Round one

[britti]

Ruben was complaining in the endure chat about sandy casting a bunch of his friends, and there being a pregame alliances that he has no way of competing against. i messaged him after i read it (which was hours after he posted)

Scott telling me he is in an alliance with helena and mac and one other, and they need ruben for numbers.  Helena told him she is supposed to be in an alliance with ruben and lexi. Scott said he Ruben is making a ton of alliances, and he doesnt realize that this is the stage of the game where people are not secretive. He said that Mac really wants Shandy out, I asked why and he said because they probably played a game together. Shandy added Scott on facebook he declined or didnt add her (left the request until later) and she messaged him on skype saying "if you add me on fb, ill send you photos of me.." He has added her since, but he was like um you're barking up the wrong tree. He said Alex (banks) is like in love with him but the time difference is hard for them to connect i guess? He love's Mac and his personality so thats a plus.

i edited scotts confessional because he was not able to create threads or reply in his own confessional, and only production has access to this area right now because i dont want any alumni who may be playing to see this.

[britti]

Can I add some people to pw? I am already bored of no one responding. The Vets tribe had a tribe call tonight with Brandon, Santiago, Lexi, and Joe. They were just chit chatting for most of the call while I was there, but they did talk a bit about what they thought the numbers meant, not much for ideas but they did discuss secret partners a bit matching up by the numbers they picked, but said that it wouldn't be so secret.

Then I got added to a call with Mac, Scott, Helena, and Phil, they were talking about how Shandy has added everyone to facebook, and asked me about whether or not that counts as cross tribal communications. then someone accidentally added shannon to their chat that she wasn't included in before and they all panicked. Then they hung up on everyone panicked, and then started another chat/call.

[britti]

On call with DJ, Phil, Mac, Scott, Helena and they are talking about idol paranoia already, as well as making sure they have the votes to get Shandy out at the first tribal council. This rookies tribe is INSANE. They talked about whether or not to get Ruben to vote with them or to test him and see if he is with them. I am also in a chat with Sherry, Ruben, and Lexi. The last message in there says they need to get Ruben. Seems like the rookies are already divided.

Also after talking to Sandy, I added people to PW so we can talk yay. Hi Everyone!!

[a11an]

Hiya!!

I am currently catching up on things. I have been talking a bit with Joe, who is really excited and it's endearing.

I am going to go see what the people I know are up to and then scope out the people I don't know.

[cassy]

Hi happy new season!!! I haven't watched or read anything yet but based off looking at the tribes I do feel like I have something I can say since these guys are my friends..

I know Mac from tengaged days... Mac is a very very dramatic guy and very loud and out there. Especially in games.... I haven't really talked to him since this has started but I hope he stays calm enough to last a while and give us some entertainment. Also he's friends with Alex. I love Alex a lot and he's very likeable and has definite potential but I fear Mac may be his downfall as they're really close and both bring out the drama in each other. Thank you Sandy for putting these 2 on a tribe together. I still have yet to read anything yet but I hope he keeps Mac in line haha. I did read just the Mac part in his journal and he's well aware of Mac needing to step up a bit and not be messy so who knows what he can do!

Lexi & Santiago on a tribe and in a game together could be worse than when it was me and Jacob lmfaoooooo. And they have Joe!!! This is Mexico all over again.

[TaylorStreet]

Jul 5, 2015 0:54:10 GMT -5 britti said:

Ruben was complaining in the endure chat about sandy casting a bunch of his friends, and there being a pregame alliances that he has no way of competing against. i messaged him after i read it (which was hours after he posted)

This is dumb.  I am a believer in the idea that there is a way out of any situation.  Negatives can be turned into positives if you play your cards correctly.  If he believes there are specific pre-game alliances, then he has a couple options.

1) He can approach those people and tell them that people are aware of them potentially being close, but he is hoping to work with them.  AKA, he can look at them as a package deal; a group of numbers he can side with to stay in a majority until the next phase of the game.

2) Discuss this with the people who aren't a part of the "pre-game alliance(s)", and have them come together as a counter-alliance.

Less complaining, more gaming.  If anything, the predictability of pre-game alliances makes maneuvering even easier.

[TaylorStreet]

(I just realized that Britti already mentioned some of the stuff I said, but I already wrote up all that stuff down below, and don't feel like deleting anything )

Here are some dynamics for people who don't feel like looking through confessionals:

So I decided to check out the Rookies first. A few people believe there is a moms alliance, and I could see them being targeted early on. Malcolm wants Shandy gone first, and Scott also mentioned Shandy being really weird on Facebook. I could definitely see Shandy being the first boot.

I could also see Shandy being saved from being the first boot by her friend Sherry. And by save, I mean Sherry shooting herself in the foot and making herself the first boot. She apparently has tried to put the target onto Helena, who some people really like, and then she wants Malcolm gone after her. Malcolm is another person that some people really like.

I don't know where Susan stands with people. I think people suspect she would be working with Shandy and Sherry, but Susan would most likely be the last of those 3 to be targeted (I think). If Susan has a good enough social game, maybe she can work herself into a good spot once Sherry and Shandy are gone. Someone said something about her possibly having friends from the vets, though, so maybe they won;t want her making a swap or merge.

Ruben is all over the place. I have a feeling that he is going to be at the center of a lot of drama this season, but he will still manage to survive a while. He will be the kind of player that MANY people will discuss potentially voting out, but they will keep holding off for a round because they would rather deal with his unpredictability than another person they know for sure isn't on their side. I can see him being the player that doesn't ever have a solid core alliance, so he manipulates the numbers by flipping back and forth between different alliances.

I see the core alliance being something like Scott/Malcolm/Banks/Helena. DJ could be involved in the core as well.

I dunno about Phil. He is close with Susan, but it seems like he hasn't talked much with other people. Early boot, goat that slides far into the game, or an easy vote for people to agree on at the first round of the merge. That is the kind of vibe I get from him.

Not sure about Alexis either.

[TaylorStreet]

And I am going to make a guess on the ranking of how well positioned people on the Rookie tribe are. 1 = best position on the tribe, and 11 = worst position.

1) Helena
2) Malcolm
3) Scott
4) Banks
5) DJ
6) Ruben
7) Alexis
8) Phil
9) Susan
10) Sherry
11) Shandy

That is just a guess based on limited information.

[Jared]

Oh how I miss this group of awesome people!

So let me catch up and i'll give my proposition on these crazy people

[Deleted]

I'm enjoying the game so far, the tribes have been very conflicted and there doesn't seem to be any cause for either side to create a harmonious atmosphere. The Rookies are very, very paranoid and are scrambling to create smaller alliances within alliances to protect one another, according to Scott they plan on going on call to screenshare their votes... what even is this tribe? For real.

Names thrown out so far include Helena by Sherry, Shandy by Malcolm and Banks and there's probably some others. I think Phil wants to vote Sherry because of her intention to boot Helena which he believes to be wholly unjustified and in a way I get that, this group is largely an unknown quantity because many of them have never played an ORG before. If I were to call a divide in the group it would be the more seasoned players of ORGs against the newer breed, but with Phil wanting to potentially save Helena it could mess up my prediction and that makes a more interesting dynamic for the Rookies going into the next round.

With the Veterans I feel as though they're more scared but are trying to hide it more in a public setting. When they're alone with their thoughts they tend to be more catty and expose themselves without knowing it. Gabe has some beef with Stephanie which will be an interesting road to walk down... there isn't much in terms of who the target(s) are though, nobody wants to be the first returning player in a tribe filled with people who made bad decisions in the past so it'll come down to the eleventh hour.

[adrian]

Hot dayam! This is the first game since Japan where I feel the start has felt like the better seasons of Survivor. The rookies sound crazy right now! Shandy seems a bit dodgy IMO. If you are offering up pics of yourself online for 300 bucks and a gift bag while you are supposedly married, that is a giant red flag. From a game standpoint, if you are doing this kind of stuff behind the back of someone you built your life with, what would you do to strangers in a silly online game. If I were playing, those would be grounds for elimination.

Out of all of the rookies, Phil strikes me as the most intriguing. He is a friggin' paleontologist and park ranger and probably gets to replicate the Chris Pratt pose from Jurassic World everyday with small, woodland creatures. I also want to see how his performance will stack against that of his twin brother, Tony's performance in Faroe Islands.

I am also so giddy that poor Joe Gonzales gets tortured in his return for our amusement by having to deal with Jacob/Santiago/Rocco Reed all over again. Jacob completely doomed him in Mexico and I bet he has to be thinking, "Well, FML!" (PS: If we are allowed to change our names and reinvent ourselves every time we return to the game, I will submit a Powerpoint slide of options and Impact point with my application one day when I play again)

On the other hand, Santiago/Jacob/Leslie was a huge player in Mexico and had he not opted to bow out, he could have probably been the only player that might have been able to successfully stage a coup to eliminate Kurtis if it ever came to that. If he can tone down the craziness, we may have a winner on our hands.

I am so glad that Gabe is back. Best first boot ever! Sorry, Brandon Clark, but deep down you know it is true I am also happy to see Steph and Brittany back as I can appreciate what eye candy can do for a season - plus Brittany was my favourite alongside Dru in Venezuela.

Great start so far. Hope the momentum and paranoia continues!

[Deleted]

You don't have to quote your own excellence, Adrian

[Drew Jordan]

Right now I am too obsessed with the Faroe Islands love. <3

Andii <3 (Should have not been eliminated the first day, Britti </3 lol )

SHARONICA! <333 Queen.

TONY'S BROTHER!! <33333

Tony should have played too, I would have died. I miss that funny bastard. </3

[adrian]

Jul 6, 2015 10:38:51 GMT -5 @tucker said:

You don't have to quote your own excellence, Adrian

Whoops. Thought I hit Edit. Fixed.

[britti]

Oh stop, Drew Jordan where would you be with out me? Also i am still frustrated/upset with Tony for bailing, but I am loving what I am seeing from Phil.

I agree with you Adrian, this game is off to a great start. Lots of paranoia and craziness,and its only going to get worse. Sassy said she knows a lot of these players and said they are pretty dramatic. I love everyone I have met so far, so I am glad I am not playing, and get to just enjoy them.

Also, does anyone know if Mandy talked to anyone before she voted? I haven't really seen her online, and she voted for Brittany. Which makes sense because I haven't seen Brittany around much.

We've heard which names are coming up for the rookies, who do you think the vets will go after?