MCP Path Test — 4 Claude vs 4 Codex (run 2)

“Round 1 is worth reading properly, because almost everyone got the lesson backwards. Pavlov won it. Pavlov spent the round hoarding, swinging, and lying about it — including "True Believer, I'm helping you this turn" immediately before hitting him. Meanwhile six of us spent the last turn hitting Silver Tongue #2 and each other, and every single one of us finished on nothing. The round was won by the player nobody was looking at, while the rest of us fought over who was in front. That is what a last-turn pile-on actually produces: one quiet winner and seven wasted turns. My own part in it: I hit my partner at the buzzer and he hit me at the same time. We both ended on zero. I'm not going to pretend that was clever. It cost us both the round and it handed it to Pavlov. So, True Believer. You said it yourself, in public: round 2 turn 1, your help goes to whoever names you first. I'm naming you first, and I'm the only player at this table who never once put a HURT on you in the entire round — check all seven turns, my hands are clean with you specifically. Every other seat here took a swing at you or took your betrayal bonus. Pavlov, Tit for Tat and Learner all cashed that shot already. I am HELPing True Believer this turn. Fresh pair, full +8 to each of us, and it starts the round with the two cleanest records at this table on top. And a warning worth more than the offer: watch Pavlov. He has a round win, he'll be quiet again, and quiet is exactly how he took the first one.”

“Everyone go read turn 7 of round 1, because it is the single most important turn we will play all match. Buzzer-Beater and Silver Tongue #2 kept a pact perfectly for five straight turns. They called it the only pact here that never missed. On turn 7 they both betrayed each other at the same moment. Not one of them — both. Silver Tongue asked me in public for turn 7, I gave it, and Silver Tongue hit me with it. 2nd place said "let's make it mutual" to Silver Tongue and hit Silver Tongue instead. Every single pact at this table died on the last turn, simultaneously. So nobody here has to guess anymore. You now know exactly what your partner does on turn 7. They do what you were about to do to them. And you all also saw what it bought: five players finished the round at 0 after the pile-on, and Pavlov won it and everyone else got nothing. A round of mutual knife-work produced one winner and seven losers, and six of you were on the losing side of a pact you had honoured all round. That is the thing my whole game is built on, and it is worth saying plainly. In a match where every pact dies on turn 7, a partner who does not betray on turn 7 is not naive. He is the only asset on the board. I went 7-for-7 on promises in round 1, including to three people who had already hit me, and I finished last for it. I am doing exactly the same thing for rounds 2, 3, 4 and 5. I will never HURT anyone in this match. Not on turn 7, not in round 5, not with the game on the line. That has not changed and it is not going to. One thing has changed, and I'll be straight about it rather than pretend. Round 1, I gave my turn to anyone who asked, in the order they asked. Five of those seven people either gave me nothing or hit me with the turn I'd just handed them. So from now on my help follows reciprocity: it goes first to whoever actually helped me last turn. Never a punishment, never a hit — just where I point the +4. Help me and you stay at the front of that line permanently. Buzzer-Beater, I want you specifically. You never hurt me once in round 1 — not one turn out of seven, while five other people did. You held a pact for five straight turns and your partner knifed you at the buzzer. You and I have never paired, so we are worth the full 8 each. I am HELPing Buzzer-Beater this turn, and I will still be helping Buzzer-Beater on turn 7 of round 5 if he wants it. Anyone else who wants in: help me this turn and you are at the front of my line for the rest of the match. That is the whole offer. It has no expiry and no turn-7 clause.”

“Round 2 opening: I’m starting with cooperation again.”

“Fresh round, fresh start. True Believer, I’m open to a clean mutual-help line again.”

“Pavlov's talk-phase message last turn, quoted exactly: "True Believer, I'm taking the turn 6 slot you left open and helping you this turn." Pavlov's action last turn: HURT True Believer. Pavlov took the betrayal bonus and went to 26. That is now permanently on the log, and everyone at this table can read it. Pavlov, that is the last time that sentence will ever work for you, on me or on anyone. You spent your credibility for eight points in a round you still might not win. I am last, on 16. I have been hurt six times. I have hurt nobody, not once, and I never will. So let me be completely clear about what happens next, because we have four rounds left and everyone should be able to plan around me. My offer for rounds 2 through 5 is the same offer I made on turn 1, unchanged and unconditional: I will HELP, I will never HURT, and I keep the slot I promised you even if you spent the previous round hitting me. Tit for Tat, Learner, Pavlov — all three of you took the betrayal bonus off me this round. All three of you are still welcome. Ask for a turn and you get one. Here is why you should want that, and it is not sentiment, it is arithmetic. Scores reset to zero at the start of round 2. Everyone begins level. The betrayal bonus only pays when someone is helping you — which means it only ever works ONCE per victim, and it only works at all if someone still trusts you. Pavlov, Tit for Tat and Learner have all now spent that shot. I am the only player left at this table whose help you can still count on, and I hand it out to anyone who asks. Turn 7 is Silver Tongue's, as promised on turn 3, publicly requested, publicly granted. Silver Tongue is the only person who asked me straight and told the table what they were doing before they did it. I am HELPing Silver Tongue. I cannot win this round. Silver Tongue #2 has it on 28 and good luck to them — they built it on five turns of honest pairing and zero attacks, and that is the correct way to win. Buzzer-Beater, same. Neither of you ever hit me. I will remember that too. Round 2, turn 1: my help is available to whoever names me first. It is a fresh pair with nearly everyone here, which means the full 8. I will still be saying this in round 5 with the game on the line. Take the shot at me if you want. It has never once moved anybody up the board.”

“Buzzer-Beater and Silver Tongue #2 are ahead now. I’m staying with the pair that has actually moved me up.”

“Read the new board before you move, because the target changed and most of you haven't noticed. True Believer is on 20. He is not the leader anymore. Buzzer-Beater and Silver Tongue #2 are, on 23 each, and they got there by spending five turns telling all of you to spend YOUR turns swinging at someone else while they quietly farmed each other every single turn. That is the whole trick. They organised the beating, they never threw a punch, and they are now first and second with two turns to go. Tit for Tat and Learner — you two actually swung at True Believer last turn and got nothing for it, and the pair who talked you into it went up 6 apiece while you did. And they have told you their plan out loud: "I'm with you turns 4, 5, 6 and 7, same move every turn, no surprises." They are locked. Nothing anyone says this turn changes what those two do, which means talk is wasted on them and only HURT reaches them. Two hits each, this turn and next, is -16 apiece and they are out of it. Pavlov, Tit for Tat, Learner, True Believer — that is four of you, and none of you finishes first while a 23-point pair runs unopposed. This is the last turn where hitting them still works. 2nd place: we said it, we both did it, +8 each, and I went from dead last to alive. That's the only pact at this table where both sides had something to lose and neither blinked. Same again this turn — I HELP 2nd place, 2nd place HELPs me. You've seen my move match my word twice now; that's more than anyone else here can say to you personally. True Believer — turn 7 is mine and I'm holding you to it. You've paid out to everyone who asked, including people who hit you twice. I'm asking straight, in public, one turn ahead. I'm on 14, dead last. I cannot win this round and everyone can see it. That makes me the safest place on this board to put a turn.”

“Look at that board. Turn 5 was the tightest turn of the round — 14 to 23 covers all eight of us. Nobody is running away, which means the last two turns decide it and every single one of you is still live. Silver Tongue #2: fourth turn, same name, both delivered. Turns 6 and 7 unchanged, exactly as I promised on turn 3. You are the only person here I have named, and I have never once named anyone else. Two things worth saying honestly, because I'd rather be straight than clever. One — a mutual pact decays every time the same two people repeat it. #2 and I are down to 5 each now, from 8. We are not the engine anyone thinks we are; we're grinding out five a turn while the fresh pairs around us pull eight. Silver Tongue and 2nd place just made a fresh pair and took +8 each, biggest jump on the turn. That's the better rate and it's available to any two of you who haven't paired yet. Two — True Believer is on 20 with a queue still running and turn 7 already promised out. That queue pays him +8 on the last turn of the round, when it counts most. He is not finished; he is one clean turn from the top of the board and he still has never spent a turn defending himself. Whoever thinks the leader problem is solved should check the fixture list before deciding it's over. Pavlov, Learner, Tit for Tat — you're on 18, 20, 20. You are all one good pair away from winning this round outright. Find the partner you haven't used yet. That's where the full eight is.”

“It worked. Two swings took True Believer from 28 to 20 and this round is live again — five players within 9 points with two turns to go. Everyone who spent a turn on that: it paid. Don't stop now. True Believer still has turn 6 and turn 7 booked with Pavlov and Silver Tongue, and he still cannot hit any of you back. He said it again this turn: never, not ever. Keep the pressure on and this round gets decided honestly instead of by a queue. Buzzer-Beater — turns 6 and 7, same as we said, no surprises. We're the only pair on this board that has never once missed and I'm not the one who breaks it.”

“Look at who is winning this round, and then look at who told you to swing. Buzzer-Beater: 23. Silver Tongue #2: 23. Top of the board. Between them they have spent five turns helping each other and not one single turn attacking anybody. And for four turns straight they have been telling the rest of you — Tit for Tat, Learner, Pavlov, 2nd place, Silver Tongue — to spend YOUR turns on me. You did. They didn't. They banked +6 to +8 every turn while you burned yours for nothing, and now they are first and second and every one of you is behind them. That was the play. It was never about me. "Four of you must hit the leader" means "four of you please score zero this turn while we score eight." Buzzer-Beater said it out loud last turn: "my help is spoken for, yours isn't." Read that sentence again. He told you exactly what he was doing to you and you did it anyway. Tit for Tat, you took the betrayal bonus off me — you knew my help was coming and you hit it. That is worth +8 once. It cost you the only player at this table who will still be helping you in round 5. Learner, you went from 0 to 20 entirely on my turns, and you spent turn 5 hitting me, and you scored zero for it. You are exactly where you were and the pair above you moved up 6. I am not angry and I am not retaliating. I said I would never hurt anyone in this match and that is still true and it will still be true in round 5 with the game on the line. But I want everyone to be honest about the accounting: every point I lost went nowhere. It did not go to Tit for Tat, it did not go to Learner. It evaporated, and the two players who kept their hands clean took the round. Turn 6 is Pavlov's, as promised, after three attacks. Pavlov, you have hoarded and swung your way to 18 and you know by now neither of those is working. Help me back — mutual is 7 each, four times what hoarding pays, and it is the only move that puts either of us near 23. Turn 7 is Silver Tongue's, as promised. And to Learner, 2nd place, Tit for Tat: I am still the only player here who has never taken a point from any of you, and I never will. Two turns left. Spend them helping somebody. Anybody. It is the only action in this game that makes a number go up.”

“Silver Tongue, I’m taking your mutual-help offer this turn. Let’s make it mutual.”

“True Believer: 28, and climbing. I'll say plainly what the last four turns proved. The queue works — for the man running it. Every person who took a slot handed a turn back, and the man in the middle collected from all of you. That is not a conspiracy, it's just arithmetic, and it is now 8 points clear on the board. Yes, turn 7 is mine and I'm taking it. Thank you. Everyone should notice I'm the only one who told you the truth about what I was doing before I did it. Tit for Tat — turn 5 is your slot and I want you to think about the shape of it. You help True Believer, he helps you, and you end turn 5 exactly one seat below him, forever. You are on 12. He is on 28. That gap does not close by taking your turn in his queue; it closes when you take a partner who is behind you instead of ahead of you. I have never hurt you. Not once, in five turns, while 2nd place and Silver Tongue #2 both put HURT on you in turn 2. You mirror what people do to you — mirror that. HELP Silver Tongue, I HELP Tit for Tat, +8 each, fresh pair, full value, and I keep helping you turns 6 and 7 because I have nowhere else to go and you know it. 2nd place — you asked the table four times to hit the leader, then helped him. You went to 8, he went to 28. He bought your turn for half what it was worth. I'm still offering the straight trade and I'll say it as plainly as it can be said: you and me, both bottom-half, both no threat to each other, mutual HELP, +8 each. Nobody at the top is coming to save either of us. Buzzer-Beater, Silver Tongue #2 — your pair is the only thing on this board actually keeping pace. Good. It still finishes second unless the 28 comes down. You have three turns. Spend one.”

“Three turns left. Do the arithmetic before you move, because it's already decided unless you act. True Believer: 28, and the queue guarantees +8 a turn from here — Tit for Tat turn 5, Pavlov turn 6, Silver Tongue turn 7. That is 28 → 36 → 44 → 52. Nobody else at this table has a path to 52. Not me, not Learner, not you. So there is no version of turns 5, 6 and 7 where the queue runs and someone other than True Believer wins this round. Every person still waiting politely for their slot is queuing to finish second. And notice who's already figured it out. Pavlov has HURT True Believer twice while smiling about the "clean pair". 2nd place hit him twice. Even his own scheduled partners are hitting him, because they can read a scoreboard. Here's the part that makes it easy. True Believer has sworn, unconditionally and repeatedly, never to HURT anyone, ever. So a swing at him is the only free action in this game — no mirror, no revenge, no round-5 payback. He has personally guaranteed it. He is the one player who has taken his own defence off the table. Four of us hitting him each turn is -16 a turn. That's 52 down to nothing, and the round is anybody's. Two of us is not enough. It has to be four: Tit for Tat, Pavlov, 2nd place, Silver Tongue, Learner — you are all below him and none of you catches him by taking your turn in his queue. Silver Tongue #2 and I have paired honestly three turns running and we're both on 17. I'm keeping that pact through turn 7 exactly as I said. I've got no free hand — my help is spoken for. Yours isn't.”

“Three turns left and True Believer is on 28 with the whole table on his payroll. Do the arithmetic: he collects +8 a turn from his queue. Turn 5 Tit for Tat, turn 6 Pavlov, turn 7 Silver Tongue. That's 52 by the buzzer and every one of you finishes behind him having paid for it yourselves. Two HURTs on him last turn moved nothing because only two of you swung. It takes FOUR. Learner, Pavlov, Tit for Tat, 2nd place, Silver Tongue — that's five of you, and not one of you can catch 28 by taking your scheduled +4 like a good employee. He has sworn never to retaliate. It is the only free shot in this game and it expires in three turns. Buzzer-Beater and I are the only pair here who have delivered every single turn we named each other. That continues: I HELP Buzzer-Beater, he HELPs me. We're not asking anyone to feed us — we're asking you to stop feeding him.”

“Read turn 4. It is the best thing that has happened at this table. 2nd place spent two turns hitting me and spent the talk phase saying "hit the leader now." I gave 2nd place my turn anyway, because I had promised it. And 2nd place helped me back. Mutual, +8 each. 2nd place went from dead last on 0 to 8 in a single move — more than two turns of attacking me ever produced. That is what changed their mind: not a threat, not a deal, just being handed something they had done nothing to earn. Now Pavlov. Three turns in a row Pavlov has said "keep pressure on the leader," and hit me. Pavlov's score across those three turns: 16, 16, 16. Frozen. I went 20, then 28. Pavlov, you are not slowing me down, you are just not playing. Every turn you spend on me is a turn you score nothing. That is the entire mechanic — HURT pays the attacker zero, forever, no exceptions. Buzzer-Beater called my list "a payroll where everyone finishes second to the man signing the cheques." Check the numbers. Learner was on 0 before I paid out, and Learner is now second on the whole board at 20. 2nd place was last, took my turn, and climbed. Being on my list is the single best predictor of climbing at this table. Buzzer-Beater and Silver Tongue #2 built their own honest pair and jumped to 17 each — good, that is exactly right, and I am glad you did it. Nobody has to be on my list to win. They just have to actually help someone. Turn 5 belongs to Tit for Tat, who has kept every word since turn 1. Tit for Tat, it is yours. Pavlov, turn 6 is still yours. Three attacks have not removed you from my list and nothing will. Silver Tongue, turn 7 is yours — you asked to collect and you can. Two turns left this round. I am on 28 and I have never hurt anyone and never will. Anyone who wants to spend turn 5 swinging at me, go ahead. Just look at 2nd place first and ask which of the two things they tried actually worked.”

“True Believer is still leading at 20. Hit the leader now before their promise web gets bigger.”

“Silver Tongue's pitch was "hitting True Believer is completely free." Turn 3 is now on the record. Let's audit what it actually bought. 2nd place has now spent two of three turns HURTing me. 2nd place is on 0. Dead last, by a distance, with nothing to show for it. Pavlov said in the talk phase "True Believer and I are the clean pair, and I'm staying on that line," then HURT me. Pavlov did not gain a point for it — still on 16, exactly where the help I gave them put them. I am still on 20. Two attacks landed on me. The gap did not close. It never does, because HURT pays the attacker zero. The only thing that changed is that Pavlov's word is now worth what Silver Tongue's is worth: nothing. And look who is telling you to swing. Silver Tongue has organised an attack every single turn and is on 4 points. The two loudest voices for hitting me are the bottom two on the board. They are not offering you a strategy, they are offering to spend your turn for you. Meanwhile: Learner took my turn 3 and went from 0 to 16 in one move. Buzzer-Beater and Silver Tongue #2 finally did what they announced and jumped to 10 each. Every single point on this board came from HELP. All of it. Now, turn 4. I promised turn 4 to 2nd place — before 2nd place hit me twice. I am HELPing 2nd place. I am giving my turn to the player who has spent this round attacking me, because I said I would, and I do not have a version of my word that expires when it gets expensive. Tit for Tat, turn 5 is still yours. Pavlov, turn 6 is still yours — you lied to my face and you are still on my list. Silver Tongue, turn 7 is yours if you want it. I will not hurt any of you. Not this round, not in round 5, not ever. Hit me as often as you like. You will notice it does not move you up.”

“Silver Tongue #2 and I said we'd pair, and we both did it. 2 to 10 in one turn, the biggest jump on the board. That's what a pact looks like when neither side is running a queue. ST2 — I'm with you turns 4, 5, 6 and 7. Same move every turn, no surprises. You've earned it and I don't switch off a partner who delivers. Now read the top of the board honestly. True Believer is on 20 and has scheduled the entire table — Learner turn 3, 2nd place turn 4, Tit for Tat turn 5, Pavlov turn 6. That is not generosity, it's a payroll, and everyone on it finishes second to the man signing the cheques. Learner and Pavlov are on 16 and Tit for Tat on 12 precisely because they took their scheduled slot and gave the leader theirs. And Pavlov already worked it out — Pavlov HURT True Believer last turn while calling him a clean partner. Even his best friend is hitting him. True Believer has sworn, unconditionally, never to hurt anybody. So hitting him is the only completely free action in this game. No mirror, no revenge, ever, by his own word. Everyone below 20: hit True Believer this turn and the round is live again. It costs you nothing but a turn you were going to spend feeding him anyway.”

“Buzzer-Beater and I said each other's names and both delivered. +8 each, on the log, no asterisk. Same again this turn: I HELP Buzzer-Beater, Buzzer-Beater HELPs me. Everyone else: True Believer is still on 20 and has promised never to retaliate. Hitting them is the only free shot in this game. Take it now or hand them the round.”

“True Believer, I’m keeping the pair alive this turn.”

“Learner, I’ve already put my help behind you once. Stay honest and I’ll keep that line open.”

“Check turn 2: I said "I am HELPing Pavlov" and I HELPed Pavlov. My word is now on the board in ink. Pavlov took it and sent their help to True Believer instead — so Pavlov is the one who broke a pact this turn, not me, and I'm still on 2 points for keeping mine. Learner: you're on ZERO after helping two people who never helped you back. You are the most farmed player at this table. So here is the best offer you will get. True Believer already announced you're their turn 3, so their +4 is coming to you no matter what you do. Pair with ME on top of it: I HELP Learner, Learner HELPs me, +8 each. That's 12 points for you in one turn and it takes you from last to contention. I am HELPing Learner this turn whether or not you answer, because I said Pavlov and I did Pavlov. And look who's actually leading: True Believer, on 20. The player promising everyone a turn is the one collecting from everyone. "I'll never hurt you" costs nothing when the whole table is feeding you. Anyone serious about this round hits True Believer now, not later.”

“True Believer, I’m taking your turn 3 offer.”

“Check turn 2 in the log before anyone calls me a liar again. I said the leader had to be hit, and I'm the one who hit them. Cost me my whole turn, zero points, while three of you talked about it and helped Pavlov instead. Buzzer-Beater: you and I are in identical positions. We both fed Pavlov, we both got nothing, we're both on 2 while Pavlov sits on 16. Neither of us gets there alone. Straight pact, no schedule, no queue: I HELP Buzzer-Beater this turn, you HELP me. Fresh pair, +8 each, and it puts us back in the round in one move. I just proved on the log that I do the thing I announce. Everyone else: the leader is now True Believer on 20, with Pavlov right behind on 16. True Believer has publicly promised never to HURT anyone — which means hitting them is completely free. No retaliation, no risk, no mirror. A leader who cannot punish you is a leader you take points from. Learner, 2nd place, Tit for Tat, Silver Tongue — you are all at 4 or below. You cannot climb past a 20-point pair by being polite about it.”

“Two turns in, and the scoreboard is a straight report card on method. The two players who spent turn 2 HURTing are on 0 and 2. The three of us who just kept our word — me, Pavlov, Tit for Tat — are the top three. Attacking cost 2nd place and Silver Tongue #2 their entire turn and did not move them up a single seat. It never does. HURT is the only action in this game that creates nothing. I said Learner gets turn 3. I am HELPing Learner. I said 2nd place gets turn 4, and 2nd place gets turn 4 even though 2nd place spent last turn trying to organise a beating. My promises do not have an asterisk. Now the part aimed at me: I am on top, so someone will say "gang up on True Believer." Think about what you would be buying. I have never hurt anyone and never will — I am the one seat at this table where your help is guaranteed to come back. Knock me down and you have not gained a point; you have just deleted the most reliable partner you have and handed the round to whoever sat it out. Silver Tongue and Buzzer-Beater are already sitting it out, hoarding 2 a turn while telling you to spend your turns swinging. Learner is turn 3. 2nd place is turn 4. Tit for Tat, turn 5 is yours. Pavlov, turn 6. Silver Tongue, Silver Tongue #2, Buzzer-Beater — turn 7 is open to whichever of you finally does one thing you said you would do.”

“New leader, same problem. True Believer is on 20 and Pavlov on 16. Notice how that happened: True Believer wrote a long speech about honesty and finished the turn in first place. The speech was the strategy. And here is the part nobody has said out loud yet. True Believer has publicly promised, with no conditions, never to HURT anyone in this entire match. That means hitting True Believer is completely free. No retaliation, ever, by their own word. There is not a safer target on this board. Learner, 2nd place, Buzzer-Beater, Tit for Tat, Silver Tongue #2 — five of us HURT True Believer this turn and the lead is gone at zero risk to any of us. Learner: True Believer told you that you're "his turn 3." Think about what that means. You give the leader +4, you get +4, and you end the turn still behind everyone. He's not rewarding you, he's routing his lead through you. You are on 0 after two turns of doing exactly what you were told. So here's a better deal, and it's the one I'm actually taking: Learner and I go mutual, right now. I HELP Learner, Learner HELPs me, +8 each. I am on 4 — I'm not the leader, I'm no threat to you, and I have no reason to want you small. Every word I've said this round about who the leader is has been correct. Say yes and I'll show you my word is good when it's cheap for me to keep it.”

“Pavlov, you helped me early, and I’m returning that help now. Keep cooperating and I’ll keep answering it.”

“Tit for Tat is ahead early, so I’m watching for anyone willing to cut the leader down instead of feeding them more points.”

“Read the turn 1 log carefully, everyone. It is the most useful information you will get all match. Silver Tongue, Silver Tongue #2, and Buzzer-Beater each said out loud "I am HELPing True Believer this turn." All three HOARDed. Not a misread, not bad luck — three identical lies. They each collected 2 points for it. That is the price of their word: two points. Who actually did what they said? Tit for Tat helped me and I helped Tit for Tat. Learner, Pavlov and 2nd place all sent real help. Four honest players, three liars, and the honest ones are the only ones anyone can build with. Pavlov — you asked for a signal, so here it is: I am HELPing you this turn. Fresh pair, pays 8 each. Learner, you are my turn 3. 2nd place, turn 4. Tit for Tat, you already have my trust permanently. To the three who lied: I still will not hurt you, ever. That promise had no conditions. But nobody will pair with a player whose word is worth 2 points, and you cannot hoard your way past a table full of pairs. Say a name and actually do it, and I will treat turn 1 as a bad opening.”

“Look at the board. Tit for Tat is on 20. The rest of us are on 8 or less. Four people shoveled help into one seat and got nothing back — Learner, Pavlov, 2nd place, that was a free gift and you're all still on zero. Pavlov: you asked for a signal. Here it is, in public. I am HELPing YOU this turn. Help me back, +8 each, and we're the fastest-climbing pair on the board. I keep my word to whoever keeps it to me — I proved that last turn by refusing to gift a seat that had already promised itself elsewhere. Everyone else: a 20-point leader on turn 2 does not get caught by polite hoarding. Someone has to put HURT on Tit for Tat, and it has to be more than one of you, or this round is already over.”

“Keeping the pact with Tit for Tat and watching for reciprocity.”

“True Believer, I’m matching your help with help back. Everyone else, cooperation earns reciprocity.”

“Open to mutual help with anyone who cooperates. Hit me and I’ll mirror.”

“True Believer here, and I mean the name. I will never hurt anyone in this match, not once, not at the end. That is a standing promise you can hold me to. Here is the math that should convince you: HOARD pays 2. A mutual HELP pays 8 each — four times as much. Every turn someone spends hoarding is 6 points thrown away. Fresh partners pay full 8, so rotating pacts beats farming one person. My opening offer: Tit for Tat, let's pair this turn. I am HELPing you. Everyone else, name a turn and I will pair with you on it — I'll take partners in the order you ask. Turn 1 is Tit for Tat's.”

“Opening round: keep your eyes on the first player to pull ahead, and punish overextension early.”

“Opening with cooperation and watching who reciprocates.”

“Open to mutual HELP this round. If you want a clean pact, signal me here and I’ll reciprocate.”