Citadel of Alamut [Concluded]
November 1256 AD,
The invasions of the Mongols have driven thousands of refugees from all places to form into groups, seeking safety and protection. One such group, the Orgahs, people from all different backgrounds and nations of the earth, were starving and thirsty in the sun-scorched desert of Iran. They were pursued by Mongols, led by the terrifying Hulegu Khan. Who were they, in this position, to refuse the shelter of a seemingly abandoned fortress, with a unique water supply and walls to rival Constantinople or Antioch? Lured by safety and water they entered the Citadel of Alamut.
But it was not deserted. Within cellars and secret rooms there were men, trying desperately to conceal themselves, some claiming to be servants, others shown by their actions to be assassins. The Mongols, despite the impregnability of the castle, layed siege and stipulated their conditions:
'The Orgahs will be allowed to leave, if all the Assassins are handed over to the Mongols.'
It seemed like relief, but the post script revealed otherwise.
'However, I cannot depend on your judgement, or honesty yet. You must be tested, your skills of perception and war measured. I have sent a number of my spies amongst you once I knew you would reach this place before me. Every night, they will kill some of your number, and every day, you may execute one of your number. Only one. I hate cheating. Once they are all killed, you will be allowed to leave, and the survivors will be given rewards above their station. I will trust your judgement on which of the people here are assassins, and which are servants once this has been done.
Also, your martial skills will be tested to the limit. Every now and then, I will send a champion to face one selected by your number. If three of your champions are defeated, I will launch an attack. I do not see why I should wait here in the sun if I can simply storm the place. Be warned, as time goes on, my patience will run out.'
He did not believe they could pull off the coordinated skills and judgement calls needed to lynch all of his spies before they killed all of the townies, nor to select and find among their number Champions who could face the Mongols. But the Orgahs were no ordinary people, and among their number were more men of importance than Hulegu Khan had ever guessed possible.
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Basic rules of Conduct:
No quoting PMs, either privately, or Chat logs, privately (in chat, by PM) or publically (in the thread). Ditto translating then quoting. Paraphrasing PMs, or quoting from in this thread/the information thread or past mafia games is fine.
Dead may not PM or discuss PMs.
No multiple accounts. If I find someone is using these, they will be WOGGED for certain.
Voting is not necessary, participating is. People who post very little or very insubstantially (e.g. post a spam post once every round and say nothing linked to the game) will be wogged.
Please don't spam the thread. A little banter is fine, but excessive spamming and 'empty' posts will be punished.
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Game Rules:
Basic mafia:
Every night phase, the Mongol spies will kill some of your people.
Every day phase, you have to vote on one person to lynch.
The number of spies will be linked to the number of participants.
Advanced:
The Roles:
Most players will have a special role, of some kind, and unique/differentiated victory conditions. Even the Mongol spies will be varied.
The Champions:
On days 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, a Mongol Champion will be sent to face a man elected by the townies as their own champion. The results will be decided on by a combat system. The loser will be killed. If three of these challenges are lost, the Mongols will invade. This will be very bad for the town.
The Weapons Store:
There is a store of weapons in the fortress. It is operated mechanically, and a player must pay some of the little money he has saved into a receiving slot to get the weaponry, equipment or armour he wants. Gold may be gained by looting the body of a Mongol champion, or by killing people. A per turn bonus is being considered, but isn't likely.
Fighting:
Every player has set fighting skills, from 1-10, at the start of the game. By certain actions, they may increase these fighting skills and gain proficiency with different weapons. They must gain the weapons in question to use these proficiencies, though. Some players will start with weapons. Others will be less fortunate. Certain weapons will be triggered and granted to players by certain events. Some of these triggers may be shown beforehand, others may not be.
The seven weapon proficiencies are: Bow, Mace/Staff, Sword, Spear, Axe, Fist, Knife
There is at least one weapon for each proficiency available. Fist proficiency does not require a weapon to use but is fairly ineffective. I do not intend to turn the game into a number-crunching D&D type battle system. Combat will be relatively simple to understand. Anyone may kill using weapon skills at night. Suffice to say, this is a risky strategy.
Duels:
Three duels per round. Same combat system as not described fully above. Players may not fight more than one player in a round, nor may they make more than one challenge in a round. The player who triumphs in a duel will get a payment from the
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Basic victory:
The town wins when all spies are dead
The spies win when all Orgahs are dead. A Mongol assault does not mean an automatic loss for the townies, but will certainly result in more trouble for them.
So, anyone interested? Fighting will be kept secondary to lynchings and spy kills. Special roles should be available for just about everyone, unless we get a really large number of participants, at which point they'll run out of originality.