Hand sizes at a glance
The 18 cards that are not in the stash are dealt round the table, so hand size depends on how many are playing.
| Players | Cards per player | Cards unknown to you at the start |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 6 | 15 |
| 4 | 4 or 5 | 16 or 17 |
| 5 | 3 or 4 | 17 or 18 |
| 6 | 3 | 18 |
"Unknown" counts the other players' hands plus the three stash cards. CHECK · confirm how NoHonor deals 18 cards at four and five players: unequal hands as shown, or extra cards face up.
Two players: a mode of its own (coming soon)
Games start at three. With only two hands, each player would hold nine of the 21 cards and the game would be over almost before it began, so two players get their own mode instead. It is coming soon: four cards face up for both players, seven each, and a pure logic duel.
Until it arrives, two friends can open a private room and add a bot as the third seat. That plays as a normal three-player game.
Three players: the thinking game
Three players hold six cards each, a third of the deck. You know a lot from the start, and every question passes through at most two other players.
- Focused questions pay off early. You can afford to name your own cards from turn two or three.
- Hand counting becomes practical. With six cards per opponent, pinning down one player's whole hand is realistic, and from then on every answer they give is easy to read.
Four players: the standard game
Four is where public tables start. With the default 45-second timer, a game takes about 15 to 25 minutes.
At four, follow the standard approach in Opening Moves: wide questions early, focused ones once each column is down to two or three cards. Pay attention to the order of answerers: the player on your left answers your questions first, so they reveal the most to you over a game.
Five and six players: the watching game
At six players you hold three cards and 18 are unknown. Your own questions alone will not get you there in time. The winners at big tables are the players who learn from everyone else's turns.
- Every "no match" counts. With six players, a question can pass four or five people before someone answers. Each one who passes holds none of the three cards.
- Track who answered whom. "Rafael's player showed Lena's player a card" means he holds one of three. These notes add up quickly at a big table.
- Watch the clock on your rivals. With more players, more people are close to the answer at once. When someone's question goes unanswered, assume they may accuse next turn.
- Use the board. With more pawns, the Drag and the corner passages matter more.
Picking a table size
For a first game with friends, four is the sweet spot. For learning to think hard, three. For a lively party game, six. For a quick logic duel, two plus a bot, until the two-player mode arrives.
Public tables start when four players are waiting and fill up to six. If fewer than four arrive within a minute, bots take the empty seats so nobody waits for long.
