Discuss here, so we don't clog up the main thread or the tavern. :)
Damn you Labor Party aggressors! *shakes fist*
On a serious note, are the Bezhans largely Orthodox?
Don't mean to follow Carp's Question with too many others but, how many more do we need to start? Should I try and get people to join the game?
Yes. They had a pagan religion, which has had a kind of rebirth (somewhat like Romuva (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romuva_%28church%29)) which is considered more of a symbol of ethnic pride and identity than a religion, and those who are not atheists go to Orthodox Churches whether they are followers of this religion or not.
And to the other question, once Captain Obvious' faction is in, I'm starting. This is actually more popular than I anticipated. :P
And the people say "Boo National Forum! Yeah Labor Party!" :p
On a slightly more serious note, I added an official EELP Flag and Mascot to my post in the other thread (you should all check it out :) ).
And finally, I can't wait to start this up! :)
I'm really excited for this to start. I had a great uncle in NY (who came to a very unfortunate, early end) that was the head of his own gang. In his memory I officially dedicate all my successes to him. Also, I'd like to blame all my failures on The Man puttin me down!
Inspired by Elemental_Elf, I also have a new flag. Maybe soon it will be a state flag...
ooh, another mafia, this should prove interesting...
Well, by the time I had finally gotten started (no thanks to either Linguistics or Japanese...), all the other archetypes I could think of had been taken. So I decided to take the more interesting route of making an opposing faction.
Quote from: Holy Carp!Inspired by Elemental_Elf, I also have a new flag.
I'm glad I inspired you! :) Hopefully the other Political parties will follow suit!
Quote from: Holy Carp!Maybe soon it will be a state flag...
Not if the EELP has anything to say about it! :poke:
I'm a little confused about your second agent's bio, limetom, as it says he is a native but moved away. Did he come back or move to another province?
Quote from: amikaligulaI'm a little confused about your second agent's bio, limetom, as it says he is a native but moved away. Did he come back or move to another province?
Err... fixed.
I have (finally) chosen a name for my faction: Hotel Vladivostok.
People familiar with a certain television show should get some of the references I've thrown in so far... :-p
Quote from: limetomI have (finally) chosen a name for my faction: Hotel Vladivostok.
People familiar with a certain television show should get some of the references I've thrown in so far... :-p
If its anything like the TV show I'm thinking of... Can I stay a night? :P
Update is done, everybody!
Damn the Popo for hampering the EELP message for a greater Evostrania! :P
Thanks for updating Wensleydale.
Hahaha! The first post of this turn is mine!
Oooh, I like. :D
Two small nitpicks:
My party is the HII (i) not the HLL (l)... I guess the L could be for "al-" but I was just leaving that out of the acronym. I blame sans-serif fonts. ;)
Also, Milia Yegorov's name should probably be Yegorova, as female surnames add an -a to the -ov. (Anna Kournikova, Maria Sharapova, etc.)
Male and Female Russian names at http://www.behindthename.com/nmc/rus.php.
Russian Surnames at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Russian_surnames.
Hope this helps you guys out.
So, how radical are the other Bezhan groups? Are these all resistance armies, or terrorist groups, or what?
This is the reason why yours has sped to popularity, you see. They're a mix of either extremely conservative groups with very few actual aims who are allowed to exist for that reason and that reason alone to small guerrilla armies of forty or so men too poorly equipped to deal with their opponents.
You forgot Vezik in the regional breakdown! ;_;
Those poor, poor forgotten people... They need stronger leadership to help guide them along! That leadership will come from the EELP!
Quote from: Elemental_ElfYou forgot Vezik in the regional breakdown! ;_;
Those poor, poor forgotten people... They need stronger leadership to help guide them along! That leadership will come from the EELP!
Don't be silly, of course I didn't... *shifty eyes*
Hopefully the people of Vezik, and the rest of Evostrania, recognize the superior message of the EELP and propel us to electoral victory in the next election.
I would advise attempting to speak to parties with similar-looking goals, such as the Socialist Party and the other Bezhans (as well as scouting about for other Mafiya factions etc).
(Also, you don't have elections. So I'd get fermenting rebellions and blackmailing government officials. Or alternatively, kill the president. :P)
Is there any kind of Duma or parliament, even if it's only the President's party, or is it a total autocracy?
Quote from: Holy Carp!Is there any kind of Duma or parliament, even if it's only the President's party, or is it a total autocracy?
Seconded!
I would think that there would be lip service paid to democracy, but it quickly lapses back into a corrupt system of government, following the model of most of the real former SSRs. :)
By the way, what was its former name? Something like Evostran SSR would seem to fit.
I've never seen a forum game quite like this before. Before I commit too much time to poring over it, would there be room for another player?
Quote from: Holy Carp!Is there any kind of Duma or parliament, even if it's only the President's party, or is it a total autocracy?
Not exactly. There's a cabinet that the President is supposed to consult on important matters, but they haven't met in four years and they're all presidential supporters anyway.
And sure, Bill, there's room.
Anyone interested in arms deals should PM me, just to let me know. I live in Hawaii IRL, so there's a bit of a time delay between me and most other CBGers (i.e. when it's lunch time for you all, I'm just waking up.) I'll definitely get on it faster with some extra notice.
We need a new due date to generate some posts!
How about next Tuesday (the 23)?
Next Tuesday is good by me.
I will attempt to meet this deadline.
I assume you mean Tuesday the 25th, right?
That's what I meant, lol (stupid keyboard *chucks at Time Dragon Stat Sheet* )
Yesterday. Heh.
Now I've just got to write an update... :P
Are we stuck again? :(
Do I have to threaten to declare victory again? ;)
Actually I think we're waiting for the update. And the only people who are victorious around here are the Zadga Mafia.
You shall ALL rue the day when you didn't let the EELP Run our GLORIOUS COUNTRY!!!
In other news, I can't wait for the update!
Grah! Sorry. I'll get started now.
Quote from: WensleydaleGrah! Sorry. I'll get started now.
Sweet! I hope we'll have it before Tuesday (I'm usually a better writer on Tuesdays, dunno why).
Note. Despite the fact that this is the EVOSTRANIAN tourist board, I can answer questions about neighbouring countries. And of course, you can attempt to get support in REAL neighbouring countries... which may not have very sizable Bezhan populations, but are still, y'know. Countries. Don't be afraid of interacting with things outside of Evostrania itself. :)
Your map of asia in the main thread isn't showing up for me.
Ahem. Sorry about that...
Edit: FIXED.
So, why exactly did you put in the additions? (don't worry, I'll be posting about it soon)
As in, the eastern countries?
They're there because as the 'Eastern Coalition' opens up, new opportunities for shadier groups and, of course, for the Muslims and Bezhans, will appear in these nations. I also thought it was time to reveal Evostrania's neighbours (which I would have done originally, but I forgot to and then excluded it from later updates because I felt it was then unneeded).
I'm delaying the deadline for two days so that people can get around to posting their orders.
So what day are the orders due?
(Sorry I haven't updated, I've been swamped with an essay and two midterms this week)
Today, I believe...
And if nobody else gets them in, I'll just declare myself the winner again!
Allahu Akbar!
So the deadline Sunday, then?
Sorry, I've got a lot of job applications to do right now, but I'll try to submit something by Sunday.
Yeah, Sunday. :)
Whee, update :D
One question... for the HII, it says "wealth +1" but it actually went down from the previous update (it used to be 3 and is now 2)
Corrected. :P
Hey, sorry I didn't post orders, I got REALLY distracted. Is it still cool if I post in this turn?
Of course. I'm not sure if I posted an update for you, but if I didn't, just work off the last one. :)
When's the next update? I have finals up until Wednesday... Can the next due date be after that (so I have time to post)?
The next update... will come eventually.
It just seems that practically everyone's lost interest in Evostrania or is busy at the moment, so, uhh.
Quote from: WensleydaleThe next update... will come eventually.
It just seems that practically everyone's lost interest in Evostrania or is busy at the moment, so, uhh.
Well it is finals time for many of us.
Also, maybe you should have a 'shake-up' event that changes some of the dynamics of the game to rekindle interest.
That's what I plan to do in the next update. But it's finals (well, ish) time for me as well, so I'm busy too.
I'm leaving (for a six week vacation) in 4 days, I probably won't have access to a computer. So my orders will be to continue what I have been doing, mostly infiltrating Chatko by uniting local gangs. Further, I wish to continue strengthening my hold over Vezik by appealing to the Ethnically-Evostrian masses against the unwelcome hordes of Bezhans.
I'll try to write out a lengthy list of orders, if I find time (lot to do before I leave) but if not, I just wanted to give everyone a heads up).
I'd just like to say:
I WIN
:explode: :pwned: :explode:
I would like to start this up again at some point. Or something more like the World at Dawn. But since nobody was posting for a while...
Edit: Actually, this gives me an idea.
Still up for it, by the way...
Quote from: WensleydaleThat a ground-shaking enough event?
Indeed. Too much so, perhaps. I don't mean to rain on your parade or try to pooh-pooh your attempt to get this game going again (because I enjoyed it, and would like to see it active again), however, this particular event-- especially from my perspective at the Islamic faction-- makes very little sense.
The HII, which was supposedly the major Muslim group, was seemingly completely unaware of this. Why did they have 0% influence in a territory that had a powerful enough Muslim group to succesfully break away, despite supposedly being the Muslim organization in this country? Why would the HII just sit on the sidelines while this happened-- I would think they would be leading the charge, or, if a rival Muslim organization had started to form, they'd be trying to absorb/subvert/control it. Why was the HII completely unaware of any Muslim separatism in this area? For that matter, why is the HII so weak, if Muslims have enough numbers to break off into an Islamic republic, anyway?
Instead, they're just sort of struggling along, trying to amass money and influence... while some NPC Muslims come out of nowhere and do everything they were maybe eventually building toward, in one fell swoop. It's pretty discouraging, in all honesty.
Quote from: sparkletwistThe HII, which was supposedly the major Muslim group, was seemingly completely unaware of this. Why did they have 0% influence in a territory that had a powerful enough Muslim group to succesfully break away, despite supposedly being the Muslim organization in this country? Why would the HII just sit on the sidelines while this happened-- I would think they would be leading the charge, or, if a rival Muslim organization had started to form, they'd be trying to absorb/subvert/control it. Why was the HII completely unaware of any Muslim separatism in this area? For that matter, why is the HII so weak, if Muslims have enough numbers to break off into an Islamic republic, anyway?
A good question. I forgot to give HII any influence in the new republic, which I will do. But!
1) Why did the HII not know about these muslims?
The muslims who founded the republic are from Zadko, which is a separate country. The extension of territory only occurred because they are Bezhans first and Muslims second, and several already-existing Bezhan groups of other religions (primarily orthodox) in Evostrania joined the revolution.
2) Why is the HII so weak in this area?
HII has always been focussed in the west of Evostrania, and have never really tried to extend their power into Zadga, which is traditionally Islamic in the east and Orthodox in the west (whilst being Bezh all the way across). Evostranian Zadga has a negligible islamic presence, it was the idea of Bezhan rebellion, rather than Islamic rebellion, that led to a declaration of independence. Essentially, it's only an islamic republic because the Bezhans who began the rebellion and are 'administrating' (sort of) the new republic are muslims. The likelihood of it staying as an Islamic Republic for more than a few months if it manages to survive are unlikely.
QuoteInstead, they're just sort of struggling along, trying to amass money and influence... while some NPC Muslims come out of nowhere and do everything they were maybe eventually building toward, in one fell swoop. It's pretty discouraging, in all honesty.
Edit:[/b] Added influence for HII in the new Bezhan republic.
Quote from: WensleydaleHII has always been focussed in the west of Evostrania, and have never really tried to extend their power into Zadga
I was hoping that you would either a) incite your own uprising this turn to join the republic, b) send your own people to help with the war effort, or c) attempt to subvert the new republic for your own ends. If there's something you'd like me to change, I'd be glad to.[/quote]not[/b] the one pulling most of the strings.
My suggestion for what to change would be to give all of the player factions a boost, or at least change the numbers to match what you're thinking, if you seriously intended being able to overthrow the country to be on the table. To me, that's a good thing-- I wonder if the number of users didn't dwindle a bit because there was a sense of powerlessness, where the player factions were all third-rate outfits in a sea of powerful NPCs.
That's all just my opinion, though. Again, I'm not trying to rain on your parade or be difficult. If there's something you, as GM, want to do, then of course I'd be happy to talk about it and try to wrap my head around it, so the game can move forward. I'm not looking for bickering or whatever, of course. :)
I'm perfectly willing to put the game on hold until we can mesh out a decision between us.
QuoteMy suggestion for what to change would be to give all of the player factions a boost, or at least change the numbers to match what you're thinking, if you seriously intended being able to overthrow the country to be on the table. To me, that's a good thing-- I wonder if the number of users didn't dwindle a bit because there was a sense of powerlessness, where the player factions were all third-rate outfits in a sea of powerful NPCs.
This is really strange, to me. Again, I'm no expert on the politics of this region, but it just doesn't seem to make sense. In order to get away with an "Islamic Republic", you'd need a pretty sizable Muslim majority (or at least a plurality) and a strong sense of Islam as being one's main identity. The notion of an "Islamic Republic" implies that Islam is the state's official religion, the laws are based on Sharia, there is some legal status for mullahs etc... to me, it has some strong connotations and it is not just a Republic with some Muslims in charge. I didn't get the sense from the Bezhans this would fly at all, particularly since their basis seems to by and large be Orthodox-- but maybe I just got the wrong sense from them. It seems like, if they're Bezh first and foremost, that's what they'd base the republic on. The proud Orthodox Bezhans would be aghast at being in an "Islamic Republic," and there can't be that many Muslims or the HII would look pretty stupid for not having any dealings with them. [/quote]
I understand this, and you're right to a certain degree. What I imagined happening, however, was this.
1) Sizable muslim Bezhan majority in Zadko. These are relatively unknown to muslims (and everyone else) in Evostrania because the border with Zadko has been closed for so long militarily.
2) The border is opened, sort of. Troop amounts are lowered on both sides, taking a substantial amount of pressure off the Bezh in Zadko.
3) A Bezhan muslim imam, for reasons of patriotism and religion, declares that the Bezh should rise up and remove the chains of their oppressors. Islamic Bezhans everywhere do so as they have been ready to do for many, many years.
4) Bezhans in Evostrania - particularly militant groups - seize the opportunity to join their brothers from Zadko in outright rebellion. These are orthodox Bezhans (as well as atheists and members of other religions) but see themselves as Bezh first.
5) The imam declares the Islamic Republic of Bezh an entity.
The republic is not really a nation as such yet, however. It has existed for only a few days at this point in the game, it is holding together - just about - but it doesn't have a constitution, a real code of law, or anything as such yet. The Bezh muslims are in charge, and it's them that want an islamic republic - but the Evostranian Bezhans, who are primarily orthodox, are in it only for the chance of a Bezhan nation.
I'll just go ahead and tell you that my original plan was for the state to collapse into civil war within a couple of turns anyhow, unless something dramatic happened to pull it together.
Quote from: WensleydaleThese are relatively unknown to muslims (and everyone else) in Evostrania because the border with Zadko has been closed for so long militarily
These are orthodox Bezhans (as well as atheists and members of other religions) but see themselves as Bezh first.[/quote]the Evostranian Bezhans, who are primarily orthodox, are in it only for the chance of a Bezhan nation.[/quote]
Maybe they didn't even know it was going to be an Islamic republic, and it's like "huh? *civil war*"
QuoteIn support, in power, in everything. Basically, these factions should be clearly the "heavy hitters" in Evostrania. Perhaps you always intended it this way, and perhaps I've misunderstood your scale: is a 10 a dominant power in Evostrania? A US-esque superpower? Or what? It just doesn't seem to be working that way right.
Maybe they didn't even know it was going to be an Islamic republic, and it's like "huh? *civil war*"[/quote]How many of these are there? My view was, up until recently, almost none, so it's a big surprise to me.[/quote]I'm not sure how realistic this is. Oppressed groups tend to always have an "underground." I'd think Muslims would be able to communicate and share a common cause.[/quote]THE IDEA FOR A SOLUTION:[/b]
Simply rename the Islamic Republic of Bezh 'Bezh Republic'. Forget about the muslim Bezh, have them be a minority even in Konistrania and Zadko. Have the insurgency be mostly ethnic-based rather than religious-based. Rework the current factions' statistics to make them more heavy-hitting.
Howsaboutit?
Quote from: WensleydaleTHE IDEA FOR A SOLUTION
I like it! :D
So I'm ditching the 'percentage support' system and replacing it with values of 1-100 (not much different, I know, but the benefits are that we no longer have to worry about support values adding up). I've given you all boosts. Note that 100 support means that you're practically in control of a province and 50 support means that you have a substantial chunk of the population under your wing. Two groups' areas of support may overlap - for example, one shopkeeper might be paying protection money to the Mafiya whilst being an ardent supporter of the Evostranian Unity Party.
Edit: DONE