Esteemed Selenids,

It has been over three years since our region was founded. Selene was an idea: a community where NationStates would remain, first and foremost, a game, where roleplaying would be a fun activity for all to share. Over the past couple of years, I cannot help but wonder if we have lost sight of that idea, and tried to become something that we are not.

We tried to become a standard Modern Tech region, but in so trying we stopped being fun, exciting and unique. What fun is there in roleplaying in a world much like our own, without added incentives, wiggle room for creativity or hardly anything to set us apart from others? We must be honest with ourselves and admit that there is much for improvement, but also much opportunity for renewal and future success.

I have consulted with the Prime Minister over the past few days, let alone few weeks, and we have come to the conclusion that profound change is needed, on a scale not seen since the first year of this region. To that effect, I would like to announce some changes:

1. The Privy Council is dismissed. They have my deepest thanks for their long service to the region, and I hope they will remain in Selene and help in the work to remake it.
   
2. Parthenopias and Sizhou are appointed Privy Councillors for Roleplay Reform, and will be tasked with the arduous work of remaking the region, though always with the input of its members.
   
3. In the spirit of the change that will sweep the region, all letters patent are rescinded, with the exception of titles held by the Emperor or the Crown Prince.
   
4. Corpus Juris will remain the law of the region, though some changes to its other chapters, especially Chapters IV and V, should be expected.
   

For a more formal version of these decisions, please refer to Royal Order 1901.

With that announcement out of the way, I would like to go into detail on the changes that we can all expect moving forwards:

1. The Map of Artemia, and all accompanying history, will be voided.
   
2. Selene will cease to be a Modern Tech region; instead we will transition to Post-Modern Tech.
   
3. There will be two habitable planets. One planet will host the human species. The other planet will host three species, two of which will be playable.
   

Specifics on just how "post-modern" our tech level will be, how the solar system will work and which how participation and plots will work will be forthcoming. I hope we can, in due time, involve everyone in this discussion, but I also hope we all understand that some decisions will have to be made by the Privy Council, in order to ensure an orderly transition.

If all goes well, I would hope to enact these changes no later than December. Until then, please do share your thoughts on these proposed changes, and your ideas on how to make them work for the region in general, and for each of you in particular.

A few months ago we asked our members to answer the Roleplay Interest Survey, a questionnaire that asked about their interests in terms of tech levels and types of roleplays. The idea was to know more about what kind of roleplaying you want to see in the region, so that what we do are roleplays that you can enjoy. It has taken a few months for us to take another look at this, but we finally have the results of the Survey, and wish to present them for a discussion among our community.

It goes without saying that, if you weren't here when the Survey was first conducted, you are more than welcome to answer it now by going here. Your answers will be quickly incorporated.

Tech Levels

Results show that most respondents are comfortable with Modern Tech roleplays, but a majority also would like to see Past Tech roleplays, and nearly half have an interest in Future Tech. Since MT is our canon, there would be no issues with that field. Things are more interesting and complex when it comes to promoting roleplays of different tech levels; it would be possible to promote canon roleplays in Past Tech, or promote FT roleplays in The Dardanelles. It would depend (1) on interest levels and (2) how dedicated the community would be to following through with those roleplays.

Of course, given our current relative inactivity, there is an argument to be made about focusing on keeping stable activity in MT before branching out to other tech levels, but that would depend on what kind of interest there is. Perhaps branching out would lead to more activity, rather than divert from it.

A majority of respondents are, at worst, indifferent to all types of roleplay suggested in the Survey. There are four types of roleplay, all related to internal national events or peaceful cooperation, that respondents answered they either Like or Strongly Like. Nation Building has the highest likeability average, at 4.6, so there lies the most potential for member engagement.

There are two points to consider about this. On the one hand, nation building is important in order to have a consistent and well-developed world, and also so each member can figure out what place it has in the world. We simply can't roleplay with others if we don't know what kind of country each of us have. Are we friends? Are we enemies? Do we have valuable resources? Are we monarchies or dictatorships? There are many questions that need to be answered.

On the other hand, focusing too much just on nation building risks prolonging our current inactivity, where we focus on off-forum nation building and Flash News posts, without actually creating stories or interacting with each other. These results also show us that there is potential for cooperation. Plenty of respondents have a liking for space exploration roleplays, civil wars and government visits. In addition, while other types of roleplay are in the minority, there are still players who like them, and we need to listen to them.

There are some ways in which we can motivate people to get involved. For one, we can integrate nation building into story creation. For example, if we have a nation building theme of the week or month, we can try all try to commit to incorporate that theme into actual, non-Flash News, roleplays during that month. If we have developed lists of our main industries, we can commit to roleplay about trade deals, industrial crises or product exchanges. If we develop the history of our Antarctic treaties, we could do a Past Tech roleplay that shows the early exploration of the Antarctic continent. Another idea we could incorporate is to allow each member to decide a roleplay type or theme of the month, provided that it has broad agreement from the community, and to each promise to roleplay that. I understand that some of us have preferences, but unless we absolutely hate a kind of roleplay, I believe we can make small concessions in order to make the region a more active and fun place.

For now, I would like to hear from all our members. You must have some opinion about the results of the Survey, or some thoughts about what kind of roleplays you would like to see. Right now it doesn't matter how unlikely you think it is that we will do your preferred roleplay. The idea is to know what ideas are out there, so we can figure out what has more acceptance, what could be workable, and what we should do moving forward.

I am proud to announce the first Foreign Policy Marathon, a week-long event whose goal is to promote activity and encourage our roleplayers to form closer ties with each other. This even is officially hosted by the Privy Council, and therefore all roleplayers are encouraged and expected to participate.

When will the Marathon take place?

It will take place between August 1-7, for a whole week.

What does it involve?

All roleplayers will be required to participate in at least one foreign policy event, with at least one other roleplayer. Each event will be worth a certain amount of points; by the end of the week, the roleplayer with the most points will receive an award.

How are points given?

Events will be worth a certain amount of points, based on the following rules:

Are there any standards to how events may be roleplayed?

This Marathon is meant to encourage actual activity in the region; twisting the spirit of the rules will not be allowed, and will result in a final score of zero. Events will have to adhere to the following rules:

• While roleplayers may continue to post in Flash News, posts there will not be worth any points.
  
• A newspaper article will only be worth points if the other participating roleplayer(s) post an equivalent article referencing the same event.
  
• Roleplays, including official meetings, visits or military exercises, will only be worth points if they have more than two participants.
  
• Events will not be worth any points if they are not in the form of a newspaper article or an actual roleplay.
  
• Events will not be worth any points if the only participating countries are owned by the same roleplayer.
  

In short, what is this Marathon about?

If you have a country on the map, you have to do as many foreign policy articles and roleplays as you can, with as many roleplayers as you can. Whoever has the most points by the end of the Marathon will get an award.