# MAFIA: The Game - Ideal for Beginners \[Game in Progress\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 14, 2015, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099 "2015-07-14T00:45:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 24
**Author:** ![TexCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/texcat/32/9041_2.png) [@TexCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TexCat)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/461 "2015-07-24T19:24:48Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > more flip flops than a south Florida beach in July Hehehe.šŸ˜› **vote Septimus** I agree with Johnny, but as noted earlier, I did not like that Septimusā€™s first reaction to the scheme was to work out how scum could overcome it. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/462 "2015-07-24T19:53:46Z")
> [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > Another question: the first Day is a week long, give or take. Is this likely to be the case for all Days or just the first one? And lo, in the beginning spake\*\* storyteller\*\* from on high and saideth: > [@](#): > > The game will start with Day One, which will begin whenever all players have confirmed receipt of their Role PM. During Day One, players may discuss whatever they choose and vote for anyone they choose. Day One will end at noon Eastern Standard Time on Monday, July 27; subsequent Days will last exactly five real life days. All Days are considered to end exactly at the appointed time, even if Iā€™m not able to post the official ā€œDayā€™s Endā€ post at that time. So it appears that all subsequent Days will end at noon EST on Saturday (which sucks for me, as Iā€™ll never be able to be around at the end of the Day) and begin at noon EST the following Monday. ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/463 "2015-07-24T20:02:47Z")
> [@TexCat](#): > > Hehehe.šŸ˜› > > vote Septimus > > I agree with Johnny, but as noted earlier, I did not like that Septimusā€™s first reaction to the scheme was to work out how scum could overcome it. In which one of Septimus post did he work out how scum could overcome it? You mention in your post 380 , when defending yourself from Chronos, that you were pointing out flaws for town, yet septimus was pointing out flaws to help scum, but I cant find the post by Septimus that you are referring to. Edited to remove colour from quoted post ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/464 "2015-07-24T20:03:00Z")
> [@TexCat](#): > > Hehehe.šŸ˜› > > **vote Septimus** > > I agree with Johnny, but as noted earlier, I did not like that Septimusā€™s first reaction to the scheme was to work out how scum could overcome it. Really? And his second reaction was to _share what he had worked out with the Town!_ If the Town was considering a plan, and a scum player noticed that said plan would actually work to the advantage of scum, why in the world would he not keep his mouth shut and hope Town would screw themselves? I am very suspicious of those voting for\*\* septimus.\*\* For pointing out fatal flaws in the plan,\*\* septimus\*\* and\*\* Biotop\*\* look like near-certain Town to me. **Chronos** , not so much. His overall contribution to the contribution looks strongly enough pro-Town to me that I will balance it against his earlier anti-Town idea and put him back into the ā€œundecidedā€ pile, but I could easily imagine a scum\*\* Chronos\*\* perceiving the disadvantages of the plan and deciding to push it rather than share said disadvantages with Town. And yes, I am well aware that the same could equally be said of me! In retrospect I am a little embarrassed that I failed to notice these flaws right away, but clearly there are a lot of other Townies in the same boat. A heads up that my participation is going to drop dramatically for the rest of the Day, but I will definitely follow along and have my vote on the scummiest-looking candidate at Dayā€™s end. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/465 "2015-07-24T20:04:17Z")
Um, rather that should read ā€œcontribution to the discussionā€.:smack: ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/466 "2015-07-24T20:08:02Z")
> [@Precambrianmollusc](#): > > In which one of Septimus post did he work out how scum could overcome it? You mention in your post 380 , when defending yourself from Chronos, that you were pointing out flaws for town, yet septimus was pointing out flaws to help scum, but I cant find the post by Septimus that you are referring to. > > Edited to remove colour from quoted post post 360 ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/467 "2015-07-24T20:20:59Z")
Not seeing how that is helping scum, it points out that the plan was flawed for town. anyway it is beer oā€™clock ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/468 "2015-07-24T21:26:48Z")
Mill meal time again. ##### I just want to strongly encourage all town players to postā€¦ and to post a lot. We need your input. Also this is important, it seems to me, because \*\* wolves have to lie every time they post. Every damn time!\*\* Even if it is something inconsequential, like a joke it is still a lie because the wolf is pretending to be town. It is hard to lie over and over again, day after day without getting caught. Meanwhile, town players speak the truth so they donā€™t have to worry too much about inconsistencies. Even if you contradict yourself in error, thatā€™s better than not posting. Trust us to tell the difference. Then, when you suspect someone, you can go over post after post after post. Whose posts in total are nothing but a pack of lies? So please post NOW, before experienced wolves have a chance to instruct wolf newbies. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/469 "2015-07-24T22:00:17Z")
> [@JSexton](#): > > Remind me why youā€™re doing that? Sure. Here is what I said when I voted the first time. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > I am not swayed by Jsexton or any other vote on Chronos. I think Chronos is an easy target due to his discussion and analysis of the vote tiebreaker. So easy, Iā€™m moving my vote over to Jsexton. > > Itā€™s a combination of his push to lynch Chronos and a vibe. Vibe is not a popular reason to vote, but Iā€™m going to anyway. I do agree that I would rather play mafia than obsess on the tie-break, but I think it was town-like to introduce the discussion. Then I voted, which Iā€™ve removed from the quote. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/470 "2015-07-24T22:13:58Z")
Just wanted to rear my head up briefly since Iā€™ve gone a bit quiet of late. I kind of ran out of gas during the whole tie-rigging debate because I had nothing to add to the mechanics of it, and because I felt I expressed my feelings for the whole prospect and didnā€™t want to repeat myself. I see my reticence has earned me my first vote. I didnā€™t really think I was the most silent player, but go figure; Iā€™m not a voluminous poster at the best of times. Maybe I can work to turn that decision around. Anyway, Iā€™ll be posting my vote too (along with my reasoning, such as it is) I hope later tonight. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/471 "2015-07-24T22:22:35Z")
So I spent a good part of the day re-reading all 460ish goddamned posts in this thread. I took notes. I made a spreadsheet. I tried to lay out everyone on a chart with arrows pointing around like some terror cell org chart. I know less now than I did at 9:00 this morning. But I know I clearly **can** choose the wine in front of me, which is what Iā€™m going to do here shortly when I sit down to dinner. Itā€™s spaetzle night! Anyway, I agree with my [del]shady[/del] esteemed colleagues **[Mahaloth](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18537510&postcount=319)** and **[Cygnus42](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18545054&postcount=459)** that something ainā€™t right about **JSexton**. He seems to sow a lot of suspicion ([e.g., recently](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18544672&postcount=455)) without going to bat for many posters. Up until recently, I donā€™t think e ever said he thought anyone was OK. Now, true, the recent exception to that is his newfound support of **Chronos** and **Biotop**. As I see it, though, he initially opposed the tiebreaker plan and attacked **Chronos** , and once the plan started to fall apart, and **Chronos** and **Biotop** were getting their consolation high-fives, then JSexton claimed that they were definitely townies and heā€™s never vote for them. I believe he was using the plan to attack **Chronos** , who he knows is town, but as town support coalesced around **Chronos** and **Biotop** , at least for the time being, **JSexton** decided to back it off a bit. Heā€™s not going to get them lynched today now. So he moved on to **Cygnus42**. Iā€™m probably reading too much into a fluff post, but I have been suspicious of him since [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18532901&postcount=203) early post: > [@Jsexton](#): > > Me too, fellow Townsperson! It certainly is a nice day for us, two perfectly normal townspeople, to be walking around on two legs and eating peanut butter sandwiches, eh? And I suspect he was trying to get a message to his fellow hairy-handed gents in [post 340](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18537878&postcount=340): > [@JSexton](#): > > What I was saying was that a wolf can vote (or even unvote, if the votecount is right) last second to ensure there is no tie, nullifying any possible gain of tiebreaker info. Yes, doing so is highly suspicious, and probably leads to that wolf being lynched the next day. BUT, and this is what my last sentence was about, thatā€™s totally worth it to the scum as awhole if it avoids having multiple wolves publicly exposed. So, looking at these tea leaves, I have to: **vote JSexton** ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/472 "2015-07-24T22:32:44Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > And lo, in the beginning spake\*\* storyteller\*\* from on high and saideth: > > So it appears that all subsequent Days will end at noon EST on Saturday (which sucks for me, as Iā€™ll never be able to be around at the end of the Day) and begin at noon EST the following Monday. Thanks for pointing that out, ---
**Author:** ![sangfroid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@sangfroid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sangfroid)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2015, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/473 "2015-07-24T22:43:46Z")
_ā€¦wanders around the Cecilton Inne hoping to find a decent bottle of spirits to enjoyā€¦_ Along with some more conversation. So, I too will add my two cents before retiring this evening, but I must say all the back-and-forth about the tie scenario has been quite the distraction. And this: > [@Biotop](#): > > _[snip]_ā€¦this is important, it seems to me, **because wolves have to lie every time they post** ā€¦_[/snip]_ bears repeating. Well said. Every time the wolves bark (or howl from the mountaintop) they have to dissemble, disguise, conceal, obfuscateā€¦ Townspeople can and will make some blunders, but they can usually be explained and reconciled. After toNight, things should begin to get interesting indeed. Need to reread a bit more and assess. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/474 "2015-07-25T01:06:34Z")
Just a simple point of clarification, before I go into anything more in-depth: All Days (after the first) last five days, _and all Nights last two days_. This means that the entire cycle is exactly a week long, so if the first Day ends on Monday at noon, then all Days will end on Monday at noon. Which is in turn inconvenient for me, because Iā€™m unavailable weekdays during the day, but I suppose you canā€™t please everyone. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/475 "2015-07-25T02:07:12Z")
**Biotop** , I notice that you havenā€™t voted yet, aside from the temporary self-vote. Youā€™ve expressed some suspicions ([on **septimus** , at least](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18543877&postcount=447)); do you intend to act on them? **Plumpudding** , [your analysis of **TexCat**](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18538884&postcount=369) seems to have you suspicious of her; might you be persuaded to vote for her? Remember, everyone, if you suspect someone, vote for them (unless youā€™re already voting for someone you suspect even more). Voting shows that youā€™re serious about your suspicions, and puts pressure on the person youā€™re voting for. Donā€™t wait to vote just in case you find a better prospect; remember, you can always change your vote if that happens. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/476 "2015-07-25T05:55:26Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > **Biotop** , I notice that you havenā€™t voted yet, aside from the temporary self-vote. Youā€™ve expressed some suspicions ([on **septimus** , at least](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18543877&postcount=447)); do you intend to act on them? Ok. Fair enough. Based on a lot of confusing comments already mentioned by others, gut feeling, and his ready willingness to vote for himself in **Septimus** ā€™ plan ā€”as I think a suspected real wolf might do: Vote Dante G ---
**Author:** ![sangfroid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@sangfroid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sangfroid)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/477 "2015-07-25T10:11:43Z")
Ok, so now a couple of random votes/questions have drifted my way for no real reason whatsoever. Wolf darts? I have questions about all of them that only the Night will resolve, but Iā€™m going with the most recent for now. vote TexCat I will be away all day today at my kidsā€™ track meet so I will check in tonight EST. I usually prefer to watch all the last-minute stuff up close, but I gotta run. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/478 "2015-07-25T11:15:16Z")
About to hop into the car again. I will endeavor to check up on the thread via phone towards th end of the day. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/479 "2015-07-25T11:21:13Z")
Agreeing with Bayardā€™s line of thought in #471. Vote JSexton ---
**Author:** ![Plumpudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Plumpudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plumpudding)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2015, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099/480 "2015-07-25T12:38:59Z")
OOG: Hi guys! Iā€™ve been a bit silent lately, sorry for that. Iā€™ve had a few busy days with some friends over, and yesterday we took a dutch guy for a sightseeing trip around Oslo. Anyway, I have posted quite a lot and shared more or less all my confused thoughts so far. Right now Iā€™m hung over, and I need to read the last pages a couple of more times. > [@Chronos](#): > > [Snip] > > **Plumpudding** , [your analysis of **TexCat**](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18538884&postcount=369) seems to have you suspicious of her; might you be persuaded to vote for her? > > Remember, everyone, if you suspect someone, vote for them (unless youā€™re already voting for someone you suspect even more). Voting shows that youā€™re serious about your suspicions, and puts pressure on the person youā€™re voting for. Donā€™t wait to vote just in case you find a better prospect; remember, you can always change your vote if that happens. I do have some thoughts on **TexCat**. I donā€™t trust her at all. In my ill attempt at an analysis, I highlighted a few issues I had with her, and her response was to ignore _all but two_ of my points! I gave answers to her objections, one apologizing for (mis)reading to much into her post and one rebutting _her_ **misreading** of my post. And her response so far has been to **ignore** that too! **TexCat** , am I on your ignore list already? Please donā€™t ignore me, Iā€™m thinking a lot about you! So much so that Iā€™ll actually go ahead and Vote TexCat Iā€™m gonna go back, count posts for my list and read over a few times more to get a better picture of our situation. Like Arnie, Iā€™ll be back. And Iā€™ll stay home all day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099.md?page=23) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-game-ideal-for-beginners-game-in-progress/725099.md?page=25)