Sensible Erection | Sensible Nonsense Chapter Four

Tuesday, 25 August 2009

Sensible Nonsense Chapter Four - Hits and Misses

quote [ Don't click on that link unless you're ready to see a little piece of your childhood looking about as sad as it's possible for a moldy old puppet to look. ]

“You know, none of this would have happened if we’d met in Dream’s library”, sighed Eeyore. “Not that anyone asked what I thought. Still, can’t say we spent enough on security. Ah well. You get what you pay for.”

“Yes, yes, dearie me. Still Him of the Endless has his hands full what with all those Gods and Angels having their little conference. Can’t blame him for being booked up already, excuse my pun.” Mrs Beaver chittered to herself as the pair made their way to the breakfast table.

Most of the Delegates had already arrived, and were taking their seats around the table as Engywook the Gnome adjusted his spectacles on his seat atop the fruit bowl. He peered down at a fastidiously scripted list, and read aloud:

“Beaver, Mr? Present, yes, I see.
Beaver, Mrs? Also present.
Caterpillar? Yes…”

The group wearily nodded or gestured their presence as they picked at the morning’s fare. No one paid much attention, that is, until:

“Hoggle? *ahem* Senior Ambassador Hoggle, of World Labyrinth? Has anyone seen his excellence this morning?”

Nothing was heard. Nothing drew them slowly but surely to where Hoggle had gone to his final rest. Nothing could have been more terrifying than what they discovered.

But Nothing was there, still. From the crowd a strangled moan could be heard, emanating as if from a deep cave, thick and old and reverberating like a rumbling earthquake. With short, convulsive steps the Rockbiter was edging closer and closer towards where the Nothing had taken over. With every step his form seemed to grey and fade as if one were looking at an old photograph, the very solidness of his being seemed to weaken until he looked to be formed from chalk-dust rather than firm mountain stone.

Rivulets of tears ran over the craggy outcrops of his cheeks. As the others watched in horror, he began to stumble faster and faster toward the blindness until he reached the very edge of solid footing and threw himself, sobbing, into the abyss.

The crowd broke in terror. It took some time for them all to summon the courage to return to the discussion table. Unfortunately for them all, there was nowhere else to go. The only course of action was to keep going, or else…

Nothing.

The Narnian Delegation
Hpew - Sir Tumnus (Snr Ambassador)
verycleanteeth - H.R.H Jadis of the House of Charn
cb361 - Mr. Beaver
eightysix – Mrs. Beaver
archangel_2 - Reepicheep

The Ozite Delegation
Silent - Jack Pumpkinhead
shiftace - H. M Woggle-Bug, T.E

The Fantastica Delegation
badgerbaiter - Falkor, a Luckdragon (Snr Ambassador)
Zelgius - Engywook
Stension - Grograman
lilmookieesquire - The Hero Hynreck

The Neverland Delegation
juju - Princess Tiger Lily
Hito - Mr. Smee
shiney things – Representative of the Mermaids

The Wonderland Delegation
theolypse - The Caterpillar (Snr Ambassador)
caffeine - The Dormouse
rash1 - The Mock Turtle

The Labyrinth Delegation
Narrenschiff - Sir Didymus
Foobar - The Junk Lady
Bodnoirbabe - Dist. Leader of the Fireys
beerboy - William the Worm

The Affiliated States Delegation AKA the ‘Junior’ Worlds
Fwee - Eeyore, Ambassador for the 100 Acre Wood
happiest_sadist - Wild Thing, Ambassador for Where They Are
v21 – Puff the Magic Dragon, Ambassador for Honalee

Dead:
cool_drool - Representative of the Lollipop Guild, Oz TOWN – Lynch Day One
spite48 - The White Rabbit, Wonderland TOWN – Murdered Night One
KingPellinore - Tootles, Neverland TOWN – Non-existed, Night One
RecnaMoruen - TikTok, Oz TOWN – Modkilled, Day Two (Inactivity)
Stratafyre - Tinkerbell AKA Ginny Weasley, INFILTRATOR – Lynch Day Two
theCooler - Nick Chopper, Oz TOWN – Murdered Night Two
Misanthrope - The Little Prince, The Affiliated States TOWN – Non-existed, Night Two
dead_bob - The Duchess, Wonderland TOWN – Lynch Day Three
Todomanna - Hoggle, Labyrinth TOWN – Non-existed, Night Three
Balzac - Pyornkrachzark, Fantastica TOWN – Nothing-assisted Suicide, Night Three

THE ARBITER FOR TODAY IS HAPPIEST_SADIST

PROLOGUE: http://www.sensibleerection.com/entry.php/77111
DAY ONE: http://www.sensibleerection.com/entry.php/77132
DAY TWO: http://www.sensibleerection.com/entry.php/77190
DAY THREE: http://www.sensibleerection.com/entry.php/77255

On Notice: badgerbaiter, happiest_sadist, shiney things. Please vote today. OR ELSE.

[mafia game] [by brat#3@8:57amGMT] [+8 Good]

Comments

brat#3 said @ 9:01am GMT on 25th Aug [Score:-5 Overrated]

brat#3 said @ 9:03am GMT on 25th Aug
mod down, plz.

RoboRonnie said @ 9:59am GMT on 25th Aug
/weeping and gnashing of teeth

/shuffles away

Silent said @ 10:19am GMT on 25th Aug
I retract my downmod, a day lasting near enough a year? Think of all the accusations that would fly, no doubt we would have some good theories as to these invaders!

cb361 said @ 8:19pm GMT on 25th Aug
We've won. We've trapped them in a timewarp.

Silent said @ 11:24am GMT on 26th Aug [Score:1 Funny]
And all it took was a jump to the left..

Aidentas said @ 8:21pm GMT on 25th Aug [Score:-4 Underrated]
20.

Aidentas said @ 8:21pm GMT on 25th Aug [Score:-4 Underrated]
21?

brat#3 said @ 9:02am GMT on 25th Aug [Score:5 Good]

Caffeine said @ 11:13am GMT on 25th Aug
beerboy, once more, for reasons I have loosely detailed.

HPew said @ 9:34pm GMT on 25th Aug
Yes, why not:

beerboy

Third on the bandwagon yesterday--usually I'd go for fourth, but that is rash1 and I don't think we 'saved' him yesterday just to lynch him today.

Narrenschiff said @ 12:15am GMT on 26th Aug
I'm not buying the beerboy angle. Let's pretend for now that we're right about rash1, that he's town. I'll buy that for a dollar. The item description checked out. Why would mafia want to distract from a townie bandwagon?

Why beerboy, anyway? Zelgius started the dead_bob bandwagon. Caffeine voted beerboy yesterday, am I missing something? I didn't see any reasoning yesterday.

I got nothing today, though, not even a rhetorical vote so I'm going to put out a placeholder Fwee for being a dick yesterday until we get more discussion up in here.

Narrenschiff said @ 11:03pm GMT on 27th Aug
Foobar, for starting a conspiracy against me.

Narrenschiff said @ 11:03pm GMT on 27th Aug
Um, not starting, adding to. You dicks.

happiest_sadist said @ 1:01am GMT on 26th Aug
HOW ARE YOU LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.
ALL YOUR VOTE ARE BELONG TO ME.
No, I'm kidding of course. Nothing belongs to me except for the honor of being your Arbiter for today.
I have been distracted lately by events which I may not discuss (because they are Out Of Character) but I am prepared now to participate more fully in our decisions relating to our unfortunate circumstances.
I am saddened by the loss of Mr. Hoggle and of Pyornkrachzark, particularly since they were not revealed to be of the Infiltrators.
With each day's passing without our revelation of at least one Infiltrator, we come closer to the loss of our worlds.
I shall speak more on this later, but in the meantime, having reviewed the minutes so far, my vote is for Caffeine, since I must disagree with his assertion that multiple "random" kills are of benefit to us. I find this suspicious, and I suspect his recommendation of multiple lynches is a ploy to eliminate more of our innocent number for the Infiltrators' benefit, or perhaps for that of the Nothing.
I cannot see the Moon, or I would howl for those lost to us.

archangel_2 said @ 2:45am GMT on 26th Aug
Right, because that worked SOOOOOO well for us yesterday. /sigh/

happiest_sadist said @ 3:17am GMT on 26th Aug
Explain please?

archangel_2 said @ 4:41am GMT on 26th Aug
dead_bob was lynched yesterday because he was "obviously" mafia, based solely on his vocal belief that multiple lynches would be helpful to the town. He was a townie.

Narrenschiff said @ 8:13am GMT on 26th Aug
haha, yeah. maybe not so fast on the caffeine vote there, sadist.

happiest_sadist said @ 10:29pm GMT on 26th Aug
I'm thinking of changing it. There's time yet, I suppose. I'm not actually convinced of Caffeine's guilt- he just seems as good a candidate as some and better than a few.

HPew said @ 11:15am GMT on 26th Aug
But caffeine was here yesterday, albeit asleep or shoved into a teatop, so why would he reiterate a potentially suicidal strategy?

HPew said @ 11:16am GMT on 26th Aug
teatop? teapot.

HPew said @ 11:17am GMT on 26th Aug
Oh, ffs, bolding. beerboy

Todomanna said @ 11:21am GMT on 26th Aug
If he didn't change it, you can use <strong> tags in place of bold and it won't affect your current vote.

HPew said @ 7:54pm GMT on 27th Aug
Although, if badgerbaiter, happiest_sadist, and shiney things don't turn up soon we're going to have the equivalent of a multi-lynch even if we don't want one.

theolypse said @ 1:53pm GMT on 26th Aug
So I've been reviewing Stratafyre's disinformation campaign. And I feel it points at foobar, who was very adroitly Too Reasonable To Believe His Shit. Too adroitly so, in fact-- criticizing the most transparently ridiculous claims but letting lesser absurdities slip through. I look at that and see Safe Distance.

I also think lilmookieesquire and TheCooler have answers that need to be questioned, but they're less convincing.

theolypse said @ 1:34am GMT on 27th Aug
...TheCooler is dead?

Sonofabitch.

Hito said @ 10:30pm GMT on 26th Aug
theolypse is working really hard to make himself sound town, but most of his logic is circular. He has also past the quota on the term 'adroit', which in itself is suspicious.

I'm not convinced he had the potion, as the items pretty much follow the literature. Not too hard to guess. I'm on the fence about him, so this vote is to further discussion. It may change as the day progresses.

foobar said @ 11:15pm GMT on 26th Aug
beerboy is too quiet.

cb361 said @ 12:29am GMT on 27th Aug
I'm likely to be away from the internet for a day(!) so I'll vote for caffeine on the flimsy evidence that he was the first to vote today, and I don't agree with what he said about multiple lynches. I'll do my best to check in and see if anything better has come up, but the baddies are likely to be the quiet ones, I think.

lilmookieesquire said @ 2:48am GMT on 27th Aug
badgerbaiter is a stinking dragon-pervert.

shiftace said @ 6:11am GMT on 27th Aug
lilmookieesquire for the crazy talk on day 2 and 3 mostly for the day 2 attempting to negotiate with a terrorist bit.

Bodnoirbabe said @ 9:06am GMT on 27th Aug
Narrenschiff for reasons detailed below. It's more of a suspicious feeling I've been getting from him the last few days.

Fwee said @ 10:15am GMT on 27th Aug
/sigh

As depressing as it may be, turning on my delegation may indeed be the only choice.

v21

Ah well, I just wish I knew what our item had been.

Stension said @ 1:07pm GMT on 27th Aug
no clue right now.

no vote

will change closer to the end, wanna watch some discussions first

Stension said @ 11:49pm GMT on 27th Aug
Going back to initial suspicions. Maybe he's just crazy, but it's the best I have currently.

lilmookieesquire

eightysix said @ 1:21pm GMT on 27th Aug
i'll continue my vote for lilmookieesquire. Just because he was the arbiter yesterday and couldn't be lynched doesn't mean that i'm going to/have to find someone else today.

beerboy said @ 2:06pm GMT on 27th Aug
Eh, guess I'll vote for foobar. I'm pretty sure someone in my delegation isn't what they seem.

Silent said @ 7:58pm GMT on 27th Aug
cb361
Still suspicious thereof.
Hope to be able to vocalise it soon though.

verycleanteeth said @ 8:11pm GMT on 27th Aug
Foobar gets the axe.

verycleanteeth said @ 1:11am GMT on 28th Aug
Switching to lilmookieesquire.

archangel_2 said @ 9:41pm GMT on 27th Aug
In case I don't make it back before the end, and because I'm still reasoning out who to vote for, I'll just vote for myself: archangel_2

Zelgius said @ 10:47pm GMT on 27th Aug
I really have no idea who to vote for, so I'll just place a throwaway vote on shiney things.

juju said @ 11:09pm GMT on 27th Aug
foobar
Because out of those who are up in votes at the moment, he's the one I feel most comfortable going for.

A general thought, even if he is innocent: With Stratafyre's coming out and discussion of Bodnoir as the nothing, I imagine there would be at least one mafia member hoping to get some credibility by joining in the discussion against Strat's ideas. Also there might be those who usually are more vocal in discussions who stayed away from that, which also bears looking at. But for now--I nap!

rash1 said @ 11:33pm GMT on 27th Aug
Hpew

v21 said @ 11:50pm GMT on 27th Aug
Christ, guess I'd best plump for someone. Theolypse has won me over, if temporarily. beerboy, foobar and Narrenshiff all arouse vauge suspicions in me.

foobar said @ 1:13am GMT on 28th Aug
lilmookieesquire

verycleanteeth said @ 1:17am GMT on 28th Aug
I do believe this was in after time was up :P

brat#3 said @ 1:18am GMT on 28th Aug
Indeed it was.

foobar said @ 1:19am GMT on 28th Aug
Not by my clock :(

lilmookieesquire said @ 9:13am GMT on 25th Aug
I told you guys nothing was a big deal :(
RIP my lil' rock eating buddy.

brat#3 said @ 9:15am GMT on 25th Aug [Score:2 Informative]
To clarify: balzac asked to be removed from the game. Not enough rocks.

balzac said @ 7:32pm GMT on 25th Aug
We rockbiters never DID deal well with death.

Caffeine said @ 11:09am GMT on 25th Aug
Hmmm, yes. Um. *yawn*

Hello.

I'd like to tell a story, about how multiple daily lynches are one of the best tools an innocent group of characters such as us has against an invisible threat. It has been proven before. It will be proven again. The infiltrators can kill only one per night. Our kills are, by their nature, random. Statistically, our advantage is in smart votes and multiple kills.

I just... I ... zzzzz... Oh!

But I... such a story may be more effort than is needed. I really just feel I must ask you to consider those who so quickly formed a bandwagon to lynch the innocent, yesterday, for a suggestion that could benefit the town. You may find, among their number, those who would wish us harm.

And... I really do feel that.... well...

....zzzzz

cb361 said @ 12:55pm GMT on 25th Aug
A random lynch is more likely to increase then decrease the percentage of mafia players in a game. We engage in them at the start of a game because they are the only way to gain intelligence. You don't gain intelligence from random multiple lynching, in fact it could be argued that you gain less intelligence. And they are easy to derail with a single vote if one of the targets doesn't want to die.

Having said that, band-wagons can and do develop, pushed entirely town players, without the involvement of the mafia.

Silent said @ 1:01pm GMT on 25th Aug
Wait, you mean that yesterdays lynching might have had nothing to do with the mafia? There goes every possible theory I was likely to have been in the process (Don't want to full anyone into thinking I had a theory, but I might have been working on it).

cb361 said @ 2:08pm GMT on 25th Aug
I meant 'can' as in 'not always'. I've been part of very acrimonious fights that I later learned were entirely town-led. So long as it isn't a mafioso on the chopping block, it doesn't matter much to the mafia who the town kills, so in general the mafia are more likely to ignore a bandwagon, or even present the appearance of talking the town down from an ill-judged lynch.

That's all generalisation of course. A sneaky mafia will vary their behaviour.

Narrenschiff said @ 12:06am GMT on 26th Aug
Exactly. I say we never multiple lynch without at least some kind of grounded information. If we go straight random we'll always usually hit a townie, there's just not enough mafia to go around. Haphazard lynching is just helping along the mafia. It's more important to draw out information. If we could get information without lynching for the first few days, I'd do just that.

Caffeine said @ 12:46am GMT on 26th Aug
In regards to my beerboy vote yesterday: it was essentially a throwaway vote. I didn't trust the bandwagons, and he's quiet.
Today it's because he was one of the first to jump on the bandwagon to lynch dead_bob, and again, he's quiet. It's a hunch vote.
We seem to be forming a lot of flash bandwagons that end up lynching town, and not a whole lot of in depth analysis to go with them, and yesterday's was the most suspicious to me.
I'm sorry I don't have the time to do the analysis myself, but I can at least point out that we appear to be being led by the noses, and yesterday seems like a blatant example.

v21 said @ 12:25pm GMT on 26th Aug
What irony: I'd say today's nascent bandwagon for beerboy is the least fleshed out. dead_bob was a vote against something (sorry dead_bob) not for.

Um, but yes! analysis is useful! More, please!

beerboy said @ 5:20am GMT on 27th Aug
I'll admit I jumped on dead_bob a bit fast, but calling for a multi-lynch tends to make me suspicious due to the likelihood of killing two innocents.

I just don't think it'll really solve the mafia problem since they can always turn the tide to the innocent one in order to "stop two innocents from getting killed" and suggest the other one for the next day. And then of course try diverting all attention away from them afterwards due to hunches and thoughts from night actions.

not sure if any of that made sense, but I gots class in the morning and at the rate I'm goin I'll have a major hangover tomorrow.

happiest_sadist said @ 1:03am GMT on 26th Aug
I agree. I'm no expert in probablility theory (Wild Things don't get much schooling) but it seems to me that if there are more of us than of them that random lynches are more likely to get us than them. Multiple lynches should make it even worse.

rash1 said @ 3:29pm GMT on 26th Aug
Wait, so merely suggesting a different tactic (eg. multi-lynching) makes him an infiltrator? I think you might be jumping the gun a little; Discussion should be encouraged, a suggestion is not an admission of guilt.

Silent said @ 3:56pm GMT on 26th Aug
In general a multi-lynch does little more than to take out more of the innocent population, if two or so people appear to be guilty then multi-lynching is not so frowned upon, but if you're just pushing a multiple lynch with no proof for anyone, it looks like you're trying to take out the innocents.

foobar said @ 8:02pm GMT on 26th Aug
Further, if just one is innocent it's not at all hard for the mafia to tip the balance.

Caffeine said @ 8:06pm GMT on 26th Aug
Not without tipping their hand.

foobar said @ 9:55pm GMT on 26th Aug
Not really, so long as they don't get carried away. It can easily be played as suspecting the innocent of the two.

Caffeine said @ 10:18pm GMT on 26th Aug
Most things can be played off. The key is to compile a record so that series of seemingly innocent actions can be seen for what it is.
Therefore, votes help. People having to defend themselves help. Lynches help.
But only if we're paying attention and making sure our votes are smart ones so that we can't be led from bandwagon to bandwagon in a series of "innocent" events.

So again, my main point here isn't to call for a double lynch, it's to call for a sharp eye at exactly what happened yesterday, and we don't have a whole lot of time to do it in.

eightysix said @ 1:32pm GMT on 25th Aug
I don't want to sound controversial, but I've always firmly believed that the elimination of mafia goes hand in hand with the elimination of town in most of our games.

From a town perspective, when you whittle down the number of unknowns, it's easier to spot patterns. Sometimes, this is clearer for certain savvy players, but you need the numerical superiority to vote someone off anyway. (which is often why it's easier for the mafia, the informed minority to sway votes early in the game.)

Consider watching the patterns of 30 people as opposed to watching the patterns of 6. (and over a longer period of time when any patterns would have been established)

What the mafia fears is an informed majority - an uninformed majority or an informed minority is par for the course, and the mafia would do anything to aid this along.

Caff's theory is one way to spin it, but if we get rid of too many too quickly, the information available to us is naturally less. Statistically, yes, our advantage is in fact in smart votes -and- multiple kills. We can lynch 3 town for 1 mafia and still cut it close to winning. The problem is that while multiple kills are easy (easier) to achieve, smart votes often aren't. And that goes back to us being uninformed.

Statistically, if I could say with confidence that in this cluster of 4, there will definitely be at least 1 mafia, then I could hope to sway the vote to get a 4 way lynch going. (I don't think a 4 way has happened before, though. Has it?)

The reality of the situation though, is that everybody will have their say about who the top 4 most suspicious people are, and without doubt, the mafia will influence this vote. They do not only achieve this, but achieve a day of anonymity.

'Who let these 4 innocent townies die?'
'We all did.'

Beaver will back me up on this, won't you, dear?

Caffeine said @ 10:24pm GMT on 25th Aug
*pours himself a little cup of tea and continues in his sleepy little voice*

My theory is one way to spin it... precisely. We can argue it endlessly. The mafia can influence the vote, yes, but there are more of us than there are of them. You may as well say "we may as well not lynch anyone, they're just going to sway the vote anyway". The more votes, the more lynches, the more data, the more chance of catching them in a lie or in a noose. Lynching is always a risk, but it's the only weapon we have, and the more times we pull that trigger the better.

You may not agree fully, but it is a sound theory and one that has worked to the town's benefit in the past.

I'm not asking people to agree, but you notice no one is calling for my head, either. I'm not calling for a double lynch right now, I'm calling for scrutiny. My question is: why did that bandwagon form so suddenly when this concept was proposed yesterday? Who formed it, and why? Who was being protected, and what were they afraid of?

archangel_2 said @ 11:32pm GMT on 25th Aug
Yeah, my first instinct yesterday was that it was to cover rash1, since he was the one we were about to lynch, but theolypse was able to concur with his description of the artifact he claimed to use - giving it credibility.

I honestly think that rash1 was able to prove he wasn't mafia well enough for most people (it took me a bit more, but I'm in agreement with them now), and so the town lept at ANYONE to lynch rather than a definite townie. Unfortunately, another townie was chosen... The reasons to lynch him were insubstantial as fuck, but that's only because there wasn't any time to come up with a better candidate.

v21 said @ 12:11pm GMT on 26th Aug
This seems like the right analysis of yesterday, to me. If I was about at the end of the day, I woulda switched from rash1, and would probably have leapt on dead_bob. Everyone else seemed pretty sure... and I didn't have anything better to go on.

(And I'd trust rash1 & theolypse as town now. Given how closely their defenses are tied together, and the frequency of violent death or ... disappearance in this mis-begotten wood, it seems a risky ploy for two Infiltrators to link their destinies so close. Plus, caff could expose them by disagreeing with the items description. If caff turns up dead in his bed, though, that'd make me suspicious once more.)

v21 said @ 2:50pm GMT on 26th Aug
With more thought: I trust rash1, but theolypse could just be a smart mafia. He could confirm rash1 without needing any info on the item, and if he's mafia, he knows rash1 is safe. It hinges upon caffeine, of course.

Caff, any thoughts?

rash1 said @ 3:39pm GMT on 26th Aug
The thought had crossed my mind. Caff, unlikely as it may be, may not have had the chance to use it yet (and the potion was removed from play as a result of a death).

theolypse said @ 8:26pm GMT on 26th Aug
It specifically makes you invulnerable because it makes you undetectable-- too small to see.

You, sir, should have left more details than that for me to fill in, so we could trust each other, instead of only me trusting you. I realized we'd have this problem as soon as I read what you wrote. I dearly hope the Duchess didn't have the flask yesterday.

On the other hand, this just leaves me not-specifically-trusted, rather than less-trusted, right? So let's carry on with you largely believable and me still trying to figure out who isn't.

v21 said @ 12:00am GMT on 27th Aug
While I still would dearly welcome caffeine's input, that's enough for me to pause my readying for lynching. You're a great player, whichever side you're on.

(And yes, the same thought about rash1 rationing his info did occur to me. Note this, people from other delegations! Secrets are precious, and should be rationed accordingly. Hrmm... there must be a system for using these secrets as the key for a cryptography system...)

Caffeine said @ 12:25am GMT on 27th Aug
Love to, if it falls into my hands, but I haven't gotten it yet.

theolypse said @ 1:09am GMT on 27th Aug
Then there are three possibilities:

You are lying,
I am lying,
or dead_bob had it.

In any of those circumstances, it's out of the game. So instead of dwelling on that, let's figure out why each of the six people who were attacked was.

theolypse said @ 1:11am GMT on 27th Aug
Well, or rash1 is the Nothing, but I'm not getting a Serial Killer feeling from him, and if the potion shows up after today, we'll know that was the case.

rash1 said @ 3:56am GMT on 27th Aug
If the potion shows up again, it wouldn't necessarily mean I was the nothing. It could be that caff is a townie/the nothing and is lying about having the potion.

theolypse said @ 4:05am GMT on 27th Aug
I can't fathom why he would, as a true Wonderlander. And on second thought, I can't see why either of you would, as the Nothing.

It's not as though being able to protect oneself makes one a target for killing, right?

So, yeah. Original three options. I'm definitely inclined to believe the third one unless a really good argument is made against Caffeine.

I'm starting to wonder why some of the delegations are doing so well.

archangel_2 said @ 7:06am GMT on 27th Aug
I think it's because the Infiltrators have been focusing on removing items. If that's true, then the ones who haven't been hit yet are either lower on the totem pole in terms of targets...or have Infiltrators in our midst who've already destroyed the items.

Either way, but especially if the second is true, it makes me more than a little worried about my own delegation...

archangel_2 said @ 1:12am GMT on 27th Aug
yeah, that's my thing, too - I've yet to receive an object. It's still pretty early in the game, but I AM getting a bit concerned about whether or not the Narnian item is still in play...

beerboy said @ 5:04am GMT on 27th Aug
Same goes with the Labyrinth item... I have not gotten it yet and the only way it could be gone is if Todomanna had it when he died or if a traitor in the Labyrinth delegation destroyed it.

Bodnoirbabe said @ 9:05am GMT on 27th Aug
I'm starting to get that feeling too. I would think that if anyone else in my delegation got the Vile of Stench, they would have at least said so as to confirm what I had said a few days ago. I don't think they'd be scared to because coming forward to say you had it the previous night doesn't make you a target and it would confirm at least that you're not mafia. Unless they're lying of course.

I hate to throw stones, but I think we need to seriously look into our own delegation and see what people are up to.

The biggest suspect on my list in my own delegation is Narrenschiff. He's making just enough comments to stay active and busy, but they aren't really giving much information. They're full of white noise. Also, he seems eager to vote along with other people, rather than do his own vote. Not having to give a reason for a vote is a good way to not leave a pattern.

I may be off base here, but I don't trust him...think I'll put my money where my mouth is and vote for him.

Narrenschiff said @ 6:57pm GMT on 27th Aug
Eager to vote how other people are, Bodnoir? Have you been paying attention to my votes, at all?

There's a lack of information in my comments because there is a general lack of information entirely. We've all been bandwagoning much too quickly.

For the record, I haven't seen the vial of stench.

foobar said @ 10:20pm GMT on 27th Aug [Score:1 Informative]
I'm beginning to suspect the same. No one has claimed to have the vial since you, which implies it has been destroyed.

I'm innocent, but I have no way to prove it, nor any special info at all. If I'm not here tomorrow, take a hard look at beerboy and Narrenschiff. And if I have to go, at least take beerboy with me.

rash1 said @ 3:52am GMT on 27th Aug
Yes, that was an oversight on my part, apologies. I don't find you particularly suspicious, however, and for now, I'm willing to believe you are not an infiltrator. If you were, you could have said nothing and remained outside the limelight, albeit, you would not be known as a townie.

v21 said @ 12:15pm GMT on 26th Aug
More lynches gives us a little more data (of absolute, corpsey quality), but there are still the same number of votes, which is also important information.

Hito said @ 12:46pm GMT on 25th Aug [Score:1 Informative]
*YAWN* My, what a strange dream...or was it? I was resting soundly after an entertaining evening of (Wipes the excess fairy dust from his nostrils)....sssssssnnnnnnnuuuh recreational therapy...to the sound of my cabin door lock being picked. Luckily a pirate sleeps with one eye open. I slipped into the escape hatch and when the dust settled, my room was upside down. I fear the infiltrators came for me last night.

Narrenschiff said @ 12:02am GMT on 26th Aug
Neat!

Bodnoirbabe said @ 5:30pm GMT on 25th Aug
Just putting it out there, but I wouldn't mind if the days and nights went by a little faster.

archangel_2 said @ 5:42pm GMT on 25th Aug
Yeah, 363 days and so many hours left for the day phase? and NO time for the night phase?? that's just ridiculous! ;)

grandpa ramo said @ 7:04pm GMT on 25th Aug
hey clean teeth prince caspian, hows sf

verycleanteeth said @ 1:34am GMT on 26th Aug
dunno, I'm in SA atm

grandpa ramo said @ 1:34pm GMT on 26th Aug
OH SHIT!!! Magic time (i don't have any of my brother's decks, just new ones)

lilmookieesquire said @ 3:16am GMT on 26th Aug
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_Hwp58SYfg&feature=player_embedded

Never trust dragons.

lilmookieesquire said @ 2:38am GMT on 27th Aug

lilmookieesquire said @ 2:39am GMT on 27th Aug
(if you are playing from work, you might not want the audio to be playing)

lilmookieesquire said @ 2:47am GMT on 27th Aug

Do we really need any more evidence than this for a lynching?

lilmookieesquire said @ 3:17am GMT on 26th Aug
badgerbaiter is a dragon.

happiest_sadist said @ 4:00am GMT on 26th Aug
Why, so he is!
By any chance, is a dragon a Wild Thing?
I think it must be, particularly if it is a Luck Dragon. What could be more wild than that?

v21 said @ 12:16pm GMT on 26th Aug
I oppose your reasoning in the most sincere and heartfelt way.

lilmookieesquire said @ 2:37am GMT on 27th Aug
Don't you have a joint to smoke you fire-breathing hippy.

shiney things said @ 5:01pm GMT on 26th Aug
Goodness, this isn't going well at all.

Silent said @ 5:30pm GMT on 26th Aug
If you have any theories, share them as I fear I am clueless, every time I think I have a grip on happenings it all falls through, damn you counter arguments.

theolypse said @ 1:31am GMT on 27th Aug
Night 3

(Infiltrators attacked) Hito:
...has talked less than most swans I know, all game. He has consistently voted in the middle of bandwagons, and has never been voted for. Sounds like a randomly-chosen Because We Can't Get Him Lynched kill. ...assuming he really was attacked, that is. Ladies, can you at least reassure us that that sounds like a reasonable result of the use of pixie dust?

(Nothing killed) Todomanna:
...declined to really vote, D3, while arguing long and hot with Bodnoirbabe. This came after feuding with archangel_2 and, again, BNB, on D2. BNB claims to have investigated aa2 the first night. If I had to point a finger, I'd point it at aa2 taking advantage of a bit of removed pressure, but the only way that makes any sense at all is if BNB is an Infiltrator. If anyone so much as received the stench flask after that, they can guarantee that aa2 is not the Nothing. I'm not getting a lot off this one, and welcome an alternative train of thought.

Bodnoirbabe said @ 9:13am GMT on 27th Aug
If I was an infiltrator, I certainly wouldn't kill the person I had so publicly been fighting with for two days. Too suspicious. I do believe, however, that there is an infiltrator in my delegation, as no one has come forward to say that they had it. Todo could have died with it, but that leaves 3 others that could have received it on night two. Because no one has come forward, I think it fell into the hands of the mafia and was destroyed.

Right now, I feel most suspicious about Narrenschiff, but it's not based on anything but gut feelings.

theolypse said @ 1:44am GMT on 27th Aug
Night 2

(Infiltrators killed) theCooler:
...did nothing of any consequence whatsoever. Not one thing. In fact, he seemed more convinced by Strat's deathbed announcement than anyone else was. Smells like a random number to me.

(Nothing killed) Misanthrope:
...commented seven times in two days, and two of those were votes. He barely played.

Both of those people were fairly withdrawn the day before they died. I could suppose that even the evil ones among us are sick of people not contributing, but that seems like a genuinely -bad- strategy for folks who win by limiting the flow of information.

Thoughts?

archangel_2 said @ 3:58am GMT on 27th Aug
Honestly, I think they started by killing the active players, until the Ruby Slippers became such a big deal. Now, they've been targeting delegations that have an object left - and it's sounding like they've got most of 'em already. :(

We just lucked out that last night they picked a faction who's object gives protection - although, if there aren't many objects left, that kinda limits which delegations they can go after in an attempt to remove them from the game...

theolypse said @ 1:50am GMT on 27th Aug
Night 1

Spite48 talked with a lot of people, and switched his vote several times. He interacted with Stratafyre more than with anyone else. I'm getting too dispirited by this lack of leads.

KingPellinore commented exactly once, to vote. For Bodnoirbabe, if anyone wants to argue that that matters.

rash1 said @ 4:04am GMT on 27th Aug
We might be able to use the items to another advantage, as seen in the potions case. This might be too drastic a move at this juncture, but if we devised a system of posting who had what item when, we would be able to gather a bit more information about possible infiltrators.

There are the obvious disadvantages of course. We don't know who would be lying, but if there were conflicting stories about who had the items on a given day, we would at least have some possible targets. We wouldn't be able to tell when the dead townies had (or were buried with the items), or if they have fallen into baddie control, but at least it would be something.

Just for the past of course, we don't want item users to fall tonight and have the items lost.

Any thoughts? Anyone care to elaborate?

The items might just be the key to solving this.

beerboy said @ 5:12am GMT on 27th Aug
not a bad idea, but what if nobody owns up to ever having an item? Even still, the mafia would most likely never claim to be holding an item, since on reassignment if no one gets it/claims to have it, they may have suspicion thrown on them.

Stension said @ 1:06pm GMT on 27th Aug
I've been looking at my delegation

The Fantastica Delegation
badgerbaiter - Falkor, a Luckdragon (Snr Ambassador)
Zelgius - Engywook
Stension - Grograman
lilmookieesquire - The Hero Hynreck

I had the Fantastica item last night. However, I used it on our dear departed balzac and thus didn't gain any new information.

At this point, I support the examination of delegations as it narrows down the group of people you should keep an eye out for.

archangel_2 said @ 3:14pm GMT on 27th Aug
Yeah, I'm thinking that we need to focus on the delegations (like my own) that have EVERY member still alive...as well as those that don't have many left (why were they spared? luck? the mafia got the item and is now done with that delegation? or because they're only/mostly mafia left...)

Seems pretty stupid to leave only the mafia, so they'd be pointed out pretty quick, but even in the Oz delegation, that could mean one of the two is mafia...

Personally, I think we're better off focusing on my own delegation right now, since we've still got all our members, but no mention of a device being used at all... (Now, we HAD said to keep quiet about the devices, and it's only Day Four with five delegates still around, so it's entirely possible that the device is still in play, just being kept silent, and that luck is the reason I haven't received it yet, but it doesn't hurt anything to not describe the item but SAY that you used it on a previous day, so I'm thinking that people need to come forward and say if they got it and on what day, or assume it was destroyed...)

archangel_2 said @ 3:36pm GMT on 27th Aug
Looking into my own delegation, they've all been pretty middle of the road as far as comment count (some days quiet, but other days active - no one's been quiet for more than a day, which could easily be real life intruding on the game).

I know that I'm Town, but that's not something I can prove, so decide for yourselves whether or not you believe me.

I'm also inclined to believe verycleanteeth is Town, given that he voted for Stratafyre on Day One (and at that point, he already had three votes on him, so that could've easily led to Strat being lynched on Day One - so hardly a throw away vote!)

as for the rest of the delegation...I've no idea. They're all experienced players, so they know how to play the game. If there's an Infiltrator in our midst, he'll be good at hiding...

HPew said @ 4:56pm GMT on 27th Aug
I would flip it the other way--concentrate on the smaller delegations.

If we can assume one mafia per group the choice is much smaller. E.g. Wonderland, 33% chance to hit mafia; similarly Neverland, 33%; 50/50 with Oz!

The only problem being if I have guessed wrong about the distribution--if there are four mafia and me in Narnia--then my plan will turn out very badly.

eightysix said @ 5:22pm GMT on 27th Aug
we can't assume an even distribution, and to suggest that is very dangerous thinking. the only people who would know for sure is the mafia.

HPew said @ 6:12pm GMT on 27th Aug
We can assume an even distribution and then extrapolate a plan from there. The mafia distribution is either even or uneven, set up randomly, carelessly, or with a cunning foresight. To choose a distribution model and then test it does not seem unreasonable. The thinking for concentrating on the larger groups does not even have a rationale.

I already acknowledge that it will be bad if I am wrong. But it is a plan which can be considered.

Silent said @ 5:27pm GMT on 27th Aug
I fear I am going to get defensive on this point, there's no proof or reasoning that either Shiftace or myself are mafia, the idea that we exist is cause for concern is foolish, would it not be better to hide in the masses?
It just seems like this idea is to rush through and risk the worlds remaining without looking at the proof, if you feel shiftace or myself are guilty of conspiring against the town then vote for us but just shooting us for still being alive? That's only going to wind up with delegations dead and our worlds struck from existence.

juju said @ 10:09pm GMT on 27th Aug
I am worried about just throwing away a vote due to my confusion this late in the day with the votes this close. I will spend a bit of extra time looking at the leaders and seeing which I'm more suspicious of, and hope I'm looking quickly enough to put a vote down in time.
It's more difficult to notice patterns with so few mafia dead, and the one who has gone down was fairly early.

archangel_2 said @ 11:43pm GMT on 27th Aug
better to throw away a vote than to get yourself one step closer to mod-killed...

verycleanteeth said @ 1:01am GMT on 28th Aug
Throw away votes are part of the fun!

rash1 said @ 11:31pm GMT on 27th Aug
Not sure I like the current trend of three people from one delegation getting so many votes. Seems like we could have another item at risk.

verycleanteeth said @ 1:02am GMT on 28th Aug
Do we know that items are evenly distributed or something?

rash1 said @ 2:07am GMT on 28th Aug
Did not each deligation receive one?

Stension said @ 2:28am GMT on 28th Aug
I've always operated under the impression that every delegation brought one item from their world with them.

FROM THE PROLOGUE

Items
Each Delegation has brought with them one Magical Item which is passed within their party each morning to a randomly determined Delegate.

brat#3 said @ 1:16am GMT on 28th Aug
Good thing I hadn't started writing :P

brat#3 said @ 2:50am GMT on 28th Aug [Score:3 Informative]
The events of the morning seemed to have had a lasting effect on the daily discussion. In desperation theories were presented and cut down over and over again. The air was thick with tension and mistrust, as eventually focus fell onto those delegations who had yet to feel the pain of loss. Was there something sinister behind their continued health?

Over the course of the afternoon accusations flew thick and fast.

"That Worm is too quiet! I don't care how small he is, he should be able to make SOME kind of noise instead of just sitting there getting tea all over our notes!"

"It's that Junk Lady, she could be hiding anything in that pack of hers! I bet she's been stealing from us in our sleep, and who knows what else! I don't buy this 'dearie' crap. My grandmother never collected toenail clippings, it's unnatural!"

"Doesn't anyone remember Hynreck's little display yesterday? Power mad he was, waving his sword around like he owned the place. Hmph. It wasn't so big a sword, anyway."

After some more heated arguing, the Junk Lady and the small, trembling Worm were ushered out to a small clearing to await their fate. The Firey leader couldn't bear to watch, and so had removed her eyes for the time being. Sir Didymus bid a wavering "Farewell, my lady..." to his colleague, dabbing at his eyes with a fresh monogrammed handkercheif.

Princess Tiger Lily stood to the front, her bow drawn with six red-fletched arrows. Grograman stepped forward to touch the arrowtips to his mane, and they exploded into flame.

*sniff* "You'll be sorry about this, girly," said the Junk Lady. "What about your pretty beads, hmmm? your little mocassins from when you were a baby? You'll miss them, won't you? And some feathers for your hair? No? Well, fine. No wonder Peter took off with that Wendy, she knew a thing or two about accessorising."

At this Tiger Lily's eyes narrowed coldly, and she let loose the storm of arrows. One, two, a third into the worm stored in the Junk Lady's breast pocket- all perfect hits, but the fourth-

The fourth flaming arrow struck into the Junk Lady's oversized back pack, setting it alight in an instant. It was only a second after that a strange fizzing could be heard, a reddish glow from inside the burlap sacking...

"Cannonball!!!!" cried Smee, diving for cover as the blast rang out across the woods.

When the dust settled the Delegates stood slowly, dusting snow and soot and dust off their clothes and marvelling that there seemed to be no injuries. "That was lucky! I thought we'd be goners for-"

Relief turned to sadness, as the delegates saw the bruised and broken form of Falkor wound tight around the charred form of the Junk Lady. It seemed they owed their luck entirely to him, but his own had run out. His ruby eyes were lifeless, and the only ringing the delegates could hear now was the ringing of their ears.

"Poor Falkor," said Hynreck. "Atreyu will be so distressed. But he has seen fit to save my life, and I shall endeavour to repay this debt by continuing to fight the good fight, to have courage in the face of death, to avenge my fallen comrades-"

"Not. So Fast."

Jadis stepped forward to where the Hero Hynreck stood. "The explosion seems to have rather damaged your attire- but forgive me, I don't believe you had sparkling skin when last we met?"

Hynreck looked down to where the blast had torn off one side of his waistcoat and undershirt, revealing a strangely pale and shimmering torso at odds with his swarthy complexion elsewhere. The other Delegates gasped in shock as he raised his head again, a cold and disdainful expression on his face.

"How very unfortunate. Such a shame, really. It's not like you'd have gotten it on your own. We're all much too smart for you. And prettier, too. I don't understand your kind at all. Who'd want to imagine themselves with any of you lot? Caterpillars and worms and.. beavers. You can keep your pre-school audience, I'm more than happy with my adolescent Mary Sues, thanks all the same. You don't even know what you're missing-"

In a flash, Jadis plunged her spear deep into the imposter's chest. "What utter twaddle," she said, as he gaped and burbled like a fish out of water. "Wearing makeup doesn't make you interesting, you know. And Jareth does it better than you by a long stretch, my boy."

And with that, the sparkling youth fell over into the snow, face down, legs askew, most ungraciously. No one seemed overly fussed about arranging him artfully, so they moved back to the discussion table.

As the light slowly faded, the group noticed the absence of the Mermaid. She was not in any of the pools, which had been slowly draining by the day as the blockages grew stronger. However, as the moon came up, the surface of one appeared to shimmer with a golden glow, and the group could see what resembled flecks of sea foam travelling slowly over the rippling surface. Wherever the Mermaid was now, the party wished her well in her journey.

But for now, perhaps there was a little time to celebrate, before the Night came.

Dead:

badgerbaiter - Falkor, a Luckdragon - Fantastica TOWN (Modkill)
shiney things - Representative of the Mermaids - Neverland TOWN (Removed by request)
foobar - The Junk Lady - Labyrinth TOWN (NB. Not a splodey, that was just a plot device.)
beerboy - William the Worm - Labyrinth TOWN
lilmookieesquire - Edward Cullen - INFILTRATOR

Stension said @ 2:54am GMT on 28th Aug
*phew* That was pretty gruesome (5 dead? Pah!), but I'm glad my suspicions about mookie played out well.

Stension said @ 2:57am GMT on 28th Aug
Also, foobar, I'm still amazed that you being a bit late made the death toll jump up by two. Little actions seem to definitely matter. Sucks though.

Still 2 town for 1 inifi isn't too terrible I suppose. 4 to one is much worse though. If you're town, stop committing suicide and stop getting modded!

foobar said @ 3:43am GMT on 28th Aug
verycleanteeth jumped in with a couple minutes left to make it a triple lynch. It was 4-4-4 for me, beerboy and mookie, and I switched my vote from beerboy to mookie.

archangel_2 said @ 3:54am GMT on 28th Aug
His switch was kind of a good one. Would've been even better if yours had gone through, but it was JUST too late. :(

But without verycleanteeth, lilmookieesquire would've lived, and we'd've been down townies without an Infiltrator to balance things out - and we got rid of the damn sparkly one! :D

deadlilmookieesquire said @ 4:16pm GMT on 28th Aug
I thought you guys were pretty swell too... *death rattle*

Bodnoirbabe said @ 4:09am GMT on 28th Aug
Oh, Narren, you are so on my lynch list tomorrow.

Narrenschiff said @ 8:34am GMT on 28th Aug
Yeah? Why's that exactly?

junk lady's ghost said @ 9:18am GMT on 28th Aug
OoOOooOOOOoooOOOooOOOO