Manipulating Is A Fun Game, Amirite?/Confessionals

Day 16
"azuolas"

- NO FREAKING WAY!!! We. 10000% had a Survivor: Gabon gif moment today. After an anticipated reward challenge, we see that NEB is the one to go. Which absolutely blows my mind!! Out of everyone that went to the Ruta 2.0, Neb was the person I thought would flip first. And the fact that there was most likely a revote of some sort even throws a bigger wrench in the plans. Now we are playing folks. Let's ride.

"azuolas"

- At this point, I can fully trust Ryan and Nemo. Ryan and I have always had a good bond and continue to have open dialogue with each other. The other day, Nemo and I had a conversation and I discovered that he was wayyyyy younger than I thought he was. And the way he reacted to my reaction made me believe that he trusts me fully. The only problem is, Nemo can be very set in his ways. He wants to go Ąžuolas strong all the way which is fine. But he won't even think about talking any strategy unless we absolutely have to. Nemo could either be the biggest asset or the biggest anchor in my game. Time to decide which is which.

"azuolas"

- I get SO ANGRY. When I volunteer to sit out then someone - *cough* Piper *cough* DOESN’T EVEN SUBMIT. Ugh I really hate that we are about to bring them to merge and other people are actually trying to play

"ruta"

- Hoo wee, what a round.

Glad that the post-swap jitters and nerves are gone, because now that everything is seemingly out in the open, I am ready to play. I knew if I stuck with the plan to send Evan home, I would’ve ended up drawing rocks with Bubs and Frog. That’s not very fun. Taking out Neb solidified my trust with Ryan (though I’m still slightly hesitant now), Kam, and Frog - especially when I didn’t trust any of them before this vote. I feel like I’m in a flexible position, but I’m still going to keep in mind the relationships I was prioritizing in the original Azuolas tribe. But Bubs didn’t take that very well. And part of me thinks that I could have been more clear when communicating with him about the vote, but I won’t find excuses and I won’t really dwell on what could’ve been. I know he’ll report to Nemo about what happened, so if we lose (and I feel like with a live challenge coming up, we might end up doing just that), we can send him home. It sounds kinda odd that I’m willing to vote two people out that have expressed their loyalty to me, but I think this is a sign to start forming stronger relationships and ensuring that I am more than just willing to work with tribal lines. Don’t get me wrong - while I do like the idea of “Azuolas Strong,” I know I need to stay open-minded. I would prefer if the winner of the season did come from our tribe (and it’d be really sweet if it was me), but I don’t see much potential in all seven of us (or six, if something bad happens) working together - this vote showed that personal agendas will become a priority. Heading into a merge situation, I do want to reconnect with Matty since nobody knows about that alliance. I kinda want to pit Kam and Nemo up against each other since Kam’s made it clear to me that we can’t let Nemo win, and I really saw Nemo taking Neb to the Final Two over me. But I’ll also keep in mind that Evan, Kam, Pendant, and Piper, they’re all underdogs, ready to fight and find any cracks or tension to slip past. So while I do want to trust Evan and Kam, I know that I can only work with them for as long as I can since they have had time to establish loyalty. And right, I guess I should address Neb’s final words. Yeah, part of me wishes that I did have an idol. That’d be funny. But even with the clues (and my one guess on original Azuolas), do you really think I could solve the puzzle? Highly doubtful. A little bummed that my alliance with Nemo and Ryan has been outed, but it was only a matter of time before someone found out. I think on paper, the Isaiah’s Draft alliance worked, but when I realized that most of our conversations were getting dry (and I barely talked to Ryan during the last round), it could only take me so far. But with everything in the open, I think it does push me to start reconsidering my options.

Once again, I’m just thrilled to be here. I’m the happiest egg in Lithuania. I feel like even if things keep changing pretty much every day I’m out here, I am learning so much, and I can’t believe I’m almost halfway through. What an experience 🤠🧡

"ruta"

- Hey y'all! Welcome back to another edition of Evan going insane because he somehow survived another vote! Honestly, I'm proud to own the highest vote count of everyone left in the game (4 votes strong and counting) (also this is excluding the votes negated against Kam)! So, I explained the whole plan for the vote in my last confessional, but now let's talk about the revote. So fucking Keanu screwed me over and put the black vote on me, however I wasn't too nervous heading into the revote. I knew for a fact I had Kam, which meant I only needed one of the other votes to stay alive (the deadlock doesn't affect me or Kam, and there's a 2/3 chance Samb or Bubs go, which was best case scenario at the time). I had a good feeling Frog was locked onto my side, so all he needed to do was convince Samb to avoid rocks. At first, he was hesitant, mostly cuz of the repercussions with OG Azuolas. It was soooooooo frustrating because I pretty much did all of the things he wanted me to do and his attitude to be like "oh wow I'm pleasantly surprised you actually went along with this" like stfu get outta here. But, Frog happily worked his magic enough to flip him and send Neb home 3-1. Honestly, I don't see any reason why it was that smart to keep me in Samb's eyes, but whatever I'm not complaining lmao. This move just put me and Kam in an amazing spot tho! Neb pretty much called out Samb on his way out (and showed his love for me, which means I'll get another break from those fucking black votes!!!), and Bubs made the damage worse by pretty much isolating himself because he's pissed a good ally of his got sent out. This means that if Samb wasn't heavily considering taking out Bubs if we lose next, it's much more likely he would do it this next round. However, Bubs pretty much came up to me and was like "obv I voted you, Neb was just a good friend" and all of that shit. This whole situation from him is screaming DESPERATION to me, which is perfect to utilize for myself. Me and Kam were discussing getting rid of Samb already, and with this dude being very reluctant to even save me in the first place and the opportunity to keep someone in Bubs who'll be loyal to us and be able to connect us to the others from OG Azuolas, who wouldn't try to explore this option? Really the only hurdle is Frog and seeing how tight he is with Samb, because if Samb does potentially have an idol I wouldn't want Frog telling him. We'll cross that bridge if we have to tho. Honestly best case scenario at the moment is keep everything together because I have trust from all angles rn and I won't have to worry about a black vote slightly messing up plans this time :). That's it from me today, hopefully my manipulation continues to work and things go exactly like I want them to >:)

"azuolas"

- Neb voted out? Thats..pretty interesting to be fair,

I wasn’t really that close with him, but still. It’s sad to say Piper probably goes in this tribe, I really like everyone its so hard to vote someone out 😭

Day 17
"azuolas"

- Heading into this immunity challenge, our plan is to throw it to Ruta. Our hope is that we will have at least 1 loyal Azu with us to have a 5-4 majority over Ruta and the possible flipped Azu. Personally, I think Neb flipped and just rocked himself out. But, can’t eliminate all options just yet. It’s a risky move and I hate to throw a challenge. But it’s worth it that we are throwing it to save someone instead of trying to get someone out.

Day 18
"ruta"

- Much love to Bubs. Glad we talked things over before they left the game, and I wish nothing but the best for them.

From a game perspective though, it’s good to know that Bubs can’t run back to Azuolas and tell them that Frog and I flipped on Neb. Had we lost another Immunity Challenge, I think we might have gotten rid of them, but I don’t know about that for sure. We are down to four people right now, and everyone has given me their word - but whether or not that means anything… we’ll see about that. I was supposed to lock in a three-person alliance with Evan and Frog, but that’d be kinda suspicious if we do that now on a tribe of four. You snooze, you lose, Samb! I’m a little nervous about where I stand on New Ruta, but hopefully with the first idol clue I can stop taking random guesses.

Anyways, I’m still surprised to make it to the top ten!? Crazy how fast time flies. I hope that we merge after this Reward Challenge. Original Azuolas is down to just six compared to Ruta’s four - not that big of a gap, so it’s still anybody’s game right now. I do want to reconnect with the remains of Isaiah’s Draft (and do my best to explain to them what happened) as well as try and reach out to Matty again. Things are starting to shape up, and I know that as deals slowly get locked in and as loyalties are being tested, I need to step up my game. Still, I’ve got the urge to merge, and I hope I’m there to celebrate 🤠

"ruta"

- We lost today’s Reward Challenge. That kinda sucks because we need another clue to find the idol, but oh well.

Here’s a fun fact - the last time I played, or at least “tried” to play Codenames was about a few months into lockdown last year. I had one of those ZOOM game nights with my friends, which ended up lasting until around 3 or 4 in the morning… and I fell asleep when we were playing Codenames. I think my team won, so maybe that’s a good omen heading into this Immunity Challenge. It should determine who doesn’t make the theoretical merge and also the theoretical jury, so I hope Ruta is able to pull things off. If we do merge and get rid of another person from Azuolas, then we’ll be relatively even with a 5-4 gap.

If my tribe does go to Tribal Council, I really think it might be me. I think the main criteria for the vote will look at who has the relationships that will be beneficial heading into the merge. I do have the Leaf of Linden, and I really didn’t plan on telling anyone about it, but if worse comes to worse, I might have to us it as either a way to get the votes or to save myself. Either way, I really do t want to go to Tribal Council. Evan and Kam deserve a break!

"azuolas"

- It seems Pendant is coming off too strong to Nemo and Matty. Nemo is put off by his information dumps. It's to the point of over-sharing and Nemo questioning the accuracy of it. Like apparently Pendant said that he was running the show on OG Ruta with Kam and Piper... like why the hell would you tell the other tribe that?? Meanwhile Matty sees Pendant as a strategic and physical threat, and he's definitely pushing Pendant for the vote. Piper has made less effort to communicate by comparison. I actually enjoy chatting with Pendant though and I'd rather him stay over Piper from a social standpoint. But it's already F10 so I guess it's time to start making strategic plays.

Nemo suggested throwing the next immunity to boot Pendant or Piper, and to save Samb in the process, since we're scared a flip happened on the other side. I brought this idea up to Matty as well after the Bubs quit, saying we need to protect our OG numbers, and Matty seems sold on the idea. Nemo made a secondary alliance with myself/Pendant/Piper. I assume this is to cover all our bases in case the throwing fails and we end up merging with them. But if we successfully throw, then we look really snakey for making an alliance and immediately breaking it. Is this just to stop P&P from voting myself and Nemo? Won't whoever survives get sketched out by us at merge lol. Well maybe Nemo will take the heat for it since he created it without even consulting them it seems like. I can just pretend I was forced into it or something. Having said that, I do think it's a good idea for us to scoop up P&P before anyone else tries to. Nemo really is running this game rn. I'm just glad to be his ride or die haha. But yeah, there is concern about OG Azuolas still holding numbers at merge, especially if Frog has flipped on us. Who knows with that Neb vote. I'm confident Samb will stick with myself and Nemo though. And if we feel good about Matty and Anubis, then yeah we have the numbers 5-4 no matter what. It gets trickier if we lose Samb and Frog is there instead, cuz Frog could give OG Ruta the numbers. But if that scenario happens, I guess Nemo & I can stick with Pendant & Piper, then we can make a flip happen at 7 I guess??? Like if Anubis and Matty end up going 9 and 8. I don't know. I'm not used to merging as late as F9 LOL. A lot of this also hinges on Anubis feeling like he's a part of the Azuolas core too. Otherwise, Scattegories was a fun challenge. I enjoyed looking up obscure words for that one.

Also, sad to see Bubs go out. Sending him my best wishes! I know we didn't talk much, but he seemed cool.

Day 19
"azuolas"

- Azoulas: Okay guys let's throw

Azoulas: Wins the challenge.

What. The. Fuck!? I WAS TRYING TO THROW. how... I wasnt gonna throw on the first turn. I kinda wished I made it on r1, even if it meant being quick. Still????????? On another note, we can probably expect merge, and Azoulas are at least 5-4 with 1 person being the swing...Although theres also the black vote to consider. Lets see how this goes..

"azuolas"

- Azoulas: Okay guys let's throw

Azoulas: Wins the challenge.

What. The. Fuck!? I WAS TRYING TO THROW. how... I wasnt gonna throw on the first turn. I kinda wished I made it on r1, even if it meant being quick. Still????????? On another note, we can probably expect merge, and Azoulas are at least 5-4 with 1 person being the swing...Although theres also the black vote to consider. Lets see how this goes..

"ruta"

- If you're allergic to pine trees, I am so sorry for you. It is an absolute travesty that you don't get to enjoy Christmas trees. And I don't know, playing with pinecones, or eating pesto pasta with the pine nuts in them. You should not be allergic to pine. Pine allergies are the absolute worst kind of allergies. And I, for one, love pine trees. Probably my favorite type of tree, come to think of it. Not only do they grow in temperate climates, but I'll have you all know that they grow in tropical climates. In fact, one of my beaches back home is at the edge of a pine forest. Sounds pretty fantastic to me.

(I think Isaac's rave about the jacaranda tree in the original Azuolas chat is still very fresh in my mind 🤠) This has been a pretty hectic week both IRL and in this game. I really miss the Jackbox days and our winning streak at Azuolas. I do. Those feel like ages ago. And since I've been here, I've had to spend hours mastering slither.io, trying to think of beauty products that start with G, finally learning how to type with the home row keys, and having more game conversations than I've probably had all game. I know one of the reasons I applied was to step out of my comfort zone, but new Ruta has shoved me off the theoretical couch I was sitting on at Azuolas and sent me smack dab into the cursed forest. This Tribal Council is one I am not looking forward to. On the bright side, I can put away the idea that there's an idol out there. There are thousands of languages in the world, and there's an infinite number of two-word combinations out there. I don't think any of us would be lucky enough to figure it out. I genuinely like Evan, Frog, and Kam, but I know that one of the four of us are going home... unless there's a top secret Lithuanian comeback twist, but I really doubt that it exists. Let's start with Frog. I'd say Frog was maybe... the fifth or sixth person I was closest to on original Azuolas. Obviously, being stuck on this cursed tribe has brought us closer together, and I think I'd be stupid to campaign to Evan and Kam to get rid of him. Plus, I don't even know if tribal lines still matter, but if one of us goes home, Azuolas ends up blowing an 8-4 lead. I want to lock in a Final Two with Frog, and I was supposed to lock a final three with him and Evan if Bubs didn't get evacuated, but that just goes to show I need to be more assertive. The only downside to keeping Frog is that I seriously suspect that there is a hidden Mallorca alliance between Evan and Frog, and at most, I'd be playing third wheel to them. I dodged a bullet when it came down to the Neb/Nemo final two (and I am wary of a potential Nemo/Ryan final two), so I will need to tread caution over there. On that note, there's Evan. Our conversations have been kinda dry, like, I feel like I should trust him since he flipped on Kam before and he did tell me about the Black Vote when I didn't even need to (and on that note, why didn't I say split the vote between Evan and Kam at the first Tribal Council... I just realized that as I type this confessional down). I promised him an alliance with Frog (and I only picked Frog because I wasn't supposed to out my secret alliance with Bubs), but I don't think we've had good conversations. I didn't slip that we were voting Kam, but I did promise him I had his back. And I really want to work with Kam. She's a phenomenal social player, and I know for a fact that she is gunning for Nemo. I remember sleepily typing in my application form that I wanted to pit the big players against each other, and there was my shot! I wanted to be right in the middle of the Kam and Nemo rivalry! And I do like her a lot, but she is dangerous. I told her that I'm confused, but I kept playing up the fact that we needed to go get Nemo once we merge. But Frog and I both decided that Kam is too strong of a social player to bring to the merge. And I think right now, I'm leaning towards sending her home. Which sucks, but at least I have one less threat to worry about. I really don't want to tell anybody about my Extra Vote. I haven't. I think it would be a good idea to use it now since on paper, we have two Ruta and two Azuolas locked and loaded, but I obviously know that it isn't the case. For all I know, Evan, Frog, and Kam are all voting me out, or that Evan and Frog really do have my back and Kam goes, so I end up wasting the Leaf of Linden. So as of now, I will not use the Leaf of Linden.

This has been a long confessional and I've been up since 5, but I just want to say that with Tribal Council happening on Day 20, regardless of what happens, I am so proud that I officially made it past the halfway mark. So much has happened so far, and I really don't want this ORG experience to end, especially since I promised myself I'd do my best to focus on my academics this semester so I won't play another for a long time. I have been a lot more paranoid than I usually am, but I have also genuinely enjoyed getting to know the ten people I've crossed paths with. And of course, there's the five hosts as well, and I appreciate all of their hard work into making the season as iconic as it is. It just sucks that I ended up on the cursed tribe, but I'm going to do my best to pull through. If my mistake in the last round was not speaking up and lack of communication, in a few hours, I will definitely do my best to ensure that I'm still here.

Day 20
"azuolas"

- How? Literally how can Ruta be so bad? I mean this one they couldn’t have helped really. They could have been trying to throw it idk. But we didn’t even get a chance to flop on the challenge. Everything was set perfectly. Back to the drawing board I reckon.

"azuolas"

- Well, I am getting extremely nervous about the outcome of this tribal. If they tie, that means that Azu strong is still in tact and even if they lose an OG Azu member. But if the vote comes out 3-1. I am afraid we will be down in numbers with 4 strong Azu versus Ruta and Frog or Samb. Ugh every scenario I was ready for except for this one. Guess I’ll just have to suck it up and play Survivor lmaooooo

"ruta"

- Right it feels like a while since I done one of these so here we go.

I opted to vote against Neb on the revote since he isn't the best at challenges (sorry) and I'd reconciled with Kam about the initial vote. After Neb was gone, Bubs was understandably ticked off so me and Samb tried to calm him down. With this predicament, it made bubs an easy vote if we lost again. BUT, bubs was then evacuated from the game. However, this is Survivor and you always gotta adapt. After another loss for Ruta (Seriously this is the most cursed tribe I've ever seen let alone be on) ugh, I'm thinking it might be better for my game to let go of Samb here. If i vote against Kam/Evan but Samb still goes home because of the black vote then that makes me look really dodgy heading into a merge. But by voting out Samb, it should, fingers crossed, put me in Kam and Evan's good books whilst also meaning that Azuolas originals will only have my POV from the last 3 rounds and why we went from 8 to 5 in that period of time.

At this point, all i can really do is hope this is either a 3-1-1 or 4-1 (black vote included) against Samb otherwise my game is really over ):

"ruta"

- https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/862188229171609621/870705582062059520/20210712_171235.png

MMMHHGHHGHGHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMHGHHHLLLLMMMMMMMGGGGLGLGLLGLGLGMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFLLMMMMMMMSSSKSKMLFMMMMMMMMMMGAGAGAGGALLLUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMFKFKMFMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMLLMMAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEGRGRGGRGRMMM I can't believe it. I'm at a loss for words. I don't know where to begin, but I think things are best expressed with a 🤠🧡 I set an alarm on my phone to go off every four hours after finding out that I got an idol clue for being the spymaster. My first guess was Taislius Auguminis, which is a Lithuanian book about botany. And then I scanned the Wikipedia page for Latin phrases and got Nihil Novi (Nothing New) which has something to do with the history of Poland and Lithuania? And then I tried Clavis Aurea (Golden Key)... which I think had to do with finding hidden meanings? I really didn't think I could get it. My next guess was going to be either Hidden Idol or Immunity Idol in Latin, but that seemed kinda silly. I tried to look at the announcements channel or tree mail to see if there's any phrase that could be translated to Latin. And then at the buff reveal, I remembered that Ruta means rue and it was a symbol of purity... and then I realized that scientific names are Latin! And rue has a scientific name! RUTA graveolens! Thank goodness I'm the only one that knew our idol was in Latin. It took me almost two hours to solve the puzzle. That's practically double the time it took me to solve the Ruta Meilutyte one. Granted, I've been up since 4 am, but I swear, if I have to do another puzzle challenge, it's probably going to take me three hours to solve a 4x4 slide puzzle, or like, a 16-piece jigsaw. But I did it! It just sucked because I had to celebrate quietly since everybody else is still asleep. I said in my application that I am keeping the idol to myself and that it'd be funny if I pulled it out and everybody just went :0 And tonight just might be the night. And while I was solving the puzzle, Frog messaged me and told me that Evan and Kam were voting for me. Okay, even without finding the idol, I'd feel at peace with that decision. I did lose the challenge for us, and I'll admit that I haven't been as social or as active lately, and honestly, I am still so grateful to make it to the top ten and to reach the halfway point, but I believe Frog. Frog obviously doesn't want me to Black Vote him if I go, so him stabbing me in the front and not the back by giving me a head's up is a smart move. So because of that, I'm not voting Frog. Besides, I think I rambled last time that I need to keep Frog so that we don't end up with a 5-4 disadvantage numerically. I then checked in with Kam, who gave me a pretty generic "I don't know what's going on!" conversation. She is a smart player. There's a reason why she came back for Warrior's Revenge and made it to the Final Four. I don't know that reason because I don't keep up with main ORG, but yes. I think it'd be poetic justice to send Kam home with the same idol she used to make a fool of all of us, but I am still trying to keep the potential Kam/Nemo rivalry in the back of my mind. If I choose to save her, I think I could cement something with her, but the way we've been fake nice to each other makes me wary if I can really trust her down the line. I also checked in with Evan who told me we're still voting Kam out. I haven't given Evan any reasons to lie to me, so I don't really know if I can trust him... but then he switched topics and asked me if I was doing anything fun today. Yes, because I should definitely enjoy what could be my last day here. Still, I want to trust Evan, and I really think keeping him would give me options to work with down the line... but I think after talking with my three tribemates (that sounds really sad to say out loud), I will be deviating from the plan and sending Evan home.

Oh, and after losing the challenge yesterday, I visited that favorite beach with the pine trees I mentioned. It was fantastic. I got to think about this experience, and I am still so grateful to be a part of the lucky 16 that lived here in Lithuania.

"ruta"

- It’s only 11 am, and I am still buzzing. I am tired. I am exhausted. But to make it through tonight, especially knowing it was a unanimous vote… was pretty insane.

I switched my vote 45 minutes before Tribal Council because I realized keeping Kam was a lot more dangerous for my game. While I feel like I can’t converse with either Evan or Kam, it was a lot harder for me to read Kam. I was also afraid in the slim, slim, slim microchance that Frog actually voted to save me that I’d accidentally end up tying the vote. Playing an idol… was exhilarating. I really am so grateful for the head’s up. But on her way out, Kam did raise a good point. I’ve been playing a lot more cowardly than I realized. She’s not wrong: I was absolutely terrified of every person on new Ruta. I messed up the Neb vote and then I lost us the spyfall challenge, but what matters now is that hopefully I can say that I have Frog with me, and I’ll work on keeping Evan around as well.

The jury phase should start in the next round. I know I’ll be heading into my next Tribal Cojncil with a Black Vote on my back, so if a merge is around the corner, I know I’ll need to win immunity. I feel like my ramblings aren’t making any sense anymore, but wow. It’s been a long and tiring seven hours. I should probably get some rest.

"azuolas"

- Nemo first suggested that we ought to throw the next challenge in order to save Samb, and while I'm always hesitant to throw because things can go always go awry, it does seem like Nemo has positioned us both at the middle of Azuolas 2.0. So I guess I'm relatively safe if we do go to Tribal.

I brought up the idea of throwing to Matty, and while he was hesitant at first, he eventually agreed it was a good idea (with the pretense of saving Samb and Frog). So the plan was brought into the Oak Squad alliance chat to ensure Anubis wasn't left out on the plan. And luckily Anubis was already thinking about throwing, so it all kind of worked out. That is until the challenge happened and Samb completely messed up on the second round. Oof. Now we're panicking about losing Samb before merge and it messing up the numbers for OG Azuolas. Nemo let me in a few secrets – he knows Piper and Samb from before the season. He suspects Evan and Frog have a similar bond. And he found the Azuolas Idol. Oh, and he intends on taking myself and Samb to F3. These are all good signs that Nemo trusts me quite a bit. He's looking more and more like an obvious winner contender at this point too, though. But that probably makes Nemo a good shield. I can see him getting targeted in the mid-merge. Not much else to really report here. Pendant and Piper are acting the same as before lol.

Trust ranking: Nemo > Matty > Anubis > Pendant > Piper