When you are the sheriff

Being the sheriff is a very responsible and interesting role, and here are some basic rules a good sheriff should follow and a couple of more tips:

Remember that you are the leader of the red team and their main trump, so your primary task is not to survive, but to help your red team to win the game. I have many times observed a situation when new players, who received the sheriff's card, are so afraid to be killed, that they do not reveal in time, and thus help mafia to win. Don't let this happen.

When to reveal is the most important question for the sheriff. If you reveal too early, you will be killed too early, and will not make enough checks, if you reveal too late, either red players will be voted off and mafia will win in their full complement, or a false sheriff will reveal on time and nobody will believe you, because you were too late to reveal. When revealing clearly say that you are the sheriff, then in chronological order - whom you checked and their color.

So when is the right time to reveal? It's when there is a critical situation at the table. A critical situation is when red citizens have only 1 or 2 players' advantage over black players, so if a red player is voted off, the game is won by mafia. For example, 8 or 7 players with 3 mafias at the table, 6 or 5 players with 2 mafias, and 4 or 3 players with 1 mafia member. Why is 8 players at the table a critical situation? Suppose a red player is voted off and there remains 7 players, including 3 mafias. At night mafia shoots and there remains 6 players with 3 mafias. Mafia won!

That's why it is crucial that in a critical situation a black player leaves the game. This way the city can still win. So your checks, even if you have only red checks, will be a decisive factor for the city to vote in the right way. Of course, at night you will be killed, but will be able to make one more check.

On the 3rd day, if there are 8 or 7 players at the table, reveal even if on the 2nd day your black check was voted off and you know there remain only 2 mafias. The thing is - only you know this and for other players the situation is critical. At this point one of the remaining mafias is very likely to reveal as the false sheriff and people will be less likely to believe you, especially if the false sheriff gives you checked black.

Reveal before the critical situation only if you are killed at night, or if there is real danger for you to be voted off.

On the 2nd day (when it's too early to reveal) if your check on the first night is a black one, and there is something to criticize in this player's actions, nominate them, but don't attack too strongly, and be sure to vote against them. If it is a strong player, whom nobody suspects, leave them alone so far.

If your check is a red one, and there is a danger for them to be voted off, try to protect them, but adduce logical arguments and do not vote against them.

One of the criteria of the real sheriff is whom he checks. On the first day players always demand some players to be checked, so it's better to check the most suspicious player for the table. If you decided to check another player, be ready to explain why you checked exactly them. For example, if there are no really suspicious players, you can check a strong player, who always talks well, just to know their color and to play with them if they are red. If you checked a player and found them red, secretly let them know you checked them (usually the sheriff catches the glance of the player and draws a circle in the air or at the table in the direction of the this player) If your checked red player believes you, they will become your ally and may cover you, saying they are the sheriff thus getting killed instead of you, so you will have one more night for a check.

If there reveals a false sheriff, never check them, because they are black a priori. Also there's no use checking the false sheriff's black checks, because they are 99% red (a false sheriff very rarely gives his black player black - only if the whole table strongly suspects the latter).

Always remember that your actions as the sheriff must be clear and logical, so that red players believe you if they have to choose between you and the false sheriff!

Good luck:)

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16