About the original topic-card library

A topic card contains a public question, a full answer, a short answer, and three direction tags. The question and tags are shown to every player. Only the Truth-Knower can read the selected answer edition before discussion, and the answer is shown to the whole room after the guess.

The three language libraries follow the same concept order so a room can use one language consistently. Cards are stored as individual records rather than as images of printed material. This allows the site to choose a card, display the correct text edition, and avoid sending the answer to other players.

• More than 500 original playable topics.
• Full and short answer editions.
• Hong Kong Traditional Chinese, Taiwan Traditional Chinese, and English.

A suitable topic has an explanation that most players are unlikely to know but can still discuss. The useful part is usually a cause, an unexpected use, a change over time, or a relationship between familiar things. A fact that depends only on recalling a date, number, or famous name gives the other players very little to work with.

Topics are rejected when the question gives away the answer category, when the explanation cannot be checked, or when the subject cannot be expressed clearly in all three languages. The library favours questions that can produce several different explanations before the real one is revealed.

The question identifies what needs to be explained without including the unusual fact itself. It must contain enough information for a player to form an answer, but it should not include specialist wording that points directly to the correct field. The phrasing is reviewed together with the direction tags rather than on its own.

The full answer states the central fact first and then provides the explanation needed for the reveal. The short answer keeps the same central fact in a smaller form. Both versions are written in original wording and are compared so that neither changes the meaning of the topic.

Every card has one direction related to the answer and two alternatives that could reasonably fit the question. The three labels are kept at a similar level of detail. A very specific correct label placed beside two broad labels would reveal more than the words alone appear to reveal.

The alternatives are chosen from associations created by the question, not from unrelated categories. Across the complete library, the correct direction appears in different positions and the same labels can be correct on one card and alternatives on another. This prevents position or label frequency from replacing discussion.

The factual claim behind a card is checked before publication. Notes record where the claim can be verified and which part of the explanation is supported. A topic is removed when reliable support cannot be found or when common accounts disagree in a way that cannot be explained within a short card answer.

Sources are used to check facts, not to supply text for the game. Questions, answers, short editions, and direction tags are written for 9UPPER Online. Commercial card text is not copied, translated, paraphrased, or used as a source list for this library.

The three versions describe the same topic, but they are not produced by replacing words one by one. Common names, sentence order, and the amount of explanation may differ when needed for clarity. Each version is checked to make sure that its question does not reveal information that remains hidden in the others.

Before release, the library is checked for missing fields, repeated questions, invalid tags, unmatched concept order, and answer-edition gaps. The text is then reviewed as a complete card. These checks keep the three playable libraries aligned without publishing their secret answers on this reference page.