The Syndicate

Rough mafia chat translation:

LC: I kinda want to claim before Tony.
JJJ: It comes with great risk. We have to be right that it’s my role.
LC: Yeah. I want to.
JJJ: Eh. It sounds fun. Just not sure of the odds.
LC: You know, I really want to.
JJJ: I mean, fuck it?
LC: Fuck it, right?
JJJ: Pretty much just fuck it?
LC: I’m thinking fuck it
JJJ: Fuck it.
LC: Fuck it.
JJJ: FUCK it.
LC: FUCK IT!
JJJ: FUCK IT!

Gang, I understand if things are frustrating. Let’s please try to treat each other decently though. Remember that we still have a moderator on duty in juliets.

Tony was a huge reason why we found ourselves in a position to gambit in the first place. He blew up everything we had tried to design with POE. This group was ours to eliminate:

Tony himself
Mac
Jiwon
nutella

So, Tony sends nutella’s role to Mac. Mac neighbors with Jiwon.

ALL FOUR OF THEM could clear each other. Tony deserves a ton of credit for that. It definitely ruined the game state I was working toward.

Thanks for the game [mention]NANOOKTHEGREATANDFEARSOME[/mention]. It's a jarring return to the kind of mechanical game construction I haven't seen as much since my time on RYM and a few games on HCR. I knew Tony was a major threat here because of his background. Us no-claim-accustomed Cindy Kates are in a tough place adapting to this kind of game, and I'm glad you gave us something to chip off the rust Nanook.

I guess this makes DS and I 2-0 as teammates.

This game is also a nice study in balancing mechanisms that many Cindy Kates aren't accustomed to. Given the style of games that have most-often been played here, 8 vs. 3 is never fair. With that in mind, I understand Epignosis's doubts about that, for instance.

But I think the balance here was quite reasonable. In a game of this build, the ratios must inherently tighten because mechanical clearances abound. This is similar to what the folks on HCR know best -- their ratios tend toward this tighter formation as well.

I'm also super pleased with the way our first two Racket games have gone.

Hall of Fame updated.

I totally get it, Epi. It may not be easy to see for everyone especially from different game cultures, but this is different. There is a clash of philosophy at the core of how one may interpret mechanical data. We know how much bullshitting we have seen here over the years with mechanics, and how they can be used to obfuscate reality. So when they’re closer to an objective reflection of the game, it isn’t obvious unless you have been there before.

Games with very tight alignment ratios must necessarily be heavily mechanical in design, or they cannot be balanced. 8 vs. 3 only works if some information really is 100% solid. That’s just the lesson going forward. Epi isn’t alone here either — LC and I could have easily failed in designing this gambit. Hell, maybe we DID fail, and that can be attributed to our relative inexperience too.

Another interesting bit from this game:

LC and I had no BTSC on Day 2 or Night 2. We had to separately submit N2 kills, and if they didn't match Nanook randomized.

I sent a kill on Tony. I figured he was the rolecop thing and wanted it gone. I also wanted to try to egg nutella into thinking Epi and I are the team and maybe snag a quickhammer on Epi.

LC sent a kill on nutella, which is what ended up happening. Obviously it worked out. I wonder how the game changes if that randomizes differently.

SHO DID