Aaryn Gries

I will have mine up this evening. I work 'til 7 EST and have an appointment shortly after.

Hey, jury.

It’s kind of felt like forever ago that this game started. But my initial strategy coming in was to get a few allies and develop some relationships that would keep me safe the first little while. I quickly aligned myself with Elissa, Janelle, Cassi and Shane in the first round. Another part of my initial strategy was to not come off too strong in the challenges… but that plan was very quickly blown to shit, haha. Early suspicions of a boys alliance led to the ‘Bitches of the Night’ alliance being formed which included all the remaining BB girls at the time. Our alliance, although slightly fractured, dominated and most of the boys were sent packing. I did my best to keep up my social game and had decent relationships with basically everyone on the BB side come merge.

At merge, the Big Brother players all agreed that it would be best to target the Survivor players and that we did. Eventually, there came a point where I needed to pick between my two closest allies at the time (Elissa and Cassi) but I went against Cassi just because Elissa and I had vowed F2 to one another and I felt more comfortable working with her and my other allies. A figurative line had been drawn in the sand after Cassi’s departure but Elissa and I managed to keep most of the control with our challenge wins, strategy and social skills. Not everything went according to plan (ie. Jordan’s elimination and Josh’s numerous powers) but I think I proved fairly resilient and recovered well in all cases. Once all the big threats were out, it was basically just a matter of taking out my allies that weren't Elissa in order to ensure we F2'd!

Overall, I think I did a good job of playing the game strategically, competitively and socially. Strategically, Elissa and I dominated most of the early and late game. We discussed nearly everything together and always consulted one another before going ahead with decisions unless it was an obvious choice that didn’t require consulting. Competitively, I won +/- 10 challenges and still managed to make it this far without being targeted a whole lot. Socially, I had a lot of good relationships with people and used these connections in order to advance myself and my allies as far as I could take them. Despite being an obvious challenge threat, my name managed to stay pretty clear of the radar just because I kept my allies close and always tried to ensure that there were more people with me than against me. I also tried to keep the lying to a minimum.

I don’t want to get to in-depth with my game play right now just because I know I’m going to be asked several questions regardless. That and I see some of you online right now and don’t want to keep you waiting!

Bring on the questions!

Lol so Elissa was in an all girl alliance. Hmm interesting.

Hey boo<3

So here are my questions:

1) How loyal were you to me? I trusted you the most in the game, and was wondering what your intentions were for me, honestly? You offered me a final three with you/Elissa, and was that true?

2) At final five would I have stayed over Jordan, had I not made that move when I did to get rid of her?

3) Try to identify all of the jury, as to who they are on IMDb.


Thanks!

Congratulations on Final Two, Aaryn. I have one question for you.

In the jury house, there is a lot of talk going on about you lying to people when it would serve no purpose, since they were being voted out anyway. And lying at other times simply because, to the views of the jury, you could. As you have said that you wanted to keep the lying to a minimum, what are your thoughts on learning of this?

Eddie Fox wrote:

Hey boo<3

So here are my questions:

1) How loyal were you to me? I trusted you the most in the game, and was wondering what your intentions were for me, honestly? You offered me a final three with you/Elissa, and was that true?

2) At final five would I have stayed over Jordan, had I not made that move when I did to get rid of her?

3) Try to identify all of the jury, as to who they are on IMDb.


Thanks!

Hey Eddie! <3

1) I was definitely loyal to you but I was more loyal to Elissa and Janelle. After Cassi was gone, I was easily closest with you, Elissa and Janelle. My intentions were to go F4 with you and then vote you out. The F3 deal that I offered was not genuine because I mostly just needed to ensure that you stuck with us for the votes. I felt a bit bad lying about that, but then you went and voted for Jordan and Elissa at F7 and F5. I had trusted you up until those points and so after that I was kind of like "well fuck it... if he can lie to me, I can lie to him"

2) I would have pushed for you to stay if that had been the case. It's hard to say whether or not it would have happened because, truthfully, Elissa and I would have had a better shot at going to the end if you were out of the picture at F5. But the selfish part of me would have definitely wanted you to stay because I knew you'd have been more willing to go further with me as opposed to Jordan since I wasn't really sure what she was thinking.

3) This is tricky because I only think I know one, lol.

Sierra - I only had 1 conversation with her and it was the round that she was leaving. Tough call. HarleyStodden
Sophie - tough one because her and I didn't talk much but I thought she was well-spoken. I'm going to say JB.
Jessie - another tough one. From what I could tell she seemed smart and articulate but I didn't talk to her long enough to get a good idea. I'll guess homecomingguardking
Cassi - very good at challenges. She gave me PRP/Jessica vibes so I'll guess that but I don't think that's right.
Shane - someone that was kind of soft spoken and very social. I'm going to guess Cindy/Tara just based on his social gameplay right off the bat.
Jordan - wasn't really vocal enough for me to get a good idea. I'll guess... Alaina?
Todd - he always gave me Henry vibes. So Henry.  
Josh - someone that is really good at challenges when he needs to be. I'm going to guess Robs_Film89.  
Eddie - I already mentioned that I have no clue who you could be but you were good socially and I think you were good competitively too. I'm going to guess Firebolt.
Janelle - she kind of puzzled me and I really have no idea but she did give me Daniel vibes sometimes. So Daniel.

Thanks and good luck!

Yeah. So I thought the round I left we were going to be in this new powerhouse alliance and everything would be fine the next few eliminations, and then I leave. Did you try to get me to stay, or knew you were fine either way so it didn't matter if me or Jessie went?

Which pre-juror would you have wanted to be a juror, and who on the jury would you kick off if you could?

For fun: What's a better word game, Scrabble or Pictionary?

Jessie Camacho wrote:

Congratulations on Final Two, Aaryn. I have one question for you.

In the jury house, there is a lot of talk going on about you lying to people when it would serve no purpose, since they were being voted out anyway. And lying at other times simply because, to the views of the jury, you could. As you have said that you wanted to keep the lying to a minimum, what are your thoughts on learning of this?

Hey Jessie,

My thoughts on learning about this is that I'm a little bit surprised but I can definitely understand it. I felt as though most of the lying I did served a purpose and I will do a juror-by-juror analysis of who I lied to and why.

Sierra - I told her that I was voting her out. I'm confident I didn't lie to her about anything.
Sophie - hands down the most unnecessary lying on my part right here. Lying to Sophie didn't really benefit me anything. I lead her on to believe that me, Eddie and Elissa were going to take you out that round.  
Jessie - We only talked once and it was very brief. I'm also confident I didn't lie to you.
Cassi - I lied to Cassi but thought it served a purpose. The plan was to blindside her and lead her and Josh into thinking that we were voting for Josh. We were mostly concerned about HII's getting played that round. To ensure that didn't happen, I avoided telling them the truth. I also lied to her when she asked if I was feeding information to Elissa. Telling her the truth about that would have turned my game into a mess (although I'm more than confident she had already had her doubts with me).
Shane - I lied to him about voting for Josh the round Cassi left. Elissa and I wanted to determine where his loyalties were so I believe it served a purpose. When he voted for Jordan, we knew he wasn't with us.
Josh - lied to him about voting for him when we voted Cassi that round. See Cassi's description for reasons why I believe that served a purpose. Lying to him about voting for Jordan at F7 served less of a purpose. I just wanted to ensure that it wasn't my ass he was coming after that round so I fabricated a lie and pretended I was going to vote for Jordan.
Jordan - I barely talked to her and therefore didn't lie to her. I guess Elissa, myself and her had a F3 but that was something Elissa told her. Not me.
Todd - I don't recall lying to him about anything. I think we agreed to keep each other safe if need be at F8. But then he lied to me about voting for Shane that same round which he didn't.
Eddie - I lied about the F3 alliance of myself, him and Elissa. Otherwise I was honest with him.
Janelle - Her and I never committed to a F2 and therefore I didn't feel as though I was breaking her any promises when I voted her off. I guess I semi-lied to her by implying that I didn't know who I would take F2 (which I obviously knew). But what was I supposed to do? Tell her the truth and that I wanted to boot her off? Or straight up lie and tell her I would take her F2 which wouldn't have been the case? I think I chose the best option.

I think the main reason I may seem a little surprised by people reacting that way is simply because a few of those people had lied to me before. Most of my lying was game/strategy related and I personally don't feel bad about lying to people who have lied to me. The only lies I would deem completely unnecessary were the lies to Sophie. Perhaps what I should have said was that I tried to keep the unnecessary lying to a minimum.

so im very proud of you winning all those challenges, i can understand how it feels to win so many challenges  however, i think between you and elissa, elissa made a little bit more effort to get to know me, at least pre-merge and shortly after merge. i am not gonna ask ridiculous questions like, how loyal were you to me because i know you were not lol. You had no reason to be.


however, like i said, i think elissa played a stronger social game. as for strategic, i am not sure which one of you was stronger so one question for you is:

was there any round pre- or post-merge in which YOU were the person to decide who went home that round? Like, in any round, was the person you suggested to go home the one that eventually went home? I am not talking about mutual decisions you made with Elissa either. I want you to tell me the times you decided who was going to go home, whether Elissa agreed or disagreed with you.

as for physical game, you win that one. so my vote will be based on social, strategic and physical games and right now the score is 1-1. thanks girl and good luck!!!

First of all, congrats. I think you played a great game.

Now I want to talk about my vote. This is going to both of you.
I don't know if you know this or not but when I was voted out....
*pulls HII out from behind her back*
I had this.
So you played up that lying very well. Now I knew that you were with Elissa over me that round, but I still felt like you wanted me to stay so I figured Josh was the vote. Other things also made me think Josh was the vote too, but that was one of the reasons.

Now Im actually a little upset with you. You were my number 1 ally throughout the entire game. So to know that you so easily lied to me and screwed me over, is upsetting. And if I had played my idol on myself that night and then stayed, you would have been my #1 target just because I trusted you so much. However clearly it was a smart move as you are in the finals.

I want to know. Had you not lied to me and sided with me over Elissa. Do you think you would still be in finals?

From the looks of things it seems like Elissa was the leader of your final 3 alliance with Janelle? Was she? I would also like examples of things you did or decided, then made her go along with it.

I also want to know which 3 jurors, you think fought the hardest in this game? Please do not say Janelle, Eddie and Josh because they were the last 3 jurors. I want to know who you honestly believe fought the hardest in this game.

I may have more questions later, I forgot what all I wanted to address. lol

Sophie Clarke wrote:

Yeah. So I thought the round I left we were going to be in this new powerhouse alliance and everything would be fine the next few eliminations, and then I leave. Did you try to get me to stay, or knew you were fine either way so it didn't matter if me or Jessie went?

Which pre-juror would you have wanted to be a juror, and who on the jury would you kick off if you could?

For fun: What's a better word game, Scrabble or Pictionary?

Hey Sophie,

Truthfully, I didn't campaign overly hard for you to stay because the plan had basically been set in stone that it was going to be either you or Eddie leaving that round. I was already much closer with Eddie and therefore the target shifted to you. Jessie wasn't targeted because she couldn't compete in the next Immunity/HOH (whichever it was) and Todd somehow avoided discussion altogether. I would have liked to have voted Jessie off that round just because I trusted you more, but it would have made things more messy for Elissa and I.

Had we voted with you, it would have created serious trust issues for myself and Elissa with the remaining BB players. Therefore it would have put me in a way worse position when I was already sitting in an OK spot. For those reasons I could not risk it.

I would probably have wanted Lisi on the jury just because her and I chatted a little bit come merge. She seemed level-headed and I really wanted to work with her but she was sadly evicted the first round after merge. I would probably boot Jordan just because I talked to her the least of the jurors throughout the game.

Scrabble >>>>>> Pictionary

Thank you for the in depth response. I know that I'm still undecided with my vote, and now my cat is c5wylinh wsll obrrt my gve so i'll finsihj ujod lsyrt.

I mean that "my cat it crawling all over my face, so I'll finish this later." And now he gets up. Anyway.

I think that this will be a close vote from everyone. There is a lot of debate in the jury house right now, so it will be exciting to see the finale.

Todd Herzog wrote:

Aaryn, representing District 13!!

so im very proud of you winning all those challenges, i can understand how it feels to win so many challenges  however, i think between you and elissa, elissa made a little bit more effort to get to know me, at least pre-merge and shortly after merge. i am not gonna ask ridiculous questions like, how loyal were you to me because i know you were not lol. You had no reason to be.


however, like i said, i think elissa played a stronger social game. as for strategic, i am not sure which one of you was stronger so one question for you is:

was there any round pre- or post-merge in which YOU were the person to decide who went home that round? Like, in any round, was the person you suggested to go home the one that eventually went home? I am not talking about mutual decisions you made with Elissa either. I want you to tell me the times you decided who was going to go home, whether Elissa agreed or disagreed with you.

as for physical game, you win that one. so my vote will be based on social, strategic and physical games and right now the score is 1-1. thanks girl and good luck!!!

omfg my browser has crashed TWICE while trying to write this response up. Anyways...

Hi Todd,

I feel as though I had the upper hand in the following votes... 100%.

1) Drew - I was HOH this round and targeted him for two reasons. The first being that it was around the time that Shane had hinted a boys alliance to me and I got nervous. Drew had a penis and therefore could have very well been involved with that. The second being that he was a wildcard. We knew Rachel wasn't that good at challenges whereas Drew never got to show his ability. I was concerned he could show up, win and HOH and gun for me.

2) Shane (first attempt) - so Shane didn't actually go home this round, but I was HOH and made it extremely clear to Josh that I had wanted either Shane or Neil to leave after he won the Veto. Once he chose to save Neil (who I wanted to leave since Josh won POV) I put the target on Shane. Howie ended up leaving instead due to Cassi going against the Bitches of the Night.

3) Sierra (first attempt) - I had made a connection with Lisi shortly after the merge and we kind of decided to watch each other's backs for the time being. When Cassi nominated her and Sierra, I knew that I immediately wanted Sierra to leave because I could potentially use Lisi later on. Unfortunately, someone from the BB side flipped and booted off my girl Lisi.

4) Jessie - I don't know what it was about Jessie, but she always struck me as the strongest Survivor player and therefore I had wanted her out for a while. When I won HOH at F10, I set my sights on Jessie and successfully got her out of the game.

5) Janelle - This one was my 100% my decision, obviously.

I know... that's only 5 out of how many players and only 3 of those 5 actually went home. But I'm trying to keep it as real as possible and let you know that, even if my plan didn't work sometimes, it was still my suggestion. Elissa and I made some decisions mutually. Other decisions were so incredibly obvious that neither of us should really take credit for them (Josh's boot, Shane's boot, Todd's boot). Elissa definitely had the upperhand on some decisions (Erik, Cassi, Eddie, the first attempt at voting Todd off). Others I can't remember at all (Dan, Rachel). And some I don't think either of us had the upper hand (Sophie).

Is it confirmed that I saved Shane or just rumored? Because I didn't save Shane.

That was just my assumption.  I don't know who it was then. Whoever it was did a damn good job of keeping it secret.

Lol Im just kidding it was me. Fuck Howie.  The real mystery is who kept voting with the Survivors come merge.

LOL gurrrrllllllllllllllllll

Yeah idk who that person was. I assumed Josh but was never sure.

Cassi Colvin wrote:

First of all, congrats. I think you played a great game.

Now I want to talk about my vote. This is going to both of you.
I don't know if you know this or not but when I was voted out....
*pulls HII out from behind her back*
I had this.
So you played up that lying very well. Now I knew that you were with Elissa over me that round, but I still felt like you wanted me to stay so I figured Josh was the vote. Other things also made me think Josh was the vote too, but that was one of the reasons.

Now Im actually a little upset with you. You were my number 1 ally throughout the entire game. So to know that you so easily lied to me and screwed me over, is upsetting. And if I had played my idol on myself that night and then stayed, you would have been my #1 target just because I trusted you so much. However clearly it was a smart move as you are in the finals.

I want to know. Had you not lied to me and sided with me over Elissa. Do you think you would still be in finals?

From the looks of things it seems like Elissa was the leader of your final 3 alliance with Janelle? Was she? I would also like examples of things you did or decided, then made her go along with it.

I also want to know which 3 jurors, you think fought the hardest in this game? Please do not say Janelle, Eddie and Josh because they were the last 3 jurors. I want to know who you honestly believe fought the hardest in this game.

I may have more questions later, I forgot what all I wanted to address. lol

Hi Cassi,

I honestly don't think I would have made the finals had I sided with you that vote. I would have been turning against a lot of my friends (Elissa, Eddie and Janelle) and sided with you/Josh/Todd/Shane. I never felt overly close to Todd. And although I got along with Josh and Shane, I never felt as though they had my best interest. It would have been a tougher battle for me going forward had I sided with you guys. I'm not saying making finals would have been impossible by any means, but it would have been tougher to picture.

I already posted some examples of the decisions that I would say I made in our alliance. The main decisions of mine were the votes of Drew, Shane (attempt #1), Sierra (attempt #1), Jessie and Janelle (OBVI). I brought Elissa into an alliance with Eddie and I when him and I first started talking about teaming up. My alliance and relationship with Eddie was pivotal to my game especially because he helped me eliminate several people that we needed out. I also made a solo decision to use a vote doubler the round Erik left. Elissa once told me something along the lines of "we have a F3 with Jordan so you should talk to her and let her know you're aware she's alive" lmao Elissa <333. But I chose not to because that F3 was never my intention nor my idea. So I definitely made my own decisions from time to time.

Was Elissa the leader? No. We were a duo as Elissa and I discussed earlier this evening over messages. But I did try my best to make it seem as though Elissa was the leader of the alliance. There were times when it came down to the vote and I would be like "Just tell me how to vote LOL" and shit like that to make it appear as though I wasn't as involved in the decision making process as I was. I put a big enough target on my back by winning numerous challenges... so I didn't want people to think I was calling the shots. Elissa would often post in the chat rooms who we were voting for and what not. I always knew of the plan ahead of time, but by her posting it gave people the impression that she was in charge and that's exactly what I wanted. I wanted to appear "second in command" so that if anyone ever expressed interest in going after the two of us, they would consider taking Elissa out first.

I believe that you fought the hardest in the game (of the eligible options) and that's not me trying to kiss ass either. I feel as though you definitely fought harder than Todd, Jordan and Shane. Jessie and Sophie seemed very into the game as well but I think you've got the edge on those two. You were an extremely active competitor and played a good game overall.

It wasn't me lol. I was loyal to BB until the round Cassi went.

I'm going to ask more personal questions in a bit but for lack of something creative rank the jury based on the loyalty you had to them and also rank them based on how well you think they played.

Also Aaryn who do you think it was that voted with the survivors around the merge time?

Response to Josh

Based on loyalty, I would rank the jury members as follows.

1. Janelle - I was easily the most loyal to her of the jurors. We had been aligned since very early on and she never did anything to make me question her loyalty to me.
2. Eddie - The next two are really close. I will say Eddie next just because him and I hit off and managed to maintain a fairly honest relationship for a while.
3. Cassi - She was my second closest ally after Elissa. Her and I got along really well and I wanted to stay loyal to her as long as I possibly could. Eventually, there came a point where I had to betray either Elissa or Cassi and so I chose to stay with Elissa.
4. Shane - Him and I got along and he was a fair ally. I sort of dropped trust in him after the boys alliance was confirmed but then we smoothed it over. Then he sided with you later on and so my loyalty to him died quickly. He was a good guy... I would have shown him more loyalty had he sided with me.
5. Jordan - Her and I rarely talked but I felt more loyalty to her than others simply because she was a BB player and was a loyal member of Bitches of the Night.
6. Sophie - Her and I became friends the same round that she was booted. Had she not been the target that round, I think her and I could have worked nicely together.
7. Josh - Of the BB players, I definitely felt the least loyal to you. We got along fine but I always considered you dangerous... probably because I assumed you had voted for Lisi and myself at F14 and F13 (apparently I was assumed wrong). I rank you higher than most the Survivor players simply because I didn't talk a whole lot to the remaining 3.
8. Todd - him and I didn't talk a whole lot but I thought he was funny and enjoyed his presence.
9. Sierra - never had loyalty to her, but I would have sooner worked with her than Jessie.
10. Jessie - never had loyalty to her either.

As far as who I think voted with the Survivors those rounds. Hmm...

It definitely wasn't Cassi or Elissa. Janelle and Jordan had always proved loyal to myself and Elissa so I don't think it was them. Apparently it wasn't you who voted against us? So I guess by process of elimination that leaves... Shane?!

Now... based on who I think played the best games.

1. Josh - You were a great competitor and played the game well enough socially that had you made finals, I think you would have had a good shot at winning. At the point you were voted off, you had several friends on the jury (Cassi, Todd, Jessie, Shane) that would have definitely considered voting for you. I don't think you played amazing strategically... but you definitely did a good job enough job. You were an underdog considering how long you managed to last and how many times Elissa and I wanted you out. Competitively, you managed to win most of the competitions that you needed to and used those wins to, literally, buy yourself more time in the game.

2. Eddie - I considered his gameplay amusing. He was quick to go against his allies shortly after merge and side with me of all people, lol. That was smart of him, though... because it ensured he got a lot farther than he might have gotten. He mostly did what he was told up until he voted Jordan off. He made some really odd choices after that. First, he came running back to us ladies. I was kind of like... what? :DHe was then somehow OK with voting Todd out the next round, though. Janelle gave me a double vote that round to ensure she stayed even if he attempted to flip again which he didn't. But then he flipped a third time and tried to vote off Elissa after that! Had he succeeded with that and made finals, he could have presented a really interesting argument for why people should vote him to win. He gets points for being the last Survivor player standing and did well enough socially, competitively and strategically.

3. Cassi - She was strong competitively and definitely did a good job socially. She had made some friendships on the Survivor side which was smart but I think her biggest mistake was that she didn't have a very good poker face. She was pretty quiet in the 'Bitches of the Night' chat room and it quickly became well known that she was close with Josh. Those factors combined and it was kind of like this when the votes came out and Howie was evicted:



But overall, she played a really strong game. Had she not been eliminated the round she left, it very well could have been both her and Josh sitting in myself and Elissa's spots.

4. Janelle - Janelle played a pretty solid game. She was loyal to her allies, didn't piss off anyone and really stepped it up competitively towards the end of the game. Strategically, she was mostly doing whatever Elissa and I had planned. But she played it very well socially and had quite a few people that would have been willing to listen to what she had to say if she made finals. I think her only downfall was probably staying as loyal to Elissa and I as she did. Had she made a move against one of us, she would have had a better shot at winning.

5. Jessie - I think she did the best of the remaining Survivor players. I didn't talk a lot with her behind the scenes, but based on what I could tell she was articulate and seemed to have a good grasp on what was going on. She had ties with BB players (Josh and Cassi) which is one of the reasons I considered her dangerous. Competitively and socially she did pretty good. Had the Survivor players managed to take control of the game after merge, I think she would have made it a lot farther.

6. Shane - I think he played a good game. He started off the game by playing all sides, got caught and managed to go right back to playing all sides again. Eventually, that gameplay caught up with him after myself and Elissa tricked him into thinking the F9 vote was for Josh. But it was a strategy that worked well and got himself pretty far in the game.

7. Todd - I never really knew a lot about Todd. I think he did an OK job in all aspects of the game (competitively, socially and strategically). He fell on the wrong side of the numbers shortly after merge but he had friends amongst the BB side who kept the target off of his back. He managed to make it pretty far in the game and even saved himself from getting booted at F8.

8. Sophie - I definitely got the impression that Sophie was a smart girl during my conversations with her. Similarly to Jessie, I think she could have been dangerous had the Survivor side taken control shortly after merge. The difference between her and Jessie was simply that I think Jessie had better connections on the BB side that were willing to keep her safe. She made connections with BB a little too late. But I would say she did a fair enough job competitively and socially.

9. Sierra - She was a strong challenge competitor and I think she played well socially considering the hand she was dealt. She suffered a bit of bad luck having come from a tribe of mostly inactive players and was quickly targeted come merge. Had Sophie not won Veto at F12she probably would have made it a bit further. She proved to be a fighter by pulling off the votes to stay at F14 and she managed to get 2 people to vote Eddie at F12.

10. Jordan - Strategically, she was basically just doing whatever she was told to do. She definitely benefited from having a vagina in the early stages of the game and was carried pretty far by myself and the other girls because she had one. Had she somehow managed to make finals, I don't think she would have had a shot in hell at winning.