Suburbia - Chapter Ten

[Bob]

CHAPTER TEN - CONCLUSION

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"I've solved it!" Winston said triumphantly. "I know everything!"

"Make sure you get a good shot of this!" Truman Bigbucks yelled into the cameraman's ear.

"Ow." the cameraman said.

"It's obvious that the person who killed Chief McGovern is none other than..."

"You! James Swanson!"

"Me? But I'm such a nice guy. I give aerobics lessons to underprivileged kids."

"You killed the Chief because you were still angry at him for having an affair with your wife."

"Oh yeah? And who's my accomplice then, Mr. Detective-pants?"

"Your son, Robbie!"

"Actually, dad, it was me."

"My own daughter?!"

"Yes, now then, I've got this gun, reach for the sky!" James yelled.

"Drama is good! Cry, cry!" Truman said.

"Drop your weapon!" Agent Stone said as the FBI arrived suddenly.

"Nuts."

"Hands up, everyone! Especially you guys over there!"

"Eep!"

A few moments later...

"It was an accident, I swear!" Amber yelled.

"Give it up, Amber. I would have confessed sooner if the loss of my son didn't drive me over the edge."

"Your son is not dead." Mayor Bob said from behind.

"Oh my god! You're all alive!" someone yelled.

"That's the magic of special effects." Mayor Bob said.

"Where's Officer Hutch?" Jackie asked.

"Errr....That wasn't exactly a special effect..."

"How could you do this, dad?"

"I'm sorry son, I love you so much. I only wanted the best for you, and when that Chief was bothering Amber and I, I remembered all of the things I saw your mother and the Chief do, and it drove me mad."

"I love you, dad!"

"Break it up, you're still going to jail."

"Are you going to call a lawyer for me?" Amber asked her father.

"No. You got yourself into this mess, now get yourself out."

"But daddy!" Amber cried as she was led away.

"I thought I lost you forever!" Sarah said.

"I'm sorry about the whole affair thing, Sarah dear. It was a mistake."

"Oh, it's okay Alex. I love you!"

"All of you megablocks are under arrest, too."

"Job well done, I'd say." Newly Promoted Chief Scott said.

"Yeah, except I had to do most of the work. You guys are terrible cops."

"You knew who did it two days ago, and you finally came to arrest them after a seventy year old man condemned his daughter and his friend in front of the entire town. Yeah, and we're terrible cops." Jackie Scott said.

"I'm going to have to arrest you too, Mayor Bob."

"I'm afraid that's not possible."

"What do you mean?"

"I control everything, I can turn that gun into flowers if I wanted to."

"Oh yeah?" Agent Stone asked.

"Yes. I can." Bob said.

"Well, I guess I can't arrest you."

"Let's get married soon, Steven!"

"I love you, Ashley!"

"Where's that hot nurse?! I loved her!"

"The hot nurse was just an actor."

"An actor? Don't you mean an actress?" Marcus asked.

"Errr..." Truman Bigbucks said.

"Noooooooo! I'll never find love ever!"

"Keep moving you slimebag." The FBI Agent said.

"It'll be alright, Marcus. Don't you worry."

"You think so?"

"Yes. Why don't you show me your Captain Kirk action figures later today." Jackie said.

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"And so, the Town of Lexington lived happily ever after." Mayor Bob said.

"I hope you all enjoyed the game!"

~~~

Winner:

Winston Robinson, played by Rumble Strike

Rumble Strike answered everything correctly, except for the accomplice.

Congratulations to Rumble Strike for winning the game!

[K-Nut]

Congrats Rumble!!! And It ended with a happy ending, aww! I was lost this entire time, so these answers were kind of random:

1) Who killed Chief McGovern? = Chief McGovern Sarah Jordan.

2) Why did Chief McGovern die? = Alex, knowing how unaware his wife was, decided to have her go ask the chief for dating advice. When he refused, she pushed him into the fountain, unknowing he was H2Ointolerant.

Uhmm, no.

Sarah needed to take her stress out on something, and the Chief was the closest thing she could use.

Not that either. Okay, here's my real answer:

The chief, on his drunken spree, was going to arrest some crook. Sarah and Robbie got paranoid, thinking they'd be arrested, and killed the chief unintentionally. The rest of what happened was paranoia trying to catch the killers, while there really weren't any, just a big misunderstanding

3) Who was the accomplice? = Robbie Swanson

[Bob]

Anyone can post here, by the way.

[CorneliusMurdock]

And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling FBI Agents! How was it their jurisdiction anyway?!

Um, Bob, what were the winning conditions for Peanuts and I?

[Brickdoctor]

Congratulations, Rumble Strike.

Honestly, I had no idea Cornelius was the killer. Actually, I really had no clue at the end, but I think that was more of me having been sidetracked by Gotham Mafia, Heroica, and an unforeseen trip.

[CMP]

Congrats Rumble Strike!

I was way off, though. I was honestly shocked Peanuts was the accomplice. I must say, this was a really well-done game. The story and sets behind it were fun to read - especially the characters, which I believed were both well-written and well-fleshed out by the players. My only grievance was that we never got to see my house. Can't imagine how much Star Trek memorabilia would be in it.

[Masked Builder]

I'm rather wishing I had played this. Oh well, you run a great game and I'll be on board for the next one!

[K-Nut]

You know, I was suspicious of Peanuts, but then at the end...

[Bob]

And I would've gottne away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling FBI Agents! How was it their jurisdiction anyway?!

Um, Bob, what were the winning conditions for Peanuts and I?

To not get caught. You almost got away with it, too, literally because I was close to shutting down the entries until Rumble Strike sent his in.

[CorneliusMurdock]

To not get caught. You almost got away with it, too, literally because I was close to shutting down the entries until Rumble Strike sent his in.

So one person suspected me and Peanuts and I both lose?

I really thought everyone would be on to me when my criminal record said I punched McGovern. Which is exactly how I killed the Chief. I had tried to talk my way out of it, but I wasn't sure how successful I was. The other thing was our kill attempt on Flitwick going horribly awry. It basically cleared three (maybe five) people. Our original plan was to kill Fugazi but we were told that was a bad idea. Really, Bob? That was a worse idea than taking a hostage and having a shootout with the FBI?

I'd also like to say thanks to Peanuts for being a wonderful accomplice. You guys never found the gun or even had an inkling that James and Amber were a couple.

[Fugazi]

So one person suspected me and Peanuts and I both lose?

I really thought everyone would be on to me when my criminal record said I punched McGovern. Which is exactly how I killed the Chief. I had tried to talk my way out of it, but I wasn't sure how successful I was. The other thing was our kill attempt on Flitwick going horribly awry. It basically cleared three (maybe five) people. Our original plan was to kill Fugazi but we were told that was a bad idea. Really, Bob? That was a worse idea than taking a hostage and having a shootout with the FBI?

I'd also like to say thanks to Peanuts for being a wonderful accomplice. You guys never found the gun or even had an inkling that James and Amber were a couple.

Well done Rumble Strike! And scum too! This was an exciting, if difficult mystery game.

Now, I must say that we made a connection between the killer's M.O. and Cornelius' back story early on -- Day 1 if I'm not mistaken -- but we didn't think that Cornelius had such a stronger motive than others. And we didn't miss the flirting between Cornelius and Peanuts either. But what I don't quite get is what was the Chief attempting to do with his handcuffs on Cornelius. Was he trying to arrest him for making out with Amber? How old was she anyway?

[ADHO15]

I'm really sorry for my absence at the end there, Bob! I just got too busy with end-of-term work.

I probably would have followed Peanuts' theory as it seemed to make more sense than the mum/Alex affair story which I believed to be the key beforehand. Either way, I wouldn't have guessed correctly!

Congrats to Cornelius and Peanuts for fooling the majority, but more importantly, well done Rumble for figuring it out!

Great job hosting, Bob, and thanks for letting me play!

[Professor Flitwick]

Well done Rumble Strike! Gotham City may have bested you, but well done on winning your first Mystery!

I never ended up sending any answers, as I couldn't decide between Chief Scott (I felt her affair linked to it, somehow), Winston (Even though I tried hard to prove to everyone that firefighter Sue might've been wrong, it kept coming back to me), Robbie, James (that business with the late Mrs. Swanson also struck me) and Officer Hutch (don't know why, but I felt if it wasn't Chief Scott (and I knew it wasn't me), it must be someone on the police force).

Well done both Cornelius and Peanuts, the former of whom was only suspected through back story, and the latter of whom went undetected, both after a brilliant second Mystery performance! Though one question, why try and kill me?

I voted yes to enjoying the game, and enjoyed the Characters the most, as everyone played their parts well, if they turned up. I'm going to be honest here, and say for your hosting abilities, that you 'Could have been better'. I, and several others, felt rather insulted when you paused the game to (in part) complain than no 'all stars' signed up for your game. No host should insult their players base like that. I obviously voted 'no' for seeing this coming.

[Rumble Strike]

Yay, we won

I was really worried once Peanuts/Amber was orchestrating a campaign against me, because I thought we'd had some good father/daughter roleplay and Peanuts was one of those who had played the whole game and done well in character. I could see that people were listening to him, but I knew I was innocent.

Because this wasn't a Mafia game where I had to protect myself, last night I just spent a bit of time going back and seeing how the info we had fitted together. To be honest, I didn't focus much on what we had found, but what had happened during the mystery. I speculated in-thread very early on that perhaps someone had a vendetta against the police, with the Chief dead, Officer Hutch's bike being vandalised and the problems Deputy Scott was having (house on fire etc). Then later Officer Jackson being attacked. With most of the civilians having their own problems/issues during the time (Sarah/Alex/Julia) I thought it could be James as he had previous with the chief, and speculated that he could have had the vendetta. Because of the drugs angle with Robbie, I thought his son could be the accomplice.

I wasn't confident about it and it was more like a hunch than anything specific. I am amazed Amber was involved - I never saw that at all, but maybe I was too close to her to see.

For the game itself:

I love the characters - great job on the roleplay everyone, I thought people did really well with that.

It was helped by Bob's lovely sets - great pictures and story for beginning and end of days.

Where I felt the game had issues was in the freedom that you gave us, Bob. Maybe there was too much freedom and it sometimes felt a bit aimless. I think we maybe needed a stronger guiding hand in places, a bit more focus on what was important. For instance, your strong hint about the CCTV could perhaps have started the game and not come in after a couple of days. I know it's a fine line to walk as "Quest Master", but a little more direction may have helped participation because I think some people may have just thought early on that we weren't really getting anywhere. I hate to bring up a "competing" forum game but some of the Heroica Quests walk that line very well indeed. Perhaps some inspiration can be gained from those.

I would also consider a smaller game. 3 months IS a long time to commit to one game. Fewer characters and places to go may well have helped us work out what we were supposed to be doing, as well as making it easier for you.

Overall I did have fun playing, and that's what counts! So I would like to thank Bob for all his hard work, and to the people who played, and especially those who put the effort in.

[K-Nut]

I would also consider a smaller game. 3 months IS a long time to commit to one game. Fewer characters and places to go may well have helped us work out what we were supposed to be doing, as well as making it easier for you.

Have you seen the length of Red Scare Mystery? Six Months!

[Peanuts]

Dang, I really thought I won!

Well, I definitely enjoyed the game, and I enjoyed being on the bad side once again. Thanks to Cornelius, I really think we did a good job working together. Too bad his background story set him up. Well, at least we got a happy end.

I voted "No" for "Did you see that coming?", because I didn't see it coming at all. I didn't know we had to fool the entire town in order to win, but it seems somewhat fair, considering the fact the town had few to go on.

I really loved the characters, and the amount of roleplay people put into the game. Especially the father-daughter relationship with Winston was nice, sorry I had to ruin everything in the end.

I also loved the interiors to the buildings, that was something that had been completely lacking in Red Scare. The story was also far more linear than in Red Scare, which I think is a good thing. Overall, I liked Suburbia a lor more than your previous game.

But something I really don't understand, we planned to kill Officer Scott, but Bob told us that wasn't a good idea. Then we tried to kill Jackson, but instead we took Marcus hostage, and shot Alex Jordan. Was that a modkill?

And who was the brown-haired person the firefighters had seen? And what about that hand at the firestation?

I think you did a somewhat good job hosting this, Bob. But frankly, there were things that could have been better, like telling us not to kill Fugazi or mass-murdering silent people. It's hard to blame somebody who was modkilled, because I myself wouldn't have suspected you to kill a key figure to the game. But at the same time it also was a shame those players contributed so few. But nevertheless, you did a good job. In my opinion, it was good that you didn't hint us towards the CCTV cams until midgame, it keeps the game exciting when such useful evidence turns up.

And congratulations to Rumble Strike, for figuring out two out of three questions and winning the game. It's your fault that we didn't win Well done.

[Bob]

I voted yes to enjoying the game, and enjoyed the Characters the most, as everyone played their parts well, if they turned up. I'm going to be honest here, and say for your hosting abilities, that you 'Could have been better'. I, and several others, felt rather insulted when you paused the game to (in part) complain than no 'all stars' signed up for your game. No host should insult their players base like that. I obviously voted 'no' for seeing this coming.

For that I'm deeply sorry. I let outside pressures into the game, and I shouldn't have. What angered me mostly was the lack of participation. People signed on and committed to playing the game, but then they posted maybe four times a chapter. A mystery game is different than a mafia game. It's not as black and white as rooting out scum. You have to communicate and speak with other players to try and make them screw up or miss a detail. You need to be vigilant. If all you're doing the entire game is investigating without talking at all, then you won't win

I would also consider a smaller game. 3 months IS a long time to commit to one game. Fewer characters and places to go may well have helped us work out what we were supposed to be doing, as well as making it easier for you.

It was supposed to be a lot shorter, but as I said nobody participated so we were stuck at locations for days when we could have been there and out a lot sooner.

But something I really don't understand, we planned to kill Officer Scott, but Bob told us that wasn't a good idea. Then we tried to kill Jackson, but instead we took Marcus hostage, and shot Alex Jordan. Was that a modkill?

And who was the brown-haired person the firefighters had seen? And what about that hand at the firestation?

Deputy Chief Scott was unkillable at night, which is how she survived the fire and the exploding van. By kidnapping Marcus, you were able to lure Jackson out of the house, because he had barricaded himself in. You were unable to kill Flitwick and K-nut because he had protected himself and I said there was a chance that your kill would be unsuccessful. And yes, Alex Jordan was a modkill. Also, the brown-haired person at the fire station was a red-herring. You could have showcased the firefighters uncertainty by seeing how she changed her mind several times, thinking it was a man, then a woman, etc. The hand was Chief McGovern, who waved to the fire-woman outside before finding you at the fountain.

I think you did a somewhat good job hosting this, Bob. But frankly, there were things that could have been better, like telling us not to kill Fugazi or mass-murdering silent people. It's hard to blame somebody who was modkilled, because I myself wouldn't have suspected you to kill a key figure to the game. But at the same time it also was a shame those players contributed so few. But nevertheless, you did a good job. In my opinion, it was good that you didn't hint us towards the CCTV cams until midgame, it keeps the game exciting when such useful evidence turns up.

I only killed people who were silent mostly because I was getting angry and I wanted something exciting to happen, other than the boring "nothing happens at night" scenarios.

However, there is something that has been bothering me, so I'd like to congratulate a second winner:

Amber Robertson, played by Peanuts!

Theoretically you were not identified in any of the answers, and as a result you didn't lose. Thus, you are our second winner of the game.

Things I'd Like to Change:

-NO MORE TOWN SETTINGS.EVER: There's to many places to go, it's hard to photograph, it's just an overall pain in the butt.

-10 Characters: Because it'll make it better.

-The Miscellaneous Actions: I tried to make things a bit exciting at night since I removed the conventional mafia actions, but overall they were confusing and as a result if I host again then I won't include them.

Personal Notes:

I liked the way everyone settled into their characters, but like I said, I wished that there was more conversation between the characters.

I just realized that I italicized some of my responses, which is bad and a habit I'll have to end quickly when responding to quotes.

[Professor Flitwick]

Things I'd Like to Change:

-NO MORE TOWN SETTINGS.EVER: There's to many places to go, it's hard to photograph, it's just an overall pain in the butt.

-10 Characters: Because it'll make it better.

-The Miscellaneous Actions: I tried to make things a bit exciting at night since I removed the conventional mafia actions, but overall they were confusing and as a result if I host again then I won't include them.

It's good to here that you have plans to host again, and I dare say that those changes will make for a greater game. I look forward to seeing it.

I liked the way everyone settled into their characters, but like I said, I wished that there was more conversation between the characters.

Yeah, I tried to keep the love between myslef and K-nut ( ) prominent. I also tried to do things a Californian policeman would do, such as speak Spainish for the Hispanic population.

[K-Nut]

Bob, are you going to post player analysis' for everyone?

[Rumble Strike]

It's a Robertson family clean sweep! Well done Amber!

[Mrlegoninja]

Good Job Rumble Strike! I didn't know any of the answers so I didn't send anything in.

I'm sorry Bob. I kinda slowed down during chapters 8 and 9. I was busy, and I couldn't find that much time to get on. The rest of the game I think I did pretty good on.

Just one thing bothers me. I did not understand the miscellaneous actions. That was very confusing. I'm glad that if you host again, you won't include them.

Bob, you were a great host. I think you did better this time than Red Scare Mystery. I'm sure your next game will be even better!

Once again, congratulations Rumble Strike. This has been the funnest Eurobricks Game I've ever played.

[Bob]

Bob, are you going to post player analysis' for everyone?

If you want?

Players (14)

Mr. Jack Montgomery, husband of Julia, father of Jeremy

Owner of Local Pet Store

Played By: --- Mrlegoninja

You were rather fair in your own analysis. You were strong in the start, but you slowly started to stop playing which was rather annoying because you had a good character. All in all, I'd say you did a good job.

Mrs. Julia Montgomery, wife of Jack, mother of Jeremy

Owner of Local Pet Store

Played By: --- Dannylonglegs

I had to kill you off for a reason, and it's mostly because you didn't participate. Like, at all. You were one of my favorites in Prohibition, which was why I was excited to see you sign up, but you didn't really participate.

Jeremy Montgomery, son of Jack and Julia

Student

Played By: --- ADHO15

I like how you used the miscellaneous actions to do your own investigations at night indirectly. You played your character very well, even during Gotham City Mafia. You did a very good job, I'd say.

Mr. Alex Jordan, husband of Sarah

Accountant

Played By: --- Cralegoboy

I know you had other life issues to deal with, but I was forced to kill you off because you stopped posting almost entirely as the chapters went on. As your action for the night you died, you selected to get "very drunk", so I had you step into the live fire. You did really good in Red Scare, but you didn't perform that well here.

Mrs. Sarah Jordan, wife of Alex

Owner of Department Store

Played By: --- Brickdoctor

Nice work overall. I liked your ability to fit into your character and you analyzed and explored the various settings very well. Nice work, you get an A+ for effort.

Mr. Winston Robertson, father of Amber

Retired Banker, Artifact Collector

Played By: --- Rumble Strike

You won, so there's obviously that. As I told you throughout the game you did a good job fitting into your character excellently.

Amber Robertson

Unemployed

Played By: --- Peanuts

You won as well, so nice work. You did exceptionally well flying under the radar the entire game.

Officer Steven Jackson, fiance of Ashley

Police Officer

Played By: --- Professor Flitwick

Nice work. Even though you got shot you still kept participating even after the hiatus and you sent in a guess. (I think)

Ashley Baker, fiance of Steven, sister of Marcus

Owner of Grocery Store

Played By: --- K-nut

These analyses are getting rather repetitive, honestly, but nice work.

Marcus Baker, brother of Ashley

Meteorologist

Played By: --- CallMePieOrDie

Good job! Nice effort! Well done! Okay, anyway, I liked how you referenced Star Trek like your character was supposed too.

Officer Ryan Hutch, married to his career

Police Officer

Played By: --- badboytje88

You had told me that this game wasn't your cup of tea, but I still would have liked you to participate. After three chapters of you not posting, I had to kill you off.

Mr. James Swanson, father of Robbie

Personal Trainer

Played By: --- CorneliusMurdock

You almost won, if it wasn't for Rumble Strike. I was very close to closing the answer submissions when he submitted his. Good work other than that.

Robbie Swanson, son of James

Unemployed

Played By: --- Jedi master Brick

You didn't really participate that much, and when you did it was usually just a sentence or two and then you left the topic. I had given you a rather good character, so I had hoped you would have explored and used it more.

Deputy Chief Jackie Scott, married to job

Deputy Chief of the Lexington Police Department

Played By: --- Fugazi

You thought it was drugs, which was a good guess considering all of the events transpiring. Overall, you did a good job and participated every chapter.

Police Chief Arnold McGovern

Chief of Police

Played By: --- def

You didn't play long enough...okay, nevermind. Def's character was like mine in Bloodbrick's Asylum II and in Witchbreed Mafia School. We used each other to start off the game, something that we decided on via PM before the game.

By the way, Scorpiox, I noticed that you voted in the polls, but didn't post here. I hope everyone knows that this is open to the general public, as in everyone.

[CMP]

Marcus Baker, brother of Ashley

Meteorologist

Played By: --- CallMePieOrDie

Good job! Nice effort! Well done! Okay, anyway, I liked how you referenced Star Trek like your character was supposed too.

That was evil. I used every last ounce of everything I know about Star Trek to make this character. Which isn't much. It's a shame I sent in that action where I beat Robbie too late, that would've been fun to see.

[Tamamono]

Well, this was a pretty good game, and I certainly regret not signing up for it! The characters were interesting, the setting was well put-together (although I'm a bit of a sucker for town-settings!), and the story was very well thought out! I enjoyed following this game very much!

I have to admit, I never saw that ending coming. In fact, Peanuts and Cornelius (along with Fugazi and a few others) stood out to me as the most pro-town players in the game! I was almost completely sure that the killer was Rumble Strike.

My main criticism of you as a host is the amount of action you took against the players. Making four modkills was going way over the top. I completely understand your frustration with the inactivity some players were showcasing in this game, but I don't think making that many modkills is really necessary. It causes way too much confusion (I honestly thought that the deaths of Jedi master Brick and Dannylonglegs were the scum's doing at first) and takes suspicion away from the people you kill, which can make a big difference in the game, since the inactive players are the ones most likely to be turned on by the rest of the town.

I'm sorry if I come off as a bit harsh here. I understand that mystery games (and all games, for that matter) take a lot of work to prepare, and it's obvious that you put in that effort to make this a fantastic game. Great job.

[Scorpiox]

Watching from the sidelines this seemed quite a good game. It's refreshing to see lots of good characterisation, but it's a shame about the lack of regular posters. The sole reason I didn't sign up was that I didn't know what a mystery game was.

The game seemed very open, with regards to what people could do, though it seemed a little too open at points. It didn't seem that much evidence was actually found, and most of the suspicions started at the beginning of the game. I really didn't suspect CM or Peanuts, as I overlooked the apparently vital info nearer the start. I suspected Rumble like most others but in the end he won it for the good guys!

I think you are good host, Bob_, the characters were good and the sets were outstanding! I love the way you took time to build all the houses and streets.