The Art of Game Creation

[Haelbarde he/him]

Old Technology, New Technology

 

Format: Micro-Game (2-6 days, 6-8 players, 24 hour cycles). If enough people sign up, multiple games could be run simultaneously with different themes, though the mechanics could remain the same.

 

World: Nalthis

 

The first lesson of Awakening is that only a fraction of possible commands are known. And so wealthy Awakeners, the Hallandren clergy included, finance grand operations to discover secrets long forgotten from ancient ruins. But there has always been discontent in the Court of the Gods, and a recent underground chamber discovered beneath the Godking's palace, dating from before the Manywar and linked to Peacegiver himself, could undermine all that they have built. New Commands, known by only the Godking's High Priests, to create living BioChromatic weapons with but a handful of Breath.

 

This is a secret that they all agree should pass with them to the grave. But priests start dying, black smoke emerging from their wounds as the blade absorbs their Breath. Old technology meets new technology, armor is sheared and locks are sliced by an Awakened dagger with one Command - Kill. One of Susebron's High Priests has a festering grudge and is willing to risk his life to kill him. And so, having no one they can trust, the priests disguise their Godking as one of their own, and slowly go through their own ranks for the guilty party.

 

Roles

• Assassin. The Assassin wins regardless of his own survival if he manages to kill the Godking. The Assassin can name someone to kill at the start of every cycle, and will kill them even if he is lynched. There is only one Assassin.
• High Priest. The Godking's High Priests all know the Godking's identity, and win if they can lynch the Assassin while keeping the Godking alive.
• Godking. Godking Susebron wins if he survives the game. His lynch vote can count for double if he wishes it to. Note that the total number of lynch votes, though not how many each individual player contributed, is always shown the following cycle. There is only one Godking.

Hey, that's cool! It actually works as a mini elimination version of Avalon.

[Adamir he/him]

Hey, that's cool! It actually works as a mini elimination version of Avalon.

Thanks - I was trying to put together a game that would be easy to GM, and would only take a week or so. With my schedule, I won't have more than two consecutive weeks to spend on SE.

Edited September 25, 2015 by Adamir

[Seonid he/him]

Alright! Here is the faction game that I've been working on. It's set in Roshar, an alternate history where the peace talks between the Parshendi and the Alethi actually get off of the ground. There are lots of factions, and lots of roles. Any feedback would be appreciated, especially on the balance. And especially from Kas, if he's checking this, to help me stress-test every possible way that the game could be broken.

A Desperate Alliance

In the midst of the chaos and turmoil of the War of Reckoning, a faint beacon of hope shines. The Parshendi, in a surprising move, have offered peace to the warring Alethi highprinces. Atop a wide plateau in the middle of the Shattered Plains, the Parshendi and the Alethi delegations meet to attempt the negotiation of a formal and binding peace treaty.

But such a momentous occasion has not gone unnoticed. And on Roshar, secrets abound. From the shadows, many malicious eyes watch the negotiators. None of them seek the same ultimate goals. Not all of them are human. But all watch and meddle for the same purpose - that these fragile talks must bear only a stillborn fruit...

Public Factions

Alethi

The Alethi delegation is ostensibly present to negotiate peace between the Parshendi and themselves, but mistrust of their recent enemies runs high, and whispered conversations in quiet tents reveal that their first loyalty is solely given to their own princedoms.

The Alethi do not have a faction doc - all Alethi discussion must be done in the thread.

Win Condition - At least one Alethi player must survive to the end of the game.

Parshendi

The Parshendi delegation is tasked with negotiating peace with the Alethi highprinces. However, if push comes to shove, their primary responsibility is the safety of their people. Whether a player is Parshendi or not is publicly known at the beginning of the game.

They have a faction doc to discuss in, although it may not be wholly private (see the Voidbringer faction, below). Parshendi do not begin the game with roles, though they may take different forms - each with its own ability - during highstorms (See Roles, below).

Win Condition - At least one Parshendi player must survive to the end of the game.

Hidden Factions

Voidbringers

You have heard the call of your Lord and Master, the one who hates. At His direction, you have embedded yourself within the Parshendi delegation. Your ultimate goal is, of course, the destruction of the world in a new Desolation. For now, though, you will settle with ending the Alethi peace with the powers granted by your ancient gods.

The Voidbringers get a faction doc to conspire in, separate from the Parshendi doc. They have no faction kill, but they do get unique forms, detailed under the role section, some of which have kill abilities. They are hidden among the Parshendi, with access to all the regular Parshendi forms in addition to their unique options, but they do not share the Parshendi win condition.

Win Condition - Kill all Alethi.

Sons of Honor

Your devotion to the tenets of Vorinism is absolute, and the degraded influence and state of the modern devotaries is shameful to you, bordering on blasphemous. Through your studies of history, you have realized that the Parshendi are, in fact, the Voidbringers of the old stories - the warriors of a Desolation. And since a new Desolation is the only way to return the rightful order of things, this peace must be sabotaged at all costs.

The Sons of Honor have a faction doc to conspire in, but do not have access to a Faction kill. They are hidden among the Alethi, but do not share the Alethi win condition.

Win Condition - Kill all Parshendi

Ghostbloods

You are the hunters, all others are the prey. And on this isolated plateau, you get the chance to prove your hunting skills.

The Ghostbloods have a faction doc to conspire in, and have access to a Faction kill each night cycle. Essentially, they are a standard Eliminator team. They may be hidden among both Alethi and Parshendi, but do not share win conditions with their host faction.

Win Condition - Outnumber the non-Ghostblood players.

If enough people sign up, the following additional hidden factions may be added:

Diagrammists

The swirling patterns and instructions of the Diagram have led you here, to give a small push that will send the Alethi princedoms into chaos sufficient for King Taravangian to assume power in Alethkar. You know that he is the only chance the world has against the upcoming Desolation, and nothing can stand in the way of mankind's salvation.

Luckily, however, your enthusiasm can be contagious. If others are willing to submit to the instructions of the Diagram, they are welcome as your compatriots. Only the obstinate and the hopelessly idealistic must be removed.

The Diagrammists have access to a faction doc to conspire in, but do not have a faction kill. They do have a conversion ability, however, which may convert any player who is not already a member of a hidden faction or a Highprince (see Roles below). All Diagrammists are Alethi, but do not share the Alethi win condition.

Win Condition - Convert or kill all other players.

Skybreakers

The despicable arts of Surgebinding have risen again, and with them, the spectre of a new Desolation. You have been tasked by a Herald of the Almighty himself, the embodiment of Justice, to protect the world by ending them and the servants of Odium. On this plateau, where they cannot escape you, you will mete out Justice.

The Skybreakers have a faction doc to conspire in, and have access to a Faction kill. They are all Alethi, but do not share the Alethi win condition.

Win Condition - Kill all Surgebinders and Voidbringers. Note that the Skybreakers do not have to survive to the end of the game in order to meet their win condition. As long as all Surgebinders and Voidbringers are dead by the end of the game, the Skybreakers meet their win condition.

Alethi Roles

Highprince: You are a Shardbearer with both Shardplate and a Shardblade. Unlike other bearers of a Shardblade, you may not attack another player during the night cycle, due to the unfortunate political implications this would have. However, you may instead choose a player to protect during the Night Cycle. If they are the target of a kill action, the action is blocked and the attacker is killed instead. If the player you choose to protect is attacked by more than one kill action, you may block up to two of them, but still only kill one of the attackers (chosen randomly). You may not protect against the lynch. This role is restricted to the Alethi Faction, and may not be converted by the Diagrammists.

Courier: You may make one PM per cycle between any two players. These PMs last until you close them or until you die.

Ambassador: Your study of other cultures lends you significant influence in the camp. Once per day cycle, you may pick another player and change their vote to either another player or to no target. In addition, during the Night Cycle, you may pick a player to place a secret vote on. At the end of the next Day cycle, you may choose to have either your vote in-thread or your secret vote counted. You may not choose both.

Artifabrian: Your expert understanding of fabrials makes you unparalleled at gathering information. Each Night cycle, you may target one player. You learn their role and Faction.

Guardsman: You may protect a player from death each cycle. After you successfully protect one player, you are injured and may not use your ability again.

Shardbearer: A Shardbearer may possess either Shardplate, which allows them to survive the first kill (including the lynch) that they are targeted by, or a Shardblade, which allows them to target one player to kill during the Night cycle. A Shardbearer will not possess both.

Surgebinders

Windrunner: You may choose to use one of the following abilities each cycle:

Gravitation - you may protect one player from death.

Adhesion - you may choose one player to roleblock.

Edgedancer: You may choose to use one of the following abilities each cycle:

Progression - you may revive a player who has died in the past cycle from death.

Abrasion - all actions targeted at you this cycle fail.

Lightweaver: You may choose to use one of the following abilities each cycle:

Illumination - you may target one player, and redirect their action to another player.

Transformation - You may target a player, and alter their action as follows:

A player who would perform a kill action instead protects their target; a player who would protect their target instead roleblocks their target; a player who would roleblock their target instead kills their target; A player who would learn their target’s role or faction instead creates a PM with their target; a player who would create a PM with their target instead changes their target’s vote to a randomly determined player; a player who would change their target’s vote or action instead learns their target’s role (but not Faction). Other actions are not affected.

Dustbringer: You may choose to use one of the following abilities each cycle:

Division- you may target one player for death this cycle.

Abrasion - all actions targeted at you this cycle fail.

Parshendi Forms

Warform: A parshendi in Warform survives the first kill (including the lynch) that they are targeted by. In addition, you may pick a player to protect during the Night cycle. If that player is attacked, then you take the kill instead. All Parshendi start the game in Warform.

Scholarform: You may study another player during the Night cycle. Their role or faction (randomly determined) are revealed. If you target a player you have previously targeted, you automatically learn the other piece of information.

Nimbleform: You may create one PM per cycle with yourself and up to 3 other players, which lasts until the end of the cycle.

Dullform: Upon taking this form, you will be noted in the write-up as having died. After one full cycle, you will be revealed to be still alive. While in this form, you may take no actions, and may not post in the thread. Any actions targeted against you (by a player suspicious that you are still alive) will still be effective.

Stormform: You may survive the first kill (including the lynch) that you are targeted by, even if you have already survived a kill due to Warform. In addition, you may target another player to kill with your lightning during the Night cycle. Their death is revealed in the next write-up, along with the attacker.

Smokeform: All actions targeted against you except the lynch fail this cycle. Your vote is not counted, and you may not take any actions except for changing forms.

Decayform: You may use your abilities during the night cycle to target another player to roleblock. All of their actions fail, and their vote is not counted. In addition, once per game, you may kill the player you are roleblocking. They die at the end of the following Day cycle.

Mechanics

The game ends if the Sons of Honor, Voidbringers, or Diagrammists achieve their win condition AND the Ghostbloods are all killed, or if the Ghostbloods achieve their win condition.

EDIT: Removed the text talking about eye color - it was a leftover from an earlier version. There is such a thing as too much complexity!

Edited September 28, 2015 by Seonid

[Clanky he/him]

How do the Voidbringers/parshendi change forms?

 

Can you be a surgebinder along with other roles?

[Seonid he/him]

How do the Voidbringers/parshendi change forms?

Can you be a surgebinder along with other roles?

Oh, good question. I forgot to put that in. Any cycle, a parshendi or a voidbringer may forgo their action in order to change forms.

On the second question - there are no double roles and no parshendi may have any roles.

[Adamir he/him]

Role idea - Riot Leader

 

The Riot Leader has a one-use ability that stops all PMs and stops anyone from posting. Anyone who doesn't vote has their vote assigned to a single player named by the Riot Leader to the GM when he uses his ability. This would probably be an Eliminator role, given its potential to cause chaos and kill a single lynch target based on how many people avoid voting. Anyone who votes must send it to the GM; while under Mob Rule, all votes become anonymous, and any roles/abilities that increase the number of votes a player has no longer work.

 

Additional Names: Survivorite Preacher, Shu-Dereth Priest, Politician, Zinc Misting, Gyorn.

[Gamma Fiend he/him]

It looks like I'm up to host the next MR game, so without further adieu, I present to you....

 

 

Welcome to The Lord Ruler’s  Secret School of Inquisition and Hemalurgy!

 

 

NO PMs in this game. And this game will be ‘Role-Madness’, where all players will have a role.

 

Standard Mid Range Elimination game. 48 hour Cycles that consist of Day & Night combined. Lynches will happen first, then Metal Actions/Skaa Kill.

The Skaa: A group of infiltrators who are trying to learn the secret of The Inquisitors and destroy them from within. The Skaa decide who gets to make their Kill each Cycle. Using a kill action will replace your Metal Action for the Cycle.

The Skaa (Eliminators) have a secret Doc to conspire in.

 

Allomantic Roles: You have gained great blessings from the Lord Ruler, in your increased Allomantic strengths, but even metals don’t last forever. Each Role will have a Limited Number of Charges of metal they can use each game. There will be no way to replenish these numbers.

 

Pewter: Makes you stronger and increases your endurance. Burning it at night protects you from one attack. Does not save from lynches.

Tin: Enhances your senses, and with heightened hearing and being able to see through the

mists at night, nobody is able to sneak up on you. You are told who targeted you during the Night, if anybody did. (if multiple people target you, you will be told of one of them at random)


Steel: With strength and precision, you are able to kill even an Inquisitor with your coinshot powers.  

Iron: You do what a Lurcher does best, and you protect your target from one attack at Night. You can not protect yourself.  
 

Bronze: Detect if your target used a metal action, what they were burning, and if they targeted somebody,. But not the identity of who they were targeting. No alignment revealed.

Copper: Coppercloud yourself and one target, making you immune to emotional allomancy and bronze.

Brass: Sooth a target, role-blocking their metal-action. Does not prevent the Skaa kill.

Zinc. Riot a player, re-directing their metal action to a target of your choosing.Does not affect the skaa kill.

Gold: The introspective nature of Gold allows you to see what actions you were targeted with the turn you burn it. You will be told up to two actions you were targeted with, if any, but not from whom the actions came from.  

Atium?: The ultimate metal, letting you see a few moments into the future, giving you the ultimate advantage in battle. You are nigh invincible when burning Atium, and a deadly sight for any enemies nearby. You become immune to all actions used against you and kill everybody who targeted you with an action.

 

The number of players in this game will of course directly affect how many uses each Role will have, as that's a lot of maths to take into account! But yeah, let me know what you think, or leave any questions/feedback! Sign-ups won't be immediately starting or anything, so no huge rush right now!

 

Updates/Clarifications
-Rioting players burning Metals that don't have targets other than themselves will still burn their Metal, (just will do so fervently), and still just target themselves.

-Atium may or may not actually be added into the game, based entirely on the GM's whims and own discretion. Any rules regarding it will be clarified, however. (At a later time)

 

Edited October 1, 2015 by Gamma Fiend

[STINK he/him]

What happens if you Riot someone who has Gold? Is it a waste of their ability or are they told that it seemed to have no effect?

[Gamma Fiend he/him]

What happens if you Riot someone who has Gold? Is it a waste of their ability or are they told that it seemed to have no effect?

 

Good question! Rioting someone who can't target other players with their Metal action will just basically make them burn their Metal normally, but with zeal! So in this case, the Gold player will learn they were targeted with Zinc, for example, so they've both still burned their Metals, which will be important for The Stack and other Effects.

 

Will be updated in the rules!

[STINK he/him]

And what exactly is the order of actions?

[Seonid he/him]

Also, if you are burning Atium, the rules say that you kill anyone who targets you with any action. So if I try to protect someone who is burning atium, they kill me? If I am smoking them, they kill me? If I am Rioting or Soothing them, they kill me?

 

Just checking to see that I have this right.

[Herowannabe he/him]

Also if someone soothes me when I am trying to use a metal action, do I still lose a charge of metal?

[A Joe in the Bush]

I've been trying to solve the inactivity problem that plagues both Town and Mafia alike. When there aren't enough pinch hitters, Inactives can really kill the team. This is the best system I've come up with, besides pinch hitting.

 

The Puppet Master.

 

Every so often, (A turn or a cycle, or until death, however long the GM decides) The village players are asked in their PM to vote for a player to become the puppet master. Whatever villager gets the most votes secretly becomes the Puppet Master. The puppet master is told what roles are inactive, Not who has what role, just what role. They may then control that role until the player returns and proves activity. Any action that affects the Puppetmaster (Roleblock, target changing, kills) does not affect the role they are controlling. The Mafia would be able to elect one of their own players to puppet master the Mafia roles.

 

Thoughts?

[Alvron he/him]

I've been trying to solve the inactivity problem that plagues both Town and Mafia alike. When there aren't enough pinch hitters, Inactives can really kill the team. This is the best system I've come up with, besides pinch hitting.

 

The Puppet Master.

 

Every so often, (A turn or a cycle, or until death, however long the GM decides) The village players are asked in their PM to vote for a player to become the puppet master. Whatever villager gets the most votes secretly becomes the Puppet Master. The puppet master is told what roles are inactive, Not who has what role, just what role. They may then control that role until the player returns and proves activity. Any action that affects the Puppetmaster (Roleblock, target changing, kills) does not affect the role they are controlling. The Mafia would be able to elect one of their own players to puppet master the Mafia roles.

 

Thoughts?

Heh.  I had a similar idea and talked to Meta about it.

 

Puppet Master:  Should a player go inactive then you can send in orders for them.  This role will be given out as needed during the game.  It can be an eliminator calling the shots for another eliminator or a villager taking over for another villager.  You are not allowed to reveal that you are a puppet master nor can you vote/post for the player you have replaced.  Should your main character die but your puppet lives you cannot post at all in thread or PMs except to send in orders.  In this case the results will be posted either in Write up for Village or Doc for Eliminators.

 

Metas response:

In my experience, inactivity is just something that's kind of a given. There are some people that just won't play unless they have some Uber-Crazy-Fanciful role or if they're not an Eliminator. Trying to stop inactivity is kind of like offering granola to a child that is expecting candy; they're going to throw it in your face, no matter how much you try to tell them the benefits. 

 

As you've experienced, even being an Eliminator isn't enough to draw some people out of hiding. It's just not something that can be forced. 

 

That's what makes the Puppet Master awesome, yet frightening. 

 

It gives either team (I'm really not sold on the "as needed" part, BTW.) the chance to gain the abilities of an inactive teammate back. My worry is that is also could encourage people to, like the pitch hitter idea, not participate because they have something to fall back on. 

 

Overall, the idea is sound. You've covered all the possible angles with it other than the "as needed" angle, as I fear that bit might cause people to think that the GM is taking a partial viewpoint to a given game rather than trying to be as impartial as possible. 

 

I just think that it will give people even more of an excuse to not check in. 

[little wilson she/her]

Personally, I support the idea of a puppet master.

 

I can see what Meta is saying, and I agree that inactivity is unavoidable. This is one of the reasons I'm so entirely opposed to the Contribution Crusade, because it conflates inactives and lurkers and while lurking can be affected by a Crusade, inactivity cannot because every reason people have of going inactive, whether it be that they wanted a certain role/alignment, real life was too busy, they forgot about the game, or they got bored are things that can't be changed. They will always happen. But the fact remains that they mess with the balance of the game. Some games, they affect the balance a lot more than others, particularly when the inactive is an eliminator, though it can easily affect the balance when the inactive is a villager as well. It also messes with faction games rather heavily, since those tend to be role madness and if one team has multiple inactives while another team is stocked full of actives, the inactive team is pretty well screwed.

 

GMs balance the games based on the number of players who sign up. While inactivity should be taken into account, that's an incredibly hard thing to guess. You don't know who's going to go inactive. You might be able to guess at a couple people who have a habit of going inactive, but that's just one of the reasons people go inactive. Real life reasons are unpredictable and they can happen to anyone regardless of prior game activity.

 

I think having a role like the puppet master is simply another way to adjust for the inactives. It's a way to work around it. Simple as that. Yes, the inactive will always be a problem, and there's nothing that can be done to fix that. But that doesn't mean we have to sacrifice the game balance that the GMs work hard on all because of something like inactivity. Sure, we can't make those inactives be more active, but we can at least keep the role, whether that's through a pinch-hitter, a sort "Snapping" mechanic where a regular becomes the inactives role and the inactive turns regular, or a puppet master. They're all just different ways of handling the same problem.

 

My biggest issue with the puppet master is that it needs to be something announced at the beginning of the game as a possibility. If the GM does not announce that it's an option, it shouldn't used, even if most of the eliminator team is inactive. While that really sucks for the eliminators and I feel for them even if I'm on the opposing team, finding out that one of your opponents whom you thought was dead is still controlling an inactive eliminator over 4 cycles after the fact is a bit of a surprise. So this can't be a secret role. It needs to be made clear up front. Obviously not who the puppet master is when/if it's needed, but it cannot be a sudden addition that leaves the other team thinking that "these players are inactive and therefore not a threat because they haven't been online in so long." No. A puppet master means that everyone has a chance of being a threat, regardless of activity and both teams should be aware of that.

[Herowannabe he/him]

Re: puppet master:

An interesting idea, and has some merit, but there are two additional (potential) problems that I haven't seen mentioned yet:

1: when the puppet master dies- she can't still be controlling another role AND have access to the dead doc and the info that it contains. The solution is simple enough- when the puppet master dies don't give her access to the dead doc until her puppet player(s) bite the dust too.

2: While the puppet master helps solve the problem of what to do with inactive players, it also makes it easier for players to go inactive. The Pinch Hitter system had the exact same problem: "It doesn't matter if I leave the game since someone else will take over for me."

However I commend (and up vote) you for the suggest. I belief that game design can go a long way towards preventing inactives. The best game designs seem to be those that give everybody something to do and reward players for participating. Claincy's QF4 with the Breath mechanics was an excellent example. Players had a good reason to participate since if they put in their dues and collected more Breaths they would be rewarded with additional powers and abilities.

[little wilson she/her]

I agree fully with that first point. I'd also recommend that an eliminator puppet master is unable to comment in the eliminator doc after they die, though they can still view it.

The second point...I agree that the pinch hitter system got somewhat abused, but that wasn't really a fault of the system. It was more a fault of the execution of the system. Instead of being strictly for players who are inactive, it turned into a back up for anyone who could go inactive, so active players jumped on it for that purpose, not even attempting to maintain activity during a time that they wouldn't have been able to keep up with the game as well. They just turned it all over to the pinch hitter.

If we explained it better and made it so only inactives could use it, we would have less of this problem, I think. Because people would know that their team would lose their ability for a few cycles before a pinch hitter picked it up, and they'd try to maintain a minimal level of activity until they can play fully again.

However I commend (and up vote) you for the suggest. I belief that game design can go a long way towards preventing inactives. The best game designs seem to be those that give everybody something to do and reward players for participating. Claincy's QF4 with the Breath mechanics was an excellent example. Players had a good reason to participate since if they put in their dues and collected more Breaths they would be rewarded with additional powers and abilities.

Generally, I agree with this, but even that can't stop inactivity. Claincy's game had 2 inactives in it and one of those was the Seeker (not that I'm complaining that the Seeker went inactive. That game was horribly broken and an active Seeker simply would've made it even more impossible for team evil to even have a chance).

From what I've seen, the smaller the game, the more the activity. LG9 had one inactive but all the other players were pretty active. That game is also the smallest LG we've had. It was also role madness and everyone could search the room to possibly find useful items (or less useful items, like a dead mouse). But I think it was the size that helped the activity. Or maybe it was that it was the first Reckoners game. Not sure.

There are four main reasons people go inactive. Three of them, we cannot affect to any degree whatsoever. Real life getting busy, forgetting about the game, and not getting the role/alignment desired. The only one we can affect is people getting bored with the game as it drags on, and the only way we can affect that is limiting the sizes of the games. Player sizes.

I like the big games, personally. 26-30 players is a lot to keep track of, but gosh, it's fun. Those games also have inactives. Always. And the inactive list only grows as the game goes on. We can reduce the sizes of the games to prevent that from happening. Or we can leave it and keep the big games. But leaving it means we have to accept that inactives are going to happen. That's just a fact.

That fact doesn't mean we have to lose the roles though. It just means we have to clearly explain the uses of those inactivity filters/mechanics so they can't be abused.

[Alvron he/him]

1: when the puppet master dies- she can't still be controlling another role AND have access to the dead doc and the info that it contains. The solution is simple enough- when the puppet master dies don't give her access to the dead doc until her puppet player(s) bite the dust too.

They wouldn't get the dead doc if there was a chance of becoming a puppet master.  Way too much of a chance that the information will change their actions.  

 

I agree fully with that first point. I'd also recommend that an eliminator puppet master is unable to comment in the eliminator doc after they die, though they can still view it.

I disagree with you here.  They have already lost a vote and voice in the main thread as well as PMs so letting them plot and plan in doc should be allowed otherwise all they would have is what can be gained with the puppets role.  Maybe have it so that the village Puppeteer can have one PM open with another player of their choice so they can have their voice heard as well.

[dowanx]

Hey guys after playing several of these games I got thinking about what would make an interesting game and came up with some game mechanics I would like your feedback on.  

 

Game Setup:

 

MR or LG game.  This could be a normal Eliminator versus Village type game or a 3+ faction type game. If it is a faction game some of the roles will have to be adjusted specifically the seeker type role.

 

 

Basic idea:

 

If any player gets about 10 investments they explode with power and die.  The number of investments someone requires to die should change based on how many players there are and the desired length of the game, but for the purpose of this outline assume 10.

 

Some Roles only work on players with x+ number of investments while other roles require the use of investments.

 

The number of a player’s current investments is not public knowledge, but are sent to each person in a PM at the end of night/day.

 

Voting does not bring a lynch about but instead adds 1 investment counter to a player.

 

PM rules would depend on if it is a faction game or a normal game.  

 

Roles:

 

Normal player:  You get to vote, but have no other abilities.

 

Seeker:  Once a day they can place a vote on someone, but this does not give that person an investment charge.  Instead if that player is higher than x investments the seeker is told what their alignment is or if that player is lower than x investments the seeker is told what role that player is.

 

Scanner:  Once a day and night they can scan to see how many investments a player has.

 

Manipulator:  Once a day this player may move 1 investment from one player to another player as long as that player has less than x investments.  They can not move an investment from themselves.

 

Striker: Once a day this player may target a player and add 2 investments to them.  

 

Defender: Once a day this player may target a player and remove 2 investments.  A player can not go into the negative.  

 

Redirection: Once a day you can redirect someone's action.  This removes 1 investment from yourself and can only be used if you have an investment.  

 

Prevent Action: Once a day you can prevent someone’s action.  This removes 1 investment from yourself and can only be used if you have an investment.

 

Funnel:  Once a day you can move an investment from yourself to another player.  You can only do this if you have an investment on yourself.

 

God among Mortals: You do not die if you get to 10 investments instead your win condition is to get above 20 investments.  Win condition will change if the number of investments required for death goes up or down.  

 

Eliminator: At night you can add one investment to a player in addition to with whatever role you might have.  This will need to change if the number of investments required for death goes up or down.

 

 

Summary
 

This is a rough outline and I am not sure how best to balance it, but I think the game mechanic would be fun.  I see a lot of potential fun trying to track investment levels of players and trying to use abilities based off of that tracking for the best purpose of whatever team that player is on.  It also would give every player more incentive to play since their vote always does something.  

 

Feel free to change anything and run with the idea if you like it.  This post is mostly about the game mechanics and if you guys think it would make a fun game.

 

Potential problems

 

Seekers being found out way too early.  This is due to them being the only role where their public vote does not increase someone’s investment.

 

There are a lot of roles that can remove investment.  A Seeker might be able to survive in the open due to this.

 

Eliminators not being able to give enough investments out.  If they focus investments it will make them obvious.  Their night investment is secret, but is that enough?

 

Defender might be overpowered.  Should his ability add an investment onto himself?

 

Roles that require the use of investments might be too hard to kill.  Lower their death cap?

[Seonid he/him]

Hey guys after playing several of these games I got thinking about what would make an interesting game and came up with some game mechanics I would like your feedback on.

Game Setup:

MR or LG game. This could be a normal Eliminator versus Village type game or a 3+ faction type game. If it is a faction game some of the roles will have to be adjusted specifically the seeker type role.

Basic idea:

If any player gets about 10 investments they explode with power and die. The number of investments someone requires to die should change based on how many players there are and the desired length of the game, but for the purpose of this outline assume 10.

Some Roles only work on players with x+ number of investments while other roles require the use of investments.

The number of a player’s current investments is not public knowledge, but are sent to each person in a PM at the end of night/day.

Voting does not bring a lynch about but instead adds 1 investment counter to a player.

PM rules would depend on if it is a faction game or a normal game.

Roles:

Normal player: You get to vote, but have no other abilities.

Seeker: Once a day they can place a vote on someone, but this does not give that person an investment charge. Instead if that player is higher than x investments the seeker is told what their alignment is or if that player is lower than x investments the seeker is told what role that player is.

Scanner: Once a day and night they can scan to see how many investments a player has.

Manipulator: Once a day this player may move 1 investment from one player to another player as long as that player has less than x investments. They can not move an investment from themselves.

Striker: Once a day this player may target a player and add 2 investments to them.

Defender: Once a day this player may target a player and remove 2 investments. A player can not go into the negative.

Redirection: Once a day you can redirect someone's action. This removes 1 investment from yourself and can only be used if you have an investment.

Prevent Action: Once a day you can prevent someone’s action. This removes 1 investment from yourself and can only be used if you have an investment.

Funnel: Once a day you can move an investment from yourself to another player. You can only do this if you have an investment on yourself.

God among Mortals: You do not die if you get to 10 investments instead your win condition is to get above 20 investments. Win condition will change if the number of investments required for death goes up or down.

Eliminator: At night you can add one investment to a player in addition to with whatever role you might have. This will need to change if the number of investments required for death goes up or down.

Summary

This is a rough outline and I am not sure how best to balance it, but I think the game mechanic would be fun. I see a lot of potential fun trying to track investment levels of players and trying to use abilities based off of that tracking for the best purpose of whatever team that player is on. It also would give every player more incentive to play since their vote always does something.

Feel free to change anything and run with the idea if you like it. This post is mostly about the game mechanics and if you guys think it would make a fun game.

Potential problems

Seekers being found out way too early. This is due to them being the only role where their public vote does not increase someone’s investment.

There are a lot of roles that can remove investment. A Seeker might be able to survive in the open due to this.

Eliminators not being able to give enough investments out. If they focus investments it will make them obvious. Their night investment is secret, but is that enough?

Defender might be overpowered. Should his ability add an investment onto himself?

Roles that require the use of investments might be too hard to kill. Lower their death cap?

That seems like a very interesting game, dow. I liked the ideas you talked about in the Dead Doc for LG14, and I like the fleshing out you've done here. As far as balance goes, I'd say have both defenders and seekers add an investment to themselves if they use their ability, but don't make it public which votes added investments and which didn't. That way, if 5 people vote but the target only gets +4 investments, the Seeker has got to be one of the 5, but isn't revealed automatically. There are enough investment removing roles that the Defender can take having an investment token added for using their ability.

The roles that use up their investments are good as they are, I think, because the Eliminators can add 1 investment per player targeting them. If the role is an Eliminator role, there should be enough voters to take them out. But that's just my perception here. I'd like to hear what more experienced players have to say about it.

On another subject - I put together a half-sequel, half-satire of LG14 in the Dead Doc. It's a normal Village/Eliminator game, with a lot of elements drawn from Joe's LG10 and LG14 (as is appropriate, I hope, for a sequel - I also draw on the lore established by Joe's LG about Hoid vs. the 17th Shard). Here's the more polished version. I'd like some feedback on it from the more experienced players.

To Reforge a God

Background: Since the last two wars with Odium, the Cosmere has finally had peace. The 16 Shards are now able to turn again to their own pursuits - creation or destruction, as it suits their Intents. But the greatest conflict since the Shattering brews on the horizon. Hoid, the discredited leader of the 17th Shard, is rumored to have returned. The last letter he wrote since he left the Cosmere to parts unknown hinted at his desire to end the rule of the Shards entirely, and reforge that from which they Shattered. The name can be heard floating on the Rosharan highstorms. It curls with the mists in Scadrial. The colors of Nalthis whisper it to the Returned. Adonalsium.

Through the length and the breadth of the Cosmere, the message travels, leaving consternation in its wake. The final conflict of the divided Cosmere approaches. The end of the order of uncounted millennia looms. The Shards gather their forces for one last stand. Will they be able to defeat Hoid and end his goal of reforging Adonalsium once and for all? Or will Hoid take his final vengeance on that Coalition?

Only one thing is certain. The Cosmere will never be the same again.

Factions:

Shardic Coalition: For untold millennia, you have supported the rule of order in the Cosmere. Hoid and his interference has brought you only two costly wars, and the insolent fool didn't even have the decency to face his punishment for his warmongering. Now, he has returned, and you must stop his plan to bring about the return of Adonalsium at any cost. The Coalition wins after killing all members of the 17th Shard, as well as Odium and his Champion(s).

17th Shard: You have been brought into Hoid's great plan for the worlds of the Cosmere. He was there when Adonalsium was Shattered, and he intends to be there when the God is reborn. To bring his plan to fruition, you must gather up the Shards from their original holders. Unfortunately, they are not likely to surrender them peacefully. To win, you need to outnumber the members of the Shardic Coalition. (Autonomy, Odium, Survival, and any Champions of Odium/Agents of Autonomy do not count towards either faction for purposes of outnumbering.) In addition, the 17th Shard has a sudden death win condition - if at any time, members of the 17th Shard hold all 10 Unshattered Shards, the game is immediately over and they win. If Cultivation is Shattered, this sudden death win condition is no longer possible. The 17th Shard have a doc to conspire in, and have a Faction kill.

In addition, there are three Shards who have separate win conditions. These will be described in the Roles section.

Roles: All players may make up to three actions in a turn (spread out over day and night cycles). The following count as actions: using a Shardic action or investment ability, using a minor role ability or Faction kill, investing in another player, passing a Shard to another player. Voting in the thread does not count as an action.

Hoid: The current leader of the 17th Shard, Hoid has collected a wide array of investiture and knowledge over the years. Hoid begins play with a list of all players who hold Shards, but not which Shards they hold. In addition, Hoid may use any of the following abilities once per turn in addition to any actions gained by other means, up to his action limit:

 

     Roleblock: Once per night, you may roleblock a single action.

     Protect: Once per night, you may protect a single player from an attack.

     Redirect: You may change one player’s vote to the target of your choice.

     Secret Vote: You may use an action to submit your vote as a PM.

     Healing: You may use an action to gain one extra life until the end of the turn.

     Scan: You may target a player and learn their investiture level, and the world it originates from.

 

If Hoid is invested by either Odium or Autonomy, the investment fails, as if they had tried to invest another Shard. If Hoid is invested by either Honor or Endowment, they are told that the investment failed, but Hoid steals a charge of Investiture from the Shard. If Hoid is invested by any other Shard, the investment is treated as normal. At the end of the turn, Hoid steals a charge of Investiture from the Shard that invested in him. Hoid may not hold more than one stolen charge of investiture from each Shard at a time. Once per cycle, Hoid may choose to burn a stolen charge of investiture in order to gain the investment ability of that Shard until the end of the turn. Any action taken because of a stolen investiture charge does not count towards the limit of 3 actions per turn.

 

Hoid may not make any kill actions, including the Faction kill.

Shards: The ten Shards of Adonalsium are roles of immense power. Each has a Shardic ability that they may use once per turn, except where noted. Some Shards have a passive ability that is always active. In addition, each Shard may choose to invest in another player at any point during the turn. That player gains the investment ability of the Shard. Investment lasts for one turn (both day and night cycle), except for the investments of Endowment, Honor, Odium, and Autonomy. At the end of the turn, the investment returns to the Shard. Attempts to invest another Shard have no effect, and the Shard will be notified of their investment’s failure. If a Shard is killed, the Shard is given to the player they invested in last cycle. If they did not invest during the previous cycle, the Shard goes to the player that killed them. If multiple players contributed to a kill, such as in a lynch or multiple attacks, the player that receives the Shard will be randomly chosen. In addition, a Shardholder may choose to pass their Shard to another player.

Holding Multiple Shards - A player may hold more than one Shard at a time. However, a player that holds multiple Shards may only use one Shardic action per turn, regardless of the number of Shards they hold. If they use a Shardic action, they may only invest using the same Shard. If a player holding multiple Shards does not use a Shardic action, they may invest using as many Shards as their action limit allows.

Shattered Shards - A Shard that has been killed by Odium’s Shardic ability becomes Shattered. The Shard is passed to the last player to be invested by it as normal, but that player may not use the Shardic ability, invest in another player, or pass the Shattered Shard. The holder of a Shattered Shard counts as having been invested by that Shard, and may use the ability granted that Shard’s investee. A player who holds the Shattered Shard of Endowment, Honor, Odium, or Autonomy does not become Returned, a Champion, or an Agent if they were not already.

Win Conditions - Three Shards have separate win conditions from the other factions - Odium, Autonomy, and Survival. These win conditions apply only to the original holder of the Shard. If these Shards are passed to another player, they do not affect that player’s win condition.

Endowment (Nalthis):

Shardic Ability - May target a player during the day cycle. That player gains the minor role associated with the Shardworld they are on until the end of the following night cycle, and may use its ability once during the turn. They do not gain any items - the role is fueled completely by Endowment's power. This is in addition to any other roles the player may have. An Unshattered Shard is not affected by this action. If Endowment has not invested a player, they may not use their Shardic power.

Investment Ability - Endowment's Investee becomes a Returned upon dying. Unlike other Shards, Endowment may invest in a player that died during the last cycle. If a dead player is invested in, they become a Returned the following cycle.

Dominion (Sel):

Shardic Ability - Once per turn, during either cycle, Dominion may redirect a single action to another target. They must choose both the player to redirect and the action. If the target player may not use the chosen action, a random action is redirected instead. Dominion's ability may not be used on another Shard's Shardic Ability, although it may be used on their investment or investment ability. Dominion also may not force another player to pass a Shard.

Investment Ability - Any actions (including votes) taken by Dominion's investee cannot be blocked or redirected except by a Shardic Action. If Dominion does not invest, it may use this ability instead of its Shardic ability.

Devotion (Sel):

Shardic Ability - Each turn, during either cycle, Devotion may create up to 3 PMs. These last until Devotion chooses to end them or the Shard is passed. The PMs may have any number of people, and do not have to include Devotion. Devotion may have any number of PMs open at one time, but they may not create more than 3 in a turn. In addition, Devotion may set a time for when the PMs are created if they won't be able to be online when they want to create it.

Investment Ability - Devotion's investee is protected from the lynch. If Devotion does not invest, it may use this ability instead of its Shardic ability.

Preservation (Scadrial):

Shardic Ability - Once per game, during any cycle, Preservation may freeze the round. From the moment the ability is activated, no actions, investments, or votes will be counted during the next 72 hours. Preservation may set a time for this ability to activate if they won't be online when they want it to start. After it has been activated, Preservation may not cancel the order.

Passive Ability - Preservation has an extra life.

Investment Ability - Preservation's Investee remains in the same state as they were when the cycle started. If they were alive, they do not die. If they were dead, they may not Return. All actions targeting them fail, and all actions they take fail. This is the only role that may cause the Troll to not change sides, and the only action that fails to change the Troll’s win condition. If Preservation does not invest, it may use this ability instead of its Shardic ability.

Ruin (Scadrial):

Shardic Ability - During the Night Cycle, Ruin may target a planet for destruction. It will be revealed in the next write-up. The PM for that planet will be closed, and any players on that planet will be randomly sent to another planet. This ability may not be used on consecutive turns, and may not be used to destroy the last planet remaining.

Investment Ability - Ruin's Investee may make a kill action. If Ruin does not invest, it may use this ability instead of its Shardic ability.

Cultivation (Roshar):

Shardic Ability - Once per turn, during either cycle, Cultivation may target player. If this player has a minor role, they gain a new set of items. If this player holds a Shattered Shard, the Shard is unshattered. If the player holds an unshattered Shard, or does not have a minor role, this ability does nothing.

Investment Ability - Cultivation's investee may redirect a single vote during the day cycle. If Cultivation does not invest, it may use this ability instead of its Shardic ability.

Honor (Roshar):

Shardic Ability - During the Night cycle, Honor may target another player to roleblock. All of their actions fail. If the target was another Shard, and their actions targeted Honor, they may not be blocked by this ability.

Investment Ability - Honor's investee becomes a Champion of Honor.

Odium (Roshar):

Shardic Ability - During the Night cycle, Odium may target another player to kill. If they do not currently have a Champion of Odium, this kill is effective against any player. If they have created a Champion of Odium, the kill only succeeds against Shards. Shards killed by Odium's ability become Shattered.

Investment Ability - Odium's investee becomes a Champion of Odium.

Win Condition - Odium wins by Shattering all 10 Shards in the game. This condition may be met whether or not the original holder of Odium is still alive.

Secondary Win Condition - Kill all other players in the game, except your Champion.

Autonomy (Taldain):

Shardic Ability - During the Night cycle, Autonomy may choose a player to convert to the cause of freedom. The player is notified that they have been converted, but nothing else happens to them.

Investment Ability - Autonomy's investee becomes an Agent of Autonomy.

Win Condition -Autonomy wins by converting all remaining players to the cause of freedom. This condition may be met whether or not the original holder of Autonomy is still alive.

Survival (Yolen):

Passive Ability - Survival has three lives.

Investment Ability - Survival's investee gains an extra life.

Win Condition - Survival wins only if the player survives to the end of the game.

Minor Roles: A minor role has an ability that requires an item to activate. Each role starts with a certain number of items, although either a Returned or Cultivation’s Shardic ability may increase this number.

Elantrian (Sel): During the Day cycle, you may burn an Aon in order to change another player's vote. You begin the game with 3 Aons.

Awakener (Nalthis): During the Night cycle, you may drain color from a scarf in order to scan another player's investiture level. You will be told whether they have no role (normal Investiture), a minor role, a shattered Shard, or have been invested by a Shard that cycle (High Investiture), or if they hold a Shard (Shardic Investiture). You will also be told the world that the investiture comes from. You begin the game with 3 scarves.

Poisoner (Yolen): During the night cycle, you may use a vial of poison to poison another player. If you are killed, any players you have poisoned die with you. You begin the game with 1 vial of poison.

Knight Radiant (Roshar): During the night cycle, you may protect another player. If they are attacked, you may spend a charge of Stormlight in order to block the attack. You begin the game with 1 charge of Stormlight.

Mistborn (Scadrial): During the night cycle, you may target another player. If they make a kill action, you may burn a vial of metals to block their action and kill them instead. You begin the game with 2 metal vials.

Mastrell (Taldain): During the night cycle, you may target another player. If you or they are targeted by an Awakener or the Analyst, you may use a bag of sand to screen yourself from the scan. The Awakener's scarf will still be used. You begin the game with 3 bags of sand.

Trapper (Yolen): Your Aviar is used to protecting you from danger. However, against the power of Shards and their Invested agents, the most it can do is allow you to survive one round past the turn you are attacked for each charge of Investiture it has. Your Aviar starts with 1 charge.

Investment Roles: Invested roles are given to the Investee of Endowment, Honor, Odium or Autonomy. Unlike the Investees of other Shards, these retain the Investment of their Shard until the Shard withdraws it, or until the Shard dies. The Shard that invested them may not pass their Shard to another player without first withdrawing the investiture.

Returned (Nalthis): After dying, either to the lynch or a kill action, you remain dead for a cycle. You do not get access to the dead doc, but may not post in-thread. At the end of the cycle following your death, you return to the game for as long as Endowment remains invested in you. You no longer have your old role, but you may at any point choose to do one of the following - Roleblock another player’s action, protect another player (including from the lynch), or give a minor role a single item. Using one of these action kills you. At any point, if Endowment withdraws her Investiture from you (including by being killed), you lose one life at the end of the following cycle. Protection roles cannot protect against this, but extra lives such as those gained by Survival’s investee can.

Champion of Odium (Roshar): Upon becoming a Champion, you have a PM opened up with Odium. In addition, your win condition is changed to match Odium’s. Each night cycle, you may make a single kill that is effective against any non-Shard player, or against players who hold shattered Shards. If you is roleblocked by the Champion of Honor, you die and Odium is unable to invest in a new Champion. If Odium voluntarily withdraws the Investment, you cease to be a Champion, and your win condition reverts to your original one. If you are converted by an Agent of Autonomy, you lose the investment as normal and may not use your kill, but the PM is not closed and your win condition does not change unless Odium chooses to invest in another player. If Odium is killed but not Shattered, you receive his Shard, and maintain your win condition, but are no longer considered to be invested by Odium. If Odium is Shattered, you receive his Shard, but remain a Champion.

Champion of Honor (Roshar): Upon becoming a Champion, you have a PM opened up with Honor. Each night cycle, you may make a single roleblock. If your target is a Shard, it does nothing. If you are killed by the Champion of Odium, Honor may no longer Invest in another player. You retain your role and PM until Honor withdraws his investment or is killed. If Honor is Shattered, you receive his Shard and remain a Champion.

Agent of Autonomy (Taldain): Upon becoming an Agent, you have a PM opened up with Autonomy. In addition, your win condition is changed to match Autonomy’s. Any investment actions targeting you fail, and the actions of players Invested by another Shard fail if they target you (Shardic abilities and minor roles function as normal). Once per cycle, you may convert another player to be autonomous. Your converts function in all ways as Autonomy’s converts with the following exception: if a player you converted was invested by a Shard that round, they lose their Investiture. The Shard is informed that the investiture has returned to them. For one cycle following the conversion, any attempts by a shard to invest the converted player fail. If Autonomy withdraws the Investment, you cease to be an Agent, and your win condition reverts to your previous one. If Autonomy is killed but not Shattered, you receive his Shard, and maintain your win condition, but are no longer considered to be invested by Autonomy. If Autonomy is Shattered, you receive his Shard, but remain an Agent.

Meta-Roles: These are commemorative roles poking fun at LG14. When a player holding a meta-role other than The Troll or an Outed Player dies, another player is randomly chosen to receive the role, in addition to any other roles they hold at the time. Meta-roles do not use or carry investiture, and are not revealed by Awakener scans.

The Stick: Any actions directed at the Stick by Hoid are changed into kill actions. The Stick starts out with another minor role.

The Scapegoat: During the day, if the person who is lynched voted for the scapegoat, the scapegoat is lynched instead. The scapegoat starts out with another minor role.

The Troll: Any actions targeted on the Troll cause them to switch alignment. This is cumulative, so multiple actions will cause them to switch multiple times in the cycle. The alignment is counted for scans, for outnumbering purposes, and for any other purpose that it might be needed in except for win conditions. The Troll’s only win condition is to survive the game.

The Puppetmaster: During the day cycle, you may target two players. One of the following things happens, at your discretion. Either the players have their roles switched around (including meta roles), or one player becomes roleless and the other gains both roles. This reverts at the end of the turn. Shards remain with their holder, but any minor roles or meta-roles the Shardholder possesses are switched. If one of the players affected by the Puppetmaster dies, then the roles are not reverted at the end of the turn.

The Lifeless Commander: During the night cycle, you are given one layer of protection for each attack that targets you. However, you receive no protection against attacks made during the day.

The Suicidal Analyst: Each night cycle, you scan a player to learn their role and alignment, including any meta-roles they hold. If you target a player whose alignment differs from yours, they become Outed. However, every night, you are attacked once for each Outed player you have created. You may spend an action in order to target a player you would like to scan. If you do not do so, a random player is chosen to be scanned, even if you have used all three of your actions that turn. If you are killed by a kill due to an Outed player, you win, even if your faction loses.

Outed Player: Created by the Analyst. Your role is publicly revealed in the write-up. After you are killed, you do not die until 2 cycles have passed. No player starts out as an Outed Player.

Planets and PMs: There will be 7 worlds available: Scadrial, Roshar, Nalthis, Sel, Taldain, Yolen, and First of the Sun. Each of these worlds will have a PM associated with it. Anyone on that world may use the PM freely. Other than these planet PMs and PMs that may be created by roles, no PMs between players are allowed.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Seonid

[A Joe in the Bush]

Just a minor Clarification:

Autonomy (Taldain):

Shardic Ability - During the Night cycle, Autonomy may choose a player to convert to the cause of freedom. The player is notified that they have been converted, but nothing else happens to them.

Investment Ability - Autonomy's investee becomes an Agent of Autonomy.

Win Condition - Odium wins by converting all remaining players to the cause of freedom. This condition may be met whether or not the original holder of Autonomy is still alive.

 

I'm guessing that should be Autonomy?

[Seonid he/him]

Just a minor Clarification:

I'm guessing that should be Autonomy?

Thanks! Fixed it

[little wilson she/her]

Meta-Roles: These are commemorative roles poking fun at LG14. When a player holding a meta-role other than The Troll or an Outed Player dies, another player is randomly chosen to receive the role, in addition to any other roles they hold at the time. Meta-roles do not use or carry investiture, and are not revealed by Awakener scans.

The Suicidal Analyst: Each night cycle, you scan a player to learn their role and alignment, including any meta-roles they hold. If you target a player whose alignment differs from yours, they become Outed. However, every night, you take one kill action for each Outed player you have created. You may spend an action in order to target a player you would like to scan. If you do not do so, a random player is chosen to be scanned, even if you have used all three of your actions that turn. If you survive to the end of the game, you lose, even if your team otherwise wins.

 

So, if the Analyst is always being given to another player upon the previous analysts death, wouldn't this mean that someone is guaranteed to lose through just the bad luck of receiving the analyst on the last turn of the game when they can't possibly die in time?

[Seonid he/him]

So, if the Analyst is always being given to another player upon the previous analysts death, wouldn't this mean that someone is guaranteed to lose through just the bad luck of receiving the analyst on the last turn of the game when they can't possibly die in time?

I...hadn't even thought of that. It's not a good situation, really. Hmm...here's a thought on closing that hole: what if the kills were persistent, too? Something like "every night cycle, you receive one attack for each Outed Player still living."

The other option would be to make dying to one of these kills a secondary win condition. So, if you die to a kill from having outed a player, you win even if your team loses. But if you live to the end of the game, you can still win with your team.

I think I like the second option better.

[little wilson she/her]

Wait, so is the kill action on the suicidal analyst an attack on them? So every time they out someone, they get attacked? The way I'd been reading it was that they got to make a kill every time they outed someone. Maybe make the wording on that part a little more clear?

 

That second option is definitely the better of the two. The secondary win con emphasizes the suicidal aspect of it, but it doesn't compromise the win for the analyst who is bound to survive (regardless of what team they're on).