Saboteur (card game)
A mining-themed hidden-role card game of tunnels and sabotage.
Saboteur is a mining-themed card game designed by Frederic Moyersoen and first published in 2004. The game involves players being secretly assigned roles as either Miners (Gold-Diggers) or Saboteurs, with the Miners attempting to build a tunnel to a hidden treasure and the Saboteurs trying to prevent them. It is known for its hidden-role mechanics and team-based gameplay, accommodating 3–10 players across three rounds.
- Path cards
- 35
Lore & Background
In the base game, players are assigned either a Miner or a Saboteur role and given a mixed hand of path and action cards. Miners play path cards to build a tunnel from the mine entrance to one of three face-down goal cards, only one of which contains gold. Saboteurs play path cards that hinder progress, such as dead ends or turns. Action cards allow players to sabotage others (breaking their tools) or repair tools, and include map cards to secretly view a goal card and rockfall cards to remove a path card from the mine.
Reader's Guide
Saboteur introduced a simple yet engaging hidden-role dynamic in a card game format, where players must deduce teammates and opponents while building or obstructing a tunnel. Its significance lies in its accessibility and replayability, with role distribution that keeps the exact number of saboteurs uncertain. The game has spawned an expansion, Saboteur 2, which adds new roles (including a Selfish Dwarf and Geologists), team colors, and additional path cards such as bridges and ladders. The original game's scoring system—where gold nugget cards are distributed randomly among winning miners—adds a luck element to the team victory. Saboteur remains a popular party game for its blend of cooperation, deception, and simple rules.
Did You Know?
- The base game includes 35 path cards, 27 action cards, 28 gold nugget cards, and 11 role cards.
- Players are dealt a secret role from a shuffled set that includes one extra role card, left face-down to hide the exact number of saboteurs.
- The treasure goal card is randomly assigned to one of three face-down goal cards at the start of each round.
- A player who plays a map action card may privately look at one of the goal cards.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Saboteur (card game)?
Saboteur is a mining-themed hidden-role card game in which players are secretly dealt roles as either Miners (Gold-Diggers) or Saboteurs. It was designed by Frederic Moyersoen and first published in 2004.
What are the roles in Saboteur (card game)?
Each player is secretly assigned as either a Miner or a Saboteur. Miners cooperate to lay a continuous path of 35 tunnel cards toward a hidden treasure, while Saboteurs use special abilities to block or reroute that path.
How many players can play Saboteur (card game)?
The game supports anywhere from 3 to 10 players at the table and is structured around three rounds of play.
How does a round of Saboteur (card game) end?
A round concludes when the Miners connect their starting tile to the treasure tile with an unbroken tunnel path, or when the pool of 35 path cards is exhausted before they succeed. The overall match is then decided across the three rounds.
Why is Saboteur (card game) notable among connection games?
It is well known for blending hidden-role deduction with cooperative-versus-adversarial team play at a single table. Its simple mining-tunnel theme keeps the sabotage mechanics approachable while still rewarding careful bluffing and reading opponents.
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