This drastic measure is deemed necessary to protect the rest of the Illyriad population from getting the illnesses currently afflicting many Harmless? players, apparently due to the inferior farming and medical practices of that alliance. The quarantine is effective immediately and until further notice.

1) No player outside Harmless? is to entertain guests from Harmless? towns, unless they are appropriately disinfected with the approved magical and acidic procedure, and are found disease free on two consecutive medical examinations spaced more than a week apart without any visit to a Harmless? town in between.

2) No imports of hides, herbs, animal parts, food, leatherwork, wood or soil from Harmless? towns are allowed under any circumstances. (Stone, iron and metal objects are exempt from the export restrictions imposed on Harmless? towns for the time being, provided approved disinfection procedures are followed).

3) Any quarantined products from Harmless? towns found anywhere outside Harmless? city gates should be burned immediately, and the area cleansed by approved disinfection spells.

We are saddened to have to take such drastic measures, but the evidence of an extremely dangerous plague afflicting Harmless? towns is overwhelming and allow no doubt that complete isolation is the only prudent and humanitarian preventive action possible at this advanced state of disease. The plague has so far had the following globally observed symptoms:

a) Desperate hordes of scouts have left a large number of Harmless? towns, seeking citizenship in towns of other players. The vast majority of those scouts have perished in their ailment after only brief hospitalisation. That scouts so obviously left their hometowns without being prepared is a sure sign that they were seriously ill when leaving. Scouts are always prepared.

b) Compound afflictions of magical nature have been detected as spread from Harmless? towns, including mind affecting brain entropy and swarms of locusts devouring and fouling food and cattle alike, causing significant havoc also in towns neighbouring Harmless? afflicted plague centres.

c) We have a few isolated occurrences of hordes on riding beasts breaking through the magical fences erected around civilized settlements and thus making the town vulnerable for wild dogs and mammoths following the desperately famined Harmless? citizens and wreaking havoc to the orderly storage of food and supplies.

d) Reports have been received on "rabid statements by high-ranking Harmless? officials in the forums", and although this is as yet unverified, we fear that the illness is not contained to the populace.

NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to section 11 of the Bees Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. B.6 (hereinafter "the Act") and the power delegated to me by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, I hereby establish a quarantine area being the entire Harmless? alliance.

Odd, Chief Road Coordinator

Dear Harmless players.

I am a player in Fairy Road Authority. As I see it, we, at Roads, build roads, tend our cities, craft and send resources to new players. We try to be nice to our neighbours, and most of all, we have a sense of humour.

I am a big player, but despite my size have no army to speak of. This is common knowledge to you all, and I have indeed said so to you myself. On several occasions. It is not hear-say, and I am sure your many scouting efforts have confirmed this. After a lot of activities by spies, spells and scouts, I was finally attacked yesterday, and now I am also under siege. However, although I have no army, I want no help. No I am not a martyr, I just do not want to fight. Fighting is not the game I am playing on Illy and it never will be. I just want to build my roads and tend my cities.

It was rather impressive, however, to look at the thousands of armies flying in over my city, landing on a small hill next to my town. It reminded me of an episode of Star Wars. Some time soon you will have a victory, though it will be a hollow victory because I have no army and will not fight. Last night, just before I was off to bed, a second town of mine was attacked. Or rather is being attacked, with armies locked on target. With the attack incoming I moved my army out and sent a siege with 542 soldiers and 3 siege engines to the H? player who is attacking me. Luckily this player has a sense of humour, and I know he will have a silent chuckle over my “valiant effort” over his beer this evening. To the outside world, to his alliance members, he will also have a victory, because I am not, of course, going to fight. He will naturally also crush my siege attempt, and can show to his alliance that he is fierce and will probably use the fact that I attacked him as a rally to arms. Perhaps some of the people who are not fighting will be afraid and try and condone what is happening. Perhaps not.

I am not the only one in Roads who has this approach. I have many alliance members who stand tall and continue to play the game the way we want to play it. It is a sandbox game, and building roads is as good an approach as any, in my opinion.

I understand that war games are fun for some of you, and I appreciate that. And to go for a big city, like myself, I understand too. However, to go for a city like me, when it is common knowledge that I have no army and am not playing a war game, but building roads, really is beyond me and I ask why? Was it because you wanted to instill fear in other players, hoping they did not know that we do not keep an army and do not want to fight? Is it to make Consone afraid, or get up in arms? They will not of course because I am declining offers for help, and if you thought about it you would know, because we have said so all along. Who are you trying to impress? I am not impressed and I don’t think many will be impressed that an alliance as big as H? which obviously enjoys a war game, attacks a player who builds roads and who is not defending and who, most importantly does not play a war game? How can that be a game? How can that be a victory?

Please understand that not wanting to play a war game does not mean watching others play a war game, or not participating because I do not have an army. No! Not wanting to play a war game means not wanting to play a war game. Not having an army means not having an army because we are not playing a war game but building roads.

Before summing up, I would like you to listen to a song. As you listen, please replace “the alphabet” with roads, and “the USA” with H?, “Norway” with Fairy Road Authorities. Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f488uJAQgmw

Now please answer me, where do we go from here? Are you going to let me play the sandbox game that I want to play while you continue playing the sandbox game that you want to play with the players who actually want to play that with you? Will you let your sense of humour prevail (I have seen some wonderful glimpses from quite a few of you), have a giggle and leave us be to have ours, hopefully together with you and any other player who wants to.

Stay safe!

Tullernas

The Fairy Road Authority appreciate the efforts of Harmless? in trying to contain the plague. However, although the cleverness of their abbreviative leadership is laudable, their findings contradict conventional wisdom and seem to be quite unfounded. It is obviously difficult to build a research organisation from scratch in a short period of time and such mistakes are only to be expected. It is a good ambition, however, and we appreciate that turn of events.

On a more serious note, apparently the rumour of successful treatment of a few afflicted refugees has spread to the populace of Harmlosia, and crowds of desperate people of a multitude of professions have been crowding the Fairy Roads disaster relief planning office (FRDRPO) in Willowglade, Norweld, offering to aid in the campaign against the plague and requesting asylum from what they describe as a “terribly dangerous situation back home”. Because many of the occupations represented were quite unconstructive and even directly harmful(!) to society at large and the host town in particular, quite a few individuals have been directed to make-shift shelters in rural areas where they undergo re-educational programs. Indeed, some have already started out as freehold cotters and farmers in the general vicinity of Willowglade, the majority unfortunately without pledging allegiance to the town that selflessly helped them. Also, as can be seen by the growth rate of surrounding towns, quite a few have also found new homes in un-afflicted neighbour communities. So far, to reduce the risk of contamination of those towns, the small disinfection team of the essentially administrative facility in Willowglade has been increased dramatically by volunteers from other establishments in the town. Unfortunately, this combined with the general difficulty of handling such large numbers of refugees have dangerously decreased the population working in traditional trades in the town. The Willowglade department of health and safety has expressed serious concern that not enough staff remains at our hospitals, overfilled as they are with malnourished and weakened travellers from virtually all of Fenrisulvens, as well as several other kingdoms within the H? alliance that have failed to heed the quarantine.

Since direct communication with Harmless? officers have been largely futile and as in this case sometimes quite counterproductive, we hereby plead to all literate persons among the Harmlosian population: Please explain to your neighbours and townsmen that they must not leave your hometown! Direct them also to follow the pictorial instructions on the fertiliser and disinfection packages that are being sent to selected Harmless? towns by courtesy of the Fairy Road Authority. We realise that it is difficult to get through with sufficiently detailed instructions to such an undereducated and desperately malnourished population now also in the vicious grasp of a devastating plague, but for humanitarian reasons we must make that effort. It is easy to understand the desperation of these poor Harmlosians but although we want to do our utmost in support of any serious effort to counter the plague, we just cannot handle such large influx of refugees. Please do NOT travel to Fairy Road towns!

And finally, a plea to the general populace of Elgea: Do help contain the plague to Harmlosian soil. The plague instances we have observed so far is mainly caused by inferior soil over-fertilised by Trove fertiliser, although the malnutrition that followed has also caused outbreak of other illnesses. Do help contain the plague by isolating Harmless? communities. Trade is, as pointed out, always dangerous, but we need to support by sending fresh Trove-free soil to the towns.

The spreading of the plague has been slowed by valiant effort of a large number of volunteers, and although the plague seem to have spread to some of Harmless? confederate alliances that were not taking appropriate measures, containment efforts have been essentially successful. There is thus no need for the Elgean populace at large to panic and the risk of contamination is small, as long as the appropriate preventive measures are followed as instructed. To reiterate, pursuant to section 11 of the Bees Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. B.6 (hereinafter "the Act") and the power delegated to me by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, I hereby declare the quarantine area still being the entire Harmless? alliance. In addition, caution must be observed when interacting with members of alliances closely affiliated with Harmless? because they have apparently often been somewhat lax in observing preventive measures. Still, standard pyromagical disinfection procedures should be sufficient in such occasions.

Odd, Chief Road Coordinator

Nesse wrote: Still, standard pyromagical disinfection procedures should be sufficient in such occasions.

Finally a use for all those mages I employ!   I'll train them as a medi team right away.... 

The main reason for this appointment is that the plague could become a significant problem in endemic areas when there are social upheavals, crowding and unhygienic conditions. The H?ead quarantinist is thus fully authorist to command any elgean citicen to take plague preventive actions as deemed appropriate by the H?ead quarantinist, including the following International measures:

International measures:

1) Telepathic notification within 24 hours by governments to FRDRPO and to adjacent countries of the first imported, first transferred or first non-imported case of plague in any area previously free of the disease. Report newly discovered or reactivated foci of plague among H?armlosians or other Elgean citizenry.

2) Measures applicable to ships, air and land transport arriving from plague areas are specified in International Health Regulations. These regulations are being revised, but the new regulations will not be in effect until the year 2010 or sooner.

3) All ships, including mammoth pulled desert ships should be free of rodents or periodically deratted and pyromagically cleansed.

4) Rat proof and appropriately warded buildings at seaports and airports; apply appropriate insecticide and disinfective spells after first making sure that sentient beings are evacuated; eliminate rats by having effective rodenticide spells continuously in effect.

5) For international travelers, international regulations require that prior to their departure on an international voyage from an area where there is an epidemic of pulmonary plague, those suspected of significant exposure shall be placed in isolation for 6 days after last exposure. On arrival of an infested or suspected infested ship, or an infested aircraft, or any individuals suspectedly teleported from plague ridden areas, travelers may be disinsected and kept under surveillance for a period of no more than 6 days from the date of arrival. Immunization against plague cannot be required as a condition of admission to a territory.

6) All travellers are urged to travel with a certified disinfectionist mage, and have appropriate cleansing spells cast on any suspicion of infection.