International Democratic UnionBoard

“Hrarroom!” (= “Greetings”), and a hearty "Welcome to the IDU", for both Heaths and Vallinor, and “Welcome back!” for Llihc.

*(sends over a gift basket of this nation's produce, including a large jar of high-quality honey and a large bottle of high-quality maple syrup as well as assorted fruits and nuts, for each of your national governments: If they don’t want the sweet stuff, or the nuts, then they can exchange those for some smoked salmon, or for extra fruit)*

“Hrarroom!” (= “Greetings”), and a hearty "Welcome to the IDU", for both Giovanniland in idu and Khavali.

*(sends over a gift basket of this nation's produce, including a large jar of high-quality honey and a large bottle of high-quality maple syrup as well as assorted fruits and nuts, for each of your countries’ national governments: If they don’t want the sweet stuff, or the nuts, then they can exchange those for some smoked salmon, or for extra fruit)*

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.... and there goes Thyerata ... again. :(

Bears Armed wrote:

“Hrarroom!” (= “Greetings”), and a hearty "Welcome to the IDU", for both Giovanniland in idu and Khavali.

Thanks! I'm a diplomat from The West Pacific if you didn't know already, and I moved a nation here to keep in contact with you all. How are you today?

Greetings from Khavali!

A small post for now, but I was curious if anyone here happened to have some advice for writing up backstory and Factbook info for a nation? While managing a nation is fun, I think it would be a bit more enjoyable to piece together some lore and information!

Giovanniland in idu wrote:

Thanks! I'm a diplomat from The West Pacific if you didn't know already, and I moved a nation here to keep in contact with you all. How are you today?

Cool flag, Bro

North cross wrote:

That's a fun read, thanks for taking the time to write it up.

May I ask where you developed an interest in trilobites? I will admit, they are not something I had thought much about, before your poll on the subject. But you seen to have thought a decent bit on the subject.

Thank you.
I’ve been interested in natural history from an early age, thanks to influences from my parents and primary school teachers, and had already become interested in palaeontology as well before my teens (although, admittedly, in those days my main focus was on dinosaurs rather than any other group of extinct life-forms… ;) ). Later on I acquired a degree in Zoology, for one reason and another, and I’ve continued reading widely on these sorts of things ever since. Trilobites aren’t actually high on the list of organisms in which I’m interested, but I’d read a bit about them and when I originally started work on the region’s ecology the possibility of their having survived here was something that I considered. At that point I dismissed the idea as too unlikely, but a TG discussion with another (non-IDU) player who’s also been doing world-building led me to reconsider and so — as we now have a rather wider map to stock, and hadn’t held any polls for a while — I started the poll about them. The information about RL Trilobites that I’ve posted so far was largely acquired quite recently from Wikipedia, although some books on various aspects of palaeontology (that were already in my personal collection) helped as well.

Accidentally CTE'd, oops

Can I ask if you notice the forum is down for "a couple of days", you notify me? I was only told last night for the first time.

My provider has no idea what's wrong with the server, and why it won't respond to rebooting it. They actually suggest leaving it for a few days and seeing if it sorts itself out??? Terrible advice.

I'm very, very sorry guys. I think it's all lost. And I'm fuming, considering the hundreds I've paid this provider over the past few years. I'll keep trying to get it back up, but I can't make promises and I can't give an ETA.

Laeral wrote:

I only noticed issues with the wiki yesterday; i was able to view and edit the wiki just fine the day before. Thanks very much for the update, and thanks for trying to get it all fixed. We'd be all completely lost without it.

Yeah, I didn’t start having problems with it until maybe 24 hours ago. I’ve been traveling so it might have gone down before then but I am pretty sure things didn’t start to break until quite recently.

I thank you for your continued efforts to get the forums back up and running. Hopefully all is not lost.

Sanctaria wrote:

My provider has no idea what's wrong with the server, and why it won't respond to rebooting it. They actually suggest leaving it for a few days and seeing if it sorts itself out??? Terrible advice.

I'm very, very sorry guys. I think it's all lost. And I'm fuming, considering the hundreds I've paid this provider over the past few years. I'll keep trying to get it back up, but I can't make promises and I can't give an ETA.

Oh dear.
I think that I have back-ups saved for most of the 'Ecology' stuff, at least from the last few years although maybe not the really early stuff too, as well as my own stuff from the festivals, but it's still a blow and I extend my sympathies to anybody who posted 'important' stuff for which they don't have back-ups kept.

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I don't have internet access from my lodgings, so normally use the public computers at one or another of the local libraries... but the county's libraries have closed as a precaution (from this morning, with no advance warning) during the Coronavirus problem. I'm at an internet cafe now, but can't use that as much as i did the library, and even if I personally remain healthy presumably they will have to shut as well under emergency regulations sooner or later...
I'll log into my other nations in this region today, to extend their existence just in case (EDIT: Done; also, all of my current puppets in other regions, including the two that weren't already in vacation mode, as well...), and will probably put my active nations into vacation mode as well fairly soon.

Hey, IDU! Some exciting and not-so-exciting life developments have led to some decisions that I’ve had to make that are shaping my future for activity in the IDU. Effective soon, I’m stepping down from my position of Cartographer and taking a massive break of activity from the region, and handing over the files of the map to my friend and co-cartographer, the incredible Gardavasque.

The time spent as regional cartographer was a great one! I enjoyed working with you all to create a new world and small details that made our map unique, in my opinion. The map will still be available in its current form and can be updated and changed by Gardavasque. I also wanted to thank Lauchenoiria, Laeral, Sanctaria, Bears Armed, Libertas Omnium Maximus, and Xiomera for their continued leadership. In addition, I'd like to thank everyone who has ever interacted with me in either RP, world-building, mapping related matters, or just conversation. This region has been my home since 2018 (and before my return to the region, 2017). I never thought I'd be in such a good spot to influence the region in such a direct way, and it has been a really fun experience. This region has also given me friendships and exciting memories that I wouldn't ever give back.

In the mean time, I’ll be removing the link to my personal version of the map so that my personal account is no longer connected to the regional board, but it won’t be long until you can see the map again from Gardavasque’s end.

Thank you everyone! I’ll still be sticking around in the Discord servers for direct communication and conversation!

Sincerely,
Zamastan

There are profound changes appearing on the horizon perhaps for all of us; some of these transitions are decipherable, and others remain to be unveiled. Crises are like bottlenecks for change. Rarely is it wise to open the door to chaos, but once chaos at the threshold, it is important to remember to hold fast to what we hold most dear. Let us hold fast to dear ones, whose affection keeps us strong. May we hold fast to our fondest dreams, so that dreams lead us to what we are meant to become. And most important, friends and nations, let us hold steadfast to our values and moral principles; for they define who we are individually and collectively. In uncertain times we move in the right direction one step at a time. Whether we know it or not, we are a diverse group with diverse strengths. No matter what uncertainty may bring us, we know not one of need face it alone, for we are united.