Mafia (and Werewolf): The 1987 Moscow Origin, Full Rules and Host Guide
Mafia was invented in 1987 by a psychology student at Moscow State University. Here is how it spread, how Werewolf was born in 1997, the roles, the complete night-and-day rules and how to host it without a moderator.
Mafia is the social deduction game that turned the phrase "who do we trust?" into an evening's entertainment. It is played in dormitories, on Silicon Valley off-sites and at village weddings, and it needs nothing but people and a way to hand out secret roles.
Where does Mafia come from?
Unlike most party games, Mafia has a known inventor. Dmitry Davidoff created it in spring 1987 in the Psychology Department of Moscow State University, reportedly as a way to explore how an informed minority behaves against an uninformed majority. It spread through dormitories and student summer camps, then through Soviet colleges in the late 1980s. In the 1990s it reached the rest of Europe — in some countries under the name City of Palermo — and the United States, and a Latvian television series adapted it in the mid-1990s.
In 1997 the interactive-fiction author Andrew Plotkin gave the game its second life as Werewolf, reasoning that a hidden enemy who looks normal by day fitted the werewolf legend better than organised crime. In September 1998 the game reached the Graduate College at Princeton University, where several variants and extra roles were developed. Today "Mafia" and "Werewolf" are used interchangeably; commercial versions and the hit deduction games of the 2010s all descend from Davidoff's classroom experiment.
The roles
- Mafia (the informed minority) — know each other, kill one player each night.
- Villagers (the uninformed majority) — must find the mafia by discussion and voting.
- Detective — checks one player each night and learns whether they are mafia.
- Doctor — protects one player each night; if the mafia choose that player, nobody dies.
- Optional extras: Jester (wins if voted out), Mayor (double vote), Lovers, Vigilante.
How to play Mafia
- Deal secret roles. A good ratio is one mafioso per three or four players, plus a detective and a doctor.
- Night: everyone closes their eyes. The moderator wakes the mafia, who silently choose a victim; then the doctor, who chooses someone to save; then the detective, who checks one player.
- Morning: the moderator announces who was killed (or that the doctor saved them). The victim reveals nothing and stays silent for the rest of the game.
- Day: the town discusses, accuses and votes. The player with the most votes is eliminated and their role is revealed.
- Repeat until all mafia are gone (town wins) or the mafia equal the remaining villagers (mafia win).
Our Mafia and Werewolf pages replace the moderator: the phone is passed around to deal roles privately, then the host taps through each phase — wake the mafia, doctor, detective, morning reveal, a discussion timer and the vote — and the screen checks the win condition after every elimination.
House rules worth adopting
- Dead players stay silent. Their body language is still allowed to be dramatic.
- The first night has no vote: the town gets one day of discussion before anyone is eliminated.
- Set a discussion timer (three to five minutes). Mafia thrives on endless debate.
- Ties are settled by a revote between the tied players; a second tie means nobody is eliminated.
Tips for hosts
- With children, play Werewolf and skip the killing language: players are "sent to sleep" and "wake up in the morning".
- Under eight players, use one mafioso and no doctor; the game is over in ten minutes.
- Above sixteen, add a third mafioso and make the detective's result public only if they choose to reveal it.
- Record the roles when a player is eliminated — the end-of-game reveal is half the fun.
Play Mafia now — free, no sign-up
Play Mafia online with friends in the same room: the phone deals secret roles (Mafia, Detective, Doctor, Villagers), narrates every night and day, tracks eliminations and announces the winning team. 6–20 players.
Frequently asked questions
How many players do you need for Mafia?
Six is the practical minimum (one mafioso, one detective, four villagers). Eight to sixteen is the sweet spot; above that, add a third mafioso and a doctor.
What is the difference between Mafia and Werewolf?
The rules are the same. Werewolf is the 1997 re-theme by Andrew Plotkin: werewolves instead of mafia, a seer instead of a detective, and the village instead of the town. Many groups find the fantasy theme easier to explain to children.
Do you need a moderator?
Traditionally yes — someone who knows every role narrates the night. Our Mafia page acts as the moderator: it deals roles by passing the phone, then walks the host through each night and day.