Long Game 79/Anonymous Game 10: The Rhythm of Freedom

[Steeldancer he/him]

The day is over! no more votes or PMs until I get the night up.

[Plum Rhinoceros]

Just now, Mint Heron said:

I'd much rather try and get people to move to Vulture. I feel really confident that they're an elim, because of all of the reasons I've suspected them so far, plus the fact that they had no reason to try and claim to Flamingo when they could've tanked an exe and possibly caught some elims.

Sigh. I understand Lion, but can't say I'm pleased. But this is better than a villager death. See you all tonight.

There's no time to move to Vulture it ends NOW that's the point xD

...No hammer? Huh.

[Steeldancer he/him]

LG79/AN10 Night 5: 'Tis Only a Flesh Wound
No one had ever really liked Chashen. They found him abrasive and annoying. So it was no surprised that after the death of another senseless mateform, they started coming after him. 
"You never liked Mateforms anyway, so it was probably you murdering them all along," accused Pavli. 
Chashen was offended by this statement. "It's not like just because I dislike mateforms that I want them all dead," he explained to the rhythm of annoyance. But they didnt listen, and they strung him up. 
But of course, he didn't die. His armor protected him from that. They injured him, but didn't actually kill him. Lame. This was why the traitors, if they were among them, would crush them. They had to be willing to entirely stomp them out. 
Once the group had lost interest in him again, he returned to his previous activity- carving a piece of wood. There was a child he wanted to give a toy to. The kids would be the ones to suffer the most from all this death and confusion. 
---
Abaram smiled quietly. They were very close. They would strike when they reached the Frostlands, was the current plan. End these pathetic rebel's dreams and bring some of them home as examples of what happened when you defied Odium. 
She hummed to the Rhythm of Exultation. Quietly, of course. She didn't need anyone realizing what she was doing.
---
Heron (7): Mouse, Vulture, Scorpion, Beagle, Rhino, Dragonfly, Lion
Vulture (2): Falcon, Heron
Weasel (2): Flamingo
Flamingo (1): Tuatara
Mint Heron was exed, but survived! 
Player List

Spoiler

1. Amber Vulture
2. Amethyst Scorpion
3. Azure Mouse
4. Charcoal Hyena Mateform Rebel
5. Chartreuse Penguin- Elrin Mateform Rebel
6. Coral Swan Dullform Rebel
7. Cream Tuatara
8. Emerald Falcon
9. Fuchsia Ostrich Dullform Rebel
10. Indigo Weasel
11. Ivory Dragonfly- Kethri
12. Magenta Albatross Dullform Rebel
13. Mauve Crocodile  Dullform Rebel
14. Melon Dingo Dullform Rebel
15. Mint Heron- Chashen
16. Onyx Flamingo
17. Opal Lion- Atticus
18. Oxblood Beagle- Jalnor
19. Plum Rhinoceros- Edith

I'm going to be ending this turn 1 hour early, due to an obligation to my family at noon tomorrow. So the night turn will end in 22ish hours at 11AM EDT, 8/3/21

Edited August 2, 2021 by Steeldancer
VC

[Plum Rhinoceros]

@Steeldancer can we have the VC?

[Steeldancer he/him]

Just now, Plum Rhinoceros said:

@Steeldancer can we have the VC?

dangit I ALWAYS forget something. 

[Plum Rhinoceros]

Congrats, Flamingo, you're confirmed. Sorry for doubting you :P.

[Opal Lion]

.......................................

1 minute ago, Plum Rhinoceros said:

Congrats, Flamingo, you're confirmed. Sorry for doubting you :P.

Also this.

[Plum Rhinoceros]

Hmm

@Azure Mouse, @Cream Tuatara, @Oxblood Beagle- I know I just pinged Mavset. The question is which one.

Can you three make PMs tonight? I think everyone should anyway, but if these three do then we can confirm that Mavset didn't hop. Ideally they include someone widely village read and not like, Vulture/Falcon/Weasel or something... idk I don't want to Mayor so do tell me if I'm going too far but this could be useful.

Edit: Apparently @Amethyst Scorpion too :P.

Edited August 2, 2021 by Plum Rhinoceros

[Opal Lion]

6 minutes ago, Plum Rhinoceros said:

I think everyone should anyway,

Sir

What do you have against Art(TM)

[Plum Rhinoceros]

1 minute ago, Opal Lion said:

Sir

What do you have against Art(TM)

 I mean like everyone should to confirm themselves as Didn'tKillTonight, the art serves that purpose fine, you're good.

[Opal Lion]

Thoughts:

-Again, I'm conflicted. Vulture's actions and responses were weird. Plus, if we assume that Vulture really is the Village Scholarform, then it wouldn't be difficult for the Elim Scholarform to assume Vulture used the warform gem on himself rather than lug it around. Giving someone else warform is too much trust that early on. He probably got hit by a decayform Elim the Night he claimed anyway, if there's one. Which means that while he would never have attracted a CW (dubious, depending on how much Elims wanted to save Heron), he would also never have needed to fear himself becoming the CW. As Rhino and I have pointed out, he's never been able to directly answer that simple question we keep asking.

-Heron's responses to the voting are also weirdly subdued, if we assume that Heron was a Villager who also suspects Vulture. Basically Heron also just keeps digging and Heron's main response has been 'k but Vulture sus' which doesn't help me with my suspicions of them.

-Beagle abstained from voting today, likely knowing the warform jig was up. 

-Due to OTing and other stuff on my plate, I'm too tired to keep up aggressive RPing but I'm active enough in PMs that a dead artform or a Lion failing to check in should be sus. I'm fine with this.

-I'm disheartened that <Mouse, Vulture, Scorpion, Beagle, Rhino, Dragonfly, Lion> excluding Vulture, whom I am rethinking aggressively, Dragonfly, and Rhino, most of the final votes on Heron also come from players I suspect. This is worrisome.

-If Beagle is not warform, then the results of D4 are even more mysterious, given Vulture voted for Beagle and Dragonfly and I essentially caused that chaotic vote tie. Where were the Elims? Tempted to lightly read Beagle Village for this, though it could also be a bus. 

-As Rhino pointed out, our main Malibu pool shrinks to: <Mouse, Beagle, Tuatara.> Given that Tuatara's second PM involved our PoE, that's a bit eh but players will player, which is my general philosophy on these things. We also have a missing artform to account for, and that elusive scholarform. If Beagle is truthful in claiming they are not the scholarform, this entails it has to be Mouse or Tuatara. I don't recall Tuatara meeting scholarform requirements subsequently so if they were, they're sitting on it. RP counts to the scholar requirements so Mouse is meeting it. Off the top of my head, I don't recall if Beagle has been meeting the scholarform requirements recently.

-Given Vulture swapped to warform, it is if true not possible that Vulture could have been making the Evil gems. To me, Village Vulture likely indicates the Elim team hasn't been using their stash and has been seeking to distribute those gems to Villagers instead. Conversely, if Vulture really was making Evil gems, why isn't the Village scholar calling this out? Did both Village gems go to Elims? This should be a slam-dunk thing to warn about.

-It is theoretically possible Malibu could be hiding among our mateforms. The only possible Malibu in this scenario is Scorp, as Hyena confirmed being mates with Weasel, and Pengiun with Falcon, meaning both were in mateform at least once. Scorp being Malibu would minimally implicate Weasel in lying with Scorp (in the scenario Malibu went for the mateform gem), if not one of <Mouse, Tuatara, Beagle>, in the scenario two Elims claimed the mateform gem and Malibu went for artform but lied.

-I need more painkillers.

[Mint Heron]

6 minutes ago, Opal Lion said:

-Heron's responses to the voting are also weirdly subdued, if we assume that Heron was a Villager who also suspects Vulture. Basically Heron also just keeps digging and Heron's main response has been 'k but Vulture sus' which doesn't help me with my suspicions of them.

I don't understand how my responses were weird? I was trying to get people to vote for Vulture over me. My last post only came at the time it did because I had to stop and read your last post, then add a response about that. I lost track of time and didn't realize just how close to rollover we were.

[Opal Lion]

12 minutes ago, Mint Heron said:

I don't understand how my responses were weird? I was trying to get people to vote for Vulture over me. My last post only came at the time it did because I had to stop and read your last post, then add a response about that. I lost track of time and didn't realize just how close to rollover we were.

That's what I'm curious about. It felt like there was no urgency, which to be fair, I guess you didn't feel any knowing you were warform but it also sounded semi uninvested which I would not have expected from a Villager. That's just my toneread though.

The Vulture push...IDK. It's hard to sus you and Falcon for it when I myself have flipped views on Vulture (sorry Vulture!) near the end of the cycle but I maintain I had a powerful knee-jerk gut nope to that PM and then had to work through what was troubling me about it. At the same time, it feels like you guys weren't really into the push and at that time it felt like another attempt to splinter the vote off you.

I guess that's a long way of saying I don't know what to think but telling me Vulture is more suspicious than you doesn't change my suspicions of you, at core. The only reason I lightened on you is because Vulture was pushing so hard for your lynch and I hardcore suspected him after that move.

Now? Soddit, I need painkillers and rest and then I'll rethink.

[Amber Vulture]

Darn, I need a song about lions sleeping and I just can't seem to think of any.

Okay, let's go through my morning.
1. PM Flamingo and ask if they'll be on near rollover to stop a hammer. At that point I thought they and one other villager were split off votes and that worried me. I thought rollover was two hours earlier than it is for whatever reason. So when I
2. Saw Lion vote for me, I go into full panic mode. At that point I was typing another post for the MR and logged out/in with Vulture to see where things stood with five minutes to OH NO I'M BEING HAMMERED. Rationally, I knew I had Warform, but the assumption was that if the elims are doing it, they have a plan to win.
3. I got one post in and then stopped, because obviously can't post after rollover. What kind of a crazy person would ever do that.
4. Anyway, then I get back and realize I've got time to redirect this. I'm assuming that the two votes of consequence are v!Rhino and v!Lion, then e!Heron, e!whoever else comes by to vote. At that point, the logic is voting for me is bad. I know my alignment, so it's bad, even if I don't die. I'd been ignoring the votes on me up until then because I figured it was just elims hoping to trick people into not voting for Heron.
The point of confusion seems to be, why would Warform me be afraid of the exe? I think that's a bad way of looking at it, because I was more focused on what exing me doesn't do. Namely, kill an elim.
I think Opal pulled the trigger early. He actually had good instincts to realize the elims weren't too terribly worried, but it was because Heron is Warform, not because he's village*. Hammers don't come hours in advance, they come with 5 minutes to go. In a previous post, I detailed how even if he wasnt a Thug, the elims could at least force or a tie by moving their votes. It would have resulted in a no exe, but then with an NK, it becomes 6:5. All they need is some vote manip and they've got it in the bag. Actually, that's where we're at now, but I'm proceeding as if this is a winnable game.
I didnt know if Heron was being honest. Them being Warform fit the votes, so that made sense, but I'd rather test if they're a Thug than have a zero percent chance of hitting an elim, which was what voting me was. I don't think just letting myself be half exed was a good play. At least the way I did it, you got my reactions under pressure, so you can read into that. Good job.
Now we have to convince everyone to vote for the same person again and deal with even tighter margins. Probably with village crutch Opal dead because thread control is swell.

*Villagers do have better odds for getting Warform though, so I'm not sure how to read that.

I wish Weasel was still a Malibu candidate, I'm really liking an exe of them. They hoarded gems for no reason. And they were on at the perfect elim time for rollover. But Heron's asking them to vote seemed off for e-e. 

I think Mouse is the best option for a Malibu kill. Probably vote there tommorow. 

Edit: Also, apologies to Flamingo. I'd changed my mind about your Malibuness anyway, but it's nice to have confirmation 

And @Cream Tuatara if you wanted to really prove your role, you could probably just make two PM groups, both with v!Lion in them. It'd end the debate about if you jsut claimed to make a PM group that was all elims but didn't actually do it. 

Edited August 2, 2021 by Amber Vulture

[Azure Mouse]

Fumesh sat alone besides a fire.

The storm in the camp had died down, for now. A highstorm was no time to fight. But while the highstorm might wash away the blood on the ground, it could not wash away fear or distrust. Come morning, everyone would just go back to arguing, and fighting... and killing.

How many singers would die at the hands of the spies? How many more by the hands of their fellow runaways?

Fumesh was just so tired. Tired of secrets and arguments. Tired of the voice in his head, when he looked at his companions, whispering: they could be the one to kill you. Tired of huddling under whatever shelter he could find in a highstorm, wondering if the spies were coming for him next.

He sighed, his breath causing the fire to flare up. From his pocket, as if in response, came a squeak. Zure poked its head out, pushing a sphere in front of it. The gemstone fell down and rolled to a stop in front of him.

Fumesh stared at the sphere. It whispered.

He'd kept it hidden. If the others had seen him with it, he had no doubt he'd have been the one strung up on the rocks. But no one had.

He picked up the sphere. Its whispering had grown louder, recently- the spren inside begging him to draw it in, make it a part of himself. Fumesh had captured it in the chaos following the last storm. He'd realized what it truly was, and he knew- if he gave into its demands, it was all over.

But perhaps it was over anyways.

The stormwall appeared on the horizon. Fumesh stood up, clutching the sphere in his hand, and faced the storm. His fire died, blown out by the coming wind.

Fumesh attuned Resolve.

The stormwall hit. The Rhythms merged. Fumesh's gemstone shattered, red lightning flickering out towards his chest...

ᴡᴇʟᴄᴏᴍᴇ ʙᴀᴄᴋ, a voice said.

And then everything changed.

 

[Mint Heron]

40 minutes ago, Azure Mouse said:

Fumesh sat alone besides a fire.

The storm in the camp had died down, for now. A highstorm was no time to fight. But while the highstorm might wash away the blood on the ground, it could not wash away fear or distrust. Come morning, everyone would just go back to arguing, and fighting... and killing.

How many singers would die at the hands of the spies? How many more by the hands of their fellow runaways?

Fumesh was just so tired. Tired of secrets and arguments. Tired of the voice in his head, when he looked at his companions, whispering: they could be the one to kill you. Tired of huddling under whatever shelter he could find in a highstorm, wondering if the spies were coming for him next.

He sighed, his breath causing the fire to flare up. From his pocket, as if in response, came a squeak. Zure poked its head out, pushing a sphere in front of it. The gemstone fell down and rolled to a stop in front of him.

Fumesh stared at the sphere. It whispered.

He'd kept it hidden. If the others had seen him with it, he had no doubt he'd have been the one strung up on the rocks. But no one had.

He picked up the sphere. Its whispering had grown louder, recently- the spren inside begging him to draw it in, make it a part of himself. Fumesh had captured it in the chaos following the last storm. He'd realized what it truly was, and he knew- if he gave into its demands, it was all over.

But perhaps it was over anyways.

The stormwall appeared on the horizon. Fumesh stood up, clutching the sphere in his hand, and faced the storm. His fire died, blown out by the coming wind.

Fumesh attuned Resolve.

The stormwall hit. The Rhythms merged. Fumesh's gemstone shattered, red lightning flickering out towards his chest...

ᴡᴇʟᴄᴏᴍᴇ ʙᴀᴄᴋ, a voice said.

And then everything changed.

 

...what.

[Oxblood Beagle]

1 hour ago, Opal Lion said:

-Beagle abstained from voting today, likely knowing the warform jig was up. 

Uh … no I didn’t. I just put my vote on Heron earlier and didn’t move it.

I’d considered it, seeing as there was a lot of Elim-Warform-Beagle or bust, but I figured trying to confirm myself that way would be too… too desperate? Too something.

I’m not contesting Vulture’s Warform claim though. Scholar? Eh. Unfortunately I’ve rather backed myself into a corner on that end.

I’m slightly scared of Vulture, because between them and Heron I don’t know what to think. But if next cycle is 6-5 exelo… E-War-Vulture is immortal, because we can’t afford to spend a cycle killing their extra life when we’re only leading by one. Actually that might just mean E-War-Vulture means an Elim win unless they just miss a kill. But we’d be in that exact situation with Heron as well, and I think of the two I’d bet my spheres on Evil Heron.

 

…. or someone converts to the Voidbringers and ends the game this turn. That could also happen.

[Cream Tuatara]

2 hours ago, Plum Rhinoceros said:

Hmm

@Azure Mouse, @Cream Tuatara, @Oxblood Beagle- I know I just pinged Mavset. The question is which one.

I am not Mavset, unless you think I'm in a team with Mouse, Falcon, and Scorpion. Falcon isn't super distrusted, nor is Scorpion, even if Mouse kind of is. 

51 minutes ago, Amber Vulture said:

And @Cream Tuatara if you wanted to really prove your role, you could probably just make two PM groups, both with v!Lion in them. It'd end the debate about if you jsut claimed to make a PM group that was all elims but didn't actually do it. 

I would do that, but Nimbleforms can only use their second action once per cycle. I will happily do that with you, Lion if they're alive, Rhino, Dragonfly, or whoever else you decide on, or, I can put on my artform today and put something in the write-up to confirm me.

[Amber Vulture]

4 minutes ago, Cream Tuatara said:

I am not Mavset, unless you think I'm in a team with Mouse, Falcon, and Scorpion. Falcon isn't super distrusted, nor is Scorpion, even if Mouse kind of is. 

I would do that, but Nimbleforms can only use their second action once per cycle. I will happily do that with you, Lion if they're alive, Rhino, Dragonfly, or whoever else you decide on, or, I can put on my artform today and put something in the write-up to confirm me.

I feel like the Artform is less confimable than two PMs. But maybe hold that thought because evil Mouse may be a thing? If they're Malibu, it makes things much easier. 

Edit: and just strategically, why would you ever go for Artform anyway? 

Why are all the top suspects posting near the same time. Myself included

Edited August 2, 2021 by Amber Vulture

[Plum Rhinoceros]

1 hour ago, Amber Vulture said:

Darn, I need a song about lions sleeping and I just can't seem to think of any.

Here

1 hour ago, Amber Vulture said:

1. PM Flamingo and ask if they'll be on near rollover to stop a hammer. At that point I thought they and one other villager were split off votes and that worried me. I thought rollover was two hours earlier than it is for whatever reason. So when I

The issue is here though- v!you wants the elims to hammer you, so why mention this to Flamingo at all?

1 hour ago, Amber Vulture said:

The point of confusion seems to be, why would Warform me be afraid of the exe? I think that's a bad way of looking at it, because I was more focused on what exing me doesn't do. Namely, kill an elim.

And we're more focused on what the elims hammering you does. Namely, reveal most of their team. That's better than exeing a single elim.

1 hour ago, Amber Vulture said:

It would have resulted in a no exe, but then with an NK, it becomes 6:5. All they need is some vote manip and they've got it in the bag. Actually, that's where we're at now, but I'm proceeding as if this is a winnable game.

I believe we have Flamingo, and as long as the game continues we have a chance. It's closed when the elims cannot lose so where there's a cycle there's hope.

1 hour ago, Amber Vulture said:

I don't think just letting myself be half exed was a good play.

And I think I finally understand why, so I don't think you need to reply to anything I've said here- I think we just need to agree to disagree here.

...But I think Mouse claimed Mavset? So uh not sure how to feel about that :|

6 minutes ago, Oxblood Beagle said:

I’m not contesting Vulture’s Warform claim though. Scholar? Eh. Unfortunately I’ve rather backed myself into a corner on that end.

Thing here is that if Vulture wasn't Scholar they're not Warform. So you'll have to explain a bit more.

5 minutes ago, Cream Tuatara said:

I am not Mavset, unless you think I'm in a team with Mouse, Falcon, and Scorpion. Falcon isn't super distrusted, nor is Scorpion, even if Mouse kind of is. 

I would do that, but Nimbleforms can only use their second action once per cycle. I will happily do that with you, Lion if they're alive, Rhino, Dragonfly, or whoever else you decide on, or, I can put on my artform today and put something in the write-up to confirm me.

Nah I trust you. Plus. Mouse. So.

Edited August 2, 2021 by Plum Rhinoceros

[Opal Lion]

6 minutes ago, Amber Vulture said:

I feel like the Artform is less confimable than two PMs. But maybe hold that thought because evil Mouse may be a thing? If they're Malibu, it makes things much easier. 

You can't put on a form and send the write-up stuff in the same Turn. Each is an action. It's why my Making Art (TM) takes up an action and I don't PM at night anymore. So it'd defeat the purpose anyway since the point of confirming Tuatara isn't confirming they're Village but that they're not Malibu.

[Amethyst Scorpion]

@Plum Rhinoceros, sure I’ll make a PM. Should it’s participants be publicly known or should I keep them secret? I’ll max out the capacity.

[Plum Rhinoceros]

37 minutes ago, Amethyst Scorpion said:

@Plum Rhinoceros, sure I’ll make a PM. Should it’s participants be publicly known or should I keep them secret? I’ll max out the capacity.

The point is verifying your night action, so it'll probably end up being known anyway. Doesn't really matter, do whatever you want. Thanks!

[Oxblood Beagle]

1 hour ago, Plum Rhinoceros said:

Thing here is that if Vulture wasn't Scholar they're not Warform. So you'll have to explain a bit more.

I mean, they could be. There would just have to be something even more very weird going on.

Also, I more meant I’m saying I’m not Warform, and I’m “not” Scholarform. One’s a hard claim, one’s… what I would say in any case.

[Opal Lion]

14 minutes ago, Oxblood Beagle said:

I mean, they could be. There would just have to be something even more very weird going on.

Also, I more meant I’m saying I’m not Warform, and I’m “not” Scholarform. One’s a hard claim, one’s… what I would say in any case.

I mean, regardless of whether you said it or not, I don't think there's another option now. There are at maximum four warform gems in this game. We have three confirmed warforms all claiming to have acquired it C1 and I know for a fact Heron did not attune N2 and N3 and probably N4 come to think of that. For you to contest the warform claim, you'd have to admit to...being both warform and a scholarform.

Oh dear. Oh dear me  

Edited to add: I probably should've slept but sometimes painkillers don't work. Word of advice sometimes just don't wing it it's not worth it.

Edited to add2:

2 hours ago, Oxblood Beagle said:

Uh … no I didn’t. I just put my vote on Heron earlier and didn’t move it.

Tbh I noted it and forgot, my bad. I think I'm so used to you late voting I'm just like ??? no more last minute Beagle today?

Edited August 2, 2021 by Opal Lion