Nine Below
Social deduction under the ice
Nine of you came down. The station only has power for eight.
Ready to play now.
A demonstration of Nine Below, played by the computer against itself.
Nine Below — playing itself
Ways to play
Alone, against the computer
Your own pace, no arranging anything. Take a move back whenever you like.
Play alone5 opponents, weakest first
- DrowsyNames people almost at random, and often the wrong one.
- WatchfulReads the ledger, and votes on what it finds.
- SuspiciousWants real evidence before it names anybody.
- SharpAs one of The Ninth, never goes back to a module the ledger has already blamed it for.
- Cold-eyedNames nobody it is not sure of, and is usually sure.
Together, in the same room
5–8 players. One device goes round the table, or everybody plays off the same screen.
Play in the same roomOnline, at a table
A room code, joinable from anywhere. Pause tonight and pick it up next week from your device.
Play online
About
A research station four hundred metres under an ice shelf, and a rota that no longer adds up. Every watch you pick a module and a job, nobody says what they chose, and at dawn the ledger publishes exactly who was where and exactly what the heat did — and never who did what.
How it feels
- Accusations over dinner
- Arithmetic you can argue with
- Nobody is above suspicion
What the design is for
Roles with jobs
Everyone has real work to do, which is excellent cover.
A ledger, not a memory
Who was in each module and what the heat did, in writing, permanently. The one thing it never records is intent.
Two or three of you
From seven people up there are three of The Ninth; at five and six there are two, and they know each other. Seven is the hard table — over eighty measured matches the Crew take it 35% of the time, and no width of station measures better.
- Best at
- 6
- Kind
- Social Deduction
- Table
- Hidden roles
- Studio
- Board.game Originals
The opponents
Drowsy
Names people almost at random, and often the wrong one.
Watchful
Reads the ledger, and votes on what it finds.
Suspicious
Wants real evidence before it names anybody.
Sharp
As one of The Ninth, never goes back to a module the ledger has already blamed it for.
Cold-eyed
Names nobody it is not sure of, and is usually sure.
Achievements
0 of 5 earned
Still Warm
Win a match of Nine Below.
The Ninth
Win as one of The Ninth.
Never Named
Win as one of The Ninth without anybody ever accusing you.
Nobody Innocent
Win as Crew without putting a single innocent person out.
It Was Already Cold
Be alone in a module that lost heat, and survive the watch.
Key art
Concept key art — Board.game art system
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