User blog:Chris Lang/Traitor Game VI - Introduction to Traitor Game Essentials

Okay, I intend to re-post Traitor Game VI: Back to Basics soon. But first, an introduction.

At the end of Traitor Game V, we all discussed ideas for the next Traitor Game. Many of us came up with ideas. The ideas were so good we had to use all of them sooner or later. There was 'It's in the Cards' by tangentman, involving Madame Xanadu and a mysticism/magic based scenario. There was 'I'll Take Valhalla', by Indigo Al involving the feud between the Norse gods Odin and Hela. There was 'How Low Can You Limbo' by Joe Acro involving Immortus and his apparent goal to preserve Limbo. And of course there was my 'A Galaxy Far, Far, Away' involving Darth Jubba the Sith Hutt.

First, however, we decided that the Purple Skull's scenario would go first. This scenario took bits and pieces of other ideas the Purple Skull had (the Living Tribunal, Doom, and so on) and put them together in a scenario where everyone was free to choose whichever character they wanted, with no limits. Sort of 'going back to basics' after the special 'holiday themed' scenario of the previous game.

However, there were to be a few new twists. One of them was the introduction of a 'first kill NPC'. This was my idea. Having been a part of Traitor Game V, and having read the previous four games, I felt sorry for the poor player who was eliminated first before they had a chance to vote. So I suggested that there be an NPC first kill, which would allow all the players an opportunity to vote at least once. The Purple Skull and the rest embraced the idea.

But who would that first NPC kill be? Well, in our discussion, we thought that it was funny that in the first three Traitor Games, a different player signed up as Batman, and in each of them Batman got targeted by the Traitors. So we decided that the 'first kill' NPC would be Batman. And thus Batman officially became the 'Kenny McCormick' of the Traitor Games for a while, his multiple over-the-top deaths becoming something of a running gag for a while. Finally, however, we decided to give Batman his due in a scenario revolving around him and his efforts to break free of that cycle. But that's a story for Traitor Game XIV: Legion.

In any case, the 'first kill NPC' has been used in almost all of the Traitor Games since this one, giving everyone a chance to cast their vote at least once. So this is one of the ways this game marks another step in the evolution of the Traitor Games. Another way is the increased emphasis on role-playing and characterization, which had been getting better with each game.

So Traitor Game VI begins, taking what had been a pretty silly subplot from the previous game, and having it be the basis for the main storyline of this one. Indeed, as TV Tropes would put it, Beware The Silly Ones. First off, I'll re-post the Purple Skull's introduction before getting into the game proper...

RUMINATIONS: We have indeed come a long way since this. As the bar has been raised, much of our writing has improved. But we owe it partially to players putting in their best effort in games such as this one. The good parts will start soon. Stay tuned for Part 1 of the Traitor Game Essentials re-presentation of Traitor Game VI: Back to Basics.