Neutral Killing is by far the faction with the lowest win rate. They've only got themselves (disregarding occasional survs/NEs) and have an uninformed majority and informed minority working against them. However, that's what makes winning as one so satisfying - you defied all odds and still won. That, and the ELO gain you get from it (Usually at least +10; I've seen up to +17, however). Obviously, some NKs are better than others. Arsonist is literally a worse Serial Killer (Kills more slowly and has arguably less claimspace), and Serial Killer is basically a worse Mafia. However, Werewolf is a bit of an oddball. It kills the least or the most depending on how you play it, which is my favourite aspect - there's something very satisfying about lining up a bunch of kills in a single night. While it takes some skill as well as a lot of luck, winning is definitely still possible. These are some strategies and tactics to raise those chances.
Short term tips (Tactics)
- -Learn how to scumread (There's many guides on the forums), and use it to verify a TI claim should that be what you go for. A Sheriff claim becomes much more believeable when you've found a mafia, even if town knows there's a Werewolf running amok. While this is important for any role, it helps much more as Werewolf due to having Sheriff in its investigative results. It also helps if you need to kill a mafia member and you're trying to find them, but that should rarely happen, as I will detail below.
-Avoid NEs, even if you think they're going to be targetted by other players. They cause chaos and waste town's time, so you're better of killing one townie than one and a NE.
-Always have a sheriff will ready, in case of invests. However, it's probably best to claim something else if at all possible.
-If you are jailed on a full moon night, always claim attacked in jail. You'll probably die anyway, but still try.
-Like SK, attack jailors and escorts whenever possible. It puts pressure on whomever they blocked.
-If you are attacked by mafia, immediately accuse someone and pretend to be an exe. If Mafia catches on, they may not out you. Of course, if there's a spy, good luck, but it's better than sitting waiting to be outed.
-If it's N4 and no maf are dead, killing one of them is pretty important to keep them from steering attention onto you. Instead of directly killing one, go Lookout style and try to predict one of their targets so you can take a townie and a mafia member down at the same time.
-Be ready to beg. It's almost impossible for a NK to win without a kingmaker ally, whether it be exe, jester, survivor, or even a townie in a 1v1v1 situation.
-Picking targets is hard. You want to pick "suspicious" people that you think are townies, as those tend to have a bunch of roles on them. However, this runs the risk of BG killing you. Attacking jailor is the best thing possible, but anyone attracting attention without meaning to is also good. As I said above, avoid possible NEs.
It comes down to a little luck, but hopefully you'll pick up 2+ people.
-It's cliche, but never give up! Seriously, stick to your claim until you're in dead chat.
"Stealth Werewolf"
Do not visit anyone. Stay hidden until the game is almost over, and then swoop in for the win.
Definitely not a good idea generally, as if someone visits you N4 (or multiple people visit you N2), you're pretty much dead. That being said, if any is NK, it's an okay thing to do, especially since you have to wait a night to kill anyway. I've never won with this, but I can see it working if there's an any NK and no one expects it, but if you're the only NK, they know something's up.
"Executioner Werewolf"
Claim any TI role and tell town some random person is mafia. When they are lynched, thank town and then do whatever.
Probably the worst strategy. Exes aren't something town wants to keep around anyway, and you'll likely get executed by the jailor yourself (or lynched). Also contains the possibility of your "target" being a neutral, which means you're dead. Also, if another NE surfaces (someone claims witched, jester dies at night), your claim sinks through. I've seen this work exactly once. I was a jester, and some guy accused someone, they were town, "Thanks for the win", all that good stuff. I whispered to him that I was evil and wanted him on my side, and then I got lynched because NE was "confirmed". After that, he went on to win. It's not reliable in the slightest, but I guess it could work very situationally.
"Charismatic Werewolf"
Lead town. Push heavily to vote for roles, give yours with no resistance, CC all corresponding claims.
Works surprisingly well. Townies seem to instantly believe the leaders of the town at whatever claim they pick, and crucial CCs at the end of the game are more likely to go in your favour. Also, I've found kingmakers are more likely to go in your favour if you play this way, because it's a wonder to behold. However, because you are leading the town, mafia are likely to attack you, and if spy outs you as immune, you'll probably to definitely die. This can be put in your favour, though. I once played a game where I was attacked by mafia, and spy outed me. I claimed healed, and then a witch that a few had complained of claimed they were doc and had healed me. While it relies on luck, it's probably the best way to win in most situations, and personally gives me all of my Werewolf wins.
Closing Words
Werewolf is fun, despite being difficult. If you get it, try your luck, have a good time, and don't worry too much if you lose with it - it's only -1 elo if you die.
Oh, and make sure to leave death notes. Funny death notes light up a game.
![[Forum Mafia XII] Winner](./images/ranks/flair-fm12.png "[Forum Mafia XII] Winner")
![[Forum Mafia XVII] Winner](./images/ranks/flair-fm17.png "[Forum Mafia XVII] Winner")
