Jeff Probst reveals what happens in Survivor if a player’s idol is found

Ever wondered what would happen if a Survivor player’s found idol was buried and discovered by another player? Jeff Probst reveals what would happen.

The game of Survivor is an ever-evolving one, with the rules changed both by production in advance and by players on the fly. Ben Driebergen churched things up by playing a Hidden Immunity Idol during the discussion period of a Tribal Council; something I had no idea you could do before he went and did it.

Something I had been wondering for a long time was what would happen if you found a Hidden Immunity Idol that was hidden by a player who found it earlier. We know that you can’t willingly take other players’ powers in the game such as idols, but you can go through their bags and personal items to obtain that information. Without knowing if a player or production placed it, what would happen?

You don’t need to wonder anymore, as Dalton Ross from Entertainment Weekly found out from Survivor host Jeff Probst exactly what happens. No matter what the case may be, Probst says the player’s idol is theirs as long as they don’t play it or are removed from the game. If a player decides to hide their idol in inch-deep sand, it’s still theirs if someone finds it later.

He does present some options for players to take advantage of this fact because production will step in to stop players from affecting other peoples’ powers. For example, players can bring it into camp to force someone to claim it as their own. They can also spy on the idol spot and see who comes to take it.

An option I didn’t see presented was for Survivor players to start information warfare or propaganda campaigns. If a player has an idol and knows people are searching for one in futility, the second player could spread around the fact an idol has already been found, point to its location and push the idea that the idol-holder has been wasting others’ time.

There’s nothing more frustrating to people than trying to accomplish a task that’s fundamentally impossible to accomplish, and with the starvation effect deteriorating the players’ minds, it could so distrust in said player. We’d love to know what kind of tricks you would play in this exact Survivor situation, so let us know!