Official Rulebook

SECRET HITLER

The year is 1932. The place is pre-WWII Germany. Players are German politicians attempting to hold a fragile Liberal government together and stem the rising tide of Fascism.

In Secret Hitler, players are secretly assigned to one of three roles: Liberal, Fascist, or Hitler. The Liberals have a majority, but they don't know for sure who anyone is. Fascists must resort to secrecy and sabotage to accomplish their goals. Hitler plays for the Fascist team, and the Fascists know Hitler's identity from the outset — but Hitler doesn't know the Fascists and must work to figure them out.

The Liberals win by enacting five Liberal Policies or killing Hitler. The Fascists win by enacting six Fascist Policies, or if Hitler is elected Chancellor after three Fascist Policies have been enacted. Whenever a Fascist Policy is enacted, the government becomes more powerful and the President is granted a single-use power.

Liberal

•Majority of players
•Know nothing about others' identities at start
•Must deduce who the Fascists are
•Should generally tell the truth

Fascist

•Minority of players
•Know each other's identities
•Know who Hitler is
•Coordinate in secret to sabotage Liberals

Hitler

•One player, on the Fascist team
•In 5–6 player games, knows who Fascists are
•In 7+ player games, does NOT know Fascists
•Must stay hidden and play like a Liberal

Role Distribution by Player Count

# Players	Liberals	Fascists	Hitler
5 players	3	1	1
6 players	4	1	1
7 players	4	2	1
8 players	5	2	1
9 players	5	3	1
10 players	6	3	1

Liberals Win If:

•Five Liberal Policies are enacted
•Hitler is assassinated by the Execution power

Fascists Win If:

•Six Fascist Policies are enacted
•Hitler is elected Chancellor after 3 or more Fascist Policies have been enacted

⚠ Hitler Zone: Once 3 Fascist Policies are enacted, any election that makes Hitler Chancellor is an immediate Fascist victory. Always ask a new Chancellor if they are Hitler when 3+ Fascist Policies are enacted. Hitler must truthfully confirm if asked after election.

1Pass the Presidential Candidacy

•At the start of each round, the President placard moves clockwise to the next player.

2Nominate a Chancellor

•The President chooses any eligible player as Chancellor Candidate.
•The last elected President and Chancellor are term-limited — they cannot be nominated as Chancellor.
•If 5 or fewer players remain alive, only the last elected Chancellor is term-limited (not the last President).
•Players can discuss Chancellor options openly before the vote.

3Vote Simultaneously

•All players (including candidates) vote Ja! (yes) or Nein! (no) simultaneously.
•Majority Ja! → Government is elected. Proceed to Legislative Session.
•Tie or majority Nein! → Election fails. Election Tracker advances by 1. Presidency moves clockwise.

Election Tracker

•Tracks consecutive failed elections (max 3). Resets to 0 whenever any policy is enacted.
•If 3 governments in a row are rejected: Chaos! The top policy card is revealed and enacted immediately. No presidential power is granted. Term limits are forgotten.
•If fewer than 3 tiles remain in the deck when chaos occurs, shuffle the discard pile into a new deck first.

President

•Draws the top 3 Policy tiles from the deck secretly.
•Discards 1 tile face-down into the Discard pile.
•Passes the remaining 2 tiles to the Chancellor.

Chancellor

•Receives 2 Policy tiles from the President.
•Discards 1 tile face-down into the Discard pile.
•Enacts the remaining tile face-up on the track.

Secret knowledge & lying: Verbal and nonverbal communication during the Legislative Session is forbidden. The President and Chancellor MAY NOT randomise tile selection. However, they can lie about what they saw or received when discussing publicly. Discarded tiles are never revealed. Players must rely on the word of the President and Chancellor.

Deck reshuffle: If fewer than 3 tiles remain in the Policy deck at the end of a Legislative Session, shuffle them with the Discard pile to create a new deck. Unused tiles should never be revealed.

When a Fascist Policy is enacted that covers a power slot, the sitting President must use that power before the next round begins. Powers are one-time use only — they don't stack or carry over.

Investigate Loyalty

The President chooses a player and secretly examines their Party Membership card (Liberal or Fascist). The card is returned without revealing it to others. The President may share or lie about the result. No player may be investigated twice.

Call Special Election

The President picks any other player to be the next Presidential Candidate. Any player can be chosen — even term-limited ones. After the special election government, the presidency returns to its normal clockwise rotation.

Policy Peek

The President secretly looks at the top 3 tiles in the Policy deck and returns them in the same order. The President may share or lie about what they saw.

Execution

The President formally executes one player, who is immediately removed from the game and may not speak, vote, or run for office. If the executed player is Hitler, Liberals win immediately! If not Hitler, the table does not learn whether the executed player was Liberal or Fascist.

Fascist Track Powers by Player Count

# Players	Slot 1	Slot 2	Slot 3	Slot 4	Slot 5	Slot 6
5–6 players	—	—	Peek	Execute	Execute	Veto*
7–8 players	—	Investigate	Special Election	Execute	Execute	Veto*
9–10 players	Investigate	Investigate	Special Election	Execute	Execute	Veto*

* Veto Power activates after 5 Fascist Policies — see below.

After five Fascist Policies have been enacted, a new permanent rule takes effect for all Legislative Sessions:

•The President draws 3 tiles, discards 1, and passes 2 to the Chancellor as normal.
•The Chancellor may, instead of enacting a policy, say “I wish to veto this agenda.”
•If the President agrees: “I agree to the veto.” — both tiles are discarded and the Election Tracker advances by 1.
•If the President refuses, the Chancellor must enact a policy normally.

Each veto counts as an inactive government and advances the Election Tracker by 1.

As a Liberal

•Everyone claims to be Liberal — watch actions not just words.
•Slow the game down; discuss all available information before voting.
•Ask candidates who they would investigate or execute before voting them in.
•Track voting patterns: Fascists often rush votes and create confusion.
•Don't hesitate to execute suspicious players once the power is available.

As a Fascist

•Blend in perfectly — act like a Liberal at all times.
•Fascists most often win by electing Hitler, not by enacting 6 policies.
•Protect Hitler's identity — create doubt and confusion about others.
•Rush votes and create chaos to prevent Liberals from coordinating.
•Wait for the right cover to enact Fascist Policies subtly.

As Hitler

•Play as Liberal as possible. Enact Liberal Policies when you can. Vote for Liberal governments.
•Trust your Fascist teammates to create opportunities — don't out yourself by playing aggressively.
•You need the Liberals' trust to get elected Chancellor. Avoid fights and disagreements.
•In 5–6 player games you know your allies; in 7+ player games you don't — act accordingly.

Important: The only time players must tell the truth is in Hitler-related game-ending scenarios. A player who is Hitler must say so if assassinated or if elected Chancellor after three Fascist Policies have been enacted.