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By Order of the King

Par Loosejaw Games

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Statut actuel

Pledge Manager ouvert Fin de campagne : 25/09/2026

Fonds récoltés : 26 929 €

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In By Order of the King, you’ll either step into the bloodstained boots of the Executioner or join the ranks of condemned prisoners desperately trying to keep their heads.

But these are no ordinary inmates. Each is scheming against the others, armed with lies, half-truths, and powerful items smuggled into the gallows. The Executioner must listen carefully to their testimony and separate truth from deception before choosing who gets the chop. Execute the wrong prisoner, however, and it may be the Executioner’s own head that rolls!

Chaos, bluffing, and betrayal reign in this social deduction game, as prisoners use bizarre item cards to deceive the Executioner, frame their rivals, and survive another round.

And simply keeping your head isn’t enough. Every prisoner has a secret role and hidden agenda that can earn them precious coins throughout the game. Outsmart your fellow inmates, profit from their untimely demise and, if fortune favors you, leave the gallows with both your head and your riches intact.

Inspired by other social deduction games like Werewolf, Secret Hitler, Avalon, Among Us, and Mafia, we noticed one flaw in all of them! It is sooo annoying when you keep getting the "good" role. We don't play social deduction to be honest and virtuous! We wanted a game where, no matter your agenda, you can always lie! While the loyalists need to help the executioner, earning money for each successful execution, the executioner still gets a reward for killing them! So even the executioner's loyal subjects must lie, bluff, and lie some more to survive the executioner's wrath, before they can pursue their own "virtuous agendas" (getting everyone else killed)!

By Order of the King is quick to play with endless replay value! Every game there are new combinations of roles, items and events. Meaning no matter how many times you play, no game will ever be the same (it's mathematically impossible). On top of that, games with smaller groups rarely exceed 15 minutes, and larger groups 20 minutes, so mistakes aren't punished for long and new players can pick the game up really quickly.

Reviews 🪶

Gasgraham

"It has been one of the most successful games I’ve tried at School Games Club... It has been requested week on week..."

"My personal concerns over the stress of playing games where players need to lie, or of the potential for hurt feelings over ‘feels bad’ moments, melted away within minutes of playing it for the first time. In fact, I found myself leaning into the spirit of the game..."

Board Of It

"By Order of the King is a very interesting and excellent example of the social deduction genre because... first, everyone has a reason to lie; second, ...any combination of roles can be in any game, and [third] you have all these crazy items and events that come into the mix."

"If you are a fan of social deception games, or a moderate fan, or any kind of fan, then I think this is a game you want to look at."

The Lucky Roll

"...there are many other influences present here such as Avalon, Secret Hitler, Sheriff of Nottingham, Bang Dice, and Mafia that add some very interesting mechanics..."

"A great twist on the genre... if you see this game, get it."

How do you play? 🎲

In By Order of the King, every prisoner stands before the Executioner with just a secret Role and an Item card between them and the chopping block. Each round begins when the Executioner reveals a Gallows card, introducing a new rule or event and a suitably gruesome method of execution for that round! Then, each prisoner gets one action. You can either:

PEEK at any card on the table, gaining valuable information that you can reveal, twist, or outright lie about...

SWITCH any two cards. But beware: switches are blind. You won't know what you've gained, forcing you to rely on the testimony of your fellow inmates. That mysterious card you just stole could be your salvation or your death sentence.

Once every prisoner has acted, the executions begin! The Executioner must piece together everyone's claims, bluffs, and accusations before deciding who gets the chop. The more prisoners they execute, the greater their reward—but greed comes at a price. Execute a prisoner carrying a Pardon, or worse, execute the Princess, and the tables turn: the saboteurs take the gold, and the Executioner's head is the one that rolls!

Can you persuade the executioner to spare you?

Players only get to look at their own item card at the beginning of the game, meaning the value of cards is dictated by who the executioner believes is telling the truth, not necessarily what the item really is! Optional peek actions can be used to gain further insight, but all "switching" in the game is done blind.

The action phase facilitates players to take an action: peek at or switch any item card. The Loyalists should be trying to peek at cards to help the executioner. But if they have a weak item, they may want to take a chance and blindly switch their card for a more powerful item. Saboteurs should be trying to deduce where the pardon is, and trick the executioner into executing that player. Or, they could try to get a strong item, like the shield, to execute the player with the pardon themselves! The Executioner meanwhile is watching everything, and can control the pace of the game, stopping to interrogate players, and choose the order players take an action.

Small Box - Big Punch! 📦👊

We love small box games which pack a big punch! That's why, even though By Order of the King can fit in your pocket, it includes 46 cards, 20 wooden coins, 20 gems, and a beautifully-crafted rulebook!

Smuggle Your Copy into Game Night! 🤏💼

Small box games are portable! That means you can take By Order of the King wherever you want nice and easily. Going on a Ryanair flight but don't have space in your tiny bag for a board game? No problem, By Order of the King fits in your jean pocket! Worried about the board game pickpockets that terrorize our streets? No problem, By Order of the King fits in a fanny pack! On the run from the police and need lightweight entertainment? No problem, By Order of the King fits in a car glovebox or even in the door pocket!

All copies of By Order of the King are in English, but digital translations of the rules will be available on our website in Deutsch (German), Français (French), and Svenska (Swedish) at launch:

Reward Items & Add-ons ➕

Executioner Figurine 🔪

Don't miss out on this Kickstarter exclusive reward - Eddie the Executioner figurine. This little guy will only be available through this Kickstarter campaign and is made from high-quality resign. While Eddie the Executioner can be used as a substitute for the Executioner card in By Order of the King, his game agnostic 50mm base plate means he can be used in other tabletop or war games. Or maybe just as a beautiful desk or shelf decoration!

Please note: This is a digital render.

Exclusive 1/500 Holographic Card 🧚‍♀️

Mari Lwyd is coming to town! A future Myths & Legends expansion pack is planned for By Order of the King. But don't let the silly passage of time stop you! One creature, the mischievous & musical Mari Lwyd, is available to buy for keen collectors and impatient players with your copy of By Order of the King. It will have an exclusive holographic front and will be limited to just 500 copies worldwide. It will arrive in its own top loader to keep it protected!

Only available through the Mary Lwyd Exclusive reward pack.

*Please note, the expected arrival of the Mary Lwyd Exclusive Pack is November 2026, not 2030 as indicated on checkout.

Clothing! 👕

*Clothing may be shipped separately.
*Only available in UK, EU, USA, Australia.

T-Shirts

Here at Loosejaw Games we're big believers in fashion. How are you supposed to be seen at a board game convention, or friends' game night, or crying having lost longest road to your ex girlfriend in a particularly weird and intense game of Catan, if you don't have an awesome gallows-themed board game shirt on? With beautiful artwork from Johnny Greenteeth and quippy titles, you'll be the most popular guy or gal in your living room! You have literally no other option than to buy one of our AWESOME Ts! Seriously, no other option. Buy them.

I seriously think I could've gone pro in football, if not for that blasted arrow to the knee! No seriously, I could've been Manchester United's starting number 9, or the starting quarter back for the baseballers (I don't know American sports, sorry!), if hadn't taken that projectile to my tibia in my youth! Oh what am I doing here? Oh I'm just hanging out. Court-ordered hanging out? Well yeh but... please put that rotten fruit down! No please!

Ah witchcraft. I might be burning at the pyre for some systemic injustice that I didn't even commit. But, at least I have a darn Nice Hat on! You can't take that one away from me! But wait, it's a picture of a hat on a T-shirt? Shouldn't it say I have a nice T-shirt on? The marketing guys have really messed up on this one.

Don't be a Dummy. Buy a damn shirt!

Pink Jumper!

Where all my witches at!? We didn't want to JUST do black T-Shirts. This pink jumper would make Barbie blush (so would the flames of the pyre on which she would have been burnt in the 1600s)! This beautiful cherry jumper will make the witch inside you want to come out - because of the smoke of course!

Making: By Order of the King - Ebook 📖

Over two years I've managed to create my own tabletop game! If you want to know my story, and maybe get some insights into how you can make your own board game, why not pick up my Ebook! Inside, I go into the game design process from inspiration, concept, and execution. How I managed to do over 150 game tests without spending a dime. The harsh realities of copyright including the dramatic retheming we had to do in response to a certain hiccup! I also go into detail about the game art, including exclusive looks at concept art which never made it to the final game, sketches, and creative decisions!

The Ebook is included in most reward tiers as a bonus thank you for supporting us!

Shipping costs will be charged after the end of the campaign. We are a small business, and fluctuating shipping fees, laws, and political circumstances makes shipping too difficult to calculate upfront. We will keep everyone updated regarding shipping fees in the Kickstarter pledge manager. Above are estimates of shipping costs only.

The game will be fulfilled by GamesQuest.co.uk.

Estimated Timeline ⏱️

Above is only an estimated timeline! We want to get our game to you as fast as possible! However, we are only a 2-man team. We will communicate with you over the Kickstarter pledge manager any status updates, delays, or other notable events relating to your orders. We aim to have the game to you by November!