Re Ansteopality

[Richard Bainter]

> Now we have some thing to talk about discuss even. If we are going to use
> Bryn Gwlad as the center one can not help but include Shadowlands,
> Middleford, and perhaps Ravens Fort and Emerald Keep if the populaces so
> wish.

I heard that Raven's Fort straw poll voted:
4 in favor, 4 abstain, and 28 opposed

This may have been based on the existing "proposal" though. I'd rather
like having them in "my" (keep reading) group if there was a split.
*big grin*

> We could then have border wars with Elfsea, Steppes, Stargate,
> Bordermarch, and others to claim their Cantons, Colleges, or unclaimed
> lands.

This does sound like fun, but I would have thought that Principality
borders would have to stay stable, or at least not flucuate rapidly.
Not even to mention the populace votes. *grin* (I know, I'm being too
serious here. *wink*)

> Scince we would be totaly within Ansteorra we would never be a threat
> to become a Kingdom, but would always offer that inner territorial
> rivalry.All in good fun. :-) ;_).

As long as it's all good fun, I'm for it. (And I do think it *could* be
great fun.)

The BIG problem I see, is what about the politics of "we're better than
you" or simply ugly politics? If I have to wade through a bunch of
politics to have fun, I'll go play elsewhere. *sigh*

I've been thinking this over very seriously as of late and I have a
problem with the reasoning behind some of this. It goes roughly
something like:

1) We're just too damn big and people aren't playing nicely. (We can't
have that event there because group foo won't show up. We can't get rid
of Lord So-And-So because group blah will split off. We have to make Bar
a Pelican or group bar will be pissy. Sir Dingle got upset with Master
Berry and now neither of the groups talk. And other childish anticts.)
Some day a group/area is going to get so pissed off at everyone else
they will rally and split off to a principality and it'll be ugly cause
no one will talk to anyone else.

2) Well if we're going to have principalities, why not do it while we're
still friendly. Maybe we can do it without hurt feelings. Everyone will
still go to the same events they go to, but we'll have local focus behind
the principalities.

3) Well these groups tend to play together, so if no one else wants
principalities, we'll just go off and play with ourselves and ignore
them. (Yes, I intinitially used that phrasing since I recently heard it
in just this dicussion.)

The problem as I see it is that to focus inward, you can't focus on the
Kingdom and whatnot. (Even the best of intentions have to end after the
person passes out from exhaustion.) As well, the mentality of going off
and playing internally means that you are excluding the groups outside.
Thus you've just accomplished what you set out to not do. Make groups
that have split off from the main group and aren't dealing with the
others. (There are always individual exceptions of course.)

As well, if we can stop at #2 it may be that we can do it without hurt
feelings. Unfortunately if we go on to #3, we are gonna have hurt
feelings cause if nothing else there is a "we're better than you" air
about it. We might as well have stayed at #1.

Then again, I'm just Joe SCAer who wants to have fun at his game and
not someone who has to deal with these decisions or problems.

Ciao,

-- 
Phelim Uhtred Gervas  | "I want to be called. COTTONTIPS. There is something 
Barony of Bryn Gwlad  |  graceful about that lady. A young woman bursting with 
House Flaming Dog     |  vigor. She blinked at the sudden light. She writes
pug at pug.net           |  beautiful poems. When ever shall we meet again?"