Beggar

Information

Type	Traveller
Artist	Aidan Roberts

"Alms for the poor, good Sir? Spare a coin, Madam? Thank you. God bless! You're a right kind soul and no mistake! I'll have some swanky nosh tonight, I will!"

Appears in

Cult of the Clocktower Episode by Andrew Nathenson

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Summary

"You must use a vote token to vote. If a dead player gives you theirs, you learn their alignment. You are sober and healthy."

The Beggar can not vote unless someone gives them a token to use, but they learn if the player that does so is good or evil.

• The Beggar cannot raise their hand to vote at all unless they have a vote token.
• When they do vote, they lose one vote token. If they have more than one, they may only use one at a time.
• Only a dead player may give their vote token to the Beggar, after which that dead player cannot vote. Each dead player decides for themself whether to give the Beggar their vote token. No one, including the Beggar, may move a player’s vote token on their behalf.
• When a player gives their vote token to the Beggar, the Beggar learns whether that player is good or evil.
• The Beggar can still nominate freely, and can still vote for an exile freely, because exiles are not affected by abilities.
• If the Beggar dies, they gain one vote token to use while dead, just like any other character would. However, the Beggar loses all their previously acquired vote tokens.
• If the Beggar would become drunk or poisoned, they do not.
• The ability to donate vote tokens is unique to the Beggar ability. Players may not give their vote token to a player that is not the Beggar, whether or not a Beggar is in play.

How to Run

The Beggar cannot vote unless they have a vote token. They lose one vote token each time they vote.

During the day, a dead player can declare that they give their vote token to the Beggar. Transfer the vote token to the Beggar and privately tell the Beggar the alignment of that player.

Examples

The Beggar cannot vote. On the fourth day, the Monk gives her vote token to the Beggar. The Beggar may now vote (once), and learns that the player is good. The Beggar is evil and tells the group that the Monk player is evil.

The good Beggar has three vote tokens. The Recluse gives the Beggar their vote token, and the Beggar learns that they are evil. That day, the Beggar dies, and loses all their vote tokens except for one.

Tips & Tricks (if you are good)

• You definitely want to learn the alignment of at least one player, but don't get too greedy. Learning 1 or 2 player's alignment could mean that 1 or 2 good players can no longer vote - this is probably acceptable. But learning 5 players' alignment could mean that 5 good players can no longer vote - and that gives evil the majority vote at the next execution, granting evil the win. Gain a vote token or two... or three... but know when to stop.

• Tell the truth about good players who give you their vote token. You trust them. They will probably trust you. Have a private conversation about your combined strategy for the future, and tell the group that they are good. You can trust whatever information this good player has due to their character ability, so use that to your advantage and let them help you decide who to vote for.

• Lie about a good player who gave you their vote token. If you tell the group that a good player is in fact evil, the Demon or its Minions may seek you out and tell you who they are, believing that you are evil too. This could be amazing information. Either way, you'll want to tell the group that you were lying before the game ends, and reveal your strategy to them, otherwise they may believe that you are evil, or that the good player who selflessly gave you their token is evil.

• If an evil player is foolish enough or brave enough to give you their vote token, tell the truth about their alignment. Tell the group that the player is evil, and be prepared for that player to accuse you of being evil. Since it is rare for evil players to give their vote to a good beggar (but some will do so because it is so unexpected), you may find it difficult to convince the group that they are evil. It will be easier to convince the group if you can get a good player's vote token as well, as that good player will probably help you.

• If an evil player has given you their vote token, you may want to lie about their alignment. Tell the group they they are good - this may convince the evil players that you are evil, and will encourage more evil players to give you their vote token. On the final day, you can reveal the truth.

• You can't vote. So, when you do get a vote token, use it very, very wisely. This is especially important because you may have removed a good player's ability to vote when you took their token, which means that good has less voting power overall. Make your vote count by saving it until the final day, or waiting to use it when your vote will decide whether a player is executed or not.

• Be proactive in getting players to give you their vote token. Ask. Demand. Bargain. Beg. Others will not usually volunteer to give you their token, because they have other things on their mind, but will often consider it if you pester them a little.

Tips & Tricks (if you are evil)

• Learn the alignment of as many players as possible. Take vote tokens from as many players as possible. Even though by talking to the Demon you can learn the alignments of all players quickly, the more players that give you their vote tokens, the more players will not be able to vote on the final day. You'll be able to vote as much as you want, and that is a powerful enough ability to win the game. Good players often don't realize how powerful their dead vote is - 1 player giving it away to an evil Beggar might not make much difference, but 4 players doing so will make a huge difference.

• When good players give your their token, tell the truth about their alignment in order to gain their trust. If you publicly tell the group that a good player is good, that goes some way in confirming their legitimacy (and therefore their information), but you may be able to convince more players to give you their token. You can lie about their alignment at a later date.

• Lie about good players' alignment, if you think that you can get away with it. It is much more common for good players to give their vote tokens to Beggars, so claiming that an evil player has done so is a difficult bluff. But, it is possible, and if you succeed, you have not only convinced the group of the illegitimacy of their information, you have gained a vote and convinced them of your goodness. The good player will kick and scream and do everything they can to convince the group that you are evil, so be prepared.

• Lie about evil players alignment, if evil players give you their tokens. There is usually not much to be gained by telling the group that an evil player is evil, beyond making yourself look good. Sure, you'll get the benefit of looking more trustworthy (and maybe even getting another player to give up their vote token), but you've sacrificed the evil player to do so. The Chef, Empath, Investigator and Undertaker in particular are very good at using the simple fact that one player is evil to deduce the alignment of several other players.

• Tell the truth about evil players to build trust. But do so rarely. Very rarely. Since it is so unlikely that an evil Beggar would actually tell the group the truth about an evil player's alignment, when you actually do it, it may be believed. You'll want to make sure the payoff is worth it though. It can be worth it if the evil player was heavily suspicious anyway, or if the evil player was the third or fourth player to give you their vote token. In such circumstances, building the group's faith that you are good can give you the edge and keep you alive.

• Use your vote wisely or throw it away. Either way, it doesn't really matter. What is important is that you look like you use your vote wisely, and that you save at least one vote token for the final day. The final day is all that really matters, so who you vote for before that point is mostly about making you look trustworthy so that you can survive until the final day.

• Be proactive in getting players to give you their vote token. Ask. Demand. Bargain. Beg. Others will not usually volunteer to give you their token, because they have other things on their mind, but will often consider it if you pester them a little.