Hello,

I want to inform you on the foundation of the Southern League of Free Cities and Teritories.

We are a group of people that do not want to be part of a aristocratic or authoritarian alliance. We are players who do not want to be in an alliance where only a few huge players make the decisions while small players are not even informed about the situation. Thus we decided to form some kind of democratically organised alliance. We will base our decisions on a participatory and representative system. We are looking for large or small players that are interested in joining!

So far we are in the process of founding this alliance. Currently we do have some Dictators and everyone that joins and participates in the debate on the Convent of the Southern League of Free Cities (=some kind of constitution) can be named Dictator!

If you would like to join as member and if you are interested in participating in the creation of the Convent, please feel free to do so. Just contact a Dictator or any other member.

Below you will find a short description on the structure of the alliance when the Convent is accepted (however, some things might change. If you like to have more information (also a graphical introduction), please have a look on the alliance profile and the public forum.

In any case we are interested in good relations with our neighbours and other alliances!

Best wishes for the future,

Janosch

Introduction to the Southern League of Free Cities and Territories:

The Convent of the Southern League of Free Cities is a contract between the League Members. If you are new in our alliance, you will usually start as Associated Member. You can observe and learn about our alliance in order to apply for membership, if you desire. And (if you need it) you have some time to grow and learn about Illyriad. You are however protected by the alliance and we can send you ressources.

There are some administrative bodies and positions you should know about.

If you apply for membership, you may become a League Member and thus a member of the General Assembly. Every Member of the Southern League should participate in the political process through the General Assembly. The General Assembly is the sovereign and has powerful political instruments. However its decisions take time. In order to protect the interest and the governability of the League some decisions can not immediately (or not at all) be influence by the General Assembly. The General Assembly is chaired by the General Representative.

The General Assembly elects two Consuls among the members of the Senate and the High Council. They are something like a President of the League. (Consuls where the highest posts in the Roman Republic before Caesar became Dictator for life.) The consuls should not rule from above but justly and fairly moderate the political discourse. However, if quick decisions must be made the Consuls and the High Council must act! They are responsible for the functioning of the political system.

The Consuls chair the High Council. The High Council consists of the Consuls, the general Representative, the President of Senate and the Minister of War. The High Council serves as some kind of Government. Most members are elected and only the Minister of War is appointed by the Consuls. The High Council has powerful political instruments and acts much quicker then the General Assembly.

League Members that are active and participate in the the League and continue to grow can be elected Senator. The Senate consists of trustworthy and honourable league members that are named Senators for live. The Senate controls the Consuls and the High Council. It is chaired by the President of Senate. The Senate speaks justice in case of crime or political conflict.

Update:

1. We have renamed our alliance to the Old Republic [Rep]!

2. You do not need to be located in the south/alliance focus is moved to all of Illyriad, in order to attract more members.

3. We are currently voting on the founding document of our alliance in our new forum (that has included polls).

This Republic is not only interesting for small players (that have the benefit of being included and informed on all decisions), but also for larger, more active and experienced players (since 1. we have the Senate, that is particularly attractive for larger players and 2. it offers an excellent perspective to exchange information/thoughts/strategies/foreign affairs and all other important issues of Illyriad, in an active and friendly community). We are urgently looking for active players, that have at the moment excellent opportunities to be elected in high offices.

1. One of The Roman Empire's most vital failings was the over-stretching of supply lines, and the ineffectiveness of distant governance. Thankfully, news in Illy is instant, so I think you might fare slightly better in this respect, with your wide geographic scope.
   
   
2. The alliance structure seems over-complicated, and seems better suited to representing thousands of people rather than a hundred. Committees can slow you down in a crisis, likewise so can referenda, which incorrectly assume that everyone polled is fully informed. People are elected to representative positions, so that one person (or few people, on the case of your Consuls/High Council) can make live decisions on their behalf. This is a two-edged sword.
   
   
3. Elections only make sense when there's a genuine choice to be had (and the vacancies have not already been filled by a nod from the organisers). It is also a discriminating process that will result in rejection.

Thanks for your wishes and critique.

1. Each of this 100 people represent thousands of people (okay not now but maybe one day). It is therefore quite a large organisation!

2. We clearly need to be able to act fast. All Members of the High Council will be part of the government and will be able to act in crisis. The Consuls rule.

3. The central conflict in the 'democracy' is that, if small players are elected in the government they can not act (in some cases) without the large players. Therefore we have the Senate. They need to coordinate in some cases and in a war centralised decisions are important.

4. However, Illy is not a war game! And if there is a war we have the Minister of War who will coordinate and command.

5. I founded this alliance to be able to participate in the decisions of my alliance. Therefore I wanted a representative AND participatory system because I want everyone to be able to participate.

6. Also the political conflicts and election going on in the alliance will be an amusement in itself. Therefore we need a slightly more complicated system to give the institutional base for some conflicts and elections.

7. Players in this alliance will have the possibility to learn more quickly about the world of Illy. That is because they have the possibility to use this knowledge and they are informed about the decisions of the High Council. The game will be more interesting for small players and the large, active and experienced players will have a lot of weight anyway. Also experienced players will explain their reasons and convince the others.

8. To tell me a democracy is a discriminating process and argue for a authoritarian/royal style of government is properly a joke?

9. Finally, we will not vote on every decision in the General Assembly. It should rather work the other way around. If there is an interest among the majority of players there can be a poll in the General Assembly.

I think it will work! Everyone is welcome! Also large players! We now have not elected the government. Therefore you can still join in high positions (if you get elected...).

Have fun!

Janosch

Three announcements:
1. We have renamed our alliance to “the Old Republic” [Rep]!

2. You do not need to be located in the south/alliance focus is moved to all of Illyriad, in order to attract more members.

3. We are currently voting on the founding document of our alliance in our new forum (that has included polls).

This Republic is not only interesting for small players (that have the benefit of being included and informed on all decisions), but also for larger, more active and experienced players (since 1. we have the Senate, that is particularly attractive for larger players and 2. it offers an excellent perspective to exchange information/thoughts/strategies/foreign affairs and all other important issues of Illyriad, in an active and friendly community). We are urgently looking for active players, that have at the moment excellent opportunities to be elected in high offices.