Hello all, an unusual method of conveyance (that is to say, on the forums instead of Discord), but one that was deemed necessary given the severity of what is being proposed. After internal discussion, the Lore Staff has more or less with consensus agreed that the State Metropolitan, or some iteration of the Guard, is disproportionately negative to a positive roleplay experience on the server. We will first try to explain why this is: The Server in general survives on day to day conflict activities (we are working on seriously ramping up staff events, but that is a side-matter). It's therefor almost self-detrimental, when roughly half the server wants to engage in this conflict, that there is immediately a force of discouragement. The Guard in general, through iterations, has mostly just become bureaucratic imbroglio. In order to satisfy the needs of the players to protect player rights, increasingly convoluted steps had to be made that are just not fun in roleplay to go through. Even if two entirely different groups unrelated to the Guard are going at each other, the Guard is still used as a bludgeoning tool to threaten long term harm on characters, for example by dragging them off to prison in a defeat, or by calling them into a scene they were not before. Crime does not happen, because of the inherent risk to averse consequences. Short of shaming players for not being "brave enough" to do crime, the Guard will always deter criminal activity, thus shutting down an entire avenue of roleplay, no matter what changes we make to change the optics. Players will perpetually fear character death or maiming, no matter how few times it happens, how many protections there are, or now rarely they are applied. This is a very valid concern to have, but we must also internally accept that no amount of reality check, will change public optics. Guard presence and consequences always complicates ten other systems, like raids, where specific exceptions and even exclusion protocols are established because there is no way to properly integrate guards in those situations without seriously endangering other characters. So what is the plan? The plan is to wind down the Guard in the coming 2-3 weeks or so. This gives players the time to comfortably adjust to the impending change, and perhaps already get a head start by resigning from the guard and operating under the new circumstances of the state of law/lawlessness in Regalia. So what functionally changes? In order to facilitate ease of entry militia work, all weapon/armor perms will be released, meaning bearing arms or weapons is no longer illegal (except in the Imperial Palace). Knights will still to some degree enforce the law, but only on an individual basis, and only to protect the weak and defenseless, not to enforce state repression or authority. Prison Cells will be constructed in the Mercenary Keep, and recommended to any other group to provide in their own Rentals if they want to hold custody over their enemies. Regalian Law and Server Rules will be updated to reflect this change, both by removing some laws that become un-enforcable, but also to clarify imprisonment rules for those who want to play Vigilantes. Crookback and Fairbanks Militia remain unchanged, as they are part of the Borough concept that is a lot more flexible and generally lacks the negative outcomes of city guard. The State Metropolitan will not be dissolved IC, but rather just become "unplayable". That way the guard and petty crime exists in the background, but players instead become superheroes and supervillains that the Metro is unable to tackle, thus fostering more of a fantasy for the players. So are we just an Anarchy server now? No. Long term imprisonment may still be a thing for some situations. For example, someone who repeatedly tries to kill an Imperial Family Member, may still be captured by a Knight, and delivered to the Palace for judgement. There are still pro-state and pro-law agents who will seek to do "what is right", which includes preventing murder, and seeking justice for those who have been wronged by evil/criminal/anti enterprises. In those situations, we will always seek to refrain from executions and maiming, by creating a common prison ground that is attached to a roleplay hotspot, thus allowing someone who is "captured by the palace for terrorism or grand crime" to still continue roleplaying until their time is up, hopefully in an area that is traffic heavy so as to give them people to roleplay with, and hopefully also in an area that is open and has facilities like streets and taverns, so that it's not just languishing in a prison cell. Regalia is still a police state, and while the Guard might be gone from the street, there are still Characters who will enforce the law and the authority of the Emperor on the street. There will absolutely be an increase in civil liberties as low crime laws may no longer be enforced, but anyone who tries to overthrow the ruling government or unleash a demon apocalypse on the city, will still be treated like a traitor by those Player Characters, and dealt with accordingly. What do you expect the benefits to be? No more Crime-Baiting. In the past there was an epidemic of crime baiting among lawful characters to propose "interesting roleplay opportunities" to criminals before utterly clowning on them by calling the guard. Crime can happen, and players will be encouraged to seek restitution with vigilantes, superheroes, private militias, mercenaries for hire, or general good Samaritans. The return of District watchers. Dedjok in particular gained much public acclaim from being "that guy who guarded Floral Court", with no Guard present to enforce law, and it being left up to neighborhood watch and Militias, we hope to encourage more direct engagement from within communities. Increased value of Noble Guards, Business Guards, Clandestine Bases, Keeps, and general increase of the value of individually hired security persons without it becoming "oh so you don't trust the guard". More space in Imperial Isle for businesses and Roleplay spots that won't be taken up by a massive Prison, and a clearer road distinction to the far side of the city that is hard to reach. Higher value for "pro-state Agents". It will become easier to prove being loyal to the Emperor when there isn't a "basic default" option in the Guard. Basically, the Guard was probably filled with a bunch of anti-state agents, pro-Imperial agents will not stand out more, and thus attain more acclaim. I am a Commissioner. What should I do? You are in graveyard shift. You should not disband your Chapter until the official change comes through, and guide your members out of the Guard in whatever way they need. You should consider if you want to start up an unofficial vigilante or militia group after being released from the guard, or if you want to go chase other venues. I am a State Metropolitan. What should I do? You have the freedom to stick with the Guard until it goes down, or resign early and find new opportunities. We will be rolling out the changes slowly, so it is recommended not to immediately jump on the new vigilante venue while armor/weapon perms aren't released yet. You should think to yourself if you want to be a pro-state, flexible-freelancer, or anti-state agent, and consider your options from there with any other group. I am a random Citizen. What should I do? Nothing really. You can slowly watch the ship sink, or get a head start on potentially new roleplay opportunities opening up now that the "threat of the Guard" will soon be gone. Questions? Concerns? Please make a ticket. We are however fairly set on our plan to execute this, and as such will unlikely entertain petitions or calls to reverse plans. There was a wide carrying support among the Lore Staff from multiple sub communities both pro and anti state groups. We have the better interest of the majority of the players in mind, and while change may initially appear uncomfortable, we promise that the increase in individual choice and decision freedom, as well as the decrease of the theoretical threat of the guard, will be experienced as positive, even among ex-guards. We therefor ask patience, and flexibility, a willingness to try out the new format and put faith in our insights and speculated solutions to age old problems.
