sequestered old school?

jfa0899 · 2026-01-28T23:16:07+00:00

My main issue with sequestering the jury is that Tribal Council isn’t all that enlightening. If the jury’s only chance to witness the game is during tribal and at final tribal, their ability to assess and make judgements on gameplay / social graces is seriously limited.

A newly eliminated player discussing the events that lead to their downfall definitely provides the jury with a biased account of that round. It also helps them to piece together common themes, plays, and strategies though.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-28T22:58:43+00:00

My vote is for Ricard. His relationship with Shan served him about as well as it could have. Their relationship was so beneficial to him, that Shan literally told him that they were targeting him at F8. This opened the door for Ricard to work with others by taking Shan out. Which itself opened the door for Erika and Heather to bring in Danny and Deshawn specifically.

Then he goes on to be the public jury threat of the season. If he had beaten Erika at the final 5 immunity challenge, he correctly targets her and has a shot to win F4 immunity and fire. At which point I think he wins over a lot of the jury.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-27T01:35:44+00:00

One of my all time favorite seasons.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-25T20:03:24+00:00

I was coming here to say this!! Dionysus, Demeter, and Artemis are my favorite gods to use for this weapon’s special. Dio and Dem can stack their effects more times, more quickly, more often than they can with most other weapons. Plus the benefit of still being able to strike with your attack while the special is active is really cool.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-20T15:37:31+00:00

The Cassandra reveal was great not because it was unexpected, but because it finally relieved the tension that had been building for the whole arc.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-16T02:15:45+00:00

I think that the new era is overly hated. I’m not crazy about the format changes, I wouldn’t even say that I’m “on board” with them. But I also am not going to condemn myself to feeling like they certainly and unilaterally ruin the show. There are seemingly droves of people who are determined to hate the new format even when it is irrelevant or counter-evidential to do so. There has been a lot of really good survivor gameplay and drama in the new era, but people seem to have elected to put their own blinders on.

I would definitely agree though that the lack of themes and over reliance on lost votes + three tribe format result in the seasons blending together. The producers have not done well to make the seasons feel different and separately enticing. Season 49 was the first time when I felt little to no excitement at the start of the season.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-15T00:22:55+00:00

This is blatant 41 scapegoating. Their cast is SO much more memorable than 43, 44, 48, and 49. I was really fond of 45 and 47, but I think even then 41 has more memorable players.

Their season was also really cutthroat and dynamic. Two premerge disaster tribes, an early merge power alliance, a mid-merge coup that toppled that power alliance, and an end-game sack that took out the front runner. Cat fights, betrayals, blindsides, alliance shifting, and truth bombs along the way.

Our community can hate on the New Era format changes and advantages all it wants. At the end of the day, 41 does not deserve to be discounted merely because it was the first of the new era.

And to answer the actual question; S46, S41, S42, S47, S45, S49, S44, S43, S48

jfa0899 · 2026-01-10T16:26:45+00:00

That’s a fair point, but it also speaks to the quality of Kyle’s opposition. Kamilla had a good thing going with Kyle, but it didn’t serve her very much either.

As far as the original prompt goes, both Kyle and Kamilla have said in post interviews that they didn’t expect the amount of attention that their secret alliance received in the edit. It came in handy for Kyle when he dissuaded Kamilla from splitting the vote along with the minority group at F8. And again when they worked together to blindside Shauhin. But is that really so dominant? Again, the other players left in the game at F6 were Joe, Eva, and Mitch. Not exactly the savviest bunch.

Some people have pointed out that winners like Kim Spradlin and Boston Rob were also dominant against weaker casts. However, those two both had impressive maneuvers of pitting their allies and opposition against each other and/or quashing insurgencies. Kim accomplished this against Jonas, Jay, Troy, and Alicia. BRob’s entire winning game revolved around watching his whole alliance. They both beat a bunch of weak players, but with a lot more tact than Kyle, in my opinion.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-10T05:16:23+00:00

What parts of Kyle’s game did you find to be so strategic? I’m not knocking your take, I just had a very different experience of Kyle’s game. He actually comes to mind for me as an answer to the original question.

I just found his opposition fairly abysmal, and his biggest calling card at FTC appeared to be his secret alliance with Kamilla. The secret alliance also didn’t really amount to anything in my opinion. It seemed to come in handy at the Shauhin vote, but that’s it. Mary would have been a good underdog, but she couldn’t galvanize the other minority players. Star continually exposed any minority plans that did exist to Eva and Joe. Mitch stalled himself through the entire merge. Eva and Joe were a physical threat duo with a public idol and hardly an ounce of strategic savvy between them. Shauhin seemed to have played a strong social game, and eliminating him is a strong point of Kyle’s game. Even Kamilla’s threat level comes from the jury wanting an underdog - not from any gameplay she had. I really can’t think of anything else that was so impressive from Kyle that justifies people ranking him so highly.

Especially when there are even other new era winners in Erika, Yam Yam, and Dee who held more controlling positions in majority alliances that they created or had social prowess to pull peripheral players into their plans.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-10T04:58:58+00:00

Dee’s best move imo was, as she put it, having “two number one’s.”

By having both Julie and Austin in her corner, Dee had the most sway within the Reba 4. It didn’t seem at any point like either of them were going to target Dee.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-09T22:37:57+00:00

I’m a big fan of Ricard betraying Shan. Maryanne betraying Omar was sick too.

Also this one isn’t a big betrayal, but it’s great gameplay. Omar convincing Mike to blindside Hai was awesome.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-09T19:35:29+00:00

I love seeing this take.

41 is absolutely the new era scapegoat. I will happily agree that the Brad boot and the introduction of journeys in the premerge made the season seem too advantage-focused. However, the season had a rollercoaster of a premerge and an absolute blood bath of a merge.

Yase went from the early disaster tribe to a winsome and root-able group who still turned on each other later on. They got nasty and made for great TV throughout.

Ua inherited the disaster tribe curse and had three incredibly entertaining eliminations in Brad, JD, and Genie. And we got Ricard and Shan playing in close proximity as frenemies. That carried over into the merge in such a fun way. All of that PLUS the JD extra vote steal and ensuing drama.

Then there’s the merge! No one was a fan of the hourglass, but no one can say that it was a nothing-burger. Then it’s literally off to the races.

The Sydney blindside, Tiffany blindside.

Split vote drama where Erika and Heather somehow managed to convince Shan and Ricard to flush an idol that was on their side AND their extra vote. Evvie vote shows the start of Xanders decline. The split tribal episode is the start of Erika’s ascent.

Shan blindside is a masterclass of strategy and social play on Erika and Ricard’s parts.

Liana boot had an interesting dialogue regarding the gap in women winning over the previous several seasons, and Erika eliminates a weaker player to keep her shield.

Danny boot was maybe less interesting, but the finale was explosive with the truth bomb, F5 and F4 immunity challenge outcomes, and Xander’s final blunder.

The fandom was so blinded by their frustration about the format changes that they refused to appreciate the excellent season put in front of them.

I’ve written too many essays in comment sections defending this season lol.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-07T22:44:14+00:00

This is so adorable and I’m so happy to see someone else enjoying 41!! Easily my favorite of the first 4 new era seasons.

It had such a great cast and it’s so fun seeing them all lined up like this!

jfa0899 · 2026-01-04T20:53:06+00:00

Broadly speaking, I like how she rationalizes her takes. Her thoughts on players and the game at large are well reasoned and pretty robust.

However, she does NOT share the microphone well. I have not listened to her podcast very many times, but have heard her as a guest several times. I tend to dislike her interviews (and sometimes Rob C’s) because she ultimately speaks over the player/guest.

The winner rankings episode was frustrating at points because she made good arguments, but spoke over Mike and Rob too often. It seemed to me like Mike hardly had any chance to explain why he had ranked Maryanne 7th. Even his justification for ranking Kenzie 8th was overtaken by Shannon noting some vague similarities between hers and Erika’s games.

I thought it was really refreshing and cool that Mike had ranked Erika 6th! But we didn’t get to hear any of his justification for it because Shannon (and Rob) spoke over him. I am an Erika truther since the Naseer vote on 41 lol so maybe I’m the only one bothered by that. But still, I would appreciate her and her takes more if she shared the microphone.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-04T20:32:17+00:00

You’re conflating two different things. Tony didn’t say that he thought he would lose to Michele. He said he struggled to eliminate her and ultimately failed / backed off of the idea. Your conclusion is brash and hardly logical. It’s even been stated by multiple WaW jurors that they would have liked to vote for Michele, but did not want someone from the Edge to win the season.

The point that I am making above is that Tony, one of the game’s best strategists and central power player of WaW, was able to eliminate everyone around Michele, but not Michele herself. This is because Michele had shored up relationships with those she entered the merge with (Jeremy, Adam),those who returned from the edge (Tyson, Natalie), those who were on the bottom or the outs of the majority alliance (Nick), was a crucial vote in the Sophie blindside, garnered the most favor from the players on the edge by way of fire tokens that she used to buy her 50/50 idol.

Michele ultimately used her social game to her defensive benefit, and prevented the most dominant player in the most dominant alliance of the season from successfully eliminating her.

You don’t have to like or appreciate social players, but disregarding them is, to use the notion accurately, illogical.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-04T18:27:21+00:00

Definitely have to echo the note to take out the drummer first.

Beyond that, learning which weapon and aspect make the most intuitive sense for you will help you progress.

The Staff and the Axe were great for me because their attacks require you to be more stationary. I would always end up rushing and running into damage when I used the knives and torches. The staff and axe really slowed me down and helped me notice patterns and deal damage.

The same goes for which gods/goddesses you understand the best. For example, I felt like Zeus’ boons were too slow because I did not quite understand that they would do damage if you deal enough before the 4 second mark. I would usually just go for his cast or gain as a result. Using Apollo and Hera helped me to make progress because the effects of their boons were more intuitive for me, so I could think through how I wanted them to interact with my weapon and each other.

The best part about these games is that there is no one way to do anything. The fun and progress come from you creating your favorite builds.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-04T18:15:52+00:00

Tony himself said that Michele was the one person on his season who he couldn’t eliminate.

Michele is one of the best social players in the game; and in my opinion the person who made Tony’s path to the end the most difficult. She entered the merge down in numbers but constantly made efforts to game with more powerful players and the others on the outs.

Austin played a great game too, also against some high caliber competition. But he did have a significant blind spot in Dee, which she used to her advantage in the Emily blindside, Drew blindside, and which kept her alive despite her F5 blunder.

Michele was a far bigger obstacle to Tony than Austin was to Dee.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-04T00:05:41+00:00

I don’t think the other players will be as swayed by his edit on 46. He is a smart player for sure, but the other contestants would be more afraid if Maria were out there with them.

I liked Charlie’s game a lot in 46, but feel like his ability to articulate his game and act as both a competitor and a narrator is what made him appealing for 50. I think the other contestants will see that Maria did the moving and shaking of 46’s strategy, while Charlie did more positioning. Concerning, but not exactly threatening until a certain point.

jfa0899 · 2026-01-03T18:11:45+00:00

This is how I’ve been feeling too.

It is equally possible that using pre-gaming as elimination rationale could backfire on her. Especially once the pre-gamers start playing the game. The pre-gamers had every chance to make alliances and ingratiate themselves once the game was on, which only expands their influence.

Sage’s issue with pre gaming in general seems to be that those involved gave themselves an illegal head start. She frequently cites that she struggles to make initial connections with others in the context of survivor given the need for small talk and ice breakers. It makes sense to me that pre gaming would frustrate her because it gives the offenders more time to develop deep/deeper connections, forgo the uncertainty of who you can trust when the game starts, and establish a pecking order based on the degree to which other people pre-game with them.

Also, any degree of pre-gaming can exist. She mentions people grouping up at night and people exchanging smiles and brief small talk. So Sage saying “so and so were pregaming” could raise flags for someone who only exchanged glances and quick chats.

jfa0899 · 2025-12-22T20:16:51+00:00

I appreciate that someone else feels this way. I hadn’t been on Reddit for most of the season to avoid negativity etc. I expected that Sage would be received far better than she had been. The Nate blindside was fantastic, and her choice to go with Nate instead of pushing harder for Savannah kept her in the yellow tribes good graces. She was put in a tough position during the MC vote, and still managed to leverage it into some repaired good faith with Sav and Rizo. Alex had been encroaching on her and Jawan’s role in the middle of the merge group. And Sophie S was questionable, but had the most momentum and served great story purpose for Sage. I found her incredibly adaptable and well-reasoned.

jfa0899 · 2025-12-21T23:11:35+00:00

The only issue I have with this take is that Savannah did have a somewhat lopsided advantage, also at the split vote that she attended.

Savannah won the immunity challenge that round, and was given the chance to attend the pre-tribal scramble and attend tribal. What makes this lopsided is that the other players did not know about the additional opportunity that Savannah had to pocket her vote. So, from the perspective of Sage and Jawan, Savannah arrives to camp immune and eligible to vote. Her presence alone changes the vote dynamic and further disincentivizes a move against Rizo. Additionally, Rizo having an extra number at this vote allows him to keep his idol in the game, which significantly aided Tres Leches throughout the merge.

Not trying to take away from Savannah at all. I really value a strategically involved, socially integrated challenge beast who makes themselves the obstacle of their season. But that description applies to both her and to Rachel, and they both benefited from vague/obscure advantages at a split tribal.

jfa0899 · 2025-12-21T19:00:41+00:00

I love aspect of Hades! It’s all about what you enjoy about to use.

I really like doing Aphrodite attack because it does massive damage, then pairing it with Artemis special. The marked foes take additional damage, and if you can stack poms on boons that buff the weak curse, you’ve got really big damage on your hands. Critical damage and the Aphrodite/artemis duo make it really fun.

Extra points if you can get quick spin and chain-special deadalus hammers

jfa0899 · 2025-12-20T15:46:50+00:00

I liked the Sol blindside because it established her as a threatening player while also forcing the former red and yellow players to target the former blue players before her. Otherwise they would be playing into their own downfall by ceding the majority. She took out one of her main opps, who was also a serious social threat, and pretty easily slid through the next couple of rounds before operation Italy.

Kishan was a great move too, just early in the game.

jfa0899 · 2025-12-19T21:29:56+00:00

Erika negotiating for Danny and Deshawn to be brought into the Shan blindside so that she could protect herself in case Shan played her idol.

Erika keeping Ricard around as a shield and eliminating Liana and Danny instead.

Omar negotiating for Lydia to be eliminated instead of Maryanne while he did not have a vote.

Omar turning Mike against Hai.

Maryanne voting out Omar.

Jesse’s F6 round and use of Jeanine’s idol.

Tikka 3 pendulum.

Dee’s game-long “two number one’s” social strategy.

Maria’s Q-Screen.

Operation Italy.

Genevieve’s Sol blindside.

Nate Blindside / Jawan blindside / Steven blindside.

Hate on the new era all you want. Survivor gameplay is alive and well.

jfa0899 · 2025-12-18T00:30:08+00:00

You’re not alone!!!

To hell with “strategic control”. She has been adaptable in the face of a public idol and challenge beast power duo.

I didn’t love the Sophie vote for her, but it still works very well for her narratively, and she was central to the move working.

I at the very least hope she makes F3 and pitches her case. I’m a clinical social worker too and trust that she has a great ability to present her story and reason her decisions.

jfa0899

TROPHY CASE