Day selection and private night questioning
- A jailed target cannot perform its normal night ability.
- The prisoner is protected from ordinary attacks while jailed.
- Jail chat gives the Jailor a private claim before the next public discussion can shape the story.
Execution limits
You have three executions, cannot execute on Night 1, and lose the ability to execute after executing a Town member. Jailing remains available after that mistake. A prisoner’s death is not interchangeable with a guilty trial vote: Executioner and Jester objectives specifically need a hanging.
Choose between information, detention and execution
Early game
Early jails are information actions first. Ask for the exact role, prior targets, planned action and a concise reason for the claim. A player who has to improvise those details privately is easier to compare with the story they tell the town later.
Mid game
Executions become safer when several independent clues converge: incompatible claim space, night feedback, visitor evidence and vote behavior. The Jailor has unusually high downside for a wrong irreversible decision, so “suspicious” should not automatically mean “execute.”
Endgame
Near parity, the Jailor must think one full cycle ahead. Jailing the likely killer can deny the night kill even without executing, while a correct execution may immediately restore Town control. Count votes before choosing between information, control and removal.
Record prisoners and their original claims
A Jailor claim can be provable through prisoners who confirm jail chat. Keep a private record of whom you jailed, what they claimed before the day began and whether any execution was used.
Verify the jail sequence with prisoners
When someone claims Jailor, ask prior prisoners to verify the jail sequence. Also test whether the claimed prisoner could have performed a night action; impossible simultaneous actions are strong mechanical evidence.
Important interactions
- Jailing suppresses the prisoner’s normal night action, which can explain a missing investigative or killing result.
- Because the prisoner is protected while jailed, an attacker selecting that target may produce no death even without Doctor or Bodyguard involvement.
- Transporter and roleblock stories should be compared carefully with jailing because multiple forms of control can otherwise be confused.
Decision example: jailor target choice
A claimed Sheriff says they checked Player 8 on Night 2, but you jailed that Sheriff on Night 2. Because the prisoner could not perform the claimed check, the contradiction is mechanical rather than behavioral. That is the kind of evidence that justifies much more confidence than a vague tone read.
A prisoner is not always a harmless prisoner
Ordinary jailing stops the prisoner’s normal action, but dangerous special interactions remain. A Serial Killer spared in jail can retaliate against the Jailor, and Pestilence has exceptional immunities. Do not treat “I can keep the killer jailed” as a universal safety guarantee. Check the suspected role before relying on detention without execution.
Keep three separate records: the day you selected the prisoner, the claim collected in jail chat, and whether an execution was selected. A prisoner’s unsupported assertion that they were attacked outside jail is different from feedback you personally received.
Common mistakes
- Executing on one weak contradiction when the jail itself already neutralizes the suspected killer for the night.
- Wasting private chat by asking only “role?” instead of collecting a full timeline.
- Revealing every jail target too early and giving evil roles an easy map of Town information.
