The Foreign Game's RulesI already linked this in the Future Mafia Games thread but I'll put it here as it is probably better off linked here.
My Foreign Mafia Experience This is a recap of the game from my experience and how it worked and played out.
It was a 14 player game. The theme was Animal Crossing. It seemed right. My first game here was an Animal Crossing themed game so my first mafia game there could be Animal Crossing themed as well. The roles were simple. There was a detective and doctor which were the same as how we usually use them. There was also a double voter and bandit role. The double voter role is simple enough. As explained there: "During the day this player’s vote counts as two. The second vote won’t be visible to others and will instead be noted by the host." The bandit role was the only new role to be encountered. Its description was such: "[It] requires one less vote than normal in a lynch to be killed." These were all the townie roles used.
Now, the reason the bandit role mentions needing one less vote is because voting was done a bit differently. First of all, both the day and night phase could last 48 hours maximum. During the day phase, everyone could vote for whoever and change their vote during this time like normal. However, if a vote reached a majority then the day would immediately end. As an example, if we had 14 players and 7 players had voted Stevey and then Nickmitch decided to also vote Stevey, giving him 8 votes, the day would then end before the 48 hours are up as Stevey had reached a majority vote regardless of how others may have voted or if some who had voted Stevey had been thinking of changing that vote. Obviously, the roles that could affect votes would also have to be taken into account but once a majority decision is reached the day is over. If 48 hours is up and no majority is reached, then the person with the most votes against them would be eliminated. If it was a tie vote, then no one would be eliminated. One other difference is that players could also choose No Lynch as an option and thus the day could end with the majority having decided to not kill anyone.
The mafia side also had some difference to it. There was no godfather. All mafia members were equal and could be investigated and exposed by the detective. In order for the mafia to make a kill, the members had to make a choice and each would make their choice known to the host. Thus, it was like another mini-vote where players had to discuss and talk to each other who should be killed and form a majority opinion. If a majority opinion is not reached, then there is no kill.
Now we get to some of the factors that make the game a bit more unbalanced in my view. First of all, there were 4 mafia members. In a game with 14 players, I think that was 1 mafia member too many. Plus, the number of mafia members was not made known to the rest of the players. Thus, townies had no idea how many players they had to eliminate but the mafia did. On top of that, the mafia was given a free hit before the first day began so we got to immediately lower the opposition's numbers and had a crack at eliminating a great townie role before it could be used.
Recap of How the Game WentThe host made a post letting everyone know that the night 0 action was now occurring after sending out roles. 3 people posted in the thread while waiting and it was those 3 people I recommended as our first hit on the idea that they probably received a role and knew the game had begun which is why they started posting so soon. Others in my group chose one of those names as she was an experienced player so they thought it best to take out such a threat. With that, we eliminated our first townie.
I had also made a post in the meantime while we made that decision stating: "Ok. So, if I'm reading the rules right, the game has begun but only the players who have a role are able to play right now. Otherwise, I've got to wait a few days to be able to join in, correct?" I figured with no one hopefully knowing me there, I might as well play up my "first-timer" player status. It sounds so dumb but it works.
Now, there was one player named Jojodude88 who was rubbing people the wrong way. He was one of the three choices I had made to the group on night 0 since he was being quite active from the start of the game. The first post he had made during that night action phase was asking what role another player had and made a vote during that phase. When Day 1 began, he started getting some votes. This led another player named Paragon to post the following:
1. JoJodude88 is an innocent guy. Works for the village. Nickname is JoJo
2. Stop jumping on the bandwagon. Give him a break, he's new.
3. He hasn't posted much else to determine whether he's a bad guy other than the fact the he asked what our roles are. Someone could have lied to him, and he wouldn't have known the difference. Generally, though, a very bad idea to ask what someone's role is.
I right away seized on that. How could this player by so certain that Jojo was innocent so early unless he had investigated him? This was my number 1 suspect for the detective which I considered the mafia's biggest threat. In the meantime, players started leaning towards no vote and I joined in with that choice as it slows townie progress and means the mafia stays safe and gets another hit. My post was as follows:
Ok. Finally get to vote!
So, reading things over, paragon makes some good points and I'll go with that.
Vote: No Lynch.
My big question is this: Wouldn't anyone who wants to vote someone out right now be a mafia? We basically have to wait for the detective do his investigations. So without that, how can anyone say someone else is guilty right now?
I figured I'd mention myself being on board with Paragon's thoughts as it would help my innocent act especially if I was right about him being the detective. I asked some more dumb questions as well because I'm shameless.
While not having a reputation there had its benefits, it also had its drawbacks. When I recommended to the mafia that we hit Paragon, it was met with resistance. As one player warned me, "I don't think he's the detective. A detective wouldn't claim this early on. I think he was just trying to say that he's probably just making nooby mistakes." Still, with my
annoying persistance powers of persuasion, I got the group to vote for Paragon and sure enough, we eliminated the detective. The mafia train was barrelling along.
For some reason, when writing the Day 1 story, the host used my name to write up a short story of what happened. Why give me the extra attention? I want my name to not be thought of by the other players. This is why I try to use player's names sparingly in my story writing. Unless they actually had a hand in voting someone out or I can make a joke with something that happened that day with a post or action they made, I don't mention anyone unless it is late in the game and then I may try to include everyone in a write-up just so that no one has more "screen time" than another player. The host even mentioned "By the way I would take any unintentional hints dropped in the write ups with a pinch of salt. I'm trying to avoid name dropping and any hints that may come from the write up are unintentional". Still, why take the risk if it might influence things? It makes you a player then instead of just a host. I just deflected it with this remark, "Cool! You're making me the hero of the story? I'm down with that. Thanks!" as if it didn't even bother me because I'm so innocent and new to the game. But I tell you, man, inside myself, I was choked!
On day 2, one of the townies very kindly made themselves a target of the vote early on by choosing no vote after the day 1 events while the other townies had wised up that a no vote only benefits the mafia. I started employing some of my methods for deflecting suspicion. I threw out some false logic just because I enjoy framing people and decided to target a player named Steven. It sort of worked. One person voting along with me saying, "Because what Khush said seems legit." I am 2 legit 2 quit. Say what? Another joined in the vote, mentioning, "because I agree with what Kush is saying." I believe in Harvey Dent too. Oh wait. That didn't work out in the end....
However, my frame-up came too late and not enough people joined in to make it the majority vote. Not that it mattered to me much. An innocent townie got lynched which was fine by me. Anyone not a mafia member is a good vote out. I asked my mafia if they were the doctor, who would they protect? I only got one response. Communication between mafia members was not any better there. I tried to use some strategic thinking but to no avail. You see, at this point in the game, there was one player who had yet to show up. This player, named Megageeklizzy, hadn't been seen since putting their name down in the sign-up portion. (Yes, even there, player participation wasn't 100%.) As I tried to explain to the mafia:
"Well, the reason why I asked who you would protect as doctor is because I doubt any of us would choose to protect megageeklizzy. That is my recommendation for the hit because it gives the townies absolutely nothing to go on. He has no voting history or made any comments and therefore it keeps everyone else's votes safe from being exposed as voting for a townie or townie role. Plus, the doctor will most likely not be protecting that person allowing us to make a successful hit."
It seemed like a great, great hit. Of course, mafias love to hit active players rather than inactive ones but there are benefits of taking out inactive ones especially with the way this game was going. A successful hit now and we just have to take out two more townies tomorrow. 1 in the vote along with a successful hit and it is a tie amount of players giving us the win. Instead, they wanted to hit Jojodude88. Part of it was some flawed reasoning as to the way the vote ended. Players assumed Jojodude was the double voter. I thought it was the worst possible move as that was the one player the detective had actually investigated and had said was a townie which caused his death. His verification of Jojo's innocence was why he was hit. If there was one safe choice for the doctor to protect, Jojodude was it. Still, since the majority were voting Jojo, I went along with it. Pick your battles and I knew I needed to work with them to get them to work with me later or they might tune me out as being unreasonable, not a team player, or some such thing.
Fortunately, Jojo was not protected because who knows what the doctor was thinking. (As it would be found out after the game, the doctor kept protecting one of the mafia members all game. Of course, it wasn't me.
Lousy doctors never protecting me.) Jojo was revealed as just an innocent townie and day 3 began. I picked up where I left off on Day 2 with my frame job of a couple innocents. While I had named two suspects and chose Steven again, the second of my two choices got a couple votes so I changed my vote and voted to make the second choice the majority because the charade didn't matter anymore. It was the last day. Let's end it. The player was revealed as another regular townie. I appealed to my mafia to target megageeklizzy who had still not shown up yet and was least likely to be protected by the doctor. This time, they agreed with me and we whacked megageeklizzy who turned out to be the bandit role. Nailed it!
But then, in a shocking twist, we were told the game wasn't over. Even though it was 4 - 4 because the townies still had the double vote role, the host felt they could still control the vote and vote out a mafia member therefore we had to eliminate that role. So be it. It was just delaying the inevitable as far as I was concerned.
Day 4 started out with 2 votes going against one of the mafia members named Vast who had been getting targeted all game. But then a saviour arrived. A player by the swashbuckling name of Cap'n Droid made a vote for another player with the curious moniker of Swampert X. Cap'n Droid had been bothered by Swampert X's day 2 vote of Vast which read, "I'm still saying we should lynch Vast cuz YOLO". Coupled with Swampert X's behaviour in game, Cap'n Droid felt that he had to be mafia. This allowed Vast to vote for Swampert X creating a tie. Then another townie, Steven, voted for him and another mafia member voted for Swampert X. I decided to lay low and didn't even bother to vote. At this point, a curious thing happened. Cap'n Droid then posted:
That's five. Quickest kill I've seen yet, hope it'll quell some of the distress going on here.
Did you catch it? There had only been 4 votes cast for Swampert X. Yet Cap'n Droid was proclaiming it as 5 so happy was he that his choice of Swampert X had been followed upon by other players. It could be 5 if the double voter also had voted Swampert X but how would Cap'n Droid know that unless he was the double voter? I explained it to the mafia and we all voted to lynch Cap'n Droid. At this point, the host disappeared for 17 days and then finally reappeared to proclaim:
What with Christmas and everything this became incredibly backlogged. If I keep putting the write up (ending) off I'll never do it.
Swampert is lynched by the town and is revealed to be the detective.
With it now turning to a night phase and with no protection available, the mafia will outnumber the town, even with the doublevoter (Steven) and win.
Congratulations mafia!
Swampert was actually the doctor but the host had clearly given up on the game. The only townie role that survived was the double voter Steven who was the other townie along with Cap'n Droid to vote for Swampert X which makes me very suspicious. How did Cap'n know that? Had they communicated outside of the game? None of us in the mafia could ever tell who the double voter role belonged to. Is it because he was secretly telling others his role to stay protected? If so, it just goes to show that the townies were frustrated with the public posting method and began resorting to private communications to get success. NWR model validated! And if not, who cares? Still blew this thing out of the water and townies hardly got close to us. I never even got a single vote. Ha ha ha. Much better than playing here......
A couple good reactions on the reveal the mafia had won.
Cap'n Droid had this to say:
WELL PISS.
And Verotten posted:
What! No!
Khushrenada was meant to be the heroooo.
Blegh. Congrats mafia... I guess... *huffs*
Trust me. I was the hero. You just had to change your viewpoint of the story.
Topic: Mafia World Report! A Foreign Investigation and Meditations by Khushrenada! (Read 5152 times)
