Triogenix

For IPCs specifically - in general since they have a fixed price tag attached to them, I would rather not see them become more ""expensive"" than other species, or more difficult to manufacture at a baseline; so in this case positronics. When move onto species/factions specifically, depending on the feedback I get from the IPC team, the case might end up being positronics specifically don't use phoron, but other components in certain IPC frames, or just contemporarily produced IPCs in general do. As for cyborgs; no idea what I want to do yet. Any significantly powerful AI is going to use phoron though(so the horizon's AI would)

One Month Later; Mandate Committee Officially Closes All Investigations; Dorn officially retires. End of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc 31 days can seem like a long time, and yet, this past month has been a whirlwind within the Republic, its government, and media. One month ago, Ake Torvald successfully defeated the reigning incumbent president Joesph Dorn, and has since successfully put an executive branch together, worked through the changeover period, and has been sworn in as President, officially accepting all responsibilities of the office. However, during that month of transition, President Torvald was still keeping himself busy, trying to shore up political alliances, and expand his coalition, with only limited success. His biggest move politically so far happened about half way through the transition period, when he successfully got his first presidential bill passed, with 55% of the senate voting in favor, 5% abstaining, and 40% voting against an omnibus bill that raised funding for the TCAF by 33%, and also established a 5th “branch” of the TCAF. Ever since the creation of the TCAF to replace the old foreign legion model, there has yet to be a replacement to the somewhat famous sentinels, who were tasked with protecting high value targets, locations, and other things of import to the Republic. In the interim between the establishment of the TCAF and the passing of this bill, corporate security experts were simply hired by the republic. No longer! The TCAF now officially has a 5th branch, known as the Praetorians, who are responsible for the safety of the President, Vice President, Secretary of Defence, and similarly important government officials. They are far better equipped and trained than even corporate mercenaries, though complaints have already surfaced about the costs of this wing of the TCAF, afterall, it is somewhat difficult to pay for the standard armament for them to be plasma weaponry of all types. The TCAF connection has put some noises in a joint as well, not Secretary Trasen, but other members of the Senate who claim the president is overreaching his powers. Unlike all other branches, the Praetorians have their own separate command structure, still following all the standard ranks simply with “Praetorian” after it, but with a completely separate “Legate Praetorian” who instead of reporting to the secretary of defence as all other branch command level officers do, the Legate Praetorian reports directly to the President, and is appointed by them. This has led to accusations that President Torvald means to create his own private army - loyal to the president and not the Republic at large. President Torvald has downplayed these claims, stating that “They’re only here to protect those positions integral to the functioning of the Republic during peacetime and emergencies, from the office of the President, the Secretary of Defense, the Senate, and many more.” As part of these duties, Praetorians regularly guard and patrol around the Senate building itself, where today the Mandate Committee met for the final time, to officially close all lines of investigation, even those into entities outside of the Dorn Administration. The committee closed it’s final session with a joint message, stating; Both the TCAF and BSSB have both already confirmed after an internal review of evidence, that no charges will be pressed against any of their members. Secretary Trasen, when asked if there was any evidence of potential criminal activities during peacekeeping operations, declined to comment. Shortly after the Mandate Committee’s announcement, former President Dorn officially announced his retirement from politics, following the Free Market Party shattering under his leadership. He received thanks from the leaders of all political parties for him firm leadership of our country since our independence, and stated; As the capstone to his resignation announcement, Miranda Trasen personally gifted President Dorn a high-end stellar yacht, as well as a recently constructed residence at the Top of the World; all for his services to the country. Miranda said, quote, Little has been heard from Queen Vaur on the other hand, who has retreated to Caprice following President Torvald’s victory. Her office has only released one official statement, lamenting the loss of the election. With the election season now over, we will be sure to keep our readers updated to any more fallout from this historic period.

Talk Trio Hello all. As some of you may know, for the past 4-5 months I have been working on a fundamental rework to the phoron scarcity. This is a massive project, and it's been pretty much the only thing I've been working on. We're getting very close to finishing the hardest part - the general effects of the scarcity, that will be spurwide. For this rework, I've chosen to approach this very methodically. This is firstly, for the good of the lore, and second for my own sanity. I'm starting with the general effects, then applying those to every entity within the spur, then writing that entities response to the spurwide effects, only 1 or 2 of them, which I'll then take and apply to individual planets, which will then have responses that highlight the effects on characters specifically. I'm hoping to have this done within a year, 6-8 months is my goal, but with the general effects done, now all that's left is factions and planets, which are far easier; there are literary techniques called parallels and overlaps. As a simple explanation on how they're sometimes used(to great effect), next time you sit down to watch a show pick 1 scene at the start of the season, and count how many times a scene that can be described in the exact same way happens in that season with different characters, or two characters who are similar in one way but different in the next. Depending on the show, you might get only a handful, or you might get more than 20, then think about which show you thought had more depth, it's something you can talk for hours about. So why is this important in writing? Essentially, it's two very simple way for a writer to make their work much easier to understand from the audiences perspective, while also keep an illusion of depth, difference, foils, in a way that the audience fully buys into. This is especially important for aurora lore, because we already have a lot of it, and this rework needs to add a fair amount more. This is why I'm only having one or two spurwide points, and then basing everything else off of those two points. In essence I'm writing at most two "scenes" and changing the "characters"(nations, planets, groups, species, etc) inb4 someone calls me a hack which means, the audience doesn't have to remember 8 different scenes, or the different scenes for every planet, you just have to remember one or two, and since everything is kind of a variation of that, it doesn't seem difficult to understand, even if you're reading a ton of words. It doesn't always work, as all literary techniques do, but why did I choose it for this rework? Below is a list of requirements for the scarcity to function in it's intended purpose, with subheaders for things that the above header requires to function as well. Essentially, it's laying out the OOC restrictions that I need to write within for this rework. The scarcity must be present The scarcity must be constantly affecting the spur. The scarcity needs to be the driving force, directly or indirectly, behind all events occurring within the Aurora setting This can be done by showing how NPCs and entities make decisions in this new galaxy, compared to the old. Introduces long lasting affects on planets This really can't ever go away. EVERY PLANET ALSO NEEDS TO BE AFFECTED There can be degrees, but as an example; Moghes and Adhomai would be less affected by the scarcity, BUT STILL AFFECTED, than Biesel and Earth, because Moghes and Adhomai were already broke However, they should and would still be affected by the actions of other nation states, which is not the scarcity directly. Using the Hegemony as an example, maybe they're on the edge again in terms of feeding their people, cause dominia increased pirates in the sparring sea to try and offset some government expense. Or the alliance starts being assholes and making it difficult for Hephaestus ships carrying raw materials from Moghes to NHP, but not if they're ships coming from the SSRM. Geopolitically is around This is actually more similar to the first point, but specifically in terms of factions. it shouldn't be that they're every action is driven by the scarcity itself, but it should tie to back to it. An example would be having a situation that was a result of the scarcity, drive a faction to do something Another example would be having a situation, that was a result of a situation, that was a result of a situation, that was a result of the scarcity. The effects at all scales must be consistent Using a current example, interstellar travel should be fundamentally different if you compare Biesel and Sol An important point here, especially with how I'm writing it, is that them having fundamentally different experiences is not always beneficial to the narrative. Still need to figure out specifics here. There needs to be a written out, long term plan, atleast in broad strokes, so that there is a level of consistency across loremasters. This can be done on the forums Lastly, the scarcity itself should be fairly equal with it's effects. The only scale would be developed to undeveloped, with the latter getting off "easier." This doesn't mean every nation should have the same effects - governments and other entities should not be simply ignoring the issues - the differences should arise in the different and unique ways factions choose to try and mitigate the primary focus. The scarcity needs to be important Be debilitating enough that a healthy amount of instability is introduced into the entire setting, allowing for more freedom and creativity in creating characters and writing. Instability is one of the oldest tricks to shake up the setting. Here, the instability is a result of a potential resource shortage. Phoron needs to be a requirement to do what the primary focus is at an effective/efficient rate, and a lack of phoron means that an entity must do the primary focus at a ineffective/inefficient rate. Furthermore, all entities must be somewhat reliant on phoron for their level of life, or at least on things that phoron effects massively. As a result of the second half, the primary focus should not be something that, if made incredibly difficult for the faction, causes their narrative to be a worse story(like, just a bad story, not a story about something bad) Additionally, it should not be so important and an issue that it is difficult to write around. This will just see it ignored, as it's too much of a pain to consider. The scarcity needs to be relevant The scarcity must have impacts that are tangible, believable, and generally enjoyable(good or bad) in-game for characters. If it's just an out of game interaction with the lore, it never sticks as well. These impacts cannot just be in backstories from planets, there needs to be a clear presence onboard as well. Money needs to matter. The same as Point 3 Section 2 in addition with that there isn't any reasonable potential for a solution which mitigates the debilitations of the primary focus. Different reasoning, this time it's about making sure that the scarcity isn't something that can be ignored, it's relevant to characters no matter who they are. If there are - write them down on the planning document The scarcity needs to be the driving force, directly or indirectly, behind all events occurring within the Aurora setting This necessitates that the scarcity fluctuates every now and then, which changes the setting. This could be both good and bad fluctuations, but generally should trend towards bad unless there is a desire to end the scarcity and replace it with something else. DO NOT BURN OUT or if you do finish the rework before quitting The Scarcity, A Villain, And Progressing A Narrative The overall purpose of the scarcity is an OOC function that creates possibilities, allows for more freedom and creativity in narrative direction, and every once in a while shakes up the status quo which always establishes itself, keeping the setting fresh, without massive retcons. This is it's purpose, because that's what it needs to be, it just so happens this is also the purpose of an antagonist literarily. The phoron scarcity is the classic man vs nature conflict, where instead of man surviving against nature, it is man killing nature for short term gain while ignoring potential long term damage, and once there's no more nature left, turning on their fellow man. It is likely the best representation of one of our setting's pillars, corporations; entities who will do anything for more short term profit, even if it damns them and everyone they know in the process. However, that makes the corporations sound like they should be the antagonist, and the ones doing things and then progressing the narrative. And I agree, they should be more proactive than they currently are, because right now they are almost entirely reactive to situations as they occur. However, the corporations must always remain the protagonists, because player characters are part of corporations, and they are indisputably the protagonist. So there needs to be something else pushing forward the narrative, and that antagonist being a creation of the corporations is the best way of making the corporations at fault, but not the antagonist. I think it would be a lot less interesting if overall antagonist that's supposed to progress the narrative was a state, or related to a state, and 100% "an outsider" not something we helped create. Current Very Generalized Changes(Basically my to do list, some things got changed in ways not mentioned here because I haven't updated this) Firstly, to start off this section I must say this; there isn't anything in here that is unnecessary. All of this stuff fulfills one of the goals above, in a way that I think minimizes drawbacks and maximizes positive qualities. I know some people would disagree, but trust me, if I could do less work for this, I would. If something's not necessary to change, I'm not gonna touch it. Shifting the importance of Phoron away from interstellar travel, as this is incredibly difficult to keep going, when it's difficult to write around. Additionally, making interstellar travel a little easier in some regards, and a little harder in others. The focus on interstellar travel alone would increase the chance of this being overwritten by whoever's LM in 2027. Reason; we are an interstellar setting. All our factions are interstellar. If interstellar travel is difficult(which, if it was the primary focus, it would need to be) doing anything in the setting is difficult. And that's not very fun. Placing far more of writing about the scarcity on planet pages, rather than general pages. Planet pages are origins, and that's where the focus of the effects should be, at the character level, rather than the geopolitical or spur level. Additionally, the general scarcity page and faction additions/reworks should be kept as short as possible, only info that writers need/like to have to do something with this narrative. Implement a system in the lore staff section of the forums which contains broad stroke arcs and plotlines for every species, so that even as writers change, things can keep going. I've been trying to do this for a while, but haven't found an effective system. I think using the same system I'm using to write this, I can carry it over, once I've proved it works. Create Economics Lore page Macro-Economics page Keep it simple, keep it sweet, writer info prioritized. Use infographics where-ever possible Reach out to members of the community who understand this better than you do. Codify Trade-Routes with a map. Also create a bubble map with things like general GDP, biggest exports and exports, etc. Goal is to show that the spur's economy is interlinked, and there's no real option except to participate. Microeconomics Use it to talk about economics on specific planets however, where there is far more detail. Every planet/faction/entity needs to be, if only a medium amount, reliant on phoron. Mechanical pay system that can be edited to reflect changing situations. Need to speak with devs Player info prioritized, talk about the average person and what they do, make it personal, don't zoom too far out. At the same time, don't focus too far in either - the point of this lore should be to illustrate the impacts on player characters specifically. This does not mean getting rid of phoron gas, or phoron meds(no it does for the meds), but hopefully, phoron in it's solid form in a RSC, and phoron in it's gas form is generally unchanged. I do not care if that's not possible - I will make it possible. Shift focus from Interstellar Travel to phoron being the only element which is a Room Temperature Superconductor. Codify the interstellar travel system Should still mostly efficient and effective - but not at zero cost. It should be something mitigated, and the migitation not have awful drawbacks, but it should have drawbacks Idea for Biesel, making fat stacks off of exporting their remaining phoron, however is therefore dealing with more pirates attacking those shipments, still hasn't diversified their economy, and isn't considering the long term. Rewrite but keep the solved/mitigated Interstellar Travel we currently have. Create a map that contains all the connections between named systems - and CLEARLY how it functions. Should also try and do some new stuff here. Phoron should be used to produce; Most electronics in developed and/or used space/planets/regions of a planet. Most computational tools, components, and similar(aka computers) Through the two above - basically any piece of technology/electronics from a developed nation/planet/region is gonna have phoron in it. AI NOT IPCS Quantum Computers Electrical Infrastructure includes continent crossing powerlines and the wires inside your walls. Bluespace Drives Phoron should still be used to some extent as fuel still, but with an unbalanced ratio; such as 1mol phoron : 5mol other gas. Potentially develop new bluespace drive IC'ly? This solves the largest issue with the phoron scarcity, why people besides biesel and Elyra are using phoron. It's cause there's nothing else that does this. This especially is not final yet, I'm waiting for some feedback - however I think it is an elegant solution(thank you for the idea sammy) Make the discovery date of phoron ONLY earlier, sometime in the 2350s This is sadly kind of necessary for the spur to be reliant on phoron already - the bluespace stufff... maybe also a bit earlier, but could stay, talk with human lore. Idea for History; Sol was in the middle of the warp gate project Decided it would be a good idea to also try to build bluespace gates once the research was done Deficit spending.exe Stop before going all the way because you need to start spending even more Funnel new excess money into navy Caeserism grows.jpg Uhhhhhh yea idk where else I was gonna with this There should be attempts to replicate phoron, AS A SOLID SOLARIANS, with a focus not on replacing ships and similar, but on finding a replacement for the phoron in manufacturing, infrastructure, computational shit, etc. Break up the current alliances so that all alliances are on relatively equal footing as each other, which also goes to increase instability. A massive one here that I suspect won't go over well is the Nralakk Federation being allies with Sol needs to go. Having the two primary superpowers in the setting allied to each other is horrid narratively - especially with tension increase - I know this is like Sol's 1 alien alliance, but this is just; Problematic for every other team OOC'ly, as it makes both powers seem almost invincible from outside forces, to the extent they'll never be seriously defeated; their only downfalls are internal. This is fine to an extent, but they both need a peer level threat - and since they're the only two superpowers really, they kinda gotta be threats to each other. Or IDK we need to supercharge biesel so it can threaten Sol but that'd be silly. Limiting in terms of alliances. As both superpowers are in an alliance with each other, they don't really have any real threats - so they don't need to interact with the smaller nations to build a coalition, when it's just "Sol-Nrrallak Death Ball." This can be done in either an IC or OOC manner, though IC is preferred. Maps! I know for a fact these are outdated af - so they're going to change a fair amount when I finally finish everything

Åke Torvald Elected as Second President of the Republic of Biesel Final Article of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc At 11:42pm, Local Biesel Time, former President Dorn was forced to concede the election to one of his former political acquaintances, the dark horse of this election, Ake Torvald. Former President Dorn waited until the very last votes were being finalized to officially concede the election, and recognize that the former presiding speaker had defeated the once indomitable leader of the Free Market Party. At 11:50, after a short conversation with the former president, Ake Torvald descended the stairs of his campaign headquarters, to address a crowd of supporters that was beginning to grow rapidly as more republican citizens poured in to celebrate his victory; Thank you, thank you all. Tonight, we stand at the crossroads of a new dawn for Biesel—a dawn where strength, security, and sovereignty are no longer just words but our reality. I want to take this moment to extend my heartfelt gratitude to every single one of you who believed in our campaign, who believed in a Biesel that is ready to shape its own destiny. With the help of Miranda Trasen, and the greater Stellar Corporate Conglomerate, we’re here today to celebrate a victory, but not just them, I can’t forget the Tau Ceti Conservative Party. With them on our side, we’re gonna take Biesel to new heights. No more playing second fiddle—it's time for Biesel to be the multi-system nation-state it’s meant to be. This isn’t just a win for me—this is a win for every single one of you who’s sick of the same old story. It’s a win for everyone who wants a future where Biesel stands tall, where we don’t take orders, where we forge our own path. Thank you, Biesel. Let’s go make history. In other election news, senate results were also announced shortly after presidential voting was finalized, and we have the current percentages here; The Free Market Party utterly collapsed within the senate, going from holding 47% of the seats, to hold 11%. The Cetian Social Democrats had a more than 150% increase, seeing their 20% jump to 33% The Congress of Cetian Conservatives however, had the largest increase, going from controlling 15% of seats, to a new, more than double amount of 38%. The Egalitarian Coalition of Biesel lost badly as well, going from 10% to 4%. The Progressive Party of Biesel saw minor gains, going from 8% to 12% Lastly, the Hadiist Party of Biesel saw its limited influence further diminished, falling from 4% to 2%. With no one party having a single majority, for the first time in the history of the Republic, parties are beginning to cut deals with whichever party is most closely aligned with their own, and creating coalition style voting blocs that have split the senate in two. With 51% of seats is the President’s own bloc, made up of the Cetian Conservatives and the remains of the Free Market Party, and holds the technical majority of the senate by two seats. With 49% of the seats, is the already nicknamed Opposition parties, made up of the Cetian Social Democrats, the Progressive Party of Biesel, and the ECB. While on paper these two blocs seem set in stone, the reality is as of now, they are loose alliances of parties with similar interests, who themselves are having an increasingly difficult time controlling their individual senators. With only 2 votes deciding a majority, the process to pass every bill is predicted to become a free for all, as the two main parties, Cetian Social Democracts and Cetian Conservatives, try to wrangle enough senators to their cause on any issue. As one political reporter put it; However, the new President may have some help with that, in the form of his cabinet, a motley collection of influential politicians from across party lines, who President Torvald has assembled to help him with the job of running the country. Some positions still remain vacant, as the new President settles into the office, but here’s what we know for now; In the position of Vice President is his old friend, Adalet Uysal, leader of the Cetian Conservatives and someone who will be a key political ally for the independent president. They first met in the political arena of New Gibson, and despite sparing often, have come to respect each other for their political acumen. As Vice President, it is expected that Adalet Uysal will be running the day to day operations of the senate on behalf of the president, wrangling senators in line and keeping the unstable majority bloc intact, a job that will prove to be difficult. In the position of Secretary of Defense, President Torvald has decided to keep Secretary Trasen at his post, owing the decision to the recent formation of the TCAF, and the need for consistent leadership during these early stages of its development. Secretary Trasen’s responsibilities do not seem to be expanding much, though it can be assure his current ones will only grow, as the militaristic rhetoric of the Cetian Conservatives looks on the way to becoming law within the Republic. In the position of Minister for Positronic Affairs is not a very well known individual, Jamthus Gale a low level bureaucrat in the overall ministry, having been posted to Reade for the past 10 years of his career. He is a known advocate for positronic rights, and owner of several charities dedicated to assisting positronics in D-14 - but there has still been heavy backlash that a positronic is not holding the position, something that was standard since Dorn’s 2nd Presidential Victory. Lastly, as Minister for Development of the Corporate Reconstruction Zone. Head of a new ministry, Iara Galindez of Port Antilla, currently the planet’s Attorney General, has been tapped by the Torvald Administration to fill this role. Her ministry is expected to, following the conclusion of peacekeeping operations within the Eastern Corporate Reconstruction Zone, assist in developing the region in order to bring about a quality of life not seen under the Solarian Alliance, and fully integrate it into the Republic. The Times has gotten confirmation that she is making her way to Tau Ceti now, and has resigned her post as Attorney General for Port Antilla to take up this new opportunity. For now, that’s all we know about the incoming President’s plan for his administration, and it’s make up. We wish President Torvald the best of luck, will keep our readers updated as more information is revealed, and will leave it off with this quote from the new President;

Thank you for your application. However I have decided to go with another applicant. I hope to see you apply to more positions in the future however!

Thank you for your application. However I have decided to go with another applicant. I hope to see you apply to more positions in the future however!

After long consideration, I have decided to select you as the next deputy loremaster! Congratulations!

Cetian Conservative Congress Rises in Opinion Polls Part 3, Article #3 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc About 2 weeks away from election day - the final opinion poll before the votes are cast has been concluded. It paints a grim picture for the Free Market Party, with only 18% of respondents saying that the party would have their vote. In contrast, 48% of respondents showed a favourable view of the Cetian Conservative Party, with the main reasoning provided being the parties position on the threat presented by the Solarian Alliance. Having been invaded twice by Solarian fleets, citizens of the republic appear to agree with the Cetian Conservatives that a large militarization campaign is necessary to safeguard our democracy into the future. Combined with the mishandling on multiple levels of the Peacekeeper Mandate - which has seen a decrease in support for the Free Market Party Across the board - it’s uncertain just how this election day will pan out. This uncertainty has begun to affect the Dorn-Vaur campaign and many of their supporters, as donations for the campaign have slowed to a crawl. In fact, this past month compared to the same time during the previous election has seen Dorn raise less than a third of what he once did. The most notable thing about the donation list however is the complete absence of any of the Trasen’s, or their affiliated companies; in fact the complete absence of any notable corporate figures. Long time supporters of the President, the absence of their donations seems unexplained, and so far they have failed to respond to any requests for a comment. We will keep our readers updated as we go into this uncertain election.

From a lore perspective - Eh. Technically this is already the case with Code Delta, the "whatever means necessary" clause. Additionally, we already have the following within the Standard Operating Procedure; So, captains can already order executions, it's within the remit of their authority. Sure, it might be illegal/not within reason, but that is supposed decided/adressed after the fact, once the captains orders have been carried out, as stated above. After the fact the captain can be arrested for whatever the HoS thinks he broke with regulations, but I think given the wording of the above it's abundantly clear that; a) The captain is allowed to violate regulations in non-standard situations and b) The crew and rest of command is required to follow the captains orders until they are completed, or the situation is resolved(according to regulations) Therefore I don't really think this accomplishes anything that we don't already have.

Hi! Thanks for applying, and my apologies for only now getting to this. I have a few questions/comments about your application. 1) Nearly ever application, or question on it has referenced the amount of lore we have, and it's relevance to the setting, alongside potential issues we currently have regarding both those things. I'd like to know your thoughts on lore that is, as I consider it, one step removed from actually effecting players. As an example of what I mean that I'm currently working on, the macro level economic lore for the orion spur really doesn't matter to individual characters directly; yet at the same time, lore such as that is what dictates the lower level lore that could matter to individual characters. In my experience this link is not always evident, and lore such as this makes up a majority of what people consider "irrelevant" lore.(I might have explained this poorly, but I don't want to go on a massive rant at the same time.) So should we cut down on the amount of this lore? Split the wiki into "lore pages" and "reference pages?" or whatever other thoughts you may have. 2) Adding on to what Faye mentioned above, there are going to be times where prolonged discussion/debates/arguments are simply not worth the effort from any parties. I understand wanting a comprehensive view/understanding of issues, but a big part of management is picking your battles; deciding what you can cave/budge on and what you can't. Given my past experiences with you, my main concern/fear is that every discussion about a change where there is disagreement would end up being an 8 hour slog fest, and result in team members getting frustrated about any discussion. With all that said, the question I have is do you think that you are open to reining yourself in, for lack of a better term, when it comes to discussing things, disagreement or not? 3) Somewhat related to the above, one of the more difficult parts of being on the lore team is that we tend to catch a lot of flak, warranted or not, from the player base at large. Some outright hostile, some more passive aggressive. I'm not sure what it's like as a developer, but how do you think you'll react when this inevitably happens? Do you think you'll be able to stay motivated? 4) Lastly, if you get this position, how long do you see yourself being in it?

Hi! Thanks for applying; I have a few questions/comments regarding this application. 1) Many of the questions here have referenced the amount of lore we have, and it's relevance to the setting, alongside potential issues we currently have regarding both those things. I'd like to know your thoughts on lore that is, as I consider it, one step removed from actually effecting players. As an example of what I mean that I'm currently working on, the macro level economic lore for the orion spur really doesn't matter to individual characters directly; yet at the same time, lore such as that is what dictates the lower level lore that could matter to individual characters. In my experience this link is not always evident, and lore such as this makes up a majority of what people consider "irrelevant" lore.(I might have explained this poorly, but I don't want to go on a massive rant at the same time.) So should we cut down on the amount of this lore? Split the wiki into "lore pages" and "reference pages?" or whatever other thoughts you may have. 2) In regards to this, there is a flipside that is also important, especially for management, and that is knowing when to pick your foot up. Disagreements are pretty common, whether it's between the DLM and LM, amongst headstaff, or with another member of staff, they're a fact of working in a team. And just - being honest, there's constantly times where discussing/arguing/debates over these disagreements are simply detrimental, creating more issues than they solve. With that said, the question becomes if you think you'll be able to somewhat regularly just agree to disagree, and still meaningfully contribute to a project. Furthermore, what do you think your biggest obstacles would be in accomplishing this? 3) Lastly, should you get this position, how long do you see yourself being in it?

Hello! Thank you for applying, and apologies I'm only now getting to this. I just have a couple comments/questions about your application. 1) Reading over your app, I'm struggling to get a sense of what your thought process looks like, so I'd like you to explain in depth how you'd go about accomplishing the following goals; I'd like to run a biesel arc about growing economic issues within the republic, but keeping it minor, as a stopgap measure between now and whenever I finish the scarcity rework. This should be done primarily via articles, but have in-game effects if possible. 2) The position of deputy loremaster is, compared to mine atleast, much more involved in writing lore, but still has significant management aspects. With that said, do you think you'll be capable of at times being the "bad person" for lack of a better term. That's all for now! I'll probably have several follow up questions depending on how you answer these. Remember there are no wrong answers, and thank you for applying once again!

Mandate Committee Concludes Investigations Into Dorn Administration Part 3, Article #2 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc In a press release today, the Mandate Committee has announced that it has ended its investigation into the Dorn Administration, and will not be recommending charges being pressed against officials within it, or against the president himself. The announcement has seen a resurgence in the popularity of the Free Market Party, who while not found innocent in the court of public opinion, has been found innocent by the government. During the release one of the committee members stated; “War is never without tragedy, and the Peacekeeper Mandate had its share. However, we have found no evidence that the Dorn Administration encouraged any behaviour outside the bounds of the law, and only ever acted in the best interests of the Republic and its people.” However, as alluded to earlier, this has not cleared the Free Market Party in the court of public opinion, where they are still struggling in polls. Members of the Dorn-Vaur campaign are optimistic about this ruling, hoping it will improve their position in the polls as the date for the election closes in. Most political experts agree however, that it is too early to tell. This hasn’t ended the Mandate Committee’s investigations entirely, merely cleared the Dorn Administration, and those who are a part of it, from any blame. They will be continuing to investigate the actions of the Tau Ceti Armed Forces, including the Foreign Legion going forward. It is unclear when these investigations will end, but Times sources close to those involved indicate some months after the election is the likely period all investigations will be wrapped up. We will keep our readers updated as the story progresses.

Presidential Debate Highlights: Everything to Know About 2466’s Presidential Debate Part 3, Article #1 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc MENDELL CITY, BSL — After struggling to secure a venue, the political action committee “Electoral Integrity” finally organized the debate for the upcoming Presidential elections. Hosted by Orion Spur Oracle Network, the event, held last night, might be the only Presidential debate of this season. However, its importance was largely felt across the Republic. With the “Dorn Out” movement gaining traction, candidates have felt the pressure to do the best out of the 150 minute runtime. As for the audience, the Presidential debate is already reported as being the most-watched presidential debate in the history of the young Republic. The night was notable for high tensions between the candidates. However, President Joseph Dorn maintained his composure for the whole run, something notable for many political commentators. The two candidates with the largest campaigns, incumbent President Joseph Dorn and Presiding Speaker Åke Torvald, are largely considered the victors by their respective supporters. Additionally, some commentators agree that Zash Vi’tak’s participation was commendable. The Hadiist Party of Biesel’s candidate, Matvei Karakhan, refrained from participating last night. The candidate had amassed enough support to earn a spot in the debate, but it is speculated that Mr. Karakhan chose to withdraw from the event after being attacked with a bottle during a recent rally. Here are some debate takeaways: NON-HUMAN RIGHTS While the Republic of Biesel has cemented itself as the most multicultural country in the Orion Spur, non-human rights remain a hot topic among many voters. This debate came after the recent Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act, approved in record time, which limited voting rights for Vaurca citizens. The 2466 election is also considered the most diverse Biesellite election by far, with all known species partaking in a Presidential ticket. The Cetian Electoral Commission allowed for ten members of the audience to ask questions to the candidates. Two questions were related to Vaurca citizenship and their participation in this election, and one was regarding the “personhood” status of IPCs. Speaker Åke Torvald—criticized for vaurphobic comments in the past—took the two Vaurca questions and redirected them towards his opponent, President Joseph Dorn. Presiding Speaker Torvald and leader of the Cetian Congress of Conservatives Adalet Uysal, are largely considered the main sponsors behind the Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act. However, Mr. Torvald shifted the focus from him towards Mr. Dorn, blaming the President for the “draconian measure.” “I’ll say this how it is: Joseph Dorn has failed Tau Ceti over and over again, and the people have noticed,” Mr. Torvald declared. “And now that we’re voting him out, he has tried to cheat the system. I support the Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act because it’s a measure to protect our democracy. The Vaurca, multiplying at tremendous rates, are all granted citizenship immediately by Dorn’s Universal Citizenship Program. What Dorn tried to do is ensure all of them, the millions of them, would vote for him forever. High Queen Vaur as his running mate was the most blatant attempt to manipulate our democracy. This draconian measure was not something we wanted, but that became rather necessary after Dorn’s constant cheating.” President Dorn responded to Mr. Torvald by pointing out the dangers of changing the rules of democracy: “It’s plain and simple, folks—if Mr. Torvald doesn’t like the rules of the game, he changes them. He’s spouted vaurphobic comments for years, and now that he’s running for president, he’s noticed he can’t win without that population. So what does Mr. Torvald do? He cheats. He rigs the system. And if he can do it against Vaurcae, he can do it against Skrell or Tajara, too. He’s a threat to democracy.” The exchange was cut down short after the debate moderators muted both Mr. Torvald’s and Mr. Dorn’s microphones. However, this exchange was followed by boos and cheers from the crowd that attended the event. When asked about synthetic personhood, Progress Party of Biesel candidate Montgomery dominated the stage: “Out of all the candidates on stage today, I’m the only one that can reassure this—each synthetic has the keys to achieve their own freedom, but we must ensure a truly free market first. Our current system is rigged by market intervention from the so-called ‘Free-Market Party’. Their reasoning is obtuse, using old feuds to protect a monopoly that enslaves us all. Before we can have these conversations, we must first strive for a truly free economy, which is exactly what I propose.” At the same time, Åke Torvald gave an unsettling answer: “I’ll say this, and I’ll say it only once because I know the media will quote it out of context,” said Torvald. “But what the Republic of Biesel needs the least of at the moment is more manufactured votes. We want all votes to count for, and more importantly, be casted intelligently.” President Dorn immediately responded to Mr. Torvald’s comment, “So you want a dictatorship?” While Torvald’s microphone was muted, the candidate crossed his arms for everyone to see on stage. “The basis of democracy, of any democracy, is that all can vote. It doesn’t matter if you’re wealthy or poor, or if you were the best of your class. It doesn’t even matter if you look different than the others—every vote counts. And we’ll make sure that every vote still counts.” After President Dorn said this, a brief cheer was heard from the audience. The other candidates were less articulate. While all of them—including Montgomery—avoided the real issue in hand, Harbinger of Peaceful Purposes awkwardly responded, “We are not ready to have this conversation yet.” This remark came after Harbinger was attacked weeks ago during a rally in District 14, an event which almost led the Egalitarian Coalition of Biesel to drop from the race. The Diona candidate’s performance was largely panned by political pundits and audience members, with many describing the candidate as “weak” on Chriper. THE SOLARIAN ALLIANCE While Biesel’s importance in the international stage cannot be understated, most questions by moderators and audience revolved around Sol and the Biesel relationship with its former State. After secession, the Republic of Biesel briefly maintained diplomatic relations with the Sol Alliance, even during the tumultuous events of then Admiral Frost’s First Solarian Invasion. However, after the second Solarian Invasion, diplomacy quickly crumbled, and four years after the 35th Fleet attacked Tau Ceti, the question looms as to how Biesel should approach Sol. Mr. Dorn’s firm stance against Sol highlighted his invaluable experience in leading Biesel through two invasions: “I’m the only man that knows how to face this peril, the warmongers of the Alliance. I’ve led the Republic of Biesel through two invasions, and after the first one, I’ve focused on strengthening our military. I believe that under the leadership of the Free-Market Party, a third invasion would never be possible. However, I cannot say the same about the platforms of the other candidates.” Mr. Torvald responded to President Dorn, attacking the Tau Ceti Armed Forces: “Dorn managed the crisis, but in typical Dorn fashion, he created a new one. In fact, Dorn’s the reason as to why there was a crisis in the first place,” the Presiding Speaker declared as the audience oohed and aahed. “The Corporate Reconstruction Zone has shown Dorn try and act tough, but he has let this circus go on for way too long. Why did it take so long for the Republic of Biesel to form a proper army? If we want the Republic to persist and prepare for any future peril, we must start by what’s important—make sure our military is properly funded. Secretary Trasen, and our entire defensive establishment, deserve a level of support the current administration has not given them. This not only includes increases in direct defense spending, but the establishment of a domestic industry base which will support the military, and ensure their supply of all the tools of war. Not only will this strengthen our country's strategic autonomy, but economists have already estimated it will introduce up to two million new jobs into the Republic, as well as bring an influx of cash into the economy, helping to combat the ongoing scarcity.” Candidate Zash Vi’tak had previously been shunned for their comments on the Nralakk Federation’s handling of the Marauder Systems. For this reason, many believed that Vi’tak would refrain from any remarks about foreign policy. However, the candidate surprised everybody with a “unity” speech: “My family migrated to New Gibson when we were still part of the Sol Alliance. I understand Sol, as many of my peers decided to migrate to Europa and Callisto. I, too, understand the fear of a Solarian invasion—a fear that is still perfectly rational. However, the politics of today do not call for bravado. The Orion Spur remains in conflict and many countries are uncertain about their future. The Republic of Biesel must act as a beacon of peace and prosperity, a destiny we have earned through our people. The only way we can maintain our leading position is by leading by example. Our platform strives for unity across the Republic of Biesel, placing value in our workers, and ensuring that there is no future threat that can hinder our progress.” This comment was followed by an applause from the crowd, cut short so as to not distract from the assembly. THE PHORON CRISIS The uncertainty amid the phoron crisis has only increased in the past couple of years. The candidates took a large segment of the debate to talk about economic policy—a topic that was shoehorned-in across many of the questions—but all were careful not to get into detail about their plans to resolve the phoron crisis. Orion Spur Oracle moderators pressed the contenders to articulate how they could solve the problem, but all candidates waltzed around the topic, instead focusing on how they could improve Biesel’s economy through different perspectives. Montgomery was the only candidate to address the elephant in the room, by saying, “We may not know how to solve the phoron crisis, but we know how to solve the crisis that’s been the Dorn’s administration.” This got a chuckle out of Åke Torvald, who immediately said, “If I agree with Montgomery on one thing, it’s that.” A NIGHT OF FEUD As expected, the debate night was full of quips and attacks between the candidates. Most of the remarks were directed towards President Joseph Dorn, not missing a chance to insult him. As Mr. Dorn breezed through the debate questions, his opponents became desperate. Last night, President Dorn was thrown various baseless insults, such as “incompetent” (Torvald, Montgomery), “a disgrace” (Torvald), “the puppet of Zo’ra” (Torvald, again), and “a man lacking the virtues of a leader” (Vi’tak). Mr. Dorn did his best to remain unfazed by all of these comments. After the rounds of dogpiling, Mr. Dorn said in a firm and inspiring voice, “You see, folks. This is what politics comes to when you make a stronger argument than your opponent. They have nothing else to say, so they’ll go to the insults. If your opponents go so low as to attack your character, then you know you have better policies than them.” This was followed by an applause that was not cut short by the moderators. However, the jabs were not only directed at President Dorn. When asked about their economic policy, candidate Harbinger of Peaceful Purposes seemingly stumbled for a moment before completing their response. Mr. Torvald immediately broke into laughter, to which a hostile Harbinger responded, “What’s so funny?” Mr. Torvald said, “You can’t make this up,” while pointing at the Diona candidate. “Maybe Harbinger should have stayed home tonight. Don’t come back, don’t come back… until you all agree who’s in charge.” The clip of Åke Torvald mocking the Diona candidate quickly went viral on social media. The more combative Torvald has received large criticism, as he seemed to miss on debate etiquette. While some of his supporters have tried to spin these spiteful comments as Mr. Torvald “saying what everybody thinks,” his opponents do not feel the same. “Åke Torvald showed that he’ll always be an Understad bully,” as put by a spokesperson from the Dorn-Vaur campaign. President Joseph Dorn seems to remain strong in polls conducted by the Oracle, and the debate is unlikely to change that perspective. However, political pundits believe that Åke Torvald’s “bravado” of last night might have hurt his campaign, with some expecting Torvald to fall almost 7 points due to alienating more non-human voters.