# Shakespeare Mafia-- Act I **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 12, 2025, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789 "2025-07-12T15:19:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**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 15, 2025, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/161 "2025-07-15T13:19:40Z")
> [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > for casting the first series of serious votes. Are you kidding? This vote is so bad it makes me think you are Town. I don’t really do policy votes, but this would be one. Why discourage serious voting? And do you have some typical read that scum do the first serious votes? ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/162 "2025-07-15T13:58:21Z")
> [@AngeloftheNorth](#): > > I think Prof is meta-gaming based on > paranoia. Mahaloth’s post about Day One appears to be friendly and intended to help the newbies. It seems to me something that he would do as Town or Scum. > > Biotop questions it, which is a thing he does often, and as you note, Mahaloth shrugs it off, which is also a thing he does often. I tend to agree, and it makes me feel somewhat better about you that you’re not taking the opportunity to cast shade on Biotop. ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/163 "2025-07-15T15:54:48Z")
> I find the Vote All to be an obnoxious habit. One that I find scummy at best, Scummy _at best_? What’s your worst case scenario, real life serial killer?! 🙂 Anyway, I apologize for vanishing yesterday. As an advance notice, that’s going to happen nearly every Monday because I tend to have meetings wall-to-wall on Mondays because god alone knows why. All the discussion on possible game setups is useful just because it gets people talking about _something_, but we should be careful not to draw any kind of conclusions about the setup that is not explicitly stated in the rules. A strict reading of the rules doesn’t even require that there be any Major characters at all (I played a game here once where the rules gave a list of potential power roles and then the game itself turned out to be all vanilla)! @Biotop - I really like your post asking “what are the right questions?” This early in the game, there aren’t a lot, but there are some. I propose this one as a starting point: (1) what types information that is uncertain to the rest of us would be certain to Scum? Has anyone said anything that might suggest that they have more information than your average Townie about such topics? I will re-read the last 24 hours of posts with this question in mind, and report back with observations later this afternoon. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/164 "2025-07-15T16:43:40Z")
> [@AngeloftheNorth](#): > > Right now I’m good with Prof P, Glee, Thing.Fish, PardelLux, Storyteller, and SunUp. > [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > there are 2 people I am always very wary of, because I can never tell if they are Scum or not, and Biotop is one. > > The other, of course, is her royal majesty, the Queen of Scum: > > **vote AngeloftheNorth**. My feeling so far, very preliminary, but sorted alphabetically because it can be gamed, even if nobody knows how yet: AngeloftheNorth SUSPICIOUS BicycleBill UNKNOWN Biotop UNKNOWN DemonTree UNKNOWN Dizzymrslizzy UNKNOWN glee UNKNOWN LH75 SUSPICIOUS Mahaloth SUSPICIOUS Pardel-Lux TOWN Prof.Pepperwinkle trending TOWN storyteller0910 UNKNOWN SunUp UNKNOWN Thing.Fish UNKNOWN This would mean that **AngeloftheNorth** ’s list of people he is good with includes only one Villain at most to confuse Townies. I would exclude **Prof.Pepperwinkle** (for now) and me (definitively), the rest is not clear. So I will **vote AngeloftheNorth** **vote LH75** to see what happens. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/165 "2025-07-15T16:45:38Z")
When we find the game names of the characters I will change the alphabetical order acordingly, but I would not be surprised if **Chronos** had given us game names in the same order as above. ---
**Author:** ![Bicycle\_Bill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bicycle_bill/32/6208_2.png) [@Bicycle\_Bill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bicycle_Bill)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/166 "2025-07-15T16:55:32Z")
If you want to change to my character name, I am HIPPOLYTA. _But all the story of the night told over,_ _And all their minds transfigured so together,_ _More witnesseth than fancy’s images_ _And grows to something of great constancy,_ _But, howsoever, strange and admirable._ _- A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act V, scene 1, lines 24-28_ _ **-“BB”-** _ ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/167 "2025-07-15T17:08:46Z")
I also think this is coming from Town. He is legitimately paranoid about me a lot. Of course, he could be pretending to be paranoid, but it’s a vote that’s going to attract attention so doesn’t make sense as a scum move. ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/168 "2025-07-15T17:11:10Z")
I don’t think that was suspicious on Biotop’s part at all. He’s good as scum, of course, but the question reads normal for him and his response reads as his normal playstyle… like “I had to ask.” ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/169 "2025-07-15T17:14:38Z")
I’m a she. 🙂 Please explain what you find suspicious about my behavior. Also what you find suspicious about LH5 and Mahaloth. ---
**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 15, 2025, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/170 "2025-07-15T17:17:14Z")
Mahaloth 1 (Prof.Pepperwinkle 2-9, AngeloftheNorth 146) Biotop 1 (AngeloftheNorth 146) DemonTree 1 (AngeloftheNorth 146) LH75 2 (AngeloftheNorth 146, Pardel-Lux 164) Bicycle\_Bill 1 (AngeloftheNorth 146) DizzyMrsLizzy 1 (AngeloftheNorth 146) AngeloftheNorth 2 (Prof.Pepperwinkle 149, Pardel-Lux 164) ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/171 "2025-07-15T17:18:19Z")
**Unvote Biotop** Rereading that exchange and commenting on it in the absence of much other evidence right now makes me think Biotop is more likely Town. ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/172 "2025-07-15T17:18:58Z")
Sorry, @Chronos, didn’t mean to mess up your nice fresh vote count! ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/173 "2025-07-15T17:30:56Z")
**Unvote Bicycle\_Bill** because of his name claim. It’s possible he’s doing this as scum but it reads more as something a Town newbie would do. For the new players: it’s better not to make role or name claims this early in the game. Since Chronos has spelled out for us that minor characters are Vanilla and major characters have roles, doing so narrows the pool of potential powers for scum. If there are 3 Villains, they know who each other are, and then out of the remaining 10 players, they now know BB and Glee have no role, assuming BB and Glee are being truthful. That means toNight they will shoot amongst the 8 of us who have not role- or name-claimed. I am not blaming you guys, just pointing out that there’s a good reason for everyone else to keep quiet about this. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/174 "2025-07-15T17:45:14Z")
Sorry, should have been clear from your avatar and your title of _Queen_ of Scum as per **Prof.Pepperwinkle** that you are a she! You are suspicious because you write so much, explain things in a way that makes you look Town-ish and were the first to claim being not Scum. **LH75** is suspicious because they team up with you in post 159. This is circular reasoning, I know. **LH75** suspicion leans on yours. **Mahaloth** is suspicious because he asked for an explanation (post 80), got it, and did not comment on it. Weak suspicion. ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/175 "2025-07-15T18:32:41Z")
No worries (on the pronoun). Thank you for explaining your votes. I find your explanations believable. ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/176 "2025-07-15T18:37:28Z")
@Pardel-Lux, please note I am _not_ the first person to claim Town. Glee is, at the bottom of his (if my pronoun use is wrong please correct me) long post toward the very beginning of the day. ---
**Author:** ![AngeloftheNorth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelofthenorth/32/19559_2.png) [@AngeloftheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngeloftheNorth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/177 "2025-07-15T19:09:09Z")
@Biotop, what information did you hope to gain by asking me about why I was curious about a vig? ---
**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 15, 2025, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/178 "2025-07-15T20:22:05Z")
> [@AngeloftheNorth](#): > > - > > [Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/biotop), what information did you hope to gain by asking me about why I was curious about a vig? It does not really help Town to know whwther we have a vig or not in Day 1. Most of the discussion on mechanics was in the context of explaining to new and less experienced players some of the basics about roles. That is understandable. However your question was an anomaly in that it was not in response to a newer player or as a role of teacher or as asking something that needs to be kniwn on Day 1. It wasn’t the real question. That said, I am OK with your answer. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/179 "2025-07-15T20:40:28Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > (I played a game here once where the rules gave a list of potential power roles and then the game itself turned out to be all vanilla)! I remember another game where town had no power roles, but scum were given a Godfather just to make them paranoid! ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2025, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789/180 "2025-07-15T20:43:45Z")
And please, for the love of God, nobody start calling each other by character names. That just makes it way too confusing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shakespeare-mafia-act-i/1020789.md?page=10)