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Oct. 2nd, 2005 05:24 pmThe Shepherd's Bible
Your Goal As A Shepherd:
The goal of a shepherd is to keep the game as even as possible for the duration of the game. He is not to show favor to either side or any one person, but aims to manipulate events so that the game plays as closely as possible. For a Shepherd a game that ends in a 'coin toss' is ideal.
Achieving Your Goal:
Originally Shepherd's were required to do everything randomly to make it 'fair', now randomness is only required for two things A) selecting the wolves at the start of the game and B) breaking ties such as in the case of an Ousting, or selecting the people to go to an Ousting vote from the Suspicion poll.
It's generally suggested that Shepherd's watch the game carefully and try to put suspicion on those who have been avoiding it.
Clues may be sent at any time and should all be carefully worded as to give away not too much and not too little. Though sometimes the appearance of an apparently useless clue can cast double or give support to a player just by them recieving the clue.
Wolves should never recieve clues. One of the key points to a wolf hiding among the sheep is their ability to lie about getting a clue if necessary.
Making Your Shepherd:
For the sake of entertainment, make your own Shepherd who's personality you will keep to in your posts. You may not make a seperate journal for them, or give them a real 'name' beyond the Shepherd. But giving them personality makes things fun and also helps keep things organized as to who is Shepherding each game.
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aviy plays the Gentlemanly Tea Time Sociopath and _overshadowed_ plays his irresponsible younger sibling.
Pre-Game Responsibilities:
When a Shepherd wants to begin a game, make a "Calling the Flock" or something similar post. ICly request a minimum-maximum number of players, say what times the voting and 'Night time' will be held and request they leave their e-mail.
The game can begin at any time once the minimum number of players has been achieved, though it's polite to wait to see if you reach the maximum.
Selecting the Wolves:
This MUST be done randomly. Feel free to pull names out of a hat assign numbers and uses a randomizer program, or roll dice in IRC. Whatever works for you, just be fair.
Once the wolves are selected make a LOCKED post on the Shepherd's journal to the wolves.
Do Not say the names of the wolves anywhere in that post, merely state which game it is for. Basically many of the Shepherds might be running one game and playing in another. They should be able to go to the Shepherd's journal while logged in as the Shepherd and not have the game spoiled for them by seeing the names of the wolves. They will, of course, see the post itself but I expect our Shepherds to hold to the spirit of the game enough to not actually venture inside and see who the wolves for other games are.
And, in the event that this ever actually happens, even accidently, I expect you to remove yourself from the game you're currently playing so as not to ruin play.
E-Mailing:
Once you have your wolves selected it's suggested that you keep the names, e-mail addresses and wolf/sheep status of your players all in one place, as you'll need to refer back to it often.
Send a SEPERATE e-mail to each person from the shepherdofwolves@gmail.com e-mail account. Sheep should simply get a e-mail which reads "Sheep", Wolves should get an e-mail which tells them that they are a wolf and who else is in their pack. Also include the url to the private wolf post you made on the Shepherd's journal.
When you are done make sure you delete all the sent drafts entirely, first sending them to the trash bin then deleting them permanately from there. Remember, many shepherd's use this e-mail address and they don't want to find out accidently who the wolves are in your game because you didn't clean up after yourself.
The First Post:
Once e-mails are sent out you can make the first post. The subject line should read Game X: Day 1 and use the "Daytime" icon.
In the post include schedule information and a note of how many wolves there are total. Also make a poll which has the names of every player. Make sure the poll is Viewable to None and Usable only by Friends.
The First Ousting:
When it comes time to hold an Ousting, put Day 1's post under a lj-cut, edit it to say that there will be no more voting, and take the two people with the most suspicion on them for an Ousting poll.
If there is some tie, for example one person has four votes and two people have three, flip a coin (or remove a name from a hat) to determine who of the tied will go up for Ousting.
The Ousting post should read Game X : Voting 1 and use the "Night" icon.
The Ousting poll should be viewable to All and Usable by Friends.
Leave the Ousting poll open for however long the schedules allows (standard 2 hours).
The First Night:
When the Ousting poll needs to be closed do it much as if it was a Suspicion poll. Put it under an LJ cut and announce who got voted out. If votes came to a tie, flip a coin to determine who is Ousted.
The wolves should know to send an e-mail to the Shepherd's address at some point within this hour. So make sure you're ready to read their vote and completely delete their e-mails afterward.
As a rule, Shepherd's shouldn't be hanging around the inbox unless you're waiting for wolf votes to come in. Other games may be running and you don't want to be there when wolf votes come in for a game that is not yours.
Nighttime must continue for the full allotted time if not all wolves send in their votes. However, once all votes are recieved you can end Nighttime whenever you wish.
If for some reason the wolf votes are torn and there is no majority for which sheep to kill, choose which sheep dies at random. First among which ever sheep got the most votes, and if no sheep were voted for choose among all of them.
The Next Day:
Much like the first day, only you announce who died during the night. It's generally suggested you do not annouce if the Ousted person was a wolf or not until two or more people have been Ousted.
Clues:
The amount of clues and who you give them to depends entirely on the state of the game. Too many clues make people look like liars, too little will leave the game unbalanced. The ideal is to give at least two, although these clues can and should be vague in order to cause debate among the flock. This also gives the wolves room to lie. However, it can be deviated from and is all left up to the shepherd. Knowledge of the characters are often needed to give useful clues however, so if you have a character in the game you know little of, research may be in order.
Day one generally begins with at least one clue suggesting who among the flock is trustworthy. I.E. Trust the alchemist. This can be specific or vague depending.
A familar pattern of clues is to list three to four characters, with at least one being the wolf. I.E. Among the odd wizard, the rare beauty, and the shortie lies a wolf. No character is specifically named and who is being referred to is up for debate.
Also, any suspicious activities can be reported as clues. If one character is especially quiet, unusually vocal, or making strange alliances it can be noted as clues. Likewise, it can also be announced to players by the shepherd who has casted suspicion on them in the polls.
Deciding when to announce the number of wolves left and who was a wolf can be tricky. If announcing who was an wasn't a wolf gives away who the other wolves are, it is best NOT to announce it. Likewise, it's a good idea to wait a few rounds to announce if the number of wolves have dropped.
Your Goal As A Shepherd:
The goal of a shepherd is to keep the game as even as possible for the duration of the game. He is not to show favor to either side or any one person, but aims to manipulate events so that the game plays as closely as possible. For a Shepherd a game that ends in a 'coin toss' is ideal.
Achieving Your Goal:
Originally Shepherd's were required to do everything randomly to make it 'fair', now randomness is only required for two things A) selecting the wolves at the start of the game and B) breaking ties such as in the case of an Ousting, or selecting the people to go to an Ousting vote from the Suspicion poll.
It's generally suggested that Shepherd's watch the game carefully and try to put suspicion on those who have been avoiding it.
Clues may be sent at any time and should all be carefully worded as to give away not too much and not too little. Though sometimes the appearance of an apparently useless clue can cast double or give support to a player just by them recieving the clue.
Wolves should never recieve clues. One of the key points to a wolf hiding among the sheep is their ability to lie about getting a clue if necessary.
Making Your Shepherd:
For the sake of entertainment, make your own Shepherd who's personality you will keep to in your posts. You may not make a seperate journal for them, or give them a real 'name' beyond the Shepherd. But giving them personality makes things fun and also helps keep things organized as to who is Shepherding each game.
aviy plays the Gentlemanly Tea Time Sociopath and _overshadowed_ plays his irresponsible younger sibling.Pre-Game Responsibilities:
When a Shepherd wants to begin a game, make a "Calling the Flock" or something similar post. ICly request a minimum-maximum number of players, say what times the voting and 'Night time' will be held and request they leave their e-mail.
The game can begin at any time once the minimum number of players has been achieved, though it's polite to wait to see if you reach the maximum.
Selecting the Wolves:
This MUST be done randomly. Feel free to pull names out of a hat assign numbers and uses a randomizer program, or roll dice in IRC. Whatever works for you, just be fair.
Once the wolves are selected make a LOCKED post on the Shepherd's journal to the wolves.
Do Not say the names of the wolves anywhere in that post, merely state which game it is for. Basically many of the Shepherds might be running one game and playing in another. They should be able to go to the Shepherd's journal while logged in as the Shepherd and not have the game spoiled for them by seeing the names of the wolves. They will, of course, see the post itself but I expect our Shepherds to hold to the spirit of the game enough to not actually venture inside and see who the wolves for other games are.
And, in the event that this ever actually happens, even accidently, I expect you to remove yourself from the game you're currently playing so as not to ruin play.
E-Mailing:
Once you have your wolves selected it's suggested that you keep the names, e-mail addresses and wolf/sheep status of your players all in one place, as you'll need to refer back to it often.
Send a SEPERATE e-mail to each person from the shepherdofwolves@gmail.com e-mail account. Sheep should simply get a e-mail which reads "Sheep", Wolves should get an e-mail which tells them that they are a wolf and who else is in their pack. Also include the url to the private wolf post you made on the Shepherd's journal.
When you are done make sure you delete all the sent drafts entirely, first sending them to the trash bin then deleting them permanately from there. Remember, many shepherd's use this e-mail address and they don't want to find out accidently who the wolves are in your game because you didn't clean up after yourself.
The First Post:
Once e-mails are sent out you can make the first post. The subject line should read Game X: Day 1 and use the "Daytime" icon.
In the post include schedule information and a note of how many wolves there are total. Also make a poll which has the names of every player. Make sure the poll is Viewable to None and Usable only by Friends.
The First Ousting:
When it comes time to hold an Ousting, put Day 1's post under a lj-cut, edit it to say that there will be no more voting, and take the two people with the most suspicion on them for an Ousting poll.
If there is some tie, for example one person has four votes and two people have three, flip a coin (or remove a name from a hat) to determine who of the tied will go up for Ousting.
The Ousting post should read Game X : Voting 1 and use the "Night" icon.
The Ousting poll should be viewable to All and Usable by Friends.
Leave the Ousting poll open for however long the schedules allows (standard 2 hours).
The First Night:
When the Ousting poll needs to be closed do it much as if it was a Suspicion poll. Put it under an LJ cut and announce who got voted out. If votes came to a tie, flip a coin to determine who is Ousted.
The wolves should know to send an e-mail to the Shepherd's address at some point within this hour. So make sure you're ready to read their vote and completely delete their e-mails afterward.
As a rule, Shepherd's shouldn't be hanging around the inbox unless you're waiting for wolf votes to come in. Other games may be running and you don't want to be there when wolf votes come in for a game that is not yours.
Nighttime must continue for the full allotted time if not all wolves send in their votes. However, once all votes are recieved you can end Nighttime whenever you wish.
If for some reason the wolf votes are torn and there is no majority for which sheep to kill, choose which sheep dies at random. First among which ever sheep got the most votes, and if no sheep were voted for choose among all of them.
The Next Day:
Much like the first day, only you announce who died during the night. It's generally suggested you do not annouce if the Ousted person was a wolf or not until two or more people have been Ousted.
Clues:
The amount of clues and who you give them to depends entirely on the state of the game. Too many clues make people look like liars, too little will leave the game unbalanced. The ideal is to give at least two, although these clues can and should be vague in order to cause debate among the flock. This also gives the wolves room to lie. However, it can be deviated from and is all left up to the shepherd. Knowledge of the characters are often needed to give useful clues however, so if you have a character in the game you know little of, research may be in order.
Day one generally begins with at least one clue suggesting who among the flock is trustworthy. I.E. Trust the alchemist. This can be specific or vague depending.
A familar pattern of clues is to list three to four characters, with at least one being the wolf. I.E. Among the odd wizard, the rare beauty, and the shortie lies a wolf. No character is specifically named and who is being referred to is up for debate.
Also, any suspicious activities can be reported as clues. If one character is especially quiet, unusually vocal, or making strange alliances it can be noted as clues. Likewise, it can also be announced to players by the shepherd who has casted suspicion on them in the polls.
Deciding when to announce the number of wolves left and who was a wolf can be tricky. If announcing who was an wasn't a wolf gives away who the other wolves are, it is best NOT to announce it. Likewise, it's a good idea to wait a few rounds to announce if the number of wolves have dropped.
