On the Warzones
Okay, let’s start with some info. There are, in total, six true Warzones. They are Warzone Europe, Warzone Asia, Warzone Africa, Warzone Australia, Warzone Airspace, and Warzone Sandbox. Numerous other ‘warzone’ regions exist, made by players who weren’t content with the current count, but only the Game Created Six come with unique features. In a Warzone, there is no founder. You can not set a password, ejections are influence-free and bans only last until the next update. Other than these unique features, a warzone functions just like any other region. These Warzones were created for the simple purpose of giving people something to fight over.
The original purpose was a failure for one primary reason, the lack of value the Warzones held. Who wants to fight over regions built specifically to fight over, when instead you could try to invade regions which have active communities and infrastructure to destroy or hijack? In any case, the Warzones have remained the target of not dedicated raider regions, but smaller or newer groups who have yet to learn the lack of value the regions hold. But enough on the introduction.
The most interesting thing about the Warzones, I think, is the culture and communities that exist because of their uniqueness. Residing in a region built to be fought over has ended up giving a lot of residents irregular views, me among them. I’d just like to take a moment here to discuss some of the uniqueness behind the Warzone culture, in light of our theme this year of Diversity.
One primary tenant of our community, at least in Warzone Europe, is that we believe we have no right to our home region. While in a UCR, the region has an owner and in other GCRs there is a highly developed regional government, there was never meant to be a community in the Warzones. Independent Warzone communities have just as much right to their ‘home’ region as anyone who might try to take it. In a region specified for warfare, it is our belief that our region is our home only for as long as we can hold it. In the warzones, might makes right.
Another notable cultural icon is the idea of patrons. With warzones having so little capability to defend themselves, comparitive to other regions, submitting to a stronger ally has always been the smart move. Warzone Europe is a great example, having thrived under the patronage of Astarial. Warzone Asia has the protection of Lazarus among others, and Warzone Sandbox is under the protection of numerous regions.
Finally, I’d like to mention Warzone Unity. The exact details have been a matter of long, long debate (typically Warzone Europe arguing pro-sovereignty while other warzones argue pro-unity) but the Warzone regions under ‘native’ control have an integral brotherhood between them. A large portion of RMB posts are embassy posts from other warzones, there is a shared thread in Gameplay for the Warzone regions, we help each other in defense and have negotiated together against larger groups in the past. (For example, when Rifty’s Association of Imperialism proposed establishing a protectorate over all warzones).
I don’t want to spend all day raving about how unique the Warzones are, so let’s move on to another nuance of the Warzones that I find fascinating. That being, thanks to their unique point in gameplay, they can provide an amplification of sorts for the gameplay dynamic of regular regions. They work as a magnifying glass, and I personally have learnt a lot from leading a Warzone. For one, it’s been very helpful for understanding the primary concepts of region-building.
In the Warzones, you need three things for a community to be successful. You will require Activity, Strength and Popularity. Let’s go ahead and discuss these in a bit more detail.
First is activity. This is the lifeblood of any region, the RMB posts, IRC chats, Forum discussions, military actions and all. You need activity for almost anything to happen, an inactive region is a dead region. This is true in the warzones, and everywhere else. A community that is online often, and actively contributes is the most important thing for you to have, hands down.
Then, there’s strength. Let’s be honest here, you can have as active a population as you like, in the warzones you need the power to hold it, or you might as well not even try. There will always be another who would contemplate toppling you and taking your region, which is well within their right, so you need to be able to hold your region from any potential usurpers. Warzone Europe is notable in this category, we’ve systematically held the highest endorsement count in the Warzones and we haven’t been raided successfully in over a year (not an invitation to try), while regimes in Warzone Africa and Warzone Sandbox for example, have come and gone.
Thirdly, and as a potential stand-in for number two, there is popularity. To put things very simply, if people like you, they might help you. Having strong friends is almost as good as being strong yourself, and it always helps to not be on the bad side of more powerful regions, so popularity is vital to holding down your region. I think the victor in this category is Warzone Asia, which has historically held it’s region with a handful or less of WA nations, because whenever they are having issues, they have allies to fall back on.
The most important thing though, is to build a real community. You need to establish some sorts of communal bonds between the people residing in your region, or everything else is for nothing. Off-site forums, community activities and roleplays, military gameplay, anything to make your region feel less like puppet storage and more like a home. This is true from regions of a handful of nations to the monolithic feeders and sinkers.
The Nationstates world has so many nuances, all of them with their things to make them unique and fascinating. In my opinion, the Warzones don’t get enough attention considering their value as such unique gameplay regions. Of course, my opinion may be a touch biased. In any case, I hope I’ve shone a little light on the Warzone regions and I look forward to the rest of the lectures!