Printing your murder mystery kit: tips for a great result

A printable murder mystery party means freedom: you get the kit straight away, and you can reprint it for every new party. You still need to print it well. Here are our tips for a result that really feels like holding a police case file.

Colour or black and white?

Colour is recommended, especially for the case files: photos, receipts, bank records, maps. They look more real, and some colours can even matter in the investigation (an outfit, a stain, an object).

Black and white works too. If your printer is monochrome, print the host's book and character files in black and white, and keep colour, if you can, for the few photographic clues.

Which paper?

• Standard 80 gsm paper: perfect for the host's book, the files and most of the evidence.
• Slightly thicker paper (120 to 160 gsm), if you have some: ideal for invitations and cards, which get passed around.
• No need for special paper: the content creates the atmosphere, not the paper weight.

Printing order

1. The full kit, single-sided (easier to sort).
2. The solution, separately, without reading it, straight into a sealed envelope.
3. The cards, to cut along the lines.

If you are playing too, take the pages out of the printer face down and only read the labels at the top.

Cutting and sorting

The cards (Official questioning cards in The Vernier Case, Truth question cards in La Queimada du Pazo) can be cut with scissors or a paper trimmer. Then sort the case files:

• by character: everyone gets their own evidence;
• by act: some only arrive in act II or III.

One envelope per character and per act, with the name written on it, and the host just hands them out at the right moment.

Small touches that make a difference

• A cardboard folder for the host's book.
• Paper clips or a bulldog clip for the shared evidence in the middle of the table.
• A red marker to circle important clues during the game.

No printer?

You can play on a tablet or phone: each player receives their file at the start of the evening, then their evidence at the right act. We explain how in our article on murder mystery without a printer.