The North Pacific Army: Independent and Mightyby r3naissanc3r, Military Correspondent
During the last few months, the North Pacific Army (NPA) has been experiencing a period of unprecedented activity and development. In a period of five months, the NPA has undertaken more than 40 operations, remaining in deployment near constantly. It has tied twice, then broken three times its historical deployment record from 2012, with the current record standing at 21 deployed troops. The NPA has been consistently providing five or more units at update, 10 or more units for reinforcements after a single update, and 14 or more units for reinforcements after multiple updates. These performance metrics rank the NPA as the most sizeable military in game-created regions, and one of the most formidable and active in the game overall.
These successes are the result of a continued focus on increasing the capability of the NPA by successive governments of The North Pacific. For three terms now, and under the leadership of Minister of Defense and NPA General Gladio, the NPA has been following a two-pronged agenda of systematic training and extensive recruitment. On the first front, the NPA has been conducting diverse training missions on a weekly basis. The emphasis has been on joint operations with allied militaries, with the NPA having deployed multiple times with each of its many allied militaries. These have been complemented with smaller missions for more specialized training of new soldiers.
In terms of recruitment, there have been extensive and varied recruitment campaigns, in coordination with the Ministry of Home Affairs, aiming to bring both new and established members into the NPA. The campaigns have taken the form of regular scripted, mass, and personalized telegrams in the game, personal messages on the forum, as well as advertisements for the NPA. These campaigns have resulted in more than 50 new Privates in the NPA, several of whom have subsequently been promoted to higher ranks. The fact that the vast majority of currently active soldiers have enlisted during the past five months is indicative of the effectiveness of these campaigns.
The NPA is an independent military with a tradition of more than a decade in protecting TNP, its allies, and its interests abroad, at the same time always closely adhering to the directives set out by The North Pacific Army Doctrine. The exceptional performance of the NPA in these roles justifies the choice for an independent orientation that has been made by all TNP governments since the delegacy of Blue Wolf II. It is also a demonstration of the strong potential for other independent militaries that focus on sustained activity, training, and recruitment.
An Interview with Funkadelliaby mcmasterdonia, Foreign Correspondent
This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.
Following the announcement by Funkadelia to step down as of the People’s Republic of Lazarus earlier this month, I was able to sit down with him for an interview. I have simply presented the questions and allowed Funkadelia to answer, with no argument or interruptions from me as the interviewer. Funkadelia has made it clear that his comments are his as an individual and not reflective on the views of the People’s Republic of Lazarus.
mcmasterdonia: I am joined today by Funkadelia, former Chairman of the People’s Republic of Lazarus. Thanks for joining me today, Funkadelia.
Funkadellia: It's not a problem. I'm glad to be here and answer your questions
mcmasterdonia: So, you decided to step down as Chairman. What made you reach this decision?
Funkadellia: It was a combination of a lot of factors. Not the least of which was my dwindling amount of time that I have been able to commit to the position. However, there are other pressing factors that led to my decision. I will admit, I was considering stepping down for the past month or so now, but I think now is the most appropriate time to.
The war ended with Osiris, and I was left guiding Lazarus through the next period of peace. However, in my opinion I just felt some crucial change within Lazarus. Everything simply feels different than when I was first elected. Perhaps it is my newfound experience or it is something different. Either way, I feel that it is time for me to pass on the torch and allow someone else to take the reigns to continue to keep the keep the region full of robust activity and culture.
I feel that for some amount of time I have been lacking in that respect, so I feel that the region can be helped more if someone else with new ideas and new ways of doing things takes charge and brings Lazarus to new waters. I am not retiring from Nationstates, and I fully intend to continue to be active in Lazarus, and will be happy to help the next Chairman during their administration.
mcmasterdonia: Have you enjoyed serving as Chairman as Lazarus? Perhaps you could share some of the highlights from your term in office?
Funkadellia: Serving as the Chairman has been the high point of my time in Nationstates by a *very* wide margin. I feel that I have served the region well during my tenure and I am pleased with how it turned out on the whole.
I think the top highlight from my service was the Regional Sovereignty conference. Despite the disagreements between some of the regions, I believe that we got some serious work done in that realm, and I hope Lazarenes take that position and run with it, as Regional Sovereignty is something that is fundamentally very important to the People's Republic at its root. A runner up is easily the peace with Osiris, and the situation surrounding it. That was a lot of fun and it produced a very critical peace deal.
mcmasterdonia: What was the greatest challenge of being Chairman?
Funkadellia: Just as the ending of the war with Osiris was a high point, the beginning was a low point. At the time, I was constantly being trashed by the big name imperialists, and Lazarus was about to be tossed into a war over something entirely nonsensical. It may have not been that difficult from an objective point of view, but it was personally hard to keep my own sanity during that time.
War was being declared over my cabinet for obviously personal reasons, not region v. region reasons, because all of the members of my cabinet were also in Milograd's cabinet, and things were normal during that time. There were no sabre rattlers. Suddenly, when I became Delegate, the story was different.
At the same time, we were shifting forums, and that was drawing a lot of ire from our own citizens, so that wasn't helping the situation either. I sincerely worried about the continuation of the PRL at that point, in all honesty.
mcmasterdonia: Did the war declaration take you by surprise?
Funkadellia: Yes, it did. Mostly because of the reasons I stated. My State Council was very similar to Milograd's, but suddenly Osiris had decided to declare war over my selection, which was mostly holdovers from Milograd's time. I did not take the bit about Karpathos' "threat" seriously, and still don't. Karpathos says things like this to everyone on a regular basis, that's his nature.
So yes, it's safe to say I was a bit blind sighted about the prospect of war.
mcmasterdonia: Had there been any efforts by the Osiran Government to discuss their concerns with you, prior to the declaration of war?
Funkadellia: No. I received no contact whatsoever. I prefer dialogue and pacific settlements of disputes to war and military action, especially as Lazarus is a region that is committed to not aggressing on regions. But there was not even an avenue for that, nobody brought any concerns to me, it was just sudden.
mcmasterdonia: Did you attempt to discuss the declaration of war with the leadership of Osiris, prior to it's ratification before the Deshret?
Funkadellia: I did not. They didn't seem willing as it was. I was mostly trying to get my own house in order in preparation for it. I will admit that was probably a fault, however we never sought to escalate matters in the first place. I figure that because they had the dispute with us, they should have contacted us, or more specifically *me* with it privately before they decided to make a decision like that.
mcmasterdonia: Were you surprised or disappointed by the responses of other regions to the declaration?
Funkadellia: I was probably the most disappointed with TEP's handling of it. In my opinion they totally mismanaged the entire thing, and their causing of tension with Lazarus was absolutely unwarranted. Most of the other regions seemed to fall where I expected them to. I anticipated a lot more out of the other side though, I must say. Not to say I was necessarily disappointed, but myself and my State Council and the Lazarene Security Directorate had expected a far more expansive campaign for the delegate's seat, but instead we had a coup attempt that was easily spotted.
mcmasterdonia: Do you think the regional sovereignty conference strengthened the position of Lazarus in the war? And, more generally speaking, how do you think Lazarus was perceived during the war by other regions?
Funkadellia: I think the unity of so many regions definitely supported the Lazarene position in this. Also, the absolute debacle at the hands of the Osiran government due to the attendance of some regions to the conference really helped us out on that front.
mcmasterdonia: Okay, thanks for the honest and detailed answers Funkadelia. I will move on now to some reflections on your past term and plans for the future. Do you have any regrets from your term in the Chairmanship?
Funkadellia: I do have a few. I think that one of the major ones was my mishandling of the group that left Lazarus close to the beginning of the term. With the exception of Ikania, I feel like that group of folks could have contributed more to Lazarus if I had given them the opportunity. They were a total thorn in my side, but I really mishandled what happened. I do not regret removing Llamas as Vice-Chairman, but I do feel I should have used less grave words when I learned of what they were doing. I'd say that that is my biggest lingering regret over my whole term.
mcmasterdonia: What will you miss most about being Chairman and Delegate?
Funkadellia: Being able to have such a direct impact on Lazarus as a whole. I liked to think of myself as the Chairman was supposed to be: Primus inter pares, first among equals. I never really felt like I was very far above the citizens, soldiers, congressmen, and governors of Lazarus, and I felt like I really got along with everyone. I really enjoyed being able to take peoples' inputs and put those into policy for the region.
mcmasterdonia: What do you believe is the greatest challenge for the People’s Republic? Do you believe that the People’s Republic is a sustainable form of government that will continue to survive the test of time?
Funkadellia: I feel if we're able to keep the place vibrant, then the PRL will be around for quite a long time. It requires a combination of dictatorship and democracy to keep things interesting and stable. I think that the biggest challenge ahead will be just that: to keep things vibrant. We have a lot of potential, but right now Lazarus is hitting a bit of a lull, and I hope that my successor can overcome it and turn it around for the for the better.
mcmasterdonia: Final question, What advice do you have for the next Chairman?
Funkadellia: I hope to expand on this on the 21st, the day they take office, but I will be brief here: The next Chairman must be strong willed and creative. They should keep the spirit of the PRL in mind, and try to emulate that spirit during their term in office. They should also try as hard as they can to keep Lazarus inclusive and fun for all people.
I didn't really have the creativity (or time) for it, but I believe it would be incredibly beneficial for the next Chairman to have an eye for culture and continue to try to develop our culture and make people *want* to be part of Lazarus.
mcmasterdonia: Thanks for joining me today Funkadelia. Congratulations on your term as Chairman of the People’s Republic and I wish you luck with your future. I hope that you will stick around.
Funkadellia: Thank you McMasterdonia. It was good to be able to truly speak my mind. I plan on being around. NS will be stuck with me for some time to come
And thank you for the well wishes.
Cultural R3naissanc3 in The North Pacificby mcmasterdonia, Culture Reporter
The North Pacific has been undergoing a cultural renaissance in the past couple of months. The Ministry of Culture has been rolling out a collective of diverse cultural programs across the region to tremendous success.
Theme weeks have been introduced as immersive cultural events, involving both the forum and the in-game region. First came House of Cards week, with Delegate r3naissan3r remodelling himself as President Garret Walker, and his cabinet Ministers following suit by modelling themselves after their respective counterparts. A custom-made House of Cards skin was created and adopted for the week-long event, and several events related to the TV series took place on the forum. Not long after the House of Cards week, the forum had another custom skin, this time themed after Game of Thrones. The Game of Thrones week featured the age-old quarells between "readers" and "viewers", an in-game battle among several Westerosi commanders for the Iron Throne, and of course the SPOILER thread. The event culminated in the dramatic execution of Delegate r3naissanc3r at the command of Minister of Culture Malvad, who was subsequently proclaimed a traitor by nations on the RMB.
A range of other events have focused on interplay between the forum and the region. Jointly with the Ministry, the Security Council has been sponsoring an RMB trivia game, which requires nations to search the forums for answers to questions ranging from term durations to punctuation peculiarities. Winners get to choose the delegate's flag, pre-title and motto. Lord Nwahs won the first season of the game, selecting a meerkat theme for Delegate r3naissanc3r to use on his nation. The second season is currently underway. Another program, the Regional Identity Crisis, has seen the regional community come together to deliberate on what makes TNP the brilliant and culturally rich region it is today. The forum nominations and in-game polls have determined everything from the region's official dish to its official motto, recently concluding with the selection of The Northern Light as the official nation of TNP.
The Ministry has also been working to encourage increased roleplay activity. The Ministry recently compiled an encyclopedia of all factbooks and dispatches written by North Pacifican nations, and Stories of The North Pacific regularly selects factbooks among them to prominently feature in the region. A new map for national roleplay has been commissioned and is actively maintained. Finally, a large-scale roleplay, the Democratic Union, has been launched, in the form of a formal confederation of all nations within TNP.
TNP has also had the opportunity to participate in events by other regions, such as the regular changes to the theme of the World Factbook Entry during The East Pacific's OCTEPERFEST. Several more multi-regional events with TNP's allies and friends are scheduled for the near future. Overall, this increased cultural activity has contributed towards a significant growth in forum posts and in the number of nations deciding to join the regional forum.
