Magic Umbrella

Magic Umbrella is an example of a secret rule game.

What is a secret rule game?

A secret rule game is a playful, often puzzling group activity where one or a few players know a secret rule that determines what fits or happens in the game, while the rest of the players must figure it out through observation and deduction. The fun lies in the mix of confusion, clever hints, and the "aha!" moment when players crack the code, making these games perfect for sparking laughter and creative thinking in social settings.

Like all secret rule games, Magic Umbrella is played in a group where some, but not all, players know the secret rule. Magic Umbrella is also an example of a Membership game, because of the form that the core gameplay takes.

What is a Membership game?

In a Membership game, gameplay revolves around organizing things into groups based on a specific quality. For example, whether something belongs under the magic umbrella. The quality varies from game to game, but typically, anything that can be discussed, be it a person, place, thing, or otherwise, may or may not possess that quality. In this way, that thing can be considered to be a member of the class of things possessing that quality, or not. Players who know the secret rule understand the criteria that determines membership, and can easily determine whether anything put forward by the other players should be a member of the class or not.

How to play Magic Umbrella

Gameplay revolves around players gathering examples of something that either belongs under the magic umbrella, or not. There are two ways these examples can be provided.

The first option is that a player who already knows the secret rule can volunteer an example. All players should know which other players claim to know the secret rule, and will know to trust the examples accordingly. Players who claim to know the rule, but don't actually, will quickly be discovered by players who actually know the rule, and their examples will be called out as incorrect. When providing examples, it may be helpful for players to provide examples of two things that are similar in some respects, but only one of which belongs under the magic umbrella.

The second option is for players who do not yet know the secret rule to suggest something new and ask the players who do know the secret rule whether it belongs under the magic umbrella. Typically, this question will be answered the same way and at the same time by all players who know the secret rule, which is helpful to convince new players that the rule is not arbitrary, and that it is an easy process to determine whether something belongs under the magic umbrella. While questions will almost always be answered with "yes" or "no", there are some cases where the answer may be less concrete, which can give players clues about the secret rule.

The game ends when all players know the secret rule, and can agree on what belongs under the magic umbrella reliably. These players will no longer be able to play Magic Umbrella, but don't worry, there are plenty of other games!

What is the secret rule?

Click the link below to show the secret to Magic Umbrella. Remember, these games are played by learning the rule, and if you don't already know it, revealing it here will rob you of the opportunity to learn the rule by playing. If you already know the rule, click the link to see some tips and recommendations that can't be provided without spoiling the secret.

Reveal the secret rule to Magic Umbrella

The secret to Magic Umbrella

What determines whether something belongs under the magic umbrella has to do with the way the players speak of the thing being suggested or asked about.

If something is preceded by the word "Um", it belongs under the magic umbrella.

Considerations

One thing to consider when playing Magic Umbrella is what form the “Um” can take. It’s important to reach agreement as early as possible on the following details:

Do all filler words, such as “Uh,” and “Hmm,” count as “Um” for the purposes of the game?

Not everyone uses “Um” as their filler word, and unless you are playing in a large group, you may find yourself in a situation where only players who know the rule consistently make that noise. This can make it difficult for new players to find anything that belongs under the magic umbrella, which can be discouraging.

My recommendation is to allow anything close to “Um,” to help avoid discouraging players who don’t naturally say “Um.”

Does the “Um” have to come right before the thing that’s supposed to go under the magic umbrella?

For example, “Can… um… magnetoresistive non-volatile storage media go under the magic umbrella?” vs. “Um… I think that a priceless collection of etruscan snoods can go under the magic umbrella!”

I think it’s easier to play the game, and no less fun, if the “Um” is allowed anywhere in the sentence. Let people be creative! However, there is one exception:

Can the “Um” be contained in the thing that’s supposed to go under the magic umbrella?

This is the most controversial rule consideration for Magic Umbrella. Do umpires, tumbleweeds, forums, or indeed umbrellas, belong under the magic umbrella, simply due to their spelling?

On one hand, it’s nice to allow the “Um” to fall literally anywhere in the sentence, including within the word or phrase being tested. Additionally, there is a nice property many secret rule games share, that the game’s title usually fits the rule. Green glass doors are allowed through the Green Glass Doors, after all.

But on the other hand, players who stumble across one of these special words will tend to be mislead by it, taking longer to understand why things that were allowed under the magic umbrella seconds ago might no longer belong there.

My recommendation is not to allow something under the magic umbrella simply because it happens to have an “um” sound embedded within it. Although I think in an ideal world the game is more beautiful if played that way, the reality is that you will have more fun playing the game if players can focus just on the filler words being added to questions and statements, and not have to worry about the things under the umbrella themselves.