- Sat Jan 30, 2021 12:31:35 pm
#55989
1. First Impressions - we all have 'em. Who has stood out to you in a good way and in a bad way from the first night of socializing?
From the first night and yesterday, I think there are some individuals who have stood out as being weak socially (Laura, Reynold) or odd (Brandon). I can't tell if Brandon's God-schtick is real or not. If it's real, God Bless (as he would say); if it's not real, big yikes.
From the first night and yesterday, there are some individuals who I've really enjoyed. Michael is my number one right now. We hit it off instantly and I enjoy talking game with him. I'm not sure if I'm being naive but I won't lash out against him until he does so first. We've talked over the possibility of forming some sort of subgroup (particularly with the clue he found under Jeff Probst's username), but it's hard to distinguish between different people. Michael said he feels the best about Alexis, and I think looping in Sherri and Shamar would also be good. But it feels a bit early and I don't want to freak anyone out by being too aggressive. I also kind of feel like Michael is no nonsense and I'm a bit worried he's gonna get annoyed with me being social but we'll see.
I'm doing a rundown of the rest of my tribe here in order of rank (best impression to worst) just to help clarify my thoughts.
Sherri: I really enjoy Sherri and I think she's someone who would be fun to work with moving forward. She's a great conservationalist and perceptive. I think she'll have a lot of options but hopefully we've connected enough that I'm a top priority for her. I can see Sherri having made good connections with Shamar, Alexis, and Elizabeth right now but that's a hunch more than anything based on times people are online in green and her conversation skills.
Shamar: I like Shamar and can see the potential. He feels a little naive to me. I worry that someone like Shamar would say the wrong thing to the wrong person and not realize it. But I'm still continuing to develop a relationship with him so we'll see.
Erik: I enjoyed my first night conversation with Erik after the initial awkward hiccups. He's eccentric and kind of cool and I enjoy that I can differentiate him from other people on the tribe.
Alexis: I really enjoy Alexis but I think everyone does too. The few people I've asked about tribe impressions all have her the highest. I don't want to compete with Alexis or someone like Sherri for the social UTR swing vote role so I'm going to have to continue to think of ways to differentiate myself and carve a different path.
Hope: I think Hope is someone I could potentially make gains with if I make it far enough to stick around for awhile and she does too. She's on and off a bunch but she remembers aspects of our previous conversations which I think is important.
Elizabeth: I get weird vibes from her. It feels like she's gotten a second (third?) lease on life by being in this group relative to the alumni group (lmao at the dynamics that group must be working thru right now). I think a lot of people are relying on her for information. I also thought it was kind of weird she told me earlier in the day yesterday that she and Allie talked and Allie randomized the coins for this challenge, but then in the group chat last night to Laura Elizabeth said she herself randomly picked people for each option? Those kind of slip ups are head scratching, but maybe I'm reading too much into it.
Allie: I trust her the least. I think she's really smart and will have a lot of options. I also didn't like how she went around the first night asking everyone what they thought of the tribe but then never followed up about her own impressions that much. I also think the fact that she and Elizabeth so quickly and efficiently came up with a list is a little eyebrow raising. For example, I was online yesterday during the times they were in the morning when the challenge was posted and neither asked me about the lists.
2. Opening Twist - were there any intros from the other tribes' dossier that stood out to you? And do you have any plans for your newly-minted tribe member?
The first four hours of the game were incredible but flew by quickly. I'm gonna have to find a way to sustain myself better. I didn't read the dossiers that closely. The #4 one stood out as being someone a bit over the top. Otherwise they were mostly benign and vanilla to me. I don't have any plans for Elizabeth besides watching her and thinking about ways to strike her and her idol down when I can.
3. StrandedCoin - this will be the second season of Stranded to feature StrandedCoin! Have you been thinking about how you might use it to your advantage? Has it been discussed amongst your tribemates?
I talked a bit with Michael about the coins, and Elizabeth mentioned that in past seasons coins could be used in challenges for advantages or disadvantages. I also tried 'Reply Quote' on a few posts from hosts to see if any image links were hidden for extra coins (based on the intro post description about walks on the beach and who knows what you'll find). I know this is an old school player mistake, but I'm almost of the mindset that it's better not to be too aggressive about twists or items. I don't really want to coast like Elizabeth by having an item, I want to work for it. I'd rather put in effort in conversations so that I don't necessarily need an item to survive. HOWEVER, I understand this is a polarizing opinion and I could be thinking myopically here.
4. What are your thoughts on surviving?
One early thought I have about surviving is to not get paranoid. Even if subgroups have started to form the game isn't gonna be over for me because of it. Could be a naive thought but who knows. There are a lot of things that could happen. So being dynamic enough and staying positive enough could go a long way. Another early thought I have is about not coming off as disingenuous. I feel like I have the potential to be labeled as fake or as someone who will have options, so I want to make sure I'm connecting with people in the most authentic way as possible.
