Hi all, I (30M) played a game of Catan recently with some friends. After a few drinks in this game, it got a little 'hot' between me and some of us. We are still friends now. But at the time it was a little awkward. I'll use fake names. So there was me, Joe, Alice, Anton (Alice's new bf), and we invited a new friend who has recently moved here. Let's call him Barry and his girlfriend Cara. Recently we have found a particular meme/reel video quite funny of a guy playing Catan where him and his friends have a debate over the game because 'they had an alliance', which was broken. We thought that was funny. So I began incorporating that into our jokes during the game, and actually was suggesting that me, Barry and Cara had an alliance. Well after a few hours and a fair few drinks later, these alliances had solidified a little more. Note that Barry and Cara hadn't played Catan much, but me and Joe had, and there was friendly competition between us. In order to foster the alliance between me, Barry and Cara, throughout the game I would give them favourable trades. To me, creating some trading alliances in the game can benefit you. Perhaps we took it too far though. At the end of the game we perhaps got ahead of ourselves and had decided we had wanted 'one of us' to win the game, ahead of Anton, who was in the lead. On our respective turns, we realised that we couldn't get Barry or Cara to win. But, if they gave me pretty much all their cards, I could win. Now after a few drinks, and getting caught up in the competition, this seemed like what we should do to beat 'the other side'. And so we did that. It was at the point I put the final cards down to win, the realisation washed over me that it was actually quite awkward and maybe not the best sportsmanship. Joe was particularly angry. He has ADHD and admits he does get caught up in the semantics of things like this. He purported that it 'wasn't the right way the play the game'. He was visibly upset with us, mainly me. And then declined going out to the bars afterward. Now I have reflected on this. I probably wouldn't do this again. I think I am probably the asshole for 1 of two reasons. 1) The three of us created an alliance in the game which forced some unwelcome 'us' and 'them' competition into the game, and ended up with us ruining the game at the end. Or 2) I was the sole asshole, but actually what I did was a perfectly legitimite tactic in the game, but was an asshole for manipulating people. Essentially perhaps I manipulated my 'opponents' into thinking we had an alliance, and then giving me cards at the end to win. Legitimate in a game of Catan, perhaps, but still an asshole. I've reflected on this, and I think my actions were aligned with Number 1, but I'm not 100% sure the game didn't get to my head. But if it was Number 2, am I really an asshole? Or just such a good Catan player that I can manipulate my opponents to literally giving me the game?