Quick Fix 66: Full River Red

[Kasimir he/him]

Hour One: Fade

Water trickled through the clock.

The ancestors used light once, Gaovaris knew. They were ingenious, those ancestors. Before water, they’d turned to light, the way all the Empire now embraced the life-giving light of the eighty radiant suns. Saiman, beloved scholar of Enkidan province had written as much in A Treatise on Light: Ancient Methods of Timekeeping. It had been cited by those as renowned as Master Zhuge himself, in various contexts. They’d never written about the turn to water, though. You could guess why, though.

Light was unreliable, and in the dark hours where the eighty suns retreated below the earth to fight the forces of darkness, the night reigned supreme. You needed a way to tell the time even then. Or you could say: doing so allowed government to function, even late into the night.

Water trickling through the clock. A strange way to measure what might be the last day of their lives.

An ambassador murdered. Vengeance threatened. Always vengeance. It was the honourable thing to do, as the Revered Master himself had written in his Annalects. There were things you had to do; ritual propriety. The ambassador’s death was a desecration. That needed righting.

He knew all that, and still he played his cards. He knew about Imperial lidan–it was an old fascination to have hit the Imperial Seat. A Southern import, as far as Gaovaris knew, but everyone’d taken to it, and soon enough, an Imperial version had emerged. Years and years ago. He played six twos: swords, flowers, cups. The artwork on the card was quite good: a glazed celadon wine cup, the sort you lost many an evening in, while contemplating the writings of the ancestors.

“Six at once?” Randen asked, eying the faded backs of Gaovaris’s hand as though his eyes could pierce them. “Are you sure?”

Gaovaris gave him a bland stare. “In the Art of War, Sahazi writes about the need to act decisively when conditions are favourable. They seem so, do they not?”

 

 

Water trickled through the clock.

Jiang Zhangrong was not going to do something so crass as to admit it out loud, but they were particularly stressed by this sudden, unaccustomed burden. 

They would do what they could. They would do what they must. Duty, as General Hengkai had said, before he’d died defending the Mulla’dil border from Dzhamar all those centuries ago, was heavier than a mountain. Death was lighter than a feather.

You knew this, and still, you could feel the weight come crashing down on you. Soldiers you’d diced with. Laughed with. Broken bread with. You maintained a distance, of course. Regulations were strict about the need to, and the way a proper officer comported themselves. You did all that, and still, the thought of treachery. It made you sick to your stomach. 

Knowing that you would have to produce the traitor. Or else. Or else.

So many scholars, Jiang thought, and allowed themselves to judge. Maybe some sedition came naturally, to those who favoured the ink brush over the sword. 

So very many scholars. 

Still, you couldn’t cry over spilled wine. You had to make the best of the cards you were dealt. Jiang had been given a task. They intended to die discharging it, if they must (preferably not, but sometimes, you never knew; sometimes the eighty suns were unkind. It was said, after all, that shadows, too, were the province of light.)

They pivoted sharply on their heels and began shouting out orders to the soldiers to conduct the search as thoroughly as they could. Water trickled through the clock. Time never stopped, no matter how pressed for it you were. The eighty glorious suns never stopped, one day after the next, in their relentless passage through the world they guarded with their light.

The Captain was expecting results.

 

 

Water trickled through the clock.

Captain Kezin scowled ferociously as the bound and blindfolded man was shoved at his boots by a crowd of soldiers.

“Have you determined he was the traitor?” he asked, aloud. There was no sign of his lieutenant. You could take that two ways. Kezin made up his mind about how he wanted to read that absence.

“Captain, we found him loitering about the compound’s back gate,” one of the soldiers said, nervously. “Lieutenant Jiang said to take him to you.”

“Let’s see what he has to say, then,” Kezin said. He unwound the blindfold. He thought he recognised the man, and he was right. He saw his lieutenant come stalking into the compound square at the head of another squad of searchers, their face shadowed in the wavering light of the torches, and waved them over.

“So tell me,” Kezin said, mildly. “You didn’t gag this man. He wasn’t screaming or protesting his innocence. I suppose you took that as a sign of guilt?”

“He said he was watching for anyone who was trying to leave,” another soldier said. Kezin peered at her. He thought he remembered her. Prevented an assassin from striking at one of the younger Arbiters of the Discovery Faction while she was drinking tea in the Frozen Moon. That sort of detail always commended a soldier to him. “He couldn’t prove he had orders, though.”

“He was clearly traitorous scum,” protested the first. “Captain, he was armed. With these.” A third soldier came forward, with a wrapped bundle of rough cloth. He tugged it open, enough for Kezin to see a sheathed sword, and a dizzying array of knives.

The captive looked at Kezin.

Kezin hated the bastard. Always had. Had to make Kezin’s life more difficult, and he knew it. The scar just below his left eye felt warm again. Memories of that man’s blade splitting skin as they fought.

He said, with glacial impassiveness, “I’ve ordered the compound locked down. The last thing we need is for the killer to evade the searchers and leave. If I did not order you to do it, I clearly had to order someone to do it.”

Well, he had. He just hadn’t ordered Fade to guard the secret exit. No one ordered Fade to do anything, or if anyone did, that was above Kezin’s paygrade.

Fade said, perhaps taking pity on Kezin. “I have my orders. And I have evidence of them.”

“He lies,” the first soldier said, uneasily. Kezin made note of that. A tendency to dig in when confronted was a weakness. 

Kezin pulled out a knife and slashed through the rough cord binding Fade’s hands behind his back.

Fade said, “Thank you, Captain.”

“Shut up,” Kezin said. “And don’t make it my problem again.”

Fade reached into his cloak, and pulled out a single silk pouch. Kezin cursed. He hadn’t even noticed the lift. But he couldn’t have just done it, could he? His hands had been bound. He wanted to examine the cords, now. Perhaps they hadn’t been tied all that tightly.

He hefted it. “Your signet, Captain.”

Grinding his teeth together, Kezin accepted it back, pocketed it. “Dismissed,” he snapped. 

The soldiers gaped. The insistent one was blanching, now, realising he’d apprehended someone on the Captain’s orders, and probably a Discovery asset. I wish, Kezin thought, darkly.

He swung. A sharp, underhand throw.

The knife buried itself in the dirt and the soldier jumped back. The next time, Kezin promised himself, he was not going to aim to miss. Bloody stupid gesture. He’d liked that knife, but he was furious. Hated Fade’s stupid games.

“Get moving!” Kezin shouted, his voice harsh. Not just at that man, at all of them, gathered in the square. “Every hour, the killer eludes us! The Senior Arbiter wants whoever it is found before dawn!”

 

 

Fade / @Araris Valerian was executed but survived!

Hour One has begun! It will end at 0000hrs on Wednesday, 24th May 2023, at 0000hrs SGT (GMT +8). 

Role PMs have been sent. If you have not received your role PM, please let me know. (But please do scroll down and check your inbox first.)

Please remember that PMs are open but are only one-on-one. Please include me and Araris in all PMs.

Finally, please also be reminded to desist from posting in the thread until I can reserve the next post. I will always do so in order to collect both the current player list and the most recent set of rule clarifications for easy access.

[Kasimir he/him]

Rule Clarifications:

Spoiler

• I will be doing my utmost to prevent any player SP errors. In the world where I do make a mistake with your SP and it affects how much you would have staked, I need you to highlight the post to me to rectify it as soon as possible. I can't change the final bid that got locked in post-rollover but I can refund you the missing SP. If you want to point out to me in your GM PM while submitting orders how many SP you expect to have, I can work with that, but that's not required.
   
• You will receive a normal votecount at rollover informing you of the votes and who voted where.
   

• 22 hours ago, Kasimir said:

  Pre-emptive rule clarification here made publicly given the centrality of SP to one of the mechanics in this game:

  This post counts as 191 words. 151 if I discount the last section, which I won't in this case, given it's an IC RP post, and it's irrelevant here anyway. I don't count text in quotes as those aren't yours. 

  If you have a single line of RP over a huge bloc of ingame text done OOC, I won't count the ingame text as the RP section should break the limit on its own, but you are free to do the RP then text format.

  To repeat, for the avoidance of ambiguity:

  • I don't count quotes no matter what. These are not your words so I can't give you credit for them.
  • If you are doing a IC RP post on game-relevant matter (see Archer), I count the whole thing, and I'm fine giving grace to the end there.
  • If you are doing a RP post with OOC text later on, then I count only the RP section.
  • You are free to ask me in your GM PM where you are on SP and I will tell you.

•  
• Try not to game my criteria too much or to assume I'm only going to reward players who do fancy, dramatic, serious RP. That's not how this works, and you'd be surprised.
   
• Please re-read the rules for the signet bids carefully. A signet request needs a scan target.
   
• There is no actions economy, so players can both scan and kill at the same time.
• [More forthcoming]

Player List:

Spoiler

1. @The Wandering Wizard - Rambleton (Poet)
2. @TheAlpha929 - Mallard G. Wingworth IV (Duck Wrangler)
3. @Fifth Scholar - Kudyard Ripling (Imperialist Poet)
4. @The Known Novel - Gaovaris Solumnant (Scholar)
5. @Son_of_Hoid - John Bluhm (Spy)
6. @Archer - Georg Wasintown (Farmer)
7. @xinoehp512 - Krow Nelcaf (Yuen Sympathiser and Veteran)
8. @Devotary of Spontaneity - Left & Right (Spy and Defector)
9. @Szeth_Pancakes - Randen (Card Sharp and Bodyguard and Mistaken Identity)
10. @JNV - Jiang Zhangrong (Lieutenant)
11. @|TJ| - Fletcher the Fetcher (Fence)

 

Edited May 23, 2023 by Kasimir

[The Wandering Wizard he/him]

Been a while, at least it feels like it's been a long time

 How are you my fellow poet, Ripling(Fifth)?

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

hmmmmmm

Welcome to SE, Hoid

[The Paradoxical Phenomenon he/him]

2 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

hmmmmmm

Welcome to SE, Hoid

There’s always someone that does that 

EDIT: and if I’m not mistaken, voting is done via GM-PM for this game

Edited May 22, 2023 by TheAlpha929

[The Wandering Wizard he/him]

3 minutes ago, TheAlpha929 said:

There’s always someone that does that 

EDIT: and if I’m not mistaken, voting is done via GM-PM for this game

You are right! Clearly I need to reread the rules xD

Free PMs finally though! Hopefully I don't pull a chameleon though

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

7 minutes ago, TheAlpha929 said:

There’s always someone that does that 

EDIT: and if I’m not mistaken, voting is done via GM-PM for this game

Whoops. Sorry Hoid.

[The Paradoxical Phenomenon he/him]

Find a killer. What had Mallard got herself roped into? She barely even knew why she was doing yet, and she was already supposed to find the man who killed the ambassador. Doesn’t seem like I’ll be doing a lot of duck wrangling, she thought. Doesn’t seem like there’ll be a lot of hand to hand. Though… if I’m the one to find the killer… I could be rich! I could be famous! Mallard had always been ambitious. But up until now, daydreams of wealth and renown had been just that, a dream. Just like squeezing a duck-tater…

[Archer he/him]

Water trickled from his crotch. The anteaters used to be light once, Georg knew. They were indigenous, those anteaters. Before winter, they'd been light, now they were way too heavy to be scared off easily. Georg's hands quivered, then faltered, dropping his pitchfork. It was time to run.

Editor’s note: nope, not doing that

Hi sonnies, it’s me, Grandpa Georg! I’ll be hanging round here for a few days while I wait for some things on the farmstead to resolve themselves. I promise not to be a bother. I can probably help! I’m sure whatever you’re doing is easy peasy, let me at it.

9 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

Whoops. Sorry Hoid.

See, look at this here post. This gal is apologizing for no reason. Youth today are too easily cowed. Speaking of cows, if you ever want to clean the metal flakes and nails and pins out of yer heifer’s stomachs, you just need to stick a magnet in their feed. It collects all the bits as they digest it, then gets pooped out the other end! Ya just have to check yer patties afterwards for the magnets, or you’ll burn through a load of cash doing it. Anywho, strange comment, lassie! Stick

27 minutes ago, TheAlpha929 said:

There’s always someone that does that 

That there is a very neutral statement! Take a stance, youngin', it'll make your chiropractor happy if you grow a spine. 

[The Paradoxical Phenomenon he/him]

3 minutes ago, Archer said:

Water trickled from his crotch. The anteaters used to be light once, Georg knew. They were indigenous, those anteaters. Before winter, they'd been light, now they were way too heavy to be scared off easily. Georg's hands quivered, then faltered, dropping his pitchfork. It was time to run.

Editor’s note: nope, not doing that

Hi sonnies, it’s me, Grandpa Georg! I’ll be hanging round here for a few days while I wait for some things on the farmstead to resolve themselves. I promise not to be a bother. I can probably help! I’m sure whatever you’re doing is easy peasy, let me at it.

See, look at this here post. This gal is apologizing for no reason. Youth today are too easily cowed. Speaking of cows, if you ever want to clean the metal flakes and nails and pins out of yer heifer’s stomachs, you just need to stick a magnet in their feed. It collects all the bits as they digest it, then gets pooped out the other end! Ya just have to check yer patties afterwards for the magnets, or you’ll burn through a load of cash doing it. Anywho, strange comment, lassie! Stick

That there is a very neutral statement! Take a stance, youngin', it'll make your chiropractor happy if you grow a spine. 

It’d make me happy if I had a chiropractor. 
EDIT: Mat, apparently 

Edited May 22, 2023 by TheAlpha929

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

45 minutes ago, Kasimir said:

“In the Art of War, Sahazi writes about the need to act decisively when conditions are favourable. They seem so, do they not?”

“That’s… not always true,” Randen replied. “It’s generally considered bad strategy to play six cards at once, unless you have the Dor. It gives your opponent an advantage, and makes no difference to you: after all, you can play as many cards as you wish on your turn.”

Randen would wait. Yes… that was the strategy that befit the game. If he played his hand too early, his opponents would capitalize on his rashness; using his cards to build their web of sets and runs. Better not to voice your truth until you were sure you could win.

After all, the game ran on secrets, didn’t it? If he revealed his own, that gave the traitors no incentive to show theirs. Instead, he could draw; let them think he had naught when he was one lucky card away from winning. Then, when he went out, it would be glorious; the kind of game spoken of in legend. He flicked the cards in his hand, considering his options. Deceit would save him where truths would not. Covert messages; hidden lies.

That was how the game was played.

Water trickled through the clock. Mallard looked at him expectantly.

“I’ll draw,” he said, smiling ruefully.

Hand:

Spoiler

8 8 10 2 7
5 6
Dor
8

Edited May 22, 2023 by Szeth_Pancakes

[The Paradoxical Phenomenon he/him]

Quote

I’m just going to be lazy and do out-of-character stuff in a quote box

Kas, this might be in the rules, but will there be a VC at the beginning of each cycle, and will it say who voted whom?

@Kasimir

[Kasimir he/him]

2 minutes ago, TheAlpha929 said:

Quote

Kas, this might be in the rules, but will there be a VC at the beginning of each cycle, and will it say who voted whom?

 

Yes, and yes. I won't give you an official votecount while the cycle is ongoing for obvious reasons, but at rollover, you will know what the VC was and who voted where. Basically think of how QF59 ran it. Here for reference, if you need to see how this panned out in practice:

 

[Fifth Scholar he/him]

33 minutes ago, The Wandering Wizard said:

Been a while, at least it feels like it's been a long time

 How are you my fellow poet, Ripling(Fifth)?

Ripling looked over the man who had so rudely accosted him. He was a dishevelled figure, to be sure, the kind the Emperor would never permit to wander the streets if His rightful authority would simply be recognised. “A fellow poet, eh? Well did His Excellency speak, in the first verse of His most sainted address to the people of this nation:

‘Sir, I admit your general rule

That every poet is a fool;’

“Yet, while His Excellency would not dwell further on such a subject, preferring instead to extend the labelling of dotards with his masterful retort, 

‘Yet you yourself may serve to show it

That every fool is not a poet,’

I am afraid that among the many beneficent qualities which the Emperor possesses and I do not, resides also the virtue of restraint. And so, sirrah, I address you now directly for your exceptional breach of propriety. While I may indeed be a poet and a fool for the sake of the Emperor and His wisdom, that through the folly of my verse His manifold wisdom may be more clearly revealed, I see in your comportment nothing to suggest even the remotest trace of a purpose to your exceptional folly. Pray tell, among such a den of thieves and liars, what could possibly serve you to pluck me out, a personal herald of His Excellency and a believer in the Eighty Suns which He oversees, in such a manner? Would that we were questioning these others, who gamble with their money and their livelihoods, trusting their fortunes to the tumbling of a die or the shuffling of a pack of cards, rather than the surety of the Emperor and His good purposes!”

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

15 minutes ago, Archer said:

See, look at this here post. This gal is apologizing for no reason. Youth today are too easily cowed. Speaking of cows, if you ever want to clean the metal flakes and nails and pins out of yer heifer’s stomachs, you just need to stick a magnet in their feed. It collects all the bits as they digest it, then gets pooped out the other end! Ya just have to check yer patties afterwards for the magnets, or you’ll burn through a load of cash doing it. Anywho, strange comment, lassie! Stick

“First of all, I’m not a gal,” said Randen, bemused. “And second, I made a mistake and then apologized. We need to treat newbies with respect. Otherwise, they’ll quit the guard and never come back!

“Also, I believe you made the same mistake I did.”

[Archer he/him]

27 minutes ago, TheAlpha929 said:

It’d make me happy if I had a chiropractor. 
EDIT: Mat, apparently 

Do they teach you nothing in school these days? Back in my day, they taught civics properly, through rote memorization and repetition. You can't vote for someone who isn't a candidate, and since Mat is a pinch hitter, they're off the board. Kids are too distracted by their fancy water clocks to pay attention. You should pay more attention to me, my generation is infallible. 

14 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

“Also, I believe you made the same mistake I did.”

Don't sass me, lassie. I don't make mistakes, I make cornbread. Pass me my glasses, so I can-

Oh hello, mister! Where'd that girl go? Kids these days, always running off to play with their toys. I was just telling her that I am writing things in red to apply pressure. Pressure which I would never apologize for applying slightly wrong to the person I'm targeting. 

17 minutes ago, Fifth Scholar said:

 Would that we were questioning these others, who gamble with their money and their livelihoods, trusting their fortunes to the tumbling of a die or the shuffling of a pack of cards, rather than the surety of the Emperor and His good purposes!”

I like the gambling! I'd join in, but my pension payments stopped when I reached the age of 120. Anyone willing to trade their coins for some cornbread? 

Question for the group so I can add thirty words to this post: are we thinking there will be two elims or three? This concludes my question, thank you for reading it

Quick edit: one is also a valid response to my question. As is four. Or five! Really, any number may be chosen. Some are just less likely than others. Such as one, four, and five. 

Edited May 22, 2023 by Archer

[The Paradoxical Phenomenon he/him]

1 minute ago, Archer said:

Do they teach you nothing in school these days? Back in my day, they taught civics properly, through rote memorization and repetition. You can't vote for someone who isn't a candidate, and since Mat is a pinch hitter, they're off the board. Kids are too distracted by their fancy water clocks to pay attention. You should pay more attention to me, my generation is infallible. 

Don't sass me, lassie. I don't make mistakes, I make cornbread. Pass me my glasses, so I can-

Oh hello, mister! Where'd that girl go? Kids these days, always running off to play with their toys. I was just telling her that I am writing things in red to apply pressure. Pressure which I would never apologize for applying slightly wrong to the person I'm targeting. 

I like the gambling! I'd join in, but my pension payments stopped when I reached the age of 120. Anyone willing to trade their coins for some cornbread? 

Question for the group so I can add thirty words to this post: are we thinking there will be two elims or three? This concludes my question, thank you for reading it

Spoiler

I’m guessing 3, but I don’t know 

Mallard rolled her eyes at the fat old guy. “I will draw…”

Hand:

Spoiler

1 6 8 1

9 5 

2 4 5

3 9 8

Dor

 

[Kasimir he/him]

14 minutes ago, Archer said:

Do they teach you nothing in school these days? Back in my day, they taught civics properly, through rote memorization and repetition. You can't vote for someone who isn't a candidate, and since Mat is a pinch hitter, they're off the board. Kids are too distracted by their fancy water clocks to pay attention. You should pay more attention to me, my generation is infallible. 

Don't sass me, lassie. I don't make mistakes, I make cornbread. Pass me my glasses, so I can-

Oh hello, mister! Where'd that girl go? Kids these days, always running off to play with their toys. I was just telling her that I am writing things in red to apply pressure. Pressure which I would never apologize for applying slightly wrong to the person I'm targeting. 

I like the gambling! I'd join in, but my pension payments stopped when I reached the age of 120. Anyone willing to trade their coins for some cornbread? 

Question for the group so I can add thirty words to this post: are we thinking there will be two elims or three? This concludes my question, thank you for reading it

Pre-emptive rule clarification here made publicly given the centrality of SP to one of the mechanics in this game:

This post counts as 191 words. 151 if I discount the last section, which I won't in this case, given it's an IC RP post, and it's irrelevant here anyway. I don't count text in quotes as those aren't yours. 

If you have a single line of RP over a huge bloc of ingame text done OOC, I won't count the ingame text as the RP section should break the limit on its own, but you are free to do the RP then text format.

To repeat, for the avoidance of ambiguity:

• I don't count quotes no matter what. These are not your words so I can't give you credit for them.
• If you are doing a IC RP post on game-relevant matter (see Archer), I count the whole thing, and I'm fine giving grace to the end there.
• If you are doing a RP post with OOC text later on, then I count only the RP section.
• You are free to ask me in your GM PM where you are on SP and I will tell you.

Edited to add:

14 minutes ago, Archer said:

Quick edit: one is also a valid response to my question. As is four. Or five! Really, any number may be chosen. Some are just less likely than others. Such as one, four, and five. 

I can neither confirm nor deny that this game is a social experiment with five different Elim teams all thinking they're the only team in the game.

Edited May 22, 2023 by Kasimir

[JNV]

Lieutenant Jiang Zhangrong marched through the compound, noting positions of each soldier. There were ten others within the building. Ten people shrouded in treachery. As lieutenant, it was their personal responsibility to find the traitor, no matter how many died in the attempt. So many were dedicated to frivolity. Gaovaris, Mallard, and Randen were playing cards instead of remaining on alert. Others still were jovial despite the significance of the task at hand. This was a game of lives played for the fate of the empire. Some did not seem concerned in the slightest, as though the Rose Empire was of no import. To be second in command is to be first to die when failure holds a knife to the throat. Better to be shattered jade than unbroken pottery. Better to die for duty than live in dereliction.

Ten soldiers. Ten possible traitors. The Yuen Loyalists could claim the compound once they matched faithful soldiers in number. Though Zhangrong would fight to the best of their ability, others were not nearly so trained. With two Yuen Loyalists and complete failure, everything would be over in four hours. With three Yuen Loyalists, three hours. Better to assume the worst and be pleasantly surprised than to assume the best and be caught off guard. Three traitors. Three hours. Time clung to their throat like a noose, tightening with every drip of the water clock. It would be so easy if the Captain would allow them to search everyone's belongings, but of course, the Captain had no proof of trust, even for a faithful lieutenant who had served for many years. Far too easy for a traitor with the ring to plant evidence in people's belongings. They had to keep the Captain's ear. The fate of the empire rested on their shoulders. They would not bend. They would not break.

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

Randen draws a card, his mind racing. “I’d say three,” he replied to the old man, ignoring his rude diatribe. “What organization would plant just two traitors in a group of eleven guards? They would surely be found out and crushed before the end of the night. Plus, the captain’s signet is a powerful advantage. The traitors don’t have anything like that.

“It’s like a game of riideo — have you heard of it? It’s Arelish. You get dealt a hand, and some hands are better and more likely to win than others. If you have a good hand, you can bet on it winning. If you have a bad hand, you have to fold, or you’ll lose more money than is necessary. We must assume that the traitors are smart, and will act in their best interests. If they only have two spies, they won’t dare act this rashly. If one of the spies breaks under interrogation, they would be ruined. But if they have three — or more — it makes sense that they would kill the ambassador.”

He stared at the stamp card in his hand. Could the traitors have a Forger on their side? If so, how much advantage would that give them? They weren’t omnipotent creatures, but they were powerful. Then again, the Forger couldn’t work quickly. If they had one, it would probably only have time to forge one stamp…

“Three,” he said decisively. “Three traitors.”

Hand:

Spoiler

8 8 10 2 7
5 6
Dor
8 2

 

[Fifth Scholar he/him]

15 minutes ago, Archer said:

Do they teach you nothing in school these days? Back in my day, they taught civics properly, through rote memorization and repetition. You can't vote for someone who isn't a candidate, and since Mat is a pinch hitter, they're off the board. Kids are too distracted by their fancy water clocks to pay attention. You should pay more attention to me, my generation is infallible. 

Don't sass me, lassie. I don't make mistakes, I make cornbread. Pass me my glasses, so I can-

Oh hello, mister! Where'd that girl go? Kids these days, always running off to play with their toys. I was just telling her that I am writing things in red to apply pressure. Pressure which I would never apologize for applying slightly wrong to the person I'm targeting. 

I like the gambling! I'd join in, but my pension payments stopped when I reached the age of 120. Anyone willing to trade their coins for some cornbread? 

Question for the group so I can add thirty words to this post: are we thinking there will be two elims or three? This concludes my question, thank you for reading it

Quick edit: one is also a valid response to my question. As is four. Or five! Really, any number may be chosen. Some are just less likely than others. Such as one, four, and five. 

Ripling gravitated towards the older man as he began speaking, grateful for a more sensible voice to have begun declaiming amongst the rabble of soldiers. “Ah, my good sir. You do well to chastise these youths for their hotheadedness and impudence. Truly, to disrespect one’s elders is a grave offence, for it is nothing more than the refusal to respect a rightful authority, and there is no authority more rightful than His Excellency himself. Who should countermand an elder, when his true Elder provides for him the radiance of the Eighty Suns? Or who might gainsay a father, when the fatherly hand of the Emperor guides the Rose Empire into its new dawn? It is right that our forefathers themselves have declared of our magistrates:

‘Beneath them sit the aged men, wise guardians of the poor;

Then cherish pity, lest you drive an angel from your door.’

“But certainly, sir, with this being said, you must realise your reverent position makes it all the more imperative that you encourage good and upright behaviour amongst the youth you rightly excoriate. For who can follow well, if he has not a leader to look to whose example can truly be called just? And though the Emperor provides the greatest model of rule for us all, our necessary distance from His divinity makes it all the more imperative that we have other figures who will rightly reflect the stewardship He performs perfectly. And for you, sir, to be involving yourself in the gambling and the vast uncertainty which it entails—you only risk giving these rascals who would throw off all guidance of their elders and fathers more grounding for their otherwise spurious charges of hypocrisy and neglect.

“Yet on account of the respect I have for your seniority, I will say that there are likely only two in this foolish sedition. Were there three, we would be in too grave a peril, and I am reminded of another set of words from of old:

‘When beggars die, there are no comets seen;

The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.’

“Were this company, and our beloved captain, in too grave a danger, a danger which three traitors in a company of eleven may well represent, the Suns themselves, held in orbit by His Excellency, would surely give warning. Yet they are silent.”

[Kasimir he/him]

In the interests of fairness, I've made this clarification to one player and will share it publicly:

While the tiebreaker is RP dependent, and I don't want to over-articulate my criteria because I don't want players actively seeking to game me, that's not the point of a reworked Nightwatcher mechanic, I will note that players generally seem to think I overcredit serious/dramatic/fancy RP and undercredit RP that's just...funny, even if it's not going to be winning any fancy awards.

I'll just say this would be a very bad assumption to make and leave it at that  

[Szeth_Pancakes he/him]

1 hour ago, Fifth Scholar said:

“But certainly, sir, with this being said, you must realise your reverent position makes it all the more imperative that you encourage good and upright behaviour amongst the youth you rightly excoriate. For who can follow well, if he has not a leader to look to whose example can truly be called just? And though the Emperor provides the greatest model of rule for us all, our necessary distance from His divinity makes it all the more imperative that we have other figures who will rightly reflect the stewardship He performs perfectly. And for you, sir, to be involving yourself in the gambling and the vast uncertainty which it entails—you only risk giving these rascals who would throw off all guidance of their elders and fathers more grounding for their otherwise spurious charges of hypocrisy and neglect.

“First of all,” said Randen, standing up and facing Ripling, “I am right here. And secondly, that which we call life is itself a gamble. Don’t you see? We are all prisoners of chance.

“Let me tell you a story, Ripling — though it may not be a story you want to hear. About fifteen years ago, there were two boys living in the Orei slums. Both of them were dealt a poor hand in life. Their parents were dead; they had no money. Still, however, they did not give up. They worked from before the sun awoke to after it slipped beneath the horizon, every day, for five years.

“One of those boys died of hypothermia in the Great Frost ten years back. One of them found a position in the palace guard, and worked his way up to the position he is in now.

“Do not speak to me of gambling, poet; for you have never had to gamble with your life.”

Randen sat down with a hmph. “Beggars’ deaths may not ‘blaze forth the heavens’ for you, but they do for the people they love. And the deaths of princes matter not to those they oppress. Keep that in your mind before you quote from your long-dead philosophers.”

Edited May 22, 2023 by Szeth_Pancakes

[Archer he/him]

50 minutes ago, Fifth Scholar said:

Ripling gravitated towards the older man as he began speaking, grateful for a more sensible voice to have begun declaiming amongst the rabble of soldiers. “Ah, my good sir. You do well to chastise these youths for their hotheadedness and impudence. Truly, to disrespect one’s elders is a grave offence, for it is nothing more than the refusal to respect a rightful authority, and there is no authority more rightful than His Excellency himself.

Hear hear! The only time you should discount seniors is Tuesday at the Walmarket! 

54 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

“It’s like a game of riideo — have you heard of it? It’s Arelish. You get dealt a hand, and some hands are better and more likely to win than others.

I know all about being dealt bad hands. I brought my own deck from home, I hope ya don’t mind if I deal myself in here. Let’s see what I’ve got.

The Eleven of Hearts! Quite like the eleven of us. A large number, but smaller than say the Twelve of Hearts! I’ve got the beginnings of a run…

Now the Joker! That reminds me of the Forger’s Stamp I hear is available. A good defensive tool for the spies to use on one of their own number, if they can determine which of them will be scanned rather than outright killed.

Oh look, the Two of Armadillos. No wait, I declared falsely. It was the Three of Armadillos. I suspect the spies may be able to lay false claims as well, either with confidence if they win the bidding, or as a bluff, if the kill the one who wins the bidding. Suppose they mislead us a third of the time through one of these strategies, allowing them to defend a teammate.

Taken together, these cards spell misfortune for us. I see untrustworthy scans in your future. The amount they can be undermined makes the Signet mechanic no better than say two extra good guys. Meaning that three spies is a reasonable number to expect, since that is about a quarter of the group.

Now for my final card… the UNO Reverse! We can reverse our misfortune, but only by acting quickly! We stand to be outnumbered within four days, if we fail to uncover anything. In my old age, 130, please stop yammering on about it, I forgot to factor in the secret voting mechanic. Slight village benefit, but not so much that an extra bad guy is reasonable.

See I’ve got five cards in my hand now, and that’s more than you, so I win?

3 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

“Let me tell you a story, Ripling — though it may not be a story you want to hear. About fifteen years ago, there were two boys living in the Orei slums. Both of them were dealt a poor hand in life. Their parents were dead; they had no money. Still, however, they did not give up. They worked from before the sun awoke to after it slipped beneath the horizon, every day, for five years.

“One of those boys died of hypothermia in the Great Frost ten years back. One of them found a position in the palace guard, and worked his way up to the position he is in now."

Yeah, hear hear, society is meritocratic and the other boy was a weak freeloader who didn't deserve success! Now give me my money, I calculate that you owe me three of the big coins, and ten of the little ones. Plus interest for making me wait. I'm not getting any younger here 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

2 hours ago, TheAlpha929 said:

EDIT: and if I’m not mistaken, voting is done via GM-PM for this game

"Secrets and lies?"

Krow shook his head. That was exactly the problem that plagued the government these days. If they could all just be honest, surely so much more could be done. "If we don't work together, the traitors will eat us alive."

2 hours ago, Archer said:

Do they teach you nothing in school these days? Back in my day, they taught civics properly, through rote memorization and repetition. You can't vote for someone who isn't a candidate, and since Mat is a pinch hitter, they're off the board. Kids are too distracted by their fancy water clocks to pay attention. You should pay more attention to me, my generation is infallible. 

Don't sass me, lassie. I don't make mistakes, I make cornbread. Pass me my glasses, so I can-

Oh hello, mister! Where'd that girl go? Kids these days, always running off to play with their toys. I was just telling her that I am writing things in red to apply pressure. Pressure which I would never apologize for applying slightly wrong to the person I'm targeting. 

I like the gambling! I'd join in, but my pension payments stopped when I reached the age of 120. Anyone willing to trade their coins for some cornbread? 

Question for the group so I can add thirty words to this post: are we thinking there will be two elims or three? This concludes my question, thank you for reading it

Quick edit: one is also a valid response to my question. As is four. Or five! Really, any number may be chosen. Some are just less likely than others. Such as one, four, and five. 

"The traitors will be as numerous as they can manage. Any hand they can slip inside our guard is another hand to watch each other's backs."

1 hour ago, Fifth Scholar said:

Ripling gravitated towards the older man as he began speaking, grateful for a more sensible voice to have begun declaiming amongst the rabble of soldiers. “Ah, my good sir. You do well to chastise these youths for their hotheadedness and impudence. Truly, to disrespect one’s elders is a grave offence, for it is nothing more than the refusal to respect a rightful authority, and there is no authority more rightful than His Excellency himself. Who should countermand an elder, when his true Elder provides for him the radiance of the Eighty Suns? Or who might gainsay a father, when the fatherly hand of the Emperor guides the Rose Empire into its new dawn? It is right that our forefathers themselves have declared of our magistrates:

‘Beneath them sit the aged men, wise guardians of the poor;

Then cherish pity, lest you drive an angel from your door.’

“But certainly, sir, with this being said, you must realise your reverent position makes it all the more imperative that you encourage good and upright behaviour amongst the youth you rightly excoriate. For who can follow well, if he has not a leader to look to whose example can truly be called just? And though the Emperor provides the greatest model of rule for us all, our necessary distance from His divinity makes it all the more imperative that we have other figures who will rightly reflect the stewardship He performs perfectly. And for you, sir, to be involving yourself in the gambling and the vast uncertainty which it entails—you only risk giving these rascals who would throw off all guidance of their elders and fathers more grounding for their otherwise spurious charges of hypocrisy and neglect.

“Yet on account of the respect I have for your seniority, I will say that there are likely only two in this foolish sedition. Were there three, we would be in too grave a peril, and I am reminded of another set of words from of old:

‘When beggars die, there are no comets seen;

The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.’

“Were this company, and our beloved captain, in too grave a danger, a danger which three traitors in a company of eleven may well represent, the Suns themselves, held in orbit by His Excellency, would surely give warning. Yet they are silent.”

Krow sniffed. Flowery nonsense. All these poets, thinking their fancy words made them somehow better than a man who put in an honest day's work. "Ridiculous," he said. "Death comes silently and without warning, be it soldier or king." Whether you fell in battle or were strangled by the side of the river, he thought, but did not say. Friends of his had been branded traitors for such words.

2 hours ago, JNV said:

Lieutenant Jiang Zhangrong marched through the compound, noting positions of each soldier. There were ten others within the building. Ten people shrouded in treachery. As lieutenant, it was their personal responsibility to find the traitor, no matter how many died in the attempt. So many were dedicated to frivolity. Gaovaris, Mallard, and Randen were playing cards instead of remaining on alert. Others still were jovial despite the significance of the task at hand. This was a game of lives played for the fate of the empire. Some did not seem concerned in the slightest, as though the Rose Empire was of no import. To be second in command is to be first to die when failure holds a knife to the throat. Better to be shattered jade than unbroken pottery. Better to die for duty than live in dereliction.

Ten soldiers. Ten possible traitors. The Yuen Loyalists could claim the compound once they matched faithful soldiers in number. Though Zhangrong would fight to the best of their ability, others were not nearly so trained. With two Yuen Loyalists and complete failure, everything would be over in four hours. With three Yuen Loyalists, three hours. Better to assume the worst and be pleasantly surprised than to assume the best and be caught off guard. Three traitors. Three hours. Time clung to their throat like a noose, tightening with every drip of the water clock. It would be so easy if the Captain would allow them to search everyone's belongings, but of course, the Captain had no proof of trust, even for a faithful lieutenant who had served for many years. Far too easy for a traitor with the ring to plant evidence in people's belongings. They had to keep the Captain's ear. The fate of the empire rested on their shoulders. They would not bend. They would not break.

Krow nodded respectfully to the lieutenant as he passed. A capable man, Lieutenant Zhangrong. He had every confidence he would be able to lead them through this crisis. Unless...

No. There was simply no way the Lieutenant was a traitor. Not after all his years of loyal service to Discovery.

21 minutes ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

“First of all,” said Randen, standing up and facing Ripling, “I am right here. And secondly, that which we call life is itself a gamble. Don’t you see? We are all prisoners of chance.

“Let me tell you a story, Ripling — though it may not be a story you want to hear. About fifteen years ago, there were two boys living in the Orei slums. Both of them were dealt a poor hand in life. Their parents were dead; they had no money. Still, however, they did not give up. They worked from before the sun awoke to after it slipped beneath the horizon, every day, for five years.

“One of those boys died of hypothermia in the Great Frost ten years back. One of them found a position in the palace guard, and worked his way up to the position he is in now.

“Do not speak to me of gambling, poet; for you have never had to gamble with your life.”

Randen sat down with a hmph. “Beggars’ deaths may not ‘blaze forth the heavens’ for you, but they do for the people they love. And the deaths of princes matter not to those they oppress. Keep that in your mind before you quote from your long-dead philosophers.”

"Well said," remarked Krow. To be honest, he hadn't understood half of what had come out of Kudyard's mouth, but if it was anything like what Randen had insinuated, he disagreed wholeheartedly.

2 hours ago, Szeth_Pancakes said:

“That’s… not always true,” Randen replied. “It’s generally considered bad strategy to play six cards at once, unless you have the Dor. It gives your opponent an advantage, and makes no difference to you: after all, you can play as many cards as you wish on your turn.”

Randen would wait. Yes… that was the strategy that befit the game. If he played his hand too early, his opponents would capitalize on his rashness; using his cards to build their web of sets and runs. Better not to voice your truth until you were sure you could win.

After all, the game ran on secrets, didn’t it? If he revealed his own, that gave the traitors no incentive to show theirs. Instead, he could draw; let them think he had naught when he was one lucky card away from winning. Then, when he went out, it would be glorious; the kind of game spoken of in legend. He flicked the cards in his hand, considering his options. Deceit would save him where truths would not. Covert messages; hidden lies.

That was how the game was played.

Water trickled through the clock. Mallard looked at him expectantly.

“I’ll draw,” he said, smiling ruefully.

Hand:

  Reveal hidden contents

8 8 10 2 7
5 6
Dor
8

"Wait too long, though, and you may miss your chance to strike, hmm?" Krow shook his head, staring into the distance. "Too many people these days think too much. Thought without action is dead."