CLICK HERE FOR SPECIAL POWERS (AKA Matty's Questions 2.0)

[mattywhitmore]

Alright, I pretty much rushed this whole thread the first time around, so I decided to just re-make it so that it wasn't embarrassingly terrible. I also promised Chelsea that I'd throw a little shade, so here goes nothing.

First off, congratulations to both of you for making the finals! Sixteen people went into this game, and you two are the last ones standing, so in my opinion, one of you definitely deserves the title of Sole Survivor, regardless of whether I think you played well or not. However, one of you doesn't deserve the title, and so I'm going to try and figure out who that person is. I want you guys to know that my vote is mostly still up in the air at the time I'm writing this, but there are certain things I'm looking for. One of them is not flattery, nor is it humility. All I want is for you to own the game you believe you played, and if you think I'm full of shit, let me know why I'm full of shit. Let's begin, eh?

DISCLAIMER: I am going to be blunt, and I am going to sound like an ass. Y'all seemed like nice enough people, and so I feel kind of bad having to be the bad guy here, but I feel like it'd be fairly disingenuous not to say what I feel like I need to say.

So . . . I'll begin with my general view on your collective game. To start, kudos on not taking Pete to the finals, because he most likely would have won over both of you. To put it bluntly, I believe the only reason either of you made it as far as you did was because of a cheap Vote Reversal power, an idol, and then Pete making terrible decisions due to being overly paranoid. I'm not sure I really see where either of you, without the use of powers and idols, actually did anything to get yourselves to the F4 even. Was there really never a point where either of you saw a strategic advantage in flipping? Did all three Tané truly think they had this game locked up once y'all got to F3? Did you guys not even think about that? 

Week after week, Vahiné players entered Ponderosa, and week after week, I was disappointed in the lack of anyone willing to make a move. I mean, for me, my own willingness to make moves stemmed from wanting the season I was on to actually be exciting and interesting to watch. Just based on how this looks from where I'm sitting over at Ponderosa, I'm a little underwhelmed with how it turned out, to be completely honest.

Bobby Jon

I have mixed feeling about you, man. It was kind of foolish of you to take me out so early, when you could have easily strung me along as both a forced ally, as well as a target to hide behind once Danielle left. If people want a certain person out, and said certain person doesn't want you out . . . then you really shouldn't take them out. In my opinion, you REALLY lucked out by Pete becoming the next largest target, and not you. That, to me, shows a lack of foresight in regards to your game. On the other hand, I'm not completely sure that it was so much luck from that point on that got you here, as it may have been you leading sheep to what you thought was the slaughter. At any point, Sierra could have turned on you and worked with Danielle and Sarah, but she didn't. I'm not sure whether to accredit this to Pete, to you, or to luck.

Honestly, I'm not really sure what you've done in this game, aside from win powers and be nice to everyone. You obviously had the superior social game, I'll give you that, but in regards to maybe strategy, and certainly physically, I think you may be outdone in regards to Sierra. I don't know how it is for the other jurors, but I wouldn't vote for somebody just because they were nice to me.

Sierra

So, I don't think I really need to inform you that some people are pissed at you for whatever reason. They think you told too many lies, and played an all around dirty game, allegedly making several needless betrayals, the most bitched about being the one where you coldly stabbed Pete in the back at F3. I'm not so sure this is the case, though. Pete, in my opinion, was the biggest threat to win between the three of you. Pete was probably the only Tané who had a shot at winning without relying on cheap powers and idols. The fact that you boldly took him out regardless of your F2 with him shows me that you have the ability to do what it takes to win, no matter what the cost. I think that style of play takes balls, and I respect that a lot. Unfortunately, you've probably lost his vote in doing so, which is . . . not so good.

Although I believe you're only in the finals because of cheap powers and such, I do really like how you played the game early on, especially attempting to save Stephen by trying to get us to vote Eddie out, who was a strong member of our tribe at the time. I caught onto it immediately, but I definitely respect the attempt, 'cause it could have totally worked on a different group of people. I really wish we could have seen more of that later on in the game! Even though you were incorrect in thinking I wanted you out, you were correct in actually voting me out. Actually, I think you were one of maybe four people who actually played well that round.

Regardless, one of the more important aspects of this game is the ability to read people, or in simpler terms, the ability to understand what they'll base their vote on. I can tell you now, I seem to be one of maybe three people on the jury even willing to vote for you prior to these questions and answers. That's just bad jury management, no matter how you slice it. I think you can still turn this around, but your answers had better be on point, especially towards the people you supposedly betrayed.

___________________________________________________________
Now who's ready for some questions?! I know I am! Huehuehue

(Don't worry about writing an essay for me or anything like that -- I'm just looking for certain things in your answers, and so as long as I get those, I'm good)

For Both:

Q1: I'm leaning more towards voting for a certain person over the other right now. Who do you think that is, and why? Why shouldn't I?
Q6: You people are too nice! I want to see a little chaos. Would you kindly throw a little shade at the person you're sitting beside?
Q7: You've both read my general analysis of your games. What am I wrong about?

For Bobby Jon:

Q2: You decided to go to the F3 with two people who obviously had a F2 deal. Why?

Q3: If Sierra hadn't gotten the Vote Reversal power, what would have been your "Plan B"?

Q4: I can't really see anything you did in this game in which Sierra didn't also do. Can you shed some light on that for me?

Q5: Why vote me off over Sarah, when you could have used me as a guaranteed target, instead?

For Sierra

Q2: Yes or No -- within the final three rounds, did you plan on taking Pete to the end? If so, what made you change your mind?
Q3: I don't think you spoke with me once over the course of the game -- why not? Is it truly because you didn't want to feel bad about voting me out? Keep in mind that I already think you played the better strategic and social game, so making excuses for a bad social game is kind of pointless.
Q4: Why would you tell BJ about your F2 deal with Pete?
Q5: During the round that I went out, did you have any knowledge of how Pete, Eddie, and I planned on pulling BJ into a four-person alliance and taking the girls out? If not, how about prior to just now? If so, to what extent?
________________________________________________________
Anyway, good luck y'all! It was fun playing with you guys! 

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

Don't worry Matty, I don't mind you being blunt at all. But I think it's my turn to spill some truth and set the record straight. I think you're a nice guy, so hopefully I don't offend with my responses, but I need to shed some light on the issues weighing on your mind. You want me to own up to my game, and I'm going to deliver.



I'm not sure I really see where either of you, without the use of powers and idols, actually did anything to get yourselves to the F4 even. Was there really never a point where either of you saw a strategic advantage in flipping? Did all three Tané truly think they had this game locked up once y'all got to F3? Did you guys not even think about that?



Week after week, Vahiné players entered Ponderosa, and week after week, I was disappointed in the lack of anyone willing to make a move. I mean, for me, my own willingness to make moves stemmed from wanting the season I was on to actually be exciting and interesting to watch. Just based on how this looks from where I'm sitting over at Ponderosa, I'm a little underwhelmed with how it turned out, to be completely honest.



Alright, where do I begin....I guess I'll start by establishing that I should not be penalized for playing an idol. Was it lucky that I purchased the idol at the auction? Yes, but here's a news flash: this game is about 40% luck. It's not fair at all to take jabs at us for not throwing our "special powers" into the trash. Next, I'm going to repeat that I do not see a SINGLE moment in this game where it would have been beneficial for me to flip. Seriously, look throughout the merge and tell me whose boot I should have flipped on.



Abi's? Why would I make myself public enemy #1? Alexis'? It would be a terrible idea, and there was no chance to anyway. Misty? She died. Yours? I'm not gonna throw my game in the trash to become a Vahine pawn when I have a chance to turn things around so that *I* have a position of power. Eddie's? Why would I throw away the power I just gained? Danielle's? NO, Pete and Sierra would hate my guts, and I'd get destroyed by Danielle in a jury vote. Sarah's? The same applies. I may not have known about Pete and Sierra's deal, but I found a way here regardless, thanks to my persuasion skills and social game (which I'll touch on again later).



It is completely unfair to complain about how I never "made a move" (aka flipped to the Vahines) when there was never a good reason for me to do so. One can have good gameplay without needlessly backstabbing allies to look flashy.



I have mixed feeling about you, man. It was kind of foolish of you to take me out so early, when you could have easily strung me along as both a forced ally, as well as a target to hide behind once Danielle left. If people want a certain person out, and said certain person doesn't want you out . . . then you really shouldn't take them out. In my opinion, you REALLY lucked out by Pete becoming the next largest target, and not you. That, to me, shows a lack of foresight in regards to your game. On the other hand, I'm not completely sure that it was so much luck from that point on that got you here, as it may have been you leading sheep to what you thought was the slaughter. At any point, Sierra could have turned on you and worked with Danielle and Sarah, but she didn't. I'm not sure whether to accredit this to Pete, to you, or to luck.



OK, I'll start by addressing your complaint that we should have idoled someone besides you. I'm going to be straight-up; this paragraph sounds like a bit of rewritten history to make the fact that you were voted off seem like a bad move by the other players. You claim I could have used you as a target to hide behind, but there's a few problems with that statement. First of all, I already had more than enough targets to hide behind--Pete, Danielle, and even Sierra for her challenge prowess. And second of all, the first time we had a 1 on 1 conversation was ONE DAY before your elimination. I had no reason to trust you, especially given that I knew almost nothing about you. I already established that there was no reason for me to flip this round, and it would have been risky and stupid to drag you farther into the game when you were such a threat. And look what happened: I was not targeted the rest of the game anyway. Voting you out that round was not a foolish move on my behalf at all.



Next, I'll address your saying that I lucked out when Sierra brought me to the finals over Pete. Now, don't get me wrong, it WAS lucky that Sierra wrote Pete's name down instead of mine. But I played a HUGE role in making that happen--Sierra didn't flip a coin to decide who to eliminate. I spent all day convincing Sierra to take me to the end over Pete. You can check out Pete's jury thread if you want to see all the details and logic that I used. I successfully destroyed a Final 2 deal using only my persuasion and social skills. THAT is where I utilized and demonstrated my social game at its finest. There is absolutely no reason that my survival of that Final 3 vote should be written off as pure luck.



Finally, let me make something clear--I knew that Sierra was never gonna flip on Pete and I to go with the girls. Why, you may ask? Because I KNEW that Sierra was talking to Sarah and Danielle. Sierra was simply attempting to acquire information from Vahine about who they were voting for, and she spilled all the info she could gather to me and Pete. I was never in danger because Sierra was never gonna flip, so you can scratch luck out of the equation here too.



Honestly, I'm not really sure what you've done in this game, aside from win powers and be nice to everyone. You obviously had the superior social game, I'll give you that, but in regards to maybe strategy, and certainly physically, I think you may be outdone in regards to Sierra. I don't know how it is for the other jurors, but I wouldn't vote for somebody just because they were nice to me.



Here's the thing, Matty: the social game and the strategic game are intertwined, and there's no way to separate them. You act like having a social game equals just being nice to everyone, but there are so many more layers than that. I used my real friendships with my fellow castaways to benefit my game. Would you like some examples?



I played up the fact that I was a jokester so that people wouldn’t take me seriously and wouldn’t target me. I got Pete to trust me 100% by revealing that I had an idol after he told me about his double vote, and that trust lasted throughout the whole game. Thanks to my bond with Danielle, she told me every round whether I was in danger or not, and when she informed me I was safe at the Final 7, it gave me enough confidence to play my idol on Sierra and eliminate you. I convinced Sierra to stick with Tane at the Final 4 by putting everything out in the open at Tribal Council. I BROKE A FINAL 2 DEAL using only my connection with Sierra and my persuasion skills.



So there are a lot of problems with you saying that you don't wanna vote for me because I was “just” nice. Yes, I love befriending people just for the sake of it, but I used my bonds to my advantage in the game. My social game ACTIVELY helped me get to where I am now. So when you said that all I did throughout the game was “use powers and be nice”, I needed to set the record straight and demonstrate that I wouldn’t be here now if it weren’t for my social skills.


For Both:

Q1: I'm leaning more towards voting for a certain person over the other right now. Who do you think that is, and why? Why shouldn't I?

I ain't stupid--I bet you were leaning towards voting Sierra. You said at Tribal Council that your jury vote would be based on strategy, and I bet you believed that she played a better strategic game. However, I think that I played a better social game AND strategic game than Sierra, as my votes were always carefully calculated. Hopefully my statements above have changed your mind.

Q6: You people are too nice! I want to see a little chaos. Would you kindly throw a little shade at the person you're sitting beside?
Sierra is awesome, but I don't think she made many connections with others, which severely limited her options in the game. She would have been eliminated if I hadn't chosen to play my idol on her, and voting out Pete brought forth a lot of rage from the jury. I think I was generally more aware of how others perceived me.

Q7: You've both read my general analysis of your games. What am I wrong about?


See my above paragraphs.

For Bobby Jon:



Q2: You decided to go to the F3 with two people who obviously had a F2 deal. Why?

Hindsight is 20/20. I went to the Final 3 with them because I thought that Pete would take me since he said he wanted to, and that Sierra would take me because Pete was a bigger threat. I didn't expect the Final 2 deal to be a reality, but I still managed to find a way to get here regardless.

Q3: If Sierra hadn't gotten the Vote Reversal power, what would have been your "Plan B"?

Well, since I was usually able to keep the target off of me as I said earlier, I would have waited a couple rounds. I think all 3 of my fellow Tane members (not counting Misty) would have been targeted before me, so I would slip by while stirring up some paranoia within the Vahines. I would tell the people I had the closest bonds with that I was open to be used as a vote, and since the Vahine tribe seemed less willing to stick together than the Tanes, I think I would have eventually found a crack.

Q4: I can't really see anything you did in this game in which Sierra didn't also do. Can you shed some light on that for me?

I formed friendships with people outside of my alliance, so I had more backup options than her. I played an idol successfully. I was not voted out like Sierra was at the Final 7. By convincing Sierra to stay loyal, I stopped Sarah's impressive plan to save herself at the Final 4, and I also overcame a Final 2 deal to gain a seat here at the end.

Q5: Why vote me off over Sarah, when you could have used me as a guaranteed target, instead?

I addressed this above too. Voting you out did not hurt my game in any way, and I had enough targets to hide behind already.

Whew! I apologize if I came off as brash, Matty. I didn't mean to sound rude, so sorry if I did. It's just that it's really easy to criticize people's games from Ponderosa, even though there was a lot more to my game than what meets the eye. Just because I didn't make pointless flips and flashy "big moves" doesn't mean I didn't have a sound strategy. I wanted to clarify my strategy since that's what you're basing your vote on.

Oh also; I actually thought the season was pretty fun, haha. Dynamics like the Pete-Eddie pact, Danielle trying to get me to flip at 5, and Sarah's final gambit made what seemed like a Pagonging pretty interesting, if I do say so myself. It shows you can't always judge a season by its boot order.

Alright, I'm done for real now. If you have any questions or complaints about any of my responses, just say the word and I'll try to answer.

[mattywhitmore]

Bobby Jon Drinkard


I appreciate the thoughtful and lengthy response! Let me offer a closing rebuttal in response to a few key things there . . .

"Was it lucky that I purchased the idol at the auction? Yes, but here's a news flash: this game is about 40% luck. It's not fair at all to take jabs at us for not throwing our "special powers" into the trash."
I think that it's completely fair to take the blatant reliance on idols and powers into account. Luckily for you, Sierra is in the same boat, so that won't affect my vote much at all. Now, take for example, Yul Kwon or Tony. They were both great players, and they both were able to get to the end without having to actually use the cheap powers they had. If you guys had bluffed the vote reversal, gotten Vahiné people to flip, and then bluffed it again the next round . . . see, that's the kind of idol play that gets you votes. If you play an idol because Pete told y'all who we were voting for, then that's more to Pete's credit than yours.

"You claim I could have used you as a target to hide behind, but there's a few problems with that statement. First of all, I already had more than enough targets to hide behind--Pete, Danielle, and even Sierra for her challenge prowess."
Hmm, guess you're a psychic, then, 'cause I thought Sierra didn't start her immunity streak until after I was already gone! It sounds to me like the only real target then was Danielle, and you sort of just sat on your hands and hoped another target would emerge, which it did, luckily for you. That doesn't make your answer any less irrelevant, though. A strategic move would have been actually CREATING those targets, but you didn't mention doing anything like that to me.

"Because I KNEW that Sierra was talking to Sarah and Danielle. Sierra was simply attempting to acquire information from Vahine about who they were voting for, and she spilled all the info she could gather to me and Pete. I was never in danger because Sierra was never gonna flip, so you can scratch luck out of the equation here too."
It sounds to me like you were Sierra's "Plan B Goat", to be honest. What she probably didn't expect, though, is that the jury would be so bitter towards her. I've been getting Samoa-esque vibes ever since Pete arrived at Ponderosa.

"I convinced Sierra to stick with Tane at the Final 4 by putting everything out in the open at Tribal Council. I BROKE A FINAL 2 DEAL using only my connection with Sierra and my persuasion skills."
So . . . what you're telling me is that your strategy was to be a nice guy so people like you and trust you. That's great . . . but where did you actually make any moves with the information people were giving you? Again, that sounds like you just sitting on your hands and hoping for the best. Seems like the only move YOU ALONE actually made in this game was convincing Sierra to take you over Pete, which honestly wasn't that big of a move, because Pete was obviously going to win over both of you, anyway. Further, Sierra could have been planning on taking you as a goat by then, anyway. Now, if YOU were going to obviously win over Sierra and Pete, then I'd be impressed!

"Yes, but here's a news flash: this game is about 40% luck."
Yes, I'm aware of that, as I mentioned in my original post. Luck is part of the game, and y'all had it. However, luck doesn't earn you jury votes, and here's a new flash for you: your game was about 70% luck.
_____________________________________________________________

Anyway, once again, thanks for the response, and for putting effort into your answers! You did indeed play a good social game! A better social game than Sierra, for sure! I still feel like your strategic game was severely lacking, but I'm glad to hear that you had a lot of fun playing this season, regardless! I remember my first time in the finals . . . it was so exciting. I want you to understand, I don't think Sierra necessarily played very well, either. If her strategic game was as awful as her social game, my vote would be for your social game for sure. Just, I felt the need to write this out for you so that when the season is over, you understand why I most likely ended up voting for Sierra over you.
(If she even gets around to replying by then . . .  -_-)

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

Q5: During the round that I went out, did you have any knowledge of how Pete, Eddie, and I planned on pulling BJ into a four-person alliance and taking the girls out? If not, how about prior to just now? If so, to what extent?

Lol sorry, I know this question was directed to Sierra, but I wanted to chime in. I knew about the boys' alliance from the second Pete brought up the idea of it--I believe Pete told me first, actually (correct me if I'm wrong Petey Piranha). I was not going to be "roped in" as a fourth--it's just that Pete was the mouthpiece since he knew you better. If you think I'm lying, why else do you think I contacted you that one day saying that I wanted to talk about the things Pete was saying to you? The boys' alliance thing was just a safety net, but it was never really close to a reality, because we didn't know if we could trust y'all. Again, I'm not trying to claim that I dominated this game with an iron fist or anything--far from it--but I was a lot more aware of the things that happened in this game than you want to give me credit for.

Hmm, guess you're a psychic, then, 'cause I thought Sierra didn't start her immunity streak until after I was already gone! It sounds to me like the only real target then was Danielle, and you sort of just sat on your hands and hoped another target would emerge, which it did, luckily for you. That doesn't make your answer any less irrelevant, though. A strategic move would have been actually CREATING those targets, but you didn't mention doing anything like that to me.

Whoops, haha. My bad, I dun goofed regarding Sierra's challenge streak. But still, I was far from the biggest target remaining in the game, and I avoided ever becoming one because of my bonds with my fellow castaways. THAT is where my social game came into play. And I'm kind of confused with what you mean by "creating targets".

It sounds to me like you were Sierra's "Plan B Goat", to be honest. What she probably didn't expect, though, is that the jury would be so bitter towards her. I've been getting Samoa-esque vibes ever since Pete arrived at Ponderosa.

I don't believe I was Sierra's goat at all. I might be wrong, but I'm pretty sure she was planning on going to the finals with Pete all the way until the Final 3. And with all due respect to Sierra, because she's super funny and cool IMO, I think it's a problem with her game that she MADE the jury so angry. Juries have every right to be upset, and the creation of a "bitter jury" can only be the result of a finalist making them that way. There's a reason Natalie White beat Russell Hantz.

So . . . what you're telling me is that your strategy was to be a nice guy so people like you and trust you. That's great . . . but where did you actually make any moves with the information people were giving you? Again, that sounds like you just sitting on your hands and hoping for the best. Seems like the only move YOU ALONE actually made in this game was convincing Sierra to take you over Pete, which honestly wasn't that big of a move, because Pete was obviously going to win over both of you, anyway. Further, Sierra could have been planning on taking you as a goat by then, anyway. Now, if YOU were going to obviously win over Sierra and Pete, then I'd be impressed!

Again, please tell me ONE moment in this game where I could have made a "big move" that would actually be beneficial for me and wouldn't have made me a social pariah after the vote. I can't think of one. It sounds like you wanted me to randomly flip on my alliance just because it'd be flashy. I want to know at what moment I should have made a "big move" and didn't.

Again, Sierra did not bring me as her goat. She wanted to bring Pete all the way until the Final 3, and she flat-out told me she didn't think she could beat me, even though I tried to convince her otherwise. Who knows? Maybe she will beat me, but I don't think I was a goat in any way.

Sorry for the huge response again, but it just sounds like you came here to FTC with assumptions about me and my strategy, and you refuse to let them go. You say that Sierra and I played similar games, yet you claim that she was a better strategist, and I still don't know why. Again, I'm not some sort of mastermind, I'm just a crazy goofball. But little moves and social plays helped me maneuver my way to the finals, I was much more game-aware than you want to give me credit for, and I already listed when my social game helped me out in my previous post. My apologies again if I sound cross, I'm just trying to defend myself.

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

Jul 22, 2015 6:50:43 GMT mattywhitmore said:

I also promised Chelsea that I'd throw a little shade, so here goes nothing.

Chelsea is the root of all evil.

[mattywhitmore]

Bobby Jon Drinkard

"Lol sorry, I know this question was directed to Sierra, but I wanted to chime in."
Yeah, I pretty much already knew everything in your answer. I was looking for something in Sierra's, which is why I asked her. If it makes any difference, I originally planned on getting Eddie to flip once again at five, taking you out instead of Sarah. However, if y'all took Sarah out that round, I pretty much would have been forced to work with you until you decided to take me out, whether I trusted you or not, because of numbers.

"But still, I was far from the biggest target remaining in the game, and I avoided ever becoming one because of my bonds with my fellow castaways. THAT is where my social game came into play. And I'm kind of confused with what you mean by 'creating targets'"
But . . . the same could be said about Sierra. Nobody at Ponderosa has told me she'd have been in trouble if she hadn't won immunity, and she didn't even have to rely on a social game. 

"Again, please tell me ONE moment in this game where I could have made a "big move" that would actually be beneficial for me and wouldn't have made me a social pariah after the vote. I can't think of one. It sounds like you wanted me to randomly flip on my alliance just because it'd be flashy. I want to know at what moment I should have made a "big move" and didn't."
It's not really about being flashy -- it's about being interesting. You either need to make big moves in this game if you want to win, or you need to make so many correct small moves that you literally play a perfect, but boring game, ala Kim Spradlin. You didn't make big moves, AND you relied on super powers to get you here. If the jury weren't so bitter, you'd have probably fucked up not by not making any moves. In my opinion, your saving grace right now is that the majority of them are bitter.

"Sorry for the huge response again, but it just sounds like you came here to FTC with assumptions about me and my strategy, and you refuse to let them go. You say that Sierra and I played similar games, yet you claim that she was a better strategist, and I still don't know why."
Have you not read her opening statement?  Aside from her strategic plays, she had the balls to stab allies in the back, and knew who she did and didn't need to speak with. You say I have assumptions coming into Tribal, but the more of your answers I read, the more I believe those assumptions to be true. Obviously I'll need to see her replies to my own questions first, but once again, solely based on what the jurors have told me, her opening statement, and her answers to far . . . I honestly think Sierra played the superior game.

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

Well clearly I'm not gonna change your mind no matter what I say, haha. I wanna repeat that *I* don't think I'm some genius mastermind or anything--I'm a goofy trainwreck. But I still have a few final points to make, and then I'll turn the floor over to Sierramazing.



It's not really about being flashy -- it's about being interesting. You either need to make big moves in this game if you want to win, or you need to make so many correct small moves that you literally play a perfect, but boring game, ala Kim Spradlin. You didn't make big moves, AND you relied on super powers to get you here. If the jury weren't so bitter, you'd have probably fucked up not by not making any moves. In my opinion, your saving grace right now is that the majority of them are bitter.



But I had no opportunity nor motivation to make one of these "big moves". And in the end, it all comes down to your viewpoint as a juror. You believe that one needs to make flashy big moves or else they aren't "playing the game". That's why you believe Russell Hantz should have beaten Natalie White. And that's fine--everyone has a right to his or her own opinions.



But regardless, there is no rule that states one has to make big moves in order to win. That style of gameplay is not suited to who I am as a person, and making big moves just for the sake of it can easily alienate jurors who DON'T believe that you need to make big moves to win. Each individual juror can vote based on whatever criteria he or she wants, and I'm hoping the others appreciate the more low-key yet effective game that I played (which was based on avoiding elimination), along with my friendships that I hope last for a long time past this season.



Have you not read her opening statement? Aside from her strategic plays, she had the balls to stab allies in the back, and knew who she did and didn't need to speak with.



But she didn't stab us in the back...
and if you're referring to the girls' alliance, I don't think Sierra was sincerely a part of that for a second. She told Pete and I everything the girls were saying.


You didn't make big moves, AND you relied on super powers to get you here. If the jury weren't so bitter, you'd have probably fucked up not by not making any moves. In my opinion, your saving grace right now is that the majority of them are bitter.



The superpowers thing applies to Sierra too. And again, with all due respect to Sierra (luv you Bae), she created these angry jurors, and that is a flaw in her game. My plan was to make friends with everyone, since 7 of them would be future jurors, and go to the end with someone who played a similar strategic game, yet was less liked, because most people will vote for a friend over someone they're angry at. But I see that I'm never going to get your vote, because you believe that Sierra had a better strategy despite my arguments, and that's the sole criteria you're basing your vote on. Hopefully you can at least admire my persistence, hehe.



So I'mma peace out of this thread considering you're probably the only one reading my replies LOL. It's been a blast to play with you, Matty, and I wish you the best of luck, Sierra!

[sierra]

Sorry its taking me so long to get to your questions, been busy at work and shit, you know how it goes. Anyway, I’m finally glad that I get to weigh in on these questions because this thread has been HOT HOT HOT all day long it seems, and I’m here to serve as much truth as I can.

Q1: I'm leaning more towards voting for a certain person over the other right now. Who do you think that is, and why? Why shouldn't I?

Well, my gut tells me that you are leaning toward voting for me to win. Why? Well because you have been sweet enough to like most of my TC posts and other posts throughout the game since you left, so that either means you are doing it tongue-in-cheek and hate me, or you actually like how Im playing the game. The second reason is just that, you like how I played this game. I like to think that I played this game…unlike how some may suggest, not very dirty. I didn’t tell extraneous lies to get to where I am at, and only really backstabbed a select few people…who if I didn’t backstab and vote off, I would not even be sitting here typing to you now. Why shouldn’t you vote for me? If you want to say I played a less than stellar social game that is the only reason why I could see you not voting for me over BJ.

Q2: Yes or No -- within the final three rounds, did you plan on taking Pete to the end? If so, what made you change your mind?

Yes. My heart was set on taking Pete to the end since almost the beginning of the game, and even going into the final round I had my heart set on that. But then it hit me, even before me winning the final immunity challenge, I may not be able to beat Pete. And it became a personal dilemma. Do I follow my heart and take Pete to the end even though people like Sarah and Danielle have preached since you(Matty) left the game that NOBODY could beat Pete in the finals? Or would I take BJ to the end if I won, because I felt like I may possibly have a better shot at beating him? Nothing either of those two said to me after I won immunity changed how I felt about the situation, I already have the paranoia set in that Pete would demolish me in the finals, and I didn’t know how to approach the situation. I didn’t know what to do, up until I actually wrote and cast the vote. Immediately after I felt like I made the wrong move, and I felt like I let a friend down, but I guess only time will tell if that’s true. I just want to point out that BJ has made it an argument of his that his talks with me before the vote swayed how I voted, which couldn’t be farther from the truth. My skepticism of taking Pete to the finals had already been implanted several rounds before thanks to the two lovely ladies that left before him, and I even told him to go to bed and not help me on the final immunity challenge because I didn’t know what I was going to do, and I didn’t want him to have stayed up all night with me just to be blindsided because I had a personal conflict.

Q3: I don't think you spoke with me once over the course of the game -- why not? Is it truly because you didn't want to feel bad about voting me out? Keep in mind that I already think you played the better strategic and social game, so making excuses for a bad social game is kind of pointless.

Heres my logic to not talking to you…at all, and it almost extends to why I hardly talked to Eddie either. Why should I be fake, and pretend to be interested in talking game with people who I know I am going to have to vote out and who I know wont serve my interests in the game. By the time merge came around, I already knew 7 of the 10 people at merge, and I had already planned out a strategy to get me far into the game (Damn Misty screwing everything up) so talking to you never seemed like a smart play. And im glad that I didn’t, because the round you left, had I been friends with you and talked to you, I would have tried to get Eddie idoled out most likely over you, which would been bad news for me because I really think you could have held Vahine together and forced at least a tie that next round – not only forced a tie, but you may have been able to convince Sarah to use the idol on yourself.

Q4: Why would you tell BJ about your F2 deal with Pete?

When I told BJ about my F2 deal with Pete, I was leaning toward taking Pete to the end, and I wanted to let BJ know why. Then I sat down, thought about it, went over my options, thought about how each juror would vote, and ultimately decided to take BJ to the end over Pete…possibly the downfall of my game, but its where my head was at, at that point in time.
I would have not told him about it if I didnt think at that point that I was going to take Pete to the end...because telling him about my F2 would have just made him want to fight harder for me to take him. 

Q5: During the round that I went out, did you have any knowledge of how Pete, Eddie, and I planned on pulling BJ into a four-person alliance and taking the girls out? If not, how about prior to just now? If so, to what extent?

During the round you went out…no I do not think that I knew about any all boys plan to take the girls out. I did however figure out about it a few rounds later…I think either the round that you left, or the round after that one. I knew that Pete was tight with you and Eddie, and BJ was just kind of there…he has a penis, so I mean he had to be involved, but mostly that the core was you Eddie and Pete, and that’s part of the reason why Eddie wasn’t able to vote Pete out, because he felt some sort of loyalty. The boys however didn’t know that me and pete were tight…which makes me feel even shittier about not taking him to the end.

Q6: You people are too nice! I want to see a little chaos. Would you kindly throw a little shade at the person you're sitting beside?

Oh shady shade shade. The only shade I can think of is that BJs real argument to getting here was his social game. He didn’t do well in challenges, and his strategic game hinged on players…like myself, to get him to where he is at. I could have easily decided at f6, f5, or even f4, hell even f3 to cut him off and take him out. Those rounds people were coming to ME for a vote, and not to him, and before those rounds, BJs only identifier was being the nice guy from Tane. Don’t get me wrong, hes still the nice guy from Tane, but I think his strategic game was not very strong.

Q7: You've both read my general analysis of your games. What am I wrong about?

Ill be blunt. You summed up my game pretty well. I think the only thing that I would like to add onto the whole ‘causing drama with trying to get Eddie out point’ is, the reason why I did not do that anymore after I tried to save Stephen was because immediately after it happened, Eddie went radio silent, and even though, if it had worked, it would have been a smart play…it didn’t work, and it hurt my game. It went against my creed of trying to be the underdog that was playing a very behind the scenes game. That move made me up front to everyone on the Vahine tribe…and really early too, so that was a scary thought. So That’s the reason why I simmered that type of gameplay down, because Vahine was onto my antics early on, and I didn’t want to give yall anymore reason that you already had to think I was a potential threat later on.

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

I could have easily decided at f6, f5, or even f4, hell even f3 to cut him off and take him out.

I feel awkward because I just said I was done posting in this thread LOL. But I just wanted to say that the same applies to me. Danielle approached me at 5, and Sarah approached me at 4 (although technically I couldn't have taken you out because of your immunity streak (props for that btw), if you factor challenges out of the equation then I could have).  So I wasn't just sitting there leaving my fate in the hands of others. I just decided that it would not be logical for me to flip at either time--it seems this was a smart choice, as you didn't flip either.

[sierra]

I feel awkward because I just said I was done posting in this thread LOL. But I just wanted to say that the same applies to me. Danielle approached me at 5, and Sarah approached me at 4 (although technically I couldn't have taken you out because of your immunity streak (props for that btw), if you factor challenges out of the equation then I could have). So I wasn't just sitting there leaving my fate in the hands of others. I just decided that it would not be logical for me to flip at either time--it seems this was a smart choice, as you didn't flip either.

But immunity is totally a part of the game, and had you tried to flip, then you would have just screwed yourself over because you would have been taken out the very next round..because i doubt that Danielle and Sarah at that point would have turned on each other, and you would have then made an enemy out of me. Me on the other hand could have flipped, taken you out, and I feel confident that I could have still worked with Pete. F4 would have been my best chance to flip. No idea if Sarah would have entertained the idea of voting you out, but I had the power that round, hence why you made a HUGE speech to everything that happened that round. 

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

Those are all valid points, and yeah, you totally deserve credit for winning immunity. But in my defense:

- You didn't flip at 5 or 6 because you're a smart cookie--had you flipped, it would have alienated Pete and I, and Danielle/Sarah would have won the jury vote in that scenario. Even if you had only flipped for one round, I still would have been safe--Sarah and Danielle kept targeting Pete because I was close with both of them.

- At Final 4, the same applies--I don't believe Sarah would have voted me out, again because of our bond. That's why she only turned to you for help AFTER I told her that I wasn't going to flip, and it's why she voted for Pete again.

My friendships with them helped me out here, as they protected me from elimination. So it's not really fair for you to claim you could have easily picked me off when the only scenario where that would have happened is one where you would have lost the jury vote to the Vahinés.

[sierra]

I would go on to wager that to keep themselves safe Sarah and Danielle would have targeted you instead of risking one of themselves going by keep going after Pete had I been receptive to voting you out.

At final 4 had I approached Sarah with voting you out, she would have had the option to either do it, go to you and try to get your vote (which seemed unlikely after your rant at TC) or get voted out herself. I cant read minds, so its very likely that she may have just fallen on her sword and voted Pete out, but I think the Sarah that I knew who always fought wouldnt have.

I think what Im saying is as fair of an argument as you claiming that you convinced me to take you to the end, when that was far from the case. I still love ya, but this is just how I saw the game, and thats how you saw the game. I dont think either of us can speak for Danielle or Sarah, but we can only go off of our perceptions of what would have happened.

[mattywhitmore]

Lol, it's pretty great to see that both of you guys are arguing in here. Anyway, I'm pretty confident that I've figured out who I'm voting for now, so thanks for the answers! BJ, I was intentionally harsh on you in this thread because I wanted to see how you'd react to that, being the "nice guy" and all. Although you took a lot of what I said in the wrong way, I still like that you took the time to fight for my vote, even when I said I'd most likely be voting for Sierra. Once she arrived, though, Sierra didn't hesitate to argue right back at you, which I also liked. I've gone and read all of y'all's answers and statements in other threads, and I can assure you both that my own personal bias will have a very little (if any) impact on who I vote for. 

So . . . good luck! 

[Bobby Jon Drinkard]

I would go on to wager that to keep themselves safe Sarah and Danielle would have targeted you instead of risking one of themselves going by keep going after Pete had I been receptive to voting you out.

I'm not arguing that they wouldn't have voted me out after Pete, but that scenario never existed because you knew that if you flipped and destroyed the Tanes, you would have lost in the finals.

At final 4 had I approached Sarah with voting you out, she would have had the option to either do it, go to you and try to get your vote (which seemed unlikely after your rant at TC) or get voted out herself. I cant read minds, so its very likely that she may have just fallen on her sword and voted Pete out, but I think the Sarah that I knew who always fought wouldnt have.

But you didn't approach Sarah to get her vote, again for good reason. And Sarahmazing did come to me to try to get my vote before my rant at Tribal Council. But either way, in reality, after I declined she approached you about voting Pete, not me.

I think what Im saying is as fair of an argument as you claiming that you convinced me to take you to the end, when that was far from the case. I still love ya, but this is just how I saw the game, and thats how you saw the game. I dont think either of us can speak for Danielle or Sarah, but we can only go off of our perceptions of what would have happened.

This is all true. Although regarding the Final 3, you were pretty unsure when you approached me and told me about your Final 2 deal, and I put in a lot of effort to try to convince you to bring me instead...not that I jumped into your brain and forced you to write down Pete or anything lol.

BJ, I was intentionally harsh on you in this thread because I wanted to see how you'd react to that, being the "nice guy" and all.



I've gone and read all of y'all's answers and statements in other threads, and I can assure you both that my own personal bias will have a very little (if any) impact on who I vote for.

So . . . good luck!

[sierra]

I don't use tumblr so I can't get cute gifs ;(