You are head of a family in an Italian city-state, a city run by a weak and corrupt court. You need to manipulate, bluff and bribe your way to power. Your object is to destroy the influence of all the other families, forcing them into exile. Only one family will survive...
In Coup, you want to be the last player with influence in the game, with influence being represented by face-down character cards in your playing area.
Take it in turns to claim you have a certain character and perform the action, however you can lie and are fine unless someone calls you out successfully. If they are wrong however, they lose a character instead of you!