Ask the Editor - New Nations

Question: 
My friend and I were considering starting a group/country. We have a couple people who could join with us, but we want to make sure we do it correctly and people take us seriously. Do you have any advice for us?

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Just do it. My advice would be to have an idea of your countries background and culture when you come in. Ask yourself questions like “Who are we?” “What tropes do we fit into?” Build yourselves up a little. Have a Heraldry, uniform, or other unique recognizable quality. My other advice is that when you unveil yourselves to the community, do it as a group. What I mean is have as many of your people as you can. We get new groups in our game. New nations, knighthoods, guilds. It's a thing.

Keith “Saegan” Cronyn

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I say go for it too! It is a wonderful chance to be creative and contribute to the community in your own way. I’m in the unique position of having started a new nation just a little more than a year ago and we put a lot of focus on creating a cultural identity for ourselves before the big reveal. This made it very easy to answer the “Who are we?” question that Keith mentioned. What makes you unique and what is the goal of your group? Be able to answer those questions even if they are as simple as “We’re a group of friends looking to have fun together.” If you can do that, then people will have a better understanding of your identity and purpose and respond appropriately. As for advice beyond that, be prepared for a lot of work! I’m not saying that to discourage you, but rather to prepare you for any crafting, meetings, and team building activities that may come up. Creating a nation is a very rewarding and challenging experience and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Best of luck!

Renee “Kindrianna” Booke

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Although it’s nice to hear that you want to be a part of the community, I’d say don’t worry too much about what other people think of you. Starting a nation/group means that you are already with like-minded people. I’d focus on your own culture, what you stand for, government structure, etc. Let the community worry about you on their own. Do it!

Hannah “Nhadala/Salt Queen” Blood

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I would say, create your group or nation first, and the rest will follow. In terms of the “correct” way to form a group, most people follow the same process, which you seem to have started as well - gathering together a group of like-minded people that want to play and hang out together, both in and out of character. This is the first, and most obvious step.

But there is also a but of thinking and discussion that needs to occur between you and your friends as well. I feel that one of the most important things you need to decide when starting your group/ nation is what you want to stand for, and what you want your contribution to the game and community to be as a whole - almost like creating a mission statement, or deciding on a group identity. Decide what you want your heraldry and colors to be, and how you want to present yourselves (Tabards? No tabards? Specific makeup or other characteristics? Are you human?) 

As for other peoples’ opinions of you, or the fear of not being taken seriously - I wouldn’t let that stop you. Your group’s reputation will grow and change as you start to hit more events, play together as a unit, and interact with others. Above all, you just need to be true to yourselves, your vision for the group, and how you want to play your characters moving forward - and make sure you're having fun and enjoying the game while doing so! Everything else should flow naturally from there.

Jen “Areni” DeNardis-Rosa

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