Theme Test Market

[DemonHybrid]

I have a theme game that I might want to run in the distant future (after I'm through modding a few games to get the experience). Posting for thoughts. I trust that no one will take the idea before I get to run it <3

Stop Light Mafia.

Starts off at night. There are two sets of PRs given out: Red and Green power roles. Each person gets a Green PR and a Red PR (or vanilla/goon, of course). They also may get post restrictions associated with the color.

Anyway, at night, mafia chooses who to kill, of course. Game would start off on Red light, therefore making everyone their Red PRs and giving them the chance to use the night actions of their Red PRs. Mafia ALSO chooses who the "Stoplight" is for the day; they can choose one of themselves as the stoplight as well. The stoplight will be announced by the mod. This person, during the day, posts ONLY in either fully red or fully green text each post. Whatever color they post in, all of the PRs and post restrictions (if any) change to whatever color the stoplight posts in. This may effect the game by allowing day actions, and of course, changes the post restrictions; cue funny results. When someone gets lynched, the stoplight chooses once more the color that will be in effect during the night in twilight phase, and then night begins. Play continues until end.

Thoughts?

[DemonHybrid]

Boo, more thoughts

I wanna start putting this together =)

[DemonHybrid]

As far as the mafia choosing the stoplight, I figure this. Let's say you have two sets of mafia PRs, the green set and the red set. For simplicity's sake, lets say there's a mini setup, so 12 people, 3 mafia.

Format is Green PR/Red PR, post restrictions not included.

Mafioso 1 is Godfather/Poisoner
Mafioso 2 is Roleblocker/Dayvig
Mafioso 3 is Goon/Roleblocker

This meaning that whenever the stoplight posts in all green, the mafia setup would be this: Godfather, Roleblocker, Goon for each of the mafiosos, respectively, 1 2 and 3.
When the stoplight posts in all red, the mafia setup would be Poisoner, Dayvig, Roleblocker. I'm making it overpowered for a reason, just a sec. It won't be overpowered during the real game, but I'm doing this for exaggeration's sake.

Now, lets say mafia chooses the stoplight. Here's where the magic happens with the mechanic: if mafia chooses to keep choosing a mafioso to be the stoplight, and they try to keep it on red as long as possible, 3 questions will start to come up:

1. Why are you three the ones with the stoplight all game?
2. Why do you want to keep it on red? Is there a reason?
3. You guys seem to be buddying with the stoplight...what's the deal?

Also, along with this, little do they know that there could be roles to counter their powerful little team (If the dayvig targets something like....a redirector-type role, or a bulletproof townie..they wouldn't know it till it's too late). This is something they all have to keep in mind, and trying to exploit the stoplight could spell disaster for them.

I suppose I could let everyone vote to see who becomes the stoplight after the nightkill flip, but it has an interesting effect the original way. One of the problems I ran into is if I wanted to do SKs or other third-party roles...what if all the mafioso are dead and the 3rd parties are still alive? Secretly tell them that they have the choice? So...having everyone vote might be the valid way to go. Have a Day, Twilight, Night and Stoplight phase. No one posts anything BUT a vote to see who the stoplight is (similar to a lynch), and then play resumes.

The Kingmaker idea is valid too; I'd have to research it and see how it could relate.

Also...as far as the PRs having particular themes, maybe or maybe not. I could get a little creative with them, however, I might just keep them the same. Already a lot going on.

With this game, wincons will ALWAYS stay the same. If there's an SK, he goes from SK with x power to an SK with y power (or no power at all) depending on the color. Mafiosos are mafiosos all game, town is town all game. The color-changing just decides what PR they are. It's almost like playing two games in one with the same wincon. Makes things mega interesting once everyone's got the hang of it.

[DemonHybrid]

And yeah, it's extremely swingy, but therein lies the fun. Everyone will fight to become friends with the stoplight and try to convince them to change the color to their preference.

Mafia can get double the exploitation, Town can get double the PR use IF both are careful. It all depends on who the stoplight listens to.

Actually...while typing the sentence before this one, I suppose having everyone vote for the stoplight would be the most ideal situation. What do you think?

[DemonHybrid]

Yeah, I figured you were going for that, sounds like there would be some fun interactions. From the sounds of it I'm guessing you are deliberately going to make one colour more powerful for the mafia, or at least have the roles be very different?

Have the roles be very different. The balance will be the same for both colors; I just made red more powerful in that specific example for the sake of argument.

[DemonHybrid]

Exactly. I agree with you.

[DemonHybrid]

I overpowered the Red side to make that more appealing to the mafia in that specific example only, so that they would definitely be more inclined to choose Red in order to explain the desire for certain people to choose a specific color. In the real game, both colors will be well balanced, but figured for ease of explanation in that example, I'd make one of the colors clearly the favorite for mafia.

As long as you guys get the idea, just know that I'd be balancing both colors, don't worry.

[DemonHybrid]

So, updated version of this, with updated full-game sample (much more balanced this time):

Let's say we have 12 people, mini theme (planning on making this a large theme game, not a mini). Again, format is Green PR/Red PR.

Mafia A has Goon/Roleblocker
Mafia B has Godfather/Goon
Mafia C has Roleblocker/Framer
Townie 1 has VT/VT
Townie 2 has VT/Cop
Townie 3 has Doctor/VT
Townie 4 has Tracker/Jailkeeper
5 has VT/Miller
6 has VT/VT
7 has Nurse/VT
8 has 1 shot dayvig/VT
9 has VT/VT

Game starts off on Night 0, PRs start off on red. Mafia chooses to kill Townie 6. He flips "Red Light Vanilla Townie, Green Light Vanilla Townie". Stoplight phase then comes after the flip. No one says a word; they just vote for who they think the stoplight should be by saying

Stoplight: X

. Let's say everyone votes townie 9 as the stoplight. Now, day starts, and everyone starts voting he won't care what color it is, so he might switch back and forth for the hell of it. Maybe someone's post restriction annoys him, whatever, but here's Townie 8 with an obvious desire to have the color Green at all times. People start wondering why Townie 8 wants it green and suspects him because of it. Maybe mafia has a day-role? A daycop, or a dayvig perhaps? They lynch him because of it. He flips "Green Light 1-shot Day Vigilante, Red Light Vanilla Townie".

In twilight, before the flip, the stoplight posts once more:

Color: Red

. So, the player list is this: Roleblocker, Goon, Framer, VT, Cop, VT, Jailkeeper, Miller, VT, VT.

Cop gets a guilty on the Miller, Jailkeeper and Roleblocker counter RB. Goon kills Townie 7. He flips "Green Light Nurse, Red Light Vanilla Townie". After the flip, again, no one says a word, and they vote for the stoplight.

Stoplight: X

. This time, they vote Townie 5 as the stoplight.....but the cop outs himself and says that Townie 5 is guilty. Everyone believes him and votes the stoplight to a lynch. Before he flips, the lynched stoplight goes

Color: Green

and the flips "Green Light VT, Red Light Town Miller".

Now the PRs for the night are Goon, Godfather, Roleblocker, VT, VT, Doctor, Tracker, VT. Mafia attempts to kill Townie 2 (Now a VT, but still with the knowledge of whatever investigations he has)...but wait! Townie 3 decides to protect Townie 2 after the miller flip! He's more use to us alive, he thinks to himself. Roleblocker blocks a VT, and the Tracker tracks the godfather, who went to kill the cop! Again, stoplight phase starts...but no flip. No one dies. They choose Townie 3 as the stoplight. Then day starts.

Tracker outs himself...why would Mafia B target the cop? They lynch Mafia B and Townie 3 says

Color: Green

to keep himself as the doctor. Mafia B flips "Green Light Mafia Godfather, Red Light Mafia Goon". Night starts, and they decide to kill Townie 3. The Roleblocker RBs the tracker. So, townie 3 flips "Green Light Doctor, Red Light VT". Ahh...so THAT'S why he wanted the light Green. They decided not to target Townie 2, taking the chance that he's only a VT on Green Light. Stoplight phase starts, and they choose Mafia A as the stoplight...uh oh.

Obviously he's going to want to keep it on Green now that Townie 3 is dead. But his buddy, Mafia C, slips up, and the town lynches him. Mafia A says

Color: Red

(as he wants his RB power) and Mafia C flips "Green Light Roleblocker, Red Light Framer". During the night...PRs are Roleblocker, VT, Cop, Jailkeeper, VT. Mafia A decides to kill the cop...but Jailkeeper decides to jailkeep the cop! Bad decision on the mafioso's part to choose Red for the night. Stoplight and Day phases start....stoplight doesn't matter, because the town put 2 and 2 together and decide to lynch Mafia A. Town win.

Obviously, it could have gone very badly for town. Very swingy, but everyone has full control of what goes on all game. It produces extremely fun results and forces people to use their brains instead of JUST relying on their roles.

[DemonHybrid]

Far_Cry, I would love to play a TF2 themed game, especially if it had some neat, team-based mechanics to it. Keep me posted. Not really interested in any of the other ideas personally.

DH, thanks for breaking it down for me a little more. I understand what you're thinking now, and it sounds like a lot of fun. PM me if you decide to run it.

Will do. Do you want to co-mod it?

I'm thinking of testing it in a mini theme before I move onto bigger and better things.

[DemonHybrid]

To be honest I'd be more interested in playing it than modding it, but I'd be happy to help out.

Oh no nononono, by all means then, play in it. It's going to be a while until I mod this, I still need to mod my normal first, but I have all my materials ready...just waiting for the queue to go by.

[DemonHybrid]

Yes.

[DemonHybrid]

Are you talking about my game? Because you can NK the same person and still kill the same cop...he'd just be a townie at that point in time.

[DemonHybrid]

Someone HAS done a Warcraft mafia, right? Or am I going crazy?

If not, I will make a set-up for it and make it a large Theme.

[DemonHybrid]

I'd like some opinions on a game mechanic that I'll be introducing with my Mortal Kombat Mafia.

In a Day phase, instead of voting to lynch, you vote to choose.

Choose: DemonHybrid

.

Once there has been a majority vote on a choice, that player is chosen for Mortal Kombat. That player can still speak and vote to choose.

The Day continues and you vote to choose another person.

Choose: Faraday

Once a majority vote on the 2nd choice has been reached, Mortal Kombat begins. During that phase, only the two people chosen for Mortal Kombat can speak. However, they cannot vote. The rest of the players vote, but cannot speak other words.

Vote: DemonHybrid

or VOTE: Faraday.

Once a majority has been reached, the surviving player posts one more thing, and then the losing player dies.

A few potential problems:

-Games can dry up when it's just a back and forth between two people
-It may become a "who's a better debater" deal instead of a fight for survival
-It could become boring for those not posting

A few of the upsides:

-Phases can go as quickly or as long as the non-Kombatants choose; they're the ones choosing for the lynch.
-With no justification for votes, it promotes discussion for the next day
-It can be seen as a fight for survival instead of a debate.
-Creates interesting interactions if the two people are on the same faction and they know it
-Focuses scumhunting to two players.

Thoughts? I think I need a more general opinion on this.

[DemonHybrid]

I agree that private votes may tilt it too heavily into scum's favor. Not having it revealed real-time takes the strategy out of it.

[DemonHybrid]

1. If all the votes are public it makes no difference to the game. Town will discuss. The deadline will loom near. Town will choose the scum/compromise. The second kombatant is meaningless because town will all vote for the first person. Therefore, same as a normal lynch.

Would it make a difference if only the kombatants can speak, do you think? And on every day?