The Syndicate

So far, every Mafia game ever played on The Syndicate has had one core feature -- forum text as the primary content. This time we're going to finally change that. We'll give our fingers a break and instead use our mouths to play the game of Mafia. This game will be played in spoken recordings. Vocaroo is a simple recording service which makes this process quite simple. I promise I am in no way affiliated with that website and have no intention to advertise.

Important note: Vocaroo is simply the best recording option I am aware of; it is not required for players to record their posts this specific way. If you are aware of an alternative and would like to use that instead, please let me know so I can check it out. If it works in a forum post it'll probably be fine with me. We played a couple of these games back on RYM and some people preferred to use YouTube, for example.

So how will this work?

~ Every single post in this game will feature a recording of some kind. The vast majority of game content will be recorded, and it will be against the rules to use a lot of text.

~ Text will still exist in the game thread in a limited capacity. Since it's difficult to review a game thread or post histories filled with recording links, a small amount of text will be allowed to describe the contents of a recording. That text can accompany the link or be the link. I will establish an official limitation in the game thread; it will probably be about 3-4 text words per recording.

~ Voting will be vocalized within recordings, but there'll still be a poll in the thread to keep things simple.

~ The mafia team will still have BTSC, and they won't be required to use recordings there -- it's not practical. However, they will have less time during night phases to operate with to help maintain a fair balance.

Game details:

~ Game cycles will elapse 72 hours, however they will not be the standard 48/24. They will instead be 60/12: 60 hour day phases (2.5 real-time days) and 12 hour night phases. The purpose of this is to allow players a little more time to work with since it can be more difficult to make recorded posts than text posts within whatever time constraints.

~ The game thread will not be locked during night phases. The mafia team will be allowed to communicate privately during day phases.

~ Standard heist guidelines will apply -- no more than three non-vanilla roles with legal infodumping and roleclaiming.

~ The actual setup will be open, but it'll depend upon how many people participate. I am willing to devise a game for 13, 14, or 15 players. I'll decide where to cap it depending upon the progression of sign-ups.

Participants:
1. Metalmarsh89
2. DrWilgy
3. a2thezebra
4. TheFloyd73
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Request from the host:

If you sign up, it will be a good idea for you to verify that you'll have the technical means necessary to participate. Please verify in this sign-up thread that Vocaroo (or whatever other recording option you prefer) functions properly for you by posting an example of some kind here. I will check you off as being ready to roll after that.

If anyone has questions or concerns about anything related to this game, please let me know.

About the holidays:

If necessary, I'll delay the start of this game until after Christmas. Please let me know how big an issue the holidays are for you when it comes to playing in a Mafia game (particularly one like this) and I will try to accomodate y'all.

The importance of gamesmanship:

Obviously playing the game respectfully is always important. In this game it will be a major point of focus though, because it will put a little more on the shoulders of the Moderator on Duty. I don't expect that person to click on and listen to every single recording posted in the game thread. That means the players will need to ensure they are as respectful as possible -- and it's just jarring to feel like someone was rude to you in spoken word. Just imagine! I don't expect this to be an issue, I just wanted to emphasize the importance of it.

Quick tips for cleaner audio recording (the kids these days call these things "hacks," which is really stupid):

1. The most important thing I can tell you is to lower your input volume. If your mic is too hot, then the quality of your recording is going to suffer. That nasty distortion you hear on playback is called clipping. All you have to do is dial back on the volume of your recording device (for Windows 7, go into the Control Panel / Sound and click the "Recording Tab," double click the mic you are using, and then you can adjust the level). Don't worry if you think the signal is a tad low- people can always turn up their speakers. It's better than clipping.

2. Eliminate as much background noise as possible.

3. I'm not suggesting you get one if all you're doing is playing a mafia game, but if you use your microphone with any frequency, it is worth it to purchase a pop filter. That will reduce the effect of the plosive noises inherent in the repressive and guttural sounds of the English language.

4. Keep a few inches of space (4-7) between your mouth and the microphone- it's not your girlfriend.

5. Keep your mic safe. Don't let Kanye West anywhere near it.