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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 18:33:39 GMT
Okay, confessional time!
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 18:50:24 GMT
1. That vote was crazy! What happened? How are you feeling?
Yeah....that was crazy.
So, here is the basic game state from my point of view:
- I felt pretty good about where I was in the game. I felt I had great relationships with Excella, Steve, Billie, and Sheva, and a solid relationship with Excella. I felt like I was basically cordial with everyone else except for Carlos. I felt like Carlos was really trying to work the rumor mill to scramble the game.
- I felt that the biggest threats in the game were Matt/Dog, and maybe Jessica. I was worried that Matt/Dog had an idol from the Press the Button Challenge (their tribe pushed the button far earlier than any other, so it stood to reason that they had the idol). And Original Dimi was becoming very close to a majority of the players left. I also just felt that Matt and Dog were both really strong social players.
- I knew that there was an Elza vs. Kathereine conflict, but I kind of LIKED that, and I wanted to keep that conflict in the game.
So, I began feeling people out on a Matt vote. I tried to keep it to people who I believed I could trust to keep the push silent.
About an hour before the vote, all Hell broke loose. Apparently Sheva told Carlos about my push on Matt. Carlos (of course!) told Matt. Matt came to me and told me I was "full of shit" and really felt super betrayed. It was a mess.
I played my idol, switched my vote from Carlos to Matt, and held my breath...
In the aftermath, these are the things that I've learned:
(1) I think that Matt probably thought of me as a little bit closer than I expected. He had never asked me to be in an alliance with him, which is one of the reasons I wanted to reduce the strength of his game state, but I think he saw my secret push on him as more of a betrayal than it felt like to me.
(2) I think that Sheva/Jessica/Carlos are closer than I was really giving them credit for.
(3) I do think that Sheva is still loyal to me. I feel like she just made a mistake in trusting that Carlos would work with her to vote out Matt, rather than relaying info to Matt to try to drive a wedge.
(4) Carlos is a dangerous player to have in the game, because he is going to pass on rumors and try to blow up relationships.
(5) My best way forward is probably to try to work through the #villagepeople, which is the five players who were on the Village Outcast tribe. Steve, Billie, Excell, Elza and me. That group is especially good for me, because I think I have two solid groups of three within that five (Angela/Billie/Steve and Angela/Excella/Elza), which gives me flexibility. Elza is the one who I most need to convince to stay with that group, and I need to work on that in the next few days.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 19:11:00 GMT
2. What do you see as the game state from your viewpoint? A list showing who you feel is on top and on bottom would be great.
I think rankings are tricky, as there is a lot to pack into it. It would probably be better if I had an X and Y axis, and then I could rate each player's chances of making the final three on one axis, and their chances of winning on another. I'll just give them a rough combined rating, and then comment.
Strongest Position
Jessica - she has been able to stay out of the fray, and has nobody targeting her at all. She also has a hidden immunity idol that she got from Leon at the last Blue Umbrella tribal, I believe. So she is out of the spotlight and off the chopping block, but also has good relationships and an idol she can use to make a big move.
Excella - just seems to be playing a strong game, and is off everyone's radar. She is also a positive, well-spoken person, and I bet she can make a good jury speech.
Angela - Oh, I still think I'm in a decent position, but it got a lot worse after last tribal, having to use my idol and blow up my game a little. I think I have a lot of strong relationships that can carry me a long way. I just have to avoid being labeled duplicit, when I have to make choices between close allies.
Billie - Off everyone's radar, but she has been quiet and non-impactful in a way that will make it harder to get jury votes.
Steve - Done a great job rebuilding relationships after losing everyone on his tribe. He actually has a great jury story if he can make it that far, and I'd say he has a great chance to stick around a while.
Sheva - Not drawing much heat, but seems to have been caught feeding the rumor mill too much last tribal.
Carlos - Seems to be out of the immediate spotlight for a vote, but I think he has lost trust all around the tribe from passing notes.
Katherine - She is doing fine, but her game has mostly been defined by her conflict with Elza, which isn't a great look and may be her downfall.
Matt - Just lost his #1 ally and lost his cool. He is a strong player and can dig out of this hole, but I think he may have burned some bridges last night in anger.
Elza - is not playing a very high-impact game, but keeps insisting on settling this old feud with Katherine. I feel like the sense around the tribe is that Elza's insistence on voting off Katherine every single tribal is not particularly strong strategic play, and there are not many other notes to her game. I think that may make it hard for her to stick in the game, and hard for her to win if she makes the end.
Weakest Position
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 19:15:07 GMT
3. Do you consider yourself a Hero, a Villain, or something in between? What are some examples to show this?
Oh, I don't really relate to that axis of judgment, and maybe that's why I should be perceived as a villain. I am playing the game very hard. I am trying to make as many people in the game as possible view me as important to move their own games forward. That always results in some double-dealing, to be sure. Some of that came back to bite me last round.
I think that I can only keep playing this way if I can improve my information control. I can speak freely and influence the game if I feel like the people I am speaking with will hold my comments in confidence, but when that breaks down, I can get very badly burned.
Trying to reset, refresh, and tighten up my information. "This is a trust tree, damn it!"
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 19:16:40 GMT
4. Are there any spicy or fun PMs you'd be willing to screenshot and share with the spectators to gain more insight into your game?
Yes, I'll curate a list when I find some more time. This is a good prompt.
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Post by Night Howl on Aug 7, 2023 19:17:49 GMT
If you're answering questions...
Who is the biggest obstacle to your game at the moment and why?
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 20:08:41 GMT
If you're answering questions... Who is the biggest obstacle to your game at the moment and why? I think it's Carlos. Loose lips sink ships. Snitches get stitches. I stopped telling Carlos anything of note after the first merged tribal counsel when I found that he was passing notes. He still found a way to hit me with leaks by leaking things that I had sent to Sheva and that got to him. It's really hard to play all sides when someone is feeding the rumor mill like that! |
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 7, 2023 23:08:20 GMT
Okay, gun notes:
Alex fired a gun on himself at Moreau, first vote.
Barry probably fired a gun on himself at Duke?
Matt fired a shotgun on himself at Bela
Katherine shot a rifle at Angela at BSAA
Ramon shot a rifle at Elza at BSAA
Elza fired shotgun at Excella while at Daniela
Hunk and Steve shot rifles at Jessica while at Blue Umbrella
Albert shot a rifle at Billie while at Village
Joe fired a grenade launcher at Excella and Angela at Miranda
Carlos fired a grenade launcher at Matt and Dog at Miranda
Possible guns remaining, other than mine:
Billie
Excella
Sheva
Jessica
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 8, 2023 3:16:24 GMT
I think that Sheva may have voted for me last round and it’s blowing my mind.
I think that Jess and Carlos voted Dog.
I think that me and Excella were the two Matt votes.
Elza and Katherine cross-voted.
Pretty sure Sheva voted for me.
Billie missed the vote. Steve…I guess it could have been Steve too.
Rats. Maybe it was Sheva AND Steve.
I may be in trouble here.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 0:54:12 GMT
Well…I just hope I stick around and this vote goes to Carlos here. Extra credit if Jess plays the idol that I believe she has.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 0:58:23 GMT
If Jess plays the idol for Carlos after that speech, she is a superhero and deserves to win.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 14:11:46 GMT
Okay America, I just fired off a delicate message to Sheva that I will share with you all:
Hello Sheva,
So...I'd really like to talk about something delicate. I'm not really sure how to bring it up. I'm nervous about it. I just have to rip off the band-aid...
Carlos told me before he went out yesterday that he voted for Dog at the TC before. It makes sense. He used a grenade launcher on Dog and Matt, after all. I don't think he had any reason to lie to me at the point when he told me this.
Jess tells me that she voted for Dog. You also told me that you voted for Dog.
I can't seem to figure out the second person who voted for me (Katherine has told me that she voted for me).
Sheva, I hate to put you on the spot. And my feelings towards you aren't going to change either way. But I feel like we need to get into this in order to move forward.
I get that we are playing a game. And you might have plenty of reasons to want to vote me out. We are all trying to juggle a complicated mix of relationships, and so I am not here to judge you or make you feel guilty. I want to take the time to talk about the hard stuff, because I care about you.
On the vote when Dog went home, did you vote for me?
With love,
Angela
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 14:16:43 GMT
As context, Sheva and I have been incredibly close in this game. We worked hand in hand at Bela, Sheva was voted to the outcast tribe at Angie and pulled me with her. Then we worked very closely at Angie. I have definitely considered her to be an untouchable #1 ally in this game, at times.
However, I've noticed a bit of distance since she came back from Blue Umbrella. Her "plans" with me are half-cooked and lacking conviction. I think she probably voted for me during the TC when Dog went out because first she told me she voted for Matt, then changed that story and said she voted for Dog. Additionally, she was the one who passed on many of my private thoughts about Matt to Matt, which caused quite an uproar, and meant that both Matt and I played our idols and cross-voted.
So...I feel like I need to get that vote back in the open with Sheva to try to figure out what is going on. I feel like, if I don't address it at all, it will linger and she'll want to vote me out just to avoid the issue. If we can have a candid conversation about it, I think we can actually grow our relationship much stronger.
Still possible that she didn't vote for me at all, and it was Jessica (or Steve). But I don't think Sheva would blame me for asking her this question, given the information I have.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 14:18:47 GMT
As a bit of a window into that last vote, I think that the outcome was dictated largely by an alliance of four that assembled mid-way through the phase. The group included, me, Katherine, Elza, Excella.
Here was the opening post I made, in the thread to all of us called "Sugar and Spice":
Ladies,
Oh no another group chat!
I am hoping that this one will have some staying power.
I've been looking for the right group of allies for quite a while. This one is on nobody's bingo card -- it's quite unexpected -- but I feel like it could be great.
I'd like to play with this team if you all want to play together too.
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Post by Angela Miller on Aug 9, 2023 14:51:42 GMT
And here is my morning message to Steve. Here, I am using a "let's talk about the game" message as a pretext to explain why Steve should work with me for the next vote and vote out one of Matt/Elza/Excella/Katherine. I am blatantly playing all sides, in this, as I am pretty firmly in an alliance with Elza/Excella/Katherine right now.
Good morning sunshine!
I hope that you're doin' well.
So...nine people left.
Angela
Steve
Billie
Jessica
Sheva
Excella
Elza
Matt
Katherine
With Katherine and Elza making up, I kind of think about the roster in terms of the groupings above, I don't know about you. Seems like it might be wise to vote out someone in the original Dimi group next tribal, else they wind up with half of the castaways?
Just mulling it. What are your thoughts?
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