OT: SPF mafia round 7 - Return to Salem
NOTE: Text in italics is story. Flavor and role playing. There are no hints or clues in there, and trying to read anything into it will be to your own detriment. I'll be using this distinction throughout the game.
It was a rather dreary sight. The sky hadn't changed it's dull, gray look in days. Trees lined the driveway on both sides, their leave-less branches seeming to defy the coming of brighter days. Two men at the front door were the only signs of life. Occasionally, after a few drinks, I'd contemplate whether they deserved to be called sentient. I sighed and turned around. "More newcomers, you say?" My subordinate, a slightly more intelligent man named Dan, nodded.
I had worked hard to make Salem a place the families could call home. But there tends to be some truth to clichés, and in this case, competent help was hard to come by. According to rumors, the bloody affairs of last fall had earned me the nickname Don Diablo back home. Some even whispered that I was to blame for the deaths of my old partners. I miss them. Things seemed so much simpler, back when we were still plotting at night to make this place our own. But that was then, and the present requires my attention. A deserted town attracts all sorts of people. On the upside, deserted places rarely attract honest folks. But what few end up here tend to be annoyingly curious.
"Anything else?", I asked. Dan retrieved a postcard from his pocket and handed it over. The picture on the front was a rather boring shot of the local church. On the back were two words, "Sunny weather", and a smiling face were most people would leave a name or signature. This was the third such postcard found, making no sense at all, addressed to a post office box in a nearby city. It was worrying. The most glaring suspects had already been relocated to the forest, with a rather obvious lack of effect. At this rate I'd have to start looking for a new clearing soon. "Bah."
Dan left the office without another word. He might not be that smart, but he'd seen me in this mood often enough these past days. This place had been payed for in blood, and I have no qualms about taking a second mortgage if anything threatens it.
[highlight]Introduction[/highlight]
Welcome to round 7 of the SPF Mafia game. In this "vice versa" edition, you will play out a bloody struggle for control of the now mafia-occupied town of Salem. Two hostile factions have left their tracks, a band of rival mafiosi and a team of undercover cops. Whatever their plans are, they're unlikely to benefit Don Diablo's family.
Previous rounds mostly focused on a small number of people "in the know". This round aims to be different in that respect. There will still be a few special targets among the family, but regular players will now have more to offer than just wits and words. To balance things a little investigation has been toned down. It will only show if someone has been up and about at night, but not what the person was up to. Death is the only thing that will reveal someone's true allegiance.
[highlight]The factions[/highlight]
While the roles have been reversed, in a sense, the gist of it remains as usual. Most of you will be occupied with lynching your fellow players during the day, while two groups will have the honor to fight Don Diablo for control of his town at night. Both opposing factions are allowed to exchange PM's or emails during the night, and can remove one player from the game each night.
To make things a little less static, each faction comes with a choice made during the first night. Based on this choice, they will be given a special one-time ability. The two opposing factions will get one shot per faction, while the regular family members each get a separate choice (and use) of ability. The three power roles on the families' side are exempt from this, and only get the abilities associated with their role. The possibilities will be announced upfront, but the choices will not be made public.
The Don's family
Lured by visions of freedom, or more accurately: lawlessness, these figures now make up the bulk of Salem's population. While most lack the ambition to risk their lives for a home, none of them have trouble killing for one.
Option #1: Stay cautios.
Sleep is a good thing. Except when people are disappearing at night. You can't stay awake indefinitely, but a single night of caution could make a lot of difference.
You cannot be targeted by any nightly actions when you choose to stay awake.
Option #2: Start drinking.
Many people believe that alcohol is capable of solving their problems. While a questionable belief in general, you never know what you'll find if you're unsure which way is home. Remembering what happened can be tricky, though
You'll receive the name of a random player who was active on the night you were drunk. Active players include all family members using an ability, as well as all members of an opposing faction that uses an ability.
The rival mafia
They're mafia, and that's about all we know. Who they work for or what they really want remains a mystery. But if they had good intentions, they would've presented themselves to the Don. And if they have bad intentions, they're probably at least as brutal as the Don can be. That, or suicidal.
Option #1: Greed.
Greed is sometimes called the universal motivator. Anyone can be bought with the right offer. But stay cautious, some people might have more to gain by turning you in.
You can try to turn one player to your side. Everything's fine if you target a regular member of the family. If you accidentally pick someone else, they'll walk away with the name of a random member of your group.
Option #2: Vendetta.
Payback's a *****. You've heard that before, I suppose. But to some people, it's a matter of principle, taking precedence over things we'd normally consider much more important (such as staying alive).
You get a free kill, in addition to your regular nightly kill, against someone who opened up the voting on one of your members.
The undercover agents
Buying a few cops is a well established means of survival for the families. Unfortunately, there's always someone with more money. And then there's those pesky brown-nosers that refuse to accept a little gift. Cops you don't own are almost always trouble. And the only thing we know for sure about these guys is that they're not on the Don's payroll.
Option #1: Good cops.
Being able to call upon a few squads of policemen is nice. But it requires a good deal of coordination. And if finding mafiosi was that easy it would've been done a long time ago. But lynching will be next to impossible with so many witnesses around.
This ability doesn't take effect until the day following the night it is used. During that day, discussion and voting are allowed as usual. But there won't be a lynch at the end of the day.
Option #2: Bad cops.
You're job is convicting criminals, right? But even the most wicked don can't be locked up without evidence. Fortunately for you, however, it works the other way around as well: anyone can be convicted with the right evidence.
You can falsify evidence, changing the allegiance someone reveals when they die.
The Don's trustees
The doc - as usual.
The snoop - a toned-down cop. Each night you specify a person, and get told if he or she was active that night.
The goon - a role-blocker. Each night you specify a person, who will not be able to act that night. If a member of an opposing faction is targeted, that faction has a 1 in (# of living members) chance of being blocked.
[highlight]The small print[/highlight]
I reserve the right to punish infractions as I see fit. If possible, I will remove and/or replace offenders as long as I believe it will not unbalance the game. Other options will be considered if the game has progressed too far. In general, I reserve the right to do pretty much whatever I please, whenever it pleases me. But you can rest assured that I'll only do so if I believe it'll improve the game in some way.
I'm hoping for at least ~25 players with this set of rules. If things go nice and fast, night 1 will start saturday evening (GMT-ish). But that all depends on how fast you people sign up. Day and night will last for as close to 48 and 24 hours, respectively, as I can manage. I reserve the right to end either of them earlier if the alternative is a delay I deem too long. Of course, I'll do my best to announce such a decision beforehand.
Be active at least once every 24 hours! Ok, maybe that wasn't such small print. But I will be enforcing activity. Do not sign up for this game if you cannot commit the necessary time (if this is your first game, read a few of the previous games to get an idea of what's involved). If something comes up during the game, let me know immediately. Posting "I will be unavailable for some time" only takes a minute, and there is no excuse for disrupting the game by not doing so. Even if you somehow manage to break the internet within a 50 mile radius of where you live, I consider it common courtesy to other players to drive 51 miles and find a public place to inform us.
Don Diablo is out for blood, and will make sure someone is lynched every day. The exact mechanics are open to suggestions, but if no one objects I'll keep things simple and lynch whoever has the most votes at the end of the day. In case of a tie, the one who received his final vote last will survive.
I have a gmail account named muzzzspf where you can contact me if my PM box is full. To make sure you've all read this with your brains turned on, please send me an email with mafia and your forum username in the subject after signing up in this thread.
Aside from all that, the usual stuff goes. No posting at night, no discussing this game on other threads or over IRC/IM/etc...
Have fun, stay vigilant, and win!
---
Game starts here
NOTE: Text in italics is story. Flavor and role playing. There are no hints or clues in there, and trying to read anything into it will be to your own detriment. I'll be using this distinction throughout the game.
It was a rather dreary sight. The sky hadn't changed it's dull, gray look in days. Trees lined the driveway on both sides, their leave-less branches seeming to defy the coming of brighter days. Two men at the front door were the only signs of life. Occasionally, after a few drinks, I'd contemplate whether they deserved to be called sentient. I sighed and turned around. "More newcomers, you say?" My subordinate, a slightly more intelligent man named Dan, nodded.
I had worked hard to make Salem a place the families could call home. But there tends to be some truth to clichés, and in this case, competent help was hard to come by. According to rumors, the bloody affairs of last fall had earned me the nickname Don Diablo back home. Some even whispered that I was to blame for the deaths of my old partners. I miss them. Things seemed so much simpler, back when we were still plotting at night to make this place our own. But that was then, and the present requires my attention. A deserted town attracts all sorts of people. On the upside, deserted places rarely attract honest folks. But what few end up here tend to be annoyingly curious.
"Anything else?", I asked. Dan retrieved a postcard from his pocket and handed it over. The picture on the front was a rather boring shot of the local church. On the back were two words, "Sunny weather", and a smiling face were most people would leave a name or signature. This was the third such postcard found, making no sense at all, addressed to a post office box in a nearby city. It was worrying. The most glaring suspects had already been relocated to the forest, with a rather obvious lack of effect. At this rate I'd have to start looking for a new clearing soon. "Bah."
Dan left the office without another word. He might not be that smart, but he'd seen me in this mood often enough these past days. This place had been payed for in blood, and I have no qualms about taking a second mortgage if anything threatens it.
[highlight]Introduction[/highlight]
Welcome to round 7 of the SPF Mafia game. In this "vice versa" edition, you will play out a bloody struggle for control of the now mafia-occupied town of Salem. Two hostile factions have left their tracks, a band of rival mafiosi and a team of undercover cops. Whatever their plans are, they're unlikely to benefit Don Diablo's family.
Previous rounds mostly focused on a small number of people "in the know". This round aims to be different in that respect. There will still be a few special targets among the family, but regular players will now have more to offer than just wits and words. To balance things a little investigation has been toned down. It will only show if someone has been up and about at night, but not what the person was up to. Death is the only thing that will reveal someone's true allegiance.
[highlight]The factions[/highlight]
While the roles have been reversed, in a sense, the gist of it remains as usual. Most of you will be occupied with lynching your fellow players during the day, while two groups will have the honor to fight Don Diablo for control of his town at night. Both opposing factions are allowed to exchange PM's or emails during the night, and can remove one player from the game each night.
To make things a little less static, each faction comes with a choice made during the first night. Based on this choice, they will be given a special one-time ability. The two opposing factions will get one shot per faction, while the regular family members each get a separate choice (and use) of ability. The three power roles on the families' side are exempt from this, and only get the abilities associated with their role. The possibilities will be announced upfront, but the choices will not be made public.
The Don's family
Lured by visions of freedom, or more accurately: lawlessness, these figures now make up the bulk of Salem's population. While most lack the ambition to risk their lives for a home, none of them have trouble killing for one.
Option #1: Stay cautios.
Sleep is a good thing. Except when people are disappearing at night. You can't stay awake indefinitely, but a single night of caution could make a lot of difference.
You cannot be targeted by any nightly actions when you choose to stay awake.
Option #2: Start drinking.
Many people believe that alcohol is capable of solving their problems. While a questionable belief in general, you never know what you'll find if you're unsure which way is home. Remembering what happened can be tricky, though
You'll receive the name of a random player who was active on the night you were drunk. Active players include all family members using an ability, as well as all members of an opposing faction that uses an ability.
The rival mafia
They're mafia, and that's about all we know. Who they work for or what they really want remains a mystery. But if they had good intentions, they would've presented themselves to the Don. And if they have bad intentions, they're probably at least as brutal as the Don can be. That, or suicidal.
Option #1: Greed.
Greed is sometimes called the universal motivator. Anyone can be bought with the right offer. But stay cautious, some people might have more to gain by turning you in.
You can try to turn one player to your side. Everything's fine if you target a regular member of the family. If you accidentally pick someone else, they'll walk away with the name of a random member of your group.
Option #2: Vendetta.
Payback's a *****. You've heard that before, I suppose. But to some people, it's a matter of principle, taking precedence over things we'd normally consider much more important (such as staying alive).
You get a free kill, in addition to your regular nightly kill, against someone who opened up the voting on one of your members.
The undercover agents
Buying a few cops is a well established means of survival for the families. Unfortunately, there's always someone with more money. And then there's those pesky brown-nosers that refuse to accept a little gift. Cops you don't own are almost always trouble. And the only thing we know for sure about these guys is that they're not on the Don's payroll.
Option #1: Good cops.
Being able to call upon a few squads of policemen is nice. But it requires a good deal of coordination. And if finding mafiosi was that easy it would've been done a long time ago. But lynching will be next to impossible with so many witnesses around.
This ability doesn't take effect until the day following the night it is used. During that day, discussion and voting are allowed as usual. But there won't be a lynch at the end of the day.
Option #2: Bad cops.
You're job is convicting criminals, right? But even the most wicked don can't be locked up without evidence. Fortunately for you, however, it works the other way around as well: anyone can be convicted with the right evidence.
You can falsify evidence, changing the allegiance someone reveals when they die.
The Don's trustees
The doc - as usual.
The snoop - a toned-down cop. Each night you specify a person, and get told if he or she was active that night.
The goon - a role-blocker. Each night you specify a person, who will not be able to act that night. If a member of an opposing faction is targeted, that faction has a 1 in (# of living members) chance of being blocked.
[highlight]The small print[/highlight]
I reserve the right to punish infractions as I see fit. If possible, I will remove and/or replace offenders as long as I believe it will not unbalance the game. Other options will be considered if the game has progressed too far. In general, I reserve the right to do pretty much whatever I please, whenever it pleases me. But you can rest assured that I'll only do so if I believe it'll improve the game in some way.
I'm hoping for at least ~25 players with this set of rules. If things go nice and fast, night 1 will start saturday evening (GMT-ish). But that all depends on how fast you people sign up. Day and night will last for as close to 48 and 24 hours, respectively, as I can manage. I reserve the right to end either of them earlier if the alternative is a delay I deem too long. Of course, I'll do my best to announce such a decision beforehand.
Be active at least once every 24 hours! Ok, maybe that wasn't such small print. But I will be enforcing activity. Do not sign up for this game if you cannot commit the necessary time (if this is your first game, read a few of the previous games to get an idea of what's involved). If something comes up during the game, let me know immediately. Posting "I will be unavailable for some time" only takes a minute, and there is no excuse for disrupting the game by not doing so. Even if you somehow manage to break the internet within a 50 mile radius of where you live, I consider it common courtesy to other players to drive 51 miles and find a public place to inform us.
Don Diablo is out for blood, and will make sure someone is lynched every day. The exact mechanics are open to suggestions, but if no one objects I'll keep things simple and lynch whoever has the most votes at the end of the day. In case of a tie, the one who received his final vote last will survive.
I have a gmail account named muzzzspf where you can contact me if my PM box is full. To make sure you've all read this with your brains turned on, please send me an email with mafia and your forum username in the subject after signing up in this thread.
Aside from all that, the usual stuff goes. No posting at night, no discussing this game on other threads or over IRC/IM/etc...
Have fun, stay vigilant, and win!
---
Game starts here
