Discussing the future of NationStates

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=14538714'>Discussing the future of NS</a>

Saw this thread on jolt. seems to have finally gotten legs moving, as violet has joined the discussion.

[Guest]

I was most shocked by violet announcing that he would consider a code change (with regard to the adzone, I think).

[Caer Rialis]

There are some parts of these proposals I like, such as removing the founders' check on delegates. However we see the same complaints from the founded regions on the feeders. It's a lot of same old, same old

[Southern Bellz]

The removal of founders would be interesting.

[mavenu]

the discussion has heated up other ideas. mainly that if regions give up founders + minimum size = new feeder. Also, delegates can send weekly TGs.I'd recommend that you take another gander at it, and add your two pence in.

[mavenu]

thread's still alive there.

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=587841'>Discussion on update times</a><a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=586807'>Discussion on founders</a>

[Kandarin]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://www.esurveyspro.com/Survey.aspx?id=ff04333c-768c-4d83-a6d0-ce2d60867444'>This</a> was assembled in an effort to gauge the relative interest of varying aspects of the game. It's unofficial, but what it's trying to find out is still worth knowing, so take a look.

This was previously posted on the Jolt forum but as we all well know that forum doesn't necessarily reflect the interests of the entire game.

[Kandarin]

The survey is now closed, and results have been posted here:

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=590035'>http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=590035</a>

[mavenu]

thread's still alive there.

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=587841'>Discussion on update times</a><a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=586807'>Discussion on founders</a>

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=589919'>Summary of ideas, with links to where they occured</a>, as they occured over mulitple threads.

A List of Ideas
Just trying to organize some of the ideas we've brought up.

Regional Influence

? Get rid of Regional Influence + Founders
? Get rid of Founders
? Make Regional Influence Optional
? Get rid of just Regional Influence
? Changing the mechanics of Influence (Seniority VS. Endorsement)
? Evil Wolf's Post on the subject
? ? Snefaldia's post on the subject

NationStates Customization

? Regional Categories
? Take my fun Regional Category NationStates-esque Quiz!
? Regional Issues
? Bicameral System, with Regional Delegates and WA delegates (no founders)
? Ketchupland's post that inspired the Bicameral system
? Regions can decide between different types of voting structure
? Extended BBcode and allowed length in Factbooks and Telegrams
? Different regional types (unicameral, founders, bicameral, and anarchies
? Regional & Nation Customization
? Including links to helpful tutorials and other links of interest in the first standard game telegram
? Always allow WA Delegates to edit the WFE, regardless of settings by Founder
? Disallow Founder to edit WFE

Security

? Safezones for people who just want to play "politician".
? A Whitelist
? Regional Moderator
? Passwords which drain influence
? Frisbeeteria's post on the subject

Regional Advertisement and Community Growth

? Regional Endorsements
? A TG-All in region function for Delegate/Founder
? A feeder license for powerful user created regions > Naivetry's post on the subject
? An Adzone concept (with either a telegram ad, or an adspot)
? Organization of the Regions by Regional Power

World Assembly

? "Burn" function for Proposals.
? Proposal Raiders
? ? My Problem with Quorum
? ? ? QoD telling me to shut about Quorum, or leave (a long standing tradition apparently)
? An "effect" line for a proposal, to be written by the proposer or someone else.
? Making Quorum harder to get.
? An automatic delegacy function for regions with only one WA member.
? Kandarin's post on Quorum Inflation
? Discussing the proposal list in the delegate's standard congratulations telegram.
? Advertising the proposal list better than a small measly link on the WA page. (You can tell how I feel about this one. )

Other Game Mechanics
? Changing the time of update
? Open Source NationStates
? Close down feeders

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=590877'>Broadcast Zone</a>

I propose the creation of 27 new game regions - that is, one for each nation type (Psychotic Dictatorship, Left-Leaning College State, etc.). Being Delegate of one of these regions would allow a nation to send out a telegram to all nations of that type at intervals (let's say a week - I'm not certain about the optimal interval) starting several (let's say three) days into that Delegate's incumbency. This telegram would have a special title - the name of the region, perhaps - similar to the messages sent by the WA or the mods. These regions would have gimped regional controls in the manner of the Rejected Realms or Lazarus; that is, no passwords and no ejection.

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=93&sid=2bea7ab50f797c841a6a2545c23cd349'>Link on new forum</a> for the master list of suggestions

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2923&sid=ff5d5aac7bff63e2052f057b6a926a12'>Bickering about the update time</a>

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4498&sid=b34a647a6aa1e39e5807ce0d8eed671f'>Annexation</a>

Another proposal for your comments!

Annex: A method for declaring a region to be part of a greater empire.

How it might work:

    * Regional Control permits a Delegate or Founder to nominate another region to be annexed
    * Regional Control of the nominated region permits its Delegate or Founder to dismiss or accept the annexation request
    * If accepted:
          o The main page of the nominated region states that it has been annexed, and by which region
          o The main page of the annexing region displays a list of the other region(s) it has currently annexed
    * At any time, the Delegate or Founder of either region may dismiss the annex, at which point:
          o The main pages of the two relevant regions no longer display any annex information
          o The main page of the annexing region retains a historical listing that it had once annexed the other region during that period


Possible rules:

    * A region cannot be annexed by more than one region at a time
    * A region may annex an unlimited number of other regions
    * A region may not annex an "ancestor" region, meaning a region that has annexed it, or a region that has been annexed by a region that has annexed it, etc.

[tsunamy]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4498&sid=b34a647a6aa1e39e5807ce0d8eed671f'>Annexation</a>

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' data-author="'violet'">Another proposal for your comments!

Annex: A method for declaring a region to be part of a greater empire.

How it might work:

? ? * Regional Control permits a Delegate or Founder to nominate another region to be annexed
? ? * Regional Control of the nominated region permits its Delegate or Founder to dismiss or accept the annexation request
? ? * If accepted:
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the nominated region states that it has been annexed, and by which region
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the annexing region displays a list of the other region(s) it has currently annexed
? ? * At any time, the Delegate or Founder of either region may dismiss the annex, at which point:
? ? ? ? ? o The main pages of the two relevant regions no longer display any annex information
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the annexing region retains a historical listing that it had once annexed the other region during that period


Possible rules:

? ? * A region cannot be annexed by more than one region at a time
? ? * A region may annex an unlimited number of other regions
? ? * A region may not annex an "ancestor" region, meaning a region that has annexed it, or a region that has been annexed by a region that has annexed it, etc.

</blockquote> I realize I'm late to this (and since I haven't had a nation for some time, irrelevant to it) however I think this sounds like an awesome idea. It would turn the game into more of a war zone-esque stuff. Where as instead of each region being allied with others ... it would actually mean something when regions attacked each other.

[mavenu]

then you run into mencer/macedon who apparently take over regions for kicks...

[Caer Rialis]

then you run into mencer/macedon who apparently take over regions for kicks...

And they're not even on Route 66!

[mavenu]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' > <a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4498&sid=b34a647a6aa1e39e5807ce0d8eed671f'>Annexation</a>

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' data-author="'violet'">Another proposal for your comments!

Annex: A method for declaring a region to be part of a greater empire.

How it might work:

? ? * Regional Control permits a Delegate or Founder to nominate another region to be annexed
? ? * Regional Control of the nominated region permits its Delegate or Founder to dismiss or accept the annexation request
? ? * If accepted:
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the nominated region states that it has been annexed, and by which region
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the annexing region displays a list of the other region(s) it has currently annexed
? ? * At any time, the Delegate or Founder of either region may dismiss the annex, at which point:
? ? ? ? ? o The main pages of the two relevant regions no longer display any annex information
? ? ? ? ? o The main page of the annexing region retains a historical listing that it had once annexed the other region during that period


Possible rules:

? ? * A region cannot be annexed by more than one region at a time
? ? * A region may annex an unlimited number of other regions
? ? * A region may not annex an "ancestor" region, meaning a region that has annexed it, or a region that has been annexed by a region that has annexed it, etc.

</blockquote>I realize I'm late to this (and since I haven't had a nation for some time, irrelevant to it) however I think this sounds like an awesome idea. It would turn the game into more of a war zone-esque stuff. Where as instead of each region being allied with others ... it would actually mean something when regions attacked each other.
</blockquote> A first step towards the 'annexe' feature (see previous posts, can't be arsed finding a link) has been made! Regions now have history pages for an automatic record of notable events. Check out your own region page and have a look! Regional settings have been twiddled with so that everyone can see them without having to manipulate URL addresses. You can check that out too!

[mavenu]

<a class='bbc_url' href='http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=23902'>Link</a>

One of the major drawbacks of NS, at least for new players, is the steep learning curve. There's a lot to do in the game, much of which is not immediately evident. As feeder regions and recruiters have often learned, NS is pretty intimidating at first glance. This isn't something that can really be eliminated, nor something for which I want to place blame (for it is a consequence of many things that make the game good); it's just an unavoidable fact of the way the game works.

From experience in various feeder regions, I've noticed that a side effect of Influence exacerbates this. Not only do new nations start in vast, impersonal feeder regions, only to be deluged with similarly vast, impersonal recruitment telegrams, but they start with their position in the game universe bluntly displayed: "Minnow". All of the other Influence titles are statements of relative significance, but Minnow is a statement only of the insignificance of a nation. This is often frustrating and disappointing. It is all the more so because nations that choose to move to very large regions or to remain in the Pacifics must wait months or years to be rid of the title. Their only recourse, at present, is to launch a massive, aggressive endorsement-swapping campaign that tends to place them under a great deal of suspicion.

Therefore, I propose that nations that would currently merit the "Minnow" rank should not display the Influence stat at all, until such time as they have enough influence for it to be worth noting (Vassal or above). It would send the same message to those that understand and use Influence ("This nation has very little influence") without passively degrading those that do not understand or use Influence by pointing out their lack of it every time they log in.

from Kandy. I'm liking this idea.

[Caer Rialis]

That's not a bad idea at all.

[mavenu]

how about "New to Region" or something less demeaning?