Long Game 61: A Radiant Light

[Kasimir]

Ping me when the new ruleset is up? I'm not unsympathetic to the player situation, but due to RL obligations, I just can't afford to commit to a game of the original's complexity at this point. I'll see what I can do if I get a glimpse of the new rules. No promises though, I'm sorry :/ 

[Devotary of Spontaneity]

14 minutes ago, Kasimir said:

Ping me when the new ruleset is up? I'm not unsympathetic to the player situation, but due to RL obligations, I just can't afford to commit to a game of the original's complexity at this point. I'll see what I can do if I get a glimpse of the new rules. No promises though, I'm sorry :/ 

The plan is to have an exact rerun of LG20 with the original rules for that game if we don't get enough players.

[Kasimir]

3 minutes ago, Devotary of Spontaneity said:

The plan is to have an exact rerun of LG20 with the original rules for that game if we don't get enough players.

Just to confirm, the game starts in under 24 hours, or...?

[Devotary of Spontaneity]

1 minute ago, Kasimir said:

Just to confirm, the game starts in under 24 hours, or...?

The current signup deadline is 20.5 hours from now, yes.

[Guest Coda]

I'll sign up, though this is my second game, so I might just fail at it. Give me the stupidest character possible please.

[Fifth Scholar]

8 hours ago, Coda said:

I'll sign up, though this is my second game, so I might just fail at it. Give me the stupidest character possible please.

Don’t worry—you did plenty well with the MR, and if this game remains in its original form (which, admittedly, looks unlikely), you’ll likely have people to advise and help you, and if not, the ruleset will be much simpler.  

The LG20 Rules, for reference, which will be used barring an influx of late signups: 

Factions and Win Conditions:

Ghostbloods’ Win: Outnumber the other players

Bonus goal: Obtain a Shardblade and Soulcaster. 

Nobles’ Win: Kill all Ghostbloods

Bonus goal: Survive until the end and the player with the most/most valuable items will be made king and the other survivors will be made Highprinces/Highprincesses.

Thief's Win: Steal or otherwise obtain at least one of each item(excluding Shards) throughout the course of the game (which are included in the game itself) to become a master thief and live a life of luxury. Items stolen and then lost due to use do count for the purposes of this win. 

Items:

Spoiler

One item from each category may be used by a player each cycle. Only one Tier 1A and one Tier 1D item may be held by a player at any time.

 

Tier 1A(ttack) items:

• Shardblade: A Blade can kill one person a night
• Pain Knife: The Pain Knife can be used during either a night or a day turn. Pain knives used during the day cancel someone's vote or item transfer for that day. Using the Pain Knife during the day takes up your first action slot at night. If the Pain Knife is used at night, it randomly cancels one of the target’s actions. 
• Soulcaster: At night, a Soulcaster can be used to divert one chosen action of a player’s to a target of the Soulcaster’s choice. 
• Grandbow: One regular kill per night.

Tier 1D(efense) items:

• Shardplate: can defend against two regular attacks(lynch included) and one shardblade attack. After five turns, the Plate grows back.  Shardplate passively blocks a Pain Knife. Blocking a Pain Knife can only be done once. 
• Painrial: can protect someone else from one regular attack at night. Takes a cycle to gather enough stormlight to use it again.
• Half-Shard: Protects against one Shardblade attack only and is destroyed in the attack. 

Tier 2 items:

• Spanreed: This is the only way for anyone to use PMs. Players with a Spanreed are the only people who can start the messages. The GM must be included in all messages. The PMs can contain up to a fifth of the total amount of starting players. Setting up the spanreed counts as a night action, but once you use that action, any number of PMs can be created that night.
• Alerter: Alerts you to who performed actions on you. Using the alerter takes an action at night to set up.
• Reverser: The reverser allows the holder to change one person's vote each day cycle. 

Other Roles: 

Spoiler

Thief: The thief can name a person and an item they want to steal from that person each night. If that person holds that item, the thief steals it. Shards cannot be stolen by the thief. After the thief uses the item once, they lose it. The thief belongs to their own faction.

Ghostbloods: They get to conspire on a secret google doc. They get one group kill per night plus any items they may have. One person must send a PM to the GM with their desired kill target. This counts as an action and a maximum of only two others can be taken. Win condition: Acquire a Shardblade and a Soulcaster.

Shardbearers: Any person who holds one or more shards can publicly challenge someone during the day. The challenge must be issued with at least 24 hours remaining in that Day. There are no fake claims allowed, all Alethi can tell whether someone has a Shard or not. That day, the votes can only be between those two people, the Shardbearer and their chosen opponent. This may only be used once per shard.

Artifabrians: Can choose one person a night to get a temporary item (excluding Shards or a Soulcaster). That person will receive the item and can use it for the next cycle, with the exception of Grandbows which take two cycles to form. After that it will be taken away. The person given the item will be informed what they were given but not who gave it to them.

Spy: the Spy can choose one person a night cycle to spy on. They will be told one of the items that person holds and the total number of items their target has. 

Item Rules: 

Spoiler

Item Transfers: A player can, instead of their day vote, give someone an item, but they must declare it in the thread publicly. The GM will not confirm if the player actually possesses the item. At night, an item can also be given in place of an action. 

Heiring: A player may nominate an heir in place of a day vote(must be done in the thread) or night action who will receive some or all of their items if they die.

 

If a person is killed at night, one of their items go to their killer and the rest to the heir. If the killed player has no heir, all the items are sent to the killer. If a person is lynched, half of their items are split between those who voted for them and half go to an heir, if declared. If there is no heir, all items are split between the voters. 

A player can only hold one item of each of the 12 types at a time. A player can also only have one of each category of the Tier 1 items. Ex: Devotary can have a Shardblade and a half-shard shield, but if she kills a player with a Pain Knife, she doesn't get to keep it. She can choose whether to keep the Pain Knife or the Blade. The other(s) will be rolled for to see who finds it, or is given to an heir if there is one.

Other Rules: 

Spoiler

Each Day turn will be 48 hours and each Night turn will be 24 hours long.

Every player gets up to three actions per night. Only one item from each tier category may be used per cycle. One 1A, one 1D, and one Tier 2 item is the most that can be used. Any action can be replaced with the Ghostblood kill or a role ability/declaring an heir.

Changes from Maill’s ruleset in LG20: Elimination of the rule which obscures the alignment of Full Shardbearers upon their death, elimination of death cries, elimination of the Emotion Bracelet Item, and a modification of the thief’s win condition which allows them to count items they are Heired or which they receive through other means towards their win condition. Potentially an elimination or a modification of the activity filter as well, which will be announced at the start of the game. Artifabrians take two turns to make a Grandbow. 

Edited November 11, 2019 by Fifth Scholar

[Straw]

Eh, might as well sign up as Straw.

[Elbereth]

Signing up, possibly against my better judgement.  

[Fifth Scholar]

Signups are closed! The new thread should come up in about an hour, and PMs will be going out shortly. Thanks to everyone who’s joined, and good luck! The near-exact LG20 ruleset is official, by the way. 

[Fifth Scholar]

Highprince Sebarial, 

Upon further correspondence with the agents planted in our midst—the Ghostbloods who we have identified—their close-lipped silenced and stiff denials only serve to confirm my suspicion that it was they who tried to assassinate you. The Highprince of Investigation agrees with me, and adds that after our raids in which we were able to capture a Ghostblood spy, the camps have had an undercurrent of activity, and the organisation appears ready to make a counter-strike. It is apparent that some of the men around us will not hesitate to knife us in our sleep, and so the only thing we may do is stab them first. That said, the increased security around your warcamp is impressive, and reassures me that the next strike will not come near you. I can only hope it does not fall on me. Keep up your spirits, and tell your troops to be vigilant for absent or suspicious-looking men these next few days. Our continual cohesion in these times is imperative. 

 

Elhokar, King of Alethkar

---

Mraize looked around the small circle of men and women huddled inside the stone-walked tavern. His voice was silky and soft, yet carried an undercurrent of pure rage within its low whisper. “Alright,” he said, fighting to keep his rage down. “Which one of you thought it would be a good idea to go out and cut a hole in a Highprince’s wall? You’re all capable Shardwielders, which is why you have the Shards to begin with, so you know the consequences of doing something like this! You know a stunt like this would attract attention! Why? Why would you expose our entire network?” He swept his gaze from side to side. The members looked startled, as Mraize rarely had trouble keeping control of himself, but not afraid—just as they had been trained. Their eyes stared back into his, and one of them replied. “None of us carved that hole.”

“It was in the shape of three diamonds,” Mraize hissed. “How could that not be your doing?”

“The same three diamonds which we are never to carve into anything important or permanent or official?”

“I…” Maize faltered. “Are you saying we’re being framed for this?” 

“What else could it be?” another Shardwielder sighed. “We’ve already told you that we’re blameless in this, and you’d perhaps literally chew our heads off if we lied; that’s the only other option. Either the king wants a scapegoat for something he ordered himself, or else a third party wants us both weakened to the point of death.” 

“This is true,” Mraize conceded. “Which is why it will become essential that we kill the king without delay. He is the head directing Alethkar’s efforts against us, and his death will cut that head off, leaving the body, as large as it may be, to writhe.” Mraize felt his voice grow in power. He had to be right about this. “Your new task is to get yourself into his court, convince your way through or slaughter the other guards, and kill him. We cannot afford to let this drag on any longer, or we will all be found separately and killed. And finally, find that Shardbearer who actually cut the hole. I want his Blade!” 

Three crashes of mugs slamming against the table in agreement greeted Mraize’s ears, and five seconds later the tavern was deserted, the only sign of previous habitation the faint beer flecks on the table and the hushed, echoing whispers of a conspiracy gone wrong.

---

Day 1 has begun! It will end in about 47 hours at 9 PM EST (-4:00 UTC) on Tuesday 12 November. 

All role PMs should be sent out! Thank you to Devotary and Snip. A brief reminder that one-on-one PMs are closed, unless you have a Spanreed and use it during the Night turn. 

There will be a lynch today, with no vote minimum to kill. Ties will result in a random death. 

The updated rules may be found here. Good luck to all!

Player List: 

1. Elandera as Brightness Ellarel, a flighty scribe who nonetheless remains tethered to the ground

2. Rathmaskal as Brightlord I.N., whose reversed name conceals his role as a secret member of the Knights of Ni

3. Butt Ad Venture as Brightness Hmynyes, a connoisseur of classical Vorin music

4. Xinoehp512 as Brightlord Rashor, a man who determinedly believes that blue wine is a plague from the Voidbringers

5. Araris Valerian as Brightlord Arilar, a recently arrived spy with ties to the Kholins 

6. StrikerEZ as Brightlord Nalakor, a professional chull breeder and racer and close friend of the King’s Wit

7. Furamirionind as Brightness Dohila, a lighteyes who insists on wearing only orange and green lace

8. Hemalurgic Headshot as Rat, a pet of Brightlord Joe and a secret worldhopper

9. Sart as Tleir, a Purelaker trying desperately to impersonate the missing Brightness Drella while House Sebarial hunts for her

10. STINK as Jumae III, a Brightlord whose eccentricity in fashion contrasts sharply with a docile and even temperament 

11. DrakeMarshmallow as Brightlord Ekard, a man at the mercy of the Almighty Himself

12. Amanuensis as Brightlord Ularid Leiken, a man hunting a chull with a green shell which once insulted his mother

13. Coda as Brightness Dejda, one of Adolin’s former girlfriends who now hates the Kholins with a passion

14. Straw as Brightlord Straw, an effigy of Gavilar which was officially recognised as a lighteyes of the fourth dahn 

15. Elbereth as Brightness Tintallë, whose title has come under charges of redundancy by expert Quenya scholars

[Guest Coda]

Brightness Dejda gasped as she heard about the attempted assassination on Brightlord Sadeas. That man was one of the few people who shared her views on the Kholin family, those savages. It was simply terrible, what happened these days. First King Gavilar, now the Brightlords! Was she next? Storms! What a horrid thought. 

[Araris Valerian]

27 minutes ago, Fifth Scholar said:

There will be a lynch today, with no vote minimum to kill.

Awesome! Let's kill Elandera. (subject to change upon things happening this cycle and me reading the rules)

[Elbereth]

I second that! Elandera. 

[DrakeMarshall]

It's good to be in the game. It feels like it's been a while.

Unusual, for a vote to develop in such rapid succession. I'm going to rule out Araris and Elbereth being on the same team, because eliminators are usually more cautious about that sort of thing.

I have no intention of placing a third vote on Elandera though, so Sart, consider yourself poked.

[StrikerEZ]

Sorry, would’ve made a post sooner, but all of a sudden two friends started having crises, so I had to talk with them for a bit.

Anyway, Drake. Something about the way you phrased your comment about El and Araris’s votes sounded off. I wouldn’t be surprised if all three of you were elims. I suspect Araris the least though, because poke votes are his thing, then El, because I don’t remember El being one to jump on votes like this, and then I suspect you the most because your post feels off to me. 
 

Anyway, I’ll probably wake up and wonder what I was thinking when I wrote this post, but my vote’s staying on Drake for now.

[Elandera]

Huh. Two votes already?  If I didn't know any better, I'd be concerned.

Not much to say yet, other than a few rule questions. @Fifth Scholar, does the thief winning end the game, or is that separate? If the former, we should all probably be cautious about specific item claiming. Granted, with the bonus win-cons, that might be a good thing anyway.

The Shardbearer's ability is interesting, as it becomes a claim, but also a forced lynch between two people (though, Fifth, how does the thing work that "all Alethi can tell who has shards?" Would it be announced that someone's claim is fake?). I would urge caution of being too free with these challenges, as we really don't need two villagers caught in one. The bonus goal of the elims obtaining a shardblade or a soulcaster suggests they don't start with these items, so early on, it would only work if they have shardplate.

---

Dark ink stained her freehand, caused by what was now a smear of black across the paper in front of Ellarel. Her employers would not be pleased. She was supposed to be more skilled than this. However, someone had startled her when they burst into the room.

Ellarel quickly scrubbed the ink off her hand, and replaced the parchment. The person who'd caused her such a mess began talking of assassination plots and Highprinces being attacked. She quickly tuned out the woman, unconcerned by the political intrigue around the warcamp. The only think that concerned her was Adolin Kholin.

Hopefully she'd be able to remove the stain from her hand before the feast. Ellarel knew it would be her chance to grab his attention. She was reluctant to admit her efforts so far had gone unnoticed. But not at the feast. She had a new dress made, and found a stylist that could work wonders with her black and blonde hair. 

Tonight would be the night.

"Brightness Varam. Are you done?"

Ellarel was startled back to the present once again. Her hand was paused on the paper, black ink beginning to pool under her reed. Another paper ruined. "No, brightness."

"Then I'd suggest you bring your mind back to Roshar and finish the computations."

Edited November 11, 2019 by Elandera
Hit send mid-RP

[+Ed Venture]

Well...I’m not sure what’s going on with the votes for Elandera, so currently everyone who has posted is suspicious. Araris and El for their seemingly random- oh...wait. Yeah it’s Araris’s thing. Elandera. Taking a poke vote and making it a lynch vote? I don’t like this. But...drake was is clearing too easily and Striker is not voting on El after expressing paranoia about her actions.

———

Brightness Hmynyes hummed a quick piece to herself as she strolled through the warcamps. Music. It’s melodies, symphonies, rhapsodies, even every note was bliss. Why didn’t the Ardentia promote more music? It was a very honorable profession, music. Filled with order and glory to the Almighty. And surely the Heralds would need musicians in the Tranquiline Halls? She couldn’t see why not. Still...such flagrant warship was seen as improper among many nobles, and the ardentia made no moves to change it. Brightness Hmynyes decided that she would have to convince the masses herself.

...perhaps with the new hymn she found in a ancient text? “The song of Spren” was a quite varied piece. It went staccato to legato in seconds. As changeable as a windspren. As powerful as a rotspren. As beautiful as a creationspren. It would be perfect.

[StrikerEZ]

1 minute ago, Butt Ad Venture said:

Well...I’m not sure what’s going on with the votes for Elandera, so currently everyone who has posted is suspicious. Araris and El for their seemingly random- oh...wait. Yeah it’s Araris’s thing. Elandera. Taking a poke vote and making it a lynch vote? I don’t like this. But...drake was is clearing too easily and Striker is not voting on El after expressing paranoia about her actions.

I did say I was voting on Drake because I suspected him more than El. 
 

(also, please ignore the fact I’m still awake, I can’t fall sleep )

[DrakeMarshall]

When was the last time you've seen two eliminators vote in rapid succession of each other? Especially when those votes lead the lynch and are placed less than three hours into the game.

[Fifth Scholar]

3 hours ago, Elandera said:

Not much to say yet, other than a few rule questions. @Fifth Scholar, does the thief winning end the game, or is that separate? If the former, we should all probably be cautious about specific item claiming. Granted, with the bonus win-cons, that might be a good thing anyway.

The Shardbearer's ability is interesting, as it becomes a claim, but also a forced lynch between two people (though, Fifth, how does the thing work that "all Alethi can tell who has shards?" Would it be announced that someone's claim is fake?). I would urge caution of being too free with these challenges, as we really don't need two villagers caught in one. The bonus goal of the elims obtaining a shardblade or a soulcaster suggests they don't start with these items, so early on, it would only work if they have shardplate.

The thief win does end the game, yes. As for the Shardbearer question, just don’t lie about having one if you don’t. >> I will correct you, and ramifications will be vaguely unpleasant.  

[Elandera]

24 minutes ago, Fifth Scholar said:

The thief win does end the game, yes. As for the Shardbearer question, just don’t lie about having one if you don’t. >> I will correct you, and ramifications will be vaguely unpleasant.  

Oh, I see my confusion now. I misunderstood that the person receiving the challenge also had to be holding a shard, so I was worried someone might try to use it as a scan of sorts. This makes a lot more sense, though. 

[Hemalurgic Headshot]

*squeak*
went Rat as it scurried through the corridors. So much to do, so much to see... why bother with normal hallways? At this, it slipped into a hole and disappeared.

Whoa, lots of votes. I’m not sure what you all are getting at there, but have fun with it.

[Straw]

8 hours ago, Araris Valerian said:

Awesome! Let's kill Elandera. (subject to change upon things happening this cycle and me reading the rules)

 

7 hours ago, Elbereth said:

I second that! Elandera. 

Huh, immediate votes on Elandera? I sense a conspiracy.

I'll poke Amanuensis for now.

Edited November 11, 2019 by Straw

[Elbereth]

7 hours ago, Butt Ad Venture said:

Well...I’m not sure what’s going on with the votes for Elandera, so currently everyone who has posted is suspicious. Araris and El for their seemingly random- oh...wait. Yeah it’s Araris’s thing. Elandera. Taking a poke vote and making it a lynch vote? I don’t like this. But...drake was is clearing too easily and Striker is not voting on El after expressing paranoia about her actions.

You might want to reread this.  

[Guest Coda]

As the votes were cast, Brightness Dejda frowned. "Why so hasty, my friends? The day has just begun, and already, so many of you have cast your votes. While Brightness Ellarel may be flighty and forgetful, I do not believe her actions could justify an execution. Brightness @Elandera, do you have a defense? Brightlord Arilar(@Araris Valerian), could you explain your vote on Brightness Ellarel? Brightness Tintellë(@Elbereth), could you explain your eagerness to kill Brightness Ellarel? Brightness Hymynyes(@Butt Ad Venture), your explanation of your vote seems quite contradictory."