WW: LXXXV - The Lost Philosophers of Maiar

[Valier]

great game wolves!!!!! I can't believe you all managed to survive....and thanks for killing me on N3....(NOT!!!) glares Ah well it was fun anyways. At least I wasn't way, way off with my suspicions...Well at least I thought Boro and Skip looked fishy. Nessa and Wilwa though that was a surprise!!
Hope to play again soon with all of you

[A Little Green]

Agan I did realise you were hinting at me but I had no idea what it was about. Especially I had no idea that lobster was referring to Lobelia. Congrats wolves! Great job!

[Nogrod]

I do remember all wolves making it to the end before (how could I not? ), but what I was pointing out to as a record, was that there were four wolves and a village of 24! So they really took off 20 villagers without a scratch! That, I think, could be a record?


For the few comments of the nice set-up or story... I'm actually a bit disappointed myself because I had this idea that the Maiar would eventually get more anguished and I could start marching all these ideas from different existentialist-philosophers & modernist poets into the narrations wailing about the misery, emptiness and pointlessness of life... but we never got that far - thank's to the effectiviness of the wolves.

I might have started on that road when Mänwe died, but as he took his death so coolly I felt it would have be wrong to make him die in total anguish in the narration after been cool as a cucumber in the game...

When I realised that the game was ending pretty fast I started this "wolves discuss theological implictions of death during the Night" -scene, and thought of continuing it the next Night to give it a twist... (well, developing it further with the idea of what about there is no quarantee to your faith...), but then Lommy and Greenie came to spend an evening with me as I was laying sick at home, so I had never time to write it...To me, the evening sure was much more fun that way, but sad outcome for the narration.


But hey, once again, great game everyone! It was a pleasure to mod this, and a lot of fun to follow the discussion knowing where you guys had it right and where you went astray... and I must say I couldn't avoid some headdesking myself either...

[Aganzir]

Originally Posted by Macalaure

Guessing your role right was actually the only good thing I managed to do this game - after you brought my attention to the fact that Shasta referred to you as a cobbler, but to Rikae as an ordo. Didn't help, though.

Hehe that makes me even happier you weren't a wolf! I didn't want a known innocent status but it would've been strange if I had kept insisting I hadn't been dreamed of, that's why I tried to hint at Legate & Green.

Originally Posted by Inziladun

It's been done at least once before.

Yes and also in my game like two years ago (the wolves were Nog, Nerwen & Durelin).

Originally Posted by wilwarin538

I was so excited when Sallycakes brought up that idea, and even more excited when Agan drew extra attention to it.

Yeah I really regretted underlining it afterwards... but I was in a hurry and didn't have time to think my actions through! I was sure the wolves would think I was the cobbler and the cobbler I was a wolf (at least on day 1) and both would be surprised when I turned out innocent. Who did Pitch suggest (besides himself) and did any of you ever hint at him?

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Nogrod

For the few comments of the nice set-up or story... I'm actually a bit disappointed myself because I had this idea that the Maiar would eventually get more anguished and I could start marching all these ideas from different existentialist-philosophers & modernist poets into the narrations wailing about the misery, emptiness and pointlessness of life... but we never got that far - thank's to the effectiviness of the wolves.

Oh my, how many more Days would you have wanted to torture us? Wasn't that enough?

Seriously, the story was great as it was, and at least you have still something left for a future game, if it comes to that So, I wouldn't worry...

[Nogrod]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

Oh my, how many more Days would you have wanted to torture us? Wasn't that enough?

I was actually counting on the game lasting about 10 Days (8-9 minimum)...

That of course was based on the presupposition that you'd get at least one wolf lynched on D3 or 4 the latest to end the double-kills...

[Pitchwife]

So this was my first time as the cobbler. Initially, I thought it would come quite naturally to me, as I all too often end up functioning as an unintentional cobbler when I'm an ordo, but once the game got going, I found it fiendishly difficult. All that duplicity and double think, without the wolvish advantage of knowing your foes and allies and being able to bounce your ideas off your packmates - it was a nightmare. I consoled myself thinking that as long as I got suspected enough to be a distraction and at need a convenient lynch instead of a wolf, I couldn't do that much wrong, and this at least seems to have worked out.

As for my speculations about the wolves' identities, there naturally was a lot of flipflopping, but my last guess on the Day when I died was *fanfare* Agan, Mac, Rikae, and possibly Shasta (but don't ask me what I thought I was doing when I started suspecting him late on Day 4, I've no idea). Nog didn't believe his eyes when I sent him the list post mortem. Legate was on it too a Day or two before, and I'd even considered Zil for a while (not on the Day I voted him, though - at that time I'd started to surmise that Nessa might really be a wolf, before Mac managed to make even me doubt it again).

It was crazy. I kept seeing imaginary hints in all the wrong places, and probably missed quite a lot real ones. (wilwa, I did notice what you said about the Valier kill, especially since Agan was so kind to point it out, but you looked so innocent after all that not wanting to alert the wolves & cobbler to what sally had said, so it got buried in the self-generated white noise.) Wonder what I looked like to the real wolves - you at least knew about me, but you must have wondered why I didn't respond to any hint of yours.

(Speaking of hints, Rikae, I was thoroughly baffled what in Arda you could mean with me hinting to/about Boro, until you explained it when I was dead. Agan's explanation was correct, of course - it's a vocabulary question. Boro's title was nowhere near my mind at the time.
While we're at it, what was that "I think I might know someone who knows something" thing on Day 4 really about?)

Anyway, kudos to the victorious pack! And Nessa, I take back my words on the thread, you are a survivalist! All four of you are.

Kit having to drop out was a gift of Melkor, and things might have gone differently if she'd been lynched instead. I was quite aware that I'd be a likely candidate for hunting, so naturally I had to argue against it.

Anyway, none of you innocents should sell yourselves short, you all put up a brave fight. Agan, those double kills must have been a Ranger's nightmare! And Shasta, I guess it wasn't easy to pick your dreams either with so huge a village. Too bad you got killed on the very Night you dreamed your first wolf!
Mac, what do you mean, worst game ever? Come on, you were spot on with suspecting Boro, skip and me, even if you got Boro's role and mine mixed up. Not so spot on with Nessa and Mänwe, but such is life.
À propos:

Originally Posted by Boro

and my night PMs consisted of "Mac's not the seer. He's not the seer, just put up with him, *sigh* can't we just kill him anyway?"

So I wasn't the only one thinking that! That's why I suggested him on Night 4. You wolves probably did well deciding to leave him alive, it would have been rather risky for Boro and me otherwise. Not your fault I had to draw the wrong conclusion when I found him alive in the morning...

Originally Posted by Valier

and thanks for killing me on N3....(NOT!!!) glares

You can blame me for that, I suggested it. Not terribly sportsmanlike after your long absence, I know, but take it as a compliment - I was pretty scared of your psychic powers, and I suppose so were the wolves. Looking at the repercussions, it seems to have been one of my brighter ideas in this game. (Sorry, Zil!)
But it was a pleasure to play with you for the first time. Same to Cailín and Mänwe (who faced unanimous lynching with admirable stoicism, and I never got why anybody found you so suspicious in the first place). And well met again, Ozzy and everybody else!

Last not least, as always, thanks and kudos to Nog for modding this! It was huge fun, the story idea was great (and well executed, whatever you say), and I enjoyed your narrations very much, including and especially the music - reading the lists of the living and the dead with Penderecki in my ear was a unique experience.

[Galadriel55]

I (as a "bystander") thoroughly enjoyed reading the narrations, and the music was fantastic! I really enjoyed watching the game as well! Great job, Nog, and great job wolves!... And innocents!... And gifteds!

[Pitchwife]

/\
Hear, hear! Perhaps we'll get a new recruit for this madness in the near future?

[Galadriel55]

Originally Posted by Pitchwife

Perhaps we'll get a new recruit for this madness in the near future?

Perhaps so, but I'm not sure about near. I've considered joining for this game, but decided not to, since the most I'd be able to do is about 3-5 posts per day. I don't think I'd make a great player at that rate! I will probably join a game during a break, so that I can participate more.

[skip spence]

Originally Posted by Pitchwife

It was crazy. I kept seeing imaginary hints in all the wrong places, and probably missed quite a lot real ones.

We never discussed hinting at you so I can only speak for myself but I was okay with you not knowing who we were and never attempted any communication. It just seemed too risky given the good position we were in after Day 2 and we were quite confident just to leave you alive hoping that the Day would come when your services would be required.

Originally Posted by Boro

and my night PMs consisted of "Mac's not the seer. He's not the seer, just put up with him, *sigh* can't we just kill him anyway?"

Originally Posted by Pitchwife

So I wasn't the only one thinking that! That's why I suggested him on Night 4. You wolves probably did well deciding to leave him alive, it would have been rather risky for Boro and me otherwise. Not your fault I had to draw the wrong conclusion when I found him alive in the morning...

That´s funny because when we recieved Mac's name from you we had already hatched our plan to make it appear that the wolves had framed Nessa, and killing Mac would've spoiled that plan (though we also wanted him gone, no doubt about that). We feared that you would think Mac was a wolf when we left him alive but thought "never mind, we´ll have his neck the following Night instead to set things straight". That almost backfired badly. The Nessa protection scheme worked a charm sure, but when you voted me and almost had me killed, and then was lynched yourself instead, which incriminated Boro in the process since he had pretended to be the cobbler, we though, ****, maybe this is the beginning of our fall from grace.

But then we nailed Shasta-seer and all of a sudden the sky cleared and birds were singing. That last Day was such a relief after four Days of hard struggle.

I did feel bad for Manwe and Shasta though, I really did.

I´ll try to rep people when I get back home.

[Kitanna]

Wow...I kept up with Nogrod's narrations to see how the village faired. The only thing I had going for me was suspicions of Pitch, but hark, there be the cobbler and not a wolf.

Good job wolfies and excellent narrations Noggie.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

Wow.

I've not really been able to pay attention since last Sunday (which is when I died, I think - handily enough) as I've been too busy concentrating on not dying. It seems to be going better, finally.

Anyway, congratulations to the victorious wolves; thanks to Nogrod for the huge game and the (probably) correct decision to go with double-kills, as well as not putting Cailin on the other side from me (that would have caused serious problems); and also thanks to everyone for keeping 'wolvery' in use.

It seems I have a really good Nessa-radar.

++NESSA