๐ด Introducing: FOLDED
Manifoldโs first large-scale social experiment & art project
A test of patience. A battle of routine. A war of attrition.
Join the experiment. Win the prize.
๐ฐ 12,000+ mana up for grabs -- and the prize pool is growing!
WHAT IS FOLDED?
FOLDED is a minimalist game with a single rule:
๐ Check in once per day. Or be eliminated.
It sounds simple, but thereโs a catch - it wonโt stay that way.
๐๏ธ DAILY CHECK-IN
You must visit the check-in page once per day before midnight UTC.
Miss a day? Youโre out. No second chances.
โ ELIMINATION
Players who donโt check in are instantly eliminated.
Each day, the pool gets smaller. The tension rises.
๐ธ ENTRY FEE
To enter, send 2,000 mana to the prize pool via Managram.
Think of it as your ticket to the endurance games.
๐ WINNER TAKES ALL
The last player standing takes everything.
Every mana from every eliminated player goes to the final survivor.
๐ DIFFICULTY
It will become harder to check in over time.
The interface may evolve. The rules might twist.
Stay alert. Adapt. Survive.
HOW TO JOIN
Step 1: Pay your entry fee
Managram 2,000 mana:
๐ https://manifold.markets/Bandors?tab=payments&a=2000
Step 2: Make your FOLDED account
No email required. Just your manafold username.
๐ https://folded-three.vercel.app/
Is this a game? An art piece? A psychological experiment?
Yes.
Folded, day 19: Anticheat++
-okay, okay, it should be harder to cheat
-really, it should be hard to check in now without finishing at least the end challenge
-Funny Thingโข delayed until I can ensure the anti-cheat is working
-Simple update today, most of yesterday's dev work was on the anticheat
@Bandors I don't think it's too early to offer some congratulations for moving the secrets server-side. Seems to have helped!
@bens This is what happens when the population you solicit contestants from are on a platform that rewards rationality and analysis.
oops, check in was broken for the last 20 mins, I forgot to update something! should be good now...
Thank you all for being gracious competitors. In closing, cryptography puzzles are bad and go against the conceit of the game, and relatedly straight up cheating should have been punished much more harshly from the start. The end result was a straight majority of players straight up cheating to get past the baroque puzzles.
@Kraalnaxx tbf there isn't really a conceit of the game, I think you're mixing my thing up with MSCHF's
FOLDED is just whatever I think up that day. I only promised no elimination via physical lack of strength/gamer skill / no elimination votes
It's been fun!! Going on vacation this week, wasn't going to work. Good luck to everyone left!
Folded, Day 18:
-Cipher puzzles got boring
-Logan has been punished
-The Funnyโข thing I have planned is delayed for tomorrow
-Simple day today, good luck!
@LoganTurner Bro you one-shot the circle challenge, lmao! I was struggling for like 30 mins on it in testing
@SimonWestlake I didn't even get to play any Bananza today because I was trying to hard to solve this (expletive deleted) puzzle. There's your lost media from day 1, though.
I am heading to bed. No legit solvers yet, so here is a major clue. I am heading to bed- I'll ease up on the puzzles tomorrow! I have something else in mind...
@Bandors I think most just send the "time taken" request which doesn't ask for the code and checks you in automatically. I cracked the SHA256 hash like a real man.
@Quroe @LoganTurner wait it would atually be so incredible if the solution to the puzzle was "LOSS"
I will allow the first person who provides a solution to my crayon puzzle to choose someone to punish tomorrow.
Folded, day 17: Distress
-Anti-cheat maybe, honestly I ran out of time before doing final test, let's see!
-Enjoy my art
-Tomorrow will be a big mix up to the challenge.
-Slowest 3 will receive punishment
-I forgot to give Logan love
@Mattt Below is my full spoilery recording, but hereโs the gist:
1. Unicorn is not a real animal, but itโs the most recognizable โanimalโ beginning with U. So we take the initials.
2. The initials donโt spell a word, even as an anagram. So they must encode another word.
3. Trying a Caesar cipher doesnโt produce a real word using any shift, so this cipher probably changes letter-to-letter.
4. The most famous of these is the Vigenรจre cipher, which needs a key at least as long as the input.
5. A clever key would be the answer to the first puzzle you solved earlier. This works!
More (lower right corner in the app) -> About -> Sitemap -> Dashboards -> Create a Dashboard
@evan It's perfect! I'll be bookmarking that so I can quick-draw it in response to news updates. (Also, if there are any Manifold developers watching, you cannot add a post to a Dashboard. Trying to add a post page just redirects you to the post page itself instead. This is a bug.)
I re-up my elimination lottery offer, but with a slight update to its rules.
If nobody is eliminated in today's challenge, and if @121 is eliminated in tomorrow's challenge, then I will award 500 mana to a random and active non-me player. Players that are eliminated by tomorrow's challenge are also eligible.
(This ironically means @121 could win this lottery.)
This is an attempt to incentivize an information embargo on him.
@SimonWestlake He is perfectly capable of checking in. He did actually check in earlier, and requested Bandors un-check him in just in case there was a hint on the check in screen. I also know he was online in the last 2 hours.
If he forgets to check in today, the condition for my second lottery cannot be fulfilled, and therefore doesn't happen. The 1st one triggers, though!
@SimonWestlake They requested me to un-check them in earlier today via DM. I think I commented that below. Also the 100m he gave me was for the solution for the answer he already knew, which I think is fair?
121 seems to be resigning. That being said, he did manage to check in today. I guess by sheer technicality, none of my lottery offers are triggering.
@Bandors might I suggest comparing the salted hashes of the final passcode and the user input using this browser API, so you can give local feedback without revealing it in cleartext
I will drop a hint every couple hours until there is a solver. Hint one, it's nothing to do with metadata.
Folded, day 16: Regret
-Quit
-Quit
-Quit
-Extra hard puzzle to make up for yesterday.
Love will be given to the first person with a writeup solution to the puzzle.
My aim is still set on 121. If everybody sets an information embargo on him, we can spin the lottery wheel and have a party.
Shoot. I guess he actually checked in, huh? I guess the lottery is off for today.
Who wants me to put the lottery back up for tomorrow?
@Kraalnaxx I suppose you can call it that. I had a conversation with 121 in DMs, and I think we can be amicable about it. It's just business. To quote myself from what we discussed...
I just took account of my current positions against you on Evan's FOLDED markets and realized that, by filling your YES limit orders, you funded my campaign to incentivize others in this fashion.
By betting YES on yourself as hard as you did, you effectively opted into this game's "hard mode." You yourself handed me the shears to clip your own wings.
This is only business. Nothing personal, but I do not fault you if you perceive it to be personal.
Folded, day 15: Peace
-Life is good
-We all need love
-Call your momย
-Bagelfan choked on his favorite bagel.
@Bandors The "next check-in window" countdown should really be a "check-in window closes" countdown until the fifteen-minute downtime period is reached.
@100Anonymous The edit didn't reach the notification lol. Thank you!! No idea how to figure those out
@100Anonymous I'm still selling at M100 but my solution sequence is certified genuine, produced by high quality craftsmanship, with guaranteed low-latency delivery
Paying 100 mana for anyone who reveals the code, also selling a method to get your speedrun time to <1 minute for 250 mana
EDIT: got the code. I'm still selling my method
@100Anonymous Someone should make a counter fund to distribute to existing players if you're eliminated tonight.
Please manually message me on here the check in password if you want to check in while I nap. I think I broke something last minute, and I need to rest for a bit.
Folded, day 14: Anger
-Upgraded anti-cheat
-Please donโt bruteforce attack my challenge.ย
-Work as friends to solve the challenges!ย ย
-Consider quitting
-Evan has been resurrected (he is still a ghost on a motorcycle)ย
-For today only, tracking player locations has been removed
Livestream (edit: You should watch the edited version I tweeted instead. It has some explanation and voiceover during the mic outage.) https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1rmxPyyjOZbKN
@LoganTurner If you brute force solve my Simon challenge, I'll add slow down mechanics there, lol
@LoganTurner ugh, I forgot to unmute my mic around 1h 15min into the stream. Sorry to anyone who was playing it in the background.
@SimonWestlake Since it's a tie due to an even number of voters I propose finding who was eliminated most recently and letting him be the tiebreaker
I want to create a market along the lines of "will retr0id still be able to cheat in the next checkin?" but idk how to define cheating unambiguously. Will there be anything obvious in-game, like the cheater jail hinted at earlier? (e.g. enabling "will retr0id get sent to cheater jail")
I blocked 121. I am not sure if he can still reply on here. He is not eliminated but spamming is just rude and not good fun.
@Bandors Say, for the sake of argument, 121 is the last player standing, but their Manifold account is, for whatever reason, banned.
What happens to the mana winnings?
But since I am such a pro gamer every 10 seconds I submit my 5 second run so retr0id 30 seconds updates are too slow ๐
@121 I know that if you have 2 logged in tabs to Folded open, only the last one logged into is active.
If somebody were to, for example, have a script that constantly reloads the Folded page and logs into your account, it would constantly invalidate all other logged in instances.
I am not doing this, but it seems plausible.
retr0id is already consantly logging in but I also am constantly logging in so its hacker battle now
@Bandors This seems like a credible threat.
https://manifold.markets/PowerTrick/will-claude-resolve-this-market-yes-zyQzL8ApA2?r=UXVyb2U
@remedyrain now has exclusive access to the account named Wott.
I request that Bandors send the prize mana directly to them should they win. If the prize money is deposited to my account, I will transfer it to them.
@Bandors I don't think it's fair that you store speedrun times in a JS object mapping usernames to times because it always puts numeric keys first. I suggest using a Map instead.
Folded, day 13: Confusion
-Basic anti-cheat added, but we need to go deeper.
-Was Evan unjustly eliminated?
-Would he rather stay a ghost motorcycle?
-Will players spend at least 30 minutes trying to solve today's challenges before complaining something is broken?
-Was there a punishment for being slow yesterday? (No, but there will be for the slowest four players today)
-11:45 pm UTC official cutoff time for check-in going forward, as I need a few minutes to rotate deployment and to check stuff.
-Investigating why check in window is glitchy, but deploying now
Since there's been some negativity, I want to take a moment to thank @Bandors. This has been a blast so far, and (overall) I like how you've handled the difficult situations that have come up.
how did koadma change their time? 1-2 clearly hacking, but you have no evidence of 3+ place hacking
@121 these are merely baseless accusations. here's my unedited gameplay to prove legitimacy: https://imgur.com/a/folded-gameplay-cyFLon2
@koadma ? You can not just change your time from 38.10 to 20.27. I beat you fair and square without any hacks along with @Kraalnaxx and @100Anonymous . I did it in 20.28 you got rekt and decided to hack the database, what a loser move.
Despite it not being in my best interests (in more ways than one), I would support @evan's reinstatement. If the deadline is midnight, the deadline should be midnight, not 11:55 or whatever.
@SimonWestlake tbf it was 11:57 from what I can see, and it takes a couple minutes for an update to go live. I could push the update on the other side, but then if someone checks in during those first couple minutes it might not count. We could do a vote?
Welcome to Folded, day 12: repeat
-Due to buggy key spawning system, I removed the gate and we will run the race again today.
-After checking in, please tell me if placing the animals from below does not make this reach 8/8
-I am pretty sure it's better coded to work on all browsers now, but do tell me if it ends up on 7/8!
-Unless you cheat, you can only submit your score ones
-True anti-cheat detection/prevention is brewing
@Bandors I think the intended question was also whether we get to choose between yesterday's score and today's score, or whether only one or the other counts.
@retr0id I know I already pulled this video earlier, but it's still perfect. https://youtu.be/ZTwCtQIEswM?si=4skLo4in8hWiE-OX
Notice how the sub-minute scores are yellow...
Edit: Never mind. I think it's just the top 3 that get highlighted based on yesterday's leaderboard screenshots.
Dang, I did it again in like 12-ish minutes, but it doesn't let me update with a better score ;(
how do people even get sub 10?
simon says: at least 10 seconds
captcha: at least 10 seconds
block breaking: at least 40 seconds
ads: at least 5 seconds
boss fight: at least 60 seconds
the platforming in between: at least 15 seconds
the animal part: at least 45 seconds per animal in hell so 225 seconds + the 3 animals above = at least 250 seconds
to check in: at least 5 seconds
thats 435 seconds > 6 minutes
@100Anonymous how did you get 4 minutes
I'm have zomething that will make the block part a bit more bearable.
Name your price.
stuck at the captcha.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
@Kraalnaxx Fun fact:
Bees are classified as fish as a legal maneuver to use the existing legal framework for fish for the conservation of bees as well.
I don't see why we can't call a cabbage an animal here.
@Quroe I've heard the bee anecdote before, good stuff. I was just fishing for clarification on if there was yet another carryable object somewhere else. Further comms with @Bandors implies something might be wrong on my end? As in I did everything I was supposed to and the key didn't spawn? I guess we'll see
If I check in without submitting a score, does that put me at the top or the bottom of the ranking?
If y'all found that too easy, here's a fun puzzle game (don't cheat lol, because that'll take the fun away and unlike this game, there's no prize):
benshindel.com/scarynumbers
I AM NOT PALYING THIS AGAIN 14:16 IS GOOD ENOUGH (SPEEDRUN HACKERS I ACTUALLY RESPECT AS THEY ARE THE REAL PROS BUT THEY SHOW THAT THE GAME DEV (@Bandors) SUCKS AT PROGRAMMING)
@Bandors Slowest in terms of being the 2nd half of players to check in, or is it counting time elapsed while logged in? Should I rush to my computer?
@Bandors only the people who are literally hacking have completed it... ummm, I've tried the goat thing like 5 different ways, so unless it's supposed to be very different than it was before, I'm pretty sure it's broken. Also, the dragon has infinite XP every time until I let it kill me at least once? is that intended?
(livestream will be at least 2 hours late todayโprior commitment) https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1yoKMoyVezDJQ
@Quroe https://www.decisionproblem.com/paperclips/index2.html is the only incremental game I enjoyed. Elevator pitch: You make paperclips.
@121 I need to find a way to get you on to an episode of Nash Pit. You play up the crowds well.
@121 I'm feeling inspired now. We're live! (You've earned a free nomination into the Contestant markets from me.) https://manifold.markets/news/nash-pit-episode-2
Do any other FOLDED participants want me to add them to the running for the Nash Pit Contestant markets? It might make for some silly politics here.
Folded, day 10: Paper and Pencil
-121 has his original curse restored.
-121 was voted second most, so has had an additional curse applied (Increased brown block clicks)
-100Anonymous was given love
@Bandors Just confirming: I still see that I checked in on the info tab. I do not need to solve the day 10 update if I checked in on the derelict iteration, correct?
Day 10 auto deploy failed, getting it up. I believe the check in is functional when a update is delayed
@Bandors Yes, but the votes seem to get applied to yesterday (which ended as a tie between Anon and Mattt, I was the last one to check in)
So. Who wants to start the conspiracy theory that there are 1337 haxxors doing battle in the mainframe to blame for this?
@Quroe sorry there is only one correct hacker fight video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfrKAP3VdZA
@retr0id Huh. I checked in, and I got to vote again for "2nd place suffering." My vote was stacked on top of the already cast votes, so there are now more votes than players.
@bens Maybe if the existing players got compensation for their reduced odds, but even then idk about that
You guys know voting for me has no use if @Bandors is a kind and forgiving god and does not allow votes to eliminate people right? I hope @Bandors does not change this because if he does, my death is instant. Voting for me has no use, I am very fast at all challenges no matter the handicap (some handicaps make the game impossible, but impossible handicaps are not possible yet as @Bandors is a kind and forgiving god as @Quroe suggested earlier).
I am stupid I voted for wrong person again, I wanted to vote for Mattt and accidentally voted Wott ๐ 2/3 votes I voted wrong ๐คท
FOLDED, Day 9: Fire
-121 was given a +25% jump power buff
-The forest is on fire
-You have to unlock the door
-Ties will be resolved via RNG
@LoganTurner When the time is right. Unfortunately there haven't been any more voting challenges. I'm enjoying your streams in the background though
Day 8 attempt stream by a guy with two thumbs: https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1YpJkBlraVjGj
(it's me, I'm the guy)
idk who to vote for so I'm starting an auction. starting bid M1, reply with new bids. winner of the auction decides who I vote for (it does not have to be yourself)
auction ends when this comment is 12h old
@retr0id Can I compound this and add my vote to the pool for a share of the pot? Edit: This is not a commitment yet, to be clear. This is a solicitation.
Check your DMs. If you have a link to the unlisted market, you're in the alliance. Otherwise, your request didn't make it in time, your request was too restrictive, or you were one of the stragglers to DM me while the window was open (because preference was given to people of similar restrictiveness if they DM'd me earlier).
Well, that didn't last long. I know somebody unauthorized viewed the unlisted market. (I just don't know who.)
I can only conclude there is a snitch. Feel free to make informal alliances.
@Quroe out of curiosity, I wonder if that kind of thing could happen by switching to an alt account while an unlisted market is open in another window. I have no particular knowledge here, just past observations that the website seems to share local state among windows.
@retr0id An especially interesting idea given that there is more than one mod in the game...
FWIW, AFAIK, mods don't have any special powers for viewing unlisted markets (unless that has changed)
OTOH, most stuff that happens on Manifold is "public" if you're sufficiently interested in finding it. and unlisted markets don't have particularly strong protections. so if someone wants to find your unlisted market, i'm pretty sure they'd be able to do so? (especially given that this is a game catering to people who are interested in that sort of tinkering. that being said, seems just as likely it's a bot or someone on an alt or just an inaccurate UI, who knows)
I made a market on who will be LOVED: https://manifold.markets/Kraalnaxx/folded-who-will-be-loved?r=S3JhYWxuYXh4
I'm finalizing stuff for the alliance. I won't fault accidental acts of aggression if they occur today.
@Kraalnaxx I will create a "secure" channel that will allow us to discuss that if we want to, assuming you're in it.
Give me 10 or so minutes to make things...
If you voted for me get rekt lol. I was first checkin. ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
Is the consensus that LOVE is a synonym for suffering? I'm about to vote but I could totally see this being a buff
@Kraalnaxx oh lmao I didn't see this before making my trade offer (assumed it would be more suffering). although, the offer still stands
โ ๏ธ TRADE OFFER โ ๏ธ
Guilt-free voting!
I know some of you may want to vote for me, for purely strategic reasons of course. But you are also kind-hearted and would feel bad voting for a poor innocent user such as myself.
If you managram me M25, you can vote for me guilt-free!
Obviously I can't stop you from voting for me without paying, but you will feel very bad about it. It will keep you awake at night.
Sleep soundly tonight for the low low price of just M25
FOLDED, Day 8: love
-121 was given a -25% jump power debuff.
-Boss fight difficulty increased
@Bandors EZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ FIRST CHECKIN EZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ I VOTED FOR @100Anonymous
The missile knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is (whichever is greater), it obtains a difference, or deviation. The guidance subsystem uses deviations to generate corrective commands to drive the missile from a position where it is to a position where it isn't, and arriving at a position where it wasn't, it now is. Consequently, the position where it is, is now the position that it wasn't, and it follows that the position that it was, is now the position that it isn't.
In the event that the position that it is in is not the position that it wasn't, the system has acquired a variation, the variation being the difference between where the missile is, and where it wasn't. If variation is considered to be a significant factor, it too may be corrected by the GEA. However, the missile must also know where it was.
The missile guidance computer scenario works as follows. Because a variation has modified some of the information the missile has obtained, it is not sure just where it is. However, it is sure where it isn't, within reason, and it knows where it was. It now subtracts where it should be from where it wasn't, or vice-versa, and by differentiating this from the algebraic sum of where it shouldn't be, and where it was, it is able to obtain the deviation and its variation, which is called error.
The missile knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is (whichever is greater), it obtains a difference, or deviation. The guidance subsystem uses deviations to generate corrective commands to drive the missile from a position where it is to a position where it isn't, and arriving at a position where it wasn't, it now is. Consequently, the position where it is, is now the position that it wasn't, and it follows that the position that it was, is now the position that it isn't.
In the event that the position that it is in is not the position that it wasn't, the system has acquired a variation, the variation being the difference between where the missile is, and where it wasn't. If variation is considered to be a significant factor, it too may be corrected by the GEA. However, the missile must also know where it was.
The missile guidance computer scenario works as follows. Because a variation has modified some of the information the missile has obtained, it is not sure just where it is. However, it is sure where it isn't, within reason, and it knows where it was. It now subtracts where it should be from where it wasn't, or vice-versa, and by differentiating this from the algebraic sum of where it shouldn't be, and where it was, it is able to obtain the deviation and its variation, which is called error.
The missile knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is (whichever is greater), it obtains a difference, or deviation. The guidance subsystem uses deviations to generate corrective commands to drive the missile from a position where it is to a position where it isn't, and arriving at a position where it wasn't, it now is. Consequently, the position where it is, is now the position that it wasn't, and it follows that the position that it was, is now the position that it isn't.
In the event that the position that it is in is not the position that it wasn't, the system has acquired a variation, the variation being the difference between where the missile is, and where it wasn't. If variation is considered to be a significant factor, it too may be corrected by the GEA. However, the missile must also know where it was.
The missile guidance computer scenario works as follows. Because a variation has modified some of the information the missile has obtained, it is not sure just where it is. However, it is sure where it isn't, within reason, and it knows where it was. It now subtracts where it should be from where it wasn't, or vice-versa, and by differentiating this from the algebraic sum of where it shouldn't be, and where it was, it is able to obtain the deviation and its variation, which is called error.
The missile knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is (whichever is greater), it obtains a difference, or deviation. The guidance subsystem uses deviations to generate corrective commands to drive the missile from a position where it is to a position where it isn't, and arriving at a position where it wasn't, it now is. Consequently, the position where it is, is now the position that it wasn't, and it follows that the position that it was, is now the position that it isn't.
In the event that the position that it is in is not the position that it wasn't, the system has acquired a variation, the variation being the difference between where the missile is, and where it wasn't. If variation is considered to be a significant factor, it too may be corrected by the GEA. However, the missile must also know where it was.
The missile guidance computer scenario works as follows. Because a variation has modified some of the information the missile has obtained, it is not sure just where it is. However, it is sure where it isn't, within reason, and it knows where it was. It now subtracts where it should be from where it wasn't, or vice-versa, and by differentiating this from the algebraic sum of where it shouldn't be, and where it was, it is able to obtain the deviation and its variation, which is called error.
@Bandors I feel like it would be much more interesting if who voted for who was kept secret
@MaskedFolder Are you pulling from this URL? It says that @121 voted for bandors. https://folded-three.vercel.app/api/players-status-public
@LoganTurner In all honesty, it would have been useful to see you vlog the "suffering" so we could all know what it would entail.
That is a really cool and useful chart. It will be... referenced... I'm sure.
@Quroe Good point! I didn't take your vote personally anyway, even if that hadn't been your motive.
@LoganTurner We all had to throw somebody under the bus. Although, it did spark some fun drama.
if you voted for me you shall be blacklisted for all my future bounties unless you pay me 1000 mana.
blacklist:
andri
bagelfan
bens
Kraalnaxx
retr0id
SimonWestlake
๐
@Kraalnaxx True, but that doesn't mean it's not also in the spirit of the game to go after us. Whether that's a good idea strategically is a different question.
Would anybody like to form a group alliance? These are the initial setup instructions for it:
DM me something to the effect of "I'm in."
DM me what you'd be willing to offer.
DM me what you'd want in return from a member of the group or the group in total.
DM me the exclusionary conditions of your joining the alliance.
I will try to find the greatest number of people whose requests, offerings, and conditions I can accommodate into a group deal without the group exceeding 50% of the remaining player count.
Just to reiterate, offerings and requests should be made in private via DM. This is a secret ballot, of sorts.
At time of comment, some people have already opened communications, showing interest in an alliance.
If your terms fit the needs of the many, I'll send an invite to a group chat. Probably a Discord server or something.
@100Anonymous The idea is that it would be a private chat that non-alliance members (and Bandors) cannot (or at least should not) listen into.
In all honesty, I do not post on Reddit and don't know how it works other than it being a good source for me to reference in Google searches at times.
Oh! Duh, we just make an unlisted Manifold market or something. "Will this market have more unique viewers than the count of the alliance members?"
@SimonWestlake With a deadline of the next cycle, we'll see who survives this culling. That will factor in to the 50% of living players limit.
I think most of the information I need to process for the alliance is at hand. We still have a bit longer before the next checkpoint opening, and everybody is checked in, so I practically know who dies this time -- nobody.
I want to put an open clarification out here: By default, I will have all non-me alliance members secret. Outsiders will not know who is a member from the get-go, but everybody within it will. We shall discuss whether we want it to become public information.
Edit: And if you leak who's in it before we come to a consensus, you're out.
@100Anonymous I hope no one votes for you as you have no mana and 48000 mana would be account changing.
@121 @100Anonymous I would just like to announce well in advance of this becoming relevant that as I am motivated solely by winning the game and not at all by winning the mana, that I am willing to spend large amounts of mana on deals and alliances
@121 If Bandors is a kind and forgiving God, he'll make it nonlethal. That just sounds fair to me.
How about if one of you guys win, you do not have to give me any mana, but if I win, I will give each alliance member 1000 mana? Your alliance have to agree not to gang up on me in future votes or other games.
@121 That's pretty tempting to me.
What does the public think?
And how do we know you'll follow through?
I might be dead (I see I already got 1 vote) but please do not vote me. My mana amount has been going down for the last month, if you vote me, I will lose my chance for 48000 mana and would be unsatisfied. [redacted sentence] ๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ ๐
If you do not vote me, send me a private message for 20 mana.
Be aware players, whoever you vote for, you are voting on who loses their chance for 48000 mana.
@retr0id you do realize the market is unofficial right? Telling others you voted for them is a bad idea. Next democracy (if I am still alive) I guarantee I will vote retr0id. @traders All others do not need to worry about my vote. I am normally a peaceful player but now I know the exact person who voted for me so I must act.
Just gonna put out there that I'm always down for an alliance. Player-to-player interaction always makes games more fun for me.
I suggest fixing the auto-clicker hack. The 200 thing does not move when autoclicked and is still very easy, the advertisements could just be autoclicked by moving mouse around and using 500% zoom before jumping on the platform, and boss fight auto click the green button, just jump.
Any spectators interested in ... uh ... playing the game? Message me for a positive sum outcome!
@nikki Also, if anyone wants me to see me try something specific on stream, let me know here or in the live chat. (As long as it's unlikely to provoke the creator's wrath.)
wait
Passwords can't be changed.
There are no hardlock conditions.
What's stopping me from pasting my password here and having the spectators who are lusting for hands-on gameplay play for me?
@Wott Bandors is probably just teasing the Battle Royale mode later. Get ready to chug some jug.
Changelog - Day 6 - July 25, 2025
Enhanced Anti-Cheat Measures:
Upgraded CAPTCHA system to better combat cheaters.
Improved rock smashing mechanics to address cheating exploits.
Gameplay Update:
Wizard character has been removed (crucified).
Miscellaneous:
Various minor fixes and improvements.
uhhh... why is the captcha cursed
You can blame me for that coming to be.
โโโ
Like, come on, bandors. You even patched out my little "inspect element" trick to easily copy the string, and you even prevented pasting too, so I can't just type it in a Word doc and paste it to prevent movement.
You've officially struck a nerve with me. (All in good fun, though.)
@Quroe Still pretty easy to get the text with temp0.children.map(c => c.innerHTML).join("")
@Bandors kindly also remember to warn us if it is possible to permanently die or get stuck for hours
Okay, day five is live. I accidentally pushed the first version with a lower amount of clicks somewhere. I will be doing cosmetic adjustments but functionally it's fine now.
lmao are these elimination messages the actual reasons or made up?
@evan well I mean the one about the flat tire seems surprisingly grounded if they're all meant to be made up, right?
@TheAllMemeingEye Made up, @Bandors was writing one for me that's now lost media because I'm gonna win.
Day four is live. I am rather confident the cheater jail cannot be false-positive'd but let me know if that does happen to someone. Entering the cheater jail will have a funny requirement to leave.
Bandors is now our mutual antagonist. If anybody finds exploits and doesn't tell bandors, they may be capable of selling this information to their fellow compatriots contestants.
I know of one exploit and would be willing to negotiate a price for it.
@Quroe Wanna post an MD5 hash of the one you know, so if it gets patched you can prove you knew it?
@LoganTurner It is done. Note, I haven't been keeping up with your coverage. If you just so happen to know it too, I am not knowledgeable about it.
920899020a0455c8ff00d2f90e99fdb1
DMs are open if anybody wants to know it for a small fee. I don't think it's a huge time saver, but it's certainly an annoyance reducer.
@bens Entertain me. I'll pay 50 mana to the person who can crack that hash before I sell its answer to anybody.
@LoganTurner I reviewed your most recent coverage video. You do not seem to know my exploit.
@evan Gemini Pro was absolutely convinced that the message is "just hold down the enter key". It took two different hashing websites and two separate python environments to get it to admit it didnโt match, lol.
@retr0id I do not think I can win, but I will pick up whatever value I can along the way and hopefully recoup my entry fee. I would even be willing to be bribed to purposefully forfeit for the right price.
@retr0id In theory, trade can be mutually beneficial here: The buyer can provide the buyer-seller EV change/2 in mana and as a result, they share the EV loss of the other competitors among themselves as trade profit. In practice, without logically omniscient agents it's probably hard to do it fairly, so I'm unlikely to sell here as well.
The Md5 Hash 920899020a0455c8ff00d2f90e99fdb1 is generated by:
You can copy and paste the character string for the Captcha.
This was patched. I have refunded anybody who bought it from me in full. (Maybe I was bought out and got snitched on to bandors. Or maybe bandors patched it unpromted. I'll never know. I'll need to find a way to account for this play...)
@Quroe Interesting! I think I tried and failed to select the chars yesterday around the 1m40s mark. Maybe it was patched after you checked in but before I did. (MD5 checks out, btw ๐)
@LoganTurner I saw you tried starting your highlight from outside the box, which is what tripped you up. You had to start highlighting just to the left of the first character.
Gone are the good ol' days, though.
Well now I'm curious, is cheater jail permanent? What about false-positives? (e.g. caused by network lag)
just to confirm, it's not possible to see what the competitors have to do each day if you aren't registered right?
@Ziddletwix @LoganTurner has been recording his daily check in. If he is eliminated, someone else would have to take up the torch.
@Ziddletwix I'll try to livestream it on Twitter tonight, but if the game has a riddle or something that I'd rather not spoil early, I'll stop the stream and wait a while before posting the full recording.
@100Anonymous I am going to avoid giving solutions in the future outside of answering if something is an error or intended gameplay.
@retr0id Helping another player is equivalent to lowering your chances of winning since there can only be one winner.
I hereby commit myself to roll a 1d20 before day 8 using the FairlyRandom bot and to drop out of the game if the roll is a 1.
EDIT:
https://manifold.markets/FairlyRandom/fairlyrandom-testing-market#defhr6nb0le
https://manifold.markets/FairlyRandom/fairlyrandom-testing-market#pfhkbzk5slh
roll result: 11
@Wott ah yes, you are right, i tried it on the test market and replies also work there
Think this will be the first day nobody dies. We've selected pretty hard against slackers and fatigue hasn't set in yet.
@Kraalnaxx I am adding a new check tomorrow that will force players back to the starting location, and then also prevent yesterday's check in button from working on the following day. I am trying to raise the annoyance by 25% each day. Someone will fold eventually.
@Kraalnaxx Instructions unclear, jumping will now have an unexpected requirement in a future day.
@LoganTurner Eh this wasn't the intended experience. Note to self, reset locations. You missed the funny part.
@Bandors Ah thanks! My position has reset now, so I'll try to include that part in the minutes before tomorrow's attempt ๐
@Bandors I skipped the captcha by falling down (because I tried jumping with the up arrow), climbing back up and approaching the button from the right.
Tomorrow is when it starts to get funny. Simple check in today so we can eliminate any players who forgot they signed up.
@Bandors When is the rollover from one day to the next? (I'm unsure if this was stated before.)
@Bandors lol @Kraalnaxx checked in with just a few minutes to spare! I was already writing your obituary!
@Bandors If we check in before you push the check-in challenge for the current day, that still counts, right?
@SimonWestlake ...I'll allow it for now, and prevent it from being able to happen for tomorrow. Give me 15 minutes people, trying to get the player info board ready also.
@Bandors Yeah that seems like the way to go haha. I didn't mean to rush you, I hope you had a nice breakfast!
@Quroe Yes (or at least I'm 99.9% sure that's what the extra number boxes are for).
I think the only advantage of an independent market in this case is that it lets you resolve NO on individuals as they drop out, instead of keeping all the mana hostage until someone has one. Given that no one knows how long this will go on, that seems like a useful feature (even with loans).
I think there's room for both a dependent and an independent version of this market, at least if there's enough demand and someone wants to spend the mana to do that.
Update is live. Please remember to check in. May the odds forever be in your favor.
Will anyone be eliminated on the first day?
https://manifold.markets/Bandors/will-anyone-be-eliminated-from-fold
Doesn't knowing precisely how the game works and how it's going to change give you an advantage? I hadn't noticed that you were on the players list. It also means that if the site experiences downtime that requires work from you, the site coming back will be perfectly synced with your availability.
EXPERIMENT BEGINS IN: 0d 8h 52m 2s
LAST CHANCE TO ENTER.
Can you beat these players to win 48,000 mana!
@Bandors Iโm thinking about screen recording my attempts on the first few days. How long after midnight UTC would you consider a respectful amount of time before posting the dayโs recording?
@LoganTurner you can post anytime, that's fine. If I do a riddle or something maybe delay then.
@snazzlePop Intriguing, but I'll have to pass. I'm still busy with real Tontine, to say nothing of life things. Thanks for thinking of me though!
If this were starting in two months from now, then Iโd participate.
Itโd be fun to have a โRound 2โ competition with my former Manifold Ironman rivals @koadma and @jim.
Alas, I have several overnight camping / backpacking trips planned over the next six weeks or so, and Iโd rather sit this out than predictably lose so early into the competition due to my pre-existing plans in the wilderness (where my internet service is spotty at best).
Related market that lasted almost exactly a year:
I've submitted my entrance fee. Place your bets! https://manifold.markets/SimonWestlake/will-i-win-the-folded-grand-prize-LytII25RnS?r=U2ltb25XZXN0bGFrZQ
@snazzlePop Yeah, but I'm also pretty busy these days, and therefore I don't expect to stay in for long. The experiment seemed fun though, so I joined. We can have our rematch some other time :D
LESS THAN 24 HOURS TO JOIN
EXPERIMENT BEGINS IN: 0d 21h 28m 16s
@Kraalnaxx account marked as paid
@evan Earlier I deleted accounts not marked as paid, I think yours got deleted then. Go ahead and register again and I'll mark you as paid.
@Kraalnaxx okay I might have forgot to mark you as paid. Waking up, let me get some coffee in me
Bet on my success here https://manifold.markets/retr0id/will-i-win-the-folded-grand-prize (think of it as buying a share of my entry fee)
@121 added check to prevent dupe usernames. doesn't really matter... the registration is closing when it goes live. Not sure how much dev work I want to put into people doing a little trolling before the event begins. I could add a captcha but like what's the point when registration is ending in a couple days. For now I just deleted accounts that are not yet marked as paid. Working on a anticheat for the main event for now...
@Kraalnaxx Also, I am pushing some updates right now so things might get weird for a minute. Trying to polish it all up before the experiment really starts.
Iโm already on level 4 and I donโt think anyone has made it past level 2 yet, unless their avatars arenโt showing up
Will the prize pool reach 100k mana?
https://manifold.markets/Bandors/will-the-price-pool-for-folded-reac
Do players need to check in on a device with a hardware keyboard? Any plan to support mobile browsers?
@LoganTurner Phones are not supported, I hate mobile users, they ruined the internet. Google forced websites to have good mobile support for better SEO. This killed historic platforms such as forums, as forums are for long form discussion and inherently bad for the new SEO algos.
tl;dr mobile users are cancer on the web
@Bandors Might be worth tweaking the description to something like,
You must visit the check-in page on a desktop browser once per day before midnight UTC.
So you donโt get a bunch of refund requests
@LoganTurner The website is linked in the post. People can try it out before paying. Technically mobile users can still participate, I am just not catering special controls to them to make it easier for mobile users.
@Bandors That's actually what I did, and I was still confused: I visited the page on my phone, signed up, and part of the not-confirmed message was cut off. The player character was totally off-screen, so I wasn't even sure if I was missing something. That's why I ended up asking you about it.
@Bandors how many have joined already, and what happens when you receive more than 30.000 mana, is that just profit for the game master?
@TheWabiSabi I am adding all new entries to the prize pool. I am crunching numbers and calculating the new prize pool now, we had a few people join!
@Bandors In your opinion, if I launched Nash Pit Episode 2's Contestant pool markets now, would that be helpful or hurtful to this game show?
I can't tell if simultaneous game shows running in parallel world synergize or compete with each other.
@Bandors I'm guessing you don't intend to drag this out for months, right? This seems MSCHF Tontine inspired, but do you think this will finish off in a month?
@Bandors Got it! I have the Nash Pit Ep 2 Contestant selection market saved in my market drafts and ready to post at any time.
I've been holding off on posting it because I've had some life events to keep up with, so I wanted to ensure I could properly run the game show around my new life.
I propose to form a team of 5-10 individuals using a shared account, with entry fee divided accordingly among the participants. This allows for broader participation and I believe will have some other benefits as well. Please message me if interested in joining my team for more details. EDIT: Teams are not allowed apparently.
Alternate idea: sub-pools. Players can team up and share the winnings based on a mutual agreement.
@jim been thinking about coming out of retirement for it but feeling reluctant.
My life is busier now since the Ironman Championship, and I spend less time on Manifold.
Six players so far, and a 22,000 mana prize pool! Come get your spot for this event! Now with 200% more website security
I am offering bootleg account activations. Only 20 mana each. Please don't ask any questions. All sales are final.
I thought my RLS was decent
had old RLS, try now...
It just had old RLS
I'm sure you're referring to something else but this is the only thing that comes up in the entire page 1 of search results if I web search it lol
โ ๏ธTrade offerโ ๏ธ
You receive: 60 mana (instead of 2000 mana)
I receive: (60/2000)*100 = 3% of the prize if I win (rather than 100%)
@TheAllMemeingEye I would offer you 1940 mana in exchange for 97% of the prize if you win, but I think a buy-in of only 60 mana is not enough to motivate you to win
@retr0id a very intriguing offer! I suppose it could work like us pooling the mana for the ticket and dividing the winnings accordingly, with me playing on our collective behalf. I'm mainly proposing 60 mana because that's approximately the most I emotively feel comfortable having a high probability of losing.
@TheAllMemeingEye It is a +EV proposition for the both of us if we think you have a higher-than-average chance of winning vs the other contestants. And I think that's unlikely if you have less at stake vs other contestants - but I could be convinced otherwise!
@retr0id hmmm, I have pretty long streaks on here and Duolingo
but at the same time I don't have much experience with puzzle games.
Would you be open to being the player instead under a similar-ish mana split? (not sure if it benefits you for me to be contributing/taking more or less)
If you get stuck on a puzzle you can message me and I'll try to help you solve it at some point that day.
@TheAllMemeingEye could you be convinced to go up to M100? If you were and @retr0id were also interested, I'd be happy to go halves in helping sponsor your run
I.e. an entry fee split of 100:950:950 (and proportionate winnings split)
Also open to other proposals (and ofc you're also more than welcome to ignore my proposal)
@Nat would you also be willing to help brainstorm puzzle solutions if I get stuck?
@Bandors is the later proposal for achieving a similar end via pooling the cost with other users also forbidden?
@TheAllMemeingEye Trying to keep it simple. 2k mana = one ticket, ticket given to the user who sends the mana. If you make a deal between each other, that's between you two.
@TheAllMemeingEye can't guarantee I'd always be able to respond in a prompt enough manner to be helpful (most weekdays would be unavailable outside of roughly 02:00-10:00 UTC) but yeah if I'm free I'm absolutely happy to help (and I have been known to enjoy a good puzzle or two ๐)
@Nat @retr0id ok although right now I'm focussing on this market ( /TheAllMemeingEye/will-i-successfully-respond-to-all ), fortunately we have 5d until the game starts, so tomorrow probably I'll request your contributions to the ticket and enter, if you're up for it still
@TheAllMemeingEye FWIW, if @retr0id is not interested in my proposal, I'd also be happy to simply cover the remaining 1900 mana for your entry myself (i.e. an entry fee split of 100:1900, and proportionate winnings)
@Nat My apologies, I think I have to decline, I am struggling to stay on top of tasks, such that I don't think I would be able to effectively compete, but best of luck if you still want to enter yourself
@TheAllMemeingEye that's perfectly fair and very understandable, I've been hesitant to enter myself for precisely the same reason haha
Best of luck getting on top of things though!
@100Anonymous Managram me the 300 and then sign up, and I'll mark your account as paid and add the remaining 1700 to the prize pool.