The Voices of Gameplay: A Series of Interviews

[Crushing Our Enemies]

The Voices of Gameplay

A series of interviews, published monthly.

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The Voices of Gameplay will tell the stories behind gameplay events in the words of players with unique perspectives and insight into those events. On the last day of each month, I will post an unedited, unabridged interview with a member of the Gameplay community. Likely subjects of interviews will be players who are influential in current events, and players who do not often post long comments or public statements.

This series will attempt to bypass the propaganda and loaded rhetoric that one frequently finds throughout this forum. The interviews will be posted without editorial commentary, and interpretation will be left to the readers. In that spirit, I ask that comments discuss the actual words of the interview subject and the events they describe, and not degenerate into the mindlessly aggressive snark that this very publication attempts to cut through.

As the actions and events of invaders and defenders tend to dominate regional interaction in gameplay, many of these interviews may feature the remarks of such individuals. I will endeavor to present a representative sample of the entire gameplay community, however, due to my deep involvement in the military sub-game, I may have trouble finding subjects elsewhere to interview. I may not even be aware of major events happening all over the game map! Therefore, if you have a suggestion for an interview subject, feel free to telegram me with a link to their main nation, and the reason you think they ought to be interviewed.

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This series is not affiliated with any region, organization, or multi-regional alliance. In my selection of interview subjects and questions to ask, I will be acting as an independent journalist. No one outside of myself and the subject will see the content before publication.

[Mahaj]

Hmm. I look forward to seeing this idea at work, COE. Obviously, its kinda hard to judge this so far other than the idea, the only other thing I have to say is that possibly it might have been a good idea to do this with a puppet, since people are going to see this, you, and your flag, and make a connection.

[New New York]

I will say that CoE is one of the voices of Gameplay that I trust most to be able to give a neutral series of interviews.

[Mahaj]

I will say that CoE is one of the voices of Gameplay that I trust most to be able to give a neutral series of interviews.

I'm not doubting that.

[Rachel Anumia]

I look forward to these

[Pandemicia]

They will certainly prove to be interesting.

[Tim-Opolis]

Looks interesting. I await it

[Crushing Our Enemies]

I'm glad to see that you all like the idea. Look forward to our first issue to be published on Tuesday! Remember, if you have an idea for an interview subject, telegram me with a link to their main nation and why you think their story ought to be told. Otherwise, this series is probably just gonna be full of invaders and defenders talking about the military sub-game.

[Frisbeeteria]

If you want the extraneous "Whee, I like it" posts removed, post in Moderation.

[Crushing Our Enemies]

It is my pleasure to present the 1st edition of

The Voices of Gameplay

A series of interviews, published monthly.

This edition features the words of Spartzerium, a veteran defender of such organizations as the Founderless Region Alliance and the United Defenders League. It has recently been announced that on February 7th, Spartz will end his career as a defender, and join The Black Hawks.

The following interview took place on Thursday, January 26, 2012, beginning at 9:05 PM and ending at 10:30 PM Eastern. It is unedited and unabridged. Smilies have been rendered as text because Spartz used so many, the NationStates forums think I am trying to spam. Enjoy!

Q: Good evening! You’re on the record with The Voices of Gameplay. Thank you for agreeing to this interview. First question. Let's start out with something basic. When did you begin playing Nationstates, and what do you think is the most significant difference between the game today, and the game when you started playing?

A: I began playing NS around mid-2008. Most significant difference... if we’re talking about the raider/defender game, probably the daily data dumps. They changed the dynamics of the game quite a bit, and enabled new tactics that would be almost impossible before.

Q: How would you say those new tactics have changed the dynamics of the military sub-game? What new skills are most useful, and what previous skillsets are now antiquated?

A: Well, for example... there's tagging raids, which would be extremely hard without good timing, especially with all those defenders keeping a close eye on you, waiting for you to move. Defenders never had to keep as close an eye on raiders before then. Back when Halc was doing his raids, I'd be refreshing my dossier every second or two for what seemed like ages, and still didn't make it in before the region updated sometimes. Speed is especially useful nowadays. And before, a lot of it came down to luck, hoping there wouldn't be much variance when doing your raid/lib.

Q: Most of our readers know you from your reputation as a defender. How did you get involved in defending? Who are/were your biggest influences in that community?

A: Long story... The first region I really got involved in was The Council of Narnia. A few months after I joined, they started a defender military, which was noticed by the FRA, who sent us an invitation to join the alliance. We accepted, and then a few months later our founder retired. The region went into inactivity, including the military. Later on, around mid-2009, I decided to join the FRA forums, though not necessarily the Rangers. At least, I wasn’t planning to join the Rangers until the Deputy CoDF [Chief of Defense Force -ed.] at the time invited me. I applied, got speedily accepted, and the rest is history. :P As for influences... early on in my defender career, I was influenced by the older, important defenders in the FRA who had experience, like Sedge, Cocodian, etc. Then over the last year or two, I’ve joined the club of older, important defenders myself. :P

Q: So, did you defend in The Council of Narnia's military before you joined the Rangers, or was that application the beginning of your defender career?

A: I defended with it a couple times, but it only lasted about a month or two after I joined. With the founder quitting, and nobody else willing to take the reins, we decided to shut it down. A few months later Cocodian tried reviving it, but that didn't turn out so well.

Q: While we're on the subject of the Founderless Region Alliance, some in the Gameplay community feel that the FRA’s ability to defend regions from invasion has been on the decline for some time. Do you share that opinion, and if so, to what factors do you attribute that decline?

A: Well, yes. The FRA’s numbers have declined lately, a big reason being the UDL. Many FRA Rangers have dual membership in the UDL, do their missions with the UDL... When I left the FRA, activity seemed to be up, and they were doing a couple small defenses; I am unsure of the FRA’s current activity though, as most of my forum access got removed. :P

Q: Is there any frustration on the part of the FRA, for losing so many Rangers to the UDL?

A: I don't remember anyone being frustrated... unless they were keeping their frustration hidden, or something.

Q: Fair enough. Your mention of the United Defenders League actually leads into my next question. As many of our readers are aware, you were a founding member of the UDL. Can you describe for us how that organization came about, and your role in its beginnings?

A: Uni contacted me a couple days before he started getting things set up. He basically asked if I was interested in joining/helping out. He also asked for my input on a few potential names for his new org, and we eventually settled on “United Defenders League.” Uni did most of the hard work, and just getting everything set up; I mostly helped with admin stuff.

Q: For the record, when did that start getting off the ground?

A: Around the start of June, just after his FRA impeachment vote, when he resigned as Arch Chancellor.

Q: I would love to follow up on that, but I don't want this to take all night, haha. Looking back, what do you consider your finest moment as a defender?

A: Haha, ok. :P I can't think of any particular moment I consider my finest, but I’d say the peak of my defender career was about a year ago, while I was serving my second (non-consecutive) term as Chief of Defense. Coincidentally, that was also when I was nominated for Defender of the Year (and lost to Wordy by a single vote. Darn you Wordy! :P).

Q: What about that term stands out to you as the height of your career?

A: Well, basically, that was when I was most actively leading out. I was basically in charge of everything happening at the major update, and did most of the libs and defenses. I also got a few newer defenders involved, such as one whose name you might be familiar with: Frattastan. He was my Deputy that term, and I put him in charge of the minor update.

Q: As many of our readers know, your defending career will be over soon. What factors made you decide to end your defending career? Has your decision to become a raider impacted any of your friendships in the defender community?

A: I was asked a similar question in another interview. :P But basically, I never had problems with defending. There were small annoyances from time to time, but ones I could live with. My decision to switch was mainly cause I found raiding so fun, and I thought I’d enjoy the game more playing on the other side as a raider.

Q: Well, let's talk about that then. As you just alluded to, you began raiding with The Black Hawks some time ago, under the alias “Ballopia”. How did you get involved with The Black Hawks, and how would you describe your experiences there so far?

A: Well, about early December, I told Tramiar and Rawr I was interested in potentially switching. After a few days, and after making sure the CotH [Council of the Hawks -ed.] was ok with it, I decided to join TBH. I don’t regret that decision, TBH is a great community, and I’m having fun!

Q: What made you wait this long in revealing your change in loyalties? Why not announce your defection as soon as you began raiding?

A: Well, I wanted to be completely sure, without a doubt, that I wanted to switch, before revealing it. It would be really bad if I made the decision, and regretted it... Plus after I had made the decision, I was really nervous about announcing it. Took me a while to be ready. :P

Q: Understandably so. Have you ever thought about switching sides earlier in your defending career? If so, what made you decide not to?

A: Other than doing it as an April Fools joke, I never gave it more than a passing thought. If you told me a year ago that I’d be switching... I’d think it was some kinda joke. :P

Q: Obviously you do not take issue with the raider ideologies of today. Was there ever a time when that was different? How have your attitudes towards raiders and the raider community changed over time?

A: I never was much of a moralistic defender. Nor did I ever hate raiders. My attitudes to things like tagging raids have definitely changed since I've tried them, though, from “Ugh, these are so annoying. I hate them!” to “Hey, these actually are pretty fun.” I guess it really depends which side you’re playing on.

Q: On a lighter note, how did you meet Briana (aka Tramiar/Akrine/Dzanani), and what made you decide to marry her?

A: Oh Briana... :P Well, it’s another long story. Basically, after the CoJ/CoN forum destruction by Rougiers in June 2010, Joshua made a new CoJ forum. He asked for a few FRA military liaisons to join, and I was one of them. A few months later, Bri joined. I lurked a lot but rarely posted, so we didn’t get to talk much, other than a couple forum threads and a conversation we had over PM. Eventually Josh left, and I got picked as Vice Commander of CoJ... without even being a citizen of the region. :P I did get citizenship though, and became active in the region... We became closer friends, but didn’t find each other on MSN and really begin talking until a couple months later, when someone added both of us into a group convo with each other. As for marrying her... why wouldn’t I? :P She’s fun to talk to and be with, and just plain awesome. I love her. :P

Q: D'awwwww... This will be the last question. Do you have much to do with NationStates outside of the military sub-game? How you would describe your role in the larger game community?

A: I used to be highly involved in Forum 7, on the NS forums, back in 2009-2010. Not sure if they’d still remember me, it’s been a while. My role... depends on your viewpoint, I'd think. I’m an enemy to some, a friend to others, and a “who’s that guy?” to many more.

Q: Before we wrap it up, do you have any final comments?

A: Umm... I can't think of anything. :P

Q: Well, on behalf of The Voices of Gameplay and our readership, I’d like to thank you for telling your story. I hope your voice finds willing ears in the community.

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That concludes Issue #1 of The Voices of Gameplay!If you have an idea for an interview subject, telegram Crushing Our Enemies with a link to their main nation and why you think their story should be told. Look forward to our next issue, to be published on February 29th!

[SunRawr]

Excellent choice for your first interview. That was a very interesting read Good job COE!

[Unibot II]

Good read. Knew most of it, but good read.

[Tramiar]

A few months later, Bri joined. I lurked a lot but rarely posted, so we didn’t get to talk much, other than a couple forum threads and a conversation we had over PM.

We didn't have a conversation over PM. I sent you a PM, didn't get a reply, and sent you another accusing you of ignoring me. We had a TG conversation because your fake Gulag mask prevented you from using the PM system just as well as the real Gulag mask would have.

[Mallorea and Riva]

Very nice interview! Interesting stuff to know right there.

[Spartzerium]

A few months later, Bri joined. I lurked a lot but rarely posted, so we didn’t get to talk much, other than a couple forum threads and a conversation we had over PM.

We didn't have a conversation over PM. I sent you a PM, didn't get a reply, and sent you another accusing you of ignoring me. We had a TG conversation because your fake Gulag mask prevented you from using the PM system just as well as the real Gulag mask would have.

I know I thought that was needlessly complicated to explain >.> I suppose I could've made it "PM/TG" but I didn't think of that. *feels stupid now*

[Mahaj]

... I knew it'd be Spartz! xD

Good interview, nice read, good job to CoE.

[Tim-Opolis]

Not surprising that it would be Spartz.

Great Interview

[Belschaft]

Q: D'awwwww... This will be the last question. Do you have much to do with NationStates outside of the military sub-game? How you would describe your role in the larger game community?

A: I used to be highly involved in Forum 7, on the NS forums, back in 2009-2010. Not sure if they’d still remember me, it’s been a while. My role... depends on your viewpoint, I'd think. I’m an enemy to some, a friend to others, and a “who’s that guy?” to many more.

Curse you false prophet of Reppy!!!!! There will be a reckoning come the end of days, when finally I succeed in casting you out into the pit of the damned, and bask solely in the glory of the one true god of Forum Seven!

[Spartzerium]

Q: D'awwwww... This will be the last question. Do you have much to do with NationStates outside of the military sub-game? How you would describe your role in the larger game community?

A: I used to be highly involved in Forum 7, on the NS forums, back in 2009-2010. Not sure if they’d still remember me, it’s been a while. My role... depends on your viewpoint, I'd think. I’m an enemy to some, a friend to others, and a “who’s that guy?” to many more.

Curse you false prophet of Reppy!!!!! There will be a reckoning come the end of days, when finally I succeed in casting you out into the pit of the damned, and bask solely in the glory of the one true god of Forum Seven!

Hahaha! Heretic >.>

But those were fun times.

[Belschaft]

Curse you false prophet of Reppy!!!!! There will be a reckoning come the end of days, when finally I succeed in casting you out into the pit of the damned, and bask solely in the glory of the one true god of Forum Seven!

Hahaha! Heretic >.>

But those were fun times.

Indeed they were. Between the two of us we pretty much built the new F7's first fad

[Mahaj]

I'd say you should interview Update, but its too slow.

[Minor Update]

I'd say you should interview Update, but its too slow.

Speak for yourself, I'm not slow

[Mahaj]

I'd say you should interview Update, but its too slow.

Speak for yourself, I'm not slow

You haven't finished yet!

[Tim-Opolis]

Maybe take turns between Raiders, Defenders, and Impartial Natives

Oh. And a Merc or two

Get some of everything

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Interesting idea and good interview.