What simply occurred?!? That was the response of just about each participant and jury member on Wednesday’s penultimate episode of Survivor 49, when a brand new wrinkle within the recreation left one individual beaming (however not for lengthy) and one other contestant fully, by her personal phrases, embarrassed.

All season, Sophi Balerdi has been holding onto her secret Information is Energy benefit that allowed her to steal an immunity idol or benefit from a participant at Tribal Council if she may accurately deduce who had one. Then, Steven Ramm gained a bonus throughout a Journey that grow to be frequent public data — setting him up as the plain sufferer for Sophi’s thievery.

However there was one thing within the small print of that benefit that Steven stored to himself. His benefit enabled him to dam the vote of one other participant, however he needed to formally announce when he needed to make use of it and whom he needed to apply it to earlier than he left for Tribal Council. And since Sophi may solely use her Information is Energy at Tribal Council, that meant Steven now not had a bonus in his possession if he had already given a reputation again at camp, thereby placing his Block-a-Vote into play.

And that’s precisely what occurred.

A 'shocked' Sophie Segreti reveals what led to her 'Survivor 49' downfall 'Survivor 49' recap: Chaos and confusion reign at Tribal Council

“There was quite a lot of discuss of ammunition and what aspect has extra of it,” Sophi introduced at Tribal Council. “And Survivor 101 is when you have got one thing in your pocket, you actually shouldn’t be so vocal about it, as a result of there could possibly be a silent murderer within the midst.”

She then bought to the matter at hand. "I’m sorry, Steven, however do you have got a bonus.”

Steven, who had already used his Block-a-Vote on Savannah and due to this fact had a smile as extensive as a Fijian island, then responded: “Nope!”

When Sophi incorrectly deduced, “Oh my God, he gave it to anyone else,” Steven hit her with one other “Nope!”

As Sophi buried her face in her fingers in humiliation and allies Rizo Velovic and Savannah Louie tried to understand what was taking place, host Jeff Probst made it official: “So Steven doesn’t have a bonus, and now, Soph, neither do you.”

The host mentioned the intricacies of this new equal components scrumptious and diabolical twist on the newest episode of the On Fire With Jeff Probst podcast, revealing that sure, the precise result’s what they have been hoping would occur once they put the pre-Tribal Council wrinkle into impact.

“The why behind this benefit is that we needed to drive the participant, on this case, Steven, to play the benefit earlier than they depart for Tribal,” Probst explains on the podcast. “And that's very uncommon and it's a giant twist as a result of it forces the participant to make an enormous transfer primarily based solely on the data they’ve at camp at that second earlier than they get to Tribal.”

That might result in some drama by itself. “So if you happen to get to Tribal and also you notice, ‘Oh, man, the vote is shifting,’ or Tribal turns into alive, otherwise you notice you've been lied to this complete time, it's too late, you've already dedicated.”

It seems Steven was being lied to your entire time, as he was ultimately unanimously voted out, however the true evil magnificence within the twist is what else occurred.

“The second why,” Probst explains, “was as a result of we knew it may influence the Information is Energy, which was additionally within the recreation. So once we're laying this out at first of the 12 months, we don't know who's going to have what benefits and the way it may play out. However we do know this: When you play that benefit again at camp, that secret Block-a-Vote has now been performed. The benefit is gone. It doesn't exist. It hasn't been revealed, but it surely's now not a bonus that may be stolen.”

Whereas it made for an embarrassing second for the assured, self-proclaimed Silent Murderer, it’s not like Sophi essentially did something incorrect — until you wish to take into account not taking one of many a number of idols may have snagged for the reason that merge as a substitute.

“So what Soph did that evening, actually, she had all the pieces proper!” Probst says. “She had the data, and she or he had set it up completely. And in virtually some other state of affairs, she would've been proper. She would've stolen Steven's benefit earlier than he used it.”

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Which brings us to the massive query. “So did she misplay it? That's the way it'll go down within the historical past books,” Probst notes. “Not likely honest. She didn't actually misplay it as a lot as she bought bought by a brand new twist she couldn't have anticipated.”

Tthe host is wanting ahead to seeing how that now performs out sooner or later. “What I feel can also be enjoyable is that now that gamers have seen it as soon as, they understand it's doable. And the way will it influence the sport shifting ahead? As a result of it provides you one other layer. ‘You recognize that benefit you assume I’ve: Possibly I nonetheless have it. Possibly I already performed it.’ And so I feel it's going to introduce new uncertainty right into a recreation the place the uncertainty gained't be revealed till later. And that may mess all people up.”

Simply ask Sophi Balerdi.

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