Strategy & Tactics: Mafia

[Seamus Fermanagh]

A thread to discuss mafia techniques and strategic approaches for vanquishing those annoying townies.

[Csargo]

I don't think this should be allowed Sasaki.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

I don't think this should be allowed Sasaki.

Haha, why not?

• Don't accuse too many people. Most of the people you accuse will try to dig up dirt on you.

[Cowhead418]

• Don't play like Sasaki. Sorry SK, but when you play you always seem to get lynched in the first few rounds. There are always lots of people who are suspicious of you every game.

[Csargo]

Haha, why not?

• Don't accuse too many people. Most of the people you accuse will try to dig up dirt on you.

Because if you can't do it on your own you deserve to live and deserve to be killed by the townspeople. Same with the detective position Doctor and such. That may just be me but I don't think it's right.

[Ignoramus]

• Don't play like Sasaki. Sorry SK, but when you play you always seem to get lynched in the first few rounds. There are always lots of people who are suspicious of you every game.

People are always suspicious of Sasaki. Just like Lemur.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

• Don't play like Sasaki. Sorry SK, but when you play you always seem to get lynched in the first few rounds. There are always lots of people who are suspicious of you every game.

Hey, my mafia record isn't bad. I'm a lot more lynchable as townie. But yes, if you are mafia don't play like I do as townie. I don't fuss about getting lynched as townie, you can see in Godfather 2 I got lynched but in doing so I got a pretty good idea of who the mafia are.

[doc_bean]

Act like a townie :

-Don't post too much or draw too much attention to yourself
-Don't defend yourself too much, use a logical defense, don't appeal to emotion
-Don't behave too differently from previous games

Other tips:
-Go invisible (I'm keeping it on for good, again )
-Kill your the best 'detectives' first, especially those who will lose interest in the game if they are killed
-Try to figure out who the doctors/detectives are

[Seamus Fermanagh]

Act like a townie :

-Don't post too much or draw too much attention to yourself
-Don't defend yourself too much, use a logical defense, don't appeal to emotion
-Don't behave too differently from previous games

Other tips:
-Go invisible (I'm keeping it on for good, again )
-Kill your the best 'detectives' first, especially those who will lose interest in the game if they are killed
-Try to figure out who the doctors/detectives are

Pretty straightforward.

What signs do you look for in spotting a detective?

[Silver Rusher]

Pretty straightforward.

What signs do you look for in spotting a detective?

-Use of language such as: "Trust me", "Just vote/don't vote for him" or "I know", stuff which makes them certain without telling you why.
-Defending other members, even when they haven't received much suspicion.
-Attacking others and providing what seems to be a mostly made-up, flimsy and tenuous argument. Easy to confuse with bad players or mafiosi, both of whom should be lynched, so be careful.
-Sticking with voting for a certain player without letting up no matter which argument is presented.
-And of course the common tell, talking about the detective an unusual amount especially if it implies they are not the detective. I think this only happens to new players, anyone who has played the game a few times knows that this is a very bad mistake to make and should be avoided.

Any good detective, however, will try as hard as possible to avoid these. Remember, as many have said a detective for a mafioso is a good trade and so you should only like for the ones about attacking players randomly in new players. More experienced ones would probably reveal instead at this point.

[Kommodus]

What signs do you look for in spotting a detective?

Often, detectives will try to look inconspicuous - not unlike a mafioso. Look for them among players who make one or two short posts per turn, and more only if they have to.

As the game progresses, look for someone who consistently draws some suspicion, but not enough to get lynched. Such a person may be a detective trying to make sure he's not a tempting target for you.

[Kagemusha]

Keep poor old Kage alive, or you will be cursed.

[doc_bean]

Pretty straightforward.

What signs do you look for in spotting a detective?

Detectives are much harder. I've rarely if ever identified one (Killing Gertegoor in Sasaki's first game was due to Silver Rusher).

I think PMing the innocents is the way to go when you're a detective, just make sure you don't do it too early, so they won't turn against you too soon (they always do...).

[Dutch_guy]

I think PMing the innocents is the way to go when you're a detective, just make sure you don't do it too early, so they won't turn against you too soon (they always do...).

This isn't allowed in the newer / current games you know

[doc_bean]

This isn't allowed in the newer / current games you know

Really ? I don't remember reading about this in the rules. Makes sense of course.

[Silver Rusher]

Really ? I don't remember reading about this in the rules. Makes sense of course.

It's generally included in the detective's starting PM rather than in the rules.

[Death Match]

As the game progresses, look for someone who consistently draws some suspicion, but not enough to get lynched. Such a person may be a detective trying to make sure he's not a tempting target for you.

That is what I tried...

[Seamus Fermanagh]

Watching Sasaki in the G2 game, I got to wondering if a "white noise" approach might work for the mafia.

(btw, I don't think he was in that game, but we'll see)

White Noise would be lots of postings, suggestions of suspicion etc. in several directions; couple with lots of argument when people say no way.

Goal would be to numb and confuse.

Workable?

[Sigurd]

Watching Sasaki in the G2 game, I got to wondering if a "white noise" approach might work for the mafia.

(btw, I don't think he was in that game, but we'll see)

White Noise would be lots of postings, suggestions of suspicion etc. in several directions; couple with lots of argument when people say no way.

Goal would be to numb and confuse.

Workable?

I think as I said in GF2; the need for new methods is inevitable for winning a game of mafia; certainly if the same players play all games.
A method that worked in one game will not work in another as the players have all experienced it. Mafia today and that goes for all roles, need to be innovative and come up with new ways to defeat suspicion or getting lynched.

When we finally reach the stage of no one believing anyone, the game will become a game without skill, where random is the key word.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I'd just like to say that, while most mafia strategies will evolve, one of them will not.

Communication between you and your fellow mafiosi is absolutely essential.

In Godfather 2, Myrddraal, Csar, and I exchanged manymanymany PMs, talked constantly in the chat as well as MSN, but it still wasn't enough. I believe that had there been more communication, a mafia victory would have happened. So if you are really committed to killing the town, you need to talk constantly.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

I think the big mistake the mafia make is coordinating too much in their efforts. It becomes a "found one you've found them all" thing. This happened in Cosa Nuova when Sigurd noticed that the voting patterns pointed to Xiahou, and in TGF2 it became pretty clear that Csar was guilty from the way he'd been interacting with GH and Myrd...they at least had an excuse for acting together.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I think the big mistake the mafia make is coordinating too much in their efforts. It becomes a "found one you've found them all" thing. This happened in Cosa Nuova when Sigurd noticed that the voting patterns pointed to Xiahou, and in TGF2 it became pretty clear that Csar was guilty from the way he'd been interacting with GH and Myrd...they at least had an excuse for acting together.

I think you made my point.

After I saw Csar voting Sigurd after I posted that ridiculous PM, I slapped myself for not talking with him first. Because eventually, I think, that's what got him lynched.

[Seamus Fermanagh]

I agree with General Hankerchief.

Not only must your killing strategy be coordinated, but your overall strategy for postings and votings as well. ANY of these elements can come back to bite you in the posterior, and there is always someone who is tracking one or more of these.

The only means to do this, of course, is frequent comms. Be careful of PM's on the site, however, since those can be monitored as well.