Brick's Speech (ROTI)

Wow.  It’s been a long journey to the top.  Probably only a few weeks, but it feels like months.  After getting fourth place last season, making it as far as I did before was a dream, but making it to the finale?!  Well, I’m so proud and happy to be here, especially with Jo, who has been an amazing friend to me.  Thank you so much for sticking with me all this time.
It’s funny that I made it to the finale since I was almost eliminated second.  People saw me as a threat due to me getting fourth place in World Tour (something I’m still incredibly proud of).  It was thanks to Lightning, who flipped, that I survived the first vote of the Rats.  Immediately after that, I decided that I was going to play a completely different game than the one I’d previously planned to play.  So I reached out to Jo and she agreed to form an alliance.  I recruited Molly, Lightning, and B (I don’t know why the awards say Jo did it) and the majority Rats alliance was formed.
The initial purpose was to give me safety against Scott, who was trying to vote me off.  At the first chance, when the others asked me who to vote for, well, they didn’t need much convincing.  So Scott left.  Now, that left me with a choice.  Sink back into the middle of the alliance and let someone else take charge, or lead the alliance and establish myself as even more of a threat.  I chose to take charge, which, as a kid with extreme self-doubt and social anxiety, was a big change that thrust me outside my comfort zone.
My skills as an alliance leader (or at least a prominent figure) were put to the test almost immediately when the teams merged.  Dawn offered me a spot in her alliance, and boy it was tempting.  I didn’t know where to go, and I worried that the wrong choice would eliminate me and make me an early merge boot.  I had already joined Dawn, Sam, and Zoey in the alliance, but when I woke up in the morning, though I considered sticking with them because I didn’t want to betray anyone, I knew what I needed to do.  Even if it cost me my game, I was not going to fade into the background--I was going to be a prominent player.  This is what I promised myself right after Dawn went home, and that’s what I did.  The fact that I’m in the finale because of that decision I made brings me joy--that in the long run, I did something right.  I made the right decision.  That means a lot to me.
Now I was on shaky ground with Sam and Zoey.  The former won the sole vote challenge, which made me nervous.  When I learned that Sam was planning to use his vote on Jo, I initially was going to use my idol to protect her, but then discovered that it would simply eliminate Sam’s second pick.  Instead, I directed Sam’s vote away from Jo, saving her from elimination and using the idol on myself.  At this point, I knew where I needed to go.  I wanted a final three with Jo and Molly, now I just had to get it.
Zoey reached out to me with an offer of a final two alliance.  That wasn’t going to work, considering my plan for the boot order, but I accepted her offer for help.  All the pieces fell into place and Sam was gone.  Initially, Zoey and I had parted ways, but when she and Sam had a falling out on Discord, I saw an opportunity and let Zoey back into the alliance.  So Sam was eliminated, leaving me, Zoey, Jo, and Molly in the final four.
While Jo and Molly blazed on ahead, I stayed behind in the thicket of social manipulation.  I had two backup plans, so it came down to who won immunity.  Jo won, giving me a clear path as to where I needed to go.  While Jo was immune and had a foolproof ticket to the end, my path was not so easy.  When Zoey voted for Jo, I knew where I had to go.  My vote, which I’d planned from the start but withheld just for loyalty’s sake, sealed the fate of the game and set into place the final three plan I’d had since directly after the merge.
It all came down to winning or not.  I sat in my room and paced, refreshing the screen until the news came.  Jo had won, and she was taking me to the finale.  After all my hard work, my game finally paid off.  Thanks again, Jo, for taking me.  Your loyalty means a lot to me and I’m in your debt.  After spending hours every day strategizing, both with other people and solo, it felt good to make it to the finale.
I’d like to take a moment to address each member of the jury.  I’ve interacted with almost all of you and wanted to thank you for supporting me (or even working against me) to the finale.
Dakota, I know we didn’t get to interact much, but Dawn voting you out was the event that set everything in motion and made the inklings of a plan form in my mind.  I’m sorry that happened to you, but I’m also thankful for all it brought me throughout the game.  Congrats on all the awards you got!!
B, I was really impressed with your game strategy.  You were a key member of our alliance until the end, and I’m sorry we had to vote you out just before the merge.  I think I speak for everyone here when I say that if not for the loss at the end, you would’ve made it extremely far.  Thank you for being a member of my alliance!
Dawn, Sam, and Zoey.  I could address you individually but I feel like what I have to say applies to all of you.  I know I don’t deserve your votes, simple as that.  What I did was wrong in a player sense, and so I want to thank you, no matter what you think of me or who you vote for.  I hope my passion for the game and determination to win means something to you, even if you ended up on the other side of it.  But taking a step back...this is a game.  It’s an amazing game that brings out the best and worst in us.  Looking at it from that perspective...I have to tell you how much fun I had.  All our alliances, conditions, propositions, vote discussions, and even our fights...all of it was so fun.  I think taking that step back, as invested in the game as I am, was a crucial step for me to understand how this game has brought us into a tight-knit community.  Spending time together outside of the game was the breath of air that kept me going when I was scared about a vote or a challenge.  I can’t thank you enough, so I’ll just stop here.  Can’t wait to see you in All-Stars, and thank you for considering me!
Lightning, you were a core member of our alliance.  I’m sorry that the Sam vote turned on you, but I had a lot of fun roleplaying with you and discussing who to vote out.  We were close on the wiki even before the season, so to get a chance to bond more was so cool.  You always roleplayed in character and I loved reading your confessionals.  Also, thanks for saving me in the pre-merge by flipping to Sierra.  I wouldn’t have made it to the finale if it wasn’t for you.  Stay awesome!
Molly, I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again--you were the best!  I’m so excited that you were able to be a part of the final three.  I loved talking strategy with you, even if we didn’t do it often.  You were a great friend and this season was really the one where we got to interact the most and see what we could both do.  I’m proud of both of us.
The amount of progress that I’ve made is something that I wouldn’t have imagined at the start of the game.  This roleplay...it’s like a community within itself.  A wiki within a wiki.  Words can’t express how therapeutic this game has been.  Every day I wake up excited and nervous to check the roleplay and see my progress.  I’m not a competitive person, more like a socially anxious one, but this game has done so much for me.  I hope that, even though I’ve left on rocky ground with everyone in a sense, that you can put that aside to see the emotional investment I’ve put into the roleplay, into the community, into every single move that I’ve made.
And now, for the summary.  Although Jo played a more straightforward game, one that I’m proud to be a part of, I had the most difficult path to the finale.  I worked backstage, surviving an early vote out to establish myself as a threat and the leading force in the game.  I pretty much took down the Maggots alliance by myself (again, differing from what the awards say, also, I don’t know why Jo says she took down the Maggots alliance considering she didn’t really talk to them) and used the support of the alliance that I was leading to make it to the finale with lots of friends on that side.  I dominated the pre-merge challenges, leading the Rats to victory on three separate occasions.  I was the most socially invested in the game, spending hours (I’m not joking, usually the first two hours after I went to bed were spent pacing the room thinking) every day planning out strategies for every possible scenario.  I toed the line between the two major alliances, taking out one of them and using my manipulation skills on the other alliance to do so.  I did this without once being targeted after my constant switching.  I hope the fact that I saved both Molly and Jo twice from the Maggots alliance using manipulation is repayment enough for the loyalty they showed me.
However, this jury speech is a chance for me to stand alone, and take credit for all I’ve done throughout the season.  Though enemy to some, I pride myself on being an honest one.  I was the driving force behind almost every action in the game, and even though I’m on rocky turf with some of the jury members, I hope you’ll take a step back and acknowledge that I was the biggest presence in the game, as well as respect my determination and dedication.
Thank everyone so much for considering me, and good luck Jo!  Questions are welcome if it helps people clarify my actions throughout the season. I’m excited to get to participate in All-Stars with everyone.  :3

**Winning Speech? Yes (1st)**