GeneralCamo's Tajara Deputy Application. Or: How I learned to stop worrying, and apply to write for the bipedal cat creatures.

[GeneralCamo]

Ckey/BYOND Username: generalcamo
Position Being Applied For: Tajara Lore Deputy
Have you read the Lore Team Rules and Regulations wiki page? Yes
Past Experiences/Knowledge: I work as a writer on some external projects, and have worked on Aurora's code before.
Examples of Past Work: I co-wrote a proposal for a Himeo expansion: https://forums.aurorastation.org/topic/18941-himean-military-expansion/#findComment-167845

- Is there any part of Tajara lore should be expanded, removed, or changed? Explain why.
A few years ago, I wrote a major expansion of the Himean military. While this application was denied for understandable reasons, I wrote the majority of the FTC's section on this. I feel with the FTC, while significantly expanded under Catsin, there's still a lot of room for improvement. These people are claimed to have underground bunkers with weapons, and endless training. How is this happening? Would Himeans really prefer a second military competing with their existing syndicate forces? I would prefer a total rewrite on this to instead feature some token integration into Himeo's existing forces (which would be controversial with some members, mind you), instead of having their own military which is completely independent. Honestly this lore doesn't really gel well with the newer lore on the factionalism anyway, tbh. Why would people who don't support the plan to return to Adhomai, train in this group? There's already some existing lore on this integration, but it isn't well-versed or described. I believe differing views on this could be a major reason for people to get involved with it.

Fleshing out the DPRA's various internal factions more would also be nice, especially how they see the DPRA's future in an intergalactic sense. Obviously the Ruralist Al'mariists want total isolation from the galaxy. But what about the moderates? Or the Natediists? Some might seek Al'mari's original goal to stand with the galactic community as equals. Others might see this as impossible given the circumstances of the Second Revolution, and revise their thinking accordingly. There may also be different views on who the tajara as a whole should align with, even within the supposedly unified and centralized PRA itself. With NBT2 coming up, I feel this is something that we definitely need to expand upon, so we can tie it with the future of the lore as a whole.

- What area of Tajara lore would you like to work on the most, and why?
There's a few areas I would like to look into, even before we move to NBT2. First, I would like to go ahead and standardize the usage of improper noun "tajara" vs. proper noun "Tajara", perhaps introduce a new form of the proper noun where we use it currently. Second, there is very little reason to engage with the lore. In the past, the war provided excuses for people to fight on behalf of the forces in our setting, either as antags, or a more natural soon-to-be IR'ed incident. But with a de facto peace, there really isn't much of a point here. While I think igniting a new war on Adhomai wouldn't work, I do believe there is a lot of potential with the FTC's impending proxy war in potentially getting this element back. We could even involve other species in this proxy war so others have an opportunity to get their characters to have opinions on the war. I can't imagine the Coalition of Colonies and Himeo not having a stance on the proxy war that is happening inside their own borders.
 

- What would you like to see in the future of Tajara lore?
Overall, the tajara are in an interesting place. Their lore is well-crafted and organized, with only a few issues to solve. I believe we should continue to expand and develop on the existing lore, while looking into how we can integrate tajara into the NBT2. There's plenty we can do on NBT1 mind you, that could serve as a backdrop to how we move forward with NBT2. That apparently won't happen for a couple years anyway.
 

Additional Comments: I am also alright at coding. Though my spriting skills are basically coder sprites at best. I've always been discussing in discord a lot about tajara, and asking questions. I will note I have a character who belongs to the FTC. Given my desire to work on the FTC, I will retire them permanently to avoid any perceptions of a conflict of interest.

[CatsinHD]

Thank you for applying! The FTC strikes once again for a Tajara Deputy application. I do have a few questions. Answer the best you can, remember that there are no wrong answers.

1. Your stances on the future of Tajara lore are based around developing existing lore and integrating into the rest of NBT2. Tajara lore does have a degree of control over the direction, themes, and endpoint of the lore. What thoughts, ideas, or comments do you have on where Tajara lore would be at NBT2 (I.E. factions, themes, communities, culture, etc.)? You don't need to address every example; broad ideas are fine.

2. War is a strong choice in conflict, and a powerful tool for engagement when done right. However, it is an option best used in moderation. What is your stance and opinions on other methods of conflict that may be used in other areas of the lore, sometimes at the same time as a (proxy) war. Examples may be espionage, border conflicts, the North Pole race, etc.

3. As was discussed before, the Lore Deputy position (within the Tajara team at least) can have many different duties. Ideation, proof-reading, arc running, article writing, etc. Are you willing to handle these duties, and which ones are your preferred duties to handle?

[GeneralCamo]

1 hour ago, CatsinHD said:

1. Your stances on the future of Tajara lore are based around developing existing lore and integrating into the rest of NBT2. Tajara lore does have a degree of control over the direction, themes, and endpoint of the lore. What thoughts, ideas, or comments do you have on where Tajara lore would be at NBT2 (I.E. factions, themes, communities, culture, etc.)? You don't need to address every example; broad ideas are fine.

Generally, the general themes are factionalism and space neocolonialism. With the planned de-emphasis on corporations, that leaves room to look into what happens when these kinda corrupt support networks, collapse. The PRA is actively building a bluespace gate with the support of NanoTrasen, for example. Can the PRA, alone, really maintain this?

This kind of uncertainty and instability is a key concept we should maintain with NBT2. Such a thing would easily provide an incentive for tajara to seek a potential slightly better life as part of an independent collective, instead of relying on the uncertainty of their home. We don't necessarily need to keep the factions as they are now. But the scars of the past alone should drive them to seek better frontiers.

1 hour ago, CatsinHD said:

2. War is a strong choice in conflict, and a powerful tool for engagement when done right. However, it is an option best used in moderation. What is your stance and opinions on other methods of conflict that may be used in other areas of the lore, sometimes at the same time as a (proxy) war. Examples may be espionage, border conflicts, the North Pole race, etc.

You're correct that it's best used in moderation. Other times it's best to instead look into unity of the factions against general xenophobia and oppression. Having an arc involving an unfair guideline implemented that all three factions oppose together for instance, could be a way for players to engage with the lore. The main thing however is to give reasons to engage with said lore. North pole races are interesting lore, but they provide little incentive to engage with it in the context of the game. At the end of the day, we're not a collaborative wiki project; we're an RP multiplayer game.

I suppose the main thing is to consider how things affect players day-to-day. A players character's homeland being contested between two factions could provide conflict, as they could have their entire life ripped apart based on how that goes. But "pie in the sky" things are much harder to relate to, and therefore engage with.

1 hour ago, CatsinHD said:

3. As was discussed before, the Lore Deputy position (within the Tajara team at least) can have many different duties. Ideation, proof-reading, arc running, article writing, etc. Are you willing to handle these duties, and which ones are your preferred duties to handle?

In my other teams, I generally handle ideation, writing, and copy-editing. Being a writer for the game mod Rise of the Reds often leaves me very conscious about render description lengths, as an example. I believe you mentioned particular trouble with making things "too long", which is something I particularly specialize in.

I have volunteered for events in the past. I am fully willing to step up and run them instead, or in addition. Possibly even mini-arcs that take little effort. A visit from a government official, or an election day, are small events that anyone can partake in. Typically providing a fair amount of content to engage with, while being extremely light on risk.