Othello, the Moor of Venice (game prep)

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 12:22 am

This will be a slight variation of standard Werewolf.

Knowledge of Shakespeare is not required!

Evil team will consist of:
Iago
Roderigo
Emilia iff she finds her lady's handkerchief

Good team will consist of:
Othello
Desdemona
Cassio
Emilia unless she finds her lady's handkerchief
Miscellanous Venetians

Depending on the participation level, optional powered roles will include:
Bianca (chaotic good)
Brabantio (chaotic neutral)
Montano (good)

Interested?

Remus West · Post by **Remus West** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 1:28 am

Probably but can't be certain with that little information. Rule set?

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 3:56 am

You're so demanding.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 8:46 am

Ooh, I'm in! Is it cheating if I read the Cliff's Notes?

Also, let's just assume for a minute that I'm a newbie who doesn't know how to play Werewolf. What do I need to know?

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 10:45 am

Holman wrote:What do I need to know?

The rules. On the plus side, none of us know them either, so we're all in the same boat.

@ Grund, When you say slight variation, do you mean boardgammy, or just powery? I'm off the entire week of Thanksgiving, so if you can start before that, I'd very likely play.

Qantaga · Post by **Qantaga** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 10:48 am

To win the Moor again?

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 10:54 am

stessier wrote:
Holman wrote:What do I need to know?
The rules. On the plus side, none of us know them either, so we're all in the same boat.

@ Grund, When you say slight variation, do you mean boardgammy, or just powery? I'm off the entire week of Thanksgiving, so if you can start before that, I'd very likely play.

Just powery. I don't have time this season to concoct a grand, thematic, boardgamey thing that requires spreadsheet management and fails two thirds of the way through.

I'll post the rules later today or this evening. We'll start ASAP.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 11:13 am

"what if *you* were the chump husband?"

I'd love to see the rules.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 1:47 pm

Holman wrote:Ooh, I'm in! Is it cheating if I read the Cliff's Notes?

Also, let's just assume for a minute that I'm a newbie who doesn't know how to play Werewolf. What do I need to know?

Wolves kill at night, villagers hunt for wolves during the day by voting to kill one player (majority vote). Villagers usually have a hidden seer that scans a player at night to find out if they are wolf or not. That is the standard game. Then we have other roles that expand on that basic game which vary from game to game.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 1:49 pm

Remus West · Post by **Remus West** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 4:08 pm

Also, keep in mind that Lassr is always a bad guy and should be voted out as early as possible. The only exception to that rule is if bb2112 or Chaosraven are playing. Then they should go first.

Remus West is never a bad guy and should always be heeded when offering advice.

Lagom Lite · Post by **Lagom Lite** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 5:33 pm

Ooh a game full of Shakespearian quips? In!

Remus West wrote:Remus West is never a bad guy and should always be heeded when offering advice.

Heaven truly knows that thou art false as hell.

bb2112 · Post by **bb2112** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 8:29 pm

Lagom Lite wrote:
Remus West wrote:Remus West is never a bad guy and should always be heeded when offering advice.
Heaven truly knows that thou art false as hell.

What he said!

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 9:10 pm

Lagom Lite wrote:Ooh a game full of Shakespearian quips? In!

Yes! But they must all come from You Know What.

Heaven truly knows that thou art false as hell.

That's a good start!

I may not be able to get the rules up until Thursday. My Tuesday and Wednesday have turned into a mega-crunch.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Tue Nov 06, 2012 4:01 pm

Do we have to say things like Doth, and Tis?

Cuz I gots me no old english skillz but I be IN.

redrun · Post by **redrun** » Wed Nov 07, 2012 1:14 pm

Grundbegriff wrote:
Lagom Lite wrote:Ooh a game full of Shakespearian quips? In!
Yes! But they must all come from You Know What.

The Scottish play, AKA: the play that must not be named?

No, that doesn't make sense.

Francis Bacon?

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Wed Nov 07, 2012 1:52 pm

redrun wrote: Bacon?

Mmmm. Works for me. Is Hamlet close enough? That's pretty much back bacon, isn't it?

redrun · Post by **redrun** » Wed Nov 07, 2012 2:41 pm

LordMortis wrote:
redrun wrote: Bacon?
Mmmm. Works for me. Is Hamlet close enough? That's pretty much back bacon, isn't it?

Now is this evening of discontent made glorious morning by this smell of bacon.
And all the dreams that have sat with-in our heads, removed by this rasher of life.
Sad-faced hunger has been erased from our poor faces, and now
instead of carrying acid laden stomachs that fright the inhabitants of our breakfast table,
we joyfully converse with those around us, to the happy sound of bacon crunching.

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Thu Nov 08, 2012 9:44 am

"O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name.
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love
And I'll no longer be a Capulet."

"See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand!
O that I were a glove upon that hand,
that I might touch that cheek!"

I love Shakespeare. Does that make me a geek? Or a Nerd? Or just eccentric?

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Thu Nov 08, 2012 12:28 pm

I'm a gonna blow through this game like a blast from a canon!

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sat Nov 10, 2012 5:54 pm

The Good Team

Othello, a noble Moor in the service of the Venetian State.

Othello wrote:"Villain, be sure thou prove my love a whore,
Be sure of it; give me the ocular proof:
Or by the worth of man's eternal soul,
Thou hadst been better have been born a dog
Than answer my waked wrath!"

Othello, adventurer and general, is a great leader of men but a poor judge of character. For this reason, among others, Othello is easily duped despite his insistence on rigorous proof. Always ready to detect and condemn misdeeds, Othello scans nightly in search of malefactors. He will learn whether his target is "friend" or "foe", but Iago will look like a "friend" to him. If Emilia finds the handkerchief and thereby changes alignment, then Desdemona will also look like a "foe" if Othello scans her.

Desdemona, daughter to Brabantio and wife to Othello.

Desdemona wrote:"I cannot say 'whore':
It doth abhor me now I speak the word;
To do the act that might the addition earn
Not the world's mass of vanity could make me."

Desdemona has no power to affect fate, whether her own or any other's, and yet the world of this game revolves around her. She has lost her handkerchief. If her handmaiden Emilia finds it, Emilia will leave her side and join her husband on Team Evil. If Emilia finds the handkerchief and thereby changes alignment, then Desdemona will also look like a "foe" if Othello scans her. And if Desdemona is slain by day, Othello (if alive) will automatically die with her.

Cassio, Othello's lieutenant

Cassio wrote:"I have drunk but one cup tonight, and that was craftily qualified too, and behold what innovation it makes here: I am unfortunate in the infirmity, and dare not task my weakness with any more."

This Florentine, "a person and a smooth dispose to be suspected, framed to make women false", is charismatic, efficient, and loyal. However, he has a weakness for strong drink which, to his misfortune, makes him look bad when he is, in fact, good. So he's eager to restore his reputation. Each night, Cassio may protect one player (himself or another), but he may not protect the same player twice in a row. If Othello scans him on or after a night when Cassio has successfully protected another player from an attack, Othello will detect that Cassio is a "friend"; otherwise, Cassio will look like a "foe" if Othello scans him.

Emilia, wife to Iago and handmaiden to Desdemona

Emilia wrote:"I am glad I have found this napkin:
This was her first remembrance from the Moor:
My wayward husband hath a hundred times
Woo'd me to steal it.... what he will do with it
Heaven knows, not I;
I nothing but to please his fantasy."

Emilia is devoted to Desdemona, but Iago has badgered her to acquire Desdemona's handkerchief and she longs for Iago's approval. Emilia is unwilling to steak the keepsake, but if her lady should happen to drop it and she to discover it.... Each night, Emilia scans another player to find out whether that person is (possibly unwittingly) holding the handkerchief. If Emilia finds the handkerchief, she will have a copy made-- or maybe just take it-- and will leave Team Good to join Team Evil, receiving thenceforth all the rights and privileges thereunto pertaining. She will retain her ability to scan for the handkerchief.

Miscellanous Venetians

As many as it takes to give the specials proper cover.

Possible additional members:

Bianca, prostitute and Cassio's mistress

Iago wrote:"...Bianca,
A housewife that by selling her desires
Buys herself bread and clothes: it is a creature
That dotes on Cassio; as 'tis the strumpet's plague
To beguile many and be beguiled by one"

On the morning after her tryst with Cassio, Bianca has found a handkerchief! Though she and Cassio are both married to other people, Bianca cannot help but wonder whether he's being unfaithful to her. What if he left the hanky accidentally and it belongs to some other woman? Just to be sure, she's taking it from house to house on the sly to see whether anyone seems to recognize it.

Montano, Othello's predecessor in the government of Cyprus

Montano wrote:"Worthy Othello, I am hurt to danger:
....nor know I aught
By me that's said or done amiss this night;
Unless self-charity be sometimes a vice,
And to defend ourselves it be a sin
When violence assails us."

If attacked by night, Montano will survive the attack once regardless of whether Cassio defends him.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sat Nov 10, 2012 7:21 pm

The Evil Team

Iago, Othello's ensign.

Iago wrote:"In following him, I follow but myself;
Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
But seeming so, for my peculiar end:
For when my outward action doth demonstrates
The native act and figure of my heart
In compliment extern, 't is not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at: I am not what I am."

Iago, indignant that Othello promoted Michael Cassio to the rank of lieutenant but left Iago a mere ensign, has sworn that he will avenge this slight by dealing them an unforgettable comeuppance. If killed by day, Iago will have the option to slay someone with his dagger.

Roderigo, a Venetian gentleman

Roderigo wrote:"My money is almost spent;
I have been to-night exceedingly well cudgelled;
and I think the issue will be, I shall have so much experience for my pains,
and so, with no money at all and a little more wit,
return again to Venice."

Roderigo is infatuated with Desdemona, and despite her recent marriage, Iago has promised to win her for Roderigo. In exchange for this support, Roderigo sustains Iago's machinations by providing money and performing gruntwork. As long as Iago is alive, Roderigo has the ability to skulk around the Cypriot sea port at night on Iago's behalf. During this nocturnal activity, Roderigo may select one of the lodgings allocated to the Venetian visitors and figure out whether or not it is inhabited by "a Venetian gentleman" such as himself. If it is not, then he may safely infer that the inhabitant is either Othello or Desdemona or Cassio or Emilia.

Possible additional members:

Emilia, wife to Iago and handmaiden to Desdemona

Each night, Emilia scans another player to find out whether that person is (possibly unwittingly) holding the handkerchief. If Emilia finds the handkerchief, she will have a copy made and will leave Team Good to join Team Evil, receiving thenceforth all the rights and privileges thereunto pertaining. She will retain her ability to scan for the handkerchief.

Brabantio, a senator and Desdemona's father

Brabantio wrote:"O heaven! How got she out? O treason of the blood!
Fathers, from hence trust not your daughters' minds
By what you see them act. Is there not charms
By which the property of youth and maidhood
May be abused?"

Though an old friend of Othello, Brabantio is ethnocentric to the core and cannot believe that his fine Venetian daughter would willingly join herself to the Moor. Brabantio demands Othello's arrest and trial for absconding with his daughter, and brings matters of state to a halt until his sense of justice be satisfied. Brabantio searches for Othello by night; if he finds Othello, he exposes Othello's identity to all. Brabantio and Roderigo may both scan, the former only for Othello, and the latter only for Venetian gentlemen. Brabantio has no access to Iago's forum, does not count toward the Evil population, and does not participate in slayings by night; he is an independent potential source of chaos. However, Othello scans him as "foe".

Miscellaneous rules for Team Evil

As long as he lives, Iago may (in consultation with his teammates) select a victim to slay at night. If alive, Roderigo will do the dirty work. If Iago dies, Roderigo will both select and dispatch the victim.

If ever Emilia is the sole surviving member of Team Evil, she will select and dispatch victims by night just as her husband, Iago, would have wanted her to do. However, if she ever selects Desdemona as a victim, Emilia kills herself rather than harm her lady.

If the game has no Bianca:
The handkerchief will be randomly given, at the game's outset, to one player other than Iago and Emilia. It will stay with this person, and this person will not know that he possesses it. If Emilia finds it, she will take it and convert.

If the game has Bianca:
The handkerchief is given to Bianca at the game's outset. Each night, she will move the handkerchief from one person to another. Nobody who has previously held the handkerchief may receive it again, and no recipient will learn Bianca's identity during this operation. However, each recipient will learn that he has received it. If Emilia finds it, she will write down its characteristics, have an exact copy made, and deliver it (along with herself) to Iago. The original handkerchief will stay in play.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sat Nov 10, 2012 7:41 pm

The Sequence

Each Day, the following events take place:

Venetians gathered in the colony of Cyprus select one person to execute. Then they furnish themselves with some swift means of death for the poor devil.
If Desdemona is selected for death and is executed, Othello, if living, dies with her.

Each Night, the following events take place (if possible):

Cassio selects somebody to protect.
Team Evil (Iago, Roderigo, possibly Emilia) kills someone.
Roderigo scans for Venetian Gentlemen.
Emilia scans for the handkerchief
[*}If Bianca is in the game, she moves the handkerchief.
Othello scans for friend or foe.
If Brabantio is in the game, he scans for Othello.

Remember: Othello's judgment of character is faulty:

If he scans person P and P is on his team, he will be told that P is "friend" unless
* P is Cassio and Cassio has not saved someone that night
* P is Brabantio
* P is Desdemona, and Emilia has found the handkerchief
If he scans person Q and Q is on Team Evil, he will be told that Q is "foe" unless
* Q is Iago

Please critique, find holes, etc.

Lagom Lite · Post by **Lagom Lite** » Sat Nov 10, 2012 9:28 pm

Maybe too few villains? Depends on the number of players of course, but maybe you should consider potential unpowered villains if this gets popular (Gratiano? Lodovico? Turkish invaders? Clowns? Iago's servants/friends/allies?).

Edit - very nice presentation btw.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sat Nov 10, 2012 9:57 pm

Lagom Lite wrote:Maybe too few villains? Depends on the number of players of course, but maybe you should consider potential unpowered villains if this gets popular

Yep. Here's my thinking. If the game is small (say, 11 or 13 participants), then two or three bad guys and three specials should be ok. If the game grows large, then folding in additional roles will make sense.

I think of Bianca as a complicating factor, but I think of Brabantio as a good player who (unwittingly) works mostly for the advantage of Team Evil. If many sign up, then folding in unpowered evils-- maybe the Clown, for example-- will be necessary.

Edit - very nice presentation btw.

Thanks.

BTW-- as always, the victory condition is that of a standard game: Team Evil wins iff (Good.population == Evil.population). Team Evil wins iff (Evil.population < 1).

triggercut · Post by **triggercut** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 4:43 am

IN faith he is a worthy gentleman, exceedingly well read and profited.

triggercut · Post by **triggercut** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 4:49 am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGtgacHMIec" target="_blank

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 6:21 pm

Holman
Qantaga
Lassr
Lagom Lite
RMC
triggercut
Remus West
stessier
...

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 6:52 pm

This is the most Structuralist reading of Othello evah!

I'm looking forward to it.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 7:07 pm

Holman wrote:This is the most Structuralist reading of Othello evah!
I'm looking forward to it.

Don't worry. Its Barthes is worse than its bite.

Remus West · Post by **Remus West** » Sun Nov 11, 2012 11:19 pm

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Mon Nov 12, 2012 11:04 am

Iago is a zerker and his notes say "if he dies by day", but there is no other option that I can see, correct?

In the simple game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, then there can be no conversion, correct? In the expanded game, who has to die to lose it?

In.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Mon Nov 12, 2012 9:39 pm

stessier wrote:Iago is a zerker and his notes say "if he dies by day", but there is no other option that I can see, correct?

I don't understand what you're asking.

Iago is a zerker. If killed, he may take someone with him.
Iago's life empowers Roderigo to skulk for Venetian Gentlemen.

In the simple game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, then there can be no conversion, correct? In the expanded game, who has to die to lose it?

To lose what?

In the smaller game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, then there can be no conversion.
In the larger game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, Bianca can still move it. So the possibility of conversion remains.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Tue Nov 13, 2012 6:50 am

Grundbegriff wrote:
stessier wrote:Iago is a zerker and his notes say "if he dies by day", but there is no other option that I can see, correct?
I don't understand what you're asking.

Iago is a zerker. If killed, he may take someone with him.
Iago's life empowers Roderigo to skulk for Venetian Gentlemen.

You said "if he dies by day". There is no method by which he can die by night and thus not zerk, correct?

In the simple game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, then there can be no conversion, correct? In the expanded game, who has to die to lose it?
To lose what?

In the smaller game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, then there can be no conversion.
In the larger game, if the one holding the handkerchief is lynched, Bianca can still move it. So the possibility of conversion remains.

To lose the ability to convert - which you answered. Thanks!

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Tue Nov 13, 2012 9:41 pm

stessier wrote:
Grundbegriff wrote:
stessier wrote:Iago is a zerker and his notes say "if he dies by day", but there is no other option that I can see, correct?
I don't understand what you're asking.

Iago is a zerker. If killed, he may take someone with him.
Iago's life empowers Roderigo to skulk for Venetian Gentlemen.
You said "if he dies by day". There is no method by which he can die by night and thus not zerk, correct?

He's a bad guy. There's no night-hunter. None of the Good is a night-spike for the evil attackers (although I could add that feature to Montano, if we have him).

Whaddya think? Would it be worthwhile, and not imbalancing, to have Montano be not only immune to one night attack but also deadly for one attacker?

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Wed Nov 14, 2012 6:37 am

As a potential villager, I like the idea that the zerker's kill could be balanced by one of our own. Especially since even in a 9 player game he would have this ability and we have to kill him to win and there is a chance for conversion.

What do others think?

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Wed Nov 14, 2012 6:48 am

And after hitting submit, I see the minimum number of players is 13. With that level and only 2 bad guys to start, the extra bad guy kill isn't such a big deal. I think everything is fine as is, but I'll never turn down the good guys getting an extra ability.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Wed Nov 14, 2012 11:22 am

stessier wrote: but I'll never turn down the good guys getting an extra ability.

So, if it is implemented and you complain about it in the game then that means we are safe to lynch you. Noted. Yea, kind shrew. I before thee except after C.

Grundbegriff · Post by **Grundbegriff** » Thu Nov 15, 2012 6:05 pm

Bueller?

RMC · Post by **RMC** » Thu Nov 15, 2012 6:08 pm

Send out a posse to russel us up some players..

Err.. Or should I put a Thee in that sentence..