The Rejected Times -- Issue XIII

[Unibot]

Issue XIII, January 19, 2014

Editor's Note

Why does all the news have to break right before our print due date? Yikes this was a close one. Some great stories here - I'm glad to see our journalists put out all of the stops to bring you this wonderful new edition by the eleventh hour (technically, the eighth but who's counting?).



>> INTERVIEW

Interview with McMasterdonia after his Landslide Victory

INTERVIEW | THE CHURCH OF SATAN

Elections for the delegacy of The North Pacific took place recently. Not surprisingly, McMasterdonia won. Looking at the results, the other candidates, Durkadurkairanistan and Tim, didn't seem to stand a chance. Clearly that means McMastedonia is doing good work over at TNP! Normally, according to TNP citizens, the elections end with a runoff vote. This time however, McMasterdonia secured his victory with a stunning 31 votes. That's exactly 86.1% of the votes! If ever there was a dictionary example of a landslide victory, this is it.

We managed to snag an interview with Mister Popularity, himself.

The Church of Satan: First of all, congratulations on being elected delegate! Judging by the results, it seems as though the other candidates never stood a chance. Would you agree?

McMasterdonia: Thank you. The only other candidates for the office of Delegate, besides myself, was Tim and Durkadurkiranistan. Neither of them were offering a ‘serious’ or positive platform. Durk’s platform was simply a negative campaign thread about his opponents (an amusing read to be sure). Tim has had a long career in the North Pacific that ultimately ended when he resigned from the position of Vice Delegate after he had resigned from the World Assembly to attempt to liberate the Eastern Islands of Dharma. Since then most, if not all of his election campaigns have been conducted mainly for amusement value. His recent platform was for him to be elected Chairman of the People’s Republic of the North Pacific.

I was disappointed that nobody other than me had put their name forward or run a serious campaign for the position. There are a lot of ambitious members of the North Pacific and the position of Delegate is a desired one for obvious reasons. Members of the region who I consider to likely be future Delegates have simply said that they were happy with my previous term of office and that they will seek the position at the next election. As I said though, it was a disappointment. I would rather a fiercely contested election any day and I do not think that people should be discouraged from running simply because it may seem like they don’t stand a chance. One of my favourite election campaigns was my first one against the incumbent Delegate Eluvatar – I surprised myself with the amount of support that I was able to gather in a short period of time. It was a good experience for me and other candidates who have ran for other positions such as Speaker or Vice Delegate recently and lost have expressed a similar feeling – despite losing it was still very worthwhile.

The Church of Satan: In regards not only to your own election, but for all 3 positions (Delegate, Vice Delegate and Speaker,) they all ended in landslide victories. Even citizens of The North Pacific agree that this is quite uncommon for the region's elections. What would you attribute this to?

McMasterdonia: I disagree that all of the elections were landslide victories. The Speaker won the election with 58% of the vote. This is still a decent majority, but newcomer Bootsie still did very well in achieving the percentage that he did and he should be commended for his efforts in that regard. The Vice Delegate election still had multiple highly experienced candidates running for the position, as has become the norm over the past few elections. Democratic Donkeys was very narrowly defeated by Sanctaria at the last election, his high political profile combined with his early momentum from his exploratory committee was what helped him secure such a strong victory.

The Church of Satan: What's the most important thing, at least from your perspective, that you'll be doing during your term?

McMasterdonia: There are many important matters that I will be attending to during this term and as such I don’t think I can point to one particular matter specifically. One such matter will be a review of World Assembly Voting in the region that I will do in consultation with Abacathea. A strong focus will also be placed on translating our high number of World Assembly nations in-game to a high percentage of them in our regional assembly and actively involved in our regional forum.

Over the past term we have seen the slow implantation of the changes to the influence rules, and this will be finalised over the new term. I spend a lot of time talking to WA members in game, especially as we do not have a formal endorsement cap (other than the Vice Delegate’s endorsement level) and I intend to make sure that our Security Council remains at the highest endorsement levels possible to ensure that the North Pacific does not become an easy target for rogue delegates.

Other than that, I consider it important to keep the government fresh and innovative. I’ve had quite a few new members in my cabinet over the past term and I expect that I will review the functionality of the cabinet and consider the possibility of bringing new members into the cabinet to give them government experience to help them in future election campaigns and the positions that they may hold in the future.

The Church of Satan: What would you say is the most pressing matter you will have to tend to in The North Pacific and why?

McMasterdonia: More recently we have seen attempts to reform the court system. I am concerned that some of these reforms are going in the wrong direction and are giving authority over civil matters to the Fiqh Flemingovian system that could literally render any ridiculous verdict that amused Flemingovian the most and the Court would enforce that verdict. It might seem amusing, but I hope that we can address the concerns about civil law in the region without going down this particular path. It is the wrong one for the region and one that I will not support.

In the past term we experienced issues with an inactive Attorney General and then once that was resolved with a FOIA which would have required the court to release private deliberations if it was accepted by my office. A significant amount of time was focused on reaching an agreement that would satisfy both parties and I expect that negotiating skills will have to be in fine form to achieve a reform to the judicial system that maintains a certain level of faith in the system and keeps region members happy with the system in place.

The Church of Satan: Do you have anything in mind at the moment that could resolve the matter?

McMasterdonia: Obviously law reform will be part of the solution to this ongoing problem. There has been a lot of talk on this area in recent months and there will be more in the months to come. We must approach this matter with an open mind and be willing to negotiate to achieve a solution that leaves all sides as satisfied as possible.

The Church of Satan: Do you plan on making any changes in regards to foreign affairs for The North Pacific?

McMasterdonia: Yes, I plan to focus on developing a closer relationship with Lazarus and the Rejected Realms. We have been considering holding a cultural event with Lazarus for a while now, but various things have interfered with it. We remain neutral on Osiris for now, but that is an ongoing matter and I will be talking about Osiris more in the weeks ahead.

The Church of Satan: What about inter-regional policy? Any changes to be made there?

McMasterdonia: Broadly speaking, it will be business as usual.

The Church of Satan: Thank you for your time McMasterdonia. Good luck with your term.

McMasterdonia: Anytime!

 

>> NEWS

Massive Moderation Crackdown - Forty roleplayers banned for "joke" thread

COMMENTARY | TRR STAFF


 

"SPAM IS SPAM..."

 
In a stunning move, Forum Moderator Dread Lady Nathicana, banned forty roleplayers for one day from the Official Forums for their participation in a roleplay thread that bordered on spam.

“Spam is spam. Spam is not acceptable,” says Dread Lady Nathicana, “There is far too much of it that goes on. That does not excuse an all-out spamfest such as this, especially from players who know better”.

The tough, perhaps even unprecedented response has sent some fuming about the excessiveness of the action.

Some of the prominent members banned included Milograd, Bodobol, Tiami, Virana, Sailsia, Constaniana, among a number of others – several of which are also serving as Roleplay Mentors in NationStates. Participants were shocked by the move, with many of them having assumed the thread was more or less a joke for roleplayers to roleplay poorly in jest and good fun.

Veteran roleplayers, that we spoke to, refused to comment in fear of moderation retaliation, but did call the move, “excessive”, noting that many of the participants had never been warned before – a widespread ban, for what might have been one or two “spam” posts, could be considered too much force used in hindsight.

Others expressed concerns that the backlash from this decision could further push roleplayers to leaving NationStates for an alternative site.

DISCLAIMER: The Rejected Times has not included any soundbites from members who were involved in the purge, since that could be construed as “posting around a ban”.

 

North East Somerset crowned Balder's New Delegate

COMMENTARY | UNIBOT
 

"On the beaches.... we shall sunbathe".

 
This Friday, it was announced that North East Somerset had been chosen as Balder's new King -- which means he is expected to serve as Balder's new delegate, replacing Rachel Anumia (technically, Rachel Somerset). The King triumphantly raised his arms to the crowds in Nordic Square, gesturing the V-sign, upon the announcement of his victory.

North East Somerset has given his opening address to Balder already -- from it we can get a sense of his particular goals in mind: security, stability and legislative and judicial reform. The new King also expressed his belief that success and unpopularity among the international community are related concepts -- that Balder cannot achieve of success without fostering new critics.

"Not every other region in NationStates approves of our success at the moment," says North East Somerset, "and that situation can only become more polarized in the future if it increases. But I am sure you did not elect me to shy away from the international challenges of progress, as much as I am sure that we will not miss the opportunities that will arise too".

North East Somerset's election comes as a surprise to some because Balder has been denying its image as an "imperialist summer-home" for some time now. Despite these denials, Balder has replaced Rachel Anumia (and before her, Charles Cerebella) with another common name from the imperialist sphere of influence (if not the man most associated with imperialism, besides Onderkelkia himself). North East Somerset denied his associations with The New Inquisition, where he is a prince under Charles Cerebella and Viktoria Gryffyn.

"Why always TNI? Why not LKE, or Europeia?" asks North East Somerset, rubbing the fallen ash off his coat. "I am Vice Chancellor. When HEM was away, I was Supreme Chancellor. I am also an Admin, and Director of Intelligence. Architect of the EAAC, the foreign policy making vehicle of Europeia".

The King also denied his involvement (or at the very least, denied being Liegeois) in the recent attempt to coup The Rejected Realms.

"Obviously I wasn't Liegeois, holding WA simultaneously to it," says North East Somerset to The Rejected Times. Although, there does remain the possibility that the WA Member-Nation's ownership has been switched -- which North East Somerset calls an unnecessary risk that he presumably wouldn't undertake.

Ultimately, what can we expect from North East Somerset as a delegate on Foriegn Affairs? We're in for a whirlwind of a ride -- someone who will not be afraid to push Balder ever closer to an imperialist identity and antagonize defender regions. You can get a sense of that when you listen to him while he discusses his plans for the future. North East Somerset squawked at one comment, pulling the cigar out of his mouth to bark at the journalist that he "don't intend to work with FRUDL". 'FRUDAL' is, of course, a common dysphemism to refer to the Founderless Regions Alliance and the United Defenders League.

In regards to North East Somerset, expectations suggest that he may just be the most divisive and controversial delegate yet to reside in Winter Palace.

 

Makhnovia Liberated!

COMMENTARY | TRR STAFF
 

The sun rises in Makhnovia, the day after being liberated from Fascist rule.

 
Makhnovia was liberated last night by the combined forces of United Defenders League, Lazarus, TITO, The Pacific, The East Pacific, The Founderless Regions Alliance, The South Pacific, Wintreath, The LHCB, Spiritus and Renegade Islands Alliance. Makhnovia has been under fascist occupation by the Right Wing Uprising (which includes fascist and Nazi regions), until the liberation force of over forty defenders, swarmed into the region and removed the fascist invaders.

Tim-Opolis, the triggerman for the liberation and all-around perfectionist, was critical of his own performance, telling The Rejected Times that he was unhappy with the timing. But nonetheless, he says the region was liberated and returned to the natives, which is "what matters in the end". Triggering aside, the leaders of the participating organizations were thrilled with the liberation's success.

"We were pleased to work with everyone who came out and believe this was a substantial mission for all of us," says Chairman Milograd, "22 Fascists is nothing to laugh at. Aside from the usual faces, it was great to work with The South Pacific, Renegade Islands Alliance, and the New Pacific Order in realizing this mission. The LLA wants to start working more with all of them and believes that there is a lot of potential for success when we work together".

The UDL echoed the Chairman's sentiments.

"I think this was a great liberation," says Mahaj, Chief of the UDL, "it showed that the might of defenders is impressive, and that even active raider delegates are not safe in their castle of tyranny. The UDL looks forward to doing many more liberations with the LLA, EPSA and allied forces".

When asked what he felt it was like to work with UDL's new allies, EPSA, Mahaj was enthusiastic (with just a hint of veiled mordancy).

"I'm glad to see the EPSA in the liberation as well," says Mahaj. "I think it shows that, unlike on the invader side of the field, our treaties are meaningful on the battlefield, and aren't just ways of justifying corroding the region's structures".

We spoke with Xoriet, who had the pleasure of attending on behalf of EPSA -- it was her first liberation. She was very excited.

"After all the defender flak I've been reading on the forums lately I was curious to learn for myself just how efficient the organizations were. Needless to say, it was fairly amazing," says Xoriet, grinning happily, "there is no tinge of what might-possibly-be-guilt on liberations versus invasions. The success of a liberation is sweeter than a raid. Especially a liberation where the delegate in question has an alarming number of endorsements. Liberations mean you have thwarted the efforts of a raider region.".

Kringalia, Vice Delegate of The South Pacific, who had been a spectator to the liberation returned to The South Pacific, excited as well.

"NSA should do more missions with the LLA from now on!" Kringalia tells The South Pacific, while echoing his sentiments to The Rejected Times, "I've never been involved in military gameplay, so it was quite something to see how a liberation actually happens. I do know the value of the NSA in promoting activity and engagement in the region. There is also much potential to develop our relationship with Lazarus, so I think it's only logical to want to work with an active military, like the LLA".

At the moment of success, The Rejected Times was there to capture the wild cheers and (now censored) cursing from all of the participating defenders....
 
Quote

<milograd> GO
<Tim> I AM DELEGATE
<milograd> GO
<Tim> MUAHAHAHAHA
<PERGAMON> in
<@milograd> 
<Horse> YES
<UWO> Im in
<MrSpeaker|ADMIN|MOVIE> got it
<Funkadelia> in
<Unibot> Boom!
<hobbes> WE WIN
<Mahaj> nice
<Beta_> YAY YAYAYAY
<Wintermoot> 
<libetarian_republics> HAIL
<milograd> f**king nice guys
<TECT> Shit. My screen froze on that lol
<Beta> YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
<TECT> Hail
<Aleisyr> yay o/
<Tim> guys i am delegate what is this even
<milograd> i love these
<Mahaj> yo who is rally cry?
<Beta> Hail!
<TheGrimReaper> gg no re
* hobbes pops champaigne
<Tim> guys how do I even
<Bodobol> WOOP
<@Feux> win
<NewZep> Done
<Mahaj> f**k
* Horse pops potatoes

 
 

The East Pacific ratifies new UDL Treaty

COMMENTARY | TRR STAFF

The East Pacific has ratified a treaty with The United Defenders League – their treaty last year was withdraw due to mutual conflicts and confusion over the intent and scope of its wording. This new treaty has been written to address the problems with the last treaty.

In its preamble, The East Pacific sympathizes with The United Defenders League's defender cause, while The United Defenders League praises The East Pacific’s diplomatic maturity. Overall, the treaty is a fairly standard military-intelligence-diplomatic cooperation treaty. Nonetheless, the treaty serves as further guarantee of The United Defenders League’s service in any time of need, despite its new GCR Non-Intervention Policy, which prohibits The United Defenders League from intervening in feeders and sinkers without legal obligations to do so.

Bachtendekuppen, delegate of The East Pacific, called the new treaty, “a serious enhancement” over the previous treaty.

He said the treaty recognizes a relationship that has been blossoming between the two parties for the past year, while the merry Puffin expressed his hopes that the treaty encourages more “mutual help and cooperation”.

“It shows that the UDL is capable of respecting that The East Pacific as a region has its own sovereign interests,” says Bachtendekuppen, “while TEP respects the mission of the United Defenders League to safeguard the security and sovereignty of regions across NationStates”.

The United Defenders League’s leader was no less thrilled.

“I'm delighted it passed,” says Mahaj, Chief of the UDL, “I think The East Pacific is a great region and it'll benefit both of us. I look forward to working with The East Pacific on the battlefield: they have a bunch of competent people there”.

When asked whether he thought the vote may have been a surprise to some, The Chief struck an optimistic tone.

“Ultimately The East Pacific has to make their own choices and I'm glad they made this one,” says Mahaj. “I think this shows that treaties between GCRs and military organizations are possible without resorting to piling in citizens to vote and subvert the regional consensus”.

He was, however, not so optimistic about the UDL’s critics.

“I look forward to the Cormac Starks and Evil Wolfs of the world proclaiming loudly as if they think they're a bunch of prophets about how this treaty will be the doom of The East Pacific. Luckily, the people in The East Pacific are smart enough to see these people for what they are”.

The treaty was officially “acknowledged”, on January 18, by the Office of the Delegate after its ratification by the Magisterium on the previous day. This marks a return to a much closer relationship between these two world powers.

 

XYZ Treaty Passed

COMMENTARY | THE CHURCH OF SATAN

After the breakdown of the PSSP (Pan-Sinker Security Pact for those in the dark) another idea was suggested. Though it wasn't immediately acted on, over time negotiations came down to the ratification of The XYZ Treaty. You're probably thinking "Oh great, it's another PSSP. When does it end?" You could be right. Then again you couldn't be more wrong as well! In the final stage the intended signatories were to be TRR, Lazarus, Mordor, Renegade Islands Alliance and 10000 Islands. This treaty doesn't bind the signatories entire region necessarily, but just its military, if they so desired before ratifying it. Frattastan, delegate of TRR, made it perfectly clear that the treaty itself does not have 'sinker unity' in mind, it is oriented towards defender regions, and along with the annexed protocol, it'll be more heavily focused on culture and military cooperation than the PSSP ever was.The XYZ Treaty is first and foremost, however, a multilateral treaty for defender regions.

Frattastan explained the treaty enthusiastically to The Rejected Times.

"It's a multilateral defence/cultural treaty," says Frattastan, delegate of The Rejected Realms, "with an additional protocol (to be signed only by the RRA) to create a framework to facilitate military cooperation between the largest defender or defender-leaning regions. It does not set up an inter-regional organization".

The treaty itself has an interesting history -- it was first proposed by Sauron from Mordor, several months ago and negotiations began in November. All intended regions took part in negotiations regarding the ratification of the treaty, however in the end 10000 Islands rejected the treaty. Nonetheless, 10000 Islands were more than happy to work with all of the signatories in the future though.

"I liked the concept of the PSSP however, but it needed to be done with like-minded and already friendly regions, unlike the PSSP," says Sauron. "The initial concept and idea was brought up by myself after a brainstorming exercise with Karputsk back in late August, before I expanded and fleshed out the idea in more detail with the then President of Spiritus, Wintermoot. A number of people have added to the idea including Harmoneia, Guy and Shizensky to name just a few."

While negotiations were mostly smooth, with the treaty well received abroad, there some initial concerns.

"There were some concerns in the beginning," says Shizensky, " but they came from the older members that were around when we were in the ADN. We learned then that inter-regional organizations just weren't our thing and those members wanted to make sure were weren't putting ourselves into a similar situation. There was no opposition to the treaty once the drafts were introduced".

There were also concerns voiced in The Rejected Realms and Mordor that the treaty may prohibit the region from engaging in war measures, however the general response seems to be that none of the participating regions would participate in armed conflict anyways.

Ultimately 10000 Islands decided to reject the XYZ Treaty, which was expected by many of the participating world leaders -- although they all had positive things to say about the region.

"I love 10000 Islands a lot and respect them," says Milograd, "but they're not exactly the kind to really break from isolation (and that's okay!). I was pretty surprised when I found out that they'd be attending our drafting session, actually. I appreciate that they were willing to consider working with us in such a capacity, even if it didn't happen in the end."

Grub, however, spoke briefly to The Rejected Times and said with a concealed smile, "Good news may be coming to TRR from XKI". So, in many ways, we'll just have to see what the future holds for defenderdom. In the meantime, a new multilateral treaty has been brokered between some of the game's largest defender regions and the future looks bright for now. How long will it last? Nobody can say for sure but only time will tell. All of the world leaders I spoke to expressed cautious enthusiasm for the new agreement.

 

Onder Kelkia Lecture Series Set To Start

COMMENTARY | KOGVURON

The Emperor Onder Kelkia Lecture Series of 2014 has been announced by the University of the Land of Kings and Emperors. The series will contain essays both on NationStates and on real life topics from a variety of authors. The series was announced in early January at the NationStates World Fair.

There has been no word yet on whether the lectures are only open to non-enemies of the state, which would prevent many defenders from contributing ideas or comments. However, this writer speculates that they would not be welcome anyway. There has been no announcements of any timetable or schedule as of yet and no word on who will be speaking.

Lectures were a major part of the NationStates World Fair and hopefully, the essays presented here will be of the same quality as those presented a few weeks ago. Those lectures were quite thought-provoking and enjoyed by many, including noted NSer Cormac, who said, "I liked the World Fair lectures overall. I thought some of them were a bit odd, but regardless, everyone put a lot of effort into them and I appreciated their contributions to the philosophy behind this game and some of the issues that confront us as players." When asked if he intended to attend the Kelkia Series, he added that he does not plan to, but does think that the series will be "brilliant." We are sure that this will be a great event and represents another step in the trend of lecturing on NationStates, which we hope to see more of in the future.

 

Kknight replaces Feuer Ritter - Bob Moran promoted

COMMENTARY | HORSE
 

"You could say they went with the 'dark horse' candidate.... I feel bad for making that pun".

 
This month in TBR, the same old same old seemed to be taking place. Bob tagging the s*** out of regions, we defenders stopping him a few times, new privates spamming regions, threatening to raid them. But then, the kind-of-predictable-because-it-happens-bi-monthly happened! Feuer Ritter, recently promoted Chief of The Black Riders, resigned from his post, citing personal reasons for his resignation. This, obviously leaving a vacancy in the Chief position, forced Halcones to choose from his fine selection of Marshall’s and General’s. When the decision finally came down, Kknight was revealed as the new leader of the spectacular invading region. Citing “previous experience and knowledge” as his ascension through the ranks, Kknight took the reigns on January 12th, 2014.

In other news, Bob Moran, one of my favorite invaders (possibly my favorite) has been promoted to the rank of Captain. Citing his commitment to invading and the region as his quick ascension through the ranks. Bob Moran has quickly become a well known raider in his short time on NS. I kindly asked him to stop tag raiding. He said “Ok, I'll stop for the duration of our current occupation, just because it's you Horse!!”. He clearly lied, because they tag raided last night. Y u do dis Bob. Y. ;-;.

In all seriousness though, my sincerest congratulations to both Kknight and Bob. I hope to see you every major update (lest I become bored for a long time.

 

Massive "Puppet Dump" Rises 

COMMENTARY | UNIBOT

A massive "puppet dump" (a region made of someone's puppet-nations) has been growing in size. "Unknown Region", the newest puppet dump, was created by Polia on January 12. By January 15, "Unknown Region" had gained 250 new nations, only to be followed with another 380 nations by January 17. How is the founder of this region making so many new nations so quickly? A "Create Puppet" feature on NationStates++ has been Polia's weapon of choice. The grand puppetmaster told The Rejected Times that the "Create Puppet" system is "very quick and easy", although he later continued by admitting that the overall process "takes a very long time".

"Even with NS++'s 3 buttons, it took an hour to create all 250" says Polia.

The puppetmaster explained that his goal was to surpass The Black Riders's home region in size. Polia noted on a sad, reflective note that The Black Riders had recently invaded The Empire of Official Chat. Polia, however, stressed to The Rejected Times that "this is not about revenge and glory". He also said that he hoped to surpass 1030 nations and enter what he called "The Big Ten" -- presumably, the top ten regions in terms of population.

Nonetheless, puppet dumps on massive scales tend to attractive a lot of negative attention among broker-region communities (e.g., Europeia, 10000 Islands) for displacing genuine world leaders on the population rankings. True North, NationStates's last major puppet dump, was condemned on December 13 2012 by the Security Council for building its region with puppet-nations. The subsequent repeal of "Condemn True North" argued that the original condemnation successful persuaded True North to significantly reduce its operations (downsizing its region by five thousand members).

Polia says, however, is not concerned about international opinion.

"I do not mind the unpopularity," says Polia. "I intend to stop after around 1500 nations".

 

Evil Wolf resigns from The North Pacific Security Council

COMMENTARY | FRATTASTAN

Justifying the move with a sudden urge to "murder small woodland creatures and kick puppies", Evil Wolf announced his resignation from The North Pacific's security council last Wednesday, thus freeing up his WA nation from his obligations in TNP.

The decision came only days before The South Pacific finalised the repeal of its treaty with Lone Wolves United, widely considered a deadweight alliance due to the lack of activity of the invader group, which hasn't had a major presence in the battlefield for over two years. This was the second diplomatic setback for LWU in the matter of months, following Lazarus's repeal of their treaty with them in December.

When asked about his plans for the future, Wolf - who is well-known in the NationStates world for his exploits as a region crasher - has refrained from commenting, save for a few snarky remarks. "Obviously a group that does not exist cannot have 'activity'", he said when asked if we should expect a resurgence of Lone Wolves United, or if he intended to dedicate himself to other projects.

So far, Wolf's current WA nation has escaped detection.

"So, it seems Unibot wants to know where my WA is. If he were paying attention, he would already know".

 

>> OPINION

Recruitment: Building a Foundation of Principles

OPINION | CORMAC A STARK

Cormac Stark discusses the need for reform in our recruitment system...

When I posted a thread in Technical raising concerns regarding the new telegram system and its impact on recruitment, I had no idea if others shared my views. I quickly discovered that they did. While no consensus has been reached on how best to deal with recruitment, there has been broad agreement among players that the current system isn't working. Some players cited the massive amount of spam new and refounded nations are receiving. Others noted that it is difficult, if not impossible, for regions that aren't using stamps or auto-recruitment scripts to compete in this new system. A myriad of proposals have been offered -- including a reversion to manual recruitment, tweaks and limitations to the current system, and new ideas that shift the focus away from telegrams -- but most players seem to agree that change is badly needed.

While the proposals that have been offered are well-intentioned, the starting point for this discussion should be about the broad principles behind recruitment in NationStates rather than the mechanics of how recruitment is performed. We're never going to agree on the mechanics if we're all just throwing out ideas without putting any thought into the basis for those ideas. When we talk about recruitment in NationStates, what are the principles that should guide that discussion? This is the question we need to be asking before we can move forward, united as players behind a mechanics proposal for administrators who may be understandably reluctant to roll back the system they so recently created.

The first principle in any discussion of recruitment should be fairness. Our recruitment system should be fair to regional recruiters and there should be a level playing field for all recruiters. The system should also be fair to new and refounded nations, bearing in mind that the first goal of recruitment is to find these nations a home -- a place to belong and to be integrated into the NationStates community. There are other principles that can and should be considered, including but not limited to accessibility, effort, and innovation. We need to make sure that our recruitment system remains accessible to the broadest number of regions possible as well as to new and refounded nations. We should ensure that effort is rewarded because those willing to put effort into recruitment are also likely to be those best equipped to teach new players how to play this game. We should also prioritize innovation because the more innovative the approach to recruitment, the more interesting the process, the more likely that players are going to more actively engage with that process.

We all know that this recruitment system isn't working. Let's come together and discuss the foundation of principles upon which we want to see our recruitment system built, and then let's approach game administrators as a united community with a proposal to build that system. It isn't enough to tell administrators that we don't like their system. We need to tell them what we want to see instead, and before we can do that we need to determine exactly what we, the NationStates community, want from our recruitment system.

Players can participate in the ongoing recruitment discussion in Technical here.

 

The Occupation of SPACE : An Open Letter

OPINION | XANTHAL

Xanthal, long-time delegate of SPACE and prominent neutral, makes a passionate address to the world...

By now it may have come to your attention that SPACE is currently under the control of The Black Riders. The present occupiers have begun to make threats which lead me to believe they may ultimately intend to clear SPACE and turn it into a trophy puppet region. SPACE, as you may know, has been a welcoming region to raiders and defenders for years; a place for the R/D game to be played in good spirits on all sides. These threats may easily be harmless baiting, but as the closest thing SPACE has to a native leader I feel that I cannot simply ignore them. For that reason I have asked my friends in the raiding and defending communities to monitor the situation in SPACE. I now invite you to do the same.

The truth is that this is going to play out largely regardless of my direct actions. Our survival as an open, Founderless, and free region continues to depend upon the providence of the raiding and defending communities, as it always has: the mechanics of gameplay demand it. By its very nature SPACE exists perpetually on the edge of a precipice; as the native Delegate I've managed to walk that edge for five and a half years, many invasions, and many liberations. I've always known it would end sooner or later, either pulled over by malicious raiders or yanked away by the more restrictive regional administration that some defenders have urged. Nevertheless, I continue to be fond of the idea that a region can choose to be founderless -- a place for the R/D game to play out in a way that's fun for everybody. SPACE, in my mind, epitomizes that idea; when it's gone, so is one of the precious few examples of a region where raiders, defenders, and natives can occupy the same space and not be constantly at each other's throats.

I and the rest of the community will move on, but I think that will be a little sad.

 

[Westwind]

"murder small woodland creatures and kick puppies"

 

 

Hail Evil Wolf !

[Charax]

The balance and professionalism in the Balder piece though.

[Consular]

I'd expect nothing less from Unibot.