Mid-Range Game 49: Lode of Luthadel

[|TJ| he/him]

And time's up!

[|TJ| he/him]

Cycle 3 - An End to the Madness

Allrianne just made it inside the city walls of Luthadel. She’d been eavesdropping on the meetings between her father and the soldiers, so she knew she could enter the city undetected. Now, she had to make a decision. She had followed around Breeze and listened in to his conversations as well. She looked towards Kredik Shaw, and then towards Venture Keep.

Would he still be in the keep? Or would he have already gone inside the palace? It… it doesn’t matter. If he’s in the keep, he’s safe and I don’t have to worry. 

Having made her decision, she started walking towards Kredik Shaw.

***

They walked carefully, making sure they didn’t get too close to the intruders. They needed to close them in, make sure that not one of them escapes the palace. They need to box them in to trap them. 

They just turned around a corner to find a bruised and bloodied body on the floor, inhaling in large gasps. Vin approached the figure and was shocked to find that it was a familiar face.

“Dim? What happened to you? You were with us!”

“Pardon, me…..Lady Vin…..got a little too close to a few of them….” He took a deep breath.

“I know you asked us not to get too close….but I noticed something….” Another deep breath.

“It’s alright Dim, we’ll get you back to the keep and patch you.”

“No, Lady Vin… The only reason I held out for so long was in the hopes that you’d find me….They….They have a Mistborn...Lady Vin….or a Coinshot in the least…. They got me….” he pointed to his rib cage where he was bleeding profusely from the coin that had torn at his skin. He wasn’t going to make it.

“Lady Vin...I don’t- could you please do me the favor?” he asked pleadingly.

Vin understood. Dim was a good man, and if a painless death is what he asked, she would give it to him. He deserved to go out the way he wanted, and she didn’t want him to suffer any longer. She flicked a coin out and nodded her head. “Thank you, for everything, Dim. I’m sorry…” 

***

Vin flew off. She needed to vent out some energy, and she needed to find the person she thought was responsible. She flew around hastily, trying to find the Watcher, she needed to know if he would hurt her friends. She knew he would, she wanted to hear it from him nonetheless.

She burned Bronze and tried to sense him. She pondered over burning duralumin to extend her Seeking, but eventually decided against it. She might require it later

There.

She felt a barrier that was the coppercloud and followed it. She flew as she burned Steel and Iron as and when required, and finally settled near the dark figure.

“Would you kill someone close to me?” she asked firmly

The Watcher turned around, seeming only slightly surprised. “If that’s how you’ll stop playing their games, then yes” he replied calmly.

“You did it then? You killed him?”

“I’m here on a task, and I’ll have to complete it, you should stay out of their games. You deserve better.”

“I deserve better? Answer me! Did you kill him?”

“We’ll meet again, Vin. Hopefully, you’d have changed your mind by then. Stop letting them control you.”

He turned and walked away for a couple of steps, and then he….stopped and turned, wearing an confused look on his face. “You did it...I didn’t think you could. You released me from the cursed life. One way or another, you healed me. The voice was right about you.” Just as he finished, he faltered and fell to the ground, blood pooling around him. 

Vin stood in disbelief at what she had done, the touch of the steel coin she’d held just moments earlier felt morbidly cold.

---

Archer was eliminated! He was a Venture Loyalist  Thug!
StrikerEZ was killed! He was Zane!
Matrim's Dice was attacked, but survived!

Vote Count:

Archer (9): Liranil, Matrim's Dice, Ashbringer, StrikerEZ, Illwei, Biplet, The Unknown Order, Whysper, PizzaPower55
Liranil (1): Archer
Matrim's Dice (1): Quintessential

Cycle 3 has begun and will end on March 22, at 23:30 IST [GMT + 05:30]. Please try to bold your votes, and give retractions in green. Don’t forget to put your actions and kill votes in! Please welcome @Devotary of Spontaneity coming in to replace Experience. @Flyingbooks will receive an inactivity warning. If they do not post during this cycle, they will be replaced or removed.

Player List:

Spoiler

1. @Quintessential - Tess Mourn
2. @Flyingbooks - Lan MinRai
3. @Liranil
4. @Matrim's Dice - Philico
5. @Random Bystander
6. @Ashbringer - Faleast
7. Archer - Dim Venture Loyalist  Thug
8. StrikerEZ Zane
9. @Illwei
10. @Gears - Roko the Basilisk
11. @Biplet
12. @The Unknown Order - Nicole Atyo
13. @Whysper
14. @Devotary of Spontaneity
15. @Tani - Reva
16. @PizzaPower55
17. STINK - Udfolt Terris Venture Loyalist
18. @Shard of Reading

Edited March 20, 2021 by TJ Shade

[Quintessential she/her]

Okay, will have more later but first of all: Striker may have been lying about his identity but he likely was telling the truth about using atium and seeing Mat (this way, his team knows a member of the other team to try to take out--why would he lie about who was attacking him?). AKA, Mat is Cett, and was the one RNGd with the attack on Striker. Striker, meanwhile, was Straff (obviously) and Straff was the team that attacked Archer last cycle.

[---]

Well

Okay then

honestly?

Matrim

[Quintessential she/her]

Ah! Right. Matrim thank you for reminding me to do that Illwei  and now, to update my notes!

[Flyingbooks]

2 minutes ago, Quintessential said:

Okay, will have more later but first of all: Striker may have been lying about his identity but he likely was telling the truth about using atium and seeing Mat (this way, his team knows a member of the other team to try to take out--why would he lie about who was attacking him?). AKA, Mat is Cett, and was the one RNGd with the attack on Striker. Striker, meanwhile, was Straff (obviously) and Straff was the team that attacked Archer last cycle.

I'll vote Matrim then.

Spring break has begun, so I'll definitely be more active this week.

[---]

2 minutes ago, Quintessential said:

Ah! Right. Matrim thank you for reminding me to do that Illwei  and now, to update my notes!

This is messing up all my theories I don't want to look back through old cyclesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

[Quintessential she/her]

Just now, Illwei said:

This is messing up all my theories I don't want to look back through old cyclesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

: P Mat's essentially mechanically confirmed Cett. All votes on him are NAI at this point. 

[---]

Before I do that,

quick thoughts:

 - Bip feels different this game
 - that's reall all I have
 - oh ho ho

Just now, Quintessential said:

: P Mat's essentially mechanically confirmed Cett. All votes on him are NAI at this point. 

I- I know, I'm just saying that mat being an Elim doesn't line up with my stuffs and now i gotta rethink things and look for who Mat might have linked to ;-;

[Quintessential she/her]

Just now, Illwei said:

 - Bip feels different this game
 - that's reall all I have
 - oh ho ho

I actually have Bip down as potentially being on the same elim team with e-Mistborn Striker because she kinda sheeped him on STINK  (actually, originally I'd said it would be one of the two of them on an elim team with e-Mistborn Liranil but unless Mat's a Thug, I'm.. pretty sure we've already found both the elim Mistborns : P)

[Mat he/him]

...

Striker had a vested interest in killing villagers. I'm mechanically confirmed Cett if you trust the elim Mistborn. Which I see zero reason to do so.

Illwei was by far the most connected to Striker- I'll go back to the previous cycles and outline why more cohesively.

The votes make sense now- Illwei's likely Straff, Quinn is still tunneling from last cycle, and Books wasn't here and is just jumping on Illwei [likely Striker teammate] saying I'm confirmed when I'm nowhere near that.

I am the other (presumably the only other) village Thug. Hence why I was suddenly more skeptical of Striker last cycle; I had thought it weird there'd be more than two.

[---]

Also hey I'm still 100% for voting Elims on C1 unless for this game it needed to be one on each team to qualify.... :thinking:

[Quintessential she/her]

2 minutes ago, Matrim's Dice said:

Striker had a vested interest in killing villagers. I'm mechanically confirmed Cett if you trust the elim Mistborn. Which I see zero reason to do so.

Well of course you don't, you're the accused  

For those of you who are wondering why we're voting the person the confirmed elim Mistborn accused, here it is:

 There are two elim teams. Each team has a vested interest in killing off not only villagers, but the other elim team. Striker had a way of mechanically confirming a member of that other team, so he used it and announced it to the thread so that something would be done about it the next cycle.

On the other hand, he would have had no way of mechanically confirming someone as village. If he announced the identity of someone he didn't know was Cett, he'd risk accidentally choosing one of his own teammates--and his team isn't exactly doing great either.

Anyway, point is that Striker was almost certainly telling the truth about Mat.

[---]

1 minute ago, Quintessential said:

Anyway, point is that Striker was almost certainly telling the truth about Mat.

The one hesitation is why would they...NK? Matrim? I guess it's not a hesitation, more of just. confusion. because why Kill Mat there when...when killing a villager just seems better? so maybe it is a hesitation. because killing Mat there doesn't make sense to me.

[Quintessential she/her]

Just now, Illwei said:

The one hesitation is why would they...NK? Matrim? I guess it's not a hesitation, more of just. confusion. because why Kill Mat there when...when killing a villager just seems better? so maybe it is a hesitation. because killing Mat there doesn't make sense to me.

Striker didn't post about Mat until last-minute, remember? None of his teammates would have known for sure about Mat either. Idk why they chose Mat specifically, but I'd guess it wasn't Striker secretly leaving clues in his posts or anything--more like one or more of his teammates thought Mat was a good kill for tone.

[Mat he/him]

Unrelatedly prefacing this by saying that my gut on Striker is apparently always wrong -_-.

Anyway:

Why Illwei is Straff:

Quote

Striker

Obviously wanted to keep that shiny 100% vote on elim record and knew to be guaranteed to by voting on her Mistborn :P. Which normally isn't a good reason but I could totally see it. Don't deny you can too :P. (As a general 'you')

Quote

obviously he's [Striker] evil

Yes that right out of the gate bussing Wei we all know :P. In joke form though.

--Both Striker and Illwei were on the bad idea Stink train, also  

Quote

But yeah
right now I'm thinking I don't want to kill either one of them, basically because I don't want to end up getting caught killing them both and then being at C4 with no info basically because we spent the last cycles killing off the Elims NK Targets

Like

Does no one realize how that's just... ??? because there's less chance that they are elims than basically anyone else ??

Does this not still stand? :P. (When posted, this was a defense of Striker [and technically Archer I guess])

Quote

On mobile rn but I don't like Archer antagonizing the fact that Striker dies early? Pointing that out is completely NAI imo, and the times it's antagonized it's usually the elims trying to find something. I personally think it's because of strikers tone more that he dies early. Because other people say things too and don't get killed, but striker says things with a sorta tone that always feels forced/fake to me for some reason? Even though I know it's not. I also don't usually listen to that sorta thing though? Unlike mat, a had a really early village read on striker in the game he was village, so I'm obviously an expert on reading striker now as well :P.

More defense of Striker but it's disguised more as a shading of a known villager.

---

Holy Quinn really is pushing me hard isn't she. (Another Straff? :P)

But here, bolding because I want everyone to see this:

Since you all are so sure I'm the Cett Mistborn, why not leave me to die by the hands of Straff and kill Illwei this cycle? There obviously aren't elim Lurchers or Striker would still be alive, and giving Cett one and not Straff one would be unbalanced. I'd flip village Thug but then at least you wouldn't waste a cycle killing me. Food for thought. I got the village's interest at heart so it'd be a pain for you to kill me when I'm already dead and when you could take out another Straff.

[---]

had in my notes earlier stink/Mat E/E but that's not it lmao. back to reading.

Potentially bip/striker team, yeah. She offhandedly interacted with alot of his posts I think.

Matrim did reinforce this "don't kill the outed mistborns" that could imply he's a mistborn or just that he's an Elim I guess, seeing as the two people talking about that were him/Striker.

Lmao I think Striker might have slipped and Ash caught him. So I don't think Ash is on his team. Striker said:

Quote

In that scenario, I say we avoid exing the player. Unless a mistborn has already died, there's too low of a chance, for my tastes, that the outed mistborn is Vin

which Ash pointed out. how. "low chance of vin" shouldn't have been the wording there.

Realized that I did point out things I didn't like about Matrim so apparently I did think he was an Elim and I'm very confused

Really the only interaction I'm seeing with Mat is Tani, and that was barely an interaction.

Yeah I've got nothing

 - Ash not Cett (Edit: Straff. I can read.)

that's all I've got. you're welcome

Edited March 20, 2021 by Illwei

[Quintessential she/her]

13 minutes ago, Matrim's Dice said:

Since you all are so sure I'm the Cett Mistborn, why not leave me to die by the hands of Straff and kill Illwei this cycle? There obviously aren't elim Lurchers or Striker would still be alive, and giving Cett one and not Straff one would be unbalanced. I'd flip village Thug but then at least you wouldn't waste a cycle killing me. Food for thought. I got the village's interest at heart so it'd be a pain for you to kill me when I'm already dead and when you could take out another Straff.

To be honest, this is actually fair. For the same reason that I can believe a confirmed Straff's claim of a Cett identity, I can just as easily listen to that Cett's claim of Straff connections. The only downside is that it opens up the possibility of Mat being Lurched.

Okay, so what I'm discovering right now is that multiball is weird XD I'm simultaneously so convinced that Mat is elim that I've marked all 49 mentions of him in my notes doc with the Cett color, and I'm genuinely listening to his arguments for why Illwei is Straff. Which are actually... pretty good. I'm... not... sure what to do here. Because Mat's pointing out a bunch of things that I think pinged me at the time, or later (in going through my notes just now I was like "why was Illwei voting for Striker for so long anyway?"), but I never... I don't trust my gut on Illwei, mostly because of QF51 tbh. 

The thing that pings me the most, though, is Illwei continuously referencing "the Elim team," as though she's not thinking so much about the fact that there are two. For the elims, there is only one elim team that they have to worry about, so that seemed kind of slip-ish to me. 

Anyway I... okay y'know what let's do this. Matrim Illwei

To be incredibly crystal clear, this does not mean I don't think Mat's elim. If Straff doesn't attack him this cycle, or if they do attack him but he survives, I will be pushing for his exe next cycle. But he makes a good point, and I can't see why they wouldn't attack him, since their own Mistborn said he was an enemy. 

Edited March 20, 2021 by Quintessential

[Liranil she/her]

I need to reread things, but I'd also like to point out that since Mat survived, he's either a Thug or a Mistborn, or a Lurcher saved him.

(Ninja'd, sorry if I repeated what someone else said)

Edited March 20, 2021 by Liranil

[---]

31 minutes ago, Quintessential said:

Striker didn't post about Mat until last-minute, remember? None of his teammates would have known for sure about Mat either. Idk why they chose Mat specifically, but I'd guess it wasn't Striker secretly leaving clues in his posts or anything--more like one or more of his teammates thought Mat was a good kill for tone.

Perhaps TMI on the kill? I wouldn't have killed Matrim, because I think you were potentially setting him up to be the next cycle's ML.

18 minutes ago, Matrim's Dice said:

Both Striker and Illwei were on the bad idea Stink train, also

I mean, I can't speak for Striker, but...I started that train? Ofc I was on it? I started it because I had a theory, which has...proven itself wrong in more ways than one :P.

And you're selectively picking things? leaving out the posts I made where I mentioned how people were focusing so much on Archer because of the kill and just basically ignoring Striker? anyways.

8 minutes ago, Quintessential said:

To be incredibly crystal clear, this does not mean I don't think Mat's elim. If Straff doesn't attack him this cycle, or if they do attack him but he survives, I will be pushing for his exe next cycle. But he makes a good point, and I can't see why they wouldn't attack him, since their own Mistborn said he was an enemy. 

Why wouldn't they attack him? because confusion. I think that he's basically confirmed Elim, and I don't see a reason to wait on that. Kill me next cycle or something, or- "Why not let the Elims kill me off!" (that was a mocking tone, fyi :P) Because I think Elims have more reason than not to kill villagers over elims. much safer for them to leave the main vote for the Elims and NK people that they think are either on their team or are a village threat.

Edited March 20, 2021 by Illwei

[Biplet she/her]

Noooooo Zane my beloved </3

(note: this is about me and Striker dating irl, not about me liking Zane as a character)

[Mat he/him]

3 minutes ago, Illwei said:

Perhaps TMI on the kill? I wouldn't have killed Matrim, because I think you were potentially setting him up to be the next cycle's ML.

Yeah I kind of think you and Quinn are both Straff, Quinn for that reason- pushing hard to kill me so that she doesn't have to vote to do so. But each of you pointing these things out about the other just confuses me :P.

5 minutes ago, Illwei said:

And you're selectively picking things? leaving out the posts I made where I mentioned how people were focusing so much on Archer because of the kill and just basically ignoring Striker? anyways.

I didn't mean to do that. I basically just skimmed every post looking for where you quoted Striker, so I guess it's selective but I didn't not quote anything I read :P.

1 minute ago, Biplet said:

Noooooo Zane my beloved </3

(note: this is about me and Striker dating irl, not about me liking Zane as a character)

Or is it about Zane being your in game Mistbon?  

[Biplet she/her]

1 minute ago, Matrim's Dice said:

Or is it about Zane being your in game Mistbon?

LMAO

[---]

Just now, Biplet said:

LMAO

I don't see you saying he's wrong :eyes:

[Devotary of Spontaneity]

So Striker being Zane makes more sense than him being Vin, since Vin!Striker should have been able to survive an attack by burning Steel and redirecting his attacker. Zane's team doesn't seem to have a Lurcher since they didn't protect Striker either time.

42 minutes ago, Quintessential said:

On the other hand, he would have had no way of mechanically confirming someone as village. If he announced the identity of someone he didn't know was Cett, he'd risk accidentally choosing one of his own teammates--and his team isn't exactly doing great either.

Assuming Striker did burn atium, he might have been able to tell that someone wasn't on his team. Atium reveals all actions and the players who submitted those actions, and since Straff players know who their Mistborn is, there's no reason for them to target Zane with any metal other than iron or copper. I don't think that matters in this case though, since if Matrim isn't the Cett Mistborn, he's a Thug who wouldn't have been able to target Zane with anything. That or Matrim is Vin/was Lurched, but I assume he would have claimed that if it was true. I also would have assumed Striker would prefer the village to waste an exe or two killing Matrim instead of killing him personally as Illwei says, but I guess that's not the case. If Striker didn't burn atium and just named Mat randomly it especially makes no sense to kill him, unless some other Straff member put in the kill and didn't pay attention to remove it.

Overall, Striker was more likely to have attacked Matrim if he was telling the truth about using atium, than if he's just throwing out a random name. If Striker had scanned Matrim doing some other metal action it especially makes sense to kill him, but then Matrim wouldn't have survived unless he's Vin or was Lurched, and he's claiming just Thug. The scenario where Matrim is a village Thug is one where Striker was just fully lying, assumed Mat was too hostile towards him to be a Straff, and got unlucky that a Straff teammate picked Matrim as a kill. That gives enough reason to believe Matrim is a Cett, and likely the Mistborn since having elim Thugs is a lot of lives to chew through.

Straff would have to kill Cett Mistborn!Mat at some point, and Mat shouldn't be able to survive unless he picked the right player to burn steel at. I don't think the elim teams have to be so symmetrical that Straff's apparent lack of a Lurcher means Cett doesn't have a Lurcher, but also Lurcher's can't save people twice in a row. I do however think that should be trying to get the elims to fight each other, and I don't know if trying to kill two members of the same team does that better than keeping things even. If Illwei dies and is Straff, then Cett won't be hunting for any remaining Straff, though maybe since there's not really a good way for the elim teams to work together, remaining Straff members would want to go after Cett by killing any they find for a while. So killing Straff!Illwei makes sure Matrim gets attacked tonight, killing Illwei is objectively worse if they're a villager, unclear if Cett would attack Illwei today as a Straff suspicion if Matrim dies as their Mistborn. The optimal scenario is exe Matrim, have Cett kill Illwei, but it's hard to gain cooperation by actively going against their interests.