So I'd like to talk a bit about theory in power roles. Because, frankly, at first I was lost as Doctor. I mean, I knew what I could do. I just didn't know how to make a good decision. For us beginners, does anybody have tips on playing power roles - what to look for, how to choose night targets, etc?

For some giggles, here's my night actions.

Night 1: I protected PlaneShaper. At that point, I wasn't sending my thoughts behind the pick to Alt yet (which I started doing so I could do this) so I don't remember why I picked PS specifically first night. If I had to guess what I was thinking, it was that mafia would whack PS to remove his experience from town.

Hindsight: The nightkill was JaC, and in hindsight he was an obvious first-night target, really. JaC's play grows stronger as the game goes on, and he seems to have a knack not just for hunting but combining - put together pairs that seem to have not-so-obvious patterns.

Night 2: I protected Van. My notes say Shock was my other option, so I lost a 50/50 choice on that one. At that stage of the game, Van seemed like a potential target to me because he hadn't said much, and so my thinking was that mafia whacking the quiet guy wouldn't give town much information.

Hindsight: Well, duh. I had the right target in mind, I just didn't pick him. My notes didn't say why Shock was considered.

Night 3: Van again. Same reason as above - as somebody who appeared to be giving very little, he struck me as a good mafia target. Other options I considered on this night were Confused and PlaneShaper. My hunch is that this is the evening mafia discovered I had a power role. My reply PM from Alt to resolve night actions included a conversation between Gideon and Sorin, and it resulted in the two of us staying up chatting all evening.

Hindsight: I was doing a hell of a job finding mafia. Unfortunately, though, I was finding them so I could protect them. This is the evening DK bit the big one, so I wasn't even close to the right target here.

Night 4: I protected PlaneShaper. At this point I was oblivious to the fact that mafia were on to me from the previous night ( ). PS seemed like a solid NK target at this point. Having him flip as tracker wouldn't really give anything new to town - we already knew DK was town, from his gruesome death the prior evening. But... even though I finally hit the right target, alas... I was roleblocked. Sorry, PS. (And, to keep adding insult to injury, the other players I considered protecting were Van and Confused. )

Hindsight: The only hindsight here relates to Day Five. I was tempted to reveal my role at this point. the gambit was that I could sacrifice myself, figuring I'd either be roleblocked or nightkilled from that point on anyway. However, after going through Van's posts, I got a real strong hunch on Confused, and decided to pursue that instead. If I couldn't get a Confused wagon to move, I was going to reveal.

Night 5: I protected Numbers. As I said to Alt, the person I really wanted to protect was me. I was quite sure at that point I was dying.


So, there's what I did and they why I did it when I still had that info.

There's not really a full out strategem to play power roles. Especially the doc. After all, it all ultimately falls on WIFOM with the mafia.
I had one great doc play a few years back (hypnotist variant that stopped 3 mafia kills, including hits on the cop and myself. Also logically deduced most of the mafia team), but I doubt I could do it again.

The best you can do as doc is to try and protect people you suspect to be a power role.
Protecting the strong players only works if you think the strong players are town.

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Cop is a slightly different story. That one is a bit more math-like.
When do you come forward with targets?
Do you come out with a scum on D1 if you do not know if there is a doc?
Do you come out with 3 townies?

That kind of contemplation depends on the number of people that live and how many non-confirmed will remain 2-3 days in the future.

Well, just my personal lesson from this, never sign up for a mafia game when exams are around the corner thinking you can catch up. it doesn't work that way.

Well, turns out that I still have some time(but not enough to write something longer than 3-4 lines or posting every day) , so this victory seems kind of unjustified, maybe a draw?

A lesson I learned plenty of times when I started 9.5 years ago