This is a follow-up to the proposal post, for characters to ICly argue to Youmi, Nama, and Doro why Hathaway's proposed solution is a good idea. The winning vote was to propose the empresses marry each other, so all arguments must be in support of this solution. Arguments are due 28 February 23:59 UTC.
WHAT DO I DO?
Submit a unique argument for why the empresses should marry in the comments below. Arguments must be between 50-250 words and must be submitted as a summary of what your character would ICly say. Characters may submit arguments in a group or solo. There will be a subthread for anyone looking to group up below!
UNIQUE ARGUMENT?
This means that your argument should not be for the same reasons as anyone else. Because each submission must be a unique argument, you may only be involved in one comment, so choose carefully!
For example, if the solution was to make the Hanabiran national animal a hamster, you could not argue it should be because hamsters are cute if that was already someone's argument; you must choose a different argument, such as hamsters' propensity for chewing wood would be a boon to the logging industry.
You may choose a related topic as well; for example, hamsters being cute because they are small if someone argued that hamsters are cute because they're soft.
WHAT ARGUMENTS NEED TO BE MADE?
Nama and Youmi must be given solid reasons why their marriage will benefit each empress and empire. If you need help thinking of something they could offer each other, looking over the dossier description of each empire may help.
THE SOLUTION WAS ALREADY VOTED ON. WHY DO WE NEED ARGUMENTS?
The mods will be using an algorithm to determine how effective the solution is. What the empresses think of it and how successful it is depends on both quantity and quality of the arguments, as well as other ~secret~ factors. In other words, if only one person submits an argument (and that argument is "because I like hamsters"), the solution will fail. So get brainstorming!
I DIDN'T VOTE FOR IT, BUT I STILL WANT TO ARGUE FOR IT. CAN I?
Absolutely! Characters who decide to help the majority despite their qualms may certainly argue for it.
WHAT IF MY CHARACTER DOESN'T AGREE?
If your character wouldn't argue for the marriage solution, then they certainly don't have to! If they would actively argue against it or for a different solution, you may handwave that they did, but we are only accepting arguments for the winning solution.
Having totally not read the guy’s mail, Simon would have an addendum to the Emotional Approach: Nama is close to Lord Doro and in addition to mentioning her attempt to reach out to Youmi, her letter to Doro expressed a lot of concern for the Flowerlands’ safety during the skirmishes, to the extent that in his half-written reply, he had to remind her that sending Mountain Clan samurai would make matters worse. So, presumably, she’d want to consider that the union of the empires would leave the Flowerlands bookended by powerful allies, and the Empresses now both extended family of its ruler. The Flowerlands can’t very well just move out from between the two empires, so this is the best way to protect it when it’s in the vulnerable position of being geographically between two larger empires: give both a vested interest in its safety.
As a bonus, both empires covet the Flowerlands’ resources and this eliminates the tug-of-war between the three of them and the threat of the Flowerlands just being swallowed up by one empire, which would both be bad for the Flowerlands and deny the other empire a slice of the trade pie.
The Flowerlands will be in the literal middle of all this, so there’s no avoiding them during all this cultural exchange stuff, but they remain an independent territory, so they don’t threaten the empires’ matriarchal values. They’re just more secure, and therefore also in a better position to trade.
Ideally whatever of this is useful would be phrased in such a way that it isn’t super obvious that somebody in Ophelia read the stuff on Doro’s desk. Super ideally, somebody else likes the sound of this and is down to clown with saying it publicly in front of ethereal royalty from another dimension instead of Simon doing it (but whatever he’s a team player) (but for real though)
After writing stuff out and thinking on it, I think Veronica's argument will be in favor of cultural assimilation, as I've illustrated already. That's what she can argue about the best, and it's less diplomacy-focused so that that stuff can be handled by other folks! A lot of people got her thinking about this the most and it's what speaks to her.
If anyone has any additional points and would like to group up, LMK
Fiona will be arguing that each other's military strengths will fill in weaknesses that the other has. She's a Negotiator so she's got that part down, but anyone with military experience who wants to back up her statements or help brainstorm are welcome!
We understand why Empress Nama might hesitate to accept marriage as a suitable solution: her society values strength through victory, and the rebels at the heavenly summit reinforce this belief. It is entirely possible that they will struggle to view unification as a valid path to peace, and as a young empress, she must consider that those very same rebels might see her as a traitor who is selling out their people by compromising with a clan that threatens their way of life and their sovereignty. All evidence thus far suggests that these insurgents are poorly organized, unified by a sense of expectation and righteousness — this cannot be allowed to calcify into a single, organized movement rather than attempts at inciting chaos as punctuation for their singular demand.
Consider then that defying them in and of itself is an act of strength. One that must be thoroughly maintaned.
We therefore offer assurance that should the Empresses choose to wed, Ophelia will provide any necessary assistance to the already considerable efforts of both kingdom's combined forces in subduing any remaining resistance. Furthermore, focus must also be set aside for publicly reassuring the Mountain Clan's people that their traditions and way of life will continue on, despite this political shift, as a means to take the edge off the rebel's legitimacy and momentum.
We are confident that with the rebellion in check, and with prolonged encouragement from governing officials as relations between your kingdoms flourish, that this is indeed the best course of action for all parties involved.
I'm gonna be the first to admit that I am very much foggy on dayquil rn, so if anyone sees anything wonky in need of fixing or adjustment tell me and I'll totally make it happen!
looking at our other ideas, i see a lack of stuff specifically targeted towards youmi, so i'd say really play up how youmi and the sea clan will benefit from the mountain clan's military in particular. maybe mention their quick response to the attack at the festival specifically?
Jason could add to Negotiator power? He's been reminded a lot about his own experiences with a near civil war and could possibly add to this conversation by explaining that the land he comes from was in a similar situation and that the two groups had to come together in order to defeat a great enemy. He'd point out that not everyone was happy with it at first, but that the combined combat strength and experience of the two groups is what helped them prevail.
He might also mention that while it wasn't a marriage -- the two groups in question DID have an exchange of leaders to learn about each other and learn to trust each other that way. It worked out well for them and he has a strong feeling the same could happen here.
If she wants Jason there as support he's game. He could possibly add examples from his own experience and near miss with a civil war and how there's precedence for this sort of cultural assimilation working out in other places?
It's a little bit of both! Since each argument must be unique, it's preferable that each argument submitted focus on one main point in particular to leave other points open for others to use in their arguments, meaning that covering all the bases will also lead to a decent number of arguments. However, overall group participation is also important, so if a character would not be able to come up with a new argument but would be able to support an existing one, that's just as good.
While Alucard completely respects everyone else's arguments and agrees with the majority of them, he would additionally propose the benefit for their respective peoples. Not just in the overall cultures and how they can help each other (one clan's military, another's arts), but also in their safety, security, and the people's happiness.
Overall, neither clan want war, despite some of the rebels that instigated the coup with Empress Nama. A handful of rebels does not voice for everyone. In order to protect both kingdoms, it's best to unify them.
I don't have a fully proposed argument yet but once I get my brain in order I'll put something together.
Having totally not read the guy’s mail, Simon gathered Nama is close to Doro, both of whom are listening to Ophelia's pitch, and that in addition to mentioning her attempt to reach out to Youmi, her letter to Doro expressed a lot of concern for the Flowerlands’ safety during the skirmishes, to the extent that in his half-written reply he had to remind her that sending Mountain Clan samurai would make matters worse. So, presumably, they’d want to consider that the union of the empires would leave the Flowerlands bookended by powerful allies, and the Empresses now both extended family of its ruler. The Flowerlands can’t very well just move after the Merging left it literally sandwiched between the two empires, so this is the best way to protect it when it’s in the vulnerable position of geographically surrounded by two larger empires: give both a vested interest in its safety.
As a bonus, both empires covet the Flowerlands’ resources and this eliminates the tug-of-war between the three of them and the threat of the Flowerlands just being swallowed up by one empire, which would both be bad for the Flowerlands and deny the other empire a slice of the trade pie.
The Flowerlands will be in the literal middle of all this, so there’s no avoiding them during all this cultural exchange stuff, but they remain an independent territory, so they don’t threaten the empires’ matriarchal values. They’re just more secure, and therefore also in a better position to trade. If Doro's amenable to it, they can sell that sweet, sweet Flowerlands dirt (and whatever else they have there??).
Ideally whatever of this is useful would be phrased in such a way that it isn’t super obvious that somebody in Ophelia read the stuff on Doro’s desk. Super ideally, somebody else likes the sound of this and is down to clown with saying it publicly in front of ethereal royalty from another dimension instead of Simon doing it (but whatever he’s a team player) (but for real though).
Aizawa and Aloy will be arguing that unification will benefit both empires in terms of trade.
While both empires have access to natural resources, combining them both will allow each unfettered access to the other's geographically rare assets. Of particular note is the Sea Clan's access to fish and pearls -- the latter of which Aloy can provide physical evidence of, having been provided a sample of two massive pearls from pearl divers.
In addition to gaining each other's resources, merging the empires will eliminate the skirmishes in the Flowerlands, reducing the risk of travel between the Empire of the Crashing Wave and the Land of Celestial Mountains, reducing costs all around. They will also have the additional benefit of each other's foreign trading partners for expanded routes and customers. Aizawa will further argue that unifying the empires in this way and creating a free-flowing trade would produce a robust shared economy, thereby bringing stability and prosperity.
sure thing!! i have two other people (zarya and lucina) who are going to be joining the group as well, i'll write a draft up tomorrow with everyone together
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axiology2018-02-21 06:42 pm
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