Regional Security Council Establishes Endocaps




Regional Security Council Establishes Endocaps
Security Tightened As Game-Changing Update Nears

Written by Eldorin, Edited by Pland Adanna​


Arnhelm, Europeia - The upcoming Frontiers and Strongholds update is poised to enact some of the biggest changes to NationStates since its inception over twenty years ago. NationStates has witnessed the introduction of influence, the creation of GenSec, and and so much more… but this is something entirely different. While the details are still being finalized by the game administrators, years of development have given the Europeian government ample time to prepare for the expected changes after the update goes live. One of the primary tenets of this preparation is the establishment of the Regional Security Council, a process that started all the way back in 2021.

Much less was known about the extent to which things may eventually change in NationStates back then, and yet Europeia had the foresight to begin preparing. In fact, one of the first ideas put forward by Peeps in the initial thread on the topic was a 'Gameside Security Council'. Although tabled in February of 2022, the inherent need for preparation persisted within conversations surrounding Europeia’s security as the update remained in its development phase. Legislative drafting would eventually be reignited that June, when the Frontier/Stronghold Act entered the Senate.

The ideas that would eventually become law were not without controversy. Months of discussions and at least one veto were all required before then-president Writinglegend was able to sign the Frontier/Stronghold Act (2022) into law. The 'Gameside Security Council' had become the 'Regional Security Council' (RSC), and Europeia had enshrined four familiar faces into its new security apparatus; Prim, Pichtonia, GraVandius, and Pland Adanna were confirmed by the Senate in March of 2023, with the controversial denial of UPC a heated topic of debate in the following Presidential Election.

One of the primary roles of the RSC is to establish and enforce limits on how many endorsements Europeian World Assembly nations can accrue. This prevents invaders from reaching dangerously high endorsement levels and threatening the position of WA Delegate. The importance of this measure lies in the mechanics of the F/S update, where Frontiers (the type of region Europeia has voted to be) vest their executive authority in the position of WA Delegate, currently held by Le Libertia, rather than the Founder HEM.

By trusting the Regional Security Council with Border Control authority, multiple nations share the influence costs of ejecting and banning invaders rather than just the Delegate, which more effectively maintains influence pools. On March the 31st, these endorsement caps were announced by the RSC ahead of the update, along with an initial enforcement period:​
  • The Vice Delegate is limited to 170,​
  • The RSC members are limited to 150,​
  • Citizens endorsing the Delegate are limited to 50,​
  • Non-citizens endorsing the Delegate are limited to 25,​
  • And any nation not endorsing the Delegate is limited to 10.​
The EBC reached out to RSC members Prim and Pichtonia, who have provided comments on the endocaps and their importance:

Prim:
"I think it will be critical at the outset of the F/S update to be somewhat cautious about our endorsement policy. We have set the endorsement caps somewhat low compared to other GCRs, I feel, primarily, because we will be an early target of antagonistic parties. We need to establish a strong gap of influence between the Delegate/VDel/RSC officers and the rest of the region over the first few months before possibly allowing a loosening of the caps in any way. I am however supportive of the differentiation of citizen caps and non-citizen caps. I feel that citizens are vetted and trusted and have earned a higher cap, as well as creating a strong incentive to our gameside residents to join the forum and increase their cap allowance."​

Pichtonia:
"We've actually had an endorsement cap before the Regional Security Council sprung into action, too. And I know this looks like quibbling over words, but I point this out because I think the changes to the endorsement cap are mostly a reflection of the upcoming transition to Frontier. There will be tremendous new security challenges. For the longest time, we've been able to rely on our founder, HEM, as our Gameside security bedrock. Thanks to his presence and powers, any attack on us probably would have been a disturbance at most, and so we were able to afford a lot of flexibility, even a degree of ignorance of Gameside matters. However, in this new era that awaits us, Gameside threats could be existential. The founder nation mostly won't matter. It will be the Delegate who exercises his control and influence over the region, and mechanically the Delegate is the nation with the most endorsements. So to ensure that this nation is one we have well vetted and lawfully chosen to be Delegate, and that the Delegacy remains practically unattainable to anyone else, especially our adversaries, a stricter endorsement policy is sadly a necessity. The different endorsement tiers, then, are mostly to aid smooth transitions between Delegates and extra hands on deck to aid the Delegate with fighting threats.

It's painful to see that some nations choose to leave over the new policy, even though I don't begrudge them for their decision. They'll always be welcome back. But it also helps to remind oneself of why we are doing this. Sometimes you need to prune your flowers so they can blossom anew. I didn't vote to transition to a Frontier, but I see the chances that could arise. New nations to engage with, new citizens to enrichen our community. We can't just hope for the best, we have to work hard, and there'll always be an element of chance, but if we do this right, then Frontier Europeia could potentially be the biggest and best revitalization program to our region."​

Years of planning and preparation are now in the past as Europeia takes its first steps into uncharted territory. Though more challenges certainly lay ahead, the sails of security and progress have been raised, ready as ever to crest the endless and uncertain horizons of change.
 
Thank you for allowing me to add my thoughts! Great timing with the article. The update is getting close!
 
Very nice article!!!
 
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