Long Game 77: A Political Trap

[StrikerEZ]

3 hours ago, Archer said:

Throwing back to the distinction of RP discussion, can you adjust your program to count italics and plaintext separately? Could probably have everyone put RP in italics going forward @StrikerEZ

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I mean, I have no idea how, but that might be possible? I didn’t code the program myself.  I don’t wanna mandate that everyone do RP in italics though.

[+Lotus]

A woman sat down next to Josephine. Shara, she thought her name was. Josephine had seen her around the town and thought she looked quite presentable in her neatly pressed outfit. 

The woman asked if the bar served coffee, which made Josephine's eyes widen. Not that she would like coffee herself, but perhaps some tea with a shot or two would be better than this wine. 
 

Josephine watched her for a few moments before she spoke "I have to say I do not enjoy coffee very much, but it will probably be better then this" she said, gesturing at her cup of wine, "I really don't know why I got it. Its horrible compared to the wine where I'm from"

[Mat]

Philico led the boy through the streets, winding his way towards the market- the non-shady kind. He took out a few boxings he had to spare; although he technically could form some from hordelings he didn't think that would be kind to the salesperson. He shouldn't rip them off, not when they were likely struggling financially right now anyway.

He purchased a small loaf of bread, one that no doubt looked like a bar of gold to the boy, and handed it to him. To the lad's credit, he didn't run away right then as Philico had been half expecting him to do. The boy looked up with shining eyes, as if the bread really were made of gold. "I didn't think you'd actually do it." He said, in awe.

Philico smiled. "I'm no liar. I hope you are the same way."

The boy sighed, reluctant to give up what he likely viewed as the last thing that was truly his own. But he eventually gave in, feeling the need to repay the debt. "Flynn."

Philico clapped a hand on the small figure's back, shadowed buildings blocking the light from illuminating his face. "Well, Flynn, we should get back to your alleyway. It's getting dark out, and the streets aren't safe right now."

Flynn kicked some dust as they started to walk. "They never are."

Philico thought back to how quickly the group earlier today had been willing to take Zara's life. Without a proper trial at all. "Especially now."

[|TJ|]

7 hours ago, Araris Valerian said:

Okay, so the thing is, we didn't have any reason to believe anything one way or the other about the vote last turn. We had nothing concrete on anyone involved, so I was perfectly content to kill one of them off.

You honestly believe that you'd be fine killing one of the most active players when compared to an inactive player? That.... sounds like an easy way to get rid of an active village without wasting on kill on them tbh. You can dsay all you want about 'not really bothered with who dies between them' but you did make the vote which preferred Mat's death over Exp's.

And since the topic of missing votes came up, I feel it's important to state the mistake I did the last time when I was extremely paranoid of an elim vote manipulaing their way to victory in the end game because I thought there was an elim Connector and noticed Mat's vote missing and deduced he must either be a village Sparker or an elim Connector and I decided to take a chance and kill him and he turned out to be the village Sparker...so to the potential Coinshot, he careful while making assumptions xD

I for one don't mind that the PMs are down. Open PMs are a nightmare especially with the current meta, I know roleclaims will leak their way into the elim camp and with the way things were going in the first cycle, it felt like there would have been a lot of claims. And Drake was threatening to go all Maill on us :P.

Reads list to come later, I need to re-read D1, and might be busy with work.

[Szeth_Pancakes]

Sorry about my inactivity tonight. I was... doing something

You'll see

It has to relate to the line at the bottom of my signature

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That clicking noise you just heard is the elims cocking their NK guns. What are you up to? @Szeth_Pancakes

Alright, don't NK me. I am a Twinborn, and my Allomantic ability is Nicrobursting. Which is why I was so mad about PMs closing.

[Mist]

*checks sig for white text*... None found

Edit: Szeth's, that is.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Mist

[DrakeMarshall]

Juno flung the door open to Garmet's most reputable tavern, a bustling establishment only a short walk away from the meeting hall. She walked purposefully up to a counter, waving at the owner, a shortish bloke sporting a mustache and a brightly colored shirt. "I would like..." She said pensively, "some soup." They'd been at it in the meeting hall for hours into the evening, and those refreshments just weren't cutting it. Juno dropped a handful of boxings over the counter, which he accepted bemusedly, and slumped into her seat.

She zoned out for a moment, thinking over the past day, before coming to with a start at the realization that she wasn't the only person from the meeting hall in here. She gratefully accepted a bowl of steaming onion soup and a generously buttered slice of bread, making her way to where that pair was sitting. What was their names again? Josephine and Shara. She was pretty sure they were both from Elendel.

"Long day, yeah?" she said from behind them. "Rebels really shook the town up."

She eyed the neglected glass of wine speculatively before claiming it for herself. It wouldn't do to see it go unappreciated, it simply would not do.

"I'm Juno, by the way. Pleased to meetcha."

sorry not sorry

[Biplet]

Shara held the mug of coffee between her hands. The warmth seeped into her skin, warming stiff fingers that had grown cold in the night chill. Iden would criticize her for drinking a coffee so late at night. Shara, rest! I said rest! Not caffeine! She could hear his voice in the back of her head, and the thought of it pulled at the corners of her mouth.

She sipped the coffee. Watery, but tolerable. She’d had worse. “Not much of a drinker myself,” Shara replied to Josephine. “Where are you from?” She’d let Josephine talk, get a read on her maybe. 

The idea immediately made Shara grimace. How long had she been working, pouring over half baked theories and letting paranoia get to her? She was about to place payment on the counter and move to a more secluded corner of the tavern when another woman burst through the doors of the tavern, loudly introducing herself. Shara recognized her. Her notes flashed in the back of her head. Juno, loud, boisterous, not afraid to speak out about what she believes. Has a lot of thoughts, leader type. Unknown allegiance, leaning to loyal.

Shara tipped her head toward Juno. “Shara. And to you.”

no need to be sorry

[StrikerEZ]

@Ashbringer @Biplet @Szeth_Pancakes @Matrim's Dice @Lotus @Araris Valerian @The Unknown Order @DrakeMarshall @Jondesu @Archer @Ventyl @Devotary of Spontaneity @Azmine_king @|TJ| @manukos @Dannex @Flyingbooks Here's your just under 9 hours left reminder to get your actions in!

EDIT: and @Mist, who I somehow mist when I was trying to tag everyone. My bad!

Edited June 1, 2021 by StrikerEZ

[DrakeMarshall]

Juno took a seat nearby as Shara seemingly took her measure and then introduced herself.

"Hmmm, I remember you from the meeting, I think. You wrote to me, before the messenger service went down." A good conversation, even if Shara's views on the trade of information were regrettable. A shame, what happened with the messenger. Juno fished in her pocket for a moment, touching a slightly creased scrap of paper, a message that had meant to be sent and a promise that could not easily be kept. Who'd have thought Zara was missing from the meeting only cuz he had his hands full with singlehandedly delivering all our messages?

"Sorry to hear 'bout that unsavory business with the death threats and the bloke in a very vibrant cloak, by the way. Am I right in guessing that you would be from Elendel? One of Yoden's people, perhaps?"

The folks from Elendel proper largely didn't understand Garmet's problems, but Juno reluctantly conceded that this was, for the time being, alright. We've got bigger problems on our hands, and harmony knows it. Still, she wasn't exactly planning on letting Elendel sweep Garmet under the rug after the whole rebel thing blew over. Just... After.

[Ashbringer]

Well. Ash here had a rather crazy day.

10 hours ago, DrakeMarshall said:

Of all the votes on experience, I am probably the most suspicious of this one.

In my experience, when the main reason for a vote is preventing ties or vote manipulation, it is often a disingenuous vote.

Because, while it is a valid reason, it's also a justification for literally any train ever. Why do you support this train in particular? If it was one of several reasons, then fine, but if it's the main reason for casting a vote, I am suspicious.

7 hours ago, Archer said:

This I don’t. What do you have against ties? @Ashbringer

What do I have against ties?

Honestly... I'm not sure where that started. The whole Coda+ILuvHatz thing in LG66? The three ties in my LG? Quinn dying D1 of the AG? I've been burned by them too many times so far, and I've found that orchestrating a tie always ends poorly. So, yes, that was my main reason. I don't like ties. At all. Particularly in a game like this one, with so many different kinds of vote manipulation. So that's what my instincts are, to break ties and near-ties. 

I also like to avoid... vanity wagons? Someone called them that. Or just voting off away from the main train, intentionally. And if it came down to killing Matrim or Experience D1... I'd like to see what Philico does.

Oh, and boxings. 

I'm not going to try and get up before rollover, I don't think... I got too exhausted today.

[Devotary of Spontaneity]

Another turn wasted by me.

7 hours ago, Archer said:

Huh. It’s a classic late-round Devo vote, but it pointedly avoids adding to the stakes. I’m okay with that, but I’m not sure I quite follow the mindset.

One boxing isn't a lot, but Mist choosing to forgo it by withholding a vote was something to note. Elims might want boxings more but it still benefits villagers plenty well enough. I hadn't paid nearly enough attention the rest of the cycle to comprehend any alignment related information, so I didn't make a relevant vote. Apparently Mist killed me in LG 66, which I did not remember when I cast that vote.

Magrait shook herself out of a near trance again, after another exhausting yet at times exhilarating stint viewing the memories of Adomert and Inedze. They had been told they were  the best personality match to the two deceased scientists, but it was still disconcerting to slip into the memories of stranger and recognise near identical situations and corresponding emotional responses. Adomert contributed the majority of the memories, evidently having had the time and the inclination to store everything, while Inedze's recollections were far more spotty. She might almost call it secretive, though perhaps that was only the natural consequence of being employed directly by the PRE, while Adomert seemed to have been a private individual interested in a government job producing electricity. A job they'd gotten posthumously in a sense, though by the time Adomert's copper medallion was found, its contents discovered,and its possession reassigned, Inedze's knowledge of electricity already surpassed Adomert's. Inedze's electrical knowledge seemed to be intact, or at least was as far as Magrait could tell, since electricity was not their specialty. If she ever made it back to Elendel, they'd have to look into the latest discoveries on the subject. She frowned, 'if' was rather pessimistic, yet Adomert had been killed by rebel infiltrators and Inedze had died under mysterious circumstances that they were starting to fear might also be due to rebel activity. Unbidden, Magrait began replaying the memory of Adomert being stabbed in the chest by someone who'd apparently thought being descended from someone who'd helped the Lord Ruler start a tyrannical empire of a thousand years made one worthy of wealth, power, and privilege long after the empire fell. An official PRE investigation had come to the conclusion that a woman named Lumen had been the murderer, according to one of Inedze's memories that had shocked her out of her previous memory trip as they recognised the name as also belonging to the convention's secretary. It couldn't have been the same person as the old Lumen had been stabbed to death and Secretary Lumen looked way too young to have been a rebel 25 years ago, and yet when it came time for Magrait to pick someone who might be conspiring against the PRE their thoughts immediately jumped to her. Their accusation had been ignored as the essentially baseless suspicion it was, but now it was time to spend a little less time down memory lane and a little more time hunting down the saboteurs.

[Flyingbooks]

Although it was the middle of the night, Veren wandered through the streets with their long, dark coat wrapped tightly around them against the chill. As they walked, they thought about the messenger’s recent demise. Although he had honestly been acting very suspicious - he had barely been seen around town recently, he had not spoken to anyone else since the rebels had talked everyone here, and his shows of loyalty often seemed so extreme that they had to be faked - Veren had been unconvinced that he was an infiltrator from the very beginning. The rebels would hardly send in somebody so unskilled at keeping attention away from themself, after all. It was getting rather late, so Veren started to walk back to their rented room on the floor above the tavern. When they opened the door to the tavern, the smells of warm food reminded them that they hadn't had a proper meal since noon because of all of the excitement of the day. Veren ordered stone food and, as they ate, noticed that several fellow meeting participants were also here. They made a mental note to themself to talk to them tomorrow, and then went to bed. They'd need all the meager hours of sleep they could get for tomorrow.

 

[DrakeMarshall]

 

5 hours ago, Archer said:

1. I accept your explanation, but note you decided that making a new wagon wasn't a viable option 

Starting a new wagon was a theoretically viable option, just one that would have been sorta counterproductive and hypocritical for me to take at the time. But times change and I later decided the badness of the current wagons probably outweighed whatever reasons I had for not trying to make a new wagon earlier.

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5. I'd guess a few people accepted. Probably one of them was evil. So your secret is already out and you should just claim in thread :). 

Fewer than you would think, honestly  Either the rumors of rampant PM unsafety I've been hearing about are exaggerated, or I was particularly unlucky in choosing to send PMs to a lot of the people who were the biggest supporters of PM safety 

In any case, I think I'll take my chances. See, maybe I'm more free about disclosing my role than some, but not free free. It's gotta be a trade, quid pro quo, yeah? You decided against that particular trade when it was offered, so I'm not exactly gonna just tell you my role if you ask nicely, now, am I? 

2 hours ago, StrikerEZ said:

EDIT: and @Mist, who I somehow mist when I was trying to tag everyone. My bad!

You have done a terrible, terrible thing Striker  forgetting about Mist was a mist-ake

10 minutes ago, Ashbringer said:

Well. Ash here had a rather crazy day.

What do I have against ties?

Honestly... I'm not sure where that started. The whole Coda+ILuvHatz thing in LG66? The three ties in my LG? Quinn dying D1 of the AG? I've been burned by them too many times so far, and I've found that orchestrating a tie always ends poorly. So, yes, that was my main reason. I don't like ties. At all. Particularly in a game like this one, with so many different kinds of vote manipulation. So that's what my instincts are, to break ties and near-ties. 

I also like to avoid... vanity wagons? Someone called them that. Or just voting off away from the main train, intentionally. And if it came down to killing Matrim or Experience D1... I'd like to see what Philico does.

Oh, and boxings. 

I'm not going to try and get up before rollover, I don't think... I got too exhausted today.

I mean, I guess I can see where you're coming from, if you have bad experiences with ties. Whether or not ties are actually good or not can be a discussion for another time.

My point was that avoiding ties is a valid justification for basically any wagon. You chose this wagon in particular, and I have to imagine that you do not jump on every wagon you come across, which is why I find it a lil suspect for that to be the main stated reason for a vote. It implies a degree of hidden motive.

6 hours ago, Matrim's Dice said:

Edit: wait the image didn’t post

sorry I’m on mobile I’ll edit it in later

its those thonks Drake uses sometimes

I gotchu fam 

[|TJ|]

Okaay here's the read list I was talking about:

1. Ashbringer - Elim read because of the "I don't like ties" thing because I remember Ash specifically going for ties in previous games.
2. Biplet - Mild elim gut read hmmmm probably just wariness because of her previous elim game.
3. Szeth - Okay, I think I'm taking back the elim read and change it to a village one, Szeth jumping to conclusion that confirming one's role as confirming them as village feels like from a villager.
4. Mat - Was reading him null till yesterday, but the fact that no one was willing to save him leans me toward village. From in-thread stuff, I can't differentiate between village and elim cause he plays very similar game when he's both. 
5. Lotus - Elim, RP without game discussion
6. Araris - Mild elim read, regards to the defence of the stab vote, see my previous post
7. Drake - Yeah, anyone going around offering info claims, I'm leaning elim until I'm thoroughly convinced otherwise. Maill's claims are still haunting me from LG74 :P.
8. Archer - I gave my reasoning for the village read earlier, and I don't see anything suspicious with what he's posted this cycle.
9. Devotary - I thought someone said she was being her usual self with the vote, but I actually found her different. Usually, she votes for one of the leading trains, as in almost always she can decide who dies in the event of a tie, or create a tie in case the votes were close. This game, she decided to vote on a player without any vote. She did explain her vote, and it's understandable. I'm not reading this as elim, it's just...different from usual and I'm noting it.
10. Books - Gut village, I liked that vote on Drake actually, contrary to Matrim

Everyone else is a null and/one haven't spoke much.

[StrikerEZ]

Okay, that's the cycle! No more posting or submitting actions until the next one is up! 

[StrikerEZ]

Josephine felt relaxed for the first time in a long while. Getting to spend the night out at the tavern and interact with people, even if she had been a little nervous at first. Shara and Juno were really sweet, and they'd helped her come out of her shell quite a bit. She'd even been persuaded to get some coffee by Shara, so she felt alert and awake.

And so it was no surprise that she heard the footsteps following her before her attacker wanted her to, with her nerves on edge already. Her first thought was fear, then her second was of the instructions she carried on her. I can't let this person see those, Josephine thought, quickly turning around, tapping electrum to help calm her nerves. She would need as much determination as possible to get out of this and make it to her spaceship.

The attacker came at her with a spike, and Josephine went to grab their arm, hoping to keep that spike far away from her as possible. The attacker tossed her to the ground, trying to get enough leverage to just push the spike down into her chest. Josephine struggled to keep that spike away from her, while also trying to kick the attacker off of her. It was no use, they were just a lot stronger than her. The spike drove through her chest.

"Pah," she said, blood spurting out of her mouth as the attacker walked away. "I hate having to border-skip...." Her life faded shortly after.

~

Myra ran through the streets, her attacker somewhere behind her. She burned zinc, trying to enflame any emotions she could think of that would help stop her follower. The stranger had already got one hit on Myra, with a strange spike that still ached in her shoulder. The streets of Garmet were way too quiet at night, the chill digging at her bones and the spike itself sending jolts of pain throughout her body any time she moved.

She noticed a shadowed alleyway, and ducked around the corner at the last moment, hoping to lose her attacker. She hid behind some boxes, hoping that the attacker would lose track of her. Unfortunately, she barely had time to scream before the attacker grabbed her from behind, ramming another spike through her, and leaving her body there for the cold.

~

There was a man who went by the name of Az. Most didn't know where he came from, and he didn't often show up at the meetings. But tonight, someone was looking for him. He could hear their footsteps quietly following him as he walked through his apartment. He'd stayed away from the meetings on purpose, once they got trapped, because he didn't trust any of these people. 

Quietly, he walked around his apartment, gathering his equipment. A vest lined with aluminum to prevent allomancers from pushing or pulling on it. An aluminum gun as well. Dark clothing to make it so Tineyes or Windwhispers had to work harder to see him. He didn't have time to grab everything, but any good hazekiller worth his money knew how to defend themselves with only part of their equipment.

The attacker finally caught onto what Az was doing, and attacked. Az reached for his gun, but the attacker knocked it out of his hands. Az stumbled back, trying to get enough room from his attacker so he could reach for the knife strapped to his leg. He wasn't used to people going straight for physical combat first. He finally managed to grab his knife as the attacker got a spike into his neck. Az's eyes went wide, hands going to his throat, as the attacker pushed the knife even deeper. Eventually, Az fell still.

~

The next morning, news spread throughout Garmet of three murders throughout the night, all seemingly unconnected in who was killed. Yoden sighed as he read the papers that morning, a chill going down his spine. That's just great, he thought to himself.

~

Lotus has been killed! They were a Rebel Pulser/Pinnacle Twinborn!
Jondesu has been killed! They were a Loyalist Rioter Misting!
Azmine_king has been killed! They were a Loyalist Hazekiller!

PMs are still closed, so refrain from making PMs please.

There will be a removal this turn. As a reminder, there is no vote minimum, and a tied vote will result in one of the tied players being removed.

This turn will end at 9 am CDT on Thursday, June 3rd.

Also, credit to Lotus to giving me some stuff about her character that I put into the writeup!

Player List:

Spoiler

1. @Ashbringer
2. @Biplet - Shara, advisor to a representative of the third Octant, Iden. 
3. @Szeth_Pancakes - Earl Euphemie, a journalist from the Elendel Daily, definitely not a highly trained assassin.
4. @Matrim's Dice - Philico, here to steal Faleast's Kandra thunder.
5. Lotus - Josephine, definitely not out of her league. Rebel Pulser/Pinnacle Twinborn
6. @Araris Valerian - Sweeper, a lowly cleaner of the political chamber building.
7. @The Unknown Order - Walker, who...walks. Yeah.
8. @DrakeMarshall - Juno, member of the Board of Somethingorother, and an enthusiastic protestor.
9. Jondesu - Myra, not witty or even particularly bright, but she’s honest. Loyalist Rioter Misting
10. @Archer - The Great Panini, wealthy patron of the arts and amateur ventriloquist, accompanied by Bagel.
11. @Ventyl - The Lafay Etteax, find out what he’ll do on the next episode of Sanderson Elimination!
12. Experience - Zara, questionably loyal, but in extreme ways. Loyalist Tineye Misting and Investigator!
13. @Devotary of Spontaneity - Magrait, an amalgamation of Adomert and Inedze through their stored memories from a coppermind.
14. Azmine_king Loyalist Hazekiller
15. @Mist - Lumen, a secretary who's trying her best and wants to bring justice to whoever needs it.
16. @|TJ|
17. @manukos - Bill, Bill Door. Probably shaped like a triangle.
18. @Dannex
19. @Flyingbooks - Veren, assistant to the Elendel representatives, playing both sides to get the nobility less influence in politics.

PMs will be sent out as soon as possible.

Edited June 1, 2021 by StrikerEZ

[Mat]

...Anyone want to claim that Lotus kill?  If you're the Coinshot please don't but a Hemalurgist might consider doing that as it would clear you. I'm assuming the 3 kills were Coinshot/Elim/Hemalurgist since 2 Coinshots doesn't seem likely to me.

Or maybe the Kandra had a one time kill idk.

It's hard to tell which kill was the elim kill because they both could easily be low-info. I'd probably guess Azmine for the elim kill just because that would be the option of the two that is strictly strictly low info cause Azmine was fully inactive.

As far as those roles go I guess it could be a lot worse... I had to check what Hazekiller did (and Lotus' Twinborn powers) and as far as roles we could have lost those aren't terrible. The Pulsar ability had the later potential to troll and the Pinnacle could have got the elims some safer kills later so that's a good kill, whoever it was.

Also, unrelated: You'll regret that  You know who you are

Szeth, for aforementioned reasons and all that. I don't think his claim overrides my read. Overall I don't think the deaths changed my reads all that much seeing as all three of those were in the middle of my Null pile :P.

[Mist]

Not much information in any of those kills, except that there were a lot. Fine I'm voting so I don't forget. ooh bad/interesting ideas: vote on myself for boxings The Unknown Order welcome to the game, care to show up?

Lotus said people are people. Jondesu hadn't said much, and Azmine said nothing.

oh no conspiracies so Lotus responded to Mat asking her. Teammates playing off each other. And Mat seems trusted and killing inactives preserves the game state so *sigh* I'm tinfoiling...

Also hi Mat! it's been a while!

[Mat]

14 minutes ago, Mist said:

Not much information in any of those kills, except that there were a lot. Fine I'm voting so I don't forget. ooh bad/interesting ideas: vote on myself for boxings The Unknown Order welcome to the game, care to show up?

oh no conspiracies so Lotus responded to Mat asking her. Teammates playing off each other. And Mat seems trusted and killing inactives preserves the game state so *sigh* I'm tinfoiling...

Also hi Mat! it's been a while!

Something tells me another inactive exe might not be the best idea

Spoiler

Hello!!

[Biplet]

In the early hours of the morning, Shara left the tavern. Two cups of coffee sat comfortably in her stomach, though it did little to pull her out of her half-awake stupor. She really needed sleep, and Harmony knew she’d get it as soon as she returned to her room. At least one other person at the tavern had remarked on how tired she looked, and that had decided it. As soon as others noticed she was tired, she lost her edge in meetings, and she needed to remedy that.

As she moved through the quiet streets of Garmet, an eerie quiet settled around her. The hair on the back of her neck pricked up, as if someone watched her, but she could hear nothing. The tavern lights had faded from view, and with it, the sound of happy patrons. Now, the early morning chill blanketed the streets, bringing with it the quiet of pre-dawn. No one moved, no wind blew. Just the dew and dust and Shara. 

A scream split the night.

Shara ran. She sprinted blindly through the streets, turning corners so fast she nearly collided with light poles and mail boxes. Her heart thundered, threatening to push it’s way out of her chest. Harmony, why had she worn flats?

The building that housed her room came into view. Shara threw the door open, sprinted up the stairs, and flung herself into her bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Her breathing came in labored gasps and she leaned against the wall, closing her eyes and tipping her head back to try and catch whatever breath she could.

Hands clasped her shoulders, and she almost screamed before Iden began speaking. “Shara, Shara, what happened? Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Shara coughed. Wow, she was out of shape. “A scream… out there… I was--” she coughed “I was at the tavern.”

Iden shook his head. “Survivor above, another?”

Shara wiped sweat off her brow. “What do you mean another?”

Iden blinked. “You haven’t heard? It’s Josephine. She’s dead.”

---

Rp for now, discussion to come.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Biplet

[Araris Valerian]

Okay, so who am I suspicious of? Well, Drake is the first person that comes to mind, for simultaneously attacking me and defending Mat. I'm not exactly sure why people were super against killing Mat, but I got the general feel that it was because he has a reputation as an active, helpful villager. I'd like to think that I possess a similar reputation. So I'm not quite sure why it makes sense to want to keep Mat alive C1 but to go after me. There are essentially 3 points of disagreement here. The first is whether Mat was a good vote option last cycle. The second is whether I was a good vote option. The third is that there was some significant difference between me/Mat being good vote options.

Next would be everyone who voted on Experience with the express intent of keeping Mat alive. Like, sure, Mat could be village. I don't think that Mat-ters a whole lot right now. The issue is that the Mat train potentially gave elims something easy to deflect off of onto an inactive. In this list is TJ and Drake (again). Ash voted for the reason of avoiding ties, Ventyl voted in self-preservation (kinda suspicious, but not the same thing), and Archer's vote came way earlier in the cycle. Mat voted in self-preservation obviously.

Other people would be Ventyl, who was not really in any danger and didn't need to vote for Experience, and Biplet (who I'm sad I suspect because we had a nice PM going), since she definitely solidified the Experience train.

[DrakeMarshall]

Alrightie that seems to have been an eventful night. I really want to go back and sift through everything people said about Lotus, now.

For now, though, I am going to suggest that Ashbringer is a good choice.

Here are my reasons:

• Like I brought up last turn, of all of the votes on Experience, I am most suspicious of theirs. I don't dispute that tie avoidance may be a valid reason, but the thing is, it is an equally valid reason for all wagons. So if it's the main reason you are giving for your vote, it seems like there are other reasons you're maybe not saying. And while I get that everyone is stretching to find reasons to vote a little bit in D1, of all of the votes that happened, this one probably sticks out most.
• They have been engaging in discussion mostly only when somebody calls them on something. And, again, this does not necessarily make an elim, but I do think it makes it more likely.
• A couple times I've noticed Ashbringer viewing the thread for a while without posting, and while this isn't really a big deal, it does make me think maybe they are spending that time being active in the elim doc.

D2 votes kinda feels bad because I'm really not that sure about Ashbringer being evil, but I'm also more sure about it than I am anyone else, and I disagree with literally all of the other votes cast so far in this turn, so... Yeah.

Next on my to-do list will be replying to a bunch of stuff and then rereading the previous cycle.

[Araris Valerian]

27 minutes ago, DrakeMarshall said:

A couple times I've noticed Ashbringer viewing the thread for a while without posting, and while this isn't really a big deal, it does make me think maybe they are spending that time being active in the elim doc.

I'm just gonna say, as someone who leaves this game in an open tab just about 24/7, that this is a pretty bogus reason to suspect someone.

I'm also interested that you find tie avoidance to be more suspicious than attempts to preserve a player of unknown alignment.

[Biplet]

Okay, I've done my Spanish studying, so I'm here for a bit!

If you're the coinshot and you got Lotus: nice! You're a much better coinshot than I was in my first LG.

I don't have enough to vote right now. This hasn't been the greatest game for me, suspicions-wise. Currently a little sus of mat, confused-sus about Ventyl (still), and sus of Szeth. But now Mat is voting on Szeth, and Szeth voted on Mat D1, which could be a distancing plan but I doubt it?

Realized I'm just trying to pad this to 200 words, and I just... really don't have enough to say to do that.

1 hour ago, Araris Valerian said:

Biplet (who I'm sad I suspect because we had a nice PM going), since she definitely solidified the Experience train.

Our pm was nice! But I want to reiterate that I took my vote off of Experience very quickly. I understand that it's probably the timing of my vote that looks suspicious, I get that, but it's just so odd to me that the basis of suspicion on me is a vote I said was partially a poke and then moved off the person. I really, honestly, did not expect people to go for the Exp exe. I expected more people to join me on Ventyl, to be quite honest, but the situation was handled by the mods, so I'm not going to push a Ventyl exe based on the blackmail.

Just now, Araris Valerian said:

I'm just gonna say, as someone who leaves this game in an open tab just about 24/7,

I do this too. I've been doing Spanish class all day with this tab open in the background. Pretty sure if you check the game at any point during the working day you'll see my name at the bottom XD