Lord and Lady Westing's Will

Lord and Lady Westing's Will – a 1930s murder mystery party game with an aristocratic setting for 11 to 16 guests.

"I wanted to say how much I loved Lord and Lady Westing's will. It was quite complicated but still lots of fun. My guests and I will be way more prepared and excited for next time! Thanks again!"
Sam Wright, United Kingdom

Recommended for ages 15+
Costs US$29.99
Written by Rachel Wendel

Lord and Lady Westing's Will is a dinner party murder mystery game for 11 to 16 guests and a host – download the free introductory pdf file.

Join us in an impeccably suave evening of suspicion, double-dealing and murder! You will be in the middle of the action and it will be up to you to wheel and deal with the other guests. Can you achieve your goals, keep your secrets hidden and survive Lord and Lady Westing's Will? It's up to you.

Lord and Lady Westing's Will

Lord and Lady Westing's Will is set in 1935, at Chateauhouse in Derbyshire, England: the country estate of the wealthy and influential Lord and Lady Westing.
Lord and Lady Westing have died in a tragic hot-air balloon accident. You have been invited to a celebration of their life and legacy. It will be a day of celebration and gaiety (and possibly great reward!) The year is 1935 and there are rumblings of war across Europe. The Great War is still fresh in people's memory. Times are lean and Germany is looking more militant by the day. The tragic death of this charming and exciting couple only further darkens the mood of the country.
But there are hints that not all is as it seems. Why did the Westings arrange this unusual party to read their will? Why did they invite crime-solvers as well as some of Europe's and America's more notorious personalities? Was their death truly an accident? – or is something more sinister in the wind?

Lord and Lady Westing's Will lasts for about four hours and is suited to an evening. It is often played over a meal – a finger buffet if possible to allow guests to circulate and talk in private.

The free introductory pdf file contains an introduction to the game, a cast list of all the characters, and a copy of the News Clippings – plus details of how to buy the game.

These are the characters in Lord and Lady Westing's Will:

• • Alex Harper – Flighty socialite
  • Camille Perroquet – famous French detective
  • Ethel Collins – Lord and Lady Westing's cook
  • Francesca Marcuzzi – elegant Italian viscountess and widow
  • Frank Norris – Lord and Lady Westing's gamekeeper
  • Georgie King – Wealthy American big game hunter
  • Grace Stevens – charming and youthful American heiress
  • Helen Trout – middle-class London shopkeeper
  • Jack McGritt – grizzled, no-nonsense American private investigator
  • Lord Jimmy Vaughn – charming and frivolous second son of a Duke
  • Marion Miles – world-renowned mystery writer, creator of the Dash Hamlet and Agnetha Mistie novels
  • Max Kuchler – powerful Swiss arms manufacturer
  • Morgan Vey – well-known German hypnotist and psychologist
  • Natalya Sudakova – talented ballerina from the Soviet Union
  • Superintendent Charles Stone – respected and solid officer of the Metropolitan Police
  • William Smyth – Lord and Lady Westings' loyal lawyer

How Freeform Games Murder Mysteries Work

Lord and Lady Westing's Will is unlike many murder mystery games. Although the game starts with a murder, some of the characters have more important things to do than to investigate it. And the killing may not be over – it's not certain that everyone will survive the remainder of the evening!

Lord and Lady Westing's Will is played just like a murder mystery game. You may be trying to solve the murder, but primarily you are (initially at least) concentrating on your own goals and objectives. Unlike most boxed murder mystery games, Lord and Lady Westing's Will lets you decide how to achieve your goals and thwart your enemies.

On the evening of the game the guests are met by the organizer, the Westings' butler/housekeeper, and welcomed to Chateauhouse. They then receive their detailed backgrounds – including dark secrets, objectives and money. The fun then begins as they form alliances, blackmail each other, steal items and maybe even try to attack one another! Depending on what the players choose to do, there are several different possible endings, but finally everyone finds out how they did, and what secrets everyone else was concealing.

Extra characters

Sometimes you have too many guests and you need more characters. So we've written a free extra character for each of our games that you can add in, and some of our customers have created their own characters for their parties and are kindly willing to share them.

• • 'Ginger' Roberts – freelance reporter in search of the Big Story. (Any)
    (by Freeform Games)
  • Sam Doubloon – collector of antiquities (Any)
    (by Freeform Games)

Please note that we haven't always tested these – and they may not tie in exactly with our games.