Varcayn
From PhallaWiki
| Varcayn |
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| Player Info |
| Profile: Penny Arcade |
| First Game: World War I |
| Last Game: Currently Active |
| Phalla Career: January 24, 2008 - Present |
| Location: Vancouver |
| Time Zone: Pacific |
| Other Stats |
| Mini Wins: 1 / 2 |
| Main Wins: 13 / 25 |
| Total Games: 27 |
Varcayn is regular Phalla player who has been playing actively, albeit with several extended absences, since the beginning of 2008. He first stumbled onto the game by accident after a friend directed him to the Penny Arcade Forums for other reasons and took a quick liking to the game, despite having no previous exposure to Mafia or its variants.
On the Penny Arcade Forums, Varcayn actively participates in Phalla, Battlestar Galactica, and Diplomacy games in Critical Failures, but rarely visits other forums and generally posts infrequently outside of game threads. He uses the logo from Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22 as his avatar. "Varcayn" itself does not carry a significant meaning, but was previously used as a Dungeons and Dragons PC name by the player.
Phalla Strategy
Varcayn usually lays low during the first four to five days of any main Phalla game, often posting infrequently and only on topic. Indeed, his strategy in the early game is strictly conservative and he often uses a RNG to determine the targets of any special abilities in the first few days as things develop. Additionally, his Day 1 vote is always randomized. As the game progresses to later stages he becomes a far more active player, discussing theories on mechanics and the identities of other players at length. In the later stages of the game he becomes far more aggressive and starts to take significant risks with any abilities he has access to.
This strategy often enables Varcayn to survive until the end of most games, often in a significant position. His late-game actions played a significant role in determining the outcomes of Captain Planet, Innsmouth, Legend of the Red Dragon, and Phallastar Phallactia: The Occupation of New Phallica.
Varcayn has a general aversion to blind networking, and will rarely seek out contacts unless he has reason to trust them. He also dislikes the concept of grudges, preferring to avoid them entirely.
Hosting
Varcayn has hosted one main game, Timeline. The game has become well known for its unique core mechanic, where players could never die and were instead returned to Day 1 to begin the game again should they be "killed". The game was generally well received by his fellow players, and a sequel is being planned.
When hosting (or playing) Varcayn has a preference for games that are upfront about their mechanics and hide as little as possible from players. He, similar to Dac Vin, believes that the vote should be very rarely or never manipulated in any form.
Other
Varcayn was awarded the "Most Deaths in a Day" (The Intentionally Left Vague Award) in The Second Annual Phalla Awards for using his special ability in Phallaman X to kill 14 players, or 21% of the game's players in one night.
Varcayn attended PAX 2009, participating in that year's in-person Phalla hosted by Rend.
