Overview
Includes detailed information about what each role does, how to play it, and how to select roles as a host. INCLUDES ASSASSIN AND GRAVY.
Introduction
There are a variety of roles in Goose Goose Duck, and it is important to know and understand how each one works to play them well and to know which ones to select for your lobby as host. Below is a quick explanation of the information I’m covering for each role.
Role Group: Whether it is a goose, duck, or special avian role.
What it does: Basic description of the role.
Purpose: The purpose of the role in the larger context of the game.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: The lobby conditions in which the role feels fair.
Special Interactions: Special interactions the role has with other roles or game play mechanics.
Claim: The conditions in which you can or should claim your role to other players.
How to play: The do’s and dont’s of playing the role.
Classic Goose
- Try to stay alive.
- Finish your tasks as fast as reasonably possible.
- Look for bodies or try to identify the killers after you are done with your tasks.
Classic Duck
- Activate sabotages covertly.
- Call sabotages without making them obvious (DON’T CALL DOORS IF ANY FELLOW DUCKS ARE DEAD)
- Kill geese that the lobby has hard-cleared whenever possible, or players with threatening roles like the Sheriff, Vigilante, Medium, and Detective. Killing the special roles (Dodo, Vulture, Pigeon) is also important if you know their identity.
- Focus on clearing yourself primarily; defending your partner can be grounds for getting voted out.
- Once dead, focus on calling all the sabotages and killing geese using the airlock, or the teleporter or shuttle if on Nexus Colony.
Dodo Bird
What it does: You win if you get voted out.
Purpose: To prevent the lobby from randomly voting out an excessive number of players in an attempt to vote out the Ducks.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 8+ players
Special Interactions: Can see bodies killed by the Professional.
Claim: Almost never, as you will likely get killed by a Vigilante, Sheriff, or Duck rather than getting voted out.
How to play: Dodo is a tricky role to play because you have to make yourself suspicious enough that players want to vote it out, but if you make it obvious that you really want to be voted out they’ll know you’re the dodo. You can just hope that you get voted off as suspicion for a kill for one. Reporting a body and not talking can sometimes do the trick, as well as faking Cameras, Intercom, or any of the sabotage tasks. Knowing how your lobby reacts to certain potentially suspicious actions is key to picking the right ones to get voted out. Staying alive is the biggest key. Avoid doing suspicious things in front of the Vigilante, Sheriff, or Ducks if you know who any of them are, as they may just shoot you right there.
Vulture
What it does: You can eat corpses and must eat a certain number to win (based on the total number of players, 2-5).
Purpose: Benefits the ducks by reducing the number of meetings and removing the knowledge of where certain geese died.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ ducks and 10+ players
Special Interactions: Vultures can see and eat bodies killed by the Professional.
Claim: Almost never, as the lobby will want to get you out of the game immediately.
How to play: The two biggest keys to this role are staying alive and never letting anyone see you eat a body (unless it’s the last one you need). It is better to pass up a corpse than to be seen eating one (a mistake I’ve learned the hard way). You sort of want to stay near the center of the map at all times while still moving around a bit and still doing some tasks. If you think someone might die somewhere (such as at lights), head there, but head there late so you aren’t the one killed. Head straight for a body whenever you see it; just remember to pass it up if others are around.
Pigeon
What it does: You infect other players to make them into pigeons. Infect all living players to win. Resets each meeting. You can vent.
Purpose: Helps discourage players from grouping up and/or rounds dragging on between meetings.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 12+ players
Special Interactions: None
Claim: Never
How to play: Since you have to infect all other living players, you almost have to stay alive until there are fewer players. Just keep walking around so you can infect players as fast as possible. Keep track of who you infected as there is currently no visual (repeating colors can be helpful), although it won’t let you infect the same person in the same round twice. Avoid dangerous areas whenever possible. You can use the vents to get across the map quickly while searching for people, but make sure not to get caught venting. Complete tasks only when necessary to not look suspicious.
Gravy
What it does: A bounty of silver coins is given either to your killer or you if you stay alive the entire game. Each task you complete increases the size of the bounty. The bounty can be passed between players (Example: If the Sheriff shoots duck who killed the Gravy and the game ends, the Sheriff gets the bounty).
Purpose: Provides a moral dilemna for ducks, as killing the Gravy will get them money but might get them caught.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: Sheriff and Vigilante can claim the bounty, but they will not be able to see the icon above your head.
Claim: Anytime
How to play: Watch the movements of players around you as you go around the map. Anyone who seems to stop when you pass by or doubles back is likely a duck as only ducks can see that you’re the Gravy. You are probably going to die, so just do your best to figure out the ducks are before then. Openly admitting (or claiming) to have not done any tasks may keep the ducks from wanting to kill you.
Mechanic
What it does: You can use the vents on a cooldown (same as kill cooldown). Cooldown starts after each meeting or after you exit any vent. There is a short 1 second cooldown for moving between vents.
Purpose: Can allow Ducks to more easily be caught for venting. Alternately, it means that any player caught venting cannot immediately be identified as a Duck.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: None
Claim: At the start of the round (if you plan on hiding in the vents), or immediately after someone sees you vent or claims Mechanic. Claiming this role late in the game is a bad idea.
How to play: This is a versatile role that can be very powerful. Hiding in the vents to set up a trap (such as staying in the Security vent while one player watches cameras) is a legitimate strategy. If a sabotage is called, make sure to hop in a vent and move to the vent closest to that sabotage (lights and reactor especially). Trying to complete most or all of your tasks early before hopping in a vent can work nicely, as you should become a target once the Ducks know you’re the Mechanic.
Vigilante
What it does: You can kill any player once per game.
Purpose: Allows you to kill off a suspicious player at any point, even if the lobby is reluctant to vote them out. Lessens the impact of Vulture.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: Can claim bounty from Bounty goose. Will report Canadian.
Claim: Immediately after killing someone or after someone else claims Vigilante.
How to play: While shooting people early is fun, the chances of you shooting a bad role later in the round are better (unless you specifically seek out someone activating a sabotage early). Feel free to shoot if you are fairly sure someone is a Duck, Dodo, or Vulture, but I suggest reporting the body and claiming Vigilante. Any role the Sheriff can safely kill is also a good target for the Vigilante, although Ducks are the priority if the Sheriff is dead. If you’re using proximity chat you can also tell people to stay away from you unless they want to get shot, which is fun.
Technician
What it does: You can see approximately where sabotages were called from on your minimap (the circle lasts ~10 seconds).
Purpose: To make ducks be more conscious about when and where they call sabotages.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Almost any (less effective in lobbies with blind ducks)
Special Interactions: None
Claim: Anytime
How to play: Inform other players of where sabotages were called from at meetings (don’t call meetings to relay this information unless you know who it is based on that info). Keep in mind that this role is PRIMARILY useful if ALL ducks are alive, as the map shows sabotages called by duck ghosts as well. Late game technician information must be used with more than a grain of salt. If you see sabotages coming from Cargo Bay (SS Mother Goose/Black Swan) late in the game, it’s probably a duck ghost.
Medium
What it does: Allows you to know the number of ghosts on a cooldown.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: None
Claim: Anytime
How to play: Make sure to pay attention to how many players are dead at each meeting so that when you use your ability you can figure out if anyone has died (or any number above 0 before the first meeting). The most important use of this power is keeping track of how long a body or bodies have been dead for, so for instance if the ghost count hasn’t changed when you check and 2 seconds later a body gets reported, whoever reports it killed or saw who killed. Alternately, if the body is really old, you can say that being close to it now is mostly irrelevant. Be sure to call a meeting or search for a body if a lot of people have died since the last meeting. Make sure to count the seconds since you last checked so you have the most accurate information.
Birdwatcher
What it does: You can see through walls. Your vision is in flashlight mode. You can increase the amount of vision on a cooldown.
Purpose: Another way for geese to potentially identify ducks.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: None
Claim: Anytime
How to play: This role can be tricky because while seeing through walls is great, always standing in one spot can make you an easy target, not to mention the fact that you won’t see someone approaching you. Similar to mechanic, try to focus on seeing through walls into areas where you think a kill might happen (such as an adjacent room you just left some players in), or a room adjacent to a sabotage. Focus on shining your vision through walls whenever possible, but don’t stay in one place for too long. Most players don’t see this role as much of a threat so it’s usually safe to claim.
Canadian
What it does: Your killer will automatically report your body after 1 second.
Purpose: Another way for geese to identify the killer, and it can also counter stack kills if you are on the stack.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks
Special Interactions: Sheriff and Professional will not report your body. Your body is not reported if you get ejected from the airlock.
Claim: At the first meeting (but don’t call a meeting, non-prox chat). In a lobby with proximity chat, instead of telling everyone, you should tell a couple trusted individuals your role (your “lawyers”), being sure to tell new players if your lawyer(s) die.
How to play: Once you have claimed your role, purposefully put yourself into dangerous situations (fixing lights, being alone in good kill locations like Showers, Engines, or Reactor) in hopes that you get killed. Your role is ONLY useful if you die AND other players know you were Canadian.
Sheriff
What it does: You can kill any number of players with the Duck, Vulture, Pigeon, or Dodo role so long as you don’t shoot a Goose. Killing a Goose will cause you to commit Seppuku.
Purpose: This role is a double-edged sword that either greatly benefits the ducks or geese depending on how successful the Sheriff is. Slight counter to Vulture and Dodo.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks and 10+ players
Special Interactions: Can claim bounty from Bounty goose. Will not report Canadian.
Claim: Immediately after killing someone or after someone else claims Sheriff.
How to play: While shooting people early is fun, the chances of you shooting a bad role later in the round are better (unless you specifically seek out someone activating a sabotage early). Since shooting wrong will kill you, try to shoot only if you are sure someone is a Duck, Dodo, or Vulture, but I suggest reporting the body and claiming Sheriff. Players acting strongly like the Dodo or Duck are the safest to kill. Killing in front of people is fine, just be sure you kill the right person. If you’re using proximity chat you can also tell people to stay away from you unless they want to get shot, which is fun.
Mimic
What it does: You are a basic goose whose name will appear red to the Ducks.
Purpose: Can counter the ability for Ducks to get double kills. Slows down kills by forcing the Ducks to identify the Mimic or be more careful.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks and 12+ Players, better with proximity chat
Special Interactions: All Duck roles will see your name in red. Ducks can kill ducks. Ducks cannot be blind.
Claim: Almost never. Usually only if you are about to be voted out.
How to play: The mimic is a tricky role because you want to act somewhat like a Duck so that the other Ducks might kill or vent in front of you, but if you act too much like a duck in front of Geese you might just get voted out (or shot by the Sheriff/Vigilante). Faking sabotage tasks (or doing the goose tasks that are on sabotages) is a bad idea as any Duck nearby will know that it either has already been activated or wasn’t activated by you. If you get people asking if you are a duck or if they can trust you (prox lobbies), they are probably a Duck.
Don’t try too hard to identify the Mimic and instead focus on killing with lights down or with no one around. Killing the mimic is NOT a priority as you can literally win without killing them. As a duck, you should be careful about claiming mimic, as your duck partner may just kill you thinking you are the mimic. Remember that you can kill your partner, so it’s not a good idea to press the kill button anywhere near your partner, as you could kill them by accident. The best way to identify your duck partner(s) is by being in the same room as them when they activate a sabotage, as the task will get marked as complete on your screen, but if you see them kill that works too.
Detective
What it does: Once per game you can see if a player has killed (via an angel or devil icon above their head). The icon will NOT change from an angel, even if they kill after you checked them.
Purpose: Another way for geese to identify a Duck. One of the most objective accusations in the game.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: Will show the Devil icon for a Vigilante or Sheriff who has killed. Will show a halo for a duck who hasn’t killed.
Claim: Usually once you have used the ability, but you can claim sooner if you want.
How to play: This role can only be useful once someone has died and is stronger in the late-game. Use it on someone that you or the lobby strongly suspects of being a duck. It can also be used to determine who the killer is in a 50/50 situation without voting both players out. Not useful if the person in question is claiming Vigilante or Sheriff. Be sure to claim who you used the ability on and what the result was in the next meeting (calling a meeting is OK if you identified a Duck this way).
Cannibal
What it does: You can eat a corpse once per game.
Purpose: No special purpose.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Any
Special Interactions: None
Claim: Never
How to play: Eating a body late in the game (especially on the final 4) can be extremely strong, but that’s only if you make it that far. Eating the first body you kill can work just fine too. Just like with Vulture, make sure no one sees you eat the body.
Silencer
What it does: Before each meeting, you can silence one player so they will be unable to use voice or text chat in the next meeting. You cannot vent.
Purpose: Counters the common notion that someone is a Duck simply because they are quiet.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 12+ Players
Special Interactions: Cannot effectively use airlock while alive.
Claim: Never
How to play: Silencing people becomes more dangerous as the round goes on, because players will cross paths with fewer avians between meetings (i.e. if someone is silenced and they ONLY crossed paths with you, they know you’re a Duck). Killing the person you silenced last round is usually a good idea. Silence players only when it has a clear and strong benefit. Also, try not to walk up to someone with the sole purpose of silencing them, as this can give you away too. Avoid killing in corners since you can’t vent; if you pass someone heading towards a body you just killed go ahead and silence them.
Spy
What it does: At every meeting, if you are the only player to vote for someone, you can learn their role (it shows up above their head in-game and in subsequent meetings).
Purpose: Can counter the strength of players not claiming key roles that counter the Ducks (Mechanic, Sheriff, Vigilante, Detective) by allowing the Duck to identify them.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: Almost any (Votes NEED to be color blind or blind)
Special Interactions: Can identify Mimic
Claim: Never
How to play: Kill players as normal, and make sure to try to identify the role of someone at every meeting. Focus on identifying the mimic if there is one. It is rarely necessary to vote with the group, so just try not to vote players that you think will get voted in the current meeting.
Assassin
What it does: Up to twice per game, you can kill a player in a meeting by correctly guessing their role. You can only kill up to once per meeting. You will die if you guess incorrectly.
Purpose: Allows you to kill players who are hard to find or kill. Significantly weakens the strength of players claiming their roles, especially Canadian and Mechanic.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks and 12+ Players
Special Interactions: Will not report Canadian if killed in meeting. Cannot kill Gravy or a basic Goose in a meeting. Killing a Lover Goose will kill both Lovers in the meeting, and will kill your Lover Duck partner if there is one.
Claim: Never
How to play: Since you can die if you guess incorrectly, you want to wait until you are sure someone is indeed a certain role before trying to kill them in the meeting. You can still kill outside of meetings, so it’s okay if you don’t use your power right away. Try to focus on the roles that players tend to claim anyway, or when someone has used their ability like Vigilante or Sheriff. These are free kills, so take advantage of them if you’re sure of someone’s role. If you’ve identified the Mimic, assassinating them works well, or if you’ve seen the Vulture eat one of your kills. Just be aware that players can claim roles they aren’t to try and get you to shoot wrong. If you are 99% sure you’re going to get voted out in a meeting, you should try to assassinate someone even if you aren’t sure of anyone’s role.
Proffesional
What it does: Bodies of Geese you kill will disappear. Instead, anyone walking within a radius of the body will auto-report them. You cannot report any bodies.
Purpose: Counters the strength of the Canadian Goose role.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks and 10+ players
Special Interactions: Will NOT report Canadian. Vulture can still eat bodies you kill. Players on a task will get kicked from that task to report the body if they are within the report range.
Claim: Never
How to play: In some ways, playing the Professional is a lot like playing Classic Duck, as you can vent and people can’t see the bodies. You can get away with some fun vision plays if you believe players are on a task. Killing on a stack is far less useful as Professional, especially since whoever reports it cannot be the Duck. If you find a body get away from it ASAP since you can’t report it.
Lovers
What it does: You and a random player are “in love” (you know who because their name and yours will be in pink). If one player dies, the other immediately commits Seppuku. It’s either 2 Geese or 1 Duck and 1 Goose. You are effectively a Classic Goose or Classic Duck. You can win as Duck and Geese respectively even if you don’t win specifically as lovers. To win as lovers, you and your partner have to be 2 of only 3 living players in the lobby, and one of those 3 players HAS to be a duck. It can be easier to win as lovers if one of the lovers is a duck. Note: If your lover disconnects from the game without dying, you will still be alive, but you can only win as duck or goose, respectively.
Purpose: No special purpose.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 12+ Players, NOT blind ducks
Special Interactions: If one lover is a Duck, other partner Ducks can kill the lover Goose, resulting in the death of their Duck partner. A Duck lover can kill their Goose lover. If your lover gets voted out, you will die at the end of the meeting.
Claim: NEVER!
How to play: Hands down the hardest role to play in the game, as your survival is partly in the hands of another player. Primarily, you want to be sure you and your partner stay alive without making it obvious that you are lovers (being together all the time, trying too hard to clear each other). Given that you need to be in the final 3, you have to make sure to get all but 1 of the ducks out before the final 4 (the duck lover if you aren’t both geese). You almost want to figure out who the ducks are while allowing them to kill off most of the lobby before you vote them out. Try to vote with your lover whenever possible (if votes aren’t shown). Encouraging the lobby to vote out players can be advantageous as long as you avoid the Dodo. If your partner is a duck lover, you can just try to follow them around everywhere as this tends to keep you safe (especially in non-prox lobbies). As a duck lover, you should tell your partner(s) not to kill your goose lover (prox lobbies)
Morphling
What it does: You can take the DNA of other players and transform into them. You cannot vent. DNA is saved until you morph.
Purpose: Counters the idea that just because you saw someone kill (or stand on the body) that it was actually them.
Suggested Lobby Conditions: 2+ Ducks and 12+ Players
Special Interactions: Cannot effectively use the airlock while alive. Sheriff or Vigilante can kill you while you are morphed.
Claim: Never
How to play: NEVER take the DNA of your duck partner(s), or the Dodo (if known). While morphing is extremely fun, every successful morph means 3 different things you could become suspicious for (taking DNA, morphing, unmorphing). You have to be extra careful to make sure you are not seen doing any of these things, but killing while morphed is almost completely safe (not to mention powerful). Try to make sure you don’t morph into a living player and pass by them (taking someone’s DNA then killing them is really effective against this). If you are playing with proximity chat, be sure to NOT speak while you are morphed as this can give you away as well.