Shelby

**Shelby** was a contestant of SurviVARs: Evolution.

## **Profile**

**Discord:** spyontheinside

**Gender:** they/them

**Timezone:** CST

Shelby was our Hero, and one of the most captivating players because of it. In a cast of mostly chaotic villains, Shelby was a stable and honorable hero. They made big moves, and ended up running a lot of the game with Hope’s help, but never did this with a hint of malice or cruelty. They were a lovely presence, and offered a lot of stability to a wild season. They were a real contender to win it all, until Touchy Subjects exposed their position on top of the game. Their downfall was one of the biggest moves of the season’s villain, which creates some lovely poetry for the arc of the endgame. Shelby pulled off an epic game without immunity wins or advantages, which is even more impressive. Thank you for giving us everything you did, Shelby. You’re a real rock star.

### **Nominations**

**Best Move (Drew's Blindside)**

Anytime someone goes home with an idol in their pocket, it’s impressive for the players who pulled off the blindside. It’s even more impressive when the player with the idol is on top of the tribe and is situated to take the game by storm. Drew had been subtly influencing every vote he participated in, while using players like JC to buff his threat level. It wasn’t long before someone caught on to this, and his immunity idol made him even more of a target. After the chaos of the Sorbet vote, and then the unanimous Jack vote, an organized blindside against Drew was the last thing anyone expected (especially Drew). He went from a dark horse contender with a real shot to win to an early juror with an idol in his pocket.

**Best Move (Serbet's Blindside)**

It’s really a shame that this was the Tribal Council with the parchment fiasco, because it overshadowed what is easily one of the most interesting Tribal Councils in SurviVARS history. We’ve never seen a 5-3-2-1 vote before, and that alone earns it some recognition. This round was insane to follow, but that’s part of why it was so fun. No player knew everything this round, and even the UTR power players like Hope and Kyle were left in the dark. Arceus wasted an idol, Hope received her first votes all season, Drew was almost eliminated with a single vote if more idols had shown up (because Serbet would’ve idled and Drew was planning to idol Hope if that happened), and then ultimately Serbet went home despite being a top contender and major force within the season. Serbet had an idol that he didn’t use, and a cross-tribe alliance took him out in the middle of the arc where tribal lines were deeper than ever. This round was so chaotic that Jack wound up being robbed just as much as Serbet, because people wanted an easy vote after so much chaos. This vote was chaotic, iconic, and ultimately a VERY good move for the five players who took out Serbet.

**Voice of the Season**

Shelby was one of the most beloved voices on this cast. They were humble and sincere, but still sharply intelligent and well-informed. Not to mention their meme game was always on point, and their confessional was a bright spot in otherwise dark moments. Thanks to their position as the social center of this game, they usually knew what was going on and their updates helped spec lounge a lot. I’m thankful for how much love and effort they put into this game, and for the heart they filled this season with.

**Player of the Game**

Shelby was one of our most consistent Edgic contenders, only missing two episodes while they were in the game. Everyone loved them, and they were topping trust rankings left and right. They didn’t have immunity idols or advantages. All they had was their social game, but it was one of the best we’ve ever seen. Everyone was content to let them continue running the game, and they had people like Hope and Kyle who helped make this happen. They had a social death grip on this cast, and didn’t receive a single vote until Kyle decided it was time to cut them. If Kyle didn’t have an EV, Shelby may have won the season. I don’t think that’s a stretch to imagine. They were the hero of the season, but they played a damn good game on top of that and deserve the credit where it’s due.

### **Awards**

**Hero**

Some players rule through challenge prowess. Others win through advantages and clever moves. And some players just social game their way through thick and thin, and nobody pulled this type of game off like Shelby. Some people’s social game revolves around deception and manipulation, but not Shelby. The core of their social game was just being likable, and Shelby had no problem with this. Everyone wanted to work with them at every step of the game, and the only times they got blindsided were when they got too powerful and people needed to bring them down a notch. They were loyal to their allies and played a strong, clean game. They were positive in their confessionals, and a lovely presence to everyone who interacted with them.

**Best Duo (With Hope)**

Hope and Shelby played this game very very well. They swapped together, and Hope was able to get in close with Shelby despite being on the bottom of OG tribe numbers. Even when Hope played against Shelby by eliminating Nicko, they reached the merge together and became a powerful force. Between the two of them, it looked like they controlled every vote. They were integral parts of the Serbet and Drew blindsides, which were two of the biggest moves of the game, and they were set to be the rulers of the merge. Touchy Subjects was not good for either of them, though, and their power position was exposed. Kyle was able to use his EV to knock out Shelby, ending this duo’s reign. This season had a LOT of duos, but Hope and Shelby were arguably the most powerful and influential of them all.