California Trilogy - Going to San Francisco (Game Over!)

[Thesp]

Time's running out, town.

[Mr. Grey]

Final Vote Count:

Thesp: 2 (curiouskarmadog, Gaspar)
No Lynch: 1 (Thesp)

Condorcet Winner:

Thesp

Pairwise Results: 2-1, 3-1, 2-1, 2-1

To view the complete table of pairwise results, put this information in this form.

[Mr. Grey]

Love Bug

"I left my heart in San Francisco.
High on a hill, it calls to me,
To be where little cable cars climb halfway to the stars.
The morning fog may chill the air, I don't care..."

"You know, I just realized something."

The four remaining passengers from the crash of Bus 815 sit around the body of Michael Jackson waiting for Mr. Grey and/or his assistant to return. They've been sitting here in the dark for hours, bored, sipping pink champagne (where did that come from?), seeming to recall something about a lack of internet access... but why should that be relevant to Mr. Grey's lack of arrival here? So much has happened in the past six days that they just take it in stride and don't think much about it.

"What's that?"

"There were an awful lot of musicians on that bus."

"Oh, are you claiming to be a musician now, too?"

"I played bass, back in the day. Walking Fish, they called me."

The man the others have come to call Thesp nods sadly. Soon, he won't be able to play bass any longer. The others have kinda sorta decided to kill him. They're acting rather... what's the word? Ambivalent? Nonchalant? Whatever. It doesn't matter, anyway. There's nowhere to run. And eventually Mr. Grey and that scary assistant of his will return and that will be that.

"Walking Fish? What a silly name."

"Yeah."

"I'd suggest killing you for that if we weren't already."

"You could still change your mind."

"No, they can't."

The guests turn as Mr. Grey finally enters the room.

"So sorry for the delay. You know how it is. Never a dull moment. Anyhow, no time for pleasantries. You..."

He points to Thesp.

"...need to die."

He snaps his fingers, and a hole opens in the floor. There is no cartoonish moment of Thesp floating in the empty space above the hole. There is only falling, and falling, and a distant splat.

"He was who he claimed to be. And now... sleep."

---

Thesp (Victor Conte, SCAPE) has been lynched. It is Night 6. Deadline for choices is 12:00 GMT Sunday.

[Mr. Grey]

Golden Gate

"..."

curiouskarmadog, destructor, and Gaspar walk into a pub. Wait, no, wrong story.

curiouskarmadog, destructor, and Gaspar are sitting around an old radio, messing with the dial. All three are surprised to still be alive.

"..."

Last night is a blur. One minute, Mr. Grey was there talking to them, and the next... well, it's as if with a snap of his fingers he put them all to sleep. They woke half an hour earlier as the sun hit just the right elevation to reflect off the polished metal lining the window panes right into their eyes. Whatever caused their slumber doesn't seem to have any lingering ill effects.

"...back..."

"There, go back. You almost had it."

"Had what?"

"That song. You don't hear that song?"

"...Relax... ...receive..."

"What the frak is that?"

One of them starts to fiddle with the dial some more, but they are interrupted by the door flying open. They turn expecting to see Mr. Grey, but instead...

"You two!"

"Hello."

Sarcastro and IH (who looks... different) - the two missing passengers - are standing in the doorway. The three around the radio jump up, unsure whether to cheer, run away, or go crazy.

"Where have you been??"

Sarcastro has a glazed look in his eyes. He ignores the question and instead says:

"There must be some way out of here."

He blinks, and shakes his head.

"No. That's not right."

IH... or... someone wearing an IH suit snaps a finger and the radio suddenly comes on:

"...you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave!"

"What the... what's going on here? You two look... different somehow. Almost..."

Something clicks.

"Oh my..."

"Yes. It's true. We're Cylons. And we have been from the start."

"Dead. Not Cylons."

"Dead. Right. Whatever."

And with this, both collapse. As the life leaves them, their bodies rapidly deteriorate. The flesh, long dead, now snaps back like a broken rubber band into its natural, rotted state.

Mr. Grey's assistant enters.

"You probably have a few questions."

"Yes!"

"Ok. As you may have just figured out, three of the passengers on your bus were already dead, well before the killing here started. One body was possessed by an evil spirit, but the other two were looking out for you."

"And SCAPE?"

"Finished. You've thwarted their evil plan to addict children to performance-enhancing drugs through suggestive country tunes. It would have worked, if not for you pesky kids."

"And the Zodiac Killer?"

"Yeah. The Zodiac Killer was just a red herring?"

"Not quite."

He grins a little too widely and pulls out a long, sharp, flawless knife and holds it over his head maniacally. Then he relaxes.

"Good pose, right? Don't worry. None of you are of any use. Just a couple more signs, though, and I'll be able to carry out my ritual. A few carvings into the bodies, and chant or two, some fresh ox blood, and I'll be riding Hale-Bopp before..."

"Hale-Bopp? Wasn't that the comet from the late '90s?"

"Yeah?"

"The one that won't return until the 44th century?"

"The... wait, what? You mean I... it..."

The assistant crumples into a heap on the floor and starts sobbing loudly. Mr. Grey enters behind him.

"Ah. He was bound to find out sooner or later. Now then. I believe that settles that. Your limo is waiting just outside. Have a pleasant journey, and enjoy your stay in San Francisco."

"But what about the ghosts? And the killings? And why did you keep us here? And..."

"So many questions, so little inclination to answer. Bye bye, now..."

The bewildered survivors stumble outside, to freedom.

---

Meanwhile, in another plane of existence...

IT IS TIME TO SAY GOODBYE. I WOULD TELL YOU ALL HOW MUCH I WILL MISS YOU, BUT I LACK THE BIOLOGICAL TOOLS TO ALLOW EITHER SUCH EMOTION OR THE ABILITY TO LIE ABOUT THE LACK THEREOF. SO...

There is something like the "pop" of a bubble bursting, and 15 souls are freed from the Hotel California's metaphysical trap. Some move on to happy places. The dopers and the country-singing dopes go elsewhere, while an unfulfilled roadie tags along behind them.

All is quiet in Mr. Grey's house. And on the seventh day, he rests.

---

The ghosts of the Hotel California have moved on to the afterlife. Click here for their story.

curiouskarmadog (Count de Morcerf), destructor (Huey Lewis), Gaspar (Randy Jones), and (all but one of) the Innocents win!

[Mr. Grey]

Mr. Grey will return in...

"California Trilogy III: City of Angels"

Coming in

Autumn 2008

Spring 2009!

[Mr. Grey]

Roles, Mechanics, etc.

Spreadsheet with Votes and Night Choices

Sample Role PM:

Sample Role PM

Role Name:

Innocent San Franciscan

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You're just a resident of San Francisco on the way home, wondering how you ended up in this situation.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

The SCAPE Mafia:

Role Name:

Victor Conte

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

You escaped Mr. Grey's house, and now you can resume business as usual. You and your business associate, Barry Bonds, have teamed up with the Dixie Chicks to push your wonderful drugs on the unsuspecting public - starting with those oh-so-impressionable children. You're ready to get to San Francisco and off this bus, though. Something about it is making you nervous...

Group:

Victor Conte (Thesp), Barry Bonds (Rogueben), Emily Robison (Niv), Martie Maguire (MrBuddyLee), Natalie Maines (FaerieLord). You may talk to each other by PM at night. Each night, you may send one Mafia member to make a kill attempt on another player (you must specify who is making the kill). However, you may only do this twice during the game. As a group, you also have a one-shot ability to kill during the day. One of you may use this ability by posting

Kill: XXXX

. This ability can only be used before the lynch for the day is determined.

Safe Claim:

You have determined that Robin Williams is not on the bus.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

like

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Role Name:

Barry Bonds

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

Victor Conte is out of jail, with a new plan. Everyone dislikes you anyway, and if

everyone

is addicted to steroids it will be harder for them to judge you, so you're on board with his plan. You're on the way to San Francisco to put the first phase in motion.

Group:

Victor Conte (Thesp), Barry Bonds (Rogueben), Emily Robison (Niv), Martie Maguire (MrBuddyLee), Natalie Maines (FaerieLord). You may talk to each other by PM at night. Each night, you may send one Mafia member to make a kill attempt on another player (you must specify who is making the kill). However, you may only do this twice during the game. As a group, you also have a one-shot ability to kill during the day. One of you may use this ability by posting

Kill: XXXX

. This ability can only be used before the lynch for the day is determined.

Safe Claim:

You have determined that Robin Williams is not on the bus.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

find

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Role Name:

Emily Robison

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

You and your fellow Dixie Chicks have joined forces with Victor Conte to hook children on steroids through the use of country music. Why would you do this? Well, the money certainly helps. But mostly it's because - like all country musicians - you are evil.

Group:

Victor Conte (Thesp), Barry Bonds (Rogueben), Emily Robison (Niv), Martie Maguire (MrBuddyLee), Natalie Maines (FaerieLord). You may talk to each other by PM at night. Each night, you may send one Mafia member to make a kill attempt on another player (you must specify who is making the kill). However, you may only do this twice during the game. As a group, you also have a one-shot ability to kill during the day. One of you may use this ability by posting

Kill: XXXX

. This ability can only be used before the lynch for the day is determined.

Safe Claim:

You have determined that Robin Williams is not on the bus.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

place

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Role Name:

Martie Maguire

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

You and your fellow Dixie Chicks have joined forces with Victor Conte to hook children on steroids through the use of country music. Why would you do this? Well, the money certainly helps. But mostly it's because - like all country musicians - you are evil.

Group:

Victor Conte (Thesp), Barry Bonds (Rogueben), Emily Robison (Niv), Martie Maguire (MrBuddyLee), Natalie Maines (FaerieLord). You may talk to each other by PM at night. Each night, you may send one Mafia member to make a kill attempt on another player (you must specify who is making the kill). However, you may only do this twice during the game. As a group, you also have a one-shot ability to kill during the day. One of you may use this ability by posting

Kill: XXXX

. This ability can only be used before the lynch for the day is determined.

Safe Claim:

You have determined that Robin Williams is not on the bus.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

time

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Role Name:

Natalie Maines

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

You and your fellow Dixie Chicks have joined forces with Victor Conte to hook children on steroids through the use of country music. Why would you do this? Well, the money certainly helps. But mostly it's because - like all country musicians - you are evil.

Group:

Victor Conte (Thesp), Barry Bonds (Rogueben), Emily Robison (Niv), Martie Maguire (MrBuddyLee), Natalie Maines (FaerieLord). You may talk to each other by PM at night. Each night, you may send one Mafia member to make a kill attempt on another player (you must specify who is making the kill). However, you may only do this twice during the game. As a group, you also have a one-shot ability to kill during the day. One of you may use this ability by posting

Kill: XXXX

. This ability can only be used before the lynch for the day is determined.

Safe Claim:

You have determined that Robin Williams is not on the bus.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

leave

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Innocents:

Role Name:

Count de Morcerf

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You thought you were putting the Mr. Grey ordeal behind you, exploring this strange new world. There's something odd about this bus, though, and you have a feeling that something is going to happen. Whatever it is, you've repented of your sins and will do your best to stop whatever evils lie ahead.

Abilities:

Each night, you may choose one dead player to investigate. You may receive a clue from this investigation.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

back

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Mod Note:

Receives clue left by ghost (if any), or a hint that the player has been dead for a long time (in the case of a moved-on original ghost).

Role Name:

Keith Hernandez

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You're Keith Hernandez! You can get whoever you want! And you're not picky...

Abilities:

Each night, you may choose one player to seduce. They will be blocked from all night actions.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

never

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Robert Graysmith

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You used to be a humble cartoonist. Now, you're an expert on the Zodiac Killer. You're on the way to San Francisco to present your findings, but you should keep an eye out. You never know where the killer might be hiding.

Abilities:

Each night, you may choose one player to investigate. You will be told if that player is the Zodiac Killer.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

last

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Mod Note:

There is no Zodiac Killer. Revealing Mr. Grey's assistant as the Zodiac Killer is just flavor; both Mr. Grey and the assistant were off-limits for investigation.

Role Name:

Roadie

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

Years of travel with musicians has led you to one conclusion: crazy stuff tends to happen around them. You don't know what lies ahead, but you want to make it out alive.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

door

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and you are still alive.

Mod Note:

Can still win if he doesn't survive; see ghost PM.

Role Name:

Björk

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

I once had no fears
none at all
and then when
I had some

to my surprise
I grew to like both
scared or brave
without them

the thrill of fear
thought I'd never admit it
the thrill of fear
now greatly enjoyed with courage

when I once was
untouchable
innocence roared
still amazes

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

thing

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Carlos Santana

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

"The most valuable possession you can own is an open heart. The most powerful weapon you can be is an instrument of peace."

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

night

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Mod Note:

Gains Ghost Doctor ability on death.

Role Name:

Gordon E. Moore

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You helped found Intel. You even have a law named after you. So what are you doing on this bus?

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

passage

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Huey Lewis

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You're on the way to San Francisco for a celebrity golfing event. As much as you like golf, you're pretty bored by the whole idea. Maybe something interesting will come up.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

relax

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Lars Ulrich

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

Now I lay me down to sleep,
Pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I die before I wake,
Pray the Lord my soul to take.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

before

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Michael Jackson

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

No one's gonna save you from the beast about to strike...

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

said

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Mod Note:

Gains Ghost Thriller Sense on death.

Role Name:

Randy Jones

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

Whoa there, cowboy!

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

receive

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Mod Note:

Gains Ghost Vigilante ability on death.

Role Name:

Innocent San Franciscan

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You're just a resident of San Francisco on the way home, wondering how you ended up in this situation.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

running

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Ghost Traitor:

Role Name:

Jim Jones

Alignment:

The SCAPE (Steroids, Children, and Profit! Enterprises) Mafia

Flavor Text:

Since Jonestown, your spirit has roamed far and wide, looking for opportunities to make people miserable. There's only so much you can do as a ghost, so your affect has thus far been minimal - even when possessing people, you have difficulty getting them to do anything they wouldn't anyway. However, you can sense an evil group on this bus, and you have decided to help them in whatever way you can.

Group:

FaerieLord, MrBuddyLee, Niv, Rogueben, Thesp

Safe Claim:

You have been possessing the body of an Innocent Fresnino.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

checkout

.

Win Condition:

You win if at least one SCAPE member is alive, and everyone else is dead (or if nothing can prevent this from happening).

Ghosts:

Role Name:

Ray Charles

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

You can't see evil. And you aren't AniX. You'll just have to use your gut.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

remember

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Role Name:

Baron Danglers

Alignment:

Innocent

Flavor Text:

The last thing you remember is that a large man was approaching you in the night, and then... well, now you're on a bus. Strange.

Abilities:

You have no night abilities.

Secret Word:

Your secret word is:

programmed

.

Win Condition:

You win if all threats to the town are eliminated and at least one innocent is alive.

Ghost PM:

SCAPE

You're dead! But it's not the end... now you get to haunt the living!

You may only post in the Hotel California thread, with the other ghosts. You have read-only access to the Basement, and may of course read the main thread, but do not post there. You are dead.

Your win condition is unchanged. You may discuss with your fellow SCAPE-aligned ghosts (which includes Sarcastro, the ghost traitor) here. In addition, you have a one-shot ghostkill which can be used at any time to eliminate a ghost permanently (takes affect at the end of that Day/Night cycle). Only one such kill can be used by your group per cycle.

You may leave a one word "clue" with your body. You do not have to leave this clue immediately, but once you have chosen your word you may not change it. Player names count as one word for the purpose of this ability.

Ghost PM:

Innocent

You're dead! But it's not the end... now you get to haunt the living!

You may only post in the Hotel California thread, with the other ghosts. You have read-only access to the Basement, and may of course read the main thread, but do not post there. You are dead.

Your win condition is unchanged.

You may leave a one word "clue" with your body. You do not have to leave this clue immediately, but once you have chosen your word you may not change it. Player names count as one word for the purpose of this ability.

Ghost PM:

Roadie Addition

Your win condition is changed as follows: List the living players in the order of your choosing. The highest on your list who survives the night will become your target. You win if all threats to the town

and the target

are eliminated. Note that if you choose a threat to the town, your win condition reduces to the town win condition, so choose wisely.

Ghost PM:

Carlos Santana Addition

Your win condition is unchanged. You have, however, gained an ability: during each Day/Night cycle, you may protect one ghost, preventing them from being forced to "move on".

Ghost PM:

Michael Jackson Addition

Your win condition is unchanged. You have, however, gained an ability: your "thriller" sense is tingling... you can tell that at least one player (among those not confirmed-SCAPE) has something other than the innocent win condition.

Mod Note:

Secret words are words from the final verse of Hotel California. Flavor Scenes were composed of the following parts:

All scene titles are song titles (assosicated with the dying player, if that player is a musician).
Lyrics from a song about/relating to San Francisco.
Words/phrases from Hotel California scattered throughout.

Thanks for playing!

[curiouskarmadog]

my mind just exploded...ghost mechanic? ghost words? ghost killings? and all I got was "hotel"? Glad I didnt get Niv's clue, that would have sent me going down the wrong path, which I think might have been game changing.

Sorry to have to lie about my name..I figured if told you the truth, I would be lynched faster than I could have argued.

fun game, reading the ghost forum was great. wonder if the Count will be in the 3rd game since he has survived another game.

[MrBuddyLee]

Brilliant, thank you mith.

Teammates, I'm sorry I let you down. Nothing I did remotely resembled scumhunting D1/2. Yuck.

Nice work, town. Way to clean house.

Sarcastro has a glazed look in his eyes. He ignores the question and instead says:

"There must be some way out of here."

He blinks, and shakes his head.

Sarc=Joker, IH=Thief

[Nibbler Twins]

Mr. Grey will return in...

"California Trilogy III: City of Angels"

Coming in Autumn 2008!

Pre /in as Nibbler Twins if Guardian is available, or if not, one of my many glorious aliases.

[FaerieLord]

Oh yeah, pre /in to III as well. I really liked this game.

[curiouskarmadog]

yeah, pre/in as well if you are taking them..

Nibbler was a guardian alt?

how funny.

[Xtoxm]

pre /in to if allowed great game!

[curiouskarmadog]

somebody should nominate this game...I will second.

[Flameaxe]

I might as well pre-in too. I might double-head with someone that stays though...

[Niv]

pre /in. would love to try a double head if someone will take on the suckage

[PookyTheMagicalBear]

dat was fun

thx for modding

[Gorrad]

Very pre-/in

[Gaspar]

Well golly gee.

Somebody's going to have to explain this whole Hotel California deal, because there's an awful lot that I still really don't get.


Also, I suppose I'm obliged to finish off the series once City of Angels rolls around....

[Guardian]

Nibbler was a dual head of DGB and Guardian... that started dead.

Good job townies, game well played by all!

Excellently dome mith, good game, even though I'd have liked to have not started dead!

Brilliant fun DGB, I'd love to again.

[DrippingGoofball]

Brilliant fun DGB, I'd love to again.

It was nice to be smart half the time!

[NabakovNabakov]

Somebody's going to have to explain this whole Hotel California deal, because there's an awful lot that I still really don't get.

Most of the NK's came from a majority vote of the ghosts. They were like a vig by committee. It was pretty effective because all dead players who came to the hotel were confirmed as town or scum. That seriously cut down on the deception/suspicion factor.

Bah, my role was just asking for the ghost kill. I feel awful that I didn't do anything afterwards though.

GG

[destructor]

I'm very happy we won, but I'm almost embarrassed by how I played. I didn't really get much done besides staying alive. =/

I'm looking over the setup now and it looks nuts. The Ghost thing is great. While it seem to favour the town, I realised that every scum that we lynched made it harder for the town-Ghosts to control the nightkill.

[OhGodMyLife]

I have to give props to Fae and Niv for keeping us guessing up until it really became clear that SCAPE was a full blown scumgroup. The haunting of Pooky was pretty much entirely a result of their deceiving us.

Definitely a good game, could have gone either way right up to the end.

*Shakes fist at MBL*

[PookyTheMagicalBear]

yea

i still cant believe u guys let them talk you into thinking i was their cult leader.

[Glork]

yea

i still cant believe u guys let them talk you into thinking i was their cult leader.

...this sounds interesting. Mith, is there any way we could gain access to Hotel California? I would be VERY interested to read it.


All in all, I'm thrilled with the way I played. Early reads on Fae, MBL, and Thesp were all accurate, and I managed to find Rogueben. Endgame was rough -- I was so upset when Thesp flipped SCAPE that I was pretty much ready to write a lengthy rant. I'd probably have ended up defending Niv until the bitter end -- my fatal flaw is that in scumgroups of 3+ people, I always manage to decide that exactly ONE of them is very very protown.