RAIDERCON 2023: A NEW FRONTIER

[Honeydewistania]

Couldn’t you put instead of :stuck_out_tongue: lol

I give you art and this is all you see!?

Yes.

[Jakker]

Here is the podcast recording discussing the theme of building community!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jkXVJN ... sp=sharing

[Jakker]

Day 4 is here! Check out these wonderful interviews and stay tuned for another podcast later tonight!

The Future of Raiding - Astrid Weisberg

Dakota
What got you involved in NS and raiding?

Astrid
I looked up something along the lines of nation simulator and found nationstates. As for raiding I just thought look at all these regions. Would be cool to try and own as many as possible.

Dakota
Who are some of your raiding mentors and how have they helped you?

Astrid
Valfor has pretty much taught me everything I know. He promoted me to captain and allowed me to actually lead raids.

Dakota
What was your training in raiding like?

Astrid
Really straightforward I learned to trigger and point in one update.

Dakota
What has been some of your favorite NS moments so far?

Astrid
My favorite moment is probably seeing Great Cthulhu eject Fedele from The East Pacific. Followed by seeing COE get commended. Then becoming deputy prime minister of the LKE.

Dakota
Are there any goals that you hope to accomplish as an imperialist or NS player in general?

Astrid
For now I just hope to be the first to earn the rank of Major General in the LKE imperial army. I would also like to eventually reach the rank of Kaptein in Balder. As for the future it all depends on what happens.

Dakota
What challenges do you think new raiders face and how can those challenges be overcome?

Astrid
I think it's incredibly easy to be overwhelmed by it all. Combined with the fact that raiding takes longer then what a new player will expect. All we can really do is extend a helping hand and walk them through the process.

Dakota
Many new players do not stick around long. What factors have contributed to you getting further involved in raiding?

Astrid
The fact I like the people I raid with, and that I enjoy being a part of the LKE. Additionally knowing that some defender groups act overly arrogant and self righteous. Drives me to keep going.

---

The Future of Raiding - Pterodaxtyl (Dax)

Dakota
What got you involved in NS and raiding?

Dax
In December 2014 I was bored and looked up games I could lead a country in and came across NS. I made a nation and it CTE'd but I eventually came back a few months later. Over time, I learned about the different regions throughout NS and what all they do, such as regions that raid and defend. In 2017 I finally decided to check out this part of the game and joined The Black Hawks as a Private until my discord stopped cooperating with my phone and I couldn't do any raids. After leaving then returning to NS by 2019, I met Dakota and mentioned this and how I was also interested in trying raiding out again someday, causing her to encourage me to rejoin and get involved in TBH again.

Dakota
Who are some of your raiding mentors and how have they helped you?

Dax
Unsurprisingly, I'd have to say my main mentor with raiding has been Dakota who dragged me back into TBH and was more approachable for questions and clarification during times when I was confused or needed help. She also helped me fight my mobile raiding "roadblock" of sorts so I would be able to jump, point, and even trigger from mobile successfully.

Another mentor of mine would definitely be Jakker. He's a great leader who is willing to talk to people and he answered questions I had (/still have ) as well as working through any problems I had with my situation with me.

Dakota
What was your training in raiding like?

Dax
Ngl terrifying at first. For my first training, I wasn't entirely sure what I was doing and didn't ask for clarification on anything I was confused about. I was super nervous and knew I would mess up. I also hadn't planned ahead for how I would work things out on my phone past "hey I have a tablet too let's use that" (the tablet made it so much worse) so I ended up sitting on the floor freaking out over one little mistake which led to more. I had to do another training, which I learned was okay and that messing up wasn't so bad. The second one was scary at first, but once I got the hang of it, I did pretty well especially with the help of pings that Dakota threw in.

Dakota
What has been some of your favorite NS moments so far?

Dax
One of my favorites would have to be my first time triggering. I had no confidence in myself considering how hard it was to even prep 10 targets on mobile, it seemed to me that triggering itself would be near impossible. However, I stuck with it and I'm glad I did. I couldn't watch the targets update during the actual raid, but when I saw the first "hit" pop up in the chat, I was so happy and excited to do more. The folks who showed up helped me feel less nervous and were so supportive as well.

Dakota
Are there any goals that you hope to accomplish as a raider or NS player in general?

Dax
At this point I mainly just want to see what all I can try out in raiding and explore the different areas of it. I've wanted to sleepers or more with ops for a while, and I also aspire to lead a large shotgun raid. There's just a lot to raiding and I think it'd be fun to see what all I can experience with it. Overall though, I think my main goal would be to be the best raider I can be despite being limited to mobile most of the time. I've improved a lot over time with practice, but there's still room to improve and I know I can get even better.

Dakota
What challenges do you think new raiders face and how can those challenges be overcome?

Dax
I think that a lot of newcomers realize raiding isn't quite like other games and takes a lot of legitimate work and practice to get the hold of. We can lose some folks because it can be harder to get ahold of, especially for people new to NS in general.

Dakota
Many new players do not stick around long. What factors have contributed to you getting further involved in raiding?

Dax
I am super shy and it takes me a bit to get involved in new communities so I was quiet at first when I joined the server and eventually the nest. This also made me pretty hesitant to hop in for raids (well, alongside me not wanting to make more than 12 puppets.) But I started getting more involved and socializing with other folks in the region early in February when that one shady puzzle was posted and the hawks were working on it together. It was a fun reason to keep coming back to the nest and to get to know other folks around the region. After that, I felt more comfortable joining in raids with everyone and had a lot of fun with it.

---

The Future of Raiding - Refuge Isle

Dakota
What got you involved in NS and raiding?

Refuge
I got involved with NationStates around the end of 2012, when some older NSers first brought the game up in our community chat. I had obviously never heard about it before, but it was a few years after we had done other browser-based MMO games together and it looked like this was the next one. We founded a region which was basically just for our group, because insular communities be insular, and I think my impression of it at the time was "Wow, there's nothing to do here!" And then for some reason or another they made me delegate.

About six months into that, when the (considerably fewer) issues started recycling, my ex who was also the regional founder ceased to exist and we were basically raided instantly. Because I had no concept of how R/D worked, I made a bunch of multies and stole back the delegacy (because that's definitely how that works) and was promptly banned from the WA. After the ban, I lost interest. I had some resentment towards raiders for being the reason we stopped playing but, in retrospect, that's not the case at all. It was an event that happened to take place when we were already moving on to other games, which is how it was raidable in the first place.

It took a while to see that.

When I came back in 2018, I sort of planned on doing the same thing – come back for a little while to see how things were and then leave after a couple months when the issues started recycling. Instead I got pulled into weird regional politics with Caer Sidi for a month before getting frustrated and storming off to found my own region with card games and fishing equipment.

Some time passed, things happened, and even though I ended up making a region that I think people genuinely enjoyed, I got sick and it compounded with the stress of feeling like I was in a glass box. I had too much history in my community, a real need to get out of places I didn't want to be in, stop talking to toxic people, and stop being a person I didn't really want to be. Essentially, I was on the fast track to quit NS permanently in the way that I think a lot of people find themselves sooner or later.

Fortunately, as I was about to move on from being a cards player, I started talking to Sakana from the card server because she was fun to have bid wars with. She talked me into trying out tag raiding after my delegacy was up, and I was like sure, the game can't possibly get any worse. And so we ended up forming this sort of secret raiding org because it's not like anyone was going to be suspicious of me, and ended up getting some 75-100 hits a night to freak people out.

Dakota
Who are some of your raiding mentors and how have they helped you?

Refuge
Sakana! Seriously though, I don't really have mentors in the sphere of raiding in the same way that I think everyone else does. For me, instead of a career path with fabled heroes of the past, raiding has been more like going out for a dance. It's social, it's fun, it's comfortable.

The exact way that things happened for me were probably the only circumstances where I ever would have made it into raiding at all: stress-free tagging, in private, with a friend I was comfortable with. Things getting explained in a way I understood at a pace of exactly "whatever". If at any point, I didn't like what I was doing, how I was doing it, or who I was with, it wouldn't have worked out.

Getting all of that sorted and practiced before I came to TBH is what made raiding there at all possible.

Dakota
What was your training in raiding like?

Refuge
It was a dark Saturday, the first of February when Sakana, clad in animal hides, strode onto the battlefield with banners of sloths hastily folded into stars. She roared and assumed her true all-caps form full of power, authority, and more importantly keybindings.

"I will not be intimidated by you!" I cried out, hastily preparing travel runes

She wandered about me, placing cairn stones in a circle, their druidic powers filling me with the knowledge of all the ancients who had come before. She stomped her foot and the gateway to Primula materialised.

---

So back in reality, my first experience with gp directly was observing an EPSA training run, when Saka was Overseeing Officer and while I was still locked as delegate. The whole thing was kind of crazy because none of these people had the slightest clue what was. I had some guesses, and some of them turned out to be wrong, but it was still useful to get an idea of the flow of update.

For my actual training a couple weeks later, we prepared 25 puppets in a brand-new region, specifically refounded to be a JP, called Trieltics. Saka had some utilities from her days at Lily. I didn't, but I was pretty used to switching to manage card farms and this wasn't too far removed from that. I can't see incredibly well, and I don't have a second monitor so being able to find a way to fit Discord onto the same screen as the browser was frustrating. It was also hard to see when a region updated because targets were given without the template and where the heck is anything even.

I called for a target, BB called go and everything worked well – it was a hit. Naturally, I did what every raider should and moved back, signed out of that account, signed into the next one, opened up the email for that account and joined WA. But hey, it was within a minute so we wouldn't discover I was doing it wrong until much later. We ended up getting 24 out of 25, but I was kinda frustrated that I couldn't find a workflow and I was stumbling over everything.

So, I think two days later we doubled the goal and tried to hit 50. This time I also had keybindings, and it was a bit of an awkward process that made things a little bit too complicated. Still mostly doing things wrong like singing into individual accounts instead of just clicking join emails. Something about update still didn't make sense to me, my setup didn't make sense to me. Even though I was getting better at it, I guess it felt a bit like not being able to read or something.

And then, for whatever reason, there was a point on the 24th where everything just clicked and made sense. I said "Saka - I got it," and honestly that's probably another answer for the favourite moments question. Naturally, she asked if I wanted to point, and I said heck no you're too good at it. She said well, actually this has all been my first time pointing at this speed. So, it turned out that we both kinda grew from that weird adventure. :3

Dakota
What has been some of your favorite NS moments so far?

Refuge
I honestly really struggle with this question because the big things I've done that I should have loved weren't really that pleasant at the time. So naturally, all of my moments are silly sentimental things.

One of those was when a person I really liked on the site asked to be pen pals. One of those was when Saka asked me to be her NS sister to make up for me not having a family IRL. And one of those was when people sent back TGs that they didn't want to move out of my region when I was quitting because they didn't want to be in a different community than ours.

Dakota
Are there any goals that you hope to accomplish as a raider or NS player in general?

Refuge
Ultimately, I want to find a comfortable spot to make something better than how I found it, or otherwise show that there's a more positive way of doing things than what's been done in the past.

Dakota
What challenges do you think new raiders face and how can those challenges be overcome?

Refuge
Raiding in NS isn't an incredibly complicated or involved process, but I think for new people coming in, it can be a little overwhelming. There's a lot of terms thrown around that aren't necessarily intuitive and what feels like a lot of pressure to do things exactly right in a crushingly short span of time. The only real solution is to stick with it, do things you're scared of, try it once and do it better the next time.

I think it's super important to be able to answer people's questions without coming off as condescending or arrogant, and remember to interact with people as people instead of referring them to a pre-made guide. Otherwise, make them feel like this is a larger community that they can be a part of.

All of that has probably been said before, but it's worth repeating because every time with a new raider, it's going to be a new first impression. And for all the people that have come through TBH, sometimes we hit that and sometimes we miss it, but it's worth considering that every new person that shows up might be a legendary raider one day if the right conditions are there.

Dakota
Many new players do not stick around long. What factors have contributed to you getting further involved in raiding?

Refuge
If you just show up as a new raider and you don't know anyone or don't even really understand what you're doing, I feel like that's not going to work out. Having friends and finding out that this is a legitimately welcoming community with people who are around for reasons other than just updating has helped to keep me around.

---

The Future of Raiding - The Chariot (Steven)

Dakota
What got you involved in NS and raiding?

Steven
Originally I was introduced to NationStates through a friend group, as many of us were. Though most of the friends would wane in their interest, I took an unusual liking to the game, especially considering its monotony (I was primarily an issues player at the time). Floating around NationStates for a couple years, user-made guides pointed me towards another way to play the game: raiding and defending. I made a brief foray, though its complexities wouldn’t keep me for long. After quitting the game and picking it back up again some time in 2019, a newly vacated Minister of Defense position in my first region got me involved once more. I would play the regional politics game for a while, going a bit deeper into R/D via my friendship with Vamperiall, until eventually joining the late Aukumnian Imperium. There I was almost immediately appointed to second-in-command, and the subsequent raids with Matthew (of Hartfelden), Xadrya, and Ar (who are now my partners in 3 Guys), would cause me to fall in love with raiding.

Dakota
Who are some of your raiding mentors and how have they helped you?

Steven
My path into raiding was a bit… unusual, so this question doesn’t really apply to me. I was largely self-taught, so I suppose the answer to this question would be Nephimir? I suppose if I had to pick a person it might be Vamperiall, as his resignation as Minister of Defense enabled me, and his region, Voltarium, sent me initially to Lily.

Dakota
What was your training in raiding like?

Steven
As I’ve previously alluded, I didn’t really have any training. My introduction into raiding was essentially just figuring things out with a friend or two, all equally clueless. Though perhaps most formative to who I am as a raider today was a raid I did with Lily, right after getting back into NationStates. Voltarium sent me in, and I was essentially thrust straight into darkest pits of speed raiding as one of my first proper tag raids. Keeping up with them was a Herculean task⁠—one I wasn’t up to. I ended up jumping in some 40 regions (not terrible considering I was using a trackpad at the time; nothing had necessitated more speed until then), though the process forced me to develop and consider ways to speed up that I still use today.

Dakota
What have been some of your favorite NS moments so far?

Steven
By far, I think, the moments I look back upon most fondly were the moments I quit my times in the Aukumnian Imperium. Though tarnished its name might be, I would meet some of my favorite people on NationStates to this day, and my raids with them were incredibly fun. Not even because of the raiding⁠—we weren’t all too competent⁠—but rather due to the interactions with really cool people. I remember vividly the nights where we would stay up deep into the morning after some 20-30 hit raid, either voice chatting or just talking on Discord, utterly incoherent from sleep deprivation. That was, and is, the aspect of raiding I most enjoy.

Dakota
Are there any goals that you hope to accomplish as a raider or NS player in general?

Steven
I feel pretty fulfilled as a player right now, honestly. I’m not really aiming for anything specific, other than perhaps the nebulous ideas of pushing the single team tag record to 200 with Sweeze or getting the manual record with 3 Guys. I feel I’m in a cushy spot; whereas I used to aspire to become more involved, sitting back, relaxing, just chilling feels like a break of sorts from the usual tumult of NationStates. And taking a vacation in both real life and NS just feels right in a sense, y’know?

Dakota
What challenges do you think new raiders face and how can those challenges be overcome?

Steven
As someone who had to stumble through my newbish days with essentially no guidance, this question is especially pertinent. There are a *lot *of ropes to trip before newcomers can get on their feet. Update times being inconvenient is a practically unsolvable problem. The amount of work and dedication required. The seemingly unmendable gap between native and raider mentality (wait, you can own multiple nations???). The confusingly abundant military double-talk, which I think could be toned down in general. And of course, there’s the sheer degree to which the only stickied guide to R/D on the gameplay forums is outdated, though I think even a revamped version of it wouldn’t help too much. I would love to see, rather, a holistic guide. Ideally it would provide the basics, linking to further reading if required, but also the current state of the metagame. What I often see guides fail to do is explain how it all actually… works. Yuno-style pictures, industry standards, and so on. It certainly would help up-and-coming organisations avoid getting laughed at.

Dakota
Many new players do not stick around long. What factors have contributed to you getting further involved in raiding?

Steven
A definite difference between long lasting players and training raid bailers is motivation. For me that consistent motivation was the binding responsibilities of a regional position or just wanting to hang out with friends. And I put special emphasis on the latter; the only reason I continue raiding is because of the great people I can connect to through it. The R/D community is an incredibly fun group of individuals, and I think it’s an important factor in player longevity. Though it may seem normal to us, raiding is a lot of work. Hours of time dedicated to changing a bit of text—at face value it probably doesn’t seem too appealing. Perhaps we should try to immerse new players into the community they’re joining before thrusting them into the deep end. Dakota’s poaching recruitment tactics, for example, do essentially this, befriending her victims and familiarizing them with the community for staying power.

[Wymondham]

Fascinating interviews!!

[Jakker]

Here is the podcast recording on today's topic!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UlVcQT ... sp=sharing

[Jakker]

The last day of RaiderCon 2020 is here! We were late on sending out questions to our speakers which we sincerely apologize for. We are still working on finalizing things in full. I will update the content as more answers come in. In the meantime, enjoy what we have!

Spotlight on Commended and Condemned Raiders - Crushing Our Enemies

Dakota
What distinguishes raiders who have received recognition through being condemned/commended or inducted into the Raiding Hall of Fame compared to those who have not?

COE
Well, first it’s important to realize that commendation and condemnation are very different from induction into the Raiding Hall of Fame. Both are noteworthy, but for very different reasons.

The standard for attaining a WASC badge is a moving target, and can be affected by the identity of the author, the political climate in each of the large GCR regions, which UCR regions have the most political power at the time, how large the player base is, etc. All of those factors have little to do with the nominee’s achievements and legacy, yet they can matter substantially to whether a resolution passes. So a condemnation or commendation doesn’t happen in a vacuum; it has to be contextualized. It’s not simply a recognition, it’s a historical event. When it happens, it means that someone (or multiple someones) have felt strongly enough that you are deserving that they took the time to write it all down, and convince other people that you exceed the standard. It also means that your claim to benevolence or malevolence is clear and undeniable enough that the resolution passes. And it means that no one has made a better argument that it be taken away (yet).

Induction to the Raiding Hall of Fame is very different. It means that a handful of people who are considered authoritative have decided that you are one of the greats. That you have earned your place in the history books of raiding, and your name will be on the lips of generations of raiders to come. It’s not subject to your popularity among the wider player base, or the approval of politically powerful WA blocs. It’s a recognition by the raiding world, and for the raiding world, and will never be taken away unless you screw over the raiding world hard enough that there’s really no choice.

I’ve written a lot without actually answering the question: what distinguishes raiders who have achieved these recognitions from the rest? I think there’s two answers to this.

The first answer is that they tend to have a creative mind. They don’t try to replicate the success others have had before them, they try to make things better. Instead of plus-oneing a growing consensus, they try to add something. They have a drive to change and innovate, and are always asking the “what if” questions. This is kind of a core value of raiding to me, because if you think about it, raiding is an innovation in and of itself. It was never built into the game; it was invented by raiders.

The second answer is that they make the rest of us want to recognize them. That seems obvious, but seriously, let’s take the focus off the players themselves, because it’s really more about the impact they have on the rest of us. They rise to positions of leadership because they make real connections with other people, showing themselves trustworthy and inspiring others to follow their lead. They listen when others have something to say. They lift others up when they see someone who deserves their own recognition. At its core, this game is still about politics, and politics is about building relationships and inspiring people. When someone does that well enough, recognition comes for it.

Dakota
Often, players may equate building legacy in raiding to recognition by others. Is that what it is all about? Are there ways to build legacy even when those efforts may not be acknowledged as visibly or publicly?

COE
This is kind of a semantic argument about the meaning of the word legacy. I tend to use the word to mean an enduring and noteworthy contribution that outlasts you. I think that sort of thing generally doesn’t happen anonymously. I mean, hell, everything about raiding is kind of about getting attention. We like putting our flag on things.

But sure, you can keep a low profile and still leave a legacy. I bet hardly anyone knows who Keanewood is these days, but circa 2007-2008, he recruited like a maniac and was probably responsible for the vast majority of the new nations that entered The Black Hawks. This was back when all recruitment was manual and one at a time. The biggest innovation in recruitment around then was when someone had the idea to scrape the regional happenings to keep a constant record of new nations being founded, so that you could send telegrams to more than just the nations that were founded while you were actively watching. There was no activity page, no sorting by residency, and absolutely no scripted telegrams. Who really knows how Keanewood altered the trajectory of The Black Hawks by his countless hours sending telegrams? Maybe other people would have picked up the slack if he wasn’t there, or maybe not. Maybe our numbers would have dwindled until we closed up shop for good.

Dakota
There can often be a lot of outside factors that influence one's legacy like if their accomplishments were written down, the time period in which they played, or the region they were involved with. Gameplay can also sometimes give the impression of "what have you done for me lately." How should a raider grapple with all of these factors? Should they be intentional and conscious about building a legacy or should this not even be a concern because of so much outside of their control?

COE
The first noteworthy thing I ever did in NS was to leave The Black Hawks and start my own raiding group. It stalled out two months later, and I shuttered it. As I was deciding what to do next, Red Back asked me if I wanted to come back to TBH. I said I wasn’t sure, because when I was in TBH, I felt like promotions were slow in coming, and the people at the top weren’t very active - those were my reasons for leaving in the first place. His response was basically “Well would you come back if I made you a General?” He set me up for success, and I’ve tried to pass that on to others when I see the opportunity to do so. I am part of Red Back’s legacy, and I hope that there are a few folks out there who consider themselves to be part of mine.

The point I’m trying to make is that most people don’t build legacies from scratch. They inherit a legacy, and try to build on it. No one gets to write their own story, everyone just plays their part in it.

Dakota
Who do you regard as a few raiders who have built a strong and positive legacy? What about them or their actions is/was memorable?

COE
Man, I could talk about “a few” all day long, because the problem is we’re all connected - once I start listing people, I gotta give credit to all the indispensable folks they relied on, and I swear I will leave out important people and kick myself later. So let me save myself some regret and just tell you about one: Red Back.

When Red Back joined The Black Hawks in 2005, the region was a joke. The first major event involving The Black Hawks was the destruction of their forum by a defender spy who got promoted to root admin level. This was a handful of weeks after the region was founded. Our concept of opsec was that no one could read the forum without making an account. There was constant drama between the original founder and other top members of the region, because even then, he never knew how to share credit, but was an expert at casting blame. A critical mass of nations to keep the region going was never really reached, and after only a year of existance, TBH merged with another region, then tried to split off again without much success, and eventually the founder nation ceased to exist.

It’s really remarkable that Red Back came through that era with the chops to essentially reboot the region from scratch and turn it into a military force that actually lived up to its slogan, “the most feared military organization in NationStates.” In the early days, we could only say that with a straight face because we were noobs who didn’t know any better. Red Back turned TBH into a real raider region.

The difference was that Red Back knew how to empower other people to make change, and was not afraid of losing control. He extended enormous trust to people who had earned it, and handed over enough authority to them to let them make their mark. He gathered a team, and had the sense to let the team work to accomplish the mission he set for them. I remember distinctly one day I was re-organizing the content of the forum, trying to cut down on unused sections and combine similar subforums, etc. I dropped the plan in the generals area for approval, and once it was given, I implemented about 95% of it, and told Red Back the rest had to be done by a root admin, expecting that he would get around to it when he had time. Instead, his reply was “well I guess it’s about time I made you a root admin, then.”

Letting go of control over something you care deeply about is scary as hell. That makes Red Back one of the most courageous players in the game. He had the ability to tell when someone has a fire in their belly and will do good things with his region, and he would always give them plenty of space to run with their ideas. This is how it came to be that TBH is lead by a council that divides responsibility among several people, and comes together to agree on the major decisions, with no one person having authority over the rest. As Red Back stepped away from daily activity, he retained his rank as Commander in Chief, and his ultimate authority as founder of the region. That meant that no one, then or now, could ever become the person at the top - that chair is occupied. Red Back still has absolute power. He could kick the whole council out of the region if he wanted, and change the forum theme to pink and gold. He’s got the big stick, but he knows better than to use it. As a result, the leaders and decision makers of TBH work together as equals, and share the load. So many regions crash and burn because one person tries to do everything, and then realize they can’t handle it all and there’s no one to pick up the slack. In TBH, if someone burns out, they just get replaced, they don’t take the region down with them.

It took me a long time to realize this, but Red Back is the reason that TBH is 15 years old and still going strong.

Dakota
Newer raiders can sometimes feel like everything in the game has already been done. With nearly two decades of raiding history, what does it take for someone to stand out in the modern game?

COE
Yeah, I hear you. Sometimes it seems like all anyone can do is replicate a successful formula from the past and add new graphics to it. I guess my answer is that you shouldn’t let everyone else’s winning formulas stifle your imagination. Right now, raiding seems to be focused mostly on being able to get the most hits in an update, and being able to manage influence well in an occupation so you can keep defenders from liberating. Maybe you stand out by picking a different objective. Maybe you’ve got a radically cool idea, but then realize that it will slow down switch times, or doesn’t use influence efficiently. Instead of abandoning it because it might result in fewer hits, or more liberations, change the paradigm. Be willing to embrace the idea that everyone is wrong about what “success” is except you.

Tag raiding didn’t come about as a natural evolution of raiding up to that point. It was a radical shift in the idea of what successful raiding looked like. At the time that tag raiding was invented, the priority was toppling delegates with larger endorsement totals, and holding their regions as long as we could. Doing more than one raid in an update was kind of silly because if you couldn’t hold onto them, what were you really proving? Dashing through update hitting dozens of regions was unthinkable - completely alien to the raider mindset. Now, it’s hard to even imagine raiding without it.

I guarantee you that not everything has been done. The next big innovation is only unthinkable now because no one has thought of it yet.

Dakota
What should a raider keep in mind if they want to be condemned or commended one day?

COE
I think the musical Hamilton said it best, through the voice of George Washington:

Let me tell you what I wish I’d known
When I was young and dreamed of glory
You have no control
Who lives, who dies, who tells your story

Dakota
There is a narrative that raiders should not be commended, yet you were able to receive this recognition. What message does it send that you were commended?

COE
Well first let me point out that I’m certainly not the first raider to be commended. One of the earliest commendations went to Todd McCloud, and the resolution includes a clause about his raiding accomplishments. Others include Severisen and Evil Wolf. The common thread between all of us is that we all had other credits to our name outside of raiding. Todd did big things in The East Pacific, Sev’s resolution was full of his history in Catholic (as Devoted Deacons), and Wolf was delegate of TNP and destroyed Nazi Europe. A resolution commending a raider that’s all about how great a raider they are is not going to fly. As Jakker’s first attempt to commend me shows, even a resolution that’s like, half about how great a raider someone is doesn’t fly. My commendation only went through because we de-emphasized my raider-ness enough that Kuriko decided she wouldn’t campaign hard against it. (As a side note, having to modify the proposal to appease defenders didn’t really sit right with Jakker or me. So, with my blessing, he added some last minute changes to make the first letter of every line anagram to “raider unity”. That way, the proposal as a whole pays homage to the raider ideals close to my heart.)

So as far as what message it sends, I’m not sure it really sends any, aside from the plain meaning of the text itself. It doesn’t prove that a raider can be commended, cause we already knew that. It’s just a thing that happened. Like all successful resolutions, it was a product of the right author, the right timing, and a little bit of politics.

Dakota
Any other thoughts or advice that you would like to give about building legacy in raiding?

COE
Not everyone who’s remembered well deserves to be remembered well, and certainly not everyone who’s forgotten deserves to be forgotten. So if you achieve recognition and renown, try to be one of the ones who deserves it. But failing that, at least try to be one of the noble ones who was undeservedly forgotten.

---

Spotlight on Commended and Condemned Raiders - Mallorea and Riva

Dakota
What distinguishes raiders who have received recognition through being condemned/commended or inducted into the Raiding Hall of Fame compared to those who have not?

Mall
Usually a number of factors, including legacy (what you've done), age (how long you've been doing it), and likability. Those are the three main ingredients in getting the Security Council to slap a shiny badge on your nation.

Dakota
Often, players may equate building legacy in raiding to recognition by others. Is that what it is all about? Are there ways to build legacy even when those efforts may not be acknowledged as visibly or publicly?

Mall
There are a thousand different ways to play the game, so players have built their legacies in different ways. A player, for example, might be very well known for raiding a number of regions and advocating for their destruction. On the side, he might also be an accomplished roleplayer, but that either isn't widely known or is a secret, hidden behind alt accounts. Separately, as a roleplayer, they may be building a legacy in that community. The end takeaway is that your legacy is what people will remember you for.

Dakota
There can often be a lot of outside factors that influence one's legacy like if their accomplishments were written down, the time period in which they played, or the region they were involved with. Gameplay can also sometimes give the impression of "what have you done for me lately." How should a raider grapple with all of these factors? Should they be intentional and conscious about building a legacy or should this not even be a concern because of so much outside of their control?

Mall
A legacy isn't built in a day. This is a game, and it is meant to be played. If you focus all of your energy on building a legacy, you'll likely be remembered as the player who was desperate for attention and just wanted to be important.

Dakota
Who do you regard as a few raiders who have built a strong and positive legacy? What about them or their actions is/was memorable?

Mall
I'll only name a few who were connected with my initial transition to raiding. I could give an exhaustive list, but I don't think that makes for great reading material. Jakker, Tramiar, and Crushing Our Enemies worked to build The Black Hawks as we know it. They shaped the organization to have a degree of professionalism that I still consider to be unmatched. On top of that, they are genuinely good people. It's always a good reminder that, while we're griefing regions into the void, we can still be pleasant folks.

Dakota
Newer raiders can sometimes feel like everything in the game has already been done. With nearly two decades of raiding history, what does it take for someone to stand out in the modern game?

Mall
This is a very good question. The simple answer is that you can get creative and go where no player has gone before, or you can rehash an old favorite and try to do it better than the last guy. As an example, some players will recall my "Liberate Haven" proposal. That actually wasn't a novel play - Around 2010 (if I remember correctly) a player by the name Oh My Days tried the exact same thing. There's nothing wrong with a little cheeky plagiarism of ideas, we've all just been copying the Farkers in one way or another from the beginning.

Dakota
What should a raider keep in mind if they want to be condemned or commended one day?

Mall
Just play the game. Play it well, and don't worry about the badge. By the time you get a condemnation, you realize that it's not nearly important as the fun you had getting to that point.

Dakota
Any other thoughts or advice that you would like to give about building legacy in raiding?

Mall
Never take the game too seriously, and go grief some regions. Just be polite about it.

---

Spotlight on Commended and Condemned Raiders - Reventus Koth

Dakota
What distinguishes raiders who have received recognition through being condemned/commended or inducted into the Raiding Hall of Fame compared to those who have not?

Koth
The distinguishing factor is really that those with SC badges and/or those in the RHoF have probably already done the most memorable things they're going to do in their career. It doesn't necessarily mean that their careers are over, it just means that they've got enough material for a canonized highlight reel. When you're admitted into these halls, your legacy is cemented in a few short paragraphs or bullet points, because rarely does anyone get more than that dedicated to them. In essence, what I'm saying is that what distinguishes these players is just down to time and effort. There's an x-factor as well, but my other answers might touch on that.

Dakota
Often, players may equate building legacy in raiding to recognition by others. Is that what it is all about? Are there ways to build legacy even when those efforts may not be acknowledged as visibly or publicly?

Koth
"If a tree falls in a forest, and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" The fact of the matter is that visibility is what makes a legacy. Quietly contributing in the corner might get you acknowledged in your day, but unless that knowledge is passed down somewhere, written for someone to observe down the line, it might as well have not happened. There are thousands of untold stories in NSGP, regions that barely made it off the ground and disappeared without their narrative passed on. If you only want to prove anything to yourself, there's nothing wrong with that. But don't be surprised if you're the only one that remembers you in the future.

Dakota
There can often be a lot of outside factors that influence one's legacy like if their accomplishments were written down, the time period in which they played, or the region they were involved with. Gameplay can also sometimes give the impression of "what have you done for me lately." How should a raider grapple with all of these factors? Should they be intentional and conscious about building a legacy or should this not even be a concern because of so much outside of their control?

Koth
One's concern should probably be somewhere in the middle. One should be conscious of how their actions affect their legacy, but they should also not let the pursuit of a good legacy blind them. Legacies are not built in a day, they are the culmination of everything you do in the game for as long as you're actively playing it. For many of us, that's a lot of time and accomplishments to sort through. Consider your legacy passively, and let it enter your mind only in big moments. Often, what people remember about you is exactly what you remember about yourself, because you will naturally re-tell stories of fond memories.

Dakota
Who do you regard as a few raiders who have built a strong and positive legacy? What about them or their actions is/was memorable?

Koth
It's hard not to shout out Jakker here, as one of the most positive and nurturing raiders that's ever played the game. He commands respect through his calm and playful demeanor, always reasonable and considerate in conversation. I'll also acknowledge Tramiar, Severisen, Kylia Quilor, and Rachael as overall positive people throughout my years as a raider. "Strong" and "positive" are not adjectives that often end up together very often in raiding history, in my personal opinion.

Dakota
Newer raiders can sometimes feel like everything in the game has already been done. With nearly two decades of raiding history, what does it take for someone to stand out in the modern game?

Koth
Acknowledge that everything in the game has already been done. There's not many other ways to abstract the basic tools we've given. Think of it this way: nobody can tell you what you need to do that hasn't been done already, because if we knew, we'd already have done it. Focus on the zeitgeist, the spirit of the environment you're coming up in as a new raider. Think about what should be done, given the climate around you. Oftentimes, it's not something that's never been done before that gets people's attention. It's something that could only be done in a certain context, with the right people, the right resources, in the right place. You never know what butterfly effect you can cause. You stand out by being the type of person that's needed in the moment, whatever that may be.

Dakota
What should a raider keep in mind if they want to be condemned or commended one day?

Koth
Hope to God that nobody you've crossed ends up being in a position to influence a lot of WA votes against you somewhere down the line. A notable proportion of SC outcomes are dictated by the personal feelings of the largest regions in the game, so be prepared to sell yourself to GCRs and play the unenviable game of reputation balancing. Beyond that, you should amass a number of "bullet-pointable" achievements throughout your career, like high positions of power, medals, leading notable raids, running a personal project, etc. It's rare to see someone enter the halls of the SC for being totally generic in their accomplishments.

Dakota
Any other thoughts or advice that you would like to give about building legacy in raiding?

Koth
Be yourself, and never try to be anything else. It's totally bland advice, but authenticity is really treasured in GP. Just look at how people descend upon anonymous puppets on the forum like vultures in the desert. If it's meant to be, that you are destined to stand out among the crowd and make a name for yourself, you will eventually. If it's not meant to be, then you'll trail off end up as one of those names in old raid reports that people look back on and wonder about, maybe. It's your life; you tell me how it goes, dude. If you want me to know your name, then you'll introduce yourself. That's all it takes.

[Jakker]

Here is the podcast recording from today!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K5Iq1W ... sp=sharing

[Jakker]

These last five days have filled me with such joy. Thank you to everyone who helped, contributed, and engaged with RaiderCon 2020. This year was all about how raiding has been built. It takes a community to develop something with such lasting impact. It is really special to participate in an event like this with others. Not only did it give so many a chance to connect and reflect on raiding, but we can look at this year in the future and reminiscence of the shared experiences that truly served to build so much.

The last five years of RaiderCon have seen so many great moments. Since experiencing the first convention in 2015, we have grown the Raiding Museum (working to transfer this on-site), examined dozens of topics related to raiding, and engaged in various events like Capture the Flag, Trivia, Puzzles, and raid games. We were able to even see RaiderCon advertised to the collective NS community in 2017. We have witnessed 23 and counting players enshrined in the Raiding Hall of Fame. We have listened to musical creations in RaiderVision that showcase such genuine creativity and fun. It is not easy to maintain a high level of planning and execution consistently on NationStates. Not every year has had the same activity, but each RaiderCon has added to where we are today. In total, they serve as an embodiment of the eternal attempt to capture the intangible magic of raiding.

While it is not possible to ever fully re-live everything that makes up raiding and the players who have engaged in it, we must continue to try. For the more we can share everything that makes up raiding, the more we can keep the players and raiding innovations of the past alive. Through this, we can inspire players of the present and future to keep moving raiding forward. Regardless of how one may feel about raiding, it is a microcosm of pure player innovation in NationStates. And this should be celebrated. This needs to be celebrated. For this is what keeps the site alive.

Until next year. RaiderCon it up. Now, Forever, Always.

[Queen Yuno]

What amazing work

You all did so much

It was really impressive and thanks for hosting this event

[The United Vex Imperium]

Good stuff! I really enjoyed the interviews from earlier

[LollerLand]

Great interviews! I really appreciate all the hardwork that went behind this.

[Sweeze]

this was way fun, massive props to all yall who organized this, looking forward to next years' ^-^

[Vetelo]

RaiderCon is a sham

[WayNeacTia]

RaiderCon is a sham

Your opinion is probably duly noted.

[RiderSyl]

RaiderCon is a sham

correct

s - super
h - happy
a - atmosphere
m - go away Attero

[Pterodaxtyl]

I've had an amazing time participating in this year's RaiderCon. Thanks to all the coordinators and organizers for all you hard work on this! It's been a blast!

[Bhang Bhang Duc]

Thoroughly enjoyed reading all the interviews, well done all.

[Crushing Our Enemies]

The organizers of RaiderCon really outdid themselves this year. I had a lot of fun failing miserably at the puzzles and trivia! A big thank you to all the organizers and panelists for an awesome event!

[Roavin]

Just echoing the sentiments, I felt it was really well done this year and even this francoist-defenderist subversive enjoyed the event.

[Aclion]

RaiderCon is a sham

correct

s - super
h - happy
a - atmosphere
m - go away Attero

s-h-a-g?

[Drexlore]

Graphics created by Malphe II, Inspired by Varax Zwei

RaiderCon is an annual event held in the summer that celebrates the past, present, and future of raiding on NationStates. This convention first took place in 2015 to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of The Black Hawks, and now coincides with The Raiding Hall of Fame. Players across NationStates come together to engage in discussions, games, and of course, raiding. RaiderCon has daily programs that examine raiding from various angles and it is a fun time! If you are interested in checking out the content from years past, they can all be found in these dispatches.

The discord server will be opened shortly. Please note that RaiderCon is an event intended to examine raiding and celebrate various aspects of it. The Coordinators have the authority to not mask someone or remove someone that is unverifiable, showcases they will not adhere to that mission, or engages in behavior in the server that negatively affects others.

RAIDING HALL OF FAME

Before RaiderCon, players can provide their nominations to The Raiding Hall of Fame. When the festival begins, nominations will close to allow judges time to determine their ballots before the new class is inducted during the closing ceremonies. If you have knowledge of historical raiders who should be honored or are just curious about learning more about our sphere's storied history, please check out the thread linked above!

RAIDERCON 2022: ACROSS THE SPHERE

This year, while we are celebrating the revival of raiderdom after a less than perfect 2021, we also are welcoming both new and returning faces into our ranks. As opposed to The Black Hawks carrying the torch of Raidercon, we will be celebrating this newfound variety by dedicating one day to each of the 5 orgs that have proven their strength and commitment to raiding this year. While these are by no means the only raider orgs, we believe it is important to recognize their major contributions to our sphere, and therefore are allowing each region to host their own specific events that they feel embody their culture the best. This years daily hosts will be:

June 20th: The Eternal Order
Panel on The Past Present and Future of The Eternal Order
Variety Game "Knight"


June 21st: Osiris
Golf With Friends
Skribbl.io


June 22nd: The Brotherhood of Malice
Among Us
"The Big Raid" (Rax's Heist One-Shot)


June 23rd: The Black Hawks
Time Capsule: Raidercon Edition
"Totally Useful And Not Completely Pointless TBH Trivia"
Monopoly Game Night


June 24th: Lone Wolves United
"What's In Scar's Pocket?"
A LWU AMA (surprise victim host pending)


*Event times will be added as the events approach. Events are subject to change. All changes to the schedule will be announced via discord and during each Day's opening post!

This year's Raidercon will be held primarily on Discord, with major announcements and events being presented in this forum thread as the festival progresses. You can find content from the previous years here.

EVENT-WIDE ACTIVITIES

Alongside the regional events that will be occurring daily, there will be some longer events for guests to participate in! These fun-filled events will include, but not be limited to the following:

• Trigger Battles!
• Retro Flag Contest!
• Raider "Who Am I?"
• Puzzle Hunt!
• And More!

We sincerely hope you join us in these festive times, please be on the lookout for the opening of the server and the start of the celebrations!

[Pterodaxtyl]

Hell yes, besties, it's that time of year again

[Honeydewistania]

Revival of Raiderdom? Don’t make me laugh

[Miravana]

Revival of Raiderdom? Don’t make me laugh

Churn out all the propaganda you want, this is a reflection of 2021 vs 2022, which can only be described as a revival in terms of sheer numbers of raiders. No one can deny the strength both factions possess at the moment, or at least no one sensible.

[Minskiev]

across the sphere? why, i hardly know 'er