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The Best Nation in the World of Orcuo Behold. |
The Peoples Hyperspace Union of Habsenburg "Gay" ☠️ |
The Psychopomp of Jolly Reaper Hey FNR! Let's say you're reading a book. You play NS, so let's face it, you're a nerd, and thus it's a reasonable assumption to make. You like the book fine, but you don't like the perspective it's written in. Maybe you don't like the narrator being a character in the story, or maybe you don't like events unfolding in present tense. What perspective would you prefer it be written in? Let us know in the poll above. |
The Rogue Nation Conspiracy Theo of Horrorlandian State Oh wow! |
All nations are requested to move to Equiterra |
The Federal Republic of Today in History 27th January 1945 (79 years ago): Auschwitz is liberated Auschwitz concentration camp (German: Konzentrationslager Auschwitz; also KL Auschwitz or KZ Auschwitz) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschwitz I, the main camp (Stammlager) in Oświęcim; Auschwitz II-Birkenau, a concentration and extermination camp with gas chambers; Auschwitz III-Monowitz, a labor camp for the chemical conglomerate IG Farben; and dozens of subcamps. The camps became a major site of the Nazis' Final Solution to the Jewish Question. Red Army soldiers from the 322nd Rifle Division arrived at Auschwitz on 27 January 1945 at 15:00. 231 Red Army soldiers died in the fighting around Monowitz concentration camp, Birkenau, and Auschwitz I, as well as the towns of Oświęcim and Brzezinka. For most of the survivors, there was no definite moment of liberation. After the death march to camps inside Germany and Austria, the SS-Totenkopfverbände (SS-TV) guards had left. About 7,000 prisoners had been left behind, most of whom were seriously ill due to the effects of their imprisonment. Most of those left behind were middle-aged adults or children younger than 15. At Monowitz camp, there were about 800 survivors and the camp was liberated also on 27 January by the Soviet 60th Army, part of the 1st Ukrainian Front. The Red Army had been advancing deeper into Poland since mid-January. Having liberated Warsaw and Krakow, Soviet troops headed for Auschwitz. In anticipation of the Soviet arrival, SS officers began a murder spree in the camps, shooting sick prisoners and blowing up crematoria in a desperate attempt to destroy the evidence of their crimes. When the Red Army finally broke through, Soviet soldiers encountered 648 corpses and more than 7,000 starving camp survivors in the three main camps. Items found included 837,000 women's garments, 370,000 men's suits, 44,000 pairs of shoes, and 7,000 kg of human hair, estimated by the Soviet war crimes commission to have come from 140,000 people. The first gassings—of Soviet and Polish prisoners—took place in block 11 of Auschwitz I around August 1941. Construction of Auschwitz II began the following month, and from 1942 until late 1944 freight trains delivered Jews from all over German-occupied Europe to its gas chambers. The Nazis deceived the victims upon their arrival, telling them that they were at a temporary transit stop, and would soon continue to German Arbeitslagers (work camps) farther to the east. Prisoners wore colored triangles on their uniforms, the color denoting the reason for their incarceration. Red signified a political prisoner, Jehovah's Witnesses had purple triangles, "asocials" and criminals wore black and green, and gay men wore pink. Jews wore two yellow triangles, one over another to form a six-pointed star. Prisoners in Auschwitz were tattooed on arrival with an identification number. Selected able-bodied prisoners delivered to the death camps were not immediately killed, but instead were pressed into labor units called Sonderkommandos to help with the extermination process by removing corpses from the gas chambers and burning them. Vernichtung durch Arbeit ("extermination through labor") was a policy; camp inmates would literally be worked to death, or to physical exhaustion, at which point they would be gassed or shot. The Germans estimated the average prisoner's lifespan in a concentration camp at three months, as a result of lack of food and clothing, constant epidemics, and frequent punishments for the most minor transgressions. The shifts were long and often involved exposure to dangerous materials. Those selected for death at all camps were told to undress and hand their valuables to camp workers. They were then herded naked into the gas chambers. To prevent panic, they were told the gas chambers were showers or delousing chambers. At Auschwitz, after the chambers were filled, the doors were shut and pellets of Zyklon-B were dropped into the chambers through vents, releasing toxic prussic acid. Those inside were murdered within 20 minutes; the speed of death depended on how close the inmate was standing to a gas vent, according to the commandant Rudolf Höss, who estimated that about one-third of the victims were killed immediately. Johann Kremer, an SS doctor who oversaw the gassings, testified that: "Shouting and screaming of the victims could be heard through the opening and it was clear that they fought for their lives." The gas was then pumped out, and the Sonderkommandos—work groups of mostly Jewish prisoners—carried out the bodies, extracted gold fillings, cut off women's hair, and removed jewelry, artificial limbs and glasses. At Auschwitz, the bodies were at first buried in deep pits and covered with lime, but between September and November 1942, on the orders of Himmler, 100,000 bodies were dug up and burned. In early 1943, new gas chambers and crematoria were built to accommodate the numbers. Of the 1.3 million people sent to Auschwitz, 1.1 million died. The death toll includes 960,000 Jews (865,000 of whom were gassed on arrival), 74,000 non-Jewish Poles, 21,000 Roma, 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war, and up to 15,000 other Europeans. Those not gassed died of starvation, exhaustion, disease, individual executions, or beatings. Others were killed during medical experiments overseen and performed by the camp doctor, Josef Mengele, the “Angel of Death." Georgii Elisavetskii, a Soviet soldier who entered one of the barracks, said in 1980 that he could hear other soldiers telling the inmates: "You are free, comrades!" But they did not respond, so he tried in Russian, Polish, German, Ukrainian. Then he used some Yiddish: "They think that I am provoking them. They begin to hide. And only when I said to them: 'Do not be afraid, I am a colonel of Soviet Army and a Jew. We have come to liberate you' ... Finally, as if the barrier collapsed ... they rushed toward us shouting, fell on their knees, kissed the flaps of our overcoats, and threw their arms around our legs." The Soviet military medical service and Polish Red Cross (PCK) set up field hospitals that looked after 4,500 prisoners suffering from the effects of starvation (mostly diarrhea) and tuberculosis. Local volunteers helped until the Red Cross team arrived from Kraków in early February. In Auschwitz II, the layers of excrement on the barracks floors had to be scraped off with shovels. Water was obtained from snow and from fire-fighting wells. Before more help arrived, 2,200 patients there were looked after by a few doctors and 12 PCK nurses. All the patients were later moved to the brick buildings in Auschwitz I, where several blocks became a hospital, with medical personnel working 18-hour shifts. Battle-hardened soldiers who were used to death were shocked by the Nazis' treatment of prisoners. Red Army general Vasily Petrenko, commander of the 107th Infantry Division, remarked, "I who saw people dying every day was shocked by the Nazis' indescribable hatred toward the inmates who had turned into living skeletons. I read about the Nazis' treatment of Jews in various leaflets, but there was nothing about the Nazis' treatment of women, children, and old men. It was in Auschwitz that I found out about the fate of the Jews. The liberation of Auschwitz received little press attention at the time; the Red Army was focusing on its advance toward Germany and liberating the camp had not been one of its key aims. Boris Polevoi reported on the liberation in the official newspaper of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Pravda on 2 February 1945 but made no mention of Jews; inmates were described collectively as "victims of Fascism". It was when the Western Allies arrived in Buchenwald, Bergen-Belsen, and Dachau in April 1945 that the liberation of the camps received extensive coverage. At least 802 prisoners tried to escape, 144 successfully, and on 7 October 1944, two Sonderkommando units, consisting of prisoners who operated the gas chambers, launched an unsuccessful uprising. Only 789 Schutzstaffel personnel (no more than 15 percent) ever stood trial after the Holocaust ended; several were executed, including camp commandant Rudolf Höss. The Allies' failure to act on early reports of atrocities by bombing the camp or its railways remains controversial. Apart from Auschwitz-Birkenau the other five extermination camps were: Chełmno, Belzec, Sobibor, Treblinka and Majdanek. Auschwitz and Majdanek death camps also used extreme work under starvation conditions in order to kill their prisoners. Approximately 6 million Jews were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators. The European Jews were targeted for extermination as part of a larger event during the Holocaust era (1933–1945), in which Germany and its collaborators persecuted and murdered other groups, including ethnic Poles, Soviet civilians and prisoners of war, the Roma, the disabled, political and religious dissidents, and gay men. The death toll of these other groups is thought to be over 11 million. 27 January is a day commemorated since 2005 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In the decades after the war, survivors such as Primo Levi, Viktor Frankl, and Elie Wiesel wrote memoirs of their experiences, and the camp became a dominant symbol of the Holocaust. In 1947 Poland founded the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum on the site of Auschwitz I and II, and in 1979 it was named a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/52/Auschwitz_I_%2822_May_2010%29.jpg/1280px-Auschwitz_I_%2822_May_2010%29.jpg Gate to Auschwitz I with its Arbeit macht frei sign ("work sets you free"). https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Birkenau_m%C3%BAzeum_-_panoramio_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Birkenau_m%C3%BAzeum_-_panoramio_%28cropped%29.jpg Auschwitz II-Birkenau gatehouse; the train track, in operation May–October 1944, led directly to the gas chambers. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/WW2-Holocaust-Europe.png Camps and ghettos in occupied Europe showing WW2 borders. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Bundesarchiv_R_165_Bild-244-47%2C_Asperg%2C_Deportation_von_Sinti_und_Roma.jpg Romani people being deported from Asperg, Germany, 22 May 1940. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Selection_on_the_ramp_at_Auschwitz-Birkenau%2C_1944_%28Auschwitz_Album%29_1b.jpg Hungarian Jews on the Judenrampe (Jewish ramp) after disembarking from the Holocaust trains. Photo from the Auschwitz Album (May 1944). https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Birkenau_a_group_of_Jews_walking_towards_the_gas_chambers_and_crematoria.jpg Jews from the Tét Ghetto walking toward the gas chambers located near crematoria II and III, 27 May 1944. Photograph from the Auschwitz Album. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Crematorium_at_Auschwitz_I_2012.jpg/1280px-Crematorium_at_Auschwitz_I_2012.jpg A reconstruction of crematorium I, Auschwitz I. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Child_survivors_of_Auschwitz.jpeg/1280px-Child_survivors_of_Auschwitz.jpeg Young survivors at the camp, liberated by the Red Army in January 1945. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/86/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-R69919%2C_KZ_Auschwitz%2C_Brillen.jpg/1280px-Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-R69919%2C_KZ_Auschwitz%2C_Brillen.jpg Eyeglasses of victims, 1945. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/soviets-liberate-auschwitz https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_of_Auschwitz_concentration_camp https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auschwitz_concentration_camp https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extermination_camp https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holocaust |
The Nomadic Peoples of Pizza delivery man Sup guys |
The Democracy of Athanes Empire Just thought I would say hey! |
The Bright Plumage of Gryphon Barmaid I have the best plumage in all the land |
The Free Land of US Internal Revenue Service Ah, yet another nice day of tax collecting in the sun! And it isn't rain with a side of depression! |
The United Nations of South Asians Hello Everyone! |
The Democracy of Athanes Empire Just thought I would say hope everyone has had a good weekend! |
The Commonwealth of Freedom-Troops Freedom!! |
The People's Republic of Lakumbe Im back Ascoobis, Athanes Empire, and My Nation |
The Avatar of Thanatos of Altys Hello friends! I thought I'd spice up the way I deliver news from The East Pacific a little by posting on some RMBs, so here I am! The Eastern Pacific News Service's February 2024 edition is out, with many articles to read! Including Castenor (Aivintis)'s Foreign Newsstand synthesising all import Foreign Affairs event of last month. You can read it here: ⤆ ⤇ ↺ ☖ | 🔒 Secure | https://epns.mon.gov.caek/issue/2024/2.html . . . Delegate's Update By: Merlovich | Edited by Altys Hello hello! What a month we’ve had here in TEP, hey? Let’s start with the biggest event of all, the heartless nuclear apocalypse that is N-Day. You’ll get a full rundown later in the edition, courtesy of your wonderful commander Altys, but hoo-boy do you guys deserve one massive round of applause for your efforts. It is immensely satisfying to come out on top, and I can't think of anyone more deserving. TEP obviously must give a massive thank you to those regions who fought alongside us this N-Day. To our friends from The Black Hawks, Warzone Trinidad, The Free Nations Region, Sparkalia, Kantrias, Astoria, The Communist Bloc, The Leftist Assembly, Atlanticana, Karma, Lair of the Dragon, Lazarus and Alstromerian Commonwealths, thank you! We’re immensely proud to work alongside you on N-Day, and we hope to continue working together for many N-Days to come. I was very proud to hand out several awards this month, many of which were related to our victory in N-Day. Of course, Altys was awarded our highest N-Day honour, the Gold Order of Annihilation, for his tremendous work and effort not just this N-Day, but for many N-Days previous. Vulbania was awarded the Silver Order of Annihilation for their outstanding performance in the event, and Eastern Alksearia, Gemeinschaftsland, The spinoff, Eshgh and Rosari were all awarded the Bronze Order of Annihilation for their efforts. Not to be left out, our former Minister of News and tirelessly working executive staffer Vussul was awarded the Silver Order of Maintenance for their hard work building, organizing and maintaining our region's dispatch framework. In the Executive, we've been hard at work over the last few weeks. We've had a couple things take up a lot of our time, notably the nuclear apocalypse, as well as our NEST repeal, which I'll touch on shortly. Our EPSA rework is coming along nicely, we've made steps forward on a questionnaire to be sent out in the coming weeks, as well as a lot of brainstorming of potential themes, structures and general operations. We're also looking to get started on porting over UTEP works to the new framework under Chancellor Aivintis. Our FA rework was put on hold while we handled the NEST repeal, but we'll be getting back to work this week. Our Culture Ministry has been running quite well, with Valentines Day events this month, as well as the upcoming Rogue Rendezvous event alongside TNP, NPO and Carcassonne. We're looking forward to more events in the near future, as well as the continuation of the Hunger Games. In FA News, TEP took part in Operation: Midnight Hour to secure our friends in Atlanticana this month. More can be read here. Our Foreign Affairs Council and Magisterium have been the hardest workers this month, as discussions with TNP reached their finale. We've made the difficult decision to repeal our nearly decade-old NEST [North-East Security Treaty] agreement with The North Pacific. Both sides have agreed irreconcilable differences exist, and TEP remained unsatisfied with TNP's lack of interest in repairing the relationship. TEP and TNP have had a rocky relationship for the better part of two years, and this week marked an unfortunate breaking point, where we felt things could continue at this pace no longer. Our FA Council has released a statement that delves further into the matter, however for those who may not see it, I figured it should be noted here also. TEP looks forward to furthering our existing friendships, as well as creating new friendships in the future. More can be read here. That's all from me this month. Thank you all again for a tremendous effort this N-Day, and I look forward to writing to you all again in next months edition. Back to Top NDay10, A Tale of Darkhorses By: Altys From February 24th 2200 GMT to February 25th 2200 GMT, the tenth edition of N-Day unfolded, revealing a battlefield fraught with unforeseen dynamics. Notably absent were two stalwart competitors, The Potato Alliance and the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, casting a shadow over the event. Left in their wake were factions which we could've qualified of darkhorses: Kingly Heathens Asserting Neighborliness (as Cosmic Corsairs in February 2023), Anime Nations Against Liberals (in 2022), Jellyfish Elite Fighting Force (in September 2023), and the Starlight Brigade (in September 2023). However this battlefield was not one all factions expected the way it ended up looking. Several foresaw the return of the Potato Alliance and the Horsemen, with some expecting the Horsemen to rise in formidable strength compared to September 2023. A few even speculated that the remaining factions would surpass their prowess from the previous edition. However, the most astonishing twist unfolded with the merger of Kingly Heathens Asserting Neighborliness and the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, birthing the massive Kingly Horsemen Asserting Neighborliness. This merger held the potential to ascend into a megafaction, altering the dynamics of the event in ways unseen since the sixth edition of NDay. Read more about NDay here! Back to Top Magisterium and Culture Updates By: Dremaur and Cappedore | Edited by Altys Hello reader. You will find below a small update on activity within TEP's legislature, the Magisterium, as well as an announcement from the Ministry of culture. Both were condensed due to the amount of articles within this edition! Magisterium Update
Culture Update During the course of this event, we will be hosting many activities, including a treasure hunt, watch parties, a night of chess, a board games arena, and even the regional favourite… Hunger Games! We will also be hosting game nights of Jackbox, Skribbl.io, and “Secret Hitler”, with some fun spam games along the side. We would love to see you there! More details will be announced soon and I am planning many many more events and activities for the coming spring and summer periods, so make sure to watch out! Back to Top Praesidium Update By: Aivintis Over the course of February, Grand Vizier Aivintis granted citizenship to 8 residents of The East Pacific and processed 1 clerical change to the citizenship roster. In order to ensure the integrity of the February 2024 Delegate Elections, Grand Vizier Aivintis initiated a citizenship audit to confirm that all voters in the election were indeed residents of TEP with a valid WA nation on record, or a confirmed claim to EPSA exception. At the beginning of the audit, 12 citizenships were flagged as invalid. Two citizens corrected their citizenship within the legal 48 hour period, leading nine citizenships to be immediately removed at the end, with a tenth maintained pending Conclave action. Regarding this last invalid citizenship, the citizen in question filed a lawsuit against the Citizenship Office during the period in which correction was requested. When this Civil Trial was rejected by the Conclave At Large for lack of need and a lack of merit. Citizens are reminded to ensure that their resident nation remains alive and in TEP, and that their WA nation remains alive as well, or else that their EPSA exception is filed – the Grand Vizier will reach out to the Overseeing Officer to confirm this. Pending citizenship applications and clerical changes remain awaiting telegram confirmation. The Grand Vizier once again encourages all residents to apply for citizenship so that they may exercise their right to vote in Delegate elections and Concordat referendums. As per the Standing Orders of the Praesidium, the elections for the Grand Vizier and Eastern Pacific Police Service Commissioner were begun in January, though a delay was incurred due to the fault of the Grand Vizier himself. Once corrected, however, the elections continued. At the beginning of February, Grand Vizier Aivintis and Eastern Pacific Police Commissioner Marrabuk were both re-elected unopposed, with the unanimous consent of the Praesidium At Large. The Praesidium leadership is elected to six month terms with no term limits. Back to Top Interview with Eastern Alksearia By: Aivintis I recently had the pleasure of speaking with the Overseeing Officer, Eastern Alksearia, otherwise known as Shadow. A former Delegate, Shadow is a prominent figure in East Pacifican politics, and is currently executing a plan to reform the Eastern Pacific Sovereign Army, our regional military. Aivintis: Thanks for agreeing to be interviewed for EPNS. I know you're a very busy person, as the Overseeing Officer and an Arbiter of the Conclave. And not even that, but you also hold positions in other regions, yes? Shadow: I do. I'm the Supreme Harbinger (note: Chief Justice) in Astoria, I'm the Speaker of the House of Commons in Thaecia, I do work for the Warzone Trinidad Mafia as well. It's a busy schedule, but I find fun in it. Aivintis: Busy schedule indeed. How do you find a way balance your different regional associations? I know I, for one, very much struggle. Shadow: Very simple. The way I interact in a region is similar to an RP, at least on the government level. I'm always myself in public channels where I'm just chatting with people. But in government, I don a different "persona". Astoria/Kantrias I have a specific image, in WZT I have a different persona, and even in TEP. Though, my persona in TEP is probably what is the most similar to me irl. Otherwise I'm on top of things because of pings or because people reach out to me in my DMs. Aivintis: Right, yeah, pings and DMs are really all I need, too. You mentioned your personas across different regions, would you mind expanding on what kind of persona you’ve cultivated in TEP, and why? Shadow: In TEP, my persona -as stated previously - is very much just my morals and ideals from irl and put into TEP. Though there are some tweaks. I am unabashedly me. I will not let someone ruin that. Plus. I take being in TEP government as fun. There's nothing happening in TEP that should make or break my day. Aivintis: That’s totally fair. How have your experiences in TEP been so far — you’ve been here coming up on four years now, I think? Shadow: Yup, April 28th will be 4 years. It's crazy to think that I've been doing this for 4 years. But I think TEP is becoming a second home to me. Aivintis: I think a lot of us can relate to that. Getting into the meat of the interview, I was wondering what your duties are as Overseeing Officer. Obviously, you’re the leader of our Army, but what does that entail? Shadow: As Overseeing Officer, i usually cordinate with other militaries for EPSA to join in on. During this term it's been a bunch of fashbashes, but there have been a few liberations and even a couple tag raids. I am also responsible for keeping track of how many operations people participate in and promoting people. Aivintis: How has EPSA been, activity-wise, throughout your tenure? Shadow: We have done a bunch. We went Fash bashing with WZT during Operation Cabaret and then during its sequel Sacrumterra. We help liberate WZT a couple times. But mainly, we aren't doing our own ops currently. Mainly, it's my own fault. I havent gotten a time to sit down and plan operations for EPSA. I want to. I'm currently planning something (but no spoilers). Aivintis: Ooh. I’m looking forward to see what you’re planning. Moving backwards from talk of the future to talk of the past, what accomplishments are you most proud of within the last term? Shadow: Within the last term, I'm very proud of our soldiers bashing the Fash with old friends and new friends. The most proud one is Sacrumterra as I got to be the point and I now hold the keys to Eden. Aivintis: That was definitely a prominent moment, and a point of regional pride for me, although I wasn't able to attend due to being WA-locked. Apart from fash bashes, what other kinds of operations has EPSA seen in the past few months? Shadow: I remember the days when I was WA locked. Fond memories. Speaking of fond memories, I also have fond memories of liberating WZT both times. Our Army has some people assist with the siege of UEPU. Aivintis: Our allies in WZT have definitely faced a lot of attacks, and it’s heartening to see our military support our friends. Especially from the perspective of a civilian Foreign Councillor. How do you see the relationship between FA and EPSA? How do they influence each other? Shadow: A and the entirety of R/D go hand in hand. They influence both. It's a delicate dance and balance between the two. EPSA is definitely heavily influenced by our FA. I wouldn't conduct an operation for EPSA if it jeopardized our FA. Aivintis: Understandable. Now, I was curious. Would you say EPSA is often overlooked or underrated? I mean, it's a somewhat detached Executive department from my observations. Shadow: I wouldn't say EPSA is overlooked. I think it is a little underrated. I think people don't see us doing as much and thinking we aren't there, but I assure you, we are there. We are going to go through a rebrand which will help breathe life into EPSA. Aivintis: Rebranding is a huge thing, but I’m also wondering, what other changes do you hope to last beyond your term? Shadow: I would love to see the Command team lead ops on their own, and maybe have EPSA start to lead their own ops in general. Aivintis: Well thank you so much for your time. Before we go, is there anything else you’d like to say to the citizens of TEP? Shadow: Thank you all for reading this article, y'all are amazing, and keep doing what you're doing. Aivintis: Alright. Thank you again for your time! Shadow: My pleasure! Back to Top The Foreign Newsstand By: Aivintis & Altys Hello and welcome to the Foreign Newsstand. We in The East Pacific’s FA Watch are tasked with discussing and debating news of global significance within NationStates Gameplay (NSGP). With an eye on the forums and the news reports of our allies, we see discussion on a wide range of interregional political topics. For the purposes of sharing interregional news, I’ve developed this quick Newsstand to summarize the goings-on of our diplomatic partners and other regions. Here are the major events of February 2024:
Back to Top Analysis: How Activity in The East Pacific changed throughout 2023 By: Altys Throughout the year 2023, The East Pacific experienced a dynamic landscape characterized by numerous departures and arrivals within its community, the introduction of the impactful Frontiers/Strongholds game update, and shifts in its network of Discord servers. As the year concluded, we saw the RMB Cafeteria Discord server attaining official status as a TEP server and previous publications in this newspaper featuring opinion articles suggesting a decline in activity within TEP. Motivated by these observations, I set out to compile and analyze activity data, aiming to discern patterns and make predictions about the future trajectory of the region's community. DEFINITIONS Before we begin I will list and define here a number of terms used in this paper:
STATISTICAL BIAS STATISTICS First Semester of 2023 There are different ways to explain these numbers.
With the points made above the numbers we get make more sense. Now to see whether the F/S update, the summer slump and other events will see them change for the next six months! Second Semester of 2023 Among the other major centers, the RMB Cafeteria experienced a substantial 65.8% drop in activity, the RMB itself saw a 33.8% decrease, and TEP Urth Roleplay observed a 25.5% decline. A closer examination of subcommunity activity shares in TEP reveals a significant shift, with Valsora's share dropping from 60% to 39.1%. In contrast, the main server + Government experienced a rise in its share from 31.1% to 45.8%, establishing itself as the most active subcommunity within TEP. The Urth subcommunity remained relatively stable, with its share changing marginally from 13.4% to 15.1%. The extrapolation from these numerical trends indicates a discernible pattern: Valsora experienced a contraction in size, Urth exhibited stagnation, and the Main/Government subcommunity demonstrated growth.
Now seeing those shifts in activity dynamic between the first and last six months in TEP, what can we expect of 2024? For that we can take a peak at January's statistics and extrapolate... Projections for 2024 Considering these trends, projections for 2024 suggest that Valsora is likely to regain a more active status compared to the second half of 2023. TEP Main is expected to maintain its positive activity trend established throughout 2023. On the other hand, Urth may either remain stagnant or experience a decline in activity over time, as evidenced by its reduced contribution in January 2024 compared to the same month the previous year. Back to Top Valentine's Day Article By: Yukkira "If I grew up here, I don't think I'd ever leave." - Anakin Skywalker, circa 32 BBY Ah, Naboo, gem of the Chommell Sector. A peaceful planet by nature, Naboo is home to humans known as the Naboo, as well as a species of reptilian-like humanoids called the Gungan. Naboo's surface is full of vast oceans, pristine green plains, and expansive swamplands, with fauna as unassuming as the gentle Shaak of the endless plains, to the large and terrifying sea creatures that dwell deep beneath the waves of the oceans, near the planet's core. During the tumultuous period known as The Clone Wars, the period was foreshadowed with an invasion by the Trade Federation leading an army of droids, which posed an existential threat to the planet. However, due to the timely intervention of two Jedi by the name of Obi Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn, as well as the stalwart leadership of recently elected 14-year-old Queen Padme Amidala, the Naboo with great assistance from the native Gungans, managed to repel the Trade Federation's invasion, ensuring Naboo's independence. "It's beautiful." "Yes, it absolutely is." ―Shara Bey and Leia Organa, about Naboo During this year's Valentine's Day Events, Naboo was offered to the TEP community as one of several choices to take a would-be date on, and while during the initial few days, there was fierce competition from supporters of The Shire, by the end of day 4, it was clear, that Naboo was the place to be. It's honestly not too hard to see why. Ladies and gentlemen, reptilians and insectoids, it is hard to understate the psychological impact vast green plains have on your psyche. Imagine you, with the people that you loved, surrounded by an endless ocean of green, sheltered under a clear blue sky. Breath that sweet morning air in. Take in the sounds of the birds singing their love songs into the pristine summer sunrise. It's just you, your significant others, and the world. Let all your worries wash away into the light playful breeze that sweeps through your hair. Time seems to stop, as the world watches you, as you watch it in return. What incredible peace. What a beautiful life. How fortunate are you to be alive right now? "Naboo" by nidhi-rathish on DeviantArt This Valentine's Day, let the region's choice of Naboo be a calm and gentle reminder that it's okay to disconnect once in a while. Find the time- no, MAKE the time to run away from live for a day. Go pack your bags, rent a cabin for a weekend on a distant shore, and just leave your worries at the door. Go take that badly-needed, much earned break, and live in the moment, for now. It's no exaggeration to say that as the world got smaller, it got quicker. We've become so busy with trying to earn that degree, trying to earn that pay raise, trying to keep up with that next big thing, that the art of stopping, taking stock, and breathing, is becoming more and more rare. The largest reason however, is because we've forgotten potentially, as a society, just what disconnecting can do for us, not just mentally, but physically. If you feel good, then you'll act good, so in essence, you'll be good. Take care of yourselves, Kings, Queens, and Monarchs of TEP. Until next year. Yukki Valentine's Day Poetry Contest The first poem up is styxprincess's "last dance." These are her thoughts on her inspiration for the piece: The inspiration for “last dance” was that feeling of being invisible and immobile - feeling like everyone around you is moving faster than you are, and none of them can see (or care to see) that you’re falling behind. I also draw from the age-old idea that someone only dies once they’re truly forgotten, and tie it in as a self-justification for a fear of attachment that stems from being uncomfortable with actually moving forward, despite hating where you are. “last dance” uses a lot of techniques that are typical of my poetry, such as significant use of the second person and the use of capitalization as a tool for emphasizing important words and themes and telling a visual story to supplement the lack of dynamic pacing and tone when read from the page. However, it is significantly less prescriptive than my other poems, instead putting the impetus on the reader and asking them to make a decision. Other more specific acknowledgements go to my own personal failures with romance, the visual setting of “On My Own” from Les Miserables, the song “Prodigal” by David Wirsig, The Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan, the fairy tale of the little match girl, Travis Kelce’s impending retirement, my best friend forever Ms. Sams, the liminal feeling of being all alone in an empty bar, and of course, Arthur Murray Dance Studio. Yukki's thoughts: Next up is daneson's "The Universe." Rather than a traditional comment on their inspiration for the piece, they instead gave simply, these two pictures: Yukki's thoughts: And now we have the meme submission of hyde's "5 horrible things you should never say to a girl this Valentine's Day." When asked about what their inspiration was for the piece, they said: So, for inspiration, I kinda made it as a low-effort sh*tpost and as a mix of genuine advice for things you should never say to a girl if you are trying to get a date. I pulled many of the lines from it from quotes I either made up with real life friends or from terrible rizz lines I've read on the internet, such is why it is so, so ass. Yukki's thoughts: Now we have "Grapes" by the rat-pope themself, interimname. When asked about their piece, they said: Yukki's thoughts: I truly appreciate the fact that of all the entries that I've had the privilege of reading this year, that I am able to view a piece that gets to the root of why I volunteered to put on this year's festivities at the very last minute. I believe that as a purveyor of chronic geek memes, that the meme of a geek being unable to find another geek to love is rooted in the idea that self-appreciation leads to the coincidental success thereof relational love. While I give credence to the fact that styxprincess's piece touches on the idea of self-love as well, her piece is wrapped in thoughtful melancholy, while the rat-pope's piece knocks on hardwood. Yukki's final thoughts: This is what I've taken from these poems and I thank each and every writer for their thoughtful, sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always incredible pictures that they painted. Until next year. Back to Top Expectations and Confusion: How NDay10 came to be Written By: Altys Leading up to the event, each faction had their own, different, expectations for the event. The field we ended up getting was by and large decided by them however true or false they were. So let's discuss them! Initial Expectations Inside KHAN (Kingly Heathens Asserting Neighborliness -- later Kingly Horsemen Asserting Neighborliness) awareness dawned early on regarding the non-reformation of the Potato Alliance. Notably, the addition of Icarus Moreaux and 9003, former Potato Generals and de facto leaders in September 2023, fueled expectations of a rerun from the previous edition without the Potato Alliance. KHAN then expected a fight to happen between them and the other major factions, where it would stand at a disadvantage. Inside A.N.A.L (Anime Nations Against Liberals) Command there was the expectation for a re-run of the previous edition (September 2023). The faction and its allies would first team with KHAN and the Potato alliance to kill the Horsemen of the Apocalypse (HotA). Subsequently, the event was expected to transform into a clash between A.N.A.L & Allies versus KHAN & Potato Alliance, placing the former at a strategic disadvantage. Consequently, ANAL took proactive measures, extending invitations to more regions, crafting strategies, and training new members as puppetmasters. Inside JEFF (Jellyfish Elite Fighting Force, Commaders shared a parallel outlook with A.N.A.L Command, envisioning a rerun of the alliance against HotA from the previous edition. The possibility of Potato and KHAN aligning was also considered, with no knowledge of Potato's dissolution. In preparation, JEFF expanded its ranks by inviting additional regions and working to transform existing members into puppetmasters. Inside Starlight (Starlight Brigade) Command, there was the anticipation of a shifting battlefield while retaining similarities to the previous event. Foreseeing an alliance against HotA, identifying Potato as a definite adversary, and anticipating a potential conflict between A.N.A.L & KHAN were the expectations held. Potato's Dissolution The official dissolution of the Potato Alliance, declared by its Commanders four days before the even, dramatically altered the landscape from the previous edition. Major factions braced for a tougher confrontation against HotA, given the softening of captchas and the absence of Potato's numerical support. Moreover, the expectation emerged that, even if victorious against HotA, the ensuing landscape would not favor KHAN. This expectation materialized into a stark reality when JEFF started assimilating regions once aligned with the Potato Alliance. With JEFF's rapid expansion, A.N.A.L and KHAN standing neck-and-neck in nation count, and HotA yet to appear on the board, some within A.N.A.L Command questioned the relevance of the previously agreed Mutual Defense Pact against a potential KHAN-Potato alliance. Doubts persisted until KHAN clarified that HotA was "not forming as a separate entity." KHAN and HotA merging The revelation shattered burgeoning hopes in A.N.A.L Command of clinching victory. The merger of KHAN and HotA mirrored the historic alliance between CARD and HotA in NDay6 of 2021, reaching a horrifying 16 000 nations. A.N.A.L, JEFF, Starlight, and later the Motokata Defense Coalition (MDC) swiftly devised strategies to overcome these overwhelming odds. At that time, their combined strength barely surpassed 5,000 (eventually reaching around 13 000), paling in comparison to HotA's 2021 peak. All factions unified under a single command structure aimed at enhanced coordination against KHAN, initially agreeing to defend each other's WA nations and to carry coordinate strikes. However, unbeknownst to them, not the entirety of HotA would align with KHAN. Despite the potential for a "megafaction," the merger did not fully materialize, rendering the event more even than the coalition initially believed, if not actually favoring KHAN's adversaries. The Eight Hours War Written By: Altys NDay began like any other, with factions stockpiling. Though a notable divergence unfolded as A.N.A.L intensified its nuclear production, nearly amassing a stockpile surpassing that of the two following factions combined within the first 20 minutes of the event. This stark departure from its historical emphasis on a defensive stance and shield production caught KHAN Command off guard, defying their expectations. One the 30th minute, the storm unfurled. JEFF, accompanied by A.N.A.L's puppetmasters, honed in on KHAN. Targets multiplied, the earliest first strike to reach over 150k targets had it not been for JEFF's premature firing orders, 40 minutes into the event instead of 50. ANAL, in order to not weaken the attack, followed suit. Yet the initial salvo faltered due to sluggish pageloads and an untimely fire order limiting the firepower of A.N.A.L's puppetmasters. Undeterred, a second barrage ensued 45 minutes later—this time composed of Starlight, MDC, and A.N.A.L's non-puppetmasters. KHAN remained steadfast in defense, but teetered on the brink, succumbing to negative scores. Around the two-hour mark, the tides shifted as KHAN retaliated, unleashing barrages upon JEFF. What unfolded was an hour of relentless back-and-forth, where JEFF fell into the negative as their aggressor rose to the podium. As the clock struck the three-hour mark, a revelation dawned upon the anti-KHAN coalition. JEFF, caught in the ceaseless dance of attack and defense, showed signs of fatigue. Puppetmasters, doubling as commanders, strained to redirect their focus to shields and nukes, let alone oversee their troops. Internal morale also crumbled in tandem with the dwindling score and the never-ending deluge of enemy nukes. Adding to the chaos, the recent NDay updates saw the coalition's shared tech malfunctioning, diverting part of their nuke targeting to nations outside the KHAN fray. Worse, more often than not those targets were aimed at their own allies. A strategic pause became imperative to discuss how to pursue and fix the tech. After 40 minutes of code fixing and deliberation, a paradigm shift unfolded. A.N.A.L's offensive juggernaut would no longer be divided, and JEFF, now firing alongside Starlight and Motokata, would gain time to regain focus and organization. The tech issues resolved, the crossfire among allies was also to cease. A.N.A.L spearheaded the renewed assault, this time puppetmasters and non-puppetmasters attacking in tandem. The faction targeted over 500k warheads against KHAN, ready to avenge their aquatic friends. A tapestry of fire and counterfire unfolded over several hours, climaxing at the seven-hour mark as KHAN redirected its offensive onslaught towards A.N.A.L. The ensuing volley, nearly entirely shielded, gave way to several follow-ups with many more nukes piercing through the faction's shield dome. However, it proved too little, too late. With each barrage, KHAN absorbed more damage than its adversaries, its combat strength steadily waning. By the eighth hour, radiation levels breached 50%, signaling the coalition's triumph. The war had its winner. Until the arms control treaty went into effect, the coalition would continue to feast upon the corpse of their enemy, inflicting a record 1 177 441 radiations. The final leaderboard would see A.N.A.L in first place with a total score of 722 734. In second place was the Starlight Brigade at a score of 258 323, also the only major faction to stay at 0 radiations (!). Finally in third place the Jellyfish Elite Fighting Force, back in the positives with a score of 250 241. Their enemy KHAN sat at -967 520 score. Back to Top (an upvote would help greatly with visibility too!) |
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