My eyes.

My sentiments exactly. Only with an exclamation....My eyes!!!!

May I ask what a 2of4 game is? Not sure I recall seeing that term before.

Can someone do something about SirPrimal's avatars, please ?

It is really getting out of control.

do you not appreciate the art of this (very) slow stop motion animation?

What's wrong with a fake moustache?
Gof'rit!

I liked it when there were two games at once because I could always be in a game, but it didn't mean playing in every single game. It'd be nice to get more players...

I wonder if the Game numbers in the signup threads are offputting to newbies? They might see the high number and think that there'd be a lot of catching up or something. I think something more like "Who wants to play ______ Mafia?" might be better, with ______ being the name of the scenario. Of course we can still put numbers in the actual game thread since the players are captive by then, mbwahahaha!

We need to talk.

http://wiki.mafiascum.net/index.php?title=2of4

I already picked via random.org so as long as I've not lost the document with the stuff it's ready to go and needs only a cursory review, since it's an established setup with no tweaks.

Thank you for the answer. That does seem more like my flavour of mafia, since I'm currently questioning my (and others') sanity. Will probably be interested in a spot, but better to leave it for new players instead.

I think this is a good idea. Might want to let signups run for a bit, so that more people get the chance to see it. And for a game of this nature, I think newbies should have priority, if that should become an issue.

Is there any non-intrusive way we can advertise, other than keeping the signup thread well bumped?

I also think SPF's idea about leaving out the numbers might have some merit. It can't hurt to try, at least.

We could also try a mentor system to help new players, similar to what they have over at MTGS. I'll leave the explanation to them:
"Mentor: an experienced player that offers some of their time to help a new player by being a “behind the scenes” source to answer questions about the game. Questions can range from vocabulary, to previous examples of when game results occurred, to general strategy advice. Mentors are advised to not give play-by-play instructions or make decisions for the new player, but to tell them (usually between phases) what they have done right and wrong already. Suggestions of what to do next are not allowed, and specific examples about other players in the game at hand are not allowed. (Communications with a Mentor are usually handled in a QT monitored by the Mod.)"

I would be totally down to mentor or play. Whatever would help to make this a success.

I think some sort of time bubble would also really help (meaning that the time spent on the mafia game does not actually use up your time). Plus, it would be an awesome thing to have on other occasions, as well.

As said, we need to talk. About Day 1.

I've been thinking about ways to minimize the Day 1 Slog (tm). I figured I'd bring it up now, so that the next mod could take it into consideration for their setup, if they so choose. Of course, if NFY is doing a standardized setup that point might be moot, but whatevs. Anyway, I'd like your input on what you think of these ideas, and if you have any additional ideas of your own.

So, get to it.

-Disallow unvotes. Changing one's vote would of course still be fine, but once your vote is on someone, you can't go back to not voting. The idea is that you keep votes in the system, forcing all players to take some kind of stand.

-When the game starts, the mod posts a vote count where all players are voting (votes decided by random means, of course). Players who want to partake in normal random voting are of course free to move their vote around. Probably best combined with the earlier suggestion of disallowing unvotes, as it ensures that all votes will be active at all points throughout the first day.

-Start the game at Night. It means once Day starts there will be more information (although hidden) among the players, hopefully stimulating early discussion. The biggest concern is that the mafia get to kill, which I strongly oppose since it'd mean at least one player would very likely not get to partake in the game as all. As long as we've only got one game running at a time - meaning the next game could be as much as 3-4 months away - that's completely out of the question for my part.

-Start the game with a no-kill Night (AKA Cop Headstart). Same benefits as above, but since the mafia doesn't get to kill it's a sizable boon for the town. Nothing wrong with that, but mod should take it into consideration when considering balancing.

Input? Anyone?

Anyone on? I typoed a post number and would like a buffer so I don't edit by double post.