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Recruitment

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As part of the game, the Traitors can Recruit (the term Seduce is sometimes used in other versions) a Faithful to their cause, usually once they have lost a member. The Faithful will usually be given the option to accept or reject the offer, except when this is a Blackmail or Ultimatum.

A list of recruitments can be found here.

Mechanics[]

On a night where Recruitment is permitted, the Traitors typically have the option to either Recruit or Murder. In some cases, if the Faithful declines the offer, the Traitors can choose to Murder instead; in others (including the British, Dutch and American versions), a failed Recruitment results in a wasted night instead.

When a Recruitment occurs, practice differs as to whether the presenter specifies that it has taken place, or if they leave it to the Faithfuls to guess.

When only one Traitor remains, the sole Traitor will either issue a Blackmail or an Ultimatum, depending on the version.

Blackmail[]

In a Blackmail, which first took place in the first Norwegian season, the Traitor will simply force a Faithful of their choice over as a Traitor, without giving them an option to decline.

Ultimatum[]

First introduced in the first British series, a Faithful does have the option to decline being forced over as a Traitor - however, this will lead to them immediately being Murdered and leaving the game. For gameplay reasons, the vast majority of contestants usually accept being forced over as a Traitor and still having a chance, rather than exiting the game permanently.

Strategy[]

When to Recruit[]

In earlier editions of the game, Recruitment was a popular move as soon as the first Traitor from the group was Banished, as a means of replenishing the group's strength in the game and maintaining a numerical advantage. Increasingly, however, the meta has shifted to not Recruiting unless absolutely necessary, for various reasons:

  • The remaining Traitors are not under suspicion, and Recruitment would reset the playing field and make everyone become suspicious again.
  • The remaining Traitors find it a higher priority to Murder and eliminate an immediate threat, instead of wasting a night on Recruitment.
  • The remaining Traitors are afraid that the Recruited Traitor might betray them, especially if it becomes known to the recruit that the current Traitors openly betrayed the Banished Traitor(s) before.

Therefore, the standard practice has gone from Recruiting as soon as a gap is present among the Traitors, to maintaining more flexibility and prioritising Murders, or even avoiding it unless forced to.

Who to Recruit[]

There are a few general archetypes of Faithfuls that the Traitors might choose to Recruit, including:

  • The Unsuspected: Someone who is either on the quiet side and not suspected by most of the other contestants, or is in such a vocal leadership position that people think is a clear Faithful. The risk for this is that the recruit's behaviour changes enough that others become suspicious of them.
  • The Gamer: A Faithful with strong strategic, rhetorical and/or social skills who would be a useful asset to the Traitors. The downside for this is if the Recruit decides to turn on the Original Traitors, and can succeed at doing so because of their strength. Hence, Traitors often choose to simply Murder this archetype instead.
  • The Loved One: Especially prevalent in celebrity editions where a pair of contestants have had a strong pre-existing relationship before the game, Traitors might choose to recruit someone they know will never betray them and who they know they can work with. However, the problem for this - especially when said relationships are public knowledge - is that if one member of the pair is suspected, the other will naturally be suspected or targeted as well.
  • The Scapegoat: A weak Faithful and/or one that already has a lot of suspicion on them, Recruited for the purpose of being sacrificed within the next few rounds. This is a tactic with very mixed results as many scapegoats know why they have been Recruited, and will do whatever they can to sabotage the other Traitors - frequently with success.

Traitors will often avoid Recruiting Faithfuls they already have a very close relationship with, as said Faithfuls can influence the group in their favour without being a Traitor themselves.

Trivia[]

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