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How to play The Resistance (2026): The Resistance is a hidden-role game for five to ten players. Most of the table are resistance operatives trying to complete missions; a few are spies who know each other and quietly sabotage those missions. There is no elimination and no moderator, and a game takes about half an hour. This guide follows the Indie Boards & Cards rulebook: roles by player count, the spy reveal, building a team, voting, running a mission, winning and the official variants.
Get the game: The Resistance
The box includes character cards, mission cards, team and vote tokens, score markers, a leader token and score tableaus for five to ten players. It costs about $19 and is one of the best-value group games you can own.
Price band: $10–$20 (about $19) · Check today’s price on Amazon
The goal
The Resistance wins by completing three missions. The spies win by failing three missions, or if five proposed teams in a row are rejected during a single round. Players may say anything at any time, true or false, but nobody may reveal their character card.
How many spies? Roles by player count
| Players | Resistance | Spies |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 3 | 2 |
| 6 | 4 | 2 |
| 7 | 4 | 3 |
| 8 | 5 | 3 |
| 9 | 6 | 3 |
| 10 | 6 | 4 |
Shuffle the right mix of character cards, deal one face down to each player and let everyone look secretly. Place the tableau for your player count in the middle, give each player one approve and one reject vote token, and hand the leader token to a random player.
The spy reveal script
The leader reads this aloud so the spies learn who their partners are:
- “Everyone close your eyes.”
- “Spies, open your eyes and look around so you know all the other spies.”
- “Spies, close your eyes. Everyone’s eyes should be closed.”
- “Everyone open your eyes.”
Each round: build the team
The leader chooses who goes on the mission, using the team size from the chart below, and may include themselves. Then everyone, leader included, secretly picks a vote token and all reveal at once. A majority approve sends the team. A tie or majority reject fails the vote, and leadership passes clockwise for a new proposal. Five rejected teams in a row in one round hands the game to the spies.
| Team size | 5 players | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mission 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Mission 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Mission 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Mission 4 | 3 | 3 | 4* | 5* | 5* | 5* |
| Mission 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
* In games of seven or more players, the fourth mission only fails if at least two Fail cards are played.
Each round: run the mission
Every team member gets one Success and one Fail card and secretly plays one face down. Resistance members must play Success; spies may play either. The leader collects the played cards, shuffles them and reveals them. One Fail card (two on mission four at seven or more players) fails the mission. Mark the result on the tableau, move the round marker and pass the leader token clockwise.
Winning the game
The game ends the moment either side reaches three missions: three successes for the Resistance or three failures for the spies. The spies can also win early through five straight rejected votes in one round.
Strategy for both sides
- Resistance: get on teams and watch votes. Voting patterns, mission results and table talk are all information. Ask people why they voted the way they did.
- Resistance: reject teams you do not trust. Good players use several rejections a round to test reactions.
- Spies: act like the Resistance. Push to get on missions and vote as an honest operative would.
- Spies: change your habits. If you always pass the first mission, people will learn it. A spy caught early can still sow confusion to protect partners.
Official variants
- Targeting: the leader chooses which mission to attempt before picking a team, and players vote on both. Each mission can be tried once, and the fifth cannot be chosen until two others have succeeded.
- Blind Spies: skip the spy reveal. Spies do not know each other.
- The Plot Thickens: Plot cards give the Resistance extra information. Use seven Plot cards with five or six players and all 15 with seven or more. The leader draws one, two or three each round, depending on player count, and hands them to other players. The rulebook suggests a couple of plain games first.
Ready for more hidden-role games? Read our best social deduction party games, compare with how to play Secret Hitler or try the classic in our Mafia rules guide.
The Resistance rules questions
How many spies are in The Resistance?
Two spies with five or six players, three with seven to nine and four with ten.
What happens if a vote ties in The Resistance?
A tie counts as a rejection. Leadership passes clockwise and a new team is proposed.
Can The Resistance be played with four players?
No. The official tables start at five players and go up to ten.
