Congrats on making the merge

What's the plan now?

Who do you like so far in your new tribe?

Looking forward to more massive Helen PMs, I hope.

These people have a goodnight thread? There are clearly some players here besides myself familiar with this style of game.

Well done on making the merge Brian!

A goodnight thread signals... 'competence'? Do you adjust your game because of that?

Tell me about the new people you meet as the weekend goes on.

I think I'm going to be the first target because Rob wouldn't let it be Helen.

I'm going to enjoy this weekend because it's my last before I go back to school, but I'll still talk to people more as Sunday approaches.

Random thoughts while I'm checking in for 3 minutes.

Now that we're merged, the end-game scenarios in this game differ significantly from what original Helios would have looked like if we were on the verge of being picked off. Helen was nervous and offered me a logical justification as to why I should bring her to the final two of our tribe while we were over there. Now, those reasons no longer apply as far as reasons why I should take her to the final two in the game. So even though I would have still considered taking her to the final two out of loyalty (because I am often loyal to an original alliance), she won't believe that I will and will try to take me out sooner, fearing that I won't take her there.

I need to prevent this from happening. Honestly, as much as I love them as players, Rob and Helen need to be taken out of the game at the first safe opportunity. However right now there is not a clear path to the end, and it may not be until we see who wins the challenge on Sunday to even decide what route we take based on the immunity winner deciding a tiebreaker and the high likelihood of a tie.

There's so much to think about.

Another reason why Helen needs to go: my fate is in her hands concerning her negotiations with Rob. This is so frustrating; I want to talk to him myself. I'm capable of the same kind of negotiation in significantly shorter messages. But now I need to wait to see what she says so that I can support it, and by the time I finish reading one of her messages about their discussions, they're already having new discussions. So, I'm like considered a second to Helen. And that means that people will want to break us up. Even though that in some regards makes her my "shield," I'm fearing that I'm actually going to be considered her shield based on how this is working out and her growing connection with Rob, and quite possibly the Asterian target tomorrow if things don't go Rob's way.

And if it's 5-5 and we don't control the tiebreaker, I don't think Ted will risk giving up his idol unfortunately.

UGH. This is horrible. I was out all day today, and I get some PMs with updates about Penny/Erin orchestrating a plan that fundamentally destroys what Helen and I have been working towards. I hate it because my fate isn't in my own hands. The game has turned into a complicated mess, and I predict I'll go home tomorrow as a result because I've been away this weekend and haven't talked to many people at all.

What's the Penny/Erin plan, and what exactly are you & Helen working towards?

I've been INSANELY BUSY and didn't even sleep last night. I need a nap, but I don't even know if I'd wake up for the challenge. And then if I got voted out, I wouldn't feel a large sense of loss because I didn't do anything post-merge to even deserve to stay. So I'm ready to work today, and then if I get voted out, I'll feel real emotions and it'll hurt --- which I oddly enough prefer over not feeling anything.

The plan that Helen and I have been working towards is to get Rob to think that it's me, him, Helen, and Christy as a final 4 sub-alliance with a third member of Helios and Joanna in a 6-person majority alliance to take control of the game here. Would I want to be loyal to that? Not really! I'm still with Helios for now. But we'd maybe learn some information as far as who is being targeted that could benefit us as far as placing our target, recruiting Ted, getting Ted's idol to work in our favor.

Erin and Penny are apparently recruiting Daniel and Joanna pretending that they fear that the two of us are too close and are now loyal to Rob rather than themselves. So, they are working towards blindsiding Rob. The issue --- Joanna is in BOTH alliances. That's why this is a mess because I don't even know what story to hold while talking to different people and it makes it very, very dangerous to talk strategy with anyone. So Helen has alerted Rob that Penny's targeting him in order to try to maintain a degree of trust with him.

If I play this right, I can utilize my position here because Helen is confiding a lot in me about her plans, but I'm not considered 'Helen' in terms of being such a threat. So I want to turn her into my shield. And I'll try to play the, "I'm on your side with everyone" bit along with Helen, Penny, and Erin. I really do get the feeling Helios is going to genuinely split because Helen is so furious at Penny and Erin, Erin legit wants Helen out, and no one even knows where Ted is standing. Asteria's in position to capitalize, but I'll do what I can to keep Helios together and make everyone think I'm on their side. That's my strategy. I don't know WHAT is going to happen in this vote, but it's going to be one of the most interesting in Stranded history.

How is tonight shaping up?

Who do you believe is voting for who?