If your group likes the knife-in-the-dark scheming of Coup or The Resistance but wants something with a bit more meat on it, Council of Serpents is worth a look. The compact fantasy intrigue game from Dutch studio Wulfhorn Games launches its crowdfunding campaign on Gamefound today (7 July).
Got a regular group? Create a private community, poll for the best date, vote on games, and let your friends RSVP in one place.
Set up your group for freeYou play a member of a shadowy council pulling strings behind three noble houses. Using a hand of Influence cards, you nudge each house's fortunes towards either Triumph or Collapse, and the round you tip one over the edge helps decide who comes out on top. The clever bit is that you never attack another player directly. You are all meddling with the same houses, so the tension comes from reading where everyone else is pushing rather than from open aggression, which keeps things spiky without turning the table sour. It is small enough to bring to the pub, in the same portable bracket as the card games it takes cues from.
Wulfhorn is the one-person operation of Ruud Nederpelt, based near Amsterdam, with a back catalogue that includes the post-apocalyptic Rise of the Wastelands, which ran a successful Kickstarter in 2024. Council of Serpents is the studio's latest swing at portable, deep-enough-to-chew intrigue.
Run game nights? Backseat Gamer handles RSVPs, waitlists, date polling, and game voting so you can focus on playing.
Start organising for freeCampaigns like this often live or die on their opening weekend, so it is worth backing early while it is fresh. If you need a regular crew to try it with, find a group near you.
Sources: Wargamer | Wulfhorn Games | Gamefound
