# Mafia: The Thrill of the Chase \[Newbie Friendly!\] **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 20, 2011, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526 "2011-11-20T06:04:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 37
**Author:** ![special\_ed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@special\_ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/special_ed)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/721 "2011-12-14T00:16:59Z")
> [@Svejk\_1](#): > > Yes it does. Still, on that assumption too I would still say that a justification of a vote would amount to making a reasoned claim that me being scum is more likely than others being scum - something that you have not done. Yes I have. I’ve presented what makes me more suspicious of you than of anyone else. You may disagree with it. I cannot prove it, but it’s what I’ve got right now. ---
**Author:** ![MentalGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/439d5e/32.png) [@MentalGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MentalGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/722 "2011-12-14T03:48:38Z")
> [@Silver\_Jan](#): > > @\*\* Mental Guy\*\*, I find it rather odd that you are prepared to go along with the lynch of someone that you don’t believe to be scum, this just goes against the grain for me. If you just sit back and let what you see as a mislynch go through then that looks anti-town to me. Scum will just be rubbing their hands in glee, unless of course you are scum. I think if you were to look at my past games you would find several times when I was perfectly okay with a lynch that was not my first choice. I think Svejk is _possibly_ a mislynch. But my argument basically boils down to “there is too much scumminess surrounding him for him to actually be scum.” That is not an argument that I plan on making a major stand on. > [@fluiddruid](#): > > I’m not sure if I agree with your reasoning here, **MentalGuy** , but it did bring up a point that I wanted to make and forgot to in my previous post about Svejk. I just listed those things as evidence along with evidence the other way. What do you disagree with as possible evidence of Svejk being scum? ---
**Author:** ![MentalGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/439d5e/32.png) [@MentalGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MentalGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/723 "2011-12-14T04:40:28Z")
Bleached. [QUOTE=Mahaloth] False or hasty? I’ll do hasty(well, quick, anyway) on Day One…don’t know about false since I don’t know who/what anyone is. Vote Svejk for the random vote. [/QUOTE] Votes Svejk early in the game for a random vote. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > :bleached: > > Wow, how did I miss this before? What’s up with this deal? Not voting is anti-town. And I don’t think voting abstain counts. > > Huh. The real question is if you are just making a bad townine move or if your move is actually scummy. Hmmmm… > > Anyone making a remotely serious case for a vote on Day 1 is likely scum? Attempting to discourage anyone from trying to make a serious case on Day One? That does seem scummy. > > Fubble, that is one weird-ass post you made there. I think you just took over my number one suspect spot. > > **Unvote** > > **Vote Fubbleskag** Changes vote to fubbleskag after fubble abstains from voting. Later says it is more for the post than for the vote. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > The abstain thing is muddled at best. It’s more his comment than the vote, though the vote got me examining him closer. > > The comment. It moved him up my list of suspects to number one. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > I’ve been steering clear a bit, but I will vote right now so not to end the Day with no vote. > > **Vote Special Ed** > > I’m not sure how to explain this. His style and tone seem…different. It’s hard to put a finger on it. Anyway, that’s my vote. Votes Ed for his style and tone seeming different. This after it has been mentioned that Ed has changed his playstyle lately. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > I still suspect ed, and to a certain extent fubble, but you know who has pinged me quite a bit? > > Choie. > > It’s her tone, I think. Very light, supportive, making casual comment on others. I think she’s scum hiding in play sight. Anyway, it’s early. I’m voting to get it out there. > > **Vote choie** Votes choie for her tone. I don’t really like any of these votes, but these last two I find particularly suspicious. Votes on players unlikely to be lynched with the reason being “tone”. Besides these vote posts, I do not recall him casting suspicion on (or really even mentioning) anyone except fubbleskag. I feel Mahaloth is trying not to attract notice with his votes, but does not want to not vote. **Vote Mahaloth** This vote may change tomorrow evening after I have looked at some other players. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Jan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Silver\_Jan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Jan)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/724 "2011-12-14T05:18:48Z")
> [@GuiriEnEspana](#): > > And you still haven’t answered my question. To save you having to go searching for it on the previous page, I’ll just ask again as now it’s bugging me that you won’t answer. > > Way back on Day 1, when Svejk suggested he may unvote you if someone more suspicious came along, you said: > > “I find it very curious that a random vote has turned to a suspicious one, is it just semantics or does he know more than I do?” > > What could Svejk possibly have known that made him suspicious of you after his vote? I am still not sure what you are getting at but this may be what you want answered, **Svejk** said that he might unvote me if someone\*\* MORE\*\* suspicious comes along. For another person to be\*\* MORE\*\* suspicious, I must have been suspicious in the first place! **Svejk** placed a random vote, the end, then he said\*\* MORE\*\*, that’s why I mentioned semantics. Yo cannot have more of anything if you don’t have anything in the first place! ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Jan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Silver\_Jan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Jan)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/725 "2011-12-14T05:26:24Z")
> [@GuiriEnEspana](#): > > So what did you mean by this then? I didn’t immediately place an OMGUS vote which was what I wanted to do and as people have pointed out, is what I would normally have done. I stayed quite about it and thought about it rationally, even though the vote against me wasn’t rational. ---
**Author:** ![Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/db5fbb/32.png) [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirka_T_Bawa)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/726 "2011-12-14T05:50:05Z")
Been off Christmas shopping, and then time with wife when I got home, so haven’t had much of a chance to respond to posts the past few days. My last post (asking about the mod kill) was on my phone while christmas shopping, and you all know how hard it is to post on a phone… Doesn’t mean I haven’t been reading though… > [@Scathach](#): > > Your position makes no sense. My position doesn’t make sense? Well, I still suspect you from yesterday, I would have voted for you starting the day, however, proven townie **Astral** made a case that lynching **Svejk** would provide more information. I’m willing to accept his argument since I know it was from the heart… What, you would I have rather I had voted for you from the start? I would have voted for you, **Scathach** , at the start of day, however, I believe **Astral** ’s idea that **Svejk** would be a better lynch, because if he comes up scum, I think it’s way more likely you’re scum… However, if he comes up innocent, I think he might really be just a townie worried about the votes on you.. Would that save you? No… But, it would give me more data in order to more properly judge you. Basically, it would make me give you the benefit of the doubt.. And would let me start to judge you from the beginning as scum or not, and not have my previous ideas hanging over my head. While, If I just lynched you from the get go, and you turned up town, I would just think I was wrong, and lynch **Svejk** because of his change in bandwagons on a town. > [@GuiriEnEspana](#): > > **Hirka** , can you respond to the criticism of your vote yesterDay? Sure, would you mind linking to it? I even missed it, or forgot it if I saw it on my phone. > [@gnarlycharlie](#): > > it does seem too obvious a play for scum to make so i’ll say **Svejk** is leaning town. > > what bothers me is **Hirka** ’s vote on **Svejk**. i understand that lynching **Svejk** can give us answers but **Hirka** ’s reason is off. he’s willing to risk lynching a possible townie **Svejk** to prove he should be voting for **scathach** who he already suspects. > > **Vote Hirka** As I mentioned above, my main reason for voting for **Svejk** is because I think he’ll give me more information then a lynch of **scathach**. **Svejk** ’s change of vote was more suspicious to me, and covers two possibilities to me: 1. He doesn’t want to be linked to a townie bandwagon lynch, and we all know the 2nd or 3rd votes are most suspicious on a townie lynch, so changed to be the last vote on another townie. Or… 2. He was trying to protect a scum mate who he thought was safe at first, then saw the change of votes, and wanted to protect his scum mate. Of course, there is always the 3rd option, he is Innocent, and his vote is as he says it is… While that is a possibility, to me, it is farther down the possibility lists then options 1 and 2. So, I voted for who I found scummiest so far. > [@Scathach](#): > > At least someone agrees with me on this. I also don’t like how people are relying on “known townie” Astral’s stated intention to vote, since simply being town doesn’t necessarily mean he was right and it smacks of responsibility shifting While we don’t know for sure he was correct in anything, we at least know his analysis was from the heart. While he might have been wrong, at least I can read his thoughts and know they aren’t from scum, so can take them as he meant them. To me, it is better to be led astray by a honest townie, then from a conniving scum. For now, I’m going to stand by my vote… OOG: I work two 12 hour shifts the next two days, so will skim the thread, but don’t know how much time I have to “think”… **When is End of Day? And can we have a current vote count?** ---
**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:** [December 14, 2011, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/727 "2011-12-14T13:26:24Z")
> [@MentalGuy](#): > > I feel Mahaloth is trying not to attract notice with his votes, but does not want to not vote. > > **Vote Mahaloth** I’ve had little to say this Day because my suspicion has not changed. Also, I think choie has changed a bit since my vote, which looks like trying to self-correct/hide. Is it in anyway anti-town to list our suspect list in order? Anyway, my current suspect list from most scummy down is: 1. Choie - play-style 2. Special Ed - play-style 3. Fubble - actually, I suspected Fubble before being insulted/attacked, so I kind of wonder if that was a huge distraction attempt by fubble. If so, not my preferred play-style, but possible. However, still 3rd for me. ---
**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:** [December 14, 2011, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/728 "2011-12-14T13:28:42Z")
Uh, I meant to bleach the vote on me, Trepaped. My bad. ---
**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:** [December 14, 2011, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/729 "2011-12-14T13:30:39Z")
> [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](#): > > OOG: I work two 12 hour shifts the next two days, so will skim the thread, but don’t know how much time I have to “think”… I missed this post before I posted. Dude, do you need a sub? I think Day Two is still reasonable to get subbed out if you need one. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/730 "2011-12-14T13:40:54Z")
been very busy lately, only able to read sporadically, not really had a chance to post; admit - very unhelpful for town, but it is what it is only have a minute, won’t be fixing typos voted \*\*Septimus \*\*because it was my original vote, I hadn’t had time to review any of the other cases or build one of my own, and had already caught a boatload of shit from you lot for not voting; damned either way, it seems **fluiddruid** welcome back; understand you’re trying to catch up, but if you’re going to comment on my voting, please catch up more thoroughly before doing so. also, your case against Svejk seems to me somewhat emotional/reactionary - almost as if you’re consciously baiting a new player so that you can then make a ‘smear’ accusation. consider yourself pinged, assuming I have time to review you more thoroughly before the next vote (and live that long, ell oh ell) I’m leaning town for **Svejk** ; the cases against him seem weak to me, and he seems genuinely disheartened at the prospect of being falsely lynched. also, as has been mentioned, he seems to be very good at this so far - I’d hate to see one of the better players mis-lynched (as opposed to mis-lynching me, who is notably terrible at this game) for the moment, **MentalGuy** ’s case on \*\*Mahaloth \*\*is the only thing that’s really struck with me **vote Mahaloth** ---
**Author:** ![special\_ed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@special\_ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/special_ed)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/731 "2011-12-14T16:36:40Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I missed this post before I posted. Dude, do you need a sub? I think Day Two is still reasonable to get subbed out if you need one. a sub because he’s busy for 2 days? ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/732 "2011-12-14T17:00:15Z")
> [@fubbleskag](#): > > **fluiddruid** welcome back; understand you’re trying to catch up, but if you’re going to comment on my voting, please catch up more thoroughly before doing so. I’ve read through the thread, but I still haven’t seen an acceptable explanation. Saying you voted septimus because it was your “original vote” doesn’t address his claim. So, to be explicit: why didn’t you address his claim? What were you thinking in voting for a claimed Doctor? > [@](#): > > also, your case against Svejk seems to me somewhat emotional/reactionary - almost as if you’re consciously baiting a new player so that you can then make a ‘smear’ accusation. consider yourself pinged, assuming I have time to review you more thoroughly before the next vote (and live that long, ell oh ell) You and Svejk have both accused me of having bad motives. I’ll reiterate what I said: my first suspicion of Svejk was his intentional non-tie-breaking post. It’s not based on emotion, personal vengeance or whatever else. If you want to discuss it on the merits, let’s do – but there’s nothing else I can say if you want to keep summing it up in terms that are inaccurate and vague. Besides, it really doesn’t make sense. If I’m responding emotionally or irrationally, that doesn’t make me scum – usually, knee-jerk OMGUS votes are Town, not Scum. So why the ping? I get that you disagree with me, but it seems like a scattershot approach to discredit me. You’re emotional! You’re just reacting to his post! You’re scummy! But they don’t go together. FWIW I find your “me too” vote on Mahaloth weak. Can you at least explain why it’s resonant with you? Do you wholly agree with what he said? Do you have anything to add? ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/733 "2011-12-14T17:07:57Z")
> [@MentalGuy](#): > > I just listed those things as evidence along with evidence the other way. What do you disagree with as possible evidence of Svejk being scum? While I agree with the conclusion, I don’t think all of these are good evidence. Your reasons were > [@](#): > > His vote change late in the Day yesterDay. > Astral’s death last Night. > Svejk’s change in his posting pattern (he has disappeared). Specifically, I object to Astral’s death being a good reason for Svejk being scum. I don’t think it’s evidence the other way either – it’s just neutral to me. Killing your critics is a somewhat risky and clunky move. Certainly it has been done – and it’s a natural impulse to try – but at the same time it also makes sense to kill your critic’s critics. I’d consider it a null tell with the information we have at this point. Late day votes are troublesome in some ways but in and of themselves are a null tell. I have freely moved votes end-of-day as Town many times. I hate to leave a useless vote on someone not in the running if I truly do have strong feelings about vote leaders. I’m not saying it can’t be a scum tell by any means – I just don’t like the argument as you’ve put it here, if it’s as general as it appears. The posting pattern I do find troublesome, though specifically for Sjevk’s reasons behind it rather than the occurrence itself, but I’ve hashed that out pretty extensively. Hope this answers your question. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/734 "2011-12-14T17:14:30Z")
**Svejk** , we’ve hashed out our disagreement pretty extensively, so I don’t want to keep centering a ton of my energy around it. Suffice it to say that I still am pointing a finger of suspicion your way. However, I genuinely didn’t understand or believe that you were trying to say that you were not participating because you were bummed out about being a vote candidate. This is less scummy put that way (though still ill-advisable) but at this point I think it’s only fair to accept your word that this is how it was intended. Nonetheless I would like to echo my previous sentiment that explanations are best made, and best made clearly, at the time rather than explained later, which gives too much wiggle-room for my taste. However, I really object to the language you use towards me. If it’s not intentional smearing then I request that you stop. I’m not responding emotionally, I’m not exacting vengeance, I’m not feeling guilty – I have genuine suspicion towards you. I’m not, as you put it, “harping on and on” – I’m responding to your posts, and defending my position. I agree, as I put above, that we’ve pretty much exhausted this line of questioning and I’m willing to stop, but I think it’s only fair to point out that this type of language is what I’m considering a smear. If you think a line of discussion is pointless, that’s fine – express why. Calling my posts “harping” is only going to provoke me. That’s why I keep saying that you’re smearing – you’re using words that seem designed to provoke response or to cast me in an unfriendly light without using substance or fact. In any case, my vote still lies with **fubbleskag** and I’m content with that. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/735 "2011-12-14T17:31:14Z")
Hirka, I have this in my notes: Day 3 ends at 10:00 AM MST, on Friday, Dec 16th. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/736 "2011-12-14T17:57:45Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I’ve had little to say this Day because my suspicion has not changed. Also, I think choie has changed a bit since my vote, which looks like trying to self-correct/hide. > > Is it in anyway anti-town to list our suspect list in order? Anyway, my current suspect list from most scummy down is: > > 1. Choie - play-style > 2. Special Ed - play-style > 3. Fubble - actually, I suspected Fubble before being insulted/attacked, so I kind of wonder if that was a huge distraction attempt by fubble. If so, not my preferred play-style, but possible. However, still 3rd for me. Hmm. How has my play style changed? You voted for me pretty much right off the bat this Morning (er, I think). I don’t _think_ I’ve been different. Do you mean I haven’t been making longer cases as I was during Day 2? The main reason for that is just that I’m all-too-cognizant that my case against **Inner** was dead wrong, even though I genuinely smelled scum there. So I’m kinda holding back on making major post-by-post analyses until I have a strong feeling one way or another. Anyway, I’m trying to wrap my mind around the **Svejk** case. I have to say I recognize his disheartenment and subsequent lowered posting activity – it’s pretty much exactly the pattern that I fell into during my first game. I started getting defensive and a tad depressed that my words were being used against me. But that _is_ the whole point of the game, y’know? People over-analyze everthing, that’s part of the masochistic/sadistic fun of Mafia. So for me a newbie’s activity level and reluctance to post since the votes turned against him are kind of a null tell, because I understand how oddly personal it feels when a barrage of votes lands on you when you’re not used to it. What I’d say to **Svejk** is that if you are town, you _need_ to participate and develop a mental shield that lets you take the naysayers in stride. Don’t be so quick to defend yourself rather than looking for genuine scum–in my admittedly limited experience, this can work against you more than you realize. And if you _do_ focus on scumhunting rather than your own defense, this way, even if you go down, you’ll have helped your team thanks to your participation, because a dead confirmed Townie’s words generally hold a tad more weight than anyone else’s other than a _live_ confirmed Townie. Of course, OTOH, if you’re scum, do whatever you want. We’ll hopefully suss you out in the end. Anyway. This actually reminds me of something **special ed** said (at least I think it was him): I mentioned four scenarios – 1. Town **Scathach** , Town **Svekj** ; **Svejk** switched his vote to **Inner** because he just didn’t like the bandwagon on **Scathach** and thought the case against **Inner** was stronger. 2. Town **Scathach** , Scum **Svejk** : **Svejk** thought **Scathach** was destined to be lynched (due to the rising groundswell of suspicion against her) and figured hoping off the bandwagon would make him look less scummy. OR, for some reason he felt **Inner** was more likely to be a power role. This strikes me as a very risky scenario since it does (and obviously _did_) make him gain more attention to himself. 3. Scum **Scathach** , Town **Svejk** : Really, same as option #1. 4. Scum \*\*Scathatch, \*\*, Scum **Svejk** : **Svejk** was worried that **Scathach** was about to be lynched and decided to hop off the train and cause a new bandwagon on **Inner**. So **special ed** said he didn’t think there were equal chances of these scenarios being true, but I don’t think he elaborated on which he felt was most likely/unlikely. Could you do so now? Ditto anyone else who either a) has corrections to my suppositions or b) wants to offer ideas on these cases. Of all the other players, I’m still baffled by **fubbleskag** ’s weird choices at the end of the last Day. There were a bunch of posts that were just copy/paste and smilies. He remains suspicious of **Mahaloth** but I can’t see any real arguments as to why. **Scathach** herself: hasn’t done much scumhunting, in fact doing more to protect **Svejkb** than to protect either herself or hunt out any other players. Which is why I lean toward options #3 (if she’s snuggling) or #4 (if she’s protecting either a regular scumbuddy or a scum power role whom she deems more “important” than herself). **Mahaloth** … well, I’m tempted to mistrust him since he’s been riding me for a while (and not in the good way ;D) and I’m not seeing a rationale other than play style. I actually think I’ve been doing a much better job of scumhunting since my last game, believe it or not, so I’m feeling pretty good about my participation as a useful Townie this time around. If **askthepizzaguy** were here I’d love to know his thoughts on my more confident play. 🙂 But anyway, that’s just me. Putting his vote for me aside, he’s been curiously defensive and oversensitive to everything **fubbleskag** says, and I can’t quite figure out if it’s genuine anger or if he and **fubbles** are scum involved in some kinda performance art. Together their behavior is really weird and, I daresay, suspicious. Or maybe they’re just kinda reactionary / strange players. **Silver Jan** ’s playstyle is _so_ markedly different from how I’ve seen her play before that it kinda has to make me more curious. However, RL issues do seem to explain this, so I guess I’m neutral on her at the moment. **fluiddruid** ’s coming across as a bit defensive, which IIRC is relatively status quo for her style in the Mafia games I’ve read. I can only speak for myself, but I know if I’d only written 9 posts in three weeks (now a few more since she was called on the carpet for it) I’d damn well expect to bear the brunt of Town’s irritation and suspicion. That she’s this defensive surprises me and begins to ping me a bit. **Mental Guy** has stayed off my radar with a pretty understated play style. His vote against **fisha** can be set aside considering it was a Day 1 vote where we’re all basically stabbing in the dark. His next vote was for **Scathach** , and I couldn’t then and still don’t see the reason why that bandwagon started on her. That he remained on **Scathach** despite others jumping off to **Inner** could be read either way: if she’s scum, he could’ve been either Town insisting on her guilt, or scum deciding to keep his bet where it was since should a scummy **Scathach** eventually be exposed, he’s lookin’ pretty good as a result. **Gnarlycharlie** , could you expand a bit on your rationale for voting for **Mahaloth** last round? Not getting a feeling on **gnarlycharlie** on either side. **GuiriEnEspana** , for reasons unknown, does not strike me as scum, although again his repeatedly asking questions from days ago (and not linking to them, which isn’t very helpful) shows either a terrier-like stubbornness to dig at the truth, or a pretty clever scum ploy to put everyone on the defensive and thereby avoiding the spotlight shining on himself. If he is scum, he’s damn good. Ditto Town, for that matter. I think that’s everyone. Looking at my not-very-well backed-up summaries above, I would be most tempted to vote for **Scathach** , **Svejk** , **fluiddruid** and **fubbleskag**. And maybe **Mahaloth** but I can’t trust myself enough to say whether there’s some subconscious OMGUSing urging me to vote for him. For now, I’ll… **vote Scathach** But don’t be surprised if this vote switches as the Day goes on. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/737 "2011-12-14T17:58:11Z")
> [@fluiddruid](#): > > I’ve read through the thread, but I still haven’t seen an acceptable explanation. Saying you voted septimus because it was your “original vote” doesn’t address his claim. So, to be explicit: why didn’t you address his claim? What were you thinking in voting for a claimed Doctor? I did address his claim and I’ve already explained my vote; your lack of acceptance does not equal a lack of an explanation on my part > [@fluiddruid](#): > > FWIW I find your “me too” vote on Mahaloth weak. Can you at least explain why it’s resonant with you? Do you wholly agree with what he said? Do you have anything to add? did. enough for a vote at this time, yes. not at this time. > [@fluiddruid](#): > > Specifically, I object to Astral’s death being a good reason for Svejk being scum. I don’t think it’s evidence the other way either – it’s just neutral to me. Killing your critics is a somewhat risky and clunky move. Certainly it has been done – and it’s a natural impulse to try – but at the same time it also makes sense to kill your critic’s critics. I’d consider it a null tell with the information we have at this point. agree > [@fluiddruid](#): > > However, I really object to the language you use towards me. If it’s not intentional smearing then I request that you stop. Calling my posts “harping” is only going to provoke me. That’s why I keep saying that you’re smearing – you’re using words that seem designed to provoke response or to cast me in an unfriendly light without using substance or fact. this is officially the most overly-sensitive mafia game I’ve played. > [@fluiddruid](#): > > In any case, my vote still lies with **fubbleskag** and I’m content with that. as am I. ---
**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:** [December 14, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/738 "2011-12-14T18:03:26Z")
> [@choie](#): > > **Mahaloth** … well, I’m tempted to mistrust him since he’s been riding me for a while (and not in the good way ;D) and I’m not seeing a rationale other than play style. I actually think I’ve been doing a much better job of scumhunting since my last game, believe it or not, so I’m feeling pretty good about my participation as a useful Townie this time around. If **askthepizzaguy** were here I’d love to know his thoughts on my more confident play. 🙂 But anyway, that’s just me. Putting his vote for me aside, he’s been curiously defensive and oversensitive to everything **fubbleskag** says, and I can’t quite figure out if it’s genuine anger or if he and **fubbles** are scum involved in some kinda performance art. Together their behavior is really weird and, I daresay, suspicious. Or maybe they’re just kinda reactionary / strange players. I don’t think I’m reactionary or strange. I just think fubble made outrageous and false claims about me, with no citation, and it bothered me. It wasn’t “in game” claims, either, it was personal. And unprovoked. How have you down better as a scum hunter in this game? ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/739 "2011-12-14T18:06:00Z")
> [@GuiriEnEspana](#): > > I can’t think of any reason why you’d suggest Special Ed is the vig. That’s not what I’m suggesting. As the whole of my post indicates, I think we have an SK, not a Vig; if I’m wrong and we have a Vig, I theorize that we seem to have one who is either uncooperative or unreceptive to town suggestions (hence the lack of attempt to confirm the doc claim). I only mentioned **special ed** as an example because, frankly, he’s one of the posters that I think would be most likely to completely ignore suggestions and target his own kills. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526/740 "2011-12-14T18:09:16Z")
> [@choie](#): > > Anyway, I’m trying to wrap my mind around the **Svejk** case. I have to say I recognize his disheartenment and subsequent lowered posting activity – it’s pretty much exactly the pattern that I fell into during my first game. I started getting defensive and a tad depressed that my words were being used against me. But that _is_ the whole point of the game, y’know? People over-analyze everthing, that’s part of the masochistic/sadistic fun of Mafia. > > So for me a newbie’s activity level and reluctance to post since the votes turned against him are kind of a null tell, because I understand how oddly personal it feels when a barrage of votes lands on you when you’re not used to it. > > What I’d say to **Svejk** is that if you are town, you _need_ to participate and develop a mental shield that lets you take the naysayers in stride. Don’t be so quick to defend yourself rather than looking for genuine scum–in my admittedly limited experience, this can work against you more than you realize. And if you _do_ focus on scumhunting rather than your own defense, this way, even if you go down, you’ll have helped your team thanks to your participation, because a dead confirmed Townie’s words generally hold a tad more weight than anyone else’s other than a _live_ confirmed Townie. > > Of course, OTOH, if you’re scum, do whatever you want. We’ll hopefully suss you out in the end. 🙂 > [@choie](#): > > Of all the other players, I’m still baffled by **fubbleskag** ’s weird choices at the end of the last Day. There were a bunch of posts that were just copy/paste and smilies. He remains suspicious of **Mahaloth** but I can’t see any real arguments as to why. previously explained (was so tempted to respond here only with a smiley of some kind lol) > [@choie](#): > > Putting his vote for me aside, he’s been curiously defensive and oversensitive to everything **fubbleskag** says, and I can’t quite figure out if it’s genuine anger or if he and **fubbles** are scum involved in some kinda performance art. that would be something, wouldn’t it? > [@choie](#): > > **fluiddruid** ’s coming across as a bit defensive, which IIRC is relatively status quo for her style in the Mafia games I’ve read. I can only speak for myself, but I know if I’d only written 9 posts in three weeks (now a few more since she was called on the carpet for it) I’d damn well expect to bear the brunt of Town’s irritation and suspicion. That she’s this defensive surprises me and begins to ping me a bit. 🙂 > [@choie](#): > > **GuiriEnEspana** , for reasons unknown, does not strike me as scum, although again his repeatedly asking questions from days ago (and not linking to them, which isn’t very helpful) shows either a terrier-like stubbornness to dig at the truth, or a pretty clever scum ploy to put everyone on the defensive and thereby avoiding the spotlight shining on himself. If he is scum, he’s damn good. Ditto Town, for that matter. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526.md?page=36) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mafia-the-thrill-of-the-chase-newbie-friendly/603526.md?page=38)