Ten Candles (ready for queue)

[kimpossible]

This game is inspired by Ten Candles, a horror RPG by Stephen Dewey. The flavor is taken from there, a world where the lights have gone out and mysterious entities known as Them lurk in the darkness. The mechanics of this game are based on a ritual in the game where cards are burned for in-game effects, but given Mafia roles to make it playable as a zero-sum game.

There is also a mechanic where candles are blown out and truths are added to the world, which may be used for a second version of this game. In the RPG it is foregone conclusion that all the candles will be blown out and all the characters will die. At the end of the game the players whisper the final truth: "The world is dark." It is a haunting, chilling, tension-filled roleplaying experience.

The PDF may be purchased here: http://cavalrygames.com/shop/ten-candles-pdf

The Rules

1. The game begins with 8 town and 2 scum.
2. Town wins when all scum have been eliminated. Scum win when they achieve parity with the town.
3. Every day the players choose one player to lynch. The victim is chosen by plurality vote, with votes cast in large #FF0000 text. Self-voting is allowed. No Lynch is not a valid vote.
   
   1. In the event of a tie, the player who has held the majority of votes for the longest continuous time period will be lynched. So if Player A reaches 5 votes, followed by Player B reaching 5, Player A will be lynched.
   2. If Player A reaches 5 votes, then Player B reaches 5, then Player A drops to 4, and then goes back to 5, Player B will be lynched as the one who has had 5 votes for the longest continuous time period.
   3. In the event that no votes are cast you’re playing wrong, but the lynchee will be chosen randomly from amongst the town players. Scum will not be randomly lynched.
4. Alignment is revealed after death.
5. Every player has a power. Town powers may not be activated by choice; instead they will be triggered automatically and non-optionally when the player is lynched. Town powers may not necessarily have fully town-positive effects.
6. Scum have both a cover power and a real power. Their cover power will never be activated.
7. Scum have a nightly kill. The powers of players eliminated in this manner will not be activated.
8. Players will be informed of their alignment and power via PM at the beginning of the game. Powers / cover powers are assigned independently of alignment.
9. Scum will have chat at all times.
10. There are no hidden rules beyond the powers assigned to players.

I have a second version of this game with the same flavor but different mechanics where instead of hidden powers everyone is a cop, the game is played flipless, all town are honest cops, all scum are dishonest cops. It may see the light of day eventually, it may not.

[kimpossible]

Feeling more inclined toward fully hidden powers, since I've already thought up 8 and why make my life harder with 2 more?

I think I would tell the scumteam what powers are in play but not who has them, because I think town could probably win in short order if they call for a full reveal and look for anyone counter-claimed. Scum should have the ability to come up with plausible cover powers.

[Nanook]

Personally I like a list of ten powers, that are randomly assigned (or at least, we know what the ten are, but we don't know "scum can only have these two," so functionally random to the town). Feels a bit townsided to make scum lie about their power AND not be able to use it if forced to, which effectively outs them.

[kimpossible]

Personally I like a list of ten powers, that are randomly assigned (or at least, we know what the ten are, but we don't know "scum can only have these two," so functionally random to the town). Feels a bit townsided to make scum lie about their power AND not be able to use it if forced to, which effectively outs them.

Sure, but they're outed anyway if lynched. That's the only way powers are activated.

That said, I'm also perfectly fine with a published list of what's out there. Either one eliminates the CC problem. Two more shouldn't be THAT hard to think up.

Double plus bonus, it means I can get public help on them.

[Nanook]

Personally I like a list of ten powers, that are randomly assigned (or at least, we know what the ten are, but we don't know "scum can only have these two," so functionally random to the town). Feels a bit townsided to make scum lie about their power AND not be able to use it if forced to, which effectively outs them.

Sure, but they're outed anyway if lynched. That's the only way powers are activated.

That said, I'm also perfectly fine with a published list of what's out there. Either one eliminates the CC problem. Two more shouldn't be THAT hard to think up.

Double plus bonus, it means I can get public help on them.

Oh! Ok, yeah, that makes sense then, and scum having to come up with their own is probably fine.

[kimpossible]

Personally I like a list of ten powers, that are randomly assigned (or at least, we know what the ten are, but we don't know "scum can only have these two," so functionally random to the town). Feels a bit townsided to make scum lie about their power AND not be able to use it if forced to, which effectively outs them.

Sure, but they're outed anyway if lynched. That's the only way powers are activated.

That said, I'm also perfectly fine with a published list of what's out there. Either one eliminates the CC problem. Two more shouldn't be THAT hard to think up.

Double plus bonus, it means I can get public help on them.

Oh! Ok, yeah, that makes sense then, and scum having to come up with their own is probably fine.

I already have my 10 now, so I can really go either way. In fact, I'd almost prefer a public list, exactly because I can get a little input if folks think any are too imbalanced. Plus... me and hidden rules. We ain't friends.

[Zoomzip]

I think I am intrigued by variation 1. If I'm right it is:

Town kills Player A (Alignment Unknown) > Player A dies, but provides IR on Player B. If Player A is town, this is a Sane Cop reveal. If Player A is scum, this is a Paranoid Cop Reveal.

That's... interesting.

[kimpossible]

I think I am intrigued by variation 1. If I'm right it is:

Town kills Player A (Alignment Unknown) > Player A dies, but provides IR on Player B. If Player A is town, this is a Sane Cop reveal. If Player A is scum, this is a Paranoid Cop Reveal.

That's... interesting.

That's correct. Both variants seem like they have the potential to be interesting.

In fact, if I greatly like both ideas, I might take both and reskin one of them with new flavor. Probably Variation 2, since Variation 1 was my original idea and I like the idea that flavor-wise the player is sent into the Darkness and their ghost reveals one piece of information before disappearing. Which is based on the game mechanic where after each candle is extinguished, each player adds a new fact that is true about the world.

[Zoomzip]

Is there a night kill in either variation?

[kimpossible]

Is there a night kill in either variation?

Both, yes.

Variant 1, no IR on NK, only lynch, otherwise it seems too townsided. Though, if I went 9/3 maybe alter that so that scum could sacrifice one of their own to throw a false IR. It's a thought.

Variant 2, power does not activate after NK, only after lynch.