Hey dude!
So, thing is, people really don't like groups going in and ganging up on everyone. But you also want to play with your friends, I get that. It is a fine line to walk, but it can be done. Just recently, I got invited to play a game with a good forum friend (blobbydude) and, even though we know each other pretty well and have played a lot together, we had limited communication. It was just how the game happened to progress, in fact I'm pretty sure he got someone to betray me (is that true blobs?????). Anyway, point is, you can play with your friends, just don't go out of your way to work with them. Make alliances with other people sometimes, backstab them from time to time, but just make sure you don't ruin your real life friendship
Good luck with your games! If you wanted a softer ease into subterfuge, I'm sure there's a few forum guys who would love to help you through your first game