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Fifth Scholar

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Everything posted by Fifth Scholar

  1. I’ll note that Striker is comprising half your support right now, so it’s a little odd how much you’re condemning his decisions given that he had the chance to put pretty much anyone else in the lead, especially Bip, and didn’t. Still prefer you over her and Szeth, but once again the disagreement is strong Archer’s latest set of posts reads very oddly to me. Logically I should switch to his wagon to consolidate, but it has a big enough lead now that I’m leaving my vote on Mat in protest. I did not like the way this election developed and will be a bit disappointed in how the votes were conducted regardless of the flip (though obviously getting a villager on is good even if I’m suspicious of the last-minute switchers). Mostly I’m just disappointed in myself for artificially dampening my activity early in the cycle when my vote and opinions probably would’ve actually mattered
  2. Meh, I’m still elim reading Szeth and you together, so you switching to Bip might be an improvement in the sense that it would remove some of my paranoia there, but I’d still rather Archer be elected than either of the other two. (If we’re really going for last-minute consolidations, does anyone care to join me on Matrim? ) TBH if Striker decides to put Bip on the Circle because of nepotism, your vote change or lack thereof probably won’t matter too much, so if you’d rather yourself get in than Szeth (and since I’d rather you be elected than Szeth), you might as well remove your vote now so you don’t scare anyone by hammering. I’ll probably stay on Mat as my safest non-Alv village read, so if you want that to be a wagon in contention and add your vote to it, that’d also be cool.
  3. Alright, caught up, which was surprisingly easy for 40 posts. Thoughts W/o multiquoting because I need sleep: - I like the idea of seeing what Alv will do as WL. - The Biplet train is weird to me, and after last cycle I’m more leery of Araris, so I’m not sure she’s the best semi active to vote in if we want to go that route. Though I’d really rather not vote in semiactives anyway, as it seems like a good excuse to avoid the hard work of analysis and lets the Elims get away with slipping in their less vocal players. - Archer is actually probably village but I disagree with most of his takes, whereas I think Tani is evil but nonetheless making quite a few good points, perhaps intentionally - I retain my uneasiness about Steel, but am glad that he’s participating more actively and still doing his fun RP - Mat is village, here I stand. Also, on a similar note, still getting the evil vibes from Szeth and I’m not a huge fan of his election or the reasoning of those pushing it, so there I stand as well. - Current read of Striker: ????? (hey this is becoming a motif) Good night.
  4. Gonna say it again, but I read these kind of “pure reaction” posts as evil by default, so noting Striker as a suspicion (or rather more of one than he was already). I voted the best I could when looking at a very complicated knot of interactions? Mat was no longer a viable candidate since Tani had moved off, I wasn’t about to elevate Striker, and you and Szeth were still giving me all the bad vibes (kinda still are, even though you’re apparently right about everything and I’m not). Only choice left was Elan, and I’d liked her contributions and tone far more than the other candidates. Not that I was right in the end, but I tried Sorry dude, though it’s kinda your fault for trusting my 12:30 AM brain which hasn’t been village since you left for your mission and has a lot of catching up to do This is perhaps a little extreme, given we have (possibly) five cycles left and four players alive who voted last round on people not named Elandera. Holding off for this cycle might be wise, but I’d be fine putting Mat up for the Circle in a round or two, given that my position on him hasn’t moved much with Elan’s flip. Not sure if I like this kind of statement, especially if the Elandera votes were half- or majority-village (which, from my perspective, just means one of you, Araris and Mat is still good ). Once again I’m gonna challenge everything you say even though you keep voting on me. If you suspect Araris for using the logic “I trust Elan more because of her voters,” you have to apply that same suspicion to me, as that was one of the tipping factors in deciding my vote. And if Steel’s vote seemed fine to you but you don’t want to elect someone who voted Elan last cycle, you shouldn’t be voting on me either. *** I wrote all this analysis yesterday afternoon (>24 hrs ago) and then committed to not posting it until I’d gotten some RP written. A few RL things (snakes invading the chicken coop, shifts at work, talking with family) meant that it never got much beyond the outline stage. Here’s two paragraphs of it, which I’ll post now with the now-very-outdated analysis to avoid losing it in the text editor, and then I’ll read the last 30-40 posts, respond and vote. One of these days I’ll get time and my RP will be decent instead of rushed *** Darrel coughed up blood. His cubicle was still occupied, the only one filled in after the strike. Olaf had told him it was important to defy the other workers and show up in the closed factory. He’d wondered why. Now, with two bodies strewn on the floor, he’d begun to understand. Olaf’s telegram to the foundry had gone through early, earlier than even he’d imagined. Starrick’s response was so swift it almost preceded the heads-up message which Olaf had sent Darrel. He’d barely had time to slip the odious leather gloves on and grab his dueling cane before the door to his office burst open and two of the boss’ thugs—perhaps even literal ones—peered in menacingly. “The Boss needs you,” they’d said. Well, they’d discovered that the Boss was going to have to learn patience when dealing with the old noble houses. The pair of men were still slumped unconscious, perhaps comatose, the gloves’ smoke making their breathing ragged and shallow. Of course, Darrel himself wasn’t as young and spry as he used to be. He tenderly felt at the broken rib where the first man’s club had struck him, hacking up another clump of blood mixed with phlegm. When was the last time he’d not been able to heal with Investiture? Tathingdwen? It was a sobering thought. Perhaps he was really too worn thin to keep up the subterfuge and double-agency. Rusts, he didn’t even know whose side Olaf was on in this. He just handled the contacts. And it looked like another one was coming down the aisle. There. Time to play catch-up.
  5. Based on the first paragraph alone I will not be voting on Archer for the next few cycles >> I've not played with him much, but self-congratulatory remarks like that are one of the hallmark elim tells and it's made me immediately (more) suspicious of him. That said I won't complain if I have his vote for WL, even if the Lotus vote is a little odd I mean, I'm happy to be "info killed" so you guys know it was v/v and we're two cycles away from victory. That said, I probably wouldn't vote on myself at this point if I didn't know my alignment, so I hardly blame you for hesitating - I've been too quiet lately for really no good reason other than feeling like I have to RP and multiquote a lot, and haven't really contributed too much in the way of analysis (though this post is hopefully actively fixing that). Maybe I should go with the Kas strat of the chill RPful game and not worry about replying to the entire thread That said, you're one of my more tentative village reads, and I like your reasoning on Elan and Striker even if I might not join those votes myself quite yet. Really not liking Archer now for the Szeth vote, who I also don't trust. He has basically a flipped view of Elandera from me about the Szeth situation too, which ironically is making me more likely to vote on her despite my D1 misgivings >> Hmm. Not sure whether Striker is a villager who's giving me terrible tone reads because I always tunnel on him or if he's an elim trying to use village!Mat or village!Elandera to gain cred, or if he's teammates with either of them. My gut is saying 2 with 1 as a serious option and 3 as "break glass in case of emergency" but either way, despite agreeing with a sizeable chunk of this post, I don't like it much >> Uh. That's a take. Do you have any thoughts or a vote beyond that? Your play this game is kind of confusing me I'm just paranoid in general, so don't take the suspicion personally (and now your post on Striker is making me like him more. Why can't the elim teams I compose in my head seamlessly work together and defend each other instead of introducing distancing and complications >>) I'm actually in strong agreement with Striker about Tani, particularly since the way she's throwing around her double vote this cycle seems very...calculated in a way I don't like, and is mostly giving me anxiety Yeah I don't like this post. The hesitance (which I got onto Elan for earlier but is especially present here; there's no need to apologise for a lack of strong reads even if that's the case, and it seems like an attempt to head off an attack on her), plus the Szeth vote, who has been my only consistently strong elim read this game. And now it's immediately retracted, again, though the points in response to Szeth are, in fairness, quite good. I don't know if this was a genuine change in heart or a phishing attempt seeing if people would accept the election. Hey, guess what, my gut doesn't like you this game, surprise And I don't really know how I've been giving you weird vibes over the course of like, two posts, but I'd love an explanation. What are you doing with your votes >> Alright, seems fair enough, enjoy singing to Kas in-thread for the rest of the game I guess What are you doing with your votes I think it'd work almost the opposite? If elims want to be elected, they've got to give people a reason for it I actually like the Bip vote though, because it's not something an elim would think to do or notice, so congrats on earning village points I guess (unless you two are evil together but at some point I have to take my tinfoil hat off and try to trust people ) Interesting logic on Elan. I...am kinda coming around to the idea of Elan on the IC, mostly because I like the people voting for her and I feel like everyone else I have some reason to actively suspect from this cycle. The only thing making me uncomfortable is the weird triangulation going on with Striker and Mat, but I suppose we'll get some answers if we vote one of them out, so >> Elandera and Mat for WL because I appreciate the steadiness of his vote and he's one of my few village reads. Sometime my brain will have to break down the web of interaction that just happened, but that time is not 12:30 AM [big RP post is (hopefully) incoming, btw]
  6. Catching up late because my multiquote of last night was consumed by the text editor, which gains an unparalleled voraciousness in Kas' games for some reason, and then working a long shift this evening. Hopefully doing things from my laptop will reduce the chances of this happening again So, uh...thank you for the vote, though I'm a little confused by your thought process on Striker. You think the early votes for him were a possible elim push, but you also trust him and the people voting on him enough to support making him WL instead? I...don't see the process connecting those thoughts I do agree on Szeth though, and would be uncomfortable placing him anywhere near a position of power for the time being. Given that we are in Elendel, with the months of Vinuarch and Doxil, this is Mistborn Era 2, so I hope they've got telegraphs if they've developed radios already Once again, a hesitant thanks; I suppose I strive for equivalent competence, though I'm unsure of what to make of your commentary on me as a whole. You're completely correct on the Steel vote; it had no initial justification whatsoever beyond the fact that I couldn't really help myself. He and I have a history similar to Wyrm and Kas, except with less betrayal and more bad gut reads leading to mass village slaughter. Luckily for the village this game, we couldn't mislynch any villagers even if we tried (Once I get more time (and presuming I'm not voted out this cycle) I will develop Darrel's position a bit more and start responding to your RP speeches, I've been loving them) this is why I'm an advocate of keeping trust reads simple and holding villagers accountable for playing like they're evil, because it dodges a lot of the IKYKs which you've just introduced Have not played Avalon before but I'll go ahead and +1 this anyway. It's actually hard for us to screw up the lynch long-term, comparatively, as we need to get a simple majority of villagers elected and most players are village, so the real challenge will be creating valid distractions for the Tineye so that the Elims don't have him pinned come late-game. (Which ironically makes the voting and elections more important, as that's where ordinary villagers will have to have good enough reads and suspicions that the Elims will think they couldn't have possibly gotten all that right unless they had been, say, handed a list of elims ) (sidenote: liking the RP) Agreed on Tani. Can't remember if someone pointed this out earlier, but I don't like your equivocatory stance on voting here. Unless you're the Tineye, you'll never be able to trust anyone enough to elect them, so you kind of have to vote from what you have. And the earlier you do that, the more the thread can look at you, the more information we get, the more analysis progresses, etc., the better. (Mainly, etc.) So while I do agree with you on Szeth, you've also now joined him on my list of people who I'm probably not voting in anytime soon. Smh, do your research, it's not like I don't have village games where you can witness my catastrophically bad play and thus make judgment calls based on those Aw thanks (wait I'm now tied for the lead ) Now I'm not tied for the lead To address your points briefly, yes, my posts tend to read this way, though I'd disagree it's AI so much as a function of being an English major who sees every piece of writing as something with a purpose that needs to be tailored and revised. I will freely admit that I am often dishonest or subtly manipulative as a villager; feel free to look at any of the games I linked to TJ, but especially MR29, MR31, LG54 and LG56. So this tendency to manipulation extends to my writing, where I have careful diction when I'm doing serious multiquoting like this and not just firing off joke responses or one-liners. You're free to disagree with it, but with three and a half years of this playstyle under my belt from both alignments, it's probably not going back VCs are helpful. I'll go Alvron Striker because if Tani gets extorted I'd rather see what Alv does with the double vote than Striker, and I'll leave my primary vote on Steel because the significant part of me that cares about playing for a win still has some meager hopes of being elected, and I don't really trust TJ too much at all even though he's far from the worst choice. There are just a lot of people I'd elevate first (myself chief among them )
  7. SMH outing all my good elim strategies so they can’t be recycled (I’d note that in that game, in which I was evil both times, the aforementioned strategy got me elected via hammer in the first run-through, and not at all in the second, so it’s really less effective than you’d imagine) TO THE FACTORY OWNER KNOWN AS STARRICK STOP This discussion took up probably half of MR38b over whether Bard could be trusted, who had helped Corrupted!Ulmo!Stink get onto the Council via a last-minute vote, and surprisingly the people who were most dogmatic on this point were evil. (Including me. ) So while I get the basic idea behind this, and probably wouldn’t put anyone up for election *immediately* after they voted in an elim, we should have some flexibility or the Elims can win just by manipulating all the villagers onto a teammate, staying off themselves, and then getting elected by staying in the smaller pool of more “trusted” players. YOUR RECENT STRUGGLES WITH THE FREED SKAA HAVE COME UNDER THE ATTENTION OF CERTAIN SCADRIAN NOBILITY STOP If Kas took cues from MR38, I’d agree here. That game we had 5/17 Elims in round two (I think?) and still had an awful time trying to get any of our own nominated THEY HAVE AGREED TO USE THEIR VAST EXPERIENCE IN DEALING WITH THE LOWER CLASSES TO AID IN THE RESOLUTION OF THE SITUATION STOP Why, exactly? I fail to see how that plan is AI at all. This seems like an overly hasty trust. SUCH INTERFERENCE HOWEVER WILL COME AT A PRICE STOP The preferred terminology is Wyrmimir THE NOBILITY INVOLVED MAY BE CONTACTED THROUGH THE OFFICE OF THE LABOUR UNDERSECRETARY TO ARRANGE A MEETING STOP Eh…yes and no? I’ve always had distaste for approaches which clear people for suspicious or suboptimal behaviour, as it’s in the interest of the village to look and behave like villagers, which includes altruism and looking for other people to trust, but in this case I agree; the first person everyone should want elected is themselves. (Except perhaps the Tineye or Watchman, but that’s a separate discussion.) That being said, the way this game operates, you have to find someone else to trust, or your participation is meaningless. So those altruistic people will be the ones advancing the game if everyone else is just saying “hey, look at me, elect me!” PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT ANY DAMAGE TO THE UNDERSECRETARY OR LACK OF REPLY TO THIS MISSIVE WILL BE VIEWED AS OCCASION TO ASSIST THE STRIKING WORKERS STOP In the interest of not cleaning said bathroom with my creaking back and arthritic hands, Steeldancer. (This vote obviously subject to change.) And Striker, because why not. YOUR COOPERATION COMMA PROMPTNESS COMMA AND WILLINGNESS TO COMPROMISE WILL BE OF TREMENDOUS HELP AS WE LOOK TO DIFFUSE THE SITUATION QUICKLY STOP
  8. An old man, tottering, leaning on his walking stick for support, stepped into his office. He closed the door with a heavy sigh, slumping into the straight-backed chair in a way that made the old wood creak in protest. Ignoring his furniture, he grabbed the folder he'd been looking at for the past week, now grubby with his fingerprints on its sleek cover. Labour Reports, week of 5 Vinuarch. All the numbers were in red. A disaster for Demas Starrick, that cruel manager and symbol of the careless decadence of the new businessmen. Or perhaps he was an icon of hope in a rapidly industrialising world, providing jobs for those who were formerly impoverished skaa.REPLYING TO YOUR TELEGRAM STOP Darrel did not much care about the spin of either side now. He had been everywhere. Member of the Terris Synod in Tathingdwen for the longest time, getting caught up in time trouble and finding himself hawking wares as a merchant in Silverlight to survive, then acquiring Dominion, and with it nearly the Cosmere itself. And now he had given it all up, been Returned to Scadrial as a man without powers at the request of Mercy. To live the rest of his ordinary life as best he could. And he was not about to get caught up in the latest petty squabble of labourers and managers. It was not going to happen. It simply didn't matter anymore. He closed the folder again. He was tired. It was time to go home, take a nap, and finally hand in his resignation to Starrick while he wouldn't have time to object. Maybe in that order. Maybe not. Bending over his cane, he stood and faced the door. And stepped back in surprise, teetering dangerously. I HAVE ALREADY REFUSED TO REMOVE THE POLICE COMMISSIONER OF BOSTON STOP I DID NOT APPOINT HIM STOP A tall, thin, hooded figure stood in the doorway, a lit match in hand. In the other, somehow, were the labour reports he had just set on the desk. How did this man get them? He felt anger flare in him. His arm moved to grasp the reports, but the man just leaned back, bringing the match closer to the thin paper. "Wait!" Darrel broke in, croaking. "I need those! What do you want?" HE CAN ASSUME NO POSITION WHICH THE COURTS WOULD UPHOLD EXCEPT WHAT THE PEOPLE HAVE BY THE AUTHORITY OF THEIR LAW VESTED IN HIM STOP "What do I want?" a raspy, elderly voice answered. "I want you, Darrel, to get involved in one final adventure for my sake." The hood dropped, revealing the age-blotted face of one of the old Scadrian nobility. A long grey eyebrow ran above his piercing eyes, which stared into Darrel's, prompting the spike of dread to rise to the surface at last. HE SPEAKS ONLY WITH THEIR VOICE STOP THE RIGHT OF THE POLICE OF BOSTON TO AFFILIATE HAS ALWAYS BEEN QUESTIONED COMMA NEVER GRANTED COMMA IS NOW PROHIBITED STOP "Olaf," he spit. "Enjoying getting the last word on me after all these years?" THE SUGGESTION OF PRESIDENT WILSON DOES NOT APPLY TO BOSTON STOP THERE THE POLICE HAVE REMAINED ON DUTY STOP "It's Lord Ffnord, to you," said the count nonchalantly, riffling the report papers. "Anyway, it's about time I gave you a chance to do something besides rot in that wizened body of yours. We're both old fogeys, now, but we can make one last play for the good of Elendel." His eye glinted. "Just like the good old days. Here, take these. You'll need them." A pair of badly dyed leather gloves were thrust into his hand. HERE THE POLICEMANS UNION LEFT THEIR DUTY COMMA AN ACTION WHICH PRESIDENT WILSON CHARACTERIZED AS A CRIME AGAINST CIVILIZATION STOP Darrel looked up, bewildered, through the familiar haze of black smoke. "How in the name of the God Beyond did you get your arsonist paws on these?" YOUR ASSERTION THAT THE COMMISSIONER WAS WRONG CANNOT JUSTIFY THE WRONG OF LEAVING THE CITY UNGUARDED STOP "Not your concern," he replied. "Now, it's time to get serious..." THAT FURNISHED THE OPPORTUNITY COMMA THE CRIMINAL ELEMENT FURNISHED THE ACTION STOP Signing up as Darrel, an old man who's seen one too many scrapes and just wants to retire, rust it all. Except he somehow can't. Looking forward to being trolled by Kas once again Pardon the poorly written RP, I got excited to sign up as soon as I saw it was a Kas game and kinda rushed it. Hope to get more done before the game starts. THERE IS NO RIGHT TO STRIKE AGAINST THE PUBLIC SAFETY BY ANYBODY COMMA ANYWHERE COMMA ANY TIME STOP
  9. The details were stomach-churning. It shouldn’t have been a surprise - prior work with financial crimes and inconsistencies in the past ought to have been a better indicator that something fishy was up with the transfer of so many boxings to obscure funds in the Southern Dominance. But to embezzle funds? From the Steel Ministry? Only a madman would do—could do—such a thing. Well, that was Rostam for you. A madman indeed. Except now his madness had caught up with him, and there would be blood to pay. A nod to the secretary in the corner of the office sent him, bowing, down the hallway to bring Rostam into the room. It looked the same as it ever did - tall, narrow windows framed by candlelight to hide the flakes of falling ash which spewed forth from the nearby Mount Zariel, a reminder of the dominion of the Lord Ruler. The earring felt hard and bumpy, the only thing taken off Rostam which had been classified as a “weapon” by the Ministry secretaries. It was pure iron, more of a hook, cruelly sharp and covered with a thin layer of dried blood. Rostam had never had piercings; in fact, he’d been the austere one in the family, shunning jewellery and luxury. What was he thinking with this artefact? And why would the Inquisitors single it out, out of all the things to take off him? Nothing added up. I shook my head. Such thoughts were too distracting, and the door was opening again, Rostam entering with his head still held high. That blasted man. He even had the audacity to speak first, before the secretary had left again. “Brother. You look tired." “Rostam.” The contempt was still below the surface. For now. “Rusts, man, what were you thinking? The Ministry’s in an uproar over this! A few boxings here and there and they might have quietly dismissed you. Now there’s an entire trial lined up for you. In Luthadel itself! Lord Ruler, do you have any idea as to how stupid this was? And guess who’s job it’ll be to get you there?” He looked unconcerned. Maddeningly so. “Yours, presumably. If you take the case to trial, of course.” The smile which followed was humourless, judging from experience. “That’s not a given yet.” “You think your back is safe because you have a brother in the Ministry? What you’ve done is despicable. You deserve every punishment the Inquisitors can devise. You’ve left life in shambles for everyone not in on your petty schemes, and it’s come to an end. An end, Rostam.” “You’re trusted, brother. Because there’s something you’ve forgotten.” He leaned in closer, unwashed breath rancid. When he finished, he stepped back, looking satisfied with himself. He was laughing, in fact, laughing at the emotions which had carelessly been plastered on my face. “Well, we both know your Ministry principles are out the window now. How are you going to help me?” Breaths. Slow breathing, one breath at a time. This was insane. Was anyone in the room? Nobody should be in the room. It’d be a whisper, then. “There are some back channels the Ministry uses to get people out who they want to publicly chastise but actually have uses for. You’d get sent through one of them, a switch that should be able to be arranged without too much hassle. If you’re crafty - if - you might get out of the way before the Inquisitors find you out.” Rostam was smiling fully now. “Thank you, Iste. And as for your own plans, I may perhaps be of aid to you. One brother to another.” “The Ministry cannot be escaped.” Asserted more flatly than intended, but it was true. Rostam should know. He’d probably eventually find out, despite whatever efforts were continued on his behalf. “It is expected that one of us will fall into the hands of the Inquisitors. And it will not be you.” Rostam shrugged. “Not sure there. Have you heard of this village called Fallion’s Tears? In the Southern Dominance, out of the way, barely exists on Ministry records. A scholar there is retiring, and there might be a perfect place for you to use your talents and do your little self-imposed penance at the same time.” The iron earring dug in, hook tearing the flesh of the palm, and other voices seemed to overlap Rostam’s. “You will have an important role to play ere your time is complete…” I wrote Iste's backstory eleven hours before the game will possibly be decided, as Kas threatened to turn him into a duck wrangler and we couldn't have that. So instead he's a retired obligator who got involved in sketchy business twice and eventually lived the chill and peaceful life in Fallion's Tears to escape it all. Except that stupid earring...always causing trouble for us older pacifist gents
  10. Aw It's much nicer of you to just let the confusion stand...though I will say completely seriously that your list is off because of the assumptions you hold about our team TJ shouts this from the rooftops for two cycles and we kill him, only for you to keep repeating it. Maybe Illwei was right about our choice of kill targets for tonight Correct
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