Chateúiža Lancaster (AKA Lancaster Manor), 9 P.M. , The Night Before

The Lancaster Family walked around their Manor, Inspections each room of the guest wings. Even though she was 62, Eliza Lancaster walked the corridors with ease. Her light blond hair was mostly overtaken with gray, but she was still beautiful. She was accompanied by her husband, Andrew, and her twins, William and Alice, as well as William's husband Jacob. She walked with a professional step, a habit from her years as a politician. Her husband Andrew carried a checklist. "Room 22 clean, next". He murmured, marking it down. Alice looked excited, as she was in charge of the conference. She looked at her watch. "9:15". William rolled his eyes. "That's the third time you've checked your watch in a minute. Relax, they'll come in the morning". She stuck her tongue, and he playfully nudged her. This broke out into a poke fight, until Jacob stepped in, chuckling. "Children, seperate.". He pulled his husband into a hug. He was a few inches taller than the rest of the family, about 6'3", and muscular, with short, dark brown hair and tan skin, which contrasted with the rest of the family, with hair ranging from pale blond to dark brown, and mostly fair complexions. William punched him in the stomach lightly, and he responded by ruffling his hair. By the time the joke fight was done, Eliza and Andrew had finished their room inspection. Eliza raised her eyebrows. "Are you three going to help or just stand there playing?".
Alice sighed. "There's nothing else to do but wait".
Eliza put her arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Then wait we shall".

[nation]Phria[/nation], https://theidu.us/forum/memberlist.php?m...file&u=784 has CTE'd and should be re-masked accordingly. Thanks.

Following the recent Poll:

Poll introduction
The Free Bears of Bears Armed wrote: Our regions distribution of lands & seas and consequent pattern of ocean currents means that its larger continent should probably have temperate forests extending further north, and both continents have less desert, than is the case for Earth-RLs continents and we probably didn’t have as much of an Ice Age, either. This means that we probably never had enough habitat for large herds of Mammoths, but we could have had Mastodons or even (in warm temperate or hotter climates) true Elephants, at least before humans also arrived here and started hunting them. If your nation is on a continent or a large island close to this, and not too mountainous, and bearing in mind how much room any surviving herds would need, do you think that it has or had_

Poll Results
Mastodons, now extinct?: Aertemedia, Anglia-Saxia, Comhar, Rosewald, Gonhog, Laeral, and North Cross.
Mastodons, surviving?: (nobody)
"true" Elephants, now extinct?: Lauchenoiria.
"true" Elephants, surviving?: (nobody)
Other (both types, Mammoths [in the "upper" north, or north-central plains], or some other type), as explained in RMB?: (nobody)
Whatever fits bearing in mind the neighbouring nations' choices?: Naboompu, Bears Armed, Gardavasque, Xiomera, Libertas Omnium Maximus, Trive 38, Zamastan, and Christos.
None of the above?: (nobody)

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

The now-extinct Elephants in Lauchenoiria were probably the same species as Earth-RL Eurasia’s now-extinct ‘Straight-Tusked Elephant’ Paleoloxodon antiquus, which was more closely related to the surviving African Elephant than to the Asian Elephant & the Mammoths. Looking at the other responses given, this might also have ranged [through Conternia?] into the lowland parts of Libertas Omnium Maximus. Lauchenoiria could also have had — and, indeed, could still have — Gompotheres (specifically Notiomastodon, of the type originally labelled ‘lowland mastodon’) spreading into at least its eastern edge from [nation]Malabra[/nation].
The now-extinct Mastodons in some of the region’s more northerly lands (Anglia-Saxia, Gonhog, Laeral, Christos, and probably Bears Armed, at the least) were probably from the same species as Earth-RL’s ‘American Mastodon Mammut americanum, but might have developed into an endemic sub-species here. It would be helpful if we knew whether they also occurred in a continuous range across certain other lands in that part of the region (High Fells, Skoden, Kivasek, Legionas, any of the Schnauzerlands, Sanctaria, Sciongard...).
As for the southern continent, I still need [nation]Sanctaria[/nation]’s reply to a request for information that I posted in the Map Discussion Thread before I can make “informed” suggestions.

All across the IDU, Auroras lie awaiting orders that might never come. They live their seemingly normal lives… until the day they get a call.

During the peace talks in Haven, it was revealed that Charissa Clarke was a Kerlian sleeper agent, part of the mysterious "Aurora Programme". Lauchenoirians began to ask: what is this programme, how did the information come to be in the hands of a Resistance leader, and, most of all, are there more Auroras out there?

In search of these answers, the Lauchenoirian Intelligence Agency has decided to set up a taskforce, with the aim of tracking down any more Kerlian sleeper agents, and discovering just what Kerlile have been up to.

They invite other countries to join - after all, Auroras could be anywhere. And you wouldn't want one to become your Prime Minister, would you?

Rules
1. No WMDs
2. No invasions of Kerlile (or anywhere else, for that matter)
3. The majority of this RP will be covert ops. This will not become a war.
4. Don’t go killing others’ characters without permission.
5. Modern tech only
6. Open to all IDU nations, but please fill in the form at the end of this post to participate.
7. No graphic descriptions of torture - imply, don't describe.

What we know so far (IC):

The Aurora Programme was first revealed during the peace talks in Haven, Sanctaria which ended the Second Lauchenoirian Civil War. A USB containing information identifying Prime Minister Clarke as a Kerlian sleeper agent found its way into the hands of Jae Chung, a member of the Lauchenoirian Resistance who escaped Annatown during the Gonhogian assault. There is a link to the contents of the USB at the end of this post.

It is thought, although not proven, that Auroras are taken at the age of approximately 3 from orphanages in Kerlile to somewhere called the Aurora Centre in the Julietta Region of Kerlile. It was also heavily implied in the documentation that the girls’ parents are killed. In a later leak, it was revealed that the Pierre family of Kerlile are in charge of the Aurora Programme – however, the evidence for this was insufficient to secure a conviction of Pierre in court, so it is not strong.

The contents of the USB were collated by Councillor Carmen Robinson of Kerlile, some of them in 2017 – which is before Clarke was ordered to carry out her mission. So, Robinson has been collecting these for a while. She was in hiding for a while after that as a result, and later spent some time in a Kerlian prison and was tortured. The Robinsons have a family feud with the Pierres after Carmen’s grandmother tried to stage a coup against Pauline’s grandmother – which resulted in the death of the Joanne Robinson.

What we know OOC that is not yet known IC:
- There are between 6-8 Auroras in most countries
- These Auroras will have been born between 1966 and 2003. There will be none outside of this age range.
- They are exceptionally well trained in fighting, resisting torture (and in carrying it out).
- All Auroras will have false documents that 'prove' they are citizens of their assigned countries.
- They will speak all official languages of their assigned countries.
- They will have three names: a birth name, a training name, and a cover name. They will likely not know their own birth name.
- They tend to get jobs which will enable them to have influence: in politics, the civil service, the military etc. In super capitalist nations, potentially in big corporations.
- No two Auroras assigned to the same country will be the same age, or will be consecutive ages. It is likely that your Auroras will be an even spread of ages between 16 and 53.

Helpful stuff

Familiarity with the RP titled “Have I Got Coups for You” is not necessary, however there are several posts which are somewhat relevant, which it may be a good idea to familiarise yourself with. There are also posts in the TRC RP which may be relevant. These are linked below:

Quote:

Regional Security Act

A bylaw to regulate the use of Executive Powers in The International Democratic Union

This IDU States Assembly,

Grateful that the members of The International Democratic Union (hereinafter “IDU”) who have the ability to eject/ban other members of the IDU are some of most well respected and upstanding members of the community.

Believing that it directly counters the founding principles of this region that said members would posses the unchecked ability to eject any member of the IDU for any reason deemed arbitrarily to be a "security threat."

Noting that there is no regional definition of what a security threat is or looks like and therefore the members of The IDU with Founder privileges may and must interpret "security threats" as they see fit.

Acknowledging that, although unlikely, a regional raid is a distinct possibility and a severe threat to the IDU as a region. As such, it would be unwise to prohibit founder privilege nations to use their executive function in times of actual time-sensitive crisis.

With that said, hereby resolves the following

§1 Ejection Protocol

1. Defines Executive Powers as the ability to eject/ban users from the region and suppress the posts of another user

2. Defines "Founder Privileges" as the individual users who have access to the Founder Nation, "The IDU"



3. All members of the IDU with Executive Powers must do the following in the event that they see fit to eject a member for breaching regional policy:

a. Formally declare their target and rationale for ejection on The IDU's Regional Message Board

b. Contact another member of the IDU who holds Executive Powers and gain their explicit consent to eject the member. This consent should be expressed publicly on the RMB or other public method such as the IDU official discord chat.

4. In the event that a user with founder privileges uses the founder nation to nominate a user for ejection, they must disclose which user they are.

5. In the event that two or more nations with Executive Powers agree to the ejection of the target, herein referred to as "the defendant,” this assembly shall grant the defendant these following rights:

a. A minimum of 24 hours to voluntarily leave the region

b. A chance on to defend their actions or statements on a public chat such as the RMB or a specifically designated appeals channel/forum on either the IDU Forums or Discord.

c. All nations with Executive Powers should take the merits of the defendant's argument into account and, should they prove valid, reverse their decision to eject.

§2 Ejections of Regional Officials

1. Defines "Elected Official" as a user who's nation holds an regional role that they were elected to

2. No Elected Official may be ejected or removed from position without an IDU Judiciary Committee hearing. In the event they are found to have breached regional policy, the defendant may be removed from office or ejected from the region by any user with eject/ban capabilities at the Committee’s discretion.

§3 Raid/Raiding Provision

1. Herby defines the following,

a. A “Raid” as: The event in which a group of non-region native nations/users rapidly join the region with the intent of quickly electing a member of their group to the position of delegate via endorsements and harming the IDU.

b. A “Raider” as: Any user or nation taking part in the raid

2. In the event of a raid from an outside entity, it is the duty of those individuals granted Executive Powers to use every ability at their disposal to avert a crisis. In the event of a raid:

a. Article I of this bill is suspended for the duration of the raid

b. Any and all nations with executive powers have the right to eject, ban, and suppress the Message Board post(s) of any members they deem to be part of the raid

c. If a non-democratically instated Delegate should take power, they are exempt from Article II and may be banned/ejected.

c. After the invariable conclusion of the raid, when all raiders have been ejected or have left, Article I shall take effect again


§4 Other Provisions and Exemptions



1. Users with Executive Powers may eject any member from the region during the Z-day Event for breaching the Anti-Zombie Policy so long as the following requirements are fulfilled:



a. Members of the region have been reminded of the Anti-Zombie Policy by messages on the Regional Message Board and given ample opportunity to correct of their actions



b. Is not the delegate



2. Upon the conclusion of Z-Day Event. The user in question shall be unbanned (if applicable) and formally invited to rejoin the region with all due cordiality.

Televisions and internet devices throughout the IDU will be tuned to the X[sub]3[/sub] Network, Xiomera’s premier source for not-government-produced-but-still-government-approved programming. As the picture swoops over Tlālacuetztla, it soars over a large outdoor stadium, with a towering pyramid in the center of it surrounded by huge safety cushions. As the music builds to a dramatic crescendo, the announcer begins.

“ARE YOU READY? Because it’s time once again for the most popular show in Xiomeran history. For fifteen years now, people have come here, to Pyramid Stadium, to test their luck and see if they can win a life-changing prize: one million quetzals. And for the first time EVER, contestants from other lands will be trying their luck against the best Xiomera has to offer!”

The camera swoops down, to pan over a group of 12 people in climbing outfits emblazoned with their country’s flag standing on a stage next to the pyramid.

“Which of these twelve will have what it takes to leave Pyramid Stadium with the prize? They’re about to find out - and so will you! Because the time has come for them to take on.....the PYRAMID OF MISFORTUNE!”

The crowd in the stadium cheers wildly as the show’s host, Tohuitlnoch, jogs onto the stage. Tohuitlnoch, a former Xiomeran soldier and three-time Pyramid winner, is a huge fan favorite, as evidenced by the raucous crowd.

“Hello Xiomera and the world! Welcome to the sixteenth season of Pyramid of Misfortune! Today, we welcome a new crop of sacrifices - I mean, contestants! But we’re mixing it up for you, because the Pyramid should never be boring. For the first time, nations from all over the IDU have sent their best to compete with our best to see who’s really the best. It’s a showdown for the ages. Zamastan, Libertas Omnium Maximus, United New England, Eiria, Kerlile, Lauchenoiria and Kvask have all sent challengers to take on two Xiomerans. Will our Xiomeran contestants, Xiyāōtl and Tlachyāōtl, defend the nation’s honor and take home the prize?”

As the camera shows Xiyāōtl and Tlachyāōtl, standing with defiant looks on their faces, the Xiomeran audience cheers very loudly and shouts in Huenyan battle cries.

“Or, for the first time ever, will the one million quetzal prize and the title of Master of the Pyramid find its home in another country?”

As the camera pans over the other contestants, the crowd reacts differently. The Xiomeran audience cheers for the challengers from Kerlile and Kvask, politely but less lustily cheers for most of the other countries’ challengers, and boos noticeably for the ones from Zamastan and Lauchenoiria. A true sportsman, Tohuitlnoch takes exception to the booing.

“None of that booing! Everyone here on this stage is a winner - at least, until they lose!”

The crowd laughs and the booing dies down.

“So let’s quit wasting time! It’s time for our first four contestants to get CLIMBING!”

The crowd cheers even more loudly, ready for the fun to commence. The first four making their run up the Pyramid step forward, as their pictures and biographies flash across the screen.

“Our first four challengers, fans: Warren Jarrius, a private security contractor from Jade Harbor in Zamastan. After losing his wife in a tragic accident, he’s here seeking the prize for his kid! That’s a good cause if I ever heard one - give him a hand, everyone! Now our second challenger: Kyle Martins, from Burgundy in Libertas Omnium Maximus. He’s here to prove that even desk jockeys can be athletes - well, we’ll find out soon enough! Our third contestant: John Escalada, from Middlebury in United New England! He’s here because his brother and coach, James, dared him to take on the Pyramid. Well, John, be careful what you wish for! And the last contestant for Round 1: Alison Johnson, a top cop from New Riga in Eiria! She’s here because people underestimate her, and she’s ready to prove them wrong! Well, Alison, if you beat the Pyramid, you’ll shut them all up once and for all....but be warned. All of you...many have tried to beat the Pyramid, but let’s just say we haven’t had to pay out a lot of prizes the past fifteen years. So....good luck. You’ll need it!”

Tohuitlnoch has each contestant led to their side of the Pyramid. All four of them line up; then, a horn sounds, and all four of them run to the Pyramid and begin climbing to the second level.

On Side 1, Jarrius begins making good progress, his security training serving him well. As he makes it to the top of the second level and tries to climb onto the ledge, a Pyramid Defender, clad in a costume resembling ancient Xiomeran battle garb, suddenly jumps up from behind the stone wall of the ledge and jabs at him with a foam tipped “spear”.

On Side 2, Martins is already scaling the ledge, his athleticism giving him an edge. However, just as he begins swinging over, he discovers the stone “railing” around the ledge is coated with a slippery oil. He begins to lose his grip.

On Side 3, Escalada has a bit more trouble; he hasn’t made the ledge yet when a Pyramid Defender emerges from a hidden window and throws a fake foam “snake” at his head.

On Side 4, Johnson’s martial-arts training suddenly becomes desirable; as she is preparing to scale the stone wall around the ledge and get to level 2, another Pyramid Defender emerges. Rather than swinging a fake spear, he tries the ancient method of just pushing her off the wall.

Okay, so Eiria has chosen to host the Mediation Conference for the trade dispute. The Event will be held in Duņceda, at the Lancaster Estate. The Estate is huge, with 5 guest houses and a huge Manor. Each delegation either gets a guest house or a wing of the manor. We could even host the conference outside in the beautiful courtyard, weather permitting. Main parties of the Trade Dispute can sign up as a main participant, and other nations may sing up as observers if they so wish. All guests will dine on Eirian Delicacies, which will be made by some of the finest chefs in Eiria.
Delegations may have up to 6 armed guards and up to 10 diplomats.
Application:

Nation Formal Name:
Chief Ambassador's name:
Amount of People in Delegation:
Main Party or Observer?:
Any people with food Allergies or Dietary restrictions?:
Desires for Conference Outcome:
Any Questions, Comments, Concerns?:

The IDU Storefront

I imagine in the cannon of many users, real world products do not exist or are not used in their nation. It would also make sense that nations would produce their own products. Name one RL nation that doesn’t have at least one product to its name? All this gave me the idea to open a regional storefront.

The regional storefront is a place to show of your nation’s products so that they may be used/referenced/etc in RPs. This can be cars, phones, guns, watches, anything really.

If you have a product of your nation that you want to show the world, tell the IDU about it in a post on this thread.

It is my hope that this storefront will help users in world building(company building really) and putting product ideas on paper. It can also just be a new place to advertise your latest phone. The world is your Oyster.

Issue #1 for the International Democratic Union - August 5th
Emperor Lynnoux Yakovlev announces Kerlian men are granted Trivian citizenship
Emperor Lynnoux Yakovlev has addressed the people of the interplanetary regions today, concerning the situation in Kerlile. His Majesty described the matriarchal nation as a "rogue state" - an unprecedented title to any nation during his realm.
An operation with loudspeakers and translated leaflets was held on Kerlian airspace to ensure the message arrived to the nation's population.
The Imperial House of Yakovlev has not given out any further commentary on the situation.
Kerlian authorities are yet to give out a response.
In his speech, Emperor Lynnoux mentioned that "the campaign will continue until Kerlile stops their state-enforced apartheid".

What the game is:

Pyramid of Misfortune is the longest-running game show/contest in Xiomeran history. For fifteen seasons, it's provided Xiomerans with amusement watching people try to outwit other people, and the malicious intent of those running the game, to win big prizes. Now, to boost ratings, the X[sub]3[/sub] network is opening the contest up to foreigners for the first time. Xiomerans vs. the world: who can win it all? It's time to find out.

How the game works:

In the Xiomeran capital, the X[sub]3[/sub] Network Studios has on part of its property a giant outdoor ampitheater, surrounding a pyramid that stands 100 feet (ten stories) tall. The pyramid is constructed to resemble a scaled-down version of the much-taller main building of the Palace of Flowers. At each of the first nine stories, a flat platform forms a narrow terrace. A combination of randomly scattered indentations and rock climbing holds leads up to each terrace. The pyramid has four sides; four contestants compete against each other at a time.

The goal of the challenge is simple, in theory: climb up to the tenth story of the pyramid and hit a giant red button. Whoever does that first, wins the contest.

But the game would be boring if it just involved climbing. So, the people inside the pyramid and at the top of it will be doing their very best to make sure your contestant doesn't make it to the top. You can expect "boulders" and "rocks" (made of a non-crushing polymer) to get tossed at you, slick substances to suddenly get dumped right where you're trying to grab, trap doors into the pyramid to open suddenly underneath you, "snakes" (more fake props) to get thrown at you en masse, "pyramid defenders" to pop out of suddenly-opened windows to try to knock you off, and so on.

Not only that, but your fellow contestants will have one shot, if you're doing too well, to try to take you down. Each contestant's "coach" will have a remote control, with three buttons corresponding to the three sides that the other contestants are on. The coach will be able, once per run, to press one of those three buttons to try to slow down, or knock off, a rival contestant to help their own player out with a "coach's challenge" random event. Your coach will only get to use that trick once, on one rival, so choose wisely when to use it!

How actual "gameplay" will take place:

I'll be posting what challenges the game throws at your player: rocks, oil slick, whatever it may be. You then post your response as to how you plan to evade it and make it to the next stage. I will then let random choice decide your fate, by rolling a d6 dice. If the roll is 4-6, you made it; no further challenges needed. But if the roll is 1-3, your attempt to evade will fail. I will then roll a "saving throw" for you, giving your contestant a chance to "recover" from whatever disastrous choice they made that is threatening to hurl them off the pyramid. If your "saving throw" is good....you "recover", and climb on. But if you fail the second throw....your contestant finds themselves bouncing on the safety cushions at the base of the pyramid, and the game is over for them.

It's a Xiomeran contest. No one said it would be easy.

Whoever makes it to the top of the pyramid first, or is just left clinging to the pyramid after everyone else falls off, is the winner. Depending on how many contestants there are, there will either be one round, or several "elimination" rounds leading to a final playoff.

You can use your "coach's challenge" trick at any point in the contest just by posting in the IC thread that your coach is using it, and who they're using it on.

What you can win:

The grand prize of 1 million quetzals, with a matching prize to be donated to the charity of the contestant's choosing. Also, the ability to say you beat all the other countries competing and claim bragging rights. If you don't like Xiomera, you also get the added bonus of rubbing it in the faces of the Xiomerans that you beat them at their own game in their own capital. If you really dislike Xiomera, you can choose HNN (the former XUN) as the charity you want to donate your matching charity prize to.

How to enter:

Your country sends up to two contestants, and one coach, to Xiomera to play the game. You can choose any field or profession, or experience, for your contestants and coach. The game, like Xiomera in general, makes no distinctions to gender, so your contestant can be male or female. All contest runs will be mixed gender.

If you want to enter, post in this thread the following:

1) A bio of your contestant(s), with the following information:

Name:
Age:
City and country of residence:
Occupation:
A quote about why they want to win the contest (short or long as you like):

2) A bio of your contestant's coach, with the following information:

Name:
Age:
City and country of residence:
Occupation:
A quote about why they think their player win the contest (short or long as you like):

I will leave signups for this open until 8/9/2019 with the actual RP tentatively planned to start the following Sunday 8/11/2019. If you have any questions or suggestions, please post them here as well!