Aye, Dark Overlord!

“Tell me, you worthless piece of gargoyle dung, how did you manage to lose the Crystal Ball? I specifically ordered you to go to the Temple in Ruins, retrieve it, and bring it safely back to me! How could you mess that up? You slime! The Mummy Queen will surely have her hands on it now, and I need that Crystal Ball to extend my domination over Kragmortha!”

The dark plot was foiled, and the Overlord is looking straight at you for an answer. Can you talk yourself out of this one? Someone has to take the blame, and unless you can make up the best cover story, your service may no longer be needed!

Aye, Dark Overlord! is a funny and fast-paced card game of quick thinking and shameless excuse-making for four to six players. One player takes on the role of Rigor Mortis, the Dark Overlord, who finds that his diabolical schemes have once again been thwarted. The other players portray his cowering goblin servants, concocting ridiculous excuses to avoid the Overlord’s wrath. 

Each goblin player begins the game with three Hint cards. When called upon to provide an explanation for their mistakes, the player must play a Hint card and create a story based on the title, illustration, or text on that card. And it had better be good, since the Dark Overlord has no patience for stalling or boring stories.

There’s more to being a servant of a Dark Overlord than making up unlikely excuses. It’s also important to accuse your friends and try to distract them while they tell their lies. Goblin players start the game with three Action cards to do exactly that. These allow the players to Pass the Buck, forcing some other poor soul to start explaining himself or Freeze another player’s story, attempting to derail his train of thought as he makes his excuse.

Make sure to keep your stories interesting, though: the Dark Overlord will only put up with these shenanigans for so long. The Overlord player may give a Withering Look card to any player who doesn’t use a Hint card appropriately or who lets the excuse go on too long before passing the buck. As a matter of fact, he can dole out Withering Look cards for no reason at all. So it’s a good idea to keep the Dark Overlord happy, because if a player receives three Withering Looks, it means certain doom. 

When one of the Overlord’s servants receives a third Withering Look, the game is over. The hapless goblin is taken away to suffer the Dark Overlord’s terrible wrath. Everyone else lives to cower in fear during the next game.

Featuring fast and engaging gameplay, Aye, Dark Overlord! is the perfect game to break out during a party or a goblin servant gathering. Tell lies, blame your friend, and above all, avoid the wrath of the Dark Overlord!

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30+ minutes

4 – 6 players

Ages 13+



Icons used in the Aye, Dark Master! variant


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