TIG XCIV– WHere the Stars Are Strange (Game thread)

[Eönwë]

Boromir88 - I don't know. Something about him seems a bit off, but he seems to speak sense. But isn't he more vocal usually? Why is he so quiet?

Sally - At first I was leaning guilty, now I'm leaning innocent. She hasn't posted enough. It's more recappy like Shasta did on Day 1, which isn't really a good measure of good or bad.

Shasta - Crazy. About as crazy as Legate. And he worries me.

Pomegranate - I still find her sharp and innocent.

A Little Green - She is far too deep under my radar. So she worries me.

Pitchwife - I've been flip-flopping on him the whole game. At first he seemed dark and evil, then good, and now I'm uncertain again.

Lottie - The only reason I don't have a strong feeling of her innocence is her lack of posts. And that's a big reason, because she's usually pretty vocal.

Inziladun- Obviously, he's innocent.

Lommy - If Legate turns out to be evil, she needs to be re-evaluated, because she would seem pretty bad in that case. If not, I don't know.

Legate of Amon Lanc - Weird, crazy, evil. Maybe. Some of his most recent posts have started to look relatively genuine, which worries me. But I think he's done enough to condemn him.


So basically, now I suspect everyone except for Zil and Pom, and Lottie to a lesser extent.

[Eönwë]

When that I was and a little tiny boy,
With hey, ho, the wind and the sun,
A foolish thing was but a toy,
For the sun it burneth every day.
But when I came to Harad's lands,
With hey, ho, the the wind and the sun
'Gainst Northern spies we made our bands,
For the sun it burneth every day.
But when I revealed where my heart does lie,
With hey, ho, the wind and the sun.
I could see that I was soon to die,
For the sun it burneth every day.
A great while ago the world begun,
With hey, ho, the wind and the sun,
But that's all one, my time is done,
And we'll strive for Sauron every day.

[Nerwen]

Deadline. No more posting.

Edit: Legate, of course, has been lynched by eight votes to three. Narration to follow.

[Nerwen]

The survivors were not sure whether to mourn G55 or rejoice that a spy had been caught. Strangely, though, the talk again soon turned to the Acolyte. Shasta was particularly determined to rout this mysterious individual.

"Why are you so sure the Acolyte must be evil?" asked the Legate of Khand suspiciously. "And why did you suggest a double-killing yesterday?"

"I sense the beginnings of a witch-hunt!" snarled Shasta. "What about you, Easterling? Why wouldn't you believe the Envoy? Spy!"

By the end of the day Guard-lieutenant Shasta and the Legate of Khand had all but come to blows, shouting insults and accusations at one another while the rest looked on in bewilderment.

"My Master has, as yet, granted me no insight into either of these two," said the Envoy, "but I wouldn't be surprised if one of them's a spy. Or even both."

There was some talk of killing the pair of them, but after some debate it was generally decided that Shasta looked the better of the two, and that it was Legate alone who must die. It only remained to think of an appropriate method of execution.

I know," said one among the company– they were never afterwards sure who– "This Legate claims to be an Easterling, does he not? Well, then– think of the Wainriders!"

It took the others only moments to grasp the possibilities of the idea. Boro volunteered the large, heavy cart he used for his charges' fodder, and, once Legate had been tied up and placed in the middle of the main courtyard, the company got together and gave the vehicle a hearty push. The huge waggon trundled slowly, inexorably forward. The crunching and squelching it made going over the Easterling's helpless body could not be drowned out even by his frightful dying screams.

The waggon rolled on with bloody wheels, coming to a gradual halt at the far side of the courtyard.

The crushed and mangled thing it left in its wake was barely recognisable as Legate. The others waited around it as the shades of evening fell, hoping against hope for some sign, for the barest hint of a magical change.

They were to be disappointed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Living
Boromir88 –Wealthy mûmak breeder.
Sally –Messenger girl.
Shasta –Particularly attentive guard-lieutenant.
Steve –Court Jester (from Umbar).
Pomegranate –Entertainer.
A Little Green –The Empress's favourite snake-charmer.
Pitchwife –Captain in the "Provisional Royal Númenórean Navy" and emissary of Angamaitë IX, Lord of Umbar.
Lottie –Accident-prone sorcerer's apprentice.
Inziladun –Minister of the Treasury.
Lommy! –Court physician.


Dead
The Empress of Harad. Mod. –assassinated in her sleep.
Bom Tombadillo –Greatly afflicted beggar. Ordo. –multiple stab wounds.
Eruhen –Court eunuch. Ordo. –burned to death on the Empress's funeral pyre.
Rikae –Empress's handmaiden. Royal Executioner. –garotted with own wire.
Nogrod –Camel and coffee trader. Spy. –poisoned with own merchandise.
Galadriel55 –Professional assassin. Captain of the Guard. –neck broken in stairwell fight.
Legate of Amon Lanc –Legate of Khand. Ordo. –crushed to death by an enormous waggon.

Night Four has begun.

[Nerwen]

"Come in, come in," said the Envoy of Mordor. "I have been expecting you."

"You have?"

The Envoy smiled. It was not a very nice smile, but his visitor had the sense it was doing its best. "Why, what sort of magician would I be if I had not? I dreamed of you tonight. I know who you are and why you are here– young Acolyte. Come, and I will teach you, as the Empress commanded."

The Acolyte shuffled uncomfortably on the threshold. "Well, I'm not sure if I– that is, I–"

"I know, I know– I saw it all in your mind. You have doubts. You are loyal to your own people, and hate the Men of Gondor– as who does not?— yet you have unfortunately been led astray by some of the more absurd stories about my Master. Ha! Ha!" –here he laughed in a not-terribly-convincing manner– "it really is astonishing, the things people will believe! Still, desperate times call for desperate measures, and I am willing to take the risk. Luck is on our side tonight anyway– these craven Elf-friends clearly have not the courage to make an attempt on my life yet, so there is time."

The Envoy instructed his new pupil for several hours, exclaiming frequently at the speed with which the Haradian picked up the rudiments of sorcery.

"There's one thing I'm curious about," the Black Númenórean said in a moment of relaxation, between sips of fine coffee (certainly not Nogrod's). "Did you kill Eruhen? You needn't be afraid to tell me– I never liked him, you know."

"Well, I–" the Acolyte began.

"Wait!" said the Envoy, holding up a hand. In a moment the Acolyte heard it too: the sound of soft footsteps– they seemed to be made by two or three pairs of feet– coming up the stairs. Then there was silence, broken only by a faint whispering outside the door.

The Envoy's grey eyes slitted. "It seems our lesson is to be interrupted after all." He led the Acolyte to the room's one window. "One at least of us must survive. You have learned quicker than I thought possible– and I am confident now you will choose the right path."

"But what about you?"

"Me? Oh, it will be enough if I can take this–" the Envoy's face twisted into a snarl, "this Gondorian rabble with me!" He drew a black, evil-looking dagger, worked with strange symbols around the hilt.

As the Acolyte hesitated on the sill, nervous of the longish drop to the ground, the door shuddered under a rain of heavy blows.

"Go!" screamed the Envoy. Even as the Acolyte jumped, the door crashed open, and three figures burst into the room, swords drawn. (The Acolyte did not have time to make out their features.)

Winded by the fall, the Acolyte could only gasp for breath and listen to the sounds coming from above– battle cries and curses in several languages, screams, the clash of steel, the strange burning and sizzling noises as the Envoy threw his magic into the fray.

All was quiet by the time the Acolyte had recovered enough to creep indoors, and peer cautiously around a corner at the staircase– which three figures were even then descending.

The Acolyte fled, but not before hearing them say to one another, "What a fight that foul sorcerer put up– but our victory is all the sweeter. Nogrod is avenged at last!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Living
Boromir88 –Wealthy mûmak breeder.
Sally –Messenger girl.
Shasta –Particularly attentive guard-lieutenant.
Pomegranate –Entertainer.
A Little Green –The Empress's favourite snake-charmer.
Pitchwife –Captain in the "Provisional Royal Númenórean Navy" and emissary of Angamaitë IX, Lord of Umbar.
Lottie –Accident-prone sorcerer's apprentice.
Inziladun –Minister of the Treasury.
Lommy! –Court physician.


Dead
The Empress of Harad. Mod. –assassinated in her sleep.
Bom Tombadillo –Greatly afflicted beggar. Ordo. –multiple stab wounds.
Eruhen –Court eunuch. Ordo. –burned to death on the Empress's funeral pyre.
Rikae –Empress's handmaiden. Royal Executioner. –garotted with own wire.
Nogrod –Camel and coffee trader. Spy. –poisoned with own merchandise.
Galadriel55 –Professional assassin. Captain of the Guard. –neck broken in stairwell fight.
Legate of Amon Lanc –Legate of Khand. Ordo. –crushed to death by an enormous waggon.
Steve –Court Jester (from Umbar). Envoy of Morder. –sliced up by the spies on Night Four.

Day Four has begun.

[Thinlómien]

Ok, since assumedly Eönwë is no more, we have:

Boromir88 –Wealthy mûmak breeder.
Sally –Messenger girl.
Shasta –Particularly attentive guard-lieutenant.
Pomegranate –Entertainer.
A Little Green –The Empress's favourite snake-charmer.
Pitchwife –Captain in the "Provisional Royal Númenórean Navy" and emissary of Angamaitë IX, Lord of Umbar.
Lottie –Accident-prone sorcerer's apprentice.
Inziladun –Minister of the Treasury.
Lommy! –Court physician.

Out of which Zil and four others are ordos, three are wolves and one is the acolyte. Since the acolyte doesn't count in the tally, this means that if we lynch an innocent toDay and another (presumably Zil) dies during the Night, it's three ordos, three wolves and the acolyte toMorrow, which means the wolves win, unless the acolyte has some superpowers and is willing to use them from the village benefit, but let's not assume that.

So we basically have to lynch a wolf toDay. This means we should think at least twice before we vote toDay.

I'm going to finish my analysis from yesterDay now.

Also I just looked at the vote tally and only our known innocents (Steve, Zil and Legate) voted Shasta, everybody else voted Legate. It would be tempting to conclude Shasta's guilt from this, but we can afford knee-jerk thinking toDay.

[Pomegranate]

Agh. And I felt so smart suspecting the same person three days in a row, just to find out that despite everything I thought had to mean he was a wolf, he wasn't. Now it's my turn to need a full reevaluation of everything.

And I was going to bring about the same point as Lommy. We can't afford to lose an innocent today. At least not alone - a double lynch with a wolf and an innocent would still keep us alive. Hence today, if it was considerately done, I would suggest to think about a double lynch. Counting numbers:

Lommy already mentioned what happens if we lynch an innocent today. We're dead.
If we lynch a wolf today, and they kill an innocent at night, we end up with 4-2 (+1) tomorrow. That's pretty much the same situation as today.
If we lynch the acolyte today, it's 4-3 tomorrow, which means we have our chances, but they are not big.

Whereas:

If we lynch two innocents today, we're dead, surprisingly.
If we lynch an innocent and a wolf, it's 3-2 (+1) tomorrow, which is bad, but not as bad as lynching only an innocent.
If we lynch two wolves today, we might be able to breath again.
If we lynch the acolyte and an innocent, we're done for.
If we lynch the acolyte and a wolf, it's 4-2 and the unknown powers of this game are gone.

This obviously again depends on the acolyte, their alignment etc. But let's not discuss that all the time today.

I'll need to think and evaluate a lot before I have an opinion, an idea of this game again. I'll be doing that now (as well as writing an essay).

[Thinlómien]

So, how did everybody treat Nog on Day2? For Day1, please see this post.

Lommy defends Nog’s change of heart concerning Gal (#165). Lists Nog under “innocentish” and says she has good gut-feeling about Nog and trusts him for the time being (#204). [Editor's note: after reading the posts she xed with] amends that Nog looks a little worse (#206). Believes the revelation and votes Nog (#273).

Legate [my analysis was almost done in the end of yesterDay, so he was included all along, and I will leave this here in case it's of scientific interest to anyone] slightly defends Nog’s Legate-180 on Gal (#166, a cross-post with Lommy’s #165). Then he defends/explains Nog’s anger ventilation to Pom (#178). The discussion continues (#182). Then he discusses Rikae with him (#190). Makes fun of him and tells him to read his (Legate’s) post (#191). Attacks Eönwë for a suspicious attack on Nog (#194). Lists Nog under “grey” (his second most innocent category) and says a lot about him seems innocentish but there have also been good points against him lately (#213). As has been discussed, doesn’t believe Steve’s reveal (#236). Continues this (#239). Then, more or less makes a Legate-180 (#248). Ponders about lynching Zil in Nog's stead or making a double lynch, but concludes single lynch is much better (#275). Votes him not to split the votes (#276). Agrees with Pitch's arguments for Steve and against Nog (#276).

Pom points out Nog’s major role in the Bom-lynch but doesn’t conclude much from it (#167). She further discusses Bom-wagon, mentioning Nog several times (#172). She defends to Nog why emphasising his role in the Bom-lynch made sense (#173). Argues with Legate about Nog’s innocence/sensibility (#180). Thinks he answered her suspicions pretty well (#231). She leaves before Eönwë's reveal.

Pitch criticises the Bom-lynch and directs the criticism towards Nog (#168). He answers his criticism (#175). Rants a little more about the Bom-lynch, says Steve’s attack on Nog makes him look better despite his (Pitch’s) earlier suspicions on him (Nog) and discusses Rikae’s death with Nog (#211). A rather aggressive point against him (#214). Again, discusses Rikae with him (#224). After the reveal, he trusts Steve (and shortly tells why) and votes Nog (#277).

Boro discusses Rikae’s death with Nog, and defends himself (#177). He defends Eönwë’s attack on Nog and discusses Nog’s actions in the Bom-wagon without labelling them as anything else than “overkill”, as opposed to “suspicious” or “innocentish”, but says he seems to be treading carefully which implies suspicion (#203). He crosses with the seer reveal while saying: Nog was careful yesterDay but maybe an inncent Nog would have a reason to do that too, says he wanted to refrain from commenting (and encourage others to do so too) Eönwë's attack on Nog before Nog himself reacts, he has conflicting opinions about Nog himself (sometimes he sounds genuine, sometimes he sounds really bad) and is not sure whether everything thus far is enough for him to vote him as he recalls innocent Nog often being paranoid too (#254). He is amused by Nog's desperation and faulty facts and votes him (#267).

Lottie trusts Steve's reveal and votes Nog (#256).

Sally is catching up: she finds Nog willingness to help Bom's suicide alarming and after reading until the end of page five, she lists Nog in her guilty category which covers half of the village (#265). Votes Nog but mentions the possibilty Steve is lying (#266).

Shasta trusts Steve and believes in Nog's guilt, but believes we should lynch Zil the assumed acolyte (#268).

Greenie says that regardless of Nog's starting it, Shasta was the one behind the Bom-lynch (#184). She acknowledges and adds points against Nog but says she has a good gut-feeling about him (#187). She doesn't like Eönwë's jump on Nog and agrees with Legate's points about it (#195) then votes Eönwë (#196). She leaves before Eönwë's reveal.

Conclusions to follow.