Tarquinus

1. This question has been answered already. 2. Censors determine the size and constituency of the electorate, and do not collect votes. The process of vote collection is simple, and has been explicitly stated. 3. Neutral parties do not name nominees. Does Japan nominate candidates for office in Romania? These nominees - and there are five, not four - were named by Lorerootians.

The people of Loreroot have spoken, and think almost unanimously that this election should be a matter for people of Loreroot. My guidelines posted above stand: if you wish to vote in the election but have no homeland, please notify Gremlin or Mya Celestia. All votes should be submitted to Karak. If you sent a vote to Pamplemousse, worry not, for she has given to Karak the few votes she received. On behalf of the inter-alliance cooperation of Loreroot, I offer heartfelt thanks to Pamplemousse for her offer to moderate and her honest criticism and recommendations. Let no one question her integrity or her neutrality, for she is a model of both. I cannot emphasise strongly enough that Pamplemousse is neither an ally nor a puppet of Loreroot in any way, but a dignified and independent neutral.

Frankly, I abhor democracy, and the Eclipse does not function as one. I carry on democratically out of consideration for those who wish it so.

[list=1] [*] [b]What can be done to help make Loreroot better?[/b] Loreroot needs to play to its strengths, which are diversity, creativity, and culture. Loreroot should shore up its weaknesses, particularly in dueling, but it should also concentrate on its strengths and be true to its nature. [*] [b]What do you think can be done to bring everyone closer together?[/b] Lorerootians need to do more together. They should train together, quest together, and so forth. They already party together. [*] [b]What do you think is causing people to leave alliances?[/b] That is a question with vast implications, and I am uncertain I know the answer. What causes people to leave the realm? As to alliances, I think the difficulty is partly to do with the combat system and how difficult it is to train whilst staying in an alliance. In other cases, internal strife - and contrary to what some may say, Loreroot is not the only land that sees such strife - and worse, stagnation can drive people away from their alliances. But when people become emotionally distraught, they tend to leave dramatically, not just from alliances, but from the realm. [*] [b]What do you feel can be done to fix the problems in lore?[/b] Loreroot's problems are no greater than any other land's, and hardly different. Still: Lorerootians must stay focussed on solutions more than problems, on the collective strength they gain from their diversity. [*] [b] What do you need for the High Council to better serve you?[/b] As I am on the High Council I shall say that first I should like to see the two vacant seats filled. Second, I should like to see Councillors engage each other candidly and respectfully, for we have much work to do, and [u]we[/u] are to blame if our inter-alliance co-operation breaks down. [*] [b] What skills/gifts/talents to you have to offer?[/b] I have long experience in leadership, I am a strong warrior and a fair tactician, and I am not easily cowed. I have focus and writing skill, having authored the Loreroot Charter and the codes of conduct for the Children of the Eclipse. Finally, I have a working knowledge of the history of MagicDuel, both recent and less recent, from my experiences in the realm, from my conversations with Archivists and veterans, and of course from reading the Adventure Log. [*] [b]What would you like to see in Loreroot?[/b] More joy, more friendliness, more of the spirit of the Loreroot I know. Alone among the lands beyond Marind's Bell, Loreroot is accessible to everyone. Let us welcome all who come, letting them know our reverence for tradition, our enthusiasm in the present, and our delight in new friendships are the things that drive us and distinguish our land from the others. [*] [b]What do you believe could make Loreroot a better and more entertaining place?[/b] More cooperative roleplay, more inquisitiveness into the land and its mysteries (have you ever been to Path Keeper?), and more quests! I am working to redress that last point particularly. [/list]

The election to replace the Speaker of the Law will be open in one half-hour, 0800 Server time, Day 137, and will remain open for 48 hours, that is until 0800 Server Time, Day 139. The nominees: [list] [*] Gremlin [*] Mya Celestia [*] Siala Lone Wolf [*] Lady Renata [*] Sparrhawk [/list] Please send all votes to Karak via PM. [u]TITLE[/u] your PM "LOREROOT ELECTION - SPEAKER OF THE LAW". Make sure it is clear who you are and for whom you are voting. I have removed Windy from the list of nominees as she has resigned from the Guardians of the Root. This voting is open to ALL residents of the land of Loreroot, including the neutral Crafters if they desire to cast their votes*. To those not yet affiliated with a land, I offer encouragement to submit your name to one of our Censors, Mya Celestia or Gremlin, and indicate your desire to vote in this election. If you have another homeland, I humbly request that you refrain from voting. Thank you for your co-operation. *As neutrals, the Crafters are under no obligation whatsoever with respect to the inter-alliance organisation represented by the High Council.

[quote name='Burns' post='31299' date='May 17 2009, 01:52 AM']what is the point of non-combat pacts?[/quote] Whatsoever point there once might have been is now gone. I never questioned it, for whatever reason; I was simply told not to attack fellow Loreroot alliances without permission, and agreed (since I really wanted to get the Eclipse started, and was eager to gain support), and was later told not to attack the members of Guerrilla Golemicarum because Loreroot had signed a non-aggression treaty. And I tried to observe these rules for months before the Eclipse officially existed, though I was aware the observance of the treaty was uneven, to be charitable, as much on the Loreroot side as the Guerrilla Golemicarum... if not more. For the record, I disciplined a member of the CoE for having violated the treaty with GG - twice. His punishment, as decreed by Shadowseeker, was a blessing in disguise, though the fellow in question certainly felt the weight of it at the time. Anyway, interesting point, and it is a shame tempers ran so high on a matter that is in fact so trivial.

Thank you, Ailith. Your help is always appreciated - and this would have come out anyway.

Please, please, please: peace, my friends. This is a misunderstanding. Kragel, my brother, the idea of Loreroot alliances asking permission to attack each other is an old one, but hazy and never adequately explained, let alone enforced. It was not clear whether, for example, Willow's Shop was an exception. This tradition goes back to RPCs who are long gone, and the Savelites were never properly informed, and so on. When I swear in members to the Eclipse, I inform them that, as a matter of courtesy, [b]we[/b] do not attack members of other Loreroot Alliances without first asking. This tradition is by now utterly pointless, as fight balance no longer helps (and, in fact, most skilled fighters now skew themselves heavily to losses). Luna has been with us a long time, however, and remembers some of the old traditions. They were never laws, so, respectfully, I submit to you that no one has ever been 'forced' to do or not to do anything. Finally, to reiterate, I have tried very hard to acknowledge your neutral stance in Loreroot, and to offer you participation in our inter-alliance cooperation... but not to require it, as I honour your intentions. Luna, beloved Sibyl, I thank you for your acknowledgement of the miscommunication. I know some of those who love you are calling for Kragel's head on a platter, but I believe you do not want that. To my fellows among the Eclipse: I honour your show of support for our true leader, and thank you. We are no democracy; and we of the knights will always close ranks behind our priestesses, right or wrong, blunt or courteous, for better or worse.

[quote name='Firsanthalas' post='31141' date='May 15 2009, 06:46 AM']I voted for Karak to be President. I am not disputing that Karak is President of the Council or that I voted for him. I am however questioning the remark that Karak is also the Leader of GOTR. Currently you are the leader of GOTR as you occupy that slot. If Tarquinus made a mistake in his statement, then Tarquinus or anyone else can say so. Don't try to make out that I said or agreed to something I didn't. A statement was made in public. I questioned that statement. If it was an error, then say so and all can see it and understand. Don't jump down my throat for speaking up about something that I felt was incorrect.[/quote] I made a mistake, and issues of terminology - which I have said above I don't really care about, despite some very high-pitched inisistence that it matters - are part of the problem. Amoran is the systemic and symbolic leader of the Guardians of the Root alliance. Who is the actual leader of that alliance matters little to me: it can have a secret leader, a junta, or be an anarchy, and I feel that is nobody's business but the Guardians'. Not the Eclipse's. Not the general MagicDuel public's. Nobody else's but the Guardians'. Similarly, if the Guardians wish to punish or otherwise change the composition of their membership, I have nothing to say about that, just as I would disregared anyone else's recommendation about conduct in the Eclipse - [b]except[/b] where it involved matters affecting joint diplomacy. To name one example, I disciplined a knight - twice - for violating the joint-alliance non-aggression treaty with Guerrilla Golemicarum (he kept attacking Grido, and Grido rightly lodged a complaint.) Karak, as president of Council, presents a unified face for the alliances of Loreroot. In that sense, he is our "leader", and I believe his calm, unflappable demeanour amply demonstrates why you, I, Ibruzu, and Amoran voted in Council to select him. Out of respect for BlackThorn, I called our alliance of alliances "the Guardians of the Root." My mistake: that was a bad idea, as it seems to cause confusion. I believe you, Firsanthalas, understand Karak's position, scope and limitations of authority, and role. I publicly apologise to you, Firsanthalas, for my carelessness in terminology, and offer this clarification to those watching this topic.

[b]Note: web-searches and textual analysis indicate that nearly all the above prayers are the [u]original works[/u] of MagicDuel players.[/b] The sole exception is "Song of the Goddess" submitted by Dark Mystic, in real life a single mother with an infant child and a full-time job, who admitted she lacked the time or the writing gift to submit the requisite prayer to join the priesthood of the Children of the Eclipse. I told her it would be ok to use this relatively obscure pagan prayer, given that this is not from a major, living religion with large numbers of people to offend, and given that the "hymn to Hecate," found everywhere from modern Satanism to the fiction of H.P. Lovecraft, had been used by Khalazdad on several occasions in rites pertaining to Necrovion. Dark Mystic is now a PWR with a very interesting role that contributes to the flavor of both Loreroot and Necrovion.

I work for nothing, all right. You show you are weak in argumentation. I will not start again.

God, precisely. The volume of shrillness only increases. Have you heard of the Savelite Church? It is something like, oh, I don't know, a religion. The Children of the Eclipse are a religious and military order, as is a matter of public record. Rescind my RPC status, as it is evidently a mistake. Everyone in MD knows what I was doing with the Eclipse, with the Sibyl, with Penelope Lightmoon. For months. Not possible in MD, you say? But it has happened. Stop it if you can. Ban me. Revoke my powers. Delete my posts. [i]There is still religion in MagicDuel, and there is nothing you can do to change that.[/i] [b]Edit: As it seems to be unclear, this is not a surrender of any kind; to the contrary, it is defiance. I am saying that if you believe my role to be inappropriate, take away my RPC status and powers, ban me, etc, you will still have failed to change my conviction. I intend to carry on leading the Eclipse and holding religious services as we have done from the outset. I will not stop. I will not discard service liturgy, some of which is original work and some of which has been used by another RPC (Khalazdad).[/b]

[quote name='Yrthilian' post='31066' date='May 14 2009, 08:36 AM']LOL i find this funny. When did i or even the MR's state we were working together? I beleve we never did.[/quote] You did not, and indeed you have not shown any evidence of doing so... except when it came time to go to war, when your so-called 'defense force' sprang to life, seeming highly interested in imperialism and espionage (which they will, of course, deny). Their "defense" of Golemus Golemicarum seems to have been a plan for shock tactics and assault. Let us not rehash the discussion of the Savelites' fate, or indulge in finger-pointing or laughable protests of innocence. You find it funny that you do not work together, that you sign a non-aggression agreement with which your "military arm" will not comply. I find it pitiable. We aim to do otherwise. [quote]If you wish to know things about Golemus i have already stated to other just ask and i will do my best to answer, this is how i have always worked.[/quote] Very well. Why did you choose to annul the Treaty of Land Balance? I suppose Renavoid's signature achievement was 'kept secret' from you? Or perhaps you feel you do not need to explain yourself. You do not. Nor do we. We have chosen to do so from courtesy, but between the shrill posting in capitals and puerile insults from people who ought to be able to manage at least a show of maturity, my patience is quite exhausted.

I am not at all offended, particularly when you do not try to belittle me. I see the truth in what you say; still, whether we band together from necessity or ideology, it is pertinent to Akasha's train of inquiry to explain how we co-ordinate and why, and to compare, and in some cases, contrast ourselves to other entities.

You tread a dangerous road to deny you share interest with Guerrilla Golemicarum, or that you co-ordinate with it. Whether you choose to continue to undermine your own credibility in that fashion is immaterial to me, since my point in this context is that we of Loreroot strive to avoid the kind of pick-and-choose "diplomacy" practised by your organisation, which is quite simply that you welcome warfare but not peaceful co-existence.

You are meant to defend Golemus Golemicarum, not invade other lands. Clarify further: your involvement in the "war" makes no sense according to your stated role. [quote]MR's were fighting because its our job, not because Yrth asked us to.[/quote] Yrth's bellicose behaviour and unilateral declaration of war effectively "asked you to" fight, whether or not he asked you in so many words. To assert otherwise is absurd on its face. The point is simple, and it stands: there is co-operation, though by your own admission scattered, between Guerrilla Golemicarum and the MR Fraternity. You lose no face by admitting what is plain to the meanest intellect.

Three other offices exist as support to the High Council structure: Tribunes, Censors, and Seconds. [list] [*] [b]Forest Tribune[/b] - Tribunes monitor the High Council and make sure it represents the interests of the people it serves. Consensus - unanimous agreement - among Tribunes can force a re-election of the High Council. Each alliance in Loreroot is allowed one Tribune. Tribunes can attend High Council meetings, but may not speak in the meetings. Tribunes are selected according to the custom of their alliance; for example, the Tribune of the Children of the Eclipse was named by the Sibyl. Tribunes cannot hold office on the High Council while they are Tribunes. [*] [b]Censor[/b] - Censors are volunteers who attempt to determine and catalogue the members of the electorate of Loreroot. This position has little power and no real reward, except that those who serve in this regard are marked and remembered by the Council for their efforts, and stand to gain prestige for later elections. [*] [b]Second[/b] - Seconds are designated assistants who act in the stead of Councillors who may be absent for whatever reason. This is an [i]ad hoc[/i] office that is appointed by individual Councillors, and all decisions made by seconds during emergencies are subject to later review by the Council. [/list]

Your clarifications are appreciated, MRD, but unnecessary - I do not feel anyone should be scrutinised in this fashion, and merely used Golemus Golemicarum as an [i]ad hoc[/i] example. I mean no reflection on your or your men whatsoever.

Asserting a thing does not make it so. The Children of the Eclipse conduct our own disciplinary reviews - no one else does. We have our own codes of conduct, by which no others are expected to abide. We choose to submit to the Guardians of the Root's leadership in terms of diplomacy and war, since part of our stated alliance role is to defend Loreroot and cooperate with the Guardians. We choose to coordinate our training efforts with the Guardians, and our religious services with the Savelites, so that redundancies can be avoided. In all other respects, our affairs are conducted like any other alliance, with jumping to leader, alliance chat, and so forth. The Savelites are approached for purposes of cooperation. We of the Eclipse have nothing to say about their internal affairs. How the Guardians conduct their internal affairs is up to them. They choose to involve other alliances in their affairs - very nice of them. They look around for help and leadership, and they get it, from us (the Eclipse) and others. I do not see where the line between wishes and realities has been crossed. These are the simple realities. Where is the problem?

Burns - I am referring to the treaty of non-aggression, which MRD refused to recognise because he hated the [b]Guerrilla Golemicarum[/b] ambassador, Lady Isolda, and no other reason. He admits it freely - MRD is very forthright about such things. We want to avoid such a situation. That's all. It's easily said, but not so easily done.

Yes. It is. And it has its own internal structure, which I believe is not the topic of the current discussion. The Guardians of the Root are symbolically/systemically led by Amoran, as you know well. How that fighting alliance conducts its own affairs is as of little concern to me as how the MR Fraternity conducts its affairs: I assume the MRs know what they're doing, and I leave MRD and the others alone about their business. We have created a super-structure for Loreroot, again according to the wishes of BlackThorn. We wish to cooperate with each other - Guardians, Eclipse, Savelites, and (if they want to) Crafters. This cooperation gives Loreroot as a land the seeming of being united, rather than just another place on the map. I wonder why the relationship between MRD and Yrthilian is not under scrutiny - it is EXACTLY the same sort of thing as this "super alliance", but simpler.

And I responded. Guerrilla Golemicarum displayed an inability to coordinate its diplomatic dealings with the MR Fraternity, making Golemus appear fractured and inefficient. I note that, when it came time to cease talking and thinking, but to start killing, the MRs suddenly were all loyalty and subservience to Yrthilian. No one commented on that [b]drastic[/b] change. Perhaps you will speak to it now? We in Loreroot wish for something better - we want a land that is not only well defended, but organised and justly governed. The elements of the big alliance - our alliances, as you call them - manage their own affairs internally. Go on, suggest LunarGoddess and I do not know how to run our alliance again. See who believes you. As to coordinating three separate alliances, or guilds, or whatever you call them, it is a complex and demanding task. No, we are not merging, for many reason, systemic as well as philosophical. Yes, we are attempting to cooperate in an organised fashion. You do know what cooperation is, I assume?

[quote name='Akasha' post='30988' date='May 13 2009, 03:35 PM']again ... : :crazy: :shok: Question: Is there a big change..DRASTIC one in Loreroot THE LAND AND ITS PEOPLE (with a public vote AKA MAGICDUEL OFFICIAL FORUM THIS ONE) OR THE LOREROOT does not know how to use its alliances anymore? are all alliances merging into one?[/quote] This is not news. The organisations in Loreroot try to work together. Do not pretend to be shocked: it is unseemly. You saw us acting in concert during the "war", and you saw me responding to you over and over again. Do you think it only now appopriate to ask whence I received the authority to speak for the forces of Loreroot?

[quote name='Akasha' post='30984' date='May 13 2009, 03:22 PM']:crazy:'Guardians of the Root Alliance, which includes the Children of the Eclipse, the Savelite Church, and the Guardians of the Root guild.' :shok:[/quote] It is the legacy of BlackThorn. I have no further comment, other than to say that a consistent attempt has been made to unify the organised bodies in Loreroot, so that situations do not occur such as were seen not long ago in Golemus Golemicarum, where a treaty was adopted by one alliance (Guerrilla Golemicarum) but rejected by another (the MR Fraternity). I shall say nothing of the inefficacy of that arrangement, which I hold to be self-evident, nor of the tendency of certain organisations to disregard diplomacy wholesale as whimsy strikes them. As to the nomenclature of guilds and alliances, I do not care. There is a Tree-badged Guardians of the Root organisation, which exists to defend loreroot. It is supported by The Children of the Eclipse, and in the past, by the Savelite Church.

Does uncertainty persist in how the High Council was elected, what it does, and why? The High Council is the governing body of the Guardians of the Root [b]Alliance[/b], which includes the Children of the Eclipse, the Savelite Church, and the Guardians of the Root [b]guild[/b]. The Crafters are invited to participate in our general elections, and to select a member for the office of Tribune. The Council has seven (7) seats, four of which are elected, three of which are appointed by the Council itself. The elected positions were chosen by a general election of the members of all the alliance guilds, and though our censors worked very hard to tally all the members of the electorate, I fear the Savelites and the Crafters were inadvertently passed over. They are invited to vote in all successive general elections, however, including the one for Speaker of the Law, which shall be held in the next day or so.* Of the appointed positions, two of the current seats were appointed by the previous Council, though one (Captain-General) has since been vacated, and the other (President of Council) has been appointed by the sitting Council. Karak, as President of Council, is the leader of the Guardians of the Root [b]Alliance[/b]. He had been elected to the post of Speaker of the Law, which is now up for election once more. The wherefores of this arrangement should be self-apparent to any of those of you who understand the.... questionable**... practise of Republicanism. *Contact Mya Celestia, Gremlin, or any of the members of the High Council (Amoran, Firsanthalas, Ibruzu, Karak, or Tarquinus) if you belong to a Guardians of the Root Alliance guild and wish to cast a vote in the election. We shall be happy to tell you more about the position and the current nominees. **As one who has been a king and tyrant, and understands the efficiency of despotism, I find the practise distasteful in the extreme: an exchange of the efficient tyranny of one for the inefficient tyranny of a few, with the added burden of increased corruption. Sadly, the people in the Guardians of the Root Alliance seem to favour this practise, and as I swore to NelyaSetesh and promised BlackThorn many times, mine order, the Children of the Eclipse, owes fealty to the Guardians of the Root Alliance. We therefore abide by it for the purposes of our role in that alliance. With respect to our internal matters, the Eclipse is ruled by the Sibyl and her edicts carried out by me.