Leaving Limbo [Concluded]

[LazyMcCrow]

I wish I was, then Id be in line for a victory. Instead my splitter faction died a terrible death

Vote: Neri

Note: This vote did not count as scottishranger did not unvote his previous vote on Visorslash

[LazyMcCrow]

DAY SEVEN

VOTED TO KILL:

Visorslash: BSmith, Neri, Scottishranger

Neri: Visorslash



With a grim look of determination, Visorslash pumped his arms and picked his knees up, as he sprinted along a rusty walkway and under a large concrete archway. Slowing briefly to look behind him, his eyes flashed with anger as he saw BSmith, Neri and scottishranger gain the walkway - still apparently hot on his tail.

Visorslash briefly considered attempting to break the ancient walkway and send them hurtling down to their doom, but quickly assessed that there was not enough time before they cleared the gangway and he was probably not strong enough anyway.

He ran on.

The echo of Visorslash's footsteps rang around the dark hall, accompanied by the ever-increasing deep boom of machinery. As the small boy cornered the space opened up into a cavernous hall - a thin walkway, one handrail limply hanging on to the rusting grill of its base - stretched from the concrete ledge, out into the blackness.

Visorslash paused and looked about him for any possible alternatives. The ledge ended to either side of him at sheer concrete walls, above him, the grinding teeth of vast cogs turning, methodically punctuated the gloom. Beyond the ledge, below the walkway: A dark abyss.

Offered no alternative, Visorslash pressed on. He felt the walkway rattle with each of his light footfalls and he trusted to his balance - staring out into the darkness before him as he ran on - determined not to look down.

A platform loomed up before him, and as Visorslash cleared the walkway onto it, he heard his pursuers enter the cavern behind him and pause as he had... as he was doing now.

The platform was a huge concrete block, rising from the depths. About ten metres square, the platform was bare but for a small control panel and lever, mounted at the far side of it. Next to the panel reared the tooth of a huge cog, the top and bottom of which were hidden in the dark.

Visorslash made a tentative leap, but he could not reach the lip of the cogs tooth. There was no way off the platform except forward on to the cog, or back the way he had come and the pounding feet of his accusers ruled out that possibilty in an instant. With no other options, Visorslash pulled the lever on the control panel and his heart leapt as a huge rumbling rose from the depths, marked by the shrieking of metal and gears as they slowly crawled to life. The cog tooth before him inexorably began to move - thankfully upward - albeit with the slowness of the truly gargantuan. The small boy hopped from foot to foot as the tooth cleared the edge of the platform and the next began to rise into view. As it did so, he realised the other three boys had reached the platform. BSmith ran toward him as he jumped and scrambled atop the gleaming dark metal of the cogs tooth. The three boys shouted at him as he rose quickly up - the cog was accelerating rapidly and he adjusted himself quickly to maintain his footing. Then the angry faces of the boys below, sank out of sight as the cog turned. It seemed they were not desperate enough to chase him further and Visorslash allowed himself a steady breath before turning ahead in readiness for what might appear before him next.

The pitch surface he was wedged into reached the apex of the cog and Visorslash pressed his foot against the flank of the tooth in front of him, staring wide-eyed for any sign of a way onward.

He only saw the huge tooth of the descending cog a second before it pressed itself into the one he was riding. No time to cry out, no time to leap back - no where to go: Visorslash was turned into a thin bloody jam as the massive gear ground down apon him.

Back on the platform the three remaining boys could only guess at Visorslash's fate. They huddled together after their chase and - once they had got their breath back, decided what they should do. First they stopped the cog turning. If Visorslash was the Free Spirit, they reasoned that they could sleep comfortably here - safe in the knowledge that there was no way the cog could be traversed without their hearing it - and that would depend on their being another terminal at the other side to set it in reverse motion.

The boys did not discuss the possibility that Visorslash was not guilty, but the small boy called scottishranger appeared openly fearful and his eyes flicked between the large bulk of BSmith and the smaller frame of Neri - expecting either one of them to leap to their feet and attack him that instant.

Neither did and soon the three boys lay down to sleep.

IT IS NOW NIGHT SEVEN - NIGHT WILL END IN APPROX. 24 HOURS

ALIVE
Neri
BSmith
Scottishranger

DEAD
Arjos (Killed Night Zero)
landlubber (Lynched Day One)
Classical Hero (Killed Night One)
Ishmael (Killed Night One)
Chaotix (Lynched Day Two)
Jarema (Killed Night Two)
Montmorency (Lynched Day Three)
Atheotes (Killed Night Three)
DaveShack (Killed Night Four)
Zack (Lynched after Tied Vote Day Five)
Seon (Killed Night Five)
Subotan (Lynched after Tied Vote Day Six)
Askthepizzaguy (Killed Night Six)
Visorslash (Lynched Day Seven)

[Neri]

BSmith is a Big 'Un, so as far as I can tell he can't be a Free Spirit. Scottishranger, however, has no protections.

Vote: scottishranger.

[LazyMcCrow]

BSmith is a Big 'Un, so as far as I can tell he can't be a Free Spirit. Scottishranger, however, has no protections.

Vote: scottishranger.

It is night :)

[Neri]

Ah, whoops, these 48-hour cycles mess with me. Unvote, I guess?

[Montmorency]

I have lost.

gg

[scottishranger]

Gah. Neri must die then. Its already been established I am a splitter, a neutral faction that cant win anymore cause we needed votes. If BSsmith is a big un, that leaves Neri

[Montmorency]

That was the last lynch...

[Neri]

Sorry, when was it established that you were a splitter?

[scottishranger]

when i was the second person to vote for leaving limbo? and the fact that it is my role.

Anyways if that is the last lynch then good game, to bad about this ending though :(

[Neri]

Being the second person to put on a show means nothing except that you have accomplices, and maybe not even that.

[LazyMcCrow]

NIGHT SEVEN HAS ENDED - WRITE UP TO FOLLOW

[LazyMcCrow]

NIGHT SEVEN

Neri had trouble getting to sleep. Even as the other two were curled up and attempting to lose themselves to the temporary escape sleep offered, he couldn't help but blurt out accusations at the other small child, scottishranger. Eventually, exhaustion overtook him and he passed out, mutters and whimpers occasionally spluttering from his lips.

The darkness this deep in the complex, was the same at night as it was during the day. Neri had no idea of the time, but it certainly felt as if hours had passed when he woke with a jump: A shrill cry breaking the silence.

Neri's hand instinctively clamped to his own mouth, in case he had been the source of the shriek, and he jumped to his feet. He struggled to get his bearings and vigorously rubbed the smudge of sleep from his eyes. The huge cog remained stationary above him, and he span around in time to see his last two companions, struggling at the edge of the concrete platform. BSmith had scottishranger's arms pinned and was shuffling his feet while the smaller boy struggled ineffectually.

It was obvious that the larger child would win the battle.

For an instant Neri felt the impulse to charge at the pair and knock them both into the blackness, but his body seemed somehow detached from his mind and he remained an observer to the events as they unfolded.

Shifting his weight, BSmith found some purchase on the dusty floor and shoved the smaller boy as hard as he could - simultaneously releasing scottishranger's arms from his grip.

For a second the Little 'Un hung in the air, his mouth a silent 'O' - eyes wide as saucers staring madly at Neri - and then he plunged from view, the scream only rising after he had disappeared, but it lasted what seemed like an age before ending abruptly far below.

The whole time scottishranger was falling, Neri had kept his eyes trained on BSmith. The big boy turned, once the scream had ended and his eyes flashed at Neri.

'p-please, let me go...' Neri felt himself backing into the control panel, legs moving automatically away from the remaining Free Spirit before him. BSmith said nothing but stared at Neri and slowly moved toward him.

In the blind panic of utter despair, Neri's hearing faded into a cotton wool sludge and he felt himself turn and run. He only got three feet before the ground beneath him ended at the ledge of the concrete platform and he felt his limbs cartwheel into the darkness of Limbo.

BSmith - or 'Player One' as he was known, stood for a moment, looking down into the black. He had lost a good friend, his good buddy 'Player Two' had been an early casualty in their quest to destroy the Lost Tribe, but he felt the elation of having eliminated the threat none the less - and was gladdened by the thought that any Free Spirit who had to suffer the same journey; would be able to do so without the threat of the cursed children of the Lost Tribe.

BSmith turned and ran back the way he had come. This chapter of his ordeal over, and his journey through Limbo could finally continue.


GAME END - Mafia Victory!

Role Allocation

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

1. Visorslash
2. Arjos
3. Jarema
4. Subotan
5. Neri
6. Montmorency
7. Classical Hero
8. Ishmael
9. BSmith
10. DaveShack
11. landlubber
12. Chaotix
13. Seon
14. Scottishranger
15. Atheotes
16. Zack
17. Askthepizzaguy


1 x SK (1 Kill) (1) = Big 'Un
2 x Mafia (1 Kill) (2+3) = 1 Big 'Un & 1 Little 'Un
3 x Neutral (4 - 6) = Little 'Uns
11 x Town (7 - 17) = 2 Big 'Uns & 9 Little 'Uns

Random Sequence:

SK
12 CHAOTIX


MAFIA
9 BSMITH
8 ISHMAEL

NEUTRAL
7 CLASSICAL HERO
16 ZACK
14 SCOTTISH RANGER


TOWN
11 LANDLUBBER
15 ATHEOTES
13 SEON
6 MONTMORENCY
1 VISORSLASH
5 NERI
4 SUBOTAN
10 DAVESHACK
3 JAREMA
17 ASKTHEPIZZAGUY
2 ARJOS

I've enjoyed hosting my first game on the org and hoped you enjoyed playing.
Thanks to all of you for contributing and a special thanks to Askthepizzaguy & General Hankerchief for their invaluable advice on game balance while I was coming up with the game*.
Hope to see you all in another game soon.

*It is entirely possible that I did not correctly balance this game. The numbers of Big 'Uns and Little 'Uns - the number of 'Splitters' were all changed a few times before I started the game. I also ditched a detective role :D But some of the close calls were crazy - BSmith DID narrowly avoid the - seemingly random? - lynch by the flip of a coin, not to mention the close attempts by the splitters - even with only three of them able to win with a successful 'Leave Limbo' result.

Anyway - I would welcome any feedback - it was certainly a good learning experience and whether or not you guys feel it was balanced, I hope to do better next time :)

[Ishmael]

I won my first game as mafia! Yay!

...and of course by 'I won,' I mean that 'BSmith won, and I tagged along for the ride.' Full credit to him for our victory. Thanks Lazy for hosting (and your great write-ups), and well played everybody else - you had us sweating in that tied round, let me tell you.

[Ishmael]

Either you're a Free Spirit; or, you are seriously, with a straight face, espousing what is quite frankly one of the dumbest theories to ever grace the game of mafia.

You picked it Zack . I apologise if any of my comments came off as rude, but as you can see I was just trying to deflect attention away from BSmith.

Also, here's the Mafia QT for anybody that's interested.

[BSmith]

Thanks Ishmael – you were a great partner and like I said in the QT, this was a team effort to the end!

This was a quite enjoyable game for me, made even more enjoyable by actually winning. We had some big ups (surviving the coin toss) and big downs (Ishmael getting killed N2) with some luck thrown in there too!

[Zack]

You picked it Zack . I apologise if any of my comments came off as rude, but as you can see I was just trying to deflect attention away from BSmith.

Well, if anything I was the rude one, not you.

Good job, BSmith, I didn't suspect you hardly at all, even if I wasn't trying to scumhunt at all. I would have guessed Neri was the last mafia.

And bad job town, for wasting all that time lynching off the Splitters.

[Neri]

I think this officially makes me the least helpful townie ever... I'm not entirely sure how I survived.

[Montmorency]

Ah, Chaotix. At least your lynch was a good idea. You had already done your bit.

Good job, BSmith. You made effective use of your role as a cover.

Looka likw you were finally scum, Ishmael.

[Zack]

Ah, Chaotix. At least your lynch was a good idea. You had already done your bit.

Chaotix was more effective at fighting the mafia than the town was! I love it!

[scottishranger]

Told ya not to waste time lynching neutral splitters. However I never thought that the mafia would be big uns! Good game Lazy!

[Ishmael]

It's worth noting that I was a Little 'Un (which is why Chaotix was able to kill me). I'm still not sure why the town thought that all the Free Spirits were Little 'Uns though - I seem to recall it originating with something Chaotix said, and as a serial killer you wouldn't consider him to be the most trustworthy.

[Montmorency]

and as a serial killer you wouldn't consider him to be the most trustworthy.

Hey!

[BSmith]

I'm not entirely sure how I survived.

You were pretty much always on my side, or pushing ideas that benefited me - all the way to the end. You also made some of the exact same arguments I was going to make, especially when pushing for Subotan's lynch, but got there before I did. That and you were drawing valuable lynch attention away from me.

I figured it would be bad form to kill you off.

Question for the group - why didn't you question the Seon kill? I think that was make-or-break for me as I had just come off the tie-breaker and figured I'd be getting more attention the next day.

[landlubber]

I think this officially makes me the least helpful townie ever...

In your dreams, I have that title for this game. ;)

[Chaotix]

Ah, Chaotix. At least your lynch was a good idea. You had already done your bit.

Good job, BSmith. You made effective use of your role as a cover.

Looka likw you were finally scum, Ishmael.

I guess so!

I think I have a surprising knack for nailing scum with first-night kills as a neutral-ish role.

Congrats to BSmith for going all the way to the end, and to Ishmael for concealing your Free-Spirit-ness so well.

[Seon]

You were pretty much always on my side, or pushing ideas that benefited me - all the way to the end. You also made some of the exact same arguments I was going to make, especially when pushing for Subotan's lynch, but got there before I did. That and you were drawing valuable lynch attention away from me.

I figured it would be bad form to kill you off.

Question for the group - why didn't you question the Seon kill? I think that was make-or-break for me as I had just come off the tie-breaker and figured I'd be getting more attention the next day.

I knew that you smelled like scum. I didn't know why, but you somehow seemed...off... to my eyes. I was trying to prepare a case against you when I got killed. -_-