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Here's what people have been saying about Spellbound:
"Thought you might like to know how Spellbound went. We played it this last Saturday and I think it went well over all. This is our family's third one of your games we have played in the past year! Bottom line, everyone had a fun night. Thanks for providing great games. Keep it up! "
Cindy Haacke, Utah, USA
"Spellbound on Sunday was an immense success!! An exciting afternoon/evening of scheming, betrayal, intrigue, plot twists, magic, and mayhem! I don't think my neighbors were quite prepared for all the folks running around in cloaks and robes hurling spells at each other, or lurking around corners!
My players are already clamoring for a sequel! If you haven't tried one of Freeform Games mysteries (or if you have, and are looking for another), Spellbound comes with the highest possible recommendation that I (and my players) can give!"
Nathanial McConnell, USA
If you would like to tell us how your party went, please click here to send us your story.
Spellbound – a magical murder mystery game for 13 to 17 guests and one or two hosts 
Costs £20.00 (about 30.2 US dollars)
Written by Lisa Perez
Download the free
introductory file
Spellbound is a dinner party murder mystery game for 13 to 17 guests and one or two hosts – download the free introductory pdf file.
Join us in an enchanted evening of magic, mayhem, and mystery! 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 Spellbound? It's up to you.
Spellbound
Welcome to the Tremaine School of Magic, which is located within an ancient British castle. The castle is built at the top of a cliff and is miles from the nearest town or city. Students and Professors live in the castle during the school year, but today is the last day of school before summer break.
Last night, someone painted a red X on the Headmaster's door. This morning Professor Bennet, the Headmaster, woke up unable to remember anything. Not even his own name! Parents are convinced that the school is under some sort of magical attack, and the professors have announced that if the culprit is not caught, the school will close and will not reopen next year. Professor Riley Karlsen, the most senior teacher, is overseeing investigations. No-one may leave the school grounds before the end of the school day. Anyone caught doing so will be presumed guilty and detained for questioning.
Even with all of that going on, today is still the dreaded day of finals. Each professor will give an exam and grade the students' performance, and a full scholarship will be awarded to the student with the highest grades.
Let's hope the students' memories are working better than the unfortunate Professor Bennet's!
Read Spellbound
stories See Spellbound
pictures Read the
Sorcerer's Scoop
Spellbound 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 list of all the characters, a copy of The Sorcerer's Scoop, and the exam regulations – plus details of how to buy the game.
These are the characters in Spellbound:
- Angela McIntosh – A smart, studious girl
- Blair Jones – A fun-loving, friendly student; the class clown
- Casey Lansing – A rebellious rule-breaker
- Dave White – A smart, studious boy
- Detective Alex Rogers – Detective Stephens's partner, also investigating the case
- Detective Kerry Stephens – The head detective investigating the case
- Erick Bennet – The son of Professor Bennet
- Jason Edwards – The most popular boy in school, dating Shantell Andersen
- Julie Andersen – The smartest girl in school, Shantell's sister
- Nina Brown – A socially awkward, quiet student
- Professor Lee Roderick – Professor of Alchemy
- Professor Riley Karlsen – Professor of Transformation
- Professor Skyler Patterson – Professor of Foretelling
- Ryan O'Callaghan – A good-looking, arrogant student
- Shantell Andersen – The most popular girl in school, Julie's sister, dating Jason Edwards
- Taylor Martin – A rich and popular student
- Veronica Olsen – A rich and popular student, best friends with Shantell
| Number of guests | Male characters | Female characters | Characters that can be played by either sex |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| 15 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| 16 | 4 | 5 | 7 |
| 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 |
How Freeform Games Murder Mysteries Work
Spellbound is unlike many murder mystery games. Although the game starts with the attack on Professor Bennet, most of the characters have more important things to do than to investigate it. And the attacks may not be over – no-one is safe!
Spellbound 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, Spellbound 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 Librarian, and welcomed to the Tremaine School of Magic. 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.
Please note that we haven't tested these and they may not tie in exactly with our games.
IMPORTANT – if you've bought the game, you can download the files for these characters from the download page where you got your main game files. Contact us if you need the link and password to get back to that page.
- 'Ginger' Roberts – freelance reporter in search of the Big Story. (M/F)
(by Freeform Games) - Harley Garrick – school groundskeeper (M/F)
(by Nathanial McConnell)
Purchasing Spellbound
Spellbound costs £20.00 (GB pounds). That works out at about US$30.2 at today's exchange rate, although the rate charged by your credit card may vary slightly.
To purchase Spellbound, follow these three steps.
Step 1: Download the free introductory pdf file. You will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to read this. If you do not already have Acrobat Reader, click here.
Step 2: Read our terms and conditions of purchase. Then come back here and click on the button to buy the game!
Step 3: Our orders are processed by WorldPay – we don't actually see your credit card details. After you have entered your credit card details you will be emailed the location of the main pdf files, plus the password required to unlock them. You can then download those files and enjoy the game!
Or, buy now!
Cards we accept
We accept the following credit and debit cards:
Cast Iron Guarantee
We offer a Cast Iron Guarantee on all our murder mystery games. If you're not completely satisfied with Spellbound then please let us know within 30 days and we will refund you.