (or if special condition is met). Playing it means you win the round
Hide	While in your hand, Hunter cards have no effect on you. Do not reveal it
Dog	Give to another player; they discard 1 card face down and add Dog to hand. The discard choice is theirs
Friend	Become the Monster’s ally – win or lose together with the Monster player
Rumor	Each player draws 1 card from the hand of the player to their right
Gossip	Each player gives 1 card to the player to their left
Steal	Draw 1 card from any player’s hand, then give them 1 card

Monster Special Abilities

Monster	Ability
Vampire	Gain +1 VP if you win (3 VP total)
Werewolf	Hunter cards have no effect if Monster is your last card
Goomiho	First Hunter card played has no effect on you
Mermaid	Can be played if 2 Villager cards have been played
Mandrake	Can be played if 2 Hunter cards have been played

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Round Scoring

• Monster played successfully: Monster and Friends each gain 2 VP.
• Monster discarded by Hunter/Dog: The player who forced it gains 2 VP. All others (except Monster and Friends) gain 1 VP.
• Monster discarded by Friend’s betrayal: Everyone except Monster and Friends gains 1 VP.

Game End

After 5 rounds, the player with the most VP wins. Ties share victory. For a tiebreaker, play additional rounds with shuffled Monster cards.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Hunters cannot be played on the first turn of a round.
• Monsters can only be played on the last turn or when their special condition is met.
• Card effects override general rules when they conflict.
• Hide does NOT protect against Dog discard effects.
• Dog discards go face down to the playing area of the player who played the Dog.
• Friend discards go to the bottom of the general deck.
• If you have 4 Hunters (or 3 Hunters + Monster) at round start, discard 1 Hunter face down and skip your turn.
• Playing Fog/Gossip/Rumor/Deal as your last card with no other cards: played without effect.

Player Reference

Phase	Action
Round Setup	Deal 4 cards including 1 random Monster
Start	Wanted card played first
Turns	Play 1 card per turn, clockwise
Round End	Monster played (Monster wins) or Monster discarded (Hunters win)
Score	2 VP for winner, 1 VP for non-allied players if Monster caught
Game End	After 5 rounds, highest VP wins