Nation System

### Overview

In most SMPs that involve nations, it's relatively easy for anyone to form a nation - whether it's a new player or a group of players banding together. However, with how easy it is for nations to be formed, this often leads to too many nations on servers with small playerbases, with one nation often being made up of 2-3 players and barely being active. After all, the main definition of a nation is: *“A large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or language, inhabiting a particular country or territory.”* And most nations made up solely of 2-3 people and having a small amount of buildings made do not fit this definition. This becomes problematic, especially when it means old and new nations will not progress due to little players not joining as they seek to form their own nation. This overall presents an unrealistic standard for nations in SMPs.

Riftborne has its own system when it comes to nations in order to prevent mass nation formations and requiring players to actively join together with others to form one. On the server, forming a nation will not be easy and will require players to come together to accomplish this, similar to how forming nations may go in real life politics. This is to ensure players devote time towards preparing their settlements to become a nation, over outright declaring themselves a nation despite having a small population and one building. We discourage players actively claiming they are a nation, despite being a single settlement and with little to no other people involved with them. Though they can RPly claim such, but won’t be seen as an offical nation both ICly and OOCly by others.

It is highly suggested that if you seek to start a nation or settlement, worldbuilding guides about creating settlements and nations will come in handy for you. The information below will assist you in creating a settlement or nation.

### Settlements

Settlements are a vital part in Riftborne, serving as hubs for player activity, homes, and roleplay. They are essentially areas where a community forms and where many people are located - rather than single houses and bases in the wilderness. This can range from small villages with simple farms to grand cities filled with countless people.  Often you will find taverns, forges, churches, inns, and many other types of structures here. Without them, there would be no homes or any businesses around, no parks or structures that hold lore importance to them. Thus if you wish to form a nation, you have to first form a settlement - but you will require other players to help determine what settlement you have.

When it comes to forming a settlement, it's good to consider what lore you want tied to your settlement. Is your settlement one devoted towards a certain profession? Does your settlement rely on seas and rivers for transportation and trading? What is the architecture like there? It’s always good to consider where your settlement is geographically so you can determine the culture and architecture of your settlement. For example: A settlement with a long history with Alchemy will have a few Apothecaries, have structures associated with Alchemy, and maybe plenty of greenhouses and a river nearby, and Alchemists themselves are revered or welcomed there. The best settlement isn’t one that has the most buildings or has the greatest buildings appearance wise but the one that can tell a good story through what buildings are used and the culture it is presenting.

When forming a settlement, players are highly advised to start small, meaning they should not aim towards making grand castles or massive structures right off the bat. Instead, they should start small and focus on a more realistic standard and grow from there.

To form a settlement, you must start with a minimum of 3 players and what type of settlement you are will depend on your player count for your settlement and what is built within your settlement. Certain settlement types will require certain builds. When a settlement has gained enough players and structure to rank up, they must let a member of staff know so their status can be updated for everyone to know. However, it is recommended to also create buildings that are devoted towards professions, shops, and any other necessities not listed down as a requirement.

The settlement types and their requirements are listed below:

* **Village**: In order to be considered a village, a settlement must have all of the following: 3-5 players, 3+ buildings (houses, shops, tavern, etc), a warehouse or storage, a Marketplace, and one farm.
* **Town**:  In order to be considered a town, a settlement must have all of the following: 6-8 players, 6+ buildings  (houses, shops, tavern, etc), a town hall, and two farms.
* **City**: In order to be considered a city, a settlement must have all of the following: 9+ players, 9+ buildings (houses, shops, tavern, etc), walls surrounding the settlement, and 3 farms.

Listed below is a series of buildings and structures you can include within your settlement to help expand and make your settlements more appealing, as well as benefit your settlement, though don’t try and add all of them. These can help change your settlement type but also add more places for roleplay and business. However, some may be limited to a certain settlement type.

* **Shops / Profession Stations** - These can be run by players or by villagers (NPCs) and are used to sell goods and to also craft and create items.
	+ **Apothecary** - A shop where Alchemists can sell potions and grow reagents, sometimes can include treating the wounds of others.
	+ **Artificer’s Workshop** - A shop where Artificers can sell mechanisms made in their profession and work on their projects.
	+ **Auction house** - A building where customers can bid for certain goods and materials and gain items of value for either high or cheap prices.
	+ **Bookshop** - A building where books can be sold to people, along with materials needed for book writing.
	+ **Forge** - A building where Blacksmiths can create and sell wares to people. Must include an actual forge outside the building.
	+ **General Store** - A shop that sells general goods that are common and plenty, such as basic materials.
	+ **Marketplace** - A series of stalls within a square, street, or structure that allows for the buying and selling of goods within a settlement. Can be inside or outside.
	+ **Tailors** - A shop where people can purchase simple outfits and certain accessories for themselves or others. (Used to advertise skin making)
	+ **Tavern** - A place for many to meet up and share a drink, as well as see any information and jobs on Notice Boards within them.

* **Government Buildings** - These can be run by players or by villagers (NPCs) - though some will require NPCs. These are used for primarily diplomatic and governmental purposes.
	+ **Bank** - A building used to store and transfer coins into another set of currency.
	+ **Guardhouse** - A building used by guards for their headquarters, living spaces, storage, and housing criminals. Often attached to walls surrounding the settlement.
	+ **Castle** - A building used to house royalty and nobles, along with used for diplomacy. Alternatively, can serve as a better version of a barracks for a guardforce. (Restricted to towns and cities)
	+ **City Hall** - A building used for diplomacy and used for meetings for residents within a settlement. Can be used for court cases if a court house is not made.
	+ **Court** - A building used for court cases and handling matters involving the residents on a larger scale, and is big enough to fit more people compared to a city hall. (Restricted to cities)
	+ **Shrine / Church** - A small shrine or church  devoted to a god or pantheon of gods where the public can go to do worship and small rituals.
	+ **Temple** - A large building devoted to a god or pantheon of gods where the public can go to do worship. This building typically houses priests and clergymen in them.

* **Entertainment Buildings** - These can be run by players or villagers (NPCs) - though some will require player involvement to function. These are used for entertainment purposes, along with education and helping expand on lore for a settlement and the world, or to provide a place for roleplay purposes.
	+ **Arena** - A structure used for combat of any kind and usually has seating for audiences, these structures are either located outside or inside.
	+ **Library** - A building devoted to the access and storage of books and records, as well as used for educational purposes and protecting history. (Player activity required)
	+ **School / Academy** - A building devoted to teaching others certain subjects and matters involving the lore of the server. (Player involvement required)
	+ **Restaurant/cafe** - A building devoted to the consumption of foods and interacting with others, which is more formal than a tavern.
	+ **Theatre** - A building where actors can put on plays and shows for other people. (Player involvement required)

**Settlement Redlines**

* Settlements must have a minimum of 3 players, though a normal base can have 3 players and not be classed as a village if they do not follow the requirements to be classed as one.
	+ Village: 3-5 players, 3+ buildings (houses, shops, tavern, etc), a warehouse or storage, a Marketplace, and one farm
	+ Town:  6-8 players, 6+ building  (houses, shops, tavern, etc), a town hall, and two farms
	+ City: 9+ players, 9+ buildings (houses, shops, tavern, etc), walls surrounding the settlement, and 3 farms
* When making a settlement, at least make sure that the buildings and structures are fitting for a roleplay server that’s focused towards mediaeval fantasy, though players are recommended to be creative and try out a range of building styles while ensuring they fit the overall theme. (TLDR: No modern buildings).
* While you can self-proclaim your settlement to be a “nation” roleplay wise, you will not be officially recognised as a nation OOCly and will be expected to follow the requirements to actually gain nation status.
* In order for someone to be considered a member of a settlement, they must have an official home/base within the settlement. They cannot be considered a member if their base is 10k blocks away from the settlement and its borders

### Becoming a nation

Nations are when three settlements come together under one rule or union and follow the same laws as each other. In order to form a nation on Riftborne you must meet the following requirements and not meeting one will result in the nation’s formation not being permitted:

* A signed agreement from three settlements, who have the following:
	+ One settlement needs to at least be of city status to become the capital city, while the other two settlements can be either of the three types.
	+ The three settlements need to be at least somewhat close to each other and not spanning across the whole map.
	+ All three settlements have active players who have a home/base within the set borders of the nation.
* An official nation flag (for in-game and nation posts)
* A map outlining the borders of their nation.
* A set of laws for the nation that all three settlements must follow
* General lore for the nation (such as what type of government it is, the overall culture of the nation, etc, etc)

Once three settlements meet these requirements, they will be recognised as a nation in IC and OOC and can take part. From there, they can carry out matters such as politics, ensuring any projects within their nations are going strong, opening up trade, etc. A nation can open up outposts around their borders, go to war with other nations or settlements, and expand on their territory with locations or settlements (though said settlements must still follow the requirements).

However, should a nation fall inactive for over a month due to issues, staff will give the nation leader a heads up and check up on the nation. Thus if a nation leader cannot rule, the position should be handed to someone else and the staff are to be informed. Should there be no communication or any increase in activity, the nation status will be revoked and lore wise: the nation has fallen due to a lack of management and care.

**Nations Redlines**

* A trio of settlements can be considered a nation when they have the following:
	+ Three settlements, one that’s a city, and two settlements that can be both towns, villages, or either. Said settlements must be in close radius to each other, and all the settlements’ players must be based or have a home within the set borders for the nation.
	+ An official flag (for in-game and posts)
	+ An image clearly displaying the chosen borders for a nation.
	+ A set of laws for the nation that all three settlements must follow
	+ A general lore for the nation (such as what type of government it is, the culture of the nation, etc)
* A nation has to be active in order to function as a nation, and falling inactive for a month can result  in having this status revoked if there is no progress in activity.