Hey mastin, I've read all of your articles on the mafiawiki. My favorite is the interactive tells you wrote. One thing I remember you writing is that you should have as many scumspects as there are scum or something along those lines. Now with the requisite ass kissing out of the way...In post 0, mastin2 wrote:(AKA, the "School of Mastin thought" on mafia.)
I've had a fair number of people following in my footsteps (asking "What Would Mastin Do?"), a few people call me a genius when it comes to the game, and/or asking to learn from the 'master' himself. I've even had a 'student' of mine "graduate", via surpassing me in his skill and talent. Not to mention, how I can apparently give people good advice and have always seen potential in users who often don't see their own.
I already do IC work (and sometimes IC outside of newbies), but I wanted to expand that a bit further and become, quite literally, a professor of mafia. (When I finish my mafia textbook, this'll be a whole lot easier a "course" to take.
What this thread is for:
Asking me advice on how to play the game of mafia, to give feedback to the players in general, and to critique specific games for emphasis of these.
A note:
Please keep questions on the game in general, as to not be specific to an ongoing game. If you want to ask a specific question about (or even related to) that game, write it down and askafterthe game's already over.
What to ask:
Any question relating to the game. It can be anything from "Where do you look for scum?" to "How do you find town?" to "How do you break the RVS ice?" and so on and so forth. You got a question, I'll have an answer for you. Any question so long as it's not ongoing-game-specific will get as much elaboration as I can cram into the lesson.
How I'll help:
Note that my teaching style is incredibly personalized and intimate. (Not necessarily hands-on, but almost never completely hands-off, either.
Just ask, and I'll do what I can.
Obviously, if I know you, I can already give that advice without the time delay, and will do so. If you want more detailed feedback, sure, I'll go through the process above, but only on your request. (My memory sucks for specifics, but is typically quite good for the generalities. Thus, why I won't do so by default.)
Note that I can always give more, but am kinda lazy.
Note for moderators:
You're not excluded from this! I'm more than happy to critique your setups and your modding practices. My process won't be as good as, say, zoraster's survey is, but it's better than nothing and is available at request. Just know it follows the same rules as above, and thus, will typically take some time for me to do.
A disclaimer:
If you're a better player (or moderator) than I am, chances are, I won't actually be able to help.should be the one doing the teaching!you
For instance, while it's theoretically possible for me to teach AngryPidgeon something, he already "graduated" and took my advice to heart, added his own spin, and IMPROVED it. I'm good at the game, and a great teacher--but I'm not the best. If I don't have much to say, it's a sign of your talent having bloomed with skill, and you've earned not only my respect, but also my admiration.
On Specific Games:
Note that Iwillgive feedback on games that I'm not familiar with, but as with the above, my advice will be more accurate if I'm intimately familiar with the game. I'll analyze the setup and give an overview of each player, along with what you could do better in future games, and point out those general behaviors. Basically, this is a hybrid of the general theory questions I'll be answering, and the individualized coaching, tying it all together.
Grad School:
Just because you've "graduated" from my academy doesn't mean your mafia education is finished! The game evolves, the site evolves, players evolve, you evolve, and thus, the advice I give will also therefore evolve. You can ask me again to help, as many times as you'd like. It's a never-ending process of betterment. (But do note the above--I can try to help you, but if you're better than I am, it'll be much harder for me to actually do so.)
Spoiler: Subjects Lectured On
Spoiler: Current Students
Spoiler: General Learning Resources
However in light of my recent Newbie1485 there was a point where I only had one scumspect. What should a player do if they have only one suspect? Or even worse, no suspects? The scum are too careful?
We all know that sometimes people have off days or someone is just a VI. When, if ever, should you not pursue the lynch of the scummiest player?
(Town still won by a great play of our cop)