Best Strategies For Mysterium

Sometimes you just want to play a game and not think about how to best play it. But other times, you understandably want to learn how to do the latter. I’ve been there myself many times, and I’m going to help you determine the way to best play Mysterium. In other words, these are the best strategies for Mysterium.

The best strategies for Mysterium are choosing the right player for the Ghost, thinking about how the other players think, communicating efficiently, eliminating distractions, communicating about your confidence level as a Psychic so the other Psychics can effectively use Clairvoyancy Tokens, considering how many Vision Cards to give Psychics as the Ghost, using Crow Tokens effectively, and realizing everything going wrong is just part of the joy of the game.

A Quick Refresher On How To Play Mysterium

Mysterium sees all players working together to solve a murder mystery. Specifically, one player is the Ghost, and the rest are the Psychics. The Ghost gives the Psychics Visions in the form of surreal, painterly cards. The Psychics try to figure out what Suspect (referred to as Characters by the game, but Suspects makes more sense), Location, or Object the Visions are giving them clues about, then choose. 

All Psychics must guess correctly their Suspect, Location, or Object within seven rounds. Doing so moves everyone onto Phase 2. In Phase 2, they all get the same Vision, which is three cards. They secretly vote on one of the groups of Suspects, Locations, and Objects. The group with the most votes wins. Hopefully, that’s the group the Ghost secretly picked as the solution to their murder. If so, everyone wins! If not, everyone loses.

Best Strategies For Mysterium

Before I start discussing the best strategies for Mysterium, please know I didn’t list these in any particular order. They’re in the order I thought of them or found them (I did some research to add some extra ideas). That’s it. 

Also, don’t feel like you need to use all or even any of these strategies. If they work for you or seem interesting, then great! Use them. If not, or if they inspire you to use a different strategy, that’s great too. 

Basically, use this list however it works best for you. That’s why I wrote it, and that’s what I’m hoping you’ll get out of it. 

Without any further ado, here are the best strategies for Mysterium.

Choose The Right Ghost

The Ghost Player is an important part of the group succeeding or failing at the game. That can be a big burden for one person to bear, but thankfully Mysterium knows this and encourages everyone to laugh when things go wrong. 

Laughing or not, though, the Ghost Player has a lot to do with how the game progresses. This is ironic since they can’t talk at all, but the Vision Cards they give to the Psychic Players are crucial for helping those players make the correct guesses for Suspects, Locations, and Objects. 

The best Ghost Players will understand this. Better yet, they’ll understand, to some degree, who they’re giving those Vision Cards. For example, maybe the Ghost Player understands the Psychic Player they’re giving Vision Cards to focuses more on the colors of a card. Or maybe the Ghost Player knows they will see the big elements of the cards first before seeing the smaller elements. 

A good Ghost Player uses this knowledge to their and the Psychic’s advantage.

A good Ghost Player also realizes even having all this knowledge doesn’t account for a Psychic suddenly changing course and everything going hilariously wrong. But that’s just how Mysterium goes sometimes. 

Think About How The Other Players Think

This strategy pairs well with the latter part of the one above. The thing about Mysterium is that while a great deal of it rests on the Ghost Player’s shoulders, not all of it does. The Psychics have their part to play too, and if they don’t play that part well, it doesn’t matter how well the Ghost Player considers them or the way they think.

In short, the Psychics need to consider how the Ghost Player thinks too. Are they the sort of player who knows them well? Are they giving out lots of similar cards? 

Paying attention and considering what you’re seeing as a Psychic goes a long way with Mysterium.

Communicate Efficiently

While the Ghost Player can’t speak, the Psychics can. However, there are two aspects of Mysterium that complicate this.

The first is when the Psychics have to make a choice for a Suspect, Location, or Object. As you probably well know, while doing so, they’re under the constraint of a timer, which lasts approximately two minutes. 

This can cause people to panic, which can cause their communication to suffer. 

The second is even when they’re not under a time constraint, people can overthink what they’re seeing. This can also lead to communication suffering.

The best remedy for this is to communicate only when you’re sure or mostly sure and to keep it as simple and straightforward as possible. You don’t suddenly have to become a robot, though. Just remember, the less you say, the better off you and your team will be.

Eliminate Distractions

Aside from setting the mood with background music or dim lighting, eliminate as many distractions as possible while playing Mysterium. This is a game that encourages players to have fun with it, but it also demands a certain level of focus. Lose that focus for any reason, and you might make a poor choice.

Communicate About Your Confidence Level

As you likely know, Psychics can play Clairvoyancy Tokens. These tokens show either a ✓ or an X. This is why I call them ✓ or X Tokens (plus, it’s easier to remember what they are that way). 

These tokens are essential to winning the game since guessing right with them, whether or not a player’s guess for a Suspect, Location, or Object is correct, means a chance at seeing more Vision Cards in Phase 2. That means more information to cast a better vote, and that means a higher likelihood of winning.

To help your chances of victory, tell the other Psychics if you’re confident in your guess for a Suspect, Location, or Object, even if you’re confident you’re wrong. Doing this helps them make good choices with their ✓ or X Tokens, which in turn helps all of you win the game.

The Ghost Should Consider How Many Vision Cards They’re Giving Players

In general, as the Ghost, I recommend only giving one Vision Card to each Psychic. Doing this lessens the chances of the Psychic misunderstanding what clue you’re trying to give them. 

However, giving them more than one Vision Card at a time can be useful in some cases. For example, if the colors match the color of a Suspect, Location, or Object, give the player both! Doing so doesn’t guarantee they’ll pick the right one, but that doesn’t mean giving them both cards is a bad decision, either. 

This also goes along with knowing the players. The more you know them and how they think, whether from previous experience or trial and error, the better you can make choices about what Vision Cards to give them and how many.

Use Those Crow Tokens!

As the Ghost Player, use the Crow Tokens. Don’t hold onto them unless you absolutely have to. To be clear, I’m not saying use them willy-nilly, but I am saying don’t be afraid to use them either. Using them can give you a much better hand of cards, which can turn the tide of the game. 

Realize It’s All Going To Go Wrong And Realize That’s Okay

Mysterium is intended to go wrong. That’s part of what makes the game special and fun. It’s hilarious seeing someone’s best-laid plans go horribly awry, and it’s hilarious being a part of them, even unintentionally so. 

Lean into this madness, and you’ll have a much better time with Mysterium.

Did You Know?

(Each time you refresh the page you will get a new “Did You Know” fact!)

Did you know LEGO might be a board game? I took the time to explore this possibility, and I’d love it if you joined me in it over here!

Conclusion: Best Strategies For Mysterium

The best strategies for anything, including Mysterium, can be relative. For example, you may look at my best strategies for Mysterium and think I’m missing something or got it wrong somehow.

I’m okay with that.

In fact, if you find yourself thinking that, let me know your thoughts in the comments below. I’d love to hear what you think, including if you found a lot of utility in these strategies!

And, as always, keep on gaming, fellow board gamers.