DEV DIARY #2: A Look at the Ripper

A Look at the Ripper in 4 Penny Coffins

In 4 Penny Coffins, one player takes on the role of the Ripper: a victim of demonic possession that demands bloodshed at any cost.

While innocent players investigate crime scenes, compare evidence, and attempt to uncover the truth, the Ripper works in the shadows manipulating suspicion to survive long enough to carry out the demon’s will.

Unlike the antagonists in many social deduction games, the Ripper in 4 Penny Coffins is not just trying to convince others they are innocent. The role is built around manipulating the investigation through pressure, escalation, and calculated risk. Every murder creates evidence. Every witness becomes a threat. Every decision can shift the investigation closer toward the Ripper’s conviction.

The Ripper’s Goal

To win in Ripper mode, the Ripper must:

• commit 2 murders over the course of 2 nights

• avoid being convicted during the following Conviction phases

If the Ripper survives long enough after completing their required kills, the demon fully manifests and the match ends in a Ripper victory.

However, there’s a twist.

Aggressive Rippers can choose to take additional risks by committing extra murders during the hunt phase. If enough extra kills are secured, the Ripper can bypass the need to survive conviction entirely and immediately claim victory!

This creates two very different approaches to the role:

• A careful, manipulative Ripper who controls suspicion and survives socially

• A reckless killer who attempts to end the match before investigators can react

Both strategies are viable, and both create very different stories for players.

Designing the Ripper

From the beginning, we knew we didn’t want the Ripper to feel passive.

In many social deception games, hidden antagonists spend most of the match reacting to accusations and trying not to stand out. While social deception is still a huge part of 4 Penny Coffins, we wanted the Ripper to actively shape the investigation itself.

The Ripper can:

• cover up implicating evidence or plant evidence to frame others

• manipulate witness testimony

• redirect suspicion

The result is a role that constantly balances stealth, timing, manipulation, and violence.

The visual design of the Ripper evolved significantly during development. Early concepts focused heavily on demonic imagery such as horns, skulls, talismans, and cloaks. We wanted the Ripper to feel supernatural and unsettling, while avoiding designs that felt too sci-fi, cartoonish, or traditionally monstrous.

One of the earliest ideas was to keep much of the Ripper's form deliberately vague. His head, arms, and exposed beating heart would stand out while the rest of his body appeared to be formed from smoke and shadow. The goal was to create fear through uncertainty and make players question exactly what they were seeing.

One element that sparked a surprising amount of debate internally was the top hat. Some members of the team felt it clashed with the demonic direction we were pursuing, while others argued that it had become inseparable from popular depictions of Jack the Ripper. Although the real Jack the Ripper was never known to wear a top hat, the silhouette has become iconic through decades of books, films, and illustrations.

As development continued, we found that the original design wasn't landing as strongly as we hoped. While the demonic elements were interesting, the character lacked some of the visual impact and recognizability we wanted. Eventually, we revisited the top hat and embraced the idea of combining classic Ripper imagery with our supernatural interpretation of the character.

The final design leans further into unsettling, ghoulish features while retaining key elements like the exposed beating heart and a cool pulsing effect on his skin. Combined with environmental effects that reduce visibility when the Ripper transforms, the result is a character that feels both familiar and deeply unsettling: part Victorian legend, part demonic nightmare.

Horror Through Uncertainty

Playing as the Ripper is not about hiding in the shadows waiting for the right moment to strike. It’s about surviving an investigation that is slowly closing around you.

Every murder creates new risks:

• witnesses may identify you

• evidence may place you at the scene

• investigators may begin connecting timelines

• innocent players may start watching your movements more closely

As pressure builds, the Ripper must constantly decide whether to:

• play cautiously and manipulate suspicion

• take greater risks to secure another kill

• or push the investigation toward the wrong suspect before it’s too late

Unlike traditional social deduction games that rely primarily on social reads and bluffing, 4 Penny Coffins grounds suspicion in evidence and investigation systems. Players are not just asking “Who is acting suspicious?” They are trying to prove guilt using clues, testimony, and deduction.

That creates a different kind of tension.

The Ripper is not simply pretending to be innocent. They are trying to survive while evidence, witnesses, and other players slowly build a case against them.

And sometimes, the most dangerous player in the room is the one “helping” to solve the crime.

4 Penny Coffins Wishlist 4 Penny Coffins now to play both sides of the hunt later!