Chained Words
Keep the chain alive. Don't be the one holding the bomb.
A word chain with a hidden fuse burning underneath it — you're not just trying to think of a valid next word, you're hoping the fuse doesn't go off on your turn. The tension builds precisely because nobody, including the host, knows exactly when it will.
Objective
Take turns adding words to a chain — each one must start with the last letter (or syllable) of the previous. A hidden fuse can blow at any time and eliminate whoever is on the turn.
How to play
- At the start, a starting word is shown. Players take turns in a fixed order. On your turn, type a word that starts with the required letter or syllable.
- A hidden fuse is ticking — it can blow at any moment, even mid-round. When it does, whoever's turn it is gets eliminated and play skips to the next player.
- The game continues until only one player remains. Eliminations stack across rounds; come back next round to be the last one standing.
Scoring
The last player standing scores the most. Everyone else is ranked by how long they survived — the earlier you're eliminated, the fewer points you score.
Example round
- The starting word is 'Snake'. Ana, Ben, Cleo, and Dan play in turn order.
- Ana adds 'Elephant' (starts with the last letter of Snake). Ben adds 'Turtle'. Cleo adds 'Eagle'.
- It's Dan's turn to add a word starting with 'E' when the hidden fuse blows.
- Dan is eliminated for that round and play skips ahead to Ana, who continues the chain.
- Play continues until only Ben and Cleo remain, with Ben eventually the last player standing; Ben scores the most points that round, Cleo scores less for surviving second-longest, and Dan and Ana score the least for being eliminated earliest.
Strategy tips
- Don't stall — since the fuse can blow at any moment including mid-round, a quick confident word is safer than a long pause hunting for the perfect one.
- Keep a mental list of common letter or syllable endings you tend to get stuck on, so you're not scrambling when the chain lands on one.
- There's no way to predict the fuse, so play every turn as if it could be your last one — the strategy is really about staying calm under a timer you can't see.
- Since eliminations stack across rounds, a rough round isn't fatal to your overall standing — come back sharp for the next one rather than tilting.
Best with
Works from two players up. With a slightly larger, chatty group the suspense of 'who's it going to hit' becomes a running joke; with two, everyone gets lives instead of being knocked out, so it turns into a tense head-to-head where the bomb decides who loses a life each round.
Variations
- Agree on whether words can repeat within the same chain or must all be unique for the whole round.
- House rule: require each next word to share a full syllable with the previous one rather than just the last letter, for a harder variant.
- Set a verbal time limit per turn on top of the fuse, so slow players face two risks instead of one.
FAQ
Can the fuse go off on the very first turn?
The fuse is hidden and can blow at any moment once the round starts, including early, so there's no safe number of turns to wait out.
What happens to a player once they're eliminated?
They're out for the rest of that round while play continues among the remaining players, and their survival time still counts toward that round's scoring.
Do eliminations carry over between rounds?
Eliminations reset each round — everyone gets a fresh chance to be the last one standing next round, with points ranked by how long each player survives.