What's the distinguishing/unique feature of AN or its User?

[Valentine Z]

So I think it is unique that instead of just being the typical NATO, UN, Warsaw Pact, or anything of that sort, you have actually well-written Alliances that are not just "We good, they bad" scenario. As I read through the factbooks about the alliances, many of these were forged with bullets, fire, and perhaps a few other metaphors that I might have missed out - they have been forged on basic needs, and NUN (the dude behind the nation) is excellent in writing a narrative that the alliances and friendships between nations are dynamic, and so are the rivalries and the state of being enemies. For example, Russia and US totally had a fight in WP-USA Skirmishes, then Russia was very quick to lend a hand to US in the 2021-2022 EU-America War (which I am hoping that reality won't follow, oh my!).

Bottom line, I really just love the change of alliances and sides, the camaraderie of helping one another out against a common/larger enemy, and all of that. Very rarely do I see such a thing on NS.

[CBG Palisade]

I guess I can start posting on this account outside of the sig thread now.

The most distinguishing feature about Val that I haven't mentioned yet is their really good grasp on statistics. It goes with the "video game bonus" stuff, really; they seem to have quite the grasp of numbers and how they play into each other and it's quite impressive at the end of the day. You can make numbers fit together, be they economics or population demographics or stat boosts, in a way that I really can't do without writing out whole paragraphs on paper or digitally, and that takes a sort of forethought you don't see everyday. Good on you for that.

[Sanghyeok]

Since I'm sure many people here are familiar with Kiu's forum 7 presence, I think it's only fair for me to share something unique outside here. Although you rarely show yourself in NSG, most of your contributions are either thought provoking arguments or mostly correct claims. They also tend to remain quite factual and neutral in the threads they participate in across NS.

[Maydona]

animated gif flag and pink text

[Azur Deutschland]

AN: You can post. That's cool and unique.

Since I'm sure many people here are familiar with Kiu's forum 7 presence, I think it's only fair for me to share something unique outside here. Although you rarely show yourself in NSG, most of your contributions are either thought provoking arguments or mostly correct claims. They also tend to remain quite factual and neutral in the threads they participate in across NS.

A really talented individual. The user has this incredible talent to create character driven stories. A lot of that comes from, if I recall correctly, the fact that she has written a lot of stories previously. Fiction and non-fiction, I believe. The effort and dedication is impressive and inspiring.
I say this a lot too, but a really good and wholesome friend.

[Maydona]

AN: You can post. That's cool and unique.

Since I'm sure many people here are familiar with Kiu's forum 7 presence, I think it's only fair for me to share something unique outside here. Although you rarely show yourself in NSG, most of your contributions are either thought provoking arguments or mostly correct claims. They also tend to remain quite factual and neutral in the threads they participate in across NS.

A really talented individual. The user has this incredible talent to create character driven stories. A lot of that comes from, if I recall correctly, the fact that she has written a lot of stories previously. Fiction and non-fiction, I believe. The effort and dedication is impressive and inspiring.
I say this a lot too, but a really good and wholesome friend.

Aaaa fellow rozen maiden fan I see.

/skip

[Feyrisshire]

A really talented individual. The user has this incredible talent to create character driven stories. A lot of that comes from, if I recall correctly, the fact that she has written a lot of stories previously. Fiction and non-fiction, I believe. The effort and dedication is impressive and inspiring.
I say this a lot too, but a really good and wholesome friend.

The same goes for you, Azur.

One thing that I noticed with your puppets in Azur Rosen Europa is how the formatting is consistent and always well-detailed. No matter what the theme is, whether its German (not Nazi fascist: hint) nationalist, or feudal Japan full of youkais and haniwas, or Warhammer 40k, Phantasy Star or Vocaloid metal horror whatever, the nation is always based on colorful and unique character-driven lore and stories rather than anything else, with traditional nation-building and worldbuilding taking a backseat.

Another is that, in contrast to Sanghyeok, whose character-building is focused only on a few characters, such as Oomiya Sakura, her "Evil" Older SIster and some secretary girl idk, esp. on Reverberating Days - Azur's character building is more rapid, a new set of characters and their story acts (like a VN) in every nation - the exception seems to be Aurelia Dellamorte in Azur Mondlicht and AD.

Oh, and of course they have to be all beautiful and attractive lolis and bishoujos always, even if the theme is Vocaloid body horror - keep it up (No liberal bishonens pls)

[Gamers Rise Up Land]

They're a Communist Weeaboo

[Kiu Ghesik]

they're a gamer

bn do based m-l catgirl nation Feyrisshire.

[El-Sallia]

loyal, smol, ready to rol

(Is that a reference to anything?) Damnation, didn't read that. My apologies.

/skip

[Kiu Ghesik]

loyal, smol, ready to rol

(Is that a reference to anything?)

Yes, but we don't talk about it here.

Also if you could do Feyris rather than me that would be nice.

/skip, stillFeyrisshire

[Sanghyeok]

Feyrisshire, you were one of the first users I met on NS when I moved to TCB. I remember when you were running for some position in TCB council and I voted for you because you said something about cute frogs, lol.

Since then I've learned more about them both stylistically and ideologically. Your dedication to Marxist-Leninism and learning about various leftist movements and nations - in particular, the Soviet Union's political and economic conditions -as well as your grasp of theory (particularly more obscure writings) and your love of anime with Russian characteristics would be memorable enough by itself. Your factbooks are also amazing: I'm not sure how many times I've told you, but your overview factbooks served as inspiration for many of my own factbooks' formatting, style, and content. I know for sure I wouldn't be able to replicate your ability to write beyond surface level into deeper subjects as society's practices, organs of government, political movements, etc.

Also you really like frogs.

/skip and do Kiu

[Valentine Z]

they're a gamer

bn do based m-l catgirl nation Feyrisshire.

While I didn't mean it as an insult when I say that the factbook designs are relatively simple, they are still nonetheless very, very impressive. The uniqueness screams especially with the religion Factbook - the picture of the sky is consistent and has a cool gradient with the background color, along many other nicer bits of the usual writing. ♥ I think you are also one of the rarer nations that use the paragraph/essay format with an indent on the first sentence of every paragraph. A very subtle but nice touch to enhance readability!

[Menschlicher Sternenstaat]

I don't usually stay around F7 long enough to archetype people, but I see you constantly make huge replies with a mix of IC and OoC natures. interesting

[Wexas]

Ignoring the 'they're super nice' thing, I gotta say, Valentine Z is an interesting moral story - even if unintentional. It shows man, one which is ignorant enough to destroy the world over political boundaries. With the press of a button, billions died. However, like a story ripped straight from the Bible/Quran/Vedas themselves, mankind redeems itself from its baptism by fire. It rises from the ashes to create a civilization better than those of its forefathers, promising to never again repeat those same mistakes and work together for the future of all mankind.

While post-apocalyptic nations are not too uncommon on NS (*Waves hand*) and some nations do have a 'repair the world' approach to the apocalypse, the way the AU has written Valentine Z has made it so it's more than just 'the world fucked up, but we rebuilt', but rather an exhibition of both the worst of mankind and how it can redeem itself to be its best. It's almost poetry in a way. Do I have problems with what the 'better world' entails? Sure. But I'm talking about it on a literary/philosophical level anyway rather than a political one.

Okay, I can check "over analyzation of a nation's narrative" off the daily bucket list.

hecc

AN: I'll be the first to admit Menschlicher Sternenstaat (or MS for the sake of time) has some of the most bizarre, but strangely enduring, aesthetics I have ever seen on an NS nation. Imperial/Fascist German, Elements of the 80s(?), PMT/Early FT, Elements of the High Middle Ages, it seems to be scattered all over the place as if someone was blindfolded and threw darts at a dartboard. And yet... it really works! While there aren't a lot of images Which is fine, because I am okay with reading w/o pretty pictures, the world MS is within is simultaneously crazy and yet makes sense. Frankly, I quite like it.

[Kiu Ghesik]

To be very, very basic- in a word the wiki. It's rare, I think, to see competently-organized Wikia sites, and despite me disliking Wikia on the principle of its tendency to shove obnoxious ads everywhere I've actually dug through your offsite lore in length. It's really well made, I think, and it's one of two Wikias I have ever bothered to take an interest in. So, kudos to you for that- and you seem to have a really good eye for design, which is quite cool.

Ninja'd by a man who was ninja'd.

Aight, so, I'm actually quite impressed by Wexas' personality OOCly and in a good way. They don't seem to really slot into any one box; I mean, on the one hand they've got quite serious and well-made lore that I really do like to read through with an eye for realism and a taste for making a good story. On the other they can be absolutely memeshit insane at times, while still keeping up the serious, high-quality stuff elsewhere. Those two sides don't really seem to blend into each other that much, and it all combines to make a person who is both really amusing and interesting to interact with. I know this kinda sounds odd, gushing about a person's OOC stuff, but hb Wexas' personality is definitely quite unique and they'll stick with me for a good long while.

Also effortposter+PT is instant gold.

[Baizou]

Ninja'd by a man who was ninja'd.

Would you believe that I was going to reply to you and Sanghyeok, but suddenly had to step away from the computer before sending? And now it's come full circle! In theory, I've been ninja'd by four folks, including yourself!

Lessee, I've talked about regional worldbuilding before. The Bronze Ageness is a gimme, though of course extremely cool as well. Oh, this is one that I think gets mentioned to you, but is worth digging into more: theological worldbuilding. Lots of users point out how it's neat that Kiu Ghesik has a factbook about religion, which is comparatively rare on NationStates, where political culture usually dominates worldbuilding. Even I don't have a factbook for Mahouzouhou, even though I probably should hammer out some details since Mahouzouhou plays such a major role in Baizou's history and present!

But what I think is more unique than just having a religion factbook—because that much isn't strictly unique—is the way Kiu has created Ghesite faith virtually from the ground up. Other nations with fictional religions are often derivatives of existing faiths, and I'm willing to count Mahouzouhou as one of those (as while it is not the same as Shinto, it still comes from the same general background of East Asian shamanistic tradition).

The Sky Mother, on the other hand, is a whole new deity, and the Ghesites' rites and rituals are a whole new faith tradition. The way oracles are Bronze Age meteorologists is incredibly clever writing/design, and the existence of an animistic pantheon that encompasses the entire sky—and includes winds as obvious as the cardinal directions and as speculative as the Celestial Winds—speaks to the organic growth of the faith, whether one grants by human invention (an outside naturalist's perspective) or sacred inspiration (a Ghesite perspective, perhaps). And how cool is that!

TL;DR: It's not just that the Ghesites have a faith. It's the originality and detail put into both their faith and their theology! That's what I think really distinguishes Kiu Ghesik.

Also you really like frogs.

I realilze you said /skip, but I hope it's alright I include a quick word for you. Paraphrasing Ibram Kendi, the measure of how transformative a communication is comes down to how it changes people and liberates the "power within." I think that Sanghyeok's communication—in NSG, F7, and factbooks—is very transformative, changing people in positive ways!

[Sanghyeok]

A really talented individual. The user has this incredible talent to create character driven stories. A lot of that comes from, if I recall correctly, the fact that she has written a lot of stories previously. Fiction and non-fiction, I believe. The effort and dedication is impressive and inspiring.
I say this a lot too, but a really good and wholesome friend.

〃(≧へ≦)〃≫☆★☆★

Baizou: I usually don't believe in the power of individuals- after all, I subscribe to the idea that major reformations in history come from mass society's changes. On an small level though, I have to admit even though you're one person, you've improved forum 7 greatly since you began contributing here. All your posts are so well thought out they set a new standard for "effort post" that some of us are now trying to match, which I think many people appreciate since it makes our community better.

[Wochaystein]

A really talented individual. The user has this incredible talent to create character driven stories. A lot of that comes from, if I recall correctly, the fact that she has written a lot of stories previously. Fiction and non-fiction, I believe. The effort and dedication is impressive and inspiring.
I say this a lot too, but a really good and wholesome friend.

〃(≧へ≦)〃≫☆★☆★

Baizou: I usually don't believe in the power of individuals- after all, I subscribe to the idea that major reformations in history come from mass society's changes. On an small level though, I have to admit even though you're one person, you've improved forum 7 greatly since you began contributing here. All your posts are so well thought out they set a new standard for "effort post" that some of us are now trying to match, which I think many people appreciate since it makes our community better.

Likes Ace Attorney very much. A generally cool person.

[Baizou]

While Sanghyeok's user is indeed a cool person, I don't think they've ever mentioned Ace Attorney.

BN, I'd invite you to respond to Sanghyeok.

[Cybus1]

Honestly, and as low-effort as this will probably sound...the radiant elephant flag! It’s so nifty and eye-catching, and I quite like it! The lore behind it is well thought out and interesting!

Edit;
I find the humanization of the Chairwoman quite nice: she enjoys parfaits and writes nice poetry, which is nice because many socialist/communist leaders on NS have zero personality beyond their ideology.

[Baizou]

Honestly, and as low-effort as this will probably sound...the radiant elephant flag! It’s so nifty and eye-catching, and I quite like it! The lore behind it is well thought out and interesting!

As much as I appreciate the kind words about Baizou's white elephants (and I do!) I am not Sanghyeok, who as I described above, has yet to receive a response in the thread (and in my post above, I didn't even play the forum game). So, /skipme, and:

BN: I would invite you to do this for Sanghyeok.

Thanks, Cybus!

/skipme; do Cybus1.

[Valentine Z]

Honestly, and as low-effort as this will probably sound...the radiant elephant flag! It’s so nifty and eye-catching, and I quite like it! The lore behind it is well thought out and interesting!

Edit;
I find the humanization of the Chairwoman quite nice: she enjoys parfaits and writes nice poetry, which is nice because many socialist/communist leaders on NS have zero personality beyond their ideology.

So I finally found another nation and player that has the name "Vostrov" with them. It's such an amazing coincidence because I do have Vostrov as a nation because back then I was going for something a tad Slavic and went with that name somehow because I thought it sounds Russian enough, but after years, I have just been answering issues on that. So yeah, this is actually now one of the more unique bits I have found out - someone who actually used the name Vostrov! ♥️

For Sang, I would say that I have not really seen someone as a nation who details about what kind of desserts and food that their Chairwoman enjoys. Sure, most nations does a thing here and there with their food, but man, this is just on another level, and in a good way!

[Nouvelle-Floride]

I don't think it would be very unique and original for me to say "oh uhhhh they're very nice and they're basically everywhere" is exactly a unique feature, and as such sells short what Val Z has written.

As someone not familiar with conlangs in the slightest, the Valkyrie Språk is distinctive in its own right, and I've never heard of a language that combines English and Luxembourgish together, and also delegates specific subjects to various, not exactly similar languages. I take it is what the moniker "quilt language" is for. I'm not exactly sure if this is what you'd call consistent or even reasonable, but it is very striking just from a glance at it. It almost seems like the rules of the language change on the fly depending on what you're talking about, but this itself is consistent with the language itself.

[El-Sallia]

There is a certain elemental simplicity to Nouvelle-Floride's lore; I like where it's gone; I look forward to see where it heads.