Hex Master

**With the Necronomicon:**
You cannot find evidence of wrongdoing. Your target seems innocent.

When the **Hex Master** was a child, her grandmother was burned at the stake on suspicion of witchcraft. As her belongings were being confiscated, one object caught the Hex Master's attention. It was a worn out book. Skimming through it, she could tell it was in her grandmother's handwriting. It was a guide on curses!

Something awakened in her that day. Exploring the book became an obsession, consuming every aspect of her life. The townspeople's jeering of her seclusion only added fuel to her passion.

Only one entry in the book eluded her powers. A hex of mass destruction. Every night she sneaked to her grandmother's tombstone to attempt the curse. She knew of another sorceress who practiced at the cemetery, but she felt performing the spell at her grandmother's grave was the only way she'd ever successfully complete it.

"Damn!"

The spell fizzled into dust. The rats' beady eyes felt as if they were taunting her. A fresh wave of grievance came over her. She grabbed one of the rats and flung it across the clearing.

It landed by the grave the Necromancer was reanimating, disrupting her concentration. Startled, she moved to where the Hex Master was working. The Necromancer watched as she raised a hand towards her furry subject and recited an incantation towards a rat. She meticulously went through this process for each one.

Upon hexing the final rat, strength began to flow through her fingers. It manifested itself as a soft purple glow. It slowly evolved to a large flame on her palm. Her hand recoiled slightly, and the flame trembled. She calmed it back to rest in the middle of her palm. Moments later, the group of rodents' hair collectively stood on end. She took a deep breath and snapped her fingers. The blaze instantly left her hand and engulfed the rats, erasing them from existence.

The Necromancer made a noise of surprise and stepped out from behind her cover. "Who are you?"

She rose from the cold dirt and turned to face the Necromancer, who stared at the ashes in disbelief.
Her devilish smile accurately conveyed the joy she felt finally executing this curse.

"I'm the... Hex Master." (credit)

## Mechanics

 File:SpecialLabel Hexed.png  The Hex Master is a role with the ability to **Hex** one player each night. When all the non-Coven players left alive have been **Hexed**, all **Hexed** players will die in an Unstoppable Attack.

* If you die the same night you use your final **Hex**, the wipeout will still occur.
* You will still use your final hex even if you are role blocked.
* A Necromancer can trigger a final hex if they reanimate your body to **Hex** the final non-Coven member.
* It is not required to hex the Town Traitor for your final **Hex** to go off.
* Hexing a player *cannot* be intercepted by a Bodyguard. If you visit a trapped target, you will trigger a Trap but not die from it.
* The Unstoppable Attack will not trigger Veteran alerts.
* If a Coven member ends up **Hexed** due to a Transporter or formerly being an Amnesiac, they will die to your large attack.

* Players are not told that they are **Hexed** until it kills them.
* **Hexed** players will appear as suspicious to the Sheriff and as part of the occult to the Occultist. They will also show up under the Hex Master's results to an Investigator and Consigliere.
* With the Necronomicon, your targets will not only be **Hexed** but will also be dealt a Basic Attack. In addition to this, your ability becomes Astral, meaning your ability will no longer be considered a visit.
	+ For example, you will not die to a Werewolf that attacks your target; your attack will ignore a Bodyguard's guarding, nor will a Lookout detect your visit.
	+ Even with the Necronomicon, your attacks still hex people; you can use this to kill people who have a form of defense (whether temporary or permanent), provided you hex everyone else.

## Strategy

* Claiming Investigator or Sheriff is a good idea because **Hexed** targets have their investigation results changed to yours. Listing your **Hexed** targets and then claiming that they were/are **Hexed** can be a good idea. Be wary of experienced players as they may notice that all your results are of **Hexed** people and call you out for it. You may wish to mix in a few other results as well, and only use hexed results when you cannot fill up your Last Will.
	+ You can also claim anything you want because your **Hexed** targets have the same investigation results as you, and you will look **Hexed** to an investigative role.
		- But beware, as Spies will notice that the Coven hasn't visited you unless the Transporter or Potion Master interferes. Also, if you have the Necronomicon, the Sheriff will find you to be not suspicious, which is what shouldn't appear if you are **Hexed**.
		- If there is also a Potion Master, you should communicate with them about the players they've revealed, and add that into your Investigator will.
* Claiming Bodyguard is also a good strategy because you can get away with saying that Bodyguard can't intercept the Hex Master's attacks. Since it is the only Town Protective role that will not do anything to you (regardless if you have the Necronomicon), it makes a good fake claim.
	+ Be mindful that a Lookout, Tracker, or Trapper can see that you didn't visit as you claim.
* Acting like a Jester when you obtain the Necronomicon is not a bad idea. You share the same investigative results as a Jester, appear innocent just like a Jester does, and will not appear to visit anyone.
	+ This can backfire if a Jailor or Vigilante chooses to kill you, or the Town wants to give you the win.
* Don't go up or down the list starting from top or bottom, as these players are often targeted by other killing roles, or worse, protected by a Crusader. Picking random people with a name that doesn't stand out means you'll be able to win much easier. You rely on your targets surviving in order to cast the final spell.
* Keep track of the people you have **Hexed** and share it with the Coven members. Kill the ones who are not **Hexed** to end the game quickly.
* As the rest of the Coven are also capable of killing, ask your Coven to not attack the people you've **Hexed** in order to not perform any useless work. Conversely, avoid hexing people that the rest of the Coven is likely to want to kill before the endgame.
* When choosing who to hex, some Arsonist strategies may be relevant since the roles are similar in changing investigative results and being able to deal an Unstoppable Attack to all affected targets.
	+ Unlike an Arsonist, you *must* hex all non-Coven for your final **Hex** to go off. Therefore, it often makes sense to hex confirmed Survivors and Jesters, at least if the Town seems unlikely to kill them for you. This also includes Pirates, Amnesiacs, Executioners, and Guardian Angels.
* Choose people who you think will live the longest. Remember, when every living non-Coven player becomes **Hexed**, an Unstoppable Attack happens, purging the rest of the players in the late game. Even if there are 3 people that oppose you, if you guessed that they were going to live until the end of the game and **Hexed** them earlier, you could still finish them off, which would ensure your victory.
* Bear in mind that your hex will not kill Pestilence, as it has Invincible Defense. You will die if you target him without the Necronomicon or without a form of protection.
	+ The only situation where it makes sense to deliberately hex Pestilence is if you have everyone else **Hexed** and are certain there will be enough Coven left to lynch him the next morning since even though it won't kill him, hexing him is still a requirement to set off your hexes on everyone else; if you have the Necronomicon, you can even hex him without dying yourself since you will have an Astral attack.
* Use Astral to your advantage. Being Astral means you do not have to worry about being killed by the Town Protectives, roles that rampage, the Ambusher or be busted by Lookouts or Trackers. You can even safely attack a Veteran; if they don't alert, they'll die, and if they do, you'll survive and they will be **Hexed**.
* Just because you *can* kill people once you have the Necronomicon doesn't necessarily mean you *should*; you can still hex people with protection instead. If the Town seems directionless and passive, it can make more sense to target rival night immune killers instead of people you can kill immediately and either rely on other Coven to kill the rest or hope that the rival killers will take them out for you.
* It's best to keep your role under the radar, as once the town knows a Hex Master, finding you will be one of their top priorities. The best way to stay hidden is to keep your fellow Coven alive as well. Bear in mind this strategy is completely useless if the role list completely shows your role.
* A Necromancer can help you hex people if you are an Amnesiac that remembered Hex Master. The previous Hex Master(s) body can be reanimated to hex someone.
* If you are an Amnesiac who remembered Hex Master, it is important to find out who has already been **Hexed**. Try asking your new Coven teammates.
* Your hexes, along with being gateways for an Unstoppable attack, also function as permanent Frames. Use this to your advantage, as you should try hexing people who are likely to be checked by a Sheriff or an Investigator.

## Trivia

* The Hex Master is the only Coven role that can directly kill a Neutral Killing role other than the Medusa.
* Prior to Version 3.2.4, the Hex Master must have survived the night in order to perform their final hex on all non-Coven players.
* The symbol of the Hex Master's hexes resemble the “文” (wén) character in Chinese.

## History

* 3.2.4
	+ Hex Master can now deal their Unstoppable Attack if they **Hex** their final target the same Night the Hex Master dies.
	+ Temporary Defense given by certain roles through game mechanics now give attackers the message "Your target's defense was too strong to kill.".
* 3.2.3
	+ Fixed a very complicated Trapper-Hex Master interaction that could result in a player dying to a Trap that should have previously triggered.
* 3.1.14
	+ Added Hex Master vs. Jailor (no executions remaining) stalemate detector.
* 2.5.5.12200
	+ Added a label to visually indicate **Hexed** players for the Hex Master (File:SpecialLabel Hexed.png).
	+ The Hex Master's role icon has been changed. Old one was File:Achievement Hex Master.png.
	+ Added Hex Master's circled role icon (File:RoleIcon Hex Master Circled.png).
* 2.5.1.10655
	+ Fixed Guardian Angel "target was attacked" feedback.
* 2.0.0.6582
	+ Introduced.

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