Terminology poll: Mafia or wolf?

[GeneralHankerchief]

To fill in some time until the next game starts.

Here's why "mafia" is objectively the better name for the antagonistic faction in these games: it makes more sense. Werewolves are, by nature, regular humans who turn into mindless, bloodthirsty beasts upon the fulfillment of certain conditions. Unless they're psychos like that one guy in Harry Potter, there is no planning, no decisive stratagems, no higher level of thinking. They do not discuss victims. They do not try to think of strategies to stay one step ahead of town investigators when doing their killings. They do not try to fabricate believable alibis. Night falls, they morph, and then they hunt. Werewolves are dominated by primitive instincts and are prisoners of their own bestial natures.

Does this sound like the villains in Mafia to you?

Now, take the alternative. "Mafia". Unlike werewolves, mafiosi are entirely human. They have set goals and plan and discuss with each other how best to accomplish these goals. At night, they position themselves to strike their victims and remove them from the game. There is no mess, no malice, simply intent on getting them out of the way as part of a step towards a larger success. They remain in control of themselves at all times. Furthermore, a mafioso's only goal is to kill their victim, whilst werewolves sometimes want to make other werewolves - an ability and a goal that puts wolves more in alignment with the "cult" faction of these games.

Clearly "mafia" is the superior name for this villainous faction, and I hope you see it my way, although I suppose in the name of fair play I will allow arguments towards the alternative. However, one argument that I will not accept is the foolish "well 'wolf/wolves' is shorter to type than 'mafia/mafiosi' ". First of all, this is why the word "scum" and its variants were invented, which circumvents this problem nicely. Secondly, there seems to be a correlation with people pairing "wolf" with "villager", which completely falls apart considering the most common "good side" pair with "mafia" is the much more elegant "town". You can't simply sing the praises of wolves using this argument and then drop the horribly-mangled "villagery" while keeping a straight face.

I eagerly await your thanks for allowing me to convert you on this most important of issues.

[Dp101]

Werewolves transform when dead, and are thus easily identified. How can you tell a dead mafia from a dead innocent in a way that you could not use while they were alive?

[GeneralHankerchief]

Werewolves transform when dead, and are thus easily identified. How can you tell a dead mafia from a dead innocent in a way that you could not use while they were alive?

Well see, this is the problem inherent with games that have immediate reveals upon death, but this is an argument we'll save for another day.

[Zack]

Werewolves transform when dead, and are thus easily identified. How can you tell a dead mafia from a dead innocent in a way that you could not use while they were alive?

in b4 this is ignored so gh can keep pushing his wolfy A G E N D A

[Dp101]

in b4 this is ignored so gh can keep pushing his wolfy A G E N D A

Luckily it wasn't so GH is not a wolf.

[Montmorency]

Yay, down with that vile "w/w" and "v/v" stuff.

Werewolves transform when dead, and are thus easily identified. How can you tell a dead mafia from a dead innocent in a way that you could not use while they were alive?

CSI and public records bureaucrats. Or, if CSI isn't available, check their wallets. It works, except for the times people don't carry wallets with IDs.

For a more philosophical approach:

The Game is the part of the whole that reenacts the whole as the whole. It therefore recognizes nothing outside itself, as we recognize nothing outside what we recognize.

[Dp101]

Yay, down with that vile "w/w" and "v/v" stuff.



CSI and public records bureaucrats. Or, if CSI isn't available, check their wallets. It works, except for the times people don't carry wallets with IDs.

For a more philosophical approach:

But that reasoning requires cops to be in the game, and/or jailkeepers or something.

[Montmorency]

But that reasoning requires cops to be in the game, and/or jailkeepers or something.

Or the host.

[Dp101]

Or the host.

But thematically the host rarely exists as an entity to actually examine bodies, in most writeups I see it is the townspeople who discover the identities of the dead.

[Zack]

Mafia doesn't really have a good singular use so I use wolf/scumbag

Werewolves is long to type (suck it) so I call the faction mafia/scum

town doesn't have a good adjective form like villagery ("towny" seems wrong) or singular form (same issue for "townie")

but I almost always use town over village (shorter)

my system is logical and I reject your attempt to strong-arm me into your preferred nomenclature

[Zack]

also lol at using any argument for mafia games that revolves around "realism"