Introduction :

Over time, the personalities that the realm has attracted have changed my perspective from that of a prospective enemy into that of a joyful participant of the free kingdom.

That being said, I am an expansionist at heart. With the ambition of becoming a Duchess of the Free Kingdom, I intend to steer the realm towards taking an active role in external affairs and projecting outward influence.

While I suspect that we will have more internal violence relative to other kingdoms in the beginning, the proponents of such behavior will quickly find themselves bereft of allies and replaced by various pvp groups craving their positions. After which, we will be in a greater position than several of our foreign counterparts.

A monarch needs a council that provides well rounded advice; and I fear that the majority of the current lineup of dukes, while great people, do not come off as the types who will truly press the monarch to take advantage of the position that we are bound to be in. I intend to be a voice for practical opportunity and the continued expansion of the realm and her allies, whatever the course may be.

The future of the Free Kingdom is rare hope worth fighting for, an opportunity for us to write a story of unexpected success and a fuse to light the flame required to entice outside communities to join in for Luna's tale.

Policies

Religion: I have no qualms with people worshiping as they please. Personally, I believe Flawliss to be a quite awesome fellow, and I wholeheartedly support his vision of the Virtori church. As such, I will encourage nobles and mayors to willingly participate in his community activities and endeavours.

Laws: I don't really have to explain this part, do I? Use your wonderful noggin!

Taxation: Taxation is obviously subject to change, but ideally speaking, this is an area where I would prefer to differentiate between players and npc's. Npc's are said to come and go based on prosperity conditions, thus one would imagine that the system would be changed to meet the needs of the time for them. Afaik, taxes for players are an explicit contract, and can be different from the taxes of npc's. Ideally, your player population should be taxed to a fair or minimal degree whilst a fair enough portion of them constantly provide willing support. (It's our job to make them want to do that, after all)

Drama: It's rather silly when people specifically say that they intend to be tolerant or opening towards all. That's implicit with the fact that it's nearly 2018 and is essentially "feel good" material for soliciting positive opinions. Such material really does not give you an idea of what those people will really do in any given situation.

Learn from it and follow Tyrion's advice when it comes to people biting at your flaws. Enjoy who you are and you wont get triggered very often. At the end of the day, people should have a thick skin and a good sense of humor. Still, there are limits to what I tolerate, but mine is not the shoulder to cry on if someone calls your Polish friend, "German Lite". (<3 Ishtavan).

Levies: In the event of foreign aggression, should someone not wish to fight, I will not punish them for it. However, their neighbors and I are going to be rather displeased with them if they aren't an essential contributor.

Duchy and personal County Aims

Personal Wealth: I will likely begin with investing my personal wealth into expanding a sustainable income and aiding in the construction of churches in my county, as the long term benefits are worthwhile.

County Goals: Without the ability to play the alpha / beta and test what the most efficient uses of our time is, I cannot give you an informed answer to this question. Ideally speaking, I desire a coastal county and my mayors / counts / influential citizens will likely seek a mixture of aiding in military might, naval improvements and whichever endeavors seem to provide the most profit during testing phases of the game.

Duchy Goals: Without knowing the true amount of work involved with running each duchy, I intend to expand our influence to its greatest extent, aiding counts and other dukes in pressing their claims outward and enticing aspiring leaders into seeking their successes with us.

Economically speaking, in addition to the paths the citizens of the duchy take, I intend to cement stronger ties and trade priorities for our people with friendly mayors, counts and dukes- be they within or beyond the kingdom. (Aid in expansion, protection, friendship, mutual profit and the gift of cannabis rabbits will provide these ties)

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FAQ:

Q: Why the change of heart regarding the Free Kingdom:

After a long absence, I was lured back in by a friend a little over a month ago. The Free Kingdom campaign started shortly after, and I at first had little to no faith in the viability of a kingdom formed out of a bidding war.

Until recently this lack of faith resulted in paying little attention to the campaign, peeking in only to have a chuckle at the things that people say whilst gathering support for themselves. At the time, I viewed the Free Kingdom as a farming ground, a place where we would go to indulge in mayhem without fear of a greater force after launch.

That being said, over the past few weeks my interest in the realm was piqued by the personalities within it. Though we may have drastically different views on how to manage a realm, I have come to appreciate the thoughtfulness and will of not only several of the Monarchical candidates, but also of the Dukes, Counts and future citizens of our soon to be home.

Q: Why take a role in external affairs when it could cause instability in the effected region, lower our resources and increase resentment towards us:

To this, I remind people that this is a game, and while npc's should be reserved to serve the realm, players will nearly always be of the greatest impact in deciding the outcome of events in Elyria. This gives your restless players something to do, and assists the economy in providing a resource sink.

The antagonistic nature of this is offset by proper targeting, there needs to be an ally to gain out of it or a lack of major powers to agitate. Should aiding some foreign duke in defeating his comrade result in the ire of the ruler and an attempted removal of the duke, we either face the consequences (Or the intended result) or leverage other influence to prevent fighting. Either way, strife is the source of countless great stories and inspiring individuals /peoples.

Delving into the other concern; the risk of expending resources on external affairs is real. However, I find that it is easily countered by the draw such policies will have upon the pvp/pve community. Given time, it should increase player retention for the game and increase the strength of the kingdom as a whole.

Q: Why support a religious organization:

While it is not a primary focus of mine, there are a few reasons to support religious aspects of the game, the greatest of which being that we are telling a story here: religion is a fantastic story tool. Outside of storytelling, the practical purpose is additional community events, charity, medical aid, paladins, motivations for the npc populace and perhaps one day, casus belli.

Q: What experiences do you have that you believe qualify you to run a duchy:

Over the past 10 or so years I've been an officer in a plethora of successful guilds, I've been a former guild and raid leader, lead large groups of mostly pugs in pvp (Rift's Conquest and some WvW in GW2) and formerly owned and operated the channel used to organize the collaboration of Rift NA's talented pvp'ers/pve'ers for the most effective potato farming and giant lobster-nightmare-thingy hunting.

But of course, at this point, most of us have a fair enough experience with all of that. It's the dedication in causing events to unfurl in an efficient manner and the capacity to learn from those with experience in many fields that makes the beating heart of the realm.