Summary:

“Demons must attack alive Minions (if they can die). [+1 Minion]”

The Balatro giveth and the Balatro taketh.

• The Balatro adds a Minion to the bag and removes a Townsfolk.
• When the Demon acts, if a Minion lives & can die, they must attack them. If the Demon tries to attack a different player, the Storyteller must tell them to choose differently.
• When no Minions can die (because they are dead or otherwise) the Demon may attack as normal.
• If the Demon needs to continue attacking but they have already chosen all available Minions, they may attack as normal.

How to Run:

During setup, replace a Townsfolk token with a Minion token.

If a Minion can die and the Demon tries to attack a different player, shake your head no and allow them to choose differently.

<aside> 📌 When the Demon acts, optionally show them the Balatro token if there is a Minion that can die to make it clear

</aside>

<aside> <img src="/icons/more_gray.svg" alt="/icons/more_gray.svg" width="40px" />

Information

“Poker? I barely know ‘er!”

</aside>

Examples:

<aside> 📖 There are 10 players, but there are 3 Minions in play because of the Balatro: the Organ Grinder, Mistress, and Boomdandy. On night 2, the Imp kills the Mistress. The next night, they kill the Organ Grinder. The next night, they kill the Boomdandy. Then, they kill the Virgin because no Minions live anymore.

</aside>

<aside> 📖 There are 2 Minions in play: the dead Harpy and the alive Poisoner. Tonight, the Po attacks three times. They try to attack the Courtier but the Storyteller indicates for them to choose differently because the Balatro is in play (& alive). They then attack the Poisoner, then the Courtier, then the Juggler.

</aside>

Meta:

Tips & Tricks:

• Reveal that you're the Balatro! The Demon can't attack you at night, so there's no reason to hide. If the good team wants to stand a chance against the larger evil team, they'll likely need to know to fear it. Outing yourself also allows the good team to avoid killing you early on.,
• Hide that you're the Balatro. The extra Minion being able to coordinate against you will quickly put you on the ropes. If you fall, the evil team will have an almost surefire victory! If the evil team can unite against you, proving your innocence is much harder.,
• See who's trying to make you look evil. Evil players have a lot more to gain from that than good players. Be especially aware of effects like the Spy or Wraith that might clue evil into your identity, and what decisions the Storyteller would likely make.,
• Executing every day lets the good team, in some regard, control both the kills during the day and at night. However, avoiding kills can be an even more potent strategy! Knowing for certain which players are Minions, and keeping good players alive while you accrue more info to find the Demon with.,
• Wring as much potential as you can from your ability. The later you survive, the more sure you can be that the Demon is the only alive evil player. You can also utilize the fact that dead players are Minions. You can try to use the info they were bluffing before they died to your advantage, but be aware that they'll know you can do this.

Bluffing as the Balatro:

When bluffing as the Balatro, there are a few things that you should consider:

• Consider the strategy that you'd use were you actually the Balatro. While this is good advice for any character, it's especially important for the Balatro, as they tend to make very large decisions early on in the game. There is a good chance that a believed Balatro claim will lead the good team, and so you must prepare for this responsibility.,
• Kill suspicious players in the night! Players will use the alignment of players killed at night to verify whether or not you're the Balatro. Any player you kill early on, good or evil, will immediately attest that you aren't the Balatro. If you want any hope of saving your skin, you need to make sure they aren't too trustworthy in their accusation.,
• Look for the extra Minion. Games with extra evil players make group consensus very dangerous. If the good team is on the same page, redirect them to more niche opinions within the group. This fear can easily save you a day or two.,