Getting to Know Europeians 2.0 - Darkslayer - Slayer of Justice
An interview with one of Europeia's foremost legal minds
Written by Forilian
Edited by Comfed
In an effort to help everyday Europeians know more about their fellow citizens, Getting to Know Europeians is an interview project aiming to ask Europeians casual questions about themselves. This is the second iteration of this project; if you missed the previous article, you can read the interview conducted with Peeps here. The previous series of interviews was conducted in 2020 with Hezekon, Kuramia, Lloenflys, Maowi, Prim, Istillian, Astrellan, and Pichtonia.
Chief Justice Darkslayer has had a storied and eventful career in Europeia. His time in the region began in March 2020, when he applied for citizenship. Although perhaps he is better known for his legal career today, Darkslayer first found his calling in Europeia with the Ministry of Radio. "My career started off by joining the Ministry of Radio which at the time was under Minister of Radio Calvin Coolidge. Because in other communities I had enjoyed vc'ing and talking to others it seemed to be a natural fit for me. During that term I worked on a lot of radio shows and would eventually become a Deputy Minister of Radio."
A rising star in the region, Darkslayer would not just stay a deputy minister for long. In May 2020, Darkslayer was elected senator through a by-election, and in June, he was appointed Minister of Radio (under First Minister McEntire) as well. Darkslayer himself describes his career as having "took off" within the first six months of him being in the region. With all these positions, of course, came great responsibility; Darkslayer highlighted the importance of being proactive and taking charge throughout his time as minister for radio:
"During my tenure as radio minister, I probably learned best that you are the driving force of momentum in radio. You need to be proactive in messaging your staff; you need to do outreach and communicate with foreign friends, and you need to be able to organise your shows without conflicts. Sometimes this becomes difficult and that means you need to be flexible to adjust your shows when stuff come up. Contrary to popular belief, radio isn’t just the ministry of scheduling, and it has become much more technologically demanding given the new transition. There are a lot of skills needed in radio which can make it a difficult role to succeed in."
Another institution that Darkslayer has diligently served in is the Senate. When asked what he was most proud of having achieved during his time as a senator, Darkslayer gave the following reply: "I think I am most accomplished about, generally, the work and collaboration needed in each terms. I was part of the term to pass the executive modernisation bill, the term after we managed to implement further amendments to the change in executive, and the term after that I had managed to become one of our quickest ascending speakers. So there’s a lot that I am proud to have accomplished, but it has to be as my number 1, the teamwork and collaboration to get a lot of work done during those terms."
Unlike most Europeians, Darkslayer's real-life career path overlaps with his Europeian career. The region's chief justice is, in his real life, studying for a law degree. When asked about whether the two legal careers he's had have influenced each other, Darkslayer noted that "they have both complemented each other in different ways." He then added, "studying and practicing law irl has allowed me to be able to learn how to research law, argue it, convey and communicate law, and analyse issues. This has worked great for euro law, and has allowed me to use those skills here. Euro law has assisted me in being able to read through the lines, and apply the law in complicated scenarios. Collectively, both of these have certainly enhanced my ability to interpret, apply, and explain the law both to lay and legal people."
Aside from his accomplishments in the political system, Darkslayer is also known in the region for his distinctive social persona. Darkslayer stated that the "supportive fostering [social] environment" in Europeia is "definitely one of the huge benefits the region brings. (...) I think our social environment is a fundamental core of the region. We have an incredibly active social environment which appreciates an IC/OOC divide. Most people can get along with others, and there are lots of things to do—we regularly have VCs, gaming sessions, radio shows, and really active channels."
As to where he sees himself in the region in the future, Darkslayer replied, "I think my future aspirations is [sic] to simply carry on delivering public service in a variety of positions and doing my part to help Europeia grow. This comes regardless of position and I am hopeful that my past, current and future work will be able to assist our newer leaders to grow and carry on the work we have done." He also noted that he has served in a variety of roles in Europeia: "I have managed to accomplish a lot during my time – became chief justice, senate speaker, minister of foreign affairs and minister of radio. All of those positions I have loved and would happily do any of them." Ultimately, Darkslayer concluded that "position wise I am happy where I am now and I'll have to see where the future takes me!"
Finally, Darkslayer gave the following advice to newcomers to Europeia: "I think newcomers should utilise the resources available to them. We have experts in all fields who are active, supportive, and encourage growth in the region. Messaging them and asking for advice is a great first step to reaching the goals you set yourself. We’re quite lucky that our leaders of each branch are active and supportive - so if newcomers want to get involved in either branch, message the head of that branch and they will help you. Newcomers should also be prepared to take bold steps to get their name out there - work hard, run in elections, socialise with our region and before you know it, your euro career will be taking off."
Darkslayer has had a truly astonishing career in Europeia, with his work covering four branches of government (executive, judicial, legislative, and world assembly/gameside). We are excited to see where the political tide will take him next; three cheers for Darkslayer!
