Spheres of Influence: Alliance

Des-Accor, Ecrithur, Forgent, Bulwar, Elblet, Khuln Darihm, Khuln Kalderak and Khuln Garuhm all voted aye on both proposals.

Gundarth voted aye on the Ríoch's, and waited for him to vote first on the Postmaster's.

After conferring, Margunkyn and Themaran voted nay on the first proposal, and aye on the second. They believed their royal claims to the land should extend downwards indefinitely, and other Alliance nations should need to - as a bare minimum - seek permission before acquiring land from them to colonize beneath them.

Rykarth likewise voted aye on the second proposal, but took a moment to speak on the first. "I am, perhaps, a little more familiar with the deep caves than most people here," he said. "Thorjron has been delving into the depths as of late in search of magma to power our machines. My city's efforts are small-scale proof that the depths can be tamed. But I fear that the way you propose will result in hasty land-grabs, with countries seeking to lay claim to as many resource veins down there as possible. A scramble for the deep caves will lead to loss of life, and potentially threaten the safety of your above-ground homes through overextension. I abstain. I just ask, if you must descend, that you all exercise extreme caution."

Geród nodded to Rykarth's concern. "I understand your concern, and sympathies. However even if there are valuable resources down there, all boreholes I imagine will be state controlled for the precise reason of security, both to neither let whatever is down there easy access to the surface and, I imagine, restraining reckless action on behalf of private individuals and enterprises to exploit it wantonly. Any expansion down there will be considerably more controlled and controllable than sailing across the seas to the East ever could be. And besides I sincerely doubt given the rate and difficulty at which any expansion into the underworld anyone here would even be so much as bothered to colonise under anyone else's lands, to allay the fears of both Margunkyn and Thearan."

"With that said, I do see the value in the Postmaster's article, and vote Aye. Allowing emergency meetings in the case of horrible occurrences the require calling of a convention, especially in the light of an organised conspiracy to literally undermine the Alliance, is a good idea. Any member nation who encounters some impending calamity that requires co-ordinated action should have the authority to call a meeting, especially if its something such as a plague. Frivolous abuse of such a power would be punished, I imagine with trade restrictions of other such punishments in proportion to the waste of time incured. I would add however, nations who justifiably call an emergency meeting based on their own intelligence and the emergency turns out to be a false alarm should not be unduly punished."

Aye to Gerod's thing. Underdark seems like a glorious place to fight.

Aye to Postmaster, but with reservation. Is it going to be fast? Words bore Orbona.

Nova Kalla is currently busy with the new Fire Emblem game, but has read through the proposals.

Abstain from the Underdark proposal because Nova Kalla has no strong opinions on it.

Aye to the Postmaster's Article.

Following the passage without serious opposition of both of today's articles, the Forgent ambassador announced that his queen will be withdrawing her knights from the western frontier to search for boreholes in Forgent territory.

The representatives of the border kingdoms reacted by making similar statements, though clearly the ambassadors hadn't recieved instruction to do so and were merely warning that it would probably happen and letting their monarchs to decide whether to actually do so. Duchess de Cazou of Des-Accor stated firmly that she'd be doing likewise to ensure no dastardly fiends were tunneling up under her lands, and there were general murmurs of agreement from the other minor powers who would likely be doing the same.

"Are we all done, then?" asked Malcolm.

"Yes I imagine so, unless there is any other business."

"Indeed, no I was not alerted of any other proposals, friends! It is time to wrap this party up. Thank you all for coming, thank you for letting us hear your voices and concerns. See you all in ten years, or rather, you will see my successor.

Anyhoo, it is now time for the Slimerider parade, which will officially mark the ending of the meeting. Hopefully one day, the CUBE can host another meeting in the ditant future, but until then, it will be free for any kind of diplomatic event.

Have a good journey home, friends!"

"This has certainly been eventful. Hopefully the next time we meet there well be less troublesome excitement happening." Cregit Exiro got up, signing. Just some more business to wrap up and this parade.

How did one ride slimes anyway, some sort of flat saddle to spread out surface pressure? Also, surely the mess and trail... Maybe should ask to look into slimes one day, see how they did against bugs.

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hey completed my app hope i'm not too late

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APPLICATION:

Country Name: GNOMETOWN
Country Colour: GNOME YELLOW
Government: Big Gnome, the gnome with the Biggest, Pointiest Hat. While some say the Gnomish Council really control Gnometown, it's the Big Gnome who has the final say on what inventions and knowledge The Gnome College pursues.

Each seat on the council is filled by a representative of a Gnomish Origin.

Deep Gnomes represent the Gnomish belief that they descended from an oppressed class of dwarves, forced to work the deep mines.

Tree Gnomes believe that they were magically created from Elves, to serve as the ultimate assassin.

Sea Gnomes believes they evolved from crabs, created by human mages.

Halfling Gnomes believe they're actually a race born from the union of Elf and Dwarf, driven to the fringes of known society in persecution.

Kobold Gnomes believe that gnomes descended from the people of Antipode, created by 'The Great Mana Disaster.'

Bugbear Gnomes believe that gnomes are members of the Unity who were cursed for being unable to live up to the Unity's ideals, trapped forever in Gnomish shape.

Lunar Gnomes believe they came from space. When asked to clarify WHERE in space, they simply waggle their fingers, saying, in their spookiest voice, "ooooooouuuuuuterrrrrr spaaaaaaace."

Leader: Big Gnome currently is, actually, a somewhat short gnome, only coming in at two feet tall. However, his hat, which is six feet tall, is equal parts impressive and frightening. It is a tall, crimson conical contraption of various alloy platings, levers, gears, and at least one steam exhaust pipe. Underneath it, Big Gnome's face is mostly indecipherable amongst the wild brush of his beard, though his six inch, narrow, pale nose juts out from beneath. He's a gnome of few words, but one of action, and he has promised the Origins their long sought-after vengeance on the races who probably-most-definitely created and abandoned them.

Society: Gnometown is a series of curling caverns, treacherous tunnels, and gaping gulches, located in a long-dormant volcano that stands between an arid wasteland and a haunted forest. The gnomes are both a people of industry and aggressive secrecy, and their society mostly revolves around glorifying whoever can make the next most innovative or outlandish invention. When they encounter science, ideas, or technology they haven't seen produced from other cultures, they work feverishly at ripping it off, often producing a more dangerous, hyper-active alternative, and claim they invented it all along. Gnomes also claim origin from literally every intelligent race. Except maybe the bugs. That went badly last time with the bugs. Origin Mantis Gnomes all died. No one likes to talk about it.

History: Gnometown itself is very old but used to be much smaller. There is archaeological evidence that they were once an early civilization kept in check by the neighboring volcano and extremely dangerous woods. However, once the volcano went dormant, they moved in. The population boomed afterwards ever since, and now the only thing keeping them in check are their extremely dangerous inventions. This 'knowledge' is of course condemned by nearly every member of the Gnomish council, since EVERYONE knows that Gnomes were REALLY created by elves/humanity/the Nogroon/the Unity/etc. , and THUS can't be older than... Uh... Recent history.
Gnometown's science and culture has been booming since the Alliance has brought more and more nations into closer contact with each other. However, so committed are they to their secrecy, that on the occasions they DO trade, they do so disguised as 'weird surface dwarves.'

Alliance: The Alliance will pay DEARLY for abandoning Gnomekind!

The shared Antipode research project should probably be discussed in a public manner. Thedrin’s suggestion and vote? Improved steam engines. Sounded the most practical and useful to all. The technology had enormous potential!

What did everybody else think?

Kor Vurneus would push that, instead, the group research project be kept as something more basic and universally useful for now. Not that steam engines weren't useful, but, their extensive uses and access to them were probably more important to more advanced or economically strong countries. Kor Vurneus's suggestion and vote was for Improved medical techniques, such as to both allow more advanced diseases to be cured or to allow new methods to be available for the more common blights.

Not everyone can afford to go for a jog to throw off the sickness! Some people needs to be cured... before they got sick! Ovis likes the idea of Health for everyone!

Steam engines would benefit even economically weak countries, reducing labor on any number of tasks and leading to new means of transport, manufacturing, and countless other things. Antipode votes steam engines!

Tiranóg suggests an alternative, a standardized system of weights and measures for all the nations of alliance. To unify systems of measurement to increase efficiency of trade, benefiting all economies and increasing the overall speed of all projects, construction and research and communication of such across the alliance.

Actually, I do have to swap my vote to that! Wastes swaps to this unified measurements, which would strengthen our bonds, and would allow us to trade faster! Working together!

Thedrin...actually thinks that's a really good idea! He also thinks medicine is a good idea, but a standardized system of weights and measurements for the entire Alliance would actually drastically increase efficiency, cooperative research, and would help with just about every aspect of daily life.

He would switch his vote to that. It was a great place to start, and a perfect cooperative project to get the international scientific ball rolling.

Alyn thinks for a good while, but they decide that in the end, standard weights and measures are better for this sort of international project. After all, the Unity already has quite sophisticated magical healing, though the resources are limited.

In the interest of efficient science, Antipode will also vote for standard weights and measures. No longer will ridiculous "imperial units" slow our calculations with their baffling and inexplicable conversion factors!

Having a base to grow from seemed pretty important. If they had to redo everything in a few years, or struggle to share any information because of such a thing, what was the point? The Post was all about that Measurement Standardizing business.

Orbona would like to have steam engines. Standard weights sound boring as hell, it's kind of obvious where the weights stand? On the ground.

GERÓD CALLS AN EMERGENCY COUNCIL OF THE ALLIANCE IN KILFULIN

The first to arrive was once again the procession from Khuln Kalduhr. The 100-gun Sunsail-class warship 'Remembrance' yet again arrived at an Alliance Council meeting, sailed by a full Dwarven crew. Queen Durgana was aboard, with her twenty-one Royal Guards and her translator Bardina Silvertongue.

When it docked, she stepped off the ship and made haste to wherever the Council was happening. Unless somebody was waiting, of course.

Alyn arrives in a much-more-subdued manner than last time, which is saying something. They are in plain traveling clothes with a few druids in homespun robes as an escort.

Postmaster Dubois was back, baybee. Still on a delivery ship, still with her closest guard, still ol' Durgan Hassletongue at her side. Also, same ol' outfit, because it was too chilly for shorts here. Someday.

Thought we could go an indeterminable amount of time without this happening, dudes. And it wasn't even about bugs. This was supposed to be for bug problems. Why did it have to be people problems???

Ovis arrives, his personal cube jumping onto the harbour even before the ship docks. Friendventures await!