Faithfuls

The vast majority of contestants enter the game as **Faithfuls**, one of two factions that can win.

After the Traitors are selected at the beginning of each game, the remaining contestants are designated as Faithfuls by default. While outnumbering the Traitors by far, they possess the disadvantages of receiving no initial information on who the Traitors might be, as well as having limited ways of protecting themselves from Murder. Their main power comes in having enough numbers to Banish suspected Traitors at the Round Table.

As Faithfuls, their objective in the game is diametrically opposed to that of the Traitors: to ensure that few or no Traitors remain at the end of the game, allowing them to either outright win or exercise more agency in determining the winner(s).

## Recruitment

Besides the initial Round Table selection, the only other opportunity for a Faithful to become a Traitor is via Recruitment (Seduction in some versions). this happens when at least one Traitor has been Banished at the Round Table - the surviving Traitors are then presented with an option to Recruit a Faithful and replenish their numbers. When a Faithful accepts, they immediately become a Traitor, with their role and win condition flipped.

Most Recruitment attempts can be rejected without direct consequence; the only exception to this was in *The Traitors (UK)/Series 1*, where Kieran Tompsett had to accept a Recruitment or be Murdered instead.

Chronologically, the latest a Recruitment has taken place in any season is by the third-last episode.

## Win Condition

Due to the evolving game format, several different win conditions have arisen for the Faithfuls to win, depending on the specific season's endgame.

### Prisoners' Dilemma

The earliest seasons involved a prisoners' dilemma. In *De Verraders (Netherlands)/Season 2* and a few other early editions, if all the contestants that survived past the final Round Table were Faithfuls, they would then decide if they would Share or Betray:

* If all the contestants picked Share, they would divide the prize fund evenly.
* If one contestant picked Share while the others picked Betray, the contestant who picked Share gets all of the prize fund.
* If two contestants picked Share while the third picked Betray, the contestant who picked Betray gets all of the prize fund.
* If all the contestants picked Betray, the prize fund would be forfeited entirely.

Later editions of the show that kept the prisoners' dilemma format required at least two Faithfuls to make the final three; otherwise, a lone Faithful would be sidelined and watch the two Traitors decide instead.

### Survive the Endgame

Subsequent editions of the game involved a scenario where after the final mandated Round Table, the remaining contestants had a choice to Banish Again or End Game. If at least one contestant chose Banish Again, the group would vote to Banish another fellow contestant, after which they were presented with the options again (and could theoretically do so until the final two or three, depending on the season). If everyone chose End Game, the Faithfuls would win provided no Traitors, dividing the prize fund among themselves.

## Strategy

Most Faithfuls, when offered the opportunity, accept a Recruitment as it grants them protection from Murder and provides an information advantage. The other side of the coin is that Faithfuls who reject a Recruitment are typically Murdered. However, this can be risky as not all Faithfuls can successfully adjust to playing as a Traitor, with behavioural tells that are picked up by their fellow Faithfuls.

Aside from this, it is often argued that surviving as a Faithful is a matter of luck, due to the limited power and information the role intrinsically holds, as well as vulnerability to two modes of elimination. Nevertheless, the most important task as a Faithful is not necessarily to eliminate all the Traitors as soon as possible (especially since the show's production has a vested interest in ensuring some Traitors are present in the endgame), but to survive as long as they can while gathering information and forming social connection. This can be done while maintaining a strong social game and credible alliances with others, and balancing the tightrope of not being too invisible (so you don't get Murdered easily) but not be seen as taking charge or rubbing others the wrong way (so you don't find yourselves in the crosshairs of a Banishment). Explicitly branding yourself as a 'Traitor hunter' is also an easy way for one to either be Murdered, or have the Traitors find some way to influence your Banishment.

Another strategy for survival is to form a close bond with a contestant you suspect to be a Traitor - this will make it likelier they keep you around as you are seen as a vote they can influence, while you can work to Banish them towards the endgame or when the opportunity presents itself. Most importantly, it must be remembered that whether you like or have a close relationship with someone is often independent of whether they are a Faithful or a Traitor - their actions must be viewed through a logical perspective, and the most successful Faithfuls have seized upon logical inconsistencies rather than vote based on their personal emotions.

From a more objective perspective, winning Shields is the single best way to guarantee staying in the game, and this opportunity can often be obtained by either doing well in Missions, or being popular enough to be voted the chance to receive one. Even if a visit to the Armoury is ultimately unsuccessful, a common strategy is for everyone who visits during a round agreeing to remain silent about whether they possess the Shield. This way, Traitors are less likely to target the group in case their Murder attempt is blocked; if a Traitor in the group does somehow obtain the Shield, they will hesitate to target others within the group, as this could lead to a potential trail back to them.

## Trivia

### Franchise

* The Faithfuls in *Les Traîtres (Belgium)/Season 1* are currently the season to Banish their first Traitor with fewest people left, only succeeding at doing so in the final five. They are also the Faithful group that Banished the fewest Traitors - one; a record tied with *De Verraders (Netherlands)/Videoland Edition*.
* The Faithfuls of *Os Traidores/Season 1* are the latest to first Banish a Traitor - having failed to do so in the first six Banishments.
* *De Verraders (Belgium)/Season 1* is the season containing the most Faithful winners, with four Faithfuls surviving the endgame and Banishing all the Traitors.
* The Faithfuls of *Nasledniki i Samozvantsy/Season 1* Banished the most Traitors - six in a season. However, this can be partly attributed to a mid-season reset skewing the number of Traitors in-game.
	+ For official seasons in the Franchise, the record of six also goes to *The Traitors NZ/Season 1*.
* *The Traitors (Australia)/Season 1* is the season with the biggest starting cast of Faithful contestants - twenty. Even with Recruitments, eighteen contestants exited the game as Faithfuls, a number tied with *The Traitors (UK)/Series 1*.

### Contestant

* Chatilla van Grinsven from *De Verraders (Netherlands)/Season 1* is the first Faithful to win.
* Gaby Blaaser from the same season is the first Faithful to be Murdered.
* Daan Nieber from the same season is the first Faithful to be Banished at the Round Table.
* Philippe Scofield and Pholien Systermans from *Les Traîtres (Belgium)/Season 1* are the first Faithfuls to win as a group, as well as achieve a clear Faithful win (as Chatilla's win was shared with Traitor Samantha Steenwijk).
* Niels Albert from *De Verraders (Belgium)/Season 1* is the first Faithful to reject a Recruitment.
* Sander Dale from *Forræder (Norway)/Season 1* is the first contestant to reject being selected as a Traitor.
	+ He later rejected another Recruitment attempt from the Traitors, making him the only known contestant thus far to reject becoming a Traitor twice. He is also the first and currently only Faithful that the Traitors did not attempt to Murder at the next available opportunity after turning down Recruitment.
* Chloe Campbell from *The Traitors (Australia)/Season 1* is the first Faithful to Quit the game.
* Quentin Jiles from *The Traitors (US)/Season 1* is the first (and so far, only) Faithful finalist to not cast a single correct vote, in either Banishing a Traitor or ensuring the game ended without any Traitors remaining.
* Anna Allen and Fernando Guillén Cuervo from *Traitors España/Season 1* are the first Faithfuls to be victims of a Double Murder.
* Sam Smith from *The Traitors NZ/Season 1* holds the record for successfully voting to Banish the most Traitors - six in total.
* Sam Johnson from the same season is the first Faithful to leave the game permanently before Traitors were designated; and walk away with part of the prize without winning.