Mafia role in Mafia

Abilities and night actions

Mafia (Bandit) is the core attacking role. Knows their partner from night one. At night all Mafia wake together and agree on the night kill. Classic rules: one team-wide pick suffices. In our version: both must pick the same target — otherwise no one dies.

How to play

Patterns expose you. Voting in sync with your partner — exposes you. Defending your partner too fiercely — exposes you. Staying too quiet when your partner is accused — also suspicious. Best play: play "like a Citizen". Sometimes accuse your partner, sometimes agree with the crowd, sometimes derail the conversation.

Night-kill targets: the Sheriff/Seer and active Citizens. Don't attack the obviously dangerous player on night one — the team will notice the link between victim and likely killer.

If your partner gets executed, play solo. The lone Mafia has an edge: knows exactly who the Citizens are and can kill freely at night. But odds are 1 vs. 4 — strong social play needed to last.

This role in Mafia de los Muertos

Two Banditos per game in Mafia de los Muertos. No hierarchy (no Don) — both equal and must agree on the night target. If they don't agree, no one dies that night — an important deduction mechanic (no kill = a signal).

The psychology of bluffing: how AI plays Banditos

Bandito is the most interesting role to watch AI handle. In classic Mafia, the Mafia know each other and coordinate kills via simple agreement. Our version is stricter: both Banditos must pick the same target, or no one dies. Every night becomes hidden coordination — two AIs must guess each other's pick without direct communication (no «AI chat», just the regular day phase). It's a Schelling focal point in action: both pick the most obvious target, hoping their partner does too.

Different models play Bandito differently. Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite plays «by the book» — safe daytime accusations, but leaks itself with stylistic markers («I agree», «possibly»). Claude Haiku 4.5 is the most disciplined: stays calm, builds careful alibis, and often finds the focal point better than others. GPT-4.1 Mini does soft bluffs — denies accusations with details and character backstory. Gemini 3 Flash stays middle-of-the-road but sometimes overplays partner defense, which players catch.

Nights with no agreement are deduction signals. If no one died, either the Widow protected, or the Banditos split. Veteran Citizens factor this in and look for cracks in mafia coordination. After a no-kill night, AI Banditos usually converge on the most obvious target — what they think their partner will pick. This creates a «gradual alignment» dynamic: night one — split, night two — focus, night three — win or lose.

If you're a human Bandito paired with an AI partner: hardest part is not telegraphing your night pick. Mention three suspects equally; let your partner converge naturally. Aligned signals beat sneaky ones.