Interrogation Room - alexa

[Tsaiah]

@ Tsaiah, are there any players who you feel have most influenced your approach to Mafia (from any site)?

I have an ongoing list. :3 (I actually said OOH I'M GLAD YOU ASKED THIS out loud xD)

Gonna break these up into multiple posts, hue. To start with:


Stanari - Just. In all kinds of ways. I've known her since my first game of mafia, and between playing with her, watching her play, being in her games, talking with her, and following her to other sites, i don't feel like i can possibly quantify what all i've learned about mafia, myself, and others, directly and indirectly, thru Stan.


Abyssum - Of all the then-new players I've encountered, I think I grabbed their arm the hardest, in wanting them to keep playing (and to play with meeee xD). We have different but overlapping approaches, and from them I've learned soooo much about how to get into people's heads effectively, how to better present thoughts, how to stand your ground, reassesing vs second guessing, gosh, just so many things. Also find them to be a shining beacon of good humor as a part of even more serious play.


Polygone - Absolutely my introduction to more unorthodox playstyles, from poly I learned to understand, respect, and treasure different approaches to the game. Also that the harmless sounding crazy fun guy in a game can, in actuality, be a silver-tongued, word-spinning devil leading everyone off a cliff. xD His love of fun as a vital component of a game has been huuugely influential, helping keep me grounded if i edge toward -too- seriousness, as well as his treatment of fellow players, and defense of thread health.

[Infected_alien8_]

@tsaiah if you had to give someone one piece of advice for life, what would it be?

[Infected_alien8_]

[mention]Tsaiah[/mention] *

[JaggedJimmyJay]

[mention]Infected_alien8_[/mention], were there seven other infected aliens before you?

[Infected_alien8_]

@Infected_alien8_, were there seven other infected aliens before you?

No lol, 8 was always my 'lucky number' as a kid. I always used to get clutch 8's in board games and stuff, and I also got my dog (who I love so much) on my 8th Birthday. So 8 has always been my favourite number!

[Tangrowth]

Hey you two!

I'm really so glad to have you both here.

How about some questions from me?

For both of you:
- Do you enjoy tabletop and other board/strategy/card games other than mafia? If so, what are some of your favorites?
- What is your favorite activity and/or location if you want to relax?
- If you could travel anywhere right now with no concern for time or money, where would it be? Why?
- Favorite book? TV show? Movie? Video game? In addition, do you have any esoteric recommendations for lovers of any of these to check out?
- What music do you listen to? Could be genres, artists, songs, whatever. I'll gladly take anything music.

For [mention]Infected_alien8_[/mention] only:
- Jay already asked you about what you learned about yourself in Champs this year, but nonetheless I wanted to reflect in another way on our games together. What were some of your most treasured moments from playing your qualifier (Game 9) and wildcard (WC Game 1) Champs games this year and why? In addition, which player(s) from either game would you most like to play with again and why?
- What inspired and/or influenced you to choose Psychology as your focus of study at university?
- Re: what dunya asked you earlier about people being good or evil, care to elaborate on why you believe you tend to gravitate towards a pessimistic view of the human race in general? (This is a fascinating discussion for me, and I appreciate that you two landed on different sides here.)

For [mention]Tsaiah[/mention] only:
- What were some of your most treasured moments spectating Champs this year and why? (this could be Game 9 and WC Game 1, because they were obviously the best, but also other games as well)
- If you could learn any 3 languages instantaneously, which would they be and why?
- If money were no concern and you could start writing as a fiction writer, what would you choose to work on first and why? Would it be something new or already in the works?
- Re: what dunya asked you earlier about people being good or evil, care to elaborate on why you believe strongly here that the majority of people are good? (This is a fascinating discussion for me, and I appreciate that you two landed on different sides here.)

[Infected_alien8_]

- Do you enjoy tabletop and other board/strategy/card games other than mafia? If so, what are some of your favorites?

I've never played any other board/strategy/card games other than Mafia

- What is your favorite activity and/or location if you want to relax?

Hm, not sure, I don't really do anything to 'relax' but if I'm getting really worked up and panicky about something, lying on my back on my bed usually helps me calm down.

- If you could travel anywhere right now with no concern for time or money, where would it be? Why?

The moon or something lol. Or if it's possible, another planet. Just because I'd love to experience a whole new world, or see Earth from the position of the moon. I think it'd be beautiful and wonderful to experience something like that.

- Favorite book? TV show? Movie? Video game? In addition, do you have any esoteric recommendations for lovers of any of these to check out?

I'm not really a reader but I read a book called World War Z as a kid and I loved that, so I'll say that's my favourite book (but it's nothing like the movie, the only similarity is that the world is ending due to zombies but the zombies aren't even the same type of zombie, and none of the characters in the movie are in the book I don't think? It's very weird, and I found the movie disappointing after reading the book first)

My favourite TV show... hmmmm. If you asked me this two years ago I'd have said The Walking Dead, because I used to be absolutely in love with that show. I haven't yet seen the latest season (actually thinking of starting to watch it again today) but the season before that I found quite underwhelming. Season 4 I think it was, is my favourite. I also love Friends.

My favourite movie is probably Slumdog Millionaire. I haven't seen it in years but it was my favourite when I saw it.

My favourite video game of all time is Fallout: New Vegas. It's been my favourite game ever since I first played it when I was about 13, and ever since I keep going back to it every now and then and I love it so much.

I don't have any recommendations nope. My friend told me that I should play S.T.A.L.K.E.R since I like Fallout NV but I bought it but haven't played it yet so not sure what to say about that, but I guess I'll pass on my friend's words lol

- Jay already asked you about what you learned about yourself in Champs this year, but nonetheless I wanted to reflect in another way on our games together. What were some of your most treasured moments from playing your qualifier (Game 9) and wildcard (WC Game 1) Champs games this year and why? In addition, which player(s) from either game would you most like to play with again and why?

Umm, I'm not sure I have any specific moments that I treasure really, it's just the experiences as a whole that I found amazing. Although in the wildcard games, you being drunk was a highlight lol, because it made me laugh lots.

I'd like to play with everyone again haha. I'd love some kind of reunion games or something. If I had to choose specific people I'd like to play with again that stand out, if we hadn't already played again I'd have said you, but that's already happened lol, but also dich from wildcards. I thought dich was hilarious and loved interacting with him. And I thought you were really fun and nice to play with and kept things really interesting.

- What inspired and/or influenced you to choose Psychology as your focus of study at university?

Well I've always been interested in other people, personalities, motivations, feelings, struggles etc. So I was kind of drawn to Psychology as a way of learning more about how people work. But I actually decided to pursue acting instead at first, since that was my dream, and psychology was kind of a 'backup plan' as something I was also interested in. I enjoyed acting a lot and it was a way for me to take on another human being in my own mind and play them, and that was something I loved always, whether on the playground pretending to be different characters in different stories, or on a stage performing. So I went to drama school for a year, but after that I decided that an acting career wasn't for me, so I researched a bit into Psychology to see if I wanted to go to that instead and learnt a bit about mental illness and stuff, which really interested me and kind of ignited my desire to learn more, and I imagined myself being a clinical psychologist or something and it really excited me.

I've always sort of naturally found myself in situations where I'd help someone by listening to their problems and helping them wrap their mind round stuff, like my Mum when I was a kid, and then later my friends. So it kind of made sense that maybe people talk to me because I'm good, or at least, not *bad*, at stuff like that, and since clinical psychology is interesting, maybe that's the dream job for me. When I told other people about it they also thought it fit me well, and I've always been a kind of natural analyzer of other people, kind of like I have an inborn psychologist's brain or something lol, a curiosity about other people and my own mind. And I found myself getting really excited about the idea of being a clinical psychologist so I went for it. And here I am!

- Re: what dunya asked you earlier about people being good or evil, care to elaborate on why you believe you tend to gravitate towards a pessimistic view of the human race in general? (This is a fascinating discussion for me, and I appreciate that you two landed on different sides here.)

Well, I guess the main reason comes from the fact that I know people are out there suffering really badly somewhere, some people are born into poverty and struggling just to get food or water, some people are dying of deadly diseases that aren't yet cured. And I see all that, and then I also see people not doing anything about it, living their own lives, buying expensive clothes or tickets to concerts or whatever, when really that money could be going to people who need it more, charities, etc. It's like people are capable of choosing to ignore others, because they're far away, and focus on themselves. And I'm not trying to sit on a high horse here, I do this, I buy video games and stuff, knowing full well there are charities or poor people who don't have the quality of life I have. And instead of either giving some money to help, or going out and volunteering to do something, to help in another country, or to help in a shelter or something, I just sit and play video games. Not everyone is like this of course. But a lot seem to be, and I am. So it's like, a sort of selfishness I guess?

And then there's the fact that the media seems to focus on showing us all the bad stuff out there than the good, so I see a lot of bad things happen, caused by other people. Killings, abuse, greed, corruption. And after seeing all that, and seeing the unbalanced nature of the world and how many people don't really seem to care, it's kind of difficult for me to think of everyone as great people.

And I get it, I get why sometimes people focus on themselves and their families and those they care about. I don't think it's completely selfishness that drives it all. I think a lot of it is 'I love these people so I'm focusing on making sure they're having a good time'. I think that's probably the case for a lot of people, rather than "I don't care about others". EDITED IN TO CLARIFY: And in those circumstances, when people focus on themselves and friends/family because they love them and want the best for them, I think that's wonderful and admirable. But not everyone seems to have that motivation. Like for me, I spend my money and time playing video games because it makes me happy. I'd probably find happiness without them but I still choose to favour those things instead of helping others who need my money or time more than I do. [EDIT OVER]

And it seems even when people get to a point where they have so much more than everyone else, they try to keep it that way. I've never heard of someone winning the lottery and then splitting it to different charities after they've made sure they're comfortable or something for example. Maybe it's happened, I don't know. And even if it hasn't, it could be that they're just focused on their loved ones having the best quality of life they can, which again I completely understand and admire. But I don't think that's the case for everyone, it's not the case for me anyway, I just like video games so I spend my money and time on it, rather than helping someone who needs help. It's just purely about me. And I don't think I'm alone in that, maybe I am but I don't think I am.

I do believe there are good people in the world, I know some people who I have nothing but absolute love for, and nobody's perfect and we all may have a biased perception of things, not think about other perspectives sometimes etc. But still by looking at the world, and the inequality of it all, and then seeing all these terrible things happen in the media and stuff, it's kind of hard for me to say 'human beings are awesome', you know?

And then just day to day I tend to kind of be biased in imagining the worst of strangers. I'm always suspicious of strangers, suspicious of their motives or what they could do. Not that I'm convinced all strangers are harmful or anything, but the suspicion is always there. So there's that too.

Hopefully that made sense and didn't sound like I was lecturing people or anything, I'm not saying 'people are selfish and I don't like us' or anything, I get it, I have a focus on my own life and stuff around me because that's what's in my field of view, that's what my attention is on, and it's easy to forget about others far away, easy to purposefully forget too so that I can do what will make me happy. I just don't think it makes me a 'good person'. Sure I make sure to do some good, I donate to charities sometimes, I try to be kind and understanding and give people the benefit of the doubt as much as I can. But I don't think that makes me 'good' overall, and I don't think I'm alone in being that way, from what I've seen. So yeah.

I don't want to judge other people when I don't know them and I'm not inside their heads, so this opinion isn't like, set in stone, I'm willing to be proven wrong, and I don't have this like solid opinion that 'people are this way', because I don't know that. It's just, the stuff I see makes me lean towards those conclusions so far. So that's kind of my stance on it.

EDIT: And it's not that I think I/others have to be completely selfless to be a good person or a good human race or anything either, I think we all need to look after ourselves as well. It's just, it feels a bit excessive sometimes, when I see what some people have, the sheer amount of money or quality of life, yet still choose to spend time/money on themselves to further enhance their lives, purely for personal gain, rather than helping others, like myself, I do that. And that's the point I'm trying to make I think.

EDIT AGAIN (and again): And I don't dislike those people or myself for doing that, I don't feel dislike towards them/it

It's just like, a 'fact' of life, human beings are kind of like that sometimes, I guess? Just the way I am, to focus on my own life, just naturally that way. Maybe I'm a bad person for not disliking myself for it, or not disliking others for it, or seeing it as 'just the way it is' rather than fixing it for myself, I don't know.

I don't think being that way makes me or anyone else 'bad' or evil or anything, just makes it hard for me to think that people in general, like our human race, are great and wonderful and stuff

Hopefully this makes sense, I keep thinking 'actually I think my point came across like 'this' by accident and making a new post to clarify it lol

[Infected_alien8_]

And to clarify, it's not like I think only people who are completely selfless are good or anything

It's just some people, it feels like a lot, kind of get comfortable and happy but then carry on getting even more, only for themselves

Some people focus on their family/friends and giving them the best life they can have and I think that's fair enough, that's not something I think makes them bad or anything, I think that's wonderful

But some people, like me, seem to just kind of do stuff for themselves when they could be doing stuff for others but choose not to

So yeah

[Infected_alien8_]

And doing something for oneself I don't think is bad as such, like if we didn't look after ourselves we'd be unhappy too

It's just, sometimes I think it's a bit excessive if that makes sense

Like it's a bit too unbalanced, some people have nothing, some have almost everything but they'd rather keep getting more than help those who have nothing, purely for themselves

[Infected_alien8_]

And I don't dislike those people, I don't feel dislike towards them

It's just like, a 'fact' of life, human beings are kind of like that sometimes, I guess? Just the way I am, to focus on my own life, just naturally that way

I don't thnk it makes me or anyone else 'bad' or evil or anything, just makes it hard for me to think that people in general are great

Hopefully this makes sense, I keep thinking 'actually I think my point came across like 'this' by accident and making a new post to clarify it lol

[Infected_alien8_]

Edited my original post to kind of account for the additional posts I made, sorry for the mess lol

[JaggedJimmyJay]

We're back gang. A swarm of newcomers has arrived in our neighborhood, and it's time we get a better idea of who these folks are. Hurl your questions with reckless abandon. First on the hot seat:

FAYT

[mention]Fayt[/mention]

[juliets]

[mention]Fayt[/mention] welcome to the syndicate!

- what site is or was your homesite?
- what does your name mean? (every time I see it I think "Fayetteville" for some reason)

[Fayt]

@Fayt welcome to the syndicate!

- what site is or was your homesite?
- what does your name mean? (every time I see it I think "Fayetteville" for some reason)

Hi!

My homesite is from Narutoforum. DDL was looking for a sub and I volunteered.

My name is from Star Ocean. The character name is Fayt, I'm not a fan of him but I liked his name.

[Sloonei]

What hobbies are you currently most passionate about?

[Epignosis]

Are you Fiona Gallagher?

[Fayt]

What hobbies are you currently most passionate about?

Gaming with long time online friends, programming in my free time, binging tv shows. Otherwise not much hobbies. Hoping to get more into mafia.

Are you Fiona Gallagher?

Yep, I just finished Shameless after starting it a month ago.

[nutella]

What are your favorite games and tv shows (besides shameless) lately or of all time?

[juliets]

Also [mention]Fayt[/mention] are you from the USA or another country? If US, what part (if you don't mind revealing)?

[Fayt]

What are your favorite games and tv shows (besides shameless) lately or of all time?

Witcher 3, Last of Us, Persona 5, and Fire Emblem 3 houses are my current favorites. Currently playing LoL, WoW, and OW

Favorite Tv shows the office, brooklyn 99, parks and rec. I also liked Altered Carbon and I try to look for any shows that people recommend me.

Also [mention]Fayt[/mention] are you from the USA or another country? If US, what part (if you don't mind revealing)?

Yes, I live in southern california about an hour or so from LA

[Sloonei]

Hitchcock or Scully?

[Fayt]

Hitchcock or Scully?

Scully

[dunya]

are you a cat or dog person?

there is a wrong answer.

(just kidding)

[Fayt]

are you a cat or dog person?

there is a wrong answer.

(just kidding)

dog person for sure

I like cats too so I would like to own both in the future

[dunya]

ouch, fayt, you broke my heart. just kidding, i love dogs too. but cats are superior.

what's your fav song currently that you can loop 20 times in a row?

[Fayt]

Hmmm thats a hard one. I would say currently Different Songs by Set it Off or Wasted Nights by ONE OK ROCK

[dunya]

i don't know either of those, will check em out!

do you mind me asking if you are a student or graduate?

[Fayt]

i don't know either of those, will check em out!

do you mind me asking if you are a student or graduate?

Graduate, I finished school about two or three years ago. I'm a full time programmer now.

[Sloonei]

are you a cat or dog person?

there is a wrong answer.

(just kidding)

dog person for sure

I like cats too so I would like to own both in the future

This is the correct answer. Don’t let dunya tell you otherwise.

[Sloonei]

What constitutes a sandwich?

What’s the best sandwich you’ve ever had or can think of?

What’s your favorite place you’ve ever been to?

Favorite movie?

Favorite color?

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Fayt, would you like to punch me in the face?

[Fayt]

What constitutes a sandwich?

What’s the best sandwich you’ve ever had or can think of?

What’s your favorite place you’ve ever been to?

Favorite movie?

Favorite color?

After looking at the chart, structural purists and ingredient rebel. Also a poptart is a ravioli.

Best sandwich... Hmmm... I once had a sandwich with wheat bread, beef, hot links, melted American and swiss, crispy fries, coleslaw, spicy mayo, and mustard. It was really tall and messy but delicious.

Favorite place would be like a Dave and Busters lol. I like to play games and win tickets.

Favorite movie memento. Used to major in film and I liked to edit. Memento was unique in that sense.

Color, blue. I feel like blue go with everything.

Fayt, would you like to punch me in the face?

haha no, you seem like a very nice guy!

[juliets]

I love that a pop tart is a ravioli!!

Also, great taste in movies [mention]Fayt[/mention], memento was sooo good.

Do you have a favorite book or poem or short story?

Where did you go to school?

[Sloonei]

Also a poptart is a ravioli.

[mention]Quin[/mention] thoughts?

[Sloonei]

Memento’s great and I haven’t seen it in years. I’m gonna have to revisit that soon.

[Fayt]

I love that a pop tart is a ravioli!!

Also, great taste in movies @Fayt, memento was sooo good.

Do you have a favorite book or poem or short story?

Where did you go to school?

ooh yeah Memento is one of my favorite films when I was young.

I don't really have a favorite book. The only one I read recently is the lies of locke lamora, that was recommended to me. I still need to start on the wheel of time.

I went to UCI, university of irvine.

[juliets]

I love that a pop tart is a ravioli!!

Also, great taste in movies Fayt, memento was sooo good.

Do you have a favorite book or poem or short story?

Where did you go to school?

ooh yeah Memento is one of my favorite films when I was young.

I don't really have a favorite book. The only one I read recently is the lies of locke lamora, that was recommended to me. I still need to start on the wheel of time.

I went to UCI, university of irvine.

I had not heard of the lies of Locke Lamora but I just looked it up and it got rave reviews. I was also reading a debate today on discord about WOT being better than LOTR - WOT was winning!

[Fayt]

I love that a pop tart is a ravioli!!

Also, great taste in movies Fayt, memento was sooo good.

Do you have a favorite book or poem or short story?

Where did you go to school?

ooh yeah Memento is one of my favorite films when I was young.

I don't really have a favorite book. The only one I read recently is the lies of locke lamora, that was recommended to me. I still need to start on the wheel of time.

I went to UCI, university of irvine.

I had not heard of the lies of Locke Lamora but I just looked it up and it got rave reviews. I was also reading a debate today on discord about WOT being better than LOTR - WOW was winning!

I like con artist stories but I'm bad with reading so that was something that was recommended to me. I enjoy it because I like the characters too.

I'm debating on starting WOT or waiting for the tv series actually haha. I might read it if the TV show hooks me.

[nutella]

Stormlight is better :P

I have heard of Lies of Locke Lamora though, it's on my list

[dunya]

are you a cat or dog person?

there is a wrong answer.

(just kidding)

dog person for sure

I like cats too so I would like to own both in the future

This is the correct answer. Don’t let dunya tell you otherwise.

sloonei don't know what's best for him imo

[dunya]

[mention]Fayt[/mention] do you know a band called The National?

[Fayt]

@Fayt do you know a band called The National?

Nope, do you have any recommendations for songs?

[nutella]

all of them tbh!!!

[JaggedJimmyJay]

I'll give it until tomorrow evening whenever I am able to and we can move on to the next interrogation. Normally these have lasted a week in the past, but I think it's best to do them in a more rapid-fire sequence right now.

Get your final questions in for Fayt!

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Also I will go ahead and make myself the third piece of the obligatory The National obsessee quartet around here. It's all super.

[Sloonei]

I'll complete the quartet. Boxer is the album I'd start with, but you can really do no wrong.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Thanks for taking your turn, Fayt! It's so great to have you here. We'll move on now to the next newcomer on the hotseat:

NANOOKTHEGREATANDFEARSOME

[mention]NANOOKTHEGREATANDFEARSOME[/mention]

Get your questions in gang.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

What glorious conquests did you lead to be called "the Great" like those other titans of history?

[NANOOKTHEGREATANDFEARSOME]

What glorious conquests did you lead to be called "the Great" like those other titans of history?

Like all the great leaders through history, I gave myself the title first and I’ll worry about the details later.

[NANOOKTHEGREATANDFEARSOME]

Also I’m only taking one question at a time, if you try to ask me 8 in the same post I will answer selectively.