Cormactopia Prime wrote:Glen-Rhodes wrote:The notion that coups are just another way the game is played is a real problem, not just some bland statement of fact. Why spend countless night awake trying to retake your community from a usurper, if you're just going to think this is what happens in the game and you shouldn't get so upset about it?
The real fact is that coups tear regions apart. They're great fun for the handful of people pulling them off. But in the end, all we're left with is high animosity between players who feel betrayed and homeless. At some point, why even bother building these communities if it's socially acceptable and encouraged to destroy them?
There's one thing I don't understand about defenders like yourself who oppose invasions and coups at a meta level, which is to say those who insist that such things are OOC bad and should be excluded from gameplay altogether, not those who take political positions against invasions and coups and defend against them. What exactly
do you, and others like you, want to happen in gameplay? You claim to like the interregional politics aspect of gameplay, yet if there were no invasions and no coups, there would be very little reason for regions to interact with each other beyond spam festivals and other such "cultural" initiatives. There wouldn't be any reason for treaties, multiregional organizations, etc. There would be no conflict. What do you imagine gameplay would be without conflict? I imagine it would be incredibly boring, and that most regions would be isolated islands with no interaction with any other regions.
I can't speak for Glen-Rhodes because I don't know his exact sentiments on this issue, but I'll respond to your question because I'd consider myself to be someone who does oppose invasions and coups at a meta level except in extremely limited circumstances (e.g, anti-fascist action) and because I have very strong personal sentiments on this issue that I want to express: The communities in this game and the good generated by having strong, stable, and prosperous communities, in my opinion, far outstrips any abstract good that conflict or interregional politics in GP generates. Having communities be torn apart and the immense negative impacts that can have on players is something that I cannot abide for the sake of conflict and interregional politics. The current social system of coups and invasions only benefits a small minority of Gameplayers who thrive in conflict (because, let's be clear,
it's that minority of players that love participating in conflict and warfare that are the ones who benefit from this current social order) at the expense of the vast majority of nations; natives, GCR citizens who just want to enjoy the unique communities of their regions and GCRs, etc., which leads me to oppose coups, invasions and whatnot except in extremely limited circumstances.
To be clear, I'm not calling for the complete abolition of military Gameplay and coups, but I am calling for such conflict to be limited to areas where it is an accepted part of a community's way of life and doesn't negatively impact communities that are just that; communities of people that just want to enjoy themselves and do whatever it is that they do, either in GCRs or UCRs. I don't object to political conflict (probably not coups per se because of the impact that such things have on communities, but just political conflict in general that can sometimes get dirty) in regions like Euro or possibly TNP (I can't say that I'm familiar with TNP's community, so please do correct me here if I'm repeating a falsehood) that accept political conflict as a part of their community and way of life, or R/D in Warzones, other designated military Gameplay regions or regions that accept R/D in their region, but I what I do object to is such conflict in regions whose communities and citizens don't accept such conflict. Would this potentially have a deleterious impact on certain segments of GP? Probably, but this is in my opinion a necessary sacrifice so that other communities and individuals don't have conflict imposed upon them that they don't want. This ideal NS of mine is obviously a pipe dream and I have no illusions about that reality, but as a defender I consider it my duty to fight for the sovereignty, freedom and survival of NS communities, even if that battle and war will never truly end.