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Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental] [signups-closed]

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Phoenixsong

beep beep coming through
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NOTE: Just wanted to say ahead of time that I'd really appreciate it if you'd join this game, even if you're unfamiliar with/meh about the flavor! I think it will work best with a fairly large number of players, and I'd love having a decent-sized group of guinea pigs to help me test drive the mechanic! If it works out I can always run an encore with different flavor* later! Thanks in advance! Exclamation points!!!

*I could've done something else for this game, sure, but there are just enough ToS fans here that someone could've shoehorned a game in before me, and I'm sorry, Dave, but I can't let you do that.


Re: first three words of thread title: If you didn't see this coming then you are either new here or an idiot.

Re: fourth word of thread title: This part you probably didn't see coming, though!


Welcome to Evolution Mafia! This is an experimental Mafia game mechanic I thought of the other day and would really like to try out—hopefully it should be really quirky, encourage a bit more participation from the players and in general be a lot of fun, so bear with me while I go over the basics.


how do I shot evolution mafia

All players who join a game of Evolution Mafia begin play as vanilla members of their respective factions. No mafia dons, no inspectors, no aliens, no nothing—just a bunch of powerless people who can't do anything but sit around and talk (the mafia faction as a whole still has a kill action and can converse, of course, but no terrorists or silencers or anything like that).

However! Save for the poor sap who gets mafia'd on the first night, most of you won't stay vanillicious for very long! Rather than receiving a generic vanilla PM stating their faction and nothing more, players will receive a PM with a role progression. This progression will outline a ladder that they can climb, starting with vanilla-whatever but “evolving” into new roles with actual actions and abilities as the game goes on. The precise number of evolutions may vary between roles, but a basic progression looks like this: vanilla player > weak power role > standard power role > advanced power role. So there are plenty of power roles in the game—you just have to earn the right to use them!

To reach a new evolution and therefore a new role, you need to meet certain milestones and “level up”. For the most part, these milestones are contributory post milestones. Again, this may vary slightly from role to role, but generally speaking, the more helpful posts you make throughout the game, the better your role will become. Posts are considered contributory/helpful at my discretion, but I will be fairly lenient with this. I'm not expecting everyone to be a Butterchuru or a Jack_the_PumpkinKing or one of the other notable/experienced players, nor am I expecting every other post to be a wall of text, but I am expecting occasional thought and discussion of some sort. As long as it's apparent that you are actually trying to play the game, even if you're still confused or are barking up the wrong tree entirely, I will give you credit toward your next evolution. Irrelevant, spammy or chatty posts, on the other hand, or repeated use of the "sorry, I just don't have anything to say" or "I'm just posting so you won't lynch me" excuses, can cost you points (and if it gets really bad, remember that I am a mod and will happily infract you for crapping up my game thread). The milestones you need to hit will be explained to you in your role PM.

At the beginning of each night phase after the first, I will PM any players who have reached a milestone and tell them that they are allowed to progress to the next level. Simply respond to my PM confirming that you'd like to evolve (if your evolution has a night action you can also use it in the same PM to save time). Evolution is voluntary, and you don't even have to evolve at all if you don't want to. If you decide you want to evolve later, PM me at any time and I'll evolve you at the start of the next night. If you earn enough points to progress to an even later evolution, you are also allowed to skip directly to that one (e.g., if you are vanilla and post enough to evolve to either weak OR standard power role, you can choose standard without evolving to weak first). You can only evolve once per night, and evolution is permanent—if you evolve from vanilla to weak then you can never go back to vanilla. Think carefully about if and when you want to evolve! Most people will want to get to the highest and therefore best role possible, and in general I'd encourage that, but I can think of a few creative uses for "detrimental" roles, too. ;)

This game uses "pseudo-secret" roles. I'll give you a list of the standard roles that are included (doctor, inspector, alien, etc.) so you have a general idea of the setup, but will not give you any information about how many evolutions are in any given role progression or what those evolutions may be—make no assumptions about what roles are in the game, because someone may be able to evolve into a role that does something you wouldn't expect! You'll receive details about your specific progression when I give you your role PM. Some roles may also have an additional "god-tier" evolution; you will be told if you have one, and you will be told what you have to do to reach it, but you will not be told what it is until you actually achieve it. God-tier evolutions will be pretty difficult to obtain but are well worth attempting to earn!

I would like to stress again that this game is experimental! I have no clue whether or not this mechanic is actually a good idea, awesome as it sounds to me on paper. It also uses several roles that have never been seen on TCoD before iirc (e.g. poisoner) and several that I made up entirely (e.g. alien deactivator). I have done my best to balance everything, but if it all bombs horribly anyway then I am very sorry! and totally welcome any feedback you might have to make it better!


Yes, there will be spoilers (there are even a few in the barebones role list below)—I still want more people to play the ToS games and don't want to ruin them for you so I won't be too heavy-handed wherever possible, but by this point I'm pretty sure the statute of limitations has run out on the first game, at least. So, uh, maybe just skim the deathflavor/role PM flavor if you're that concerned, but play anyway because Evolution Mafia is going to be funtiems!


Kratos's House Rules in Brief


  • No discussion outside of the day thread unless your role permits it.
  • Roleclaiming/fakeclaiming is fine; quoting/screenshotting/otherwise posting infallible proof of communication from the GM is not fine.
  • Players who do not show me some signs of life in 192 hours, a.k.a. two game days and two game nights, will be modkilled. You can PM me to tell me you're still paying attention if you really don't want to post or use an action, but if your playstyle involves lurking then this is probably the worst game you could sign up for anyway. You may submit an action in advance if you think you're going to be away, and I'll give you credit for it.
  • Modkilled players are considered to have automatically lost the game, even if the rest of their faction later goes on to win.
  • Flavor text may or may not be relevant, primarily depending on my mood. Pay attention, but get hung up on it at your own risk. Anything that's definitely important will be summarized in bold at the bottom of my posts.
  • Lynches and night actions are not required and will not be randomized, but do be mindful of that rule about activity. Lynches are made based on plurality, not majority. Note that it is possible to lynch a player with only one vote if no other lynch votes have been placed. You should probably speak up if you don't want the mafia to swoop in and ninja-vote their way to victory.
  • I will ask the last non-modkilled player to die to break any lynch vote ties, and they'd better not post before I tell them to do it (I may ask them to PM their vote to me anyway). If there is no suitable dead player I will randomize the tiebreaking vote.
  • If you think I made a mistake with the vote count, I probably actually didn't. Think about it for a minute. (If you're convinced there was an actual mistake, though, tell me!)
  • I will be locking the game thread at night to prevent any of the stupid nighttime posting that's been going on. I can't really "lock" dead players out of the thread, but I will not tolerate deadposting and anyone who does it will be retroactively modkilled as well as infracted. If you have something to say to me at night or after you're dead, PM me and stay the hell out of my thread.
  • Take nothing at face value—remember that there are still secrets in this game!—and have fun!


roles plz


Mafia

1. Brute Lualdi – Hitman (has a set number of "unblockable" kills)
2. Alice – Poisoner (has a set number of delayed "poisoning" kills)
3. Decus – Roleblocker (prevents a player from using their night action)
4. Hawk – Framer (can make one player appear "mafia" to investigation for one night)

Any of the above four mafiosi can submit a night kill, but only one will actually go through (priority is Brute > Alice > Decus > Hawk); the mafioso who makes the kill is the one who must be roleblocked/redirected/etc. to have an effect.

5. Richter Abend – Terrorist (can kill themselves and another player during the day; inspects innocent, flips mafia)
6. Aqua – Rolestopper (can stop all actions, except mafia kill, from affecting a player; inspects innocent, flips mafia)


Richter and Aqua are confirmed to one another at the start of the game but cannot converse in private (a la fishing brothers).

Innocent

7. Lloyd Irving – Vigilante (can kill one player each night)
8. Colette Brunel – Jack-of-all-Trades (has one-shot protection, killing, roleblocking and inspecting abilities)
9. Genis Sage – Inspector (can find out the alignment of one player each night)
10. Raine Sage – Doctor (can heal one player each night)
11. Sheena Fujibayashi – Doctor (can heal one player each night)
12. Zelos Wilder – Doublevoter (their vote is counted twice)
13. Presea Combatir – Commuter (can protect themselves from lethal actions at night, but not consecutively)
14. Regal Bryant – Tracker (can find out who one player targeted each night)
15. Kratos Aurion – Bodyguard (can protect one player each night but dies if that player is attacked)
16. Yuan – Streetear (receives random information about other players/game info at night)
17. Botta – Voyeur (can find out which actions targeted one player each night)
18. Dirk Irving – Inventor (can give several one-use items to other players)
19. Noishe – Friendly Neighbor (can have the GM confirm their innocence to another player)
20. Corrine – Mirror (any action that targets them also targets the player who used it)
21. Tenebrae – Distractor (can redirect one night action to themselves)
22. Marta Lualdi – Alien Deactivator (can reset an activated alien if they target that player at night)
23. The Wonder Chef – Pitcher (can throw one of several items at other players)

Third-Party


24. Mithos Yggdrasill – Serial Killer (can kill one player each night, wins if last player standing; investigates innocent, flips mafia)
25. Emil Castagnier – Alien (wins if lynched while active; inspects/flips innocent if inactive, inspects/flips mafia if active) (yes, Kam, I have already considered and implemented ways to balance this, no whining from you)


The role list as is assumes 15 players, but I'd really dig more than that. If more than 15 people join I will add more roles (and maybe another mafia faction) and when signups close I will post the revised list for your convenience. Signups will remain open until there are at least 15 players, and we'll see how it goes after that; I probably won't accept a lot more than 25 people, though, because as much as I'd love to host a massive game writing 10+ additional progression PMs is going to drive me insane.


gogogogogogooooo
 
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Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Oooo, shiny, interesting... and good theme... I in.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

I'm assuming we can join and play well enough without any knowledge of how ToS works, yeah?
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

ALEINS??? IN MY MAFIA????? WHINE WHINE WHINE WHINE WHINE WHINE

I really don't care much for Tales of but this looks cool.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

I'm assuming we can join and play well enough without any knowledge of how ToS works, yeah?

It's just extraneous flavor for my amusement and the amusement of anyone else who's a fan; you don't need to know anything about it, no. (You should, but that is another matter entirely!)
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Heck yes; I'm in!
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

It's just extraneous flavor for my amusement and the amusement of anyone else who's a fan; you don't need to know anything about it, no. (You should, but that is another matter entirely!)

Well you should know about so many things, namely Glee, so don't you get me started. >|
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Probably not a good idea to make this my first mafia, but eh! It sounds interesting and fun... I'll give it a try.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Joinage despite having played ToS1 but not 2. *OH WELL*

Talk about coincidental, you and I putting together wildly experimentally-mechanical games around the same time (although mine doesn't taste like ToS). You'll see what I mean when I finish mine and post it. That may be as soon as days or as far off as weeks, I don't know yet because I'm procrastinatory.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

I should totally not be making this my first serious mafia game, but...

TOS. <3

Even if I'm not totally familiar with the sequel beyond the first twenty minutes of game play and internet spoilers, I just can't resist something like this.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Joinage despite having played ToS1 but not 2. *OH WELL*

Talk about coincidental, you and I putting together wildly experimentally-mechanical games around the same time (although mine doesn't taste like ToS). You'll see what I mean when I finish mine and post it. That may be as soon as days or as far off as weeks, I don't know yet because I'm procrastinatory.

Oh man experimental mechanics you don't even know. This is only the beginning. I am going to experimental mechanic the bejeebus out of TCoD Mafia in the coming months. And it will be glorious. (I do look forward to what you're coming up with, though! I'm actually a little disappointed that I didn't join Mindscrew Mafia after all...!)

This game shouldn't actually be too tricky for first-time players! It's primarily the same as a simple game of mafia, just with extra incentives and the occasional extra decision to make! Hopefully! Assuming I didn't screw something up!
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

I love ToS~
Even though I haven't even gotten 1/2 way through the first one.
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

Aaand that's more than 15 people! In fact, it is 15 people + the exact number of additional roles I already had finished (gog damn that was actually kind of faster than I was anticipating D: )! I'll leave signups open for another day or so (unless we hit too many people) because there's at least one more person I know was intending to join, and I'll try and get some more of the additional roles finished up in between omghomewurks while we wait. Said omghomewurks may delay the start of the game until Friday, fyi, but hopefully not! So, uh, until then... yeah. Join up!
 
Re: Tales of Symphonia Evolution Mafia [experimental]

That's 25 people, so I think I'm going to call it here and close signups. Give me a bit to finish sorting things out and the game should start soon. Thanks, you guys!
 
Sorry for the delay, folks! I had to flail a little bit to find additional characters that were worth giving roles to, and in the end decided to go with "shit, lets add people who are supposed to be dead/not there, oh and also lets be stupid and add the Wonder Chef because that's hilarious". Fuck continuity, this is Mafia. Then came the minor computer trouble. It's all sorted now, though, so I'll get the game thread up and the role PMs out straightaway!

Here's the finalized role list again, as promised:

Mafia

1. Brute Lualdi – Hitman (has a set number of "unblockable" kills)
2. Alice – Poisoner (has a set number of delayed "poisoning" kills)
3. Decus – Roleblocker (prevents a player from using their night action)
4. Hawk – Framer (can make one player appear "mafia" to investigation for one night)

Any of the above four mafiosi can submit a night kill, but only one will actually go through (priority is Brute > Alice > Decus > Hawk); the mafioso who makes the kill is the one who must be roleblocked/redirected/etc. to have an effect.

5. Richter Abend – Terrorist (can kill themselves and another player during the day; inspects innocent, flips mafia)
6. Aqua – Rolestopper (can stop all actions, except mafia kill, from affecting a player; inspects innocent, flips mafia)


Richter and Aqua are confirmed to one another at the start of the game but cannot converse in private (a la fishing brothers).

Innocent

7. Lloyd Irving – Vigilante (can kill one player each night)
8. Colette Brunel – Jack-of-all-Trades (has one-shot protection, killing, roleblocking and inspecting abilities)
9. Genis Sage – Inspector (can find out the alignment of one player each night)
10. Raine Sage – Doctor (can heal one player each night)
11. Sheena Fujibayashi – Doctor (can heal one player each night)
12. Zelos Wilder – Doublevoter (their vote is counted twice)
13. Presea Combatir – Commuter (can protect themselves from lethal actions at night, but not consecutively)
14. Regal Bryant – Tracker (can find out who one player targeted each night)
15. Kratos Aurion – Bodyguard (can protect one player each night but dies if that player is attacked)
16. Yuan – Streetear (receives random information about other players/game info at night)
17. Botta – Voyeur (can find out which actions targeted one player each night)
18. Dirk Irving – Inventor (can give several one-use items to other players)
19. Noishe – Friendly Neighbor (can have the GM confirm their innocence to another player)
20. Corrine – Mirror (any action that targets them also targets the player who used it)
21. Tenebrae – Distractor (can redirect one night action to themselves)
22. Marta Lualdi – Alien Deactivator (can reset an activated alien if they target that player at night)
23. The Wonder Chef – Pitcher (can throw one of several items at other players)

Third-Party


24. Mithos Yggdrasill – Serial Killer (can kill one player each night, wins if last player standing; investigates innocent, flips mafia)
25. Emil Castagnier – Alien (wins if lynched while active; inspects/flips innocent if inactive, inspects/flips mafia if active)


Here we go!
 
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