Life hacks for blacks in different rounds

Every player has his own style, which develops over time. Some act aggressively and take the role of the attacker. Some play defence. The author of "Mafia in the Style of Zen" thinks one should be flexible and able to do everything, but admits that the sweet player generally gets an advantage over the other black types. Speeches without aggression and direct attack, and without defending oneself, suit him. Such minutes contain devices of redirection and distraction. Seven life hacks are collected below.

1. Redirection

The point: even if some slot attacks you directly or indirectly, you do not consider at all the variant that you are mafia. You keep building the count of the game and turn the other person's attack into buying hands.

Analysis of a situation in the critical round

There are seven of you (slots 1 to 7), you are the sixth. Player 4 in his speech calls players 2 and 1 red. Player 5 calls player 3 mafia. How do you remove the fourth from the table and buy hands without it looking pushy?

The reasoning is built on the count of the game. The fourth called two red, so he has four reds found, including himself. Between the third and the fifth there is a conflict, that is, among them one is a civilian and one is black (by the dynamics of the game). In the remainder the fourth's mafia are you (the sixth), the seventh and one of the third or fifth.

The speech: "Player four has a shortage of blacks at the table. By his version the mafia is the seventh (that way we buy his hand if he is red), among the third and fifth there can be only one black, because there is a conflict between them. He has no last black. If I understand correctly, for him the mafia are the third, the fifth and the seventh, which cannot be because of their conflict. So all hands must go against him".

What such a speech gives.

1. You do not consider the version that the fourth is wrong exactly about you, and indirectly instil your red colour in the town.
2. You move the attack from yourself to another.
3. You buy one more red vote.

If the mafia gather votes against each other in the critical round, then by redirection, closing the round, you can buy two red votes at once. If the player you attack called a black red, you buy extra votes: the civilians are pitted against each other by the count of the game.

One more example. In round zero the fifth found only one black before himself. You are the sixth: you can pit the fifth against the late slots (seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth) by saying that by the fifth's version half of them are mafia.

2. Helping the don find the sheriff in round zero

To narrow the don's search for the opponent, provocations can be used against those civilians who may be sheriffs. They can be nominated, attacked emotionally or accused of a vague position. This raises the probability of killing the red leader under an online agreement in round zero: the sheriff has to react, and his reaction can be seen.

3. Covering the real sheriff

If you see a reveal, catch the red leader with your eyes and cover him. This saves you from removal in the current round. You will kill the real sheriff the coming night, but the strength of your position will grow many times. If the dead man says nothing about you (and that happens regularly), you can state that the red leader revealed to you, that is, trusted you. Consequently he left you for the town as a civilian.

4. Lifting a threat to the team

If at nine the vote is between two civilians, lift (throw your hands for) the one who in the future could "float up", that is, become red for the table. The general rule: vote for removing the one who would bring the mafia team more problems in the late rounds. Leave alive those who are weaker in the level of play.

5. Safe mixed colours

At nine, and at any odd number, you can nominate your black under the first hands. You will not turn the civilians against yourself and will lower the probability that this black leaves the table in this round. Against the first nominated candidate hands are usually not gathered: there are undecided players at the table who vote against those who stand later. The greatest danger of being removed is for the player nominated under the last hands: he is removed by the undecided votes.

Later you can remind: "The two of us cannot be blacks, since I nominated him in the first round". The argument: there is no such black team, so we are red.

6. Breaking the vote

With an even number of players, to break you need to nominate a red under the first hands. Then the sweet player can add the deciding hand and win. Breaking the vote by not giving a hand is fraught with the civilians insuring you and giving their own.

If at an even number you lifted your own by putting a hand against him (he was under the first hands), boldly state that you cannot be on one team with him, because otherwise you would have broken the table by not putting a hand and won. The argument works if the one voted out created for himself an image of mafia. The author notes: the formulation works on inexperienced players, an old wolf cannot be fooled with such a trick. The same applies to nominating your own under the first hands.

7. Fouls

Do not waste precious fouls on nonsense and jokes outside your own speeches. A remark received during another player's minute is a powerful instrument of influence. At the right moment you can knock a civilian off his speech or bring a counter-argument before the vote. If there is a player at the table with three fouls, you can provoke him into a fourth and win. This is a calculation on inexperienced and emotionally unbalanced players, but it works.

For the red

1. If a black in his speech deftly "takes another's count as his own", check whether he is leading you to a hand against his opponent.
2. Doubt it if a player calls red those whom he did not discuss, while he himself stays out of the conversation.
3. Pay attention to the first nominated slot in an odd round: if he turns out black, it may be mixed colours.
4. Catch fouls only out of real need, and do not respond to provocations.

Application

1. Buy votes, using the count of the game and redirection.
2. Help find the sheriff in round zero.
3. Strengthen your position with moves.
4. Vote against those who are dangerous for the black team.
5. Use fouls wisely.

Self-check questions

1. Concentration test: which life hack is given in the epigraph to the chapter about these devices? (You may not look if you forgot.)
2. At seven, with no sheriff, the mafia in the critical round gathers votes against each other. You close the round. Compose a speech that lets you buy two civilian hands.
3. If a civilian called a black red, how many hands can you buy with the help of redirection, counting yourself red by default?

Practice

Play the situation from the analysis three times, changing slots in turn: each time compose a redirection speech as the sixth, the fifth and the seventh.

Typical mistakes

• Redirecting without counting how many blacks the attacker has by his version.
• Playing a break at an odd number.
• Spending fouls in advance.

Source of the idea. The chapter "Life hacks for blacks in different rounds" from Dmitry Novik's book "Mafia in the Style of Zen" (2020). The wording and structure were compiled by us.