The Story of The East Pacific Volume Four - The First Reconstruction
Foreword
I once again thank Kurogasa, FPS, EM, and Zuk for reviewing and checking things for me.
I’d like to add that this volume doesn’t cover a lot of the busy work going on in TEP during this time. Many discussions were had on minute details and laws. These things have not been documented because of how tedious it would be to do so. I have covered all the important details and some more interesting ones.
As is standard, an addendum will be released if needed.
Furthermore, don’t expect a good flowing volume. The rebuilding of TEP was a struggle rather than a great march forward. Differing opinions resulted in a constant back and forth between what was seen as the ideal TEP.
Aside from that, I am caught in a trap of my own making. I have to both create an extremely accurate secondary source and an interesting story. The two styles clash with each other. I can only do my best to reconcile as much as possible. The future volumes notably suffer from this problem too.
I believe the most important discussions were held off the forums, so the only thing I can go off is the forums and memory of old-time TEPers. This would only get worse as time went on. Later volumes will be significantly handicapped by this limitation.
Empire Aftermath
The Empire had at last been defeated on the 21st of December, 2008. But not everyone was confident the victory would last. A lot of people expected another salvo from the Empire before they finally faded away[1]. To ensure a lasting victory for the Confederacy, ASBS reneged the “no endocap” promise and set the temporary endocap to 80 for security purposes. He also banjected Phedre and Rahl but, for whatever reason, none of the other Empire members. Now, TEP began discussions to create election procedures that ASBS had promised the residents, a new constitution, and the possibility of a Guardian system[20].
A day later, on 22nd, a meeting was held between the Elders to discuss the state of the region[2]. I’d like to say what was discussed and what was decided but these discussions were held offsite. So, the discussions have been lost which is a shame since these discussions would have been one of the most important ones in our region’s history.
Two days later, on the 24th, Todd McCloud, with the help of Loop, drafted the first constitution proposal. This wasn’t the Concordat. It was called the “cabinet proposal”. Two days later, on the 26th, FPS drafted his proposal, the “republican proposal”[20]. The draft version of the Concordat.
Loop’s and Todd’s proposal had an elected Government forming a Cabinet to run the entire region. Just one branch, the Cabinet. It was a parliamentary system without a judiciary[20].
FPS’ idea had a four split Government between the Executive, Judicial, Legislative, and the Viziers with elections for certain positions like the Delegate, the Viziers, and Legislative branch membership[20].
These proposals would be voted on shortly.
On the 26th, an endowatch was set up to keep people in compliance with the temporary endocap of 80 which had been instituted after the Empire fell. The endowatch was run until the 29th of January, 2009, during which it worked to keep people below 80 endorsements. A side note, Minininjas, which was Phedre/Neenee’s nation, was on the watchlist for some time after it got close to the endocap[7].
On the 27th of December, 2008, FPS put up the two opposing constitutions for a vote. In the end, FPS’ constitution won and its ideas continued to be worked on[19].
A day later, on the 28th, Pax officially resigned as the fourth Delegate of TEP[3]. Pax was the self-declared Delegate-in-exile during the Empire occupation[92].
On the 7th of January, 2009, FPS’ republican proposal, after being worked on off-site, was ratified and finalized as the Concordat. Beginning TEP’s old Concordatial era[33]. This old Concordat was significantly different from the one we have today. Time has changed it drastically but the incredible change isn’t immediately obvious. The Delegate had a six month term and had to vote in the WA with the majority of TEPers, the Magisterium had all of its members elected at the beginning of every new Magisterium session, Arbiters had to be an odd number with no minimum but a maximum of seven, Honorary Citizenship was enshrined in the Concordat, and nations were forbidden from obtaining titles of nobility even in foreign Governments. Besides this, it does retain a lot of the same structure and points. The ratification of the Concordat, symbolizing the passing of the torch from the Edlers, is still in the last article of the Concordat to this day.
The Old Concordatial Era Begins
On the 10th of January, 2009, Loop explained the TEP flag for the first time. His explanation for the colors was this:
Green was for life, black was for death, and yellow was “for that reward which waits beyond for you”. The broken checkerboard pattern represents the uniqueness of each TEPer. The green blocks under the emblem signify support. The wheat as sustenance. The star represents guidance, akin to the northern star for sailors. The carpenters square to represent treating everyone squarely, ie. fairly. And the compass because of its versatility[18]. For reference, here’s the original flag: https://static.miraheze.org/tepwiki/7/77/Flag_1.jpeg
On the 11th of January, 2009, the first Delegate elections were held. Since this was the first election, the Elders (Flem had gone inactive in TEP so just Loop and EM at this point) and, as in-game Delegate, ASBS, oversaw the process[25]. As part of this, ASBS declared his neutrality[26]. After nominations were concluded, there were three candidates, Todd, Warre, and Dannistaan[27].
Warr’s campaign was about building activity and maintaining vigilance in case the Empire came back. In a break from tradition, Warr advocated for a military, albeit a more defensive military[44].
Dannistaan’s campaign was also about vigilance and activity but it had a more central focus on accountability[45].
Todd’s plan had the same themes of activity and vigilance but he created an eleven-point plan that he promised to fulfill[46]. Todd’s eleven-point plan was divided into two phases and eleven steps.
Phase one consisted of steps one to four. Step one involved booting the remnants of the Empire and transitioning the Delegacy from ASBS to Todd. Step two was the appointment of advisors to assist with the region building. Step three was setting up a more permanent endowatch program called the “Rebel Guard”. Step four was setting up the Magisterium and getting Magisters.
Phase two consisted of steps five to eleven. Step five was removing the elders now that their purpose was fulfilled. Step six was to nominate the first Viziers. Step seven was building the Conclave. Step eight was creating a legislated endocap. Step nine was rebuilding the foreign affairs department. Step ten was creating an intelligence minister. Step eleven was an announcement that all of the steps were done.
All of this was set to span a timeframe of about 20 days[11].
In the end, on the 21st of January, 2009, Todd was elected as the first Concordatial Delegate with 80% of the vote[23]. So the next day, Todd took an oath of office, a practice now forgotten, on both the RMB and forum where he promised to defend TEP and the Concordat[71][9]. Alongside this, he gave his inauguration speech, a practice continued since Gnidrah to this day, which I have pasted below in its entirety for your reading:
"Ladies and gentlemen of The East Pacific, I stand before you as a nation / player with a very colorful and unique history, a nation which has scoped the current status of NationStates with an open mind and loads of experience. A detailed status report has been compiled. Some regions are falling due to inactivity; some are clinging to their old traditions and beliefs, holding new members at a safe distance. Some have seen regional populations cut in half, some are arguing over what a coup means and if they are having a coup or not (what?). But this region is excited. The people here are excited because they are doing something new. They are getting new players involved. They are working together and above all, having fun and getting to know each other. I’m very proud of this region and its ability to come together and unite toward a common goal. Who wouldn’t be? You all are in my opinion among the cream of the crop which is the crock that is NS (say that three times fast!). Naturally, that isn’t meant to offend other regions, but more or less is offered as a challenge. We have shown what working together and getting new players involved can create. Imagine if we all did that. Apocalypse be darned.
The reign of the empire has ceased in TEP. The clouds of oppression have lifted, allowing the flowers of democracy to take root and grow. The book that represents their reign is now closed for good, heaped on the pile of other recreational reading material. But I present to you a greater book, a larger and better written book (with a cool cover too), one that can turn the collective heads of Nationstates and lift our spirits. It’s a book that we as older players have perhaps long forgotten, a book which we all first picked up when we started playing this game. Really playing this game. Perhaps we saw someone else reading that book and therefore wanted to read it too. Or maybe we just saw it on the shelf and wanted to have at it. The book I am talking about is activity. Not the nuke the world activity that has been shown to fail numerous times. Real activity. Reaching out to the casual and new players. Extending a hand to a player that’s working hard but without fruits to his or her labor. Forgiving and moving forward instead of goose-stepping back to the habits of a child. We all know these things but they have not happened. Perhaps we have too much prestige, too much power, too much I’m here and you’re over there mentality. I’ve been a victim of that myself. I’m not accusing anyone, just accusing the belief, which is still an unpopular thing to do. We’re so smart and wise and capable; we can use that for the game’s sake. Even if it’s just to one nation, that’s one more nation who can join us. One more nation to pass that book on you yourself was probably handed to you all those years ago.
As for the new players, the casual player, the above is all TL;DR, but hear me out. Be bold. After all, our arms can only stretch so far. Join the forums and tell us about yourself. Voice your opinions. Get to know your people, your potential friends. TEP nations specifically, get to know me. I have a lot of energy and experience to share with you, free of cost. But not just me there are others who are equally as important and knowledgeable, if not more, in this region and on the forums.
There are no heroes on NationStates. Just those who know and those who do not know. And while I’ve never been a delegate before, might not know how that works, might not get it, might even be a little rough around the edges or odd, I can assure you the critics will quickly silence. I am a man (or fox… whatever) of my word I will do my best to be the best delegate I can be. I can’t promise the moon, but I can promise activity, interaction, and excitement. I can promise responsibility and seriousness when it is needed. I can promise availability and honesty. And I can promise I will do my best to assist the game, in any way I see fit and am capable to do. Positively, of course. And while I may never truly know the game in all my years of playing, I’d like to have you know I will do my best. There is no substitute.
In conclusion, I’d like to end with the words of Charlie Chaplin, of all people. While his words are most decidedly for real-world applications, I believe they may also have inroads for NS as a whole:
Thank you for your time.
- Todd McCloud"[8]
So Todd got to work the next day, the 22nd of January, and opened up Magistrar sign-ups (or Magisterium sign-ups). Magistrars (henceforth called Magisters) had to be Citizens by ratifying the Concordat on the forums, then they had to state their nation(s)[94]. By the end of the nomination period, which lasted for just three days, there were 13 valid candidates.
On the 23rd of January, and selected his first advisors. Kandarin, for his level-headedness and experience across the game, and TAO, for his feederite politics and experience as Delegate of TWP[10]. You’ll notice that both advisors were former Delegates. Todd clearly wanted leaders of functioning regions to help rebuild TEP.
On the same day, Todd nominated the first Viziers as well. These Viziers were ASBS, Morhams, and Stagnationstan. ASBS was chosen for his role in bringing down the Empire, Morhams for having the most influence in the region as well as being anti-Empire, and Stagnationstan for also being anti-Empire. Dannistaan was approached about being a Vizier but he refused. Stagnationstan would later refuse his nomination. Morhams and ASBS accepted and were confirmed on the 3rd of February, making them the first of TEP’s Viziers[36].
On the 29th of January, the voting for the first Magisters had ended. All candidates, except for Macungue Swamp, were elected by the Citizens[95].
So the Magisterium got busy drafting the Standing Orders of the Magisterium (SOM) on the same day. The SOM governs the internal procedures of the Magisterium. The first draft was by Gulliver, just three paragraphs long. Kelssek made his own draft a few days later[93].
Gulliver’s draft was extremely basic. It laid out that a Magister can propose laws, debate them, and suggest changes. It did have an interesting motioning system. A legislative proposal had to be endorsed by a quarter of the Magisterium for a vote to occur. A proposal could also be forced into being tabled if a simple majority of Magisters dismissed it[93]. There was no clause on what to do if both happened.
Kelssek’s draft had an elected Provost at each Magisterium session, a Deputy Provost position which could be appointed by the Provost, a clause which allows Magisters to vote in a new Provost at any point, and basic provisions on proposing legislation, debating it, amending it, etc[93].
There was more support for Kelssek’s proposal so it continued to be drafted.
Despite the Provost position not being established since the SOM wasn’t ratified, Kelssek was elected as the first-ever Provost on the 31st of January, 2009. Warr’s name was floated as a candidate but Kelssek’s reputation had him elected with unanimity[35]. This should go to show that Kelssek’s proposal was uniformly accepted by everyone.
Also on the 31st same day, the forum masks for the Delegate, Viceroy, Provost, Magisters, Viziers, and Arbiters were created[4].
Back to the SOM. Kelssek’s proposal was worked on and then brought to vote on the 3rd of February. It passed the Magisterium on the 4th[37]. This SOM was similar to the one we have now. The only differences were the clauses relating to Magister elections at the start of every Magisterium session, and It was less hyper-legalistic.
On the 11th of February, the first Arbiters were confirmed. Since the rules mandated an odd number of Arbiters, only three people were inducted in. These first three were Kandarin, Loop, and Lazlowia[38]. Todd’s original plan was six nominations. These were Kandarin, for his experience, Loop, for his history in the region and ability to make difficult decisions easily, ASBS, for his quick thinking skills, TAO, for his experience, Really Nice Hats, for being nice and active, and Lazlowia, for being active and an RPer[96]. Due to the quirky way voting was done, only four candidates were voted in, Kandarin, Loop, RNH, and Lazlowia[38][96]. The Magisterium then held a vote on who to remove but Todd offered RNH a position as ambassador in place of Arbiter which RNH accepted. This resulted in there being only the three Arbiters mentioned before[38].
On the 15th of February, Todd called for recruits for several positions. These positions were ambassadors, welcomers (to welcome new people on the forum), and “Laz Takers”, to recruit people who refounded in Lazarus back to TEP. ASBS, Cloudous, and Hoi Oligoi posted publicly that they would help[83].
Shortly after this, on the 26th of February, Todd created the post-Empire FA Ministry. Todd decided to appoint several FA Ministers. These first Ministers were RNH, Hoi Oligoi, ASBS, and Todd himself[48]. This band of Ministers later expanded to include Dyr Nasad[49]. This effort acquired 25 foreign relations for TEP with most of the then-major regions included. Take a look at the list:
The Pacific
The North Pacific
The South Pacific
The West Pacific
Lazarus
10000 Islands
The Black Hawks
British Steel
Canada
Caprecian Continent
The Commonwealth
Empires of Earth
Equilism
Equinox
Free Region Alliance
Great Britain and Ireland
Imperial Britain
Leone
Leviathan
Liberalia
Paradisia
Philosophy 115
Sapienta
The New Inquisition
The United Kingdom
Not all of these were active embassies of course. TP, TNP, TSP, TBH, Leviathan, and Philosophy 115 all had rather low response rates. The Imperial Britain and Liberalia embassies were later closed due to inactivity and the rest had respectable activity[49].
On the 1st of March, 2009, the Standard Time Act, the oldest law on the books, was passed[13]. The purpose of this law was to make the timestamps displayed on the forums conform to UTC. These days, it is entirely pointless as Tapatalk uses your location to give you timestamps. Its only effect now is requiring the Government to use UTC for times. It is largely useless today and was very nearly repealed much later. There is also the interesting overstep of IC into OOC.
On the 4th of March, 2009, the first EPNS issue was compiled by Todd. This followed after a week of work and the help of ASBS and Warr who contributed articles. Although it was officially titled “East Pacific Newspaper”, the pseudo-Ministry behind it was called the “East Pacific News Service”. The first issue contained a regional report written by Todd, the story of the fall of the Empire written by ASBS, RP news written by Warr, and a quiz[12].
On the 9th of March, 2009, Todd began an RMB event where participants contributed by adding three words to the previous participant’s post. This resulted in a story that was 561 words long, spanning 187 posts by different people. Even regional recruiters got into the fun[64].
On the 25th of March, 2009, Todd wanted to discuss getting a regional military. Since Todd was an ex-military leader, he said he would prop it up and get it up and running himself. Loop, as always, was vehemently against despite being one of the Farkers. He insisted that it would hurt TEP by spreading its World Assembly residents out and may cause satellite regions to prop up, eventually depriving TEP of its Citizens. Rynyl instead wanted a police force as did Anglic Jutland. Warr and Cloudous wanted a defender military[74]. This was not the first time a discussion on the military was had and it wasn’t the last. Another discussion happened later on with the same opinion; TEP should not have a military[78]. Thus, nothing was done about the military during this era.
Also on the 25th of March, the Lazarene FA Minister, KillerKitty, telegrammed Todd a treaty. This treaty recognized TEP’s and Lazarus’ Governments as legitimate, asked for military cooperation (how Lazarus was supposed to work with TEP’s non-existent military is mystifying), and required each region to protect the other. It was an average treaty as far as they come[81]. After several months of delay on the Lazarene side, it was ratified by TEP. The first post-Empire treaty that TEP had agreed to[82].
On the 12th of April, 2009, Kandarin was made the first-ever Viceroy. I stress the word “made” as he just assumed the Viceroyship. There wasn’t any actual election for it, technically making Kandarin’s Viceroyship illegitimate, at least for the time being[40].
On the 20th of May, The Office of Tourism and Recruitment Bill was passed to establish the office of the same name[39]. The first Director was Dyr Nassad[21]. These days, it goes by the name of the Ministry of Immigration and it continues the same tasks. The first of our modern Ministries was established. The bill would eventually be repealed down the line but the Ministry remained. This bill also set the precedent for Ministries to be legislated into law. This habit of legislating Ministries persisted for a long time.
After this, around the end of May, the summer lull had struck TEP[72][79]. The summer lull is a characteristic of all NS regions where everyone gets busy doing IRL stuff and no one has the time for NS. Despite what Todd may have believed, You’ll see that the region did well in the summer although forum RP did dry up.
On the 1st of June, another three-word story was finished. We don’t know who began it or when but we have the final result, 413 words or 138 posts[68].
On the 3rd of June, 2009, the second EPNS edition was posted. This edition, late by 2 months, featured a debate contest being held between TEP and Equilism. It also featured the first mention of the WA Liasion as an Office/Ministry with Drakkengard as Director. This Ministry survives today as the Chief Ministry of World Assembly Affairs. During Todd’s terms, he voted according to forum votes[89]. Interestingly, the first mention of the University of The East Pacific as an established entity also comes from here[21]. The idea was Dyr Nasad’s. He posted about its possible creation just a day earlier[80]. My beloved Ministry survives with great effort to this day. and retains most of the same functions as back then as well.
On the same day as the EPNS publication, Todd attempted to give the newly formed UTEP its first project. This project was a professor-like system for a group of topics. The topics were TEP history, NS history, TEP RP, general RP, raiding, and defending. The only ones that had professors were TEP RP (Pax), general RP (DFD), and raiding (Todd)[86]. Of these three, only DFD would do something with their position, creating the “Collaborative Fiction Education” project later on in October. This project taught the ropes of RP[87].
On the 4th of June, 2009, Dyr Nasad developed the first TEP awards. It had been developed since the 1st of June with the help of Antracia and YaM[69]. The rewards were for the most influential, most active, best ad spammer on the RMB, the regional top 10 in national rankings, best WA opinions, most active ambassadors to TEP, best overall member, best newcomer, most helpful, the funniest, the best quote, favorite Government member, funniest thread, friendliest member, best blonde moment, and the smartest member. Todd and Loop wanted to get this done but it didn’t get anywhere[67]. Some of these awards would be coincidentally reused over a decade later.
On the 5th of June, another three-word story was finalized. Likely to have begun a day after the last one, the 2nd of June, but its beginner is unknown. This one spanned 561 words or 187 posts[68]. 7 days later, due to the success of the prior installments, Todd began another story[64]. This time it spanned 240 posts[65].
On the 22nd of June, 2009, ASBS CTEd and effectively resigned as Vizier. TEPers paid their respects to the ex-Delegate, Vizier, and TEP legend[22]. He would return four years later[73].
On the 24th of June, 2009, Dyr Nasad proposed a regional currency. His idea was for people who post get rewarded an amount of money, a salary for Government positions, RP businesses to be set up around it, and for it to be spent on RP map plots, factories, ports, and the like. Todd was supportive of the idea. Kandarin, however, was opposed. He believed it would encourage spam and implementing it smoothly for RP would be a difficult task. He flat out said he wouldn’t allow map plots to be bought otherwise he would pull the map altogether since it was his creation. The idea effectively died there[77].
On the 7th of July, 2009, Dyr Nasad opened up the third discussion thread for dealing with the RMB spam. The previous two had gotten nowhere and the problem persisted. This time, a law was proposed that limited posts to ten lines, no all caps, no all bolded, italicized, or underlined posts, no excessive punctuation, and no insults. The punishment for breaking this proto-RMBRA (Regional Message Board Regulation Act) was banjection[75]. These days, this law would be picked apart. The line limit was proposed a while ago in an amended RMBRA draft and it was rightly criticized for it since your screen resolution decides how many lines appear. Nevertheless, it passed. The first RMBRA was enacted with all its primitive faults[76].
On the 11th of July, 2009, nominations for the Delegacy opened but this time Todd, as Delegate, oversaw the elections in place of Kandarin, the still illegitimate Viceroy[28]. Later threads would imply that the Conclave’s inactivity forced Todd to take elections into his own hands. Nevertheless, on the 20th of July, Todd was re-elected in an illegitimate election[24]. His campaign was promised to keep the activity going and was similar to his first campaign[47].
On the 16th of July, given the success of the three-word story installments prior, another one was hatched, this time by Dyr Nasad. This one is known to have stretched 215 posts[65] before being deleted by the NS mods for whatever reason[66].
On the 28th of July, 2009, Todd asked for a grading of the Government and his governance during his time as Delegate. This gives us valuable insight into how TEP was functioning up to this point. The Concordat was generally agreed to be a good document; the Magisterium, although active, wasn’t passing very many laws; the Executive was doing fine; the Conclave was failing as there was no elected Viceroy, general inactivity which caused the Delegate elections to be held by Todd, and outdated Citizen records. Having read this, you can imagine that people weren’t satisfied and wanted some reform. Lazlowia even advocated for the Conclave’s abolition. Back on topic, the WA Liasion was seen as perfectly fine thanks to the elbow grease of Drak; RP had flatlined thanks to the summer lull; debate contests had ceased due to spotty membership; UTEP was seen as a failed project; FA was slow and now depended on the efforts of just Todd and Dyr Nasad. Overall, TEP’s reconstruction was happening but in a long struggle[88].
On the 17th of August, 2009, the third EPNS edition was posted. It was a lot more spartan than the previous editions, featuring a message from the Delegate, some RP news, and some Magisterium news[14].
On the same day, Todd posted a few ideas that had been discussed in earlier Chatzy discussions. The only notable one was to abolish the Conclave and let the Magisterium take its roles. The idea wasn’t discussed further even though it wasn’t the first time the idea came up[85].
On the 25th of August, 2009, Todd opened a discussion on political parties. The only serious response was from Lazlowia. Lazlowia was against it since it could turn TEP ripe for a civil war or coup[84].
On the 3rd of September, 2009, Loop created TEP’s ZetaBoard although the Invision forums weren’t migrated immediately[5].
On the 4th of November, 2009, the fourth EPNS edition was posted. It was as spartan as the last edition but with an added humor section[15].
On the 15th of November, 2009, Dyr Nasad attempted to give EPNS a more permanent structure by asking for staffers. The previous two editions likely resulted in his drive but there was still no interest[90][91].
On the 9th of December, 2009, the fifth EPNS edition was posted. This edition was even more sparse than the last with no Magisterium section and a smaller RP section. It did have an extended Delegate message and it did keep the humor section[16].
On the 27th of January, 2010, Kandarin was elected Viceroy. Legitimizing his Viceroyship and making him the first-ever elected and official Viceroy[41].
On the 3rd of March, 2010, the third-ever Delegate elections opened. This time elections were handled legally by Viceroy Kandarin. At the end of the nomination period, just DFD and The Vacationer accepted[29]. On the 13th, DFD won the election and was declared the new Delegate[30]. Interestingly, DFD assumed the Delegacy under their Empire nation, Lady Edea[34]. As a note, DFD ran their Delegacy a lot less heavy-handedly than Todd. On another note, Todd did something around this time that put him in disfavor with TEPers. I haven’t found out what but that’s the vibe I got from here on.
DFD would, during her Delegacy, govern with a lighter hand than Todd and ran the Executive as a President-esque figure rather than a military general manner.
Within the first three days of her Delegacy, DFD began the Delegate shuffle. A move which all Delegates hereafter perform. This “move” consists of making nominations, renominations, Cabinet changes, and minister changes. For DFD, this meant nominating Terasu for Arbiter, cleaning up the forums, creating a thread for Citizen suggestions, and appointing Todd to mind the endowatch program[54].
On the 12th of March, Gnidrah came back after a long hiatus. He was welcomed back, he reminisced about the old days and then he went offline[43]. It would be several long years later before he returned.
On the 21st of May, 2010, Kandarin began the largest cultural event of TEP’s history, titled the “Summer of NS”. It involved nearly every major region and nearly every major gameplayer. I’d give the list of names but it’s huge. Bears Armed, Reploid Productions, Barbara, TAO, Reziel, and The Bruce are some of the invited faces. Their regions were also on the invite list. The number of games planned were equally as huge. These include raiding Warzone Asia, art contests, RP contests, and a contest to get as many regional passwords as possible through social engineering[63]. For such an ambitious project, designed by Kandaring and helped along by DFD, I’m not entirely sure if it ever happened. Since it was cross-regional, it couldn’t have happened on TEP forums, which leaves IRC as the only other place. As the old IRC chats are gone, so too is any hope of seeing how this went down. Nevertheless, I hope someone around from that era will be able to provide some light after reading this.
On the 3rd of June, 2010, DFD opened a thread to criticize the forum admins for removing her admin position. She called for checks and balances on the admins and demanded an answer as to why her admin role was removed. Todd also echoed concerns about the admin team. Kandarin, an admin, then explained what had happened. DFD was removed from their position because the Delegate role no longer carried the admin role with it since admin and Delegate are two distinct jobs. He also explained that it was with the consent of all the admins. DFD then called for Kandarin’s removal from the admin position which was criticized by FPS and Warr. DFD then said it was convenient for it to happen after she got into a spat with Kandarin and asked why she wasn’t notified beforehand [57]. Kandarin then apologized for the lack of communication on his part and promised to keep a log of admin actions in public view. DFD still wasn’t satisfied and still believed it to happen out of malice. She then made a series of radical proposals aimed at providing checks and balances on the admins. These proposals were voting on admins, allowing admins to be put on trial before the Conclave, requiring admins to have a WA in TEP, and requiring admins to be wholly separate from the Government by not participating at all[58]. This lengthy discussion ended in circles. DFD and Todd argued for change, radical reforms at times, and FPS and Warr argued against it.
On the 5th of June, 2010, DFD proposed a secondary endorsement cap for the Magisterium to deliberate. The secondary cap was for honored members of TEP, allowing them to collect more endorsements because of their past. It was also supposed to help regional security. Eluvatar called such a privilege a watered-down Vizier to which DFD called it an honor, not a Government position[59]. It was passed by the Magisterium on the 30th of July but the law was poorly written, really badly written for that matter[60]. So FPS proposed a better-written law on the 30th of August to fix it. This law was also passed[61] and stood for an impressive three years before being repealed in 2013[62].
On the 10th of June, 2010, FPS resigned as Admin[6].
On the 2nd of July, the sixth EPNS edition was posted but as the second volume of EPNS and the first issue of the second volume. Unlike the last few times, this edition had some content. The Delegate message was replaced with a long introductory message, FA had a dedicated section beyond some small text at the bottom with embassy information, an interview with Delegate DFD was included, as were some opinion articles, jokes, humor, and some artwork[17].
On the 10th of July, 2010, the Standing Orders of the Conclave (SOC), after a very long period of deliberation, were finally voted on and passed[42]. The SOC governs the internal workings of the Conclave. The delay doesn’t reflect well.
On the 22nd of July, 2010, yk001nul created a thread to spread an epiphany they had. Their idea, revolutionary and ahead of its time, was RMB RP. They said that RMB RP already happened but they wanted to make it more official and on a grander scale. Everyone was in support[56]. I can’t say what progress yk made but I know they would be very pleased to know that their idea was an unimaginable success in the future. RMB RP, having existed on and off for over a decade, is now firmly entrenched with official RMB RP worlds.
On the 26th of August, 2010, DFD, who had become an admin again after the Delegate admin policy was assumedly backpedaled, and the rest of the admin team got into a drama surrounding Warr’s removal from the moderation team. It was done as Warr wasn’t particularly active in the position but Warr felt that it was motivated by ulterior reasons. Warr had gotten into spats with Pax for alleged godmodding and DFD because she misinterpreted something he said. This drama was severe enough for Warr to completely resign as Magister and later leave the region altogether[55]. Warr would only return in 2021 when EM sent out mass emails to old-timers.
On the 2nd of September 2010, Delegate nominations were opened with just two candidates making the cut, Pax and Allegheny[31]. Since Pax was a joke candidate, the only effective choice was Allegheny. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that on the 17th of September, after a botched counting by Barb, the Viceroy, Allegheny became the Delegate[32]. He would serve with his nation “South Allegheny”[34].
Daily Life
Daily life in TEP changed quite a lot after the Empire.
To begin with, the average nation still did little. This would be the case for the rest of TEP’s history too. The WFEs they would have seen were these:
During ASBS’ reign:
"Join the regional forum at: http://www.TheEastPacific.com
The East Pacific has been liberated.
Please endorse A Slanted Black Stripe and Dannistaan.
The current Resolution before the World Assembly is the Patient’s Rights Act.
For one week, the temporary endorsement cap will be 80. Keep your endorsements no higher than 80, until we can get the elections announced."[50]
During Todd’s:
"Welcome to The East Pacific, the most energized region in NationStates! Amazing, isn’t it? (Current Endocap: 80)
Please endorse your delegate, Todd McCloud, and viziers Morhams, A Slanted Black Stripe.
Forum: http://theeastpacific.com | Public chat, regional points: Click here
CURRENT TOPIC
[a topic of conversation]"[51]
It later included an events section just above the current topic and the TEP flag mentioned earlier when the option for regional flags was added[52].
DFD’s WFE was designed by participants in a competition so it changed quite often[53].
The RMB, as ever, was claimed by advertisers with a little conversation. Therefore, communication still happened mainly offsite. Chatzy began some small-scale use during this era but most communication happened over the forums, IRC, Skype, AOL, or MSN.
TEP went from isolation from FA to active participation in FA. This active participation, however, did slow down. As for the foreign view of TEP, it was still the RP Pacific. I also believe most people viewed the region as being weak after coming out of a coup. At least the cries of dictatorship and inactivity came to a halt.
Cultural changes occurred. Imperialism and totalitarianism tones became odious. Coup jokes also lost flavor as did threats to coup the region from Joe Nobodies.
The forum was very active. Lots of legislative and Executive work went on during this era and RP held strong even if it did stabilize later on. Under Todd’s term, the Government was quite heavy handed. During DFD’s term, the Executive was led in a more presidential manner. This is why so little is known about DFD’s time compared to Todd.
Trivia
–Todd was the first-ever elected Delegate.
–Despite the impression some people have, TEP was never sure-footed in its path forwards after the Empire collapsed. A lot of debate happened, presumably a lot of backtracking on ideas was done, and a lot of compromises were likely made before the new constitution was done. TEP had to then iron out the kinks of this new Government, kinks which still need ironing out today such as Conclave inactivity and the powers of each branch.
–Debate contests began in 2009 during this era. These continued on and off until 2013 where they drop off completely. The turnout for most debates was low. Some people signed up and then didn’t even bother debating when the time came. Other debates that happened consisted of just a hand few posts.
–Loop’s motto, “My bigness is exceeded only by my Frenchness” came about during this era since Loop became the largest nation in the region during this era[70]. I have no idea if Loop is French so I can’t explain the latter.
–The Concordat didn’t have provisions for amending and repealing laws. This renders all laws amended or repealed by the Magisterium until the provisions were added invalid.
Who’s Who
Free Pacific States (also known as FPS) - Became very active in the beginning to rebuild (joined 5 January 2004)
Kelssek - Famous legislator that came back to rebuild (joined 26 March 2004)
East Malaysia (also known as EM) - Now considered an old guard member due to how old he became (joined 27 May 2004)
Kurogasa - One of the first appointed Arbiters, served for several years, later Viceroy in 2011 (joined 21 October 2005)
Bai Lung - Very prominent RPer, famous for solo RPing (joined 3 December 2005)
Lazlowia - Prominent Arbiter (joined 21 July 2006)
Drakkengard - Long time WA liason, all-rounder, and more accomplishments documented in the next volume (joined 15 October 2007)
Todd McCloud - The first official Concordat Delegate (joined 18 January 2008)
Warre - A very active RPer, a legislator, and the second-ever elected Provost (joined 18 April 2008)
Der Fuhrer Dyszel (also known as Der Fuhrer Deizel, DFD, and Lady Edea) - A Delegate of this era (joined 25 February 2009)
Dyr Nasad - An incredibly active Provost and legislator (joined 9 April 2009)
Sources
[1]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/we-win-t13548.html
[2]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/meeting-of-the-elders-and-members-t13550.html
[3]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/stepping-down-t13551.html
[4]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/government-user-groups-t13555.html
[5]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/zeta-boards-t13564.html
[6]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/retirement-t13570.html
[7]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/endo-watch-t11575.html
[8]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/inauguration-speech-t11576.html
[9]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/oath-of-office-briefed-t11577.html
[10]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/appointment-of-advisors-t11579.html
[11]https://thesouthpacific.fandom.com/wiki/Point_Plan
[12]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/first-paper-39-s-team-t1653.html
[13]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/magisterial-assembly-hotline-t11583.html
[14]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/tep-newspaper-3rd-term-t1655-s15.html#p62761
[15]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/tep-newspaper-4rd-term-t1656.html
[16]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-east-pacific-newspaper-5th-edition-t1657.html
[17]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/tep-newspaper-july-2010-edition-t1665.html
[18]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-explanation-of-the-crest-of-the-ep-t11815.html
[19]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/constitution-proposals-t8579.html
[20]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/elders-and-new-government-t8580.html
[21]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/newspaper-2nd-edition-t1745-s15.html#p58562
[22]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/a-slanted-black-stripe-t1755.html
[23]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/congratulations-to-todd-mccloud-t6505.html
[24]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-voting-booth-t6510-s15.html#p61557
[25]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/elections-t6496.html
[26]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/statement-of-neutrality-t6503.html
[27]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/delegate-nominations-t6498.html
[28]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/delegate-elections-how-it-works-or-will-work-t6506.html
[29]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/delegate-elections-t6512.html
[30]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/voting-thread-t6515-s15.html#p69010
[31]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-east-pacific-delegate-nominations-t6520.html
[32]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/recount-requests-t6523.html
[33]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-constitution-the-concordat-t8581.html
[34]Page 6 here:
http://www.nsdossier.texasregion.net//history.aspx?region=the+east+pacific&type=Exact&group=region&start=&end=
[35]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/election-of-the-provost-t11343.html
[36]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/selected-viziers-t11346.html
[37]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/first-orders-of-legislation-t11347-s45.html
[38]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/presentation-of-conclave-nominations-t11348-s15.html
[39]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/office-of-tourism-and-recruitment-t11369-s15.html
[40]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/arbiters-t11664.html
[41]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/actual-viceroy-elections-t11671-s30.html#p67610
[42]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/consideration-of-standing-orders-of-conclave-t11685.html#p73667
[43]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/matt-39-s-back-t2387.html
[44]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/imperial-kingdom-of-warre-t6500.html
[45]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-royal-confederacy-of-dannistaan-t6501.html
[46]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-peaceful-mind-of-todd-mccloud-t6502.html
[47]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/todd-mccloud-39-s-delegate-campaign-thread-t6508.html
[48]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/eleven-point-plan-t11581.html#p52654
[49]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/summon-t11383-s15.html
[50]https://web.archive.org/web/20081224174843/http://nationstates.net/page=display_region/region=the_east_pacific
[51]https://web.archive.org/web/20090223112537/http://nationstates.net/page=display_region/region=the_east_pacific
[52]https://web.archive.org/web/20091219143531/http://www.nationstates.net:80/region=the_east_pacific
[53]https://web.archive.org/web/20100618003330/http://www.nationstates.net/region=the_east_pacific
[54]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/connected-t11600.html
[55]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/still-think-that-very-mature-there-is-right-t13575.html
[56]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/rmb-rp-omg-wth-t13381.html
[57]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/discussion-of-recent-administrative-actions-t11607.html
[58]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/discussion-of-recent-administrative-actions-t11607-s15.html
[59]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/proposal-for-a-secondary-endorsement-cap-t11434.html
[60]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/vote-secondary-endorsement-cap-t11438.html
[61]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/secondary-endorsement-cap-reform-act-t11470-s15.html
[62]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/secondary-endorsement-cap-reform-act-t14318.html
[63]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-overall-plan-t2826.html
[64]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/our-rmb-three-word-story-t4233.html
[65]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/our-rmb-three-word-story-t4233-s15.html
[66]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/our-rmb-three-word-story-t4233-s30.html
[67]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-east-pacific-awards-t4230.html
[68]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/3-word-story-status-t4228.html
[69]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/tep-awards-t4227.html
[70]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/my-bigness-is-only-exceeded-by-my-frenchness-t1878.html
[71]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/series-of-events-t11578.html
[72[forum.theeastpacific.com/a-spark-is-needed-t1747.html
[73]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/asbs-back-from-the-dead-t1144.html
[74]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/i-wanted-to-leave-this-open-for-debate-t11356.html
[75]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/rmb-and-adspam-t7675.html
[76]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/rmb-and-adspam-t7675.html
[77]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/finance-t11374.html
[78]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/tep-military-t11593.html
[79]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/state-of-the-region-discussion-t1789.html
[80]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/state-of-the-region-discussion-t1789-s15.html
[81]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/potential-treaty-with-lazarus-t11375.html
[82]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/potential-treaty-with-lazarus-t11375-s45.html
[83]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/seeking-able-bodied-individuals-t1739.html
[84]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/political-parties-t1757.html
[85]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/points-from-meetings-t11382.html
[86]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/the-holders-t14208.html
[87]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/collaborative-fiction-education-f70/
[88]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/government-report-card-t1752.html
[89]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/policy-on-delegate-votes-t7580.html
[90]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/newspaper-t11407.html
[91]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/newspaper-t11407-s15.html
[92]As documented in the previous volume.
[93]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/first-orders-of-legislation-t11347.html
[94]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/magistrar-sign-ups-t7643.html
[95]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/vote-on-magisterium-candidates-t7658.html
[96]https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_east_pacific/presentation-of-conclave-nominations-t11348.html