The series was announced by Warner Bros. Discovery ANZ in November 2022 and was described as "an addictive, whodunnit reality series where contestants work with and against each other using lies, deception and betrayal to win".
The concept of the show is based on Mafia, a social deduction game created by Dimitry Davidoff in 1986.
Whilst not an obvious country in the realms of armour historically, it is true that metal armour was used successfully in battle in NZ following a gift of a suit of armour from King George IV of England in 1820. In the region, Australian villain Ned Kelly red erected the idea a century later during hold-ups.
The show has become a global phenomenon, with the UK version of the Netherlands original being streamed more than 34 million times on the BBC iPlayer.
The New Zealand version of the format will see 19 participants compete for a cash prize.