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{{role
{{role
|alias= Neighbors
|alias= Monk
|alias2= Best Friends
|alias3= Mafia Mason
|align= Pro-town
|align= Pro-town
|type= Linked
|type= Linked
|choice= Automatic
|type2= Passive
|type3= Informative
|choice= none
|notes=  
|notes=  
}}
}}
__notoc__
__notoc__
Masons are a [[faction|group]], usually all on the [[Pro-Town]] side, that usually have some information about each others alignement. They can communicate with each other at [[Night]], if they choose, but otherwise usually have no special abilities. In one variation of the Mason role, the Masons cannot reveal that they are Masons to the town through [[roleclaim]]ing. Instead, they must find other ways to defend each other.
'''Masons''' are Town-aligned players who know that they are Town and can speak to each other privately at Night. The number of Masons can vary from game to game, and it is not impossible for there to exist separate Mason groups within the same game.


In [[Werewolf]] flavor, these are called '''Monks''' (most notably in the Open Setup [[Monks and Masons]]).


==Mafia Masons==
This version of Mason, and ''only'' this version of Mason, is considered Normal on mafiascum.net.
Sometimes, one member of the masonry group is a scum mason, a person in the masonry who is secretly part of the mafia or some other scum group.   This occasionally happens in games where the moderater does not specifically tell all masons that they are all town. (See: unconfirmed masons, sometimes called "Neighbors")


Mafia masons are not a very common role, but just the possibility that one might exist often leads to paranoia and distrust within the mason group.
If there is one Mason, there is always another.  A single Mason is equivalent to an [[Innocent Child]].
 
Masons are the central feature in the Open Setup [[Friends and Enemies]].


==Variations==
==Variations==
Mason members can have additional roles ([[Cop]], [[Doctor]]) in addition to being a mason. However, sometimes the moderator may want to "de-power" the mason role by removing either the confirmed innocence of the mason partner(s) or the ability to night-talk.
The Mason role has generated a fair amount of controversy and a few offshoots.  Be sure you ask the moderator what precisely it means to be a Mason, as all of the below have been known to simply be called "Mason".
 
Most notoriously, some moderators will introduce [[Mafia]]-aligned Masons, taking the term "Mason" to imply that it is ''probable'' that the other Masons are Town-aligned, and not absolute.  These nonconfirmed Masons are supposed to be middling in certainty between [[Neighbor|Neighbors]] (see below) and confirmed Masons; however, this is impossible to mathematically verify.


====Best Friends====
The "standard" term for players who know each other to be Town but are unable to speak to each other privately is '''Best Friends'''.
Best Friends are a group of roles who know each other's confirmed innocence, but cannot communicate privately. Usage tends to be rare though, as the confirmation is the powerful factor of the Mason roles, and the difference in power for determination of balance in the "private communication" aspect is debatably negligible.  


====Neighbors====
To contrast, the standard term for players who do not know each others' alignments but can speak to each other privately is [[Neighbor|Neighbors]].
A Neighbor is a person who may night talk with one or more other people, but no one in the group is certain of the others' alignments. This can lead to the effect of having a "game-within-a-game" for mason members to try to discover if a [[Mafia Mason]] (or a [[Serial Killer]]-mason) is amongst them.


[[PokerFace]] popularized this term as an alternative for [http://www.mafiascum.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1123736#1123736 Unconfirmed Masons].
There is nothing sacred about the Masons being forced to talk at Night only; some moderators let Masons speak during the Day or at any time. This raises their effectiveness somewhat.


====Monks====
==Use and Power==
In a game with a werewolf flavour, the masons are sometimes known as Monks.
The most obvious power of a Masonry (and Best Friends) is the mutual confirmation of multiple players as Town.  Consider that a Cop can find out over the span of two Nights that two other players are innocent, and if the Cop roleclaims effectively, the Town wins three confirmed-innocent players on Day 3.  A three-person Masonry, on the other hand, has that same number of confirmed innocents from the start of the game.  In addition, while a Cop's innocent results are mostly only useful if the Cop lives to claim them and is believed, each of the Masons can mutually confirm the others as soon as the existence of a Mason is made evident.  (For instance, if someone dies overNight and flips Mason, the other Mason(s) can still claim and be considered confirmed Town.)  Last, Mason is difficult (but not impossible) for scum to fakeclaim, as they need to put up a scumpartner to be their fake Mason partner and hope that neither of them die over the course of the game.


Some moderators consider two Masons to be a roughly equivalent substitute for a [[Cop]].


:''See also [[Cult]]s.''
The conversational aspect of Masons is not nearly as good (as opposed to with [[Neighbor|Neighbors]], where the conversation is a means to the end of discerning the Neighbors' alignments).  It can be used to allow the confirmed Town players to confer with each other and play strategically during the Day - much like scum do, but with the intent of helping the Town and confounding the scum instead of vice versa.  To that end, the ability for Masons to speak to each other amplifies the skill of the Masons themselves, but has no inherent power by itself.

Revision as of 16:54, 31 July 2011

Mason
Alias:
  • Monk
Alignment:
Role type:
  • Linked
  • Passive
  • Informative
Choice:
  • none

Masons are Town-aligned players who know that they are Town and can speak to each other privately at Night. The number of Masons can vary from game to game, and it is not impossible for there to exist separate Mason groups within the same game.

In Werewolf flavor, these are called Monks (most notably in the Open Setup Monks and Masons).

This version of Mason, and only this version of Mason, is considered Normal on mafiascum.net.

If there is one Mason, there is always another. A single Mason is equivalent to an Innocent Child.

Masons are the central feature in the Open Setup Friends and Enemies.

Variations

The Mason role has generated a fair amount of controversy and a few offshoots. Be sure you ask the moderator what precisely it means to be a Mason, as all of the below have been known to simply be called "Mason".

Most notoriously, some moderators will introduce Mafia-aligned Masons, taking the term "Mason" to imply that it is probable that the other Masons are Town-aligned, and not absolute. These nonconfirmed Masons are supposed to be middling in certainty between Neighbors (see below) and confirmed Masons; however, this is impossible to mathematically verify.

The "standard" term for players who know each other to be Town but are unable to speak to each other privately is Best Friends.

To contrast, the standard term for players who do not know each others' alignments but can speak to each other privately is Neighbors.

There is nothing sacred about the Masons being forced to talk at Night only; some moderators let Masons speak during the Day or at any time. This raises their effectiveness somewhat.

Use and Power

The most obvious power of a Masonry (and Best Friends) is the mutual confirmation of multiple players as Town. Consider that a Cop can find out over the span of two Nights that two other players are innocent, and if the Cop roleclaims effectively, the Town wins three confirmed-innocent players on Day 3. A three-person Masonry, on the other hand, has that same number of confirmed innocents from the start of the game. In addition, while a Cop's innocent results are mostly only useful if the Cop lives to claim them and is believed, each of the Masons can mutually confirm the others as soon as the existence of a Mason is made evident. (For instance, if someone dies overNight and flips Mason, the other Mason(s) can still claim and be considered confirmed Town.) Last, Mason is difficult (but not impossible) for scum to fakeclaim, as they need to put up a scumpartner to be their fake Mason partner and hope that neither of them die over the course of the game.

Some moderators consider two Masons to be a roughly equivalent substitute for a Cop.

The conversational aspect of Masons is not nearly as good (as opposed to with Neighbors, where the conversation is a means to the end of discerning the Neighbors' alignments). It can be used to allow the confirmed Town players to confer with each other and play strategically during the Day - much like scum do, but with the intent of helping the Town and confounding the scum instead of vice versa. To that end, the ability for Masons to speak to each other amplifies the skill of the Masons themselves, but has no inherent power by itself.