Confederation of Corrupt Dictators: Ultimate Gameplay Thread

[Cedoria]

Neither The Communist Bloc or The Leftist Assembly creates spectacle after spectacle in the WA trying to promote themselves or their ideology, now do they? Neither of them have run candidates for SecGen, and cry about it everywhere when their candidates lose. Neither of them go on and on and on and on and on and on about the WA Elite. Neither of them have a bad habit of crashing spectacularly in public and then doubling down while denying all responsibility.

Don't get confused. I find communism and fascism equally reprehensible, but in terms of NS gameplay? The CCD and its fascist wankery stands alone.

You do know that the outgoing gensec is Caelepes, aka Misley, right? A prominent figure in the NSLeft who ran on a extreme leftist platform?

Maybe you people should stop giving the fash the time of day. You're not slaying some dragon by challenging them, you know.

Calapes is not a member of either region being discussed. We supported his candidacy, but we didn’t chuck a spectacular snit about it on the forums when they didn’t win.
Y’Know, unlike CCD.

[Prydania]

but that term just makes me think of some twelve year old's high fiving as they grief someones minecraft server

It's funny because that's what most people tend of think of when they think of internet Nazis. Then again fascists are always the sort to project.

[Confederation Free Press]

https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=1345676

A little Easter message :^)

[Custadia]

I actually never said that. Go back and read. I said that no member of The Communist Bloc or The Leftist Assembly had run for SecGen and then cried about it after they had lost. Here's the post in question.

Neither The Communist Bloc or The Leftist Assembly creates spectacle after spectacle in the WA trying to promote themselves or their ideology, now do they? Neither of them have run candidates for SecGen, and cry about it everywhere when their candidates lose. Neither of them go on and on and on and on and on and on about the WA Elite. Neither of them have a bad habit of crashing spectacularly in public and then doubling down while denying all responsibility.

Don't get confused. I find communism and fascism equally reprehensible, but in terms of NS gameplay? The CCD and its fascist wankery stands alone.

I wasn't actually making a communist v fascism argument, or saying no commie had run for SecGen. I said neither of those regions had run candidates for SecGen in as annoying a manner as the CCD's campaign for Joco. Which was in response to Shrew's inquiry as to why I wasn't condemning them.
Fact is that while fascism and communism are both reprehensible? It's the CCD that makes the biggest spectacle and annoyance of itself, in ways commie regions....just don't.

So yeah. You misread what I was saying and jumped to conclusions. No harm, it happens.

You're right, I did misread. I gave you credit for understanding that Llama had given two examples of a wider class of regions where none was due.

Here's a secret for ya. NSG is full of teenagers who pontificate over issues they only barely understand and highly opinionated 20-somethings who haven't quite figured out they're not the great political philosophers they think they are. Always has been, and likely always will be. And before you get upset at that characterization? I've been both.

Regardless, it's not a place I would look to for a nuanced, scholarly discussion. On communism or any other topic.

After your twenties did you suddenly gain understanding or was it that you realised you're not the philosopher you thought you were?

It's funny because that's what most people tend of think of when they think of internet Nazis. Then again fascists are always the sort to project.

You got em with the big words there, chief.

Fascism sucks and fascists regions are valid raid targets, but I really struggle to feel anything but pity for anybody who feels the need to assert their moral superiority over their residents or express moral pride in undertaking those operations. You beat some edgy internet kids who can barely play this game. You didn't prove to them that they're wrong, you didn't perform a public service. You fucked with a dumb SC proposal that would almost certainly have failed at vote anyway, you didn't storm the Eagle's Nest. Honestly, who writes entire seminars about how fascist regions aren't RP or spends their free time making snarky posts at them when there's literally any other kind of gameplay they could be doing.

Kudos to those who organised the cool quorum raid, though. We'll see if the powers that be let that stay a thing.

[Kavagrad]

You do know that the outgoing gensec is Caelepes, aka Misley, right? A prominent figure in the NSLeft who ran on a extreme leftist platform?

Maybe you people should stop giving the fash the time of day. You're not slaying some dragon by challenging them, you know.

Calapes is not a member of either region being discussed. We supported his candidacy, but we didn’t chuck a spectacular snit about it on the forums when they didn’t win.
Y’Know, unlike CCD.

Hell, we spent the last portion of the election trying (successfully) to ensure that Misley finished on exactly 420 votes. Watching fascists pitch a fit over something we didn't take even slightly seriously is very funny.

[Reploid Productions]

Kudos to those who organised the cool quorum raid, though. We'll see if the powers that be let that stay a thing.

I'm assuming by "powers that be" you mean moderation, in which case I must put on my Captain Buzzkill costume and once again be the bearer of bad news:

Moderation doesn't care. It's an unconventional use of legal game mechanics that has been heavily politicized, but then most of modern Gameplay stems originally from "unconventional uses of legal game mechanics". Given this is a political simulator and "military action to enforce a sphere of global influence" falls well within the scope of regional politicking, so long as nobody's using WA multies to do it, moderation has no reason to intervene.

Captain Buzzkill AWAAAAAAAAAAY!

[Ever-Wandering Souls]

Honestly, who writes entire seminars about how fascist regions aren't RP or spends their free time making snarky posts at them when there's literally any other kind of gameplay they could be doing.

"Good people."
"People who care."
"People who aren't just bystanders."

Pick one. No wrong choices.

[Custadia]

Kudos to those who organised the cool quorum raid, though. We'll see if the powers that be let that stay a thing.

I'm assuming by "powers that be" you mean moderation, in which case I must put on my Captain Buzzkill costume and once again be the bearer of bad news:

Moderation doesn't care. It's an unconventional use of legal game mechanics that has been heavily politicized, but then most of modern Gameplay stems originally from "unconventional uses of legal game mechanics". Given this is a political simulator and "military action to enforce a sphere of global influence" falls well within the scope of regional politicking, so long as nobody's using WA multies to do it, moderation has no reason to intervene.

Captain Buzzkill AWAAAAAAAAAAY!

This isn't bad news from my perspective. In fact, if administration thinks (and continues to think) this is fine than that's a good thing; a new dimension to GP and in particular the SC is welcome. I never meant to imply that it was against the rules, only that pragmatically speaking it's a game mechanic that will need to be appraised by staff if its use becomes widespread.

"Good people."
"People who care."
"People who aren't just bystanders."

Pick one. No wrong choices.

There are no good people.
Care about what?
Bystanders to what?

[Blood Wine]

Kudos to those who organised the cool quorum raid, though. We'll see if the powers that be let that stay a thing.

I'm assuming by "powers that be" you mean moderation, in which case I must put on my Captain Buzzkill costume and once again be the bearer of bad news:

Moderation doesn't care. It's an unconventional use of legal game mechanics that has been heavily politicized, but then most of modern Gameplay stems originally from "unconventional uses of legal game mechanics". Given this is a political simulator and "military action to enforce a sphere of global influence" falls well within the scope of regional politicking, so long as nobody's using WA multies to do it, moderation has no reason to intervene.

Captain Buzzkill AWAAAAAAAAAAY!

Congratulations Captain Buzzkill, you have been PROMOTED to MAJOR Buzzkill

[Valentine Z]

I'm assuming by "powers that be" you mean moderation, in which case I must put on my Captain Buzzkill costume and once again be the bearer of bad news:

Moderation doesn't care. It's an unconventional use of legal game mechanics that has been heavily politicized, but then most of modern Gameplay stems originally from "unconventional uses of legal game mechanics". Given this is a political simulator and "military action to enforce a sphere of global influence" falls well within the scope of regional politicking, so long as nobody's using WA multies to do it, moderation has no reason to intervene.

Captain Buzzkill AWAAAAAAAAAAY!

Congratulations Captain Buzzkill, you have been PROMOTED to MAJOR Buzzkill

I just want to drop by to say that thank you for this! You made my night!

*Now, on with the regular programme, please!*

[Ever-Wandering Souls]

[Stellar Colonies]

(Image)

WAlite

[Honeydewistania]

(Image)

This is peak shithousery

[Ever-Wandering Souls]

(Image)

WAlite

Our mascot is WAluigi


Credit: Rach and Bowzin

[The Gilded Star]

Our mascot is WAluigi

<picture here>
Credit: Rach and Bowzin

I love it, it's got the mustache-twirling villainry CCD accuses you of and everything.

[The Xaviet Empire]

Legit Memes

[WayNeacTia]

I never meant to imply that it was against the rules, only that pragmatically speaking it's a game mechanic that will need to be appraised by staff if its use becomes widespread.

So everything Reppy said flew right over your head huh? Moderation doesn't and never will give a shit. Raiding is and always has been legal, and this isn't the first and nor will it be the last time delegates were toppled just to move a proposal from quorum.

[Custadia]

Raiding is and always has been legal,

I never meant to imply that it was against the rules

_

and this isn't the first and nor will it be the last time delegates were toppled just to move a proposal from quorum.

if its use becomes widespread.

_

Moderation doesn't and never will give a shit.

There are many, many ways to tinker with the way the WA proposal queue works. Should the WA proposal process become "broken," appropriate tinkering will be considered.

Capturing delegacies to affect which proposals enter the queue is not an exploit of game code but of game mechanics. It exploits game mechanics much in the way a procedural maneuver can exploit parliamentary rules. It is not illegal and need not be made completely impossible. Should it become apparent that this tactic is too effective for WA proposal authoring to be fun, measures will be taken.

Just a notegiven Galiantus's long history of wanting to destroy the WA/grind it to a complete halt/etc:
If this caught on enough that a small group of players was successfully bringing the GA to a complete standstill via GA-motivated raiding, the most likely result would be admin lowering the approvals required for a proposal to reach quorum until such a point that the tactic was no longer easy to pull off on a constant basis. Would not be the first time the approvals requirement has, been wiggled around a bit.

From a game balance perspective, raiding to nudge WA proposal approvals or even voting is certainly a valid political maneuver albeit a dick move (again, politics. Tends to have a lot of dick moves by nature); however it should not be so easy to accomplish that it can be done to all, or even to most proposals. If that starts happening, then the aforementioned adjustment to the required approvals would likely be forthcoming.

_

So everything Reppy said flew right over your head huh?

So maybe it was my point that went over your head, not reppy's that went over mine, huh? The question is not whether quorum raiding is legal or should be legal, it's whether it's balanced. Staff have already indicated that if they conclude that it is not then they will act to make it so.

[Reploid Productions]

Just emphasizing a very important key point from mine and Elu's 2018 posts on the subject, since apparently that's become somehow relevant:

If this caught on enough-.

Should the WA proposal process become "broken," appropriate tinkering will be considered.

It still hasn't caught on enough and the process does not appear to be "broken." The quorum-crashing technique has been used on a very meager handful of proposals since then rather than the "bring the WA to a standstill" scenario that people were worried about, so either the task is presently difficult enough and/or of insufficient interest that players need a particularly strong motivating reason to do it.

Basically, it remains extremely unlikely that the techies will see a need for technical finangling on a system that is not presently broken. Your efforts would be better spent reflecting on what it is about your region's international relations that has managed to give so many players that strong motivation to go to the effort.

[Custadia]

Your efforts would be better spent reflecting on what it is about your region's international relations that has managed to give so many players that strong motivation to go to the effort.

The CCD is not my region. I am not resident there, nor am I resident in any region that calls itself their friend, nor will I ever be. I just think that this pseudo-NSG stuff is the lowest form of gameplay and it frustrates me that it and OOC bullshit is all that's coming out of gameplay at the moment. I really wasn't being sarcastic when I said I thought the novel kind of raid was cool.

[The New California Republic]

Your efforts would be better spent reflecting on what it is about your region's international relations that has managed to give so many players that strong motivation to go to the effort.

The CCD is not my region. I am not resident there, nor am I resident in any region that calls itself their friend, nor will I ever be. I just think that this pseudo-NSG stuff is the lowest form of gameplay and it frustrates me that it and OOC bullshit is all that's coming out of gameplay at the moment.

...

...I'm pretty sure that comment was not directed at you, like, at all...

[Custadia]

...I'm pretty sure that comment was not directed at you, like, at all...

I don't see how that's the case since that entire post is addressing the quotes from elu and reppy I included in the post above.

[The New California Republic]

...I'm pretty sure that comment was not directed at you, like, at all...

I don't see how that's the case since that entire post is addressing the quotes from elu and reppy I included in the post above.

It's pretty clear from the context provided in the post that it's targeted at Shrew etc.

[Custadia]

It's pretty clear from the context provided in the post that it's targeted at Shrew etc.

I make a post quoting Elu and Reppy about circumstances under which quorum raiding might be nerfed and the very next post reppy quotes those exact same posts themself, emphasising that those circumstances haven't been met in their understanding, and you think that that's in response to somebody who last posted here several pages ago and didn't bring up whether the mechanic was balanced at all?

I'm pretty sure they just thought I was somebody from the CCD trying to get quorum raiding nerfed because I was butthurt about their proposal or something and telling me I'd have better luck trying to prevent this from happening again by improving the pr situation of what they percieved to be my region.

[The New California Republic]

It's pretty clear from the context provided in the post that it's targeted at Shrew etc.

I make a post quoting Elu and Reppy about circumstances under which quorum raiding might be nerfed and the very next post reppy quotes those exact same posts themself, emphasising that those circumstances haven't been met in their understanding, and you think that that's in response to somebody who last posted here several pages ago and didn't bring up whether the mechanic was balanced at all?

Sorry man but just not seeing the latter statement being targeted at you, as based upon what is being said by Reppy it is being situated in the wider context of the tons of other shit in other threads (including in the WA and Technical) brought up by Shrew.