rules overview

video
 OVERVIEW
Two covert operatives are on a secret mission in a crowded city. Each knows 9 secret agents
that the other must contact. Communicating in coded messages, they sneak past enemy assassins
in an attempt to complete their mission before time runs out.
Codenames: Duet is a cooperative word game for two or more players.
A key card gives you 9 words to give clues for and 3 words your partner must avoid.
A clue is only one word, but it can point to multiple words that you want your
partner to guess. Your partner also gives you clues for the words you need to find.
If you both find all the words before you run out of turns, you both win.

These rules describe a two-player game,

but adding more players is easy. Details are on page 11.

SETUP
one
9 timer tokens player 25 word
15 agent in the time bank cards
cards

1 assassin card the other a key card

player in the stand
IMPORTANT! You and your partner sit on opposite sides of the table. (If you sit on the same side,
the key card will not work.)
Shuffle the word cards and deal 25 at random into a 5 × 5 grid, as shown.
Place the green agent cards and the assassin card where both players can reach them.
Place 9 timer tokens bystander side up beside the word grid, as shown above. This forms the time bank.
Leave 2 timer tokens in the box. Only 9 tokens are used in the standard game. However,
this game is quite challenging. A 10th or 11th token can be added to make it a little easier.
These extra tokens are colored blue to remind you to use only 9 in the standard setup.
Set the plastic stand beside the word grid. Shuffle the deck of key cards and draw one at random.
Place the key card in the plastic stand so that each player sees only one side of the card. The card
should be wider than it is tall, as shown above. Either wide edge can be on top.
Tip: If you hold the deck vertically and draw from the middle, then you will see only your own side
of the card.
2
DUET KEY CARDS
Each game has 1 double-
sided key card. On your side Give clues for
of the card, 9 words are the green words.
marked in green. These are Avoid clues that
the words you want your might lead to the
partner to guess. three assassins.
You also see 3 assassins Try to avoid
marked in black. If your innocent bystanders.
partner guesses one of
these words, you both immediately
lose the game.
The other words are innocent
bystanders – people who get in
the way. If your partner guesses
one of these words it is an
incorrect guess.
Your partner also sees 9 green
words and 3 black words, but they
are mostly different words. Your partner will give you clues for the words
that are green on the side of the card that you can't see.

GOAL
You both win if you can find all 15 words in nine turns or less.
Note: You are each giving clues for 9 green words, and 9 + 9 is more than 15, but some words appear
green from both sides. Details are on the back page.

IF YOU KNOW CODENAMES

If you already know Codenames, you still
need to learn these rules. The core idea
is the same, but most of the details are
different.
The key card is double-sided so you and
your partner can take turns giving each
other clues. Timer tokens are used to
limit your number of turns. And a word
that looks like a green agent on your
side of the key card might be something
completely different on turns when you
are the guesser.
3
 GAME PLAY
Start the game by looking for a clue that will • If your partner touches a word that you see
lead to two or more green words. Your partner as green, that is a correct guess. Cover it
will also be looking for a clue for words that are with a green agent card. Your partner has
marked green on the other side of the card. made contact with one of your agents and
you are one step closer to winning the game.
GIVING A CLUE (Note: You cover a green word with a green
A clue is one word and one number. The agent card even if it wasn't one of the words
number tells how many words on the table you meant. Do not let your partner know.
relate to the word in the clue.
You should act like you meant that word.)
For example, Weather: 2 might be a good clue
• If your partner touches a word you see as
for STORM and RAINBOW.
black, that is an assassin. The game is
The word in your clue cannot be one of the over and you both lose. Your partner went
words visible on the table. So in the example
above, storm: 2 would be an invalid clue. down a dark alley looking for a contact and
Rain: 2 would also be invalid because rain is got caught by the assassins.
part of RAINBOW. Full details are on page 10. • If your partner touches a word you see
It is legal to give a clue for only one word, but as tan, mark it with a timer token. Take
you will have to give some clues for two if you a token from the time bank and place it on
want to win the game. A successful clue for the word card, bystander side up, with the
three or more words is a big accomplishment. arrow pointing from you to your partner.
This indicates that when you gave a clue,
The First Clue your partner guessed this word and ran
Either player may give the first clue.
into an innocent bystander. Do not cover
Let's suppose you find a good one while your
partner is still looking, so you offer to give the the word. This still
first clue.
BUCKET BRICK ANT might be a word that
LEMONADE RUSSIA

your LEMONA
partner DEwants
You say a word andBRICK
BUCKET a number … and nothingANT RUSSIA

else. Now your partner tries to figure out which you to guess.
words you meant. Running into an innocent bystander ends the
turn immediately, and running into an assassin
MAKING A GUESS
CAVE FIDDLE VAMPIRE TATTOO RANCH
ends the game. On the other hand, finding
On a
CAVE turn when youFIDDLE VAMPIRE
give the clue, your partner TATTOO
a green word gives your partner RANCH
a chance for
will make guesses. Your partner takes time to another guess.
look at all the words on the table. Then he or
she makes a guess by touching one of the word
One Clue, Multiple Guesses
LOCU ST RIFLE VIRUS
Your partner can make another guess if the
IGLOO MAKEUP
cards.
LOCUST RIFLE VIRUS
first guess IGLOO
was correct. (You MAK
do EUP
not give
another clue.) The second guess is made the
same way as the first, and you mark the word
according to the same rules. If that guess is
POTTER CAESAR NAPOLEON
correct, your partner can guess again. And
GOLF PINE

POTTER CAESAR NAPOLE ON again. Your GOL

partner
F can make an unlimited
PINE
number of correct guesses.
Ideally, your partner will find all the words
indicated by your clue. Of course, it doesn't
always work out that way.
DOLL LUNC H SKATES CRAFT PEW

DOLL LUNCH SKATES CRAFT PEW

4
END OF THE TURN if your partner guessed a bystander, you should
have marked it so that the arrow on the token
Each turn has exactly one clue and at least one
points from you to your partner. Here is what
guess. Assuming you don't run into an assassin,
can happen if you guess that word:
there are two ways a turn can end:
• Your partner might see it as an assassin, in
• A wrong guess ends the turn. If your
which case you lose the game.
partner touches an innocent bystander,
you mark it with a timer token from the • Your partner might see it as an inno-
time bank and the turn ends. cent bystander, in which case your part-
ner marks it with a second timer token,
• After one or more correct guesses, your
with the arrow pointing toward you. The
partner may choose to end the turn by
timer tokens should be arranged to cover
taking a timer token from the time bank.
the word, since neither of you can guess
The token is kept checkmark side up in
it again.
front of your partner.
• Your partner might see it as a green agent,
A turn always uses up a timer token. The
in which case your partner covers it with
number of timer tokens left in the time bank is
the number of turns (and the number of clues) a green agent card. The timer token should
left in the game. be put on top of the agent card to remind
you of what happened on the earlier turn.
If everything goes well, your partner will guess
as many words as you indicated by your clue Using Clues from Earlier Turns
and then stop. But your partner may choose You might not find all the words related to your
to quit early. It is also legal for your partner partner's first clue. Maybe your turn ended early
to take additional wild guesses, but we don't because of a wrong guess, or maybe you chose
recommend it. to end it early because you weren't willing to
risk running into an assassin.
NEXT TURN When it is your turn to guess, keep previous
You and your partner will take turns giving clues in mind. You are not required to guess
clues. So if you gave the clue on the first turn, words related to the current clue. You can
your partner gives the clue for the next turn. guess words related to any clue you have been
When you are guessing, only your given. Sometimes you might want to guess the
partner's side of the key card is relevant. The words you are most sure of first, even if they do
words your partner wants you to guess could not relate to the current clue.
appear green, tan, or even black on your side. This is also important to keep in mind when
You should focus on the words and ignore the you are thinking up clues. Your partner will have
key card. another chance to guess a word he or she missed
A word that is covered by a green agent card on your first clue, so it might not be necessary to
does not need to be guessed anymore. In give another clue for that same word.
particular, if you guess a word that looks green
from both sides of the card, your partner will GUESSING THE LAST WORD
cover it, and neither of you will give clues for it If all 9 words that you see as green have
anymore. (If this happens, do not tell your partner been covered by agent cards, tell your partner
that you were also giving clues for that word.) that he or she has no words left to guess. Your
A word marked by a timer token might need partner will be the one who gives clues on all
to be guessed by the other player. For example, remaining turns.

5
 EXAMPLE OF PLAY

You have the words and key card shown here. It is your turn again. You say miniature: 2, hoping
You have a good clue for 3, so you offer to to get DOLL and ANT. Your partner touches
start. You say salad: 3. DOLL. You cover it with a green agent card.
Your partner touches RANCH, because ranch She's not sure about the other miniature word,
dressing can go on a salad. You cover RANCH but she has figured out that you might eat
with a green agent card. Confident she has the a salad for lunch. She touches LUNCH. You mark
right idea, she touches RUSSIA, because she just it with a green agent card. Her hand hovers over
learned how to make Russian dressing. LEMONADE, something else you might have
The incorrect guess ends the turn. You mark at lunch. Your stomach tightens, because that
RUSSIA with a timer token, bystander side up. word is an assassin, but you act calm, as though
The arrow points from you to your partner. it would not bother you at all for her to pick
that word. Fortunately, she remembers there is
It is now your partner's turn to give a clue.
something called a Caesar salad. She touches
After some thought, she says Waterloo: 2. You
CAESAR, and you cover it with a green agent
touch NAPOLEON and she marks the word with
card. You do not sigh with relief, because that
a green agent. That word happened to be green
would give too much away. She touches ANT.
on your side, too, but you don't tell her that. The
You cover ANT with a green agent card.
other word for Waterloo is hard to find. Maybe
your partner thinks the Battle of Waterloo Your partner ends the turn by taking a timer
happened in Russia? token from the time bank. You have 6 turns left
You touch RUSSIA. Your partner marks it with and the board looks like this:
a green agent card. It already has a timer token,
so she puts this on top of the agent card. You
have no reason to take a wild guess, so you take
a timer token from the time bank and place it in
front of you with the checkmark side up.
(Your partner was actually giving a clue for
NAPOLEON and RIFLE. But RUSSIA was also
green on her side of the card, so it counts as
a correct guess. She is not supposed to give any
of this information away, so she acts as though
RUSSIA was exactly the word she meant.)
6
 ENDING THE GAME
CLEAR VICTORY SUDDEN DEATH
Once all green words from both sides of the card If you have used up your last timer token and
have been guessed, both players win the game! there are still words to be guessed, it is time for
There are 15 agent cards and 15 words to the sudden death turn.
guess. (There are 9 on each side, but 3 overlap.) No one gives any more clues. You have no
So you win when the last agent card is placed. more time. The sudden death turn just allows
Of course, there are other possible endings: you to use all the information you already have
in one last attempt to win the game.
ASSASSIN If only one player has words left to guess, that
If either player guesses a word that the other player is the guesser. If you both have words
player sees as black, your team has been caught left, you are both guessers. You can make your
by the assassins and you both lose. guesses in any order, and you do not have to
take turns, but you are not allowed to discuss
a guessing strategy.
Guesses should be made one at a time and
marked in the usual way. For example, when
your partner touches a word, your side of the
key card determines whether the guess is
correct or not.
A wrong guess in sudden death ends the
game – both players lose, even if the guess was
just an innocent bystander.
If all your guesses are correct and you find the
last green agent, you both win!

LIMITED COMMUNICATION
Your information should be limited to what you can deduce from each other's clues. If you comment
on your guess, don't give away any information about your side of the key card. If you guess a word
that your partner marks as a green agent, do not tell your partner what that word looks like on your
side. Do not give your partner advice on when to stop guessing, and do not tell your partner how many
words are left to guess unless all the words you see as green have been covered by green agent cards.

YOU ARE READY TO PLAY YOUR FIRST MISSION!

Afterwards, turn the page and tell us how you did.

7
 DEBRIEFING – HOW DID IT GO?
YOU MET AN ASSASSIN YOU WON A STANDARD
Yeah, this happens. You lost. That's what the 9-TOKEN MISSION
assassins are paid for. You can just flip all the
Awesome! You did great, and you are ready for
word cards over (or deal a new set), draw a new
anything!
key card, and try again.
The section on the facing page explains how
Before giving a clue, always check the three
to use the mission map to find new challenges.
assassins. Try to avoid a clue that could lead to
The various missions require different skill levels
one of those words. Careful players can avoid
and strategies.
the assassins … usually … sometimes.
Of course, you can also play the standard
Good luck!
9-token mission again. With so many key
cards and words, each game will be completely
different.
YOU RAN OUT OF TIME
Your sudden death turn ended on an incorrect Scoring a 9-Token Mission
guess and you failed to contact all your agents. Some games are a struggle where you run into
Do not give up – flip the word cards over (or deal lots of bystanders and have to use your sudden
a new set), draw a new key card, and try again. death turn to pull out a victory. Other games you
To succeed, most of your clues need to connect might win in only 7 or 8 turns. You can evaluate
two or more words. Don't be afraid to give clues how well you did by counting up your score:
that are a bit of a stretch. Your partner knows
• Give yourselves 3 points for each timer to-
that not every clue will be a perfect match. Just
ken left in the time bank. (But do not for-
beware of the assassins.
get that you also used a token on the last,
If you consistently run out of time, consider victorious turn.)
adding a 10th or 11th timer token. Maybe you
need to practice on an easier mission before • Give yourselves 1 point for each timer to-
tackling the tougher challenges. ken that a player took when ending a turn
after a correct guess.
• Subtract 1 point if you needed the sudden
YOU WON A MISSION death turn to win.
WITH 10 OR 11 TOKENS If you score more than 5 points, that's really
good. A score of 9 or 10 is awesome. And if you
Great! You played with some extra timer tokens,
can score more than 10, you
but you contacted all your agents while avoiding
really should give the
the assassins. Mission complete!
mission map a try.
We hope you enjoyed the game. You can play it
this way again, or you can try it with 9 tokens.
It may be tough, and you might need several
attempts or a bit of luck, but it feels great to
beat that mission!

8
 MISSION MAP
So, you just successfully completed a standard USING THE TIMER TOKENS
9-token mission? Congratulations!
If the guesser chooses to stop guessing after
(If you have not done that yet, keep trying.
one or more correct guesses, he or she takes
Return here when you succeed.)
a checkmark-side-up token from the time bank.
Moscow Your team is ready for
If only bystander-side-up tokens are left, the
Yakutsk
London Berlin 8 –8
10–2 11–2 more challenging missions. 8 –4
guesser takes one of these instead and places it
Take one of the mission
checkmark side up on his or her side of the table.
Paris Prague
11–0 Monte Carlo 9–9 maps from the pad.Tokyo
If the turn ends by guessing a bystander, the clue
8 –1
9 –0 (There are multiple copies,
Madrid giver takes a bystander-side-up token from the
Shanghai
10–0 Baghdad so you can play missions 7 –4
Vatican City time bank and uses it to mark the incorrect guess,
8–5 with various teams.) Write
8 –0
Dubai
your as usual. However, once you are out of bystander-
7–5 names in the 6Team
Casablanca Hong Kong
9 –3 Cairo box and then mark side-up tokens, wrong guesses are penalized. In
–4
the
Bangkok
9 –5
circleMumbai
labeled this case, you mark a bystander by removing two
Prague.
7–7 You
6 –5
checkmark-side-up tokens and flipping them
have just completed the
Singapore
over to mark the bystander. The mistake costs you
Prague 9–9 mission!
6 –6
two turns instead of one.
Sydney
e Janeiro Now you are free to take any mission connected
Cape Town 9 –1
7 –3 (The stack of two tokens
to 10Prague.
–1 (Your choices are Berlin, Cairo, or
BUCKET BRICK ANT LEMONADE RUSSIA

Moscow.)
BUCKET Here's what theBRICK is treated LEMONAD
numbers next to each the sameE as
ANT RUSSIA

mission mean: a single token.)

Of course, if someone guesses an assassin, the
MISSION PARAMETERS
CAVE FIDDLE
timer tokens are irrelevant – you lose.
VAMPIRE TATTOO RANCH

Each mission has two parameters. The first If a turn uses up your last token or your last two
CAVE FIDDLE VAMPIRE TATTOO RANCH
number is the total number of turns. When tokens, you play a sudden-death turn, as usual.
setting up a mission, put this many tokens in the However, if a turn causes you to use up more
time bank and leave the rest in the box. Moscow tokens than you have, you lose immediately.
uses only 8, while Berlin uses all 11. Cairo This will happen only when you have 1 timer
LOCU ST RIFLE VIRUS IGLOO MAKEUP

usesLOCU
9, ST
just like the standard
RIFLE Prague mission.
VIRUS
token left, itIGLOO
is checkmark sideMAKup,EUPand the
The second number is the number of acceptable guessing side guesses a bystander.
mistakes. Only this many tokens are bystander
side up. The rest are flipped to the checkmark
CONTINUING ON
side. When setting up Cairo, for example, only 5 When you win a mission in Berlin, Moscow, or
POTTER CAESAR NAPOLEON GOLF PINE

of the CAESAR
9 tokens will be bystander
POTTER
side up: NAPOLEONCairo, mark itGOLF as complete. More PINE
missions are
unlocked. You can continue outward along any
Cairo 9–5 9 timer tokens total unlocked line.
DOLL LUNC H Different missions require different strategies.
SKATES CRAFT PEW

For some, you will need a very careful approach.

DOLL LUNC H SKATES CRAFT PEW
Others reward bold clues and aggressive guessing.
5 acceptable mistakes
Use the mission map the way that is the most
Moscow 8–8, Bangkok 7–7, and Singapore fun for you. Perhaps you will find a few favorite
6–6 are just like the standard mission, but with missions and replay them again and again.
fewer tokens. For the other missions, you have Perhaps you will push outward, trying to complete
a limited number of acceptable mistakes. them all. The lines under the map can be used to
keep notes on your failures and successes.

If you use up all your maps, you can print more! Download the PDF from czechgames.com.

9
 VALID AND INVALID CLUES
Some clues are invalid because they violate the look up the French word for FLAT. The only
spirit of the game. foreign words allowed are those you would
Your clue must be about the meaning of the use in an English-language conversation.
words. You can't use your clue to talk about (Crepe is okay.)
the letters in a word or its position on the table. Proper names are okay, as long as they are one
Middle: 1 is not a valid clue for the word in the word. So Michelangelo is a valid clue, but Leonardo
middle of the table. S: 3 is not a valid clue for da Vinci is not … unless you think it should be:
three words that begin with S.
Letters and numbers are valid clues, as long
LOOSENING UP THE RULES
as they refer to meanings. You can use one: 2 Leonardo da Vinci, IRS, New South Wales,
as a clue for METER and DOLLAR. (Hundred: 2 Boxing Day, The Lord of the Rings, moth-eaten,
might be better.) You can use B: 2 as a clue for and guinea pig might all be good clues, but they
FLAT and LETTER. (But this clue will only work break the rule that a clue must be one word.
on your musical friends.) It can be frustrating to have the perfect clue
and not be able to use it. You can choose to
The number you say after your clue can't be
relax the "one word" rule and allow multi-word
used as a clue. Hair: 5 is not a valid clue for
names, acronyms, titles, and compound words.
SHAMPOO and PENTAGON.
You can't say any form of a visible word on You might also want to allow homonyms and
the table. If HIDE is visible, you can't say hid, other word play. Boy: 2 is not strictly related to the
hidden, or rawhide. But hideous is still okay. meaning of SUN, but it could be a good clue for
A word is "visible" until it is covered by a green SUN and BROTHER. English has a long tradition
agent card or two timer tokens representing an of word play, and you should feel free to use clues
incorrect guess from each side. A word marked like this if they make the game more fun.
as an incorrect guess from only one side is still
considered visible. PENALTY FOR INVALID CLUE
You can't say part of a compound word on the If someone accidentally gives an invalid clue,
table. If EARTHQUAKE is visible, you can't say you should take a one-turn penalty by discarding
earth, quake, earthy, or quaking. But hearth and one of the timer tokens from the time bank.
ear are okay. Then the guesser should guess as though the
You are allowed to spell your clue. This can be clue were valid. (So the turn ends in the usual
helpful if you want to say knight while avoiding way, which in most cases will use up another
things related to night. timer token.) In some circumstances, an invalid
clue might give away so much information that
Accents, vocal inflections, and singing are not
you decide it's better to start over with a clean
allowed. Don't say pancake in a French accent
game, but most of the time this penalty should
as a clue for FLAT and NAPOLEON. And don't
be sufficient.

ADVANCED TECHNIQUE: THE ZERO CLUE

It is legal to give a clue for zero. For example, and your partner might even be able to see that
if you want your partner to guess ELEPHANT, SLOTH is getting in the way of an easy clue like
ANT, and MOSQUITO while avoiding the assassin animals: 3.
SLOTH, you can give a clue like lazy: 0. This will Even when your clue is for zero, your partner still
indicate that your partner should avoid SLOTH, must guess at least one word.
10
 WITH MORE THAN 2 PLAYERS
This game was designed for 2 players, but just give the clue without discussion, if you think
in playtesting we had a lot of fun with larger you have found a good one.
groups. Players should divide into two sides The guessing side may discuss their guess, but
sitting across from each other. Everyone should they should not say anything that would reveal
be able to see only one side of the key card. information about their side of the key card. As
Gameplay is the same as for a two-player always, the guess is official only when one of the
game. Anyone may give a clue, and all the guessers touches the word card.
players on the opposite side of the table
are guessers. The clue-giving side may
discuss the clue ideas, but they should
not let the other side overhear. You
can whisper, write things down,
or even leave the room, if you
want. However, discussion is not
required. Often it's easiest to

LOOSER TURN ORDER

Some of our playtesters preferred a variant where the two players do not have to take turns. You can
allow a player to give two clues in a row, if you like. But then the other player should give a clue. To
give all clues from one side before even starting to give clues from the other side is not in the spirit
of the game.

A Game by Vlaada Chvátil & Scot Eaton

Illustrations: Tomáš Kučerovský
Graphic Design: František Horálek, Filip Murmak
Words and Rulebook: Jason Holt
Playtesters: Kreten, Dita, Vítek, Ondra, Zuzka, Tomáš, Plema, Yuri, Jakub, Filip, Léňa, Katka, Vláďa,
Alne, Meysha, Matúš, Dávid, Yurri, Mišo, Lenka, dilli, Meggy, Patrik, Roneth, Fanda, Jirka Bauma,
Miloš, Yim, Pogo, Jája, Elenistar, Iva, and more awesome people from Czechgaming, Podmitrov,
Malenovice, and other Czech gaming clubs and events, Jason, Josh, Paul, Emilee, Greg, Laura, Ryan,
Lucy, William, Elizabeth, Jim, Jordan, Brad, Leigh Ann, Aron, Sarah, Stacia, Amy, Erin, Dylan, Jeff,
Kathy, Kirk, Peter, Bradley, Nelson, and lots of great gamers from Gathering of Friends, BGGcon, MisCon,
GAMA Trade Show, Baycon, Airecon, Protospiel Minnesota, Pionek, and other events worldwide.
Special thanks to: Petr Murmak, Jason Holt, Paul Grogan,
Joshua Githens, and Michal Štach for relentless presenting and
playtesting the game at gaming events. Our kids and spouses Alenka,
Hanička, Pavlík, and Marcela Chvátilovi, Kristina Eaton, Lenka
Murmaková, Sierra Stoneberg Holt, and Vicky Strickland for being
at hand whenever a new version or idea needed to be tested.
The entire CGE team (and especially Dita Lazárková and Vít Vodička) © Czech Games Edition
for keeping an eye on everything, preparing amazing prototypes, www.CzechGames.com
and still finding time to play a game of Duet here and there :)
June 2017
11
 THINGS TO REMEMBER
Each turn consists of exactly one clue and one If you have not won the game after using your
or more guesses. Your number of guesses is last timer token, you play a sudden death
unlimited as long as you keep guessing correctly. turn. Both players may guess, but no clue is
When a player touches a word, its identity depends given. If anyone makes an incorrect guess, you
only on the other player's side of the key card. lose the game.
Touching a tan word ends the turn. Touching When using the mission map, an incorrect
a black word ends the game. guess might use up two timer tokens. This
happens if you exceed the acceptable number
A word marked by a timer token for one player
of incorrect guesses. If you have only one token
may still be guessed by the other player. When
when you must give up two, you skip the
it is marked both ways, it is considered covered.
sudden death turn and lose the game.
Each turn costs you one timer token from the
You must never reveal anything about your
time bank. Either it is used by the clue giver
side of the key card, except that you must tell
to mark a bystander the guesser touches, or it
your partner when all words you see as green
is taken by the guesser to indicate he or she is
have been covered by green agent cards.
done guessing.

SECRETS OF THE KEY CARD

All key cards are designed according to this diagram. You can use this knowledge to your advantage.

COLORS AS YOUR PARTNER SEES THEM

Find these 15 words to win the game.

COLORS AS YOU SEE THEM

Of the 9 words you see as green, 3 are also green on the other side of the key card. That means
together you have only 15 words to guess. Note: Some players like to always place their agent cards
facing the guesser so they can keep track of who guessed which green words.
Of the three words you see as black, one is black, one is green, and one is tan on the other side of the
key card. This means that one word you see as black is a word you must guess. Furthermore, if you have
found the black word that is green on the other side, you should not guess the other two black words.

DUET AND OTHER EDITIONS OF CODENAMES

You can use the words from Duet in the original
version of Codenames. And you can take the words
from the original set and play Duet with them. You
can even combine both sets of word cards to get Note: You can
a set of 800 unique words to use in either version of the game. distinguish Duet cards from
The Duet key cards will also work with Codenames: Pictures, the original Codenames
if you deal out the picture cards in a 5 × 5 grid. cards by two dots.
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