Sunday, September 21, 2008

Who Dun It in Cattle Skull?

As I mentioned in my post on Friday, we were invited to a dinner party on Saturday where we would try to figure out who killed Major Dupont. This was our first 'mystery party' and weren't really sure what to expect.

Mr. Fix-It was less than thrilled with the prospect of 'playing' a game at dinner. He's usually up for a board game or card game...but this game wasn't really high on his list of fun possibilities. As it all worked out, we had a great time.

Our scenario was set in the Old West town of Cattle Skull, which is right down the road from Buzzard Butt. We had a Sheriff who was really an outlaw (Blue Barney); Stella (me) who's daddy had been killed by the Major; Clive, a slimy lawyer; Hope, a gal who longed for the big city and had been spurned by the Major, but made great apple pie; Bea, who owned a big ranch that included a seemingly worthless mine; Ace, a drifter who's been sneaking around Bea's property and the silver mine, but also has a hankering for Hope's apple pie; He Who Runs, an indian who seems to know way too much about a lot of things; Sabrina, the school marm who has an axe to grind with the Major, but wouldn't have killed his dog; Bill, is the long lost sister of Sabrina but can't remember it; and Slash who was an outlaw secretly in love with Hope, who wanted to kill Major Dupont because he had 'slashed' him with his sword...in the butt. There was also wayyyyy too many different maps lurking about.

Our hostess provided a marvelous dinner and yummy dessert. We spent the entire dinner asking each other questions, trying to figure out who would have the audicity to kill the much hated Major Dupont. This was a bit awkward at first because we didn't all have our parts memorized as well as others. But after a bit, everyone really got into the spirit of things. The only person allowed to 'lie' about their character was the murderer...but we didn't know all of each other's story, so we never really knew who was lying and who wasn't. It was a very tangled web that was weaved.

Not to brag or anything (that would be something Lea or the Princess would do....) but when all was said and done, yours truly picked the murderer...sort of. I said it was either _____ or _____, I couldn't decide on which one. My second choice was the right one. I think I'm the only one who specifically chose the right one. If not perfect, at least I was really, really close! I'm not going to tell you 'who dun it' because you might want to play this same game some day and that would just ruin it for you! You know me, always protecting my readership!

My friend who hosted this party found all the materials on the web. We think it's a homeschool family that puts them together. You can find a bunch of games here, if you're interested. Their games are G-rated. Some games are for all boys, some for all girls, but most for a mixture of people. I highly recommend this idea for your next party...as long as you invite me!

Stay tuned!


5 Click here to Comment!:

Anonymous said...

we did one of those mystery parties for my daughter's 13th birthday party. it was so much fun! and you are right... i would have totally bragged!

Michelle @ Sew-Krafty said...

I love this! My girls and I are such crazy mystery lovers. I'm thinking about one of these for Peach's 14th B-day party!
Thanks.

Mamajil said...

very cool!! Millie wants a Nancy Drew mystery birthday party...I will have to check out this link and see if I can find something there to incorporate into a 10 year old b'day...

Laura said...

Thanks for the awesome idea! Sounds like loads of fun.

Kelley said...

I've heard of these but have never been a part of one. Sounds like a blast!