Scarlet... Library... Revolver

Here at The Murder Mystery Company, we have been devoting vast time and resources into answering one of the most important questions in existence - just how effective are the 6 traditional Cluedo weapons? In the latest of our posts, it’s time to look at... The Revolver

It is perhaps strange that the revolver is only used as a murder weapon in Cluedo one sixth of the time; at face value, it has the benefit of range, ease of use and simplicity. Point and shoot.

So why is it that five sixths of the time would-be-murderers would rather use blunt, sharp or hessian objects rather than the combination of gunpowder and lead? The kind of mathematical certainty one gets when randomly selecting one of six cards? Or something more?

Guns are loud. Really, really loud. They weigh in at around 140 decibels, which is loud enough that in a confined space can easily cause permanent damage to your ears.

One way to catch someone who had just fired a gun inside a stately home would be to go up to everyone in turn and say, in a loud and clear voice, “Guilty people say ‘what?’” - case closed.

Silencers don’t silence, they merely reduce the sound from the volume of a gunshot to the volume of, say, a jet engine. Again, that’s something other party guests are going to notice.

Another way of solving the Cluedo crime quickly would be using Gun Shot Residue, which basically means every time you fire a gun your hand and arm get covered with little particles from the gunshot, that can be linked back to the exact gun you fired.

The revolver is an interesting choice of weapon for a would-be-Cluedo murderer, because the actual killing part is the easy bit - it’s returning yourself to a position of ‘reasonable doubt’ among the cast of suspects that is hard to do.

To stand a chance you would need to have a revolver, some ear protection, some disposable gloves, some kind of protection for your arms and the ability to hide all of this equipment expertly in the seconds you would have before everyone came running into the crime scene screaming “Was that a jet engine I just heard?”

Mind you, I suppose that’s what secret passages were invented for.

Pros: Simple to use; effective; ranged.

Cons: Noise; forensic evidence; bad for ears.